A man from Roanoke County was one of two U.S. service members fatally shot during a protest over the burning of several Qurans.
The Roanoke Times reported Friday that Cpl. T.J. Conrad, 22, was killed in Afghanistan on Thursday.
Conrad’s father, Tim Conrad, said a man wearing Afghan military or police fatigues ambushed his son.
T.J. Conrad leaves behind a wife and 7-month-old son. His family said they were traveling to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to be there when the body arrives.
Tim Conrad said his son had been in the Army for about four years, including time in the reserves. He was set to be promoted to sergeant on Thursday.
Brief by the Associated Press
A possible tornado tore through rural Mathews County on Friday evening, damaging two mobile homes and a boathouse. No one was injured.
Mathews Sheriff Mark Barrick said the powerful winds knocked two mobile homes off their foundations and destroyed a boathouse at Davis Creek Marina. A woman was in one of the homes, but she was not injured, Barrick said.
Power lines were knocked down, outbuildings were damaged and pine trees were sheared off in the storm, he said.
National Weather Service meteorologist James Foster said the agency is trying to determine whether a tornado hit the area.
Brief by the Richmond Times-Dispatch
Liberty University in Lynchburg may acquire a satellite campus in the rural town of Northfield, Mass., providing a brick-and-mortar outpost for online students from the Northeast and, possibly, a secluded site for an undergraduate honors program.
If the deal goes through, the property would be a gift to Liberty from the family of Steve Green, an Oklahoma billionaire and president of Hobby Lobby, a craft-store chain with Christian roots.
“We deeply appreciate the Green family and Hobby Lobby contacting Liberty and making this offer. ... We appreciate their confidence in Liberty,” said LU Chancellor Jerry Falwell Jr.
In 2009, the Green family bought the site for $100,000 and has since invested $5 million in improvements.
Hobby Lobby recently invited 15 Christian schools and organizations to submit proposals of possible uses of the property.
The goal is to donate the campus to a school or organization with the funds to maintain its century-old buildings and uphold its Christian heritage, said Jerry Pattengale, a college administrator hired by Hobby Lobby to find a new owner.
Liberty responded with strong interest and is a top contender, said Pattengale.
Falwell said Liberty’s proposal is to become part-owners of the campus with another Christian institution.
If Liberty becomes a part-owner, their preliminary plans are to develop an honors program there and hold classroom sessions for online students.
Pattengale said the final decision falls with the Green family and is not expected for at least two months.
Brief by the Richmond Times-Dispatch
A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 shook southwestern Siberia on Sunday afternoon, the second to hit the area in two months. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries, emergency officials said.
Residents of multistory apartment buildings said objects tumbled off of shelves, windows rattled and chandeliers swayed during the quake, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.
The earthquake hit about 100 kilometers (60 miles) east of Kyzyl, the capital of the Russian republic of Tuva, which borders Mongolia.
A quake of similar strength hit the same spot in late December. That quake damaged dozens of buildings, including a bridge over the Yenisei River to Mongolia.
Sunday’s quake, which the U.S. Geological Survey said was centered 11.7 (7.3 miles) below the surface, was felt across a broad swath of southeastern Siberia.
Brief by the Associated Press
Human rights groups are urging UNESCO to abandon a prize named after Africa’s longest-ruling dictator, one they say could be tainted by some of the millions he allegedly has looted from oil-rich but poverty-stricken Equatorial Guinea.
The board of the U.N. agency for education, science and culture meets Monday and is expected to discuss the $3 million UNESCO-Obiang Nguema Mbasogo International Prize for Research in the Life Sciences, which it accepted in 2008.
A chorus of outrage from around the world so far has delayed a decision on the prize that activists say should be quashed definitively.
Many ask how President Teodoro Obiang Nguema can offer such a prize while thousands of his people live without electricity or a clean water supply.
Railing against Obiang’s effort “to abuse the reputation and standing” of UNESCO, the New York-based Open Society Justice Initiative accused him of using the prize “to launder the image of his regime.”
Obiang has the support of African countries that form the biggest bloc in the agency’s 58-member executive board, with 14 seats compared to nine held by Western nations.
South Africa’s retired Archbishop Desmond Tutu last year was among signatories to a letter saying they were “deeply troubled by the well-documented record of human rights abuse, repression of press freedom and official corruption that have marked his (Obiang’s) rule.”
Brief by the Associated Press
A North Carolina man is losing his exotic reptile collection worth $49,000 after police found dozens of venomous lizards and snakes in his home.
Fifty-one-year-old Walter Kidd of Hendersonville pleaded guilty Friday to 30 misdemeanor charges of possessing endangered animals and failing to properly label containers of poisonous snakes.
Police seized the reptiles in August after Kidd was bitten by an exotic venomous snake and rushed to a hospital. Officers said his mobile home was packed with snakes in plastic containers.
Kidd’s attorney says the reptiles were not a danger because they were kept inside his home.
The creatures were taken to the state natural sciences museum in Raleigh.
Brief by the Associated Press
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Richmond, VA 23284-2010
VIRGINIA BEACH – Family and friends gathered at St. Luke’s Catholic Church in Virginia Beach to pay their respects to Carolina Perez, the VCU student killed in a DUI accident last Wednesday morning.
More than 420 people attended the funeral, including about 40 VCU students. The university provided free transportation to the noon mass.
A slow procession of tearful mourners said goodbye to a beloved daughter and friend at the viewing before the funeral mass, which was held at the church Perez attended as a standout student at Princess Anne High School in Virginia Beach.
Rev. Silvio Kaberia delivered the homily in English and Spanish.
“What a great inspiration: faith in God. And that’s what Carolina had,” he said. “She had great faith.”
Rev. Patrick Golden of the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Richmond spoke of Perez’s positive effect on the Catholic Campus Ministry at VCU.
“I couldn’t believe how many people (Carolina) impacted,” he said. “She was a healer of souls.”
Aleena Inthaly, Perez’s suitemate in her dorm, attended the funeral on Saturday. The solidarity of the funeral helped her find closure, she said.
“I’m kind of uplifted,” said Inthaly, a political science and international relations major. “It’s not really saying goodbye because I know she’ll always be a part of me and everybody who knows her. Being with everyone who cared about her made me feel better about the whole thing.”
Perez is survived by her mother Floriana, father Rogelio and two younger brothers, Rogelio Jr. and Adam.
Those who knew Carolina Perez remember her for her permanent smile, ceaseless work ethic and unwavering faith in God.
Rose Pham, one of Perez’s best friends, met her the summer before their freshman year. Both Perez and
Pham were in VCU Acceleration, a program for pre-med majors.
“(Carolina) was a very sweet person who cared about others. She always smiled,” said Pham, now a sophomore criminal justice major. “You would never see her without a smile.”
Perez, a devout Catholic, was heavily involved in the Catholic Campus Ministry at VCU. She lead the CCM’s Rosary group on Monday nights and attended mass every Sunday, Pham said.
Perez routinely spent her time helping others. She volunteered for the Carver-VCU partnership and Crossover Health Care Ministry on the Southside. Perez, a biology major at VCU, wanted to be a doctor.
Joshua Dart, the VCU Campus Minister at CCM, said it was Perez’s willingness to befriend people who needed a friend that made her special.
“There’s a joy that she had that she especially wanted to share with people who she knew didn’t have joy, and the way that she did that was by being herself,” Dart said. “She knew who she was because she knew of her love for God.”
Michael McIntyre, Perez’s UNIV 200 professor, said she was quiet in class, but clearly bright. He broke the news of her death to her classmates on Thursday afternoon.
“I got in there and was talking to the class and looked over at where she always sat – she always sat in that same desk – and the desk was empty,” he said. “Even though I knew that moment was coming, it wasn’t any easier to take.”
She was researching the effects of alcohol on young people for her term paper, he said.
Perez was killed in a DUI accident that also left two other VCU students injured early last Wednesday morning.
The driver of the other car, Varinder “Vick” Chahal, was also a VCU student. He was charged with felony manslaughter, driving under the influence and refusal to submit to breath and blood tests.
Perez, 19, was a month shy of her 20th birthday. CT
In this section: Carolina Perez’s friends recount fatal accident • 4 IHOP Express gives back for National Pancake Day • 4 General Assembly considers bill to waive faculty tuition costs • 5
Along with every other IHOP in the United States VCU’s IHOP Express will participate in the seventh annual National Pancake daythis Tuesday.
From 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., dinein customers will be offered two free buttermilk pancakes (with a side of syrup and butter).
The point of National Pancake Day is to raise awareness and funds for Children’s Miracle Network as well as other funds and local charities. All IHOPs, whether they are full-sized locations or not, are invited to participate. Nationally, IHOP hopes to raise $2.7 million dollars this year.
IHOP Express is not the only dining option on the VCU campus that participates in raising money and awareness for charities.
Chili’s has a long-time partnership with St. Jude’s Hospital, where they participate in the annual nationwide fundraiser held every September. During National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, VCU’s Chili’s joins forces
with the rest of the nation’s Chili’s restaurants in an effort to raise $50 million dollars in 10 years to support the St. Jude mission of curing terminal illnesses and saving children.
Chili’s also actively participates with local and student non-profit organizations in Give-Back Night local fundraisers. The fundraiser allows Chili's to “give back” a portion of the evening’s proceeds to VCU student organizations. These nights can be held any time between Sunday and Thursday – all an organization needs is a voucher.
Shafer Dining Court also has measures in place to help the community.
In 2009, during what is known as Waste Week, Aramark reported a 520-pound reduction in waste at Market 810 and donated an equivalent amount of food to Central Virginia Food Bank.
Waste Week challenges students to reduce the amount of wasted food on Monroe Park campus, especially at Shafer Dining Court.
Now, Market 810 donates an average of 1,200 pounds of food to the Central Virginia Food Bank. CT
A Fat Tuesday feast at The Village Café left Gabrielle Atkins, Jan Garcia, Carolina Perez and Jackie Bifulk stuffed. As practicing Catholics, they planned to fast for Ash Wednesday.
The friends headed over to the Catholic Campus Ministry after the meal to hangout. When the Cathedral closed at midnight, Atkins volunteered to drive Bifulk to her apartment on the Southside. Garcia and Perez decided to ride along.
After dropping Bifulk off at home, Atkins took the Robert E. Lee Bridge back over the river. On the way, Garcia suggested they go downtown to see the lights, something the friends did often.
Atkins took the Second Street exit and drove south until she reached a red light at the corner of Second and East Canal streets.
At 12:37 a.m., the light turned green. Atkins put the car in first gear and accelerated. Already in the intersection, she looked over her right shoulder and saw the white car coming. She tried to get out of the way, but couldn’t.
Virander “Vick” Chahal’s white Mazda collided with the Yaris on the back passenger side, right where Carolina Perez was sitting. The impact sent Atkins’ car spinning into a nearby building.
“When we were spinning, I could still see everything, but I couldn’t hear anything. It was just off. It was gone for a moment,” Atkins said.
She remembers the flash of blue lights and paramedics on the scene almost immediately. Atkins and Garcia called out to Perez, but she didn’t
respond.
“I didn’t want to see her. I just knew she wasn’t responding, and I figured they were going to take care of it and she was going to be fine,” Atkins said.
The paramedics pulled Perez from the backseat first, then Garcia and Atkins from the front.
“From being pulled out of the car on the way to the ambulance, I was just praying,” said Garcia, a junior English major at VCU. He lost his father about 10 years ago. “I was just asking him to help us and watch over us, please take care of us.”
An eight-minute ride to MCV landed Garcia and Atkins in the trauma room. They were told Perez was in critical condition.
“I thought she would make it,” Garcia said.
The whiplash from the crash fractured a vertebrate in Garcia’s neck. Atkins suffered two broken ribs, a bruised lung, liver and kidney. Both are out of the hospital and expected to make a full recovery.
Varinder “Vick” Chahal, the driver of the Mazada, is a VCU student. He was charged with felony manslaughter, driving under the influence and refusal to submit to blood and breath tests.
Perez died in the hospital. The 19-year-old sophomore was majoring in biology and minoring in chemistry and catholic studies at VCU.
Her funeral was held this past Saturday at St. Luke’s Catholic Church in Virginia Beach.
“She was always happy and wonderful and warm and forgiving,” Garcia said. “The best thing we could do for her now is just keep living as best as we can.” CT
The children of nearly 6,500 faculty members of public universities in Virginia could receive a 50 percent tuition waiver if a bill passes through the House, is signed into law and funded.
Senate Bill 104, proposed by Sen. John S. Edward, D-Roanoke, passed unanimously through the Senate two weeks ago and is currently in the House Appropriations subcommittee for Higher Education.
If passed, the program would only be initiated if enough money is budgeted by the General Assembly to fund it.
However, if no money is budgeted for the fund, the cost of implementing the tuition waiver would be absorbed by each university.
Despite its pitfalls, the bill’s possible benefits give its supporters reason for optimism.
“Virginia has taken a look at (tuition waivers), and it is of interest to faculty because it recognizes they have college
of faculty members who work for any public institution in the commonwealth, including VCU.
The benefit is more commonly given by private universities as a way to compete for faculty members, Fauri said.
In Virginia, Old Dominion University has a tuition-waiver program for faculty and staff, but it’s limited to six credithours per semester and to employees with incomes below $89,000. The University of Richmond also offers a tuition waiver to faculty members, said Mark E. Smith, senior director for Governmental Relations at VCU.
Senate Bill 104 would allow for children of faculty members at public universities in Virginia to receive a 50 percent tuition waiver. The program would only happen if the General Assembly could fund it.
According to an estimate of fiscal impact published by the Department of Planning and Budget, the average cost of mandatory tuition and fees at four-year state schools is $9,534.
To fund a single student for four years, it would cost more than $19,000, an amount that would increase if the student did not graduate on time.
The legislation creates the Dependent Children of University and College Faculty Reduced Tuition Fund, which will be managed by the State Council for Higher Education of Virginia.
education expenses for their children and it attracts people to the university,” said David Fauri, president of the VCU Faculty Senate.
Although a tuition waiver is supported by many faculty members, the VCU Faculty Senate has not taken an official position on the bill, Fauri said.
Tuition waivers are granted at some major public universities across the country but there is currently no mandated tuition waiver for family members
“(VCU) is certainly in favor of anything that provides benefits to faculty and staff,” Smith said.
The way it is currently worded, the bill would only benefit the children of faculty members of public universities, but not children of staff.
The measure would require that the faculty members have taught at least seven years at Virginia state schools for their children to qualify for the waiver.
The bill is on the docket for the scheduled Monday afternoon meeting of the House Appropriations subcommittee for higher education on Feb. 27. CT
Quinn Casteel
Assistant Sports Editor
After VCU’s 89-77 beat down of George Mason on Saturday night, it’s safe to say that no Ram player will go to bed with visions of Sherrod Wright’s buzzer-beating three-pointer in their head anymore.
“As soon as the game was over, we never forgot about it,” said VCU point guard Darius Theus, who had seven assists. “We’ve just been waiting for this game, and it just shows how hungry we were to go out and play Mason.”
In what was Senior Night for VCU, and also the last game of the regular season, the Rams posted their highest output of the season with 89 points, topping an 87 point explosion against UNC-Wilmington back in December.
The Rams’ lone senior Bradford Burgess had a career-high 31 points in the final home game of his career. Juvonte Reddic had his sixth double-double of the season with 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Troy Daniels knocked down five three-pointers en route to a 17-point performance.
Burgess and the rest of the Rams were given some extra motivation moments before tip-off as the athletic department conducted a pregame Senior Night ceremony, honoring Burgess and a senior team manager. As the team was still posing for pictures, Mason senior Andre Cornelius led the Patriots onto the court for layup lines, blatantly inter-
Top: Bradford Burgess and Briante Weber swarm George Mason guard Byron Allen as he asks for a timeout on Saturday night.
Middle: Darius Theus and Briante Weber dive for a loose ball as Theus collides at midcourt with George Mason guard Byron Allen.
Bottom left: Rob Brandenberg, who played 27 minutes on Saturday, drives to the hoop on George Mason guard Vertrail Vaughns.
rupting the end of the ceremony as they were met by an uproar of boos from the Siegel Center crowd.
“I can’t talk about that, but if you were at the game you saw what happened,” said a humble Burgess.
Theus and Burgess both declined to comment on the act, but head coach Shaka Smart made it clear that it did not go unnoticed by anyone. When asked if they noticed what Cornelius and the rest of the Patriot players did, Smart said simply, “Yes.”
When asked to elaborate, he said, “We noticed it and we fed off of it.”
GMU also had two technical fouls and a flagrant foul in the contest, in which the Patriots trailed by double-digits the entire way following a 12-0 VCU run over just a minute-and-a-half stretch in the first half.
“It was crazy; we just looked up, and it was turnover after turnover,” Theus said. “It’s just discipline on defense and being aggressive in the press. As we’re pressing teams, they will get worn down and mentally tired.”
With the victory, VCU eclipsed the 25-win mark in the regular season for the first time in school history. They also wrapped up the No. 2 seed in the CAA tournament, with Drexel in the top slot and Mason at No. 3. The Rams and Patriots, who split the regular season series 1-1, would meet for a third time if they both win their opening game in the tournament. CT
Players and coaches stood on the Siegel Center floor and paid homage to a career one final time. A tribute video played on the big screens, highlighting the long-lived, illustrious career of VCU’s lone senior Bradford Burgess following an 89-77 paybacklike trouncing of George Mason.
Burgess had just done what every senior college basketball player dreams of accomplishing on Senior Night: give your best performance, set career highs and dismantle on of your bitter rivals. He broke the Patriots down and attacked from every angle of the court to the tune of a career-high 31 points in front of a sold-out crowd.
“It was the Bradford Burgess show,” VCU head coach Shaka Smart said. “He was phenomenal. He led our team in every way.”
The entire time he was performing like a man possessed, Burgess didn’t even see the buckets materializing on the scoreboard due to a malfunction.
“I couldn�t tell the scoreboard was off; I was just playing,” Burgess said. “It�s great to go out like that on your senior night so I'm happy about that.”
There were other perks besides receiving a framed jersey and a pat on the back. The win over George Mason gave Burgess his 104th win, the most of any VCU player in the program’s history.
From the start, the emotions were flowing. Burgess, accompanied by his mother and father, were met at halfcourt by his teammates and coach for Senior Night ceremonies.
Feelings swarmed through Burgess’ head: some good, some bad.
“Mixed emotions, a lot of things went on at the beginning of the game,” he said. “I was happy, excited, angry, but at the end of the day I just had to be focused with the game, try to play my best game my last time out.”
The anger Burgess was referring to stemmed from the George Mason players starting their warmups on the court near the end of his ceremonies.
“We noticed it and we fed off of it,” Smart said.
Burgess in particular. He played his best game numbers-wise and stamped what had to have been one of his most memorable performances in front of a home crowd.
Earlier in the week, Burgess said he couldn’t choose a moment in the Siegel
Center he would call his favorite. There were too many to pick from. And Saturday night, he walked off the floor as a player one final time.
Top: Bradford Burgess scored a careerhigh 31 points in his final Siegel Center performance.
Bottom left: Bradford Burgess rejects George Mason senior Ryan Pearson on a three-point shot Saturday night.
Bottom right: Richmond Times-Dispatch reporter Tim Pearrell interviews Bradford Burgess following the match.
From a coaching standpoint, Smart reminisced about the days when he was an assistant at Dayton and head coach at the time Oliver Purnell would show a river of emotion on Senior Nights. Smart said he was emotional prior to the game, but quickly turned the page.
From a teammate's perspective, it was like watching someone you looked up to move on.
“It was very emotional for us, just coming in and being here with Brad for two and a half years,” junior guard Darius Theus said. “And he has taught us a lot on the court with great leadership, great role model.”
But Burgess isn’t finished, and neither are the Rams. The CAA Tournament, and possibly the Big Dance, loom ahead, territory with which Burgess has become quite familiar. Saturday night marked Burgess’ 141st consecutive start. He played his last game at the Siegel Center, but not the last game of his career.
“We're not done,” Smart said. “He's not done, and we have big goals ahead of us starting next Saturday.” CT
I was happy, excited, angry, but at the end of the day I just had to be focused with the game, try to play my best game my last time out.
Senior Day festivities aside, the emotions were still raw for Beth Cunningham.
Missed opportunities, too many open looks and all the little things it takes to win a basketball game had been tactically flawed in a 69-59 loss to George Mason Sunday afternoon.
“I'm more emotional right now of just being upset,” Cunningham said. “Just being mad about how we played.”
It was the final home game for seniors Chelsea Snyder, Andrea Barbour and Courtney Hurt, who’ve combined for 83 wins in their time at VCU. Not lost, but spoiled by a Patriots team, which created open looks and did all the little things right.
“They were more aggressive,” said Hurt, who finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds. “They did the little things like loose balls and things like that really played in their favor.”
At times, George Mason would grab a marginal lead, but the game was seemingly never out of reach. The Patriots took a 14-point lead, their largest of the game, with just more than three minutes left in the first half, but the Rams were able to chisel it down to nine points before the half ended.
It was the story of the game for VCU, which teetered on the verge of a comeback all day long. But the Patriots were too fresh, too tidy and almost mistakefree to allow the rally.
“We could never seem to get over the hump,” Cunningham said. “And I kept telling our kids, as much as we hadn't played as well as we wanted to play, we were still right there.”
The Rams cut the lead to as low as six with just under a minute remaining but couldn’t get shots to fall on two of their final three possessions. On the other end George Mason found open looks on the perimeter at free will. The Patriots buried the Rams with 42 percent shooting, hitting five of their 14 shots from beyond the arc, three of which came from junior guard Amber Easter.
“For me it's hard to get open shots,” Hurt said. “So to see other teams get open shots is frustrating.”
VCU was stale from long range, missing
15-of-18 tries from deep. Barbour provided one of the only bright spots on a struggling Rams offense. The Charlottesville, Va. native created open looks for herself and knocked down seven of her 14 attempts. But it couldn’t combat VCU’s sloppy mistakes, which led to 10 turnovers in a game with a small margin for error.
“A lot of this stuff to be honest is to an extent just some bare basic principle type of things,” Cunningham said. “Your foundation.”
For Hurt, the loss stings but goes down as a small divot in the illustrious mark she’s put down in the Rams program. The all-time leading scorer that set seven single-season records a season ago played her final game at the Siegel Center with an emotional mindset.
“It's a senior game so it's the last time you step out on the court in your home gym,” Hurt said. “So the emotions through the game were going through my head.”
The VCU women’s basketball team (16-12, 9-8) visits Drexel Feb. 29 for their final game of the regular season before heading to Upper Marlboro, Md. for the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament. CT
VCU (4-4) defeated Binghamton (0-3) 12-3 on Sunday afternoon, which marked a three-game weekend series sweep of the Bearcats.
Starting pitcher Kyle Pelchy earned his first win of the season, going six innings and giving up two earned runs to go along with six strikeouts for the Rams.
Offensively, VCU was led by 3 RBI from Joey Cujas, who has been on an early season tear. The sophomore middle infielder has seven RBI in the Rams’ first eight games, to go along with six doubles and a .393 batting average.
The Rams went 1-4 on a West Coast trip to open the season, but worked their way up to .500 with three wins at home over the weekend. They will host their next eight games as well, beginning with Norfolk State on Tuesday afternoon. CT
In this section:
students comedians • 11
A league of extraordinary facial hair • 12
After their annual production of “The Vagina Monologues” this past weekend, “Vaginal Wonder” will have lost at least some of its taboo, thanks to VCU’s gender, sexuality and women’s studies department.
The production, held at the Shafer Street Playhouse this past Friday, Saturday and Sunday, had audience members laughing and crying simultaneously.
Playwright and prominent feminist, Eve Ensler started writing “The Vagina Monologues” in 1997. Ensler interviewed 200 women of various ages, occupations and races about their vaginas. She asked the women what their vaginas would wear, what they would say and what they would smell like. Similar responses were compiled in one monologue, but some women’s stories stand out in their own monologues.
Every year, a new optional
monologue is added. Any group performing the monologues can choose which of the many optional monologues they would like to include. This year’s new monologue included the hate of Facebook groups which justify rape and the recent legislation over birth control.
“I am over the government telling me I don’t have the right to not be pregnant,” said Raven Wilkes, a freshman theater arts major, who performed the 2012 monologue.
Other topics included women attempting to see their own vaginas, lesbians, trans women, giving birth, sex workers for women, different types of moans and reclaiming the word “c---.”
“It was the one swear word I told myself I’d never say, and I love it now,” said Jessica Skiles, a freshman theater major, who had her fingernails painted to resemble vaginas, complete with a “glitt-oris.” At the end of her monologue, the entire audience was chanting “c---” in chorus.
Another topic of discussion for the monologues is the taboo of the word
vagina. One segment involved all 13 actresses, dressed in shades of pink and red, yelling various nicknames for vaginas.
“It’s breakfast of champions in Richmond, Va.,” one actress exclaimed.
“Why? It’s a body part. It’s nothing to be afraid of. Love your vagina. I feel like every girl should have a relationship with her vagina, but don’t view it as something separate from you. It’s the heart of you,” Skiles said.
One monologue in particular sparked protests during “The Vagina Monologues” last year. In 2010, one of the optional monologues called “They Beat the Girl Out of My Boy… Or So They Tried,” about trans women, was left out in 2011, said director and junior English major, Erin Willis. Protesters thought that the monologue was neglected in 2011 because of a dislike of transgender people.
“It was a lot of misunderstandings,” said Elizabeth Popp, director and gender, sexuality and women’s studies grad student.
“The Vagina Monologues” are a part of a larger organization called V-Day, a global movement to end violence against women and girls. Complimentary rights are given to any group who wishes to perform “The Vagina Monologues”, but groups are asked to take donations for an organization chosen by V-Day each year.
This year, 10 percent of proceeds from “The Vagina Monologues” go to help the women of Haiti. VCU’s “Vagina Monologues” will also be giving the other 90 percent to the organization RAINN.
RAINN is the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network. It's the nation’s largest anti-sexual assault organization. All donations to the show went straight to the local counseling center at the YWCA in Richmond.
“It’s not just a play,” Popp said. “It’s a movement that raises awareness for violence against women.” CT
Nick Bonadies Spectrum Editor
For Chad Roberts, being selected as an extra in Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” last November was little surprise.
Roberts is the founder and “El Capitan” (a self-chosen title) of Richmond-based beard-growers’ association, Follicles of the James 'Stache & Beard League – or “the League,” for short, to its almost 30 members.
The League is a founding member of the North American Competitive Beard and Moustache Alliance and the Richmond chapter of Beard Team USA, both of which promote facial hair appreciation both at home and abroad.
His facial hair, fittingly, is prodigious – dense – but exquisitely well-groomed.
At Gallery5 this past Friday, where members of the League appeared as featured guests with the Richmond Comedy Coalition, Roberts’ teeming mane was sculpted into two divergent halves – a styling he coined “The Fork in the Road” or, alternately, “The Robert Frost.”
But left to its natural state, Roberts’ beard could easily have felt right at home against a gray wool uniform.
“Mr. Spielberg saw that certain something in me,” Roberts said. Simon Leake, the League “Gentleman and Scholar” (his own self-chosen title), also represented the League in the ‘Lincoln’ cast, and was known on the set only as “Moustache.”
Though they do occasionally provide Hollywood directors with background manliness for their films, Follicles of the James’ main business lies in nationwide competitive bearding competitions –and starting this Saturday, they’ll be running their own.
The “1st ever Mid-Atlantic Beard & ‘Stache Competition” is currently open to registration for all categories – moustaches, beards full and partial, styled and unstyled, ladies’ division (imitation beards), etc. – and is set to take place at Strange Matter Saturday, March 3 at 8 p.m.
Proceeds will benefit the Central Virginia Food Bank.
“(Bearding competitions are) kind of like a dog show,” the League’s self-appointed “Master of Stache and Destruction,” Zack Pettrey said. “You go up and you prance around in front of the judges. They lift your tail, look at your butt, that sort of thing. … It's awkward.”
Pettrey has grown his moustache for a year and eight months – “I got out of the army and decided ‘f--- shaving’,” he said – and is expecting “a future bearding champion” with his partner in March. He said Saturday’s competition at Strange Matter has attracted BEARDS cont. on p. 12
• Take good care of yourself. A healthy you grows a healthy beard.
• Let it grow out for a solid month to six weeks. That way you know what you're working with.
• Genetics plays a large role, and a full beard doesn't work for every face. There's an entire spectrum of facial hair options. Go with what suits you best – a crappy beard with a great moustache doesn't do anyone any favors.
• Summertime beards are just as awesome. They're kind of like Panama or straw hats. They keep the sun from beating down on your face and let the breeze right on through to cool you off.
(Beard-growing advice courtesy of Follicles of the James 'Stache & Beard League) but also males of all different beard coverages – up to and including none at all.
competitive bearding teams from as far as Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
The panel of ajudicators will include lead singer of Gwar Dave Brockie, Richmond radio icon Melissa Chase, Legendary World Wrestling referee Dave Hebner, reigning ladies’ division champion Ashley Brown and others.
While most of the categories strictly prohibit the use of hair extensions, false beards or any form of hair pins, the Ladies category actively encourages facial hair substitutes of any variety, with sub-divisions for both realism and creativity. The Leagues’ sister group –the Bearded Beauties of the River City, or RVA Whiskerinas – caters to the fine art of female beard crafting specifically.
Gentleman and Scholar Leake said that the League not just welcomes members of genders in its ranks,
“There are a couple of guys in the group who are doing ... their very best,” he said. “And that's all you can ask.”
“Facial hair is one of those things that doesn't exactly define who you are,” Pettrey said. “You define what it is. ... He rocks a moustache, he rocks a beard, I rock a mustache and a beard. There's guys with sweet mutton chops, there's guys with Van Burens. … There's people who break down those barriers.”
“It's who you are,” he said. “Wear what you want.” CT
The Mid-Atlantic Beard & ‘Stache Competition will take place at Strange Matter on Grace Street this coming Saturday, March 3 at 8 p.m; Tickets $5. Registration for competitors addtional $5; competitor check-in 7 p.m. Proceeds will benefit the Central Virginia Food Bank.
Friday and Saturday brought a gutbusting new dimension to the Main Stage at the Singleton Center as 15 VCU theater majors, ranging from freshman to graduate level students, tried their hand at humor in the Stand Up Comedy Show.
For the occasion, VCUtheatre brought in nationally renowned and acclaimed Stephen Rosenfield, director of the American Comedy Institute of New York City, to coach the young comedians. With Rosenfield’s past students having appeared on “The David Letterman Show,” “The Conan O’Brien Show,” “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” and “Last Comic Standing,” among many other impressive credentials, the success of the night was hardly a surprise.
Each performer produced with his or her own original material for the comedy show. During their workshops, Rosenfield helped the students polish their acts, assisting with such aspects as fleshing out jokes and effective delivery.
“What Stephen was really good at was teaching us to structure a joke,” Elliot Duffy said of working with Rosenfield. “Some things wouldn’t need any help at all; sometimes it was as
simple as moving a word around.”
Duffy’s opening line, “So Adele has six Grammys,” was enough to send many audience members into a laughing fit. As if that weren’t enough, Duffy offered a punch line. “I only have two.”
Each of the 15 performers only had a few minutes on stage, but each made his or her own distinct impression on the audience. While of course not all material can be recounted as accurately as if seen in person, some of the highlights of the comedy show are as follows.
“Fun-sized” Rachel Blackburn opened the night with her mildly cliché but overall effective short jokes, taking full advantage of and adding a new spin on the cultural hip-hop vernacular term “shawty.” A testament to the success of her set, audience reactions were frequently funnier than Blackburn’s jokes themselves.
“When I lived in London, I was approached by a casting director who wanted me to audition for a part as an elf,” Blackburn said. “That’s it, that’s the whole story.”
According to Aaron Mauck, the RA system at VCU doesn’t consist of much more than drunk people taking care of other, younger drunk people. And based on reactions from the audience, his claim was more than just a joke in a
stand up show.
Whitney Houston, of course, made it into the comedy show last as her death was mourned by Morgan Barbour along side that of “fellow black female performer Michael Jackson.”
Barbour also warned audience members to steer clear of guys in white vans. “They’re compulsive liars. They never have the free candy they promise!”
Perhaps the most original performance of the night, the beginning of freshman Mahlon Raoufi’s set centered around jokes about his unusual first name, pronounced “May-lin,” which he told audience members is the Biblical word for “sickness.” Raoufi then proceeded to tell audience members about his quest for a girl who would stay by his side “in Mahlon and in health,” and who would suffer “morning Mahlon” for the sake of their child, Mahlon Jr.— the third person on the planet to share the name.
Caty Nickelson followed Raoufi with one of the most successful sets of the night in which she hilariously impersonated a handful of the many personas to be found at the average VCU frat party.
Andrew Flack was one of the few performers who took the stage in costume, with his Superman shirt
complimenting all too well his virgin jokes –namely, why everyone thought he was one.
“My parents have been together for 14 years,” Danielle Williams said near the beginning of her set. “I’m 18. You do the math.”
In addition to other eye-wateringly effective material, Williams evaluated on the dilemma of how the fine line between “f--- me” and “I’m desperate” is determined solely upon the number of “ys” attached to the word “hey” in a text message.
Besides addressing the dangers of “you can look, but you can’t touch” while in a committed relationship, Matt Johnson described Virginia as a “skeezy Spaniard” who wants to “get up in ya,” successfully making light of the recent close call with a bill that would have required women to undergo an invasive ultrasound before an abortion.
Caitlin Carbone brought the night to a close by expressing her desire to be the target of aggressively given compliments, rather than the usual cat calls. “Ay yo, bitch! Yea, I’m talkin’ to you! You smell nice! Is that Chanel No. 9? I love Chanel No. 9!”
Thanks to Stephen Rosenfield and VCU theater students, Stand Up Comedy audience members will greet the coming week with sore abdomens. CT
In this section:
Reality television defines and defiles us • 14 Story of Jeremy Lin helping break stereotypes • 15
Colin Hannifin Columnist
There is little to like on television these days. Sure, there are still smartly scripted and enjoyable shows being aired, like the perennial award winners “Mad Men” or “How I Met Your Mother.”
But more and more content producers are shifting their focus from traditional television offerings into the world of reality television. This decade-old phenomenon is primarily responsible for the decline of television as a cultural medium.
Some background: Reality television has been around as long as television itself. The earliest reality shows were hidden-camera shows and talent-search shows. This is a far cry from the shows we see today. Reality television really exploded in the early 2000s, with genre-redefining shows like “Survivor” and “American Idol” debuting to record audiences and prolonged ratings dominance.
In the decade between 2000 and 2010, these two shows alone topped the ratings for six years and continue to do so. The genre has advanced far beyond a few high-succeeding network shows. Cable networks, like the History and Discovery Channels, are now dominated by channel-produced reality programming, like “Ice Road Truckers” or “Swamp Loggers.”
It’s easy to write all of this off as the work of an idle mind worrying too much about television. But since it became a household staple in the 1950s and 60s, television has been the premier and preferred way to transmit information and culture. These shows helped define generations, from the early “I Love Lucy” to “The Andy Griffith Show” and from “Happy Days” to “The Cosby Show.” These were immediate staples of American culture. “Pimp My Ride”? Despite its Internet popularity, I think not.
This isn’t to say that no reality television can be culturally significant, nor is it to say that all scripted shows
are. Unfortunately, there has been an explosion of poor reality television programming within our lifetimes. But it isn’t without reason. Reality television offers multiple advantages to networks: significantly lower costs while tapping into America’s seemingly insatiable thirst for highly-edited, real drama.
More than anything, this increased investment in reality television is one thing: a sign of laziness.
The History Channel, instead of focusing on history, shows country boys sticking their hands down muddy holes to catch catfish. What was once the Arts & Entertainment Channel makes most of its revenue off mentally ill individuals who pack their houses to the gills with items they don’t need. The Learning Channel follows around the mother of over a dozen children and calls it a day. While the top reality shows are cleverly produced, the rest of the crop is rarely so lucky.
Content producers should instead buck the reality trend, the easy route, and instead go the way of the American
Movie Channel, which has invested in more traditional, scripted shows and won multiple awards with its hits like “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad¸” or “The Walking Dead.” These are considered by many to be among the best shows on television – and none of them are reality.
Yes, it’s harder to make very good, scripted, traditional shows. However, when it’s done right, it pays off bigger than any cable reality show can.
Reality television is a genre that won’t soon be disappearing. Shows like “American Idol” have proven their relevance and power, and won’t soon be exiting television.
The market is, right now, oversaturated with reality television, and it is detracting from the cultural relevance of television. Instead, channels should be focusing on creating quality traditional content which, when well received, can pay far higher dividends than a reality show ever could. CT
Asian-American Jeremy Lin, current point guard for the New York Knicks, has dominated both on the court and in the media for the last couple of weeks. In doing so, he's helped to defy the stereotype that surrounds his race.
The introduction of this tall, attractive Asian male, whose image has swept the media for weeks, is changing America’s perspective of Asian-Americans. While “Linsanity” has produced both crude and unfunny jokes that touch on Asian stereotypes, Lin’s on- and off-court performance is helping to prove the jokesters wrong.
We have all seen various AsianAmericans, especially on VCU’s diverse campus. However, there is still a picture in our head of the Asian male or female who is known for having Einstein’s brain and excelling at hobbies in the arts, such as music or drawing.
Lin, whose parents emigrated from Taiwan, was born in Los Angeles and
raised in a Christian family. Like Lin, many people can relate to being born and raised in America while being of a different ethnicity. They don’t embody Caucasian features or typical American habits, so they may feel disconnected from the majority of American society.
Integrating proves to be a challenge because immigrants are often caught between nationalities. They know they’re American, but their physical appearance, foreign accent or particular behavior clearly divides them from the America portrayed on the cover of magazines and television ads.
While the media is slowly being filled with various other races, the majority of what we see still consists of CaucasianAmericans. Lin is a role model for children of different races who don’t have someone with whom to identify.
I know that I don’t fulfill many of the stereotypes that are made about my own ethnicity, yet I’ll be the first to admit that stereotypes have influenced my perception about people of another race.
While many of us know better than to judge based on a stereotype because we have seen that almost everyone is an exception, we’re all still guilty of doing it. It’s part of human nature to identify differences in other people. At the very least, these judgments occur on a first impression and superficial basis.
Lin will give Asian-American kids a role model to look up to, someone to show them that they can go beyond the limitations introduced to them through stereotypes.
Lin is a different type of role model for today’s youth, particularly AsianAmericans without athletic role models. Lin can be the person to whom they can look and know that race is an obstacle that can be overcome. It’s a good thing to see that we’re recognizing that diversity goes beyond just blacks and whites.
In the grand scheme of things, Lin is only the beginning; he has opened doors for Asian-Americans after him. CT
Opinions expressed are those of individual writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Commonwealth Times or Virginia Commonwealth University. Unsigned editorials represent the institutional opinion of The CT.
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