2 18 14

WHAT’S INSIDE?

Pg 6

Misinformation a problem on social media Student’s poetry addresses social issues Baseball sweeps Northern Colorado in four

P3 P4 P5

TOMORROW’S FORECAST

HI: LOW:

SHSU OUSTED IN SLC TITLE MATCH

72o 62o

Alex Broussard | The Houstonian

Chance of Rain:

Follow us today! @TheHoustonian

20%

www.HoustonianOnline.com

Volume 125/ Issue 10

Facebook.com/ TheHoustonian Tuesday, February 18, 2014

CAMPUS

SHSU submits proposed agenda

JAY R. JORDAN Associate Editor

Lab, dorm and meal plan charges may be increased starting in the fall, according to university documents obtained by The Houstonian.

Sam Houston State University, like the other universities that are part of the Texas State University System, submitted items it wanted on the February quarterly Board of Regents meeting agenda. Multiple requests for lab fee, resident hall fee and meal plan rate increases were submitted by SHSU, according to the documents.

Each item on the final agenda requires approval from the

Board of Regents before it can be implemented.

Resident hall rate increase proposals were sent for consideration by SHSU. The university proposed a 4 percent increase across-the-board with fees ranging from $72 to $110 more per semester, and $20 to $25 for the summer.

The reason for the increase is an increase in the amount of repairs and renovations to the resident buildings on campus, according to the documents.

“We are using more energysaving materials to maintain our buildings in order to assist the Department of Residence Life in operating more efficiently,” the document stated.

If every hall were filled to its

maximum occupancy rate, the university would see an additional $297,160 in revenue starting Fall 2014.

Since 2009, SHSU has received $261,892 in cash incentives from Entergy’s Texas SCORE Program, including $104,842 in January, according to Today@Sam. The university said it planned on using that money for additional environmental improvements.

The nominal lab fee increases are relatively small when compared to overall tuition, as the changes only range from $2 to $22 per credit hour. The current rate is $8 per credit hour across the board, and this change seeks to make lab fee pricing dynamic.

“Lab fee changes are being requested as a result of the need

SOCHI

to replace or repair outdated equipment and tools used by students in the course,” the report stated. “These fee increases will allow students to have access to high quality equipment and supplies and to continue hands-on learning in the lab environment.”

The documents state the $8 lab fee has remained at that price since it started, and since then, equipment and supply costs have increased. The university plans on seeing a year-round total of $169,365 in additional revenue due to the change.

Additionally, the university wants to raise meal plan rates for both mandatory and voluntary plans. The mandatory plans are seeing a 4 to 4.2 percent increase across the board, while

the voluntary plans would go up between 5.04 and 5.3 percent. The proposed additional revenue will total $424,418.

These items are among many other proposed agenda items, including numerous additions and alterations to current SHSU degree programs and a 10-year extension to the university’s contract with Aramark.

The President’s Office Chief of Staff Kathy Gilcrease declined an interview for further discussion on the Board of Regents and SHSU’s proposed agenda items.

The Board of Regents meeting is on Feb. 27-28 and will be streamed live online.

The Houstonian will follow up with the proposed agenda with SHSU officials.

IMPACT WRESTLING

Brynn Castro | The Houstonian

BRING THE PAIN. TNA Impact wrestlers perform inside the infamous steel cage at Johnson Coliseum on Sunday night. Fans cheered on their favorite contenders from the SpikeTV production that stopped in Huntsville on their Road to Lockdown tour. This is the third time a professional wrestling association has stopped at the coliseum.

Lillie Muyskens | The Houstonian

CAMPUS

Mental health nursed by campus center KASSIDY TURNPAUGH Assistant News Editor One Sam Houston State University student has broken the status quo as she comes forward to talk about her time at the counseling center and how it has helped her.

SHSU senior Kelly Whitaker has been an avid supporter of the Counseling Center amongst her friends as well as a visitor since spring 2012.

“I started having panic attacks,” Whitaker said. “I went to the hospital for a really bad panic attack once, and I had to start

Visit our website! www.HoustonianOnline.com

going to counseling.”

The National Institute of Mental Health has found that 4.1 percent of the United States’ 21.5 million college-aged citizens suffer from some form of mental illness, including anxiety and panic disorders.

The average college student goes through quite a bit in addition to school, so the occasional stress induced crash is to be expected.

Sam Houston State University is no different than any other college in that respect, according to Executive Director of the Counseling Services Drew Miller, Ph.D. “What we see when we look at

that data is that the prevalence rates for things like depression and anxiety amongst our students are similar to those of students around the country,” Miller said.

The SHSU Counseling Center’s main focus is on the helping student, faculty and staff further themselves by “resolving personal difficulties that prevent optimal functioning,” according to their mission statement.

The counseling center offers a variety of intervention types, including individual counseling, couples counseling, group counseling and crisis intervention based upon cognitive behavioral therapy.

“CBT has been proven to be highly effective in dealing with many of the most common mental health concerns, including depression and anxiety,” Miller said. “It’s particularly useful in our setting because individuals can start seeing a benefit from it in a matter of weeks as opposed to months and months of therapy.”

After visiting the center for more than a year, Whitaker has found that knowing she isn’t alone and has an unbiased party to talk to are some of the most helpful aspects of the counseling center.

“Looking back on it now, I think it helped me a lot,” she said.

“I actually started to look forward

to the meetings to get things of my chest.”

With the experiences she had at the center, Whitaker has found not only an improvement in herself but has also taken to helping her friends by recommending them to see the counselors when things seem too difficult.

“I really like it,” Whitaker said.

“Everyone is really nice there.

I’ve recommended it to couple friends.”

The counseling center is located in the Lee Drain Building, directly across from the Administration Building. For more information, call 936-294-1720.

Be sure to pick up the Houstonian’s Best of Huntsville survey located in Dan Rather 210 to nominate your favorite hot spots on campus and in the City of Huntsville!

Page 2

News

Tuesday, February 18, 2014 houstonianonline.com/news

TECH

Facebook ads attract fake ‘likes’

JENNIFER JACKSON Contributing Reporter

Three quarters of likes on a promoted Facebook page are fraudulent, according to a recent study.

The study, performed by science video blogger Derek Muller, found that even though he paid for legitimate promotion of his business’s Facebook page to real people, the majority of the likes he received were from fake profiles or “click farms.”

Most click farms are used when people buy illegitimate likes for their page. Facebook discourages this method and has made an effort to delete these fake profiles.

To be undetected by Facebook, the profiles like not just the page they are paid for, but other pages as well. So even if businesses pay Facebook to promote their page, they can still receive likes from fake profiles.

According to Muller, the biggest problem with fake profiles liking a business’ page is that when that business posts something for their fans to engage in, Facebook only sends it to a percentage of their fans. When those fans engage with that post (i.e. liking, sharing or commenting) Facebook will send it out to more fans. However, when the post is sent to a fake profile, there is no engagement, so the post will not reach a larger portion of its legitimate fans.

The fake likes in addition to Facebook’s newsfeed filter system provides less engagement for a business’ page, leading the business to believe it needs to pay for more advertising.

Senior Will Love looked into Facebook advertising for SHSU e-Sports, campus’s online gaming club and said “it wasn’t that expensive.”

“The reach would be anywhere from 6,400 to 17,000,” he said.

“Those are good numbers, but we felt it wouldn’t have many people in our target market, just numbers.”

The price of promoting a Facebook page depends on the targeted audience and price per click. The price per click is the amount a business is willing to pay per user clicking on their page. The higher he amount, the more likely someone will click on that page.

“We have focused on proving that our ads drive business results and we have even updated our ads to focus more on driving business objectives,” Facebook said in response to Muller’s video. “Those kinds of real-world results would not be possible with fake likes.”

LOCAL

Round table sparks wage talks CONNOR HYDE Editor-in-Chief With March primary elections approaching in two weeks, U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, R-District 8, is making his rounds with local small business owners to address their concerns.

During his Monday session with Huntsville business owners, concerns over the proposed raise in the federal minimum wage is a hot political topic as owners are concerned over increased labor costs.

Senate Bill 460, named the Fair Minimum Wage Act 2013, was introduced in March 2013 to increase the minimum wage for employees across the nation incrementally in three phases.

The plan is supposed to raise minimum wage to $8.20 in phase one, $9.15 in phase two and finally to $10.10 by 2015.

Where there is exceptional support from the Democratic Party and its supporters, Republicans, including Brady, say raising the minimum wage will hurt the economy. Democrats believe the bill would help minimum wage adjust for inflation and encourage consumer spending. Yet, Brady said to Huntsville business owners the bill “will hurt the growth of jobs.”

“I think it will make fewer jobs available for young people and

especially minority young people trying to find their first job,” he said. “I think the goal shouldn’t be to raise minimum wage but to get people off it.”

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 452,000 workers in Texas earned minimum wage or less in 2012, which is 7.5 percent of hourly-paid workers. Nationwide, the percentage of minimum wage workers is 4.7 percent of hourly-paid workers. Although the number of minimum wage workers have declined from 2011.

The state unemployment rate has also dropped. In 2012, Texas had an unemployment rate of 6.8 percent, which dropped to 6 percent in 2013.

Due to the drop in unemployment rates and workers on minimum wage in Texas, Huntsville business owners like Linda Branch said she has been able to maintain hourly wages well above the current minimum wage.

Branch, who is the owner of the Learning Rx, said businesses like hers are going to suffer the most from federal minimum wage raises.

“I don’t have a single employee that makes minimum wage,” she said. “My wages have to go up in proportion with minimum wage going up.”

Branch said raising the minimum wage also will force her to reduce the amount of employees to ensure she’s able to provide for a

Brynn Castro | The Houstonian

REACHING OUT. (Left) Joe Smith and (back) George Miles furthers discussion about issues which were touched on during (right) Rep. Kevin Brady’s round table with the Huntsville Chamber of Commerce on Monday.

long-term staff.

“I can’t even hire a college kid or high school kid to work my desk because the cost increases demand that I spend my money on people who are most stable,” she said.

Yet, SB460 proposes to restore the value of the dollar and boost consumer spending, according to Raise the Minimum Wage, a project maintained by the National Employment Law Project. According to the project, the federal minimum should be $10.74 to keep up with inflation over the past 40 years.

The effect on employment also remains minimal, according to a 2013 survey conducted by the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. The survey

concluded there’s a “4-1 margin that the benefits of raising and indexing the minimum wage outweigh the costs.”

And Democrats agree.

U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minn., said in an interview with the Minnesota Post that she supports SB 460 to support families who are dependent on minimum wage salaries.

Despite the support, Brady and Huntsville business owners are unyielding with concerns of increased labor costs and staff deductions.

Brady said instead of raising the minimum wage, there needs to be training to help employees move from dependence on minimum wage salaries.

NATION

GOP leaders ousted in recent scorecard HANNAH ZEDAKER Senior Reporter

Republicans are viewed at an all-time low when it comes to environmentally friendliness, including Texas representatives and senators, according to a recent report.

The League of Conservation Voters recently published the National Environmental Scorecard for the first session of the 113th Congress revealing an overwhelming neglect of pro-environmental voting for Republican House of Representatives members and Senators nationwide.

Published annually, scorecards serve as voting records for each respective session of congress and provide a way for the public to compare different representatives and senators as well as each state as a whole. The LCV first began publishing the National

Environmental Scorecard in 1970.

These scores are calculated by dividing the number of proenvironment votes cast by the total number of votes tallied and can range anywhere from 0 to 100.

Despite President Barack Obama’s dedication to address environmental problems, this year, scorecards exposed the lowest average congressional Republican scores over the last 43 years since the scorecards were first published, averaging at five percent.

U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, is one of the representatives who contributed to the low voting record, according to the report.

In 2013, Brady voted for two of the ten pro-environmental actions taken into consideration on the scorecards, which included the flood insurance reform and the anti-environmental farm bill, receiving a total score of seven percent.

“I disagree with some of the

principles [the LCV] opposes such as the Keystone pipeline. I support it because I think it’s important for us to take the oil from Canada, refine it in our Texas refineries and use it in America because that oil will go somewhere—China or somewhere else, with less environmental regulation,” Brady said. “Also, I like the development of oil and natural gas, especially natural gas, it’s much cleaner burning, it’s abundant, and some of the priorities such as global warming, we see differently—so I just disagree with some of their basic views.”

In addition to differing opinions, Brady said his environmental decisions can also be attributed to better ways of reaching the same goal.

“When it comes to regulations, I think we can clean our air and clean our water even more if we give industry a little more time to develop the technology to do it,” Brady said. “In fact, on most

regulations, most businesses will tell you that ‘we can get there at a lot less cost of jobs if you’ll give us time to develop the technology.’

So I actually think getting high standards for clean water and clean air, you can achieve without killing jobs if you’ll just partner with industry rather than fight it. I just think there’s a smarter way to get to the same goal.”

Regardless of his low score, Brady said he hopes to engage young people, who will inevitably inherit the problems of today.

“I’m just hopeful that we can engage more young people as Republicans, we can listen more, find out how we can help, in fact, I would love to have roundtables with students to give me a chance to listen to them.”

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, received a score of 15 percent, while Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, received a score of 8 percent.

CAMPUS

New online feature has students puzzled

CONNOR HYDE Editor-in-Chief

A new Blackboard feature that allows Sam Houston State University students to access their previous semesters’ class history has some confused with their current classes.

According to Ruth Cubas, director of Online Course Development at SHSU Online, the new component doesn’t affect current classes, and is there as an option for students to remove the feature.

“This new feature tends to cause confusion for some students who do not readily understand why a course list may include courses from past semesters,” Cubas said. “This is a matter of student preference… some simply don’t want to see their old courses listed on the menu.”

Blackboard serves as an online portal for students and professors to maintain online classes as well as accessing documents and interactive features to complement course curriculum.

The new feature was implemented at the start of the spring 2013 semester. Cubas said students have called concerned about the interaction between current courses and the new feature end up involving issues unrelated to their course history.

“Students who didn’t enroll in

a course before the start of the semester, or who were dropped from a class for non-payment, may experience a slight processing delay in seeing their courses online,” she said. “Students who desire to have old course titles removed from their course list face absolutely no issue as it relates to their [current] coursework.”

Students are able to check previous grades of past classes that coincide with an itemized list of assignments for each class taken.

Yet, junior criminal justice major Alec Haeberle isn’t sold on the usefulness of the feature.

Haeberle said the feature is a good idea, but he doesn’t see the usefulness in tracking course history.

“It could be useful if you’re trying to trace a grade history,” he said. “If you’re trying to get some official report a transcript would be the best idea. I thank them for the feature but where would I use it?”

Currently, SHSU Online is taking calls regarding problems or confusion with the feature.

Students are able to remove the feature at their discretion as long as they screen shot their current My Sam schedule and email it to SHSU Online.

For more information contact, SHSU Online and Distance Education and Learning

Technologies

for

Academics

(Delta Center) at 936-294-2780 or

email at delta@shsu.edu.

Page 3

Viewpoints

Tuesday, February 18, 2014 houstonianonline.com/viewpoints

NATION

Fake news ruins social media BRENT LEITH Columnist Social media bashing is old hat at this point.

As a small subgenre of op-ed, it’s halfway between the late Andy Rooney’s cranky musings on youth culture and the untenable insistence that President Obama is a secret Muslim socialist on the “OK, we get that you don’t get it” scale of social criticism.

Despite the disdain these misinformed cynics invite with their misgivings, there is a valid argument to be made that social media has features that promote irresponsibility.

Take Twitter, a prime source for the spread of misinformation online.

Some of that

misinformation is wholly trivial, like the recent casual mix-up of singer-songwriters Pete Seeger and Bob Seger. Within a few hours of Pete Seeger’s passing in late January, users were tweeting their love of Bob Seger’s “Night Moves” – I prefer “Turn the Page,” personally – and wishing the very much alive musician a peaceful eternal slumber.

The Seeger-Seger goof was not an isolated example of lazy retweeting, but one of many examples of Twitter acting as the world’s largest game of telephone.

Widespread misreporting of deaths and hoaxes perpetrated to that end have affected several notable people. The death of Morgan Freeman was widely retweeted in 2010, the result of a hoax attributing the news to a tweet @CNN never actually made.

Hackers caused quite a stir when they took over @ foxnewspolitics in 2011 to report the assassination of Obama while wishing @joebiden good luck in his new job. Bill Cosby appeared on CNN in 2012 to dispel Twitter rumors that he had died and plead the originator of the hoax to consider the devastating effect the joke had on his loved ones.

Perhaps the impetuous mobs of Twitter should be forgiven for their hasty tweets, despite the personal grief they may have caused, but what about traditional media giants like CNN, whose breaking news feed is the most subscribed news-centric feed on Twitter?

In the race to be wrong on Twitter first, CNN is an Olympic gold medalist.

Journalistic prudence has been turned on its head by the insatiable demand for content, and “Get it out the door quickly and correct it later,” has become the standard.

CNN certainly took that standard and ran with it, jumping the gun in 2012 to report on Twitter that Rep. Gabrielle Giffords had died within minutes of the assassination attempt she ultimately survived. CNN also led its Twitter coverage of the Boston Marathon bombing with an unverified death count, among other notable online gaffs.

The knee-jerk reaction is to claim that traditional media outlets should be held to a higher standard than the unruly social media masses, but the inescapable truth is that they are a part of the same fray. We, the users, including

the person punching the keys at CNN, shoulder responsibility for the mishaps and misreporting.

For better or worse – and I say better – social media has made the audience an arm of the media, but we degrade it when we retweet or repost without research, and our obsessive consumption is the driving force behind the imprudent and damaging speedreporting method adopted by news organizations for the web.

Twitter is a tool, as is Facebook, Reddit, or any other social media site you may hang your hat on.

We’ve been given access to these tools as part of a technological and cultural revolution, and we’ll largely build our future using them. It’s in our best interest to use these tools responsibly and to quash the irresponsible use of them quickly and mercilessly.

Make CNN earn its title as largest news feed on Twitter by subscribing to more responsible feeds with reporters willing to wait the extra minute to make sure they get it right. And, for the love of all that is good and pure in the world, make sure Cosby is actually dead next time.

PAWS UP

PAWS UP to SHSU baseball: Nice sweep to start the season

PAWS UP to House of Cards: The suspense and drama inside the Beltway is back on Netflix.

Season 2 starts with a bang and hasn’t disappointed midway through the binge.

PAWS UP to the clown shortage: The number of clowns is dropping nationwide and that only means less nightmares for children and adults alike.

NATION

Injustice spoils recent Fla. trials COLIN HARRIS Viewpoints Editor Fifteen months ago, a Florida man was in a convenience store parking lot, and a Dodge Durango carrying four black teenagers was blaring loud music next to him.

Michael Dunn chose to park next to this vehicle, but his patience had run thin with hearing “rap crap” as he liked to call it, so he asked them to turn it down.

When they declined, which may or may not have been in a threatening manner, Dunn reacted like a psychopathic criminal who deserves to be in prison, pulled out his handgun and fired a barrage of rounds into the vehicle.

Ten bullets to be exact, and one of those proved to be fatal for Jordan Davis, a passenger in the SUV. Dunn went to trial for the violent outburst, and Saturday the jury finished deliberating. He

was found guilty of three counts of attempted murder, but the jury didn’t convict him for the murder of Davis.

The jury was hung, so he wasn’t acquitted and there may very well be another trial.

In the past seven months two different men have not been found guilty of murder related to their roles in killing black teenagers in Florida. The first was George Zimmerman and now it’s Dunn.

The commonality that stands out is prosecutor Angela Corey overcharging each defendant with crimes for which she can’t make the case.

Unlike Zimmerman, Dunn was actually found to be somewhat culpable for his actions and faces a lengthy prison sentence, regardless of what happens with a future retrial for the murder.

He won’t be making headlines for allegedly pointing a shotgun at his girlfriend or selling personal artwork on the Internet. Nor will he sign up for a celebrity boxing match.

Even with Dunn behind bars though, did Davis ultimately receive justice?

The answer is unequivocally no, and the person to blame is Corey who for whatever reason can’t perform the duties of her job and secure convictions when black teens end up dead.

The comparisons to the Zimmerman case are easy to make. Both happened in Florida and involved armed men killing unarmed black teenagers. The prosecution was ineffective and the Sunshine State’s wildly libertine self-defense laws entered into the debate after each verdict.

However the differences in the two cases are what make the Dunn verdict even more harrowing.

The events that spurred Zimmerman to fatally shoot Trayvon Martin are clouded at best. We know Zimmerman followed Martin and this led to a physical confrontation.

At some point Zimmerman deemed it necessary to use his handgun and Martin wound up dead. Corey pursued a seconddegree murder charge against Zimmerman and he could have ended up behind bars for manslaughter, which has a lower threshold for determining intent to find someone guilty.

Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz blasted Corey for overcharging Zimmerman when he may very well have been found guilty of a lesser offense.

“If there are riots, it will be the prosecutor’s fault because she overcharged, raised expectations,” Dershowitz said. He also accused her of potential perjury in the affidavit she filed to substantiate

the second-degree murder charge, because she may have withheld evidence of the injuries Zimmerman sustained in his scuffle with Martin.

Her pattern continued in the most recent trial. Compared to the Zimmerman case though, the proof of wrongdoing was even clearer, but the results were the same. The jury found evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that Dunn attempted to murder the three survivors of his vicious outburst, but the firstdegree murder charge was not as substantiated as the attempted murders.

Although we may never actually know, the panel might not have been able to figure out whether the murder was planned in advance, which was what Corey determined Dunn did. The jury didn’t fully buy her case.

If a prosecutor is going to charge someone with first-degree murder, the onus is on him or her to prove premeditation. This is how Corey failed the Davis family and the people of Florida. Taken in isolation it’s a professional mistake, but not unforgivable.

Given that she seems to have repeated the same sort of error that resulted in George Zimmerman’s acquittal, it’s time for Floridians to reconsider her role in their court system.

PAWS DOWN

PAWS DOWN to the NBA Slam Dunk Contest: That was absolutely unwatchable. Next year just get Gerald Green to blow out candles on cupcakes sitting on the rim for an hour.

PAWS DOWN to Google: Tacitly admitting to the New York Times that Google+ was created for datamining is disappointing, but not at all surprising.

PAWS DOWN to NBC and Christin Cooper: You made Bode Miller cry in Sochi about his recently deceased brother. It was disgusting and obvious trolling.

The Houstonian Editorial

The Houstonian was named in the top 100 college newspapers for journalism students by JournalismDegree.org. Members of Associated Collegiate Press and Texas Intercolligiate Press Association.

EDITOR’S NOTE Articles, letters and cartoons by Houstonian staff members or others in this paper are their own and not the opinion of the Houstonian, unless it is noted as such. Submissions and letters to the editor are welcome. Please send submissions to viewpoints@houstonianonline.com. Articles may be edited for grammar and spelling at discretion of editor. Unsolicited oppinions should be 150 words or under. Please contact us if you wish to submit anything longer. Deadline for submission is by 5 p.m. on Mondays or Wednesdays.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Connor Hyde ........................................................................................................................................936-294-1505 FACULTY ADVISER Robin Johnson..................................................................................................................................936-294-1499 STAFF Jay R. Jordan .................................................................................................................................Associate Editor Colin Harris...................................................................................................................................Viewpoints Editor Jeremy Villanueva..................................................................................................................................Sports Editor Kizzie Frank.............................................................................................................................Entertainment Editor Stephen Green...........................................................................................................................................Web Editor Kassidy Turnpaugh.............................................................................................................. Assistant News Editor Dharmesh Patel.........................................................................................................Assistant Entertainment Editor Marissa Hill........................................................................................................................................Sports Reporter Hannah Zedeker.................................................................................................................................Senior Reporter Steven Snook.............................................................................................................................Multimedia Reporter Samantha Zambrano.............................................................................................................................Layout Editor Lillie Muyskens..............................................................................................................................Graphic Designer Staff Reporter(s)..................................................................................................... Kaleigh Treiber, Alex Broussard

Advertising

BUSINESS MANAGER Paty Mason......................................................................................................................................936-294-1500 ADVERTISING MANAGER Stacy Hood.........................................................................................................................................936-294-1495 STAFF Cristina Tazado.............................................................................................................................Delivery Manager

Advertising Deadlines

Tuesday’s Issue............... Friday at 2:00 p.m.

Thursday’s Issue........... Tuesday at 2:00 p.m.

Call for pricing.

Page 4

Arts&Entertainment

Tuesday, February 18, 2014 houstonianonline.com/a-e

CAMPUS

Poetry reflects social unrest KIZZIE FRANK A&E Editor

Sam Houston State University student Aaron Graves has decided to go to the beat of his own drum and the flow of his pen and publish his own collection of poetry.

“Inside the Mind of Greatness” started off as a project solely for his personal uplifting, Graves said.

He eventually realized that the subjects that most speak to him may relate to a larger audience.

Graves’ poetry topics include inner conflict, human suffering, politics, sociology and other things that young people face today America.

The bonus poem, not included in the table of contents, “The Inadequate” is a piece that highlights social issues amongst high school and college aged people.

More specifically, he focuses on the topic of incarceration and the feeling of entrapment.

“They deserve peace like the ones who have been vindicated.

For the people that are locked up behind bars that is serving a life sentence over the charge of ‘innocence.’ This is the life of an inadequate,” Graves said in “The Inadequate”.

Graves said the poem is intended to highlight a common mentality of a younger generation and they can only go into “easy money” professions, and do outof-the-box things.

Graves has no background in the English department, nor does he intend to major in the subject. Without formal training, he has managed to get three publishing companies interested in publishing his work.

Some people engaged in the formal literary community can be critical about the structure of modern poetry. This is not one of the things Graves worries about, he said. He wishes to reach out to the black community, but to younger and less exposed members of society he said.

“Many of us are viewed as gang bangers, thugs, rappers, uneducated pretty much sums it all up,” he said. “We’re known for street shootings and things like that,” he said. “I feel that kids of other ethnicities can relate to my work as well.”

Graves added that he wanted to break the constraints of the stereotype and set an example for black individuals in the community.

“I think it’s always good to see something different come from [blacks] other than becoming rappers,” he said. “ Graves said he wishes to encourage students to write about their experiences and recite them.

He intends to start an organization on campus, whose mission would be to crush the fear of public speaking amongst his fellow writers and other students.

“I am having flyer printed and

Kizzie Frank | The Houstonian

MODERN SCRIBE. Managment Information Systems major, Aaron Graves practices his autograph and jots down ideas for his next poetry book. Graves will hold a book signing for his collection titled “Inside the Mind of Greatness.”

hopefully will be ready to be notarized soon,” he said. “I am also linked in with Barnes and noble, scheduled for Barns & Noble in Conroe, and many other places.”

Weather permitting, Graves will

host his book signing February 18 at 11 a.m – 2 p.m., SHSU’s mall area. He said he hopes to host one at Texas State University early March. He will also return to his old high school, Klein Oak, as well

as Blinn College.

Copies of “Inside of the Mind of Greatness,” will be available for $10 at each book signing.

LOCAL

Country artist woos local crowd PARBATTEE MAHARAJ Contributing Reporter

Parbattee Maharaj | The Houstonian

IN TUNE. Newcoming country artist, Charlie Worsham performs songs from his latest album, “Rubberbands” at local Huntsville night club, Shenanigans.

Charlie Worsham may not be a well-known name among the mainstream line of music, but this didn’t stop him from putting on a great show in Huntsville.

Worsham stopped off at Shenanigans last Wednesday and put on a show for Sam Houston State University Students and the Huntsville citizens.

His soulful country music featured his concert along with opening act and fellow country newcomer Josh Grider.

Worsham is fairly new to the music industry as he recently released his debut album in 2013.

Fans came to know him and his music when he opened several shows for Taylor Swift.

Worsham released “Rubberband” in August of last year and made his impression on country music fans.

“My family and I bond over

country music, so we send each other songs all the time,” sophomore marketing major Peyton Boles said. “I heard his music and immediately became a fan.”

Boles agreed Worsham’s music is not the typical country music that everyone is so accustomed to hearing.

“He looks like he’s gone through a lot, and he’s really worked his way up. He writes all these songs, and they’re so meaningful. And they’re not just twangy county music, they have a lot of soul to it,” she said.

Among the first few songs, Worsham played his current single “Want You Too” which was a definite crowd pleaser.

Midway through his performance, Worsham brought fellow country artist Cody Johnson on stage and they performed a few songs together—a nice surprise for the fans as no one was expecting Johnson on stage.

“I didn’t know any of

[Worsham’s] songs, but I enjoyed his music,” senior accounting major Ani Brown said. “I did like it when Cody Johnson was up on stage with him though…I would listen to some of his songs again.”

Throughout the show, Worsham pulled his own weight. He not only sung wonderfully, but played either the guitar or banjo for the entire show rather than depending on his band alone.

After singing more songs from “Rubberband,” Worsham mixed up his set list. He covered Bruno Mars’ “Treasure” and played a tribute to The Beatles. He closed the show with his first single “Could It Be” which left the crowd wanting more.

“The concert was perfect,” Boles said following the concert.

“The song line up was awesome, everything from The Beatle to George Jones to his songs. It was all amazing, perfect is the only word I could use to describe it.”

REVIEW

New ‘House of Cards’ hit viewers like a train STACY HOOD Contributing Reporter Note: this article contains spoilers While most of America was buying last minute gifts to ensnare their Valentine, many were settling down for a marathon on the couch.

The highly anticipated second season of “House of Cards” premiered Friday on Netflix and slaps viewers in the face with intense political drama intertwined with murder.

The main characters, Francis and Claire Underwood, played by Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright respectively, continue to shock and manipulate the audience into rooting for the villainous Francis Underwood. Underwood finished season one as the newly appointed Vice President after strategically staging a suicide of fellow congressman Peter Russo disguised as murder and dethroned standing Vice President.

And the blood continued to flow throughout the second

installment.

The most shocking moments happened in the first episode with yet another murder of reporter Zoe Barnes that many hoped would take down Underwood. Yet the deception is two-fold, Claire Underwood went from stabbing her employees in the back to physically denying their right to life.

Rape, and abortion tends to be a sensitive topic for most. “House of Cards” went head first into the issue with the unveiling of Claire’s college rape and her decision to abort the pregnancy that followed.

In the real political realm something of this nature would instantly destroy a representative; not for the Underwood’s who come out of the scandal politically stronger.

The continuous gain of the Underwood’s proves that good does not always triumph over evil.

Francis Underwood has taken the route from anti-hero to a full out villain. Threats that arose in the first season to bring down Francis Underwood’s quest for power have been hung only to be threatened again.

Much like the first season, the couple that conspires together stays together. Francis and Claire Underwood each have a specific agenda that requires a form of manipulation from the other party, due to the partnership they yet again come out on top.

“I used to be on the edge of the frame,” Francis Underwood said. “Now, I’m only three feet away.”

As the story arc begins to unfold, those determined to binge watch will make it through the midseason lull in just a few hours on their way to the epic climax.

However, those who have chosen a life outside of 13 hours of a single show may get deterred and skip to the end.

Unearthing new characters, and sub plots this season can keep a viewer tied to the screen. Although the story may provide for some time away for Underwood to manipulate more interworkings, they provide little to no benefit for the show itself.

The last episode makes the

season.

There is no rest for the wicked, and there is no stronger force than a lust for power. Francis Underwood gives no final monologue, which is significant as

he stands over his new desk.

His struggle to gain power is over and his future will depend on his ability to keep control over the web of lies and deception that he’s created.

RANDY ROGERS BAND • JOSH ABBOTT BAND TURNPIKE TROUBADOURS • WILLIAM CLARK GREEN KEVIN FOWLER • JOHN D. HALE • AMERICAN AQUARIUM ZANE WILLIAMS • CROOKS • SHINYRIBS SPAZMATICS • AND PEOPLE'S CHOICE

Page 5

Sports

Tuesday, February 18, 2014 houstonianonline.com/sports

BASEBALL

SHSU earns first season sweep KYLE KELLY Staff Reporter

Sam Houston State baseball achieved its first series sweep of the 2014 season with a game four 7-1 victory over Northern Colorado at Don Sanders Stadium Monday night.

The Bearkats went on another mid-game rally, tallying five runs in the 6th inning with support on the mound from true freshmen Sam Odom to win to take the sweep.

Odom pitched five scoreless innings with two strikeouts on the evening. Although Odom didn’t give up any earned runs, the Bearkats had defensive issues that led to Bears’ lone run off one of the Bearkats’ three errors.

Odom came into Monday’s game having never pitched in a college game. Odom gave the Bearkats’ offense patience that they would later receive support in the middle innings.

“It was a lot of what I expected, but I really had no idea what to expect, it was a great feeling,” Odom said. “I felt really good out there. You know that one run isn’t something I like to see but I’ve got a lot of experience moving forward.”

Northern Colorado starter Nick Miller surrendered three earned runs in five and two-third innings and then was pulled in favor of right handed Kevin Willman who did not fare much better as he was the victim of the Bearkat rally in the sixth inning that sealed the victory for the Bearkats.

The sixth inning started off with the Bears giving a walk to the Bearkats and Wyatt Powell came in as a pinch runner. With one out and a runner on first and second, Ryan O’Hearn came up to the plate for the first time during the night as the pinch hitter. With a 3-2 count, O’Hearn connected for a two-run double to right center field, giving the Bearkats a 4-2 lead.

Although O’Hearn did not start on the evening, he proved to be a pivotal aspect of the Bearkat’s offensive surge.

“Coach Pierce talked to me about not being in the starting lineup tonight since we’ve had five games in a row, letting some guys rest up, but you’re always ready to come off the bench and deliver,” O’Hearn said. “It’s exciting to help the team win getting those RBIs and just building on a good start.”

The inning would not stop there SHSU as they would go on to add three more runs from center

Akex Broussard | The Houstonian

UP TO THE PLATE. Junior infielder Carter Burgess steps up to the plate against Northern Colorado’s Nick Miller.

Burgess finished the game with two hits and a run. the Bearkats garnered their first sweep on the 2014 season.

fielder Colt Atwood and catcher Shea Pierce.

Seth Holbert would then come in relief for Odom and pitch two

shutout innings to go along with three strikeouts. Jordan Church retired the final four batters securing a 7-1 victory for the

Bearkats.

SHSU travels to Lake Charles, La., to play McNeese State Tuesday night at 6 p.m.

CAMPUS

TNA shakes Coliseum with big event, small venue JEREMY VILLANUEVA Sports Editor Alcohol is banned from Huntsville.

At least that’s what TNA Impact Wrestling star Ethan Carter III (EC3) announced at TNA’s Road to Lock Down tour stop at

Johnson Coliseum Sunday.

EC3’s “dry county” comment was just one of the many ways TNA captured the audience’s interest and captivated the fans’ TNA experience. TNA connected with the audience by getting the fans involved with the wrestlers, which they really wanted to

hit the nail on the head. “[I was] most excited about putting a smile on the fans’ faces,” said Rafael Morffi, TNA Impact Wrestling senior director of live events. “We have a lot fan interaction activity going on.”

Two hours before the matches began, TNA held a meet and greet session for fans who purchased a special ticket where the fans received autographs and took pictures with selected wrestlers. In addition, fans had the opportunity to purchase backstage passes for an even more exclusive experience.

Sophomore mass communications major Jacob Dzik enjoyed the amount of fan interaction time because it gave him a chance to treat his 16-year-old brother, an Impact Wrestling fanatic, he said.

“I was excited for him to go backstage and meet all the wrestlers,” Dzik said.

Dzik said he didn’t know a smaller town like Huntsville could hold such a huge event. When his brother told him TNA was coming to Johnson Coliseum, he didn’t believe it.

“He texted me for three months about it,” Dzik said. “I was very surprised when I heard [it was coming to Huntsville]. I thought he was wrong.”

Although Huntsville is smaller in comparison to the tour’s two other Texas stops – Austin and Abilene – the wrestlers didn’t see that playing any factor in their performances. The wrestlers still wanted to give Huntsville a good time.

Tag-team duo the American Wolves (Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards) didn’t see the size of Huntsville as a reason

to not perform as hard. The duo didn’t want to neglect any fans, they said.

“There are big towns, there are small towns [and] wrestling still lives in every town,” the Wolves said. “We like to bring it to people who might not be able to see it as often as big cities. Nine times out of 10 the small towns are a lot more passionate.”

The main event was the World Heavyweight Title Steel Cage Match with championship holder Magnus against Samoe Joe. “We give fans a little taste with the World Heavyweight Title match,” Morffi said.

Magnus ended up winning with the illegal help of EC3, but the audience was still in for a surprise.

New investor MVP made an appearance as he rushed his way to the ring to knockout EC3 and leave EC3 lying in the middle of the ring.

Fans were on their feet in an uproar as EC3 defeated “The Cowboy” James Storm after questionable officiating. The fans were yelling and chanting for Mr. Anderson as he came from behind in a two out of three fall match to beat Samuel Shaw.

The World Tag Team Title Match between the Wolves and the BroMans (Robbie E and Jessie Godderz) was one of the most exciting matches for the fans as the Wolves won the match, but didn’t win the titles due to the win coming from a bogus disqualification.

The show began with a fight between Austin Aries and Chris Sabin for the X Division Title that Aries won to the crowd’s delight. Following was the Knockouts Title match between Madison Rayne and Gail Kim with Rayne holding on to her title.

Brynn Castro | The Houstonian

BROS DOWN. Crowd favorites the American Wolves – Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards – exit the ring after winning the match against the BroMans but not walking away with the World Tag Team Title due to a disqualification rule.

Sports MEN’S BASKETBALL

Alex Broussard | The Houstonian

NOT ENOUGH. Junior Kaheem Ransom stares down the SFA defense. Ransom finished with 11 points, but couldn’t get the victory. SHSU is now 11-2 when Ransom scores in double figures.

Kats fall to SLC leader MARISSA HILL Sports Reporter Stephen F. Austin State halted Sam Houston State’s journey to the top of the Southland Conference with a narrow, sevenpoint win Saturday.

SFA came into Johnson Coliseum with momentum on their side, sporting a 20game win streak and a perfect record in conference play as they ousted SHSU 67-60.

Junior post Jacob Parker was unstoppable as he recorded 20 points for the evening.

Sophomore guard added insurance around the perimeter with a hefty 16 points, with seven coming from the charity stripe.

Coming into the game, SHSU head coach Jason Hooten said he knew that the Lumberjacks would be tough to tame.

“We knew they would be good,” he said.

“We just have to continue to get better at things offensively.”

Most of the first half was competitive between both teams, with the Bearkats’ defense forcing key turnovers and drawing points out of them. With 11:47 on the clock, SFA’s Cameron Dallas lost possession of the ball, allowing senior forward Terrance Motley to finish at the rack with a tonesetting dunk.

After Motley rocked the rim, the Jacks were clutching a one-point advantage before senior guard Deshaunt Walker dropped a 3-pointer to up the lead to four points.

However, sophomore guard Paul Baxter would not accept that.

Baxter answered Walker with a threepointer of his own, again cutting SFA’s advantage to one.

The Jacks began to pull away from the Bearkats after three crucial turnovers as they scored off of each one. With 1:28 left in the first half, SFA had given themselves a 14-point cushion and managed to hold a 10-point advantage, 37-27, at intermission.

The Bearkats opened up the second half with an open layup from senior forward James Thomas, but they struggled to connect on their shots in the second half, missing their next four looks at the basket.

The Bearkats regained some life after a quick layup from junior center Michael Holyfield, putting the score at 36-50. Just seconds later, redshirt freshman guard Dakarai Henderson connected on back-toback 3-pointers, pulling the Bearkats within eight points of the Jacks.

From there, SHSU’s offense picked up somewhat, seeing production from Motley and freshman forward Aurimas Majauskas.

No strangers to late-game thrillers, SHSU pulled within five points of SFA with 18 ticks left on the game clock, but an untimely turnover and foul kept them from gathering any last second magic.

Allowing SFA to defeat them again was unacceptable to junior guard Kaheem Ransom.

“They outplayed us the first 35 minutes,” he said. “But we got the film, and we’ll watch it.”

The Bearkats return to the road for the next three games, facing Lamar first Saturday at 6 p.m.

apply today & save $100 with zero deposit

TEXAS-SIZED TOWNHOMES across the street from SHSU

WALK TO CLASS + UNIQUE TOWNHOME FLOOR PLANS + FULLY FURNISHED WITH LEATHER-STYLE FURNITURE PRIVATE BED & BATH + 24-HR FITNESS CENTER + COMPUTER CENTER WITH MACS + PET FRIENDLY + INDIVIDUAL LEASES

VI L L A SONSYCA M O R E.CO M • 1 61 5 SYC A M O R E AV E N U E • 9 3 6 .4 3 9. 52 3 4 Limited time only. See office for details. Fees & amenities subject to change.