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August 28, 2018
COLLEGIATETIMES
An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903
Sen. Tim Kaine and Corey Stewart answer questions at Senate Forum
see pages 3 and 4
Hokies head to Tallahassee for first time since the Beamer era The Hokies look to secure their first win in Tallahassee since Nov. 16, 1974. DILLON CAMPBELL assistant sports editor
For the first time since legendary coaches Frank Beamer and Bobby Bowden graced the sidelines, the No. 20 Virginia Tech Hokies head to Doak Campbell Stadium for a primetime Labor Day matchup with the No. 19 Florida State Seminoles. A sea of 79,560 fans await them, salivating to tomahawk chop for every Florida State third down conversion, touchdown and everything in between. Although Justin Fuente was linked to the Florida State head coaching vacancy after Jimbo Fisher’s departure to Texas A&M, he quickly shut down those rumors,
saying he was “incredibly happy” at Virginia Tech. The Seminoles eventually hired Willie Taggart, who coached the Oregon Ducks last season, as Fisher’s replacement. Fuente and Taggart each lead electrifying offensive attacks into Tallahassee as their teams are spearheaded by the quarterback play of Josh Jackson and Deondre Francois, respectively. Jackson is coming off a successful freshman campaign when he threw for 2,991 yards, 20 touchdowns and nine interceptions, as well as rushing for 324 yards and six touchdowns, leading the Hokies to a 9–4 record and the Camping World FSU / page 5
Hokies continue to look for leadership in defense With eight starters gone from the defense from last season, Bud Foster will need to get the best out of this unproven squad. ROBBY FLETCHER
assistant sports editor
With Virginia Tech’s primetime Labor Day matchup against Florida State just a week away, it’s interesting to see just how many questions this young defense still has unanswered with the season so close in sight. It looks like it’ll be a massive challenge for defensive coordinator Bud Foster to replace some of the best athletes he’s had in his 23 seasons as the defensive coordinator in Blacksburg. The “next man up” mentality this team has had to embrace this offseason will no doubt be the defining characteristic this young team has as they look to prove their worth beyond their No. 20 ranking in the AP Top 25 poll. Here are three players ready to take the
reins this season and attempt to catapult this promising Hokie defense into the elite levels of the ACC.
Devon Hunter Most people are well-acquainted with the promise and jaw-dropping talent Devon Hunter exhibits when he walks onto the field. The 6-foot, 225-pound defender from Chesapeake was Virginia Tech’s most prized recruit coming into the season last year, as well as our only five-star recruit. Though he was mostly stuck to special teams duties last season, he’ll find that his role on defense is to be greatly expanded as he’s set to switch from his natural strong safety position to that of the WHIP after Mook Reynolds’ dismissal from the team. Hunter exhibits the size, strength and speed capable of
committing to the new linebacker/safety hybrid position and he’ll no doubt flourish in his new role on the team. The hype surrounding Hunter surely makes it hard to not buy into him as Tech’s next great star on defense, but we’ll have to also live with some of the rough edges that come with a player adapting to an entirely new position. Still, Hunter looks capable of being the heart and soul of this young defense for the next few years.
Dylan Rivers Yet another prized recruit that came from Tech’s 2017 class, Dylan Rivers is currently entrenched in an intense three-player battle for the Mike linebacker position that former captain Andrew Motuapuaka once owned. Duking it out with freshman Dax Hollifield as
well as sophomore Rayshard Ashby, Rivers has stood out as a potential leader akin to Motuapuaka this offseason. Though it’s looking like Rivers will take control of the Mike position while Ashby takes the backer spot, it’s still been a very close battle between three very talented young linebackers and Coach Fuente has definitely taken notice. “I have been pleased with those guys. I know Bud’s been pleased and he’s pushed them hard and they’ve needed it because they have some big shoes to fill,” Fuente said in a recent press conference. One area in particular that the 6-foot-1, 232-pound Rivers excels the most is in defending the run. It’s evident in watching Rivers play that his ability to decipher a play pre-snap and
react to it quickly is his most valuable trait. He’s solid at tracking the ball from sideline-to-sideline and is sure to be a favorite among the Hokie faithful.
Bryce Watts The Tech secondary has just not been able to catch a break this offseason, with the early loss of JUCOtransfer Jeremy Webb to an Achilles injury being added to the departure of mainstays Adonis Alexander, Brandon Facyson and Greg Stroman to the NFL. Now, Tech will have to work with what they’ve got in a very young and unproven group headlined by sophomore Bryce Watts. It certainly helps that redshirt-freshman Caleb Farley was officially moved to cornerback to help provide depth at the position, but
it’s been Watts and sophomore Jovonn Quillen who have taken the majority of first-team reps. The two sophomores carry the most experience at the position, and will have some major shoes to fill this season. Watts appeared in all 13 games last season, recording five tackles and one pass breakup. He’ll certainly be tested a lot early in the season, especially against a Florida State offense led by senior wide receiver Nyqwan Murray, who recorded a team-high 604 receiving yards last season for the Seminoles. Fortunately for us, Watts learned from some of the best cornerbacks Bud Foster has seen at Virginia Tech.
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Get back on track with helpful semester habits It’s rarely fun getting re-organized after summer, but sooner is better than later. Simplify your studious lifestyle with these tips. MADY MOORE
lifestyles staff writer
Summer has officially come to a close. This summer, like any other summer, was a much-needed break from the daily grind, and I must say it was nice to receive only five emails in a day. With the semester starting, that means our study routines, sleep schedules and mindsets must adjust before we step foot on campus. In order for us to snap out of our summer mode, we must start our semester routines early, and I am going to offer some tips that have always helped me adjust to a new school year. Read and write daily Reading posts on social media does not count. By reading I mean cracking
open a good old hardcover or paperback of your choice and read it as if you were reading it for a class, or reading an article from a quality news source. Reading consistently as the semester starts makes it less of a drag when your first reading assignments roll in for the semester, and it becomes more of a habit rather than a task when you read regularly. Writing is also important to help your mind adjust to getting back into the semester groove. We take down notes consistently in class, and when your mind has had a long break without taking notes or writing anything down, your hands can feel like noodles when you begin to take notes during the first week of classes. To avoid noodle fingers and
OPINION: CURRENT DRUG LAWS FLAWED Legalization provides a better alternative.
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to ensure that you can keep up with what is going on in class, writing things down or typing on a daily basis can certainly help. This can be done in the form of contributing to a blog, writing a journal or writing a to-do list every day. I get it, I sound like everyone’s third grade teacher reminding you of your summer reading list, but it’s worth it to note that good reading and writing skills are essential to doing well in college classes. Ch eck you r em a i l regularly First off, if you do not check your email at least 10 times a day like I do, I assume that you live under a rock. Emails are crucial to our lives here at Virginia Tech, and we get emails that require
immediate action and ones that we certainly cannot miss. We receive emails about our e-bills, on-campus housing, if applicable, and financial aid awards that require immediate action. This habit is a good one to keep year round because emails do not cease when classes are not in session, and checking emails daily reminds us of how important it is that we do not miss emails from professors. Check that email at least twice a day — in the morning and at night — but there’s no reason to be like me and check it 15 times a day. Get your sleep schedule intact Adjusting your sleep HABITS / page 5
GRANDE RETURNS WITH ‘SWEETENER’ Read our take on her response to Manchester.
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War on drugs fails to stop cartels, decriminalization and regulation the answer
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ast month, Vi rgin ia Tech football player Mook Reynolds was arrested on marijuana related charges the same day that he was dismissed from the team. Now, he could face between one and 10 years in prison and/or a fine of up to $2,500, in a particularly egregious miscarriage of justice. The war on drugs was based on a lie. Thenpresident Richard Nixon told the nation that he wanted to bring it back into an era of “law and order.” However, as was revealed in 2016 by former Nixon Domestic Policy Chief John Ehrlichman, this “war” was merely a front for voter suppression. Nixon knew that the people blocking his path to victory in the presidential election were primarily anti-war young progressives and people of color. Since he couldn’t arrest anyone in either group without probable cause, he began the war on drugs, focusing on pursuing these people. This policy was continued by subsequent presidents by spending more on drug policy enforcement than on treatment programs, especially Ronald Reagan, for whom drug offenses became a major tenet of his domestic policy. The United States is currently at a turning point when it comes to drug usage. Much of the country is stricken by an opioid epidemic as states are either debating the legalization of marijuana or have legalized it. With the rate of overdoses across the nation increasing and the Trump administration’s current anti-marijuana policies, it seems as though the United States might be facing a critical point in which we, as a nation, must decide what our attitude is going to be toward drugs. Attorney General Jeff
Sessions has maintained his belief from his time as a senator that marijuana is a dangerous and life-threatening drug. He has even linked the current opioid crisis to cannabis usage. While it is admirable that the Justice Department is ready and willing to do something to help the millions of Americans who are suffering, the solution to this crisis that has been put forward by Sessions has been to simply lock up as many people as possible, which is clearly unsustainable. Currently, a substantial number of illegal drugs come from south of the border. Because these substances are illegal in the United States, cartels have been able to maintain a booming business with no legal oversight because of the black-market demand. Legalization would allow for gover nment oversight over the industry and encourage Americans to start their own drug-based small businesses, boosting local economies. However, a lot of drugs come into the U.S. through legal means, such as through the postal service, and are sent from nations other than Mexico. It is difficult to know what is in a person’s mail without first opening the package or letter. Tampering with people’s mail is a crime, so it makes more sense to handle the effects of what is being sent in a legal manner. T herefore, the government should legalize all of these drugs — even the more dangerous and addictive ones, such as cocaine and heroin — in order to decrease the nation’s dependence on the Mexican cartels, thereby taking power and money away from them. The government could also implement some sort of tax, similar to what
Colorado has done with ma r ijuana sales. The revenue could be used to fund health care, specifically addiction treatments. People who would previously have been branded criminals and locked up in prison would instead be able to access the help that they need. Another issue that should be addressed is mandatory minimums. Many drug-related offenses require the accused to spend a certain amount of time in jail if convicted. This stipulation was intended to make all of the punishments fair from offender to offender. However, it created a system in which there is little ability to judge people on a caseby-case basis. Further, some of the mandatory minimums make little sense. The American Bar Association has even refer red to mandatory minimums as the “antithesis of rational sentencing policy.” Additionally, the system by which drugs are categorized is counterintuitive, as they are higher for one relatively safe drug, marijuana, than for a far more dangerous one, cocaine. Legalization would also allow more studies to be done to ensure fewer people become addicted to these drugs. The continual refusal of the federal government to legalize the use of drugs has hurt this nation more than it has helped. Thousands of people have died during the war on drugs, while all it has accomplished is putting more people in prison and handing the Mexican cartels more money. If America’s leaders really want to implement a sensible drug policy, decriminalization is the answer.
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n the era of the Women’s Ma rch and the #MeToo movement, victimization and identity politics have been brought to the forefront of American culture. The growing popularity of these movements has almost made them household names. The catchy and inescapable hashtags on social media have made them nearly impossible to ignore, and it is clear they are not going away any time soon. College campuses especially are hotbeds for these movements. With support from professors and many st udent organizations, their messages are heard campuswide. W hile these movements have good intentions at heart, their actions are often undermined by their fallacious beliefs, which are grounded on falsehoods and hazy statistics. Feminists tend to promote the idea that we live in a culture that accepts and in some ways promotes rape. Let’s set the record straight — there is no rape culture in the United States, and there certainly isn’t one on college campuses either. One common misconception that is used to support such claims is that 1 in 4 women will experience sexual assault on campus. While this statistic is often proclaimed by these movements and even taught by universities, it is simply a myth. Universities have been at the forefront of the biased feminist agenda. Obama-era policies that required the minimal “preponderance of the evidence” (51 percent guilty) to suspend or even expel the accused have made college campuses treacherous grounds for students. This is due to universities initiating zero-tolerance policies and suspending
students without due process, which consequently is a problem with students being wrongfully blamed or found guilty with insufficient evidence. In response to the hysteria, the Trump administration eradicated these sexual assault policies and implemented a system in which colleges may require “clear and convincing evidence” (75 percent guilty). Unfor tunately, universities may choose not to investigate and make decisions based on this high standard of proof and are able to continue their barrage of witch hunts. If it’s not exaggerated campus rape statistics, it’s the myth of the gender wage and achievement gaps between men and women. Feminists ignore the reality that men tend to work longer hours, work more dangerous jobs and deviate from lifestyle choices such as raising a family instead of furthering their career, which directly affects why women earn less than men. Women are succeeding at higher rates than ever. In fact, they are earning the majority of doctoral degrees and are outpacing men in college enrollment by 13 percent. These m ove m e n t s choose to ignore these clear findings because they contradict their core beliefs. Their use of identity politics and victim culture attract large numbers of members and supporters who simply don’t have much evidence to support their beliefs. In fact, findings show that rates of sexual assault and rape in the United States have decreased by over 63 percent since 1993. People should be cautious of their far-fetched claims, and should be cautious of the movements in general. And if it’s not the pink hats that make you stray away, then let
SALLY DUKES • opinions columnist • senior, political science
the shady funding convince you. Over $250 million of funding for partners of the Women’s March event has been sourced to the billionaire philanthropist George Soros. Soros has been known to meddle in and disrupt the affairs of foreign countries for his own personal interests and political gain. He is most recently notable for using millions of U.S. taxpayer dollars to help fund the socialist Albanian government. These m ove m e nt s’ influence have crept their way into the corporate world as well. It was reported recently that Netf lix has implemented sexual harassment policies that disallow employees from looking at a coworker for longer than five seconds. Other ridiculous rules include abolishing lingering hugs and asking for an employee’s phone number without permission. It is no coincidence that rules such as these are put in place just as #MeToo has gained massive popularity in the United States. If you decide not to support these movements in their so-called fight for women, be ready to be called sexist, misogynistic and every other word in the book that is used to compensate for their own cognitive dissonance. Extreme feminist ideas and horrible sexual assault and harassment policies completely undermine the real problems that women in America face, such as domestic violence and mental illness. It is apparent that these movements have gone too far in the past, and we must certainly make sure they don’t in the future. THOMAS THORGERSEN • opinions columnist • senior, political science
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Sen. Tim Kaine answers questions on tax cuts, affordable health care and civil rights in Virginia Kaine will be facing Republican nominee Corey Stewart in the upcoming Virginia Senate election in November 2018. MIKE LIU
news editor
Kaine has been serving as the junior United States senator from Virginia since 2013. Prior to this position, he was Virginia’s 38th lieutenant governor from 2002 to 2006 and 70th governor from 2006 to 2010. Kaine was the nominee of the Democratic Party for vice president of the United States in the 2016 election. Kaine will be facing Corey Stewart, who won the Republican nomination on June 12 after defeating Delegate Nick Freitas and Christian minister E.W. Jackson, in the upcoming United States Senate election in November 2018. The Collegiate Times and Virginia Tech Television had the opportunity to speak with Kaine about the upcoming election, gun violence, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, civil rights issues in Virginia and the Affordable Care Act. Q: You were governor of Virginia when Virginia Tech had that shooting back in April 2007. Since then — Sandy Hook, Stoneman Douglas, Santa Fe … This doesn’t seem to be a problem that’s going away, so what do you believe the answer is to gun violence, but more specifically on school campuses? Tim Kaine: Well, there are a lot of answers and, yeah, I was the governor in April of 2007, and that was probably the most memorable day of my life for that reason. I was on an economic trade mission and flew back to Virginia Tech and then it has been years. First working with fa m ily members, the Tech com munity and others to study everything that happened. What went wrong? What can be improved? Then to implement positive changes and putting some changes in gun laws in Virginia, and now at the national level where I serve on the committee dealing with both health and education trying to tackle this as a public health matter of significance. What can be done? First, in the aftermath of the
shooting at Virginia Tech we did a study and basically said tell us everything that went wrong. My lawyers at the time, some of them said don’t do that, you’ll just give people the ability to sue the state. I said I don’t care about the law suits. I owe to the families, those who’ve been injured and the Tech community answers and improvements. One of the things we learned from that horrible shooting is if your background record check system isn’t comprehensive, bad things are gonna happen. Seung-Hui Cho, who was the disturbed young man who committed this mass killing, was barred from having a weapon. He had been adjudicated. Under federal law, he couldn’t have a weapon, but he was able to get one because of weaknesses in the background check system. The first thing we should be doing, some states have done this, we tried it in Congress in 2013 and came close, but frankly we could not get enough Republican votes, we need to have a universal background check system. That is the single thing we can do that will have the most impact on this. Second, I also support limitations on some kinds of weapons of carnage that were used to commit the crimes. For example, I am a co-sponsor of a bill that would limit the size of magazines that go into weapons. Often in a shooting, it stopped when a shooter was changing out a magazine. Law enforcement can stop the shooting in Parkland, Florida, when the student who was shooting tried to change the magazine and the gun jammed. That’s what stopped that horrible tragedy. I do support meaningful limitations. It’s not just about guns. I think campus and community mental health is really important. Safety protocols, understanding how to give the public notice of situation so that they can protect themselves, that’s really important. The right funding for law enforcement is important. We usually are willing to address those things and where Congress has been unable to act. So far, it has been tough
making these meaningful changes to gun laws like u n iver sa l backg rou nd check, but I’m gonna keep promoting. I think we are within a very few votes in the House to get into a place where we can do universal background checks, and that will keep us safer. Q: Another change that almost happened was with the Tax Cuts and Job Act, graduate students almost found themselves paying taxes under greater amount than what they actually receive as a paycheck. It also moved to repeal other higher education benefits. Although it died, there is a potential it could come back in the future. Where do you stand on that? TK: I voted against the tax bill because I thought it has its priorities wrong. We needed to tax reform, but the bill that the White House and Republican majority pushed was deep permanent tax cuts for corporations, but tiny, temporary expiring tax cuts for people, and I thought the priorities were backwards. The tax reform should be focused on individuals more than corporations. You are right, the initial proposal would’ve taxed grad students on what they called tuition waiver. If you are a teaching assistant, there is a tuition at grad school but they tend to waive the tuition because you teach. That was a very foolish proposal and I advocated with Republican colleagues saying, “Look, I know you are gonna vote for this bill, you’ve cooked it up without Democratic input, but you should take that out.” One senator in particular, Susan Collins of Maine, I talked to her a lot about it, and I think she helped convince colleagues to pull that out, but there is certainly an effort on the Republican side to try to bring that back, and I will vigorously oppose trying to tax graduate students on these tuition waivers. Q: Reflecting back on last year, the violent protest in Charlottesville, and D.C. actually hosted the Unite the Right rally, too. What do you think has changed in that year’s span, but also what could be done to
ETHAN CANDELARIO / COLLEGIATE TIMES U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine answers questions during the Kaine-Stewart Senate Forum, Aug. 24, 2018.
avoid violent protests like that from happening in the future? TK: The Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville was a very dark day for this country because, like the horrible tragedy at Tech that led to the loss of life, a paralegal, Heather Heyer, was murdered by a white supremacist and two state troopers who I knew very well who wouldn’t been on that day, but they had to be there because these violent people came to Charlottesville had to be there patrolling and their helicopter went down and they were both killed. We have to stand up against hate. Bottom line is people of good will need to stand up against hate and we need to really practice the values that we teach — Virginia is for lovers or so we say. We are not for haters. Virginia is about equality, that pivotal, North Star value that Jefferson put into the Deceleration of Independence. We have to stand for equality. We say we are a commonwea lt h. T hat mea ns community. We have to act like a community. The first thing we have to do is leaders, everyday citizens have to stand up against hate and division and instead embrace what I called the for-all value. The last two words of the Pledge of Allegiance. We say we are for all and we have to act like it. Q: You’ve been fighting to protect the Affordable Care Act. Why should we support it?
ANTHONY WU / COLLEGIATE TIMES Tim Kaine answers questions from the media on various topics after the forum, Aug. 24, 2018.
TK: When the Affordable Care Act passed, the uninsured rate in this country has gone down to one of the lowest that it’s ever been. Women can’t get discriminated against in the premiums they are
charged. Children can stay on family policies until they are 26. Nobody can be discriminated against based on a pre-existing health condition. We have to preserve it, and that’s a huge difference in the race. I want to preserve it and my opponent wants to repeal it. A repeal effort almost passed in the Senate a year ago, and it would’ve taken health insurance away from 20 to 30 million Americans. Instead, by saving the Affordable Care Act, we gave the Virginia legislature the ability this year to pass a medical expansion that was part of the Affordable Care Act and 400,000 Virginians, many in southwest Virginia, will get health insurance for the first time in their lives. We need to maintain it, but we also need to improve health care, and I have a number of ideas, whether it’s dealing opioid addiction or moving even further to provide more coverage and bring down cost. We need to continue to improve. Q: Why should college st udent s, i ncludi ng freshmen who are just 18 years old, go out and vote? We don’t really pay attention to tax cuts and tax rates, and sometimes our lives don’t even exist outside the Blacksburg campus. So why should we vote? TK: When I talk to 18-year-olds, I have three 20-somethings. My kids are a little bit older than the 18-year-old, but when I talk to my kids and their friends, they care deeply about equality. If you care about equality to all, elections matter and the two sides are different. If you care about the cost of education, you want affordable college, you want to have Stafford Loan, votes in elections really matter to you. If you believe in science
and worry about climate change, for example, elections really matter to you. The first reason to participate is because there is a huge difference between the candidates. There is a huge difference between the parties on issues that matter to young people. The second reason to participate is there is not just a difference between the candidates; you make a difference. Elections in Virginia are close. They are close. We’ve had two statewide races in the last 10 years that had been decided by less than 500 votes. We have one legislative race that was decided essentially by a coin flip because it was tied. Young people when they participate can be the difference maker in any election. I think sometimes young people know that on issues there are differences but they sort of think, “but do we make a difference?” In a state like Virginia where the elections are so close, I can tell you young voters make a difference. If you ca re about education cost, if you care about equality, if you care about science, if you care about health care, you actually have the ability to make a difference in the policies that we put in place, and that’s where I think engagement is so important. That’s why I’m so happy to see last year in Virginia, and this year too, so many young candidates, first-time candidates, active voting, volunteering, canvassing by college students. That’s really important.
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PAGE 4 August 28, 2018
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Corey Stewart, Republican nominee for Senate, discusses immigration, abortion and gun violence After defeating Delegate Nick Freitas and Christian minister E.W. Jackson, Stewart will be facing Sen. Tim Kaine in the upcoming Senate election in November 2018. BENITA LUKE
news staff writer
Corey Stewart is an American attorney who is currently serving his fourth term as the at-large Chair of the Board of Supervisors of Prince William County, Virginia. Stewart won the Republican nomination on June 12 after defeating Delegate Nick Freitas and Christian minister E.W. Jackson, and will be facing Tim Kaine, who has been serving as the junior United States senator from Virginia since 2013, in the upcoming United States Senate election in November 2018. The Collegiate Times and Virginia Tech Television had the opportunity to speak with Stewart about the upcoming election, immigration, gun violence and abortion issues in Virginia. Q: You’re from Prince William County and you’ve led an initiative where 7,500 criminal illegal aliens were turned over for deportation. If you were elected U.S. senator, how will you take action in regards to immigration in terms of the commonwealth? Corey Stewart: It’s never been so relevant as it is today after the murder of Mollie Tibbetts in Iowa. We put the policy in place which now has (deported) 8,200 illegal aliens. Let me be clear about who these folks are. These are people who have committed crimes in my community. We don’t go looking out for illegal immigrants. What we do is this: If someone is arrested for a crime in Prince William County, for assault, something as serious as murder and so forth, (apart from) traffic violations, we check their immigration status. We check everybody’s immigration status whether they’re wh ite, black, Hispanic, Asian. We don’t
care what language they speak, we don’t profile. We haven’t had a single case of profiling and because of this policy, we have apprehended and turned over to ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) 8,200 criminal illegal alien immigrants and we have seen our violent crime rate go down significantly. This is the 287(g) program. If we had been using this program across the country, Mollie Tibbetts would be alive today. Typically, when someone commits a serious crime, there is a lot of lead-up crimes. Somebody doesn’t just wake up one day and commit a murder. If somebody’s here illegally and they commit a crime, instead of releasing them back into the community, we turn them over to ICE and get them deported so they can’t commit another crime against an American citizen. Q: In regards to immig ration, you suppor t President Donald Trump’s fight to fund a wall. Where do you think you’ll be pulling the means to fund and support such an infrastructure? CS: At the end of the day, it’s $20 billion. I would support it by using (money) out of the defense budget. I think one of the most important things with national defense is national security and these are the national border. The question really isn’t how to fund it. The question is whether or not to have a wall and that’s been the big debate. Immigration itself is good. I believe in immigration. My wife is an immigrant. But you have to know who is coming into the country. When there’s no border security, people come in across the border, unscreened. They could have criminal backgrounds
ANTHONY WU / COLLEGIATE TIMES Corey Stewart answers questions from the media on various topics after the forum, Aug. 24, 2018.
and they could, God forbid, have a terrorist background. It’s not just the people coming in illegally who may have criminal backgrounds, but they also carry drugs with them. Eighty percent of the fentanyl and other artificial and illegal opiates in this country are coming across the border from factories in Mexico. Almost 100 percent of the heroin, we have a heroin epidemic in this country, is coming from across the border from Mexico. If we want to deal with the opiates crisis, if we want to deal with criminal issues, we first at least have to end the anarchy at the
border, end the chaos and provide for adequate border security. Q: Speaking to a school campus that fell victim to a mass shooting in 2007, how would you explain your position in protecting the right to bear arms while also maintaining school campus safety? CS: Let me just ask this question: What is the best way to protect you, your family, or anybody else? Is it with a sign that says this is a gun-free zone? Of course, a criminal doesn’t comply with a gun-free zone sign.
KAILA NATHANIEL / COLLEGIATE TIMES Corey Stewart answers media questions after the Kaine-Stewart Senate Forum, Aug. 24, 2018.
In fact, that’s almost like an open invitation. It screams out that this a soft target. Look, you can’t protect our students, you can’t protect our higher education students like at Virginia Tech or kids from K–12 with signs. You have to have armed guards. We’ve done this in Prince William County. There’s a school resource officer program. These are armed police officers. We have them now in every one of our middle schools and high schools in the county. Now, we are hiring retired police officers and it’s about half the cost to do that, and we’re going to soon have officers and retired police officers in every one of our elementary schools, middle schools and high schools. We need to do that at Virginia Tech as well, and you already have armed security here and you need it because the only way to stop a gunman who’s intent on murdering innocent people is to have armed protection. Q: You’ve made it known that you’re pro-life. How will you rally Virginians behind defunding Planned Parenthood and placing restrictions on abortions? CS: When there’s an abortion, I think there are two victims. It’s the unborn baby and the mother. I’ve known people who are close to me and I’ve spoken to a lot of women who years ago had abortions and they’ve regretted it ever since. The country’s waking up, especially with your generation. More and more young people are pro-life because it’s just a matter of seeing it that it’s an unborn baby, especially in the later terms of the pregnancy. That this is a life, that it’s a human being that we’re dealing with here. One of the things we have to do is pass a capable bill that until 20 weeks and only in extraordinary circumstances, can there be an abortion. Sen. Kaine
voted against that bill. He should’ve voted for it because right now in the United States, you can get an abortion leading up to the point of birth.
Q: Why do you think college students should go out and vote? What issues do you think are the most pressing to young adults that we should pay attention to?
CS: I believe in what Winston Churchill said: “If you’re not a liberal and you’re under the age of 30, you have no heart. If you’re still a liberal after the age of 30, you have no brain.” The reason is you are living in somewhat of a bubble here. It’s a great place to be. Your college years are your best years. You don’t have to pay for anything. Once you’re out, you’re going to realize that when you get that first paycheck, you’re going to see that the federal and state governments are taking a lot of your money. You need that money to raise a family, buy a house, etc. That’s OK as long as the government is spending that money wisely like providing for a national defense, providing health care for the poor, and building roads and schools. These are good and lawful functions of our government. I’m a fiscal conservative and I’m also a very staunch hawk on protecting our constitutional rights especially our First Amendment, our freedom of speech is under threat right now. It’s up to your generation to stand up against political correctness. A lot of people have given your generation a lot of grief. I don’t believe that for a minute. I think that this is going to be a very tough generation that is going to help us restore our rights for this country.
@CollegiateTimes
lifestyles
editor@collegiatetimes.com
collegiatetimes.com
August 28, 2018 PAGE 5
collegiatetimes.com/lifestyles
Ariana Grande’s ‘Sweetener’ taps into love life and emotional health
Check out these notable songs from “Sweetener” for more insight on Grande’s recovery from the tragic Manchester terrorist attack.
“the light is coming” (feat. Nicki Minaj) “The light is coming to get back everything the darkness stole” is the phrase constantly repeated throughout the song. Grande uses these words to state that better things are coming that will overshadow tragedy and pain. Grande teams up with frequent collaborator Nicki Minaj and Nicki’s verse references several controversial relationships. She mentions her rumored relationship with Eminem, her feud with Remy Ma and puts out a snarky line mentioning Grande’s album along with gossip: “sips tea and it’s unsweet.” This, unfortunately, is my least favorite song on the album. Grande repeats “the light is coming to get back everything the darkness stole” a total of 18 times during the song. To be honest, it gets slightly annoying after a while. Also, in the background of the whole song, the phrase “you wouldn’t let anybody speak” is playing every four counts, an addition to the song that doesn’t run
“get well soon” The final song on Grande’s album, “get well soon” leaves the listener on a thoughtful note. Grande mentions again that she was in a very bad place after the Manchester attack, and as a result, she developed anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (as stated in her lyric, “Girl what’s wrong with you? Come back down”). Grande is not afraid of reflecting upon her mental health in this song and wants people to prioritize themselves (“This is for everybody, babe you gotta take care of your body”). After listening to this song, it is evident that Grande struggled with her mental health and wants others who felt the way she did to “get well soon.” At the end of the song, “sweetener” Grande has left 40 seconds We all know the saying — of silence on the track to pay “when life gives you lemons, tribute to lives lost in the make lemonade.” Grande Manchester terrorist attack. references this saying in the These 40 seconds make title song of her album. She the song five minutes and COURTESY OF REPUBLIC RECORDS talks about a special someone 22 seconds long — which in her life who acts as the represents May 22, the date of “sweetener” when life gives the Manchester attack. her lemons, of course. She A lot of the songs on (540) 951-2141 tells the listener how they add “sweetener” showcase what “sweetener” to her life. Ariana Grande was going (540) (540) (540) 951-2141 951-2141 951-21 (540) 951-2141 (540) 951-2141 (540) 951-214 I enjoy the song overall, through after the terrorist (540) 951-21 (540) 951-2141 PROPERTY MANAGEMENT MANAGEMENT MANAGEMENT but there are distracting back- attack and where she PROPERTY is PROPERTY PROPERTY MANAGEMENT PROPERTY MANAGEMENT PROPERTY MANAGEMENT PROPERTY MANAGEMENT ground noises added in this now in her path to recovery. PROPERTY MANAGEMENT song as well. When Grande She places pop love songs mentions the getting and the and empowering anthems hitting and the flipping and throughout the album to mixing in the chorus, she also create breaks between more adds an “ayy” to the end. Also, emotional tracks. Whether Giles Road Tee Street N. Main Street throughout the song, Pharrell you find yourself in the midst Williams adds a “sheesh” of mental health issues, a Giles Road Giles Road Giles Road Tee Street Tee Street Tee Street N. Main Street N. Main Street N. Main Street Giles Road Tee Street N. Main Street Giles Road Tee Street Giles Road Tee Street every few words. It’s not as tragedy or a loving relaN. Main Street Giles Road Tee Street N. Main Street N. Main Street Giles Road Tee Street N. Main Street Giles Road Tee Street N. Main Street annoying as the sound bite in tionship with someone, I the background of “the light recommend giving this album is coming,” but it still leaves a a listen. This album is for sour taste in your mouth. everyone. P u n i nt end e d, t he Center Street Center Street Center Street Clay Street Clay Street Clay Street “no tears left to cry” Center Street album will add a little bit Wharton Street Wharton Street Wharton Street Center Street Clay Street Center Street Clay Street Clay Street Center Street Clay Street Center Street Clay Street Wharton Street Wharton Street Center Street Clay Street Wharton Street Wharton Street Center Street Clay Street Wharton Street This song was Grande’s of “sweetness” to your Wharton Street Wharton Street first musical release after life. Overall, despite some the Manchester attack. She distracting noises in a few references being in a positive tracks, I give this album a mental state she “want(s) to be solid four and a half out of five in all the time.” She uses this stars. S. Main Street S. Main Street S. Main Street S. Main Street Giles Road Giles Road Giles Road S. Main Street song to be a positive influence S. Main Street S. Main Street Clay Street Clay Street Clay Street S. Main Street Giles Road Giles Road Giles Road Giles Road Clay Street Clay Street S. Main Street Giles Road Clay Street Clay Street Clay Street Giles Road on her fans by telling them not Clay Street @CollegiateTimes All All locations All All locations locations near near VT near VT VT to retaliate against hate, S. 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“raindrops (an angel cried)” Grande opens her album with this 37-second a cappella introduction. She sings the words, “when raindrops fell, down from the sky, the day you left me, an angel cried, oh she cried, an angel cried, she cried.” Grande is referencing the Manchester terrorist attack with a verse from the Four Seasons’ “An Angel Cried.” This introduction song showcases the pain Grande went through in May 2017.
“God is a woman” This song has sparked controversy — it depends on who you talk to. Some say that Grande is claiming that she is God-like or is some kind of deity or that she is being blasphemous. However, Grande is actually telling her partner that she is so good in bed that her partner will “believe God is a woman.” She compares her sexual skills to biblical references (“baby lay me down and let’s pray,” “boy if you confess you might get blessed”). Grande also mentions girl power in some of her lyrics (“I can be all the things you told me not to be, when you try to come for me I keep on flourishing”). The pop song isn’t necessarily religious; it’s about empowering women and embracing sexuality.
stated in her lyric “we’re way too fly to partake in all this hate, we out here vibin.’” Grande has made it known that she was in a very dark place after the Manchester tragedy, and this song is the result of her healing and surrounding herself with loved ones. This song is very uplifting and is the perfect jam to listen to if you’re having a bad day.
HABITS: Stay up-to-date
with events on campus from page 1
schedule can be the most grueling of these tips because as much as we all love sleep, a good night’s sleep can be tough to achieve. I get that staying up until 2 a.m. to chat with friends or watch funny YouTube videos is fun during the summer, but when our bodies have adjusted to going to bed at 2 a.m. and we have to wake up for an 8 a.m. class in the fall, things aren’t pretty. Our biological clocks need to adjust to a regular and more realistic schedule for the fall semester, so it may be helpful to pretend that you are starting classes a week in advance and adjust your sleep schedule
One year after the horrific Manchester bombing at an Ariana Grande concert, Grande has returned with her fourth album “Sweetener,” for her fans. In the album she alludes to the terrorist attack several times, how she has healed and her road to recovery with post-traumatic stress disorder issues. Not to mention, her past relationships, as well as her fiance Pete Davidson. Here’s my take on some of the most notable tracks from the album — you’ll find that some are sweet and some are sour.
smoothly. This is actually a sound bite from a political video from 2009 about private insurance (interesting, right?). In my opinion, this phrase is unnecessary and the song would be much better without it. Despite the annoyances, the song overall has a very uplifting message and a funky beat.
EMILY CARTER
lifestyles staff writer
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PAGE 6 August 28, 2018
editor@collegiatetimes.com
collegiatetimes.com
Paid Advertisement Finding Equality at
Virginia Tech jennaware99@gmail.com
Jenna Ware, MSW, LCSW, ATP/CFI
I’m
Jenna
Ware,
Co-
founder of the Joseph F. Ware, Jr.
Advanced
Engineering
Laboratory,
College
Engineering.
I’m
of also
transsexual. I don’t run the Ware Lab; I’m speaking as an individual. Joe and I have many ancestors
who
have
been
involved in Virginia Tech and the town of Blacksburg. His father, Joe Ware Sr., was a student here as of 1899, later as an Army officer, he became a professor of military science
Joe was a conservative Republican Christian 40
to another, and Joe and I
liberal Democrat Jewish
always knew Virginia Tech to
transsexual.
respond in kindness. In a world
Joe had no concept of prejudice. It wasn’t in his soul. would
ways of living that involve transition from one standard
years older; and I am a
Why
There are many different
it
matter
if
someone was a different race, age, religion, trans, disabled … or from a different ideology? What mattered was what kind of person someone is. I wrote our story to share.
that increasingly focuses on gender, gender role, gender as a euphemism, I have been feeling left out because I have always been distinctly about physical sex, so I asked to also be included from Menah PrattClark, JD, PhD., VP of Inclusion, and the Commission on Equal Opportunity and Diversity. VT
at VT and the Commandant of
responded
the Corps of Cadets. Several
recognize
other family were students at
gender
VT.
Westview
expression, and transgender
Thomas
are not synonymous with the
Buried
Cemetery, founded
in William
the
terms
Presbyterian
with, that
“…we the
gender
identity,
sex
terms
identity,
sex
Church in Blacksburg, now a
expression, and transsexual,
restaurant
John
nor is one set of terminology a
Montgomery Thomas fought
subset of the other set. We will
in the Civil War for Virginia;
be developing an appropriate
and Giles Thomas fought in
awareness,
the Revolutionary War.
communication strategy this
on
Main;
education,
and
summer.”
Joe was born and raised at 404 Clay St., now the east
I want to thank the CEOD
edge of campus. He graduated
and Menah for that much
here, taught math here, then
inclusion. I am looking forward
went on to the Skunk Works at Lockheed
where
he
became the flight test
I’ve known prejudice and
A
engineer in charge of the first Air Force One, the SR-71 Blackbird, the U-2, all Connies including SIGINT variants, the P-38 lightning… And he married me as his third wife. This blows my socks off. I tell our story because it is so rare: It’s truly a story of loving each other because of who we are, what we care about—not disliking each other because of some other property. We were drawn to each other in spite of considerable differences,
a
acceptance
that
could well adopt:
model the
Apple iBooks, EPUB; Amazon, Paperback / Kindle
of
world
bigotry all my life, small minds who played games and hurt because
I
didn’t
fit
expectations, who struggled to make me something I was not, who ousted me when I didn’t conform. But if I’ve learned anything, it’s that when I’m bullied, the thing to do is to speak up. I spent a lot of years avoiding
that,
unwittingly
contributing to my difficulties before it dawned on me I was part of my own dynamic. I made my life with my husband harder than it needed to be because I wouldn’t stand up for myself. I do my best to share this life experience in my story.
to the programs … but I also want to ask for the rest, as VT has so far refused to include equal protections in the VTwide
non-discrimination
statement. People who live a life that is different, who have known disrespect or even hate crimes, please accept my embrace and support; and to everyone, I also offer Joe as an example of the best kind of man, VT born and
bred,
graduates
one and
of
your
instructors,
who understood the value of a person’s heart regardless of difference, who was willing to stand
against
make it so.
anything
to
sports
editor@collegiatetimes.com
collegiatetimes.com
August 28, 2018 PAGE 7
collegiatetimes.com/sports
FSU: Jackson, Francois headline top-20 ACC matchup
from page 1
s t r u g g l i ng against tougher opponents toward the end of the season, Jackson will look to make a statement to start the season against a top-20 team like the ‘Noles. After injuring his patellar tendon in Florida State’s season opener against Alabama last season, Francois looks to start off where he left his freshman season when he threw for 3,350 yards, 20 touchdowns and seven interceptions during an impressive freshman campaign in which he registered the largest comeback in school history in his first collegiate start against Ole Miss and led the ‘Noles to a 10–3 record along with a trip to the Orange Bowl. On the defensive side of the ball, the Hokies and the ‘Noles both lost their defensive leaders to the 2018 NFL Draft, with Virginia Tech’s Tremaine Edmunds and Florida State’s Derwin James drafted back to back, going 16th and 17th, respectively. Despite the losses of key defensive players, each team boasts solid returning defensive lines. Virginia Tech’s Ricky Walker, Trevon Hill and Vinny Mihota will look to harass Francois, while Brian Burns and Demarcus Christmas
will look to badger Jackson. Some new faces will appear on the scene for both teams, as Dylan Rivers, Divine Deablo, Reggie Floyd, Caleb Farley and Bryce Watts look to fill the Hokies’ defensive holes left by the departures of the Edmunds brothers, Adonis Alexander, Brandon Facyson and Greg Stroman. T he ‘Noles’ Ha msa h Nasirildeen and Joshua Kaindoh take over in place of James and Josh Sweat. On offense, the Hokies hope Eric Kumah, Sean Savoy and Phil Patterson can collectively replace Cam Phillips’ consistency and reliability at wideout, while the ‘Noles hope Tre’ McKitty and D.J. Matthews can do the same in replacing Auden Tate and Ryan Izzo. The Hokies will look to win their first game in Tallahassee since 1974 as the Seminoles come into the game as a six-point favorite in what should be an offensive affair.
@DillonHCampbell
AUSTEN MEREDITH / COLLEGIATE TIMES Florida State’s Ty Jones (33) finds a gap in Virginia Tech’s defensive line, Dec. 4, 2010.
AUSTEN MEREDITH / COLLEGIATE TIMES Senior Davon Morgan (2) pushes Florida State’s EJ Manuel (3) out of bounds, causing him to fall short of a touchdown, Dec. 4, 2010.
are you
to care for athletes?
Join the nearly 400 Virginia Tech alumni who were inspired to attend the private state-of-the-art osteopathic medical school in Blacksburg,Virginia. VCOM is a proud partner of Virginia Tech athletics and has a Sports Medicine Fellowship program with physicians who provide care for Hokie athletes. Visit us online to find out how you will be
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PAGE 8 August 28, 2018
editor@collegiatetimes.com
collegiatetimes.com
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