Poor special teams and an unin-spired defensive performance overshad-owed receiver Danny Williams record breaking day and doomed the Panthers against Murray State Saturday. In their first home game since Sept. 10, the re-sult seemed to stymie Georgia State head coach Bill Curry who spoke in a disap-pointed tone after the game.

“If I had a rational explanation for what you’ve seen the last four weeks I would certainly offer it,” Curry said.

Quarterback Drew Little played well in his second start of the season, while Bo Schlechter returned to his punting duties. Unfortunately, the Geor-gia State special teams continuously gave the Racers a short field.

“Any short drives are detrimental especially with a potent offense like that. You have to make them go a long way and

we didn’t do that,” Curry said. “There are so many things we didn’t do well and field position is among them.”

Special teams coverage and punting was a concern as the Racers repeatedly broke loose for big punt returns, but Cur-ry quickly pinpointed the problem.

“Bo (Schlechter) didn’t have a good day,” he said. “Our coverage does not al-low us to kick the ball down the middle

THE SIGNALVOLUME 79 | ISSUE 9 GSUSIGNAL.COM

News..........................2Opinions....................6Sports.........................8Entertainment.......13Campus Life...........17

THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY SERVING THE UNIVERSITY SINCE 1933

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011

INDEX

Men’s soccer shutting out

the competition

INSIDE THIS EDITION

Wed10/12Hi 75

Fri10/14Hi 74

Thurs10/13Hi 79

z Entertainment FLUX 2011Artists invade the Atlanta art scene

page 13

z Opinions SGA replies to last week’s editorial

page 6

z Campus LifeCommon cancels GSU speech

page 17

The Student Government Association an-nounced last week that it has spent 26.36 percent of its budget. However, no official document detailing their expenditures has been made available to the public.

SGA President James Dutton stated that SGA could not release such documents at this time as a result of stipulations from the

Division of Student Services.Furthermore, the posting of SGA’s minutes

have also lagged behind, as they were not available on the organization’s website until Oct. 7. Dutton indicated that SGA is working towards posting its meeting minutes.

“The bureaucracy of the university has slowed down the process,” he said on Oct. 5. “But we are working to get them up as soon as possible. We are not trying to hide any-thing.”

Dean of Students Dr. Rebecca Stout, on

the other hand, emphasized the centrality of transparency within SGA.

“Ultimately, as elected officials, the SGA is accountable to the student body regarding how they spend their funds,” said Stout.

Students aware of the organization’s lack of transparency are beginning to voice their concerns.

“I am unfortunately not very aware of how funds are being spent on campus,” said Georgia State student Alicia Thompson. “I feel like there is a lot of behind the scenes

information that is not shared with students, so they kind of just leave us in the dark when it comes to all the specifics of fund spending. They advertise what they want us to know and don’t publicize that information when they don’t.”

According to Paul Marmol, SGA’s Vice President for Budget and Finance, the orga-nization’s funding is dictated by the Student Activity Fee Committee. However, Marmol

JOCELYN CRAWLEYSABASTIAN WEEStaff

Despite being sacked three times, Murray State quarter-back Casey Brockman put up five touch-downs against the Panthers.

SAAKIB ZAFRANI The Signal

Feeling

continued on page 8

The Atlanta City Council approved a resolution last Monday granting Georgia State the rights to build twen-ty-five “enhanced stamped pedestrian crosswalks” at eight campus intersec-tions.

Formed from a hardened plastic into a faux brick pattern with the Georgia State logo at the center, some of the decorative crosswalks have al-ready been installed across Courtland Street as well as at the intersection of Piedmont Avenue and Decatur Street in front of the Petit Science Center.

The cost of the project to students has yet to be confirmed. However, one representative with the manufacturer of the product used to construct the crosswalks estimated that each inter-section would probably cost between $1,500 and $2,000, depending on colors used, and the size of the street and the placement of in-road warning light systems.

According to Chris Hughes, the Assistant Director for Design and Construction Services, there is no set timeline for when the project will be completed but work will begin before the start of next semester.

Hughes said the project’s goal is to make traveling around the camp safer and more pleasant for pedestrians.

In addition to the new crosswalks, the school has recently expanded the sidewalks and landscaping along Piedmont Ave.

“New wider sidewalks and trees down Piedmont are going to make it a more pleasant atmosphere for stu-dents than what we had before, slow down the traffic and provide a safer environment,” Hughes said.

Decorative crosswalks to expand throughout campusJOEY NEELYCHRIS SHATTUCKStaff

continued on page 4

Student Government transparency in question

Graphic by Bennett GreerI / The Signal

continued on page 4

OCCUPY ATLANTA

DJ DUNSONAssociate Sports Editor

GEORGIA STATE PANTHERS LOSING

STREAK CONTINUES

BLUE

page 11

US!

Occupy Wall Street comes to our city

Exclusive:Inside look at the

growing movement

See pages 2 & 3 4

Follow us!

NEWSEDITOR

Chris Shattucksignalnewseditor@gmail.com

THE SIGNAL | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011

www.gsusignal.com/news

SABASTIAN WEESenior Editor

Students, parents, grandparents, the employed and un-employed joined the Occupy Atlanta protest last Friday in Woodruff Park to make their voices heard. From the wars in the Middle East to rising education costs, these people shared one thing in common:

They’ve had enough.Protesters stood along the perimeter of the park holding

up signs and passing out flyers. Some chanted “how do you end the deficit? End the war and tax the rich!” Others en-gaged in discussion about the problems facing the country and the possible solutions.

“We’re done being controlled,” said Jeanette, a public policy major at Georgia State “We’re sick of the one per-cent of this country making the decisions for the other 99 percent … By sticking together, we can make this count.”

The protest comes on the heels of a growing movement sparked by Occupy Wall Street in New York beginning last month. That demonstration has since spread across dozens of cities in the U.S.

“I’ve been waiting for something like this,” said music major Maris Gill. “My primary concerns are basic human rights that everybody is entitled to. Withholding that from the public is a f—king travesty.”

Consisting of over 400 people, the group held a general assembly at 6 p.m., with each of them eligible to vote. The assembly established the process of voting through non-verbal communication—waving fingers meant consensus; thumbs-down to oppose; crossed-arms to block a consen-sus; and rolling fingers to tell the speaker to get to the point. They also stressed the importance of remaining non-vio-lent under any circumstance.

The assembly’s purpose of the night was to continue its discussion about the organization of the protest. Howev-er, the arrival of Atlanta media like 11 Alive and WSB-TV, along with a Fox News helicopter hovering above, fueled the energy of the crowd, causing them to make a push to begin occupation that night.

The event was met with another snag when U.S. Rep. John Lewis, a renowned Atlanta figure and key player in the 1960s Civil Rights Movement, stopped by to say a few words in support of the protest. However, the assembly voted to have Lewis wait until they finished their current agenda item. The vote prompted the senator to leave, as he had a prior engagement.

While many felt the decision alienated the black com-munity, protesters remained firm and voted to begin occu-pation that night, arguing that occupation will create inclu-sion for all races.

Lewis told reporters he did not have a problem with the assembly’s choice, referring to a similar process he was all too familiar with in the Civil Rights Movement.

“This is not something strange or out of the ordinary for me,” said Lewis. “The process will grow, it will mature. It will work out.”

At press time, protesters were warned by police they would be arrested Monday if they didn’t leave the park.

RAGING PEACEFULLYPHOTOS BY HILARY COLES / THE SIGNAL

(Right) Former Kennesaw student Indy Sheri, who had to drop out due to the rising tuition costs, wanted the Fed-eral Reserve to be held account-able, even done away with. “We can’t put our trust into anything that requires a profit.” (Below) Occupy Atlanta organizer Joe Diaz was one of the few people who managed to block U.S. Rep John Lewis from speaking at the rally. Diaz was not regretful of his stance, saying “It was out of respect of the process. We wouldn’t have bent the rules for ordinary people.”

Former military officer John T. Row IV brought along his uniform to take a stand against “the government allowing corporate fat cats to run our lives.” Row added that he was tired of seeing government policies dictated lobbyists. “If you look at pay rates for a lower enlisted man, you’re looking at an impoverished people. You go to a military town and you’re looking at an impoverished community.”

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

OPEN

THE SIGNAL | NEWS | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011 03

SABASTIAN WEESenior Editor

As 400 Occupy Atlanta protesters took their stand in Woodruff Park, the group’s team of legal advisers and media personnel scrambled behind them to pick up the pieces.

The general assembly convened on Friday to discuss their strategy to organize. Instead, the crowd chose to begin occupation of the park that night. To complicate matters, they also blocked U.S. Rep. John Lewis from giving a statement in support of the movement. While the congressman praised their efforts to work demo-cratically and did not express disappointment, many felt the decision was detrimental to the cause.

Sara Amis, one of the group’s media personnel, did what she could do to convince the crowd to reverse their determination to occupy, on the grounds that rejecting John Lewis has alienated the black commu-nity and the point of the movement was to maintain inclusion.

“Halfway through the assembly, they began to chew out the moderator for being white, so he had to step down,” said Amis. “From there it just turned ... They chose to occupy but the time was not right yet. We need to be more organized. They jumped the gun.”

Legal adviser Jamie Roberts was called to the park to provide the group with advice on where they stood legally if they should occupy. According to Roberts, the group had received a permit that would last until 11 p.m. After that, the police could make the crowd leave the premises.

“They don’t have an option,” said Roberts. “Once that permit is gone, the police can do whatever they want.”

Roberts gave the crowd that warning, but the deci-sion was made. The occupation was to begin.

When 11 p.m. arrived, the police gathered along Auburn Avenue and watched the crowd, but they never made a move. They later indicated to the group’s tacti-cal team (the group that officially deals with the police) that as long as the protesters behaved and remained peaceful, they would be left alone.

Relieved and irritated, the media and legal crew headed back to their headquarters on the second floor studio of 60 Walton Street, ready to do some damage control.

The nearly empty studio is on loan from the Ameri-can Friends Service Committee, a Quaker organization founded in 1917. When the group first moved in last Tuesday, the room was completely barren, save the shine from the wood floors. The committee would later provide a few tables and chairs. Since then, the group has created a few makeshift tables to make due.

Every now and then, protesters would come through and grab a bite to eat or lend a hand. But it was always the same people there, making sure things ran smoothly.

Frazzled, frustrated and red-eyed bushed, media personnel David sits at his laptop responding to Twitter and Facebook feeds regarding the Lewis situation. In a corner adjacent from him, a table littered with food donations, from donuts and chips to fruits and canned food.

But David was too tired to eat. Having slept only a couple of hours the night before, he has had to jump between his real job as an electrician and his Occupy Atlanta role in dealing with the media circus surround-ing the protest.

“They say we’re just a bunch of stinking hippies,” said David. “But I stink because I work.”

Two days later, as tents were scattered across Wood-ruff Park, Amis is back at headquarters, typing up an apology letter to Lewis. Deeply aggravated by what transpired on Friday, Amis left the scene altogether on Saturday.

“My primary concern is to make sure not to exclude anyone, because that is what symbolically happened.” said Amis. “Lewis may not have said he was disappoint-ed, but we don’t know what he’s really thinking. We’re hoping this letter will make the situation better.

If the backlash continued, Amis believes the move-ment will lose its focus and the message will be lost.

“This is a young process that is still in development,” she continued. “It is visibly progressing. The message is the complexity of conversation.”

OCCUPY ATLANTAInside the headquarters

PHOTOS BY / HILARY COLES

The headquarters for Occupy Atlanta, located at 60 Walton St., is mostly empty except for some evidence like maps of the city, flyers for Occupy Atlanta, and donated food.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2011 | NEWS | THE SIGNAL04

The Mandatory Fee Com-mittee is currently mulling over an Athletic fee increase and a new Green fee, which will increase overall fees up to $36 per academic year.

Since the arrival of the Board of Regents-mandated Special Institutional Fee (SIF), an increase in other fees like Athletics would result in a de-crease in SIF funds in order to prevent the total cost of man-datory fees from rising.

However, the Board of Re-gents has indicated that SIF

funds for this year would not shift in the event of an increase in individual fees. However, the committee has the option to vote for a decrease if neces-sary to at least maintain the current mandatory fee costs.

The Athletics Department proposed a six-dollar increase for the 2012-2013 academic year, with most of the funds going towards the marching band and two new women’s sports.

When the football program was approved three years ago, the Athletics Department was to break up the needed in-crease over four years instead

of making one large hike. Ac-cording to Athletics Director Cheryl Levick, the proposed six-dollar increase is part of that four-year plan.

Additionally, with the cre-ation of the football program, the law required the universi-ty to create at least two wom-en’s sports. To comply, the de-partment recently announced sand Volleyball as the Georgia State’s newest women’s sport. The second sport has yet to be determined.

Questions about cutting funding from other sports or reducing football costs was met with warning from

Levick, who indicated that a funding decrease in any area could result in limited sports participation and scholarship opportunities for students. Reduced funding could also result in layoffs or elimination of certain sports, she added.

The proposed Green fee would cost students $10 a se-mester and would be used to create a proposed Office of Sustainability, which will facilitate projects to reduce Georgia State’s environmental footprint and energy costs.

This is the third year the fee has been proposed. According to Georgia State alumni and

Atlanta attorney Paul Black, “green” universities like Geor-gia Tech and Kennesaw State University with existing sus-tainability programs have ben-efitted greatly by providing students with scholarship and internship opportunities and by receiving grants for envi-ronmentally-driven research projects.

Black also noted that be-cause the projected alloca-tions from the fee are flexible, the committee can readjust the allocations as they see fit.

“We don’t care how you do it,” said Black. “We just want to see this happen.”

The committee will meet next Friday to make their recommendations to Georgia State administration. If ap-proved by the administration, these recommendations will be forwarded to the BOR, where the final decision will be made.

Mandatory Fee Committee meetings will be held on Friday, Oct. 14 from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. The meeting will take place in room 315 on the third floor.

SABASTIAN WEESenior Editor

Mandatory Athletic, Green fees up for debate

also noted that students comprise a majority of the votes within the SAFC and therefore play a primary role in determining where its funds go.

SAFC records provided the amount of funds allocated to each organiza-tion, like SGA, Athletics and Art, but it does not include a percentage break-down detailing exactly how much money is spent by SGA for any given project or service. While students may have access to SAFC minutes through the Dean of Student’s website, the most recent SAFC meeting minutes are from March 25, 2011.

SAFC awarded SGA $141,284 for

the fiscal year, approximately $4.41 per student.

Marmol explained that the money goes to student-related activities, like the Homecoming Tailgate on Oct. 22, which will provide free food, T-Shirts, music and games. Funds are used to co-sponsor events put on by student organizations.

The SGA Budget and Finance Com-mittee, made up of eight elected sena-tors, provides an oral budget overview at every SGA Senate meeting; these reports are not physically available at these meetings.

As of press time, Open Records Re-quests have been submitted to SGA to obtain detailed budget expenditures.

SGA refuses to release recordsContinued from page 1

Mixed reactions from studentsThe project does not come without some controversy.

Some students believe spending money on decorative crosswalks is a waste of the school’s money.

“The money they are spending on these crosswalks could be spent on more necessary projects around the school,” said real estate major Corey Conklin.

Yet, some students say they are happy with the chang-es.

Swapnil Patel, a computer information systems gradu-ate student, wants the campus to expand its downtown footprint and believes decorative crosswalks are one way to draw in visitors.

“I go to the Rec. Center and Student Center a lot,” said Patel. “That intersection and crosswalk is completely crowded with students, so coming up with new decora-

tions really for the students would be great for them and for newcomers.”

Kevin Saunders, a junior pre-nursing major, agrees that the project may be a good way to improve the cam-pus image in theory, but questions whether now is the time to focus on decorative projects.

“It’s a good idea because it gives the campus more of a ‘campus-feel’ to it but with everything that’s going on with the economy right now, we have to be mindful of every dollar,” said Saunders.

He believes that spending money on these decorative crosswalks is pointless because they will have to be fixed later down the road.

“The ones by the Petite Science Center are already coming up,” said Saunders. “They’re going to spend more money to repair it when that money can be put towards something more efficient.”

Decorative crosswalks stir controversyContinued from page 1

The University will be installing 25 new decora-tive sidewalk, despite objec-tions from some students. The material, formed from a hardened plastic into a faux brick pattern fea-tures the Georgia

CHRIS SHATTUCKTHE SIGNAL

Georgia State upgraded its primary wireless network, now known as Cat-Chat 2.0, this week.

Information Systems and Technol-ogy (IS&T) says the upgrade will al-low students, faculty and staff mem-bers to sign in wirelessly at more places around campus. This system will also provide a more reliable con-nection and easier sign in process when selecting “CatChat2x” as the connection.

The upgrade will increase capacity and coverage in 22 additional build-ings by adding approximately 700 new wireless access points.

The upgrade was budgeted through the Student Technology Fee and will more than $600,000 in the first year and more than $900,000 in the second year have been invested into the expansion of this upgrade.

The gradual update of the system is now in its final phase and opened to students on campus Oct. 10, although the project will not be completely fin-

ished until December 2012.The upgrade has been prompted

by the growing number of students who have experienced difficulty with connectivity, speed, accessibility or other facets of CatChat. Further, past campus surveys of students have indi-cated that “wireless networking” was the area in need of the most improve-ment,

According to William Baskin, the manager of Telecommunication/Net-work, IS&T based the upgrades par-tially on that student feedback.

“IS&T used Technology Fees to work where they will impact stu-dents the most with the goal of im-proving student access to information on campus and in class,” Baskin said. “We targeted specifics places on cam-pus with heavy student traffic and where large numbers of connections were needed.”

He says the upgrade has increased the availability and capacity of the wireless network within the past 18 months throughout 11 buildings on campus.

Although the CatChat 2.0 network

was not scheduled to launch until Oct. 10, some students were able to log in to the system in the weeks be-fore.

“CatChat2xis better than other connections, but I have been discon-nected before while using CatChat2.0 in the library,” Dianna Daily said, a student at Georgia State.

Even though some students feel the connection remains somewhat slow, others have not had as many problems with it. “It’s fine. I have a hard time connecting in classrooms but anywhere else is not a problem,” said Dacia Little, a journalism major.

Another issue students seem to be facing with the current wireless sys-tem is the overall consistency of the system. Student Cody Reyes hopes the new system will improve connec-tivity around campus.

“My biggest problem is sometimes it’s difficult to connect to CatChat,” said Reyes. “Sometimes it takes mul-tiple tries, sometimes it’s just once. But usually once I connect it’s fine.”

CatChat gets $1.5 million upgradeBRITTANY SPORNHAUERStaff Writer

TOUGH BUT GOOD

TOUGH

Certified by the National Court Reporters Association (NCRA)Affiliated with the National Verbatim Reporters Association (NVRA) Serving Atlanta Since 1972

Yeah, we’re tough. But our graduates are some of the most successful members of a field that’s growing year after year. Come to us and you’ll work hard the next two years of your life, but you’ll love how we prepare you for the future. Give us a call or visit our website today and FIND OUT WHAT WE’RE ALL ABOUT.

Brown College is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of the Council on Occupational Education (COE)For more information www.bccr.edu/disclosures

(404) 963-9930 | www.bccr.edu/2011

R.I.P. CatChat

Raise up your laptops and tablets and rejoice: The new and improved CatChat wireless network comes online this month! You may have seen the CatChatx2 network show up on your laptops recently, and soon, it will be fully operational. Hopefully, you will be saved the inconvenience of having to trek the halls searching for that sweet spot of internet connectivity that is both near an electrical outlet and near a table to sit at. Everyone knows how difficult it is to get access to one of the computers in the library, so it goes without saying that having a dependable wireless connection is absolutely essential to the typical student on campus. Most of us at one time or another have experienced that moment of panic, “Is that paper due today? Is there a test today? A syllabus! My kingdom for a syllabus!” we cry as we thrust our laptops into the air, grasping at straws of WiFi. With the improvement of CatChat, perhaps we will see this drama play out less in our courtyard and hallways. Perhaps we will no longer see students hammering their refresh buttons on their web browsers, waiting for the puzzlingly elusive network login page. Maybe the dawn of a new age of WiFi is upon us, and we will be a fully connected 21st century university.

All speculations aside, it is certainly a good thing that the university is taking the steps to improve Internet connectivity on campus. In this day and age with so many students relying on access to e-mail accounts, online textbooks and ULearn, a dependable wireless network on campus is undeniably necessary. With an increasing amount of course content being posted online, it is the university’s responsibility to make sure that students are able to access that content in a timely and convenient fashion. Many students rely on this connection not just for school content but also as their primary Internet connection through which they conduct most of their online activity.

The GSU website’s student help center asserts that “wireless CatChat connection is intended as a supplemental means of access to the campus network, not as a replacement for a wired network connection” and that “sporadic loss of connectivity will occur”. Having admitted the limitations of the wireless network, it is good to see GSU use the funds from our student technology fees in a way that benefits all of the students equally. Improved access can only benefit students, and result in a student body that is not only better connected, but also better prepared and more informed.

OPINIONSTHE SIGNAL | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011

www.gsusignal.com/opinions

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 • Savanna Keo,

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

COPY EDITORS

ALICIA JOHNSON MILES KEENLYSIDE

EDITORSAVANNA KEO

signalIopinions@gmail.com

FROM THE EDITORIAL BOARDLetter to the Editor

James DuttonSGA President

I am personally very pleased with the enthusiasm and passion Mr. Kirk has for his University and his Student Government and I hope that every student would feel as pas-sionate about the issues facing our lives as he does, albeit hopefully in a more respectful and informed way.

Three years ago, Greg Abt and Lacey Enyart were senators in the SGA and saw things they did not like; student leaders were not taking their jobs as elected representa-tives for the student body seriously, students were not attending and were not prepared for required meetings, and thousands of dollars were being spent on Executive Board retreats out of state. Being justifiably upset at this ir-responsibility, they decided to form the Stu-dents First Ticket and run in opposition of the things we all, Mr. Kirk and myself included, rightfully despise. This group was, and still is an extremely diverse group of students po-litically, socially, economically, ethnically, re-ligiously, and is also representative of a huge portion of student groups and organizations. They won in a landslide election. Since that time the Students First Ticket has remained devoted to rooting out injustice, championing student causes, and demanding more from our University, the Board of Regents and the State Legislature.

The Students First Ticket has been able to institute such changes as the initiation of the Repeat to Replace program (allowing stu-dents to completely replace low grades with higher grades by retaking classes), the abil-ity to use PantherCash off campus (thus in-creasing the diversity of food options for stu-dents) and taking the fight over the changes to the HOPE scholarship to the State Capitol (where I personally spoke twice before the Education Committee about why their plan would be disastrous for the students of Geor-

gia and even personally put forward our alter-native plan which would have kept the fund-ing at the same level for students who have a 3.0 GPA).

The election for this year’s SGA was the most contested election in history; more can-didates ran for more positions than ever be-fore. 85 prospective SGA members attended the debate along with many student and non-student visitors. During the allotted time, Mr. Kirk asked me what the Students First Ticket, now running for its third year, could bring to the SGA that they had not already done. In response to Mr. Kirk’s concern I offered that we, the Students First Ticket, as with any group seeking to enact meaningful long-term change, have strived to remain revolutionary in nature while avoiding the complacency of our predecessors.

I cited the fact that in the years before the Student First Ticket ran for office the students in the SGA were not truly the cham-pions of student issues as students expected them to be but were sadly, in office for purely personal reasons; for the bragging rights, to pad their resumes, to get letters of recom-mendation from administrators, or, worst of all, for the small stipend and the office. I ex-plained to him that as a law student, I needed none of those things and that as for the sti-pend I could make more money working at a gas station than for the SGA and it would be much less stressful. Mr. Kirk also asked me several questions to which I could not give, in his mind, a very good answer. Mr. Kirk asked what I was planning on doing to lower the price of a Coca-Cola and how I, as SGA President, would balance the State of Geor-gia’s budget. I responded to what Mr. Kirk felt were serious questions. I, as the President of the Student Government, have no control over what price the Coca-Cola company sets

Letter to the Editor

In my time in SGA, I have seen a strengthening in academic standards, two of the most diverse and competitive election cycles SGA has ever seen, and a SGA that drastically improved the student experience. Please note that I am speaking for myself, and cannot speak on this matter as a whole for SGA, yet our work seems self-evident in what we have provided the students with.

SGA is not a puppet of the admin-istration, yet we do work tirelessly with ad-ministrators for the students benefit. Admin-istrators, staff, and faculty are here for us. I would like to thank our faculty, staff, and administrators for their work from one of my favorite Sociology professors, Dr. Maura Ryan, to University President Dr. Becker for the tireless work they do to ensure the qual-ity, standards, and growth of GSU.

Now, please allow me to directly address some fallacies that Mr. Kirk wrote in his editorial. In attendance at the Candidate Debate over 100 individuals were present including those running for positions which numbered over sixty alone. The Concert that Mr. Kirk asserted was not chosen by students

was false due to the fact that the five artists on the questionnaire were chosen by utiliz-ing listserves, student polls at Spotlights sev-eral events, and by polling students at Incepts where over 3,000 students had input on the decision. Campus Events and Spotlight Pro-grams Board are funded through funds ear-marked for programming and events and with the funds allotted over 32,000 students annually are able to enjoy free food, prizes, and subsidized admission to various Atlanta landmarks, concerts, and attractions.

Student Activity Fee money which funds the Student Government Associa-tion and most student organizations on this campus are not able to be utilized for schol-arships. However, the administration has provided space for students to get assistance with scholarships through the Scholarship Office in Sparks Hall.

So students this is my opportunity to ask for you to actively engage in the pro-cess. We have vacancies in our Senate, open senate meetings where students can let us know concerns and suggestions for improve-ment, and office hours where we can engage. This dialogue is an important one, and I hope to see more students come and actively en-gage with SGA to address any and all con-cerns.

Ben WilliamsSociology Major SGA VP of Student Life

Continued on page 7

THE SIGNALSTAFF INFORMATION

EDITOR IN CHIEF Miranda Sainsignaleditor@gmail.com

SENIOR EDITOR Sabastian Weesabwee0615@gmail.com

MANAGING EDITOR Mishall Rehmansignalmanaging@gmail.com

NEWS EDITOR Chris Shattucksignalnewseditor@gmail.com

CAMPUS LIFE EDITOR Angel Whitesignalliving@gmail.com

SPORTS EDITOR Saakib Zafranithesignalsport@gmail.com

ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR D.J. Dunsondunsondj@gmail.com

ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Brooke Marshallsignalentertainment@gmail.com

ASSOCIATE ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Paul Demerrittpdemerritt1@student.gsu.edu

PRODUCTION EDITOR Bennett Greersignalprod@gmail.com

ASSISTANT PRODUCTION EDITOR Aysha Johnsonsignalprod2@gmail.com

PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR Judy Kimjudithkim92@yahoo.com

ONLINE EDITOR Brittany Williamssignalwebsite@gmail.com

COPY/OPINION EDITORS Savanna KeoMiles Keenlyside

Alicia Johnsonsignalopinions@gmail.com

ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Joey Commanderjcommander1@student.gsu.edu

CIRCULATION MANAGER Phillip Mascisignaldistribution@gmail.com

OFFICE ASSISTANTS Jared CateBrianna Alvarez

Sean DiasSTUDENT MEDIA ADVISOR Bryce McNeil

bmcneil1@gsu.edu

MISSION STATEMENTThe Signal shall provide, in a fair and accurate manner, news of interest and significance to the Georgia State University community and serve as a forum for the expression of ideas of members of that community. Furthermore, The Signal shall provide an opportunity for students to pursue experience within a professional newspaper environment. The Signal shall also provide truthful and ethical advertising of interest to the Georgia State University community.

ADVERTISINGThe deadline for all advertising is 5 p.m. on the Tuesday prior to the desired issue of publication. Ads must be print-ready and in PDF format; files must be delivered via e-mail at signalads@langate.gsu.edu. Please visit our website at www.gsusignal.com/advertising for more information, including rates and payment methods.

COVERAGE REQUESTSRequests for coverage and tips should be submitted to the Editor in Chief and/or the relevant section editor.

LETTERS TO THE EDITORThe following guidelines must be followed when submitting a Letter to the Editor. Failure to follow them will result in your letter not being considered for publication.

Letters must be submitted to the Opinions Editors via e-mail and must include the text of the letter in the body of the message. Letters should be 200-400 words maximum. The Signal will allow longer letters, but only in rare circumstances. Letters must include the full name(s) of the writer(s) and include their year and major. If the writer is a faculty member, they must include their title and department. Letters will be fact-checked prior to publication. The writer may be obligated to make changes to the letter for publication. Letters will be edited for grammar, clarity, length, factual accuracy and adherence to Signal policy. The Signal reserves the right to modify and/or reject letters at the discretion of the editorial staff.

STAFF POSITIONSThe Signal accepts applications for staff writers and photographers throughout the year; additional available positions will be listed at www.gsu.edu/studentmedia. If you are interested in working with The Signal, please fill out an application (available in our offices or online at www.gsusignal.com/applications) and return it to Bryce McNeil, Student Media Advisor, in the Office of Student Activities (Suite 330,

Student Center).

OFFICE INFORMATIONThe Signal

Suite 200, University Center • P.O. Box 3968 • Atlanta, GA 30303Phone: 404-413-1620 • Fax: 404-413-1622 • Web: www.gsusignal.com

The following guidelines must be followed when submitting a letter to the editor. Failure to follow them will result in your letter not being considered for publication.

Letters must be submitted to the Opinions Editors via email and must include the text of the letter in the body of the message. Letters should be 200-400 words maximum. The Signal will allow longer letters, but only in rare circumstances. Letters must include the full name(s) of the writer(s) and include their year and major. If the writer is a faculty member, they must include their title and department. Letters will be fact-checked prior to publication. The writer may be obligated to make changes to the letter for publication. Letters will be edited for grammar, clarity, length, factual accuracy and adherence to Signal policy. The Signal reserves the right to modify and/or reject letters at the discretion of the editorial staff.

SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR

THE SIGNAL | OPINIONS | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011 07

Progressive Student Alliance

Former GSU student and activ-ist Tatiana Jasira Lima was released on September 22nd after having en-dured nearly a year of incarceration. She had been falsely accused of mur-dering her less than 2 months old baby.

As a student, she was active as the President of the Sankofa Society. She participated in work on behalf of the Jena 6 and political prisoners like Mutulu Shakur and Mumia Abu-Jamal. She traveled to New Orleans to assist victims of Katrina and also participated in the Conscious Col-lective, Caribbean Students Associa-tion, Black Students Alliance and the Office of African American Student Services and Programs. In 2008, she graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s in African American stud-ies and continued her efforts with the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement and Daughters of the Diaspora.

The charges currently pending against Tatiana stem from a situation in August of last year where she had brought her daughter to the hospital out of concern for the child’s breath-ing. The examining physicians ob-

served several bone fractures to the child’s skull and ribs. The child’s father had stated to police that he might have accidentally caused the child’s injuries when she fell while he was changing her, and when he rolled over on her while sleeping.

The investigating detective tes-tified in the probable hearing that he did not find evidence that Tatiana was responsible for her daughter’s death. Despite this, the District At-torney’s office presented charges of Murder, Felony Murder, Aggravated Assault, and Aggravated battery for indictment on October 29, 2010. Ta-tiana was later arrested and placed on $170,000 bail.

As members of the Progressive Student Alliance we call on the cam-pus community to properly engage and understand the issues of race and our criminal justice system, especial-ly in light of the unjust execution of Troy Davis last month. It’s critical that we build a strong culture of soli-darity at GSU when the state singles out one of our own to attack and criminalize, especially if it is a work-ing class woman of color like Tatiana.

The fact she is receiving pro bono investigative services from the

Tyembia Investigative Services and pro bono legal services from the Davis Bozeman Law Firm speaks to both her innocence and wide spread support. Investigator Rashid McCall with the Tyembiaa Services was one of the GSU student organizers that led to the creation of the African American Studies Department. In-vestigator Watani Tyembia is a vet-eran activist that has been involved in fighting for political prisoners for over 35 years. Rob Bozeman and Mawuli Davis are GSU College of Law graduates who have been inten-tional about taking on pro bono cases for people who have been falsely ac-cused. This includes the complete exoneration of Eric Johnson, who is now in his second year of college rather than serving prison time for a crime he did commit.

The fight is far from over; the charges are still pending and the case has yet to go trial. Please sign the peti-tion at justice4tatiana.org demanding that the DA drop the charges. Also link up with the Progressive Student Alliance and others on campus seek-ing to organize around this case.

Letter to the Editor

Continued from page 6for its products nor can I do any

more than pay my taxes to help the State of Georgia balance its budget. I would, however, continue to work with Auxiliary and Support Services to ensure that the discount we re-ceive when buying a Coke with Pan-therCash continued and that I would continue to fight for increased fund-ing for higher education at the state level and for lower tuition and fees at the Board of Regents level. This I have done and still do every chance I get.

The SGA is working diligently to ensure a positive student experience, allowing access to several forms of student engagement, and maintain-ing students’ rights. The fruits of these tireless efforts are seen in such initiatives as the Repeat to Replace program which allows students to increase their Academic standing, in-creasing parking options on and off-campus, increasing student access to the football games, spring break be-ing later in the semester starting in the 2012-2013 Academic year, not al-lowing an increase in the jurisdiction of the Code of Conduct to include

off-campus activities, and saying no to fee increases when students are hurting.

Even when the administration tried to over-rule the students and in-crease fees anyway, I personally went to the Board of Regents to challenge them to live up to their promise that they would not increase any institu-tional fee without student support for that fee increase. Because of my actions, no GSU fee was increased last year. There was only a blanket in-crease, already planned by the Board of Regents, enacted for all institu-tions state wide. Each of these initia-tives took time and hard work from everyone in the SGA and shows our commitment to putting the needs of students first. It is the students of our University that elected us and it is the students we will continue to serve.

To address any concerns about a stipend increase for the SGA Ex-ecutive Board, I need to set the re-cord straight directly; there was no stipend increase. The SGA Senate, none of whom receive a stipend, pro-posed and voted unanimously on a

bill to increase the monthly stipend by around $115 after seeing the many hours of hard work that we put in above and beyond our required of-fice hours. The Executive Board ab-stained from voting on the bill, as it would have directly affected them, except for two Executive Board votes against. Despite the overwhelm-ing support the bill had in the SGA, it was decided in the end not to in-crease the stipends of the Executive Board and to use that money to fund more student programs.

We invite any interested stu-dent to our SGA Senate meetings which take place every other Thurs-day night in the Sinclair Suite of the Student Center. I would also like to personally invite anyone, includ-ing Mr. Kirk, who still has questions about what SGA does, who the SGA is, why the SGA does what it does or what the SGA plans on doing in the future to come by my office at 400 University Center or to email me at jDutton2@gsu.edu and I would be glad to further discuss any concerns or issues with any member of the University community.

www.gsusignal.com/sportsSPORTSEDITOR

Saakib Zafrani thesignalsport@gmail.com

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

D.J. Dunson dunsondj@gmail.com

THE SIGNAL | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011

Feeling blue: Fourth straight loss leaves Panthers searching for answersof the field. There is a specific place he is supposed to punt it, but we did not get that done today against a dan-gerous returner and that killed us.”

Wide receiver and return man Albert Wilson also missed his second game of the season after suffering a hamstring injury three weeks ago. In his stead, receiver Danny Williams broke Georgia State’s receiving yard-age record by catching nine balls for 151 yards and one touchdown. How-ever, Williams was the only receiver with more than two receptions. The running game was also non-existent as the Panthers averaged only 2.5 yards per rush for 86 yards against a Murray State run defense that al-lowed 497 yards in its previous two games.

Defensively, cornerback D’Mario Gunn snared two intercep-tions, but the offense was unable to capitalize on them. After throwing the first of his two interceptions on the first offensive play, Casey Brock-man threw for 321 yards and four touchdowns.

Instead of relying on big plays, the Murray State’s offense methodi-cally moved the ball down the field by throwing on short and interme-diate routes, then relying on receiv-ers to gain yardage after the catch. The Racers also used screen passes to running backs as an extension of their running game. Despite running for only 68 yards on eight carries, Murray State running back Duane Brady caught seven passes for 91 yards and one touchdown. A penalty also wiped off 28 yards from Brady’s 80-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.

Murray State’s first touchdown drive began near midfield following a short punt by Schlechter. Georgia State responded with the longest touchdown drive in its short history,

highlighted by a 49-yard completion to Danny Williams. Two plays later, Russell would carry the handoff, along with a slew of defenders into the end zone to tie the score.

The Panther’s next offensive drive ended with a 39-yard field goal by kicker Christian Benvenuto that gave Georgia State its first lead since its season opening win over Clark on Sept. 2.

Unfortunately, that’s where things took a turn for the worse as Murray Stated raced out of the gates in the second quarter with three unanswered touchdown scores and tacked on a fourth to start the second half.

The most pivotal play of the first half came after Curry inexplicably re-placed Little with Schlechter at quar-terback on the final possession of the

half. Schlechter then overthrew a wide open Darius McCray, who was sprinting downfield with nothing but daylight between himself and the end zone.

It would prove to be a costly misfire and swing momentum in Murray State’s favor. Two incomple-tions later, Schlechter shanked the punt 19 yards out of bounds. On the final offensive play of the first half for Murray State’s Duane Brady received a short screen pass, ran behind a wall of blockers, reversed field and sprinted 46 yards into the end zone. Instead of the Panthers trailing 21-17 after a touchdown catch by McCray, the Racers extended their lead to 28-10 going into the half.

Murray State began the second half with the ball and wasted no time making reservations for the end zone

by going 97 yards for the score. The touchdown appeared to have the Racers cruising to a blowout victory, however, Georgia State made a seri-ous comeback attempt in the third quarter.

“In that third quarter we were coming together, that was probably the best we’ve played all year,” Danny Williams said.

After replacing Drew Little for one play, Kelton Hill uncorked a 43-yard touchdown pass to Danny Williams to pull Georgia State back within 18.

On the next possession, Little would lead the Panthers deep into Murray State territory before Russell made it a two possession game with a short touchdown run to make the score 35-24. The Panthers next drive stalled and Benvenuto missed a short

field goal with eight minutes remain-ing to take all of the air out of the Pan-thers comeback attempt.

Brockman slammed the door shut on a potential Georgia State comeback by throwing his fourth touchdown pass of the afternoon and gave the Racers a 42-24 lead.

“The team was ready to come back, which we did, but we didn’t sustain,” Curry said. “You can’t just come out and have a burst by throw-ing a couple of touchdowns. You have to keep fighting and we should have been able to keep scoring.”

In the process, Murray State became the fourth consecutive op-ponent to eclipse the 40-point mark against the Panthers defense. Murray State also became the latest offense to shred the Panthers 3-4 defense. Georgia State’s defense has been manhandled over the past four games and is giving up more than 400 yards per game.

While the Georgia State offense has found a groove, they can’t contin-ue to account for the team’s defensive lapses. Unfortunately, the Panthers may not have the size and personnel at this point to excel in their 3-4 de-fense.

“That is something that Coach (John) Thompson has utilized for years,” Curry said. “The idea is to be able to move around and be faster to get in the gaps and confuse their running game. Obviously that wasn’t consistently effective either.”

It’s also important to remember that this is a two-year-old football program. Despite the story that the final score tells, this team is an im-proved rushing offense and run de-fense away from becoming competi-tive.

The Panthers will look snap their four-game losing streak on the road against the previously ranked South Carolina State Bulldogs on Oct. 15.

CURTIS COMPTON | AJCThe Braves dropped an 8.5 game lead in the wild card race in the month of September, and failed spectacularly down the stretch to orchestrate one of the most meteoric collapses in MLB history.

The Georgia State men’s golf team fin-ished seventh overall last Tuesday at the fourth annual Rees Jones Collegiate Invitational in Daufuskie Island, S.C. Two members of the team finished in the top 15.

Senior golfer Clemens Dvorak and sopho-more Tyler Gruca shot final rounds of 76 and 77 respectively. Dvorak tied for 12th while Gruca tied for 15thoverall.

The Panthers as a team shot a final round of 308 which was 47 shots over par at the event.

Local Georgia university, Kennesaw State, won the tournament for a second consecutive year with a final round of 289, just 17 shots ahead of Georgia State.

The Panthers return to the green Oct. 17-18 for the AutoTrader.com Collegiate Classic hosted by Georgia State and the Berkeley Hills Country Club located in Duluth, Ga.

The Georgia state women’s golf team tied for fifth overall last Tuesday at the UNCG Star-mount Fall Classic.

Charlotte Lorentzen nabbed a first place nod at the tournament and teammate Char-lotte Guilleux shot a hole in one to give the Panthers a final team score of 308.

The first place win for Lorentzen marked her first of the year and the second of her ca-reer. Guilleux shot her first hole in one and the first in three years for Georgia State.

The women will get back to the course in North Carolina next week for the Lady Pirate Intercollegiate in Greenville.

ZAKKIYYA ANDERSONStaff Writer

Strong individual performances for golf

GEORGIA STATE SPORTS COMMUNICATIONSCharolotte Lorentzen wins CAA Golfer of the weeek

Continued from page 1

After a poor showing against Murray state, the Panthers will travel to South Carolina State University. The Bulldogs are coming off of their homecoming game, and will look to dismantle the Panther defense in their pursuit of a fourth straight Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference title.

With redshirt junior quarter-back Derrick Wiley leading the way, the Panthers will be up against an-other prolific offense. In a 69-0 vic-tory over Delaware State on Sept. 24, Wiley threw for 250 yards and four touchdowns through the air. The 6’1 200 pound Wiley completed 12 of his 20 attempted passes.

Along with torching Delaware State through the air Wiley rushed for 2 touchdowns on the ground. With his monster offensive show out, Wiley tied 2 school single game re-cords. These included the four pass-ing touchdowns, and total touch-downs posted in a game with six. Luckily for the Panthers, they won’t have to face Wiley, who is out with a torn knee meniscus.

Due to this injury Wiley could potentially miss the remainder of the season. Richard Cue will be starting at quarterback in place of the injured Wiley. In his first start last weekend, Cue completed 15 of his 22 passes for 171 yards and two touchdowns.

Although Wiley will be out due to injury, they still have freshman running back Jalen Simmons em-powering the Bulldogs offense. In the 69 – 0 route of Delaware State Sim-mons set up two touchdowns for his team. Simmons rushed for 92 yards on 11 carries, averaging a stellar 8.36

yards per carry. If Georgia State is going to com-

pete, the Panthers will have to slow down the Bulldog offense. If the de-fense allows the quarterback to make third down plays and let Simmons run the ball effectively, the Panthers will have a hard time getting off the field. With a balanced attack on of-fense the Bulldogs have the potential of draining the clock and draining the defense.

Not only do the Bulldogs have a force on offense, but on the defensive side of the ball as well. Senior defen-sive lineman Patrick Washington will be pressuring the Panthers offensive line and attempt to get to the quarter-back.

Washington also put up big

numbers against Delaware State. Washington had seven tackles for a total loss of 22 yards in the victory. The Panthers offense will have to be aware of Washington at all times.

An area where the Bulldogs have struggled is on special teams. Pre-season All-MEAC placekicker Blake Erickson has missed his last five field goal attempts, including a potential game-tying kick in the fourth quar-ter, and is 3-9 on the season.

The Panthers cannot have too many three and outs, because this will put the Bulldogs right back on offense with a short field and tire the defense out. The game will be taking place in Orangeburg, South Carolina on Oct. 15 at 1:30 pm.

Panthers look to get back on track at South Carolina State

BRIAN LINDER/T&DRichard Cue passed for 171 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 92 yards and a touchdown in the Bulldogs 49-38 victory last weekend.

EVAN OWENS Staff Writer

This �le was processed through a Kodak Prinergy system. Be advised that it may contain overprint settings that need to be honored in your workflow.

09/16/11 16:21

Executive CD:

Creative Director:

Art Director:

Writer:

Account Executive:

Production Supervisor:

Coordinator: Ext.

Title:

Market:

Run/Disk Date:

Color/Space:

Live:

Trim:

Bleed:

Notes:

Bill to:

REQ

CE:

Production Artist:

Task:

Spell checked

Required proof: Contract Laser Quick Print Mock-up

M. Freeman

J. Ragg

G. Malloy

S. Beaudette 6513

Reality Sucks

4C/Newspaper

10 7

Page 1 of 1

11LBQ0087

115047

1/0

LIZ

New.

11LBN0144_F GM AD ID # : GCEN01440000

RAB

YES

Snap

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

RAB

RAB

RAB151783A01

10.0 in.

7.0

in.

In fact, it’s the best college discount from any car company,1 and can save you hundreds — even thousands — on an eligible, new Chevrolet,2 Buick or GMC. If you’re in college, a grad program or even a recent grad...take advantage today and get a great deal on a new ride to call your own!

1) Eligible participants for the GM College Discount include college students (from any two- or four-year school), recent graduates who have graduated no more than two years ago, and current nursing school and graduate students. 2) Excludes Chevrolet Volt. 3) Tax, title, license, dealer fees and optional equipment extra. See dealer for details. The marks of General Motors, its divisions, slogans, emblems, vehicle model names, vehicle body designs and other marks appearing in this advertisement are the trademarks and/or service marks of General Motors, its subsidiaries, affiliates or licensors. ©2011 General Motors. Buckle up, America!

LUCKILY THE GM COLLEGE DISCOUNT DOESN’T.

Find us on Facebook: facebook.com/gmcollegeprogram

Stop pedaling...start driving. Visit gmcollegediscount.com/save

To save even more, combine your discount with most current incentives.

2012 Chevrolet Sonic(discount example)

Sonic 5-Door LS MSRP starting at $ 15,395.00

MSRP of Sonic 5-Door 1LT as shown3 $ 16,495.00Preferred Pricing3 $ 16,202.07

Your Discount $ 292.93

2012 GMC Sierra 1500(discount example)

Sierra 1500 Reg. Cab WT 2WD MSRP starting at $ 22,940.00

MSRP of Sierra 1500 Extended Cab SLE 2WD with optional equipment as shown3 $ 32,840.00Preferred Pricing3 $ 31,026.26

Your Discount $ 1,813.74

11LBN0144_F__151783A01.indd 1 9/17/11 4:05 AM

The Georgia State softball team wrapped up their 2011 fall schedule on Oct. 2, splitting a doubleheader with Georgia Tech to finish 6-2.

“We had a good effort and great attitude from the whole team. I’m excited about the direction that this program is headed,” said head coach Roger Kincaid to Georgia State Ath-letics.

The Panthers lost the first game of the doubleheader 7-2 but were able to bounce back with a 5-3 vic-tory in the second leg.

They opened the fall season with a doubleheader against the University of Georgia in which they won the first game 4-3 but lost a 2-1 pitcher duel in game two.

They were victorious in both games of another fall doubleheader against Georgia Perimeter with 6-2

and 4-0 wins.Georgia State’s other wins came

against Young Harris, a 7-2 victory, and Kennesaw State, who they de-feated 6-5.

The defending CAA champions are returning the majority of last seasons athletes, but the fall season has also given seven freshman an op-portunity to prove their value to the team.

The fall exhibition games gave them a chance to adjust to the feel of college level softball and make the proper adjustments to be ready for the regular season.

“The freshman class has come in and really pushed the veterans,” Kincaid told Athletics. “They’ve made for a very competitive playing environment.”

The regular season will begin in February of next year, and the Pan-thers will look to repeat as confer-ence champs.

DYLAN RICEStaff Writer

Softball completes exhibition season 6-2

GEORGIA STATE SPORTS COMMUNICATIONSGeorgia State split doubleheaders against Georgia and Georgia Tech in fall season.

THE SIGNAL | SPORTS | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011 09

Use your smartphone to get tailgating tips, games, and recipes.

No QR reader? Visit tervis.com/college

Looking for more smart cup fun?

Self-Warming SystemA cup that keeps drinks hotter than other cups. Take a cautionary sip before you start swigging.

Eternity WarrantyEvery Tervis tumbler is guaranteed for life. That’s eleventy-zillion beverage sips, give or take.

Portable CoolerKeeps cold drinks cold.It’s a smaller, more portable version of your dorm fridge.

Identity ProtectionMore than 1,000 designs to choose from. So, you can change your emblem as often as you change your major.

Virtually UnbreakableYour Tervis tumbler won’t crack, melt, chip, or fail any other final exam.

Meet Georgia State’s valedictorian. The world’s fi rst smart cup.

tervis.com/smartcup

© 2

011

Terv

is

8.22.11Tervis

TERV110120_GeorgiaState.indd

PRINT

InDesignCS5

10.375x14.25

R1

Clint Betlej

TERV110120_GeorgiaState_Print.indd 1 8/22/11 2:40 PM

Sports Calendar

WEDNESDAY OCT. 12Men’s Soccer vs. UNC Wilmington Panthersville // 7:00 p.m.

FRIDAY OCT. 14 – 16 Women’s Tennis at Roberta Alison Fall Classic Tuscaloosa, Ala. // All Day

FRIDAY OCT. 14Women’s Soccer vs. TowsonPanthersville // 7:00 p.m.

SATURDAY OCT. 15 Cross Country at Coach “O” InviteTroy, Ala. // 11:00 a.m.

Football at South Carolina StateOrangeburg, S.C. // 1:30 p.m.

Volleyball at UNC WilmingtonWilmington, N.C. // 2:00 p.m.

SUNDAY OCT. 16Women’s Soccer vs. George MasonPanthersville // Noon

Men’s Soccer vs. Drexel Panthersveille // 3:00 p.m.

MONDAY OCT. 17 – 18Men’s Golf host AutoTrader.com Collegiate ClassicDuluth, Ga. // All Day

Men’s soccer eyeing CAA tournament

Georgia State’s defense has been its strong suit as the Panthers shut out three consecutive opponents, including one in a win over NC State and top 25 ranked William & Mary. Georgia State ranks first in the con-ference in goals allowed per game and first in shutouts.

Two of those shutouts came with redshirt freshman CJ Cochran in goal. Cochran replaced junior Vin-cent Foermer, who has been battling injury since mid-September. Last month, Foermer was named to the TopDrawerSoccer.com Top 20 Col-lege Players to Watch for the Colo-nial Athletic Association list.

Meanwhile, Cochran was named the Colonial Athletic Associa-tion’s Rookie of the Week for his per-formances, and he made three saves in the victory over NC State. In his freshman debut, Cochran made 10 saves to lead GSU to a 1-1 tie. Cochran

is also the CAA leader in save per-centage and third in saves per game.

Scott Evans and Ayokunle Lumpkin are the offensive linchpins and lead the team in points, goals and assists.

Stephen McGill is establishing a reputation as the team’s best closer after booting two game winning pen-alty kicks this season. The first came in the 85th minute when he smacked in a penalty kick against Mercer on Sept. 9. McGill buried his second game-winning goal against Hofstra on Oct. 1.

Most importantly, the Panthers remain undefeated at home. Despite losing a 1-0 thriller against North-eastern on Saturday, the men remain in great position for one of the top six spots in the conference.

Defending CAA champion William & Mary sits atop the CAA standings, just ahead of second place James Madison and Delaware.

Old Dominion(#21) and William & Mary(#22) are both ranked in the

NCAA’s top 25.Georgia State is nestled atop a

five-way tie for fifth place in the con-ference.

William & Mary is led by senior midfielder, Nicolas Abrigo who has scored six goals this season.

Delaware’s duo of Roberto Gimenez and Evans Frimpong are second and third in the conference with 12 goals between themselves.

James Madison is second to Georgia State in goals allowed this season. They’ve allowed one more goal in three fewer games.

Old Dominion ranks first in the conference with 2.78 goals per game. ODU junior forward Yannick Smith’s 11 goals leads all CAA players. That’s only five fewer than the entire Geor-gia State team.

Men’s soccer will return to Pan-thersville for a two-game stint start-ing on Wednesday Oct. 12, as they host UNC Wilmington, and then Drexel on the following Friday.

D.J. DUNSON Associate Sports Editor

25 Baylor at 24 Texas A&MGriffin will have another huge passing

day against Texas A&M’s less than stellar defense. However, Griffin will have to keep pace with A&M’s loaded offense. In order to so, he’ll need another big game from running back Terrance Ganaway but Texas A&M has the seventh best rushing defense in college football. Unfortunately, Texas A&M also has the nations worst pass defense. Southern Methodist, Oklahoma State, Arkansas and Texas Tech have all put the Aggies second-ary noogies over the past few weeks. Robert Griffin will have a field day against A&M’s corners.

Baylor wins 31-34.

6 Oklahoma State at 11 TexasIf the Longhorns couldn’t make it com-

petitive against the Sooners in their annual rivalry game, things won’t get much easier against Oklahoma State. The Cowboys enter the game as college football’s highest scoring football team. Against Kansas last weekend, the Cowboys put 56 on the scoreboard by halftime and finished with 70. The Long-horns quarterbacks David Ash and Case Mc-Coy are too inexperienced to keep pace with Oklahoma State’s offense. The freshman duo was a turnover factory against Oklahoma. Oklahoma State has committed 14 takeaways in the last three games, which is more than 99 Bowl Subdivision teams have earned all season.

Oklahoma State wins 48-24.

17 Florida at 15 AuburnIf John Brantley wasn’t out for the sec-

ond straight nursing an ankle injury suffered against Alabama, Florida would be favorites against the Tigers. Instead the Gators will split quarterback duties between true fresh-men Jeff Driskel and Jacoby Briskett.

If scouts and the eyeball test are any in-dication, Driskel is the next big thing at Flor-ida. While, he struggled against Alabama’s defense, he will have success and build his confidence against Auburn’s rebuilding de-fense. The dual threat quarterback has drawn comparisons to Cam Newton. Driskel won’t have to carry the load as running backs Jef-frey Demps and Chris Rainey will find room to run against Auburn’s porous defense.

Florida wins 27-21.

12 Michigan at 23 Michigan StateAfter leading the Wolverines back from

another halftime deficit, Denard Robinson has the Wolverines sitting pretty at 6-0 and has fans believing a Rose Bowl is in their future. They’ve got good reason to believe. The Michigan defense is much improved from last season’s 110th ranked defense. This year’s defense is allowing only 12.5 points per game, which is up from the 32.5 points per game they allowed last season. Last week-end, Northwestern scored 24 first half points but once Michigan adjusted at halftime, they pitched a second half shutout. Michigan won’t pitch a shutout but the Maize and Blue will celebrate a victory.

Michigan wins 21-34

Weekly NCAA football matchups and predictions

DJ DUNSON Associate Sports Editor

GEORGIA STATE SPORTS COMMUNICATIONS Georgia State leads the CAA in shutouts and also has the fewest goals allowed per game.

THE SIGNAL | SPORTS | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011 11

PRESENTING FALL 2011 WITH

DR. TEST PREP (DR. GARY B. COHEN)

The South’s Premier Test Prep Professional

GMAT PREP CLASSES Buckhead Center

Mondays, October 3 - November 14, 2011 | 5:30 - 9:30 p.m. Wednesdays, October 26 - December 14, 2011 | 5:30 - 9:30 p.m.

Alpharetta Center

Saturdays, October 22 - December 10, 2011 | 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.

LSAT PREP CLASSES Peachtree-Dunwoody Center

Sundays, October 9 - November 13, 2011 | 1:30 - 5:30 p.m.

Buckhead Center

Tuesdays, October 18 - November 29, 2011 | 5:30 - 9:30 p.m.

GRE PREP CLASSES Buckhead Center

Thursdays, October 27 - December 15, 2011 | 5:30 - 9:30 p.m.

www.testprep.gsu.edu (404) 413-7300

USE PROMO CODE exed1 WHEN REGISTERING ONLINE TO RECEIVE $25 DISCOUNT!!

$625! $625!

ENTERTAINMENTEDITOR

Brooke Marshallsignalentertainment@gmail.com

THE SIGNAL | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011

www.gsusignal.com/entertainment

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Paul DeMerrittpdemerritt1@student.gsu.edu

FLUX 2011: An artistic takeover of Atlanta

Footloose gets grittier modern-day remake

I’m standing at the front of a crowd of people, pressed against a rusty chain-link fence, watching the building on the other side explode.

With series of thunderous

booms, bricks crumble and dash to the ground. The gaping, widening holes reveal trees, a rushing waterfall and a rabbit hopping skittishly back and forth. When the wall is gone, all that remains is this powerful yet peace-ful natural setting, and we bask in the sight for several minutes until, with another mighty rumble, the wall be-gins to reassemble itself.

Broken bricks rush up into the holes, filling the gaps. Within a few seconds, the forest is covered, and all that remains is a dirty brick wall. The crowd is silent for a moment, and then bursts into applause.

This projection, created by Jeff Demetriou and Fake Love and named “Homesick,” was just one of the hun-dreds of art exhibits on display at FLUX 2011.

On Sept. 4, Flux Projects, an or-ganization dedicated to supporting artists and displaying their work in Atlanta, transformed the Castleberry Hill Art District into a living, breath-ing art exhibit. The streets were filled with people — 10,000 to 12,000 of them — some in costume, some car-rying ghostly lanterns, but most just observing the enchantment of the event and taking in the overwhelming creative energy and charm.

FLUX 2011 began with a lantern parade and ended with a display of iron fireworks, a Chinese tradition in which someone throws melted iron against a wall.

“When the iron hits the wall, it splatters in a manner that resembles fireworks,” Executive Director of Flux Projects Anne Dennington wrote in an email to The Signal. “For FLUX 2011, Dan Timms and Patrick Toups erected a 30-foot tall wall behind El-liott Street Pub, and the melted iron was thrown against this.”

This year’s FLUX dwarfed last year’s: 266 artists created 34 projects for display, as opposed to the 25 proj-ects shown at FLUX 2010. Some of the better known participants included Monica Cook, Dodekapus, gloATL and the Zoetic Dance Ensemble.

“[FLUX] included artists well-versed in the public realm and others making their first venture into this practice,” Dennington wrote. “It also presented national talents along with some very promising students.”

The projects were wide-rang-ing, to say the least: projections, light and sound installations, theatre, iron pours, dance, music, puppetry and dance, to name a few.

“We focused on projects that

could run continuously throughout the evening,” Dennington wrote. “We wanted people to be able to immerse themselves in the event rather than watch a schedule.”

Dennington wrote that the most remarkable thing about FLUX 2011 was the diversity of projects and the number of artists who collaborated to make them happen.

“There were large, “Wow!” proj-ects and smaller, fun contemplative ones,” Dennington wrote.

In addition to all the planned art projects, local artist Catlanta hid six art-cats around Castleberry Hill for FLUX 2011. Anyone who found the art may present it at The High for free admission on Nov. 10: Catlanta Day.

Dennington wrote that FLUX 2011 more than lived up to her expec-tations.

“We had hoped to grow the event, both in projects and atten-dance, and we accomplished both,” she wrote. “As the event grew, so did Atlanta’s engagement with it, and that was wonderful to see.”

When the news that a remake of Footloose, the classic 1984 film starring Kevin Bacon, would hit the big screen Oct. 14, skepticism arose. Fans of the original doubted how the remake could possibly succeed, and assumed it would just be another equivalent to High School Musical.

Director Craig Brewer thought the exact same thing when Para-mount Pictures originally asked him to remake Footloose.

“[Footloose] has a little more teeth than [Paramount Pictures was] thinking,” Brewer said in a round-table interview in which The Signal

took part. When Paramount told Brewer

they wanted him to make Footloose, he told them he wasn’t completely sure he could commit.

One night in New Orleans, he was driving down a long bridge. His windshield was covered in bugs that had been smeared by the wipers, and he could hardly see.

“I started seeing trucks go by and figured out how I was going to do Footloose,” Brewer said.

In the original version of the movie, five students are killed by a truck on the way home from a night of dancing. Brewer realized he should put this scene toward the be-ginning of the film, shocking the au-

dience with the harsh reality of the accident.

“We made everyone think that it was going to be a High School Musi-cal kind of Footloose... and then we kill them,” said Brewer. “Moving the accident just made everyone more emotional.”

Brewer also realized he had a real connection to the film. Raised in the South, he always felt like it was a magical place. But he wasn’t the only person who felt a personal connec-tion with the story. Julianne Hough (“Dancing With the Stars”), who plays Ariel Moore, said she would never label herself as a “wild child,” but that she did grow up in a con-straining environment.

Kenny Wormald (Center Stage: Turn it Up) said he has always strong-ly desired to fight for what he be-lieves in. His character, Ren McCor-mack, fights for the right to dance in Footloose. He also connected to Ren because of his background as a male dancer.

When asked what his favorite part about filming was, Wormald smiled and replied, “Getting to do Craig Brewer’s Footloose. ... By the end of [the filming process] I was stoked. ... I wanted to shoot it all over again.”

Both actors have a strong back-ground in dance. Wormald started when he was six years old, after he

went to a New Kids on the Block concert.

“I wouldn’t stop dancing and imitating their moves,” he said.

Hough started dancing when she was only three years old, prac-ticing in her neighbor’s basement. When she moved to London at age 10, she began studying ballroom and Latin dancing.

Their lifetimes of training paid off: Hough and Wormald’s dancing in Footloose was impressive, and their great chemistry made the scenes come alive.

“What we’re most proud of is that we took Footloose seriously and we had a great time with it,” Brewer said.

LAURA APPERSONStaff Writer

KENDALL HARRISStaff Writer andBROOKE MARSHALLEntertainment Editor

MICHELLE ASCI | THE SIGNALThe Krewe of the Grateful Gluttons Lantern Art Parade featured ghostly lanterns and crazy costumes.

MICHELLE ASCI | THE SIGNAL Art exhibitions took over Castleberry Hills at FLUX 2011.

Mason Graduate Studies Welcomes Georgia State Panthers

You may know Mason as a dynamic university just outside of Washington, D.C., but…DID YOU KNOW

U.S.News & World Report.

U.S.News & World Report.

Stop by our table at the Graduate School Fair on campus on October 17th.

admissions.gmu.edu/grad.

Where Innovation Is Tradition

For details and registration information, visit www.gsu.edu/homecoming

2011October 17-22

Tuesday, Oct. 11Good Morning Commuters I • 8-10 a.m., Unity Plaza and Aderhold Learning Center.Friday, Oct. 14Paint the Town Blue Registration DeadlineMonday, Oct. 17Good Morning Commuters II • 8-10 a.m., Unity Plaza and Turner Field.Banner Competition Deadline • 10 a.m.Bleed Blue! Show Your Pride in GSU • Decorate your door, office or living space today for the week.Tuesday, Oct. 18Library Plaza Rally • 12:15-1 p.m., Library Plaza.Sculpt It for the Hungry • 2-4 p.m., Student Center Ballroom.Powder-Puff Football Tournament • 4-8 p.m., Hurt Park.Wednesday, Oct. 19The Prefix: Greek Exhibition • 7 p.m. (Doors open at 6 p.m.), Student Center Ballroom. Free/GSU students, $5/guests. Open to GSU students and one guest per student.Thursday, Oct. 20Golf Cart Parade and Spirit Rally • Parade: Noon-12:30 p.m. Begins at Gilmer Street and Peachtree Center Avenue.

Spirit Rally: 12:30-2 p.m., Hurt Park.Royal Ball • 9 p.m.-2 a.m., Student Center Ballroom. Free/GSU students; $5/guests. Open to GSU students and one guest per student. Tickets on sale at new Campus Tickets Booth, University Center.Friday, Oct. 21Distinguished Alumni Awards • 6-9 p.m. (Cocktails at 6:30 p.m.; Dinner at 7:15 p.m.), Student Center Ballroom. $50/person; $400/table of 10.Homecoming Concert – Rick Ross • 8 p.m. (Doors open at 7 p.m.), Tabernacle. $15/GSU students, $27/general admission, $42/day of show (online or at venue only). Visit www.gsu.edu/homecoming for complete details.Saturday, Oct. 22SGA Homecoming Tailgate • 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., Georgia Dome Orange Lot.Homecoming Football Game and Royal Court Coronation • Georgia State Panthers vs. South Alabama Jaguars, 3 p.m., Georgia Dome. Halftime: Marching Band performance; Royal Court Coronation; and announcement of Spirit Cup and Paint the Town Blue winners.

01 WadingMoss of Aura (Friends Records)

02 James Pants James Pants (Stones Throw)

03 DraculaNurses (Dead Oceans)

04 PortamentoDrums (Frenchkiss)

05 Strange MercySt. Vincent (4AD)

06 Gentle SpiritJonathan Wilson (Bella Union)

07 Super Basement EPJesse Futerman (Jus Like Music Records)

08 Dreams Come TrueCANT (Terrible Records)

09 Mikal Cronin Mikal Cronin (Trouble in Mind)

10 Through Donkey JawAmen Dunes (Sacred Bones)

11 GoogooshGoogoosh (B-Music)

12 Veronica FallsVeronica Falls (Slumberland)

13 SkyzooThe Great Debater (Self-Released)

14 Catbirds & CardinalsDan Melchior Und Das Menace (Northern-Spy)

15 When Fish Ride BicyclesCool Kids (Green Label Sound)

16 The Wonder Years9th Wonder (Traffic)

17 Acid Baby JesusAcid Baby Jesus (Slovenly Recordings)

18 ElectrafoneBeats Antique (Antique)

19 The Rip TideBeirut (Pompeii)

20 Aabenbaringen Over AaskammenCasiokids (Polyvinyl)

21 Extra PlayfulJohn Cale (Domino)

22 Lucas SanttanaSem Nostalgia (Mais Um Discos)

23 Candygram For Mowo!Mocean Worker (Mowo! Inc.)

24 Era ExtranaNeon Indian (Mom & Pop)

25 Rock Creek ParkOddisee (Mello Music Group)

26 Canopy EPPainted Palms (Secretly Canadian)

27 Again Into EyesS.C.U.M (Mute)

28 In HeavenTwin Sister (Domino)

29 Life SuxWavves (Ghost Ramp)

30 The Whole LoveWilco (dBpm)

Director Tsui Hark may not be a household name, but in critical circles, he’s known for his visionary work in film. The grand aesthetic of Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame proves that this rep-utation is deserved.

The film is a historical fantasy chronicling the rise of real-life em-press Wu Zetian as she becomes Chi-na’s first female ruler.

Before she is able to take the throne, though, a supposed super-natural plague in the form of spon-taneous combustion begins to wreak

havoc on many of the powerful offi-cials in Zetian’s rule.

In order to solve the mystery behind the seemingly unexplainable deaths, she calls upon a man she im-prisoned for eight years: Detective Dee.

Hark’s directing in Detective Dee is hands-down the strongest thing going for it. The way Hark es-tablishes the background landscape is so fantastic that at times you may catch yourself focusing on the sights behind the characters rather than the action at hand — that is, until you get to a fight scene.

The choreography for the action sequences can best be described as smooth and precise yet whimsical.

Watching the motion of the characters as they fly around the screen and wield their weapons can only be described as extremely enter-taining.

That’s just what this film is: en-tertaining. The story is engaging and keeps you interested until the end. However, as it progressed, certain “mysteries” of the plot seemed to unravel a bit too early, and there was just something about it that wasn’t completely captivating.

With that being said, it’s a good flick that fans of the martial arts, ac-tion and/or historical fantasy genres are sure to fully enjoy.

Melodies so languid, vocals so feather-soft and songs so utterly calm that after one track, you’ll swear you’ve spent the entire day lying in a field watching clouds float by.

Deliciously melodramatic melody meets indulgently overwrought lyricism to create the kind of music that makes you want to stagger around Paris at 3 a.m. clutching your head and crying out about lost love.

Era Extrana continues in the dreamy electronic vein of previous Neon Indian offerings, but with a more retro, spacey feel.

Nothing compliments the chilly weather of fall like the weary intensity of Wilco.

COURTESY OF INDOMINA RELEASINGDetective Dee blends visually stunning cinematography with thrilling fight scenes.

CHRISTIAN PEREZStaff Writer

Blink-182 Neighborhoods DGC Records

From shooting stars and wishing wells to police cars with loaded guns, Blink-182’s new album alludes to ev-ery subject under the sun. And if you liked the tongue-in-cheek humor and quirky sounds from the group’s previ-ous albums, you may enjoy Neighbor-hoods.

Many people remember the group from off-beat yet undeniably catchy middle-school anthem “What’s My Name Again?”. Like the former track — which places primacy on per-sonal inefficacy — the group’s new album includes several songs that ref-erence inner fears about oneself. “Ka-

leidoscope,” for example, discusses an individual’s worries about a bad dream in context of a conversation about a journey toward personal progress and self-fulfillment. Yet unlike “What’s My Name Again?”, Kaleidoscope con-tains a serious note that speaks to the importance of recognizing and accom-plishing goals in spite of obstacles and hardships. While at times playful and esoteric (the song includes references to putting a butterfly in a bell jar), the message is ultimately sobering.

Although unique, “Kaleidoscope” is not the only song from Neighbor-hoods that includes references to nega-tive thoughts and emotions. In “Na-tives,” the singers discuss feeling like a cat in a cage and go on to compare themselves to Jekyll and Hyde. As if the metaphor and simile weren’t suf-ficient enough to sustain the track’s dark undertone, the group threw in references to self as bastard child and inward dying.

Interestingly, the moody and mel-ancholy lyrics of “Natives” are coupled with an upbeat tune marked by an en-ergetic repetition of words that com-prise the chorus. Whether intentional or not, the stark contrast in lyrics and sounds is a noteworthy novelty which resurfaces in songs like “Ghosts on the

Dance Floor.” In “Ghosts,” the singers speak of the universe leaving them and having no place to go, against back-ground beats reminiscent of pep rally music.

Although some aspects of Neigh-borhoods are unconventional, others parallel persistent trends in the world of music-making. Amongst other things, the album includes several biblical references that might remind one of vacation bible school or Sun-day sermons. For example, in “Snake Charmer” — a track about a woman who deceives and seduces rather than practicing purer forms of love — the singers point out that good girls like to sin and offer Eve as an example.

In Neighborhoods, Blink-182 doesn’t venture far from what fans have come to expect. Although there are morose moments, the album is marked by light-hearted lyrics that sig-nify a blithe acceptance of life’s woes and blessings.

While those in search of some-thing different from the band may be a bit disappointed, those who like the group’s existing repertoire probably won’t be. — Jocelyn Crawley, Staff Writer

Historical fantasy meets awesomefight scenes in Detective Dee

THE SIGNAL | ENTERTAINMENT | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011 15

Continued on page 7

Atlanta Events

TUESDAY, OCT. 11Splatter Cinema Presents: Evil Dead 2If you’ve seen Evil Dead 2, you know it’s one of the greatest cult classics ever to hit the small screen. If you haven’t seen it, good god, what are you waiting for?! In addition to bringing you this cinematic masterpiece, Splatter Cinema will also do a horrifying recreation of an undisclosed scene from the film. (Fair warning: If you can’t handle your gore, maybe you should sit this one out.)Plaza Theatre, 1049 Ponce de Leon Ave. // 9 p.m. // $9, 18+

THURSDAY, OCT. 13Siberia My Sweet, Gun Party, Cassandras, Hawkeye PierceAre you tired of all the Save Criminal events yet? Of course you’re not! Yet another party for an awesome cause goes down this Thursday at the delightfully grungy Basement. In addition to kickass music, there will also be artwork from nearly 50 Atlanta-area artists, as well as free beer (get there early, ‘cause you know it’s gonna run out).The Basement, 1245 Glenwood Ave. // 8 p.m. // $7 with receipt from Criminal Records, $10 without, 21+

The Clap, The Husseins, Bond Trader, The Marsh Hens, and Them ThingsYou can’t go wrong with the free Thursday shows at Star Bar, especially when The Clap are involved.Star Community Bar, 437 Moreland Ave. // 9 p.m. // Free, 18+

FRIDAY, OCT. 14Hungry Hungry Humans and FriendsAfter a hiatus and a search for a new drummer, indie punk rockers Hungry Hungry Humans are back. Come celebrate their return, and enjoy jams from Perpetual Dusk at Curtsy Caverns, Jeremy Waun and Memphibians. WonderRoot, 982 Memorial Dr. // 8 p.m. // $5, 18+

Noot d’Noot 100th Show AnniversaryI can think of three reasons to see this show: Noot d’Noot, Judi Chicago and the Back Pockets. Three of Atlanta’s most vibrant, fun bands together under one roof, totally pumped about the fact that this is the 100th show Noot d’Noot has played? Make that four reasons.Star Community Bar, 437 Moreland Ave. // 8:30 p.m. // $10, 18+

SATURDAY, OCT. 15Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue with Cherry RoyaleFresh on the heels of the release of his latest album, For True, Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews is hitting Center Stage with his unique brand of sound: supafunkrock. Center Stage Theater, 1374 West Peachtree St. // 9 p.m. // $30 advance, $35 at the door, all ages

Kill Your Darlings ATL and Hyde Present: Seven Deadly SinsPride, gluttony, lust, wrath, envy, sloth and greed? Sounds like a wild Saturday night to me. Seven writers will each tackle one of the deadly sins, two DJs will be spinning, and eight visual artists will be showing off their stuff.The Melvin Gallery, 648 John Wesley Dobbs Ave. // 9 p.m. // Free, all ages

SUNDAY, OCT. 16Karaoke at Southern ComfortSure, this is a mainstay of Atlanta culture, but it deserves to be pimped once in awhile just the same. You’d be hard-pressed to find a better way to spend your Sunday than by rubbing elbows with hipsters and truck drivers, drinking entire $5 Yuengling pitchers by yourself and enjoying tone-deaf renditions of “You Are So Beautiful” and white girls trying to keep up with Jay-Z on “Big Pimpin’.”1383 Cedar Grove Rd., Conley, Ga. // 9 p.m. // Free, 18+

Want to see an event in this space? Contact Brooke Marshall at signalentertainment@gmail.com with the event name, time, date, location and a brief description.

>> ALBUMS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15

DJ ShadowThe Less You Know, the BetterIsland

DJ Shadow spent two years working on The Less You Know, the Better, not worrying about the crit-ics, but only about his fans, putting in a record what he likes about mu-sic right now. It’s been five years since his last solo album, and critics and fans alike were beginning to get impatient. Fortunately, The Less You Know, the Better lives up to expecta-tions.

Sometimes this latest offer-ing sounds like a departure from DJ Shadow’s previous sound, but the master of the sample is always there. The energetic first track, “Back to Front (Circular Logic),” contrasts strongly with the quiet “Sad and Lonely.” The techno “Def Surrounds Us” slices with the hip-hop “Stay the Course,” and the jazzy “Run for Your Life” is energetic enough to keep you pumped all day. Don’t miss the soul-ful “Scale it Back” or the pop-rock “Warning Call.”

DJ Shadow has definitely ex-tended his palette on his latest re-lease, but he hasn’t forgotten his mu-sical roots. Tracks like “Enemy Lies” or “Redeemed” are pure abstract hip-hop à la his debut. The album closes with the punchy “Let’s Get It (Bass, Bass, Bass),” that makes you feel that five more years would be a long wait before another new album.

Even though some of the tracks are hard to categorize, the experi-ence is ultimately positive: a musical slideshow. It is rare to find a noncom-mercial artist who can appeal to a broad audience in one album, so for that reason, this album worth a listen.— Jean-François Gerard, Staff Writer

Ryan AdamsAshes & FireCapitol Records

I can see how the term alt-coun-try would be a turn-off for most. Af-ter all, people who claim to like all music can claim not to like country in the same breath and see zero op-position. Country, especially by our generation, is reviled.

For alt-country legend Ryan Adams, however, he isn’t sure how he feels about it. And I’m not talking about the prolific musician’s forays into multiple genres and styles. In early 2009, Adams was diagnosed with Ménière’s disease, an ear disor-der that causes distortion of sound. After a brief hiatus, Adams has re-leased his first solo album since the diagnosis, Ashes & Fire, which required him to literally reinter-pret how music sounds and what it means. I can’t think of anything more exciting.

It’s tough to pin a distinct style to Adam’s music. He’s played in clas-sic rock, black metal and garage rock styles, if that’s any indication. If any-thing, Ashes & Fire sticks closer to Adam’s alt-country roots. Instrumen-tation is sparse, usually just a piano (played by Benmont Tench, a found-ing member of Tom Petty’s Heart-breakers), guitar and compressed faded percussion. There’s no twang to Adams’ vocals, but occasional slide guitar adds a little homegrown tex-ture.

I consider it a blessing that in-strumentation took a backseat this time around. Adams’s vocals are alive in Ashes & Fire, with his voice clear and condensed across the album’s 11 tracks. He swaggers his way through each song, fully confident in both his musicianship and lyrics, which are as poetic as the best Decemberists album.

It’s an honest shame that more people haven’t heard Ryan Adams before, so consider this your jump-ing-off point. Ashes & Fire is imme-diately accessible, and you’ll be en-joying yourself moments into “Dirty Rain,” the album’s opener. We may hate country, but Ryan Adams proves that there’s more to alt-country than meets the eye. —Michael Rabalais, Staff Writer

J. ColeCole World: Sideline StoryRoc Nation

With his album Cole World: The Sideline Story debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 Chart, Jay-Z’s lat-est protégé, J. Cole, proves that any underdog can get up off the sideline. Released Sept. 27 after being pushed back several times, Cole’s album be-came a popular topic on Twitter and Facebook, leading to a boom of fans.

Cole is often compared to his peers in the industry, including Drake and Kanye West, but his album proves that he has a voice of his own. His rhyme style is keen and thought provoking, and he uses metaphorical references and storytelling to convey messages to listeners. He cleverly combines his personal experiences and struggles of the average person to create inspiring songs. Cole is defi-nitely an artist who knows the impor-tance of establishing a relationship with fans through music.

Notable tracks that define the album include, “Dollar and a Dream,” “Sideline Story,” “Cole World,” “Rise and Shine” and “God’s Gift.” These tracks give listeners a great sense of who Cole is and best display his rap-ping ability.

Fan favorite tracks and current or future singles on the album in-clude “Can’t Get Enough,” “Mr. Nice Watch,” “In tha Morning” and “Work Out.” Controversial and inspiring tracks on the album include, “Lost Ones,” “Breakdown” and “Never Told,” where he speaks on the sub-jects of abortion and infidelity. Missy Elliot also makes a surprise appear-ance in the catchy track “Nobody’s Perfect.”

Lyrically, Cole is exquisite and more skilled at rhyming than most popular hip-hop artists today. This album proves he has the potential to reach the success of rap’s most well-respected lyricists, like his mentor, Jay-Z.

But although Cole may be a lyri-cal guru, his songs lack instrumental appeal and consistency. He produced the majority of his own songs, and as a rookie in industry, it showed just a little in this aspect.

Artists like Kanye and Drake are known for not only producing dope beats in the studio, but also putting their signature on it. Even if they produce a song for another artist, fans can identify their work based on their unique style in creating music. Since Cole is just starting out, he still has time to improve in that area of his music and define his own style as a producer.

“Work Out” became Cole’s lead-ing single for the album, followed by “Can’t Get Enough,” featuring Trey Songz. “Mr. Nice Watch,” featuring Jay-Z, was also slated for release as a single early this month. Although very fortunate to have heavy-hit-ters in the music business like Trey Songz, Jay-Z, Drake and Missy Elliot featured on his first album, none of these tracks exude who Cole is as an artist and represent what the album as a whole is truly about.

It seems as though Cole went the route of releasing singles that he thought might grab the audience’s at-tention. This is usually a mistake for new artists, making it easier for the public to compare them to their fa-vorite artists who came before them. One has to think of singles for their albums as samples given out at their favorite Chinese food place. If the sample doesn’t taste as good as you expected, are you going to buy your lunch there?

This time, word of mouth about how excellent J. Cole is as a lyricist triggered the success of his compila-tion.

In the age of stealing of music and piracy, Jermaine Lamarr Cole proved that any newbie in the biz is capable of selling way more than 100,000 copies of their first album. As he narrates audiences through his sideline story, he proves that he’s nei-ther a duplicate of his predecessors or just another bubblegum rapper. It’s only the beginning for him.

Despite the comparisons to oth-ers, Cole has found a way to get his voice out there. In a sense of making it into the industry, J. Cole has gotten off the sideline, but within the indus-try he still has a lot of work to do. Af-ter all, it is a Cole World.—Nicole Holman, Staff Writer

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011 | ENTERTAINMENT | THE SIGNAL16

The rapper Common notified Cam`pus Events early Monday that he would be un-able to attend his previously scheduled guest appearance because he would be in Haiti during that time.

According to Cara Jones, the Campus Events advisor, Common is in Haiti with CNN as part of their “Heroes” series and would be unable to return in time for his appointment.

“That commitment apparently was more important for him to keep then com-ing and doing the commitment he had with us,” Jones said.

She says Campus Events is working to reschedule him for sometime in the spring.

“We want to be able to reschedule him and that’s what we’re going to work towards,” Jones said. “Until we get a date commitment from him – and he actually shows up – our plan is to reschedule him for the spring.”

There will be no alternative guest speaker for Tuesday.

Common was scheduled via a $25,000 contract last July and planned to discuss his recent book release, “One Day It’ll All Make Sense,” and share his personal story and in-sight into the rap scene.

Jones says they will seek to regain some of the marketing expenses incurred as part of the promotional activities for Common through a clause in his contract.

“We are able to re-coop some of the expenses in regards to the money we spent on promotional material, there was a clause for that in our contract. So we can request that,” Jones said.

Jones said she doesn’t expect Com-mon’s last-minute cancelation to affect stu-dent turn out, even though “everybody was disappointed.” She says it’s up to Campus Events to spread the work and get him to reschedule.

“We’re really sad that he’s not coming,” Jones said. “I know a lot of students were excited. We were excited to have him, but I can’t make him get on a plane and I can’t make him come.”

Campus Events does expect any future contract with Common to include great-er time spent with students as a means to make up for the cancellation, Jones said. “Hopefully when we do re-negotiate the agreement and hopefully re-book him, we’ll probably ask for some additional time with students.”

Common sparked some controversy last May among conservatives for his lyr-ics when he was scheduled to speak at the White House by First Lady Michelle Obama.

He is known for his trademark style of

“conscious rap,” which he uses to shed light on social issues around the world. He has received numerous recognitions of his mu-sic from the NAACP Image Award nomina-tions to the Grammy awards.

He has also founded The Common

Ground Foundation that focuses on the in-terpersonal development of young people in underprivileged communities. The founda-tion strives to build these youth into pro-ductive leaders and contributing citizens of the greater society.

CAMPUS LIFEEDITOR

Angel R. White signalliving@gmail.com

THE SIGNAL | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011

www.gsusignal.com/campuslife

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

OPEN

Common cancels Distinguished Speaker Series appearance ANGEL R. WHITECHRIS SHATTUCKStaff

LOUIE FAVORITE | ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTIONCommon will not be visiting Georgia State’s Distinguished Speaker Series on Oct. 11.

FRIDAYNOV. 116 -11 p.m. 20

11

AQUARIUMattheGSU NIGHT

Spring Event Sold Out So BUY YOUR TICKETS EARLYat Campus Tickets, University Center Cash, check, PantherCash and credit cards accepted.

Until October 27:$12 Aquarium only • $20 with Dolphin Show

Beginning October 28:$15 Aquarium only • $25 with Dolphin Show

Family and friends welcomeChildren 2 and under FREE

Free campus parking and shuttlesSupported by Student Activity Fees

www.gsu.edu/studentevents

FeaturingAT&T Dolphin TalesShow at 7 p.m. • Limited tickets available

The Georgia State Athletic De-partment and the Residence Hall Association (RHA) have partnered together for a number of events in order to increase awareness of the different athletic teams and events on campus.

The partnership between the two organizations took its form in the name Project Spirit. Project Spirit reaches out to the different residence halls on campus, in order to get more students who live on-

campus to attend athletic events. In turn, the residence halls with the most student participation--which is counted by PantherCard swipes--will win prizes.

The partnership came to-gether to sponsor a block party last Thursday, where more than 500 students in attendance. The party took place at Piedmont North, and there was a lot of visibility from students as well as the athletic de-partment.

The Project Spirit organiza-tion was officially introduced to the Georgia State student body on Sat-

urday, Oct. 8 at the Georgia State vs. Murray State football game.

Charles Frye, a junior and computer information systems ma-jor and the Project Spirit Director of Public Relations has a simple re-quest of the Georgia State student body.“Everyone please come out to the games.”

Nadia Slaughter, Junior, math-ematics major and the Project Spir-it Director of Programming, shared the same enthusiasm, “We need your support at as many athletic events as possible.”

There were t-shirts, stickers,

book bags and game schedules given away in order to increase the school spirit and camaraderie at athletic games. Rap artist Yung Tone performed his new release “No Cuffin” at the block party. He took photos with students, and encouraged them to attend the school’s athletic events.

The Assistant AD for Mar-keting with Athletics, Tina Kelly, continues to encourage students to show their enthusiasm by going to athletic events. Their mission is to get more students out whether it is for football, soccer, basketball or

golf. She believes each of the differ-ent sports teams are important, and each team needs more people to fill up its seats.

The Project Spirit program looks forward to more block par-ties and other promotional events in the future. In addition to prizes and winnings, they will continue to be focused on increasing the vis-ibility of the athletics department. The Project Spirit program prom-ises to be a positive partnership for the students who live on campus to be more actively involved in ath-letic events.

Project Spirit throws huge block party

JAMILA DEWITT | SIGNALThe Project Spirit is an organization started to create more awareness of athletic events on campus.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011 | CAMPUS LIFE | THE SIGNAL18

JAMILA DEWITTStaff Writer

Campus Calendar

Want to see your event in this space? Contact Angel White at signalliving@gmail.com 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.

OCTOBER 11, 2011Paper Trail: The Art of Taking Dynamic Lecture NotesAlthough your professor mentions what be on the test, you don’t have to write every word down. Instead, find out how to distinguish critical from trivial information and how to do all this without cramping your hand. Effective note-taking enhances your learning and makes studying for exams easier!University Center Room 485 // 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Distinguished Speaker Series: Common- One Day It’ll All Make SenseThe “King of Conscious Hip Hop,” Common is one of music’s most poetic and respected lyricists. Over the course of seven albums, his introspective rhymes have pushed boundaries with their incisive social commentary. In September, he released his first book for adults, a provocative and touching memoir titled One Day It’ll All Make Sense, which explores his upbringing and familial relationships. Student Center Ballroom // 3:00 p.m.

OCTOBER 12, 2011Writing a Winning EssayThis workshop unlocks the secrets of what sets a scholarship winner apart from thousands of candidates - the personal essay! Learn how to create a winning essay by avoiding common mistakes, understanding what the judges want to see, and reviewing winning essays and essays that failed. If you have already written a personal essay that needs work, don’t be afraid to bring it!Sparks Hall Room 251 // 3:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Department of African American Studies documentary screeningThe Department of African American Studies presents “Black Masculinity in Comic Books and Hip Hop Animation,” a documentary viewing and discussion. Brandon Schultz and Jonathan Gayles will moderate.Cinefest // 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

OCTOBER 13, 2011Lunch and Learn: Careers in DiversityA panel discussion on turning your passion for diversity into a career.Lunch will be provided.Veteran’s Memorial Hall // 12:15 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Study Abroad FairCan’t decide between South Africa, South Korea, or South America? Come to the Study Abroad Fair to figure it all out! Meet with GSU program directors and program reps from scores of other universities and companies. Talk with Financial Aid and the Scholarship Resource Center about how to fund your experience! This year we also have a raffle for a $100 voucher from STA Student Travel and a $500 Eurail Ticket! Free trivia prizes, too! Student Center Ballroom // 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

OCTOBER 14, 2011Yoga ClassesEmployee Development & Wellness is sponsoring a series of Yoga classes for Georgia State University faculty, staff & students. Try the 1-hour class of gentle yoga, emphasizing stress reduction and relaxation. Veteran’s Memorial Hall // 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

THE SIGNAL | CAMPUS LIFE | TUESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2011 19

Five ways to overcome midterm mania

Angel WhiteCampus Life Editor

Midterms –a gift and a curse. It is a gift because it signifies that students have made it through half the semester and have made it that much closer to winter break. It is a curse because they now have to begin late night study ses-sions, anxiety attacks, and sleep and nutrition deprivation in efforts to prepare. Instead of beating yourself up, The Signal has compiled five ways to instead beat test anxiety and best prepare you to ace all midterms.

1. Get enough sleep.According to The Sleep Foundation, getting seven to eight hours of sleep is essential to a healthy lifestyle. This

is especially important when preparing for a major test or presentation. Sleep allows for the body to repair itself and allows for the mind to rest. With a rested mind, it allows for more efficient memorization and focus. Suggestions for a good night sleep include turning off all distractions such as lights, television, loud music, etc. and also, try to set a regular bedtime a week prior to the midterm or major class assignment.

2. Utilize campus resources.Georgia State offers various services to assist students in preparing for midterms and overcoming test anxiety. Un-

der the Georgia State University Academic Support division there are numerous services offered to assist students in academic success. The Counseling Center offers numerous workshops on effective note-taking and study skills. While the Office of Student Support Services address test taking strategies, time management and any students suffering from test anxiety. Visit www.gsu.edu and search “Academic Support” for more information.

3. Use Supplemental Instruction (SI)The office of Undergraduate Studies sponsors SI on our campus that provides academic support to a select group

of classes offered on campus. The program offers study sessions beyond the classroom free of cost. The study sessions are usually led by students who previously did exceedingly well in the class and share their tips and insights on how to understand course materials. An SI schedule is available at http://www.gsu.edu/success/SI.html.

4. Manage your time.Time management is imperative in acing an exam or class project. In order to properly prepare, set blocks of time

throughout the day dedicated to the assignment, but do not overload yourself. Make sure to establish balance in your schedule to ensure no cram sessions occur. By creating blocks of study time in between blocks of resting time, it will decrease stress and develop a more organized pattern of studying.

5. Ask for help.Even if it is the day before the exam, do not be afraid to ask professors for help. Instructors are willing to answer

any questions students have before the exam day. I say before the exam day because your professor may not be so will-ing to answer questions as he or she is passing out the exam. Set up an appointment during office hours or email any questions or concerns.

For more information on academic support and success, visit http://www.gsu.edu/success/about.html.

GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY RELATIONS

Styles Spacing Lists

Campus Events

CAMPUS EVENTSwww.gsu.edu/studentevents

Styles Spacing Lists

Leadership Development

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENTwww.gsu.edu/leadership

Ethics and LeadershipWednesday, October 12, Noon-1 p.m., Student Center, Lucerne Suite

Understanding and developing ethics is an important leadership component. Explore different ethical viewpoints and apply them to real world examples.

Social ResponsibilityWednesday, October 19, Noon-1 p.m., Student Center, Lucerne Suite

Many corporations have begun to honor a third bottom line: people, planet, profit. Join us as we investigate the responsibility leaders

have to the community and the sustainability of our planet.

Styles Spacing Lists

Student Organizations

STUDENT ORGANIZATIONShttp://gsu.orgsync.com

OrgSync Training Day Friday, October 28, 465 University CenterJoin us for a day of workshops covering various aspects of the OrgSync system at GSU. Representatives from OrgSync will be on campus to lead discussion and offer tutorials in the following areas:

Session 1: Using OrgSync for Involvement, 10-11:30 a.m.

Session 2: OrgSync Resources for Advisors, 1-2:30 p.m.

Session 3: Using the OrgSync Website Builder, 3-4:30 p.m.

All sessions are B.Y.O.C. (Bring Your Own Computer), and snacks will be provided. For more information, contact studentorganizations@gsu.edu. RSVP for each session using the calendar on OrgSync.

Styles Spacing Lists

Spotlight

SPOTLIGHT PROGRAMS BOARDwww.gsu.edu/spotlight

Asylum 1913: Nightmare on Gilmer Street Friday, October 287-11 p.m., Student Center BallroomThe theme of Spotlightʼs annual Haunted House this year is an insane asylum. The event will feature many festive activities, including pumpkin decorating, fortune tellers, a cake walk, a costume contest, food and much more. Come out and have a scary fun time!

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

Styles Spacing Lists

Homecoming

SAVE THE DATE!See website and ads in this issue for the Rick Ross Homecoming Concert and Homecoming Schedule of Events.

Courtyard Music Series.jpg

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

Georgia State University uLearn Facebook TwitterGeorgia State University uLearn Facebook Twitter

Cinefest Film Theatre

Page One: Inside the New York Times, October 10-16

ATLANTA ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL

Chasing Waves, October 11

Mumbai Connection, October 13

House by the Cemetery, October 15

The Silent House, October 17-24

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

Styles Spacing Lists

http://www.gsu.edu/studentcenter

WHATʼSHAPPENINGON CAMPUS! Supported by Student Activity Fees