• •
LIFE & ARTS
OPINION
Rebranding campaign is a waste @ 6 Obamacare and the Catholic Church @ 6
• •
SPORTS
The Caricaturist on Valentine’s Day @ 10 Review on dubstep legend: Caspa @ 8
• •
Win slips away from MBB @ Back Q & A with Carl Larsson @ Back
THE GRIFFIN Canisius College, Buffalo, NY
Friday, February 10, 2012 Volume LXXXII Number 14
Senior shirts leave seniors wanting a little more
By Lauren Sformo & Sam Scarcello News Writer & Editor in Chief
As a member of the senior class,thereareafewthingsthatsignify the end of four years of hard workandgoodtimes.Somearesignificant,likeadiploma,whileothers providemoresentimentalvalue,like the senior shirt. In a way, the t-shirt represents the class and remains a keepsake years after graduation. This past week, seniors graduating inthespringreceivedane-mailthat unveiled the most popular design “voted on” by students. Theshirtswerecommissioned and designed by the Canisius Student Personnel Graduate Association.Apparently,thevotetookplace atSeniorHappyHourafewmonths ago.Theywerealsoacceptingdesign ideasattheevent.Thet-shirtswould ultimatelycost$15each,andsenior students with easy access to cheap drinks were asked to vote on the design, a decision now criticized as not-so-smart. Whenthedesignhitcertainsocialmediasites,thecommentswere fast and furious. “Brutal. Anybody wanna start
a white tee revolution?”wrote one senior. Another seemed to point out how bizarrely the situation unfolded: “Why did I just order one before I knew what it looked like? Also,agreedonthedrunkenpeople votes. I know I voted, but have no idea what for.” But one commenter summed
Or,assomestudentshavesuggested,theshirtcouldeasilybeaseniorcapstoneproject.Itwouldtake onmuchmoremeaningifastudent or group of studentswhoknewthe graduatingclassconceivedthedesign. Another concern has been raised since the shirt was revealed: theissueregardingthedesign’sorigin. Local clothing company, and-
up what most seniors are thinking, “things I’m not getting…” Formanystudents,thedesign seems like a gross mishandling of the school’s resources. Why were the Digital Media Department or Digital Media Arts Club (DMAC) notcontactedtohelpwiththeshirt’s design? After all, there are over 100 DMA students on campus.
Jordan Smith / The Griffin
Buffalo, has found success with a particular t-shirt design that the senior shirt mimics well enough to be considered copyright infringement.Theheartofthedesignisfour words, all related in some manner, separated by ampersands. An example would be one shirt featured onthewebsitethatsays“Delaware& Chippewa& Elmwood& Hertel.“ The senior shirt design reads,“Griffins& Buffalo& Jesuits& Petey.” Those are all fine and relevant to Canisius, but they don’t directly correlate to the senior class. Why not “Frisch& Dugan& Bosch& Delevan.” or “Old Main& Koessler& Lyons& Health Science?” A graphic of Petey and the words “Canisius College, Class of 2012”makeupthebackoftheshirt. Thesituationhasleftmanystudents asking how and why? Many were unaware of a student vote or even the ability to submit a design. Andfacedwitha$15cost,questions ariseaboutwhetherstudentswould even want such a shirt. In the grand scheme of things, it is not that big of a deal. Is it pretentioustocomplainwhenwe’reall afforded so much while there are many with so little? Maybe. It’s all a bit ridiculous, but these are apparently the issues that face college seniors. Change thecurriculum,raisetuition,butfor God’ssakedon’tscrewupmyt-shirt.
Refugee’s quest from the Congo to America inspires, captivates Canisius By Hayden Ristevski News Writer
Imagine waking up on your 34thbirthday.Butinsteadofpicturing yourself celebrating with your family, visualize saying goodbye to them for what could be forever. Thinkofwhatitwouldbeliketoflee with fear from a war zone in nothing but a shaky, old wooden canoe youmustusetotravelacrossafourkilometer river, unsure of what the land on the other side may bring. Once there, imagine what it would beliketoliebetweencolddeadbodies to protect yourself from bullets swirlingthroughtheair,mereinches from your skin. Picture the pain you’dfeelwhenbeingtorturedand beaten, with no food, no water and nowhere to go.
This is how Raphael M. Ilanga celebrated his 34th birthday. He didn’t get to have a party. He didn’t gettoeatcakeandblowoutcandles. His only birthday present was a 6-inch scar on his left leg, a lasting gift from military forces after they shattered his bones. On Feb. 1 in a packed room, Ilanga told his audience of his incredible journey from The DemocraticRepublicofCongotoAmerica inan attempt to escape to freedom and the promise of a better life. The Democratic Republic of Congo is located in Central Africa, and according to the Central IntelligenceAgencyhasapopulationof about71millionpeople.It’salsothe poorest and most poverty stricken country in the world. Due to extremepoliticalconflicts,thecountry is in a civil war known as the Second
CongoWar.Asof2009,theestimated death toll is 45,000 people per month,anumberthatisexpectedto continue to rise. “InCongo,killingpeopleislike joking. It’s nothing in Africa.”Ilanga said. Since 1998, over 5.4 million people have died from the war and it’simmediateeffects.Ilangarefused to be a part of that statistic. AsamemberoftheMovement for the Liberation of the Congo (MLC) political party, Ilanga was part of the oppositional group rebellingagainstthegovernment.He wasaworkingclassman,withawife and two children, living in a war zone. On March 23, 2007, Ilanga’s life changed forever. He was in the middleofacivilianfightagainstgovernment militants when he had his chance to escape.
OPINION
Ilangalefthisfamilybehind,for fearthattheywouldnotsurvivethe journeyaheadofhim.Hiswifehada babyandanotheryoungchild,and hefeltthattheywouldbebetterprotected if they stayed behind. “My wife wanted to live with someone who can protect her, she is living in the military because she wanted to be safe. One of my kids lives with my sister in the Congo, too,” Ilanga explained. IlangatraveledfromtheDemocratic Republic of Congo to the Congo,ontoGabonandCameroon, wherehewentdayswithoutsleeping andeating;lackingthebasicnecessities of life. Eventually, he traveled toMorocco,thenorthwesternmost point of Africa.There he was able to safely travel to Spain, a transitional point on his journey to the United States.FromthereIlangaboardeda
LIFE & ARTS
flight that took him to Texas. Buthisjourneyhadjustbegun. In Texas, Ilanga met an immigrationofficerwhotoldhimhehad 26daystostayinthecountrybefore attemptingtoimmigratetoCanada, and sent him on a Greyhound bus headed for Buffalo, NY. “When I first come to America I know not one word of English” Ilanga said. He explained that he carried a dictionary, “the big one,” and pointed to pictures of things hewanted,suchaswater,topeople who would help him. Afterathreedayjourneyacross thecountry,IlangaarrivedinBuffalo he headed towardsViva La Casa, or “Vive”asit’softenreferredto,ashelterforrefugeesindowntownBuffalo located on Wyoming Street. After Continued on pg. 2
SPORTS
Let’sfaceitmarriageisalmostasobsoleteas VCRs and tape cassettes. And while it’s sad tosay,lovemaybejustasobsolete.Withthe recordsofcelebritymariiageslastingonly...
It’s Sunday night and closing time for gourmetshops,restaurantsandsupermarketsin NewYork City. Dozens of bursting garbage bagsarewhippedoverdumpsterwallslike...
The National Football League is heavily based upon matchups and execution. Last Sunday evening, the NewYork Giants held an advantage . . .
PAGE 7
PAGE 8
PAGE 13
The voice of Canisius College since 1933
www.thegriffincanisius.com Send Submissions to: Griffin@canisius.edu
News.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
1-5
Opinion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7 Life And Arts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-12 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-16
This paper is made from recyclable fiber
Please recycle
NEWS
2
Friday, February 10, 2012
pg.
Dan Savage, co-creator of the ‘It Gets Better’ campaign, to come to Canisius next week By Sam Scarcello Editor in Chief
DanSavage,sexcolumnistandco-creator of the“It Gets Better”campaign will visit Canisius College on Feb. 16 at 7:00 p.m. in the event hosted by the USA Justice Committee. The night will begin with a presentation of the Canisius College“It Gets Better”video, compiledbyUnityandfeaturingover40messages from students and faculty. Savage will discuss his work with the video campaign and the influence it has had on LGBT youth around the world. Inrecentyears,theissueofcyberbullying hasbeenattheforefrontofsocialcommentary followingtherisingtrendofteenagesuicides in the LGBT community. For this reason, it’s arefreshingchangeofpacetoseesomeoneusingthepowerfulreachoftheInternetforgood. Savage’s campaign asks people from all over theworldtouploadshort,positivevideoswith encouraging messages for LGBT youth. The message is simple: as bad as it may be now, it willgetbetter.Withmorethan30,000entries and 40 million online views, to call the campaignasuccesswouldbeanunderstatement. The event comes at an interesting time for Buffalo. Jamey Rodemeyer, a Williamsville teen, participated in the“It Gets Better” campaignbyuploadinghisownvideoinMay of last year. Shortly after, he committed sui-
cide, unable to handle the bullying he faced on a daily basis. It is unclear if Savage will commentonJamey’ssituation,butitmarked a large turning point in the fight against bullying. Lady Gaga, one of Jamey’s idols, even dedicatedasongtohimandpromisedthathis death would not be in vain. Celebrity contributors like Gaga have madethecampaignresonatethatmuchmore withsupporters. Ahandfulofthe30,000videosuploadedtotheprojectfeaturecelebrities like Neil Patrick Harris, Ellen DeGeneres, KathyGriffinandmanyothers.Thebeautyof thecampaignisthatthecelebritiesdon’tdefine it, which often happens. It has created a platform where the individual is the star and theirdifferencesarewhatmakethemspecial. Peoplefromallaroundtheworldaresharing their stories in hopes of reaching people like Jameywhostrugglewiththeirsexuality,bullying and the trials of everyday life. “The Internet isn’t written in pencil, it’s written in ink.” This line from the 2010 film The Social Networksumsuphowimportantitistothink twicebeforespeaking,asithighlightsthepermanentstateourwordstakeonwhenposted ontheweb.Whatweputoutonthewebexists thereforever. Fortunately,itlooksasifSavage is leaving a trail of acceptance with “It Gets Better.” ThefreeeventwilltakeplaceinMontante Cultural Center and is open to the public.
Refugee: Ilanga’s story delivers lessons to those who get to know him Continued from front
his 26 days were up, an Immigration lawyer toldhimthatinordertoimmigratetoCanada hemusthavefamilythere,alawthatwasn’tenacted until after he had left the Congo. “I handed him my passport and he say that the passport was no good,”Ilanga said. Thelawyerexplainedthathemuststayinside oftheshelterforeightlong,torturousmonths, withthegreatfearofbeingdiscoveredbyimmigrationandsubsequentlydeportedlooming in his mind. Ilanga has been staying atVive for about two years now, and is still awaiting an immigrationtrialtoreceivehispaperstostayinthe U.S. He says that all of the refugees must help outaroundtheshelter,andthathehasbecome “the best dishwasher ever.” As of two months ago, Ilanga has finally receivedworkingpaperstogainemployment. Up until that point, he said he spent all of his time eating, sleeping and studying English. For Ilanga, the hardest part of his journey to America was learning English. “To understand English was so hard for me, but I want to learn. I study English for two hours every day.” Julie Guerra, a Junior Accounting major from Orchard Park, serves as Ilanga’s teacher every Tuesday, and has done so since Sept. 2011.GuerrareceivedherESLcertificationat theUniversityofPittsburghandispassionate about helping immigrants learn the English language so they can succeed. Guerra is also helping Ilanga study for his GED test.
“He passes the math section with flying colors, but fails the reading section because it’s timed so we’re working on the speed of hisreading.He’sgottensomuchbettersinceI started working with him.” Guerra said. “Raphael is great. He is very open. He’s helpedmetolearnmoreabouttheworld.Ialmost feel that I learn a lot more than he does. I’m a lot more cultured because of him.” Milano Rodriguez, the president of The International Affairs Society at Canisius College and a native ofTrinidad, was the person who worked to bring Ilanga to the College to speak. He had met him after volunteering at Vive and said that he“stood out”and showed what it is truly like to be a refugee. “I feel as though it’s the little things in life that can make a big change,”Rodriguez said. Ilangaurgedthestudentsinattendanceto taketheireducationandknowledgeandputit togooduse.Hetoldstudentstotakewhatthey are studying and try to help others with it. He usedtheexampleofstudentsstudyinglaw,by sayingthatthereareplentyofpeoplewhoare in need of lawyers to help them to be free. “The worldontheothersideneedshelp, Congo needs help, Africa needs help.”Ilanga said. He also said that students should just come to Vive to help - not by giving material objects, but by spending time with the refugeesandhelpingthembetterunderstand American culture. “No one can know about America by himself, they need to know where to start,” Ilanga said.
NEWS
Friday, February 10, 2012
Evicted: ‘Occupy Buffalo’ forced out of Niagara Square by City of Buffalo By Amanda Gabryszak News Writer
The first day of February was fairlywarmandofferedhope for an early spring with a ray of sunshine. ForOccupyBuffalomembers,however, it was crunch time. Thepermitallowingoccupiers to reside in Niagara Square was set to expire. Members of the occupation had to decide whether to sign a 5-week extension with the City of Buffalo, set to expire on March 8, or face eviction. On February 2 at 2:00 a.m. the occupationwasremovedfollowing failed negotiations with the city. Occupiers were concerned with some of the specifics of the contract.Accordingtoanonymous Occupiers, the city would have requiredthattheOccupationremove its tents for the upcoming Winter Festandanyothereventsthatmight takeplaceintheforeseeablefuture
- essentially left to the city’s discretion. All negotiations took place in private in City Hall, and were held between the city and a small group of occupiers with backgrounds in law. Otheroptionswerediscussed during a rather tense general assembly.Somevaguewordinginthe contract left concerns that the city mightnotcooperatewiththemovementinthelongrun,aplanreferred toas‘Phase2.’Occupierssuggested adding a line to the contract ensuringthatthecitywouldhelptheprotestersintothissecondphaserather than just tearing down tents. Occupy Buffalo members requestedmoretimetonegotiateand weredeclined.Thecampfacedeviction. The bulldozers came late that night. Cops came with a SWAT team and ten arrests were made. Thosearrestedwerereleasedinthe
morning. Thefollowingafternoon,ageneral assembly was held in Niagara Square.Occupierslookedtiredbut notdefeated.Theydiscussedother options and long-term plans, and foundhousingamongthemselves fortemporarilydisplacedcampers. Thepolicehadallowedthemtodeconstruct the donated Geodome andatee-peethatmorning,twovisualcenterpiecesofthemovement in Niagara Square. Whilethetentsnolongerstand at Niagara Square, hope within members of Occupy Buffalo is far fromextinguished.Generalassembliesstilltakeplaceregularly,sometimesatNiagaraSquare,depending on the day. On February 11, the camp plans to welcome a bus of Occupy Wall Street Members.There will be a meet and greet, and then the two parts of one far larger movement will set to work.
Top Political Tweets @ActuallyNPH (Neil Patrick Harris) I’m a big fan of our President. He’s rad.
“ “
”
@ StephenAtHome (Stephen Colbert) NewtGingrichandMittRomneyhavecombinedintoaFrankensteincreaturenamedNittRomgrich.Itcriescoconutmilk.#preparethem
”
@newtgingrich CourtofAppealsoverturningCA’sProp8anotherexampleofan out of control judiciary. Let’s end judicial supremacy
“ “ “ “ “ “
”
@ RickSantorum Tonight’s debate was a real barn burner! (Odds are there’s a debate tonight, so I’m tweeting just to be safe.)
”
@MittRomney Go Pats! Happy Super Bowl Sunday everyone.
”
@JoyVBehar OnRomney’splanet,everyonewillhaveperfectlycoiffedhair.
”
@ Jon2012girls Attention Fashion Week: Sweater vest’s are officially IN this season.#MOprimary #santorumcharm
”
@ BorowitzReport (Andy Borowitz) Dear Rick Santorum: a surefire way to create millions of jobs would be to have millions of gay weddings. #NoH8
Amanda Gabryszak/The Griffin
”
Compiled by Jonathan Beck
NEWS
News Of The Weird UNITED STATES - Your Government Knows Best: A 2007federalenergy-independencelawrequiredcompanies that supply motor fuel in the U.S. to blend in a certain cellulose-basedingredientstarting in 2011, even though (as theEnvironmentalProtection Agency well knows) the ingredient simply does not now exist. A New York Times reporter checked with the EPA in January and found that the companieswillstillhavetopay themonetarypenaltiesfornoncompliance (and almost certainlytheeven-stifferpenalties for 2012, since the ingredient is still two or three years from development).“Itbelieslogic,” saidapetrochemicalstradeassociation executive. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA - In November, the WashingtonTimesreportedthatthe Washington, D.C.-area Metro transportation agency had hired,asafinancialconsultant, awomanwithmultipleconvictions for bank fraud and who had been implicated in one of Washington’s largest heroin rings.Furthermore,evenwhen the agency learned of her record, it neither disciplined her nor removed her from her financeresponsibilities.According to the Times, Metro has otherlaxmanagementissues. A Maryland state attorney recently revealed that a Metro employee had been “storing” 70 unaccounted-for pieces of Metro property (including computers and televisions) at his home for years, and followingthatnews,accordingtothe Times,otheremployeesbegan sheepishly returning similar property.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Parts of the library largely forgotten Great services for students are readily available
By Amy Brooks News Writer
Everydaystudentsgoinandout of the Andrew L. Bouwhuis Library to study, print papers and check out books. While most students know about services in the library like the circulation desk, Tim Horton’s Café andBakeShopandthewalk-upcomputers, there are other things like media viewing/listening room, the art gallery and the Wii that aren’t as well known. Onthelowestlevelofthelibrary therestudentscanenteraroomwith computers and VCRs called the
viewing/listening room. “We still have some videos that were not able to be made into DVDs or are not available on DVD,” explainedLyndaKirstein,librarycirculation coordinator. Thecomputersintheroomalso have Rosetta Stone on them.To use RosettaStone,studentshavetoregister online and log into a computer in the viewing/listening room with theinformatione-mailedtothemaftertheregistration.Theheadphones usedwiththeprogramareavailable at the circulation desk. “Because it’s a smaller, private space, you can speak down there,” Kirstein explained.
AlthoughthePeterA.andMary Lou Vogt Art Gallery is located on the main floor of the library, it is often overlooked. “It was started by the Fine Arts Department to show art works on this side of campus,” Kirstein said. Eachartshowinthegalleryusually lasts about a month.The gallery is open whenever the library is.The artworkcanbeseenthroughthewindows,butthedoorcanbeunlocked upon request. Another underused part of the library is the Nintendo Wii. On the main floor of the library byTim Horton’s is a television that has both a Blu-Ray player and aWii hooked up
ARTS CANISIUS
U P C O M I N G
February 12 – Members of Arts Promotion Club will present a benefitconcerttosupportHamlinParkSchool’smusicprogram at2:30p.m.inMontanteCulturalCenter,$3students$5general admission. February 14 - Percussionists Mark Hodges and Dinesh Joseph willpresentthelatestInformally~FormalChamberRecitalat7:30 p.m.MontanteCulturalCenter,$7students$15generaladmission. February16–Composer-in-ResidencePersisVeharwillpresenta lectureentitled,“Voices–1,2,andMore”at2:30p.m.inMontante Cultural Center. February 23 – Richard D. Falkenstein, Ph.D., presents“A Tale of ThreeCities...ThreeLutenists,aPoliticalFantasiaandtheSiena Lute Book,”a music lecture, at 2:30 p.m. in the Richard E.Winter ’42 Student Center, Regis Room.
Courtesy of www.newsoftheweird.com Compiled by Jonathan Beck
CLASSIFIED ADS For Rent
For Rent
3 bedroom apartment adjacent to Campus. Dishwasher and laundry facilities included. Available June 1. Contact:
Beautiful 5 Bedroom Home Fall 2012 Spring 2013 Very Well Maintained, Dishwasher, Washer & Dryer Gretchen 716 785 1645 jpelletter@stny.rr.com
andrewmoynz1@aol.com
or 874 1653
to it. Anyone with a Canisius ID is welcome to play on the Wii. “We have the controllers, and anything that you need to play it,” Kirstein said. “To play it you just needtobringyourIDcardandcheck it out like you would anything else.” Books that aren’t available in the library can be ordered online through Connect New York, a systemwherelibrariesaroundNewYork State borrow and lend books. “It’s really fast,”said Kirstein.“It only takes about three to four days.” When a book is in, students receive an e-mail alerting them to its arrival.
NEWS
Friday, February 10, 2012
B U F F A L O Photos by Jonathan Beck
Send Submissions To: Griffin@canisius.edu
W I N T E R
OPINION
6
Friday, February 10, 2012
pg.
E d i t o r i a l What happened to separation of church and state? Religious tolerance. That’s what many thinkofwhenthey hear the phrase,“separation of church and state.” But it’s a lot more thanjustbeingabletopracticewhatreligion you want to. It stands for the belief that a religious institution should not have any influenceordeterminationingovernment, butevenmoreimportantly,thegovernment shouldnothaveanyinfluenceordetermination in a religious institution. That’s why, in recent weeks, the health care debacle with contraceptives and the Catholic health care system has been strikingacontroversy. Formanywhodon’tknow alotabouttheissue,thefederalgovernment
is mandating that all health care facilities, including Catholic hospitals, covercontraceptivesunderhealthinsurance plans. For many who are not Catholic, they may not understand the controversy that is involved in the issue. It goes against the Catholic belieftousecontraceptivesbecause they prevent intercourse from being unitive and procreative. President Obama’s health care plan has instituted the mandate and has drawn even further controversy
Rebranding campaign is a waste of money and talent TÁn Ho As Canisius launches its new integrated marketing and rebranding campaign in order to attract a more diverse studentbodyandimproveitsreputation,I can’thelpbutnoticetheirresponsibleuse ofresourcesandtheutterlackofrecognition for the talent we have on campus. My first thought when I heard of the new campaignwas that a huge strategic movementlikerebrandingmustrequire quite a large sum. What else could the moneyspentonhiringanoutsidefirmto change the face of Canisius be used for? What about creating newscholarshipsthat would attract potential students? I know as a prospective student, the first thing I looked at was tuition costs. Giving extra money to students wouldhelpmakethis less of a concern. My second thought was why the College did not decidetouseitsinternal
resources such as the Digital Media Arts program, the Canisius CollegeVideo InstituteandtheMarketingDepartment. It certainlyseemsinefficienttonotusethe resources that the school already has. Therearemanytalentedfacultyand staff at Canisius College that could help in the rebranding campaign. If the DMA program contributed, that would be a greatthingtoshowprospectivestudents. It would also garner more exposure for our creative arts programs. Sure,wecansaythatthemoneyspent onthecampaigniswellworthit.Butifitis ajobthatwecandoourselves,weshould takeadvantageoftheopportunitytoshow the diverse abilities of our campus. Iamapersonwho likestoquestioneverythinginordertoseean issuefromallperspectives. Therefore, is it irrational to bring up thesequestions?Does the end justify the means? Or are there better alternatives? hot@canisius.edu
Got an opinion? Share it!
Student opinion pieces and political cartoons can be emailed to gorczycm@canisius.edu
Be a part of The Griffin discussion! Follow us on Twitter (@CanisiusGriffin) and Facebook (The Griffin Newspaper)
from the Catholic community. Many are calling Obama a hypocrite and a liar for going back on his word. Obamasaidataspeech in Notre Dame in 2009 that he would support the conscience of those who disapproved of abortion andsimilarpracticesanddrafta conscienceclause. Nowhisactionsin 2012,contradicthisownconscience. While many argue that it would lower costs, it is not only immoral and unethical to force a group of people to defy their conscience, it is
un-American. What makes the situation even more complicated is that fact that not all Catholic institutions like hospitals and schools employ strictly Catholics. Is it moral and ethical to deprive non-Catholics of services that they do not believe to be immoral just beacuse they work in a Catholic institution? Obama’s conscience clause may have been a better way to deal with the situation and help individuals seek out their choice, rather than mandating all institutions that skew the lines to make the issue of separation of church and state blown out of proportion.
Valentine’s Day, bringing headaches and heartaches Bridget Schaefer
It’srightaroundthecorner–Valentine’s Day isTuesday. For those who truly hate this day, there is one place that all your lonely hearts can rejoice.The central Asian state of UzbekistanisbanningtherecognitionofValentine’sDaythisyear,describingitas“forces with evil goals bent on putting an end to nationalvalues.”Unfortunately,Idoubtanyone willbetravelingthereoverthenextweek,and Valentine’s Day celebrations are in full force here in America. The pressure is on and expectations are at an all time high. Everyone has polarized opinions of the holiday – you eithersporttheclashingredandpink,oryou hate it. I’m attempting to not be the typical single, Debbie-downer, but I do stand with the haters on this one. Like many others, the traditionsandexpectationsgivememoreofa headache than heartache. Therearedozensofmythsandlegends on how Valentine’s Day came to be but I will spare you the boring details. Ironically though,onemythstatesthattheholidaywas supposedlycreatedtostopsexualpassionin public and prevent certain marriages in the Roman Catholic Community. St.Valentine, apriestatthetime,heldsecretmarriagesfor couples,andapparentlywrotethefirstvalentine to a forbidden love. He was eventually killed, made a saint and the rest is history. Hallmarksteppedinacouplethousandyears laterandinflatedValentine’sDaytotheholiday we know today. Hallmark alone creates 1,400 different Valentine’s Day card designs, resulting inover144millioncardexchangesindustry wide. Greetingcardsheavilyrelyonthisholiday to support their market, and this year is no different. With the new technology of smartphones,cardcompaniesareexpanding intothehugemarketofe-cards.Somethink they’re sentimental and cute, but sendinga pre-made email to show your sincere affection seems just a tad lazy. ThetypicalValentine’sDaygiftconsists ofanotherbigseller:theperfectbouquetofa dozenlong-stemmed,redroses.189million roses are sold on Valentine’s Day in the U.S. alone. Florists obviously jack up their prices
aroundValentine’sDay,knowingthatbuyers will pay almost anything to live up to the expectations of the holiday. Othermarketsfindanextremeincrease insalesaswell.Manyindustriesbenefitindirectly from this time of higher sexual intensity. For example, at-home pregnancy tests reach their highest number of sales in the monthofMarch,consequentialofalltheromanticcouplingsinFebruary.Also,condom salesare25percenthigheronValentine’sDay. Atleastnoone’sgettinganyunwantedValentine’s Day gifts. WhenlookingatfactsandnumbersbehindValentine’sDay,it’sclearthattraditionis not the only thing to blame all the expectationson.Themediahasalargeinfluenceover howpeopleshouldact.Forexample,the2010 mediocreromanticcomedy,Valentine’sDay, portrayed every pressure and expectation regardingtheholiday.Starringalmostevery celebrity that calls themselves an actor, the movieshowsthestereotypicalhappycouple, thetroubledmarriage,thejealousgirlfriend, lustyteensandofcourse,thelonersthathave absolutelynojoyintheirlivessolelybecause of their single status.Though the movie has its funny points, the extreme stereotypes clearlydepicttheactionsweshouldtake.The mediahasalsograceduswithmindlessreality showsurgingthequestforlove.TheBachelor and its spinoff, The Bachelorette, is a guilty pleasureshowfilledwithdramawhereoneis expected to find true love over the span of a coupleofepisodes.Ican’tblameanyofthese contestants – I’d probably fall in love too if I was in the middle of paradise drinking, eatingandlivinginluxuryallday.Sadlythough, minusafewexceptions,thecouplesresulting from that show make Kim Kardashian’s last marriage look legitimate. So there’s a few statistics and facts behind the most romantic day of the year. As muchassomecynicsmaywanttoforgetthe holiday all together like in Uzbekistan, it’s not going anywhere any time soon. So we might as well embraceValentine’s Day and celebrate.Ifnot,atleastyouhaveanexcuseto eat a lot of chocolate. schaef10@canisius.edu
GRIFFBITS
What do you look for in a romantic partner?
Akyla, freshman
Taylor, freshman
Kaitlyn, sophomore
Tanner, junior
“Trust.”
“A good cuddler”
“Sense of humor.”
“Spontaneity.”
STUDENT SOUNDOFF In Response: Catholic education is the best education
Aidan Ryan
From the February 3rd issue What can public schools offer students? If you follow the news it seems as though America’s public schools are underachieving, overspending and failing their students. Public schools are constantly under scrutiny, and the criticisms are not flattering. Is there anything good that can come out of a public school education? Why would middle-class parents with bright children take the risk of sending them to the local public school when a nearby private or Catholic school has a higher ranking and a reputation for providing a superior education? I am a product of public schools (albeit, not an inner-city school district, but a large first-ring suburban district). My parents are public school teachers. There was never a question about whether or not my sisters and I would attend the local public schools. In the end, my public school education has served me better than I could possiblyhaveimagined,andalthough my parents had the money to send me to a private school, I am grateful they chose to send me down the street to public elementary, middle and high schools instead. Large public school districts have the advantageoflarge student bodies and therefore are able to offer diverse courses. My high school had honors courses, Regents-level courses, at least twelve Advanced Placement courses, and college-level foreign language. We also had music, theater, film study, art, photography, creative writing, science and technology electives. The sheer number of course offerings was comparable to Canisius’ course catalog! I took advantage of the AP, honors and arts courses; some friends took lots of math and technology, others took science. The sheer size of the school allowed for a large number of course offerings and the ability for students to create schedules around their own interests. What else do public schools offer their students? Diversity. Public school populations (even in the suburbs) are not contingent on a par-
Fixing Buffalo public education
ent’s ability to pay or an admissions test. They are required to educate every student who comes through the doors. In school, I got to know people from different ethnic backgrounds, vastly different socioeconomic backgrounds and different family situations. Coming from a rather typical middle class family, public school opened my eyes to the hardships some families face. I had friends and acquaintances that constantly had to move from rental house to rental house; friends whose families lived in housing projects; friends whose parents did not have jobs; and I even knew a girl who was forced to drop out when her mother had to go on disability and they could not pay for food (she later got her GED). Not only does this swatch represent some of the problems public schools face in educating their students, it also opened my eyes to a world of families outside of my comfortable middle class existence. I gained a diverse perspective of the way Americans live, something a private school, whose populations tend to be more homogenous, would not be able to offer. Despite my parent’s ability to pay for private schools, I am glad they decided to send me to public school instead. I benefited from the generous course offerings (which have enabled me to graduate from college a whole year early), as well as the opportunities to pursue and cultivate my passions for theatre and music. More importantly, going to public school opened my eyes to the lives of families and students profoundly different from mine. I gained empathy for those who were in hard situations. I understand why some students drop out of school, and I see the difficulties faced by so many Americans less fortunate than I. Sure, I may have a better collection of dress clothes if I went to private school, but the diversity I experienced in public school is indispensible. -Meghan Burke burke41@canisius.edu
The Buffalo Public School System has been makingheadlinesforquitesometime.Whetherit’s incompetence,corruption,studentstrikesorcontroversyoverabysmalfailurerates,parents,taxpayersandlocalmediahavehadlittletroublefinding thingstocomplainabout–somuchso,thatBuffaloNews.comhasanentiresubsectiondedicatedto theever-growingaccusationsleveledattheBuffalo PublicSchoolsandthevariousfiguresblamedfor thelonghistoryofdisappointmentandfrustration. What few proponents of the Buffalo Public Schools are left may point to City Honors as proof thatthesystemisnotentirelyworthless.However, CityHonorsisananomaly;thebrighteststudents inBuffalomaybegiventhechallengesandopportunities they need to excel, but the rest – the average,under-motivated,ormisguided,andeventhe poortest-takersthatperhapsdidn’tpassCityHonors’entranceexam–languishinenvironmentsthat are utterly unconducive to learning. First, the hard facts: about half of all Buffalo PublicSchoolstudentsdropoutbeforegraduation. Quite frankly, this should be illegal. In our age of globalizationanddramaticshiftsintheAmerican economyit’shardenoughtogetadecentjobwithoutaBachelor’sdegree;withoutahighschooldegree, this is nearly impossible. Thesofterfacts:oneofthegreatestproblems facing the Buffalo schools is the BuffaloTeachers Federation.Regardlessofone’spoliticalviews,one cannot deny that the BTF looks out for its members, not the kids. For proof, consider the fact that inadistrictinwhichtheaverageteachermakesan annual salary of $52,000, taxpayers shell out $5.2 million dollars per year to pay for liposuction,hair removal,andotherformsofglorifiedpampering. Meanwhile,theschoolboardexistsforitsownselfpreservation, just like the BTF. While these two forcesquibbleandquarreloverwhooughttotake the blame for their shared failings, no one speaks for the children. So how to fix it? Here are some suggestions I offer to spark the debate. First off, drastic measures need to be taken tobringthegraduationratetowhereitshouldbe: 100 percent. I ask that my readers try to muster up somefaithinmankind–graduatinghighschoolis not difficult. But any sort of penalty to students thatdidn’tgraduatewould,realistically,bebecause oftheracialdisproportionunfortunatelylatentin Buffalo public school attendance, which end up lookingsomethinglikeJimCrow. Assuch,theburden has to be on the teachers. After all, it’s literally their job. Teachers have to be evaluated on a fair andunbiasedbasis:teacherswithhighratesoffailuremustberemovedandlikewisetheadministra-
tors of schools with high rates of failure must also beremoved. Conversely,incentivesshouldbeoffered to those who perform well. Ofcourse,fairteacherevaluationswouldbea curse to the BTF. Any sort of solution to the school systemmesswouldhavetostartbyrenegotiating the BTF’s contract and getting rid of the current systemofteacherevaluations,aswellasridiculous andirresponsibleperks,likeplasticsurgerycoverage. Even contract renegotiation would not be enough. One key ingredient is something that would undoubtedly be denounced by both the SchoolBoardandtheBTF,makingstrangebedfellows through mutual fear. I am talking, of course, about school choice vouchers.This policy, which hasbeenimplementedsuccessfullyinplaceslike Ohio and the District of Columbia involves taking tax money that would have gone to support publicschoolsystems,andgivingittotheparents of school children to use on their children’s education as they see fit. This means that more lowincomeparentscouldaffordtosendtheirchildren to private schools if they chose to do so. Likewise, parents that wish to send their children to public schools could continue to do so at no cost. Obviously, this bill will not be good for everyone. Assomestudentswillinevitablyleavethe publicschools,someschoolswillhavetocloseand consolidate – just as the Catholic schools in the WesternNewYorkareaaredoingnow.Thismeans that some teachers will lose their jobs, and some children will have to change schools. However, whilethispolicywon’talwaysbegoodforteachers or administrators, the children will undoubtedly be better off. They along with their parents have greatercontrolovertheireducation. Anotherhidden benefit is that as public schools are forced to layoffteachersandclose,thebestschoolsandthe best educators will emerge. Also, parents who already send their children to private school will be able to use their tax dollars on their own children, rather than to support a broken system in which they clearly do not believe. For those misguided pseudo-students of the Founding Fathers who shriekthatthispolicyisdirectlycontrarytoJefferson’s vision for public schools, I point out that the resultwillbeanundeniablybetter-educatedand freer populace. Thesesteps,andotherswhichIhaveundoubtedlyoverlooked,mustbetakeniftheBuffaloPublic Schools are to be fixed. I, for one, am sick of reading about our abysmal affair. But being sick doesn’thelpanything. It’stimeforthoseinpower, bothelectedandunelected,totakeheedandstart looking out for the children that they are paid to educate.
Michele Binkowski Taylor Allison
Emily Smith
ryan70@canisius.edu
Marriage, shmarriage Matt Gorczyca Opinion Editor
Let’s face it, marriage is almost as obsolete asVCRs and tape cassettes. And while it’s sad to say, love may be just as obsolete. With therecordsofcelebritymarriageslastingonly a few hours, there seems to be no respect for the sanctity of marriage anymore. When did it become a trend to fly off to Vegas and get hitched, only to have it annulled a few hours later? Oh, that’s right,“What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.” I just thought marriage and love were a lot more than some trend thrown around by celebrities. I’m not one to pick up a tabloid to see what’s happening in the lives of Holly-
wood’selite,butseeingthedisrespectfulway celebrities treat marriage is not only embarrassing, it’s disgusting. Take for instance, the brilliant Kim Kardashian. She got her career started when a tape of her having sex with rapper Ray J was leaked. It must make Mama Jenner very proudknowinghowtheempiresheishelping her daughters build all came from one glorious sex tape. Don’t get me wrong, I have to say that Kim has made a career separate from her sex tape and has tried to erase the foolish mistakefromherreputation. However,what it boils down to is that very mistake is the reasonsheisfamousandsheiskeepingherfame by repeating such foolish mistakes. Her 72day marriage is probably what she will be remembered most for.
Sam Scarcello, Editor in Chief Taylor Schupp, Copy Editor Jonathan Beck, News Editor Matt Gorczyca, Opinion Editor Alicia Greco, Life & Arts Editor Nick Veronica, Sports Editor Jordan Smith, Layout Editor
Founded in 1933, The Griffin is the student newspaper of Canisius College. 2001 Main Street Buffalo, NY 14208-1098
On second thought, it will probably be the fact that she didn’t want her husband to move his things into her house in Los Angeles. At least that is what was portrayed in her realitytelevisionshowKourtneyandKimTake New York. Again, I’m not a regular viewer of the show, but when I saw in an online blog howKimgotnotedfor“theworstreasonever to end a marriage,” I just had to take a peek. With all of this hype about celebrities getting married by sun-up only to have it annulled by sundown, it makes me wonder if marriage is even manageable anymore. It’s not even Hollywood that is plagued by this. It’s estimated that nine out of ten marriages endindivorce,andthat’sjustnormalpeople! Well, relatively normal. Not to get all religious, but I have to say
Morgan Culhane, Layout Editor Steve Brown, Layout Editor Kerry Freeburg, Copy Reader Mary Battaglia, Copy Reader Leah Mosher, Copy Reader Rich Lunghino, Copy Reader Julie Zirnheld, Webmaster
that the Catholic Church has a very good system called pre-cana that is a test of sorts for engagedcouplestoseeiftheyarereallyready for marriage, something our dear friend Kim didn’t take into consideration. I even advocate living together for a bit. Even though theCatholicChurchwouldn’tbeverythrilled with the idea, it’s something Kim never thought of and would have saved her a few million dollars. With any chance of marital bliss being thrownoutthewindow,Iwonderismarriage even manageable? Does love even exist? I’d like tosay,yes,but unfortunately,it takesalot morethanlovetomakeamarriagework,after all, you do have to live with the person.
Courtney Helinski, Web Video Editor Kimberly Nowicki, Advertising Director Thomas Ippolito, Business Manager Mike Carrig, Distribution Manager Colin Gordon, Photography Director Robert Kaiser, Adviser
gorczycm@canisius.edu February 10, 2012 Volume LXXXII Number 14 Phone: (716) 888-5364 Fax: (716) 888-5840 E-mail: griffin@canisius.edu www.thegriffincanisius.com
Unsigned editorials appearing on this page represent the opinions of The Griffin. All other columns, letters and artwork represent the opinions of their authors and are not necessarily representative of The Griffin’s position. The opinions expressed in this newspaper are not necessarily those of Canisius College or its student body. Articles must be typewritten and should not exceed 500 words in length. Letters to the editor must not exceed 250 words. The deadline for submission is 5 p.m. Tuesday of the week of publication. Letters must pertain to an article recently published to The Griffin. Letters must be signed and include a phone number and address. No pseudonyms are permitted. Letters are published at the discretion of the Editorial Board and are subject to editing and condensation. Letters may be sent via electronic mail to griffin@canisius.edu.
LIFE ARTS pg.8 Alicia Greco
Life and Arts Editor “Who out there is ready for Caspaaa…”local DJ andimpromptuMCMarioBee’svoiceechoedthroughout the high vaulted ceilings of Town Ballroom. The crowdroaredaslocalBuffaloDJ,Stuntman,continued hisdubstep-infusedset.Fromthestage,theviewwasa sea of bodies, each one dancing uniquely. MNMPresentsproudlybroughtCaspa,alegendaryDJfromtheUnitedKingdomtoTownBallroomon February 4. Regardless of musical preferences or the ongoingargumentofmainstreamdubstep andit’s“coolness”factor,thisDJdeservesa verycredibleamountofrecognition.Caspa, otherwiseknownasGaryMcCann,helped form and brought to existence the genre that was dominating the underground music scene, dubstep. He is an originator and an incredibly powerful force in Electronic Dance Music. Not only is he worldrenownedandrunsthreerecordlabels,he hasalsoputsoutremixesofextremelywellknown artists that can blow minds. The show opened with DJ Stuntman followed by Rochester’s own DJ Bones Jones then a second set from Stuntman with Mario Bee on the mic. DJ Friction, a well-known UK drum n’ bass artist, was scheduled to open for Caspa but experienced difficulties with his visa. “I love this job and would never take it for granted,”read an email from Friction to Buffalo promoter Mike Marshall. My introduction to this music scene was through two close friends of mine a fewyearsback.TheminuteIheardthrough thesoundsystem,thefamiliarringingand muffledsoundsofsomeonetryingtoweaseloutofadebt,Iflashedbacktomemories of when Caspa’s remix of a TC track was oneofmanysongsinthesoundtracktomy dailylife. Awell-knownhitofhis,therewas an insatiable need for the drop as the mut-
teringcontinuedoverthespeakers,andtheneveryone yelledinthequiteominoustone“where’smymoney?” IgrinnedwhenIsawthefriendswhobroughtmeinto thisworldweredancingwildlyrightbesideme. Aperfect moment. Caspa’sstagepresencewasboss-likeashecontinuedthroughhisimmaculateset. Ifthiswereabacchanalia,CaspawouldhavebeenDionysusforthecrazed dancers. Littlemulti-coloredorbsoflightblinkedfrom variousfingertipsandformedvisualmasterpieces.Plasticcupswithwaterwerethrownwhentheenergywas on high and refreshing droplets would splash down. Walking down the ramp heading into the lobby,
Friday, February 10, 2012
my ears perked up and I stopped. My two girlfriends stared at me, curiously, wondering what I was doing. When I finally recognized Jesse Mills’smooth vocals from“Fighting Fire”by Breakage, I told them I would meet themshortlyand ran backinside.The emotionallypotentfemalevocalsofstrengthagainstalloddsin the form of love ran through and gave me chills. Lost in the sound, Caspa then transitioned into his remix of Deadmau5 and Kaskade’s track “I Remember”.Spellboundandwithoutthinking,Itookthe short amount of steps from the upper tier to the main floor. This original track was what opened the gateway for me into this world of music. I can recollect a conversation with one of the two friends whom introduced me to Caspa’s music. He told me repeatedly over the phone to look it up because I would love it. He was right. Itisaheartbreakingandbeautifully producedtrackthatalwaysbringsaboutan overwhelmingfeelingofnostalgia. After all this time, it still has a deep sentimental impact. Alone on the floor, I closed my eyes to leave the world behind me. As if Caspa knew the emotional journey I was on, he brought in his original track“Back for the First Time”. My eyes began to water as I absorbed the symphonic elements and heardthevocalsthatMr.Hudsonreleased on his own edit of the track that I became so familiar with. “Love never dies” were the life-saving vocals I believed in with the entirety of my heart. The three track segmenttookthealreadyincredibleskillfulperformance,andtookittoanintense emotionallevel--alevelthatnotmanyDJs have the ability to do. Caspa did what every phenomenal DJ has perfected; he broughtadifferentindividualexperience for everyone that attended. His track selectionwasimpeccableandhispresence wasstrong.Afterintroducingmyselfbackstage,hewascuriousastowhatIthought of the show. “Amazing, it was absolutely amazing” I replied.
Google Images
How to: eat for free, solve hunger problems and stick it to the government Bridget Schaefer Life & Arts Writer
It’sSundaynightandclosingtimeforgourmetshops,restaurantsandsupermarketsinNew YorkCity.Dozensofburstinggarbage bags are whippedoverthedumpsterwallslikeashotput. The doors close, lights shut off and that’s when peoplecomecrawlingtowardsthedumpsters like they’re approaching Mecca.These people proceedto“dumpsterdive,”aswecallitnow,and get to their business. They rip open the newly diisposed trash and dig up hundreds of Italian breadloaves,bagels,freshproduceanddozens ofdifferentmixedpastasaladsandgreens.They basicallyuncoveredafull-blownpicniccapable of feeding a small army. They walk away with enoughfoodtosustainthemselvesforawhile-or at least until their next dive. Now you might be thinking, these people arehomeless-obviouslythey’regoingtoeatout ofthetrash.Wrong.Mostoftheparticipantsare job professionals living in big cities, like New York.They are called freegans.Yes, this word is compoundedfrom“free”and“vegan.”Freeganism began in the mid‘90s and consists of peoplewhoemployalternativestrategiesforliving by minimal participation in our economy and consumerism.Theyrecognizethatourcomplex industrialandmassproductioneconomyisultimatelydrivenbyprofit.Thefactorsusedtoproducegoods,includingsweatshoplabor,animal abuse, and air and water pollution, all contributetoourunethicalsociety.Hence,theystarted
boycottingthepurchaseofproducts.Freegans also take part in other protests such as“squatting.”This is when they “squat” in abandoned orunusedbuildingsbecausetheyfeeleveryone shouldhaveshelter.Theybelievesocietyiswastingtheseunusedbuildings,onlygivingthemup for a profit in return when in reality, they could be put to good use and shelter the homeless. When I first heard about freegans and dumpsterdiving,Ithoughtitwasalittleabsurd; there is no need for such extreme measures as eating out of the trash. Little did I know that thetrashtheyareeatingissomeprettygourmet garbage. Freegans definitely do not skimp on expensivefood.Thinkaboutallofthegourmet prepackagedandpreparedsaladsthatsupermarketshave,orallofthepreparedmeats,pizzasand subsyoucanalsopurchase.Mostoftheseitems are thrown out with the rest of the trash at the end of the day, although they are still perfectly edible. Supermarketsalsohaverestrictionsonproduce and farm-grown products. For example, tomatoesmusthaveacertainshape,weight,size, color and formation in order to be sold at a supermarket.Sowhathappenstothepoortomatoesthatdon’tmeetthesestandards?Garbage. Thinkaboutwhenyou’rebuyingfreshproduce: youalwayslookforthebestgreenpepperorthe shiniestappleondisplay.Whywouldyoubuya pepperwithabruisethesizeofafingernailwhen you could buy a perfect pepper? Sadly, these veggieswithfingernail-sizedbruisesarethrown out. The same goes for all produce, meat, fish, etc.Restaurantsalsohavetheserestrictions,and somefarmswon’tevenpickcropsiftheyarenot
up to par. I work in a restaurant, and I see the gallonsofsoupandsaucewethrowoutweekly because we have no use for it. Obviously I snag some soup before this happens… does that make me partially freegan? If you add up all the pounds of wasted but perfectly edible food that is thrown out each year in America, you’ll get around 96 billion pounds. After hearing that statistic, I took back myfeelingstowardsthedumpsterdivers;Iguess theytrulyaredivingforareason.There’snoneed forthisfoodtobethrownout. It’sjustasgoodas itwastwentyminutesearlier,whenitwassitting on the shelf at the supermarket. Now knowing all of this, why not fight American hunger with all of this wasted food? ThousandsofAmericansgohungryeveryday. Why not have more supermarkets and restaurants give away the food they consider“trash” to those who really need it? It would save a few lives, I’m sure, and it would save these freegans from digging through trash. The trend of freeganism is catching on in many major cities. College students, young professionalsandenvironmentalistsseemtobe leading the pack of freegans toward free nourishment. I wish them happy dumpster diving, but my appetite and my wallet are completely content with the dollar menu at McDonald’s. I’m definitely on a budget, but I don’t think I’m on the brink of garbage picking just yet. Who knows,maybesometimefromnowthefreeganism trend will catch on; instead of your mom asking you to run to the store for a loaf of bread, maybe she’ll say“can you run to the dumpster and find some wheat bread?” Google Images
LIFE & ARTS
Friday, February 10, 2012
Quebecois Film Festival Offers Intense Perspective into the Horrors of War Matthew DiStasio Life and Arts Writer
This week Canisius hosted a Québécois Film Festival offering a diverseselectionofinterestingfilms. TheQuébecgovernmentsponsored thescreeningoffivedifferentfilms between February 6 and February 12, each followed by a discussion led by different faculty members. Tuesday’s showing included the suspenseful and chilling yet culturallyinsightfulfilmIncendies, whichissetinanunnamedcountry in the Middle East that is similar to Lebanon during its civil war. As the audience gathered prior to the startofthefilm,anticipationswept throughtheroom.Professorscould be heard debating their critical interpretationsofthefilminconfident
whispers and a small group could be heard speaking to each other in Frenchtowardtheback,settingthe atmosphere as truly Québécois. The Film Festival will continue with two different films Friday throughSunday. OnFebruary10,a filmaboutthe 1989 MontrealMassacreentitledPolytechniquewillbe shown in the Regis Room-North with a discussion led by Dr. Nico Lorgnier. The hockey film Maurice Richard will be screened February 11at7p.m.intheMontanteCultural Center, with a discussion by Dr. Eileen M. Angelini and Dr. Michel Vigneault, and again on February 12 at 2 p.m. in Regis Room-North. The films are a great opportunity foranyCanisiusstudentinterested in the film an art of a unique North American province. Google Images
So 20th Century England, we’re not so different after all Sam Scarcello Editor-In-Chief
Without a big budget, a major star or a marquee declaring“ExecutiveProducerStevenSpielberg”,genre fare in the television industry typically has a hard time catchingon,althoughevenSpielberg’sTerraNovaisn’t invincible. AsidefromafewstandoutslikeAMC’sblock of programming and FX’s American Horror Story, if a show doesn’t take place in a hospital full of sexy RNs or the busiest precinct in NYC then it is an uphill battle to secure an audience. This is what makes the success of DowntonAbbey,acostume-perioddrama,soundallthe more puzzling. Set at the dawn of World War I in North Yorkshire, England, Downton Abbey is a story of the haves and thehave-nots.TheCrawleyfamilyrunsanestatecalled Downton. And by the Crawley family I mean their staff of servants, maids, footman, valets and so on. The cast isfilledwithseasonedBritishactorslikeMaggieSmith, otherwise known as Professor McGonagall from the Harry Potter films. It premiered in September 2010 on ITV in the United Kingdom to strong reviews and ratings and has since crossed over to the United States
thanks to PBS’s Masterpiece Classic. Aftercruisingthroughthefirstseasonoftheshow onNetflix,Icanseewhytheshowiscatchingon. DowntonAbbeyisfilledtothebrimwithinteresting,complex charactersandengrossingdrama.Foranerawheremanners were a top priority, I’ve never seen a cast of characters that were more thrilled to stab each other in the back.Surely,theproceedingsareexaggeratedfortelevision’ssake,buttheshowpridesitselfonthedeepmelodramathecharactersfindthemselvesinandthepayoff for the audience is worth it. TheCrawley’sfortuneisjeopardizedinthepremiere episodewhentheheirtotheestatetaxiedtheTitanicto theoceanfloor.Theireldestofthreedaughtersgetsone of the strongest arcs of the season. Mary is placed front and center to marry and save the estate. The youngest daughter,Sybil,takesaninterestinwomen’srightstoleisurelypassthetime.Theunfortunatemiddledaughter, Edith, coasts through the first half of the season unnoticed, but she puts Jan Brady to shame in terms of the “jealous younger sister”role when all is said and done. Thisisjustthefirstofmanyseason-longordealsthatunfold over the too brief, seven-episode season. The family’s staffers are constantly jockeying for moreprominentpositionsandwilldoanythingshortof
slittingeachother’sthroatstomakeithappen. Oh,and theyhatenewcomers. Apparentlyintheearly20thCentury,allanyoneinEnglanddidwaswhisper,plotagainst eachotherandeavesdropwhichwasspoofedmercilessly in Saturday Night Live’s digital short last week. Aside from the threat of WWI, the show’s setting gives way to the women’s suffrage movement, introductions to“new”medicines and tongue-and-cheek handlingsoftechnologicaladvanceslikethetelephone. Thewriterstreattheaudienceinawaythatdoesnottalk down to them, while managing to not feel dated at the same time. It’s an interesting look into a society that’s stillnotthatfarbehindus.Whilethewaythecharacters talkandaddresseachother,especiallybetweenclasses, orthewaytheydressmayseemforeign,everythingelse abouttheirmotivationsandactionsisstartlinglyfamiliar. I didn’t think when I sat down for my first episode ofDowntonAbbeythatIwouldbewatchingaprogram with such cultural relevance. The parallels to modern culture are easily made, especially amidst the Occupy Movementandeconomicrecessionsandreboundsoccurring around the world. Those in control fear any change that may result in the shift of power, while the lessfortunatewonderwheretheentitledgetoffthinking that way.
Google Images
LIFE & ARTS
Friday, February 10, 2012
The Caricaturist...
is confused by Valentine’s Day
Nick Veronica Sports Editor
The Caricaturist’s inner dialogue… Every year I get sick after the Super Bowl. Andit’s notjust because I ate way too much. Okay well that’s part of the reason. Butalso becauseIlook on my calendar and see that stupid February day with the 1 followed by the 4. Takeiteasy,man.It’sjustanotherday.I knowit’sagirlyholidaybutit’snotallthatbad. You shut your face before I shut it for you. It’s a stupid day for stupid girls and their stupid feelings.They have stupid expectationsofsomemancominglikethey’re friggin’PrinceCharmingorsomethingand, you know, marrying them or some sh**. Beingnicetoagirldoesn’tmeanyou’re goingtogetmarried.Andyoudon’thavetogo all-out,either.Sometimesgirlsjustwantalittle bit of effort to show them you care. I’msickofhearingaboutthis“chivalry” crap. Uhh.The knight was nice to the damsel.Realf***ingprecious.Chicksbackthen didn’t have any rights. Winning her heart musthavebeenprettyeasywhenshespent allofherlifecleaningcastlefloors.Nowthey wantphonecallsandchocolatesandthink we can hold hands in public and stuff. It wouldn’t kill you to hold someone’s hand— My hand will literally disintegrate. Now you’re just being ridiculous. It happened to a guy once. I saw it on Wikipedia.AndonetimeIheld agirl’shand at a wedding and I started to feel some tinglies so I know it’s real. Like how your hair stands up before you get hit by lightning. Then BOOM. And besides, what if I’m
walking with that chick and I see an even hotter chick? Then my shot with the even hotterchickisruinedbecauseshethinksI’m with this other girl. … I … I’m going to pretend you didn’t justsaythat.Andmaybethose“tinglies”you weretalkingaboutwerereallyyourhearttrying to tell you that you like someone. Hahaha don’t make me laugh. Me? Like? Someone? In the same sentence? Maybe there’s a reason our brain never lets you talk. Let me tell you something about hearts, because they’re the symbol for this wholeValentine’sDaynonsense.Youknow what it looks like when you turn a heart upside down? A pair of testicles. Which is ironic, because that’s exactly what you’d hand over to a chick if you gave her your heart. Ha! That one made me laugh. And it actuallydoeskindoflooklikethat.Butthat’s besidethepoint.Youhavetolikegirlsalittle bit, don’t you? Of course I like women. What kind of question is that? I like hanging out with them,and…um…stuff.Yeah.Hangingout with them. Lots of them. That’s what I like. Uhhuh.Andhowdotheyfeelaboutall of this? Who? I feel great. I’m living the dream. You’re an idiot.The girls. How do they feel? Oh. Um. Hmm. They’re cool with it. I’veneveractuallythoughtaboutitlikethat before. I think they’re cool with it. They probablydon’tmind,right?Imeantheystill gettohangoutwithmeandeverything.So they’re probably cool with it. Letmegetthisstraight.You’vegottento thispointinyourlifeandyou’veneverconsideredawoman’sfeelings?Womendefinitelyhave feelings.Infact,that’ssomethingthey’remost knownfor.Don’tyouwatchmovies?Everyone
knowsthat,whethertheywanttoadmititor not,womenhavethatdreamthey’vebeenholdingontoforeverthattheywanttobeaprincessandhavetheir–well,excusemyreference –PrinceCharmingcomeforthem.That’swhy theyallmadeabigdealabouttheRoyalWedding last year. She was a real-life princess. Oh yeah. They made a big deal about that thing. Pretty dumb if you ask me.Why dotheyevenneedaRoyalFamilyanymore? They have Parliament. Stupid princesses. Ofallthedumbthingsyou’vesaidsofar, youactuallymightbeontosomethingthere. Butgirlsdon’tcare.RememberthoseMario games?Youhadtobeatallthoselevelsand fightthedragonandeverythingjusttorescue Princess Peach— Soitwasasetup!Subliminalmessaging totrytogetguystodonicethingsforchicks. Those tricky bastards! Umm,Iguess,butyou’restillmissingthe point.Andstopcuttingmeoff.Idon’tthink anygirlsreallywanttobelockedupinacastle guardedbyafire-breathingdragon.Theidea thataguywouldbebraveandcourageousfor herandwouldbewillingtogotogreatlengths justtoprovehowmuchhecaresiskindofthe like their fantasy of the perfect man:tough enoughtobeatadragonandcompassionate enough to want to. Dragons aren’t even real. You’reamoron.Look,we’retalkingabout Valentine’sDay.Youclearlydon’tcareabout anywomaninparticular,becauseifyoudid youwouldn’tneedaremindertodosomething niceforher.Butyouneedallthehelpyoucan get,whichiswhytheworldremindsyouby startingtoadvertiseforValentine’sDaymore thanamonthinadvance.It’snotlikeEasteror Thanksgivingwherethedatemightchange.It’s on the same day every single year. So what exactly would a guy do for a girl?
Anything!Whatyoudodoesn’tevenreally matter that much.The hard part is doingsomething.Ifyouhavethecouragetoget offyourassandputyourselfouttherealittle, womenwillgenerallyrespectthatyoutriedfor them. But be spontaneous.They like that. Be nice…so like, if I tell them that I don’tthinktheylooklikecompletesh**on that day, will that count? Youreallydon’tunderstandwomen.Like at all. What if I say “God bless you” when they sneeze? Howabouttakingthemouttodinneror buyingthemchocolatesorflowersorsomething. Chocolates? I don’t want her to be fat. ThenI’llreallylookdumbholdingherhand when the hotter chick walks by. But dinner might work. I like eating dinner. As long as it’s somewhere cheap. It’sonedayoutoftheyear!Ithinkyoucan spendalittlebitofmoney.Ifyoutreatherto somethingitwillgoalongwayforyou.Show heryoucare.Becharming.Itwon’tkillyou– andIdon’twanttohearaboutyourWikipedia bullsh**. Wait a second. Say that again. Wikipedia bullsh**. No, the other thing. One day out of the year? That’s it.This is all making sense to me now. I can do whatever I want all year long, but as long as I do really nice and compassionate things one day a year, women will reallylikethat?Icansacrificeonedayoutof the whole year.This year is a leap year so I’ll even get that day back! I love this holiday! Ugh.
Leather lace &
Erika’s beauty lives on
“I hope that with this I accomplish sharing her storywitheveryoneandanyonewhowilllisten. Being abletodonatetothefoundationbysaleoftheshirtswas an absolute plus. It’s also a plus for me to see her mom so happy when everyone is interested in buying one,” statedVisone when I asked her what she hoped to accomplish with this project. The2011t-shirtdesignlastyearwasafemalegypsyportraitwithglowingcolors:ablue bandanawith a slightveilcoverentrancingeyesandsunsetorangehair. Therewere250shirtssoldandarestillgettingrequests for more. The design on the shirt is no longer in stock butprintsofthegypsyportraitarestillavailableforsale. TheshirtsarebeingprintedthroughPositiveApproach,aBuffaloscreenprintingcompanylocatedon Elmwood Avenue. Justin Howard and Joe Piehler are working closely on the project to help develop it further.Thisyear’sdesignwasfromherseniorconcentration portfolio. “I wish she was here to see it and had thechancetounleashherclothinglineherself,Iknow itwould’vegoneveryfar. Shehadtheinitiativeandthe drive to make it that way,” Visone said.
Alicia Greco
Life and Arts Editor Art and fashion have a wonderful way of giving beautyeternallife. ErikaPaigeHoernerwasanartist,a fashionistaandalwayshadagleamingsmileonherface. On February 5, 2011, at the age of 18, she was ejected from a vehicle during a tragic drunk driving accident that occurred on the 33. Loved and missed by many, her creative energy lives on. AbestfriendofErika’sforseveralyears,Samantha Visone developed“T-shirts for Erika Hoerner”to help spread the beatific artwork Hoerner has produced. “Shewassomeonewhoyouwantedtobearound, who made you feel like a million bucks, and made you feel and appreciate a genuine friendship. My favorite part of our friendship was all the little notes and pictures. She almost left a trail of her stay wherever she was,” Visone said. Hoernerwasmajoringinfashionmerchandisingat BuffaloStateCollege. Atthewake,anentireroomwas coveredwithartworkinalmosteverymediaincluding self-portraits,sketchesandexquisitepaintings.Herjoyousenergycouldbefeltuponenteringtheroom.Upon herpassing,manyrequestedpiecesofherartworkasa keepsake. This ledVisone towards her inspiring idea. Printingherdesignsgaveeveryonetheopportunityto have a lovely memento. Proceeds from the t-shirt sales go towards the ErikaPaigeHoernerScholarshipFund,whichwillhelp anup-and-comingfashionmerchandisingstudentat Buffalo State. The scholarship was created by ShannonCampbellandAlison Pieroni with the help of Buff State’sstudentsandfaculty.Theyearlyawardcanrange anywhere from $500-$5,000.
TopurchaseanErikaPaigeHoernerone-of-a-kind shirtvisithttp://www.facebook.com/tshirtsforerikaP PositiveApproach:http://positiveapproachpress. com/ If interested in contributing additional donations they can be sent to:
Image Courtesy of Facebook
Buffalo State College Foundation 1300 Elmwood Avenue CLEV 417 Buffalo, NY 14222
LIFE & ARTS Culinary Beat Common dangers of caffeine Lisa Stachura
Life and Arts Writer Whatistheonethingyoureachfor when you’re tired: an energy drink or coffee?Everyoneknowsthemainingredientofthesedrinks,caffeine,isneeded for that extra boost of energy to keep your eyes from drooping. However, is that boost worth the side effects? Caffeine is found naturally in coffeebeans,tealeavesandchocolate.Accordingtoovercaffeinated.org,75%of caffeineintakecomesfromcoffee.However,someover-the-countermedicines andcarbonatedbeverageshaveacentral nervous system stimulant as well. Somedownsidestocaffeineintake arerestlessness,headaches,irritability andelevatedheartrateandbloodpressure. One of the most common side effectsisdehydration,whichiswhyrehydrating is key. Sleep is also significant for good health,andcaffeinecanseverelyaffect one’s sleep pattern.The half-life of caffeine in the body is about six hours, and withcaffeineinyoursystem,theability to obtain a restful and beneficial deep sleep is greatly diminished. According to the student newspaper, The Miami Hurricane,mostcollegestudentsrelyon caffeine to stay awake for late nights to
completeacademicassignments,which can become counterproductive since sleep is necessary for efficient concentration. Caffeine makes your heart race, causesdilatedpupilsandtightensmuscles. However, did you know that caffeine releases glucose into your blood stream?Afterdrinkingacuportwo,you are on a sugar high, which is accompaniedbyanenergycrash.Naturally,you’ll opttoreachformore;however,thiscan lead to a dependency issue. Havingyourbodyinthishormonal state all day is horrible for your health. As you drink more and more over the course of time, your body will become dependent on the stimulant.With this dependency,caffeineintoxicationcan arise,withthemostcommonsymptoms beingjitters,heartpalpitation,flushing and twitching.The increase in cases of intoxication is due to the popular rise of energy drinks, which hold massive amounts of caffeine. The pump of adrenaline gives you energy and allows you to feel good by changingthedopamineproductinyour brain system. But is it really worth the risksofbecomingaddicted?TheAmericanHeartAssociationsaysmoderation iskeytohealthycaffeineconsumption. Drink wisely, and drink only one or two cupsofacaffeinatedbeverageperday.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Creative Corner The Too-tight Life By Andrew Coddington Your brittle bones will break, ribs stick and puncture, and ankles sprain when you go outside, when you dance. Or at the very least, your hair will come undone and no one wants to see that. You know that a boy once died on his eighth birthday of confetti. Asphyxiated, deluged or paper-cut in that sea of party decorations with all his family and friends around. Poor boy. Makes you wonder: what lurks in a helium filled metallic balloon, the Hindenburg? Scary to think of those kaleidoscopic streamers and frosted cake candles next to the curtains all spring-breezing off their delicate rods, all listing to ignition. Drake’s Take Char
Put That Record On music critique by Timothy Gaughan on Drake’s Take Care
At the end of “Over My Dead Body,” the opening track on Drake’s Take Care, there is a snippet of DJ Screw’s “Sailin Da South.” “This is for you sucka ass n****s who wanna do me” pops up somewhat surprisingly,completewithhiscodeineinfluenceddrawlthatprecedestheaforementioned ESG line. Ostensibly,thismakesnosenseinthe context of the song or the album, as there isn’t much resonating with any Screwesquesubstanceotherthanthetrack“Under Ground Kings.”Take Care is mostly an album about money, women and Drake’s relationship to the two. DJ Screw remixed mostlyunknownSouthernandWestCoast hip-hopartistswhosemusicleanedtoward subjectssuchascrime,druguse,lowerclass ennui, discrimination, etc. A list of things theCanadian-bornchild-actor-turned-rapper cannot attest to. “Over My Dead Body” is a classic al-
bumopener.It’smid-paced,encompassing an overarching aesthetic and mood. The first line of the song is, “I think I killed everybody in the game last year/f*ck it I was on though.” It is a fairly cognizant line, in which an allusion to homicide is present; one can’t help but think of Drake’s selfawareness of his own irony. By the end of thefirsttrack,youareexpecting“chopped andscrewed”,leaning,gangstarap,butthe second track,“Shot for Me,”turns out to be aclubsapromancejam,theshotbeingone in a two oz. glass and the line,“I can see it in your eyes you’re angry.” As far as I’m concerned, you give up the right to street fetishism once you’re playedonTop40radiostations,andDrake seems aware of this. His use of DJ Screw is meta-posturing,somethingthatisprevalent formanymusiclisteners,especiallyfansof hip-hop.Thisplacementofa“songwithina song” is a painterly stroke of genius.
LIFE & ARTS
Friday, February 10, 2012
Regal Elmwood Center 16 2001 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, NY
CHRONICLE (PG-13) DAILY 2:00 4:40 6:50 9:15 FRI/SAT/SUN 2:15, 5:05 7:25 9:45 The Woman in Black (PG-13) DAILY 1:20 4:05 6:35 7:15 9:00 9:40 FRI/SAT/SUN 2:05 5:00 7:35 9:55 The Grey (R) DAILY 1:10 1:50 3:50 4:30 6:40 7:30 9:30 10:10 FRI/SAT/SUN 1:15 4:30 7:45 10:35 Big Miracle (PG) DAILY 1:30 4:15 6:55 9:50 FRI/SAT/SUN 1:35 4:25 6:55 9:25 Underworld: Awakening (R) DAILY 2:35 7:45 FRI/SAT/SUN 9:35
15 Sensational Superhero Songs
“Superman”—Eminem “Batdance”—Prince “Iron Man”—Black Sabbath “Spider-Man”—The Ramones “Kryptonite”—3 Doors Down “Batman & Robin”—Snoop Dogg “Captain America”—moe. One for the Money “Waiting’ For a Superman”—The Flaming Lips (PG-13) DAILY 1:25 6:35 “Flash”—Queen FRI/SAT/SUN 1:25 6:35 “Gotham City”—R. Kelly Red Tails “Superman (It’s Not Easy)”—Five For Fighting (PG-13) DAILY 1:35 4:25 7:25 10:15 “Nobody Loves the Hulk”—The Traits FRI/SAT/SUN 1:40 4:45 7:40 “Spidey’s Curse”—Black Lips 10:30 “Ghost Rider”—Suicide Man on a Ledge (PG-13) “Magneto and Titanium Man”—Paul McCartney & Wings DAILY 2:05 4:50 7:35 10:25 FRI/SAT/SUN 3:50 9:20
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (PG-13) DAILY 1:15 4:10 7:05 10:00 FRI/SAT/SUN 1:00 4:05 7:05 10:15
Sounds of buffalo monday RINSE 8PM-11PM live stream on waxmuseumradio.co Evac Protocol and HXLY
Talking Leaves to host... Kevin Fox! TV producer and screenwriter to discuss and sign his new novel Until the Next Time
tuesday Rusko—Town Ballroom 8PM-12AM all ages—DJ Medison & SwaggleRock
Thursday, 2/16/12, 7 p.m. at 3158 Main Street
Rusko After-party—Soundlab 11:30PM-4:30AM 18+ $12 tickets
The event is free and open to the public. Books to be signed are requested to be purchased from Talking Leaves as an act of encouragement and support for the author, the publisher, and the bookstore. On his 21st birthday, Sean Corrigan’s father hands him the diary of a dead uncle, whose existence he was unaware of prior to this moment. The journal, kept by uncle Michael after he fled New York for Ireland in the early 1970’s to escape prosecution for a murder he did not commit, draws Sean into a search for the truth and meaning of his uncle’s life and his family’s history. Sean too leaves New York for Ireland, where he is caught up in the lives of people who not only know all about Michael Corrigan but also have a score to settle. As his connection to his uncle grows stronger, he realizes that within the tattered journal he carries lies the story of his own life—his past as well as his future—and the key to finding the one woman he is fated to love forever. Fox has penned a romance cloaked in mystery and suspense that takes readers inside the rich heritage of Irish history and faith. Until the Next Time is a remarkable story about time and memory and the way ancient myths affect everything—from what we believe to whom we love. Ancient Celtic and Irish belief plays a key role in the story; the author describes the book as a literary “Celtic knot” to be unraveled strand by strand.
Talking Leaves independent bookstores nourish independent minds 3158 Main Street 14214 (716) 837-8554
wednesday CREAM Dukes Bohemian Groove Bar 10PM-4AM 21+ DJ Twist & DJ Arehouse & DJ Medison – no cover – drink specials and kitchen is open until 12am
thurs.
Fri.
Sat.
sun.
PHENOMENON Noir Ultra Nightclub
Friday Night Riot Bayou Nighclub
InSANITY Saturdays Noir Ultra Nightclub 10PM-4AM 18+ --Roboroc & guest DJs under 21 $8
SILK DBGBs 253 Allen St. 21+ no cover
10PM-4AM 18+ SwaggleRock & SunGlasses Mike & Roboroc w. live drums under 21 $8 ($4 before 11pm)
10AM-4AM DJ Sunglasses Mike and Potent J 18+ $5
Friction, Queen City Cartel, 10pm4am, 21+, dbgbs, TEMPERS ROUGE, Stuntman, BRYZERGOLD, SMIRK
CHRISTIAN DHARMA (9-10:30p) ACTIVE8 (10:30p-12a) DERF (12-1:30a) TBD (1:30-3a) MEDISON (3-4a)
SPORTS
Friday, February 10, 2012
P A E L T IAN Eli tops Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI Super bowl XLVI
G
By Brady Phelps Sports Writer
The National Football League isheavilybaseduponmatchupsand execution.LastSundayevening,the NewYorkGiantsheldanadvantage with most on-field matchups, and they made the big plays when necessary to hoist theVince Lombardi Trophy once again. Eli Manning proved to beTom Brady’skryptonite.Thegamewasn’t always that pretty – it seemed like a bit of a stalemate for awhile, both head coaches waiting to catch the other one slip. It could be argued that a lack of execution led to New England’s downfall (they had the ball and the lead with four minutes to go), but ultimately NewYork was in the right place at the right time and now Eli andTom Coughlin find themselves in Hall of Fame conversationswithtwochampionshipsto show for their coach-quarterback partnership. Thegamestartedwithastrange play in which Tom Brady was pressured by Justin Tuck, forcing him to heave the ball to nobody in particularwhilehewasintheendzone. Theintentionalgroundingpenalty resultedinasafetyanda2-0leadfor NewYork.Manningdrovedownthe fieldandhitVictorCruzonaninside slant for a touchdown on the ensuing possession. Cruz’s trademark salsadancecelebrationhelpedcap off a brilliant year for the rookie. In the second quarter, Brady put together a Super Bowl record 96-yard drive before hitting Danny Woodhead in the end zone, after a New England field goal, to take the lead into halftime. Brady conducted another impressive drive, coming out of the lockerroomhot.Marchingdownthe gridironineightplaysandcovering Hockey Feb. 9, 2012 At Buffalo, N. Y. RIT 3, Canisius 1 RIT Canisius
1 1 1—3 0 0 1—1
First Period—1, RIT, Haltigan 3 (Hartley, Lynch), 16:16. Penalties—Descoteaux, RIT (hooking), 5:22; Farrell, Can (boarding), 7:35; Parker, Can (hooking), 18:12. Second Period—2, RIT, McReynolds 2 (Lynch, Garbowsky), 2:44. Penalties—Danford,Can (hooking), 0:17; Haltigin, RIT (hooking), 4:49; Thompson, RIT (roughing), 8:01; Gibbons, Can (interference), 13:52. Third Period—3, Canisius, Law 11 (Gibbons, McCrank), 8:50. 4, RIT, Garbowsky 6 (McReynolds, Spivak), 12:55. Penalties—Roe, Can (roughing), 5:54; Gibbons, Can, ten-minute misconduct, 14:07; McReynolds, RIT (goaltenderinterference), 14:30; McKellar, Can (interference), 16:11; Hartley, RIT (cross-checking), 17:22; Garbowsky, RIT
Google Images
Eli Manning wins his second Super Bowl MVP award last Sunday in Indianapolis.
79 yards, Brady dropped back and found tight end Aaron Hernandez forhissecondpassingtouchdownof the day.The G-Men answered with two field goals of their own in the third quarter. Though holding a 17-15 lead goingintothefourthquarter,thePatriotswerereelingandneededtoregaincomposure.Thefirstmajorslipupbyeitherquarterbackcameatthe beginningofthefourth,whenBrady
(interference), 19:10; Jessey, Can (slashing), 19:26. Shots on Goal—RIT 17-811—36. Canisius 5-4-7—16. Power-play opportunities— RIT 0 of 6; Canisius 0 of 6. Goalies—RIT, Madolora 14-6-2 (16 shots-15 saves). Canisius, Capobianco 5-8-2 (36-33). Attendance—678 (1,800). Time—2:05. Women’s Basketball Feb. 2, 2012 At Lewiston, N. Y. CANISIUS 58, NIAGARA 57 CANISIUS (11-12, 5-7 MAAC) Wilkes 5-7 0-0 11, Ruttle 5-9 6-9 17, Morabito 3-8 2-2 11, Hoohuli 2-6 0-0 5, Durham 3-6 3-5 9, Angelos 0-1 0-0 0, Gardner 0-0 0-0 0, Lennox 0-1 0-0 0, VandeBovenkamp 2-7 1-2 5. Totals 20-45 12-18 58. NIAGARA (8-16, 5-7 MAAC) Britton 2-6 1-3 5, Gatto 2-6 2-2 6, Morris 1-3 2-2 5, Johnson 3-4 0-0 7, Stroman 7-16 1-1 17, McGuinness 3-8 0-0 9, Van Leeuwen 0-0 0-0 0,
eluded pressure but then had his passpickedoffbyChaseBlackburn. Blackburn was able to jump above Pats tight end Rob Gronkowski, whowashamperedbyahighankle sprain. The Patriots were at the 50yard line with the ball and the lead atthefour-minutemarkwhenBrady threw a pass toWesWelker. Having toturnawayfromthesafetyandleap backward,theballhithishandsand
dropped.Thefirstdowncouldhave sealedthegameforNewEnglandas it would have brought them to the 20-yardline,withinfieldgoalrange. NewYork decided to seize the moment with just under four minutesremaininginthegame.Starting athisown12-yardline,Manninghit receiver Mario Manningham with a beautiful pass down the sideline, putting it where only his receiver couldhavegottenit.Theplay,which
Box Scores & Standings Waterman 0-0 0-0 0, Flamm 2-8 0-0 5, Frost 0-0 0-0 0, McQuade 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 21-53 6-8 57.
Jones 1-8 7-8 10, Myles 4-9 2-2 12, Nd-Ezuma 2-4 1-4 5, Pereira 1-3 0-0 3. Totals 23-64 18-26 71.
Halftime: Niagara 35-32. 3-Point Goals: Canisius 6-20 (Wilkes 1-2, Ruttle 1-3, Morabito 3-8, Hoohuli 1-4, Durham 0-3), Niagara 9-19 (Morris 1-2, Johnson 1-1, Stroman 2-6, McGuinness 3-6, Flamm 1-2, McQuade 1-2 ). Fouled Out: None. Rebounds: Canisius 36 (VandeBovenkamp 9), Niagara 26 (Morris, Johnson 7). Assists: Canisius 14 (Durham 7), Niagara 11 (Stroman 4). Total Fouls: Canisius 12, Niagara 15. Attendance: 287.
CANISIUS (4-20, 1-13 MAAC) Manhertz3-99-1015,Bleeker 2-4 0-0 6, Washington 7-16 0-0 15, Hymes 4-14 2-4 10, Milian 4-7 0-0 11, Ezeamama 0-0 0-0 0, Santiago 1-6 1-2 3, Funk 0-2 0-0 0, Heath 3-6 0-0 6. Totals 24-64 12-16 66.
Men’s Basketball Feb. 9, 2012 At Buffalo, N. Y. RIDER 71, CANISIUS 66 RIDER (11-15, 8-6 MAAC) Stewart 0-7 2-2 2, Gadson 8-14 2-4 19, Penn 5-12 1-2 12, Thompson 2-7 3-4 8,
Halftime: Canisius 34-29. 3-Point Goals: Rider 7-29 (Gadson 1-5, Penn 1-7, Thompson 1-3, Jones 1-6, Myles 2-5, Pereira 1-3), Canisius 6-22 (Bleeker 2-4, Washington 1-5, Hymes 0-6, Milian 3-4, Santiago 0-3). Fouled Out: Canisius, Funk, Tyler. Rebounds: Rider 45 (Penn 10), Canisius 41 (Washington 10). Assists: Rider 20 (Thompson 10), Canisius 13 (Washington 5). Total Fouls: Rider 16, Canisius 16. Attendance: 730.
was reviewed, showed that Manninghamdidindeedhavebothfeet inbounds.The38-yardgainwasone of the most memorable plays the game would offer. Manning proceeded to pick apart the Patriots secondary in all-pro form before Ahmad Bradshaw sprinted up the middle for a touchdown and the leadwithamere57secondsremaining, though Patriot defenders let himscoresotheiroffensecouldget the ball back. The pressure was now on New England to drive the length of the field in under a minute.There were a few drops by Patriots receivers, but they managed to get to about midfield. Brady dropped back and heaved a Hail Mary as time expired – the ball was tipped, and fell just out of Gronkowski’s reach. The Giants had beaten the Patriots yet againtoclaimthetitleofSuperBowl Champions. It was a game that truly could have gone either way. The Giants fumbled twice at crucial times, but recovered both. The Patriots droppedsomeballsandgaveuptoo muchontheground.AhmadBradshawandBrandonJacobscombined for over 100 yards in the running game–somethingthatwasexpected, but should have been planned for. It should be the success of Manning, and not the failure of the New England Patriots, that this Super Bowl is remembered for. With a 30-for-40,296-yardandonetouchdown performance, Eli deserved to be Super Bowl MVP. The little brother now has more Super Bowl rings than his Hall of Fame shoe-in older brother, Peyton. But if Eli’s careerremainsthissuccessful,Peyton might have some company in Canton. phelpsb@canisius.edu
Atlantic Hockey Standings Team GP Air Force RIT 22 Mercyhurst 21 Niagara 21 Robert Morris 21 Bentley 21 Holy Cross 21 Connecticut 21 Canisius 22 Army 21 American Int’l 21 Sacred Heart 21
Conf. Pts. Ovr. 21 12-4-5 29 14-7-6 13-6-3 29 16-10-3 12-5-4 28 15-11-4 11-5-5 27 12-9-7 11-7-3 25 13-12-3 9-6-6 24 9-12-7 10-8-3 23 12-13-3 11-9-1 23 12-14-2 9-10-3 21 9-16-4 3-13-5 11 4-15-7 4-15-2 10 5-21-2 1-18-2 4 2-24-2
MAAC Men’s Basketball Standings Team Iona Loyola Manhattan Fairfield Rider Siena Niagara Marist St. Peter’s Canisius
GP 13 13 14 13 14 14 14 13 14 14
Conf. Pct. Ovr. 11-2 .846 19-5 11-2 .846 18-5 10-4 .714 17-9 9-4 .692 14-10 8-6 .571 11-15 5-9 .357 10-14 5-9 .357 10-16 4-9 .308 9-15 4-10 .286 5-20 1-13 .071 4-20
MAAC Women’s Basketball Standings Team Fairfield Marist Manhattan Iona Loyola Canisius Niagara Siena Rider St. Peter’s
GP 12 12 11 11 12 12 12 12 12 12
Conf. Pct. Ovr. 11-1 .917 18-5 11-1 .917 16-7 6-5 .545 12-11 6-5 .545 10-12 6-6 .500 10-13 5-7 .417 11-12 5-7 .417 8-16 5-7 .417 7-14 2-10 .167 10-13 2-10 .167 2-21
SPORTS
Friday, February 10, 2012
Synchro
Synchro crushes competition at Canisius Invitational By Hayden Ristevski Sports Writer
The Canisius College synchronized swimming competed in their secondmeetofthe2012seasonlast SaturdayafternoonatKoesslerAthletic Center pool, dominating both WheatonCollegeandLindenwood University at the Canisius Invitational. The Griffs came out with a final score of 90 points, with Wheaton coming in second with a score of 72 and Lindenwood falling to the third spot with a score of 14. Canisius swept the meet, taking first and second place in all of their swims, including the solo, duet and trio events. Overall, the team had a great group swim placing first with a score of 89.167, an improvement from last week when they scored 83.750 at Boston University Invitational. In the trio routine event, sophomore Svetlana Ponkratova, junior Victoria Mintz and freshman Viktoria Mironova combined to place first with a score of 87.667. Sophomores Jessica Mancini and Morgan Lebrecht teamed up with junior Missy Andrews to place second
best swims of the season so far so thatwasreallygreat.Thejudgeshad goodcommentsandwe’llhopefully take those comments and improve on our swims for the rest of the season,” Grogan said. Grogan felt that the invitational as a whole went really well. “Wehadreallygoodswimsand it was nice to have some good competition here that we don’t normally compete against. I think we all wentoutandhadreallygoodswims and that’s all that we can ask for at this point,” Grogan said. Looking forward, the team has tokeeptraininghardinpreparation for their main goal – to win at nationals. “I think there’s a lot of focus on ‘team’ this year. We have a reallygreattheme,we’reswimmingto SnowWhite and the Seven Dwarfs so it’s a lot of fun, so I think that a lot of our focus is really on the long term goal of nationals and doing our best there,” Grogan said. The Griffs take to the pool Courtesy of Patricia Andrews again on Feb. 11 and 12 when they Members of the synchronized swimming team pose in their Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs outfits. face Wheaton once again at the with a score of 83.667. swam together to take second with of 89.500. Senior Jessica Grogan Wheaton Invitational in Norton, In the duo routine event, a score of 84.167. placed second, with a score of Mass. Ponkratova and Mintz finished first In the solo routines, Ponkra- 83.667. with a score of 88.667. Mironova tova took home her fourth first“I feel like it went really well, ristevsf@canisius.edu and sophomore Lebrecht also place finish of the day with a score all of the solos had some of their HOCKEY
Lack of offensive support leads to loss vs. RIT By Rich Lunghino Sports Copy Editor
The Canisius College hockey teamwasn’tabletoduplicateit’s3-1 victory against the RIT Tigers from Oct.20lastnightattheBuffaloState Ice Arena. Instead, the away team flipped the script with a 3-1 win of its own in front of a crowd made up mostly of energetic Tiger fans. Sophomore goaltender Tony Capobiancowasphenomenalinthe first period, stopping all but one of the 17 Tiger shots in the frame. The second-year netminder made severalgreatstopsincludingasaveona breakawaywithaboutsevenminutes to go in the period. The lone goal in the period was scoredthreeminuteslateronawrist shot from the point which found its way through a maze of players in front of the Canisius net and went past Capobianco low on the glove side.Despiteskatingtoe-to-toewith theTigersforthefirsthalfoftheperiod,Canisiuswasonlyabletomuster
fiveshotsonopposinggoalieShane Madolora. RIT continued its momentum builtbythefirst-periodgoalandaddedtotheirleadwhenashotfromthe circletrickledpastCapobianco’sfivehole.TheTigers held the majority of thepossessionofthepuckformuch of the period. On the other side, the Griffsweren’tabletogeneratemuch offense, registering only four shots on goal. Then again, it is difficult to createoffensewhentheotherteam has the puck a majority of the time. “The middle portion of the game, the last seven minutes of the firstandthesecondperiodwaswhen RIT the puck possession,” head coach Dave Smith said. “The first part of the first period was pretty evenandwehadchancesanddidn’t get pucks on the net.” Canisius finally broke through withagoalinthethirdperiod.Freshman Mitch McCrank made a nice play in the neutral zone by stripping and RIT player of the puck and quicklygettingittosophomoreKyle
Gibbons.The Griffs then broke in on Madolora on a 3-on-1 rush. SophomoreTaylor Law called for Gibbons to give him the puck and made no mistake, one-timing Gibbons’pass intothetopofthenet.Law’sgoalwas his team-leading eleventh. The momentum then seemed to shift in favor of the Griffs. The team skated with renewed energy andfreshmanStephenFarrellmade a nice hit at the Canisius blueline. However, RIT would take hold of thegame,addingastrangetallytoretakeatwo-goallead3-1.Capobianco seemedtocatchashotwithhischest but the Tigers’ Matt Garbowsky somehow made contact with the puck and put it into the net.The Canisius players werecallingforahigh stick, but the goal stood. Thefrustrationmountedforthe Griffs as the game came to a close. After a scrum in front of the RIT net left Madolora down on the ice, Gibbonstookaten-minutemisconduct penalty and vented his frustration inthepenaltybox.Sixminuteslater,
the final horn sounded and RITtook thevictory.Capobiancorecorded33 saves in the loss as his team was outshot 36-16. “I’m worried about the way [frustration] played out in tonight’s game,” Smith said. “That’s not the way we represent ourselves or our hockeyteamandthatfrustrationhas got to be channeled differently and we’ll deal with that.” Last weekend, the Griffs split a home-and-home series with the Robert Morris Colonials, losing 6-4 inPittsburgh,Pa.beforecomingback to Buffalo and earning a 2-1 victory. In the loss, Morrison got the start andplayed26minutesbeforebeing replacedbyCapobiancoafterallowing three goals on 20 shots. Capobiancowasbeatentwiceon18shotsin his action. TheGriffsadmittedtheygotoff to a rough start in Pittsburgh, going down 5-1 with 15 minutes to go in the third period. Canisius rattled off three-straight goals off the sticks of Law, Gibbons and Jessey, but were
unable to complete a comeback. Canisius returned home and turnedoutacomplete60-minuteeffort in a 2-1 win. The Griffs were solid at both ends of the ice and freshmen Mitch McCrank and Stephen FarrellscoredthegoalsfortheGriffs. Farrell’sgoalwasthefirstofhiscollegiatecareer.Capobiancowasstrong innet,recording29savesforhisfifth win of the season. Whenaskedwhetherthegame was one of the most complete that the Griffs have played this season, Gibbons responded, “absolutely” adding that the previous game had been “dismal.” Canisius (9-10-3, 9-16-4 Atlantic Hockey) has one more chance to get back at the Tigers in the regular seasonasthetwoteamswillmeetfor thesecondgameofthehome-andhomeseriesSaturdaynightat7:05in Rochester.The2,100-seatFrankRitter Memorial Ice Arena will be sold out. lunghinr@canisius.edu
SPORTS
Friday, February 10, 2012
women’s basketball
Durham plays purple heartbreaker in Lewiston By Ed Lupien Sports Writer
Obtaining what many would deem to be a signature win of its season,thewomen’sbasketballteam downedcross-townrivalNiagaraon itshomecourtinLewistonSaturday afternoon, garnering a 58-57 victory on a layup from junior Ashley Durham with0.9secondsleftinthe game. As Canisius trailed by one with 8.7 seconds remaining, Durham took the inbounds pass and got a screeninthebackcourtfromAshley Wilkes driving down the right side of the lane to the other end of the court. Durham made it to the basket and managed to get her shot over oneofNiagara’sforward.Theballhit highofftheglassandwentthrough thenettogiveCanisiustheleadand ultimately the win as Wilkes interceptedtheinboundspassjustover halfcourtontheensuingpossession. “The plan was we were going to set a screen for Ashley and let her go hard to the basket,”head coach Terry Zeh said.“If they rotated over we were going to flip it to [Jen] Morabito or [Jamie] Ruttle but nobody picked her up. Wilkes set a good screen, sprung her free, and she finished it.” The Griffs battled throughout the game before going on a 9-0 run after trailing 48-38 with 12:19 minutesremaining.Canisiuslimitedthe Purple Eagles to two field goals the restoftheway,outscoringthem209. “It does feel good to be on a winning side,” Zeh said. “I’m hopingthatwecanstopgettingdownso muchandbattlingbackbecauseI’m running out of hair and my blood pressure is going up but at least we keep digging.” As a team, Canisius shot 44.4 percentfromthefieldinthecontest including a 30 percent effort from beyond the arc, going 1-for-8 (12.5 percent) from that distance in the second half. SophomoreforwardJamieRuttle paced the Griffs with 17 points whilesophomoreguardJenMorabitoandWilkeseachchippedinwith 11. Durham finished with a stat line ofninepoints,sevenassists,andfive rebounds. Thewincame16daysafterthe PurpleEaglesdefeatedtheGriffs6660attheKoesslerAthleticCenterin
Mailbag: Sometimes You Just Can’t Win By Alexander Vilardo Sports Columnist
I’ll be honest with you: After lastweek’scolumn,Iwasexpecting togetafewemailsfrombasketball players or people involved with thebasketballprogram.Ithought I might get an email or two from even administrators. I was right about getting emails. I was wrong in thinking they wouldn’t be from synchronized swimmers. This week, I’ve decided to include my favorite bits of these emails. After reading the girls’ reviews of my last column, I’ve learnedthatsynchronizedswimmers are passionate and tough – and they don’t come up for air.
Colin Gordon/The Griffin
Junior guard Ashley Durham scored the game-winning layup against Niagara.
agamethatwastelevisedonESPN3. Durham’sbasketwasthelatest game-winning basket for the program since a buzzer beater against St. Bonaventure on Jan. 24, 1995. With the win, Canisius earned two points in the Battle of the Bridge competitionandtrimmedNiagara’s lead to 10.5-6.5. Zehnotedthathekepthiscomposurethroughoutthegamebyrubbingavoucherforacomplimentary ice cream atThe Silo in Lewiston for good luck. The voucher was given
to Zeh prior to the game by Mike Scott,theteam’sradiobroadcaster, whowasconfidenttheGriffswould be victorious. Canisius (11-12, 5-7 MAAC) will embark on its final weekend road-tripoftheregularseasonlater this week as it travels to New Jersey for a clash with Rider tonight followed by a Sunday afternoon tilt with Saint Peter’s. lupiene@canisius.edu
You want to talk about hockey? Fine, by all means I agree with what you’re saying. I just wonder if you’ve ever considered synchronized swimming ... Our team is consistently top and is ranked within the top five nationally EVERY YEAR. We’re quiet about it too ... [and] we don’t have the fundingthatbasketballhasandyet withsofewteamsnearuswehave to travel longer distances just to compete...Iunderstandyourarticle’ssidecompletely,howeverIdo ask you to to take a look at teams whoarestillabletobechampions without the school’s focus – perhapswehaveearnedsomefocusin thepast14yearsthatwehavetaken the ECAC title at our regional championships. Thank you, Synchronized Swimmer A Thanks for agreeing with my article.Ihavealotofrespectforsynchronizedswimming.Irealizehow harditisandhowtoughyourpractices are, and I love that your team winssomuch.Iwisheveryteamon campuswonevenhalfasoftenasthe synchroteamdoes.Withthatsaid, synchronizedswimmingisn’tapopularsportbecauseitdoesn’tlenditself tobeingaspectatorsport:Toomuch ofthesporthappensunderwaterfor peopletorealizewhatisgoingon. Have you ever watched synchronizedswimming?Thewords youjustsentmewerecompletely illogicalandignorant...Whatpart ofsynchronizedswimmingisnota “spectatorsport”?It...ismeantfor spectators to watch ... Everything you see is what you are meant to see,andeverythingunderwateris meant to stay underwater ...Your articlestatesthathockeyhasclose statistics to the basketball team “but there is hope.”Instead of rewardingthehockeyteamonlyfor potential, why not reward a team thatactuallydeservesit?Wedon’t just have the potential, we have proof and it is sad that basketball andhockeybothgetmorepublicity for losing than synchro for being nationally ranked. Thank you, Synchronized Swimmer A Ineverrealizedhowtoughsyn-
chronizedswimmersare.Iwonderif theycanreboundorbackcheck,too. Honestly,Ihavewatchedsynchronizedswimming–mysistersdidit whentheywereyounger.Yes,Isaid “there is hope,”but I also said that Buffalo is a hockey town. Notice I didn’tsay“synchronizedswimming town.” It is obvious that your reason forbeingignoranttowardsynchronized swimming is because it is either“not your taste”or that you areincorrectinsayingthatyourespectthesynchroteamhere.Ifyou don’t actually respect our team, keep writing about how hockey and basketball are losing, and someoneelsecankeepputtingthe threesmallparagraphsabouthow synchro did really well. I am sorry if my calling you ignorant was ... offensive however I am really just tryingtoopenyoureyestomyand my teammates passion and hard work. Regards, Synchronized Swimmer A You do realize that I took zero shotsatsynchronizedswimmingin mylastcolumn,right?Andlook,just becauseotherpeopleenjoythingslike olivesdoesn’tmeanIhavetolikeolives.Istillrespectolivesandconsider themafood.Butthanksforletting someoneelsewritethearticlesabout yourteam–Ialreadyhaveenough work this semester. Also, I forgive youforthenamecalling–I’vebeen calledmuchworse.Ihavesisters,remember? I am a member of the synchronized swim team ... I’m not here to tell you why synchro is thebest,becauseweknowweare. Not to be cocky but we are consistentlythebestperformingteamon campus ... I have massive respect for EVERY team on our campus. I agree with you on the state of our basketball team ... it’s pathetic! If I were [the] AD I wouldn’t be pouringmoneyintosynchroeither,let’s be honest it’s not a high-publicity sport, but unlike your article I believe money should be given to the teams that earn it ... I think hockey has SO much potential to be a popular, successful program ... However, they are not performing as if they deserve that kind of money ... It’s annoying when the teams that actually perform well never get the respect we have EARNED, especially from the athleticdepartment.Iguessmypoint is that ... I think there should be moreresearchintotheotherteams ... Will sports like swimming or cross country ever be as popular as hockey? No! But that doesn’t meanwedon’tdeserveopportunitiestobegoodeither.Givemoney to those that earn it. -Synchronized Swimmer B Rememberthattimeyouasked yourselfifsportslikeswimmingor crosscountrywilleverbeaspopular as hockey?
vilardo2@canisius.edu
sports
RIT beats Canisius on scoreboard, in stands
@14
@15 Durham’slayupbeatsNiagara. Volume lxxxii Number 14
Canisius College, Buffalo, N.Y.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Men’s Basketball
Men’s basketball throws away passes, victory By Nick Veronica Sports Editor
All Gaby Belardo could do was sitandwatchashisteamletanupset of the Rider Broncs slip through its fingerslastnightattheKoesslerAthletic Center. The junior guard has battled through a back injury all season to trytogivesomequalityminutestoa teamstrugglingtoremaincompetitive.Butafterreceivinganinjection Wednesday that hadn’t taken full effect, coaches decided Thursday morning to hold him out and get him ready for Saturday’s matchup with Siena. Belardowatchedhisteamcontrol the first half and walked to the locker room with them at halftime leading34-29.Hewatchedhisteam continue to outscore Rider deep into the second half, going up as many as 10 points with 7:19 to play. But when the Broncs went to a full-courtpress, Belardo wished he could have been out there, giving his team a veteran presence it desperately needed. Instead, he could only watch as the Griffs turned the ball over on five straight possessions while Rider ripped off a 13-0 run, taking its first lead of the night with 1:38 left and securing the win, sinkingtheGriffsto4-20overalland 1-13 in MAAC play. “Itwashardattheendbecause weneededaballhandlerandIwasn’t there,”Belardosaid.“Thoselasttwo minutesIthinktheteamneededme andIfeelbadIwasn’twithmyteammates. “Ihatesittingdown,evenwhen my back is feeling bad I still want to play. Coach [Tom Parrotta] told me to take the day off and be ready for
Colin Gordon/The Griffin
Harold Washington scored 15 points and even pulled down 10 rebounds last night for his first career double-double.
Sienabutithurtsalotjustwatching my teammates giving 110 percent and not winning. I feel bad. I kind of feel like I let my team down but we’redefinitelygoingtogetthiswin on Saturday.” On a night when it looked like the Griffs would pick up their second win of the calendar year, the endresultwasinsteadacollapsethat
extendedtheteam’slosingstreakto eight games. “We kind of went into a lull,” said junior Harold Washington, who had a double-double of 15 pointsand10reboundsbutalsowas chargedwiththefirsttwoturnovers duringtheGriffs’collapse.“Nobody could find their scoring touch. We werekindofdesperateforabasketso
sometimeswefindourselvesforcing theissuealittlebit.Oncetheybegan tofull-courtpressus,Ithinkwekind of broke down a little mentally and started playing to their hands and startedtopanic,andthat’swhatled to the back-to-back turnovers.” The Griffs were two guards down last night without Belardo andReggieGroves,whohadhissus-
pensionliftedbyParrottaearlierthis weekbutdidnotgetintothegame. Lack of depth has been an issue for Canisius all season, bust last night, the opponent wasshorthanded as well. Themysteriousgastrointestinal virus afflicting students at Princeton and Rider universities hit the Riderbasketballteam,Broncscoach Tommy Dempsey said, as bench players Eddie Mitchell and Junior Fortunat were“struck ill”on the bus ridetoBuffalo.Theplayerscombine toscoreovereightpointspergame but will remain secluded from the team until cleared to play by doctors. Dempsey hopes they will able toplayinthesecondgameofthetrip against Niagara. The low point of the game camewith18secondsleftafterRider’s Novar Gadson hit a free throw toputhisteamuptwopossessions, 67-63.Parrottatookhislasttimeout to draw up a play and sent freshmanTylerFunktoinboundtheball. When Funk couldn’t find a man, he tried to call a timeout, but was assessed atechnicalfoulbecause Canisius didn’t have any left to take. Parrottatookresponsibilityfor the play after the game, saying he shouldn’t have put a player in that situationwhowasn’treadyforit,but whenJeffJoneshitbothensuingfree throwsthegamewasessentiallyout of reach. Belardo gets back to action SaturdayafternoonwhentheSiena Saints come to the KAC. He may be hoping for a repeat of the last time Siena visited Canisius – Belardo hit thegame-winningshotwith11secondslefttoknockoffthethree-time defending champs. veronicn@canisius.edu
Hockey
Q & A with Swedish hockey player Carl Larsson By Nathan Barillari Sports Writer
Griffin writer Nathan Barillari satdownwithCarlLarssonthisweek, afreshmanonthehockeyteamfrom Sweden.Larssonisthefirst-everhockeyplayeratCanisiusbornoutsideof NorthAmerica.In25gamesthisseason,hehasonegoalandfourassists. Larssondiscussesthehockeyseason, differencesbetweenSwedenandBuffalo, and, of course, the food. Nathan Barillari: So how do you like it here at Canisius so far? Carl Larsson: I like it a lot. It’s a great experience here.Traveling around in the U.S. and playing againstgoodteams,andbeingable to get a good education too. It’s a great experience. NB: What influenced your decision to come here? CL: I gotta say my Dad had a big part in it … I always wanted to comeoverhereandplayhockey.I’ve
always liked the North American kind of way to play hockey. And my family, we all value an education so it’s a win-win situation for us. NB: Talk about some of the biggest differences between the American style of play and the Swedish style of play. CL: Well first off, the rinks are muchbiggerinSweden,sothetempo is a little bit slower because you havemoretimewiththepuck.Here on the other hand, it’s much faster andyouhavetotakethepucktothe net, you have to be quick on taking thepucktothenetandgetbodiesto thenetandthatwayit’smorephysical. NB: Do you think you’ve adjusted well to the American style? CL: It’s been taking time to adjust to it but, I’m feeling that I’m getting better and better. NB: Describe yourself as a player. CL: I’m a pretty big centerman. I like the center of the ice … making passes, trying to get the puck to my
wings … I want to say I’m a pretty good all-around player. NB: How does it feel knowing that you’re the first player born outside of North America to play hockey at Canisius? CL: It’s pretty cool. I didn’t even know it before but it’s just a cool thing. I haven’t really thought about it that much but I’m glad to bethefirstandhopefullywecanget moreSwedishrecruitscomingover in the future. NB: Talk a little bit about the difficulties of the language barrier between Sweden and the United States. CL: Well, I feel the English is starting to get better and better. First when I came over, I had some trouble understanding [English]. Youhavetotalkeverydayanditgets betterasthetimegoesbyandallthe peopleinSwedenspeakprettygood [English], because we start quite early in school talking English.You have to be around the guys all the time speaking English and it gets
better all the time. NB: So you learned English over in Sweden and picked up on it here some more? CL: Yeah. I mean you start in Swedenwhenyou’re10,soIhadlike eightyearsofEnglishbeforeIcame over here. English is the second language to Sweden so if you were to come to Sweden you would get aroundtalkingEnglish,mostpeople know English. NB: How different is the food here in Buffalo from the food back in Sweden? CL: (laughs) Yeah, that’s a good question … you guys have a lot of subs here and that’s not what we really eat in Sweden. Normally, I would have a sub for breakfast and a big meal for lunch like you have for dinner and then we’ll have a big meal for dinner, too. So, I think we trytoeatmorehealthycomparedto here. Everything here has got to be quick, you know? NB: So is that your new favorite food, subs?
CL: No, I actually miss the Swedish food a lot, I can’t wait to getbackandgetmymom’sfoodand have it cooked … but I can’t complain.It’sgoodfoodherebutIprefer the Swedish food, to be honest. NB: Aside from the language and the food, what has been the biggestchallengeoradjustmentfor you? CL: Oh, that’s a good question. Ithinkthebiggestchallengeisjustto makeeverythingwork,yougottobe goodinschoolandyougottoadjust to North American hockey, the languageitself.Everythingcombined hasbeenthebiggestbarrierforme. NB: Do you have any final thoughts you want to add? CL: I don’t know how many games we have left, but we talked aboutputtingpressureonourselves and starting to compete more during the rest of the season … it’s not over and we will work hard to get as far as we can. barilla1@canisius.edu
The voice of Canisius College since 1933
www.TheGriffinCanisius.com
Send Submissions to: Griffin@canisius.edu Follow The Griffin on Twitter!
@CanisiusGriffin @NickVeronica @RichLunghino
News.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
1-5
Opinion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7 Life And Arts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-12 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-16
This paper is made from recyclable fiber
Please recycle