by Cory Woodroof | Apr 11, 2012 | Opinion
Blue Like Jazz is a rarity. Once in a blue moon, the Christian base in Hollywood will strike lightning in a bottle, producing a satisfying look at faith and religion through unfiltered eyes. More often than not, audiences are served up a fresh bowl of faith-based pabulum – be it in the form of a “Kendrick brothers original” (Facing the Giants, Fireproof) or another off-brand copycat you might find at the local Redbox. Films made by the faithful often lack any bite. The projects are too focused on being happy, inoffensive and resolved. The end result is harmless, but a typical Sunday morning sermon usually finds greater success. This past August, golf-centric melodrama Seven Days in Utopia succeeded in slightly rising above the genre, providing a decently endearing story while staying within the confines of the churchyard. Having a cast featuring Robert Duvall and Melissa Leo didn’t hurt. Still, I wondered when the right movie would come along at the right time to finally put an end to the usually languished faith-based fare. I wondered when a filmmaker would be bold enough to portray the daily walk of a Christian without a coating of fresh sugar. Blue Like Jazz, adapted from Donald Miller’s best-selling memoir, finally offers Christian audiences a film they can be proud of – a journey into faith and life through the eyes of a scarred believer. Don Miller (Marshall Allman) stands as the example of the perfect Bible-belt Christian until a horrid discovery sends him from his Texas home to Oregon’s Reed College, a super-secular institution based in free expression. Miller begins to struggle with...
by Cory Woodroof | Apr 5, 2012 | News Slider
Lipscomb welcomed James P. Pinkerton to campus Tuesday night as a part of the Don R. Elliot Distinguished Presidential Lecture series. Pinkerton, a domestic policy and campaign worker for both Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, currently serves as the co-chair for the RATE Coalition (Reducing America’s Tax Equitably), an organization dedicated to the decrease of the corporate income tax rate. Pinkerton also serves as a regular contributor to Fox News, best known for his work on the Fox “News Watch” program. He also contributes to Fox News’ website. More recently, Pinkerton served as the senior adviser on the Mike Huckabee 2008 presidential campaign. After an introduction by Linda Peek Schacht, executive director of Lipscomb’s Nelson and Sue Andrews Institute for Civic Leadership, Pinkerton lectured on the importance of governmental involvement in the research for cures of diseases affecting our nation. Pinkerton based his talk on a magazine article featuring actor Michael J. Fox’s charitable organization, which focuses on the cure for Parkinson’s disease. In the article, Fox questioned why the government does not feature a department that specifically goes after curing diseases. Pinkerton agrees with the Fox’s questioning. “He’s sort of right,” Pinkerton said. Pinkerton offered insight into the current trends of FDA and government practices regarding research funding for the cure of major diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and other malevolent sicknesses. Pinkerton believes the future of medicine and the search for cures in our nation rests on the funds and attention received. Above all, Pinkerton believes the American people desire a system of government that will pursue curing diseases and ailments that affect people on...
by Cory Woodroof | Mar 27, 2012 | Uncategorized
If you have ever walked past High Rise or taken a drive down Granny White, you might notice a booming building with large smokestacks, constantly pouring steam into the sky. Have you ever wondered what goes on inside? The Steam Plant, one of campus’ primary HVAC facilities, serves as an important part of our community. Dave Sutton, the HVAC supervisor on campus, gave me a look inside the Steam Plant, offering some insight into his job and the services offered by the large facility. Sutton, going on eight years as the HVAC supervisor, oversees the Steam Plant, as well as other heat and ventilation facilities on campus. Sutton offered insight on what really goes on inside the Steam Plant. “The main function for serving campus is just to provide heat and domestic hot water during the winter time,” Sutton said. The Steam Plant is made up of different boilers, pumps, tanks and other machines. A water treatment facility also finds its home in the Steam Plant. Modern advances in technology have allowed for automatic controls to monitor the boilers. Previously, a coal fire boiler was used to carry out the functions the current boilers perform. “[The boilers] used to have to be manned 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Now, we just do controls. We only have to check [the controls] twice a shift,” Sutton said. Sutton must remain vigilant with his job in case of any on-campus emergencies regarding utilities. “I’m pretty much on call 24/7, so I’ve been called in here numerous times in the middle of the night. When a boiler goes down or...
by Cory Woodroof | Mar 13, 2012 | News Slider
Kiernan McMullan, the opening act for Mat Kearney when he performed at the SGA-sponsored spring concert, sat down with Lumination, offering a look into his past, his new album, Two Years, and his new organization, American Cadence Records.McMullan was born in Hong Kong and grew up in Boston and Ireland. While in the UK, McMullan began his journey into music. “I moved up to Dublin, and I started doing lights and sound for a living. And, so, in doing that, I met a lot of people who worked for the studios.” McMullan had songs ready to record and got free studio time in which he could improve his skills. After that, McMullan was ready to go on tour. “From there, it was just an instant wanting to go on the road,” McMullan said. McMullan toured all across Ireland. Then he signed a record deal with 111 Records. After this, McMullan moved back to the states to pursue a new career as a musician. During his time as a musician, McMullan has opened for such musical acts as Sheryl Crowe and Colbie Caillet. “I was lucky enough to open for both of them in the same night,” McMullan said. “I did a lot of touring where it was a huge venue one night and a coffee house to fifteen people the next night.” McMullan finds inspiration from all types of music. “I’ll sit and listen to hours of classical music, and I’ll sit and listen to heavy metal and everything in between,” McMullan said. Songwriting plays a huge part in McMullan’s music. Many aspects fuel the words in his songs....
by Cory Woodroof | Mar 9, 2012 | News Slider
Around 3:30 Friday morning, students living in High Rise awoke to another evacuation. The High Rise dormitory was evacuated for a second time, sparking disbelief and frustration among residents of the hall. Emergency vehicles were quick to respond to the scene. The possible cause for the evacuation lies once again in the dorm’s boiler room. Sophomore biology major Brennan McNeil was one of the first people to spot the hazard. “I was the first one down in the electrical room,” McNeil said. “There was smoke coming out of the main conduit in the back – white smoke. It smelled like a fire – a chemical. So, campus security came up, we met them in the lobby. They declared that we needed to be on alert. We called the fire department. At that point, we decided that it was best to evacuate everybody.” From Kim Chaudoin, Lipscomb’s director of corporate communication: Work to repair the line began at about 5 a.m. this morning. Emergency generators for affected areas are in transit to campus. At this point, it is not known if this is related to yesterday’s water line incident. The university is in the process of bringing in outside contractors to thoroughly review all utility issues that might be related. During the evacuation, many students noticed the smell of smoke while they were exiting the dormitory. “It smelled like smoke in the stairwells,” RA Adam Sain said. “About 3:15 this morning, a breaker blew in a substation that we have here on campus,” Chaudoin said. “It kind of threw a surge through the line, and there’s a conduit that’s near the...
