Dec. 4, 2015

collegiatetimes.com

111th YEAR, ISSUE 141

December 4, 2015

COLLEGIATETIMES An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903

Sustainability in Blacksburg: Part two

Behind the scenes:

VT Rescue

Forty Virginia Tech students juggle the demands of typical student life and the stress of being on-call around the clock to respond to 911 emergencies.

LAUREN PAK / COLLEGIATE TIMES

LAUREN PAK news staff writer

For any 911 call placed on Virginia Tech property, there are 40 EMT-certified students waiting and ready to respond.

“I figured there was no better way I could think of serving than to help somebody out when they’re having the worst day of their life,” said Jack Shepard, a sophomore mechanical engineering major and attendant on VT Rescue. “It’s something I didn’t think I would like this much.

It’s an adrenaline rush; it’s a way to really help people out.”

The Virginia Tech rescue squad is free to call and completely student-run. As an auxiliary organization, it is not an official division of the university but operates on a large scale,

supervised by VT Police.

“We have these crazy requirements, and they’re not always easy,” said Chris Eyestone, a junior agricultural economics and international studies major and chief of VT Rescue. “They always rise to the occasion in the end, and that’s what really impresses me about every one of our members.”

The squad emphasizes training and demands high standards, but some students come without any medical experience. Through continuous training online, in classes and frequent drills and practices, members are taught everything they need.

“Going into college, meeting my friend group, I would have never thought I would be the one on see RESCUE / page 4

Volleyball finishes season on winning note but denied berth to NCAA championship Both starting and ending the season on winning streaks, the Hokies finished their 2015 season 19-13. The progam continues to develop as multiple players earned ACC honors.

JOSH WILETS volleyball beat reporter

The Hokies finished a rather tumultuous season with a win over in-state rivals U.Va. last Saturday in Cassell Coliseum.

Virginia Tech defeated the Cavaliers on senior day in a thriller 3-2 (25-20, 24-26, 25-21, 23-25, 15-7).

Virginia Tech opened its season at Cassell Coliseum on the newly named Virginia Tech Carilion Court, hosting the Radford University/Virginia Tech Invitational. The Hokies swept the tournament, defeating East Tennessee

State, LIU Brooklyn and Elon in three sets each.

The Hokies stayed red hot when participating in the Spartan Invitational.

The invitational took place at Michigan State University. Virginia Tech swept this tournament as well, defeating Miami University (OH), No. 19 Michigan State and Butler in four sets each.

The win over Michigan State was the first time in Virginia Tech volleyball history that the Hokies defeated a ranked opponent on the road. The history book re-writing continued as the Hokies earned votes

in the American Volleyball Coa ches A sso ciat ion (AVCA) top 25 poll for the first time in program history.

Virginia Tech traveled to Bloomington, Indiana, to take part in the Indiana Invitational. The Hokies earned one win in the tournament, defeating Bowling Green, after losing to Indiana and Northern Arizona. The loss to Indiana was the Hokies’ first loss of the season.

The weekend directly following the Indiana Invitational, the Hokies hosted the Hok ie Invitational. In addition

to Virginia Tech, three other teams (Middle Tennessee, Chattanooga and Liberty) took part in the tournament. Virginia Tech sandwiched the loss to Chattanooga with wins over Middle Tennessee and Liberty.

The Hokies finished t hei r non- con ferenc e schedule with a record of 9-3 before beginning the portion of their schedule which featured ACC opponents.

Virginia Tech began its ACC schedule at Cassell Coliseum, facing North see RECAP / page 5

Virginia Tech hosted an energy competition, “Turn Down 4 Watt,” in order to promote environmentalism on campus.

CLARE RIGNEY environmentalism beat reporter

Before Thanksgiving break, after Virginia Tech’s Office of Energy and Sust a i nabi l it y congratulated the winning dorm in its energ y c omp et it ion, “Turn Down 4 Watt,” it was not the only organization using social media to spread a renewable message.

Katie Janse van Vuuren and Lea Sarment are both juniors at Virginia Tech, van Vuuren focused in Biological Sciences and Sarment in Biological Systems Engineering.

They wanted to create a petition to help the situation of recycling in Blacksburg after noticing a problem van Vuuren’s boyfriend was having at his complex.

“My boyfriend lived in Maple Ridge and, in Maple Ridge, they have one recycling bin … he used to bring (recycling) to our place,” van Vuuren said. “So now he lives in Terrace View, he has one recycling bin, and it’s right by their leasing office … there are only, like, two buildings that can walk there comfortably, so he still drives it to our place.”

About a month ago, Sarment and van Vuuren created a petition titled ‘Simplifying Blacksburg Recycling: The Change’ to have recycling bins placed more accessibly around Blacksburg’s 126 apartment complexes.

The students have been using Facebook, email and texting in order to encourage people to sign.

The roommates regularly host “networking parties” where they both skim through their phone

contact lists and figure out who they should text.

“The goal was 50 (signatures) a day at the beginning,” van Vuuren said.

By this past Monday, they had received 795 signatures. After the initial five days, they had 440 signatures, nearly 100 a day. People have been responding on the petition, asking the girls to make it happen at their own complexes.

“Clearly a lot of people need this and want this … the Blacksburg Town Council is really good about valuing peoples’ opinions,” Sarment said.

If the Blacksburg Town Council approves van Vuuren and Sarment’s p r op o sa l, a n ord inance will have to be wr itten. Luck ily for the two students, they already have the support of Councilmember Cecile Newcomb, who com mented on their petition, “I am in full support of this as a citizen and as a Town Councilwoman.”

Blacksburg has had curbside recycling for 15 years. The face of Blacksburg recycling changed this past July when the town adopted single-stream recycling.

Sustainability Manager of the Town of Blacksburg Carol Davis said that old bins required people to separate their recycling themselves, which often led to contaminated waste and tons of loads of recycling having to be sent to a different location for another round of sorting.

The company responsible for picking up recycling is the Montgomery Regional Solid Waste see GREEN / page 3

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY RICKY LAM

Students and members of the Town of Blacksburg are encouraged to save energy whenever possible.

Men’s basketball falls to Northwestern in overtime, 81-79 RICKY LABLUE editor in chief

Despite trailing for most of the game and erasing a nine-point halftime deficit, the Virginia Tech men’s basketball team was able to fight back and take Northwestern into overtime.

However, the overtime period did not go as planned, and the Hokies dropped their second game of the season 81-79.

After the game, Head Coach Buzz Williams was a little more frustrated than usual.

“We lost by two in overtime on national TV,” Williams said.

That was not the only

reason, though. The Wildcats shot 56 percent from the floor in the first half and made 10 threes. Williams made it clear that they did not play well enough defensively.

“We need to try and win games when you score 79 points,” Williams said.

Guard Seth Allen had one of his better nights offensively, hitting 7-15 shots and scoring 25 points.

“I’m definitely getting more comfortable,” Allen said. “I’m just going to stay consistent on my workouts and hopefully I can keep having good nights.”

“I thought he was a little bit more efficient,” Williams said of Allen. “He always teeters on the line of being efficient

JESSICA JONES Find out how the new Netflix original measures up to other Marvel series. page 2

ALEXA JOHNSON / COLLEGIATE TIMES

A shot by Devin Wilson (11) knocked down by Northwestern. Dec 1, 2015. or inefficient. I thought he was better.”

Justin Bibbs and Chris Clarke finished with 17 and

11 points respectively, but the offensive effort was for naught, as Northwestern seemed to keep making

STUDENTS DEBATE CONFEDERATE FLAG Participants discuss the flag in a legal context. page 3

baskets, keeping the Hokies out of reach.

“We need to become much more efficient with what we are doing defensively and offensively,” Williams said.

“We tried to create a scoring contest, and that normally doesn’t work.”

Northwestern got off to a hot start and never really looked back. They led 45-36 at halftime and connected on six three-pointers. On the other hand, Virginia Tech shot just 36 percent from the field.

After the game, Bibbs was unsure as to why the Hokies got off to such a slow start.

“I have no idea,” Bibbs said.

“We have a tendency of doing that.”

Williams, however, had a

/CollegiateTimes @collegiatetimes

quick answer.

“Bad coaching,” Williams said.

The second half was a reversal of the first. Tech clawed its way back and tied it with 8:45 left to play on a putback by Satchel Pierce.

Pierce, who has not seen much playing time this year, finished with six points and seven rebounds in 19 minutes off the bench.

“I think it says a lot about his character to sit over there and not play for three games,” Williams said.

After trading baskets, Allen tied the game back up with a pair of free throws with 55 seconds remaining. Neither see BASKETBALL / page 5

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PAGE 2 December 4, 2015

editor@collegiatetimes.com

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opinion collegiatetimes.com/opinion

your views [letter to the editor]

W

hip, silver bullet, pull the trigger, shoot down in flames, shoot the breeze, shoot yourself in the foot, shooting fish in a barrel, shot across the bow, shot in the dark, shotgun marriage, point and shoot, bite the bullet, smoking gun, cross-fire, straight shooter, best shot, parting shot, blown away, under the gun, hair trigger, sweating bullets ... etc.

From our own campus, and now to Paris, France, guns and bullets have become the medium for violence in our global society.

Yet, we invoke the most insensitive euphemisms of all in our everyday language, and no one seems to notice. By habit, we approach a new initiative with the phrase “let’s pull the trigger and get it started” or we face the reality of a difficult situation and couch it in the phrase “there is no silver bullet to fix it.” We say “we are under the gun” to meet a deadline. In present context, these phrases are simply inappropriate and insensitive to a world trying to cope with the ever-increasing violence involving guns and bullets.

Words have meaning. Words matter.

Let’s think before we speak.

PAUL WINISTORFER, PHD • Dean, College of Natural Resources and Environment

your views [letter to the editor]

NASCAR’s roots soaked in Appalachian moonshine

L

ittle did American citizens know that the Prohibition Era in the 1920s and 1930s would begin a whirlwind of events in the Appalachia Region, resulting in the creation of a multi-billion dollar sports industry: NASCAR. On Jan. 16, 1919, the United States Congress ratified the 18t h Amendment that prohibited the sale, manufacture, export, import and transport of alcoholic beverages in the United States. However, states began prohibiting alcohol as early as 1910, with Maine being the first to do so. The Prohibition Era resulted in the illegal practice of making, transporting and selling alcohol known as bootlegging, and the practice grew like wildfire in the Appalachian Region.

During this time period, Appalachia was a place experiencing a rebuilding period, and there was immense poverty in the area.

There really was no other way to survive and make an income in Appalachia than the illegal whiskey business.

Good ol’ boys from West Virginia to Georgia began making whiskey and moonshine in homemade stills

and delivering the illegal substance. As the illegal practice expanded, law enforcement caught wind of the bootlegging process.

This attention from law enforcement resulted in bootleggers modifying their vehicles in order to have a superb, reliable car to outrun the federal agents. As cars became more agile and fast, bootleggers and mechanics began comparing the vehicles to one another’s. It was not long until the bootleggers began racing each other on highways and bypasses as they were delivering their illegal liquor supplies.

As time went on, highway races between the bootleggers became a daily routine as the men delivered their liquor. Not long after, a racetrack was cut into a cow pasture for the races to be conducted. Bootleggers would race one another on windy, dirt tracks when they were not making and running liquor across the region. This pastime eventually became a huge hit in the Appalachian region.

Everyone from the bootleg racers to the mechanics who worked on the cars to the track owners who managed the races were involved.

Bootleggers’ cars advanced

along with the races. Their engines, transmission and brakes were all modified to such a high degree that law enforcement just could not catch up with them.

The races grew tremendously in size over the years, with up to 30,000 people recorded in attendance.

Bootleggers flocked to the tracks with the skills that they had mastered driving the switchback roads of the Appalachia region at high speed. As a result of the surging popularity of the stock car races, members of the racing community decided that a governing body was needed in order to sanction, promote and fund the races. On Feb. 21, 1948, a meeting was held and the National Association of Stock Car Racing was created. The Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina was host to the first official NASCAR race one year later, and, as they say, the rest is history.

NASCAR would eventually become a worldwide, multibillion dollar industry, but the sport’s roots will forever be soaked in Appalachian moonshine.

MARY HUDDLESTON • sophomore/multimedia journalism

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collegiatetimes.com/lifestyle

New on Netflix: Jessica Jones

Gun euphemisms reflect insensitivity to violence ords have meaning and convey powerful messages. Words matter. Images spring from words and meet each of us individually in that space defined by our life experiences.

Some words used on our campus bother me.

A host of euphemisms have crept into our everyday language, and we rarely stop to reflect on the meaning or origin of a phrase that may have been better suited for a different time and place. The expressions “silver bullet,” “pull the trigger,” “shoot from the hip,” and “under the gun” are used in everyday language across our campus, including those in leadership positions. I hear these and similar terms at least once a week, if not once a day. It always makes me cringe.

I cannot help but reflect on the pain and suffering inflicted on so many in our country and around the world by violence involving guns and bullets. For survivors and the families of victims of gun violence, I think these euphemisms would be particularly poignant. Those of us who were here on April 16, 2007, experienced the very worst of “pull the trigger,” “shoot from the hip,” and “under the gun.”

There are numerous gun and bullet euphemisms in our language: shoot from the

lifestyle

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Have a news tip? newstips@collegiatetimes.com The Collegiate Times, a division of the Educational Media Company at Virginia Tech, was established in 1903 by and for the students of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. The Collegiate Times is published every Tuesday through Friday of the academic year except during exams and vacations. The first copy of the Collegiate Times is free, any copy of the paper after that is 50 cents. To order a reprint of a photograph printed in the Collegiate Times, visit reprints.collegemedia.com. The Collegiate Times is a division of the Educational Media Company at Virginia Tech, Inc., a 501(c)3 nonprofit with a mission to provide educational experience in business and production of mass media for Virginia Tech students. © Collegiate Times, 2015. All rights reserved. Material published in the Collegiate Times is the property thereof, and may not be reprinted without the express written consent of the Collegiate Times.

BRADY TICKLE movie columnist

Just when you think Marvel has reached its peak and has nothing fresh to offer, it goes and makes something like “Jessica Jones.” Admittedly, I was not excited for this series, as I had neither heard of the titular heroine before nor did I think that it would stand up to “Marvel’s Daredevil.”

Boy, was I wrong. Not only is “Jessica Jones” better than “Daredevil,” it is also easily one of the best new shows of this year.

For those of you unfamiliar with the character (as I was), Jessica Jones is a relatively recent superhero in the Marvel canon created by the great Brian Michael Bendis (scribe of the highly under rated “U ltimate Spider-Man” series, among other works). Jones works as a P.I. for her firm, Alias Investigations, mostly taking jobs that involve catching unfaithful spouses with their pants down.

Jones’ edge over fellow detectives is created by her super strength and ability to jump like nobody’s business. Basically, it’s fairly easy for her to coerce information out of shady individuals and get to places that anyone else would have trouble accessing.

From this description alone, it may sound as if Jones has her life under control; unfortunately, two issues prevent her from attaining true stability.

The first is her tendency to alienate almost everyone she comes into contact with, resorting to booze in the place of genuine human connection. The second is a homicidal maniac named Kilgrave who happens to have the power of mind control.

Kilgrave can be partially blamed for Jones’ alcoholism; he held her under his control for months, forcing her to do whatever he wanted. Jones often cites her horrible experience with Kilgrave as an excuse for her alcoholism, stating that her heavy drinking is the only way through which she can cope.

As can be expected, Kilgrave finds his way back into Jones’ life, forcing her to face her previous captor and attempt to take him down.

The plot does not sound

COURTESY OF NETFLIX

all that complex, but this is merely for the sake of keeping this review spoilerfree; there is much more going on in this show than one would expect, with several twists and turns throughout its roughly 13-hour runtime to keep you engaged.

“Jessica Jones” not only stands apart from other Marvel offerings due to its shocking plot developments but also due to the fact that this is by far the darkest offering in the Marvel cinematic/television universe (even more so than “Daredevil”).

“Jessica Jones” tackles tough subjects including rape, drug addiction, infidelity and stark violence regularly, often without batting an eye. This brings gravity to the events transpiring onscreen, as it is not always clear who the good guys are. While “Daredevil” took a few episodes to get genuinely great, “Jessica Jones” captivates from minute one.

Along wit h an enthralling story, “Jessica Jones” also benefits from some top-notch acting.

K r ysten R itter (who many may know from her role in “Breaking Bad”) completely embodies the character of Jessica Jones in a way that is analogous to Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal of Tony Stark, and it is nearly impossible to see any other thespian in the role.

Ritter gives Jones an angry, tough and defiant edge that could have come across as cliché in the hands of another actress, establishing the character as one of the most three-dimensional and intriguing in the Marvel universe.

Every good hero needs an equally good villain, and that is definitely the case here with David Tennant’s take on Kilgrave. Much like Kingpin stole the show in “Daredevil,” Kilgrave does

the same here, owning every scene he’s in. If Marvel’s film villains (obviously excluding Loki) were as interesting as their television villains, their movies could be more on-par in this respect to “The Dark Knight.”

Overall, there are only two minor flaws that I have with “Jessica Jones”: Jones’ best friend, Trish Walker (Rachael Taylor), and the random infidelity story thrown in. In my personal opinion, Trish came off as somewhat annoying at times, trying to act tougher than she actually was, and the fact that she was written in such a cliché way in comparison to Jones just makes her more frustrating to watch. She is intended to act as Jones’ friendly foil, though, so her more “triedand-true” way of behaving and speaking probably could not be avoided.

T he ra ndom i n f idelity story pertains to Jones’ attorney and case distributor, Jeri Hogarth (played by Carrie-Anne Moss). Too much time is spent exploring Hogarth’s love triangle, and this whole portion of the story came off as extraneous, as if it were merely put in there to show how edgy the show is. While this part of the story is eventually used in a somewhat meaningful way, it still feels thrown in for the sake of being included.

Despite these minor flaws, “Jessica Jones” is overall one of the best viewing experiences you will have this year. The show grabs your attention and keeps you entertained throughout.

I urge you to keep in mind that this praise is coming from someone who was not even mildly interested in watching the show to begin with. I give “Jessica Jones” five out of five stars. @CollegiateTimes

Christmas parade kicks off holiday season in Blacksburg On Friday, Dec. 4, thousands of local residents are expected to line mainstreet for the annual Winter Lights Festival and Holiday Parade.

SAVANNAH WILSON lifestyles staff writer

The annual Winter Lights Festival and Holiday Parade is this Friday, Dec. 4 in downtown Blacksburg and is comprised of events intended to get everyone in the holiday spirit. In 1991, the Blacksburg Parks and Recreation and the Virginia Tech Chapter of Circle K started the festival to provide the New River Valley with a great holiday experience.

“It’s the start of the holiday season, and a lot of people get excited about the upcoming holidays, so it really helps get everybody in the spirit,” said Randy Hall, the communications program supervisor at Blacksburg Parks and Rec. From 4-7 p.m., the festival will feature the Holiday Gift Market on College Avenue where Christmas crafts and gifts will be on display. There will also be a chance to take family photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus at The Lyric Theatre starting at 4 p.m.

At 5 p.m., the Blacksburg Children’s Chorale will be

singing classic Christmas carols on the Henderson Lawn near The Lyric Theater. Following the Christmas carols, there will be the annual lighting of the Blacksburg Christmas tree on Henderson Lawn with music provided by Downtown Blacksburg, Inc. The parade will start at 7 p.m. on Perry Street, then continue to Stanger Street, Patrick Henry and North Main Street. The route of the parade will be blocked off so that spectators will be able to stand along the roads and enjoy the parade. The Blacksburg police will lead the parade, followed by the dignitaries of the town of Blacksburg, including the mayor and members of the town council. The HightyTighties, Virginia Tech’s Regimental Band, will follow.

Those who registered to walk in the parade will come after, including multiple Boy Scout and Girl Scout organizations throughout the New River Valley, organizations and clubs at VT, old modeled

cars and antique cars, marching groups, horses and walkers.

“From the number of entries we have, the parade should be on target for a turnout of spectators from 5,000 to 8,000 people lined up on Main Street,” Hall said.

At the end of the parade, Santa will be set up on a ladder on a fire truck from the Blacksburg Fire Department.

Blacksburg Parks and Recreation and the Virginia Tech Chapter of Circle K will continue to work closely together with the parade lineup and the staging for the night of the parade, and The Virginia Tech Amateur Radio Association (VTARA) has helped a great deal to spread the word about the parade.

The Winter Lights Festival and Holiday Parade continue to be family-friendly events for the New River Valley, bringing the holiday spirit to Blacksburg. @CollegiateTimes

editor@collegiatetimes.com

December 4, 2015 PAGE 3

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news collegiatetimes.com/news

Mayor’s refugee comments spark national backlash Roanoke Mayor David Bowers breaks with party orthodox by suggesting U.S. should learn from Japanese internment camps in WWII. ANNA DAVIS news staff writer

LOREN SKINKER / COLLEGIATE TIMES

A political science student speaks of the controversies surrounding the Confederate flag during Tuesday night’s discussion, Dec. 1, 2015. The event was hosted by Phi Alpha Delta and the Political Science Club.

Students debate Confederate flag in the wake of recent controversies Moderators emphasized the importance of open and honest discussion to explore all sides of the controversial issue. All those in attendance were encouraged to speak their minds.

ALISON CUEVAS news reporter

Apprehensive glances filled a lecture hall in Torgersen Hall on Tuesday as members of the university community anticipated a discussion about the Confederate flag.

Phi Alpha Delta fraternity and the Political Science Club hosted the event in order to discuss the subject in a legal context.

The discussion hit home for the community because of the recent national attention Christiansburg High School received when 23 students were suspended in September after wearing Confederate flag shirts.

“It is a small part of the bigger picture,” said political science and international studies professor Brandy Faulkner. “It is a symbol that students have to look at for seven hours a day if it’s allowed to be part of public schools.”

Montgomery County Public Schools have not lifted the ban due to the continued racial tension, as the school system wants to avoid an even greater disruption to the school.

“Maybe if adults were more educated and knew all sides of the issue, then it would probably be a healthier society in general,” said Trey Bloomfield, the president of Phi Alpha Delta.

The Virginia Tech chapter of Phi Alpha Delta is an extension of an international fraternity for pre-law students.

“As lawyers, there are a lot of issues regarding freedoms,” said junior pre-law student Jessica Walker.

“People claim that it infringes on

their freedom of speech, so it’s important they understand their legal rights.”

The Confederate flag has brought up controversial topics about the First Amendment, but the courts have given no clear resolution to the issue.

The conversation about the Confederate flag has recently been brought up after white supremacist Dylann Roof murdered nine people inside a historically black church in Charleston, South Carolina, this past summer. After the shooting, photos surfaced online of Roof posing with the Confederate flag.

Since the incident, officials have called for the national removal of the flag on government property.

Retail corporations such as Walmart, Amazon, Sears, eBay and others have also stopped selling Confederate flag merchandise.

“My goal was to start us on the path where we can discuss things openly and honestly,” Faulkner said.

“I was happy to hear from students who were willing to put themselves out there.”

Some students expressed concern with the flag because of its origins and what it symbolizes. Others defended their freedom of speech and the historical value of the Confederate flag in American history.

“It’s hard to balance having everyone being heard without anyone feeling upset. I don’t want it to get too heated,” said Mallory Wyne, the president of the Political Science Club.

Before the discussion began, Faulkner explained the important difference between being offended by something and when a symbol is derogatory towards a community.

“It’s not really about if it offends me. There are many things that offend me, but to see the hurt and pain in my community, how can I not fight against that?” Faulkner said.

The hosts emphasized a need to reach out to people of all different backgrounds. They were able to get members from both the Young Republicans and Young Democrats organizations to come out.

“People really can sit down and talk about controversial issues. It doesn’t always have to end in conflict,” Faulkner said. “The balance comes from hearing people around the table and when we start to realize that my emotion is not the only one here.”

While some would suggest that emotion should be kept out of the subject altogether, Faulkner believes it is a disservice to not be true to oneself.

“If we pretend that we are not affected by these things, it makes people more comfortable,” Faulkner said. “At the end of the day, I am affected by it and it does bother me.

I don’t feel I should have to hide that at all.”

Overall, students spoke up and were able to have a healthy conversation without personal attacks.

“I’d like to think that Tech is a different environment and that we are gifted in that we feel safe and that we can express our ideas,” Bloomfield said. “At the same time, we can’t take for granted that something like that couldn’t happen here.”

@CollegiateTimes

GREEN: Blacksburg lottery to reward citizens with home energy audits from page 1

Authority.

“They collect all of the recycling, then they make a determination whether the level of contamination is such that they have to send it to another station that does sorting,” Davis said.

The percent of loads discarded for contamination from Blacksburg since July has dropped to 0.94 percent.

However, even though singlestream recycling is more efficient, many apartment renters in the community, like Sarment and van Vuuren, say that the act of recycling is not as easy.

The Town of Blacksburg hosted a survey on recycling in late 2014 that had 377 responses. Of the respondents, 73 percent said that their apartment complex had recycling, but only 58 percent responded that their recycling bin was within an easy walking distance from their apartment.

“There is a trend, we’ve noticed, that the bigger the apartment complex, the less satisfied the residents are with the recycling,” van Vuuren said.

Of the respondents, 59 percent said that they are not satisfied with the recycling facilities at their complex, the most common reason being that they are uneducated on what they can and cannot recycle, with which the containers do not help.

Although these initiatives speak for the dedication of students and staff of Virginia Tech, the Town of Blacksburg is busy as well with the Weatherize initiative, which deals with the efficient use of energy and internal heating inside of a home.

“We’re looking at a house as an entire system,” said Davis, whose work on the Solarize Blacksburg campaign helped quadruple the amount of solar in the community in less than two years.

For the Weatherize campaign, the Town of Blacksburg is offering discounts on resources that will help people take a better look at their energy use, such as reducedcost home energy assessments to inspect the efficiency of their energy consumption.

“I had an energy audit done on my home … I was throwing money away every month on heating and cooling my home in places that were really not well-insulated,” Davis said. Through the assessment, she discovered open seams in her dry wall that were letting in cold air.

The Town of Blacksburg also launched Energize Blacksburg, a website created through its partnership with Wattzon. On the site, people can answer questions about their current behaviors and receive tips on how to be more environmentally conscious and reduce waste in their own homes.

By creating an account, people enter the drawing for a prize and could win items such as a home

composter, a box of LED bulbs or a free home energy assessment.

“This is just a model that works … it was an experimental model when we did it for Solarize, and we weren’t really sure if they would get engaged with us when we say, ‘Hey, we’ve lined up this discount for you and we’ve streamlined the process and removed as much complexity as we can’ … and I guess that’s what people need to launch into something,” Davis said.

The Weatherize has another goal, besides informing Blacksburg about its energy efficiency. Because of its commitment to sustainability, Blacksburg is currently a semi-finalist in the Georgetown University Energy Prize. For a prize of $5 million, Davis said that the town must “reduce energy most as a community over the next two years.”

Davis said that, if Blacksburg were to win the $5 million prize, it would “advance some high-priority sustainability initiatives for the town” that they “haven’t had the money to work on.” For Davis, there is never a shortage of environmental strategies to consider.

Davis and her contemporaries at the university agree that there are many ways to make the community more environmentally conscious, starting with things like outreach and encouraging recycling.

@CollegiateTimes

Roanoke Mayor David Bowers (D) broke with the Democratic party’s general stance on immigration and drew national attention by releasing an official statement on Wednesday, Nov. 18 that called for the city to cease admitting Syrian refugees to the area.

B o w e r s’ remarks sparked widespread criticism, particularly for citing the Japanese internment camps during World War II as validation for his request.

“I’m reminded that President Franklin D. Roosevelt felt compelled to sequester Japanese foreign nationals after the bombing of Pearl Harbor,” he wrote, “and it appears that the threat of harm to America from (ISIS) now is just as real and serious as that from our enemies then.”

These comments cost Bowers his position on Hillary Rodham Clinton’s Vi rg i n ia L e a d e r sh ip Council and prompted backlash from a variety of sources. Bowers’ fellow city council members held a press conference on the same day that the statement was released to clarify that they did not back his position; he was called “childish” and “irrational” throughout the meeting.

“Not only was I shocked, but other people on the city council were shocked.

The fact that he would use internment camps as an example of how we should act is appalling, and I think it’s quite embarrassing for him,” said senior Obaid Rehman, president of the Muslim Students Association and biological sciences and religion double major.

Bowers’ remarks spread rapidly across social media, and the story was picked up by major news outlets like the New York Times, CNN, ABC and Fox News. The overwhelming response was the same: Bowers’ comparison to the internment camps had been inappropriate.

G e o r ge Ta kei, a Japanese-American actor on the 1960s television series Star Trek, published a lengthy Facebook post condemning the mayor’s position.

“There never was any proven incident of espionage or sabotage from the suspected ‘enemies’ then, just as there has been no act of terrorism from any of the 1,854 Syrian refugees the U.S. already has accepted,” Takei wrote.

Bowers’ statement struck a personal chord with Takei, who was a victim of the internment camps.

“We were judged based on who we looked like, and that is about as un-American as it gets.

If you are attempting to compare the actual threat of harm from the 120,000 of us who were interned then to the Syrian situation now, the simple answer is this: There was no threat.

We loved America. We were decent, honest, hardworking folks. Tens of

thousands of lives were ruined, over nothing.”

Bowers later apologized for his internment camp analogy at a city council meeting broadcast live on WDBJ on Friday, Nov. 20, but still stood behind his proposal.

“I issued a personal political view in a statement on the mayor’s office stationery on Nov. 18, 2015, indicating that although Roanoke is a welcoming city and America is the melting pot of the world, I’d become very concerned in regards to the relocation of the Syrian refugees and the safety of Americans.

My position on this issue expressed in that statement remains the same today,” he said.

“

The fact that he would use internment camps as an example of how we should act is appalling.”

Obaid Rehman President of the Muslim Students Association

While Bowers’ motion to suspend refugee aid is backed by select legislators like the Virginia Republican Party Chairman John Whitbeck, it is unlikely that his request will go into action. He contradicts Gov. Terry McAuliffe, who stated earlier in November that Virginia would continue to admit refugees to the state, as well as President Obama, who aims to provide U.S. assistance to an additional 10,000 Syrian refugees.

Despite the lack of authority behind Bowers’ statement, many believe the damage is still substantial.

“Even though he has no real power to stop refugees from coming, if a leader in a position of power is able to say things like ‘we shouldn’t accept refugees’ and cite internment camps as a viable option, then for the regular man, it becomes okay to subscribe to a similar ideology, which then can manifest itself into hate and violence within our own community,” Rehman said.

He sees adm itting refugees as a chance for the U.S. to rise above ISIS’ fear mongering tactics “Our country is a country that has a heritage of being reputable, but it’s not crystal clear — it’s the opposite. We have a lot of blemishes. But the thing about our country is that we always move forward.

Even though we’ve moved forward, we still have a ways to go and we still have to continue growing as a nation … (Admitting refugees) is an opportunity for our country to live up to the message that we say we stand for, of being an accepting place and being a refuge for those in need.”

@CollegiateTimes

PAGE 4 December 4, 2015

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RESCUE: ‘We’re best friends, we’re there for each other on call and out of the station.’ from page 1

the rescue squad,” Shepard said. “We’re more than just colleagues in a professional organization; we’re best friends, we’re there for each other on call and out of the station.

Hands-on learning is the only way to prepare for the unexpected. Membership requires dedication, quick thinking and a strong work ethic under pressure.

“On a call, there’s not much room for mistakes,” Shepard said. “You don’t really get that second chance to save somebody’s life; it’s kind of a one-time thing.”

The squad operates on a volunteer-basis, but becoming a member is competitive.

This semester, 10 probationary members were selected to serve out of 120 applicants, and only a few will become full-time members on the squad.

“I’m just really glad I’ve been given this opportunity to be serving the school,” said Se Jin Lee, a junior neuroscience major and attendant on VT Rescue. “What better way to serve the school than to be just 100 percent ready for anyone on this campus when they’re in the most need, which is when you’re physically hurting?”

VT Rescue partners with SafeRide, residential halls, Schiffert Health Center and RecSports to serve the community. The squad has three ambulances parked at the station, located on the academic side of campus.

“I’ve gotten to the point where if there’s any sudden noise, I think it’s tones. Like if there’s a microwave that goes off or something, I’m like, ‘Okay, time to go,’” Shepard said.

Members volunteer 20 hours per week, alternating between in-house first call or backup duty. This includes one night duty per week from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 a.m.

“My nights I like to grab Slurpees from 7-11,” Shepard said. “It’s just these cool

little things, hanging out with best friends, and we’ll fall asleep on couches watching a movie together.”

In the station, members finish homework, relax or take naps while waiting for calls. It is a place for work and play, a place many come to as their second home on campus.

“Because we spend so much time with one another, because we’re operating in high pressure situations, we need to be able to trust our team members, get along well,” Eyestone said. “Being able to have the kind of outside-of-work relationship is really helpful to bringing up the team dynamic overall.”

You don’t really get that second chance to save somebody’s life; it’s kind of a one-time thing.”

Jack Shepard VT Rescue attendant When a call goes out, members drop what they are doing and grab their gear to go. Students switch from normal mindsets into alert and professional responders.

Their jobs deal with life or death situations.

“We could be working on an assignment, hanging out, doing the Schmoney dance with all of our friends one second, and then the call goes off and we flip,” Eyestone said.

“After a couple of times of being casual and then having to transition, you kind of just get it.”

VT Rescue provides on-hand support for every major athletic and campus event.

All members are required to be present for home football games. Constant readiness requires organized logistics, finances and commitment from every member.

“Football games are just completely different — that is a mass casualty,” Lee said. “We treat it as if it were a mass casualty incident because we know 66,000 people is a lot more than we can handle. I cannot imagine how a football game would run if an EMS agency was not ready to receive all those patients.”

Membership is a hefty time commitment and has brought the squad closer together.

“Because we are staffed 24/7 365, we obviously have to work around our class schedule, and it’s cool to be in engineering design and econ at 12:30, go to the station and be running a seizure call 10 minutes later, then afterward, grabbing lunch and going back to class,” Shepard said. “It’s a very unique situation that I don’t think a lot of people get to experience.”

After hours of service committed over the years, the students see the experience as an opportunity to improve themselves as people, medical responders and leaders.

“I think Tech rescue has taught me so very much about people, life, service,” Eyestone said. “No matter what the day is, no matter what you’re feeling or experiencing, you’re living ‘Ut Prosim,’ and that, I think, is really special.”

The squad, along with its strong alumni network, will celebrate its 46th anniversary this year, as current and future members continue to serve the community, one life at a time.

“I think it makes me feel very proud of myself, but also throughout this process, I was very humbled at the same time,” Lee said. “I really started to love the community and I was like, ‘Man, I really want to do something to give back, and I found out about VT Rescue and I was like, ‘This is perfect. This is exactly what I want to do.’” @Lauren_pak

We

can kiss the rain goodbye as a cold front has pushed through our region and left nothing behind except for mostly sunny skies this weekend.

Today’s conditions will be partly cloudy with a calm breeze out of the northwest.

The high temperature is expected to reach 50 with overnight low temperatures reaching down to 27.

Saturday morning will be quite frigid as we recover from the overnight low, but mostly sunny skies will quickly increase the high temperature to 56 degrees. The low temperature will be 27.

Sunday will be similar to Saturday, as low morning temperatures will climb throughout the day to a high temperature of 57. The overnight low temperature will be 33 degrees. Be sure to follow @ HOKIEwxWATCH on Twitter for all of your real-time updates!

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

High: 50o

High: 56o

High: 57o

Low: 27o

Low: 27o

Low: 33o

ALEX THORNTON • weather correspondent • @HOKIEwxWATCH

editor@collegiatetimes.com

December 4, 2015 PAGE 5

collegiatetimes.com

Whit Babcock hits home run with hiring of Justin Fuente RICKY LABLUE editor in chief

Replacing Frank Beamer was never the intention, but Virginia Tech came about as close as possible with Justin Fuente.

The 39-year-old Fuente was officially introduced Monday morning to Virginia Tech fans and media. Director of Athletics Whit Babcock had been in talks with Fuente for some time but said the deal became official Sunday morning.

Fuente handled the press conference with both poise and confidence and also provided a vision for the future.

“This is absolutely the job that I was interested in,” Fuente

said. “Whit is correct; I had really no interest in anything else, just this, because of what it has been and what it can be and the community that comes along with it.”

The hire makes perfect sense on paper. Fuente turned Memphis from football afterthought to American Athletic Conference (AAC) contender.

The Tigers won a share of the AAC title last season and went 19-6 in his last two seasons.

Fuente’s forte is definitely on the offensive side of the ball.

This season, Memphis is 11th in total offense and seventh in scoring. Quarterback Paxton Lynch has taken NFL draft boards by storm and has turned into a solid passer under Fuente’s tutelage, throwing 28

touchdowns and over 3,600 yards.

Retaining current Virginia Tech Defensive Coordinator Bud Foster should assure fans that the defensive side of the ball will not be ignored.

This hire is a slam dunk. Not only did Babcock get his guy, but he secured him before most colleges even got to speak with Fuente.

Part of that was thanks to Frank Beamer.

“The way (Beamer) announced his retirement, he did that and he talked to me and he said, ‘Whit, I also hope this will give you a little extra time to do what you need to do,’ and there’s not many coaches in the country that would even think of that,” Babcock said.

Beamer also met with Fuente in his office.

“But I just felt so great sitting in there and getting a chance to visit with him, and obviously we all know you don’t replace a legend in coaching,” Fuente said. “You hope to build on what he’s already done. You hope to continue to operate in the same manner with the same principles and the same integrity that he’s done for so very many years here.”

The fact that Fuente respects his predecessor means almost as much as his qualifications as a coach. Beamer’s replacement needed to understand the heritage that comes with Virginia Tech football and be respectful of its hero.

“Justin respects tradition,”

Babcock said. “He’s not afraid to be great. This is the job that he wanted. He was not shopping himself around. He could have had a number of opportunities, but this was the job he wanted.

He’s comfortable in his own skin. I believe his humility and calm confidence and lack of ego and lack of the limelight will make Coach Beamer proud. And those were Coach Beamer’s great strengths.”

Fuente also highlighted his love for the community of Blacksburg, which stands out more so than his plan for the offense.

“The thing about this job is it comes with all of those things wrapped up in a community that I cannot wait to raise my three girls in, and that was a

huge contributing factor to me,” Fuente said.

Fuente is a great hire in a football sense and an even better one in the character sense. Babcock needed a coach who can win but also a coach who can make the transition from the old era to the future.

Beamer’s legacy is more than just blocked kicks, touchdowns and bowl games. His ability to connect with the community and become a leader off the field meant just as much as his on-field success.

Babcock needed to find a coach who fit the Beamer mold.

Fuente certainly seems to fill that role. @RickyLaBlue

BASKETBALL: Hokies’ RECAP: Program continues to develop with two players earning All-ACC honors defense struggles to contain Wildcats from page 1

Carolina, NC State and Pittsburgh.

After taking a loss in their ACC opener to North Carolina in four sets, the Hokies went on to defeat the NC State Wolfpack and the Pittsburgh Panthers.

The following weekend, the Hokies were defeated

by U.Va. in Charlottesville before heading north to defeat Boston College and then take a loss to Syracuse.

Following the Hokies’ road trip up north, Virginia Tech faced an extremely tough stretch of their schedule. The Hokies won three of their next 10 matches, including losses to No. 15 Florida State and No. 25 North Carolina.

During that difficult stretch, junior outside hitter Lindsey Owens recorded her 1,000th kill in her Virginia Tech career.

The Hokies turned it around and won their last four matches of the regular

season, defeating Syracuse, Boston College, Pittsburgh and Virginia.

When the Hokies faced Boston College, senior libero Kenedy McGrath tallied her 1,000th dig in her time at Virginia Tech.

Du r ing the match against U.Va., seniors Ken nedy Br ya n a nd McGrath were recognized for their efforts and contributions to the Virginia Tech volleyball program.

Virginia Tech finished with a record of 19-13 (10-10 ACC) and the Hokies were denied a berth in the 2015 NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship.

The Hokies ended the season eighth in the ACC standings out of 15 ACC teams.

Two Hokies earned All-ACC recognition: Lindsey Owens (second team All-ACC) and Jaila Tolber t (all-f resh ma n team).

In terms of individual

from page 1

ZOE SCOPA / COLLEGIATE TIMES

Starting players for the volleyball match against NC State get ready for the start of the first set. a c c ompl ish m ent s on the volleyball cour t, Owens racked up 400 kills while Ashley Battle owned a team high attack percentage of 0.330. Libero McGrath added 483 digs while averaging 3.96 digs per set.

The Virginia Tech

volleyball team will feature many returning players next season as the Hokies look to build on a solid foundation going forward.

@josh_wilets

team could get ahead in the final possessions, sending it to overtime.

The Hokies opened a four-point lead to start overtime but struggled from that point on. Threes from Sanjay Lumpkin and Bryant McIntosh gave the Wildcats a two-point advantage.

N o r t hwe s t e r n h el d that two-point lead with 27 seconds left, and the Hokies’ last possession fell apart from the get-go.

Allen slipped while trying to drive to the basket, and Clarke forced up a jumper after getting the loose ball at the buzzer that rimmed out.

“We didn’t execute it,” Williams said. “You have to be able to go somewhere on the bounce in that play. It stalled out pretty quick. We probably dribbled 11 times and threw up a prayer.”

“I just slipped,” Allen said. “I tried to make a move and I just slipped and fell.”

This was also the first meeting between the Hokies and former center Joey Van Zegeren, who transferred to Northwestern after leaving the team midway through last season.

Bibbs said it was weird seeing Van Zegeren in Northwestern purple, but it had no effect on Williams.

“None,” Williams said.

Va n Z egeren, who comes off the bench for Northwestern, dealt with foul trouble early on and scored four points while committing four fouls.

The Hokies are now 4-2 on the year and will play Arkansas Pine-Bluff on Saturday, Dec. 5. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Cassell Coliseum.

@RickyLaBlue

PAGE 6 December 4, 2015

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