The Daily Beacon

Issue 6, Volume 122

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Debate rising around campus gun policy

Vols fall 75-65 to UK; 0-3 SEC McRae leads scrappy effort, Wildcats too strong in the end Austin Bornheim Assistant Sports Editor

File Photo • The Daily Beacon

Members of Faculty Senate converse after their decision to vote against amending the gun bill that would allow licensed faculty members to carry firearms on campus on Feb. 7, 2011.

Emily DeLanzo Managing Editor Senate Bill 239 proposed

by Rep. Stacey Campfield (R - Knoxville) in 2011 would have allowed “full-time faculty and members of the staff at any public post-secondary institution in this state who have a valid handgun carry permit ... to carry handguns at all times on the premises of the public postsecondary institution in which they are employed.”

University administrators from public universities across the state of Tennessee composed

an official statement for lawmakers expressing their dissatisfaction with the bill.

But it’s not just administrators who have concerns with the bill. Students and faculty alike have expressed concerns about the preservation of UT’s learning environment if concealed weapons were allowed on campus.

Lisa Dicker, a junior in political science and Asian studies, feels uncomfortable with such a change. She believes guns should only be carried by campus police.

“I don’t believe that more guns on campus means a safer environment,” said Dicker. “It allows

for more mistakes and small incidents to occur with no real evidence that it would prevent a large scale assault on a school.

Despite high profile events, school campuses, the vast majority of which are gun-free, remain some of the safest places in our country with very few homicides or gun-related incidents.”

Dicker feels as though additional weapons would be “a detriment to the learning environment.” She is not alone.

Fellow student Tyler Dinwiddie, senior in sociology, agrees with this sentiment.

Dinwiddie stated that weapons

should remain “only in the hands of qualified, trained officers.”

Many students do not feel comfortable with the idea of students or faculty carrying weapons.

UTPD Chief Troy Lane relayed the gun policy that UT espouses.

“The University of Tennessee is opposed to allowing any type of weapon to be carried on campus with the belief that these items are not conducive to a positive learning environment,” Chief Lane said.

See GUN CONTROL on Page 3

Tennessee battled to the final moments in a hostile Rupp Arena Tuesday night but came up short, 75-65, to the Kentucky Wildcats.

Junior Jordan McRae led all scorers with 23 points – his fourth-straight 20-point game – but it wasn’t enough to catapult the Volunteers to victory.

“We definitely went into the game knowing that we could win,” McRae said. “Down the stretch our team has to make key stops and better decisions.”

The Vols (8-7, 0-3 SEC) took a 54-53 lead with 7:19 left to play on the strength of a Derek Reese 3-pointer, but the Wildcats regained the lead for good less a minute later after a three-point play.

“I thought it was a wellplayed game by both teams,” head coach Cuonzo Martin said. “Both teams competed and played hard. I thought both teams executed.”

The two SEC foes were neck and neck going into the locker room – 10 lead changes in the first half – with Kentucky (11-5, 2-1) leading 34-31.

With the help of a rowdy home crowd the Wildcats went on multiple runs in the second half where it looked like they would run away with the game, but Tennessee refused to go away.

Kentucky extended their lead to eight twice in the second half, but both times the Vols responded with a basket of their own.

“I thought we did a good job,” Martin said. “Guys took care of the ball, moved the ball and we had spacing. The key was trying to get those big guys off the blocks and force those guys to play on the perimeter.”

At the 12:42 mark in the second half the Volunteers began cutting into the Kentucky lead, and over the next two minutes were able to knot the game at 47-all.

See GAME RECAP on Page 3

Student group takes equal benefits campaign to chancellor Justin Joo Staff Writer The Benefit Equality Campaign has continued into the spring semester, with the student group Friends with Benefit Equality delivering a letter on Monday to the office of Chancellor Jimmy Cheek about the issue.

The issue is a pursuit for benefits provided to spouses of UT faculty to be available to homosexual and heterosexual domestic partners of UT faculty, who for whatever reason are not married either by choice or because they have no legal means to.

The campaign’s roots go back to April 2012, when Faculty Senate unanimously passed a resolution to pursue benefits of some kind to domestic partners of faculty.

Then in September, Cheek and Agriculture Chancellor Larry Arrington sent a threeparagraph letter to the Faculty Senate stating that they could not extend any benefits.

The chancellors’ reasoning was that the university is a state institute and that the benefits Faculty Senate suggested to be provided were “inconsistent with the public policy of our state outlined in constitutional and statutory provisions.”

Since then, Faculty Senate and other groups have taken a variety of action to express their dissatisfaction with the chancellors’ brief response.

Toward the end of the fall semester, Cheek said at another Senate meeting that he was working on a second, more detailed response, which would be released in a few weeks.

With still no response from Cheek, Friends with Benefit Equality drafted and delivered a letter to the chancellor encouraging either a response

Justin Joo • The Daily Beacon

The Friends with Benefit Equality delivered a letter to Chancellor Jimmy Cheek’s office requesting a response about providing benefits to the domestic partners of UT faculty. or, ideally, a move to provide some benefits. They also delivered a poster board that said, “New Year’s Resolution Benefit Equality.”

This is not the first letter that the group has given to Cheek. The first one was taken to the administrative offices of Andy Holt Tower last semester. Part of this second letter’s intent is to try and get Cheek to not only respond to that first letter also to get some sort of response to the equal benefits campaign as a whole.

Robert Naylor, sophomore in global studies and primary writer of the letter, said that

he hopes that this time around the chancellor will provide a response.

“I feel like this time since we gave him a larger thing to look at (the poster board),” Naylor said, “he’ll be more apt to read the letter because I doubt he even read the first one, because he didn’t respond.”

Friends with Benefit Equality is a student conglomerate group that represents several other student organizations, including All Campus Theater, Amnesty International, the Beatitudes Society, the Harry Potter Alliance, the Lambda Student Union, the Progressive

Student Alliance and Students Promoting Environmental Action in Knoxville (SPEAK).

Naylor said that there are several other student organizations that are thinking about joining.

Both the first and second letter were written to get a response from Cheek on the equal benefits issue. Friends with Benefit Equality are hoping to set up some sort of meeting to have further discussion on the issue. Ideally they want the chancellor to begin the process of providing equal benefits, but at the very least, they would be somewhat satis-

fied with getting some sort of official response from the chancellor.

Jennifer Dobbins, senior in political science, edited Naylor’s letter. She said that another aspect of the letter is clarification of the chancellors’ first response from September.

“There is a goal for us to making this letter,” Dobbins explained. “We really just want some sort of a response from the administration of UT explaining their response to the UT Faculty Senate.”

Dobbins and the Friends with Benefit Equality’s issue with chancellors Cheek and

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Arrington’s response was that the reason they cannot provide some sort of benefits to domestic partners is because it doesn’t comply with the state’s policies. Friends with Benefit Equality want Cheek and the administration to explain which state policies are being referred to and how exactly they clash with a new benefit policy.

Cheek was not in his office, but the letter was to be delivered upon his return. UT administration did not have an immediate response to the letter or the Benefit Equality Campaign as a whole.

utdailybeacon.com

‘We Back Pat’ raises awareness on page 6

2 • THE DAILY BEACON

Wednesday, January 16, 2013 Associate Editor Preston Peeden

IN SHORT Around Rocky Top

ppeeden@utk.edu

Managing Editor Emily DeLanzo edelanzo@utk.edu

Crime Log January 2 11:00 a.m. An officer was dispatched to the Student Health Center to speak with a subject in reference to a laptop having been stolen from a locked room. The location of the occurrence was listed as room 204 of the old Student Counseling Center.

1:15 p.m. A complainant reported that an unknown suspect entered her office in the Hesler Biology Building and took her cellphone.

January 3 4:27 p.m. An officer observed a red Ford Escape

bearing Tennessee tags traveling northbound on 22nd Street.

The vehicle passed through an intersection without stopping for a posted stop sign. He conducted a traffic stop. The drive was issued an Ordinance Citation for Disregarding a Stop Sign and Misdemeanor Citation for Simple Possession and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

5:00 p.m. An officer was dispatched to investigate a theft complain inside of room 416 at East Stadium Hall. The officer arrived on site minutes later and made contact with a UT

staff member who had made the complaint. The complainant reported the theft of two university-owned Apple iPads from the room.

January 5 12:50 a.m. An officer observed a silver Honda Accord turn left onto 17th Street from Cumberland Avenue, which is a restricted turn intersection.

He initiated a traffic stop and further investigation led to the arrest of the driver and multiple citations being issued to the passengers, including citations of Underage Consumption and Driving on a Revoked License.

1559— Two months after the death of her half-sister, Queen Mary I of England, Elizabeth Tudor, the 25-year-old daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, is crowned Queen Elizabeth I at Westminster Abbey in London.

The two half-sisters, both daughters of Henry VIII, had a stormy relationship during Mary’s five-year reign. Mary, who was brought up as a Catholic, enacted pro-Catholic legislation and made efforts to restore papal supremacy in England. A Protestant rebellion ensued, and Queen Mary imprisoned Elizabeth, a Protestant, in the Tower of London on suspicion of complicity. After Mary’s death, Elizabeth survived several Catholic plots against her; although her ascension was greeted with approval by most of England’s lords, who were largely Protestant and hoped for greater religious tolerance Tara Sripunvoraskul • The Daily Beacon under a Protestant queen.

Rachel Elise, student in graphic design, examines the drill work for the table being Under the early guidance of made for the Art Charette. Students are welcome to participate the Art Charette’s Secretary of State Sir William Cecil, Elizabeth repealed theme, “Nerve,” in the Art and Architecture Building at 1 p.m. on Friday.

Mary’s pro-Catholic legislation, established a permanent Protestant Church of England, and encouraged the Calvinist reformers in Scotland.

In foreign affairs, Elizabeth practiced a policy of strengthening England’s Protestant allies and dividing her foes.

Elizabeth was opposed by the pope, who refused to recognize her legitimacy, and by Spain, a Catholic nation that was at the height of its power. In 1588, English-Spanish rivalry led to an abortive Spanish invasion of England in which the Spanish Armada, the greatest naval force in the world at the time, was destroyed by storms and a persistent English navy.

With increasing English

domination at sea, Elizabeth encouraged voyages of discovery, such as Sir Francis Drake’s circumnavigation of the world and Sir Walter Raleigh’s expeditions to the North American coast.

The long reign of Elizabeth, who became known as the “Virgin Queen” for her reluctance to endanger her authority through marriage, coincided with the flowering of the English Renaissance, associated with such renowned authors as William Shakespeare. By her death in 1603, England had become a major world power in every respect, and Queen Elizabeth I passed into history as one of England’s greatest monarchs.

competition of capitalism in favor of a more cooperative economic system. They isolated themselves from national and global markets and built a largely self-sufficient means of meeting their agricultural and material needs. Barter within the community helped them avoid using American currency.

The community’s agricultural and craft operations grew so quickly that the members soon found they needed more land than was cheaply available in New York. Like many of other land-hungry Americans, they looked westward. In 1855, the first members began setting up a new colony in Iowa called Amana, purchasing 30,000 acres of contiguous land as a base for their agricultural and craft operations. Amana (located near modern-day Iowa City) flourished in the decades to come. By the turn of the century, the colonists had built seven largely self-sufficient villages with farms, stores, bakeries, woolen mills, wineries, furniture shops, and the other necessities of independent living.

The Amana community thrived for nearly 80 years, but its isolation from the rest of the world inevitably began to wane during the 20th century.

In the early 1930s, the colony experienced severe economic problems, in part due to the Great Depression. The people voted to abandon their communal life in 1932, and they reorganized the colony on a capitalist basis with each member receiving stock in a new community corporation. The people of Amana began using American currency in January 1933.

1933—After nearly a century of cooperative living, the utopian Amana colonists of Iowa begin using U.S. currency for the first time.

The wide-open spaces of the West have always appealed to visionary reformers attempting to start new societies. Among others, the Mormons in Utah, the Hutterites in South Dakota and Montana, and the Swedenborgians in California all moved West for the same reason: cheap land and freedom from interference. Most reformers moved west after the Civil War, when travel became easier and the threat of Indian resistance was declining.

As with the Mormons, the Amana colonial movement began in New York. Christian Metz, taking his cue from the writings of 18th century German mystics, established the group in 1842 on 5,000 acres near Buffalo, New York.

Metz and his followers were similar to the Mormons in their rejection of the selfish —This Day in History courindividualism and dog-eat-dog tesy of history.com.

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

THE DAILY BEACON • 3 News Editor RJ Vogt

CAMPUS NEWS GAME RECAP continued from Page 1 Kentucky responded with a run of their own to push the lead back to as many as four, but a jumper by McRae and Reese’s trey put Tennessee ahead.

But the Vols were unable to maintain their lead. “(UK) did a good job of making plays,” Martin said. “I thought our guys put ourselves in position but just didn’t capitalize.”

The Vols’ final chance to sneak away with a road win came in the final minute when Josh Richardson went to the line following a flagrant foul against Julius Mays. Richardson air-balled the first free throw and the second bounced harmlessly off the iron.

GUN CONTROL continued from Page 1 “The University of Tennessee has stated its opposition to allowing anyone other than law enforcement officers to carry guns while on campus,” UT President Joe DiPietro said.

“The current law works. There is no need to change it. A primary priority of the university is the safety and security of our students, faculty and staff. This responsibility is taken seriously, and campuses work with law enforcement officials to take measures to create the safest environment possible. We agree with law enforcement that campuses will not become safer with more guns.”

Several UT students expressed their dislike of the previous bill.

“In 2011, I wrote my state representatives voicing my concerns regarding the bill proposed by Sen. Campfield which would have allowed college faculty and staff to carry concealed weapons,” said Dicker.

Fear is growing within the campus community that a similar bill will be proposed in the near future due to the Sandy Hook shooting in December.

“In the wake of the most recent school shooting incident, I do believe that the subject of guns on campuses will be revisited,” said Dicker. “I hope that the decisions that result

rvogt@utk.edu

Assistant News Editor David Cobb dcobb3@utk.edu

Tennessee still had a chance to cut down the 6-point Kentucky lead on the ensuing inbounds play, but McRae’s missed shot from the wing and a Wildcat rebound dashed the Vols’ hopes.

“Well, Josh (Richardson) missed two free throws and we had a play and got to the rim, and I think Jordan (McRae) might have had it blocked,” Martin said. “He executed the play.

That is part of it.”

The Vols currently sit at 0-3 in league play for the first time in 15 years.

“It’s something that we can hopefully get ourselves out of this (losing streak),” McRae said. “These next couple games are must win so we are going to have to do whatever we have to do to try and get it straightened out.”

Tennessee will hit the hardwood again this Saturday at home against Mississippi State. from this discussion are based on rationality and not fear.”

Students like Dicker would rather legislators focus on taking alternative prevention techniques more than promoting guns.

“Faculty and staff on campuses should also be trained in recognizing possible mental health issues in students and colleagues and have clear venues to report this,” Dicker said. “Finally, schools should have welltrained campus police or a school resource officer, depending on the size of the school.”

Similarly, Ben Wagner, senior in psychology, argues that preventing potential shootings lies more within mental awareness than gun control.

“We need to take necessary precautions Parker Eidson • The Daily Beacon to ensure that we understand what is hapJunior guard Jordan McRae drives to the basket againat Kentucky on Jan. 15, 2013. He pening with these individual’s lives or perled all scorers with twenty-three points. haps enable teachers to have some more input if they think some disturbed behavior going on because parents don’t get to see their kids all day during school,” Wagner said. “All of this needs to be taken into consideration for everyone’s safety coupled with gun control laws.”

At the end of the day, the university is interested in preempting any type of violence.

“It’s no longer an argument about allowing your students to come packing to school, but to prevent such tragedy from happening,” Wagner said.

Presidential photo exhibit visits UT Baker Center Justin Joo Staff Writer A glimpse into the lives of the U.S. presidency is on display at the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy with the Associated Press’ presidential photo exhibit, entitled “The American President.”

The exhibit is on display in the Rotunda, free and open to the public and will remain open until Jan. 25 (it will be closed on Jan. 21 in recognition of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day).

The exhibit is a traveling one, and its presence at UT was designed to coincide with the upcoming presidential inauguration on Jan. 21.

Dr. Nissa Dahlin-Brown, associate director of the Baker Center, was key in getting the exhibit to UT. “I just happened (to learn about) it,” Dahlin-Brown explained. “So we applied actually over about a year ago to get it. It kind of made sense to do it right before or during the inauguration, so that’s why we picked this time.”

Dahlin-Brown said that one of the benefits of seeing the exhibit is that it gives access into the personal lives of the presidents and allows the public to see what the country’s leaders were like during some of history’s most pivotal moments, such as the Reagan assassination attempt and the failed Bay of Pigs invasion.

“I think it’s interesting because it shows so many facets of a president,” DahlinBrown said. “There’s crises in war, the president at ease, the president around the world. …

It’s a nice perspective of the president and that role in our country.”

For those visiting the exhibit today at 5:30 p.m., they will be treated to something special. Dr. Michael Martinez, assistant professor in journalism, will be giving a one-time walking tour of the exhibit.

“Basically I’m going to try to talk about anecdotes and the behind the scenes and how the Associated Press covers the presidency, and give an indication on how they’re able to come up with photographs you normally might not expect to see,” Martinez said.

For someone giving a tour of the AP’s presidential photo exhibit, there may be no one better suited than Martinez.

Not only was Martinez a senior photo editor for the AP from 1992 to 1999, but his current research actually focuses on photojournalism and the presidency.

“I’ve got a background in knowing about presidential photography and the AP,” Martinez said in describing his experience. “I’m interested in — and I’m researching in — the presidential photographers from Kennedy to Obama and looking at the first 100 days in photographs over the various presidency just with my research.”

Early on in prepping for the exhibit, Dahlin-Brown wanted to have someone give a tour, and she sent out emails to various faculty. It was a connection with journalism professor Robert Heller that connected Dahlin-Brown with Martinez, whom Dahlin-Brown thinks is great for the job. “(Martinez’s) incredible background, I mean a 26-year veteran photojournalist who worked for the AP, is just perfect to talk about this exhibit,” Dahlin-Brown said.

Martinez said that for him and others, the appeal in observing the photo gallery comes from the extensive coverage that photographers have with the presidents, which provides insight into virtually every moment of a president’s time in office.

“They cover the president 24/7, basically,” Martinez said. “It’s called the ‘death watch,’ and literally, the AP and other wire services … whenever the president is

open for business ... they’re around. And they make sure that nothing happens to him, but in the course of that, they cover everything he does.”

Martinez joked, “If he moves, if he sneezes, somebody’s there.”

The exhibit is opened from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

4 • THE DAILY BEACON

Wednesday, January 16, 2013 Editor-in-Chief Blair Kuykendall

OPINIONS

bkuykend@utk.edu

Contact us letters@utk.edu

Editor’sNote Criticism never easy, sometimes necessary

Blair Kuykendall Editor-in-Chief For those of you who tune in for my weekly addresses to the UT community, this column is certainly a deviation from the norm. This week, we’re going to get a little bit personal.

After a recent bout of introspection, I have come to the conclusion that my last semester of editorials will be most effective if I lend them some context. To that end, I need you to understand how I view criticism.

Of the countless imperfections that no doubt exist in my personality, criticism is perhaps the most unflattering. Whether a product of nature or nurture, I have never been afraid to state exactly what I think about anything and everything around me. In some contexts, it’s unhealthy. I make it a point to fiercely fight these tendencies. My internal critiques about people, institutions and the less than efficient floor plan of the UC, are often just unnecessary. I have found that when you have no power to improve the object of your criticism, such negative thoughts are simply a waste of precious time.

The irony of this critical tendency is that I direct it toward the people and things I care most about. It doesn’t stem from any kind of ill will, but rather a passionate desire to render some kind of service to the individuals and institutions I value the most. I want to see them maximize their potential. Vocalizing my criticism is not the easiest way to win friends.

If anything, it can be quite a dampener on my relationships. Understanding this, I now very often choose to simply keep my mouth shut when there is nothing to be gained from my commentary.

In some instances, though, I encounter people or causes worth martyring popularity

for. I don’t dispense critical remarks lightly. Instead, I opt to knowingly sacrifice the esteem I desire from people I admire to give them my true opinion about their choices. I know my ideas and solutions are not the magic bullet for everyone’s problems, but I share my thoughts in the hope that what I say might make their life easier or better at some point in the future.

I think this would be an excellent point to emerge from the sordid depths of my personal life and return to how this applies to my editorial coverage. The Daily Beacon has been and is committed to the transparent evaluation of the ideas and actions of administrators, faculty and elected student representatives at UT. That being the case, constructive criticism is an absolute imperative.

I believe that Chancellor Jimmy Cheek and his administration can agree with this idea.

The chancellor has made many constructive (pardon the pun) changes to this university already during his short tenure. A campus makeover, a new branding campaign and a quest to better our national ranking are all part of his vision. Whatever you may think about his plans, I do believe his actions are taken with the best interest of UT students at heart.

Improving the UT experience for future students is something I believe we can all rally around. So, this semester, some of my editorials may get very real, very fast. There are a great deal of changes that need to be made to UT’s daily operation to improve the lives of students, and I’m making it my business to dredge them up. UT’s administration, SGA, teaching faculty, and yes, even the student newspaper, could all find ways to serve students better. Let’s talk about them.

Email me your concerns, and I’ll throw them together with mine. Maybe we can dial down the screw a few notches before I graduate.

— Blair Kuykendall is a senior in economics and College Scholars. She can be reached at bkuykend@utk.edu.

SCRAMBLED EGGS • Alex Cline

DOTTY... • Katie Dyson-Smith

Columns of The Daily Beacon are reflections of the individual columnist, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Beacon or its editorial staff.

Zombie apocalypse maybe alright The Maple Kind by

Hunter Tipton I had an interesting conversation with someone the other day as to why society seems to be thoroughly obsessed with zombies. With shows like “The Walking Dead,” movies like the “Resident Evil” series, and video games such as “Left 4 Dead” and “Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare,” Americans seem to be infatuated with the impending zombie apocalypse and are willing to spend their time and money to be consumed by it. It is as if many people would be happier if a zombie apocalypse actually occurred than they currently are in their dayto-day lives.

What’s truly fascinating about the prevalence of zombies in American society is how long they have stayed popular. I’m not even sure it can still be considered a fad, given its longevity. My first experience with the craze was the original mini-game “Nazi Zombies” that was contained within the game “Call of Duty: World at War” released in the fall of 2008. I’m not sure if zombies were taking America by storm before then, but they sure did afterward. From that point onward, the popular “Call of Duty” franchise has included a zombie mini-game in each of their new editions, despite numerous statements that they would not continue the zombie saga. Simply put, the popularity of the zombie mini-game was so high that it was actually driving up the demand. The franchise couldn’t afford to not continue producing downloadable zombie content.

All of this leads us back to the original question: why is it that people love zombies so much? I’ve asked several people and gotten mixed views. One individual speculated that it dealt with the fact that so many people subconsciously view both themselves and peers as zombies simply trying to make their way through a 40-hour work week in the rat race of life. Another thought that it dealt with the fascination of death and the afterlife. I think that these explanations look far too deep for the answer. I think the true answer lies in a human’s inherent desire to experience the simplicity of life.

Imagine a world where you can walk through Knoxville and only hear the cicadas in the trees. Or better yet, consider New York City without the constant commotion of people and car horns. There are no desk jobs, no 40-hour work weeks, no schooling, and no laws. The only worries in life are those that are related to basic human needs. The issues I deal with on a daily basis are getting into medical, how I’m going to pay for medical school, making good grades, ensuring URHC functions properly, and keeping up with my lab research. After a zombie apocalypse, all I would have to do is look through houses for food and make sure I have somewhere safe to stay.

While life would be more dangerous, there is something oddly comforting about stripping human existence down to its core. There is always the issue of being surrounded by your undead friends and neighbors. But other than that? Life is golden. Kick back, relax, and try not to get eaten.

— Hunter Tipton is a senior in microbiology.

He can be reached at jtipto10@utk.edu.

Stop to notice the people around you All Things Dark and Twisty by

Samantha Warchol

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Blair Kuykendall

editorinchief@utdailybeacon.com

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There are approximately 7,058,410,003 people in the world. Depending on your location and daily activities you may see one person a day or see thousands. Just sitting in the library, dozens upon dozens of people cross your path, yet there is the possibility that you may never say a single word to any of them. On such a big campus, it is easy to meet a person once and never see them again.

Being college students, it is even more common to have people come into our lives briefly and leave quickly. We are in a constant state of transition. In high school, you may have the same people in the same classes every day, and you don’t stray very much from where you are. In the working world, you work with virtually the same people every day. Here on campus though, it is easy to disappear into the masses, missing opportunities to connect with people. Unlike in high school or at work people are constantly coming and going. Your best friend may be studying abroad and that new roommate you have may be like a mouse in their hole.

Many people complain that large universities lose their sense of community. It’s true!

How can more than 20,000 people truly emphasize a sense of community effectively?

They can’t, and that’s OK. The great thing is all of the smaller communities that develop.

There are the artists, the engineers, the sports fans and so many more. The challenge, though, is stepping beyond those limited communities we have developed. Of the dozen or so people waiting in the Starbucks line with you, you may not like most of them.,

although one could potentially become a lifelong friend. It is impossible to know which people we meet in any certain day will leave an impression.

A friend of mine was in the elevator the other day and a guy started talking to her out of the blue. After getting off of the elevator, he realized that he forgot to actually ask my friend’s name. Coincidentally, she ran into him the next day. This time he was smart enough to ask her name and get her phone number. The point here isn’t simply to talk to every person you meet in random places … that’s asking for trouble. It’s that there are so many people in a day that we meet and simply pass by or let walk out of our lives.

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “You may never know what results come of your action, but if you do nothing there will be no result.”

Of course he was talking about protests, but the same idea applies here. College is a time for taking chances and doing random things.

Try a new club or talk to that quiet person in the back of your English class. There was a girl in one of my classes last semester who I didn’t talk to for the first few weeks; one day she pointed out that we had actually shared another one of our classes, which I had failed to notice. Today, I am pretty good friends with that girl.

Just imagine all the people you have never met that are standing all around you. Smile at that person you walk by and see every Tuesday between your classes. We watch so many people walk into and out of our lives constantly, but we never know which of those people will be the ones standing by our side years from now.

— Samantha Warchol is a sophomore in psychology. She can be reached at swarchol@ utk.edu.

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

THE DAILY BEACON • 5 Arts & Culture Editor Victoria Wright

ARTS & CULTURE Yo La Tengo relaxes sound with third album

Want to impress that really you are. However, “Ohm� is Brandon Swinford really the only track on the Contributor album where there is a strong feeling of the “I Can Hear attractive someone who’s sig- the Hearts Beating as One� nificantly cooler than you? vibes. As awesome as that Give them a Yo La Tengo album is, it’s not a bad thing album. Why? Yo La Tengo to say, because I really like has a way of arranging tracks their slow, sleepy love ballads that gives you the best of all more than their “We’re a bad your emotions. They really ass indie rock band,� side. do ballads well, but they I’m sure that’s commenting also know how to rock out. on the inevitability of makHowever, their new album ing albums for more than 20 “Fade� is erring on the soft- years.

Band member Georgia er side of Yo La Tengo, as opposed to their releases Hubley’s angelic voice is from the past decade. Get sadly missing from most of ready to get in touch with the tracks. One of the few your friend-renouncing, lost- that it is featured on in this love side of your soul and record is “Before We Run,� which features these cheesy listen to “Fade.�

If one is acquainted with string riffs that are probany of the album’s music, you ably supposed to give one know their songs can just a sense of ironic happiness, breeze by for six minutes in but instead make one feel guitar feedback heaven. It’s like they ran out of ideas for gonna get jangly. Their first the tracks they are present track is sunshine music for on. Something I wish they a rainy day, following their had incorporated more on tried-and-true six-minute this album is Hubley’s voice, plus of guitar and organ for- which is like falling asleep mula. Imagine the feeling of to an angel’s whispers. Her knowing you’re leaving for voice, besides being incredithe beach later that day and ble, would have gone perfectthe weather isn’t good where ly with the album’s extremely

vwright6@utk.edu

Assistant Arts & Culture Editor Melodi Erdogan

merdogan@utk.edu

Around Rocky Top

trance inducing vibe. This is something they nail on the track “Cornelia and Jane.�

The reason I’m so into YLT’s sleepy songs are that they manage to hold your attention in the moment. The work from “Fade� sounds a lot more stagnate on the drums and bass, which kind of takes away that feeling.

You’re going to zone out on a lot of these tracks, but in a regenerative listening experience for your heart muscles.

One track I feel broke the mold of the album as a whole was “I’ll Be Around.� This track features really nice movement throughout all the instrumentation, and I think it will be a keeper on my Android after only a couple listens. Later, the song “Two Trains� comes on and I feel like for a great overall summation of the album, just listen to that. If that’s your jam, explore further.

Overall, this album will not be in my rotation as heavily as “Painful� or “I Can Hear the Hearts Beating as One,� but for winter, you may find these songs really hitting home.

Tara Sripunvoraskul • The Daily Beacon

Architecture students practice sketching the interior space of the Art and Architecture building on Tuesday.

• Photo courtesy of Yo La Tengo

Ira Kaplan from Yo La Tengo plays during a set on Dec. 11, 2012

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6 • THE DAILY BEACON

Wednesday, January 16, 2013 Sports Editor Lauren Kittrell

SPORTS

lkittre1@utk.edu

Assistant Sports Editor Austin Bornheim abornhei@utk.edu

SEC works to ‘Back Pat’ Lady Vols thrive in SEC play Troy Provost-Heron

Staff Writer Throughout the SEC, and especially at UT, Pat Summitt is in everyone’s thoughts.

The SEC announced that for the second year they have organized a “We Back Pat” Week to bring awareness and recognition to the Pat Summitt Foundation, which was established by Summitt in November 2011, and its fight against Alzheimer’s disease.

“I am honored and humbled that the Southeastern Conference schools continue to support the work of the Pat Summit Foundation’s fight against Alzheimer’s,” Summitt, head coach emeritus, said. “The ‘We Back Pat’ Week not only brings public attention to our cause, but it also helps raise funds that will be awarded by our foundation in the form of grants to organizations who battle this disease every day.”

Summitt also thanked the

SEC and its member institutions for joining her efforts in trying to find a cure.

“I want to thank the SEC and its member institutions who have agreed to participate,” Summit said. “It means so much to Tyler and me that you joined us in our efforts.

Together we will win.”

Throughout the week, SEC schools will offer support at their women’s basketball home games (17 games in 14 cities) by increasing awareness of the foundation and its mission, as well as having the players wear “We Back Pat” T-shirts during warm-ups.

Sophomore point guard Ariel Massengale said that most of the women on the team are here because of Summitt, so it’s an honor to give back to her.

“I feel like every time, being Tennessee, we step on the court we are playing for our coach,” Massengale said. “She laid the foundation for us and

it’s part of the reason why a lot of us are here now. She’s done so many great things for women’s college basketball and just to be able to give back to her is a great honor and opportunity and I don’t think she should just have a ‘We Back Pat’ Week, I think we should dedicate our whole season to her and all that she has done for us.”

SEC teams and players aren’t the only ones that can help the foundation’s cause during this week. The foundation offers the sale of “We Back Pat” T-shirts, “Fierce Courage” wristbands and other items, as well as a new feature this year that allows supporters to donate $10 by texting the word “COACH” to the number 50555.

The Lady Vols will finish off “We Back Pat” Week with a matchup against the Alabama Crimson Tide at 1 p.m. on Sunday at Thompson-Boling Arena.

• Photo courtesy of Tia Patron/Tennessee Athletics

Lauren Kittrell

Sports Editor The Lady Vols (13-3, 4-0 SEC) haven’t been phased by conference play.

That doesn’t mean SEC teams aren’t viewed as a challenge.

Sophomore point guard Ariel Massengale said their recent overtime win against Florida was a great confidence boost for the team.

“Every time we play someone on the road in the SEC, it’s gonna be a tough game and a tough challenge for us,” Massengale said. “The coaches told us afterwards that any time you can get a win on the road in the SEC, it’s a huge win.”

Massengale said it was just good to know that the young team could compete in situations like that.

“It was a tight game. We had to get stops at certain key points in the game and we did that,” Massengale said. “Things got tight, we were down late in the game, but we stayed together as a team and we didn’t get rattled or lose focus or anything.”

With several injuries on the team, the Lady Vols’ bench is slimming. Massengale played the full 40 minutes of the Florida game and said it’s something you can’t really prepare yourself for.

“I think another thing that helped me was the game being so close, you really don’t think about, ‘oh man I played the whole game,’ you’re just trying to make that next play so you can win,” she said.

Massengale added, “We know our numbers are tight and the bench is slimming. If you’re out there playing, you have to play hard and give it your all.”

Head coach Holly Warlick said she was proud of the team for pulling out the win in the

Matthew DeMaria • The Daily Beacon

Sophomore point guard Ariel Massengale rushes past a Missouri defender at Thompson-Boling Arena on Jan. 10. end, but she was aware of the team’s weaknesses that made the game so tight. Warlick said missing rebounds was the result of a lack of focus on the team.

“That’s just something that we have to keep pressing and practicing and holding them accountable to,” Warlkick said.

“It can be a difference in winning and losing a game.”

Massengale said the points when the team couldn’t seem to hit a shot were tough, but that it’s one of the aspects she loves about basketball.

“That’s the fun (thing) about basketball,” Massengale said.

“Sometimes the shots go in and sometime they don’t.”

She said at that point their focus shifts to defense.

“We know if we aren’t scoring then we can’t let them score either,” Massengale said. “Coach Warlick told us to keep attacking the basket and if you attack

they’ll call fouls and get to the free throw line and get some easy baskets.”

Warlick said the rebounding and defense are key and games without those aspects of basketball are going to be close and interesting. She said she thought the team could improve both offensively and defensively, but her focus is on the defense.

“They’ll be ready on Thursday,” Warlick said, regarding the Lady Vols’ upcoming game against Auburn. “We can’t rely on our offense to win games.”

Massengale said the team isn’t focused on playing harder or better, just playing up to the team standard.

“Every day we come out here, we’re giving 110 percent,” she said. “I think our coaches have done a good job of making practices tough for us and it makes the games easier in a way.”

MLB focuses on broken rules

Head coach emeritus Pat Summitt poses with a painting by Carl Hess depicting her eight national championship titles during the “We Back Pat” fundraiser event on Tuesday at Thompson-Boling Arena.

R.J. Vogt News Editor Look, I’m not a big baseball fan, but something just doesn’t seem right.

Last week, the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame refused to let anyone from this year’s class of candidates join Cooperstown.

Each eligible player must receive 75 percent of the vote to become a Hall of Famer; nobody did.

This isn’t because this year’s list is devoid of talent. No, this year’s list included the all-time greatest home run hitter, baseball’s only seven-time Cy Young Award winner and a few other household names with their own places in record books.

On stats alone, these baseball greats would’ve been a sure bet for the Hall of Fame.

Here’s the curveball; some of this class did steroids. That’s right, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosa (allegedly) took performance

enhancing drugs. Because the voting process criteria includes terms like “integrity,” “sportsmanship” and “character” these guys did not make the cut. ESPN talked about it in between shots of Tim Tebow (on the bench) and the Lakers (another loss!), and the news faded. The sports world moved on.

Well, I say wait a minute. The Hall of Fame is right in withholding membership from those who knowingly broke MLB rules. But considering a whole generation of players broke the rules, and the terms of their rule breaking elevated the game, then maybe it’s the rules that are broken. Baseball is a sport, but Major League Baseball is a business dependent on an audience. That audience exists if and only if the baseball is exciting (for proof on that claim, go to a Royals game) so the entertainment ability of its players drives the profit. What do steroids offer? More entertainment value. We want our athletes to perform at their highest possible standard — steroids raise the bar.

And please, don’t whine that steroids aren’t fair because not everyone has access to them. In a league with no salary cap, any complaining based on uneven economic abilities is rather hypocritical. If steroids are evil because only those with money

can get them, then the Yankees should be abolished for their free agency practices. Though I’m sure pumping chemicals into your blood is dangerous, so is playing baseball. Any pretense of “protecting the players from themselves” was dropped long ago, when pitchers began blowing out their elbows and shoulders and outfielders first leapt without reservation into outfield walls.

The people pay to see them play. For 20 years, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosa provided that service more than adequately. A rule that prohibits the greatest players from recognition as the greatest players is unjust. They broke that rule, and though they lacked the idealism of the Founding Fathers or the humanism of Martin Luther King Jr., they echoed a tradition that’s been around for centuries.

As St. Thomas Aquinas said, “An unjust law is no law at all.”

So with Cooperstown, I agree. Barry broke the rules, so Barry can’t come in. But any rule that keeps the greatest home run hitter out of the Hall of Fame is a rule that needs a closer look.

Let ‘em play.

— R.J. Vogt is a sophomore in College Scholars. He can be reached at rvogt@utk.edu.