Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Issue 28, Volume 125
Dylan Canfield • The Daily Beacon
Knoxville falls to No. 10 in ‘Bible-mindedness’ US survey previously ranked the city at No. 1 in 2013 poll In a 2014 ranking of “Bible-minded” U.S. citStaff Writer ies, an assessment commissioned by the American Hanna Lustig Bible Society, Knoxville News Editor ranked 10th, dropping nine The Bible Belt isn’t merely spots from its 2013 position a nickname. It is a verifiable as No. 1. But, with Chattanooga geographic trend. topping the list instead, Tennessee remained one of the three most heavily represented states on the list, the others being Kentucky and North Carolina. Each of these states contains three cities ranked within the top 20. In addition, all but one city in the list’s top 10 share a border with Tennessee, forming a snake-like belt across the Southeast. Dale E. Jones, secretary-treasurer of the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, one of the pioneers of the religious census, noted the importance of gathering such data. “Religion is a major sociological phenomenon in any country,” Jones said.
Liz Wood
SEE
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“Whether you’re attending or not attending tells you something about the culture.” Prior to 1950, religious data in the U.S. hadn’t been gathered on the county level. ASARB began conducting religious censuses in 1950 and has since conducted one every decade. Religious data for the census is gathered from more than 100 different religious groups across the country as well as from households at random. Notably, more populous cities were generally found less “Bible-minded.” The ABS’ “Bible mindedness” study was based upon data collected from the 2010 religious census conducted by the ASARB. Criteria for qualifying as a “Bible-minded” person included whether or not the person had read the Bible in the past seven days, as well as the extent to which the person believes its accuracy. In Eastern Tennessee, rises observed between the
2000 and 2010 censuses indicate an increase of 191,000 more people associating with a religious institution of some kind. Despite this growth, Jones said actual commitment levels to specific religious congregations has plateaued over the last decade, at best. “Overall, religious organizations aren’t building up much,” Jones said. “They’re convincing people to become
part of their organizations. Some are gaining; some are losing, but the net is about the same as it was 10 years ago.” Although Kathleen Connelly, senior in philosophy, noted a “national trend” away from religious affiliation, she asserted the inability of this trend to account for the influence of regional culture and tradition. “I think there’s an
important extent to which people in the South, and Appalachian people specifically, feel they need to retain a sense of identity that is distinct from a national American identity,” Connelly said. “An extent to which people feel like their identity is being threatened by the growing secularization of the United States.” See BIBLE MINDED on Page 2
ARTS & CULTURE >>pg. 3
Cheers: Knoxville’s own ‘barcade’ finds perfect balance between games and the college nightlife ARTS & CULTURE >>pg. 3
Courtside View: The Vols look to avoid a big night from Georgia’s guards, three straight losses SPORTS >>pg. 6
SGA launches two petitions responding to activity fee bills Hayley Brundige Assistant Photo Editor
Community The Student Government Association launched two online petitions on Feb. 9 in response to Senate Bills 1608 and 2493. Both bills, written by State Sen. Stacey Campfield, R-Knoxville, would alter the way student activity fees are allocated at all public institutions of higher education in Tennessee on the basis that the current process is biased and unequal. SB 1608 would divide and distribute student fees among student organizations based on the membership of the groups requesting funding for speakers and other programming. On
SPORTS >>pg. 6
Staff Writer
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signatures the other hand, SB 2493 would completely prohibit the use of institutional revenues for visiting or guest speakers. The SGA petitions advocate for the retention of the current student fee distribution process, which allows
Hannah Moulton
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students on the University Programs and Services Fee funding board to determine which groups and events recieve money from student fees; currently, 5 percent of student fees are used for programming. One petition is open to
all students and faculty at Tennessee Board of Regents schools, including state universities and community colleges and can be found on the SGA website. An additional petition open to the general public was created on change.org.
Vols sweep Purdue to open 2014 Dargan Southard Assistant Sports Editor
A confident Simmons may provide the Lady Vols with the spark they need to chase the title
Students
The inclement weather was a nuisance. The schedule changes became complicated. The waiting caused frustration. But despite the countless alterations to Tennessee’s opening weekend itinerary, a negative word was difficult to find amid any postgame dialogue as the Vols finished off a threegame sweep of Purdue with a convincing 8-2 win Monday afternoon at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. A Sunday doubleheader kicked off the series — and the season — with the Vols winning the opener 3-0 and cruising in the nightcap, 20-2. “It was a good weekend for many reasons,” head coach Dave Serrano said. “The sweep
is always good. Got a lot of guys in, got to get a lot of position players in. A lot of pitchers got their feet wet for the first time.” Snowy conditions — both in Knoxville and the Midwest — ultimately changed the 2014 season-opening series from a weekend set to a SundayMonday affair. Once the Vols (3-0) finally took the field, though, the delay hardly seemed to matter. In the three games combined, Serrano’s squad allowed just 15 hits, posted a 1.33 team ERA and hit .388 as a whole. “Longtime coming,” said right fielder Scott Price, who finished the series with a .455 average and six RBI. “It took us a couple extra days to finally get out here, but 3-0 — no matter who you’re playing or what level of competition — is always a
A Band Eat Band world: Local music competition takes stage
good way to start.” In Game One, the pitching staff stifled the Purdue offense all afternoon, limiting the Boilermakers (0-3) to just six total base runners and only one hit. Freshman Hunter Martin, senior Nick Williams (1-0) and sophomore Drake Owenby combined for the shutout in the opener as the trio didn’t allow a Boilermaker into scoring position after the second inning. Williams, who was originally scheduled to start this weekend, was particularly dominant in relief, tossing five no-hit innings with two strikeouts. “Whenever Hunter was going to quit throwing, I had the ball,” Williams said on Sunday. “I was getting a lot of first pitch swings, so that was the big thing that was working
for me, being able to establish a strike first pitch and them swinging at it.” With the Purdue bats incheck, UT needed just a sliver of offense and found such in the third inning. A pair of Farragut High School alums jump-started the attack as freshman Nick Senzel’s RBI double brought home shortstop A.J. Simcox for the first run of the season. David Houser followed with a run-scoring single, and the Vols suddenly had a two-run cushion, more than enough to support the strong work of the UT hurlers. Serrano’s squad would tack on an insurance run in the seventh as sophomore outfielder Christin Stewart’s first hit of the season brought home Price. See BASEBALL on Page 5
Scruffy City’s Band Eat Band competition will take place at the Preservation Pub this Tuesday starting at 10 p.m. The competition, which is sponsored by i105, Blank Newspaper, Rock Snob Recording and Preservation Pub, showcases the talents of local bands ranging from a handful of different styles. The competition, which began in January and ends in April, is held every Tuesday. The competition’s semi-finals and the final will be held in June in the center of Market Square. Two bands play each night and a coin is flipped to determine the order. The bands will then play two 30-minute sets. The rules for the competition are laid back; bring a crowd, be original, be cool and be the best band live. The “cool” requirements for the competition accurately portray the easygoing atmosphere that the competition has grown to be known for. Andrew Sayne, whose band – Grandpa’s Stash – won last year’s competition, said the Band Eat Band competition differed from most he had participated in before. See BAND EAT BAND on Page 3
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“... As commitment to traditional group values – such as the family unit, friendship or community – continues to change, the implications will not go unchecked.” OPINIONS >>pg. 4
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