www.redandblack.com Wednesday, January 26, 2011 Vol. 118, No. 76 | Athens, Georgia

What would one student do for a chicken biscuit?

Page 2An independent student newspaper serving the University of Georgia community

E S T A B L I S H E D 1 8 9 3 , I N D E P E N D E N T 1 9 8 0

Black&RedThe

p.m. showers/wind. High 45| Low 27

Index

EARS OF CORNSee why

Thomas Brown is back in Athens

on page 6.

News ........................ 2Opinions .................. 4

Variety ..................... 5Sports ...................... 6

Crossword ............... 2Sudoku .................... 5

STOMPING GROUNDSHave a glass of wine. You

just won’t know what

it is.Page 5

MYSTERY WINESee page 3 for part two of our series on genetically

modified organisms.

Where’s Mikey?

President Adams is

chillin’ at the

Holiday Inn with the

Athens Rotary Club

and four of his

friends.

Let the party begin.

By TIFFANY STEVENSTHE RED & BLACK

The body of a University student was found in the Fine Arts building Tuesday at 9:48 a.m., according to University Police.

A student reported missing by individuals in Family Housing Building K on Monday was the same as the deceased individual found Tuesday morning, University Chief of Police Jimmy Williamson told The Red & Black.

“They reported him missing at

about 11:30 [a.m.],” Williamson said.A University Police release

described the individual as a black male in his mid-40s.

As of Tuesday afternoon, police were uncertain as to the cause of death.

“Like it said in the release, there are no signs of foul play. There are no wounds to make us think that it was self-inflicted, either,” he said. “His body was transported to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation in Atlanta this afternoon. After they perform some forensics, we should know the cause of death.”

Authorities reported being rela-tively sure of the deceased individu-al’s identity, but declined to reveal the individual’s name until investiga-tions are complete.

“Right now, that’s all we’re going to reveal until we confirm his identity and contact the next of kin,” Williamson said.

Williamson also declined to reveal who reported the body to police and where in the Fine Arts Building the student was first found.

The student may have been miss-ing as early as 2 a.m. Saturday, according to Tuesday’s University Police log.

Individuals related to the case also “reported being unable to locate or contact” the student.

Some classes were cancelled due to the discovery of the deceased, according to student reports.

Williamson said additional infor-mation would become available after further investigation.

Body found in campus building

By KATHRYN INGALLTHE RED & BLACK

Tailgaters on Myers Quad may face tougher restrictions following concerns about excessive damage.

“We are going to see if we can examine — and we’re still waiting on some video — the destruction on Myers Quad,” said Matt Winston, assistant to the presi-dent. “Myers was treated very poorly.”

Winston and members of the Gameday Committee met for the first time this semester Wednesday to discuss possible changes to gameday policies.

SGA submitted a resolution to the committee calling for changes in the tailgating policies already in place on North Campus.

“We’d like to see the time ban lifted,” said Josh Delaney, SGA president. “We’d also like to see the return of tents because it can get pretty hot in the summer in Georgia for tailgat-ing.”

He said the limi-tation of tailgating to four hours before a game was restric-tive.

Under the pres-ent rules, fans on North Campus tail-gating for a game with a 7 p.m. kick-off begins at 4 p.m.

Another point SGA would like to revise is the limit of tables to four feet in length.

“We picked points that we thought were the most changeable and that were probably the most limiting in terms of tailgating on North Campus,” said Trey Sinyard, student representative for the Athletic Board.

Winston said Delaney and Sinyard brought up important points at the meeting.

“They brought up that students felt, or students believed, that they could not do pre-game activities on North Campus,” he said. “That was flat-out wrong.”

Winston said the restrictions did not prevent all tailgating, but did draw the line at bringing a keg or an entire living room.

“North Campus isn’t off limits. In fact, we want people on North Campus — we just don’t want them destroying the place,” he said.

Winston said the committee was still in the beginning stages and no decisions have been made.

When completed, those recom-mendations will go the cabinet and then to President Adams.

“Every year we do this and every year everything goes on the table,” he said. “We look at what worked and what didn’t work.”

Tailgating regulations may come to Myers

By MITCH BLOMERTTHE RED & BLACK

The Georgia men’s basketball team let another one slip away.

Two overtime periods couldn’t secure another home win for the Bulldogs.

After a pair of last-second shots by both teams kept the game alive, No. 23 Florida outscored Georgia 19-6 in the second overtime to defeat the Bulldogs 104-91 on Tuesday in Stegeman Coliseum.

“I think we had one or two bad possessions and we couldn’t afford those,” center Jeremy Price said of the second overtime period. “They scored off our bad possessions and we were kind of playing catch up.”

Florida’s Erving Walker threw up a last-resort shot from far outside the arc and sunk it, forcing a sec-ond overtime period.

After the shot, Florida took over in the second overtime period, something Georgia head coach Mark Fox said he didn’t think would happen.

“We have always trusted our defense,” Fox said. “And with the way we were rebounding in the sec-ond half, I didn’t think we were going to do any-thing else.”

The Gators (16-4, 5-1) racked up nine points in the first two minutes of the second overtime peri-od as an exhausted Georgia team struggled to maintain possession and pull down rebounds.

“[Florida] played their tails off, and our kids did too,” Fox said. “I’m proud of our team. I’m proud of our fans, but we have to win the heartbreak-ers.”

Georgia forward Trey Thompkins kept the game going past regulation, when he hit a layup as the second-half clock expired, tying the game at 73 as the Bulldogs fought through a late Florida surge.

The Gators’ game-saver five minutes later wasn’t quite as prepared.

With Georgia (14-5, 3-3) appearing to be the vic-tor after shooting guard Sharrard Brantley and Price each hit four consecutive free throws to give the Bulldogs an 85-82 lead with six seconds left to play, the Bulldogs chose not to foul Florida and run the clock down.

That decision proved to be a costly one as the Florida bench exploded with excitement when Walker tied the game.

The win gives Florida a greater lead in the SEC East, while Georgia is still looking for its winning streak in SEC play. Georgia forward Travis Leslie led the Bulldogs with 21 points, though he had six costly turnovers.

Thompkins recorded a double-double with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Point guard Dustin Ware added 10 points. The Bulldogs were 16-of-24 from the foul line.

Walker and fellow Florida guard Kenny Boynton led the Gators with 24 points apiece.

Florida Center Vernon Macklin scored 23 points and Chandler Parsons added 18 points and 12 assists.

Georgia will travel to Lexingtion, Ky., to take on the Wildcats Saturday afternoon.

Gators chomp Dogs in double overtime

PHOTOS BY FRANCES MICKLOW | The Red & Black

Jeremy Price (top) battles Florida’s Patric Young and Vernon Macklin for a late rebound in Georgia’s double overtime loss. Gerald Robinson (above right) dishes an assist. Price (above left) walks off the floor after yet another heartbreaking home loss for Georgia.

MICHAEL BARONE | The Red & Black

The body of a man in his mid-40s was found in the Fine Arts Building on Tuesday. University Police said there was no indication of foul play.

Related to report of missing person

MEN’S BASKETBALL Florida 104, Georgia 91

WINSTON

MELTDOWN

Great 1 BR choices!

Wow! Great Prices & Close to Campus!

www.joinermanagement.com 706-353-6868

Lynn Rock Hillside White Columns Hall

GREEK SPECIAL

Complete Tuxedo Rental* - $3995

It’s not too late for this weekend.

THE DAILY PUZZLE

PEARLS BEFORE SWINE® BY STEPHAN PASTIS

ACROSS 1 Residence 5 Run __;

chase 10 Prescribed

amount 14 Whitney

and Wallach 15 Sifting

device 16 Pealed 17 Dissolve 18 Sir __

Newton 19 Toledo’s

state 20 Skunk 22 Bench

areas for baseball players

24 Very long time

25 Wild 26 Remem-

bered mis-sion

29 Help 30 Striped ani-

mal 34 Pleads 35 Broadcast 36 Monotony 37 Sheep’s cry 38 So-called 40 Under-

garment 41 Series of

eight piano keys

43 Prefix for night or section

44 “Woe is me!”

45 Fraternity letter

46 Droop 47 Sword com-

bats 48 Animate 50 Pea casing 51 Filthy pov-

erty 54 Barely ade-

quate 58 Yours and

mine 59 Poultry

shop pur-chase

61 Story 62 Become

furious 63 Divided 64 Margin

65 Peepers 66 Slowly, in

music 67 Precious

DOWN 1 Rope fiber 2 Margarine 3 Pepper

grinder 4 Values

highly 5 From China

or Japan 6 Clenched

hand 7 Earl Grey,

for one 8 Dodged 9 Happen

again 10 __ over;

was gaga about

11 Hawaiian island

12 In a __; miffed

13 Person-alities

21 Pigeon’s noise

23 Stared 25 Blaze fight-

er 26 Monastery

superior 27 England’s

Robin __ 28 Fine-

grained chalcedony

29 Feel sick 31 Holy book 32 Of the

countryside 33 Accumulate 35 Stein con-

tents 36 Kennedy or

Koppel 38 To no __;

fruitlessly 39 Actor __

Young 42 Books of

maps 44 Inspected

financial books

46 Mexican shawl

47 Put on, as garb

49 Spoken 50 2-colored

horse 51 Blister or

boil 52 Landing

place 53 Encourage 54 Comedian

Sahl 55 Manu-

factured 56 Seaweed 57 Sidelong

look 60 “Peter __”

Previous puzzle’s solution

2 | Wednesday, January 26, 2011 | The Red & Black NEWS

Student charged with theft of chicken biscuit

Warrants were released Monday for a

University student charged with the theft of a chicken biscuit from The Bulldog Café on Thursday, according to University police reports.

Officials told police at about 11:15 a.m. they observed Benjamin Reid Fincher placing one chicken biscuit in his jacket pocket and attempting to conceal it with a hat. He then paid for another chicken biscuit at the register. When an employee approached him about the theft, Fincher ran, leaving behind his book bag and other posses-

sions, according to the report.The value of the chicken biscuit was

estimated to be $2. Fincher’s possessions, which included

a bag of Costa Rican coins, a psycholog-ical science textbook, a Swiss Army knife and a Gerber multi-tool were placed in an evidence locker at the University Police Department, according to the report.

Fincher declined to comment.

— Compiled by Tiffany Stevens

CRIME NOTEBOOKONLINE Documents

By MARY WALKERTHE RED & BLACK

Joining student organizations not only helps make a large state university small-er, but it’s also linked to academic suc-cess.

“It is proven that students involved in organizations do better in school,” said Josh Podvin, the assistant director of stu-dent activities and organizations. “They are more successful academically and they graduate on time.”

The Department of Campus Life will host its annual Winter Activities Fair today from 11:00 a.m. to 3 p.m.

More than 150 student organizations will set up booths and tables in Tate Grand Hall encouraging students to join their organizations.

On a campus of more than 33,000 stu-dents, clubs and organizations help shrink the University.

“Getting involved in organizations makes campus feel a bit more like home,” Podvin said.

Podvin said the Department of Campus Life believes it is important to host a win-ter activities fair because it gives students a second chance to get involved.

“Many first-year students take the first semester to get acclimated,” Podvin said. “In the second semester, we like to give them the opportunity to step out and join.”

There are organizations that appeal to every student’s interests, such as Selam

Ethiopian Society, which is new this semester, and Young Americans for Liberty.

One new organization is the Dawg Dish Cooking Club, which caters to the starved college student.

“I studied in Argentina this past semes-ter and spent a lot of time cooking with my house mom,” said Genna Linton, founder of Dawg Dish Cooking Club. “I enjoyed the interaction of cooking with someone else, but when I got back to Georgia, I realized there wasn’t a cooking club.”

Linton said students will cook and share their tips, techniques and recipes.

“The idea of a cooking club is that you learn from each other,” Linton said. “Cooking can be a very daunting task if you have never done it before. But with others it is less intimidating.”

And getting involved — in a cooking club or any other organization — trans-lates to more than just fun.

“Students involved get to hone their leadership skills and take on more respon-sibility,” Podvin said. “They learn about managing conflict, planning events and other good skills for the future.”

Activities Fair helps students learn outside of their classes

When: Today from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.Where: Tate Grand HallMore Information: Student groups will host displays and be available to answer questions.

WINTER ACTIVITIES FAIR

By AJ ARCHERFOR THE RED & BLACK

Dwight Freshley, Cal Logue, Charles Gruner and Thurmon Garner have seen it all.

The celebration of the University’s 50th anniver-sary of desegregation con-tinued Wednesday with a discussion panel of four University professors.

The speakers recalled their personal histories interacting with students from different races.

Many identified moments when they real-ized how badly race rela-tions needed change.

“I walked into a wash-room after dinner one night and saw an African American man scratching his face and saying, ‘I wish I could turn this black skin white,’” Freshley said.

Upon addressing the issue, panel members directed their speeches

toward shifts they began to see in interracial inter-actions as time pro-gressed.

“I left Detroit for the South and had the impres-sion from my family that the South was back-wards,” Garner said. “When I arrived, I instead felt at home.”

In addition to personal recollec-tions, the panelists discussed how they attempted to make higher education more available and relevant to black students.

“We had very few resources, but we studied speech strategies used by African American speak-ers and watched taped speeches to analyze their tactics,” Gruner said.

After the presentation, members of the audience had the opportunity to

pose questions to the panel.

Many said they appre-ciated the light the discus-sion shed on how far desegregation has come.

“This discussion brings context to the situation and informs us of exactly

what interactions were like back then,” said Marcus Coleman, a Ph.D. student with a focus on political communication.

Despite the apparent prog-ress, some believe there are more issues to be addressed if the

University is to move for-ward.

“Racial tensions were heightened and blatantly displayed back then,” Coleman said. “They still exist but are now nuanced, textured and below the surface.”

University professors reflect on race relations

GARNER

MICHAEL BARONE | The Red & Black

Caution tape blocks the room in the Fine Arts Building where a body was discovered on Tuesday. Police said the deceased individual was reported missing around 11:30 a.m. Monday. The identity of the individ-ual has not been publicized and will not be revealed until the police investigation is completed. Police are unsure of the cause of death.

By KATHRYN INGALLTHE RED & BLACK

Students may be one step closer to swimming in the Dead Sea for course credit.

SGA is researching a proposal that would allow students to study abroad in countries under the U.S. State Department’s Travel Warning List.

The list includes nations such as Israel, Kenya, Mexico and Haiti.

“Basically what this is trying to do is look at poli-cies other universities have with study abroad,” said Jonathan Arogeti, who is leading the research.

Arogeti said some of the nations on the list are large and the conflict keeping students away is limited to a small area.

Students who study abroad in these nations cannot use University funds such as the Foundation Fellows Scholarship or Bernard Ramsey Scholarship.

These students must also fill out large amounts of paper work to receive credit if they study in coun-tries on the list.

The subcommittee’s members will research the University’s listed peer and aspirational partners — schools to which the University is or aspires to become similar.

These schools include the University of Virginia, Cornell University and the University of California, Berkeley.

“Dr. Adams has made a commitment to interna-tional education. He’s greatly expanded it,” Arogeti said. “We’re just trying to expand it fur-ther.”

The Academic Affairs committee also discussed a proposal to change the pol-icy of requiring students suspended because of code of conduct violations to withdraw from classes and receive a WF.

“The new proposal gives instructors discretion when

a students is suspended for violating the code of con-duct — not academic hon-esty. It gives discretion to give a WF or WP. And right now we have four WPs and the University suggests taking five classes, so even if you use all four you still fail one class,” said SGA Senator Wells Ellenberg,

He said about 20 to 30 students each semester are suspended from the University.

“The question is ‘Doesn’t that irreparably harm a student’s academic career and shouldn’t we separate conduct violation from vio-lations of an academic nature?’” Ellenberg said.

There is a petition sub-committee to which stu-dents may appeal, but Ellenberg said the results vary and he would like a policy that is more defined.

“The stated purpose for the Code of Conduct is a learning process, so is it a learning process, or is it overly punitive?” Ellenberg said.

SGA researches study abroad

POLICE INVESTIGATION CONTINUES

By DALLAS DUNCANTHE RED & BLACK

Editor’s note: This is part two of a two-part series about genetically modi-fied organism research at the University. We contin-ue with legislation con-cerning GMOs.

Can a genetically modi-fied food product cause consumers who eat it to grow a third eye?

“Absolutely not,” said Wayne Parrott, University crop and soil sciences pro-fessor and researcher on GM crops. “There’s not many times in science when you can say that, but this is one of them.”

Parrott said one reason many consumers fear genetically modified organ-isms, or GMOs comes from the science education in the United States and a disconnect with agricul-ture.

“I think it’s fear of the unknown,” he said. “It’s the thought that it’s out of your control … This is a pretty common fear and I don’t begrudge anyone for having it.”

The Green Revolution

GMO proponents con-tend as the world’s popu-lation increases. GM crops will be used to feed the hungry — hence the increase in research.

GMO skeptics disagree.“That argument is very

powerful, and it’s not going away any time soon,” said Hilda Kurtz, associate pro-fessor of geography. “There’s enough data to support that contention, but to argue against it is not going to stop produc-tion of GMOs.”

Much of the concern with GMO exportation stems from the Green Revolution, an agricultural event where high-yielding varieties of corn and wheat were planted in countries such as Mexico.

“The U.S. has come to [some of these countries] and said, ‘we will give you corn for people and ani-mals to eat.’ And they turned it down because they said, ‘you can’t guar-antee that this corn is GMO-free,’” Scott Angle, dean of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, said. “So it’s better for people to starve than to be exposed to risks that we still can’t even quanti-fy; they’re so small that we can’t even see them.”

Others said GMOs don’t necessarily help hun-ger issues.

“I feel like the answer to the world’s problems, like hunger problems, isn’t more technology,” said Kayla Calhoun, a senior from Colquitt. “Especially in developing countries, they have people come in with GMOs as a new crop and promise profits, so they’re like, ‘we get cash’ and then don’t worry about feeding their own population. So they intensely farm the land and destroy the land so they can’t grow food for their own people.”

Change the system

“I can see it from both points of view,” Shannon Lawrence, the instruction-al resources project man-ager for the Career, Technical and Agricultural Education resource net-work, said. “But we still

have starving people, so obviously this GMO stuff ain’t working. It’s the sys-tem that’s broken — not the food.”

Problems with the gov-ernment are felt on both sides of the GMO debate.

In July 2008, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) introduced three bills related to GMO regulation — The Genetically Engineered Food Right to Know Act, which calls for accurate labeling of food as GM; The Genetically Engineered Safety Act, a call for Food and Drug Administration screening of all GM foods through the existing food additive process as well as a mora-torium on GM crops until the bill is in effect; and The Genetical ly Engineered Technology Farmer Protection Act, which aims to allow farm-ers to save seeds and seek compensation for failed GM crops.

Parrott said he believes

the government is over-regulating GMO crops because of trade concerns with Europe. He said Europe originally was on par with the United States in terms of GMO research, but as soon as diseases such as mad cow and foot-and-mouth hit, citi-zens lost faith in food safety. GMOs got swept into that debate, and now Europe is strict on the U.S. imports because its citizens are anti-GMO.

“Our food indus-try is completely dependent on genet-ically engineered microbes for fermen-tation. If you use cheese, if you drink light beer or if you want to take a vita-min pill, those are all genetically engineered products,” he said.

Calhoun said officials

are more likely to cater to big businesses, especially those that could donate money to campaigns, and

smaller farmers would be left out of the legislation.

“The minute our government said it was OK to patent life is when it all went downhill,” she said.

Scientists may have less influence when there are politics involved,

Parrott said.“There are very

good scientists and this is their career, but they get orders from above saying, ‘You’re going to ignore this and do this instead,’ so they understand the science but pol-itics end up trump-

ing it,” he said. Sen. Saxby Chambliss

(R-Ga.) wrote in an e-mail interview he believes the

federal government’s role in this debate is to pre-serve consumers’ and the environment’s safety with regard to biotechnology.

“We are currently engaged in a vigorous debate about the role of government, and I am genuinely concerned about the implications for the future,” he said. “If the current administration goes too far, the impact could have significant implications for the future supply of food and fiber in Georgia, the United States and around the world.”

Is there an answer?

“If I had an answer, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now,” Parrott said. “Quite often the media takes comments out of context. Scientists as a group don’t have the resources or the time to lobby and the Organic Consumers Association spends millions on lobby-

ing. I don’t even feel our representatives call upon us as a source at all.”

Calhoun said she gets most of her information about GMOs from her classes, and said there are many different perspec-tives at the University.

“We need individuals to have an honest and open debate about the technol-ogy — to discuss what it is and what it is not,” Chambliss wrote. “It offers so much potential. Yet it is so easy for groups to spread misinformation through passion and fear. UGA can continue to be a leading voice … to high-light the benefits and needs of agricultural bio-technology in all facets of our lives.”

But whatever stance is taken — it’s all about con-sumers being informed.

“The end result is what you think, what you come up with,” she said. “That’s important.”

NEWS The Red & Black | Wednesday, January 26, 2011 | 3

Genetically engineered food sparks ‘vigorous debate’

CHAMBLISS

KUCINICH

CORRECTIONSTuesday’s article

“University must change plus/minus system” con-tained dated data. The list of the University’s “peer” and “aspiration-al” institutions changed, and the article does not reflect this change.

Six of the University’s “aspirational” institu-tions have no A+. Five of the University’s “peer” institutions have no A+.

The Red & Black is committed to journalistic excellence and providing the most accurate news possible. Contact us if you see an error, and we will do our best to correct it.

Editor-in-Chief: Mimi Ensley

(706) 433-3027editor@randb.com

Managing Editor:Rachel G. Bowers

(706) 433-3026me@randb.com

4 | Wednesday, January 26, 2011 | The Red & Black

Biases not just a conservative flaw

E-mail and letters from our readers

What we hoped would be relaxed, may be strangled.

The administration may be adding tailgat-ing restrictions to Myers Quad after reports of damages.

The Gameday Committee met to discuss possibilities for changes in gameday policy.

Gameday policy ... meaning tailgating. And that’s OK. When students act like toddlers, they lose

their playtime privileges.But there is a problem.The Student Government Association has

campaigned for changes in tailgating policy on North Campus.

After a semester of smoking ban and “don’t ride the bus” plans, this is actually a proposal that students care about.

SGA has put time and effort into crafting something the administration could reasonably enact.

Students complained about the restrictions — and SGA listened.

And now, after presenting a reasoned argu-ment, the administration has thrown up a giant road block.

Not only are we not getting tents on North Campus, we’re also not receiving even the appearance of a compromise.

No. The administration is throwing more restrictions on the table.

Yes, SGA has attended meetings with offi-cials. And yes, the administration can now say it consulted students.

But were we really consulted? When even the most rational of proposals are ignored, it’s clear the administration prefers students seen, not heard.

The editorial board demands more than a public relations summit between students and administrators. We demand students’ voices be considered and actually accounted for in the decision-making processes at the University.

We have good ideas. We promise. Take a moment to listen to them.

— Mimi Ensley and Courtney Holbrook for the editorial board

Majority opinions of The Red & Black’s editorial board

Unheard voicesThe administration has ignored SGA’s proposal for tailgating policy changes

Mailbox

Our Take

Mimi Ensley | Editor in Chief editor@randb.comRachel G. Bowers | Managing Editor me@randb.comCourtney Holbrook | Opinions Editor opinions@randb.com

Phone (706) 433-3002 | Fax (706) 433-3033

opinions@randb.com | www.redandblack.com

540 Baxter Street, Athens, Ga. 30605Opinions

Students must break their love addictions

After reading Jonathan Rich’s article (“Republicans not suited for role in science,”

Jan. 24), I came away with one unmistakable conclusion: Rich must be a Republican.

Rich acknowledges a disparity in the amount of Republican and Democratic professionals in scien-tific and academic fields. He insists conservatives are unable to cope with cognitive dissonance.

Apparently, conservatives can’t accept information that goes against their previously-held beliefs. They make quick assump-tions — and stick to them through hell or high water.

If this is true of only Republicans, then Rich must have voted for John McCain.

If this article had been written by a Democrat, surely it would have based its argument on a bet-ter foundation than a single schol-arly article published in a 2003 issue of the Psychological Bulletin.

A scientific-minded Democrat would realize that referencing a single, ambiguous scholarly work to form conclusions isn’t good science. One should branch out and seek multiple sources to back up an argument.

But that would prove inconve-nient to a conservative such as Rich. Several studies find Republicans and Democrats alike have trouble coping with informa-tion contrary to their beliefs,

including an article published in the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience by Drew Westen, director of clinical psychology at Emory University. A 2009 study published in the American Economic Journal: Applied Economics revealed similar conclu-sions.

Unfortunately, Rich already made up his mind on Republicans. Any information that doesn’t jive with his argument shouldn’t be rec-ognized. This is clear proof — Rich is an ardent Christian who opposes abortion and loves guns.

And who knew the ability to per-form scientific inquiry was based on partisan lines? I sure didn’t.

After all, when conducting scien-tific research it’s just so much easi-er to lump your observations into two separate categories such as “Republican” and “Democrat,” rather than dealing with “design flaws,” “messy data” and “vari-ables” which “are not clearly defined.”

Forget all that. Republicans could never per-

form adequate research. Their pre-conceived beliefs and biases would get in the way. Democrats wouldn’t

succumb to the same mistake, because, you know, it’s science.

Never mind who’s picking and defining the variables, planning the research design, working with the data and removing inconvenient observations.

Science can’t be wrong. Especially when it’s performed by Democrats who obviously don‘t have deeply-held beliefs or ideals.

Jonathan, it’s a good thing you’re a Republican. Apparently, you could never deal with a profes-sion that lacks “quick and easy answers.”

I mean, you just generalized an entire political party composed of millions of people.

What’s quicker and easier than that?

I do accept there seems to be an interesting lack of Republicans in the scientific and academic fields. But I am not completely sure as to why this is.

I don’t claim to have a definite answer. However, I can be sure of one thing — a lack of conservative scientists is not the result of some cognitive handicap.

The mind’s inability to cope with and reconcile information that contradicts one’s beliefs is a human flaw.

Not a conservative one.

— Evan Tighe is a grad student from Alpharetta studying

international affairs

EVAN TIGHE

We’ve given it many names.

Hookup Culture. No Strings Attached. Friends with Benefits. Settling for Less. The College Years.

Why do we have so many labels for what is so obviously an addiction to love?

Well, that’s what addicts do: come up with slang terms or euphe-misms to downplay and rationalize their desires into something more acceptable.

Here’s another thing they do: engage in addic-tive — often maladaptive — behaviors to fill a void within themselves and avoid deeper issues.

Love addiction can also have biological causes. It can stem from a dependence on the euphoric effects of “physi-cal and psychological arousal” that often come with the excitement of falling in love or infatua-tion, according to Psychology Today’s Diagnosis Dictionary.

Such arousal is trig-gered by phenylethylam-ine (often in conjunction with other stress-related neurotransmitters), a chemical in the brain that facilitates those feelings of euphoria.

But no matter what we’re actually seeking — whether it’s attention or chemicals — we’ve all

been guilty of at least one of the following:

Flirting without a cause. Random hookups. Staying in unhappy rela-tionships.

All of which eventually leave us emotionally drained, filled with regret and far worse off than when we first scored that hit of love.

Why do we engage in such destructive behav-iors?

Well, we’re often in search of things such as personal validation and self-esteem to remedy feelings of inadequacy and rejection.

We want “love”— as though it’s some all-con-suming panacea that will fix everything and make our lives more enjoyable. Like those beer commer-cials.

But I think few of us in our generation know what “love” is.

And that’s the source of our addiction to it. Love itself isn’t the prob-lem. Our perception of and how we pursue it, is.

Our perception is by far the trickiest part of the addiction to over-come. You not only have to deal with your own

views on love. You have to go up against an entire society’s cultural beliefs.

What to do when the dealers and enablers reside in our homes?

We’re surrounded by them in the form of music, television and movies.

Our music is fraught with hookup rhetoric and odes to unhealthy code-pendence.

Our movies tell us waiting for someone to come along and “com-plete” us is far more important than taking the time to learn about and appreciate ourselves as “whole” people.

Our television shows are a veritable resurrec-tion of the Cola Wars. Brands battle for our hearts and wallets, offer-ing up their diametrically opposed wares of loveless sex and marriages that reek of desperation.

Online dating ads screech “find love today” — as if it were a BOGO item on sale at Publix.

No wonder we don’t know what real, healthy love is. Or that we’re all worthy of it. We’ve objec-tified love and ourselves.

Love has become yet another bauble to attain, like an iPhone 4. And our hearts have become the currency with which to buy it.

Problem is, there’s inflation. Our hearts have

become nearly worthless to us in our blind pursuit for mere crumbs of affec-tion.

And we continue to act like addicts, sometimes doing degrading things to get our fix.

We’ve cheated. We’ve lied to ourselves and oth-ers. We’ve traded in our hearts for cheap labels and half-relationships.

(Come on, if “it’s com-plicated” then it’s not a relationship. At least not a healthy one. And if it’s not healthy, then why are you still in it?)

It’s time to reclaim our self-worth. Because if we don’t realize we’re worth more than just a hookup, we’ll keep settling for them. Real love will always be out of reach.

The key to that happy realization? Taking the time to get to know, love and accept ourselves first — outside of any roman-tic relationship.

Begin by taking care of your body, and investing more in your friendships, families and activities that you enjoy. Strive to make yourself happy — rather than asking others to do it for you.

And stop being such a “lovesick crack head”.

— Anita George is a senior from Lilburn

majoring in magazines and

psychology

ANITA GEORGE

Cartoon Adams is dubious practice

The recurring cartoon-ish depiction of Dr. Michael Adams, president of the University, on the front page of The Red & Black — along with the obligatory condescending text — is childishly demeaning, insulting and well below the dignity of such a highly regarded col-lege newspaper.

I look forward to read-ing The Red & Black again — once this dubious editorial practice is dis-continued.

GREGORY H. ROBINSONProfessor, Athens

Chemistry

Conservatives can be scientists too

Jonathan Rich took a very big liberty in the assertions in his column (“Republicans not suited for role in science,” Jan. 24).

For instance, look at the members of the 111th Congress that have back-grounds in health care: 16 of the 24 representatives were physicians; 12 of those 16 medical doctors were registered as Republicans. Surely being a doctor qualifies you as a scientist.

And with regard to con-servatives being “uncom-fortable with ambiguity and uncertainty,” who isn’t? I’m a conservative. I realize the threats of glob-al warming and the incredible benefits of

stem-cell research that you feel only liberals were aware.

But I know all academ-ic fields contain some degree of uncertainty and have their gray areas.

That’s why we study them — to examine and resolve the issues at hand.

And I’m a registered Democrat; where does that place me in the sta-tistics?

MARTIN W. PROCTORSenior, Tallahassee, Fl.

Finance

Bachmann attack ends with sexism

I usually agree whole-heartedly with Adam Carlson’s columns. Tuesday’s (“Bachmann hurts political rhetoric,” Jan. 25) was no exception, until the parting senti-ment Carlson chose to press upon his readers.

I too find Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) a damaging force within the American political land-scape.

But differentiating her brand of political idiocy as being different from those of other Tea Partiers because she is “a visible Republican with a vagina” ended a compelling argu-ment with a sexist senti-ment that was completely unnecessary.

How about we find a visible Republican, regard-less of genitalia, who isn’t completely insane?

ELIZABETH ANSLEYHAYES

Junior, GainesvilleEnglish

NEWS: 706-433-3002News Editor: Rachel BunnAssociate News Editor: Polina MarinovaSports Editor: Nick ParkerVariety Editor: Joe WilliamsPhoto Editor: Sara CaldwellDesign Editors: Amanda Jones, Haley TempleCopy Editor: Beth PollakOnline Editor: Jessica RobertsEditorial Cartoonist: Sarah QuinnEditorial Adviser: Ed Morales

Editorial Assistant: Sarah Jean Dover Recruitment Editor: Katie ValentineSenior Reporter: Dallas DuncanStaff Writers: Umarah Ali, Jason Axlerod, Ryan Black, Mitch Blomert, Kelsey Byrd, Adam Carlson, Melissa Cohen, Lindsey Cook, Kelly Corbett, Jacob Demmitt, Zach Dillard, F.Tyler Elrod, Briana Gerdeman, Sarah Giarratana, Emily Grant, Mariana Heredia, Drew Hooks, Kathryn Ingall, Emily Karol, Elaine Kelch, Edward Kim, Heather Kinney, Alex Laughlin, Christopher Miller, Cody Nichelson, Tunde Ogunsakin, Robbie Ottley, Michael

Prochaska, Adina Soloman, Tiffany Stevens, Zachary Taylor, Eva Vasquez, Mary WalkerPhotographers: Michael Harris, Emily Karol, Meagan Kelley, Frances Micklow, AJ Reynolds, Julianne Upchurch, Dina ZolanPage Designers: Abbey Boehmer, Ana Kabakova, Christopher Miller, Charlee Russell

ADVERTISING: 706-433-3001Advertising Director: Natalie McClureStudent Ad Manager: Sarah CarltonInside Sales Manager: Haley Winther

Account Executives: Carolyn Evers, Nick Henner, Andrew Love, Sarah Overstreet, Zach Smith, Rebecca TonneSales Associates: Ally Macatee, Marisa Negri, Zach Smith, Sharanya Vijaykumar, Kennan WoodAdvertising Assistants: Laurel HollandClassifieds Representatives: Sarah Oldaker, Jenna VinesCirculation Manager: Blake MolinaCreative Assistant: Olivia ScarboroughAssistant Production Manager: Joshua Trey Barnett

Production Assistants: Nicollette Childs, Jenni Chiu, Elaine Kelch, Elizabeth StewartProduction Manager: Sam PittardPublisher: Harry MontevideoOffice Manager: Erin BeasleyAssistant Office Manager: Megan Yue

Cleaning Person: Mary Jones

The Red & Black is published Monday through Friday fall and spring semesters and each Thursday summer semester, except holidays and exam periods, by The Red & Black Publishing Company Inc., a non-profit campus newspaper not affiliated with the University of Georgia. Subscription rate: $195 per year.

Our StaffOpinions expressed in The Red & Black are the opinions of the writers and not necessarily those of The Red and Black Publishing Company Inc. All rights reserved. Reprints by permission of the editors.

Editorial board members include Mimi Ensley, Rachel G. Bowers, Robert Carnes, Courtney Holbrook, Robbie Ottley and Joe Williams.

The Red & Black publishes daily during each semester according to theUniversity schedule. Ads may be placed Monday - Friday 9 a.m. 5 p.m. in ouroffice at 540 Baxter St. or call 433-3011 and charge it to your MasterCard, VISA,or American Express. Prepayment is required. Ads can also be faxed via form to433-3033 or e-mailed to classifieds@randb.com . Classifieds

PRIVATE PARTY RATE(Applies to individual persons only)

(0-25 words)1st Day/Skip days.....................................................$6.003 Consecutive Days.................................................$10.005 Consecutive Days.................................................$15.0010 Consecutive Days...............................................$20.00

HOUSING ANDEMPLOYMENT RATE

(0-25 words)1st Day/Skip days.....................................................$9.003 Consecutive Days.................................................$25.005 Consecutive Days.................................................$35.0010 Consecutive Days...............................................$65.00

BUSINESS RATE(All commercial other than housing and employment)

(0-25 words)1st Day/Skip days.....................................................$7.003 Consecutive Days.................................................$19.005 Consecutive Days.................................................$31.0010 Consecutive Days...............................................$61.00

FREE “FOR SALE” ADSUniversity Community Only

(Private Party Merchandise, Under $101) (0-15 words)

3 Consecutive Days..................................................FREE(Merchandise must be priced. One item per hsld per week.

Ads must be received from UGA e-mail address only.

No walk-ins or standard mail accepted.)

Classifieds Rates& Information

3 & 4 BR new houses avail8/1! Great dwntn location,LG BRs, tile, HW flrs, secu-rity & sound sys. 706-713-0626. www.newagepropertiesa-thens.com

NOW SUBLEASING! 1 per-son for 5 BR/BA house.New house, less than 1 mifrom campus. $400/mo.Other roommates are maleUGA students. Reid at 770-486-0595.

3BR 2BA DUPLEX $750W/ 1 MONTH FREE! NOPET FEE! NO SD w/ ac-ceptable credit! Under $700w/ current special. 2 milesfrom downtown. Unitcomes with W/D, dw, mi-crowave. Includes sec sysmonitoring, lawn mainte-nance, & pest control. SDof $450 fully refundable.Owner/Agent 706-549-2500www.ambroseproperties.-postlets.com

4BR 4.5BA cottage at TheStation available January!HW flrs, private baths,huge walk in closets, all ap-pliances incl. Floorplan is amust see! 706-543-1910

CLOSE TO CAMPUS anddowntown. 4BR 3BAhouse. W/D, DW, CHAC.Deck off back. $850/mo.706-549-2500.

4BR 4BA TOWNHOUSESCLOSE TO CAMPUS. 2LARGE LRS, LARGE UTIL-ITY ROOM, W/D, DW,GARBAGE DISPOSAL,LARGE DECK, ALARMSYSTEM. 2500 SQFT.$1300/MO. 706-549-2500.

4BR WINDSOR PLACECONDO COMPLETELYREMODELED (FIVEPOINTS AREA) All newflooring, cabinets, granitecountertops, plumbing &electrical fixtures, appli-ances, and HVAC. Looksbrand new. 4 huge BRs, 3BA, 2 LRs, large utilityroom, huge deck & pool.Downstairs LR can beused as an additional BR.Approximately 2500 sq ft.Must see! Available nowor pre-lease for fall. Pricefrom $1400-$1650.Owner/ Agent AmbroseProperties. 706-549-2500.

NOW PRE-LEASING forFall 2011. 4BR 2BA prop-erties available very closeto campus. CityBlockProperties. 706-296-9546. www.cityblock.biz

NOW PRE-LEASING forFall! Houses, condos &townhomes 1 to 5 bed-rooms. Five Points, Down-town & Eastside. Great lo-cations at unbeatable rates.Aaron 706-207-2957.

HUGE 4BR/2.5BA SplitFoyer house in Glenwoodsubdivision in Five Pts.Massive sunroom, familyroom & den. LR, DR, andcomplete kitchen. Lots ofbuilt-ins. 4BR on top floor.3 car carport. Quiet area.$1300/mo. Call 706-546-0600.

COMPLETELY RENO-VATED 1920 historic homeat 270 Springdale in theheart of Five Points.3000+SF, 3 F/P’s, Heart ofPine Flrs, Grand Staircase,4BR 3BA. Sunrm,Screened Porch, Hugefenced yard, Granite, SSAppliances, Jetted Tub,Glass Shwr, walk in closet,Loft, etc. Available Jan 3,2011. $2400/mo. Call706-546-0600 for showing.

GREAT 2BR 1BA house.Great central location.50% off first month rent.HW floors, big sun-deck,IKEA kitchen, W/D. Dogfence on back side. 404-368-8043 for moreinfo. Photos and more: http://www.rentals.com/-Georgia/Athens/r1125042/

SPECIALS on S. Milledge Ave!

Pre-leasing for summer and fall

Hunter’s Run 2br/2ba $7203br/2ba $8004br/4ba $1200

W/D, alarm system, pets welcome

hancockpropertiesinc.com706-552-3500

! BARTENDING! UP to$250/day. No experiencenecessary. Training avail-able. Become a bartender.1-800-965-6520 ext 106.

PART TIME SERVERS.Iris Place Retirement. 755Epps Bridge Pkwy. Apply inperson. $7.25/hr (no tips).Out by 7:30 p.m. Weekendshifts also.

PLAY SPORTS! HAVEFUN! SAVE MONEY! Maine camp needs fun lov-ing counselors to teach Allland, adventure & watersports. Great summer! Call888-844-8080, apply: www.campcedar.com

SUMMER OF A LIFETIMEat CAMP WEEQUAHIC.Join our staff as a coun-selor and instructor in oneof our 40 activity areas.Must be fun, responsible,and want to make a differ-ence in children’s lives.Email tony@weequahic.-com and visit us Jan 31 inRamsey at Camp Fair. APPLY online www.wee-quahic.com

OUTSIDE GOLF OPERA-TIONS personnel neededby Athens Country Club.Part time hours includingnights and weekends. Ap-ply in person, Tuesthrough Thurs at the ACCGolf Shop and ask forBrandon. 706-354-7111.

THE RED & BLACKis now accepting applications for a

Spring Semester Business Intern

Great opportunity to gainreal world business skills

while working in a fun environment. Must beavailable MWF 1:30 to 3:30. Visit our website:

www.redandblack.com for more information and

an application.

1BR APTS W/ 1 MONTHFREE & NO PET FEE!Close to Campus & Down-town from $380-$425 NOSD w/ acceptable credit.That’s only $350-$390 w/special. www.ambroseprop-erties.postlets.com. 706-549-2500

1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 5 BR. Awe-some close to campus.Houses for Fall! Historicalhouses, modern amenities.Porches, yards. Petfriendly. $350-$1950 mo.luckydawg96@hotmail.com

CLASSIFIEDS DISCLAIMER

The Red & Black does notverify, investigate, or en-dorse any classified ad.Readers are urged to

use caution when responding to an ad.

2BR APTS $550- $650 w/ 1MONTH FREE! NO PETFEE! NO SD w/ goodcredit! Blocks to campus &downtown. W/D included.Only $505-$596 w/ currentspecial. www.ambroseprop-erties.postlets.com 706-549-2500

2BR 2BA BRICK flat onUGA busline. All appli-ances, includes W/D. Smallquaint apartment commu-nity for serious student.Steve 770-490-9656.

2BR 2.5BA CONDO$890/mo. Nice, just offcampus walk to class ortake UGA bus. Aples clos-ets & storage, deck, mi-crowave, W/D, DW, 2 carspaces. hojogaaz@yahoo.com. 404-429-3794.

2BR 2BA DUPLEX $650.w/ 1 MONTH FREE! NOPET FEE! NO SD w/ ac-ceptable credit! Under $600w/ current special. 2 milesfrom downtown. Unitcomes with W/D, DW, mi-crowave. Includes sec sysmonitoring, lawn mainte-nance, & pest control. SDof $400 fully refundable.Owner/Agent www.ambroseproperties.-postlets.com 706-549-2500

1BR SUBLEASE.TOWNE Club, off ofMilledge Ave-good loca-tion. 3BR apt, top roomavailable with its own bath-room. 2 other male room-mates. 770-359-7363.ryanbataillon@gmail.com.

APPROXIMATELY 100 CREDIT COURSES ONLINEFor more information or to register:

www.georgiacenter.uga.edu/randb706-542-3243 1-800-877-3243

See your academic advisor about applying specific IDL courses to your program of study.

Suite 193 1197 South Lumpkin Street Athens, GA The University of Georgia is committed to principles of equal opportunity and a!rmative action.

UGA Online Credit Courses

Register Now for Spring Credit – UGA Online Credit Courses (through Feb 5th)

Arrested? Bond, James Bond, Inc.Arrested? Bond, James Bond, Inc.Arrested? Bond, James Bond, Inc.$1000 off w/ this

ad

706-613-0007

4 9 5

2 4 6 7

5 3 8

9 2

4 8 1

6 7 2

3 7 1 8

7 9 5 6

1 5 8 7

1 9 5 2 3 6 8 4 7

6 2 4 1 7 8 9 3 5

3 7 8 9 4 5 1 6 2

9 1 6 3 5 4 2 7 8

5 4 7 6 8 2 3 9 1

2 8 3 7 9 1 4 5 6

4 3 2 5 1 7 6 8 9

8 5 1 4 6 9 7 2 3

7 6 9 8 2 3 5 1 4

The Japanese puzzle Sudoku relies on reason-ing and logic.

To solve it, fill ing and logic.

To solve it, fill ing and logic.

in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3 by 3 box contains the digits 1 through 9.

Nothing has to add up to anything else.

Previous puzzle’s solution

VARIETY The Red & Black | Wednesday, January 26, 2011 | 5

By MELISSA COHENTHE RED & BLACK

Featuring dances choreo-graphed from decades past, the University’s Ballroom Performance Group is celebrat-ing its 20th anniversary with five performances of “Ballroom Magic” this weekend.

“If you’ve seen ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ or ‘Dancing With The Stars,’ you’re going to see a lot of stuff like that, like salsa and ballroom,” executive director Michael Fulford said.

The show boasts a variety of musical genres, as well as danc-ing styles. And the different numbers are directed by not only Fulford and his artistic director, Natalie Cox, but stu-dents as well.

“There are formations where we’re doing something like musi-cal theater, that tells a story and is a mix of melodies and differ-ent style,” Fulford said. “We are doing some older numbers involving disco as well as some hip-hop.”

Fulford began his interest for ballroom dance while a sopho-more undergraduate at the University.

The high school football play-

er needed a P.E.“I heard from a friend that

taking ballroom dancing is a great way to meet women, but then I found out I really love dancing,” Fulford said.

Nika Arkhipov, a senior mar-keting major from Yalta, Ukraine, competed in ballroom dancing competitions from the age of 5 to 16.

“My parents threw me into ballroom dancing,” Arkhipov said.

After taking a break at the end of her high school years, Arkhipov returned to a “more fun” approach to dancing while attending the University.

“I really like that it’s more like a community,” Arkhipov said. “We are really close and hang out all the time. It is a very different atmosphere than just me and the instructor.”

Being cast to dance in “Ballroom Magic,” the major

annual show for the dancing group, is no easy feat. The group is composed of about 50 dancers, separated between senior danc-ers and apprentices.

Usually only the senior mem-bers are able to dance in the big show, though sometimes appren-tice dancers fill in if needed.

After at least one semester as an apprentice, dancers may advance to be a senior dancer.

Arkhipov said the audition process may seem daunting, but the group is extremely support-ive of dancers with any range of experience.

“At first you have to audition three different dances,” Arkhipov said. “We all vote as a group. We are looking for differ-ent things like technique, as well natural performing abilities.”

Fulford commutes from Atlanta and Lawrenceville to Athens for rehearsals and shows because of his great appreciation of dancers’ dedication, he said.

“I love watching the creativity of our students and their growth as dancers as well as people,” Fulford said. “They commit a lot of hours to our group while bal-ancing being a full time student or applying to graduate school … They keep me young.”

Dancers celebrate anniversary

By KELLY CORBETTTHE RED & BLACK

Good wine doesn’t come cheap.

For those over 21, how-ever, Aromas is hosting a wine taste testing featur-ing eight wines from par-ent company Five Points Bottle Shop for only $10.

The catch? The regions, labels and prices of the wines are unknown, leav-ing guests to form a blind opinion of the wine.

“For the first event, I mixed a few wines for a wide variety,” said Svetlana Rostova, a wine buyer of Five Points Bottle Shop. “It is a good oppor-tunity to taste a lot of dif-tunity to taste a lot of dif-tunity to taste a lot of different wines that you may never think of buying.”

For now, Rostova is let-ting everyone try her favor-ite wines, but said she would like to go through as many wines as possible. The selection of wines must be logical and easy for people to taste, she said.

“I make sure that peo-ple can handle the changes from one wine to another,” Rostova said. “Very, very good wine can taste bad if you put it in the wrong sequence.”

This will be the third blind wine tasting at Aromas, which first began holding the tastings in November. At Aromas sec-ond tasting the following month, 36 people came out to try their hand at guess-ing the flavors.

“They’ve gone really well. We’re getting a bigger turnout each time,” said Heather Allister, manager of Aromas.

Since it is a blind tast-ing, Rostova keeps every-thing a secret until the end.

“I want them to be open-minded.” Rostova said. “I challenge them to guess.”

After the event is over, she gives guests a list with descriptions of the wines. Ratings are combined and featured on the wine labels at Five Points.

“It’s a great way to taste some wines without being influenced by labels and regions and what you thought you liked in the past,” Allister said.

Blind wine tasting opens patrons’ eyes

Courtesy Ballroom Performance Group

Composed of about 50 dancers, the Ballroom Performance Group is celebrating its 20th anniversary with various dancing styles, such as disco and hip-hop.

When: Thursday-Sunday at 8 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m. Where: New Dance TheaterPrice: $10 for students, $15 for non-students

BALLROOM MAGIC

When: ThursdayTime: 6 to 8 p.m. Where: AromasPrice: $10

WINE TASTING

By ZACH DILLARDTHE RED & BLACK

No one ever accused Thomas Brown of not being tough.

Coming out of Tucker High School, the 5-foot-8 Brown became one of the top high school running backs in the country. In his four-year college career, the former Bulldog fought his way to 2,646 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns despite his lack of desired size for a running back.

Even the hometown NFL team took notice of his toughness and work ethic — the Atlanta Falcons drafted Brown in the sixth round in 2008.

When Brown was faced with one of the toughest

decisions of his life, he was ready for it.

“Well lately, obviously, I finished playing football and about mid-June to early July [2010] I was play-ing with the [Cleveland] Browns and I came home and was trying to figure out what my next move would be, whether I would continue playing football or going to move on,” Brown said. “After meeting with my wife and my family, I decided it might be best if I just move on and get the second chapter of my life going.”

Brown has transitioned from his professional play-ing days to a role with the

Georgia’s football strength and conditioning program under Joe Tereshinki after head coach Mark Richt broached the subject with him in a conversation this

summer.The former

Bulldog strong man — Brown earned the reputation as the strongest pound-for-pound player in program history — said he made the decision based on wanting to be closer to his family in Auburn,

Ga.Family is the topic of

conversation early and often with Brown, so mak-ing a family-centric choice to leave his playing career

behind comes as little sur-prise.

“Well, it wasn’t hard at all because my entire life I’ve been prepared for it,” Brown said. “I’m so thank-ful for having parents who, growing up, did not care at all about me playing sports. They encouraged me, of course, and wanted me to do well in sports but every-thing was academic-based. So I was always prepared for life outside of football.”

Brown is the only son of Bishop Thomas Brown, Sr., and Dr. Louise Baker-Brown, who he said drove back and forth from Mississippi to Georgia on occasion just to “see their baby boy”.

The work ethic their son became known for as an athlete was taught by example growing up in the Brown household in Stone Mountain.

Thomas, Sr., was elected the 54th Bishop of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church — a long-time goal realized that places him over “300 or 400 churches between Mississippi and Louisiana” — while Dr. Baker-Brown was a school teacher who worked her way up to the county office.

With their son now resid-ing in Georgia year-round as a coach — and Dr. Baker-Brown enjoying retirement — the visits would be expected to come at a higher frequency.

Besides, the commute between Mississippi and Georgia also brings one additional reward for Brown’s parents: seeing their grandchildren.

“Two boys, two boys. A 2-year-old and a 1-year-old. Can you believe that?” Brown said. “But when you have kids they make you grow up very quickly. And you lose a lot of sleep. I almost feel like I’m in col-lege again, staying up all night and getting up early. But I enjoy it. They are the pride and joys of my life. So I’m just trying to do the responsible things as a father and set a good example for them and raise them up.”

And for Thomas Brown, that shouldn’t be too tough.

6 | Wednesday, January 26, 2011 | The Red & Black SPORTS

FILE | The Red & Black

Thomas Brown decided his playing days were over, and he’s now back in Athens after being hired as a strength and conditioning assistant.

Former Dog joins coaching staff

BROWN