November 1, 2010

Vanguard The

VOLUME 48, NUMBER 14

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Serving USA Since 1965

November 1, 2010

Jags Still Undefeated

Take a Look Into the New Dining Hall Turn to pp. 10 and 11.

Voting Tuesday?

Remember, midterm elections are this week. Don’t forget to cast your ballot!

Colin McGee | Photo Editor

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Bryant Lavender clings to the ball during Saturday’s win against Georgia State. Lavender had four receptions for 87 yards and one touchdown. SEE STORY ON PAGE 13.

Controversy on Campus:

Students Express Disdain For OpenAir Preacher’s Sermon (see p. 4)

SGA Withholds Homecoming Queen Election Results Alex Whalen

ASSOCIATE EDITOR alexwhalen@gmail.com

SGA says it’s holding off on announcing the Homecoming queen winner to create tension around election results.

After a tight runoff election, most of the members of the 2010 Homecoming Court have been announced. All but one of the runoff races were decided by fewer than 20 votes.

Tikira Gamble clinched Freshman Maid with 272 votes. Lauren Ashley Easterling edged out her opponent for Sophomore Maid with 125 votes.

Brittany Ward, with 123 votes, was elected

Inside

Police Blotter p. 2

Been online lately?

Read user comments from our website, www.usavanguard.com (turn to the Jag Growl on p. 2).

to Junior Maid, and Christopher Martin won Homecoming King with 636 votes.

The only candidate to win the first round of voting was Christian Smith, the Graduate Student Maid.

Katie Bandy and Ebonee Moody were in the runoff for Homecoming Queen and, although the results are in, the Student Government Association (SGA) wants to wait to announce the winner.

According to SGA Vice President Colin AlGreene, this is to create a bit more drama for the elections.

Although a firm date had not been set by print time Sunday evening, Al-Greene said the SGA plans to announce the 2010 Homecoming Queen sometime at the end of this week.

Arts & Entertainment. p. 8

See Arts & Entertainment, page 9

Bandy

Homecoming queen candidates Katie Bandy and Ebonee Moody, along with the rest of the student body, still don’t know who has won runoffs for their category. Christopher Martin won Homecoming king.

Sports p. 13

USA Student in Running for Met Opera Spot

Moody

Martin

Opinion p. 15

Distractions p. 18

Miami Heat Favorites for NBA Championship See Sports, page 14

JagLife p. 19

How Are You Supposed to Identify Sarcasm in Text?

See Opinion, page 16

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Vanguard The

University of South Alabama’s Student Voice Mission The Vanguard, the student-run newspaper of the University of South Alabama, serves its readership by reporting the news involving the campus community and surrounding areas. The Vanguard strives to be impartial in its reporting and believes firmly in its First Amendment rights.

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EDITORIAL STAFF Editor-in-Chief: Daniela Werner Managing Editor: Matthew Peterson Associate Editor: Cameron Adkins Etc. Editor: Laura Beth Calcote Arts & Entertainment Editor: Cal Thomas Opinion Editor: Alex Whalen Sports Editor: Matt Weaver Photo Editor: Colin McGee Webmaster: Rodney Thompson DISTRIBUTION Distribution Manager: Johnny Davis ADVERTISING STAFF Advertising Manager: Wesley Jackson Advertising Representative: Regi Allen Advertising Representative: Daniel Fordemwalt Graphic Designer: Brittany Hawkins MANAGEMENT Adviser: Jim Aucoin Accounting: Kathy Brannan

Web site: http://www.usavanguard.com Mailing Address The Vanguard University of South Alabama P.O. Drawer U-1057 Mobile, Ala. 36688 Phone Number (251) 460-6442 Article XIV, Section 8 of The Lowdown: The editors of the student publications shall be free from any type of censorship and shall be responsible for the form, content and staff of the publication.

SPLC Statement: The Vanguard recognizes and affirms the editorial independence and press freedom of all student-edited campus media. Student editors have the authority to make all content decisions and consequently bear the responsibility for the decisions that they make.

November 1, 2010

P LICE BL TTER

10/18- Theft of Property, 2nd Degree A debit card, student ID and black leather wallet were stolen from Epsilon 1 between 10/9 at 5 p.m. and 10/10 at 1:30 p.m. The items were valued at $37.

10/18- Contempt of Court/Failing to Appear A female was arrested an outstanding warrant after being pulled over on the connecting road between Stadium Boulevard and the Gamma parking lot.

10/19- Theft of Property, 2nd Degree A laptop was reported stolen from the Library at 3:15 p.m.

10/19- Theft of Property, 2nd Degree A brown wallet containing multiple credit cards, cash and a driver’s license was reported stolen from the Electrical Engineering building between 10:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. The items were valued at $168.

10/20- Theft of Property, 3rd Degree Three textbooks were stolen from the USA Bookstore. The items were valued at $300.

10/20- Harassment/Menacing An unknown suspect directed obscene language toward a student and made him fearful of serious physical injury by driving a vehicle toward him in the Student Center parking lot.

10/20- Contempt of Court/Failing to Appear Two non-residents were detained for outstanding arrest warrants and transported to Mobile Metro Jail.

Three syringes and one small medicine bottle containing a white liquid were confiscated from the suspects.

10/21- Harassing Communications An employee of the USA Knollwood Physicians Group reported that on 10/17 at 2:25 p.m. a female committed the crime of harassing communications.

10/22- Harassing Communications A resident of The Grove reported that the crime of harassing communications was committed.

10/22- Failure to Appear A non-affiliate was stopped for an improper tag by the intramural fields and turned over to the Mobile County Sherriff’s Office for an outstanding arrest warrant.

10/23- Theft of Property, 2nd Degree Between 6:45 p.m. and 7:10 p.m. a driver’s license and multiple bank cards were stolen from a student at the Rec Center. The items were valued at $23.

10/24- Theft of Property, 3rd Degree

A flower girl dress was reported stolen from the Mitchell Center dressing room at 3:10 p.m. The item was valued at $300.

10/26- Harassing Communications A student reported receiving sexually explicit phone calls and videos on her cell phone from an unknown person without her consent.

10/26- Domestic Violence, 3rd Degree A student was arrested on an outstanding warrant for domestic violence in the 3rd degree.

10/27- Domestic Violence, 3rd Degree A female resident was assaulted by her boyfriend at The Grove. A minor injury was sustained, but it was not treated.

10/27- Theft of Property, 3rd Degree An iPhone was stolen from the Rec. Center between 9 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.

10/28- Theft of Property, 3rd Degree An HTC cell phone was reported stolen from the cafeteria at 2:15 p.m.

10/28- Failure to Appear/Driving With Suspended License A non-affiliate was detained and turned over to Mobile County Sheriff’s Office for an outstanding warrant.

Jag Growl

What You’re Saying About “Admin: Central Parking Complaints ‘Ironic’”

by Associate Editor Cameron Adkins “I’ve said it for three years.

Anybody that complains of an inability to find a parking spot in the Central lot is either lazy or uninformed.”

-Nurse Jag (comments taken from usavanguard.com)

November 1, 2010

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November 1, 2010

Preacher’s Message Prompts Student Disgust Alex Whalen

ASSOCIATE EDITOR alexwhalen@gmail.com

Tensions were high Friday as Jesse Morrell, an open-air Christian preacher, came to USA’s campus to spread his message.

Standing on a bench outside the Student Center, Morrell spoke for nearly four hours on a variety of topics – from homosexuals to Harry Potter and from women’s role in society to socialism.

A self-proclaimed “Bible thumper,” Morrell said he uses purposefully inflammatory language to “present the truth so people can accept or reject it.”

The Vanguard spoke to Morrell at various times throughout his sermon at USA. Morrell told The Vanguard his main message is, “Sin leads to Hell, but Jesus saves us from sin.” Many of his statements, though, did not sit well with students.

“This is some bull crap,” Veronica Adams, a junior Studio Art major, said. “He called [President Barack] Obama the antiChrist and said that Satan is a woman who was behind the feminist movement.”

Morrell, who said he is distinctly against feminism, said, “Men should be the breadwinners and women the bread-makers.” He later added, “I’m not against women being educated – I bought my wife a cookbook.”

Sporting a “no-homos” badge, Morrell also spoke on the supposed evils of homosexuality, sodomy of any kind, and premarital sex. He even accused many students of being “STD-ridden whores.”

Morrell also spoke out against Muslims, calling them “sinners without a savior.”

Jesse Morrell, an open-air preacher, holds up his sign to USA students.

For nearly four hours Friday, Morrell spoke outside of the Student Center., although many of his statements didn’t sit well with his audience. According to USAPD, Morrell acquired a permit from the University to speak Friday.

Alex Whalen | Associate Editor

Mohammed Alshaer, a junior Information Technology major and president of the Saudi Student Association, expressed disgust over Morrell’s statements.

“He has a right to free speech, but he’s saying that all Muslims are terrorists,” Alshaer said.

Alshaer said he recognized that Morrell’s views do not echo those of all Christians, but was still upset that anyone should make public statements like this.

Elijah Griffin, a senior Entrepreneurship major, said he wondered how the University

should handle a situation like this.

“He has a right to free speech and a right to be here because he has a permit, but he’s clearly upsetting people,” Griffin said.

The Vanguard asked Morrell why he communicates messages that cause people to be visibly upset if he’s trying to convert people to his cause.

“I’m not inflammatory; I’m offensive,” Morrell said. “The truth gives the person the choice. I tell people the truth, and they choose how to respond.

“My target audience is those who disagree with me. I’m here to teach the fear of God,” he said.

Campus police were stationed at the Traffic Circle near the Student Center.

Officers on scene said they had many complaints from students but because Morrell had a permit and was entitled to free speech, officers could not legally remove Morrell from the premises.

The event was held without incident, though, mostly due to students policing themselves.

Several times throughout the sermon, students crowded up closely to Morrell were urged by their classmates to step away and not get near the speaker.

Behind these urgings were rumors amongst the crowd that Morrell’s real purpose was to incite violence against him so he could then sue the University or its students.

Courtnee Sprinkle, a freshman Anthropology and Archaeology double major, was among those who shared this sentiment.

“I think he’s a jackass and a scam-artist,” Sprinkle said. Campus police on scene said they had also heard these rumors, but did not know if they were true.

After the event, The Vanguard asked Morrell about these rumors.

He denied having ever filed a lawsuit against a university or a student, but did acknowledge two lawsuits against Connecticut police departments.

Morrell said that he only sued for attorney’s fees.

According to the New Haven Register, see PREACHER | 6

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November 1, 2010

Oil Spill Survey: Public Trust in BP, Feds Diminished Cal Thomas

ucts].”

Brown said media hype is a concern for surveyors, too.

A telephone survey conducted through “When there is a disaster we tend to exagmost of September by the USA Polling gerate the disaster – we leave the thumbprint Group measured 412 South Mobile resiof a disaster on the psyche of the country … dents’ responses to the BP PLC oil spill.

It’s difficult to address how long people take The poll was conducted as part of a to bounce back,” he said. larger survey by Steve Picou, a USA sociolAlanna Whitaker, a ogy professor, and Keith Nicholls, director USA junior Geography of the polling group. major, said that she is “We were looking to see if there were concerned about Piways we could be involved in the research cou’s findings that only process,” said Thomas Shaw, co-director 14 people out of 80 of USA Polling Group. “Picou does many who said they received post-disaster surveys and was interested in compensation from BP data collection on the oil spill’s impact … said it was adequate for these people have been affected in a variety their losses. of ways -- some barely, some severely. People “I know there are have been unemotional or so emotional they many instances where Picou are to the point of tears.” they’re legit, but I know Among data Picou released was a reportof several instances ed 62 percent of respondents who felt the oil where people are just trying to collect monspill had negatively impacted their houseey,” Whitaker said. “Loss of enjoyment and hold income. 78 percent of respondents quality of life is not a good reason to claim. were concerned about the health effects of The Sea Lab here at USA, property holders, the dispersants used, and an additional 38 those with legitimate ties to the coast – that percent believed seafood from spill-effected is who deserves the money.” areas was unsafe for consumption.

Erin Capley, a graduate student working “A serious chemical unknown with the on her Master’s in environmental toxicology, dispersants is causing people to worry a lot echoed concerns held by 71 percent of reabout their own health, particularly those spondents that the spill’s ecological damage who are close to the coast. When you don’t is permanent. know the chemical makeup of the dispersant “[BP] took a gamble with their knee-jerk that is 11 times more toxic than the crude oil reaction trying to appease us,” she said. … it’s logical,” “They are Picou said. concerned “More than with making basically dissolved the oil in the water. anything,” Picou people happy Now you can’t get it out; you can’t filter it. It’s in the added, “it is first, not the imperative that environment ocean.” we scientifically … Sand’s prove and comability to -Erin Capley municate that transport Graduate Student in Environmental Toxicology the oil is of no water is very consequence to high. health and the seafood is safe to eat. If we “If the oil gets into the water, it will seep don’t do this, the impact will be here this into the sand. No matter how deep they dig, summer, and the following summer.” it’s already there. You can treat it, but that’s Dr. Charles Brown, a professor in USA’s a lot of sand, as deep as you could go. psychology department, understands the “And crude has a lot of nasty stuff like wariness of locals – 60 percent interviewed Toluene that has been proven to cause said they had no trust in the information organ failure or even cancer. We still don’t that was being distributed by BP and 59 know the long-term effects of some of these percent said they had no trust in the federal things,” she explained. “BP basically disgovernment’s response to the spill. solved the oil in the water. Now you can’t get “There is a reason for them to be conit out; you can’t filter it; it’s in the ocean.” cerned,” he said. “Especially in this area, Picou and his team will present their perception of food safety will be an issue findings at a National Science Foundation for the community to sell its products and conference in New Orleans this week. worldwide for the distribution [of the prodSENIOR REPORTER vanguardaande@gmail.com

“BP

Afraid to ask your doctor?

Ask Dr. Cannon!

E-mail your health questions and concerns to Dr. Cannon at usavanguard.editor@Gmail. com. Her answers run in the Etc. section of The Vanguard.

Heather Cannon, M.D. is USA’s Student Health Center Medical Director.

Anonymous e-mails are welcomed.

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Special Ed Revamped In order to accommodate the growing need for special needs-certified teachers, USA’s special education program is undergoing revision, according to College of Education faculty.

Cal Thomas

SENIOR REPORTER vanguardaande@gmail.com

USA’s College of Education (CE) has redesigned its special education program to better prepare graduates to handle special-needs students, according to CE administrators.

The CE had 14 undergraduate teacher education programs reviewed this past summer.

Among them were Combined Elementary Education, Early Childhood Education, Collaborative K-6 Education and Early Childhood Special Education. These programs have merged with special education classes already.

Dr. Harold Dodge, associate professor, and Dr. Rebecca Giles, professor, of the Department of Leadership and Teacher Education said they were excited about the prospect.

“We have indeed eliminated our current elementary special education program as it previously existed, as a stand-alone education,” Giles said. “Certification is still available but you receive certification in K-6 collaborative teaching.”

The University of Alabama is among the few universities in the state that offer similar programs. There is a huge nationwide demand

for people to work with children who require individual attention; but few teachers, Giles said, are actually certified to teach them.

“We weren’t graduating enough students to fill the need that was out there, hence the merge,” Giles said. “Elementary education graduates were – rightfully – expected to work in inclusive classrooms and felt that they were not given enough preparation.”

This lack of preparation led to the merge in programs. There is now a single K-6 education program, and students who complete the program will receive dual certification for the same number of hours.

The College of Education did not extend the program in any way; however, content, course work, field experience, and other aspects have been significantly restructured to meet state requirements for certification in K-6 elementary in addition to K-6 collaborative.

Those who complete the new program successfully will have the option to add certificates for early childhood education and early childhood special education, which allows them to teach those younger than kindergarten-age.

“More and more special needs children were being mainstreamed to the classroom.

That simple. I was superintendent of one of the first three school systems in the country who did this,” Dodge said. “They enjoyed the interaction with their peers, they adapted, etc., but their teachers just were not trained.”

The change in program only applies to K-6 special education. There will be no changes made to the secondary special education or masters in special education programs. see EDUCATION | 7

November 1, 2010

Preacher from page 4

Morrell won a $25,000 suit against the city of New Haven, Conn., for its police department’s actions during a 2004 sermon of his.

Morrell was also arrested and later released at Alabama A&M University.

As his time at USA came to a close, Morrell suggested he may return next semester.

He said the students who gathered to watch were a great audience, although

Morrell

heckling and jeering at the speaker were almost constant.

Upon Morrell’s departure, students cheered.

Some students said that it wasn’t because they enjoyed the talk, but simply because he was leaving.

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November 1, 2010

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Education from page 6

All three are currently offered but no new students are being admitted to the current program.

“We had students that wanted to finish the old program and didn’t have to look at the new one but are now willing to,” Dodge said. “They want to look at the new one. At this point, other programs have begun to look at it, like 6-12.”

The College of Education is still offering and completing the K-6 special education individual and combined elementary programs through 2012, at which point the individual programs will be completely phased out.

Have an Opinion?

Let Us Know!

Send Letters to the Editor to USAVanguard.Editor @Gmail.com

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Arts & Entertainment

6 Professor Prepares for 40th Anniversary Piano Recital

Cal Thomas A & E Editor

vanguardaande@gmail.com

November 1, 2010

JP Lights Up Halloween with Killer Thriller Rave

Cal Thomas

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR vanguardaande@gmail.com

After 40 years teaching at a university, one is likely to have many memories of days and nights spent organizing lesson plans and notes and preparing for mornings that come a little too early. But for Dr. Jerry Alan Bush, a USA music professor, the memories are much more pleasant – and will be represented in a 40th anniversary recital on Nov. 7.

“This concert, it’s something old and something new,” Bush said. “It represents things which I have not performed before as well as pieces that I’ve played in the past that have been requested.”

Bush has performed since the age of nine and has covered a wide variety of music. The recital this Sunday will reflect a portion of the music he has become familiar with, such as Chopin and Albeniz, as well as the premiere of a new piece by Associate Professor of Music Dr. David Durant.

Bush “I have two Debussy pieces that I will play,” Bush said. “One of them was played the first time I had a performance as a college student in the fall of 1965. The other was in the first USA faculty recital I participated in in 1972. They go together well and represent the beginning of my college and teaching career.

I’m also playing the first piece I played with an orchestra – Beethoven’s First Concerto.”

Bush has been at USA since 1971.

“Jobs were hard to find at the time,” Bush said. “But things worked out. If someone were to have told me I’d be in the same place after 40 years, I’d have called them crazy.”

Bush feels the amount of growth that South Alabama has seen since his arrival is an accurate representation of his career. He recalled when the Music Department was still in the basement of the administration building and Laidlaw Performing Arts Center was still just a dream.

“Facilities can’t teach anything, but they can facilitate instruction,” Bush said. “And it’s certainly true here … development certainly has facilitated a great deal of activity by the faculty.

“When I got here there was no recital hall, there was a room with a piano in it. We had to set up chairs for concerts.

We had some good ones – but it’s not the same as being in a good arts facility.”

Bush said he never remembered a time where he was not dedicated to music, even – as he has been told – as a toddler.

He also said he cannot imagine doing anything else. The fact that at the end of this year he will officially be recognized as a 40-year faculty member is a testament to his continued devotion.

“It’s energizing to be around the students,” he said. “They change year after year: backgrounds, repertoires. They discover things for the first time as I do. Numerically this recital is a milestone, but every year I am here has a special point.”

Bush teaches master classes for the piano. Most recently his performances have been given in New Orleans and Atlanta, but he has played in New York and Philadelphia as well as a performance at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. “It makes one a little more articulate when you have to discuss or teach music in front of an audience,” he said. “I always take the time to communicate, and my form is the piano. I welcome those who are interested and hope those who are not may find it more interesting than they thought.”

Bush will be performing his 40 Year Anniversary recital Sunday, Nov. 7 at 3 p.m. in the recital hall of Laidlaw Performing Arts Center.

Colin McGee | Photo Editor

Above: Freshman Snookies Patricia Bellido and Jimena Bellido dance at the Halloween Rave in the Student Center Ballroom.

Left: Junior Veronica Adams breaks it down on the dance floor during Thursday's Halloween rave.

Sarah Wraight

CONTRIBUTING WRITER sarahwraight9@gmail.com

It was impossible to miss the entrance to the Techno Thriller/Halloween Rave last Thursday night, with a spooky fog crawling through the doors of a glowing, beat-bumpin’ Student Center Ballroom.

Things got even more enticing, though, upon entering the dance, where plenty of glow sticks were distributed. Immediately noticeable was the strobe-lit dance floor in the middle of the room, surrounded by glowing tables and a DJ booth streaming out continuous techno tunes.

A large variety of music was played, from hits such as “Dancing Queen” and “Cupid Shuffle,” all with a techno beat to accompany the ravers’ waving glowsticks. There was also a projection screen above the DJ booth, showing the silent black and white film, “Dracula,” throughout the party.

An assortment of guests streamed in with costumes such as: Medusa, Mrs. Krueger (Freddy’s woman), a few lady cops, biker chicks, a ninja, a Johnny Knoxville look-a-like and many more. A costume contest was held in which each willing participant strutted their stuff on an imaginary runway across the dance floor, and audience members applauded loudly, or not so loudly, rooting for their favorite costumes.

Many USA students won prizes for their unique costumes.

First place, along with a Walmart gift card, went to Joseph Burgum as the “Honey Bee.” Second place was a tough one to choose, but the audience finally chose Elizabeth Smith, the “Blue Crayon” to take home the next title and gift card.

The most intense and highly entertaining part of the night, however, may have been the “Thriller Dance Contest.” Those who knew the dance well occupied the front of the dance floor, where judges could easily spot their “best moves,” but others just looking to have a good time were welcome to join in on the fun of the Michael Jackson hit, “Thriller.”

Two winners were chosen. Veronica Adams, as Medusa, won first place, along with a set of Carmike movie theater tickets, for her dead-on performance. Johnathan Pham, as himself (who was a break dancing machine!) won second place, along with a second set of Carmike Movie tickets.

Other perks include the free candy, popcorn and a lot of good finger foods the guests munched on in between dancing. A “Glow Ring Toss” game attracted many, and a prize was awarded if you rang three glow-in-the-dark bottles in a row.

Also, Jaguar Productions (who hosted the rave) was very clever with tombstone decorations they bordered along the bottom walls. Each stone had a football team USA has defeated this season written in bold, such as: “HERE LIES THE PANTHERS” and “R.I.P. MINERS.” Overall, it was extremely spooktacular, with more than 100 USA students who were able to enjoy the Halloween atmosphere a little early. If you missed out on the fun this October, don’t be afraid! There are many months of fun ahead with JP Productions.

Be sure to catch their next event this week, the performance of comedian Josh Wade, Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Student Center Ballroom.

To Light A Fire to Play Serda’s Coffee Co. Mary Beth Lursen

STAFF WRITER mel904@jaguar1.usouthal.edu

The members of To Light A Fire grew up involved with music and have been trying to evoke emotions from their listeners since the first time they came together.

Originally To Light A Fire was just made up of Ben Smolin (22, vocals and keys), and Tyler Cody (19, guitar).

Now it includes members Alison Smolin (22, drums), Shane Cardinal (32, bass guitar), and Andrew Flickinger (25, guitar and harmonies), the band has slowly added over the years.

Despite the fact that it took them some time to form, Ben describes the band as a family, saying they have been through everything together.

This he cites as their biggest accomplishment, saying how being a family is rarity among bands when so many fall apart over their egos or problems within the band.

Although the band is so close, the biggest adjustment they have had to make has been learning to create music on individual levels and combining them into a cohesive sound.

They create music in an impromptu manner, never sitting down to write a song about anything in particular. Topics of their music range from fictional ideas—such as a soldier in World War Two—to personal issues, like their relationships with God. Their indie/hard rock sound is expected because the members of To Light a Fire are each influenced by different bands – from Tool to Muse to Our Lady Peace.

The main goal that the band wants to achieve is to be able to make lasting music that means something to them and to the people who listen to it.

The band has been touring in the Southeast during their free time on the weekends. With shows lined up in Atlanta and Nashville, the band is hoping to hit the road full time in the next year, and they are currently working on a new EP. To Light a Fire will play at Serda’s Coffee Company on Royal Street Saturday, Nov. 6.

Foreign In Love: Jawen Takes on US

Cal Thomas

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR vanguardaande@gmail.com

In the shadow of such “artists” as Lady GaGa, Justin Bieber and Kanye West that dominate the Top 40 charts, a relatively unknown band from Normandy is making a breakthrough here in the states with their new album, “1,2,2 is five.”

Jawen is a French band from Evreux, Normandy – brothers Nicolas and Olivier write play, produce, and record their own songs with contributions from bassist/producer Yann Cortella.

They began playing bars in France, covering bands from the Stones to Marvin Gaye and Prince until Nicolas enrolled at Boston’s Berklee College of Music. In 2002, the brothers moved to Paris, where they spent a few years songwriting and playing gigs while working at music stores and giving private music lessons.

“The first gig we played was a little club in Paris. Not many people were there – it was a great venture because when you write songs, you have an idea of what your music can do onstage, but you don’t know the real thing,” Olivier said.

“I just saw all the musicians working together [in Boston] and jamming together. It was so amazing – exciting. I saw them play in clubs and thought, ‘This is what I want to do. I want to be a musician.’”

In 2002 the duo recruited Cortella through a jam session – his previous experience as a producer helped the group improve their production and recording skills. They returned to Normandy after three years in Paris, where they produced their own first EP, “TWO,” in 2007. A self-released full-length album in 2008 resulted in their being signed with French label Neogene Music.

Now, two years later, “1,2,2 is five” has gotten airtime on several radio stations across the country, getting huge responses from stations in Colorado and Minnesota.

Jawen is touring promoting the new album in France. The album will be available in the U.S. via iTunes and other online music services.

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November 1, 2010

USA Student in Running to Join Metropolitan Opera Program Daniela Werner

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF danielawerner87@gmail.com

A USA student has the chance to become part of the Metropolitan Opera.

Vocal performance major Nick Brownlee was recently selected as one of six winners in the Met’s National Council Auditions for the New Orleans District. He is the first USA student to make it past the first level of this competition and was chosen from 35 students from across the U.S. to go on to the Gulf Coast Regional Finals Jan. 23.

The winner of the regional finals will compete in New York for the chance to be one of the Met’s next young artists.

The auditions are held annually in 14 districts within the U.S. and Canada. Opera greats like Renee Fleming, Thomas Hampson, and Frederica von Stade have received awards from the Met’s National Council.

The 21-year-old bass baritone hails from Theodore, Ala., and has performed multiple roles with Mobile Opera and can be heard in the company’s performance of “Tosca” this spring. Brownlee spoke with The Vanguard about how he’s been preparing for the competition, what he plans to do after it – win or lose – and what he feels has been the driving force behind his success in college.

The Vanguard: Talk about what being chosen as one of the six winners for this district means to you.

Nick Brownlee: It’s a big deal. … It’s an audition for the Metropolitan Opera’s Young Artist Program. ... They’ll select two [of those] to go to New York.

V: What’s involved with preparing the repertoire you’ll be performing?

B: I’m taking the same repertoire I took to the first round, which is what they suggest. It’s just every day coaching and every day working on putting the face and the action with the music and the words. They’re really all about the acting side of it, as well. They’re big into that.

They want the total package. The voice, the looks, the everything.

They’re looking for not necessarily the best voice, but the best all-around package that they can market.

It’s all a marketing thing, just like anything is. [They ask themselves,] ‘Can I sell this person?’ That’s what every business essentially comes down to: ‘Can I sell this product?’

And that’s kind of the idea behind it.

V: When did you decide to enter?

B: I guess it would have been late August [when I

Daniela Werner | Editor-in-Chief

USA Vocal Performance major Nick Brownlee is the first USA student to be selected past the first level of auditions for the Metropolitan Opera's National Council Auditions. If he wins one of the top two spots in the competition, he'll be on his way to New York City to become a member of the Met's Young Artists program.

decided to enter]. I got pushed into entering the contest by a judge who had heard me sing at the Afternoon of Stars, [which is] this recital-type thing we do for Mobile Opera.

He had judged the Met competition before and told me that I was exactly what they were looking for and that I really needed to do it no matter what.

At first I didn’t want to because I was like ‘Well, I’m not ready for it.’ He was like, ‘Just do it. Get five arias.’

Dr. Rowell and I picked out five arias in August and I worked on them up until October.

V: Are the arias challenging?

B: They are. It’s probably the most challenging repertoire I’ve ever done. The thing that makes it challenging is the huge time span that it covers.

I’m singing anywhere from Mozart to Kurt Vile, who wrote this piece that I’m singing from in 1940. So it covers a lot of time period. see OPERA | 19

Discover Mobile’s Soul Kitchen Music Hall

Timothy Borland

STAFF WRITER trb903@jaguar1.usouthal.edu

Believe it or not, Mobile has a burgeoning music scene.

This may be hard for lovers of pop music to believe, but if an open-minded music lover is willing to delve a little deeper, there are vast rewards to be found.

Many of the best bands from the festival circuit frequent venues in Mobile. Mobile’s location on the Gulf Coast makes it a convenient stop for tours traveling through Alabama to larger destinations in Florida or Georgia.

A premier location for concerts in the Port City is the Soul Kitchen Music Hall located at 219 Dauphin St. Many popular bands such as Bassnectar, Pretty Lights, JJ Grey and Mofro, STS9, Blind Mellon, Robert Randolph, the Wailers, and the Derek Trucks Band have all made well-received appearances at the music hotspot.

Galactic’s appearance at the Soul Kitchen on Halloween last year received an ecstatic response from a full house. The New Orleans jazz-fusion band hopes to repeat the experience Nov. 6 when they will be returning to the Soul Kitchen with Cyril Neville and Corey Henry of the

Rebirth Brass Band.

The name of the venue was inspired by the song “Soul Kitchen” from The Doors debut album, which also featured the classics “Light My Fire” and “Break on Through.” The music hall previously existed in what is now the Alabama Music Box until it outgrew that building and moved to its current location at 219 Dauphin St. The new location can house an audience of up to 1,000 people.

Tickets for Soul Kitchen events can be purchased in advance at various local businesses, such as the Mellow Mushroom on University Boulevard and Old Shell Road adjacent to USA campus. Tickets are also sold at the door for an increased price the night of the event. If you wish to avoid the lines and the crowds, you can also purchase will call tickets via the venue’s website at www.soulkitchenmobile.com.

Shows are normally 18 and older and require an I.D. and a Soul Kitchen card that can be applied for at the entrance for a small fee. For upcoming shows, directions, and ticket sales call the box office at 251-433-5958.

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Vanguard

November 1, 2010

Dining Hall May Wait Until January Matthew Peterson

MANAGING EDITOR mwp601@jaguar1.usouthal.edu

T

he new Dining Hall, which was originally slated to be completed at the beginning of the fall semester, now may be an entire semester behind schedule.

“There’s talk right now from the administration that if we go too late in the semester, it doesn’t make sense to open for the last two weeks of the semester,” Chris Willis, director of Facilities Management, said. “[If we have too many more delays,] it would probably be a January opening.”

Adam Nevill, Food Services director, said he hopes it will open before then, and Dr. John Smith, vice president for Student Affairs, said there’s not much left to be done. “[The slowness of this project has] certainly been a source of frustration,” Smith said. “I’m hoping they’re going to finish it up soon ... There’s not really a lot left for them to do.”

All students who live in on-campus housing were required to purchase meal plans this year to pay for the new facility.

Until it opens, students will continue to have those meals served in the Market.

“I think it’s sad because it’s a service that students are initially paying for and not getting to use,” SGA President Kimberly Proctor said. “It’s kind of another disappointment in the whole process ... I wish that it would have been thoroughly looked at.”

Willis said the delay can be mostly attributed to the weather and some problems from the contractor.

“By far, we had the hardest winter in the last 20 years, and it ate them up,” Willis said. “It delayed them at least two or three months.”

Nevill said the rain also caused some problems. For example, the bottom floor had to be dug out, and rain caused the hole to be filled with mud again.

“They dug that hole out about 10 different times,” Nevill said.

There were also code compliance issues with the circular stairs in the entrance.

“The contractor was three months late getting the circular stair on site, and then when it got here, it’s wrong,” Willis said.

“So they have work to do to fix this.”

So the delay should not be blamed on the administration, according to Willis.

“We’ve been doing the best we can since day one,” he said.

For example, “because we were in a hurry and they were going to be working this during the summer months, we spent money to bring portable air conditioners in here to try to keep control of the humidity, so they could be doing work before they had the mechanical systems done.”

Willis also had his employees do much of the tile work on the counters in the main dining area, which sped up the process.

Instead of hurrying the project at this point, the administration has been focusing on quality.

“We were killing ourselves trying to get done in August, but when it became obvious in June that they weren’t going to make it, we kept trying to press them to get done as early in the semester as they can,” Willis said.

“When it became obvious that it would be after Labor Day, we shifted our focus to make sure we got the quality -- Let’s not make any rash decisions ... We’re going to have this building for 50 years. We’re at the point where it’s got to be right, not in a hurry,” he said.

Photos by Managing Editor Matthew Peterson Top: A view of the food service section of the dining hall, which will feature bread baked in-house.

Right: The circular stairs, shown here, have delayed the completion of the dining hall. They will eventually be marble.

Below: The meeting space, which will feature two 62-inch screens. It will be available for use by student groups.

Left: Another view of the food service area of the Dining Hall, which will also boast a soft-serve ice cream machine.

November 1, 2010

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Left: The area immediately up the circular stairs will have cashiers standing guard, but after that, it’s free roam.

Top: The bakery section should be a favorite, as students will be able to get freshly baked bread there.

Dining Hall: Worth the Wait?

Matthew Peterson

MANAGING EDITOR mwp601@jaguar1.usouthal.edu

Despite a possible delay of an entire semester, Food Services Director Adam Nevill said he thinks the new Dining Hall will be well worth the wait.

“I think that, when people get in here and see what we can do with this building, I don’t think you’re going to have many complaints on having to wait for it,” Nevill said. “It’s going to be something this campus really needs.”

Among its attractions is a five-foot diameter flat-top grill, which Nevill said will have a wide range of uses.

“There are a whole lot of things we can do,” he said. “This is where we’re going to try to put our main ‘wows.’”

He said the grill could be used to do stirfries, quesadillas, crab cakes, fried green tomatoes, in addition to its original use, a Mongolian grill. Students will be able to pick out their ingredients and give them to a chef who will prepare them in front of you.

Nevill said that will be another attraction for the facility: the food will be prepared in open view, something he calls a “fresh foods concept.”

Most of the staff from the Market will move over to the new Dining Hall once it’s completed.

“We hired that staff over there in an effort to get them ready to come here,” Nevill said.

The new Dining Hall will also feature extended hours. On Mondays through Thursdays, it will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.,

Fridays 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Prices will remain the same as the Market.

Downstairs will feature a coffee shop called Java City, which will serve sandwiches, sushi, hot and cold coffee, and smoothies. It will be open 7.a.m. to 12 a.m. on Mondays through Thursdays, and the weekend hours have not been settled set.

All of these hours are fluid, though, as Nevill said, “There are definitely some options to change” them depending on traffic flow.

Other amenities include meeting rooms equipped with 62-inch televisions for presentations, according to Chris Willis, director of Facilities Management. These rooms will be open for student groups for meal-time meetings.

Left: A view of the area that will include a continental breakfast and the soft-serve ice cream machine.

Right: The Dining Hall will feature many “intimate” dining areas, such as the one shown here. Administrators say it will have a different feel to it.

Nevill said the entire building will have a more intimate feel to it.

Instead of one large room, students will be able to dine in many separate dining spaces, including under a wooden ceiling in the rotunda.

“It’s not going to be like you’re eating in the army barracks where all 500 people are sitting within sight of each other,” Willis said.

Once you get up the stairs past the cash registers, Nevill said it’s “free roam” to eat in any one of the 512 seats, including the balcony, which features a nice view of the Moulton Bell Tower. There will also be nine 42-inch TVs all around the dining space.

No additional parking will be added to accommodate the facility.

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November 1, 2010

Sports

Matt Weaver Sports Editor jmatthewweaver@aol.com

November 1, 2010

Curry’s Corner

Lakers To Meet Celtics In Finals Jayson Curry

SPORTS COLUMNIST jayson-curry@hotmail.com

It’s always hard to predict how a season in any sport is going to play out.

Of course, there are several teams that will always be competitive each season, but in the grand scheme of things, anything can happen.

Consider baseball and the World Series. Who would have thought that neither the Yankees nor Phillies would have been playing for the title this fall? Go figure.

Predicting the playoffs or the outcome of an entire season is hard work. This is especially true in the ultra-competitive and lengthy NBA, but someone has to try it.

After watching the first few games of the NBA season, we have a decent idea of how this is going to play out.

After watching the Heat and the Celtics you can see that even though Miami has the “Three Kings” they really won’t play like kings until much later in the season.

On opening night, the Heat looked closer to King James and Two Other Guys.

And even Lebron played more like a mere prince turning the ball over 8 times and shooting a low percentage from the field, despite scoring 31.

The Celtics still look solid just like each of the past few seasons and actually made some quiet additions over this offseason, including acquiring the “Big Shamrock” Shaquille O’Neal. Boston silently appears ready for another deep championship run.

And don’t forget about the other teams in the East like the new-look Chicago Bulls led by possibly the best point guard in the league and newly-signed Carlos Boozer.

And everyone still has to worry about Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic.

Howard has been working with league legend Hakeem Olajuwon all summer to improve his offensive-post game. The East is obviously strong and likely stronger than ever before.

The two-time defending champions Los Angeles Lakers got their championship rings on opening night and almost had their night spoiled by losing to Houston but pulled out the two-point win.

The usual suspects, Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant led the Lakers to another win and likely many more to come. L.A. has to be the clear favorite in the Western see LAKERS | 14

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Football Defeats Georgia State

South Alabama Returns Home To A 39-34 Victory Over Panthers Jake Wasdin

SPORTS REPORTER jake-wasdin11@yahoo.com

South Alabama football survived a second-half scare from Georgia State, defeating the Panthers 39-34 Saturday night at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.

The Jaguars, coming off a late game victory against UC-Davis, again needed to play from behind to win a close ballgame, and they did it on the arm of C.J. Bennett.

Bennett finished Saturday with 181 yards and three touchdowns on 12-of-24 passing.

The three touchdowns thrown by Bennett tied a school record. Kendall Houston finished with 178 yards rushing and a touchdown.

“I think we all knew that when Ken came up, he could do the job,” Bennett said.

“Like coach Jones said, he’s a quiet guy but he works really hard.

“He’s always doing his job and he’s one of the toughest runners I’ve ever seen. He’s always running downhill.”

After Georgia State opened up the game with a two-yard touchdown pass, South Alabama found themselves playing catchup early, trailing 7-0.

The Jags quickly retaliated when Kendall Houston found the end zone on a nine-yard touchdown rush.

The score capped a nine-play 72-yard drive by South Alabama.

The Panthers retained the lead after Lawson McGlon missed a PAT attempt.

In the second quarter South Alabama completely took control of the game after GSU quarterback Drew Little ran for a one-yard touchdown run.

Georgia State took the lead 14-6, but not for long.

The Jaguars opened the second quarter with Bryant Lavender catching a 40-yard touchdown pass from Bennett.

The air attack didn’t stop there as Ben-

Colin McGee | Photo Editor The Jags ran the Georgia State Panthers out of town Saturday with a 39-34 victory at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.

nett also connected with Kevin Helms and Jereme Jones for touchdowns in the second quarter.

Lawson McGlon tacked on a 35 yard field goal to end the half as South jumped out to a 30-14 lead.

In the third quarter, McGlon tacked on another field goal from 28 yards increasing USA’s lead to 33-14.

GSU caught momentum after the field goal as Little completed a 47-yard strike to Danny Williams for a Panther touchdown.

GSU had cut into the Jaguar lead, 33-21.

Into the fourth quarter, South Alabama drove 37 yards setting up an 18 yard field goal for McGlon. South maintained the 3621 lead but GSU responded when Little ran for his second touchdown run. The Panthers cut into the lead 36-27.

Once again, McGlon came up big as he

nailed a 31-yard field goal to make the score 39-27.

“We got ahead by playing really well offensively in the first half and the defense made adjustments and after the first drive,” South Alabama head coach Joey Jones said.

“We’ve been ahead a lot at halftime and the other team would fold, but this team didn’t.

“My hat’s off to the Georgia State team for coming back and making a really good game out of it.”

Georgia State would make the game close one more time as Kelton Hill ran for a 5-yard touchdown rush to make the score, 39-34.

Georgia State would get no closer as USA ran down the clock to hold on to the victory.

Football Enters Home Stretch Against HSU Matt Weaver

SPORTS EDITOR jmatthewweaver@aol.com

Exiting the toughest part of the 2010 schedule 3-0, South Alabama football is looking to finish the year strong with an impressive showing over the final two home games of the season.

First up is Henderson (Ark.) State in South Alabama’s Homecoming Contest on Saturday, Nov. 11.

The underrated Division-II Reddies are 6-3 out of the Gulf South Conference and are led by quarterback Nick Hardesty.

Hardesty is just coming off a masterful performance in which he became Henderson’s single-season and career passing leader.

Hardesty completed 37-of-56 passes for Colin McGee | Photo Editor 420 yards and five touchdowns in the RedFresh. RB Kendall Houston eludes defenders dies 35-26 victory over Ouachita Baptist Saturday against Georgia State. Houston carWith Hardesty, Henderson State should ried 31 times for 175 yards and one touch be the most pass-aggressive team that the down.

Jags should play all season.

South Alabama’s secondary has been a question all season long and Henderson might be the most persistent passing-test for the Jaguars.

Henderson State is coached by sixthyear headman Scott Maxfield.

Maxfield is cited as an offensive wizard who has created one of the Gulf South’s most creative offenses.

Since his arrival, the Reddies have been one of the league’s most decorated programs and are typically found near the top of the D-II rankings.

Expect South Alabama to fall behind early after weathering a Reddie barrage.

Adjustments will be key for South Alabama’s defense, who should be making regular stands by the second quarter.

The game will be played in Ladd-Peebles Stadium, and kickoff is slated for 4 p.m. Live stats and quotes can be found on the Vanguard Sports Section Twitter @ USAVGSPORTS.

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Vanguard NBA Season Preview

November 1, 2010

Sports Briefs

Miami Enters 2010 As Championship Favorites Aaron Fiveash

SPORTS COLUMNIST fiveashaaron@gmail.com

The air has a chilly bite to it, but the Miami Heat has turned all attention toward the NBA this fall as every eye is drawn to the 2010-2011 basketball season.

Despite Lebron James hijacking the offseason, most have not realized that the start of the NBA season has already been set upon us with the first games being played out on Tuesday, Oct. 26.

The Los Angeles Lakers have set out for the prestigious three-peat, but most so far think that the champions will come from the Eastern Conference.

Entering this season, the favorites by far have to be the Miami Heat with their impressive off-season acquisitions.

Miami managed to resign star guard Dwayne Wade to a multi-year deal and followed that up by negotiating a signand-trade with Toronto for star forward Chris Bosh.

Yet the Heat’s biggest investment this off-season has to be the signing of megastar forward Lebron James, a two-time NBA MVP, to take his talents to South Beach.

Between Bosh, Wade and James, the Heat have spent a staggering $43 million on what many are calling the “Three

www.greenascot.com

Lebron James, sporting his new Miami Heat jersey before the season's opening tip-off.

Kings”.

These signings have made their mark on Miami’s future as well as the current NBA landscape.

To obtain these key players, the Heat had to give up several first and second round draft picks in the next several years, but these moves have undoubtedly

The

Vanguard Sports Poll LAST WEEK:

THIS WEEK:

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Will USA Basketball Compete

World Series?

For NCAA Berths?

* Yes * No

“Two words - Cliff Lee” @Akakinjin on Twitter

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made the Heat the team to beat for the better part of this decade.

With the start of the season, the sports world asks many questions.

The latest of those have been, “Where will Carmelo Anthony end the season?”

As of now the question still stand but the most likely answers appear to lie with the New York Knicks or Chicago Bulls who have both laid claims on the 20102011 trophy.

Other questions coming out of the east are gathering just outside of Boston as the reign of the “Big Three” is under the attack of age and the new Miami empire.

Can the Celtics make one last run with Garnett, Pierce, Allen, Rondo and Shaq?

What about the Bulls? Is Carlos Boozer enough to aid budding stars Derick Rose and Joakim Noah, or will Chicago have to start pressuring Denver for Anthony sooner rather than later?

The season looks to be a great one with many big name players on new teams, but no matter what happens this season one thing is for sure: this will be the most star-studded and exciting product the NBA has had in a long time.

Sports Editor Matt Weaver contributed to this story.

Colin McGee I Photo Editor

Senior Forward Liz Clark, who hails from Ontario, guides the ball through defenders during her last game as a Jaguar Friday night. The Lady Jags fell to Troy 0-1 in an overtime finale Friday.

Soccer Falls 1-0 to Troy in Season Finale Troy forward Jill Pinder netted the game-winning goal in extra-time, as University of South Alabama soccer fell to the Trojans 1-0 Friday night at The Cage.

Pinder scored the only goal of the match off of a corner kick in the 97th minute.

USA outshot the Trojans 19-8 in the contest. Troy totaled five shots on goal, while the Jaguars managed four. With the loss the Jaguars finish the season 5-14-1 overall, and 3-8-0 in SBC action.

Errors Fell Jag Volleyball 3-0 to Florida International

Lakers

From page 13

Conference and the league. And playing in the West this year should be an easier task than ever before for Los Angeles.

Their competition is slim as the Nuggets are hurting as superstar Carmelo Anthony is waiting to be dealt to another team and probably a team in the East.

The Jazz lost their second-best player in Boozer and are now just short on championship-winning talent.

The Blazers have the talent but must stay healthy if they are to compete in the ultra-fit NBA. The Mavs and the Spurs are quality people but are led by aging stars who just don’t have the same step as they used to.

The only team that can handle the Lakers in the west are the very young but very talented Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Thunder came off of a great season last year and are led by league-leading scorer and newly named FIBA World Championship MVP Kevin Durant.

And don’t forget about super quick point guard Russel Westbrook who Bryant was charged to guard in the playoffs last season.

As much as the NBA world has changed for better or worse it should all play out the same as last year.

Give the Heat a full season to get used to playing with each other. Don’t expect a championship right away as the Lakers and Celtics meet in the Finals one more time.

Attack errors proved costly for the University of South Alabama volleyball team Friday evening as the Jaguars dropped a 3-0 (22-25, 21-25, 17-25) to Florida International at Jag Gym. In the loss, USA committed 26 attack errors, while FIU had just 13.

Juliana Almeida and Samia Salomao led the Jags with eight kills apiece, while Torlandria Jones chipped in with seven.

Freshman libero Jenna Hassell led all players with 25 digs.

Lasiter and Lawson Earn All SBC Honors at Track Championships University of South Alabama cross country’s Scott Lasiter and Tori Lawson earned all-conference honors at the Sun Belt Conference Cross Country Championships Saturday in Bowling Green, Ky. The Jaguars finished third in the men’s race and fifth in the women’s race.

Lasiter finished 10th with a time of 25:44.6 to lead the men’s team, while Saber Salah finished 18th with a time of 26:23.20 on the 8k course. Mark Sullivan finished 20th with a time of 26:25.30, just two-tenths of a second behind Salah. Matt Miller finished 23rd with a time of 26:45.5, and Damien Lee finished 27th with a time of 26:51.60.

The Jaguar men finished with 97 total points. UALR won the team title with 50 points, and Middle Tennessee State finished second with 76 points.

Alex Whalen Opinion Editor alexwhalen@Gmail.com

Opinion

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November 1, 2010

OUR VIEW

A

SGA Must Clean Up Its Act

t The Vanguard, most of us are past the point of trying to understand why SGA should use precious student fees to purchase the toilet paper (TP) that will be used to trash our campus for Homecoming. We still don’t understand the hype behind making your own campus look poorly maintained.

The University’s maintenance workers already have enough to do with going after the garbage that’s rolling around the University, tossed to the wayside by an already-irresponsible student population that doesn’t care to use a garbage can.

It’s probably useless to argue with you that running around “junking” USA while throwing toilet paper and God knows what else on our buildings and beautiful trees is tomfoolery accessorized by student fees; we’re addressing the plans you’ve already told us about, which are supposedly limited to trashing the area within the traffic circle on campus: the Jungle.

We understand being a little overzealous about Homecoming festivities, but TPing campus grounds is not something student leaders should be quick to do.

Last year, homecoming “clean up” was a joke. Not only was toilet paper left hanging in the trees to later fall on the ground, but boxes and plastic wrapping were strewn all over the place.

The SGA has assured us that this year will be different. Homecoming Chair Ashley Johnston expressed her and the SGA’s commitment to keeping trash off the ground and restricting rolling to the Jungle.

Last year, most of USA’s campus was adorned with white ribbons of toilet paper. This made cleanup a daunting task, resulting in a trashed campus for weeks after Homecoming.

The SGA heard the complaints, and this year campus police will monitor decorating activities; the only things flapping lazily in the breeze around campus should be sheet signs.

We expect you to keep your word about keeping your trash within the confines of the traffic circle, and we hope you’ll do the most thorough job possible picking up the garbage after Homecoming has run its course.

Few things make a university look as unkempt as toilet paper that hasn’t been cleaned up. People at USA actually care about this campus, and we expect you to act like you do the same by removing as much of your own garbage as you can.

Homecoming Committee members and SGA senators will be out Sunday evening cleaning up, according to Johnston. With the bulk of the trash limited to the jungle, cleanup should be much easier this time around.

This isn’t just a call to be environmentally friendly; this is a reminder that you set an example for the student body. You should be leading the way in teaching students to cherish their campus.

We will be watching, as will the rest of the USA community, to see how effective cleanup efforts actually are. The ball’s in your court, SGA.

It may not matter whether you have the campus police number in your cell phone - until you really need it. We asked students if they have the number and why or why not.

As part of my housing meeting, the RA had the campus police come and talk to us.

They gave out the number and I put it in my phone. I’m glad, because I actually had to use it.

Erik Gabriel Junior Internat’l Studies

I don’t know what [the number] is, but it would be good to have. I’m a transfer student, and our orientation had to do with the program, not the University.

Jessica McCain Grad Student Psychology

Dissension in the Leaks: A Fading Vision John Glass CONTRIBUTING WRITER john@johnglass.org

Despite all of his renegade, mysterious, and ‘exposing-the-system’ qualities, whistle-blower Julian Assange will eventually prove to be just one more angry hacker.

Assange’s website is WikiLeaks, which has released thousands and thousands of secret Pentagon documents on the Afghan war to the mass public.

Assange recently announced that he plans to soon release even more classified documents. This, however, has drawn the ire of the Obama administration, which has asked that he return all classified documents in his possession at once.

Assange wouldn’t dare try to expose the secret documents and exact whereabouts of, say, some of the world’s radical terrorist groups. If he did, he’d wind up with his throat cut ear to ear, and he knows it.

But Assange won’t have to worry about making enemies because it looks as if they’re crawling right out of his own camp.

According to the New York Times, many of Assange’s top assistants have publicly defected, disenchanted with Assange’s personal antics and dictatorial style.

On Sept. 20, in an encrypted online chat made available to the Times via a transcript, Assange’s tone and demeanor are evident when he dismisses some of his own colleagues,

calling them a “confederacy of fools,” and then adding, “Am I dealing with a complete retard?”

The defectors, many of whom are from Iceland, Sweden, Germany, and Britain, were concerned about the publication of the names of native AfAssange ghans who act as intelligence sources.

“We were very, very upset with that,” said one WikiLeaks volunteer, “and the way he spoke about it afterwards.”

Assange even recently suspended the spokesman for WikiLeaks, Daniel Domscheit-Berg, and accused him of “bad behavior.” Domscheit-Berg, who later quit, was interviewed

by German magazine Der Spiegel and said, “This one-dimensional confrontation with the United States is not what we set out to do.”

The stability of someone who enjoys publishing secret documents that expose the names of native Afghans trying to make a difference in their own country is questionable, at best, and the concern over Assange’s stability is evidenced by all of the recent dissension.

Herbert Snorrason, an Icelandic activist and former WikiLeaks volunteer, claimed that Assange was dismissive of those who criticized him and that he “was not in his right mind.”

Both Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders have publicly condemned

the actions of WikiLeaks, as well as, interestingly, Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales.

A lot of people, apparently, do not share the vision of a reckless hacker that exposes sensitive and compromising information. Assange would be better off channeling his computer savvy and anger elsewhere.

Assange is on the run, though, uncertain and probably unnerved by the Obama administration’s statement that the government “is weighing his actions under the 1917 Espionage Act.” In September he fled Sweden, where he faced charges of rape and molestation.

He moved on to Germany and then England. On Oct. 24 he granted an interview to CNN but then walked right out, his anger and frustration further exemplified when he was unable to answer questions of alleged sexual abuse.

One almost feels sorry for him. But one day the bedlam of Afghanistan will all be done, some of which will be traced directly to Assange, and the only person he will have to blame is himself.

We all make our own bed, and Assange is no different.

As with some unstable, imperious leaders of struggling Third World countries, the defections and dissension within WikiLeaks is ultimately most telling of its founder.

Assange will wake up one day and eventually be ashamed. And he will eventually be forgotten.

I used to have the number programmed in my phone, but I got a new a one and I guess it didn’t transfer over.I live on campus, so it’s something I should have.

Lance Chambers Senior Meteorology

Living in the dorms, I figured I needed the campus police emergency number. So yeah, I have it programmed in my phone.

Omar Silva Junior Psychology

Want a soapbox?

Well, here you go!

Just e-mail your campus thoughts, complaints, or ideas to usacampuspulse@gmail.com and we’ll print them right here!

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POINT COUNTERPOINT Making Information Harder to Find

Editor’s Introduction: Ever since Internet search engines became the way to go to find out what you need to know, companies have worked tirelessly to top the list of relevant search terms. But a new trend is emerging, especially in the political arena. Politicians and political organizations are now working to hide damaging information farther down the list of search results. By using the same

tactics a business might use to top the search results, companies are now getting paid to stack the deck with information about a person or organization to direct attention away from information that’s harmful to their clients. Since very few people look past the first few pages of search results, this information becomes quite hard to find. But is this practice unethical? You decide.

Knowledge is Power

Motives Are More Telling Than Actions

“This kind of thing is frightenperforming works of fiction? Oh. ing to me because it gives me the Oops. feeling that the very concept of Yes, I realize that I’m now being objective truth is fading out of the sophomoric and immature, but world. After all, the chances are let’s take a look at an issue that that those lies, or at any rate simistrikes the heart of Gulf Coast lar lies, will pass into history.” residents. When the BP ownedThis quote from George Orand-operated Deepwater Horizon well’s essay, “My Country Right blew up and released virtually inor Left,” was derived from his calculable amounts of oil into the uneasiness with how history was Gulf, what did BP do as a result?

Justin inescapably malleable, especially According to ABC, Christian Herrington in the hands of those who control Science Monitor, USA Today, New information.

York Post (the list goes on and on), His thoughts on the matter were of the they all reported that aside from setting up kind that any rational person would have, clean-up agencies and a $20 billion claims and vaguely echo a Latin maxim that fund, BP spent many millions of dollars in has been innumerably repeated since the marketing that included spending, as some days of antiquity: scientia potentia est, or analysts have said, upwards of $10,000 a “knowledge is power.” day to search engines, influencing what In today’s age, and as long as there has information would be brought up when been society, the gatekeepers of informacertain terms were keyed in. tion are those who wield the most power, But BP is not an exception in guiding and if having read an NPR article titled search results - far from it. According to “The Business Of Burying Internet Search 2010 projections from the Search Engine Results” is any indication, that assertion is Marketing Professional Organization easily agreeable.

(SEMPO), search engine (emphasis on Nevertheless, the important thing to take search engine) marketing is expected to be a note from that last paragraph is that NPR $16.6 billion dollar industry. How uplifting: specializes in telling works of fiction and general information coming up not in how that in the real world, no special interest it’s searched, but in how it’s bought. group / corporation / politician would ever Of course, it’s naïve in thinking that sacrifice their dignity, morals and ethics just every dollar spent in influencing search to do something as silly as paying Google, results has a sinister motive. In fact, I’m Yahoo!, Bing, etc. to hide negative press sure most companies that partake in search from unsuspecting eyes. engine marketing just want to make sure Oh, wait. I’m sorry. It happens, and by that they’re on page one on Google and amazing happenstance, I was just chanconsequently receive more exposure. neled telepathically by the board members However, whenever any organization of BP PLC on the issue of dignity, morals wanting to suppress or divert information and ethics. What was I saying about NPR see KNOWLEDGE | 19

Information is an essential aspect Or, if it is some bad history, are of our lives. Access to and the use public figures required to simply of information is just as important. empty the laundry basket?

With the advent of the Internet What about the companies and search engines like Yahoo! and that are able to control how easily Google, our expectation is that we information is accessed? A similar have immediate and easy access to instance has been brought to light whatever information we desire. concerning the Congressional canConsider the nature of that didate Ben Quayle. information. Is it your own, private His campaign team was able to information? Does this information pay a company to ensure that any Tory place your business or family in an searches concerning this particular Albertson area of his life would have difficulty unfavorable light? What would you do if an individual or organizasurfacing anything of interest. tion attempted to use true or manufactured A common mechanism used is to pay information against you?

Google enough money to ensure material This type of question has become a being searched for is buried back on the fifth prevalent one with current social network page of results rather than coming up first. services like Facebook. Many college stuIs this ethical, for the company managing dents or young professionals, in particular, the information and the individual conare facing serious repercussions because cerned? pictures, videos, or information concerning This seems to be a case of business. Not them are being posted for all to see. making information impossible to access, In the case of a social network there are merely manipulating how easy to is to some simple answers. One, don’t participate. obtain. This sort of control seems to be a Two, don’t do, or say anything that might direct consequence of easy access. Consider get posted. Three, avoid friends who may do life without Google or Yahoo!. any of the above to you.

In most settings, manipulating informaNow, consider a public figure or a person tional access wouldn’t receive a blink of an desiring to become one. What if they want eye. But we don’t like stuff hidden from us. to protect their private information? The But instead of the ethics of the access, a argument could be made that, once stepping more telling consideration would be the mointo the public arena, privacy becomes a tive behind the manipulation. moot issue. And yet, if you were one, what We all have things in our past that we would you do? would rather not have open to just anyone.

When considering this type of question, Those things are usually connected to a time there is a tendency to assume the informaof life where bad decisions were made and tion being considered is negative, “dirty most of us have learned from, and then laundry.” But, what if it isn’t negative? What move beyond those decisions. So are we able if it is simply information that you don’t to face the past and move forward, showing want everyone on Facebook to know about? see MOTIVES | 19

Clearing the Air

By Alex Whalen alexwhalen@gmail.com

Sarcasm

If you’ve read any of my columns, you may have noticed that I’m kind of a smart ass, and sarcasm is part of my repertoire. In normal conversation, this is only problematic insofar as I tend to get in a bit of trouble here and there.

But in talking to some of my loyal readers (yes, I was also surprised they exist!), it’s come to my attention that my sarcasm doesn’t come across very well in written form.

When spoken, sarcasm has a distinct tone that most people (except Canadians) can pick up on. But the written word lacks the tone, body language, and general feel that are indicative of when someone is being sarcastic.

Some possible solutions are for me to write better columns, stop being sarcastic or just stop writing altogether. My response to the first two solutions: too difficult and not gonna happen. As for the last solution, as tempting as it is, it won’t fix the general problem of written sarcasm.

Suppose, just for a moment, that you’re a smart ass. Your friend posts some inane thought they have on Bookface or Myplace or whatever. Seeing this post, you comment that this is the best idea you’ve heard since they put peanut butter and jelly in the same jar.

Misinterpreting your sarcasm as support for the idea, your friend wastes time pursuing something idiotic.

An even worse scenario is one in which you use sarcasm to playfully pick on some-

one who then gets really offended because that playful tone is missing.

My initial solution to the problem was a sarcasm font. But this would involve hiring a typographer to develop a font that wouldn’t be accessible to many people.

I then considered using already existing fonts that could accurately capture the tone of the sarcasm.

Comic Sans MS is good for getting across a playful tone: Those Crocs are just about

the sexiest shoes I’ve ever seen.

For those moments where your sarcasm comes from disdain for something, it would be nice to have a font that drips with sarcasm. There are horror/scary fonts, but they’re dripping with blood, not sarcasm.

The problem with changing out fonts is that a) they just don’t look quite right, and b) not many places where you post comments online can support the range of fonts needed to convey the right kind of sarcasm.

The best solution, then, is a punctuation mark. We use these all the time to express a tone within a sentence. Holy skunk paste,

Batman! Are you really going to wear that dress to dinner?

There is a company that has developed a sarcasm punctuation, which they call the SarcMark, but they want you to buy the thing. Not only am I not going to pay money to be sarcastic, but there’s no way an online site could support the font needed for this punctuation mark. (It looks like an at “@” symbol with a dot in the middle).

We need a standard symbol that any keyboard would have and any website could support. I suggest the dollar sign “$” but I’m certainly open to other ideas.

You could even use this with other punctuation to help with issues of tone. I really like that “Clearing the Air” column.$ Who wouldn’t want to read what Alex is rambling about this time?$ It looks awkward, I’ll admit, but I think that’s just because we’re not used to seeing dollar signs at the end of sentences.

So, smart asses of the world unite for a better tomorrow! A bunch of sarcastic people getting together, should be fun.$

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Distractions

Caption Contest

November 1, 2010

Do hilarious things come to mind when you see this photo? E-mail your funniest caption for it to usavanguard.editor@gmail.com. The winner will be published next week!

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“Jag Life”

Opera from page 9

Being musical and interpreting every aria and deciding what you way you want to go with the character …

There’s just a lot more behind it than the normal person sees.

V: What faculty have helped you prepare for the competition?

B: [Associate Professor of Music] Dr. Rowell is my voice teacher so I’ve been taking [lessons] with him now for four years, and I also coach with Dr. Moore, [director of choral activities]. I would call Dr. Moore my coach and I would call Dr. Rowell my teacher.

Basically what a coach does is … coach diction [and say], ‘Maybe let’s take a little more time here.’

A teacher’s just raw technique and ‘How are we going to approach this note? What do we need to do physiologically to make this piece happen?’

A coach is more of a fine-tuning, if you will. You want to go to them with your stuff already learned so they can mold and shape it and make it as musical as possible.

V: When you’re preparing for big competitions, you have to prioritize.

How has this competition changed your life? Has it given you new goals?

B: I’ve won NATS competitions here and I’ve won stuff in Alabama and I always wondered, ‘What do I stack up like against grad students?’

Out of the six of us [selected], [several are grad students]. And so I wanted to see how I stacked up against the best, the best that can be assembled in one place in a district.

New Orleans is a Mecca for art schools. My district is a region. Normally about three districts are in one region, but that’s different here because New Orleans … encompasses such a large area. So the district is its own

Education from page 6

a change if needed; or are we stuck, unable to handle close scrutiny?

Information and its access will always be an issue, particularly in business and politics.

How businesses and political candidates deal with that information may be more telling than the information being sought in the first place.

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A Comic by Ben Lewis

region.

I want to have a career singing.

That’s the bottom line. I want to be a professional opera singer. I want to see where I’m at right now compared to other people.

V: If you win the competition, what will you do?

B: If you win in the final round in New York, you not only get a substantial amount of prize money, but you also get in their Young Artists program pretty much automatically. That would start next August which would just affect everything.

You basically have to be in New York. It’s a paid position. I would be performing with them. It would be pretty awesome. To think that I’m only a step and a half away from that is crazy.

V: What are you thinking going into this? Are you nervous?

B: Not really. I’m thinking I’m glad because I know the five I’m going against. I’ve heard them sing.

I’m just really pumped up about it.

I’m the youngest out of the six, so it’s kind of a cool thing to know that … there’s a lot of room for improvement.

I think what’s cool about this competition is that it’s not broken up into male and female [categories]. This is just a who’s-got-the-goods kind of thing, male or female.

V: How did you know you wanted to study music?

B: It’s a funny story. I joined choir in seventh grade (I needed an easy credit and I was a football player). I needed an elective.

I realized that I really enjoyed it and I kept with it. In ninth grade, the most influential lady in the world, my high school choir director, kind of led me in the way of music. I discovered that I just loved it … and then decided when I was a senior that I couldn’t not do

music. There’s no other option.

I wanted to do business or do something normal so I could just be in Mobile and have a family. What people don’t realize is that being in the entertainment business affects your family and where you’re going to live for the rest of your life. I wanted to do something normal, but I just can’t get away from it.

V: You just can’t get away from it.

B: I can’t. I know it sounds so corny just to say that, but honestly I’ve tried to get away from it. I’ve never tried changing my major, but one summer I told myself I’d go a month without singing or playing. A week into it I was completely down, just physically down.

It sends something through me that nothing else can compare to.

V: You’ve been in operas and have completed a lot of USA’s vocal performance program. If you had to give other students, especially music majors, a piece of advice, what would it be?

B: Develop a work ethic. I feel like [not having one] is what almost got me out of school. Once I developed one, I said, “This is my two-hour block of practice time. I’m going to make it; I’m going to love it. This is my block of theory time.”

You just have to do those things.

It can’t be one of those things where you only work on stuff that you love. I hate music history; it’s so hard, but it’s something you have to commit to and devote yourself to. That work ethic has to carry over in everything.

I honestly think that more people should realize that they have the mental capacity to do college. It’s not about mental capacity. If you go to class and do the work, I think more people have the mental capacity than you would ever believe.

It’s about work ethic, and that’s what weeds people out.

www.usavanguard.com Go there.

Education from page 6

on a search engine can do so for the right price, such as BP, that’s when it becomes conspicuously unethical.

For when one has the capital to suppress the content of information, one controls the flow of knowledge; control the flow of knowledge, you control the flow of thoughts; control the flow of thoughts, you can control what decisions come about. And that’s where the danger lies.

Whenever individuals aren’t privy to every piece of information available, good or bad, decisions that do come about are made without everything being known, and as history has shown us time and again, such decisions, and thus outcomes, can have disastrous consequences.

(Next to Chuck E Cheese)

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