Why did you vote for him? Page 19
Oral Roberts University • March 14, 2012
Jammin’ for Jesus IWC records worship album in the Mabee Center Page 8
Photo by Austin St. John
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Contents 4
Life: SA election votes are counted
7
Faith: Lent traditions explained
10 13
Center: 168 Film Festival winners announced Sports: Teams prepare for NIT tourney
17
Muse: Why should you have to wait?
19
Muse: Why should students vote in the GOP election?
Do you have a story idea for the Oracle? Email oracle@oru.edu or tweet @OruOracle! Photos by Jeanette DeRubeis
Oruoracle.com
The ORU College Democrats, headed by Jonathan Townsend (bottom), met March 10 in Zoppelt to rally support from the community for the upcoming election for President in November.
THE ORACLE • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • 3
Life Holman-Wagoner win SA presidential election
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By Aba Hammond Sixty-two percent of the roughly 900 students who voted online March 8 selected Daniel Holman and Joshua Wagoner as the 2012-13 Student Association president and vice president. President Mark Rutland announced the next day in chapel that the two juniors bested Jonathan Fruh and Ciera Trisch in the election. Rutland added that the four candidates ran such a polite campaign that ORU should send them to Washington to teach professional politicians how to run in an honorable way. “Dan and I look forward to diligently serving the student body next year,” Wagoner said. According to SA election rules, the candidates had only one week to publicly campaign for office. They used Facebook groups and pages, Twitter pages, and websites to get their messages across. They also passed out campaign buttons, free
frozen yogurt coupons and went out of their way to talk to students all over campus and inquire of their concerns and hopes. The primary opDan Holman portunity for the candidates to share their visions for the upcoming academic year was a SA-sponsored forum the night before the election in Zoppelt Auditorium. “We want to create a culture where everyone feels like they can belong,” Fruh told the audience. “This university has changed my life - I love this place. Holman said his heart is in leadership. “It’s important to be a leader, but it’s also important to be a leader of leaders,” Holman said. “I want students to be represented well.” Both vice presidential candidates touted their experiences in student government and the General Assembly and voiced their vision for the
upcoming year. “We really want to give you all of us and share our plan for Student Association,” Trisch said. “It will be perfect for ORU. I’m Josh Wagoner running because I know what it takes to get things done. I’ve served 2 years on SA and GA.” Wagoner said, “We believe that SA is a great organization, but it can always improve. We are going to bring the students’ interest in. I have a heart to serve the students. I have experience in the GA, connections with administration.” Students weighed their options after hearing both parties speak at the forum. “I attended the forum and listened to both sides,” said junior Caleb Jones. “Dan and Josh answered the questions very well. They were very professional and responsible. Outside the forum, they were active in getting people to vote in the elec-
tion and not necessarily for them…. but to just vote. They ran a good race.” “Dan and Josh walked around campus all week dressed professionally and talking to people,” said junior Amanda Nussbaum. “I believe that Jonathan and Ciera have real SA experience, knowledge and an honorable character,” said junior Rachael Perry. “I voted for Fruh-Trisch because they were more qualified candidates,” said senior Rebecca Butcher. “It’s about listening to the voice that no one hears. I believe Fruh-Trisch would have done that.” Despite the Fruh-Trisch ticket falling short in the vote count, the presidential candidate was gracious about the results. “What a life-changing process this has been. I am so grateful for it,” Fruh posted on the Fruh-Trisch Facebook group wall. “I am so excited for what God has in store for ORU in this next season.”
Emergency Infant Services holds citywide shower By Hannah Rundell April showers bring May flowers, but for the Emergency Infant Services (EIS) in Tulsa, the shower will come in March. On March 31, the EIS College Board will hold its third annual baby shower to benefit families with young children in the Tulsa community. The drive will take place at three different drop-off sites from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. These include Peek-A-Boo Baby Boutique at 81st and Memorial, The Lolly Garden in Utica Square, and the EIS headquarters in downtown Tulsa.
The EIS College Board is made up of college students from all over Tulsa, including students from ORU. The board’s current president is ORU senior Chelsea Dean. “[The shower] is really a great opportunity to help people within our own community,” Dean said. “There is a massive need, and [the families] can receive all the help they can get.” The non-profit organization’s website states the shower was able to help more than 12,000 babies ages 0 to 5 last year. According to Dean, all donations go
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toward the EIS supply stock, which is open to the community. Also, EIS does not require income verification for families who come in need. The purpose of the drive is to redistribute supplies to those within the community. “We would love it if people would get together and bring actual physical donations,” Dean said. “That would be awesome.” She recommended students go shopping together to purchase items to give, or asking people with young children for donations when
they travel for Spring Break. Another way ORU students can support is by volunteering during the baby shower by taking donations and giving tax-exemption forms at each site. Anyone is welcome to volunteer, and you do not have to be on the board to serve. Joe Edens is not on the board, but he still volunteered at last year’s drive. “We sat at a table and took donations from people who dropped them off,” Edens said. “It was a really humbling experience. People literally brought bags
and bags of clothing, toys, and other items to donate. Small children brought some toys and handed them over, which was a really awesome thing to see.” This year, the College Board hopes to have an even better turnout for EIS at the shower. “Last year’s [baby shower] was really a learning experience,” Dean said. “We had a lot of people who couldn’t make it at the last minute. “It was really amazing to see how much a small group of people could do together.”
ORU alumnus impacts lives of young men By Nathanael Robertson Although many people are uncomfortable with the direction of society, few people actually know how to implement ideas to stop it. Former Student Association President Dexter Sullivan is one of those few. In the summer of 2010, after attending the funeral of a young church member who was caught in trouble, Sullivan had questions. “Just looking at the contrast between my life and the life of other people, I wanted to know how can we bridge the gap and hopefully make a difference in the place of the future of young men, not only in Detroit or Tulsa but in America,” said Sullivan. He then sat down with his grandfather and discussed the issue of troubled young men falling through the cracks and what could be done. It was there the Man to Man Project was formed. “The vision was birthed right there at that restaurant table, and the rest is history,” Sullivan said. Less than two years later, Man to Man has grown and branched into different groups. Currently with 10-12 members, and 18-20 at its height, the Man to Man Project targets youth ages 12-18 by going into local schools, building relationships and tutoring students. The volunteers mainly stem from
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Alumnus Dexter Sullivan, back center, formed the Man to Man Project. ORU students as well as a few members of the Tulsa community. They are currently involved with Central High School, Tulsa Hope Academy and will begin work with East Central High School in the near future as well. “The best part of Man to Man is just serving,” said freshman Brian Nhira, the current Man to Man coordinator. “It’s very rewarding to serve these young men, speak into their lives.” Although the organization is fairly new to Tulsa Outreach, it already has been recognized by City Hall. Man to Man member Frankie Miamen was awarded the Mayor’s Mentor of the Year Award on Jan. 25 at the Annual Mayor’s Mentoring Breakfast for his work last semester.
Global Crisis Simulation to be held The Global Crisis Simulation will be held March 31. The Simulation will take place from 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. on the sixth floor of the GC. Students will be assigned to a country and will be racing against the clock to bring an international crisis under control.
Students will be given a chance to experience simulated life experiences like foreign policy, intelligence and international media relations. All majors are welcome. For more information, contact Rachel Curylo at rjcurylo@oru.edu.
“It actually came as a shock,” said Miamen. “It’s a humbling feeling to be honored because that’s never been my intention to get an award.” Miamen joined Man to Man simply because he could relate. “Growing up in the inner city, I know what a lot of these kids are going through,” Miamen said. “It’s been a tremendous blessing to be able to mentor these kids and tutor them and see where they started at to where they’re at now and to impart into their lives.” On March 8, the team went on their first outreach to Central High School and helped students with their homework. “It seemed to me that the teachers were not as involved as they need to be,” said Yvann Karamko, a freshman
from the Ivory Coast. “I think that it was really good that we went. I think it’s necessary, and I am excited to keep going.” Last semester, Man to Man was involved in mentoring students at Hawthorne Elementary, the McLain High School football team, and also did work at Marshall Elementary School. Since getting in McClain High School in the fall of 2010, Man to Man has been consistently involved in Tulsa schools, including an alternative school like Tulsa Hope Academy, tutoring, speaking to, meeting with, mentoring and just getting to know the teenagers. Looking ahead, Sullivan has big plans for the project. He would like to provide scholarships for high performing students, developing curriculum for mentoring outside of tutoring, social skills, college and professional readiness. The mission is to “expose, educate and empower,” said Sullivan. “I believe that mentoring is two sided,” Sullivan said. “There’s a part that we play as mentors, and there is a part that students have, and that’s their response and their engagement of the relationship.” For more information on the Man to Man Project, go to themantomanproject.com.
“Art of Murder” Spring Showcase Theatre to debut this week By Michelle Mills To make anything a success takes talent. Who better would know this than the artist making his living with paint and canvas? Likewise, one shouldn’t
commit a murder without some sort of preparation. Furthermore, no director should prepare to showcase such an event without a little dab of dark humor. Oral Roberts University’s directing class will showcase
“The Art of Murder” March 14 and 15 at 7:30 p.m. in Howard Auditorium. Admission to attend “Art of Murder” is free, but seating is limited, so come early!
THE ORACLE • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • 5
Super Luper scores All-American honor among Mid-Majors
Kevi Luper averaged 24 points and 3.8 steals per game this season. College Sports Madness has named Kevi Luper to its 2011-12 Mid-Major All-American team. Luper is the lone
Summit League student-athlete on the team. The junior guard averaged 24.0 points and 3.8 steals per game. A native of Adair, Okla., Luper leads the Summit League and ranks in the top five nationally in both categories. Luper is the lone Summit League player to represent the conference on the Naismith Trophy Early Season Watch List, and she competed for Team USA at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. The only three-time winner of the Summit League’s Player of the Year award, Luper was also named conference player of the year by CSM. The online publication also honored senior Jordan Pyle as a 3rd team AllSummit League selection and senior Georgia Jones as a 4th team pick. The Golden Eagles earned a bid to play March 16 at Wichita State in the the first round of the women’s NIT.
Ralph Winter will be the Class of 2012 graduation speaker May 5.
Hollywood producer will speak to seniors President Mark Rutland announced in chapel March 7 that Hollywood film producer Ralph Winter will be the Class of 2012 graduation speaker. Winter’s credits include producing the “X-Men” and “Fantastic Four” film series as well as episodes three through six of the “Star Trek” film series. He also has helped turn several Christian novels into movies such as “Thr3e,” “Hangman’s Curse” and the “Left Behind” series. His latest film is about President Ronald Reagan and is scheduled for release later this year. “We need to invade the Hollywood culture with Spirit-filled people,” Rutland said. “(Ralph Winter) is a major Hollywood producer.” Winter holds a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of California at Berkley. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America and the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. ORU will hold its 2012 commencement ceremony at 1 p.m. May 5 in the Mabee Center.
‘86 alumnus named announcer for Harlem Globetrotters games ORU alumnus Jeff Brucculeri has been hired by the Harlem Globetrotters as a public address announcer. He will introduce players at each Harlem Globetrotter show across Canada and the United States. Brucculeri was initially offered a contract to be a fill-in announcer and then trained with other public address announcers at Tulsa and Oklahoma City shows.
Brucculeri graduated from ORU in 1986 with a bachelor of arts degree in telecommunications. Brucculeri also works as an independent broadcaster, a part-time reporter at Tulsa news talk radio station KRMG and a studio host at auctionnetwork.com. He is a professional trumpet player and ministers in churches around the country, and he plays regularly with the ORU Basketball Pep Band.
DUI case delayed until May
Announcer Jeff Brucculeri
Students raise funds wearing bow ties Sudents wore bow ties to chapel March 9 to support the Whole Person Scholarship Fund. For every bow tie worn that day, ORU alumni and friends were asked to pledge an amount toward the Whole Person Scholarship Fund.
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Richard Roberts’ appearance in court on a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence of alcohol has been delayed until May 4. The former ORU president was arrested Jan. 24 after an Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper clocked him going 93 mph in a 65-mph zone on the Creek Turnpike west of U.S. 169. He failed several sobriety tests. Roberts’ court hearing had been set to determine whether the case goes to a jury trial.
Faith
The Faith Editor is Josh Copeland. You may contact him at joshuatrevorcopeland@gmail.com
Lent uncovered, unwrapped, explained committed. In the Catholic church, this is the confession of sins to a priest and his absolution given after that. Lent lasts for 40 days, and it peaks during Holy Week, where the actions of Jesus are remembered: his crucifixion, his death and his resurrection. Contrary to popular belief, Lent is not celebrated exclusively by the Catholic church. Since Lent is an observance found within the liturgical calendar, any church that holds to the liturgical calendar would probably participate in it. Some of those observers include Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians, Anglicans, some Baptists, some Mennonites and Eastern Orthodox. The celebration of Lent differs significantly between Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox. However, each has valid attributes that are ben-
eficial to believers. The Roman Catholic tradition has more to do with the individual where as the Eastern Orthodox has more to do with the body of believers. Roman Catholics focus on Jesus dying for individuals. Eastern Orthodox believers focus on Jesus dying for the community. Both are accurate, but different. A common practice of Lent is committing to fasting or giving up items of luxury as a form of repentance. It is used as a way to remember what it is that Christ did in giving the life that humanity now has. ORU junior Kyle Gibson, a theology major, is observing Lent. “I’m Catholic, and I follow the church calendar,” he said. “I like fasting within the community. It’s a time of penance and intentionality of spending time with God.” “I am only drinking water for liquids and no dessert,” said Gibson.
The Brilliance EP reflects on Lent By Katie DaCosta Bril·liance (noun): excellence or distinction; conspicuous talent; splendor, elegance or magnificenceall words that appropriately pay homage to the musical craftsmanship produced by The Brilliance. Created as an alternative to the standard sound of worship music, David Gungor and John Arndt compiled The Brilliance, a band influenced by classical music and beautifully enhanced by the simplicity of a piano and a string quartet. After producing a moving self-titled album in 2010, The Brilliance followed their debut album with a second that
paid tribute to the liturgical season of Christmastide. Advent, Vol. 1 released in December 2011 and provided its listeners with a musical companion for Christmas. Without fail, The Brilliance delivered yet another phenomenal, even heart wrenching, comrade for the succeeding liturgical season in the Christian calendar: the reflective, and often painful, season of Lent. The symphonic strings and stirring harmonies blend beautifully with the liturgical and sacred prose. The music is written around a piano and string quartet. Arndt bolsters the album
with his sensational talent on the keys and is joined by equally moving contributions from those on the violin, cello, drums and other instruments. Their album is a scriptural journey through Lent, not only bringing the Scripture alive, but also reflecting Christian doctrine, spiritual disciplines and prayer. The first of the seven songs, “Dust We Are And Shall Return,” reflects the Christian belief that “from dust we’ve come and dust we are and shall return.” Songs like “Now And At The Hour Of Our Death” echoes the Catholic prayer, the Hail Mary, while “Holy Communion” honors the
“On Fridays, I don’t eat meat along with the rest of my church.” Some Christians might ask, “Why celebrate Lent? Isn’t it just a religious observance?” The answer is yes. However, it is not any different than many other Christian observances that most believers practice weekly. Any observance can be reduced to religious observance when stripped of its meaning and purpose. What is the the meaning of Lent then? Lent is an opportunity to take time (40 days) to remember what it is that Jesus did and more importantly who he did it for: you / or/ the community of believers. Christ freely gave up his life so that you would gain eternal life. Why would believers, individually and corporately, not take an opportunity to freely give up something in commemoration of what Christ did out of gratitude?
time-held tradition of Communion and sings like a prayer, with lyrics reflecting on Christ’s “body broken, God’s love poured open to make us new.” This poignant album, respectively titled “Lent,” challenges its listeners to face a reality many Christians desperately try to deny and even numb: the reality of pain, heartbreak, disappointment, and even death, much of which is reflected upon during this liturgical season for which this album was crafted. The album culminates in the repetitive cry, “My God, have you forsaken me?” reflecting not only the prayer of David, but also Jesus as he approaches his death on
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By Joshua Copeland The season of Lent began Feb. 22, marking the Christian observance of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday. The traditional purpose of Lent is the penitential preparation of the believer -- through prayer, penance, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial. Its institutional purpose is heightened in the annual commemoration of Holy Week, the last week in the season of Lent, marking the death and resurrection of Jesus, which recalls the events of the Passion of Christ on Good Friday and then culminates in the celebration on Easter Sunday of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. There is a BIG, theological word used in the description of Lent. “Penitential preparation” refers to the process of preparing for the outward expression of repentance for wrongs
the cross. The song compels those listening to face the depth of this honest question in their own lives, a challenge not easily accepted. Lent is the season where we face the barren places in our lives, once fertile and alive, and identify with Christ’s death. It reminds us of our frailty, our insufficiency, and yet, it is a season of hope because of what comes after.
THE ORACLE • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • 7
Worship album recorded at college event
Photo by Austin St. John
Kamber White, Wes Hill, A’Leithia Sweeting and Suzi Land lead the crowd in worship. By Nathaniel Robertson Since the founding of ORU in 1965, worship has always been an integral part of the ORU experience. On March 1, the International Worship Center was able to build on that experience, recording a live album in front of 2,100 College Weekenders, students, parents and Tulsa residents, according to IWC staff. “The purpose of the album was to put songs from the hearts of the students out there and display what the Lord is doing at ORU specifically,” said Jon Torres, one of the singers and current Music To the Na-
tions coordinator. “We just wanted to say what’s on our hearts instead of just doing everybody else’s songs.” Recorded on the first day of Spring 2012 College Weekend, the album had been in the works since last fall when IWC interim director Jon Swindal had a vision for the recording. This semester, the team practiced every Thursday night for an hour to two hours specifically for the album. During the week of the recording, they practiced every day. Writers included Suzi Land, A’leithia Sweeting, Thomas Bracciale and Israel Sierra, among others.
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Sweeting, the unofficial head of the creative side of IWC, wrote and co-wrote five of the 11 songs on the album. “It just comes out of my prayer time,” Sweeting said. “I’ll usually just be hanging out with the Lord, it’ll just come out of it or I’ll just pick up my guitar. I don’t really intentionally sit down and say ‘I’m going to write a song.” Tyler Buffkin, a senior College Weekender from Arkansas, enjoyed the recording. “I have never seen so many young adults honestly worshipping God with everything they had in them,” Tyler said. “It was the best worship service that I have ever been to. It let me know ORU was serious about loving God and having him as the foundation of ORU.” Junior Aaron Quinn attended the recording as a director for College Weekend, as well as to support his friends in IWC. “I thought it was really
Photo by Austin St. John
Kamber White leads worship at the IWC album recording. amazing, it was really cool to see the College Weekenders really get into it,” said Quinn. “I talked to them after and they said, ‘It was amazing, We don’t have that at home.’ It was really cool to just be able to enter into the presence and be with everyone else doing it.” The album, which was also streamed online, is scheduled to be released fall of 2012, and the title has yet to be determined. “There are a lot of strong songs and concepts, and we’ll pick the concept that speaks the most for the rest of the album,” explained Daniel
Tsubota, album coordinator. Despite a successful live recording, there is still work to do on the final project. Over the next few months, the album will go through post-production. The album was the fourth recorded by ORU worship. The previous albums include “Extraordinary” (2006), “Revolution” (2007) and “Until the Whole World Knows” (2009). “We want to keep the momentum going as far as songs that are coming from students’ hearts at ORU and see what happens after that,” said Torres.
Religion News Service ORU Board of Trustees Chairman Mart Green and his family own the world’s largest private collection of rare biblical texts and artifacts, and a portion of those historical treasures are currently on exhibit inside the Vatican in Rome. The exhibit of more than 150 artifacts opened Feb. 29 and will continue to be displayed through April 15. Items include the Codex Climaci Rescriptus -- a nearcomplete Bible from the sixth century with extensive passages in Jesus’ native Aramaic -- and ancient pieces of papyrus that contain the earliest text of the Sermon on the Mount. Mart Green’s brother Steve purchased his first biblical artifact in November
2009, and the family has worked continuously to add to their collection. American archaeologist Scott Carroll serves as director of The Green Collection. Carroll said the main goal of the “Verbum Domini” exhibit inside the Vatican is to dispel the common misconception that the Bible is a book that “divides people that have different religious faiths.” According to Carroll, the story of the items on display shows that biblical texts were written, preserved and disseminated by Protestant, Catholic and Jewish groups that, despite having different creeds, had “very close connections in their work and study.” Carroll said displaying early bilingual versions of the
Bible in Arabic and Latin and early English translations will highlight the unique role the Bible played in the world’s cultural history. “I hope that someone who is skeptical will at least be open-minded and see that, as an intellectual, you have to know something about the Bible and its history,” Carroll said. A larger portion of The Green Collection is being shown to the public through a traveling museum exhibit called “Passages,” which began last year in Oklahoma City and is now in Atlanta. The Greens hope to eventually build a national Bible museum in Washington, D.C., to house their growing collection of biblical text and artifacts.
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Greens’ biblical artifacts now displayed in Vatican
“Blue Like Jazz” movie debuting “Blue Like Jazz,” a film version of the 2003 New York Times best-selling Christian book by the same name, will open April 13 in theaters nationwide. The film version of author Donald Miller’s memoir casts him as “a 19-year-old sophomore at a Texas junior college who tries to escape his Bible Belt upbringing for life in the Pacific Northwest at the most godless campus in America.” The movie was directed and produced by Steve Taylor. The cast includes Claire Holt (“Mean Girls 2,” “The Vampire Diaries”) and Tania Raymonde (“90210” and “Lost”).
Schuller resigns from church board
Robertson supports legalizing pot
The Rev. Robert Schuller and his wife have resigned from the board of the Crystal Cathedral church he founded in Southern California where he broadcast his “Hour of Power” television program for several decades. Schuller started the church in 1955 and retired in 2006 as senior pastor. His son and daughter subsequently served for a few years each as lead pastors, but the church fell into bankruptcy and was recently sold for $57.5 million to the Roman Catholic diocese in Garden Grove, Calif. ORU Board of Trustees Chairman Mart Green and his family bid unsuccessfully last fall to purchase the glass-walled church. Earlier this month, three Schuller family members (a daughter and two sons-in-law) were fired by the church, leading the elder Schullers to resign.
Pat Robertson says he does not plan at age 81 to start smoking marijuana, but he recently shocked a few folks by saying he thinks the drug should be legalized. “I really believe we should treat marijuana the way we treat beverage alcohol,” Robertson recently told The New York Times. “I’ve never used marijuana and I don’t intend to, but it’s just one of those things that I think: this war on drugs just hasn’t succeeded.” Robertson, based in Virginia Beach, Va., reiterated his thoughts on his television show, “The 700 Club,” saying the costs of sending people to prison for possessing and using small amounts of pot is not right. “We’ve just got to change the laws,” he said. “We have the highest rate of incarceration of any nation on the face of the Earth. That’s a shocking statistic.”
Dove Award nominees announced for Christian musical artists The Gospel Music Association recently announced the nominees for the annual Dove Awards, which will honor the best in Christian music April 19 in Atlanta. Nominees in some of the categories include:
Artist of the Year: Casting Crowns, Jason Crabb, Laura Story, LeCrae and The Isaacs
New Artist of the Year: Jamie-Grace, Dara Maclean, Royal Tailor, Beyond The Ashes and The City Harmonic
Male Vocalist of the Year: Chris August, Chris Tomlin, Jason Crabb, Kirk Franklin and Steven Curtis Chapman
Female Vocalist of the Year: Francesca Battistelli, Kari Jobe, Laura Story, Mandisa and Natalie Grant
Group of the Year: Casting Crowns, David Crowder Band, Gaither Vocal Band, Needtobreathe and The Isaacs
THE ORACLE • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • 9
Leah Sostman, left, and Ethan Hopper, right, starred in the winning film “Only a Reminder,” directed and produced by Collin Mastbrook.
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By Hannah Rundell and Halle Byrams Inspired by LA’s 168 Hour Film Project, Student Association organized its first ever 168 Film Contest Feb. 19 through Feb. 24. Students had exactly 168 hours, or one week, to write, shoot, compose music, produce and edit a film. Fourteen teams entered the film contest, but only four finalists were chosen to be shown at the red carpet premiere. The red carpet premiere featured live music, free SA sunglasses, popcorn and a photo booth. Students sat on blankets on the lawn between Claudius and EMR dormitories and watched all four of the finalists’ films. Other rules for the competition required a set of black sunglasses to appear in the film, a character named Chuck or Chelsea Phillips as an inventor, the line “I wish I would have known that yesterday” and the theme was vision. Out of the four finalists, only one was chosen as the champion: “Only a Reminder, directed and produced by Collin Mastbrook. Senior advertising major and Em-
Photo by Jeanette DeRubeis
168 Film Festival gives students chance to shine
my-award winner Collin Mastbrook was the director and producer for his team’s film, “Only a Reminder.” The film, a sci-fi thriller, depicts a man who has a vision that his wife died. Flipping back and forth between the future, past and present, the audience pieces the clips together as the man works on wires and spends time with his wife. Eventually his wife dies and he operates on her, carefully placing in chips and wires. She awakes a robot, physically looking like his wife yet not the same. The robot serves as only a reminder. Mastbrook’s winning team included Caleb Bonanno, MMI major and photographer director; Leah Sostman and Ethan Hopper, actors; and
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Caleb Jones, screenwriter; and Joseph Ninowski, assistant director who also contributed the story idea. “I just thought it was a great excuse to make a movie in a week,” Mastbrook said, on why he decided to pursue the contest. “We came up with the story in a day and the next day we went right into pre-production.” Mastbrook said that the project required a lot of organization. “When making a movie in only a week, you have to crunch down all the aspects of making a movie,” he said. Sophomore multimedia major and finalist Kayla Herron directed “Foster” with seven of her close friends.
“Directing films is what I plan on doing for my career,” Herron said. “The contest sounded kind of fun and I thought it would really challenge my skills.” The “Foster” team consisted of Mark Niemeyer, Joshiah Barton, Andrew Byrd, Bruce Dixon, Kendall Pope and Drew Forbes, who wrote a 12-song soundtrack for the film. “We pulled several all-nighters,” Herron said. “At 5 a.m. we would get up and start shooting. We put a lot of time into it and it was a lot of fun.” Herron said she enjoyed the red carpet premiere and was pleased with the turnout. “It was a fun time,” she said. “I was surprised a lot of people actually came out and watched the whole thing.”
The Winners:
Best Picture and People’s Choice: “Only a Reminder,” Collin Mastbrook Best Actor: Joshiah Barton, “Foster” Best Actress: Leah Sostman, “Only a Reminder”
Tornado destroys student’s town By Hannah Covington Around 3 p.m. on March 2, Joe Edens walked by Hava Java while running an errand for the admissions office during College Weekend. As he briefly glanced at the television, something caught his eye. On the TV in the GC coffee shop, Edens saw the name “Marysville, Indiana” flash across the screen. The next words made his stomach lurch: tornado outbreak. As the ORU sophomore soon discovered, his hometown was among a score of cities spanning eight states affected by a record-breaking tornado outbreak March 2. After seeing the name of his small town on TV, Edens pulled out his phone to call
his older sister who, along with his mom and other sister, lives in Marysville. When she picked up, they were already in the basement. “I couldn’t hear her because of all the noise,” he said. Two hours later, Edens received a call, giving him the news every person wants to hear after a disaster. His family was safe. With his house about half a mile outside of town, the tornado just missed them. The rest of Marysville cannot say the same. Located about 30 miles from Louisville, Ky., the small township took almost a direct hit from the tornado. An officer from the Clark County sheriff’s department
said the town is “completely gone.” With 1,900 residents, no mayor and no stoplight, Edens said it’s hard to call the loose collection of farms and families an actual “town.” “Marysville” is more or less the name given to a number of clustered houses and satellite communities. There’s a post office, a
Presbyterian church, a community center and a hardware store. Now, there’s only a water tower looming over a bevy of damaged structures and homes. “In pictures, there’s not even anything to judge by except the water tower,” Edens said. “Almost all of the people in Marysville don’t
have anything anymore.” In the days since March 2, search and rescue efforts have ended. Now the cleanup begins. Over spring break, Edens said he plans to make the 10-11 hour drive back home to help out with recovery and clean-up. Continued on page 12
Internet Photo
A tornado ripped through Marysville, Ind., on March 2.
THE ORACLE • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • 11
Continued from page 11 Edens said the relief efforts for this disaster have been overwhelming. Tents have been set up for hot meals. Donations are pouring in from surrounding communities. And this help is needed, as most families living in Marysville are now homeless. Edens said he is grateful that his family is safe and his home was spared, but his thoughts and prayers remain with those who lost so much. “Before the tornado, I’ve never been confronted with the idea of not having a home before,” Edens said. Though his house sits outside the town and wasn’t damaged in the storm, Edens takes a road right past the destruction to get there.
He knows this drive will never be the same. He remembers going to Bible school at the Presbyterian church with the white steeple. He would take the family lawn mower to get repaired at the hardware store. Growing up, he and his friends played basketball in the community center. No more. In the past week, Edens said he has read more than one national paper that questioned the point of rebuilding in a place that had so little to begin with. In an article in The Washington Post, one reporter observed that because of the tornado, “this flyspeck village may have suffered a mortal blow.” Edens believes otherwise.
12 • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • THE ORACLE
“Reporters have asked why we would even want to rebuild, that there’s no point,” said Edens. “It’s been very frustrating how insensitive some of these remarks have been.” This town may not have a shopping center, but it has history. “Families have lived there for generations, and it’s been a farming town since the 1800s,” Edens said.
“We will rebuild.” A day after the tornado hit, the weather took another drastic turn. It snowed 4 inches in Marysville. With snow coating the rubble and debris, Edens said everyone is looking forward to the approaching change of seasons for more than one reason. “Warmer weather is starting,” said Edens. “And with spring coming, it will bring hope.”
U.S. tornado outbreak Feb. 28-March 3: •Deaths: 51 and counting • 413 tornado warnings issued • 42 tornadoes confirmed, as high as 80 possible • States affected: Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina and Georgia Source: earthsky.org
Sports
The Sports Editor is Billy Burke. You may contact him with comments or questions at therevolutionis@oru.edu
Being a Division I school has major impact Studies show it brings greater exposure and enrollment By Billy Burke Money helps colleges attract students by having sound academics and an attractive campus, along with other bells and whistles. However, most people don’t realize the major impact Division I athletics has on a university’s enrollment. Andy Ellis interviewed Troy University’s men’s head basketball coach Don Maestri during a study conducted on how the transition to Division I athletics affected the Alabama university and asked him about the influence of Division I athletics on the university’s enrollment. “Of course, I have seen how it was before the move to Division I, as well as after, and there is no doubt in my mind that the amount of visibility the university receives now is far greater than it ever could have been at the Division II level,” Maestri said. “You just can’t put a price tag on the amount of publicity and exposure you get. “The cost of buying that type of exposure for Troy University would be astronomical.” So Division I athletics obtain exposure for the university, but how much? According to ORU Athletic Directer Mike Carter, it’s a deal breaker. “Through our agreement with Fox College Sports, our games are broadcasted to a potential audience of 64 million households per game,” said Carter.
Photo By Jeanette DeRubeis
“Athletic success for a college sports team often results in increased visibility,” says ORU Athletic Director Mike Carter. He points to ORU’s TV agreement with Fox College Sports, which provides a potential audience of 64 million viewers who tune in to see the university showcased through home basketball games like the one above. Remember last year’s NCAA tournament? Apart from bankrupting gamblers in Vegas and making sports analysts everywhere backpedal on their predictions like Lance Armstrong on rewind, it would serve as a perfect example for how Division I athletics can affect a university’s appeal After George Mason’s unforeseen winning streak during the 2006 NCAA men’s basketball tournament, the Northern Virginia school saw unbelievable increases in applications (22 percent), out-of-state freshmen (8 percent) and average SAT scores in the freshman class (25 points), as well as increases in fundraising and game attendance.
“Having a successful Division I athletic program will assist in bolstering the brand of an institution, and will therefore improve its quality of applicants,” said Carter. “Knowledgeable prospective students are more likely to choose which college to attend based on the brand of that institution than any other single variable.” ORU isn’t excluded from this statistical research. Rewind back to 1986: Arnold Schwarzenegger ties the knot, moonwalking is in full effect and Bill Buckner becomes a symbol of eternal hatred in Boston. This was also the year when ORU was reaping the benefits of a flourishing athletics program. Full-time
undergraduate enrollment was up to 3,624 students, however, it was not destined to last. Three years later, in the spring of 1989, ORU dropped its athletic program from NCAA to the NAIA. The result? Enrollment continuously plummeted from 3,139 in 1989 to 2,401 in 1994. After the return to NCAA Division I and several successful seasons, the enrollment has increased, but not yet fully recovered. “Athletic success for a college sports team often results in increased visibility,” said Carter. “Visible athletic programs then allow for the potential to showcase the university in a positive manner, resulting in prestigious perceptions.”
THE ORACLE • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • 13
Eagles face defeat, settle for bid in NIT Losing in league tournament costs ORU its shot at NCAA By Billy Burke The Oral Roberts Golden Eagles went to the Summit League tournament on cloud 9. After winning the regular season title, ORU went into the men’s tournament with the No. 1 seed. The student body and Ozone members who traveled with the team were expecting nothing less than an appearance in the nationally publicized championship game and a crack at an NCAA birth. However, this year ORU failed to do either. The Golden Eagles would end up on the wrong end of an upset and lose to upstart Western Illinois who would later lose in the championship game to South Dakota State. Junior Bobby Baehr, a founder and member of the Ozone who traveled with the team to South Dakota, was disappointed to see Western Ilinois fall to South Dakota. “We were really hoping for Western Illinois to pull off the win,” said Baehr. “It really would have made us look good, and we really wanted to see South Dakota lose.” No one can blame Baehr or the Ozone for their resentment toward the Jackrabbits. South Dakota fans relentlessly heckled anyone who represented ORU, even when they were playing another team. However, when a team is the No. 1 seed and has booked tickets for a better ranked conference the following year, some tension can be expected. In the press conference following the loss, head coach Scott Sutton, Dominique Morrison and Warren Niles seemed stunned, as though awakened from a bad dream. “It seems so unreal,” said Morrison. “There’s just so many things going through my mind right now, I can’t even tell you.” The story of the game was missed opportunities when they mattered the most. ORU failed to score in the final
four minutes of the game and blew an eight-point lead over the Leathernecks. Morrison truly carried the team, scoring 23 points, more than half of the team’s total. Coach Sutton was as emotional as one could expect, but gave no excuses for his wilted Eagles. “When you don’t score in the last four minutes of the game, you don’t deserve to win a tournament game,” said Sutton. “Plain and simple.” When asked to describe what ORU’s locker room was like after the loss, Miles had one word to say to the microphone: “Silence.” The season isn’t over for ORU. The Golden Eagles will host Nevada in the first round of the NIT tournament March 14. Nevada comes into the Mabee Center off a loss to Louisiana Tech in the second round of the WAC Tournament, but won the regular season championship with a 13-1 conference record. “We are excited about the NIT,” said Sutton. “We face a very talented and well-coached Nevada team on Wednesday night. Hopefully our fans and our students will come out. This team has done an amazing job all year, and they deserve for the fans to support them.” This will be the eighth trip to the NIT tournament for the Golden Eagles, who haven’t won an NIT game since 1975. This may not have been the season that ORU fans and sports writers were hoping for, but ORU still has a chance to play in the championship game at Madison Square Garden, win the NIT and prove that being snuffed (Iona, really?) for an at-large bid was a mistake. Sometimes, the best way to forget about a loss is to win, and if that means raising an NIT championship banner in the Mabee Center, then so be it.
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Photo by Austin St. John
Mike Craion, above, is ending his senior season for the Golden Eagles.
Scene
The Oracle Scene Editor is Halle Byrams. You may contact her with comments or questions at hbyrams@oru.edu
Catch a concert before you head home By Amy Lecza The days of finding a parking space downtown are over – three big concerts are coming to the BOK Center, and you’d better get accustomed to walking. Cars will be parked in every spare space for miles to see the Black Keys, Miranda Lambert and Van Halen. Each of these acts will be performing in April and early May. Miranda Lambert, America’s favorite sassy country singer, will be gracing Tulsa in early April on the Midwest leg of her On Fire Tour. Touring with her are country stars Chris Young (“You”) and Jerrod Niemann (“Lover, Lover”). Lambert has toured previously with big-name country artists like Toby Keith (“Made in America”), Kenny Chesney (Summertime”), Lady Antebellum (“Need You Now”), Sugarland (“Stuck Like Glue”) and Brad Paisley (“Country Boy”). Among her best-selling singles are “Gunpowder & Lead,” Lambert’s emotional musical tribute to an abusive relationship. While the lyrics are almost humorous, there are very real undertones to the dialogue in the song. Lambert establishes herself as an artist who isn’t afraid to sing about the “deep stuff.” “White Liar,” another song that begs the listener to draw upon his or her own life experiences, explores the complicated nature of adultery. The video brings a joking side to the song, but it’s clear that Lambert has experienced heartbreak. Lambert’s track “Only Prettier” delves humorously into the artificial friendships between women and, with lines like, “Well, I’ll keep
drinkin’/And you’ll keep gettin’ skinnier/I’m just like you/Only prettier,” Lambert can only be described as awesome. Lambert and her husband, country singer and star of reality TV show “The Voice” Blake Shelton live outside of Tishomingo, Okla., about three hours southwest of Tulsa, two hours south of Oklahoma City and two hours north of Dallas. Miranda Lambert will be at the BOK on Thursday, April 12. Tickets start at $27.75. The Black Keys have been a band since the early 2000s but have only gained widespread recognition in the last three or so years. They’ve appeared on “Saturday Night Live” twice, most recently in December where they promoted their most recent album, “El Camino,” and from it received much acclaim. The band has come a long way in the last decade. Formed in 2001, the group consists of guitarist and vocalist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney. They began as an independent act founded after both band members dropped out of college and moved back home to Akron. Their debut album, “The Big Come Up,” was recorded in Carney’s basement in 2002 and established their uniquely raw blues-rock sound. Most of their fanbase from that time forward was due to their constant touring in small clubs and frequent album releases.
The group released “Attack and Release” in 2008, the first album produced by a frequent collaborator of theirs, Danger Mouse. Their first commercial breakthrough, however, didn’t come until 2010 with their album “Brothers” and their immensely popular single “Tighten Up.” “Brothers” won the duo three Grammy awards and several other nominations. At the 2011 Grammys, the Black Keys won Best Rock Performance, Best Alternative Music Album and Best Recording Package. Their most recent album, “El Camino,” peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart and has led to the first arena concert tour of the band’s career. To go from humble Akron roots to selling out Madison Square Garden in 15 minutes is a remarkable feat. The Black Keys will be at the BOK Center on Saturday, April 28. Doors open at 7 p.m., and tickets start at $35. Special guest the Arctic Monkeys will also be performing. Van Halen. There’s a group of guys you probably wouldn’t expect to see touring still. However, after four decades of successful musicmaking and show playing, the band is still at it. Kick off May the right way with a Van Halen show that’s
sure to get your blood pumping. Formed in 1972 in Pasadena, Calif., brothers Eddie and Alex Van Halen (guitar/vocals and drums, respectively) joined with bassist Mark Stone to form the grunge rock band. Famous for the drama surrounding the exits of former band members Michael Anthony, Sammy Hagar, Gary Cherone and Mark Stone, the band went through its ups and downs. The only two consistent members of the band have been the Eddie and Alex Van Halen. Despite the undeniably wicked draw of drama, the band has proven itself as more than just a media magnet. They’ve sold over 80 million albums worldwide and have had the most No. 1 hits on the Billboard rock chart. Van Halen has also been credited as the 19th best-selling band of all time and is one of just five rock bands that have had two albums sell more than 10 million copies in the U.S.. This honor earned their debut album diamond status. Van Halen will be performing at the BOK Center May 1 with special guest Kool & The Gang. Tickets start at $29.50.
Internet Photos
From left: Eddie Van Halen, the Black Keys, Miranda Lambert.
THE ORACLE • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • 15
Easy, quick cookie recipes for mid-terms By Francesca Lucido As Spring Break quickly approaches, and study sessions begin to fill every line of your planner, you may start to feel like all of your professors got together to plan out your demise as a student. If the thought hasn’t crossed your mind, then I personally commend you for your obvious indestructible nature. Snacking is a study ritual everyone indulges in. Whether it’s for a quick boost of energy between physics problems, or to calm cravings between meals, it’s easy to take a trip to Chick-fil-A or raid your roommates snack drawer. However, other options abound. Try reducing stress by spending a few minutes in the kitchen. According to About.com baking is a common stress reliever, due to the comfortable aromas created when baking your favorite treats such as cookies, cakes and pies. Preparing a homemade batch of Peanut Butter Oatmeal Biggies could be the perfect solution to your late night study session cravings. By setting aside 15 minutes of your time, you could create a little piece of peanut butter heaven and divert your attention to something other than midterms.
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Biggies – (Recipe courtesy of business student, Austin McCarter) Ingredients: 1/2 cup butter, softened 3/4 cups packed brown sugar 1/2 cup white sugar 3/4 cups peanut butter 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/4 tsp baking soda 2 1/2 cups regular rolled oats 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips or raisins Directions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Beat together butter, sugars and peanut butter until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; mix well. Stir in oats and chocolate chips; mix well. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 9-10 minutes. Cool for 1 minute on cookie sheet; remove to wire rack.
If you don’t have time to bake, but are craving a homemade snack, try this recipe from Allrecipes.com.
Chocolate Fudge Cookies Makes 2 dozen cookies. Ingredients: 1 (18.25 oz.) package devil’s food cake mix 2 eggs 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets. In a medium bowl, stir together the cake mix, eggs and oil until well blended. Fold in the chocolate chips. Roll the dough into walnut sized balls. Place the cookies 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
Last-minute ideas for Spring Break plans By Halle Byrams and Katie DaCosta With midterms, papers and projects due this week, who can blame college students for viewing spring break as a light at the end of the tunnel? While some students have been planning their spring break at the beginning of the school year, others may not have any idea of what they will be doing. There are many options the student can consider for a fun and safe spring break. Road Trip Going on a road trip with friends is a classic and fun way to spend spring break. A road trip to a different city or state wouldn’t break the bank and can be a fun
way to break up the monotony of Tulsa. Driving from Tulsa to the surrounding states generally takes less than a day. To save money, everyone can pool their money together for gas, food and a hotel room. To make it interesting, take back roads for the scenic route and stay with friends or relatives to save more money. A road trip doesn’t have to take you out of the state. For those who are recreationally inclined, Oklahoma is home to many natural beauties awaiting your exploration. Wichita Mountains Wildlife Recreation in Lawton, Okla. is an easy three and a half hour drive from campus
16 • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • THE ORACLE
and is home to over 59 acres of mountains. You don’t have to spring break in Hawaii to see a waterfall because you only have to drive an hour and a half to make a hike to Oklahoma’s 77-foot cascading beauty. Two vantage points offer a view from the top and the bottom of the falls, and hikers can picnic along the four and half miles of hiking and nature trails. “Stay-cation” Those staying close to campus or at home can still have a great Spring Break. Now that school is out of the way for a whole week, students have an opportunity to catch up on hobbies, TV shows, movies and shopping.
Those who enjoy crafting can peruse their favorite craft stores for supplies and catch up on all the projects they’ve accumulated on their Pinterest boards. Book worms can justify opening up a book of their choosing. For the adventurous “staycationers” who will find themselves getting restless on an empty campus, Tulsa can satisfy an andrenaline junkie’s craving with local options like skydiving at Skydive Tulsa in Haskell, indoor rock climbing at New Heights Rock Climbing Gym. And for those who are just burnt out and need to maximize the week off from classes, catching up on sleep is always a popular and welldeserved option.
Volunteering For students with a heart to serve and make a difference during spring, there are many volunteer programs across the country. Alternative spring break usually means volunteering during spring break. Many students see this as a rewarding way to spend time off from school. United Way, i-to-i and Habitat for Humanity are many programs that offer spring break volunteer opportunities. Students who can’t afford to leave the country can find the same rewarding experience at local homeless shelters, soup kitchens and partnering with communities to build homes for those in need.
Muse
The Muse Editor is Kelsie Wardell. Contact her with comments or questions at klwardell@oru.edu.
Date Doctor By Christian Aranza Even as I write, I sit here thinking about the conversation I’ve had with myself a thousand times. Why didn’t I wait? Was it worth it? Would I be an entirely different person, husband and one-day father? I will never know the answers to those questions. I lost my virginity when I was 18, late by today’s standards, but early by the standards I had once set for myself. I went to all the “True Love Waits” banquets, wore the ring and had every intention of presenting myself pure to my wife. However, at 18 I found myself “in love.” I felt so strongly towards my girlfriend and I convinced myself she was worth it; worth throwing away my commitment, worth robbing my future wife of what is
Pre-Marital Sex - Why Not? Here’s why...
rightfully hers and worth living with the memories, if in fact I didn’t marry this girl. Everyone told me it was this incredible thing to do! In the back of my mind, I heard my father’s voice warning me about the guilt and shame people experience when they don’t wait. I didn’t feel any of that. I didn’t feel guilt, regret, remorse or shame. I “felt” much closer to the person I “loved”. When the relationship came to an end, I still felt no remorse or regret. Maybe some pain, but not enough for me to admit I should have waited. When the next girlfriend came around, waiting wasn’t a question. I had already crossed that line, so why regress? One turned into two, two turned into…well, let’s just say I quickly forgot about the waiting.
I lived life constantly connecting myself to whomever I had feelings for or whenever the opportunity arose. It wasn’t about the “love” anymore. It revolved around the experience. The more experience I gathered, the better lover I’d be in marriage one day, right? I was convinced abstinence was closeminded and old fashioned, and as a newly engaged man to the woman of my dreams, I had tons of experience to share with her, right? On May 29, 2010, as I stood at the end of the aisle watching my beautiful bride walk toward me, suddenly, like something out of a Scrooge movie, different faces, names and places began racing through my mind like the ghosts of Christian’s past. Finally, at that moment, I felt it: the guilt, the shame, the
Meandering Observations
By Chandler Elmore In today’s rude and rushed world, an act of kindness is hard to find and a word of kindness, even harder. Alas, a conversation without an agenda is down right impossible to come by. We want to speak with purpose without wasting words. We
want our sentences to vibrate with knowledge and understanding. I am the first to admit it is hard to talk without a specific goal in mind. I have been testing myself, deliberately stepping out of my comfortable bubble and reaching out to those often never talked to, just talked about. These are the people who do the work we complain about and take for granted; window washers, toilet tidier, vacuum pushers, card swipers. They tend the gardens in our peripherals. They serve food day in and day out. The list goes on and on. The more degrading the task, the quicker we are to dismiss them. I am not deceived into believing you
remorse and the sadness. It flooded over me. This angel was walking toward me, and I had nothing to give her that I hadn’t given to someone else. She was and is worth everything this world has to me, and yet, I had spent my physical and emotional savings on so many young women who weren’t even half of this woman. At that moment, I realized how much she was worth the wait. She was worth waiting for, even if I had to wait until I was 100 years old. But I hadn’t, couldn’t, wouldn’t and didn’t. I spent the first six months of our marriage feeling guilty, regretful and remorseful toward sex. What we shared was so different than the sex I had experienced before her. This was pure, holy and right before God. At 25 years
old, if I could change one thing, I would have waited. I would have presented myself untainted to the woman I’m sharing the rest of my life with. I would have been selfless in realizing I wasn’t saving sex for myself, it was for her. I could give you statistics and numbers about how waiting until marriage is healthy and beneficial, but I didn’t care about that at 18 years old either. What I do hope helps is this true story about a young man who thought he knew it all, only to find out he was bankrupting himself and his future wife. God can and does heal these areas, but it’s much easier to wear a helmet than have a scar to write an article about. One day, you too will stand at the end of an aisle, and I hope all you see is the person walking down it.
Don’t Overlook Others
do not know at least one person who fits these parameters. But riddle me this: When was the last time you said hello, thank you, or had a conversation with them? As a public relations major, I know humans love to talk. Let’s face it, one of the most interesting things to talk about is ourselves. Highlight that and talk to them about their interests, what gets them through the day, and you might be surprised at what you uncover. Get out of the stagnant communication zone you know so well and branch out to people you normally wouldn’t pay any attention to. We are all human and all have stories in need of a listener.
This is not meant to be an article lamenting about how much we do not talk. I am sure that professors everywhere would agree we talk too much. This is to gently coerce you to engage in deeper, more meaningful conversations with everybody you interact with. Don’t be the person who decides to have a heart to heart when entering Saga. Be that person who, if time allows, will talk to the janitor or the cafeteria workers. I am certain if we all do this to a greater capacity, then the new relationships would spring up in the most surprising areas of your life. Give it a try and just see what happens.
THE ORACLE • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • 17
Shot Calling: Deuces, Summit League
By Billy Burke My Sunday afternoon was spent like most ORU student’s, writing three different things for four different classes, finding a way to eat something else when you suddenly have an overwhelming craving for Chick-fil-A, and hunching over a small TV praying to God that your team falls into the favor of the holy selection committee. Next to me was Bobby Baehr, or as you might know him, the leader of the Ozone. The two of us possess enough fanhood to fill the Mabee Center over at least twice. So when Iona was selected as the No. 13 seed for the NCAAs, we were both nothing short of irate. Our choice of vocabulary could not be deemed as ORU appropriate, and we both sunk into a funk for the rest of the day. It wasn’t so much that we were angry ORU didn’t get in. We knew it was a long shot. We were mad that ORU was disrespected and put in the back seat while Iona was put into the tournament. Why you might ask? I shall educate you. Despite having a higher RPI (41), Iona has two less wins than ORU, less divisional games (13-1) and was 0-2 vs. teams with an RPI ranking in the top 50. ORU was 2-2 against teams ranking in the top 50 RPI and a better divisional record with more games (171) than Iona. So why didn’t ORU get considered? The writing on the wall
says one thing: the Summit League. I say this because we are in the Summit League, and people outside of the conference don’t respect it. Despite having the top scorer (Reggie Hamilton) and two others in the top 10 of leading scorers (Gains, Wolters), the Summit League is not looked upon with any seriousness. While at the tournament in South Dakota, I counted six reserved spots for NBA scouts. One night, I sat next to two of them as they talked about and broke down Alex Young from IUPUI, who, in the past four years, lead the NCAA in scoring. I was told he was being projected as a third-to-fourth round pick. But this isn’t a complete anomaly. IUPUI cranked out George Hill a few years back, and he has (when
healthy) budded into a fine NBA player. So what is my point? No, the Summit League may not be an elite division and I personally think that a change of scenery to the Southland Conference will be good for ORU (not the other teams in the Summit, mind you), but I think that analysts should have looked a different way when crunching the numbers they should have looked at just that, the numbers. If they had, they would have seen that although the Summit League isn’t amazing on paper, it can produce a diamond in the rough, or two. No, ORU didn’t go out as I would have liked us to. No, I didn’t appreciate the coach of Western Illinois joking around after the game and
saying, “Well that was easy” after his team upset the Golden Eagles. No, I didn’t care for the hostile and at times disrespectful environment that South Dakota posed for ORU fans and players alike. But hey, that’s sports right? ORU is waving goodbye to the Dakotas and riding off to a better conference that carries more respect, better teams and (thank God) a warmer climate. I can’t wait to breakdown the match-ups, forge new rivalries and get a chance to see Pat Knight run around just as ticked off as his old man. So am I upset right now? Of course. I would turn my fan card in if I wasn’t. But the greatest thing about sports is that in eight months, I’ll be ready to do it all over again.
Photo by Austin St. John
Junior Bobby Baehr is a faithful leader for ORU’s student section, the Ozone, at all of the home basketball games.
18 • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • THE ORACLE
Why did you vote for him?
By Matthew McAfee Jobs, experience and electability are the three main reasons I voted for Mitt Romney over any other candidate. Twenty-five million Americans are unemployed, underemployed or have stopped looking for work. As a senior college student, the economy and job market are very important to me. Romney has the greatest chance and ability to fix the economy. Over the course of his life, Romney has performed turn-arounds for failing organizations. For over twenty years, he helped companies on the brink of complete failure become profitable once again. In 1999, when the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics were about to fail, Romney was selected as the best person to fix them. He took his business experience and not only saved the 2002 Winter Olympics, but raised a $300 million surplus. Romney also has direct experience in fixing a government. While governor of Massachusetts, Romney fixed a $3 billion surplus without raising a single tax. Finally, Romney has the best chance of beating President Obama. This election, like all presidential elections, will be determined mostly by the Independents’ vote, and Romney will beat President Obama by winning the their vote. I proudly support Mitt Romney and hope you will too!
By John Weiand Rick Santorum had my vote since he came out of the woodwork only a few months ago. His views on the Afghanistan War match up with mine. Santorum is quoted as saying, “We cannot let those who have given the last full measure die in vain by abandoning the gains we’ve made thus far.” He also shares my stance on homosexuality. Although he has reiterated again and again that he has nothing against homosexuals, he is against the perpetration of homosexual acts. It is much easier to love the sinner and hate the sin when you have this mindset. He also supports keeping marriage as a heterosexual bond and not allowing gay marriage. Unlike Romney, Santorum feels that the federal government should ban abortions across the board. Romney thinks it should be in the hands of the state, but Santorum pushes for a federal law. I will vote for Romney if it comes down to him and President Obama in November. However, I support Santorum for the passion he has within the issues, despite him and Romney seeing eyeto-eye in many respects. Santorum is a strong man of God and I would be honored to have him as my president.
By Stephen Salmon I voted for ol’ Newt because, let’s face it people, something needs to change. Today in America, we have so many different issues, we put the reality TV shows on MTV to shame. America needs someone with big ideas, big dreams and a big vision to get us out of the slump we have fallen into. And I ask you, what is bigger than the moon? Probably every other thing in the galaxy, but we can’t go there. All we have is the moon, and Newt has a plan for America to be on the moon. These are the kind of ideas I like to see from people who want to get my vote. With his past experience as the speaker of the House and the leader of the Republican Revolution, I believe Newt is the most qualified person to lead this country in the future. I am not the only one who thinks so. “Newt is by far the most intelligent, well-informed, visionary, mature, decisive, persuasive, charismatic, has the most gravitas and is the most presidential of all the candidates, including candidate Obama,” said Alan Lenav, PhD. Newt Gingrich is the best candidate to lead America and help fix our problems, and that’s why I voted for him.
By Greg Tanis All the GOP candidates are men of faith, pro-family and pro-life. All are concerned with job creation and the moral structure of America. They all take diverging positions on how to carry these beliefs out. I voted for Dr. Ron Paul in the Oklahoma Republican primary. I did not vote for him because he is pro-life (in social issues as well as in his foreign policy, which is unique) or for free markets per se. I voted for him because I strongly believe he has the most effective ideas to promote and expand these ideals. He has the best understanding of the political system out of any candidate and is the most divergent thinker of the group. He’s not afraid to break from ineffective schools of thought, even if he is highly criticized. He is principled and hopeful. He understands America’s modern position in the world and is clearly influenced by his Christian worldview. I voted for Ron Paul, in short, because I am tired of Republicans and Democrats swapping positions and nothing actually changing. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. These parties have become two wings of the same bird, funded and influenced by the same companies and interest groups in many cases. Ron Paul is a beacon of hope for politics. I encourage you to vote for sustainable, long-term change, not Band-Aid solutions and talking points.
THE ORACLE • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • 19
20 • Wednesday, March 14, 2012 • THE ORACLE