Vol110 issue06 by Santa Monica College Corsair Newspaper

CORSAIR

OCTOBER 21, 2015 | VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 | SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

THE TRUTH ABOUT ORGANIC (PG. 5)

STUDENTS PREPARE FOR EARTHQUAKES (PG. 8)

FIRST COPY OF THE CORSAIR IS FREE, EACH COPY AFTER IS 25

THE GREAT GOD PAN DOESN'T PAN OUT (PG. 11)

SPORTS MID-SEASON REVIEW (PG. 12)

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CONTENT

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

EDITORIAL STAFF Devin Page ....................................Editor-in-Chief corsair.editorinchief@gmail.com Yasha Hawkins...........................Managing Editor corsair.managing@gmail.com Alissa Nardo ......................................News Editor corsair.news@gmail.com Bailey Peraita ..........................Health & Lifestyle corsair.lifestylepage@gmail.com Jacob Hirsohn ............................... Opinion Editor corsair.opinionpage@gmail.com Josh Shure .........................................Sports Editor corsair.sportspage@gmail.com Nik Lucaj ..............Arts & Entertainment Editor corsair.calendarpage@gmail.com Claudius West .................. Multimedia Director corsair.multimediadept@gmail.com Jose Lopez ...........................................Photo Editor corsairphotoeditor@gmail.com Alexandra Perry ...................................Illustrator corsaircartoon@gmail.com

A man pulls a crowd of zombies in for a selfie during the 7th Annual Hollywood Subway Zombie Walk, Sunday in Hollywood. (Carlos Espinosa/The Corsair)

William Miguel ..............................Design Editor corsair.designteam@gmail.com

CORSAIR STAFF Chase Maser, Daniela Barhanna, Carolyn Alfaro, Jeremy Sanders, Kevin Colindres, Alexandra Obiekea, Adam Robert Thomas, Grace Gardner, Oskar Zinneman, Wynn Taylor, Hannah Kovar, Semaj Harbin, Andrew Olender, Frederick Riggs, Tarah Kelly, Roxana Esquivias, Yesenia Sandoval, Samantha Ruvalcaba, Samuel Huntington, Ariana Kidd, Melina Guelli, Stephanie Irineo, Ryanne Mena, Carlos Espinosa, Ramses Lemus, Daniel J. Bowyer, Dotan Saguy, Tina Eady

FACULTY ADVISORS Saul Rubin & Gerard Burkhart

AD INQUIRIES: corsair.admanager@gmail.com (310) 434 - 4033

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR DEVIN PAGE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

FRONT COVER Design by William Miguel

This week we are at the halfway point and a week away from Halloween, which we won't get to celebrate with a colorful, elaborate Halloween issue. Spirit Week and Halloween coverage will mostly move to online. Homecoming seems full of promise, and the homecoming committee is working on improving the turnout of the homecoming game and spirit week in general. With free admission to each of the events, this should allow the students to decide for themselves whether spirit week is worth celebrating. SMC participated in its Great Shakeout once again where millions of Americans participated in an earthquake drill in preparation for the big earthquake supposed to be coming for years now. What came out of it was a lot of useful information that will probably be ignored by most students. In theory, the earthquake drill is a great

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idea, but in practice it is an issue that people will have to personally face before it grabs their interest. Much like the Northridge earthquake, where building codes were updated, and awareness was raised amongst those who experienced it. We live in a society that is trapped in a cycle of repeating the same habits and experiencing the same results. Apparently history books aren't doing the job. The Corsair strives to inform and be objective while opinion articles require a firm stance and strong voice. This week, our A&E Editor recaps "The Great God Pan" play put on by the Theater Department and directed by Dr. Adrianne Harrop. While it would be easy to fault the acting for falling flat in the play, it is the director who is supposed to lead and set the play in the right direction. If on the third night, a cast member is still walking in the wrong direction, or one person is shouting while everyone else is @THE_CORSAIR •

whispering, you would have to question the direction the cast was given. While Nik was able to find positive moments in the play, he notes that it would not please the great god "Pan." Arrows will fly in the Corsair's direction again, but that is the nature of a critique. Someone's always going to be unhappy in the end. Please no threats to the A&E email, rather I direct you to write a response in the "Letter to the Editor."

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NEWS

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

SPIRIT WEEK Corsair Homecoming to be revamped

DEVIN PAGE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Homecoming for the average college would consist of tailgates, football, and drunken activities full of debauchery. Homecoming dances are also a common theme as well as pregame parties. However, Santa Monica College is offering an alternative for students to still have fun and stay out of trouble. Every year SMC has a homecoming, but students often miss the meaning being at a community college. Past offerings have included “Homecoming Idols,” faculty vs. staff football games, and various other activities with low turnouts. The new homecoming committee hopes to change that this year with a whole new game plan. Some of the newest offerings that are unique to this homecoming include Tired Tuesday, College Wear Wednesday, a DJ, face painter, carnival games, movie night, poster competition for the clubs, and a tailgating picnic before the game with trick-ortreating for kids.

All of this work comes from a diverse homecoming committee consisting of faculty, staff, and students, a group that hasn’t existed in the past committees. “Everyone has different knowledge, expertise, and ideas, which has made all the difference,” said Alexandra Breschensbauer, Associated Students director of Student Outreach. The homecoming committee is currently working on flyering over 17,000 homes in the Santa Monica neighborhood, specifically the 90404 and 90405 zip codes. “We want to attract as many students as possible, and we also want to reach out to the community,” said Breschensbauer. This year, instead of students paying for their admission to the homecoming game the Athletic department has decided to gift the tickets and students will all be able to get free admission for the game. This effort will also attempt to up attendance records for the football games and show the Athletic Department support. There will be a series of events happening throughout spirit week, many unique to spirit week as a whole and of course Club Row which always falls around Halloween. This year’s Club Row theme is “Throwback to the Future,” featuring over 50 new clubs looking to recruit new members.

SHARING IS CARING

Breeze Bike Share comes to Santa Monica on November 12 NIK LUCAJ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Easy alternative transportation is coming to Santa Monica on Nov. 12 in the form of Breeze Bike Share. Breeze Bike Share, as its name indicates, is a city-wide system of bike stations that allow you to pick up a bike, use it, then drop it off at your destination. There will be 500 bikes spread between 75 stations all over Santa Monica with stations in Venice expected to be built soon. The city has commissioned CycleHop to install, launch and operate the system while it will be supplied with bikes from Social Bicycles. “The Bike Share is part of an overall biking strategy that the city has been developing for a number of years,” said Liz Bar-El, Senior Planner at the City of Santa Monica. “The purpose of Bike Share is to offer people another way to get around the city as an alternative to driving… It’s about one-way trips to get you where you need to go.” The city pursued grants for the project and was able to get two million dollars to help pay for it through Metro’s Call for Projects and the Air Quality Management District.

Testing for the project began Aug. 13 and, while it was scheduled to end Sept. 13, they have decided to continue with it while they install new stations. Testing is being done by over 230 founding members who have been able to try the bikes for free. Signing up for the program is as easy as going to BreezeBikeShare.com, selecting a plan and entering credit card information. Registration is also available through the Social Bicycles app. Regular fare will cost a resident $99 for a year-long membership but a special price will be available for SMC students. They will be able to purchase sixmonth memberships for $47 in order to accommodate students who only attend for one semester. While memberships are active, users will be allotted one free hour of ride time a day. They will be allowed to go over that time but will be charged a prorated $6 an hour. People will also have the option of just dropping their bikes off anywhere, not just at stations. However, this will incur a $2 charge. The bikes are built with on-board computers to keep track of their usage and whereabouts. When you go to pick it up, it will

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If school spirit isn’t your interest, there will be opportunities to win prizes at the homecoming game through entering a raffle or the goal kickoff during the game. By entering those competitions you could win an ipad or a $1000 bookstore voucher. Prior to the homecoming game, there will be a tailgate picnic on the campus quad full of carnival activities, trick or treating, food trucks, a DJ, balloon and henna tattoo artists. Students from SMC’s broadcasting class will have the opportunity to act as announcers to pump everyone up during the game and the tailgate picnic. At halftime, Santa Monica High School’s Marching Band will perform to further get the crowd going. During the game, SMC will face off with the LA Southwest Cougars where the Corsairs hope to continue their undefeated streak against the Cougars. The homecoming-spirit week events have come together in a way for more students to participate. With the help of the Athletic department, AS, alumni, faculty and staff, each element of the homecoming is coming together. “We want to put SMC on the map even more since we all are very proud to be SMC,” said Breschensbauer.

require a code and a pin number to unlock. A built-in GPS will track the bike’s whereabouts to prevent theft and when you drop the bike off, it will say something like, “Thank you. You have used 12 minutes.” Ferris Kawar, Director of the Center for Environmental and Urban Studies at SMC, talked about the benefits for students, “We’ve got 30,000 students and 4,000 parking spaces, it’s not good odds for you trying to fight everyone else for a spot everyday. This puts one more tool in our [toolbox]... It just gives people that option to find another way.” There will be three stations on the SMC Main Campus as well as one on the Bundy Campus. The program has multiple benefits for the city as a whole with little drawback. “The city’s number one priority is to reduce the amount of tailpipe emissions,” Kawar said, “and hey if we get to reduce congestion at the same time, that’s a bonus, and hey if people just happen to get a little bit healthier because of it, that’s a double bonus.” Bike Share has already been implemented in a number of major cities and Metro plans on building stations in Downtown LA in 2016. The ultimate goal is for it to spread its benefits to all corners of the country. All the bikes will be sponsored by Hulu which will also be involved with the launch on Nov. 12. Invites will be sent out and the entire community will be encouraged to attend the event.

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NEWS

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

NBCU TO LAUNCH A CURATED COMEDY SERVICE BAILEY PERAITA HEALTH & LIFESTYLE EDITOR Comedy fans can rejoice for some good news because this Thursday in New York NBCUniversal announced it’s upcoming online streaming service, SeeSo, that will exclusively serve comedy. SeeSo will launch this December in an invite-only beta, followed by a wide release in January of 2016. NBCU is providing an online streaming service like Netflix and Hulu but differing from them by offering only curated comedy for the first time. For $3.99 a month, the service will offer ad-free orginial series as well as older favorites providing exclusive content and licensed material. Aimed at comedy fans, the service will launch 22 new full-length comedy shows as well as oldies for those who love 30 Rock, Parks and Recreations, The Office, Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Kids in the Hall and complete collections of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Saturday Night Live. It's an entirely mobile comedy central with every types of comedy featured from dark to stand up. Recently, comic Amy Schumer has announced an HBO special: live at the Apollo to premier this fall. The Emmywinner got personal in her first HBO special directed by Chris Rock and this

HEALTH & LIFESTYLE

is one of the most elevated levels a comedian achieves. Now with the upcoming SeeSo, comics and writers alike will be able to achieve a new outlet and a curated following that will remain loyal followers. Also the service will include daily standup specials and 3-5 movies per month, with titles to include “Fast Times at Ridgemont High.” Seeso also will stream live comedy specials down the line. “This is a complement, not a replacement” for general-interest SVOD (subscription video on demand) services, said Evan Shapiro, executive VP of NBCU Digital Enterprises. As reported by Variety, he claimed that Seeso would augment, rather than eat into, viewership of NBC shows on TV and distributed across other platforms, like Hulu. Shapiro then when on to elaborate to the The Hollywood Reporter, “Big streaming services have created a paradox of choice — they're great if you know exactly what to watch, but if you aren't in the middle of a binge, the search can be near endless, by focusing on a specific yet large niche, and providing a curated experience, we can help viewers find good stuff they might not or cannot find. SeeSo is your neighborhood comedy eatery, with daily specials from a chef you trust."

Of those 22 shows you can be able to find a comedy writer, Kevin Seccia. He will be one of the men behind Bajillion Dollar Propertie$ which he describes as a full day of non-stop pitching and writing- "It's exhausting but I'm having fun." he says. This isn't Seccia's first time around writing for a show and he's made you laugh before considering his extensive background in comedy. From his 21-year record in the comedy scene, he's done stand up in local LA comedy clubs that have since then moved around and made his way to Brooklyn, New York where he's written "Punching Tom Hanks" and worked on a slew of shows since then and even popular animated movie, Kung-Fu Panda. It's a new project for the refined writer since it's one of the first times a newtork has established a specific niche and on top of that added 22 entirely new full-length comedy series. This affordable service is to the likes which no one has seen developed before. The ad-free service will be available on the web and streaming via connected devices and other distribution partners in 2016. NBCU says the launch of SeeSo will not affect its pre-existing deals with Hulu, which it co-owns as a silent partner alongside 21st Century Fox and Disney, and YouTube, where many of its late-night clips go viral.

Below is a full list of original series and stand-up specials: 1. Bajillion Dollar Propertie$ 2. Before the Morning After 3. Big Jay Oakerson's What's Your F*@#ing Deal 4. Dave & Ethan: Lovemakers 5. Flowers 6. Gentlemen Lobsters 7. HarmonQuest 8. Hidden America with Jonah Ray 9. Live From The Barrel House 10. New York’s Funniest 11. Night Train with Wyatt Cenac 12. Sammy J & Randy in Ricketts Lane 13. Soul Mates 14. Take My Wife (w/t) 15. The Amazing Gayl Pile 16. The Comedy Show Show 17. The Cyanide & Happiness Show 18. The UCB Show 19. Thingstarter 20. Besser Breaks The Record 21. Rory Scovel: The Charleston Special 22. Untitled Cameron Esposito StandUp Special

IVORY TRADE

TUSK SALES ENDANGERING ELEPHANTS BAILEY PERAITA HEALTH & LIFESTYLE EDITOR Studio City, Calif.- Within four days of a craigslist ad being posted, a 15” ivory horn was sold from a student at Cal. State Long Beach. Adjectives such as "beautiful, intricately carved" and "exquisite" were used to describe the horn but most importantly the item was “From a smoke-free home,” claimed the ad. Since ivory absorbs minerals very well, coming from a smoke-free home makes the product less likely to be damaged from the nicotine minerals. Upon further exploration, a site for tips on how to clean ivory elaborates that the piece should be dusted often because of how well ivory collects dust and minerals. That horn is one of the many ivory products sold online today in the biggest online market for illegal ivory- Craigslist. The horn is just one of the products that is more than likely to be extracted from one of the estimated 96 elephants that are illegally killed each day in Africa in order to keep the trade thriving for the sole purpose of profit, just like the seller from Studio City. The online market for ivory is the fastest growing and most profitable illegal trade which is comparable to the weapons trade. In California alone, an estimated 840 ivory products are posted for trade on Craigslist due to the site’s poor-quality screening process that makes it convenient to trade illegal products. Although Craigslist is historically against the trade, CEO Jim Buckmaster recently added ivory to the explicitly prohibited items. However, like the trade of drug dealing, vendors are using code words to weasel their way around the filtering software. Code words such as “scrimshaw,”

“bone” and the obviously contradictory phrase “faux” are used to waffle between such guidelines. The reality is that Craigslist is, knowingly or unknowingly, complicit in this global network of free trade regulated by the public that works together to illegally sell ivory. This leaves Craigslist as the medium to encourage the decimation of elephant populations while coordinating organized crime and terrorism. An in-depth and thorough investigation conducted by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) found 615 items worth over $1.4 million in total. The products found all contained code words: elephant, tusk, scrimshaw, faux, and bone while other vendors had the audacity to mention the items as “pre-ban” or an “antique.” The pre-ban refers to the proposition during July 2014 of Obama's administration in which a near-complete ban on the commercial ivory trade in the United States, with exceptions for antiquities. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service clarify the definition of antique on their website as "commercial trade of 100-year-old antiques into regulations that re-affirm the criteria." Currently the topic is still up for revisions and debate as newer regulations are awaiting public comment. While the judicial systems coordinate steeper regulations concerning animal welfare and by-products, this still leaves free-trading online. The online marketplaces are seemingly endangered due to strict regulations but there are still a few alive, much like the elephants. Craigslist is the most popular marketplace, but other forms of online trade for ivory range into the deep web. This branch consists of content that is not indexed by standard search engines that allows a freefor-all sharing or products, information

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and trade beyond legal standards. The UN Environment Program and INTERPOL have estimated the illegal ivory trade is worth close to $200 million per year which is conducted over the visible and invisible web. The market has changed from trade shows and shops and has moved online. And now citizens of the U.S., China, Japan and Africa are the largest proponents and buyers.

The UN Environment Program and INTERPOL have estimated the illegal ivory trade is worth close to $200 million per year... Dr. Fred Bercovitch of Kyoto University, an avid animal rights activist and contributor over a dozen research papers, attributes the sales to common practice, “I think that the prime answer is 'tradition.' It's something of an excuse in many areas to continue to do things the old ways, even if not acceptable @THE_CORSAIR •

any more. Here in Japan, it's one of the key answers given to 'why continue whaling?', yet, the same people who do so use mobile phones and think women should be able to work.” Although for more progressive nations, “Tradition is a tough one to crack and might not explain why one of the biggest ivory markets is in the USA, where we have no tradition of ivory use,” says Bercovitch. “People are hypocrites when it comes to 'tradition'; some traditions are nice to hold onto, some are not.” According to “Blood E-commerce,” an investigation conducted by the environmental investigation agency, “In February 2014, searches for ‘ivory’ on www.rakuten. co.jp yielded more than 28,000 ads for elephant ivory products, indicating that a significant demand for elephant ivory persists in Japan.” The demand in Japan is just one of the largest that continues to cause Africa’s native elephants to be continually wiped out due to poaching for the ivory-rich tusks. As the demand increases, prominent Internet retailers such as Google, eBay, and Amazon have banned the sale of elephant ivory on their controlled sites. However, the vague and imprecise confines of Craigslist have allowed the illegal trade to thrive in all countries. The flourishing market is distinctly shown as an estimated 50,000 elephantsone sixth of Africa’s remaining elephants are slaughtered every year. That was last estimated in 2013 and the number have risen since then to a mighty 96 poached elephants per day. While governments of China and the U.S. have made a historical move this last September to promise to ban ivory imports and exports, the online trade still hides in plain site.

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HEALTH & LIFESTYLE

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

ARE FARMER'S MARKETS WORTH IT? Finding out what's on your plate RYANNE MENA STAFF WRITER It's a human attribute to have vices and virtues, good and bad, healthy and unhealthy and especially now with the variety of foods offered in America. Eating healthy is a common attempt by most Americans and for the most part isn't done the right way due to the lack of nutritional education. With the rise of GMOs, additives and preservatives food labels are becoming incomprehensible. This has developed a widespread food insecurity. That's where farmer's markets come in; farmer's markets provide organic produce grown on local farms- where quality and natural, food is solid, and you don't have to be insecure about what's on your plate. However many do not take advantage of nourishment offered by natural foods, or even take the time to educate themselves on exactly what they are eating. Food nutrition is imperative because the lack of contributes to obesity and unknowing bodily abuse by food. However, it can be a big tricky to find out if your food really is actually organic. What is considered actually organic is food that was made using no artificial chemicals or substances, meaning that produce didn't grow from a genetically modified seed, which is where the label "Certified Organic By The United States Department of Agriculture” seal, placed on produce packaging, comes into play. Back in the 1920's all agriculture was generally organic, according to the Organics Institute. It wasn't until the 1930's when farming methods changed, as farmers began using chemicals to repel insects. This was so farmers, which made up only 21% of the labor force, could grow more produce than they needed and ship out the rest to other local markets. Insecticides used during this time were based off poison arsenic, such as the Paris Green brand of insecticide, the most popular of its time. In the 1920's, an Organic Movement started in Britain where farmers wanted to find a more natural way to grow produce as an alternative to what the industrializa-

A vendor replenishes blueberries at the Culver City Famers Market on Tuesday. (Dotan Saguy/The Corsair)

tion of agriculture brought along. But by the 1940's, a much stronger insect repellent was created, leading to the ultimate demise of the old way of organic farming but in the 60's and 70's, consumers started to become aware and interested in what they were consuming and focused on the well being of the environment. In 1962, a writer by the name of Rachel Caron published a book called "Silent Spring," where she criticized pesticides, insecticides, among other similar products. As a result of this 'natural' trend, there was a revival of organic methods to farming, and as a result organic markets started to emerge, creating a small economy for the “organic movement." In the late 1990's, consumers started to resist the notion of factory farming, because of the health hazards associated with the chemicals used in food and household cleaning products. Now, people are starting to become even more aware of what is in their food. However, one major problem is that some people just cannot afford to eat well. In a documentary called "Food Inc.," an American family stricken with poverty is shown to only be able to afford a fast food diet, lacking little to no fruits or vegetables, simply because they just cannot afford to eat anything else. They have the knowledge

of what the food they are eating is doing to them, but still continue to buy it because what else are they suppose to do? With the general public finding out more about their food and the food industry, the future of food education in Americans is growing. The negative effects this food is having on us along with the scientific evidence to go alongside it is too strong to ignore as stated in The Huffington Post, "5 Food Labels That Mean Nothing," "While certain words and phrases such as 'Low Sodium' or 'Certified USDA Organic' are regulated and certified by government agencies, most are not - and it's up to the consumer to read between the lines in order to find something healthy to eat." At any given farmer's markets, most stands will give the name of the farm on which their produce came from, usually a local farm. Many stands at farmer's markets also have information on their produce out for display, such as how their food was exactly grown. Most advertise the fact that they sell organically grown and produced food without the use of any pesticides or insecticides. The workers there are usually more than happy to educate the customers there. Visiting the Santa Monica Farmer's Market, the future change regarding the food industry grew as some of the workers

there who, not only knew a lot about what they ate, but also cared about that as well. Beth, a worker at the Windrose Farm stand at the Santa Monica Farmer's Market, believes there are benefits from eating organically. She said, “The obvious one, health. You don’t want to put toxins in your body and its much better for the planet. Why would you want to put toxins in the Earth?" Before many people became aware of what they was actually eating, they were just as ignorant to the reality as many other Americans were. When people did find out the truth to what they were eating, they made a change. According to an article on The International Business Times, the largest demographic of people who purchase organic foods have college degrees and have a family (Here's Who Eats Organic Foods, And Why; Market Research). The more time goes on, the more people are going to be aware of this horrific reality. And the more available good food will be available to people, even to the poverty stricken. Most people don't know that you can actually get food stamps for farmer's markets. There is an uprise in regards to people knowing and caring about what they’re nourishing their bodies with, as farmer's markets are becoming a bigger trend.

on Twitter get real, real mad at nobody. Sure, if you scroll through this hashtag you will see racist people being racist, as you can with many hashtags. The entire conversation,though, was started on a false premise. It was designed so that unaware people could provide a day’s worth of entertainment to people without anything better to do. The fact that this hashtag was fake doesn’t mean it —or the party behind it— isn’t horribly racist; it just means it isn’t worth talking about. #BoycottStarWarsEpisodeVII essentially serves as an echo chamber. Twitter users are incredulous at the fact this tag is trending, and they express their feelings by using the hashtag and helping it trend more. As the conversation goes on, it seems to have shifted to making fun of all of the people who fell for it. Within the hour, the pendulum swings back, and the tag will be littered with think pieces about the truth at the center of the fake outrage. This is similar to the never-ending plight of one of Twitter’s favorite companies to trend: Urban Outfitters. Every year or so, Urban Outfitters unleashes a piece of clothing insensitive, offensive, or just plain gross enough to get the outrage machine cooking online. Now, this is a two-sided issue. On the one hand, Urban Outfitters shouldn't

be able to make a shirt that says “Eat Less,” or a bloody Kent State sweatshirt, without facing consequences. Those are unethical, lame things to do, and people should be bothered by it. There also isn't much good in plastering these images all over Twitter, helping Urban Outfitters be the number one trend in the world at that time.

your insincere and condescending apology, and you’re making headlines, baby. We must find a way to damage the reputation of a company that does something worthy of having their reputation damaged other than screaming into the void about it on Twitter. It's better to live in a world with flawed social activism than none at all, and Twitter has proven a useful tool for activists in the past, with protests in Ferguson and the Arab Spring both being largely organized via Twitter. That’s why the lack of creativity from the best social activists on the site is confusing. If a group of anonymous internet people — allegedly from 4 Chan, but who can keep track at this point — can get some fake racist thing trending so quickly, why is it so difficult to counter? The next time the CEO of a chicken restaurant says he doesn’t support gay marriage, the bright, kind users still left on Twitter must think of something more creative than “Ugh, Popeye’s is the worst.” Start a hashtag about how much you love KFC. Tweet about how gay marriage is legal and how happy that makes you. Tell us about your daughter, how’s she doing in school? When people or companies do something unethical, it deserves outrage; but outrage has become an industry, and that’s as outrageous as anything.

OPINION

INTERNET BOYCOTTING This is the industry of outrage JACOB HIRSOHN OPINION EDITOR Late monday afternoon, a peculiar thing started trending on Twitter: #BoycottStarWarsEpisodeVII. These type of things are often meaningless, and almost always worthless, and while none of the people involved are likely to actually boycott the new Star Wars movie, it certainly inspired at least a brief inquiry. Internet boycotts are usually inspired by one of three things: a cast or crew member saying something offensive, a joke, or something entirely more absurd. This hashtag fell hard into the third category, being almost laughably insane at first, then depressing, then shifting to just plain tedious. The details of the hashtag aren't worth getting into — It was something about the movie encouraging white genocide — because just as quickly as it became obviously offensive, it became obviously fake. It was a scheme cooked up by some Internet villains so they could watch everyone

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We must find a way to damage the reputation of a company that does something worthy of having their reputation damaged other than screaming into the void about it on Twitter. At this point, one has to figure that Urban Outfitters has an employee with the title “Outrage Specialist” on their door. It’s free guerilla advertising to get the internet mad at your company. It just takes a post about a product on your website — you probably don’t even have to make any actual products. You follow that up with an anonymous tip to Buzzfeed about the new horrible Urban Outfitters shirt, spend a few minutes writing @THE_CORSAIR •

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HOMECOMING

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

OCTOBER 31

HOMECOMING CORSAIR FIELD

KICKOFF 1:00pm

SMC CORSAIRS take on LASC COUGARS

with the SAMOHI

MARCHING BAND

WIN AN iPAD

Balloons by The Soozi Show Henna ‘Tattoos’ & Face Painting

$1,000 FIELD GOAL CONTEST (bookstore voucher)

PRE-GAME FAMILY PICNIC

TAILGATE

FOOD TRUCKS

Oaxaca on Wheels Shake Ramen Green Truck

ON THE QUAD 10:30am #proudtobesmc alumni.smc.edu

SANTA MONICA COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT BOARD OF TRUSTEES Rob Rader, Chair; Dr. Louise Jaffe, Vice Chair; Dr. Susan Aminoff; Dr. Nancy Greenstein; Dr. Margaret Quiñones-Perez; Barry A. Snell; Dr. Andrew Walzer; Jonathan Eady, Student Trustee; Jeff Shimizu, Interim Superintendent/President

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VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

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PHOTOSTORY

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

Mike Tuitasi gives instructions to the evacuation drill volunteers before the Great Shakeout earthquake drill at Santa Monica College. The drill started at 10:15AM. (Dotan Saguy/The Corsair)

SHAKE, RATTLE AND ROLL SMC PARTICIPATES IN THE GREAT SHAKEOUT 2015

DEVIN PAGE & ADAM THOMAS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & STAFF WRITER

Tania Bustamante (left), 20, Graphic Design major, and Kassandra Eckert (right), 18, Nursing major, lean up against the mural on the Science Building during the Great Shakeout drill at Santa Monica College. Bustamante shared that she feels it is good to educate people using drills because some people do not know what do or panic during intense situations like an earthquake. (Jose Lopez/The Corsair)

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Last week, Santa Monica College took part in The Great California ShakeOut, a statewide earthquake preparedness drill that saw millions of people participating. For SMC students, participation meant stopping whatever they were doing and waiting outside for twenty minutes at 10:15 a.m., when a series of alarms sounded. Staff and faculty then checked buildings to ensure no one was occupying them before attaching paper X’s to signal to potential emergency crews that they were cleared. Leading the ShakeOut drill was Mike Tuitasi, vice president of Student Affairs. Tuitasi is in charge of emergency preparedness and worked in conjunction with the SMCPD as well as the building monitors (staff volunteers) to make the drill run as smoothly as possible. "This is an educational opportunity for students. There a lot of international students [and students from out of state] who've never been through an earthquake," said Tuitasi. Tuitasi reminds us that in case of an earthquake disaster, students should expect @THE_CORSAIR •

for freeways to be down, transit to be unavailable, and the parking structure to be closed. "Students should be prepared to be stranded for up to three days," said Tuitasi. “Like any drill, it’s practice,” said Sgt. Jerry Romano of the SMCPD shortly after the ShakeOut ended. “There’s always room to improve, so it’s never perfect, but I’d say that for about 85% [of this drill] we were right on.” Many of the school’s administrators and staff were in agreement with Romano about staff and faculty preparedness during and after the drill, finding that the school was more than up to the task to handle a real earthquake should one ever occur. Wendi DeMorst, Interim Director of supplemental instruction and one of the faculty members checking buildings during the drill said, “I feel like this, just getting people to understand what to do in an earthquake – duck, cover, get out of the building – and not have people chaotically running all over the place, I think that’s beneficial.” However many of the students seemed

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PHOTOSTORY

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

Trena Johnson, staff member of the outreach office, affixes the red X evacuation marking on the doors of the cafeteria building during the Great Shakeout earthquake drill at Santa Monica College. (Dotan Saguy/The Corsair)

(center) Payal Sedani, Computer Science major, and Tzu Kuo, Communications major, unable to fully hear the call to evacuate remain seated at a table in the cafeteria during the Great Shakeout event at Santa Monica College. (Jose Lopez/The Corsair)

(below) Students mistakenly stay and pass under the AS building bridge during the Great Shakeout earthquake drill at Santa Monica College. (Dotan Saguy/The Corsair)

bored and listless about the drill. Most conversed with other students forced outside with them while waiting to get back to class, the library, or whatever prior activity they were doing before the alarms sounded. “I don’t mind it, I just hope it’s over quickly,” said Angela Choi, a student who was ushered out of the cafeteria when the drill began, “I know it’s for safety and the earthquake that’s coming, but it’s definitely disruptive.” “I’m not sure students have natural disasters on their radar,” said Bruce Wyman, Director of Facilities. “They have lots of things to consider, but it’s part of our responsibility to help them grow in awareness that these things can happen. A lot of our student population probably hasn’t experienced a natural disaster.” Wyman demonstrated one of two water purifiers the school purchased to ensure a potable water supply in case of an emergency. The DIVVY POD purifiers are part of an emergency plan to turn the campus’ fountain and pool water into a supply of drinking water for up to three days in case students ever become trapped on campus, all without the need for electricity. In preparation for these natural disasters, booths were set up by different purveyors such as the American Red Cross, Community Emergency Response Team, SMC Geology program, etc. At her booth, Marcia Hall, Career Service Advisor, had an array of supplies spread out on the table for an FOR EXTENDED COVERAGE VISIT US AT THECORSAIRONLINE.COM •

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PHOTOSTORY (CONT'D)

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

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emergency including drinking water, a flashlight, batteries, playing cards. "It's important to have the things that you need in order to sustain you... we say for at least three days," she said. The school’s Earth Sciences department also had a table informing students of careers in geology and how they could obtain a basic seismograph app for their smart phones. “We had a few people initially attack us, which was gratifying,” said Professor Stuart Cooley. "But I think overall people are a bit laissez-faire about this. My guess is if we did a poll of people walking by, maybe one in five would have something even approaching an earthquake kit.” Dr. Cara Thompson, who teaches geology was also on hand to bust a common myth that many students had expressed: that the lack of recent noticeable earthquakes could build up to a “big one” to come soon. “If you’re looking at one fault, then yes [that’s true],” said Thompson. “If the land around the fault is moving but the fault itself isn’t slipping then the longer you wait, the bigger the earthquake. But when you look regionally, that’s not true. Just because we haven’t had a bunch of small earthquakes in a while regionally, that doesn’t mean that’s building up to a very large one.” Cooley recommended that students interested in any recent rumblings they

Students sit under a tree during the Great Shake Out instead of evacuating to open space. Many students were unaware of the Great Shake Out at Santa Monica College. (Stephanie Irineo/The Corsair)

might feel to go online and check the Southern California Earthquake Data Center managed by Cal Tech, which tracks all recent seismic movements in our fault lines by linking seismographs across the southland,

including SMC’s own seismograph stationed in Drescher Hall. By the end of the day’s drill, the consensus seemed to be that while the school was doing all it could, few were truly prepared

in case a major earthquake was to hit any time soon. Thinking that we take our safety for granted, Hall said, "It's not a matter of if it's going to happen, it's when."

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

FROM THE NEW YORK THEATRE TO AN LA ART SHOW GRACE GARDNER STAFF WRITER There is hardly a seat open. The tables are essentially slabs of tree. The higher ones have stools for chairs and the lower ones have wooden crates. It's trendy without being unapproachable. There are plenty of people but plenty of room. You get the feeling that everyone here is friends, like this isn't just another bar with a random assortment of people. It feels like a reunion. From the corner of the room, under a large, naked light bulb, a sandy blonde girl with a black dress and brown leather boots says, "I'm going to sing some songs for y'all." A dusty spotlight swings toward her from the right.The lights occasionally flicker. A man with a beard puts his leg up behind a girl's chair. The bar is Gravlax and is hosting an art show for Santa Monica College's Writers Club. Along with a variety of pieces hung on the wall, there are black and white photographs laid out on a table. The photos belong to Sergio Cacciotti who took them over ten years before in New York. He is sitting at the bar drinking sangria from a mason jar, with a play he's written in front of him. Now, he writes mainly for pleasure. However, there was a time when he wrote and directed plays for a living. Over ten years ago, Sergio was at a loft party in Chelsea, New York when he and his friend had a brilliant idea. Looking around at the 3,000 square foot space, the two estimated that if they rented a similar space and had other people to help with rent, they could move in and set up a theater in their home. They roamed the streets of Manhattan, looking for "For Rent" signs. After about a year, they were about to give up when they found the perfect place on 42nd Street. During that time, New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was cracking down on the Red Light District. The strip clubs were shut down, but the sex shops were allowed

Photographs of the events on September 11th 2001 in New York City are showcased by Santa Monica College student Sergio Cacciotti at PS Poets Art Show. (Dotan Saguy)

to remain open. So on 42nd street, above the sex shop, Show World, was a vacant space that used to be a strip club. The group asked if they could rent it for $3,000 and the owner casually agreed. They had 5,000 square feet to create a place where they could both live and put on performances. Coincidentally, two theaters on the street were being redone, the Amsterdam and the New Victory. These were very wealthy theater companies, so as they were , all of the old materials were simply thrown away. The group was quick to take advantage of the situation. They took wood, recovered old seats and built their theater entirely out of hand-me-down materials: the stage, the risers — they even fireproofed the roof. After a year of putting it together, it was completed. They called it The Pantheon. It waselegant,not"dingy"or"black-boxed"."People really took to it," Sergio said. "We turned the strip club into an art complex." Sergio was only 22 and the creative director of the theater. He wrote plays, directed and produced in the thick of the New York theater culture. "I felt so alive at the time,"

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Sergio said. "The theater scene is so vibrant in New York. Running that theater was probably the best decade of my life... What killed us was September 11 of 2001." After 9/11, people stopped going to the city as much. They weren't seeing as many shows. The actors stopped making as much money. To top it all off, the lease ran out and their rent was raised to $8,000. They racked up $100,000 worth of debt when they finally sold their theater/home in 2004. "I walked away with almost nothing, just enough to start new," Sergio said. He wanted a change, so he decided to give L.A. a try. After running a theater company for a decade, even serving on the board of directors for other theater companies, Sergio was unable to find work. "I wasn't able to get auditions," he said. Back in New York, it was "really all about the art." In L.A. there was much more of a focus on networking. Sergio, being a fairly introverted person, didn't have the kinds of people skills that would allow him to penetrate the scene. “I didn’t enjoy it,” he said, “I just didn't like it. I was getting older @THE_CORSAIR •

and invested a lot of time and years into my career, and I just couldn't anymore.” So he decided to start over. He took classes at Santa Monica College and decided he would become a social worker. He hadn't written for 6 years and was almost ready to graduate when he took Mario Padilla's Creative Writing class. "It kind of rekindled my passion of being artistic again," Sergio said. In early 2015, Sergio's friend Susan invited him to a bar called Gravlax. The bar she took him to was actually co-owned by Lars Magnus Stefansson, a former actor who used to hang around the Pantheon. They had taken acting classes together at Lee Strasberg Theater and Film Institute in New York and had lost touch for 15 years. Now, Magnus was helping him host events that fostered that same creative energy they had experienced in New York. While originally dismayed by the superficiality of the L.A. art scene, Gravlax has rekindled Sergio's hope. He said, "I think when you hear people talking [at Gravlax], they're talking about art, novels, fear, poetry. It's not 'let's make a movie and become famous.' It's another level of artistry."

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VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

PANNING "THE GREAT GOD PAN"

Actors perform their the last rehearsal for the play "The Great God Pan" by Amy Herzog before it opens at the Main Stage at Santa Monica College from October the 15th to 25th 2015. (Carlos Espinosa/The Corsair)

NIK LUCAJ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR In ancient Greek mythology, Pan is seen as the god of many things: fields, groves, wooded glens, shepherds and flock, and rustic music. He is a friend of the nymphs and associated with spring and fertility. The half-goat god was quite busy, but on top of all those things, he was also the god of theatrical criticism so it’s fitting that the SMC theater department’s newest show uses his name. “The Great God Pan” is a play originally written by Amy Herzog. It shares a name with a late 19th century novella by Arthur Machen where the main character, Dr. Raymond, attempts to open the mind of man to experiencing the world by performing minor lobotomies. The plot of the play has nothing to do with the novella, but SMC’s adaptation of “The Great God Pan,” directed by Dr. Adrianne Harrop, certainly felt like a lobotomized play. The play centers around Jaime (Brendan James Cobia), a journalist who has his life thrown into disarray by the return of his childhood friend, Frank (Ayinde Ross), and the news that he brings. Frank files a lawsuit against his own father because of childhood sexual abuse. Frank’s father is strangely cooperative with the investigation, divulging the names of all the children he molested and Jaime is one of the kids that he named. Jaime has a bad reaction to the news, not just because being molested is terrible, but because he has no recollection of it happening. What ensues is the ripple effect that this news has throughout Jaime’s life. The scenes that follow include interactions with his girlfriend of six years, Paige (Sophie Jones-Kellett), his mother, Cathy (Sarah Jean Long), his father, Doug (Ryan Matthew Corry) and his childhood babysitter, Polly (Jo Ellen Docherty). The first thing that struck me was the

dissonance in the dialogue. There was no rhythm in the conversations which randomly shifted between a choppy, staccato style and an Aaron Sorkin-esque, rapid fire style with no beats in between. The volume of speech was inconsistent with some characters shouting as if they were in a football stadium and others at the normal “speak to the person in the back row” volume. It seemed as though the cast was split in half and separated during rehearsals, never quite being on the same page. The lack of rhythm and polish was compounded by clumsy writing and scenes that added nothing to the story. Two scenes in particular involving Paige at her job as a Social Worker and her patient, Joelle (Eilina Gabrielle Vergel de Dios), seemed completely superfluous, adding little to Paige’s character development, and only added an obnoxious character with a half-assed attempt at highlighting the issue of eating disorders in young women. Blocking was also a problem for the actors as they awkwardly moved their way through scenes. This was especially apparent in the scenes involving Paige and Jaime where they always seemed to be doing a strange dance that had them switching between one person sitting down and the other one standing. This added to the list of issues that gave the appearance of an early rehearsal as opposed to their third show. The stage was set up as four different locations going from left to right. The design came off as banal, with the living rooms of the second and third locations having the exact same palm tree in the corner behind couches. Side stage was also visible when sitting in the middle of the theater. The audience was able to see actors walking toward set doors minutes before their scene began which distracted from what was happening on stage and broke the suspension of disbelief. The performances were a mixed bag but can most likely be chalked up to questionable directorial choices and Harrop’s

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failure to guide her actors. Cobia was at his best when his character, Jaime, was arguing and upset. He was able to nail these effusive scenes and command the stage with his presence, but unfortunately these were few and far between. His scenes with Ross were especially offensive to the ears as they were speaking in different keys. It sounded like they were just reciting lines instead of listening to each other and having a conversation. Jones-Kellett would often show flashes of taking the play on her back and carrying it but also failed to be consistent and often lost rhythm. Her scenes with de Dios fell victim to the same lack of chemistry as the ones with Jaime and Frank. De Dios’ anxiety-ridden character was too loud to the point of pushing past funny into annoying and dominating the scene. Jaime’s dad, played by Corry, was a floundering character who failed to make an impact and his relationship with his son was hard to buy. The shining stars of the show were Long, @THE_CORSAIR •

as Jaime’s mother, and Docherty, who played Polly. Long was the first character to appear with a normal speaking rhythm. Even though her character was meant to be a larger than life, theatrical caricature, she was able to keep it in check and keep her character based in reality. She delivered her lines with the poise and precision of a professional, and her comedic timing was impeccable. Docherty also showed great presence and timing and she was able to create a character that felt real. The play was about 15-20 minutes shorter than Herzog’s original, which may account for why the play, as a whole, just felt incomplete. The ending seemed to sneak up out of nowhere without there ever being a climax. With no real antagonist and no climax, it was difficult to invest any emotion into the show. At times, “The Great God Pan” was both funny and entertaining, but it was too often overshadowed by inattention to detail and below average execution and fails to please the great god Pan.

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SPORTS

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 06 • OCTOBER 21, 2015 • SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

SPORTS ROUNDUP A Mid-Season Review JOSH SHURE SPORTS EDITOR Santa Monica College's fall sports season has been extremely eventful so far this year. With just shy of a month left for all of the teams, we take a look at how the Corsairs have been doing across the board.

football

women's volleyball

The SMC football team simply can not be stopped this year in their quest for an undefeated season. Entering their upcoming game this next Saturday, October 24at home against LA Valley, the Corsairs have won all six of their games this season. The football team has currently won 30 straight conference games, a streak that dates back five seasons now. The Corsairs are seeking to win their fifth consecutive conference championship all under head coach Gifford Lindheim. The Homecoming game will be played on Halloween this year, October 31 at 1 p.m. The football team has only four games remaining; however, it is highly likely that they will be invited to compete in a bowl game at the end of the season.

The SMC women's volleyball has recently been on fire. The Corsairs have yet to lose a match in the month of October by winning four straight games in the month. The overall season record for the volleyball team is 10-7 and their recent success has helped them move up the CCCAA weekly rankings. As of October 19, the SMC women's volleyball team is ranked #30 in the entire state.

men's soccer The men's and women's soccer teams are both have winning seasons and look like they both might be able to make an impact in the playoffs this year. The men's team is currently 9-2-4 (9 wins, 2 losses, 4 draws) and lost their first game since September 18 yesterday against Oxnard who is the only team to have beaten SMC this season. The success of the men's team has helped earn them a current ranking of #13 in the most recent CCCAA (California Community College Athletic Association) rankings. The men only have six games remaining on their schedule, but do not play a home game until November 3rd when they will host Glendale.

women's soccer The women's team has a record of 6-4-4 (6 wins, 4 losses, 4 draws) and are coming off of a scoreless draw at home against Bakersfield yesterday. The women have seven remaining games on their schedule and look to improve upon their record to solidify a spot in the playoffs. The next home game for the lady Corsairs will be playing a back to back with the men's team on November 3 against Citrus College.

cross country The SMC men's and women's cross country teams are looking forward to their upcoming Western State Conference Championship this upcoming Friday at Legg Lake Park in South El Monte. The men's cross country team come into the meet ranked #13 in Southern California as of October 13 rankings. The women's look to improve from their previous times. On the women's side, Sandra Ignacio looks to improve on her 23:23 5k time that earned her a 24th place finish at the Santa Barbara Invitational back on October 9. For the men, at the Santa Barbara Invitational, three runners posted sub 24 minute, four miles times that placed all three in the top 25. Top ten finisher, Brian Northrup looks to improve and keep himself under 23 minutes like he did at Santa Barbara for the upcoming meet this Friday.

Santa Monica College Corsair Roger Jones (20) (center) breaks through LA Harbor College defense and dives to score a 10-yd touchdown run during the second half of the match at Santa Monica College. The Corsairs went on to win 61-36. (Josue Martinez/The Corsair)

water polo Both the men's and women's water polo teams have struggled a bit this season. The men have played some extremely close matches; however, they tend to not be able to come out on top this season. So far, the men's team has a record of 2-20. There is still another eight scheduled matches on their schedule so their is still a chance to salvage the season. The women's team have a record of 4-12, but are recently on a win streak. The lady Corsairs won back to back matches last week on October 16 and 17. The women only have four more scheduled matches remaining. Both teams will host the SMC Mini Tournament which will take place this upcoming Friday, October 23.

You have a world of ideas. Let’s hear them.

At CSU Dominguez Hills, our students represent many cultures. And share multiple perspectives. With one of the nation’s most diverse campuses, including a thriving international community, we encourage our students to embrace their individuality. While preparing them to collaborate in a global workforce. U.S. News & World Report ranks CSU Dominguez Hills among the most ethnically diverse universities in the West.

CSUDH.EDU/International (310) 243-3422 Santa Monica College Paige Begell (2) fighting for possession of the ball against El Camino College Ashley Mercado (17) during the match at Santa Monica College. Santa Monica College went on to win the game with the score of 2-1. (Josue Martinez/The Corsair)

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