The ContrabandThe voice of the McNeese community since 1939

Vol. 75

November 11 - 15, 2013

Phone- 337-475-5646 EMail- msucontraband@gmail.com

Issue 10

See Harassment on page 05

Coming Soon: The Retooled Contraband,

Website.

Hey there, sexy!When catcalls and come-ons cross the line.

David PalmerThe Contraband

By the time you parked your car or left your dorm, went to class and somehow made it to lunch, it is likely that you’ve passed some-one on campus that’s had to deal with a sexual remark or come on recently. Maybe they have even been grabbed, poked, prodded or touched without permission. Yes, you. The person reading this article. Sixty-two percent of McNeese State University’s (McNeese) 2013 undergraduate enrollment is fe-male, totaling 4,619. According to a 2011 report by the American Association of University Women called “Drawing the Line: Sexual Harassment on Campus”, 62 per-cent of college students have ex-perienced some

form of sexual harassment. Sixty-six percent say they know someone who’s been sexually harassed. This means two out of every three people you see while walk-ing to class has had to deal with unwanted advances or remarks.One of those people might be Erin Evans. Evans, a junior, told the Contraband that she gets grabbed and touched a lot because of her tattoos. “People think that because I have tattoos that I’m the person that they should come up to, and ask me questions, which, you know, is fine,” Evans said. Evans’ arms are visibly tat-tooed; on her left arm is a yellow rose and the familiar pink breast cancer awareness ribbon. “It’s when the touching hap-pens, or when they get very sexu-al, like they ask, ‘Oh, so you’re into

kinky stuff,’ and I’m like, ‘I have a breast can-cer awareness logo?’ I don’t re-ally think that’s kinky, but whatev-er,” she said.

Lochness Mobsters to return home: Lake Charles’ hippest sons will play at Dharma later this month. See page 10.

Rodeo teams continue hot streak: Kyla Fos-ter’s efforts help the Pokes to national rankings. See page 16.

Cowboys fall: The McNeese football team suf-fers a brutal de-feat at the hands of Southeastern. See page 12.

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This creepy guy is not a depiction of any student or staff member.

You pull into a parking spot on the second floor of the park-ing garage and then make your way to the stairwell while avoid-ing floating chip bags. Dis-carded cigarette butts in the elevator prompt you to take the stairs while dodging water bottles rolling down the steps. “I don’t usually pay attention,

but looking around, yeah, it’s pretty trashy,” said Tiffany My-ers, frequent parker in the garage. These things can be hard to miss because let’s face it you are just relieved that you found a spot. It might seem like second nature to avoid trash, but some students have been noticing the problem.“The actual parking area is pretty clean, but the stairwells are pret-ty bad,” said Taylor Alexander. Now consider this: The

parking garage does not cur-rently have any trashcans. However, there is still hope. “We are planning on purchas-ing multiple trash cans for the garage at each level. However, we have been debating exactly what type to purchase. We had been purchasing the black wrought iron receptacles that are in the quad and John McNeese Park but were not sure if that was right for the garage,” said Rich-ard Rhoden, head of facilities. Rhoden also said that the McNeese State University’s grounds team should be clean-ing the parking garage as part of their responsibilities. “I did contact my Grounds Su-perintendent, and he assured me

that his employees go through the parking garage every morn-ing along with all the grounds around the entire campus and pick up errant trash floating around campus,” said Rhoden. Rhoden also said that facili-ties are working there best to make sure the parking garage is being taken care of. He has meet-ings set up this month to dis-cuss issues that need to be ad-dresses concerning the garage. The only question left is: Why has it taken so long to address this problem? “I do not know why they waited so late to get trash cans. I didn’t know it was even an issue,” said Davante Lew-is, student body president.

NewsNovember 11 - 15, 2013 The Contraband

How clean is the McNeese parking garage?Morgan AuthementThe Contraband

In a recent issue of the Contra-band, we wrote that Braylin Jen-

kins has finished his undergradu-ate degree at McNeese. That was in error. Jenkins plans to con-tinue pursuing his education in the near future with the goal of earning his degree. The Contra-band apologizes for the error.

*Editor’s Note*

Jonathan ClausenBottles and cigarette buds litter the stairwell of the parking garage.

November 11 -15 03The Contraband

Want a tattoo? Think before you inkAthena JohnsonThe Contraband

Tattoos and piercings are

considered an expression

of yourself and a personal

choice, but is it worth that

self-expression if it costs you

your dream job?

“I think tattoos and body

piercings are an individual

display and if people really

want them they should have

the right in our free speech

culture to go ahead and have

them. Just because you want

to make an expression doesn’t

mean you can hide the reac-

tions to them. You need to

think carefully about getting

them and what it does to the

people around you,” said Rob-

ert Markstrom, an assistant

professor at McNeese State

University.

If you walked around and

asked people how they felt

about tattoos and piercings

and the difficulty of getting a

job if you have either of the

two, you would get a variety of

answers. Such as people being

upset that potential employers

judge on appearance, or that

people make to choice to get

them where they get them and

it was their decision and they

have to reap the consequences

of their choices.

Ralynn Castete, director of

Career Services, said that stu-

dents should be aware of the

policies of potential employ-

ers. She also said that she has

had several employers indicate

it can be a deal breaker.

“Piercings and tattoos reflect

the judgment of a person and

how they will represent their

company,” said Castete.

Tattoos are often looked

down by employers, and they

often make finding a job more

difficult depending on the

job and where the tattoos and

piercings are.

“It’s hard me for me to get

jobs, or I have to cover them

up,” said Kimberly Trahan as

she gestured to her arms cov-

ered in tattoos.

“Getting a tattoo is very

crazy. I regret them nine times

out of ten. I regret where they

are at and what they are, and

once you get them, it’s very,

very hard to take them off,”

said Trahan.

David PalmerThe Contraband

The Student Government Asso-

ciation tabled two bills aimed at

increasing student assessments

for the band and the spirit fee,

the first step in a process that

will allow senators and students

a chance to review those pro-

posals.

Bills F13-02 (called The Stu-

dent Senate-McNeese State Uni-

versity Legislation to Increase

the Student Self Assessed Band

Fee) and F13-03 (called The Stu-

dent Senate-McNeese State Uni-

versity Legislation to Increase

the Student Self Assessed Spirit

Fee) are both asking for increas-

es student assessments for the

band and the Cowgirl Kickers

and Cheerleaders, the first in a

series of bills in coming weeks

that will seek increased fund-

ing.

Currently, students are as-

sessed $2.50 for the fall and

spring semesters and $2 for the

spring semester, which pays for

the Cheerleaders, Cowgirl Kick-

ers and McNeese’s mascot Rowdy.

The band’s student assess-

ment is currently $8 per stu-

dent in the fall and spring

and $5 in the summer.

The band’s Student Govern-

ment Association senator,

Austin Vallot, told the Senate

that the band has experienced

a more than 47 percent in-

crease in the number of mem-

bers over the past six years.

More band member’s means

more costs in equipment, uni-

forms and travel expenses.

“The current amount of the

Band Assessment provides

strained resources for the Mc-

Neese State University Band and

an increase in revenue gener-

ated by this fund would allow

the band to better recruit and

retain its members and rep-

resent the McNeese Commu-

nity as a whole,” the bill reads.

Vellon’s bill is looking for at

$5 increase to $13 in the fall

and spring semesters and a $5

increase $10 in the summer.

Senator Shelby Dale Johnson,

representing both the Cowgirl

Kickers and the Cheerleading

squad, presented the bill to in-

crease the spirit fee. The bill

would increase the spirit fee up

$1 to $3.50 for the spring and

fall semesters and up $.50 to

$2.50 in the summer semester.

Ladies and gentlemen, start your spendingNews

The first round of fee increase proposals hits the student senate.

It’s hard for me to get jobs, or I have

to cover them up.

Kimberly TrahanDisgruntled Tattoo Owner

04 November 11 - 15 The ContrabandStudent Life

The Safety Dance

A random sample of McNeese State University (McNeese) students, when asked whether or not they felt safe on campus, replied with a “yes.” Twenty students: nine freshmen, six sophomores, two juniors, two seniors and one graduate student indicated that crime on or off campus wasn’t a daily concern.

“Yes, I feel safe on campus,” said Donald Wilson, a non-traditional student who is working on an education degree. He also works in campus safety.

“There’s still work to do as far as communication between police and students to make them feel safe,” he said.

The top level of the parking garage on Tuesday, Nov. 5, was ripe for the picking. Two Contraband reporters systematically checked that level for cars with easy thieving opportunities. Would-be thieves could help themselves to 18 instances of book bags, clothes, shoes, one MP3 player,

four items that could be considered wallets or purses, eight textbooks, a copy of The Longman Anthology of World Literature (retails on Amazon for $85), a camera bag and a laptop.

Do you still think your belongings are safe even if your car is locked?

In the past month, three assaults were investigated by the Lake Charles Police Department that were within one block of McNeese campus. There were 13 car crashes, five of which were hit and run incidents. Five businesses within one block of McNeese have reported a break-in.

This from statistics reported to CrimeReports.com by the Lake Charles Police Department. Go farther afield, to other parts of the city, and one may find more reports of assault, theft and even homicide.

On campus, McNeese Police have responded, so far in 2013, to three assaults, nine instances of burglary (seven of which are vehicle related), one instance of a narcotics violation, one robbery

and a bevy of noise complaints, parking lot crashes, suspicious people, vehicles and activity.

Still feel safe?McNeese Police Chief Robert

Spinks is in the business of safety. He said that the recent rash of burglaries on and nearby campus is a good wakeup call.

“Student, staff and faculty need to realize, you know, don’t leave items of any value in plain view,” he said.

“Taking that extra two and a half minutes to throw iPods and backpacks and laptops into the trunk is incredibly important.”

Keeping valuables safe from theft is one way that students can keep their own safety in mind. However, Donald Wilson feels that students simply don’t know enough about safety procedures in the event of an on campus crime or accident, and that could lead to tragedy.

“They don’t know what procedures to follow. I think if we got a little sheet, saying that these are the procedures to follow these are the policies that you do in case of an emergency, then it would be good,” he said.

“People need to know what to do and where to go in case these things happen,” he added.

David Ryan PalmerThe Contraband

Students need to be proactive to keep themselves from harm

Two more burglaries were reported to the McNeese State University (McNeese) Police Department last week, bringing up the total instances of malicious vehicle ransacking to four in the past few weeks.

McNeese Police Chief Robert Spinks said that the modus operandi of these new burglaries don’t match the ones from the old Lake Charles Cinema parking lot.

“This group of car burglaries differs significantly from the car burglaries of last week that occurred mainly off campus in the parking lot of K-Mart, Ryan’s and Planet Fitness, which the Lake Charles Police Department is investigating,” Spinks said.

In those burglaries, thieves smashed a window in order to pilfer their goods. However, no windows were found smashed in the Burton parking lot.

“No significant damage has occurred in these instances, and it appears that the cars were left unlocked,” Spinks said.

Spinks said that McNeese Police and LCPD are on alert for more suspicious activity, and encourages faculty, students and residents to report anything out of the ordinary.

“We encourage people to report any suspicious activity immediately by calling 911 or our dispatch number of 33-475-5711 immediately,” he said.

Trifling thieves rifle through Burton lotDavid Ryan PalmerThe Contraband

November 11 - 15 05The Contraband

Harrassment from page 01

At the zoo: catcalls and wolf whistles

It’s likely you know someone who has had to deal with harassment or even assault. In “Drawing the Line: Sexual Harassment on Campus,” authors Catherine Hill and Elena Silva show that nearly two-thirds of students experience some kind of harassment but are pressured or directed away from reporting such experiences to university officials, either by a climate of nonchalance towards this behavior or simply because they don’t want to make a fuss.

Sexual harassment happens to both men and women, but Hill and Silva say that there’s a difference in the type of harassment and the severity.

“Male and female students are nearly equally likely to be sexually harassed on campus,” the authors write.

“Female students are more likely to be the target of sexual jokes, comments, gestures or looks. Male students are more likely to be called gay or a homophobic name.”

Even a simple act as

telling a woman to smile as you walk by is offensive according to Dr. Janet Allured, head of women’s studies at McNeese.

“She might be deep in thought or concerned about something. It is not her responsibility to make a happy face for a stranger,” Allured said.

“It’s forward of a strange guy to ask a girl to do anything, even to ‘smile.’ It’s not his business, and it’s a form of unwelcome approach. It’s not funny.”

Part of the issue is that catcalls and wolf whistles, come-ons and innocuous requests for a smile are objectifications of women.

“They are disrespectful, and make a woman into a sexual object, which (chances are) she did not ask for or know was coming. It’s untoward behavior that makes a woman feel uncomfortable and unsafe,” Allured said.

“It’s not only rude, but it can be frightening.”

No consent, no touch

Touch is a form of nonverbal communication and carries with it a sense of intimacy, especially on places like the neck, torso and legs. When that kind of a touch is unexpected and unwanted, it can cause serious discomfort.

And it’s not just a problem that women have to deal with in a college environment. Evans used to be the manager of Hot Topic in the Prien Lake Mall.

“You know, that’s a Mecca for those who are into tattoos and piercings. I was the manager, and I was in the middle of one of these little one minute meetings, where we say ‘well this is what you need to do this shift…’ and like in the middle of it, this guy just comes up –I have tattoos on my neck

and behind my ears – and he just starts touching them,” Evans said.

Immediately she froze.“I didn’t know how to react,”

she said. “Since then, I’ve gotten better.

I just give a really awesome bitch face, but right then, I just tensed up. He said ‘I appreciate good work when I see it.’”

Erin said that since then, and because of other times, her defense mechanism is to appear standoffish.

“I usually don’t talk to a lot of people,” she said.

Seriously, not funny

Hill and Silva write that, while men and women on college campuses have equal chances of being harassed, men are more likely to be a harasser.

“Half of male students and almost one-third of female students admit that they sexually harassed someone in college, and about one-fifth of male students admit that they harassed someone often or occasionally,” they write.

For many, humor is the driving force behind these incidents.

“A majority of students who admit to harassing another student say they did so because they thought it was funny,” Hill and Silva write.

Funny or not, this behavior can have a serious effect on the feelings of safety and security that men and women feel on campus.

Erin Evans prefers to only visit McNeese during the day.

“When I started taking classes, I had a night class. It was in Kirkman, and I parked in that parking lot by the library. I would just try to speed walk with this massive car key in my hand just in case something

happened,” she said.

“But I don’t have any night classes now, so I try not to be there after dark.”

Evans said that it’s not just McNeese, of course. “I do that anywhere, though. If it’s the mall or Wal-mart, I try not to be out at night,” she said.

“I don’t want to get mugged or raped.”

This falls in line with what Hill and Silva found during their study.

“Female students are more likely to avoid their harassers, find it hard to study or pay attention in class, avoid particular buildings or places on campus, or have trouble sleeping due to sexual harassment. Female students are also more likely to get someone to protect them,” the authors wrote.

McNeese has a sexual harassment policy that can be found at http://www.mcneese.edu/policy/sexual_misconduct_policy. If you or someone you know has been the victim of sexual assault, contact McNeese Police at 337-475-5711, or the Lake Charles Police Department at 337-491-1456.

06 November 11 - 15 The ContrabandStudent Life

A “curriculum of partnership” between McNeese State University (McNeese) and Fort Polk is provid-ing soldiers with educational and career opportunities, enabling them and their families to reside in the Southwest Louisiana area.

Beginning in January 2011, Mc-Neese Provost Dr. Jeanne Daboval and other university administra-tion met with Fort Polk personnel working in the base’s educational center, to examine the degree op-tions at McNeese available to sol-diers.

“The meeting was very posi-tive, and we learned about the details of the lengthy process re-quired to complete the Memoran-dum of Understanding (MOU) be-

tween McNeese and Fort Polk and began the process at that time,” said Dr. Daboval.

The MOU was signed in Sep-tember 2013, by President Wil-liams and Fort Polk representa-tives. McNeese is now a member of the Servicemembers Opportu-nity Colleges (SOC) Consortium, becoming part of the national network of universities that serve soldiers. University classes will be offered at Fort Polk this spring.

The need for military reduc-tions due to the the Budget Con-trol Act of 2011, has soldiers seeking civilian careers and estab-lishing a new way of life.

An article in the American Press quoted Fort Polk Progress Chairman Michael Reese: “It’s re-ally the first step in the process of educating the military community

of all the great quality-of-life op-portunities there are for soldiers in the Lake Charles community.”

Southwest Louisiana’s indus-trial expansion is going to increase job opportunities, and as for sol-diers wanting to settle in the re-gion, “many of the skills used at Fort Polk are a great foundation for high-paying jobs here in the Lake Area,” according to KPLC’s “Hot Button” Editorial.

Brig. Gen. Hickman, Com-mander of the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Polk, stated in the American Press ar-ticle that Fort Polk has the “pre-mier training center in the United States Army.”

Fort Polk officials visited local areas to learn about educational and career opportunities avail-able to soldiers when they transi-tion out of a military lifestyle into a civilian lifestyle. Officials went to the Southwest Louisiana Entre-preneurial and Economic Devel-

opment (SEED) Center. Brig. Gen. William Hickman suggested that soldiers who recently graduated from high school would benefit from the center’s Innovation Lab.

Local veteran Mr. C. Wade Shaddock, Colonel, US Army Re-tired has been a strong influence in the partnering of Fort Polk and McNeese.

“We are thankful Mr. Shaddock became an advocate of the agree-ment and assisted in keeping the process moving forward,” said Dr. Daboval.

Mr. Shaddock served in the Vietnam War and was a paratroop-er in the 82nd Airborne Division. He attended and graduated from the United States Military Acad-emy at West Point in 1957. He received his master’s degree in international relations at the Uni-versity of Kansas. And from 1976-1979, Mr. Shaddock was a Profes-sor of Military Science at McNeese.

A military base and University providing opportunities for those who serveKatelynn McCartneyThe Contraband

Fort Polk + McNeese

Hey! Stop it.What bugs you? Four people sound off

“When girls walk around in booty shorts and head wraps. No body is going to take them serious.”

Nichole Williams

“When people put bacon at the bottom of the cheese burger.”

Emily Sonnier

“When people walk slow and drag their feet.”

Katie Sonnier

“When people in the car in front of you takes forever to turn. I just want to ram them with my car.”

Tony Antione

November 11 - 15 07The Contraband

Novembeard

Morgan AuthementThe Contraband

Selling facial folicles forcharity

It’s weird to buy a beard.It’s November and there

are an abundance of beards popping up. Many may think it is a passing fad, but underneath all that hair are good intentions.

McNeese State University’s (McNeese) chapter of the Baptist Collegiate Ministry is putting a unique twist on a new tradition. This tradition is called “No Shave November,” a spin off of the Australian charity “Movember.” The idea was that men would grow out their mustaches in order to raise awareness for testicular and pancreatic cancer.

“No Shave November” is similar in the fact that men are prompted to grow not only their mustaches but their beards as well—like full on lumber jack. Men participating usually use

t h e i r r u g g e d looks to help garner donations for their preferred charity or donate any money they would have put toward grooming that month.

Enter one 'beard auction.'On Monday, Nov. 17, 2013,

the McNeese Baptist Collegiate

Ministry (BCM) will

hold a beard auction. The rules are that the highest bidder has the ability to shave the beard they won any way they want. The person wearing the beard must keep it that way for the next day.

“Last year, we had a guy with

half his face shaved. When he went to class, one side of the room thought he shaved, and the other half thought he still

had a beard,” said Tia Bourque, a BCM intern.

All the proceeds will go into an account that helps

fund mission trips.Bourque also said

that she enjoys it when people team up to make

sure they can shave one certain person. She thinks competition is fun and more money can be earned that way. This means the BCM can help more people.

“As Christians, we believe missions are very important so it is worth getting my beard shaved,” said Jace Verdin, a participant.

Verdin went on to say that he is very particular about his hair. He might not prefer the way his beard will be shaven, but for this cause he will endure.

“Some of us can’t go on trips. This is our way of contributing,” said Verdin.

The BCM is also doing a booth were people can buy a pie and pie someone in the face for those who can’t grow beards but want to contribute to this cause.

If you or somebody you know would like to participate or to find out more about this event, call the BCM at 477-4866. The BCM can also be reached at mcneesebcm@yahoo.com.

08 November 11 -15 The ContrabandKiss and tell: cultural differences can result in sticky problems

You round the corner and apolo-gize as you nearly run into the cou-ple making out against the wall. If you’re in American you roll your eyes at the blatant show of PDA (public display of affection). If you are from elsewhere your reaction may be completely different, from outrage to just shrugging it off.

A.J., who wishes to remain anonymous, is a woman from Romania who works on McNeese State University (McNeese) cam-pus. According to A.J., there is no real taboo on public affection in her home country. It’s normal to see two women kissing there, but here they are viewed as a couple.

“If I tried to walk with my arm around my friend Daniel’s shoul-der, people would get some strange ideas,” said Andrew Maust, a McNeese student from Ecuador.

Here in America we are very con-scious about how much we touch other people. We are even taught from a young age in school not to touch other people. In many other areas of the world, it is viewed as normal for friends to kiss, hold hands or walk with their arms around their friend’s shoulders.

Bishal Malla told of how he would hold hands with some of his friends when he still lived in Nepal. It was a normal occur-rence there and wasn’t looked at as an act of a couple but just a normal gesture between friends.

Malla also said that couples kept most of their dealings be-hind closed doors and where considered “shameless” if they were caught showing affec-

tion in public on a regular basis. “I was shocked when I first came

America and couples would kiss at the register in stores, in hall-ways or any public places. You do not do that in Nepal,” said Malla.

In the western hemisphere though, we are more open to couples showing affection in pub-lic places, not just here in North America but also in South America.

“PDA is looser in Ecuador; you would regularly see people mak-ing out on the streets,” said Maust.

It can be a bit of a shock to some of the foreigners who have come to McNeese to study when they see the displays of affection that occur on campus when that is a “no-no” where they are from. For others though, it’s tame here com-pared to their home countries.

Athena JohnsonThe Contraband

“Until death do us part.” Or for some couples, “Until college do us part.”

Hanging on to your high school sweetheart can be a difficult thing when it comes time for college. The stress, and the time that col-lege can take up can often put strain on a relationship. How you handle this trying time together paints the picture for your future.

K.L. a female sophomore here at McNeese who wishes to remain anonymous, just recently ended her five-year relationship with her high school sweetheart. “I was in college, and he was in the army, so time was limited and schedules conflicted.”

Alexis Harmon who is a senior here at McNeese has been with her boyfriend since her senior year of high school and says that college actually brought them closer. Her influence on her significant other led to his enrollment in college this past year.

It wasn’t all easy though, and sometimes college did cause problems between them, which re-ally made Harmon stop and think about the relationship she was in.

“It stops being a fairytale, and it starts getting real, and that’s when you have to ask yourself if it’s worth it to say,” said Harmon.

Tracy Standley, the assistant department head for mass com-munications, has been with her husband for 30 years total. The relationship began while she was

a junior in high school. She ended up going to Our lady of the Lake University in San Antonio which was further from her husband than she had hoped for.

She later transferred to Sam Houston State to be closer to her lover. Before she transferred though, the distance put quite a strain on the couple.

“Over the Christmas break, we talked about it, and we really kind of decided that we really wanted to be together, and after I trans-ferred, everything was great,” said Standley.

Not all high school relation-ships are doomed; some do work out. It just depends on the couple and how much work they are will-ing to put into the relationship to keep it working.

Just can’t relate: High school sweethearts and collegeAthena JohnsonThe Contraband

Ryan domingueMcNeese students enjoying one another’s company.

November 11 - 15 09The Contraband

Megan LandryThe Contraband

There is one in all of us. Whether it’s the gamer who wears his favorite game proudly on his shirt or the person whose secretly counting down the days until the release of Thor: The Dark World, there is a nerd in all people, and with the soon-to-be released Thor movie, that nerd is awaking and wondering how much the movie follows the mythological origins of Thor.

Compared to Norse mythol-ogy, being the defender of man-kind and carrying around the hammer are about the only things that are the same between the mythological Thor and the Thor in the movie.

Although in Norse mythology, the god of thunder’s appearance is different. He has a long beard and is a redhead unlike the ac-tor Chris Hemsworth, starring as Thor in the movie, who is blond. The long beard is important in mythology because it represents masculinity, which is a big deal to Thor.

An additional difference is seen in Thor’s father, Odin. The gods of Norse mythology are usually battling the giants dur-ing which Odin creates strife. He gathers knowledge, prophecy and magic. He also frequently lies and engages in battles of words.

This is a change from the movie because Odin reprimands his son for bringing on war.

Loki, an enemy from The Avenger’s movie and a main char-

acter in Thor: The Dark World, is just a god of mischief in Norse mythology. He sometimes plays pranks on his fellow gods. He also gave birth to many bizarre gods and monsters including Hela, the death goddess. Odin never adopt-ed him in Norse mythology either. This Loki is different from the character in the movie because he is portrayed as evil in the movie and is considered Thor’s adopted

brother.These are just some of the

major differences seen between to two. There are too many minor details to state them all.

Hey nerds!Student Life

You’ve got your comic book

superheroes in my Norse

mythos! It’s awesome

Courtesy Google

Above: Actors Chris Hemworth and Natalie Portman star in Thor 2: The Dark World. The character of Thor has been adapted multiple times, from his comic book incarnation (at left) to the his more mythical roots (at right.)

Chris LeBlancThe Contraband

The unique musical styling of

the Lochness Mobsters has area

roots and broad appeal.

The three-piece band started

as a duo. Brothers Taylor (lead

guitar and vocals) and Brooks

(drums and vocals) Lumpkin start-

ed the group. Although the initial

attempts to recruit their friend

Michael Chavez (bass and vocals)

were in vain, the band formed in

2008.

Drawing inspiration from

bands like the Black Lips and the

Strange Boys, the Mobsters have

developed a unique surf/garage

rock style and a strong local fol-

lowing.

But, the market in Lake Charles

wasn’t strong enough to support

the avid musicians. This prompt-

ed the Mobsters to make a move

to Austin, Texas earlier this year.

“We wanted to play as much

as we wanted and not exhaust

the market,” Chavez said. “Lake

Charles kind of put a timetable on

us as a band… the ceiling is only

so high.”

The move has reinvigorated an

already promising musical career.

“We’ve been in touch with all

our favorite bands. Our favorite

record label (Burger Records) has

been in contact with us,” Chavez

said.

The Mobsters now tour region-

ally, playing three to four shows

per week. They’ll return to Lake

Charles on Friday, Nov. 15 for a

show downtown at Dharma. The

show will also feature Burger Re-

cords’ Holy Wave.

10 November 11 - 15 The ContrabandArts and Entertainment

The prodigal mobsters returnThe unique musical stylings of the Lochness Mobsters to be on display at downtown bar, Dharma.

Cover art from the Lochness Mobsters’ album, “Zedonk” (If you think it’s insane, see it in color).

(Gingerbread) Housing boom to hit Lake CharlesMegan LandryThe Contraband

Christmas time is in the air

stirring up the holiday spirit.

Lights are twinkling in the night,

trees are being set up, and eggnog

is being set out on shelves. All

this is accompanied by the smell

of gingerbread for the Southwest

Louisiana Annual Gingerbread

House Contest.

The contest is to be held on

Saturday, Dec. 7, with the dead-

line for registration by Wednes-

day, Nov 13. Divisions for dif-

ferent entries include amateur,

professional and school groups.

By Friday, Dec. 6, from 1:00

p.m.-4:30 p.m., entries must be

brought to the Convention & Visi-

tors Bureau.

The awards ceremony will be

held at the bureau with Gumbeaux

Gator, Southwest Louisiana’s

own mascot, to help present the

awards. Following the awards

ceremony, the gingerbread houses

will remain on display at the

bureau through the month of

December. Visitors will then have

the opportunity to vote on the

People’s Choice Award that will be

announced on Tuesday, Dec. 31.

The Annual Gingerbread House

Contest is held in conjunction

with the Lake Charles Christmas

Lighting Festival and is sponsored

by the Lake Charles/Southwest

Louisiana Convention & Visitors

Bureau.

To register, contact Shanna

Landry with the Lake Charles/

Southwest Louisiana Convention &

Visitors Bureau, at 337-436-9588

or visit www.visitlakecharles.org/

register.

November 11 - 15 11The Contraband

Think about all the times within a day you pull out your phone to send a text message, snap a quick picture or check your Facebook. This is technology that society takes advantage of on a daily basis. But what if you did not have the ability to do any of those things?

Tammie Lou Van Sant, a 52-year-old paraplegic, has not been able to take a picture, send a text message or make a simple phone call for 20 years since breaking her neck a car accident. Thanks to Google Glass, she has been snapping pictures across Santa Cruz, California.

So, what exactly is Google Glass?

Google Glass is a wearable computer with an optical head-mounted display that displays information in a smartphone-like hands-free format.

While people like Van Sant see the good that the new technology, there are others that see the devices as problematic. So, is Google’s new leap in innovation a bane or a boon for the world?

The Good

Google Glass has the ability to drastically improve production and help companies run more efficiently.

An Economic Times article from Nov. 6, 2013, states that, “Use of smart glasses like Google Glass has the potential to improve work efficiency in verticals like manufacturing, field service, retail and healthcare and could help them increase profits substantially.”

As well as improving manufacturing, Google Glass can also help streamline the medical

industry. According to an article in the

San Francisco Chronicle from Nov. 5, the technology companies Philips and Accenture have together developed a prototype of a tool that would use Glass to display a patient’s vital signs in

near real time directly into the

surgeon’s field of vision. The idea is to

put all of the patient information a doctor might need right in front of his face, available on voice command.

Doctors are able to use the glasses to view x-rays during surgery without having to look back and forth between the patient and a computer screen. They also help during routine check-ups by allowing doctors to update files and take pictures of anything relevant to the patient’s visit.

The Bad

A woman in California was ticketed for driving with Google Glasses being cited for distracted driving.

Google does warn users about traffic laws in its Google Glass FAQ: “Most states have passed laws limiting the use of mobile devices while driving any motor vehicle, and most states post those rules on their department of motor vehicles websites.”

However within the website

it talks Google Glass advertises its ability to give you turn-by-turn directions whether on a bike, walking or driving a car.

According to a study released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Virginia Tech Transportation

Institute (VTTI), 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involve some form of driver distraction. The distraction occurred within three seconds before the vehicle crash.

With so many distractions already averting drivers’ attention, Google Glass will just add to the issue.

There are also privacy issues that have been expressed by members of Congress. U.S. Representative Joe Barton expressed concern over the privacy issues in a letter to Google, which can be found on Joe Barton’s webpage.

Barton was “disappointed” by Google’s response to privacy concerns.

“I am disappointed in the responses we received from Google. There were questions that were not adequately answered and some not answered at all. Google Glass has the potential to change the way people communicate and interact. When new technology like this is introduced that could change societal norms, I believe it is important that people’s rights be protected and vital that privacy

is built into the device. I look forward to continuing a working relationship with Google as Google Glass develops.”

The Ugly

Another major issue that is facing the device is that it is not aesthetically pleasing. The futuristic design of the devices does not appeal to people as “wearable.”

In a survey conducted by Bite Interactive, they found that 38% of the people would not wear them even at a lower price point, and only 10% of people would wear them on a regular basis.

Google is taking steps to make the glasses easier on the eyes. The frames allow for prescription lenses to be added and they are working with sunglass retailers such as Ray-Ban.

Google Glass has both positive and negative aspects associated with the product. Regardless of how you feel about the product it will be coming to select Best Buy locations across the country in 2014. Much in the same way Apple has space, Best Buy is renting out 6,000 square feet inside each one of its stores to Google to showcase Glass.

Google Glass: The good, the bad, and the uglyCorey GreineisenThe Contraband

Sports

November 11 - 15, 2013 The Contraband

‘Boobirds’ come out in Pokes’ loss

For the McNeese Cowboys’ “Fill in the Hole” game, the hole seemed to be emptied by the end of the third quarter and suffered a heartbreaking loss against the Southeastern Lions.

McNeese received the ball first, and two plays into the game, they fumbled the ball. This was only a small glimpse into what the rest of the game would look like. Southeastern gained control of the ball 31 yards away from their endzone. Six plays later, South-

eastern scored the first of the 41 points they scored in the game.

With 7:34 left on the clock, Stroud threw a pass to Diontae Spencer, but it was intercepted by a Lion and run for 30 yards. Ten plays and two and a half min-utes later, the Lions found them-selves in the endzone with the first touchdown of the game. The Geaux Blue fans booed and rang their cow bells in frustration as they watched their Cowboys take a beating. At the end of the first quarter, the score was 10-0 in the Lions favor.

The Lions kicked another field

goal as the clock hit 13:37 in the second quarter. After a punt from the Cowboys, the Lions took the ball down the field for another 45 yards in 3:16, bringing the score to 20-0.

In McNeese’s next attempt at scoring a touchdown, they brought the fans to their feet and changed their “boo’s” to cheers of excitement. After a call of pass interference from the referees, Cody Stroud completed a pass to Diontae Spencer for 24 yards for a touchdown with 5:44 left on the clock in the second quarter.

Southeastern and McNeese

failed to score in their next two drives. On Southeastern’s second attempt to score after McNeese’s touchdown, they reached the Mc-Neese 13-yard line. However, the pass was intercepted by Cow-boy Guy Morgan and returned 40 yards to the Lions’ 47-yard line with only 11 seconds left in the second quarter, bringing the crowd to its feet again. McNeese could not complete Stroud’s first pass attempt

See Football on page 15

Jonathan Clausen/ contrabandThe Lions defense show McNeese quarterback Cody Stroud the ground.

Hannah PhilleyThe Contraband

November 11 - 15 13The ContrabandCross country unphased by muddy welcome at Ward 4Jacob TroutmanThe Contraband

Last season, the McNeese State University (McNeese) men’s Cross Country team brought title of Southland Conference Cham-pion back to Lake Charles. This season the Southland Confer-ence (SLC) Championships were hosted by McNeese, but cross country powerhouse Lamar Uni-versity (Lamar) reclaimed the men’s title and also laid claim to the women’s championship. The Cowboys finished fourth overall, while the Cowgirls land-ed in ninth place. Senior Amy Talbot, the only McNeese runner to break in to the top 10 rank-ings, earned a SLC All-Confer-ence second team selection with a time of 22:01.1.

“I thought we ran well con-sidering the conditions, but everyone had to endure them,” said McNeese Head Coach Bren-don Gilroy. “I’m really happy for Amy. After she suffered that stress fracture during last year’s race, she has really worked hard to get back into competing form and did a great job today.”

The Ward 4 Power Centre Sports Complex was overrun by mud and muck on Nov. 1, creat-ing rather difficult conditions in which to run. Nevertheless, Tal-bot, a native of Liverpool, Eng-land, seemed to be unfazed.

“The track was wet and mud-dy, but for the exception of no hills, it’s just like running at home,” Talbot said. “I’m excit-ed about the 10th place finish because I’ve worked really hard to get back after my injury last

year.”The Cowboys were shut out

of the top 10 with Alex Bruce-Littlewood crossing the finish line at the 25:50.3 mark to fin-ish in 13th place overall. Junior Alex Kiptoo finished in 14th with a time of 25:53.1.

The men’s team came in

fourth with a score of 104 be-hind Lamar, Stephen F. Austin and Texas A&M – Corpus Christi. Lamar finished first with a mark of 26. The Cowgirls landed in ninth place with a tally of 207. Lamar took first with 36, while Central Arkansas took second with a mark of 78.

The SLC Championships closed out the McNeese teams’ seasons. The NCAA South Cen-tral Regionals will be held on Nov. 15, in Waco, Texas. The NCAA Championship will take place a week later on Nov. 23, in Terre Haute, Ind.

The contrabandAlex Bruce-Littlewood trudges through the mud.

The McNeese Cowgirls fail to rope in a win from the final two games of the season. They played Oral Roberts and Cen-tral Arkansas.The Cowgirls have struggled all season, and sea-sons prior to this, to find the net when taking shots. Looking back over the 2010-2013 seasons, the Cowgirls have 390 shots on goal compared to their 828 attempts. Their opponents have 539 shots

on goal as compared to the total 1,158 shot attempts. The Cow-girls seem to be taking the same amount of shots as their oppo-nents. However, they seem to be taking more of a machine gun “spray and pray” aggressive ap-proach.

The coach was unavailable for comment on this.It was no different when the Cowgirls took a trip to Tulsa, Oklahoma, and fell to the Eagles 2-0. De-spite the effort of the Cowgirls,

their shots just could not find the net. Callie Allbright took two of those shots, and Tori Lasiter and Krista Steinbeiser each had one. All four shots were off tar-get. Thanks to goalkeeper Mag-gie Marks seven of the nine on target shots taken by the Eagles were saved. However, two shots got by Marks to allow the 2-0 loss for the Cowgirls.For their season finale, the Cowgirls trav-elled to Conway, Arkansas to take on the Central Arkansas

Bears and suffered defeat 1-0. The Cowgirls played better

as they took five shots during the game. Kayla Goedicke and Allbright had two of the three off target shots. Lasiter had the other as well as one on tar-get shot. Steinbeiser also had one on target shot. Marks saved two of the three shots on target from the Bears. However, about

The 2012 Southland Confer-ence Cross Country Champi-onships ended badly for War-rington, England native Amy Talbot. Halfway through the race Talbot suffered from a stress fracture and was unable to finish. A little over a year lat-er, however, on Nov. 1, Talbot was back in action at the 2013 Southland Conference (SLC) Championships where she ran a 22:01.1 to earn 10th place finish and SLC All-Conference honors.

“I’m really happy with my season,” Talbot said. “I’ve been quite high in finishing all of my races. I did aim to finish in a higher place at conference, but I gave all I had, and I’m very pleased about getting All-Con-ference after everything I went through with my injury. This

time last year I thought I would have no chance with how strong the fields of athletes have be-come.”

Talbot sat out the 2013 In-door Track season and ran in only three meets in the Outdoor season. She performed well as she continued to rehabilitate, posting a 7th place finish at the conference meet and snagging first in the 3K at the SLU Lion Invitational.

Talbot has led the Cowgirls all season. She registered a 13th place finish at the Rice Invita-tional in early September and finished second at the McNeese Stampede to lead McNeese State

University to a third place team finish.

At the Choctaw Open 5k on Oct. 20, Talbot finished second by a margin of five seconds, running a 18:21.20. Four other Cowgirls placed in the top 10 to clinch the team title.

Talbot will be heading home to England later this month to compete in her European trial in Liverpool. When Talbot returns she will focus her attention on wrapping up her schoolwork and pursuing a career as a per-sonal trainer.

“I’m really happy for Amy,” McNeese State University Head Coach Brendon Gilroy said. “Af-ter she suffered that stress frac-ture during last year’s race, she has really worked hard to get back into competing form and did a great job [this season].”

14 November 11 - 15 The Contraband

Jacob TroutmanThe Contraband

Devastating double loss for Cowgirls’ season finaleHannah PhilleyThe Contraband

runnerspace.com / contrabandAmy Talbot keeps her eye down the track for a chance to pass opponent.

See Soccer on page 15

Talbot overcomes injury, adversity to lead CowgirlsI’m really happy

with my season.Amy TalbotMcNeese Cross Country

November 11 - 15 15The Contraband

Volleyball still seeking four wins for Gamble’s 800th

Head Coach Terry Gamble and the Cowgirl’s volleyball team still stand four wins short of Gamble’s 800th career win due to the losses at Houston Baptist and Texas A&M - Corpus Christi.

Halloween brought a creepy aura to the volleyball court for the Cowgirls as they took on Houston Baptist in Houston, Texas. After a hard fought set by both teams, the Cowgirls came out on top in the first set with a score of 28-26.

The Huskies retaliated by de-feating the Cowgirls in the next two sets by 10 points and five points with scores of 25-15 and

25-20. The Cowgirls did not go down without a fight, but they lost in a heartbreaking final set with a score of 25-27.

The Huskies took the match winning three sets to the Cow-girls’ one. Malina Sanchez led in kills with 18 followed by Sophie Tenbusch with 14 and Amber Fryer with 10. Vanessa Bentley had 35 assists, and Kelly Gra-ham had 14. Kara Rockey and Kimberlyn Patterson command-ed the digs category with 19 and 11 consecutively. Rachel Cagni-na and Tenbusch controlled the blocks with four each and were closely followed by Carly De-Marque and Chrysta Stuart with three.

The Islanders from Texas

A&M – Corpus Christi danced away with a win by sweeping the series against the Cowgirls. The Cowgirls could not seem to get the momentum going as they lost the first set 21-25. The Islanders still seemed to hold the Cowgirls to the same level of aggressiveness in the second set with a score of 22-25 and an Islanders’ win. The Cowgirls seemed to just give up on the final set and took a loss of 25-15 and allowed the Islanders to take the match. Fryer led in kills with nine and Tenbusch trailed with eight. Bentley led in assists with 27. Sanchez and Cagnina had eight digs each and narrow-ly beat Rockey, who had seven. Stuart had the most blocks with

five.The Cowgirls have exactly

four more chances to help Coach Gamble reach his 800 career-win mark. The Cowgirls take on Sam Houston State in Huntsville, Texas, on Nov. 7 at 7 p.m. Sat-urday, Nov. 9, McNeese will take on Lamar in Beaumont, Texas at 1 p.m. Nov. 12 is the Cow-girls’ last home game, and they will be playing Houston Baptist again at 7 p.m. Their final regu-lar season game will be played in Thibodaux, Louisiana at Nich-olls State on Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. Let’s cheer on our Cowgirls as they pursue the four wins need-ed to help Coach Gamble reach his 800th win.

Hannah PhilleyThe Contraband

Soccer from page 14

team. The girls finished the season with a record of 6-12-2 for the season. In conference play, the Cowgirls were 1-10-1. Lasiter led the Cowgirls in shots on goal for the season with 13. Haley Lyons, Stein-beiser and Goedicke tied for second place in the shots on goal each with 11. Allbright led in assists on the season with 3 followed by Savannah LaRicci, Johna Germany and Steinbeiser with 2. Marks led in saves with 53 and Lauren Sestak followed with 43. The Southland Confer-ence tournament will be held at Cowgirl Field on Nov. 7 – 10. The Cowgirls will not be play-ing in the tournament.

attempt in the series to score. On the next play, Stroud found Spencer who ran for 18 yards. Ryan Rome missed the field goal attempt with three seconds left. The score at the end of the half was 20-7 in the Lions’ favor.

To start the second half, the Lions started scoring early. They brought the score to 27-7 just be-fore the 12 minute mark.

The Cowboys did not seem to care when the Lions scored again with a little less than two and a half minutes left in the third quar-ter. Angry and disappointed Cow-boy fans booed their own team to show their disapproval, which is disrespectful of the fans.

“Booing the other team is fine, but don’t boo your own team. Tell

them how you feel, just don’t boo them,” said Amelia Parks, a fan who stayed until the last second of the game.

We always seem to hound the athletes about sportsmanlike conduct, and fans should abide by that too. We are there to sup-port the team, not make them feel worse about how bad they are playing.

A good example of supporting the team is the mysterious masked blue men trying to keep what was

left of the student section alive and cheering during the fourth quarter. When the clock was at 7:44, the Lions scored the final touchdown of the game. The blue men tried everything they could to keep the crowd pumped, spe-cifically by doing push-ups and chanting “We still got this”. Their cheering was not enough, and the damage had been done. The final score was 41-7 with the Lions ripping apart the hearts of what was left of the fans and the Cowboys.

After the defeat from the Li-ons, the Cowboys stand at 7-2 on the season. The Cowboys will travel to Nacogdoches, Texas to take on Stephen F. Austin Uni-versity on Nov. 9 at 3 p.m. The Cowboys final home game will be against Northwestern on Sat-urday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m.

Football from page 12 Booing the other team is fine, but

don’t boo your own team.

Amelia ParksMcNeese fan

Hannah PhilleyThe Contraband

Home arena advantage isn’t just a big deal for foot-ball or basketball. McNeese State University’s (McNeese) rodeo teams took advantage of their home dirt as they announced themselves as a national power last week-end. McNeese’s men’s and women’s teams each took first place in their team and individual categories at the National Intercol-legiate Rodeo As-socia- tion

(NIRA) Rodeo, which was hosted by McNeese. Individually, McNeese’s Cowgirls set the pace. Roping in the women’s all-around title was Kyla Foster with 82 points. Chey-anna tied for third in barrel racing. Paige Plush won the breakaway roping compe-tition defeating her own teammates Chelsea Car-roll (second place), Foster (tied for fifth), and McK- enzie Cooper

(tied for sev-enth). Kirst-en

Smith came in second in the goat tying event, followed by Morgan Wallace in third and Foster in sev-enth. McNeese’s men also blew away the competition. Wil-liam Morian placed first for the men’s all-around title with 245 points. Michael Houston placed fifth in saddle bronc riding. Jack Kitaf tied for fourth place in the bareback riding

category, beating fellow McNeese rodeo teammate Chad Ruther-ford. Jackson Frey won second in the bull riding event. William Morian won fourth in the

tie down roping and team roping header categories. Benjamin Cox tied for second in steer wrestling over Morian in fifth and Joshua Denison in sixth. Not only do the McNeese rodeo teams shining bright in the arena, they also shine in classroom. Ike Fontenot and Kirsten Smith were named 2013 NIRA Scholar Americans. This honor is given to college rodeo participants with a 3.5 GPA and earned points at a 2012-2013 NIRA

sanctioned ro-deo. The rodeo

coach-es nomi-nate

the students. Both the men and women’s teams are first in their region after the rodeo this

week-end. The

Mc-Neese

women’s team is 10th in the national standings, while the men’s rodeo is 16th. Foster is sixth in the na-tional Women’s All-Around rankings. Morian is 16th in the national Men’s All-Around rankings. This week, McNeese’s men and women’s teams traveled to Conroe, TX for the Sam Houston State Uni-versity rodeo. It will include a long and a short go (for the top 10).

16 November 11 - 15 The Contraband

Dome, sweet dome!McNeese’s rodeo teams continue their successful seasons under the vault-ed ceilings of Burton Coliseum.

McNeese Rodeo