Spring 17 Issue 6

INSIDE Environuts growing

Volume 84, Issue 6

ESTaBLISHED 1979

MCLA’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER March 9, 2017

Page 3

SGA CLUB BUDGETS TO INCREASE NEXT YEAR $10K also added to the supplemental budget

By Nick Tardive @Nick_Tardive Senior News Editor SGA passed its budget recommendations for the next fiscal year with little resistance on Monday, despite an impassioned plea from the Fashion Club and a long statement from the Student Activities Council (SAC), which detailed how a $14,000 cut in their budget would negatively affect them.

Few clubs tried to make a case in appeal for more money from SGA. Fashion Club, which was seeing a $70 cut despite a large increase in participants, attempted to receive a bump from $700 to $1000. Debate Club asked for an extra $45, from $305 to $350. Both clubs were making these pleas, hoping to have enough money to have enough resources to put on events and draw more students into the clubs.

SAC, despite their long statements regarding how the budget

MASS. STATE AUDITOR

MCLA, seven other Colleges in cross hairs

By Nick Tardive and Gianna Vigliatura Senior News Editor and Staff Writer

MCLA, as well as seven other colleges in the Commonwealth, were targeted for “inadequate” controls over its inventory, furniture and equipment. According to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Office of the State Auditor’s (OSA) official report released in last August, Every item worth $1000 is required to be tagged by the colleges and be properly inventoried.

Lawrence Behan, vice president of Administration and Finance, claimed the policy was somewhat outdated in its practice. One thousand dollars in 2017 doesn’t go as far as it once did, to which Behan said he and a group of Chief Financial Officers from other state universities in Massachusetts were working toward getting the OSA to raise the minimum price for tagged items.

Behan spoke to The Beacon about issues outlined in the OSA official report, as well as his plans to present new policy drafts to the Board of Trustees meant to correct the problems.

“We’re not more unusual than any other place in the Commonwealth,” Behan said.

Behan also said that depreciated items were included on that list, so long as they cost $1000 when initially purchased, and that the College had to get prior approval from the OSA if they wanted to dispose of any tagged items.

“If an asset has no value, why does it need to be in the inventory?” he asked.

What MCLA did not share with the rest of the colleges targeted by the audit, however, were property thefts left unreported to the OSA as mandated, inaccuracies on the College’s internal control questionnaire, and $11,000 in travel expenses not properly preapproved by the OSA. Instead, the problem was a matter of MCLA’s conflicting policies regarding procurement card usage and the approval for that usage.

From the official report, the conflicted policies stated that all College related travel must be approved by the division head prior to travel, but the

AUDIT, Page 3

cuts would affect them, made no mistake about trying to get more money. Shannon Esposito stepped aside from her SGA role for a moment to be a part of SAC’s address to student government.

“The SAC you know and love is going to have to change next year,” Esposito said.

Events such as Barn Babies, SAC carnivals and visiting comedians will have to be cut down drastically, if not cut entirely.

Beyond that however, the clubs

The Numbers Total requested by SGA Clubs: $347,992 Total approved for SGA Clubs: $257,118 SGA Operating Budget: $103,991 at the meeting seemed to be fairly pleased with their budgets. Only seven clubs received cuts, including SAC, Black Student Union and the

Biggest Cut: Student Activities Council, by a difference of $14,328 from last year.

Biggest Increase: Harlequin Musical Club, by an increase of $5,825.

Latin American Society. More clubs than not also got raises in their budgets.

BUDGETS, Page 2

IT’S A RIOT!

PHOTO BY DOMONIQUE ACKLEY — PHOTO EDITOR

Last week, the Fine and Performing Arts department put on "RIOT," adapted from a 2011 show of the same name devised by The Wardrobe Ensemble, a group based in Bristol, UK. Be sure to f lip to page 7 to see The Beacon's full review and page 12 to see a photo essay from the show.

BEACON POLL

MCLA supports arming campus police

By Mitchell Chapman @mitchapman Editor-in-Chief

When the MCLA Board of Trustees voted ten to one to arm campus safety in Feb. 2012, it was hotly debated, going against 90 percent of faculty and 67 percent of students who were against it, The Beacon reported at the time. Today, campus opinion has greatly changed.

According to a non-scientific survey The Beacon put out, of 175 survey takers 100 strongly agreed with arming campus with lethal firearms (57.14 percent), 16 (9.14 percent) agreed, 15 (8.57 percent) disagreed, 38 (21.71 percent) strongly disagreed, with only six people being impartial.

“It is a matter of safety for the community that they have to appropriate tools to respond to potential lethal threats to our community members,” one survey taker described.

When asked about arming campus safety by non-lethal means, a slim majority of survey takers disagreed: as 54 survey takers

GRAPHIC BY MITCHELL CHAPMAN

GUNS, Page 4 Unlike 2012, the majority of the campus supports arming campus police.

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March 9, 2017

CAMPUS NEWS

Without IEP, College seeks to emulate its strengths

By Nick Tardive @Nick_Tardive Senior News Editor After three decades, the College will no longer offer the Individual Enrichment Program (IEP). It was used as a way to offer underprivileged and disadvantaged high school students entering college a chance to acclimate to living on campus.

The program was funded through a federal Student Support Services grant, which MCLA last received funding for in the Fiscal Year 2014. The College received anywhere from $280,000 to around $300,000, depending on the year.

“We applied for another grant, but we did not receive it,” said Cindy

Brown, vice president of Academic Affairs. Although a valued program Brown spoke of in high esteem, the IEP is expensive. It requires the school to house students over the course of their stay, and retain faculty and other staff during that time as well. And the grant was not paying just for IEP. According to Brown, the grant also funded several programs run by Center for Student Success and Engagement (CSSE), such as academic tutoring.

With resources limited due to the loss of the federal funding, MCLA had to prioritize, and shelved the IEP. However, Brown said that MCLA is considering figuring out what parts of the program worked best in an attempt to emulate what they believe is a highly successful program.

“My belief is that there will be some

discussion to see if we can relaunch the summer program,” said Brown. “That conversation needs to happen now.”

Junior La’Juan Allen brought up the individual enrichment program up to the Student Government Association (SGA), for which he was recently elected Senator in the special elections.

Allen, a participant and later a volunteer in the program, was concerned at the College’s cutting of the program.

“My focus wouldn’t be as intense as it is,” said Allen. “That program changed me. It gave me confidence, it pushed me.”

Allen urged the College to consider bringing the program back immediately. He attributed his experiences with the IEP to his success at MCLA. As a participant he attended three courses, of which he got credit for two.

PHOTOS BY NICK TARDIVE — SENIOR NEWS EDITOR

A full gallery filled with SGA club member clubs listen to the budget discussion.

Despite concerns from SAC and Fashion Club, the budget was passed unaltered.

BUDGETS From Page 1

Immediately after SGA passed the budget for next year, Sen. A.J Cote made a motion to move $18,853 from SGA’s reserve budget to the supplemental budget.

The intended effect of the bill was to give clubs lacking sufficient budgets to receive emergency funds in case they attempt to undertake new initiatives.

Cote introduced the motion “in order to provide a sufficient safety net.”

Sen. LaJuan Allen seconded the initial motion, which sparked a lengthy, heated debate among senators and students in the gallery.

“I feel like this is a time clubs are most vulnerable,” said Allen.

“This is a good safety net for clubs.”

Allen argued that the reserve budget was meant to help in situations such as this - enrollment is down, he said, and clubs need all the money they can to draw what students the school has into club participation.

Parliamentarian Jess Lovellette, Trustee Brianna O’Rourke and Senators Declan Nolan and Jake Vitali all spoke up, as they believed the total number itself was bigger than necessary.

Lovellette pointed out that the supplemental budget as is is rarely drained.

“I do know this is a drastic number, especially because the supplemental budget isn’t running out of money,” Vitali said.

Vitali and Allen both added “friendly amendments” to the initial motion after a discussion about the benefits of adding the money to the operational budget

versus adding it to the supplemental budget. Money added to the supplemental budget is only meant for emergency situations and new initiatives from clubs, whereas money in the operating budget could be used by SGA to help co-sponsor events with clubs - which sometimes is as little as offering up money for an event and putting their name on a flyer.

The final motion ended up adding $10,000 to the supplemental budget, and the other $8,853 to the operating budget.

The vote didn’t happen until around 9:30 p.m, where it was passed with a small majority of student representatives passed the initiative. Vitali and Nolan were two of the Senators who voted no. Cote, Allen, and Senators Adazae Shepherd-Edwards and Avery Woodbury voted yes.

The intensity of the work, the overall workload, required study halls and tough grading from professors were effective in getting students prepared for college. Because the program is for low-income and disadvantaged students, Allen said that this was important for them because they might not have been attending college in the first place - let alone go into their freshman year unprepared. With recent concerns on campus about diversity, Allen said that having an IEP could help with retention.

“You can ramp up targeting urban areas, you can bring minorities to campus, but if you don’t have the resources on campus to help them get acclimated to college life, you won’t retain them.” said Allen.

The IEP, Allen explained, is an im-

portant safety net meant to help those more vulnerable, more at risk. He said it was a matter of “morality”.

“We’ve talked about this in the past,” said Brown. “I would be interested in taking a look at people who have taken the program and how they fared. Not just at MCLA, but after college as well.”

Brown said that, due to the expenses of the program, the College would rather research what aspects of the program were most useful to the participating students. One of which was the classroom experience given to students, which put them in the midst of a course selected straight from the undergraduate catalog. Brown said she thought that was a better use of resources than an academic tutoring, which simply didn’t give attendees a proper introduction to college life.

CAMPUS POLICE LOGS 2/26-3/5 Sun. Feb. 26 Street. Refer to incident: 17-79-OF in 10:26 a.m. – Filed report on Public Safety log. larceny / forgery / fraud in the Flagg Wed. Mar. 1 Townhouse Apartments. Refer to 5:36 p.m. – Filed report on a complaint incident: 17-72-OF 17-1065 in Public from the Murdock Hall Lot. Refer to Safety log. incident: 17-82-OF in Public Safety log.

10:36 a.m. – Filed report on 6:20 p.m. – Warned subject in a vandalism in the Flagg Townhouse juvenile problem in the Amsler Campus Apartments.

Center.

Mon. Feb. 27 Thur. Mar. 2 3:42 p.m. – Filed report on a person 4:54 p.m. – Closed case on larceny / injury in the Amsler Campus Center. forgery / fraud in the Amsler Campus Refer to incident: 17-76-OF in Public Center. Refer to incident: 17-83-OF in Safety log.

Public Safety log.

6:00 p.m. – Assisted North Adams 6:20 p.m. – Responded to a safety police on Porter Street. Refer to incihazard at the Center for Science and dent: 17-77-OF in Public Safety log.

Innovation.

7:21 p.m. – Responded to suspicious Fri. Mar. 3 activity at the Shapiro House.

2:54 p.m. – Responded to a 911 hangTue. Feb. 28 up call from the Admissions Office.

2:42p.m. – Completed a medical Sat. Mar. 4 transport from the Wellness Center.

3:41 p.m. – Investigates suspicious 5:55 p.m. – Closed case on suspiactivity on Montana Street. cious activity on Porter Street. Refer 5:41 p.m. – No action taken on suspito incident: 17-78-OF in Public Safety cious activity at the Flagg Townhouse log.

Apartments.

7:20 p.m. – Investigated suspicious Sun. Mar. 5 activity in Venable Hall.

12:56 a.m. – Closed case on suspi8:08p.m. – Arrested Chloe B Carcious activity on Ashland Street. rigan of North Adams in the Freel 1:19 a.m. – Assisted North Adams Library Lot for Assault and Battery on police on Montana Street / Blackinton Family / Household member. Refer to Street. Refer to incident: 17-84-OF in accident: 17-3-AC, arrest: 17-4-AR, Public Safety log. and incident: 17-81-OF in Public 11:20 a.m. – Filed report on disturbSafety log. ing the peace on Montana Street. Refer 10:48 p.m. – Filed report on a to incident: 17-85-OF in Public Safety domestic disturbance on Montana log.

FINANCIAL AID ANNOUNCEMENT MCLA SCHOLARSHIPS FOR 17-18 WILL BE AVAILABLE MARCH 16TH!!

APPLY ON-LINE AT MCLA.AWARDSPRING.COM LOG IN WITH YOU’RE A# AND PASSWORD. DEADLINE IS MIDNIGHT, APRIL 3RD!!! ******************************************* THINKING ABOUT TAKING SUMMER CLASSES? STOP BY THE FINANCIAL AID OFFICE FOR INFORMATION ON SUMMER FINANCIAL AID *************************** SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Apply on-line at Scholarships.com Free scholarship search!

CAMPUS NEWS

March 9, 2017

THE ENVIRONUTS

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Strong membership, more to come

PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE ENVIRONUTS AND AIMEE GELINAS

The Environuts, volunteering at the Tamarack Hollow Trail last year in Savoy, Mass.

The club expects to join the Wildlife Society in Washington D.C.

By Mitchell Chapman @mitchapman Editor-in-Chief

MCLA’s sustainability club, the Environuts, have a lot in the pipeline, but much of it is dependent upon mother nature. However, that hasn’t stopped the club from getting new members.

“So far this semester we have inducted about seven new members who are all freshman,” Environuts President Elsa Mastico said. “We have around three prospective members who so far have only completed part of their membership requirements.”

Unlike other clubs on campus, membership is not obtained after attending a certain amount of meetings. To become a member of the Environuts, a student must attend at least three of their meeting and help out with

AUDIT

From Page 1 use of a procurement card is allowed for travel expenses, and the receipts for those are only reviewed once a month.

“I think it was an oversight,” he said. “When these policies were written there was a difference in the way procurement cards were used.”

In the two years from the start of the audit and its conclusion, the OSA found that 16 expenditures totaling $11,000 (out of 810 worth $544,724) were not properly documented on a pre-approved travel voucher.

In regards to the lack of pre-approved travel expenses, Behan wanted to assure people that MCLA was “not

at least three events in the same semester. Helping out at an event includes making club banners, set-up and clean up activities.

Volunteer service at one of their sanctioned events also counts towards this.

“In previous years, we have helped small farms prep for the spring months by clearing invasive species that grow around their land,” Mastico said. “In the future we will try to expand our assistance to other farms and help them with things like prepping for the winter months.”

Being a sustainability club, the weather limits what they can or cannot do, and the month of February was no exception.

Aside from the occasional heat wave, MCLA and the surrounding region of Berkshire County was consistently covered with a blanket of snow.

violating any” state finance laws. He made the distinction due to the former President of Westfield State University (also a target of the official audit report), Evan Dobelle, who was accused of spending school funds on “international travel, limousines, fancy hotels and expensive meals,” according to “The Boston Globe.”

Dobelle ended up paying $185,000 in a lawsuit settlement that ended two years of investigation and litigation. Dobelle was also accused of improperly spending college money when he was President of the University of Hawaii and was with the New England Board of Higher Education.

“The auditors are basically saying, ‘you said you were going to do this, but you haven’t,’” Behan said.

“They’re measuring us

“This semester we have been doing a lot of planning for the spring months,” Mastico said.

“Since many of our club activities are weather dependent, we plan many of our spring semester activities for after spring break. That said, we are planning a few movie nights and vegan taste testing nights that are not weather dependent. We will be doing those during the club meetings.”

Going forward, the club is planning on attending the Climate March in Washington D.C., along with MCLA’s Wildlife Society on April 29. In order to accommodate for both clubs, they are hoping to arrange for a coach bus.

The Environuts have existed on campus for nearly seven years, founded in the spring of 2010, and its constitution was ratified as an official MCLA

against what we say we’re going to do.”

Behan said it was good to have an outside agency getting MCLA to follow through with its own policies.

While Behan claimed to have drafts meant to update the policies outlined as problematic on the OSA, he also attributed many of the oversights with regards to these outdated policies to a prolonged transition MCLA saw after the departure of President Mary Grant and James Stakenas, the former vice president of Administration and Finance.

Behan did not begin working at MCLA until after the audit had been finished, however, he hopes to have the new policies implemented by the end of this fiscal year.

Club during the fall semester of that same year. It was founded by alumni Rebecca Geraci,’13, with the support of a group of several other students. Over the years, the club has taken on a number of issues from protest-

ing the Keystone XL pipeline to helping local farmers.

The Environuts meet Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. in Bowman 207.

Prospective members are encouraged to attend.

Straight from Sierra Leone, "The king of Bubu music" (NPR) celebrates ancient tradition in this good-vibes bash.

Live Music

JANKA NABAY

AND THE BUBU GANG Saturday, March 11, 8pm CLUB B10 | $10 STUDENTS | $16 ADVANCE $22 DAY OF | $28 PREFERRED

Tickets: massmoca.org or 413.662.2111 87 Marshall Street, North Adams, Mass.

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March 9 2017

Beyond the Beacon

Brief from The Los Angeles Times

Hundreds stranded at station in Serbia BELGRADE, Serbia — He was, by his account, the go-to shopkeeper for U.S. troops at a small outpost in northern Afghanistan, stocking appliances, construction materials, the latest headphones and an endless supply of Monster energy drinks.

Then the base closed, the Americans departed and Taliban threats against his life began.

CORRECTION

CAMPUS NEWS

Now Tariq Stanikzay sleeps alongside six other Afghan men in a freezing metal shed behind the main train station in Belgrade, the Serbian capital, with blankets and strips of cardboard pressed against the walls for insulation.

Hundreds of Afghans, Pakistanis, Syrians and others huddle here in abandoned warehouses and sheds that run along the tracks of the 19thcentury depot, burning donated firewood, old boxes and strips of tires during a winter when nighttime temperatures have touched zero degrees.

This is where their flight from poverty and violence has ended, at least for now: at the doorstep to a Europe that is trying to shut the door on migrants.

Due to a publishing error, an earlier draft of the “Former IGC treasurer accused of larceny” article was published, which contained information about the Treasurer and some money that was allegedly missing from

Pi Upsilon Pi online. There is no evidence that the former treasurer is linked to this event.

The Beacon also reported that the charges came from Beta Lambda. In fact, they came from IGC. We regret the errors.

GUNS

However, the College is far from a consensus, as MCLA Faculty Association President Graziana Ramsden alluded to.

“I am still convinced that arming campus police is a mistake since there is no crime on this campus that would warrant that, and our annual Clery Report offers sufficient evidence,” Ramsden said. “In addition, it is shameful that we have Admissions events with campus police tabling in full SWAT gear, which is unnecessarily intimidating and sends the wrong message. I

From Page 1 strongly disagreed (30.86 percent), 42 disagreed (24 percent), 29 agreed with arming the campus police by non-lethal means (16.57 percent) and 29 strongly disagreed. When the strongly agree and disagree categories are combined: 96 survey takers disagreed with non-lethal means (54.85 percent) and 58 agreed (33.14 percent). 21 survey takers were indifferent .

BWN SPOTLIGHT

Cook-off: final Round

PHOTO BY SAM KNISKERN

To see the final round of the Campus Center Cook-off, be sure to check out this week's episode of Beacon Web News on our YouTube page. understand safety is important but the militarization of law enforcement is a problem we should address with campus officials, and request they look seriously into the message armed police officers send on an academic campus at a time of social change.”

Others, such as senior Taurus Londoño, expressed gratitude towards public safety. Londoño, who lived just a few blocks from campus, experienced a string of incidents beginning with a break-in at his apartment in which public safety assisted him, one as

recent as November of last year.

“I genuinely felt that my life was in serious danger, and I was greatly comforted by the calm reassurance and compassion of an armed campus police officer,” Londoño said. “I spent much of that night at Public Safety. I am absolutely convinced that public safety officers must be armed in order to protect our fellow students on campus.”

When asked if they ever felt uncomfortable around a campus police officer because they were armed, 138 survey takers said no (78.86 percent), but 37 people said yes (21.14 percent). Of the

takers that felt uncomfortable, many shared their stories.

“I’ve been profiled because of my appearance,” one survey taker said. Another survey taker responded, “It seems to make them more aggressive, even over small stuff.” Other takers expressed their discomfort when officers have reached for their weapons.

“Sometimes just walking around they have their hands on their belt, and it’s a little unsettling, as an African-American,” one survey taker said. “But I do understand that it is protocol.”

FEATURES

WJJW DJ Profile: Jacob Vitali and "Your World According to Me"

By Ron Leja rl2670@mcla.edu Deputy Features and A&E Editor

Political Science major Jacob Vitali is the host of “Your World According to Me,” a two hour program airing every Wednesday from 4 to 6 p.m. on WJJW, the campus radio station. “Your World According to Me” consists of a mix of political banter concerning current affairs, opinion pieces, interviews and an extensive collection of music.

Comedic in his execution, Vitali often starts his show with a monologue in which he pokes fun at various headlines found in both local and nationwide newspapers, providing listeners an opportunity to learn about the problems currently effecting the world around us in a way that is both lighthearted and fun. Fans of popular news-based talk shows such as Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show,” or HBO’s “Real Time With Bill Maher” will most likely get a kick out of Vitali’s take on the world around us.

On occasion Vitali expands on stories that he finds of particular interest, opening up in to a segment which he’s dubbed “Special Commentary,” in which he discusses a

I feel like in some ways that the Trump administration has been a blessing because every week I’ve been on the air, they’ve provided both interesting and easy to poke fun at stories Jacob Vitali

given subject matter for a larger portion of the show. Recently stories concerning the antics and often controversial actions of the Trump Administration have led to what Vitali describes as “a blessing” for content, making stories concerning the current state of the government a widely reviewed issue.

“I feel like in some ways that the Trump administration has been a blessing because every week I’ve been on the air, they’ve provided both interesting and easy to poke fun at stories,” Vitali explains. “They’ve also been so controversial that it’s hard not to find guests who want to share their opinions about their actions, whether in agreement or not.

In particular, I’ve been exploring the Russia connections, as well as scandals surrounding some of the cabinet nominees.”

The majority of the show is meant to be satirical in its execution, though he does occasionally open up towards more serious discussions.

He’s also been known to acquire an array of special guests from varying backgrounds to join him in discussion from time to time, including both students residents of Berkshire County. Some of his previous guests include amateur wrestler Ryan Goffman, protest organizer Marty Packer, marketing and promotions manager Kelly Skelton of the Love of the Game Sports Foundation and fellow radio DJ James Swinchoski.

Segments are broken up with the occasional song from an abundance of genres, adding a nice variety of music throughout the show, dipping in to both country, hip hop, heavy metal and alternative rock. Vitali’s interest in DJing stems from an inherent appreciation of the radio.

“I wanted to join campus radio because scanning stations has always been one of my favorite past times,” Vitali mentioned. “There’s nothing I love more than to be on a road trip, traveling to a place I’ve never been, and scanning the sta-

PHOTO COURTESY OF JACOB VITALI

Jacob Vitali's "Your World According to Me" is a satirical discussion on both local and world news." tions for compelling dialogue or new music. Coming from Billerica, I’ve had access to all of the Boston stations and they have some really great programs.”

Vitali also enjoys the freedom that coincides with creating his own radio show. Despite having to follow regulations set in place by the FCC, as well a few rules set by the school, he finds the act of creating something that is very much a product of his own creation rewarding.

“I love having that flexibility to

tell jokes, interview others, and play some new music I’ve just come across,” Vitali admitted. “I love WJJW as a whole because no DJ’s show feels the same as another, every person on air brings a lot of themselves to their show and I really appreciate that.”

In the future, Vitali hopes that he will be able to acquire some more prominent guests, as well as use his show to launch some new and upcoming talent who are looking for exposure.

COUNSELING SERVICES

healing minds through the power of meditation

By Emily Gabert eg3887@mcla.edu Features Editor Sonora Thomas laid out patterned scarves along her office floor. Each acted as a checkpoint along the road of life. Thomas stood beside a scarf, acting out a technique she uses with her clients at MCLA’s Counseling Services.

“They get more information if they do it versus just talking about it,” Thomas said. “So, I find getting up and being active, is helpful, as you start to learn more information rather than just thinking hypothetically.”

When students come in and talk about the possibility of switching majors, Thomas pulls out her plastic bin full of scarves and has students practice the different aspects of deciding to do a career in a certain field. They start out from doing ten years down the road, to 20, and so on. Sometimes students realize the difficulties that may come with a different major, and they may decide to just stick it out with their current major. Thomas enjoys working with college students because many are beginning to understand themselves and forming ideas and different viewpoints that may be different from the same ones their parents held onto.

Students are discovering how they want to live their lives, and what they want to fill their lives with.

“It’s such a great age and a time in peoples’ lives,” Thomas explained, “and they’re moving away from their families and getting to see that things are different, and not everybody does things the way their families do it. It’s a big eye

opener... there’s so much going on at this age.

It’s a total kick to be around all of that, and supporting people on that quest of self-discovery.”

Thomas has been working to get students involved in the act of meditation. She has participated in different events held in all three of the residence halls and last semester she even began to have a weekly session where students can get together in one big space to sit down and relax via the power of meditation. These sessions do not focus solely on completely clearing ones mind – as she knows this can be hard for beginners – but just giving people a moment during the day where they can just stop and relax. Initially, her meditation sessions were held in Sullivan Lounge, a space she quickly realized was not the ideal spot for meditation. This semester, she holds the weekly session in Bowman Hall room 201 between 12 and 12:30 p.m. Thomas has had a much better student turnout this semester; she said she’s had as many as nine people show up.

“I put on relaxing music, we do about ten minutes of movement to help people slow down, feel their body and breath, turn their attention inward,” she said, “and then I guide them through about 15 to 20 minutes of meditation.”

Thomas is an Austin, Texas native who joined MCLA in 2016 from Austin Riggs, a psychiatric hospital in Stockbridge, Mass. She holds a master’s degree from Lesley University in clinical mental health counseling. She first started off at Simmons College for a year, before she decided to take a year off and go to Barcelona, Spain. Thomas remarked that going into college right after graduating high

I put on relaxing music, we do about ten minutes of movement to help people slow down, feel their body and breath, turn their attention inward and then I guide them through about 15 to 20 minutes of meditation Sonora Thomas

school was not the best decision at the time for her.

“After a year and a half, I thought ‘well I really should get my life together,’” she said. “I decided to come back [to the United States] and went to a community college in Oregon for two years, and then the closest college, for me, was in Boise, Idaho.”

At Boise State University, she studied voice performance. She taught at a high school music classes for a year. As she taught voice lessons, Thomas found herself talking about people and their lives in an hour-long music lesson. She soon realized singing wasn’t what she wanted to do with her life. Thomas found herself much more interested in learning about peoples’ stories; she knew she wasn’t in the right field for her – and decided to switch into studying to become a therapist. It took her about five years to decide on a graduate program; she ended up at Lesley University.

“It’s such a good experience to do something completely new,” said Thomas, “and as an

PHOTO FROM YELP.COM

Thomas came to MCLA in 2016. older student, I appreciated it so much more and I wasn’t burnout. After being in the work world it was so much fun to go to classes…I was a much better student in my 30’s than in my 20’s.”

Thomas participated in an internship at Lesley’s counseling center; her husband moved out to the Berkshires to take on a job at Williams College. Thomas joined him a year later, taking a position at Austin Riggs before joining MCLA. She had been looking for a while to move back into a college setting. In her free time, Thomas loves to be outside hiking with her dog and even snowshoeing.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Fine and Performing Arts Presents: RIOT

By Ron Leja rl2670@mcla.edu Deputy Features and A&E Editor It’s no big secret that America loves to shop, but in recent years the drive to acquire material possessions has, at times, driven people to commit some pretty deplorable acts. Fights break out, crowds of shoppers bust through doors and people trample one another for the next hot item as utter chaos ensues.

Last weekend the Fine and Performing Arts department presented their re-imagining of "RIOT," an obscure theatrical experience that puts a cynically humorous spin on the darker side of consumerism. Originally created by the Wardrobe Ensemble, a theatre group hailing from Bristol, UK, "RIOT" retells the experiences of shoppers involved in a mass stampede that occurred during the grand opening of the United Kingdom’s largest Swedish furniture store.

The play was inspired by the testimonies and personal experiences of those involved.

Susan Katzoff, guest director for "RIOT," worked alongside the Wardrobe Ensemble in order to bring the show to MCLA. Together, they made several changes to make the play more relatable to a local audience, allowing for a more immersive experience. The Fine and

Performing Arts department is the only group outside of RIOT’s originators to ever perform it.

RIOT kicks off with a handful of new employees about to undergo their first day of work at their local furniture store. James, Jana, Nikki and Charlie, played by John Kelly, Rachel Grzelak, Brianna McDermott and Alex Sasso respectively, are greeted by Gin, the easily alarmable store facilitator played by Andrew Pietrykowski.

Each are given an attempt to break the ice, giving the audience a glimpse in to their character traits, and then sent out to cover different sections of the store. Meanwhile, crowds of shoppers can be seen clawing at the doors in a zombielike manner, reminiscent of the iconic “Don’t Open, Dead Inside” scene from “The Walking Dead."

Two other characters are also introduced along the way. Store manager Patricia, played by Lindsay DeWinkleer, comes off as a Bohemian, new-age hippy with an overbearing temper, while store safety officer Toralf, played

by Keaira Person, is comically oblivious to the surrounding bedlam spreading through the store. In one memorable scene, she calls out for people to stop rioting so that she can tie her shoe before telling them to carry on.

The colorful cast of characters, each executed charmingly by the Fine and Performing Arts (FPA) Department, really help to set the tone for the entirety of the show. Each of them are quirky,

almost cartoon-like at times, and enjoyable to watch, much like "RIOT" itself. Each character has a noticeably different personality all their own that helps to make each of them a pleasure to watch as the story unfolds.

As the show continues, there are a number of interactions that occur that touch on potential romantic endeavors. The store supervisor Calum, played by Sebastian Phillips, finds himself caught in a split-object love triangle between the provocative and tattooed Nikki, Calum’s current lover, and Charlie, whom he’s apparently known from a previous interaction. Meanwhile, the bumbling and unkempt James falls head over heels for Nikki after she makes the mistake of sarcastically commenting on his abs, or lack thereof.

While the latter never pans out, a great amount of humor occurs between James and Nikki, eventually erupting in to an impressive and admittedly hilarious dancing segment after James attempts to resuscitate her. The musical number that ensues all but stole the show, and the use of red Christmas lights throughout this choreographed piece was impressive, to say the least.

While "RIOT" was in fact a riot to watch, it did include a fairly trivial shortcoming in regards to the story itself. The climax is subtle, and some of the engagements between characters

PHOTO BY RON LEJA

The Fine and Performing Arts Department is the only theatre group . never managed to develop in to anything worthwhile, making interaction feel shallow when one realizes that the story between certain characters is never going to amount to anything significant.

However, as far as dark comedy’s go, "RIOT" was a good time. The humor used

throughout was authentically funny and the musical numbers were performed with the utmost spirit and energy. For those of us who can’t help but to just shake their heads when they see shoppers pushing and shoving their way past one another, "RIOT" is sure to delight.

What Goes Wrong With Event Participation?

By Emma Monahan A&E Writer Student participation on campus seems to be one of the biggest problems that clubs and organizations seem to face every day.

Michael Obasohan sat in the Amsler Campus Center marketplace, encouraging MCLA students and faculty members to participate in the “My Black is Beautiful” campaign. When asked about the art show that was to take place later that evening, Obasohan explains how the event was canceled due to low submissions.

“It’s very disappointing,” he tells the Beacon.

The “My Black is Beautiful” art show was to take place at 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 28 in the Campus Center achievement lounge, and was co-sponsored by Black Student Union (BSU) and Student Development. The planning for the art show started in January, Obasohan explained, who works in Student Development, with flyers used for advertisements.

When the submission pile was low, they extended the deadline date.

“We decided to make it more interactive,” Obasohan said, “by moving it to the marketplace today.”

Students had the opportunity to become involved in the event by creating their own art with multiple tables set up as stations.

One station, where Obasohan sat, was where students could write

PHOTO BY CHRIS RIEMER

Despite efforts by clubs and organizations, many events struggle with participation. on sticky notes about what made being black beautiful and then hang them up on a poster behind the table that said “My Black is Beautiful.”

Another activity was where students would finish the sentence written on a whiteboard that said “Black is…” then stand in front of the poster with the sticky notes for a photo, which would then be formed into a collage full of all the photos taken.

With everything going on not just in our country, but also on our campus, this art show event was something that Obasohan seemed really excited for, and it’s upsetting that it was unable to arise. Was is due to poor publicity and planning? Or lack of student involvement?

Area Coordinator Griffin Lab-

bance sat down with The Beacon to explain why students may not go to events on campus, and how Resident Advisers (RAs), as well as the Resident Directors (RDs), improve on their event planning.

“The unfortunate part is that it’s sometimes hit or miss,” Labbance said. “You can do everything right and people just don’t show up.”

Labbance says that one way to get students to come to their events is to try and find events that the residents want to go to, to put on events that interest their community. Berkshire Towers RA Kayla LaVoice says that she does this for her events.

“I get residents to come to events by planning programs that they are interested in,” she says, “I always

have my residents fill out surveys at the beginning of each semester which asks them to list a couple event ideas. Then I use those ideas when planning events. That way I know it is something that my residents are interested in and they feel as if they helped because they gave me the idea to begin with.”

Just because no one shows up to an event, it doesn’t mean it was a bad idea (Bias word choice?).

It all comes down to planning.

Labbance says that everything could look well written down on paper, but if no one comes to the event, he has them go back to the drawing board to see what went wrong.

“What was still in the way?”

He asks, explaining the after-

math (word choice?) with RAs, “What else is going on on campus? We don’t try to put an event down in a Residence Hall the same time as the Spring Concert, we don’t want to try and compete with a major campus event.”

Labbance held a Flagg Townhouse event last semester for students to learn basic car skills, and it was a chance to ask any questions with an actual mechanic. He says it was during the day, parked right outside of the Townhouse complex near Bowman Hall, and students were able to ask quick questions as they walked by, as well as get to know someone from the community.

College students are constantly busy with homework, classes, clubs, sports, the list can go on and on (editorializing?), and that’s one of the main reasons they don’t participate in many events: there’s not enough time.

“They [students] get busy with school, clubs and participating on campus,” LaVoice says, “I’m okay with this though because I want my residents to find things they are interested and passionate about on campus.”

The processes of having students attend events on campus is trial and error. No event is perfect, and those who put on events are never going to get the numbers they want, but RAs and clubs need to remember that they still entered some people for a couple of hours, even if it’s only one.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

March 9, 2017

7

“Get Out” an ingenious and thought-provoking film

By Chris Riemer A&E Editor Since watching “Get Out,” I’ve been reading a lot of reviews. I doubt I’ll ever run out of them.

The movie, Jordan Peele’s directorial debut, famously had a 100 percent positive rating on “Rotten Tomatoes” (now down to 99 percent), and given the content and the recent political climate, reviewers everywhere are anxious to ensure that readers know that they “get it,” that they’re one of the good ones and that they’ve seen “Rosemary’s Baby,” which is similar in some ways, I guess. I would really suggest seeing the movie before getting some white guy’s hot take, but you’re here now, so here goes.

The protagonist is Chris (Daniel Kaluuya), a young photographer who’s a little nervous about going to meet his white girlfriend Rose’s (Allison Williams) parents, whom she hasn’t yet told that Chris is black. Upon their arrival, Rose’s family’s behavior is weird and unsettling, but also instantly recognizable—her father Dean, played by Bradley Whitford, tries to ease Chris’s nerves by announcing his support of Obama. Rose’s mother Missy (Catherine Keener), a psychiatrist, scolds Dean for his boorishness, and offers to help Chris quit smoking by hypnotizing him. He politely declines.

The first sign that something

is really wrong is the behavior of the groundskeeper and maid, Walter and Georgina. Both are black, and Chris expects some sort of camaraderie—especially among Rose’s overly racist and ignorant extended family, who have come for an annual gathering, which Rose had forgotten about—but Walter and Georgina’s strange, forced behavior causes Chris to wonder if there are some who don’t approve of his relationship with Rose.

The performances are pretty uniformly stellar: Kaluuya is perfect as the cautious boyfriend trying to navigate (or preferably avoid) the racial tension of Rose’s behind-the-times relatives, and supporting actors like Lakeith Stanfield, Betty Gabriel and Marcus Henderson are brilliantly creepy in their roles. Caleb Landry Jones occasionally over-acts as Rose’s brother Jeremy, but for the most part everyone is totally believable—in fact, it’s one of the most terrifying things about the film.

I don’t really know how to write about race in “Get Out,” in part because I think the “let me prove I’m one of the good ones” mindset is both kind of unavoidable for white people and also an idea which was rightfully criticized in the film.

I found it a little ironic that white reviewers of “Get Out” have tended to reactively try to distance themselves from the behavior of the white charac-

PHOTO FROM UNIVERSAL PICTURES

Daniel Kaluuya and Allison Williams as Chris and Rose in "Get Out" ters, behavior which is present even before the horror really set in—little moments like an older white family member squeezing Chris’s bicep—as if it was beyond the realm of possibility that they’d engage in subconscious racist behavior.

Basically, there’s a lot to unpack in “Get Out,” and I think white viewers should try to avoid thinking that they’re “in on it,” somehow, as if they were a member of the criticizers and not the criticized, because part of the horror of the film is that Rose, Dean, Missy and Jeremy all exhibit some of the post-

racial ignorance white people seem inclined towards when they’re trying to prove how not-racist they are. In fact, one of Rose’s older family members—who tries to tell Chris that Chris’s race doesn’t matter to him—is literally blind.

There’s a lot more metaphor in the film, and it would spoil it to examine it too deeply, but I’ll mention that Peele is clearly cognizant of the cell phone’s function as a tool of the disadvantaged.

I’m not a massive fan of modern horror movies, so maybe I’m a little out of touch, but I thought the horror/comedy descrip-

tion was a bit of a misnomer. It’s definitely possible to watch “Get Out” as a comedy with a long and terrible sequence leading up to a punchline, but I found myself horrified and scared a lot more often than I laughed. If you’re expecting something like “The Cabin In The Woods,” you’re in for a surprise. However, even if you’re not a big fan of horror, “Get Out” is an ingenious and thought-provoking film that should be required watching for anyone who needs a better understanding of the complex racial social dynamics of the 21st century.

50 years of art-rock: celebrating the anniversary of “The Velvet Underground & Nico”

By Jon Hoel Co-Managing Editor You can’t say an album is the greatest of all time; grandiose statements are just dogmatic and bravado doesn’t make for interesting music journalism. What is way more indisputable is the stature of The Velvet Underground’s premiere album, “The Velvet Underground & Nico,” released March 12, 1967. Another art-rock icon, Brian Eno, once pointedly remarked that “VU & Nico only sold 30,000 copies of that album, but I think everyone who bought one of those 30,000 copies started a band.”

From its blueprints “The Velvet Underground & Nico” was an eclectic project. Andy Warhol, who had been acting as the band’s manager, wanted to produce the album on the condition of the inclusion of one his so-called superstars, Nico, a German actress and model. Nico, who was partially deaf, often sang slightly off-key and in a rather droll voice with occasional pitch perfect beauty. The other vocals on the album were provided by Lou Reed, whose voice is also quite jarring at times.

The album’s sound, while supposedly led by Warhol, was mostly constructed

by Reed and John Cale, arguably the virtuoso of the group, in the way Lennon/McCartney dominated the Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s” album, which was released around the same time.

The songs are legendary. In the album’s 49 minutes, its 11 songs do so much more sonically than most bands achieve in their entire careers.

While the album is mostly regarded for

its eclectic quality and variety, it has a lot to offer in the traditional scale as well.

The exploratory guitar work on “The Black Angel’s Death Song” is phenomenal, especially when paired with Cale’s piercing electric viola.

“Heroin” is another superb experimental song, where the tempo of the track intentionally increases, attempting to mimic an actual opioid high, before reaching its frantic crescendo, which is subsequently punctuated by more viola and strumming.

Adversely, Nico’s song is quiet, simple and sugary sweet. “Femme Fatale” and “I’ll Be Your Mirror” are worlds away from roaring erraticism of “Black Angel” or “Venus in Furs.” Reed has one radio friendly hit on the album as well, with the seminal “Sunday Morning” which opens the album beautifully.

As iconic as the album itself is, its unmistakably identifiable album art, the phallic yellow banana, was created by Warhol for the album. On the original renditions of the LP, the banana on the front was removable, coming with the instructions to “Peel slowly and see.” If the album’s buyer peeled their peel off, they would see a flesh-colored banana underneath it. Later copies were not removable, though the original has been recreated in many subsequent versions of the record. After the album was recorded, its release was fraught with controversy.

The record label Verve didn’t know what to do with it. Its lyrical content was beyond explicit—romanticizing tales of sadomasochism and smack addiction.

They also were unsure about all of the

PHOTO FROM TTG STUDIOS

The Velvet Underground & Nico were once managed by pop-art guru Andy Warhol. sonic experimentation on the album and Warhol’s erratic involvements. Because of this, they delayed the release almost a year, and upon its eventual arrival, did not promote or distribute the album almost at all.

Consequentially, the album was a financial disaster, selling few copies at its release. Because of this, tensions arose between the group, which led to the firing of Andy Warhol as both producer and manager, followed shortly by the dismissal of Nico. The Velvet Underground would record three more excellent records “White Light/White Heat”, “The Velvet Underground” and “Loaded”. After “Loaded,” all four of the

band’s original members, Lou Reed, John Cale, Sterling Morrison and Maureen Tucker, would no longer be a part of the group. Doug Yule, who joined the band during the recording of their self-titled album in 1968, would use the moniker to record a final VU album “Squeeze.”

Essentially a Yule solo project, it was panned both critically and commercially and in time vanished from the history books.

It took more than a decade for critics to begin reevaluating the enormous influence of “The Velvet Underground & Nico.” It is now considered almost prophetic in nature, and sonically uncanny for all of the art and electronic rock bands that would follow its traditions. The album was certified Platinum in the UK, having sold over 300,000 copies. On the 50th anniversary of its release, “The Velvet Underground & Nico” sounds as sharp as ever. While comparable albums from 1967 can feel worn and dated, VU and Nico still comes off as cutting edge, and will continue to span the horizon with possibilities, inspiring future bands of all genres to challenge sonic norms and create and innovate on new albums.

SPORTS Raptors feed on Trailblazers

By Brady Gerow @MCLABeaconSport Sports Editor Bard College’s Caleigh DeCaprio led her team in a 14-4 victory over the MCLA Women’s Lacrosse team in both team’s season opener last Sunday at the neutral sight of Marist College.

Casey Witte got the Raptors on the board four minutes into the match to give them an early 1-0 advantage over the Blazers.

DeCaprio would then net her first goal only 40 seconds later making it 2-0, and Witte tallied another goal to give Bard a 3-0 edge, forcing a Blazer timeout only a few minutes into the match.

Coming out of the timeout, the Blazers didn’t back down. Senior Natalie Caney scored off a feed from Kim Granito for the Blazers’ first goal, and when Granito scored with 14:54 left in the first half, it was 3-2 in favor of Bard. From that point on, the Raptors had full control of the match. The Raptors put up nine straight goals to end the first half of play, having given them a more than comfortable 12-2 lead over the Blazers.

The Raptors eventually improved their lead with their final two goals in the second half of play.

For the Raptors, Marion

MCLA 's Lacrosse team huddled up in preperation for a game last season.

Adams, Melissa Rosenthal, Witte and Dylan McDonald all ended with a pair of goals in the match.

The Raptors collected 27 shots and scooped up 24 ground balls on the afternoon.

The Blazers were paced by Caney and Granito who each recorded one goal apiece. Granito also recorded an assist in the match. The Blazers committed 16 turnovers and were limited to

Baseball team looks to open season against Oneonta

By Brady Gerow @MCLABeaconSport Sports Editor

The MCLA Baseball team looks to start off its 54th season of play this Saturday, as they take their annual trip to Florida to play Oneonta State and four other teams.

The Trailblazers will look to improve upon their 4-25 record from last year’s season. After getting three of their four wins in Florida last year, the Blazers will look to record a few wins on the trip to start off the season.

The Blazers start the season and the trip with a double-header against Oneonta State.

Oneonta was not among the five teams who made the trip last year, so the Blazers have an opportunity to play some new competition.

The Blazers will play nine games over a five day span in Florida against five different teams.

After going 1-9 at home last season, the Blazers have 13 home games this season in looks to get the home field advantage in a few extra games.

The team will be coached again by Mike Gladu, who is going into his second season as head coach. Gladu will have a lot of spots to fill this year after losing seven seniors.

One thing looking up for Gladu is his roster has grown from 20 players last year to an impressive 32 players this season.

Looking forward to this year’s schedule, one game that stands out is the April 24 meet-up with Springfield College. In last seasons contest with Springfield, the Blazers narrowly lost after a walk-off base hit in the tenth inning of play.

The team will be looking to senior Myles Candelet and junior Billy Pulasky to lead the team on offense this year. Pulasky boasted a

PHOTO FROM MCLA ATHLETICS MCLA 's Myles Candelet and Head Coach Mike Gladu talking befor an at-bat in a game from last season solid 0.333 bating average last season, while Candelet recorded a solid 0.304 batting average. Junior Liam Nolan will also be looked to on offense, as he was the only Trailblazer last season to hit a home-run; he hit three.

With more home games and a growing roster, the Blazers will look to improve from last season’s record with its core of veterans, as well as its large group of new talent on the roster being led by Gladu.

PHOTO FROM MCLA ATHLETICS

just 11 ground balls and 16 shot attempts on the day.

The Blazers have kicked off the season with 0-1, and are back in action on Friday when they open up at home against the College of

Mount Saint Vincent at 4 p.m. at Shewcraft Field while they look to get their first win. The Raptors, now 1-0, face off with New Paltz on March 15 in an away game with hopes to improve to 2-0.

MCLA’s Softball team set to start season in Florida

By Joseph Carew jc2824@mcla.edu Co-Managing Editor

The crowd dispersed, the teams left the field, the announcers switched off their microphones and the softball game came to an end.

The score stood 5-3 in the first round of the 2016 MASCAC playoffs and third seed Westfield State had knocked out sixth seed MCLA. But that is nothing more than history now. Seven freshmen have joined the team in hopes to match or better last year’s result. Perhaps even bring back the MASCAC title to the College for the second time in three years.

The softball team begins its new season next Wednesday against UMass Boston on their Florida spring break trip. Seven seniors graduated from the team over the past year and this dramatic changeover of players may help to reinvigorate the Trailblazers back to the playoffs.

Last year, the Blazers managed an 11-22 overall record and went 5-9 in the conference. This was good enough to snatch the final spot into the playoffs. The team was 4-6 on last year’s march through Florida but found trouble in the latter half of the year, falling in nine straight games.

The team is made up of just two seniors: Alexandra Romano and Katelyn Henault.

Upcoming highlights:

PHOTO FROM MCLA ATHLETICS MCLA senior Katelyn Henault dabbing in celebration in a game last season.

The season will turn to more regional games with a pair of contests at home against Sage on Thursday, March 23.

This year may just produce another close battle with Salem State University on the first of April.

Last year’s two contests against the University resulted in each team taking a game. The Blazers took the first game 7-3 but were narrowly beaten 4-3 in the later contest.

Southern Vermont College will be looking for some revenge at home on April 4 after being crushed

by MCLA 10-0 and 15-0 in a season series sweep for the ages.

Massachusetts Maritime will be also looking on April 17 for payback of a sweep the Blazers had on them last season. MCLA took both games, scoring a combined 38 runs while the Buccaneers managed just three.

SPORTS

National anthem policy will test players’ convictions

By Dylan Hernandez Los Angeles Times wire service Los Angeles- Maybe the protesters will be fined. Or suspended. Or exiled for the remainder of their careers.

The next time a U.S. national soccer team player refuses to “stand respectfully” for the anthem, there will be consequences.

Good.

It’s not that athletes shouldn’t be allowed to take political stands.

They should.

Nor is refusing to stand for the anthem a sign of disrespect toward the military. It’s not.

Want to honor our servicemen? Increase their wages, improve their benefits.

No, this is about credibility.

It’s something that politically inclined athletes lack these days and U.S. Soccer might unwittingly bestow it upon the next player who kneels or sits while “The Star-Spangled Banner” is played.

Whether the federation was right _ or smart, even _ to institute this rule can be debated.

My visceral reaction tells me it was unnecessary. But there is an opportunity here. With the threat of punishment serving as a barometer to measure their depth of conviction, national team soccer players now have a chance to be taken seriously in the political arena.

Think back to history’s most significant athlete-activists.

Jackie Robinson. Muhammad Ali. John Carlos and Tommie Smith.

What happened to them wasn’t right. But their message was strengthened by their sacrifice. The social and financial hardships they withstood have made them enduring figures in history _ not only sports history, but American history.

Right or wrong, the contemporary athlete-activist is widely perceived as making no sacrifices, which is why the majority of what he or she says or does gets dismissed.

The football players such as Colin Kaepernick who pro-

tested racial inequality on the sidelines? They were still paid.

It’s no coincidence that the athletes most vocal about political issues have been basketball players. They have the least to lose by speaking out.

The NBA’s player pool is about three-quarters AfricanAmerican. As the league’s fans have come to cheer on and relate to African-American players, they probably have become more inclined to side with African-Americans and other ethnic minorities on civil rights issues. The result is that a basketball player can speak out on social injustice without alienating his target audience, as, say, a baseball player in St. Louis would. If anything, figures such as Carmelo Anthony and Gregg Popovich have been elevated by wrestling with racerelated issues.

This isn’t to say that Kaepernick, Anthony or Popovich are misguided or insincere.

But these are cynical times and the reality is that an athlete or coach who collects the majority of a seven- or

eight-figure paycheck will be viewed with skepticism.

U.S. Soccer’s intention clearly was to eliminate controversy and the resulting backlash from sponsors. In the short term it will do that, with women’s national team midfielder Megan Rapinoe saying through her agent Monday that she intends to comply with the rule.

Rapinoe kneeled during the anthem last year as a symbol of solidarity with Kaepernick.

It’s important to remember players remain free to do what Rapinoe did. Nobody will physically force them to stand. What has changed is that there are now possible consequences.

U.S. Soccer smartly decided against outlining specific penalties, safeguarding the federation from having to hand down a harsh punishment on a popular or indispensable player. It will nonetheless require courage on the part of a player to take a stand and face the unknown penalties.

Nowitzki eclipses 30,000 career points

By Tania Ganguli Los Angeles Times wire service Los Angeles- Only six players in NBA history have ever scored 30,000 career points.

Three of them were Los Angeles Lakers when they did it, and one reached the milestone against the Lakers in their Tuesday night loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Dirk Nowitzki stepped back, away from Larry Nance Jr., and took that infuriatingly gorgeous fadeaway jump shot he’s used to exasperate opponents thousands of times. With that bucket, he made history. He eclipsed 30,000 career points before and the Mavericks beat the Lakers 122-111.

“There’s a reason he has 30,000 points,” Nance said.

“That’s a seven-footer leaning back. That can shoot. Good luck.”

Nowitzki scored 25 points, all of them in the first half.

Needing 20 points to reach the milestone, Nowitzki made all of his first six shots and had 18 by the end of the first quarter. That tied the highest-scoring first quarter of his career.

His first shot of the second quarter? An airball.

“After every basket I made, I felt a buzz in the crowd,” Nowitzki said. “I head into the second quarter sitting on 18 and I remember walking out onto the court and everybody got up. So I got a little nervous and hoisted an airball. But I was able to regroup and made the next shot.”

His history-making shot came with 10 minutes and 58 seconds in the second quarter.

Before the game paused to celebrate his accomplishment, he hit a three-pointer and the Lakers called a time out. The Mavericks mobbed Nowitzki and fans serenaded him with cheers. He walked on to the court to wave a thank you to

them.

“Him and Kobe are going to be the only ones to play 20 years on one team,” said Julius Randle, a Dallas area native. “He won a championship out here.

To this city, he is everything.”

Randle made his own mark in a game, notching his third triple double this season. With 13 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists, Randle became the first Laker to have three triple doubles in one season since Kobe Bryant did it in the 2004-05 season.

Perhaps fueled by Nowitzki’s hot start, or the kind of confidence against the Lakers many teams seem to have, the rest of his teammates had strong shooting nights, too. Forward Wesley Matthews made five of nine shots _ all of his makes three-pointers. Nowitzki, Seth Curry and Yogi Ferrell all made at least half of their three-point attempts and more than half of their shots overall.

“I think teams feel like, when they play us right now, that we are a soft team that they can come in and get their offensive numbers against,” Lakers Coach Luke Walton said. “It has to be up to us to change that, and the only way to change that is to do it out there on the court.”

With the loss, the Lakers dropped to 19-45. They have lost eight games in a row.

Nowitzki , meanwhile, joined Wilt Chamberlain, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Michael Jordan as the only players in NBA history to score at least 30,000 points.

He has a habit of doing this to the Lakers. In 2010, he scored his 20,000th point over then-Laker Lamar Odom.

Walton remembers it well.

“You’re upset that it happens against you as a team,” Walton said. “But he got a lot of points on other teams too. He’s one hell of a player.”

What to expect with Colin Kaepernick’s free agency stock About a year ago today, not left on his contract with the 49ers. Had he not opted out, too many people outside of he would’ve been due the Bay Area knew, or north of $17 million. really cared much, for Not too bad for a man Colin Kaepernick. who has become one In 2011, he had a of the most scrutinized Super Bowl run that players in the NFL. resulted in a loss to I want to be clear, I Baltimore, but in the take no personal issues following years, he’d Kaepernick’s experienced extreme Andrew with actions at the National regression, to the Baillargeon Anthem. It was his point where, a year right as a form of self ago, his long term The Call expression. His team status in the NFL publicly supported his was in serious doubt. actions, while many Trade talks surfaced, fans around the NFL, fans of and he was nearly traded the Niners and fans of other to the QB-needy Denver teams, did not.

Broncos.

While there may or may Of course, everyone now not be an ethical issue with knows Kaepernick through Kaepernick’s actions, they his infamous act of kneeling certainly have made his future during the National Anthem. in the NFL quite cloudy. Even And now, a year later, though Kaepernick recently Kaepernick has presumably announced he would start put an end to his career in San standing up for the National Francisco by formally opting Anthem moving forward, any out of his final two years

team who wants to take him on will be taking on a ton of baggage. Kaepernick will be attracting plenty of scrutiny, and in some cases outright hatred, wherever he may go. For a guy whose mobile “dual threat” game is on the decline, and for a guy who has only averaged roughly 182 passing yards per game since the start of the 2015 season, I find it to be very doubtful Kaepernick signs on with a team any time particularly soon. There are definitely better, less controversial, and less expensive, options for a team on the look for a backup, and many of the teams looking to find a starter, such as the Cleveland Browns or Chicago Bears, will more likely find their starter elsewhere, likely through the draft, and not turn to Kaepernick.

All in all, I respect Kaepernick’s right to self expression, but his decision

to kneel during the National Anthem, his declining play over the years, and his decision to opt out of his well-paying contract with the 49ers have all combined to make his future in the NFL seriously cloudy.

Andrew Baillargeon is the host of The Call, a weekly program broadcasted by WJJW. Tune in on Sundays from 7-10 p.m..

Listeners can also tune in via 91.1 FM WJJW or our website, hyyp://www.mcla.edu/ Student_Life/studentmedia/ wjjw/.

March 9, 2017

SCORE BOARD

MCLA Women’s Lacrosse MCLA (4),Bard College (14) Kim Granito (MCLA) 2 Goals, 1 Assist

Caleigh DeCaprio (Bard) 4 Goals, 3 Assists, 6 Shots, 5 SOG

NBA Portland Trail Blazers (126), Oklahoma City Thunder (121) Allen Crabbe (Port) 23 Pts, 4 Reb, 2 Ast

Russell Westbrook (OKC) 58 Pts, 3 Reb, 9 Ast

NBA Golden State Warriors (119), Atlanta Hawks(111) Stephen Curry (GS) 24 Pts, 4 Reb, 9 Ast

Paul Millsap (Atl) 20 Pts, 10 Reb, 4 Ast

NCAA Men’s Basketball Pittsburgh (61), Georgia Tech (59) Michael Young(Pitt) 17 Pts, 6 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk

Tadric Jackson (GT) 17 Pts, 3 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl

NCAA Men’s Basketball

#4 Gonzaga (74), #19 Saint Mary’s (56)

Nigel WilliamsGoss (Gon)

22 Pts, 6 Reb, 6 Ast, 6 Stl, 1 Stl

Calvin Hermanson (St. Mary’s) 14 Pts, 3 Reb

NCAA Women’s Basketball #1 Connecticut (100), University of South Florida (44) Katie Lou Samuelson(UCONN) 40 Pts, 2 Reb, 5 Ast, 10-10

Want a guest column? Contact Mitchell Chapman on Office 365.

9

3pt FG

Dorottya Nagy (USF) 15 Pts, 2 Reb, 3 Stl

OPINION

CAMPUS COMMENT

EDITORIAL

What are your plans for spring break?

From the Beacon to the trustees: disarm

Disarmament on campus must be explored, especially with the student handbook prohibiting personal protective measures.

In spring 2012 the MCLA “A college weapons policy that prohbits student board of trustees voted 10-1 to arm campus students from protecting themselves with security. This was very controversial because more non-lethal weapons while arming its police than 87 percent of faculty, force with lethal ones can’t pretend it has the 93 percent of department chairs and a vast majority of safety of students as its priority.” the student body opposed I’m going to Peru with my travel course and I’m so excited!

Diana Faulkner, Senior

I’m going to a St. Patrick’s Day I will be spending time with parade, and getting some family and friends. I’m going much needed relaxation time. to Groton, Mass. to spend Drasana Johnson, Senior some time with friends.

Molly Mott, S enior

PHOTOS BY DOMONIQUE ACKLEY, TRAMEL GRIFFITH AND EMILY GABERT

the motion. Our recent Beacon survey has brought the much-disputed, heated conversation back to the surface.

The Beacon’s then-Managing Editor, Nick Arena, reported on the change in policy in 2012, which was due largely to recent incidents of gun violence on college campuses such as the infamous Virginia Tech massacre of 2007. At the time, Joseph Charon, who was Director of Public Safety in 2013, remarked that the issue of arming public safety officers was “one of those recommendations that required careful consideration around implementing it,” and “as a community we take on the tough issues and we think through them respectfully and critically and try to make the best decision we can with the overall interest of the campus community.”

It seems clear in retrospect, that this was not the case, and it was more an is-

sue of liability than any amount of concern of respect for the campus community.

Especially now, with the new surveys bringing light to a conclusion that should be aggressively discussed on campus right now—the fact that we do not need lethal arms on our campus.

We, the editorial body of the campus paper, have varying personal and political opinions about gun control and policy in the country, but acknowledge that it is a separate dialogue than whether or not campus safety needs lethal weapons.

It’s difficult to argue for the “safety” of having guns around on campus, when students aren’t even allowed to carry nonlethal weapons to defend themselves.

The Beacon’s Copy-Chief, Lauren Levite, wrote an article in the Dec. 10 2015 issue of the Beacon where she called for allocation of non-lethal weapons on campus, citing sexual assault statistics as a valid concern— ”The New York Times” reported that one in four women

will be sexually assaulted on campus.

A college weapons policy that prohibits students from protecting themselves with non-lethal weapons, while unnecessarily arming its police force with lethal ones cannot straight-facedly pretend it has the safety of its students as the priority.

Arguments can be made that most college campus safety officers are armed.

In fact, as of 2007, according to Campus Safety Magazine, more than 90 percent of colleges in the United States had armed police officers.

That’s a red herring though. It doesn’t matter what other colleges are doing in this regard — because if the college body — the students, the faculty AND the chairs all feel passionately opposed to something, it doesn’t matter what other colleges feel, the board of trustees should adhere to the demands of the campus they are representing. Or — in Jeffersonian terms: cooperation or resignation.

The Myth of the Wage Gap: It’s not what you think The existence of a differin this area is clearly ence between the meneeded, this study leads dian earnings of men and to the unambiguous women exists. conclusion that the “In 2015 the median differences in the annual earnings in the compensation of men United States for women and women are the Joseph and men working full time, result of a multitude of Carew year-round were $40,742 factors and that the raw The Porcupine wage gap should not and $51, 212, respectively” Chronicle according to the American be used as the basis to Association of University justify corrective action.

Women (AAUW).

Indeed, there may be Fortunately and, contrary to nothing to correct. The differences popular belief, this does not mean in raw wages may be almost entirely that women are being paid less than the result of the individual choices men for the same amount of work. being made by both male and In “An Analysis of Reasons for the female workers.”

Disparity in Wages Between Men The multitude of factors includes and Women”, a report prepared for the career choice differences the U.S. Department of Labor in between men and women. Men are January 2009, it reads: statistically more likely to choose “Although additional research careers that are more dangerous,

work in higher-paying fields, take jobs that require work on weekends according to cbsnews.com.

These differences all work towards increasing that median earnings gap between men and women.

Marketwatch.com reports that “fewer women choose to major in engineering, chemistry, and physics.

More choose to take English literature, communications, and gender studies.” These fields more often than not pay less than the sciences.

Which would mean men statistically are choosing higher paying careers than women thus a comparison of apples to apples becomes much more tangy on one end.

Opponents would then point to the incalculable societal pressures that push women towards certain degrees but every moment this becomes less and less of a legitimate

argument. “One 2010 study found that while women represented 11 percent and 12 percent of university tenure-track applicants in electrical engineering and physics, they received 32 percent and 20 percent of job offers. They were more likely than male applicants to get hired when they applied,” again according to Marketwatch.com.

What it all boils down to is that more individuals who are female put more importance on their personal lives over their careers than male individuals.

That isn’t a judgment.

It is merely a fact. When some of the factors (like education, college major, length of time in workplace, occupation) are accounted for the gap “narrows to the point of vanishing” according to Christina Hoff Sommers in an

article published on huffingtonpost.com.

It is important to note that it doesn’t vanish completely. The AAUW reported that it becomes about 6.6 cents from the overly reported 23 cent gap. This will amount to a significant sum over the years but economists don’t have a consensus on where this difference comes from. “The AAUW notes that part of the new 6.6-cent wage-gap may be owed to women’s supposedly inferior negotiating skills — not unscrupulous employers,” writes Sommers.

The point is that the well-publicized “wage gap” is a misinterpretation of the numbers. Life is far more complex than people tend to portray it and immediately pointing at something and shouting sexism is to do a disservice to oneself.

11

March 9, 2017

OPINION THIS TIME 30 YEARS AGO

Drugs hit close to home (Editor’s Note: This article was published on March 12, 1987, 30 years ago.)

The Beacon is published Thursdays during the academic year and is distributed to the MCLA community. The Beacon is funded by the Student Government Association, the English/Communications department and ad revenue. Single copies are free and additional copies can be purchased at 50 cents each. If you wish to purchase additional copies, please contact a member of staff.

By Fatima Maia

What automatically comes to mind when one hears drug abuse? Is it Nancy Reagan, Miami Vice, street junkies, or is it one’s best friend?

In the midst of all the publicity against drug use is it possible that many NASC students and administrators may have oeverlooked the fact that, like in society, drugs are readily available on campus.

A NASC senior named Joe, not his real name, said, “You can find anything you want.

Certain times of the year there are more drugs available. You can get it anywhere. If you wanted to, you can get pot and coke, but also acid shrooms, speed and smack.”

Drug abuse is a major topic in newspapers and on television nowadays. NASC is not exempt from the problem in our society.

Susan Kormanik, of Health Services, said, “I feel there is a small clique involved in drugs.

More students are involved with alcohol abuse.”

CONTACT INFO

Whether it be alcohol, marijuana or cocaine, the abuse of any of these substances is frequent among college campuses throughout the country.

According to Joe, most of the drugs are brought into campus from home. It is irregular to buy drugs from the town. He states that on average, a gram of cocaine is usually $100 and a gram of marijuana is $10.

Marijuana is the least expensive and most commonly used of all drugs. Joe said, “most (NASC) students smoke pot regularly.”

Jane (not her real name)’s, boyfriend from home is a frequent user and dealer of marijuana and cocaine. When he comes up to visit he is always well supplied.

“I can’t believe how much he can sell just at one party. The demand for cocaine on campus is so high.”

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, 28 percent of all young adults from ages 18-25 have tried cocaine at least on one occasion.

Of the same age group, 64

percent have tried pot at least once and 92 percent have tried alcohol at least once.

In mixing drugs and alcohol, the danger of what Kormanik describes as potentiation arises.

“This is where one plus one equals five. Alcohol is a sedaative, if you take any drug with alcohol that’s also a sedative, the body works at a higher level for a longer period of time. So if you take a sleeping pill with alcohol, it cuold have a fatal effect.” said Kormanik.

The Digital Homicide case highlights flaws of new job models Indie games lennium Copyright Act developer Digital does not literally mean Homicide’s $15 mil“fair” use. lion lawsuit against Since the cases’s YouTuber and introduction, the former Destructoid internet has changed editor Jim Sterdrastically. While in ling has come to a many regards, it is still close. The verdict: the “wild west” for Mitchell dismissal. creators, new Chapman content While this coninstitutions are starting clusion was whole to form. Google has From the fully suspected, with announced YouTube Editor the man behind TV, a service that Digital Homicide, would allow for userJames Romine, repgenerated videos to be resenting himself in court, the more integrated with tradifact that a small indie developer tional TV shows, which might had the gaul to even pursue this ultimately reign in some of the case in court is concerning, platform’s content. Google has especially considering the fact already started demonetizing that Romine lacked the basic videos it deems not “adverunderstanding that the Fair tiser-friendly,” and Steam, the Use clause in the Digital Milonline games distribution site

which Digital Homicide used to publish their games, has announced plans for stricter regulation.

While it seems standards are being raised, security for new media workers like Sterling is still lacking. In fact, as the internet is becoming more and more corporate, these positions are becoming increasingly less secure, as new corporate models are emerging, with anything that doesn’t fit those models being left out in the cold.

I wouldn’t expect proper health care packages or 401k agreements to be included anytime soon in these new media jobs, all the while they are left unprotected from attacks by even the lowest common denominator, ranging from

companies like Digital Homicide to the “triple A” developer Electronic Arts.

And this does not apply just to those seeking to obtain careers as entertainers, journalists or game developers. This model has been unceremoniously applied to companies like Uber and Airbnb, in which employees fulfill the roles of traditional jobs (transportation and hostel services), but with much less job security and supposed liability.

The United States is entering a new age of opportunity through increased connectivity, but in doing so it is throwing away previously established security nets for workers. The age of Unions is long gone, and the race to the bottom is only just getting started.

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EBOARD Editor-in-Chief Mitchell Chapman

Co-Managing Editors Jon Hoel

To the Editor: Economic and political systems have failed to serve the needs of hundreds of millions of people around the world, leaving many impoverished, working harder for less, disillusioned and angry. People everywhere are demanding change.

Sadly, many people are fearful and selfish and retreat into tribal identification and blame other groups when under pressure. Quixotically, they pine for the self-serving and divisive past, the “good old days” that weren’t so good, for the change they want. As symptomatic as a fever to an infection, the world is seeing a surge of “angry populists” that

caters to this fear and tribalism, confuses uniformity for unity, and seeks to recreate that divisive past by calling for a national revivalism – guaranteeing more conflict as divisions are stoked and nations continue to compete.

On the other hand, the young and young at heart know that change cannot be found in the divisions of the past. The way forward for them is love and oneness. It is not uniformity, nationalistic or otherwise, but unity, which will only be found in the greatest amount of diversity, the young desire (Similar things don’t need unifying, after all). Love and oneness is not ideology or philosophy. It’s reality. We are interconnected with each other and our envi-

ronment in ways our limited senses do not perceive.

Sharing is the only way to express love and oneness.

There should be a department at the UN for the redistribution (or sharing) of resources.

Every nation could make an inventory of what it produces and the needs of its people.

Any resources and goods produced beyond what is needed (the overflow) will be put into a global fund upon which all nations can draw what they need but lack. This would meet everyone’s needs and, hence, create justice. Sharing would also lead to the trust between nations needed to resolve problems, lead to demilitarization (you’re not in conflict with those you trust) and create world peace.

As an old saying goes, some people have to go all the way to the end of a road before they realize it’s a dead end. Sadly, that is all too true. With all of the pain, suffering and heartbreak that divisiveness and competition has caused, many people still retreat into narrow identification and selfishness, seeming determined to travel that road to its bitter end.

Love and oneness beckons us forward like a brilliant light illuminating the distant sky on the long and dark road humanity is traveling together.

Brotherhood, sharing and justice are the signs along the way that will bring us there.

Jason Francis Clarksburg, MA Former MCLA student

Chris Riemer

Joseph Carew

Sports Editor

Senior News Editor

BWN Producers

Nick Tardive

Features Editor Emily Gabert

Deputy A & E and Features Editor Ron Leja

Letter Love and Oneness

A & E Editor

Copy Chief Lauren Levite

Brady Gerow

Dan Wohler Sam Kniskern

Design Editor Adam Sams

Photo Editor

Domonique Ackley

Web Editor and Business Manager Zack Benjamin

STAFF Photographer Trammel Griffith

Copy Editors

Staff Writers

Nick Webb

Reagan Smith

Aryel Brosnan

Emma Monahan

Gianna Vigliatura

Gianna Vigliatura

Hannah Snell

Hannah Snell

Lily Schaub

ADVISERS Shawn McIntosh

Jenifer Augur

y B s o Phot

a j e L Ron

The “Riot” cast sang in harmony during one of three musical numbers of the show.

Nikki, played by senior Brianna McDermott, waits impatiently during the meet ‘n greet.

Junior John J. Kelly played James Blumpt, a character who strived to be noticed past his intial meetings of other characters.

Junior Lindsay DeWinkeleer and sophomore Rachel Grzelak share a touching moment between an old man and a new worker trying to hide from the outside chaos.

Senior Philip Shedd ended the show on Saturday in Venable Theatre with a monologue of his horrifying shopping experience during the IKEA opening.