October 20, 2015

Richland

CHRONICLE Vol. XLII Issue 8 Oct. 20, 2015

RLC jazz students back up renowned singer Groban Pg. 3

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2 CAMPUS

October 20, 2015

THE FACES OF RICHLAND

Jackie Reynolds: health professions organizer AHLAM MARYAM AL MAHROOQ Staff Writer

Staff photo Vanessa Myron

Reynolds helps students on the health path.

For the last 20 years, Jackie Reynolds has organized an event in the spring called Health Professions Information Day. The week-long event hosts notable speakers from surrounding facilities and university medical personnel, as well as health profession programs.

“I think it is important to boost the students up that way and show them the ways to do that, give them some support,” Reynolds said.

That’s one of reasons she organizes it. She feels community college students sometimes have a problem getting into medical school. By hosting different representatives, it gives students a chance to reorganize themselves and compete on an equal playing field with university students. In addition, when students come to a presentation they are more likely to learn about a field they never knew about, as well as find out if the program is competitive. They are also able to decide if a particular field is suitable for them.

Reynolds is known as a professor who keeps on advising, exposing, helping transition and providing students information about the area

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ALL NEW

Caf sthtele D o E

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of medical and academic institutions as well as health-related careers.

Reynolds is a member of the Texas Association of Advisors for the Health Professions. She has been at Richland since 1985 and graduated from Texas A&M University in 1973. She then earned her master’s degree in 1975 from the University of Hawaii and received an Excellence in Teaching Award from Richland in 2015.

In addition, she was honored by the American Society for Microbiology and worked for a few hospitals, including Parkland Hospital, as a clinical microbiologist.

Reynolds was a research microbiologist for Abbott Laboratories. She also taught on different campuses, including El Centro College and at the medical school at the University of Hawaii.

Reynolds said she loves microbiology because it involves a lot of lab work.

“I get bored easily, so I am always trying to reinvent the wheel,” she said.

Reynolds has a different approach to teaching. She believes instead of doing the boring

stuff, such as reading off the PowerPoint in class, she focuses on case studies and puts students in groups, analyzing and putting together jeopardies for reviewing materials in the lab.

That way students are able to improve their critical thinking skills.

Reynolds said communication and participation are enough motivation to keep students studying effectively in subjects that interest them. Some students are big communicators and others are totally silent. That presents a problem when a student needs an evaluation letter for medical school.

Reynolds wrote a lab manual for two microbiology courses. It was for Richland students, but it’s available for any student.

It saves them money. Reynolds is in the tutoring center, and she opens her office once a week for about an hour.

Reynolds said, “Life gets in the way, but when you commit to doing something at the beginning, you should just go all the way. Don’t stop to do other things. Just keep moving.”

“I think it is important to boost students up ... give them some support.”

— Jackie Reynolds

New student ambassadors

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S THR AT N OUG IG H HT S

OCT

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ole Lot M h W a d n a s e s u o H d te n u a H GET $5 OFF PROMO CODE : RICHLAND AT SCREAMSPARK.COM ®

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Image courtesy Richland Communications & Marketing department

Twenty new student ambassadors will represent Richland at off-campus initiatives and help engage potential and current students in the Richland experience. They promote college events and student engagement activities, serve as campus recruitment tour guides and collaborate to enrich student participation in clubs and organizations, according to the Richland College website.

Front row, from left: Itzel Sosa, Zahara Wadud, Hassan Najem, Bertille Maffo, Danielis Guzman, Elisha Muniz, Henry Pham, Saron Tesfaye, Victorine Akoma. Middle row: Domenica Barboza, Bianca Banda, Sundas Sheikh, Parveez Natha, Bel Khuu.

Back row: Steve Ehlert, Chris Smith, Witt Wortham, Ricardo Rosales and Edwin Newbold.

S CAMPUS 3

October 20, 2015

Staff photos Isai Diaz

Jazz singers rehearse the songs they will perform with Josh Groban. From left: Natalie McCurley, Rhina Restrepo, Martha Schessler Bethany Zientek, Steven Singleton, Maria Bel-

tran, Valentin Lopez, Brandon Jones, Nick Paldino, Angel Hare, Ashley Fuentes, Veronica Merritt, Garret Dunaway, Dr. Michael Crawford and Alex Gonzales.

RLC students sing backup for Groban Copy Editor

It’s not very often students receive the musical surprise of singing with a multiplatinum artist.

That’s just what happened, though, to Richland jazz singers when chorus director Dr. Michael Crawford told them they would be singing backup for Josh Groban.

“I think they’re having a hard time believing this is actually going to happen. So they’ve worked hard,” Crawford said.

Rehearsals for the event have been taking place Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Crawford said a few weeks ago an agent for Groban contacted him to ask if the jazz singers would be interested in working with Groban during his upcoming tour through Texas in October.

Crawford, who had never met Groban, said he was happy to say “yes.” The performances will take place Friday in Austin and at the Fair Park Music Hall in Dallas Sunday.

“The shows are about an hour and a half,” he said. “We will back him up on two songs: “Anthem,” from the musical “Chess” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from “Carousel.”

Crawford said he and the backup singers will just come out and sing these two songs with Groban. He will learn more details Friday, when they are scheduled to arrive in Austin. Dress rehearsals are at 2 p.m. and the show starts at 8 p.m.

Groban’s most recent collection, “Stages,” came out in April. It consists of songs from Broadway musicals, such as “Les Misérables,” “Carousel,“ and “The Fantasticks,” among others.

Groban requires 20 singers. They are: Sopranos: Natalie McCurley, Rachel Moon, Rachel Trevino, Rhina Restrepo, Angel Hare, Ashely Fuentes; altos: Martha Schessler, Bethany Zientek, Veronica Mer-

makeup, nothing like that that stands out.

They’re really not paying a lot of money to hear us. They’re paying a lot of money to hear him.”

After the performance in Dallas, he and the singers will have their pictures taken with Groban, which they are pretty excited about, Crawford said.

“I think this is an incredible opportunity for our singers to be involved. Even if people don’t listen to his music, they know the name,” he said. “And, I would guess that a lot of people have listened to him. He’s quite a phenomenon.”

Crawford has sung some of Groban’s pieces and said while Groban can cover both tenor and baritone, his songs are very difficult to sing because he has such a wide range.

Crawford said he thinks it speaks well for

Groban as an entertainer to be able to make this opportunity available to college kids because every place he goes, he contracts with a college group for backup singers.

“He wouldn’t have to do that,” Crawford said. “He could probably figure out something else, so I think he does it for all the right reasons.”

There’s one other aspect of importance for the jazz singers.

Crawford said they’re earning $2,000 for each performance, which will be used to help finance a spring tour for 16 jazz singers.

“The Choral Department gets the $4,000 for a trip to Seattle next March for a local jazz festival,” he said. “We travel every spring, but this is a little more costly, so the fact that this came along is really pretty good.”

Image courtesy huffpost.com

Natalie McCurley, left, Rhina Restrepo and Marta Schessler practice one of Groban’s songs.

Josh Groban

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JOYCE JACKSON

ritt, Maria Beltran; tenors: Crawford, Garrett Dunaway, Josh Usry, Steven Singleton, John Villalas; baritones: Brandon Jones and Nick Paldino, and basses: Alex Gonzales, Valentin Lopez and Drew Bramlett.

“The jazz singers were chosen because they are my best singers,” Crawford said.

“I have to have 20 singers. I only have 12 jazz singers, so I’ve augmented it with eight other singers from the chamber group.”

Crawford said he won’t be taking any rhythm section players, just the 20 singers on the trip, and they equally are divided among men and women.

Groban wants the backup singers to wear black.

“They stipulate black for men and women … no sparkles, which I told my singers, you know, they really have to be almost part of the wallpaper,” Crawford said. “No hair, no

4 ENTERTAINMENT

October 20, 2015

‘Sicario’: Full of gritty, intense action

ALINA LUNA

Benicio Del Toro as Alejandro.

Staff Writer

Blunt as Kate Macer.

Images courtesy fandango.com

Emily Blunt is on the hunt in “Sicario.”

RICKY MILLER

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Entertainment Editor

For those who don’t know, “Sicario” is Spanish for hit man. That is just one of the aspects covered in this intense and gritty actiondrama which pulls no punches in its storytelling technique.

Emily Blunt, who earned her action stripes in Doug Liman’s enthralling-yet-exhausting “Edge Of Tomorrow,” is aces as FBI agent Kate Macer. She’s asked to join a U.S. task force to apprehend a Mexican drug dealer.

At the head of this task force is FBI agent Matt Graver (Josh Brolin, “No Country For Old Men”) who, for all intents and purposes, is her boss. Graver is assembling a team to follow a ruthless Mexican drug dealer.

Also on the team is Oscar-winner Benicio Del Toro (“Traffic,” “The Usual Suspects”) as a man simply referred to as Alejandro. He is

a man who speaks few words, only opening his mouth when absolutely necessary.

The action switches back and forth between the United States and Mexico with the greatest of ease. It’s the same basic formula as the James Bond films.

The storyline’s greatest shift in tone resides in the empathy factor regarding those who are good and bad. The majority of the time, those who are bad receive their just desserts. That wasn’t the case with the recent crime caper “Black Mass,” where Johnny Depp’s main character James “Whitey” Bulger was just a ruthless criminal killing for no reason.

In “Sicario,” the violence is portrayed as necessary. The gritty action sequences are well done and justified.

At the head of this flick is director Denis Villeneuve, who helmed the gritty, hard-to-watch kidnapping tale “Prisoners” in 2013. Like “Prisoners,” he only shows violence when absolutely necessary.

Grade: A-

“The Monster Squad” (1987) — This is a fun little flick involving monsters of lore, including The Mummy (Michael Reid Mackay), Dracula (Duncan Regher), Frankenstein’s monster (Tom Noonan) and The Creature from the Black Lagoon (Yom Woodruff Jr.). It is a bit dated, but it’s also just a good old time at Bthe movies.

Costumes for a frightfully exciting night

Blunt, Josh Brolin and Del Toro plot strategy.

With Halloween less than two weeks away, now is the time to throw something together that will not scare away too many people. Gentlemen, here are a few tips to make that night just as enjoyable for you as it will be for the ladies.

For guys, the questions to answer are fairly simple. Do I want to go all out or stick to the clichéd mask with all black clothes? Is the group going to dress up? Am I pairing up with my girlfriend? How much money am I really willing to spend?

The options could be anything from a supervillain to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. If dressing up isn’t your thing, do the typical mask idea.

Be sure to make it your own, though.

Instead of buying a scary mask, buy a horse head and wear all brown. If you really are not in the holiday spirit, the absolute easiest costume is to wear all black from head to toe. All you have to do is follow someone and BOOM! You’re a shadow for Halloween!

With Halloween so close it pass before we can even enjoy it. Whether you’re a shadow or a sweet princess or a prince charming, be bold, be safe, and embrace the spirit of Halloween.

I’ll be watching “Nightmare Before Christmas.” It’s scary enough for me.

Del Toro aims to wipe out crime.

“Nightbreed: The Director’s Cut” (2014) — After years of waiting, Shout!

Factory released a director’s cut of Clive Barker’s (1990) feature about a fictional place called Midian, where monsters live and all your past transgressions are forgiven. In this flick, monsters are the good guys and man is evil.

B+

“The Frighteners” (1996) — Michael J. Fox (“Back to the Future”) is a ghostbuster-for-hire who encounters some ghosts that are not altogether friendly. From director Peter Jackson, who would later go on to direct trilogies for J.R.R. Tolkein’s “Lord of The Rings” and “Hobbit.”

B-

“Gremlins” (1984) — This was an early start for Steven Spielberg’s production company Amblin. A pint-sized creature named Gizmo, a mogwai, creates monsters that are mean, self-serving and rude.

A

“Gremlins 2: The New Batch” (1990) — This one satirizes the original with Phoebe Cates’ Kate Beringer explaining why her family does not celebrate Abraham Lincoln’s birthday.

—Ricky Miller

A-

October 20, 2015

CAMPUS 5

Texas crime drama: A lesson in morality JOYCE JACKSON Copy Editor

Events related to a small Texas town and a group of friends became the focus of the Richland Drama Department’s first fall production, “Comes the Storm,” which ran Oct. 6-10.

“Storm,” an original two-act play written by Drama Department Chair Andy Long, takes place in a run-down bar named “Ida’s Place” in present time.

Long named the bar “Ida” on purpose, he said, because “it’s a good, old-school Texas name.” Also, one quote from the Bible, specifically from the book of Job, inspired him to write the play. It’s “Out of the south comes the storm; out of the north, the cold.”

That quote, Long said, stuck with him because in Texas we don’t get winter. We get “freakish ice storms” that shut everything down, so in “Storm” it was snowing.

Long was born and raised in Houston and wrote the play this past summer. It was based on when he was young and visited the same type of bar in Deep Ellum in Dallas.

The plot revolves around six characters, friends who experience an unexpected violent murder and suddenly wind up in a moral battle over the circumstances. All six actors are Long’s sophomore drama students.

Kudos to Scott Osborne and Long for creating such a fantastic set of a quaint small Texas bar. With a couple of tables, a tiny lighted bar complete with Budweiser and Lite signs, plus a piano, it seemed so inviting to the audience that they probably felt right at home while craving their favorite drink.

Mieko Hicks portrayed Ida and Raied Makhamreh, her overly doting husband, Tim. They displayed some great chemistry as a twosome.

With Hick’s deep, low voice, she commanded attention in all other scenes. While trying hard to prove his love for her by taking good care of the bar, Tim never feels it’s enough to satisfy her and admits that, “Ida calls all the shots.”

Audrey Clark had the delightfully sexy role of Carla, who dazzled the audience with southern speech and a cute, little skimpy outfit with boots, while explaining how she and the love of her life, Frankie, were married in a casino three weeks

verses whenever the mood hit him while shuffling around the stage in baggy beige clothes. His performance was thoroughly enjoyable.

Long said, “He [Martin] is that helpless part of our society that’s the pure. We have a lot of people in our culture who are lost that way. You talk to them and when you’re lost, one of the things that a lot of people rely on is religion. And Martin relies on that.”

In one dramatic scene, loud gunshots from

Image courtesy Richland Communication and Marketing Department

Carter Brown plays the most challenging role as Martin in “Comes the Storm.”

earlier.

Carter Brown had the most challenging role as Martin, who arrived at the bar one day and never left. Long created this character to be “very pure in spirit, resembling a religious figure.” Brown stole the show with a fantastic performance, which included loud outbursts, some wild facial expressions and sporadically spouting off biblical

outside disturbed the friends while stranded at the bar. Jabin Lewis, as Carla’s newlywed husband Frankie, was able to pull off a quick, but dismal death scene as he stumbled through the door just long enough to fall flat on the table, bounce to the floor – and die. The duffel bag he carried, loaded with cash was scattered all over the place.

Suddenly, friendship turns to conflict, and the dire situation is turned into a moral dilemma: Martin wants a reward if the money is turned in so he can go to Disney World. Ida wants to keep it to expand the bar. Carla and Tim want to turn it in, but then Ida confesses her brother, Ben, had something to do with Frankie and some of the stolen money. Ben, however, is nowhere to be found.

Eric Obregon, portraying the deceptive Detective Padilla, arrived next to demand his fair share of the money after questioning the group about the murder. The scene fell rather flat as he spoke. Until he became violent, slamming Tim’s hands with a baseball bat, then shooting him in the thigh while he curled up on the floor screaming in pain.

In the final scenes, Padilla shows his true colors. He steals money from the cash register, orders the group to lie about a masked robber coming to the bar when the police come, and insists on handling the investigation himself.

Carla takes several stacks of the money and disappears. Ida is elated, thinking she’s got the rest of it.

Martin, however, spouts one last meaningful biblical statement: “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?”

The most important moral lesson Long said he wanted people to walk away with is: “Don’t be greedy. Learn to embrace and be happy with what you’ve been given and what you’ve earned. Learn that sometimes enough is enough and in order to be happy and successful, we don’t all have to be millionaires.”

If there’s one vital scene the audience should remember from “Comes the Storm,” it’s Martin clinging to the duffel bag stuffed with money as he slowly backs out the door into the ongoing snowstorm.

Staff photo Isai Diaz

Students attended events last week as part of Complete With Me Week at Richland. The events were planned to encourage students to complete their degree programs through

Staff photo Bel Khuu

fun and various campus activities. Above left: Students stand in line for cotton candy under a tent at Ducktoberfest. Above right: Victorine Akoma has fun riding the electric bull.

Richlandchronicle.wordpress.com

Thunderducks have fun during Complete With Me Week

6 OPINION

October 20, 2015

Passionate Sanders versus efficient Clinton

Richland

CHRONICLE STUDENT MEDIA LEADERS Editor-in-Chief Online Editor Photography Editor Entertainment Editor Copy Editor

Marta Planells Joe Stumpo Blanca Reyes Ricky Miller Joyce Jackson

ON THE COVER

Photo illustration by Quan Tran Image courtesy davidgraudesign.com

COVER AND FONTS

Certain cover fonts are provided by the following: www.nymfont.com - www.bvfonts.com

STUDENT MEDIA STAFF Isai Diaz Abraham Igene Quan Tran Bertille Eya Maffo Alina Luna Tiago Ferreira Vincent Leal

Diana Bonilla Melanie Brandow Ryan Derenbecker Harris Sadiq Bel Khuu Ahlam Maryam Al Mahrooq Vanessa Myron

STUDENT MEDIA ADVISERS Erica Edwards

Steve Noviello

Jack Fletcher

Larry Ratliff

David Goodloe

Tim Jones

Karin Matz Image courtesy The Associated Press

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, left, speaks as Hillary Clinton smiles during the Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas.

MARTA PLANELLS

Richlandchronicle.wordpress.com

Editor-in-chief

The first Democratic debate Oct. 13 left no clear winner, but it narrowed the race to basically two lanes: one for Hillary Clinton and the other for Bernie Sanders. More or less nothing has changed.

Both received more attention during the debate than their counterparts. According to the New York Times, Clinton spoke for 31 minutes, Sanders 28, O´Malley 18, Webb 15 and Chafee 9.

Clinton, the favorite according to most polls, demonstrated her broad political experience. She appeared comfortable, with a great understanding on the topics of the debate. For most of the time, she maintained a professional tone and only raised her voice to defend women´s rights to take maternity leave and public funding for Planned Parenthood.

She attacked Sanders for being too soft on gun control.

“It´s time the entire country stands up against the National Rifle Association,” she said.

Her opponent on the left, Sanders, had an acceptable performance. He did her a favor on her email scandal.

“The American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails,” he said.

In an arguably unwise move, the senator abruptly cut off the discussion about emails and ended discussion about one of the weaknesses of his opponent. Clinton thanked him and then came one of the most memorable images of the night, a friendly gesture between them.

Sanders also scored several of the few lively moments during the debate with catchy phrases

“It’s time the entire country stands up against the National Rifle Association.”

— Hillary Clinton that drew applause.

“Congress does not regulate Wall Street. Wall Street regulates Congress,” he said.

Sanders also said he would lead a “political revolution” bringing together millions of people to transfer power from large corporations to the working class.

This and the fact that Sanders defined himself as a “democratic socialist” can present problems in his race to win the White House in

a country that is not prepared for far left-wing political stands.

Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley got some of the attention. The other two presidential hopefuls, former Sen. and Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chaffee and former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, should consider leaving the campaign. Their performances were poor, and they were too far near to the center of a party that is leaning left this election cycle.

Chaffee made one of the few big mistakes of the night. The moderators asked why he had voted in the Senate in favor of the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act, which in 1999 allowed the integration of commercial and investment banks he responded by saying “It was my first vote. I had just come to the Senate. My father had died.” Did he not know what he was voting for?

Clinton embodied efficiency and Sanders brought passion to the debate. Only Trump, who was throwing out comments from his Twitter account, managed to steal their limelight.

The CNN debate, co-sponsored by Facebook, had more than 15 million viewers, CNN said on a news release citing Nielsen ratings data.

The debate broke the previous Democratic debate record of 10.7 million viewers when Obama and Clinton squared off on ABC in 2008, according to the news release.

ISSUE DATES October 20 October 27 November 10 November 17

November 24 December 8 December 15

AWARDS

ACP Pacemaker Winner, 2000, 2001, 2007 ACP Pacemaker Finalist, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2007 ACP Online Pacemaker Finalist, 2007, 2008 1st Place - TIPA Sweepstakes, 2005 3rd Place - TIPA Online, 2005 & 2006 Over 170 Texas college journalism awards since 2000 CMA Newspaper of the Year Finalist, 2014 1st Place – TCCJA Overall General Excellence, 2014 2nd Place - Pinnacle College Media Award, 2014

CONTACT INFORMATION

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Staff meetings for fall semester: Monday and Wednesday at 2 p.m. in E020 Letter Policy Letters to the editor may be edited for space. They will be edited for spelling, grammar and malicious or libelous statements.

Letters must be the work of the writer and must be signed. For identification and verification purposes, letters also must include the writer’s classification (grade level), full name, address and telephone number, although address and telephone number will not be published.

Editorial Policy The Chronicle is the official student-produced newspaper of Richland College. Editorials, cartoons, columns and letters are the opinions of individual students and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of other individual student writers, editors, advisers or the college administration. © Richland Chronicle 2015

You’re hired, Mr.Trump

JOYCE JACKSON Copy Editor

Since billionaire Donald Trump surprised everyone and jumped into the race for the White House, he has shaken up the country with his outlandish speech and an ultraflamboyant style that fascinates the American people.

Trump is like a breath of fresh air, who has given us some hope in a country that’s in crisis mode. Although some people may not like Trump’s style, he stands out from the other wimpish Republican candidates because he speaks the truth.

That truth is that this country is going downhill because our federal government isn’t working as it should. Trump understands how vital it is that we elect a president next year who can work for the people. The majority of U.S. citizens are in shock over the dysfunction in Washington, D.C. When Trump first announced, “We need to make America great again,” and “I’m your man,” many of us felt he was right. He has every reason to feel confident, since he’s ahead in the polls, has only spent $2 million on his campaign and says he won’t even take a salary if he’s elected.

What I really like about Trump is that he comes off as a strong leader. I don’t think any

of the other candidates, Republican or Democrat, can top him as a negotiator. This is quite the opposite from Obama, who struggles to run the country with a pen and a phone and by making an abundance of illegal/unconstitutional executive orders, even though he has said in the past he doesn’t have the power to do so.

The economy is a huge issue among candidates in the race for the White House. Who else is better at juggling money in the business world than Trump? No one in the race. When Trump says, “I will be the greatest jobs president that God ever created,” I believe him.

I think everyone is sick of hearing the candidates utter repetitive statements on illegal immigration: “We must secure the border.”

Obama has allowed people to enter the country illegally and to overwhelm our country’s immigration system against the will of the people. It’s as if “we the people,” don’t count anymore, while those in the U.S. without legal permission are under the illusion that they have the same rights as U.S. citizens. In reality, they don’t.

I don’t think it’s realistic, though, when Trump says he’ll deport the 11 million-plus undocumented aliens who are already here, but it’s up to our Congress to step up and take action on immigration reform, and they have failed miserably. Trump won’t tolerate illegals overwhelming our country.

The tragic murder of Kate Steinle in San Francisco in July is the perfect example of how negligent the Obama administration is in allowing illegals, many with criminal records, into our country. Francisco Sanchez was in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody ready to be deported for the sixth time when he took refuge in this sanctuary city and then killed Steinle.

Why is our federal government allowing sanctuary cities to ignore federal laws? It’s shameful.

I like it when Trump spouts off with, “We have stupid and incompetent people running the country.” I’m glad someone is defending Americans who believe our Constitution is in jeopardy. I like the fact Trump won’t kowtow to this political correctness nonsense bombarding our country.

The presidential election is a long way off.

The polls will rise and fall and only time will tell whether or not Trump will be the leader we think he is.

I have no doubt that he’s quite intelligent, a superb negotiator and an excellent real estate mogul. So, with what he has already accomplished in his life at 69, I can envision him making America great again.

I could easily vote for him. In fact, as of today, I would say, “Mr. Trump, you’re hired.”

You’re fired, Mr.Trump

PETE SHANNON Staff Writer

This guy Donald Trump is responding to a need within much of the electorate to have a spokesperson who will convey its deep dissatisfaction with the nation’s professional politicians. Many voters will also cheer, at least temporarily, for anyone who figuratively sticks a thumb in the eye of the press, a troupe often seen as elitist and unrealistically liberal.

Many so-called news people seem as ambitious and celebrity-bound as the politicos they cover.

We can easily put them in the same box, the one reserved for the folks we love to hate. Trump, acting as our surrogate shining knight, has shown a gleeful knack for skewering both groups, politicians and pundits alike, on the same saber.

Are his positions well-taken though?

To me, his policy on immigration seems strident, unfair and racially prejudiced. Building an impenetrable wall across thousands of miles of desert to keep out a few hundred so-called invaders, even if it were paid for by what may be the enemy, (Mexico), looks like a golden opportunity for government corruption and waste. Sending 11 million undocumented aliens home and then processing their applications for re-entry would be not only expensive, but unjust. Can’t you just picture all the crying children clutching at the chain-link fences?

Trump’s recently announced tax scheme to grant full exemption to couples earning under

$50,000 looks like an amateur’s boondoggle.

What better way to pander their votes than to promise a huge segment of the population complete freedom from paying for any share of their government?

In a democracy, everyone should participate in its cost as well as enjoy its benefits.

Granting anyone a total pass on taxes looks exactly like what it is: a basically insulting promise to put a “pig-in-every-pot” extracted right out of Huey Long’s Depression-era Louisiana.

Interestingly, Trump’s proposed tax redo also quietly caps the rate on the very rich at a lower percentage than it is now, that guarantees a continuation and widening of the income disparity gap. And he somehow expects, for his naive idea of asking corporations to magically bring home all their accumulated overseas profits at a paltry 10 percent tax rate, to make up for whatever budget deficits his giveaways will cause.

If, as he claims, he wants to unify the country and “make us great again,” he certainly has so far shown only an egregious plan for doing so.

Trump’s screwball policy announcements are not what troubles me the most, though.

As an independent voter, I am more worried about what kinds of lackeys and incompetent supporters he might bring to Washington.

I do agree that our country could use a unifying hero to swoop in and rescue us from our deadlocked Congress, or at least

go through the motions enough to cut off or reduce their constant carping.

Because a presidential campaign is costly, that person would most likely be rich. As silver-spoon preppies, the Roosevelt clan was able to do that pretty well, and so could the Kennedys and the Bushes. Their boys already had a background of public service though, and a demonstrated ability to get things done in the big-government arena, which is not at all like private business.

Trump might be able to muscle his Chinese suppliers while plying them with booze on his yacht, but it’s doubtful if his self-touted “deal-making ability” would carry the day in negotiations with ISIS or Iran, or hold the North Koreans at bay.

We haven’t heard a word from Trump yet about his plans for installing term limits for Congress, reforming our federal campaign system, hammering out a workable energy policy, or how he’d deal with global warming and world famine.

When he’s ready to show us what kind of statesman he would be on those and similar high-level issues (besides just being nicer to our wounded veterans), I might be inclined to sit up and listen.

In the meantime, while he’s learning how to complete a cogent sentence in English, I’ll be giving the other candidates a lot more attention.

If you were to ask me right now for whom my support for president might be, I’m afraid I’d have to respond quite easily: “Not Trump!”

OPINION 7

Upcoming Events Today 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Richland percussion group and steel bands perform Fannin Performance Hall, Room F108

Thursday Noon to 1 p.m.

Richland Fusion Band Cafeteria Stage, El Paso Noon and 2 p.m.

Author Jullien Gordon “101 Things To Do Before You Graduate” Sabine Hall, Room SH117 Free book to first 30 students

Oct. 27 7:30 p.m.

“Fall Symphonic Instrumental Concert 1: For a New World” Wind symphony, string orchestra, chamber ensembles Fannin Performance Hall

Oct. 29 1 to 3 p.m.

Mental Health Symposium Sabine Hall, Room SH117 (sponsored by Counseling Services)

Oct. 30 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Halloween Costume Contest – prizes given Cafeteria stage Sign up in El Paso Hall, Room E040

Nov. 6 12:30 and 7:30 p.m.

“Americana” dance concert Fannin Performance Hall Guest artists: Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet and Lonnie J. Hightower Free and open to the public

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October 20, 2015

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October 20, 2015

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