The SpringHillian_issue 8_spring2014

April 3, 2014

Volume 98 Issue 8 Photo illustration Photography: Kiva Talty Graphic Designer: Matt LaBorde

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam

WHAT’S INSIDE:

NEW SORORITY ON THE HILL | PG. 3

& WATER

SCARCITY

By ChelseaWALLACE Assistant Editor

Students, organizations and faculty across Spring Hill’s campus have come together to help give clean water to those in need.

From March 18 through March 22, Alpha Sigma Nu week raised money to help El Cercado, Dominican Republic, obtain clean, safe water.

Senior Mackenzie Harms, a member of Alpha Sigma Nu, spearheads the efforts to raise awareness of and money for clean water. Harms participated in the 2014 International Service Immersion Program (ISIP) and traveled to El Cercado, Dominican Republic where she and her fellow badgers built latrines and worked on improving literacy and farming. “They have now built 25 aqueduct systems,” Harms says. “Sadly, only one of these aqueducts have water so the rest of these villages are receiving contaminated water.”

SERVICE

Harms explains that four of the aqueducts are contaminated with E. Coli, while the rest of them have unknown contaminants.

According to Water.org, 3.4 million people die each year from water-borne diseases, including one child every 21 seconds.

In Latin America and the Caribbean alone, there are 32 million people without access to safe water.

Harms works with Alpha Sigma Nu and other faculty across campus to raise money for chlorinators to purify water in the Dominican Republic, which cost $120 each. “So far, teaming up to raise awareness and money is going well and we already have enough money for a couple of chlorinators,” Harms says. “There is a campuswide event in the works currently for the end of April that will hopefully spread

SEE FROM THE COVER PAGE 3

ENGAGEMENT: IS THERE A ‘TOO YOUNG’? | PG. 8

BADGER CREATES SITE FOR FISHERMEN | PG. 9

THE SPRINGHILLIAN

THIS WEEK

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WEEKLY FORECAST Thursday - 70/64 - Cloudy Friday -71/59 - Scattered t-storms

Saturday - 69/57 - Showers

Sunday - 67/60 - Scattered t-storms

HILLIAN STAFF Editors: Matthew LaBorde Chelsea Wallace Advisor: Stuart Babington Photo Editor: Kiva Talty

Design Editor: Bre Vaughn Reporters: Jacquelyn Sauneé Gaillard Teague Abby Massengale Sports: MJ Connell Eric Thomas

HILLIAN CONTACT The Hillian Newswire @HillianNewswire Hillian Newswire hillian _ newswire Letters to the Editors newswire@shc.edu Read the Hillian Newswire online at newswire.shc.edu

April 3, 2014

EVENTS OF THE WEEK Homecoming on the Hill Taking place April 4 through April 6, registration is still open for interested students and alumni. Events include Badgers BayFest at 6 p.m. on April 4, a Delta Boat Tour at 11 a.m. on April 5 and Java with the Jesuits at 10 a.m. on April 6. Registration for events will be open on Friday, April 4 from 11 a.m. unti 8 p.m. and Saturday, April 5 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.

“Helene Berr, A Stolen Life” Exhibit The “Helene Berr, A Stolen Life” exhibit is now on display in the Barter Room of the Marnie and John Burke Memorial Library through Aug. 10, 2014. This traveling exhibition is based on the journal written by Helene Berr, a young Jewish French woman, whose promising future was brually cut short by Vichy Government’s laws and the extermination plan imagined by the Nazis.

Student Organization and Leadership Awards (SOL) The SOL Awards are intended to honor and recognize the individuals and groups that have made a positive impact on the co-curricular life of the Spring Hill College campus community. Each year, a nomination and selection process is held during the spring semester with winners being annouced at the annual SOL awards ceremony. Nominations are due April 4.

An April Fools’ Note: Stories marked with the joker’s hat symbol pictured at the right are meant as spoof or joke articles, not as statements or reports of fact.

THE SPRINGHILLIAN

NEWS

April 3, 2014

FROM THE

COVER more water awareness and raise more money for chlorinators.”

Harms is not the only person on the Hill who is concerned with the growing problem of water. In fact, there’s an entire class dedicated to learning about the social and economic value of and problems with water.

Leigh Litwiller, coordinator of SSC395 Global Water for spring 2014, explains that the class hopes to bring a fuller understanding of issues associated with water to its students. “The class is structured around understanding the water issue not just globally, but locally, nationally and internationally,” she says.

The class has nine professors from various disciplines and is split in many sections, including science, history, theology and social science. The Global Water class is the third of its kind, following similarly constructed classes about migration and oil.

“One of the things we try to do with [the global classes] is have them be problem-based classes, so classes that present issues being dealt with. Ideally, we’d be able to lay out a format for people to deal with any contemporary issue as far as looking at it in an interdisciplinary way,” Litwiller says.

One major factor in diseased water that causes illness and death is human sanitation. Particularly, the treatment of human waste. Water.org says only 10 percent of water is treated, meaning that the other 90 percent of dirty water flows into the world’s lakes, rivers and oceans.

“That doesn’t sound like it has that much to do with water, but when it is human feces that create all the wash diseases - open defecation is the biggest contributor to wash diseases and impure water,” Litwiller says, referencing a speaker who recently discussed the water problem in Haiti and El Salvador. “A lot of it is not about water and pipes, it’s about keeping poop out of water - animal, human - keeping it out of the water supply….It’s not very sexy, but it needs to be done.”

Some solutions include composting human waste as field fertilizer as well as diverting animal waste from water sources, Litwiller explained.

Alpha Sigma Nu advisor Fr. Michael Williams recounts a conversation with an acquaintance about the water issue. “We were having a conversation and he said, ‘The next major world war will be fought over water’,” Williams says. “This is a coming issue where international companies are buying water rights in poorer countries, so clean water is becoming more and more of an international issue.”

Harms’ passion for aiding the Dominican Republic villages has given Alpha Sigma Nu its first international philanthropic cause. Williams hopes that in the future, Alpha Sigma Nu members can give more of their time and efforts to international service. “I’d like to keep encouraging Alpha Sigma Nu members to go on the immersion trips,” Williams says. “My dream would be to go on an immersion trip just for Alpha Sigma Nu members. That’s really an expression of what they’re learning in Alpha Sigma Nu as far as Jesuit values.”

As far as Williams is concerned, these efforts embody the Jesuit ideals that Spring Hill tries to put forth.

“A lot of Alpha Sigma Nu members have gone on immersion trips, and I’m delighted with that because for any student, it raises their consciousness of how they can contribute and should contribute in the future to making the world better, especially for people who are poor,” Williams says.

Harms, a pre-med student at Spring Hill, says that her experiences with the Dominican Republic villages and Alpha Sigma Nu have only strengthened her resolve. “It is only through [service] that I will truly be able to listen to the needs of the people far and wide to make the greatest impact on the world,” Harms explains. “I hope to be able to invest as much time in my patients as the physicians at the clinics in El Cercado do.”

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POo Joins SHC As New Sorority

By GaillardTEAGUE & JacquelynSAUNEE Reporters They say you can never have too much cake, or here on the Hill, they say you can thing our school’s Greek organizations could never have too much Greek life. benefit from, especially considering we haven’t This year, the amount of sororities on had a new sorority on campus in forever. With campus reached an all-time high. However, the addition of a new sorority, we can expect the Panhellenic love flowing through the more Greek participation on campus, more Badgers’ veins the past few months simply diversity in over-priced spirit jerseys, and more can’t be contained to just six sororities. chaco-norts based outfits.”

In the fall of 2014, Rho Omicron Theta Several current sorority members are even will join the Greek community of Spring more excited about the prospect of dropping Hill. their letters to become a part of the new sisterThis addition to Greek life on the Hill hood. Freshmen Liyah Welch, a member of may come as a surprise, but with the success Sigma Kappa, and of Sigma Kappa, Harper McNutt, a leaders at the member of Delta national headGamma, share their quarters of Rho collective enthusiOmicron Theta asm, “Being in two saw the Hill as different sororities a perfect new has been really hard home. for us. Our friendship Instead of just isn’t the same. participating We can’t wait to drop in the formal our current memrecruitment berships so we can process, Rho finally share letters!”

Omicron Theta However, not will hold an informal recruitment in the everyone is ready to welcome another sorority fall. However, the organization hopes to gain many new members through a unique facet of their by-laws: members of other organizations, even those who have been initiated, are allowed to join. This means that members of the other sororities on campus have the option of dropping their current letters in order to join the new chapter.

The announcement of this new addition has received an overwhelming amount of positive feedback. Tri Delta’s president Ellie Heffernan shares, “I love sororities and I can’t wait to welcome another Rho Omicron Theta members make their official sorority hand symbols. on campus! I don’t think Photo by BreVAUGHN there are enough philanthropy events, so I am excited to have some more onto this campus. Kacie Staples, Delta Gamto fill up my weekends!” ma’s president, shares, “No more than four, or Phi Mu president, Haley McHugh, I’m transferring.” smiles ear to ear as she states, “A new soRegardless of the scope of reactions, Rho rority would be phabulous! We could use Omicron Theta will be making its debut another color scheme around here.” on campus in the fall. Ready or not, POo is Mary Grace Pollet, a member of the coming to the Hill. inaugural Sigma Kappa pledge class, shares her excitement, “I totally think this is some-

“I totally think this is something our school’s Greek organizations could benefit from, especially considering we haven’t had a new sorority on campus in forever.”

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THE SPRINGHILLIAN

Dorm Gang Violence Continues to Grow

By AbbyMASSENGALE Reporter

this war because, “freshman aren’t allowed to There has been a recent increase in vandalrun this school, Mob Town runs this, yo.” This ism on Spring Hill’s campus, and investigators incident almost started a riot, but that day’s caf are pointing the finger at the on-going “dorm lunch of fried chicken and macaroni suppressed gang” rivalries. the angry mob.

Over the past few weeks, the various dorms Although these gangs differ, they do have one on Spring Hill’s campus have been attemptcommon weapon: caf cup traps. These caf cup ing to assert themselves as the dominant dorm traps are extremely dangerous and should not be by launching attacks on their rivals. There are taken lightly. The substances of this trap are delithree dorm gangs in particular that have been cious caf cookies and peanut butter. Dorm gangs linked to these incidents: have been setting Walsh, Toolen, and these traps outside Mobile. Although two of of rival dorms in these gangs are groups an attempt to lure of freshmen, by no their rivals out of the means does this mean safety of their rooms. that they aren’t capable Once this vulnerable of destruction. Then badger has fallen there are the seasoned victim to the trap, the veterans posted up in opposing gang steals Mobile who would entheir ID and rushes joy nothing more than to into McKinney’s to put these novice badgers celebrate on the vicin their place. Known tim’s badger bucks. on the streets as the It is during these Tooligans, Walsherz “storming of the and Mob Town, these dorms” that horrific gangs strike fear into the and unspeakable hearts of their fellow things occur. From badgers. ripped down door This vandalism war decorations to missbegan when the Tooliing clothes from the gans made an attempt to laundry rooms, the take control of the mail monstrosities are room over a month ago endless. The RAs by placing a sign with have chosen to re“Property of the Toolimain neutral during gans” above the door. these gang attacks, This plan was foiled but still continue to when the third floor east write up anyone with side Walsh residents a suspicious open threw their mattresses container. Nevertheat the Tooligans. Since less, these “behind this failed attempt at enemy lines” attacks taking control of care continue to occur. packages and Greek inAfter all of these vites, the Walsherz have incidents, the badger been increasing their community can only attacks on the Tooligans wonder when these and Mob Town.

Mob Town reluctantly poses. Photo by AbbyMASSENGALE actions of vandalism Freshman Juan Sicco by dorm gangs will praised the vandalism cease.

Those who have chosen to remain neutral of the Tooligans: “We are vandalizing the other continue trying to create a “United Dorms for parts of campus for those Tooligans who came Badgers” with the hopes that peace can somebefore us. Never forget the Tooligans of years how be found. Until it is found, it looks as though past.”

The Tooligans fell victim to Mob Town when these rival dorm gangs will continue to vandalize and lash out at one another, one caf cup trap at a their beloved dumpster outside the Toolen time. parking lot was spray-painted with a giant “MB” on all sides. Mob Town junior Hannah Gassie says her gang found their way into

April 3, 2014

5

April 3, 2014

‘Her’ Shows Us the Price of Loneliness

Are.” His concept is sweet, heartbreaking and makes you seriously think.

For centuries, writers have explored love and its losses, enlightening us on the boundaries of human connections with depressing poems and what not.

Spike Jonze’s film “Her” tells the love story of Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), an earnest and emotionally confused writer. He

By BreVAUGHN falls for an artificially intelligent Design Editor (and might I add, alluring) computer operating system named Warning: this article may Samantha (Scarlett Johansson). contain spoilers about “Her” This movie is the inkblot test It’s not you, it’s me and my for our feelings about technology.

400 other lovers…you seem to Those who are nuts about have a problem with that. technology might think the movie The basis for “Her,” a film furthers the argument that there about a man who falls in love is nothing scary or bad about a with his computer’s operating world where a human’s needs system, at first sounds like a are fulfilled by technology. Then joke. there are others who believe the I could picture in my head substitution of human commitment puns and cheesy lines poking for programmed affection has gone fun at a nerd-type protagonist falling in love with a computer. too far. To be honest, I am on the skeptical side. I personally love But, I am glad it was in the hands of Spike Jonze, the genius receiving hugs and having human contact. director behind “Adaptation” But, I think the movie isn’t and “Where the Wild Things

really about the value or danger of technology. It is about loneliness, exposing the human fear of being isolated. Although the obvious concept of the movie prompts us to wonder about the possibility that technology might replace human activities, more so than it already has, it challenges us to ask: What makes human relationships special? What makes our bond exceptional?

In the movie, humans and their technology reach a happy equilibrium.

There is cheerful furniture, art everywhere and everyone is in the upper-middle-class. Yet people are lonely and puzzled with self-doubt.

Theodore is a typical example of this. He goes through his work day ghost-writing (more like dictating to a computer) heartfelt letters for strangers. By night, he numbs the pain from his divorce by playing video games.

What the film implies about Theodore is that he needs an emotional boost, an intelligent and empathetic companion to help ease the pain of his life. Of course not another human being, but an operating system.

Samantha is not just a machine but a “conscience” that learns everything

about Theodore after quickly going through his emails.

As he gives in to Samantha’s charm, his feelings are never portrayed as distasteful or unreal. He even calls her his “girlfriend” and his friends don’t think it’s strange that he is calling the OS his girlfriend.

Samantha has feelings too, by learning from her mistakes she develops needs and wants.

He doesn’t have trouble falling in love with an operating system, but he has a harder time separating his feelings from his human body. When Samantha hires a sexual surrogate, he can’t go through with it because it feels “weird” in a way his current sex life, which consists of Internet porn and phone sex, does not. His consciousness is linked to his physical body. He also gets jealous when he finds out Samantha is in love with hundreds of other humans. She loved him but she couldn’t understand why feelings required singular commitment.

“Her” reminds us that our technologies don’t always produce spiritually satisfying ends.

What makes it such an engaging movie is that like a good poem, it provokes us.

Feminism: Respect Our Differences

By GaillardTEAGUE Reporter The idea of feminism has been around for centuries, but only in the 1900’s did it develop into the concept we understand it as today.

Webster’s dictionary defines a feminist as one who advocates equal rights for women. By this definition, feminism is a beautiful thing to stand for. However, recent decades have transformed the idea of feminism into supporting women in their pursuit of

what they are entitled to.

This feeling of entitlement tempts women to transform their fight for equal rights into a fight for equality.

Let us look at those two phrases: “fight for equal rights” versus “fight for equality.” Yes, there is a difference.

To have equal rights as our counter-species, the male, means that one sex is not given more rights in society simply because of their genetic makeup. To be treated with equality implies something quite different.

It would imply that man and woman are the same, transposable, equal. In the perspective of today’s average feminist, anyone who challenges this idea is considered sexist.

At the beginning of time, God created human.

God created human in His image and likeness. First,

He created male. But, knowing that man would not be able to survive alone, He created female.

He created female to complement male.

Pope John Paul II says in his 1995 ‘Letter to Women,’ “Womanhood expresses the ‘human’ as much as manhood does, but in a different and complementary way.” Obviously, male and female physically complement each other; this does not need to be argued. But God also created man and woman to complement each other ontologically. In other words, we differ in the very nature of our beings.

Man and woman are not the same. Therefore, they should not be treated the same. With equal respect and rights?

Absolutely. Equivalently?

Not so much.

“It is only through the

duality of the ‘masculine’ and the ‘feminine’ that the ‘human’ finds full realization,” JPII states in his letter. We as the human race need to take careful note in the beauty that distinguishes man and woman, honor and respect this distinction, and treat each sex with the dignity they deserve in light of their differences.

God created man to be physically and ontologically the “protector.” God created woman to be physically and ontologically the “nurturer.” This does not mean that women cannot protect and men cannot nurture, but honestly recognizing these aspects of the sexes prevents hostile feelings of inequality based on how society portrays male and female.

Addressing that God purposefully created man

and woman in all their physical and ontological aspects, it can be confirmed that Him doing so was a gift. We are not entitled to anything. Every ability we possess and every aspect of our being are, in fact, gifts.

We should treat it as such.

This is what true feminism is: advocating respect for women in light of the true dignity that is an innate part of their nature.

We can only do this by looking at the core of our humanity and our sexuality and seeing it for what it really is – a gift.

Therefore, instead of demanding sameness in treatment of man and woman, feminism should be about fighting for respect and honoring the dignity of women that was so graciously bestowed by our Creator.

THE SPRINGHILLIAN

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LIFESTYLE

April 3, 2014

Photo by BreVAUGHN

#AROUND THE

HILL

Do you want your photo to be in The Springhillian? Are you doing something on campus that you want students and staff to see? Use the hashtag #aroundthehill on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to let us know what fellow Badgers are doing on campus. Your photo could be in the next issue of The Springhillian!

Photo by EricTHOMAS

All photos were taken during Oozeball, an IFC-sponsored event that benefits the Rape Crisis Center of Mobile, Ala.

Photo by BreVAUGHN

FEATURE

8

April 3, 2014

When is Too Young to Say ‘I Do’?

By JacquelynSAUNEE Reporter Simply put, our generation is getting married later than ever before.

Yes, little girls still dream about that magical day when they will put on a beautiful white gown and walk down the aisle to meet their Prince Charming. However, these dreams are taking an increasingly longer amount of time to become a reality.

Some of the most common themes of various online blogs are “how to make the most of your twenties” or “why your twenties are the best years of your life.” Topics of these articles typically include travel, independence, personal success and anything else that promotes the mantra of living “young, wild, and free.”

Marriage is nowhere to be found in these lists of appropriate or desirable activities for twenty somethings. Even being in a serious, committed relationship is not deemed worthy of mention.

However, a recent Buzzfeed article provides a convincing argument of “21 Reasons Why Netflix is the Best Relationship You’ll Ever Have.” Is being in a “relationship” with Netflix more socially acceptable than pursuing a true relationship in hopes of marriage? At this point in many college students’ lives, the answer to this question is a resounding yes.

According to the National Health Statistics Report of 2012, the median age of those married for the first time is currently 28.3 for men and 25.8 for women.

Just fifty years ago, the median age for marriage was 23 for men and 20 for women. The age increased by almost six years for both men and women. Engaged freshman Amanda Jenkins shares, ”I feel like the age [when it is socially acceptable to get married] is being pushed way back. My parents were married by my age and had me at 21. They had almost no objections.”

Now, however, many are quick to judge when someone in their early twenties proudly declares an engagement. Jenkins explains, “It hurts when people tell me that I’m making a mistake because I know that I want to be with Albert for the rest of our lives.”

The most common reaction couples claim to encounter is that they should wait until they are financially stable before entering into a marriage. Senior Olivia Jennings shares her view on this criticism: “Everyone in my family has gotten married young, so I’ve seen the [financial] struggles they’ve been through. But my favorite part about us getting married young is that we get to do just that- grow up together. I think it is a beautiful thing to be each other’s witnesses.”

Jennings explains why she and her fiancé are ready to grow up together and get married: “It was the next natural step. We knew it was right and it makes the separation so much easier knowing that ‘forever’ isn’t too far away.”

Senior Amy Lyons explains her recent engagement to fellow senior Matthew Burke in a similar fashion: “When you’re in a relationship as a senior in college, you really have to start talking about your future togeth-

Recently engaged Matthew Burke and Amy Lions hold hands. Photo by KivaTALTY

er and what you’ll be doing after graduation. For us, we knew we wanted to stay together and do our best to be in the same area next year. We just felt like it was the next step for us.”

Another common criticism in regards to engagements of young couples, or couples that defy the age norm, is that the couple is not mature enough to make such a significant life decision. However, Lyons explains how she and her fiancé did make their decision: “I usually never feel completely ready to make any huge life decision, but I think we have thought it through and talked about a lot of things and made the best decision for us.”

This couple also describes the support they have received from both family and friends. Burke says, “My mom even called me the night before I proposed to make sure that everything was ready and if I was ready. My aunt and godmother, who I am super close to, even screamed hysterically out of excitement. Also, most of my closest friends had been plotting and scheming with me to make it the perfect proposal ever so they were definitely excited as well.”

So does age matter?

Penny Gyan Flores, class of 2013, shares her view, “I think age absolutely matters when considering marriage. I feel that people need to be at an age at which they are fully aware of what they are being called to.

With that being said, I have met couples who were far more advanced in years than my husband and I, but honestly had no clue as to the vocation they were about to enter into.”

People are getting married later and later in life, that’s the reality of our generation. When people do decide to get married at a supposed “early” age, criticisms and judgments often ensue. However, not everyone, including several couples on Spring Hill’s campus, are following suit. Student engagements are a prevalent occurrence, and they are often extremely well-received by the student body and beyond.

“We get to do just that - grow up together. I think it is a beautiful thing to be each other’s witnesses.”

April 3, 2014

THE SPRINGHILLIAN

9

For the Fisherman, By the Fisherman Fisherman’s Times at a glance: Instagram Followers: 2,168

Facebook Followers: 581

Algero’s tiny Mobile dorm room is made for a fisherman. A YOLO paddleboard acts as his headboard while a Yeti cooler positioned at the left side of his bed acts as his nightstand. Spear guns and fishing poles are mounted to the walls, and he keeps a kit of materials under his bed for making homemade flies.

Photos by MattLABORDE

By MatthewLABORDE Editor-in-Chief Seated at a desk in his Mobile Hall dormitory, Senior Chris Algero gently ties two weighted beads to a small hook. It’s the first step when building his own “fly,” the device used as bait in the sport of fly fishing, the most difficult genre of fishing.

The way he goes about creating his flies – diligently, with careful precision – could be used to characterize the way in which he runs his comprehensive informational salt water fishing website called The Fisherman’s Times.

Chris works directly from his dorm room on most occasions. He’s a laid back Louisiana native who sports casual dress: flip flops, shorts and a fishing polo. He’s a behind-the-scenes leader who is more concerned with putting out a solid product than being in the spotlight. “I’m always thinking one step ahead,” says Algero.

The website was born out of Algero’s love for the sport of fishing, an activity that he grew up with living near the lake just outside the city of New Orleans.

While fishing in locations such as Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Florida over the last four years, noticed that there wasn’t a website that cohesively covered the entire Gulf Coast. Chris’ goal for the ‘Times’ was for the website to be a “one stop shop” for Fisherman seeking current trends in Gulf Coast fishing, advice from boat captains, and opinion articles from local fisherman.

Junior Diego Juncadella, a Miami native, acts as Algero’s right-hand man whose primary goals are marketing, social media and the

general promotion of the company.

According to Algero, “Diego does a really great job at spreading the word.”

The two first became friends after realizing that they shared an undeniable passion for fly-fishing, spear fishing and any sport that involved being in the water. When asked about the team’s relationship, Juncadella says, “It is a very genuine friendship and being in business together hasn’t changed that dynamic.”

“When fellow fly fishermen meet, it’s an instant respect.”

- Sam Glass Both Algero and Juncadella are most attracted to the challenge of fishing. For Algero, learning the ways of fly-fishing presented him with the next big obstacle in becoming a better fisherman. Juncadella not only does it for the challenge, but for the deep satisfaction a good day of fishing awards him. For the two of them, their collective obsession for catching fish goes hand-in-hand with the amount of work they put into the efforts of the

Fisherman’s Times.

Algero’s primary concern for the website is the generation of content, which is one of his chief responsibilities. “One of the ways in which we create content and promote ourselves is by finding captains in different regions to write blogs for us,” says Algero, who mentions that ten captains currently write for Fisherman’s Times.

According to Algero, the hope is that these captains will promote the Fisherman’s Times to their local fisherman communities.

Because Fisherman’s Times is such a grassroots project, they rely heavily on the power of social media to boost their image and to disseminate information. According to Juncadella, “The activeness of promotion through various social media platforms is directly linked to the growth of our site and its importance cannot be understated.” The Fisherman’s Times currently has 2,168 Instagram followers and just under 600 Facebook likes.

On top of that, the hash tag “#FishermansTimes” has been used 883 times by different Instagram users who want their content featured on the Times’ website.

Between working on the website two to three hours of the day and trying to spend three to four days a week on the water, the owners of Fisherman’s Times find that their lives are consumed with fishing.

Sam Glass, a Spring Hill alumnus who often goes fishing with Chris and Diego, bonded with the team the moment he saw a picture of them fishing on Facebook: “When fellow fly fishermen meet, it’s an instant respect. So, one picture on Facebook is all it took for me to invite them aboard

and we’ve had many great trips since then.” Sam is sort of the unspoken third member of the Fisherman’s Times team. He takes them on fishing trips, helps them with photos and videos, and supports them in any way he can.

Glass has a vast amount of experience in fly and offshore fishing, and his passion for fishing has been brewing since he fished in diapers with his uncles in the surf of the outer banks. Being older, Glass provides a big brother perspective on the two fishermen. “It’s hysterical,” he says, talking about his experiences fishing with Algero and Juncadella, “Diego’s favorite fishing outfit consists of turtle necks and a gold chain, and if you ask him, he’s the best fisherman that ever lived.” He didn’t spare Algero of friendly criticism either, saying, “If you ever want to sell something, tell Chris it will catch him more fish and he’ll take two.”

All jokes aside, Glass earnestly recognizes their dedication and knows they have the ability to be extremely successful. “These websites have been proven” says Glass, “I think Chris and Diego have a good angle and they work hard. If they stick with it I can see great potential for profit.”

When asked where the company would be in five years, both Algero and Juncadella have high hopes.

Algero knows that these types of sites take up to seven years to build solid followings, but he intends Fisherman’s Times to be a leader among informational fishing websites in the South. Diego discussed the potential for financial growth with potential for advertising revenue, and hopes that Fisherman’s Times “continues to be used as a valuable tool for our followers and content continues to grow exponentially.”

To see their work for yourself, check them out at the FishermansTimes.com

10

Should College-Level Student-Athletes Be Paid for Their Efforts?

Last Thursday, March 27, the National Labor Relations Board in Chicago said that the Northwestern University football players are able to unionize.

This was a huge step in the recent uproar of student-athletes making the argument of getting paid to attend school.

Besides making this argument, one of the main reasons for this fight to unionize has come about because they want to receive better medical support. I feel that student-athletes deserve some special medical coverage because it is hard to pay for large medical bills especially if a player receives an injury like Kevin Ware in last year’s March Madness tournament. Something as severe as tearing an ACL or in Ware’s case, a gruesome compound fracture, is a big deal and should be taken care of by the school since the injury occurred while participating in a school activity. The NCAA is not

By MjCONNELL legally obligated to protect Reporter players from injury, but shouldn’t they be?

Every year multiple student-athletes go down with injuries that require surgery and are left with their families to figure out how they are going to pay for it. According to CNN, these young adults are dedicating around 40 hours of their week to practicing for these sports. This is one of the things the NLRB highlighted in their ruling to allow the players to unionize. This violates the NCAA’s 20-hour rule, which states that no coach can take up 20 hours of an athlete’s time. Another reason they are considered employees is because they work 20 and 50 hours a week while generating millions of dollars for their institutions, according to CNN. I think that these athletes do a tremendous job providing revenue for their schools while playing the sport they love. This is a rewarding thing for them to continue their athletic careers as well as getting their education paid for. Although 15% of men’s baseball, basketball and football players may not pursue the major they want because of the sport, they are still getting a substantial amount of tuition paid for, while other students have to work on their own time.

Players definitely deserve to have their medical bills paid for, even if it is something as simple as getting an MRI paid for. They work incredibly hard for their schools while playing at a high level and taking care of their school work as well.

Student-Athletes are very hard workers for the most part and should be rewarded with a little bit more incentive that just their education paid for. At least their meals and accommodations are paid for, but a little bit of spending money on those trips wouldn’t be a bad idea if it has restrictions on where it can be spent.

SPORTS

April 3, 2014

#ATHLETEPROBZ EMBARRASSING TWEETS

By EricTHOMAS Reporter Have you ever heard of the titles “Glamour Boy” or “Diva?” They’re terms typically used to classify people who always want things to be given to them and throw temper tantrums when things don’t go their way.

Believe it or not, some of the greatest athletes in today’s world are associated with these nicknames.

Let’s be honest… most of us have at least some type of social media profile, whether it is facebook, twitter, or some other form of online presence. We use these online profiles for numerous purposes such as communication or planning.

However, as with most mass media platforms, we must also come to terms with the fact that not everyone knows how to properly manage their social media presence. This is escalated even further if the tweet in question comes from someone extremely popular or of high esteem such as professional athletes.

Now before we go any further, let’s clarify something: Not all professional athletes have terrible social media skills.

But there’s really no dispute that some athletes need better management techniques and need to simply think about some of the things that they post on these websites. For example, Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Roddy White found himself in a pretty tough spot two weeks ago when he bet a Twitter follower season tickets on the 50-yard line that No.

3 Duke would beat No. 14 Mercer in the second round of the 2014 NCAA tournament.

For those of you who follow March Madness, you know what happened in that game. For those that don’t, Mercer defeated Duke by a score of 78-71.

Naturally all eyes were on White to see if he would honor his bet. Initially, White attempted to back out of the deal by tweeting, “Y’all people are crazy on twitter you want me to man up and pay a bet to a person that had nothing to lose in the bet #soundsridicules.” While White eventually did honor the bet, it doesn’t change the fact that he severely put his foot in his mouth by making the bet in the first place. Sure the bet may have seemed logical at the time, it was Duke vs. Mercer. However, saying that people were crazy by asking him to “man-up” seemed to rub a lot of people the wrong way.

If the Roddy White example didn’t get you thinking, then perhaps the shenanigans of a much more well-known athlete will. I’m talking about Chad Johnson/Ochocinco, former wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals,

Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots.

Now when most people see athletes that bounce around from team to team, they usually adopt the mindset that money was the main reason. For Ochocinco, it was more of him making unnecessary noise off the field and not focusing on the matter at hand. For instance, take this tweet that Ochocinco made during, yes during, an actual preseason game back in 2010. “Just talk with Kelly Washington, Desean Jackson, Geoff Pope, Hank Baskett and I caught a ball from Mike Vick, I love pre-game warm-up.” Needless to say this didn’t sit too well with the NFL front office, and Ochocinco was fined $25,000 for his in-game tweet.

Both of these are cases of professional athletes not knowing when to bite their tongues and allowing fans/followers to get under their skin. However, these cases can seem tame when compared to Wayne Rooney’s twitter outburst when he was harassed by a fan in 2012.

This is the tweet that set Rooney off, “Rooney you fat whore I’ll smash ya head in with a pitchin

wedge an bury ya with a ballast fork ya fat ugly lil nonse.”

Now you would think that a superstar player like Wayne Rooney would be able to keep his cool given his fame level right?

Here’s Rooney’s response, “I will put u asleep within 10 seconds hope u turn up if u don’t gonna tell everyone ur scared u little nit. I’ll be waiting.”

The common theme found in each of these cases is that some athletes simply don’t know how to manage social media, which begs the question: Should athletes be allowed to have social media accounts?

While banning professional athletes from social media altogether may be a bit extreme, not to mention stupid because it clearly wouldn’t work, perhaps there should be better regulation and monitoring of what athletes can and can’t say.

There should also be harsher punishments for when the athletes do or say something detrimental to the organization they are affiliated with.

Pro sports bring excitement and joy to millions of people across the world, but some of the acts and stunts that athletes pull are simply embarrassing and really don’t belong in the games. While we as fans like them and believe that making “noise off the court” is awesome, we have to remember that at the end of the day, our names aren’t going on their paychecks.

April 3, 2014

THE SPRINGHILLIAN

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Campus with a View: Where to Watch the Games

By MjCONNELL Reporter After having a very productive start to their spring season, Spring Hill’s men’s golf team looks to show off their skills in front of the home crowd.

The season looks very promising for the Badger’s and with a strong finish on their home course, the men look for a bid to nationals. After finishing in second at the Wolf Pack Invitational on March 17 through 18 and a strong performance in the second round of William Carey’s tournament, it should be an exciting event to follow when the men host on April 6 through 8.

Freshman Grant Luisi is looking forward to having Springhillians come out and enjoy the tournament. “It’s not often that people get to watch the golf tournaments because they’re never really home, but I’m definitely excited and I hope we can take the win,” says Luisi.

Besides players being excited to play on the beautiful Spring Hill Golf Course, the squad offered some insight on where the best spots to watch the tournament. Playing for the team for four years now, senior golfers Phil Dugan and Spencer Lane shared their favorite parts of the course and some advice on proper golf audience etiquette.

“Proper golf course etiquette for spectators definitely starts off with standing still while the golfer is getting ready for the swing,” says Dugan. “Moving around and stepping on leaves is annoying, you may think you’re far away, but it’s pretty quiet out there and we can hear it.”

Don’t think that having to stand still will affect your level of intensity. The golfers actually recommended getting rowdy, but at the proper times.

“You can get rowdy before the shot and after the shot, but don’t do it while someone is taking their shot, it really messes people up,” says Lane.

Dugan also adds a few small things to be mindful of. “Talking and whispering while one of us is over the ball can be heard from the tee box, just try to be quite when we’re over the ball,” states Dugan.

Dugan says the hole the people can get a great view from would be the 14th hole alongside the apartments. “I think 14 is pretty good because everyone can sit along the apartments and you can see 15’s green as well,” says Dugan.

Lane recommends groups gathering in either the parking lot of patio behind Stewartfield.

“The best area would be up by the parking lot by the white house, because 14 and 16’s tee boxes are right there and 13’s green is right there,” says Lane. “That place is on point up there.”

Lane is also a big fan of hole 13 where he predicts a lot of action will happen. “13 is a fun hole because it’s an easy hole, only a 300-yard hole, there’s out-of-bounds, bunkers, there’s trees and it’s an easy hole to get an eagle… you’ll see a lot of cool stuff happen up on that hole,” says Lane.

Another interesting about 13 is the difficulty of putting. “You’ll see a lot of people three-putt on that, it’s a hard putt to make,” adds Dugan The next hole that will a thriller to watch will be hole 15 where many take hits on the scorecard from putting on this difficult green.

With our own golf team and beautiful course, every Badger needs a personal spot to watch the games.

Photos by MjCONNELL “Hole 15’s green is literally a large slant,” informs Lane, “I’ve seen kids 8-putt on this green… because if they hit it past the hole, there’s no way they’re making it.” Lane also says that this is where students should get the most rowdy before and after shots.

Another great spot for student’s to catch a great view of the tourney comes on the corner of Spring Hill College Rd. and Brother Ferrell Blank Dr. behind the tee box of hole number five. “Five’s tee box wouldn’t be too bad,” says Dugan, “it’s right after 15 and isn’t a bad walk from the other holes.

Also, if you’re feeling adventurous enough to travel down the Golf Course parking lot, you can see the golfers come down the fairway of the

fifth hole. “It’s a further walk, but you can see five, nine and six’s tee,” says Dugan. Although there is a few to catch down at the base of the course, the two agree that majority of the action will be taking place at the top.

“Down at the bottom, there’s nothing to see down there,” says Lane, “but up at the top, there’s a lot of action up there.”

Well, there you have it, the eldest members of the squad gave their advice about the course they’ve scaled year in and year out. The tournament kicks off on Monday, April 7 and continues through the 8. Be sure to go out and support the Badger’s golf team as they look to continue a successful season.

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HILL YEAH!

April 3, 2014

THE BADGER PUZZLER 3.

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Across

PHL331:01 President2K14-15 The best thing to come to the caf since Pasta Tony The newest sorority to come to campus The second longest line known to students I gave up caf cookies…

This newspaper’s got jokes The prettiest walk on campus during spring Is that really necessary? Hint: personal transportation

Down

Badgers lounging in the trees via…

IT’S FINALLY HERE! OMG OMG OMG part deux The Hunger Games: Spring Hill Edition The sport only known to badgers Did we really just get that email?

Themed party? No problem It’s 70 degrees? ROAD TRIP! I just got a care package from home!

Please connect to a wifi IT’S FINALLY HERE! OMG OMG OMG

Answers: 1. Hammocks 2. DunkinDonuts 3. BIOETHICS 4. HousingSelection 5. WalleyBall 6. Pita 7. Allstudents 8. Goodwill 9.DauphinIsland 10. Styrofoamcups 11.POO 12.OmeletLine 13.Mailroom 14.RESNET 15.

CHIPOTLE 16. Lent 17. SPRINGhooligan 18. Grotto 19. Segway