Thursday, January 31, 2013 Serving the University of Alabama since 1894 Vol. 119, Issue 81

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NEWS | CAMPUS MOVIE FEST CULTURE | ALUMNI

NEWS | ALUMNI

NEWS | MILITARY

By Taylor VeazeyContributing Writer

ESPN’s SportsCenter anchor and University of Alabama alumnus Rece Davis will speak at the Ferguson Student Center Theater today at 11 a.m. in an event spon-sored by the University of Alabama Program in Sports Communication.

Andrew Billings, director of

APSC, said it is obvious why the program invited Davis to be a guest speaker.

“Rece is one of those faces and names we invite into our living room during the year,” Billings said. “He is syn-onymous with football and culture in Alabama and the South.”

Billings said just like our university wants to be the best in sports, our students want to be the best in the sports industry.

“Jobs in sports are incred-ibly competitive, and I think

hearing from people in the industry can provide a lot of insight to them,” Billings said. “People like Rece can shed light on how you can make it in this industry.”

Even though the program in sports communication is in its first year, this is the second big name that they have brought in as a speaker. ESPN Executive Chairman George Bodenheimer spoke last October to more than 500 students, faculty and others.

ESPN’s Rece Davis to speak at Ferguson CenterNew communications program hosts event

CW FileRece Davis

By Francie JohnsonContributing Writer

If Matthew DeVine of funk rock band Downright has learned anything about the music industry, it’s that the true measure of success is not pre-ceded by a dollar sign.

“The reward is in the work itself,” DeVine said. “The reward is getting better at what you do, setting a standard and meeting it, reaching deeper to improve, taking a hard look at your weaknesses and coming to terms with them. Those are all the real reasons to do any art.”

Downright, comprised of DeVine and Steve Lewis, will

headline at Green Bar this Friday. Both band members sing and play numerous instru-ments, including bass, guitar and keyboard.

Downright’s sound merges funk and rock, but the band members hope their audience will take away more from their music than just conventional genre descriptions.

“I want [people] to feel like dancing when they hear [our music],” DeVine said. “If they’re not dancing, I want them to be emotionally challenged by it. To feel something they were not expecting to feel at a given moment. Almost like sneaking in there and reminding them that they have feelings they’d forgotten.”

Alabama alumni return to preform show at Green Bar

Downright wants to make audience dance

SubmittedMatthew DeVine and Steve Lewis both preform multiple instruments on their tracks.

SEE DOWNRIGHT PAGE 14

SEE DAVIS PAGE 15

By Kyle DennanContributing Writer

On Jan. 24, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced a major shift in military policy – women will now be allowed to serve in combat roles. For some University of Alabama students, the change is a welcome one.

“I think it’s good,” said Ann Durand, a sophomore majoring in political science and a cadet in the ROTC. “As long as the women can keep up with the men, they should be treated the same.”

The ban was instated with the 1994 Direct Ground Combat Definition and Assignment Rule, which stated women would be excluded from serv-ing in units whose primary mis-sion was direct ground combat.

The removal of the ban on

women in combat roles will also affect the career trajectory of female soldiers.

“What’s important about this is that women can now get promotions faster,” Durand said. “Combat fast-tracks your career.”

Durand’s physical fitness scores qualify her for com-bat roles, but she was previ-ously barred from those roles because of her gender.

According to the Department of Defense, women make up

approximately 15 percent of military personnel.

“The Department’s goal in rescinding the rule is to ensure that the mission is met with the best-qualified and most capable people, regardless of gender,” Panetta said in a news release.

The lines which separate female soldiers in non-combat roles from men who are in com-bat roles have become blurred over time.

Lift of combat ban for women affects ROTCMilitary women may be promoted faster

SubmittedAccording to ROTC cadet Ann Durand, combat fast-tracks careers for women. Durand’s physical fi tness scores qualify her for combat.SEE MILITARY PAGE 15

IF YOU GO...• What: Alabama

Program in Sports Communication presentsRece Davis

• When: 11 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 31

• Where: Ferguson Student Center Theater

RECORDED BYSTUDENTS

By Krystina PedersenContributing Writer

The University of Alabama will host The Campus MovieFest Finale Thursday, Jan. 31 in the Ferguson Ballroom at 7:30 p.m., where 16 films created by UA students last month will be screened, judged and awarded.

Forty-six films were submitted by University of Alabama students for last year’s competition, and J.R. Hardman, promotions manager for Campus MovieFest, said there was even more participation in 2013 from students at the Capstone.

“We’re really excited because even more teams participated and created even more movies than last year,” Hardman said.

The 16 films that will be screened Thursday were chosen by an anony-mous panel of student and faculty judges who deemed them the best in this year’s competition.

Student-made fi lms to be screened at the Ferg

SEE MOVIEFEST PAGE 2

TSOLOSCENE( T H E i s o n l y l i v i n g o n c e )

PAGE 16

CW | Austin Bigoney

ONLINE ON THE CALENDAR

LUNCH

SteakBaked PotatoBroccoli & CheeseSplit Pea SoupPasta Bar (Vegetarian)

FRESH FOODLUNCH

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DINNER

Carved HamCandied YamsPinto BeansCollardsBanana’s Fosters Crepes

(Vegetarian)

ON THE MENULAKESIDE

FRIDAY

What: International Coffee Hour

Where: 121 B.B. Comer Hall

When: 11:30 a.m.

What: McCollough Medical Scholars Forum

Where: Shelby Hall

When: 3:30 p.m.

What: Honor Band Spectrum Concert

Where: Moody Music Building

When: 7:30 p.m.

TODAY

What: Campus MovieFest Finale

Where: Ferguson Center Ballroom

When: 6 - 8 p.m.

What: Alabama Symphonic Band

Where: Moody Music Building

When: 7:30 p.m.

What: Men’s Basketball v. Arkansas

Where: Coleman Coliseum

When: 8 p.m.

SATURDAY

What: Swimming & Diving v. Georgia and South Carolina

Where: Alabama Aquatic Center

When: 11 a.m.

What: Women’s Gymnastics v. Georgia

Where: Athens, Ga.

When: 4 p.m.

What: Raudelunas Pataphysical Redux

Where: Ferguson Center Theater

When: 7:30 - 9 p.m.

ON THE RADAR

GO

GO

Page 2• Thursday,January 31, 2013

ON

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The Crimson White is the community newspaper of The University of Alabama. The Crimson White is an editorially free newspaper produced by students. The University of Alabama cannot influ-ence editorial decisions and editorial opinions are those of the editorial board and do not represent the official opinions of the University. Advertising offices of The Crimson White are on the first floor, Student Publications Building, 923 University Blvd. The adver-tising mailing address is P.O. Box 2389, Tuscaloosa, AL 35403-2389. The Crimson White (USPS 138020) is published four times weekly when classes are in session during Fall and Spring Semester except for the Monday after Spring Break and the Monday after Thanksgiving, and once a week when school is in session for the summer. Marked calendar provided. The Crimson White is provided for free up to three issues. Any other papers are $1.00. The subscription rate for The Crimson White is $125 per year. Checks should be made payable to The University of Alabama and sent to: The Crimson White Subscription Department, P.O. Box 2389, Tuscaloosa, AL 35403-2389. The Crimson White is entered as peri-odical postage at Tuscaloosa, AL 35401. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Crimson White, P.O. Box 2389, Tuscaloosa, AL 35403-2389. All material contained herein, except advertising or where indicated oth-erwise, is Copyright © 2012 by The Crimson White and protected under the “Work Made for Hire” and “Periodical Publication” categories of the U.S. copy-right laws. Material herein may not be reprinted without the expressed, written permission of The Crimson White.

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LUNCH

Chicken ParmesanEgg NoodlesGrilled Zucchini & SquashSeasoned CornVegetable Alfredo

(Vegetarian)

DINNER

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BURKE

By Tori LinvilleContributing Writer

A University of Alabama stu-dent is bringing a new app called Nightwise to campus that allows people to see events going on in the city as well as what their group of friends is doing for the night.

The app is in the development stages and will be released to col-lege students in August 2013.

Nightwise was created by col-lege students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The app is designed to be a quick and easy way to get updates about what friends are planning

to do for the night and to see what bars in the area have going on.

Kiernan Heine and Ben Foster, two UNC students, are co-found-ers of this new app.

“We’re answer-ing two questions at once,” Heine said. “What’s going on and what are the peo-ple I care about doing. It makes making plans easy, and it encourages people to go out and experience things they enjoy with the people they enjoy.”

Nightwise features a friend list similar to the social media app Snapchat combined with features similar to Twitter. The

app is also nonin-vasive, using the contacts from a user’s phone as a friend list instead of instantly link-ing to Facebook.

“We saw social media as not being very private, so we

chose to go through the contact list instead of Facebook,” Foster said. “We wanted to create a bet-ter sense of community in the

towns we’re launching in, and we feel like Facebook friends don’t necessarily represent your inti-mate friends group.”

Nightwise allows for students to sign up for the app to be in their town on their website and will be providing QR codes in bars that use the app after the app’s launch. The University has its own campus representative for Nightwise, sophomore Kyle Leopard.

“It’s a new way for students to determine whether they should go out that night or not,” Leopard said. “Say I want to go to Innisfree, and I don’t know what my friends are doing. I would just

pull up Nightwise to see which of my friends are going out and which bars they’re going to be at. It’s a great, feasible tool to use and location services aren’t builtinto the app, so it can’t track you either.”

The app is aiming to release in 10 college towns later this year within the Southeast, such as Chapel Hill, N.C., Tuscaloosa,Athens, Ga., and other towns where there is a growing night-life.

To request Nighwise in a cer-tain town, students can go to getnightwise.com. The app is also available on Facebook and Twitter.

UA Student brings Nightwise app to Tuscaloosa

CMF is the world’s largest student film festival and a pre-mier outlet for future movie makers that allows students to create videos for either fun or to kickstart their careers in filmmaking. Participating in CMF is free and requires only a team captain and crew mem-bers that attend the University.

More than 100 schools are participating in the festival this year, but Hardman said he expected the competition from Alabama to be fierce, both regionally and nationally.

“The films made at UA have been excellent in the past and have gone on to be nominated and win prizes on the National at CMF Hollywood before,” Hardman said. “I think every-

one is going to be blown away by the talent of their fellow students, as well as have a great time seeing what they’ve accomplished.”

Each film is approximately five minutes in length and content ranges from comedies to dramas, depending on each participant’s interest.

Three of the 16 screened films from UA participants win the Best Comedy, Best Drama, and Best Picture awards, and their crews will claim prizes includ-ing directors’ chairs and a 12-month subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud. Those top three will advance to national compe-tition to compete in Hollywood, Calif., in June. The winner in UA’s Best Picture category will

also be invited to attend the Cannes Film Festival in France.

Adam Hofer, a junior major-ing in economics and finance, shot a video for the festival that explores the mind of someone who is planning on committing a school shooting and how they can be stopped.

“I’ve been interested in the filmmaking process since middle school and have always loved making and studying films, Hober said. “When I heard the competition was free and provided equipment and the opportunity to meet professionals in California and Cannes, I knew it was right up my alley.”

All films were filmed and edited in the span of one week

unless special permission was granted for movies that contain scenes that required longer amounts of time to film.

“Doing this really helped sharpen my cinematography skills,” said Hofer. “I tried new styles of shooting and imple-mented some aspects that I had read about.”

Tonight’s festival concludes Alabama’s sixth year par-ticipating in the festival. The screening of the University’s top 16 films Thursday is free to attend, and the doors of the Ferguson Center Ballroom will open at 6:30 p.m. so students can arrive early, walk the red carpet and take photos. The screening of the films begins at7:30 p.m.

MOVIEFEST FROM PAGE 1

Films to be shown in Ferg Ballroom tonight

IF YOU GO...• What: Campus

MovieFest Finale

• Where: Ferguson Center Ballroom

• When: Doors open at 6:30 p.m., screening begins at 7:30p.m.

From MCT Campus

A Capitol Hill hearing on gun control Wednesday brought together both sides of the debate, but the sharp differ-ences on display showed that common ground could prove to be elusive.

The high-profile hearing was the opening act in what’s likely to be a lengthy and contentious drama about public safety, law enforcement, mental health and personal liberty. But time might not be on the side of those who are pushing for changes in gun laws.

“They understand their best chance to get this done is to do it soon,” said Robert Spitzer, chairman of the Political Science Department at the State University of New York at Cortland, and author of “The Politics of Gun Control.”

“What should America do about gun violence?” was the subject of the hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee

that came seven weeks after a massacre in Newtown, Conn., that left 20 elementary school children, as well as six adults dead.

While no clear-cut answer emerged from the nearly four-hour hearing, former Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona expressed a sentiment that both sides would seem to embrace.

“Speaking is difficult, but I need to say something impor-tant,” she said. “Violence is a big problem. Too many children are dying.”

But after that, the questions and testimony revealed the divide that has long defined the debate over gun control.

James Johnson, chief of police in Baltimore County, Md., said Congress needed to extend background checks to gun shows, where 40 percent of guns sales occur.

Wayne LaPierre, chief executive of the National Rifle

Association, said that back-ground checks don’t work, nor do more gun laws.

“We could dramatically cut crimes with guns if we started enforcing the 9,000 federal laws on the books,” he said.

Giffords’ husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, said bet-ter background checks could have stopped the Tucson shoot-er, Jared Loughner, from buy-ing a gun.

“My wife would not have been sitting here today if we had stronger background checks,” said Kelly, a gun owner.

In an interview Wednesday on Telemundo, Spanish lan-guage TV, President Obama said, “What we’re looking for here has nothing to do with tak-ing away peoples’ guns…We’re talking about some common sense things.”

The shock of the bloodshed in Newtown, which followed a rash of recent mass shootings, galvanized supporters of gun restrictions and prompted new

legislation in Congress from Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., that would ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, as well as tightening back-ground checks.

But gun rights advocates have mobilized, too, opposing efforts to curb guns or ammuni-tion and promoting the enforce-ment of existing laws, prosecut-ing gun crimes and focusing on mental health issues.

“This is such a hard debate because people have such fixed positions,” Feinstein said.

Even if her bill moves to the floor, and there’s no guar-antee it will, Republicans and Democrats are divid-ed on its core components. No Republican senator has expressed support for Feinstein’s bill, while the Democratic members of the committee included four of the cosponsors. They even dis-agree about some of the smaller things, such as whether exist-ing laws are used to the fullest

to prosecute criminals.A January poll by the Johns

Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health found that 69 percent of those sur-veyed favored a ban on military-style assault rifles such as those used in recent murder sprees atan Aurora, Colo. theater and at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown.

Nearly an identical number favored restrictions on high-capacity ammunition clips, such as the one used in the Arizona shooting that injured Giffords.

Spitzer said the current script reads a lot like it did after the mass shooting at Columbine High School in Colorado in 1999.The Senate passed new gun restrictions with Republican support and a tiebreaking vote from then-Vice President Al Gore. The bill languished in the House, giving the National Rifle Association time to orga-nize opposition. The House ulti-mately rejected it.

Gun debate begins in Congress, but both sides start out far apart

“We wanted to create a better sense of community in the towns we’re launching in.

— Ben Foster

Editor | Melissa Brownnewsdesk@cw.ua.edu

Thursday, January 31, 2013NEWSNEWS

OPINION

CULTURE

SPORTS

Page 3

By Mark HammontreeContributing Writer

Alabama Atheists and Agnostics and the Southeastern Collegiate Atheist Alliance will host two former pastors to speak at their event “Out of the Pulpit: from Pastor to Atheist” on Feb. 2, in Room 205 of Gorgas Library at 3 p.m.

Richard Haynes, a former mega-church pastor, and Jerry DeWitt, a former Pentecostal preacher, will tell their stories

of their journey from deeply-rooted religious pasts to the atheist leaders they are today.

According to a New York Times article on DeWitt, when the small-town pastor began to struggle with his own beliefs, he began to participate in an organization called Recovering from Religion that sought to aid those in the often uncertain transition from religious prac-tice to a purely secular life.

Eventually, DeWitt began to speak publicly again, this time

as an atheist “convert.” He now travels around the country, especially the South, speaking about his own story and his views on religion.

For many atheists and agnos-tics, having formerly religious figures now serve as atheistic leaders is a meaningful valida-tion of their views. They take such stories of conversion as support for the belief that any-one, regardless of their cur-rent beliefs or views, can come to view the world in a more secular light.

“What Jerry DeWitt and Richard Haynes have been through is something that is not often spoken of, and very seldom understood,” Gordan Maples, regional campus orga-nizer for the SECAA, said.

“Hearing these two men talk about their experiences may help provide a new perspective for people, regardless of their own background.”

Student groups like AAA and SECAA hope events like

these can help foster a more understanding and respect-ful dialogue between atheists, Christians, Jews, Muslims and other faiths.

Michael Grierson, vice presi-dent of AAA, said his group and the SECAA have hosted similar events in previous years when prominent atheist speakers were invited to come speak in a setting open to any who would like to attend. To that end, Grierson hopes that many will attend, not just those who would consider them-selves atheist or agnostic.

“I’ve reached out to dif-ferent religious groups and invited them for the chance to create positive dialogue among different perspectives,” Grierson said.

In the Ferguson Center Tuesday, less than a hundred feet apart, both the Alabama Atheists and Agnostics and a Christian student group, UnAshamed, manned tables to reach out to students and to promote similar events. ForUnAshamed, an upcoming wor-ship event held in the Zone at Bryant Denny Stadium; for AAA, the former pastors who will be speaking at Gorgas.

“In my opinion, it is impor-tant to learn about the expe-riences of people of differ-ent backgrounds and beliefs than yourself,” Maples said. “It is a key to understanding people who are different than you, which fosters empathy and a sense for our common humanity.”

Groups to host 2 pastors turned nonbelievers

By Samuel YangContributing Writer

The Alabama Management Society, along with Kappa Alpha and several other greek organi-zations from The University of Alabama, will host a fundraiser to benefit the Mobile, Ala., com-munity impacted by tornadoes on Christmas Day 2012.

Greek organizations Alpha Chi Omega, Phi Delta Theta, Delta Kappa Epsilon, Chi Omega and Alpha Phi are co-hosting the event along with Kappa Alpha.

“I think there’ll be a great turnout,” John Stassen, KA philanthropy chair, said. “I want to raise as much money as I can for this cause.”

Stassen, who is from the Fairhope/Daphne, Ala., area across the bay from Mobile, Ala., said he took initiative on adapting the original AMS plan

of having a cookout for vic-tims of Hurricane Sandy both because of his personal connec-tion to the area and because of what he sees as an opportunity to network within the greek community.

“I started out with two fra-ternities that had a lot of cur-rently active members from the Mobile area,” he said. “I wanted to provide an opportu-nity for us to come together for a greater cause.”

Chi Omega Philanthropy Chair Sims Munn said many were enthusiastic to organize a fundraiser for Mobile because many UA students are well aware of the difficulties facing tornado-impacted communi-ties following the April 27, 2011, tornadoes.

“That was something that created more of an awareness and compassion within the greek community,” she said.

“We are very excited to come together with these particu-lar Greek houses because we have never done something with these certain houses like this before. This cookout is something showing our com-passion for those in the state of Alabama.”

Mark Lail, AMS president, began organizing a greek-affil-iated cookout in October and said he agreed the decision to ultimately send proceeds to Mobile tornado relief was con-nected to the Tuscaloosa tor-nadoes and also sees a sense of Alabamian unity driving the cross-state relief effort.

“The state of Alabama is a huge part of the University [and] we called on the state of Alabama when we were hit,” Lail said. “We wanted to give back to the community that gave to us when Tuscaloosa was hit. We wanted to be there

to help other people in similarcircumstances.”

Cameron Troilo, AMS vice president and member of Kappa Alpha, said the event will last from 3 to 7 p.m., with hot dogs, hamburgers and sides served beginning around4 p.m.

Tickets are $5 and can be bought via purchase funds or with credit card or cash at thedoor. T-shirts will also be on sale.

AMS to host cookout for Samdu IF YOU GO...• What: Tornado relief

fundraiser

• Where: Kappa Alpha Fraternity House

• When: Feb. 1, 3 to 7 p.m.

IF YOU GO...• What: “Out of the

Pulpit: from Pastor to Atheist”

• Where: Room 205 Gorgas Library

• When: Feb. 2 at 3 p.m.

LiquidListings

Private Events Call: 205-349-0505

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By Tray SmithSenior Staff Columnist

Last year, Mississippi and Wisconsin passed laws that allow licensed gun owners to carry concealed weapons on college campuses. Similar measures are now being considered in Texas and Arkansas, as policymakers at the state and federal level con-tinue to debate and discuss changes to gun laws.

Here at The University of Alabama, though, we don’t need the state legislature, Congress, or the Supreme Court to make sensible chang-es to gun policy. We can do it ourselves.

Alabama is one of 23 states that allows universities to decide if individuals can carry concealed weapons on their campuses. The University of Alabama has decided they can’t. That policy can and should be changed.

Since 2004, Utah has allowed concealed-carry on public col-lege campuses, and in the past two years, courts in Colorado and Oregon have struck down university policies that prohibited concealed-carry.

So far, no harm has been caused by concealed-carry on those campuses. However, there are several examples of college-aged permit hold-ers using concealed weap-ons successfully to defend themselves.

In 2009, for instance, a group of students taken hostage by

two masked intruders at a party in College Park, Ga., were ultimately freed when one of the students pulled a firearm out of his backpack and began shooting at the kid-nappers.

Such stories are common-place, and reflect a mountain of statistical evidence that suggest more guns in the hands of responsible citizens deter crime. A 2003 study pub-lished in the Stanford Law Review found that murder rates decline by between 1.5 and 2.5 percent for each addi-tional year a right-to-carry law is in effect.

Despite the proven impact concealed carry laws have had on reducing crime, allow-ing guns on college campuses still seems like a stretch for a lot of students and faculty members. Some are reluctant to sacrifice the false sense of security provided by “gun-free zones,” while others have legitimate concerns that mix-ing guns and college is a reci-pe for danger.

In Alabama, though, indi-viduals have to be at least 21 years old to obtain a permit to carry concealed weap-ons. Most students that age do not live on campus. The University could allow con-cealed-carry on campus and still prohibit storing weapons in dorms.

Alternatively, the University could give concealed-carry permit holders who still live on campus the option of rent-ing a UA-approved safe to store their weapons, and even conduct random inspections to make sure the weapons are secure.

Gun skeptics are not just worried about the dorms, though. Mark Timmons, a UA junior majoring in civil engineering, summed up the concerns many students have when he told The Crimson White earlier this week that no one should carry a gun on campus regardless of whether they have a permit.

The greatest tragedy would be for students to find them-selves in a situation where they needed a concealed weapon but don’t have one because of UA’s policy.

UA students with concealed-carry permits can already take their handguns everywhere they go off campus. If licensed college students possessing handguns are really a threat to public safety, then we are in danger every time we leave the University’s borders.

Far from being a threat to

public safety, though, law-abiding gun owners are per-haps its greatest ally. The sim-ple act of applying for a con-cealed-carry permit implies an individual has a certain level of respect for the law. After all, most criminals intent on using weapons to harm others don’t start by asking the sheriff’s department for permission to carry the weapon.

Additionally, in the state of Alabama, law enforcement officials can deny permits to individuals they deem untrust-worthy. Every concealed-car-ry permit holder has already been screened by their county sheriff and must reapply for their permit annually.

For permission to use a per-mit on campus, UA could con-duct additional background checks and even require a gun safety course, as the Mississippi law requires. Other University policies, like requiring students without concealed-carry permits to store their firearms at UAPD, could remain in place.

What shouldn’t remain in place is the University’s indis-criminate ban on defensive weapons that prevents law-abiding students from carry-ing guns in self-defense, while doing nothing to deter crimi-nals who disregard the rules and the law.

Tray Smith is a senior major-ing in journalism and politi-cal science. His column runs weekly on Thursdays.

Editor | John Brinkerhoffletters@cw.ua.edu

Thursday , January 31, 2013OPINIONSNEWS

OPINION

CULTURE

SPORTS

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Respect the shifting gender roles, bringing women into combat By Hannah WaidStaff Columnist

While driving to class the other day, I heard an interest-ing conversation on the radio. It was comprised of two ques-tions. First, what were the listeners’ thoughts on women leaving the house without makeup? Second, what were the listeners’ thoughts on the lifting of the ban on women in combat?

I found it very interesting that these two questions were asked together. They could not have seemed more opposite at first. Eye shadow or camou-flage. Mascara wands or war weapons. But as I continued to listen to the responses of the people calling in, I realized that both questions dealt with the typical American ideals, or to some, stereotypes.

Some women called in say-ing that they would never dare to leave the house with-out wearing makeup. They said they personally felt more confident when they wore it or that they even felt naked without it.

For some women, wearing makeup was a decision they made for themselves. Others said they wore makeup because they wanted to pres-ent themselves in way that caused others to view them in a certain way, whether that be a colleague seeing them as prepared and put together or a significant other to see them as beautiful. Another asked, “What is eyeliner?”

Then as people addressed the question of women in com-bat, the spectrum of respons-es was just as broad. Some women questioned the abil-ity of other women fighting in combat, looking at themselves and claiming that they did not have the same physical-ity of men. Other women were ecstatic about the increase in opportunities and move toward equality for women in war.

But the most interesting call-in was from a woman who had an insider’s view. As a member of the U.S. armed services, she offered a view that most Americans are not able to see from the outside. She expressed excitement for both herself and other women around her.

When the radio DJ asked her if there were any nega-tive opinions of this from the men in the service around her, her immediate answer was no. She acknowledged there would be some negativity

from many men and women,both involved in and outside ofmilitary services. And one ofthe popular arguments is the issue of sexual relationshipsor rape risks in combininggenders in the combat unit.

Instead, she claimed thatthe main problem she hadheard of was one of famil-ial ties rather than sexualtension. She described thebond of men and women inthe armed services as onebetween brothers and sisters,and that with the ban liftedthat allowed women to fight indirect combat roles, the menwere concerned about thesafety of their military sisters.

It is expected of brothersto protect their sisters. Ofmen to protect women. Andthe opportunity for women to fight in combat roles intro-duces a new question for menin how they can protect thosewomen.

As the conversationbounced back and forthbetween makeup and combat,between something trivialversus something life threat-ening, the American idealsand stereotypes seemed toremain the same. The typicalAmerican ideal woman is onethat is gentle and feminine,in both her actions and herlooks. The typical Americanideal man is one that is braveand protective, in both hisactions and his treatment ofothers.

But as the stereotypicallines of femininity becomeblurred, with women tradingin mascara wands for combat weapons, the stereotypicalroles of masculinity begin tochange as well. Nevertheless, I believe that the great-est quality of both men andwomen is confidence. Combator no combat. Makeup or nomakeup. We should respectthe men and women who are confident, willing and ableto fight for our country incombat.

Hannah Waid is a juniormajoring in English. Her col-umn runs biweekly.

NEWS | CIVIL RIGHTS

Hannah Waid

Tray Smith

The Million Dollar Band has more resources than any other schoolAs a former member of the

Million Dollar Band, I marched for four and a half years and completely understand where the current member who was interviewed in the article is coming from.

I’ve gone to Arby’s for a restroom or water break, practiced in the rain using a shopping bag to keep my hair from getting ruined, and I’ve even had to find an open room in Moody Music Building to change and primp for a perfor-mance. But if you ask me, it’s all part of the experience.

We have traveled to many different schools and had a chance to socialize with other bands. I have heard from every single one how good we have it in the Million Dollar Band.

When traveling we didn’t have to pay for our own trans-portation or raise money, every member received per diem for food on trips even when food prior to the game is provided, we have our own crew of band managers that move our larger equipment for us in our own equipment truck and we don’t have to

raise money for our uniforms.As far as water breaks are

concerned, we have Gatorade and water available at every practice and are provided with a water bottle at the start of every year to bring with us to practice. On extremely hot days or rainy days the athletic department allows the band to use the indoor practice facility that the team also uses.

We also have access to our own personal trainers for inju-ries or illness that we may sus-tain and have a huge support staff of assistant directors.

Also, we are able to have our music arranged by renowned composers.

If the person who was inter-viewed looked a little closer at the reason for Auburn’s need for a new facility, it’s because they were forced to move due to campus expansion and they have to raise, as an organiza-tion, $14 million because the athletic department is only providing $1.2 million in fund-ing. These extravagant plans may not even come to fruition. Also, the new facility will be further away from the stadium

and the members will have to carry their equipment there.

As a member of the col-orguard, I know all too well about having to find a place to practice that wasn’t muddy or too small, but we always found a place if needed. Of course there are improvements that can be made in every orga-nization on campus, because that’s the nature of evolving as a group, but we are far from being downtrodden and mistreated, or having money withheld from our group.

There are many programs

(even AU) that wish they have our resources. It is why we don’t play “Keep up with The Jones” at The University of Alabama, we set the standard. The day that I find myself thinking anything at AU is superior to Alabama will be the day I yell, “W.D.E” and lose hope in all that is good inthis world. Roll Tide!

Alesia Pruitt is a former mem-ber of the Million Dollar Bandand a 2008 alumna of The University of Alabama.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

NEWS | GUN CONTROL

Law-abiding students should be able to bear arms

NEWS OPINION CULTURE SPORTS Thursday, January 31, 2013 | Page 5

Despite growth in popularity, online dating is almost as ridiculous as it is riskyBy Tara MassoulehStaff Columnist

The night before the National Championship, I watched an ESPN special on Manti Te’o. The hour-long segment had all the makings of a great Hallmark movie: the hardworking athlete, a tragic turn of events, a diag-nosis of cancer, and most impor-tantly, the rise of an epic hero.

Of course, I fell right into the trap. By the end of broadcast, I was almost in tears trying to suppress mutinous thoughts that I actually wanted Notre Dame to defeat Alabama just so poor Te’o could have his shot at victory.

Of course, just 24 hours later, The University of Alabama had

once again proven their domi-nance, and Notre Dame depart-ed wondering what had gone so wrong. When Deadspin.com debuted their headlining story revealing that Te’o’s girlfriend did not die of leukemia and in fact, never existed in the first place, I was shocked. It had all

been an elaborate hoax.And after the kind of emotion-

al response I had to Te’o, falling in love with his inspirational story and endearing struggle to the top, I couldn’t help but feeling that it wasn’t only Te’o who had been “catfished,” but me too.

While the idea of meeting people through the Internet is certainly not a new develop-ment, it has evolved to take on entirely new meaning in today’s increasingly tech-savvy soci-ety. Online dating sites claim to bring people together based on common interests, values, and personality traits. Some sites even go as far as to specialize for certain types of people, such as vegetarians.

The problem with meeting people through the Internet is that we have no way of sepa-rating truth from reality. With all the warnings and stories of failure, it’s amazing to me that online dating services continue to thrive, and people still invest in online relationships.

I vividly remember the times when my mom thought that the minute I made a Facebook account, I would become the world’s biggest target for kid-nappers and rapists galore. Today, it seems that every-one shares everything on the Internet. For example, the new Tinder app, which is basically an updated version of “Hot or Not” has spread like wild-fire around college campuses,

including The University of Alabama. Just the other day, I heard a girl excitedly telling her friend about a coffee date she had set up with one of her “matches” on Tinder.

What ever happened to the notion of serendipity? What about love at first sight? Does anyone still believe that love happens when you least expect it, not when you go searching for it on the Internet like a pair of obscurely colored boots? It’s a sad day when we’ve trans-formed love into a science that can be pinpointed through the equivalent of an advanced search on Google.

We’ve all become too impa-tient to wait for love in it’s organic form, so it makes

sense that what we end up with is a fake version of the real thing that leaves us feeling as empty and alone as Manti Te’o himself.

If you want to play a com-puter game, sure, do it aroundthe dull glow of your computer screen. If you want to type a paper or do some research, fine, pull out your laptop. But if you’re looking for love, then believe me, and so many oth-ers who learned the hard way,when we say you’re not going to find it within the confines of a 13-inch pixelated screen.

Tara Massouleh is a freshman majoring in English and jour-nalism. Her column runs bi-weekly on Thursdays.

NEWS | CAMPUS

NEWS | SOCIAL MEDIA

National Merit Scholar: UA scholarship offer unwarranted, counterproductiveBy Nathan JamesSenior Staff Columnist

I am a National Merit Finalist. The University of Alabama gave me the laptop I’m writing this article on, pays for my tuition, room and board, and will pay me $6,000 over four years in additional stipends.

But I really don’t think they should.

National Merit Finalist sta-tus – the sole requirement for all of the above rewards, minus the laptop – is bestowed to 1,700 students who receive the highest scores on the PSAT in their state. The PSAT is nothing more than a prac-tice test taken in the third year of high school.

As glad as I am to receive the benefits UA bestows on

National Merit Scholars, I feel that excellence on a single standardized test is not suffi-cient achievement to warrant them. The accomplishments of incoming students, as well as their potential to positive-ly contribute to a University campus, cannot be measured by a multiple choice reasoning test.

Over half of the UA

freshmen this year will even-tually owe the University over $100,000 in tuition, room and board, meal plan costs and textbooks. The cost of attend-ing this univer-sity is quickly becoming pro-hibitive, state school or no.

I understand that Robert Witt’s policy of aggres-sive expan-sion required funding in the form of higher tuition rates, but the desire to grow must be coupled with some level of sensitivity to the financial needs of the student body. One aspect of this responsibility is the obligation to allocate

scholarship funding wisely and generously.

To that end, I honestly don’t believe that National Merit Scholars are categorically

more deserving of financial aid than other stu-dents. Judging from our aver-age financial background, I’m quite certain that we don’t need the money more than a typical UA undergrad. In fact, students who score very

highly on standardized tests are statistically more likely to be privileged.

So why do National Merit Scholars receive such spe-cial treatment? I find it

highly unlikely that University administrators felt that we were a crucial addition to the student body. We tend to be indistinguishable from other high-performing high school students.

What I suspect is this: We were given scholarships because having lots of stu-dents with impressive titles is good for recruitment.

The University is currently scaling back scholarships for National Merit Scholars, and while I hope this is because they have decided to allocate scholarship funds more judi-ciously, my suspicion is that they no longer need additional National Merit Scholars for their recruitment efforts. If it’s the latter, administrators need to seriously reconsider how and why they distribute

scholarships.Money matters. It’s a barri-

er between the disadvantaged and the attainment of higher education, and scholarships are one of the best ways for schools to circumvent it. So when schools – UA included – allocate scholarships for the wrong reasons, they’re con-tributing in a small way to sig-nificant social problems.

In summation, I’m glad that my education is paid for.But I can’t help but wish the University would work a little harder at getting money to those who need it, and not those who’ll make UA look bet-ter on recruitment pamphlets.

Nathan James is a sophomoremajoring in public relations. His column runs weekly on Thursdays.

Nathan James

Tara Massouleh

“As glad as I am to receive the benefi ts UA bestows on National Merit Scholars, I feel that excellence on a single standardized test is not suffi cient achievement

to warrant them.

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NEWS OPINION CULTURE SPORTSPage 6 | Thursday, January 31, 2013

By Ashley TrippStaff Reporter

In today’s social media world, users are constantly inundated with text, pictures and videos from family and friends. We can reach one another at a swipe of a touch screen, stay in constant com-munication throughout the day via text, and build entire social networks with people we’ve never met.

The ease with which we can stay in touch is remark-able – but is staying in touch what we’re actually doing?

Some researchers postulate that as our web of contacts grows wider, our real-life rela-tionships lose depth and can make us lonelier, negatively affecting both mental and physical health.

In an article in The Atlantic, John Cacioppo, the director of the Center for Cognitive and Social Neuroscience at the University of Chicago, said interacting with people in the flesh is vital for mental health.

“The greater the propor-tion of face-to-face interac-tions, the less lonely you are,” he said. “The greater the proportion of online interactions, the lonelier you are.”

Bryan Poole, a UA graduate student in psychology, said he became a Facebook user years ago, when the site only allowed college students to have accounts.

“Even after it became a mainstream network, I used

it constantly to keep up with old friends, maintain current friendships, and keep track of new acquaintances,” Poole said.

To some degree, he said he thinks this is why studies are beginning to show this corre-lation between social media use and loneliness.

“Perhaps more time spent online means having less time to spend with others in your immediate social envi-ronment,” Poole said.

Moreover, he said it seems that people think online inter-actions provide the same quality of relationships as do face-to-face interactions.

“Perhaps that kind of think-ing is preventing people from moving away from the key-board and stepping into a cof-fee shop with nearby friends, who can alleviate loneliness better than the online mass-es,” Poole said.

Martha Combs, a UA graduate student in psychol-ogy, said loneliness relates to poorer health outcomes.

“Lack of social support is often a primary risk factor for many different mental ill-nesses and, conversely, hav-ing a good base of social sup-port can be protective against mental illness and health issues,” Combs said. “As humans, most of us desire social interaction and we often learn about ourselves and the world via the feed-back we receive from others.”

Feedback is sometimes negative and people experi-ence embarrassment and/or

rejection, she said.“Sites like Facebook have

made social interaction seem easy – it can be done from the security of home, where the risk of embarrassment and rejection is lessened,” Combs said. “So, rather than put themselves out there socially, many people, especially those with social anxiety, turn to online social networking sites to fulfill their need for social interaction.”

However, Combs said social interaction via the Internet is just not the same, as it lacks those cues such as “body language and voice intona-tion that we have in in-vivo interactions.”

“Therefore, although social networking online may pro-vide some interaction, in a way that feels safe, it does not completely fill that need,” Combs said.

Cacioppo told The Atlantic that social media or online relationships aren’t inher-ently unhealthy – rather, if utilized in a certain way, they can directly counteract lone-liness.

“If you use Facebook to increase face-to-face contact, it increases social capital,” he said. “Facebook can be ter-rific, if we use it properly. It’s like a car. You can drive it to pick up your friends. Or you can drive alone.”

Janis Edwards, a UA associ-ate professor in communica-tion studies, said her person-al experience with Facebook has not been lonely, as she uses it as a supplemental

rather than primary means of communicating.

“It’s anything but lonely,” Edwards said. “And I expect when I retire and return to my hometown, I will be more familiar to those who haven’t seen me in a long time, so re-integrating will be relatively easy.”

The range of affects, positive and negative, on Facebook may have to do with user age.

“I resisted Facebook for a long time, but now it keeps me in touch with high school friends, colleagues around the country and friends from hometown, where I haven’t lived for 25 years,” Edwards said.

Personally, Poole said he uses Facebook less fre-quently than he used to simply because he said he doesn’t have time for it.

“Taking part in many dif-ferent activities on campus such as teaching classes, doing research, taking lead-ership roles as well as off campus such as preparing

for a June wedding, doesn’t leave much time to ‘like’ a post or write on someone’s wall,” Poole said. “It leaves less time to maintain what I think are more shallow interactions online, and, relative to all of the other things I’m doing right now, using Facebook just doesn’t seem as appealing or socially satisfying.”

Combs said Facebook offers an illusion of intimacy that is not as genuine as it seems.

“People want intimacy with others, but sometimes feel afraid to put themselves out there in real life,” Combs said. “Facebook offers the illusion of intimacy with others and those who use it for that reason leave unsatisfied.”

By Camille CorbettContributing Writer

It is common to see a band performing during halftime of a football game but at The University of Alabama, the band even performs at gymnastics meets and basketball games.

The UA Gym Jammers are members of the Million Dollar Band that play at gymnas-tics meets and other sporting events across campus.

“We were playing at a wheel-chair basketball game and someone decided to call us the Gym Jammers, and the name just stuck,” David Sheffield, a

senior who plays euphonium with the group, said.

Johnathon Blankenship, a junior who plays the trom-bone, said he enjoys playing at gymnastics meets.

“Gymnastics meets are fun, and it’s a great atmosphere. Gymnastics meets are one of the most fun things on campus and it’s incredible to be part of

it,” he said.Acceptance into Gym

Jammers is much more selective than acceptance to the Million Dollar Band.

“There are a lot of fewer spots,” Sheffield said. “So, there are tryouts, and there are two separate bands to cover all the events.”

The Gym Jammers also

have a more difficult practice schedule than the standard Million Dollar Band because of the infrequency of the times they meet.

“We introduce some new music we wouldn’t normally play, and we really don’t get as much practice time as we do during the Million Dollar Band,” Sheffield said. “So, it’s a little bit more of a challenge.”

Due to the competitiveness of this band, members are pushed to become better per-formers and musicians.

Casey Sperrazza, a senior who plays mellophone, said playing at a sporting event can be difficult.

“Playing at athletic events is just complex because you have to balance entertaining a crowd all the while playing an instrument,” Sperrazza said.

Members of The Gym Jammers also reap a few perks for their hard work to make sure the gymnastics meets and basketball games are spir-ited.

“We get about $500 between the two semesters,” Sheffield said.

In addition, these stu-dents travel with the differ-ent teams for special games, Blankenship said.

“We don’t get to travel during the season, only post

season, just for gymnastics regionals and, assuming we make the top 12 or top 6, we will go to UCLA for nationals,”he said. “For basketball sea-son, we go to the SEC tourna-ment and [men’s and women’sNCAA tournament].”

Even though they aren’t playing for football games, the members of the Gym Jammers still feel the pres-sure to perform to the best of their abilities.

“Last year, I was in Atlanta,and it was just as nerve-racking as the nationalchampionship in New Orleans[last year]. We got just as excited,” Blankenship said.

MDB’s Gym Jammers add to game atmosphere“It’s a great atmosphere. Gymnastics meets are one of the most fun

thing on campus and it’s incredible to be part of it.

— Johnathon Blankenship

Facebook, social media leads to more loneliness offl ine

CW |Cora LundholmAccessible on many different forms of technology, Facebook keeps students occupied at inopportune times.

Monday, January 7, 2013

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January 9, 2013 Championship Edition

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NEWS OPINION CULTURE SPORTS Thursday, January 31, 2013 | Page 7

By Chandler WrightAssistant News Editor

Following the Dec. 14 school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., Tuscaloosa school and city officials began reassessing school safety plans. Although many of these changes have not been put into place, they could affect student groups on campus that volunteer in

Tuscaloosa schools.Many student-led mentor-

ing programs on campus go into schools weekly and work with local children of all ages. In many cases, these programs require an application pro-cess and background check before UA students able to get involved.

Vicki Holt, a former employ-ee of the Tuscaloosa County School System and current

faculty advisor for READ Alabama, a UA student-led lit-eracy improvement and men-toring program, said school officials are also examining door locks and the possibility of installing doorbell systems in the schools.

“The superintendent’s office is going around to all schools to make sure they have the abil-ity to remotely lock and unlock the front door with a doorbell system, and if they aren’t fully equipped to do so, providing the schools with those safety measures,” Holt said. “They’re also making sure that they are using the doorbell system, because not everyone has been.”

Although the safety changes could make it harder for UA mentors to access the schools and their students, READ direc-tor of community relations Laurel Reeves said she thinks the changes will underscore the importance of the work the UA students are doing.

“If anything, I hope that [the safety changes] will make the volunteers take being in the schools a little more serious-ly and understand that they are not here for a play date,” Reeves said.

However, Reeves said many

of the changes are more of a reinforcement of the policies that were already in place at the schools and doesn’t think the changes will impair the volunteers.

“I don’t think the safety changes will have a negative impact on volunteers in any way. I don’t think wearing your ID will scare anyone away from volunteering,” Reeves said. “As far as I can tell, they’re not necessarily making that many changes to the current safety procedures; they’re just enforc-ing them more strictly. For instance, we as volunteers are required to have ID’s on us at

all times. In the past I think that was more of a recommended thing.”

Despite the proposed safety changes, Holt isn’t convinced they will effectively protect the students of these elementary schools throughout Tuscaloosa.

“Yes, you’ve got to keep your school safe. You’ve got to keep your kids safe,” Holt said. “But in hindsight, you can’t always keep them safe. If somebody wants to get in a building and do harm, they’re going to. They’re going to find a way to do that.”

Additionally, although many of the proposed increases in

security could be beneficial, Reeves said it will be hard to effectively anticipate and stop those who are determined to doharm.

“Some of the safety measuresI’ve heard of, for example the doorbell system, will increase school safety. Locking class-room doors from the inside is also a good idea,” Reeves said. “That way if someone should get in, there is at least some-thing between students and harm. But honestly, when it comes to radical individuals coming to schools with guns, I don’t know that there is much that you can do about that.”

Increased local school security may impact volunteers

By Adrienne BurchAssistant News Editor

Wellthatscool.com is host-ing a 20th anniversary screen-ing of the film “Groundhog Day” at the Bama Theatre on Groundhog Day, Saturday Feb. 2.

The event is sponsored by Sigma Tau Delta, The University of Alabama’s English Honor Society and The Tuscaloosa Arts Council. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., but the film will not start until 6:30 p.m.

In addition to the screening of “Groundhog Day,” there will

be a Bill Murray costume con-test and drink specials from Druid City Brewing.

“It’s just such a neat thing to see a thing like this at an old

movie palace like the Bama Theatre,” Bo Hicks, co-founder of wellthatscool.com, said.

Tickets for the event are available for $7.50 in advance on Brown Paper Tickets, and will be $10 at the door.

Hicks encourages anyone to come to the event and dress up as any character of the film for the costume contest. Druid City Brewing will also be bringing a special brew, The Ned Ryerson Rye Beer, for the event.

Wellthatscool.com was founded by a group of men in Tuscaloosa with the mission of making fun events happen in

the city of Tuscaloosa. The site has been around for nearly four years now and has sponsored events such as a chili cook-off and Suds of the South Beer Fest.

“We [are] all a bunch of locals in their early 30s that just wantto do cool things,” Hicks said.

He said for them it is not about making money, but about bringing fun and interesting events to the city of Tuscaloosa.

Hicks said they came up withidea for the “Groundhog Day” screening when they were approached by a member of Sigma Tau Delta.

IF YOU GO...• What: “Groundhog

Day” screening

• Where: Bama Theatre

• When: 5:30 p.m., Feb. 2

Bama Theatre to screen fi lm, debut beer

CW | Caitlin TrotterSchool systems began rethinking security after the Sandy Hook Elementary tragedy

NEWS OPINION CULTURE SPORTSPage 8 | Thursday, January 31, 2013

By Taylor VeazeyContributing Writer

The University Recreation Center is offering a special edition of its Achieve More Together program to help stu-dents meet their goals of getting in shape by spring break.

Achieve More Together, or AM2, is a program designed to help students get the maxi-mum fitness experience with a licensed personal trainer, while also providing the benefit of training alongside their peers.

Jason Casey, coordinator of fitness at the Rec Center, said the personal training staff tries to meet the demands of so many students wanting to get in shape for spring break.

“We are offering the AM2 specials to allow clients the abil-ity to work out with friends and receive expert personal training at a low cost to the client,” Casey said.

With the AM2 spring break programs, students can pay $200 per person for training twice a week from Feb. 4 to March 21. This package also includes a before and after BodPod Body Composition Test. Through another program in partner-ship with Outdoor Recreation,

students can pay $115 for train-ing twice a week from Feb. 5 to March 7, ending with a two-day backpacking trip March 8-10.

Other options include tradi-tional one-on-one personal train-ing and partner training offered in private studios to provide a less crowded space. Casey said many clients come in with unre-alistic expectations about losing weight and getting in shape, and his staff discourages fad diets and quick weight loss schemes.

“We hope that individuals involved in our program do not just focus on the numbers and realize that we are here to help them develop an overall healthy person,” Casey said.

Although students may desire to lose a drastic amount of weight in a month’s time, Casey said that is unattainable. He said a healthy and attainable weight loss would be one to two pounds per week, achieved through increased physical activity, a proper exercise program and an improved diet.

“We want to promote proper, healthy fitness and wellness practices and not encourage individuals to set and try to attain unrealistic goals for any reason, including spring break,” Casey said.

Turner Pyle, a junior major-ing in public relations, started using the Rec’s facilities more often this semester to get in shape for a summer job that requires her to be physically fit. However, she said her sporadic schedule would make it hard to have a scheduled session with a trainer.

“I would be interested in it if I knew that the trainer could be flexible to my schedule,” Pyle said. “Especially since it’s pretty expensive.”

Braxton Billings, a junior majoring in health care manage-ment, had a personal trainer at the Rec last spring and plans to have one this semester as well. He said the accountability of a personal trainer provides more motivation.

“Not only does a personal trainer put you on an accurate pathway to reach your individ-ual goals, but he or she gives you a sense of accountability,” Billings said. “In the early stages of training, that accountability is everything.”

Registration for the AM2 spring break program ends Jan. 31. For more information about personal training and fitness services at the Rec Center, visit urec.ua.edu.

Rec Center offering deals for spring break preparations

By Ellen CooganContributing Writer

Thrill-seekers can chill out this weekend by submerging themselves in the 48-degree water of the outdoor Rec Center pool at the Polar Plunge on Feb. 3.

Registration for the free event begins at 1 p.m., and stu-dents will be given two oppor-tunities to make the plunge either at 1:15 p.m. or at 2:30 p.m.

There will also be a luge com-petition at each of those times,

where students will be timed to find who is the fastest down the water slides.

“The weather outside may not be freezing, but the water is going to be close to it,” Walter Kolis, aquatics operations coor-dinator, said. “Last time, the pool was 48-degrees, and we expect the same this year. You’ll love the sun rays when you get out.”

Kolis said students should also come out to watch Capstone

Village Executive Chef Tom Hadden create an ice sculpture on the pool deck.

After the ice sculpture dem-onstration at 1:30 p.m., students will compete for the best cos-tume at 2:15 p.m.

Free hot chocolate will be available for all in attendance, and there will be a limited num-ber of free Polar Plunge mugs, but participants should bring their own towels. Students can warm up after the icy exposure

in heated showers and dressing rooms.

The Rec Center also held a Polar Plunge in 2011.

“We had good numbers then but expect more this time around,” Shane Reeves, aquat-ics programs coordinator, said. “We hope for 50 to 100 partici-pants.”

The idea for the plunge came from a former graduate assistant.

“She is from New York, so

they do them a lot up there,” Reeves said. “It is something fun and different for students who grew up in the South. And for those that are from north-ern states, maybe it will remind them of home.”

This event is not for a special cause, but it just for fun, Reeves said.

“We wanted to try and build the event before doing some-thing like [raising funds or awareness for a cause],” he said.

Programs last around 90 days, minimize cost, maximize result; include individual, group options

IF YOU GO...• What: Polar Plunge

• Where: UA Rec Center Pool

• When: Feb. 3 at 1 p.m.

Polar Plunge includes dip in cold water, hot drinks and ice sculpture

CW | Pete PajorRegistration for training at the Recreation Center to get in shape before spring break ends soon.

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NEWS OPINION CULTURE SPORTS Thursday, January 31, 2013 | Page 9

Editor | Marquavius Burnettcrimsonwhitesports@gmail.com

Thursday, January 31, 2013SPORTSNEWS

OPINION

CULTURE

SPORTS

Page 10

By Billy Whyte

When I was less than a year old, my parents bought me a Joe Montana doll. Joe Montana was a four-time Super Bowl cham-pion quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers and is consid-ered by many to be the greatest quarterback of all time. As a young kid, I played with the Joe Montana doll all the time and had it by my side constantly. Along with all the 49ers shirts and jerseys, and even my 49ers helmet I wore all the time, I was quickly brainwashed into a devoted little 49ers fan before I even knew what football real-ly was or could even throw a spiral.

My father was a die-hard 49ers fan, being born in San Francisco, so in a lot of ways,

my obsession with the team was pre-determined before I was even born. But the level of which my infatuation with the 49ers affected my everyday life was astounding. I always want-ed to be the red team in what-ever game or sport I played. I always chose 49ers players like Jerry Rice or Steve Young when I had to talk about my heroes in elementary school. And in everything I did, I always had to be number 16. It was my favorite number, and I never knew why until I found out later as a 12 year-old: it was Joe Montana’s number. Same number I had seen a thousand times on my favorite toy as a little kid had been ingrained into me without me even realizing it.

This Sunday, the 49ers will be playing in the Super Bowl

for the first time in 18 years, and for me, this Sunday repre-sents 10 years of devoted servi-tude finally coming to fruition. Watching the NFL on Sundays is practically part of our reli-gion in my household, and when I started watching every 49ers game with my dad as a 10-year-old, I had expected the amazement and glory of all the past 49ers teams my dad had told me so much about over the years. Instead I got stuck with eight straight seasons without a winning record, and a list of starting quarterbacks that would make any fan cry. Instead of the likes of Joe Montana and Steve Young, I was forced to sit through the likes of Tim Rattay, Ken Dorsey, Shaun Hill, J.T. O’Sullivan, and worst of all, the perpetually injured and

uncertainty that was Alex Smith. I don’t know what’s worse, trying to convince myself every year that this was the year Alex Smith would turn the corner, or that I actually began to really like mediocre Shaun Hill just in comparison to the rest of the horrible quarter-backs I lived through.

I got so used to disappoint-ment and failure to the point it really didn’t bother me any-more when we lost each sea-son; at that point I had just I expected it as a 49ers fan. And then Jim Harbaugh came to the 49ers and put on a coach-ing clinic the last two years that can only be rivaled by the great Nick Saban himself. And since then, as a 49ers fan, everything has changed.

I spent 20 hours at the library

this past weekend in prepara-tion of my big accounting exam, and was immensely stressed in the hours leading up to the test. But I wasn’t stressed about the exam; I was stressing about the game on Sunday. It’s always hard to explain to non-sports fans how important sports are to me, but the amount of joy a 49ers win on Sunday would bring me is potentially only rep-licated by the joy of my future wedding day. And if the 49ers

lose, well let’s just say I have already told a couple friends to check in on me Monday and Tuesday to make sure I’m okay.

At this point in my life, just like my curly hair and my dread-ful singing voice, I’ve learned my zealous 49ers fandom is just a part of who I am, and Sunday will be one of the most impor-tant days of my young life. Now I’m just praying I’ll get to remember it well in the future.Go Niners.

Years of team disappointment shift to excitement before Super Bowl SundayCOLUMN

By Marquavius BurnettSports Editor

Gymnasts are taught to focus on their routines and not the opponent during competi-tion. But occasionally, rivalries are built, and certain meets become personal.

No. 5 Alabama and No. 8 Georgia have a healthy rival-ry. Being in the Southeastern Conference and facing each other multiple times a year both fuel the fire, but the level of excellence sustained by both programs is essential as well.

The two titans are two of just four teams to win an NCAA Championship, including UCLA and Utah. Since 2002, the two teams have claimed eight of the 11 NCAA team titles, and of the 31 that have been

awarded since the NCAA included women in 1982, Alabama and Georgia have combined for 16.

“The rivalry has grown over the years,” Alabama head coach Sarah Patterson said. “Over the years, we knew that if we were going to win a national championship, we had to get past [Georgia] and if they wanted to win one, they had to get past us. I don’t think that’s changed.”

In SEC competition, Alabama and Georgia claimed every conference title between 1990 and 2006. Alabama last competed in Athens, Ga., in 2011, with the Tide winning 197.675 – 197.225. The two teams faced off on April 20, 2012 in the semifinals of the NCAA Championships. Alabama won

the semifinal and went on the win the championship, while the Bulldogs failed to make it to the final day.

That failure played a large part in the Bulldogs’ decision to bring in a different coach-ing staff, led by first-year head coach Danna Durante. Patterson was not surprised by the move.

“I’ve seen a few coach-ing changes in our sport,” Patterson said. “A few years ago when they made the change at Florida, I felt like it was because they weren’t beating Georgia and Alabama. Now, they make the change at Georgia because they weren’t beating Florida and Alabama. That’s the highest level of our sport. People want to succeed at the highest level.”

Alabama is undefeated this season but has yet to put together a complete perfor-mance. Senior Ashley Sledge said the Tide didn’t peak until the NCAA Regionals in Seattle, Wash., last season.

“That’s the beauty of our sport; we get to have that build up,” Sledge said. “Other sports have to be at the top all year. We can experiment and land at the top when we need to be at the top.”

Sledge acknowledged that the Tide is pacing itself for the bigger goal.

“This is where we’re sup-posed to be right now,” Sledge said. “We don’t want to be on top of our game in January. We want to be there in April.”

The meet begins Saturday, Feb. 2 at 4 p.m. ET in Athens,

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NEWS OPINION CULTURE SPORTS Thursday, January 31, 2013 | Page 11

MEN’S GOLF

By Billy WhyteStaff Reporter

For NFL fans, the Super Bowl represents an emotional roller coaster of a season cul-minating in one final game. For those who don’t have any rooting interest in the 49ers or Ravens, or don’t care much about the NFL in general, the Super Bowl just represents a day of hanging out with friends and watching the best commercials of the year. But

because of the immense suc-cess of Nick Saban genius coaching ability, there actu-ally is something for Alabama fans to root for in the Super Bowl: The Ravens Defense.

The Ravens defense fea-tures two All-American Alabama defensive stal-warts in Terrence Cody and Courtney Upshaw. Cody, the mountain himself, was Alabama’s nose tackle in 2008 and 2009, and is best known for blocking two field

goals in Alabama’s 12-10 win over Tennessee in 2009 that allowed Alabama to remain unbeaten and go on to win a National Championship. Courtney Upshaw was Alabama’s starting outside linebacker in 2010 and 2011, and was named the 2012 BCS National Championship MVP.

Cody only plays on first and second down, but his run-stopping ability has proved invaluable to the Ravens defense. Upshaw, a rookie, is

the starting outside lineback-er for the Ravens, and while he isn’t lighting up the stat sheet this year, he has shown a lot of potential on the edge as a pass rusher, and has been better than expected in stop-ping the run.

Next you have the man run-ning the show for the Ravens defense: Dean Pees. He was the defensive coordinator for Saban way back in 1990 when Saban was the head coach at Toledo. He then followed Saban to Michigan State to be his defensive coordinator from 1995-1997, before Pees got his first head coaching job at Kent State, Saban’s Alma Mater.

Baltimore Ravens Upshaw, Cody form Saban’s Super Bowl ties

By Marquavius BurnettSports Editor

University of Alabama golf-ers Justin Thomas and Bobby Wyatt were named to the 2013 watch list on Jan. 30 for the prestigious Ben Hogan Award presented by Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts, in con-junction with Colonial Country Club, The Friends of Golf and the Golf Coaches Association of America.

The award is presented annually to the top men’s NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA or NJCAA college golf-er, based on performance in all collegiate and amateur com-petitions during a 12-month period. The Ben Hogan Award

selection committee repre-sents the leaders in amateur and collegiate golf.

Thomas, a sophomore from Goshen, Ky., was a semifi-nalist for the award a year ago. He then went on to win the Nicklaus Award and the Haskins Award, which are presented to the National Collegiate Player of the Year. Thomas leads the Crimson Tide in 2012-13 with a 70.40-stroke average and ranks eighth in the most recent Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index. He has equaled the Alabama career record with five victo-ries, including the 2012 Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate.

Wyatt, who was the medal-ist at the 2012 U.S. Amateur at

Cherry Hills and advanced to the round of 16 in match play, is a junior from Mobile, Ala. He is second on the team with a 71.83-scoring average with two top-five finishes in the fall of 2012 for the Crimson Tide. Wyatt ranks 19th in the in the most recent Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index.

The 10 Hogan Award semi-finalists, which could include individuals not on the cur-rent list, will be unveiled on Thursday, April 18, with three finalists chosen on May 8. The three finalists will be invited to Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas, for the black-tie Hogan Award presentation on the evening of May 20.

Marten Olander won the

1993 Ben Hogan Award and is the only Alabama player to claim the honor.

The award, which was first

issued in 1990 and included academic achievement in its original list of standards, revised its criteria for the

2001-02 collegiate season to its current standard of honor-ing the outstanding amateur collegiate golfer.

Thomas, Wyatt added to Ben Hogan Award watch listThe 2013 The Ben Hogan Award Watch List includes, in alphabetical order:

Daniel Berger (Florida State, Soph.)Julien Brun (TCU, Soph.)Albin Choi (North Carolina State, Jr.)Corey Conners (Kent State, Jr.)Scott Fernandez (Iowa State, Soph.)Steven Fox (Chattanooga, Sr.)Ben Geyer (St. Mary’s, Sr.)

Talor Gooch (Oklahoma State, Jr.)Brandon Hagy (California, Jr.)Max Homa (California, Sr.)Michael Kim (California, Soph.)Jace Long (Missouri, Sr.)Tyler McCumber (Florida, Sr.)Cheng-Tsung Pan (Washington, Soph.)Kevin Penner (UNLV, Sr.)Thomas Pieters (Illinois, Jr.)Patrick Rodgers (Stanford, Soph.)

Trevor Simsby (Washington, Jr.)Brandon Stone (Texas, Fr.)Julian Suri (Duke, Sr.)Ben Taylor (Nova Southeastern, Jr.)Thomas (Alabama, Soph.)T.J. Vogel (Florida, Sr.)Michael Weaver (California, Jr.)Pontus Widegren (UCLA, Sr.), Chris Williams (Washington, Sr.)Wyatt (Alabama, Jr.)

BEN HOGAN AWARD WATCH LIST

By Manal YousifContributing Writer

The University of Alabama men’s tennis team will take on Cornell and Harvard on Friday in Flushing, N.Y.

The Crimson Tide is com-ing off a pair of wins on Sunday against New Mexico and Penn State in the Wake Forest Spring Invitational. They played three matches in two days, starting at 1 p.m. for their first match, then at 7:30 p.m. for a doubles match. On Sunday they finished matches at 1 p.m.

“The match-up was gru-eling, but in the end it was great for us. We need things like this,” head coach George Husack said.

Husack also said he would sum up this season thus far as ‘comfortably uncomfortable,’ due to the format of these matches.

“Jarred Botha played nine sets of tennis and won all three matches and three sets of ten-nis,” Husack said. “For him to stay in there mentally and certainly physically makes me very proud of him and as well

the team”The Tide will have to pre-

pare for yet another two-match-in-one-day format in New York this weekend.

Husack said his approach for these matches in prac-tice includes no-break ses-sions and constantly moving for about two hours. A lot of their drills involve more aero-bic training rather than static conditioning. He also said they always have some form of motivation during these drills, like making the losers run.

“It pays to be a winner,” Husack said.

As the team looks to keep their streak alive, they will go up against Cornell and Harvard. The Cornell men’s

tennis team is coming off a win against George Washington on Saturday. On the other hand, Harvard men’s tennis team fell in their last match against No. 8 Oklahoma on Saturday in the ITA kick-off finale.

The Tide will be using fresh-man Becker O’Shaughnessey to help lead the way this week-end. O’Shaughnessey finished strong by clinching the match on Sunday against Penn State sophomore Samir Iftikhar.

“He started off slow, but then clinched the match strong while cramping. He is a physical beast.” Husack said. “We are going to rely on him a lot, not for just this year but for years to come.”

O’Shaughnessey is having a solid first season with the Crimson Tide. He earned a spot on the all-tournament team at the Tom Fallon Invitational and advanced to the semifinals of the USTA/ITA Southern Regional Championships. Head Coach Husack said he is pleased with his development and his continuing growth.

Alabama is set to play Feb. 1 at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. CT.

By Alexis PaineStaff Reporter

The University of Alabama women’s tennis team will com-pete against Texas Christian University and Southern Methodist University this weekend after toppling the Clemson Tigers at home Jan. 27, and winning its match against the Memphis Grizzlies Jan. 26.

Head coach Jenny Mainz said playing at home last weekend allowed the team to work off early season jit-ters. It was also an opportu-nity for the team to experi-ence a loud crowd and intense atmosphere.

“The team was fired up; the fans were fired up; the coaches were fired up,” Mainz said. “It was just an electric environ-ment at the indoor facility. We played off of the crowd and the noise and the energy.”

This weekend the Tide will take to the road for its first matches away from home this season. The Tide entered the match with Clemson ranked No. 9 and maintained its com-posure through what Mainz

said was a tough competition.“Our backs were against the

wall a couple different times,” Mainz said. “Actually both days in doubles we played from behind. We just had to fight.”

The head coach said come-from-behind wins are some of the most important in ten-nis. The wins against both the Grizzlies and the Tigers have motivated the team.

“[Last weekend] gives us a lot of confidence going into the rest of the season because we’re battle tested,” Mainz said. “We didn’t win easily. When we beat Memphis 4-0, it was a close 4-0. I always think

if you can win the tough ones,the tie-breakers, the third sets, the ones where you’re very very close – I think it shows a lot of mental toughness and stamina.”

Senior Antonia Foehse said the team’s focus helped the players through each match. She said each player was con-cerned with what happened on their court, and the support of teammates helped each play-er stay motivated. The team believed they could defeat Clemson and went into the match with this mindset. The win has propelled the team forward because they know they can win the challenging matches, Foehse said.

“We were thinking about this feeling all week, like win-ning against Clemson,” Foehse said. “And then when we actu-ally did it, the feeling was unbelievable because we actu-ally made the step and went over the hump and did it.”

The Tide will travel to Texas for its first away matches of the season this weekend. The team plays TCU on Feb. 2 and will travel to Dallas, Texas to play SMU on Feb. 3.

MEN’S TENNIS WOMEN’S TENNIS

Men’s team heads to N.Y. to play double-header Wins during 1st weekend supply team motivationIF YOU GO...

• What: Women’s Tennis v. TCU, SMU

• Where: Ft. Worth, Texas; Dallas, Texas

• When: Feb. 2, 1 p.m., Feb. 3, noon

IF YOU GO...• What: Men’s Tennis v.

Cornell, Harvard

• Where: Flushing, N.Y.

• When: Friday, 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. (CT)

FOOTBALL

MCT CampusTerrence Cody

MCT CampusCourtney Upshaw

Page 12 | Thursday, January 31, 2013 NEWS OPINION CULTURE SPORTS

Dates of A-Day, Homecoming set for 2013 teamBy Marquavius BurnettSports Editor

The University of Alabama announced the dates for the foot-ball team’s 2013 A-Day Spring Game and the 2013 Homecoming game.

A-Day is sched-uled for 2 p.m. (CT) on Saturday, April 20, while Homecoming is set for Saturday, Oct. 5 when the Crimson Tide hosts Georgia State.

The annual A-Day Game will be televised live to a national audi-ence by ESPN2. A-Day is the 15th and final practice of the spring. Admission will once again be free to the pub-lic. More information

on A-Day, including additional activities, traffic and parking, will be available at a later date on rolltide.com.

Alabama leads the nation in spring game attendance over the last six years with a total of 516,536 fans and an average of 86,089 during that period. The largest A-Day crowd in school history came in 2011 (92,310). In head coach Nick Saban’s first year of 2007, the stadium was at full capacity prior to expansion (92,138).

Further details about Homecoming weekend activities, including a kickoff time for the game, will be released as they are finalized.

Crimson Tide looks to rebound against GeorgiaBy Caroline GazzaraStaff Reporter

The Alabama women’s basketball team will travel to Athens, Ga., to play No. 13 Georgia on Thursday. Following a loss to Vanderbilt on Sunday, Alabama hopes that this next conference game will work in the Tide’s favor.

Currently 2-5 in confer-ence, coach Wendell Hudson feels confident the Vanderbilt game taught the team some

important lessons to focus on when competing against Georgia.

“We have [to] focus on the things we have control over like converting more turnovers, hit-ting free throws and not being too emotionally involved in how the game might be being called,” Hudson said. “If we had taken care of those areas against Vanderbilt, we would have had a great chance at win-ning that game.”

Because Georgia is ranked

nationally, there are always concerns the Bulldogs may have an advantage over Alabama. However, Hudson and his team don’t feel that the Bulldogs have anything the Crimson Tide doesn’t have.

“There are no concerns, nor do they have an advantage over us just because they are ranked,” Hudson said. “That is why we play the games.”

This is the second time this season that the Bulldogs will face the Tide. Last time the two

met, UGA won 95-83.At that point in the season,

the Tide had a free-throw shooting average of 57.1 per-cent against the Bulldogs. As of now, Alabama has a 40 per-cent free-throw shooting aver-age. Because of this decrease, Hudson has been focusing on shooting from the line in prac-tice as well as zone work.

“We have worked on 1-2-2 zone because we think we will be able to utilize that more,” Hudson said. “We also

continued to work on the areas we have control over, such as free throws.”

With only eight more con-ference games in the season after Georgia, Alabama could be feeling the pressure to win every game to make it into the post-season. Instead, the Tide isn’t placing any more pressure on any one game than normal in hopes that technique and form will help them win.

“There is no more pressure on this game than any of the

past games,” Hudson said. “Wetake the schedule one game at a time. Every game counts as one game.”

Georgia may be ranked nationally, but what it comes down to is practice. After a long week of working on shoot-ing and footing, Alabama is prepared for the game ahead of them. UGA may be the one of the best teams in the SEC and in the country, but the Tide is more than ready to face them once more and hopefully win.

By Marc TorrenceAssitant Sports Editor

After a controversial call foiled Alabama the last time out, the Crimson Tide men’s basketball team will take the court Thursday night for a home matchup against the Arkansas Razorbacks.

“The refs made the call,” sophomore guard Rodney Cooper said. “We can control only what we can control. We’re just worried about Arkansas right now.”

Sophomore guard Trevor Lacey pulled up for what would have been the game-winning shot against the Tennessee Volunteers last Saturday, but appeared to be fouled by the Vols’ Jarnell Stokes. The offi-cials did not call anything, how-ever, and the game was over.

A win against Tennessee would have placed Alabama in the top three in the Southeastern Conference. Now the Crimson Tide can only hope to move forward despite the controversial loss.

“Trying to get the wins on

the road,” Cooper said. “Get the big wins and try to be in the top four so we can be in a good position for the SEC tournament.”

Arkansas will bring an up-tempo style of play into Coleman Coliseum. The team’s media guide boasts the “fastest 40 minutes in basketball,” a phi-losophy that head coach Mike Anderson adopted from his years as coach of the Missouri Tigers.

The Razorbacks are ranked second in the conference in points per game (78.3) and third in field goal percentage (.453).

“We expect the game to be up and down,” Alabama head coach Anthony Grant said. “Hopefully, we’re prepared for that. I think our guys are pre-pared for that. I think it could be a factor both ways. Certainly the style of play, it probably will be a game of runs in terms of the tempo and the style of play. I think our guys will be pre-pared for that.”

Arkansas is led by junior for-ward Marshawn Powell, who is averaging almost 16 points

per game and just under six rebounds per game. Powell is shooting 54.2 percent from the floor and almost 44 percent from three-point range.

“He’s playing extremely well for them,” Grant said of Powell. “You look at some of the num-bers he’s putting up from an offensive standpoint. He’s a guy that, to me, is just wired to score. He can really score the basketball and he’s been able to do that his whole career.”

Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. and the game will be televised on ESPN2.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Men’s basketball to host RazorbacksFOOTBALLMEN’S BASKETBALL

CW | Jingyu WanAlabama returns home to Coleman Coliseum to face Arkansas.

IF YOU GO• What: Men’s Basketball

v. Arkansas

• Where: Coleman Coliseum

• When: 8 p.m.

After tough loss to Vanderbilt, Alabama women look for an SEC victory on Thursday in Athens, Ga.

NOW Leasing forFall 2013!

www.HAEDWARDS.com205-345-1440

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Thursday, January 31, 2013CULTURENEWS

OPINION

CULTURE

SPORTS

Page 13

Life of a pageant queen full of responsibilitiesBy Megan MillerStaff Reporter

After the crown and bouquet of flowers have been awarded, a pageant queen’s job is not complete, as many might think. The win marks the beginning of her newest job and the set of responsibilities that come with holding a title.

In addition to balancing the typical activities of a student, winners of pageants carry on an additional set of responsibil-ities that include participating in speaking engagements, per-formances and appearances at community events. The judges not only evaluate pageant con-testants based on the official criteria, but also determine how well candidates can handle the responsibilities of the title.

“The judging panel selects who can best fulfill the job requirements,” Olivia Wilkes, a junior majoring in public rela-tions and Miss Heart of Dixie 2013, said. “As Miss Heart of Dixie, I represent northeast Alabama – more specifically the Dekalb County and Jackson County areas. I make a variety of appearances in the area as well as here in my hometown of Tuscaloosa and parts of Birmingham.”

Wilkes said events can include fundraisers, parades and a variety of community events.

“You sign a contract with

your local, state and even national director that states what you agree to do and not to do,” Wilkes said. “In exchange for this, you are being paid scholarship money.”

There are many different types of pageants, but typical categories featured in a pageant are private interview, on-stage question, lifestyle and fitness in swimsuit, talent and evening gown. Each of these categories contributes a percentage to a contestant’s overall score, then judges rank each contestant on a scale of 1-10 based on how well they feel the contestant did in each phase.

Any contestant who wins an official preliminary to the Miss Alabama pageant goes on to compete in the Miss Alabama pageant in June, which will be held in the Wright Center on the Samford University campus.

Wilkes is currently prepar-ing for the pageant by exercis-ing, eating healthy, volunteer-ing, reading the newspaper and watching news so she is able

to stay informed on current events.

“This will be my first year competing at the state level after competing in 38 prelimi-naries, so I’m very excited that I finally get to have this opportu-nity and share this experience with so many talented, beauti-ful and intelligent women from all across Alabama,” Wilkes said.

Brooke Falls, a senior major-ing in biology, has competed in small, local pageants such as Miss Sorority Row and the Miss Corolla Pageant.

Miss Sorority Row features a talent portion and a reading about your sorority’s philan-thropy, while Miss Corolla fea-tures an opening number, pre-interview, on-stage question and a beauty competition.

“I like to do them for fun and just fit them into my schedule when I can,” Falls said.

Falls also prepares for pag-eants by eating right, exercis-ing and staying up to date on current events.

“I feel as if you gain confi-dence with yourself because you have to put yourself out there and get over nerves to be on stage in front of a lot of peo-ple watching you,” Falls said. “I have made a lot of friends through pageants as well, and I think that’s an impor-tant aspect of participating in pageants.”

Falls and Wilkes both agree

reality television has given many people a false perception of what pageants are really like.

“Pageants require more prep-aration than one might think,” Falls said. “Not everyone is like Honey Boo Boo.”

Wilkes said a common mis-conception about pageants is that everyone is like the children on “Toddlers and

Tiaras.”“People think that contes-

tants in the Miss America orga-nization came from that sort of pageant upbringing,” Wilkes said. “Although that may be true in some places, I’ve never met anyone in Alabama who had participated in those type of beauty pageants when they were younger.”

Falls said before people judge all pageants to be like what they see on television, they should try it.

“I’d encourage people to try [pageants] out first,” Falls said.“The most important thing is to just be confident with yourself and know that you’re out there to have fun and whatever hap-pens, happens.”

“Pageants require more preparation than one might think. Not everyone is like

Honey Boo Boo.

— Brooke Falls

SubmittedPageant winners’ responsibilities only begin with the crowning ceremony.

Brookwood drumline adds college student membersOf 29 members, 10 come from the Million Dollar Band; others hail from Ala. middle and high schoolsBy Deanne WinslettStaff Reporter

This year, the Brookwood Indoor Drumline of Brookwood Middle School became the Brookwood Independent Drumline, a group of drumline competitors composed of play-ers from all education levels and ages.

Dustin Barnett, a sopho-more majoring in secondary education and social sciences, was a member of the initial Brookwood Indoor Drumline throughout his middle and high school years. He said the expe-riences he had as a part of the

drumline were invaluable to him as he grew up.

“It kept me out of trouble,” Barnett said. “Being in music, you tend to fall into the wrong crowd, especially being a drum-mer. It kept me from getting in too deep into things I didn’t

belong in. It really changed a lot of things about myself as a man.”

Now, Barnett is a member of the Million Dollar Band and is continuing this year with the re-classified BID. While BID was restricted to middle and high school students, it has now expanded to include college stu-dents as well.

“They decided to make it ‘Brookwood Independent’ so that college kids from around the state could come and play, rather than just high school and middle school,” Colin Claybrook, a sophomore major-ing in marketing, said.

The drumline currently has 29 total members. Ten of those members are also Million Dollar Band members. The other mem-bers are students from both Brookwood Middle School and Brookwood High School.

Claybrook is one of the 10 MDB band members cur-rently a part of the Brookwood Drumline. He auditioned to be a member after learning about the group from friends.

“I had some friends that were trying out, and I know some of the staff members, and they kind of talked to me about it, and I decided to do it,” Claybrook said.

This is Claybrook’s first year as part of the BID. He was accepted to be a member after completing the three weekend audition process.

“We hold auditions at Brookwood Middle School. We’re given an audition packet to practice before the audition and then we go through three camps over three weekends,” Claybrook said.

BID competes in an average of five to six competitions each off-season, with the last two being the Southeastern Color Guard Circuit Championship in Nashville, Tenn., and the World Guard International

Championship in Dayton, Ohio. Their most immediate competi-tion will be this Saturday with the Prattville Indoor Drumline for the SGCG Premier Day.

Claybrook said they will havetwo competitions in February, two in March and two in April.

To practice for the competi-tions, members meet at the-Brookwood Middle School gym every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Claybrook said so muchtime spent together has caused the group to form a tight bond.

“We’re a tight group,” Claybrook said. “We’re all very good friends. We’re like a family.”

Speaking engagements, performances and community events fi ll the calendars of pageant winners

“We’re a tight group. We’re all very good friends. We’re

like a family.

— Colin Claybrook

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Page 14 | Thursday, January 31, 2013 NEWS OPINION CULTURE SPORTS

By Amy PuenteContributing Writer

Internships offer students the chance to gain valuable experiences and skills that prepare them for entering the workforce. As a result, many University of Alabama students choose to spend their summers and semes-ters interning for their major, and occasionally some chose to expand their experiences beyond their field of study.

Travis Railsback, executive director of the Career Center, said interning outside their

majors, though done by few, can help students prepare for their futures in the workforce.

“I think they could benefit by developing transferable skills to bring into the work-place,” Railsback said.

In addition to helping secure post-undergrad futures, students can use internships to satisfy general interests they may have or to gain experience in the field of their minors. Conversely, an internship unrelated to their majors may effectively serve students whose career plans do not directly pertain

to what they are currently studying.

Though internships unre-lated to students’ majors are helpful, Railsback said they may be difficult to obtain. He said companies recruit-ing interns directly from The University of Alabama usu-ally request students from specific majors.

“They will have challenges finding internships outside their majors,” Railsback said. “Companies are very specific about majors when it comes to internships.”

Despite the difficulty of

finding such internships, some students have found them very rewarding. They often decided to intern out-side of their major because their post-graduate plans do not directly relate to their current studies.

Lena Oshinskie, a junior majoring in English, recently participated in an educa-tion internship. Oshinskie, who wants to educate at-risk youths after graduation, said she chose English as her major because of its wide-ranging applicability.

“English is pretty broad, so I

think it’s definitely applicable to what I want to do,” she said.

Rather than searching for an English-related internship, Oshinskie worked with the Unity Square Neighborhood Revitalization Project, which focused on helping the at-risk citizens of a low-income area. Oshinskie said this internship gave her more relevant expe-rience in her actual career interest.

“I’m definitely interested in teaching, but I’m more inter-ested in serving a specific demographic,” she said.

If students are interested

in finding internships outsidetheir field of study, Railsbacksaid they should post updat-ed versions of their resumes on the Crimson Careers web page. The site allows students to view and search for avail-able internships that interest them.

However, Railsback cau-tioned that many of these internships may only be offered to students within cer-tain majors. If students cannotfind internships in the fields they want, Railsback said they should seek jobs that will satisfy their interests.

Some students choose internships outside of major

By Asher Elbein

If you haven’t heard of “Archer” by now, you’ve been living under a rock. With the hit FX show now starting its fourth season, it’s as good a time as any to give the best spy comedy on television a try.

Sterling Archer is the world’s most dangerous secret agent, or so he insists to any-one who will listen. Employed by the low rent, free-market spy organization I.S.I.S, Archer and his coworkers spend their time mercilessly screwing

with each other, both in the office and the field. Every so often, when all else fails, they do some actual spying.

In many ways, “Archer” oper-ates more like an office comedy than a spy show, with its heavy focus on bureaucratic absurdity and the character’s shockingly illegal deeds. The frequent spy missions are characterized by equal incompetence – almost nobody at I.S.I.S is very good at their job, and the ones who are spend most of their time put-ting out the fires set by the rest of the cast.

It’s that character interac-tion that drives most of the humor in the show, and ample credit has to be given to the title character himself. Sterling Archer is a man obsessed with his own (nonexistent) clever-ness, James Bond reflected through a stereotypically frat boy frame. He’s also a dam-aged and tragically oblivious character. In fact, the more you learn about the various char-acters in “Archer,” the more it’s possible to appreciate how deeply strange and damaged they are.

“Archer”’s characters may be tragic, but the show is much more concerned with mining the comedy out of their dys-functional relationships than working through them. And the variety of humor mined is staggering. Gross humor, ref-erence-based quips, and out-and-out absurdity are mixed together so that it’s impossible to tell what kind of joke is com-ing at any given time. This rap-id-fire style does lead to come-dic misfires, but the flow of jokes is fast enough that anoth-er, better joke usually rushes

along to take its place. It’s a testament to the lunatic nature of the show and the cleverness of the writers and actors that a simple word (“Lana!”) can be screamingly funny.

That said, “Archer” is some-what reliant on running jokes, and this can give the show a somewhat repetitive feel when watched from week to week. A few episodes are also somewhat hit or miss – jokes either don’t land or go too far over the line, which is always a risk when a show deals in transgressive comedy. It’s also

worth noting that the first epi-sode is not up to the show’s later standard. At its best, “Archer” is crass and offensive, but wittily so – more Louis C.K.then Daniel Tosh. The pilot, however, goes for gross-out humor too fast, before we’ve had a chance to get to know thecharacters.

Still, for the most part, “Archer” is very, very funny. As the perfect mix between espionage exploits and office scheming, it earns its place as one of the best comedies on television.

COLUMN | TELEVISION

Crass humor, complex characters makes FX’s ‘Archer’ 1 of best comedies on television

DeVine and Lewis view music as a means of self-discov-ery and self-liberation.

“We want to shake people out of complacency, and help them to experience moments together with us,” Lewis said.

“Your own soul needs to be freer every day you live,” DeVine said. “Our souls are often the last thing on our

minds. Our music, and really any good music in my opinion, should remind you that you have a soul and that it needs attention.”

This “liberation of soul” that is so deeply rooted within Downright’s music was one of the driving forces behind “Lightheaded,” the band’s newest album.

“‘Lightheaded’ is a great pro-duction and the best collabora-tive songwriting in the band’s history,” Lewis said.

“Lightheaded,” Downright’s fourth full-length album, will

be released in late spring of this year, but the band has been working on the album since summer 2011.

“‘Lightheaded’ is different in that it’s something we’ve really taken our time with,” DeVine said. “Other albums we were more interested in getting them out by a certain date, which made them more urgent.”

While the band members enjoyed the recording process, they both look forward to per-forming their newest tracks live in front of a Tuscaloosa audience.

“I feel like [performing live] is much more forgiving [than recording]; much more give and take in the moment,” DeVine said. “Also, an audi-ence drives you to do things you wouldn’t normally do. It’s more like a conversation.”

Wes Keith, the band’s man-ager, said Downright’s power-ful live performances are part of what enticed him to work with the band.

“I experienced the magic groove that could take over a room and turn it inside out,” said Keith, who has been

Downright’s manager since 2003.

For these two musicians, Tuscaloosa is more than just another name on a long list of tour destinations. DeVine and Lewis, both University of Alabama alumni, met in the music school here and formed Downright in 1999, the year they graduated.

“Tuscaloosa was a great environment to get the band started, always a lot of fun and an excitable crowd of enthusi-astic music lovers,” Lewis said.

Not all college bands last

after graduation, but 14 years later, Downright is still going strong.

“We had such a chemistry that there was never any doubt we would continue as a band,” Lewis said.

Downright will perform at Green Bar on Friday, Feb. 1, along with opening acts Blackwater Thieves and Junior Spicy. The show starts at 10 p.m. and the cover charge is $5.

For more information on Downright, visit the band’s Facebook page or go to downrightmusic.net.

DOWNRIGHT FROM PAGE 1

Alumni recording 4th album ‘Lightheaded’

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NEWS OPINION CULTURE SPORTS Thursday, January 31, 2013 | Page 15

DeVine and Lewis view music as a means of self-dis-covery and self-liberation.

“We want to shake people out of complacency, and help them to experience moments together with us,” Lewis said.

“Your own soul needs to be freer every day you live,” DeVine said. “Our souls are often the last thing on our minds. Our music, and really any good music in my opin-ion, should remind you that you have a soul and that it

needs attention.”This “liberation of soul”

that is so deeply rooted with-in Downright’s music was one of the driving forces behind “Lightheaded,” the band’s newest album.

“Lightheaded is a great production and the best col-laborative songwriting in the band’s history,” Lewis said.

“ L i g h t h e a d e d , ” Downright’s fourth full-length album, will be released in late spring of this year, but the band has been working on the album since summer 2011.

‘Lightheaded’ is different in that it’s something we’ve really taken our time with,”

DeVine said. “Other albums we were more interested in getting them out by a certain date which made them more urgent.”

While the band members enjoyed the recording pro-cess, they both look forward to performing their new-est tracks live in front of a Tuscaloosa audience.

“I feel like [performing live] is much more forgiving [than recording]; much more give and take in the moment,” DeVine said. “Also, an audi-ence drives you to do things you wouldn’t normally do. It’s more like a conversation.”

Wes Keith, the band’s manager, said Downright’s

powerful live performances are part of what enticed him to work with the band.

“I experienced the magic groove that could take over a room and turn it inside out,” said Keith, who has been Downright’s manager since 2003.

For these two musicians, Tuscaloosa is more than just another name on a long list of tour destinations. DeVine and Lewis, both University of Alabama alumni, met in the music school here and formed Downright in 1999, the year they graduated.

“Tuscaloosa was a great environment to get the band started, always a lot of fun

and an excitable crowd of enthusiastic music lovers,” Lewis said.

Not all college bands last after graduation, but 14 years later, Downright is still going strong.

“We had such a chemis-try that there was never any doubt we would continue as a band,” Lewis said.

DeVine said the band’s early days writing and per-forming in Tuscaloosa pro-vided Downright with a solid foundation to build on and remain an influence on Downright’s music to this day.

“There’s a lot of appre-ciation for the South here,” DeVine said. “When you

appreciate where you are from, you can build on it. I think the south is a great region and the struggles of the last 75 years have pro-duced some incredible music here. Embracing the region doesn’t mean condoning its problems, so Tuscaloosa was a great place to start out.”

Downright will perform at Green Bar on Friday, Feb. 1, along with opening acts Blackwater Thieves and Junior Spicy. The show starts at 10 p.m. and the cover charge is $5.

For more information on Downright, visit the band’s Facebook page or go to downrightmusic.net.

DOWNRIGHT FROM PAGE 1

Band still playing 14 years after graduating

The Washington Post’s Faces of the Fallen project, which com-piles information about soldiers who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, found that 146 female service

members have died in these wars to date.

According to the Service Women’s Action Network, women have played important roles in combat units during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan already, through Lioness Teams and Female Engagement Teams.

Lioness Teams accompany Marine combat units in Iraq in

order to search Iraqi women for weapons or explosives. This is necessary because of the cul-tural stigma that comes with being touched by a man for Iraqi women.

Female Engagement Teams are tasked with building rela-tionships with Afghan women.

“The absence of a clear line between enemy and friendly territory produces a situation

where both women and men are always exposed to the pos-sibility of combat, necessitat-ing every soldier to be combat-ready,” SWAN said in a state-ment about women in combat roles.

Durand said she can serve on equal footing with her male counterparts.

“I feel accepted,” she said. “The rucks we carry are the

same. My training is the same as the guys’.”

When packed, a ruck carries everything a soldier would need for field training exercises. It can weigh 60 pounds or more.

Ricky Webb, a 2008 graduate of the University and member of the National Guard, agreed.

“Granted, I’m in a non-com-bat field, but I treat them with the same respect I’d treat any

other soldier,” he said. “In train-ing, I’ve seen women that could pass the male scale in physicaltraining. If they can cut it, theycan cut it.”

The removal of the com-bat ban has affected the way Durand thinks about a long-term military career.

“It’s something to consider,” she said. “The removal of the ban opens new things up to me.”

MILITARY FROM PAGE 1

Lift on ban enhances track for promotions

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Today’s Birthday (01/31/13). Travel plans advance, and writing fl ows. A fun, creative phase sparkles with exploration until summer, when productivity and a career rise occupy your time. Changes at home hold your focus. Group eff orts succeed, so rely on family and friends, and be generous, too.To get the advantage, check the day’s rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging.Aries (March 21-April 19) -- Today is an 8 -- Th ere’s more room for love. If you’ve been thinking about it, now’s a good time to pop the question. Reality clashes with fantasy. Choose wisely. What would be the most fun?Taurus (April 20-May 20) -- Today is a 7 -- Accept the gift of laughter from a loved one or a child. Relaxing helps you work. Balance your job and your family. Launch a new project now.Gemini (May 21-June 20) -- Today is a 9 -- Unexpected confrontation and beauracratic delays interfere with your plans. Use the tension to make something beautiful. Look at the problem with a child’s perspective.Cancer (June 21-July 22) -- Today is a 9 -- Your mind moves more quickly than you can. Th is work is fun, really. It’s not the time to throw your money around. Entertain outside opinions. Postpone travel.Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) -- Today is an 8 -- Something works gloriously. Stop for a minute, and let it soak in. It’s easier to concentrate. Don’t speculate with love or money.Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) -- Today is a 7 -- Learn from a master of fi nances,

and continue improving your net worth. Don’t let it slip through your fi ngers. Be logical and creative at the same time. Postpone travel for now.Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) -- Today is a 9 -- Follow your heart, and take on a leadership role. Abundance is avail-able, but don’t let your friends spend your money ... especially what you haven’t earned yet.Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) -- Today is a 6 -- Don’t rush it, more work will come soon enough. But don’t procrastinate either, as there’s not time for that. Th e situation may be confusing. Trust your intuition.Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) -- Today is an 8 -- Collect old junk at home and give it away, in a clean sweep. Consider replacing it with something you’ve long wanted. Ensure it doesn’t become tomorrow’s junk.Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) -- Today is an 8 -- Off er encouragement to others and to yourself. Th en start studying the next subject. Balance career and family like a pro. Travel does look good now.Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) -- Today is an 8 -- A great adventure lies ahead. Inspire those who love you. Th e trick is to balance work and fun; get your homework done before get-ting sucked into video games.Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) -- Today is a 6 -- You’re entering a two-day transformative cycle. Go for the gold. Consider your plan well. Friends help you fi nd the best partner. Aim high and get into action.

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CLASSIC COMICS AND ALBUMS: large collection of comic books, albums, movie posters, sports memorabilia, DVDs/ CDs, beer signs. In Skyland Antique Mall, 311 Skyland Blvd, and Bama Flea Mall, Birmingham. Details on Facebook.

EDITING ASSISTANCE Do you need someone to edit your papers? Contact Trey (205) 310-3308. Rates range from $10/hour for basic spell-ing and grammar to $30/hour for more detailed changes. My specializations are edu-cation, psychology, and his-tory.

CULTUREPage 16 . Thursday, January 31, 2013

EditorLauren Ferguson

Assistant Editor Katherine Owen

SCEN

ET

HE

Most students have a so-called “bucket list” of things to do before

leaving The University of Alabama. With graduation approaching in

May, The Scene decided to take a look at what it is that makes the UA

experience different from all other college experiences. From champi-

oning the infamous “Mugshot” burger at Mugshot’s or scaling a silo in

Northport, Ala., these are the most common to-do’s on the bucket lists

of UA students.

Photos: CW | Shannon Auvil and Austin BigoneyPhoto Illustration: CW | Larsen Lien and Daniel Roth