Volume 81, Issue 4 by Millsaps College

MILLSAPS C OLLEGE

THE PURPLE & WHITE VOLUME LX X XI | SEPTEMBER 20, 2012

FEATURES “9/11’s anniversary is anything but peaceful.” PAGE 6.

ARTS&LIFE

SPORTS

“...the root of a plant serves a similar purpose to the intestines of a human body.” PAGE 4.

“We want Millsaps football back where it belongs.” PAGE 8.

Presenting...

| Photos contributed

LANA PRICE MANAGING EDITOR

Less than a mile from campus at the intersection of a neighborhood Belhaven street and Riverside Drive sits a two-story white house fully equipped with large brown shutters, a brickpaved sidewalk and a screened-in back porch. From the outside it is the typical, quaint Belhaven home. But, this house in particular is different from the rest because on the top floor is an office that has walls plastered with bright-colored concert posters and art prints. Macintosh screens and telephone lines blink with activity, as Face-

book is updated and calls and emails are answered. This is Ardenland—a Jackson-centered concert promotion company that is the brain-child of a passionate man named Arden Barnett. Ardenland has just a two goals that have remained unchanged in its near two-year existence. “My goal for the company, one, is to be financially successful and to be able to support my family. The other is to provide live music for the world,” beams Barnett. Has this goal changed? “Never. Not one iota. I wake up every morning wanting to book music, wanting to put performers on a stage in front of people and hopefully make a living doing it.”

Barnett went to both Boise State University and the University of Alabama Birmingham. “I have a degree in life,” Barnett chuckles. “I never completed (college), but when I went I studied both communications and marketing.” Barnett has spent nearly 30 years in the music business as a talent buyer and event planner. Since he started as the concert chair at the UAB, Barnett has held positions booking music at Hal and Mal’s with Malcolm White Productions, produced the musical portion of Jubilee Jam and owned another company, Windborne Productions. Before leaving Windborne Produc-

tions, Barnett also worked producing events on the Millsaps campus, including Wide-Spread Panic shows, free shows performed in the bowl and Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity parties. After taking a six-year sabbatical from the music business to take a corporate job in Jackson, Ardenland was developed when his department was discontinued January 2011. “I needed a job. I just lost my job, and even the six years I was out of the music business—every single day – there wasn’t one day I didn’t think about being back. It’s just in my PRICE CONTINUED ON PAGE 5.

The stirred pot has only simmered

GENNY SANTOS OPINIONS EDITOR/ PHOTOGRAPHY MANAGER

On Dec. 9, 1994, Kiese Laymon received a one-year suspension from Millsaps College for taking and returning

a library book without properly checking it out. The terms for his reinstatement into the College included mandatory therapy based on the articles he wrote for the Purple & White. He never returned to Millsaps College. Laymon entered Millsaps College in the fall of ’92 as a first year student. His first article published in the P&W ran on March 30, 1993 and was headlined “Voice of the Oppressed: institutional racism at Millsaps.” Laymon discussed the lack of black faculty on campus and problems that caused black students looking for a role model. The following April Fool’s issue ran an article poking fun at Laymon’s argument, noting that it was appropriate the

P&W ran the article in a dark black ink. must learn is that change takes time.” The following semester, Laymon was Laymon began running a series called named Opinions Editor of the Purple “Key Essays,” a play on the pronuncia& White. His first article as an editor tion of his name. The first of these esran on Aug 31, says ran on Sept. 1993 and ad9, 1993 and “I write this with a weighty was a satire, as dressed President Clinton’s were most, on disappointment in our empty promideals and student body and our utter the ises of becharacteristics apathy to all things ing the voice of Millsaps’ and hope for students. He around us.” the minorioffered his own ties. The foldefinition of lowing edition of the paper ran a re- Millsaps as “a caged haven of Jack sponse with the main point, as stated Daniels, Southerners, vomit, disposby the author, that “if minorities ever able bank accounts, red necks, SKOAL, SANTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 2. are to advance, the first lesson they

O PINIONS

| September 20, 2012

...The stirred pot has only simmered SANTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1.

Rush Limbaugh fanatics and all imaginable-ims.” He commented that the Millsaps students will “find solace within the waiting arms of daddy’s businesses.” Laymon’s “caged haven” resembles what we now refer to as “the Bubble.” As his first article echos the need for a more diverse faculty which we still lack today. And, even as a student who is working to pay off mounds of student loans, I know that I have no lack of disposable income funded by mommy and daddy, and this seems to ring true with the majority of campus today. Laymon’s article generated two responses in the next paper— one in agreement, the other not. Laymon then wrote about racism in sororities. He avoided stating names or letters, rather referenced the victimized girl as “Bijou” and the sorority as “sorority number one.” Bijou, a black woman, had received an open bid from sorority number one and at chapter had openly supported Laymon’s articles. Later that week, Bijou received various phone calls from both a male and female voice, the former telling her to “BE A GOOD LITTLE N****R GIRL AND DROP sorority number one!” I am not being too presumptuous in saying that this article hits close to home with the current buzz on the Millsaps campus. While the chatter has died down, the article run last week in the Purple & White dealt with sexuality in the fraternities on campus. While it is evident that the actual content of the “controversy” in nowhere near as offensive in nature as the incident in ’93, the controversy is still present. However, unlike our predecessors of ’93, our campus yielded zero written responses, despite that our recent article included both names and letters. Laymon continued to write controversial articles that stirred the pot, usually satirizing the student body, poking fun at both the whites being too white and the blacks dropping friends for not being black enough. In what may be considered the

T HE P URPLE W HITE

most controversial of Laymon’s articles, he satirizes the campus’ communal goal to obtain an orgasm. He comments on the phallocentrism of both campus and society, never giving regard to the clitoris while the phallus is continually glorified. After this, Millsaps College President

George Harmon shut down the student newspaper and on Dec. 23, 1993 sent out more than 7,300 letters to students, faculty, staff and alumni. In his letter, Harmon expressed his “disgust that such (an article) should have been published in any college newspaper, much less one connected with Millsaps College and The United Methodist Church,” further stating that we should hold more moral integrity in our institution of higher learning. He continued to say that the student publications board should have “prohibited publication of these essays until revised to meet criteria” of the college. After the paper had been reinstated, Vicky Coleman, a sophomore at the time, ran an op-ed brilliantly pointing out that “our elders here at Millsaps suffer from the disease of double standards. Is it okay to speak our minds as long as it does not offend anyone?” I am pleased

Section Editors

Caroline Brandon Salvo Blair Genny Santos Layout Editors Maryam Qureshi Allie D’Andrea

Staff Advisor | Woody Woodrick E-mail corrections to Editor-in-Chief Kenya Strong-Johnston, stronkk@millsaps.edu. Advertising rates available upon request. E-mail Juan Fernandez at fernajd@millsaps.edu.

to say as a current staff member that, as far as I understand, we receive a great amount of support from our current administration whether or not they agree with the opinions stated in the paper. Laymon, on the other hand, took a different approach in his response to Har-

recounts that some of the brothers were in black face, with afros and confederate flags tied around their necks shouting “Kiese, write about this!” Laymon and Watkins called the local news station and cameras arrived on campus to film Bid Day events. The story and videos went nation wide. Soon after, Harmon put Laymon and a brother from each house on probation, and in the Nov. 23, 1994 issue of the Purple & White, Laymon’s name disappeared from the staff list as Opinions editor. On Dec. 12, 1994, the Monday after Laymon’s suspension, students held a protest in the bowl questioning the validity and fairness of his punishment. Laymon did not return to Millsaps and spent the following spring semester at Jackson State University. The following year he was admitted into Oberlin College “because of, not in spite of, what happened at Millsaps College,” states the Gawker article. I write this lengthy hidden history of a Millsaps student not to unveil the seedy administration of the years of old; however, I write this with the heavy disappointment in our student body and our utter apathy to all things around us. I know for a | Photo contributed. mon’s letter. In the foreword to fact the anger that swelled within his next article, Laymon apologized for the Bubble at Sara Sacks’ recent arseeming to offend the campus in refer- ticle. But, besides protected comments ence to Harmon’s letter that his Key Es- on the internet, the Purple & White says were “designed to shock rather than received no responses on the issue. to inform.” Laymon then continued to The complacency which blankets this write his article on how much he loves the campus and this generation is disheartgrits in the Caf ’ and using our expanding ening. Laymon’s articles were neither liberal education to count squirrels in or- as inflammatory as the recent Sacks der to kill time until being able to eat grits. article, nor did they mention names or Harmon’s letter did not deter Laymon letters. However, the level of student from confronting controversial issues on response astounded me, as I sat in the campus in his articles. Tensions swelled College Archives, flipping through ison campus until Bid Day in October sue after issue of the Purple & White. 1994 when events came to a head in I mean, we can’t even get our students to an altercation involving Laymon, his go to a free concert in the Bowl. Or to get girlfriend Shonda Watkins and broth- free snow cones. Or to even make it to a ers from the Kappa Sigma and Kappa damn volleyball game! What does that apAlpha houses. According to Laymon’s athy and lack of voice say about our camrecent article on Gawker entitled “How pus? And, I fear when the time comes to to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in hand over the country to this generation. America: A Rememberance,” Laymon

Contributors Katie Greer Jordan Hammons

The Purple & White is published weekly. This publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission of the Editor-in-Chief.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in visual and written content printed in the Purple & White do not necessarily reflect those of the editors, Publications Board, Millsaps College, The United Methodist Church or the student body. Complaints should be addressed to the Millsaps College Publications Board. Contact Kendall Gregory or Dr. Pat Taylor. Letters to the Editor Submit letters to the editor to the Purple and White at Box 150708 or e-mail Kenya StrongJohnston, at stronkk@millsaps.edu. Letters should be turned in before 12 p.m. on Sunday prior to the Thursday publication. Anonymous letters will not be published.

A RTS &L IFE

| September 20, 2012

Parker’s hysterical nature KENYA STRONG JOHNSTON EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The vast majority of people rarely recognize connections in nature as meaningful, much less existing. They simply happen, without thought. To Mary Jane Parker, Millsaps’ most recently recognized artist, these connections are everything. Parker, a New Orleans native, received her formal artistic education at Louisiana State University and Illinois State University. However, beyond the walls of the classroom is where she finds her brilliance. Parker’s main ideas come from two seemingly different themes: nature and hysteria. Although at first seemingly unrelated, Parker’s work intertwines the two. “We’re part of nature, but we also control it and use it for our benefit,” she says. Her objective is to display this tension with a constant feel of attraction and repulsion. People get close to her artwork out of interest for the subject at hand, take in what it is trying to say and then find themselves retreating because of the reality they find within. Parker’s first inspirations came from the intrigue of the unlimited amount of relations and similarities between nature and the human body. “I am fascinated by my realization that the root of a plant serves a similar purpose to the intestine of a human body,” she states in her artist’s mission. As she continues in her mission, Parker’s work draws “attention to the unity that exists between our humanity and the world we inhabit.” Parker explores specimens, vines and internal organs of humans through encaustic painting, which is a process of painting and layering with pigmented wax and heat.

From the anatomy drawings of Leonardo da Vinci to the post Katrina overgrowth in New Orleans, Parker has explored “how humans try to organize nature and how nature has a force that goes beyond our capability to control it.” Parker has displayed side-by-side blood vessels and stars that look so similar one can barely tell the difference in their appearance.

| Photos by Genny Santos.

She h a s drawn flowers sprouting and living from the moist warmth of a cow intestine. Her connections are limitless. Parker has worked largely with stencils in her study of overgrowth. At first printing her stencils, she then decided to use them as pieces themselves. Mounting the large stencils 2-to-3 inches off the wall; the cast shadows offer different senses of layers. “We are looking at it as a beautiful object when it is really so disastrous,” she says about her vine studies. This again brings back her main objective of attraction and repulsive. What meaning can the viewer find by truly studying the shadows behind the mounted stencils?

In the depths of the dark moments, what truth can be found? The idea of hidden meanings can be related to Parker’s other main theme of hysteria. “It was a disease,” she says, “that was attached to women in the late 1800s who, according to societal rules, didn’t fit in.” Upon seeing depictions of these suffering women from so along ago, Parker felt their need to be released or freed. Her first work with the uncomfortable women depicted in a doctor’s sheet from the time period, revolved around the beauty of constellations. She found ways to set up the women in the night sky, making their hysteria a part of a natural darkness. She connected them to nature and set them free. Her work with hysterical women led to her exploration with Yupo, a synthetic paper that Parker finds to be a “luscious surface to draw on.” As in her Vocabulary series (which displayed in the Lewis Art Gallery), Parker further developed the idea of tension and “disheveledness.” The series, among with others, is a series of human figures set negatively

with her stencil designs of the vines. The connection of a beautiful yet destructive nature with the almost painful tension of a woman trapped in hysteria aims to capture “the idea of hysterical moments blending into the fabric of their world so they aren’t identified, pulled out by society.” She frees these women in history by giving them nature to hold on to and identify with. Refocusing herself from ultimate hysteria, Parker also chooses to focus on the things she has in front of her now. After taking pictures of her niece and gathering lace from around the world, Parker created her series called Keepsakes. “It’s a layer of memories and how things become more and more faded as time goes on,” she says. Although the theme may seem divergent of her previous interests, Parker maintains her use of nature by covering faces with vines and with lace – a manmade vine. Her composition of the black and white series is well thought out and put together in a way that represents history, age and time passing. However, it cannot escape her previous tension in the direct poses and stares of the people she portrays. With her continued connection to an imperfect nature, Parker recognizes that “it is human nature to try and make it better.”

Caf ’ Creation: Sopapilla

JORDAN HAMMONS CONTRIBUTOR

It’s Mexican food night in the Caf ’ again. The refried beans and the tortilla chips make for a meal that is reminiscent of a festive restaurant with sombreros hanging on the wall.

When I reach for dessert, the fiesta is over. The glass door to the dessert refrigerator slides open to reveal chocolate pie and fruit. How can I truly experience a south-of-the-border dinner without a proper dessert? I know I can solve this riddle. I know: a sopapilla. These tasty pockets of flavor are thought to have originated in Albuquerque, N.M. more than 200 years ago. Many countries have their own version of the treat. Traditionally, sopapillas are fried dough shaped like small pillows. They are generally sprinkled with powdered sugar, honey or syrup. Since the chances of my being able to fry anything in the Caf ’ are slim, I have to find an alternative to frying dough for my dessert. Replace the fried dough with

bread. Is it still a sopapilla if I use baked bread instead of fried dough? I quickly search the Internet. Fewer people willing to spare extra calories for a fried dessert, there are hundreds of recipes for baked sopapillas. The affirmation of a few hundred anonymous based cookbooks makes me feel empowered. I get a piece of pita bread from the bread bin and place it in the toaster on speed seven (the line on the knob is faded so just guess). My warm bread falls from the toaster, and I whisk it to the salad bar where I coat it in fresh butter. I walk over to the fro-yo machine as the pita bread greedily absorbs the melting butter. Then I dust the top with cinnamon (it’s on the table with the chocolate chips). For it to count as a dessert, it needs to

be sweet. A squirt from the jug of honey next to the cinnamon creates the perfect flavor. Honey should be used judiciously so that it doesn’t overpower the other flavors. Two puffs of fro-yo if adequately spaced can look like eyes (especially if you add chocolate chip pupils). Following through with my sweet facial construction,I try two versions of a mouth. The first, a halved banana, doesn’t look as good but adds another flavor. The second, whipped cream, is simpler but is more aesthetically pleasant. The smile on your sopapilla will match the smile in your heart as you enjoy the last course of your fiesta-friendly meal.

F EATURES

| September 20, 2012

Expanding Jackson’s “economy of art:” alumna capitalizes her Millsaps degree

SALVO BLAIR SECTION EDITOR

Each wall of the main room of Cups coffee house is decorated in alumna Samantha Ledbetter’s paintings, which abound with vibrant water colors and captivating designs. Ledbetter, who received a degree in visual arts in May, started Millsaps knowing that she wanted to take art classes but had no clue it would soon become not only her major, but her future career. “There are other things I could have done, but no. Deep down I knew I was an art major,” declares Ledbetter. Ledbetter points to one of the paintings hanging on the wall and says, “These paintings are all about the ‘flower of life.’ They are more about being a projection of my own feelings towards the cosmos and all that.” Paul Cezanne, a French post-impressionist, was a major influence to Ledbetter’s style and can be seen in much of her work. “I feel like he was trying to catch the spiritual essence of shapes rather than just faces or objects,” says Ledbetter. She also cites Alice Neel as a profound influence on her work. It is apparent that Ledbetter combines the soft elements of Neel’s expressionistic work with the harder lines of the symmetrical “flower of life.” Ledbetter recently sold her first painting for $1000 to a regular patron at Cups. The painting was of one of Ledbetter’s friends, Knowlton. She was inspired to paint it from a photograph that, as she describes, “totally captured his essence.” “It instantly reminded me of Knowlton, not just what he looked like, but who he was. I knew I had to paint it,” she says. Along with selling her pieces at Cups, Ledbetter has found another

Ledbetter, a Millsaps alumna, has begun selling artwork like this self portrait showing elements of “the flower of life.” | Photo contributed.

place in the Jackson art community. “Now, I work at the Jackson Art Council, and I also make these paintings and try to hustle them,” declares Ledbetter. The Jackson Art Council is in charge

of a multitude of artistic communities in Jackson. They oversee the tenants of the art center, which include Ballet Mississippi, the Mississippi Symphony, the Crossroads Film Festival and the Interna-

tional Ballet Competition. The art council also writes grants for local art projects, such as last spring’s Cocoon Project. Ledbetter’s duties for the Art Council include preparing art galleries for events by hanging paintings and making sure the lighting is right to ensure the artists’ paintings are represented in the manner that they wish them to be displayed. When an artist is showing, he or she will show up with all of his or her work and give it to Ledbetter who then describes how it would be best represented in the space. As Ledbetter described the intricacies of her job, such as hanging-height or soft vs. hard lighting, it almost takes on a scientific air. Every aspect must be precise, and she must diligently follow the artists’ instructions. As new galleries pop up every few months in Fondren, it is obvious that there is an art scene emerging. Ledbetter recognizes that the local community is interested in advancing the art community. “When you tell a friend your doing an art thing, they’re like ‘Oh, I wanna come’ and it is incredibly supportive when you hear that,” says Ledbetter. Ledbetter has enjoyed working with the Art Council and selling her own work, but she has a vision for Jackson. She wants an “economy of art” to emerge here and asks Millsaps to get involved in creating it. Ledbetter speaks with enthusiasm as she describes how interconnected the art community is. For instance, Ledbetter may be showing her art at a gallery, but in the corner an up-and-coming indie-band may be playing a set.

#nothinghaschanged: A twitter cycle COMPILED BY GENNY SANTOS OPINIONS EDITOR/ PHOTOGRAPHY MANAGER

elusivejunior after 4 weeks of owning a bike, I now know how to navigate this campus without having to pedal. The trick is to take advantage of the hills PrettyInPink Are those fireworks or gunshots I hear? #jacksonproblems SoccerNSorority Took the wrong notebook to class, spilled stuff (on) my shirt, locked myself out of my room, and walked to class when it was cancelled. #Mondays loudandproud Random dude in the laundry rrom doing the sniff sniff clean/dirty check on every article of clothing. Probably should just wash em bro.

PikeOnStilts Almost got hit by a Millsaps security officer in his golf cart, texting while driving. Come on now. sassyandiknowit OMG I HATE PHYSICS SO MUCH IS THIS EVEN REAL I DON’T KNOW BRING ME NEWTON loudandproud Just licked 80 envelopes. What’s that taste in my mouth? Must be leadership. #prelawsociety SororitySenior The only thing I’m learning in accounting is if I ever want to account anything I’d better hire an accountant. MillsapsBubble What is the point in MajorAir if I cannot f**cking even tweet my complaints about MajorAir?

MeowsapsSenior dr. smith called me into his office 2 discuss my paper (really long poem) on soviet cinema. he said it was weird but weird will do and yolo MillsapsBubble Have Millsaps students gotten sick of the Kava house yet, or are stale bagels a staple of our liberal education?

PrettyInPink IF YOU’RE A CHAMP AT COMPUTER SCIENCE COME TO THE LIBRARY NOW. elusivejunior I have learned everything I need to know about life from Ms. Shirley & Ms. Vassie

SecretSarcasm Millsaps Internet rawkkksssssssssss. #Millsapsproblems

loudandproud When I close my eyes, I see the accusative verb chart. Make it stop. #tminusthreehours

gingerbreadgirl Just paid for Rueben’s in change #college #noshame

SororitySenior “Dude, aren’t there two bell towers?” #freshmen #Millsapsproblems

ThatGreekGirl The library closing at 1am is one of the worst things to have ever happened to me. #nightowlstudent #Millsapsproblem

NightOwl How come every soap dispenser on campus is empty> #millsapsproblems

C OMMUNITY

| September 20, 2012

September 20-September 26, 2012 Thursday Arts & Life: 7:30 p.m. Set the Controls “A Pink Floyd Experience” Duling Hall Student Life: 5 p.m.– 9 p.m. Glow Laser Tag Galloway Lawn Clubs: 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. French Club Movie Night Christian Center Room 21

Friday Sports: 7:00- Women’s Soccer vs. Alcorn State Arts & Life: 8 p.m.-Caroline Herring Duling Hall

Saturday

Sunday

Sports: Men’s Golf SAA Conference Preview @ Birmingham

Sports: Men’s Soccer @ Piedmont Arts & Life: 7:30 p.m. Chris Robinson Brotherhood Duling Hall

Greek Life: 11 a.m.– 1 p.m Kappa Delta Ice Cream Social Outside ‘Caf

Mon. Sports: 6:00- Women’s Soccer vs. Huntington

Tuesday

Wednesday

Student Life: 8 p.m.–9 p.m. Zumba Aerobics Room

Arts & Life: 9 p.m. Cherub and Mansions on the Moon “Champagne and Satellites” Hal and Mal’s

Student Life: 8 p.m.–9 p.m. Zumba Aerobics Room

Clubs: 8 p.m. CMT presents Invisible Children film “MOVE” AC 215

11 a.m.- 1 p.m. Yearbook Portrait Day Leggett Center

9 p.m. Fellowship of Christian Athletes HAC Skybox

To submit an event to the Community Calendar email Kenya Strong Johnston, stronkk@millsaps.edu

...Presenting Ardenland PRICE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1.

blood. It just doesn’t go away. Every time I try to get out, I always come back,” says Barnett. “I love what I do. That’s the best job in the world. I love to share music, and there was a void in the Jackson area that, when I left, no one really picked up in a lot of respects. So, here I am filling the void,” he says. Since its birth, Ardenland has helped to fill that void in the Jackson music market, bringing large concerts and festivals to the area, and the company has spread beyond both Jackson and Mississippi booking events in Atlanta, Hattiesburg, Oxford and the Mississippi coast. “Recently, we did the Flaming Lips. There were two dates, one in Jackson and one in Hattiesburg. That was really big. It was a fun day. We also did the Wilco show which was a brilliant night at the office. Those are a couple of the big ones, and there are some major things in the pipes right now that are not yet announced.” With five concerts coming up in the next week and dozens of others with tickets for sale, Ardenland offers events for all age groups. “We do every genre of music from every age groups—from kids to seniors. There is no one target audience for Ardenland. We target them all,” says Barnett. “The festival that I am doing in November on the Mississippi Coast should be announced soon. It is massive. That weekend is the Sun and Sand and Film and Music festival,” Barnett beams. “We just got everybody—any type—including Gregg Allman, Ga-

lactic, Trombone Shorty, Keller Williams, the original Blues Brothers with Aykroyd and Belushi, Kevin Costner.” Though there is no target audience Ardenland is eager to get involved with the surrounding college campuses. “We have actually, just in the last week, had an influx of Millsaps stu-

dents call or email asking to be a part. It is such an amazing feeling. We’re finally starting to tap into the college market. We’ve been wondering where y’all have been for the past year and a half,” says Barnett. With several projects in the works for the end of 2012, Barnett claims that there will be several opportunities for students to get involved by attending events. Ardenland has recently started a new ticket that is intended to help those

who cannot afford to go to shows. “It is a pay it forward ticket. Because we have so many shows, we realize that not everyone can afford to go to every show. In order to encourage people to continue to go to shows when they can’t afford, if they’ll send an email to givelove@ ardenland.net that says ‘Hey, I can’t afford to go to the show tomorrow night, but I’d really like to go.’ We’ll put them on the guest list at no charge. All that we ask is that they do something nice for someone— bring someone’s trashcans in or just do a random act of kindness for a neighbor or a stranger,” says Barnett. “We’re not try| Photo contributed ing to put anyone in an embarrassing situation. It’s all private. We don’t need any of these long excuses. I lost my wallet, or I lost my job. We care, but we don’t need an explanation. Just say, ‘I’d like some help on this one ticket if you don’t mind.’ I think that would apply especially to a lot of students because there is not a lot of income,” Barnett continues. Beyond going to shows, Ardenland also offers other ways that students can become part of the company, and Bar-

nett encourages students to get involved. “We would absolutely love if we could have people help out, and we are very mindful of both their time and work. And, we will gladly exchange for tickets and swag, or whatever we can do to help out,” says Barnett. Barnett also encourages students to become a voice in Ardenland by letting him know who and what they want to hear. “I am hardcore into suggestions. If someone wants to hear a band, I listen. Just send me an email or post it on the Ardenland Facebook page. Just get me the information of who they want to hear, and I promise I will do my best to make it happen. There are always those requests for The Black Keys, and that’s always a goal to get them to come. But, I am talking from the solo guitar players up—any and everything,” says Barnett. The company will book events including sorority or fraternity parties to campus-wide activities and the large music festivals and concerts. Whether is it just booking a DJ or getting lights, Ardenland can plan all or part of any event. “We work with private entities, schools, weddings. We book talent for any and everything,” says Barnett. For information about Ardenland, upcoming events or ways to get involved, go to www.ardenland.net or contact Darby Kellum, the marketing director, at Darby@ardenland.net.

F EATURES

| September 20, 2012

Turbulent times force questions, memories SALVO BLAIR SECTION EDITOR

ndeniably, this generation lives in turbulent times. Contemporary headlines across major news outlets read “4 Americans dead in Afghanistan,” “American Ambassador Assassinated,” “Israel Prepares to Strike Iran,” “Iranian Nuclear Weapons Ready,” “AntiJapan protest Spread Across China.” The world we live in is not simple. Things are never white or black; there are no good and bad guys—just 6 billion-self determining individuals. Luckily, people have enough in common and group together to form movements in hope to create a governing body that serves their self-interest best. But then, sometimes the populous becomes bent on disagreement and nations are flung into conflict. From time to time there are wars, and wars make victors and losers. Repeat victory makes the powerful more tyrannical and extended loss makes losers numerous and angry. Tyranny eventually becomes complacent, and anger becomes more popular—it is then that systems are overturned and revolutions, massacres, genocides and broken peace accords happen. A generation’s zeitgeist, or spirit of the time, is like the current that pulls from one extreme to the other. A people’s zeitgeist is determined by formative events that impact the daily life and future goals of that generation. For Millsaps’ student population, one particular formative event—the attack on 9/11/2001—has affected this generation’s spirit even when the individual chooses to abstain from politics. Most students remember being in elementary school when the two planes struck the World Trade Center. Millsaps sophomore, Harrison Olinger, was at his third grade recess when he hurt his finger and went to the principal’s office; where, surprisingly, his mom came to check him out of school for his minor injury. When Olinger was picked up by his mom, she explained the tragedy in New York to him. It wasn’t the stubbed finger that made his mom come get him from school, but a much deeper wound—a historic wound, an on a nation’s ethos, something that would take the young Olinger years to fully comprehend. Millsaps Junior Kelsey Hall currently studying religion at Millsaps was in elementary school, too, when the attacks happened. She was shaken by her questions of “why?” and was eventually propelled to begin studying the Islamic faith this semester. Hall says, “I may not ever know why (9/11) happened, but I don’t think Islamic movements are much different than (American) movements.” Dr. Younus Mirza, a first year professor of Islam and Islamic movements here at Millsaps, was a sophomore at Georgetown University when the attacks happened. “I was in my Arabic class at the time, and someone came in

late and told us what had happened,” remembers Younus. “That year was hugely formative for me, it is one of the reasons I am here teaching now.” Younus is an American of Qatari decent, but he is more interested in learning

Professor Michael Reinhard was working as a research student at the University of Chicago’s political science research lab on 9/11. He searched frantically on the web for photos and tried to comprehend the attacks with his fellow col-

Above: Images of the attack of 9/11 have become Iconic symbols of a generation. Left: After the fall of the despotic Gaddafi, Libya still faces massive popular unrest. | Photos contributed.

leagues, but it wasn’t until later at his house when he saw the images on the television that he began to understand. “Immediately I wanted to know how these guys (the 9/11 highjackers) with a few thousand dollars were able to defeat a massive bureaucracy,” says Reinhard. Reinhard recently returned from Afghanistan where he serves as an academic liaison to the developing regime there.

A DECADE PASSES...

what 9/11 means to the non-Arab world. Younus even cites one reason that he is interested in the south is because southerners may not be “as politically correct” as his prior DC-area colleagues and pupils. As Younus reflects over the years after 9/11, he distinctly remembers being in DC the day that Osama bin Laden was killed. Younus describes that evening saying, “Many people in DC celebrating that day were (Millsaps students) age.” Younus realizes how powerfully affected by these events the United States’ youth is, and he is interested in learning what it means to the present and to the future.

s 11 years tick by since the tragedy, every year brings about gloomy reminiscence on television and radio shows. Some shows demand militant revenge on Islamists; others criticize the war on terror and some even make YouTube videos to incite hatred and violence. This year, during the week of 9/11, Madison’s WQVI (American Family Radio affiliate) radio channel urged its listeners to be concerned with Islamic growth in the US. The show’s focal point was Dearborn, Mich., where there recently been an influx of Islamic migrants and immigrants. WQVI’s commentator describes the town center of Dearborn turning into “a little Damascus, here on American soil.” This year on 9/11, American’s were attacked again, this time on foreign soil— but the attacks convey a potent point:

America wasn’t attacked from behind a veil of apparent espionage. America was struck from a crowd of angry protestors in broad daylight. The heavily armed gunman and bombadiers that destroyed the American embassy in Libya belong to some organization that may not even have a name that is familiar in English. Nevertheless, many news outlets such as CNN report the event as being perpetrated by factions of Al-Queda. The true nature and finance of these attacks still seems to be wrapped in a cloud of mystery. Fox News reports a similar scenario that unfolds simultaneously in Egypt as the US condemns President Morsi of showing too much leniency to angry Islamic protestors. Why is this so? Why must everything be connected to Islam, the Taliban and Al-Queda? Who exactly is the enemy? Little over a year ago a video aired on YouTube showing thousands of Egyptian Muslims crossing the El Qasr Nile Bridge. They move across the bridge non-violently and pause for afternoon prayers, while police forces spray with water cannons and tear gas—to create a scene reminiscent of the student protests at UC Davis last year. The people in this video are Muslim and peacefully demonstrating in front of a brutal tyrant— the images resonate of scenes from Martin Luther King’s protests in Alabama during the civil rights movement. Islam and Al-Queda are all factors in NATO’s present engagement, but what major news outlets tend to fail picking up on is the aim of present militant radicalism. Militant groups seem more apt to attempt destabilizing fragile regimes like those of Syria, Lebenon, Libya, Afghanistan and Yemen than attacking American people. It just so happens some US citizens such as the Coptic Californian that published the slanderous YouTube video, “Innocence of Islam, may actually help Islamic fundamentalists to destabilize regions by providing a reason for Islamists to feel ideologically insulted—a feeling the may have been amplified by radical organizations within Al-Queda as CNN suggests. The BBC’s reports of these recent attacks suggest they must have had stringent planning for it to appear as an attack from a popular movement, occur on 9/11 and coincide with similar scenarios in Egypt and Afghanistan. What happens if the combination of these factors and anger over Western insults come together to create another Arab Spring, but this time to oust American influence? How many wars can we sustain until our involvement is regionally condemned and we are driven back across the Atlantic?

S PORTS

| September 20, 2012

Intramurals: a sport for all kinds CAROLINE BRANDON SECTION EDITOR

Intramurals give students—athletes and nonathletes—the opportunity to participate in sports while on campus. So, whether you miss the high school glory days of being the star athlete, or are not so athletic, intramurals is a chance to shine. Intramural sports are open to budding athletes who may not have realized their potential yet. Generally, each sorority and fraternity creates a team to compete in each sport and battle against each other as well as non-Greek teams and squads comprised of off-season, varsity athletes. Intramural sports encourage friendly competition among students, and in turn some heated rivalries develop. Junior William Travis of Sigma Alpha Epsilon says, “Our biggest rivalry is definitely Kappa Alpha. Those games always seem to be very competitive, and most of the time a good number of people come watch. It’s a cool atmosphere.” “Our biggest rivalry is those SAEs,” agrees Sophomore Kurtis Gallant. Competition on the field and court has gotten intense in the past, and has even resulted in injuries. While that is never the intention, the compete-to-win mind-

set can take over the ability to play safely. Intramurals offer students a break from schoolwork and the stresses of everyday life. So, no matter your experience level, engaging in intramurals is not just about winning and losing. It is a way to have friendly competition and get to know our peers outside of the classroom. “Intramural sports are great because they appeal to both former athletes who want to continue playing competitively and to inexperienced students who just want to play for the fun of it,” says Travis. Junior Dani Rossano agrees. “Intramurals are a great way for non-athletes to show case their talents. It provides a fun and competitive environment for the members of fraternities, sororities, independents, and other groups,” she says. Intramurals can be a time to bond with friends, relive those high school glory days, discover a newfound talent, cheer on friends or just have a get away from academic pressures. It offers an environment, away from the classroom and traditional student organization atmosphere that fosters friendly competition. It gives students a chance to feel as part of a team. “Intramurals are really what you make of them. They can be tons of fun if you make them that way,” says Rossano.

| Photos by Caroline Brandon.

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S PORTS

| September 20, 2012

As a team, Pelch and the Majors focus on making a name KENYA STRONG JOHNSTON EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Strong team leadership and commitment from every teammate have been the driving forces to Millsaps’ 3-0 start in football. “We have a great group of seniors,” says sophomore Zach Bell. “We are all riding their ship,” he says of the seniors and their leadership on and off the field. Head Coach Aaron Pelch recognizes all of his seniors as “having a sense of urgency.” He particularly identifies linebacker Jeb White, offensive lineman Kyle Mac-

derclassmen are contributing to the success of the team along with the seniors. “This team has depth to it,” he says. “The younger kids have taken on a responsibility for the seniors, knowing they will be there one day too.” With around 30 freshmen joining the team this season, there isn’t a position on the field for each of them, however their job has been just as important to the team’s early season wins. “They help give us a look at what the opponent is doing,” says Pelch of the freshmen’s role on the team. “We wouldn’t be winning without them.

“We are trying to take it week-by-week,” says Bell. Pelch agrees and acknowledges that the team has done a good job of staying focused. Besides the positive influence from attitude and team-wide contribution, Pelch recognizes the team’s preparation in the offseason as a major factor in its early success as well. Because most of the players came in in shape, they were “able to focus on the things that were more important,” he says. “The approach of the coaching staff was also different.” The Majors took the Backyard Brawl

They’re as big a part of our success as anyone who has taken a snap in a game.” The contributions from every player, since the very beginning, has helped create a team dynamic that is strong and gives every member of the team a foundation to build off of.

victory over Mississippi College 2317. The following weekend, on their first road game, Millsaps had a big win over LaGrange College 54-7. “We’re hungry,” says Bell of his team’s motivation and drive to continue posting W’s on the scoreboard.

| Photo by Kenya Strong Johnston

Donald and defensive back Greg Blasiar. “Kyle has done a great job being a leader on offense,” says Pelch. “Greg Blasiar has let his play speak for him.” Blasiar has recorded 10 tackles and broken up four passes for the season. Pelch makes it clear though, that the un-

“This past weekend,” he says of the team’s 54-28 win over Point University, “we continued our win streak on the road. With our new offensive scheme this year, we have more options and are scoring more.” Pelch sees his offensive players placing “a pride in running the football” this season. However the strong and physical players on the defensive line in no way cease to be principal players on the field. For the season, Pelch and the Majors’ main goal is to reclaim their deserved respect as a football program in The South. “We want to get Millsaps football back where it belongs,” says Pelch. “Of course, we want to make sure our seniors have a good final season as well.” This mentality is important as the Majors compete in the new Southern Athletic Association Conference this year where they will be missing their open bid. “Initially the conference probably won’t be received as well nationally,” says Pelch. But there is no doubt in Bell’s mind that the Majors can take home a conference championship and “make a deep run in the playoffs.” Although the Majors play less on the road this season than they did last season, the weekends away from home come in chunks, allowing the traveling to take more of a toll on the players if they let it get to them. “The guys have done a good job so far of not letting the traveling wear them down,” says Pelch. “Coach calls us the Road Warriors,” says Bell. Ideally, the Majors treat every game situation like they are playing at home, on their turf. Pelch tries his best to focus solely on the practice ahead of him but knows that if the boys come to practice with a “work every day attitude” and “not rest on past victories,” than success is sure to be theirs this season.

Preseason polls prove unreliable

DREW GIUDICE CONTRIBUTOR

Every August the Associated Press, USA Today, Sporting News, and those guys who still live in their parents’ basement and write a sports blog release their college football Preseason Top 25. And every August, I ask, “What’s the point?”

This early in the season, top 25 polls are about as meaningful as Juwan Howard was to the Miami Heat winning the most recent NBA championship. The fans of those top tier programs, billed as the early favorites to contend for the national title get their hopes up before a single snap has been taken. They brag on Twitter accounts or in a Facebook status “Herbstreit picked us to be the national champs yeeeaaa buddy” or “already #6 in the first poll, this is our year!!” Nevermind the fact their favorite team might be breaking in a new quarterback, have a new coach still implementing his scheme or that they play in the ACC and therefore aren’t allowed to win a national championship. The “experts” picked them to be good this year so, doggone it, they’re going to be good. Over the last five seasons, 50 teams started the year in the top 10 of the AP poll.

Of those teams, almost half (23) failed to finish the season ranked as one of the country’s ten best. 35 of those 50 ended the season ranked lower than where they began. Zero teams that started the season ranked number one finished it that way. The most surprising stat is that 10 of those 50 teams completed the year unranked, an average of two teams each season. Some of the most egregious errors by the so called experts happened in 2008 and 2010. The 2008 Georgia Bulldogs, led by Matthew Stafford and Knowshon Moreno, started the season at the top, ranked as the nation’s best team. They proceeded to drop three games to major rivals Alabama, Florida, and Georgia Tech while finishing ranked 13th. The experts whiffed on the bottom half of that year’s Preseason Top 10 as well; teams ranked sixth through 10th (Missouri, LSU, West Virginia, Clemson,

and Auburn) finished the season 19th, 23rd, or not ranked at all and combined for 26 losses. In 2010, traditional powerhouses Florida and Texas started the season ranked fourth and fifth respectively. The Gators went 8-5 while the Longhorns went 5-7, both finishing unranked. The experts failed to recognize the importance of losing Tim Tebow and Colt McCoy to these programs, as both teams had struggles breaking in first year starters at quarterback. My advice to college football fans: Do not pay attention to the polls this early in the season. They don’t matter. What matters is which teams go out and win games in September and October. Give yourself a chance at winning it all by being 8-0 or 7-1 at the start of November. Who cares what you’re ranked on the first or second weekend of the season?