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Graduate student Olivia Ellis shares her musical experience at UT

Wednesday, February 2, 2011 Issue 15

PUBLISHED SINCE 1906

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Vol. 116

I N D E P E N D E N T

Windy with a 20% chance of rain HIGH LOW 45 27

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Egyptians swarm Cairo demanding change Associated Press CAIRO— More than a quarter-million people flooded Cairo’s main square Tuesday in a stunning and jubilant array of young and old, urban poor and middle class professionals, mounting by far the largest protest yet in a week of unrelenting demands for President Hosni Mubarak to leave after nearly 30 years in power.

The crowds — determined but peaceful — filled Tahrir, or Liberation, Square and spilled into nearby streets, among them people defying a government transportation shutdown to make their way from rural provinces. Protesters jammed in shoulder-to-shoulder, with schoolteachers, farmers, unemployed university graduates, women in conservative headscarves and women in high heels, men in suits and workingclass men in scuffed shoes.

They sang nationalist songs, danced, beat drums and chanted the anti-Mubarak slogan “Leave! Leave! Leave!” as military helicopters buzzed overhead. Organizers said the aim was to intensify marches to get the president out of power by Friday, and similar demonstrations erupted in at least five other cities around Egypt.

Soldiers at checkpoints set up at the entrances of the square did nothing to stop the crowds from entering.

The military promised on state TV Monday night that it would not fire on protesters answering a call for a million to demonstrate, a sign that army support for Mubarak may be unraveling as momentum builds for an extraordinary eruption of discontent and demands for democracy in the United States’ most important Arab ally.

“This is the end for him. It’s time,” said Musab Galal, a 23year-old unemployed university graduate who came by minibus with his friends from the Nile Delta city of Menoufiya.

Mubarak, 82, would be the second Arab leader pushed from office by a popular uprising in the history of the modern Middle East, following the ouster last month of Tunisia’s president.

The movement to drive Mubarak out has been built on the work of online activists and fueled by deep frustration with an autocratic regime blamed for ignoring the needs of the poor and allowing corruption and official abuse to run rampant. After years of tight state control, protesters emboldened by the Tunisia unrest took to the streets on Jan. 25 and mounted a onceunimaginable series of protests across this nation of 80 million people — the region’s most populous country.

The repercussions were being felt around the Mideast, as other authoritarian governments fearing popular discontent preemptively tried to burnish their democratic image.

Jordan’s King Abdullah II fired his government Tuesday in the face of smaller street protests, named an ex-prime minister to form a new Cabinet and ordered him to launch political reforms.

The Palestinian Cabinet in the West Bank said it would hold long-promised municipal elections “as soon as possible.”

With Mubarak’s hold on power in Egypt weakening, the world was forced to plan for the end of a regime that has maintained three decades of peace with Israel and a bulwark against Islamic militants. But under the stability was a barely hidden crumbling of society, mounting criticism of the regime’s human rights record and a widening gap between rich and poor, with 40 percent of the population living under or just above the poverty line set by the World Bank at $2 a day.

The chairman of the powerful U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. John Kerry, gave public voice to what senior U.S. officials have said only privately in recent days: that Mubarak should “step aside gracefully to make way for a new political structure.”

The U.S. ambassador in Cairo, Margaret Scobey, spoke by telephone Tuesday with prominent democracy advocate Nobel Peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, the embassy said. ElBaradei has taken a key role with other opposition groups in formulating the movement's demands for Mubarak to step down and allow a transitional government paving the way for free elections. There was no immediate word on what Scobey and ElBaradei discussed.

to “give a chance” to his government.

The United States, meanwhile, ordered non-essential U.S. government personnel and their families to leave Egypt in an indication of the deepening concern over the situation.

They join a wave of people rushing to flee the country — over 18,000 overwhelmed Cairo’s international airport and threw it into chaos. EgyptAir staff scuffled with frantic passengers, food supplies were dwindling and some policemen even demanded substantial bribes before allowing foreigners to board their planes.

Normally bustling, Cairo’s streets outside Tahrir Square had a fraction of their normal weekday traffic. Banks, schools and the stock market in Cairo were closed for the third working day, making cash tight. Bread prices spiraled.

An unprecedented shutdown of the Internet was in its fifth day.

The official death toll from the crisis stood at 97, with thousands injured, though reports from witnesses across the country indicated the actual toll was far higher.

But perhaps most startling was how peaceful protests have been in recent days, after the military replaced the police in keeping control and took a policy of letting the demonstrations continue.

Egypt’s army leadership has reassured the U.S. that the military does not intend to crack down on demonstrators, but instead is allowing the protesters to “wear themselves out,” according to a former U.S. official in contact with several top Egyptian army officers. The Egyptians use a colloquial saying to describe their strategy: A boiling pot with a tight lid will blow up the kitchen, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.

Troops and Soviet-era and newer U.S.-made Abrams •Courtesy of africantravelinc.com tanks stood at roads leading into Tahrir Square, a plaza overlooked by the headquarters of the Arab League, the campus of the American University in Cairo, the famed Egyptian Museum and the Mugammma, an enormous building housing departments of the notoriously corrupt and inefficient bureaucracy.

Protester volunteers wearing tags reading “the People’s Security” circulated through the crowds in the square, saying they were watching for government infiltrators who might try to instigate violence.

“We will throw out anyone who tries to create trouble,” one announced over a loudspeaker. Other volunteers joined the soldiers at the checkpoints, searching bags of those entering for weapons. Organizers said the protest would remain in the square and not attempt to march to avoid frictions with the military.

Two dummies representing Mubarak dangled from traffic lights. On their chests was written: “We want to put the murderous president on trial.” Their faces were scrawled with the Star of David, an allusion to many protesters’ feeling that Mubarak is a friend of Israel, still seen by most – Egyptian school teacher Sahar Ahmad on the current government Egyptians as their country's archenemy more than 30 years upheaval in Egypt after the two nations signed a peace treaty.

Every protester had their own story of why they came In an interview with Al-Arabiya television, ElBaradei rejected an — with a shared theme of frustration with a life pinned in by coroffer late Monday by Vice President Omar Suleiman for a dialogue ruption, low wages, crushed opportunities and abuse by authorities. on enacting constitutional reforms. He said there could be no negoSahar Ahmad, a 41-year-old school teacher and mother of one, tiations until Mubarak leaves. said she has taught for 22 years and still only makes about $70 a Suleiman’s offer and other gestures by the regime have fallen flat. month.

The Obama administration roundly rejected Mubarak’s appoint“There are 120 students in my classroom. That’s more than any ment of a new government Monday afternoon that dropped his inte- teacher can handle,” said Ahmad. “Change would mean a better rior minister, who heads police forces and has been widely education system I can teach in and one that guarantees my studenounced by the protesters. State TV on Tuesday ran a statement dents a good life after school. If there is democracy in my country, by the new prime minister, Ahmed Shafiq, pleading with the public then I can ask for democracy in my own home.”

“

Change would mean a better

education system I can teach in

and one that guarantees my students a good life after school. If there is a

democracy in my country, then I can ask for democracy in my own home.

”

Woman pleads guilty to terrorist plot Associated Press PHILADELPHIA — A Pennsylvania woman who called herself “Jihad Jane” online pleaded guilty Tuesday to her role in a plot to kill a Swedish cartoonist who had offended Muslims.

Colleen LaRose, 47, helped foreign terror suspects intent on starting a holy war in Europe and South Asia, prosecutors said.

LaRose, who also was accused of using the online screen name “Fatima LaRose,” has been in custody since October 2009 and faced a possible life sentence under charges in a four-count indictment.

She and co-defendant Jamie Paulin-Ramirez of Leadville, Colo., are the rare U.S. women charged with terrorism. Paulin-Ramirez has pleaded not guilty since she was arrested in Ireland with other terror suspects.

The March 2010 indictment charged LaRose with conspiring with jihadist fighters and pledging to commit murder in the name of a Muslim holy war, or jihad. The indictment was announced hours after authorities arrested seven suspected terrorists in Ireland allegedly Ian Harmon • The Daily Beacon linked to LaRose.

In e-mails recovered by the FBI over 15 Ann Pham, freshman in nursing, views art in the UC Concourse Gallery on Monday, months, LaRose agreed to marry an online conJan. 24. The exhibition, featuring works from Stephen Vosilla, was on display tact from South Asia so he could move to throughout the month of January.

Europe. She also agreed to become a martyr,

the indictment said.

The man she had agreed to marry told her in a March 2009 e-mail to go to Sweden to find the artist, Lars Vilks, who had depicted the Prophet Muhammad with the body of a dog, the indictment said.

Vilks has questioned the sophistication of the plotters but said he is glad LaRose never got to him.

Both LaRose and Paulin-Ramirez come from difficult backgrounds.

LaRose, born in Michigan, moved to Texas as a girl and had married twice by age 24. Her first marriage came at 16, to a man twice her age. Both unions were long over by the time she met Pennsylvanian Kurt Gorman in 2005.

LaRose lived with Gorman and his father in Pennsburg, caring for the older man while Gorman worked at his family’s small business, Gorman said last year. He called her a “goodhearted person” who mostly stayed around the house.

But her online ties grew to a loose band of allegedly violent co-conspirators from around the world, prosecutors said. They found her after she posted a YouTube video in June 2008 saying she was “desperate to do something somehow to help” ease the suffering of Muslims, the indictment said.

See JIHAD on Page 2

2 • The Daily Beacon

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

InSHORT

Gabi Caballero • The Daily Beacon

Bart Ehrman holds a discussion in the Tyson House on Jan. 28. Ehrman is a professor at the University of North Carolina and a New York Times bestseller, who came to UT to give a presentation entitled, “Does the New Testament Contain Forgeries?”

1887: First Groundhog Day On this day in 1887, Groundhog Day, featuring a rodent meteorologist, is celebrated for the first time at Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Penn.

According to tradition, if a groundhog comes out of its hole on this day and sees its shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather; no shadow means an early spring.

Groundhog Day has its roots in the ancient Christian tradition of Candlemas Day, when clergy would bless and distribute candles needed for winter. The candles represented how long and cold the winter would be. Germans expanded on this concept by selecting an animal—the hedgehog—as a means of predicting weather. Once they came to America, German settlers in Pennsylvania continued the tradition, although they switched from hedgehogs to groundhogs, which were plentiful in the Keystone State.

Groundhogs, also called woodchucks and whose scientific name is Marmota monax, typically weigh 12 to 15 pounds and live six to eight years. They eat vegetables and fruits, whistle when they're frightened or looking for a mate and can climb trees and swim. They go into hibernation in the late fall; during this time, their body temperatures drop significantly, their heartbeats slow from 80 to five

beats per minute and they can lose 30 percent of their body fat. In February, male groundhogs emerge from their burrows to look for a mate (not to predict the weather) before going underground again. They come out of hibernation for good in March.

In 1887, a newspaper editor belonging to a group of groundhog hunters from Punxsutawney called the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club declared that Phil, the Punxsutawney groundhog, was America's only true weather-forecasting groundhog. The line of groundhogs that have since been known as Phil might be America’s most famous groundhogs, but other towns across North America now have their own weather-predicting rodents, from Birmingham Bill to Staten Island Chuck to Shubenacadie Sam in Canada.

In 1993, the movie Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray popularized the usage of “groundhog day” to mean something that is repeated over and over.

Today, tens of thousands of people converge on Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney each February 2 to witness Phil’s prediction. The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club hosts a three-day celebration featuring entertainment and activities.

— This Day in History is courtesy of history.com

Crime Log Jan. 31 A UT student reported that her student ID was stolen from the TRECS some time between 6 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. on Jan. 27.

An employee from Blount Contractors, Inc. reported that 12.5 tons of rebar were stolen from a

construction site at Neyland Drive and Kingston Pike. The materials were reported to have been stolen some time between midnight on Nov. 30, 2009, and 8 a.m. on Nov. 9, 2010. The value of the stolen materials was reported to be approximately $11,154.

— Crime Log is courtesy of Robbie Hargett

Compiled from a media log provided to the Daily Beacon by the Universty of Tennessee Police Department.

All persons arrested are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. People with names similar or identical to those listed may not be those identified in reports.

JIHAD continued from Page 1 Despite Web images that show LaRose in a Muslim head covering, Gorman said he never picked up on any Muslim leanings. She did not attended religious services of any kind, he said. Gorman said he sensed nothing amiss in their five-year relationship — until LaRose fled days after his father’s funeral.

LaRose had removed the hard drive from

her computer and set off for Europe, according to the indictment. She had swiped Gorman’s passport and planned to give it to the co-conspirator she had agreed to marry, the indictment said.

It’s unclear how she was able to travel overseas, given that the FBI, presumably tipped to her online postings, had interviewed her in July 2009. According to the indictment, she then denied soliciting funds for any terrorist causes or making the postings ascribed to “JihadJane.”

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

To find out more about the Community Partnership Center, visit http://isse.utk.edu/cpc/.

ORNL recieves two national tech transfer awards

UT team creates iPhone app to increase tourism in Knoxville Downtown Knoxville’s economy may see a boost thanks to a free iPhone application developed by UT researcher Eric Ogle and Associate Professor of Art Sarah Lowe in collaboration with three local nonprofit organizations including the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, the Carpetbag Theater and Double Apps Inc. Called the Beck Tour app, the mobile phone application features 14 historically and culturally significant sites in and around downtown Knoxville. Via a map of downtown, users can read narratives, view photos and even watch short videos created by actors at the Carpetbag Theater.

The app traces the history of AfricanAmerican culture in Knoxville. It is called the Beck Tour after the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, which preserves and exhibits African-American culture.

For instance, the Tennessee Theatre had segregated entrances and was the site of peaceful protests.

Lowe designed the application, even involving one of her classes in the Webbased tour aspect of the app. The programming of the Beck Tour was developed by software developer David Levi and his company, Double Apps Inc. While the Beck Tour may be the first of its kind, it won’t be the last. The developers plan for the Beck Tour to serve as a framework for other tours such as the Cradle of Country Music tour which already has signage around downtown Knoxville. Ogle has even consulted customers such as the city of Dallas about an app mapping out events for this year’s Super Bowl.

The Daily Beacon • 3

NEWS

Two teams from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have won awards for excellence in technology transfer from the Federal Laboratory Consortium.

The FLC awards recognize laboratory employees who have accomplished outstanding work in the process of transferring a technology developed by a federal laboratory to the commercial marketplace. The ORNL recipients will be honored at an awards ceremony in May at the FLC national meeting in Nashville.

Flexible Thin-Film Solar Photovoltaics on RABiTS is a technology developed in conjunction with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The Rolling Assisted Biaxially Textured Substrate, or RABiTS, technology portfolio, developed at ORNL, is a flexible metal foil that provides a platform for an entire generation of today’s high-temperature superconducting materials and products. ORNL and NREL teamed to license their technologies to Ampulse Corporation, a venture-backed startup in Golden, Colorado.

The combination of RABiTS with NREL’s work in depositing crystalline silicone onto various substrates offers promise in flexible, highly efficient, low-cost and durable photovoltaic materials. The ORNL team included Parans Paranthaman, Lee Heatherly, Sung-Hun Wee, Claudia Cantoni, Daniela Bogorin, Kyunghoon Kim, Fred List, Tolga Aytug, Amit Goyal, Dominic Lee, Frank Damiano and Mark Reeves.

The Laser-Induced Fluorescence FiberOptic Measurement of Fuel in Oil technology enables real-time measurements of the amount of fuel contamination in oil in an operating engine. Fuel contamination can thin the oil, lower its lubricating ability, and can lead to higher engine wear, increased oil consumption, and in extreme cases, engine failure.

The Fuel in Oil technology was devel-

oped under a collaborative research and development agreement project with Cummins Inc. and later licensed to Da Vinci Emissions Services. The ORNL team included James Parks, Bill Partridge and David Sims.

The FLC, which was organized in 1974, is a nationwide network of federal laboratories that provides the forum to develop strategies and opportunities for linking laboratory mission technologies and expertise with the marketplace. Today, more than 250 federal laboratories and centers and their parent departments and agencies are FLC members.

ORNL is managed by UT-Battelle for the Department of Energy's Office of Science.

Nominations for UT's Educators Hall of Honor due Feb. 11 There is only a little more than a week to nominate your favorite educator for a spot in the Educators Hall of Honor, housed in the College of Education, Health and Human Sciences at UT. Nominations are due Feb. 11, and the next group of Hall of Honor inductees will be announced during a ceremony which begins at 5:30 p.m. on March 24 at the UT Visitors Center.

The Hall of Honor is a place to acknowledge the work of individuals or groups who have made outstanding contributions to education in Knoxville, the state of Tennessee or the nation. Nominees can be teachers, counselors, administrators or others in the education field, as well as people who aren't considered educators but who have had a significant impact on the field of education. Groups, such as schools or civic groups that have had significant impact on student learning, also can be nominated.

With a $1,000 contribution, a donor can make a nomination and have a plaque honoring the nominee placed in the Educators Hall of Honor, and the contribution to the College of Education, Health and Human Sciences will be included in a special endowment that provides critical scholarships for teacher interns and other undergraduate and graduate students in the college's education programs.

Haslam probes Memphis City Schools Associated Press NASHVILLE — Republican Gov. Bill Haslam on Tuesday asked for a personnel plan for teachers in Memphis and Shelby County regardless of the outcome of a referendum for Memphis voters to decide whether to dissolve their city school system.

The Memphis City School Board voted Dec. 20 to put a decision to voters in the city in a March 8 special election.

The Memphis board’s surrender vote was a reaction to the Shelby County district’s move toward special school district status, which would freeze the county system’s boundaries and prevent annexation of its schools by Memphis.

A consolidated school system would have 150,000 students, with the county school board in charge.

Haslam said state law requires such a plan for teachers be approved by the education commissioner, and a letter was sent Tuesday to the Memphis and Shelby County school superintendents seeking their plans.

Haslam said he understands it’s a local issue and that nothing the state’s doing will impact the vote.

But he added that it is “our responsibility has at least one legal obligation and that is a determination as to how

teachers will be impacted by changes in school districts.”

The governor also requested the submission of an additional plan outlining how any transition between the school systems would take place with little disruption.

“We have a common sense responsibility that addresses other areas of school operations such as bus contracts, maintenance and the reform initiatives that are under way,” Haslam said.

The state statute requires the education commissioner to make sure that teachers’ privileges are not impaired, interrupted or diminished by organizational changes prior to the changes becoming effective.

Acting Education Commissioner Patrick Smith stopped short of saying the state would penalize the school systems — such as withholding funding — if a plan is not received, but said “if there are issues that arise as part of that process, then we will think about what steps to take next.”

Haslam said he has spoken with the two mayors of Memphis and Shelby County, as well as legislative leaders such as Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey, who opposes the referendum.

The Blountville Republican told reporters last week that he’s considering legislation that would block the referendum, or at least postpone it for a year.

OPINIONS

4 • The Daily Beacon

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Editor’sNote Homophobia altering recruiting landscape

Zac Ellis Editor-in-chief It goes without saying that college recruiting is a dog-eat-dog world. The higher profile the sport, the more ruthless recruiting tactics have become. With National Signing Day presently upon the college football community, now is the time to for college programs to enjoy the fruits of their labor, however legal — or questionable — that labor may have been.

But while college football and men’s college basketball often dominate recruiting headlines year in and year out, women’s college basketball recruiting is quickly becoming just as heated as its male counterparts. Top programs like UConn, Baylor and Tennessee are constantly vying for that next big signee, and while the recruiting coverage isn’t as highlighted, it has become evident that similar sleazy tactics are being used to lure big-name players to, or away from, college campuses.

An article in the Feb. 7 issue of ESPN the Magazine sheds light on a new tool being used in the world of women’s basketball recruiting: homophobia. Coaches are reportedly choosing their language wisely when wooing potential players, pitching programs that buy stock in “wholesome values” within a “family atmosphere,” all but mentioning rival programs that include homosexual athletes and coaches within their rosters.

Players are noticing the not-so-subtle references, not only on the recruiting trail, but in the locker room as well. The story cites an anonymous Iowa State player who admitted to feeling pressure from coaches to push a “family-oriented” environment to visiting recruits.

“According to the coaches, it needed to be said,” the player is quoted as saying.

The coaches accused of overstressing value-filled programs see no foul play in the alleged language; to them, they’re just selling their team and school. “... if using the word ‘family’ is viewed as negative recruiting, then we’re guilty, because we say that,” 23year Iowa State women’s coach Bill Fennelly is quoted as saying in the story. “I don’t think it’s negative. Maybe I’m the only one in America who thinks that’s ridiculous to say.”

But the real issue with such negative recruiting is not just the use of backhanded homophobic comments; it’s the attempts by coaches to hammer home the idea

that programs housing homosexual athletes and coaches feature environments unfit for an adequately fulfilling lifestyle. The moral foundation of athletic departments that would dare include athletes and coaches from outside the realm of heterosexuality need not invite top-tier recruits for official visits ... at least, that’s what some women’s basketball coaches are saying on the recruiting trail.

Technically, it’s more about what coaches are not saying than what they are. It’s the implication left in the minds of recruits that these programs boasting “family values” are better than programs supposedly without.

It’s the implication that a person’s sexuality would make a difference in his or her coaching ability or his or her ability to mentor a player off the court as any good coach does.

In 2007, former NBA player John Amaechi announced in his book, “Man in the Middle,” that he was homosexual. The uproar that resonated from sports columnists and ESPN talking heads was as surprisingly accepting as it was widespread. NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley — never one to shy away from his own opinion — said regarding Amaechi’s announcement that, “It shouldn’t be a big deal to anybody. I know I’ve played with gay players and against gay players, and it just shouldn’t surprise anybody or be an issue.”

Current Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers, who coached Amaechi on the Orlando Magic, said his reaction was simple. “It was brought up to me, and you look and say, ‘So what? Can he rebound? Can he shoot?

Can he defend?’”

The same can be said for a gay coach’s ability on a women’s basketball bench. Or in the locker room. Or as a mentor. The measurement of one’s ability to do his or her job lies not on sexuality but, in the case of college athletics, wins and championship rings. Few collegiate programs are squeaky clean, but a program’s poor reputation should come as a result of NCAA violations and suspensions instead of sexual preferences deemed “immoral” by coaches who, in reality, just want the inside lane in the race for a highly touted recruit.

College coaches know better. Coaches like Fennelly know exactly what seed they plant into the mind of an impressionable high school kid. Such recruiting tactics blacken the landscape of college basketball, but on a larger scale, the stigma attached to homosexuality in our country won’t ever disappear if this kind of backhanded behavior continues. This power is in coaches’ hands, so here’s to hoping they use it correctly.

—Zac Ellis is a senior in journalism and electronic media. He can be reached at rellis13@utk.edu. Follow him on Twitter @ZacEllis.

SCRAMBLED EGGS • Alex Cline

THE DAILY BACON • Blake Treadway

Columns of The Daily Beacon are reflections of the individual columnist, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Beacon or its editorial staff.

Video game blame overshadows real issues T he Pen is Mightier by

Sean Mahoney With the rise in popularity of video-game entertainment, the medium has come under scrutiny in recent years. Critics of the video-game industry have argued for years that violence in video games has led to violence in the youth population and even the glorification war. For them, games like “Halo” and “Call of Duty” exhibit far too much violence, which results in the youth acting violent in society. Also, some critics argue that it portrays war in a “fun” environment that only further encourages violent activity in our society. And unfortunately, the video-game industry has been unfairly placed back under the microscope once again because of the tragic events in Russia.

On Jan. 24, a suicide bomber in Moscow’s Domodedovo airport set off a bomb that killed over 35 people and injured more than 100 more. The events that took place in Russia were terrible and the actions of those responsible were nothing short of deplorable.

However, following the tragedy, media analysts sought to find a reason for the attack and found the video-game industry as an easy scapegoat. Specifically, analysts singled out the “Call of Duty” franchise and its creator, Activision, for possibly influencing the events that took place in the Russian airport. Their argument was that a particular level in the game “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2” was to blame.

The level in question involves a terrorist attack on a Russian airport, which is based on the Sheremetyevo International Airport, also near Moscow. For Russian media analysts, the similarities between the “Call of Duty” level and the actual events were too many to ignore and quickly argued that Activision was partly to blame.

I must first confess that I am a gamer and spend time with games like “Call of Duty.” I have played through the level in question and will admit that the imagery is rather disturbing. However, the claim that “Call of Duty” could possibly have any significant influence over terrorist activity or the glorification of war seems rather absurd.

Video games, like those that Activision makes, are a

form of entertainment and nothing more. Why should a video game have any more of a connection to violence in society than a violent film or television series?

Some argue that video-game violence is a much larger problem because of the amount of children that play the games. They cite that a child can play a game, but they are restricted from seeing violent films. This argument is particularly amusing, because you can immediately tell what type of parent an individual is when he or she makes this claim.

A video-game content rating system exists for this very reason. Games with violence like “Call of Duty” have a “mature” rating, which means anyone under the age of 17 should not be playing them. Retailers are not supposed to even sell these games to anyone under the age of 17.

Yet somehow, when my friends and I are up late playing “Call of Duty,” we manage to get cussed out by some kid that sounds like he is still afraid of the monster in his closet. Perhaps if the parents were to take a more active role in moderating their child’s access to media, there would be less of a problem.

Furthermore, the argument that “Call of Duty” glorifies war by making it fun is to misunderstand the medium entirely and ignore the real issues. It is strictly meant to entertain, not educate. I am fairly confident that most gamers, myself included, are aware that there is no truth in their crafting. Any individual that interprets a game like “Call of Duty” as an accurate portrayal of warfare is either far too young in the first place, or he/she had issues way before picking up a controller.

This brings me to my biggest problem with video games being the scapegoat for violence in our society and the glorification of war. To blame games for causing any form of violence in our society takes away from what may be the true causes. Perhaps poor security or discrepancies over foreign policies from particular nations have more to do with terrorist attacks in society today.

Simply, violent people are going to be violent with or without the existence of violent media. I find it difficult to believe the argument that any particular individual has been moved to violence or warfare because of a violent video game. It is no secret that we do indeed live during violent times, and it is imperative we find the causes and a solution, but a first step is to ignore the “‘Call of Duty’ made them do it!” argument.

—Sean Mahoney is a senior in history. He can be reached at smahone1@utk.edu.

Respect necessary at every level of society Lol... wUT? by

Yasha Sadagopan

Zac Ellis

Ally Callahan

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Here’s a little anecdote that I found on some website a long time ago: A professor is giving a pop quiz to a class of students during the second month of class. It happens to be both multiple choice and short answers, so the students are working and they all get to the end before being stumped by one question: “What is the first name of the woman who cleans this school?”

The narrator thinks this is some kind of joke, and vaguely recalls the physique and personality of the cleaning lady, but not knowing the answer, leaves it blank and turns it in. Just before the class is over, a student raises their hand, asking if the last question would count towards their grade. The professor responds that it does, and that in their future careers, they will meet many people — but all are significant, deserving care and attention, even if the only thing that one does is smile and say “hello.” The narrator has never forgotten the lesson, learning that the cleaning lady’s name is Dorothy.

The reason for relating this story is because of a story that my roommate told me about a professor whose class she recently attended. For some reason, the class was interrupted by maintenance people who were bringing in a table, and who had simply been informed by someone to place the table in the class. This professor, who shall remain nameless, had the absolute gall to order these maintenance workers out, treating them with undeserved disrespect, simply because they interrupted his/her class.

Granted, the workers could have waited until the class ended, but perhaps they thought that the tables were needed as part of the class. However, the professor had no right to treat them like vermin and set a terrible example for his/her students (even though they were college students and probably already had a good sense of how to treat people). The professor in question has been very well educated, from many top-notch institutions, but clearly those institutions have failed fantastically in inculcating in him/her a sense of humanity and morality.

Take note: just because you might be intelligent (i.e. privileged enough) to attend a well-established and prestigious institution, this does not give you the right to be a total (insert vituperation of choice) to people who

you perceive to be less successful or inferior. The guarantee of a sheet of paper from an Ivy League university does not make anyone less of a jerk or more of a better person.

The experience that myself and that my friends have had with the workers at UT (maintenance and others) has been nothing but courteous. They not only loft/unloft our beds, they clean our bodily fluids when we epitomize our indiscretions (hung-over freshmen anyone?) and I have learned more from the maintenance staff at Hess about life, love and man’s place on Earth than I have from paid faculty. This either means that the maintenance staff at Hess needs to start teaching our classes, or that something is horribly wrong and that we are paying good money to be taught by egocentric narcissists.

Even though we are in college, working on degrees and attempting to make our way through life, we sometimes forget that without the people who work mundane jobs, we wouldn’t function the way we do. Most of them would not have picked the jobs they work, and they are more intelligent than most people give them credit for. They are sometimes forced into those jobs because of circumstances and sometimes have to live paycheck to paycheck — the least anyone can do is treat them as equals.

The addition of a college degree to a person does not make them more interesting or give them more privileges but simply opens them up to other opportunities that are different from those who have not had the same education. Personally, I would take someone who has had life experience to educate them any day more than I would some know-it-all out of college who thinks that he/she knows everything because some internationally acclaimed professor was their mentor; or better yet, a professor who thinks that they are entitled to respect because of their brains and not the way they treat others.

I think I was most impressed when, at philosopher Noam Chomsky’s lecture at UT last week, some guy made of nothing but utter gumption began to ask him a question that started out with, “Can you hear me, Noam?” His intentions might have been amusing, but the execution was pretty disrespectful. However, Chomsky just brushed it off and answered the question as best as he could, treating the scamp with the respect he wasn’t given. Respect, however old someone is, and whatever their station in life, shouldn’t be optional — it should be universal, and hopefully this professor will learn to respect and treat his/her perceived inferiors the way they deserve to be treated.

—Yasha Sadagopan is a senior in economics. She can be reached at ysadagop@utk.edu.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

ENTERTAINMENT

The Daily Beacon • 5

Student driven by love of music Paramore staying positive after split Former biology major turns passion for music into career Brittney Dougherty Staff Writer Olivia Ellis, a graduate student at the University of Tennesse who is working her way towards a doctorate of musical arts, was lured to campus by a series of music recitals.

Ellis came to UT after graduating from Carson-Newman College in Jefferson City, Tenn. She started her college career as a biology major.

“I signed up for music theory, history and piano lessons for fun but figured out that if I loved music so much, I should make it my career,” Ellis said. She changed majors and never had second thoughts. “I know deep down that this is it; this is what I am supposed to be doing.”

Ellis’ goal is to become a college professor and the graduate student appears to be on her way.

“Olivia is a graduate assistant in piano teaching both class piano and private piano,” Fay Adams, an associate professor of music at UT, said. Ellis is studying under David Northington.

Ellis will graduate in May then head somewhere else for her doctorate.

“I won’t know until March where I will end up next year, but I am excited at the prospect of a new adventure,” Ellis said.

For now, Ellis is finishing up the curriculum required for a master’s in music. She has taken a wide range of music classes and performed by herself as well as with others. A couple of years ago, she had to accompany other musicians as part of her assistantship.

“Accompanying is different from solo performing, because you have the opportunity to collaborate with another musician,” said

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Ellis. To be in sync with the other person is the challenge that comes with accompanying, she said. Ellis has moved on from this part of her curriculum, but she still finds time for it on occasion.

“Pianists do some accompanying, but their main focus is performance,” Adams said.

With performing comes pressure, which can bring stress and anxiety for any musician.

“You can be completely prepared in the practice room, and your body can tell a different story on stage,” Ellis said.

Different people deal with pressure in different ways and Ellis has a variety of remedies.

“I like to give myself pep talks leading up to a performance and have my friends give me pep talks too,” Ellis said. “People who come to my recitals are clearly there to enjoy the music and support me as the performer.”

Eating peppermints right before a performance is another one of Ellis’ tricks.

Ellis decided to pursue a career in something she loved and thinks others should not be afraid to do so as well.

“Figure out early on what you are most passionate about, and follow that path,” Ellis said.

Like all college students, music majors are busy and can get bogged down in all their schoolwork and activities.

“Learn how to be efficient,” Ellis said.

“Blocking out practice time each day in my schedule helps me stay focused and not so short-term-goal driven.”

Ellis will be performing solo on Friday at 8 p.m. in the Cox Auditorium in the Alumni Memorial Building. She will be playing advanced piano music from composers like Beethoven and Scarlatti.

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was crazy,” said Davis. “The venues are growing, and it’s pretty exciting.”

After that, they have cleared their schedNASHVILLE — The members of ules and will be concentrating on making new Paramore are hoping to close out what’s been music. a particularly challenging chapter in the “We just want to take the chance to do anyband’s history on a high note — as Grammy thing we’ve ever wanted to do that we’ve winners. never had time to do,” said Williams. “We’ve They are nominated for best pop perform- always wanted to do an EP. Our fans want us ance by a duo or group with vocals for the hit to do acoustic stuff. We do want to do collab“The Only Exception.” The nomination orations, but I guess we’re just going to let it comes after two of Paramore’s founding unfold itself.” members quit the band late last year.

The Grammy nomination marks a turning Lead singer point for the Hayley Williams band in more said the rest of ways than one. the Tennessee“This year based band is what makes it so staying positive. cool is the fact “Losing memthat we’re nomibers is not a fun nated for a pop thing to go category,” said through, but I Williams. “It’s think that now really cool, we really feel because we’ve unified,” she told always been that The Associated rock or pop-punk Press in a recent band that’s kind interview. “We of a little bit the feel strong, and outcast, not realwe’re going to be ly the outcast, stoked to reprebut sort of on sent Nashville the outside of and represent things. So this our band and our will be awesome fans at the to bridge the Grammys.” gap.”

The split was Williams is less than amicanominated sepable. The band’s rately for best official state• Photo courtesy of paramore.net pop collaborament said that tion with vocals. brothers Josh and Zac Farro had been plan- She sang the hook in the song “Airplanes” ning to leave for a couple months and had with B.o.B. and Eminem. seemed unhappy with the band for the past “I’ve wanted to be ‘that girl’ on a hip-hop year. But ultimately, it wished them well and song for a really long time, and it seems like expressed hope that they would find happi- I sort of landed myself on a track with two of ness elsewhere. The brothers responded to my favorite hip-hop artists,” she said. “Bob is the statement with a scathing blog post, such a great new artist, and he’s young, and largely blaming Williams for dividing the he’s fresh. Obviously, (I’m) so obsessed with band.

Eminem. So, if that wins anything, I'm just Despite the downsizing, Williams, bassist going to be beaming.”

Jeremy Davis and guitarist Taylor York have The platinum-selling band has released big plans for the band’s future. They’re tour- three albums, with hits including “Misery ing South America starting Feb. 16. in Brazil. Business.”

“We’ve only been one other time, but it The Grammys air Feb. 13 on CBS.

Associated Press

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6 • The Daily Beacon

THESPORTSPAGE

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Simmons striving to reach potential under Summitt opportunities she’s earned. Her goals for the remainder of the season include becoming a better defender.

“Defense wins games,” she said.

Staff Writer Before every game Simmons isolates herself. This is Known as “Speedy” by her teammates, Meighan either done standing alone to pray or to listen to her iPod, her song of choice being “Get Back Up” by T.I. and Simmons has Chris Brown. This is already made quite her way to get in the a name for herself zone before taking on Tennessee’s on her usual 6-footcampus as a tall competition. starter for the What makes playLady Vols basketing for UT so special ball team, as she for many of these uses her speed to players is the opporpropel her tunity to play under strength as a coaching legend Pat guard.

For Summitt, Simmons Simmons, basketsaid. ball was something “She just grabs she always knew you and gets you she wanted to do engaged,” she said. from the age of 8, “She’s like another and even at that mother off the early age, she court.” dreamt of coming Tennessee is a to UT to play for powerhouse, and it Pat Summitt. shows based off the As a freshman hard work each playstill deciding er puts in. Simmons between sport sees the program as management and on its way to conpsychology as a tend for another major, Simmons national champispends most of her onship. time working hard Over the next both in the classthree years Summitt room and on the will look to prepare court.

Simmons for the “It is competiTia Patron • The Daily Beacon WNBA, which is tion that motivates Meighan Simmons drives past a Mississippi State player on Jan. 27. something Simmons me,” Simmons She has dreamed about playing for the Lady Vols for much of her is very serious about said. life, and leads the Lady Vols in scoring this season, averaging 14.8 achieving. Players Just being points per game. like Simmons have around her teamno offseason; as mates and Summitt soon as the season is over, it will be time for her to think is what encourages Simmons to perform to her greatest about preparing for next year and start physically potential.

“It’s a major adjustment to know what is expected preparing.

Simmons wants to play and to be held to a very high standard,” she said.

As a kid, Simmons spent a lot of time doing sign lan- overseas during the sumguage and was a cheerleader in second grade. mer in Spain, France or Athleticism runs in her family, as Simmons has two Turkey, which she sees as unique places and she’s cousins who play in the NFL. This season, Simmons has made the most of the interested in seeing them

Katie Cawrse

for herself. Simmons also has plans to visit Dubai and to see for herself if it really is full of rich oil men.

During the little off time actually available during the week, Simmons works just to catch up on sleep and to “chill and take (her) mind off everything just to have a moment to (her)self.”

Simmons loves the water and swimming. She also loves people and having the opportunity to meet others.

Simmons also loves country music and as of right now, she prefers Carrie Underwood.

“I would say she is the best,” she said.

As for Simmons’ future at UT, it looks as to be a bright one. Not only talented and funny, she is both grounded and focused in pursuing her dreams. This may be just the start of great things to come from this freshman from Texas.