February 13, 2009 Volume 115 Issue 16

Read the State of the College Address in its

entiretysee page 3

J e n n i f e r s t u l lthe sandspur

L au r a H a r dw i c k e

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N i c R a m o sthe sandspur

Courtesy of Chase JenningsUNSANITARY: Residents of Rex Beach faced health risks as sewer water flooded the halls when drain-age and pipe problems arose.

See Germain’s Address, page 3

See Diverse discussion, page 3

See Plumbing problems, page 3

Panelists lead discussion about conflict in Gaza

Sewage floods Rex

State of college addressed

As we all know, not every dorm on the Rollins campus looks as glamorous as Ward. In normal dorms, the floors are carpeted, the bathrooms smell, and the temperature of a room really depends on the temperature outside. However, there are certain expectations that students have that should not be considered outrageous such as a roof, a bed and floors without sewer water.

While the third request may seem rather specific, it was a serious problem that the residents of Rex Beach Hall were faced with at the end of last week. According to facilities, there was a clog in the pipe somewhere between the second floor of Rex and the third floor. The cause of the clog is unknown, but the result was an overwhelming toilet overflow of sewage that took over the bathroom and then flooded the entire hall and some rooms of the second floor.

With the presidential fervor at its peak, and the unfolding of a strange chapter in Rollins College’s student life, Student Government Association President Marissa Germain fittingly called fellow students to a State of the College Address on Friday February 6.

Students gathered on Mills Lawn to hear Germain speak. The chairs set up for the event were only filled to three quarters capacity. Attendees ranged from active college faculty and student leaders. Among the crowd was senior Salem Willis, who was taken aback by the lack of students at the address. Willis says “I wish more students came, or at least to SGA meetings which are all open to the student body.”

Introduced by President Lewis Duncan, Marissa stepped up to a podium, standing tall in front of the Mills building. The setting reflected the locally famous scene in “Sydney White” where Amanda Bynes does the cinematic equivalent. Germain sought to address the college about the stage of transition that has fallen upon Rollins.

Germain’s speech began with typical morale boosters—allusions to the nation’s new presidency, as well as recollections of athletic victories of the year. However, the serious nature of the State of the College Address was not ignored. Germain dove into the three current weaknesses of the student body.

First, she commented on the lack of an informed student body. Germain lamented over the compartmentalization on campus, specifically in separate student organizations. She was clear and concise, asserting that the students only have themselves to blame.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a dispute that has been ongoing for several decades, yet in recent history,the conflict has become particularly tumultous. This past December it once again escalated into violent military conflict. After eight days of rocket air strikes, the Israelis decided to do an amphibious invasion into Gaza. Both Palestinians and Israelis feel threatened by the other side, and although no real solution has been worked out to end the attacks on Gaza by Israel, the international community has been in protest over what they feel are crimes against humanity.

Christians, Jews, Muslims, Arabs, Europeans and many other groups of people came together around the world to show that this was an issue on humanity and not of politics or religion, as many people characterize the problem. Last week the Society for a Just Peace in Palestine held a discussion panel on the current conflict in the Middle East. The organization wanted to spread awareness as well as create understanding about the issue.

“Our purpose was twofold: to engage the campus in meaningful discussion about the events, and to ensure that people do not rely solely on biased media for their information,” said Fatema Kermalli, the president of the organization.

The event was open to the public and lasted two hours, which included a question and answer period.

The seven panelists presenting were diverse, ranging from a former member of the Israeli Defense Force, to a local Rabbi, to a Jewish advocate for peace in the region.

“Our main concern with the panel was simply to balance the views that would be presented, because the only way to find the truth is to listen to both sides of the story,” said

Not only did this event stop all plumbing within the building for several hours, it uprooted students from their rooms, and posed a serious health concern for the building’s residents. Students in Rex Beach, particularly the boys living on the second floor, had several opinions on the matter of how the situation was handled.

Resident Charlie Jicha said, “The people who worked to correct this situation did their best, but this whole situation could have been avoided. I found it very obnoxious that as a dorm we had to fight for a new carpet and that it took a week for the dorm to get somewhat back to normal. I still appreciate all the work that people put into this, and that all the residents were not forced to move.”

Earlier this past week a meeting was held in the common room of Rex Beach for residents, members of Res Life and maintenance. During the meeting, questions were answered regarding the health risks and what was going to

be done from that point about the ongoing smell and molding prevention. Leon Hayne of Res Life said, “That night [of the flood] when maintenance came out for the second time, they were able to unplug that pipe; there are no more drainage issues or pipe issues. Any residual issues have been resolved also. The carpet on the second floor and the tiles on the first floor that were affected have been replaced.” Hayner goes on to say, “The air quality tests that were done came back showing little to nothing wrong with the air.”

However, while Res Life has done a thorough job of cleaning Rex Beach, there was an issue that maintenance had been called previously about plumbing issues, yet little had been done. Hayner responded to this by saying, “There had been a call earlier about some water overflow.

Are you a lover or a hater on Valentine’s Day?see pages 6-7

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Rollins College is notori-ous for its student population that resides in the New Eng-land area of the United States. Could the popularity be due to the small classroom sizes or the wide range of academia? Yes and No. Most northerners want to come to Florida for the weather. Florida is, after all, the “Sunshine State.”

A normal year in Florida consists of warm weather in the spring, hot and humid weath-er in the summer, hurricane storms in the fall and bright and sunny during the holiday season. This year, however, has been one of the longest winters in Florida. The nights got down to a staggering 20 degrees and freezing.

Luckily, Rollins students were prepared and had their winter coats, because everyone on campus was bundled up from head to toe from the end of December to the beginning of February. A student from Professor Eng-Wilmot’s ‘Chem-istry and Society’ class even made the smart alick comment “Where’s the Global Warm-ing?”

From here it can be said that Florida is a very unpredictable state. One day could be beauti-ful, then it might rain and the next day it could be freezing. It was during the freeze spell in Winter Park that the week of February 3 was acknowledged

as Florida’s Hazardous Weath-er Awareness Week.

The National Weather Ser-vice activated a Tornado Warn-ing on Wednesday, February 4, between 10:10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. This drill was performed in order to test the state-wide warning systems that are cur-rently in place through local ra-dio and television stations.

Along with local commu-nication, the City of Winter Park has another emergency notification system called OUT-REACH. This system’s features include convenience of emer-gency contacts to cell phones, along with alerting benefits of outdoor voice and siren devic-es.

Found on the City of Win-ter Park’s website, www.cityof-winterpark.org, it describes the system further saying, “Use of mediums such as landlines, cell phones, e-mail, text messaging, FM radio and pagers, as well as outdoor sirens for those who may not have access to these devices are all offered through this system.”

The ad-vantages of these out-door warn-ing sirens are that they a n n o u n c e i m p o r t a n t w e a t h e r m e s s a g e s within the community when large groups of

people need to be directed to seek shelter or evacuate an area. The outdoor siren system of Winter Park’s procedure was tested on February 7th at noon, and will be tested on the first Saturday of each month as reg-ularly scheduled.

The OUTREACH program has and will be an essential tool to use in the case of a weather emergency. The number of tor-nadoes recorded in 2008 was far more than previous years, according to a Chicago Tribune tally. There have been more winter tornadoes in January and February of 2008, than the combination of 2005, 2006 and 2007.

Also, with the amount of hurricanes that came through Florida during 2005, OUT-REACH would have probably been used many times during that hurricane season. To re-ceive alerts from OUTREACH, anyone can register and com-plete an information form on the City of Winter Park’s web-site.

February 13, [email protected]

CorrectionsRollins Capoeira Club update:

“The Rollins Capoeira Club would like to acknowledge Capoeira Brazilian Pelourinho under Mestre Lazaro Santos for helping establish the club on campus, and to thank Mestre Lazaro for sending instructors every week. “More information about CBP is available at http://www.capoeirabrazilpelo.net/ or call 407-692-6505.”

Florida weather unpredictable

FREAKY FAST DELIVERY!

1340 ORANGE AVE.407.644.0055

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s t e p h a n i e e l l e n b u rg

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When I first met No-bel Laureate Derek Walcott on Wednesday February 4, we were making our way to the Cornell Fine Arts Mu-seum by car. For the St. Lu-cians, the weather was too cold for a walk. Members of the Winter Park and Rollins communities congregated in the Jack R. Smith’s Ameri-can Poets exhibit room.

There was a great mo-ment in the evening when Derek Walcott posed for a picture with his own por-trait. If anyone could fully appreciate the quality of that portrait, it was definitely Derek Walcott, whose paint-ings were being shown on a slide show in another room.

The next day, we met again for his master class in Bush Auditorium. He started the class by giving the group of undergraduate students on the stage with him some artistic advice. Derek Walcott said that young poets should be focused on the technical and metric aspects of poetry and should learn through reading through imita-tion of the masters. He also

Nobel laureate Derek Walcott brings island flavora r i a n e ro s e n

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pointed out that poetry, unlike prose, is meant to be recited.

He then spent about half an hour going through Curren Bell’s poem in minute detail. He included broad advice and suggested poets to read, such as Hemmingway and Hardy, making the class useful to ev-eryone present. He finished up by touching on a few other student pieces, more quickly but with the same level of insight.

Derek Wal-cott’s poetry read-ing filled every seat in Tiedtke Concert Hall. He read several pas-sages from his Nobel Prize-win-ning “Omeros” as well as poems from his forth-coming book “White Egrets,” which includes two poems written at request of the Times and BBC recognizing President Barack Obama. As he said in the Master Class, his poetry is meant to be recited.

You can listen to the sound of the words, become entranced by the metrics of the lines and be completely satisfied. When you also grasp the meaning of the piece, you are captivated

by the island flavor and col-orful narratives laced with powerful and deep themes.

In the question and an-swer session that followed the reading, the audience gained true insight into the life of such an amazing artist, with a little humor thrown in.

He gave his opinion on what the role of a poet was

(simply to write poetry) and was candid about what it means to be a writer from the Caribbean. The questions ranged from ones about po-etry in general to questions about his works. There were also a few silly questions, such as “How often do you trim your mus-

tache?” and “How do you cor-rectly pronounce ‘Caribbean?’”

He also talked about the-ater. We found out that his target audience for a comedy is an old fat lady from the countryside whom he hopes will sit in the back of the theater and laugh so loudly that she has to cover her face. He also admitted that in theater he has recently “become an authority on the flop,” and

that he has “learned nothing from failure…but the failure is negligible if you worked hard.”

Finally, when asked which of his art forms he en-joys most, he told us that it was painting because it pro-vides the most physical joy.

The joy from writing plays, he said, is sharing in the en-

You can listen to the sound of the words, become entranced by the metrics of the lines and be completely sat-isfied.When you also grasp the meaning of the piece, you are cap-tivated by the island flavor and colorful nar-ratives laced with pow-erful and deep themes.

joyment of the audience. Po-etry, however, simply brings relief and gratitude at being able to finish it. According to Derek Walcott, true po-ets are not selfish or focused on being great; their poems are about service to poetry. Derek Walcott has truly mas-tered this servitude to his art.

Courtesy of Rollins CollegeTRUE ARTIST: Nobel laureate Derek Walcott offered lessons to students, advising budding poets and reciting from his works “Omeros” and “White Egrets.”

February 13, 2009N e w s

[email protected]

Plumbing problemsContinued from page 1

Germain’s AddressContinued from page 1

Diverse discussion Continued from page 1

The second issue, as Germain sees it, deals with respect. Whether it is faculty, staff or students, no one on campus feels the respect they deserve. This fuels the other issues on campus.

The final pitfall for our student body is communication. Germain expressed disappointment for the traffic of information on campus. So many mediums, e-mail, campus mail, R-TV, and even our very own Sandspur, export exponential amounts of information at members of the Rollins community. Sifting through and determining important from disposable has become a chore, and much is lost in the process. Therefore, students are forced to rely on the rarely truthful Rollins Rumor

Mill. After presenting these

issues, Germain admitted “Change is hard, and it is long, but that does not mean we should give up.” Accordingly, a question and answer session followed the speech in Galloway room. It aimed at seeking solutions to the issues facing our student body. There, student leader Patrick McKelvey commented that “Marissa started a conversation that has never happened between faculty and students. It will be hard, but we need to start challenging each other.” The atmosphere around the talk was very optimistic.

Students wishing to participate in this new change are urged to attend SGA’s open meetings each Wednesday at 6p.m. in Galloway.

It was not sewer at that point, but water. And so, facilities had been out once to clean up any water, and they cleaned the bathroom. At that point, it was not clear that there was an actual pipe problem. They had come out just to clean an overflowing toilet. So they came out and used the wet vacs to clean everything up and left. Now, the second call was for the actual flood. So, had we been aware of the problem the first time around, I’m sure these folks could have unplugged the drain. However, we were unaware that was occurring.” He then elaborates, “We have worked with facilities and talked about the fact that while we may only be there for one reason, are there further issues that need to

be investigated, rather than just going off of thinking there is just a toilet that is overflowing. Because, had we known at the time, we probably would have unplugged the pipe and called a plumber.”

Now that time has passed and the dorm is back to regular form, it seems the flood was no more than an accident. The situation was dealt with the best it could be, and the residents of Rex Beach are happy to have their dorm back to normal, or as normal as Rex can be. Resident Chase Jennings reflects after the flood by saying, “I’ve never heard the same joke more in my life than I did during the meltdown. ‘Rex beach really is the ‘poopiest’ dorm on campus!’”

Kermalli of the selection of the panelists.

“The students should be commended for sponsoring panelist who seek solutions,” said Dr. Joan Davison, moderator for the discussion.

Even with this organization’s hard work to keep the discussion balanced, there were still emotional outbursts due to the intensity of the subject matter.

“It’s healthy to have the discussion, but I felt it was censored too much which

makes it not proactive for the cause,” said Rasha Mubarak, a spectator at the event.

Mubarak was one of several in the audience that had an emotional outburst. She later apologized for her actions and stated that she has “lots of respect for pro-Israli views.”

Alia El-Assar, who was present at the event and also helped plan the discussion, felt that the high emotions were expected, especially because of the controversy surrounding

the issue. “I feel that these outbursts

were inevitable. There are a lot of people who are extremely passionate about this issue and will understandably become enraged by certain statements.” El-Assar said.

“While it may have been somewhat disrespectful, take notice to the fact that the same people who had outbursts during the presentations were the people to stay after and talk rationally with the same

panelists they spoke against,” El-Assar said.

Kermalli hopes to sponsor more events similar to the discussion in the future.

“We’re definitely looking forward to planning many more events on campus to raise awareness, but not necessarily exactly like this one. Suggestions so far include: informal discussions, documentary screenings, teach-ins, speakers, and Palestinian cultural events,” Kermalli said.

Aside from the intense emotional flare-up that occurred during the event, the resounding opinion was that simply having the discussion was an important beginning.

“I think it’s awesome that the event happened and I strongly believe in dialogue. I welcome any opportunity to practice in the sharing of ideas,” said Ariel Vegosen, a panelist and traveling activist.

One hundred and twenty four years ago, in the year 1885, Rollins College became the first recognized college in the state of Florida. From the beginning Rollins stood out as being progressive and focused on the students. Rollins, at that time, was co-ed and its purpose was to provide an education for students from the North whose health required a more agreeable climate. Throughout Rollins’ history, national events have strongly affected our small campus community. As the Great Depression brought on the hardest economic times and could have been devastating for our small college, our President, William Fremont Blackman, persevered. Blackman not only kept our doors open, but also remained committed to Rollins students. Then, as World War II began, President Hamilton Holt challenged how our classes were taught and developed the Conference Plan that paved the way for our close relationships with faculty. With the Korean and Vietnam Wars, Hugh F. Mckean was compelled to organize an event that brought the whole campus together. Thus, Fox Day was born.

One hundred and twenty four years later we stand proudly and boldly on their successes. We have claimed the title of number one liberal arts college in the south with a Masters program. We have committed to facilitate learning not only in the classroom but as well as in our social lives through programs like Living Learning Communities and Service Learning courses. Our women’s lacrosse team nearly beat the number one women’s lacrosse team in the world: Japan. Student Government has been intimately involved with piloting the new General Education plan where connections can be easily made from class to class, revising the code of student rights and responsibilities, and restructuring our organization to better address the needs of our constituents, YOU, the student body.

All of these great successes exist amid a nation that is offering divergent cues. Our economy is a shambles, but our new president is heralding change. What does that look like? Can we find our place in that change once we leave the

marble arches of Rollins? As current students I feel that we are incredibly nervous. Nervous that as seniors we will not be able to find jobs in the ailing economy, nervous that our parents will not be able to pay tuition and we will be forced to leave the community we hold so dear and nervous that we are not ready to be adults in the “real world.”

I called this state of college to share the perspectives of the student body, as President Duncan and Provost Casey have done for the college as a whole. As I have outlined, there is a lot going in the world around us but there is also a lot going on within our direct community.

Upon my entry to Rollins I truly believed that good could be found in everything and everyone. When I heard quotes like Mahatma Gandhi’s “Be the change you wish to see in the world” I truly believed that I could be the change I wished to see here at Rollins. After assuming this position and working with this year’s SGA to tackle the issues we deemed as most important, I learned that such a simple phrase does not even nuance how difficult that particular task actually is.

This year as SGA, we were prepared to take on anything and everything. What we never realized was how long and difficult that road actually would be. At the start of this year, I was lucky enough to be in the Bush Auditorium with about one hundred of my peers as we discussed how they felt about our campus and their involvement in it. Their honesty fueled SGA to be more critical to what we were experiencing as student advocates and liaisons. At this point in my term I have been able to point to three broad issues that foster and facilitate a constant feeling of frustration, not just for the students, as I have learned, but for most members of this campus.

First, a lack of an informed student body and a consistent student experience. Not everyone needs to have the same experience here at Rollins but everyone needs to be touched by the mission of our college. Without this consistency, how can we view ourselves as one campus community when we do not have overlapping experiences? We have inconsistent standards of how people are treated based on who you are or who you know. Very few students are ever treated the same. As

students, we have become compartmentalized by the organizations that we represent and the friends that we keep. The same 100 students are repeatedly tapped by offices, preventing opportunities to be opened to other students. This is true for faculty and staff as well. As much as we can blame those who oversee the selection processes, much of the blame should fall upon us, the students. We have club presidents and team captains, activists and homegrown theatre stars who got into this college because of their exceptional leadership skills and incredible talent. We all have the capability to do something great, so why don’t we?

Second, ask any residential student, any office worker, anyone who works on maintaining our campus and you will find a common trend that exists: they don’t always feel respected. Whether it is by students, one’s superiors or one’s coworkers, the disease of disrespect has found a way into many aspects of our college and crippled many of our relationships. Our already fragile infrastructure is further threatened by the idea that there is no point in confronting an issue because there are inconsistencies on how to address them. This leads to a lack of honesty. Because very few members feel respected, very few members are compelled to be honest on this campus. Many result in the dangerous attitude that every man is out for themselves. The epidemic cultivates a lack of trust. There is no consistent message. There is no consistent plan, making it impossible to trust our decision makers. What is the standard to which our decision makers are held??? Aside from a quality education, do we have an established greater good that we are all working towards and can apply to everything that we do?

Third, and by far the biggest issue, is communication. We don’t have one central location to find out big news. The Sandspur, RTV and email cover so much that sifting through it all becomes a daunting task. Thus, we rely heavily on the Rollins Rumor Mill as that is the easiest way to truly get quick information, regardless of the accuracy. You receive that information in measured doses, not all at once.

Copy of the State of the College Address speechM a r i s s a G e r m a i n

SGA President

See Address in print, page 4

courtesy of marissa germain

[email protected] February 13, 20094N e w s

On February 20-21, Rol-lins College will be hosting the second annual Good Neighbor Conference. The Good Neigh-bor Conference is an event put on in order to honor Rollins alum, Fred Rogers (or as many of you may know him, Mr. Rog-ers). This year, the Child Devel-opment and Student Research Center along with the office of Multicultural Affairs is putting on, “Being a Good Neighbor in a Multicultural Society.”

This event will begin on February 20 at 7pm It will com-mence in the SunTrust Audito-

rium. The main speaker will be author and illustrator, James Ransome. “We wanted to open up the conference to the entire Rollins College community, not just early childhood educators, and do something that will be life changing for the partici-pants.” said conference planner Sarah Stoub.

Another on campus event that is tied in with The Good Neighbor Conference is a sweater drive from February 14-21. “We wanted to plan a day where we could gather as Roll-ins neighbors – faculty, staff, stu-dents, community – and learn more about each other,” said Dr. Sharon Carnaham, Director of the Rollins Child Development and Studen Center.

“It’s sometimes a challenge to be a good neighbor in a mul-ticultural world, and we want to go beyond tolerance to under-standing,” she said.

Then, on Saturday, Febru-ary 21 at 9am, a workshop enti-tled “Teaching Tolerance, Using Children’s Literature to Teach about other Cultures, Rearing Kind Children & Bullying Pre-vention, Triumphs of Multicul-tural Schools, and Cultures and Customs of Faiths in American” will take place.

The price to attend this con-ference is $15 while the main speaker event is free to the pub-lic. Come out and see what the Good Neighbor Conference is all about.

Students to honor Mr. Rogers by being good neighborsj e n n i f e r s t u l l

the sandspur

This especially becomes a problem when policy changes are not all placed in an easily accessible location or, often times, are not even written at all. Our community has relied so heavily on oral history that campus information is lost in translation. Old policies disappear and new policies fail to address old problems because the institutional knowledge leaves with our outgoing members. As SGA, we often struggle with how to inform the community with important information. There is so much information that is just emailed to us and then buried in the website so everyday becomes a struggle to filter between what is garbage and what it useful. When trying to figure out how tuition is established or how to plan an event one receives a different answer depending on the time of year. This current process is exhausting and overwhelming. The only system that has remained somewhat unchanged is purchasing food from the Campus Center and that can even cause a minor aneurism.

These are all issues that casually come up in the lives of an average student. These are all issues that as student leaders we have sacrificed our homework, our study time, and our social lives to be the change we wish to see in our world. However, we now know that change is hard and that it is long but that doesn’t mean that as a student body we need to just give up before we have even started.

Our student body has accomplished great things amid all of these challenges. Projects like Rollins Relief have brought groups of our peers together and organized trips to help with the reconstruction efforts of New Orleans and several Central Florida locations affected by

severe weather. A senior theatre major wrote a play in conjunction with a faculty member that was performed for six sold out shows last weekend. We have been able to work with changing what foods we have to eat and what products are carried in the C-store. Our peers have challenged the way we think about oppression with all the landmark programming for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. weekend. As a community we raised over thirty-seven thousand dollars this year alone to help the sick children of Arnold Palmer Hospital and Shands Hospital by participating in Children’s Miracle Network’s Dance Marathon. As a community we have embraced events like Tarnival, Campus Movie Fest, and Rollins After Dark, all of which are designed to bring an element of fun to our campus. Awareness about our ecological issues has literally been put in our face by organizations like Eco-Rollins. Each Greek chapter continues to embrace their individual core values rooted in academics and service.

Your SGA has begun to investigate the source of student organizational budgets and how they are used in order to provide better campus programming. We are proposing that a student representative will serve as a permanent liaison to our Board of Trustees. We are re-evaluating the graduation hour requirement in collaboration with faculty. We are working with strategic marketing to promote the new website and logo. Relationships with the Winter Park Merchants were improved with the reinstatement of the Winter Park Platinum Card. One way or another every student has been affected by our work. Whether it is policy changes or re-evaluating our finances, Student Government

has been involved.If we can manage to do

these things, why not ask for more streamlined information to be published on our website? Why not smile to each other and use the phrase “thank you” to display our respect? Why not challenge our Rollins decision makers and their commitment to the greater good? This road will be rough, but to achieve these things we need the whole community to get involved. I challenge you to ask questions about the rumors you hear, I challenge you to pick up a Sandspur and write back regarding what has been written, I challenge you to come to a senate meeting to see what things are being worked on or ask any member of SGA what we do. As a student organization that represents the student voice, you have the right to know what goes on. I invite our campus community to participate in the Question/Answer period that is to follow as well as start the informal dialogue on how to resolve these issues. It is by talking together that we will find the answers and it is by working together that these answers will come to fruition. Together we can create a community that communicates effectively and is supported by a strengthened infrastructure. It is our right to demand a higher standard and it is our responsibility to lift ourselves to that standard. As our past presidents have triumphed over seemingly impossible odds, now, we as Tars, must take on these obstacles with the same optimism and vigor. And we shall also triumph. Thank you to everyone who made this event possible but more importantly I thank you all for coming out today as well as allowing me the privilege to serve you as SGA President.

Address in printContinued from page 3

Amy Iarrobino / the sandspurEVIE’S STOMACH ACHE: Dave’s Down Under drowned in chocolate during All Campus Events’ Death by Chocolate event. Students lined up to partake of the chocolate fountain and scrumptious treats. Participants also created their own candy parfaits with Valentine’s Day themed sweets.

Rollins students and pro-fessors, Winter Park community members, and poetry lovers filled Tiedke Concert Hall on Thursday, February 5 to hear Nobel Laureate Derek Walcott read from his award-winning book “Omerus.”

Derek Walcott received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1992 and was recognized for his “po-etic oeuvre of great luminosity, sustained by a historical vision—the outcome of a multicultural commitment,” according to the Nobel selection committee. Walcott became a published poet at the age of fourteen, and a dramatist two years later. His infatuation with art transcended into the field of painting. Wal-cott’s influences stem from his home on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia are translated to all fields of his expression.

Prior to Walcott’s reading, he directed a master class in poetry. Approximately twenty young poets gathered on the cramped stage of Bush Audito-rium to have their poetry exam-ined by Walcott. He began the class by addressing the audi-ence and then scolded himself for not directing his attention to the poets. Walcott began with the poem “Tuscany”, written by Curren Bell. Walcott paid painstaking attention to detail when analyzing the poem. He exclaimed, “The urge to recite is part of poetry,” asking other stu-dents to read Bell’s words aloud. Walcott also touched on the need for young poets to study form. His commands of reverence to the masters and imitation were eased by nostalgically recalling: “No one contains more elation than a young poet discovering poetry.”

Walcott then spent a brief time on a handful of other writers’ work. His comments were straightforward, and he recognized the quality of the work. Some audience members cringed in embarrassment for the admirable students who spilled their souls for the master to analyze. However, Bell, who was subject to Walcott’s most intense critiques, was grateful for the experience. “I had no

idea I was going first, so I was very shocked,” said Bell. “But I did not think he was too harsh. It was nice to have such a close critique like that. He gave me great advice and great words of wisdom.”

Director of Winter with the Writers, Carol Frost, com-mented “He was candid. He complimented the work of each student he addressed, while try-ing to teach him or her some-thing important about what it takes to move a poem toward significance--not only as per-sonal expression of feeling and ideas, but as an art and craft.”

Frost continued, validating the incredible experience these poets had: “Had I had the op-portunity, like student writers at Rollins had, to have my poetry treated seriously when I was 20, I’d have been a little over-whelmed. I’d never ever forget it.”

For listeners completely im-mersed in Walcott’s work, the reading in Tiedke Hall was un-forgettable. Walcott skipped all introductions, and dove right into reading for nearly an hour from his novel-length poem “Omerus” and up-coming book “White Egret.”

The packed audience rest-lessly fidgeted while the poet’s St. Lucian accent faded in and out. His emphasis on diction in the master class was challenged by his half-hearted reading. Still, the message was reverberated. English major Ariane Rosen commented, “When you grasp the meaning of the piece, you are captivated by the island fla-vor and colorful narrative laced with powerful, deeper themes.”

The evening closed on a more candid note, as Walcott participated in a question and answer session with the audi-ence. Questsions ranged from serious inquisitions on the craft, to how Walcott grooms his mus-tache.

Winter with the Writers con-tinues for the month of Febru-ary. On Feb. 12, Scottish novelist Margot Livesey will conduct the master class at 4 p.m. in Bush Auditorium, followed by a read-ing and book signing in Tiedke Hall at 8 p.m. The month-long event will conclude with Billy Collins on February 19th.

L au r a H a r dw i c k e

the sandspur

Walcott inspires again

ACE: Death by Chocolate

February 13, [email protected] 5L I f e & T i m e s

Weekly horoscopeI have focused on

your romantic side for this upcoming week, just in time for Valentine’s Day. Enjoy!

ARIES: This week you will find yourself torn between memories from the past and new prospects on the horizon. If you are single, this may mean having to make a tough decision about which to honor more: your head or your heart. It is best now to weigh all of your romantic options carefully and not get swept up in the heat of the moment.

TAURUS: For the most success in your love life, it is wise to stay out of the hustle and bustle of the social scene as much as possible. Instead, focus all of your energy into making yourself happy this week. You cannot make your partner feel loved or be attractive to new people if you are unhappy with yourself.

GEMINI: Take it slow in love this week, Gemini. Forcing answers out of someone who is not ready to give them may just make them more reluctant to respond to your romantic advances. Take the time to truly listen to their needs, and your partner or love interest will come to you when they are ready.

CANCER: Take chances with your romantic side this week. Put yourself on the line when it comes to a relationship or a budding romance; go on a daring date or take the time to try to forge a deeper connection with someone you care about. Your advances will be received most openly now, so be brazen!

LEO: Independence is the key to attracting romance into your life this week. Your most attractive feature is your confidence and seeming unavailability. Play hard to get, and you are sure to breathe some new life into a current relationship or spark a new connection that will be undeniable.

VIRGO: Stop beating yourself up for your past mistakes in love. This week is the time to turn over a new leaf. Your radiance is obvious to others, and now it is time for you to embrace it. Take the time to truly consider what you can offer to someone you

care about, and then move forward with confidence.

LIBRA: Attracting lots of attention this week will seem natural if you can let your flirtatious side show. Let your love interest know just how much you care for them in a unique, creative way. Do this, and you will find many social pleasures and romantic opportunities coming your way.

SCORPIO: It is important to accept the let downs you have had in love recently and press on with dignity. Put your best foot forward when it comes to your current relationship or pursuit, and you will find that you will be more successful than if you simply dwell on the past. Now is the time for optimism in romance.

SAGITTARIUS: The fact that you are high in energy and confidence will make you very attractive this week, so it is important to be aware of how your friendly nature might come off as flirtation. While this can be used to your advantage, make sure you are directing it at the right person. Be careful not to embrace any unwanted advances.

CAPRICORN: Instead of having a plan for love now, let go a little bit Capricorn! Let the romance in the air this week lead you in the right direction when it comes to attracting someone or making a current partner happy. Relax, and you will find that success in wooing someone will become much easier than you expected.

AQUARIUS: You are in a place to have free-flowing communication this week, so let the person you care about know you how feel about them in straightforward terms. Best of all, you are not likely to be misunderstood, which makes the danger of misinterpretation in flirtation lower. Your desires should be well received!

PISCES: This week, the more you put into love, the more you will get in return. Think about the object of your affection and what will please him or her most; pamper them perhaps, or give them their space. Although it may not be exactly what you want to do, the more you cater to their desires, the better you will feel in the end.

k at h e r i n e j o n e sthe sandspur

M t . T r a s h m o r e invades Rollins campus a l e x i s o b e r n au e r

the sandspur

Nine o’clock on a Sunday morning is a time when sane individuals would be in bed, dreaming cozily under the sanctuary of a nice down comforter. Members of EcoRollins, however, do not fit into this category, for they were in the Environmental Studies Lounge of the Beal-Maltbie Center donning old clothing and rubber gloves preparing to scour and dig through garbage cans across campus.

This oh-so-sanitary project was undertaken in an attempt to prove to the student body just how many recyclables are hastily thrown away in the garbage. In a mere two hours, nine brave EcoRollins members searched through the remains leftover from a typical Saturday night and then dumped their findings into a pen on the grass in front of Olin library. “Mt. Trashmore” remained in that location for the next four days for curious onlookers to investigate.

Though the collection was substantial, it was limited to only plastic, aluminum and glass. It did not include any of the paper or cardboard products for fear of soggy decomposition

on the lawn. These paper and cardboard items can, however, also be recycled with the newly instituted comingled system.

Overall, Holt Hall housed some of the best recyclers on campus while residents in McKean, Hooker Hall and Rollins Hall all have some definite improvements to make. Though The Sandspur and EcoRollins do not necessarily condone drinking, these organizations do certainly encourage the recycling of beer cans and bottles. EcoRollins members reported being quite surprised at the number of beer cans in garbage cans even when recycling was also available in the trash rooms.

On a separate note, many of the goods in the recycling bins still had liquid or particulate matter in them and were thus ineligible for recycling. Because the recycling plant that Rollins uses requires that there can only be 10% food product in any given batch of recycling, it is vital that all containers are washed and rinsed thoroughly before being placed in the blue bins.

Though EcoRollins members described their task as “disgusting” and voiced sentiments of “desperately needing to shower” afterwards,

they were willing to undergo such a project to make a statement showing the wastefulness of the student body.

The College Sustainability Report Card gave Rollins a “C” grade for their environmental practices in 2008. To help improve that grade, Rollins employs a group of student recycling coordinators who are responsible for spreading awareness about the recycling program and ensuring that every dorm room on campus has a recycling bin. If you do not presently have a bin in your dorm room or trash room, you can contact the coordinators by e-mailing them at [email protected] or stopping by the recycling office, which is located on the third floor of the Mills Building.

Freshmen: no longer the new kids in town

j e n n i f e r s t u l lthe sandspur

Fellow first years, welcome to second semester of freshman year! Congrats, you have now made it through the less-than-popular RCC experience, blindly chosen classes and experienced the overall ignorance of being “the new kid.” Yes, second semester has arrived and with that comes positive and negative aspects. Now, only a few short weeks into the second semester, freshmen have already begun to make judgments on which semester held more enjoyment for them.

“I enjoy second semester more because now I know what is going on. When picking classes, I know the classes that I want when fulfilling gen-ed requirements instead of choosing things that would be boring for me,” said freshman Tara Napolitano.

“I also know what parties are better. However, I liked first semester because they babied us, and it was easier,” Napolitano went on to say.

Well, it seems the days of being babied are over, and sadly, responsibility will creep up and take over every college student’s life. However, responsibility can also bring several positive elements.

“I enjoy second semester better so far because things

seem a lot more familiar and you have a group of friends to come back to,” said freshman Christine Henderson.

Everyone knows being the new kid is never easy. One of the perks of second semester is coming back to an established group of friends. No one likes the awkwardness involved in meeting new people for the first time. Upon coming back from winter break, the campus seemed much more welcoming and more like home than it did during the first semester.

In the end, both semesters hold different experiences for freshmen.

“I like both first and second semester for different reasons. I liked first semester because it was new and interesting, but now that it is second semester I know how things work,” said freshman Nicole Bianco.

Even in small schools, it is hard for students to find their place and learn the ropes. First semester is basically the grace period for students to get their feet on the ground and see what college is all about. Now that that time has passed, freshmen students are finding themselves more knowledgeable and understanding of campus life.

First semester has come and gone. Second semester is in full swing, and every student is working towards their

own goals. While seniors are looking towards graduation, freshmen continue to learn, grow and observe the ways of college life. The truth is, every semester is different, and each hold new challenges.

The freshman experience continues on in the hopes of finally fulfilling the endless gen-eds and major requirements while salvaging a social life through it all. While it seems that three more years feels like an eternity, the first semester is already over faster than anyone expected. No one can say how the freshman class may feel about further semesters, or how they will feel about their entire college experience for that matter. Yet it seems the more time we spend here, the more comfortable we feel and the more fun we have, which leads us to believe that future semesters should only hold more of the same.

Here is a basic list of what you can recycle:-Plastic containers #1 - #7-Cardboard (all types)-Paper (office paper, newspaper, magazines, brochures)-Tin containers-Paper juice/milk cartons-Glass

Remember:-No biodegradables (including Starbucks coffee cups and plastic cafeteria cups)

courtesy of mct campus

The Rollins College Sandspur February 13, 20096 [email protected] e a t u r e s

t h e m a j o r -

ity of, why not impress your lady? Instead, make creative f o n d u e w i t h melted bars of dark choco- late with strawberries, cheese-

cake, pretzels and other treats to dip.

Cut the Flowers. Instead of purchasing the wallet-searing obligatory dozen roses, head to a local nursery or garden center and purchase a fl owering, living plant. Yes, the blooms will still fade, but the plant will continue to bloom throughout the season. If you are newly dating, this might conjure up images of “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days,” which will inspire a few giggles over your “love fern.” Stick with fl owers to be safe. And if you are single, buy a pott ed plant for someone you know who does not have plans. You will get the gift -giving high and have the pleasure of making a friend’s day.

C a ro l i n eS c h n e i d e r

the sandspur

C a ro l i n e

A day for lovers, or for haters

t h e m a j o r -

ity of, why not impress your lady? Instead, make creative f o n d u e w i t h melted bars of dark choco- late

C a ro l i n eS c h n e i d e r

the sandspur

C a ro l i n e

A day for lovers, or for hatersThrow Out the Candy Hearts.

They taste like chalk. It is not a big sacrifi ce. Why not bake a cake and

ice with a phrase stolen from the axed candy hearts? “Be Mine”

will certainly look, and taste, much bett er than

the powder con-fections. If you are sans plans,

bake a cake anyways. Let everyone write one thing on it in icing, tell your worst Valentine’s Day disasters and have fun.

Make Reservations to Dine In. If you do not, you will live (hungrily) to regret it. While cook-ing may not be your thing, order-ing take-out ahead of time can be decidedly more romantic. You do not have to look at couples dining while you starve. You also avoid the stomach-churning PDA. Best of all, you will not have to beg your frazzled waitress for bever-ages. However, if you enjoy cook-ing, plan to make something you will both enjoy.

Look for Ways to Love. Take a moment this Valentine’s Day to remember all of the people who make your life special. Send a text or an e-mail simply to say that you care. You will be surprised by how loved you will feel in return, no matt er what your relationship status.

For those who fi nd romance… well, romantic:

5.Love Actually: Like fi ve love sto-ries all-in-one! Filled with plenty of corny, sweet moments but with enough reality to balance it out, it is a comical, romantic treat for Valentine’s Day and any other day for that matt er.

4.Fools Rush In: Not as well known as some, but one of the best love stories of the early 1990’s. Entertaining on many levels, but still pure-ly romantic. Not to mention the leads are Selma Hayek and Mathew Perry. Who would not want to see THAT play itself out?

3.Knocked Up: A romantic comedy of epic proportions. Though it can be a bit vulgar at times, the love story still stands strong. Plus, it is a movie both girls AND guys will have no trouble gett ing into.

2. Pride and Prejudice: A clas-sic… both literally and fi guratively. One of the bett er Jane Austen adaptations—a brilliant period piece and a stunning love story. And did I mention Keira Knightly?

1. Titanic: “I’ll never let go, Jack…” Need I say more?

For those who fi nd that romance makes their eyes bleed:

5. Disturbia: Still a bit of a love story, but there is enough mystery, chaos and murder to make up for it.

4. My Bloody Valentine: It will not take your mind off of the holiday, but it sure will give it a rather “satisfying” twist.

3. Salem’s Lot: Stephen King + vam-pires = a perfect combination of non-love story en-tertainment!

2. The Ring: Depending on your taste, either a perfectly frightening… or perfectly hilari-ous couple of hours of creepiness… one of the more successful distractions from love and all things re-lated.

1. Saw 1, Saw 2, Saw 3 Saw 4, Saw 5: Just enough blood and gore to banish all thoughts of romanticism, choco-late hearts and anything lovey dovey for at least a few hours.

And for those who are perfectly happy with friendship:

3. Empire Records: Hilarity at its fi n-est, perfect for a large group of friends, a few boxes of pizza and a gut-busting laugh fest.

2. Any Marvel/DC Comics Movie: “Iron Man,” “Batman,” “Spiderman,” “The Incredible Hulk” (…the second one…) etc. All of which provide a perfect source of friend-shared entertainment.

1. Ocean’s Eleven: Litt le romance to speak of, but plenty of action. With such an incred-ible cast of characters and a mind blowing plot, it is a must rent, perfect for gatherings big or small or even just for relaxing by yourself for the night.

No matt er what your plans for this Valentine’s Day are, a good movie will always come in handy, so do not forget to check the Olin Library (or your nearest Blockbuster) to see what is in stock. Be it blood and gore, hugs and kisses or just some good old-fashioned hanging out, here is to hoping this Valentine’s Day is one of the best!

Chock full of heart-shaped, chocolate-fi lled boxes of love and mushy, gushy off erings of Hallmark-stamped wonderment, Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. But whereas the day itself is easy enough to understand and enjoy… or even just get through… fi nding something to do on this pink-and-red-laden holiday might not be so easy. That is where the good old, Valentine’s stand-in comes in handy; whether by your-self, with the one you love or sim-ply among a group of your closest friends, you can never go wrong by renting a movie. But just in case your video library is just too numerous to decide, here are a few titles to help make up your mind.

K at i e Ac k l e ythe sandspur

Films for the romantics and the cynics

“Not choco-lates again.”

“Tell me you didn’t pay a 200% mark-up for fl owers that will wilt in three days.”

“If I eat one more candy heart I’ll scream.”

“What am I going to do with another set of kiss-kiss bears?”

“We waited two hours for a table last year.”

If any of these phrases sound familiar, your Valentine’s Day plans are stuck in a rut. You can-not keep doing the same thing year in and year out, or maybe you do not celebrate I-Am-Still-Super-Single-Awareness Day. Either way, read on for helpful hints to not only help one get through the day, but even enjoy it.

Think Outside the Box. That is right, gentlemen. Boxed choc-olates no longer cut it. Ladies are bored with monotony. They still love chocolate and will still eat it if it is off ered, but the lack of cre-ativity is not impressive. Instead of forking out lots of money for something roommates will steal

A different kind of Valentine’s

Let me start off by saying, I am not a cynic. I love sappy ro-mance movies, chocolate and the occasional bouquet of fl owers. What girl does not? However, what I do not like is the idea that one day out of the entire 365 day calendar year, this ideology of “a grand gesture of love” is forced upon society for no other good reason than to perhaps stimulate our failing economy. Yes, the day to which I am referring is Valen-tine’s Day.

My goal here is not to change anyone’s perspective on the holi-day. If you share a special bond with a signifi cant other, then good for you, and you should celebrate your time together. However, why only one day? It seems to me as if Valentine’s Day is a way of saying, “Sorry I have been a bad boyfriend or girlfriend all year, let me make it up to you by shower-ing you with unnatural att ention for the next 24 hours. However, when this day ends, things will go back to the way they were, but

J e n n S t u l lthe sandspur

A bad Valentine’s Day

The Rollins College Sandspur February 13, 2009 [email protected] e a t u r e s

A day for lovers, or for hatersA day for lovers, or for haters

And for those who are perfectly happy with friendship:

3. Empire Records: Hilarity at its fi n-est, perfect for a large group of friends, a few boxes of pizza and a gut-busting laugh fest.

2. Any Marvel/DC Comics Movie: “Iron Man,” “Batman,” “Spiderman,” “The Incredible Hulk” (…the second one…) etc. All of which provide a perfect source of friend-shared entertainment.

1. Ocean’s Eleven: Litt le romance to speak of, but plenty of action. With such an incred-ible cast of characters and a mind blowing plot, it is a must rent, perfect for gatherings big or small or even just for relaxing by yourself for the night.

No matt er what your plans for this Valentine’s Day are, a good movie will always come in handy, so do not forget to check the Olin Library (or your nearest Blockbuster) to see what is in stock. Be it blood and gore, hugs and kisses or just some good old-fashioned hanging out, here is to hoping this Valentine’s Day is one of the best!

Films for the romantics and the cynics

V e r n o n M e i g sthe sandspur

It is another year, another Valentine’s Day. The time of year for the celebration of love and the practice of rituals involving Val-entine’s cards, fl owers, chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate. So, have you ever wondered how it all started? Well, it is St. Valentine’s Day, so it must have to do with St. Valentine, right? Most traditional people may say that this is the case. Now, what did St. Valentine contribute for the day of express-ing one’s love? Let me just say the Christian account does not tell the true story, if there is such a thing.

Unlike holidays such as Christmas and Easter, it is hard to pinpoint a Christian tradition in Valentine’s Day, save for the undertones of the name. As the focus has always been on the ex-pression of love, there has not been anything to do with Jesus Christ: whether it is him dying, being born, being reborn or any-thing of the sort. This makes any further concern of the origins of the holiday relatively diminished. But fi rst, what is the association with a St. Valentine and the an-nual day of love? Actually, there are accounts of a large number of Christian saints named Valentine,

such as Valentine of Terni and Valentine of Rome.

The diff erence between t h o s e t w o ,

w h o m this holi-

day seems to

Valentine’s pagan, polytheistic start

enjoy the chocolate!” In my opinion, love is some-

thing that should be shown in some fashion every day, whether it is to friends, family or a sig-nifi cant other. The idea that there needs to be a holiday so that people treat others around them bett er than they normally would is sad.

The history of Valentine’s Day centers on St. Valentine and Emperor Claudius II. Claudius decided young men were bett er used as soldiers than husbands, so he outlawed marriage. How-ever, as the story goes, St. Valen-tine continued to perform secret marriages for young couples un-til he was caught. He was then beheaded- how romantic. Other than that, not much else is known about St. Valentine, yet he has an entire holiday devoted to him, and it is not even linked back to its religious roots.

Society has taken a vague historical rumor and sold it out to Hallmark and Hershey. Valen-tine’s Day has become materialis-tic and superfi cial. The underly-ing meaning of celebrating love in general is gone, and in its place emerged a cookie cut-out struc-ture of a day that exploits the idea of love and happiness.

The idea that I am trying to convey here is not that Valentine’s Day is stupid because it victimiz-es the single people of our culture as so many have argued. Rather, I want to open your eyes to the fact that Valentine’s Day can and should be every day. We should live our lives continuously show-ing aff ection and love for the peo-ple that we care for. Just because society insists you exploit your feelings every February 14th, does not mean that you cannot make your own choice to highlight and express your positive feelings ev-ery day. Expressing love does not mean showering someone with gift s and food. Rather, it can be as simple as a smile or those three words that everyone likes to hear.

Valentine’s Day, as most peo-ple think of it, will never stop. I do not expect it to. However, it is your choice, as a person and part of society to determine whether it will be the only day you cel-ebrate the loved ones in your life. Remember that the lyric “All you need is love” does not say “All you need is a diamond ring and thirty pounds of chocolate.” So, this Valentine’s Day, keep that in mind and perhaps on February 15th, your feelings of love and kindness will still be evident.

A bad Valentine’s Daycelebrate, has blurred until they became the same person as far as people were concerned. We do not know further of this St. Valentine other than the fact that February 14th was approximately the date of his death.

Now I will divulge the origins of the holiday of love called Valen-tine’s Day. The ancient Roman Lu-percalia was celebrated around this time, in which they honored their fertility goddess, Faunus. Men went to the cave of Lupercal, in which they believed Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were suckled in their infancy by a she-wolf. There, men would sacrifi ce a goat, use its hide as a loincloth, and run around and whip women to ensure fertility. COGwriter.com describes the practice as a “sexual lott ery” in which a man and wom-en were coupled in this manner for the holiday and would couple dif-ferently the next year.

The sending of valentines actu-ally does originate from a Christian source, not as a direct foundation as part of the modern holiday but was of value enough to be a part of this tradition. A Christian priest called Valentine was sentenced to death by Emperor Claudius II for performing secret marriages for men who tried to marry in order to dodge the draft s, as only single men were allowed in the Roman army. Before his execution, notes and lett ers of love were sent to him by young lovers. From this, we can certainly say that Valentine’s Day does have a Christian side of the story to contribute to the practices.

Like most pagan traditions we still practice today, the church did not like the holiday of love-making

and tried to get rid of it. Again, like most past traditions, they could not entirely eradicate it. What did they do? They de-veloped a tale of martyrdom

and faith surrounding it and eff ectively Chris-

tianized the holiday. However, aft er the Renaissance, when celebrations of love, life and vital existence resurfaced, Val-entine’s Day was resurged with the theme of expres-sion of love. The commercialization of today has only made it that much

more popular, like every other major holiday.

February 13, 20098

brittany fornof / the sandspurARTISTICALLY BEAUTIFUL: All of the artwork fetaured in the Darden Lounge was created through the Art by

O p i n i o n [email protected]

Why Obama’s stimulus plan must succeed

Why Obama’s stimulus plan is a bad idea

G . K e i t h E va n sthe sandspur

T r av i s C l i n g e rthe sandspur

There has been a lot of hub-bub surrounding the proposed USD $827 billion economic stimulus package. As the pro-posal blasts past any previous stimulus amounts and attempts to mitigate a looming depres-sion with record spending, right wing politicos are rushing to their conser-vative huddle in an attempt to find fault with the new President.

C r i t i c s are quick to point out that the price tag of the bill, just shy of a tril-lion dollars, would instant-ly increase the national debt by nearly ten percent. They are not so quick, how-ever, to point out that the bill would also double renewable energy generating capacity in as little as three years, quickly saving not only the environ-ment but millions of dollars for overburdened Americans. It is hard to imagine how custom-ers of companies like Progress Energy, which recently raised its rates a staggering thirty per-cent, would find this measure disagreeable.

Those who do not support the bill also overlook the enor-mous investment in computer-

izing every American’s health records within the next five years. In addition to creating IT, networking, and programming jobs—these jobs would be dif-ficult, at best, to offshore to In-dia—this project will inevitably save lives. Perhaps the detrac-tors assume their lives will not be the ones saved by this medi-cal advancement or believe they are somehow above medical er-ror.

Opponents also ignore the bill’s measure to enact the largest investment in-crease in roads, bridges, and highways since the inception of the Eisenhower Interstate Sys-tem. This portion of the bill would instantly create tens of thousands of blue-collar and construction jobs across the nation while simultane-ously improv-ing the safety of American travel. Had this measure been taken just

a few years earlier, dozens of victims of the Minnesota bridge collapse could still be alive to-day.

American families and in-dividuals, many of whom owed a debt to the IRS this year, would also benefit from a tax cut of up to $1,000 per person. This cut is designed and intended to pay out immediately by decreas-ing the amount withheld from a payroll taxes. A larger pay-check, for many people, means more spending money—the very thing the troubled econo-

my needs for a recovery. Locally, the bill promises

to “create or save” over 218,000 jobs in Florida alone. Appar-ently, those who oppose the bill have never been in a position where their jobs were threat-ened by a receding economy.

College students also stand to benefit from the Obama stimulus plan. Included in the spending is an allowance of up to $2500, partially refundable, in tax credits for pursuing a four-year degree. This measure will undoubtedly generate a more educated America while giving more relief to some of the people who need it most.

Some uninformed (wheth-er unwittingly ignorant or oth-

erwise misled) critics have even debated the measure’s devotion of $600 million to the purchase of hybrid or alternative fuel ve-hicles to replace aging cars in the government fleet. “How can buying a Prius help the econ-omy?” these detractors pro-claimed. The Prius aside, there are a number of hybrid and al-ternative fuel vehicles readily available from besieged Ameri-can manufacturers like the Flex-Fuel line from Ford and an im-pressive line of hybrid vehicles from GM. Not only will the purchase of these vehicles by the government support Ameri-can automotive manufacturers, potentially abating the need for another extensive automotive

bailout in the future, but it will also help to ease the concerns of millions of Americans em-ployed in automotive support industries. Even better, as many as 20,000 new government ve-hicles will burn alternative fuel (or, at least, less gasoline), somewhat reducing demand and lowering gas prices around the country. The environment stands to benefits as well.

It is true, of course, that the bailout is a tremendous finan-cial risk. There is a much great-er risk, however, of a devastat-ing economic failure if action is delayed. To speak to that need, it is not a matter of if politicians want the stimulus package to succeed. It MUST succeed.

Locally, the bill promises to “create or save” over 218,000 jobs in Florida

alone. Apparently, those who oppose the bill have never been in a position

where their jobs were threatened by a reced-ing economy. College students also stand to

benefit from the Obama stimulus plan. Included in the spending is an al-lowance of up to $2500, partially refundable, in

tax credits for those pur-suing a four-year degree.

Recently, it seems too often that the solution to a problem is to just throw money at it. Indeed, that is the solution for the economic recession that we are now in. Barack Obama has proposed massive spending increases, to the tune of nearly a trillion dollars. This is a fool-ish idea and will undoubtedly harm the economy, not help the economy. America cannot af-ford this bailout plan and does not need the bailout plan.

The current economic situ-ation does not warrant this tre-mendous spending. For many, it may seem as though times are the worse they have been in years. The truth of the matter, though, is that recessions are a natural cycle of the economy. Capitalism results in great pe-riods of growth but also results in recessions. We must merely be patient as we wait through this recession. If we choose to

spend a trillion dollars, we will be placing a terrible burden on our generation and generations to come.

The US is already trillions of dollars in debt. The simple fact is that we just cannot afford to go further into debt. The idea that we should spend trillions of dollars in spending and bail-ing out c o m p a -nies is ri-diculous. The fact is that those c o m p a -nies need to realize that they must sur-vive on their own. That is the very essence of capitalism. Those companies that cannot survive in hard times fail. This system has worked for years, and it would be foolish for the government to start helping companies that cannot survive. The US Government should not

burden its future generations, in an effort to save companies that cannot survive hard eco-nomic times.

Many point to the Great Depression and the Keynesian models of spending used then. These individuals point out that FDR’s New Deal involved massive spending. It is certainly

true that the New Deal involved massive spending. However, the New Deal did not help end the Great Depression. World War II ended the Great Depression. The massive spending during World War II managed to end the Great Depression. However,

The idea that we should spend trillions of dollars in spending and bailing out companies is ridiculous. The fact is that those companies need to realize that they must survive on their own. That is the very essence of capitalism. Those companies that cannot survive in

hard times fail. This system has worked for years, and it would be foolish for the government to start helping companies that cannot survive. The US Government

should not burden its future generations, in effort to save companies that cannot survive hard economic times.

the massive government spend-ing prior to the Second World War did not end the Great De-pression. We must not make the same mistake that Franklin Delano Roosevelt did.

The time has come for the American people to say no. They tolerated the first bailout. Did it make the economic situation

better? NO! The first bailout already cost the taxpayers nearly a trillion dollars, and we cannot afford a second bailout. It is clear that bailouts are not going to work to ensure the success of the econ-omy. The American people must tell the US government that they do not want a

bailout and are refusing to help failing companies. The time has come for the American people to speak up and end this gov-ernment spending. If they do not, countless generations from now will be burdened by this debt that we are creating.

courtesy of mct campus / the sandspurCHEERS: President Barack Obama campaigns for his economic stimulus plan at a town hall meeting in Fort Myers, Florida on February 10, 2009.

courtesy of mct campus / the sandspur

February 13, 2009 [email protected] p i n i o n s

Kelly McNoldyManaging Editor

Amy IarrobinoProduction Manager

Amanda Hampton & Greg Golden

Advertising Manager

Fatema Kermali...........OpinionsOPEN..............................SportsEvie Lyras..........................Copy

Where do you fit into the Sandspur?

At the Sandspur, we are con-stantly looking for more voices, be they involved in editing, writing, or photography. This year we are add-ing a new Staff Reporter position. Staff Reporters will attend weekly assignment meetings and write ar-ticles to be published in the Sand-spur.

What do you get for contributing to the Sand-spur?

Other than seeing your name and work in print, you will be paid as a correspondent for the Sandspur.

How will I get my written articles into the Sandspur?

Articles for the Sandspur are typically 500-700 words in length and must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. on the Monday prior to the corresponding issue’s publication. Submissions will be e-mailed to [email protected].

Where is the Sand-spur? The Sandspur office is located on the 3rd floor of the Mills building, two floors above the post office.

How can I get involved with the Sandspur?

Sandspur meetings are held on each Tuesday of every week at 6pm in the Sandspur office on the 3rd floor of the Mills Build-ing. Any questions can be e-mailed to [email protected], and respective editors can be reached at their Rollins e-mail addresses (first initial, last [email protected]).

Phone: (407) 646-2696

February 13, 2009Volume 115 Issue 16

The Sandspur is a weekly publication printed on recycled paper, and we want YOU to get involved.

Vandals are the festering scum of the planet. I despise vandals violently. They are truly the lesser creatures of the Earth. The sad fact is that there is not enough attention being paid to this issue at all, which is why culprits can execute their sick deeds and often be overlooked. This ignorance is due to a per-missive, forgiving, altruistic at-titude that gives way to antiso-cial atrocities upon our property and others’. Turning the other cheek does not stop a thing.

The first thing you have to know about a vandal is that he has no logical reason, no ra-tional motivation, not even the slightest profit in doing what he does, destroying or defac-ing the belongings of those who have done nothing to antago-nize them. They require little to no provocation to manifest their destructive behavior.

The second thing you have to know about them is that they are masochists…by inherent be-havior and also by definition. This is especially true with van-dals that happen to be hardcore Christians. They are the ones that sully your property with aberra-tions such as “Jesus is Lord” or “Christ Saves.” They exemplify the masochistic quality of the vandal because they claim to be upholders of the so-called Gold-en Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” They certainly seem to do that, and they certainly seem to show that they would like to be done the same or worse to themselves in return. In simpler language, they are asking to be punished!

Vandals and destructive organismsV e r n o n m e i g s

the sandspurThey are asking to be equal-ly dam-aged! They should be obliged.

S u p -pose a decorated a r t w o r k , p o s t e r , or even a plain wall has been s o i l e d with paint, slime, dirt or any-thing of the sort. If the culprit is appre-h e n d e d , he should be sicken-ingly de-faced in a similar manner. If the vandalism is of a permanent na-ture, if the paint will not come off, then we must deal punish-ment of a more permanent na-ture. The discoloration of the vandal’s body will have to be tattooed unflatteringly, branded unceremoniously, or effectively poisoned to cause skin damage. If on one’s property, something is ripped away, torn, or crushed, a part of the culprit’s body should be treated likewise and the van-dalized victim gets to choose where. If the whole object is stolen and totally destroyed, we can ascertain just what kind of punishment the vandal is ask-ing for, can we not?

Personal property has been too long thrown in with what can be replaced, fixed, or oth-erwise is insignificant. What belongs to you should be a re-flection of your values and you

have to cherish them. What about things that you or others have devised or crafted? Your own dedicated, hard work was placed into making them (or paying for them). Are you going to let masochistic social degen-erates destroy your belongings for their amusement? If you are, you are just as bad as the vandals themselves, for you are condoning vandalism to happen to others who definitely will not take kindly to vandalism.

When the vandal asks why they are being punished, you can give a simple, truthful answer to that: “You asked for it.” After all, they did, whether they realize or care to admit their own masoch-ism or not. This way, would-be vandals will have learned a vital lesson to contemplate whether they should succumb to mind-lessly destructive behavior.

Some of you sensitive read-ers out there would question my

violent remarks as far as punish-ing vandals go. Let me ask you this: Whose side are you on? Are you a vandal, or a vandal sympathizer? If you have just as many problems with vandals as I do, the solution is NOT to forgive them and hope that they will change their ways. This only lets destructive organisms take advantage of you. This con-sciousness against vandals and consciousness of our belongings which we place tremendous personal value upon will indeed help raise a sense of respect for property and effectively govern-ing our own selves. Those ideal punishments I have described will serve as a warning to those who try to derive fun from ha-rassing us.

Like harmful bacteria or vi-ruses, destructive forms of life must be appropriately eradicat-ed for our own well-being.

Frosh survive first college semesterFellow freshmen, welcome

to second semester of freshman year! Congrats, you have now made it through the less-than-popular RCC experience, blindly chosen classes and experienced the overall igno-rance of being “the new kid.” Yes, second semester has ar-rived and with that comes positive and negative aspects. Now, only a few short weeks into the second semester, fresh-men have already begun to make judgments on which se-mester held more enjoyment for them.

“I enjoy second semester more because now I know what is going on, like when picking classes, I know the classes that I want when fulfilling gen-ed requirements instead of choos-ing things that will be boring for me,” said freshman Tara Na-politano.

“I also know what parties are better. However, I liked first semester because they babied

us, and it was easier,” Napoli-tano went on to say.

Well, it seems the days of being babied are over, and sadly, responsibility will creep up and take over every college student’s life. However, responsibility can

also bring several positive ele-ments.

“I enjoy second semester better so far because things seem a lot more familiar and you have a group of friends to come back to,” said freshman Christine Henderson.

Everyone knows being the new kid is never easy. One of the perks of second semester is coming back to an established group of friends. No one likes the awkwardness involved in meeting new people for the first time. Upon coming back from winter break, the campus

seemed much more welcoming and more like home than it did during the first semester.

In the end, both semes-ters hold different experiences for freshmen.

“I like both first and second

semester for different reasons. I liked first semester because it was new and interesting, but now that it’s second semester I know how things work,” said freshman Nicole Bianco.

Even in small schools, it is hard for students to find their place and learn the ropes. First semester is basically the grace period for students to get their feet on the ground and see what college is all about. Now that that time has passed, freshmen students are finding themselves more knowledgeable and un-derstanding of campus life.

First semester has come and gone. Second semester is in full swing, and every student is working towards their own goals. While seniors are looking towards graduation, freshmen continue to learn, grow and ob-

serve the ways of college life. The truth is, every semester is different, and each hold new challenges.

The freshman experi-ence continues on in the hopes of finally fulfilling the endless gen-eds and major requirements while

salvaging a social life through it all. While it seems that three more years feels like an eternity, the first semester is already over faster than anyone expected.

No one can say how the freshman class may feel about further semesters, or how they will feel about their entire col-lege experience for that matter. Yet it seems the more time we spend here, the more comfort-able we feel and the more fun we have, which leads us to believe that future semesters should only hold more of the same.

Courtesy of mct campus / the sandspurVandals: A wall in Rome which has been desecrated by vandals.

j e n n i f e r s t u l lthe sandspur

While it seems that three more years feels like an eternity, the first semester is already over faster than anyone expected.

The Timucua Jazz Orches-tra’s performance this past Sun-day night blew the walls off the Tiedtke Concert Hall. The jazz orchestra, having only been around little over a year, fea-tured an ensemble composed of established and master mu-sicians. The concert, lasting around two and a half hours, delivered eight American pre-

mier jazz compositions and three standard tunes.

Admittedly, prior to attending, due to my own igno-rance I had expected a form of jazz in generally pop-territory or mostly dominated by smooth, moderate-paced jazz. Upon be-ing introduced with the first song “Out Of Nowhere” (yes,

the title seems quite appropri-ate!), I was pleasantly proved to be mistaken. An insane, unapol-ogetic song, “Out Of Nowhere” can be described as an aural as-sault by a masterful handling of slippery musical structures and a strong amalgamation of the kind of jazz in which these virtuosos specialize. To me, this was their way of saying “This is the bare, basic roots of what we can do…though it is anything but basic!!” This tune contained some of my favorite solos of the concert, the most breath tak-ing of which was performed by

Tom Parmeter on the trumpet. Seated in the very back of the concert, I smiled as I could see audience members in front of me conversing with glazed eyes in awe of the solo, and shaking their heads implying, “I can’t do that to save my life! This guy is fantastic!”

The concert had a few

numbers on the slower, more mellow side, and I consider myself to have an affinity for slower songs. They are some-what…nostalgic, if I under-stand the correct use of the word. Should I name the piano for that reason, or some astral saxophone melodies? What about the drums? “Dindi”, the third piece performed, invoked a universal tranquility amongst audience members due to the soulfulness of its melody and timbre. Another favorite of the style, though a lot more varied due to its inclusion of techni-cal and fast-paced sections, was “Sorry to Lose You”, the next to last song performed, featuring Radiohead reminiscent rhyth-mic patterns. I could also say the same for “As the Morning Moonset,” the second song after the intermission.

The conductor and co-composer of many of the piec-es, Benoit Glazer, displayed his conga-drumming skills on the song “Fanny’s Blues.” It was very enjoyable to see him join-ing his band mates in a collab-orative percussive environment. Glazer is also a skilled trum-peter and used several songs as his playground, expertly ex-ploring every musical avenue of his pieces. Glazer was also a humorous and interactive em-cee, consistently entertain and amusing the audience between numbers. The drummer, Keith Wilson, is also an interactive

personality and I caught him occasionally shooting smiles to audience members.

The last few songs featured a jazz guitarist Bobby Koelble, whose melodic mas-tery emanated through his shredding so-los. Rollins College Music Major Hope Forconi and recent alumni Marissa Zam-bito were in-cluded in the orchestra as guest horn players on the final three songs, “Rup-ture”, “Sorry to Lose You” (a personal favorite of mine), and “Marche Pour L’Enfer”.

T h e s c r e a m i n g decibel levels of the orches-tra’s perfor-mance left my ears ringing and my heart thump-

ing, and gave me an adrenaline rush lasting for quite some time. The Timucua Jazz Orchestra turned me on to a style of mu-sic I did not even know existed, and I look forward to attending more concerts in the future.

[email protected] February 13, 200910A r t s & e n t e r t a i n m e n t

v e r n o n m e i g sj u s t i n b r au n

the sandspur

Not your father’s jazz

vernon meigs / the sandspur Timucua Jazz Orchestra was a refreshing and unique performance that was a definite treat to the ears.

February 13, 2009A R T S & e N T E R T A I N M E N T [email protected]

As enjoyable as a new great film that takes you aback is, there still is nothing quite like the classics, in my opinion. Ev-eryone has their favorites, and the rea-sons for their inclusion vary as much as the people themselves. Some hold a per-sonal sentiment because of the time and place you first saw them, or maybe be-cause they struck a particularly relevant emotional chord. Whether it is time, place, emotion, or just because you could not stand for the movie to end, they hold a special spot in all our memories. Here is part one of some classics that I think should be considered standard viewing for anyone looking for a taste of the best of the past.

“The Godfather”: No movie has

more lasting images or lines in my mem-ory. Every moment of this movie feels like something that had never been done before or since. Simply, it is the best character study, mafia or not, of any fam-ily ever in the history of cinema, and it is my favorite movie of all time. Despite the story being one of the most intriguing and tragic of its time, it is shot with such beauty and the attention to detail in each scene is remarkable. The humanization

of all of the characters, both major and minor, feels undeniably genuine, and is a credit to the astounding ensemble cast, which included Al Pacino, Robert Du-vall, and the legendary Marlon Brando.

“Lawrence of Arabia”: One of the

most ambitious movie projects ever set out upon, and the result was one of the most strikingly beautiful mov-ies ever made. Winningly performed by one of the finest actors of all time, Peter O’Toole, the movie tells the story of T.E. Lawrence, a British soldier re-nowned for his role in the Arab Revolt of 1916-1918. The movie was shot on such a scope and grandeur scale for its time that it is simply one of a kind.

Behind some of the best cinematography in the history of film, courtesy of Freddie Young, and the powerful direction and ambition of David Lean, the picture went on to win 7 academy awards.

“Goodfellas”: As hard as it is to pick my favorite Scorsese film, as he is one of my all-time favorite directors, this would have to be it. Through a strict attention to detail, a fascinating character por-trayal and a riveting story of a man’s life in, and then eventually out, of the mafia,

Scorsese weaves a fast-paced thrill ride into the life of a place we can only dream about, or more likely, have nightmares about. It is gritty, grim and ferocious in its telling of a story that could not stand for anything less. Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci and Robert De Niro shine as mafia men searching for their place amidst the mad-ness, while dealing out plenty of carnage on their own throughout.

“Dr.Strangelove or: How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Bomb”: A movie with the genius that only writer/director Stanley Kubrick could manifest. At times, the movie makes you want to laugh hard, mainly due to the acting genius of Peter Sellers, who portrays two of the major charac-ters. However, there is a message behind the madness, so to speak, as the movie

also serves as a staunch anti-war senti-ment. In the over-the-top buffoonery of the military leaders and their delegates, we are shown a frightening portrayal of the delicateness of the true national security of America and the world at large. It is finest satire movie I have ever seen, and a definite classic still rel-evant to this day, with nuclear war nev-er seeming far from mind or mouth.

“On The Waterfront”: A tale of loy-alty, family, betrayal and in the end, hon-esty at all costs. Marlon Brando delivers the performance of a lifetime as Terry Malloy, a dockworker who witnesses a murder, falls in love and struggles to comes to grips with whether fighting a seemingly insurmountable force, in mob-connected union boss Johnny Friendly, is truly worth it. A tale of quiet salvation at certain moments and climaxing and invigorating action at others; it is truly a powerful movie, moving the audience to not be able but to root for our protago-nist and flawed hero, Terry. The movie is fierce and unrelenting in its portrayal of the moral complexities that haunt us all, and the inhumanity we are all bound to come across at certain times in our lives, and how to face it.

Hope everyone is looking forward to Part II next week….

dav i d s m i t hthe sandspur

Can’t beat the classics

Nothing is more romantic than your lover whispering into your ear, her breath rich with faraway spices, that she de-sires you more than any other man. The very thought of such a whimsically passionate mo-ment invokes fantasies of warm evenings under the jewel-en-crusted Persian sky, the sound of ceremonial drums beating in the distance. This Valentine’s Day, take your sweetie out for some Middle Eastern cuisine that she will not soon forget.

In the mood for zesty, aro-matic, skewered foreign deli-cacies? Hankering for food served on a stick? Well, look no further than House of Kabob, located off of Fairbanks and New York avenues in the Urban Flats shopping center.

Hints of saffron infatuate the senses upon entry in the intimate exotic establishment. Inside, the décor is a combina-tion of a Lebanese family liv-ing room and that of a Chinese take-out restaurant. Unless you enjoy unnecessary physi-

cal contact with fellow patrons, I would suggest ordering and eating outside on the somewhat tropical patio, as the quarters inside are a bit close.

The selection of food is diverse in flavor and accom-modating to most diets and ap-petites. A variety of appetizers, salads, traditional dishes and pita sandwiches are offered along with extensive vegetarian options. Beef, chicken, lamb and even seafood, all seasoned with the flavors of the Fertile Crescent, are available in sev-eral styles at your command.

Even though numer-ous members of the “Sand-spur” staff were dining on the occasion of this review, our ap-petites were less than adventur-ous, as we all ordered similar dishes. Our meals included gyros, both chicken and tradi-tional, Greek salads and falafel sandwiches, choices which proved bolder than expected. The food was flavorful to say the least. Tongues tingled with the tang of lemon, herb and spice, but fresh vegetables served to neutralize the taste. However, many of the dishes tasted dry, despite the copious application of tzatziki.

House of Kabob is open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. (7 p.m. on Sunday) and this culinary experience is definitely worth checking out. The chow is sa-vory and the atmosphere is welcoming. Self-proclaimed catering specialist and owner, Masoud Sadeh, will gladly cater for campus organizations with plentiful portions for a reason-able price. But be forewarned; House of Kabob’s cuisine is heavy and full of strange spices and is not for those with weaker stomachs.

j u s t i n b r au nthe sandspur

For all your kabobbing needs photos courtesy of mct campus

and myspace.com

JB Braun / the sandspurZESTY!: House of Kabob is a convenient local spot for fulfilling any cravings for Greek food.

[email protected] February 13, 200912S p o r t s

Sandspur-ian of the Week

Stephanie Ellenburg

for bringing a strobe light for The Sandspur

office

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Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday SaturdayFriday

Bach Festival: Mas-ters of the Baroque Tiedtke 3pm

Bach Festival: Leon Fleisher Knowles 3pm

FEB/ RAM C

Rollins Collegewww.TheSandspur.org

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16 17

ACE presentsDeath By ChocolateDave’s Down Under

7:00 p.m.

21201918

22 23 24 28272625

Out-Reach presents Condom BingoCampus Center5:30-7:30pm

B-side ArtistsArt Opening

Darden Lounge5:00-8:00 p.m.

ACE presentsDo or Dye

Mary Jean Plaza5:30 p.m.

Sandspur Open Mic Night

8 p.m. in Dave’s

ACE presentsRollins After Dark

Dave’s Down Under10:00 p.m.

Out-Reach presentsValentine’s Day

GiveawaysCampus Center

11:30a.m.-2:00p.m.Michael PhillipsCornell Fine Arts

6 p.m.

Valentine’s DayRollins Baseball Vs.

Bentley3 p.m.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

A Midsummer Night’s Dream- Annie Russell Theatre 8:00-10:00pm

8

William L. PresslyCornell Fine Arts

Museum6 p.m.

Martin EidelbergCronell Fine Arts

Museum6 p.m.

Rollins Baseball Vs. Bentley3 p.m.

Rollins Baseball Vs. Saint Leo

6 p.m.

Rollins Baseball Vs. Saint Leo

1 p.m.

1 2 3 7654

8 9 10

Girl Scouts and Kappa Delta selling cookies outside the

Campus Center5:30-7:30p.m.

Speaker: Greek Life Anti-hazing

Bush Auditorium6:00p.m.

Spring Break

Spring Break

Rollins Baseball Vs. St. Anselm

6 p.m.

Rollins Baseball Vs. Stonehill7 p.m.

H

Good Neighbor Conference

Crummer Hall7:00 p.m.

Junior 3B Ryan Luker Leads Rollins Against PBA En Route to SSC Player of the Week Honors”

The Rollins College baseball team (3-2) won the first two games of the weekend but suffered a 9-7 loss Saturday night at Alfond Stadium, costing the team a chance to sweep the three game series with Palm Beach Atlantic University (1-4).

Palm Beach Atlantic came out strong in the first inning of Friday night’s game. Junior second baseman Vasilios Mila singled up the middle, stole second and scored on a two out single to center, hit by Joaquin Valdes. However, the Tars answered in the bottom of the first with a walk and a triple to center from junior outfielder Taylor Ferguson, scoring junior shortstop Justin Yount. After a groundout and a Bryan Bennett single scoring Ferguson, junior third baseman Ryan Luker drove a homerun to left, registering the team’s first on the young season and his first of three on the weekend. Junior catcher Ben Hewett doubled but was stranded after stealing third.

The Sailfish scored again in the second, managing

one run on a throwing error. The Tars answered with a run of their own. In the third, the Tars took over the game and never looked back. Rollins held PBA scoreless in the top half and put up four runs of their own on singles from Bennett, Hewett, freshman second baseman Josh Band and Yount. Despite a three run rally in the top of the ninth, the Tars held off PBA 13-7 to earn its second victory of the year.

Junior RHP Stephen Hiscock (1-0) earned the win for the Tars, throwing six innings, striking out six, and only surrendering one earned run. Steven Gropler and Chad Giannuzzi completed the last three innings. Buddy Fisher took the loss for Palm Beach.

On Saturday, the Tars took the first game of the double-header in impressive fashion, 15-6. Led by singles from Luker, Charlie Bailes, Band, Yount, senior outfielder Jesse More and a double from Luker, Rollins broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the second with three runs on six hits. Rollins added another three in the third on singles from John Avanzino, Bennett and a Luker home run. In the fourth, Rollins continued its offensive barrage, adding five more runs—two on a triple from Avanzino, two on a Yount single up the middle,

and one on Hewett single. The Tars added two more in the 5th and another two in the 7th on another Luker homerun before keeping PBA scoreless in the top of the ninth to finish the game with a final score of 15-6. The Sailfish managed to score once in the third and five times in the top of the eighth but could not keep up with the Tars.

Tim Griffin (1-0), throwing five innings, gave up no earned runs and only two hits, got the victory for the Tars. Danny Clark, Andrew Loynaz and Michael Eppich finished the game for Griffin, Clark and Eppich combining for three and a third shutout innings. Thomas (0-1), gave up ten runs on fourteen hits in only three and a third, took the loss for PBA.

The Tars came out Saturday night hoping to sweep PBA in the three game weekend series, but fell short. The Sailfish, determined to stave off a sweep and earn their first win of the season, came out strong. Mila opened the game with a leadoff homerun, and the team scored six runs in the first four innings, while the Tars managed only one, brought in on a throwing error. Rollins did score three times in the sixth, but it was not enough to ward off a determined PBA team. Despite giving up

five runs in six innings, Taylor McBath took the win for PBA, while Marc Hewett (0-1) took the loss for the Tars.

Despite failing to complete the sweep, the Tars were pleased with their performance over the weekend. Junior third baseman Ryan Luker, with eight hits including three homeruns was a standout at the plate. About Luker, senior RHP Michael Eppich said, “Luker has always performed well, so his success this past weekend doesn’t surprise me. He’s an unbelievable athlete and an even better teammate.” Eppich was positive about the season’s outlook as well, saying, “We’d love to win them all, but we knew coming into this season that wasn’t going to be

Evie’s 21st Birthday!

G r a h a m G i l b e rtthe sandspur

the case. It’s a very long season. The teams that are successful in college baseball are those who learn from their mistakes early and make adjustments.” Junior catcher Ben Hewett was also optimistic saying, “The young season looks very promising for us. We have a bunch of new arms, and many that look very bright for the future. We have the talent, the potential, and the drive.”

At 3-2, Rollins stands in fourth place in the Sunshine State Conference, although no team has yet played a conference opponent. On Tuesday, Rollins played host to preseason SSC favorite the University of Tampa. The game was played after “The Sandspur’s” article submission deadline.

Swing, batta’ batta’!

Courtesy of Rollinssports.comHome Run!: Senior Bryan Bennett at one of the Tars’ games