Basic HTML Version
Campus Review
October 10, 2013
Page 14
Library Compiles List of Government
Shutdown’s Effect on Research and Information
important that nobody called anybody
‘stupid’ and we also didn’t hear anyone
say, ‘in my opinion.’ Referencing a higher
authority gives more weight to your argu-
ment. This is a good debate model for our
students. This is invaluable.
“We take our mission of getting our stu-
dents college- and career-ready very seri-
ously. This gives them an eye for the prize.”
The Clayton State students providing that
good model for the Rex Mill students
were a diverse group of three political sci-
ence majors, a sociology major, an eco-
nomic major and even a computer net-
working major, Ashley Catron. A non-tra-
ditional student from McDonough, Catron
is both an IT person and an honored
author whose November 2012 essay for
English 1102, “The Fallacy of Gun
Control in America,” won the College of
Arts and Sciences’ Sharon Sellers prize
last year, and argues that, “Personal
firearms are the most affordable and
effective means for the common citizen to
resist tyranny in whatever form it may
present itself.”
Another non-traditional student taking
part on the “pro-gun” side of the debate
was Damian Loback, a junior political sci-
ence major from Newnan who served 10
years in the U.S. Army, including two
tours of duty in Iraq. Loback took part in
the debate because, “it’s important to put
out correct information. Both sides skew
the information.”
Although another political science major,
Riverdale High School graduate Krysten
Long, took the opposite side of the debate
from Loback, her concerns were similar.
“I am partaking in this event because, in
light of the recent talks over guns and
guns violence, there has been more
ambiguous information presented rather
than clear facts,” she says. It is important
that a dialogue is opened that sheds light
and facts about guns and gun violence that
will not be overshadowed by fear.”
Long also recognizes the value that events
such as this bring to a Clayton State edu-
cation, in terms similar to those used by
LeMon is expressing the value to her mid-
dle school students.
“These sorts of events bring value to a
Clayton State education by causing its
students to open their minds, think outside
of the box, and learn from and not merely
tolerate differing opinions,” she points
out. “This event’s educational value lies in
open debate. It is from debate that our per-
spectives can be broadened and perhaps,
our opinions changed. By hearing anoth-
er’s stance we are better prepared for a
world laden with disagreement and are
taught to dissect and evaluate the signifi-
cance of opposing arguments.”
Joining Long on the “anti-gun” side of the
debate were junior sociology major Ivan
Dowdell, (Riverdale) and Kendra Wilson,
a political science major from Olympia,
Wash., who says that she took part to, “get
a better perspective of the roles of guns on
campus.”
Adding more diversity to the student
debaters was junior economics major
Zakery Daniel, a native of Hampton who
is also running for a spot on the Hampton
City Council in the forthcoming
November election. It should thus come
as no surprise that Daniel is interested in
public policy and constitutional rights,
including interpretations of the Second
Amendment, which, he points out, had its
genesis in English law as far back as the
12th Century.
Following the debate, the Rex Mill stu-
dents proved they not only had been
prepped by LeMon, a 2007 Clayton State
graduate in her sixth year teaching social
studies at Rex Mil Middle, but that they
had prepared some good questions on
their own for the debaters, including
inquiries about the uses of guns and how
each side of the debate might handle
hypothetical active shooter situations on
campus.
One of the aspects of the current federal
government shutdown that is effecting
students as well as anyone else who needs
to do research is that many online
resources, including websites and data-
bases run by federal agencies, are either
unavailable or not being maintained.
As a service to both Clayton State
University students, and the public,
Clayton State Assessment & Marketing
Librarian Erin L. Nagel has published a
partial list of affected agencies often used
in research, along with a list of alternative
print and online sources that scholars and
researchers can use in the meantime. Kara
Mullen, head of the Library’s Electronic
Resources and Services, also contributed
significantly to the compilation of these
resources, as the person most familiar
with electronic collections. Both lists are
on the Clayton State Library’s blog post-
ing
located
at
http://claytonstatelibrary.wordpress.com/
2013/10/02/us-federal-government-shut-
down-impacting-information-sources/.
Nagel notes that the list of affected infor-
mation agencies is an impressive one;
including most Library of Congress web-
sites, the National Archives (the National
Archives at Atlanta is located immediate-
ly adjacent to the Clayton State campus,
thus directly affecting the University’s
history and Masters of Archival Studies
programs), the U.S. Census Bureau, the
U.S. Department of Education, the U.S.
Department of Agriculture, the Bureau of
Labor Statistics, the National Institutes of
Health, PubMed, the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, and NASA.
The list of alternative resources on the
Library’s blog includes those dealing with
statistics related to health, population,
labor, science, health, medical research,
education research, agriculture research,
and primary sources and archival
research.
“This list will be updated as more infor-
mation becomes (un)available,” notes
Nagel.
Gun Debate, cont’d. from p. 2