On Tap Issue 07 Spring 2013

ON TAPA VSU Student Magazine

ISSUE 07 / SPRING 2013

J. Daniel YoungEDItoR IN CHIEF

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STAFFGRAPHIC DESIGNER

Roberto Leal

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Public RelationsRay Pack

Devin Durham

Writers, Editors, DesignersJessica Cooke

Cathy CarmichaelTerrance JohnsonJames Washington

Jennifer MarlattJohn PreerErin Ellis

Jessica TuggleVon Kennedy

Denise PleasantSteven QuinnKarli Greene

Jennifer MarlattRay Pack

Kendra ZollicofferAshley Jacobs

John Preer

Section EditorsAutumn Sullivan - Straight Up Tasty

James Washington - SportsErin Ellis - What’s Bugging You?

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Deborah HallEmail: [email protected]

Cover page photo credit: Veronica Dominicis

Copy EditorsJenae’ Brew

Starla Monroe

Managing EditorDenise Pleasant

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PhotographersVeronica Dominicis

Devin DurhamJ. Daniel Young

OnTaptable of contents

01 NATURAL HIGH: An or-ganization that sponsors on-cam-pus substance abuse freeactivities.

04 REFRESH YOUR DORMROOM: A green dorm is a happydorm.

06 EXPRESS YOUR-SELF:Fashion sense is one of thosethings that does not come to justanyone.

08 BARTENDER’S PER-SPEcTIvE: Ever wonder whatyour bartender is thinking?

10 STRAIGHT UP TASTY:Some new treats for your tastebuds.

14 PHILIP LEvINE ANDTHE SIMPLE TRUTH: Poetryreview of Levine’s The SimpleTruth.

16 JOURNALISTS: WHAT’SNEXT? Career options for stu-dents nearing graduation.

18 LOvE BUGS: The life andtimes of love bugs.

20 cOMPARISON GAME:“...Five beats one everytime.”

22 RAcE TO THE RING: Bas-ketball insight!

24 BLAZER GARDEN: Allnatural everything!

27 FLAvOR IN YOUR EAR:Some fresh beats for your listen-ing pleasure.

28 SIMPLY DAD: A personalperspective of a Blazer and Fal-cons legend.

32 REMEMBER THE WILD-cATS: A local team’s journey toimmortality.

40 RANT & RAvE: Studentopinions about campus life.

41 RIO DE JANIERO: Be-tween Christ and a marketplace acity struggles for peace.

44 INTERvIEW WITHPOSTMEN: Get to know anewly formed band, Postmen.

45 FROM THE cLOSET TOTHE PARTY: Ladies enjoy anight out with the girls, and theirfavorite place to present theirfashion sense is at a club.

Strange for me to begin this letter by saying goodbye, but it’s my last semester, and I will

be walking the stage toward a different zip code on May 4.

It’s even stranger, considering that this issue began with a discussion last fall on how spring is a time of renewal. We editors spoke about recycling and how we can better impact our environment. We talked about food, relationships and fashion.

This issue encompasses many of these topics and then some.

Von Kennedy’s article about Rio de Janiero reminds us that the renewal of a city’s image sometimes requires growing pains. James Washington goes back to the past in search of

Valdosta High School’s football roots. Jessica Tuggle brings her father’s college career to life in “Simply Dad.”

We learned how to make a new drink, understand what the bartender is thinking, and how to reinvigorate your dorm. We chatted about bugs and what’s bugging you. We visited Blazer’s Garden and brought you a fresh perspective on new music.

We hope that our efforts paid off and you enjoy our magazine. While I may be saying goodbye, On Tap says ‘Hello!’ and will welcome you back in the fall.

J. Daniel YoungEditor In Chief

LETTER OF THE EDITORFarewell!

ISSUE 07 / SPRING 2013 1

Often enough, when someone hears me discussing my student organization,Natural High, for the f irst t ime they give me a confused look. “What kindof organization is that?” they would ask. Their confusion is expected

since the club does sound l ike something a ground of misguided teenagers would participate in. But, i t ’s quite the contrary. Natural High, often abbreviated asNH, is an organization that sponsors on-campus substance abuse free activit ies

NaturallyHigh?

NaturallyHigh?


that offer a posit ive alternative toabusing drugs and alcohol. Substanceand alcoholabuse is arisky behaviorthat occurs in Valdosta on adaily basis andfrequently affects thosewho choose tonot participatein high-riskedactivit ies. Thismeans that i taffects notonly the abuser, but our col lege’s community, campus, and students. The consequences felt from these activit iesare serious and should not be tak enlightly. Arguably, the biggest consequence around the abuse of alcohol and other substances is thepossibi l i ty of injury to either theabuser or to those around them. Thebiggest issue revolving around theabuse of alcohol and substances is therisk of injuryto the abuserand to thosearound them.These injuriescan rangefrom assault ,engaging infist f ights,sexual abuseandparticipatingin unsafe sex,which in itselfis a high-risk activity. Another consequence involves vandalism and property damage, which

can include breaking a table at the baror smashing your own TV. The most

dangerous consequence ofabusing alcohol and substances is driving while in intoxicated. Notonly can theabuser go to jai lfor DUI, they canalso lose their l icense. Most devastatingly,driving while

under the influence has a high pro babil ity of result ing in a fatal caraccident. The purpose of Natural Highis to show students they are able tohave fun in a safe, healthy environment without the use of substances or alcohol.NH has four main events and one special event. The main events involve Game Board Night, Game RoomNight, Movie Night and the newly

added KaraokeNight. NH’s special night isBingo Night. Allevents provideand are f ree to al l active VSU students. Withawareness, NHhopes that ourstudents wil lchoose alternative activit ies, overusing alcohol and

other substances, for having fun.


Game Board Night: This night is usually NH’s most quiet and relaxingnight, unless a heated game of Uno or Taboo starts up. NH members have thechoice to play with a large col lection of board games with their fr iends or fel-low club members.

Game Room Night : The night when the Student Union Game Room is freefor NH members for the duration of the event (roughly three hours).

Movie Night : One of NH’s m ore popular events and it shows a movie thatwas voted on a week prior, via email .

Karaoke Night : NH’s newest event is an open-mic sing fest , meaning, any-one is able to sing any song of their choice. They are free to sing as a soloistor with a group. Most of the t ime, as an icebreaker, this event includes a lotof group singing of Disney songs.

Bingo Night : NH’s biggest event that always has a larg e turnout. This is thenight when VSU students test their luck for prizes we provide. These prizesinclude popular CD’s, newly released movies, a large picture frame, gameboards, school supplies, free pizza cards, and a random blackout prize.

EventsEventsinDetailDetailin

By Catherine Carmichael


Use recycling bins on campusMost colleges have recycling bins placed allaround campus. Instead of dumping your plasticwater bottles and notes from fall semester’s Psy-chology class in the trash can, find a bin! They areusually marked in green, blue and brown colors,and are placed by dumpsters or inside differentbuildings on campus.

Plant somethingDevelop a green thumb by planting flowers or alow-maintenance plant, and let it grow in yourwindow sill. Certain plants (like Aloe Vera or Mar-ginita) can absorb harmful toxins in the air, andwhatever you end up planting will give you astress-free view during final week! See CathyCarmichael’s story on Dorm Window Gardeningfor ideas.

Guzzle water from a reusable bottleTote around a B.P.A free or stainless steel waterbottle. It is easy to clean and does not containBisphenol A, a compound that contains extra hor-mones. Trust me, one reusable bottle looks a lotbetter than having 15 empty Dasani bottles onyour floor.

Turn off the tapSave water by turning off the faucet when brush-ing your teeth and washing your face. “You canalso save up to 8 gallons of water a day simply byturning off the tap while you brush your teeth inthe morning and at night.” (The DailyGreen.com)

Refresh Your

Switch toflourecent

bulbs

Marginita’s absorbtoxins in the air

Ditch plastic anddrink water from an

eco-friendly bottle


Utilize power stripsInstead of strategically placing extension cordsaround your room so every charger reaches anoutlet, buy a power strip. It can have up to sixelectrical sockets and the power strip only plugsup to one socket in your wall. No more tripping onyour way to class!

Decorate with cotton beddingOrganic linen is a plus for us and the Earth. Or-ganic cotton is grown using methods and materi-als that have a low impact on the environment(goodnightnaturals.com). It is great for sensitiveskin and it is hypoallergenic. It is time to finallyget a good night’s rest.

Reuse furnitureWhy buy new furniture for your room when youalready have it from last year? More than likely,that mini-fridge is stored in your garage some-where. Leave space in the landfills for somethingelse. Items like the microwaves, refrigerators,hangers and bedding can be re-used every year. Igo the extra mile and re-use my binders and otherschool supplies as well.

Kick out the artificial cleaning productGreen, eco-friendly cleaners contain few or novolatile organic compounds (VOCs). “VOCs arechemicals in many household products that cancause respiratory problems, headaches and dizzi-ness from short-term exposure”LIVESTRONG.COM). Pick up some naturalbrands like Mrs. Meyers, Method or Simple Greenfrom a nearby store. Better yet, start using natural

A green dorm is a happy dorm Dorm Room

ingredients like lemon, baking soda and vinegarto clean places like your bathroom.

How many college students does ittake to change a light bulbSwitch your regular incandescent light bulbs outfor fluorescent bulbs. The light bulbs emit 70%less heat, provide the same amount of light, andlast up to 10 times lighter. “If every U.S. house-hold replaced just one regular incandescent lightbulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb, itwould prevent 90 billion pounds of greenhousegas emissions from power plants” . (environment.about.com)

Do not waste paperTry to print both sides when printing assign-ments, and only print when needed. Things likethe class syllabus, you can look up online. Askyour professors about emailing them your assign-ments instead of handing them in. Use a laptopor tablet for taking notes during lecture classes.

Denise Pleasant

Leave your binderat home and takenotes on you laptop

Photo Credit : Google.com


EXPRESS YOUR-SELFBy:Kendra Zollicoffer

Imagine a tough, hard hitting, intimdat-ing lawyer who takes no pity on her opponents inthe courtroom. She approaches every day with amindset to win, and an attitude that would intim-idate just about anyone who falls in her line of vi-sion. The most astonishing thing about her is thetailored suit she wears during every appearanceshe makes in court. Sleek and perfectly outliningher form, her attire always compliments her per-sonality and shines to show the world the perfectharmony between her and the material she putson her back. Not only does her choice of clothingperfectly match the setting she is in, but it alsohelps create the illusion of an intense, strong andvery charismatic woman she wants the world tosee. Do you feel that could have been ac-complished if she were wearing a short,silk sundress and nude pumps? No. What alot of people do not understand is the factthat a simple shirt and pants combinationcan be the paint on abody’s canvas, so tospeak. What the world seesyou in gives insight onwho you really are.Would an artist wearclothing indicating thathe or she is a nun? Would a Goth wearpreppy clothing andSperry’s? The state-ment you choose tomake when putting onclothing should be oneso effortlessly loud thatit not only demands theattention of anyone thatpasses by, but immediately shows them the typeof individual they are beholding. Some people may be concerned with the steps ittakes to develop one’s own fashion and do so suc-cessfully.

Fashion ispresent inday-to-day lifeto inspire peo-ple to createtheir own so allyou must do isfind the willwithin yourheart to learnmore about fash-ion, (i.e. readingmagazines, shop-ping online, read-ing blogs, orsimply paying closeattention to your fa-vorite stars). Before

you know it, you will bethat painting confidently strollingby in clothing that best suits you.

There are so many amazinglevels of fashion to choose from inmodern day society; one to fitevery mood, every climate/sea-

son, andpracticallyevery en-counterwith an-otherhumanbeing.When de-velopingyour ownfashionstatement, it is most im-portant to rememberwhat is important toYOU.

There is no needin involving yourself withsomeone else’s interestsbecause you begin toshape and mold your owninterests to match theirs,and let’s just be honest;no one likes a copycat.

“True identificationof fashion sense notonly projects a per-son’s dedication to

looking their best onany occasion, but

also expresses theirability to pinpointthose things that

compliment what-ever setting they arepresent in, while giv-

ing an accuratesummary of their

personality”.


Some styles that a person looking to de-velop their own could consider: preppy, high-end,hip-hop urban street wear, sexy chic, hipster andeven red carpet ready.

It is always around and waiting for thenext person to obtain the beauty it can bring to alife...

A select few understand its depths and ap-preciate its effect on a dull life. The conception ofan eye for fashion takes years to come by, withits necessary decisions and approval of differentfabrics, colors and their schemes, size and evenwhat day to wear a wonderful masterpiece of anoutfit.

Knowledge and consideration for fashionand all of its perks is only for people that cravethe good feeling that comes with purchasing anew Michael Kors purse or watch to accent theiralready “loud” assemble. And they are okay withthe volumes it speaks as they cruise by. The secret ”fashionistas” at heart understandthat in order to be stylish anytime you walk outof the door, you must have knowledge on morethan the current style of the day. You must un-derstand the various types of fashion, andwhich setting is appropriate for each of them.

“Fashion sense is one of thosethings that does not come to just

anyone”.


Bartender’s BluntThe number one rule is to always tipyour bartender. The job may seem in-credibly fun, and that it truly is, but thejob can be incredibly exhausting. Work-ing all the way up till four in the morn-ing making drinks for people who canbarely spell their own name is not theeasiest task on the planet. Most bar-tenders also usually are still in school,and the job is paying for their educationand overall livelihood, so remember tobe courteous. Tipping can also scoreyou a cheaper tab ; repeat tippers almostalways become a usual and have a placewithin that bar they can call their own.Another do is to clean up anything youspill on the bar. This action shows thatyou have respect for their place of work,and it will also usually catch the eye ofthe bartender. The final do is to speakloud and clear. Don’t scream at the topof your lungs, but know what you wantwhen they get to you; get the order to theears of the bartender as soon as possibleso they can serve more customers. Thisaction shows that your respectful oftheir job.

Ever wonder what your bartender isthinking of your actions? Ever go outand ask was I too much the night be-fore? Ever thought everyone has hadtheir night of too much fun? Throughthe eyes of a bartender it really is a dif-ferent world on the other side of the bar.Well now you have a chance to learnwith the do’s and don’ts of how you treatlocal bartenders.

Time to start off with the do’s ofconcerning your bartender. It’s youronly night to get crazy with your friends,and your concerns for other people andthe consequences of your actions haveflown out the window of the taxi takingyou to the bar five drinks ago. Remem-ber that yes, it is a place for you to letloose your ambitions and drive to be asuccessful college student, but it is not aplace for you to lose your manners.


& Honest PerspectiveNow it’s time for the don’ts while beingat the bar. The number one don’t is nottipping. Walking off without tipping isnot only rude, but bartenders talk, andthey will more than likely remember youif you come back another time. If youdon’t tip, don’t expect to be servedquickly at all. Another don’t is beingrude. Bartenders are not your freeslaves for the night. They are the handthat feeds you your good time, so gettinganxious and yelling at a bartender who isbusy serving forty other people is no wayof scoring any sort of quick service. Theway to go about the situation is to holdup your money with an extended arm,don’t shake your arm up and down justwait, but do try to make eye contact. Thebest way to avoid waiting is to be a kindand generous person. The third don’t isto always remember to close your tab.For one, the bar may actually just goahead and charge your card its standardwalk out fee, but it also shows the staffthat you’re irresponsible and most likelycan’t handle your alcohol.

Just remember that a bar is a place ofbusiness, and the people that work thereare trying to make a buck just like any-one else. Although it is a place to let itloose, just remember not every night isyour birthday, and have some barrier tolet yourself know when your actions arecrossing the line.

Easy DrinksDirty Sherley

- 1 part Vodka- 1 part Grenadine - 2 Parts Sprite

Tequila Sunrise- 1 part Tequila- 3 Parts Orange Juice- 1/2 Grenadine

Sea Breeze- 1 Part Vodka- 4 parts Cranberry- 1 Part Grapefruit

Lemon Drop- 1 Part Vodka- 1 Part Triple sec- 1 Part Sour/Lemon Juice


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BerryPaloma with

Minthttp://www.pocotequila.com/tqcocktails/drinks02paloma.htmlhttp://cocktails.about.com/od/embellishments/ss/rm_glass_4.htmhttp://www.tequila.net/faqs/tequila/types-of-tequila-classifications.html


2 oz blanco or reposado tequila

6 oz fresh grapefruit soda

1/2 oz lime juice

3 oz Strawberry Juice

2 drops mint extract

Halved Strawberries, Limes,and

Grapefruit for decoration (optional)

Kosher salt for rimming (op-tional)

Combine the tequila, grapefruit soda, lime juice,Strawberry juice, and mint extract in a separate cup orglass

Stir slightly to mix ingredients

Rim the serving glass(es)with salt

Serve

Wet the rim of the glass by running a lime or grapefruithalf along the edge of the rim

Put salt (or sugar) on a saucer or bowl and dab the wetrim of the glass into the salt while turning the glassslowly making sure only the outer edge is covered

Shake off excess salt

Fill your rimmed glass with desired beverage

DirectionsIngredients

Instructions for Glass Rimming

By: Autumn Sullivan

http://www.pocotequila.com/tqcocktails/drinks02paloma.htmlhttp://cocktails.about.com/od/embellishments/ss/rm_glass_4.htmhttp://www.tequila.net/faqs/tequila/types-of-tequila-classifications.html

T h e P a l o m a i s a r e f r e s h i n g c i t r u s d r i n k k n o w n f a m o u s l y b ym a n y n a m e s s u c h a s : " R e f e s c o d eT o r o n j a c o n T e q u i l a " , " S q u i r t c o nT e q u i l a " , “ S q u i r t c o n C a z a d o r e s ”o r “ S q u i r t c o n H o r n i t o s ” . T h i sd r i n k m i m i c s i t s A m e r i c a n c o u n t e r p a r t , t h e M a r a g a r i t a , w i t h i t s c i t r u s t a s t e ,b u t r e q u i r e s a l o t l e s s h a s s l e t om a k e .. T h e u s e o f e i t h e r t e q u i l a b l a n c oo r r e p o s a d o w i l l g i v e t h e d r i n k a d i f f e r e n t p e r s o n a l i t y , d e p e n d i n g o n h o w s t r o n g o r s w e e ty o u w a n t y o u r P a l o m a . T e q u i l ab l a n c o i s t h e c l e a r a n d u n - a g e d

f o r m o f t h e s p i r i t . T h i s f r o m f r o mo f t e q u i l a e m b o d i e s t h e f l a v o r o f t h e A g a v e p l a n t f r o m w h i c ht e q u i l a i s m a d e , a s w e l l a s i t s s w e e t n e s s . T e q u i l a r e p o s a d o m e a n s t h a t t h es p i r i t i s i n i t s f i r s t s t a g e o f a g i n g . B e -c a u s e t h e t e q u i l a i s a g e d i n w o o d b a r -r e l s , t h e c o l o r i s n o l o n g e r c l e a r , b u tg o l d a n d h a s a m i x t u r e o f A g a v e a n dw o o d f l a v o r i n g . U s u a l l y t h i s d r i n k i s m a d ew i t h o n l y l i m e a n d g r a p e f r u i t j u i c e ,a n d t e q u i l a , h o w e v e r I a d d e d i n t h e s t r a w b e r r y j u i c e f o r t h e s w e e t n e s s t os o f t e n t h e b i t e o f t h e t e q u i l a . T h em i n t a d d s t o t h e r e f r e s h i n g q u a l i t y o ft h e d r i n k . T h e P a l o m a i s a g r e a t d r i n kt o c o o l o f f w i t h o n a h o t S u m m e r D a y .

ISSUE 07 / SPRING 201314 Photo Credit:Jennifer Marlatt


Do you know the simple truth? Well you cancertainly read Philip Levine’s The Simple

Truth to figure it out. Published in 1994, The Simple Truth awarded him the Pulitzer Prize forPoetry. His book pinpoints the ‘simple truths’ ofthe ironic, everyday life in which he lived in the1930s and 1940s in Detroit, Michigan. Althoughthat time frame seems a long time ago, and welive nowhere near Detroit, Levine paints a pictureof truths that cannot be seen through the ordi-nary eye of society. His poetry embodies a societythat seems destroyed, darkened and deserted,similar to the society in which we live today.

Philip Levine writes about the true natureof the working man by depicting the lives of realor fake people, who have taught him simpletruths about life. The simple truths he brings tolife in his book are so simple they almost have noimportance but to the poet or the reader. Levine’sironic imagery in the title poem, “The SimpleTruth” reveal much more than the ‘Polish’ womanwho sold him the potatoes and demanded that heeat, or the ‘pinch of salt’ and ‘wealth of meltingbutter.’ These images are simple and true to oureveryday lives yet they are never spoken aboutbecause Levine writes:

Some things you know all your life. They are so simple and true they must be said without elegance, meter and rhyme, they must be laid on the table beside the salt shaker, the glass of water, the absence of light gathering in the shadows of picture frames, they must be naked and alone, they must stand for themselves.

Levine states the obvious in the previouslines, but he then shifts to the ‘absence of light.’The small things have become repressed bythings that don't matter, and that is what is trulydisappointing to Levine.

Levine ironically shifts the attention towards the reader and asks, “Can you taste whatI’m saying?” Do you taste the ‘onions and pota-toes’ or do you taste the ‘simple truth’ that hasgone unspoken? Because all these simple truthsare so obvious that we do not find any truth inthem at all. Levine brings life to these commonsituations, gestures and items by defining them invery ironic ways. These truths cannot be spokenof because they are all so obvious, he writes:

It stays in the back of your throat like a truth you never uttered because the time was always wrong, it stays there for the rest of your life, unspoken, made of that dirt we call earth, the metal we call salt, in a form we have no words for, and you live on it.

Levine expresses how he and his friendHenri finally discovered this simple truth “beforehe began to kill himself.” Can you taste what he issaying? It’s better to know the truth and die alonethan to not know any truth at all.

I believe Philip Levine has spoken for ageneration of working class people who have trulygone unnoticed. I have thoroughly enjoyed all ofhis books I have read so far, and would advise everybody to read Philip Levine and TheSimple Truth, What Work Is, and News of theWorld. I am a young, college student and I canfeel the same emotions as Philip Levine throughthe poetry he creates, and that is what makes poetry a ‘simple truth.’

Jennifer Marlatt

Photo Credit:Frances Levine


ay 4, 2013 will be a day that remains inthe mind of many Valdosta State

students for the rest of their lives. After a typicaljourney of packing bags, moving away for fourgrueling years of studies,partying, and test-taking(for many, that list hasnot necessarily beenprioritized), students will be tossed into the “realworld” with nothing more than a diploma andthousands of dollars of debt from student loans.

raduation, for many, is viewed as theculmination of a lifelong dream and anastounding accomplishment. It will mark thepassage for many into a world of adulthood thathas never been experienced. As someone whowill be graduating just a short time after thispublication is released, I am filled with more

nervous, mind-wrecking thoughts than when Iinitially stepped foot on campus.

fter constant confusion and numerousmajor changes, I landed onmy true calling of journalism.It allows me to do what I love,which is share my ideas to

anyone willing to read or listen. The world ofjournalism is expanding at an amazing rate.Much of this expansion is due to advances intechnology and social media. Many journalistsmake their living from home, doing nothingmore than discussing current events from theirlaptops.

raduates need not fear, however. Justbecause you major in journalism does not necessarily mean that a career as a journalist isyour only option.

Where is the help?

JourNalists :

“There are opportunitieseverywhere.”

What’s Next?

CAreer OptiOns

“A career as a journalist is your not only option.”

M

G

A

G


There are opportunities everywhere. We are multi-talented and able to entertain manydifferent careers. No need to worry, journalists. Take those degrees with pride; there willalways be a need for us.

Students can also rest on the fact that journalism extendsbeyond a pen, pad and computer screen. A major aspect of journalism sitsbehind the lens of a camera. Photojournalists areable to tell stories that are just as valuable as thereporters that put sentences on paper. Manynewspapers, magazines and other organizationslook to photographers for special ways ofcommunication that cannot be expressed withwords.

Another option for journalismstudents is working as a SportsInformation Director. In this profession,your job is to travel all over your city, state, orcountry (depending on who you work for) inorder to collect information regarding sportingevents and athletes in those respective areas.

Also, you would have the opportunity to coordinatemedia events and coverage for sporting

events.

Many nonprofit organizationsneed grant writers. A grant writer’s job is simple: You are paid to getthe company money. You write grants, grants are approved, and in turn,you receive a paycheck. Journalists have ampleexperience in English, grammar, and creative writingthat can help tremendously in this profession.

Journalismstudents are taughtcountless skills thatare valuable in life.For example,journalists are ableto read and editothers’ writingsamples, which canlead to jobopportunities as aneditor of magazine,newspaper, or bookpublishing company.Newspapers arereleased dailyaround the world,and there arethousands of bookspublished every year.

editor inChief

sports information Director

James Washington

photojournalist

OppOrtunities

Grant Writer


loveBugsWHAT ARE LOVEBUGS?

As the weather begins to heat up, we can expectan appearance from our favorite bugs: Lovebugs.They made their first appearance in Louisianaand from there they migrated across Mississippi,Alabama and Florida; stopping by Georgia ontheir way to South Carolina.

The now Georgia natives appear in largenumbers in April-May and August- September.Lovebugs are relatives of mosquitoes and gnats,which explains where they get their trait ofannoyance from. Unlike mosquitoes, Lovebugs

do not bite or sting.Lovebugs are easily identified by their

black, slender bodies and red thorax. They cangenerally span from 1/3 inch to ¼ inch in length;males being longer than females. In general, they live for three to four days, but malesliving a day longer than females.

These three to four days include finding amate, producing offspring and then dropping offthe food chain. Imagine having only two days tofind a mate and strive for offspring. We wouldhave to find love, get married and

immediately have kids which will set us backnine months.

THE MATING PROCESS

Mating begins with the males choosing amate. They prefer larger, heavier females because they provide better odds of reproducingand mating. As females emerge from the vegetation, males instantly plunge down andseize a female. Males have to act quickly or elsethey lose their chance at the mating partner oftheir dreams.

Love bug mating can be quite competitive.Desperate males will grasp a female that isalready mating with a male in an attempt tointerrupt mating. After finding a mate, the pair

will relax on the vegetation below and finish theirmating process, during which the male faces theopposite direction of the female.

Dogs mate and become stuck together fora few minutes, maybe even hours but Lovebugsare stuck to their mates forever. That is why theyseem like very clumsy fliers. How can you fly withsomeone attached to you going in the opposite

WhaT’s Bugging YOu?TThehe TTragicragic TTaleale

OFOF


direction? Mating Lovebugs are in the Honey-moon phase.

Every time Ihave seen a Lovebug,they have been in theHoneymoon phase. Ithink it would be safeto consider Lovebugs creatures of PDA. Butwith their short life

expectancy, theyhave to exhibit PDAevery chance they get. Lovebugs fly around

in the honeymoonphase, which means they are not afraid to havesex in public places or spread their spawn acrossmiles. They are similar to trees spreading theirpollen everywhere; we all know what pollen is.

LOVEBUGS: STAGES

Female Lovebugs lay from 100 to 350eggs that are deposited underneath debris anddecaying vegetation; this refers to trash, plants,grass etc. After 20 days, the larvae hatch and feedon the decaying plant vegetation. Larvae assumethe role of decomposer by turning the plantsubstance into nutrients that can be used by

growing plants. Once the larvae mature and havestopped feeding on the decomposing vegetation, they pupate.

During the pupal stage, the larvae’s bodybegins to develop the features of Lovebugs. Withhumans, the pupal stage takes place in the womb.

Imagine hundreds of bugs laying from100 to 350 eggs per couple; that is a lot of

Lovebugs. With those odds, I am sure that itwould be somewhat easy to find a mate.

Imagine not beinglucky enough to evenfind a mate. This means that you

either spend your lastdays being sprayed todeath by insecticide,being sprayed by awater hose, beingstuck to the windshield of a car oron a human’s bumper(fender). You could

even be lost to wander someone’s big back yard, until you dropfrom the food chain.

LOVEBUGS AS PEST’S

Besides their tragic love stories, peopleare not quite fond of Lovebugs. When Lovebugssplatter on a windshield, their fatty remnants canmake a windshield unclear, hindering the visionof an unsuspecting driver. They can clog radiatorfins and cause pitting in a car’s finish.

Lovebugs are prey to birds and fungi andenemies to humans and insecticides. SoakingLovebugs with water helps with their removal.Besides clogging radiators, hindering vision ofdrivers and causing pitting in a car’s finish, bugsare actually quite harmless to a certain extent.Will knowing the background story of Lovebugschange our attitude towards them?

Erin Ellis

Photo Credit: ZacharyToday.com


The ComparisonGame

Lately many sports analysts, announcersand fans have been making comparisons be-tween LeBron James and other great players likeKobe Bryant, Michael Jordan and Magic John-son.

Logically these comparisons don’t makesense because LeBron James is unlike any otherplayer we have ever seen. His size, and skill setmake him uncanny to any other player in theworld.

Kobe comparisons to Jordan make sensebecause of their playing style, but Jordan just sohappens to be in another league that Kobe couldnever catch.

Jordan has recently come out and saidthat he would take Kobe over James because“five beats one every time” (referring to theamount of championships they have).

But by that logic, with eleven rings as aplayer amd coach, wouldn’t Bill Russell be thebest player of all time?

My point is that championships matter,but people base too much of their opinion on theamount of championships a player has.

Just because a player hasn’t won a cham-pionship doesn’t mean he is any less of a player.Kobe has 5 rings, but he only has two FinalsMVP awards. Jordan won six championships


and six finals MVP awards. Jordan hasalso never lost an NBA Finals series in his ca-reer.

This puts Jordan on a different playingfield than anyone that theycompare him to in my book.

I wouldn’t even makethe James comparison to Jor-dan or Johnson because youcan’t compare apples and or-anges.

James is a differentbreed, and people need to un-derstand that. He is not ashooting guard like Jordanwas, and he isn’t a point guardlike Johnson was.

He is what they call apoint forward.

Every team doesn’t have someone whocan play the forward and point guard positionso he this makes him a rare luxury.

Don’t get me wrong, Jordan is still the

best to ever play the game of basketball. WhatI am getting at is that James may very well beconsidered the best all-around player ever toplay, and that may add up to being the greatest

player of all-time. Now,this is only of course if hecontinues to get better,but at this point he hasshown no signs of slowingdown.

If I were making ateam today based on play-ers from every era I wouldpick Jordan first withoutquestion.

Next, would beJames, followed by John-son.

Sorry Kobe...

Who would you pick?

By Terrance Johnson

“...Fivebeats one

every time.”-NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jor-

dan, explaining why he would pre-fer Kobe Bryant over LeBron James


Photo Credit:Getty Images

Race ToSan Antonio Spurs have clinched a playoff berth, but are still battlingwith the Oklahoma City Thunder for the top spot in the Western Con-ference it is sure to come down to the wire. Holding a one game leadover the Thunder the last few games mean a lot for the Spurs, but itwill be a challenge with the loss of Manu Ginobili for an extended pe-riod of time and an injury to defensive minded Kawhi Leonard theSpurs are in for a challenge. Tony Parker’s return to the court after amonth long from an ankle sprain looks to be promising for the Spurs,but Parker must return to basketball shape after the long absence.

The Oklahoma City Thunder holds the second spot in the WesternConference fighting to catch the Spurs and take the top spot in theWest. Regardless of anything, the Thunder are the front runners tocome out of the West and make it to the NBA Finals. The developmentof both Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook promises the Thunder a

great run to get a ring. This being their fourth year in a row making the playoffs, last two years in theConference Finals and last year to the NBA Finals, the Thunder are looking to make the next step inbecoming the team to beat in the NBA.

The Los Angeles Clippers is not the team you expect to hear in the top 4 seeds of teams, because oftheir history and them sharing the city with the Lakers, but led by Chris Paul the Clippers are lookingto make a lot of noise in the playoffs. Acquiring Chris Paul and the development of Blake Griffin hasbeen the turning point for the Clipper Organization with highlights and a winning record to match myclaim. With the Lakers dominating the headlines with their dismal play for such a storied franchise,the Clippers have flown under the radar not receiving the proper coverage due to their counterparts.The Clippers have a chance to run the table and possibly come out of the west if the Thunder lose.

The Memphis Grizzlies are a wild card in this Western Conference, due to the lack of a superstarplayer that they traded away for more role players. Thought to be a bad trade by many, the Grizzlieshave improved in defense, but lack someone who can create a shot on his own. They do have some ofthe best two big men in the game with Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph to lead the way with their pun-ishing play on the boards and putting up points for their team also. Gasol coming back from his ab-dominal strain was a great boost for the Grizziles. They hope to make a strong run in the playoffs withGasol leading the way.

Standings:

1. SanAntonio Spurs2. Oklahoma City Thunder3. L.A. Clippers4. Denver Nuggets5. Memphis Grizzles6. Golden State Warriors7. Houston Rockets8. L.A. Lakers9. Utah Jazz10. Dallas Mavericks(As of 4/2/2013)


Photo Credit:Getty Images

The Ring.

The defending Champions Miami Heat is coming into playoff form with theirsuffocating defense and vast amounts of scoring to match. Heat lead by FinalsMVP LeBron James has showed this form with a 27 game win streak leadingup to the playoffs. This is sure to be a great playoff by the way the Heat hasbeen playing. With LeBron on another MVP season and Dwayne Wade as hiscounterpart they are destined for another trip to the NBA Finals. Theirbiggest challenge will be either the New York Knicks or the Indiana Pacers,based on size in the paint, but the Heat have overcome a lot this season to beas great as they are. The Heat hope to win their second title in a row, but itwill not be an easy task to win it.

Carmelo Anthony has lead the Knicks to the number three spot in the EasternConference, with vast contributions from big men Tyson Chandler and Amare Stoudemire they lookto get out of the first round this year. This has been a constant problem for Anthony only being out ofthe first rounds once in his ten-year career in the NBA. This New York Knicks team has the potentialto come out of the East with their three point shooting, great bench, and their defense anchor Chan-dler coming back of a neck injury is a plus for the Knicks. He will be the key to the success of theKnicks and their run in the playoffs.

Indiana Pacers are looking to take the next step in becoming a high-caliber team. With the emergenceof Paul George as a star player on their team, the Pacers have definitely gotten better from the yearbefore. George must step up with the loss of their superstar Danny Granger to a knee injury that willsideline him for the rest of the year. The Pacers have an advantage inside with the presence of 7’2 bigman Roy Hibbert, who has come into his potential over the past two season, and David West they lookto dominate the boards. The Pacers have a chance to make it to the Finals as long as they stray awayfrom the Heat until the third round.

With the move to Brooklyn, the Brooklyn Nets have lived up to expectations with their play and re-ceiving a playoff berth, something they haven’t done in the past 6 seasons. The Nets acquired JoeJohnson from the Hawks to help Deron Williams with the scoring and leadership of the team. Thisproved to propel the team from out of the playoffs to expected playoffs every year. With the new teambeing their first year together, their chemistry is coming into full effect as the playoffs grow near. Theylook to put up a fight, but they must have the right firepower and defense to beat other elite teams.

Standings:

1. Maimi Heat2. Indiana Pacers

3. New York Knicks4. Brooklyn Nets5. Chicago Bulls

6. Atlanta Hawks7. Boston Celtics

8. Milwaukee Bucks

By Ray Pack Jr.


Saturdays are about get-ting dirty at 2229 E Park Ave.

Upon entering the park-ing lot of Mindful Massage andBodyworks, your mind starts towonder if you are in the rightplace. The building is unassum-ing and does not catch the eyeeven though it is facing EastPark Ave. as cars fly down theroad.

On the left side of theparking lot are two young trees(no more than ten years of age),draped over each other that leadvisitors to the land behindMindful Massage and Body-works and to Blazer Gardens.

Soon after exchangingpleasantries, everyone get rightto work.

Blazer Gardens is a stu-

dent organization at VSU dedi-cated to growing food organi-cally using sustainable andpopular methods to promotegardening.

The organization startedthree years ago when studentssaw a lack of available, afford-able and healthy food on cam-pus when students werestruggling.

“As you know prices forfood on campus can range fromseven to eight dollars,” saidBenjamin Veith, senior anthro-pology major and President ofBlazer Gardens.

Former president BobbyHancock came up with the ideato start the garden.

“The best part out this isgiving students the knowledge

ability to choose their food andhow they grow it,” DanielleCostello, Vice President ofBlazer Gardens said. “There area lot of choices that studentsdon t get to make about whatgoes into their food and how itis grown.”

As Benjamin starts tocheck cabbage, Costello buildswooden enclosures for theplants to maintain healthygrowth all while deterring ani-mals.

“You can build a box, sec-tion it off and have crops growninside it,” Costello said. “Thenwe put straw over the dirt in thebox to protect it from erosionand different bugs that couldpossibly kill the crop before itstarts.


Top: Red cabbage grown fromthe winter Garden by DaniellCostello.

Left: Benjamin Veith

Right: Jennifer Veith


The sounds of the nailgun driving through the ply-wood breaks the silence of theambience that surrounds thegarden.

Costello and Veith’s WifeJennifer, who serves as the OffCampus Advisor laugh aboutprevious crops that have failedbecause of the lack of knowl-edge they had when the two firststarted gardening.

Off to the side, Benjaminstands to the side watching asthe two women chuckle and buildsanother enclosure.

has more interest in allnatural foods than the average per-son; because he has one kidney.

Veith lost his kidney in atraining exercise while stationed inCalifornia during his time in themilitary.

“About two weeks in I real-ized that I had a urinary tract in-fection during our three weekexercise,” said Veith. “I tried topush through it, but one day I wokeup very sick with a 107 degree tem-pature. I was medically evacuatedand within a couple of days theytold me my kidney had to go.”

The tract infection hadspread into my kidney and createda kidney infection.

Because of the infectionVeith’s urinary tract pumped tox-ins back into his body.

The damage was irre-versible.

“I’ll never take a chance onmy health again,” said Veith. “I’mmore cautious about my healththan anyone. If I have kids, I wouldnever want them to go through thesame thing I did and that is why Iwill teach them to eat healthy aswell. “

Veith says what goes intohis body is only organic now andadvises other students to continuethe organization initiative andmake this a community garden.

“Community gardens buildpublic relations in the community,it is one of the reasons.

Blazer gardens wants every-one is open to anyone who wouldlike to help or just learn about gar-dening.

Interested students canstop by every Saturday at 10 a.m tohelp out.

For more information andgardening tips, visit Blazer Gar-dens on Facebook at “Blazer Gar-dens.”

Costello and the Veith’s areall seniors and urge underclassmento come out and keep the traditionsgoing.

Left to right: Daniell Costello, Benjamin Veith and Jennifer Veith all do their part to build an enclosure.


Tyga – Hotel California (April 9,2013)

Coming off his sophomore album“Careless World: Rise Of The LastKing”, the Young Money Entertain-ment Artist follows up with his jun-ior album called “Hotel California.”

With the smash hit “Dope” featuring Rick Ross andkeeping the fans intrestered with the mixtapes “WellDone 3” and “187”, and features from Wiz Khalifa, LilWayne, Jadakiss, Chris Brown, Future, 2 Chainz, andthe legendary 2pac promises for good music.

Kid Cudi –Indicud(April 23,2013)

Putting a rockalbum underyour belt with-

Dot Da Genius under the groupname WZRD (pronunced one let-ter at at time), Kid Cudi releaseshis third studio album named “In-dicud” the title was initallythought to be “Man On The MoonIII” becoming the thrid install-ment to the series. This being hisfirst solo album since 2010 thealbum is sure to be Kid Cudi at hisbest with his different approach tomusic and the rhythm he createswith people will promise for agood album. With singles like“Immortal” “Just What I Am” and“Girls” at the forefront of hisalbum including features fromKendrick Lamar, A$AP Rocky,King Chip, and the legendary RZAjust to name a few, Cudi albumsures to be entertaining.

Put Some Flavor In Your Ear!

Other Upcoming Albums:

Chrisette Michele - Better

LL Cool J - Authentic

Eve - Lip Lock

French Montana - Excuse Me French

YMCMB - Rich Gang: Flashy Lifestyle

Snoop Lion – Reincarnated(April 23, 2013)

With his first solo album in 2 yearsthe legendary Snoop Dogg drops“Reincarnated” a reggae albumunder his new moniker Snoop Lion.Snoop traveled to Jamaica studied

the Niyabinghi branch of the Rastafari Movement thislead to the title of the album and he will also be releas-ing a documentaty film also entitled “Reincarnated”showing the culture, explorations and the transforma-tion of his name into Snoop Lion. His lead single “NoGuns Allowed” featuring his daughter Cori B andYoung Money Artist Drake promoted the peace in theworld.

Out Now:

Lil Wayne - I Am Not A Human Being II

Justin Timberlake - The 20/20 Experience

Ashanti - Braveheart

Tyler, The Creator - Wolf

Will.I.Am - #willpower

By Ray Pack Jr.


A heartfelt story of a daughter’slove, affection...and gratitude

A magazine cover commemorating Tuggle’s induction to the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.

(Photo credit: Jimmy Cribbs)

Simply Dad


When football fans think of JessieTuggle, many think of a small-framed, 5' 11",230-pound linebacker who went to ValdostaState College in Valdosta, Georgia.

He is given a great deal of credit as aleader of Valdosta State College’s first-everwinning football season.

In the eyes of Atlanta Falcons fans,Jessie Tuggle is one of the greatest players inthe history of the franchise.

A 14-year NFL veteran, he is known as"The Hammer," a nickname given to mirrorthe impact of his tackles.

He appeared in Super Bowl XXXIII,five Pro Bowls, and his 1,293 tackles led theNational Football League from 1990 to 1999.

He is a member of the VSU Hall ofFame, the College Football Hall of Fame, theGeorgia Sports Hall of Fame, and the AtlantaFalcons Ring of Honor.

But when the game is over, the crowdshave gone, and the helmet and pads come off,I don’t see the numerous accolades that madehim a gridiron legend.

When I look at Jessie Tuggle, what Isee…is simply Dad.

Growing up, I remember spendingmany Sundays in the Georgia Dome. A specialpart of my childhood, this all-day affair some-times included bringing my pompoms or get-ting my face painted 15 minutes prior kickoff.I can also remember being glued to the televi-sion during every away game the Falconsplayed.

My father has influenced, inspired andimpacted my academics from the time I couldread.

He has done the same for my athleticcareer ever since the day I could run. He en-couraged me to try any sport I wanted. Hewas there to congratulate me after every vic-tory and to console me after every defeat.

My father demonstrated a strong workethic on the field and in the confines of ourhome. I remember the many times I would fallasleep in his lap as he spent countless hourswatching film from previous games in order toprepare for upcoming matchups. He studiedthe tendencies of the opposing teams, re-

Photo credit: Jessica Tuggle


viewed what he did correctly, and always learnedfrom his mistakes.

One afternoon, Daddy and I sat down forcoffee in the kitchen and talked about how hiscareer got started at Valdosta State University. I asked Dad what attracted him to Valdosta Stateafter graduating from Griffin High School (inGriffin, GA).

“I decided to attend VSU because of thepeople I met on my recruiting trip,” he said. “Ialso liked the campus."

Dad still teases me about the fact that Iam a student-athlete at VSU. When I was a child,I always told him that I would never go to hisalma mater.

I didn't want to go somewhere that every-one looked at me simply as “Jessie Tuggle'sdaughter”.

Yet, once I visited the campus, I fell inlove with the university for the same reasons hedid.

Next, I asked Dad to recall his most mem-orable moment as a Blazer football player.

He began telling me a story about thesummer before his senior season. The headcoach at the time was Mike Calvin. Calvin was aformer assistant coach at the University of Geor-gia when the Bulldogs recruited Hershel Walker,another NFL legend.

Coach Calvin invited Herschel to speak tothe Blazers football team in 1986.

"I will never forget that moment because[Herschel] was a legend here in the state ofGeorgia," Dad said.

He finished the story telling me that hewas tackling Herschel Walker in the NFL the fol-lowing year.

During the 2012 football season, Dad didnot travel to Valdosta for many games. His son,Justin Tuggle, was playing in his senior seasonfor the Kansas State University Wildcats as alinebacker.

During finals week at VSU, I asked Dad ifwe could drive to Florence, Alabama if the Blaz-ers won (their semifinal game) in Minnesotaagainst the Mavericks (of Minnesota State-Mankato).

“Of course,” he said. Dad described himself as being "happy"

for the Blazers and what they accomplished in2012.

"Being back in Florence, Alabama for theNational Championship was great,” he said. “Noone around the country knew anything about theValdosta State College Blazers in 1983. Afterwinning our 3rd National Championship onESPN, I left Florence so proud to be a Blazer!" I couldn't have said it any better.

"Obviously, it means a great deal to mefor the VSU Blazers to be [three-time] NationalChampions,” Dad said. “There was a lot ofblood, sweat, and tears that helped the programgrow.”He went on to further explain his allegiance tothe Blazer Nation.

“The football program started in 1982,”he said. “I was on the second team ever in 1983,and the first winning team. I feel like I’m a partof VSU history and I am proud of it.”

I am so grateful to have a father like him.Although I may have told Dad I would never at-tend VSU, I am more than honored to go to hisalma mater.

I’ve finally gotten used to people knowingme as “Jessie Tuggle’s daughter,” but I cannotwait to leave my own mark on the campus.

By Jessica Tuggle


Opposite: A photo of JessieTuggle stands in VSU’s Student

Union. (Photo credit: James Washington)

Below: A young Jessica Tugglereaches out to her father at an

Atlanta Falcons game. (Photo credit: Jimmy Cribbs)

“When Ilook at[JessieTuggle],what Isee...issimply‘Dad’...

...I am sograteful tohave a fatherlike him.”

~Jessica Tuggle


Remember theWildcats

How one team made history...overcomingcountless obstacles on and off the field

Valdosta High School’s 1971 Varsity Football Captains:(Top row, left to right) Steve Stanaland, Alvin Payton, Stan Bounds

(Bottom row, left to right) Calvin Lester, Scott Griffin, David Berrian

(Photo Courtesy of Lowndes County Historical Society)


Never underesti-mate the heartof a champion.

Football is a key compo-nent of Georgia her-itage, and much of thatcredit is due to Val-dosta. In their storiedhistory, Valdosta High

School’s football program has won 41 regional,23 state, and six national championships.

Also to their credit, the Wildcats have thedistinction of having the most wins of any highschool football program in the United States.Their 876 wins (through the end of the 2012 sea-son) completely eclipse the win totals of the near-est competition. The closest schools(Washington in Massillon, Ohio and Male inLouisville, Kentucky) stand at 821 wins each.Since their inception in 1913, the Wildcats haveonly suffered five losing seasons.

The Wildcats’ success extends beyond

high school. Only the University of Michigan(903) boasts a football program with more winsthan Valdosta High School, and the Wildcats sitan amazing 145 games ahead of the ChicagoBears, who currently hold the record for the mostwins in the history of the National FootballLeague (731).

Here in Valdosta, named “Titletown, USA”by ESPN in 2008, many look at the history of theWildcats and choose only to highlight their acco-lades.

No success, however, comes without ob-stacles.

From 1968-1970, the Wildcats went on astreak of 36 wins, zero losses, and one tie. How-ever, after the team lost a great deal of players tograduation, many people chose to write the teamoff as an early failure. They were projected tofinish the 1971 season with a 5-5 record and missthe playoffs.

Calvin Lester, 59, played guard for the ’71Wildcats.

The “Titletown, USA” trophy, surrounded by Valdosta High School’s six na-tional championship football trophies.

(Photo credit: Jefferies Eldridge)


“I was a ‘pine-rooter’...Kidsnowadays call ‘em ‘bench-

warmers’.”-Calvin Lester

During his junior year hebarely saw any time on the field.

“I was a ‘pine-rooter’,” saysCalvin. “Kids nowadays call ‘em‘benchwarmers’.”

After the 1970 Wildcats fin-ished their season one game shortof a state title, young Calvin took itup on himself to motivate the team.

He credits one particularpost-game speech as a major rea-son behind the soon-to-be successof the 1971 team.

“There were seniors cryingon the bus,” says Calvin. “That wasthe only game that those guys lostin their high school careers. I toldthe rest of the team that we had towin a state title for them.”

Frank Lester, 61, is Calvin’solder brother. He played defensiveend for the Wildcats during the1970 season.

“I never would have thoughtthat [Calvin] had a leadership genein him,” says Frank. “He alwayscame across as the type that fol-lowed along. But I learned a lotabout my brother that year.”

The team opened the seasonin impressive fashion, only allow-ing 22 points in their first fivegames, including two shutoutsagainst Thomasville (49-0) andBainbridge (28-0).

According to Calvin, the firsttrue test of the season would comein week six.

“We were lookin’ at ColquittCounty that week,” says Calvin. Iknew we had our work cut out forus.”

Once again, in the fashion oftrue leadership, Calvin took charge.

“Normally, after practice, thecoaches would make us run astraight sprint to the lockerroom,” says Calvin. “I told thecoaches and the team that onesprint wasn’t gonna cut it.[Colquitt] will run us ragged ifwe don’t prepare.”

Sure enough, in theirfollowing battle against thePackers of Colquitt County,the Wildcats faced their stiffest

competition, going into thefinal quarter of the game tiedat 21.

It could have been theextra sprints from practice. Itcould have been sheer will. Inthe end, the Wildcats cele-brated a 42-21 victory over thePackers.

The rest of Valdostasaw the Wildcats’ victory as aregular game.


there was an equal, if not greater,struggle taking place within theschool.

Valdosta High School wasfully integrated in 1969 and, as ex-pected, not everyone welcomed thechange.

Calvin recalls many painfulmoments from his experiences withthe team.

“Bringing [Black students]over from Pinevale didn’t do muchfor us,” he says. “We might havebeen playing together, but at theend of the day we still went to sepa-rate locker rooms.”

During the fall of 1969, ru-mors began circulating thatthe vot-ing was being fixed to prevent aBlack student from winning Home-coming Queen.

“Soon as word spread, we

1971 National SportsNews High School Football Rankings

1) Valdosta (GA)2) (Tie) Tulsa B.T. Washington

(OK)2) (Tie) Alexandria T.C.

Williams (VA)4) Tennessee (TN)

5) Pittsburgh Kiski Area (PA)6) New Orleans Brother Martin

(LA)7) East Waterloo (IA)

8) Warren Harding (OH)9) Chicago St. Rita (IL)

10) San Antonio Lee (TX)

The Valdosta High School 1971 Varsity Football team. (Photo credit: Lowndes County Historical Society)

The team saw it muchdifferently.

It was their win overthe Packers that finallybrought their potential intoperspective.

“It was that game thatmade the guys realize what Ihad been sayin’ all along,”says Calvin. “In that finalquarter, we finally understoodthat wehad what it took to bechampions, and there was nolookin’ back after that.”

The team continuedtheir dominance on the fieldin astonishing fashion.Coached by the legendary

Wright Bazemore, the teamforever etched their namesinto the record books with anundefeated season (13-0),capped with a 62-12 victory inthe state championship gameagainst Avondale.

To add to their credit,their season total of 629points stood as a Georgiarecord for 23 years.

The team’s success, ac-cording to Calvin, came from“a perfect blend of speed,quickness, and rugged mus-cle.”

For all the success thatthe team saw on the field,


the school integrated in 1971.When Valdosta High

School was named the Na-tional Champions that year,T.C. Williams tied for secondplace in the final polls.

According to the film,the Titans dealt with racialtension from society, fellowplayers, and even coaches.

Through it all, the Ti-tans banded together and fin-ished the season undefeated.

However, at the end ofthe day there can only be onenational champion.

“Everything that theywent through, we had done ittwo years prior,” says Calvin.“1971 was ours because ourworst year was a memory. Theonly real difference I saw be-tween them and us was thattheir head coach [Herman

Boone] was Black.””While the movie re-

ceived critical acclaim, the na-tional response in 1971 wasquite opposite.

“We had never evenheard of them,” says Calvin. “Ididn’t know anything aboutthose guys until I saw themovie. I thought, ‘Why notus?’”

Calvin Lester and histeammates will forever hold aspecial place in Georgia his-tory.

Football fans have afeature film to help them re-member the Titans. In SouthGeorgia, fans, former players,and loved ones have their ownmemories to remember the1971 Wildcats.

By James A. Washington

Valdosta Wildcats1971 Football Schedule

Thomasville (W, 49-0)Dougherty County (W, 47-7)

Crisp County (W, 49-7)Bainbridge (W, 28-0)

Albany (W, 41-8)Colquitt County (W, 42-21)Albany Monroe (W, 75-22)Albany Westover (W, 47-6)

Tift County (W, 60-28)Lowndes (W, 40-0)

Warner Robins (W, 35-6)Lucy Laney (W, 54-20)

Avondale (W, 62-12)

fixed that,” says Calvin. “A lot ofthe Black players walked out on theteam. We knew they wouldn’t playwithout us.”

In 1971, Calvin was named ateam captain.

This appointment also cameunder controversy.

After three Black playerswere chosen as team captains, thecoaches appointed three Whiteplayers for racial balance.

“Coach [Bazemore] knewthat the boosters wouldn’t acceptthree African-American captains,”says Calvin. “We had to reach acompromise, and that’s why wewere the first team in ValdostaHigh’s history to have six cap-tains.”

To add insult to injury, 1971marked the first year that the Val-dosta Daily Times did not feature acaptains’ lineup or photo in thenewspaper.

“I told everybody to belookin’ out for that [newspaper],”says Calvin. “But when it came out,we were nowhere to be found.”

Before the season, the Wild-cats were overlooked. In the end,their efforts resulted in theirtwenty-third regional, fifteenthstate, and third national titles.

Years later, a story similar totheir own was made into a movie.

Ironically, not only was themovie not about Valdosta, theWildcats weren’t even mentioned.

Released in 2000, Walt Dis-ney’s Remember the Titans tellsthe story of T.C. Williams HighSchool in Alexandria, Virginiaandtheir battles with racism when


Valdosta High School’s Varsity Offense.(Photo credit: Lowndes County Historical Society)

Valdosta High School’s Varsity Defense.(Photo credit: Lowndes County Historical Society)


Valdosta High School Head Football Coach Wright Bazemore with Rick Petersonduring a game in 1971.

(Photo credit: Lowndes County Historical Society)


Calvin Lester (left) and his brother, Frank, in November 2012. (Photo credit: James Washington)

Calvin Lester poses for his Senior footballphoto in 1971.(Photo credit: Lowndes County Historical Society)


I love that VSU offers art exhibitions, plays andrecitals to us for free, or at cheaper prices

than the real world.

Juniors are not allowed to register for senior classes unless they have 60 credits. I had59 credits and I had to wait nearly an entire semester before I could get registered. I think that'swhat's getting everybody behind on their graduation schedule.

There are so many student organizations to joinon campus that anyone can find a place where theybelong. I appreciate that.

Overall, I like Valdosta State but one problem thatwe do have is with the parking. With the new semester they implemented a new rule where there’sless parking for students on campus. Now there’smore parking for students off campus. Students that parked in the Oak Street parking lotnow have to park in Centennial and Sustella.That makes it harder for students in Centennial tofind actual parking spots. I really think they shouldreally do something about that.

The stores on campus--Langdale Market andSustella Market--are really convenient if youdon’t have a car. It’s nice that they actually have realfood and not just snacks.

We need a sub place on campus! All of these fastfood places on campus are going make us gain the"freshmen 30” instead of the "freshmen 15."

I think we should have designated areaswhere you smoke because I don't want tosmoke, I don't want to smell it and I shouldn't have to. But if you want to smokeand get cancer, that's your business.

The architecture has so many little details that nobody notices except for meand a few other people. I really appreciatethat about VSU.

The shuttle buses should have a set timeevery day. There are so many drivers butwhen you go out in the middle of the day,you see three or four shuttle buses sittingthere with nobody driving them. You have towait forever on a shuttle bus especially ifyou’re going to north campus with the redshuttle bus; you have to wait like, 20 minutes. I find that completely ridiculous.

It's awesome that we get free entranceinto sports events just by showing ourVSU I.D. I've been able to experience all thesports events VSU has to offer.

I’m tired of seeing people walk around withtheir pants hanging down. If I wanted tosee your underwear, I’d be dating you. Iwish we could pass a law that would allowme to tase you if your drawers are showing.

There are a number of English Professors that are amazing teachers andfriends.

What’s Bugging You?

Rant & Rave

Erin Ellis


A view of Complexo da Mare, a slum neighborhood in Rio de Janiero, Brazil. These neighborhoods are very violent be-cause of wars between heavily armed drug traffickers.

Sunny skies, vast beaches, smiling patronsare some of the ideal features of a person’sdream vacation destination. Add a statue of

Jesus overlooking the city from the mountaintops and you have arrived in Brazil’s secondlargest city, Rio de Janeiro.

This coastal town may be the luckiest cityin the world because it is soon to host the 2014World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games, but tragi-cally Rio has been the host nation of murder andsocial injustice for many years adding definitionto the phrase “ethnic cleansing.”

According to the Overseas Security Advi-sory Council or OSAC, a subgroup of the U.S De-partment of State’s Bureau of DiplomaticSecurity, Rio de Janeiro has been labeled “criti-cal” in its crime rate for the past 25 years. Dangertends to follow any foreign tourists who are visit-ing the city. Criminals are not afraid to use deadlyforce to achieve what they want from others.

Imagine the imminent danger for the lo-

cals as construction continues to make the WorldCup and Olympics a success, problems persistthat must be addressed immediately.

Rio’s major problems in the city as it getready for the events in the coming years aregangs, corruption, poverty and power.

Nearly all of these dilemmas can be tracedto favelas, or slums that surround Rio’s hilltopsand are home to millions of residence. There areover 100 favelas and most are ruled by tightly or-ganized drug traffickers and the gangs they em-ploy.

These slums are important because theyovercast the rich, upper class coast and down-town areas that will be central to hosting two ofthe world’s largest international events. These gangs terrorize the residence in these lowlyareas and systematically rob, torture and killwhoever decides to oppose their occupation inthe areas.

How can you ensure the safety of athletes,when they can see murder and destruction from

Photo by: MCT Campus


their hotel windows? To combat the problems inside the favelas,

the local government in Rio has created a a spe-cial task force to handle the chaos in the poorneighborhoods and “pacify” the violence inpreparation for the upcoming events that willhave the city in the world’s spot-light.

The Battalion of SpecialPolice Operations, also known asBOPE have deployed pacificationefforts to ride the areas of thedrug lords and the terror theyspread. Since 2009, BOPE hassuccessfully taken over 20 fave-las, plan to overtake 20 moreand are looking to have the restof the favelas pacified before the2016 Olympics according to a re-cent article in the Rio Timesnewspaper.

BOPE has been active indriving out criminals who beenin the slums and are responsiblefor numerous arrest with thehopes of keeping the violencedown or eradicating it all to-gether.

The team announceswhich favelas they are coming tobeforehand to intimidate drugtraffickers, but in essence, thisgives the gangs ample amount oftime to pack up their operationsand leave or cease the violencefor the time being.

Large drug traffickinggangs such as the Red Command(Rio’s largest and most deadliest) and Amigos dosAmigos (“Friends of Friends”) have been pacified.

In 2012, the murder rate dramatically de-clined to 10.9% only reporting 1,784 murders. An8.3% decrease from 2011 when in only fivemonths, the city saw 1,945 homicides accordingto an article on insightcrime.org.

While gangs are silenced, BOPE will alsosupport government efforts to get much neededprograms and health clinics into the areas thatwere once impenetrable by police.

In a TIME Magazine article written in 2011

by Andrew Downie, one resident describes thechanges since the favela has been occupied.

"I've been here 43 years, and I've neverseen it as good as it is now," says resident EuniceMalta. "Before it was not life, I would stand hereand a gang would come by shooting at everything

that moved. Now my kids comeand go as they please."

Sounds like a happy endingto gruesome tale, but not so fast.In some areas that have not beenreclaimed by BOPE, gangs are be-coming stronger by banding to-gether in order to fight back withferocity toward the special opsgroup.

Militias, gangs comprisedcurrent and former police, fire-men, soldiers and security guardsare taking over where the drugtraffickers have left resulting inmore deaths of innocent civilians.

Poder Paralelo or “ParallelPower,” is a term used to describeareas that are neglected by theBrazilian government and are out-side the protections of the legaljustice system. These areas atopthe hills, not reclaimed by BOPE,where lawlessness continues.

Tim Lopes, a renowned jour-nalist for his investigative reportsin Rio was brutally beaten, stuffedin a trunk, tied to a tree, had limbssevered, and was then set on fire,all while alive in one of the areasknown for its parallel power in Rioin 2002.

Some gangs and militias have bribed cor-rupted police officers to continue to deal drugsand slaughter mass amounts of people.

BOPE themselves have been indicated inextrajudicial killings of people by the organiza-tion Human Rights Watch.

Congressman Marcelo Freixo started aneffort to end corruption in both law enforcementand government. According to BBC News, his ef-forts led to the creation of the 2010 film, “Tropade Elite 2” which identified ex law enforcementofficials who are now in militias.

Photo by: MCT CampusRio de Janeiro's policemen take cover andanswer fire after being attacked by drugdealer.


These militias run services such as gas,water and alternative transport in slums, as wellas charging protection money and ruling with vi-olence and fear.Freixo also followed a long money trail connect-ing a local government offi-cial to collusion withcriminal organizations andresulted in 225 convictions.

Because of his ef-forts, Congressmen Freixohas been exiled to an undis-closed location in Europe bythe group Amnesty Unitedsince a $230,000 price wasplaced on his life.With all of these violentkillings and intimidationtechniques still occurring(now by current and ex lawenforcement), how couldthe murder rate decrease sorapidly?

A recent HBO docu-mentary offered to share asurprising theory.

In the documentary,Witness: Rio, photojournal-ist Enos Hoagland tries toanswer this very question.

Since the murderrate has went down, a crimescene investigation taskforce has been enacted tofollow up on every homicidein the city and comparetheir findings to the mur-der rate that had been re-ported. Yet before they canmake it to crime scenes inthe favelas, bodies have dis-appeared from crimescenes.

The documentarysuggests that in order tokeep the murder rate down, police are removingbodies from crime scenes in order to keep themurder rate in Rio in decline to the public.

So even though the murder rate hassharply declined in the last year, the missing per-

sons rate in Rio has nearly tripled just as fast. And as long as the murder rates are low,

the government will not provide answers to thequestion of why are so many people missing?

To add insult to injury, favelas that areclosest to the downtown Rioareas, a sense of “urban re-newal” is beginning. In themovie, the government is forc-ing families out of their homesand demolishing their homes ata rapid rate in order to cash inon the new and “safe” real es-tate.

Some families are fightingfor their right to stay, but manyothers have been forced to moveother areas of Rio or to otherfavelas that are not occupiedand unsafe to be in because ofthe gang presence.

Pushing these people into in-secure areas and squalor onceagain is not right ethically in myeyes and can cause more inno-cent people to be caught in theline of fire.

Christ the Redeemer, a 100foot tall monument dedicated toJesus of Nazareth overlookingthe city can only provide a sym-bolic gesture of peace to thepeople of Rio de Janeiro. Every-one else has to do their part tomake it happen.

When you think of genocideand ethnic cleansing of disen-franchised communities, manythink of Kosovo in the 1990’s,but more recently, Joseph Konyand Muammar Gaddafi. For thesake and unity in which the 2014World Cup and 2016 Olympicsrepresent, let us not add the peo-ple of beautiful Rio de Janeiro

because of gangs, greed and power.

Christ the Redeemer, a 100 foottall monument dedicated to Jesusof Nazareth overlooking the citycan only provide a symbolic ges-ture of peace to the people of Riode Janeiro. Everyone else has todo their part to make it happen.

“

”


Interview with

PostmenIn an interview I did this past weekend I met with the newly formed band Postmen. I foundthe two gentlemen to be quite well - educated, but also witty and humorous bringing a strongpersonality to such a newly formed group. Led by vocalist/guitarist Jake Post and Micah Leonwho both attend Valdosta State, you may know these two from the fraternity Pi Kappa Phi, buttoday I had a one on one conversation about their one true love, playing music. The style Ifound to be quite different, and their personality the band seems to bring to the table will issomething that will definitely draw people’s attention, while also bringing something new tothe table.

How long have you guys been playing to-gether?

“We’ve just started playing shows for aboutthree months, but we’ve been planning itsince about I’d say April of 2012, but I’vebeen on stage since I was fifteen” (Post)

Where have you guys performed so far?

“We really have just gotten our name at theirby playing at a few parties, and then we got agig at Flip Flops. It was really awesome a lotof our friends came out to support us. It got alittle crazy, but that’s really what we werelooking for. (Leon)

What kind of genre would you say your bandis?

“We play acoustic, bar songs mostly, a lot oftop forties stuff, and even a little hip.” Postalso later said, “if you like pop you will likeus.” (Post)

Why hip hop?

“People love hip hops songs when they areplayed acoustically, it really gets the crowdgoing, and everyone could sing along. Imean that’s what we really want is for peo-ple to sing along.” (Post)

What’s the Main Purpose for the Postmen?

“Well we want to just have fun, and playmusic, and also we want to look cool. Youknow though it’s more of a hobby for methat sometimes I get paid for it. ” (Post)

“We’ve been working really hard and arejust looking for some venues to really getour name out their because I feel that wereally have something going for this band,and knowing that I think we all are defi-nitely more than capable of putting in thework to get there.” (Leon)

Steven Quinn


Ladies enjoy a night out with the girls andtheir favorite place to present their fashionsense is at a club. Spring is the ladies’ fa-

vorite time to hit the club scene because it givesthem a chance to express a chic look in extrava-gant colors.

The outfit choices vary between showing offlong legs in shorts, body dresses, or fitted skirts.VSU sophomore. Eboni Greene favors a shortdress and open toe heels or wedges. “It gives a lady a chance to show off her vibrantcolor toes and long legs, shorter fitted dressesand high heels help the shorter ladies’ legs look alittle longer ,” Greene said.

Although there are numerous ways to put to-gether an outfit, does color during different sea-sons matter? Of course! Pastels and white aremore for the spring since it’s more of a bright and

warm season. “Darker col-ors attract heat, and theclub scene is already com-pacted along with warmweather, therefore, it’smeant more for the winterand fall,” VSU JuniorRichara Goss said. There are different typesof hang out scenes besidesthe club, however.Today’s generation we’veadapted small get-togeth-ers, “kickbacks,” and thenthere are the Greek houseparties. Fashion thentakes on a different direc-tion: ladies are alwayscautious and aware whenit comes to a party loca-tion.

For the kickback scene ismore of a comfortable place to wear anice shirt in pastel, shorts (ripped ordenim) with wedges, sneakers, or

strapped-sandals. “I believe ingoing for a more flirty look but verysimply and comfortable,” Gossadds. On the other hand, the club scene is

a little different. It resembles a red carpet event;the ladies are pulling their best creations, se-quences, prints, and mixed colors. Since there is a lot of dancing and movement, it’ssuggested to sport bottoms that don’t rise (leg-gings, pants made of a flexible material).

The options of tops vary from a crop top (bellyshirts) in suggested colors of white, peach and abright blue, or tank tops and full shirts in thesame suggested colors. “Peach, white, and like asimilar turquoise blue are like the most popularpastels,” VSU sophomore Shaquana Brooks said.

Accessories are like the finishing touch, andlike the icing on the cake, you never want tooverdo it! When attending a kickback, you are ina spacious area where it can be comfortable, sowear simple hoops or dangling earrings with ei-ther a fashion bracelet or casual necklace to top itoff.

NEVER wear too much dangle, if you’re goingto wear long earrings, scrap the necklace and fin-ish it off with a bracelet. Yet theclub scene consists of a largercrowd and can possibly get un-comfortable, which means youwould want to avoid tangling,breaking, or losing a piece of ac-cessory.

Wear hoops or studs with anecklace that doesn’t extend toor past the chest. “I like todance, so for the ladies thatenjoy vivacious movementshould definitely wear acces-sories that won’t fling whilethey’re dancing or break easily,”Brooks said. Any typical partynight is a girl’s fashion show, sobrighten it up and make it beau-tiful!

From the ClosetT o T h e P a r T y !

Photo Credit; Jessica Cooke

“I believe in goung for a flirty look butvery simple and comfortable”, said Goss.

Photo Credit; Jessica Cooke

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ISSUE 07 / SPRING 2013Valdosta State University

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On Tap Issue 07 Spring 2013

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