The Carolinian [April 3, 2013]

              News Page 2 Opinions Page 6 A&E Page 10 Features Page 14 Sports Page 20
Budget
cuts or
campus
closings?
Photo courtesy of Ildar Sagdejev/ wikimedia commons
News - P.g. 3
Wednesday, April 3 - 9, 2013 • Volume XCIII No. 27
The Carolinian
Established 1919
Box N1 EUC
UNCG
Greensboro, NC, 27413
Phone: (336) 334-5752
Fax: (336) 334-3518
Editorial and Business Staff
Derrick Foust
Publisher
Publisher.Carolinian@gmail.com
Kaycie Coy
Editor-in-Chief
Editor.Carolinian@gmail.com
Olivia Cline
News Editor
News.Carolinian@gmail.com
Emily Brown
Opinions Editor
Opinions.Carolinian@gmail.com
Tristan Munchel
Arts & Entertainment Editor
AE.Carolinian@gmail.com
Joseph Abraham
Sports Editor
Sports.Carolinian@gmail.com
Christopher McCracken
Features Editor
Features.Carolinian@gmail.com
Autumn Wells
Advertising Manager
Ads.Carolinian@gmail.com
Corrections Policy
The Carolinian never know-ingly
publishes any mistakes. Please
promptly notify us of any errors by
e-mailing the Editor-in-Chief at
Editor.Carolinian@gmail.com, or
calling (336) 334-5752. Corrections
will be published on page 2 in sub-sequent
issues of The Carolinian.
Mission Statement
The Carolinian is a teaching
newspaper that is organized and
produced by students of the Uni-versity
of North Carolina at Greens-boro.
It is our objective to teach
young writers journalistic skills
while emphasizing the importance
of honesty and integrity in campus
media.
News
2 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM See campus, page 4
A community-led meeting
about the new Campus Master
Plan was held last Tuesday and
Wednesday, with the purpose
of informing a variety of people
from the school and surrounding
community on the effects the
plan will have.
The discussion became tense
after the presentation, with
student-led groups asking
questions that began to critique
the proposal, and university
faculty, staff and campus master
planners spoke out in support
of the plan. The plan itself is
centered on a five year approach,
with an emphasis on expanding
the campus to include a portion
of Lee Street.
According to the school
website, the university is in
the process of updating its
Campus Master Plan. Over
the two day work session and
meeting session, a variety
of discussions were held
with UNCG administrators,
campus leadership and other
stakeholders.
The purpose of these
community focused forums
was to “engage students, faculty,
staff and community groups to
learn about the master planning
process and key issues, and to
review preliminary ideas for
addressing these issues in the
plan.”
The original plan was
reviewed before the question
answer section of the forum,
during which the basic plan
was discussed. The original
vision for the university was
called the Glenwood Mixed Use
Village. This calls for a mixture
of on campus residence and
new institutional buildings
for classes. The proposal also
includes a new recreational
center for the community, a new
parking deck, retail stores, and a
new police station.
The NC Student Power Union
represented the student presence
on campus. Most of the groups
questions centered on turnout
and impact on the people. “If
this is truly representative of the
students, where are the 20,000
students?” asked one student.
Officials say the university’s
expansion into the West Lee
Street Corridor was triggered by
Students protest new Campus Plan
Photo Courtesy of Camilo Vergara
Speakers present at the Campus Master Plan forum last week.
UNCG’s strategic housing plan,
which asks for the university
to increase the percentage
of undergraduates living in
university housing from 30
percent to more than 40 percent
over the next decade. In addition,
the expansion also syncs with
Greensboro’s revitalization plan
for the High Point Road/West
Lee Street corridor, a main entry
point and thoroughfare in the
city.
School officials say campus
planners also touted the project
by saying it will also spur
economic development in the
area. Projections estimate the
development will generate
more than $590 million in new
spending between 2014 and
2023, create 945 new jobs and
boost local property revenues by
$7.5 million.
The Master Plan itself is a
document that seeks to build
upon the twenty-five year
legacy of planning, with the last
update being in 2007. The plan’s
focus is on building a upon the
university’s previous planning
efforts to further advance the
vision of UNCG as a diverse,
student-centered research
university.
While the open forums
were intended to help serve as
venues for providing feedback
and suggestions to help shape
the plan as it begins to be
implemented, much of the
community, especially members
of the student body, began to
question all of the actions being
planned.
Rae Millen, a leader in the
effort to reverse much of the
proposal, said, “We are in a
Aaron Bryant
Staff Writer
News
WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM April 3 - 9, 2013 T h e C a r o l i n i a n 3
Two years ago, while NC faced
a possible $3 million budget
crisis, the then-president of the
UNC system Erskine Bowles
proposed closing down one or
more of North Carolina’s 17
campuses. “If we keep having
cuts, cuts, cuts, we’ll have to
look at eliminating schools,
campuses,” said Bowles. “That
would be the smart decision; the
unfortunate, smart decision.”
While the economic state in
NC has drastically improved
from 2011, as it expects a 3.6
percent revenue growth in 2014,
late last week a few Republican
legislative leaders brought back
the talking point of shutting
down one more schools,
upsetting many Democrats and
UNC advocates.
Senator Pete Brunstetter, a
budget committee co-chairman,
said that Republican lawmakers
discussed possible closings
of one or two UNC-system
colleges and universities to cut
spending and primarily focus
limited resources on the schools
that were performing the best.
“There should be no sacred
cows,” said Brunstetter in an
interview last Friday in response
to criticism. “The UNC system
needs to be subjected to the
same scrutiny as everything
else.” Brunstetter further
noted that it’s too soon to start
identifying which campuses
should close, merge, or transfer
into community college system.
The idea of shutting down one
or two UNC schools has created
more obstacles between NC
Democratic and Republican
leaders, as NC Democratic
senators fear that this idea
could allow lawmakers to close
down one of the five historically
black colleges and universities
or one of the colleges located in
more rural and impoverished
regions. In response, Senator
Chad Barefoot says lawmakers
should give the idea some
thought. “If Erskine said it…
then it certainly needs to be
looked at,” said the Republican
senator.
Two years ago, the UNC
system experienced more
than $400 million in budget
cuts, while student funding
took a huge dive, dropping
13 percent from 2007-2008
to 2011-2012. The cuts were
a part of the university’s five-year
plan, which also included
a report from the consulting
firm McKinney & Company.
Stephanie Cistrunk
Staff Writer
UNC Pembroke, a historically Native American school, is one of the schools many believe will be affected.
Photo Courtesy of jopam/Wikimedia commons
That report was the first to
raise the possibility of closing
one or more campuses, as the
firm proposed downsizing
and eliminating duplication in
academic programs. Although
the report was included in
the budget plan, it hadn’t
been discussed among the
UNC Board of Governors
or the universities strategic
committee. Nevertheless, it
was used as “a fact base for the
strategic planning process,”
said UNC spokeswoman Joni
Worthington. Current UNC
President Tom Ross predicts
that closing one or two schools
would make no real difference
in spending cuts, since the
students would simply go to
another campus and state
education dollars would follow
the students. In addition,
Ross speculated about what
lawmakers plan to do with the
state’s large investments in
campus facilities, which could
prove difficult to sell. Ross
also mentioned that the NC
university system has already
seen improvements in the past
four years since the budget cuts
were enacted, as cost per degree
is down 11 percent, and still
results in creating 17 percent
more degrees.
This prospect of campus
closings to reduce state
spending came after a week
Governor Pat McCrory sent the
legislature a budget proposal
for the 2013-2014 fiscal year
that proposed $135 million in
funding cuts from the UNC
system. The recent comments
and McCrory’s proposal have
ignited groups such as the
North Carolina Democratic
Party and Progress NC to make
See UNC SYstem, page 5
Possibility of changes to UNC system alarms many
Photo Courtesy of adamantlymike/wikipmedia commons
Elizabeth City State University is another school that many fear will be endangered.
News 4 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM crisis in the educational
system, student debt is rising
and liberal arts education is
under attack. Yet the university
is focused on athletic expansion.
Expansion into Glenwood is
destroying neighborhoods. They
talk about students, but the
plan is revenue based. They do
nothing to help with our rising
student debt, nothing with our
post-graduate transition into
the job market and nothing with
expanding majors. This plan is
no good.”
With regards to the student
input on the proposed
expansion, Associate Vice
Chancellor, Campus Enterprises,
Mike Byers, said “I can’t imagine
a scenario where it would be
stopped.”
Hillen also said, “The open
forums that UNCG has held,
both with the Glenwood
community and most recently
with students, were not only ill-advertised
but were a complete
facade. The meetings were held
on the premise that student and
community input is invaluable
to the planning process, but were
really just an opportunity for the
University to claim that they
involved us. When challenges
and objections to their plans
were voiced by both student and
community members, they were
either placated or completely
ignored. What we are seeing right
now is a group of administrators
and businessmen scheming on
how to expand UNCG’s physical,
money-producing assets such
as athletics, without a single
consideration for the academic
and financial support that
students actually need, and they
are justifying their actions via
the joke that they asked us and
hear what we had to say.”
The first phase of the plan is
expected to be completed by fall
of 2013.
Last Tuesday night, in the
shadow of the Supreme Court’s
impending decisions about the
constitutionality of amendments
limiting or banning gay
marriage, gay-rights activists
in thirteen locations around
the state held vigils in support
of North Carolina’s LGTBQ*
community and in hopes thatt
their actions would show the
Supreme Court their position on
the issue.
Organized by Equality NC, a
group which supports LGBTQ*
rights, the vigils were held in
Asheville, Charlotte, Fayetteville,
Greensboro, Hendersonville,
Hickory, Liberty, New Bern,
Raleigh, Winston-Salem and
Wilson, NC, with two additional
locations in Greenville and
Columbia, South Carolina.
The Greensboro vigil was held
at College Park Baptist Church,
which meets just off the UNCG
campus at the corner of Aycock
St. and Walker Ave.
The sanctuary was filled with
a mixture of college students,
church members and outside
Greensboro residents. The
agenda included speakers from
College Park Baptist Church and
from the Greensboro community,
along with performers from the
LGBTQ* and ally communities.
These ranged from a master’s
student at UNCG to local radio
personalities.
Speakers emphasized the fact
that gaining the right to marry
is not the only battle that this
community faces, but that it is a
place to start.
Keynote speaker Robert
Eldredge offered a heartfelt
and often funny view of the
situation. He concisely captured
the situation, including the legal
implications of the Supreme
Olivia Cline
News Editor
campus
from page 3
Court’s discussion of the case
and the consequences that will
follow the court’s decision.
He also discussed the cultural
roots of discrimination and
inequality.
The vigil closed with a lighting
of candles as Lyn Koonce, a
local performer who works
for 107.5 KZL and Rock 92,
played an original composition
followed by the somg Home by
Phillip Phillips. Much of the
crowd joined her in singing the
familiar song, and many found
themselves choking back tears.
Students and church members
alike seemed to regard the
event as an unqualified success.
The Facebook event page was
cluttered with heartwarming
testimonies and reviews, and
many said that the vigil offered
them new hope for a possible
change in society.
Vigil for gay rights resounding success
Photo Courtesy of See-ming-Lee/Flickr
Above: One common variation on an image many have posted as their Facebook profile pictures in support of gay
rights. Below: Attendees listen to Lyn Koonce sing during Tuesday’s Vigil for Justice.
Photo Courtesy of College Park Baptist Church
News
WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM April 3 - 9, 2013 T h e C a r o l i n i a n 5
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known their disappointment
about this prospect. The NC
Democratic Party Chair wrote,
“at a time like this, when our
economy is on the rebound,
the last things that we should
think about doing is limiting
our students’ educational
opportunities.” Progress NC
also sent out a statement similar
in message which in part reads,
“There is no better way to
destroy a local economy than
to close a college campus.” To
calm the immediate backlash,
Senator Brunstetter reinsured
that it was only a plausible
idea, and that the Piedmont
Triad UNC schools would be
safe, considering that they are
“performing well”. Brunstetter
also tried backing up his and
other legislative members’ idea
that closing one or two schools
could in time keep college
tuition low. “By having fewer
infrastructures that you’re
supporting, you can potentially
keep your cost down enough
so that government can keep
tuition low,” said Brunstetter.
Despite undergraduate
enrollment remaining static
for the past few years, UNC
board chairwoman Hannah
wrote an email Friday urging
lawmakers to put more time
and thought into the prospect,
as party politics could get in
the way of a balanced decision.
“So a discussion of downsizing,
repurposing or redesigning
parts of the University is not
inappropriate,” she wrote. “But
the topic is complex, nuanced
and not just one of economics,
and needs to be done in a
balanced thoughtful way that
truly serves the state and its
people; it needs to be done
outside of politics as much as
possible and therein lies the
danger of having it now.”
State News Briefs
Monroe shelves
drone project due to
public pressure
Senator Kay Hagan
announces support
for gay marriage
Compiled By: Aaron Bryant
James K Polk home
in Charlotte to be
closed by budget
United States Senator Kay
Hagan came out in support
of gay marriage rights last
Wednesday. The announcement
may have political consequences
because Senator Hagan will be
up for re-election in 2014.
Hagan announced her support
to the News and Observer in
Raleigh, leaving the small group
of Democratic senators who
have not publicly supported gay
marriage with one less member.
Hagan said in her
announcement on Facebook,
“Marriage equality is a complex
issue with strong feelings on
both sides, and I have a great
deal of respect for varying
opinions on the issue.” She also
said, “After much thought and
prayer, I have come to my own
personal conclusion that we
shouldn’t tell people who they
can love or who they can marry.”
The announcement comes in
the midst of two Supreme Court
cases that deal with same-sex
marriages.
For Hagan, the announcement
will bring political ramifications.
Hagan’s Senate seat is considered
the most vulnerable.
North Carolina’s voting
population this past election
voted for Republicans in the
state legislature as well as the
national ticket.
Supporters of same sex
marriages, however, point to a
rapidly changing opinion on gay
marriage, and say this will help
Hagan with her Democratic
base.The court cases are expected
to have a decision announced
early this summer.
The budget proposal released
by newly elected Governor
Pat McCrory attempts to “fix a
broken government.” However,
one of the ways in which the
budget plans to do this is by
shutting down funding for four
historic state sites, including the
childhood home of James K.
Polk.
The new budget would close
the site, as well as the other
three, to the public. The state
would as a result lay off two full-time
employees at each of the
four sites, retaining only the site
managers to protect buildings
and museum artifacts.
Supporters of these sites say
that these kinds of actions will
negatively impact our perception
of North Carolina history.
Sharon Van Kuren, president of
the James K. Polk support group
in Union County said, “This
site is very important to North
Carolina and Mecklenburg
County. We have a home of a
president. Not everybody can
say that. We’ve already lost so
much of Charlotte’s history and
we don’t need to lose any more.
That will be our battle cry.”
James K. Polk is one of two
Presidents born in the state of
North Carolina.
These budgetary battles at
the state level are reflective
of a national sentiment over
budgets. The U.S. government
has allowed for $85 billion to
be cut from non-discretionary
spending each year for the next
ten years to begin reducing the
nation’s debt.
No final decision has been
made on the Polk historic site.
The city of Monroe has
decided to shelve its drone
project amid controversy
surrounding the proposal to
purchase a mini drone for the
city’s police department. The
police chief and the city, which
started to work on its own
policies for the drone device,
decided to postpone the project
to allow for the state legislature
to debate the matter further.
Two city council members in
Monroe said they had another
reason to table the plan; the
owner of the company that
manufactures this technology
had previously served time in
prison. The city council has
also faced pressure from their
constituents concerned about
privacy issues.
The Charlotte Observer
reported that, “Monroe was
interested in using the device
for community safety, such as at
crime scenes, searches or natural
disasters. But civil libertarians,
politicians and others have
raised privacy and related
concerns about their use.”
The controversy is also present
at the national level, where, over
the last few years, the executive
branch’s use of drone technology
has risen exponentially. While
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
were first used during the Bush
administration, the Obama
administration has used drones
to target members of al-Qaeda
in various countries ranging
from Yemen to Pakistan. . At
the state level, a bill was recently
introduced that would put
significant limits on the use of
drones, and would require a
search warrant to use one.
UNC system
from page 3
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Opinions 6 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM Is there a greater concern for seeming healthy than actually being healthy here at UNCG?
Photo Courtesy OF DANIELY .GO/FLICKR
Emily Ritter
Staff Writer
Advertising is everything. The
image of a healthy campus could
very well be more important
than a healthy campus. With
campaigns for a healthy lifestyle
in full effect, what does “healthy”
look like? The state of New
York’s recent attempt to ban the
sales of high sugar drinks over
16 oz. was met with varying
degrees of skepticism, and it
really begs the question, is it
more important to seem healthy
than to invest in making healthy
options accessible? I think this
is interesting to contemplate
because commercialization
of this ever-sought “health” is
staggering, but well hidden.
Being “healthy” by new
standards is expensive. It is more
expensive to buy fresh fruits and
vegetables than to buy frozen
pizza and white bread, and the
living quarters for students
in dorms do not encourage
breaking away from this. On
our own campus, there are not
a lot of healthy options. The
Elliott University Center offers
Subway and Jamba Juice, but
even these well-known chains
require you to identify and opt
in to their healthy selections,
rather than being healthy in
general. If you explore further,
Chik-Fil-A, Salsaritas, Papa
John’s, and a Krispy Kreme kiosk
all reside in the main student
eatery on campus, and our pre-packaged
salads have little to
offer. The salads prepared on
campus are not appealing, and
cannot actually compete with
the other choices, so is it really
an “option?” I do not mean for
this discussion to appear whiny,
or unappreciative, but the work
that goes in to producing these
items is not up for debate – just
the ingredients.
Greensboro is home to many
small businesses that fully
support locally grown and
produced goods, which means
at the very least, there is access
in Greensboro. To claim that
a campus could go completely
local, or completely green, is
ridiculous. That is why the
“healthy campus” image is
damaging, because keeping up
appearances makes it difficult
to have meaningful dialogues.
There should be spaces on
campus to purchase local, fresh
and quality food. There is a
market for it, and it discredits
students when one assumes
we will only respond to fast
food chains with household
reputations. The actual health
of students should be a primary
concern. On the surface, having
a Subway and a Jamba Juice
seems thoughtful, and enough
to get by. As an institution
that encourages students
to “Do Something Bigger
Altogether,” I would think it
would be important to go above
and beyond. Having local
options would help support the
surrounding community, and
promote student awareness.
Students need to start asking
questions, and not be limited
to the small world on campus
where we interact.
This transcends the campus
eating options. Where are the
goods in our bookstore made?
Do they involve sweatshops? Do
the companies we sign contracts
with have good reputations? Is
this information accessible?
What goes into the decision
making process concerning
the chains allowed on campus?
These are important questions.
College students are deemed to
be “the future,” we are pushed
to think critically, but if we start
thinking too critically about our
campus there is a very suspicious
“do not bite the hand that feeds”
backlash. We should be thinking
critically about our campus.
We should very much consider
the impact that our university
has on our community, and we
should truly commit to “doing
something bigger” by pushing
ourselves to be a positive force
in every aspect. Universities are
becoming more commercial,
and it is a shame, because this
is a space where students should
be allowed to ask questions. I
have appreciated the time I have
spent at UNCG, but buying
pizza rolls in a campus store
compared to a grocery store is
indicative of the inaccessibility
of a “healthy lifestyle” at UNCG.
Many college campuses are not
healthy right now, and putting
on a show does not benefit
everyone. We need to start
asking, because it is vital to be
informed, to be critical, and to
question norms.
Why being healthy is trendy,
and how we CAN IMPROVE
WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM April 3 - 9, 2013 T h e C a r o l i n i a n 7
Opinions
The 21st century called and it wants you
to stop reading “Miss Manners”
Last weekend, my friend was
awarded one of the top five
“Young Democrat of the Year”
awards. For her achievements,
she was given a plaque with
her name engraved. After the
ceremony we discussed the
award and where would be
appropriate to hang it. The
conversation was mostly time-consuming.
She was concerned
with seeming conceited or
egotistical, so she avoided
hanging it anywhere that – god
forbid – someone would easily
recognize her good work. I
found myself frustrated by
the obsession with etiquette
surrounding the location of a
plaque.
I found myself thinking
about the conversation long
after it ended, and how we as a
society worry about etiquette.
From dating to setting tables,
Americans become a nervous
wreck when it comes to
following made-up rules. In
fact, we have several different
tiers of etiquette for every
situation. There is business
etiquette, social etiquette and
table etiquette. With so many,
I find it incredible that anyone
can keep up. The expansion of
information now makes it easier
to create new forms behavior.
Type in to Google, “how to...” or
“what appropriate for...” and you
will find a plethora of amateurs-made-
professionals who took to
the Internet to preach their life
rules.
I find this behavior almost
comical - our entire lives we
obsess over what is or is not
proper. We live in a society of
stress, sleep deprivation, long
hours and low wages. But still
we concern ourselves with
whether the fork goes next to
the knife or where to display
an award. According to the
Center for Disease Control
and Prevention, the average life
expectancy rate in this country
is 78 years. That’s 900 months,
3,913 weeks and over 25,000
days many of us will have on the
planet. Time is precious. Any
minute dedicated to obsessing
over social perception is another
minute better committed to our
community or selves.
Another reason it bothers
me is that we end up forcing
ourselves to be something we
are not. Take the advice of every
dating expert and you will find
yourself trying to survive the
date instead of enjoying it. I
cannot imagine the amount of
time I have wasted worrying if
Thomas O’Connell
Staff Writer
texting the girl back “too soon”
would be worse than possibly
insulting her by waiting too long.
Most of us have asked about the
right time to flirt and whether a
red shirt is too aggressive for a
first date. Many of these rules end
up being socially constructed
by technology or temporary
cultural norms. Keeping up with
these rules is almost impossible.
Our grandparents never had
to consider whether asking
someone out over Facebook
was acceptable or if opening the
door for women was sexist, but
they did have to worry about
how many days before the date
they called her on her college
pay phone.
It is nearly impossible for
an American to successfully
navigate our own social norms.
Such is the case for the mixture
of the hearing and the Deaf
community, because the latter
deems it acceptable to comment
on anything they can visibly
see. It is perfectly acceptable to
ask someone about his weight
gain, or ask what he spent on a
new car. Even if an American
did adapt to every change in our
etiquette, there are still other
cultures that value different
behavior. For example, in
Arabian societies it is considered
impolite to reveal the sole of
ones’ shoe when conversing. In
Japan you are expected to place
your dishes exactly as they were
after a dinner. As international
travel becomes cheaper, more
people will have to become
versed in the etiquette of another
nation. Technology expands
communication across boarders,
though, which makes it harder
to grasp social expectations.
My friend can simply be
bashful about praise, but surely
some of her reservations are
rooted in concerns violating
social protocol. My advice would
be to not concern yourself with
what is proper. Hang your award
where you want, and because
you want to take pride in your
work and goals. You do not have
to put yourself down or hide
your aspirations because you are
concerned that self-appreciation
is bad form. Hang your plaque
for the world to see, most
importantly yourself. To anyone
else in similar situations: red is
not an aggressive first date color,
and there are more important
things to worry about than the
placement of your fork.
Photo Courtesy OF CLAPPSTAR /FLICKR
We learn social norms at a young age. Is it just as important to just relax and make a silly face sometimes?
Opinions 8 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM Samantha Korb
Staff Writer
Recreating traditional marriage again
This past week, the
Supreme Court heard two
groundbreaking cases that could
decide same sex marriage’s
legal status at the state and
federal level. Yes, I am writing
about Prop 8 and the Defense
of Marriage of Act. Spend five
minutes on Facebook and you’ll
find friends and acquaintances
donning the red equal sign, or
a variety of a similar message
(bacon and Paula Dean equal
signs, among others); it was
impossible to not hear or see
something about the Supreme
Court’s arguments about same
sex marriage. But what does that
mean for when justices make
a decision this summer? We
all know one thing, whatever
decisions they make will have
lasting impacts on states’ rights
and the federal government’s
hand in the legality of marriage
and marriage rights.
But after a week of hearings
over the cases brought against
DOMA and Prop 8, it’s hard to
say what will come out of those
hearings. As any media junkie,
I frantically checked Facebook,
Twitter, you name it. On Twitter,
the Supreme Court tweeted out
mixed messages, but what was
known at the end of the day
was Justice Kennedy waivered
on Prop 8 (thinking it wasn’t
the right time to take up this
issue) and was more on the side
of being suspicious of DOMA.
However, that particular Twitter
handle also stated that all of the
Affordable Care Act would be
struck down, so you can never
really trust Twitter 100% of the
time either.
Another troubling and
surprising sign was the
sentiments of Justice Sotomayor,
who questioned whether or
not states should have the right
to ‘experiment’ with same sex
marriage. This was followed up
by saying “we let issues perk, and
so we let racial segregation perk
for 50 years from 1898 to 1954”,
implying that we could do the
same with same sex marriage.
It’s the idea that the public is not
‘ready’ for same sex marriage,
and that the court shouldn’t
strike down same sex marriage
bans for the sake of the public’s
readiness.
hether states can ban same
sex marriage through ballot
measures, especially after
those marriages were already
put in place. Prop 8 is the
most confusing of the cases,
as its ruling could impact only
California or it could impact
the entire nation. It’s possible
California can continue to
have same sex marriages after
their Supreme Court deemed
it unconstitutional, but the
US Supreme Court could still
allow for states to continue
to have same sex marriage
ban ballot initiatives in the
future. It’s also possible the
Supreme Court could say Prop
8 was unconstitutional and
that all states who have similar
marriage bans on the ballots
are unconstitutional as well
(reversing Amendment One
in North Carolina and other
states).
For the Defense of Marriage
Act, which was signed by
President Clinton in 1996, its
constitutionality is in serious
question, and might be the one
struck down first, if anyone of
these cases were to be struck
down. The case US v Windsor
focuses on Edie Windsor who
was with her partner Thea Spyer
since the mid 1960’s, and had
married in Toronto nearly 40
years later. Windsor’s partner
died in 2009, and since their
marriage was not legal in New
York, Windsor was forced to
pay $363,000 in federal estate
taxes on her wife’s estate. Now
the case is on the doors of the
Supreme Court after the District
Court and the Court of Appeals
both deemed Section 3 of the
Defense of Marriage Act as
unconstitutional. This section
of DOMA reflects whether or
not married same sex couples
can access federal benefits. If
this portion of DOMA is struck
down, it is quite possible section
2 of DOMA can be struck down
as well. Section 2 questions
whether a marriage in one state
can be recognized in another
state that does not have same
sex marriages.
It is hard to predict what
is really going to happen with
these cases. Whatever is going
to happen with both of these
cases, it is fair to say confusion
will still be the law of the land. I
do not expect marriage equality
to happen tomorrow, but I do
think the implications of these
decisions will impact whether
citizens will vote on same sex
marriages, and whether a couple
can access federal and/or state
benefits. Now we wait.
Nadia Stevens
Staff Writer
Red dot in an ocean of blue
It has been said that
universities can be a lonely
place for conservatives;
UNCG is no exception. With
its commitment to doctrinal
“diversity,” professors who get
a noticeable twinkle in their
eye when discussing Marx,
and College Democrats who
seem to out talk, out dress,
and out cool their Republican
counterparts at every avenue,
it is easy to see why someone
of right wing tendencies could
feel out of place here. Lucky for
them, there is place where they
can hang their hats and feel
at home. This mythical place
is none other than Yum Yum
Better Ice Cream.
On the surface, it might seem
peculiar to label Yum Yum as
an island of red in an endless
blue sea. However, if you linger
at the establishment for a few
moments longer than it takes to
eat one of their signature pink
hot dogs, you will begin to spot
the signs. Among these are its
tradition, business practices,
and signs of Christian influence.
The first sign is tradition.
Yum Yum began as a push-cart
business in 1906. A few decades
later, after some more success,
it became a free standing store.
Begun by a poor father looking
for a way to support his family,
one of his sons, W.B. Aydelette
bought out his siblings to
become the sole owner of the
establishment. Mr. Aydelette’s
zeal and passion for the business
helped turn the company into
a local sensation. One student
from the 1950s said that “Yum
Yum was Woman’s College
[UNCG] for me.” Mr. Aydelette’s
take on the company can still
be shown on t-shirts for sale at
the store today. “If you want to
live a long time, eat a lot of Yum
Yum every day.” Some of those
familiar with Mr. Aydelette’s life
may take his advice to heart; he
lived to be ninety-seven. W.B.
Aydelette’s son, Bernard, left
N.C. State after taking some
classes on cream and milk usage
in the 1940s and continues to be
involved with the company, as is
his son, Clint.
A century of establishment
and four generations of
familial support anchors Yum
Yum’s traditionalism. But
an equally important part of
its conservative identity is
its business practices. Upon
entering into the restaurant,
customers will see a small but
strong notice on the counter
signed by the management. They
“reserve the right to deny any
service.” Now, to some, this may
smack of a pre-Woolworth sit-in
Greensboro. However, taking
a moment to look around, you
will notice people of all different
backgrounds- liberals included-enjoying
Yum Yum ice cream
and hotdogs. No, this is not an
attempt to discriminate, but
instead a chance for Yum Yum
to assert some of its business
autonomy in an overregulated
time and era. Yum Yum won’t
deny you service because you
are black or gay. They will,
however, refuse to serve- and for
good reason- hostile individuals
and trouble makers.
Another sign of its
conservative business practices
is its struggle with eminent
domain. Liberals often chide
conservatives for being in the
way of progress. For many
business and home owners,
“progress” requires major
sacrifices. Yum Yum has moved
a number of times in its history,
and in the past few decades, it
has had to move as the university
See YUMYUMS page 9
Opinions
WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM April 3 - 9, 2013 T h e C a r o l i n i a n 9
expands. It previously sat
where the Mossman Building
currently does and there is
some concern about its future
location as UNCG experiences
growing pains. University
expansion is a real concern for
company management, but
even if the company is forced to
move again, expect that it won’t
go too far. Locals wouldn’t have
it any other way.
A final sign of the company’s
conservatism can be found by
reading some of the articles
posted around the counter and
on its Facebook page. There is
a posted sermon, additional
references of a religious or
patriotic nature, and “likes” for
the Boy Scouts, religious-based
social services, and other small
businesses. While the posting
of a Christian editorial may be
seen as controversial if seen in
a faculty lounge or among the
library stacks, it is right at home
at Yum Yum, and likely will be
for some time to come.
This article is not the product
of interviews with the Aydelette
family. All the research done
for it is available to anyone and
can be found online or in the
store itself. However, I believe
the signs of tradition, business
practice, and religion are signs
of Yum Yum’s conservatism. But
probably more importantly than
being a conservative hideaway,
Yum Yum is a place that brings
people together regardless of
ideology or other differences. It
is where you can find doctorate-wielding
women’s studies
professors, a bunch of history
nerds, and respectable members
of greater Greensboro all in one
place. Conservative, liberal,
white, black, old, young. Yum
Yum is arguably the most diverse
place on campus, and this is
its greatest accomplishment.
The company’s commitment to
the community it serves is the
reason that a kaleidoscope of
customers would agree with the
scribblings of a young fan: “I
love Yum Yum and I mean it.”
YUM YUMS
from page 8
Emily Brown
Opinions Editor
Yum-Yum Better Ice Cream is
without a doubt a staple for the
city of Greensboro. I recall dan-gling
my feet over the cement
steps, trying my best not to spill
a ball of mint-chip ice cream af-ter
an early morning swim prac-tice.
Much of the same event
happens to me now, 15 years lat-er,
except that it takes place after
a difficult exam and I am actu-ally
less graceful in handling the
cone. I have never asked myself
about the political leanings of
the institution until reading an
article that suggests it leans to
the right. I believe it is certainly
interesting to think about, espe-cially
to make an inference given
that we observe it almost daily
as students, even when are not
immediately paying attention.
However, my conclusions differ.
For one, although they may
“Like” the Boy Scouts, every
year they allow the Girl Scouts
to use their location to advertise
their famous cookies. The Girl
Scouts are funded in large part
by secular organizations. They
are also LGBT friendly. In fact,
the only real membership quali-fication
is that you identify as a
“girl”, whatever your definition
may be.
Their longevity could lead to
either conclusion. Simply being
open for a long time does not
speak to political philosophy,
only to being successful. We do
not argue that Bill Gates is actu-ally
conservative only because
Microsoft has been around for
a long time. Nonetheless, the
ever-present sign that advertises
their non-tangible right to re-fuse
service to anyone is in fact
an echo to days of segregation.
And although they have moved
by several yards over the years
as UNCG has expanded, their
general appearance is still also
an echo to the architectural style
that existed in the days of “sepa-rate
but equal.” However, their
diverse staff (not only in race,
but in gender and in age) quickly
defend it as merely a part of their
charm, and not any true mes-sage.
Most of all, I took one minute
to look up Bernard Aydelette
on the N.C. Board of Elections.
He happens to be the only one
in North Carolina, and he is
a Democrat. He registered in
1950, so some could argue that
his philosophy nowadays may
represent the modern Republi-can
party, but his history reflects
primary and second primary
elections with great regularity,
which demonstrates his ever-present
interest in specifically
the Democratic ticket.
Again, this is based on student
observations, not employees. I
have to admit, politics is the last
thing I think of as I open a glass
bottle of Cheerwine.
...or maybe still a
blue dot
A&E 10 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM As Greensboro’s only living
museum, Elsewhere has the
unique ability to both teach
and encourage creativity in the
same stroke. The museum is
filled with toys and other tools
of wonder, and its collection
of thrift items has allowed
the museum’s staff to create
youth-based projects under
the umbrella of “CoLAB,” or
collaborative laboratory.
This year Elsewhere is
launching QueerLab, the
third installment of CoLAB.
Queerlab is an interactive
experience aimed at gathering
LBGTQ youth of the Triad to
create “I Don’t Do Boxes,” a zine
from the queer perspective.
Chris Kennedy, a student at
UNCG and a teaching artist
at Elsewhere and Carrie Heart
of the LBGTQ youth program
Youthsafe oversee the creation
of “I Don’t Do Boxes.” The
idea of QueerLab was born
from Kennedy and Heart’s
frustration with the resources
available to queer youth.
“A lot of the stuff from
Glisten or GLADD and the top
non-profit organizations are
very—let’s just say not creative,”
said Kennedy at last Thursday’s
QueerLab meeting. “I Don’t Do
Boxes” is a radical zine aimed
at filling the gap left by the
more sterile resources currently
available to queer youth. It
is a survival guide for young
queer people coming to terms
with a number of issues, such
as growing up in the South,
religion and even what goes on
in the bedroom.
“I hope there’s a sassy sex
column,” said Kennedy. “When
you talk about gay sex it is
automatically demonized as
something evil—it’s ‘sodomy.’”
The official
departments of
QueerLab include
News & Politics,
Style & Culture,
U n d e r c o v e r
I n v e s t i g a t i o n s ,
and Advice &
Technique. The
four sections will
be curated by four
different youth
editors at QueerLab,
while the content
can be submitted by
any queer individual
across the globe. “I
Don’t Do Boxes”
will have both an
online and print
publication when
it is completed in
June, and the online
version will involve
a more interactive experience
with videos and sound clips.
Kennedy said the most popular
ideas thus far have been written
content, but he hopes the digital
possibilities will blossom as
more contributors flock to the
project.
The most challenging aspect
of Queerlab has been the clash
of Elsewhere’s open-ended
approach to learning and the
regimented nature of public
education.
“In North Carolina, people
are just so fearful and have so
much shame,” said Kennedy.
“If they get marked wrong on
something it’s like the end of
the world.” The structureless
nature of every CoLAB has had
complications because of this
clash, but the youth of
QueerLab may
have an advantage over the
students of past CoLABs. “I
think that most of the [queer]
folks I’ve come across are
actually more creative, because
they have to come up with ways
to express their identity,” said
Kennedy.
Finding that identity and
Kyle Minton
Staff Writer
comfort is one of QueerLab’s
many unspoken goals. Kennedy
and Heart stress the project as
a platform for community and
positive outreach, not just
QUEERLAB:
Photo Courtesy of Maria Sollecito
Photo Courtesy of Maria Sollecito
Photo Courtesy of Maria Sollecito
See Queerlab, page 12
A new, youth-led media project from Elsewhere
tells stories from outside the box.
Every week collaborators meet at Elsewhere to develop media for an upcoming queer-themed magazine.
Queerlab’s publication is called “I Don’t Do Boxes.”
Chris Kennedy (center) facilitates storyboard
painting at the QueerLab meeting.
A&E
WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM April 3 - 9, 2013 T h e C a r o l i n i a n 11
PASSION PIT Live at Davidson College
As March Madness comes to
an end and the NBA playoffs
get ready to start, basketball is at
the forefront of the sports world.
Basketball has seen its fair share
of theatrical treatments, and
though popular sports movies
tend to be overly sentimental,
there have been a number of en-joyable,
enlightening, and even
masterful examinations of bas-ketball
on film. Here are a few
noteworthy examples:
Blue Chips (dir. William
Friedkin)
Most sports films are not
lucky enough to have a talented
and accomplished director like
Oscar-winner William Friedkin
(“The French Connection,” “The
Exorcist”) behind the camera.
“Blue Chips” (1994) is that rare
movie. Friedkin’s presence lends
an air of legitimacy to the movie
from the outset, and the on-court
action is some of the most
intense and realistic sports ac-tion
of any film in the genre. The
film’s greatness can be attributed
not just to Friedkin, but also to
the many big-time basketball
stars and college coaches that
were featured in it.
Apart from the sports action,
the film deals with a college bas-ketball
coach (Nick Nolte) who
is forced to break the rules in
order to get the players he needs
to stay competitive. This is an
important issue in the world of
college basketball, and one that
seems to be more relevant today
than ever. Though the film drags
in some parts it never falls apart
thanks to Friedkin’s assured
Brad Dillard
Film Critic
See basketball, page 13
With a successful second
album release and an already-promising
start in the world of
music, Passion Pit, the indie
pop band from Cambridge,
Massachusetts, arrived at
Davidson College March 24
on tour to promote their latest
album, “Gossamer.”
The crowd consisted of
people from all over the state
to see the band, led by singer/
songwriter Michael Angelakos.
On “Gossamer,” upbeat rhythms
and melodies, energetic build
ups and euphoric explosions,
are tempered by Angelakos’
lyrics that deal with topics
such as mental illness,
emotional turmoil and even
suicide. Angelakos, who has
recently opened up about
dealing with bipolar disorder
and successfully managing to
control it, never stops writing
and plans to engage the band’s
next album in a still personal,
but warmer direction.
The crowd huddled close
together in desperate need to
get a better view of the stage
as Angelakos and the band got
settled. The first screams and
chants from excited fans were
smothered by a recognizable
explosion of sound from the
second track of Gossamer, “I’ll
Be Alright,” one of the various
songs of the album that deals
with self-doubt and confusion.
An already animated crowd
sang along and followed the
band into the next song,
“Carried Away,” which deals
with self-isolation, apologizing
over things the narrator never
meant to say. Angelakos’ way
to connect with the audience
relied solely on his stage
movement. He directed his
microphone playfully, still
finding a way to feed the
atmosphere in the room with
energy through his music and
truth in his words.
Excitement never dropped
as the band played songs
from their new album
and Angelakos proved his
comfortable capacity to control
his voice to hit notes that seam
unreachable. Gossamer was
not however, the only material
Passion Pit played that night.
For those who have been
faithfully following the band
since the very beginning, the
opening sound of a mandolin
took them by surprise as the
band played “Moth’s Wings,”
a song from their 2010 album
“Manners.” Starting with
a daydream-like touch and
leading into an upbeat melody,
Angelakos lead the song into
a sing-along, using the track’s
“oohs” and “ahs.” This, the most
interaction Angelakos ever
gave his audience, still allowed
the fans an opportunity to
somewhat connect with their
favorite band.
As the night approached its
end, the band left the stage
leaving everyone wanting more
and demanding an encore.
Sticking to the etiquette of
a concert, Passion Pit took
over again to play one more
song. “Little Secrets,” from
“Manners,” took off with its
irresistible and well-known
melody from its beginning
and its catchy chorus that
repeats the words “higher and
higher” over and over again.
In the album, the chorus is
echoed by a group of kids,
which were replaced by loyal
fans raising their voice and
waving their hands in unison
as the unforced high tones
of Angelakos’ voice and the
unified energy of his band paid
their goodbyes to a crowd that
was left wanting more.
Although they played a set
that seemed short, Passion
Pit delivered their music with
skill and honesty. Angelakos
carried the emotional weight of
his words through shieldingly-animated
beats and catchy
melodies, never allowing
his listeners to rest for one
moment.
March Madness: the best basketball films
photo courtesy of pennstatenews/flickr
Michael Angelakos of Passion Pit is known for his impressive vocal range, if not necessarily his stage presence.
Maria Perdomo
Special to the Carolinian
A&E 1312 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM This Friday UNCG’s finest
fashion students will be pre-senting
the latest and greatest
in design at Threads’ eighth
Annual Spring Fashion Show.
The show is put on by
Threads, the student organiza-tion
for members of UNCG’s
consumer apparel and retail
studies (CARS) program. Its
theme this year will be “the
four elements,” and it will take
place in the Empire room on
South Elm Street. Although the
spring fashion show is Threads’
most prominent event, Threads’
designers, who use the show to
present their collections, work
year round on various projects.
Senior CARS major Victoria
Kim, a two-time YMA fashion
scholarship winner, is partici-pating
in her fourth Threads
show. Her collection this year is
based off of a period of Parisian
fashion and architecture called
“La Belle Époque” which trans-lates
to “The Beautiful Era.” Her
work features motifs of iron-work
and vibrant, rich colors.
Kim, who is designing in her
third Threads fashion show,
has a concentration in Apparel
Product Design, which essen-tially
means the work she does
in her classes is more closely re-lated
to art than retail or busi-ness.
She has earned multiple
internships during her time at
UNCG, and thanked Threads
for these opportunities.
“The support that you get
through an organization like
Threads made the internships
possible,” said Kim.”
The fashion show has grown
greatly in the past few years.
“We used to have [the spring
fashion show] downtown in a
small art gallery with about 150
people attending,” said Kim.
Last year the Threads fashion
show attendance reached into
the 500s, and this year they are
hoping for even more.
As far as succeeding in a cut-throat
business like the Fash-ion
Industry, Kim believes that
the opportunities provided by
Threads are crucial. “The more
you involve yourself, the easier
things become,” she said.
Fellow senior CARS major
and Threads’ Vice President of
Design Sarah Poston is design-ing
in her fourth Threads show
this year. Her collection is more
closely related to the four ele-ments
theme.
“I was thinking about what
I like in nature, and I really
like space and the moon,” said
Poston. Her designs feature
round shapes and are largely
black and blue in color to emu-late
the features of the moon.
As Vice President of Design,
Poston oversees all of the de-signers’
production throughout
the long process of completing
a collection. “Being able to see
all of the designers’ ideas ex-ecuted
and become a finished
product is really great,” Poston
said.
Kelly Fahey
Special to the Carolinian
Threads is teaming up with
WUAG to host an after-party
featuring Knoxville electro-soul
artist Fine Peduncle and
local hip hop group Paper
Planet in the Regency Room,
located in the same building as
the Empire Room.
Threads President Abby Ow-ens
was very excited by the op-portunity
to reach out to other
student groups at UNCG, and
noted the strong relationship
between fashion and music.
Owens also commented on the
growth of the organization.
“My first year in Threads, the
fashion show was on campus,”
said Owens. Now it takes place
in the appropriately elegant
Elm Street Center downtown,
and Threads contracts profes-sionals
to conduct lighting, as
well as hair and makeup artists.
Another change that Ow-ens
noted was the presence
that Threads and their spring
fashion show have gained in
Greensboro. “It brings out peo-ple
from the Greensboro com-munity,
not just UNCG.”
Doors for the show will open
at 7 p.m., with a cocktail hour
featuring tables from local
sponsors such as Sister’s Jew-elry
and Gifts, BohoBlu Cloth-ing,
and Lillo Bella shoes will
take place. Designers will start
Setiugdhetnht sa npnrueapla rfea fsohri oTnh rsehaodws’
a production line for a
radical zine. Alex Graves, an
art student at UNCG and a
contributor to “I Don’t Do
Boxes,” is attracted to the
positivity and safety provided
by QueerLab.
“[I Don’t Do Boxes] allows
me to actively pursue things,”
said Graves. “It gives me
confidence, rather than just
being comfortable with myself.”
QueerLab’s flexible meetings
give artists like Alex the
ability to vent both their ideas
and personal lives to others
while also receiving creative
encouragement.
The word queer has an
open-ended definition within
the project which opens the
doors to anyone willing to create
for the project. “Anyone can
identify as queer, even if they’re
straight,” said Kennedy. It’s this
idea of being this fluid, open
person. Elsewhere, I think, has
always been a haven for folks
who identify as something else.”
QueerLab is a natural extension
of that haven, the next creative
step for Elsewhere to provide
better, creative resources for the
LGBTQ youth of the Triad.
QueerLab meets on
Thursdays from 6 to 8 p.m., and
the website www.idontdoboxes.
org is available now.
Queerlab
from page 11
presenting at 8 p.m. Student
tickets are $7 with a valid stu-dent
ID, and general admission
is $10.
Photo Courtesy of Amanda Lineberry
CARS students are busy designing year-round.
Photo Courtesy of Amanda Lineberry
The Threads Spring Fashion Show is this Friday.
A&E
WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM April 3 - 9, 2013 T h e C a r o l i n i a n 1312
basketball
from page 11
Too often, people stereotype
jazz as a genre that works through
a set pattern of improvised
sounds and rhythms. However,
it was made apparent through
Chris Gelb’s senior recital that
jazz music can come in many
different forms, including New
Orleans-styled jazz, swing jazz,
soft jazz and jazz fusion.
Gelb, a senior in the jazz
studies program of the school
of Music, Theatre and Dance,
has been exposed to jazz all his
life. “Both my parents are jazz
musicians,” said Gelb, “so I feel
connected to jazz since they
are jazz musicians as well. I’ve
always been around it, so it’s
kind of my music.”
After completing his last
two years of high school at
the North Carolina School
of the Arts studying classical
percussion as well as some
jazz, Gelb chose UNCG’s music
department. With accolades and
awards including reviews from
magazines such as “Jazz Times”
and “Downbeat,” the UNCG jazz
program has acquired a wide
amount of praise.
Gelb’s senior recital was held
on March 27 in the recital hall
of the Music building. He was
accompanied by Alex Bingham
on the upright and electric bass,
Aaron Bond on the guitar and
electronics, Michael Gillespie
on trumpet, Thomas Linger on
piano and keyboard and Alex
Smith on the saxophone.
The program began with
two songs featuring Gelb on
the xylophone. Appropriately
named “Xylophonia,” the first
song of the recital highlighted
Gelb’s musical abilities on the
xylophone. This upbeat tune
recalled the memory of an
elementary school’s music class
where children were encouraged
to explore their talents on
instruments. Emotions of joy
and pure happiness spilled from
the instruments out into the
audience who sat amazed at the
swiftness of the mallets beating
against the wooden planks.
The next selection of songs
featured Gelb on the drum set.
One song, written and composed
by Gelb, was entitled “Questions.”
The tense piece reflected the way
one’s mind wanders and expands
on questions, the what-if ’s and
why-not’s of life.
““Questions” was something
I wrote over winter break,” said
Gelb. “I wanted to have more of
a pop song feel. Inspirations for
this song came from Radiohead
and Ethereal pop rock – stuff
that is popular today. I wrote it
on the piano. It was nice to hear
it come out the way it did; it was
not what I was expecting in the
first place.”
Megan Christy
Staff Writer
direction and a terrific perfor-mance
from Nolte.
Hoop Dreams (dir. Steve
James)
This nearly three-hour docu-mentary
follows the lives of two
inner-city Chicago boys who
struggle to become college bas-ketball
players on the road to
going professional. The kids are
William Gates and Arthur Agee,
and we watch them mature over
almost five years, from the be-ginning
of high school until they
start college, experiencing along
with them the ups and downs
that come with the pursuit of
their dream.
“Hoop Dreams” (1994) is
remarkable in many respects,
but perhaps the most astonish-ing
thing about the film is how
the narrative unfolds with the
unpredictability of fiction. This
may be the most riveting docu-mentary
ever made, and surely
it is the best basketball film ever
made. We become attached to
the two young men at the cen-ter
of the story and, even by the
end of the massive run time, we
hate to say goodbye to what have
essentially become two family
members.
White Men Can’t Jump (dir.
Ron Shelton)
Nothing typifies the 90’s better
than this sports comedy staring
Woody Harrelson and Wesley
Snipes as black and white bas-ketball
hustlers who join forces
There was no doubt that the
crowd favorite featured Gelb’s
work on a larger drum set
during the song “Stratus.” The
jazz-rock fusion song had an
incredible build featured Bond
on electric guitar. By the climax
of the song, a large section of
the audience was head-rocking
in sync. “Stratus” was followed
by whistles, shouts and loud
applause from the energetic
audience members.
After graduation, Gelb plans to
focus and expand on his music –
specifically with his involvement
with the community and his
indie rock band The Fair and
the Foul. “Time away from
just learning about music and
actually putting it into practice
is something I look forward
to after school. I get to do
something I love and finally get
the time to put time and effort
into expanding my talents as a
musician.”
Chris Gelb: One student’s senior recital
Megan Christy/the Carolinian
Senior jazz studies major Chris Gelb held his final recital at UNCG last week.
to double their chances. Perhaps
the movie, made in 1992, is a bit
dated, but it still provides ample
laughs from some great sight
gags and banter between Harrel-son
and Snipes who have fantas-tic
on-screen chemistry. Though
the film does not have much im-portant
to say outside of trying
to buck a few racial stereotypes,
director Ron Shelton keeps the
tone light and never takes his
film too seriously. This is a pain-less
and even quite enjoyable
sports comedy.
Through the Fire (dir. Alistair
Christopher & Jonathan Hock)
Made in 2005, this documen-tary
chronicles the journey of
Coney Island basketball star Se-bastian
Telfair from famed Lin-coln
High School to the NBA.
Clearly influenced by “Hoop
Dreams,” this documentary
employs a similar technique in
following Telfair through his
everyday life, but this film only
documents Telfair’s senior year
in high school. For any basket-ball
fan Telfair’s name should be
instantly recognizable: he was
one of the most hyped-up high
school basketball players of all
time, billed in some circles as the
next great point guard. The film
documents his struggle with
deciding whether or not to go
pro straight out of high school
and also sheds light on just how
much pressure these high school
phenoms face day-to-day. Fea-turing
appearances by big name
players and coaches, this docu-mentary
is a must see for any
basketball fan.
The Carolinian is looking for a new
Ads Manager!
Interested?
Contact Derrick Foust at
Publisher.Carolinian@gmail.com
Features
1514 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM The Wild Wild West Issue: a feminist perspective on a
famous cowgirl, ghost towns, and outfits of the west
Jonathan Waye
Staff Writer
The Wild West may be most
known for its big-talkers and
big guns, but what really made
a cowboy a cowboy? Was it all
the revolvers and repeaters,
the trusty steeds and drunken
saloon poker games? While
all of these may be seen as
staples of the stereotypical
southwestern cowboy, their
typical garb and dress was
what truly identified them.
The deserts of the American
Southwest, as well as the vast
expanses of the Great Plains
in the north, were anything
but easygoing. Clothing was
meant for functionality, rather
than good looks. In “American
Cowboy Dress: Function to
Fashion” by author Laurel
Wilson, cowboy attire was
made to be used, rather
than simply worn. “Most of
the clothing worn during
the golden years of cowboy
culture had few decorative
elements, for cowboy clothing
was functional for reasons
of safety.” While decorative
adornments were added to
cowboy clothing in the later
portion of the 1800’s, clothing
was originally designed to
perform a designated task.
Each part of their outfit
served a specific purpose,
whether it be shielding the
wearer from harsh, thorny
brush or protecting them from
sweltering temperatures.
Once cattle ranching spread
into the Great Plains, simply
keeping warm became a factor
to be considered, as winters
brought plenty of freezing rain,
snow, and ice to the grasslands.
During these winter months,
cowboys were decked head to
toe in heavy, wooly clothing
in order to protect themselves
from harsh winds and bone-chilling
temperatures. Wilson
notes that “some lucky few
had coats made of buffalo
hide,” exhibiting the rugged
resourcefulness needed for
harsh winters out on the
plains.”
Although cowboys chose
their clothing on the basis
of functionality, this does
not mean that they were
not picky when gearing up.
Wilson explains that while
several catalogues offered
cowboy gear, some of the
cheaper “mail-order outfit[s]”
were often seen as inferior in
quality, and “did not measure
up to standards set by saddlers
and other western suppliers
that sold goods through
catalogues.” Goods and gear
could also be purchased in
towns at general stores, which
offered products useful to the
townspeople as well as cowboy
drifters.
While you probably have
the cowboy outfit already
memorized thanks to pop
culture and western films,
some of the finer details of
their gear may have slipped
past you. Take their signature
boots, for example. Cowboys
not only had to make sure
that their boots could stand
up to long-term exposure to
the elements, but also had to
be certain that they could use
them while riding. Wilson
writes that cowboys often
wore “high-heeled boots”
to make sure that their feet
would not become dislodged
from the stirrups while on
horseback. Spurs were also
popular among ranchers and
cowboys alike, with larger,
more ornate versions being
imported from Mexico and
“being sold as far north as
Montana.” Unlike some of the
other elements of a cowboy’s
uniform, their footwear was
often embellished. As Wilson
notes, “cowboy boots have
almost always been known for
the colored stitching on the
boot top.”
Guns, of course, were
another staple of cowboy gear
and attire. Cowboys needed
firearms due to the nature
of their work, as well as the
nature of the land; as Wilson
explains, many of the herds
these cowboys managed were
at least in part comprised of
wild cattle, if not making up
the majority. Revolvers were
also available for purchase
through catalogues, as well
as local merchants. Hats
and bandannas were a vital
necessity for cowboys, offering
a degree of protection from the
blinding sun while out herding
cattle.
Chaps were also a necessity
for any self-respecting cowboy.
Chaps were a vital component
of the cowboy uniform, and
protected the wearer when
traversing through dense
thorny brush in the southwest.
Wilson notes that even though
their original design saw
reduced effectiveness when
introduced to the plains,
“tradition was firmly set, and
no young cowboy would have
considered his gear complete
without them.” Chaps were
made from leather and animal
hide, and later on, leather
chaps with “the hair left on,”
called “woolies,” became an
essential tool for keeping warm
out on the plains.
While cowboy dress would
see extra embellishment later
on during the late 1800’s and
early 1900’s, the style of dress
originated from a sense of
rugged functionality, staying
true to the nature of the
cowboy’s work and way of life.
Chances are that these cowboys did not shop at Brooks Brothers or H&M Men.
photo courtesy of wikimedia commons
Fashion meets function in the old west
Features
WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM April 3 - 9, 2013 T h e C a r o l i n i a n 1514
Fashion Nadia Stevens
Staff Writer
During the mid-nineteenth
century through the
early twentieth century,
the American Southwest
experienced a great amount
of social and economic
uncertainty. This turbulence
was due in no small part a
result of the numerous gold and
silver deposits hidden under
various regions, principally the
Great Plains, of the continental
US. When word got out about
a new mining opportunity,
miners would travel with their
families to live in a new town,
and work in its mines. Because
of this migratory trend, a
number of small towns and
cities were founded to support
the influx of people. They
flourished until the mines went
dry, and were subsequently
abandoned; all after only a few
decades or so. Miners would
leave in an instant if they
believed that there was more
gold somewhere else. The hasty
abandonment of one exhausted
mine town after the next has
created ghost towns across
the United States which, with
some decay and dilapidation,
sit untouched, just as they were
one hundred years ago.
Mining was an attractive
occupation because it carried
with it the prospect of instant
gratification; as soon as a miner
found a big enough collection of
gold or silver, he and his family
would be rich for the rest of
their lives. Unrestricted as the
mines themselves were, mining
was an accessible occupation
open and available to anyone
who was willing to travel and
dig. Additionally, whatever
was unearthed was presumably
the property of its finder; as
soon as a miner struck gold, he
and his family were set for life.
Do the men and women who lived here 100 years ago still haunt Calico?
photo courtesy of wikimedia commons
History comes alive in western ghost towns
All that was necessary was to
find transportation to the best
mining site. Upon arrival, it
was possible to start working.
It was a precarious time, full of
people chasing a fever dream
of impenetrable wealth. It
was distinctly characterized
by constant drifting and little
closure.
These ancient towns and
villages remained long after the
activity left them. Perhaps the
most fascinating thing about
these historical remnants is the
fact that most have not been
renovated, modernized, or
even inhabited since they were
deserted so many years ago.
As sincere representations of a
dead era, they are regarded as
artifacts that must be protected
and preserved. An example of
a highly regarded ghost town
is Calico, California; a former
silver mining town which has
been declared a protected
historical monument by the
governor of California. The
buildings of this ghost town
have been restored; so that they
look exactly as they did when
they were initially built. It is
open to visitors and exploration,
but it will not soon be destroyed
or forgotten. Other well-known
ghost towns like Calico
include Oatman, Arizona and
Bannack, Montana. Each of
which has been attributed their
own individual character and
unique story.
The lives and dreams of
the people who once lived
in these ghost towns still
reside. It is undoubtedly a
haunting atmosphere; walking
through, or even seeing
an old mining town in its
entirety induces a sensation
of traveling backwards in
time. It is as if the people who
lived there are still planning
to come back someday; as if
they left everything as it was
for a reason. The ongoing
sensibility of these places has
contributed to the existence of
many ghost stories and spooky
tales of murder, suicide, and
debauchery. Some people who
have passed through a ghost
town claim to have felt spirits
roaming; they are sometimes
considered lost souls who
have returned in supernatural
form to a familiar location to
spend their afterlife. Certainly,
if there was ever a place that
harbored spiritual energy it
would be a place like a ghost
town whose physical historical
residue alludes to the residual
energy which comprises a
lingering human soul.
Whether or not you believe
in the paranormal, ghost
towns serve as a unique and
significant representation of
an important part of American
history and it is imperative that
we do our best to appreciate
and conserve them. There is
no better way to learn about
a cultural phenomenon like
the gold rush than to visit
old mining towns to observe
firsthand how mining families
lived. It is a significant
experience that we are
privileged to be able to access,
to see a place so markedly
distant, seemingly through not
only appearance, but through
time itself, from contemporary
American towns and cities.
Features 1716 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM Derrick Foust
Publisher
Cowboy narratives, from John
Wayne to Billy the Kid, all seem
to be a portrait of southwestern
men achieving the ultimate
ideal of man wearing chaps,
owning guns, and never without
their garden variety damsel in
distress. Who could not love the
cowboy image? However, I came
to the stark realization that the
underrepresented cowgirl exits
further from the conversation
of southwest narratives than
that of Will Smith’s Wild Wild
West rendition. Is the cowgirl
without representation? Were
their cultural and activist feats
without recognition? Or was
it the patriarchy that seemly
erased their narratives from
popular discourse, further
extending the sexist landscape
to the future? When a historical
narrative goes astray there are
numerous ways to cope. You can
cry about it, become angry, or
write about it. I chose to write.
Martha Cannary, who would
later be known as Calamity Jane,
was an Old West Legend from
Missouri who would drink,
shoot and lie like any cowboy
of the time. She lived her early
years on the road from state to
state with her family. Although
wagon travel to Salt Lake City,
Utah in the summer of 1866
proved difficult for the Cannary
family, Martha lost her father
and assumed the role of head
of the household taking jobs
from the entire employment
spectrum including but not
limited to: nurse, dance-hall
girl, cook, waitress, and under
some stories, prostitute, all to
feed and safeguard her family.
The turning point in the Martha
Cannary – Calamity Jane
transition was her involvement
as a scout at Fort Russell in
1870. It was at Fort Russell
A feminist perspective on Calamity Jane
that Martha Cannary strapped
on her boots and discarded
her dress for the uniform of a
soldier, thus creating Martha’s
ultimate costume – dressing
like a man. Most would assume
it was the act of dressing like a
man that gave way to her new
persona as Calamity Jane, but
in fact, it was her campaign
work to the Muscle Shell Indian
outbreak in 1872 that donned
her nickname. Besides her work
in this regard, Calamity was
also known for her relationship
with Wild Bill Hickok, who was
killed by Jack McCall.
Although her gender and
sex were under much critical
examination during her years
spent in the army, Calamity
Jane embodied many years of
feminist scholarship that would
not exist until the early 60’s.
According to Roberta Sollid,
Calamity Jane, while in Fort
Russell, wrote “Up to this time, I
had always worn the costume of
my sex. When I joined Custer, I
donned the uniform of a soldier.
It was a bit awkward at first,
but I soon got to be perfectly
at home in men’s clothes.”
True genius for the whole of
humanity that sought to contain
her into a two-box binary her
gender presentation did not
match with.
In 1953, director David Butler
sought to cinematically bring
Calamity Jane to the forefront of
America’s nuclear households in
the musical entitled, Calamity
Jane. The film featured the
beautiful Doris Day as Calamity
and handsome Howard Keel as
Wild Bill Hickok. In an otherwise
lacking representation of the
life and history of Calamity
Jane, the film’s only success
was to introduce the cowgirl
narrative with the not-so-manly
depiction of Calamity. When it
comes to film representations of
actual historical figures, maybe
we are all a part of its creation,
and its consumption. Hollywood
can never really sell a film about a
not-so-attractive woman wearing
men’s clothes without making her
a beautiful woman wearing men’s
clothes even in the 1950’s. Some
viewers want sex appeal, some
are settling with whatever art is
created and some people refuse
Calamity Jane would have put the fear of God into any city slicker who questioned how “tough” a woman could be.
photo courtesy of wikimedia commons
to compromise history for
anything less than an accurate
portrayal.
In 1984 James Goldstone’s
Calamity Jane, starring
Janie Alexander as a rustic
representation of Calamity,
strayed away from the
entertainment/musical appeal
of film to a biographical
undertaking that, arguably,
parallels the accurate image
of Calamity Jane and her
relationship with Wild Bill
Hickok.
For more information
regarding the life of Calamity
Jane refer to Duncan Aikman’s
Calamity Jane and the Lady
Wildcats.
Features
WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM April 3 - 9, 2013 T h e C a r o l i n i a n 17
Sudoku A Easy Medium
Hard
Sports
1918 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM
Sports
UNCG takes series 2-1 from Georgia Southern
Calvin Walters
Staff Writer
It has been a struggle at times
for the UNCG baseball team
this year. With a new coach and
the always talented Southern
Conference the Spartans have
taken their lumps, but showed
flashes of what could be with a
series victory this past weekend
over No. 22 Georgia Southern.
After falling in the first game
Thursday night, the Spartans
dropped an 8-4 decision, before
bouncing back with a 5-4 victory
on Friday and a 10-6 victory on
Sunday to claim the series.
The Spartans jumped out to
a 2-1 lead on Thursday night
when Lloyd Enzor led off with
a walk before Eric Kalbfleisch
singled to move him to second.
Cambric Moye then singled to
load the bases before Zach Leach
singled as well to drive in Enzor.
TJ Spina then drove in another
run with a sacrifice fly.
The Eagles answered with
three runs in the top of the fifth
to retake the lead for good. GSU
would add two more in the
eighth and another in the ninth,
while the Spartans could only
get a score once in the seventh
and eighth.
The Spartans came back in the
second game and won in walk
off fashion. Georgia Southern
jumped on the board early with
a pair of back to back doubles to
plate one run in the first. UNCG
would answer in the third inning
with a Ray Crawford double to
score Christian Wolfe. Georgia
Southern retook the lead in the
fifth inning scoring one run,
but it was short lived as UNCG
plated three in the bottom half
to take their first lead of the
game.
TJ Spina led off with a single
and later scored on a Benigno
Marrero double. Marrero
came around to score on when
Christian Wolfe homered over
the right field wall.
The Eagles would even things
up in the seventh inning, but
left the bases loaded, leaving the
door open for the Spartans.
UNCG took advantage
when Enzor reached base on a
dropped third strike and was
pinch ran for by Nick Chapman.
Chapman reached second on a
sac bunt from Marrero, before
the Eagles intentionally walked
Wolfe to set up a double play
situation. After Crawford struck
out, GSU intentionally walked
Enzor to face Moye who singled
in the game winning run.
Ryan Clark picked up the
victory throwing two scoreless
innings. Corey Taylor started
the game for the Spartans and
worked 6.1 innings, allowing
four runs while striking out 10.
UNCG used a 14 hit effort on
Saturday to take the series over
the ranked Eagles with a 10-6
victory.
The Spartans were led by Zach
Leach who went 3-5, scoring
three times and collecting two
RBIs.
UNCG drew first blood,
scoring twice in the third inning,
Enzor led off with a single and
Wolfe doubled a batter later to
put runners on second and third
with one out. After a strikeout
Trevor Edwards walked to bring
up Moye who singled to score
Enzor and Wolfe.
The Eagles would answer
with two of their own before
the Spartans put up two more in
the bottom half of the inning to
retake the lead.
UNCG would add two more
runs in the sixth inning as Enzor
tripled to drive in Leach who
had singled earlier in the inning.
Enzor scored on the play as an
Eagle error allowed Enzor to
cross the plate.
The Spartans added three
more in the seventh on three
hits highlighted by a Leach
triple. UNCG would add one
more run in the eighth when
Eric Kalbfleisch doubled home
Ray Crawford.
It was all the run support the
pitching staff would need. Lee
Gilliam picked up the victory
allowing three earned runs,
two of them earned through six
innings of work.
The victory lifts UNCG to 14-
13 overall and 3-6 in SoCon play.
Men’s Baseball., Thur
UNCG 	 4
GSU 	 8
Men’s Baseball., Fri
UNCG 	 5
GSU 	 4
Men’s Baseball., Sat
UNCG 	 10
GSU 	 6
UNCG with a great road win vs the Phoenixes
Hannah Nystrom
Staff Writer
The UNCG Spartans were
victorious over the Elon
Phoenixes winning 5 to 1 at the
Hunt Softball Park. All it took to
set fire to the Phoenixes was 10
hits and 5 runs overall.
The game did not start in favor
of the Spartans as Elon took the
early advantage 1 to 0 when
Carleigh Nester pushed Sarah
Little home after hitting a single
at the bottom the second inning.
It all started when Sarah Little of
Elon hit a single to the shortstop,
Lauren Oldham, who was able
to move the runners to first and
third after hitting a single down
third base. Hanks of UNCG,
earned consecutive strikeouts
before Carleigh Nester hit a
single to bring in a run.
After the Elon driven inning,
the third inning was the start to
UNCG’s positive momentum.
Elon handed over 2 runs after
making inexcusable errors
which favored the Spartans,
along with an RBI double from
Heather Robb.
Roob earned her second
double of the game during the
third inning giving the Spartans
a 2 to 1 lead. There were two
outs when Danielle Vega landed
a single up the middle. During
this time Lindsay Thomas
walked, which placed runners
on first and second. An error
from Elon gave Katelyn Bedwell
the opportunity to allow Chelsea
Strandlund to tie the game 1 to
1.
The Spartans did not increase
their lead again until the fifth
inning of the game when Eileen
Horsmon scored a single RBI at
the top of the inning. Horsmon
made the Phoenixes work for
the additional out when she hit
a single down the first base line.
With two outs, Heather Robb
raced to second base when Elon’s
third baseman missed a pop up.
Hormon’s single provided a 3 to
1 lead.
A 5 to 1 advantage in the sixth
inning was the result of Robb
picking up her second RBI of the
game as she sent a single to the
far left side of the field.
Soon after, Vega knocked a
single to the right side of the
field, which placed runners
on first and third base. In the
seventh inning Raeanne Hanks
sealed the deal with a walk and
an error at the end of the game.
This was a game of
improvement and triumph for
the Spartans. Hanks picked
up her 13th win of the season
ending the game with nine
strikeouts.
Robb patrolled the Spartans
at the plate with a 3 to 4 effort.
Robb also achieved two doubles
and two RBIs. Vega and Allison
Geiner also stepped it up when
both players completed the
game with two hits apiece.
The win over Elon enhanced
the Spartan’s record to 24 -7, 6-3
during the season.
UNCG’s week will be
headlined with a three game
home series vs Appalachian
State starting Friday.
Women’s Softball ., Fri
UNCG 	 5
Elon 1
WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM April 3 - 9, 2013 T h e C a r o l i n i a n 19
Sports
Impressive Miami win streak snapped at 27 games
Everick Davis
Staff Writer
If you did not already know,
the Miami Heat are pretty good.
It seems like every other week
LeBron James is breaking some
kind of record that only ESPN
would be able to discover.
Ever since the big three formed
in Miami, the Heat remained a
championship contender and
the team to beat every single
time they step on the floor.
The Heat have done some
impressive things in the last 3
years but that 27 game winning
streak has to be considered one
of the greatest accomplishments
of our generation.
The Heat broke past other
teams and landed the second
longest winning streak in NBA
History.
Most of us were not even alive
when the Los Angeles Lakers set
the longest winning streak at 33
games back in the early 1970s,
so there is no room for anybody
to say they are not impressed
with the Heat because we simply
have not seen anything more
impressive.
The accomplishments of the
Heat during this run was simply
ridiculous and it just proves the
point that LeBron James is the
best player of this generation.
LeBron James flirts with a
triple double almost every game
and has become one of the most
efficient players to ever play the
game.
Most of the time the star
player on an NBA team takes
it upon himself to take most of
the shots and pretty much takes
whatever they can get.
This does not begin to
describe LeBron James as he
plays virtually every position for
Miami as the team’s top scorer,
top rebounder, top play maker
and most importantly the top
defender.
While LeBron James does
deserve the most credit for this
27 game win streak, the efforts
of Dwayne Wade have to be
mentioned.
Last season the Heat won the
title on the shoulders of LeBron
James, as Dwayne Wade was
battling knee issues for most of
the season.
Now that Wade is healthy,
the Heat’s ceiling has never
been higher. Wade has averaged
21.3 points and 5 rebounds this
season, making his way back to
his elite status.
As good as the Miami Heat
are they still have weakness and
that played a huge role in the
snapping of the win streak, and
that weakness is size.
LeBron James is pretty much
the biggest player on the Heat’s
roster and he is listed at small
forward. Chris Bosh is supposed
to be the big man but as a finesse
player he is not enough inside
power at times.
Even though Miami always
seems light years ahead of every
other team in the East there are
still a few teams that cause them
problems.
Every time the New York
Knicks win against Miami it
just seems like luck was on their
side, but teams like the Boston
Celtics, Indiana Pacers and
Chicago Bulls always pose a
huge threat to Miami.
These teams have the size that
makes Erik Spolestra give Joel
Anthony many more minutes
then he deserves, because of the
Heat’s lack of depth inside.
The way Miami lost was very
disappointing because they lost
to a Chicago team without size.
Chicago’s defensive catalyst
Joakim Noah did not even play
in the matchup and the Bulls
still managed to pull it out.
This was because the Bulls
come out each night and play
with consistent energy and
effort.
Lately Miami has been coming
out very slow to begin games
and not giving that much of an
effort until they start to lose,
which is when they decide to get
it together.
Against Chicago that simply
did not work because in a season
without former NBA Most
Valuable Player Derrick Rose,
the Bulls are playing better than
most experts gave them credit
for.
While most basketball
analysts would believe that
the Heat should run through
the Sacramento Kings and
Washington Wizards of the
league, the Heat sometimes play
down to their competition.
Though the Bulls deserved
the win against the Heat, it is
possible Miami did not give it
their all, considering the Bulls
do not really have a star on their
roster besides Derrick Rose.
This just shows the level of talent
that exists in the NBA.
Heat fans should not worry
come playoff time because the
absence of those bad teams
always make the Heat play their
best basketball.
While it would have been a
great thing for Miami to gain
the longest winning streak in
NBA history, obtaining the
second longest one is not bad
either, since no team has come
this close to the Lakers’ record
in over 40 years.
It should be appreciated
that one day members of our
generation will look back at this
historic streak and be amazed by
their accomplishment.
20 T h e C a r o l i n i a n April 3 - 9, 2013 WWW.UNCGCAROLINIAN.COM Sports
2013 MLB season should be full of surprises
Calvin Walters
Staff Writer
The MLB season opened
up this weekend anticipating
another great season of
America’s pastime, but do not be
surprised if things look a little
different this year. The Houston
Astros switched leagues and
the biggest storyline heading
into the season appears to be
whether the New York Yankees
can compete with a depleted
and aged lineup.
Without any further ado,
here are my predictions for the
2013 MLB season.
AL East
The Orioles surprised
everyone with a playoff
appearance last year, but will
struggle to replicate their
success from a year ago. The
Red Sox tanked last year and
while they could be better this
year they look as if they will
miss the playoffs for a second
year in a row. As mentioned
earlier, the Yankees will have
to overcome the injury bug to
make a run at the wild card
with Alex Rodriguez, Derek
Jeter, Curtis Granderson, and
Mark Teixeira all facing injuries
this spring.
The Tampa Bay Rays may
be the early favorite led by
ace David Price and Evan
Longoria at the plate. The most
intriguing team though is the
Toronto Blue Jays who made
big waves this offseason with
some stunning acquisitions
that suddenly puts them into
contention. The Blue Jays can
seriously challenge the Rays for
the division title, or at the very
least make a push for the wild
card.
My pick: The Rays will get
back in the playoffs after just
barely missing out last year
and capture the division crown
while Toronto captures one of
the wildcard spots, leaving the
Yankees on the outside looking
in.
AL Central
The Detroit Tigers just
locked up ace Justin Verlander
with a massive contract and
will look for him to lead
them to another World Series
appearance this year. With one
of the best lineups in baseball
the Tigers are the favorites
to take the AL Central crown
again. The rest of the division
is a good tier below the Tigers,
but are looking for brighter
days in the future. The White
Sox only finished three games
behind the Tigers last year, but
will struggle to keep pace with
them again. The Indians and
new manager Terry Francona
are a couple years away from
competing for the title, along
with the Royals and Twins,
who could make a run this year
but do not have the depth the
Tigers do.
My pick: The Tigers roll to
another Central title while the
Royals make a surprise fight for
second place with the White
Sox, but both miss the playoffs.
AL West
This may be the most
competitive division in baseball
with four teams vying for the
division crown, and the Astros.
The Los Angeles Angels looked
like the favorites early last year
with the addition of Albert
Pujols, but failed to gain ground
early and missed the playoffs.
The Texas Rangers collapsed
late in the year on the way to
letting the Oakland Athletics
win the division on the last
day of the regular season. The
Seattle Mariners could be the
surprise team of the year with
a good young lineup and a solid
pitching rotation led by Felix
Hernandez. It should be a fun
year out west.
My pick: The addition of Josh
Hamilton to the Angeles lineup
pushes the star studded team
to the top of the division while
the Rangers once again claim a
wild card spot.
NL East
Two of the best teams in the
National League are in the East
with the Braves and Nationals
battling for the top spot.
Chipper Jones is gone from
the Braves, but Atlanta has
brought in the Upton brothers
to replace his and Michael
Bourne’s production, while
the Nationals return Stephen
Strasburg without limitations
this season. The Phillies are
stuck with an aging team while
the Mets and Marlins just try
and avoid sitting at the bottom
of the National League
My pick: As a Braves fan
my heart says Atlanta, but I
think Washington captures the
division again, while the Braves
will have to settle for another
wild card berth
NL Central
The Cincinnati Reds cruised
to the division title last year
and should be in contention
to repeat the process this year.
The St. Louis Cardinals could
pose a challenge to the Reds
with a solid starting rotation,
while the Pittsburgh Pirates
will also pose a challenge for
the Reds and could sneak into
the playoffs for the first time in
a long time. The Brewers and
Cubs might battle for last place
and neither expects to battle for
a playoff spot,
My pick: The Reds do indeed
comfortably win the division
while the Pirates put everything
together and finish second in
the division, only to just miss
out on a wild card spot.
NL West
The San Francisco Giants
won the World Series, but you
would not know it judging from
the expectations for the LA
Dodgers this year. The Dodgers
have spent a lot of money, but
have some injury problems to
battle through early in the year.
The Arizona Diamondbacks
could thrust themselves into
the thick of the pennant race
and make things interesting
for the frontrunners. The San
Diego Padres and Colorado
Rockies will bring up the rear
once again out west this year.
My pick: The Giants once
again win the division after
making very few changes
from a season ago, while the
Diamondbacks make a surprise
run at the wild card leaving the
Dodgers to contemplate why
they spent all that money.
World Series Pick:
The Los Angeles Angels show
justify their high spending
moves over the last two years
with a world series appearance
where young sensation Mike
Trout will square off with fellow
sensation Bryce Harper.
An unleashed Stephen
Strasburg will help the
Nationals bring the World
Series title to the nation’s
capital.
photo courtesy Scott ableman/fLICKR
Steven Strasburg’s arm is the key to the Nationals competing for this year’s World Series title.