BASEBALL: Sewald inspires team from the bench, p. 7
COMPETITION: Miss LSU pageant crowns Hilary Tuttle as winner, p. 3
Reveille The Daily
LSUPD
Major won’t be charged in hit and run
www.lsureveille.com
Monday, March 25, 2013 • Volume 117, Issue 113
Nic Cotten
Contact Nic Cotten at ncotten@lsureveille.com
Voting opens 7 a.m. at today Judah Robinson
Staff Writer
LSU Police Department Maj. Bart Thompson will not be charged with a hit and run by the LSUPD for his collision with LSU student Paulina Tran on March 14 because the accident did not fall into the definition of a hit and run, according to LSUPD Spokesman Capt. Cory Lalonde. Thompson said in his statement that upon feeling his car hit something, he exited the vehicle, looked for damage, did not see any and drove away, according to Lalonde. Lalonde said a hit and run is the intentional failure of the driver to stop his or her vehicle at the scene of the accident, give his or her identity and attempt to help the person hit. Lalonde said Thompson’s statement claims the major was unaware of the contact with Tran’s vehicle, believing he ran over something related to construction in the area. The LSUPD crash report did fault Thompson with the accident and said Tran was parked in a noparking zone, although Lalonde said Tran had a pass to park in that zone due to her job delivering issues of The Daily Reveille. Thompson saw Tran’s car parked in a “yellow zone” when he got out, but did not see a driver in the car or anyone else around, Lalonde said. Tran said in a previous interview with The Daily Reveille that she tried to signal Thompson. The collision was caused when Thompson backed away from an access gate to allow construction worker Greg Gersittner to back up because he did not have a wand to enter, according to Lalonde and the crash report. Gersittner said he saw Thompson inspect his vehicle and drive away but did not see a hit, according to Lalonde. Lalonde said LSUPD responds to many reported hit and runs where the driver who ran into the victim was unaware of the accident, and they do not issue citations.
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
Senior Contributing Writer
Confederate officer roared while the soldiers’ rifles fired in unison, consuming the men in a cloud of white smoke.
After holding its first election two weeks ago, Student Government will hold another election today after disputed campaign documents caused a series of University Court cases culminating in a decision to hold an election do-over. Voting begins at 7 a.m. and closes at 6:59 p.m. The results will be announced at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Live Oak Lounge. Voting in the run-off elections will be held between 7 a.m. and 6:59 p.m. on Wednesday, and those results will be announced at 4:30 p.m. Thursday in the Live Oak Lounge. Impact LSU presidential candidate T Graham S. Howell and vice presidential candidate Kaitlin Torké won the original election after Unite LSU’s presidential candidate John Woodard and vice presidential candidate Taylor Parks were dis-
RE-ENACTMENT, see page 15
SG, see page 6
LIVING HISTORY
RICHARD REDMANN / The Daily Reveille
Confederate troops fire a cannon toward the Union line Saturday during the re-enactment of the seige of Port Hudson at the Port Hudson State Historic Site. See a photo story, p. 5.
Port Hudson holds Civil War re-enactment over the weekend Jonathan Olivier Staff Writer
“Cannoneers, to your posts,” a Confederate officer cried above the chaos of rifle fire. Southern soldiers grouped into formations under orders from officers as they began to march toward the fray downfield. The crowd continued to grow
as the 25th annual Civil War re-enactment at Port Hudson near Jackson, La., kicked into action with the first cannon blast. Battle cries engulfed the air as soldiers frantically ran from one side of the field to get into position and scan for an open shot at a Union solider in the distance. “Ready! Aim! Fire!” a
View more photos and a video online at lsureveille.com.
Former SG members weigh in on this election season, p.13.
NCAA TOURNAMENT
LSU defeats Green Bay in first round Tyler Nunez Sports Writer
The No. 6 seed LSU women’s basketball team survived a feisty No. 11 seed Green Bay with a 7571 victory in its first-round game of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday in the PMAC. An 18-point second-half lead was not enough for LSU to put away the Phoenix, who used a late string of 3-pointers to bring the game within one possession in the final minute. “Give a lot of credit to [Green
Bay Coach Matt Bollant’s] kids for how hard they played and how hard they fought back,” said LSU coach Nikki Caldwell. “I was equally proud of our team for not folding down the stretch, and they were able to come away with a win.” The two squads went back-andforth in a dogfight of a first half, but the Lady Tigers ran into the locker room holding on to a 32-27 lead after finishing the period on a 7-2 run. LSU sprinted out in the second half on a 14-5 run in less than NCAA, see page 6
ANGELA MAJOR / The Daily Reveille
LSU senior guard Adrienne Webb (10) moves the ball past Green Bay sophomore guard Megan Lukan (14) on Sunday during the Tigers’ 75-71 victory against the Phoenix.
The Daily Reveille
page 2
INTERNATIONAL Authorities scramble to rescue pilot whales beached in South Africa JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Six of 19 pilot whales that were stranded Sunday on a beach in the South African city of Cape Town have died. Authorities said they planned to euthanize some of the surviving whales. Police and other rescue workers hosed down the surviving whales at Noordhoek Beach to try to keep them alive. “Seven are in poor health,” said Craig Lambinon, spokesman for the National Sea Rescue Institute. “We are still trying our best to save them.” Thousands of French protest draft law allowing same-sex marriage PARIS (AP) — Paris riot police fought back crowds who pushed their way onto Paris’ ChampsElysees avenue as part of a protest against a draft law allowing samesex couples to marry and adopt children. Hundreds of thousands of people converged on the capital Sunday in a last-ditch bid to stop the bill, many bused in from the French provinces. The lower house of France’s parliament approved the “marriage for everyone” bill last month with a large majority.
Nation & World
SCHALK VAN ZUYDAM / The Associated Press
A dead whale covered with sand lies on Noordhoek beach near the city of Cape Town, South Africa, on Sunday. Six of the 19 beached whales have already died.
Worshippers throng to Jerusalem to participate in Palm Sunday tradition JERUSALEM (AP) — Hundreds of Christians marked Palm Sunday in the Holy Land, the start of the Catholic Holy Week that concludes with Easter. Crowds of faithful gathered at Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the traditional site of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. Many waved palm fronds to symbolize how worshippers greeted Jesus over 2,000 years ago as he triumphantly returned to Jerusalem.
Monday, March 25, 2013
NATIONAL
STATE/LOCAL
Chicago mayor answers critics, calls school closings tough but necessary
Perkins Rowe development sale postponed as lawsuit still lingers
CHICAGO (AP) — Mayor Rahm Emanuel responded Saturday to widespread criticism of his plan to close 54 Chicago public schools, saying he wasn’t interested in doing what was politically easy and that the pain of the closings doesn’t compare to the anguish of “trapping” kids in failing schools. “If we don’t make these changes, we haven’t lived up to our responsibility as adults to the children of the city of Chicago,” Emanuel said in his first public statement since Thursday’s announcement about the closures. GOP hedges initial objections to Obama’s Medicaid expansion plans
Young Marine base shooting victim was goofy, warm-hearted churchgoer
(AP) — The foreclosure sale of developer J.T. “Tommy” Spinosa’s mixed-use Perkins Rowe project has been delayed until May. The Advocate reports that officials of KeyBank National Association of Cleveland had scheduled the sale for this past week. Last year, U.S. District Judge James Brady awarded the bank $201.9 million from Spinosa and three of his Perkins Rowe companies for construction loans that were not repaid. The judge also specified that interest on the debt would build at a daily rate of $32,510. The bank filed a lawsuit against Spinosa in July 2009.
CORINTH, Miss. (AP) — A Marine who was shot to death at a Virginia base is being described as a warm-hearted country boy from the South who grew up in the Pentecostal church and even preached a few times. Military officials say 23-yearold Jacob Wooley of Mississippi was killed by Sgt. Eusebio Lopez on Thursday at the Marine Corps Base Quantico in northern Virginia. Lopez also shot 19-year-old Lance Cpl. Sara Castromata to death before he killed himself.
(AP) — Councilwoman C. Denise Marcelle, a member of the East Baton Rouge Parish Metro Council, has her eye on expanding the Baton Rouge city limits. East Baton Rouge Parish is made up of four municipalities. Areas not inside those city limits are considered unincorporated. Marcelle said areas outside of the city could provide tax revenue for many services and give more parish residents a voice in the city.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Many Republican governors and lawmakers initially responded to the choice of whether to expand Medicaid under President Barack Obama’s health care law with an emphatic “no.” But a new “no, but...” approach is spreading among GOP states in which officials are publicly condemning the Democratic president’s Medicaid expansion yet floating alternatives that could provide health coverage to millions of low-income adults while potentially tapping into billions of federal dollars.
CHARLES REX ARBOGAST / The Associated Press
Parents of students at the Dumas Technology Academy Elementary School protest its closing outside the Chicago school on Friday.
East Baton Rouge councilwoman interested in expanding city limits
Weather
PHOTO OF THE DAY
TODAY Sunny
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FIND OUT WHY WE LOVE
THE ‘90s
60 36 THURSDAY MORGAN SEARLES / The Daily Reveille
A fan at the LSU vs. USC softball game Sunday sports a tattoo of a baseball with butterfly wings. Submit your photo of the day to photo@lsureveille.com.
CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS The Daily Reveille holds accuracy and objectivity at the highest priority and wants to reassure the reporting and content of the paper meets these standards. This space is reserved to recognize and correct any mistakes which may have been printed in The Daily Reveille. If you would like something corrected or clarified please contact the editor at (225) 578-4811 or email editor@lsureveille.com.
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
on stands April 8
The Daily Reveille (USPS 145-800) is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Daily Reveille is an independent entity within the Manship School of Mass Communication. A single issue of The Daily Reveille is free. To purchase additional copies for 25 cents, please contact the Office of Student Media in B-34 Hodges Hall. The Daily Reveille is published daily during the fall and spring semesters and semi-weekly during the summer semester, except during holidays and final exams. Second-class copies postage paid at Baton Rouge, La., 70803. Annual weekly mailed subscriptions are $125, semester weekly mailed subscriptions are $75. Non-mailed student rates are $4 each regular semester, $2 during the summer; one copy per person, additional copies 25 cents each. Postmaster: Send address changes to The Daily Reveille, B-39 Hodges Hall, LSU, Baton Rouge, La.,70803.
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The Daily Reveille
B-16 Hodges Hall • Baton Rouge, La. 70803 Andrea Gallo • Editor in Chief Emily Herrington • Managing Editor Bryan Stewart • Managing Editor, External Media Kirsten Romaguera • Managing Editor, Production Clayton Crockett • News Editor Brian Sibille • Entertainment Editor, Deputy News Editor Albert Burford • Sports Editor Alex Cassara • Deputy Sports Editor Carli Thibodeaux • Associate Production Editor Kevin Thibodeaux • Associate Production Editor Chris Grillot • Opinion Editor Taylor Balkom • Photo Editor Alix Landriault • Multimedia Editor Natalie Guccione • Radio Director Fatima Mehr • Advertising Sales Manager Newsroom (225)578-4810 • Advertising (225)578-6090
The Daily Reveille
Monday, March 25, 2013
COMPETITION
page 3
Hilary Tuttle wins 15th annual Miss LSU-USA Pageant Tuttle wants to be LSU ambassador Nicolas Cotten Staff Writer
There will be no do-over after Hilary Tuttle’s sparkling victory in the 15th annual Miss LSU-USA Pageant on Sunday. The winner of the pageant, hosted by Delta Zeta sorority, automatically qualifies for and receives paid admission to the Miss Louisiana competition, where recent LSU winners have gone on to be finalists and one went on to win Miss Congeniality, according to elementary education student and Delta Zeta member Allie Bruce. Tuttle, a mass communication senior, said she was in awe when she was announced the winner. “It’s been my dream to be Miss LSU,” Tuttle said. “I was shocked; I honestly had to pinch myself.” Tuttle said she hopes to recruit for LSU by being an ambassador for the University and looks forward to representing LSU at the Miss Louisiana pageant. Tuttle said she was the third runner-up in last year’s competition, her first pageant, and participated in two others in preparation for this year. The 21 contestants were judged on their interviews early Sunday morning, as well as their abilities during the swimsuit and evening gown portions of the pageant. Then the field was narrowed to the top five, who finished the competition with an on-stage question portion. The questions asked to the top five varied from the Student Government elections, pros and cons of online courses, admission requirements and the newly combined position of system president and chancellor. All proceeds of the event go to Delta Zeta’s philanthropic organizations: the Starkey Hearing Foundation, the Painted Turtle Camp, the Baton Rouge Hearing and Speech Foundation and Alzheimer Services of the Capital Area, Bruce said. “Winners participate in at least seven on-campus activities while wearing the crown, such as riding in the homecoming parade, going to Fall Fest and being at freshman orientation,” Bruce said. Delta Zeta President and civil engineering student Kristen Gahagan said Miss LSU is the sorority’s biggest annual philanthropy event, and it raises around $50,000 each year. It was announced during the event that over 15 years, Miss LSUUSA has raised more than $500,000 for Delta Zeta’s philanthropies through ticket sales, advertisements and program sales. “Most of the girls don’t have much pageant experience behind them, so they are learning,” Gahagan said. “It’s not just a philanthropy, but a professional production.” Gahagan said they tried to acclimate the competition to serving more non-Greeks than usual by having meetings in the Union
photos by CONNOR TARTER / The Daily Reveille
[Top] All 21 Miss LSU-USA Pageant contestants pose on stage before the announcement of the five finalists, [bottom left] mass communication senior Hilary Tuttle is overwhelmed with emotion after being named the 2013 Miss LSU Pageant winner, and [bottom right] the Tiger Girls perform a routine during an intermission at the 2013 Miss LSU-USA Pageant on Sunday in the Union Theater.
instead of the sorority house. “We tried to make the pageant more campus-wide, not just Greekwide,” Gahagan said. Bruce said this year’s candidates were willing and excited to compete to become the face of the University. “The reason they are here is they want to represent LSU,” Bruce said. “They were all accommodating and easy to work with.” Bruce said the candidates practiced over a five-week period, working on a choreographed dance, how to walk, interview and on-stage question preparation and what to wear. The judges for the competition
were selected based on knowledge of the University, interview questions and knowledge of pageant background, Bruce said, and they could not have a connection to any candidates. Bruce said winners also work with three University organizations, such as Tiger Athletic Foundation, Student Government or the Greek Board of Directors, while also getting involved in community charitable organizations like the YMCA, Habitat for Humanity and the MakeA-Wish Foundation. Contact Nicolas Cotten at ncotten@lsureveille.com
DO YOU HAVE AN OCCURRENCE? Call Sam at the Student Media Office 578-6090, 9AM- 5PM or E-mail: admanager@tigers.lsu.edu
The Daily Reveille
page 4
LGBT
Monday, March 25, 2013
La. Queer Conference focuses on education, action
Privilege, minority inclusion addressed
debate at the State of the Movement Panel, which brought activists from across Louisiana together to discuss issues currently facing the LGBT community’s push for equality and social justice. Erin Hebert Discussion arose after an audiContributing Writer ence member asked panelists their Though the theme of the 2013 thoughts on encouraging minorities Louisiana Queer Conference on and allies to work with the LGBT Saturday was “Turning Educa- advocacy community without retion Into Action,” keynote speaker sorting to tokenism. Equality LouiAlison Gill encouraged attendees siana President and panel member to view education and action as Tim West said society must become “colorblind” when working with equals. Gill, the government affairs people, which prompted some audience members to director for The Trevor Project — ‘By spreading education, protest. Kameron Kilthe nation’s leadwe spread knowledge christ, panel meming LGBT youth crisis and suicide of the issues, and people ber, president of the University’s prevention orgabecome aware.’ Spectrum organinization — closed zation and biologiout the all-day Melanie Stapleton cal engineering conference in music education junior senior, said it must Coates Hall with be acknowledged an hourlong keynote address that focused primarily that everyone has a racial identity on her experience working in youth that defines who they are while also advocacy and ended with audience recognizing that it should not affect their inclusion and equality. questions. Shreveport Political Director Music education junior Melanie Stapleton said she agreed with of People Acting for Change and Gill’s equation of education and ac- Equality and panelist Adrienne Critcher said racism is Louisiana’s tion. “By spreading education, we No. 1 problem and that the commuspread knowledge of the issues, and nity must educate non-minorities people become aware,” Stapleton who may “miss the mark” at times said. “They empathize and help be- despite having good intentions. Spanish senior Lauren Miller cause they realize people are getting said although she fired or committing suicide because ‘It’s something I didn’t was a little on-edge at some points of of their identity or really do much of the panel, the dissexuality.” showed Most of the whenever I was an un- cussion that diversity and conference’s itinerary consisted of dergrad, and now I see minority inclusion 18 workshops in Spectrum’s doing some are some of the most important isdifferent rooms of really great stuff.’ sues the communiCoates, divided ty needs to address. into three sessions. Nicholas Skaggs The UniverThe workshops library science graduate student sity’s role in LGBT were presented by equality was also various members of the LGBT advocate community, discussed, including the recent addition of gender identity to the University students included. Nutrition junior Markita Lewis school’s fairness policy. LAQC Chair Moriah Graham and psychology senior Ritu Roy hosted “Being an Ally: A Process, announced at the conference’s Not A Choice,” a workshop that fo- closing that attendance had incused on how members of the non- creased from 175 to 208 from last LGBT community can effectively year. Miller said she noticed more advocate for LGBT rights while diversity in this year’s conference, remaining aware of cultural differ- noting the rise in older attendees and local LGBT community ences and privileges. Privilege was also a topic of members.
PAIN PILL ADDICTION
MORGAN SEARLES / The Daily Reveille
Alison Gill, the governmental affairs director for The Trevor Project, gives the keynote address Saturday at the 2013 Louisiana Queer Conference in Coates Hall.
Library science graduate student Nicholas Skaggs said the conference encouraged him to become more involved with Spectrum. “It’s something I didn’t really do much of whenever I was an undergrad, and now I see Spectrum’s doing some really great stuff,” Skaggs said.
The conference also attracted students from other universities across the country, including Shannon Redmayne from the University of South Alabama’s Spectrum organization. “I thought this would be a great opportunity to get ideas from other students in other parts of the
region,” Redmayne said, adding that she enjoyed the informative nature of the panel and thought the conference was well-organized.
Contact Erin Hebert at ehebert@lsureveille.com
The Daily Reveille
Monday, March 25, 2013
page 5
PHOTO STORY
Civil War re-enactment brings history back to life
2
SOLD OUT
photos by RICHARD REDMANN / The Daily Reveille
This re-enactment of the Civil War siege on Port Hudson took place Saturday at the Port Hudson State Historical Site, celebrating the 150th anniversary of the historical event. [1] Union troops storm the Confederate fortifications. [2] Union troops fire from a fence line at the Confederates. [3] A Union officer shoots at a Confederate soldier during a standoff. [4] A Confederate soldier retrieves the American flag among bodies of fallen troops.
Mar. Fri. 29
MZ. 411 Molly
Apr. Fri. 5
Mar. Sat. 30
Micheal Foster Project
Apr. Thur. 11
4
Apr. Sat. 6
3
Mar. Tue. 26
Deftones World Cup Qualiier
Mar. Wed. 27
Mar. Mon. 25
1
Ringwalds
Royal Teeth
Coming Soon: April Mon. 15 Hollywood Undead April Tues. 16 Gramatik Perfect 10 Presents
page 6 NCAA, from page 1 five minutes led by senior guard Adrienne Webb, who hit three shots from beyond the arc in that span. “I knew that I had to step up and play my role for our team to win,” Webb said. “That was knocking down those open shots.” After building a 54-36 lead with 12:38 remaining, LSU saw its cushion slowly dwindle away as shots began to fall for Green Bay.
SG, from page 1
qualified despite receiving the most votes. The Unite LSU ticket was disqualified by the election board over a series of disputed campaign financial documents. The election board’s decision to disqualify Unite LSU from the election started a series of UCourt hearings between Unite LSU and the election board. The first UCourt hearing on March 16 was an appeal filed by Joe Gipson, an adviser to the Unite ticket. The appeal dealt with whether the election board had the right to disqualify Unite LSU, and the UCourt ruled in the election board’s favor. After losing the appeal hearing, Kristina Lagasse, who prepared Unite LSU’s financial documents, filed a complaint against the election board, citing it incorrectly executed its power by revaluing Unite LSU’s financial documents.
The Phoenix shot five-for-six from 3-point land in the final seven minutes of the game, including one from senior guard Megan Lukan to cut LSU’s lead to three points with 49 seconds remaining. “With every great team, you know they are going to make a run at some point in the game,” Webb said. “... Our will to win this game really shows how much that we really want to be here.” But an offensive rebound by The UCourt ruled in favor of Lagasse on March 17 and granted the relief requested, which was to rescind the election board’s decision to disqualify all Unite LSU candidates, and immediately resulted in all Unite LSU candidates being reinstated as winners. However, on March 20, SG Solicitor General Shauncey Hunter filed a petition for an injunction of the 2013 SG elections, which was then heard by the UCourt and Chief Justice Morgan Faulk. The court voted unanimously to hold a new election. The court’s decision was then executed and announced by SG President Taylor Cox at last week’s SG Senate meeting.
Did your vote change? Answer in our lsureveille.com poll. Contact Judah Robinson at jrobinson@lsureveille.com
The Daily Reveille LSU freshman guard Danielle Ballard that turned the shot clock off and led to two free throws by junior forward Theresa Plaisance with 15 seconds left all but sealed victory for LSU. Webb finished the game 4-for7 in 3-pointers for 15 points. Plaisance and Ballard also contributed heavily with 16 points each and combining for 11 rebounds. Green Bay senior forward Sarah Eichler led the Phoenix with 22
Monday, March 25, 2013 points, four rebounds and a pair of steals. Senior forward Jenny Gilbertson provided a spark off the bench for the Phoenix, scoring 15 points and grabbing six boards. LSU junior guard Jeanne Kenney was carried off the floor in the final minute after colliding with Webb on an inbounds play. Her status for the rest of the tournament is still unknown. The Lady Tigers will take on
No. 3 seed Penn State in the second round at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. Penn State defeated No. 14 seed Cal Poly 88-55 on Sunday afternoon.
Check out a photo gallery from the game at lsureveille.com. Contact Tyler Nunez at tnunez@lsureveille.com; Twitter: @NunezTDR
Monday, March 25, 2013
Sports
page 7
#SpeechbyMeech Freshman pitcher inspires team with motivational words
Catherine Threlkeld Sports Contributor
RICHARD REDMANN / The Daily Reveille
LSU freshman pitcher Mitch Sewald watches the 8-2 victory against Auburn on Sunday at Alex Box Stadium.
No. 16 seed will soon top No. 1 seed MIC’D UP MICAH BEDARD Sports Columnist
Mitch Sewald is the only LSU baseball player that hasn’t seen an inning of play this season. For now, the freshman right-handed pitcher’s words are stronger than his pitch — he has the prominent role of delivering postgame speeches to the Tigers. After most weekend series, the Tigers gather at Mellow Mushroom for a team meal, and the players call on one of their own for an inspiring speech to prepare them for the next week of games. Junior pitcher Will LaMarche gave one, but “apparently they didn’t like it,” Sewald laughed. Sewald’s first speech wasn’t planned, and he fumbled a bit. But after LSU’s series against Washington, he was prepared with a speech. It was his best one yet, fellow freshman Alex Bregman said. The team coined the Twitter hashtag #SpeechbyMeech to celebrate the weekly dialogue. After LSU’s 2-0 victory against Nicholls on March 3, Twitter was abuzz with shout-outs to Sewald. Bregman tweeted, “Big Meech was incredible today. Purely #Inspirational.” But content of the speech — like the rules of Fight Club — cannot be spoken of. It’s for team ears only. Sewald disclosed that he sometimes discusses the team’s upcoming matchups, but that’s all he’ll say.
The unthinkable is now the inevitable: In the next five years, a No. 1 seed will lose to a No. 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament. This weekend’s Big Dance action proved a seed is nothing but a number once the games begin. No. 14 seed Harvard stunned No. 3 seed New Mexico 68-62 on Thursday, and No. 15 seed Florida Gulf Coast took down No. 2 seed Georgetown 78-68 on Friday. In all, eight of the 32 teams to advance on Thursday or Friday were double-digit seeds. It’s the third time in the last two tournaments a No. 15 seed has beaten a No. 2 seed. The last time a No. 15 beat a No. 2 before last year? 2001. And it isn’t like Florida Gulf Coast made a buzzer-beater to take down the Hoyas. The Eagles controlled the game for most of the second half and won by double digits. Two No. 16 seeds, Western Kentucky and Southern, also gave their No. 1 seed opponents a significant scare. The Jags kept Gonzaga’s deficit to single digits for a majority of the second half and tied the game with 4:08 left to play before
SPEECH, see page 11
UPSETS, see page 11
BASEBALL
LSU completes weekend sweep of Auburn, 8-2 Offense jumps to early lead Sunday Lawrence Barreca Sports Writer
It didn’t take long for the No. 7 LSU baseball squad to jump on Auburn in the series finale Sunday as the Tigers from Baton Rouge completed the series sweep in an 8-2 victory in Alex Box Stadium. “It was a good overall victory, and I’m glad to get the sweep,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “I told the guys yesterday, ‘If you really want to play for a championship in this league, then these are the games we have
to win.’ These Sunday games [are Chris Chinea followed up with crucial] when you have the first a two-RBI single to right field two in hand, and we went out to break the game open against there and got the Auburn (15-10, job done.” ‘These Sunday games 0-6 SEC). In the The scoring bottom of the barrage began in [are crucial] when you second inning, the first inning have the first two in a Rhymes RBI for LSU (22-2, single and a wild hand, and we went pitch that scored 5-1 Southeastern Conference) as it shortout there and got the freshman put up two early stop Alex Bregjob done.’ runs after senior man, who has left fielder Raph had four three-hit Rhymes hit an games in a row, Paul Mainieri RBI groundout gave the Tigers a LSU coach and junior second 6-1 lead, and they baseman JaCoby Jones walked wouldn’t look back. with the bases loaded. “I knew it was going to be a But LSU wasn’t finished at big situation with me coming in, the plate. Freshman designated hitter SWEEP, see page 11
RICHARD REDMANN / The Daily Reveille
LSU sophomore southpaw Cody Glenn (24) pitches Sunday in the 8-2 victory against Auburn at Alex Box Stadium.
The Daily Reveille
page 8
GYMNASTICS
Monday, March 25, 2013
SWIMMING AND DIVING
Tigers record season high Weil earns two NCAA in third-place finish at SECs Honorable Mentions Courville ties for all-around title Marcus Rodrigue Sports Contributor
The No. 6 LSU gymnastics team tallied its highest score of the year and its third-highest score in program history with a 197.700, but still finished in third place Saturday night at the Southeastern Conference Championship in North Little Rock, Ark. The Tigers (15-6, 5-3 SEC) competed in Session II of the meet with No. 1 Florida, No. 3 Alabama and No. 5 Georgia. Florida won the competition with a 198.000, followed by Alabama with a 197.800. No. 12 Auburn, No. 16 Arkansas, Missouri and No. 19 Kentucky finished fifth through eighth in Session I of the competition. “We fell short of the team title but led the [meet] halfway through,” said LSU coach D-D Breaux. “It was an absolutely incredible meet, and I can’t be more proud of how our girls did.” The Tigers got off to a hot start, recording their second-highest floor score in program history with a 49.625. They followed up with a 49.525 on vault and had the lead halfway through Session II. Though LSU totaled a 49.175
LAUREN DUHON / The Daily Reveille
Gymnastics head coach D-D Breaux cheers on her team March 8 during the Tigers’ loss to Alabama. LSU placed third in the SEC Championship on Saturday, which Breaux called an “incredible meet.”
on uneven bars, it trailed top-seeded Florida by .05 heading into the final rotation. The Tigers put together a season-high 49.375 beam, but it was not enough to overcome the Gators or the Crimson Tide. “We had to be immensely ahead at two events in order to win,” Breaux said. “We went to bars and missed a couple of landings, then went to beam and did a beautiful job. [Sophomore allarounder Lloimincia Hall] didn’t stick her dismount, and there’s the difference in the meet right there.” Sophomore all-arounder Rheagan Courville’s career-high
39.750 tied Florida freshman allarounder Bridget Sloan for the allaround title. Courville, who was recently named the SEC Gymnast of the Year, also won the vault championship with her first career perfect 10 and tied two other gymnasts for the beam title with a 9.950. “It was my first 10, and what an amazing place to have it at,” Courville said. “I’ve been working really hard at sticking my landings, and I think the awesome lineup that we have really set me up for such a good score.” Hall and freshman all-arounder Jessica Savona each boasted a 9.950 on floor to share the individual title with three other gymnasts. According to LSU Sports Information Director Jake Terry, the Tigers will most likely be selected as a No. 2 seed for one of the six regional meets April 6. The seeds will be officially announced during the NCAA Regional Selection Show at 2 p.m. today. “There was a lot of pressure out here tonight,” Breaux said. “There was a great crowd — a slew of LSU fans here, some we know and a lot we didn’t know. That just bodes well for where we are and where this program is going.” Contact Marcus Rodrigue at mrodrigue@lsureveille.com
Lady Tigers finish 34th at NCAAs Dimitri Skoumpourdis Sports Contributor
LSU freshman diver Cassie Weil earned two NCAA Honorable Mention All-American honors in the three-meter and platform events at the NCAA Women’s Championships in Indianapolis, Ind. Weil’s score of 337.50 was good for an 11th-place finish on the three-meter event and made her LSU’s eighth All-American on the three-meter and diving coach Doug Shaffer’s 14th AllAmerican. Weil finished fourth in the consolation final of the platform event with a score of 287.15 to become LSU’s 11th All-American on the platform. Weil missed qualifying for the championship final by fewer than two points in the platform and fewer than five points in the three-meter. “My congratulations go out to Cassie on her debut performance at the NCAA championships,” Shaffer said in a news release. “Although she narrowly missed the finals in two events, she leaves this championship a two-time NCAA All-American
and the highest-scoring true freshman diver at the championships.” The Lady Tigers finished 34th in the NCAA after accumulating 11 points. Georgia came away with the title for a fifth time. LSU junior swimmer Torrey Bussey also competed at the NCAA championships and swam in the 100 breastroke (1:00.45), 200 breastroke (2:02.06) and 200 individual medley (2:00.14). Bussey enjoyed a career milestone as her 21st-place finish in the 100 breast was her highest NCAA finish. The 200 medley relay team of Bussey, freshman Caley Oquist, junior Rainey White and sophomore Amber Carter came in 20th after posting a 1:38.66 during the second day of the meet. “This was a great experience for these women who will take what they learned this week and pass everything on to their teammates,” said swimming coach Dave Geyer in a news release. “I couldn’t be prouder of these five women and what they accomplished this year.”
Contact Dimitri Skoumpourdis at dskoumpourdis@lsureveille.com
The Daily Reveille
Monday, March 25, 2013
SOFTBALL
page 9
Tigers drop final game of South Carolina series
LSU wins two of three against USC Mike Gegenheimer Sports Contributor
For two days, the LSU softball team could do no wrong against South Carolina, but on the final day of the weekend series, the wheels fell off for the No. 13 Tigers. On a bright Sunday afternoon at Tiger Park, LSU couldn’t manage to get things rolling after a slow start offensively — the overarching trend of the weekend — which resulted in a 4-1 loss to the Gamecocks. The Tigers managed to win their second home series in as many weeks despite the Sunday loss, outscoring the Gamecocks 11-4 through all three games. “South Carolina came out, and you could tell right off the bat they did not want to be swept,” said freshman catcher Kellsi Kloss. “They got that run in the first inning, and normally we can come back from that — we can tell ourselves it’s not a big deal, but we just took a little too long to score. ... We felt defeated.” Kloss attributed some of the Tigers’ problems in Sunday’s game to the mentality that they
had already won the series and didn’t go in as prepared as they should have. Slow starts and mid-game adjustments were constants for LSU coach Beth Torina and her team this weekend. The Tigers failed to score a single run before the fourth inning of all three games but scored all 11 runs of the weekend in the fourth and fifth innings. “That’s part of the game,” Torina said after the team’s Saturday night game. “You’re learning information about the pitcher in your first at-bat, and things get better as you go. That’s typical that people score late in games in both baseball and softball. I think that’s pretty common.” The spark LSU couldn’t seem to find Sunday was the fourthinning home runs it produced on Friday and Saturday. In the opening game of the series, sophomore Rikki Alcaraz launched a ball over the Tiger Park fence, pushing freshman Bianka Bell across home plate. The run eventually became the game winner as LSU senior pitcher Rachele Fico recorded her eighth shutout of the season. On Saturday, Bell and junior third baseman Tammy Wray battled it out for the team’s home run leader title when Wray launched two bombs in as many innings and
MORGAN SEARLES / The Daily Reveille
LSU junior utility player Jacee Blades hits the ball Sunday during the Tigers’ 4-1 loss against South Carolina at Tiger Park. Blades finished the weekend with five hits and two RBIs as the Tigers took two of three games from the Gamecocks.
Bell had a four-bagger herself. The two ended the weekend tied for the team lead with six apiece. The typically stellar AllAmerican Fico surrendered seven hits for four runs Sunday, which resulted in her fourth loss of the season.
“She’ll be fine,” Torina said. “She doesn’t have to be perfect every time she takes the field. I know we expect her to be, but she doesn’t have to be. We’re capable of scoring enough runs to help her on a day where she doesn’t have her best stuff. We just didn’t do
it today.” LSU takes on SoutheasternLouisiana on Tuesday and Southern Alabama on Wednesday. Contact Mike Gegenheimer at mgegenheimer@lsureveille.com
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MEN’S TENNIS
The Daily Reveille
Tigers upset No. 7 Ole Miss Trey Labat Sports Contributor
The LSU men’s tennis team concluded a successful weekend Sunday afternoon, shutting out Nicholls State 7-0 after upsetting No. 7 Ole Miss on Friday. The match against Nicholls was originally supposed to be the second of a doubleheader, but the match against No. 12 Mississippi State was postponed until April 10 due to high winds. LSU got off to a hot start against Nicholls after taking the doubles point and didn’t look back as all Tiger players won in straight sets. In Friday’s match, LSU pulled off its second Southeastern Conference upset in a row, knocking off Ole Miss in a tight contest at W.T. “Dub” Robinson Stadium. The Tigers started the day strong, taking the doubles point after the combination of sophomore Chris Simpson and senior Mark Bowtell defeated the Ole Miss duo of William Kallberg and Zach Wilder. Senior Stefan Szacinski and freshman Tam Trinh pulled off the upset of the doubles matches, defeating the highly ranked Ole Miss pairing Stefan Lindmark and Johan Backstrom. While the top half of the Tigers’ singles lineup struggled — both senior Olivier Borsos and Simpson were dispatched in straight sets — the bottom of LSU’s lineup performed well in the clutch. Borsos and Simpson were bested by the No. 14 and No. 13 ranked players in the nation. Freshman Boris Arias finished off his match well after being forced into a first set tiebreaker. Arias won the second set 6-2, which tied the overall score of the match 3-3. Senior Mark Bowtell took the reins from there. Bowtell lost his first set 3-6 but battled back to take the second set 6-4. The match went into a third set tiebreaker to determine the winner, and Bowtell proved to be too much for Ole Miss’ Johan Backstrom. “Mark Bowtell’s victory has so many components to it from being out a year with the injury, and to clinch a match at this level is a real comeback,” said LSU coach Jeff Brown. “Just him coming back to the team was amazing, but for him to get back to this level is a real testament to what you can accomplish.” Ole Miss represents the highest ranked opponent LSU has beaten this season. “Friday nights have been a little crazy for us when you throw in that win over No. 11 Texas A&M with the big victory for Boris Arias and now a big victory for Mark Bowtell over No. 7 Ole Miss,” Brown said. “We’re really looking to build on this and see if we can put two together. Last time we had the big win over Texas A&M, we didn’t handle it very well, so maybe we can turn that around.” Contact Trey Labat at tlabat@lsureveille.com
CONNOR TARTER / The Daily Reveille
LSU senior Stefan Szacinski goes to return a serve Friday during the Tigers’ doubles match against the Ole Miss Rebels in W.T “Dub” Robinson Stadium. Szacinski and freshman Tam Trinh defeated Ole Miss in the doubles matches.
3-22 ANSWERS
Monday, March 25, 2013
Monday, March 25, 2013 UPSETS, from page 7
losing 64-58. Western Kentucky led Kansas at the half before the Jayhawks rallied in the second half for a 64-57 win. Teams who want to compete to win national championships have to recruit the top players. To get those high-profile recruits, coaches have to sell them on immediate playing time and a chance to compete for a national championship. The one-and-done rule has leveled the playing field significantly. It’s no coincidence that in the past decade, two teams have won a national title and not made the NCAA Tournament field the next season. Kentucky started three freshmen and two sophomores on its national championship team a season ago. Where are they now? All five were taken in the 2012 NBA draft. The trend isn’t going to stop any time soon. Kentucky already has six of the top 18 recruits in the 2013 recruiting class, according to ESPN.com. You can’t blame Kentucky coach John Calipari for working the system. He gets big-time
SWEEP, from page 7
and I just needed to find a pitch I could drive, and I got the pitch and got the job done,” Chinea said. “Any at-bat you can get, you’ve got to take advantage of it.” While the LSU hitters thrived at the plate, sophomore southpaw Cody Glenn (4-1) dominated on the mound. After a slow start that
players to come to Lexington for two things: to win a national championship and to get groomed for the NBA. That’s all fine and dandy for the big college programs that can sell playing on the big stage night-in and night-out like Kentucky, Kansas and Duke. But the little guys are starting to use the one-and-done rule to their advantage as well. When lesser-known recruits are passed on by power conference programs, smaller schools like Harvard and Florida Gulf Coast are able to pick them up. Even if players commit to a bigger school, when they don’t receive the playing time promised, they bolt for somewhere else to shine. When No. 15 Lehigh stunned No. 2 Duke 75-70 during last year’s madness, Mountain Hawks guard C.J. McCollum dropped 30 on the Blue Devils. “They had the best player on the court tonight,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said after the loss. “He’s really one of the outstanding players in the country. You can see why tonight.” Coaches at prominent basketball programs will be saying resulted in a run for Auburn, Glenn found his groove, inducing double-play balls and escaping jams over seven-and-two-thirds innings of work. He surrendered two runs on six hits and struck out two before being relieved by junior right-hander Will LaMarche with two outs in the top of the eighth inning. Glenn’s stint on the mound was the longest by any LSU starter so far in the 2013 campaign.
opportunities on the mound as we can so that he’s feeling his release Until he gets his debut on the point and feeling comfortable mound, he’ll continue to help No. with locating his stuff.” Dunn, like the other coaches, 7 LSU’s (22-2, 5-1 SEC) winning was unaware of Sewald’s unique record in any way he can. “If that’s giving pump-up role in giving the postgame speeches, then I’m gonna do it,” speeches, but said it takes every player on the team contributing to Sewald said. Sewald, who attended Arch- make everything work. Whether bishop Rummel High School in it’s keeping a chart, observing the Metairie, is one of LSU’s five other team or building up a teamfreshman pitchers, but the other mate, it’s all important. “You know, if you’re not four have all seen time on the mound under the lights of Alex pitching or having been in the heat of the battle, Box Stadium. ‘There’s a lot of things there’s something Even as he can do over watches all of his that you can do that’s you here in the dugteammates play, out,” Dunn said. going to benefit Sewald maintains “There’s a lot of a wide grin. He’s this team.’ things that you keeping patient can do that’s gowith the trainAlan Dunn ing to benefit this ing process as he LSU pitching coach team.” comes back from “He’s going to get his opporinjuries in his foot and shoulder. “In the spring, I was locat- tunity,” Dunn said. “Obviously ing the ball pretty well,” Sewald patience and timing are the key.” LSU coach Paul Mainieri said. “After I came back from my injury, it just wasn’t as sharp. My and Dunn will evaluate Sewald’s curveball wasn’t nearly as good, progress in the bullpen and play him at the appropriate time. Unso I had to develop that again.” LSU pitching coach Alan til then, fans won’t find Sewald Dunn said Sewald isn’t having shining on the mound but instead problems, he just needs more time inspiring his the teammates to throw the strikeouts and hit the on the mound. “He kind of got behind from home runs. a health standpoint,” Dunn said. Contact Catherine Threlkeld at “So we’re trying to play catch-up a little bit and get him as many cthrelkeld@lsureveille.com
SPEECH, from page 7
The Daily Reveille
page 11
MATT SLOCUM / The Associated Press
Florida Gulf Coast’s Sherwood Brown celebrates with fans during the final minute of a second-round game against No. 2 seed Georgetown in the NCAA college basketball tournament on Friday in Philadelphia. No. 15 seed Florida Gulf Coast won, 78-68.
that more often as lower-profile schools keep racking up talented players who are committed to competing for four years, not just one. I’m usually in huge opposition to the one-and-done rule, but it makes the tournament more exciting. No one tunes in the first two days of the tourney to see
the top seeds trample over the lower ones. Upsets drive ratings. More Davids taking down Goliaths are exactly what you can come to expect with future tournaments. If the one-and-done rule remains in place, lesserknown schools will continue to make these kinds of memorable upsets in the Big Dance.
It might not happen next year, but within the next five, No. 16 will take down No. 1.
“It’s no secret what [Glenn] has to do to be successful,” Mainieri said. “He’s got to pitch down in the zone, and he’s got to let his sinker work, but he’s got to throw it over the plate for a strike. He made some good pitches, and I think he kind of got his confidence up when we turned those double plays.” Glenn recovered nicely Sunday after suffering his first loss of the season a weekend prior
against Mississippi State. The Bulldogs tagged Glenn for six runs on six hits in only three-andone-third innings of work. “It feels really good [to beat Auburn],” Glenn said. “All week, I had a bad taste in my mouth, and this is what I needed to get it out. I felt a lot more comfortable on the mound [on Sunday]. After the first two innings, I was able to settle in and trust my pitches and throw them
with confidence and get ground balls, which is what I want to do.” The sweep came after LSU won Friday’s contest 9-4 and Saturday’s game 5-1.
Micah Bedard is a 22-year-old history senior from Houma.
Contact Micah Bedard at mbedard@lsureveille.com
Contact Lawrence Barreca at lbarreca@lsureveille.com; Twitter: @LawrenceBarreca
The Daily Reveille
Opinion
page 12
Monday, March 25, 2013
Racism still major issue at La. Queer Conference SHUT UP, MEG MEGAN DUNBAR Columnist Though it’s the 21st century, racism was still a factor of conversation during the State of the Movement Panel’s discussion at the Louisiana Queer Conference hosted by Spectrum. That’s right, racism was still the No. 1 equality issue in Louisiana — at an LGBT conference. It’s a difficulty facing many members of the LGBT community who are also of historically oppressed races. Tim West, president of Equality Louisiana and panel member, spoke up in response to a question about racism in the community, claiming he was “colorblind,” framing it in well-meaning words about humans being on the same playing field. A man in the audience immediately corrected him, saying erasing race is almost as bad as being racist in the first place, in that no one would take into account another person’s background and potential racial struggles while interacting. By stripping away race, you lose identity. And not many play on the same field, even now. When applying to college, there was that one guy milking his one-48th Native American heritage for a scholarship, and Caucasian males struggled to stand out from one another. Because in our society, we still have the play between the privileged and not. To the privileged, it’s no one’s fault. If you grew up in
WEB COMMENTS The Daily Reveille wants to hear your reactions to our content. Go to lsureveille.com, our Facebook page and our Twitter account to let us know what you think. Check out what other readers had to say in our comments section: In response to The Editorial Board’s column, “‘…Please don’t make this dramatic,’” readers wrote: “Since I cannot get anything
MORGAN SEARLES / The Daily Reveille
The Louisiana Queer Conference, hosted by LSU organization Spectrum, met Saturday in Coates Hall to discuss current human rights issues, where racial inequality was determined to be one of the foremost problems in Louisiana’s society.
Louisiana, you grew up in a stratified society. No matter how many times your teachers played “Remember the Titans” during testing week, the white kids went home to white neighborhoods, and the black kids went home to black neighborhoods. That’s just the way the world worked — and still does, to a point. No one asked to be born the race or class they are; arbitrary birth is not a good way to classify people, and complacency in the face of this is
not a good way to promote true equality. Yes, no one asked you to be born white and middle class or black and upper class or Hispanic and lower class. No, that doesn’t mean you should accept it and move on. That’s not how the world should work. Race exists. The person sitting next to you doesn’t live the same life as you do, guaranteed. They could be bisexual, transgender, gay or straight and you
wouldn’t know. They could have a black father and an Indian mother, or their parents could be able to trace their blood back to Oklahoma for generations. Instead of taking away race and history, we need to learn about others, promote a balance amongst all backgrounds regardless of skin tone, sexual orientation and everything else unfairly discriminated against. The sooner we can foster a Southern society that doesn’t
of substance out of the Reveille, I will have to deal with the suppositions that I have been able to piece together from quoted comments, rumor, etc. Let me first ask why Woodard was reluctant to swear into the UCourt hearing? Did he really perjure himself? Were there really phonied up receipts created and presented to the UCourt? For the Reveille staff, you have either been very lazy in your reporting or you hold a bias in this election. I cannot think of another reason for the absolute lack of specifics.
For the UCourt, I am thoroughly confused by your actions. Mostly because there have not been any specifics released to explain your rulings. What rule was broken that warrants another election but doesn’t warrant a disqualification? Seems to me that anything that would warrant a second election would be serious enough to warrant a disqualification. For those students who have not bothered to become involved or even vote, shame on you for letting your voice go unheard. You cannot effect change by
remaining a spectator.” - Sam_I_Am
The Daily Reveille Editorial Board
Andrea Gallo Emily Herrington Bryan Stewart Kirsten Romaguera Clayton Crockett Chris Grillot
Editor in Chief Managing Editor Managing Editor, External Media Managing Editor, Production News Editor Opinion Editor
“Buying in bulk does not provide a 60% discount. After looking into banner costs I found no prices comparable. I do find it interesting that Unite presented one quote lower than what they paid but this quote was from a fraternity brother in Coushatta who designs apps and does GIS mapping. On their website they state they can print maps up to 44” wide. They do not advertise anywhere as a banner making company. They can’t make
Editorial Policies & Procedures
The Daily Reveille (USPS 145-800) is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Daily Reveille is an independent entity within the Manship School of Mass Communication. Signed opinions are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the editor, paper or University. Letters submitted for publication should be sent via e-mail to opinion@lsureveille.com or delivered to B-26 Hodges Hall. They must be 400 words or less. Letters must have a contact phone number so the opinion editor can verify the author. The phone number won’t be printed. The Daily Reveille reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for space consideration without changing the original intent. The Daily Reveille also reserves the right to reject any letter without notification of the author. Writers must include their full names and phone numbers. The Daily Reveille’s editor-in-chief, hired every semester by the Louisiana State University Media Board, has final authority on all editorial decisions.
have a need to view everyone as a similar shade of gray, the better off we will be. It’s a little sad we still need to have this conversation in 2013. Thank goodness the rest of the country is 20 or 30 years ahead of the South in terms of equality. All we have to do is catch up. Here’s a fact: In 2004, Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco banned discrimination based on sexual orientation for state employees. In 2008, Gov. Bobby Jindal rescinded this order, ending that protection. Members of the LGBT community can be fired for their natural state — fired from work not based on merit or work ethic, but because of the people they love. Is this OK? Is this something Louisiana, an upstanding society full of wonderful people who make the best food in the nation, should condone? Like it or not, silence allows this sort of action to continue. So speak up. Attend the next Louisiana Queer Conference and participate in discussion. Learn about the community of which you are a part. Sure, you may be a college student just passing through, but that doesn’t mean you can’t leave Louisiana a little better than when you came. Megan Dunbar is a 19-year-old English junior from Greenville, S.C.
Contact Megan Dunbar at mdunbar@lsureveille.com; Twitter: @TDR_MDunbar banners that are 7.5 by 8.5 feet wide. This is an outright lie. T shirt prices were not called into question but the lowest I could find is almost $10 for 100 shirts. Also curious as to how Woodard can be in 3 places at one time but that isn’t in question.” - Wgille2
Contact The Daily Reveille’s opinion staff at opinion@lsureveille.com; Twitter: @TDR_opinion
Quote of the Day “I used to work at a puppy nursery.”
Channing Tatum American actor April 26, 1980 — Present
The Daily Reveille
Monday, March 25, 2013
Opinion
page 13
I’m now embarrassed to be a previous SG member THE PICKUP PERSPECTIVE JOHN PARKER FORD Columnist I’ve had excellent experiences in LSU Student Government. At the end of my freshman year, Stuart Watkins appointed me to be an executive aide in his administration. I became an executive assistant the year after that as a member of J Hudson’s senior staff. My work and positive experiences in those first two years led to my application for and acceptance to chief of staff in Cody Wells’ administration. Though SG has never done a great job with everything, we did a few things well, and I’m proud of that. I could always justify the amount of time and energy I put into the organization by looking at those admittedly few things we did that made a difference in students’ lives. Having said that, if I were at the end of my freshman year now (similar to how I was when I applied for Watkins’ staff), I would not only avoid SG, but talk about how stupid it is and spend copious amounts of time coming up with clever jokes about those involved. Now, a lot of people involved in SG and the election(s) this year are friends of mine. They’re good people, so I want to make it clear that this column shouldn’t be taken personally. Just rationally.
SG and its processes are now a joke. We saw what happened during the first election. John Woodard beat T Graham S. Howell by more than 1,000 votes. There was initially a question of whether he severely violated the election code in doing so. That issue was looked into and resolved by the University Court, which decided he did not violate the code. According to Dean of Students K.C. White, the court’s findings are final. At least they are the second time around. For shady reasons no one can understand, White and the current leaders of SG determined the method of filing complaints and going through the court was not adequate in this situation. One wonders why. There is a strict process in place for this type of thing: someone notices something wrong, so he or she gathers evidence and files a complaint within two days. It is up to that person to provide all relevant evidence within the amount of time during that court hearing. What we’re experiencing is a case of double jeopardy. Even if we were to find out after the court case that Woodard blared Skrillex in the Quad (which is illegal) to call attention to a dog he was campaigning with (also specifically forbidden by the election code) in an attempt to attract college girls to offer sexual favors in exchange for votes (not specifically illegal in the code, but one can assume),
MORGAN SEARLES / The Daily Reveille
Taylor Parks (left) and John Woodard (right) of Unite LSU wait for Student Government election results on March 14.
it would be irrelevant because the established window had passed. And furthermore, what does the establishment of a second election mean for future elections and presidential power? The election process should be completely separate from anyone sitting in one of the three branches. Does this mean future presidents have the power to cancel or delay elections? SG will scream “No,” but why not? Also, the candidates have
been told to campaign only through social media. This opens both candidates to a myriad of potential complaints. What happens if a student wears a ticket’s T-shirt Monday? Is that grounds for a complaint? Or maybe even another election? If students think the number of court cases so far has been bad, I can’t wait to see how many more we have after this election. I kept my mouth shut during the campaigns. I kept my mouth
shut during the elections. I kept my mouth shut during the trials, too, but I can’t do it any longer. All of this stinks. It’s putrid. It smells like corruption. And SG isn’t important enough to be corrupt. John Parker Ford is a 22-year-old mass communication senior from Alexandria. Contact John Parker Ford at jford@lsureveille.com; Twitter: @JohnParkerFord
GUEST COLUMN
Former SG president, VP weigh in on elections Stuart LeJeune Watkins and Martina Scheuermann We know some are going to read this and think, “These two people need to move on.” And there’s some truth to that. For those who know us, we often like to poke fun at ourselves. So, if you can’t find the humor in some of this, stop reading now. Student Government is obviously a different organization from what it was three years ago, and we think you need to “check yo-self before you wreck yoself!” And some may think that has already happened. At any rate, you know the saying “Nice guys finish last”? We think that’s completely false. And how do we know this? Because we ran a campaign in 2009 that focused on promoting our initiatives and getting our people elected without worrying about every little thing the other
tickets were doing. We won. Yeah, we know what’s up. Sometimes we read The Daily Reveille, and happenings inevitably take over social media. It’s concerning as alumni of the University and Student Government to see students abuse the power they have as elected officials. Whether it’s hiding your voting records from Senate meetings or disregarding the student voice in any form, there’s no place for that type of behavior in any publicly funded organization. To be frank: In the real world, that doesn’t fly. So, LSU student body, choose wisely today. As a reminder, people outside of this university are watching (and it’s not just past members of Student Government). When you do these sorts of things, your actions affect your own reputation, the reputation of the entire student body and the
University as a whole. This is the chance for the newly elected individuals and all current members of SG to make things right. University administrators, you’re also part of this conversation. To the new adviser: We understand the job can be tough. Here are a few thoughts: First thing, as we’re sure you already figured out, it’s important to get to know every member of the organization — not just the ones in the highest leadership positions. Most often, the direct representation of the student body comes from the students who are the least involved. Hey, we were students once. We got amped up about our ideas and mini-missions, but sometimes you gotta rein us in. Secondly, know the governing documents inside and out, because at some point, some punk
is going to try to find a loophole and use it to his or her advantage. In some cases, it may not be ethical, though the documents allow it. Hear them out, but ask them to truly consider the consequences of their behavior before they jump to action. “Is it really worth it? The Reveille is always watching!” Oh, yeah. If for any reason, there’s a discrepancy over the definition of fair market value, go down to the College of Business and ask someone — anyone. (Aren’t they ranked as one of the top academic programs in the country? Yeah, they are.) To the system president designate: We’ve heard great things about you and look forward to meeting you one day. But really, get to know the students and work with them — regularly. This is the fastest way to learn about and understand the pulse of this campus. Genius? We know.
This organization has a strong place at LSU with a great deal of responsibility; it would be to your advantage to collaborate often. In closing, Student Government is a great “résumé builder,” but we use that term lightly. The title only lasts for one year, and you can’t take it with you — ask us or any other alum. The only things you have to stand on after your term in office are your reputation and your integrity. Consider that. Stuart LeJeune Watkins and Martina Scheuermann served as Student Government president and vice president from 2009-10. Contact The Daily Reveille’s opinion staff at opinion@lsureveille.com; Twitter: @TDR_opinion
The Daily Reveille
page 14
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The Daily Reveille
Monday, March 25, 2013 RE-ENACTMENT, from page 1 A ragtag group of Southern soldiers loaded a cannon facing the onslaught of Union troops who were slowly gaining ground. A Confederate officer raised his arm into the air as the cannoneers covered their ears. “Fire,” he yelled. The shock from the cannon blast was immediate and could be felt as the ground shook and white smoke was carried into the wind. A few Union soldiers dropped to the ground and a taunt from the Confederates – “Come on, Yanks” – sent the Union troops further into disarray. The crowd shouted as Confederates blasted a volley of rifle fire into the group of Federals until the battlefield was littered with Union bodies. The Southerners had taken the day. The re-enactment this year commemorated the 150th anniversary of the siege of Port Hudson, and the events continued into Sunday. The grounds of Port Hudson were scattered with white tents that would have been a common sight in the area during the siege, and patrons donning 19th century clothing walked the park’s grounds, visiting booths and conversing with members of the crowd. The re-enactment serves to educate the public about the last Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River during the Civil War, which, according to Port Hudson curator Michael Fraering, is a lesser known part of history.
RICHARD REDMANN / The Daily Reveille
Union artillery fires toward the Confederate troops Saturday during the re-enactment of the seige of Port Hudson at the Port Hudson State Historic Site.
“Port Hudson is not well known because you’re talking about the same time historically as the siege of Vicksburg and the Battle of Gettysburg,” he said. “This was the longest siege in American military history. There have been longer battles, longer campaigns — but this was a siege. When the Federals came up and surrounded the rebs here, there was no getting out, no getting in. The rebs in here had to fight with what they had, who they had, for 48 days.” University students also took part in the events this weekend, dressed in authentic 19th century clothing to perform a duel for the crowd. History junior Andrew Delatte and political science, international studies and history junior John Ryan McGehee portrayed a duo who agreed to a pistol duel. McGehee and Delatte stood
back to back and waited for action as re-enactor Ryan Southall gave the crowd various facts about the history of dueling. The duelers walked 10 paces, turned and fired shots while the crowd cheered and clapped as McGehee fell to the ground. The students, along with microbiology sophomore Evan Rivere, also portrayed a Union medical group that tended to the wounded during the re-enactment. Shane Marks traveled to Port Hudson from Lafayette to spend the weekend re-enacting like he has done for the past 10 years, portraying a Union soldier. The movie “Glory” got Marks interested in the Civil War, and he said he has been hooked since his first time participating in a re-enactment. Many of the re-enactors don’t know what exactly is going to happen on the field, Marks said, and
page 15 the commanding officers control much of the soldiers’ movements while in battle. Figuring out who dies, when and where, is something that happens arbitrarily, Marks said. “If someone points directly at you and shoots, you usually fall down,” he said. “[You] take a hit and try not to move for as long as you can.” The interesting history doesn’t stop with Port Hudson museum officials or the museum inside the ground’s buildings – some visitors to the re-enactment held their own unique stories. Charlene Berger visited Port Hudson on Saturday with her children and husband. This was the family’s first time at a re-enactment, and Berger said they wanted to bring their children to experience something that was special to their own family’s history. Berger’s family lineage contains strong ties to the ground she was standing on, as one of her anscestors, Confederate officer Robert Leggett Pruyn, played a pivotal role in the siege. According to Berger, Pruyn swam the Mississippi River twice during the siege to get help and send information to Confederate soldiers on the other side of the river in Pointe Coupee Parish, which was a major contribution to the battle. Pruyn went on to serve as the mayor of Baton Rouge in the early 20th century, she said, and is buried in the Baton Rouge National Cemetery. An estimated 700 re-enactors
participated this year because of the significance of the 150th anniversary of the siege, Fraering said, but re-enactors from across the South usually flock to Port Hudson each year because of the milder weather. “This time of year is a good time of year for us weather-wise, and it’s a good time for re-enactors,” he said. “You go a little further north [and] they have much colder weather. So, Civil War reenactors who want to participate in a program actually gravitate to the deeper South.” Jim Hogg, a musician from Baton Rouge, held a booth at the reenactment where he sold Civil War bullets in customized wooden boxes. He and his son, James Linden Hogg, performed a musical event for the crowd Saturday, as well. Hogg strummed an acoustic guitar while Linden used a 230-year-old violin to create a song one would have heard during the late 19th century. The family participated in the event, camping in one of the various white tents all weekend and cooking over a fire, to relive the rich history of the region, something Hogg said many of the reenactors are present for. “We don’t glory in the warfare,” Hogg said. “We want to be a record of living history, good and bad. We want to play our own part.”
Contact Jonathan Olivier at jolivier@lsureveille.com
page 16
The Daily Reveille
Monday, March 25, 2013