OIT promises to protect and observe >>See page 4
“A stranger had me by the balls, and in my shock, I froze.” >>See page 10
Bill Alexander, also known as the Appalachian Hippie Poet. Tiara Holt • The Daily Beacon
Poet pulls inspiration from life’s beauty Megan Patterson Staff Writer
Tennis player’s dreams come true on UT’s campus >>See page 12
Volume 128 Issue 23
Appalachian Hippie Poet: a man who just returned from researching basket making techniques in Australia. A man who is an eighth generation Tennessean. A man who finds inspiration in a jar of moonshine, but not in the way you might think.
However, for most of his life, the Appalachian Hippie Poet was just known as Bill Alexander. “My momma started writing poetry early in life, and I started later in life,” Alexander explained. Alexander graduated from the University of Tennessee with a master’s degree in plant and soil science and went on to a career at Oak Ridge National Laboratory until his retirement 15 years ago. “I started hiking the Smokies between ’99 and ’02 and hiked all the trails on the eastern side of the park,” Alexander recalled. “I started
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writing poetry inspired by something I would see or hear or feel on the trails.” His style began to take shape in what Alexander describes as old Scotch-Irish second and fourth line rhyme. “In 2006, my wife of 35 years passed away, and my poetry was filled with grief and alcohol at that point,” Alexander said. “I took the appropriate steps to heal and come out the other side.” See POET on Page 7
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
INSHORT
The Daily Beacon • Tuesday, February 10, 2015
DISPATCHES First same-sex couple marries in Alabama Monday morning, Tori Sisson and Shanté Wolfe of Tuskegee, Alabama, became the first same-sex couple to be legally married in their county. The couple arrived outside the Montgomery County Courthouse at 2 p.m. on Sunday to set up camp for the night, planning to wake up at 5 a.m. and greet the expected crowds of media, friends and chosen family. Sisson and Wolfe have been dating for two years and got “spiritually married” in Tuskegee last year, although their union was not recognized by the state until the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama cleared the way for same-sex marriages to begin Monday. In front of the flashes of media cameras, the couple exchanged vows outside the Montogmery courthouse as one of their grandmothers performed the ceremony.
Obama and Merkel discuss strategy in Ukraine President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced plans to attempt a “longshot diplomatic resolution” to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine in a joint White House news conference Monday, the Associated Press reports. They did not, however, outline their strategy if the diplomatic talks planned for later this week fail. In his address, Obama discussed the possibility of providing anti-tank weapons and other arms to fighters in Ukraine. At this point, though, no decision has been made. Merkel, on the other hand, strongly opposes arming the Ukrainian military. She instead holds out hope that the diplomatic negotiations can be used to effectively resolve the conflict.
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Top items on Gov. Haslam’s budget Associated Press
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Five things to know about Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam’s $33.3 billion budget proposal: 1. K-12 EDUCATION: After canceling a planned salary hike for teachers last year because of worse-than-expected state revenues, Haslam has earmarked nearly $100 million to go toward salary improvements in the budget year starting July 1, a 4 percent increase. The money would be routed through the state’s Basic Education Program, or BEP, formula, meaning the total amount of raises would vary from district to district. Teachers are generally paid through a combination of state and local funding. The governor’s budget plan also includes about $44 million to cover growth and inflation through the BEP formula. 2. STATE EMPLOYEES: Citing findings that two out of five state workers will have qualified for retirement between 2012 and 2016, Haslam wants to revamp the way employees are compensated. One proposal is to create a $48 million pool for merit raises that would be partially funded by eliminating half of the $100-per-year longevity pay that state workers currently receive. Under existing rules, state workers can earn up to $3,000
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per year in longevity bonuses that are paid out on their employment anniversary. The governor’s plan would fold half of the current bonus into workers’ base pay, and employees would then become eligible for raises of up to 3 percent depending on their performance evaluations. Legislative and judicial employees are not included in Haslam’s proposal. 3. PRISON CLOSING: Haslam plans to shutter the Charles B. Bass Correctional Complex in Nashville that currently houses about 750 inmates and the Correction Department’s sex offender program. Closing the facility would eliminate 305 prison jobs. Some inmates could wind up at a facility being built in Trousdale by private prison operators Corrections Corporation of America. The company last year agreed to finance, design, build and operate the 2,500 prison that is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year. 4. CHILDREN’S SERVICES: The state would cut 131 positions at the troubled Woodland Hills juvenile detention facility in Nashville as the Department of Children’s Services works to place teens in residential settings instead of secure facilities. Three major incidents at the facility last fall led the state to re-evaluate its security measures there. Thirty teens escaped on Sept. 1, followed by a riot in the yard and another breakout of 13 teens.
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Tuesday, February 10, 2015 • The Daily Beacon
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Laverne Cox to lecture on ‘journey to womanhood’ Altaf Nanavati Staff Writer
Laverne Cox, activist and actress in the Netflix original series “Orange is the New Black,” wants UT students to know that it gets better. As part of her national campaign, Cox will visit UT on Wednesday to tell her story as the first transgender woman of color with a leading role in a television show. Hosted by UT’s Issues Committee and Women’s Coordinating Council, Cox’s lecture “Ain’t I a Woman: My Journey to Womanhood,” will relate how her role as Sophia Burset, an incarcerated African-American transgender woman, has opened up a dialogue about issues in the transgender community. “Her talk will focus on her life and the intersection between race, gender and career,” said Natalie Bennett, vice chair of the Issues Committee. “I think students will be able to come away with new insight about gender and diversity
on screen and in real life.” Growing up in Mobile, Alabama, and raised by a single mother in a Christian family, Cox experienced bullying as a kid for appearing feminine. Due to this constant harassment and her developing feelings towards her male classmates in the sixth grade, Cox attempted to take her own life. It wasn’t until after she moved to New York, in hopes of pursuing a career in acting, that she decided to come out as a transgender woman. Shawana Davis, committee chairperson for the Women’s Coordinating Council, said she is looking forward to hearing about Cox’s journey to embracing her true, authentic self. “Laverne Cox is one to model afterwards when it comes to being who you want to be, not what society says one should be,” Davis said. “By going to this event, I hope to hear her process of getting to believe in herself and what were the things she told herself in order to do so.” Cox, an outspoken advocate for the LGBTQ community, has written about
transgender rights through various media outlets including The Huffington Post and The Advocate. On June 9, 2014, Cox also became the first openly transgender person on the cover of Time magazine. Gwen Schablik, committee chair for the Tennessee Equality Project, said Cox’s impact on the transgender community has been tremendous. “She’s brought such positive attention to the transgender community by educating others and advocating for change,” Schablik said. “She’s helping
others gain the courage to come forward and say, ‘This is who I am.’” Along with her recurring role in “Orange is the Black,” Cox is also known for producing and co-hosting the makeover television series “TRANSform Me,” becoming the first African-American transgender person to produce and star in her own TV show. Doors for the event will open at 6 p.m. in the Cox Auditorium. Tickets are sold out. Students and members of the public attending the discussion will need to bring their ticket to the event.
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The Daily Beacon • Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Careful what you click
OIT has access to some, not all information on student internet usage Chris Salvemini Staff Writer
“So, do we have access to other students’ computers? No, other than to know you’re on the network, no,” Reeves said. Activity that goes against university technology policies includes file-sharing and peer-to-peer networks, banned by Tennessee Senate Bill 3974, which placed strict regulations on copyrighted material. Since peer-to-peer networks are typically associated with illegally distrib-
Big brother is watching — well, sort of. Handling more than 300,000 accounts on its networks, the Office of Information Technology provides the infrastructure for students to access technological resources across campus. It also promises to protect those 300,000 accounts, which is proving to be a tremendous effort, preventing phishing attempts and defending against exploitation attempts. In order to keep everyone’s data safely secured, OIT a rgu e s some supervision is necessary. University administrators have the ability to view the IP address, the hostname and owner Illustration by Dillon Canfield • The Daily Beacon of any registered account using UT’s networks. Administrators do not, however, have uted copyright material and the unithe option of cross-referencing outgoing versity has received copyright claims data and viewed websites with account notices against students in the past, users. This includes illegal streaming this internet activity is strictly banned websites like Project Free TV. Instead, on campus. Reeves said any student there are detection systems to track now caught using the networks against activity that goes against university policy can be subject to severe consequences. However, there are currently policies. Joel Reeves, chief information officer very few processes in place that have and assistant vice chancellor, said the the power to restrict access on univeronly thing that can be personally moni- sity networks. “[At] UTK, there’s really nothing tored is who is using the networks at blocked unless it’s something like the any given time.
student database, for example,” Reeves said. To track suspicious activity on the networks, OIT views some basic data, such as bandwidth usage. If a certain device starts to spike significantly in the amount of bandwidth it uses on a university network, it would likely be identified as a probable attack. This is largely why electronic devices are registered to user IDs – so they can be identified and tracked in the event of a
suspected attack. Bob Hillhouse, chief information security officer, explained that OIT divides UT’s networks into appropriate sub-networks, which are tailored for different uses to ease the process of identifying attacks or normal usage. “Segmentation is just another control,” Hillhouse said. “It’s no different than saying, ‘We’re going to allow this bandwidth for research.’” Each sub-network, department and connected network is categorized under
a “potential impact category.” These are assigned based on the sensitivity of the information being processed and the impact it could have should it become public. Different sub-networks and connections have different permissions and access to users. For example, the Wi-Finetwork “ut-open” has more access and less protection compared to “ut-wpa2” and “ut-visitor,” which have less access and more security. Certain sub-networks have stricter data-protection policies than others. When OIT must conceal transfer data securely, like when students pay tuition, they use the most intense form of protection software available. The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard is the method by which the transfer of critical payment details over the web is protected. OIT uses this to protect bank account numbers and credit cards when students make payments to the university. Containing over 200 information security controls, this security method is practically impossible to crack. OIT builds its privacy policies around the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and similar federal laws which guarantee the protection of sensitive information for people at the university. More information can be found at oit. utk.edu.
CAMPUSNEWS
Tuesday, February 10, 2015 • The Daily Beacon
Events promote evolutionary education Heidi Hill
Copy Editor
Long before a giant T-Rex chased Jeff Goldblum and the cast of “Jurassic Park” through the jungle, Charles Darwin published “On the Origin of Species” as one of the first recorded observations of evolution in the natural world. Now in its 18th year, Darwin Day at UT will celebrate Darwin’s 205th birthday and his life’s accomplishments by hosting lectures, contests and an expert panel. Darwin Day’s keynote speaker this year is Alan De Queiroz, who will discuss biogeography as a branch of evolutionary science. “Our mission is to involve as much of Knoxville as possible, because historically we have a misunderstanding of evolutionary science and some hostility surrounding evolution,” said Sarah Sheffield, a Ph.D. student in earth and planetary sciences. First appearing in 2013, Darwin Day’s most visual hook for evolutionary education are the two 12-foot tall, paper mache puppets designed by local artists Kevin and Cindy Collins. Aside from their passion for local and national activism, the Collinses and their children Will and Kayce, constructed the puppets that depict Darwin and his contemporary, Alfred Russel Wallace. “It’s a very collaborative effort,” Cindy Collins said of the process of creating the puppets’ heads. “As we do specific character, Kevin gathers up a lot of pictures and they are posted all over the house, and he studies those a lot, and then he comes up with a sketch of what characteristics. He even measures the face to make them as accurately as possible.” Cardboard, chicken wire and newswire also secure the shape of the puppet’s body, along with a backpack shoulder piece which allows the animator inside to hold up the puppet’s weight. The next step, as Cindy Collins describes, involves eight to ten hours of placing paper mache, dry brush paint and perfecting the distinctive characteristics on a puppet’s face. “They’re not caricatures, but you look for features that are distinctive,” Kevin Collins said. “Darwin’s forehead was distinctive, and when it comes down to
it everything’s distinctive. The ears are distinctive, and the nose, if you’ve got a crooked nose. It’s just picking those features out and how to represent those in the best way.” The Collins family also accompanied the Darwin Day committee to its preevent trip to Dayton, Tennessee, to visit the historic courthouse where the Scopes Monkey Trial was held on July 21, 1925. A field trip like this, Kevin Collins said, adds greater relevance to past events and enriches a student’s education for the long term. “You get a sense of history and get a sense of the importance of how things work if you’re there,” Kevin Collins said. “You can sit at the prosecutor’s desk or the defending attorney’s desk, because those things are still there and so you are in touch with history 100 years ago. For me, I love history, so it’s good for me, but trying to provide education and educational experiences, is also good for [Wes and Kayce].” For Joy Buongiorno, a Ph.D. student in microbiology, the impact of the puppets will take on a different perspective as she and Sheffield, Darwin Day’s student organizer, bring the Collins’ Darwin and Wallace puppets to life this week. “It’s a pretty laborious process once you’re in there,” Buongiorno said of her time inside the puppet. “[There’s] a lot of grunting and yelling, and a lot of awkwardness.” Yet, Darwin’s Day emphasis on education and spreading excitement about evolutionary science, Sheffield said, still remains a primary focus of Darwin Day since its foundation in 1997. This year, Darwin Day held contests for Knox County elementary, middle and high schools, asking interested students to draw cartoons of common ancestors and examples of biogeography for prizes. “What we do or what we hope to do is introduce people to the fun of science, the beauty of learning and how really spectacular it is to study the world around us and how the events in the past shape the world today,” Sheffield said. “I come in and say I’m a paleontologist and I don’t have to say more. They’re on board.” For a full list of this year’s Darwin Day events, visit http://darwindaytn.org/.
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The Daily Beacon • Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Big Orange ideas gain big attention Six of UT’s brightest minds have been named finalists for a prestigious national scholarship Michael Lipps
Contributor
UT is home to many impressive and ambitious individuals, and among them are the 2015-16 Fulbright National Finalists. This year, David Morse, Chris Ludtka, Kenna Rewcastle, Jeremy Pearson, Kaitlyn Stiles and Joshua Sander have been selected as this year’s finalists for one of the most selective programs in the country. The Fulbright Program, introduced by Sen. J. William Fulbright and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman, was established as a means to exchange ideas across the globe in the fields of education, culture and science. Prior to embarking on his or her journey, though, each finalist must make it through the competitive process. Nichole Fazio-Veigel, director of the Office of National Scholarships and Fellowships, said she feels the
Fulbright Scholarship is the most extensive national opportunity for UT students. “Part of the excitement for all students who go through this process is that they really have the opportunity to create their unique experience,” Fazio-Veigel said. “It’s really one of these far-reaching opportunities that isn’t discipline specific, rather, it’s all about the project students have designed.” Kaitlyn Stiles, a doctoral student in anthropology, is a veteran of sorts when it comes to this process, as this makes her second application to the program. One thing Stiles said she has learned is the importance of cultural engagement, a large part of her research. “One way I emphasized this was by looking at how much Greek identities connect to the past,” Stiles said. With a focus on ancient bioarchaeology, Stiles looks at how skeletal remains can reveal things about culture and society and the relationship
“The image of one’s self develops throughout the application, I’ve really appreciated going through this process to define who I am.” -Kenna Rewcastle
between the physical remains and the culture we live in. For Kenna Rewcastle, a senior college scholar studying ecosystem ecology, the application process has been a rewarding one. “The image of one’s self develops throughout the application,” Rewcastle said. “I’ve really appreciated going through this process to define who I am.” Rewcastle selected her area of interest after an experience in Sweden last summer when she was introduced to the drastic rate of climate change there. The survival of the indigenous people of Northern Sweden is tightly linked to the survival of reindeer that inhabit their land. Problematic is the fact that the primary food source for these reindeer is lichen, and there is great concern about how lichen will survive in the face of climate change. “I think of it as the front line of climate change,” Rewcastle said. Both Rewcastle and Stiles give a great deal of credit to the Office of National Scholarships and Fellowships at UT for helping them through the application process, offering that those they have worked with have been very supportive and willing to figure out how to strengthen their applications. “It’s certainly a process that requires a lot of time and effort, but I think it helps you identify what you’re really interested in and how you’ll go about doing it, which are things that you don’t always know before,” Stiles said. The final list of scholars will be announced between the months of March and May. To learn more, check out ONSF Week, slated for March 2 to March 6 with the kick-off event on March 2 from 4:30 – 6 p.m. in the Lindsay Young Auditorium. Attendees will be able to hear from current finalists, Fulbright student alums and faculty. Additionally, be advised that individual appointments may be arranged with the Office of National Scholarships and Fellowships director, Fazio-Veigel, whose contact information can be found on the website: onsf.utk.edu.
The Finalists Kenna Rewcastle
David Morse
Jeremy Pearson
Kaitlyn Stiles
Christopher Ludtka
Joshua Sander
ARTS&CULTURE
Tuesday, February 10, 2015 • The Daily Beacon
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Film Committee brings unreleased films to campus Hannah Moulton Copy Editor @Hannah_Moulton
If you’ve missed any blockbusters recently, don’t worry, UT’s Film Committee has got you covered. The Film Committee provides students with an opportunity to see films yet to be released onto DVD but no longer available in theaters. The Film Committee is able to get pre-released movies by working with Swank Motion Pictures Inc., a movie distributor and public performance licensing agent. Faith Boyte, junior in English and vice chair of the Film Committee, said obtaining the films is an easy task. “It’s not too difficult of a process,” Boyte said. “We’re able to secure recently released films by contacting the distributor and buying the rights to screen the films.” The Film Committee pays anywhere from $800-$1,200 per film. Committee chairperson Nash Glover said the price of the films is not a deterrent because he knows that the better the film, the more students that will show up to the viewings. “It gets costly, but I think it’s well worth it,” Glover said. For students who have opted-in, the showings hosted by the Film Committee are a free alternative to other weekend
POET continued from Page 1 After his wife’s death, Alexander’s work could be split into three distinct phases which he coined: mountains, sad and drinking, and the rainbow. Alexander describes the rainbow phase as “the healing after the pain and the grief like a beautiful rainbow after a storm.” Chyna Brackeen, president of Attack Monkey Productions, met Alexander a few years ago and said the first aspects of him that struck her were his positive attitude, generous spirit and wild energy. “I think you get a good understanding of who Bill is through his poetry,” Brackeen said. “His soul really shines through his work.” Although the content and tone of his work has changed over the years, Alexander still draws inspiration from the physical world around him.
activities. Even for those who have not opted-in the movies are inexpensive, usually costing about $2, Glover said. “It fosters a sense of community in the student population,” Boyte said. The attendance of students is what allows the Film Committee to purchase the rights of the pre-released films. The student opt-in fees are distributed to Student-Organized Programming, which includes the Film Committee. “By opting-in, students help us show newer and bigger movies for free for opted-in students and at a discounted price for the students who didn’t and the public,” Boyte said. When choosing the films to show, each of the 15 members of the committee proposes a few films. The group then discusses the options and takes a vote. The Film Committee tries to show a wide variety of films so students can be educated on different film genres. “Film Committee likes to show a variety of different genres so as to entertain the whole UT student population,” Boyte said. And each semester, the committee is working to add more and more big name movies to their list. “We’re trying to steer towards more blockbuster films and things like that,” Glover said. “But right now, I would say it’s kind of a mix.” The Film Committee’s showings are usually well received by the student
population. “We almost always receive positive feedback, especially with regards to the new releases,” Boyte said. “A lot of students seem to really enjoy action, comedy and animated films.” In addition to film showings, the Film Committee also hosts an annual event that draws out a large crowd each year. “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” shadowcast has become one of the Film Committee’s most popular and costly events. The movie, the costumes and the performers cost about $2,000. The “Rocky Horror Picture Show” event is held every October. “It’s a big event, so we like to go all out,” Glover said. “Just to see it on the night, everyone is so excited.” A smaller event hosted by the Film Committee includes a screening of “The Room,” which has audience involvement like “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” The showing of “The Room” occurs in the spring semester. The Film Committee hosts the screenings in the Carolyn P. Brown University Center Auditorium on Friday nights, at least three times a month. “I encourage everyone to come out and see our movies,” Glover said. The next showing by the Film Committee will be “Gone Girl” on Friday at 7 p.m. in the UC Auditorium.
“I heard a fella one time say he was inspired by things he read, and I said ‘Well, I must not be reading the right stuff,’” Alexander laughed. “Mostly I’m inspired by things I do, feel, see, hear or experience, so it’s a very hands on, very active approach to being inspired.” In a moment of inspiration, Alexander met up with a man he encountered briefly at Rhythm N’ Blooms to go for a ride in the man’s 1924 Ford. “He had some original Popcorn Sutton moonshine, and we had a drink or two before he gave me a little jar of it,” Alexander said. “When I screwed the lid back on it popped, and before I got home, I had written a piece called ‘Popcorn.’” Alexander credits most of his poetry to these types of chance encounters, whether it’s a phrase, sound or sight that sparks his imagination. “Sometimes I felt bad about using other people’s words,” Alexander confessed. “Then I got to thinking that a camera captures an image in a moment, and as a poet, I capture words in a
moment.” As the MC at Rhythm N’ Blooms last spring, Alexander recited small pieces by memory between acts, occasionally doing full sets on his own. Briston Maroney, a member of local bluegrass band Subtle Clutch, met Alexander at Rhythm N’ Blooms. A few months later, Alexander then showed up to the band’s album release party and introduced the group with an original composition in its honor. Maroney was “really surprised and honored that Bill had done that since we only met him in the musician tent that spring.” Although most of his work begins as a written composition, Alexander considers his public appearances more of a storytelling performance than a poetry reading. “As a performing poet, I consider myself a storyteller,” Alexander said. “Somebody will ask me a question that may be answered with a simpler ‘yes’ or ‘no,’ but I’ll take five minutes and tell a little story that will give you the answer
in the body of the story.” Brackeen can attest to Alexander’s storytelling prowess. When she attempted to bring her son, Hayden, home from a birthday party for Alexander at the office, Hayden asked to go back saying, “Yeah, the music was okay, but I loved Bill. I just loved all of his old yarns.” “You can’t know Bill and not be familiar with his work,” Brackeen explained. “You’ll be in mid-conversation with him, and he’ll start spouting off a piece he wrote the night before.” After nearly 16 years as a poet, Alexander has no plans to slow down. “The poetry and the basket research have just been retirement efforts and hobbies more than anything, because I really think you shouldn’t just sit down and waste away,” Alexander said. “The way to continue is to have young friends, which I do, and to just be a part of society in general and to contribute in ways that maybe you couldn’t when you were working or had other responsibilities.”
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ARTS&CULTURE
The Daily Beacon • Tuesday, February 10, 2015
I could’ve been sleeping like having an excuse to repeatedly use that word). Those weren’t all the performances (duh, obviously) but just the top two examples of the Grammys putting us to sleep.
Jenna Butz Arts & Culture Editor @butzjenna Sunday night’s Grammys were just ‌ boring. Sure, there were standout moments— Hozier and Annie Lennox, Paul McCartney, Rihanna and Kanye West, Sia, Beck. But the reality is that most of the performances were slow, undramatic and completely predictable. Even the winners were predictable (except for one but we’ll get to that later). First, there’s Adam Levine and Gwen Stefani’s abysmal performance. What could have been a kick-ass rock performance was instead some weird ballad that didn’t let either of them showcase the full extent of their talent. Then, Jessie J and Tom Jones made a way too obvious attempt to be Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett without any of the acclaim. Once again, abysmal (I
“BeyoncÊ’s album defined 2014, and by pushing it aside, the Academy is saying they don’t care about women, especially women of color.â€? And though I’m excited Sam Smith won so many deserved awards, it was predictable. Check our Grammys pick ‘ems from last week, and you’ll see what I mean. We all knew Sam Smith would
sweep the awards. Don’t lie. You knew it, too, regardless of wanting BeyoncĂŠ and Hozier to win. But little lights were found in Annie Lennox putting us all under a spell with Hozier goofily smiling out of sheer joy, Rihanna’s comeback with Paul and Kanye, and Kristen Wiig casually dancing during Sia’s performance of “Chandelier.â€? Those three performances, and just those three, made the Grammys worth watching for one reason—they were memorable. They were collaborations we may have never witnessed live otherwise, and it’s Monday afternoon and we’re still talking about them. Then, there’s Beck’s black horse win of album of the year for “Morning Phase.â€? Someone in our office made a key point that Beck’s win was a big hit to diversity though, and I agree. BeyoncÊ’s album defined 2014, and by pushing it aside, the Academy is saying they don’t care about women, especially women of color. Yet, I still think Beck deserved his awards. All his years of hard work and innovation have earned him some mainstream recognition. That is until Beck got on stage with Chris Martin, and Chris Martin ruined the whole thing. Grammys: putting us to sleep since 2015.
Still sore about the GRAMMYs? Listen to our “What the Beck?!� playlist. Blow
BeyoncĂŠ
Don’t Tell ‘Em
Jeremih, YG
Take Me To Church Hozier
Brooklyn Baby Lana Del Rey
Let It Go
It’s My Time
Idina Menzel
Kelly Price
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PUZZLES&GAMES
Tuesday, February 10, 2015 • The Daily Beacon
9
Non Sequitur • Wiley Miller
NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD • Will Shortz
dadoodlydude• Adam Hatch
Cartoons of The Daily Beacon are the views of the individual and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Beacon or the Beacon’s editorial staff.
ACROSS 1 Wine store purchase 7 Sound investments? 11 Business with monthly memberships 14 Neighbor of a Hoosier 15 Ham or lamb 16 Winning tic-tac-toe row 17 Traveling, as a band 18 Exercise with a cobra pose 19 Possess 20 Lab research assistant, maybe 22 “Hooray for us!” 24 Word on a red-andwhite name tag 26 “Frozen” studio 27 Like a case before the court 30 Mont Blanc, e.g. 32 ___ mode 33 Place for a hoedown 34 Passion
1 2 3 4 5 36 Somewhat 39 Modern cash 14 register device 40 Like many 17 mouthwashes 41 Beige shade 20 42 Where Graceland is: Abbr. 24 43 1-10, e.g. 27 28 29 44 Result of a king vs. king endgame 33 45 Pat 47 Biblical partner of 39 37-Down 48 “The best is the 42 ___ of the good”: Voltaire 45 46 49 Einstein 49 50 52 1945 conference site 54 54 House tour giver 56 Like loamy soil 60 61 60 Spot for a shot 64 65 61 Walked 63 Start to catch up to 67 68 64 Thanksgiving dessert 65 School attended by 67 “___ Your Dog, Charlie Brown” Lord Grantham on (1968 TV special) “Downton Abbey” 68 Spreadsheet 66 “Same here” contents 69 Mortise inserts
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE S E L D O M
A L B M O I
O N E W A Y S H O U T O U T
R E G I F T P A N D E M I C
E R R O A L E E L S O H S A P U R I N T H T I G E T N D A S S O H P
P E A V I E W A G L E L L D B U I R E S A T E G C H I O U T T L E H A W K E A I L L Y P A L O X
F E L A I Z Z T E C K A N N I T T G O I N F O
A M E N A B L E
Q U A T R A I N
K I M O N O
E R A S E D
S S N D M Z
S E D E R S
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DOWN Betty who appeared in “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” “It’s all gone wrong!” Small songbirds Fierce way to fight Estée of fragrances Sign up, to Brits “Little Women” woman Speak Persian? Contacted via beeper
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10 Sporting arenas 11 Cheerful disposition 12 “Ouch!” 13 Hall of fame 21 ___ Starling, “The Silence of the Lambs” protagonist 23 Comoros or Barbados 25 Gap subsidiary 27 Somewhat 28 “Roll the ___” 29 Wilson and Hoover, but not Eisenhower 31 Image often accompanying the phrase “Legalize it” 34 Pro-___ 35 Deli loaf 37 Biblical partner of 47-Across 38 Like morning grass
46 Rammed like a ram 48 Charles Schwab competitor 49 It has axes 50 Spine-tingling 51 Somewhat, informally 53 O.K. 55 What fans do 57 Really liking 58 Nut job 59 Grandson of 47-Across and 37-Down 62 Molecule hidden in 4-, 11-, 23-, 25- and 29-Down
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VIEWPOINTS
The Daily Beacon • Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Sexual assault is sexual assault, no matter your gender
R.J. Vogt Open Letters
She asked if she could grab my crotch. It was Tin Roof on a Saturday night during football season. Consequently, I’d been drinking. The smile playing on her lips suggested this question was some kind of joke, and I didn’t feel threatened by the strange brunette in front of me. Confused, I said no. She pressed on. “Do you have a girlfriend?” she said. I replied honestly (yes, yes I do), hoping that the perverse joke was over. A co-ed group of her friends stood beside us, chuckling and watching our discussion with interest. “That’s sweet,” she said. “But can I grab your crotch?” Without warning, she did just that, groping me in front of a crowded bar. A stranger had me by the balls, and in my shock, I froze – everyone around me was laughing, and a guy behind her joked that the last guy got a thumb up his butt-crack, making me the lucky one. It was over in a few seconds, and she made a kissy face at me before sashaying away. A friend of mine saw the whole thing play out. I felt violated, but he looked at me and said, “Dude, that was awesome.” His reaction reflects that of most of my friends: the story is just a funny, weird memory of the debauchery Tin Roof once promised. The brief groping was probably a dare or bet, and almost everyone immediately assumes I enjoyed it. But what if she had been a he and I had been a her? What if a man walked up to a woman at a bar and asked to grope her vagina? Imagine my scenario in the reverse. She declined; he checked if she had a boyfriend; she declined again; he grabbed her vagina anyway, probing and groping, laughing and humiliating her before walking away. Seem a little less awesome? According to the Department of Justice, “Sexual assault is any type of sexual contact or behavior that occurs without the explicit consent of the recipient.” My experience was relatively minor compared to the violence committed against male and female victims across the country, but it would seem, by definition, that what happened to me was a sexual assault. Except that sounds ridiculous. What guy would ever accuse a woman of sexually assaulting him? Pop culture would have us believe that only men – only dirty priests and prison inmates and abusive fathers – assault
other men. We assume men are sexually insatiable, that they would never want to turn down sexual activity with a woman. But in a study conducted by West Virginia University, 46 percent of male sexual assault victims reported a female perpetrator. Clearly, some men do say, “No.” It’s just hard for anyone to believe. Our stereotypical gender role is to value having sex above everything else. The word “virgin” is an insult. Having lived in a fraternity house for a semester, I saw how sexual promiscuity becomes a status symbol. Getting laid garners respect; guys that can’t “close the deal” are losers. If you have a chance to have sex, regardless of whether you want to, you should. It’ll make you cooler. But the cultural message is wrong, and it perpetuates a power structure that enables entitlement to another person’s body. Acting like consent is irrelevant – the sick joke about “no means yes and yes means anal” – is leading men to sexually assault and rape women while simultaneously leading other men to hide their stories of being sexually assaulted and raped. Consider this: A 2013 survey conducted by the Bureau of Justice Statistics found that 38 percent of rape and sexual assault incidents were against men. The fact that this data seems shockingly high speaks to my point – men need to change the way we discuss sex. We need to talk about saying “No,” and even more importantly, we need to talk about hearing, “Yes.” We need to acknowledge our humanity, the innate reason that lifts us above the behavior of mere animals and gives us dignity. As a recent Slate.com article points out, “the conversation about men doesn’t need to shut down the one about women.” In fact, the two are linked: more men discussing consent will lead to fewer sexual assaults against women. Somehow, rape and sexual assault has become a women’s issue, one that most men don’t talk about. But on the night I was groped by a stranger at a bar, I realized it was never a women’s issue. It’s a people issue, and it’s on men to bring it to the forefront. UT Sex Week announces this year’s schedule this weekend. There is no excuse not to participate. R.J. Vogt is a senior in College Scholars. He can be reached at rvogt@utk.edu.
Columns of The Daily Beacon are the views of the individual and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Beacon or the Beacon's editorial staff.
UT students weigh in on GRAMMYs politics, The Recording Academy screw-ups and artist quirks Amy Prosise
@amypro93
#GRAMMYs getting super political this year with domestic violence stories, industry commentary, & several occurrences of #HandsUpDontShoot
Dede Blackwell @dedesLABORATORY be glad we get to see our fav artists and celebrate their music ourselves. North Koreans listening to “Kim Jong Un” prod. by Kim Jong Un
Jordan Achs
@Achsycontin
The #Grammys might as well be called the “who was in the Top-40 the most” awards tbh
Blac Ezell
@blacezell
I wanna go Beck to when the Grammys and AMAs had credibility and were fairly accurate with ppls views
Annie Carr
@idealisticannie
Pharrell wore shorts?! I hate the Grammys.
SPORTS
Tuesday, February 10, 2015 • The Daily Beacon
11
BASEBALL
Serrano names starting rotation for season-opening weekend Jonathan Toye
Sports Editor (@JonathanToye1)
In his first baseball media availability on Jan. 29, Tennessee baseball coach Dave Serrano told reporters the biggest challenge he faced for the upcoming season was defining roles for the pitching staff. More specifically, Serrano said he was having difficulty determining the starting pitchers for the weekend rotation, claiming he had 10 pitchers worthy of holding starting positions. But on Monday, the UT head coach provided some clarity in that department. In his first press luncheon of the season, Serrano announced Monday that righty Bret Marks will be the starting pitcher for the season opener on Friday against Florida International, with lefthander Drake Owenby going Saturday, and Kyle Serrano starting Sunday. “I feel with those three young men, we have a formidable SEC-type rotation,” Serrano said. After being limited last season with an injury, Marks won the Friday starting spot after a great fall performance - one that quickly caught the eye of fellow pitcher Andy Cox. “The guy who has impressed me most is Bret Marks,” Cox said. “I mean, he is a dude. He is a bulldog. “It doesn’t matter who we are playing, he is going to go and he is going to show up and he is just going to shut a team down and that is what you want to see on a Friday night.” Serrano also confirmed righty Hunter Martin will start UT’s Feb. 18 home opener against Tennessee Tech. He also suggested the current weekend pitching rotation might not be permanent. “We have some flexibility,” Serrano said. “And that is why I feel so confident.” Cox’s Role- Although Serrano said Cox was special last season and was a quality Friday night starter, the UT head coach has a different role for Cox in 2015. Serrano gave a simple explanation for not including Cox in the weekend rotation. He doesn’t want to use Cox just once in a weekend. Instead, when the outcome of a game is in question, Serrano wants his best pitcher on the mound. “Some of my best pitchers throughout my career have been my closers,” Serrano said. “Because you can use them more than one time. You play at least four
games a week and the schedule we play and in the SEC, the games are going to be tight. And he is going to be the guy that the majority of the time, unless he tells me he can’t take the ball that day, he is going to have the ball when the game is on the line.” While moving from starter to closer can often be a difficult transition for a pitcher, Cox said he has the same approach to pitching whether he starts the game on the mound or trots out of the dugout. “I just go in there and have confidence,” Cox said. “I just throw my pitches the way I do and let the defense work for me.” Culture Change- When Serrano became the Tennessee baseball coach in 2011, he inherited a baseball program that had suffered losing seasons in three of the last four years. Serrano had taken his past two teams, UC Irvine and Cal State Fullerton, to the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. Tennessee hired him to lead the baseball team to the same destination. Yet the rebuilding process has been long and difficult for Serrano, who has posted a 77-84 record in four-year coaching tenure at Tennessee and has failed to make regionals while at Tennessee. “It has been a lot harder than I thought it was going to be,” Serrano said on the rebuilding process. “It’s been very trying. It’s been challenging. I have been very spoiled in my career, I have been part of some really good programs. “That is part of the reason that drew me back here. I have a lot of pride for the orange and the Power T, and I wanted to help be part of resurrecting this program to the once proud days that it once was.” After three seasons of assembling his own recruiting classes, Serrano said he believes his team has the talent to compete against any team in the nation. Serrano said confidence will be crucial in taking the big step from an up-andcoming team to a team ready to make a run to Omaha. “The big challenge for this team is feeling like they belong now,” Serrano said. “That they belong as an upper-echelon team in the SEC, that they belong as a ranked team in the nation and we need to go respond that way and play that way each and every day.” Junior A.J. Simcox said he has enjoyed witnessing the change in expectations for the baseball team. “When I first came here, we were a little down to say the least,” Simcox said. “To see the program grow throughout my career here, it has been unbelievable.”
Senior pitcher Brett Marks pitches during UT’s first scrimmage on Feb. 6. Hayley Pennesi • The Daily Beacon
12
SPORTS
The Daily Beacon • Tuesday, February 10, 2015
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
WOMEN’S TENNIS
Harrison’s recent turnaround key to Two loves lead Boles to Tennessee said. “Veterinary school is just as competitive, so just Switzer No. 6 Lady Vols’ success on the court Shane being able to balance both tennis and my studies and Contributor
Patrick MacCoon
Staff Writer (@PatrickMacCoon)
After receiving SEC tournament MVP honors for averaging 19-points and 10 rebounds per game in the tournament, and helping her team win its 17th postseason league title, Isabelle Harrison struggled to find that type of success to open up conference play in her final campaign with the No. 6 Lady Vols. The Preseason First-Team All SEC post player and midseason John R. Wooden Top 20 list member struggled in her first two SEC matchups against physical Missouri and Vanderbilt teams. Due to early foul trouble in both games, and letting frustration mount, Harrison only scored five points and picked up nine fouls in 31 minutes of action in her first two conference games. The 6-foot-2 Harrison struggled not only with fouls, but also with her shot, shooting two-of-nine from the field and one-of-four at the free-throw line. This was an unusual sight for her coaches and Harrison, who averaged an SECbest 57.7 percent on field goal attempts last season while also setting the record for most double-doubles by a Tennessee junior with 18. “I just had to slow down and focus on my shot,” the former Hillsboro High School (Nashville) standout Harrison said. “It was a matter of me slowing down and working with (assistant coach) Dean (Lockwood) after practice, watching film, and just really slowing down.” With the help and encouragement from her teammates and coaches, Harrison has managed to rebound from arguably the worst two-game span of her career. Over Tennessee’s last eight conference games Harrison has been instrumental to the Lady Vols’ scoring advantage of
68.1-56.9. In that span she has averaged a team-high 15.5 points to go along with 9.5 rebounds and blocked 12 of her 22 shots on the season. “She understands we need her to put up points,” head coach Holly Warlick said. “She understands we need her to play hard, and I don’t think she is shying away from that. I don’t think she is scared of that. I think she is really confident in helping lead this team.” For the second time this season on Jan. 26, the Lady Vols’ leading scorer (12.7 points per game) was awarded with SEC Player of the Week honors, in large part to her 25-point performance in a 75-58 win over LSU. Harrison then joined the 1,000 point club with a 19-point and 10 rebound performance in the Lady Vols’ thrilling 73-72 victory over No. 10 Kentucky on Jan. 29. “I’m just blessed that I was able to get to 1,000 points,” Harrison said. “I wouldn’t be in this position if it weren’t for my teammates. They have helped me through so many tough times.” She has also improved her shooting percentage over the past eight SEC games, knocking down 48-of-93 (.516) shot attempts while scoring at least 17 points on four occasions. “She’s a leader off the court and we have to have her on the floor to win,” Warlick said. “She has great versatility in her game. She can score on the outside, catch-andshoot and has good moves to the basket. The sky is the limit for her.” With only six regular season contests left for the Lady Vols, they will continue to look for Harrison down low in the post to attack the rim and snag rebounds from her opposition and block shots. UTDAILYBEACON.COM See more online
After talking to sophomore tennis player Ashlee Boles, one can feel her passion for tennis and animals. At first a softball player, Boles switched over to tennis after wanting to play a more individual sport. Her dad, Gregg Boles, then became her tennis coach. “My dad started coaching me,” Boles said. “My sister took lessons too, it was a big family thing.” Boles grew up in a family of Tennessee fans, saying there are pictures of her and her sister dressed up with UT pom poms. Being a Vol fan from a young age lead Boles to want to play tennis at Tennessee. Her fondest tennis memory is a phone call from cohead coach Mike Patrick. “Ever since I was a little girl I wanted to play here,” Boles said. “Getting the call from coach Mike saying, ‘What is your shoe size?’ and that was his way of saying you are on the team. That is honestly something I will never forget because I have loved orange my whole life.” Her biggest goal for her time at UT is to simply be the best she can be. She opined that Murfreesboro isn’t much of a tennis area, thus she didn’t have all of the facilities she now has. At Tennessee, she has the opportunity to train every day, a strength coach, indoor facilities and two coaches who will do anything for her. According to Boles, all of these privileges give her the chance to go out and prove herself. Boles picked up her team’s lone point against Michigan with a win over Sara Remynse for what was then her fourth of the season. Co-head coach Sonia Hahn-Patrick believes it is her love for Tennessee that has led her to success this season. “When she plays she tries to play within herself,” Patrick said. “She competes really hard just like everyone else, and I think the first couple wins have really boosted her confidence. She would live and die for this team and for Tennessee, and I think when she goes onto the court, she carries that with her.” Her biggest challenge is balancing the life of a student-athlete with school work, all while attempting to have a social life. “Time management because I’m in a hard major and tennis is just as important as academics,” Boles
kind of have a social life if I can. “If not, my organic book will be my best friend. That’s perfectly fine, but time management for sure is the biggest challenge.”
• Ashlee Boles Boles’ sister is her role model and helps her with her time management. Her sister plays for the club tennis team, and watching her balance her studies with a commitment to the club team helps Boles deal with her own obligations to the tennis team and her studies. Back home, her parents push her to do the best she can because they recognize her potential. “The support behind my back helps a lot,” Boles said. Boles’ passion for animals also led her to Rocky Top. Boles loves the “big cats.” Lions, leopards, and cheetahs, but she especially loves tigers. Boles also shares her love for animals with her tennis coach. Patrick has two rescue dogs that are certified therapy dogs and takes them once a week to the UT Medical Center to visit cancer patients. Both Patrick and Boles work with Humans and Animals Bonding in Tennessee, a program done through Tennessee’s veterinary school. “We take her dogs, which are certified therapy dogs,” Boles said. “We visit the cancer and floor patients, so I look forward to that every week.” Her future plans are to attend veterinary school here at Tennessee. “Hopefully vet school, but we will see,” Boles said. “My No. 1 choice is veterinary school here and then PA school or physical therapy, but I definitely want to do something along the medical field.”