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YOU ASKED, WE ANSWERED: UT POWER OUTAGE 2015
LIFE&ARTS PAGE 8
SPORTS PAGE 6
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Wednesday, February 18, 2015
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CAMPUS
STUDENT GOVT.
By Samantha Ketterer & Eleanor Dearman
SG releases upcoming candidates for election
Power outage affects UT campus @thedailytexan
Despite a campus-wide power outage that lasted nearly two hours Tuesday, University administrators did not cancel classes. Power went out across campus at 8:15 a.m. Tuesday. Eventually, power returned building by building, until the last building regained electricity at around noon. University spokesman Gary Susswein said classes
were not canceled because University officials thought they could resolve the outage quickly. “Had we canceled classes, that would have had an effect throughout the day with people not showing up to classes,” Susswein said. “We are a university. Students are here to learn, faculty are here to teach, so we wanted to hold off on canceling classes hoping it could be resolved quickly. And it was.” Psychology sophomore Alejandrina Guzman, who
uses an electric wheelchair to get around campus, said she thinks the outage was an inconvenience for students who rely on elevators, door openers and other Americans with Disabilities Act accommodations to get to class. Guzman said she was ultimately able to find an alternate route. “I don’t think the University really did anything to help,” Guzman said. “Yeah, they fixed it eventually, but the fact that classes were still
POWER page 3
By Samantha Ketterer @thedailytexan
Marshall Tidrick | Daily Texan Staff
Students, staff and faculty wait for the lights to come back on at the entrance to the PCL on Tuesday morning.
UNIVERSITY
UT fails to notify students of bomb threat By The Daily Texan Staff @thedailytexan
University administrators waited more than three hours to notify students of two bomb threats reported in West Campus Tuesday morning. When the University finally acknowledged the bomb threats, it was through a single tweet sent from the University’s official Twitter account. Students never received a campus-wide email or text alert about the bomb threats. A man being treated for a psychiatric disorder made two bomb threats at 7:11 a.m. Tuesday — one to the North Austin Muslim Community Center at 11900 North Lamar Blvd. and another to the Shawarma Republique food trailer on 24th Street — prompting the Austin Police Department to block off the surrounding West Campus area, according to APD Cpl. David Boyd. University police spokeswoman Rhonda Weldon said APD did not immediately notify UTPD of the situation because there was no immediate threat to campus. “APD is the lead agency,” Weldon said. “In retrospect, probably, what we would have liked to have done is have sent out something that said avoid the area, but there was never a situation where APD
Marshall Tidrick| Daily Texan Staff
The Austin Police Bomb Squad investigates a bomb threat at Shawarma Republique food trailer on 24th Street. A man being treated for psychiatric disorder called in two bomb threats in the West Campus area Tuesday morning.
was communicating any kind of danger to the safety of campus or to students beyond that immediate area.” Weldon said UTPD Police Chief David Carter notified her around 9 a.m. of the threat. At that point, UTPD was on
the scene to assist APD with the investigation. “One of the reasons [APD did not contact us] is that [West Campus is] outside the Clery reporting area, which is where they normally would give us a call,” Weldon said.
The Jeanne Clery Act requires universities to inform their campus communities about crimes happening on and near campus and publish an annual security report. Boyd said officers investigated the neighborhood thoroughly
SYSTEM
but found no suspicious devices. He said APD is considering charging the man with making a “terroristic threat.” “We take all threats seriously, so we had officers respond to both locations,”
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Four groups of candidates filed to run for Executive Alliance in this year’s Student Government elections. The candidates for president and vice president are government senior Braydon Jones and international relations and global studies senior Kimia Dargahi; Plan II seniors Xavier Rotnofsky and Rohit Mandalapu; David Maly, economics and journalism senior, and Stephen Svatek, civil engineering junior; economics junior Baylor Morrison and electrical engineering senior Matthew Normyle, respectively. Campaigning began Wednesday morning at 12:01 a.m. Jones is the current SG speaker of the assembly. Rotnofsky works at the Texas Travesty. Maly is currently the editor-inchief of The Horn and The Odyssey. Morrison is involved in Camp Texas. The Election Supervisory Board, which oversees all campus elections, held a meeting Tuesday night to discuss the rules of running for student-voted positions. The Board is asking for a financial disclosure form from each candidate, in which each candidate will indicate the amount of money they plan to spend on their campaign and for what expenses as well as any donations they receive. Candidates also had the option of paying a $10 fee, which the disclosure form indicated, to make their campaigns registered student organizations.
STATE
Abbott puts higher education as top priority Alcohol prevention By Eleanor Dearman & Jackie Wang Gov. Greg Abbott made higher education research an “emergency item” in his first State of the State address Tuesday. In his speech at the Capitol, Abbott urged lawmakers to prioritize legislation related to funding higher education research initiatives. He also said the state should work to create more tierone research institutions to benefit Texas’ economy. “My budget jump-starts the process of elevating Texas higher education into the highest echelons by committing a half-billion dollars to enhance research programs and attract nationally
recognized researchers and Nobel laureates to Texas universities,” Abbott said. Abbott’s budget, released Tuesday, allocates about $56 million to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board from the Texas Emerging Technology Fund to attract prominent researchers to state universities. He also allocated $40 million to current and emerging research institutes. The budget does not go into detail on how the money will be distributed between different universities. Additionally, Abbott’s budget allocates between $400 and $540 million to the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas for cancer research at higher
education institutions and about $532 million in tuition exemptions for veterans and their families. Abbott said he also plans to sign a law that will make Texas the 45th state to allow the “open carry” of guns. “It is a basic second amendment right for citizens in that it allows them to carry their handguns visibly,” Bridget Guien, College Republicans communications director and economics freshman, said. Abbott said he is looking to deploy 500 new state troopers and double border-security spending. Ashley Alcantara, Plan II sophomore and communications director of University Democrats, said she disagreed with Abbott’s
plans to increase border security, although she appreciated his focus on early and higher education. “I think it’s a lot more effective to work with immigration reform instead of simply throwing money at the border,” Alcantara said. State Sen. Rodney Ellis (D-Houston) said he appreciated that Abbott made an effort to reach across the aisle in his speech, but said he found Abbott’s support of open carry troubling. “The devil is always in the details,” Ellis said. “The question is whether open carry in Texas is a throwback to the ‘Wild Wild West,’ or something which is far more reasonable, which I’m convinced most of those [44] states probably have.”
NEWS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFE&ARTS
Regents approve funding for alcohol education. PAGE 3
Pay attention to campaigns. PAGE 4
Basketball blows a late lead in Oklahoma. PAGE 6
Two students produce short film about love. PAGE 8
SG votes on anti-campus carry resolution. PAGE 3
Local homeless people deserve respect. PAGE 4
Barrera’s big day sparks baseball in home opener. PAGE 6
Humans of the Forty Acres launches Facebook page. PAGE 8
@thedailytexan
funding approved By Josh Willis @joshwillis35
The UT System Board of Regents approved $2.4 million at a meeting Thursday to support the expansion of alcohol prevention, education and recovery programs at all UT System schools. The funds will be used over the next three years for campus recovery centers and to provide services such as a web-based alcohol education program and early intervention screening programs, according to a System press release. UT Austin leads the UT System schools in alcohol
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education, according to Chris Brownson, UT associate vice president for student affairs and director of the Counseling and Mental Health Center. The system-wide implementation of the programs began in 2012 after the Board of Regents approved an initial $1 million. “The UT System is the only system of higher education in the nation to make this level of commitment to students by funding comprehensive programs at each academic campus,” Brownson said in the statement.
ALCOHOL page 2 REASON TO PARTY
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Boyd said. “We also dispatched our bomb technicians to both locations.” Geology senior Julianne Milner said she thought students should have received an alert because West Campus is such a densely populated student neighborhood. “It’s really nerve-wracking and made me very nervous because it was targeting a West Campus area instead of a campus one,” Milner said. “We get notifications when there are [noteworthy] crimes in West Campus, so I don’t see why this doesn’t qualify as a threat to student safety.”
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Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Riley Brands Senior Associate Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Noah M. Horwitz Associate Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Olivia Berkeley, Cullen Bounds, Olive Liu Managing Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Jordan Rudner Associate Managing Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brett Donohoe, Jack Mitts News Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Julia Brouillette Associate News Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Anderson Boyd, Danielle Brown, Chanelle Gibson, Adam Hamze, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Natalie Sullivan Senior Reporters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Wynne Davis, Eleanor Dearman, Samantha Ketterer, Jackie Wang, Josh Willis Copy Desk Chief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Taiki Miki Associate Copy Desk Chiefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Liza Didyk, Matthew Kerr, Kailey Thompson Design Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alex Dolan Senior Designers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Virginia Scherer, Kelly Smith, Iliana Storch Multimedia Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dan Resler, Lauren Ussery Associate Photo Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amy Zhang Senior Photographers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Carlo Nasisse, Griffin Smith, Ellyn Snider, Marshall Tidrick, Daulton Venglar Senior Videographers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael Conway, Hannah Evans, Bryce Seifert Editorial Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Antonia Gales Senior Opinion Columnists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jordan Shenhar Life&Arts Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Kat Sampson Life&Arts Associate Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Danielle Lopez Senior Life&Arts Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Cat Cardenas, Marisa Charpentier, Elisabeth Dillon Sports Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Garrett Callahan Associate Sports Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Evan Berkowitz Senior Sports Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nick Castillo, Claire Cruz, Jacob Martella, Aaron Torres Comics Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lindsay Rojas Associate Comics Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Albert Lee, Connor Murphy Senior Comics Artists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Crystal Marie, Isabella Palacios, Amber Perry, Rodolfo Suarez Special Projects Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amanda Voeller Tech Team Lead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Miles Hutson Social Media Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sydney Rubin
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After they were informed of the situation, UTPD officers went to the area surrounding 24th Street to make sure no students were involved in the threats. “This is outside their area, but, once they heard about it, there is concern for our students,” Weldon said. “UTPD went to the scene out of an abundance of caution to find out if this involved one of our students. It’s an area that’s outside of where they would normally do something like that.” The man who placed the bomb threats stayed at the community center’s mosque Monday night, according to APD senior officer Surei Scanlon. APD officers declined to re-
lease the man’s name or identify the hospital where he was being treated. Economics sophomore Kareem Abdi, who said he regularly attends services at the North Austin Muslim Community Center mosque, said that after recent events targeting Muslims across the country, this bomb threat brought Islamophobia close to home. “I feel like hatred is a common threat in the Muslim community,” Abdi said. “Now, it seems like another regular day when the community receives threats.” Eleanor Dearman, Adam Honze, Samantha Ketterer and Jackie Wang contributed to this report.
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ALCOHOL
continues from page 1 Regent Vice Chairman Steve Hicks said in the statement that student safety includes assuring students they have a place to go for problems with alcohol. “This initiative is an investment in student success, student health and student safety,” Hicks said. “We want to prevent students from getting into trouble in the first place, but if they do get into trouble, we want to make sure they have a place to go that will provide the resources to get them back on track.”
All UT System institutions do already have resources dedicated to alcohol recovery and prevention, according to the statement. “Though recovery centers are in various stages of development at UT academic institutions, nearly all of the campuses have a physical location, weekly recovery support group meetings, social media and/or Internet presence and a dedicated staff member to oversee the center,” the statement said. Susan Hochman, assistant director for public information and health promotion of University Health Services, said the funding that will go toward alcohol abuse prevention will support two different initiatives, online alcohol education and personal assessments of alcohol-related behaviors. All incoming UT students are required to take a web-based alcohol education course. “This is system-wide, so all system schools will be able to implement [online alcohol education] in some form or another, which some system schools have,” Hochman said. The funding will also support a program called Brief Alcohol Screening Intervention for College Students (BASICS), which is a program that provides a comfortable environment for students to assess their own drinking behaviors through dialogue with professionals and online testing. “It’s wonderful to have the funding that supports prevention, and this is a great way for us to reach all of our students in a way that we know to be effective,” Hochman said. Cary Tucker, associate director of the Counseling and Mental Health Center, said previous funds have gone toward expanding staff to better serve students, in addition to outreach efforts. “I would say that primarily the funds have been used to hire staff, and, generally, that’s been one person at each of the campuses who can actually devote the time, energy and focus to leading the effort,” Tucker said. Tucker said the recovery efforts provide a sense of community for those recovering from alcohol abuse. “It really is so heartening that it’s just having a place on campus where people in recovery can feel that they belong, that they have community and they have support,” Tucker said.
W&N 3
NEWS
3
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
SG votes on legislation against UT ‘campus carry’ By Samantha Ketterer @sam_kett
Student Government voted Tuesday to oppose a state Senate-proposed campus-carry policy at the University. Twenty-one of 27 assembly members voted in support of the resolution, a statement against allowing concealed handguns on campus. Under current state laws, licensed students, faculty and staff are allowed to keep handguns in their cars on campus. With the passing of SB 11 in the Texas Senate, the University would not be able to prohibit licensed students, faculty or staff from carrying concealed handguns on campus. SG’s resolution, AR 30, was heavily debated in the open
POWER
continues from page 1 rolling, I think that wasn’t fair. Luckily, I used the other side of the building, and I was fine — but who knows if other people on crutches, or wheelchairs or a scooter [could get around].” Guzman said she believes classes should have been canceled during the outage.
forum during the assembly meeting, with both sides coming forward to address the issue. Most students who spoke in opposition to the SG bill echoed the statement that the bill would not be representative of all students. “I know that the authors of this bill feel it properly voices the opinion of all students on campus, but that’s not the case,” accounting junior Andrew Jackson said. “This is not an issue student government needs to deal with because it is not something all students want. And I would [also] be against AR 30 if it was for campuscarry because, again, that is not something all students want.” Jamie Nalley, a co-author of the resolution, said he believed taking a vote on the resolution
meant students opinion would be sufficiently represented. “Some of us will vote yes and some will vote no, but that’s how we’re not alienating any students,” Nalley said. One of the primary reasons students spoke against campus carry, and in support of the proposed legislation, was for the overall safety of campus. Corporate communications senior Madeline Krebs said a perfect consensus is not necessary for an SG resolution. “I want to urge Student Government to not be afraid to take a stand on something just because not all students agree,” Krebs said. The legislation was originally fast-tracked for a vote last week but the vote was postponed until Tuesday night
in order to hear more student voices on the matter, according to Tanner Long, College of Liberal Arts Student Government representative and co-author of the resolution.
UT System Chancellor William McRaven also publicly expressed disapproval of the campus carry bill and said he believes “the presence of concealed weap-
ons will make a campus a less-safe environment.” SG will host a town hallstyle meeting Thursday to discuss the outcome of the resolution vote.
“As cheesy as it sounds, it might have been best to cancel those few hours of class simply because not everyone was able to make it,” Guzman said. “It wasn’t inclusive.” Students with specific concerns about how the University handled the outage should make their concerns known to University officials, Susswein said. “If there are specific,
unique situations that could help us make things even better in the future, we would be happy to speak with those students and to learn how to improve on our practice,” Susswein said. “We are always looking to do things better.” The power outage posed a myriad of problems for students across campus, as elevators ceased to func-
tion, Wi-Fi went down, and dorm key cards were rendered useless. Campus Wi-Fi was patchy throughout the day and wasn’t fully restored until 5:31 p.m., according to the Information Technology Services office. Leo Sanchez, student ambassador in the division of Housing and Food Services, said swipe cards for dorms
did not work during the outage, so students were not able to purchase food in the dining halls. UTPD spokeswoman Cindy Posey said all emergency generators worked properly. UT students received a UTAustinAlert text at roughly 8:15 a.m., which clarified that there was no emergency or on-going threat. The University sent an-
other text alert at 9:53 a.m. and emails at 10:23 a.m. and 10:47 a.m., saying the power was being restored building by building. The power outage occurred on the second day of UT Energy Week, a week of lectures and campus events focused around “the most vital energy issues facing society,” according to the event website.
Student Government clerk Jordan Durrani records votes for AR 30, a resolution opposing “campus-carry” policies, Tuesday night. The resolution passed 216, affirming SG’s stance against concealed guns on campus.
Ellyn Snider Daily Texan Staff
Power Outage Play by Play 8:15 Power goes out campus-wide.
8:45 @UTAustin tweets “Despite power outage, classes are still in session. Please proceed to class.”
8:30 @UTAustin tweets “Power outage on campus. Utilities working to bring power back to campus.”
8:56 Cell service goes out on campus.
8:55 UTAustinAlert goes out to alert campus of power outage, no emergency or ongoing threat.
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10:04 @UTAustin tweets “Power has been fully restored to campus. Thanks for your patience.”
9:53 UTAustinAlert says power is being restored across campus building by building.
10:47 Another University email goes out to alert the UT community of the power outage.
10:23 University sends campus-wide email alerting UT community of the power outage, says repairs are ongoing.
12:35 Some UT buildings remain without heat or hot water.
12:20 Six buildings still don’t have Wi-Fi; four others have partial outages.
5:30 ITS reports all network restoration related to the power outage is completed.
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RILEY BRANDS, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / @TexanEditorial Wednesday, February 18, 2015
4
EDITORIAL
As campaigning begins, pay special attention to candidates; vote With the close of filing Tuesday, dozens of candidates officially declared their respective candidacies for the plethora of open offices, including Student Government and Texas Student Media positions. Most important for us, four factions declared for student body president and vice president, and two candidates were certified last Friday to run for editor-in-chief of the Texan. In addition, candidates were certified for TSM board seats, the Graduate Student Assembly, University Unions and the Co-op Board. Candidates officially began campaigning Wednesday. As a recent firing line to this publication by an alumnus of the University noted, students have not always had a right to selfdetermination for many of their affairs. Well into the 1980s, the Students’ Association was nonexistent and the students themselves had no say over the time, place and manner of all too many items of concern for students. Some 30 years later, the integrity of students’ already miniscule exercise in democ-
racy is threatened again. The belligerent is not malevolent regents or administration officials, but an apathetic student body. In recent years, turnout has hovered around a disappointing 15 percent, according to data from the Dean of Students’ office. With turnout so egregiously low, and so many on the 40 Acres utterly disconnected, the legitimacy of the ostensibly elected representatives is called into question. Texas is dead last in political participation in the country, and we think the disengagement obviously starts early. For this university and this state, that needs to change. Certainly, this year — like many years before it — features no shortage of inspirational, qualified or otherwise positive candidates. Multiple contenders from diverse cross-sections of the University have come forward in an attempt to better this school for all who attend and otherwise interact with it. But the best way for Student Government, as well as publications such as the Texan, to work with
COLUMN
the community is to be buttressed by robust civic engagement and turnout. Thankfully, voting is easy. This year, as before, votes can be cast online over the course of two days. This means you can participate in the decision-making at any time of day, in any place with an internet connection or cell service. You also don’t have to show your driver’s license! Over the next few Amy Zhang | Daily Texan File Photo weeks, many organiza- Former UT System Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa speaks at a tions, such as this board, Student Government meeting in 2014. will offer our thoughts on the elections for presision to vote in the first place. We hope you dent and vice president as well as other posimake it. Voting begins March 4 and ends tions. The most important decision, though, March 5. You can vote at utexasvote.org. is not who one selects; rather, it is the deci-
COLUMN
ICC Cricket World Cup screening ‘Street community’ deserves respect important in uniting communities By Khadija Saifullah Daily Texan Columnist
This past Saturday, while some may have been celebrating Valentine’s Day, the Longhorn Cricket Club hosted its annual match screening for the International Cricket Council Cricket World Cup in the Jester Auditorium. This initiative itself is of huge significance every year, as members of competing teams unite to host the event. This year, India and Pakistan squared off, with India winning 50-47 as around 400 fans in Texas watched from 9,200 miles away. The Longhorn Cricket Club is an organization composed of about 20 individuals from the Indian subcontinent. Its members actively participate in regional and national tournaments. The club used the screening as an opportunity to raise money by selling refreshments and collected $240 for an upcoming tournament in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Longhorn Cricket Club will be representing UT at the American College Cricket National Tournament, which will begin March 11. College teams from all over the country will compete with each other in this game. India and Pakistan possess one of the most intense rivalries in the world, with this year’s match attracting 1 billion viewers worldwide. The rivalry originates from the extensive communal violence and differences that
erupted in the 1947 partition, when Pakistan was formed and separated from India as an independent state. Since then, additional conflicts have cemented this rivalry between two nations that had once played on the same cricket team. The rivalry transcends sports, and now, in the 21st century, the tension is omnipresent with constant claims and accusations thrown back and forth between the neighboring countries. It is precisely for this reason that the meetings of these countries on the wicket are so important. The matches offer opportunities to ameliorate conflicts as fans travel to either country in order to support their nation and share their passion for the sport. And now, more than 67 years after the partition, although our current generation has not witnessed the momentous initial sacrifices made by the establishment of either of the independent states, cricket plays an instrumental role in bringing excitement and momentarily breaking the continuous tension between India and Pakistan. We often forget to look beyond our differences and look at what holds us together. The combination of culture, ethics and religion has blessed us with regional trade and our shared passion for sports. Our nationalities aside, cricket has been and will continue to be the source of excitement for both Indians and Pakistanis during this time of the year. In the end, the game brought peace more than anything. Saifullah is a neuroscience sophomore from Richardson.
EDITORIAL
After power outage, administration should have canceled morning classes On Tuesday morning, shortly after the start of 8 a.m. classes, the power went down campus-wide. For many, this was a minor setback and an almost forgettable inconvenience. However, for others, the lack of power made getting to class downright impossible. Out of concern for those students and many others in the University’s community with similar predicaments, the administration made an egregious mistake in not canceling classes until power was restored throughout the 40 Acres later that morning. The verbal anecdotes and online photos were ubiquitous throughout the day. And while some were cute and harmless — the tweet of engineering undergraduates working near a window to complete their assignments comes to mind — others were more serious. Classrooms without windows were blackened, and the frosty outside conditions slowly permeated into the buildings. Some students were even stuck in elevators throughout the haunting ordeal. However, perhaps most pressingly, the administration’s ill-advised move to continue classes as scheduled ignored the very real concerns of students with disabilities. Without functional elevators or automatic doors, many students confined to wheelchairs or with other disabilities were totally unable to attend their classes as scheduled. These classes consisted of very important instruction time and — in at least one instance — a midterm examination. “[The administration] didn’t think through what differently abled students were going to
Photo courtesy of Valerie Sorge
Engineering students do their homework by natural light in Ernest Cockrell Jr. Hall after their professor decided to cancel class midlecture Tuesday morning.
do,” Alejandrina Guzman, a psychology sophomore who uses an electric wheelchair, told the Texan. “It wasn’t fair.” The decision to cancel class should not be made lightly. But a university such as this one needs a plethora of modern conveniences in order to function, and one of them is electricity. If the University cannot fulfill its obligation to keep the lights on, don’t expect students to keep their obligation to keep the seats full.
LEGALESE | Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan are those of the editor, the Editorial Board or the writer of the article. They are not necessarily those of the UT administration, the Board of Regents or the Texas Student Media Board of Operating Trustees.
Gabby Belzer | Daily Texan File Photo
Carl Evans sits in a parking lot near Austin Resource Center for the Homeless in 2013. The annual average of sheltered and unsheltered homeless in Austin usually rounds out to 4,500.
By Jori Epstein
Daily Texan Columnist @JoriEpstein
One sector of Austin’s street community may be seen ambling down the stairs of the University Baptist Church each Sunday, ready to spend a few hours in the safety and comfort of the church basement where computer access, phone chargers, hot meals and art supplies abound. Another community frequents the alley behind Jamba Juice at the juncture of Guadalupe and 23rd streets. And a third group of street community members dots storefronts on the Drag. With fishing nets, cardboard signs or even flowers to sell, men and women of all ages and ethnicities look to forge a living on the campus thoroughfare. Each of these communities helps comprise Austin’s homeless community. Shifting between the church, alley, Drag and other locations, these self-described homeless men and women have made for themselves a home. Cross Guadalupe Street and this changes. Members of the homeless community rarely enter the 40 Acres due to UTPD’s strict rules against campus trespassing. Last week, however, two men did. One homeless man stabbed another with a knife in the Union Building on campus Feb. 11. UTPD handled the incident swiftly, offering EMS care to the injured individual, spokeswoman Cindy Posey said. After the injured individual refused treatment, he left. The assailant was not apprehended last week, Posey said Tuesday evening. The incident left some students unsettled and surprised that aggravated assault can occur on campus so suddenly. But we must not view this as a reason for fear, intimidation or reason to cast blame. Rather, we should use the incident as a means to reorient ourselves with campus safety policies and spur dialogues. The campus sees a limited number of trespassers each year. UTPD reported 78 cases of criminal trespassing in 2014, or an average of 6.5 a month. But this includes student arrests as well. UTPD arrested 22 criminal trespassers in April 2014 —almost double the next most active month (12 in September). Eighteen of these were students arrested for entering the Tower to protest against the University’s Shared services policy. Take out that escalation, and the number drops to just five per month. Even more so, knife incidents are practically nonexistent. UTPD reported just a single in-
SUBMIT A FIRING LINE OR GUEST COLUMN | E-mail your Firing Lines and guest columns to editor@dailytexanonline.com. Letters must be between 100 and 300 words and guest columns between 500 and 1,000. The Texan reserves the right to edit all submissions for brevity, clarity and liability.
stance of assault via knife or cutting instrument through the entire 2014 calendar year. Statistically, then, this month’s incident took care of the quota. In terms of an ongoing threat, the stab doesn’t appear to be a planned attack, nor did it target UT students or faculty. It was merely a fight between two men, and it unfortunately escalated to physical aggression. As soon as it took place, bystanders called emergency services. UTPD and EMS officials arrived, investigated the incident and took appropriate action. UTPD has successful safety protocols in place. Its manual for disruptive individuals — defined as those threatening physical harm, bearing weapons, under the influence or behaving “in a bizarre manner or [with] unstable behavior patterns” — is extensive and clear. Call UTPD, describe the subject and location, remain confident and manage the emotional climate. From the statistically minimal on-campus violence to the effectiveness of UTPD policy, Longhorn students and faculty alike need not worry of on-campus danger. But we must go one step further than just feeling safe ourselves —we must also take care not to spin this incident into a stigma. Though these two men were homeless, the incident doesn’t represent the typical behavior of the homeless community. At the very most it may point to mental illness, with which we should sympathize and treat. Shying away from the street communities near campus and West Campus will not help assuage threats, nor will it solve any of these problems. If any action is appropriate, it should be extending a hand to this community and showing them that they, too, are welcome in Austin. Decreasing hostility is the most effective way to discourage violence. A host of stereotypes and stigmas surround the homeless men and women on the Drag, many of which we don’t take the time to examine. Following instances like last week’s assault, we are confronted with these questions. Last week’s assault on campus was far from ideal. But it’s our responsibility to take the negative incident and turn it into something positive. We have an opportunity to open dialogues on campus: dialogues about campus safety, UTPD responses and the interaction between students and homeless communities. We shouldn’t pass the opportunity — or the homeless men and women along our daily commutes — by. Epstein is a Plan II and journalism senior from Dallas.
RECYCLE | Please recycle this copy of The Daily Texan. Place the paper in one of the recycling bins on campus or back in the burnt-orange newsstand where you found it. EDITORIAL TWITTER | Follow The Daily Texan Editorial Board on Twitter (@TexanEditorial) and receive updates on our latest editorials and columns.
CLASS 5
LIFE&ARTS
5
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
CAMPUS
Freshmen launch ‘Humans of ’ blog By Emily Fu
@thedailytexan
Every Sunday afternoon, the Humans of the Forty Acres team walks around campus getting to know seven random strangers. The only things they bring: a camera, a recorder, and a couple of prepared interview questions. Humans of the Forty Acres, a photo blog which Jordan Cope, international relations and liberal arts honors freshman, Daniel Orr, classics and Plan II freshman and Gauthier Fally, economics freshman, founded operates like its namesake blog, Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York. The founders post one picture and an accompanying quote per day on Facebook to spotlight people around campus. The project began three months ago when the founders realized it might potentially take off on a large campus like UT. Humans of Forty Acres now has more than 900 “likes” on Facebook. “It just seemed like everyone’s on social media here, it could have a big following, and it’d be a fun project to do,” said Cope. “So I approached my other co-founders, and
SHORT FILM
continues from page 8 color than those shot digitally. “Because of the color and graininess of it, [the film] has a built-in nostalgia to it,” Hockmuller said. “That is going to help the feel of [the film] a lot. We’ll get to kind of coast off of
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I was like, ‘How would you guys be interested in something like Humans of the Quad?’” Humans of the Forty Acres did start smaller — as Humans of the Quad. It focused mainly on students who lived within the Honors Quad — Carothers, Andrews, Blanton and Littlefield dormitories. As the Facebook page became more popular, the team decided to change the page’s name to attract a larger audience base. After switching to the new name a week ago, Humans of the Forty Acres now features students from across the University. Parth Kalaria, business honors and pre-med freshman and the page’s webmaster, said the team has already seen more diversity and variety in subjects’ responses. “Given the fact that UT isn’t a small, private college — it’s a big, large state university — the only way people are going to have a sense of what others are like around them is through forums like this,” Kalaria said. Orr said the team aims to promote cohesion among UT students, staff, fans and alumni.
“We’re trying to create a community,” Orsaid said. “We’re trying to use this as a form of coalescence.” Fally said he believes the job encourages stepping out of one’s comfort zone. “I think also the message is, it’s really not that hard to meet people,” Fally said. “It’s a lot easier than you’d think to meet new people.” Saniya Walawalkar, design freshman and one
of the team’s photographers, said that her favorite interactions happen when the interviewee forgets that the camera is there, making for a more candid and honest shot. “That’s when you know they’ve relaxed conversationally — when they don’t care that I’m snapping pictures of them,” Walawalkar said. “At the end of the day, we’re aiming for genuine, which comes with imperfections.”
Although they have had many successful interviews, the members of the team said they still experience anxiety when approaching potential interviewees. “In all honesty, it’s like asking a person to dance,” Cope said. “You don’t want to do it, but you want to do it, and you’ve got to just put everything aside and go for it … and sometimes we get rejected. And we go crying on the other side of the room.”
the connotations that [16 mm] film already has.” Biehle said the project provided a good opportunity to work with 16mm. The Department of Radio-TelevisionFilm gives them access to equipment and student discounts for film processing. “It’s expensive as a student,
but when we graduate it’s going to be even more expensive,” Biehle said. “So this was our last chance for a while.” The film will be ready to show at a thesis screening by the end of the academic year. Hockmuller, who said she hopes to distribute the project to film festivals,
said she ultimately plans to extend the script into a feature-length film. Hockmuller said she has enjoyed watching “What We Talk About” transform from a personal project to something she can share. Hockmuller said community support made her even more enthusiastic for the
project as time went on. “The positive feedback from everyone — from [Biehle] to our actors to our crew to just random people I tell about it is incredible,” Hockmuller said. “I did not expect to get that kind of response. It’s amazing — it’s the best feeling in the world.”
Mariana Gonzalez | Daily Texan Staff
Humans of the Forty Acres is comprised of a group of students who spotlight an individual on campus every day of the week. The blog has a large following through its Facebook page, where the group posts photographs and quotes from the students, faculty and staff they encounter.
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MILLENNIALS
continues from page 8 struggling with anxiety or pressure to succeed. “This is the thing that really made me confident in myself,” Blum said. “I didn’t know if I could do this, but, in the end, we are doing a great revue — we have the best cast ever.” Blum said theater provided him with a motivational push and a supportive set of friends. One of those friends is Erin Roberts, the play’s writer and musical director. “Robert is really one of the most enthusiastic people that I know,” Roberts said. “He got member of the year, last year, for Creative Arts + Theatre. He’s always there, ready to help out, whether he’s in show or on the crew for a show.” If a rowdy group of students gets out of hand, or someone’s schedule conflicts with rehearsal times, Roberts said that Blum is the guy she works with. She said Blum has a way of making sure everything runs smoothly. “[As the producer], you have to be the guy to control the production staff,” Blum said. “It requires getting the word out for auditions, getting the word out for the band [and] making sure people are telling me what’s going on.” Sandy Lam, the director of the musical, said Blum is the musical’s biggest fan. No matter what personal challenges Blum may face, in the end, his dedication and contribution to Creative Arts + Theatre is something the cast and crew know they can depend on, he said. The play runs Thursday through Saturday at 7 p.m. at the SAC Blackbox Theatre.
ADVERTISING TERMS There are no refunds or credits. In the event of errors made in advertisement, notice must be given by 10 am the fi rst day of publication, as the publishers are responsible for only ONE incorrect insertion. In consideration of The Daily Texan’s acceptance of advertising copy for publication, the agency and the advertiser will indemnify and save harmless, Texas Student Media and its officers, employees and agents against all loss, liability, damage and expense of whatsoever nature arising out of the copying, printing or publishing of its advertisement including without limitation reasonable attorney’s fees resulting from claims of suits for libel, violation of right of privacy, plagiarism and copyright and trademark infringement. All ad copy must be approved by the newspaper which reserves the right to request changes, reject or properly classify an ad. The advertiser, and not the newspaper, is responsible for the truthful content of the ad. Advertising is also subject to credit approval.
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GARRETT CALLAHAN, SPORTS EDITOR | @texansports Wednesday, February 18, 2015
MEN’S BASKETBALL
TEXAS
OKLAHOMA
VS.
Sooners steal one from Longhorns By Evan Berkowitz
Junior guard Kendal Yancy turned in 14 points, tying a career high, and freshman forward Myles Turner put up his second straight double-double. However, their big games were for naught as Texas blew a late-game lead to fall to No. 17 Oklahoma, 71–69.
@Evan_Berkowitz
The Longhorns had a chance to steal one in Norman, Oklahoma, on Tuesday night. Big nights from sophomore guard Kendal Yancy and freshman forward Myles Turner had the Longhorns up 5 with 3:34 left. The offense was running smoothly, and the defense was playing hard. It looked as though Texas had No. 17 Oklahoma on the ropes in what could have been a huge conference road win for head coach Rick Barnes and company. Then Oklahoma sophomore guard Jordan Woodard hit a three. Senior forward TaShawn Thomas followed with a threepoint play. Woodard finished an acrobatic layup, and junior forward Ryan Spangler found himself free for a layup on a pickand-roll. And, just like that, Texas (17–9, 6–7 Big 12) let one slip right through its hands as Oklahoma escaped, 71–69. “We did a lot of good things tonight,” Barnes said. “We’re close, but close doesn’t get it done.” Yancy, who started his fourth straight game, hit big shots for the Longhorns and seems to be finding his confidence.
Joe Capraro Daily Texan Staff
Yancy tied his career high in points with 14 while bringing down six boards. But with the game on the line and the Longhorns down 2 with just seconds left, it was senior forward Jonathan Holmes who took the big shot for the Longhorns and clanked a deep three from dead on. Texas almost overcame its turnover problem and ran a smooth offense for most of the game. Oklahoma forced Texas into 13 turnovers, at times instilling a full-court press. The Sooners, on
the other hand, took good care of the rock, committing only five turnovers. Texas, despite having athletic players across the board, currently sits last — by a large margin — in the conference in forced turnovers. For weeks, Texas has been in the zone defense, but against Oklahoma and its plethora of shooters, Texas went back to a man defense. Until the end, the defense was strong, as it held Oklahoma to 36 percent shooting. Turner and junior center Prince Ibeh protected the rim, assisting in a team-record-ty-
BASEBALL | 14–2
Griffin Smith Daily Texan Staff
Barrera powers Longhorns in home opener against UTSA @ViewFromTheBox
Junior outfielder Ben Johnson and sophomore first baseman Tres Barrera provided the fireworks for Texas’ home opener Tuesday night. With the Longhorns up by only a run in the bottom of the seventh, Johnson drilled a single up the middle, which UTSA misplayed, allowing Johnson and all three base runners to score – increasing Texas’ lead to 7–2. In the eighth inning, Barrera, last year’s home run derby champion, drilled a three-run home run to left field, and Texas won its 12th straight home opener, 14–2, over UTSA. “I didn’t even think that ball was going out,” Barrera said of his home run. Coming off a comeback win over Rice on Sunday, Texas seemed to have the upper hand. After freshman pitcher Connor Mayes opened the game with a quick 1-2-3 inning, senior right fielder Connor Shaw and junior shortstop C.J Hinojosa drilled singles, and Barrera followed suit to bring home Shaw
Holmes and sophomore point guard Isaiah Taylor disappointed. Holmes was 1-of-6 from deep, with the one being a meaningless, open shot at the buzzer. Taylor was 1-of-10 from the field and disappeared late in the game. “We just put so much pressure on [Taylor] to do good things,” Yancy said. “On this bus ride home, I’m going to check on him.” As a team, Texas struggled yet again from long range, connecting on just 8-of-23. Inside the arc, however, Texas shot 50 percent.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL Sophomore slugger Tres Barrera had himself a game for the Longhorns in their homeopener. He went 5-for-6 with a threerun homer in a 14–2 win over UTSA.
By Jacob Martella
ing 13 blocks. After a slow start, Turner turned in his second straight double-double. He scored 17 points with 10 boards and six blocks. “I feel more confident,” Turner said. “But I still feel like I need to get the ball in the post, that midrange area.” Junior guard Javan Felix was efficient with his shots today, as he was perfect from downtown to score 10 points on just six shots. While Turner, Yancy and Felix turned in admirable performances in a tough road environment,
and give the Longhorns a 1–0 lead. Two innings later, Barrera and the Longhorns struck again. Hinojosa opened the inning with a four-pitch walk, followed by a Barrera double to score Hinojosa and double the Texas lead. UTSA fought back in the fourth. After redshirt senior pitcher Ty Marlow hit senior catcher John Bormann in the head, Bormann advanced to second on a ground out, and freshman second baseman Skyler Valentine laced a single to left to score Bormann and get the Roadrunners on the board. Following an RBI double by Johnson in the bottom of the fourth to stretch the Texas lead back to 3–1, UTSA came back in the top of the sixth. Junior shortstop Tyler Straub and sophomore designated hitter Mitchell Matulia drew back-to-back walks, and Valentine again drilled an RBI single to close the deficit to 3–2. But Texas finally broke the game open in the bottom of the seventh. With the bases loaded and two outs, Johnson singled up the
I didn’t even think that ball was going out. —Tres Barrera, First baseman/catcher
middle, only for junior center fielder Kevin Markham to let the ball go under his glove. As the ball continued rolling toward the wall, Johnson made back home without a play, upping the Longhorn lead to 7–2. In the eighth, Barrera showed off his power, getting every bit of the pitch and sending it into the parking lot beyond left field for a three-run home run. The long ball sparked a sixrun inning for the Longhorns, in which 12 batters came to the plate. Barrera became the first Texas player since 2010 to record six RBIs, finishing the night going 5-for-6, including a double and a home run. Johnson ended the game 3-for-6 with three RBIs. Texas returns to the field this weekend for a four-game series against Minnesota.
Freshmen lead Texas against Kansas State By Courney Norris @courtneyknorris
With a slew of absences on the court, head coach Karen Aston has been forced to switch things up. Freshman guards Brooke McCarty and Ariel Atkins have been thrust into starting roles. Even freshman forward Diani Akigbogun, who hadn’t seen the court since last semester, played in the latest game. Despite the pressure put on the two freshman guards to be major contributors, they give the Longhorns a big boost. Atkins is averaging 11.4 points per game over the last five, while playing more than 30 minutes a game. McCarty was just named Big 12 Freshman of the Week after averaging 13.5 points and 3.5 assists during the past week. “You could tell [McCarty] was really in control of the she moved her body,” Aston said. Atkins and McCarty have started the past seven games and hope to build on their first conference road win where the Longhorns went up to Kansas to get. While in Lawrence, Kansas, the Longhorns also scored their most points since Jan. 19. “[McCarty] played an energetic game and we need more of that,” Aston said after the last game. “She wasn’t afraid to take the shots.” Falling in their first six road conference games, the Longhorns (16–8, 5–8 Big 12) finally broke through at Kansas with a 74–63 victory to end the road skid as well as a four-game losing streak. Four players scored in the double digits, including McCarty and Atkins. “I thought we had so many players step up,” Aston said after the win Saturday night against the Jayhawks.
[McCarty] played an energetic game and we need more of that. She wasn’t afraid to take the shots. —Karen Aston, Head coach
The Longhorns look to carry that momentum and start a winning streak of their own when they host Kansas State at the Frank Erwin Center at 7 p.m. Kansas State (15–9, 5–8 Big 12) has other ideas, though, as it is searching for its first season sweep against Texas since 2012. In the first matchup between the two, Kansas State rallied from a halftime deficit to win by 9 points. During the game, sophomore forward Nekia Jones went down with a left knee injury that has her out indefinitely. However, this time around, Kansas State will be on Texas’ court, giving the Longhorns a distinct advantage. In the Frank Erwin Center, dating back to last year, Texas is 26–4 and holds a +18.4 scoring margin. Trying to take advantage of Texas’ young backcourt, Kansas State will pressure the Texas guards and try to force them into mistakes. Kansas State currently has a Big 12-leading 275 steals this season. Turnovers haven’t been Texas’ problem this season, though, as it is averaging its lowest amount of turnovers per game (16.2) in the last five seasons. The Wildcats head into Austin fresh off an overtime loss to Texas Tech on Sunday. The game will be aired on the Longhorn Network.
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TODAY IN HISTORY
1986
San Antonio’s Alvin Robertson scores NBA’s 2nd quadruple-double — 20 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals — against Phoenix.
SPORTS BRIEFLY Soccer announces 2015 spring schedule
Texas soccer will play in four exhibition games as well as host an 8-on-8 tournament during the spring exhibition season. Three of the matches will be at home at Mike A. Myers Stadium. Texas will host the University of Manitoba on Wednesday at 7:15 p.m., Monterrey Tech on Thursday and St. Edward’s on April 8. The fourth match will be a trip to Houston on March 29 to play the Houston Dash of the National Women’s Soccer League. The 8-on-8 tournament will be at home on March 8 and will feature St. Edward’s, Houston Baptist, Texas State, Texas Southern and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Admission to this event, and all home games, is free.
Softball returns to rankings at No. 25
After being in the “others receiving votes” portion of the first two USA Today/ National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) poll of the season, Texas softball has snuck into this week’s rankings at No. 25. Texas is off to a 7–3 start and won four of five at the Texas Classic., outscoring opponents 41–15 in the process. The Longhorns will return to action this weekend in California at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. No. 8 Georgia, No. 12 UCLA, Fresno State, No. 18 Missouri and No. 24 Notre Dame will be in attendance. —Evan Berkowitz
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KAT SAMPSON, LIFE&ARTS EDITOR | @thedailytexan Wednesday, February 18, 2015
THEATER & DANCE
UT sophomore climbs theater ranks
ALBUM REVIEW
Father John Misty drops sophomore folk album By Chris Duncan @thedailytexan
Last November on “Late Show with David Letterman,” a bearded man in a pressed suit sat at a grand piano and proceeded to sing his new song, “Bored in the USA.” Halfway through the performance, he stood up, but the piano kept playing. The orchestra behind him swelled as he sang lyrics delineating his meager middleclass problems. Father John Misty then nodded in thanks to lack-luster applause from the audience.
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Marshall Tidrick | Daily Texan Staff
Undergraduate studies sophomore Robert Blum (front, center) is the producer of “Only True Millennials,” the Creative Arts + Theatre Committee’s Spring Musical Revue. The show runs Thursday through Saturday at 7p.m. at the SAC Blackbox Theatre, located on the second floor of the SAC.
By Katie Keenan @thedailytexan
Undergraduate studies sophomore Robert Blum ended his first semester at UT on academic probation, with a 2.0 grade point average and a litany of doubts about his academic future. Without his friends from the Creative Arts + Theatre Committee, his 2.0 wouldn’t
have turned into the 4.0 he has today. Blum is the producer of “Only True Millennials,” the Creative Arts + Theatre Committee’s Spring Musical Revue. “Only True Millennials” is the story of two highschool couples experiencing their teenage years in the early 2000s. Blum began his involvement with the Spring Musi-
cal Revue his freshman year and said theater became an outlet for him to connect with people on a deeper level. He said finding meaningful connections with other people was a challenge prior to his involvement with theater, because he suffered from anxiety and has Asperger’s syndrome. Asperger’s is a condition that causes delays in the development
of social skills and communication skills and leads to difficulty with relating to others. Blum first got involved with the Creative Arts + Theatre’s productions by doing backstage tech work, and soon found himself trying out for a lead role in Madrigal Dinner. “I realized the one thing that helped me was that I
was acting in the Madrigal Dinner,” Blum said. “They cast me as the king and I fell in love with it. And I realized, you know, maybe there is something to UT. Maybe it isn’t all panic attacks and depression.” Blum said involvement in Creative Arts + Theatre made him realize he wasn’t the only college student
MILLENNIALS page 5
Q&A
FILM
Local band discusses music, debut album
Illustration by Victoria Smith | Daily Texan Staff
UT students’ senior thesis film tells a story of older, real love By Emily Gibson @emgeemtee
A couple semesters after radio-television-film seniors Kelsey Hockmuller and Olivia Biehle met outside a professor’s office for the first time, Hockmuller knew it was time to take her relationship with Biehle to the next level — so she popped the question. “Will you produce my thesis film?” “It’s like the beginning of how we started dating,” Biehle said. “But without the dating.” Hockmuller wrote her short film, “What We Talk About,” in summer 2013. She and Biehle will begin filming on 16mm film once their IndieGogo fundraiser, which they hope will cover production costs, ends Sunday. The movie focuses on two middle-aged adults as they sit down at a restaurant and talk about their relationship. Hockmuller drew on her personal experience with a toxic relationship and focused the work on the romantic connection between the script’s two main characters. “I cared very deeply for
someone who would never feel the same about me,” Hockmuller said. “I always wanted to tell him and I didn’t, so this short is kind of that. It’s a compilation of a lot of my real life attempts but centered around these people who are not me.” Hockmuller said the film’s focus on older characters deepens the impact the film has on its audience. She said that the characters’ age and inability to romantically connect or let go of troubled relationships will resonate more strongly than a story centered on young, inexperienced people. The movie conveys a more genuine love story than most, Hockmuller said, because the title characters reach closure rather than ending up together despite their flaws. “One thing I’ll say a lot is that I don’t believe in happy endings because you’ll have a happy moment, then the next shitty thing happens,” Hockmuller said. “People who can stay on the 50-year plan and get married at 20 and die at 80, that’s amazing. It’s beautiful, but it’s really fucking hard, too.”
One thing I’ll say a lot is that I don’t believe in happy endings because you’ll have a happy moment, then the next shitty thing happens. —Kelsey Hockmuller Radio-television-film senior
Hockmuller ultimately teamed up with Biehl to produce the movie in an undergraduate thesis film class. They worked on Hockmuller’s script, now in its 12th revision, and received feedback from their classmates. Hockmuller said shooting “What We Talk About” on 16mm film contributes to the movie’s feeling of wistfulness. 16mm film, which has been used in movies such as “Moonrise Kingdom” and “This Is Spinal Tap,” gives films an older quality and
SHORT FILM page 5
UT alumna Katey Gunn and Paul Waclawsky, the lead singer and guitarist, respectively, for local band Casual Strangers, released their self-titled debut album last July. Casual Strangers will perform at the Spider House Café & Ballroom on Feb. 18, and at Holy Mountain on Feb. 27. Editor’s note: This Q&A has been edited for clarity and concision. Daily Texan: How did you guys meet and form your band? Are most of you from Austin? Paul Waclawsky: I’ve been here 10 years. I moved here with my band, The Boxing Lesson, from Los Angeles for the music scene and made a new home. Here we are 10 years later. I pulled Katey into the band about a year and a half ago, and we started writing songs together. I brought in old band members from The Boxing Lesson — bassist Jaylinn Davidson and drummer Jake Mitchell — and the band took shape pretty quickly. DT: What were you aiming for with your debut album? PW: We were just trying to have fun with our friends, as opposed to thinking in [the] big picture and trying to make it big. We wanted to look at a more micro scale, and we’re having a lot of fun with that. That kind of leads to one of our themes as songwriters. DT: How did Austin contribute to the themes in your album? PW: It was definitely inspired by Austin. Katey Gunn: Yeah, a lot of the songs are about moments — moments in time. We were really into capturing the moment, and a lot of that came from
just going around town and meeting people. So, I think Austin was the main inspiration for a lot of the album. DT: I noticed your songs tend to build from a more minimal sound to an overpowering one toward the end. What effect are you trying to convey to the listener there? PW: We’re trying to establish that a song leads somewhere, that it goes somewhere. I find albums that really transport me do that well. DT: In your music, you tend to have a lot of spoken lyrics. What kind of effect do you think that conveys? PW: Storytelling. KG: Yeah, if you just tell a story in an unexpected and unique way to get the listener out of their usual element, then maybe they’re a little more open to the subject matter, and maybe you can go somewhere a little different. I think it has that effect. DT: Do you guys have any ultimate goals? PW: We do, but they’re mostly small goals. Last year, we wanted to record an album and press it on vinyl. We’re talking about doing a small tour now, we’ve got shows coming up in the area, we’re flying to Denver to do a show this coming July, so we’re not going to get in a van and drive 9,000 miles from town to town. And, while doing this, we’re trying to write new stuff for another record. KG: Yeah, to us, putting it on vinyl — that’s a medium that lasts. We don’t want to take over the world or anything, we’re just trying to have fun, and I hope thirty years from now someone just finds it randomly on the shelf and is like, “Holy shit. I love it.”
Artist: Father John Misty Tracks: 11 Rating: 9/10
J. Tillman, aka Father John Misty, is a folk singer-songwriter known for his multiinstrumental abilities. Giving his solo career a new wind, Tillman released Fear Fun in 2012 under his new pseudonym. The album was enjoyable, but didn’t demand respect. There were good songs with witty and clever writing, but the album didn’t leave a lasting impression. Tillman writes about odd subjects, includes a lot of dry humor in his lyrics and portrays his personality through his music. In the song “Chateau Lobby #4 (In C For Two Virgins),” Tillman describes his first night with the woman he would eventually marry, singing, “You took off early to go cheat through film school. You left a note in your perfect script: ‘Stay as long as you want.’ I haven’t left your bed since.” I admit this doesn’t sound like a master poet at work, but it sounds a lot better in the song, I promise. Tillman includes a lot of sexual imagery in his music, which is a bit ironic as his parents didn’t allow him to listen to secular music and raised him in a strict Christian household. This album brings out some of the anger he has against his parents, twisting his passion into cynicism. His rage is sincere and open-hearted, and it can often feel painful as you listen to his bitterly sarcastic lyrics. Tillman sings so sweetly, like a traditional folk singer, and plays simple chords. You expect him to be closer to an old-fashioned way of life, but Tillman rejects this image and earnestly represents what he feels. Any fan of stand-up comedy will love this album. At the same time, a poetry fan will also love this record because of the way Tillman masterfully puts pen to paper. The only slip-up I could find was the third track “True Affection.” Tillman’s sound changes from a more naturalsounding record to an electronic-heavy one. However, the fourth track, “The Night Josh Tillman Came to Our Apartment,” picks back up with Tillman’s previous style. Although “True Affection” isn’t horrible, it breaks up the flow of the album. This record could accompany albums from the Beatles and Paul Simon on a drive through the mountains. But, just like the Beatles and Paul Simon, Tillman masterfully weaves his thoughts in such a way that almost anyone can relate to it. Tillman’s sound is like that of The Velvet Underground. They both mastered a style of music that they created.