THE NEWS RECORD
132 YEARS IN PRINT VOL. CXXXII ISSUE LVVIV
THURSDAY | SEPTEMBER 27 | 2012
CAPITAL COLLISION
OBAMA AT U.N.
sports | 6
nation | 3
Board chairman explains severance
DANI KOKOCHAK | STAFF REPORTER
The University of Cincinnati’s Undergraduate Student Government meeting was visited by Chairperson Francis Barrett Wednesday. Chairman C. Francis Barrett spoke in
depth on the University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees’ decision to compensate former President Gregory Williams following his abrupt resignation. Williams resigned August 21, a week before classes began for the semester. Williams gave personal reasons for his
LAUREN PURKEY | PHOTO EDITOR
EXPLANATION FOR COMPENSATION Board of Trustees chairman Fran Barrett answered questions regarding former President Gegory Williams severance deal at the Student Government meeting on Wednesday.
resignation, but didn’t elaborate. Williams will still be a tenured professor in the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Law, Barrett said. Williams’ employment contract stated if should he no longer be president, he would be entitled to be paid the equivalent of the highest paid professor in either of these two colleges for life, Barrett said. “I think it is a great thing in trying to buy him out that way,” said Zach Nieberding, director of finances. “We don’t know how healthy he is, I hope he lives a long life but he could be living the next thirty years.” The board’s decision actually saved the university money in the long run, Barrett said. In the College of Law, the current highest salary is $255,000 annually, equaling out to $5.1 million if Williams lived for 20 more years, Barrett said. The university is required to pay him the $112,750 resignation compensation, the $100,000 retirement benefit, and the $255,000 tenured salary this year, Barrett said. “We were also required to pay the fulltenured salary for the rest of his life, so we felt that it was fair to negotiate that way down, in a contract buyout, to what was thought to be a fair number of $800,000 a year, saving millions of dollars,” Barrett said. The former president is also able to seek employment at other universities on top of compensation, Barrett said. The money to compensate Williams
will come out of the general funds of the university, which is funded partially by student tuition. Williams’ contract to consult on different matters will have no impact on the student body, Barrett said. “Your lives [as students] should not change one way or the other,” Barrett said. Several SG members asked Barrett about the details of how the board decided to pay Williams more than $1.2 million in the next two years. “I’m thankful that [Barrett] came to address the senate and I think that’s really important to have those open lines of communication with the board of trustees,” said Lane Hart, student body president. There was an open forum for any student to come and voice their concerns about Williams’ compensation and senators were asking the right questions to get that information, Hart said. “Any time there is a change in major university leadership, it does have an impact on students. The amount of compensation he has been given is a lot of money when we are talking about the tuition dollars that we as students pay,” Hart said. “Any time we have to expend that much money is a negative thing for students because that money is not being used correctly to benefit students.” The compensation could be used to give scholarships to more students, subsidizing programs, and building new academic programs, Hart said.
Park regs tossed by lawsuit BEN GOLDSCHMIDT | CHIEF REPORTER
A rule that allowed private policy-makers to write rules for Washington Park was voted down by Cincinnati’s Park Board Thursday. Park Rule 28 – the policy that was voted down – allowed rules that circumvented the public process to be enforced by law, as long as they were posted on a sign, said Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati homeless Coalition. A lawsuit filed by Jerry Davis of the Homeless Congress, Ann Brown and Andrew Fitzpatrick of the People’s Platform for Equality and Justice claims that the unchecked rules were discriminatory towards homeless people. Jennifer Kinsley, the lawyer representing the plaintiffs, said she is going to continue the lawsuit because Park Rule 28 was just one of the reasons for the lawsuit. Kinsley was not available for comment on those reasons. Park Rule 28 allowed representatives from the Cincinnati City Center Development Corporation (3CDC), the Superintendent of Cincinnati Parks and a Captain in the Cincinnati Police Department to create rules without going through the City Solicitor or a public forum, as the law requires, Spring said. The rules that were to be made only applied to Washington Park, and allegedly targeted homeless people’s rights, Spring said. One rule disallowed rummaging through garbage cans, and another prohibited people from dropping off clothing or food, according to the lawsuit.
2 3 4 5 6
Local News Nation & World Arts Life Sports
PHIL DIDION | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
SEARCHING FOR SUPPORT Vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan speaks to supporters at the Fredrick Steel Co. in Carthage, Ohio Tuesday.
PLAYING TO HIS CROWD
Ryan stops in Cincinnati, talks jobs and debt to packed house TYLER BELL | STAFF REPORTER Vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan was once again in Cincinnati era Tuesday. The morning town hall meeting at Fredrick Steel Co. in Carthage, Ohio, sought to garner support for he and Mitt Romney ahead of the November election. “Most of our jobs in this country come from successful small businesses,” Ryan said. “Sixty-five percent of our net new jobs, they don’t come from the big, giant corporations.” Though blame for the current state of the economy could be laid on both parties, President Barack Obama’s administration’s spending could eventually destroy the economy, Ryan said. Ryan used a line graph as a visual aid throughout his presentation to highlight the increase in the national debt. “They tell us they don’t even think the economy can survive past that point, because of the mountain of debt we have,” Ryan said. “We want to show you we’ve got to deal with this.” Burke Byer, who spoke at the event, owns the steel-recycling factory and joined other speakers who focused on highlighting the flaws of Obama’s administration and confirming that, if elected, Republicans would change America for the better.
THURSDAY
72° 55°
FRI
SAT
SUN
MON
SPORTS
What: Women’s volleyball When: Friday 7 p.m. Where: Pittsburgh
What: Women’s Soccer When: Friday 7:30 p.m. Where: University of South Florida What: Football When: Saturday 3:30 p.m. Where: Virginia Tech
72° 48°
73° 49°
70° 45°
72° 47°
What: Women’s volleyball When: Sunday 1 p.m. Where: University of South Florida
“I’m here to tell you, we’re in hard times,” Byer said during his speech. A clock represent the national debt continuously rose on the wall closest to the speaking platform. The clock read $16,077,537,000,000 at 10:22 a.m., $70 billion higher than reported by the US Treasury on its website later in the day. “Because of Barack,” said Steve Chabot, Republican Representative for Ohio’s first district. “Americans are broke.” The Obama campaign doesn’t want the voters looking back at the administration’s inability to come through on promises Obama made in his 2008 run for the presidency, Chabot said. “Remember when president, candidate at the time, Obama said that he was going to cut the deficit in half?,” Chabot said. “He doubled it.” Brad Wenstrup, Republican nominee for congress in Ohio’s second district, said that Obama’s reaction to the bombings in Libya and Iran’s nuclear program would be seen as weakness by America’s enemies. “We can not afford the high cost of weakness, and with Romney and Ryan we will not be weak, and we will not apologize to anyone,”Wenstrup said. “Let’s put someone in the White House who will swear to uphold the constitution and mean it.”
Ryan spoke briefly about foreign policy in the Middle East, vowing to protect Israel, a long-time ally of the US, from Iran and its other regional enemies. “We believe in peace though strength,” Ryan said. Ryan entered the building in his tour bus to the song “Rock n’ Roll Train” by AC/DC. Rand Paul, senator and son of congressman Ron Paul, who ran against Mitt Romney in the primaries earlier this year, introduced Ryan to the crowd. Jessica Stuart, a full-time mother from Cincinnati, said she supports the Romney campaign because it aligns with her values of her kids having a good college education and getting a job so that they can have children of their own who did the same. When asked what her “Moms For Mitt” pin stood for she said: “I feel like it’s for core values, for those morals and values that I am trying t raise my children with.” “We love everything he stands for and the direction he’s going to take the country,” said Danny Williams, guitarist for Pistol Holler, a southwestern Ohio band that played live for the event.
EVENT RUNDOWN LIFE
What: Catskeller Unplugged When: Thursday 7 p.m. Where: Catskeller
What: The Amazing Spider Man When: Friday 7 p.m. Where: TUC 220 What: Moonrise Kingdom When: Friday 9 p.m. Where: TUC 220
What: CCM Student Recital When: Wednesday 6:45 p.m. Where: Emery 2100
NEWSRECORDNEWS@GMAIL.COM | 513.556.5908
ACADEMIC
What: AAUP chapter meeting When: Thursday 12:00 p.m. Where: TUC 425
What: Huntington’s disease seminar When: Thursday 5 p.m. Where: Cresge Auditorium What: Serve Beyond speaker series When: Thursday 6 p.m. Where: TUC 220
2 LOCAL NEWS Ono keeps promise to student veterans Weekend Edition Sept. 27 | 2012
NEWSRECORD.ORG
RYAN HOFFMAN | NEWS EDITOR
schedules, Merchant said. The center will also provide advising as it relates to on campus advising as well as support Following more than two years of planning, the University of Cincinnati will services available from the VA. More than $194,800 in UC 2019 funding have a new one-stop center to serve its is being allocated to fund the improvements, student veterans. Merchant said. Funding was Along with the recently allocated new office, the to construct a certification staff centralized veteran is being increased office on the second from one certifying floor of University official to three. Pavilion. When a veteran “This was really applies to college, one of our top —DEBRA MERCHANT a VA approved priorities,” said UC ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT OF certifying official Santa Ono, interim STUDENT AFFAIRS AND SERVICES has to certify them president at UC. “The in order to receive investments that we financial benefits. have made are necessary ones and I don’t “The new office will work together to think we’re finished.” streamline certifying,” Ono said. The office is expected to be open and Former Provost Anthony Perzigian who operational by Veteran’s Day. It will bring said he wanted UC,“to become a preeminent together all the different offices and for America’s veterans,” advisers veterans need when applying for destination originally proposed the recommendation of benefits, said Debra Merchant, associate vice president of student affairs and a one-stop veterans’ center. There are approximately 1,023 certified services. student veterans currently at UC, and some “It’s going to be a one-stop place for students are still in the process of selfcomprehensive services designed to help the veteran and their dependents adjust to identifying themselves as veterans, said Caroline Miller, associate vice president in civilian life as well as pursue their higher the Office of Enrollment Management. In education goals,” Merchant said. 2008 there were only 600 student veterans. The new office will coordinate with the admissions office and college At the end of the 2011-2012 Spring advisers to help veterans create their quarter there was only one certifying
Our (veteran) population grew so rapidly and the resources or staffing to support that certification process did not.
New grocer set to open in January
official certifying student veterans at UC, Merchant said. There have been problems in the past with certifying veterans in a timely manner due to the rapid growth in veteran enrollment, Merchant said. “There absolutely have been challenges in keeping pace with the volume of certifications,” Merchant said. “Our population grew so rapidly and the resources or staffing to support that certification process did not.” “There’s nothing you can do about it because they’re the ones in charge, I don’t want to get on their bad side,” said Matthew Mayles, a fourth-year student in the College of Business who served four years in the Marine Corps. Mayles had a problem with his benefits during his freshmen year, he said. Six weeks after the school year started, Mayles still had not received the benefits he needed to pay his tuition. He ended up being locked out of Blackboard and Onestop. The experience was a headache and a learning lesson, Mayles said. “I tell my buddies that are getting out ‘Dude you need to be on top of the VA and call them once, twice at least’ If you don’t do that then you might get screwed,” Mayles said. Sometimes though, it isn’t UC’s fault, said Jeff Bosworth, director of veteran affairs at UC Clermont. In some cases it’s the students fault or the VA’s fault. “The VA is, in fact, bureaucratic in a sense
and they lose things,” Bosworth said. In August, an electronic error occurred when files where being transferred between VA regional offices, causing a potential delay in the benefits process for an estimated 2,600 student veterans in Ohio. Problems also arise because of the rigorous nature of processing Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits, Bosworth said. “The administrative tasks that are involved with the new GI Bill have been magnified greatly over the older GI Bill chapters, mainly because of a few [student veterans] have abused it and also some schools that have abused it, such as the for profit schools that used predatory recruitment practices.” Mayles said the improvements to veterans are much needed and a step in the right direction. “They need to get that running as fast has possible so that veterans don’t have to worry about their financial obligation to UC,” Mayles said. Ono said that he would be looking at the situation to see if they need to do anything beyond that, Ono said. He plans to schedule a meeting with a group of student veterans in the next several weeks. “I’m not going to rest on my laurels I’m very, very committed to serving our veteran students and our ROTC students even better,” Ono said. “We have a thousand veterans and I’m committed to work to continue to make the environment better for them.”
PHOTOS BY PHIL DIDION | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
BEN GOLDSCHMIDT | CHIEF REPORTER
University of Cincinnati students and Clifton residents might have another option for grocery shopping as early as January 2013. Steve Goessling, owner of three Independent Grocers Alliance stores in Cincinnati, plans to renovate the former IGA on Ludlow Avenue and reopen the grocery store, which will be called the Clifton Gaslight Market. Construction will begin immediately after a $1.89 million loan by Fifth Third Bank is closed, said Marylin Hyland, owner of the marketing firm, Marilyn Hyland Agency. The City of Cincinnati Economic Development Department approved a 10-year, $550,000 loan for Goessling’s store. Goessling has already invested $1.4 million of his own money to pay for demolition and carrying costs, but the plan will cost about $4.1 million altogether, Hyland said. “We are looking forward to serving the students, faculty and staff of [the University of Cincinnati] and the entire Uptown area,” Goessling said. Goessling announced his store will employ about 120 people — a mix of full and part-time positions are available, and hiring information will be announced this fall. Goessling will close his corporate office in Reading, and move it to the lower level of the new store on Ludlow, Hyland said. Clifton Town Meeting (CTM) helped facilitate the financial process for Goessling, said Pete Schneider, president of CTM. CTM ensured Goessling communicated with the right people, and stressed to decisionmakers how important it is for Clifton to have a grocery store like this, Schneider said. “We don’t want to see a longterm decline because of the community’s lack of a grocery store — which is a fundamental element of any community,” Schneider said. The public’s reception to the new store has been favorable, and CTM gets “at least one query a month asking when [Clifton is] getting a grocery store back,” Schneider said. “It’s been a long time coming — we can’t wait.” Some reports have stated Goessling will downsize some of his other locations to help finance the Clifton Gaslight Market, but Hyland claims there has been no downsizing at all. While the former IGA on Ludlow didn’t see success, Goessling remains optimistic about the Clifton Gaslight Market because of a market study’s findings done by a national consultant, Hyland said. “[The store] will offer 25 percent more shelf space,” Hyland said. “[Goessling] is offering more variety at an updated store, and the study says the people of Clifton will support it.” The Clifton Gaslight Market will have organic produce, fresh meats and seafood, an expansive selection of beer and wine, and a wide selection of prepared foods, Hyland said. Schneider is also optimistic about the store’s future. Clifton is a vibrant community that has just about everything a consumer needs in walking distance — except a grocery store, he said.
RYAN RETURNS Republican VP nominee Paul Ryan makes second trip to Ohio
MAKING THE ROUNDS Republican Party’s vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan speaks at Byer Steel Group in Hamilton Tuesday (top); Josh Cupp of the band Pistol Holler playing at the Romney/Ryan rally (left); Gloria Daulton, 71, holds up a sign for Christian values (right). Tuesday’s trip was the second time Ryan has visisted Ohio.
BE THE BEST!
(or at least vote for what you think is the best)
TNRʼS BEST OF UC
VOTING STARTS THIS WEEK
Have your say at newsrecord.org CHIEF.NEWSRECORD@GMAIL.COM | 513.556.5912
ADVERTISEMENT
3
Weekend Edition Sept. 27 | 2012 NEWSRECORD.ORG
NATION & WORLD
Yahoo CEO addresses her staff
Marisa Mayer is charged with saving the longtime Internet giant, reshaping industry
Jessica Guynn | los angeles timeS SAN FRANCISCO — Can Marissa Mayer save Yahoo Inc.? That’s the question Mayer tried to address in an all-hands employee meeting Tuesday as she laid out in very broad strokes her game plan for turning around the troubled Internet company. She also continued to shake up the executive ranks, announcing that Chief Financial Officer Tim Morse would leave the company. Morse, who kept a tight rein on finances since he took over the job in 2009, will be replaced by Ken Goldman, the finance chief of Fortinet who has three decades of experience at software and Internet companies, including Siebel Systems and Sybase.
Mayer, a longtime Google executive who became Yahoo’s chief executive in July, has been reviewing the business. From a stage at the company’s Sunnyvale, Calif., headquarters, she told Yahoo employees that she plans to again make Yahoo an everyday part of people’s lives, reigniting user growth and generating more advertising dollars. Many of her talking points echoed her predecessors’ with pledges to attract engineering talent from promising young companies, shift focus on smartphones and tablets as users migrate to mobile devices from the desktop, and narrow Yahoo’s products to those only with the greatest promise. In an emailed statement, Yahoo said: “We don’t comment on rumors, speculation
or internal matters. We will have more to share about our approach to building Yahoo’s future at our next earning’s call, which is in mid-October.” Larry Haverty, a portfolio manager at Gamco Investors Inc., which owns Yahoo shares, said he thinks Wall Street is undervaluing the stock. He points to four factors: Yahoo has begun to cash out a big chunk of its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., it has overhauled its board of directors, it is still a major player in display advertising on the Internet, and Mayer brings impressive credentials — and credibility — to the company. “Presumably she has something to bring to the party,” Haverty said. “The stock ought to be worth more. Looking at the stock
today, there are more ways for it to go up than for it to go down.” Yahoo shares slipped 33 cents to $15.68 on Tuesday. BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis said there’s no evidence yet that Mayer has many bold new ideas to stanch three debilitating years of declining revenue and market share losses to Facebook Inc. and Google Inc. Instead she faces the same challenges that stymied a long line of CEOs before her who tried and failed to reboot Yahoo, he said. “I have been covering this company for so long that I have seen the movie too many times. Yahoo keeps changing the lead role but they never change the ending,” Gillis said.
Settlement reached for UC Davis STEPHEN CEASAR | los angeles times LOS ANGELES — The University of California will pay damages of $30,000 to each of the 21 UC Davis students and alumni who were pepper-sprayed by campus police during an otherwise peaceful protest 10 months ago, the university system announced Wednesday. The agreement, which must still be approved in federal court, also calls for UC to pay a total of $250,000 to the plaintiffs’ attorneys and set aside a maximum of $100,000 to pay up to $20,000 to any other individuals who join the class-action lawsuit by proving they were either arrested or directly pepper-sprayed, a university statement said. A video released online, showing an officer spraying seated students directly in their faces at close range during an Occupy rally, had triggered outrage. And UC’s own investigations and a shake-up at the UC Davis police force put the university in a weak position to argue against the students’ lawsuit. The preliminary settlement, which was approved by the UC regents in a closed-door meeting earlier this month, will be paid through the UC’s self-insurance program, which officials said has about $600 million in reserves. In April, a UC task force headed by former state Supreme Court Justice Cruz Reynoso found that UC Davis police had violated policy and that campus administrators mishandled the November 2011 campus protest. In May, a separate draft report about campus responses to civil disobedience across UC urged administrators to use mediation instead of confrontation in most cases, although it said pepper spray might remain a necessary tool of last resort. A final version was released this month with no major policy changes.
CAROLYN COLE | LOS ANGELES TIMES
ON WORLD’S STAGE U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday, Sept. 25, in New York.
BRIDGE BUILDING Paul Richter and Kathleen Hennessey | mct CAMPUS UNITED NATIONS — Warning of a deepening rift between the West and the Muslim world after two weeks of antiAmerican violence, President Barack Obama used his annual U.N. address to urge Arab states to continue difficult political reforms without tolerating violence or curtailing free speech. As he defended his own record in the turbulent aftermath of the “Arab Spring” revolutions, Obama vowed Tuesday that the United States would “do what we must to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.” He called for a diplomatic solution to that crisis but added, “Time is not unlimited.” Obama promised to press efforts to help end the conflict in Syria and replace the authoritarian government in Damascus, and to push for a lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace deal. He did not say how he plans to make progress on either front. Instead, he used his 30-minute speech to the U.N. General Assembly in the heat of a U.S. presidential campaign to offer an impassioned embrace of freedom of expression and a poignant appeal to end the antiAmerican riots that have erupted around the globe, killing dozens
of people, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other Americans. Obama condemned the American-made anti-Islamic video that ostensibly sparked the protests, calling the video “crude and disgusting.”The film, he said, “is an insult not only to Muslims, but to America as well” because it embodies intolerance. In the U.S., he said, “countless publications provoke offense. Like me, the majority of Americans are Christian, and yet we do not ban blasphemy against our most sacred beliefs.” As president, he added, “I accept that people are going to call me awful things every day. And I will always defend their right to do so.” The strongest weapon against hateful speech, he said, “is not repression, it is more speech” to rally people against bigotry. “Now I know that not all countries in this body share this particular understanding of the protection of free speech,” he said. But when anyone with a cellphone “can spread offensive views around the world with the click of a button, the notion that we can control the flow of information is obsolete.” Since the video first sparked riots in Cairo, Muslim-led governments have demanded that Western leaders pass laws or take action to halt what they consider
hate speech of Islam. Tensions have risen as a result, rather than the harmony the White House had hoped would flourish after it supported popular uprisings last year in Egypt, Yemen, Libya and elsewhere. No speech, Obama warned, “justifies mindless violence. There are no words that excuse the killing of innocents. There is no video that justifies an attack on an embassy.” The president began his speech with an emotional personal tribute to the slain U.S. ambassador, J. Christopher Stevens, who he said had traveled to Benghazi to review plans to establish a new cultural center and to modernize a hospital. Stevens “embodied the best of America,” he said. The turmoil in the Middle East, the deepening civil war in Syria and the standoff over Iran’s nuclear program have given Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney grist to criticize Obama, and the president did not repeat his weekend comment that recent events were “bumps in the road” to democracy. He dealt briefly with the war in Syria, where critics have charged that he needs to give greater support to rebels fighting President Bashar Assad. Obama said only that his administration “will stand with” Syrians who
want a new order in their country. He gave no hint on how he would move the stalled diplomatic effort aimed at convincing Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions. He implied that his administration might turn to military action, but did not issue a specific “red line” that would trigger a confrontation, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly urged for weeks.
OBAMA Obama had no one-on-one meetings with other leaders, leaving those sessions to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. He did stop in briefly during a meeting between Yemeni President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi and White House terrorism chief John Brennan.
California legalizes driverless autos Jerry Hirsch | LOS ANGELES TIMES LOS ANGELES — Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill that would allow self-driving cars on California’s roads. He signed the bill Tuesday at a ceremony at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. “We are looking at science fiction becoming reality in a self-driving car,” Brown said. Tech giant Google Inc., the California Institute of Technology and other organizations have been working to develop such vehicles, which use radar, video cameras and lasers to navigate roads and stay safe in traffic without human assistance. Google has said computer-controlled cars should eventually drive more safely than humans. “These vehicles have the potential to avoid accidents. … We can save lives, create jobs and reduce congestion,” said Google co-founder Sergey Brin. “I expect that self-driving cars will be far safer than human driven cars.” Brin said autonomous cars could be functional and safe for operation on public streets within a handful of years. The bill, SB1298, sponsored by Democratic state Sen. Alex Padilla, establishes guidelines for autonomous vehicles to be tested and operated in California. “We are stepping on the accelerator when it comes to
the Google car,” Padilla said. Human error causes most traffic accidents and autonomous technology can reduce the number of injuries and fatalities on California’s roads, he said. Padilla believes self-driving cars also will improve the fuel efficiency of vehicles, reduce emissions and enable cars to talk to one another to improve traffic flow. Self-driving cars must legally have a person at the wheel, ready to assume control if anything goes wrong. The bill does the following: —Sets up safety and performance standards for the safe operation of autonomous vehicles on California’s public roads. —Allows for the operation of autonomous vehicles on California’s public roads by a licensed driver. —Requires that an autonomous vehicle meet all applicable safety standards and performance requirements in state and federal law. —Allows the Highway Patrol, in consultation with the Department of Motor Vehicles, to recommend to the Legislature additional requirements for the safe operation of such vehicles on California’s roads. Last year, similar legislation was signed into law in Nevada. In addition, Arizona, Hawaii, Florida and Oklahoma are considering autonomous-vehicle legislation.
GARY REYES | SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS
FUTURE IS NOW Senator Alex Padilla of California and California Gov. Jerry Brown arrive in a driverless car before a signing ceremony for SB 1298 at Google Headquarters in Mountain View, California on Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012. Senate Bill 1298 will allow driverless cars to be operated on public roads for testing purposes.
LIFE & ARTS 4 ‘The Master’ beautiful, but convoluted Weekend Edition Sept. 27 | 2012
NEWSRECORD.ORG
Religious film offers two stunning performances, but doesn’t make true statement woodrow goldsmith | contributor
Courtesy of the weinstein company
MAKING A STATEMENT Despite actors Joaquin Phoenix (left) and Philip Seymour Hoffman’s undeniable on-screen chemistry, “The Master” isn’t cohesive enough, as a whole, to fully convey the message writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson was after.
Hollywood’s latest religious offering is too murky to convey its message. There will surely be controversy among the film community as to whether “The Master” is about Scientology, deserves to be nominated for awards, or actually proposes ideas behind all the talking and beautiful imagery. Short answers: yes, yes and no. While “The Master” might be a visually stunning film with great performances, look past the preaching of its main characters toward actual ideas and it leaves a lot to be desired. Joaquin Phoenix — back in the spotlight after the “I’m Still Here” debacle/self-inflicted exile from the film community — plays Freddie Quell, an exWorld War II soldier suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder. Lost and out of work, Freddie joins the company of Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman), the titular Master and founder of The Cause — a religious movement that sounds so much like Scientology, Tom Cruise objected to the film. Phoenix and Hoffman are electric together, and when the film focuses on
their relationship and interactions, it is truly remarkable — Hoffman delivers with his excellent blend of control and strength, but the real story is Phoenix. Bearded rapper days behind him, Phoenix gives a fascinating, layered performance showing why he was such a big star before his faux-meltdown. But as good as the two are, neither Hoffman nor Phoenix can take the ideas of the film and transform them into arguments. Much of writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson’s script is simply a reflection of views shared by marginalized religions. Freddie’s journey is interesting, but so much is said it’s difficult to understand what Anderson is trying to convey. But Anderson does show his talent for creating dialogue and striking imagery. There are shots and lines in the film that are simply breathtaking, but Anderson doesn’t quite succeed in creating a cohesive whole. Pay the price of admission for Phoenix and Hoffman though; because it’s not often two masters of their craft play off each other with such strength and bravura.
Starry Nights Alternative rock band Cage the Elephant curates The Starry Nights Music Festival in Bowling Green, Ky., Sept. 28-29. kyle pope | staff reporter
C
urated by alternative rock band Cage the Elephant, The Starry Nights Music Festival will take place at Balance Farms in Bowling Green, Ky., Friday and Saturday. Cage the Elephant personally chose what groups would highlight the festival. In addition to themselves, Manchester Orchestra, and Portugal the Man will headline the festival, while Bowling Green locals Sleeper Agent and Morning Teleportation, and other national acts — MiMOSA, Justin Townes Earles, The Whigs, JEFF the Brotherhood and several others — will serve as other festival highlights. When deciding what bands to get for the festival, Cage the Elephant wanted to bring its career experiences back to Bowling Green. “Touring and being able to go around the world meeting all these people is a blessing in itself,” said Brad Shultz, guitarist for Cage the Elephant. “What we wanted to do was bring that back to Bowling Green and we were getting all our friends’ bands to come out and play this show.” Cage the Elephant has toured non-stop for five years, even while recording its second album. The group has sweat, shed blood and tears, and broken bones all for the
ANDREW PEARSON | Yellowberri music
HOMECOMING HEROES Alternative rock band Cage the Elephant will return to its hometown of Bowling Green, Ky. this weekend and is bringing national acts with it, including Manchester Orchestra, Portugal the Man, MiMOSA and The Whigs.
sake of music — Schultz even separated a rib during a show in England. “Ain’t No Rest For the Wicked” didn’t just appear on the radio one day and become a top 10 hit for no reason. The band aims to leave a lasting impression, whether playing arenas with Foo Fighters and The Black Keys or in the early days at hole-in-the-wall clubs like the former Mad Hatter in Covington, Ky. “It was metal night,” Shultz said. “It was four metal bands, then us, and then another metal band. Matt was getting a little crazy and got in the mosh pit with a bunch of guys.” After the show, despite being surrounded by metal heads who were well aware Cage the Elephant didn’t play metal, they still approved. One praised the band, saying, “That was some of the most metal shit I’ve ever seen.” While Cage the Elephant’s music has steadily streamed through radios and iPods around the country, it rang exceptionally loud in Bowling Green. “Bowling Green’s music scene has been like a Powder Keg and it just needed a match to be thrown in there,” Shutlz said. “Hopefully in some ways we’ve been that match.” Since then, Bowling Green bands such as Sleeper Agent, Schools, and Morning Teleportation have drawn regional and national attention.
Starry Nights is mostly about the music, but there’s more to it than that. That’s why in addition to more than 12 hours of music Saturday, other activities will be held throughout the weekend. These activities include hot air balloon rides, a graffiti wall for fans to mark on, a hammock haven where people can relax and hang out, a disc-golf course and a campsite decoration contest with tickets for life as its prize. “We wanted to do things that most festivals wouldn’t do,” Shultz said. The band wanted to make sure it had other avenues to connect with fans, while also allowing fans to connect with each other. Cage the Elephant will host a pancake breakfast Saturday morning and a Friday night, festival-wide game of capture the flag. This is much more of an experience than a concert, and that’s what the band hoped for. “We really enjoy hanging out with other bands, meeting new people, and making new relationships that we never would have made otherwise,” Shutz said. “Bringing that to one giant space should be the best experience for us and our fans.”
‘Cruel Summer’ album elicits cool response geoff daniels | contributor The important thing to remember if you ever hear more of G.O.O.D. Music’s “Cruel Summer” than its cracker-jack singles is that this is a sampler. As such, it’s no more focused on Kanye West’s art-rap decadence than Pusha T’s scorching sneers or Big Sean’s endless, mind-numbing butt-puns. For better (Kanye, Pusha, Harlem belter Teyana Taylor) or worse (Big Sean, 2 Chains, Cyhi the Prynce), “Cruel Summer” gives the listener the opportunity to see the most diverse hip-hop collective on display. It’s mostly successful, if only for diversity’s sake. Show-runner West might give most of his crew open range to demonstrate their worth on his roster, but not at the expense of his signature ambition, scope or intensity. The track “To the World” wouldn’t sound out of place on West’s 2010 masterpiece “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.”
509 and 510 Swift Hall University of Cincinnati 45221-0135 Office phone 556-5900 Office fax 556-5922
The News Record FOUNDED IN 1880
Disjointed strings lead to R. Kelly’s crooning about middle fingers, before his soaring vocals are chopped to pieces and forged into makeshift percussion. With West and Hit-Boy manning the bulk of the memorable production duties,
the beat-maker team turns in a murderers’ row of bangers, especially with the megahits “Mercy,” “New God Flow” and “Cold” — known as “Theraflu” before a lawsuit forced the name change. There’s also clever employment of outsourced showstoppers — R. Kelly and Jay-Z sound invigorated on their respective guest spots, while Ghostface Killah and Raekwon (Wu-Tang Clan) completely destroy during their turns. As one can be expect with any of West’s projects, the samples are top-notch, most notably on standout “Mercy” — a classic southern-rap trip featuring clips of the late reggae artist Fuzzy Jones and crime film staple “Scarface.” But an utterly abysmal back half bogs down the record. Unless you are looking to reach your annual John Legend quota, or trying to see if you can still tolerate Kid Cudi in 2012, the last five songs offer nothing other than vapidity. Cudi’s “Creepers” is a dud that doesn’t
even fit in “YOLO” culture, and there is an actual sample of an eagle screeching midway through obligatory slow-jam “Bliss.” The closing track “Don’t Like” is as pugnacious and gleefully ridiculous as earlier spit-fire standouts “Cold” or “New God Flow,” but after nearly twenty minutes of uninspired filler preceding it, one could be forgiven if it feels a little too late to rekindle interest. Enjoyment of “Cruel Summer” is contingent on viewing the record as a sampler. There are flashes of social consciousness, belligerence and smart party-rap all before what appears to be a mass checking-out by the talent. G.O.O.D. Music might be the most talented hip-hop collective, but its also a disappointing one. Perhaps a more involved presence from West, or finding more than one verse for Common, would have helped. Nonetheless, in the team-sport of posse rap, “Cruel Summer” often finds G.O.O.D. Music playing down to its competition.
5
Weekend Edition Sept. 27 | 2012 NEWSRECORD.ORG
LIFE & ARTS
on patrol with ucpd KARA DRISCOLL | NEWS EDITOR As a part of a University of Cincinnati Police Department initiative to engage University of Cincinnati students, staff photographer, Alex Schroff and I joined UCPD Captain Rodney Chatman during his third-shift patrol Friday night. A group of police officers and hospital workers donned gloves while they talked with each other in the entrance of the University Hospital emergency room. “That’s what we call the ‘welcoming team’,” Chatman said. “They usually assemble when a violent or agitated victim is coming in.” Chatman leaned against the parking garage directly across from the hospital as he awaited the arrival of the ambulances transporting three gunshot victims. “It usually doesn’t take this long for the ambulances to arrive,” Chatman said. The shootings occurred in Cincinnati PD’s District Four — Roselawn, Bondhill and Avondale — where all three victims had been shot at the same location, Chatman said. Three shootings in a night is a common occurrence, Chatman said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we had 400 shootings in 2012,” he said. “I wouldn’t be surprised at all.” UCPD officers regularly patrol the usually bustling area, Chatman said. For a Friday at midnight, it was
ALEX SCHROFF | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
PRE-SHIFT ACCOUNTABILITY At Roll Call, Lt. Stu Strater briefs the upcoming shift on September 21, 2012.
ALEX SCHROFF | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
MAKING A PLAN TNews Editor Kara Driscoll and Cpt. Rodney Chatman discuss the aspects of “tweet-alongs.”
“I was walking down the street and all of eerily quiet on a crisp, autumn night. The entrance of the the sudden, I saw this guy on the ground screaming and I emergency room is typically packed with pockets and thought they were just partying too hard,”Vaughn said. “He pockets of people, Chatman said. was just …. screaming. I wanted to help him but I didn’t “It’s the calm before the storm,” Chatman said. “You can now what was happening. I was just shocked.” drive by and not see anyone and that can change in a dime. With severe crimes occurring You can have a very quiet night change in close proximity to campus, in a heartbeat.” it is a top priority of UCPD to Minutes after Chatman had declared bridge connections with UC the randomness of crime occurrence, —RODNEY CHATMAN students to increase safety, his radio sounded off with reports of a CAPTAIN, UCPD Chatman said. shooting on Jefferson Avenue — directly “To police effectively, you across from UC’s campus. Suddenly, a have to speak the language of ride-along that had been relatively slow those you police,” Chatman said. “The language that college moving spiraled into a series of startling violence. students speak is Twitter, Facebook and social media more As we arrived on scene, a cluster of fire trucks and so than the conventional telephone. It’s important for us to police cars barricaded the street. Police officers worked engage with students in those media platforms.” to block off the scene where a victim was laying on the This idea has sparked UCPD to engage students by ground with a gunshot wound to the leg. live tweeting during ride-alongs and urging students to be In the 2700 block of Jefferson, a 22-year-old man proactive in reporting suspicious behavior through Twitter, shrieked as emergency workers attempted to move him Cureton said. from the ground into an ambulance. Medical staff wheeled We ended our ride-along by confronting a male student a bloodstained stretcher onto the sidewalk. who was publically intoxicated, but Chatman said he was Five suspects approached the victim on West Charlton, more concerned with safety rather than putting down the where they fired one shot into the air and another that hammer on rambunctious parties. struck the man in the leg. It is unknown how the man ended “I’m not worried about the parties,” Chatman said. up on Jefferson Avenue, UCPD Chief Michael Cureton said. “I’m more concerned with the people leaving the parties. Crowds of students appeared after seeing the They’re at a higher level of vulnerability.” commotion. While Chatman and other UCPD officers encountered A student shook his head and walked back inside his problems with students breaking the law throughout the house after seeing the victim. A group of students who night, their commitment to be open and accessible to walking to Buffalo Wild Wings on Calhoun Street stopped students is invaluable, he said. in shock, said David Vaughn, first-year electronic media “Students are our eyes and ears,” Chatman said. student.
You can have very quiet night change in a heartbeat.
SPORTS.NEWSRECORD@GMAIL.COM | 513.556.5913
6
Weekend Edition Sept. 27 | 2012 NEWSRECORD.ORG
ARMCHAIR
SPORTS
FULLBACK JASON HOFFMAN
UC looks to avenge ‘09 bowl loss
Onward for scabs, fans’ ire If there was any doubt scab referees would eventually send the betting world into chaos, at least we got that out of the way. It is unclear whether the real zebras will ever get back on the field, but at least there is no rhyme or reason to penalties or instant-replay reviews. This also means my dog has just as good a chance at picking games as I do. (Home team in CAPS) Browns (+13) over RAVENS: The Browns play teams in the AFC North tough and the Ravens are coming off a highly emotional win. Take the points in this one, but it’s going to be ugly. Patriots (-4) over BILLS: New England has gotten off to an uncharacteristic start this season, but a matchup with Buffalo might be just what it needs to get on track. Additionally, the Patriots cover the spread against the Bills more than 80 percent of the time under Bellicheck. Titans (+13.5) over TEXANS: Houston should win this game, but it won’t be a blowout. Factor in that Matt Schaub might not hear so well anymore and it’s clear you should take the points. CHIEFS (pk) over Chargers: Kansas City might not be an elite team, but neither is San Diego. Take the home team in division-rival-pick-’em games. LIONS (-4.5) over Vikings: Detroit has been disappointing and the Vikings took advantage of a weary 49er team last week. Don’t outthink this one, the Lions are the superior squad. Panthers (+8) over FALCONS: Cam Newton showed his maturity during the post-game press conference after last week’s colossal whipping at the hands of Elisha. Look for No. 1 to get back on track and show the Falcons’ defense it’s not impenetrable. I like the over in this game more than the spread. RAMS (+2.5) over Seahawks: I think Karma has a ticket for this one after Pete Carroll went all denial on Seattle’s ESPN affiliate this week. 49ers (-3) over JETS: The 49ers will get plenty of passing yards this week and will join the crowd of west coast teams that actually win cross country. CARDINALS (-6) over Dolphins: The Cardinals are one of the best defensive teams in football, and the only thing the Dolphins have is Reggie Bush. Play the points. Oakland (+7) over BRONCOS: This was a great quarterback matchup seven years ago. Now, it’s mildly interesting. Take the points while Peyton Manning is still trying to figure out his receivers. JAGUARS (+2.5) over Bengals: This is the perfect week for the Bengals to lay an egg on the road. PACKERS (-7.5) over Saints: There are two schools of thought on this one. I say the Packers go into destruction mode and make the Saints rethink that whole “Do Your Job” thing. Redskins (+3) over BUCCANEERS: No Super Bowl contenders in this one, but take the freak-athlete quarterback when two mediocre squads play. Giants (-1) over EAGLES: Michael Vick and his parrot can’t do this all by themselves. The Giants’ defense can deal with running quarterbacks and will accelerate Andy Reid’s retirement timeline. Bears (+3.5) over COWBOYS: The Dallas defense isn’t in the same category as Green Bay’s. That being said, Tony Romo isn’t much for primetime games before November. Take the points and email me Tuesday morning. On a bye: Colts and Steelers Tiebreaker: 24-20 Bears Last Week: 9-6-1 Season: 23-24-1
JOE RIKMUS | MIAMI HERALD/MCT CAMPUS
BACK IN ACTION Cincinnati’s Corey Smith hits Virginia Tech’s Josh Oglesby during the third quarter in the Orange Bowl at Dolphin Stadium in Miami, Florida, Thursday, January 1, 2009. Virginia Tech won 20-7. JOSHUA A. MILLER | SPORTS EDITOR The University of Cincinnati football team will travel to Fed Ex Field in Landover, Md. to take on the Virginia Tech Hokies Saturday, Sept. 29. This weekend’s matchup will be a rematch of the 2009 Orange Bowl, UC’s first BCS appearance, which VT won, 20-7. The Hokies lead Cincinnati head-to-head by one game all-time, 5-4. Virginia Tech comfortably defeated Bowling Green 37-0 Saturday, after suffering a surprising, 35-17, setback against Pittsburgh University the previous week. UC enters Saturday’s game as one of only two BCS schools, along with No. 18 Oregon State University, to only play two games through the first four weeks of the season, both of its bye weeks gone for the entire season. The week off has allowed the Bearcats to return to near full strength, said UC head coach Butch Jones. “Drew Frey and Alex Chisum are 100 percent, they practiced on Sunday and it’s great to have them back and obviously we are going to need big games from them on Saturday,” he said. Dominique Battle also moves a few steps closer to a full recovery and should help provide depth and experience in the Bearcats’
defensive backfield. That experience is essential because UC’s defense will be tested by the dynamic abilities of Virginia Tech’s quarterback, Logan Thomas, Jones said. Thomas, who stands 6 feet 6 inches tall and weighs in at 260 pounds, has accounted for 970 total yards and 9 touchdowns for the Hokies this season. “We have to wrap up and get 11 hats to the football. There are a number of clips where he’s [Thomas] the aggressor when he runs the football,” Jones said. “He’ll lower his padding. He plays like a 260-pound player, but he’s also extremely athletic. Then you add the other dynamic of being able to throw the football.” With Virginia Tech lacking a dependable running back for the first time in the past few years, slowing Thomas down will be the main goal for UC’s defense, which gave up 120 yards rushing to Delaware State running back Malcolm Williams two weeks ago. After giving the ball away six times against Delaware State, UC must focus on protecting the football. Bearcats’ quarterback Munchie Legaux committed three of the turnovers, throwing two interceptions and fumbling once. With Legaux still finding his comfort zone, George Winn — coming off a career high 147 yards rushing against Deleware State— will be called upon to exploit a Virginia Tech defense, which is allowing an uncharacteristically
high 185.25 rushing yards per game. Despite the yardage and 35 points the Hokies surrendered to Pitt, which managed to score only 10 against UC, Virginia Tech’s defense is more than capable of punishing UC, Jones said. “I believe they were the 9th ranked defensive line in the country starting the season,” he said. “They play with great pad level, great hands. [Their] linebackers are very active and [they have] great corners.” But the biggest worry is still the infamous special teams play of a Frank Beamer coached team, Jones said. “They have game changers on special teams. That’s been the staple of Frank Beamer,” he said. “You look at their aggressiveness on their kickoff team, kickoff return. Their punt team does a great job. But I think it’s the depth of their program and where they are at and the caliber of players they have involved in their special teams.” Saturday’s game presents a number of interesting aspects — namely Virginia Tech lost to Pitt, which UC easily handled. But with Cincinnati coming off of a poor showing against Delaware St. and yet another bye week, the consensus is this weekend’s game will most likely come down to ball security and whichever side can capitalize on special teams opportunities. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m., Saturday.
University of Cincinnati sports recap ANNIE MOORE | SENIOR REPORTER JAELYNNE JOHNSON | CONTRIBUTOR
Men’s Golf finishes 14th at Cardinal Cup The University of Cincinnati men’s golf team finished 14th at the Cardinal Intercollegiate Tournament in Louisville, Ky., Tuesday. UC closed the first day of the threeround tournament with a score of 308-302—610, tying it with the University of Georgetown for 14th place. UC’s Michael Wolf made a hole-inone during his first round and redshirt sophomore Spencer Mellon tied for 37th place after the second round. After struggling through the second round, Wolf was tied for 63rd place entering Tuesday’s final round. Bowling Green State University led the team standings at 8-under par 288-280—568 at the end of the second
round. Mellon shot a 3-over 75 Tuesday, tying for 42nd place at 8-over par 75-74-75—224 during final-round action. Another UC competitor Jared Howard finished tied for 45th, shooting 9-over par with a low round of 73. Blake Hamilton tied for 66th at 16-over par and a low round of 77; senior David Tepe tied for 74th at 19-over par with a low round of 77; Emerson Newsome finished 77th at 20-over par with a low round of 73; Michael Wolf finished 78th at 21-over par with a low round of 74. The tournament’s final round was delayed five hours due to rain and tournament host Louisville won the team title with a 6-under par 291-279-288—858. BGSU finished second and the Bearcats finished 14th in the team standings after scoring 308-302307—917. UC will be back in action when it hosts the Bearcat Invitational Oct. 8-9 at Traditions Golf Club in Hebron, Ky.
MacIntyre named to Big East Honor Roll
UC junior Emily MacIntyre was named to the Big East Honor Roll after helping the University of Cincinnati volleyball team to a 1-1 week with a win over DePaul Sept. 23 at Fifth Third Arena. MacIntyre had 62 digs in the two matches, recording 34 in the Bearcats 3-2 loss to Notre Dame and 28 against DePaul, which gave her a 6.89 digs/set ratio for the two matches. The junior defensive specialist is the first UC volleyball player to earn Big East honors this season. Despite only being mid-way through her third season, MacIntyre is currently ranked second in program history with a 3.99 career digs/set clip, and seventh in total digs with 1,241. MacIntyre recorded her 1,000th career dig during the first match of the 2012 season and is only 59 digs away from moving into No. 6 on the list. That Native Indianan also set UC’s individual match record with 38 digs, which was previously set by Jaime Frey in 2007, in the Bearcat’s Sept. 15th loss to Illinois. MacIntyre and the Lady Cats next face off in Pittsburgh, Pa. against the Pittsburgh Panthers Sept. 28th at 7 p.m.
Manga earns Big East rookie honors
JORDAN HORRAS | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
KEEPING CLEAN SHEETS University of Cincinnati defender Michael Millay dribbles away from goal, with goalkeeper Taylor Hafling surveying from behind. UC’s defense posted its fourth straight shutout late Wednesday night, drawing 0-0 with Cleveland State after lightning delayed the game for nearly an hour. Hafling now has five shutouts on the season and a season goals against average of 0.85. Be sure to check out Newsrecord.org for the full match recap and all of your other UC sports news.
SPORTS.NEWSRECORD@GMAIL.COM | 513.556.5913
University of Cincinnati men’s soccer forward John Manga was named Big East Conference Rookie of the Week Monday. Manga — a 6-foot-2-inch freshman — was awarded the honor after scoring his first career goal in the Bearcat’s 1-0 victory at Pittsburgh Sept. 22. The goal proved to be the game winner, as UC handed Pitt its first loss of the season. The Lexington, Ky. native was a Kentucky High School Soccer Coaches Association Mr. Soccer honoree, recording 40 goals and 13 assists as a senior at Henry Clay High School. Manga has one goal and one assist in ten matches this season and will look to help UC continue its recent run of good form. The Bearcats (4-4-2, 1-0 BIG EAST) have won three of the past four game, with all three matches by 1-0 scores. The last time the Bearcats had three consecutive shutouts was Sept. 25-Oct. 2, 2010 when it topped both Georgetown and Rutgers, both 2-0, and tied Xavier 0-0.