His view: AU focuses on students
On Monday, March 4, I was invited to one of more than 25 focus groups at the Ralph B. Draughon library hosted by the Office of the Provost.
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On Monday, March 4, I was invited to one of more than 25 focus groups at the Ralph B. Draughon library hosted by the Office of the Provost.
Tuition hurts. Even if your family is well off - or you managed to wrangle a full-ride scholarship - tuition is expensive.
In Alabama, gambling is illegal, technically.
In the past two weeks, I have been extremely disappointed and frankly, screwed over by the Tiger Transit system. I have seen my driver peruse the smart phone on their dash while driving, which, for anyone who has been living under a rock, is extremely dangerous when operating any vehicle, let alone a bus full of students... oh, and it's illegal.
It's not because I am lazy or because I did not like the people who ran in it--I have voted in past SGA elections.
Professional baseball season is right around the corner, and for many, if not most of us, that means there's another chance for us to follow the Braves to the postseason, only to see them collapse.
A big part of being a journalist is writing negative and sometimes heartbreaking stories. So this week, we’re taking a break from the downbeat and celebrating something fabulous.The Auburn Gay-Straight Alliance is putting on its fifth annual drag show Saturday, March 2, and we want to extend our support. On the national scale, gay rights are extremely controversial. Gay marriage should be a rather simple issue. If they’re in love, they deserve to get married and enjoy the same benefits as straight couples, no big deal.Unfortunately, the more narrow-minded among us don’t agree.Whether they are citing religious reasons, political concerns or just plain old homophobia, those opposed to equal rights for the LGBT community see gay marriage as a threat to what they think is the core of our country: family. Of course, there is no credible data anywhere to suggest gay marriage will stamp out the American family — whatever that means — but it still is a popular belief among the opposition. As far as the South is concerned, the national anti-gay sentiments seem to be concentrated. Perhaps it is the tendency for the South to always be behind the curve on civil rights, or maybe it’s the overwhelming religious presence, we can’t say for sure. What we can say is being gay in America is tough. Sure, gay men and women have it a lot worse in other places in the world, but those places don’t tout freedom and equality as part of their national ethos.Being gay in the South is even more of a challenge.The South, especially Alabama, has a long history of intolerance and bigotry. It’s only been approximately 50 years since black people were subjected to dogs and firehoses in Birmingham. Although the state doesn’t have the overt opposition to the LGBT community it did to the black community, the intolerance is still there. It’s because of that undercurrent of prejudice that we support and encourage our friends at Spectrum to say it loud and say it proud. The first drag show in 2009 was to raise awareness for the absence of Gender Identity and Gender Expression in the University’s nondiscrimination policy. Last spring, the SGA passed a resolution to add the clause, and once it has moved though the administration, it will become official.We want to let Spectrum and the larger LGBT student population know The Plainsman has their back. We believe that anyone can be part of the Auburn family, and we hope someday soon the rest of the country can learn that we’re all human, and freedom and equality doesn’t just apply to straight white Christian men.
As always, the Oscars mark the end of the award season for 2013. After Amy Poehler and Tina Fey hosted the Golden Globes, viewers have been wondering how far "Family Guy" creator Seth McFarland would take his jokes. Of course some were off color and offensive, but hardly anything to cry over. In fact, with the "music themed" ceremony, he kept the opening performance tame by following a handful of crass jokes with musical dance performances from some of the presenters.
The lines between reality television shows and our everyday reality have long been blurred. It's not a secret that scenes in popular shows are often scripted, centering around creating drama and action that will bolster number of viewers and network ratings.
SGA elections have a tendency to divide people on campus. For non-Greek students, or anyone who doesn't have some kind of organizational or personal investment in the elections, the whole process is an annoyance. Greek students appear to be on the other end of the spectrum - with their gaudy t-shirts and loud antics on the concourse.
I admit the whole Twilight craze left me skeptical to any form of entertainment with a semblance of romance combined with anything remotely supernatural.
To view the complete video interview, click here.As I sat quietly in front of a bank of lockers in the back of a brand new Gander Mountain, I wondered what, exactly, I was doing there. There was an exciting chattering in the background. “I’m going to get one signed for my little cousin.” “I’ll be their favorite uncle after this.” They were referring, of course, to the main event, the reason I was sitting in that dim back room in front of that bank of lockers: Troy and Chase Landry from the History Channel show Swamp People were on their way to sign shirts and hats and pictures; I was trying to get an interview on video.I had no stake in the game. I didn’t know much about hunting and I’d never even seen the show. To me, it was just another sign of the History Channel’s decay, adding to the mounting pile of evidence that the History Channel was anything but. But to the huddled group of employees these men were idols. Swamp People is a show about just that -- swamp people, members of a predominantly cajun community that go out hunting for alligators every season. They have a quota that they are allowed to bring in and every season is a race to see if they can fill it while maximizing their profits. Troy’s been in the show since the very beginning. Chase joined him in season three. For Troy and Chase, this hunt is a family business. For the History Channel, it’s entertainment. For the people in that back room, it’s inspirational. These two men represent, in many ways, the ideal American. Strong and individualistic, they are consummate woodsmen, and talented hunters. They operate their own business, and have done exceedingly well with it. And most of all, they are living the American dream.According to TVbythenumbers.com, Swamp People’s premiere in 2010 was the History Channel’s most successful ever. The final episode of the second season in 2011 was the second most watched program on TV that night with 2.8 million viewers. The series remains the most successful that the History Channel has ever run.So they’re kind of a big deal.The first thing that struck me as I walked into Gander Mountain was just how large it was. In Memphis, we have a Bass Pro Shop, which I thought was pretty big. This was much bigger. The second thing that struck me as I walked into Gander Mountain was the massive line that snaked around the entirety of the store. I found the floor manager, who very graciously said that he would approve of an interview so long as his marketing director signed off on it. Was she available? No, she was out for the day, but Troy and Chase would be back tomorrow, and she with them. Would he mind if I talked to a few customers? No, not at all. I took the opportunity to talk to a few of the people waiting in the line. Who were these men? Why were they so important that people were willing to wait in line for an hour just to have them sign a hat?The answers quickly revealed the deep respect and love that people had for Troy and Chase, and made me more than a little worried. Had I bitten off more than I could chew? I needed to do more research.The next day I showed up early. I found the marketing manager, Morgan Colby. Troy and Chase were expected at 11:30 a.m., she told me, and were to begin signing at noon. I was going to have 10 minutes to talk to them. And so I found myself shown to the back. I took a seat in front of a bank of lockers and began to wait. The clock slowly ground to 11:30 a.m.. They were nowhere to be found. I glanced at my phone nervously. 5, 10, 15, 20 minutes passed. They rolled in at 11:50 a.m., riding a crowd of jubilant employees into the breakroom. They immediately began signing hats and taking pictures with practiced ease, and I could instantly recognize why they were so adored. Troy and Chase were the perfect gentlemen. Charming, funny, witty, and benign, they absolutely dominated the room with their presence. They were both soft-spoken and rowdy, respectful and comfortable, distanced and familiar. It was mesmerizing. They signed and photographed for 10 minutes before I was able to get the marketing director to pry them from their employee fans. It was noon. They were supposed to be out on the floor!I was sweating when I picked up the camera. I nervously directed them to sit on some chairs in front of the bank of lockers. I sat opposite them, and began turned my gear on.I had them for 3 minutes. In those 3 minutes, I asked them 6 questions, each of which was answered promptly and with detail. They knew the drill. Troy cracked a joke about half way through that brought laughter from the employees who had gathered to watch, earning them a wry wink in return.Before I knew it, the interview was over. As I exited the break room in the back of the Gander Mountain, I almost ran into a crowd that had gathered, waiting. “That’s not Troy!” a kid shouted. No, it wasn’t; he was only a few steps behind me. The crowd erupted, and I slid through their ranks towards the door.As I turned around right before reaching the doors, I caught a last glimpse of Troy through the crowd, grinning from ear to ear as he stalked up to the signing table with Chase and cried out, “Y’all ready?!” They were true pros.
The Pope's recent decision to step down has got us thinking. Does a man really need to have the same job for the rest of his life?
As award season is here and the Oscars are coming up soon, most people are heading to the theatre based on hype and controversy. One film in particular has received more mixed reviews than praise.
Winter is usually the time for all of the big dramatic Oscar nominated films to have their time, but sometimes it is a bit daunting to watch dark thought-provoking film after dark thought-provoking film.
On Friday, President Obama proposed a "compromise" to last year's Contraception Mandate that would expand that mandate's religious exemption to include religious-affiliated organizations.
Recently, some news articles and editorials around the state have painted a distorted or incomplete picture about our business, our prices and the way we are regulated.
One of the ultimate goals of every child or teenager is to be a grown-up. The pleasure of being in charge of your life and of making your own decisions seems like the perfect solution to everyone else telling you what to do.
Like so many of us, their roots are firmly planted deep in the corner of College and Magnolia.
I can't be sure exactly who said it, but it's caught my attention.