Volume 7, Volume 7 by The Bottom Line (UCSB)

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Associated Students, UC Santa Barbara Volume 7, Issue 7 | Nov. 7 - Nov. 13, 2012

BOTTOM LINE

UCSB Rocks the Vote

FIND ELECTION COVERAGE AND RESULTS ONLINE AT bottomlineucsb.com

Unknown Culprits Steal Phone, Wallet Early Sunday Morning by THOMAS ALEXANDER Isla Vista Beat Reporter Two Isla Vista partygoers were robbed early Sunday morning, Nov. 4, at nearly the same time—a female’s phone was stolen by assault on Del Playa Drive, and a male was relieved of his wallet at apparent gunpoint on Segovia Road. At approximately 1:20 a.m. on Sunday morning, a female victim reported to the Isla Vista Foot Patrol that her phone had been stolen as she walked down Del Playa Drive. She explained that a man she had met and befriended earlier in the evening jumped on her back, took her phone from her and ran away toward campus on Del Playa. The Del Playa phone thief was described as an adult black man, standing approximately 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighing about 130 pounds. The victim further detailed that the

culprit had bleached blonde hair, hazel eyes and was wearing dark clothing. At around 1:25 a.m. the same morning, a man was walking on the 6500 block of Segovia Road when a dark red sedan of unknown make pulled up beside him. A passenger, who was described as a college-aged black male with facial hair, made a motion that made the victim believe he was carrying a gun. The passenger took the victim’s cell phone and wallet, but gave the cell phone back before driving away west on Segovia. Neither thief had been identified or apprehended as of Monday afternoon, but authorities will continue the search for the victims’ missing possessions. Police have urged anyone with information regarding either of these thefts to contact the UCSB Police Department at (805) 893-3446 or the Santa Barbara County Sheriff ’s Tip Line at www.sbsheriff.org/anonymoustips.html.

Another One Bites the Dust: Sixth Associated Students Senator this Quarter Resigns by ANNALISE DOMENIGHINI Executive Managing Editor After only six weeks of being a governing board, the Associated Students Senate has seen another senator resign, this time not out of scheduling conflicts, but out of a personal distaste for the association. Cory Wheeler, a fourth-year political science and economics major at University of California Santa Barbara, resigned last week in part because of a lucrative job offer, and also due to his already negative sentiments about sitting on the board. “I just came to realize, slowly but surely, that if I wanted to get things accomplished that the Senate probably wasn’t the place for me to be able to do those things,” said Wheeler. After being encouraged to run for senate by former External Vice President for Local Affairs Tim Benson, Wheeler saw a position as senator as a place where he could not only work on projects he was involved with in AS Bike Committee, but where he could also bring his high level of non-AS involvement into the Association as a way to pop the “AS bubble,” a name he has given to what happens when a student gets involved in AS but then loses sight of what the students actually care about or need, for whatever reason. “I came in really excited and really eager to get a lot of things done, I had a lot of big ideas and I was really excited to get just started on the work,” said Wheeler. “Once it came down to the administrative parts of the job, there are just so many hurdles and roadblocks to get through that I became immediately frustrated with

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just the process and the bureaucracy of Associated Students. I just slowly came to realize that it’s really hard to get anything actually accomplished, especially from the Senate, just because of the built in road blocks.” According to Internal Vice President Mayra Segovia, Wheeler is one of five elected senators to have resigned since the beginning of the school year. One of the resigned senators was replaced by an appointed student who also resigned, marking Wheeler’s resignation as the AS Senate’s sixth of this year. “It’s just bizarre. I was really frustrated that I felt like people within AS who were super involved whose lives just revolve around the drama and the excitement of the politics within AS. I’m just really disappointed that they would personally attack people, and it’s not political, it’s not like ‘I disagree with your idea’—it’s like you specifically are trying to hurt the students of UCSB, which is just bogus.” As far as whether Wheeler would recommend getting involved in Senate, his answer is no, with a condition: “You have to have really thick skin and you have to be able to just tolerate the madness,” said Wheeler. “If you go in being overly optimistic you’ll be kind of broken hearted by the process. If you go in knowing exactly what the process is and exactly what the limitations are, it could probably be a good experience. The Senate does eventually get things done, and I know they’re working on a couple of things now, I’m excited to see how those pan out. But as far as the bills and the discussions for the meetings and kind of all the secondary goals of the Senate, I think it’s really ineﬃcient.”

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“I just slowly came to realize that it’s really hard to get anything actually accomplished, especially from the senate, just because of the built in road blocks.”

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- Cory Wheeler, Fourth-year political science and economics major

Hurricane Sandy Devastates East Coast see page 2

Brief History of Isla Vista see page 3

Recent UCSB Alert Messages 11/4/12, 1:20a.m. Phone stolen on 6500 block of Segovia 11/4/12, 1:17a.m. Phone stolen on Del Playa Drive.

Go to https://alert.ucsb.edu/ to register for UCSB alerts.

Goleta Police Receive Grant For DUI Prevention Checkpoints to be established along local highways ricades, lighting and generators.” The grant, awarded by the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, will result in an increase in DUI checkpoints, which have previously proven to be an effective strategy in curbing the number of DUI accidents that occur in a year in the state of California. According to the California Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (CDADP), California had 195,879 arrests in 2010, and is consistently on top of the list of states with the most DUI arrests per year. DUI checkpoints will be well publicized and highly visible in order to deter those who are under the influence from driving and also to find and arrest drunk drivers who are already on the road. This grant will allow the city of Goleta to have more checkpoints and detect more offenders, effectively increasing public safety. The Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) periodically awards grants to state and local agencies through an application process. Their mission is to “effectively and efficiently administer traffic safety grant funds to reduce traffic deaths, injuries, and economic losses,” as stated on their official website. The new grant

by PRABHJOT SINGH The City of Goleta Police Department recently received $68,250 as part of an anti-driving under the influence grant, which is to be used for the enforcement of traffic safety on the streets of Goleta through the prevention of DUI related accidents. Goleta police hope to do this through using more enforcement measures, such as checkpoints, to combat DUIs. These efforts will be a part of an ongoing campaign by the police department to reduce DUI-related accidents by getting offenders off the roads. “We applied for the grant through the Office of Traffic Safety by using statistics based on DUI arrests, collisions and fatalities and then we were awarded the money to do DUI checkpoints and buy equipment,” said Sergeant Kevin Huddle, who leads the Motor Traffic Unit of the Goleta Police Department. “The money will be used for DUI checkpoints, so the actual enforcement of paying for staff to go out, organize the checkpoints and then contact drivers as they come through the checkpoint. And then a small portion of the money is used for equipment that is needed for the DUI checkpoint such as cones, bar-

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received by Goleta will become a part of the efforts by the OTS to reduce alcohol-related accidents and deaths. Driving under the influence is dangerous and can also be deadly, both to the driver and others on the road. In California, the CDADP recorded 1,768 deaths in DUI related accidents in 2010. Goleta was the location for three of these deaths. “We felt the need to apply for a grant because we have a lot of DUI drivers in our area, especially with the proximity to Isla Vista, and then last year we had three DUI fatalities in Goleta, but the years before that we had zero so our numbers went up, fatality-wise,” said Huddle. DUI arrests can result in jail time for the offenders, along with other sanctions, like having to take DUI classes, pay fines and having a license suspended. A DUI conviction on a driver’s record can also result in increased insurance rates for years after the arrest. In the end, total costs of a DUI citation can add up to $10,000. All of this, however, can easily be avoided if people make the decision to not get behind the wheel if they have been drinking. Designating a driver before heading out or taking a cab are safer alternatives that can save lives.

2010 California DUI Facts 1,768 people died in traﬃc crashes that were a result of alcohol and other drugs.

There were 24,343 traﬃc-related injuries involving alcohol. There were 195,879 DUI arrests. Males comprised 77.6% of all DUI arrests In fatal/injury crashes where drivershad been drinking, 34.7% involved fixed objects; 52.7% involved multiple vehicles.

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(Source: California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs)

The Shortcomings of IV’s Icon see page 4

Hoodie Allen Concert Photos see page 5

An Examination Alternative Treatments see page 6

page 2 | News

Campus News

The Bottom Line | Nov. 7 - Nov. 13

Former US Ambassador Explains Key Concepts of US-Middle East Foreign Policy by BEATRIZ GONZALEZ Martin Indyk, Vice President and Director for Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution as well as former United States ambassador to Israel, discussed the emerging situation of the Middle East at the University of California Santa Barbara last Sunday. Invited by the Taubman Symposia in Jewish Studies, Indyk described the current panorama in the area and how the US will be affected by it. Indyk explained the challenges the US will face in this new period as if he were speaking as the foreign policy advisor of the next president. One major concern is that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is still in search of a peaceful solution. “How long will Palestinians remain quiet, given the turmoil that is going on?” asked Indyk, adding that Palestinians can take to the streets to instigate a demand for a new political direction. However, the former Ambassador believes that the Israeli-Palestinian problem won’t be a priority of the next president of the U.S. “A conservative position will be taken that is trying to cultivate the circumstances which will improve the odds that next time there is a government in Israel, it demands the peace and a united leadership on the Palestinian side,” said Indyk. Almost two years after the beginning of the Arab Spring, the new, revolutionized Middle East has important implications for developing relations with the U.S. Haim Malka, the Director of the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic

and International Studies, discussed this point. “The overthrow of authoritarian regimes in Libya, Tunisia, Yemen and Egypt in 2011 unleashed violent anti-American forces that the previous governments had largely kept in check,” he said. Indyk considered this antiAmerican wave in a region that is experiencing fragile transitions. The new regime in Egypt is a good example of new paradoxical trends across the region. “The Muslim Brotherhood Egyptian government now has a dilemma: feeding its people or following its ideology,” he said. If they follow their ideology and decided to launch an offensive against Israel, they would not be able to feed the Egyptian people. The financial institutions would cancel cheap loans and economic inversions would decrease. Indyk maintains that the next president should consider this dilemma in the Middle East. Syria and Iran remain as two areas of instability in the Middle East, the former because of a civil war that has killed 2,000 people and the latter because of its nuclear program. “The United States is going to gradually adjust itself to a nuclearcapable (but not nuclear armed) Iran,” said professor of international affairs at Harvard University Stephen Walt in an article in the magazine Foreign Policy. Concerning the Syrian conflict, Indyk considered that the decision to make a move is a diﬃcult one, and the international community is paralyzed to take any effective action.

TBL 2012-2013 Staff

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Director for Foriegn Policy at Brookings Institiution, Martin Indy, speaks about the Middle East at UCSB last Sunday.

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Photo by Beatriz Gonzales | The Bottom Line

“The Muslim Brotherhood Egyptian government now has a dilemma: feeding its people or following its ideology,”

Writers: this issue

Annalise Domenighini, Tommy Alexander, Prabhjot Singh, Lissa Gardner, Beatriz Gonzalez, Courtney Hampton, Joanne Howard, Patrick Sheehan,Jordan Wolff, Camila Martinez-Granata, Margarita Baliyan, Christy Van Beek, Ben Fan, Francesca Kentish, Nathalie Vera, Matt Mersel, Elizabeth Aguilar

Photographers: this issue

Ayeyi Aboagye, Beatriz Gonzales, Margarita Baliyan, Morey Spellman The Bottom Line is sponsored by the Associated Students of the University of California, Santa Barbara. All opinions expressed in TBL do not necessarily represent those of the staff, of A.S. or of UCSB. Published with support from Campus Progress/Center for American Progress (CampusProgress.org). All submissions, questions or comments may be directed to bottomlineucsb@gmail.com.

The Bottom Line is an alternative voice on campus.... We provide a printed and online space for student investigative journalism, culturally and socially aware commentary and engaging reporting that addresses the diverse concerns of our readership and community. This is your community to build, share ideas and publicize your issues and publicize events. We welcome your questions, comments or concerns at bottomlineucsb@gmail.com or call our oﬃce phone at 805-893-2440.

- Martin Indyk, Vice President and Director for Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution

National News

Hurricane Sandy Devastates East Coast Amid Election by MELISSA GARDNER Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast as a post-tropical cyclone on Oct. 29. In the aftermath, at least 90 people have been reported dead, and millions of people are still without power, food and shelter. The State of California has sent aid to help the recovery effort. Preliminary estimates by the catastrophe risk-consulting firm Eqecat place the overall cost of the cleanup operation between 10 and 20 billion dollars. A national emergency so close to the election has the potential to impact voter turnout and may influence voters’ choices, meaning that the effects of the hurricane could be felt throughout the United States of America. According to weather reports, wind speeds up to 78 mph were recorded at the JFK International Airport in New York on Monday. There continues to be deep flooding in residential areas, with the highest recorded rainfall at 12.55 inches in Maryland, and flooding in Manhattan’s Battery Park subways reached a record high of 13.88 inches. Further south, the Appalachians have experienced unusual snowstorms, as the hurricane collided with winter weather fronts. On Oct. 28, the mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, advised 375,000 people to leave their homes and said that hospitals in danger areas would be evacuated. Airports, schools, public transport, the stock market and Broadway were all closed in preparation for the storm. Although these are now open, millions of homes are still without power. Charities are working in the affected states to provide shelter for people left homeless and mobilize volunteers to help with the relief effort. With the upcoming election, it must be questioned whether Hurricane Sandy will have a negative effect on voting numbers, particularly in states that had already opened for early voting, such as Maine and Vermont. Many voters may be out of state on Election Day and those who remain will be focusing on the more pressing issue of rehabilitation. The hurricane may also have made some people reconsider their vote. “Emergencies are times when big government steps in,” said professor of political

science and voting behavior, Dr. Eric Smith. “Romney will be wanting to avoid questions about FEMA.” The Federal Emergency Management Agency is a nationwide organization that manages and responds to disasters in the USA. Presidential candidate Mitt Romney stated last year that he wanted to replace FEMA with a state or private system, although he has now retracted this position. The governor of California, Edmund G. Brown Jr., released a statement saying, “On Monday, the California National Guard sent military transport aircraft carrying two helicopters and two highly trained Pararescue teams with their equipment to Charlotte, North Carolina. Aircraft are also being deployed including a Boeing C17, two C130 aircraft and two HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters.” The United States Global Change Research Program has found that “the power and frequency of Atlantic hurricanes have increased substantially in recent decades” largely due to a 2 degrees Fahrenheit increase in ocean temperatures. The devastation highlights that key issues, such as climate change, were neglected in favor of the economy and foreign policy in the electoral debates. “It seems that our media and our political leaders do not have this conversation because it requires some ‘bad news’ messaging,” said professor of environmental communications, Dr. Elizabeth Kryder. “It requires leaders to talk about mankind’s negative impact on the earth and how we need to change some of our behaviors.” However diﬃcult it may be, the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy is a reminder that it is time for politicians to acknowledge the problem and prepare effective counter-measures. “The damage caused by Hurricane Sandy is certainly indicative of the kinds of impacts we would expect to be caused by more intense weather events related to global warming,” said professor of environmental policy, Dr. Robert Wilkinson, “Whether this specific storm is definitively linked to climate change is not the point. We seem to be slow learners in this country. One would hope it will not take too many more tragic events for the United States to get serious about climate policy.”

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The Bottom Line | Nov. 7 - Nov. 13

page 3 | Features

UCSB Women, Gender, & Building Isla Vista Sexual Equity Department A Town History Making a Difference by PATRICK SHEEHAN

by JOANNE HOWARD Staff Writer

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Diversity among students is especially important on a campus like the University of California Santa Barbara. That’s why the Women, Gender, & Sexual Equity Department is an imperative resource for any student who faces sexual harassment or gender discrimination. Within WGSE are four program areas: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Resources (LGBT); Non-Traditional Student Resource Center; Rape Prevention Education Program (RPEP) and Women’s Center Programs (WC). The department also oversees three spaces: Non-traditional Student Resource Center, the Resource Center for Sexual & Gender Diversity (RCSGD) and the Women’s Center. I sat down with Rape Prevention Education Program and Women’s Center Programs director Jill Dunlap, along with Women’s Center student staffer Hannah Brown and RCSGD director Joshua Moon Johnson to learn more about their work. Since 1975, the Women’s Center has offered a sheltering space for students, staff, faculty and community members to explore matters of gender and social justice. While their mission statement, found at the women’s center website, articulates “a feminist approach to provide support, advocacy, resources and education to the UCSB community,” their programs are open to men as well. In fact, Brown says many male students first get involved as RAs who are working on passives, educational materials that can easily be displayed on bulletin boards, focusing on rape or sexual harassment for their residence halls. The Women’s Center in the Student Resource Building is also a space for discovering new resources about personal identity, healthy relationships and safety at UCSB; the center additionally includes a library and art gallery that feature themes of gender and social justice. “Safety is clearly still an issue for women on campus,” Dunlap says, especially

around Halloween. Brown cites the many visitors from out of town who come to Isla Vista without the benefit of rape and sexual harassment education that UCSB students are required to complete as a reason for a spike in harassment this time of year. To

of their gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, age or disability. Johnson, who holds a Doctor of Education degree, names lower graduation rates among LGBTQ students as reason to believe they are less likely to be happy with their college experience. Therefore the RCSGD is an important center committed to education, healing and recovery. Career staff members meet with students one on one about challenges with professors, roommates or any incidents of hate or bias, Johnson said. The center also holds trainings for RAs, orientation staffers and TAs to educate them about hate crimes as well as how to properly respond to such cases. However, the ambitious goals set by the center are difficult with only the two career staff members. In partnership with the UCSB LGBTQ Staff and Counseling Services, Women’s Center, Associated Students and Residence Life, Eucalyptus (the University committee on LGBTQ climate) is proposing a $10,000 fund to “support three UCSB student trainers and a student coordinator to schedule bystander intervention workshops. Three UCSB peereducators will schedule at least one workshop presentation a week for non-LGBTQ student organizations,” according to the proposal summary document, which can be picked up at the RCSGD located on the third floor of the SRB. This fund would help RCSGD reach its long-term goal of increasing student leadership development. The Women’s Center and RCSGD are just two of the many programs within the WGSE Department. However, all the programs work towards WGSE’s mission of “creating a campus environment that is safe, equitable, and just.” The WGSE Department is located in room 1220 in the Student Resource Building. Students looking to learn more are encouraged to follow UCSB Women’s Center on Facebook or @ucsbwomenscen on Twitter and Instagram.

Within WGSE are four program areas: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Resources (LGBT); Non-Traditional Student Resource Center; Rape Prevention Education Program (RPEP) and Women’s Center Programs (WC).

[ ] The Women’s Center carries out other initiatives such as encouraging better female representation in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) ﬁelds.

combat this, she says the university should encourage women to be comfortable in a costume that is creative rather than simply revealing. The Women’s Center carries out other initiatives such as encouraging better female representation in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields and connecting women student leaders from feminist, Panhellenic and athletic organizations to better foster female leadership not only within the university and during enrollment, but also in the surrounding community and after graduation. Like the Women’s Center, RCSGD is dedicated to providing a safe and welcoming environment for all people, especially for those who face bias because

Questions

with a Resident Director

Cari Urabe Manzanita Village Resident Director

by COURTNEY HAMPTON Staff Writer

Q. What is the best part of your job? A. My favorite part of the job is working with our students. I enjoy working with a large staff here in Manzanita, but I also love the interactions I have with students through the groups that I advise as well as the people that I meet through other various meetings. I am grateful that I get to do things that I am interested in, such as working with the Multicultural Awareness Chairs and iBuddy, which we just started this year in the residence halls. Also, we have a pretty fantastic professional and paraprofessional staff that work in Residential and Community Living which make living where you work pretty wonderful. Plus, I live in the Rainbow House in Manzanita Village and love this community. Q. Describe a memorable moment while on the job. A.I think my most memorable moment while on the job would be seeing RAs that I used to supervise become Assistant Resident Directors and working with them in their new role. That happened to me this year, where the two ARDs that currently work in Manzanita used to be on my staff two years ago. It has been amazing working with them again and that has been a highlight for me this year.

Photo Courtesy of | Cari Urabe Q. What is the worst part of your job? A. My least favorite thing about this job is that I can’t do this longer. This is my third and last year as a Resident Director, so I am definitely going to miss living and working in Manzanita. Q. Res Life hosts many ﬂoor events to help integrate. Which one was your favorite that you have attended? A. SI think there are so many fun and engaging programs that are offered throughout the year. My favorite programs are the ones that are held off campus such as hikes or boat rides on the double dolphin to experience more of what Santa Barbara has to offer. Q. What makes UCSB’s residential life unique? A. Residential life at UCSB is really wonderful because there are a lot of professionals who care about our students. People here love what they do and that really shows. That goes for our Housing and Residential Services department—from the time I wake up and see our maintenance staff around Manzanita, to seeing our RAs interacting with their residents in the day and ending with dinner in the dining commons, there are just so many staff here that do a good job and provide excellent service to our students.

Isla Vista was not built in a day. It took geological time for IV to rise from a beach to a beach-side mesa and millennia before European colonization ravaged the Chumash settlements on its bluffs. But through 19th century Mexican ownership and a few failed stints of farming and asphalt mining in the early 20th century, Isla Vista remained almost completely undeveloped at the end of World War II. In 1948, when the University of California Regents acquired a Marine base on the east end of the bluff to build a Santa Barbara campus, IV’s most regular residents were goats and cows . The development of Isla Vista from pasture to present has been a turbulent and variegated process shaped by remarkable struggles to define its trajectory. From bank burnings to community gardens, police riots to public sit-ins, building occupations to all-out street warfare, Isla Vista’s history is the story of how a little town by the sea, cynically thrown together by proprietors chasing maximum profits, became a community through the insistently defiant pride and dreams of the students and residents that lived it. The official opening of University of California Santa Barbara in 1958 and steadily growing enrollment rates in its first years fuelled a building boom in neighboring Isla Vista that would have momentous consequences for the emerging community. In anticipation of a lucrative student-housing market, a handful of Isla Vista landowners (many with connections to offshore oil ventures and all with significant influence on Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors) hatched plans to zone the area so that they could extract maximum profit from it. Using their political leverage on the County Board, they designed and pushed through a custom-made “Student-Residential” (SR-2 and SR-4) zoning ordinance for IV that permitted a density of residents unheard of in California . In a speech given in support of the casually crammed zoning order, an IV developer poised to profit from it offered that, “students arrive with a back pack and a surfboard.” Through these dubious dealings, the UCSB administration remained ominously absent. Despite pressure from IV residents and planners for the University to supervise IV’s rapid growth, the administration made clear that it did not wish to “interfere with the private affairs of any developer in this area .” Where the administration could have taken IV under its wing—the way UCSC and UCSD have with their neighboring communities—it chose instead a handsoff approach to keep focus on building the young university’s academic prestige. With bare-minimum regulation in place and university oversight absent, IV grew at a reckless speed in the 1960s as developers threw up shabby housing units and charged student-tenants exorbitant rates. “We’ll build until we run out of room,” one cheerful developer explained . Most developers and investors did not live in Isla Vista, and in the boom there was virtually no planning for public services or community health. The new Isla Vista had sewage problems, no public parks or transportation, inadequate parking space, no medical services and a peculiar absence of sidewalks and streetlights. In this first decade of development in the 1960s, IV came to resemble an urban ghetto in many respects: isolated, with a transient population, absentee-owned housing and with a police force that patrolled the territory with a heavy-hand. As students settled into Isla Vista’s bedrooms and beaches, however, they made something new of the haphazard town. A series of student-led actions at UCSB and in IV roughly over the years 1968-1974 changed the trajectory of development in Isla Vista radically— it went from one dominated by powerful elites and headed toward slumhood, to one concerned with democracy, community wellbeing and collective self-determination. This surge of activism in IV and on campus was motivated by national as well as local concerns. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, America was going through a full-fledged social crisis in which many structures of authority and order appeared to be breaking down; there were massive protests against the Vietnam War, increasing violence surrounding the civil rights movement and uncontrollable urban unrest. Young people, who were central to these movements, were simultaneously incubating a decidedly anti-authoritarian counterculture that challenged established values and lifestyles. To many, the whole edifice of American life appeared to be crumbling. The crisis was palpable in IV as well. The catastrophic 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill, rampant police misconduct and brutality and an abhorrent housing situation hit students hard. In the face of these and other offenses of authority in IV and around the country, Isla Vistans rose up in a flurry of actions that confronted the powers-that-be continued on page 8

The Bottom Line | Nov. 7 - Nov. 13

page 4 | Opinions

The Shortcomings and Disappointments of Icon by MARGARITA BALIYAN Walking in to my new apartment, I was stoked. Newly-constructed building, ocean view from my bedroom window, gorgeous black stone showers—believe me, I felt like the luckiest Isla Vista tenant to ever sign what I later realized to be a convoluted lease. I had just moved in to the Icon building: that big, orange blip in the way of everyone else’s ocean view. It had been under construction all of last year and when I signed my lease, I was nervous it wouldn’t be built in time for fall quarter. It turns out that’s not all I should have been biting my nails about. Let me tell you that when I signed my lease, I was deliriously happy. I had seen projected illustrations of what my apartment would look like as well as material about our “state-of-theart, ocean view” gym and study room and was convinced this was the place for me. I loved that the apartment came fully furnished with full beds, an in-unit washer and dryer, a flat screen TV with Internet and cable. My bedroom would have its own balcony and my apartment would have a private rooftop (to study on, of course, what’s a party?). I couldn’t imagine anything better. Which is why I was willing to pay the cringingly steep rent—$999 per person. Now before I explain my frustration with Icon, I have to elaborate on my rent situation. My parents give me $700 every month—and I am so grateful for that—but I have to cover the difference ($300 for rent, $50 for utilities, $200 for my sushi addiction etc.), meaning I have to work to live where I live. What is frustrating is that the reasons I was willing to pay $999 instead of the more common rent between 600 and 700 bucks a month— the gym, the study room, free Internet, hinted promise of a sauna and pool—didn’t translate from marketing material to real life. Upon move-in, the only furniture in my “furnished apartment” was my bed, and it was a twin, not a full as promised. My shower wasn’t working, and it was covered in grout. The stairs had plywood peeking out and the door to the rooftop deck wouldn’t shut properly. The kitchen, a kitchen that six people were supposed to comfortably use, had the shelf space of about four shoeboxes stacked together and the refrigerator was about a foot bigger than the standard mini fridge. Our dishwasher was not working. My “private” balcony was shared with the house next door (thank the IV gods that the guys next door are great and not scary creeper children). The construction on the building itself was grossly unfinished; you could practically shoot an apocalyptic zombie film in the hallways with the raw building materials strewn about, the caution tape everywhere and the general atmosphere of an abandoned construction zone. The fitness center and study room—the

An Icon Resident’s Experience

Photo by Margarita Baliyan | The Bottom Line For a monthly rent totaling almost $1000 per person, the newly constructed Icon apartments may not be providing all that tenants expect. main reasons I chose to move to Icon, were nowhere to be found. But I dealt with it. I was way too happy to be living on my own in IV, with a gorgeous view, a rooftop deck, in a new apartment. I was a happy baby and I confident that everything would work itself out eventually. Not the case. My optimistic naïveté turned out to be just that. My Internet didn’t work for five days at a time for the first month and continues to be spotty at best. My shower was “fixed,” but has atrocious water pressure and heats up to about ten degrees below adequate. The missing furniture took weeks to arrive and the promised extras, such as a second couch (the first is more of a love seat), still haven’t been installed. Half the unfinished steps are now temporarily carpeted, the other half are still plywood. The construction around the building seems to have stopped but many things remain unfinished, with peeking plywood and remnants of caution tape. The cement walkway outside of my unit was unfinished, forcing me and my housemates to evacuate our home for eight hours for four days while it was being worked on. My bathroom sink was leaking and molded over before the landlord finally got it fixed. A unit a few doors down had to call the health inspector after they discovered a deep black mushroom growing randomly from one of their walls. The fitness center, one of the main rea-

sons I was willing to pay so much for my spot in the building, wasn’t completed until a couple of weeks ago—and it’s less “state of the art” and more like “two ellipticals crammed into a bedroom sized area.” And the ocean view? Yeah, no. The machines all look out onto The Loop’s (much, much better) gym instead of the ocean. And it’s not just crappy layout, it’s shoddy construction; the tenants living right below the gym complain about how their plates rattle when someone is working out. The study center, the other main reason I signed on to live at Icon, has been completed this past week. It is the size of one of the smaller classrooms at Girvetz and a humongous conference table fills the whole thing. It’d be a lovely place to have a section, but it doesn’t exactly match up to the study room we were promised. Even now when you look at their website, they promise the “state-of-the-art fitness center will have plenty of cardio equipment with individual televisions, strength machines and free weights. [reality: two ellipticals, two treadmills, two bikes, all poor quality] For early risers and night owls, our gym will be open 24 hours a day, and will have amazing ocean views!” and “All of our units will feature private balconies,” among other hyped up assurances. Now the last thing I want to do is sound like a whiny, ungrateful brat. I know how lucky I

am to live in such a great (despite its flaws) place. But what really pushes my buttons is the way I have been treated as a tenant. It isn’t about the fact that my unit and the promised amenities such as included Internet and access to a fitness center and study lounge are blatantly not up to par. It is about the fact that my landlord does not give a quarter of a damn about it. There is a huge discrepancy between what Icon promised and what they have provided. At every turn, our requests were met with delayed response or simply ignored. Spoken promises weren’t carried out. I was told by one of the owners that it was my fault my expectations weren’t met, that if I choose to move into an apartment still under construction, I should expect that it “sucks.” Under these circumstances, I would take my money and go live at a reasonably priced apartment with a normal landlord, but my lease prohibits that from happening unless I find someone to replace me. I’m an understanding person—I get that everyone doing their best but with that said, I am not okay with being disrespected and misled as a tenant just because I am a college student with no perceived clout. It is unethical and reprehensible for Icon to renege on advertised promises and I will do everything I can to hold them accountable.

The Art of Language What’s Your Ride? Why language and our understanding of it matters

by CAMILA MARTINEZ-GRANATA Opinions Editor Language (noun): a body of words and the systems for their use common to a people who are of the same community or nation, the same geographical region, or the same cultural traditions. This is but a mere ambiguous definition of language and whom it applies to. Yes, this definition is from the dictionary. No, I don’t agree with it. From the naive age of five, every individual in America is sent to school, with the purpose to gain knowledge in math, science, literature and so on. The great odyssey of our education in the 21st century continues until we reach our undergraduate career in college—often times we choose to venture beyond that. Along the way, we are taught a particular set of grammar rules, speech structures and vocabulary that is socially acceptable. The truth is, our language and the way we speak is molded and controlled by how advisers of education and manufacturers of textbook companies want individuals to speak, write and think. The assumption that if you teach a person how to compose all aspects of expressing themselves in a cold, structured manner will make them a better citizen is a fallacy. It’s conformity. Not individuality. I can compromise on the fact that in elementary and middle schools the structure of the English language is impertinent to increasing the intelligence and improvement of future generations. It’s obvious—language is how we communicate. But there is no way that a school’s curriculum can capture the unground dialects and slangs that exist in every community. I remember the first time I heard the f-word: I asked my teacher what it meant—and aside from sending me to the principal’s oﬃce, she didn’t even answer my question. It’s undeniable that aside from our academic careers, as children we are exposed to swear words, slang and other terms that we don’t learn in school. There is a widespread fear that if we allow

our youth to know terms we give a negative connotation to, they’ll sound “stupid.” Just because I use the word “hella” or “hyphy” doesn’t mean that I’m not going to pass the 11th grade or not score a 5 on an English Advanced Placement test. By the time I left high school, I already had a sense of my own style of writing and speaking—regardless of the suggestions from teachers to improve my style. It isn’t a matter of sounding educated or smarter than someone—people equate diction with intelligence. It’s a misconception we’ve been taught since that very young age of five, and it’s created unfair stereotypes and restrictions in self-expression. How can you prove this assumption wrong? Take a look at the versatile body of students we have at University of California Santa Barbara. There are people of all walks of life— from different cities, states and countries with different economic statuses. You have all been accepted into this university because you were academically qualified to be here. Everyone at UCSB is united by this common thread—and everyone here has the freedom to speak, think and write how they want. Spoken word, media organizations and groups like Laughology remind us that while we might not be able to use certain vernacular in a term paper, we can still express our lives, thoughts and emotions as we please. Is it because we’re at college and young adults? Maybe. In an ironic way, the years of sitting in an English class and having to distinguish a gerund from a predicate has paid off. Not because people can be accepted into colleges—but because the only thing left to do with our language is to manipulate it. We can create new meanings by putting two words together. Instead of writing about an event, we can describe and stimulate the details and feelings under which that event occurred. You can experience what it was like to feel, see or be part of something—with the simple use of words. Language is an art. You have to learn to hold a paintbrush before you can paint. And from there, your possibilities are endless.

A Look at Different Types of Bikes on Campus by JORDAN WOLFF

As a total newbie to the University of California Santa Barbara, I showed up this summer knowing that I would need to find a good and affordable bike. So I purchased my bright, nearly blindingly orange cruiser with very little knowledge of the bike culture surrounding Isla Vista and UCSB. Let’s just say I quickly learned the way of things as I was immediately thrown into the bike scene of herdlike Los Angeles traﬃc, high speed NASCAR crashes and the very unappealing threat of bike theft. My first day of school was not only an introduction to academics but also a brutal awakening to the biking world of UCSB. This summer I found myself biking everywhere. I was biking to Freebirds. I was biking to the library, to the beach and to the bookstore. I found myself checking out the scenic Obern bike trails. I even biked to Arroyo Burro Beach (Hendry’s) on a very brave day; my legs are still sore. But with all this biking and with so many bikers and bikes, it got me thinking—is a cruiser the right bike for me, and what the hell are those things zipping by me every day on the bike path? What bikes prove to be the best, and why? The gist of my investigation has brought me to five types of bikes: road bikes, mountain bikes, fixies and cruisers. Third-year psychology major James Thurston talked to me about the mysterious death trap known as a fixed gear, commonly called a fixie. “It’s an awesome single gear bike. It’s very light and fast but it doesn’t have brakes.” What? No brakes? Thurston went onto to say, “It’s definitely very exciting to ride because it’s pretty dangerous. You have to think ahead and know if this person crashes ahead of me where am I going to go? Still not over the idea of no brakes, I asked if there had been any close calls by which he said, “Yeah definitely with those cars. If they dart out in front of you, you have

to jump off your bike or smash into them.” Thurston concluded by saying, “A fixie is a fun bike but it’s not for novice riders. You should get used to a mountain bike or something like that first.” So, respect and props to you fixie riders; they’re not for the faint of heart. The next bike I explored was the mountain bike. Fourth-year environmental studies major Alex Camille told me she has a mountain bike with a cruiser seat. When I asked her if she liked her bike Camille said, “Yes, I like my bike. I like it based on convenience. It’s dark green so that shows I don’t care what it looks like.” Then she compared it to a road bike, stating,“Road bikes are a lot lighter but I don’t have to worry about riding on dirt in my mountain bike. I can do whatever I want.” The idea of having no restrictions sounds very appealing, so maybe my next bike will be a mountain bike—but please, with some gears. Bike theft is a blatant issue at UCSB, along with the multitudes of obstacles bikers have to dodge while on their way to class, home or even Freebirds. Fourth-year sociology major Daniella Florant told me that in her first quarter at UCSB, a Prius backed into her. She emphatically warned me, “Beware of the f*cking Priuses!” Or as Florant likes to calls them, “the silent killers.” The last thing Florant told me was, “The nicer the bike, the more likely it is to be stolen. Having a rusty bike means you know what you’re doing.” I am currently putting dirt and rust on my bike as you read this. So what’s cool to ride? From what I gathered, it depends on its use and purpose. If you like to ride long distances, a lightweight road bike and some gears would suit you. If you want versatility, a mountain bike might be something to look into. If you want a fast and thrilling ride, check out a fixie. It seems to me that the “coolest” bikes are the ones that appeal to each person. And so I am reassured that my blinding bright orange cruiser is the bike for me. You’ll know me if you see it; it’s that orange and that cool.

The Bottom Line | Nov. 7 - Nov. 13

page 5 | Arts & Entertainment

Introducing the Youngest King’s New Band:

Smoke & Jackal

by JORDAN WOLFF Bassist Jared Followhill of Kings of Leon might not be the first king you think of when you picture the epic rock band, but in his side project, Smoke & Jackal, he’s front and center. Smoke & Jackal is a unique collaboration between Followhill and singer/guitarist Nick Brown of the band Mona. These two Tennessee natives and longtime friends figured it was as good a time as any to experiment with a brand new sound and project, which resulted in Smoke & Jackal. The duo released “EP No. 1” on Oct. 9, which is a six song, 21-minute experiment characterized by its very smooth sound, cool echoes, refreshing sound waves and skillful texture. Think Radiohead meets Foster the People, but probably not quite as good as either. Still, this side project is no small appetizer; it’s a full course meal with plenty to go around. When asked in a Rolling Stone interview about the inspiration behind the band and how the tour break of Kings of Leon influenced the creation, Followhill replied, “I knew that I would go a little bit stir-crazy just not doing anything and not having any artistic outlets.” He then went on to say, “It was super spurof-the-moment.” Brown chimed in by describing the mindset of the band, saying that “We made a rule of ‘no pressure,’” and “The second: if it’s not fun, we’re leaving. We’ll go to a bar.” The EP itself is a pretty awesome listen. It starts off with the song “Fall Around,” which immediately sets the mood for the entire album with its enchanting guitar riffs and hypnotic lyrics. Like the whole album, it’s loaded with an engulfing sound of reverberation. In “Fall Around,” Brown chants lyrical rhythms describing dirty (but enticing) and suggestive love in a delicious aural concoction. Immediately after comes the intriguing single,

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“No Tell.” Instrumentally, it’s very ambient and supplies the same cool formula as the previous song, but with more bass lines and a new perspective of the same vibe. It might not be a surprise for some fans, because “No Tell” was a single that came out several weeks before the EP. The song introduced me to the band and by itself is well worth the listen. The rest of the EP is pretty balanced and fairly stacked for a debut side project. I was actually pretty impressed with the other songs that weren’t marketed by the band. For example, “You’re Lost” is an unexpected gem that begins with a relaxing, but stunningly eerie blend of sound and escalates to a strong dynamic peak. While the other songs seem to be a lyrical proclamation for loose love, “You’re Lost” actually hits deep substantial undertones of meaning. It might just be me, but those are the songs that draw me in the most. Plus, I’m an authentic guitar lover, and the guitar solo of this song is particularly captivating. Normally I reject listening to songs with very little lyrics and repetitive choruses, but this one works for me. My only knock on it would be the fact that it is very repetitive. Despite that one shortcoming, I thoroughly enjoyed listening to it. It’s been known for a while by die hard Kings of Leon fans that Followhill was the brother with the cool taste for music and the indie rock spirit that jump started the band’s flavor, but now we’re reassured of it with Smoke & Jackal’s debut. And if you’re worrying whether or not this side band will jeopardize the focus of KoL, calm your jets. Followhill is currently working with his rock band family to follow up their last KoL album, “Come Around Sun Down.” Followhill even said Caleb Followhill, his older brother and fellow KoL member, is a supporter of the new band. So do yourself a favor and check out Smoke & Jackal on Spotify. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Script to Screen Series Set to Bring Hollywood Screenwriters to UCSB

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by CHRISTY VAN BEEK Renowned Hollywood screenwriters will make appearances at University of California Santa Barbara this November as part of the Carsey-Wolf Center and Pollock Theater’s “Script to Screen” event series. Tom Schulman, the Oscar-winning writer of “Dead Poets Society,” and Kirsten Smith and Karen McCullah, who wrote “10 Things I Hate About You,” will be headlining the events on Nov. 8 and Nov. 29, respectively. Both events will take place at Pollock Theater at 7 p.m. The Carsey-Wolf Center and the department of Film and Media Studies present several events focusing on screenwriting each year as part of the “Script to Screen” series. Introduced in 2011 by Matt Ryan and Joe Palladino, these events concentrate on the translation of screenplays to films, and offer students a chance to learn about how the scripts of many popular movies were successfully adapted by actors, directors and writers. According to Ryan, the series works toward creating an event that students “won’t get anywhere else” through exploring the inner workings of a screenplay alongside its creators. Because Pollock Theater accommodates an audience of only 300, students’ questions are fielded directly and more personally than larger events. The pair of events will include a screening of the films as well as a question and answer forum with the screenwriters, where students will have the opportunity to discuss how the decisions of the film’s creators and contributors affected the finished products. A costume contest and chance to win prizes will conclude the events. Past “Script to Screen” events have included a screening of “Back to the Future” and a Q&A with Christopher Lloyd, who played Dr. Emmett Brown in the film; another event featured an evening with the animator Don Hertzfeldt, a UCSB alumnus and producer of the Academy Award-nominated film “Rejected.” Ryan said that the last few events have featured scene readings taken from parts of the scripts, a portion of the events that the actors and writers especially enjoy and that students find notably interesting because it “gives them a different view of how the screenwriter wrote the script.” For students interested in screenwriting who don’t know where to begin or how to write an engaging script, learning how familiar scripts were written “makes the process seem less diﬃcult,” and encourages them to keep writing. The Carsey-Wolf Center holds many other events throughout the year, working in collaboration with several media initiatives to expand students’ understanding and knowledge of various forms of media literacy. As one of many job opportunities for students available through the center, the Pollock Theater offers a unique internship for students interested in the production and direction of theater events. In addition to attending workshops, Pollock interns are given first-hand experience working on media events like the “Script to Screen” series. Students interested in screenwriting or film studies benefit not only from the advice and perspective of writers who have translated their storytelling vision to Hollywood, but also from the opportunity to become a part of the expanding department of media studies. The interns produce and direct six “Script to Screen” events each year, two per quarter, and work hard to find engaging films that will appeal to a wide audience. In the words of Ryan, “the goal is to choose films that both students and the community will connect to,” but the interests of the students take center stage. Considering that there is a limited number of opportunities to speak one-on-one with well-known screenwriters of popular and beloved films, it is arguable that the “Script to Screen” events do nothing short of placing student interests at the forefront and in the limelight.

“I knew that I would go a little bit stir-crazy just not doing anything and not having any artistic outlets. It was super spur-ofthe-moment.” - Jared Followhill, Kings of Leon Bassist

Photo Courtesy of | Carsey-Wolf Center

Hoodie Allen Performs in the Hub: A Photo Recap Hip-hop rapper Hoodie Allen performs for a large audience on Friday Nov. 2 as part of the Fall concert series.

Photos by Morey Spellman | The Bottom Line

The Bottom Line | Nov. 7 - Nov. 13

page 6 | Health & Lifestyles

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Birth Control Pills and LARCs by FRANCESCA KENTISH Staff Writer There has been a growing change in the type of contraceptives women use—from the more traditional contraceptive pill to longacting reversible contraceptives (LARCs), such as intrauterine devices (IUDs) and hormonal arm implants. According to the National Survey of Family Growth from CDC, the number of women between 15 and 44 using the pill has decreased. In 2002, 19.2 percent of women interviewed used the pill compared to 17.1 percent between 2006 and 2010. The amount of women using IUDs has gone up from 1.3 percent to 3.5 percent. Healthcare providers

are now saying that the IUD is more effective and that doctors should be recommending it as a contraceptive method. Before IUDs were recommended for women who already had a child or in a long term monogamous relationship, but now it is being suggested that doctors should offer LARCs as an alternative for young women and should not just suggest the pill. The IUD is a small T-shaped plastic device that releases either copper or progesterone and is fitted by a doctor through the cervix into the womb. It is very effective as a long term contraceptive as it can stay in place for up to 10 years and is about 99 percent effective against pregnancy. After removal women have no problems in getting pregnant. The IUD works by damaging and killing sperm and the egg. If the egg does

manage to get fertilized the IUD makes it harder for it to implant in the uterus. The progesterone can stop some women from ovulating. The implant is a small tube inserted under the skin in the upper arm, and releases progestogen. They are around 99 percent effective for at least three years. They stop ovulation and thicken the mucus in the cervix, making it diﬃcult for sperm to reach an egg. They also make the lining of the women thinner making it hard for a fertilized egg to implant. The contraceptive pill is a pill that is taken orally on a daily basis. It works by stopping ovulation, thickening vaginal fluids so sperm can’t get in to the womb and making the womb slippery so eggs can’t stick to it. It is around 99 percent effective if taken perfectly. It reduces periods, can

In the Aftermath of War: Veterans by COURTNEY HAMPTON Staff Writer The Emmy-award winning documentary “Where Soldiers Come From” will premiere Monday, Nov. 5 in IV Theater 2 at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Following the 7 p.m. showing, there will be a Q & A with Dominic Fredianelli, an artist and soldier depicted in the film. Director Heather Courtney documents a group of childhood friends from Upper Peninsula Michigan who join the National Guard after high school in order to gain support for college tuition and a receive a hefty signing bonus. The film chronicles their transformation from youths to soldiers repeatedly bombed in Afghanistan, and their struggle to readapt to civilian life. Courtney will discuss the process of making the documentary in the McCune Conference Room (HSSB 6020) on Thursday, Nov.,8 at 3 p.m. The Interdisciplinary Humanities Center (IHC) of the University of California Santa Barbara will be hosting the event. The IHC promotes dialogue between different disciplines, such as the humanities or sciences, by granting money to seminars, lectures and conferences. This year’s IHC theme, “Fallout: In the Aftermath of War,” discusses the impact of war on society. The series combines psychology, history, art, political science and other disciplines to explore war through film, readings and artwork. About 85 faculty, graduate students, student-veterans and undergraduates attended the inaugural lecture, “War in History and Memory,” where Professor John E. Talbott from the UCSB history department discussed the history of warfare and forms of war stories. Emily Zinn, Associate Director of the IHC, commented that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have dropped out of the news, making it more important to bring to light veteran issues. “We decided that in general, so much energy and our tax dollars are going to fund these wars, but there hasn’t been enough dialogue around it,” said Zinn. “Unlike the Vietnam War where you couldn’t ignore it, it’s been easier for our generation to ignore our wars because it’s an all-volunteer army.” Certainly Heather Courtney’s documentary cannot be ignored, as it brings the war in Afghanistan to the viewer’s backyard, showing how the war has drastically affected average families in irrevocable ways. Dominic, Cole and Bodi, 19 and 20 year-olds, are the main subjects of the film. They are full of boyish spunk in the beginning of the film, fueled with a desire to do something with their lives and take a break from their small town. The transition from Michigan to training camp occurs when Courtney overlaps shots of the boys diving off a tower into the Great Lakes with a bomb sailing down onto an armored truck. The fun and games of training dissolves when it is announced that they are to be deployed. Suddenly, the boys are faced with the reality of their situation. “We’ve talk about what it’s going to be like to leave, what it’s going to be like to come back,” said Fredianelli. “We don’t really

A soldier on the set of the ﬁlm in Afghanistan.

talk about what if one of us gets shot, who’s going to pick him up.” He shook his head. “Crazy.” The boys are deployed to Base Salerno in Afghanistan, where they drive armored cars, sweeping for Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) before other troops go in behind them. Their excitement transforms to bitterness and confusion as the thrill of seeking out IEDs fades. “What of the point of this?” asks Fredianelli. “Who are we fighting for?” Bodi wonders if it will end because every time they locate an IED, there is another waiting to almost kill them around the corner. They drink Nyquil to sleep at night, lose weight and suffer from massive headaches and concussions caused by their trucks getting blown up. Eventually, Bodi is permanently grounded because he has suffered from too many concussions. The beauty of the film is in its direct attitude. Instead of providing any voiceover commentary, Courtney lets the soldiers and their loved ones speak for themselves. One of the most heartaching moments of the film occurs when Cole’s father discusses the absence of his son. “Every time the phone rings, you wonder if it’s him calling or…” he says before he grows silent. This silence speaks loudly of the terror of receiving a notification that his son is dead. By the end of the film, it becomes clear that the war is not quite over for the young men as they transition back to their civilian lives, reconnecting with loved ones and returning to school. “I never really hated anyone until I joined the Army,” says Bodi. “I think I’m stuck here [Afghanistan]. My soul is trapped in this shit box place of a country.” Above all, they worry about suffering from Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, TBI occurs when the head sustains a heavy blow that causes trauma to the brain. Symptoms include headaches, dizziness, fatigue and behavioral or mood changes. All of the boys in Where Soldiers Come From complain of these symptoms. Worse yet, they worry that there is no way to reverse the effects of TBI and they have no idea when their brains will simply shut down as a result of the trauma. According to the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, United States Forces have reported 253,330 cases of TBI since 2000. Additionally, TBI is often coupled with combat stress, so it is diﬃcult to distinguish post-traumatic stress disorder from TBI. However, the men from Where Soldiers Come From appear to slowly move on. While Bodi begins to see a psychiatrist to talk through his bitterness from the war, Cole goes back to school and Dominic pursues his interests in mural art. Dominic Fredianelli will work with UCSB art students to express his and other veteran-students’ experiences in war from Nov. 3-6 in the UCSB Art Department Sculpture Yard. The finished product, a mural, will be installed in the IHC Oﬃce before finding a permanent home on campus, according to Emily Zinn. More information for the IHC series “Fallout: In the Aftermath of War,” including future events, can be found at http:// www.ihc.ucsb.edu/series/fallout/.

Photo Courtesy of | Heather Courtney

reduce acne and has been linked to reducing the risk of ovary, womb and colon cancer. Third-year anthropology major Hayley Gardiner said, “The permanence of a hormonal implant is worrying if it affects you badly and I think that if you have a routine it’s not too hard to remember to take [the pill].” There are still downsides to all these methods of contraception. None of them will prevent sexually transmitted infections. While the progesterone IUD diminishes periods, the copper one can lead to heavier and more painful ones. The progesterone IUD through releasing a very low amount of hormones can induce negative side effects like depression. In rare cases it can be painfully continued on page 8

Food versus Faith, a Look at Alternative Cures by BEN FAN Staff Writer

Cures come in all shapes and sizes, particularly because of the numerous advancements in modern medicine. However, alternative methods of remedying illnesses do exist and have actually been just as effective—with twice the emotional impact. Two of the major restoratives that I took a look at are the use of certain foods, such as yams being used to cure lymphoma, as well as the practices of various religions and cultures of the Orient. Dr. Dale Figtree, a nutritional health practitioner in the Santa Barbara area, has had firsthand experience with the powers of good food. To be more specific, Figtree turned to yams and various vegetables and vegetable juices to fight a lymphatic tumor discovered in her chest area. After exhausting all forms of conventional medicine prescribed to treat the tumor, she sought out a nutritionist who prescribed “three meals a day of large, large quantities of high nutrient foods—80 percent raw foods and 20 percent cooked.” During the program to restore her health, Figtree consumed “1 lb. of yams four times a week for dinner along with 1 lb. of cooked vegetables, 1 lb. of salad and an 8 oz. glass of freshly made vegetable juice.” She stuck with the program and started a cleansing process to rid her body of any substance that might compromise her immune system. Three years later, a CT scan revealed that all signs of the tumor and cancer were gone. However, Figtree does not simply enjoy the benefits of the process without knowing the workings behind it. Sometime after her recovery, she read a book by Dr. Harold Mannors that detailed experiments Mannors was performing with mice that were bred to have breast tumors. Approximately 80 percent of the mice were healed by ingesting three things: protein digesting enzymes, large quantities of vitamin A and laetril, otherwise known as vitamin B17. She then realized why the nutritionist who helped her prescribed such a large quantity of yams—within yams exist two out of three prerequisites for healing; their high carotene content is processed by the body into vitamin A as well as laetril. Combined with protein-digesting enzymes found in other parts of the diet, the program mirrors Mannors’ success with healing breast tumors in mice. Although Figtree’s remedy borders on the alternative medicine category, according to Professor Vesna Wallace, it was found that metaphysical methods of remedies existed deep within Oriental culture. Professor Wallace, who is primarily interested in the regions of India, Tibet and Mongolia, explained the spiritual practices of Indian and Tibetan Buddhist medicine as well as shamanic works in Mongolia. In Buddhist medicine, patients are indeed given typical medicine, but they are also prescribed things such as mental cultivation and temple rituals as a kind of supplement to their well-being. In Buddhist medicine, the link between the mind and the body is direct; improving the mind will help the body, and healing the body will aid the mind. Things such as mantra recitations and the mental visualization of the “medicine Buddha” are encouraged. Wallace describes the blue color of the medicine Buddha as “like a soothing color, a color that calms inflammations, passions, mental afflictions that may give rise to disorders in the body like excessive greed, jealousy, anger, hatred. These primary mental afflictions may give rise to all kinds of physical disorders.” There are also miraculous stories of shamanic work in the region of Mongolia; one such story details a Tibetan woman who lived a life of luxury, but became a nun after her child went to college. A man with an ocular disability came to her, and seeing that he was on the verge of blindness, she proclaimed that she would be willing to give her own eyes for him. Upon hearing the statement, the blind man regained his sight. Another story is that of a young Mongolian boy riddled with illness that severely weakened him; after visiting a shaman who initially declared him dead, the shaman told the boy to hold a cup of vodka with a paper over it and the cup changed from vodka to blood, pus, and maggots that were apparently harming the health of the boy, who recovered fully after the event. Whether they have scientific support or purely spiritual aﬃrmation, cures of various kinds do exist. In the case of Figtree, the scientific support is clearly there in the experiments of Mannors. Through consumption of powerful foods, Figtree’s tumor was cured and now she is able to share the miracle of it with those around her. From Professor Wallace’s stories, I gleaned the inexplicable power of the human faith in restoring one’s physical health. When interviewing freshman James Smith on what he felt about both sides, he merely replied, “Food heals the body, but spirituality heals the mind,” which is indeed a testament to current views on the topic.

The Bottom Line | Nov. 7 - Nov. 13

Assassin’s Creed Kills the Competition One of the Most Anticipated Video Games of 2012 by MATT MERSEL Staff Writer

Since its bombastic debut in 2007, the “Assassin’s Creed” series has become one of the biggest names in gaming. Players have been treated to a high concept experience that spans the entire globe and thousands of years of history, taking audiences through the Crusades, the Italian Renaissance and the modern times as a member of a secret order of present-day Assassins set on preventing the end of the world at the hands of the Templars, which have also survived the millennia since the Crusades. After a couple of installments that failed to shift the setting and let a little bit of steam out of the series, the paradigm has shifted to the American Revolution with “Assassin’s Creed 3.” This is one of the most anticipated games of the year, but is it truly as revolutionary as the time period it aims to replicate? The first aspect of “Assassin’s Creed 3” that requires attention is its story. If you are a fan of the series, you know what to expect: the present-day Desmond Miles must use a machine called the Animus to live out the experiences of his Assassin ancestors, learning more about how to defeat the Templars and the plight of a mysterious First Civilization that has information on how to prevent the cataclysmic event supposedly taking place on that infamous date, Dec. 21, 2012. This time, Desmond hops in the shoes of Connor, a half-Native American Assassin who finds himself caught in the middle of the American Revolution. It may seem like a completely scattershot concept, with just about every sci-fi and video game storytelling trope thrown in the mix, but the series has done such a good job over the years with establishing its mythos that it miraculously manages to not only avoid feeling silly, but also construct a genuinely interesting storyline that players will want to see to the finish. It has somewhat of a slow start as the characters are established, but the narration is in top form, with twists and turns abound from the very beginning. From a gameplay perspective, “Assassin’s Creed 3” offers an expansion of the systems that fans of the series have become accustomed to. Connor can scale and run across rooftops and treetops, with Revolution-era Boston, New York and the northeastern frontier open for exploration and taking on missions that will further the story. Connor can fight and assassinate enemies with a wide range of weapons, and there are plenty of collectibles and side missions to be found. The free running is simple and responsive, and the combat is as flashy and entertaining as ever. All of these aspects are familiar to series veterans, but this is only a

page 7 | Technology

Amazon Offers New Prime Monthly Membership by ASHLEY GOLDEN Web Editor

Photo Courtesy of | Ubisoft fraction of the experience. “Assassin’s Creed 3” features the most additions to the series in its history with the debut of several new gameplay styles. New to the repertoire is hunting in the frontier, commanding troops on the battlefield by horseback, weapon crafting, unforgettable naval combat and several sequences in which Desmond leaves the Animus to visit locations like downtown Manhattan in search of more artifacts. It’s a beast of a game, and that’s not even including the multiplayer suite, which features players hunting each other down while trying to remain as inconspicuous as possible. If there’s one thing to say about the game, it’s that you will never find yourself without anything exciting to do. The final and arguably most impressive facet of “Assassin’s Creed 3” is in its presentation. The graphics are great, but as we near the end of this console cycle there is little technical improvement that can be made. However, the care given to crafting an authentic and fascinating recreation of Revolution-era America is simply unbelievable. At some points, it can feel like a history lesson, as Connor crosses paths

Pundits are calling the 2012 election the second national election to fully utilize social media.

with the likes of Samuel Adams, Paul Revere, Benjamin Franklin and George Washington, and takes part in such events as the Boston Tea Party, Paul Revere’s midnight ride and the Battle of Lexington. The world is massive and beautiful, the character animation is topof-the-line and the voice acting is exceptional, thanks to the return of voice over veterans like Nolan North for Desmond (Drake of the “Uncharted” series). “Assassin’s Creed 3” is a culmination of the series’ greatest aspects. The gameplay is even more varied but still as engaging as ever, the setting is arguably the best so far, and the adventure is absolutely enormous, taking at least twenty hours to complete without even touching some of the optional content. I could point out some of the issues with the game (some glitchy technical performance, gameplay quirks, slow sections of the story and a sluggish menu system), but “Assassin’s Creed 3” should not be criticized for the few things it does wrong. It should be applauded for being one of the most graceful and ambitious games of this generation.

www.socialmediatoday.com analyzed social media posts and determined each candidate’s “Positivity score” based on the percentage of positive posts made about them on Twitter.

The Second ‘Social Media’ Election New Technology Was More Present Than Ever in This Year’s Presidential Race

According to Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project Survey:

25 percent of Obama supporters have shared their preference over social media, compared to 20 percent of Romney supporters.

In an effort to compete with Netflix and Hulu Plus, the ecommerce goliath Amazon now offers monthly access to their Amazon Prime membership. Amazon Prime offers free 2-day shipping on approved Amazon products, a free Kindle book to borrow each month from the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library and “unlimited instant streaming of thousands of moves and TV shows with Prime Instant Videos,” as stated on Amazon’s website. By allowing monthly access to their instant videos, Amazon hopes to pull consumers, who may have previously been dissuaded by the yearly fee, away from its competitors. Still in the experimental stages, this new deal allows Amazon customers to sign up for Amazon Prime on a monthly basis for $7.99 per month instead of the $79 per year annual cost. While subscribing monthly will end up costing consumers more—to the tune of $95.88 per year, a $16.88 increase to yearly subscription—this new option will give users of the service more flexibility. Yearly membership isn’t going away anytime soon, and as it is the new monthly membership isn’t universally available yet. This has great potential for University of California Santa Barbara students and college students everywhere. Instead of paying for a full year of membership, students can buy select months during peak times of the year when the Prime service offers the most value for them, such as the beginning of each quarter when buying text books. Doing it this way, students would only have to pay $7.99 three times, once each for Fall, Winter and Spring Quarter, for a total of $23.97 instead of $79 in membership dues. This compiled with the free shipping and cheaper textbook costs through Amazon will mean big savings for students.

Barack Obama’s score: 48 percent 30 percent of registered voters have been pressured via social media to vote for either candiate. 20 percent have used social media to encourage others to vote.

The Bottom Line | Nov. 7 - Nov. 13

page 8 | Continuations

continued: IV HISTORY, page 4 successfully chased all law enforcement out of IV by 9:00 p.m . After IVs entrances had been barricaded, “there were hours at a time when there was nothing to do but enjoy being in liberated territory,” one student explained . In this carnival-esque atmosphere, a group gathered around the Bank of America building (where Embarcadero Hall is today). The BoA had been a recent target of accusations by Associated Students for its investment in war industries and was, as one UCSB student put it, “the biggest capitalist thing around .” Students smashed its windows and tore it apart from the inside before burning it to the ground. Despite international news coverage and a temporary occupation by the National Guard, unrest continued in IV for months after the BOA burning, climaxing in a massive public sitin on June 10, 1970, in which nearly a thousand Isla Vistans collectively defied a sundown curfew. The sit-in proved to be a watershed moment for IV’s development as community members, unified, took on a new consciousness. A young sociology professor, Tom Scheff, captured the sentiment, stating, “We must continue to fight those who oppress us, but we must at the same time create what

we can for ourselves…we must live the revolution in our personal lives, in our community. Isla Vista is not yet ours, but we can make it ours if we pool our creativity and our energy and our commitment .” And so a new kind of construction began in Isla Vista. Unlike the cynical development that characterized IV during the development boom, these new creations were social in nature and concerned with collective wellbeing. As a contemporary activist explained, “[there] was a tremendous sense of purpose generated, we were remaking a new society .” What followed in the early years of the 1970s was an efflorescence of alternative community institutions aimed by the people at improving the local quality of life. The gains made during this period have been indispensable for the Isla Vista community since. Students built a slew of community institutions to address IV’s needs and problems: cooperatives for food, housing, health, books and finance; the IV Recreation and Parks district, which built nearly every one of the 15 parks we enjoy today, and even the unique Isla Vista Foot Patrol, created to increase police-community dialogue.

Photo by | Ayeyi Aboagye, The Bottom Line Isla Vista has undergone numerous changes over the years; here is a snapshot of Pardall Road in present-day Isla Vista. These institutions have significantly amplified student voices and input in the subsequent development of IV. Isla Vista’s story continues, of course. Some of the gains made in the 1970s have eroded, while other battles have been fought and won. What is important to understand is that the Isla Vista we know today was not cre-

ated in a vacuum; it has been shaped by ever-changing balances of power, produced by the actions of those people who engage with it—whether they are powerful landlords and police or residents at the grassroots. The future of Isla Vista is wide-open and we, the people, have the power to make its history our own.

continued: CONTRACEPTIVES, page 6

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and asserted their rights to democracy and self-determination. In the fall of 1968 underrepresented black students occupied North Hall and successfully demanded the introduction of a Black Studies curriculum at UCSB, starting a wave that swept campus and town for years to come. Through the 1968-69 and 1969-70 school years students continually challenged their marginalization by the social institutions that shaped their lives—the most immediate of which were the police, the landlords and the university—through creative and dramatic direct actions. On campus they launched massive protests outside of Cheadle Hall in defense of a popular professor, boycotted class and occupied the UCen for weeks. They challenged the police and landlords’ right to rule in Isla Vista through three riots that gained international attention. Students fought pitch battles with cops in the street, smashed and ignited patrol cars and vandalized and destroyed realtors’ property . The flagship event of the era occurred on the night of Feb. 25, 1970, in the first of three riots that shook IV that winter and spring. After hours of street warfare sparked by an incidence of police brutality, students

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Among women using pills, patches and vaginal rings, 9.4 percent became accidentally pregnant, compared to 0.9 percent of women using LARCs. place patches and rings.

dislodged and be expelled from the body. The downsides of the arm implant are that periods can become irregular, longer or stop altogether. Some women also report having issues with acne, mood changes and breast tenderness. It also leaves room for human error. However, a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed that LARCs were significantly more effective than pills, patches or vaginal rings, especially among women under 21. The study compared effectiveness of birth controls in a group of around 7,500 sexually active women in the St Louis area over a period of three years. Among women using pills, patches and vaginal rings, 9.4 percent became accidentally pregnant, compared to 0.9 percent of women using LARCs. The reason suggested is not the effectiveness of the birth control itself, but because women occasionally forget to take pills and replace patches and rings. Dr. Jeffery Peipert, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Washington University Medical School told CNN, “Humans aren’t perfect, and it’s normal to forget to take a pill every day or file for prescription refills every month.” The growing trend in LARCs is linked to more information available about the effectiveness of different contraceptive devices. Doctors are now recommending options other than the pill. While the pill may still be the best for some women, such as those who suffer from heavy periods and acne, evidence shows LARCs to be a more effective and longer lasting alternative.

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