Hilltop Viewshilltopviewsonline.com Volume 26 | Issue 5

S t . E d w a r d ’ s U n i v e r s i t y

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Sports: Women’s soccer currently nationally ranked. Page 9.

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W e d n e s d a y , O c t o b e r 7 , 2 0 0 9

St. Edward’s University held its first annual “A Gath-ering of Faiths,” in conjunc-tion with a similar event to be held in Melbourne, Aus-tralia in December.

The event that inspired the festival, the Parliament of the World’s Religions, oc-curs every five years in a dif-ferent international city with the goal of bringing together the world’s religious and spiritual communities. It is the world’s largest interreli-gious gathering, according to the parliament’s Web site.

Similarly, the event at St. Edward’s on Oct. 1 was created to be a celebratory gathering of students, fac-ulty and staff to discuss and explore different world reli-gions in order to encourage understanding and coopera-

tion between faiths. James Puglisi, associate di-

rector of campus ministry, said the goal of the festival was to promote religious diversity along with literacy and to build knowledge and awareness.

“The more you know about religion the less conflict you will have with religion,” he said.

The festival began at 11 a.m. on the Ragsdale Lawn where various stations were set up to highlight differ-ent religions and provide students with interactive opportunities for religious exploration. Students who stopped by were able to make prayer bracelets, listen to music with religious influ-ences ranging from Judaism to Buddhism, hear stories,

World religions celebrated

Lucio ManzanoAndres Madrid visits the tables set up on Ragsdale Lawn.

Jacqueline Slanley

RELIGIOUS, 4Austin Energy has pledged

to buy more alternative en-ergy sources, which may raise student utility bills in the future.

The Austin City Council has committed to getting 30 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020. Austin Energy believes 35 percent is an achievable goal. The Austin-owned energy company predicts an increase in energy bills in the coming years due to a plan to purchase alternative energy sources, like wind turbines, clean coal, nuclear

energy and solar energy. The plan could raise energy bills nearly 22 percent or more by 2020.

Michael Peterson, the di-rector of the physical plant at St. Edward’s University said that Austin Energy’s goal is to reduce carbon di-oxide emissions from electri-cal generation by 2020. Op-tions to meet City Council climate protection goals in-

clude 30 percent renewable generation, 100-200 mega-watts of solar generation and 700-800 megawatts of energy conservation, Peter-son said.

“The impact on all custom-ers will be higher utility rates as we pay for wind turbine transmission lines, biomass [wood waste] generation, solar capital improvements and a potential rate hike,”

Peterson said. This could mean higher

utility rates for the univer-sity, and possibly an increase in tuition and the cost of living in residence halls and apartments.

Many students already feel the burden of utility prices and find it hard to pay their current bills, much less a spike in energy costs.

But Peterson said that he sees positive aspects of the new policy. Peterson said that the clean energy being bought allows for a share of the Fayette Power Plant to

Katy Johnson

Going green may cost students

“The impact on all customers will be higher utility rates...”

-Director of Physical Plant Michael Peterson

COSTS, 3

St. Edward’s University is assessing the damage after a flood that closed down the Robert and Pearle Ragsdale Center.

The university reopened the building’s third floor last Thursday and its second floor the next day. Jones Auditorium, however, remains closed indefinitely. Workers are still in the process of drying out the auditorium. Classes that were held in Jones will continue to be held in the Maloney Room until further notice.

“We’ll have to do some

repairs in there,” said Mike Stone, director of Auxiliary Services.

Those repairs include replacing damaged dry wall and replacing the carpet in

the auditorium. The carpet had been replaced over the summer at a cost of approximately $9,800.

The full cost of the damage is still being assessed

However, none of the technological or mechanical equipment in the auditorium sustained any damage, according to Stone.

The flooding occurred when a chiller pipe, which supplied cold water to the air conditioning system in the building, became disconnected in the Ragsdale mechanical room

The mechanical room has

Tristan Hallman

Ragsdale open after flood

BUILDINGS, 2

Eloise MontemayorThe carpet in Jones Auditorium will need to be replaced.

Page 2 | NEWS Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop Views

Every year, 10-12 St. Edward’s University students earn a Presidential Award. A majority of students on campus, however, don’t know who qualifies for these awards or how to apply.

Only students graduating in December 2009 and May 2010 from the undergraduate, graduate, or New College programs may apply.

“Applicants must embody the principles of the Holy Cross traditions,” said Peter Erickson, award committee chairman. “Award recipients are folks that really represent the mission of the University.”

In addition, applicants must have demonstrated excellence in leadership, scholarship, and service to the university and the Austin community.

“It must be this combination of things,” said Erickson. “A student can have a 4.0 GPA and not get this award. That’s why the GPA requirement is 3.0, which is still a good GPA. We want someone who has made strides in all three sectors.”

Scholarship refers not only to GPA but also to the degree of a student’s involvement in his/her own education, such as attendance of Kozmetsky Center events.

“This award recognizes

someone who is very, very well-rounded,” Erickson said. “That’s what makes the award so special—it’s very holistic.”

Students must first be nominated by a member of faculty or staff, by a peer, or by themselves. Nominations begin Oct. 1 and end Oct. 30. Nominations must be completed online. An e-mail will be sent notifying students of their nomination and outlining the nomination criteria. If they meet this criteria, students should arrange to meet with Erickson so that he can go over the application process with them.

The application packet includes forms for students to fill out regarding personal information, r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s , community service, volunteer activities, leadership, jobs, internships, honors and awards, among others.

The application also requires the completion of an original essay. Application packets must be turned in to the Student Life Office, Ragsdale 304, by Jan. 13, 2010 at 5 p.m.

The Presidential Awards Committee, composed of faculty, staff and students, will meet to study the applications. This committee meets about three hours a week beginning in the

spring. After all applications

have been considered, the committee will decide upon the recipients, which may be up to 12 students.

Presidential Award recipients receive a glass-encased award containing a certificate signed by President George Martin and individual acknowledgment on Honor’s Night by President Martin, including comments on the recipients’ accomplishments. This is the highest award that a student can receive at St. Edward’s.

“The fact that the Presidential Awards are rooted in students’ demonstrated commitment to our Holy Cross heritage and to the university’s mission strongly appeals to me,” said

Bill Quinn, professor of Natural Sciences. “Academic performance and service both play strong roles in the award process and that is as it should be. “

Quinn regularly writes letters of recommendations for students for the awards.

“The awards give us the opportunity to recognize and showcase the kinds of qualities that we hope students develop through their experiences at St. Edward’s,” Quinn said.

But even with the showcase, the awards have sometimes gone unnoticed.

“I didn’t really know anything about them,” said Kelsey Howell, a sophomore.

Last year’s recipients were Jessica Bair, Alexander Bargioni, Kristen Dempsey,

Sarah Elsey, Ruby Ganal-Burke, Matthew Hines, Alicia Jones, Antonio Martinez, Nigel O’Hearn, Benjamin Palmer, and Glenn Trujillo Jr.

Jessica Bair earned her BA in Psychology. She volunteered extensively as a peer educator and led a campaign through Boosting Alcohol Consciousness Concerning the Health of University Students. She was a sexual assault education coordinator, an alcohol skills training coordinator, a domestic violence program coordinator, and a peer theatre assistant director.

Matthew Hines, who graduated last spring as class valedictorian, double majored in Religious Studies and English Writing and Rhetoric. He volunteered with the Egg Ministry serving breakfast to the homeless, volunteered as an actor and musical director for the Transit Theatre Troupe, founded a weekly poetry group, “Poetry on the Garage,” and was published in the university’s Sorin Oak Review and Arete.

Prior to 1986, Man and Woman of the Year awards were given, in which the committee had to decide upon one man and one woman whom they felt most encompassed the values of the university. In the spring

of 1986, Presidential Awards were given to distinguished applicants who did not win the position of Man or Woman of the Year. With a growing student body population, the university felt more students deserved to be recognized.

In 1989, the decision was made to eliminate the Man and Woman of the Year awards and entirely replace them with the Presidential Awards. As the number of applicants increased and students became more involved, committee members found it increasingly difficult to decide on one best male and female. With such varied accomplishments, it could no longer be done. The Presidential Awards allowed committee members to recognize a greater number and variety of students.

Students with questions about the Presidential Awards or the application process should contact Pete Erickson at 512.464.8821 or visit the Presidential Awards Web page at www.stedwards.edu/stulife/pres_awards/faq.htm.

jschrau@stedwards.edu

Jennifer Schrauth

Presidential Award nominations begin

Nolan GreenThe Presidential Award winners are displayed in Ragsdale.

since been dried and cleaned out “for the most part,” ac-cording to Physical Plant Di-rector Michael Peterson. The burst pipe was replaced and the buildings are run-ning again.

Last Thursday, the third floor of Ragsdale was re-opened since the air condi-tioning blowers were elevated and not affected by the flood.

The campus bookstore and the Quick Dip, which run on the same system as Ragsdale, opened last Wednesday. Lat-er that afternoon, Physical Plant made the decision to reopen the rest of the build-ing.

Meadows Coffee House, run by Texenza, remained open for all but six hours, even as Ragsdale was closed. Meadows served customers from the side of the build-

ing, using tubs of ice to keep everything cool. Later, the coffee shop moved back in-side and did without air con-ditioning. The overall effect on Texenza’s business was minor.

“We actually did pretty

well,” said Steve Baer, café manager.

Baer also said the flooding helped business in Texenza’s new café in the newly-reno-vated Doyle Hall.

“We saw a little bit of an increase just because we were

pointing people in that direc-tion,” Baer said.

The flooding also disrupted operations for the Ragsdale help desk, Student Life and Bon Appétit, which moved its food services to the Hunt Café. But Stone said that he thought the overall response was handled well by everyone involved.

“Obviously, it’s the sort of thing you don’t want to have happen,” Stone said. “But

[Campus Center Director] Gabriel Ornelas and the whole Ragsdale staff, as well as UPD, did a great job react-ing to it. Physical Plant has been handling it well too.”

thallma2@stedwards.edu

Buildings reopen following Ragsdale flooding Continued from page 1

The overall effect on Texenza’s business was minor.

NEWS | Page 3 Hilltop Views | Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Costs of clean energy may burden studentsbe replaced with renewable nuclear power. The Fayette Power Plant is a coal-burn-ing plant located outside La Grange, Texas and fuels much of Central Texas with power.

Freshman Taylor Holden said she thinks the cost is worth it.

“We should invest the extra money it takes to introduce more wind and solar power,” Holden said. “Personally, I think that for future energy security, we need to diversify the energy sources our soci-ety is dependent upon. In-vesting in alternative energy resources can help minimize our dependency on foreign oil and reduce the chances of future federal administra-tions exploiting some of the natural resources we’re fortu-

nate enough to have left.” Senior Xavier Travino, who

lives off-campus, is a propo-nent of clean energy but wor-ries about the extra costs.

“Right now while I’m in school its hard with a part time paycheck to pay all my utilities and rent,” Travino

said. “I’ve been having to bor-row money from my parents to make ends meet. While I support the initiative for cleaner energy, any increase in the already high costs of everything is just going to make situations worse.”

Travino said higher utility

costs also may affect his aca-demic performance

“I’m already working the most at my job because of my school schedule,” he said. “It would mean I would ei-ther have to get a second job at night or reduce the num-ber of school hours to make room for more days of work.”

Peterson said clean energy is focused on production, and that St. Edward’s is focused on consumption and highly influenced by individual elec-trical waste.

“All of us need to be aware of electrical waste if we want to use less as a community,” he said. “Turning off unneed-ed lights, printing less paper, keeping doors and windows closed all contribute to our conservation efforts.”

kjohnso3@stedwards.edu

Continued from page 1In the Austin American-Statesman earlier last week,

Austin Energy provided information about its current energy sources and where it proposes to receive its en-ergy from by 2020:

Coal 32 23

Nuclear 25 22

Open Market 15 9

Wind 12 26

Natural Gas 11 10

Purchase PowerAgreements 4

Misc 1

Solar Negligible 3

Wood Waste 7

Associated Press Austin Energy plans on making wind its primary energy source

When freshman Daniel Jamison came to St. Edward’s University this fall, he no-ticed that a debate team was not available on campus. So he set out to change this and is in the early stages of begin-ning a club.

“We want to be within the system by next year,” Jamison said.

But Jamison is jumping into territory where others have failed. His attempt to start the club with fellow student Zachary Miranda will be the third in the past several years.

Jamison and Miranda are currently seeking help from the Communication Depart-ment where they hope to find an academic advisor for the club.

“We’re getting a feel for which teachers will support this,” Jamison said. “All the

teachers we have talked to so far seem really interested in helping us out.”

Along with an academic advisor, funds are also need-ed to guarantee the success of the club. Funding for this year’s possible debate team is still needed and it is a slow but steady process, Jamison said.

“We want to start ground work first before trying to get funding,” he said.

However, problems with getting funds and finding a sponsor for a debate club have hindered students’ at-tempts in the past to set up the club beyond the pre-liminary stages. Former St. Edward’s student Luis Baez attempted to start a debate club in the fall 2007 semes-ter but was met with several obstacles, including a lack of funding and support from Student Life.

“I was just given the papers

needed to make the club of-ficial and that was it,” Baez said. “It was frustrating.”

Finding an advisor with experience that would help support the club was hard to find, Baez said. Getting fund-ing and finding locations for debate tournaments also hindered any progress of the club.

“Even if we had money there is only one tournament a year in Austin, and that’s at UT,” Baez said. “Others are in Houston or out-of-state.”

With little progress in get-ting a debate team off the ground, Baez eventually ceased his attempts.

“The university didn’t re-ally care, so I stopped caring,” Baez said. “I just gave up.”

Baez is currently a junior at Texas State University-San Marcos, where he transferred during his sophomore year when he heard of the compet-itive debate team there. After

a meeting with the debate coach at Texas State, Baez made his decision to transfer there to join the team.

“For a political science de-gree it probably would have been better to stay at St. Ed’s, but I guess when you like something and really want to do it, you just go with it.” he said.

According to Baez, the lack of help from Student Life was one of the bigger issues in es-tablishing a debate club. Tom Sullivan, director of Student Life, said that he had never heard of a debate club trying to get started and that who-ever was trying to was doing it incorrectly.

“We have organizations start all the time,” Sullivan said. “It’s really easy to do. If people haven’t responded to the debate club then it is re-flective of the topic itself.”

With the establishment of a debate club still under

construction, students can participate in the annual de-bate tournament sponsored by the Center for Ethics and Leadership and Campus Ministry. The tournament was started two years ago by James Puglisi, assistant direc-tor of Campus Ministry.

“The tournament is very user-friendly,” Puglisi said. “It’s a learning experience for students. There’s a good mix of experienced and inexperi-enced debaters.”

Puglisi borrowed the idea of holding a tournament after he saw many students partici-pating in debate at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, the institution where he previ-ously worked.

“Debate is in line with the Catholic tradition of devel-oping intellect through soci-ety’s issues,” Puglisi said.

The debate tournament at St. Edward’s has seen success since its start two years ago.

Student interest has grown significantly as the number of participants in the tourna-ment increased from 19 to 32 within a year. Faculty and staff members serve as judges for the tournament and this has also helped spread inter-est campus-wide.

“It would be a great thing for the university to start a debate team,” Puglisi said. “I would love to see that type of progress.”

For now, Jamison and Mi-randa are focusing on steadi-ly gaining other students’ interest in a debate club. The pair is not looking to start tournaments in the spring 2010 semester as they know it will take time to establish the club.

“Things won’t pick up speed immediately,” Jamison said. “But we plan on sticking to it.”

asander3@stedwards.edu

New students trying to start debate clubAllison Sanders

2020(%):TODAY(%):

Page 4 | NEWS Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop Views

read through different bibles and watch a play performed by the Transit Theatre Group.

A station that attracted the largest audience consisted of four to five pictures drawn by young children depicting how they believed the world came into existence based on their religious beliefs. The pictures were then trans-ferred to oil on canvas by a former St. Edward’s student, Taylor Browning who gradu-ated in Spring 2009.

“The festival was liberating, open, and accepting,” said freshman Gaby Flores.

Overall, Puglisi said that he was satisfied with the turn-out to the event.

“We had a consistent flow of people through the sta-tions,” Puglisi said. “It seemed like people were receptive to

what was offered.” The lawn displays were fol-

lowed by two panel discus-sions in the Maloney Room. The first was a student panel discussion that allowed three current St. Edward’s students to represent their various faith traditions of Christian-ity, Islam and Judaism.

“It was a good interchange between the panelists,” Pug-lisi said.

Following the panel’s dis-cussion, the annual Nostra Aetate discussion began. The discussion united representa-tives from the greater Austin religious community to ex-plore the values reflected in Nostra Aetate, the ground-breaking Vatican II (1965) document that expressed a commitment to dialogue and understanding among diverse faith traditions.

The St. Edward’s commu-nity consists of 40 different

religious denominations, ac-cording to Campus Ministry. As a liberal arts Catholic uni-versity, St. Edward’s goal is to guide each student on an edu-cational and spiritual journey to share their own faith, find common ground with other students and discover the potential that lies within. St.

Edward’s is the only school in Texas that hosted a pre-par-liament festival.

Puglisi said it is important to show that even though St. Edward’s is a Catholic university, the community is still interested in looking at religious diversity and the university encourages this ex-

ploration.“A large part of the Catho-

lic religion is to look at the dignity of all people,” Puglisi said.

Toward the end of the fes-tival on the Ragsdale Lawn, guests were invited to sign a banner which is to be sent to the conference in Australia. The signing was done in or-der to show that small steps are being taken to acknowl-edge the different faiths in the world.

The festival was sponsored by the Center for Ethics and Leadership, University Pro-grams, the School of Hu-manities, Campus Ministry, and Leading E.D.G.E with the overall goal of instilling beneficial qualities within the campus community in order to promote dignity, knowl-edge and common justice.

The Parliament of the World’s Religions was first

held in Chicago in 1893. The event’s goal is to gather busi-ness, education, religious, environmental and secular leaders to promote social co-hesion and solutions.

The 2009 Parliament of the World’s Religions will be held December 3-9 in Mel-bourne, Australia.

jslanle@stedwards.edu

Religious event promotes dialogueContinued from page 1

Lucio ManzanoA religious painting displayed at the “Gathering of the Faiths”

Briefs

The author of Remarkable Crea-tures, a history of two centuries of nat-ural history and required reading for this year’s freshman class through the Freshman Studies program, will speak at St. Edward’s University.

On Tuesday, Oct. 13, Sean Carroll will be discussing his book and the history and meaning of evolution. Carroll is a professor of Molecular Bi-ology and Genetics at the University of Wisconsin.

Previous speakers have included John Bul Dau, author of “God Grew Tired of Us,” a memoir of his time as a lost boy of Sudan in the 1980s and 1990s, and Jeanette Walls, author of “The Glass Castle,” a memoir of the poverty she experienced in her childhood.

Carroll will speak in the Recreation and Convocation Center. Admission will be free.

thallma2@stedwards.edu

Author to speak

The deadline has been extended by one month for those who invested in the Texas prepaid college tuition pro-gram seeking full refunds.

The previous deadline was Oct. 30 for people who paid into the Texas Guaranteed Tuition Plan to request full refunds. The new deadline is Nov. 30.

The letters went out Thursday to investors. A large number of inquiries prompted the extension by the Texas comptroller’s office.

After Nov. 30, people who paid into the Texas Guaranteed Tuition Plan will receive only the money they put into the plan if they request a refund. They will not get any earnings, no mat-ter how long their money had been invested. Fees will be deducted from their refund.

Some legislators have challenged the moneysaving decision.

Tristan Hallman

Refund date moved

Associated Press

Students want aid

PHILADELPHIA, Penn. — Wit-nesses testifying at a congressional field hearing on college affordability say the government should increase financial aid and simplify the process of applying for it.

Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Penn-sylvania chaired the hearing Monday af-ternoon at Temple University in Phila-delphia.

Three students, a parent and three experts in college costs said it’s hard for families to meet the rising price of high-er education.

They encouraged Casey to expand the federal Pell Grant program for needy students. They also said many students are discouraged by needlessly complex financial aid forms.

The House recently passed a bill that would oust private lenders from the student loan business and boost Pell Grants. The legislation must still be ap-proved by the Senate.

Veteran enrollment up

AUSTIN, Texas — New student veter-ans are enrolling in larger numbers at col-leges in Central Texas and both sides are creating resources to ease the transition.

Experts say some of the veterans, includ-ing those recently returned from combat, have trouble adjusting to college life.

The Austin American-Statesman re-ports Sunday that three central Texas colleges are experiencing sharp increases in student veterans. Officials at Texas State University-San Marcos, Austin Community College and the University of Texas say they are doing everything from creating a new position to setting up a dedicated Web site with resources for veterans.

Nationally, 300,000 veterans applied for expanded benefits for college educa-tion under the new Post 9/11 GI Bill.

Meanwhile, some student veterans are creating their own associations to help them in their new roles.

Associated Press Associated Press

GAMES | Page 5 Hilltop Views | Wednesday, October 7, 2009

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6Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop Views ENTERTAINMENT

Barbie Ross is a St. Edward’s University alumnus and winner of CBS’s “Best Seat in the House” contest. Ross created a 30-second video detailing a week in the life of TV’s biggest fan. After a rigorous Facebook campaign and an outpouring of support from family and old friends, she was declared the contest winner. Her prize was a trip to the 61st annual Primetime Emmy Awards where she appeared live on camera. Below, Ross gives us a behind-the-scenes look.

The day the contest was to close, I sat at my desk, waiting quite impatiently. Around 2:30 p.m., CBS called to inform me that I was their winner and that I’d be flying from Houston to

Los Angeles in less than 24 hours. I couldn’t believe my luck. Finally, watching so much TV had paid off - hear that Mom?

The next morning, I was off to sunny California where a town car waited to take me from LAX to a four-star hotel in the heart of Hollywood. I even had a view of the famous Hol-lywood sign from my room.

Saturday, Laura Passero from CBS.com accompanied me to the Nokia Center, where the Emmy Awards were to take place the next day. After having my credentials made and taking a tour of the theatre, including backstage, I was introduced to Joe Kelly, head writer for the show, and Don Mischer, the producer.

Kelly informed me I would be a small part of the show, included in a running gag with host Neil Patrick Harris. Now, I was nervous.

I stuck around the theater for a few hours, watching presenters like Amy Poehler and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and the casts of How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory practice

with the Teleprompters. After snapping a few pictures beside the celebrity seat place holders, Laura and I were off to dine at one of Ashton Kutcher’s restaurants.

Sunday. The big day. I went down to Laura’s hotel room for hair and makeup. A foundation airbrush and seven bobby pins later, I was transformed into a glam-orous Hollywood Barbie. I even had a Hollywood dress, once intended for a celebrity client from my public relations internship the previous summer.

At 2 p.m., an Escalade came for me and Laura and drove us directly to the red car-pet at the Nokia Center. I walked the red carpet and was interviewed by TV.com about my experience thus far. The word ‘excited’ was used repeatedly. Once inside, I stood in the lobby watching guests enter

before heading to my seat. Not even 30 minutes into the show, Neil Patrick Harris explained CBS.com’s contest, in-

troduced me and there I was on national television. When he asked how my “best seat in the house” was, the camera quickly backed away to reveal two very tall Harlem Globetrotters obstructing my view. Later in the show, Harris asked once again how my seat was as I was shown sitting on top of equipment behind the cameramen. I really did have the best seat in the house after those bits – I sat in the front row, next to the cast of 30 Rock.

And just like that, the night was over.The whole weekend was incredible, but also inspiring. Being in a room full of television

industry successes made me want to work hard to achieve my dream of being a television writer. I truly believe I can accomplish anything I set my mind to and the possibilities are endless.

Deep-fried deliciousness

Courtesy of Barbie RossRoss posing alongside host, Neil Patrick Harris.

Barbie Ross

Alum strikes Emmy gold

Ross graduated from St. Edward’s in 2008 with a degree in psychology. She currently works in communications for The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

How is it that something as simple potatoes, hot oil and salt can be so delicious? French fries have become a part of our culinary lives. Here is a list of five of Austin’s best places to get French fries when you get tired of the ones at Ragsdale.

Mighty Fine Burgers and ShakesAt first glance Mighty Fine seems like a regular old burger joint, but after trying the

food, it’s apparent why there is always a line. Every single item on the menu at Mighty Fine is full of flavor, especially their fries. The restaurant advertises fresh cut, fresh cooked crinkle cut fries, and if you don’t believe them you can watch them make your fries through a glass window into their kitchen. The fries taste great, have a great balance of crispy outside and soft inside, and the portions are huge.

Hyde Park Bar & Grill Hyde Park Bar & Grill is very proud of its French fries, and to be honest there is

no reason it shouldn’t be. The restaurant has received the honor of having Austin’s best French fries for many years in a row, but if I was the one handing out that honor they may not be as lucky. The fries at Hyde Park are individually dipped in buttermilk batter and then lightly fried: think fried fish but replace the cod with potato. The result is a very heavy French fry. It is unique and hearty but for me not worth the $5 you have to spend to eat them.

Pluckers If you’re searching for the allusive waffle fry, then you may want to stop in at Pluck-

ers to get your fix. Pluckers Wing Bar has been serving wings, drinks and waffle fries around Austin for almost 15 years. It’s one of the only places in town that has ever been able to serve up my favorite style of fry. There’s no better way to sooth the burn of a couple spicy wings than with a crisp waffle fry dipped in ranch.

Dog AlmightyFor a delicious serving of traditional French fries look no further than Dog Al-

mighty. Its fries are the perfect thickness and are fried perfectly to a nice golden brown color. The fries compliment almost every item on the menu and taste great with just ketchup, but, for a real treat, ask for chili and cheese on top.

P. Terry’s Thin, crisp, and full of flavor are just a few of the ways that P. Terry’s French fries

can be described. The South Lamar stand serves up huge servings of these fresh cut fries for less than $2. P. Terry’s is one of very few places with French fries so flavorful that I don’t use ketchup. With all that flavor for such a low price, P. Terry’s is my pick for the best French fries in Austin.

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-Proctor Andersonpanders2@stedwards.edu

ENTERTAINMENT | Page 7 Hilltop Views | Wednesday, October 7, 2009

One thing you can say for the people of dear ol’ Austin: the heat doesn’t stop ‘em.

For the past 28 years, Austi-nites (and a few others) have been swinging out into the sun to sell their wares, play music, shop and eat. From Brazos to I-35, 6th Street is blocked to motor traffic, and a crowd of people wander through, sipping lemonade and looking at art.

When the city was built, all of the streets that now have numerical names were named after local trees, and the name of the festival is derived from 6th Street’s old name, Pecan St. As the larg-est art festival in Central Texas, over 300,000 people attend, adding $43 million to the city’s economy.

The festival also benefits local charities like Austin Boxer Rescue, Friends of the Planetarium and United

Care USA, and fundraises for The Old Pecan Street As-sociation, which looks after the preservation and beauti-fication of 6th Street.

White-topped tents line the center of the road, and there you can find just about anything arty for any taste. There is hand blown glass, scrap metal art, tie-dye, paintings, photography, a million dog themed objects, hand puppets, wood carvings and jewelry. Most things are brightly colored, and all of them are unique. Many of the vendors are regulars to the festival and come in both the fall and spring. Most of the wares are hand made, and some are even created right in front of you. There aren’t only small business people though. Playstation has a huge air-conditioned trailer with arcade games and prizes to promote their video games.

Many people bring their

dogs, and there are many activities for children. A petting zoo featuring a kan-garoo, a Ferris wheel and a bouncy castle are among the attractions, as well as people

performing roping and magic tricks. Fresh kettle corn, fro-zen margaritas, lemonade, cotton candy and frozen-chocolate-dipped-cheese-cake-on-a-stick are sold, and

all the bars and restaurants along the road offer two-for-one drink specials and a place to come in out of the heat.

Live music is an Austin must, and there is a wide

range of groups, from rock to flamenco, to listen to. There some fairly large local names-like Vallejo and Black and White Years playing slots. There are three stages spaced throughout the festival, so you’re bound to find some-thing you like as you wander through. There are perform-ing arts groups such as The Clickity Cloggers and The Austin City Showgirls.

This year the festival was proud to announce that it is going green by recycling. In-stead of having big trash cans everywhere, there are color-coded bins for plastic, glass, cans, etc. Many people also ride the bus to the festival, which is encouraged.

The next Festival is May 1

and 2 and features a film sec-tion and a scholarship com-petition.

skew@stedwards.edu

Pecan street fest celebrates Austin’s rootsSharla Kew

Bruce Willis’ latest film, “Surrogates” took second at the box office opening week-end.

In the film, almost everyone on earth has a robot double, or surrogate, that they can

create to look however they want and send out into the world to live out their lives while the humans sit at home and control the robot with-out being in danger of any physical harm themselves. It’s a perfect world- until people that are connected to

their surrogates start dying when their surrogates are as-saulted.

Willis’ character Greer be-gins to investigate the situa-tion and finds himself in the middle of a conspiracy he never could have imagined. Greer must take matters into

his own hands and decide the future of the human race.

While futuristic dystopian societies in peril and the fate of everyone being up to one man are plot devices sci-fi fans are familiar with, “Sur-rogates” adaptation is at least entertaining. There are only so many plot possibilities in the realm of Sci-fi, and people tend to stick with the ones that work.

The film’s special effects are practically flawless; the sur-rogates themselves tip-toe the line between human and robot so well that looking at them for too long starts to send shivers down your spine. They are made to be “perfect” people, and they look the part.

While the film is not long enough for us to buy into the troubled background stories attached to the main char-

acters (the film only runs 88 minutes), at least the film tries to give the characters lives beyond what you see on screen. True Sci-fi fans should enjoy the vision of the film, and “Die Hard” fans

should enjoy the action, but if you’re looking for the next Oscar winner you’ll be left as cold as, well, the metal inside those surrogates.

aburton3@stedwards.edu

Surrogates creates double trouble for Bruce WillisAmber Burton

Maryssa Perez

Booths lined sixth street at the Pecan Street Festival selling everything from food to jewelry.

Page 8 | ENTERTAINMENT Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop Views

The 2009 Austin City Lim-its Festival started out beau-tifully on Friday with the most comfortable climate for festival attendees in recent history.

Coheed and Cambria started the afternoon with a bang shortly after 4 p.m. on the Livestrong stage. Me-lodic and harmonized guitars screeched at top volume in

between spine cracking riffs as the band channeled Rush and other prog-rock greats to get the audience’s collective head banging. There’s some-thing about electric, overdriv-en guitars playing in unison and harmonizing with each other that is right at home in a festival atmosphere like ACL.

After the onslaught of all that distorted crunch on the Livestrong stage, festival-go-

ers only had to walk 50 yards to catch Bassnectar on the Dell stage at 5:30. Substi-tuting soaring guitar riffs for crushing bass-beat enlivened mash-ups was a refreshing change of pace and a shining example of electronic music that is usually underrepre-sented at ACL.

Thievery Corporation was another nice change of pace at 6:30, and served as a much needed wind down with their

subtle beats and jazzy vibe. Next up was Reckless Kelly,

whose Texas-country jams helped bring it all back home with a reminder of just what state we were all grooving in.

After battling through for-tified fortress walls of camp chairs in the failing sunlight, I discovered a decent spot to enjoy Kings of Leon, the Friday headliner. Although many probably stuck around to hear the band’s radio satu-

rated hits, Kings entertained the crowd by giving them what they came for as well as choosing some tasty other selections that helped bring the night to a close on a high note. The almost universally adored “Use Somebody” stood out above the others as a fitting end to a very satisfy-ing beginning for this year’s ACL.

Now if only something could be done about the bru-

tally long taxi pickup line…

dgarzaa@stedwards.edu

Saturday was filled with great instruments, immense energy, a heavy downpour and a lot of mud.

MUTEMATH was the underestimated performance of the day bringing plenty of energy, a great stage show and good music.

The crowd echoed the band’s energy as lead signer Paul Meany performed som-ersaults over his keyboard and danced for the fans.

Citizen Cope brought in a large crowd in the rain as they

performed some of their big-gest hits, including “Let the D r u m -mer Kick” and “Son’s G o n n a Rise,” along with some t r a c k s from their

upcoming LP. Their performance was

mellow, but still managed to energize the crowd.

Zac Brown Band brought a taste of country music to the festival, performing on a small stage for a large crowd. A little technical difficulty at the beginning of the perfor-mance didn’t hold the band back, as they soon had ev-eryone signing every word of their songs.

By the time Dave Matthews Band performed, flip flops were abandoned as the ACL crowd was not only drenched from the consistent rain all

day, but from the mud arising through the newly installed grass at Zilker Park.

Thousands of fans showed up at least an hour early for the Dave Matthews Band, some fans staying at the Livestrong venue all day make sure they secured a good spot close to the front for their performance.

Most of the songs Dave Matthews Band performed were from their newest al-bum, “Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King.”

The show was not without its faults. He ended his per-formance a few minutes early, leaving enough time for at least another song. The band exited the stage to the chants of “one more song.” Others were upset that he didn’t play some of his biggest hits such as “Crash Into Me,” “The Space Between,” and “Every-day.”

Overall, Saturday at ACL hosted great music and a lot of wet clothes.

kmeyer2@stedards.edu

Mud. There was a lot of mud. So. Much. Mud. But it didn’t rain. Instead, roundabout 80,000 people stood in large crowds in sti-fling humidity. It seems to be a law of ACL that there must be some amount of time where you can’t tell if you feel awesome or miser-able. But there is never any doubt as to whether it is worth it.

At the AMD stage, old-timers The B-52s kicked off with a trippy, optical-il-lusion backdrop and the

trademark bomber hair-dos.

Everyone bounced and sang to “Love Shack” and went crazy when they closed with “Rock Lobster.”

The Arctic Monkeys played next and were ador-ably British. Highlights of the show were “I Bet That You Look Good On The Dance Floor” and a short-lived mosh pit.

Next, we surged forward to be in the thick of it for Girl Talk.

One of the techies setting up had those pants that zip off at the knee, and the

crowd start-ed chanting “Make Them S h o r t s ! Make Them S h o r t s ! ” and “Show Those Legs!” Undoubted-ly the most o r i g i n a l chant I have ever heard/participated

in. When Girl Talk finally

came on, everyone went ab-solutely crazy. Toilet paper guns, confetti, crazy lights and dancing fans all added to the frenzy.

We bounced and danced and waved our arms and cheered like mad as he mixed everything from ELO to Kelly Clarkson to Elton John.

The jumbotron showed images of giant cheese burg-ers and said things like “Throw Both Hands In The Air” and “Throw Your Bra On The Stage.”

There was a muddy bra being thrown around soon after. It was an epic, exhaust-ing, ridiculously fun show. Enough to make me com-pletely forget I was standing in mud up to my ankles.

Thank you ACL, you’ve done it again.

skew@stedwards.edu

ACL Wrap-up St. Edward’s University

students share their Austin City Limits music festival experiences. For addi-tional photos and videos of ACL, see the online edi-tion at: www.hilltopviews-online.com.

Friday

Saturday Sunday

Sharla KewBassnectar at the Dell stage

Daniel Garza

Sharla KewBy Saturday night, the lawn was a sea of mud.

Kayla Meyer

Sharla KewGirl Talk invited fans to dance onstage.

Sharla Kew

9Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop ViewsSPORTS

The St. Edward’s Universi-ty women’s soccer team is fly-ing past its competition. The team has won its fifth game in a row, earning a national ranking and tallying eight wins total this season.

As of press time, the Hill-toppers were ranked 12th in the nation, according to the NSCAA/Adidas Division II rankings. The new ranking for the women’s soccer team came out Tues. Oct. 6. The Hilltoppers (8-1-1, 3-0) beat Newman University (4-5-2, 1-2 HC) 3-0 on Sunday in Wichita, Kan. making it their third straight confer-ence win.

“Our team has really uni-fied and started the season off strong,” said junior for-ward Janea Averette. “We

have started the conference off well and hope to continue our undefeated streak.”

Sophomore Jordan Ynos-trosa scored the first goal 15 minutes into the game. In the 23rd minute, senior Kim Ab-bott scored her first goal of the season, and in the 24th minute of the game, sopho-more Kelly Servage, assisted by Averett, scored the final goal of the game.

Sophomore goalkeeper Claire Tilton tallied six saves that game. The Hilltopper defense accumulated its sev-enth shutout of the season. The team was able to out-shoot Newman 16-6.

“In several games, we have shown the ability to come to-gether as a team to dominate other good teams,” Abbott said. “The next step is to play our best soccer consistently.”

The continued wins are proving how deep the tal-ent is on the women’s soccer team, having two key starters still out with injuries, senior leading scorer Stacey Cope-land and junior goalkeeper Troi Jorgensen.

“Each week, more play-ers seem to step up and are playing really well, which has been key to our success, es-pecially while we continue to battle injuries,” Abbott said.

This weekend, the Hilltop-pers have two home games against Texas A&M Interna-tional University on Friday at 4 p.m. and #19 University of the Incarnate Word on Sun-day at 1 p.m.

“We have two big games this weekend,” Averette said. “One against our biggest ri-vals, Incarnate Word. I know if we all come together, we

can put these games away and continue towards our one dream.”

kmeyer2@stedwards.edu

Women’s soccer team nationally ranked

Courtesy of SEU AthleticsFreshman Sara Singleton takes a shot against Texas A&M-Commerce.

Kayla Meyer

The students at St. Ed-ward’s University have found many transportation meth-ods when traveling from class to class ranging from walk-ing, biking, skateboarding

and even unicycling. Junior Joseph Luedecke

learned to ride the unicycle by himself at the age of 16. It took him six months and he said at times he wanted to quit.

“I wanted to know what

it felt like,” Luedecke said. “Would it feel like flying?”

To allow for more balance, Luedecke said he uses toe shoes which work well with the unicycle. Because of the toe shoes, Luedecke said the spikes on the pedals don’t

bother him. “[A toe shoe is] a

special type of shoe that quite literally is shaed to fit each toe,” Luedecke said. “It looks like a toe sock, for example, but has a flexible rubber sole and a strap to close it in on the top. ”

This year, there seems to be an increase of skate-boarders on cam-pus.

When it comes to skateboarding to class though, the

skaters face people getting in the way.

“I really don’t skate that much to class,” junior Marc Chilton said.

The skaters said the pave-ment on St. Edward’s cam-pus is great for skateboard-ing. The pavement is smooth, and doesn’t have pebbles or cracks.

Some of the skaters said they often go to Mabel Davis Park, a local park, to watch or participate in competitions. The skaters use the campus to practice ground tricks like the flip tuck or olie.

The stairs on campus al-low the skaters to practice their jumps as well but not their grinds. When it rains, the board and wheels can be damaged. The wheels can get water logged or rusty, similar to bikes.

While the walk from Main Building to Ragsdale may be

easy, walking from Johnson Hall to Fleck Hall have some students wishing for a bike.

For freshman Clara Fried-richs, having a bike isn’t that glamorous.

“People get in the way, and it’s hard walking up the hill with the bike,” said Fried-richs.

Like skateboarders, the packed sidewalks make it dif-ficult for many bike riders. It may be faster to class, but it requires a great deal of coor-dination. Agility is another skill bike riders pick up when weaving in and out of slow-moving students.

Most bike riders can be seen on days when the sky is blue and the sun is hot.

When it rains, the water can cause damage to the spokes, chains and wheels. It’s a safety hazard because the tires often lose friction and skid out of control. But

overall, Friedrichs said that bike riding is “better than walking.”

Some students also prefer to walk rather than biking or skateboarding.

“I like walking,” said junior Devon Oswald. “I mean, we’re not at the University of Texas. Classes are about five minutes away. Having a bike seems to be too much space. Roller blading, I’ll have to carry shoes. No, I like walk-ing.”

Oswald also said that walk-ing to class gives her time to ponder or to look at the yel-low flowers by the big weep-ing tree.

So whether it’s unicycling, biking, skateboarding or just walking, St. Edward’s stu-dents seem to enjoy and uti-lize various ways of getting to class.

crogers4@stedwards.edu

Candice Rogers

Alternative forms of transportation arise on campus

Kateri KuglemannJunior Joseph Luedecke has been unicycling since the age of 16.

Page 10| SPORTS Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop Views

Athletes are embracing Twitter like nobody else. They do so because Twitter offers a more direct way to interact with fans than ever before.

It seems obvious, though, that tweeting during com-petition is a distraction for the player and a detriment to the overall performance of the team.

If professional sports today were about achieving the highest level of perfor-mance possible, then tweeting in competition should be against the rules. Profes-sional sports are not, however, just about the game; rather, they are a business where the priority is profit.

Many coaches and teams have made headlines recently for issuing fines to players who Tweet during games, stating that it is a clear distraction. Charlie Villanueva of the Milwaukee Bucks was punished for Tweeting at halftime against the Boston Celtics March 15.

“…[A]nything that gives the impres-sion that we’re not serious and focused at all times is not the correct way we want to go about our business,” Bucks coach Scott Skiles said.

If the reasoning is that tweeting is a dis-traction, then that makes perfect sense. But how is that any different from in-game interviews of coaches and players adopted by a few of the major networks and mandated by the National Basketball Association? Or asking a player or coach to wear a wire so the fans can hear on TV? Answering questions on national televi-sion in front of a camera is definitely as distracting as sending a tweet from a cell phone in the locker room.

Both tweeting and things like in-game interviews offer fans a more interactive experience with the athletes and coaches. They are both encroachments on the game for the sake of creating a better product for the fans. The difference between the two is that the networks and owners do not make money off of the tweets.

The leagues are quick to adopt new ways to make their product more appeal-ing to the fans if they can financially capitalize on it. When players attempt to do the same thing by connecting directly with the fans, but without going through a sponsor or major network, sanctions are imposed to stop it, often behind the justi-fied rationale that it is a distraction.

Professional sports are a display of the best of what humans can do athleti-cally, and consumers pay to see it. If the priority is to produce the highest quality athletic display that is humanly possible, then tweeting during competition should not be allowed, and neither should in game interviews.

But that isn’t what the owners see as the priority. Their priority is profit. Mandat-ing interactivity on one hand and punishing it on the other is hypocritical and sets up a double standard.

tcollin@stedwards.edu

Fines for tweets set a double standard

The Hilltop Views sports column, ‘Five Minute Major,’ appears every other week in the sports section and is written by Co-Editor-in-Chief Tommy Collins.

Five Minute Major

Tommy CollinsSports Commentary

When I got up Saturday morning to watch ESPN College GameDay, I was not expecting the inspirational story of Mark Herzlich to be the main theme of the show.

For those who do not know about Herzlich, he was a linebacker for Boston Col-lege and was one of the best in the country, included as a finalist for the Dick Butkus Award for best linebacker in 2008.

However, one event changed Herzlich’s life forever. On May 14, 2009, Herzlich in-formed the Boston College community that he had Ew-ing’s Sarcoma, a cancer that often appears as a tumor in the legs, arms or chest.

Herzlich would miss his

entire senior season to un-dergo chemotherapy to get rid of the tumor so that he could live a cancer-free life.

Herzlich, once a 238-pound linebacker who was destined for the NFL, has now dropped weight consid-erably as well as lost his hair and a majority of his strength due to treatment.

But that didn’t stop Her-zlich from continuing to be a part of the football program. Herzlich is now none other than a linebackers coach on the team this season.

One of the more interesting parts to this story is the in-spiration Herzlich received. He started receiving letters of inspiration from Sister Barbara Ann Hallman, a nun from Indiana. Hallman wrote letters of encouragement to

Herzlich saying that he was in her prayers and to keep going, which he has done.

Herzlich has received sup-port not only from Sister Hallman, but also from his fellow Eagles.

When Boston College beat Florida State University 28-21 Oct. 3, Boston College students wore gold shirts saying “Beat Cancer” along with Herlich’s number 94 on it. The proceeds from the shirts went to cancer research in honor of Herzlich.

So thank you, Herzlich, for the inspiration you give us all. The nation is pulling for your recovery.

dshedd@stedwards.edu

Dan Shedd

SPORTS COMMENTARY

Herzlich an inspiration

Austin just got a little bit brighter with the birth of the Texas Stars, the city’s new minor league hockey team.

The Texas Stars are a few steps up from the Austin Ice Bats, which was disbanded in June 2008, and have a home in the brand new Cedar Park Center.

The facility, located on New Hope Drive and the U.S Highway 183-A toll way, was completed in September.

The $55 million project is the third largest mixed-use indoor location in central Texas and boasts a capac-ity of 6,800 for hockey and 8,700 for other events in its 181,640 square-foot area.

The venue also has high definition screens on a cen-ter scoreboard and 24 luxury suites. Along with hosting Texas Stars games, the venue will also hold music concerts, circuses and other theatrical events.

Although only time will tell if the variety of events will be a success, hockey games already hold promise to be well attended. In the match between the Texas Stars and their parent team, the Dallas Stars, Sept. 30, 6,623 seats were filled.

Although the Texas Stars lost to the Dallas Stars 5-1, pre-season matches against the San Antonio Rampage Sept. 27 and the Houston Aeros Sept. 28 were ex-tremely close, with the Texas Stars losing by one goal in both cases.

Despite not yet going to a game, St. Edward’s Univer-sity senior Matt Moore is already a big fan of the fledg-ling hockey team.

“The Texas Stars are a step below the Dallas Stars, so when you are at a game, you are watching the NHL’s po-tential stars of tomorrow,” Moore said.

The Texas Stars are a part of the American Hockey

League (AHL), the minor league version of the Nation-al Hockey League (NHL).

NHL franchises typically foster the growth of a little brother AHL team in order to obtain new, talented play-ers.

As much as 84 percent of current NHL players origi-nally played in the AHL, according to the Texas Stars Web site.

Moore urges students to at-tend a game for the fast pace and high contact.

“It’s 100 miles an hour for the entire game, so you are at the edge of your seat con-stantly,” Moore said.

For those who like to see players get rough, Moore as-sures them that “fighting is a staple of the sport as well.”

With tickets starting at a cheap $9, check out www.texasstarshockey.com for the Texas Stars’ schedule.

mmcnall@stedwards.edu

Michael McNally

New local hockey team

ADVERTISEMENT |Page 11Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop Views

Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop Views FEATURES12

In the United States, one in four women have experienced domestic abuse, and nearly three out of four Americans personally know someone who is or has been a victim of domestic abuse.

With October being Do-mestic Violence Awareness Month, many are speaking out against this issue.

Abuse is a complex psy-chosocial problem that af-fects large numbers of people worldwide. Types of abuse include physical, sexual, ver-bal, psychological, emotional and intellectual abuse.

According to anti-violence organization DamnViolence.com, the costs of abuse to society run into billions of dollars annually in the U.S.

alone. They include not only the direct costs of immedi-ate medical and psychiatric treatment, but also the indi-rect costs of learning difficul-ties, interrupted education, workplace absenteeism and long-term health problems.

One way to protect yourself from potential violent situa-tions is through the Rape Ag-gression Defense program, or RAD, which teaches women options for any confronta-tion they might face.

“It’s a natural reaction for anyone to fight back,” said Officer Alice Gilroy, direc-tor of RAD. “We teach them how to do that.”

Gilroy says that 88 percent of rapes are “acquaintance rapes,” meaning that the vic-tim knows—and most likely trusts—the assaulter.

“Alcohol is the drug of choice to incapacitate women so that rapists can get them where they want and take advantage of them,” said Gil-roy. “The number one way to escape a rape is to run away, and the number two way is to fight back. Fight back until you can run away.”

The RAD program is a nationwide series of courses taught primarily in universi-ties and school. There is also a RAD program for children and for men, though these classes are not currently pro-vided through St. Edward’s University Police Depart-ment.

“The problem is we don’t have the funds for training,” said Gilroy.

The RAD program gives women options for any con-frontation they might face.

In the class, women are taught techniques they prac-tice on trained men in pad-ded uniforms.

“RAD training costs $400, and the next class will be in the next few months,” said Gilroy.

Students, faculty or staff who might need help coping with the emotional stress of any kind of abuse may make an appointment with the university’s Counseling and

Consultation Center. The center is staffed by psycholo-gists, doctoral students and a consulting psychiatrist in or-der to give students the best treatment possible.

Appointments may be made over the phone or in person. The Counseling and Con-sultation Center is located on the first floor of Johnson Hall and is open to registered St. Edward’s students.

There are also many pro-grams and organizations that seek to help surviving victims of violence through financial assistance. The Regaining Ones Self Esteem Fund is a national non-profit organi-zation based in Boston and chartered to break the silence and the cycle of domestic violence. One of the services it provides is a scholarship to help victims of abuse regain self-esteem and continue to succeed.

The Women’s Indepen-dence Scholarship Program, or WISP, was also created to help formerly battered wom-en overcome barriers to re-ceive the education necessary for becoming employable and financially stable.

“The objective of the Wom-en’s Independence Scholar-ship Program is to help sur-vivors of intimate partner

abuse obtain an education that will in turn offer them the chance to secure employ-ment, personal independence and self sufficiency,” according to the program’s Web site.

There is also the Domestic Violence Resource Center, which works to help victims get what they need when they need it.

“We serve all individuals and families who have expe-rienced domestic violence. In providing our services we do not discriminate on the ba-sis of age, gender, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, re-ligion, marital status, sexual orientation, sexual/gender identification, disability or any other characteristic pro-tected by law,” according to the center’s Web site.

One of the services this organization sponsors is the Survivor Empowerment Fund. This fund is operated by gift card and monetary do-nations, for which domestic violence victims may apply.

It is important for survi-vors of domestic violence, or any kind of abuse, to not feel alone. There are resources both on and off campus to help with physical and emo-tional stress. If the resource needed is not available on campus, UPD or the Coun-seling and Consultation Cen-ter will surely direct survivors to the appropriate resources and be with them every step of the way.

jschrau@stedwards.edu

Rob GallopThree out of four Americans know someone who has been abused in some way.

Options available for victims of abuseJennifer Schrauth

Contact the Counselingand Consultation Center

HoursMonday-Thursday: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.Fridays: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Phone Number(512) 448-8538

Web Sitehttp://www.stedwards.edu/counsel/index.htm

Scholarship Web Sites

The R.O.S.E. Fundwww.rosefund.org/programs.html

The Women’s Independence Scholarship Programhttp://wispinc.org/Programs/WISP/tabid/62/Default.aspx

The Survivor Empowerment Fund(sponsored by the Domestic Violence Resource Center)http://www.dvrc-or.org/domestic/violence/resources/C133

FEATURES | Page 13 Hilltop Views | Wednesday, October 7, 2009

St. Edward’s, Reflect, Vol-unteer Engage, or S.E.R.V.E., is a service program on cam-pus that promotes serving the community, understand-ing local social justice issues and building relationships.

S.E.R.V.E. members get in-volved with the organization for a variety of reasons.

“I needed to do community service for my degree in soci-ology,” said Jewel Hancock, a

senior. Another student, Kelly

McCarthy, a sophomore, said she became interested after hearing an announcement at her church to join the service organization.

“Weekly and monthly ser-vice projects are the founda-tion of the S.E.R.V.E. pro-gram. It’s a great way for you to get involved with local ser-vice projects and work side by side with other St. Edward’s students. It’s the perfect op-

portunity to make friends while helping others,” said Lou Serna, assistant director of Campus Ministry and the director of S.E.R.V.E.

Nonprofit organizations that S.E.R.V.E. directly works with include the Sal-vation Army, Mary House Catholic Worker, South Congress Senior and Rehab Center and the Wild Basin Preserve.

“You can volunteer with youth, the elderly, trash pick-

up and just about anything,” said Hancock.

Hancock volunteers with the South Congress Senior and Rehabilitation Center at Live Oak and Congress.

“Lou [Serna] is really great at running it all,” she said. “Last time I went [to the re-habilitation center], we did a cooking class with them and made quesadillas.”

Hancock volunteers three hours a week and will receive one hour of school credit to-

ward her degree at the end of the semester.

McCarthy volunteers at Mary House Catholic Work-er, which she described as a halfway house for impover-ished people.

“Sometimes we cook, sometimes we garden—it’s a really good organization. It helps people bond and have a good sense of community,” said McCarthy.

She has been involved with Mary House since 2009.

In addition to volunteering, S.E.R.V.E. participants meet monthly for a Sunday social, have lunch and share experi-ences.

Students who would like to volunteer or learn more about local service oppor-tunities should contact Lou Serna at (512) 448-8537, or e-mail him at luiss@sted-wards.edu.

jschrau@stedwards.edu

Jennifer Schrauth

New organization serves the Austin community

Experiencing Austin on a budgetThe Manual

The Manual is a biweekly “how to” column that fea-tures ways St. Edward’s students can learn quick projects, practical fixes and cheap ways to have fun and survive in Austin.

College students are notorious for being poor souls, but that’s no reason not to have a good time in Austin. For the low price of free, students can learn how to enjoy everything from yoga to beer in this great city by simply knowing where to look.

jobenha@stedwards.edu

Jeni Obenhaus

The 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats that live beneath the Congress Avenue Bridge take flight en masse each night at dusk, which makes for a cool Austin outing.

Ann Richards Congress Bridgehttp://www.batcon.org/

Hit up Cannoli Joe’s on Thursday nights beginning at 6 p.m. for free beer tasting and live music per-formances during its Handcrafted Beer Tasting Tour, which lasts through the end of the year. Cannoli Joe’s, 4715 U.S. 290 E. 78745http://www.cannolijoes.com/

The print works of Jerry Bywaters will be fea-tured at the Blanton Museum of Art through Nov. 8. The exposition showcases 39 prints that center on all things Texas. Admission to the event is—you got it—free.

The Blanton Museum of Art, 200 E. Martin Luther King Blvd. 78704http://www.blantonmuseum.org/

Anyone—from beginners to professionals—are wel-come to play a few games of chess at the library every Wednesday at 5 p.m. for free.

Oak Springs Branch of the Austin Public Library, 3101 Oak Springs Dr. 78702http://www.keepingaustinfree.com/

Boy Toy, Austin’s Harold troupe, is made up of instructors and graduates of Cold Towne Theater. Catch Boy Toy every Saturday at Cold Towne Theater starting at 7 p.m. The event is BYOB and free.

Cold Towne Theater, 4803 Airport Blvd. 78751http://www.keepingaustinfree.com/

Every Wednesday at midnight, the Drafthouse hosts Weird Wednesdays, which features what

it calls “exploitation classics.” These obscure films range from amazing to amazingly bad, but fun will be had by all.

Alamo Drafthouse Cinema at the Ritz320 E. Sixth St. 78701http://www.originalalamo.com/

Ruta Maya also offers free yoga classes Tuesday through Saturday with any purchase—like a cup of hot coffee or a sweet pastry. Yoga classes include Vinyasa yoga, Ha-tha yoga and even yoga geared to-wards families.

Ruta Maya, 3601 S. Congress Ave. 78704http://www.rutamaya.net

Ruta Maya, the reigning Ruler of Free, also offers wellness classes with a purchase at the café. Classes include topics like “Medical Terminology, Latin Tuto-rial and English Word Power with Professor Doig” on Mondays, “Tai Chi with Guy Forsyth” on Tuesdays and more. Classes begin at 1 p.m.

Ruta Maya, 3601 S. Congress Ave. 78704http://www.rutamaya.net/

Local coffee shop, Ruta Maya, invites locals to its weekly Open Mic. Night every Tuesday. Open poetry readings begin at 6 p.m. and open music performances begin at 9 p.m.

Ruta Maya, 3601 S. Congress Ave. 78704http://www.rutamaya.net/

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rMitch Clendening

Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop ViewsVIEWPOINTS14

We’ve all heard it before: Piracy is a serious criminal offense. It is equivalent to theft—no, worse than con-ventional theft.

Make no mistake: Pirating music over the Internet is il-legal. But illegality alone has never been a sound moral argument.

I want to examine the conse-quences of these acts as a de-fense of them. My argument does not contest the illegality or basic morality of piracy. Theft of intellectual property is wrong, but I would like to consider the possibility that a greater good can be achieved through it. Particularly, true artistry may be saved from the petty kitsch to which it has been reduced.

Art has forever been a tes-tament to the power of the human spirit. It alleviates the

suffering that characterizes our existence—the constant struggle for an ultimate pur-pose or reason to life that few, if any, truly find.

Music is an especially vital form of art because it reso-nates with the deepest part of the soul that can only be reached through pure emo-tion. Music does not need words, pictures or reason of any kind; it moves the lis-tener with naught but pure emotion.

For this, it is beautiful.But this has been stolen

from us. “The Music Indus-try” is an oxymoron, for it fails to produce music. In-stead, it generates a hollow shell of what music once was, devoid of meaning outside of being merely entertaining.

Now, it must be admit-ted that entertainment has a purpose and is beneficial in many cases. However, the

eminence of the music indus-try has entirely redefined the very word “music” in the lan-guage of goods and services, depriving humanity of its original artistry.

The definition of “music” is ever shifting from that which is art to that which is profitable, but art cannot be created for the purpose of profit. The music industry has, principally, stolen musi-cal art from us.

Thus, by removing the profitable incentive which currently drives “music,” we may regain the original art-istry that is solely capable of soothing the human heart. Seeing as it has been stolen

from humanity, it is only ap-propriate that we attempt to steal art back. Few causes of such a nature were ever won by the means of polite re-quest.

Let us examine how the goods of the music industry are athieved. An uploader buys Justin Timberlake’s album “FutureSex/Love-Sounds” from a store. He then rips the files from the CD, generating mp3 files. These are uploaded to a file-sharing site, where they may be downloaded by any individual with an Internet connection and the proper freeware.

By this method, one pur-

chase serves several thousand individuals. Every download-er represents one CD that did not generate revenue.

So long as authorities fail to suppress such acts, and the current acceleration of piracy continues, the music indus-try may become unprofitable within the next couple de-cades. Several years later, the lack of ability to garner profit would result in its collapse, a revolutionary event in the history of music.

The collapse of the music industry would be a desirable event. It would remove profit from the realm of music, al-lowing true artists to return to the original artistry that music once was. With an in-ability to profit from creativ-ity, the purity of creative tal-ent can be assured.

Furthermore, music will once again be redefined as an act of spirit rather than eco-

nomics. The one art capable of communicating through pure emotion would be re-turned to humanity, free to exist outside of economic motivation.

Pirating music may appear wrong, but it can achieve an end that far outweighs the immediate immorality. Pi-rating can remove the profit incentive from the world of music, returning it to its orig-inal integrity. From an unjust act may come the rebirth of music.

jhartwe@stedwards.edu

Capital Metro, Gilliam fail to meet goals Editorial

Piracy can recreate integrity lost in modern musicJake Hartwell

With an inability to profit from creativity, the purity of creative

talent can be assured.

Last week, Capital Metro announced that its Red Line light rail project would not be finished until early 2010. The project is already a year behind schedule and nearly $20 million over budget.

The forced retirement of President and CEO Fred Gilliam, who took over in 2002, is not only a necessity but also an important step in righting the sinking ship that is Capital Metro.

Throughout his tenure, Gilliam has overseen a bar-rage of failures, not limited to the Red Line, which is plagued by safety issues as well as problems along the rail way. Persistent troubles with malfunctioning crossing gates is just one of the many problems being experienced

along the train line. Gilliam was the man who

originally prompted Capi-tal Metro to undertake the 32-mile train line. He then brought it through the ballot initiative stage in Novem-ber 2004 and promised to deliver the service at a $90 million price tag, an amount since surpassed that now looks close to $110 million or more.

In 2002, Capital Metro had a $200 million reserve, which has now dwindled below $4 million. In just seven years, Capital Metro, under the guidance of Gilliam, has run through its normal budget, money allocated from the 2004 ballot initiative and $196 million in its reserve—all of this while the prices of

all bus passes has risen. Also last week, Capital

Metro discontinued the ‘Dillo lines, which provide free transit service around downtown. Couple that with the fact that Gilliam and Capital Metro more than doubled the cost of student monthly passes, and those in need of cheap transportation have been neglected during Gilliam’s reign.

Over the time Gilliam oc-cupied the chairmanship of Capital Metro, he has seen ridership decline since 2002, according to the Austin American-Statesman. Al-though an all-time high was reached in 2006 as gas prices increased exponentially, it could not be sustained.

City Council Member Mike

Martinez commented to the Austin Chronicle in March that Capital Metro had wide-reaching problems.

“[The City Council] must seek answers to the many questions surrounding Capi-tal Metro and judgment er-rors that have plagued the agency for some time now,” Martinez said. “Other folks are going to have to accept their responsibility as well. It really brings into question the competence of the orga-nization.”

Although some of the prob-lems Gilliam brought upon Capital Metro will leave with him, if a poor replacement is picked, Austinites can ex-pect more of the same from its mass transit system. The Austin City Council, along

with the residents of Aus-tin, need to pressure Capital Metro to hire a chief execu-tive who can lead the orgini-zation and restore Capital

Metro’s repuatation and sav-ings account.

Courtesy of Capital MetroCapital Metro’s Red Line never left the factory floor.

VIEWPOINTS | Page 15 Hilltop Views | Wednesday, October 7, 2009

­It’s­ hard­ enough­ to­ find­“Help­ Wanted”­ signs­ these­days­without­being­forced­to­apply­online­and­lose­yourself­in­the­system.­­

A­ couple­ of­ weeks­ ago­ I­went­into­Borders­to­ask­for­an­ application­ and­ was­ told­that­I­had­to­apply­online­be-cause­the­company­no­longer­used­paper­applications.­­

After­ filling­ out­ my­ online­form­and­receiving­my­confir-mation­ e-mail­ thanking­ me­for­applying,­I­waited.­­

And­I­waited.­­And­ then­ I­ waited­ some­

more.­I­never­heard­a­word­back.­

No­“Thank­you­for­applying,­but­ we­ don’t­ have­ any­ posi-tions­at­ the­moment.”­Not­a­word.­­

By­ converting­ to­ these­ on-line-only­ application­ forms,­companies­ are­ forcing­ po-tential­ employees­ to­ plunge­themselves­ into­ a­ faceless­crowd­with­ little­ to­no­hope­of­ being­ recognized.­ With­

the­ tried­ and­ true­ paper­ ap-plication­ system,­ applicants­have­ the­ opportunity­ to­ go­into­the­store,­meet­the­man-ager­ and­ potential­ co-work-ers­ and­ leave­ an­ impression­in­their­minds.­­

When­you­return­to­submit­your­application,­they­will­al-ready­know­who­you­are­and­have­a­ face­ to­put­with­your­name­ when­ reviewing­ your­information—something­ of­which­ online-only­ job­ mar-

kets­rob­you.Sure,­ it­might­be­easier­for­

companies­ not­ to­ have­ to­deal­ with­ the­ piles­ of­ paper­applications,­ but­ how­ much­can­you­learn­about­someone­from­a­computer­screen?­­Im-pressions­are­important:­they­identify­you­as­ a­human­be-ing,­as­more­than­just­a­name­and­ a­ list­ of­ attributes­ and­work­references­on­a­screen.­­

Yes,­it’s­more­convenient­to­be­ able­ to­ sit­ down­ at­ your­

desk­ in­ the­ comfort­ of­ your­own­ home,­ filling­ out­ ap-plication­ after­ application­ in­nothing­but­your­underwear.

But­from­that­position­you­aren’t­ able­ to­ show­ employ-ers­and­convince­them­about­your­personality­or­work­eth-ic.­The­trade-off­for­comfort­is­ a­ lack­ of­ identity­ beyond­your­employment­statistics.

In­ a­ world­ where­ technol-ogy­ is­doing­more­and­more­things­for­us­every­day—nav-igating­our­cars,­opening­our­doors,­ dispensing­ our­ soap­and­flushing­our­toilets—we­should­hang­on­to­the­human­connection­in­our­work­life.­

Otherwise,­ losing­ our­ ap-plications­ in­ the­ ether­ will­soon­ translate­ to­ our­ bank­accounts­running­dry.

aburton3@stedwards.edu

3001 S. Congress Ave.#964, Austin, TX 78704Phone: (512) 448-8426 Fax: (512) 233-1695

seuhilltopviews@yahoo.comwww.hilltopviewsonline.com

Hilltop Views

Bryce BencivengoTommy CollinsEditors-in-Chief

Claire CellaTristan HallmanNews EditorsPhilip BradshawJen ObenhausFeatures EditorsKayla MeyerSports EditorRoss GreenRachel WinterViewpoints EditorsHolly AkerCaroline WallaceEntertainment Editors

Shaun MartinHead Designer

Blair HaralsonAlyssa PalomoDesigners

Eloise MontemayorPhoto EditorDaniel De Los SantosAssistant Photo Editor

Arianna AuberAmber BurtonLeslie EthridgeNicole HensonJames LeavenworthCopy Editors

Christy TorresAdvertising Manager

Jena HeathFaculty Adviser

Hilltop Views is a weekly student newspaper published by the School of Humanities and serving the community of St. Edward’s University. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the university, whose mission is ground-ed in the teachings and doctrine of the Catholic Church.

Letter Policy: Hilltop Views welcomes all letters to the edi-tor. Letters may be edited for space, grammar and clarity. Letters will be published at our discretion. Anonymous letters will not be printed.

Insufficient aid given to disabled studentsLucia Benavides

They­ say­ you­ shouldn’t­judge­ until­ you’ve­ walked­ in­somebody­else’s­shoes.­

It­ took­ multiple­ fractures­in­my­foot,­three­surgeries­to­correct­ those­ fractures,­ five­months­ unable­ to­ walk­ and­a­ whole­ summer’s­ worth­ of­traveling­ plans­ cancelled­ to­really­know­what­being­phys-ically­disabled­is­like.­

It’s­ bad­ enough­ to­ have­to­ depend­ on­ other­ people­when­ you­ have­ been­ an­ in-dependent­ person­ for­ years,­but­hopefully­you­have­good­friends­ and­ family­ to­ help.­But­ when­ your­ own­ univer-sity­ doesn’t­ care­ to­ help­ you­get­ around­ campus,­ an­ issue­

arises.When­ the­ fall­ semester­

started,­ I­ thought­ the­ last­thing­I­would­have­to­worry­about­was­getting­from­class­to­class­and­building­to­build-ing.­I­had­already­spent­three­months­ off­ of­ my­ right­ foot­and­had­other­issues­occupy-ing­my­mind.­

I­ was­ utterly­ stunned­ to­hear­ that­ Student­ Disabili-ties­ Services­ could­ do­ noth-ing­ for­ me.­ In­ fact,­ when­ I­visited­ the­ center­ to­ talk­ to­the­ director­ of­ disabilities,­she­told­me­the­only­accom-modation­they­could­provide­was­a­note­excusing­me­from­being­late­to­all­of­my­classes,­since­crutching­from­Moody­Hall­to­Trustee­Hall­was­ob-

viously­ going­ to­ take­ more­than­ten­minutes.

I­ stared­ at­ her­ and­ waited­for­ more—anything—but­that­was­it.­

Was I seriously expected to get around­this­hilly­cam-pus­on­crutches­with­a­heavy­backpack­on­my­own?­Would­I­be­ forced­to­miss­10­to­15­minutes­ of­ every­ class­ just­because­I­couldn’t­walk?­

All­ of­ my­ professors­ were­very­ understanding­ of­ my­situation­and­did­not­need­a­note­ to­ realize­ that­ I­ cannot­walk­ as­ fast­ as­ their­ other­two-legged­students.­

Another­ suggestion­ the­director­ of­ disabilities­ made­was­that­I­should­get­a­scooter­or­a­wheelchair.­I­looked­into­this­ option,­ but­ discovered­that­ renting­ a­ scooter­ costs­$100­weekly,­while­buying­it­

would­be­$1,300.­Neither­of­these­options­seemed­feasible­after­ spending­ thousands­ of­dollars­ on­ medical­ bills,­ and­$100­a­week­is­not­a­reason-able­way­to­spend­money­on­something­ I­ would­ use­ only­15­hours­a­week.

The­ director­ explained­ to­me­ that­ they­ do­ not­ pro-vide­golf­carts­to­take­people­around­ campus­ because­ St.­Edward’s­University­is­small.­This­ may­ be­ true­ when­ you­can­actually­walk,­but­the­dis-tance­ between­ Moody­ Hall­and­ Doyle­ Hall­ is­ roughly­five­ blocks,­ a­ distance­ most­people­ on­ crutches­ should­not­ have­ to­ face—hence­ the­reason­ why­ the­ government­gives­us­handicap­passes.­

Because­ SDS­ could­ not­help­ me,­ I­ went­ to­ the­ Uni-versity­ Policy­ Department­

since­they­use­golf­carts­to­get­around­ this­ small­ campus.­The­ first­ time­ I­ contacted­them,­they­seemed­very­will-ing­to­give­me­rides­as­long­as­they­had­employees­available.­But­ after­ a­ few­ rides,­ they­told­me­that­this­was­going­to­have­to­stop.­They­were­not­a­taxi­service.

I­ am­ not­ the­ only­ person­crutching­ around­ campus.­Junior­ Amber­ Trueblood,­who­ was­ on­ crutches­ from­the­ spring­ 2008­ to­ 2009­ se-mesters­due­to­a­broken­foot,­had­the­same­experience.

“When­I­called­[UPD]­cry-ing­in­pain­one­rainy­day­after­slipping­on­my­crutches,­they­told­me­I­had­to­be­in­physi-cal­ danger­ to­ receive­ a­ ride,”­Trueblood­said.­“The­campus­is­ small—a­ two­ minute­ golf­cart­ ride—but­ the­ walk­ on­

crutches­can­take­30­minutes­from­ the­ on-campus­ apart-ments­to­Fleck­Hall.”­

The­ St.­ Edward’s­ mission­statement­ reads,­ “Students­are­ helped­ to­ understand­themselves,­ clarify­ their­ per-sonal­ values­ and­ recognize­their­ responsibility­ to­ the­world­ community.­ The­ uni-versity­ gives­ the­ example­ of­its­ own­ commitment­ to­ ser-vice.”­

As­ much­ as­ this­ is­ true,­ I­would­like­to­see­a­change­in­their­ service­ towards­ those­students­ and­ faculty­ who,­because­of­their­physical­dis-ability,­need­some­additional,­and­ in­ reality­ minimal,­ help­to­experience­the­best­of­this­university.

lbenavi4@stedwards.edu

Job hunting tougher online Amber Burton

Associated PressOnline applications are devoid of personality and character.

Page 16 | ADVERTISEMENT Wednesday, October 7, 2009 | Hilltop Views

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