19 October 2015

a student newspaper of the university of tulsa

october 19, 2015 issue 7 ~ volume 101

S.A.V.E. supports victims of sexual assault with its Clothesline Project, p 6

The Collegian interviews Knight from Baha Men about their first new record release in over a decade, p 12

Earthquakes plague Oklahoma, scientists search for cause, p 4

The Collegian: 2

News

19 October 2015

News

19 October 2015

The Collegian: 3

Candidate Profile: Donald Trump Donald Trump continues to gain popularity and notoriety, despite being a divisive figure.

Jordan Hoyt Student Writer GOP frontrunner Donald Trump continued to draw media and social media attention this week, gaining over 70,000 Twitter followers while live-tweeting during the first Democratic debates on Tuesday night.

This total was more than the entire Democratic field combined where Bernie Sanders gained 46,000 followers and Hillary Clinton gained 10,000.

“I think Trump brings a very different kind of energy to the political scene that we have not seen before,” said TU junior petroleum engineering major Andrew Stone.

“He is not politically correct, which might be a little dangerous, but could also be the kind of bravado that America needs in a president. He may not be the best Republican candidate in my opinion, but I think his concern for the American worker and homeland security bring up some important issues that need to be addressed in this next presidency.”

“It might be seen on Twitter as if he had many followers, but that doesn’t give him the presidency,” said TU psychology major Sarai Torres-Hurtado.

“As a Hispanic TU student I feel like Trump has nothing on me. He doesn’t realize the power of Hispanics. Older Hispanics don’t usually have Twitter or anything like that. They will vote, they will have a say. Not for themselves, but for their children.”

Trump’s outspokenness lead to criticism after Monday’s No Labels Problem Solver Convention in New Hampshire when Harvard student Joseph Choe asked a question about US military presence in South Korea.

Before Choe finished his question, Trump asked, “Are you from

Graphic by Elias Brinkman

While Trump’s platform has many conservative aspects, there are a few progressive ideas included.

South Korea?”

To which Choe responded “I was born in Texas, raised in Colorado.” “[Trump] continues to show his racial insensitivity,” said TU senior chemical engineering major Allen Shih. “This gaffe is only embarrassing in a Q&A session

but on the international level it could lead to irreparable damage.

His insensitivity is bound to turn other countries away.”

Trump also drew sharp criticism at the same conference after implying that George W. Bush was partially responsible for allowing 9/11 to happen.

“[George W. Bush] was president, okay?” Trump said. “Blame him or don’t blame him but he was president. The World Trade Center came down during his reign.”

“How pathetic for [Trump] to criticize the president for 9/11.

We were attacked & my brother kept us safe,” GOP candidate and

Bush brother Jeb Bush tweeted on Friday.

Trump will continue his campaign with rallies in Iowa and Florida along with the next Republican debate on Oct 28 at 7 pm CT at UC-Boulder, CO.

Halloween is coming! tucollegian@tucollegian.org

editor-in-chief

Morgan Krueger managing editor

Giselle Willis news editor

Fraser Kastner sports editor

Matt Rechtien variety editor

Kayleigh Thesenvitz commentary editor

Hannah Kloppenburg satire editor

Caitlin Woods photo & graphics editor

Elias Brinkman

business & advertising manager

Paul Moses web manager

Sam Chott

distribution managers

Katie Hill, Walker Womack, Witt Womack and Kyranna Gilstrap

The Collegian is the student newspaper of the University of Tulsa. It is distributed Mondays during the fall and spring semesters, except during holidays and final exam weeks. The University of Tulsa does not discriminate on the basis of personal status or group characteristics including but not limited to the classes protected under federal and state law. Inquiries regarding implementation of this policy may be addressed to the Office of Human Resources, 800 South Tucker Drive, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74104-9700, 918-631-2616.

Requests for accommodation of disabilities may be addressed to the University’s 504 Coordinator, Dr. Tawny Taylor, 918-631-3814. To ensure availability of an interpreter, five to seven days notice is needed; 48 hours is recommended for all other accommodations. Advertising Policy: Advertising appearing in this publication does not imply approval or endorsement by the University of Tulsa or The Collegian for the products or services advertised.

For advertising information, email the Collegian at advertising@tucollegian.org. The deadline for advertising is 12 pm on the Friday prior to publication. Letter Policy: Letters to the editor must be less than 500 words and can be sent to tucollegian@tucollegian, or dropped off at Oliphant Room 110. Under no circumstances will anonymous letters be published. The name of the person submitting the letter must be published with the letter.

We reserve the right to edit or reject all letters. The deadline for letters is 5 pm on the Friday prior to publication. Editing Policy: The Collegian reserves the right to edit all copy submitted by all writers. This editing may take place in many forms, including grammar corrections, changes in paragraph structure or even the addition or removal of sections of content. Editorial Policy: Columnists are solely responsible for the content of their columns.

Opinions expressed in columns may not represent the opinions of the entire Collegian staff, the administrative policies of the University of Tulsa, the views of the student body or our advertisers.

Chuyi Wen / Collegian

Things get spooky at LaFortune Hall in preparation for Halloween.

Last week, the State Run Media used male pronouns in a credit referencing Brook Becker. These should have been female.

The Collegian: 4

News

19 October 2015

4.5 magnitude earthquake strikes Cushing amid debate

The “Cushing Hub” is a national crossroads of crude oil pipelines.

It’s also surrounded by a rising number of earthquakes in Oklahoma.

Mason Whitehorn Powell Student Writer During the early morning of Sunday, Oct 10, a 4.5 magnitude earthquake shook a great portion of north-central Oklahoma. Those who were woken by the tremor flooded social media with concerned posts around 4:30 a.m. The epicenter was near Cushing, Oklahoma, a major crude oil trading hub, where 85 million barrels of oil are stored on average and through which much of the nation’s oil is transported by pipeline.

Ten years ago, the number of Oklahoma earthquakes fluctuated within the single digits. An exponential increase began in 2009, and despite several dip years, the numbers remain on the rise. To give an idea of scale, there were 584 earthquakes above 3.0 magnitudes last year alone.

That’s five times the figures in 2013 and 582 more than the two recorded in 2004.

According to the USGS’s 24 hour seismicity report in Oklahoma, as of 6:45 p.m. Oct 12, six tremors ranging from 2.7 to 3.3 dotted the map west of Osage County. Generally, an earthquake above a 3.0 magnitude is considered significant and can be felt at the right location.

The 4.5 on Sunday is not uncommon in present-day Oklahoma, but is still significant enough to make national news. Do these epicenters and numbers map a predictable pattern caused by man, or is Oklahoma experiencing the natural patterns of geological change?

The significance of this particular earthquake is steeped in an ongoing controversy over the effects of oil production on the fault lines beneath Oklahoma.

Many claim that hydraulic fracturing— the high-pressured injection of more than a million gallons of water, sand and chemicals to crack the rock underground—directly correlates to the rise in frequency of Oklahoma earthquakes.

Many in the petroleum industry profess there is no correlation, while the opposition has no scientific evidence to connect fracking with earthquakes (reports are speculation at best). This fact is problematic; while Oklahoma does not regularly experience the kinds of earthquakes that shake the West Coast, legislatures, scientists and businessmen should make the proper inquiries to determine what can be done.

Oklahoma’s economy depends on

Courtesy okgeosurvey

This graph represents the rising number of earthquakes occurring in Oklahoma in the last few years. Some scientists believe this is due to wastewater disposal.

petroleum. If petroleum production results in natural disasters, should the state be responsible for taking the required measures to prevent further damage?

This is a situation where compromises are currently made without fully understanding the issue. Research needs to be done to determine a course of action in which checks

For every barrel of oil pumped up from the ground, twenty barrels of naturally occurring brine come with it on average.

The oil-laden fluid has to be disposed of, so it is forced at high pressures into disposal wells. Used fracking fluid is disposed of in the same way, and is injected in volumes of millions of gallons. The current theory

“The use of deep wastewater injection wells is more likely to cause earthquakes” and balances are in place to protect both Oklahoma’s economy and environment.

Many use fracking to rally against the petroleum industry when in fact, public opinion and media attention are largely focused on the wrong issue. A different oilfield practice might be what relates oil production to earthquakes. The use of deep wastewater injection wells is more likely to cause earthquakes, if at all, so these territories are marked by speculation.

Injection wells are used for the disposal of oil production’s hazardous byproducts.

is that this fluid might be seeping into fault lines and triggering earthquakes.

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission is responsible for regulating Oklahoma’s oil and gas practices. On September 18, 2015, as a direct result of the seismic activity in the Cushing area, the OCC implemented a plan. The plan called for two injection wells to cease operation and for three others to reduce disposal volume.

“As a result of an analysis of disposal well and seismicity data in the Cushing area,” the OCC advisory reads. “The

Oklahoma Corporation Commission’s Oil and Gas Conservation Division (OGCD) is implementing a plan to change the operation of certain disposal wells in the Cushing area. The plan may be altered as more data is made available.”

The 4.5 near Cushing occurred within the boundaries regulated by the report. If the disposal of wastewater and fracking fluid does affect Oklahoma’s faultlines, no one knows what irreversible damages might already be done.

From Jan 1 - May 27, 2015, there were 381 earthquakes in Oklahoma. The USGS projects that approximately 941 earthquakes will strike Oklahoma over the course of this year.

Scientists and geologists are scrambling to uncover the truth behind oil production and earthquake relations while oil and gas companies are addressing the matter with good PR and public debate.

Many Oklahoma lawmakers and activists are combatant against those companies in hopes of saving the state from a disastrous earthquake.

Oklahomans are stuck in the middle, going about their day and occasionally stopping as the ground rumbles beneath their feet.

and Harvard Ave. talking loudly at everyone passing and driving by. Upon making contact the individual was cooperative, their information was checked and was trespassed warned and asked to leave.

October 19 - November 17 LaTeX/Beamer Design Contest The College of Engineering and Natural Sciences is sponsoring a context to design a new presentation template for the University for those who wish to use the LaTeX Beamer interface. More information can be found at portal.utulsa.edu/teams/beamer/.

Wednesday, October 21 from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Dietler Commons and SA Tailgate Tent (Chapman Commons) The Clothesline Project Display The Clothesline Project is a visual display that bears witness to sexual violence.

During the public display, a clothesline is hung with shirts. Each shirt is decorated to represent a particular person’s experience, by the survivors themselves or by someone who cares about them.

Wednesday, October 21 at 10:00am to 4:00pm Reynolds Center, Concourse Oklahoma Blood Institute Blood Drive Take the time to make a life-saving difference for someone in our community by donating blood.

Wednesday, October 21 at 2:00pm to 4:00pm Circle Cinema The Outrageous Sophie Tucker Join us for this documentary presentation featuring Machele Dill, TU’s musical theatre program director.

The rags to riches story of Sophie Tucker, an iconic superstar who ruled the worlds of vaudeville, Broadway, radio, television, and Hollywood throughout the 20th century. Using all of the “Last of the Red Hot Mama’s” 400-plus recently rediscovered personal scrapbooks, authors Susan and Lloyd Ecker take you on their seven-year journey retracing Tucker’s 60-year career in show business. Machele Dill will do a short performance in character as Sophie Tucker after the film.

This film is presented in cooperation with the Oklahoma Center for the Humanities at TU. The Collegian does not produce all event descriptions in the Community Calendar.

Contact News Editor Fraser Kastner at news@tucollegian.org with events.

Oct. 10 1:45 a.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security were dispatched to investigate loud music in University Square West apartments. Upon arrival, officers heard loud music coming from an apartment. Officers made contact with the resident and informed them that the noise level of the music was high. The resident was cooperative and turned down the volume of the music. A housing contact card was completed.

1:30 p.m.

While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security observed an individual behaving erratically on campus. Upon making contact officers determined the individual was not a TU affiliate. Officers gave them a trespass ban warning, and instructed them to leave campus.

2:25 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security were dispatched to investigate a possible hit and run accident. Upon arrival, a university student stated that while travelling on a city street within campus boundaries was struck by another vehicle. The student and other vehicle both stopped and when the student approached the other vehicle to exchange information, the vehicle fled the area. The student was unable to identify the license plate of the suspect vehicle and also was unable to get any vehicle description other than the color of the vehicle. The student was not injured and was encouraged to file a report with the Tulsa Police Department for insurance claim purposes.

5:15 p.m.

While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security observed an individual sitting in the grass at the corner of 11th St.

Oct. 12 10:00 a.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security were dispatched to investigate a possible stolen vehicle. Upon arrival, officers met with a staff member who stated their truck had been stolen while it was parked off campus.

The truck was last seen parked on south Evanston.

1:00 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security were dispatched to investigate a possible stolen vehicle. Upon arrival, officers met a student who stated their vehicle had been stolen from the Norman Village Lot. A search of the area yielded no results. The owner of the vehicle contacted the Tulsa Police Department and filed a stolen vehicle report.

3:00 p.m.

University of Tulsa Campus Security were dispatched to investigate a possible harassment at Mayo Village Apartments. Upon arrival, officers met with a student who reported being harassed by an individual not affiliated by the university. The student reported receiving harassing text messages from an acquaintance. Officers advised the student to file an additional report with Tulsa Police along with a protective order.

Oct. 13 3:45 p.m.

While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security officers were noticed a vehicle unlocked in Norman Village apartments. The officer also noticed the vehicles compartments were open and contents strewn about the interior. The owner was contacted and they confirmed that someone had broken into their vehicle. Nothing of value was reported stolen, but the aftermarket cd player was damaged by an attempted forced removal.

The Collegian does not produce or edit the Campus Crime Watch except for content and brevity.

19 October 2015

News

The Collegian: 5

4th Annual Food Truck Festival draws crowd

The Eat Street Tulsa festival filled the streets of the Blue Dome District in what the organizers called a “one-day feeding frenzy.” Admisison was free to all ages. Twentyfive food trucks, a kid zone and live, local music were present.

all photos by Chuyi Wen

Above: Energy management and finance major Shuman Zhang marvels over the variety of foods vendors offered last Saturday.

Right: A local vendor peeks out from her food truck, enjoying the Eat Street Tulsa festival.

Sammie Hottel Student Writer

ISIS hacker arrested in Malaysia Ardit Ferizi was detained in Malaysia on a provisional US arrest warrant. Ferizi, a twenty-year-old Kosovo citizen, allegedly stole personal information on US military officers and gave it to several ISIS members, including a propagandist. Ferizi supposedly obtained the information by hacking a US company’s computer system. He was able to access information on over 1000 US service members and federal employees. The data included personal photos and home addresses. The information was later posted online under a group called the “Islamic State Hacking Division.”

The Pentagon has been investigating the group since August, and Malaysian authorities began monitoring Ferizi several months ago after receiving information from the FBI. He will remain under the provisional warrant until US authorities complete an application for his extradition.

Okla-Homecoming kickoff features variety of food trucks

Turkish jet shoots down unidentified drone An unidentified drone flew into Turkish airspace on Friday near the Syrian border.

The Turkish military issued three warnings before shooting down the drone with fighter jets. A US official claimed that the drone was Russian, but Moscow staunchly denies any involvement. Col.-Gen. Andrei Kartapolov, a deputy chief of the Russian General Staff, said “I state with absolute responsibility that all our drones are either performing tasks or staying at the base.”

The drone crashed only three kilometers inside Turkey, and officials are trying to determine its origin from the wreckage. Currently, only Syria, Russia and the United States have drones operating in the region.

World Food Day in Milan raises awareness of hunger October 16 marked the 70th anniversary of the founding of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. In celebration, a World Food Day ceremony was held at the Milan Expo Center. This year’s theme was “Social Protection and Agriculture: Breaking the Cycle of Rural Poverty.” UN Secretary Ban Ki-Moon spoke at the event, saying “Hunger is more than a lack of food. It’s a terrible injustice, unfairness and inequality.”

Additionally, the Food and Agriculture Organization Director-General José Graziano da Silva spoke on ending chronic hunger, and a message from Pope Francis was read aloud. International Fund for Agricultural Development President Kanayo Nwanze noted the importance of the event in light of Europe’s current migrant crisis.

Chuyi Wen / Collegian

Students receive their bright yellow Homecoming T-shirts at the Okla-Homecoming kick-off.

Lottie Boobie Bash reaches women on campus

Typhoon Koppu soon to sweep over Philippines A slow-moving typhoon is expected to hit the Philippines throughout the week, bringing torrential rains, 105 mph winds and damaging floods. The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) stated that the storm would strengthen as it approached the islands. The damage will be strongest in coastal areas and the typhoon is expected to destroy trees and unstable structures. The city of Manilla will likely feel the storm later on with over a foot of rain.

The Philippines has a history of typhoons. Typhoon Haiyan struck in 2013, killing thousands, and Typhoon Hagupit hit many of the same areas in 2014, causing over 100 million dollars in damages.

Burkina Faso general charged with crimes against humanity General Gilbert Diendere, who seized power after a coup in Burkina Faso, has been charged with crimes against humanity. Twenty-three other involved individuals, including Diendere’s wife, face the same charges. The General had ten previous charges, including assassination and attacking national security. Prosecutor Col. Sita Sangare stated that Diendere would stand before a military tribunal. Diendere could face a death penalty if the tribunal determines that the assassinations were done with “cruelty.”

The coup was organized and executed by the presidential guard. Diendere seized power immediately after but stepped down a week later. The presidential guard was then disbanded, and Diendere was taken into custody. He is currently being held in a military prison.

Chuyi Wen / Collegian

The V word event was held Monday, October 12 at 6 pm in the Lottie Jane Lobby, and was part of the week long Boobie Bash hosted by Lottie Jane housing staff.

Commentary

A fitting project:

The Collegian: 6

S.A.V.E. and the Advocacy Alliance will be conducting the Clothesline Project during the next two weeks in order to raise awareness about sexual assault.

Kyle Crutchfield Student Writer

We’ve heard the statistics before. One out of every five women will experience some sort of sexual assault during her college years.

For men, one out of every 71 will experience sexual assault during his college years. In 90 percent of sexual assault cases, the victim personally knew the perpetrator.

When I hear these facts, they fall on partially deaf ears. It’s certainly not because I don’t care, nor is it because I lack sympathy

for the victims of sexual assault. I think these facts lose their potency for two reasons: they’re repeated representations of reality, and following from that, they’re becoming a part of reality.

I’ll explain what I mean with a simple analogy from my childhood. During middle school, I stayed indoors and played on my computer a lot, to the point where I had no virtually no friends other than my virtual friends. These virtual friends, of course, weren’t my friends in the truest sense of the word. They merely filled the gap of the real­-life friends I lacked.

Over time, though, I began to think of them as my real friends.

No longer virtual, they were whom I referred to when my mom asked who I was hanging out with. (She meant in the physical world, but I let our miscommunication slide.)

These virtual friends were substitutions for something that was real; but they were representations for so long that I mistook them for actually being real. They became a part of my own reality.

To tie up this analogy, we’ve seen these statistics on sexual assault for so long now that they’re

The Clothesline Project brings people back to the forefront of sexual assault issues

All photos by Kyle Crutchfield

S.A.V.E. member Sara Douglas mans a booth with information about the project and example t-shirts.

not representations for reality anymore, but have become pieces of reality. For many of us not affected by sexual assault, including myself, the numbers have, in a sense, become more real than the people they represent. They’ve taken the place of people, and numbers are less compelling than people.

How do we put people in the foreground again, and would that make a difference in the meaningfulness of sexual assault education?

I believe so, and the Clothesline Project here at TU is putting my belief to the test. They’re making people real again.

A national movement that started in Massachusetts in 1990, the Clothesline Project “is a visual display that bears witness to sex-

Judicial Council makes correct decision regarding Sanders club

After Senate denied TU for Bernie Sanders a charter, the club sued and subsequently lost, as it should have.

Brennen VanderVeen Student Writer

On September 29, TU for Bernie Sanders appeared before Senate in order to request a charter.

That request was denied. Thirteen senators voted against the club, while nine voted for it.

The most commonly cited reason for the denial was a belief that the club wouldn’t be viable beyond this election cycle. The Student Organization Committee (SOC) guidelines for chartering clubs mandate that a club “uphold a viable presence on campus.”

TU for Bernie Sanders took issue with this interpretation. For one thing, the viability requirement in the SOC guidelines does not define viability in terms of a club’s longevity. They’re actually

followed by a requirement that a club have at least ten members.

TU for Bernie Sanders well exceeds this number.

Secondly, the club is not planning on dissolving after this election cycle. They say they plan on being around but shifting their focus after Bernie Sanders either exits the race or wins the presidency.

Since they believed they did meet all the requirements of a student organization, they filed a lawsuit against Senate with SA’s Judicial Council.

Judicial Council sided with Senate against TU for Bernie Sanders.

Unfortunately, the proceedings and actual opinions of Judicial Council are confidential, so few know the actual reasons for the ruling, and those who do cannot share that information with The Collegian. However, reading the governing documents upon which the Judicial Council is supposed to rely, one can make a guess of why they ruled the way that they did.

The SOC guidelines prohibit the Senate from chartering an organization with less than ten members, unless an exemption is granted by SOC. The guidelines do not, however, require that Senate charter an organization. Even if an organization meets the club guidelines, the Senate doesn’t have to give a charter.

Therefore it is irrelevant wheth-

Courtesy Wiki Commons

Bernie Sanders, pictured above, will not be represented by an officially sanctioned TU organization.

19 October 2015

er TU for Bernie Sanders was correct in their interpretation of the viability requirement. Senate alone has the discretion of whether or not to grant a charter. Senate can deny a charter on the silliest of reasons, let alone when senators have concerns about a viability requirement. The Judicial Council’s job is to determine whether Senate broke a rule, not whether TU for Bernie Sanders was viable after all.

In going to the Judicial Council, TU for Bernie Sanders was asking for Senate to be forced to charter an organization against its will.

Had the Judicial Council done so,

Courtesy University of Tulsa SA

it would have been a usurpation of legislative power by the judiciary.

A decision in favor of TU for Bernie Sanders would have rendered Senate as nothing more than a rubber stamp body for any organization that meets the minimum requirements of the SOC guidelines.

Judiciaries are tasked with interpreting the laws and rules as they exist. One can argue that Senate should have chartered the club. I probably would have voted to charter them. However, given there is no rule requiring Senate to do so, and the Judicial Council really only had one proper way to decide the case.

If one dislikes the outcome of the Senate vote, the proper responses are either to elect senators more favorable to the group or to have the governing documents amended so that the group would be chartered. Those are the processes open to a representative government. Otherwise, we are left with a government dominated by an unelected council that operates in secrecy.

ual violence.”

Taken straight from their website, the Clothesline Project upholds four central purposes: “To bear witness to the survivors as well as the victims of violence; To help with the healing process for people who have lost a loved one or are survivors of this violence; To educate, document, and raise society’s awareness of the extent of the problem of sexual violence; To provide a national network of support, encouragement, and information for other communities starting their own Clothesline Projects.”

Concerning the actions of the project, “During the public display, a clothesline is hung with shirts. Each shirt is decorated to represent a particular person’s experience, by the survivors themselves or by someone who cares about them.”

Here at TU, the Clothesline Project is currently being conducted by the Advocacy Alliance, which is “a multi­departmental effort at TU to end violence on our campus.”

The Advocacy Alliance includes the Dean of Student’s Office, TITAN, Alexander Health Center, TU Counseling and Psychological Services, Greek Life, TU Athletics, Campus Security and others.

One of these “others” includes S.A.V.E., or Student Alliance for Violence Education. S.A.V.E., recently founded as part of the Psychology department’s Psychology of Trauma Action Project, upholds a purpose similar to that of the Clothesline Project: to raise awareness on the emotional, physical and sexual abuse surrounding sexual assault.

The current president of S.A.V.E., senior Emily Farrar, said “We’re the undergraduate version of the Advocacy Alliance. The AA is run primarily by graduate students and faculty, whereas S.A.V.E. is run by undergraduates and is for undergraduates here. But we work with the AA to help with the Clothesline Project.”

As far as who can make T­shirts, Farrar said, “Anyone affected by sexual violence or who knows someone affected by sexual violence who wants to share their story can make a T­shirt. It’s really just a way to empower these victims and to shed the stigma surrounding sexual assault.”

She’s referring to the unfortunate belief held by many people that somehow “the victims asked for it,” which is not and will never be true.

“Sexual assault is becoming a much bigger issue now,” Farrar said. “With media covering these assaults more frequently, and with more people speaking out about their experiences, this project is just a way to continue spreading this awareness.”

When I asked about her involvement, her answer was simple: “This is my way of preventing the isolation victims of sexual assault endure after the incident. I had friends who struggled for so long coming to terms with the trauma they faced. I don’t want anyone struggling alone.”

As far as the T­shirt designs go, Farrar said, “Really anything can go on them. It’s a chance for those affected to personally come to terms with their assault in whatever form that takes.”

It should be noted that the names of perpetrators cannot go on the shirts, nor can names of the victims if a friend or family member is making the shirt.

S.A.V.E. and the rest of the Advocacy Alliance hosted a T-­shirt decorating event on Wednesday, October 14. The shirts will be hung up on Dietler Commons and in McFarlin this Wednesday and Thursday, and later on Friday on the New U at the Homecoming Tailgate event.

“We’re currently hosting bystander intervention training for undergraduates, graduates, and faculty,” Farrar said. “We have a four­hour course and a ninety­minute course that will teach students and faculty to recognize behavior that may lead to sexual assault. It teaches students how to intervene specifically and effectively in different situations, something that Haven doesn’t do. I encourage all students to try it out.”

Her comment about Haven reflects a deeper resentment held not just by her, but by essentially every single person who completes the tutorial. This is a problem, and it’s a problem that stems directly from the cause I mentioned earlier. Haven is ineffective because it puts people in the background, which makes for a very meaningless and boring tutorial.

The Clothesline Project, I hope, will be the antithesis of Haven; it will be real, with real people and real experiences expressed on real, tangible T-­shirts. It’s not a virtual reality, just like sexual assault is not. Like its T-­shirts, the project is fitting, and I hope it sends a message more meaningful than any online tutorial ever can.

An example of the decorated shirts that S.A.V.E. will display.

Commentary

19 October 2015

The Collegian: 7

Trump unfit for office Donald Trump’s candidacy offers virtually nothing positive for either the country or the GOP. Brennen VanderVeen Student Writer Perhaps no candidate this election cycle has received more media attention than Donald Trump.

Often the coverage has been negative, and rightly so.

This criticism usually takes one of two forms. First, there are his policies. His policies are a part of no coherent ideology and are often at odds with the facts. Second, there is his character. He is thinskinned and lashes out at criticism with ad hominem attacks and meanness. Both make him unfit for office.

The first fully detailed policy plan that Trump’s campaign re-

leased involved immigration.

Much of it is objectionable. For instance, he states that the Mexican government is essentially exporting people to the United States. Apparently it isn’t better job prospects or security that draw immigrants to make the journey themselves.

Either way, one of his solutions to illegal immigration is particularly absurd. He wants to build a wall on the southern border and make Mexico pay for it. Regardless of whether or not a wall is desirable, the contention that the United States could force Mexico to do anything, let alone spend huge sums of money on a wall in another country, is laughable.

The methods he says he will use are basically all extortion. He says he’ll “impound all remittance payments derived from illegal wages.” He provides no detail about how he’ll do so. However, such a policy would necessarily require a huge violation of civil liberties in order to determine the source of any money sent and to track where the money is being sent.

Another one of his proposed methods of extorting Mexico is the imposition of tariffs. Apparently NAFTA and free trade mean

nothing to him.

Trump is no better on foreign policy. Recently, Putin has been getting involved directly in Syria.

Supposedly, the reason is to fight ISIS. However, there have been reports of attacks against the main Syrian opposition.

Syria’s president, Bashar alAssad, has been friendly with Putin. Under Assad’s leadership, Syria would basically be a Russian puppet. During the Cold War, the United States managed to be the dominant power in the Middle East, leading to the exclusion of the Soviet Union. In Syria, that is changing.

What has been Trump’s response? For the most part, he’s been saying that it’s a good thing Putin is hitting ISIS. He doesn’t want America to be the world’s policeman. However, the issue here isn’t America being the world’s policeman. It isn’t even whether or not we should intervene.

While I think more intervention is necessary, I can understand why someone would be hesitant to get more involved. We can argue about what the best course of action in the Middle East is, but Trump is essentially saying he’s okay with Russia becoming the

Is Trump not such a bad idea?

Donald Trump could maybe, just possibly, stand the tiniest of a chance at “making America great again.”

Kayleigh Thesenvitz Variety Editor I can guess what you are probably thinking as you glance over this article. What kind of idiotic person has the Collegian hired that could possibly have anything positive to say about Donald Trump? Well before you get started on your letter to the editor about why they should fire my dumb ass, please hear me out. Afterwards feel free to turn to the staffbox on page 3, where you will find the instructions on how to submit said letter.

I will not attempt to justify or

dismiss the blatantly offensive remarks that Trump has made, but I will say there are some positive aspects to Trump’s campaign. While these things don’t make up for Trump’s abrasive nature, they do make his candidacy important.

According to his website, Trump’s tax plan looks like this: “If you are single and earn less than 25,000 dollars [a year], or married and jointly earn less than 50,000 dollars [a year], you will not owe any income tax.

That removes nearly 75 million households – over 50 percent – from the income tax rolls.”

So if your income is less than or equal to 12 dollars an hour and you work 40 hours a week, you don’t have to pay taxes on the money you earn, which will save you nearly 1,000 dollars every year. This is incredibly beneficial for those people who live in poverty while working a minimum wage job.

For a candidate whose intent is to fix the US economy, it is surprising that he would reserve that responsibility for only those that could afford it. In addition, his tax plan says that rich citizens will have to pay a larger

percentage of their income in taxes than the middle class.

This is a rather progressive tax policy compared to many that originate from conservative politicians. Trump has also taken a more progressive stance on fixing the mental health system in response to gun violence.

“We need to expand treatment programs, because most people with mental health problems aren’t violent, they just need help. But for those who are violent, a danger to themselves or others, we need to get them off the street before they can terrorize our communities,” Trump’s website says.

These progressive aspects of Trump’s campaign are few and far between, but their presence at all is significant for reminding the people that Trump isn’t completely out of touch with America.

Although most of Trump’s campaign is painful to listen to, there are still aspects of his message that should be heard out, because they really could be used to “make America great again.”

Courtesy Gage Skidmore

Presidential candidate Donald Trump has garnered much media attention recently.

new dominant power in the region.

He doesn’t say so because it’s the least bad option; he has been hesitant to describe it as a negative occurrence at all.

These are just two of his policies. This is to give no elaboration of his enthusiasm for using eminent domain to take the houses of poor people in order to give them to wealthy developers, of his declaration that he doesn’t know the difference between Hamas and Hezbollah or of his belief that vaccines might be linked to autism.

There simply isn’t enough space in The Collegian’s commentary section to elaborate much further on his reckless policies.

Policies aside, Trump has made numerous headlines on the personal attacks he regularly launches at those with whom he disagrees.

As with his policies, his attacks are too numerous to make an exhaustive list here, but a few are particularly notable.

After John McCain criticized people who went to a Trump rally, Trump at first denied that McCain is a war hero and then said, “I like people who weren’t captured.” For those who might not be aware, John McCain was a POW for five and a half years during the Vietnam war.

During this time he was tortured. His captors offered him early release when his father became the commander in Vietnam, but McCain refused since prisoners captured before him wouldn’t be released.

After Fox News’s Megyn Kelly asked Trump a question about his sexist remarks towards women, he complained that she “had blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever.” He later tried to say he was talking

about her nose. That defense is not believable. The word “nose” is not hard to remember, and he has too much of a history of making sexist remarks.

He has tried to deny his sexism with repeated claims that he loves women. Also, whenever a women’s health issue comes up, he says we “have to take care of women.” How patronizing. Women are not wards of the state. They have every ability to take care of themselves.

Perhaps the government should do more with women’s health initiatives, but the proposition that the government needs to “take care of” an entire sex and more than half of the country is more than a little off-putting.

Just last Friday, Bloomberg released an interview in which Trump implied that George W. Bush’s supposed negligence is the reason for the September 11 terrorist attacks. He didn’t back down when the moderator challenged him.

I am of the opinion that character is the most important quality in a candidate. Others maintain that a politician can still do a good job even if he is personally reprehensible. With Trump, that debate is irrelevant. Both his policies and his character make him unfit for office.

Trump is anger and vulgarity personified. I understand that many people are angry with the politicians currently in office, but the solution is not to elect a man whose policies, if enacted, would damage the country and whose behavior would make Washington even more sensationalized, divided and dysfunctional. Support for Trump is a vote to destroy, not to restore.

“Nightmare” terrifies for the wrong reasons

Guts Church’s haunted house is an example of religious conversion that uses base exploitation and fear-mongering.

Justin Guglielmetti Student Writer I’ll get straight to the point here since the attraction itself certainly didn’t pull any punches: Nightmare, the popular Halloween walk-through attraction hosted by Guts Church, is about as sickening and gratuitous a product as civilized humanity is capable of producing. And no, I do not say that lightly. Nor am I positive that the people in charge of this train wreck can really be properly categorized as civilized.

“Haunted house entertainment” is not for the faint of heart and I am well aware that excessive gore is just something that goes with the territory. Truth be told, I am usually a big fan of these types of ac-

tivities, since I am the type of person that gets a thrill out of being scared. As such, it wasn’t the level of violence or horror in Nightmare that bothered me, it was its theme and subject matter.

The good people of Guts Church seem to prescribe to a fire-andbrimstone version of Christianity, if Nightmare was any indication.

Their tagline for the event is “it’ll scare the hell out of you,” and it is described as a “graphic walkthrough presentation of real-life, modern-day struggles challenging our world today.”

In other words, it is a tour through a variety of events that will send a person to hell, followed by an actual descent into hell to observe the myriad ways in which these souls will be tortured for eternity.

As a believer in the Constitution and this country’s founding principles, I stand strongly behind the idea of religious freedom. Regardless of whether or not I share the same beliefs and values as the people of Guts Church, I respect their right to hold them. What I will not abide is the manner in which they choose to spread their gospel.

Nightmare is nothing more than base exploitation and fearmongering, meant to frighten and brainwash people into following the specific doctrine of this church. Evangelism and religious

conversion should be about helping people along a natural path into the faith, accepting Christ into their lives on their own terms, not making them believe that they will suffer for eternity for not believing in God. What’s more, Guts Church’s targeted demographic for this event is teens and preteens (the most frequent patrons of Halloween attractions), meaning that the minds they hope to prey on with their disgusting rhetoric are still at a very impressionable age.

I even saw several children who were clearly much younger than 12—the supposed age of admission—accompanied by parents who did nothing to shelter their children’s eyes from such pleasantries as a coat-hanger abortion, violent rape in a bathroom stall, and murder-suicide by a bullied high school student.

This wasn’t pulp horror, it was an exploitative and exaggerated depiction of terrible real-world tragedies, and not something that a child should ever have to endure.

A motley assortment of characters from “Nightmare.”

As a not-particularly-squeamish 18-year-old, even I was sick to my stomach.

Perhaps this isn’t the place for it, but I would urge for a boycott of Nightmare amongst any TU students or their family members who want to go. There can be no justification for this level of distortion of the message of Christianity, this perversion of religion so as to scare people into line. And to any of you who help put on this spectacle, if you are reading this: shame on you.

Courtesy Guts Church

The Collegian: 8

Commentary

19 October 2015

Real ID Act inconveniences US residents

Although the Real ID Act won’t negatively harm Oklahomans for now, it has the potential to be detrimental in the future as it will be a deterrent to travel and will limit citizens’ access to some governmental properties.

Sara Douglas Student Writer

In 2005 the Real ID Act came into existence and has been taking shape slowly since then. Its enforcement is promised to go up beginning in January 2016, so knowing what the act entails and requires of citizens is important. Chiefly, for a US citizen to fly domestically, enter military bases or even get into some capitol buildings in the United States, a state-issued ID won’t be enough.

Essentially, this act mandates that identification used to board federal aircrafts and to enter government/grounds must comply with federal security standards that are more stringent than state standards currently in place throughout much of the US. States whose forms of ID do not fall under federally accepted guidelines will force their citizens to seek out other, less easily attainable identifying documents.

This stubbornness to reform state-issued ID formats stems primarily from a desire to retain states’ rights and not bend to federal

pressure. One would think that under the circumstances, most voters should prefer readier access to acceptable identification than looser laws that ultimately prevent them from interacting with authorities on a federal scale.

But admittedly, the most desirable option would be to not have these restrictive federal mandates in place at all. Or at the very least, state lawmakers should agree to comply with the new regulations, rather than reject the federal authority in such a manner that their citizens are unfairly burdened.

Besides Oklahoma, approximately 30 additional states and US territories (that’s the majority—simple statistics, right?) exclusively issue non-compliant driver’s licenses and non-driver’s identification cards.

These documents are not considered adequately secure under the federal law as they do not explicitly indicate that the holder of that card has United States citizenship.

In order to obtain one’s initial driving license, however, one is required to show proof of citizenship. Although that proof is not required when renewing the license, it is highly unlikely (read: impossible except under rare circumstances) that one’s citizenship would have changed. Birth certificates and Social Security cards typically remain constant over time.

Therefore citizenship is implied in owning state-issued IDs. One must have been a citizen in order to initially obtain it, even if the ID card does not explicitly mention US citizenship. That’s not good enough for the federal government’s Real ID act though, so what does that mean for citizens of noncompliant states?

It means that we will have to expend the time, energy, effort and (most importantly for many of us) money to obtain “real” IDs. Further, we will have to exert more effort on our parts in each of these areas to maintain updated and valid state identification, which

will still be required for state-level activities.

The most popular option will probably be to get a passport, which can cost anywhere from one to several hundred dollars, depending on how quickly one wants it to be processed, or how efficiently the federal government is operating at the time. This is a direct cost to taxpayers who may otherwise not invest in a passport unless pursuing international travel. Nearly half of adult Americans do have passports, but a problem for half of our nation is a problem for the entire nation.

A few alternatives to passports exist as allowable ID, but they are considerably more limited: passport cards are less expensive but only permit travel within the Americas; military ID cards are accepted but only available to military personnel and families.

There are enhanced drivers licenses that include the mandated “proof of citizenship,” but 15 states (including Oklahoma) prohibit that information from being on their state licenses. There’s also the Department of Homeland Security’s Trusted Traveler pro-

gram, but that is a hassle to join if you’re an infrequent traveler.

Again, the Real ID Act is only complied with in fewer than 20 of our states and territories. It can fairly be said to be a massive, unnecessary upheaval of our security procedures, primarily sparked by unfounded fears of post-9/11 terrorism.

If you’re planning on traveling within or outside of the United States, visiting any military bases, entering government buildings, or even driving cross-country at any point after January 1, 2016, plan on having some form of acceptable government ID on hand. That will probably mean dropping a few hundred dollars on acquiring a passport to prove that your country of birth hasn’t changed since the last time you renewed your driver’s license, but it’s what your country wants from you.

Interested in viewing more information about the Real ID Act or seeing which specific states and territories are non-compliant? Visit: www.dhs.gov/real-id-enforcement-brief.

Graphic by Caitlyn San Pablo

The Collegian’s rendering of a “real” ID, exemplified by our very own Captain Cane.

First Democratic debate leaves much unresolved Next Cooper confronted Sanders about a poll that suggested the American people would be uncomfortable with having a socialist in office.

Sanders responded, “democratic socialism is about…saying that it is immoral and wrong that the top one-tenth of one percent in this country…own almost as much wealth as the bottom 90 percent.”

After a small debate on the pros and cons of capitalism that took place between Clinton and Sanders, Cooper then turned the attention to Chafee, asking about his political history as a Republican, a Democrat and an Independent.

Chafee had an odd response, referring to himself as a block of granite. “I have not changed on the issues. And I open my record to scrutiny,” he said.

Cooper asked O’Malley about the instability in Baltimore during his term of office.

O’Malley had a lot to say about the tragedies that occurred in Baltimore, but he was very confident in how the city made progress, saying, “It wasn’t easy on any day, but we saved lives and we gave our city a better future.”

e-mail scandal, which she did her best to defend, but the problem was brought to rest when Cooper extended the question to Sanders.

Sanders said, “The American people are sick and tired of hearing about your [Clinton’s] damn emails,” to which he received loud applause, plus a heart-felt, “Thank you” and hearty handshake from Clinton.

In the end, the closing statements of each candidate were just as telling as their opening remarks.

Chafee talked about the challenges that faced the next president and reiterated that his many years of experience were not marked by scandal.

Webb concluded with his history of confronting complex issues that faced the nation and finding bipartisan solutions for those problems.

O’Malley gave what was easily the most memorable closing statement of the night saying, “What you heard tonight … was a very, very different debate than from the sort of debate you heard from the two presidential Republican debates.”

“I truly believe that we are standing on

Sanders supporters think he knocked it out of the park. The only person who actually gained any traction from the debate was O’Malley, who seems to have solidified himself as the possible VP for whichever of the top two candidates wins the primary.

But the importance of the debate wasn’t to see which candidate can perform the best.

Debates are important because in the aftermath you can make judgements based on how the people at large reacted to what they The first Democratic debate saw on the stage. featured notable performances but The media has blown up over Clinton and failed to highlight the lesser-known Sanders, but it has mostly ignored the other candidates or establish a promising three contenders, which is an incredibly disnominee. heartening sign of the times. Webb was easily the most middle-ground candidate whose Kayleigh Thesenvitz history has shown the greatest capacity for bipartisan compromise, yet he failed to presVariety Editor ent that as a positive quality, and in fact let The first Democratic debate, which you Cooper attack him for that quality, and so he may not have seen if you were studying for failed to resonate with the viewers. midterms last week, had a great viewer turnFor whatever the larger reason at play, out but consequently has left the DemocratCooper’s questions seemed to target any ic party in a bit of a shambles, despite the middle-ground leanings as suspect to scrutiwell publicised closing statement of Martin ny, which in turn led the audience to believe, O’Malley. if they didn’t already, that not being aggresBut I’m getting ahead of myself. sively committed to all liberal The candidates who participated in ideas was a flaw. last Tuesday’s debate were former It was terribly ironic in that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, sense, because throughout the US Senator for Vermont Bernie debate several statements were Sanders, Rhode Island Governor made about the Republican inLincoln Chafee, Maryland Goverability to compromise, and yet nor Martin O’Malley and US Senathe idea of compromising on tor for Virginia Jim Webb. any liberal ideas was criminalEach of the candidates made ized. some pretty bold statements and O’Malley’s closing stateproposed some great ideas. ment received a lot of attention In their opening statements, the because of the way he put the candidates each gave the one thing burden on the republican party about themselves that was meant to to quit squabbling and actually distinguish them from the others. talk about important issues.

Chafee pointed out that he had no However, as much as I loved scandals in his 30 years of service, his statement when he first which was an obvious dig at Clinmade it, I later started to resent ton. Webb alluded to his history of the meaning behind it. working across the political aisle.

You don’t encourage democO’Malley was the first to compliracy by attacking the group of ment the current President. Sanders people who don’t agree with began by attacking Citizens United you. This sadly is something and Super PAC’s, and Clinton startGraphic by Elias Brinkman we see a lot during every eleced off with a bullet point list of her The five Democratic candidates featured in last Tuesday’s debate. tion, but it reflects poorly on policies.

Webb was finally asked about a contro- the threshold of a new era of American the Democratic party as a whole that we Anderson Cooper, the debate moderator, versial op/ed he had written about affirma- progress. Unless you’ve become discour- can’t live up to the standard of respect for started off by asking Clinton about the vot- tive action. Webb defended his article saying aged about our gridlock in Congress, talk to others that we blame Republicans for not ers’ concerns of her changing views on cer- the goal was not one of reverse racism, but our young people under 30, because you’ll having. tain topics. of suggesting that affirmative action should never find among them people that want to So if you didn’t watch the first DemoThe highlight of Clinton’s response was, be based on socioeconomic need, not race. bash immigrants or people that want to deny cratic debate, let me tell you what happened.

“Over the course of my entire life, I have alCooper later asked each of the candi- rights to gay couples,” O’Malley said.

The Democratic Party hasn’t decided on a ways fought for the same values and princi- dates what they felt was the greatest threat Sanders concluded with a list of his goals, nominee, and in the meantime we proved ples, but, like most human beings—includ- to national security. Chafee claimed it was and an unabashed plug for donations to Ber- ourselves to be a party of hypocrites. ing those who run for office—I do absorb the chaos in the Middle East, O’Malley nieSanders.com. new information.” pointed to nuclear Iran, ISIS and climate Clinton also ended the night by comparNot featured in the debate: Lawrence Cooper then asked if Clinton was moder- change, Clinton stated that nuclear weapons ing the Democratic debate to the Republican Lessig, Jeff Boss, Harry Braun, Robby Wells ate or progressive. were the largest threat, Sanders also chose one and declaring her hope in the future of and Willie Wilson, all of whom have offiClinton responded, “I’m a progressive. climate change and Webb claimed that our America. cially announced and registered themselves But I’m a progressive who likes to get greatest threat is China.

There was no clear winner of the debate. as democratic candidates, but who have not things done.”

Cooper then asked Clinton about her Clinton supporters say Clinton won while been featured in many or any national polls.

19 October 2015

Commentary

Coming out day is dangerous to LGBTQ youth

While the sentiment behind National Coming Out Day is a nice one, allies should realize that it pressures LGBTQ youth and puts them in danger.

Tara Grigson Student Writer I have known that I am gay since I was twelve years old. I realized that my best friend was talking about Tyler the exact same way I was thinking about Allison, and it was clear to me that I needed to keep that under wraps.

As a twelve-year-old, I attended a Catholic school. In fact, I literally only attended Catholic schools until my freshman year at TU. I did not come out at all until I started at TU. And I did not come out in a broader context until this past summer, before my junior year.

Twelve-year-old me did not need a “coming out day.” Twelve-year-old me needed the guarantee of unconditional love and support, and to be told that God, even the Catholic God, could and did love her, in spite of what so many of her teachers and religious leaders told her was a sin.

Enough of the third person and personal narrative: coming out day is a really nice idea that in reality has the potential to be incredibly dangerous.

The idea of a coming out day, that we are encouraging LGBT folks, particularly youth, to come out and be who they are, is nice. It is a nice idea. How nice it is that the only problem LGBT youth face is that they

just do not feel like coming out. Thank God it is not more complicated than that.

Oh wait. It’s really complicated, my bad.

As it turns out, the idea of “coming out day”—where LGBT folks can just get over themselves and disclose their identities—is really, really screwed up.

LGBT folks who are deciding whether or not to come out have to consider a number of things: namely, “Will I be physically, financially and emotionally safe if I come out?”

The reason LGBT folks are closeted is not that they are lazy, it is that they are actively defending themselves from hate and discrimination.

LGBT people should never be pressured to come out. Ever. You may think you understand their situation, but you do not. You do not understand the unique risks and experiences that person is considering.

Do not encourage someone to come out.

Do not tell them they are being dramatic, or that it will all get better if they just leave their closet. Because that is frequently not true. LGBT people deserve the total autonomy to make their own decisions regarding their identities and whether or not to disclose them.

The idea of a coming out day puts the onus on LGBT folks. It says, “You’re problems are created by you because you are choosing not to come out.” It says, “The threats you perceive are imaginary.” It says, “I do not respect your experiences or fears or values.”

Instead of celebrating “Coming out day,” instead of pressuring queer people to out themselves, it would be much more supportive to say, “I love you.” Tell LGBT people that you believe that the discrimination they experience is wrong. Your support can literally save lives.

Announce it on social media. Let everyone know that you believe that discrimination is abhorrent, and that every person, regardless of gender identity and sexual orientation has the right to safety and love.

LGBT people do not owe you their stories or disclosure. Let us know that you stand with us and support us and will fight for us. Let us decide when and what to tell you without pressure, even if you believe that pressure is good or helpful.

Coming out can be a matter of life and death.

Allies, no matter how wellintentioned, need to remember to treat it as such.

A logo for National Coming Out Day, designed by Keith Haring.

Courtesy Wiki Commons

Breast cancer awareness products are misleading

Breast cancer awareness is misused by corporations with negative intentions and misrepresented by slogans which perpetuate patriarchal stereotypes.

Giselle Willis Managing Editor October is breast cancer awareness month in the United States. The idea behind “raising awareness” is to motivate people to donate money to breast cancer research.

People and organizations put on pink in an effort to combat the disease that is expected to take 40,290 lives this year.

Women are more likely to get breast cancer than any other type of cancer, and 85 percent of breast cancer development occurs in women who don’t have a family history

of breast cancer.

Breast cancer sucks and it makes sense that we want to get rid of it. However, there are several efforts to raise awareness of the disease, especially during October, that are hiding negative intentions.

To begin with, the pink ribbon symbol is not regulated, so any company can slap it onto its products regardless of whether it’s actually giving money to breast cancer research.

Even if a company is giving money to breast cancer groups, it’s impossible to tell which group and how much money just from the pink ribbon on the box.

This is problematic when the fine print says that the company has already set a limit for how much money it will give; the consumer doesn’t know whether the cap has already been met and may not actually be contributing to the donations with their purchase.

Meanwhile, Breast Cancer Action, an advocacy organization put together by a group of women with breast cancer in San Francisco, coined the term “pinkwashing” to describe companies that market pink ribbon products which are linked to the disease itself.

There are a number of toxins that go into brand name hair and skin products that correlate with the incidence of breast cancer.

The Collegian: 9

It’s about time to reconsider

Columbus day Columbus Day is an antiquated holiday which commemorates very little of positive value, and therefore we should reconsider celebrating it each year.

Justin Guglielmetti Student Writer Tradition is overrated. There is absolutely nothing inherently honorable or appropriate about sticking to customs from a time gone by, particularly when those customs violate basic tenets of human decency that we hold today.

In fact, one might say that it is our responsibility as a modern and enlightened society to go back and correct traditions that commemorate past mistakes. I’m sure few would disagree with that last sentiment on principle, yet as a country we tend to ignore these issues even when they stare us in the face.

Note that there still exists a federal holiday honoring a known genocidal explorer for an achievement that he himself was unaware of. I speak, of course, of Columbus Day. As most TU students are undoubtedly aware, last Monday, October 12, was Columbus Day. While we still had classes, federal buildings around the country (as well as courts, banks and some businesses) closed their doors.

One local Oklahoma institution, however, was involved in headlines for refusing to acknowledge Columbus Day at all.

The Student Government Association at the University of Oklahoma signed into effect a resolution recognizing October 12 as Indigenous People’s Day instead.

Political correctness is often a doubleedged sword, especially as it is used more and more frequently to stunt free speech.

Taking provisions to avoid offending every possible demographic usually ends up producing a bizarre fragment of the truth. With that said, I don’t think OU was out of line at all in its decision, and it is about time that the rest of the country began following suit.

What is it that’s really even being honored on Columbus Day? For those who might not be familiar with the story of the famous explorer beyond the fact that “in 1492, he sailed the ocean blue,” Christopher Columbus was an Italian navigator who undertook an attempted trade voyage to the East Indies by way of an Atlantic passage under the patronage of Queen Isabella of Spain.

No connection existed between Columbus and the British Empire, the founder of the colonies that would actually grow to form the basis of the United States. Furthermore, Columbus was not some visionary who set out to prove, as is commonly and fallaciously believed, that the Earth was

For example, Avon, a popular makeup brand that hosts walks and sells pink products labeled as part of a “breast cancer crusade,” has several products classified by the Environmental Working Group as “high hazard” due to “hormone disruptors, neurotoxins and possible carcinogens.”

The terminology surrounding breast cancer can also be awkward. Variations of the slogan “save the tatas” are common, and while they turn heads, they prioritize breasts over, I don’t know, the rest of the woman.

I’m not sure anyone actually wants to fight breast cancer expressly to keep women from losing their breasts, but the language of “saving” breasts perpetuates our culture’s perverted ideology about women’s body parts.

Words like “boobies” and “tatas” also are only associated with women. About one percent of breast cancer cases develop in men, and while that doesn’t seem to be a lot, survival rates are lower for men because they are less aware of self-detection methods and of the fact that they can even get it.

If you want to fight breast cancer, do as Breast Cancer Action suggests and “think before you pink.”

Before you buy something with a pink ribbon on it, ask yourself whether you absolutely know where your money is going.

Ask yourself what the language on your

round, so his voyages can’t be boiled down to some great scientific achievement for all mankind.

He didn’t even know he had found a new continent, believing until his dying day that he had landed off the coast of Asia. This then begs the question of what special significance Columbus’ specific journey contained, if any, especially since he was far from the first person to set foot in the socalled “New World.”

By this, I refer not to the Norse explorers like Leif Erickson who sailed to North America some 400 years before Columbus (a fun bit of trivia that misses the point of Columbus’s triviality to US history entirely) but to the millions of indigenous people that already inhabited the Americas when Columbus and his successors arrived.

Most of the arguments against the celebration of Columbus Day are hinged on the brutality these Native Americans were subjected to at the hands of European explorers. Treated little better than animals, the natives were enslaved and put to work under grossly inhospitable conditions, and the

Courtesy Wiki Commons

The influence of Christopher Columbus, pictured above, may not be worth celebrating after all.

preservation of their lives was given little to no regard.

Certain nations, including the Arawak people of Hispaniola, faced total genocide, perhaps not from the orders of Columbus himself, but certainly as a result of the oppressive policies instituted by the colonies that were established on Columbus’s expeditions. He might have been the first to bring European culture across the Atlantic, but in doing so he destroyed countless indigenous others.

Lest anyone accuse me of being too quick to judge the past using modern standards of morality, I should be clear that I don’t hold Columbus to be some paradigm of evil along with men like Hitler or Stalin. He was, above all, a product of his time.

But now that 500 years have passed, perhaps it is time to consider that commemorating certain things from that time might be in bad taste.

wristband is promoting. Research different organizations devoted to breast cancer research and advocacy, like Breast Cancer Action, and consider making direct donations and calling out hypocritical companies on social media.

Graphic by Caitlyn San Pablo

Some companies that “advocate” for breast cancer awareness sell products which actually contain carcinogens.

Variety

the Collegian: 10

19 October 2015

Go Set A Watchman: disillusioning in more ways than one Mockingbird’s sequel is controversial, contradictory and tedious.

Trent Gibbons Student Writer

To Kill A Mockingbird needs hardly any introduction, firmly holding its place amongst American literary classics nearly six decades after its timely release.

In the midst of the civil rights movement, author Harper Lee addressed racial tension through the eyes of the stubborn, inquisitive Scout Finch.

Now, with the release of Go Set

able effort to defend in a court of law Tom Robinson, a young black man falsely accused of raping a white girl.

His efforts were noble, his motives virtuous; as a character Atticus was all these things and yet believable at the same time.

I mention this to help explain the shock many readers—myself included—felt after discovering the main conflict of Watchman to be centered around Scout’s following Atticus to a Klan meeting, in which he denounces the notion that blacks should be allowed to freely integrate into society.

“Do you want them in our world?” he asks.

While Scout is plunged into an

When Harper Lee brought Watchman in to her editor, they (wisely) suggested she shift her focus to the events that had transpired twenty years earlier, events which she had previously only detailed through flashbacks.

Thus Mockingbird was written and received near-universal praise.

Which raises the question: why was Watchman ever published?

The characters are less developed and the message is less timely.

Even without the comparison to the first book, Watchman is paced poorly.

I often had to force myself through back-to-back chapters of trivial character interaction, filled with stunted, inhuman dialogue.

has been published by her attorney. ‘Suspicious’ isn’t a strong enough word to describe these circumstances.

Whatever the case, Go Set A Watchman exists in all its mediocrity.

In its conclusion Scout accepts her father once more, finally perceiving him as the flawed human being he always was.

Readers, I think, will proba-

bly be forced to do much the same with regards to author Harper Lee. If anything very fortunate resulted from this book’s widespread release, it’s a message of hope to aspiring writers everywhere.

If you ever write anything as tedious or bland as Watchman, don’t fret. Enough editing, and you may write the next great American classic.

“Even without the comparison to the first book, Watchman is paced poorly” A Watchman, the story resumes two decades later, with a multitude of characters new and old.

Most notable amongst the returning cast are the aforementioned protagonist and her father, widely regarded by audiences literary and cinematic alike as a masterfully developed character, immortalized in the film adaptation in a devoted portrayal by Gregory Peck.

Atticus embodied many of the values that had made Mockingbird so memorable, making a consider-

identity crisis, the majority of her values being derived from her father, it’s undoubtable many Mockingbird fans feel the same.

And so a popular response to the novel has been that of disgust and vilification.

However, I find myself afflicted with a much more disfavorable response: boredom.

Go Set A Watchman was never actually intended to be the sequel of To Kill A Mockingbird, it was essentially that book’s first draft.

The Hourglass Project:

A fun and humorous look at deep subject matter

Courtesy University of Tulsa

It’s no surprise that controversy surrounds the publication of this novel.

Harper Lee, who had answered quite consistently in interviews that she would never write nor release another novel, has seen a steady decline in her mental health as of late.

Her recently deceased sister, Alice, is rumored by a close friend to have been her sister’s “gatekeeper, advisor, protector.”

Now, in her absence, the book

Lee Blessing’s “Hourglass Project,” is enjoyable, if not original.

Joshua Ridgway Student Writer I was a tad uneasy when I went to go see “The Hourglass Project,” not quite sure what to expect.

However I was pleasantly surprised at how much I wound up enjoying it.

While it’s not the next “Phantom,” there are numerous aspects to the play that are appealing, and it even surprised me with how it ended.

The play opens on an island in the middle of a lake, with six people waking up from a intense experimental medical procedure, which rendered the formerly dying 80 year olds into robust 20 year olds.

Courtesy Wiki Commons

Go Set A Watchman disgusts and bores fans of To Kill a Mockingbird.

The play follows the characters as they come to terms with their reduced age, all with a playful sense of humor.

It was a very intriguing set up, even if the basic concept has been done before.

However, The Hourglass Project does get the distinction of focusing more on the psychological ramifications of becoming younger, rather than the physical effects like Doctor Who’s The Lazarus Experiment.

Acting-wise the show was perfectly fine.

Every person was believable in their roles and no one broke character.

As far as the characters themselves go, the Brightfields were the most annoying.

Yes, they are supposed to be unlikeable. No they are not supposed to get on one’s nerves every second they’re on stage.

The Brightfields were overly happy and by far the loudest characters in terms of volume. It was a matter of preference, but less is sometimes more.

The set was well designed and very versatile.

Kudos to whoever made the decision to alter the level light depending on the time of day the scene takes place.

Sound effects were sparse.

The only real one would be the gunshots from the Brightfields introduction, but they were well done.

On the whole, this is a very enjoyable play.

The production values were excellent, the casting top notch, and concept intriguing.

While it does lose points for being a tad aggravating at times, it more than makes up for it with the twist ending.

I give it 3.9 out of 5 stars.

“All New People” provides a visceral look at modern angst The Oklahoma premiere of Zach Braff’s play proves to be hilarious and profound, with no hesitation to switch between the two.

James Whisenhunt Student Writer “All New People” opens with Charlie, a typical man in his midthirties who is clad in pajama pants, a bathrobe and a Pusheen T-shirt. His shoulder-length hair is parted down the middle, obscuring the sides of his face.

River dance music echoes through the living room of an otherwise empty beach house in the middle of winter.

Charlie also has an electrical cord around his neck. The play opens in the middle of his suicide attempt.

“All New People” premiered in 2011. It was written by Zach Braff, best known for his leading role as JD in “Scrubs.”

As one can tell from the opening, Braff wastes no time on pleasantries and doesn’t sugar coat anything in the show.

Characters are shown drinking, groping one another and snorting cocaine throughout the show.

They also frequently smoke cigarettes, the smell of which permeates the tiny theater during the Tulsa PAC’s showing.

“All New People” only has four characters: the suicidal Charlie, the pill-popping expatriate Emma, the drug-dealing fireman Myron, and the musically-inclined escort Kim.

One by one, in the order listed above, these characters find their way to the living room, doing their best to cheer Charlie up and give him a night worth living for.

Within the first three minutes of the play, Emma enters the room.

When it’s only these two in the room, the play feels awkward.

Jokes fall flat, silences are piercing and it feels uncomfortable to even be a witness.

This seems to be an intentional

love to the significance of the mementos of our past.

The play is able to switch between light-hearted comedy and heavy pessimism at the drop of a hat. The transitions never feel forced, though they often feel uncomfortable.

Charlie typically plays the straight-man to the rest of the cast, but every character has moments of highs and lows.

Often, these lows are caused by

music in the entire show, and each one feels powerful and important in the context of the plot. Lighting and sound effects are used infrequently as well.

The play also has a few small video segments, filmed beforehand, with some background on each of the characters.

These video segments feel a bit unnecessary, as they give a rather jarring break from the otherwise unrelenting focus and immersion

“The play is able to switch between lighthearted comedy and heavy pessimism at the drop of a hat” move on the part of Braff to capture the initial tension that the scenario requires.

After the full cast enters the room, however, the play excels in its comedy and its drama.

Topics are varied, covering everything from STDs to unrequited

another person in the room. Secrets are revealed, lies are told and later exposed, and each character is a complex picture shown in both bright and dim light.

There is little else in the drama to distract from the characters.

There are only four instances of

Zach Braff’s play “All New People” is both hilarious and profound.

in the living room.

However, these segments are used sparingly, leaving the show to rest on little but its script and acting, both of which are superb.

Each actor in “All New People” does an incredible job of capturing the wide range of emotions that

their character feels throughout the play.

Worthy of particular note is Anna Bennett, who steals the show as Kim. She brings a captivating energy to the stage that compliments her character’s naivety and chipper attitude.

The show ends abruptly, with no explicit resolution for any of the characters.

In some cases, the course of the play has put characters in a worse place than where they began. What the ending does provide, though, is perspective.

Kim states near the end of the play that “in 100 years, there’ll be all new people.” While this seems like an obvious truth, it allows both the cast and the audience the opportunity to ponder that life is short.

The play ends as the cast stare at the snowfall in silence, soaking in the simple comfort and passive acceptance that comes with silence and human company.

Courtesy Theatre Pops

Variety

19 October 2015

the Collegian: 11

He Named Me Malala inspires with vivid visuals & enrapturing narrative The documentary He Named Me Malala gives cinematic flare to Malala Yousafzai’s biography.

Sara Douglas Student Writer National Geographic assisted in producing a visually captivating and masterfully-spun story centered around Malala Yousafzai, a girl with quite a tale to tell.

Following the publication of her autobiography, this documentary succeeded in conveying Malala’s struggles—but more importantly, her strength.

The film opened with an animated sequence of a Pashtun folktale about the Afghans’ revolution against England, in which a young girl shouts to her fleeing kinfolk: “It is better to live like a lion for one day than a slave for a thousand years.”

Her name was Malala, and she died on the battlefield that day, but her people won the war and were free. Her name signifies not sadness, but bravery.

Immediately after this watercolor narrative, we are shown modern-day news coverage of the Malala who lives today after taking a bullet to the head from the Taliban. Then we see the same girl

ter the Malala of lore because he wanted her to be an activist, to be courageous and to be different.

His unwavering support of her education and independence throughout childhood in a liberal home nurtured an unquenchable love for learning in Malala.

That passion is evident in the cinematic portrayal of Malala’s story, and it is emphasized that her father’s livelihood was being a teacher in Afghanistan before the Taliban came.

Their family lived in Swat, a relatively isolated town, but the Taliban reached it eventually and imposed ever-harshening regulations that finally amounted to prohibiting girls from attending school.

Initially, we are only provided snapshots of Malala’s early life, with news footage spliced in to complement what she and her father are saying about early-2000s Afghanistan.

The overall flow of the plot is, while not chronological, pleasantly smooth. Transitions between home interviews, public speeches and archival shots are nearly unnoticeable.

Although secular education is the central theme of the movie, it dances around the idea of religious ideologies at times.

While Malala’s family practices

school bus when they were shot at by the Taliban is a fluid motion in her expression, coming just as naturally to her as drawing a rudimentary world map on a blackboard for African schoolkids.

Perhaps it is Malala’s inclination towards visual, colorful expression of ideas that led the producers to incorporate illustrations of her early childhood and significant historical events into the movie, rather than relying entirely on spoken word.

The decision to do so, from wherever it stemmed, was a solid one. Her illustrations kept the movie’s tone light and allowed for fluid progression even while addressing serious topics.

Particularly enjoyable were the interviewers’ interactions with Malala’s younger brothers. One says, “I think she’s addicted to books; it’s a terrible problem,” before laughing and amending with a “not really.” (Her favorite books, we learn, are A Brief History of Time and The Alchemist.) The youngest is highly amused at Malala’s interest in famous cricketers.

While it is easy to see that Malala’s path to where she is now was full of struggles, and we are shown brief details of her extensive recovery process after the shooting, even those speaking with her in the film mention that she avoids

“Malala still works to perpetuate the concept that ‘one child, one teacher, one book and one pen can change the world’” beginning a new life full of press conferences, talk show appearances, United Nations meetings, book signings and college campus visits.

If you don’t know Malala’s general story, the movie does an acceptable job of introducing context to a presumably naive audience.

For those going into the film with prior knowledge about how being targeted by the Taliban led to Malala’s rise to fame, we learn that her father played a hugely important role in shaping who Malala is and where she is today.

“He Named Me Malala” is a reference to how he named her af-

Islam, they recognized that the Taliban were not bringing faith to Swat. Rather they thrived on power and exclusion.

Her father even states, “It is not a person (who shot Malala); it is an ideology.”

Malala’s Islam is one of acceptance and “living in a good way.”

The Taliban’s god “is a tiny conservative man,” according to her dad.

Throughout the movie, Malala turns to sketching to assist in her explanations of events when questioned about them.

Drawing a diagram of where she and others were sitting on the

discussing her past problems.

Instead, Malala is forward-looking and selfless. She is a beautiful, intelligent girl who realizes the opportunity she has been given to speak to the world about educating children, and she is seizing it in full.

Short glimpses of Malala’s mother (from whom Malala gets her looks) and her background are given as well, and we learn that she is just as supportive as but undeniably less brave than Malala’s father.

He sought her out for her beauty during his schooldays, while she was enraptured with his intelli-

Malala Yousafzai’s life inspires this beautiful documentary.

gence, and they married for love— a rarity.

The close bond between Malala and her father is reflected in their language when they speak about each other: it’s all glowing praise.

With a stammer to his speech, Malala’s father could be seen as meek or incapable, but his obvious efforts to overcome every challenge thrown his way outweigh those possibilities.

Even with his speech impediment, he chose to become a teacher because “education gives you the power to question things, to be independent,” and it “was a threat to the (Taliban).”

Rather than seek other words when one proves difficult, Malala’s father perseveres in his attempts until he has successfully spoken his initially desired phrase.

He became a prolific public speaker against the oppressive Taliban rule, and Malala followed in his footsteps. But it was relieving to have Malala inform the audience that her life of activism was not forced on her: she says, “Dad didn’t push me; he let me do what I want. I knew the risk. … I am afraid of no one.”

The driving message in the movie and Malala’s philosophy is that “it is so hard to get things done in this world. You try and so often it doesn’t work, but you have to continue and never give up.”

Courtesy IMDB

Besides winning the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize and being credited for “(lighting) the candle of knowledge” for underprivileged girls worldwide, Malala still works to perpetuate the concept that “one child, one teacher, one book and one pen can change the world.”

Seeing her story come alive on screen was a treasure and an experience I’m now craving to relive.

The film was just short of two hours, a perfect timeframe for weaving an intricate narrative about the brave Malala of legend and our Malala today, continuing the legacy of speaking out for what is right.

Hearing such a young, resilient advocate for education demonstrate complete selflessness was absolutely inspiring.

The selected excerpts from various of Malala’s speeches that were featured in the documentary conclusion, urging the audience to #StandWithMalala, were powerful: “We realize the importance of our voice when we are silenced.

Let us pick up our books and our pens; they are our most powerful weapons. … I tell my story not because it is unique, but because it is not.

I am Malala, but I am also those 66 million girls who are deprived of education. I am not one voice; I am many, and our voices have grown louder and louder.”

Tulsa artist Benjamin Lyman gaining national fame Benjamin Lyman is a Tulsa born musician who has found inspiration through travel.

Katy Nichols Student Writer Benjamin Lyman is a Tulsa born musician. After attending Booker T. Washington High School, Lyman would frequently play at local bars and do a few house shows.

Looking to further pursue his music career, Lyman moved to NYC.

He made a living from busking (playing music on the streets or in subways) and spent most of his time in NYC couch surfing.

As of now, Lyman is living in the west coast city of Los Angeles, CA. When asked whether or not making music in bigger cities was better Lyman said, “I will say that making art has been truer for me outside of Tulsa,” he explained, “that doesn’t mean [...] that I haven’t had good moments in my room [in Tulsa] recording. I think places like Tulsa sort of place a

Tulsa musician Benjamin Lyman has made a name for himself beyond Oklahoma.

ceiling on a philosophical level that makes it hard for a lot of artists to evolve in their self perception.”

His music is a breed all of it’s own. It is difficult to place an exact

However, no matter what style of music you tend to drift to, it’s impossible to dislike what Benjamin puts out.

When asked what he thinks is the best thing he’s ever made, Ly-

However, in March of 2014, he completely removed any and all music of his from the internet.

He apologized to his friends and fans on twitter (now deleted) stating that he was deleting all of his

“It is difficult to place an exact genre on Lyman’s music” genre on Lyman’s music as it incorporates anything from R&B to hip-hop, acoustic and more.

Courtesy Vimeo

man said, “My favorite song right now is a new song I’m working on called NO REASON. It’s sort of an eerie bayou heart break song,” he continues, “It’s about sexualemotional complexities, territory, release of control and it just has this throbbing anxiety about it that I really like.”

Benjamin Lyman has a unique perspective that a lot of artists fail to meet. His lyrics are honest, fun and emotional.

“As a man, I like songs about romance that are about more than just the celebration of the pursuit or a singular moment of consummation,” he explained. “I think a lot of songs by male singers right now are bullshit, at least the ones about women they love. It’s not romantic to me. I think giving up control a bit, being intuitive, taking a lesser priority when it’s appropriate, are all very sexual and emotional things for a man.”

Lyman has a history of removing his music from his soundcloud, band-camp and other social media; it’s almost a part of his charm.

music for a fresh start.

“I delete my music for many different reasons. I put up a lot of music the last three years because I needed the bandcamp donations.

The way I see it, anything you have in the public, you should mean it. A lot of things I used to sing I don’t mean any more, so I started over.”

Benjamin Lyman’s vocals have a hypnotic melody to them. This intense quality is present in every one of his songs. You won’t be able to find much of his music on the internet right now, but that just means this is the perfect time to start building anticipation for the new music he’ll put out.

“I’m working on a new EP here in LA,” Lyman explained. “It has a very new sound; a clearer sense of self is present. It’s still me, more me than ever. There’s a lot of voodoo in this one; a lot of back and forth with the gods. It’s exciting, I’m hoping to release the EP in winter.”

Variety

the Collegian: 12

19 October 2015

Interview with Dyson Knight of Baha Men Dyson Knight, one of the Baha Men’s vocalists, spoke with The Collegian on changes in the industry, their new album Ride With Me and how “Who Let the Dogs Out?” changed the band.

James Whisenhunt Student Writer The Baha Men, most well-known for “Who Let the Dogs Out?”, released a new album on October 9.

Ride With Me is a 9-song celebration of the good vibes and Bahamian rhythms that define the band, successfully reframed with a modern, electronic backbone.

The last album the band had released with a label behind them was 2004’s Holla! Despite the gap between albums, Knight says the band never really experienced a breakup. The band would still get together to record “a song here, a song there, but nothing really serious.”

Three years ago, though, the band was given an opportunity to come back in a big way.

Sony Latin America held a conference while looking for new artists in the region, giving showcases to artists.

As Dyson puts it, “two songs into the showcase, the CEO of Sony Latin America asked if we were obligated to any other label because he wanted to sign us.”

Of course, quite a bit in the music industry has changed in the last ten years.

Despite being the newest member of the Baha Men, Knight has a good understanding of what went into making the earlier albums from talking with bandmates.

The biggest shift, in his eyes, is that “the entire band is never together for a recording.”

The Baha Men hope to no longer be defined by “Who Let the Dogs Out?’

ebration songs, featuring an African drum structure, and is described by Knight as “a cross between marching band and noise.”

Knight says that, due to the “junky” style of the island’s sound, it can be “hard to make it sound clean” and that “producers usually fight against that.”

However, the band was able to bring the issues to rest, being able to “lock in that sound.” According to Knight, “it’s all about rhythm.”

Knight took the opportunity to compli-

whole one-hit-wonder atmosphere.” Knight also worries that the song says that “the band is only good for ‘Who Let the Dogs Out?’” Knight looks at top artists in the industry, saying that “Michael Jackson didn’t [play to the fame of his biggest song], Beyonce doesn’t do it, and we are just as good. I wouldn’t even say I’m that good; [my bandmates] are that good.”

However, Knight does concede that “if [Off the Leash] opens up the market to lis-

“Ride With Me is a 9-song celebration of the good vibes and Bahamian rhythms that define the band” As is now common practice, each track is individually recorded and compiled together post-recording.

Dyson also mentions that, in some cases, the producers would come to the band with an essentially complete song for them to record.

The band would take the work and “add a bit of that island vibe, that flavor, but it’s pretty much the same song.”

Knight admits that it was initially difficult for the band to reconcile their Bahamian influences with the more modern, electronic music environment.

He refers to Bahamian music as “Junkanoo.” The genre is characterized as cel-

ment his bandmates for having the talent to find that balance.

2015 not only marks the first new album for the Baha Men in over a decade, but also the 15th anniversary of the release of “Who Let the Dogs Out?” The final track of Ride With Me, titled “Off the Leash,” pays homage to the track, even sampling the famous line.

While other band members and producers enjoyed the homage, Knight was “totally against the version that is on the album,” admitting that he enjoys the Dance Radio Mix of the song much more.

He felt that “the sample of it was a bit overkill,” and that the song “reiterates the

ten to the other songs that we have, then it’s great.” He mentions that his favorite song on Ride With Me is “Carrying On.” Knight also provides perspective on how the fame that came from “Who Let the Dogs Out?” affected the band, seeing it as “a blessing and a curse.”

It “put the band on a high hill” and that it made it hard for the band to follow-up the fame of the single.

He mentions that if the song had not become so popular, it would have helped ”the consistency of the brand.”

He feels that “the music would have a lot of great songs instead of this one mega-hit song.”

But on October 9 they released what seems to be the best album of their career, Black Lines.

al chorus that follows, this track probably would not even be identifiable as Mayday Parade.

Courtesy New Ocean Media

The song also “married the band to the US market” and changed the relationship between the band and some different markets, like Japan and the Bahamas.

Knight likens the change to a favorite drink. “They change one of the ingredients, and it tastes similar, but not the same.

So you only buy it once in a while, for the nostalgia.” He concludes, though, that “with new music, we can do new things.”

The interview concluded with a focus on the future, as Knight gives a preview of what listeners can expect from the second album in a 3-record deal with Sony.

Knight feels that “the next album is going to vary from [Ride With Me] in texture.”

There will be more collaborative efforts, both in terms of feature artists and producers.

Knight mentions that many of these collaborations will work to “give the album a more worldly feel” and feels that “we want to move away from the programming as much as possible. Give it more of a live feel.”

Knight’s final comment was that it is paramount that the band, no matter what direction their music takes, retain their music’s “good vibes.”

The Baha Men’s new album Ride With Me is now available nationwide, the physical version being exclusive to Walmart. It is also digitally available on iTunes, Google Play and Spotify. Dyson encourages anyone interested in the band to check out bahamen. com.

Mayday Parade releases new album Black Lines Black Lines marks new levels of success for Mayday Parade.

Savanna Deweese Student Writer Mayday Parade has been cranking out pop punk power ballads since 2006.

Most notable is their first full length album, A Lesson in Romantics, which is arguably one of the best angsty, young love, breakup albums in their genre.

Before the release of Black Lines Mayday Parade let out the lead single, “Keep In Mind, Transmogrification Is A New Technology.”

This track seemed to only prove that Mayday Parade refused to do anything other than mechanically drop heart-string tugging ballads.

“With the very first track Mayday Parade destroys any doubt in the record” With the very first track Mayday Parade destroys any doubt in the record.

They open with a rush of concussion waves from Jack Bundrick’s drum kit, a feature of Real Friends’ Dan Lambton, and a grittier, gnarlier side of vocals from legendary Derek Sanders.

This is an entirely new sound for them.

If it weren’t for the still catchy, emotion-

Mayday Parade’s new album Black Lines hit stores on October 9.

The shockingly passionate standout instrumentals continue throughout the whole album, manifested in the track “Hollow” through a distinctly groovy bassline and in the track “Let’s Be Honest” by a heavy, grunge riffage.

Derek Sanders, the lead singer, commented on the creation of Black Lines to SputnikMusic by saying that he “felt like

[they] wanted to try something new and fresh… Overall, on this album [they] went for more mature songwriting and created an album for [themselves] and not just writing for fans.”

This fearless experimentation paid off.

Overall, this is the only album Mayday Parade has dropped that feels like a complete work.

Their previous records have largely been single focused without any clear direction for the album as a whole.

With the explosion of this genuinely surprising record it seems that all doors are open for Mayday Parade.

The only certainty is that whatever comes next for them will not be predictable.

Courtesy Fearless Records

Variety

19 October 2015

the Collegian: 13

Alt-rock Modest Mouse brings enthusiasm and entertainment to Cain’s Modest Mouse came to Tulsa on Friday October 9 in an effort to promote their newest album.

Sara Douglas Student Writer For a band older than the majority of our university’s students, Modest Mouse exhibited immense energy at Cain’s Ballroom two Fridays ago. The band is touring for their most recent album, Strangers to Ourselves, but their setlist was only a quarter new material; the rest were “oldies but goodies” that kept the crowd dancing for hours.

The opening artist was experimental to the core, although Modest Mouse’s selection of opener Stardeath and White Dwarfs became comprehensible upon comparison of the former’s harshest instrumental breaks with the latter’s entire performance (minus the vocalist’s contributions). The decade-old band from Norman, Okla., has collaborated with The Flaming Lips on multiple projects since their lead singer, Dennis Coyne, is the nephew of Wayne Coyne, the Lips’ lead.

Edging close to the mathrock genre, Stardeath and White Dwarfs relied heavily on their bassist and drummer to provide

Courtesy Facebook / Cain’s Ballroom

The Modest Mouse concert was filled with positive energy and old favorites.

stage—predators pressuring Modest Mouse to produce a prime performance, lest they be prey (that’s my theory, anyway).

Beginning with a lesser-known track from a 1999 Japan-only release, is a move that only a band as well-established as Modest Mouse could pull off so well. Dark Center of the Universe was as warmly received as I expect Float On would

in combination with a flamingoed shirt lent a quirky exuberance to Brock’s mannerisms that was jarringly conflicting with his serious rocker persona.

Four more older songs followed, including 2007’s popular Missed the Boat, and Bukowski, a pluckily nihilistic dirge inspired by the titular German poet. Then came one of my personal favor-

“Their setlist was only a quarter new material; the rest were ‘oldies but goodies’ that kept the crowd dancing for hours” driving rhythms behind their pieces. Along with vertical light strips pulsating in time with the music and the drummer’s falsetto backing, instrumental solos were the most notable details of the performance, which wavered discordantly between mellow and metal.

Following an abnormally long delay after Stardeath’s exit, Modest Mouse’s members appeared in the midst of blue lights and fog and ambient buzzing white noise. A few snowy owl figurines had also made their way onto the

have been. The latter is their number-one gilded single and a track that surprisingly wasn’t played at this concert at all.

Moving into a couple newer pieces did nothing but amp up the energy in the ballroom, as Sugar Boats led smoothly into Lampshades on Fire before the lead vocalist and guitarist, Isaac Brock, broke character to chat with the audience.

Turquoise-painted fingernails that were constantly pushing a floppy lock of hair off his forehead

ites: Pups to Dust, a philosophical ditty about perceptions and purpose, wrapped up in ethereal vocals by the sole female in Modest Mouse, Lisa Molinaro, and tucked neatly into the middle of Strangers to Ourselves.

Dashboard signaled the halfway point in the concert, and the crowd’s enthusiasm was at its pinnacle as well.

Out of the subsequent five songs, just two were from post-2007, but since everywhere I looked people were belting out choruses, it was

Poet Joyelle McSweeney almost died and it comes across in her work. This was apparent during her reading in McFarlin’s Faculty Study, among other things.

Sweeney’s politically alert, sonically driven poetry moves and spills through a variety of genres...

The Necropastoral: Poetry, Media, Occults, is a work of Goth ecopoetics.” Immediately, I decided to attend the reading, set for Tuesday, Oct 6. I didn’t know anything about “Goth ecopoetics,” but I wanted to know more.

On the night of the event, students and faculty stood in the halls on the second floor of McFarlin Library. Dr. Grant Jenkins spoke with our guest poet while we waited for the faculty study to be unlocked. She did have short hair, but no purple tonight; her jeans didn’t quite reach her combat boots, where her socks peeked out, bright red; she was cheery as we waited.

Unlike the two other literary events I attended this semester,

our speaker was on time. No one seemed anxious. At only 8:04, a security guard unlocked the dark study.

McSweeney stood in front of a looming stone fireplace, which had a Dickinson quote carved into its face: “There is No Frighte Like a Book to Take Us Lands Away.” I later realized how well this quote applied to McSweeney’s work.

McSweeney took us places I didn’t even know existed.

We sat in furniture arranged in a semicircle around McSweeney.

She began with an ‘invocation,’ the poem “Warp Spasm,” which was inspired by Irish Epics. Her poetry is charged and energetic, crafted to be read aloud. She made references both obscure and relevant in pop culture; there were funny moments, sad lines and interesting phrases which stood out.

clear the band knew their fans would appreciate their older work.

Closing the pre-encore set with Doin’ the Cockroach was a fantastic decision.

Brock led his ensemble in increasingly violent, lurching loudness to a frenzied conclusion that saw him licking his guitar pickups prior to suddenly vacating the stage. The speakers emitted sounds like beehives again, hinting that Modest Mouse wasn’t quite finished for the night.

Predictably, the group entered again and launched into Satellite Skin, one of the few singles populating the gap between Modest Mouse’s 2007 and 2015 albums.

Paper Thin Walls’ haunting folksiness led into a nearly ten-minute rendition of Night on the Sun that vacillated between immersive melodies and blistering drumbeats.

Owning the extended version of that song has fostered in me a great appreciation for its uplifting instrumental smoothness. With its repetitive lyrics, you’d think Night on the Sun would have less impact than other of Brock’s metaphor and philosophy-packed tracks. Yet it remains an enduring

piece. The positive energy it radiated throughout Cain’s made the show’s end more tolerable.

The Good Times Are Killing Me and This Devil’s Workday concluded Modest Mouse’s splendid performance; some audience hopefuls were milling about claiming that a second encore was forthcoming, but I noticed that the humming which had permeated the air between previous sets was absent and moved to exit before security began shooing us out.

Assuming Isaac Brock was the orchestrator of that auditory detail leaves me even further impressed with the amount of care Modest Mouse’s lead, and only constant member since their 1992 founding, apparently puts into all of the band’s undertakings.

Deciding what attendees heard when the band wasn’t even on stage and changing from a shirt adorned with one species of tropical bird to another (flamingoes to toucans) were small items over which Brock took charge for Modest Mouse’s performance at Cain’s, and the experience was all the better for his creative leadership.

McSweeny read with quirky confidence.

After reading several poems and a series of sonnets, she read excerpts from her new play, “Dead youth, or, The leaks”: a play in four acts (2014). I had never heard anything like this, and I doubt I will again until I buy the play and read it myself. The play features Julian Assange of Wikileaks, Henrietta Lacks (who passed away in 1951, the same year her cervical cancer cells were harvested. They still survive as the immortal cell line, HeLa), the jailed Somali pirate Abduwali Muse and the souls of innumerable dead teenagers.

Basically, Julian Assange is attempting to upload the souls of the dead teenagers to the internet when his ship bound for Magnetic Island is hijacked by Abduwali Muse.

Lacks is a spirit mother guide who must be appeased...from what I understand. It’s all fascinating and strangely relative to our culture.

McSweeney rambles in a lovely way. I honestly believe she conveyed a translation unobtainable without her being present.

During the Q&A, the first question was this, asked rather casually in my opinion: “This is just a guess, but from the viewpoints you’re taking, especially with the dead, it sounds like you had a near-death experience yourself, did you?”

“Yeah I did have a near-death experience,” she replied. “Why did you guess that?”

McSweeney, appearing rather shocked, went on to say no one had ever asked her that question at a reading and proceeded to tell her story. She almost died during childbirth, both her and her daughter’s lives were in jeopardy and the doctors were able to save them.

“I almost died becoming a

mother. You think you heard that in the Henrietta Lacks section?” she asked the man.

Then it became apparent, the connection of her own life as a mother to Lacks, who had children herself. McSweeny has given Lacks a voice in her play. The billions of cells across the globe, all derived from Lacks’ body, will divide eternally and have helped medical research in infinite ways, though they cannot speak. Now, the mother’s voice is there too, connecting the living with the dead and evoking McSweeney’s listeners and readers. This sense of eternity is important to McSweeney. Just as the internet, Wikileaks and Assange’s work are eternal in their own ways.

The day after McSweeney’s reading I was at my job inside Tulsa International Airport. The poet was early for her flight back to Indiana when our paths crossed. We were able to chat before her flight arrived. McSweeney was enthusiastic about Tulsa and asked me how her reading went. I spoke my mind, that I was grateful she came to Tulsa and how I found her reading moving and humorous.

I had the opportunity to ask her about her writing style and she kindly asked me about my own.

While talking with her, I realized how genuine she is. Joyelle has the ever curious and open mind of a poet. There seems to be nothing holding her back. I sensed this in her poems, discovered it while talking with her and she proved me correct as she talked about her life and work.

Any sense of deep curiosity the audience picked up on in the faculty study is genuine. Joyelle McSweeney is able to write about the human condition so well because she’s not afraid to live.

Joyelle McSweeney gives powerful reading at TU

Mason Powell Student Writer Before the posters were tacked to corkboards and taped to doors on campus, I had not heard of Joyelle McSweeney. In her picture on the poster, she was looking off into the distance, she had short black hair with a streak of purple, in her hand she held a purple wildflower and behind her profile were bright green leaves.

The poster read, “Joyelle Mc-

McSweeney’s performance was moving and humorous.

Adam Lux / Collegian

Variety

the Collegian: 14

The Spookiest of Reviews: The Collegian’s list of the top five haunted houses to visit this October.

Katy Nichols Student Writer October is one of the best months out of the year. The leaves are starting to change, pumpkin lattes are back in season, and best of all it’s the month of all things spooky.

Lovers of horror and gore unite together for many activities.

There are horror marathons all over TV, there are parties and festivals alike. There are so many activities you might not be able to try all of them!

But if there is one thing you should do, especially if you want the full Spooktober experience, is to be terrified to tears at one of Oklahoma’s Haunted Houses!

I’ve decided to help you pick out which one will suit your… needs…the best. Ranked from meh to full on spook; here are the list of the top five spookiest attractions in Oklahoma!

Number five: Haunted Castle of Muskogee, 10 dollars for adults As a Tulsa native, I just couldn’t leave out this Oklahoman gem.

The Castle of Muskogee is only thirty minutes away from campus.

It is a very family oriented place but it has a huge range of activities!

There is a torture museum, a haunted hayride, and the best part is the Trail of Blood. If you’re looking for a spook, The Trail of Blood is for you!

They’ll set you and a friend out in the woods and make you find your way back. IF you can find your way back.

Number four: The Sanctuary, 20 dollars for adults This haunted attraction is located in OKC, about two hours away

from our lovely university.

It features five different attractions ranging in spookiness fit for children to grownups.

This unique attraction has made the list as it has a real backstory!

In WWII a psychiatric hospital owned by Charles Labrie began conducting experiments led by German Doctor Ryan Hammond.

Hammond was an evil man with a Frankenstein complex. Come here to take a peek at the freak show he created.

Number three: The 13th Ward, 15 dollars for adults The 13th Ward is rather close to campus, only about 15 minutes away.

This is your typical walkthrough-pee-your-pants kind of haunted attraction.

Prepare to be engulfed in this asylum where the patients have taken over!

The 13th Ward is no place for those who can’t fend for themselves.

I recommend this one if you can handle the darkness this hospital has to offer.

19 October 2015

Oklahoma’s most haunted attractions

streaming down their face. This haunted attraction is fully dedicated to the scare.

There is first the Hex House,

where you will be touched and bled on and scared near to death.

And then, if you haven’t had enough, there is a part two. Where

your darkest nightmares come to life. Will you be able to make it through?

Courtesy OK Castle

Number two: Psycho Path, 20 dollars for adults Spooky chills and endless terror are waiting for you in the town of Sperry, Oklahoma.

Only 20 minutes away, this haunted attraction has made quite the name for itself.

At this attraction you ride around the woods in a custom made ‘Scareage’ vehicle.

Sounds a little lame, but I promise you will be terrified the entire time!

There are ghouls and other entities lurking in the forest that are thrilled for your arrival.

Courtesy Ticket Leap

Number one: The Hex House, 15 dollars for one or 20 dollars for two attractions This is Tulsa’s prized possession, just 10 minutes from campus.

So spooky that people will drive halfway across the country only to leave with wet pants and tears Courtesy Stubwire

Courtesy Haunt

The Prophet: from poem to big screen

Courtesy Haunt World

The animated adaptation of the poetry of Kahlil Gibran is a visually stunning success.

Katy Nichols Student Writer

The Prophet does justice to the poetry of Gibran.

Courtesy IMDB

The Prophet is an animated film adapted from author Kahlil Gibran’s 1923 collection of poems.

Gibran is considered the mastermind behind one of the most influential works of the 20th century.

Salma Hayek is actually the producer of this film adaptation, with director Roger Allers— director of The Lion King—by her side. The film features a strong team of codirectors and animators, as well.

Hayek is a huge fan of Gibran’s works and has spent the last decade or so morphing Gibran’s words into a motion picture. In the

film, she actually voices one of the characters.

In addition to Salma Hayek as a voice actor, the film also features Liam Neeson and Quvenzhané Wallis. The chilling and exuberant film score is done by Gabriel Yared and includes songs created, for the film, by Glen Hansard and Lisa Hannigan.

For the film, Hayek and Allers took the eight most popular poems and had a different animator work on each one to create a real life version of the story they read.

The different artists’ visions come together well in the film. However, some critics disapprove of the contrasts between scenes.

The film is about the prophet Almustafa, who is about to return to his home after having been away for 12 years. He is stopped by a group of people and begins to speak to them about topics relating

to the human condition; these topics are Gibran’s poems.

As previously stated, each poem is told by a different visual. While this is suited perfectly to keep the attention of the younger viewers this movie was partially intended for, adults seem to dislike the contrasting scenes in between poems.

While a beautiful work of art, it seems that parts of this movie cater too much to a younger audience and focus less on the meaning of the poems themselves.

Despite those minute controversies, The Prophet is an exciting and whimsical adaptation of Kahil Gibran’s poems. Not only is the film visually and musically appealing, it’s extremely entertaining.

Every aspect of this film meshes together in a harmonious way.

For film-lovers, this is one for the books.

Sports

19 October 2015

The Collegian: 13

that the four games that Tom Brady would have been POINT-COUNTERPOINT: Now suspended for are over, our writers argue over the suspension

Brady broke the rules, should pay the price Haters gonna hate, NFL has nothing on Brady Joseph Edmunds Sports Writer Deflategate. If you follow the NFL, you became very familiar with this term over the summer. New England Patriots star quarterback Tom Brady was accused of knowingly using deflated balls in the AFC Championship game, in which the Patriots romped to a 45–7 victory against their opponents, the Indianapolis Colts.

Now, I don’t believe for a second that these balls were the deciding factor in that game; the Colts were vastly outmatched by the Patriots prolific offense.

However, whether or not that was the deciding factor in the game is irrelevant. Tom Brady should have served a four game suspension to open the season because using the deflated balls is against the rules of NFL play.

I full-heartedly believe that any violation of the rules of play should go punished. No one is above the law, and these rules are in place to make the initial playing field level. If you can’t win within the rules of the game, you don’t deserve to win because you can’t claim to be the best at the game.

You’re merely the best at an adaptation of the game that is biased to suit your abilities.

That being said, it still wasn’t clear whether or not the NFL would go through with handing out the suspension. A major factor in NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s decision to do so was the revelation that Brady had destroyed his phone after the incident.

Conveniently, the phone that Brady was using during the time that could have contained information in correspondence with his equipment managers was broken and inaccessible.

Why did Brady destroy his phone? He claims it to be a regular practice when he breaks his phone or a new version comes out. Destroying the old phone is his standard procedure.

When questioned by Goodell, Brady admitted that in instances besides those, it is not regular practice for him to destroy his phone. He then failed to give either of those two instances as a reason for destroying his phone in this case.

If he was innocent, wouldn’t it have made more sense to keep the phone? He would have had a clear case to present to say that he had no contact with the equipment managers about the deflation of the balls. His ability to present his old messages would have been indisputable evidence in his case, and the issue could have easily been dropped.

As I see it, Brady is certainly guilty, and should have served a suspension. I don’t

just say that as someone who has never been a fan of Tom Brady. I’m a Denver Broncos fan, and if this same case was brought against Peyton Manning, I would not back his innocence. I truly believe that Brady did something wrong, and ought to be punished.

Yet, when the case was taken before a judge, the decision was made to vacate the suspension. I couldn’t disagree more with this decision, but there’s an argument I’ve heard from Patriots supporters that particularly frustrates me.

That argument goes along the lines of “it wouldn’t have mattered if he was suspended or not, the Patriots would have won those games anyways.”

Hold on a minute. There are multiple things wrong with that argument that I’d like to address. The first being the intent to dismiss the whole issue of deflategate. As stated above, I don’t believe that Brady is innocent, and believe he should serve a suspension.

Secondly, saying that their star player’s presence or lack thereof in four games wouldn’t have an effect on the outcome is incredibly ignorant. Let’s take a look at the four games Brady would have missed.

In week 1, the Patriots won a close game against the Steelers by a single touchdown.

In week two, they defeated the Bills by 8.

They rolled over the Jaguars 51–17 in week 3, and beat the Cowboys 30–6 in week 4.

Despite not being a fan of Brady, I still consider him to be one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, second to only Aaron Rodgers. He brings a lot of talent to the table. The games against the Steelers and Bills were greatly affected by his presence.

He can engineer drives that an average quarterback could only dream of. He has the highest quarterback rating in the NFL at this point, and has yet to throw an interception.

Had he thrown an interception in one of the Patriots scoring drives in weeks 1 or 2, the Patriots could have lost the game.

Backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo would undoubtedly have thrown at least one interception at this point in the season, as even the other great quarterbacks in the league have thrown a few.

Yet, because Brady wasn’t given his rightful suspension, the Patriots currently sit in first place of the AFC East with an undefeated record. If the Patriots two games of the season had resulted in losses behind a backup quarterback, a 2–2 record would only be good for third place in the division.

Brady’s lack of suspension can’t be dismissed as irrelevant to the results of the season, and his lack of reasonable defense against the accusations against him offers nothing to convince me of his innocence.

Justin Guglielmetti Sports Writer First, let me add the disclaimer that I am a born-and-raised son of New England— a Tom Brady poster adorned my wall for a good portion of my childhood, I learned to throw a spiral from watching number 12 and I routinely get lost in his dreamy bluishgreen eyes.

That’s only partially an embellishment.

The point I’m making here is that if you’re looking for an unbiased opinion, you’d better look elsewhere.

No surprise then that I am a proponent of Tom Brady’s innocence (at least his innocence in the matter of his suspension) in this ridiculous “Deflategate” scandal, and am frankly incredibly annoyed that we are still discussing it six weeks into the 2015 season.

The case is closed, the jury out on this matter, and I mean that literally.

In case you haven’t been following the story too closely (and considering how tedious and over-the-top it is, I wouldn’t blame you if that was the case) Brady’s four-game suspension was brought to Federal court after being upheld by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell following an unsuccessful internal appeal.

And what did the honorable Judge Richard Berman decide? That the NFL’s investigation was nothing more than a witch-hunt that violated “the prerequisites of fairness and due process.”

That right there should have been the last we heard about Deflategate but no, the rest of the country insists on beating a dead horse and attempting to bring down the reputation and success of the greatest coach and quarterback combination in football history by reinstating this suspension. And let’s be clear, the suspension is a big deal.

I’ve heard some arguments recently that

the suspension wouldn’t matter because the Patriots would have won the first four games of the season anyway.

Obviously we can’t know for certain what would have happened if Jimmy Garoppolo had started in place of Brady, but odds are that the Pats would not still be undefeated.

So it is significant that they have had full access to their starter.

Now here is the part where I’m sure I will upset some readers. I fully believe that Brady was aware of the deflation of the footballs.

That’s right, I think that Tom Brady is guilty of the charges that have been brought against him!

To me, it doesn’t make much sense that the balls would be deflated by equipment managers without the knowledge and consent of the team’s quarterback, but assumptions are not enough to make a conviction.

This is the key point: there is no definitive proof implicating him, and until such time as there is, the NFL has no right to suspend him.

We still live in a country where one is innocent until proven guilty, and the treatment of Brady has essentially been the opposite.

Jealousy and hatred of the Patriots’ success are what is fueling this continued vitriolic assault against Brady, nothing more.

This would not be happening if Kyle Orton or Josh McCown had been accused of deflating balls.

If a federal judge said that the NFL had violated Orton or McCown’s due process, you can bet people would simply accept the decision. But instead, everyone is insistent on violating the very principles of America’s justice system just because they are tired of Brady’s success.

Look, I get it. It’s easy to hate on somebody who is pretty much perfect. But that doesn’t mean you’re allowed to treat him differently.

Graphic by Elias Brinkman

Welcome to the world of sports, where every scandal is required to end with the suffix “-gate.”

Are the MLB playoffs fair, and does that matter?

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! No, not Christmas. Baseball playoffs! Now that it’s deep in the postseason, I’d like to address the problem that I have with the playoffs this season.

Matt Rechtien Sports Editor

Happy October!

October is one of the most exciting months in sports because it’s not that often that baseball, basketball, hockey and football—both college and professional—overlap. No matter what sport you are a fan of, there is something for you to watch.

Baseball is my favorite sport to watch in October because it has the added bonus of being the playoffs, which adds a whole new level of excitement to what is already America’s pastime. Which brings me to an issue I have with the MLB playoffs right now.

Now you can read this article in one of two ways, or both for that matter. The first way is as the opinion of a Cardinals fan who is bitter about the end of their season at the hands of their longtime rivals, the Chicago Cubs.

Or, since it’s hockey season and I’ve devoted all my time to supporting the St. Louis Blues, as a fan of baseball in general who thinks that the current playoff format needs to be changed.

This season the three best teams in baseball—from a regular season record viewpoint—all played in the same division. Not just the same league, no. They all played in the National League Central and were all within three games of each other.

So the fact that there is a second wildcard now is great because without it one of the top-three teams in baseball (who is now playing in the NLCS) wouldn’t have even made the playoffs this year.

The issue isn’t the second wild-card, it’s how the seeding works. With the way the playoffs are formatted now, the team with

Hurricane Report

Marc Scott Leads Cross Country to Eighth Place Finish The men and women’s cross country teams raced in the Wisconsin Invitational this weekend for their last race before the American Athletic Conference Championships on Halloween. Marc Scott finished first for the second race in a row, finishing with a time of 23:35.0—eight-tenths of second faster than the second-place finisher. Ben Preisner, Luke Traynor, Isaac Dobos and Adam Roderique rounded out the scoring for the men’s side, taking eighth place in race with 28 teams either ranked in the top-30 nationally or receiving votes. Rachel Baptista led the women’s side with a 21st place finish in the 6K event.

Nicole Lee, Clara Langley, Stacie Taylor and Alyssa Bolliger rounded out the scorers, and the women finished with a 28th place finish in the field of 36. Their next race is the American Championship in North Carolina, where both sides will look to defend their titles.

Rowing At Jayhawk Jamboree and Head of the Charles The majority of the rowing team traveled to Lawrence, Kansas to compete in the Jayhawk Jamboree this weekend, while three seniors traveled to Cambridge, Mass. for the Head of the Charles Race. The Jayhawk Jamboree, held on Sunday, is the second event of the fall season for the rowers and serves as a good test for how the year is going. This is the first time since 2008 that the Golden Hurricane have sent representatives to the Head of the Charles. Head Coach Kevin Harris talked about the decision to compete: “The Head of the Charles is an amazing race and something all rowers want to do if they can. Even though it doesn’t fit in to our larger team schedule for 2015-16, we were able to open it up for these seniors in recognition of the work they have put in to our program. They were excited to do it and should represent Tulsa well.”

the best overall record hosts the winner of the wild-card game. The thought is that they get two advantages in this situation. The first is getting to play the wild-card team, and the second being that the wild-card winner will have already used their best pitcher to get past the opening round.

In theory this sounds great. But this year it didn’t really turn out that way. The top three teams in the Major Leagues had to play each other back-to-back-to-back.

Because of this, the Cardinals who had the top record in baseball got the “reward” of playing the Chicago Cubs in the NLDS, when the Cubs were the third best team in the country.

Meanwhile the Dodgers hosted the Mets.

LA lost their series as well, but that’s besides the point.

So what can be done to prevent something like this from happening in the future?

That’s a tough question because there’s no one thing that can be changed that won’t cause some other issue to pop up.

People around the sport have offered sug-

gestions like making the wild-card series longer, changing divisions or even going back to the way it was and getting rid of divisions entirely but still having five or even six teams make the playoffs per division.

These are all possibilities, but there are issues with all of them still that would need to be figured out before MLB would even think about implementing them.

But there’s always the possibility that this was a one year fluke and this won’t happen again. Three teams with 97 wins in a season is crazy, and them all being in the same division is even crazier.

So maybe there’s no reason to go changing the structure of the playoffs just because it isn’t “fair.” After all, the hottest team in the playoffs, no matter their record, is the one who hoists up the trophy.

So then fairness doesn’t always matter (note that I am not talking about cheating, that always matters). Is it really fair that the Cardinals played the Cubs in the first round?

Maybe not. Does that really matter? I would argue that it doesn’t.

Golden Hurricane sunk by East Carolina Pirates Football traveled to North Carolina to play the East Carolina Pirates in their first road conference game of the season, falling 30–17.

Wade Crawford Sports Writer The Golden Hurricane football team dropped their latest game, losing 30–17 to the East Carolina Pirates.

East Carolina chalked up the first score, as Josh Hawkins picked off Dane Evans in the end zone and returned it 100 yards for a touchdown.

East Carolina dominated the entire first half, scoring on three Davis Plowman field goals and a James Summers touchdown

pass to Chris Hairston for a halftime score of 20–0.

Tulsa fought back in the second half, scoring on a 1-yard rush by Zack Langer.

Redford Jones hit a 21-yard field goal, and Keyarris Garrett caught a 47-yard pass from Evans. However, James Summers rushed for a touchdown as well, sealing the fate of the Golden Hurricane.

Last year’s game between these two squads took place at H.A. Chapman Stadium, in the final game of the year.

The Pirates secured a 49–32 victory, in what would be the last game of Bill Blankenship’s coaching tenure at TU. Next week, Tulsa comes home again to face the newly No. 17 ranked Memphis Tigers in the Homecoming game on Friday night. Meanwhile, ECU stays home, hosting the undefeated Temple Owls.

Sports

The Collegian: 14

19 October 2015

Second half strikes lead Hurricane over Owls

Greg Diskin / Collegian

Freshman forward Juan Sanchez attacks Temple’s defense during Saturday’s 2–0 victory over the Temple Owls. Sophomore midfielder Geoffrey Dee runs through the Temple defenders on Saturday night. Dee was responsible for setting up the first goal of the game when he passed to Michael Mitrik in the 71st minute. This goal would turn out to be the game winner, as Tulsa moved on to 6–5–2 on the season, 2–2–1 in the conference.

The men’s soccer team followed up their first conference win with another; this time a 2–0 victory over the Temple University Owls at home.

Joseph Edmunds Sports Writer

Tulsa defeated the Temple Owls 2–0 on

Saturday night, as Michael Mitrik and Zach Jackson came up clutch for the Golden Hurricane, each scoring a second half goal.

The first half of the game passed uneventfully, as neither team was able to produce a significant advantage over the other side.

Seventy minutes rolled off the clock before any scoring happened. Mitrik put in a short range goal off of a pass from Geoffrey Dee to give the Golden Hurricane a 1–0 lead late in the second half.

Ten minutes later, Jackson was open on the left wing, and Ray Saari played him through. After a couple touches, he fired a laser into the goal, solidifying the Golden Hurricane victory.

Zack Stavrou also came up with a big play for the Golden Hurricane in the second half, as he cleared a ball sitting on the goal line before the Owls were able to get there to poke it home.

After the game, coach Tom McIntosh said

“We made some adjustments at halftime and I thought we connected better in the second half and created more good chances.”

The Golden Hurricane are now 6–5–2 (2–2–1 American Athletic Conference) after the win. For their next game, the Golden Hurricane will travel to Dallas to face the Mustangs of SMU. The game starts at 7:00 on Wednesday. Their next and last home game of the season will be against UConn on Saturday.

and, as time was winding down, it looked as though senior night was going to end in disappointment. Tulsa was resilient, however, and upped the pressure on Temple’s defense.

With just five minutes left in the game, Kajal Parmar was fouled outside the top of the box. Rachel Thun took a quick free kick, slotting the ball past the Owls goalkeeper to knot the score.

Momentum on their side, Tulsa pushed forward again. A mere two minutes later, Roman Edwards centered the ball and Thun was there to take a nice touch around a defender and beat the goalkeeper for the second time.

Senior night ended on a positive note after the incredible comeback, as the Golden Hurricane earned the 2–1 victory.

On Sunday afternoon, the Golden Hurricane faced their second ranked opponent of the season, No. 15 UConn.

In the earlygoing, UConn lived up to their rank. Their passes were sharp, and they pushed Tulsa back deep into their own half.

The Huskies first opportunity came quickly, as their leading scorer Rachel Hill got her head to a cross, forcing McKeon into

a diving save.

Tulsa slowly started to get their footing, and pushed forward more. Tana Dake found herself with a sole defender between her and the goal.

She faked the defender out, and sent a shot over the goalkeeper into the corner of the goal at the 25 minute mark, putting the Golden Hurricane in the lead.

Near halftime, Tulsa had multiple chances to extend their lead. First, Thun crossed it in to Christina Holmes who put a shot off the goalpost.

In the next minute Thun broke away behind the Huskies’ defensive line and was tripped up by the goalkeeper, earning a penalty kick.

Thun took the kick, but the goalkeeper guessed correctly and was able to make the save. The score remained 1–0 going into the break.

In the second half, UConn was quick to find an equalizer. Andrea Plucenik scored from short range five minutes into the half to force the tie.

The remainder of the second half played out without another goal, so the game headed into overtime.

Neither team lacked quality chances in the overtime period. UConn’s came first, as Plucenik hit the post, and McKeon was able to grab the rebound to prevent another shot.

Tulsa’s best chance came when the Huskies were complaining about a foul call, and the Golden Hurricane quickly played the ball in behind the defense that wasn’t paying attention, but unfortunately weren’t able to convert.

In the second overtime period, the Huskies sent a hard driven shot off of the crossbar, and then were able to get the game-winning goal from Samantha McGuire as she poked the ball past McKeon.

With the split games, Tulsa’s record now stands at 12–4–1 (3–3–1 American Athletic Conference).

The Golden Hurricane have two more regular season games on their schedule against East Carolina this Friday afternoon in Greenville, N.C. and in Cincinnati on Sunday afternoon to wrap up conference play.

In the first week of November the women’s team will look to take their first American Athletic Conference title in Dallas, and with it a berth to the NCAA tournament.

Hurricane win on senior night, fall to Huskies Women’s soccer beat the Owls on Thun’s late-game heroics before falling to a top-15 UConn team in their last two home games of the season.

Joseph Edmunds Sports Writer On Thursday night, the Golden Hurricane women’s soccer team welcomed the Temple Owls to town as their opponent on senior night.

The early minutes of the game looked promising for Tulsa, as the Owls had trouble with their passing. However, they quickly fixed that issue, and started to push back to even out the midfield play.

Twenty minutes in, Elana Falcone found herself open on the right half of the Tulsa defense, and was able to chip the ball over goalkeeper Courtney McKeon for a goal from a tough angle, giving the Owls the lead.

The Golden Hurricane had trouble getting their offense going for much of the game,

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Men’s Tennis @ ITA Regionals Men’s Tennis @ ITF Futures

Friday

Volleyball vs. Memphis 3:00 p.m.

Women’s Golf @ Betsy Rawls Invitational Women’s Tennis @ ITA Regionals

: Oct. 19–25

Women’s Golf @ Betsy Rawls Invitational

Men’s Soccer @ SMU 7:00 p.m.

No Events

Women’s Soccer @ East Carolina 6:00 p.m.

Football vs. Memphis 7:00 p.m.

Saturday

Sunday

Volleyball vs. Cincinnati 3:00 p.m.

Men’s Soccer Women’s Soccer @ SMU @ Cincinnati 7:00 p.m.

12:00 p.m.

Women’s Golf @ Palmetto Intercollegiate

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19 October 2015

10/13/15

12:43 PM

The Collegian: 15

tailgate takeover Recycling on campus is now bigger and better than ever!

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Join PepsiCo Recycling at Chapman Commons for the Homecoming game on Friday, Oct. 23 for games, prizes, free samples and to snap pics with Captain Cane!

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CMY

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Remember to recycle your empty bottles and cans, and GO HURRICANE!

19 October 2015

The State-Run Media

the

State-Run media We tell you only what you need to know.

Enrollment in petroleum engineering program drops as oil prices decline The black waves of the oil industry have parted, allowing a mass exodus of petroleum engineering students to finally pursue majors they care about.

James Whisenhunt Believes billions of tiny windmills are the future.

From a consumer standpoint, the recent drop in oil prices has been a blessing. The drop has also been a blessing for Petroleum Engineering students at TU. Enrollment in the Petroleum Engineering program dropped by

94 percent after the recent plunge in oil prices. It seems alarming at first glance, but this shift represents a revelation for many of the program’s students.

While a few of the former PE students simply moved to other branches of engineering, a vast majority saw this as an opportunity to escape from the ENS college once and for all. “I’ve never cared about oil”, confessed new Art History major Marcus Kaiser. He, like many other students formerly in the program, switched majors last semester.

The most popular choices for these refugees include Vocal Performance, Graphic Design and Women’s and Gender Studies.

In addition, many incoming freshmen, originally declaring a PE major while enrolling last Spring, had a last-minute change of heart.

“I was kind of scared after I saw the drop”, freshman William Frantz reports, “but I smiled, looked at my dad, and said ‘Now there’s no reason for me not to major in English.’”

While students are thrilled by their new wealth of opportunities, this shift left the PE program’s professors confused and concerned.

Fluid Properties professor Alan Avara expressed worry that, “these kids are going to end up being hippies living in street tents with their ukuleles.”

Professor Avara may have a point. Tulsa’s Guitar Center saw a 27 percent increase in ukulele sales after the oil drop. The newfound hippies, however, are not concerned. They tell a different story: one of freedom and of choice they never expected to have.

“I’m going to be poor anyway,” noted Eric Marshall, a former PE student now doubling in Philosophy and History. “I might as well do something with less math.”

While the stories of those able to escape are fascinating, a select few brave souls decided to stay in the program.

Scott Hamm, the only surviving PE senior, seems to have found a strange nirvana in knowing that

he is the last of his kind. “I’ve got it all figured out,” Hamm argues.

“Yeah, there are only like four jobs left, but when I graduate, I’ll be the only option! I’m a shoo-in!”

The only freshman PE major, Caleb Hunt, shares a similar sentiment. “There’s a lot of oil right now”, Hunt points out, “but all of that is eventually going to run out, too.” Hunt believes that, by the time he graduates, “the industry will be back to normal and I’ll be the only person able to get that money.”

Whether they’ve decided to follow their dreams or play a long game with the oil industry, the future looks bright for students inside and outside the program.

Reptilians reveal themselves to world, denounce claims that Trump is one of them

Graphic by James Whisenhunt

The lizard people are real, and they want nothing to do with Donald Trump.

Conspiracy theories were confirmed last week as the long-rumored Reptilian race revealed themselves in order to debunk theories that they are in any way involved with Donald Trump’s campaign.

Adam Lux Wears an aluminum helmet at all times.

Last week, while billions were watching their TVs, computers, or mobile devices a strange broadcast cut in all over the earth. The interruption opened with a large reptil-

ian humanoid standing against a dark grey background. The reptilian began speaking in a weird hissing language. A few seconds into the broadcast the humanoid seemed to realize that it could not be understood by its audience. It went off screen for a few seconds then returned and began speaking, apparently, in the native language of whoever was watching.

The creature confirmed many of the beliefs that the informed public has had for years, namely that there is a race of lizard people who live in the hollowed out center of the moon and control almost every aspect of our everyday lives. The

broadcast confirmed that almost all of the world’s most powerful people are actually lizard people in disguise. Obama, Tony Abbott, Bill and Hillary Clinton, the entire Bush family, and Rob Ford were just some of the names the creature listed.

This unsurprising and, quite frankly, melodramatic “reveal” was not the heart of the creature’s message. In a stunning turn of events the creature stated that Donald Trump was NOT a Reptilian Humanoid and had no affiliation with the lizard people whatsoever.

Ever since he announced his

play to run for president, experts have claimed that Trump was a lizard person. His money, power, and demeanor all pointed to him really being an 8 foot humanoid with scales and a tail. Some even went so far as to claim he is the leader of the Reptilians, and that his campaign marked the final step in their plan for world domination.

“The broadcast threw a wrench in almost everyone’s theories,” stated Dr. Holfman, a PhD in malevolent alien races. “It completely changes our perception of both Mr. Trump and the Reptilians.”

The creature went on to criticize Trump’s platform, calling his

political ideas “extreme and illogical.” He described Mr. Trump as a “xenophobic nitwit,” and claimed his hair was “a sentient beast even more malicious than we are.”

Speaking for a moment not as a reporter, but as a person, it did not occur to this reporter before learning this information how much comfort was felt in believing Donald Trump was a lizard person. It put a sort of comfortable distance between him and the average person. But now that it’s been undeniably confirmed that Donald Trump is not a 8 foot scaly humanoid reptile, but rather a human being just like us… this reporter is terrified.

Sentient alien hair frontrunner for Republican presidential nomination The frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination may, in fact, be just a wad of hair pretending to be a human being.

Brook Becker Realizes this isn’t that surprising.

Donald Trump’s campaign abruptly ended when it was dis-

covered that the man, Donald Trump, does not even exist, but is the alias and work of a complex parasite which strongly resembles a toupee.

The parasite appears to be in hot water as it is an illegal alien—not only to the US, but to the entire Milky Way. The Collegian was able to schedule an exclusive interview with the figurehead behind the forehead.

“My real name,” the organism informed the paper, “is unpronounceable by the human tongue.

It would physically pain you to hear it spoken aloud; reading my name would scar your eyes to blindness; it’s fine to feel in braille, but it causes migraines if you try to imagine it.”

When asked about Trump, the follicles responded, “Oh, him?

He’s just a giant flesh puppet with a fake name I came up with. I go

by Harold.”

Harold stated it had “no comment” about the rest of the Trump family.

When asked why an alien organism would hold such a vitriolic opposition to immigration, the being answered, “To be honest, I thought that was obvious. I’m surprised nobody figured that one out, you know? Connected the dots like they do with those huge opponents to same-sex marriage?”

Despite the illegal status as a candidate and potentially dozens of felonies, Harold is still polling above all other Republican candidate.

“I’m not throwing in the towel yet,” Harold declared. “If Ted Cruz can run for president, and Bush Jr. can become president— what’s stopping me?”