Connected

You're too old to vote.

2007-10-31T12:20:00.001-04:00

This started out as a response to a blog comment, but I figured it'd make a better full entry.

I'm not raising kids in Bulloch County (unless you count the Great Dane and chilhuahua/terrier mix), not supporting a family (see dogs, above) or planning to spend my golden years here.

So, according to some, I shouldn't vote. Dang, already did yesterday.

The "Old Statesboro" way of thinking worked great when we were in a rural community with a li'l ol' teachers' college.

But it doesn't work now. Like it or not, Statesboro is a college town, and we've got to take the good parts of that with the drawbacks.

But the drawbacks aren't as severe as anyone thinks. Athens hasn't crumbled into the bedrock by embracing its college town roots. Neither has Valdosta, Auburn, Tuscaloosa or any of a litany of towns who have experienced the same kind of growth.

I read a well-written comment that raised the spectre of increased DUIs, increased underage drinking, and package stores on every corner.

The DUIs are an enforcement concern for the local constabulary. They already do a good job, and I'm sure no one (not even the fabled drunkard students) would object to increased patrols.

You could make the argument that underage drinking might actually *drop* with some changes to the local ordinances. Get rid of 50-50 , and all of a sudden you can have straight-up bars that can kick out the kids under 21. As I read the current ordinances, bouncers can check IDs but can't keep an 18 year old from coming into a place that serves alcohol (since they're all restaurants). Gary Lewis seems to be the only candidate who's outright articulated that position on 50-50, though I feel others might be sympathetic.

I'd imagine that lots of managers and owners who have had to deal with the city busting them for underage drinking violations wouldn't mind being able to hang a big "21 and up" sign over their front door.

As for package sales, that's a bit of hyperbole. No one wants this place to be Statesvegas. There's no way the local economy could support one on every corner. Of course, anyone concerned about DUIs would be wise to allow package sales in Statesboro - after Register enacts them (pending the almost-forgone results of their upcoming ordinance vote), that'll be a longer drive over more dangerous, high-speed streets than a nice, safe, local place to buy a fifth.

Tongue planted firmly in cheek, you can blame Bruce Grube for all the strife. If he weren't such a good university president, GSU wouldn't be attracting so many folks and such a big influence on transforming the culture of the surrounding area.

Seriously, however, even though *individual* students aren't always here for the long haul (12+ years and counting for me), you're missing a key point - there will always *be* students.

Even if the group's only staying for four to six years, they're going to be replaced by new students with similar concerns and needs. More of 'em, in fact, at the rate GSU's growing.

Let's take the arguments against students as "short term" residents and put them in a different light.

"Why should we worry about how the elderly are going to vote? They're just going to die soon, anyway."

Time marches on, and it makes more of us old. It also makes more of us 18 and ready to go to one of the best universities in the entire Southeast.

It's an exciting time to live in Statesboro, and it's interesting to see that the slumbering giant of student representation was brought to life with a stiff drink.

Clarification on "Jake's Take" of Oct. 25

2007-10-25T14:29:00.001-04:00

Sometimes, an editor can go just a little too far. My editorial style tends more towards the sledgehammer than the scalpel.

I took a wrong swing in my “Jake’s Take” of Oct. 25. There are several good men in the Statesboro City Council election this year, several people who I have known for years, and some that I am just getting to know.

In the Oct. 25 column, I outright said that John Morris looked like he was intimidating young voters.

After speaking with Morris, however, I don’t think that’s the case. He got some information last week about how registering to vote could affect students’ and their parents’ taxes and financial aid status, and wanted to get that out to the voters as an FYI.

According to GSU’s financial aid office and IRS officials, voter registration doesn’t affect either. When told about that, Morris did the right thing, and didn’t put the erroneous information out there.

Let me emphasize that — he did the right thing. And I, in a misstep, made him look bad for doing it. After speaking further with the candidate, I believe that he wasn’t trying to scare anyone from the polls.

I got too close, I used poor judgment, and I shouldn’t have pulled the candidate’s name into it.

So John Morris, I apologize for my remarks last week. As contentious as this election is, we can all agree on one thing — all of the voters need timely, accurate information so they can make good decisions.

Soldiers shouldn't vote, either.

2007-10-25T13:34:00.000-04:00

Glad I got your attention with the title. I don't believe it, but other people sure sound like they do. Here's something my best friend and I were talking about tonight - what if Statesboro were Hinesville?

I mean, they've both got large populations of transient folks. Students are here for a few years to get an education, soliders are in Hinesville for a few years (or months) to defend the country. Students move away when they transfer, flunk out, graduate and get a job, or stay in Statesboro. Soldiers move away when they're deployed, or leave service, or stay in Hinesville.

Students live in dormitories and apartments and houses. Soldiers live in barracks and apartments and houses.

There are a whole lot of students from 18-24. There are a whole lot of soldiers from 18-24.

(Forgive me for blanket generalizations) Students sometimes like to drink and raise hell. Soldiers like to drink and raise hell.

So, Nancy Waters - going by your arguments to keep students from voting, would you be willing to also concede that soldiers don't have the right to vote?

Keeping students from exercising their democratic rights where they live sounds pretty unpatriotic on its own, but if you extend your arguments to their logical conclusion, it's downright un-American.

Buy war bonds!

2007-10-25T13:33:00.000-04:00

The president's asked for more money for the war in Iraq. Congressional Democrats have vowed a showdown over the cash. The war is probably the most divisive issue in American politics today.

I've got a thought - let the people who support the war pay for it. War bonds worked 60 years ago to finance military action. Heck, it'd cut out the taxation middleman.

But that'd require sacrifice, something no one's asking Americans to do. Heck, Atlanta can't even bring itself to take up serious water restrictions.

So, Herald bloggers - would you buy a bond to support the undeclared War on Terror?

2007 Statesboro City Council candidates' forum

2007-10-11T13:09:00.000-04:00

Georgia Southern's Student Government Association held a forum for the Statesboro City Council candidates on Tuesday, Oct. 9. I sat in, and here are my thoughts on the affair (in almost chronological order, no less).

Statesboro Mayor William Hatcher started the night. He began his remarks with positive words about Statesboro's growth and Georgia Southern's huge role in that.

Then, things got interesting. I (and many observers, it seems) expected him to stop there, with the usual "Happy to be here, Statesboro's great, good to see you students involved."

He didn't. Instead, he launched into a defense of the city's actions that were direct causes of such a contentious election. By doing so, he effectively endorsed the incumbents.

Hatcher emphasized that when the city cracked down on alcohol sales nearly two years ago, it was in response to GSU students and faculty that came to a City Council meeting demanding action. Those students and faculty had taken pictures at a "Ladies' Lockup" night at the Woodin Nikel (owned at the time by District 2 councilman Will Britt), and blown the damning evidence up to poster size.

His implication was that the council was responding to students' concerns. That's a little disingenous. Even if the events going on at the Nikel were appalling — women having alcohol sprayed down their open throats like so many baby birds looking for a handout come to mind — to say that the city passed its Draconian measures on behalf of the students is a stretch. That'd be like saying that since the Daughters of the American Revolution came to a meeting and didn't like the Confederate memorial on the courthouse lawn, that they're speaking for all of Statesboro.

Hatcher also defended the front yard parking ordinance (aesthetic reasons and property values) and touted moves the city has made to crack down on towing abuses. In the best "bring 'em on" tradition of George Bush, he said that two local towing companies are threatening to bring the city before the state's Public Service Commission for a hearing.

Hatcher stressed that the city isn't anti-business, and dropped hints about big stores coming soon (no Target, at least not for two or three years). He's only partially right. The city's not anti-business unless your business sells alcohol or does anything else that might upset the quiet morals of the Bible Belt.

Next came the candidates' opening statements. Will Britt started it off, apologizing for some comments he made on WVGS 91.9fm about students being targeted by police, and suggesting that the Statesboro "powers that be" don't want students to register or vote.

He's probably right in that regard. There's no doubt that the City Council enacted age limits for council and mayoral candidates after the last time a student ran. Students have never been a strong voting bloc in Statesboro, however, until this election - and that's because of quiet business efforts and overt student efforts to turn out a major portion to the polls.

Britt said he's been after the city about towing concerns for three years, and they've just now started to listen. I can vouch for that. He's had several conversations with me about towing concerns that stretch back to shortly after he was elected.

Britt's message (and the message of the other two challenger candidates) was that "punishment is not nearly as important as safety and education." He stuck doggedly to that message all night.

He also made a passing refence that "the market should dictate policy." I have a sneaking suspicion that several thousand members of the student "market" are going to do just that in early November.

District 2 councilman Gary Lewis delivered his remarks like a firey preacher. He was by far the most passionate speaker during the opening remarks. He seemed geniunely hurt that he's facing opposition in the race, and delivered the most pointed comments to that end.

He suggested that his opponent, Nathan Queen, was put up to running against him. He reiterated that any sweeping changes to alcohol laws would require a referendum, not city council votes. In the most dramatic moment of the night, he listed bars that he said had "problems" in the past.

"Will Britt, I was there for you," he said. "Retriever's, Jason Franklin, I was there for you. Rude Rudy's, John Starkey, I was there for you."

Lewis was partially right. Out of the "Old Statesboro" (to use my own turn of phrase) mambers of the City Council, he's been the most friendly to restaurant/bars aside from Britt. Still, he hasn't seen things their way every time.

Lewis said he didn't want to contribute to students' downfall, and wanted to be able to answer to their parents. That may have been a misstep, and here's why.

The students are, by vast majority, 18 and up. They live here and are constituents, their parents don't and aren't. Perhaps most importantly, fresh-faced college students taking steps into the harsh, real world don't want to hear that somebody's trying to parent them legislatively.

I was also surprised to see Lewis play the race card while trying not to play the race card. He started with "It's not a black thing, it's the right thing," but then flat-out said that the council needs a black member to reflect Statesboro's diversity.

He may be right, but that's up to the voters to decide.

District 5 councilman John Morris made a good appeal to challenge students to see more of Statesboro. He pushed the city's pro-business agenda during his speech (just so long as that pro-business agenda doesn't include Sunday alcohol sales).

Morris delivered the most technical speech of the candidates. He brought up work towards citywide wireless Internet access, and talked about infrastructure improvements toward 301 and I-16.

It was meaty stuff, but it made me wonder how much of it would have happened whether he was on the council or not — expanding communications and economic development along the 301 corridor are practically no-brainers. I can't see any council member voting against either.

Morris' big mistake may have been speaking about how he spearheaded a public smoking ban in Statesboro. In some college circles, that was none too popular.

Harry "Bubba" Propes, who's challenging Britt for the District 3 seat, gave the story of his moving to Statesboro to go to college, getting a great job in business and moving away, then coming back (and incidentally moving into a awesome house that I've wanted to buy since I was about ten years old).

He portrayed himself as someone who understands sutdents and can appreciate the city, and said he wants to pay back Statesboro for all it's done for him.

He tried to make the students feel like he was one of them, which seemed odd. When you're 21 and working on finishing your degree, it's hard to feel a kinship with a older businessman in a suit in front of you.

Propes took a couple of shots at Britt in his remarks. He said he has no conflicts of interest — Britt has had to recuse himself from some council votes — and also doesn't own a business or rental properties in Statesboro.

"I'm not here to capitalize off of you as students," he told them, a thinly-veiled jab at Britt, the former-bar-owner-turned-rental-tycoon.

One of his shots was a dud, though. He said Britt propsed "drastic" changes in his opening statement. I didn't hear any. On top of that, Propes asked "why haven't they been addressed before now?" If he was referring to towing, that's been on Britt's mind for a while.

District 2 challenger Nathan Queen looked nervous when he stepped up to the podium, but soon his his stride. Queen at times seemed to be quietly seething, and he told the students what they wanted to hear — that laws were being selectively enforced, that police could spend their time going after malicious crimes, and that the city is against them, as evidenced by the age limits for Council and Mayor.

He's mostly right, though Morris later brought up the point that the police are going to patrol near campus on the weekends, where the most action is.

Queen accused the city of passing a yard parking ordinance when the students were out for summer break, and said he was ready for a good bit of change. Judging from the voter registrations in his district, he may get his wish.

Travis Chance, who is going up against Morris for the District 5 seat, had a prior business obligation and couldn't make the debate. He sent his girlfriend, Shannon Edwards, to read a letter in his stead.

Note to Chance and Edwards: It's a little undignified to introduce yourself as a "girlfriend," especially when she's also your campaign manager. Use the campaign manager title so you seem like you're running a serious campaign.

Chance's remarks were understated. He used the standard boilerplate about Statesboro being a city that's on the move, changing and growing, and that everyone needs to have a voice in the process. He suggested that the city welcomes students on GSU Eagle game days, but isn't thrilled with them on the other six.

I haven't heard Chance speak, but Edwards had poise. I may just end up writing in a vote for her.

I can't decide if Chance's absence helped or hurt him. It makes him look like he might not despereately want the council seat, and his letter was far short of inspiring.

At the same time, if we can assume the traditional "whatever he's for, I'm a'gin it!" model of politics, he may have picked up points by letting Morris speak unopposed (more on that later).

The question-and-answer period for the candidates yielded few surprises.

Britt kept stressing "safety and education over punishment." He wants GSU to offer alcohol education classes (ironic, since he used to own two bars that were literally across the street from capus), and for students to be educated on their rights and responsiblities.

He's in favor of Sunday alcohol sales with strict limits on the time (like 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.). "It shouldn't be another night to go out," he said. He also wants to see a standardized "last call" time of 1 a.m., even on Saturdays. Alcohol promotes industry, he said.

If Las Vegas is any indication, he's right. But so does gambling. How far should the city be willing to go? Nobody wants "Statesvegas" (a great Web site, by the way).

Britt also fielded a question on why he voted against dropping towing fines. His answer was weak — he said he wanted to keep things simple, and since the state mandates a $125 towing fine, there was no need to complicate laws further.

Britt also lent his voice to a call for City Council or town hall meetings to be held on campus. He also wants to see more parks, and have the old Bulloch Memorial Hospital turned into a park.

He feels that some businesses in Statesboro operate "under duress," and that the city is missing a friendly business environment.

Lewis kept his answers to the questions pretty brief. He wants to have council meetins on campus periodically, and also reiterated that changes to alcohol laws should be handled by a referendum in the hands of the voters — putting the ball in their court.

Lewis also said that bartenders and restaurant/bar owners are responsible for not letting vulnerable patrons walk home intoxicated. Police could offer rides, but bartenders should be responsible for finding patrons a way home, he said.

As for business concerns, Lewis said that demographics determine if businesses want to come, and believes that Statesboro will see more arriving soon.

When asked about the council's move to raise the age requirements for running for council and mayor, Lewis didn't seem to understand the question. "It's always been 21," he said. When it comes to parking, he suggested that students just park in a "decent, respectable way."

As a former law enforcement officer, Lewis said that ticket fines should be consistent throughout Statesboro, though he noted that speeding fines are often determined by speed zones. Lewis said he wasn't aware that students felt like they were being targeted by the police, and suggested that they take their concerns to Police Chief Stan York or file a formal complaint (something that I've never heard of a student, even one complaining loudly and long, doing).

He also indicated a willingness to sacrifice some of Statesboro's green space in the name of development.

Lewis' biggest stumble may have been telling the students that Statesboro's becoming a popular retirement community. When the major issues that are driving them to the polls are based on "young" topics, they don't want to hear that.

He made a strong point, however, when he told the audience "We're not Atlanta. We can't do some of the things Atlanta does." Very true — I've personally had it with whiny suburban kids from Atlanta who think that every South Georgian is a drooling retard.

Morris didn't mince words about the relationship between students and the city. He said it's traditionally been good, but accused a "small group" of using alcohol and parking as a wedge.

He's right — but it's a pretty popular wedge issue, and the group isn't all that small.

Morris defended the revised alcohol ordinance, telling the students "I think we have your best interests at heart." Looking around the room, I saw several faces meeting him with a sarcastic look best characterized as "Yeah, thanks, Dad."

He also registered strong opposition to Sunday alcohol sales. "You have six days a week to buy it, to drink it, and do what you will with it," he said. "Sunday should be a day of rest."

That's injecting religion in politics. I wonder if the local Seventh Day Adventists are up in arms about Saturday sales.

He may be out of touch with the electorate as a whole, as well. He told the audience he didn't think that the community would approve of such sales — what? Business leaders don't seem to have a huge issue with it, students surely want it, and if the vote on the last big alcohol referndum (liquor by the drink) is any indication, it'd pass easily. Morris made a good point, however, by bringing up the specter of increased DUIs and accidents.

Morris said he and the city have worked hard to bring in industry, but that it's a process that involves several entities. That industry can keep highly qualified graduates from GSU in the community, he said. He also revealed that the mayor is working on an IT task force to bring high-tech industry to Statesboro, and said that Statesboro requires a certain amount of green space in every new development.

Morris made several principled stands throughout the night, which may just cost him the race if there's a big student turnout in his district.

He defended the age requirements for council and mayor. "We feel like this is a responsible age to be in a position of this magnitude," he said. He defended the front yard parking ordinance on aesthetic grounds, saying "We'll stand firm on that."

Morris was willing to listen on one major issue, however. Both Britt and Queen had strong words about people being arrested when they're trying to do the right thing — namely, underage passengers being arrested for being in possession of alcohol (in their bloodstream, no joke) when they're getting a ride home; and people being arrested for walking under the influence when they've made the decision not to drive home.

Law enforcement officials I've spoken to say that someone only gets pulled in for being a pedestrian under the influence when they're obviously a potential danger to either themselves or others, but the arrests do happen.

Morris said he was troubled by hearing that, and said that officers should perhaps offer rides home to drunk walkers.

Students aren't unduly targeted by police, he added, but it can seem that way since "police go to where the people are."

After being asked how the city and students can improve their relationship, Propes came out and gave the entire theme of the election: "Statesboro is a college town, y'all." At the same time, he said there has been "miscommunication from small groups on campus with self-serving agendas."

Again, those small groups aren't that small, but there do seem to be a lot of students who think that by voting Statesboro's suddenly going to turn into Athens after the first council meeting. The wheels simply don't turn that fast — this election may be just the first step in a longer transformation of Statesboro from rural farming community with a small teachers' college to a bona fide college town with a few farms around the periphery (that keep being bought up by developers).

Propes feels the alcohol laws are reasonable, but he doesn't have a problem with either the idea of Sunday sales or a referendum on the matter, so long as he can be assured there are advantages to having all-week sales.

Propes congratulated the council for dropping towing fines, but said he was in favor of the front yard parking ordinance, wanting rented homes to look just like owned homes. "I want things to be clean, I want things to be orderly," he said.

He may have done himself a disservice when he said he wouldn't comment on the age requiements for council and mayor, since he wasn't a part of that decision-making process.

Note to candidate: at least say "that's something I'm willing to take another look at." Safe, non-committal, and doesn't sound like you're disengaged in front of a room full of 21 year olds who've just been told by another candidate that they're not mentally qualified to run sheerly based on their age.

If students feel they've been targeted by law enforcement, Propes said he's willing to listen, and that laws should be applied consistently.

As far as business development, Propes said he agrees with Britt that the old Bulloch Memorial should be a park, and that he wants Statesboro's downtown to have improved aethetics.

He wants to "go the extra mile" to encourage business to come, which (like Morris) he said would help keep students around after they graduate (which, incidentally, is how he ended up in Statesboro).

Queen said that council members need to walk on-campus and talk to students to know what's affecting them, and that city government needs to understand that young people are going to make mistakes from time to time.

He presented a measured approach to alcohol in Statesboro. Queen likes that bars can't give away alcohol and that ladies' nights are forbidden, but agreed that a consistent 1 a.m. last call is a good move. As far as Sunday sales, he, like Lewis, put the ball in the voters' court. "It's your decision to get out and vote for that," he said. "If y'all want to see change, vote in change."

Non-consensual towing brought out Queen's passion. He called it "a license to steal," and said he wants to see fines dropped to $25 to discourage towing companies from taking advantage of students.

The age requirements for council and mayor are close to Queen's heart, since he fought a legal battle with the city after he wasn't allowed to run for mayor because of his age. He said a councilman gave a sworn statement that the move was designed specifically to keep students out of government — but he left everyone hanging when he never named which councilman it was.

Students' becoming involved in local politics is starting to change, but long overdue, he said.

As for front yard parking, Queen said it was a private property issue that could be handled by neighborhood covenants.

Queen suggested that students need set ticket fines, not discretionary ones to prevent their being victimized. He also said that selective enforcement of laws results in "maybe the college kids are picked on a little more." That targeting is tacitly allowed by the council, he said later, though "not all officers are doing this."

One thing to consider: there are a lot of college students here, so by the sheer force of proportion they're going to pick up more police attention.

One of Queen's pet issues is Luetta Moore Park, which is in his district. Its pool is closed, and he's not happy about that. He said that as property is annexed into Statesboro, people living on the city's Westside need more recreational opportunities.

Morris later took some of the wind from Queen's sails, even though the two aren't facing each other. The city owns Luetta Moore Park, but the county is responsible for its development. "We don't have a say in what happens there," he said.

Like other candidates, Queen wants to keep college students around after they graduate via increased business opportunities — he's a student himself, with plans to stay in Statesboro.

By the way, in the interest of full disclosure, I've had personal and business relationships with some of the candidates. I've performed with Gary Lewis as part of the Statesboro Blues Band. I've known Will Britt for 13 years and performed several times in clubs he's owned. Similarly, I've known Nathan Queen for several years and performed a number of times at Retriever's, which he manages.

I got robbed!

2007-05-20T20:13:00.000-04:00

Sometimes, you just learn stuff the hard way.

Case in point: my house was broken into last week. In a stunning display of targeted thievery, the perpetrator(s) pried open a door and took my computer. Not the laptop I'm writing this on, but my desktop computer.

Otherwise known as the one that I do all my musical work on, all my photography with, and generally has most of my life on it.

They also took the hard drives out of two other "project" computers that were inoperative. Strange stuff, I know.

A lot of my data was backed up, but not all of it. In their infinite wisdom, the burglars left the external hard drive with my photo archive on it dating back about five years. That's good. If I'd lost that, I'd have cried. A lot.

Didn't touch any of the expensive musical or photo equipment, left all my other stuff untouched (save for some beer in the fridge that they removed, but didn't even drink).

Anyway, I've learned a couple of important lessons. First, back up EVERYTHING. Second, I'm now securing all my computers so that if they're stolen folks not only can't get to my data, but also will get tracked.

Here's how to do it. There's a free program out there called The Laptop Lock. It's wonderful. It's free, and sets you up with an online account that gives you all kinds of goodies. If your computer is stolen (name notwithstanding, it works on desktop computers, too), you simply log in and tag your computer as stolen.

The next time the purloined system connects to the Internet, it not only broadcasts an IP address which can help police track down your computer, but also will automatically do a number of things of your choosing. These can range from deleting certain files to encrypting some of them (like bank data), flashing warnings on the screen that the computer is stolen, or even running another program of your choosing.

I've got mine set to encrypt some personal stuff, then to run a particularly insidious little program called Perfect Keylogger. This one isn't free, but it's also useful. Should my laptop get stolen, and should I trigger The Laptop Lock, then the keylogger starts running.

What it does is capture every key typed on the computer and e-mail it to me. Not only that, but it also takes pictures of the computer's screen every few seconds and e-mails those, too.

I feel a lot more secure now about my computers. Now if I could only feel safe in my own home...

Inside the factory.

2007-04-18T22:16:00.000-04:00

First, I'm quite aware that I don't blog all that often on this site. That's one of the perks of having a weekly column - I get it all out in the pages of Connect Statesboro. My blogging idol, Jim Morekis (who's incidentally my counterpart over at Connect Savannah) does it right, and I have no idea how he finds the time.

I want to give some insight into this week's issue of Connect Statesboro, and why (and how) we covered the tragedy at Virginia Tech like we did. I'm guessing that I'm going to get some feedback, and I want to have one nice, convenient spot to point critics at to clarify the way we work.

Primarily, we're an entertainment publication. However, I have a higher responsibility than that. As the alt-weekly vanguard of Statesboro, I want Connect Statesboro to be much more than just a bar magazine every week. Our readership demographic is vastly different than the Statesboro Herald's, so when news comes out that directly affects the younger set, it's my duty to present it to them.

What happened in Blacksburg is the big story of the week, month, maybe the year. It has a special resonance with Statesboro. We're both smaller southern cities, we both have sizable universities.

When the news started pouring in Monday, I knew that we had to do something for our readers. The biggest question was "What if it happened here?" I think that Marcy E. Thornton answered that question well in her story on page 5. She did an incredible job, incidentally, considering that she was hospitalized briefly Monday night (unrelated), yet still managed to get the story in under deadline.

We also wanted to give Statesboro a voice. Connect doesn't operate in a vacuum, so I sent out Ashe Tuck to speak with people and get their thoughts on the tragedy. Ashe also went above and beyond on her part.

I also had a personal connection to the story. Josh Eckstein, who hosts jakehallman.com for me, is on staff at VT. I e-mailed him that day to make sure he was okay, and he told me what was going on. With his permission, I printed it.

One of the most important considerations in my mind was how we were going to treat the story visually. There was talking. Lots of talking. We didn't want to sensationalize (I caught "Inside Edition" today, and it nearly made me sick), we didn't want to "cash in" on the killings, and we damned sure didn't want to go with cheap scares to make people pick up the magazine ("Could you be shot in class? Find out inside!)

I'm going to do something unorthodox here, but the picture there is the original cover for the magazine, our working model from Monday afternoon through Wednesday afternoon.

The picture is graphic. It's shocking, and it's something that people would definitely pick up and want to read more about - that's a primary concern, seeing as I think the story inside is a good one with valuable information that serves the public trust.

At the same time, the picture is, well, graphic and shocking. That's someone who has what appears to be a visible gunshot wound. There's a lot of blood. In the news business, context is everything, and there are special considerations. I discussed it with editors for other in-house publications. I discussed it with our publisher, Randy Morton.

And in the end, we decided to go with another photo - one that also had police carrying out a wounded student, but wasn't as blood-soaked. Compelling arguments were made both for using the original photo and not using it, but, honestly, the concern that tipped the scales was that Connect Statesboro is distributed for free in restaurants. We didn't want someone with a weak stomach glancing over at the cover and not being able to finish their meal.

The verbiage on the front was another source of concern. Though the question on everyone's mind was "could it happen here," I thought that was sensationalistic and a bit of a stretch. Of course it could happen here. That's the nature of random crazy people and the things that they do. Last year we had a nationally-televised hostage crisis. Weird, often terrible things happen, and they happen at random. It's one of the prices we pay for living in a free society.

Or for just living, for that matter.

On the other hand, "what if it happened here" was a much better question. Are local police equipped to handle it? How do they view the situation? There's been a lot of talk in the national media about whether Virginia Tech made mistakes in their handling of the crisis, but did they follow a standard procedure that we'd follow here?

Another cover idea that was discussed (briefly) was the barrel of a gun pointing toward the reader. It's a strong graphical idea, but I felt that it hit far too close to home considering Monday's events. See the picture on the left? That hit the media tonight (Wednesday). We had no idea, and it's pretty close to the aforementioned cover through, so I'm doubly glad we went with the photo from the scene.

And in the end, we ended up with the cover you see on stands today (and on Connectstatesboro.com).

Did I make the right decision? I think so. Connect doesn't always indulge in hard-hitting, "real" journalism, but we certainly have the skillset to do it, and do it right. I'm proud of the work my staff put in this week - not only on the handling of the big story, but also how we put out our largest issue ever, at 40 pages. I'd love to know what you all think. Feel free to shoot me an e-mail.

2007-03-15T13:06:00.000-04:00

(Shamelessly cross-posted from The Nerduary, another joint I blog at.)

So Lucasfilm and Atomfilms launched the 2007 Star Wars fan film contest today. Ol' George himself will be judging again, which makes me fear for the quality of the winner. Not much to say on that.

But I did find something worth sharing with the wide world of Nerduary, courtesy of the Slashdot discussion on the contest.

It's Ryan vs. Dorkman 2. Click that link for the Google version, see the bottom of this post for Youtubiness. Don't let the name fool you. It's seven minutes of the frickin' best lightsaber fighting I've seen since... well, it actually beats the pants off of just about every Lucasfilm saber fight.

They did it on the cheap, but they did it right. If you like Star Wars (and who the hell don't?), check this one out.

SPECIAL BONUS SABERING!

Here's their first video. It's not quite as polished, and not quite as long, but the ending makes it all worthwhile.

Slavery?

2007-03-12T17:08:00.000-04:00

Oh, God... someone brought up the spectre of slavery apologies in the Herald.

Okay, the Associated Press brought it up. After the NAACP did. I can just see the Soundoff lines catching fire. The Herald blogs already have.

I'm just going to go ahead and put myself on the line here. The "South Park" guys had it right this past week.

I'm a white dude. My ancestors no doubt were into some unsavory stuff, and others of my ancestors may have had some unsavory stuff done to 'em.

None of that is a defining part of who I am, though. There aren't still visible reminders in daily life of any badness done to "my people" in the past.

To quote George Carlin, "White people give the blues! They don't sing 'em!"

As such, I can't hope to understand what a rebel flag on a rednecked-out pickup truck may feel like to a black person. I'll never know what it's like to grow up in a place knowing that 160 years ago I would have been owned by someone.

With that in mind, I don't see what's wrong with an apology. Personally, I don't think it would change much. But then, I don't get it, do I? Maybe it would have a good effect.

Here's how to word it to make everybody happy. Imagine Sonny Perdue's voice saying these lines.

"Hey, y'all, slavery was a bad thing. It's a damned shame that Georgia was involved in it. None of us up here in Atlanta could ever properly apologize for it, and that's another shame. The people who should talk to you are dead and gone, and the people they should be on their knees to begging for forgiveness are gone, too. It's taken too long, but I'm here to say that as a state we collectively realize that slavery was a crime against humanity and a sin against God. We can't change the past, but we can say that we're sorry for some of the things that happened in it."

But it'll never happen.

Connecting with Savannah

2007-03-12T16:54:00.000-04:00

I had the chance last week to speak for a little while with Jim Morekis, editor of Connect Savannah. Jim and I have spoken on the phone and via e-mail a little bit, but I think it was our first face-to-face meeting.

He's a heck of a guy. He' s been at Connect Savannah since before it was Connect Savannah, and has a fierce, well-deserved pride for the publication and what it's become during his tenure.

I talked with him about the differences between our two publications, most of which stem from the different places they're published. Jim's a little older than I am, and Connect Savannah focuses a lot on being an honest-to-God newsweekly.

Connect Statesboro, on the other hand, is run by a mostly young crew, and we're in a college town. Not only that, but I share office space with a daily newspaper. As much as I love straight-up news journalism, Connect's mandate is entertainment, not covering school board meetings. In effect, if we tried to run lots of news we'd be competing with ourselves.

Connect Savannah's also been around for five times as long as we have. Though they continually evolve, they've figured out what works. We're still at a stage where we can make dramatic changes on a dime (like the redesign that hit in January).

One of my concerns has been in the vastly different tones of the two publications. We share a logo, the occasional story, and not much else. I told Jim that I pictured one of my college freshman readers going to Savannah, seeing a copy of Connect Savannah, and picking it up.

They flip through it and put it down quickly. "I don't want to know about somebody dumping toxic waste in the river! I wanna see pictures of hot chicks at the club!" they say.

One of Jim's readers comes to Statesboro, sees the logo, and picks up a copy of Connect Statesboro. "Damn, who let the frat boys have a magazine?" they think before tossing it.

Jim laughed, and told me he didn't think that would happen. Diversity is strong for a brand, he said.

I respect Jim's opinion highly. He's bar-none one of the best bloggers out there, and he knows how to run a magazine. If that's good enough for him, it's good enough for me.

And he didn't even know why.

2007-02-22T15:06:00.000-05:00

A woman came to see me yesterday at my office. That's not unheard of in itself, but she had a bone to pick with me.

I wish I could have spent more time with her, but since it was deadline day, I didn't have the time. I invited her to return today or Friday, but she refused.

She took issue with a couple of lines in a previous issue of Connect Statesboro that referenced her husband in a rather oblique way. The gentleman's been referenced before, and some pretty stinging criticism was leveled at him a while back.

I guess she didn't read those issues.

Apparently she and her sons had picked up a copy of Connect at a local restaurant, and she was dismayed to see some of the thoughts - written in an opinion column, mind you - about her hubby.

That's fine. I don't blame her for disagreeing, and she did have a point that her sons might not like reading negative stuff about their dad. Nonetheless, he's a very public figure. Others have said far worse things about him. None of that should affect their love for their father - if my dad was on the front page of the New York Times as a pedophile, I'd still love him.

Would'nt necessarily endorse his behavior, but he's dad. Gotta love the dad. And that's how it is for public figures - the fame (and huge paycheck) means that you've got to put up with some crap that Joe Sixpack won't ever have to face.

Still, I'm here to extend the olive branch. I spoke with the writer of the piece in question, and told him to pursue an interview with the gentleman, and even with he and his wife if they're so inclined.

If the two want to set the record straight, here's their chance, especially noting how recalcitrant they've been to respond to media requests. I'll let them sit down, have their say, and answer some of the questions that have been swirling around.

Should they take me up on it, it'll be in next week's Connect.

(humming) Stir it up...

2007-02-19T14:17:00.000-05:00

My column of two weeks ago about WVGS 91.9 fm, GSU's campus radio station, seems to have ruffled some feathers.

If you haven't read the column, click on the link above. It's okay, we'll wait for you to come back here.

A small war of words started, centered around Facebook.com, of all places. Never one to shrink from a challenge, I've been clarifying my thoughts for folks.

Check here. Or here. Maybe here, too. I also heard that the kids on their morning show were talking smack about me. It'd be great if they'd write honest-to-God letters to the editor (or even straight-up e-mails) that we could publish, but I guess this latest generation doesn't do that kind of thing.

I got a Facebook message from a former WVGS staffer. With her permission, here's her message and my response:

From:	Cortney Johns
To:	Jake Hallman
Subject:	WVGS
Message:	seriously do you have to hate wvgs so much? Im not even there anymore and it drives me crazy that you care so much to write as much negative stuff as you possibly can about it. Just to let you know, ive had a bad taste in my mouth about you the first time i met you at the hostage thing and you acted all nice to my face then wrote such horrible things about what i was doing there inthe next paper. That wasnt cool. Advice to you, give it up, GSU is not going to have a station like the 1970's anymore. This is what the professors want and thats what goes. Open your own station and play what YOU want to hear please so we dont have to hear you bitchin anymore! Oh, even it is negative your still giving us publicity so thanks for that. thanks, Cortney X Buzz employee :) and this is only my opinion not anyone elses.

And my response:

02.12.07 11:36am

Jake:

Sorry about the hostage thing. Over the past year I've learned that when I need to be a bastard, I need to just come out and be a bastard, not sugar-coat it.

To be honest, though, you always did strike me as one of the talented WVGS people. Hope you're doing something in the field now.

My writing style tends to be more sledgehammer than scalpel. I love WVGS — really, I do. That place made more college memories for me than damn near anywhere else except for Foy, where I had all my classes.

That's why I can't stand to see it become 99X-lite. In my latest Connect piece, I tried to present some steps to help the station. I don't want to see it disappear, but I firmly believe it can be much more than it is right now.

And becoming something more is doubly important right now — when I came up through the DJ ranks and was station manager, we didn't have to compete with iPods and satellite radio. Seems like a million years ago, but it wasn't even a decade. WVGS is going to have to offer the listener something new, some compelling reason to tune in.

That reason should be that WVGS will introduce them to new music they'll like, good stuff that they won't ever hear on other stations, or won't hear on other stations for months. Everybody wants to be part of the in-the-know crowd and feel like they're ahead of the curve, and WVGS can leverage itself to use that particular quirk of human psychology.

But, as you said, this is what the professors want. That's why I and several others vehemently opposed the changeover of the station to the comm arts department. It feels like WVGS lost its soul in that transition.

Thanks for writing. Seriously. In fact, the above is probably what the column should have been. If it's all right with you, I'd like to post your message, my respose, and whatever your response may be on the Connect blog at connectstatesboro.blogspot.com.

If it's not cool for me to use your message (and believe me, I'd understand), I'll just post the guts of my response, edited a bit for the world at large.

Again, thanks for writing. If you've spoken with anyone else who thinks I should die in a fire, let them know that we'll gladly print any "letters to the editor" they send, and I'd be happy to open up a dialogue with them.

Let me know your thoughts. As soon as I find out what the morning DJs were saying about me, I plan to make an unannounced visit to one of their shows.

Lovin' the job...

2007-02-06T13:14:00.000-05:00

Some days I'm glad that I work where I work. There are some damned interesting folks running around this building.

Here's one of the soda machines out back - it's a little finicky, and usually covered with notes from folks who've lost money in it. I don't know if they ever get the refunds they crave. (click to enlarge the photo)

Today, when I got my customary Diet Coke, I noticed an entirely new note on it. (Again, click for the bigger version)

There's a killer nickel named "Bob" running around out there. Be careful, y'all.

Make sure it's popular

2007-02-01T12:27:00.000-05:00

I'm a huge fan of Aqua Teen Hunger Force on Adult Swim. Been watching it for years. Laugh out loud at it.

However, I recognize that even though the show's pretty popular among a small, nerdlike demographic, it's not crossed over like, say, The Simpsons or Family Guy.

You've probably heard about this by now. A couple of guerilla marketers put up small lighted billboards featuring an ATHF character throughout Boston, effectively shutting down the town over terrorism fears. Why?

1) Because though the Mooninites are hilarious, they're definitely not mainstream. Nobody knows who the little guy giving them the finger is.

and more importantly,

2) Because we Americans have been completely wussified (not my original choice of words, but hey, this is an "official" blog). Ooooh, something that looks like a Lite Brite on a wall! IT MIGHT BE A BOMB! EVERYBODY PANIC! TERRORISM!

Get a grip people, seriously. Take a lesson from the Israelis, who live with things blowing up all the time, but refuse to lose their collective heads over it.

I've been wanting to write this paragraph for the longest time:

I grew up during the last throes of the Cold War. Even at 8 years old I and all of my friends knew the Russians had enough nukes pointed at us to wipe out everybody in the nation. We, likewise, did the same to them. But y'know what? This country never showed the collective fear that we have since Sept. 11. If this country suddenly is more scared of a few ill-educated religious fanatics who might cause some minor damage (in the grand scheme of things) than we were over the Soviets who could have frackin' killed us all, then we all need to start dressing in pink and sipping lattes.

And when Ignignot flipping the bird makes Boston freak out, I think that we may just be the wussiest nation of all.

Under... what?

2007-01-30T12:10:00.000-05:00

This wouldn't fit in "Jake's Take" this week, so you blog-readin' folks get it first.

There's a rumor that Carrie Underwood might also be appearing at the Brad Paisley show. It's highly unconfirmed, very suspect, and may in fact be a complete fabrication. I'm in the process of checking up on it, though, and I'll let all of you know as soon as I find something out.

Still, if she does end up coming, I don't know if ol' Brad will be the main attraction anymore. He's a phenomenal guitarist, and all, but she's just... Heck, I don't care what kind of music she sings.

We're back!

2007-01-25T12:35:00.000-05:00

The Connect blog's back. Don't ask why, just accept it. Some of the more community-minded posts will be dual-posted over at the Herald's blog site, but for now, only you die-hard Connect readers get the good stuff.

Not much to write about today, but I figured I'd at least share pictures of the new hotness:

My new camera lens came in yesterday. It's frickin' sweet. Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 EX DG. Now I just need a better camera body to attach it to.

New blog site!

2006-11-02T13:57:00.000-05:00

Seeing as the kind folks at the Statesboro Herald are hosting some nice blogs on their site, my stuff's moved over there.

Here's the link.

A month?

2006-10-16T16:27:00.000-04:00

Yeah, I know I haven't added any blog posts in a while. I've gone full-time as Connect's editor as of late, and there hasn't been a lot of time for writing anything that isn't published in the print edition.

However, I will give this interesting tidbit from my dual life as both an editor - it's kind of like being a writer, but with less typing and more evil - and gigging musician.

Did you know that a Jaegermeister bottle full of Jaeger and a Jaegermeister bottle full of Diet Coke are practically indistinguishable from each other? Neither did a fraternity full of guys in Alabama. I am now a drinking legend.

Dragon*Con!

2006-09-06T23:09:00.000-04:00

Everybody should go to at least one Dragon*Con convention in Atlanta, even if you're a die-hard realist who can't stand anything fantastical, science fiction or gaming related.

For example, I met my future wife there (though she doesn't know it):

That's a nice young lady dressed as Gabriel from the film "Constantine," by the way. I've got a weird thing for Tilda Swinton.

The reason everyone should go? The people are nice. Even if they look weird. They really, really like to party, too. This is a late-night shot down on the lobby of the Hyatt:

There's a lot of alcohol and general friendliness flowing down there. I was a good journalist, though. Promise.

My defining moment came when I (through my best friend and fellow reporter Chris Brennaman) got a chance to sit down for about a half-hour with Al Feldstein, creator of EC comics and Mad magazine.

Back in the 1950s, Feldstein felt the full force of Congress. Some spurious psychology made his comics like "Tales from the Crypt" an easy target for demagogues who wanted to look like they cared for children - a spooky mirror to the attacks on video games like Grand Theft Auto nowadays, or Dungeons and Dragons 20 years ago.

He said the political situation is worse now, due in no small part to our tendency to cocoon ourselves in video games, the Internet, and "Survivor." There are people on both sides of the aisle who want to expand their own fiefdoms at the price of our personal freedoms.

"They've gotten smart, though," he said. "They'll never try a draft again."

"Huh?" Chris and I said.

"If they start a draft, the kids will start asking why," he said. "That's the last thing they want."

Just a small taste of the conversation, but the 81 year old Feldstein got positively animated when he was talking about what the "Congressional bastards" tried to do to him.

Anyway, without further ado, here's some of my more favorite pictures, with brief explanations.

Jango Fett. Awwww, yeah.

I'm the Juggernaut, bitch! This guy knew the whole script.

If you'll look closely (heck, I did), you'll notice this young lady isn't wearing anything except makeup and a loincloth. There were cops everywhere at Dragon*Con, but enforcing public indecency laws didn't seem to be a concern.

It's Bishop and Gambit. "Gambit" had bright red, almost glowing contact lenses in.

I don't even want to know.

The "Cardboard Box Stormtroopers" were a huge hit. Here they are with best friend Chris.

My life is complete. I got a picture of slave girl Leia (one of about 10 there) dancing with Jabba.

See? There are regular folks at Dragon*Con, too. This is Tiffany, best friend Chris' lovely wife. A C-grade actor from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" hit on her relentlessly.

This is Anthony Daniels, the guy and voice inside C-3P0, being a dirty old British man.

Here's Electro, a Spider-Man villain. His gloves held honest-to-God tasers that could arc electricity between his fingers.

Best job in the world? Maybe not.

2006-08-24T15:30:00.000-04:00

(If you're here after reading this week's "Jake's Take," you might be looking for the post below on the photo retouching process)

Okay, time to come clean. If you paid attention to the small print in the swimsuit section, you'll notice that I took all the pictures.

Awesome, right? Best job on the planet! Think again. Pictures are deceiving.

Don't get me wrong. I love taking the photos, and I'd gladly do it again (and probably will), but the fun is that goofy sort of "hey, let's make you look beautiful while cracking bad jokes" deal, not the "oh my God, she's so hot, I'm such a cool photographer, we are exuding a look of sex that can be seen from the space shuttle" fun.

First, several of the women had never done this kind of posing before, and though I've shot a lot of photos (buy one if you'd like), I'm still relatively new to the female glamour photography scene. They were nervous, my mind was racing with thoughts of poses, angles, lighting and all the technical minutae from f-stops to aperture settings.

Second, take one of the outdoor shoots. It's August, a hundred-plus degrees. We're out in it, sweating. It's me, at least one assistant, the model, a friend or two of hers, and in one case three young children.

There are gnats and mosquitoes, all doing the South Georgia thing on us. On top of that, because of the way sunlight works on this planet, we're either shooting around 8 a.m. or 7 p.m., and trying like hell to get as many shots as we can (usually 100-200 or so) done before either the sun gets too high (harsh shadows) or sinks below the horizon (too dark to shoot without massive lighting rigs).

The whole time, we're talking, swapping stories, coming up with ideas for new shots, and giving uncomfortable directions. Not uncomfortable as in "how about a cleavage shot," but as in "okay, twist your hips a bit to the left, but keep your shoulders pointed to the right... yes, I know you're not meant to bend that way. It'll look great."

For some shots, I had to jump in a pool or splash around in the ocean. Ordinarily, that's fun, but not when you're holding $1,000-plus in camera equipment that doesn't like to get wet.

And the indoor shoot? Get the lights pointed the right direction. Bounce the flash off the reflector right... there. Move that reflector about six inches up. Good. Is the air conditioning on? These lights are boiling hot!

You get the idea. In short, swimsuit shoots are pretty much the un-sexiest thing on the planet, but a lot of frenetic, creative fun.

When we do the second annual one, we're shooting the pictures in the early Spring, then publishing them in August.

After all the shooting comes culling through the photos to find the "winners," then the whole retouching process - read on to the next post to find out more about the nuts and bolts of that.

How swimsuit pictures happen.

2006-08-21T12:26:00.000-04:00

For those of you who want to step inside the sausage factory (and never look at a hot dog the same way again), here's the inside dope on how the Connect Statesboro swimsuit photos get on the page.

Once we've got a willing model, we did the vast majority of the shoots outdoors, either early in the morning (8 a.m.-ish) or late evening (7 p.m.-ish). Why? Because that's when sunlight isn't directly overhead, minimizing harsh lighting - the dreaded "boob shadow" effect - and making it not so darned hot outside.

With a helpful assistant holding a reflector at the perfect angle, a photographer (usually me, we're a small staff) shot the pictures. Typical shoots had anywhere from 100-250 pictures, from which we culled two to four "winners" that'd get their shot in the magazine.

Once we knew the photos that were going to be worked up, the fun began. Just as an illustration, I'll use a photo of myself to demonstrate (photo by Luke Martin). Keep in mind these aren't the exact steps that we used on every photo, just a rough approximation of some of the things the models went through in the digital world. Click the photos for a larger look.

There I am. Don't I look sexy? No? Well, Mom thinks I'm cool, and that's all that matters.

First things first. We need to crop the photo to focus attention away from the background and on my bulging bicep.

Much better. Cropping is one of those simple touches that can really make a photo pop. Read up on the rule of thirds for the secret recipe to good crops.

As sexy as I'd like to think I am, I know that's not the case. Genetically I got the short end of the stick as far as complexion goes. I'm in my mid-to-late twenties and still fighting breakouts. As luck would have it, it's not a good skin day. On top of that, years of soda have made it so my teeth aren't the brightest out there.

The teeth aren't bad (thanks, Dr. Lasala), but they could be better. Looking at my arm, not only do I have a rather unsightly surgery scar, but I've apparently have too much underarm hair.

I have no fear, however, for these things can be fixed. First, I apply a global smoothing to my skin - it evens out my skin tone and makes my skin that much closer to perfect.

Much better... but not perfect. To fix the remaining complexion and scar issues, I break out the Photoshop "healing brush," which tries to make an area that stands out (like the scar or a zit) match the surrounding area's shading, texture and color. Oh, and it works like a charm on underarm hair.

Whoops! Forgot the teeth - and while we're at it, my left arm looks really, really pale. It probably should match my sunburned head (thanks, Brooklet Peanut Festival). I can fix both with adjustment layers, another nifty-cool Photoshop feature that lets me apply an adjustable effect to just a part of a photo.

Beautiful. Just beautiful. Now we do something a little more advanced. I want to make my bicep just a little more manly.

The first step is drawing a curve that approximates the line I want my pumped-up muscle to take. Then I use Photoshop's liquify tool to push the edges of the skin to match the curve.

Sounds tough, right? Trust me, it's not. Works for reshaping all kids of body parts.

Oh, yeah. That's more manly, all right. As a final step, we'll apply some slight vignetting - making less-important areas of the photo a little darker so more-important areas stand out.

If I was get really fancy, I'd use the "dodge/burn" tool with my drawing tablet to put in some highlights and shadows to simulate muscle definition. Gotta get on that elliptical machine more often...

This is a quick example (about 5 minutes of work). The shots that went into the magazine took anywhere from about 10 minutes to an hour or more.

So that's the kind of work we did in the Connect Statesboro swimsuit issue. Nothing too drastic - we started with some of the most beautiful women in the area. Check it out this Thursday on stands everywhere.

Tales of Hardship

2006-08-20T12:24:00.000-04:00

Imagine a world where everyone loves one another, and noone ever has to do any work because there's plenty of everything to go around...

Congratulations, you're thinking about the Smurf village, you glittering pansy. And while you were smelling tulips from the safety of your imaginary dress, and then probably kissing Matt Damon, Connect Statesboro Editor Jake Hallman and I were at Tybee Beach this Saturday, doing the opposite of kissing -- working like dogs to make sure Connect's swimsuit issue would be coming out on time. Oh, and since I brought my girlfriend with me, Anna, there was also some kissing going on.

It's been busy times since I took this job, and the grueling pace doesn't seem like it will ever let up. While going to the beach to take photographs of what someone who writes for Connect calls "Statesboro's Most Beautiful Women", I've written articles about almost more than two bands in the past two weeks, and interviewed Bubba San from the Car City commercials. That's a band a week, plus sometimes I attend Lazer Tag competitions. At this point, the only thing keeping me going are the unlimited supply of drinks bartenders feel compelled to serve me when I flash around my press pass and threaten to write something horrible about them. It's a rare time that you won't find me doing exactly that (in fact, if you see anyone at anytime doing something else, it's a safe bet that it isn't me), but once I'm cut off because I've "had too much" and I'm "starting too many fights with the waitress", I'm still busy as a beaver contributing to this newspaper. I mean, I'm not working, exactly, but the look on my face says that I sure am thinking about it.

If you're one of the many out there still collecting my fantastic yarns, you may have seen my name on last week's artist profile, as well as the piece on "Blues, Beads, and the Bayou." It's not quite the journalistic anarchy I promised yet, but be on the lookout for when I start dropping Video Game Reviews on the unsuspecting public, as I'm now being sponsored by KB (not EB) Games and given free rein to play anything in the store to my hearts content.

Also, I finally earned enough from my awesome journalism to buy myself a tattoo I've had my eye on.

Celebrating a love that will never die, it's an artist's realistic interpretation of myself as I would appear as a skull, with a banner underneath displaying the word "me", surrounded by tiny hearts to help better declare my feelings.

What's even more amazing is that if you look closely and squint, when I flex my biceps, I can create the illusion that the skull is frowning, if and when I need to express hate towards something.

Anyways, eat your heart out, 11th hour. (whoops, the competition, I meant to say!)

It'll probably be easier if you rip it out through your back.

More RIAA goodness...

2006-08-14T16:30:00.000-04:00

Maybe it's just my new pet cause, but I found more proof the RIAA's undeniably evil.

They're actually deposing a dead defendant's family in one of their lawsuits.

Previous post (with interview!) on the new evil empire here. Connect Statesboro story on a local guy getting the legal lightning strike here.

The really mean part of the suits? If the RIAA files a complaint against you for file-sharing and you settle with them (usually to the tune of $3,000 to $4,000) instead of going to court, the money doesn't actually go to the musicians you allegedly ripped off. They can still sue you. It goes to the RIAA's legal fund, and is used to file more lawsuits.

2006-08-13T19:39:00.000-04:00

Hello again, Internet. It's been a long, long time, and a lot has happened since the last time I tried my hand at this whole "blog" thing. I know I once wrote that I was quitting this business for good, and making my way in this crazy ol' world as a fugg'n rad jetpack wearing hockey player, but money has a way of changing your dreams.

Or rather, lack of money has a way of changing your place of residence from an apartment... to a shack in your grandmother's backyard. I wasn't sure I wanted a job as a freelance writer, especially after being effectively fired from my first job as a freelance writer, and had planned on flipping a coin to decide whether or not I would enter the working world a second time. As it turns out though, money made that decision as well, when I realized I didn't even have a coin to flip. So after a night spent in quiet contemplation, taking a long hard look at my life-
I decided to give it a go. And here I am, ladies, gentleman, and asexual scenesters, ready once more for cash money and criticial acclaim. The generous and hip Jake Hallman of Statesboro Connect has taken me under his wing, and until further notice, this is where I'll hang my (party) hat.

For those of you who have no idea who I am or what I'm all about, let me assure you, it's going to be a wild ride, true journalistic anarchy. I'm going to pee in your pools, and swim around in your toilets, and no one is going to be here to stop me. Except for maybe Jake, and occasionally other higher ranking members of the Connect staff, who will stop me either by hitting me, or threatening to take away my paycheck. For my parents, and other me fans, keep your eyes peeled for articles written by yours truly, appearing only in Statesboro Connect, on newsstands now.

Last thursday: I interviewed former child star Mae Middleton of TV's "Any Day Now", and took on the status quo movie rental establishment known in hushed circles as "Video Warehouse"

The RIAA have much in common with the Mafia.

2006-08-13T16:55:00.000-04:00

There, I said it. When it comes to strongarm, Corleone-esque legal tactics, nobody's got the RIAA beat. Read this, for example.

When I spoke to Rebecca Jeschke at the Electronic Frontier Foundation for my story on a local guy getting sued, she had a lot to say about their tactics against online copyright infringement (which is not theft, don't be fooled). I wasn't able to use much of it in my story on a local guy getting nailed by the RIAA, so here's the MP3 of the whole 10-minute interview.

In response.

2006-08-08T13:09:00.000-04:00

Like any business, we here at Connect Statesboro have competitors. That’s perfectly fine with us – we all grew up working in environments where having someone breathing down your neck is par for the course.

Unfortunately, some people don’t like competition. They’re threatened by it. One of our competitors’ publishers has written some unkind, untrue and unprovoked things about Connect Statesboro. In a phone conversation, he asked me to talk about him.

I won’t write his name, or his publication’s in these pages. Ever. In fact, this very post is the only time that I’ll even acknowledge this competitor exists.

The other guys don’t have that problem. They’ve written about us several times, because we scare ‘em to death.

It must be the fact that after four years of a free ride of playing at publishing a bi-weekly paper, local people (GSU graduates, even!) with proven skill and writing credentials decided to do something they weren’t – serve the entire Statesboro entertainment community, not just the university, without being self-indulgent or pretentious. Connect Statesboro’s an outgrowth of the immensely successful entertainment page that ran for years in the Statesboro Herald.

In retrospect, we should thank the competition for the free advertising. They’re used to giving away free ad space, though, since a combination of that and restrictive contracts seem to be how they keep several of their long-time advertisers from jumping ship. Take a look at one of their issues. They seem awfully preoccupied with their advertisers, don’t they?

We don’t do the give-away thing at Connect (except for online classifieds). Our advertisers pay us for space because they believe in what we’re doing and know we have legions of readers, not because we give them a free ad. We’re here for the readers, and our advertisers recognize that.

Here’s the quick defense to some of their barbs: first, yeah, we tried to hire a single one of their writers. She’s very talented, and when she explained that her current position offered more opportunities I wished her the best of luck and told her I didn’t blame her for staying.

In response to the “copying” comments, we’re a print publication. There are going to be a few similarities, but we don’t look to papers in our own town for pointers. It seems a little strange, though, that after our stellar “Carla Connect” started, a poorly-written romance advice column appeared in their paper.

As far as being “corporate-owned?” Yup, we are. And our giant, scary corporate staff is made up of one full-time person, one part-time person, four people who donate a couple of hours a week, a part-time intern and (as of today) three freelance writers. One of those people – and it’s not me - is over thirty. Truly, we have unlimited resources with which to crush lesser publications.

And lay off the sunglasses. It was bright outside that day, and it’s important to protect your eyes from UV rays. No one “threw” them on me – I own ‘em.

To tell the truth, I’d probably have written something about the competition earlier in Connect’s run (our first birthday is coming up in September), but I’ve been entirely too busy.

Their publisher’s got plenty of time to kick back in his cushy Macon office and hurl barbs down at me in my little gray Statesboro cubicle. He must be spending plenty of time during his day thinking up witty things to write, since he’s obviously not spending much time making sure the spelling, grammar, story selection and layout of his publications is up to professional standards.

But that’s not really my problem is it? Or yours. As readers, I don’t expect you to care about what their publisher thinks about little old me, or vice versa. I’m just thrilled that reader support has seen Connect Statesboro grow into something wonderful over the past year. Neither publication owns the readers, advertisers or Statesboro itself, and you’ll make your own decisions as to who to read.

So I wish our competitors the best of luck with their burgeoning publishing empire centered out of Macon. Maybe there’s enough room in the Statesboro community for our paper and theirs. If not, they’ve got two other cities to publish in. I'm only concerned with Bulloch County, where I make my home.

In the meantime, my staff and I have a magazine to put together, and I’ve already wasted too much time writing about the other guy.

Don't take this the wrong way, Rep. Barrow...

2006-08-03T21:56:00.000-04:00

If you read this week's "Jake's Take," you may have noticed that I came down a little hard on John Barrow, Statesboro's congressman.

Apologies for the crappy formatting on the column, by the way. We had Web problems this week.

Don't take "Jake's Take" the wrong way. Even if he made what's either a boneheaded or blatantly campaign-oriented, vote-whoring vote, Barrow's still my man for Congress.

I'm not going to say that his opponent in November's Congressional race, Max Burns is out of touch with young people. Burns is a former professor at GSU, so he's at least nominally in touch with that most apathetic of demographics, the 18-34 set.

Barrow beat out Burns for the District seat two years ago, incidentally, and now Burns is looking to return the favor (nobody likes being a one-term congressman).

I've met both guys, and they're both perfectly likeable. Barrow's politics run much closer to mine, however, so he's most likely going to get my vote. Barrow impressed me mightily by turning to me in an interview and asking, point-blank, "Jake, what do you think is the most important issue in the election?"

I told him it was that I didn't have health insurance (and, except for a brief period intervening, I still don't). He listened, though there hasn't been much motion on that front in Congress. My estimation of Barrow would improve even more if he introduced some legislation along those lines, but as a freshman representative, I can see that it'd be difficult to get that particular national ball rolling.

His measures to help area farmers have been admirable, though. If you work the land, you'd have to have your head screwed on backwards to not vote for Barrow - the super-conservative farm folks around here may not agree with all of his social positions, but Barrow's there for their pocketbooks ad livelihoods, and that's the most important thing, right?

And the rest of "Jake's Take?" Any of you who've followed my career in journalism know that I'm an editorial guy (that's the non-advertising part of a newspaper) through-and-through. There are some "coin-operated" papers out there that offer sweet deals - you know, the "you buy a full-page ad, and we'll give you the cover story" kind of thing.

Connect Statesboro will never do anything like that so long as I'm around. I have a great working relationship with our ads manager, Kimberly Babock, but she doesn't dictate what stories Connect covers (aside from the ads, that is). I gave her a heads-up that I would be going after Carmike Cinemas again, and she understandably expressed some concern.

They're an advertiser, and the money they pay to put a movie listing in every issue helps pay both her and my salaries.

I don't shy away from telling the truth, though, and the truth is that their service... well, it's been pretty bad at a lot of the movies I've gone to see there.

So why didn't I call them out directly by name in the column? In deference to Kimberly, plain and simple. I figured it wouldn't make a difference, since there's only one theater in town. If there was another one, I'd definitely have to have mentioned them by name. In the end, I feel it didn't make a difference. One thing I won't do is compromise my coverage for the readers.

Internet Celebrity

2006-07-28T01:48:00.000-04:00

I wrote a column in last week's Connect Statesboro about "nerdcore" hip-hop.

My first notice that it'd made it into the wider world (as in beyond the print edition of Connect Statesboro's 8,000 or so readers) was an e-mail from "Router" of "L337 GEEK BEAT" got in touch with me.

Here's the e-mail I received:

"hi. my name is mc router. im from 1337 GEEK BEAT.

www.myspace.com/1gb

iread your review article that was posted on rhymetorrents. and i sawyou reccomended NURSEHELLA and her first ever and ONLY current releasedsong and just wanted to know if you liked my stuff too. just tryin toget some feedback.

<3 mc router

--

STAY 1337. STAY G33K."

The part that got my attention was "I read your review article that was posted on Rhymetorrents." It seems that Beefy, whose "Tub of Tabasco" I gave a shining review in the column, ran a Google search, found the piece, and posted a link on the Rhymetorrents forum.

I've learned a lot of good information from all this. First of all, MC Router of L337 GEEK BEAT and Nursehella are both pretty cute. After hearing MC Chris' really really high-pitched voice, my introduction to nerdcore, I was honestly surprised that they were both women.

Pleasantly surprised.

Also, I learned that Beefy, like me, obsessively googles himself. Unfortunately, I don't find him cute at all.

And yeah, I like L337 GEEK BEAT's stuff, too. Turns out they're in the process of rerecording a lot of the vocals on their stuff. The lyrics weren't weak, but some of the technical aspects of the voice recordings weren't quite up to par. I can't wait to hear the reworked versions.

Am I on the way out?

2006-07-26T18:44:00.000-04:00

I'm reading more and more about the rising tide of anti-intellectualism in America, and seeing evidence of it. From the rise of "Larry the Cable Guy" (see "Jake's Take" in Connect's Aug. 3 edition) to the "redneck revolution," it's leading us, as a nation, down a path we don't want to follow.

It's not anything new to me, though, and that's what's really scary. It's the same thing that got me and a million other bookish, intellectual kids beaten up in high school, just carried to the national level.

This may sound strangely like rationalization, but I think it's fear that drives it. Y'see, the old adage is true - knowledge is power, the current administration notwithstanding, and smart people can be a bit scary 'cause they've got that power. They can do things with their brain you can't. Heck, they might be able to trick you into doing something they want you to do that you might not want to do.

So you've got to beat 'em down.

Hopefully, this is just a phase. Who knows, Paris Hilton may decide to go to college, and it'll be cool to be smart - or at least interested in self-improvement - again.