AWAY GAME GUIDE
SPORTS
Hightower leaves legacy on team before graduation, page 7.
Check out lsureveille.com for a list of activities in Tuscaloosa and information about the Tide.
THE DAILY REVEILLE WWW.LSUREVEILLE.COM
Volume 114, Issue 50
FACEBOOK ALLOWS FAMILY, FRIENDS TO ‘MEMORIALIZE’ PROFILES OF DECEASED By Mary Walker Baus Staff Writer
When Dustin “DC” Clemons, 20-year-old thenmass communication sophomore, was struck and killed by a car as he walked across Nicholson Drive on April 16, 2005, the University community mourned his death. His funeral service was standing room only as people gathered together to cry, laugh and remember Clemons. Clemons had many friends before his death, and thanks to Facebook, more University students were able to connect with the his family after his passing. Facebook has taken note of users’ connections to deceased loved ones, and last month the socialnetworking giant changed its policy to allow family members to “memorialize” accounts, or
set profiles to have increased privacy measures while still allowing users to express grief and memories. “Myself and [Clemons’] family and friends find comfort in being able to visit his page and see the funny and endearing messages,” said Kevin Brown, one of Clemons’ close friends and president of Dustin’s Cause, a nonprofit organization dedicated to pedestrian safety issues. “It’s powerful in the sense of creating a lasting memory. Facebook is not the end-all-be-all, but it is an avenue ... to relive memories of him, his sense of humor and his personality displayed on his Facebook profile.” Clemons had 990 FACEBOOK, see page 15
photo by MEGAN J. WILLIAMS / The Daily Reveille
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
CRIME
Student arrested in alleged rape
By Kyle Bove Senior Staff Writer
A University transfer student from the United Kingdom was arrested over the weekend for allegedly raping a woman multiple times on campus. Simon Taylor, 20, reportedly raped the woman in a portable restroom and in his ‘If nobody dorm room in LeJeune Hall, reports it, according to then that’s Sgt. Jason Betwhy [a tencourtt of the rapist] is LSU Police Department. ... available The attacks happened to do this early Sunday again.’ morning, BetJudy Benitez tencourtt said. LFASA executive director Police did not release further information about the woman, including whether she is a student or her age. Bettencourtt said the woman had an alcoholic beverage with Taylor at a bar before the attacks. The woman went to LSUPD on Sunday to report the crime. “It is very good that she reported it,” said Judy Benitez, executive director of the Louisiana ASSAULT, see page 16
ENVIRONMENT
New project aims to reduce dining hall food waste Refuse down 140 pounds since start By Brianna Paciorka Contributing Writer
Being green can be as easy as cleaning your plate. LSU Dining introduced Project Clean Plate at The 459 Commons last month to promote student awareness concerning food waste. The project aims to reduce uneaten food by having students bring clean plates to the tray returner at the
‘‘
‘You can eat all you want. Just eat what you get.’ David Heidke
LSU Dining director
dining hall and to reduce waste by 20 percent for the week of Nov. 9 to 13. “[Food waste] is something that happens often at all-you-can-eat places, such as The 459 Commons,”
said David Heidke, LSU Dining director. “You can eat all you want. Just eat what you get.” Heidke said food waste has declined from 768 pounds to 628 pounds since the start of Project Clean Plate. “This is the first time we’ve approached [reducing food waste] this way,” Heidke said. “We decided to try 20 percent because we didn’t have history on this, and it looks like we’ll pass our goals.” LSU Dining will donate food to the Baton Rouge Food Bank if WASTE, see page 16
BRIANNA PACIORKA / The Daily Reveille
Students eat dinner Monday at 459 Commons near a Project Clean Plate sign. The new project aims to reduce the University’s food waste by about 20 percent.
THE DAILY REVEILLE
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009
Nation & World
INTERNATIONAL
NATIONAL
North Korea claims to expand arsenal of atomic bombs
Obama coaxes states to change with school stimulus dollars
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea claimed Tuesday that it has successfully weaponized more plutonium for atomic bombs, a day after warning Washington to agree quickly to direct talks or face the prospect of a growing North Korean nuclear arsenal.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Using stimulus dollars as bait, President Barack Obama is coaxing states to rewrite education laws and cut deals with unions as they compete for $5 billion in school reform grants, the most money a president has ever promised for overhauling schools. And it may end up going to only a few states. In Wisconsin, where Obama will visit Wednesday, lawmakers are poised to change a law to boost their state’s chances. Nine other states have taken similar steps.
Lennon’s family donates peace recording proceeds to UN UNITED NATIONS (AP) — John Lennon’s widow and two sons are donating the proceeds from the 40th anniversary release of the hit “Give Peace a Chance” to a U.N. peacebuilding fund used to help countries emerging from conflict, the fund announced Tuesday. Chile’s U.N. Ambassador Heraldo Munoz, who chairs the U.N. Peacebuilding Commission which oversees the fund, praised Yoko Ono, Sean Lennon and Julian Lennon for their decision.
Detainees in NYC post- Sept. 11 reach $1.26M settlement NEW YORK (AP) — Five immigrant men who were detained in roundups in New York and eventually deported following the Sept. 11 attacks have reached a $1.26 million settlement with the U.S. government.
The men were part of a lawsuit against the government over the roundups that put them in federal detention and the abuse they say they suffered while they were there. Two other plaintiffs are still part of the lawsuit. The center notified the court Monday of the settlement. DC sniper asks Supreme Court to block execution WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorneys for John Allen Muhammad, mastermind of the 2002 sniper attacks in the Washington, D.C., area that left 10 dead, asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to stop his execution. The 48-year-old Muhammad is scheduled to die by injection on Nov. 10 at a Virginia prison. In court papers, his attorneys say the execution should be put off while the court considers whether his trial lawyer was ineffective. Muhammad is also suspected of fatal shootings in other states.
PAGE 2
STATE/LOCAL
Twelve day care center licenses revoked by Social Services
LSU curator gets $520,000 to study family tree of cichlids
(AP) — Twelve day care centers have lost their state operating licenses because of safety concerns, the state Department of Social Services announced Tuesday, as it wrapped up a new round of inspections. The department began inspections in September of all statelicensed day care centers around Louisiana that had previously revoked licenses or recorded deficiencies. DSS Secretary Kristy Nichols said the 12 centers that lost their licenses didn’t correct past violations and posed “a serious threat to the safety of the children.” “Because they were repeatoffenders that failed to take corrective action after being cited for serious violations, it was imperative that these centers be closed,” Nichols said in a statement. The centers won’t be able to reapply for a new license for two years.
(AP) — The LSU Museum of Natural Sciences’ top fish specialist has won a half-million-dollar grant to study the family tree of fish called heroine cichlids. Ichthyology curator Prosanta Chakrabarty says the $520,000 grant from the National Science Foundation will help him do a great deal of work unraveling the cichlid family.
TODAY ON
lsureveille com
Six deaths last week bring H1N1 toll to 30; more vaccines arriving (AP) — The state Department of Health and Hospitals says Louisiana’s swine flu death toll is now at 30, with six deaths related to the virus in the past week. Four — two boys and two women — were in the seven-parish Lafayette area. The other two are a boy from the five-parish Lake Charles area and a woman from the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain.
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THURSDAY Last BSU General Body Meeting November 4, 2009 @ 5:30 p.m. in the AACC
ONGOING IN NOVEMBER BSU Presents the 2009 Fall Gala: “A Sophisticated Night in Harlem” Friday, Nov. 6 @ 7-11pm in the Student Union Cotillian Ballroom The Eta Kappa Chapter of Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. CANapalloza! Homecoming Can Drive Nov. 4th - Nov. 10th Cans can be dropped off @ the AACC for more info contact xleon1@lsu.edu COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009 Engr. Majors Please join us for the 16th Annual LES Jambalaya Dinner 6pm South Courtyard of Patrick F. Taylor “Engineering Your Future” seminar @ 5pm 1119 PFT Event is FREE and a great career enhancement opportunity
DO YOU HAVE AN OCCURRENCE? Call Andrew at the Student Media Office 578-6090, 9AM- 5PM or E-mail: officemanager@lsureveille.com
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Log on to lsureveille.com to see photos of the Spanish Club practicing dances for the Spanish Open House on Thursday.
CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS
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THE DAILY REVEILLE
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009
Campus Crime Briefs STUDENT ARRESTED ON DRUG CHARGES A 21-year-old University student was arrested Wednesday, Oct. 28, on eight counts of illegal manufacture or distribution of Schedule I drugs, among other charges. LSU Police Department officers arrested Clarkson Hibbert, of 5941 Green Tree Road, Houston, Texas, after it was reported he altered a prescription from the Student Health Center to allow for more refills, said Capt. Russell Rogé, LSUPD spokesman. Officers arrived at Hibbert’s residence at 2826 Zeeland Ave. in Baton Rouge on Wednesday night. Hibbert gave officers permission to
search his home, where they found and collected 13.2 pounds of marijuana, codeine cough syrup, Xanax pills and an unregistered firearm, Rogé said. Hibbert was arrested on charges of possession of Schedule II drugs, possession of Schedule IV drugs, possession of drug paraphernalia, the illegal manufacture or distribution of Schedule I drugs and illegal possession of a firearm. He was booked in East Baton Rouge Parish Prison. STUDENT ARRESTED FOR MARIJUANA POSSESSION An 18-year-old University
student was arrested Oct. 26 at about 8:30 p.m. for simple possession of marijuana. LSUPD received a complaint about the smell of marijuana coming from a room in Herget Hall. Officers arrived at the room, where its resident, William Charbonnet, of 1520 Palm St., Metairie, turned over a cellophane bag filled with about 5.4 grams of marijuana, Rogé said. Charbonnet was issued a misdemeanor summons and released for simple possession of marijuana.
MAN ARRESTED AFTER TRYING TO STEAL SOCKS An 18-year-old man unaffiliated with the University was arrested Oct. 31 at about 1 p.m. for shoplifting. LSUPD received a complaint about a man trying to steal a pair of socks from the LSU Bookstore. When officers arrived, they arrested Christian Laborde, of 22816 Chene Blanc Lane, Maurepas, La., for shoplifting. Officers discov-
LEGISLATURE
Rape victim confronts Vitter By Kyle Bove Senior Staff Writer
Jennie Waldrop, animal, dairy and poultry sciences senior, was raped on Nov. 21, 2005. With the help of her attorney, a rape crisis adviser and friends, her attacker is now behind bars in Angola Prison, where he is serving a life sentence without the chance of parole. “I have felt very blessed to have received the resources that I have,” Waldrop, 30, said. “I think that every victim, man or woman, out there, deserves no less than what I received.” Waldrop said Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) was wrong in voting against an amendment that would prevent the government from working with contractors that prohibit victims of rape or assault from bringing their cases to court. Louisiana’s other U.S. Senator, Democrat Mary Landrieu, voted in favor of the amendment. The amendment to the Defense Appropriations Bill, authored by Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.), stems from a case in which former KBR/ Halliburton employee Jamie Lee Jones claimed co-workers drugged and gang raped her in 2005. Jones signed a contract includ-
ing a mandatory arbitration clause, which means any legal dispute must be settled out of court with a third party, when she began working there. Vitter, along with 29 other male Republican senators, voted against the government prohibiting such clauses. Waldrop confronted Vitter about his decision after a town-hall meeting in Baton Rouge on Saturday. A YouTube video of the conversation has garnered more than 100,000 views. “I was able to put the person who attacked me in prison,” she told Vitter in the video. “And what allowed me to do that was our judicial process.” Vitter told Waldrop he was supportive of any case like hers being prosecuted criminally to the full extent of the law. He said the language of the law was not worded how she interpreted it, and
President Barack Obama was also against the amendment. Waldrop, in a conference call organized by the Louisiana Democratic Party, told reporters Tuesday she still wants to know why Vitter voted against the legislation. She also said she wants an apology from Vitter for his on-camera actions. Waldrop said her rape adviser contacted her about going to the town-hall meeting and confronting Vitter and told her the state’s Democratic Party was looking for a rape survivor to be represented during the meeting. Franken’s amendment passed in the Senate 68-30 last month. Calls to Vitter’s Washington, D.C., office and the Louisiana GOP were not returned before press time. Contact Kyle Bove at kbove@lsureveille.com
ered he had torn the tag off a pair of socks and put it in his book bag, Rogé said. Laborde was issued a misdemeanor summons and released. TWO MEN ARRESTED FOR PUBLIC INTOXICATION Two men unaffiliated with the University were arrested Oct. 31 during tailgating festivities before the Tulane game for disturbing the peace by public intoxication. LSUPD received a complaint that two men — Peter Bonin, 50, of 16017 Highway 102, Jennings, La., and Arron Hoffpauir, 46, of 511 E. Third St., Jennings, La. — had crashed a group’s tailgate in the parking lot of the Vet School, broken their TV and tried to start fights with several people, Rogé
PAGE 3 said. When a security guard arrived at about 6:40 p.m. and asked the two to leave, they pushed him and left, Rogé said. Officers later found Bonin and Hoffpauir, who appeared to be extremely intoxicated, walking near the same parking lot, Rogé said. Bonin tried to prevent officers from putting handcuffs on him, but he and Hoffpauir were eventually brought to LSUPD and were later booked in EBR Parish Prison for disturbing the peace by public intoxication. Bonin was also arrested on charges of resisting arrest.
Contact The Daily Reveille’s news staff at news@lsureveille.com
THE DAILY REVEILLE
PAGE 4
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009
ARTS
Sigma Gamma Rho hosts contest for student poets By Emily Holden Contributing Writer
Poets covered life lessons from love and hate to religion and personal struggles for a crowd of about 70 students at the Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc. open mic and poetry slam Tuesday night. The Gamma Pi chapter of the sorority hosted the event at 7:22 p.m. in the LSU Student Union’s Magnolia Room. Kristen Lonon, chapter president, said the poetry slam is one of several events planned for Sigma Gamma Rho week. She said the sorority scheduled the event to begin at the unusual time to represent the sorority’s founding year, 1922. Lonon said the sorority started to organize open mic nights a few semesters ago after noticing an increase in student interest in the events, which were previously uncommon on campus. Je’da McGlothan, business freshman and one of three student judges for the poetry slam, said open mic nights allow students to express talents without restrictions. “You can just be yourself,” McGlothan said. “The love you feel after you go up and perform is just crazy.” Darek Jackson, political science junior, performed at the chapter’s first two open mic nights. Jackson said he didn’t prepare material for the poetry slam but felt comfortable free-styling. He said the success of a poetry slam depends on the atmosphere of the audience. “If it’s a lame crowd, it’s kind of like you’re in your underwear in front of your third grade class,” Jackson said, though the crowd maintained high enthusiasm during this year’s event. Nakia Thomas, communication studies senior, won the poetry slam and received an $87 gift card to Wal-Mart — which represents the sorority’s 87-year anniversary, Lonon said. Although the University chapter of the sorority consists of only six members, Lonon said those few participants worked hard to plan a week of events. “Our numbers shouldn’t affect how we perform as a chapter,” Lonon said. The Sigma Gamma Rho week
‘‘
‘If it’s a lame crowd, it’s ... like you’re in your underwear in front of your third grade class.’ Darek Jackson
political science junior theme is “The Glamorhous Life.” Lonon said the sorority is teaming up with mark. Cosmetics Inc. to offer free make-overs and makeup application tips at 7:22 p.m. on Wednesday in the East Campus Apartments activity center. She said the group also planned a body image workshop
for men and women with a representative from the Student Health Center at 6:22 p.m. Friday in the ECA activity center. The sorority chose the workshop topic because body image affects individuals’ opinions of themselves, Lonon said. “A lot of females have a negative view of themselves,” Lonon said. She said the sorority hopes the workshops will help students cultivate positive body images. “We’re really about being real,” Lonon said. “I don’t feel like I have to be anything other than what I am in this sorority.” SHAINA HUNTSBERRY / The Daily Reveille
Contact Emily Holden at eholden@lsureveille.com
LSU alumna Jasmine Stovall recites a poem at the Sigma Gamma Rho poetry slam Tuesday in the Magnolia Room in the Union.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
THE DAILY REVEILLE
FACULTY SENATE
PAGE 5
STATE
Scheduling break causes conflict Controversial justice of Holiday may be peace resigns following too close to exams refusal to marry couple By Sarah Eddington Contributing Writer
The placement of spring break in the University’s academic calendar induced conflict at Tuesday’s Faculty Senate meeting. Previously, spring break typically occurred the week of Good Friday, according to University Registrar Robert Doolos. Last year, the Faculty Senate and Student Government recommended the break always occur at this time. However, if this break remains the same, there would be four years between 2010 and 2020 when only one or two weeks would separate the end of spring break and beginning of final exams. “We usually tried to coordinate with East Baton Rouge Parish [School Board], but often they don’t set their calendars until much later,” Doolos said. Andrew Christie, accounting professor and Faculty Senate Executive Committee member, said he would prefer not to have his classes broken up with only a week or two before the final exam. “In my class, everything is comprehensive,” Christie said. “Chopping it up absolutely destroys the
Humphrey, McKay filed lawsuit MEGAN J. WILLIAMS / The Daily Reveille
Kevin Cope, Faculty Senate president, right, addresses Senate members Tuesday afternoon in the Senate Chambers in the Union about the scheduling of spring break.
continuity.” Patrick McGee, English professor, said having a schedule that conflicts with the EBR schools creates hardships for faculty members who have children. “Is there any evidence that students are regenerated on spring break?” McGee asked. “If we’re going to entertain what is best for our students, I would at least consider the idea of not having a break and ending school a week earlier.” The senators proposed if the year has fewer than three weeks between the break and finals, an exception will be made, and the break will be moved to the week before the week of Good Friday. The Faculty Senate will consider the resolution at its December meeting, according to Kevin Cope, Faculty Senate president.
Also at the meeting, the Admissions, Standards and Honors Committee proposed the writing component of the ACT no longer be required for University admissions. The only portions of the ACT used for admissions are the composite score and math subscore, according to an ASH committee representative. The only department using the writing portion is the Honors College. The senate unanimously passed the resolution recommending the writing component should no longer be required for University admittance. However, the Honors College will still have access to it and will continue to use it for its admissions. Contact Sarah Eddington at seddington@lsureveille.com
By Melinda Deslatte The Associated Press
(AP) — A Louisiana justice of the peace who refused to marry a couple because the bride was white and groom was black resigned Tuesday. Keith Bardwell, who is white, quit the post with a one-sentence statement to Louisiana Secretary of State Jay Dardenne and no explanation of his decision: “I do hereby resign the office of Justice of the Peace for the Eighth Ward of Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, effective November 3, 2009.” Bardwell refused to perform the ceremony for Beth Humphrey and Terence McKay because they are of different races. When questioned about his refusal, Bardwell acknowledged he routinely recuses himself from marrying interracial couples because he believes such marriages cause harm to the couples’
children. In interviews, he said he refers such couples to other justices of the peace, who then perform the ceremony, which happened in this case. Humphrey has said she and McKay received their marriage license from the parish clerk of court, where they also received a list of people qualified to perform the ceremony. When she called Bardwell’s office to ask about the ceremony on Oct. 6, Humphrey said Bardwell’s wife told her that the justice wouldn’t sign their marriage license because they were a “mixed couple.” Bardwell didn’t immediately return a call for comment Tuesday about his resignation, which followed calls for his ouster from several public officials, including Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu. Humphrey and McKay have filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Bardwell. Contact The Daily Reveille’s news staff at news@lsureveille.com
THE DAILY REVEILLE
PAGE 6
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
RELIGION
Pope welcomes community-wide Anglican conversion By Steven Powell Contributing Writer
After centuries of conflict, some members of the Catholic and Anglican Churches will soon get the change they are seeking. But the change will not come on a local level. Pope Benedict XVI announced last week the Catholic Church is open to groups of Anglicans who wish to convert to Roman Catholicism, following complaints from Anglican members. Than Vu, pastor of Christ the King Catholic Church on campus, said the pope’s announcement deals with larger groups of Anglicans or Episcopalians — local parishes, like Christ the King, won’t see much of a change. “Individuals can always convert, that happens all the time,” he said. “The new initiative will allow whole Anglican communities to convert — it happens on a diocesan level.” Vu said the pope is trying to
MAGGIE BOWLES / The Daily Reveille
Tyler Trahan, business management sophomore, walks to Christ the King on Oct. 29.
bring unity among Christians and promote diversity. He said the pope’s announcement makes it easier for certain groups to return to the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church constantly changes, but he said he is unsure of the future implications from the current change, Vu said. “This goes back to the situation in the early Catholic Church,” he said. This step is moving the right
direction, but welcoming them back is nothing extraordinary. [The two religions] have been very similar for a long time.” Michael Pasquier, religious studies professor, said the dialogue between the Catholic and Anglican Church — which has been underway since World War I — has endured a deepening separation in recent years because of social and cultural rea-
sons. The Anglican Church ordains women, gays and lesbians, which has taken heat from many conservative members of the Anglican Church, Pasquier said. “For some members, ordination of these groups was the last straw,” he said. “Anglican groups started asking the pope for a lifeboat.” Pasquier said the pope’s move will have different effects for various groups. “Where there’s unifying effects for some, there’s division for others,” he said. “It’s too simple to say this is an act of unification.” Andrew Rollins, chaplain of St. Alban’s Episcopal Chapel on campus, said it’s too early to determine the future implications because the Vatican has not released many of the details. He said the pope’s announcement was thoughtful. “The pope is responding to a request that has been made for a number of years,” Rollins said. Jaclyn Dale, biological sciences
junior, said she thinks the announcement is a step in the right direction. “People think the Catholic Church is against all other religions — there’s been too much bad blood,” she said. “It’s good to be welcoming for other faiths.” Robby Abboud, marketing sophomore, said allowing groups of Anglicans to join the church makes sense. “Who are we to say, ‘No,’ to groups expressing interest,” he said. Pasquier said he doesn’t know the future impact of the pope’s announcement, but thinks it will have a negative effect on the official ecumenical discussions. “Ultimately, this will have a cooling effect on the decades-long dialogue between the Anglicans and Catholics,” he said.
Contact Steven Powell at spowell@lsureveille.com
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Video competition entries aim to solve global issues Global issues to be addressed in videos By Kyle Bove Senior Staff Writer
One YouTube video can change the world. That’s the concept Stanford University’s 2009 Global Innovation Tournament is operating under — and the E.J. Ourso College of Business is challenging the University community to participate. Students who sign up for the competition will have eight days to create innovative solutions to a mystery challenge using limited resources, according to a news release. The mystery challenge will be revealed this evening, and participants will have to make a YouTube video about their solution. The competition is part of Global Entrepreneurship Week in which more than 75 countries participate through activities and challenges like the Global Innovation Tournament. It runs from Nov. 16 to 22. In the past, the competition has challenged students to create the greatest possible value from common objects like rubber bands and Post-It Notes. This year the challenge will be a global problem the teams will have to come up with
ways to solve. The Stephenson Entrepreneurship Institute, a branch of the Business College, is organizing the tournament locally. University students’ videos will first be judged by the SEI on Nov. 17, and the winners will go on to be global semifinalists. Global winners will receive a certificate of recognition from Stanford and will be featured on the Global Entrepreneurship Week Web site. “The competition teaches students to have an impact while working with limited time and resources,” SEI associate director Jarett Rodri-
guez said in a news release. “They need to go beyond just their ideas. They have to implement them.” More than 100 local organizers, including SEI, are participating in the challenge this year, and more than 1,000 people have already signed up. “This is the fourth time we’ve run this competition, and the results are always astounding,” said Tina Seelig, executive director of the Stanford Technology Ventures Program and creator of the competition, in a news release. “An event like this demonstrates just how much entrepreneurial potential there is among
Mellow Mushroom Team Trivia @ 8PM. Karaoke @ 10PM 3-10PM $5 Bud & Bud Light Pitchers Plucker’s Wing Bar Monday: $14.99 All you can eat wings and $3 Plucker’s Lemonades Tuesday: $2.50 Mexican Beers and Margaritas Wednesday: Trivia at 8PM. $4 Mother Plucker Mugs Thursday: $15.99 All you can eat wings. $4 Mother Plucker Mugs. $3 Margaritas and Plucker’s Lemonades
9-10:30 AM 12-1:30 PM 3:00-3:30PM
Underworld Van Helsing Manship Show
4:00-5:30 PM 8:00- 9:30 PM 1:00-2:30AM
The Forsaken Blade Underworld
our young people and how much they are capable of achieving.” University students and organizations interested in participating should e-mail Rodriguez at jtr@lsu. edu to sign up. When the specific challenge is revealed tonight, teams will make the video and submit it to a specific page on YouTube by Nov. 13 at 9 a.m. The video should be three minutes long or less. Teams will then submit their videos’ URLs to the Global Innovation Tourna-
ment’s Web site where they will be judged. Global winners will be announced online on Dec. 3. “This competition is a condensed, entrepreneurship immersion experience,” Rodriguez said. “It’s enormously empowering to realize you can create value from virtually nothing.” Contact Kyle Bove at kbove@lsureveille.com
THE DAILY REVEILLE
Sports
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
PAGE 7
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
HIGH marks photos by BENJAMIN OLIVER HICKS / The Daily Reveille
[Above] LSU senior guard Allison Hightower dribbles down the court Monday during practice. Hightower will begin her final season at LSU on Nov. 15. [Left] Hightower reaches for a lay up during practice Monday afternoon in the PMAC.
Women’s basketball player Allison Hightower looks back on long LSU career with senior season ahead
Allison Hightower took her first step onto getting started.” the LSU basketball court for the Lady Tigers Hightower enters her senior season althree years ago. The senior guard will begin ready on the John Wooden Award Watch her final season Nov. 15 at List as a national player By Rachel Whittaker LSU, and the Arlington, of the year candidate and Texas, native prefers to foas the 2010 SoutheastChief Sports Writer cus on the present rather ern Conference than look ahead to hanging up her LSU uni- Preseason Player of the Year in the media and form after this year. coaches polls. “I’ve learned every day through the exIn 2008, Hightower became the first Lady periences we go through, and I’ll miss my Tiger to lead LSU in points, assists, steals and teammates so much,” Hightower said. “But we’re not going to talk about that. We’re just HIGHTOWER, see page 11
“[Hightower’s] always in the right place at the right time and has a smart basketball IQ.” Katherine Graham,
LSU junior guard
Kelly injures foot last week Senior’s status in air for season opener By Rachel Whittaker Chief Sports Writer
LSU women’s basketball senior guard Andrea Kelly suffered a foot injury late last week and her status for the season opener Nov. 15 against Centenary is uncertain, associate sports information director Bill Martin told The Daily Reveille on Tuesday. Kelly was LSU’s leading 3-point shooter for the 2008-09 season, hitting 40.5 percent of her shots from behind the arc. Kelly was named a co-captain for the Lady Tigers in October with fellow senior guard Allison Hightower. Kelly played in all 30 regular-season games and started three for LSU in her first season after transferring from OkaloosaWalton Community College. She set her career high in 3-point field goals Jan. 25, when she converted 5-of-12 shots at Kentucky in a career-best 39 minutes played. Her career high in points came two weeks later in LSU’s loss at Mississippi State, when she scored 23 points on 8-of-10 shooting in 22 minutes played.
Contact Rachel Whittaker at rwhittaker@lsureveille.com
SOCCER
LSU opens SEC Tournament against Vanderbilt By David Helman Sports Writer
The LSU soccer team hasn’t had long to dwell on its disappointments in the past week. The No. 16 Tigers (12-4-3, 8-2-1) narrowly missed capturing their first regular season Southeastern Conference title Friday and must move on to the SEC Tournament today at noon. “It’s certainly a challenge to win three games in five days against quality competition,” said LSU coach Brian Lee. “This is probably the best SEC Tournament field in history with everyone rated so high and probably seven teams headed to
the NCAA tournament.” The three-time defending SEC West Division champion Tigers enter the tournament as the No. 2 seed and will play No. 7 seed Vanderbilt (117-1, 5-6-0) tonight. Several players agreed a tournament championship could offset the frustration from a second-place regular-season finish. “Everyone is like, ‘Well, what if? What if we did this, what if we did that?’ But you can’t dwell on that,” said senior forward Rachel Yepez. “We need to do all those things right now — in the tournament and from here on out.” Some consolation exists for a few players in the SEC’s postseason awards, which were
announced Monday. Senior forward Malorie Rutledge was named SEC Offensive Player of the Year for the secondstraight season after amassing nine goals and 11 assists through 19 games. “Apparently my family and [Lee] knew yesterday, but they kept it from me,” Rutledge said. “It was a personal goal of mine, and it feels good to accomplish that. But I’m trying to stay focused on the team right now and come home with an SEC ring.” Rutledge and senior defender Chelsea Potts were named first-team SOCCER, see page 11
GRANT GUTIERREZ / The Daily Reveille
LSU senior midfielder Malorie Rutledge dribbles the ball Oct. 16 against Ole Miss. LSU opens the SEC Tournament against Vanderbilt tonight.
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THE DAILY REVEILLE
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
SWIMMING AND DIVING
Freshman diver St. Germain adjusts to life away from home Texas native adapts to training, classes By Amos Morale Sports Contributor
Rebecca St. Germain is a little ways from home. The freshman diver is in her first year at LSU and has noticed a difference between her hometown of San Antonio, Texas, and Baton Rouge. “The weather is crazy here, I’ve come to find,” she said. “But I like it.” St. Germain is becoming a major force in her first season for the Lady Tigers on the diving board while still adjusting to life in Louisiana. In her first meet as a Lady Tiger, she scored an NCAA Zone Regional qualifying score. “It was really exciting and very unexpected,” St. Germain said. “It felt really good. I felt like [diving coach Doug Shaffer] really pushed me, and I have come a long way.” St. Germain was a club diver before she attended LSU and said club diving is different from college diving. “Diving in college is a lot more exciting,” St. Germain said. “It’s more laid back than club diving,
BRIANNA PACIORKA / The Daily Reveille
LSU freshman Rebecca St. Germain competes in the one-meter dive Friday in a swim meet against Tulane at the LSU Natatorium.
which is nice. There’s less stress, I’m sure, until it comes down to the big meets.” St. Germain also said she didn’t expect college diving training to be as hard as it is. “Diving is more of a jumping
sport, and having to run stadium stairs at 5 a.m. is a definite change of pace,” St. Germain said. “It gets you in shape a lot faster, and I feel I have more energy than I’ve had before.” Shaffer said the transition is
usually an “eye-opener” for incoming freshmen, but St. Germain is focused. “From all of the divers, I really feel there is a unified direction they’re really working very hard and very well,” he said. Fellow freshman diver Elle Schmidt said practice is fun with St. Germain. “She is usually really cheerful, really peppy, which is good,” Schmidt said. “You want to practice with people like that. It keeps the mood light even when things aren’t going awesome for everyone.” St. Germain said she set some personal goals for herself this season and has already accomplished some of them. “One of them was to break 300 [points in an event], and I got that last week,” she said. St. Germain was named the Southeastern Conference Female Diver of the Week after her performance against Tulane, scoring more than 300 in both the three-meter and one-meter diving. St. Germain said her goal now is to make it to NCAA championships and perform well for her team. She said she misses home but that her fellow roommates helped her adjust to life away from home. Schmidt, one of St. Germain’s roommates, is from Mansfield, Ohio, and said having a roommate
from out of town helped her adjust as well. “We both get homesick, and we both miss home,” Schmidt said. “It’s easy to talk to her about stuff like that.” Schmidt and St. Germain are the only female divers and became close before they attended LSU — ‘Diving in the two went on college is the same recruita lot more ing trip. S c h m i d t exciting. earned a Zone Regional quali- It’s more fying score laid back against Tulane, ... which is and said St. Gernice’ main was one of the first to con- Rebecca St. gratulate her. Germain “When she LSU freshman diver got her score, I was thrilled for her, and she was so excited when I got mine,” Schmidt said. St. Germain said she is also adjusting to college classes. “College is harder than high school for sure,” St Germain said. “But I’m surviving. I’m hanging in there and doing well.”
Contact Amos Morale at amorale@lsureveille.com
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
THE DAILY REVEILLE
PAGE 9
TECHNOLOGY
SEC conference keeps loose grip on Twitter policies By Jarred LeBlanc Sports Contributor
College sports have changed with developments and enhancements in technology. Football games are now under television contracts, and teams are forced to play at certain times because of these contracts. TV timeouts frequently interrupt games. But the latest technology to influence the college sports world are Internet social-networking Web sites like Twitter. Southeastern Conference players and coaches have joined the movement and post messages on Twitter about everyday thoughts and activities. Many people watched as LSU football coach Les Miles used Twitter on national television while he was watching the LSU baseball team win a national championship in Omaha, Neb., in late June. Miles tweeted about two-sport athlete Chad Jones, who was pitching for the Tigers during the College World Series.
“How about Chad Jones! The way he came off the field looked like he just ran a pick back for a TD. Doing two sports very well,” Miles tweeted. But some coaches have problems with social-networking sites and have committed NCAA violations while using Twitter. Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin made a recruiting violation when he tweeted, “It’s a beautiful day in Knoxville, Tennessee today. I was so excited to hear that J.C. Copeland committed to play for the Vols today!” Kiffin was in violation because a coach is not supposed to comment on a recruit by name until they are officially signed with the team. Despite the violation, Kiffin believes his team doesn’t need a Twitter policy. “Our head coach had an issue with Twitter when he wasn’t supposed to, but we don’t need a policy for our players,” Kiffin said. Though there is no specific SEC Twitter policy for players and coaches, some coaches are keeping an eye on what players tweet.
“If you’ve got guys on your team that are constantly spewing things out there that are detrimental to the team, then you have to address that,” said Georgia coach Mark Richt. “The policy that is most crucial is that everyone understands that we are a team, and we need to stay true to each other.” Most SEC coaches said they don’t have a specific Twitter policy in place, but the team has a policy about putting personal information on the Internet. “If you wouldn’t want anybody in the world to read what you are writing, then don’t post it on the Internet,” said Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen. “If you don’t want your grandmother or your mother to see your actions, then don’t do those because there is a good chance you are being videotaped.” Kentucky coach Rich Brooks said he tries to make sure his players are treated fairly so people won’t have anything embarrassing to say about the team or the coaches. “If you coach your team straightforward and honest, keep
things above board and treat them pretty much as adults, I think that shouldn’t be a major problem,” Brooks said. Even though the SEC doesn’t have a Twitter policy for the teams within the conference, the conference has a published policy about what the media can post online while in the press box. The SEC’s media credential policy states, “No Bearer [of media credentials] may produce or disseminate in any form a ‘real-time’ description or transmission of the Event. Periodic updates of scores, statistics or other brief descriptions of the competition throughout the Event are acceptable.” The SEC policy also said fans that are at the games are not allowed to “make use of any account, description, picture, photograph, video, audio, reproduction or other material subject to protection under the copyright laws of the United States.” The SEC revised its policy several times because of many complaints from the media. The final revision was released Aug. 27.
“The SEC has always had a positive relationship with the media,” said SEC commissioner Mike Slive in a news release. “When contacted by major media associations, we immediately began constructive dialogue to address their concerns. While there were a few changes we could not meet, there was agreement on many of the issues. We look forward to maintaining communication with the media as we work to balance the issues important to the media and the SEC’s ability to protect its digital rights and trademarks.” The new policy has a new section labeled “Blogging,” which states: “Blogging, including periodic updates of scores, statistics or other brief descriptions of the competition throughout the Event, is acceptable provided that the Bearer conforms to the blogging policies separately published by the SEC, as such policies may be revised from time to time.”
Contact Jarred LeBlanc at jleblanc@lsureveille.com
GOLF
Tigers take losses in final tournament of the fall Louisiana-Lafayette takes team title By Luke Johnson Sports Contributor
The LSU men’s golf team sent three golfers to compete for the individual title at the Carter Plantation Intercollegiate in Springfield, while the rest of the team got a head start on its break with the conclusion of its fall schedule. Senior Brian Leveille, junior Clayton Rotz and sophomore Austin Gutgsell were the only Tigers to compete in LSU’s last fall tournament of the season. LSU was not in competition for the team title, which requires four golfers to compile a team score.
Both Rotz and Gutgsell showed promise in individual rounds, but the three Tiger representatives couldn’t put it together for the entire tournament. Rotz finished the opening day in a tie for 12th place after an opening round 75 before rallying to fire a 2-under par 70 for the second round, which tied him for the seventh-best round of the tournament. Rotz carded seven birdies in the first round and was tied for fifth in par-5 scoring. But Gutgsell and Leveille couldn’t find the below par magic that Rotz found the first day. Gutgsell followed up his opening round 75 with a second round 76 and finished the first day 7-over, tied for 38th place overall. Leveille finished the day by firing two rounds in the 80s.
The last round of the tournament was up and down for the Tigers. Gutgsell put together one of his best rounds of the year, but Rotz stumbled in the final 18 holes, falling from a tie for 12th to a tie for 29th. Gutgsell carded a one-under 71 for the final round, which moved him up 13 spots in the final rankings from a tie for 38th to a tie for 25th. Rotz shot a 7-over 79 for the third round, which put him two strokes behind Gutgsell’s totals for the tournament. Rotz’ final day struggles dropped him from a tie for 12th to a tie for 29th. Leveille shot his first round in the 70s for the tournament and moved up from 72nd place to a tie for 62nd place after firing a 3-over 75.
Louisiana-Lafayette claimed the team title for the tournament. The Ragin’ Cajuns had three of the top five scorers for the tournament. Ragin’ Cajuns coach Theo Sliman said he is pleased his team will take momentum into the spring season. “Today showed what these guys are made of,” Sliman said in a news release. “They got after it out there. It’s a great way to close out the fall season.” The individual tournament title went to Texas-Arlington junior Zack Fischer. Fischer owned two of the three best rounds in the tournament with a first-round 69 and a third-round 67. Fischer erased a two-stroke deficit in the final round and claimed the title by two strokes over
University of New Orleans junior Ken Looper and Louisiana-Lafayette sophomore Andrew Noto. “Zack played great all week, and this was a great win for him,” said Texas-Arlington coach Jay Rees in a news release. “He has been our No. 1 player all of the fall season, and he proved that again over the last two days.” LSU finished in the top 10 in every one of its tournaments this fall and claimed one team title. The Tigers don’t compete again until the spring semester, when they head to Gainesville, Fla., on Feb. 13 for the Gator Invitational.
Contact Luke Johnson at ljohnson@lsureveille.com
PAGE 10
THE DAILY REVEILLE
FOOTBALL
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009
MLB
DT Cassius Marsh commits to LSU Phillies’ Lee may start Senior originally Game 7 on 2 days’ rest pledged to California By Michael Lambert Sports Contributor
LSU football coach Les Miles has a reputation of recruiting the best prospects in the nation. But one thing the fifth-year coach had not accomplished in his time at LSU was nabbing a high school recruit from California. But that changed with the recruitment of Oaks Christian High School defensive tackle Cassius Marsh. The Westlake Village, Calif., native committed to LSU on Oct. 26, increasing the Tigers’ 2010 recruiting class to 23 ‘He wanted members. inito play at a tiallyMarsh pledged school that to California on produced April 12 but dehis comlinemen in tracted mitment about a the NFL.’ month later. Oaks ChrisBrandon tian coach Bill Huffman Redell said Marsh California recruiting analyst for Scout.com got caught up in the recruiting process when he prematurely committed to California. “He’s a kid that was 17 years old, got enamored by attention and committed a little early,” Redell said. “He ended up wanting the opportunity to look at other places.” The Scout.com four-star defensive tackle re-opened the recruiting process and considered LSU, Oklahoma, USC, Tennessee and California. “It’s been the only recruiting circus in the West,” said Brandon Huffman, California recruiting analyst for Scout. “Every school presented
something to him.” Marsh nearly pledged to USC before committing to California, and he continued to consider the Trojans throughout his recruitment. “Many kids get the USC offer, and it’s the golden offer,” Huffman said. “But LSU caught his attention.” Huffman said LSU was recruiting Marsh more heavily than the other schools, and his official visit for the LSU-Florida game gave the Tigers the edge past USC. “He saw there is a clear difference in the kind of football in the Pac10 compared to the SEC,” Huffman said. “He wanted to play at a school that produced linemen in the NFL.” Marsh has wavered during his recruiting process, but Huffman said Marsh plans to keep his word with the Tigers. “[Marsh] seems pretty adamant,” Huffman said. “He’s got a spot secured there, but I’ve learned to never say never.” Marsh has family in Baton Rouge even though the Red Stick is 1,860 miles away from Westlake Village. “He has an uncle in Baton Rouge and figured he would fit in there,” Redell said. The only other player to commit to Miles from the Golden State was junior defensive tackle Akiem Hicks, who came from a junior college in California. Huffman said the connection between LSU and California recruits may continue once Marsh joins the Tigers. “It only takes one guy to establish that relationship,” Huffman said. “[LSU] should want to have a good relationship with California.” Redell said he was impressed with the way Miles was able to recruit a player so far away from Louisiana. “It says a lot of the university and the head coach when they can
grab a kid from California,” Redell said. “It would be easier if LSU wants another one of our guys.” Marsh is primarily used as a defensive tackle for Oaks Christian, but he also has experience on the offensive line. “He could play offensive line, but I think he is d-line all the way,” Huffman said. “He’s got the mindset of a defensive tackle.” The 6-foot-4-inch, 270-pound lineman finished with 55 tackles, 16 sacks and two forced fumbles his junior season. Marsh has 30 tackles and six sacks through five games in 2009. Redell said LSU’s 23rd commitment is a complete package in terms of ability. “If you are looking for a guy who’s athletic, strong and mean, you got one,” Redell said. “He’s the real deal.” Marsh is the Tigers’ third defensive tackle and sixth defensive lineman of the 2010 recruiting class.
Contact Michael Lambert at mlambert@lsureveille.com
By The Associated Press PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Cliff Lee’s perfect postseason might not be over yet. Lee could earn a Game 7 start for the Philadelphia Phillies if they force the World Series to a decisive game against the New York Yankees. “As far as my availability, I’m available,” Lee said. The Phillies’ left-handed ace has been flawless in the postseason with a 4-0 record and a 1.56 ERA in five starts. Manager Charlie Manuel bypassed Lee for a Game 4 start on three days’ rest because he wanted to keep him on his regular schedule. He wasn’t his usual dominant self taking his normal turn in Game 5 on Monday night. Lee had far from his best stuff and allowed five runs in seven-plus innings before his bullpen bailed him out in Philadelphia’s 8-6 win over the Yankees. “It’s a game where I had to
‘‘
‘I’ll talk to him about what he thinks about if he can pitch at all ...’ Charlie Manuel Phillies manager
battle a little more than I’ve had to the past few games,” Lee said. “Thankfully we scored a lot of runs. We won, that’s the bottom line.” Manuel said one reason he didn’t start Lee in Game 4 on short rest was because of concerns of his heavy workload. Lee would usually throw a bullpen session on Thursday, and Manuel might use him for a few innings on just two days’ rest. “We don’t know about that yet,” Manuel said. “I’ll talk to him about what he thinks about if he can pitch at all or something.” Contact The Daily Reveille’s sports staff at sports@lsureveille.com
THE DAILY REVEILLE
Wednesday, November 4, 2009 HIGHTOWER, from page 7
blocks in a single season and earned first-team All-SEC honors. Junior guard Katherine Graham said Hightower’s success will leave a lasting legacy in the roots of LSU women’s basketball. “She’s going to leave a huge imprint on those of us who will still be here,” Graham said. “She’s always in the right place at the right time and has a smart basketball IQ. She’s going to leave her mark that way.” Hightower started her LSU career in 2006 when Lady Tiger legends Sylvia Fowles, Quianna Chaney and Erica White were juniors. LSU had played in three straight Final Fours at that point, and Hightower said she was feeling the pressure when she arrived. “When I first came in, LSU was the elite program,” she said. “When I got here, I thought to myself, ‘Oh my gosh, this is going to be tough,’ and it was tough my freshman year.” Graham joined the Lady Tigers one year after Hightower, and Graham said Hightower’s role in her first two seasons was different than as a junior and senior. “On that team, she was more of a complement player,” Graham said, “Now she has a different role as the main focus of the team ... I don’t think it was a huge transition because she prepared herself each day. Playing against those players will get you ready to step in and fill that role.” Hightower said she knows the importance of leading as an upperclassman and showing her younger teammates the lessons she has learned playing Lady Tiger basketball. “A lot of what they instilled in me is to have heart ... have passion about what you do and be proud of the LSU jersey you wear across your chest,” Hightower said. “I’ve always been a person that leads by being a hard worker.” Hightower said her defense was lacking that emotional spark in her first season, and she had a lot to learn on both sides of the ball to fit into LSU’s system. “[LSU] was the No. 1 defensive team in the nation, and my defense was just horrible,” Hightower said. “I had to really get that down and flow into the motion offense we run and try to guard people. The speed is on a totally different level once you get to college.” These days, Hightower says one of her strengths is reading opposing defenses. She is No. 10 in LSU history with 76 career blocked shots and holds the school record for career blocked shots by a guard. Fowles, Chaney and White all currently play in the WNBA or in foreign leagues. Fowles is a center with the Chicago Sky, and White and Chaney played overseas during the WNBA offseason with Natanya in Israel and Energa Torun in Poland, respectively. Hightower said a long-term goal of hers has been to reach the professional stage. “It’s always been a dream of mine to play in the WNBA and overseas ever since the league started,” she said. Contact Rachel Whittaker at rwhittaker@lsureveille.com
SOCCER, from page 7
All-SEC selections, while sophomore defender Allysha Chapman and senior midfielder Melissa Clarke made the second team. Freshman forward Carlie Banks earned recognition as a member of the SEC All-Freshman team. The Tigers will need contributions from their various award
winners for success in the SEC tournament, as LSU has never won the tournament and has yet to reach the final round. The Tigers have lost to the eventual champion in the semifinal round in the last two years. “If we come out this week and win this tournament, it’s a clear argument about who the best team in the SEC is,” Lee said. “There’s full credit to Florida. They were the best
team over those 11 games, and we’re going to try to be the best team this week.” Yepez hopes to return in full health this week after being hampered by an ankle injury through the latter part of the season. “Some of it is kind of being scared at first,” Yepez said. “But just doing things one time gets me a lot more comfortable and a lot more
PAGE 11 confident, and that helps a lot.” LSU scratched past Vanderbilt, 2-1, in overtime on Oct. 11. The Commodores won four of their last five games to earn a spot in the tournament.
Contact David Helamn at dhelman@lsureveille.com
THE DAILY REVEILLE
Opinion
PAGE 12
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
NIETZSCHE IS DEAD
Obscene words powerful only when in proper context Words are important. If this claim seems self-serving coming from someone who will be trying to make a living off them in a few years, maybe it is. But that doesn’t change the fact that words and what they mean are of tremendous value to society. I’m not going to insult anyone’s intelligence by telling stories of wars and lives lost by a few misconstrued sentences. The very fact that you’re reading this paper illustrates the premium we place on language and those who can use them effectively. Words can persuade people to take action. Words can make people laugh, they can make people cry and they can teach people a lot about the world in which we live. And words can certainly offend people — something opinion columnists learn the first time they end up in the paper. Sometimes it takes a careful (or
careless) combination of words to set people off. But, especially in America, there are those select few words that create instant controversy. But why do these “dirty” words evoke such harsh reactions regardless of the context? It’s a hard question to answer. Arguments range from obscure linguistic justifications to moral and religious cries for modesty. The generally accepted answer on a college campus is “no reason at all” — as many once-starry eyed freshmen can attest, college is a place where vulgarity is as common as punctuation. As most students would have it, curse words are only abberrant because our parents and our society told us they were, so our parents and society can go ahead and — well, you get the idea. For the most part, this argument is totally correct. But saying this argument justifies the widespread use
of vulgarity misses a larger understanding of how language works. Denotatively (like the dictionary Matthew says) there’s Albright differOpinion Editor no ence between “poop” and “the S word.” But connotatively, once we apply all the associations piled onto the words by society and everyday use, the two are entirely different. The difference between denotative meaning and connotative meaning doesn’t just apply to taboo language. In the strictest sense, “eat” means the same thing as “gorge.” “Homely” means the same the same thing as “ugly.” Social conditions and personal
choice influence most of the words in our language. So saying we can curse our hearts out because the words are only bad because we made them that way is more than a little juvenile. But if that linguistic argument is too boring — or if you’ve got “a great personality” and it didn’t make sense — consider it this way. In the final analysis, there’s nothing inherently wrong with obscenity, as long as it’s in the proper context. Most vulgar words are meant to be used during times of extreme emotional distress. When your professor hands you back a paper with nothing marked on it but a D, go ahead and air your grievances. When your car breaks down in pouring rain on the interstate, fume as much as you need. And when some merry dumbass sets off the fire alarm at 3 a.m. in your dorm or apartment the night before finals, no other words really suffice.
But using these words in every other sentence in common conversation does nothing but make the words useless. If you say “the F-word” as often as you say “the,” they’re eventually going to have the same level of intensity. It won’t mean anything to you, and it won’t mean anything to those you hang around — you’ll just be another cretin who relies on shock value rather than anything approaching intelligence. But when you eventually drop that bomb in front of your grandmother or prospective employer — well, you’ve got no one to blame but your freaking self. Matthew Albright is a 21-year old mass communication sophomore from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_malbright. Contact Matthew Albright at malbright@lsureveille.com
GUEST COLUMNIST
Trains take longer but are far better than planes By Jon Frosch Special to The Daily Reveille
EDITOR’S NOTE: Jon Frosch is a guest columnist not regularly appearing in the Daily Reveille. Flying is pretty much the worst experience possible. Quite frankly, I cannot understand why people enjoy it. I guess the actual soaring through the air isn’t so bad, but the accompanying hassle far outweighs any joy that could result from a far-off view of the earth below. Having to get to the airport hours early and waiting in inefficiently organized queues just is not something I go for. So, this summer I faced a dilemma — how to combine a week in the wilderness of northern Minnesota (which is fun) with getting there (which, at least by plane, is not so). Pondering this scenario for a bit, I arrived at the solution. With apologies to Dustin Hoffman, I want to say one word to you: Amtrak. That’s right, I took a ride on the City of New Orleans, the stuff of legends and Arlo Guthrie songs. While taking an airplane might get one to Chicago faster, a 20 hour trek on the train offers a great deal more entertainment and a lot less hassle. It’s a pretty simple procedure, really: go to New Orleans at 1:41, get on the train at 1:42, sit down at 1:43, get a little card with your destination for over your seat at 1:44, depart 1:45. No
two-hour lead time required. The 20 hours passes pretty well, too. There’s plenty of space to walk around, decent food, and decent conversation — all of which are scarce commodities on a plane. Did I mention that baggage is, for all intents and purposes, unlimited? Yeah, there’s that too. Now, Arlo mentions card games with the old men in the club car, but, sad to say, I missed out on that activity. I did, however, meet an old hippie named Eli who turned out to be a stunning conversationalist who held forth at length about everything from jam bands to classic cars to the plight of youth in America. I met another guy who tried to recruit me into the Navy. And I loved every minute of speeding through the Tennessee darkness with an irreplaceable cast of characters. Maybe one could meet that kind of interesting person at the airport back when people went out just to watch the planes land, but good luck today now that every last person in that terminal dreads the very idea of being there. Being on the train and seeing the country close up just inspires that sort of zest for life. Returning from this voyage of discovery, I was disappointed to discover that Governor Jindal had decided not to pursue federal funding for a rail project linking Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Such a rail is necessary because, alas, the
THE DAILY REVEILLE Editorial Board NICHOLAS PERSAC JERIT ROSER ELLEN ZIELINSKI MATTHEW ALBRIGHT
Editor Managing Editor, Content Managing Editor, Production Opinion Editor
ERIC FREEMAN JR.
Columnist
MARK MACMURDO
Columnist
City of New Orleans forsakes Baton Rouge for the fair locale of Hammond. A commuter rail system with the Baton Rouge-New Orleans corridor at the core would be a great economic boon to southeast Louisiana, especially now that ties between the two communities are closer than ever before. Plus, and perhaps more importantly, trains attract people that are fun to talk to.
Why should anyone have to stop the party to travel — on the train you can bring it with you. That money is going to be spent somewhere, why not in Louisiana? So give the train a shot — head up the City of New Orleans to Jackson or Memphis, or even Chicago; roll up through Atlanta and Washington, D.C. to New York City on the Crescent; or, heck, go to Los
Angeles on the Sunset Limited and see the beautiful southwest. It may take a while, but you’ll have fun getting there. John Frosch is a library and information sciences graduate student. Contact The Daily Reveille’s opinion staff at opinion@lsureveille.com
BEST AND WITTIEST
cartoon courtesy of KING FEATURES SYNDICATE
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.
QUOTE OF THE DAY “Write a wise saying and your name will live forever.”
Anonymous
THE DAILY REVEILLE
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATE
Opinion
PAGE 13
Overseas troops are not protecting our freedom It’s common knowledge we should respect the military. After all, the common rhetoric goes, the soldiers overseas are fighting for our freedom. If any American mentions the military in a less-than favorable light, their fellow citizens will often remind him or her it was the military who earned the right to free speech. If soldiers earned me the right to free speech, then I am sincerely thankful. Hopefully, speech is free enough for me to criticize the organization from which this freedom allegedly springs. I don’t know what enemy’s freedom-hating machinations the troops overseas are keeping us safe from. Surely not all the troops overseas are fighting for freedom. The Spanish-American War was just an imperialistic land-grab. The 1953 overthrow of a democratically elected government in Iran was just
a power play. The recent war in Iraq was just a … Well, I don’t really know why we caused 4.7 million refugees and 100,000 civilian deaths at a cost of $3 trillion — the equivalent of more than four Katrinas, 30 Sept. 11’s and 1,000 “cash for clunkers” programs. If it was for any reason, it wasn’t to protect our freedom. Troops overseas put your freedom in jeopardy. When we sent doughboys into the trenches of the first world war, we empowered the allies to levy massive penalties on Germany that paved the path for Adolf Hitler. More recently, the U.S. Navy provided support for the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Witnessing the bloodshed was the birth of Osama bin Laden’s hatred of American imperialism. “I couldn’t forget those moving scenes, blood and severed limbs, women and children sprawled
everywhere. Houses destroyed along with their occupants and high rises demolished over their residents, rockets raining down on our home without mercy,” bin Laden said in a 2004 speech. “The situation was like a crocodile meeting a helpless child, powerless except for his screams. Does the crocodile understand a conversation that Daniel Morgan Columnist doesn’t include a weapon?” When he responded to the attack on unarmed civilians with an attack on unarmed civilians, the U.S.’s constellation of 700 overseas military failed to keep us safe. Despite spending trillions of dollars over the decades, the U.S. Department of “Defense” couldn’t even defend its headquarters.
Having troops overseas doesn’t make you safer, even against enemies capable of waging symmetric warfare. The Soviets stayed their hand because they feared mutually assured destruction, not because our troops were spraying Agent Orange on overseas rice paddies. Think about the actual limits on your freedom. The reason you can’t buy alcohol on Sundays, purchase competitive health care from across state lines or use Fed Ex to ship envelopes is because of government decrees. Sure, it may throw you the odd bone, but is a couple thousand dollars in scholarship money worth the $400,000 every household owes for future government liabilities? It doesn’t matter how you answer that question because you don’t get a choice. The bonds our treasury sells overseas are backed by your future earnings. You’ll spend your entire life paying off the debt your
elders used the government to incur. The government takes its cuts of your paychecks, wages an unwinnable war on drugs, jails more than 2.3 million citizens and employs almost 1.4 million active-duty military personnel. And that’s why it’s lunacy to suggest troops abroad are fighting for your freedom. The troops are employed by the one organization that limits your freedom more than any other. At best, soldiers can prevent foreign governments from sending their troops to protect your freedom. Daniel Morgan is a 21-year-old economics senior from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_dmorgan.
Contact Daniel Morgan at dmorgan@lsureveille.com
BURNS AFTER READING
“Libertarianism” used too often, fits only select group “Libertarian.” You’ve probably encountered this term before. But the word gets tossed around so often by so many diametrically opposed pundits — like Glenn Beck and Bill Maher — that it’s hard to pin down a reliable definition. Contrary to popular belief, libertarianism isn’t some political flavor of the week. It’s not a label for the “Ron Paul Revolution.” It’s not a flock of nerds who fawn over the effigies of some obscure Austrian economists. And it’s certainly not a “get out of jail free” card anyone can use on a small set of controversial or personal topics. For years authentic libertarianism has been buried beneath layers of morally depraved philosophies and misguided leadership. But, alas, the Holy Grail has been discovered. And its truth is so simple even small school children grasp it. Of course, I’d love to tell you. But that would break the first and second rule of libertarianism: “You do not tell anyone about libertarianism.” So instead, we’ll play a quick game of “Who Wants to be a Libertarian?” Here’s your million-dollar question: Should violence and coercion ever be used to settle social problems? A. No B. Yes C. A and B; only governments should be able to initiate force If you chose A: congrats! You’re a libertarian. If you chose B: I’m sorry; evidently you’re both mentally retarded and incorrigibly evil. If you chose C: I’m sorry; keep trying to tie your shoelaces backwards and play again. Trivia aside, libertarianism is
simply a label for a set of consistently held moral principles grounded in the philosophy that violence never solves social problems. It’s based on taking a reasoned, philosophical approach to complex moral problems — or working from first principles Scott Burns — rather than resorting to poColumnist litical “pragmatism” or coercive statist “solutions.” Most importantly, true libertarianism realizes morality is universal and applies to all individuals. Hence, no man-made institution called “the government”— which is simply a conceptual label for a small group of individuals who claim both legal and moral authority within a geographical area — can possibly hold the transcendent moral power to initiate force. In this sense, voluntarism — the logical extension of libertarian philosophy — isn’t the rejection of all authority. It’s the rejection of any involuntary and absolute authority that rules by way of an unsigned, self-incriminating “social contract.” Sure, you might get called “a damn idealist!” by your friends, colleagues or political science professors for holding such unswerving moral scruples but that’s a small price compared to what free-minded revolutionaries have been paying for centuries. Besides, you can always take the devil’s advocate approach: if people can’t be trusted to run their own lives and settle problems peacefully, then they shouldn’t have any democratic voice and a small subset of them definitely shouldn’t be granted absolute power and supreme legal authority.
If your parents had bought a litter of bloodthirsty pit bulls to protect you from stray neighborhood cats, you’d call them insane and incompetent. Ironically enough, the same misconception applies when statists argue, “We must create an all-powerful mafia-like monopoly to protect individuals from violence.” Some might even call this Godfather-like system of institutionalized crime “anarchy.” If so, “anarchy” isn’t just some abstract idea we should fear. It’s the reality of our world, where trillions of taxpayer dollars are squandered, fanning the flames of foreign intervention,
economic distortion and any other government-induced threat. So who’s really the idealist? The reasoned libertarian or the dogmatic statist? Ultimately, the choice is simple for anyone who seeks truth: you can take the red pill and put your trust in well-grounded, empirically valid philosophy rather than devoting your blind faith to abstract concepts and self-incriminating institutions. Or you can take the blue pill and desperately cling onto the idea that a small subset of people called “the government” will magically solve complex social problems through
legalized coercion and absolute power. Pragmatism might be advantageous for the select few in power. But just remember — principles are sexy. And the truth…well, you know the rest. Scott Burns is a 20-year-old economics junior from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_sburns.
Contact Scott Burns at sburns@lsureveille.com
BEST AND WITTIEST
cartoon courtesy of KING FEATURES SYNDICATE
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
THE DAILY REVEILLE FACEBOOK, from page 1
University students listed as friends on Facebook the day he died, according to an April 18, 2005 Daily Reveille article. As of Nov. 3, 2009, Clemons has 1,163 Facebook friends. Harvey Werner, one of Clemons’ childhood friends and an enrollment adviser in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions and Student Aid, said Clemons was the first of their friends to have more than 1,000 Facebook friends. Brown said he used to have access to Clemons’ profile, but he has not accessed the account in a while. “Early on, we would accept friend requests and try to clean out some of the junk messages and event invitations,” Brown said. “If his family wanted to get on, they could.” FACEBOOK’S POLICY Max Kelly, Facebook head of security, experienced a similar dilemma and blogged Oct. 26 about Facebook’s new policy regarding the profiles of deceased users. Kelly said his best friend and colleague died in a bicycling accident six weeks after starting work together at Facebook. He said the
question regarding what to do with his friend’s profile soon arose. “When someone leaves us, they don’t leave our memories or our social network,” he said. “To reflect that reality, we created the idea of ‘memorialized’ profiles as a place where people can save and share their memories of those who’ve passed.” When an account is memorialized, only confirmed Facebook friends can see the profile, leave posts or locate it in a search, according to Kelly’s blog. Memorialization removes contact information and status updates and prevents future logins. “I still visit my friend’s memorialized profile to remember the good times we had and share them with our mutual friends,” Kelly said. Kelly said to memorialize an account, family or friends of the deceased must contact Facebook. Patrick Shockey, business administration senior, said in an e-mail that Facebook has helped him remember his good friend Ellen Hinson. Hinson, then-mechanical engineering sophomore, died in a car accident in summer 2008. “When someone passes who was a member of the Facebook
PAGE 15 community, their wall sort of transforms into one of those online memorial guest books,” Shockey said. “I don’t have many pictures of [Hinson], and some of the stories are nice to read when I want to reflect on how [Hinson] touched people’s lives.” Brown said he knows Clemons would not want his Facebook profile to be deleted because of Clemons’ frequent use of the Web site. A MODERN WAY TO GRIEVE Susan Dumais, sociology professor, said Facebook is a modern and more public way for family and friends to grieve. “It’s the next step to other kinds of memorials that we’ve had in the past,” Dumais said. “[In the past] people just had photo albums, and we’ve moved on to videos ... Having commemorative films or videos of the loved one, and now, to have a piece of them in cyberspace, is the next step beyond that.” Dumais said to have the existence of a deceased friend on Facebook is probably hard for people at first, but as time goes on, they likely appreciate having a piece of that person around. Patrick Radecker, civil engineering senior and close friend of Hinson, said he wouldn’t go out of his way to contact Facebook to “memorialize” Hinson’s profile. He said he did not like how “memorialization” of a Facebook account would prevent any future login attempts. “Her mom gets on all the time, and it helps her,” Radecker said. “If she couldn’t get on, [Hinson’s] mom isn’t a friend of [Hinson’s] on Facebook, so she wouldn’t be able to see her own daughter’s pictures.” Shockey said Hinson’s parents update her Facebook status to tell her friends about the different fundraisers and charitable events held in Hinson’s name. “Without some of these updates, I feel it would be much harder to find this information on my own,” Shockey said. “[These events] help [Hinson] live on through her parents.” Werner also had access to Clemons’ Facebook account right after his death. Werner said he wouldn’t mind not having access to Clemons’ profile if his account were memorialized. “It’s amazing that in the year and a half he was in school he was able to touch so many people,” Werner said. Contact Mary Walker Baus at mwbaus@lsureveille.com
THE DAILY REVEILLE
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2009 ASSAULT, from page 1
Foundation Against Sexual Assault. “If nobody reports it, then that’s why [a rapist] is out and available to do this again.” Four forcible sex offenses were reported on campus in 2008, with two of those being in residential facilities, according to the University’s 2009 Annual Safety Report. In 2007, there was only one reported, and in 2006, there were two. Benitez said research shows 75 to 90 percent of rapes are not reported. She said victims often don’t report a rape because of a
WASTE, from page 1
students achieve the 20 percent goal, Heidke said. “It’s a neat way [to appeal to students],” Heidke said. “The cause is worthwhile, especially with recent times, as the demand on food banks are increasing.” Donovan Myers, physics and chemical engineering freshman, said though the donations are a good incentive, it doesn’t influence how much he eats at the dining hall. “I try not to waste food anyway, unless it’s something bad,” Myers said. Signs and banners in the dining hall remind students of the ways they can reduce their food waste, like exercising portion control, but Heidke said the project doesn’t just help the environment and local food bank. “Students will think twice about taking seconds, and it helps
combination of factors, including fear of retribution by the rapist and judgement of their lifestyle and choices. “We do a lot of victim judging,” she said. “But you have to remember that she’s somebody’s daughter.” LSUPD officers arrested Taylor in his dorm room Sunday. He was booked in East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on one count each of simple rape and unlawful purchase of an alcoholic beverage. Contact Kyle Bove at kbove@lsureveille.com
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‘[The project] helps prevent students from eating more than they should.’ David Heidke
LSU Dining director
prevent students from eating more than they should,” Heidke said. Amy Beecher, kinesiology freshman, often tries to do her part in Project Clean Plate, which she said works and is a good way to help the environment. “If I know I’m not hungry, I watch what I get,” Beecher said. “Everyone needs to cut back on their waste.” Contact Brianna Paciorka at bpaciorka@lsureveille.com
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