Broadside

Always pitching to help: Becky Anderson: Senior contributes on and off the field

Senior Becky Anderson does not wear a mask or cape, but she is still a superhero in many respects. Whether pitching on the field for the George Mason University softball team or helping save homeless animals, Anderson exemplifies the key qualities of a student-athlete.

California dreamin’: Junior seeks to move westward after college

Today, junior Lindsay Gray is in the pages of Broadside. Tomorrow, she will make headlines in Hollywood.

Casted as one of the top players on the George Mason University women’s tennis team, Gray is an English major with a concentration in non-fiction writing, with a communication minor.

Mason is the first stop on Gray’s journey to the world of entertainment. After graduation, the second stop will be California.

The legality of guns on campus: ‘How is our campus safer by taking away our constitutionally protected right to defend ourselves?’

Currently, the Supreme Court is considering McDonald v. Chicago which could determine once and for all if state and local governments have the right to restrict and control gun ownership.

Last year, the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment guarantees that an individual has the fundamental right to bear arms in the District of Columbia v. Heller case.

If this current gun rights case is overruled, then it is likely that all laws and ordinances prohibiting handguns in states and localities will be nullified.

The smooth operator: Obama employs the art of persuasion

Everyone in this country uses the art of persuasion; politicians, however, have perfected this art.

Politicians innately possess, or have been taught, the ability to present themselves and their platform in a way that is the most pleasing to their audience.

Finding someone to blame: Identifying the ‘nth level cause’ of climate change

Who was the first human to discover cause-and-effect relationships, and how quickly did his peers kill him for his heresy?

Until this mysterious human — let’s call him Roger Cavemanson — came along, every action in the world was clearly the work of a capricious god, or possibly a group of such gods. Cavemanson was the first to propose otherwise. For his troubles, he was rewarded with an early grave in a bog.

New age cyberbullying: Next generation of torment or total nonsense?

There have been many fabulous technological advancements in the last two decades. We have iPods, personal computers and have made fantastic use of the Internet. However, along with these improvements, there are a few inevitable downsides. One such is the practice known as cyberbullying.

In Bed with Billy: Slow and Steady Wins the Race

We all remember the story of the tortoise and the hare, and we all know the outcome. It seems as though the older we get, the faster time goes by. This may simply be because time tends to move quickly in and of itself, or it could also be the sheer fact that as we age, we begin to move more slowly. We are stuck in life as hares. but, unfortunately, age doesn’t allow us to stay that way.

The Runaways primed to scare off the competition: Young starlets bring rock ‘n’ roll to life

The Runaways will shock and sometimes disgust, but it will keep you entertained the entire time.

The film tells the story of the famed ’70s rock band formed by Joan Jett (played by Twilight’s Kristen Stewart) and follows them through the good times, the hard times and all the rock and roll along the way.

Stewart has come a long way from her role in the famous tween vampire saga. She is convincing, empowering and all around awe-striking in her performance as the sexually confused rock star.

Causing mass Hysteria

Let me take you back nearly 30 years to the era of the much underappreciated and misunderstood glam-metal genre.

Its heyday lay between the glitzy, extravagant and unapologetic years of 1981 and 1989, characterized by titans like Great White, Cinderella, Winger, Firehouse and L.A. Guns.

This was a time of rampant androgyny, of tight spandex pants and their essential bulges.

Public confessions get loud at open mic night: Pride Week event gives performers the chance to confess personal struggles and cultural insight

Open Mic Night is a Pride Week event dedicated to bringing people of all genders and expressions together to share music, poetry, comedy or art in front of an audience of their peers.

Cheese, crackers and fruits were served as students, faculty and staff situated themselves in front of the stage at the Johnson Center Bistro Thursday night. Although the turnout wasn’t as high as anticipated, there was plenty of fun and good spirit in the air. Acts ranged from poetry, spoken word and singing to comedy and a metal band.