11.30.22

Page 1

The Lumberjack

Humboldt queer community faces increased threat following national trends

On Oct. 28, the Humboldt County Human Rights Commission (HCHRC) issued a press release condemning “in cidents of hate speech and threats of vi olence against the LGBTQ community.” This came in response to the disruption of a drag event in Eureka on Oct. 23 and a violently threatening anti-trans stick er placed on a public bench and photo graphed Oct. 27.

Humboldt is facing an increase in queerphobic hate events. The bubble of progressive attitudes on campus gives a false sense of security to students. Rhetoric condemning queer culture and threatening queer youth is here in Humboldt too.

In recent weeks, local nonprofit Queer Humboldt has seen a spike in re ports of hate incidents against LGBTQ community members. The group is a resource center for Queer individuals and groups in Humboldt County. Lark Doolan, a transguy and the executive director of Queer Humboldt, described various acts of queerphobia that have been reported to Queer Humboldt.

“Hate events happen in our county at a far more frequent rate than many of our allies realize,” Doolan said. “There were a couple of weeks in November where we learned of hateful events al most every day.”

A nonbinary Cal Poly Humboldt staff member was verbally harassed about their gender and told they didn’t belong. Queer-affirming churches were vandal ized, a local trans support group was ‘zoom bombed.’ Most notably, on Oct. 23 protesters disrupted Redwood Pride Halloween, an all-ages event featuring a drag show among other festivities.

So far in 2022 the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) reported 124 incidents of anti-LGBTQ protests and threats targeting specific drag events. Their analysis draws from news coverage of threats, protests and violent action against drag events na tionwide.

GLAAD’s analysis shows increasing violence as the year progresses. In Octo ber a Tulsa donut shop was firebombed after holding a drag-themed event, and on Nov. 19 a shooter killed five and in jured nineteen others in a mass shoot ing at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, CO. Across the nation, LGBTQ safety is threatened by proposed legis lation and violence that has intensified following Pride celebrations and during

campaigning for the midterm elections. Despite being home to a vibrant queer community, Humboldt County is no ex ception.

Bellamy Devine, a trans student at Cal Poly Humboldt, said that they feel safe in certain areas and circumstances, but threatened by transphobia in others.

“Especially when it comes to events we put on ourselves, like drag shows or themed events, people seem to have a big problem when we come together to have a little fun for once, god forbid,” Devine said.

“It’s spiking. It’s part of a national [movement of] villainization of trans youth and scapegoating strategies,” Doolan said. “It’s a strategy that hurts people.”

Art Wardynski is a volunteer and Re source Director at the Eric Rofes Mul ticultural Queer Resource Center (ERC) on campus.

“Lots of other queer organizations are having trouble publicizing their events, because if they publicize it, then bigoted communities will show up and protest it,” Wardynski said.

The rhetoric claiming that LGBTQ people are dangerous to children is nothing new, Doolan said. Labelling the queer community as perverse recalls the 1970s, when Anita Bryant was cam paigning to ban openly LGBTQ teach ers.

“Her argument that queer people are inherent dangers to children is the same false narrative that we are seeing today,” Doolan said.

Despite being home to an active and vocal queer community, Humboldt County lacks any sort of official report ing mechanism to tabulate hate crimes and speech against LGBTQ community members.

Wardynski expressed frustration with finding infrastructural and admin istrative support and organizing events for queer students on campus.

“From a volunteer and a resource di rector perspective, I definitely have a lot of problems with our current campus in relation to supporting trans and queer students in general,” Wardynski said.

Queer people live in every stretch of Humboldt. They find love and commu nity in this rural haven. From dive bars to bike shops and bakeries, they occupy space in Humboldt.

“The community off-campus is large ly amazing,” Doolan said. “There are so

many queer people in our community, people who are really pro active about creating a welcoming space. In recent years, we have seen a shift and progress. So this backlash comes from a small, very vocal, very hateful minority with confusing messaging designed to stoke people’s fear.”

This vocal minority is threatening ac cess to acceptance and culture. With in

timidation, they limit queer youth from self discovery and community.

“We know that when youth learn about queer people it’s helpful because it prepares them to live in a world where diversity exists,” Doolan said. “And for queer youth specifically, it helps them see a future for themselves and survive their childhood.”

Humboldt Basketball teams pull off a double in home openers

Victory struck twice for Cal Poly Hum boldt basketball against Sonoma State last Thursday night at Lumberjack Are na. Both the women’s team and men’s team were able to pull out victories in close games in front of their fans in their home openers.

The women’s team battled closely for the whole first half, but a strong third quarter had Humboldt leading by nine points heading into the final period. The Jacks held on for a 65-55 victory.

Madison Parry led the scoring for Humboldt with 19 points. Kaz Parks add ed 17 points on 5-8 shooting from three.

“There were a lot of emotions riding

into that game, in terms of it being our first conference game and a home opener, and then on top of that we were missing one of our team mates that had recently gotten hurt in practice,” said Parks.

Devon Lewis also had a game chang ing performance in her first home game for Humboldt. Lewis had 9 points, 8 re bounds, and 7 assists.

“It was exciting, especially ‘cause it was my first time ever playing here,” said Lewis. “I loved the atmosphere.”

The Jacks seem to be figuring out their play as a team early on this season. The team had a total of 15 assists in this game.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2022 | VOL. 121 NO. 12
STUDENTS SERVING THE CAL POLY HUMBOLDT CAMPUS AND COMMUNITY SINCE 1929 FREE Midnights Review Condor project Dueling Duo Mobile Index Taylor Swift review. Endangered species on the rise. Love/hate relationship with data security app. News................... 3 L&A...................... 4 Science... 5 Sports................ 6 Opinion............... 7 Page 4 Page 5 Page 9
SEE BBALL ● PAGE 6

DELIVERY DRIVER:

FACULTY ADVISER: KIRBY MOSS

Mission Statement

The Mission of this newspaper is to fairly inform and share the stories of the Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community. We strive to report with accuracy and honesty. We hold ourselves accountable for errors in our reporting. We invite all readers to participate. Views and contents of The Lumberjack are those of the author and not those of Cal Poly Humboldt. Unsigned editorials appearing in the Opinion section reflect a majority opinion of the editorial staff. Advertising material is for informational purposes and is not an expressed or implied endorsement of such commercial ventures of The Lumberjack, Associated Students or Cal Poly Humboldt.

Wednesday, November 30, 2022 THE LUMBERJACK PAGE 2
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Steffi Puerto~Equity Editor

This semester I had the opportunity to work on The Lumberjack as the Sensitivity editor. I have enjoyed working as a collective to get stories out to the community. As well as continuing to develop my skills as a writer and overall jour nalist dabbling in all forms of storytelling.

Dezmond Remington~Sports Editor

Any newspaper where I can pretend I’m Hunter S. Thompson is a good newspaper.

This is my second semester on the Lumberjack and my first semester as an editor. Coming into college, I really wanted to pursue a career in journalism. Working on this paper solidified that for me. My writing and editing skills have improved greatly, and I learned how to layout. I am so glad to be a part of the work that we do; creating news that is by and for students is so important. I also love the sense of communi ty that exists in our newsroom and on our paper.

Angel Barker

This is my first semester as an editor on The Lumberjack, and it has been incredible. I am honored to work alongside this amazing group of people. I have learned so much about myself, journalism, and our university in these past 16 weeks. There is lots of corrup tion and wrong doings, but also so much love and kindness spread throughout our small campus. I am so thankful for the skills, knowledge, and power that this semester has brought, and I am excited to see what next semes ter brings.

Camille Delany~ Opinion Editor

This was my first semester working on LJ. I value the skill-build ing through collaboration that student media promotes. I’d encourage anyone interested in developing their journalistic strengths or be coming more connected on campus to consider joining for Spring.

August Linton~Managing Editor/Science Editor

Being part of The Lumberjack has connected me to the campus in a way that I will forever be grateful for. I love and am so grateful for the people that I work with every week to produce a paper that honors, challenges, and informs the university and the people that make it up. This forces me to expand my understanding, and makes me a better person. I am so proud of the stories that we’ve told, and the impacts that those stories have had.

Editorial Farewells

I joined The Lumberjack to better my writing skills and be more involved in the community. I found a love for docu menting this quirky town and leaving a record of the people that make Arcata special. As editor-in-chief, I want ed to share hard-hitting news stories that mattered to this community. I am proud to keep this campus account able. Thank you to my editorial team. I will fondly remember late nights in the newsroom and running the pa per around campus Wednesday mornings. I am honored to be the special Kirby edition of The Lumberjack. Thank you, Kirby, for your guidance and support.

Alana Hack man~Social Media Editor

This semester marks my one year with The Lum berjack. I feel blessed to have the paper teach me many lessons about handling adversity, anon ymous hate com ments, and most of all how to write a snarky horo scope. No pain no gain baby. See you next semes ter LJ. I look forward to more newsroom burritos.

Sophia Escudero~Copy Editor

I’ve been on the staff of the Lumberjack for three years, and in many ways, I consider it to have been essential for my growth as a writer and as a person. Journalism has introduced me to so many people and places I otherwise never would have gotten to know. For that, I am in credibly grateful. I want to thank Deidre Pike and Kirby Moss for their work as our faculty ad visors, and I’ll miss being a part of this staff.

Cash Rion~Copy Editor

As a student who hates writing, and reading for long periods of time, and is bad at math, people often ask me what I’m doing as a journal ism student. After unhinging my jaw to let out an unearthly deranged cackle before fleeing into the community forest, I ask myself the same question. In truth, I’m just here to take pho tos and copy-edit stories to make sure they’re as high quality as possible. I also enjoy run ning numbers for data reporting stories.

Jasmin Shirazian~Copy Editor

Alas, all good things must come to an end. My first semester on the Lumberjack is complete. Despite not being in class half the time, I did enjoy all the lovely memories I made this year, especially with Ollie as our EIC. And yes, I will always leave once I get my food.

Jack Hallinan~Photo Editor

Declined to comment

Carlos Pedraza~News Editor

I have been on the Lumberjack for two semes ters. I’ve met so many great friends both on staff and while reporting. I have learned so much not just about writing, photography, and design but also about Humboldt; I have been in Humboldt county for just one year, but because of the Lumberjack, I know it so much more. The long nights in the newsroom have been really fun. I appreciate all of the people on staff, our editorial staff, and our advisor Kirby. Good luck to everyone next semester. It will be a great time.

Wednesday, November 30, 2022 EDITORIAL THE LUMBERJACK PAGE 3
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My dad’s no-fault pumpkin pie

Imagine the smell of pie wafting through your house, gently alerting your nose to the deliciousness being baked in the oven. I make this specif ic pie recipe every Thanksgiving (and whenever I feel like a little pie,) and it is best made with the help of your loved ones. My dad and I always make the Thanksgiving pies together, and noth ing warms the heart and stomach more than making delicious food with some one who loves you.

Now, on the subject of pie crust: I will not crucify you if you use pre-made pie dough, but it is just so much better with freshly made dough. While it can seem daunting, it’s worth taking the ex tra time to make it.

Pie crust:

-1 ¼ cups all purpose flour

-¼ tsp. salt

-½ cup butter, diced -¼ cup ice water

Pie filling:

-2 beaten eggs, at room temperature -3 cups of cooked pumpkin puree (Or 1 twenty nine ounce can of pump kin puree)

-1 ½ cups evaporated milk

-3 Tbs. white sugar

-3 Tbs. brown sugar

-2 Tbs. molasses -½ tsp. cloves -2 tsp. ground ginger -½ tsp. salt

Let’s Bake!

For the pie crust, combine the but ter, salt and flour in a medium sized bowl with either your hands or a pas try cutter until the mixture has a grain size of a small pea. Add one tablespoon of ice water at a time until the mixture comes together, and shape it into a ball with your hands. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour before rolling the dough out into one 9-inch pie pan.

For the pie filling, start by preheat ing your oven to 375 °F. Then, place your pumpkin puree in a medium sized bowl, and add all other filling ingre dients. Mix until smooth. Spread fill ing into pie crust and bake at 375° for ten minutes. After ten minutes have elapsed, turn the oven down to 350° and bake for another 40 minutes, or until the pie stops jiggling in the center when you shake it.

Cool to room temperature before putting in the fridge, and cool for at least two hours before serving (over night is preferred). According to my dad’s preference, this pie tastes very good with either whipped cream, or some high-quality vanilla ice cream.

Disclaimer: One Peter Dellos to help you make your pie is not included in this recipe.

No thoughts, just Midnights

Taylor please, I need to be resuscitated by

tzatziki or red chili sauce and the cost of our skewer options

Taylor Swift’s much anticipated al bum Midnights more than lived up to my expectations. The nightime-pop album perfectly encapsulates Swift’s pre-folklore sound. It blends the classic pop vibes of “1989” and “Lover” with the darker energy of “Reputation.”

On the evening of October 20th, Taylor Swift fans everywhere, includ ing me, were anxiously awaiting the release of her 10th album Midnights Those of us lucky enough to live in the Pacific Time zone got to hear the album at 9pm. Even more convenient, Swift’s surprise 3 a.m. release was available to us at midnight.

From my first listen of “Lavender Haze,” I loved this album. It is incredi bly cohesive. The theme, songs written over thirteen sleepless nights, is genius. The songs perfectly encapsulate what it’s like to lay awake at night, obsessing

over what could have been, wallowing in self loathing, and fantasizing about love and revenge.

The songwriting on this album is in credible. On “Maroon,” Swift discusses a previous relationship, painting the image in various shades of crimson. The song feels like a grown up version of “Red.” The intensity of the initial breakup has faded; the speaker has reflected on the relationship and now recognizes its darker elements.

The self loathing track, “Anti-Hero,” is incredibly relatable with lines like “I’ll stare directly in the sun but never in the mirror,” and the infamous “It’s me, hi. I’m the problem, it’s me.” Swift talks about feeling out of place as a woman over 30 in the music industry. She calls herself a “monster on the hill,” discussing her insecurities in regard to her success and her feelings about be ing a well-established artist.

“You’re On Your Own, Kid,” is an other lyrical standout. It aligns with Swift’s tradition of being very vulnera ble on the fifth track of each album. I literally cried the first time I heard the bridge. “You’re on your own kid, yeah you can face this,” absolutely destroyed me.

Sprinkled between the gut punches, Swift gives us some hot girl tracks. “Vig ilante Shit,” “Bejeweled,” and “Karma” were immediately put on my going out playlist. I was so happy that there were some 1989-esque pop tracks on this al bum; they appealed to my nostalgia for the Taylor Swift of my teen years.

The 3 a.m. tracks are also amazing. Releasing seven additional tracks three hours after the initial album drop was genius. I was able to listen to the regu lar album a few times and then imme diately got new content. Some of the 3 a.m. tracks are so good it’s criminal that they didn’t make it onto the initial album.

BURGERS • $6.30-$14.20

Hamburger, chicken burger, gyro burger, falafel burger.

DINNER PLATES ~SERVED ANY TIME~ • $7.50+

Start with the basics; cold cut veggies (onions, tomatoes, cucumber, and cabbage) lightly dressed with our house Mediterranean dressing, your choice of rice or french fries, tzatziki or red sauce. Served with a warm pita bread. Plus the cost of gyro meat, falafel or any kebab skewer(s).

RICE SPECIAL • $9.00-$12.15

8oz or 16oz rice Plus the cost of gyro meat, falafel or any kebab skewer(s).

APPETIZERS • $3.30-$7.20

Halloumi cheese, falafel balls, dolmas, baba ghanouj, and hummus.

SALAD & SALAD • $3.75-$14.95

Mediterranean salad with or without chicken skewer, and tabouli.

PRICE RANGE: $6-$16

“Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve,” is my favorite song on Midnights. Swift uses religious imagery to discuss a re lationship with someone much older than her (this is 100% about John May er.) She says “If I only played it safe, I would have stayed on my knees and I damn sure never would’ve danced with the devil at nineteen.” The track is predominantly angry, with lyrics like “if I was some paint did it splatter on a promising grown man, and if I was a child did it matter if you got to wash your hands,” and “give me back my girl hood, it was mine first.” Swift regrets being lured from her “faith,” and begs for her innocence back. I could genu inely write essays on the genius that is this song.

I regularly listen to Midnights with out skipping any songs. However I do frequently skip “Snow on the Beach” and “Sweet Nothings.” I just don’t like them as much as I like the rest of the album.

If you were expecting this album to be like folklore and evermore you will be disappointed. This album is for the Swifties who loved 1989 and Reputa tion. I personally missed pop Taylor and I’m so glad she’s back.

Wednesday, November 30, 2022 LIFE & ARTS THE LUMBERJACK PAGE 4 12 | DINING Humboldt County’s Dining Guide •Lunch & Dinner •Dine In & Take Out •Beer, Wine & Cider •Handicap Access •Family Owned •Credit Cards 5000 Valley West Blvd., Arcata 707-826-2121 KebabCafeArcata.com MONDAY-FRIDAY 11am 8pm SATURDAY 12-7pm Closed SUNDAYS CONTACT INFORMATION ARCATA Kebab Café GYROS • $11.00 Gyro meat is a blend of ground lamb and ground beef. Seasoned and grilled on a vertical broiler then thinly sliced and served inside a warm pita with cold cut veggies and your choice of tzatziki or red sauce. FALAFEL SANDWICHES • $11.15-$15.25 Fresh house made falafel made with ground garbanzo beans and spices then deep fried to a crispy brown and served inside a warm pita with fresh veggies. KEBAB SKEWERS (SOUVLAKI) • $5.00-$8.15 Chicken, pork, beef, Turkish meatballs, lamb, lamb köft, shrimp, vegetable, mushroom KEBAB PITA SANDWICHES • $10.00-$13.50 Served inside a warm pita with freshly cut vegetables (onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, and cabbage) add your choice of
Photo by Shana Dellos | Ione and Peter Dellos show off their freshly baked pumpkin pies Graphic by Nina Hufman

Conservation is Taking Flight

When people think of California Condors, they are generally viewed as ‘scary’ and in many stories are tied to death, but in reality they are huge con tributors to the environment.

The Sequoia working hard the Yurok and many other agen cies to bring these mag nificent animals back home, free in the wild.

The Northern California Con dor Restoration Program’s mis sion is to bring the species back from the brink of extinction, and thanks to efforts from zoos, the Yurok tribe, and researchers, the project will aid the ef fort to grow wild populations so they can fulfill their place in the ecosystem.

“Our role in the whole effort is that we are a hospital facility for condors that may become sick,” said Jim Cam pell, director of the Sequoia Zoo. The zoo provides emergency services for the birds as well, “We are also available

which opens for other animals.”

“There are several partnerships that are involved in condor restoration. Or egon, Oakland, etc, we got a lot. But how these other facilities have helped us is in training of our staff by offering opportunities to work with these birds” says Jim Campbell. “There is not a lot about them so opportunities like these are very rare.”

With the opening of this new facil ity at the zoo, there will be a chance of renewal for this won derful species that often gets misjudged for how it looks on the outside. With this program go ing underway, condors will have a place to get better so they can be released back out in the wild. Even though the facility will not be viewable for the public, they can still learn about these magnificent creatures through staff and local researchers.

Wednesday, November 30, 2022 SCIENCE THE LUMBERJACK PAGE 5
ACROSS 4. Cal Poly Humboldt student pub lication 5. Fun activity with scissors and magazines 7. Common Arcata fruit 10. County, squid, and penguin 11. Current Editor-in-Chief 12. Disgraced ex-Arcata mayor 13. Bird subject to a rehab and release program 15. Campus building dreaded for be ing at the top of stairs 17. Traditional Thanksgiving pie 18. Band fronted by Phil Elverum 19. Overpriced food item on campus 20. Natural grocery store, open late DOWN 1. It’s time to... 2. Our favorite local hot tub spot <3 3. Sonoma State Mascot 6. Humboldt beach rated most pol luted in California 8. Home of the SJEIC 9. Cal Poly Humboldt student pub lication 14. Common dorm glassware 16. Farmer’s market food stand fa vorite
Crossword

Humboldt Basketball Teams pull off a double in home openers

Victory struck twice for Cal Poly Hum boldt basketball against Sonoma State last Thursday night at Lumberjack Arena. Both the women’s team and men’s team were able to pull out victories in close games in front of their fans in their home openers.

The women’s team battled closely for the whole first half, but a strong third quarter had Humboldt leading by nine points heading into the final period. The Jacks held on for a 65-55 victory.

Madison Parry led the scoring for Humboldt with 19 points. Kaz Parks add ed 17 points on 5-8 shooting from three.

“There were a lot of emotions riding into that game, in terms of it being our first conference game and a home opener, and then on top of that we were missing one of our team mates that had recently gotten hurt in practice,” said Parks.

Devon Lewis also had a game chang ing performance in her first home game for Humboldt. Lewis had 9 points, 8 re bounds, and 7 assists.

“It was exciting, especially ‘cause it was my first time ever playing here,” said Lew is. “I loved the atmosphere.”

The Jacks seem to be figuring out their play as a team early on this season. The

team had a total of 15 assists in this game.

“We came together a lot more than we did in the last few games and personally I feel we played more as a team in terms of everyone getting a chance to touch the ball on offense and having each other’s back on the defensive end,” said Parks.

The Jacks converted on a lot of their second chance opportunities in the game, scoring 13 second chance points on 8 of fensive rebounds.

“Even though shots weren’t falling that much in the beginning, we moved the ball very well and got good looks,” said Lewis. “Another thing was offensive boards. We

got a good amount of second chance op portunities.”

The women’s record improved to 2-2 overall and 1-0 in conference play with the win. Their next home game is on Thurs day, December 8, at 5:30 p.m. against Chico State in Lumberjack Arena.

Both the men’s and women’s teams also pulled out a victory in their matchups against the Sonoma State Seawolves. The men had a commanding start to the game and jumped out to a decent lead over the Seawolves in the first half, but went into halftime up by just three points, letting the fans know they had an entertaining game on their hands.

After a scoring surge and a few defen sive stops late in the game, Humboldt built some distance for a 79-71 victory.

“I thought we did a really good job of putting our foot on the gas, especially as we’ve been scoring the ball well the first three games and not really defending,” said mens coach Tae Norwood. “Now we won a game with our defense.”

Jaden Edwards led the Jacks with 22 points. Malek Davis added 21 points on 5-7 shooting from three.

“It was a good hard-fought CCAA game and a really solid win for our guys,” said Edwards. “I was particularly happy with the execution and plays we made down the stretch.”

He is one of the returning players from last year’s men’s team at Humboldt. The current team has a lot of newcomers.

“We got a lot of talent in this team and it’s going to continue to be fun to see how we play throughout the course of the sea son,” said Edwards.

The men’s record improved to 2-2 overall and 1-0 in conference play with the win. Their next home game is on Thurs day, December 8, at 7:30 p.m. against Chico State in Lumberjack Arena.

Wednesday, November 30, 2022 SPORTS PAGE 6 THE LUMBERJACK REGISTER NOW! It’s time to register for next semester. Plan your classes early and stay on track to graduate! humboldt.edu/register
Photo courtesy of Elliott Portillo/Cal Poly Humboldt Athletics | Ian Krishnan gets airborne for a layup against Sonoma State.

Duo Mobile makes me want to rip my hair out

Duo Mobile, count your days. That godforsaken green little app has in duced many fits of rage and hopeless ness due to its terrible user interface. I long for the days that I no longer have to toil under its evil login screen, when I am free from the influence of double verification.

To log in on your phone, you can click the call button to summon a Duo Mobile verification call to your phone. But if your phone is in Do Not Disturb or another notification silencing mode, the call from Duo to verify your login will be automatically declined.

The worst thing about the double verification sign-in is that if I don’t have my phone immediately near me, I have to go find it. Sometimes, like when I’m doing my homework, the whole point is

that I want my phone away from me, not near. This makes it easier for me to focus without distractions and to work on my five assignments that are due by midnight.

If this process gets disrupted by hav ing to get my phone to authenticate my sign-in, it can often make me unmoti vated to start my work. Let me paint a picture, dear reader, so you can un derstand my frustrations. So let’s say I have finally wrestled with my brain and emerged victorious, ready to start my homework for the day. Before I can even open Canvas and get access to the homework I have to do, Duo Mobile de crees that I must verify my identity to do my own homework.

What is someone going to do with my school account anyways? Do my

homework for me? Do my fourteen missing assignments?

I know that there is an option to have your device remember you for six days, but because I have cross-platform tracking disabled on my laptop and an anti-tracking browser, I cannot enable this feature on my laptop. This means I have to sign in with Duo Mobile at least once a day, more if I change wifi set tings, such as changing networks from my home wifi to the school wifi.

When I get really mad about having to use Duo Mobile, I calm myself down by going on the app store, searching for the app and reading all the reviews under the “most critical” filter. Some of my favorite headlines from scathing re views of the app include, “bro this app ridiculous”, “yikes”, “Terrible I hate it

I’m serious”, “Was forced to install this crap” and my personal favorite, “Abol ish this app from the app store.”

While Duo Mobile might disturb me fundamentally to my core, reading these reviews reassures me that I’m not the only college student stuck us ing this terrible authentication service until I graduate. Duo Mobile currently has a 1.9 out of 5 stars rating on the app store.

I have left countless one-star reviews for the app, hoping that eventually it will have such poor reviews that the school would be forced to implement a new authentication method. Humboldt has a long-standing history of promptly fixing things that negatively affect their students, so I’m sure they’ll get right on it.

Is Duo Mobile really that bad?

If you’re on the Cal Poly Humboldt campus, you’ve probably heard some complaints about the Duo Mobile app that adds a few extra steps to the login process. Even if not, you have experi enced it yourself when needing to have a call, text, or push notification sent your way when you’re logging into your school account.

I understand why people don’t think they should have to do all of this just to get homework done. I understand the concern behind losing your main de vice and having to problem-solve with the technology experts on the phone for hours. The Duo system is far from flawless.

However, what happens if your in formation gets exposed or your ac count gets hacked? I can confidently say the potential problems that come from a situation like that are much greater than simply having to take an extra minute of your time before doing homework.

This measure the university is tak ing to keep us safe is done with good intentions. As much of a headache as it might be, precautions need to be taken in risky situations. Attending a univer sity involves a lot of potential exposure of our personal information. If people outside the university get hold of that information it could cause major issues for the university and its students and faculty.

Don’t get the wrong idea; I am not saying Duo Mobile isn’t annoying to use. I’m not saying it’s some perfect solution that deserves all the praise in the world. But if it’s keeping us safe by protecting our data, shouldn’t we at least give the university and the cre ators behind the app some credit for that?

Overall, Duo Mobile is a warranted security measure for Cal Poly Hum boldt. Having to worry less about get ting hacked is completely worth the bit of extra work it takes to log in.

Wednesday, November 30, 2022 OPINION PAGE 8 THE LUMBERJACK 11 am - 11pm 11 am - midnight

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Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.