25 January 2021

cover by Emma Palmer

A student newspaper of the University of Tulsa

January 25, Issue13 - volume 106

TU navigates COVID-19 testing in the spring, pG. 2 Golden hurricane men’s baskeTball off and runninG, pG. 3 capiTol insurrecTion a producT of Trump and alT-riGhT, pG. 5 “The GreaT GaTsby” enTers public domain, pG. 8

The Collegian: 2

News

25 January 2021

Tulsa navigates COVID-19 in spring semester TU restructures COVID-19 testing while TPS maintains online learning as cases continue to rise locally and nationally.

Joseph Breedlove Student Writer The University of Tulsa has been offering on-campus COVID-19 testing since the beginning of the school year. Students have been getting emails from the Alexander Health Center and have been required to go get tested with IMMY Labs; however, due to reduced funding in the most recent stimulus package, IMMY Labs had to reduce the number of free testing sites they offer. They now only operate at their corporate center in Norman, OK. For the second semester the University of Tulsa will instead be partnering with Certigen. Certigen Laboratory is located in Tulsa on 9309 South Toledo Ave. Certigen Laboratory will be here for a couple months, and will either stay with us or we will find a new laboratory to partner with. When students take this test, the results will get back in 24-48 hours, which is about the same waiting period as students expected with IMMY Labs testing.

Student experiences with COVID-19 testing will be a bit different with Certigen. With IMMY Labs, students were initially able to get drive-thru testing at the Reynolds Center parking lot, where IMMY Labs staff would administer the nose swab test through the car window. Later, due to weather conditions, students instead had to go inside of Lorton Performance Center to have these nose swab tests administered.

With Certigen, students pick up self-administered test kits at the Mcfarlin Library.

Additionally, while IMMY Lab tests were funded by the state, students will have to add insurance information to receive Certigen tests. While TU has committed to paying any costs not covered by insurance for the tests the university requires students

to take when moving back to campus, it is unclear how accessible testing will be after this first wave of testing.

Despite reduced stimulus funding to cities, COVID-19 cases in Tulsa continue to rise each and every day. The Oklahoma Health Department recorded 1,837 new cases, and seven more deaths in the state.

Oklahoma is leading the nation on test positivity. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Oklahoma’s confirmed cases are 358,653, with 3,001 COVID-19 related deaths.

Despite the rising number of cases, the city and state are moving toward increased mitigation efforts through vaccine distribution. The Tulsa Health Department has added 2,714 new appointments for the vaccine.

Tulsa Public Schools have also struggled to navigate the complexities of learning during COVID-19. The TPS board recently voted to push the return to in-person classes from January to March 22. Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has since addressed the Board of Education, urging them to resume in-person learning.

In addition to extending virtual learning, the Board also extended last semester’s deadline to Feb. 5. This allows students to make up all the assignments they have missed until Feb. 5. Extending this deadline allows students to get additional support from parents and teachers and have more time to raise their grades that might have been impacted by struggles to adjust to virtual learning or increased stress during the pandemic. In these unprecedented times, TPS has attempted to balance safety with cultivating a learning environment for kids.

Similarly, TU has maintained several safety measures on campus. In addition to requiring students to quarantine for two weeks before resuming in-person classes, classrooms still enforce social distancing and mask policies. As vaccines become more widely available and the country starts the long process of distributing doses, TPS and TU both remind us of the importance of staying vigilant. Inside and outside of the classroom, remember to wear a mask and wash your hands.

.

tucollegian@tucollegian.com

@TUCollegian @TUCOLLEGIAN

tucollegian@tucollegian.org

editor-in-chief

editor in chief

Justin Guglielmetti

Emily Every

managing editor

managing Raven editor Fawcett

Sara Serrano news editor

Ethan Veenker news editor

Pipersports Prolago editor

Brennen Gray

sports editor

variety editor Zach Short

Emma Palmer

variety editor

commentary editor

Myranda Emily New Every commentary editor satire editor

Justin Klopfer Madison Connell satire&editor photo graphics editor

Conner Maggio Anna Johns

business & advertising

photo & graphics editor manager

Emma BrianPalmer Kwiecinski

media & web businesssocial & advertising manager manager

Mary Emma Bergwell Palmer Sara Serrano

distribution social media & webmanagers manager

Lee Karalia Ha Jacob Huynh Alexander

Jesica Santino and Katelyn copy editor Baker

HanacopySaad editor

Bryant Loney

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 accomodation of disabilities may be addressed to the university’s 504 Coordinator, Dr. Tawny Rigsby, (918)631-3814. To ensure availability of an interpeter, five to seven days notice is needed; 48 hours is recommended for all other accomodations.

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Letter Policy: Letters to the editor must be less than 500 words and can be sent to tucollegian@tucollegian.org. 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 p.m. 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 opions of the Collegian staff, the administrative policies of the University of Tulsa, the views of the student body or our advertisers.

COVID-19 vaccine safe, distribution disorganized Each state is tasked with creating their own plan to administer vaccines as they are cleared for public use.

Piper Prolago News Editor Since becoming available mid-December, more than 19 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered throughout the country. The New York Times reports that about 16.2 million people have received one dose and an additional 2.8 million are fully vaccinated. This includes the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, both of which are mRNA vaccines administered in two doses: the Pfizer doses to be three weeks apart, and the Moderna doses a month apart.

While some citizens have expressed mistrust of the vaccines because of their rapid progression through testing, the testing process did not skip any safety measures and reactions to the vaccine are extremely rare.

As Johns Hopkins researchers have outlined, the testing process progressed much more rapidly than they did for the development of past vaccines based on factors like new technologies (like the mRNA approach) and increased access to research participants who had been exposed to the virus because COVID-19 is so contagious and

widespread. In addition to side effects like soreness at the injection site and headaches that last no longer than two days, some have reported allergic reactions to doses in rare cases—less than seven per million doses.

While both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are administered in two doses, one of the most notable differences between the two is that the Moderna vaccines can be kept in normal freezers and do not require a super-cold transportation network, making them easier to store and transport. Both vaccines use mRNA technologies; they deliver a small piece of SARS-CoV-2 mRNA that teaches the patient’s body to produce the virus’s “spike” protein. This does not create the virus in the patient’s body, but rather triggers an immune response to the spike shape that will in turn function to fight off the virus if the patient is later exposed.

The mRNA approach is distinct from traditional vaccine approaches, which take much longer. In the past, vaccines worked by injecting dead or weakened versions of a virus into the body, which the body would identify and learn to produce immune responses to. Instead, the mRNA approach causes the body to reproduce a single part of the virus, in this case the spike shape. Because of this, the vaccine cannot cause the patient to contract COVID-19 as it does not contain infectious materials. It only triggers the body to produce harmless pieces of the COVID-19 virus. Using this approach, both

the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines have proven about 95 percent effective a month after the second dose, which allows time for the body to wholly develop its immune response to the spike protein.

Distribution of the vaccines is handled by each individual state. The CDC reports that almost 40 million doses of the vaccine (including both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna) have been distributed throughout the country at rates proportional to each state’s population. Oklahoma has used about 58 percent of their 500,000 doses; 6.8 percent of the state’s population has received their first dose and 0.9 percent are fully vaccinated. The vaccine has been distributed in state-determined phases—generally favoring healthcare professionals and individuals in long-term care facilities to be the first recipients.

In Oklahoma, vaccines are currently being distributed to Phase 2 members. If not part of another group such as first responders or healthcare workers, college students will be included in the first group of Phase 3. Oklahoma residents can fill out the COVID-19 Questionnaire at https://vaccinate. oklahoma.gov to receive notification when they are eligible to receive the vaccine.

The United States’s rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine has moved considerably slower than planned. Falling short of the initial plan to distribute 20 million vaccines by the end of 2020, the rollout has been

Vaccines in Oklahoma are set to be distributed in four phases; individuals in phase 2 are currently eligible to recieve the vaccine.

slowed both in distributing the vaccines to states and in administering the shots. Because each state is given guidelines, but no rules, on how to distribute vaccine doses to their citizens, anything from demographic eligibility to confusion about how to administer the vaccine have caused confusion for healthcare providers, hospitals and communities. While states like Texas have reported fewer people signing up to receive the vaccine than expected, some in Florida have waited in lines overnight to receive vaccines on a first-come first-served basis. Due to this confusion, many vaccines have expired before being administered as states struggle to sort out the logistics of their distribution.

President Joe Biden has presented a plan to administer one million shots each day for the first hundred days of his presidency.

Some officials argue that this is not ambitious enough and will continue to leave many doses unused. Biden has also asked Congress for $20 million to expand vaccination centers. Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna have pledged to deliver 200 million doses to the U.S. by the end of March, a rate of approximately 18 million each week. As the country jointly struggles to acquire enough vaccines to distribute to the entire population and states continue to attempt organized and effective distribution, it is imperative that we continue to use safe practices like social distancing and masks to keep ourselves and each other safe.

graphic by Emma Palmer

25 January 2021

Sports

The Collegian: 3

Golden Hurricane Men’s Basketball off and running

Despite losing key games already this season, this year’s Golden Hurricane still appears to be a force not to be trifled with. College basketball analyst Tommy Reid looks at Frank Haith’s team this year and their chances at a conference title.

Playing in an empty Reynolds Center might not have been the first choice for Tulsa’s basketball season this year, but like many things over the past year, the Golden Hurricane is making the best of the situation.

The next game began the best stretch of basketball that the Golden Hurricane has played this season thus far as they beat Northwestern State 82-55 and Memphis 56-49. Following these games, Tulsa had an impressive 102-45 win over Southwest

“As of now, Tulsa is fourth in the American Athletic Conference (AAC) with a record of 8-5 ...”

Losing the opening two games was not the ideal way to begin the season as Tulsa tried to build on the success of last season.

However, this was the way the season began. Despite only losing by a combined total of 16 points, Tulsa dropped the first game of the season against Texas Christian University (TCU) by a score of 70-65 and the second game of the season against the University of South Carolina by a score of 69-58.

The Golden Hurricane bounced back in game three when they beat The University of Texas at Arlington by a score of 79-64 claiming their first win of the then young season. However, after two postponed games, they were unable to continue the winning momentum as they dropped the next game at Wichita State 69-65.

Christian University and then beat the Number 5 ranked University of Houston 65-64 in Tulsa’s greatest feat to speak of yet. Following this Tulsa had two road wins, a 70-66 victory at Cincinnati and a 61-51 win at The University of South Florida. This capped a six-game winning streak for the Golden Hurricane.

After winning six consecutive games, Tulsa traveled to Wichita where they lost again to Wichita State, this time 72-53.

Back at home, Tulsa beat Memphis by one point with a score of 58-57. The next game was in Houston where Tulsa lost 86-59. According to the original schedule, Tulsa was supposed to have a game against Tulane last Saturday, but that was postponed to a later date.

The Collegian’s Fab Five In his own words, sports editor Zach Short ranks his top five NBA teams along with his controversial “hot seat” team, ever keeping his Western Conference bias.

courtesy The University of Tulsa Athletics

As of now, Tulsa is fourth in the American Athletic Conference (AAC) with a record of 8-5 – two and a half games behind Houston and in a position to come back and potentially win the conference. Brandon Rachal has been leading Tulsa with the most points per game at 14.8 points per game, Elijah Joiner has been leading Tulsa with the most assists per game at 3.8 assists per game and Rey Idowu has been leading Tul-

sa with the highest field goal percentage at 55.3 percent.

Going forward from here, Tulsa travels to play Temple on Tuesday at noon and East Carolina University on Saturday at 11:00 AM. The Golden Hurricane return to the Reynolds Center to play the University of South Florida on February 3 at 8:00 PM.

for the better, this spot will likely move to either the Cavaliers or the Knicks — whoever pulls off another unexpected upset next. They may not be top teams, but they

are certainly hot in a way I never expected, especially the Cavs, who just embarrassed the Nets with back to back upsets (if we still can even call them that).

College Football Recap Sports writer Tommy Reid recapitulates drama that preempted and carried through with the two teams to the end.

courtesy Los Angeles Lakers on Twitter

5. Philadelphia 76ers In years past, I would have had this surprisingly retentive squad in and out of my top five throughout the year, and almost always would have ended with them just outside upon entering the postseason. They always look good, but seldom do they make me believe they have what it takes to make a serious title claim. Given this history, I lean toward excluding them now; however, the reinvigorated play coming from Joel Embiid has inspired me. I still do not know how I feel about them as a legitimate Finals option, but I know that with their All-Star post player at potentially his career best, I cannot eliminate them from winning the East and making a run.

4. Los Angeles Clippers When Kawhi Leonard and Paul George first moved to the city of angels, I felt ready to just hand them the trophy. Now, their erratic play — as well as their crosstown rival absolutely destroying everyone in their path — has given me some pause in picking champions early. They have started the season hot, but with Leonard’s unpredictable nature (remember last year’s “load management” games?) and with George’s tag as the most notoriously not-clutch player in the league, they definitely seem better poised to drop to fifth or even out on this list before they jump to third for me.

3. Milwaukee Bucks Yes, the 76ers have started off this year looking a little hotter, but with a more difficult opening schedule (Philadelphia has four wins from Charlotte and a disappointing Washington), this is the Eastern Conference team that scares me the most. Akin to the story of Tantalus, they have a streak of disappointing postseason appearances, but I think this could be the year they make the Finals. 2021 marks the 50th anniversary of Milwaukee’s last and only championship victory, and no city seems hungrier for a win in any sport than this one. Moreover, if they make the Finals and Giannis Antetokoumnpo gets that close to a ring, any Western Conference team has a snowball’s chance in hell to stop him from winning — LeBron or otherwise. Sing, Goddess, Giannis’ rage.

2. Utah Jazz A week ago this team would have sat roughly where Philadelphia does now. Honestly, they might not have even made my list. But with an impressive streak of wins to push them ever close to becoming the best in the west, I toyed this week with placing them first overall. These guys are the real deal in any case, and with the way they have played in their most recent games, I do not know if I can see any team beating them in a series of seven. If Donovan Mitchell can continue to own his game every night, no one would even get a game seven. Look in the coming weeks to see if they can ride their momentum to a top seed, or if they crash and burn to a middle-of-the-road postseason slot.

1. Los Angeles Lakers As reigning champions, sitting atop the Western Conference with two top Vegas choices for MVP candidates, I would be a fool right now to place this squad anywhere else on the list. All of their losses look like flukes, and no team has deconstructed them enough where I could believe LeBron would not follow their next matchup with a Jordan-esque embarrassment. Unless they meet a fiery Milwaukee in the Finals, the only teams that could stop them come from across their own city and just a few states over in Utah. Yet, if the Clippers cannot refine their superstars’ play and if Utah loses any of its momentum, look for a repeat of last year’s festivities and yet another ring for this decade’s defining player.

Hot Seat: Brooklyn Nets With all the hype, I feel an obligation to write about this team here. Reverting back to Big Three style team-building not perfected since LeBron’s departure from Miami, they play a risky game. More than that, they do so without a post presence coming from any of the three. They can win big games, but with the noted selfishness of all three of their big names and their complete and utter lack of any depth whatsoever, they sit on thin ice in regard to losing this spot. If they trade Kyrie for a better team’s entire bench, they might get the chance to move into the top five. But, if they do not make a change

courtesy of Wikimedia

Before the NCAA college football season even began, it appeared doubtful that it could happen at all. Talks of canceling the season, postponing games and testing all the players multiple times a week brought on speculation that the season would not make it to the playoffs or potentially last

The Rose Bowl was the second of the playoff games held, and in this game the Buckeyes beat the Tigers 49-28. All the scoring in the game came from touchdowns and extra points. Clemson took an initial 14-7 lead, but after this, they found themselves unable to retake the lead. Justin Fields com-

“Alabama Quarterback Mac Jones threw for 464 yards and five touchdowns in the game.” more than a few weeks; however, with the Alabama Crimson Tide playing the Ohio State Buckeyes in the 2021 National Championship Game, we can see that the NCAA had successfully kept a football season alive during challenging times.

After the regular season finished on Dec. 20, 2020, the pairing for the College Football Playoff (CFP) was determined: the number one seed Alabama would play number four seed Notre Dame in the Rose Bowl, and the number two seed Clemson would play number three seed Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl. With these games set, only one thing

pleted 22 of his 28 passes and threw for 385 yards to give Ohio State the convincing win and send them to the National Championship game.

The 2021 National Championship took place on Jan. 11, 2021 as the number one Alabama Crimson Tide competed against the number three Ohio State Buckeyes. After scoring a touchdown on their opening drive, and regaining the lead twice after Ohio State tied the game, Alabama never fell behind in this game. Alabama quarterback Mac Jones threw for 464 yards and five touchdowns in the game. For the sixth time in the past 12

“Justin Fields completed 22 of his 28 passes and threw for 385 yards ...” remained that needed changing. Due to the state of the pandemic in California, the Rose Bowl broke from its traditional location and moved from its home in Pasadena, California to Arlington, Texas.

The Sugar Bowl game was the first of the playoff games held, and in this game the Crimson Tide beat the Fighting Irish 3114. Alabama never trailed in this game as quarterback Mac Jones had an 83 percent completion rate throwing for 297 yards and completing four touchdown passes to give the Crimson Tide the win. Devante Smith caught three of these passes and, including his other catches, had seven receptions for a total of 130 yards.

seasons, the Alabama Crimson Tide were the National Champions.

After the end of the game, speaking about winning the Championship game again, Alabama coach Nick Saban said, “To me this is the ultimate team. There is more togetherness on this team than on almost any team we’ve ever had. They’ve had to overcome and to persevere so much through this season, and they have done it magnificently.”

While it is too early to know what will happen next season, Alabama is definitely a team to keep an eye on as they try to win their seventh Championship in the past 13 seasons.

Sports

The Collegian: 4

25 January 2021

Looking Back on an impressive year of Tulsa Football After one of the team’s better seasons in recent history, the future seems to be looking up for Golden Hurricane football. College football writer Tommy Reid looks back on a year of upsets and comebacks.

The referees quickly stopped this; however, it foreshadowed what would later come.

While Tulsa never led the entire game, Deneric Prince had a 14-yard touchdown rush, Corey Taylor II had a 5-yard touchdown rush, Keylon Stokes had a 15-yard reception touchdown from Zach Smith and Zach Long made two field goals.

Unfortunately, all this was overshadowed by what happened after the game was finished. Moments after both teams met at midfield, a brawl began. This time, it was much larger than what happened before the game began. Many players from both teams began fighting, and it took coaches from both teams as well as game security officers stepping in to separate the two teams.

standpoint, our guys are going to continue to protect each other and go from there.”

Even though Tulsa lost its last two games of the season, there were many players on the team who had a phenomenal season. One of those players was Zaven Collins, a defensive linebacker. Most recently, he won the Chuck Bednarik award. In addition to this award, he also won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and first team All-American honors from the Associated Press, Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), The Sporting News, CBS Sports, Walter Camp Foundation, Pro Football Focus, Phil Steele Magazine and the Atlantic.

Despite losing the last two games of the

photo by Noah Weber

With their best season in the recent past, TU finished their football season during Christmas break. Their success even earned them a spot in the American Athletic Conference Championship and the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl game.

The Golden Hurricane finished the regular season with a record of 6-2 — their best record since 2016. They had wins against the then #11 ranked University of Central Florida (UCF) with a score of 34-26, The University of South Florida (USF) with a score of 42-13, East Carolina University (ECU) with a score of 34-30, the then #19 ranked Southern Methodist University (SMU) with a score of 28-24, Tulane with a score of 30-24 and Navy with a score of 19-6. Ther two losses came against the then #11 ranked Oklahoma State University with a score of 16-7 and the then #9 ranked Cincinnati with a score of 27-24 in the conference championship.

It was a rainy night when the Cincinnati Bearcats hosted the Tulsa Golden Hurricane

in the AAC Championship Game. Despite Cincinnati being the higher ranked team and getting out to a 10-0 lead at the end of the first quarter, Tulsa came back in the second quarter and tied the game at 10 points each when Zach Long kicked a 43-yard field goal and Corey Taylor II had a 10-yard touchdown rush. Twice more, Cincinnati took the lead, but Tulsa came right back and tied the game both times. However, this was not enough as Cincinnati kicked a field goal as time expired and won the game by a score of 27-24. After the game, as Philip Montgomery was speaking to the media, he said, “I couldn’t be more proud of our guys. Left it all out there on the field, made plays. We’re going to fight for 60 minutes, every second of it. We did that again tonight.”

Despite losing the AAC championship game, Tulsa still punched their ticket to a bowl game where they played the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl. Before the game, a small fight occurred between the two teams.

photo by Noah Weber

This left a bad mark on what was an otherwise normal football game. After the game, Montgomery had this to say about what happened: “The one thing I’ll say is our program, our guys, we’re a team that are going to stand up for each other, and we’re going to battle. We talk about faith, family, football and family’s going to take care of family. We’re a team that has battled all year long. We battled again today. From that

season, because of Zaven Collins and many other players, Tulsa still had a great season and will look to build on this in the upcoming college football season.

Can the new superteam Brooklyn Nets do it all?

While the Nets have certainly received their fair share of hype, not everyone is positive they have what it takes to make an impressive run. NBA writer Joseph Breedlove looks into what works — and what doesn’t — with basketball’s newest superteam.

courtesy Brooklyn Nets on Twitter

The Brooklyn Nets, an Eastern Conference NBA team, acquired Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant last season. These two NBA All Stars are normally able to dominate the league, but unfortunately Kevin Durant had to sit out the whole last season due to an achilles injury, and Kyrie Irving suffered a season-ending injury to the right shoulder and which eventually required surgery. Despite all that, the Nets still ended up making the postseason in the bubble. Losing in the first round to the Philadelphia 76ers, the Nets had much to look forward to knowing Irving and Durant would return for the next season.

For the 2020-2021 season, the Brooklyn Nets are finally healthy and potentially ready to contend for a NBA Championship.

Along with these two superstars, the Nets came across another elite player in the NBA — James Harden. People may become quick to wonder if this new superteam is unfair, having three All Stars on one team, but having three All Stars may become a problem.

In past years, so-called superteams have come about, but this one appears like no other. The new big three comprises the accolade-filled Kyrie Irving, a former number one overall draft pick, a six-time All Star and also a NBA champion; Kevin Durant, another former number one overall draft pick, a two time NBA champion, a two time NBA Finals Most Valuable Player, NBA Most Valuable Player, a four time NBA scoring champion, NBA Rookie of the Year and a ten time All Star; and, last but not least, James Harden, a two time NBA minutes leader, a NBA assists leader, a three time NBA scoring leader and a two time NBA three-point field goals leader.

With accomplishments like these between these three players, they seem unstoppable. Each player can score at ease, however and whenever. That being said, having all these All Stars on a team may affect the team’s chemistry or diminish a certain player from scoring the amount of points that they should be scoring. Kevin Durant and James Harden have played to-

gether on a team before with the Thunder, but adding Kyrie Irving in the mix may be a different story, and someone may end up having a lesser role.

The coach of the Nets, Steve Nash will have to come up with a gameplan to be able to involve all three of these All Stars and still be successful. The Eastern Conference is the weaker between the two conferences, so the Nets will have a great chance of winning the Eastern Conference finals if they are able to play with each other.

This super team has not been able to play much with each other yet, however, because of Kyrie Irving sitting out a couple of the games. Their first game together, Jan. 20 against the Cavaliers, did not end well for the Nets, with a score of 147-135 in favor of Cleveland in double OT. Harden played 51 minutes and had 21 points, Durant played 50 minutes and had 38 points, and Irving played 48 minutes and had 37 points. That was the first time they played together, so they have time to build some chemistry, but for now the super team begins 0-1 together.

Correction: Last week, the Collegian published a week ahead in sports scheduling, as well as omitting the week’s Tuesday game and naming the wrong team for Friday evening’s Men’s tennis match. The week listed below is now both current and amended to show the events correctly. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Jan. 25 - Jan. 31 Monday

Tuesday 25

none

Wednesday 26

M Basketball @ Temple 12 p.m.

Thursday 28

27

none

Friday

Saturday 29

Sunday

30

31

M Tennis Illinois St 11 a.m.

M Basketball @ ECU 11 a.m.

M Tennis Omaha 12 p.m.

M Tennis Oral Roberts 6 p.m

W Basketball @ ECU 2:30 p.m.

W Tennis Kansas 12 p.m.

none

Commentary

25 January 2021

The Collegian: 5

A $15 minimum wage is necessary to respond to COVID represents a gradual decrease in the value of the minimum wage since the 1960s. This also doesn’t take into account the rising productivity of labor. If the minimum wage mirrored inflation and rising productivity since 1968, it would be well over $20.

Currently, the Department of Health and Human Services places the poverty line at earning under $12.60 per hour. As Presi-

The minimum has been far too low for far too long, and COVID is only exacerabating the problem.

Justin Klopfer Commentary Editor As he begins his presidential tenure, Joe Biden’s main focus is helping Americans through the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. One of the ways Biden has begun this process is by increasing the minimum hourly wage for federal contractors to $15. Biden has also expressed support for increasing the national minimum wage to this amount for all workers. This increase has been sorely needed for many years, and the pandemic is only the latest reason for the urgency of this proposal.

The current minimum wage in the U.S. is $7.25 per hour. It has remained at this number since 2009. Adjusting for inflation, this

nomic consequences it could bring. People warn of increases in the cost of goods and the loss of jobs. As far as goods increasing goes, nations like Denmark have an average minimum wage of around $20 — minimum wages are negotiated through unions so it differs by industry — and products there are only slightly more expensive than the same products in America.

companies also often use wages a bit above the minimum wage as a hiring tool while fervently fighting unionization. Raising the minimum wage not only delivers immediate help to desperate Americans in this crisis, it represents a vital step in advancing the power of working people.

“National welfare spending ... is essentially subsidizing the wages of employees ...” dent Biden himself said, “no one [...] should work 40 hours aweek making below the poverty line.” Raising the minimum wage to $15 would ensure anyone who puts in the nationally accepted amount of weekly work would receive the wages they need to live a decent life.

The fact is, when workers are earning wages under the poverty line, they will turn to the government for help. National welfare spending like Medicaid is essentially subsidizing the wages of employees at McDonald’s, who could never afford health insurance on their pitiful wages. The ultrarich multinational corporations can afford to compensate their workers fairly and adequately without the support of these welfare programs.

The most common argument against raising the minimum wage involves the eco-

As for the loss of jobs, many top economists don’t seem worried, with over half supporting an increase. Minimum wage increases in the past have shown minimal if any impact on employment levels. The only possibly vulnerable sector is small businesses, particularly in low-income areas. However, it is hard to justify a business existing if it doesn’t have the capability to pay its workers enough to survive. If it was really necessary, perhaps the government could supplement the wages of these workers.

During the pandemic, billionaires have added hundreds of billions of dollars to their fortunes while average Americans have faced financial destitution. This kind of inequality is what keeps workers bonded to their low-paying jobs. If one worker quits in frustration, there are always plenty of others ready to take their $7.25 an hour. Larger

Adjusted for inflation, the minimum wage has never again reached the heights it did in 1968.

courtesy Wikimedia Commons Despite being the richest country in the world, America’s minimum wage is well below many other nations’.

courtesy Statista

Insurrection at the Capitol shows the Alt-right isn’t alright QAnon, a viral and insidious conspiracy whose members make up a considerable amount of Trump’s supporters, was present en masse. The signs, flags and clothing bearing the QAnon logo, or belonging to their merch collections were simply impossible to miss. These symbols seem harmless enough, but it only gets worse.

It was also easy to spot the right-wing militias of the Oath keepers and the Three Per-

Far-right forces were behind the attack, and Trump motivated them.

Brayden McCoy Student Writer On Jan. 6, 2020, an inexcusable attack was made on the principles of American Democracy by the supporters of the 45th President of the United States. The U.S. Capitol was last breached in 1812, but that changed on the sixth as an estimated minimum of 1,000 fervent insurrections broke into the Capitol. Some even held delusions of revolution, upholding democracy or taking down a satanic cabal of pedophiles. As ridiculous as that last bit sounds, it holds true all the same.

The symbols paraded on the flags, signs and clothing of the insurrectionists varied some, but there were recurring themes.

The most common was MAGA gear, which could be seen in the thousands on the Trump supporters inside and outside the Capitol.

The groups behind these symbols all shared a strong — and certifiably false — conviction that the election was stolen from Trump.

unforgivably sobering symbols serve as two reminders: that anti-semitism is still a problem in the U.S., and those who stormed the capitol were of a wicked mindset and intention, no matter how right they think they were.

The support and money chains behind the riot are long and complex, and the FBI is investigating the funding from domestic and foreign sources. The planning however, was

“The signs, flags and clothing bearing the QAnon logo ... were simply impossible to miss.” centers. These groups share a strong distrust for the government, love for guns and idolize Trump. Many were carrying the Gadsden flag, a flag from the time of the American Revolution that reads “Don’t Tread on Me.” The Gadsden flag has patriotic origins and has been adopted by militias and extremist groups across the country and by those who define themselves as “Anti-Government.”

Speaking of flags, for the first time in the history of the U.S., the confederate battle flag was flown inside our Capitol. Regardless of one’s political affiliation or beliefs, the fact that the flag of traitors was touted through our capitol so freely should be utterly infuriating. The confederate battle flag is a well-documented and obvious symbol of white supremacy, and has been for many years. Its presence in the riots highlighted the extent to which Trump’s racist rhetoric has enabled the worst among us, while deluding countless Americans.

Also present at the riot were anti-semitic symbols, of which there were at least three types present in multiple instances. These

mostly done online through sites like 4chan and TheDonald, plus the far-right social media platform Parler. However, a majority of the people joining the riots came from protests and rallies held earlier in the day or the day before and were incited by prominent

republican figures, including Donald Trump and Don. Jr. From approximately 1 p.m. to 2:15 p.m., the insurrectionists clashed with the very police they were backing so desperately just earlier in 2020. They beat capitol police, even killing one, and breached the capitol through multiple entrances. The building wasn’t declared safe until about three hours later. From there, Trump was impeached for the second time on Jan. 13, in the most bipartisan impeachment in U.S. history. This event has to serve to the public as a grave reminder of the danger of politicians like Trump, with the ability and charisma to create such a cult following. A group so assured of their righteousness while allowing members amongst themselves to hold such contemptible racist, supremacist, xenophobic and generally divisive stances with impunity.

courtesy Anuska Sampedro/ Creative Commons The insurrection on the Capitol occured on Jan. 6, 2021

Commentary

The Collegian: 6

25 January 2021

Trump’s pardons of Blackwater mercenaries reveal unaccountability

Our actions abroad are never held to any moral standard, especially when done through private militias.

Justin Klopfer Commentary Editor Trump’s lame duck period was surprisingly calm policy-wise, with no large disruptions to the status quo of his administration.

The now-ousted president did, however, unleash a series of final pardons for various Americans. Much of the news coverage around these pardons have focused on figures close to the Trump administration like Roger Stone and Stephen Bannon. However, one group of pardon recipients seemed to slip out of the news quite quickly: the perpetrators of the Nisour Square Massacre.

The Nisour Square Massacre was a 2007 incident in Iraq led by several mercenaries employed by Blackwater Security Consult-

The pardons should, of course, be condemned by anyone with any regard for human rights. The American government should have no right to be the arbitrator of crimes committed in a foreign country. Even if America did have this right, the massacre was a monstrously ravaging crime and its perpetrators deserve full accountability for their actions. However, we shouldn’t view it in a vacuum; these four guards were far from the only American murderers in Iraq.

The incident and its conclusions are a sobering reminder of how little accountability there is for America’s actions abroad.

Blackwater mercenaries weren’t held accountable to the law of Iraq; they could only be tried for crimes by the American justice

“The American

government should have no right to be the arbitrator of crimes committed in a foreign country.”

lengthy sentences for voluntary manslaughter. All four convictions were pardoned by Trump on Dec. 22. The administration offered that one of Iraqi investigators had “ties to insurgent groups” as a reason for the pardon. More information on this investigator isn’t given, and it seems unlikely that the actual events in question are different than they previously appeared. The administration is just giving cover for these completely baseless exonerations.

system. Mercenary groups like Blackwater went against a UN convention and a protocol of the Geneva Conventions, but neither were signed by the US. About 2,500 American troops still control bases in Iraq, despite a unanimously passed resolution in the Iraqi Council of Representatives to expel all foreign troops a year ago.

The motivations for these actions, at all levels, can be traced profit. The individual mercenaries were being paid about $800 per day of work. Blackwater itself was the re-

cipient of highly lucrative government contracts and is now controlled by Leon Black, worth over $8 billion. The planners of the Iraq War itself were always focused on profiteering as well, with Vice President Dick Cheney securing the oil interests in the region for his previous company Haliburton.

America’s actions also reflect its general philosophy of imperialism that goes deeper than just greed. The media’s unabashed support for the Iraq War, from both liberal and conservative outlets, came without any direct promise of profit. The American people, cajoled by lies from politicians and the intelligence community, viewed themselves as moral warriors crushing weak, democracy-hating Saddam. Average citizens’ enthusiasm came from finding something to feel proud of in the face of declining prosperity in their country.

As Biden’s Presidential term begins, a shift away from this violent profiteering and jingoistic outlook seems unlikely. Biden’s Secretary of Defense, General Lloyd Austin, helped lead the invasion of Iraq and later worked for defense contractor Raytheon Technologies. Biden has already hinted at ramping up presence in Iraq in response to terror attacks — attacks by groups, of course, that only came to prominence after American intervention. Military or mercenary, Republican or Democrat, imperialism always remains hegemonically unquestioned in America.

courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Tropps Deployed

Nisour Square in 2010, with a memorial on the left.

ing. A four-truck convoy was attempting to clear traffic out of the Square when a car failed to stop at the directions of the guards.

The mercenaries then open-fired on the driver, killing him instantly. The car continued to creep forward, and the shooting continued, killing the dead driver’s mother.

Blackwater continued shooting at everyone in sight, killing 17 and wounding 20, including multiple children. An FBI evidence response team deployed to Iraq was unable to find forensic evidence of the Blackwater team receiving any fire during the incident.

Several convictions resulted from the following trials, including a life sentence given to Nicholas Slatten, the initial shooter, for first-degree murder. Three others were given

Troops in Iraq over time.

courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Variety

25 January 2021

The Collegian: 7

The ever dazzling “Bridgerton”

Taking the internet by storm as a fun and merry series, “Bridgerton” has much to enjoy and appreciate as your next binge watch.

Julianne Tran Student Writer There is much to say, much to love and much to raise your brows when we’re talking Netflix’s “Bridgerton.” You may not need an introduction to this show; it seems to have taken the online world by storm.

Nevertheless, I might as well give you one. As the first show emerging from Shonda Rhimes’s mega-deal with Netflix, the mere background information of this show precedes it. While I have little experience with “Grey’s Anatomy” or “Scandal,” just hearing about a Rhimes’s production fills me with excitement and hope for some exciting, female-centric TV. To make prospects even better, “Bridgerton” brings Julia Quinn’s romance novel series to your glittering at-home screens, depicting Daphne Bridgerton, the Duke of Hastings, her large, alphabetically named family and many, many more during the illustrious season of courtships in high society.

All-in-all, I came away from this show (which I admit to finishing in three days) feeling merry, light and wanting to live in Regency-era London, attending balls and fearing gossip-columnists. Simply put, it was pure fun to live within the “Bridgerton”

world for a few (hours long) moments. Especially as I watched this show at the turn of 2020 to a new year, it was a lovely respite from the heaviness of our recent times.

The dresses were ravishing, the people were beautiful, the characters were lively and the problems were distant, with just a touch of absurdity and low-stakes. “Bridgerton” was an overall blissful experience of escapism and trivial sincerity.

ety) of the show’s production and point of view. As a little warning, the latter half of the show’s episodes contain many brow-raising, rosy-cheeked scenes. Without divulging too much, I salute “Bridgerton” for taking a prominent female perspective throughout the entirety of the show. This female gaze rids of the ever odious objectification of women that we are far too accustomed to in modern television.

This all to say, “Bridgerton” is not a spotless watch. Nevertheless, it is fun, sparkling and gleeful. If romance novels are your jam, if Shonda Rhimes produced your favorite comfort watch, if you love period pieces or if you’re just looking for some lighter, glossy TV, I would recommend “Bridgerton.” If not, well, maybe watch the trailer and decide for yourself.

“ ... it was pure fun to live within the “Bridgerton” world for a few moments.”

I especially appreciate “Bridgerton” for its romance novel roots, a genre that is typically cast aside as “guilty pleasure” reading, as if people should feel ashamed to enjoy reading a romance novel. Coming from a genre which is often ridiculed in the same way that anything largely supported by girls is minimized as frivolous, “Bridgerton” emboldens that perceived frivolity and legitimizes romance as something worthwhile and worthy of Netflix-sized budgets. More than anything, “Bridgerton” allows audiences to simply enjoy the romance, the giddiness and lavishness for what it is.

Beyond this, I also appreciated the distinct female gaze (and many conversations about women’s role and constraints in soci-

Of course, these positive notes do not mean that “Bridgerton” is without its faults.

Despite its seemingly colorblind casting, this show attempts to take on the conversation of race but is far from sticking the landing. With its great many characters, character arcs and complicated intertwinings, there leaves little room for a well-developed undertaking of race and diversity. (However, I’ll admit that I didn’t enter the shimmering world of “Bridgerton’’ with expectations for heavy topics and effective handlings.)

Moreover, there is one questionable scene regarding consent in the latter half of the show that I first overlooked because I had skipped through it, being jaded from many the intimate scenes.

courtesy IMDb “Bridgerton” has been confirmed for a second season.

Disney’s Pixar releases “Soul” on Disney+

A story about finding your passion in life, the highly anticipated “Soul” is an emotional and beautiful film for everyone to see.

Iris Ramirez Student Writer Music educators are faced with many challenges in their career, but one of the hardest decisions a musician of any kind can make is to give up performing their instrument to teach others the joys of playing music. The idea of quitting your “day job” to follow your dreams is something that seems easier said than done, but what would happen if your life just stopped, and you hadn’t done the things you loved? The movie “Soul” from Disney’s Pixar captures the importance of spending your life pursuing your dreams and finding your purpose.

The movie starts off with middle school band teacher Joe Gardner directing his band students as they struggle getting through a jazz piece. After a rough few seconds of rehearsal, the principal interrupts Joe to offer him a full time teaching position, which Joe feels reluctant about accepting. Joe later gets an opportunity to play with one of his musician idols, Dorothea Williams, and is so distracted by his excitement, he accidentally walks into a hole from a construction site.

From then on, Joe finds himself in another realm called “the great beyond and youth seminar” and while trying to return back to earth, ends up learning what it means to have a purpose in life.

Disney uses warm tones in scenes that take place on earth and light pastels when entering the other realm, giving the film a dynamic color story. It is also clear throughout the movie that each character has their own style of movement and uses their way of moving even when they are taking the place of another character (yes, characters do switch bodies). Another notable aspect to the movie is the soundtrack. The movie has a nice variety in musical selection, and the jazz scenes really stand out.

Disney also brings more attention to difficult social areas such as the life of a working class Black family and the hardships of being a musician and educator. The topics that come up throughout the movie not only create a more relatable story line for its audience, but shine a light on the difficulties those people face daily. The movie does a great job at showing how difficult pursuing a dream may be, but when a person is passionate about it, the money will soon follow.

The movie “Soul” has now become a movie I will one day proudly watch with my kids as I teach them the importance of following their dreams. Though the movie touches on heavier subjects, it fills in the cracks with simple humor that is sure to make any child and adult laugh. My favorite scene from the movie is undoubtedly when a counselor from “the great beyond” realm is calming down their students using a dogshaped hand signal and calls out “quiet coyote.” This movie will inspire you to pursue your dreams and accomplish goals while also motivating you in your day-to-day life.

“Soul” can be found on Disney+ for all subscribers to watch.

courtesy IMDb

Like all Pixar movies, be sure to take time to find all of the hidden easter eggs.

Upcoming Campus Events Emma P.

I just finished the last volume of “Akira” this week — it was interesting to see the origins of a classic that influenced a gajillion cartoonists and animators. If you like sci-fi, people yelling and kids with bowl cuts, this is the one for you.

Zach S.

I just finished my first Mary Renault book with “Bull From the Sea” and absolutely fell in love with her as an author. “The King Must Die” technically precedes it, but as all her books Myranda N. cover Greek stories of myth, one can I have started rereading “The Night start anywhere.

Circus” by Erin Morgenstern, a novel I have not read since junior high school, and I forgot how magical it was. The writing is exquisite, the im- Justin K. agery is beautiful and you cannot help I’ve been finishing up Vincent Bevbut to get so wrapped up in the fantas- ins’s “The Jakarta Method,” which is mainly a recounting of Indonesian tical plot. history from 1950 through the 1960’s.

The elimination of the Communist Emily E. Party in the country is a rarely-told “Return to Center” is an album made story in most media outlets, and Beventirely on a free-trial of garageband, ins’s book seems to be the best reand I’ve been super into it recently. Its counting of it yet written. thriftiness doesn’t stop it from being a genuinely good set of songs, and I look forward to what Kirin J. Callinan does next.

courtesy @utulsa Instagram

Monday, Jan. 25

Join Rita Howell every Monday at noon for Cardio Blast Mondays, a great way to exercise despite the chilly January weather.

Tuesday, Jan. 26

The Center for Global Engagement will be hosting an International Trivia Night over Zoom at 7 p.m. for all who are interested in participating.

Thursday, Jan. 28

The highly anticipated PowerPoint Night hosted by Student Services will be held as this week’s Hurricane Thursday at 7 p.m. over Zoom, where students have 5 minutes to share wacky presentation topics.

Friday, Jan. 29

CaneCareers will be hosting one of their first events for the semester with Why Williams, a talk on why Williams would be a good company to work at. This event will be hostProfessor Tom Seng will be dis- ed on Zoom at noon, and all particicussing over Zoom at 7 p.m. the so- pants will be entered into a drawing lar power and wind energy project for an iPad. to install in the Andes of Peru.

Variety

The Collegian: 8

25 January 2021

“The Great Gatsby” enters public domain With the great American novel entering public domain, readers can expect countless retellings to be published in these upcoming months.

Madison Walters Student Writer “The Great Gatsby” exists as one of the great American novels. Since 1925, people have devoured the story of the extravagant millionaire Jay Gatsby. However, starting this year, a surge of retellings of “The Great Gatsby” will begin to see the light of day because the novel has finally entered public domain.

To enter public domain, copyrighted works must be more than 95 years old.

Books, though most commonly thought about, are not the only work to hit public

domain. Songs, albums, movies and other copyrighted materials also enter public domain at the age of 95, so long as the material was released before 1978. Copyrighted works released after 1978 hit public domain 70 years after the death of the author. Materials can be remade before entering public domain; however, the adapter must pay a fee and ask permission. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” and Virginia Woolf’s “Mrs. Dalloway” are the two most wellknown works to enter public domain this year.

Many authors have already taken advantage of the opportunity to reinvent this beloved story. One such person is K. Woodman-Maynard, who has adapted “The Great Gatsby” into a graphic novel. This adaptation finally provides a more accessible version of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel. Maynard skillfully chose watercolor as her medium for creating the graphic novel. This allowed

her to artfully bring the many beautiful, visual descriptions to life.

Another retelling of “Gatsby” that will be sure to delight fans is “The Gay Gatsby.”

B.A. Baker has created a queer retelling of the beloved story. The synopsis of the book, as per Goodreads, is “The Gay Gatsby is a remix of the timeless classic that takes everything we thought we knew and shatters it — with love.”

Next up we have “Jay the Great” by Benjamin Frost. This adaptation is different as it exists as a modern retelling of the classic novel. According to Goodreads, the novel follows Dominick, a college freshman, who leaves the midwest to earn his degree on the East Coast. As the semester wears on, Dominick finds himself right in the middle of a “web of drama.” This novel is also unique as it diversifies the world of “Gatsby.”

Another adaptation is “The Great Gatsby Undead” by Kristen Briggs. Although this

With “The Great Gatsby” entering public domain on New Years Day, it is exciting to see retellings already in line to be published.

novel is not written by the same author, its description is reminiscent of the horror retelling of “Pride and Prejudice,” “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.” In this new version of “Gatsby,” the titular character has one remarkable difference from the original Jay Gatsby: Gatsby is a vampire, and he’s hungry for blood.

Finally, we have “Nick” by Michael Farris Smith. “Nick” exists as a prequel to “The Great Gatsby.” This novel follows Nick Carraway before he moves to West Egg. Specifically, this novel depicts his role in World War I and the effects of the war on his person. “Nick” has already received much buzz even though it was just released at the beginning of January.

These five adaptations are just the beginning. The flood gate has opened for authors to retell this classic story in any way they desire. With so many retellings, there is surely something to please everyone.

courtesy Woodman-Maynard

“Cyberpunk 2077”: only a glitch in the system From game-breaking glitches to poor graphics and an empty world, “Cyberpunk 2077” has certainly not lived up to its decade-long hype.

Zach Sabel Student Writer No game has ever gotten me, and the rest of the gaming planet, so hyped for a new intellectual property. “Cyberpunk 2077” had all the tell-tale signs of a game that would somehow exceed its already skyhigh expectations. Coming from the studio that brought us the critically acclaimed “Witcher 3,” it felt like anything CD Projekt Red made would be golden. Announced almost 10 years ago and in development since 2016, this game had more time to excel than most games get. In the end, it became sadly clear that it was a game built on lies, overpromises and countless missed deadlines.

But how did things go so wrong for such a prestigious development team?

“Cyberpunk 2077” takes place in a futuristic(ish) California megacity that’s been taken over by the mega-corporations of the world. Crime is rampant in this world as citizens do just about whatever they need to do to survive. You play as V, with the option to choose from one of three starting “backgrounds.” In the end, these have no bearing on the game and only serve as short tutorial missions before dumping you into the world and its main story. However, out of the three backgrounds of Nomad,

Corpo and Street kid, Nomad is by far the strongest and most enjoyable of the tutorials. Nomad sets you in the deserts outside of Night City. You are given a contract to transport cargo into Night City. Everything that could go wrong goes wrong, but you meet your partner in crime in Night City and an amazing character in the story named Jackie Welles. Characters are where “Cyberpunk” shows glimmers of promise. Characters like Jackie Welles, Delamain, Panam, Goro and especially Johnny Silverhand (voiced by the always brilliant Keanu Reeves) amongst others really stand out and make the story something special. While the main quest is good, the side quests are great. They provide this often-barren world with the occasional reason to actually explore.

ics. Bullets leave no impact on water, which may seem like a small thing, but this is something that games from almost 20 years ago were able to achieve. Blunt weapons often will not dent cars, which again is something much older games achieved on much weaker devices. The game doesn’t do service to the genre of “Cyberpunk.” As many have noted, it feels more like a cyberpunklite 80s fanfic.

The game world is so empty. There are hardly any random action events, and when they happen, it lasts a few seconds at most.

There are no real stores to visit and no houses to buy as previously promised. It’s an enormous world, I can give them that, but I think many gamers would rather have a real truly populated world instead of this barren

“... it feels more like a cyberpunklite ‘80s fanfic.”

The story and its quests are just about the only positive I can really say for the game.

It looks dated, feels dated, has no real intelligent AI and has an unacceptable amount of game-breaking bugs and glitches. The looks are something straight out of a low-budget 360 title, with models looking cartoony, and very far from what we know is capable of hardware today. It would be forgivable if not for the also dated physics and AI. An example of poor or no physics is bullet phys-

“Cyberpunk 2077” is playable on Xbox, PlayStation and PC systems.

world with awful AI. The AI in the game is non-existent. Shoot your gun and NPCs run maybe a few feet before all crouching in the same pose. Police often don’t respond to attacks on other NPCs or themselves, and when they do, the police simply pop in behind you endlessly until you drive away in a straight line. This lack of AI or depth in the open world is something that games for years have had, and it’s really unacceptable to promise fans such a vast, living, open

world only to give them this. Hopefully, they can find some way to remedy these errors through updates.

The most egregious aspect of the game is the glitches. They are rampant, (at the time of writing this, the first major patch has been released which is supposed to have fixed many glitches, but these are observations before the said patch) sometimes these glitches create humorous moments, but they happen so often, they just become annoying, and many other glitches can often be game-breaking. For example, while playing on Stadia, I repeatedly encountered a gamebreaking glitch that would prevent me from using weapons in my inventory. This glitch happened over and over, even after contact with support and following their recommendations. Another major bug I’ve heard about is the save file bug. Apparently, if the user’s save file goes over 8MB, it becomes corrupted and unplayable.

Graphical rendering has also been a nightmare for Xbox One and PS4 owners. The games at times have looked like something out of the ‘90s. A lot of blocky textures and slow rendering of textures hampers the experience for a lot of players. Luckily, nextgen and PC users should not have this issue.

Overall, while CDPR continues its legacy of amazing writing and characters, the same cannot be said for every other aspect of the game. At its current price of $60, I can’t recommend anyone go out and buy it. I honestly wouldn’t pay $30 for this game in its current state. As a lover of the genre, I truly hope CDPR can fix this mess.

courtesy Steam

25 January 2021

Variety

The Collegian: 9

“Heaven is a Place, This is a Place” recently released To mark the end of Frank Iero’s solo career, “Heaven is a Place, This is a Place” delivers a powerful goodbye to fans.

Madison Walters Student Writer Frank Iero and the Future Violents recently released their newest EP, “Heaven is a Place, This is a Place.” Frank Iero and the Future Violents is a band made up of Frank Iero, Evan Nestor, Kayleigh Goldsworthy, Matt Armstrong and Tucker Rule. “Heaven is a Place, This is a Place” has a tracklist of four songs.

In an interview with Alternative Press, Frank Iero stated that this EP contains the final songs recorded by the Future Violents.

With My Chemical Romance’s impending tour, COVID-19 allowing, this EP marks the end of an era for Iero as he has continuously released music throughout My Chemical Romance’s hiatus. Regardless, “Heaven is a Place, This is a Place” marks the final release from Frank Iero and the Future Violents.

“Heaven is a Place, This is a Place” is considered the counterpart of the band’s previous record, “Barriers.” The songs featured in this EP are songs that did not fit in “Barriers’” 14 song tracklist. The tracklisting for the new EP includes three new songs and a cover of R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion.”

The album opens with “Violence,” which sets a fantastically punk tone for the rest of the EP. With its almost hypnotic guitar riffs, “Violence” tells a story about unrequited love in its four minutes. However, it’s not

a “I can’t live without you” type of unrequited love, rather a “you’re going to miss me when I’m gone” type. Dripping with emotion, “Violence” is the perfect opener for this EP: it’s intense, tortured, energetic and explosive.

“Sewerwolf” follows as the second track of the EP. It also marks my favorite song from the record. “Sewerwolf’’ has a different energy from “Violence” in the sense that the melody of the song is abnormal in the best way possible. Forceful, yet still emotionally charged, “Sewerwolf” prevails as one of the strongest songs from the EP. Iero’s ravenly aggressive vocals perfectly capture the grungy tone of the song. Perhaps some of the best lyrics of the EP are found within this song; in one of the verses, Iero brazenly sings “How could you think I would ever deceive you? I live by the sword, and I’ll die by my word.” Iero’s skills as a lyricist shine in “Sewerwolf” as he vividly depicts the beauty that can be present in the chaos of destruction.

“Losing My Religion” marks a stark contrast from the preceding songs. Fans of R.E.M. can surely agree that this cover does justice to the original. The Violents’ cover offers a stripped performance of the wellloved original version. The vocals on “Losing My Religion” are beautifully melodic.

Evan Nestor and Kayleigh Goldsworthy provide backing vocals that add a further layer of beauty to the song, especially the vocals of Goldsworthy, whose voice almost has an ethereal quality. Choosing to include much more sparse instrumentation than the original, The Violents breathe a new life into this classic song. “Losing My Religion” makes for a moving yet powerful third song for “Heaven is a Place, This is a Place.”

“Record Ender” follows as the closer to the EP. The song starts off tenderly but soon explodes in a crescendo worthy of Beethoven. Iero shines as a hopeless romantic throughout the beautiful, yet poignant, lyrics of this song. Devotion is the perfect word to describe the love depicted in “Record Ender.” Above all, hope surges through as the strongest entity present in the song.

Hope and love guide this tragically beauti-

ful, bittersweet ending to The Violents’ discography.

“Heaven is a Place, This is a Place” shows just how far Iero has come as a solo musician. It’s been the greatest joy and honor to witness this becoming for the past six, nearly seven, years. “Heaven is a Place, This is a Place” is out now on all major music platforms.

This album can be bought and streamed on all major music platforms.

courtesy @frankieromustdie Instagram

Taylor Swift surprises with “evermore” release Swift uses story-heavy lyricism to guide listeners through countless beautiful and intimate stories of love and loss.

Caroline Cox Student Writer Taylor Swift shocked everyone with the surprise drop of the now acclaimed indie folk album “folklore” in July of 2020. But that was only the beginning because after five months, Swift released a sister album, “evermore.” Doing two studio albums in one year is no easy task, but Swift continues to mesmerize her fans with her poetic storytelling and acclaimed lyricism. The 15 tracks of “evermore” still have the same story-heavy lyricism as its sister album, but with more experimental musical themes.

Swift guides the listener into the woods of escapsim and shares tales of love, loss, infidelity and murder.

perspective of the woman who said no and gives glimpses into their relationship before and what it becomes moving forward. The peak of this track is in the bridge where her craftsmanship shines — each line flashes an aspect of their relationship until the split with both a sense of fondness and sorrow.

How they met in college, their friend group and tender cliche couple moments — him opening the door for her or giving him her jacket, all the way until he got on one knee, and she said no.

The track “gold rush” is a song that is heavily theorized to be about Harry Styles.

A strong beat and faster tempo makes it more lighthearted. It is about denying affection upon a particularly attractive person.

The song “‘tis the damn season” brings us back to a gloomy, nostalgic place where hooking up with your ex is acceptable.

However, it has more depth — it is about leaving the person who knows you best to return to your normal life away from them.

— “cowboy like me,” which follows the love story between two con-artists.

Not all of “evermore” is narrative — “marjorie” and “long story short” clearly draw from Swift’s life with memories of her grandmother and infamous love life.

Nevertheless, storytelling is at the heart of this album. “Ivy” is a fairytale style song about infidelity; “coney island” is a harrowing duet with The Nationals frontman, Matt Berninger, a synthesis of the two writing styles combining real Swift’s life experiences with fiction. The two breakup songs, “happiness” and “closure,” are about different stages of grieving a partner. “Closure” is in 5/4 and is chaotic, angry and stubborn whereas “happiness” is an exploration into the significance a relationship has on a life .

The titular track “evermore,” featuring Bon Iver, closes the album. It is experimental, deeply saddening, yet ends the album with a sense of hope. However, this is generally the most disliked song on the album, and it is because of Iver’s singing.

Most people skip after the first chorus. The mix between sorrow and hope is part of the genius of “evermore” as it shares true struggles of adult life.

I highly recommend a listen, and encourage multiple. Each song has depth to it that is still being exclaimed almost a month after its drop. Both “folklore” and “evermore” were unlikely music from Swift, yet they came with the excellence that we all expect from an artist like her. What comes next for Taylor Swift? Who knows, but I wait with eagerness and am sure she will surprise us all again.

“Swift continues to mesmerize her fans with her poetic storytelling ...”

The opening track “willow” welcomes you into the album with a witchy and magical sound created through a chamber. The lyrics tell the tale of wanting for someone and falling in love with them. Swift mentioned in a YouTube Q&A that the song is about the spell that becomes a person as they fall, and the style and lyrics capture the essence of that beautifully. Its semimedieval sound featuring plucked strings and glockenspiel makes you want to dance while screaming the most memorable lines — “Begging for you to take my hand / wreck my plans / that’s my man.”

Riding the high from “willow,” listeners are met with the tale of a rejected engagement in “champagne problems.” A beautiful piano ballad tells this story from the

Track 5 goes to “tolerate it,” which might be the most vulnerable song on the album. It is a ballad in 5/4 time about having a partner who does not appreciate you or your love.

It is sad, soft and leaves you thinking of times where you have longed for love from another.

No song, though, goes quite as hard as the next one, which has a unique subject matter: “no body, no crime” is an epic narrative following the narrator and her friend, Este, who suddenly goes missing at the hands of her cheating husband. This song pairs well with “Before He Cheats” by Carrie Underwood, and not just because of its subject matter. This track is a little country, something we have not heard from Swift in years. For old fans, it was greeted joyfully.

Another track has heavy country influence

courtesy @taylorswift Instagram With fifteen songs featured on the album, “evermore” is the sister album to “folklore.”

courtesy Big Machine Records

The State-Run Media

25 January 2021

the

State-Run media Gimpin’ ain’t easy.

Gimp suit sales on the rise after CDC advice for COVID-safe sex

Center for Disease Control spokesman Jared Bolt gives tips on how to have even safer sex.

Anna Johns Ooze and cream enthusiast

It’s hardly a secret that the coronavirus has seriously hurt any chances of a healthy sex life for single people. The clubs are closed, and the dating pool shrinks every day. Plus, there’s the omnipresent fear of contagion lurking in every corner, stiff and menacing, a mood-killing reaper that effectively destroys any boner. Condoms are hard enough to remember during normal sexual interactions — now there’s a highly contagious virus thrown in the mix?

“Yeah, we totally get it,” began Center for Disease Control spokesman Jared Bolt in an official statement, “it’s seriously a bummer.

Usually, it takes me three pumps tops to get me going, but with COVID and everything, I’m lucky if I can hit a bullseye at all.”

Those in committed relationships also seem to struggle with fulfilling their sexual desires. The pandemic has spelled out a complete disaster for any chance of a satisfying pump and squeeze: the damn kids stay home with their online school, stress levels rise due to job layoffs and disdain grows within an isolating environment. In the time of COVID-19, sex is as much of an obstacle as it is a reward.

In the midst of the biggest dry spell, the CDC released tips for COVID-friendly sex.

As the virus spreads through liquid droplets in saliva or respiratory fluids, sexual activity is a perfect breeding ground for infection.

Alternatives are available to sex, such as video chats, sexting and simple masturbation.

“You are your safest sexual partner,” Bolt reads from a messily folded piece of paper, amusement evident in his tone.

graphic by Emma Palmer

This dutiful husband’s hitting the sack tonight. Jealous?

“Solo masturbation is the best way to prevent the spread of COVID-19 – and to prove you’re a fucking dweeb.”

In this statement, Bolt lays out the ways to lower chances of exposure: 1. Ask your partner if they have symptoms of COVID-19.

2. Limit kissing or saliva exchange. (“Easy. You think I like doing foreplay?”

Bolt laughs.)

3. Using barriers, like walls, can keep the sexual exchange flowing without any face-to-face contact. Also, glory holes are adventurous. The gas-station bathroom experience helps heat up the bedroom.

4. Face coverings can limit the droplets exchanged during sex. Condoms, dental dams, and lubricant also help.

5. Don’t stop at face coverings. New research finds that bondage suits are the best personal protection available for sexual interactions.

Of course, the last tip only raised concern from the American public.

“The CDC didn’t realize how vanilla y’all are,” Bolt said in response.

Bondage suits — or “gimp suits” — are tight-fitting garments, usually made of leather or spandex and completely cover the body. The suit is often used in BDSM, and the wearer is called a “gimp,” objectified into a walking sexual toy for their partner’s pleasure. Genitals, breasts and mouths can be found hidden behind a zipper or simply the suit’s material.

The inclusion of gimp suits is not only revolutionary for the BDSM community but also for the regular, pandemic-cockblocked person who craves a fulfilling sexual experience. The suits help with anonymous sex or assuaging any fears of contacting the virus.

For families with nosy children, the person in the gimp suit may blend in the shadows or perhaps become a new holiday fable, akin to Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny; however, instead of leaving presents, the man in the gimp suit just fucks your mom.

Could gimp suits be the solution the horny American public needed? It’s hard to say, but the bedroom certainly seems steamier.

graphic by Anna Johns

graphic by Sara Serrano

graphic by Anna Johns