The Oracle MONDAY, MAY 11, 2015 I VOL. 52 NO. 117
Inside this Issue
The Index
News.................................................................1 Lifestyle......................................................4 Opinion.......................................................6
www.usforacle.com
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA
Racing for a cure at Miles for Moffitt Record funds raised in 10th annual cancer research event.
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By Grace Hoyte
LI F E STYLE
“Avengers: Age of Ultron” breaks box office. Page 4
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Montage
S PORTS USF baseball slumping with season drawing to close. BACK
classifieds..............................................7 Crossword.........................................7 sports............................................................8
Runners prepared Saturday morning for 5K and 8K races in support of cancer research. ORACLE PHOTO/GRACE HOYTE
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Around 3 a.m. Saturday morning, dozens of volunteers from the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute gathered on campus to begin preparing for the day’s activities. Four hours later, the thousands of attendees of the Miles for Moffitt cancer research fundraiser admired the results. For the 10th year in a row, the
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute held its annual Miles for Moffitt event on campus Saturday morning. The event was designed by Senator Connie Mack, Dr. William Dalton, former Moffitt president and CEO, and their wives 10 years ago to raise money for cancer research at Moffitt. Every year since then, a contest has been held within the center to fund cancer research projects. Tampa mayor Bob Buckhorn attended the event and saw each of the three timed races off at the starting line. Many of those in attendance came in groups sporting commemorative T-shirts in memory and
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Alumni create app for textbook sharing By Christopher Collier A S S T .
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With a new app called Borrow’d, USF alumni Daniel Mall and Rhondel Whyte are seeking to lighten the financial burden of college for students who need to buy, sell, rent and lend their textbooks. “The way the app works is really simple,” Mall said. “It allows students to be able to borrow books from other students, essentially skipping the bookstore and not having to waste money selling back to the bookstore and getting pennies on the dollar.” Mall and Whyte agreed the experience of selling their textbooks as freshmen was inefficient and unpleasant. After just one year, Mall began to think about textbooks and their costs. “I started borrowing books very frequently from friends,” Mall said. “I tried to figure out how we can make this more accessible to other students. What if you’re not limited to the circle of friends that you have? In borrowing books, you’re kinda limited to the
people that you know. What if you can borrow a book from someone across campus that you don’t know?” Whyte is a newly graduated alumnus with an electrical engineering degree and was last year’s student body vice president, and Mall graduated last year with a bachelor’s in interdisciplinary social sciences. Both men are from Trinidad and Tobago, but while Whyte came to USF in 2010, Mall’s family immigrated to the U.S. when he was about six years old. Originally, Mall created a Facebook page called Bullbooks, which grew to have a membership of over 2,000 people. Bullbooks was the prototype that evolved into Borrow’d. The process begins by signing into the Borrow’d app using profile data from a Facebook account and then scanning the book’s barcode. From scanning the barcode, a textbook database within the app will upload the text information. After the information on the book is uploaded, the seller/
lender will need to post pictures of the book itself. The daily, weekly and monthly prices to borrow or the buyout price to purchase the book will also need to be made available. Once those search parameters are set, the transaction is finalized with a meeting between the borrower and lender where the books will exchange hands. There is no need to bring cash, as the
monetary transactions happen online and the funds aren’t accessible until both parties indicate the exchange was made. “We’ve created a number of levels of security for the app,” Mall said. “For one, if you decide not to return the book, not only will you be blocked from using the app, but you will be charged the value of the book after seven days of not
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USF’s body farm to move on to greener pastures
By Russell Nay A S S T .
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USF’s latest research endeavor might be dead in its initial Lithia location, but the university plans to keep the project alive at another site. Eric Eisenberg, dean of the USF College of Arts and Sciences, said he expects USF to begin looking for a new home for the Facility for Outdoor Experimental Research and Training (FORT) in the next two to three months. “I’m confident we’re going to find a place to put this (facility), probably in the next few months,” Eisenberg said. “We’re anxious to get this thing built.” Though USF originally planned to establish FORT at the training center for the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office in Lithia, about 45 minutes East of campus, many local residents voiced numerous concerns at a recent public meeting about FORT, a facility similar to what is referred to as a “body farm” in states like Tennessee, North Carolina, Colorado and Texas. USF’s research would be a joint project between the USF Department of Anthropology and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. The resulting facility would be focused on analyzing the effects of Florida’s environment on the decomposition of corpses left outdoors. While the training center is half
a mile from the nearest home and is guarded by a police officer who lives there, many residents said they were worried about decreased property values, a widespread odor, nearby water contamination and even local animals and pests developing a taste for human flesh. Similar facilities already exist in Tennessee, Texas, Illinois and Colorado, and Eisenberg said that one in Florida would specifically examine the decomposition effects of Florida’s unique environment. As a result, USF researchers and students could help state law enforcement officials solve more crimes involving human victims left outdoors. Lithia residents, however, were rather opposed to a nearby body farm, and Eisenberg said USF ultimately decided to relocate the facility in order to maintain a healthy relationship with the community. “If (USF) were a corporation, or if we were a private individual, we could do a calculation (on)…resistance…(and) support (and) push it through and hope that it all works out,” he said. “But we’re a public university, and…we want to have a good relationship with the community. The moment the community began to point fingers at us and say, ‘You’re forcing this on us, USF,’ … we took that very seriously, and that’s why we acted so fast.” It is this feeling of being tar-
geted as an experimental test bed, Eisenberg said, that frustrated Lithia residents more than actually planning to place a body farm in their neighborhoods. He claimed many citizens and local politicians viewed this project as “the last straw” due to their prior experiences with government and their involvement with previous research projects. “Most of the comments (at the public meeting) were along the lines of, ‘This part of the county has stuff dropped on it without input, and this is the latest and last straw (of forced projects),’” Eisenberg said. “The majority of people were not objecting to the facility. They were objecting to having something thrust on them which they hadn’t had a chance to really consider.” Eisenberg said the reason why Lithia residents were widely unaware of the facility before the public meeting was due to a communication breakdown between the university, Hillsborough County and local citizens and politicians. He added that USF researchers who knew of the planned FORT location assumed Lithia’s community and key politicians also knew about the body farm solely because the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office was aware of it. Information about the project did not reach those in Lithia through the sheriff’s office, however, making USF’s public meeting with
local residents the first opportunity for Lithia’s community to provide feedback. “We didn’t go to that public meeting thinking that the process (of establishing FORT) was by any means over,” Eisenberg said. “We were seeing it as the beginning of a conversation with the (Lithia) citizens.” In deciding FORT’s next location, Eisenberg said USF will proceed even more cautiously with the implementation process and will immediately hold a public meeting if the chosen location is on county land. He said the lesson USF can learn from Lithia is that the university will want to have a future community’s approval before moving to implement the project. Deciding on and securing an appropriate site for a body farm is a process all to its own, and Eisenberg said USF has been planning the project for about a year now. First, the facility requires an expanse of land — the Lithia location, for example, would have been two acres. This land must also mirror the environmental conditions of the area of study in order to produce accurate results, which is why Florida researchers would not be able to use much of the data collected from a body farm in Texas. Researchers must also develop a security system for the facility,
including physical fencing, security cameras and deciding how the facility’s cadavers would be transported. If the chosen land is owned by a county, like the Lithia location, that county must be a party to the implementation of the project. The county’s involvement in the project also includes local politicians and citizens, and researchers must consider their thoughts as well. The lead researcher for the project, Erin Kimmerle of USF’s anthropology department, declined an interview with The Oracle on the matter. Had the Lithia location not been owned by the county, Eisenberg said, the university would likely have been able to move forward with establishing FORT. This gives USF a strong reason to consider a private or corporate site for the project as well. So far, several people have already contacted USF with potential offers to house the facility, including private and corporate lands. While Eisenberg said negotiations with the individuals and entities involved will definitely take place, the exact details on who and where remain uncertain. “I would love to be able to say to you, ‘There are five sites,’ and you’d make a nice chart, but we’re not there yet,” he said. “At this point we’re just beginning to figure out what kind of alternatives might be available.”
ing the museum near Amalie Arena, according to a Tampa Bay Times article. The move would be a part of Vinik’s $1 billion project downtown, which aims to redevelop nearly 3 million square feet along Tampa’s waterfront — including USF’s new medical school and USF Health Heart Institute. Channelside already includes the Florida Aquarium and the Tampa Bay History Center, and SPP CEO Tod Leiweke said MOSI would be a welcome addition to the educational institutions present in what could become the city’s new entertainment district. Currently, there are no concrete plans to move MOSI from its current location next
to USF, and while MOSI interim president and CEO Molly Demeulenaere said early discussions of relocating the museum downtown are exciting, moving a $120 million infrastructure is no easy task. The decision for MOSI’s relocation to Channelside is up to both the museum and Hillsborough County commissioners, who are currently discussing the issue with Vinik’s team, according to several news organizations. Bloggers around the area, like those from Saint Peter’s Blog and Voodoo Five, claim USF is currently looking into what could fill the 80-acre plot of land south of Fowler Avenue if the move were to take place.
Specifically, they speculate the university would use the land for a new football stadium for the Bulls, or a research facility. While the blogs cite the commissioners’ conflicting opinions on the move, with one commissioner saying it’s too early to have the conversation about a USF stadium due to lack of attendance and support at football games. Another commissioner’s similar pitch for a new Rays stadium was also countered with facts about the Rays lacking support at its current stadium in Tropicana Field. At its current location, MOSI attracts approximately half a million visitors a year, and Hillsborough County Administrator Mike Merrill spec-
ulated that the museum would attract more visitors downtown and be more convenient for tourists. Despite this, MOSI is also in close proximity to Busch Gardens, which annually attracts more than four million people each year — many more than any museum’s annual visitor count in the downtown area. Talk among commissioners is still ongoing, but it was made clear at a recent meeting that the county-owned land MOSI currently sits on would also be marketed to private companies, creating a number of options for the county to replace MOSI if commissioners and the museum commit to a move.
MOSI may move downtown, community sees potential By Russell Nay A S S T .
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Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) visitors might someday have the ability to learn about space and physics before taking a short walk to visit the Florida Aquarium or the Tampa Bay History Center in downtown. While MOSI has been open to the public in its current location on Fowler Avenue since 1982, the museum may move to Channelside. Tampa Bay Lightning Owner Jeff Vinik’s development team, Strategic Property Partners (SPP), has begun talks with MOSI and Hillsborough County commissioners about mov-
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MOFFITT
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support of loved ones and colleagues. One such group wore turquoise shirts. Some of their shirts read “in support of Anita,” others read “in support of mom,” still others said “in support of grandma.” One man’s shirt was “in support of my love” — he stood next to a woman whose shirt said “I am Anita/mom/grandma/my love.” Another group, made up of former high school track team members had teamed up again to run in honor of their coach, who passed away from cancer. One team member manned the table while others participated in the 8K and 5K races. Denise Baker, a former member of the team, said many in her group were running, but some were simply there to cheer others on. However, all of them, she said, were there to honor their coach and to support cancer research. “We all came together as a team,” Baker said. “Some of us are just here to support and cheer on the runners. There are a lot of people in the group who have run 5Ks, 8Ks, half marathons (and) there are parents here who are also running and walking.”
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returning it.” Though the textbook market is competitive with bookstores around a college campus, Whyte said Borrow’d is prepared. “The beautiful thing about the app is that, once a person buys a book, that book is their property,” Whyte said. “Therefore, the bookstores or any of these other avenues have no proprietary claims to that book. That’s the person’s book so if that person decides to trade a book, or rent a book, or do whatever they please with the book as they will through our app, there are no avenues from which they can attack us.”
H. Lee Moffitt attended the event, and was a figurehead at the beginning of every race and on the stage during the award ceremony. “I think that many who are here today, and many more who couldn’t be here today, are running because they have been touched by cancer in some way,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot of cancer survivors out here today, and I’m proud of them for being here supporting us.” Jennifer Dickens and Pat Windon came out Saturday with a group called Cancer Ninjas in support of Windon’s son, who had been a patient at Moffitt. Windon had participated in two previous Moffittsponsored walks, and Dickens had been part of several walks in Nashville, Tennessee, though this was her first for Moffitt. Hope, she said, was her motivation, and why she felt others should come to walks like this. “We just felt like we had gotten great care — the whole family, not just him,” Windon said. “And we got really involved, and wanted to keep that going for other families.” Moffitt employs over 4,200 people, with an economic impact of nearly $2 billion in Florida, according to its website. Historically, Miles for Moffitt has brought in as much as $600,000, though Sellers is confident that this year’s total will be higher than last year’s.
To date, the event has raised over $2 million for cancer research. “100 percent of the funds raised through registration go to research,” said Tom Sellers, center director and executive vice president of Moffitt. “We put out a request for applications, our scientists write ideas, they’re reviewed by a grant review committee, and just this week, the associate center directors and I were able to select final recipients for funding.” Most of the Cancer Ninjas walked in the 5K race, and they were among hundreds of race competitors who flocked to the posted results to get a glance at their time. Many of the racers simply wanted to beat their best time in a similar race, and others looked for their name above their friends’ to earn bragging rights. PNC Bank, the largest sponsor of the event, provided blue shirts for many of the participants, and the sea of sweaty blue racers was inspiring to behold, especially considering many of them were parents and grandparents of grown children. According to Sellers seven research teams were chosen and awarded $100,000 each. This year, over 6,500 individuals participated in Miles for Moffitt. According to WTSP 10 News, about $650,000 was raised and donations will be accepted online until the end of June.
Mall and Whyte said, in terms of price and the ability to resell a book, the textbook industry is unequal. Generally, Whyte said, a book that costs $120 can be rented in perpetuity. “They’ll rent you that book for $80, they’ll get the book back from you,” Whyte said. “You’ve gained nothing because you don’t have the book, then they rent it out a second semester for $80 — they’ve already surpassed the cost of the book they’ve already purchased.” Although Borrow’d receives a 10 percent commission from each completed transaction between any two of its current 500 users, the traffic for the app is at the mercy of when textbooks are in demand: the beginning or end of each
semester. “At this point, we have students posting their books on the app,” Whyte said. “But because it was released during finals week, students have been focused on posting books rather than borrowing them.” The startup costs for Borrow’d were roughly $50,000, more than double their initial budget of $20,000. Initially, Mall said he and Whyte contacted about 700 potential investors to make up for their lack of funding. “I got 100 (responses),” Mall said. “Of those, only 10 wanted to know more. Out of those 10, only three contacted us. Out of those three, only one saw the vision.” Their solitary investor left the project weeks before launch, leaving Mall and Whyte to rely on internal investors.
Dean’s decision ends election woes
After an eventful end to this year’s campus election cycle, Interim Dean of Students Danielle McDonald made the final decision to reject the appeal from former Student Government (SG) Attorney General Alex Johnson regarding last semester’s expedited election. McDonald supported the Supreme Court’s decision to throw out the expedited election results. As a result, there will be no change from the general election results. Nicholas Russo, who originally filed the grievance against the ERC that led to the Court’s decision, said he supported McDonald’s decision not to overturn the court’s decision. Johnson brought up three major issues in his appeal of the Court’s decision: a lack of reasoning, previous authorization and court bias. McDonald asserted that the Court fulfilled its obligation to present an official opinion within five business days per SG statute, thus countering the accusation lack of reasoning presented by Johnson. Johnson’s second point of appeal was on the grounds that the expedited election that began the controversy had been authorized previously. Johnson wrote that the Court came to a unanimous consensus that Joshua Smith, the initially affected party, was entitled to
another election due to being left off the ballot for six hours. As a result of the two elections many candidates lost out. Russo’s initial wining turnout of 274 votes in the general election fell to just 50 in the expedited election. “What the Court failed to research was that SGATO (Student Government Advising, Training and Operations) actually is the only party which has the ability to create ballots,” Johnson wrote. In her response, McDonald said the original Supreme Court decision does not have to influence new cases brought to the floor. McDonald wrote the case was heard in order to discuss a statute, not the expedited election. In the letter of appeal, Johnson wrote that he believed the Court to be biased in their decision-making, which was his third point. In his appeal, Johnson claimed the unsupported decision revealed bias within the Court. The former attorney general declined to comment on the matter. In her closing remarks, McDonald wrote that she had no reason to believe there was a bias among the justices. Russo expressed frustration with the appeal but also said that he was relieved to be able to move on from the issue. “I’m just happy now to be senator and everything, and I’m just glad it’s all over,” he said.
Borrow’d has been live for two weeks, which makes producing hard facts and figures over revenue and app traffic difficult. According to Mall and Whyte, they are in a pre-revenue stage. According to 2014 study from the U.S. Public Interest Research Group Education Fund, the price of college textbooks over the course of the last decade has increased 82 percent. In the same study, it was found that 65 percent of students have decided to not buy a book at some point in their university career. Joseph Lamura is an Army veteran who attends USF with the help of the GI Bill. Instead of taking a risk without the book, he buys them to be safe. “Going to the bookstore is always convenient because
you’re gonna get your book that day,” Lamura said. “But online, I mean what, two days to wait and pay half the price, so yeah, more reliable in that sense — for price.” Vanesa VanZile, a music major in the class of 2015, said she feels textbooks are expensive and has risked going without a textbook due to the associated costs. “This semester I took a class without having a textbook and I actually did pretty well in it,” VanZile said. “But I’ve also had that, where it goes really bad and I end up just taking a copy from someone else or taking a picture of someone else’s book. Which I kinda feel like, I don’t know, a bad person for doing that … but I’m also a poor college kid that has to pay for a lot of things.”
By Christopher Collier A S S T .
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Lifestyle
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Heroic sequel does not disappoint
Can’t miss summer movies Now in theaters: “Ex Machina” “Unfriended” “Cinderella”
By Grace Hoyte C O M M E N T A R Y
If you were expecting the second Avengers iteration to be full of puns and corny humor, you will not be disappointed. However, if you expect it to be completely devoid of meaning, you would be sorely mistaken. Full of allusions to famous works of literature and film, “Avengers: Age of Ultron” boasts a surprisingly clever script, which is balanced with plenty of face smashing and CGI. The entire movie seems to be a dialogue on the future of artificial intelligence, which looks bleak since machines lack what makes
mankind essentially human: emotion. Ultron, the mechanical bad guy, comes to the conclusion that mankind is too dangerous, and he concocts a solution that leads to the plot of the movie. The movie uses the ditty from Pinocchio to lend a creepiness Ultron, with much of the effect coming from discomfort with hearing a childhood soundtrack accompanied by a montage of action and death, who says: “There are no strings on me.” Though some criticize the movie for being formulaic, it is surprisingly full of emotion, humor and surprises, and all of our favorite superheroes are just as personable as always, which is to say that the movie again found a reason
for someone to hate Tony Stark. Captain America also manages to be adorably old-fashioned. Iron Man gets confronted by a large cluster of robots, flies around the building, and screams “s---!” Immediately, Captain America replies, “language.” Shortly thereafter, it becomes a running joke, and the patriotic hero is confronted by it several times in the movie’s 141-minute runtime. Such lighthearted banter keeps the movie from feeling too selfrighteous, though Thor takes a big swig from the chalice of holierthan-thou when he challenges everyone to pick up his hammer, Mjolnir. Needless to say, no one can lift it, though the Captain shifts the leather and iron tool
slightly. As usual, though, the Avengers look like the underdog, and the movie feels completely weighed in the bad guy’s favor until the very last moment. In that sense, the movie was a little predictable, though the suspense keeps the feeling of deja vu at bay until the credits. And, as with every cookie from the Marvel oven, the film ended with a short allusion to yet another sequel after the credits. Overall, the movie runs like any other superhero flick and delivers enough punches and quips to satisfy a comic book enthusiast or an action movie junkie.
Out Friday: “Mad Max: Fury Road” “Pitch Perfect 2”
3.5 out of 5 stars
May 22: “Tomorrowland” “Poltergeist”
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Softball
Bulls fall short of NCAA Tourney
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By Jacob Hoag A S S T .
S P O R T S
teams as free agents following the conclusion of the draft. Tight end Mike McFarland will join Cliett, as he was signed by the Texans. All-time receiving leader Andre Davis signed with the Buffalo Bills, kicker Marvin Kloss signed with the Cleveland Browns, and the St. Louis Rams brought offensive lineman Darrell Williams aboard. Defensive lineman Elkino Watson earned an invitation to the Chicago Bears’ rookie mini camp and Todd Chandler was invited by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
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After falling to top-seeded UCF, 3-1, in the AAC championship semifinals Friday, the USF softball team’s quest for a fourth-consecutive NCAA Tournament bid was out of its control and in the hands of the NCAA selection committee. Broadcast on ESPNU on Sunday night, the selection show called the names of 64 programs that now have the chance to continue their season. Following a roller-coaster season, USF was not among the teams announced. The Bulls finished the season with a 36-20 record and earned the fifth seed in the conference tournament. After beating East Carolina (16-37, 7-11) 5-0 in the opening round Thursday, in-state rival and 15th-ranked UCF (487, 16-2) stood in the way of the Bulls’ second conference title in three years, after winning the Big East in 2013. Senior pitcher Sam Greiner recovered after giving up an early run to pitch five scoreless innings, which set the table for a late comeback. “That’s what you want your seniors to do, step up and perform like that, and she did it today,” coach Ken Eriksen said. “I don’t think that anybody put us on their back like she did the past two weeks.” Junior Lee Ann Spivey tied the game at one in the bottom of the sixth with a two-out RBIsingle to bring home senior D’Anna Devine from second. Spivey, along with sophomore Kristen Wyckoff and senior Karla Claudio were named to the All-Conference team Wednesday after stand-
Lee Ann Spivey, who led the Bulls with 52 RBIs, knocked in the team’s only run against UCF on Friday. ORACLE FILE PHOTO/ADAM
MATHIEU
out seasons. In the top of the seventh, Claudio came in to pitch with the bases loaded and no outs. She nearly got out of the jam — striking out the first two batters — but with a two-strike count, UCF’s Jessica Ujvari, who scored the Knights’ first run, drove in the go-ahead run that fell just short of sophomore Juli Weber’s glove. Earlier that week, USF pulled off the comeback win, giving UCF only its second conference loss of the season, but was unable to push across any runs in the final inning of the conference tournament semis. “It’s a game of inches,” Eriksen said following the loss. “… The difference between gold and silver is a fingernail sometimes and that’s what it
was today.” Though its season was cut short, the near miss was nothing for the Bulls to hang their heads about. USF had Erica Nunn throw a no-hitter, a 16-game winning streak, as well as some tight battles against top-five teams in the country. USF’s Achilles heel was its inability to defeat top-ranked teams. Before their win against No. 15 UCF, the Bulls were 0-7 against teams in the top-25, including four losses against teams in the top-five. The Bulls lose six seniors including Claudio and Greiner, but USF’s freshmen accounted for 52 RBIs this season, with another 39 coming from sophomores.
Perry medically cleared USF forward Chris Perry was forced to sit out the final 13 games of the season after being hospitalized for chest pains that occurred during practice the evening of Jan. 24 in Hartford, Connecticut. Perry made it back to the XL Center around halftime for the Bulls’ game against UConn the next day, but didn’t play for the rest of the season due to his undisclosed injury. Friday, USF announced Perry has been medically cleared to resume all basketball activities. The 6-foot-8 forward averaged 10.8 points and 7.1 rebounds in 19 games last season.
Opinion
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Women don’t need a wait period to make health decisions
Isabelle Cavazos
be the first to have the idea. For instance, as mentioned in the Los Angeles Times, North Carolina’s lower house wants to expand its waiting period from 24 hours to 72 hours, and South Dakota recently lengthened its 72-hour waiting period by excluding weekends, federal and state holidays. Among these, 26 other states in the U.S. already have a waiting period. While wait periods aren’t as harsh as other restrictions, such as Texas’ strict criteria for abortion clinics that limited the number of facilities in the state and Florida’s own requirement that women get an ultrasound before an abortion, the expansion of wait periods tells women they can’t possibly make the right decision for themselves the first time around. As the Times reported, Republican Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto used the age-old argument that one of the 72,000 abortions in Florida last year and in years to come could have potentially prevented the cure for cancer or a venture to Mars. However, starting with the state’s young adults and talking to them about sex and contraception is a better start. In Florida, sex and STI/HIV education must stress abstinence, according to the Guttmacher Institute. To truly prevent abor-
tion, it’s time to stop dancing around talk of contraception to younger ears so they are informed about their options in the very real event that they choose to have sex. Guttmacher also notes that Florida health care providers have the option to refuse contraceptive services and that the state lacks a policy for pharmacies to provide access to contraceptives. Instead of trying to change women’s minds about an abortion, the state should work harder to prevent unwanted pregnancy. If Florida has the nerve to restrict abortion, it can’t ignore women with a pregnancy that is the result of rape. Yet, that is exactly what Florida would be doing, since the state would exempt these women from the wait if they can prove they were raped, an insensitive provision that only makes them jump more hurdles. Abortion clearly isn’t an easy choice to make, but the Legislature can’t assume women haven’t considered that already. As if many conservative pro-lifers don’t already think women wanting an abortion are irresponsible, the state doesn’t need to reinforce this myth.
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Bucs fans should pay attention to Winston’s red flags
Last Friday Jameis Winston, Heisman-winning quarterback of Florida State and No. 1 NFL draft A new Florida bill would reinpick, had his first practice for the force the ancient stereotype that Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the same women are too indecisive about day he filed a countersuit against what they want, as it would Erica Kinsman to challenge her require them to take more time accusation that he raped her. before making a major health As reported in the Tampa choice. Bay Times, Kinsman claims to According to the Tampa Bay have been assaulted by Winston Times, the Florida Legislature in December of 2012 and has recently approved a bill (HB 633) since had her testimony deemed that would require women seek“problematic” by the State ing an abortion to wait 24 hours Attorney’s Office. According to before having the procedure. What the International Business Times, Senate Republicans argue is a way the case even got Title IX, the fedto potentially prevent abortions eral law that protects against sexby giving women that much more based discrimination, involved time to consider their decision is as Kinsman claimed FSU offireally just a way to further restrict cials concealed information and women from making a personal purposefully did not notify the choice with the implication that Title IX coordinator. Despite they wouldn’t have thought it Kinsman’s battle to be heard, the through without that time. state attorney and FSU adminisBut, if Gov. Rick Scott were to Isabelle Cavazos is a senior trators never charged Winston of approve this bill, Florida wouldn’t majoring in English and Spanish. the assault. The case of Winston and Kinsman is murky at best, with the University of South Florida’s student newspaper since 1966 FSU’s timeline in handling the The Oracle is published Monday through Thursday case questionable and Kinsman during the fall and spring semesters, and twice weekly, Monday and Thursday, during the summer. climbing the legal ladder to see Editor in Chief: Alex Rosenthal .................... oracleeditor@gmail.com her alleged attacker charged. The Oracle allocates one free issue to each student. Additional copies are $.50 each and available at the While Winston, according to the News Editor: Grace Hoyte .................... oraclenewsteam@gmail.com Oracle office (SVC 0002). Times, believes Kinsman medBY PHONE dled with witnesses and purposeSports Editor: Vinnie Portell ............. oraclesportseditor@gmail.com Main . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 974-6242 fully launched an attack on the Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 974-5190 public’s perception of him. News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 974-1888 Additionally, Winston, a man Opinion Editor: Isabelle Cavazos ............ oracleopinion@gmail.com Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 974-2842 now signed to a $25.35 million Lifestyle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 974-2398 contract, is seeking in excess of Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . 974-2620 Multimedia Editor: Adam Mathieu Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 974-6242 $75,000 in damages. The new Buc seems to be playing the part Website: usforacle.com Assistant Editors: Christopher Collier, Russell Nay Facebook: facebook.com/usforacle of a pirate very well thus far. Twitter: @USFOracle The counterclaim, regardless Graphic Arts Manager: Ashley Barzaga of Winston’s innocence, is ridicuCORRECTIONS lous given that he was able to be The Oracle will correct or clarify factual errors. Contact Editor in Chief Alex Rosenthal at 974-5190. the No. 1 pick for the NFL draft COLU M N I ST
the Oracle
Adam Mathieu COLU M N I ST
and was signed to a multi-million dollar contract. If a hurt image can allow a recent college graduate to become a millionaire overnight and the face of a franchise, then it is hard to fathom what a blemish-free image would wash ashore. After a season for the Bucs that involved a crying quarterback and a 2-14 losing record, the Tampa Bay team has nothing to lose in bringing on a young quarterback that excels on the field. As reported by ESPN, Bucs’ coach Lovie Smith and general manager Jason Licht found nothing wrong with Winston’s character — the same character that walked out of the supermarket with stolen crab legs and is willing to countersue a woman that has already faced repeated scrutiny from those meant to hear her case. A real question of integrity will lay in Tampa’s acceptance of the star quarterback. At this point, there is likely no way to ever know for sure if Winston assaulted Kinsman, but fans should not walk into Raymond James Stadium and cheer for the hero they want without reflecting on who he may really be. The response by FSU and the repeated rejection Kinsman faced and challenged speaks in ways that require a deeper understanding of the case. Bucs fans should rethink the history of the man they will see leading the field and decide if they really want to sport a number-three jersey on gameday. Adam Mathieu is a senior majoring in studio art.
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The Rundown Former Wisconsin defensive back Austin Hudson announced Thursday he will transfer to play for USF. ESPN’s Joe Schad broke the news that Hudson, who played in 14 games for the Badgers at safety last season, wanted to play closer to his home of Tampa. The 6-foot, 205-pound sophomore will have to sit out the 2015 season.
Weekend scores
Baseball
USF Tulane
3 4
Softball
UCF USF
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Conference update
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T H E O R AC L E
AAC down to the wire at season’s end C O R R E S P O N D E N T
Three conference games remain in the regular season, and six teams are within two games of first place — USF being one of them. Houston stands atop the standings, East Carolina is second and USF, Memphis, Tulane and UConn are tied for third. The race is tight in the AAC, but the Bulls (30-21-1, 11-10) look to gain ground when they wrap up the regular season at home against rival UCF (30-22, 9-12). The Bulls held onto first place for the first nine weeks of the season, but started slipping when they dropped two of three to Houston at the end of April. USF has lost seven of its past nine, including two games at Tulane (31-19, 11-10) this weekend. The Bulls broke open the series with a 12-0 shutout
behind pitcher Jimmy Herget (8-2), but the Green Wave rallied in the final two games to take the series with a 5-3 win Saturday and a 4-3 win Sunday. Ryan Valdes (5-2) took the loss in Game 2, and Casey Mulholland (4-7) took it in Game 3. Kevin Merrell remained consistent for the Bulls, as he went 6-for-12 with two RBIs and scored a run in the series. The freshman has started in all 51 games and leads the team in batting average. Merrell also drove in USF’s lone run in its 5-1 loss to No. 10 Florida on Tuesday. “Kevin is a hard worker, and he’s gotten better and better since the day he got here,” coach Mark Kingston said in a statement after the Bulls fell in Gainesville. “We’re really happy with where Kevin is now, but we think the future is even better for him.” USF concludes its eight-
Kevin Merrell has started every game for the Bulls and is leading the team in batting average. ORACLE FILE PHOTO/ADAM MATHIEU game road trip against this month. Jacksonville on Tuesday at 6 It’s crunch time for the p.m. before hosting UCF for a Bulls, as these final games will three-game series, beginning determine the seeding for the Thursday at 6:30 p.m. AAC tournament, which begins The Bulls lost two of three to May 19 at Bright House Field the Knights in Orlando earlier in Clearwater.
Notebook
USF rolls past Va. Tech for Sweet 16 berth
Softball UCF won the AAC Championship against Tulsa on a walkoff home run by catcher Samantha McCloskey. The homer was the sole run of the game for either team. Baseball Houston took two of three games against East Carolina over the weekend to assume command of first place in the AAC. The Pirates now sit in second place, one game behind the Cougars.
By Vinnie Portell S P O R T S
BASEBALL
UCF (30-22, 9-12) at USF (30-20-1, 11-9) When: Thursday, 6:30 p.m. Where: USF Baseball Stadium TV/Radio: BullsCast/1010 AM
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Baseball
By Tiana Aument
Notable News
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Oliver Pramming, the Bulls’ lone senior, will look to lead the team to its first-ever Sweet 16 win. ORACLE FILE PHOTO/SEBASTIAN CONTENTO
E D I T O R
This time last year, the USF men’s tennis team was eliminated in the second round of the NCAA Tournament by Florida. Despite the loss, coach Matt Hill said he was excited for the future of his young team. That excitement came to fruition Saturday when USF downed Virginia Tech, 4-0, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center in Blacksburg, Virginia. Sophomore Sasha Gozun won both of his matches as he defeated No. 43 Andreas Bjerrehus in singles play 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 and also won his doubles match with teammate Vadym Kalyuzhnyy. “It was an amazing day for the guys and all the work they’ve put
in,” coach Matt Hill said. “It’s a huge day for the program as well. We push the envelope and try to show other teams we’re a program that’s going to be around for a little while.” After dispatching Boise State 4-0 in the first round, the Bulls had little trouble handling the No. 15 team in the nation Saturday. No. 18 USF will play No. 2 Baylor on Thursday in Waco, Texas in the Bulls’ first-ever Sweet 16 match. Six Bulls sign with NFL teams Five full rounds of the NFL Draft were completed before a USF player was selected May 2. Former USF linebacker Reshard Cliett may earn the chance to play alongside linebackers such
as Jadeveon Clowney and Brian Cushing, as he was chosen by the Houston Texans with the 35th pick in the sixth round (211th overall). “When he came here to meet with our scouting staff and our coaching staff, we were very impressed with his football knowledge, his recollection of his own defensive scheme from college and then his recollection of some of the things we taught him,” Texans coach Bill O’Brien said in an article on houstontexans.com. “We saw a very athletic guy that could be used as a potential sub-linebacker and was a smart guy.” Former USF center Austin Reiter joined Cliett as the only other Bull to be drafted in 2015 when he was taken by the Washington Redskins in the seventh and final round. Four Bulls signed with NFL
n See SWEET 16 on PAGE 5