February 6, 1997

Speaker encourages students to survive
Darin Glass
Staff Writer

"I am addicted to adrenaline." That is a phrase linked to "America's #1 Female Crime Fighter," Debbie Gardner, founder of the Survive Institute in Cincinnati.

Her shows or performances are not based on any organized, scientifically proven theory of personal protection. They are based on reality. The Debbie Gardner reality.

Gardner was one of the first women patrol officers in the country. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Cincinnati and graduated Class Valedictorian from Cincinnati-Hamilton County Police Academy. But even all the straight A's under Gardner's belt could not help her in her time of need.

During her three-year training in the cadet program, Gardner would face a challenge that would change her life forever.

Around 11p.m. after leaving a restaurant, she was assaulted by a man holding a gun. None of the physical training kicked in. None of the toughness went into motion.

She was silent. She froze. This humiliated her and she wanted to fight back. She would fight not only for herself, but for those who did not know how to fight back.

"I just know most people can take care of themselves pretty well. The problem is they don't know it," says Gardner.

Gardner's key is not to teach, but to empower anyone to reach inside and find the rage that can help you save your own life during an attack. She draws on cursing and making eye contact. She reflects this attitude with the passion that she brings to the show.

Her husband, Mike Gardner, helps with the demonstrations and has actually injured her during some of the shows. He has punctured her hand with a sharpened bed rail and has also plunged a knife in her hand which almost passed all the way through.

Debbie, all 5-foot-3, 125 pounds of her, goes all over the United States taking her message to millions of people. These programs are not just for students either. Her stops have included the FBI, IBM, AT&T, GM, GE, California Prison Guards and the United States Army, to name a few.

Gardner has been written up in several magazines like Vogue and has been on many television shows like The Today Show. She has also written a book and is working on another. In addition, she is working on self-defense videos for release.

All the attention that Gardner has gotten has not clouded her meaning, though. Audiences quickly realize this as she screams at her attackers on stage, "WHAT THE - - - - DO YOU WANT FROM ME?"

She wants to show to everyone that they can protect themselves and that they can really do it when a situation arises. She has gone to every extent to help people by even giving out her home phone number for people to call at anytime for advise.

One woman did use that home number on a Christmas Eve night a couple years ago. Gardner was getting ready to go out when she got the call from a woman who said that her husband was going to kill her. Gardner said, "Write down what I am saying. When he shows up, you're going to be holding your breathe, right? You gotta breathe."

She gave her advise and told her that she could defend herself if it got out of hand.

"I know you can do this," Gardner said to the frightened woman. Gardner's phrase is for everyone.

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Stereotypes: Are frat boys really drunken party animals?
John Starling
Features Editor

There's plenty of "types" out there on our wonderful campus, some of which suffer from unjust stereotypes.

One of the most maligned groups of people at ASU, and at most other colleges, are fraternity brothers. Despite their best efforts to do good in the eyes of the university and the surrounding community, people seem almost unwilling to give these young men the high regard they often deserve.

"You only hear the bad news of what's going on," says Junior Jason C. Yepko of Wilmington. Yepko is a member of the Kappa Alpha fraternity.

"You don't hear about the money we raised for charity," he continues, "or all the community service hours we put in. When one bad thing goes wrong, that's all you hear about."

Yepko has a valid point. The recent flurry of attention due to the sexual assaults on campus, particularly the one earlier this year near his fraternity's house, have brought the behavior of campus Greeks under the microscope.

How unfortunate it is, indeed, that students, faculty and community members choose to scrutinize these aspects of the Greeks, especially when there's no proof that any Greeks were linked to the alleged assault.

Interfraternity council president and Tau Kappa Epsilon member Mason L. Reuter, a senior from Charlotte, is quick to point out some of the good that fraternities have done. They held their most successful Christmas toy drive to date and participate in activities with local elementary schools.

Is it fair, in the light of the positive things that fraternities do, to write them off as drunkards, party animals, elitists or any other number of derogatory slurs that are often hurled at them? The answer is decidedly no.

"The typical stereotype (of us) is just being wild and crazy. ‘All you do is drink. All you do is cause trouble.' You get that a lot of times," says Senior Marc Winstead of Cary, a member of Delta Chi.

The typical fraternity member is, in fact, not the party guy epitomized in Animal House. Most are conscientious students who, just like the rest of us, like to have a good time on occasion.

Junior Kyle M. McGee of Statesville, a member of Kappa Sigma, shatters this misconception.

"People don't join fraternities now for the same reasons they (used to). Maybe back in the 70's they joined them to drink a lot of beer. Now you join fraternities for friendship."

This friendship and camaraderie are one of the more admirable aspects of fraternity life. These men form special bonds that go with them wherever they may go in life.

"It's more than just 50 or 60 brothers," says McGee. "You have brothers all over the nation. We all have something in common."

"There's the brotherhood, a type of family feeling that goes along with (being in a fraternity). Within a group of different people you find a common bond," says Yepko.

This bond seems to sport an elitist tag to those outside the fraternity. This is one stereotype that seems to plague Greeks, like Junior Steve T. Sack, a Sigma Phi Epsilon member from Boone.

"Some people expect that just because you're in a fraternity that you're not going to talk to other people who aren't Greek, or that you're not going to be just as nice to them as you would be to one of your brothers," says Sack.

"Look at it for what it is," says Yepko. "It's a social group, a brotherhood."

The hazing problem lingers in conjunction with almost any conversation about fraternities, as well, though Reuter emphasizes that ASU fraternities enforce a strict anti-hazing policy.

Winstead elaborates on this. "People think that all fraternities haze. It's just not done."

Reuter sums up the problem with stereotypes in general. "It's so much easier to stereotype a lot of people than it is to actually get to know them and find out what they're about as a person.

"I get upset when people confront me about being in a fraternity because they don't know me. All they see are the letters that I wear on my chest.

"Get to know me before you curse me," he says. "That's all I ask."

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May the force be with you...again
Jason Foster
Reporter

Star Wars
Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher

If you were born anytime in the 1970s, chances are that you grew up with Star Wars.

For me, as well as many other Generation Xers, Star Wars and its sequels were what it was all about for a period of about eight years.

Anything dealing with the subject was good. From the classic "read along" storybooks and records to those great Kenner action figures, the film provided my friends and I with countless hours of fun in the early 80s.

Like many other college-age people, when I saw the original film on the big screen, I didn't realize exactly what a feat that was. Star Wars was a groundbreaking film for many reasons and was meant to be seen in a theater. It is almost impossible to truly appreciate the mix of sound and visuals otherwise.

Now that George Lucas has released Star Wars: The Special Edition, we all have the chance to see the film the way it is meant to be seen and truly appreciate its greatness.

It doesn't matter how many times you've seen the film, viewing it this time will be like viewing it for the first time all over again.

With the clean-up job done by Lucas' Industrial Light and Magic to improve the special effects and sound, coupled with the new never before seen scenes, its almost like watching a completely new film.

The newly enhanced visual effects are nearly flawless. With the new computer-graphics technology, many new creatures were able to be added to the old scenes, a process that would have previously been impossible.

One major new scene is the one between Jabba the Hut and Han Solo in Docking Bay 94 of the Mos Eisley spaceport. This was shot for the original film but left out due to technical limitations.

Whether people realize it or not, Star Wars set the pace for most action films we get today: big special effects, lots of chases, etc.

I've heard people say that the reason it has been so successful is because the common man can identify with the characters, as none of them are made out to be any kind of superhero. I don't know how true that its, but whatever the reason, it has rarely been seen in movies since.

What more can be said about Star Wars? It's a phenomenon that started on May 25, 1977 and has really never stopped. I don't think it ever will.

In its opening weekend Star Wars: The Special Edition grossed an estimated $36.2 million. If it keeps this pace up, it will overtake E.T. and regain the crown as the highest grossing film of all time in a matter of weeks. As everybody now knows, its two sequels will also be re-released with new footage and redone effects. The Empire Strikes Back will be out on February 21 and Return of the Jedi will be released on March 7. The latter will feature a brand new musical number in Jabba's palace as well as a new ending.

Folks, Star Wars is officially back. Please, if you don't remember what it was like to see the film in a theater, go see it the way its meant to be seen. Don't just watch it, experience it. You will be surprised how quickly it can take you down memory lane and remind you of all the fun you had with it.

Star Wars has stood the test of time. How many other films that came out in 1977 can you name of the top of your head? Its a great film for many reasons, too many to cover them all. I'm just glad its back for us all to see again, and for a new generation to see for the first time.

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See New England through Newport program
Jeff Sprouse
Staff Writer

Every summer, thousands of young professionals and college students from New York and Boston flock to the little beach town of Newport, Rhode Island.

They pack into Victorian Mansions, nicknamed "Party Houses," that line the main street, while old-timers complain about the noise. On weekends, the bars and streets come alive while these people "recreate." They lie out and sail on one of the world's most famous bays.

This summer, you could attend school just a stone's throw away. It's called the Newport Program and each year, around 20 students from universities across the nation make the trek to the sun soaked southern tip of Narragasset Bay.

Classes and lodging are based at the historic Salve Regina University. One fee includes on-campus housing, six semester hours of credit, 16 meals per week, recreation, transportation and entrance fees on all required field trips.

The classes offered are diverse. For History credit, one can take Colonial and Revolutionary New England, or Nineteenth Century American Architecture. As you learn about Bunker Hill, you go to Bunker Hill. Students taking Major New England Writers visit Walden Pond. Students enrolled in American Landscaping Painting visit the fine museums of Boston.

If you need Physical Education credit, the Newport Program can help. Located next to the sight of numerous America's Cup Races, students can take Fundamentals of Sailing, and spend a portion of their day leisurely sailing the bay for credit.

Dr. George Antone, the director of the program, says, "For students from North Carolina who haven't been to this part of the United States, it's a very enjoyable experience. We take field trips every Friday to places like Boston, which is only an hour and twenty minutes away."

Jonathan Rhem, who attended the program last summer, has only good things to say about his experience

"The atmosphere is unbelievable. Because the group is so small, it's a good bonding experience. Plus it's good for your academic standing, since the classes are small and you can get to know your professor."

If this program seems appealing to you, more information is available in the Newport Program office, located in Whitener Hall. Or you can call Dr. George Antone at 262-6491 if you have any questions.

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