Fall06totalissue6(nov8)

Afraid of the dark? since 1949

Volume CXII, edition 6

A lone police officer watches over the school during his shift, which usually spans throughout the night

by Ife-Chudeni Oputa Rampage Reporter

During the month of October violence was a prominent focus, both nationally and locally. Many violence prevention events were held around the nation in honor of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, including “Take Back the Night”, which was held at Fresno State. Fresno City

College was not exempt from the focus on violence. The month began with a forum against hate crimes during Stop the Hate Week, and ended with a tragic act of violence against a respected FCC instructor. As the topic of crime and violence continues circulate the campus, one question remains unanswered: How safe is Fresno City College?

FCC has a number of people and programs helping to keep the campus

Photo by Robin Vallentyne

safe including, the most prominent of which is the College Police Department.

According to the FCC website, the department operates to “[aid] in the instructional and administrative processes of the college and district by protecting the person and rights of all district employees, district and student body property, and private property.”

One method used to aid in campus safety is the placement of emergency

November 8, 2006

telephones on college grounds.

The phones are located in the tall yellow boxes with blue lights that are dispersed around campus. In the case of an emergency, pressing the emergency button will open a line with a police dispatcher and will immediately dispatch officers to the location. The system is good, but flawed.

On the one hand, all ten emergency phones are in good working order. On the other hand, the bulk of the phones are located on the central area of campus leaving everything from the overpass to Ratcliff Stadium and all of the parking lots without protection.

In addition to Campus Police, Fresno City College has a crisis team to deal with situations on campus. “We just can’t get people to understand that you need to call the campus police...” said Robert Fox, Fresno City College Dean of Students, “Depending on what they have been told … they can mobilize the rest of the team, which would be the nurses, psych services, myself, and any number of other things.” The crisis team has been active for 26 years.

“The College takes safety very, very seriously,”

said Fox, “Everything from public health to just dealing with people, a student or anyone person’s concern about their physical safety.”

If students have questions, concerns, or suggestions about safety on campus they can contact the Dean of Students, Robert Fox. “Certainly a student can come to me and they would get my full attention,” said Fox. “I would either direct them to the right person or tell them that I would follow up on it.” An unofficial survey conducted by the Rampage showed that an overwhelming majority of students who attend daytime classes at FCC feel safe on campus. Of the 478 students who responded to the survey, 75% said they felt safe on campus. However, this statistic dropped significantly with students attending night classes. Of the 228 night students surveyed, only 53% felt safe on campus. Night students were also more likely to experience crime on campus. The survey showed that 24% of students attending night classes had experienced crime, compared to 18% of daytime students.

Cont. on page 4

Inside this issue:

Friday Night Jazzfest (page 6); Pictures of the Veteran’s Peace Memorial (page 5); Events around campus (page 3)

Paying tribute to the Veteran’s Memorial

Photo by Robin Vallentyne

Goodbye Mrs. Doffoney

Wife of FCC president succumbs to cancer

Inside, Page 2

Live performances entertained the crowd at the Friday Night Jazz Festival on October 25.

Office: (559) 442-8263

Business: (559) 442-8262

Photo by Robin Vallentyne

Fax: (559) 265-5783

E-mail: rampage-news@fresnocitycollege.edu

News

2 Rampage

November 8, 2006

A painful farewell Rampage Fresno City College 1101 E. University Ave. Fresno, CA 93741 Editor in chief: Matthew T. Mendez News Editor: Matthew T. Mendez Sports Editor: Quinn Robinson Views Editor: David Witte Reviews Editor: David Witte Photo Editor: Robin Vallentyne Business Manager: Leah Edwards Adviser: Dympna Ugwu-Oju

Reporters Matthew T. Mendez, Leah Edwards, Joseph Rios, Quinn Robinson, David Witte, Eric Valdez, Christian Beltran, DC Leavy, Chelsea Bieker, Carly Hubbell, Efren Marquez, Johanna Tanori, Brian Noonan, Buen Moua, Ana Zavala, Ife-Chudeni Oputa, Maylin Tu, Robin Vallentyne, and Michael Williams

Arletha Doffoney

by Gurdeep Sihota Rampage Contributor Arletha Turner Doffoney, wife of Ned Doffoney, president of Fresno City College, died on November 2, 2006 after a serious battle with cancer. Mrs. Doffoney was the daughter of Earl and Elizabeth Turner; and a devoted wife, mother, sister, and friend. She was 54 years old.

M r s . D o ff o n e y s p e n t much of her professional life as an elementary school teacher and social worker. She loved teaching mathematics but loved teaching children even more.

She graduated with honors from Washington Preparatory High School in Los Angeles, then attended Sarah Lawrence College in New York and Harvard University.

Mrs. Doffoney was a devout Christian; she and her family were members of Family Community Church in Fresno, California. Avid and faithful,

she introduced many to Christian life. Always the intellectual, Doffoney loved to read and travel. She spent many wonderful excursions with friends and family in the Caribbean, Mexico, Canada, and throughout the United States.

As important as reading and travel was to her, she relished her more than 20-year affiliation with the Jack and Jill Club of America. Mrs. Doffoney was President of the West Covina Chapter; she was also a member of the Orange (CA) County Chapter and the Fresno (CA) Chapter of Jack and Jill Club. A wonderful neighbor with many friends, Doffoney especially loved her Bunko nights out with the neighborhood ladies.

Arletha Doffoney leaves behind a loving husband, Ned and three children, Erin, Andrea, and Eric. Also surviving her are her loving sisters

Earlene Young, Joyce Moseley, and Beulah Mitchell and her brother-in-law, Howard Moseley.

Arletha Doffoney was always a tremendous source of strength to her Mother-in-law, Lou Ella Doffoney, her brothers-in-law, Donald, Richard and Rodney, sisters-in-law Sheryl Angela, Julie, and Karen, her nephews Frank, Yale, Howard, and Vencient, and her niece, Tonica, all of whom had looked to her as a vision in their lives.

The Doffoney family acknowledges the help of numerous friends throughout this difficult time. Special acknowledgements go to Regina and Allen Perry, Denise Young, Rona Carr, the Jack and Jill Club of Fresno, the Family Community Church, the families on St. James Circle, Fresno City College, Clovis Unified School District, the State Center Community College District, and the medical community in Fresno.

Photography/ Graphics Robin Vallentyne, Michael Behlen, David Witte, Matthew T. Mendez

Newsroom: (559) 442-8263 Business: (559) 442-8262 Fax: (559) 265-5783 E-mail: Editor In Chief: rampage-editor@ fresnocitycollege.edu lowercasejenkins@hotmail.com Rampage business Office: rampage-business@ fresnocitycollege.edu Advisor: dympna.ugwu-oju@ fresnocitycollege.edu

Rampage is an award-winning newspaper published biweekly by the Fresno City College Journalism 4 & 5 program and is a member of Journalism Association of Community Colleges. Views expressed in The Rampage are those of the individual writers and do not necessarily reflect those of Fresno City College, its students, administration or the State Center Community College District.

Letters to the editor and submissions to the calendar will be accepted via e-mail or in person 12 noon - 1 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday, at The Rampage, Room SC- 211, above the bookstore. Please keep all letters to a maximum of 500 words along with contact information.

A Moment of Silence

At the Veteran’s Day Memorial, attendees of the ceremony lowered their heads during a moment of silence for Arletha Doffoney.

Classifieds Fall 2007 Application Workshop Workshops held in Media Bldg./Library Li-142 California State University November: 9th 10:00-11:30 am 21st 2:30-4:00 pm University of California November: **6th 1:00-1:50 pm ** 6th 2:00-3:30 pm 8th 2:00-3:30 pm 14th 11:00-12:30 pm 29th 12:30-2:00 pm **Writing Personal Statement** Please reserve a seat at the Transfer Center Student Services Bldg., 2nd floor or call (559) 442-8290

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Great Pay, FT/PT, flexible schedules, no exp nec, customer sales/service, ages 18+, cond. apply, 2227527 www.workforstudents.com

News

November 8, 2006

FCC gets cooking:

by Buen Moua

in the food service business for 47 years and is a certified Executive Chef for seven years.

FCC student Drew Steele, a Culinary Arts major and a former student of Rayburn said that he really likes cooking but he did not know the program existed a year ago before he finally enrolled. Steele plans to continue his career goal by going to the Institute of Technology, to their culinary program.

According to Ricarda Cerda, a licensed dietician and the Food and Nutrition instructor at FCC, the culinary program started as part of the CAL Works program, then eventually became a regular program by itself five years ago.

Rampage Reporter The holidays are just around the corner. And when your family gets together under one roof and grandmother makes her famous dish, it is out of this world. And she would not reveal her secret ingredient to anyone, not even to your parents, or her favorite grandchild, you.

Even though you think grandma’s dish is the greatest dish in the world, “how do you make it better?” says Executive Chef Chuck Rayburn of Fresno City College Culinary Arts Program.

Chef Rayburn has been at FCC for three years. He has been

Cerda began teaching at FCC since 2000 and she was co-adviser for the Culinary Arts Association at FCC, which is currently inactive.

Courses offered in the program include basic foods, basic skills, food and nutrition, and quantity cooking and buying, and food safety and sanitation.

“We do some high-end cooking but not get too deep into it, given the time this is a nine week class, we’re just able to skim the mountain tops,” said Rayburn. “We prepare all kinds of food. I work with all the ethnic cultures that come into class.

They could be Laos, Hmong, Vietnamese, Hispanic…”

Rampage 3

An in depth look into the FCC culinary arts at FCC

“I have a student this year from Sudan…we incorporate all of them,” added Rayburn.

Chef Rayburn says his challenge is to get all of the students outside of their comfort zone willing to try other foods and flavors and hot to incorporate those [into their dishes].

There are currently 19 students in the program with Rayburn and other instructors in the program.

Students wanting to join the program are required to supply their own chef’s coat, black pants, closed-toed shoes and three basic knives—a 10” slicer, an 810” chef’s knife, and a 4” paring knife with a case to hold all the knives.

Events around campus:

Photo by Robin Vallentyne

Photo by Mike Behlen

Columnist Ruben Navarrette Jr. told his audience at Fresno City College that he opposes the border fence recently signed into law by President Bush. Navarrette spoke in the Fresno City College gym on Wednesday, November 1, 2006. Later, he answered students’ questions about a variety of topics in the lounge.

N a t i o n a l

U n i v e r s i t y

“It is a good learning experience to be a line cook of a chef. Some students leave from FCC to go to I.T. and many of them are with excellent promise [in the field].” Said Rayburn.

“You can transfer to Fresno state to their culinary program and get a four year degree.”

How great would it be to be able to cook as good as your grandmother, even improving on her dish that’s already perfect the way it is. Yes, FCC has a culinary arts program. If you just want to learn how to cook or if you are interested in pursuing a certificate of completion, anyone who is interested in the program is welcome said Rayburn.

Fresno City College was one of the sites for early voting, starting on November 1, 2006. Students, faculty, and staff took advantage of this convenience, regardless of their regular voting precincts.

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4 Rampage

How safe are you?

News

Questions regarding campus safety are answered by Lt. Watson

by Maylin Tu Rampage Reporter Stranded in parking lot S without my keys, cell phone, or any other person in sight at 8:30pm on a Saturday night, I had one question (Besides the obvious “How stupid could I be?”): Where are the police?

Am I safe, or am I a victim waiting to happen?

Actually that’s two questions, but as it turns out, FCC has 24 hour a day police presence on campus, according to Lt. Ron Watson of the SCCCD police department.

The department employs three officers during the day shift and one officer after midnight. On weekends there might be one or two officers, depending on whether there are any events on campus.

“We have more officers per square foot than the city ever thought about having,” says Watson, “We work on a very specific area in the city of Fresno.”

Not only is there considerable police presence, officers typically cover a lot of ground during the course of their shift.

“Our people are moving as much as possible. The only time we’re stopped is when we’re on a call.”

And what can students do if they feel vulnerable, for instance, while walking to their car at night?

Watson recommends coming up with a safety plan. Say your class ends at nine, what would the safest way to get to your car from say, the business building?

“Stay with a crowd of people, even if you don’t know them, walk close to them,” says Watson, “Don’t walk toward the dark areas, walk toward the light.”

And what about those strange looking call boxes on campus? If it’s dark out and you’re alone, you can use them to call a police officer who will be more than happy to escort you to your car.

“A lot of people hesitate, they shouldn’t. We’re paid to be here,” says Watson.

Of course, the most common crime on campus is not assault, but petty theft, as anyone who’s lost a wallet or prized Chia pet can attest: “People will steal anything–if it’s not locked up or tied down, people will steal it . . . You cannot leave your stuff lying around—period.”

Among other safety faux pas, Watson mentions wearing things that are easily grabbed and making rude remarks to people you don’t know (after they’ve provoked you, of course).

For the first: just don’t. For the second: “Back off, tell somebody.”

The carjacking and assault of FCC instructor Sarbjit Johal recently brought safety to the forefront of campus issues,

November 8, 2006

Safety: many feel safe Daytime Student Survey

even though, according to Watson, the incidence of single person assaults is “extremely rare.”

It has been the only incident of its kind in the past 10 years and the campus’s first carjacking.

“Half of it hasn’t made any sense,” says Watson, who believes the crime was a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“I think it was a couple of guys walking down the street.”

The school has never had a homicide, but it has seen other violent crimes, such as rape.

“We’ve had some of those,” says Watson, mentioning a serial rapist who preyed on FCC students about eight or nine years ago.

Though none of the rapes took place on campus, they happened within two blocks of FCC. The rapist would wait at the bus stop, talk to victims to gain their trust, and then walk with them to a secluded place.

He remained at large for two years before being caught.

Evening Student Survey

Overall, however, Watson believes that the crime rate is very low compared to other comparable populations. “[Students] are pretty darn safe, honestly.”

Most of the complaints received by the police department relate not to safety but to parking—there’s not enough. Violent crime is far from a daily, weekly, or even monthly occurrence.

“It gets rather boring,” says Watson.

The police department is not the only force for campus safety. The safety committee, headed by business manager Michael Guerra, occasionally does a night time light survey, which often leads to recommendations to trim trees or even add new lights.

Of course, things could always be improved. When asked what he thinks the school could do to improve safety, Watson laughs and gives what he says is the usual answer: “Give me more police officers to put on the street . . . That right now is my number one problem.”

Shortage of officers aside, he remains confident in the level of safety on campus.

FCC, unlike roughly 90% of community colleges in California, actually has a police department, and in that sense is “pretty progressive.”

Lastly, Watson hopes students will keep the department informed about anything sketchy that happens on campus.

“When they see something unusual that they do not understand, they need to call us.”

Campus safety

Cont. from page 1

Many students are unaware of the services available to them.

Evelyn Barrueta, a Fresno City College student, was asked what she would do if a male classmate that she didn’t know well offered to walk her to her car after a night class. “I wouldn’t walk with him,” said Barrueta, “[I’d walk] by myself and be on the phone.” Many students don’t know that if they call the College Police Department, they can request that an officer escort them

to their car. The Police Department has issued a list of safety tips, which include some of the services the department provides. Students can contact the College Police Department at (559) 442-8201.

So is FCC safe? Safety on campus can certainly be improved.

Still, the majority of students on campus feel safe, and there are many programs in place to keep them that way.

News Veteran’s Peace Memorial

Rampage 5

November 8, 2006

Rifles pointed skyward

Photo by Robin Vallentyne

A very fine line Photo by Robin Vallentyne

Two soldiers honoring the veteran’s memorial

by Ife-Chudeni Oputa Rampage Reporter There is a divide between college students and their professors. In college, unlike the thirteen years of school leading up to this point, it is not the responsibility of teachers ensure students success. That job rests solely on the student. However, instructors derive great pleasure from helping their students.

“The function of the instructor is ultimately to serve the student because the student in essence is the client,” said Kehinde Solwazi, an African-American Studies instructor at Fresno City College.

Students who connect with their teachers will have better success inside and outside of the classroom. “I think learning is better served when there is some kind of relationship, it doesn’t have to be … real close, but it does have to be a relationship with the instructor and the student,” said Solwazi. Just taking the time to speak with instructors outside of class can make the difference between a B and an A. Grading is largely subjective. When teachers put a face and a personality to a name they

tend to grade up. It’s a lot harder to give an unsatisfactory grade to a student that the professor knows. Connecting with an instructor takes the student from being an ID number to being a person, someone with goals and aspirations that can only be met if they pass the class.

In addition to the immediate benefit to a student’s grades, developing a studentteacher relationship can have long-term benefits. Teachers can be an invaluable resource even after a student has finished in their class. FCC students often continue their education at a four-year college or university. Those who have taken this route can attest to how important it is to have teachers who are willing and able to write good recommendations to colleges and universities. Students who have developed student-teacher relationships during their time at FCC are much better off when it comes to the application process. Not connecting with faculty makes it much harder to secure letters of recommendation, and the letters they do secure may lack the genuineness that comes from knowing someone.

The same is true for the workforce.

Again, instructors can provide recommenda-

Photo by Robin Vallentyne

Vice President of Student Services Robert Fox giving a speech during the memorial

tions, but that is just the beginning. When students connect with faculty, especially those in their field of study, the connections will carry over from the educational world to the professional world. “I actually have students from my first classes, in the 1970s, calling me. In fact many of my students are classroom teachers themselves, and I’ve presented in many of their classrooms,” said Solwazi.

Teachers that are already established in their field can help guide current and former students toward internships and other job opportunities. Often the teachers themselves will fill job openings with current and former students. “I think if you’re doing your job as a teacher than ultimately your student’s going to come back with information that’s going to help you grow,” said Solwazi.

Taking the first step to connect with teachers can be difficult, but most teachers welcome visits from students. Office hours are designed for students to have an opportunity to talk to the instructor one-on-one. If the designated office hours are inconvenient, call and schedule a better time, teachers are more than willing to accommodate.

Students should not refrain from meeting with a professor because they don’t know what to say. “Before a student comes to see the instructor they should have a list of concepts or ideas, or things that they want to talk about and most important, questions about certain things that were presented in class,” said Solwazi. If nothing else, students should take the time to personally introduce themselves, find out what the instructor expects them to bring to the class, and what they expect of their students. Also, students should ask questions about the teacher’s area of expertise, especially if it coincides with their field of study.

Unfortunately, there are teachers who can be less than accommodating. Students should not be discouraged by these experiences; they are the exception. Solwazi suggested a few things for faculty to make students feel more comfortable, “Respect them,” said Solwazi, “...talk to them more, spend time with them, just look beyond the classroom.”

If students spare a few moments to connect with teachers now, they will plant the seeds of a relationship that will bear fruit throughout their lives.

Accreditation report impresses commmission

by Buen Moua Rampage Reporter Two members from the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges Western Association of aSchools and College (ACCJC), came to Fresno City College Tues., Oct. 31 to validate the Accreditation Progress Report that was submitted Oct. 15 and requested to meet with several individuals.

Last year the college was put on warning by the Commission regarding the school’s planning process and program reviews. FCC worked continuously after it was put on warning to meet the Accreditation recommendations and turned in the final draft of the progress report.

Dr. Michael Viera from Citrus College in Glendora, CA, chaired the team, and Dr. Thomas Oliver from Pierce College in Woodland Hills, CA, was a

member of the team that visited the college last year.

“This meeting is about validation of what the faculty and staff have done since we’ve last visited,” said Viera. “We’re just confirming what they’ve [FCC] said and done.”

“We’re looking at the strategic planning documents and the progress report and it looks to us all the recommendations had been addressed,” said Viera.

Viera and Oliver’s job is to report back to the Accrediting Commission and they would review their notes and make a decision.

Added Oliver, “Some were pretty difficult and one of them was program review where you truly go in and evaluate your program. We’re really impressed with what we saw…FCC put a lot of time and effort into the recommendations and it’s very positive.”

While waiting to meet with Viera and Oliver, Rick Santos, FCC Academic

Senate President, said that the college has made wonderful progress.

The commission meets in January of 2007, to make a decision where the school’s standing is, according to Tony Cantu, Vice President of Instructions.

Said Cantu, “We would expect to hear from the Commission the very end of January or the first week of February.

Also on Oct. 31, Academic Senate for California Community Colleges Ian Walton, and Community College League of California Scott Lay, had a presentation on shared governance in the Staff Dining Room at 10 a.m. titled “Participating Effectively in District and College Governance (The Law, Regulations and Guidelines).”

“The purpose of the shared governance presentation was to make sure faculty, staff, and students understood what shared governance is,” said Cantu.

“The idea is to make sure the college community is involved in the process.”

Walton and Lay discussed on the state laws that ensure faculty, staff and students the right to participate effectively in district and college governance and the right of academic senates to assume primary responsibility for making recommendation in the areas curriculum and academic standards.

The presentation also included the regulations of the level and area of participation, and consideration of recommendations of the faculty, staff and students.

Lay stated in the presentation that relationship and communication are important in a successful shared governance.

“The Accreditation process is ongoing,” said V.P. of Instructions Tony Cantu. “We’ll still continue to address the recommendations, implementing the strategic planning, and we’re going to move forward.”

News

6 Rampage

November 8, 2006

Friday Night Jazz Festival Rocks Friday Night Jazz

Friday Night Jazz was held on October 27th in the courtyard of the old administration building. When first entering the venue the melodies of talented jazz musicians rang out. The courtyard was decorated with lights and as the night grew darker, the festival came to life. Friday Night Jazz was a fundraising event, and although it is not annual, the committee hopes it will be.

The guests at the event were mostly Fresno City College alumni curious about the new renovations taking place in the Old Administration Building. The goal for the Legacy Renewed campaign is to raise 1,000,000 dollars, but money wasn’t on the minds of the committee that night.

“The only thing we are hoping to raise tonight is

awareness of the building.�

The Old Said Event Administration Chair, Sean Building, or the Henderson.

OAB, was shut

And down in the midthat they did.

1970’s because it The auditoridid not meet earthum was open quake standards. for viewing, The building still and guests stands there, its were albeauty never leavlowed to take ing, but its insides self guided turning into dust. tours of the In 2002, Measure building.

E donated 25 ThroughPhoto by Daniel Giberson million dollars to Guitarist Mike Dana playing during his set at the Jazz Festival out the venue were old black and white renovate the building, still leaving the school short on funds. pictures showing what vari Aside from the jazz ous rooms in the building used playing by performers such as to look like, and the goal for the FCC Faculty Jazz Somwhat they will look like when etet, Ron Catalano, Little Blue renovations are complete. The Planet and the Andre Bush project will cost an estimated Group, the silent auction that 41 million dollars. The jazz took place offered winnings festival took in many donations through ticket sales and a silent from leading restaurants, shops, Photo by Daniel Giberson and art. The guests made their Les Nunes playing the trombone during his set at the auction. way around bidding on items, Jazz Festival all the while observing the great changes taking place within the alumnis faces. were among the choices the Old Administration Building.

“I went here so long attendees were given to eat.

A computer generated program ago, and I absolutely love this

“I always felt that gave a digital tour so seeing building. I’m so glad they are many people have been affected what the building looked like re- doing it.� Said alumni and by the college in one way or wouldn’t be as hard7AIT *# &## 2AMPAGE & X PDF to imagguest Mary Graves. another, this is an opportunity ine. Just walking throughout

With a full crowd lined to welcome our family back it was hard not to feel a sense up for dinner, it was easy to see and show them what they can of excitement radiating off of this event had become a huge look forward to.� Said Hendereveryone attending. It was easy success. Crab cakes, jambason. to see the pride illuminating the laya, and excellent desserts

Guitarist Andre Bush playing during his set at the Photo by Daniel Giberson Jazz Festival

November 8, 2006

Sports

7

Opinion

You seriously think we watch because of the sport?

Rampage photo editor rates the styles of mens athletic uniforms at FCC.

By Robin Vallentyne Rampage Reporter

While taking sports photos this semester I had free time to contemplate the difference about the sport uniforms and which men’s team has the better looking uniforms.

I narrowed it down to four sports: soccer, football, wrestling, and baseball.

Football Football players are the most diverse in build out of all the sports but the good colors of white bottoms and a darker red top is very flattering on most.

A suggestion would be to play in darker colored tops like black or navy blue and a little less stomach padding to show off the abs more. Also lose the helmets, seeing your face is half the attraction. There is

also the added benefit of the shoulder pads that add unrealistic Greek god shoulders to the package. The tight white pants show off just enough butt and thighs while leaving calf muscles exposed but still leaving a little to the imagination. While football has many plays where the players are bent over or flexing muscles, the excessive down time, male-to-male contact, and larger boys leave me a little bored. Plus, the stands are too far away to really see anything worthwhile.

Wrestling Wrestling’s well fitted, solid colored leotards cannot be pulled off by most, but when they are it can leave a girl speechless. One solid color is usually only a good idea in a small black dress, never in a leotard. A suggestion would be to change the leotard to two separate colors or wear just tight bottoms, like male ballerinas. I also don’t understand the weird ear warmers and kneepads, both are unflattering and should be lost completely.

One of the major advantages is also a major disadvantage; you are seated closer to the See Fashion pg 9

Assume the position: It’s moments like these when football pants are considered the greatest invention ever.

Photos by Robin Vallentyne

Moments like these make a woman really appreciate male bonding and onlookers just shake their heads.

One game at a time

Women look to make run deep into playoffs.

By Mike Williams Rampage Reporter

The Fresno City Volleyball team is on a nine game winning streak. Coach Beth Buller couldn’t be more pleased at this point in the season. With two regular season games left the 17-5 (12-2) rams look to end the season off with a bang, so they can get ready for the post season.

Fresno City has beaten Columbia twice, Merced, Porterville, Modesto, Reedley,

Sequoias, Taft, and West Hills on impressive nine game winning streak.

Last Friday the Rams hosted Columbia College in what seemed to be a walk in the park for Fresno City. Beating Columbia in the first three matches, 30-25, 30-18, and 3017. There was great teamwork and also great individual play.

Melissa Anaya had 25 assists and 11 digs. Lauren Story had 13 kills and 17 digs and Lindsay Myrick helped out with 8 kills and 5 blocks.

There are two more games remaining in the regular season. These last two games from Buller’s prospective, are must wins.

It’s imperative that the Rams finish off their season with

two more victories (which would extend their winning streak to eleven) so they can have confidence and momentum going into the playoffs.

Buller thinks her team is going to do just fine in the playoffs even with the lack of experience. Buller’s team lacks playoff experience, but these groups of girls are extremely talented and they will settle for nothing less than a state championship.

“We’re going to play hard every time we step on the court”, says Buller. “We have all the potential to get back to the state championship.”

Every team that will be in Fresno City’s bracket, they have already seen earlier in the See Women pg 10

8 Rampage

Rampage

November 8, 2006

The sports corner

A quick glance at how the rest of the teams at Fresno City College are doing

Photo By Robin Vallentyne

Fresno City College wrestling continues to preform as one of the top JC’s in the state. The Rams have a couple more matches to go until the State tournament which is held on Dec. 8-9 in Fresno Photo By Daniel Giberson

Volleyball team is getting ready for another trip to the post season. Catch Mike Williams article in this issue to find out more.

Photo By Doua Lor

Coach Oliver Geromnd has his team playing to the level that Fresno City College fans have been used to seeing from previous women’s soccer squads. The Rams are currently tied for second in the conference with Modesto and 1 game behind College of Sequoias with two conference games remaining. FCC closes out the regular season against Modesto on Nov. 10.

Photo By Robin Vallentyne

Ranked No. 6 in the state, the Fresno City College men’s soccer team winds up its successful season this week and prepares to take on the top teams in the state in the NorCal playoffs which start in two weeks.

Sports

At season’s end...

November 8, 2006

Rampage 9

Men’s soccer winds down ‘06 season and prepares for playoffs.

By Mike Williams Rampage Reporter

The Fresno City College Men’s Soccer team is looking forward to playing at Taft this Friday. This week the rams have a buy. Which means their not playing this week until Friday . Coach Eric Solberg hopes that his team will be well rested going in to the biggest game of the year.

The Rams are 14-1-6 and 3-0-2 in league. The new California Community College Soccer Statewide Standings came out this weekend and didn’t show FCC any love. The rams are ranked 6th the state behind Mt. San Antonio , Cerritos , Taft , Long Beach and Los Angeles Mission.

The rams are not worried about their ranking at all. They are just focused on winning the next game in front of them . Hopefully if FCC beats Taft they will move back up to the ranking they deserve. The rams is one of the two teams ranked in the top six that has only one loss. And they are still ranked sixth.

FCC is a great defensive of team , allowing only 14 goals in 21 games. But is still waiting for the offense to come together and Solberg knows that it could

Fashion:

happen any game. But once that happens , FCC will be a force to reckon with.

“We have to get a little bit more creative on offense”, says Solberg. “As good as we are offensively , we are easy to defend . We just don’t create space.”

Solberg is going to try anything and everything in this big match up against Taft. Taft is a big offensive of team and FCC is a great defensive team. The key will be if FCC’s offensive comes to play. If the offense comes through for FCC , the rams should walk out with a W. It wont be easy , especially traveling to Taft College.

Because of the horrible soccer field and the small town. But it can be done and FCC knows that.

Nick Anderson an assistant coach for the men’s soccer team knows they have to play a lot better than they did in the last match up against Taft.

“We have to play smarter and play our game”, says Anderson. “We want to win , but I don’t think it will devastate our season if we tie or lose.”

When Anderson is out there coaching , the players listen because they know that Anderson has been there and done that.

Anderson played at FCC and was coached by Solberg. Anderson was the California Player of the Year in 2002 and first team All-American.

Anderson was also the team captain and in Solberg’s eyes that was the best men’s soccer team at FCC.

Photo special to The rampage

Coach Solberg explains that it is plays like this that he wants to see from his squad as they make a trip once again back to the NorCal playoffs in two weeks.

The rams may have been pushed back in the rankings because of the number of ties. But why push them back now when they’ve had a number of ties all year?

“Whats bad about the six

ties is that four of them should of been wins”,says Solberg. “When you know you should of beaten the team badly the tie feels like a loss.”

The rams big showdown at Taft College is this Friday

at 3 p.m. . Solberg says that this is the “biggest game of the regular season.” Solberg and his team would like to get off to a fast start against the high powered offense of team. This is a game that FCC can’t lose.

They think they’re playing for future scholarships, but what they’re really doing is modeling for the ladies.

action than any other sport on this list so u can see everything. When I say everything, I mean everything. Again the male-to-male contact, not so great but it does provide for some interesting positioning of the male body. To bad they don’t get greased up like the Romans.

Baseball

Baseball is the slowest sport to watch so it gives you more times to stare at the pitchers.

The darker tops match

with the white striped pants is a good combination. Unlike football pants, the baseball pants is all male player but they could be a little tighter.

Plus the stripes add definition to muscle mass.

A few suggestions would be to lose the colorful socks; they only look good on catholic schoolgirls. While the baseball caps are very flattering to the player’s head, the helmets are not. They make the players look like special Ed kids.

The button up tops are good for dinner, but what happened to the baseball shirts form the 70’s? They show off muscle definition through a thin layer of cotton and had a very flattering length on the forearm.

The lack of male on male contact and the good movement of a pitch windup or a runner leaving the base are worth the trip to the stands, unfortunately

the stands are too far away to get a good view.

Soccer I left the best for last; soccer is my favorite sport to watch. FCC’s soccer team dress in the traditional red with black lettering and white high lights.

The shorts are just above the thigh at a resting position and well above the thigh while in motion. The shirts are a good t-cut with a v-neck, and the optional accessories are red bracelets, knee-highs, white or tan undergarments, white shoes and white turned over waistband. The uniform shows off a soccer player’s overdeveloped thighs and butt.

The t-shirts cling to their sweating abs as they pant down the field. Any man that can kick

over his head is worthwhile but the head punts are very unflattering.

A few suggestions: shin guards are bulging and take away form the form of the legs, and the goalie needs to match. If you’re going to color coordinate you need to color coordinate the whole team. The shorts could be a lot shorter,

like in Spanish football.

FCC has overall the best-dressed sports teams from any of the competitors. The soccer team always puts on a good show for the admission price.

Just remember looks count and a sports team that’s well accessorized is always a winner, no matter what the scoreboard says.

Sports

November 8, 2006

Rams get up to speed Cross Country prepares for State Meet.

By Brian Noonan Rampage Reporter

The Ram harriers took home the runner-up trophy on Nov. 4 at the Northern California Championships, renewing their hopes of a high placing at this year’s State Cross Country Championships.

With the cancellation of their two previous meets due to sickness and injuries, the future looked bleak until they were able to pull together for second place and an automatic qualifying spot at the state meet.

Although this is by far their best finish in years, the runner-up award was somewhat bittersweet.

Going into Saturday’s meet, Fresno was ranked first as a team and also had the

number one ranked individual in Tony Pulido. However, Pulido experienced some aggravated pain in his Achilles tendon during the race from a previous injury and was forced to settle for 6th overall, which allowed Hartnell College to win by a mere 5 points.

Despite not taking first like he had hoped, Pulido is still adamant about his team’s chances at the upcoming state championships.

“I was feeling ok during the first two miles of the race, but after halfway I could tell it was going to be tough,” said Pulido. “I had a bunch of phlegm in my throat and my legs weren’t responding. I should be healthy for the state meet though.”

Several other runners also stepped up their performance to help Fresno run through its injury-riddled season.

Freshman standout Bobby Rodriguez finished third overall in 21:26 on the four mile course, making him and Pulido one of the best 1-2 combinations

in the state.

Sophomore Cruz Adams once again impressed in what has been an outstanding season by finishing 11th overall in 22:13.

Freshmen John Brodie and Isaac Viscarra rounded out Fresno’s top 5, finishing 14th and 19th overall, respectively.

FCC was nothing short of impressive with an average timegap of just 18 seconds between their scoring squad.

With those kinds of stats and the home course of Woodward Park on their side, Fresno is surely a team to look out for as the Southern California qualifiers make their way to the Central Valley for the 2006 state meet on Saturday, Nov. 18.

“Even though we got second place, I think everyone still wanted that NorCal title,” said Adams. “Everything is finally coming together though and if we’re all healthy we will do really well at state.

Everyone should come out and watch.”

Women:

Rampage 10

Playoffs start Nov. 21

Continued from pg 7 season or in a tournament. So there will be nothing new to the Rams.

The sophomores on the team Storey, Jackie Anaya and Jacqueline Hill look to step up and lead their team to the promise land.

“We have to take it one game at a time”, says Storey. “We can’t take any game lightly.”

The three sophomores on this team have been outstanding all year. They have a winning attitude that is built in them.

They refuse to lose.

“This whole year the sophomores have taken leadership of the team. They’ve done an excellent job. All three of them”, said Buller.

The freshmen on this team are going to have to be on point every game. If I were a coach I would be a little worried going into the playoffs with mostly freshmen. But that is the least of Bullers worries.

“The freshmen are going to have to do their jobs.

They have to go out and make very few errors. They have to play with maturity and make smart decisions. Age doesn’t mean anything to me. They just have to do their jobs and we’ll

Photo by Robin Vallentyne

be fine”, says Buller.

The Rams are going to continue their nine game winning streak tonight, hosting Merced College at 7 p.m. Friday Fresno City ends the season off traveling to Porterville College, playing at 7 p.m.

“I knew we had the potential to be successful”, says Buller.”

I didn’t know if we were going to put it all together. Every bit of success we have , the girls have earned it.”

Views Bring back Myspace?

November 8, 2006

Last year, FCC banned the use of Myspace on campus.

11

Myspace is the only way to keep up on Mind if I use your computer? Why? the rumor mill, besides talking to people For classwork, that’s why. Heard of it?

by Carly Hubbell Rampage reporter Remember when you went to parties and people asked for your phone number? That was back in the days of old, where you actually communicated to new friends via your own voice. But now, people no longer ask for your phone number. Heck, they barely ask any questions to you unless its, “Do you have a Myspace?” Because there, you can meet new friends without actually having to meet them, see their personality, cut them off or attempt to get to know them, and that my friend is when you finally give out your phone number.

What I guess I’m trying to say here is Myspace plays a pretty big part in people’s lives. It’s like email without the creepy people trying to lure you into dangerous situations and spam. It’s a place where you check up on things, send silly comments to your friends and get into contact with that one kid you remember back in 3rd grade who let you borrow his crayons and didn’t care that you broke the blue one. It’s addicting and it’s convenient and probably has a bigger hold on most people than it should.

The library at Fresno City College is trying to deny people access to Myspace while in the computer lab or on any other computer lying around the campus. Don’t they see how tempting it is to so many students who attend here to check their Myspace? I mean come on, the internet icon is just sitting there and they’re trying to tell us that we can’t simply double click it and see what’s up? Personally, I would be pretty mad if they wouldn’t grant me my freedom to check up on personal matters, like what my friend Katie did last night and where

Jaime woke up Saturday morning. It’s not something that we should necessarily get in trouble for.

Many students here at Fresno City don’t even own their own computers, so Fresno City has granted them access to use their facilities to do homework, print out papers…ect. Why can’t they just be nice and let them check their email as well? Because that is what Myspace is, an email account with perks. It’s not necessarily hurting anybody or ruining someone’s life if the person next to them is checking out their friend’s page. I don’t think the computer is going to explode if Sally looks at her new picture comments. I don’t think Bob, the kid who’s writing his mid-term essay, is going to be angry if the girl next to him…isn’t writing a mid-term essay. Seriously folks, what is the big deal?

Okay, okay. Some say the big deal is that people are taking up time on a computer while others need it for actual academic reasons. Honestly, I too would be heated if I earnestly needed to print something and someone was fooling around on their Myspace. But that is when you simply say, “Hey, I have more important things to do right now, so can you please give me your computer so I can print this out?”. And unless the Myspacer is the spawn of Satan, he/she should allow you his computer. If not, you can just tell on him. What I’m getting at is during the rare time that the computer lab is absolutely filled, Myspace shouldn’t rank superior to schoolwork, but during the times when someone just needs to read their messages and there’s computers galore, just give us a break and let us check it. I honestly don’t think it’s gonna kill anybody, and if it does….well I’ll owe you a Coke.

just don’t see the necessity of it.

In fact I don’t really see the necessity of it at all. It’s just plain Myspace means a lot of things to creepy to me that elementary grade different people. Some use it for stalk- kids have pages, and even creepier that ing others, some use it as an internet their pages are probably being viewed dating site, some use it promote bands, by the over-40 crowd. I personally have and most use it for talking to friends. my profile set to private, so no one I have nothing against this communi- that isn’t my friend can view it, but it cation phenomenon, but I am against doesn’t stop random people from meswaiting in the computer lab or library saging me. I can’t put in the paper some for a computer to do a school- related of the things I’ve received, and if I was assignment, because someone is check- twelve I would be seriously skeeved out. When I coached gymnastics for ing their Myspace.

It is immensely aggravating kids, my students would want to be my to stand behind someone, and clearly “friend” on Myspace, and I couldn’t watch them do nothing but message believe the scandalous pictures 13 year candypants003 when I desperately need old girls had adorning their pages. Call to print something out. I feel that the me old- fashioned, but I know that me school’s decision to ban Myspace in and my friends never took provocative the library and computer lab is a wise pictures in bikinis and then put them on choice. Now I understand that some the internet when we were that age.

I’m not trying to all-out bash people have serious addictions, but why Myspace. not feed are a the ad“It is immensely aggravating to stand Tloth eofr epositive diction at h o m e , o r behind someone and clearly watch them aspects to it as perhaps a do nothing but message candypants003.” well. I know that I have public licome back in brary? contact with

When Myspace first became popular, I old friends that I would most likely refused to get one. I went though about never see again, and it is pretty fun a year of Myspace abstinence before to send friends comments and such. It a friend finally made one for me. It can also serve as a sort of email. Even was a snowball effect after that and though there are perks, I still stand by now I pretty much check it everyday. my opinion on banning it. There really But I don’t check it at school. I think isn’t room for personal activity when school is a place to focus on academic others have legitimate work to do. I advancements, and classes. I know I’m know my counterpart Carly over there not gaining any popularity for writing is trying to tell you the school should this, and I’m guessing most people feel keep Myspace, but in my opinion, canthat it should remain, but I’m sorry, I dypants003 can wait.

by Chelsea Bieker Rampage reporter

Rampage Editorial

Don’t you have something better to do?

There is no place in today’s society for religious radicals, be they from the left or the right, the east or the west.

This is no more obvious than in the actions of the Westborough Baptist Church, which has no connection to mainstream Baptists. In fact, mainstream Baptists won’t touch this group with a

accessnorthga.com

Shirley Phelps Roper at a protest.

30-foot pole.

Made up of mostly the family members of Fred Phelps, these are the nuts who spend their days at the funerals of American soldiers, holding signs that say “God hates fags,” “Thank God for IEDs,” and “Thank God for Sept. 11”.

The group believes that dead soldiers are the wrath of a vengeful god, punishing America for tolerating homosexuals, and punishing that soldier’s parents for “raising their son for the devil.”

Their actions inspired Ohio governor Tom Vilsack to sign a state law prohibiting protests within 500 feet of a funeral.

The most visible spokesperson of this group is Shirley Phelps Roper, who, along with her two daughters, accused Tyra Banks of “propagating the fag agenda.”

She has made the circuit in

the past few years, appearing on news programs and talk shows.

“I thank God for every one of His righteous judgements that He executes upon a rebellious nation that won’t obey,” Roper said on Hannity and Colmes.

When five Amish schoolgirls were shot and killed in rural Pennsylvania, the group made plans to protest their funerals.

They agreed to drop those plans in exchange for an hour of free airtime on the Mike Gallagher Radio Show on Fox News Radio.

“It’s kinder to kill them in their youth,” Roper said of the girls, “than it is for you to let them be full-grown, in full-on rebellion to make their stint in Hell so much more painful.”

Are you kidding? The Amish aren’t pious enough for these people? This is the same kind of religious nutjobery that

brought towers down, the same that sends American soldiers into another country every few years, the same that is responsible for the inquisition, the crusades, and almost every war in the history of

mankind.

The world would be a lot better off if the Westborough Baptist Church, and every cult like them, just built themselves a compound and stayed in it.

youtube.com

Phelps Roper and Julie Banderas of Fox News yell at each other.

Views

12 Rampage

by Leah Edwards Rampage reporter Relationship, the single word that puts more fear into some than any horror flick ever could. What is it about commitment that strikes such fear in man? Is it the realization that ‘this is it’ and the closing of the door on any future possibility? Or is it far more complex?

For some it is easier to hold onto the people we cherish as ‘friends’ and thereby avoid losing them to the ‘relationship’ nightmare. Everything changes the second you cross that line, sometimes for the better but far often for the worse. Perhaps the very best choice is right in front of your nose, but you are too blinded by terror to see how good it could be.

Ok, so maybe I am one of many who carry the battle scars of love done me wrong. There is probably a country song somewhere that will carry the message far longer than I will live, but the fear is there.

Her take

How can I know this time will be different?

I look with envy at those pretty young girls who have the men lined up on a string, but hey that isn’t me. I want something with substance, right?

I hear the guys talking, and for all they say the one truth stands solid. “A pretty girl with an ugly personality will always win against the ugly girl with a great one.” The sad thing is, isn’t that what we do to men.

How often do you check out that dork in science class, but did you see the guns on that football jock? We are all of he same species, led by our lust and blinded to the inner beauty of the great people that surround us.

Then there are the ‘users’ that give us all a bad name. The girl who gets off leading her ‘guy’ friend on, but really just likes manipulating him and getting what she wants and the guy who uses one girl for sex, letting her believe he really cares, while he secretly looks for the ‘right one’.

Come on, step up and tell the

truth. By lying to them you are cheating yourself. Don’t use people; get real with them. Surprisingly, there might actually be people who think and feel the same way you do. There will be false friends along the way, and it is up to you to learn what kind of person they really are. If they are a user, don’t be surprised if you get used. Start paying attention.

Far too often we mask our fears in liquor or drugs, thinking that to loosen up our inhibitions will help us in our quest for ‘Mr. or Mrs. Right.’ Well, I think many of us know how that realistically turns out.

Seriously, did you think making out in the bathroom after you fished your head out of the toilet was going to lead to true love? Please. That guy or girl you think you just made a lasting connection with; well, odds are they don’t even remember your name.

Or how about that guy who hung on your every word last night, but the moment his friends passed judgment so did the moment you shared. Well, you’re probably

November 8, 2006 better off without that jerk anyway, or so you continue telling yourself.

Whether you’re male or female, the ugly truth is you are judged based on your appearance, what you do or don’t have, what your friends think, what their friends think, and what you have to ‘offer’. What ever happened to getting to know someone, to making a real connection and seeing where it might lead?

We live in a society of instant gratification, and public scrutiny where everyone wants perfection and they want it right now and perhaps this is the core of the problem.

A real relationship, (Oh, no the R word) is based on mutual trust and respect.

It isn’t a chain that binds, it is a friendship that frees you to be yourself and know that no matter what stupid thing you do or say your friend will always be there.

The real thing takes time, but don’t think it comes easy. Anything worth having takes some effort and a real relationship’s value is immeasurable.

The Friend Zone

by Joseph Rios Rampage reporter

So often does the guy-meets-girl end up with someone reluctantly packing up and moving over to the friend zone.

It’s unavoidable. For you girls, he may have it all: he’s funny, smart, treats you good, he listens, he remembers your birthday, he knows your likes and dislikes, he knows your dark secrets, and he has no problem talking to you into the early hours of the morning. You both like the same things, watch the same shows, sing the same songs, read the same books, laugh the same laughs, choose Pepsi over Coke, and you both cry watching Jerry McGuire..

But are you dating? Of course not.

“He’s like my little brother,” you say.

Guys, what she meant to say is that you’re not attractive enough.

“Me?... And him?” she responds.

“Nooo. Never.”

Meanwhile, the blood from little brother’s entire body decides to congregate at his face.

“Yeah, we’re just friends,” you say, half-smiling after she just unknowingly performed the social equivalent of public castration.

Before this conversation ever hap-

His take

pens, you’ve done all the late night talking, the casual lunches, and day-time movies.

You helped her move, fixed her toilet, changed the flat tire on her car, and fed her mini-terrier while she went out of town.

You tell your friends how perfect she is and how you’re always thinking about her.

They shake their heads and say, “You better do something about it, foo’.”

The days turn to weeks and the weeks turn into months and what was meant to be a brief lay-over in the friend-zone turns into a year-long lease with no option to re-negotiate.

“So, what’s up with you and what’sher-name?” your friends ask.

Nothing.

There’s nothing going on between you two. You like her – a lot. She doesn’t, you can’t forget about her, and her tires need rotating.

Only now, her boyfriend is doing all the rotating. That’s right, her boyfriend.

To you, he’s nothing but a chump.

He treats her like an over-worn t-shirt – he likes wearing her, but at the end of the day, he tosses her in the corner.

She deserves better. She deserves someone like you.

When things go sour with Chad, Sean, or whoever, you get the sobbing phone calls at 2 a.m.. You hear the boo-hoo’s for hours and hours. She tells you how horrible he is, how much she hates him and how nice you are. At the end of the conversation she asks for your advice.

At this point you have two choices: preach compassion or vindictiveness. On the one hand, you’re just a friend. On the other, you want to take Brian’s place. And frankly, he doesn’t know how to treat her.

Screw ‘em.

Tell her how wrong it is that he treats her that way. Tell her how she’s better than all that. Compliment her. Reveal to her what you have seen all along and how that’s reason enough to lose the loser.

While you’re casually spilling the beans you’ve been withholding for so long, she’s going to be moved more by the fact that it’s you saying these things and not as much by what you’re saying.

All the good deeds, kind words, and surprise gifts will suddenly come to mind and your stock will rise through the roof while his sinks faster than shares in Enron.

Once you’ve become a resident in the friend-zone, its going to take finesse to move out. It’s rare, but it does happen.

The key is to pack up slow. You want the relationship to burn like a candle, not the match you lit it with. Unplanned one-nighters lead to more nothing, unless that’s what you’re looking for. But if you’ve hung around this long, then that’s probably the last thing on your mind (or at least not the first).

Make it clear that the idea of an actual relationship beyond friends is appealing to you, but you don’t want to rush things.

Let her know that you value the friendship and you don’t want to jeopardize it as much

as she does.

If she’s totally up for exploring the relationship world with you, then hey, do it. Forget the meetings at Starbucks and Carl’s Jr. Pick her up. Take her to a nice dinner and pay for it. Talk to her, it won’t be hard because that’s all you’ve been doing since junior high or that party back in ’99 just before the world was going to end.

Now’s your chance to start anew with something familiar, something you know, but don’t quite know. Give her your jacket, open doors, be everything you’ve been to her and be what couldn’t be before – more than a friend.

If she turns you down, it’s not the end of the world. Forget about her. Be her friend, but stop calling her. Be available, but stop thinking about her. Get out.

Call up your buddies for a pick-up game at the park, go to the club, ask that girl from speech out on Friday night – do anything and everything to move on.

If she can’t see what a prize you are, then she’s not much of one herself and not worth your time.

The worst thing you can do is dwell on it. For your self respect’s sake, don’t drop to the floor and start bending over backward trying to please her and work your way out of the friend zone. There’ll be no works salvation from that hell hole, believe me.

You’re only making things worse and nobody looks good bending over backward in a gutter – nobody.

shock value or the “aww” of social acceptance. The next week they have a boyfriend and claim that it was only “a phase.” The homosexual community has gone through way too much to have their lifestyle be a fad amongst impressionable youths.

This applies to most the women you see on the “Girls Gone Wild Videos” type of videos or at the local clubs grinding and touching each other on the dance floor. It’s like in certain moments in our society lesbianism has become “cool” or even “hip”.

I know there’s nothing better to a bunch of drunk single men then watching two females grope each other on the dance floor, but their performance now stereotypes lesbians as a whole even though they aren’t really lesbi-

ans in the first place. Even though certain lesbians don’t see the problem with it, ” I don’t really think it’s that bad, it just means homosexuality is becoming more accepted,” says Sarah N. Crawford, a student of FCC. Being gay isn’t really a choice and it’s definitely not a trend. It’s a way you view the world and to merely become a lesbian because you haven’t had great luck with men shouldn’t be a good enough reason to switch your sexuality. If you are over 30yrs old and your excuse for being a lesbian is “men are dogs” then trust me it’s not the men, it’s you. Your bad choices in spouses should merely reflect your taste and style, it shouldn’t reflect on the male gender as a whole, not all of us are jerks, bigamists

and players. Some of us actually do have decent jobs, a home, and know how to treat a woman the way she should be treated.

Certain women in our society are merely trying to find their true calling so they experiment with their sexual orientation in order to figure out where they belong.

Some may play the kissing game with their best friend or have a sleepover with a friend and end up fooling around under the covers.

Some women have even been raised by their families to believe that lesbianism is wrong and a sin, so they do it as an act of rebellion against the things they were taught. Whatever your reason is, just remember it’s not the kind of thing you should take lightly. see Choices, next page

Don’t ruin the hard work of the past

by DC Leavy Rampage reporter

Over the years, gays and lesbians have gone through trials and tribulations as well as quite a bit of ridicule because of their beliefs. They’ve had to struggle to be accepted into mainstream society and have yet to be fully accepted. But it seems they’ve gone through discrimination and prejudice only to be accepted as a trend among female adolescents.

More and more women are becoming “bubblegum-dykes”, these are women who are lesbians one week mainly because of it’s

Views

November 8, 2006

Rampage 13

Choices: Try not to prove the Radical Religious Right correct continued from Page 12 ”Sometimes it’s just hard to find a place where you belong, and can fit in,” says Sarah.

Following the crowd is never really a good reason to do things. Just like you were told when you were a kid “If your friends jump off a bridge would you do it too?”

Over the years I’ve seen countless “Jerry Springer” episodes as well as “Cheaters” and I’ve noticed that there isn’t really a difference between the loyalty of a gender.

Men cheat, women cheat; not all, but some.

Maybe it’s the emotional bond that’s such the big attraction? Nevertheless, the rules, or should I say socially accepted norms, have been very different between male and

females.

Yet females are the one gender that can do the old switcheroo without any real social backlash except from friends and acquaintances. Men, on the other hand, don’t have the luxury of being gay one week and straight the next. If you’re a gay male in our society you are marked for life. Like a chip has been surgically implanted under your skin to inform all others who see you of your situation, it’s inescapable.

I personally don’t have anything negative to say about lesbians and I’m not homophobic, I just believe that there’s a big difference between homosexual and bisexual. Homosexuality shouldn’t be a choice where you can just choose what’s most convenient for you. It should be the way you are

and an expression of how you feel, to do it for anything else is just demeaning years of progress. There are tons of homosexual men and women who wish that they weren’t gay and think their lives would be a lot easier if they weren’t, but they argue that they can’t help the way they are.

The Radical Religious Right has been arguing for years that homosexuality is wrong and against gods law. They also make the stretch in saying that there is no such thing as a person who is just born gay.

They believe that homosexuality is a choice and if you choose to be one you made the wrong choice. Their ignorant views on our modern society are plastered all over their websites like a twisted monument to hate and persecution.

“Homosexuality is raw and nasty,” said H.A. (Buster) Dobbs, one of the heads of the RRR, according to bible-infonet.org.

“Homosexuals are degenerates… They are 12 times more likely to molest children than are heterosexuals. Homosexuals killed 68% of the victims of mass murders in the United States during the past 17 years.” You can reach him at had@worldnet.att.net.

If “pop-culture dykes” continue to spread it only reinforces their point and gives them a valid argument for their narrow-minded point of views. We can’t let the anti-gay propaganda set forth by the RRR take a firm grasp on our society. That kind of thinking belongs exactly where it is, on the underbelly of our culture, where it can fester and die.

Joe knows about hard times Joe

Knows with Joseph Rios “I’ve got a lot of things on my mind right now, there’s that and some other stuff going on.

But, I don’t feel like talking about it right now.”

It’s the anthem of the worn out, the depressed, the abused, and depleted. Life eventually piles its blocks of fecal matter on our backs and we’re expected to plunge forward with a smile down the road to tomorrow.

Sometimes, you can’t. It happens to the best of us.

There’s no telling what life is going to throw your way. Monday: you work. Tuesday: you get fired, Wednesday your grandma dies, Thursday your girlfriend finds out she’s pregnant, Friday she dumps you, Saturday your car gets repossessed, and Sunday you

crawl into a bottle on John Daniels.

Yes, John. When you get to know him well enough you start calling him John.

Outside in your mailbox beneath the cable, PG&E, and phone bills, is a jury summons.

On the door is an eviction notice and rotting in the gutter is your tabby Mittens who was run down by your neighbor at some point during the night.

But before you run out, buy a bullet and rent a gun, take another look at your situation.

Is it really that bad?

(Insert chorus of yeah’s) Is it really?

A year from now, are you going to be looking back with your friends and saying, “Man I’m glad I pulled out of that.” Or will they be saying, “Man I wish he did pull out of that.”

Are you going to reminisce about how you dug and crawled out of that hole, or are you going to just roll over for an eternal dirt nap?

Once again, is it really that bad?

“You don’t know how bad I’ve got it.”

You’re right I don’t. I don’t know your life, I don’t know your story, I’ve never met you and I probably never will. But I’ve seen hard times, and I’ve seen people see hard times, and I’ve heard from those who have seen that there’s always a way out and times never stay hard.

One of my best friends goes to Japan frequently with her family. On one of her return trips home, she picked me up a souvenir. It was a small Daruma doll, modeled after the late Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. Bodhidharma is credited with founding Chan/ Zen Buddhism in 6th Century

China. Owners of the doll use it to make wishes, if Bodhidharma looks favorably on them, the wish will come true.

The interesting thing about the legless and armless Daruma doll is that he always stands up, regardless of how many times or how hard you try to push him down. The old Japanese fable explains that Bodhidharma, “falls down seven times, stands up eight.”

The story exemplifies the meaning of resilience and persistence..

Confucius says, “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”

In my own life, I’ve seen

deaths, seen loved ones battle disease, I’ve lost money, lost friends, girlfriends, pets, and keys.

Whether these tragic and somewhat tragic events fell around on or on top of each other does not negate the fact that the hard times are only temporary.

Temporary. It implies that they don’t last forever. It’s like those hour-long seconds under water when you rush to the surface for air.

Death seems eminent, but somehow, you always make it out. And in the end you should be thankful for the bad times. They make subsequent times of hardship bearable and the good times just that much better.

Reviews

14

Horoscopes

by DC Leavy

Your leading authority on Horoscopolography

Aries: March 21-April 19

Life will change for you today at 3:30, when a gypsy will cross your path. If you are nice to her the rest of the semester will be easy, if you aren’t she’ll give you an F in English.

Taurus: April 20-May 20 An old man once told me that a taurus was like a prideful midget, they never accept your help so everything is always harder.

Gemini: May 21-June 21 Under the desk next to the lamp shade….wink, wink.

Cancer: June 22-July 22 Don’t give up now, you’ve been together for to long to do that.

Maybe those underwear you found wasn’t someone else’s…………

NOT!!!!

Leo: July 23-August Ahhh the lion, once a revered king of the jungle now a kitten in an amusement park called zoo’s. Just remember there’s nothing sadder than when a lion loses it’s teeth.

Virgo: August 23-September 22 Love is Love and Lust is Lust.

One can be great, but the others a must.

Based on, or inspired by?

Some movies which claim to be based on true events are actually very loose adaptations

by Joseph Rios Rampage reporter When I was younger I alternated the Ninja turtles with Michael Myers flicks, Barney with Jason, Elmo with Freddy, and Bugs Bunny with Norman Bates.

When I got a little older I thumbed through biographies of various murderers, case studies of brutal killings, psychological studies, evaluations, and assessments of the insane, the loony, and the sick.

Naturally, the latest installment of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre series got my attention.

Having seen the other two and heard all the hype, I hopped in the car with a few of my closest and headed to the theater.

Veteran viewers and newcomers alike have heard the stories and seen the trailers proclaiming the movie’s true to life roots.

Let me be the first to tell you, if you haven’t heard or guessed it already, that this is more than just a stretch of the truth – minus the truth.

After seeing the third movie, I got curious. At the film’s conclusion the narrator claims that the killings at the home of Leatherface and his inbred relatives were some of the worst in Texas history. He went on to claim that the family continued with their killing and weren’t stopped until they slashed through over 30 victims.

This is what really grabbed my attention. I remember being about eight or nine walking through the aisles of my local Blockbuster and reading the VHS casing for TCM and how it too claimed the “based on a true story” subhead.

It took all of about 11 years for me to gather enough gumption to actually look it up.

Here’s what I found out…

TCM is droopily based on the horrific killings of the deranged wreck loose, Ed Gein. When I dove into Gein story I found little that coincided with the TCM plot line.

First of all, Gein lived in Plainfield, Wisconsin – not Texas.

Gein suffered from a severe oe-

dipal complex derived from his mother’s overpowering nature and his distaste for his violent alcoholic father.

His father died in 1940. He had a brother; he died in brush fire when they were young. Two years after his death his mother also died. Young Gein was left alone.

He began to obsess over the human body, particularly women’s bodies and their genitalia. This is what drove him to kill. At first, he would just dig up the recently deceased and cut up their bodies.

He reportedly made drapes from human skin, belts from nipples, and necklaces from human ears.

We see some of this behavior in TCM. Gein did cut off the faces and where them, but it wasn’t because of a facial deformity. .He would remove the breasts and genitals of his female victims and prance around the house wearing them over his own. We see this behavior in the character, “Buffalo Bill” in the first Silence of the Lambs flick.

Other behavior, like the

Leatherface from “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (left), Norman Bates from “Psycho” (bottom left), and Jame “Buffalo Bill” Gumb from “Silence of the Lambs” (below) were all inspired by the same man.

22. Someone you don’t expect is going to do something really nice for you today. Then a car will hit you to help balance out the universe.

Scorpio: October 23 - November 21. Oh yeah, you wear your sunglasses at night.

Sagittarius: November 22-December 21. Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day. Give a man a gun and he’s set for life.

movies.yahoo.com

Capricorn: December 22-Janu-

Aquarius: January 20-February 18. I swear if you were a foot shorter and a 100lbs fatter you could be the Penguin from “Batman”.

Pisces: February 19-March 20 Here’s a little joke that I hope gives you some advice: What do you give a thug with a bad attitude a shotgun and nothing to lose?

Whatever he F@#kin wants!

Norrius: March 10-March 10 (Sign of the Norris) There are three things Chuck Norris can do that no one else can: Believe it’s not butter, divide by zero, and know what “Willis is talkin’ ‘bout.”

preservation of his mother’s room and unhinged oedipal complex leans more towards the character Norman Bates from the film Psycho.

The major discrepancy between TCM and Gein’s story is the chainsaw. At no point, from what investigators could gather, did Gein use a chainsaw. Sure, he dismantled his victims like a big-block engine, but he did it without the use of the loud, clumsy chainsaw.

Because of the bodies’ condition, police could not determine how many people Gein actually murdered. And because of the length of time many of them were in his home, it was also unclear which ones his had killed and which ones he simply dug up.

People might buy into the whole, “based on a true story,” crock, but I don’t. When a film is loosely based on actual events they’ll say, “inspired by a true story.”

Not TCM. At least that would have been a little closer to the truth.

raremovieimages.com

Libra: September 23-October

ary 19. When you think they are talking about you and you’re not sure. Trust me they are. Do you know how I know this, because I told them.

November 8, 2006

movies.yahoo.com

Reviews

November 8, 2006

Rampage 15

‘Running with Scissors’ is good for you

by Carly Hubbell Rampage reporter

“The shoehorn, Agnes, being me the shoehorn!”, Dr. Finch screams frantically at his dazed wife. Why? Because he thinks his morning bowel movement is a miracle of God and should be placed in the front yard as a shrine.

Weird, I know. But that’s just what this whole movie is; weird. And that is why this film is just downright amazing.

Based on the true memoir of Augusten Burroughs, Running With Scissors presents the life of young boy whose life has more bizarre twists and turns that you end up asking yourself, could this really have happened? The film starts out in the early seventies as a little boy named Augusten is starting to figure out just how weird his parents are. His mother Deirdre, a struggling poet who feels that her artistic talents are being smothered by her alcoholic husband whom she believes is homicidal, is the main core of the movie, making irresponsible decisions that shape her sons life. When Augusten hits junior

high, she takes in the assistance of a crazed psychiatrist Dr. Finch, whose idea of therapy is handing out valium like candy and giving tours of his “special” room, named appropriately the Masterbatorium, in his office.

His mother takes a keen interest in Dr. Finch and hangs on to every word he says, which

is why she agrees to have her son stay with him and his wacky family and eventually having him adopt Augusten. This is when all the fun starts.

In one messy pink house, there’s Agnes Finch, the confused wife who eats doggy kibble while watching TV, Hope, the oldest daughter who believes she can talk

Joseph Cross and Annette Benning star in Running with Scissors.

to her cat Freud and whom she eventually cooks as a stew, Natalie, the younger rebellious daughter whom Augesten immediately befriends, and Neil, the 35 year old adopted son whom Augusten begins his first gay sexual relationship with.

All of these characters bring so much awkwardness and weirdness into the house they all

live in that it almost makes you want to visit for a day (but no longer than a day because more than likely you will become crazy…and smoke a lot.) It’s truly engaging to watch Augesten mature and start to understand all of the so-called adults around him and figure out that he can be his own person, despite all of the things obscene coming at him from all angles.

For the most part, the acting was superb, although I thought Gwenyth Paltrow could have put more effort in developing Hope, especially since she’s one of the bigger names of the movie. Joseph Cross depicted Augusten perfectly, his eyes displaying all of the emotions he was faced with on a daily basis, mocking and cheerful one minute, and welling up with tears the next. His performance was alltogether very powerful, showing the misgivings of a neglected youth.

If you see this movie, it will stick with you long after it’s over. For the most part it was hilarious but with a lot of heart and drama deep down inside. If you ever feel like your life isn’t normal, just look into the life of Augusten Burroughs and believe me, you’ll feel better.

www.outnow.ch

‘Saw III’: a lot of the same

by Christian Beltran Rampage reporter

“Been there, done that”; that’s the kind of feeling you get while you are part of the audience of this annual torture film.

Like its predecessors, “SAW 3” provides extremely suffering situations. With a little exception, this sequel is better than the second one, but that’s not saying much. Like terminally ill Jigsaw’s painful traps, some hurt less than others, but none are that much fun.

“Saw III” is constructed as a game within a game. Tobin Bell, who plays the psycho behind the psychopath Jigsaw, has now been elevated to tragic-leading-man status. Dying from a brain tumor, Bell lies in bed in what looks like a dirty hospital for Nazi experiments, assisted by Amanda, his victim and accomplice from Saw II, who helps him create the ultimate sick challenge. It involves putting a physician in a suicide-bomb col-

of 5 Saw III 4 out jigsaws

lar and having her perform brain surgery on him as he lies awake; helping to motivate her is the fact that she’s been tied into Jigsaw’s heart monitor, so if he dies, she dies with him…

Meanwhile, her husband, Jeff, is playing one of Jigsaw’s diabolical games. He’s confronted with a series of individuals being tortured in different ways who

are somehow connected to the hit-and-run death of the couple’s child, testing his level of forgiveness as he must decide whether to risk his own life and morals to save theirs.

The central catch in these 3 films is the clever methods of torture invented by the filmmakers, who no doubt feel pressure to keep topping themselves. But while this

film features a series of intense and gruesome examples, they don’t quite have the same impact as some of the memorable set pieces in the first two movies.

In the story, there also are numerous references to the past prequels, including the brief appearances of the cops on Jigsaw’s trail, which makes the movie a little repetitive if you have already

seen the first two parts of the trilogy; losing its cutting edge on horror movies.

Lastly, even though Jigsaw ultimately doesn’t seem to be healthy and capable of torturing more victims, it’s hard not to suspect that he’ll be back to bring about more disruption sometime around, oh, for sure Halloween 2007.

Get ready for Spring Semester 2007 at Fresno City College

SPRING SPRIN G Semester Are YYoou Ready?

Classes Start Januaryy 8, 2007

Spring Registration Fees are now $20 per unit!

Register on time fo f r best selection of cours r es! rs Continuing student registration is by appointment only from October 27 to November 9 Three convenient ways to register 1. WebAdvisor at www.webadvisor.scccd.com 2. By phone – use Touchtone T – 229-9833 3. In person, but you don’t want to wait in line, do you?

Registration has moved to the Cafeteria and Bungalow #6 Hours:Cafeteria 8:30am – 4:30 pm Monday – Friday Bungalow #6 8:00am – 5:00 pm Monday – Friday Fresno City College Admissions and Records 442-8228

November 8, 2006

Reviews

‘Pretty Little Dirty’ a vivid portrayal

by Chelsea Bieker Rampage reporter

Pretty Little Dirty, by Amanda Boyden, is perhaps the most alarming and honest account of teenage behavior I have ever read. The book opens with our main character, Lisa looking back on the first day she ever met her best friend Celeste. It starts out innocent enough, but the novel soon twists into the coming of age tale of two die- hard best friends. Celeste is astoundingly beautiful, and Lisa, feeding off her friend’s confidence becomes just as brazen. They make a completely unstoppable pair, entwining their lives around each other.

As they get into high school they experience a hunger for everything unacceptable. They break rules as a team. Extremely popular, they soon get tired of the usual parties and the ordinary people. Fighting the inner battle of the absence of her mother, Lisa latches on to Celeste’s life, and they form a single unit. In the silhouette of a mental escape, the girls find themselves visiting the local art museum in the search of more interesting characters.

When they find them, the door to the other side is thrown open in complete abandonment of their innocence.

The story is full of shockingly honest moments in which I myself thought, “Did they really just say that?” There are scenes that are so vividly portrayed that you can actually see them playing out in your head. There were moments that I felt genuinely sorry for the girls, and yet at the same time they out me into a

Rampage 16

state of awe. The descriptiveness used to describe their drug use, and the brutal words to depict their various sexual encounters were so raw. This book sugar coated nothing, and I think that’s why I liked it so much.

Each chapter is broken up by a short flashback of Lisa’s memories from the various concerts they went to. They are almost like poetry, written in the third person. It is odd to read them in the beginning, but at the end it all comes together. When the girls get into separate colleges in different states, they don’t stay separated long. As to be expected they reunite to each other, and also to a drug induced rock and roll lifestyle.

While the girls stay positive and sweet throughout the story, you can’t help but sense and underlying depression reeking from their pores. Just when you think the girls have hit their limit, they through you another curveball. It’s scary to think that two normal girls can flip their lives upside down so quickly. It makes you wonder how anyone with a soul intact could do what they did, and be able to live with themselves the next morning.

It’s almost as though they hit a breaking point, and thereafter, nothing mattered.

As the story progresses you can’t help but love to two estranged main characters, and the ending is nothing short of heartbreak. In short I guess what I’m trying to say, is that regardless of gender you should read this book. It really doesn’t have a boring moment, and even if you aren’t a big reader, the shock value of Pretty Little Dirty should keep your attention.

The Legend of Legend John Legend capitalizes on success with sophomore effort “Once Again”

by Ife-Chudeni Oputa Rampage reporter In 2004 John Legend gained wide recognition with his debut studio album Get Lifted. The world discovered a talent that the music industry had known for years. Since then, fans have been waiting in anticipation for more of the smooth sounds of the Ohio native. Legend satisfies many hungry fans with the release of his new album Once Again on October 24. “I’m truly excited about the songs and creative direction of the album,” said Legend, “This album shows how I’ve grown and developed since Get Lifted. You’ll hear a range of influences from soul to hip-hop to classic pop to alternative.”

Legend’s maturity shines through in Once Again. With few exceptions, the new album lacks the hard drumbeats displayed in many of the tracks from Get Lifted. The project shows his range as a musician, from pure R&B in the style of the Motown greats, to more rock inspired arrangements. He is able to blend the electric guitar of “Show Me” with the

organ of “Save Room”. Each track has a unique feel, and Legend successfully ties them together in an inspired package.

Once again, Legend’s album has a strong focus on unfaithfulness. With tracks 8 through 12, Legend tells the story of a doomed relationship. In the tradition of “Ordinary People”, John Legend delivers another stirring eighth track. Legend’s passion, piano and powerful vocals combine to create “Again”, an amazing ballad of a love born from infidelity. “It might be the best song when it comes to pure kind of songwriting,” said Legend in an interview with Contactmusic.com. “It’s actually the earliest song I wrote for this album because I wrote it right after Get Lifted came out… It even made me want to title the album ‘Again’, which it kind of evolved into ‘Once Again’.”

Legend follows with “Maxine”, which has a sound reminiscent of a Latin jazz lounge. The track puts Legend on the receiving end of the betrayal. The song is almost comical in it’s depiction of this chapter of the story. The track’s sarcasm is reflected by the refrain, “She may not be you, but she looks just like you.”

“Where Did My Baby Go?” continues the plot with a mellifluous plea.

Produced by Legend and Craig Street, the song showcases Legend’s talent.

With only the essential accompaniment, Legend’s piano and vocals truly stand out. The song flows seamlessly into “Maxine’s Interlude”. The track is short, but oh so sweet. It takes the listener back to the styles Marvin Gaye.

Legend concludes his mini-epic with the upbeat “Another Again”. As he falls prey to his desires, listeners will fall prey to his voice. In this song and throughout the album, Legend does what he does best; he makes his listeners feel.

Once Again is another compelling album from an indisputable talent.