Volume58issue20

Volume LVIII, Issue 20 | April 16, 2014

The Student-Run News Service of Columbus State University

COLUMBUS M AYO R A L ELECTION COVERAGE pages 8 & 9 ALSO

University

admin. to purchase live cougars,

students and faculty react——

Office

page 3

Diversity hosts series of LGBTQ events for Day of Silence—— page 6 Popular websites breached by Heartbleed, of

what you need to know——

page 10

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Columbus State University

The Saber

Brandon Short, Editor-in-Chief CsuSaberEditor@Gmail.com

Catherine Saavedra Quintero, Editor-in-Chief-Elect Danielle Davis, Managing Editor CsuSaberAds@Gmail.com

Joe Miller, Adviser

Miller_Joseph1@columbusstate.edu Joshua Jarrett, Layout Editor Tom Ingram, Copy Editor Teefuh Choice, Campus Life Editor Franchesca Renfroe, Arts&Ent Editor Elaine Hoffmeister, Local & World Editor Erick Richman, Sports & Wellness Editor Bo Love, Distribution Manager Staff Writers Brandi Phillips, Jake Hall, Erika Galdamez, Justin Minge, Avonne Waddell, Sam Sachs Photography and Art Sabrina Anderson, Jay Armstead, Ashley Kimbell, Trevor Mehrkens, Carly McMinn, Skye Williams, Jazmin McCoy, Noah Sachs 4225 UNIVERSITY AVE. COLUMBUS, GA 31907-5645 CSUSABER@GMAIL.COM PLEASE SEND US YOUR COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR SHOULD BE 400 WORDS OR LESS, MAY BE EDITED FOR GRAMMAR AND CONTENT AND MUST INCLUDE CONTACT INFORMATION.THE VIEWS EXPRESSED IN THIS PUBLICATION ARE NOT NECESSARILY THE VIEWS OF THE SABER OR COLUMBUS STATE UNIVERSITY

Cover Photo: Wikimedia Commons Cougars: Skye Williams, Noah Sachs, Trevor Mehrkens

Information accuracy is very important, especially in this age where so much information is everywhere.

Odds are you’ve seen misinformation spread everyday. Go on Facebook. Count how many of your friends share articles from The Onion, Huzlers, the National Report and other satire sites with comments such as “I CAN’T BELIEVE THIS IS HAPPENING!!!!”

People spread information without full knowledge of the source and it’s credibility. This has become increasingly rampant at CSU this month.

At the very start of the month, we were dealing with a campus tragedy in the shooting of a man by a member of CSU police. However, right as that news became stale, a (seemingly) larger controversy has arisen.

Of course, I’m speaking about the plan of CSU’s administration to look into acquiring live cougars for Main Campus. CSU has just began coming forward with details about the plan at last week’s Faculty Senate meeting, and again at the SGA Forum. There’s also a support group on campus, the “Coalition for Cougars on Campus.”

Opposition was swift, including the creation of several petitions, print and online, with support from students, faculty, alumni, and local community members. The Saber also asked for thoughts on its social media channels, and was met with a combination of support and opposition, with mostly opposition.

The problem here is that most information being spread from students, on both sides of this issue, is either partially or completely wrong. Supporters are defending their position with facts that aren’t actually facts, but assumptions. Those against it are spreading information that has been officially refuted as wrong by the administration on the most basic level.

I deeply encourage everyone, before passing judgment on this or any issue, to thoroughly look at the information presented to you and decide for yourself, not because a classmate or administration member has pressured you into choosing sides or you read a few statuses and tweets. Decisions like these affect our school greatly, and it does no good to have an uninformed populace spreading opinions.

The Saber has done everything it can to grasp a 360-degree view of this issue and get the most complete story and most concrete facts to present to you, the reader.

- Brandon Short

Editor-in-Chief



Columbus State University 2014 Scholastic Honors Convocation Honoring Outstanding Academic Achievement by Students and Faculty Friday, April 18, 2014 2:00pm in University Hall

Columbus State University|The Saber

Campus Life

Administration argues for live cougars on campus Students and faculty balk at the proposal The controversy begins: Even before faculty arrived, students gathered April 7 outside Schuster 130 with posters and petitions. “Not born to be behind bars,” read one poster.

These students attended the faculty senate meeting to protest a plan that would persue $2.5 million of donor funds to bring from design to fruition a cougar enclosure to CSU’s main campus. The exact size of the enclosure is unknown, however we do know that the entire site, which includes a meeting space, will be 9,000 square feet. The enclosure part of the development would house a rescued cougar.

During the faculty senate meeting, Kimberly McElveen, senior director of student engagement, presented the faculty senate and the student protestors waiting patiently with their posters the same argument she has since repeated at Student Government Forum on April 10 and in an email provided to The Saber.

McElveen argues that bringing a live cougar to campus, a rescued cougar, will increase student interest in main campus as a destination. All money used to initiate and maintain the cougar enclosure will come from donors. McElveen insisted at the SGA Forum that “not today, not in five years, not in ten years” would student funds pay for this program.

McElveen also stresses that the cougars will be well provided for in their habitat, with excellent care by experts.

More enigmatically, McElveen insists, along with Chip Resse, Dean of Students, that having a cougar on campus will be “cool.” As Dean Reese insisted, “the cool factor is cool.”

Not too cool to students, or faculty: At the faculty senate, faculty were solidly opposed to the plan, arguing that the pursuit of donors for this project was a misallocation of energy and resources, that keeping an animal thus caged contravenes modern educational philosophy,

and that it was inconsiderate of the university administration, who have in the past promised more shared governance, to leave the faculty out of this planning process. CSU’s own biology department was left out of the planning.

Students seem largely opposed to building a cougar enclosure. Students protested the plan at faculty senate, struggled at SGA forum to have their concerns heard, and have taken to social media to air their views.

A Facebook group, “Stop the purchase of cougars for Columbus State University campus” received 359 likes in 24 hours, and currently has 560 likes. This group has promulgated a change.org petition in protest of the plan to house cougars on campus, a petition with 855 signatures. These numbers were collected at the time of this writing, and one ought to expect them to have swelled in the time between this writing and publication.

While McElveen has warned, and rightly so, that some petitions circulating on campus contained inaccurate information, this change.org petition seems free from factual error, although it certainly stakes out an ethical perspective that McElveen and other university administrations would not seem to embrace.

There are some on campus who support the plan. The first student called upon at SGA Forum to ask of McElveen a question, McElveen called upon by his first name. Rather than ask a question, this student insisted

that he couldn’t see any problems with the plan.

After the forum—which included an inquisitive student having the microphone taken from her before she could ask her question, a student who was clearly given less time to ask her question than our first speaker was given to voice his support—The Saber spoke with Vince Richardson, who claims to represent a group he founded called the “Coalition for Cougars on Campus.” This group does not appear to have a Facebook page.

Richardson said that CSU is “not a prestigious school” and that he doesn’t “feel a lot of pride to say that he goes to CSU,” though Richardson is quick to add that he believes CSU could become prestigious. For Richardson, having a live cougar will increase our prestige. As for the safety and ethical concerns raised by students, Richardson doesn’t see a problem because, in his view, the cougars will be “as captive as a dog or a cat.”

Chelsea Pike, SGA president: It was Katie Winkles, who has circulated a campus petition, who had the microphone taken from her hands at SGA Forum, who was refused her time to ask questions of McElveen. Winkles found the experience to be “incredibly rude, disrespectful, and biased,” but has hope that future SGA Forums will offer students with the respect she believes they deserve.

While Chelsea Pike did not

April 16, 2014 | 3

Tom Ingram

Copy Editor

Illustration: Sabrina Anderson

take the microphone from Winkles’ hands, nor order that the microphone be taken, Pike could have asked that the microphone be returned. It is no wonder that many students left Forum feeling that their SGA leaders, or at least Pike, favor the plan to house a cougar on campus.

Pike says that she initially intended to “remain as neutral as possible” as a representative of students, but now opposes the plan. Pike says that she is “sorry [the microphone] was taken.”

The Saber asked Pike directly: do you feel intimidated by certain members of the administration?

Pike answered: “Yes.” Pike was calm when she answered, and refused to say exactly who it was who made her feel intimidated. Pike says that her initial plan was to call for a vote of SGA representatives on whether or not to support the plan to house cougars on campus, a vote she feels would have gone against the plan, but was asked by administrators to hold off on the vote.

Pike compared the university administration to “a clique in high school.”

More to come: Because the issue of bringing a live cougar to campus became so contentious so quickly, there are many angles left to be explored. The Saber has been and will continue to explore new angles, and will expand on issues reported on in this article. Due to the pace of events, we still have many student responses to these events to investigate. As always, we welcome student voices. Please continue to share your views.

We also hope to speak more with faculty and university administration. Keep an eye out for our next issue for a follow up. Also, you can follow us on Facebook and Twitter for more immediate updates.

Additional reporting provided by Sam Sachs.

4 | April 16, 2014

Campus Life

Tips for staying safe on campus An interview with Ryan Slay, martial arts instructor

system specializes in combative tae kwon do and realistic self-defense training that works in real scenarios like what we have seen on CSU’s campus. We teach law enforcement hand to hand combatives, women’s self-defense, and full contact fighting, which gives us a pretty comprehensive skill set in regard to campus safety.”

Ryan Slay has been teaching Tae Kwon Do at Columbus State since 2003 In light of the recent shooting, many students have worried about personal safety while on campus. The Saber took this opportunity to ask Ryan Slay, CSU Tae Kwon Do instructor, how students can stay safe on and off campus.

The Saber: What is your background?

Ryan Slay: “I began studying martial arts in 1989 and on April 5th of this year I earned my 5th dan (degree) black belt with Dean’s Martial Arts Institute. I am the head instructor of the Columbus D.M.A.I. Dojang which is the Ledger Enquirer’s Reader’s Choice winner in Martial Arts Training for the past four years. Our

The Saber: In your opinion, does Columbus State University have a safe campus?

Ryan Slay: “This campus is as safe as any other. The police here are trained as well as any other and there are plenty of panic buttons to hit all over campus. With that said, you are only as safe as you choose to be.”

The Saber: Can students better protect themselves by taking a self-defense or martial arts class?

Ryan Slay: “A self-defense course can be extremely helpful. In the long run, a traditional, combative martial arts class will typically help you much more, but be sure you take up a combative style, not a sport style as it will be less helpful in this regard.”

The Saber: How else can students stay safe on or off campus?

Ryan Slay: “[Criminals] will

Columbus State University|The Saber

look for a ‘victim.’ The victim is the one person who seems to be the easiest to attack and will not put up much of a fight.

Prevention is more important than techniques, and prevention means vigilance. Avoid walking around (campus) with headphones on and completely consumed in your phone. Get your keys out and in-hand before leaving a building to walk to your car. Say ‘hello’ to people as you pass them, because this says that you pay attention to those around you and are assertive. I teach specific methods of prevention in my seminars, but these suggestions go a long way.”

The Saber: What do you think can be done in order to secure an even safer campus?

Ryan Slay: “The bigger issue on campuses is the fact that criminals go there to commit crimes on easy victims who are banned from carrying various tools that they could use to defend themselves. I call this ‘Victim Disarmament’. State governments and college campuses typically disallow the carrying of concealed weapons on campuses, thus creating a ‘gun free playground’ for criminals who know that their victims will not be armed. Of course the criminals ignore these laws/rules. While you can train hands and feet to be very efficient in defending

Cam Krafthefer

Contributing Writer

Photo: Ryan Slay

yourself, when the attacker has a gun it makes this much more difficult. It is my opinion that students need to get proactive about supporting changes in legislation and campus policy to support their rights and abilities to defend themselves.”

The Saber: Is there anything else you would like to mention to the students?

Ryan Slay: “I want people to look around, make eye contact, and be aware of people who are behind them at all times. At least, those who look aware of their surroundings are less likely to be attacked. You are less aware than you think.”

The CSU Police Department reminds students to call the campus police at (706) 507-8911 if any suspicious activity is detected on campus.

Additionally, police are always on patrol and can escort students at any time upon request.

Sergeant Tessie Taylor reassures students that “fortunately, acts of violence on our campus continue to be isolated events.”

Residence Life introduces Greek themed housing Maryland Circle becomes new location for on campus Greek housing Beginning next Fall, a portion of Maryland Circle will be designated for Greek organizations on campus. CSU’s Residence Life surveyed students involved with the Greek community on where they would like the Greek theme housing to be located, and an overwhelming percentage preferred Maryland Circle.

The Greek theme housing will consist of three to four duplexes situated around Maryland Circle’s cul de sac. Each duplex will be able to house two organizations, meaning

approximately six to eight Greek organizations will have their own campus house.

Contrary to popular belief, CSU is not acquiring a c tual Greek houses.

G r e e k housing entails that the organizations w o u l d own and manage the property instead of the school. ResLife is merely allowing students

with a special interest and commonality to live together just like the Honors and Scholars themed housing located on both c a m puses.

Johnathon Lucia, Residence Life Coordinator, said, “This is a way to encourage more stu-

Teefuh Choice

Campus Life Editor

Illustration: Skye WIlliams

dents who are a part of the Greek community to live on campus because we want to improve the student life experience at CSU.” A concern for non-Greeks is if would they still be able to live in Maryland Circle, and Mr. Lucia assures that there will be plenty of bed spaces available for general selection. There are six organizations with a confirmed interest in the housing, but if any one of them should back out those extra spaces would be open for general selection as well.

Columbus State University|The Saber

Tattoos with tales

What does your ink say about you?

“All of my tattoos have a spiritual component to them,” said Anna Justice, a junior communication major. Justice has three tattoos. “The first one was done in Las Vegas at Club Tattoo on my 18th birthday. I got the second part of my first tattoo done here in Columbus at Tattoo Tommy’s on Victory Drive. The second and third were also done here, but at Ink 66 on Armour Road,” said Justice. The combined total for all her tattoos was $250.

“People get tattoos for all

Campus Life

sorts of reason,” Justice said.

She views each of her tattoos as a gentle reminder of something different about herself.

“They remind me to treat people with grace, to be thankful, to be a peacemaker, to be loving,” she said. Justice’s first tattoo is on her side. It’s the word “kletos” and has an olive branch wrapped around it.

“I stumbled across this word in a book title called “Fearless” by Max Lucado. It’s a Greek word, which means ‘to be called out or invited to

salvation through Christ.’ The olive branch is traditionally regarded as a symbol of peace,” she said.

Justice’s second tattoo is a small cross on her wrist. The third tattoo, on her arm, is part of a verse from her favorite hymn “Love Divine All Loves Excelling” written by Charles Wesley. It reads, “Lost in wonder, love, and praise.”

Friends and family have no qualms about Justice’s tattoos.

“My parents don’t mind tattoos. In fact, my mom has half

April 16, 2014 | 5

Danielle Davis

Managing Editor

Photo: Anna Justice

a sleeve and my dad has a rather large tattoo on his back. All of my siblings and friends like them as well,” said Justice. She explained her family’s take on tattoos saying, “We were raised in a household full of grace and love and have really just looked at tattoos as both a beautiful and artistic way of telling a story or reminding us of a special time or moment in our life when we were learning something new that has helped shaped who we are now, or who we wish to become.”

Lindsey Creek Clean up Hosted by Students for a Sustainable World along with City of Columbus, Oxbow Meadows Learning Center and Chattahoochee River Warden!

Thursday April 17th 10:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. at the clock tower

Bring your boots, waders, or an old pair of shoes and join us Friday, April 18th as we clean up Lindsey creek to kick start the One CSU sustainability fair Come by the clock tower starting at 9am the day of the clean up and we will show you where to go!

6 | April 16, 2014

Campus Life

Columbus State University|The Saber

“Kyle Ryan”, Kaitlyn Underwood presents “Aquafina Dasani”, Brian Jordan the mic.

What will you do to end the silence?

Office of Diversity Programs and Services bring awareness to the LGBTQ community The Office of Diversity Programs and Services – as well as Residence Life, the Student Activities Council and PRIDE – planned a week filled with events to demolish stereotypes and promote open-mindedness. These events were created to include inclusiveness and awareness that is happening in this generation.

The variety of events included a Soup for Substance panel discussing the LGBTQ community and how it feels to “come out the closet,” as well as the Klondike bar discussion booths, which required going through the booths of discussion and landing into the destination of a free Klondike bar. Lastly, the annual So You

Think You Can Drag fashion was held downtown at the Rankin Garden and Atrium.

All week long, the events during this year’s Week of Silence have promoted awareness and an open atmosphere, encouraging the student body to get a feel of what is like to be denied so many rights.

A student who wishes to re-

Brandi Phillips Staff Writer

Photos: Ryan Krafthefer

main anonymous said, “I enjoyed this year’s Week of Silence. I am a straight male myself and I never imagined getting knocked to the ground just because of the sexual orientation I chosen. I have learned a lot from attending this week’s event and I loved the fashion show!”

Students share their stories and views at the Game of Life meeting.

Columbus State University|The Saber

Feeling Bookish?

A&E

A review of Jeanne Duprau’s, “The City of Ember” What if all you would ever amount to in life was decided for you by a piece of paper you had no control over? Such is the difficulty of Lina Mayfleet’s life. In “The City of Ember,” your job is picked from pulling a strip of paper with the title. When Lina’s friend Doon has the same issue, they switch.

Jeanne Duprau’s “The City of Ember” focuses on the lives of the last vestiges of humanity and their home, a city of strangeness, mystery and social tradition. In a city where everything is credited to the past, what the people of Ember call ‘The Builders’ saved humanity by placing them in the city. Lina and Doon, through trial and error and intense personal curiosity, discover that not everything is as it seems.

Duprau’s novel is an interesting examination of human character and the acceptance of personal flaws. Lina and Doon operate as the perfect guides to such a strange world through their own quirkiness and flaws.

While in most novels, flaws are worked through and subse-

Special CSU Graduation Rates

April 16, 2014 | 7

Sam Sachs

Staff Writer

Image: Wikimedia Commons

quently improved, it is Lina’s and Doon’s flaws that enable the characters to discover the truth about Ember.

That truth is something is terribly wrong with the city, with corruption and secrets threatening lives and humanity’s ultimate survival.

As mysteries unfold and the struggle to break free of their world’s restrictions becomes harder and harder, Lina and Doon help to show just how powerful true information can be.

In our own world of deceit, misinformation and bias, Duprau’s “City of Ember” serves as a thought-provoking take on what it means to know our futures and control our own lives. Information is powerful, and those who have the ability to disperse it have a duty to spread the truth rather than propagate falsehoods and confusion. For those of us who have the ability to institute changes with such information, we must follow the same path as Lina and Doon and educate our people or risk the harm that falsehood breeds.

Staybridge Suites, Columbus / Fort Benning, GA 1678 Whittlesey Rd. (706) 507-7700

Complimentary hot breakfast buffet Evening Social (Tues-Thurs) Full-size refrigerator with ice maker Cook top stove 12 cup coffeemaker Free high-speed Internet Bus parking available Pet Friendly

Kick back, unwind and

Congratulations CSU Class of 2014!

SETTLE IN.

Local & World

8 | April 16, 2014

Columbus State University|The Saber

TeresaTomlinson VS. Colin Martin Brandon Short Editor-in-Chief

Photos: Courtesy of candidates

The Saber interviewed both mayoral cadidates to find out their platforms and plans for CSU if elected mayor.

What do you think of your first term as mayor, and rate it 1-10?

I’m very proud of my first term as mayor. It certainly exceeded my expectations when I first came into office. I think we accomplished the things that we set out to accomplish and made great strides in them. I think we got some bonus points for handling things I never imagined we would have to handle and handling them well. Given that I guess I would give us a 9.

We’ve lowered unemployment, lowered the crime rate. We had to handle the unexpected circumstance at the prison and reform that, which we did. We reformed the pension plan, which I really didn’t have any intention to do, but we saved it and saved the citizens $2.2 million in the first two years.

What is your second term platform?

I’m looking forward to the revitalization of what we call “City Village,” which is the blighted and largely vacant area between TSYS and Bibb Village. It would be a major community redevelopment project. At the same time we’ve got a couple of really big projects pending for South Columbus, including some street scaping on South Lumpkin Rd., an additional Rails to Trails like what we have on Warm Springs and Talbotton Rd., and bringing Westville Living History Museum to South Columbus.

The last two things you’re going to see is a transformation in how we handle and experience homelessness in our community.

We have a 10-year plan to end homelessness in Columbus. With-

in the next year, we’re looking at housing permanently or longterm for almost 200 chronically homeless individuals. We only estimate that we have 150 and 220 chronically homeless individuals in this community. We’re looking at being able to house every single one of our chronically homeless. The other side of our homeless population, the transient homeless, are capable of sustaining their housing, they just need help to get on a plan.

We’re going to continue pursuing the second tier of the high speed rail from Columbus to Atlanta. We finished the first feasibility study successfully. The Columbus to Atlanta rail would be profitable in the first year. It looks to be competitive from a pricing standpoint. It looks to be a huge economic boom to the community, adding a minimum of 11,000 jobs. I would say those are the four things that are on the horizon for us.

What role does CSU play in your plans if you’re reelected.

The City Village concept is designed as a creative community.

It’s being designed for students and those in the creative industries. They tend to be younger people, but it can be people of any age. Software designers, cultural artists, architects or whatever it might be. It creates a real vibe in the community that the university population would be very interested in. It’ll be like a village you would see in a traditional college town. This area will be immediately adjacent to the downtown campus of CSU. I personally am looking to the students of CSU to be our next group of leaders. I feel like I’m keeping the chair warm for you all. With everything I do, I’m thinking about those who are coming out of the colleges and universities and how they’re going to lead and what we’re going to be leaving them to lead.

Why should a CSU student vote for you?

Particularly for a student, especially someone younger of age, although I know there are plenty of non-traditional students at CSU, they want potential and opportunity and growth. We just found out that our population has grown again to 202,000 people, while Macon and Augusta lost citizens. There’s a vibrancy about Columbus that’s coming from different directions that’s certainly being exhibited from our leadership. It’s about sending a hopeful vision for the future. I was at a forum recently and my opponent got up and spoke for a while. After he spoke, I really feel like his campaign slogan is “Be Afraid.

Be Very Afraid.” There’s a fine line between being critical of policies and actions, which is fine in the political realm, and trying to scare the populace to death.

That’s never good for people who are trying to start out on a career to have that ominous impression that the leader of the community thinks our best days are behind us and there’s only doom that’s at our door. I think that’s contrary to what a mayor is. The mayor needs to find a way to be hopeful about the city’s future. That’s the mayor’s job. I would say that for students, particularly those that are looking to start off on different ventures in their lives, they need hope and promise and someone with a vision for a bright future, that is exactly what I’ve demonstrated for the last 3.5 years and what I plan to continue to do.

There

will be a public

mayoral debate at on the son

21st in

CSU

the david-

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at

7pm.

To see the full

transcript of the

interviews please

visit our website. csusaber.site50.net

Columbus State University|The Saber

Local & World

Columbus mayoral race heats up Why do you want to run for mayor?

What happened was that as I working in the Chamber of Commerce, there got to be this sense that leadership wasn’t right in Columbus. We had battles between elected officials. There were people concerned about crime, budget issues, the budget deficit, and the way spending was being handled. I started hearing that people wanted change but no one wanted to step up and run.

I felt like this was the right time for me. I’m going to be a much more collaborative leader. Working with city council to solve issues and other elected officials.

The 10 most important people in the mayor’s life are the 10 members of city council . You can have the best ideas and visions, but if you can’t get six votes, you can’t do anything. It’s the tough votes where you’ve got to be able to cobble together the six votes.

I’ve got support from many members of city council.

What is your platform?

We need to have a focus on crime. Crime is an issue in Columbus. To say that crime is down when there’s an obvious three year trend up is just not facing facts. Five-year averages and 10-year averages don’t matter. All that matters is what the people think, and people don’t feel safe. I’ve put forth a fourpoint plan.

Step 1 is to get police officers into neighborhoods and get them having a relationship with the people in the neighborhoods. We need to intervene on open-air drug markets. We’ve got to break that, because I’m convinced that a lot of the crime issues, especially burglaries and property crimes, and even the murders are caused by the drug market. If we can get the drug trade under control in Columbus, I think a lot of the crime will down.

Step 2 is crime prevention by focusing on first time offenders.

Make the first offense the last of-

fense. People are going to screw up. If we can get them at the first offense and positively redirect them, we can reduce the chance for recidivism so they don’ t get that second offense.

Step 3 is looking at why we lose police officers after 5 years. We do a great job of training officers when we first hire them, but after that they’re not making the money they want, another community comes and snatches them up.

Step 4 is that we want to pull the public safety team together.

Mayor Tomlinson refers to the fire chief, police chief, and warden of the prison as her direct reports, which I think is a little degrading. It’s a team effort, and a part of that team are also the sheriff and marshall and coroner. Every other mayor met weekly with that group to talk about what was going on. For whatever reason, she chose to stop that. I want to bring those meetings back.

Folks are also worried about the whole financial structure of our government. On January 1, 2011, we had a balanced budget and roughly 74 days of fund balance. Now we’ve got a $6.5 million deficit and we’re down to about 37 days of fund balance left. People are worried about that and keeping the property tax freeze. My plan focuses a lot on expanding the number of taxpayers, not taxing the ones who are here more. We can do that by recruiting companies to Columbus.

Also, one of the big parts of our economic issues here in Columbus is Ft. Benning. It’s our biggest employer and a foundation of our economy. Ft. Benning is the economic engine and we are not paying the attention to it at the city government level that we should. We need to conduct an analysis of Columbus and what more we need to support Ft. Benning in terms of infrastructure and those kinds of things.

What role does CSU play in your plans if you become mayor?

I’d be interested in talking to Dr. Mescon about anything the city can do to help CSU grow and expand. What CSU did for Uptown Columbus is amazing.

We’re at about an 18-hour downtown because of the students.

There’s a lot going on because the students came down there.

There’s music on the street, college students are walking around and it brings a sense of vibrancy and life downtown that is critical. When you bring in the intellectual capital that come from the business school, the music school, and the arts, it is one the crown jewels and cornerstones of our economy. If Ft. Benning represents the foundation, CSU represents the future. Taking care of this area around CSU is important because students need to feel safe, parents need feel that their kids are OK. I’m a big fan of CSU. Why should a CSU student vote for you?

First of all, lets address why a college student should vote. I remember when I was at UGA, there was a little bit of apathy, particularly about local elections. A lot of students didn’t live in Athens and didn’t care about it.

The best place a student at CSU can have an impact on government is at the local level, much quicker than at the state level or federal level.

Crime impacts all of us. I’m going to make sure folks feel safe in their homes in Columbus. Second of all, the biggest single issue college students face today is “When I graduate from college, am I going to have a job?” I’m going to focus on bringing jobs to Columbus, both industrial jobs and making sure Ft. Benning is being taken care of, in things such as robotics and research & development. I want to build the kind of city that someone who is in their 18-23 year old timeframe can say “I can stay here and raise a family and grow here personally and professionally.”

April 16, 2014 | 9

Local & World

10 | April 16, 2014

Columbus State University|The Saber

Internet security shattered by Heartbleed The Heartbleed Bug leaves everyone exposed to hackers Google, Yahoo, Dropbox, Facebook, Tumblr and Amazon Web Services users beware. A large scale breakdown in internet security has led to a breach of personal information all over the Internet, with an oversight in the encryption process creating a bug known as Heartbleed.

Heartbleed is a security vulnerability in OpenSSL software, an open source software which is the basic means of encryption on the Internet.

The purpose of OpenSSL is to prevent eavesdropping on Internet browsing. This software is used immensely across the Internet, so the flaw which led to the creation of Heartbleed has affected almost everyone directly or indirectly. An estimated 66 percent of the entire Internet was affected around the time of the Heartbleed Bug’s discovery.

What this breach means is that a hacker can access a wide range of information, from usernames and passwords, to credit card information and the internal data of companies by accessing the memory of data servers. The personal data for users of over half a million websites was at risk at the un-

earthing of the bug, although since the initial discovery many sites have been patched.

Heartbleed could be the

Minecraft, and OKCupid to prevent exploitation by hackers. Websites claiming to be unaffected include LinkedIn,

greatest breach of internet security ever seen, so it is advisable to change passwords on affected sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, Youtube, Gmail, Yahoo, Etsy, Flickr, Netflix,

Hotmail and Twitter, but it is advisable to change passwords on these sites to be safe. Certain plugins are also available to warn about the affected sites.

The Heartbleed bug is not

Easter Activities

It’s that time of year again, Easter is coming up fast. One of the biggest problems with Easter however, is finding activities around town that are actually worth dragging your five year old son/brother to. To make it a little easier on you, here are a few of your options that you can find in or around Columbus.

The tried and true Easter activity for children is taking pictures with the Easter bunny

Illustration: Elain Hoffmeister

only limited to desktop browsers. Smartphones, particularly Androids, are endangered by their applications, as are other devices which can be used to connect to the Internet, which makes the problem even more widespread.

The glitch is known as Heartbleed, rather than its proper name CVE-2014-0160, because it affects an extension in OpenSSL called “heartbeat” and then proceeds to have information bled out of it. The catchy name and logo was designed to raise awareness of the bug so that people take immediate actions to protect personal information.

There were initial rumors that the National Security Agency (NSA) had been exploiting the Heartbleed vulnerability for years in order to gather intelligence, but the NSA has denied all such accusations.

At this time the best way to protect information is to keep up to date with whether a site has been patched, change passwords once the website gives the all clear, and remain vigilant on the issue and cautious around social networking websites.

Justin Minge Staff Writer

What to do for Easter around Columbus at the mall! More specifically, at the Peachtree Mall located right across from main campus.

You can find the Easter bunny there from April 9th to the 19th.

Photo packages cost $19.99 and up, but if you catch it early you may get a discount! You can also have Easter bunny pictures taken with your pets, which is just too cute to pass up. If you do not find the Easter bunny on his perch, he may be taking one of his scheduled carrot breaks.

The second option is made for a more mature audience, and is also located a sizable distance away. Historic Westville is an 1850’s living history museum located in Lumpkin, Ga, that successfully recre-

Elaine Hoffmeister

Local & World News Editor

Illustration: Noah Sachs

ates an 1850’s West Georgian town. This time of year they feature an opportunity to celebrate Easter in the style of the 1850’s. The event is held on April 18th and 19th, and will last from 10am to 5pm. Some of the activities included are sewing your own bag to carry the Easter egg you will be making, making homemade Easter baskets, and also making pinwheels.

A third option is not too far from Columbus, and is located at Callaway Gardens. Callaway Gardens always puts on quite a show for Easter, and this year is no exception. Callaway Gardens will be hosting their very own Easter egg hunt on Saturday, April 19th

from 2pm to 4pm. The hunts will take place by age groups, which range from five all the way up to eighteen. The Easter bunny will also be present for more pictures. In addition, Callaway Gardens will also have a special sunrise service on April 20th at 7:30am, and offer an Easter lunch buffet on the same day.

It may not be quite as popular as Christmas or Halloween, but with the right activities Easter can measure up with the same amount of enjoyment.

Even if your Easter consists of hiding eggs in your own yard, remember what is really important about this holiday. To eat as many chocolate bunnies as you can.

Columbus State University|The Saber

S&W| Rear End

CSU Soccer travels to England The Lady Cougars visit England to compete abroad The CSU Lady Cougars are traveling to England as part of a study abroad initiative.

“The trip is about the student athletes getting a once in a lifetime cultural experience learning and growing and finding out about the English culture,” says Jay Entlich, head coach of the CSU lady’s soccer team.

“They can find out about the food that they eat, the way they live their day-to-day lives, the houses they grow up in, and the community that gets behind the football.”

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for students,” says CSU President Dr. Tim Mescon. “The fact that it involves our Center for International Education, the College of Education and Health Professions, and our student-athletes is the way a university project like this should work.”

This will be the second time that the CSU soccer team has traveled to England. They traveled there in 2010 for a similar experience. This time, how-

ever, they will get the opportunity to play three professional soccer teams in exhibition matches.

“Playing three professional women’s teams while we are there is just an incredible opportunity,” says Entlich. “We only get six dates in the spring that we can compete, so I’m just happy that we get the opportunity to compete against the best-of-the-best.”

They will compete against Portsmouth of the Football Association Nationwide Premier League, and against Aston Villa and Millwall of the FA Super League.

Portsmouth won the FA Premier League title in 2012, and Aston Villa is one of five British clubs to have won the European Cup. Coach Entlich spent some time playing for the English club Middlesbrough, so he has experienced the English fan base first-hand.

“It’s a passion,” says Entlich.

“You know folks in England

invented the game, so as part of the culture over it is engrained in them. They want to be successful every time they step onto the field. Aston Villa, Portsmouth and Millwall are all such successful teams and we are so excited to be able to step on the same field as them.”

“They were very welcoming and I learned a lot from playing over there,” says Entlich.

“Just having the opportunity to bring these young ladies back over, and share what I got to do, gosh, 20 years ago is just unbelievable and extraordinary.”

The CSU Lady Cougars will also serve as spectators for the Fulham versus Norwich City matchup inside historic Craven Cottage. Craven Cottage has served as the home stadium for the English Premier League’s Fulham F.C. since 1896. It also has history dating as far back as 300 years.

“The opportunity to watch Fulham versus Norwich of the Premier League in such an in-

April 16, 2014 | 11

Jake Hall Staff Writer

credible stadium is just such an opportunity,” says Entlich.

“I keep saying it but it is just a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as a group to represent Columbus State.”

The players will have an opportunity to not just experience soccer in England, but also get to visit many of the national landmarks around London.

“I think touring London is what I am most excited about,” says Rebecca Calder, right defender for the Lady Cougars.

The players will write a journal about everything that they have done, and give a presentation on their experiences when the trip is over.

All of their matches are airing on CSU TV at csucougars. com. The website is also the place for all news relating to the CSU Lady Cougar soccer team as well as all of CSU’s sports teams.