vol. 79 no. 14

20
Following the arrests of two student journalists last Saturday while covering Oc- cupy Atlanta protests, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and the Atlanta Police Chief have yet to respond to letters calling for the city to drop its charges. The two arrested persons discussed in the letter, Judith Kim of Georgia State’s The Signal and Alisen Redmond of Kennesaw State University’s The Sentinel, were jailed for approximately 14 hours for “obstruction of traffic.” The Student Press Law Center, a non- profit advocacy group for the rights of stu- dent media, sent a letter to Mayor Kasim Reed responding to last Saturday’s arrests. SPLC Executive Director Frank LoMon- te recognized the difficult task of crowd con- trol in volatile situations but believed poor decision making led to the arrests of mem- bers of student press. “The officers had ample time to make a distinction between a person causing a dis- turbance and a person peacefully recoding police and protester activity as part of a bona fide news organization,” LoMonte said in the letter. Redmond had a press pass with photo identification distinguishing her as a mem- ber of the media, while Kim wore a shirt that identified herself as an employee of The Sig- nal. Although LoMonte said the pass did not excuse flagrant violation of the law, he also said additional circumstances around the cases should have been taken in consider- ation. “While having a press pass is not a li- cense to violate the law, the ‘violation’ for THE SIGNAL VOLUME 79 | ISSUE 14 THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY SERVING THE STUDENTS SINCE 1933 TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2011 GSUSIGNAL.COM Although Academic Team Fee Council lead- ers stressed the importance of having adequate funds to compete in scholastic competitions, the Student Activity Fee Committee voted to cut their funding for the 2013 fiscal year during their last meeting. While the ATFC was granted $149,507 last year, they will receive nearly $13,000 less next year to pay for international trips and competi- tions. The Council lobbies on behalf of the Model United Nations, Model Arab League, Model Af- rican Union and Mock Trial teams. The group petitioned for a 44 percent increase, translat- ing into about $70,000 more, during the Oct. 28 SAFC meeting. In emphasizing the importance of an increase in funding for the upcoming year, ATFC Secre- tary Gregory Goll explained the potential edu- cational and economic benefits of supporting academic teams. “The Mock Trial isn’t a business model. Kids learn. They apply what they learn and get into law school. They meet and make references. Then many times they use [them] to land jobs, which obviously encourage alumni donations,” Goll said. James Dutton, Student Government Asso- ciation president and SAFC member, supported ensuring the Academic Team Fee Council re- tained funding based on the prestige its organi- zations bring to the university. “They have been on the AJC. They have been mentioned in the national sections of the USA Today,” Dutton said. “This is a big deal.” “If you don’t think that they’re garnering enough prestige, then I urge you to look at the legislative actions taken this year by both the House and Senate passing bills recognizing the amazing contributions to education and to stu- dent life at Georgia State given by these teams and their faculty advisor. The state has paid at- tention,” he continued. Yet, Dr. Eric Blacknall, SGA Advisor and SAFC member, questioned the validity of grant- ing the Academic Team Fee Council an increase in funding on grounds that much of the money would be used for an international trip that only benefited a small number of students. Academic teams’ funds to be slashed next year Continued on p. 2 The Student Activity Fee Committee cut funding from academic teams, despite their growth and international recognition JOCELYN CRAWLEY Staff Writer College media demand apology from mayor Continued on p. 3 TERAH BOYD Staff Writer INSIDE THIS EDITION z SPORTS CENTER JAMES VINCENT EXPRESSES HIS EXCITEMENT FOR NEW COACH RON HUNTER AND TALKS ABOUT HIS UPTEMPO COACHING STYLE. HE SAYS THEY’RE READY TO IMPROVE THEIR GAME THIS YEAR AND READY TO TAKE ON ANY OPPONENT. page 9 z MORE NEWS z CAMPUS LIFE PR POWER- HOUSE INTERN AT CNN SETS THE STANDARD FOR THE COMPETITION page 17 STUDENTS SUPPORT NEW BILL ALLOWING SUNDAY ALCOHOL SALES, DESPITE MAJOR OPPOSITION page 2 SPOTLIGHT: JAMES VINCENT z ENTERTAINMENT HORDE OF SUPER MARIOS INVADE THE STREETS OF ATLANTA page 13 US! Follow us! Hi 70 Hi 55 FRI Hi 56 SAT Hi 61 SUN Hi 67 THUR WED JUDY KIM | THE SIGNAL PAUL ABELL | ABELL IMAGES

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Page 1: Vol. 79 No. 14

Following the arrests of two student journalists last Saturday while covering Oc-cupy Atlanta protests, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and the Atlanta Police Chief have yet to respond to letters calling for the city to drop its charges.

The two arrested persons discussed in the letter, Judith Kim of Georgia State’s The Signal and Alisen Redmond of Kennesaw State University’s The Sentinel, were jailed for approximately 14 hours for “obstruction of traffi c.”

The Student Press Law Center, a non-profi t advocacy group for the rights of stu-dent media, sent a letter to Mayor Kasim Reed responding to last Saturday’s arrests.

SPLC Executive Director Frank LoMon-te recognized the diffi cult task of crowd con-trol in volatile situations but believed poor decision making led to the arrests of mem-bers of student press.

“The offi cers had ample time to make a distinction between a person causing a dis-turbance and a person peacefully recoding police and protester activity as part of a bona fi de news organization,” LoMonte said in the letter.

Redmond had a press pass with photo identifi cation distinguishing her as a mem-ber of the media, while Kim wore a shirt that identifi ed herself as an employee of The Sig-nal.

Although LoMonte said the pass did not excuse fl agrant violation of the law, he also said additional circumstances around the cases should have been taken in consider-ation.

“While having a press pass is not a li-cense to violate the law, the ‘violation’ for

THE SIGNALVOLUME 79 | ISSUE 14

THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY

SERVING THE STUDENTS SINCE 1933

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2011GSUSIGNAL.COM

Although Academic Team Fee Council lead-ers stressed the importance of having adequate funds to compete in scholastic competitions, the Student Activity Fee Committee voted to cut their funding for the 2013 fi scal year during their last meeting.

While the ATFC was granted $149,507 last year, they will receive nearly $13,000 less next year to pay for international trips and competi-tions.

The Council lobbies on behalf of the Model United Nations, Model Arab League, Model Af-rican Union and Mock Trial teams. The group petitioned for a 44 percent increase, translat-ing into about $70,000 more, during the Oct. 28 SAFC meeting.

In emphasizing the importance of an increase in funding for the upcoming year, ATFC Secre-tary Gregory Goll explained the potential edu-cational and economic benefi ts of supporting academic teams.

“The Mock Trial isn’t a business model. Kids learn. They apply what they learn and get into law school. They meet and make references. Then many times they use [them] to land jobs, which obviously encourage alumni donations,” Goll said.

James Dutton, Student Government Asso-ciation president and SAFC member, supported ensuring the Academic Team Fee Council re-tained funding based on the prestige its organi-zations bring to the university.

“They have been on the AJC. They have been mentioned in the national sections of the USA Today,” Dutton said. “This is a big deal.”

“If you don’t think that they’re garnering enough prestige, then I urge you to look at the legislative actions taken this year by both the House and Senate passing bills recognizing the amazing contributions to education and to stu-dent life at Georgia State given by these teams and their faculty advisor. The state has paid at-tention,” he continued.

Yet, Dr. Eric Blacknall, SGA Advisor and SAFC member, questioned the validity of grant-ing the Academic Team Fee Council an increase in funding on grounds that much of the money would be used for an international trip that only benefi ted a small number of students.

Academic teams’ funds to be slashed next year

Continued on p. 2

The Student Activity Fee Committee cut funding from academic teams, despite their growth and international recognition

JOCelYN CRaWleYStaff Writer

College media demand apology from mayor

Continued on p. 3

teRah BOYdStaff Writer

INSIDE THIS EDITION

z SPORtS

CENTER JAMES VINCENT EXPRESSES HIS EXCITEMENT FOR NEW COACH RON HUNTER AND TALKS ABOUT HIS UPTEMPO COACHING STYLE. HE SAYS THEY’RE READY TO IMPROVE THEIR GAME THIS YEAR AND READY TO TAKE ON ANY OPPONENT.

page 9

z MORe NeWS

z CaMPUS lIfePR POWER-HOUSE INTERN AT CNN SETS THE STANDARD FOR THE COMPETITION

page 17

STUDENTS SUPPORT NEW BILL ALLOWING SUNDAY ALCOHOL SALES, DESPITE MAJOR OPPOSITION

page 2

SPOTLIGHT: JAMES VINCENT

z eNteRtaINMeNt

HORDE OF SUPER MARIOS INVADE THE STREETS OF ATLANTA

page 13

z z MORe NeWSMORe NeWS

US!Follow us!

Hi 70 Hi 55FRIHi 56

SATHi 61

SUNHi 67

THURWED

JuDy kiM | the signAl

PAul ABell | ABell iMAges

Page 2: Vol. 79 No. 14

“I am a proponent of advancing the reputation of Georgia State Uni-versity. I am excited about the idea that we have academic teams do-ing that, but I am not in support of teams that have 100 students that get to travel to Cairo…” Blacknall said.

Several of the voting student members and alternates on the SAFC are also members of academic teams, including Zain Malik, Elise Laplante, Allison Renyi and James Dutton.

Ben Williams, SAFC member and SGA vice predisent for Student Life,emphasized the value of Diver-sity Programs by stating that they benefit a greater number of students than Academic Teams and spend less money by hosting events on campus.

“I value academic teams and what they bring. However, I don’t think that what Academic Teams do is more important than what Diversity does or what University Wide does or the colleges do,” he said.

While the university’s Academic Teams had their funding cut for 2013, Diversity received an increase from $57,500 to $79,547.

In making a case for Diversity,

Williams referenced how the Stu-dent Activity Fee Committee cut funding for various student organi-zations the previous year.

“Last year’s SAFC really screwed Diversity and University Wide be-cause to tell student organizations who benefit anywhere from 1,000 to 5,500 students on a semesterly basis that they’re all going to be funded at a level less than they were a year before when they all increased the level of programming they were do-ing on campus,” Williams said.

“That was painful and I don’t think that should ever have to hap-pen.”

I am a pro-ponent of ad-vancing the reputation of Georgia State University ... but I am not in support of teams that have 100 stu-dents that get to travel to Cairo…

-SGA Adviser Dr. Eric Blacknall

NEWSwww.gsusignal.com/news

z ONLINE: UNDERGROUND ATLANTA TO OPEN 500 PARKING SPOTS FOR STUDENTS (UPDATE)

Continued from page 1

The Freshman Dining Hall will be opened for all day study hours the week before finals with an arrangement between the University Provost and the Student Government Associa-tion.

In addition to its regular hours, the hall will be open to students between the hours of 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. starting Nov. 28 through Dec. 1.

Security in the form of ad-ditional police officers for the arrangement will be provid-ed compliments of the Office of the Provost, according to SGA vice president of Student Services,Grace Lee.

The SGA will be providing free food for students that uti-lize the arrangement, Lee said. The glass area of the dining hall will also be designated as a silent study lounge, accord-ing to Lee.

Lee encouraged SGA members at their last Senate meeting to spread the word about the arrangement to their fellow students next week be-cause of the short time left be-fore finals.

“Make sure you guys tell everyone because we have a really short turn-around, be-cause after next week we’re going to be going on break,” Lee said. “Please tell every-one you know because I really want to get a good turn out.”

The fight to accommodate a 24-hour study area for stu-dents during finals week has been an arduous one. In pre-vious years, the library, which is now open until 2 a.m. dur-ing finals, was turned down as a potential 24-hour study area due to cost concerns.

Earlier this year, the MILE computer lab in the Commons and the Aderhold Learning Center were both seriously considered as viable venues for study sites but were ultimately dismissed out of concerns over security and operational costs.

However, the implemen-tation of a 24-hour study area for students puts Georgia State on the same level as other large four-year institutions in the state, including the Geor-gia Institute of Technology and the University of Georgia, both of which provide 24-hour access to their main libraries during the week before and of finals.

RaChel ShUffIeldStaff WriterFreshman Hall

to extend finals hours

SAFC cuts Academic teams’ funding

The passing of a referendum on Sunday alcohol sales last week in Atlanta came with little sur-prise to many Georgia State stu-dents.

The Nov. 8 vote, which car-ried more than 80 percent of the vote, lifted a previous ban that prevented retail vendors from selling alcoholic beverages on Sundays.

The law preventing Sunday alcohol sales, except in restau-rants, was a quintessential ex-ample of so-called “blue laws,” or laws meant to enforce religious standards, according to Jenny Nesvetailova, a junior at Georgia State.

“Allowing alcohol to be sold on Sunday creates a separation between church and state, which should have been there all along,” Nesvetailova said.

She said she did not mind buying her wine a day early but felt the principle behind the fact should be addressed.

Other students agreed but on

separate points.“I’m all in favor of being able

to buy alcohol on Sundays,” ex-plained Stephanie Swanson, a se-nior at Georgia State. “Especially if I want to have a fun picnic at Piedmont Park.”

Despite local support inside metro Atlanta, the vote attracted major opposition from some reli-gious figures and rural areas.

For instance, the Georgia Christian Coalition opposed the vote, claiming that allowing Sun-day alcohol sales would undigni-fy the Sabbath.

The city of Atlanta can expect to start buying alcohol on Jan. 1 of next year. The city of Duluth will actually be able to purchase booze on Nov. 19th.

Statewide, the vote passed in over 110 cities and counties with only a few outliers in rural counties opposing, including Al-bany, Americus, Brunswick, Fort Oglethorpe, Waycross and Whit-field County.

Georgia was one of three states in the United States that still banned alcohol sales on Sun-days, a law that had been around since the early 1800s.

Students back Sunday alcohol salesJOeY NeelYStaff Writer

Michelle Asci | the signAlMarketing major, Victoria Perry, studies in the Freshman Dining hall which will be open for 24 hours starting Nov. 28 through Dec. 1.

Page 3: Vol. 79 No. 14

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2011 NEWS | THE SIGNAL 03

November 10

decatur St.A report was filed for Theft of Bicycle. The complainant, a GSU student stated, at 12:00 p.m. she noticed her bicycle was missing. The case is being handled by Investigations.

Poplar St.A report was filed Theft of Bicycle. The complainant, a GSU student stated, at 8:45 p.m. he noticed his bicycle was missing. The case is being handled by Investigations.

General Classroom BuildingOfficers issued a Non-GSU individual a Criminal Trespass Warning. At 4:41 p.m. officers observed the individual enter the building and when officers questioned the individual he became loud and confrontational. He was issued a C.T.W. and was escorted off campus without incident.

November 9

library PlazaOfficers arrested a Non-GSU individual for Robbery by Sudden Snatching. At 8:20 p.m. a GSU student advised officers that she was approached from the behind by two unknown individuals and one of them snatched her Apple I-Phone and ran from the area. One of the suspects was apprehend after a brief foot chase. Offices confirmed the individual was a juvenile and he was process and released to a family member.

General Classroom BuildingA report was filed for Theft. The complainant, a GSU student stated, at 9:52 a.m. she noticed her purse containing various items was missing. The case is being handled by Investigations.

Officers issued a Non-GSU individual a Criminal Trespass Warning. At 10:30 a.m. officers observed the individual enter and exit various buildings multiple times. Officers then observed the individual attempting to look into student’s bags. He was issued a C.T.W. and was escorted off campus without incident.

Student CenterA report was filed for Fraud. The complainant, a GSU student stated, on 11/06/11 at 11:59 p.m. an unauthorized debit card transaction occurred at the Student Center. The case is being handled by Investigations.

haas howell BuildingA report was filed for Theft. The complainant, a GSU staff member stated, at 3:15 p.m. he noticed a GSU issued laptop computer was missing. The case is being handled by Investigations.

auburn ave./equitable PlaceA report was filed for Robbery by Sudden Snatching. The complainant, a GSU student stated, at 4:00 p.m. an unknown individual approached him from the behind and snatched his Apple I-Pad and ran from the area. There were no injuries reported. The case is being handled by Investigations.

November 8

Piedmont ave.Officers issued a Non-GSU individual a Criminal Trespass Warning. At 10:54 a.m. officers observed the individual loitering in front of the University Commons and confirmed he had an active C.T.W. He was arrested, processed and transported to Fulton County Jail.

University CenterA report was filed for Theft. The complainant, a GSU staff member stated, at 2:40 p.m. he observed an unknown male enter the bookstore on video and take (6) Memorex Memory Cards and exit the store without paying. The case is being handled by Investigations.

November 7

Student CenterOfficers arrested two Non-GSU individuals for Theft by Taking, Trespass for Unlawful Purpose and Intentionally Aids in the Commission of the Crime. At 1:11 p.m. officers were advised two individuals approached a GSU student and asker her a question attempting to distract her when two other individuals approached her from both sides and one of them snatched her laptop computer off of the table. Officers apprehended two of the suspects that were identified by the victim. They were arrested, processed and transported to Fulton County Jail.

CAMPUS CRIMESGA to recommend changing courtyard concert policySGA Round up

The most continuous issue discussed at the Stu-dent Government Associa-tion meeting was its rec-ommendation of moving the concert series held in the courtyard every Tues-day and Thursday.

Ben Williams, vice president of student life, raised the issue by saying the amount of students in the courtyard during the times of 12 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. on those days presented a serious safety concern for students.

”Let’s say there is ra-dio equipment on the stage and it catches fire,” Wil-liams said. “What’s going to happen? Worst case sce-nario we’re going to have several GSU students die because the university did not act.”

Senators Kenneth Golden and Taylor Briggs raised questions over how to get people away from the courtyard despite the historic tradition of out-door concerts in the area.

President James Dut-ton asked whether the space in front of the li-brary could be redesigned to allow greater space for students passing through. Williams countered that structural and funding problems would probably prevent a total re-design.

While Williams con-ceded that moving the concert series elsewhere would likely face consider-able amount of student op-position, he said the SGA should hear from a wide

variety of students before making its recommenda-tion.

“It would be a tremen-dous shift for the univer-sity and something that some students are going to oppose, but sometimes there are times where we have to evaluate what’s best for the majority and what’s best for the minor-ity,” Williams said.

To get better student opinions on the subject, Senator Rashaad Owens motioned for a town hall meeting with students to determine how to proceed.

Discussion of campus police response

In his officer report, vice president of public re-lations for the SGA, Jarell Abrams, said he would be writing a letter addressed to the Georgia State Uni-versity Police Department to deal with perceived fail-ures by the department in responding to emergen-cies.

He said that he wit-nessed a woman suffer a seizure in class last Tues-day, but police took ap-proximately 20 minutes to respond after problems in answering the campus alert phone.

Abrams expressed safety concerns for other students that suffer from various diseases or handi-caps. As someone with di-abetes, he said he would be worried that if he went into shock, no one would be available to help him.

Abrams also encour-aged other SGA mem-bers to file complaints with Information Systems

and Technologies and the GSUPD to address re-sponse issues, not counting the latest spike in robber-ies last month.

“I don’t think the cam-pus police [are] adequately doing their job,” Abrams said. “And this has to be ad-dressed.”

VP Paul Marmol to resign

SGA vice president of Budget and Finance Paul Marmol will be resigning his position, effective Jan. 1.

Marmol said he would be accepting an intern-ship with the London of-fice of Deloitte, an auditing and accounting firm, next spring.

President James Dut-ton said the position would be open to everyone that filled out an application but that the Executive board highly encouraged “leadership development” from Senators already in the SGA.

“Anyone who wants to try and fill that vacancy will have to turn in an ap-plication just like a vacant senator application. I’ll have to interview those folks and figure out who’s best and take that to the E-Board,” Dutton said. “Then we’ll bring that to you all.”

SGA now in charge of new student organi-zation, mid-year SAFC money

Following the con-clusion of the SGA Sen-ate meeting, the Executive Board called a separate meeting for only its mem-bers.

In the meeting, they discussed the new applica-tion process for mid-year Student Activity Fee ap-plications for University Wide and Diversity pro-grams, which will now be managed by the SGA until the end of the year.

VP Williams estimat-ed that the SGA would be swarmed with an “exor-bitant amount” of appli-cations from Diversity or-ganizations, since he said, “they were all underfund-ed.”

The E-Board then vot-ed to make a deadline of Dec. 2 for Diversity and University Wide organi-zations to send in applica-tions for funding.

The SGA was also giv-en $5,000 dollars to allo-cate to new student orga-nizations chartered during the FY2011-FY2012 aca-demic year.

Mega One Stop Shop petition nearing comple-tion

The petition to move the Mega One Stop Shop to open the week before the beginning of each semester has almost reached its goal of 1,000 signatures, said vice president of Academic Affairs Marcus Kernizan.

Kernizan said that he hopes to send a final email with the completed peti-tion to the university ad-ministration before next week.

The final SGA meet-ing of the semester will be held on Thursday, Dec. 8 at 7 p.m. in the Sinclair Suite in the Student Center.

SPLC, university officials respond to student journalist arrests

which these journalists were cit-ed consisted entirely of ‘obstruct-ing traffic’ on a street that police themselves closed to traffic,” Lo-Monte said.

In response to the SPLC letter, Georgia State and Kennesaw State University’s student media advi-sors Bryce McNeil and Ed Bonza also issued a statement to the may-or expressing “strong disagree-ment with your department’s ar-rests of student journalists.”

“What is both insulting and disturbing about the matter is that at least one student journal-ist was informed that she did not enjoy the same rights accorded to the members of ’professional’ me-dia,” the letter said. “Regardless of whether one considers student media ‘real media,’ the law consid-ers it such.”

Four days after Kim and the others were released, represen-tatives from the mayor’s office is-

sued a statement much like the one already offered by Carlos Campos, the public affairs manager for the Atlanta Police Department.“The Atlanta Police Department has al-ways tried to work cooperative-ly and respectfully with the news media, and will continue to do so,” said Sonja Jacobs, director of com-munications for the mayor’s office.

“The department was not tar-geting journalists or any other par-ticular group. All violators were arrested. The APD’s focus was to clear the streets in the interest of public safety, both for pedestrians

and motorists alike.”The Georgia Press Associa-

tion, who also received copies of the SPLC and respective student media advisors’ letters to the May-or respects the rights of student journalists and hopes Atlanta law enforcement will treat them the same.

“Georgia Press Association supports the rights of all journal-ists to gather news and report it to the public as one of the corner-stones of a free and democratic so-ciety.”

“While we appreciate the dif-ficult jobs that the police have, we urge them to recognize that jour-nalists -- students or not -- who work within the law to report on events of public interest are also doing their jobs.”

Besides their initial state-ments, the Atlanta Police Depart-ment and Mayor Reed have yet to respond to requests cited in both letters that investigations should be administered to discover more about the nature of the arrests.

Continued from page 1Regardless

of whether one considers student media ‘real media,’ the law con-siders it such.

-Dr. Bryce McNeil and Ed Bonza

ChRIS ShattUCkNews editor

Page 4: Vol. 79 No. 14

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Page 5: Vol. 79 No. 14

The recent time change has really messed up my schedule. I’m not suffering from sea-sonal jet lag or anything like that. I’ve got back-to-back classes until 7 p.m. and by then, it’s un-comfortably dark outside. Maybe I shouldn’t park my car in a lot all the way on J.W. Dobbs Avenue, but as a struggling college student with a whole laundry list of things that must be paid for, I’ve got to scrimp and save on any dol-lars I can. Before it wasn’t a problem – I had time to stop and talk after class and then saun-ter to my car comfortably. Now, as soon as class lets out, I bolt to my car. I am afraid of the dark.

Actually, I’m just a bit paranoid that I will become the next unfortunate soul whose sto

fROM the edItORIal BOaRd reflects the majority opinion of the Editorial Board of The Signal, but not necessarily the opinions of individual editors

THE SIGNALEditorial Board

Miranda Sain, Editor in Chief• Mishall Rehman, Managing Editor • Chris Shattuck, News Editor • Sebastian Wee,

Associate News Editor • Angel White, Campus Life Editor • Saakib Zafrani, Sports Editor • D.J. Dunson, Associate Sports Editor • Brooke Marshall, Entertainment Editor

•Paul Demerritt, Associate Entertainment Editor • Bennett Greer, Production Editor • Aysha Johnson, Assistant Production Editor • Brittany Williams, Online Editor • Sa-

vanna Keo, Copy Editor • Miles Keenlyside, Copy Editor • Alicia Johnson, Copy Editor • Judy Kim, Photography Editor

OPINIONSwww.gsusignal.com/opinions

fROM the edItORIal BOaRd

z ONLINE: READ THE FULL LETTER FROM THE STUDENT PRESS LAW CENTER, ALONG WITH GEORGIA STATE AND KENNESAW STATE’S LETTER TO THE MAYOR’S OFFICE

the Signal has covered the Student Government association quite a bit these past few semesters. When we heard from the SGa that Georgia State would be providing a 24-hour service the week before finals to study we could not wait to share the news.

the Signal will be joining students during the week before finals, Nov. 28 to dec. 1 in the freshmen dining hall to study for 24 hours in finals weeks. the SGa and the Office of the Provost urged the university to open the hall from 12 a.m. to 6 a.m.

Both SGa and the Provost are putting funds together to provide appropriate security and also some free food for the late night studiers.

the Signal appreciates that the SGa and the Provost have taken steps towards having 24-hour services here at Georgia State. We would have loved to hear that the school was going to extend library hours for a week to 24 hours, but the cost concerns for that were too high for the school.

along with the library, the MIle and aderhold learning Center were both considered as possible places to hold extended hours. While we are taking the first steps into having more 24-hour services, we are fairly far behind compared to Georgia Institute of technology.

Georgia tech currently offers 24-hour library services Monday through thursday all semester long. they also offer a dining hall on North avenue, which is open 24-hours Monday through thursday as well. this would be a good goal for Georgia State to set.

Being such a large research university, Georgia State could easily attain this goal in the near future. Cost is going to be the biggest obstacle, but the benefits for students will be so tremendous. and while football is one way to compete with the large schools surrounding us like Georgia tech and University of Georgia.

it would be in the school’s best interest to offer more services directly to the students, especially a service that benefits the student’s studies.

So, save the date, Nov. 28 to dec. 1, the freshmen dining hall will be open from 12 a.m. to 6 a.m. for all student with free food provided.

Amidst the towering skyscrapers and high-rise buildings that surround our campus, sometimes it can be easy to get overwhelmed in the “concrete jungle” that Georgia State calls home.

As a school, we seem to keep buying all sorts of property downtown, which is great, but sometimes it’s hard to tell where our cam-pus ends and the rest of the city continues.

That’s our problem.So, as the university looks to rebrand its

image into the cultural and architectural heart of Atlanta through the use of strategic plans and roadway rights, it’s important that Geor-gia State also keeps attractive, safe green space within its thoughts, in addition to the big-pic-ture logistical problems it faces in how to ex-pand.

Consider our best and most preeminent model just a few miles north on I-75/85 for in-spiration.

Nestled between midtown and down-town Atlanta, Georgia Institute of Technol-ogy has an absolutely superb looking campus that is distinctly marked from the rest of its surroundings yet perfectly integrated into the community.

Indeed, when you cross over the 10th Street Bridge, there is no mistaking that you have entered onto a truly beautiful college campus with its own cultural flavor.

Tech should be our aspiration for what our campus should look like.

While Georgia State certainly has its own unique downtown flavor, which it should be rightly proud of, one thing it desperately needs is a clearly defined image like Tech’s, apparent to both students and visitors alike.

For us to succeed in the long term, Geor-gia State needs to become synonymous for what an “urban institution” should look like. We need to be the “go-to” example for other schools, not the other way around.

Forget the plastic, faux brick crosswalks the administration seems so proud of.

Those look cheap and hideous. Further, give them a few years and they

will, without question, look even worse than right now once they our covered in the filth and grime that a busy city street must inevita-bly weather.

Consider the example of the “decorative crosswalks” at the intersection of Piedmont Avenue and Decatur Street. Within just a few weeks of being laid down, the city of Atlanta repaved a lane right above the crosswalk, mak-ing it look even worse.

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that something similar will happen again in the fu-ture, especially when the university seems to want to go hog wild and put them all over cam-pus.

Now consider just Decatur Street with a closer eye towards making the campus a bet-ter place than usual. With that fresh mindset, I’m certain you will notice something distinct-ly askew.

Between the freshly paved patches of con-crete on the side of the road, patches of dirt and bare soil mar the potential appearance of what could be a more handsome college cam-pus.

Now, I don’t claim to know which trees would be best suited to place there or even if the bare spaces are the fault of the university or the city, but I do know that something needs to be done there if we are to take our constant-ly evolving image seriously.

The university should be commended for incorporating some green-scape into its ex-pansion of the sidewalks between the Urban Life Building and the Recreation Center along Piedmont Avenue, but other elements of our campus can also incorporate additional green space, in addition to just Decatur Street.

While we have some great city parks around campus, they are sullied by other el-ements of urban life that make the parks un-friendly to use, especially after sundown.

The specter of crime and the trepidation of being harassed by the homeless haunt some from actively using the parks to their fullest.

These are serious issues that must be ad-dressed, otherwise we risk scaring off the best and the brightest potential students from ever coming back, assuming they come to visit in the first place.

While these problems likely require so-lutions much larger than planting a few trees or increasing police patrols, they are reason-able problems that must be addressed for the long-term growth of our school as it makes its transition from an urban commuter school to a more traditional college.

Still, they are issues that must be ad-dressed, no matter how hard, in order for the school to continue to succeed and grow out of its proverbial roots.

Indeed, in the words of Kermit the Frog: “It’s not easy being green.”

ChRIS ShattUCkNews editor

Making our mark on Atlanta

SavaNNa keOCopy editor

Crime on campus: day or night

Continued on next page

Page 6: Vol. 79 No. 14

The term “reverse racism” may be unfamil-iar to some, so to ensure this article is under-stood to its full extent, the term will be defined prior to any opinion being stated. “Reverse rac-ism” can be defined as a term that describes the outcome of a group of people that try to protect a minority group so aggressively that it actually leads to hypocrisy.

Although this topic may be considered a controversial one, the issue exists whether peo-ple want to admit it or not. Not only does it exist but I have seen this term illustrated in the hall-ways of Georgia State. As a matter of fact, the purpose of this article is to call attention to this issue and serve as an eye opener to anyone who chooses to read further.

This term never occurred to me until I expe-rienced it myself. I was unaware there was even a descriptor designated to this topic. However, when I entered college I began to notice differ-ent student organizations that were geared to-ward a specific racial or ethnic group. At first, I did not think twice about the idea. As I looked in to various groups to become affiliated with, I was stunned to see student organizations aimed at only one race or one ethnic background.

I do not understand how it is ok for a flyer on a bulletin board in Georgia State’s hallway to read “1st Annual Black Student Film Festi-val.” Posters such as these really strike a nerve in me, and just for clarity, I have no qualms with any race, ethnic background or religion for that matter. I am a well-rounded individual with a diverse circle of friends. My issue lies within these posters, organizations and overall soci-etal behaviors that are acceptable for a minor-ity group but not acceptable for a group that is the majority.

This hypocrisy stems from the fear of possi-bly offending another race, but instead of ensur-ing equality and fairness, the aforementioned fear causes a shift in societal norms.

Referring back to this poster, if this poster was altered slightly in the favor of the race that makes up the majority of the campus, it would most likely be received as racist. I am not aware of any event geared toward only white students, because this would be offensive.

This mentality can also be seen through the student organizations that are offered at Geor-gia State. There are actually more than 300 stu-dent organizations on campus that range widely in variety. Although many of the multi-cultur-al organizations strive to educate others about their culture and are open to all Georgia State students, some are slightly less inviting.

For example, the African Students Associa-tion “was established to foster and enhance the intellectual and socio-cultural development of its members through educational and socio-cul-tural activities,” according to the synopsis given on the university’s website. If the idea is to pro-mote diversity and enhance intellectual and so-cio-cultural development, why is this organiza-tion aimed solely at African American Students? What is even more mind blowing is the organi-zation’s “purpose statement” that also appears on the website. The statement explains that the purpose is “To unite all Africans on the Georgia State University campus together and create a powerful force on the campus that educates the Georgia State family on the different cultures found within Africa.” There are no statements to be found welcoming all students.

Another organization, National Council of Negro Women, demonstrates similar ethnocen-tricity in their synopsis stating, “NCNW Inc; is a non-profit organization which strives to up-lift, lead, develop and advocate for women of African descent through programs, socials and community service.” Shouldn’t this organiza-tion just be called, National Council of Women if it is open to all students regardless? Howev-er, the organization’s description does not state this. Not to mention, if the organization had a name such as, “National Council of Caucasian Women” this would be perceived as racist.

Although the diverse and multi-cultured nature of Georgia State would obviously prompt the need to have a wide range of student orga-nizations, I feel that some have gone too far and definitely demonstrate reverse racism, which destroys the moral fibers of the human race.

BRIttaNY SPORNhaUeRStaff Writer

Racism is absurd but reverse racism is ok?

your voice • your opinionsWhat does Occupy Atlanta mean to you?

“Absolutely nothing. Just a bunch of people wast-ing their time that should be studying or getting a job or actually learning what cause they’re going against, because most of them don’t know.”

Alexandar BorissovMajor: Film

“I feel like it’s a good thing, because I feel like people need to protest, because if people don’t protest nothing will get done. Throughout his-tory, if people wouldn’t have protested things wouldn’t have gotten changed and accomplished, so I think it’s a positive thing.”

Carmen HarrisMajor: Film and Video

“It’s definitely about individuality and about hav-ing the government separate from a lot of our in-dividual decisions. It’s protecting the individual.”

Devan PinckneyMajor: Sociology

“I feel like the people that are protesting out there, they’re not going to make a difference.

They think that being out there is going to change their status and their life, but honestly,

it’s up to them to do something about their own life.”

Jean PierepaivaMajor: Business Economics

In this day of economic uncertainty, edu-cation continues to rise in costs while it loses relevance by the day. This poses the question: if the college student has no voice, what do we have left?

This same sentiment is seen with the cur-rent Occupy movement here in Atlanta. Hon-estly, I’m sure you may have your reservations about the “occupy” movement in our country. I do too. But, I am fed up. If someone is fed up and vocal about it, I have nothing but overdue respect for them.

Our nation is broke. The only solution we are presented with is bureaucratic banter from wax-faced “cable news regulars” that

at their broken-record-best, rely on past and present presidential failings as their soapbox. The current system has offered no solutions. Others don’t have a strong message, but I am almost pissed off enough to sleep in a park to voice my two cents too. The language and rhetoric that is the foundation for our nation is something of Hollywood romanticism these days. Who stands up for their cause? Who los-es everything for the opportunity to bite at the bit that could be freedom and a voice?

These kids, the ones occupying our parks and financial districts… yes, their organization could be flawed. They have a unified voice on many unified messages that may or may not be heard by The Crown,I mean Congress, or Mr. President, (whoever that may be in a year-ish).

I hope your voice, which is questioned, and at times forgotten by the gate keepers of mainstream media, is not forgotten or writ-ten off in the hearts of the American people. You are saying what we are thinking. You may be providing unconventional means for your message to flourish, and it will be lost on many. I am frustrated at the lack of cohesive-ness, unity and leadership (nationally) that has challenged this movement and thus chal-lenged our government. In a more “orthodox” United States of America, you should have a small army of voted officials on your side. I hope your “mixed” messages unify many.

teRah BOYdStaff Writer

These are strange timesContinued from previous page

ry is described in emails dispersed to all Georgia State accounts and plastered on doors around campus. I’m scared of being mugged on a campus that boasts of the most excellent college police department in the en-tire state. Why is this?

There have been a recent string of thefts and robberies lately, including those that can be found in the Crime Blotter and updated on the police website but aren’t as widely publi-cized in the form of Panther Alerts.

Aside from the stolen laptops and phones, some of the most recent Panther Alerts re-ported have become increasingly violent. One guy was pushed to the ground before his wal-let was emptied out and another innocent in-the-wrong-place-at-the-wrong-time bystand-er was choked and kicked before having his items stolen. That is a bit ridiculous.

Even more ridiculous is when you con-sider that there are more than 100 people, in-cluding certified officers and security person-nel, working for the Georgia State University Police Department. If the department has the manpower to exert a more formidable pres-ence on campus, why does heavy crime con-tinue to increase?

I understand that we are going to school in downtown Atlanta and that there can’t always be a cop on every corner patrolling every min-

ute of the day. That’s just not a feasible option. If the campus patrol can establish their pres-ence more heavily on campus, then the occur-rence of thieves and robberies may be abated.

The other day I walked past the Student Center on my way to class. Two young kids ran past me and I thought nothing of it un-til they were across the street and I heard a girl yell, “Stop them! They stole my laptop!” I became, regrettably, just another face in the masses that stood idly by as a crime was com-mitted right in front of me. Hundreds of stu-dents, not one flinched. Instead of pelting the thieves with various slanderous indiscretions, she turned on the crowd and chastised them for their inaction.

Maybe it’s too much to ask for an envi-ronment in which everyone is looking out for others, especially on a campus like Geor-gia State that seems prone to thefts and at-tacks. Or maybe it is a bit naive to think that no other student would want to be, or could even afford, to have their stuff snatched up and have to fork over the cash to replace the stolen item.

Until we can create a climate that deters thieves from committing crimes on our cam-pus, I anticipate another slew of Panther Alerts to hit my inbox. Especially since it gets dark so damn early now.

StUdeNt vOx

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2011 06 OPINIONS | THE SIGNAL

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Page 9: Vol. 79 No. 14

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SPORTS z ONLINE: FINAL FOOTBALL GAME OF THE SEASON PREVIEW (PANTHERS VS. CAMELS)

Anytime there’s a changing of the guard at the head coaching po-sition, growing pains are expected. However, Georgia State center and block specialist, James Vincent, said he feels that the 2011-2012 season will have a lot of the growth without so much of the pains.

With the hiring of Ron Hunter, Vincent is sensing a new morale among his teammates, and the ex-pectations of creating a winning cul-ture are beginning to spread through the program.

“I see a whole lot of change,” Vincent said. “My team, we’ve al-ways been hyped up, but I’ve never seen them this hyped before. It’s a whole new experience with them now. They’re ready to go to practice, ready for the games, [and] they’re not nervous. They’re just straight and cool, and they just enjoy them-selves now. They’re actually having fun.”

This new team-wide attitude isn’t just for show. Georgia State and Vincent are expecting it to spread to their performance on the court this year. A repeat of the Panthers 12-19 campaign of last year is unaccept-able.

“We have an expectation of go-ing really high in the tournament and actually [coming] out with the trophy,” Vincent said. “The whole team feels the same way. We feel like we can go further than we did last year and actually break our old tra-dition and become a winning team.”

The change won’t be limited to a shift in mental philosophy. Coach Hunter brings a whole new style of offense to the table.

Hunter’s offensive style is a run-and-gun similar to the Amare Stou-demire/Steve Nash era Phoenix

Suns, fitting considering Stoudemire was Vincent’s childhood hero who he modeled his game after.

This means a focus on layups and threes, and it means that Vin-cent and the rest of the team have been doing lots and lots of running in order to gain the stamina to per-form this offense properly.

“It’s a whole lot different be-cause it’s faster,” Vincent said. “Last year under coach [Rod] Barnes, we were more of a take it easy, slow down and see what you got type team, but that’s a whole different thing.”

While changing the gameplay style ,Vincent has focused on his own personal evolution to keep up with it.

“My role, I have to be a dominant force in the post because most of our offense runs inside out,” Vincent said. “So I have to do more of my post game. I’ve gotten faster thanks to coach Hunter’s running, a whole lot of running really. I’m a whole lot quicker on my feet, and I’m jumping higher. I’m a lot stronger than I used to be so my role down there has to be a force to be reckoned with down in the post. So I have to do a lot more than usual.”

Vincent averaged 3 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game last season in limited minutes but has shown the potential to be a key and maybe the most dominant, post player on the Georgia State roster.

Vincent’s conditioning and will-ingness to embrace his role in the new offensive philosophy Hunter has brought to the team, has all the makings of a breakout 2011-2012 season for the big man.

“There’s no school on my sched-ule that I’m not hyped to play against. They’re all very good teams, and I’m ready for a challenge.”

The evolution of a center and a program

gAry BrittAin | DoMinion PhotoVincent averaged 3 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game last season but will be a much more integral part of Hunter’s offense this season. Vincent’s favorite player is Amare Stoudemire of the New York Knicks.

#22 James VincentPosition:Height:Weight:Year:Hometown:High School:

Center6’10”267JuniorColumbus, Ga.Northside HS

dYlaN RICeStaff Writer

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Page 10: Vol. 79 No. 14

Sports Calendar

fRIdaY, NOv. 18 – SUNdaY, NOv. 20

volleyball Caa tournament Northeastern // All Day

fRIdaY, NOv. 18

Men’s Basketball vs. McNeese StateGSU Sports Arena // 7:00 p.m.

SatURdaY, NOv. 19

football vs. Campbell Georgia Dome // 2:00 p.m.

MONdaY, NOv. 21

Women’s Basketball at florida StateTallahassee, Fla. // 7:00 p.m.

tUeSdaY, NOv. 22

Men’s Basketball at Samford Birmingham, Ala. // 8:00 p.m.

fRIdaY, NOv. 25 - SatURdaY, NOv. 26

Women’s Basketball- GSU thanksgiving Classic GSU Sports Arena // 2:00 PM

thURSdaY, deC. 1

Men’s Basketball vs.florida International Sports Arena 7:00 PM

Panthers’ fourth quarter woes continue

Volleyball heads into CAA tournament

dYlaN RICeStaff Writer

ZakkIYYa aNdeRSONStaff Writer

Georgia State’s disastrous sea-son continued on Saturday as a 30-23 loss to West Alabama dropped its record to an embarrassing 2-8.

Georgia State managed to out-gain UWA 447 to 388, but failure to protect the football and execute, re-sulted in key turnovers and unsuc-cessful red zone visits.

“We were down inside the 10, four times in the second half and came away with nothing, and if you do that, you’re going to get beat,” head coach Bill Curry told Athlet-ics. “We fought valiantly, and we did a lot of good things on both sides of the ball, but ball security is the most important factor in football.”

UWA scored with little over two minutes left in the fourth quar-ter to take a 30-23 lead over Georgia State, but Panthers quarterback Kel-ton Hill answered with a drive that brought Georgia State into the red zone.

Hill hit Nathaniel Minor for a would-be 8-yard completion to UWA’s 17, but Minor lost the han-

dle, insuring another heart breaking loss.

With not much more to play for than pride, Hill had a record setting day. With starting running back Donald Russell in uniform but injured and Paris Lee and Travis Evans sidelined in the third quar-ter with injuries of their own, Hill stepped up and set the school rush-ing record with 152 yards, as well as two touchdowns.

Despite the stellar stat line, Hill wasn’t exempt from the carelessness with the football that plagued the entire team. He threw for 228 yards and a touchdown but also had two interceptions.

On a run where a score seemed all but inevitable, with Georgia State down 23-16, Hill killed all momen-tum when he fumbled the ball on the 2-yard line.

Earlier in the game Georgia State was down 10-0, and a blow-out seemed to be looming. But Hill threw a 33-yard touchdown pass to Albert Wilson to get on the board.

Not too long after, Hill once again managed to keep his team in the game with an electric 53-yard

touchdown run to bring Georgia State in striking distance with a 17-14 deficit.

With a combination of thrill-ing plays and costly mental errors, Hill was eerily reminiscent of a cer-tain pro quarterback that use to take snaps under center in the Atlanta area.

Defensively, Georgia State was fairly successful of containing fresh-man quarterback Kyle Caldwell’s arm, limiting him to 166 yards and a touchdown, with two key intercep-tions.

However, they continued to al-low big yards on the ground. UWA running back Matthew Willis piled up 171 yards and two touchdowns, and the team total was 222 yards.

Next Saturday will be the last game of Georgia State’s sophomore slump, when they take on Campbell at home.

Campbell will enter the Geor-gia Dome with a 6-4 record, so an-other loss could be on the horizon for Georgia State, which would be a fitting way to end a season that has been beyond disappointing for fans and athletes alike.

The Georgia State volleyball team will advance to the Colonial Athletic Association tournament tied for the fourth seed as they finish their season 14-7 and 6-8 in the CAA.

The Panthers lost to top-seed-ed Northeastern Friday night in five sets and defeated Hoftsra on Sunday 3-1 in the Senior Day game.

Northeastern, who is tied for the top seed in the conference, took out the Panthers 25-23, 21-25, 16-25, 25-15 and 15-11.

The Huskies claimed the first set after being up 19-8 early, de-spite allowing the Panthers to come within two.

The Panthers then went on to claim the next two sets, going up 2-1 in the match. Vineece Ver-dun and Andrea Noe both record-ed several crucial kills in the set, which overall led to a .522 attack percentage on the day.

The Huskies then went on a

roll and claimed the next two sets and eased into the victory at the Georgia State Sports Arena.

Both teams traded kills throughout the fifth and final set, but ultimately Northeastern was able to beat Georgia State.

The Panthers redeemed them-selves with a win against Hostra in their final home match of the regular season in four sets 26-24, 18-25, 25-22 and 25-16.

Seniors Verdun, Muki Kang-wa, Chelsea Perry, Mirjam Pfyl and Nevena Peeva all contributed in the victory. Verdun and Kang-wa each had 10 kills a piece on the day, their final home game of their collegiate careers.

With the win, the Panthers join James Madison and Virgin-ia Commonwealth University in a tie for fourth place in the con-ference. This is the first postsea-son appearance for Georgia State since 2005.

“It was great to be with my sisters one last time on my home court,” Verdun told Georgia State Athletics. “I’m so grateful to have

had the opportunity to play with [this team] and for a great coach like Tami.”

Verdun was recently named Academic All-District.

The Panthers came out strong and claimed the first two sets but in the third set allowed Hofstra to boast a win of its own.

Georgia State used a tenacious defense and a .500 attack percent-age to finish out the fourth set to claim the match.

“We knew what the results were going to mean today, helping to get to a higher seed in the CAA tournament,” head coach Tami Audia told Georgia State Athlet-ics.

Delaware, who has won three of past four CAA titles, nabbed the number one spot in the con-ference. The Blue Hens erased Northeastern from the tie for first by sweeping the Huskies in the regular season.

Georgia State will play James Madison in the quarterfinals in Newark, Delaware on Barbara Vi-era Court on Nov. 18.

The Panthers beat James Madison earlier this season 3-1.

grAhAM roBson | the signAlSenior Vineece Verdun recorded 10 kill shots in the final home game of her collegiate career. Verdun was also awarded Academic All-District honors.

sAAkiB ZAfrAni | the signAl

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 201110 SPORTS | THE SIGNAL

Page 11: Vol. 79 No. 14

During an up and down sea-son, I expected better inside the Georgia Dome. Instead we’ve wit-nessed a constant barrage of let-downs from the Georgia State Pan-thers football team—and from the students.

Instead. Two weeks ago, as I sat on a packed shuttle from Turner Field, one energetic driv-er asked if anyone was going to the next home game. One guy re-plied that he was a Florida fan, an-other rolled his eyes and said he would be there in spirit. I take it that he misunderstood the mean-ing of school spirit. Not one per-son spoke up during the awkward silence. It sounded like the stu-dent section during a typical home game.

Last year, we patted ourselves on the back for drawing 30,000 to our inaugural game, however, on Sept. 3, the University of Texas at San Antonio attracted 57,000 fans to its inaugural game. It was 8,000 more than South Florida’s inaugu-ral attendance record of 49,000 in 1998.

On the night of the Panthers’ inaugural football game, 11,000 students showed up. However, there were moments during the last home game against St. Francis when it seemed cheerleaders and band members outnumbered stu-

dents.In the fourth quarter, teams of-

ten rely on the energy of the home crowd. Its no coincidence that the Panthers have been outscored 45-13 in the fourth quarter at home and the only two wins have come during the most highly attended games. Despite a spike in student attendance at homecoming, it was unbelievable to watch students walking up out of the Dome dur-ing South Alabama’s game-tying, fourth quarter drive.

For a decade, Georgia State students clamored for a football team. However, instead of embrac-ing what students before us could only dream of, you’ve abandoned the team on Saturday’s. The ath-letic department even moved kick-off times from noon to later in the afternoon. In the midst of a dis-appointing 2-7 campaign, at least Georgia Tech, Georgia South-ern and UGA fans would have the courtesy to show up and boo.

It’s not just the fans, it’s the in-tensity that’s missing as well. The few students that do show up for games look like they’re waiting in line at the DMV. There is hardly any cheering for the defense or in between plays on offense.

Only two segments of the sta-dium make any audible noises during home games. There are the alumni who have set aside a few hours to watch their alma mater and the traveling fans of the road teams, who’ve driven hundreds of miles.

It’s not just football. In re-sponse to men’s basketball’s de-pressing attendance, Athletic Di-rector Cheryl Levick hired Ron Hunter, one of the most energetic coaches in college basketball, to bring excitement and hopefully fans to GSU’s Sports Arena. Alas, most Georgia State fans are so apa-thetic most of you still haven’t re-alized they hired a new head bas-ketball coach.

For football’s regular season fi-nale, perhaps Occupy Atlanta pro-testors should get free tickets in-stead of Georgia State students. At least, they’ve shown more com-mitment to sleeping in frozen tents for an ambiguous cause than Geor-gia State students do to cheering inside the Dome. Plus, the team will surely appreciate the drums and chants from the silent student section. Georgia State football will be around for the long haul, but it remains to be seen when the stu-dents will join them.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2011 11SPORTS | THE SIGNAL

JAson getZ | AtlAntA J ournAl ConstitutionThe student section is virtually empty during the panthers’ last home game against St. Francis

Occupy: Georgia Dome

Men’s Soccer to face Duke in NCAA first round

Men’s Soccer will take on the Duke Blue Devils in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Nov. 17.

After a stellar CAA campaign, the NCAA announced on Monday that the Panthers had advanced.

The men’s team had their best season since joining the CAA in 2005, as they made it to the conference tournament and advanced to the semifinals last weekend.

The team, led by head coach Brett Surrency, posted a 12-6-1 season and qualified for the sixth seed in the CAA tournament hosted by James Madison.

In the first match of the tour-nament, Georgia State faced a stout defense in the William & Mary Tribe, a team they had beat 1-0 in the regular season.

The first half proved to be a defensive battle, but the Tribe went ahead early in the second

half, as Nicolas Abrigo scored on a penalty kick in the 50th minute.

With a defense almost as good as Georgia State’s, it looked as if the Tribe might be able to nurse the slim lead to victory, but that all changed 15 minutes later as All-Tournament sophomore Stephen McGill blasted a shot from 35 yards out into the upper left corner of the net.

With the equalizer in the bag, Georgia State found themselves in prime position to take the lead on a corner kick. Bo Stroup sent a lofted ball that Evan Scott met with his head to send past Wil-liam & Mary’s goal keeper, and that proved to be the difference.

The win was Georgia State’s first in a CAA tournament and sent them to the semifinals to play a rematch against Old Do-minion.

The Panthers lost to the Monarchs in the regular season, and would lose again in the tour-nament, but not with a fight.

Again, the Panthers went down early, but fought back

from two goals down to bring the score level after senior Ayokunle Lumpkin found the back of the net in the 62nd minute.

The equalizer was short lived, as the Monarchs scored two more unanswered goals. De-fender Peter Vania gave the Pan-thers hope as he headed in a cor-ner in the 87th minute, but Old Dominion put out any lingering embers by scoring again in the fi-nal minute.

Although Georgia State went down to No. 18 Old Dominion, they proved to the NCAA that they deserved a spot in the tour-nament, and were rewarded with matchup against Duke.

Duke is 10-7-3 on the season and was mentioned as a possible sleeper in the NCAA selection show. The overwhelming favor-ite to win the title is the Univer-sity of North Carolina, but don’t count out a CAA dark horse in James Madison or Old Domin-ion, and certainly don’t count out the Panthers to make some waves of their own.

georgiA stAte sPorts coMMunicAtionsMen’s Soccer’s stellar CAA campaign was enough to convince the NCAA to give them a place in the tournament.

SaakIB ZafRaNISports editor

It’s not just the fans, it’s the intensity that’s missing as well. the few students that do show up for games look like they’re waiting in line at the dMv.

dJ dUNSON associate Sports editor

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Page 13: Vol. 79 No. 14

SUPE

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IOEntertainment z ONLINE: STAFF WRITER

ATTENDS MOOGFEST, DISCOVERS NEW TRENDwww.gsusignal.com/entertainment

MIleS keeNlYSIdeCopy editor

On Nov. 11, Skyrim, the long await-ed fifth installment of the Elder Scrolls series hit stores. The Elder Scrolls is a video game series that has been evolv-ing over time, with a dedicated group of fans that have been following the mythos. Set in the enchanted land of Tamriel, don’t let the beautiful land-scapes and storybook costumes deceive you. A bloody world of bandits, mon-sters, murderers and thieves awaits you. The open world design allows you to tromp across mist covered moun-tains and gleaming fields of grass as you pursue your fantastic destiny.

From the makers of the Fall-out, this new installment of The Elder Scrolls series utilizes a whole new sys-tem of leveling and game play that ren-ders the player almost speechless. The sophisticated new game engine allows for breath taking vistas as well as ter-rifying drooling monsters that lunge at you from the darkness. The dia-logue draws in the character and helps to stitch together the rich story line as your character works his (or her) way through the complicated histories and

politics in the game. The player is thrust into a

world recently plagued by dragons. The first four installments of the series only hinted at the existence of dragons in the game, and only now does the play-er experience their terrifying might. You are the “Dragon Born” a character who has been blessed, or some would say cursed, by the gift of the voice of the dragons. As the plot unfolds the char-acter begins to learn that they and their mystical dragon voice may be the only hope to save the world from these drag-ons.

As I entered the world of Skyrim, I adopted the persona of an old beserker orc, and donned my red war paint and knotted my grey beard. You start out as a prisoner of the empire, captured for being a suspected rebel. As you are carted towards your execu-tion you learn that you were captured along with several high-ranking reb-els. Oh cruel fate, how can I explain my way out of this? As you are called to ap-proach the beheading block, you get your first taste of the might of a dragon.

To prevent any spoilers to those who might (and I would recom-mend do) buy this game, I’ll skip for-

ward a little bit. Bethesda, the game’s developers, did a good job taking things that they did well in other games and moving them into Skyrim rather seam-lessly. There are several things that the savvy gamer will notice immediately, such as a lock picking system similar to the Fallout series. You might also notice a similar system of choosing perks that benefit particular skills your character has. There are also new systems for cre-ating armor and swords that are similar to the ways that you would create po-

tions in previous installments. Bethesda has done an ex-

cellent job in creating an Elder Scrolls game that both maintains the look and feel of the previous installments, while implementing changes that they learned from trial and error in their games from other titles series. The player truly feels that they are travers-ing a land where they are allowed to do almost anything they choose. The open-ended game play style allows the player to choose the direction of their

play, and to choose what kind of per-son they want to be in the game. Want to be a sneaky elf man who specializes in pick pocketing? Or perhaps a barbar-ian intent on smashing everything he sees? Or maybe an evil wizard bent on poisoning everyone and re-animating their corpses? The world of Skyrim is your oyster!

So far, my experience with The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim has been nothing but positive. I could tell you ex-actly how many hours I’ve spent over the past weekend (since the game keeps track) but I won’t. I see myself spending many hours on my couch playing this game, and I am willing to admit that I will probably have minimal social inter-action for at least a month because of it. The wide open world game play, the riveting story lines, the believable dia-logue and voice acting all come togeth-er to transport the player into the skin of someone living in another world.

With over 1000 hours of ad-vertised game-play time and random-ly generated quests, If your looking to immerse yourself in a fantasy world where you can control the elements and wield deadly edged weapons, Sky-rim is the game for you.

Elder Scroll SkyrimGame review

Staff Reports

In celebration of the new video game Super Mario 3D Land, Nintendo organized a series of flash mobs where 100 Mario volunteers would run around a city and eventually congregate at a mall or another popular place to put on a little show. They have held flash mobs in San Diego, New York City and recently, Atlanta.

If one was hanging around downtown Atlanta on Friday, Nov. 11, they may have spotted a few groups of six to ten Marios at a time, running about screaming “Hayyyy,” or, “It’s Mario!” The Marios were dressed in Tanooki ears and tails, a popular choice of outfit amongst fans.

At approximately noon at Underground Atlanta, 100 Mario volunteers took up the entire block that is considered to be the entrance to the indoor mall and started to trot, a performance that requires one to take one step right, left, then right again, wiggle and lastly, jump. The Marios had several passers-by join in on their dance, then later dispersed after the traditional Super Mario theme song ended.

The Marios consisted of volunteers who were locals in the area, a few were even Georgia State students who found the opportunity to partake in the flash mob through the Golin Harris marketing firm, who organized the event using social media like Facebook.

Super Mario 3D Land is the first game that was created for the new Nin-tendo 3DS. The video game was made available for purchase on Sunday, Nov. 13.

Super Mario invades Underground Atlanta

courtesy of PcgAMer.coM

Page 14: Vol. 79 No. 14

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 201114 ENTERTAINmENT | THE SIGNAL

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Page 15: Vol. 79 No. 14

01 A Turn in the Dream-SongsJe� rey Lewis (Rough Trade)

02 Life is Dance!Various Artists (B-Music)

03 VektroidNeo Cali (Self-Released)

04 Beats AntiqueBeats Antique (Antique)

05 Rock Creek ParkOddisee (Mellow Music Group)

06 Cookin’ GumboCaptain Planet (Bastard Jazz)

07 ConatusZola Jesus (Sacred Bones)

08 Candygram for Mowo!Mocean Worker (Mowo! Inc.)

09 Lone SharksThe Doppelgangaz (Self-Released)

10 On the WaterFuture Islands (Thrill Jockey)

11 TwirligigJonti (Stones Throw)

12 No One CaresDJ JS-1 (Ground Original)

13 Gauntlet HairGauntlet Hair (Dead Oceas)

14 Creatures of an HourStill Corners (Sub Pop)

15 Canopy EPPainted Palms (Secretly Canadian)

16 Daily BreadHassaan Mackey & Apollo Brown (Mello Music Group)

17 The Rip TideBeirut (Pompeii)

18 Era ExtranaNeon Indian (Mom & Pop)

19 Twin SisterIn Heaven (Domino)

20 The Year in HibernationYouth Lagoon (Fat Possum)

21 Oh FortuneDan Mangan (Arts & Crafts)

22 New Masses for Squaw PeakHoliday Shores (twosyllable)

23 Staring at the XForest Fire (Fatcat Records)

24 Hurry Up, We’re DreamingM83 (Mute)

25 NightlifePhantogram (Barsuk)

26 Hazed DreamPsychic Ills (Sacred Bones)

27 DaysReal Estate (Domino)

28 Tape ClubSomeone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin (Polyvinyl)

29 Past & PresentTycho (Ghostly International)

30 YT // STYamantaka // Sonic Titan (Psychic Handshake)

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2011 15ENTERTAINmENT | THE SIGNAL

keNdall haRRISStaff Writer

Florence Welch is painfully self-aware. She is not afraid to be completely ex-posed in her music, and you can hear it in every track on her latest album Ceremoni-als. She boldly and unabash-edly explores her thoughts, no matter how simple or how de-ranged they may be.

In “Shake It Out,” Welch recognizes that everyone has regrets and fl aws. She pin-points her own fl aws (“And I’ve been a fool and I’ve been blind / I can never leave the past behind”) but takes the lis-tener on an emotional roller coaster as she tries to “shake it off ” and let the past go.

There is not a dull track on Ceremonials — in fact, there isn’t even a dull second. It seems impossible, but Welch has put her heart and soul into every single beat of every single song on this album.

She says things in her music that most people would be afraid even to admit to themselves, much less to the world. In “No Light, No Light,” she addresses that it’s simpler for her to reveal her secrets to her audience:

“‘Cause it’s so easy / to sing it to the crowd / but it’s so hard, my love / to say it to you, all alone.”

Her unrestrained vocals add to the intensity of the al-bum, but Welch still knows that you don’t have to increase the volume to increase the ef-fect. Her voice has such range that it can express the help-lessness of holding on and the power of letting go in one track. “Never Let Me Go” is a great example.

In “Breaking Down,” Flor-ence & The Machine sounds like the Arcade Fire if they had an incredibly strong female vocalist. Every track con-tains a sophisticated artistry that hasn’t been seen in mod-ern music for years.

Florence + The Machine | Ceremonials

JOCelYN CRaWleYStaff Writer

Fans who liked My Brightest Diamond’s previous works may love the band’s newest album. All Things Will Unwind, their latest release, contains experimental sounds and provocative lyrics that startle the senses and captivate the mind.

Lyrically, All Things Will Unwind reminds one of an intense poetry reading. Without being trite or melodra-matic, the songs detail experiences and emotions in a cre-ative mode marked by both simple and complex musings. Musically, the album includes a combination of classic and contemporary sounds that give it a foreign yet famil-iar edge. From rock to opera, the songs contain and con-vey a pleasant smorgasbord of sound.

Although every track from All Things Will Unwind is marked by multifaceted lyrics and sounds, “We Added It Up” seems particularly indicative of the album’s diversi-ty. Primarily about a relationship made complex because its members are polar opposites, the singer refl ects on how this incongruity results in nothingness: “We added it up to zero. Zero.” Reconciling these opposites and ne-gating the divisions they cause, the artist brings all things together with a melodic chorus that affi rms, “Love binds

the world.”Whereas “We Added It Up” concludes with affi rming

words and soothing sounds, “Be Brave” is marked by an almost dark and haunting quality that reveals the group’s ability to portray the depth and scope of human experi-ences. Against background music that includes a sympho-ny and beating drums, the singer details various aspects of the creative process by referencing a mask and fi nger bells as tools she uses before telling herself to “get to work.” Al-though open-ended, the song seems to detail the pain and transformation that transpire when one makes art.

In addition to tracks marked by profound statements about love and creation, the album includes insinua-tions about political and cultural corruption. “There’s a Rat” covers the anxiety and anger an individual experi-ences upon realizing a rodent is eating her cheese in the kitchen. After going on to note that a snake in the cellar is drinking her wine, the singer metaphorically ties this thievery to the actions and attitudes of bankers, lawyers, governors and mayors.

With 11 rich and resonating tracks that discuss ev-erything from the complexity of love to the creation of the world, All Things Will Unwind has an esoteric spell-binding quality that does not disappoint. As always, My Brightest Diamond is a gem.

ZaCk kRaIMeRStaff Writer

Pop records are a dime a dozen — they’re kind of made to be that way, after all — but Rooney vocalist Robert Schwartzman’s new solo release, Double Capri-corn, is a little diff erent in at least one regard. Instead of being created to fuel the eternal bonfi re that is the pop music circuit, he’s decided to donate all profi ts from the sale of the album to the Tibetan Healing Fund.

Aside from its noble intentions, Capricorn is a real-ly straightforward pop record. It sounds a lot like, well, everything else that’s popular right now. That’s not nec-essarily a bad thing — it’s popular for a reason, isn’t it? Layer upon layer of synth pads and electronic drums comprise much of the backdrop, over which Schwartz-man croons and, surprisingly, raps a fair amount.

After hearing Capricorn, it’s abundantly clear that Schwartzman has had an ‘80s synth-pop itch he’s been dying to scratch (and couldn’t with Rooney). Tracks like

“Someone 2 Love” and “You Don’t Have To Lie” blend synthesizers and acoustic instruments to form dance-worthy numbers reminiscent of disco, soul and electro-pop in varying degrees.

Although his vocal chops are nothing to scoff at, his voice would be better suited to Rooney and acts of a similar style. Even so, his rap skills are better than your average teen-pop vocalist, and it changes things up on the record just enough to keep it interesting.

Fans of Rooney might be a little confused by Cap-ricorn — there’s nothing like the group’s hit “Blue-side” to be found on the record. It’s clear, though, that Schwartzman knows pop music (and how to craft it) all too well. Given his pop sensibility, it makes sense that he’d choose this record as the vessel for his dona-tion to the Tibetan Healing Fund — he knows that the record would draw more money for the charity than something less accessible. Regardless of their loyalty to Rooney, fans of synth-heavy pop will fi nd a lot to like about Double Capricorn.

My Brightest Diamond | All Things Will Unwind

Robert Schwartzman | Double Capricorn

Welch has put her heart and soul into every single beat of every single song on this album.

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STILL NEUTRAL.

Page 17: Vol. 79 No. 14

CAmPUS LIFEwww.gsusignal.com/campuslife

z ONLINE: Miss Black and Gold 2011 shows off Galactic Beauties--Find out who won!

Exclusive Eats: Food guide to Atlanta restaurant sceneJamila dewittStaff Writer

Exclusive Eats is a “Fabu-lous Guide to Atlanta’s Restau-rant Scene.” After frequent inquiry from friends about where to eat in Atlanta, CEO Zerita Buchanan cre-ated the food blog Exclusive Eats. It profiles an online guide to the most trendy and inexpensive res-taurants around Atlanta.

Chavon Wright, a Georgia State senior and english literature major, is a huge foodie and became associated with the Exclusive Eats company while dining at one of the restaurants that Buchanan was vis-iting. Wright was sitting down din-ing at Another Broken Egg in the Peachtree Hills area, and Buchan-an, along with her brother, were conducting a tasting to feature on the website. They began chatting about different things as Wright revealed that food writing was a very big passion of hers. She of-fered to work for Buchanan with Exclusive Eats if she ever needed help, and the rest is history. She is now the assistant editor for the Exclusive Eats company.

Exclusive Eats is generally a

fast and user-friendly restaurant search tool for students to find great places to dine and hang out without breaking the bank. The blog uncovers moderately priced restaurants, features on the res-

taurant, details what the restau-rant is best for, such as for a date, brunch and late night, and tells an estimate of how much money you will spend.

According to Wright, there are

several different places to enjoy a great meal in the city.

“Atlanta is very blessed in the fact that there are so many won-derful chefs and restaurant own-ers with a genuine passion for

delicious cuisine and a great eve-ning on the town,” Wright said. Some of Wright’s personal favor-ites include The Barrelhouse Tav-ern-which features a great bar, CRÜ Urban Lounge-which fea-tures small plates that are great for sharing, SouperJenny-which has amazing soups and CafeJonah-which serves a number of healthy cuisines.

Exclusive Eats’ blog is be-ing upgraded in order to give an even more user-friendly appeal and also to give the best produc-tivity to the featured restaurants. Coming soon will be tools that al-low searching by zip code or neigh-borhood, to give an even quicker navigation time. A cell phone app is also in the works, granting peo-ple Exclusive Eats on the go.

New restaurants are added about three to four times a week, so be sure to stop by to see what new places that may be worth visiting. Also, a new and improved website will be unveiled very soon, which will give you the best op-tions to dine in the city. Check out the Exclusive Eats blog at www.ex-clusiveeats.com.

JAMilA Dewitt | the signAlExcluzive Eats Assistant Editor, Chavon Wright, navigates the blog’s numerous food recommendations.

Intern Insider: Courtney BoydStaff Writer

PR powerhouse outshines competition

Where in the world is Soledad O’Brien?

Nicole Shields would know. As a public relations intern with CNN, it’s her job to create press releases and media packages, publish web con-tent, write biographies and schedule photo shoots for documentary and show hosts Don Lemon, Kaj Lars-en, Amber Lyon, Dr. Sanjay Gupta and, of course, Soledad O’Brien. A hard day’s work leaves little room for boredom or bathroom breaks.

“Basically, I build as much pub-licity for the documentaries and show stars as I can. Every day is different. The environment is fast-paced and upbeat, so I’m always busy,” Shields said.

Luckily, the Georgia State senior has enough energy to fuel three suns. In addition to interning with one of the world’s largest media conglom-erates, she is president of the campus chapter of Alliance for Women in Media (AWM) and owner of a bou-tique agency, Shields Network Pub-lic Relations Consultant. Her résumé is nearly as long as her transcripts, and includes production experience with GSTV, Peachtree TV and CBS Radio. What is the secret to her suc-cess? An insatiably ambitious spirit.

“I’m often told that I’m very am-bitious, and I’d agree. If I want a job, I’m going to make sure that nothing stops me from getting it. I take initia-

tive. If there’s no work to do, I create something to do,.” Shields said.

And she already has. The un-stoppable senior outshined hun-dreds of other applicants to earn the public relations internship with Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. back in February, then reapplied – and was hired – for two successive semesters. That’s a pretty impressive feat for someone who switched ca-reer paths despite obvious talents in a chosen track.

Prior to her current position, Shields dabbled in the field of tele-communications. In January. 2009, she became the television producer for Georgia State Television, manag-ing a small staff of peers to create a show titled “What’s Up ATL?” Later that year, she was named production assistant to producer Nina Brown for the “Frank & Wanda Morning Show.”

In 2010, Shields was hired as a production promotions intern for Peachtree TV. There she assisted in live tapings of various shows and created four commercials, one of which was shown live on the station.

While each was a forward-mov-ing opportunity, she was unsatisfied with her career outlook.

“Those internships were great, because they helped me realize what my true passion is. I didn’t re-alize that I was already doing what I loved, because it was only a small part of the responsibilities. Now, in-stead of PR being a part of my em-ployment, it’s my appointment,.” Shields said.

A six-month stint with “The Brother Tee Show” cemented her in-terest in public relations. She applied for a position with CNN through the company’s website and hoped for the best.

“I believe my previous intern-ship, experience and involvement with AWM helped. The applica-tion process is hardest for someone who lacks experience, doesn’t have a competitive résumé or isn’t aware of professional etiquette. I knew I had all three,” Shields continued.

Shields also had the support of her family, close friends and men-tors. She recognizes Ivan Shammas, national account manager at Univi-sion, among others, as an incredible mentor from whom she “learned val-ue of networking, the usefulness of being bilingual and the importance of staying focused.”

Jennifer Dargan, her current boss and director at CNN, has been the an exceptional role model.

“Some people have mentors or managers who don’t sit down and teach. My manager actually sits down and explains why something is or isn’t right. She really sits down and teaches me how to do things correctly. That’s invaluable,” Shields said.

Shields must be the model stu-dent. This semester marks her third internship within the same depart-ment at CNN. As any senior would, she hopes to earn a permanent posi-tion in the near future.

“Being able to pitch stories and

actually seeing my ideas come to fru-ition online or in print is rewarding. I eat, sleep, love PR and put my best work in this business. I would do it for free. But honestly - and put this in all caps - what I really want is a JOB,” Shields said.

To check out Nicole’s latest proj-

ect for CNN tune in to the special “Black in America 4: The New Prom-ised Land” on Saturday, Nov. 19 at 8 p.m. To join or learn more about the Alliance for Women in Media attend the next meeting, “Marketing 101,” this Thurs., Nov. 17, at 8 p.m. in the Sinclair Suite in the Student Center.

lloyD cAlDwAy Jr., APV iMAgesNicole Shields poses at the People You Need to Know Magazine’s Spark Plug Radio event.

Page 18: Vol. 79 No. 14

Campus Calendar

Want to see your event in this space? Contact angel White at [email protected] with your event’s name, time, date, location and a brief description of the event. all events listed in the Campus events calendar must either take place on campus or be produced by a Georgia State-affiliated organization.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2011 18CAmPUS LIFE| THE SIGNAL

GSU Players take on heavy topics in latest musical

Dancing, singing and comedy were taken on by GSU Players as part of the adult themed musical “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” Audience members were engaged and enthralled by the various topics that were introduced ranging from sexual orientation and politics to self-esteem and stress, all wrapped up in a succinct two-hour long package.

Prior to the show’s start, as the gathering audience began to get seated, the Putnam County Middle School Orchestra performed several basic pieces. During these segments, audience members were taken from the stage and asked to participate by playing slide whistle’s, triangles and

maracas along with other engaging instruments with the orchestra.

Despite the orchestra’s use of sour notes scattered throughout the performances, the live music ac-companying the musical itself was played seamlessly well.

The musical began with no hes-itation from the cast to start their first number, singing about the sil-ver anniversary of this spelling bee and introducing each characters persona in the process.

With splashes of purple pants, red shoes and yellow socks, the characters stood out as vibrantly as their style of acting. Each char-acter’s portrayal was animated and had goofy traits. One character only spells out words with his foot, while another can only spell correctly af-ter going into a trance.

All of the performers repre-sented a different example of a one-dimensional character that found more depth and complexity as the story progressed.

Four individuals chosen from the audience were tossed into the pandemonium of the singing, danc-ing and acting on the stage, even be-ing asked to spell words based on their own skill.

One by one the audience mem-bers got eliminated and given a juice box – or thrown a juice box – before being sent on their way. With their lack of a script or rehearsal, includ-ing them was a calculated risk that paid off with the addition of laugh-ter and realism.

After the volunteers left, the remaining characters on stage felt corny at times but not so much as

to distract the audience from enjoy-ing the show. And any comedy over-shadowed the bits in the perfor-mance that were done over the top.

However, with all the comedy based around the characters, the humor was intentionally made for an older audience. They didn’t shy away from making fun of controver-sial issues such as the Occupy Atlan-ta movement and religion, with one character having talked to Jesus on stage.

Logainne Schwartzandgrubeni-erre, played by Kris Laroche, even addressed the most recent Repub-lican National Debate, calling Rick Santorum an unfit candidate under the guidance of her two fathers.

At the conclusion of the play, the plot didn’t go in the direction that the audience may have expected.

The winning character of the spell-ing bee followed their intuition for pride as opposed to love, but this ending was a refreshing twist on what could have otherwise been seen as cliché.

The audience perceived the mu-sical well. Rashad Cain, junior film and video major, said, “I enjoyed the musical. It was cool to see them get-ting involved with the audience.”

“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” showed a usu-ally unexciting event and made it compelling with a group of talented triple-threats that didn’t hold their tongues when performing for the audience.

For more information on perfor-mances by the GSU Players, visit gsu-players.com.

thaddeus MorganCampus life associate

Doing something good for changeIntisar SeraajStaff Writer

Every May 16th, Starr Val-entino promotes everyone to do something good for his or her neighbor and believes bringing people together through love is a great start.

Valentino is a Christian man and says that although the Bible states to love thy neighbor, peo-ple no longer care about each other. Therefore, he founded Do Something Good for Your Neigh-bor Day in order to encourage people to care for one another.

Atlanta City Hall officially recognized Valentino’s efforts and Do Something Good for Your Neighbor Day on Monday, May 16th, 2011 while Mayor Ka-sim Reed awarded him for his “noteworthy efforts to improve and preserve the spirit of neigh-borliness.”

On that same day, Atlantic Station and Centennial Olympic Park hosted the unification day. Valentino promoted the day an-nually with concerts, a theme song broadcasted on local radio stations, television commercials and free food for the homeless.

One of his most memorable memories of this year’s event was emptying all of the money he had collected so far that day into the shirt of a young, preg-nant HIV victim after hearing her touching story.

Valentino’s deed is not sur-prising when learning of how he began promoting the day. He be-gan by walking along Peachtree Street with $200 in his pocket, passing out $1 bills as he trav-eled down the street. On another occasion, he walked around At-lanta distributing $5 gift cards.

“People are distant from each other and are losing some-thing of their humanity,” said Valentino.

“Do Something Good for Your Neighbor Day is a day of people uniting for the good of each other in order to bring the connection back through love.”

Valentino went to say, “It is

all about opening your heart on the day by doing something good for your neighbor and making people feel good.”

He learned all about opening one’s heart to others at an early age. His mother used to take hot meals to immobile senior citi-zens for many years. Just as he learned from an early age, Val-entino believes that we should also begin teaching the youth about having a charitable mind-set early on.

Valentino is a forerunner in exhibiting his philosophy. He is a regular volunteer worker and donator to several charities and uses his second-degree black belt skills to teach one-on-one Karate lessons.

Valentino notes some of the simple ways that you can par-ticipate in the unification effort: “Shaking hands with someone and saying ‘I love you,’ giving fi-nancial means, visiting people in the hospital, helping someone cross the street, opening some-

one’s car door for them, assist-ing a struggling mother or even by buying another person cof-fee,” said Valentino “The small-est things mean a lot to people.”

As the population continues to grow, changing the youth’s mindset would be a significant step toward spreading the goal of Do Something Good for Your Neighbor Day. Valentino hopes to make it a nationally celebrat-ed event. He plans to achieve his goal by receiving national ap-proval state-by-state, beginning with Georgia and New York. During these beginning stages, he plans to make a significant impression by making Do Some-thing Good for Your Neighbor Day the biggest unification day in Georgia.

With such a giving spirit, Valentino’s mission for found-ing Do Something Good for Your Neighbor Day is to only see the love shared between people once again.

intisAr serAAJ | the signAlStar Valentino picks up Georgia State student’s notebook.

NOveMBeR 15, 2011Spending a Semester abroad Student PanelEver thought about spending a semester overseas, but have some lingering questions? Come and listen to our student panelists as they give advice on finding and funding a program, getting transfer credit, culture shock, career tips, and more!Student Center, Golden Key Room // 12:00 p.m.

Job Search Seminar for International StudentsTOPICS WILL INCLUDE: -When and how to start your job search -Identifying employers who may hire international students -Using internships & work experiences -Job search skills & networking strategies -Understanding the immigration process of going from OPT to HI-B to Permanent Residency (green card)245 University Center // 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

NOveMBeR 16, 2011Open Mic NightCome out and enjoy our monthly Open Mic Night in the Student Center. Perform your music, poetry, lyrics or other talents, or just sit back, relax and enjoy performances by your fellow classmates. Prizes will be given for the top three winners!Courtyard Stage, Student Center, First Floor // 7:00 p.m. – 12:00 p.m.

NOveMBeR 17, 2011Molecular Basis of disease distinguished lecturer Seminar Series: dr. Steve ClarkeDr. Steve Clarke, professor of Biochemistry at the UCLA Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, will present “Regulation of Biological Function with a Little Methyl Group: Protein modification at arginine, lysine, and histidine residues.”Petit Science Center, Room 124 // 10:00 a.m.

NOveMBeR 18, 2011Menotti One-act Operas: “the Medium” & “the Old Maid and the thief”The Twilight Zone meets the opera house in The Medium, where the tawdry Madame Flora conducts séances while battling forces both natural and supernatural. Originally conceived as a radio-opera and first broadcast in 1939, The Old Maid and the Thief tells the tale of two lonely women who compete for the affections of a mysterious stranger, ultimately creating a twisted web of lies and deceit.Florence Kopleff Recital Hall // 7:30 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

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Classifi eds Lost or found any books, clothing, umbrellas, sunglasses, (etc.) This semester...?Try [email protected](For non-clothing items, you should also contact GSU police)

Wanted to buyDo you still have your “commercial master” commuter-locker padlock, and no longer need it after this semes-ter?I need a couple, willing to buy yours.Call (404)941-0790

I still need a comfortable used backpack...(Similar to path ones)Color/appearance not as important as good price.Call dean 404-585-7063 and thanx

Laptop or netbook wanted by returning student. (Need min. 2Gig ram)Also want to buy dragon naturally speaking.Please contact (404)941-0790, asap.

Announcement:Grad student desperately seeking affordable/pro bono legal assistance in pursuing couterclaims in unlawful eviction/breach of verbal contract case. If you might be able to help, as an attorney or by passing this plea on to an attorney, thank you. My personal, confi dential contact number is 404-585-7063.

Nov. 8Date My School article said that DMS has “over 16,100 members”; The website has over 55,000 mem-bers.Most of the site’s search func-tions such as age range, school, ethnicity, nationality and faith do not require the user to sign a friend up.

“Campus crime spikes with three consecutive robberies,” the story was erroneously attributed to staff writer Terah Boyd. The story was written by Chris Shattuck.

“Replacing the Courtland Street bridge,” it was erroneously report-ed that the vote for the TSPLOST funds would be on the ballot for the Nov. 8 elections. The vote will actually be on the ballot next year in 2012.

CORRECTIO

NS

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Campus Events

CAMPUS EVENTSwww.gsu.edu/studentevents

Open Mic Night Wednesday, November 16, 7-9 p.m.Courtyard Stage, Student Center, First Floor Perform your music, poetry, lyrics or other talents at Open Mic Night, or just sit back and enjoy performances by your fellow classmates. Prizes will be given for the top three winners! To perform, come out early and sign up before the event or e-mail Campus Events at [email protected].

xcinefest movie timescinefest movie timeshttp://www.gsu.edu/cinefest

Georgia State University uLearn Facebook TwitterGeorgia State University uLearn Facebook Twitter

Cinefest Film Theatre

Captain America: The First Avenger, November 7-20

House of Boys, November 14-20

For showtimes, visit www.gsu.edu/cinefest.

All shows free for GSU students, faculty and staff with ID. Guests $3 before 5 p.m. and $5 at 5 p.m. and after.

Campus Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected] Events at [email protected].

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All shows free for All shows free for GSU students, faculty GSU students, faculty and staff with ID. and staff with ID. Guests $3 before Guests $3 before 5 p.m. and $5 at 5 p.m. and $5 at 5 p.m. and after.5 p.m. and after.

Student Organizations

Just Like a Native AppOrgSync Mobile can be used on any smart-phone and works just like a native application. To access OrgSync Mobile, log in at www.orgsync.com.

Some devices will allow you to bookmark OrgSync to your home screen for quick access.

Just Like a Native App Mobile BetaOrgSync Mobile is in beta phase, and not all features are enabled yet. If you can’t �nd what you’re looking for, the full version of the site is just one click away.

More InformationVisit www.orgsync.com/recent-updates/mobile

Try out Mobile!Use OrgSync on mobile devices without installation

STUDENT ORGANIZATIONShttp://gsu.orgsync.com

Cinefest Film TheatreCinefest Film Theatre

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Leadership Development

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Leadership Development

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENTwww.gsu.edu/leadership

Corporate GovernanceWednesday, November 16, Noon-1 p.m.

Student Center, Lucerne SuiteLeadership and governance are important components

in successful organizations. In this session, we will explore how to strike a balance between the two.

Building a Diverse YouThursday, November 17, 1-2 p.m.

Student Center, Lucerne SuiteExplore ways to incorporate diverse, multicultural, meaningful

experiences into your leadership journey. Using the values categories outlined in the Social Change Model as our guide, we will identify key experiences all leaders should undertake

to enhance their own understanding of diverse issues.

Putting It All Together:From Campus Leader to Career Success

Thursday, November 17, 4-5 p.m.245 University Center

Are you prepared for career success? Do you know how to capitalize on your college experiences?

In this session, we will piece together the journey from campus leader to career success. You will leave

prepared for the next step in your career journey.

Leadership Development

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Spotlight

SPOTLIGHT PROGRAMS BOARDwww.gsu.edu/spotlight

Student Appreciation Finals Break Thursday, December 1, 7-11 p.m.Student Center BallroomStressed out? Need a break before finals? Come join Spotlight for a night of relaxation featuring massages, a movie, interactive attractions, Southern-style buffet, yoga and more. Paid for by student activity fees, this event is open only to GSU students and their one invited guest.

For more information, call Spotlight at 404/413-1610.

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SPOTLIGHT PROGRAMS BOARDSPOTLIGHT PROGRAMS BOARD

Student Appreciation Finals BreakStudent Appreciation Finals BreakThursday, December 1, 7-11 p.m.Thursday, December 1, 7-11 p.m.Student Center BallroomStudent Center BallroomStressed out? Need a break before finals? Come join Spotlight for a night of relaxation featuring massages, a movie, interactive attractions, Southern-style buffet, yoga and more.

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WHATʼSHAPPENINGON CAMPUS! Supported by Student Activity Fees