September 17 issue

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The L asso On the scene since 1914

Student-run newspaper | Never a dull moment

Wednesday, September 17, 2014 | Vol. 101, No. 19

News Feature | Internet

Net fatality: Is net neutrality dying? Net Neutrality coverage

The internet is currently fighting for net neutrality, but will things change soon? Alex Ancira Managing Editor aancira@twu.edu Net neutrality is on its last leg — the sky is falling and the internet as we know it is doomed! No wait, net neutrality is too difficult to maintain with the modern virtual landscape and legislature; we must adapt and change the laws about how the internet is governed. For the average American citizen, these are two heads of a digital legislative hydra that seems too confusing to glean truth from. The most common comment about net neutrality tends to be: exactly what is net neutrality at all? If a national survey was administered asking what net neutrality was three months

ago, most people would look more than a little confused. This is not to imply a lack of initiative or caring on the public’s behalf but more a reflection of net neutrality being a given thus far. Taken from the Federal Communications Commission’s webpage on the topic of Open Internet is a simple working definition for net neutrality: Net Neutrality is another term for Open Internet, which is “the Internet as we know it, a level playing field where consumers can make their own choices about what applications and services to use, and where consumers are free to decide what content they want to access, create or share with others.” In other words, the internet is maintained

as an open creative platform, where internet service providers, law makers and other consumers cannot affect traffic and

usage of lawfully made internet websites and webpages. Law makers opened a commenting period associated with the

FCC’s website to allow for citizens to post their thoughts on the issue of preserving net neutrality or allowing ISPs — such as

Comcast, Verizon and Time Warner Cable — to provide “fast lanes” of internet data access to select websites. The

comment period, which was originally set to end July 15, was extended until Sept. 15, this past Monday, for the legislative queries of the 2014 Open Internet Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and The Framework for Broadband Internet Access Service Refreshing the Record Public Notice, according to a public notice released on Aug. 15 by the FCC. According to The Wall Street Journal, over three million comments were logged during the open comment period about net neutrality and the purposed change in regulations on open internet policy. According to the same report by Wall Street Journal Reporter Gautham Nagesh: “Many of the three million comments urge the

FCC to ban such special deals, known as paid prioritization.” Paid prioritization can include, but is not limited to, adding a faster data speed for contracted internet websites and webapp providers, slowing down services for non-contracted websites and providers, and securing proxy-exclusive content usage rights for websites via extremely fast, exclusive data contracts. Many American citizens banded together in solidarity against the purported death of net neutrality and the open internet, according to the Sept. 15 Time Magazine article written by Jack Linshi. ...

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Graphic by Alex Ancira & Toi Ferguson

Local | Sports

Roller Derby rumbles in Denton starting now North Texas Roller Derby Revolution kicks off season Sarah de Schweinitz Reporter sdeschweinitz@twu.edu Roller derby may be the most exciting sport you’ve never watched. The players skate fast and hard, fall down, pop right back up, push and shove each other, and most importantly, work together in close-knit teams. In order for a team to be successful in roller derby,

they have to closely watch each other’s movements, anticipate what is going to happen next and stick together. There are three leagues that skate at the House of Quad in Denton. There is the all-female league called the North Texas Derby Revolution, the all-male league called the Denton County Outlaws and the junior league called The Rolling Rebellion. The skaters come from all

kinds of different backgrounds, and the age range is from early 20s to late 40s. I met one woman who works as a nurse in the E.R. and another who is a college student. Everyone is welcome to join, and no tryouts are given. According to the House of Quad’s website, you can go in with no previous experience — you just need to ...

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Local | Charity

Denton Campus Event

Follow The Lasso twulasso.com

Hispanic Heritage Denton walks for month kicked off heart health

Pachanga dinner starts the festivities on Sept. 17 Amanda Clark Page Editor aclark9@twu.edu INSIDE THIS ISSUE Opinions

Travelling in college.....................2

News

Multicultural mixer........................3

Community

Arts, Autos, Antiques.................4

Lifestyle

Food Selfies................................5

Sports

Clark’s Corner..............................6

Photo by Tammi Paul

Monday, Sept. 15th marked the first day of Hispanic Heritage Month, a time to celebrate independence of Latin American countries as well as the population of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the U.S. As a diverse campus, TWU has an entire office dedicated to recognizing, celebrating, and enjoying different cultures. The Office of Intercultural Services exists to “provide programs and services that promote diversity education, cultural awareness and

leadership development among students,” according to the TWU website. One of the ways OIS works toward this goal is through the Multicultural Student Network that not only works to bring awareness and sensitivity to the community, but also organizes events to celebrate culture. OIS is dedicated to offering programs and events that align with TWU’s mission to educate a diverse community of students so that they may become multiculturally competent and gain self-awareness about their own experiences. Today, OIS and MSN have come together to host their annual Pachanga celebration. ...

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Denton Heart Walk brings community out to take a step toward ending heart disease Emily Nickles Page Editor enickles@twu.edu

Saturday morning dawned misty with a chill unheard of during a September in Texas. Despite the bone-cold wind, runny noses and damp atmosphere, Dentonites came together to support sufferers and survivors of heart disease through the annual Denton Heartwalk. Hosted by the American Heart Association, the walk consisted of a 5K route and Minute Mile, where people could run instead if desired.

The event was attended by many different groups and organizations, including local hospitals, UNT groups and students from TWU. Both the former mayor and current mayor of the city were also in attendance. As people were arriving, there were several tents set up relating to heart health with volunteers, who handed out goodies supporting the cause. There was a free breakfast and snacks also available to the walkers, offering ...

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