The SMCC Beacon 11-4-2014

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NOVEMBER 4, 2014

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mbeacon@smccme.edu. www.theSMCCBeacon.wordpress.com YouTube SMCCBeaconNewspaper FaceBook thebeacon.smcc

Ins ide Other World

Pages 2-3 Sailboat Beached

Arts & Features Pages 4-5 Fury

Op & Ed Pages 6-7

Edward Snowden

Campus News Pages 8-10

SMCC Program: Horticulture

Sports

Pages 11-12 Giants Win World Series

S T U D E N T S ,

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VOLUME 12 ¤ ISSUE 5

S T U D E N T S

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Big Challenges, Achievable Solutions Academic Progress through Collective Responsibility

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at SMCC face some tough issues. Though we are a wonderful school, the largest community college in Maine, and offer the lowest tuition rates in New England, there are still some threats to the academic success of our student body. Consider, for example, these statistics offered by an SMCC survey in 2013: SMCC’s graduation rate falls at just 18%; the national rate is at 31%. SMCC’s retention rate for full time students is at 54%, and part time fall at 48%; the national retention rate is 59%. Lastly, the average GPA at SMCC is 2.52.

Clearly we are lacking in a few areas, but we are by no means hopeless. Here at SMCC there’re safety nets in place to help ensure the academic success for the students.

The Student Welfare Committee (SWC) is a committee that monitors the wellbeing of the student population.

SWC is an official committee of the Student Senate. Though this committee is relatively new, its members are working fervently for the betterment of this school. They consider that the students here, as a whole, can achieve prosperous results through collaboration and determination.

The committee is currently working on a number of initiatives to improve the welfare of our student population, such as:

TUITION COVERAGE POLICY SWC is looking into expanding/brining more programs to help pay for college tuition: i.e. Path to Graduation; a program that pays tuition for a number

of students with the requisite that they offer peer-mentoring the following semester.

ACADEMIC WELFARE POLICY This is the biggest initiative that SWC is taking on. They are looking into creating a committee of outstanding professors to raise standards for instruction and implement best practices that engage students. The committee is also exploring ways to get more students

to become peer-mentors for level 100 courses.

SUSTAINABILITY POLICY SWC is researching the practicality of pushing SMCC to be more self-sustaining. They are currently working toward making the campus more composting-friendly. According to the Portland Press Herald, UMF and UMaine, recently purchased an advanced composting system called an “Earth Flow” (the size of a long thin garage) that aerates its waste into rich compost for campus use in 51 days flat. If SWC can effectively implement this sustainability policy, the horticulture program could also benefit from the nutrient rich soil.

COLLEGE FOOD POLICY The Student Welfare Committee is also looking into providing affordable options at the Sea Wolves Café, as well

as seeking additional healthier options on the menu. SWC believes that prices should reflect the budgets of the average student, considering it is offering its services on campus.

Furthermore, it has been noted that at certain times there’s a surplus of students who need assistance to an uneven ratio of tutors. SWC would like to either bring tutors from other locations, or expand the amount of SMCC’s tutors during peak hours (by means of soliciting volunteers or otherwise). They also seek to promote Smartthinking online tutoring; a free service that is available 24/7. The subjects Smartthinking offers are: math, business, science, and writing.

When asked what SMCC could do to help work towards progress, the Committee on student welfare had this to say to all students: Despite all the challenges we face, we are adults, and as such we are responsible for our own success. What’s more important, we would even venture to say we are also responsible for the success of our team.

It may be difficult for some to look at a student body as being a team. Far too often, we see ourselves as individuals just trying to get by and make a better life for ourselves. We also tend to think that by happenstance we are working simultaneously, yet separately, with other students who want the same thing. However, a team is defined as those who “come together as a unit to achieve a common goal.” In the light of this definition, we at SMCC are in fact a team - a collection of students pursuant of the same goal, of a brighter future.

Even though there are measures being taken to progress this college, we all have an equal role to contribute in (Continued on page 4)

Transcending Fundamentals into Fine Art The Rule of Thirds on Display

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here is a plethora of artistic and documentary photography that has graced the walls of the SMCC Learning Commons and this art’s reporter doesn’t want it to see it go.

Located on the second floor there is a charge of emotional and thought provoking photography that will energize your creative spirit into a realm of conceptual thinking bounding your energy to that of the library.

As we know people go to the library for literary inspiration and research, but once you check out the artwork you will stay for the visual inspiration. Adding the element of creative dynamism to one’s thought processes will transcend the apathetic mind into the conscious and engaged one.

Christian Farnsworth’s Photography class (Arts 220) has been studying and applying the technique of “Rule of Thirds,” to their photographs. For the individuals unfamiliar with this rule, the “Rule of Thirds” is a basic compositional technique used in all fields of visual arts. Leaving out abstract, radial patterns and symmetrical balance, every piece of two-dimensional art ever created follows or tangibly morphs the “Rule of Thirds.” southern maine community college

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Though, it may not be called “Rule of Thirds” in film or painting, the idea is to take your frame and split it into thirds horizontally and vertically. At the intersection of these points is where you want your subject to stand as it catches the eye. The fundamental rule is meant to enhance the viewing experience.

Throwing the subject a little off the line, or intersection can create an imbalance that draws the eye to both the subject and negative space of the image.

Farnsworth’s students are conscious of this principle and have mastered the esoteric qualities it takes to hold human attention. Every photograph in this study has surpassed compositional skills to opus quality work incorporated with challenging lighting techniques, eye-catching focal length, and brain teasing creativity.

One could say it is a duty for students in search of broadening their educational experience to spend some quality time at the exhibit. Not only would it be a fun experience, but also it would be an experience of enlightenment. The beauty of an exhibit like this is that while you are studying the photographs, they act as a vehicle that is key to a calming and meditative atmosphere. To deny this institutionalized dojo with levity is an insult to your mind depriving the viewer of a journey that transcends the fundamental work found in these photographs into something that steps into the realm of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.

The show will be on display until Thursday, December 11.

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By Francis Coletti ¤

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THE

SCIENCE WATCHROOM

GET HELP

O

ther World

Your Brain on Exercise – The Wrap-up

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his is the last installment of my summer experience working in a neuroscience lab at the University of New England under a Maine-INBRE (IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence) Fellowship.

It’s been awhile, so here’s a brief synopsis of my experiment. I looked into how the perception of pain is handled in the brain through neurotransmitters associated with inhibition involved in the descending pain pathway. A rat model of advanced osteoarthritis in the left knee was used, and they were prescribed an exercise regimen that noticeably reduced pain and brought the animals back to their baseline thresholds much sooner. After weeks of exercise and retesting of pain thresholds, all subjects were euthanized, and their brains were given to me.

I was looking for what neurotransmitters (endogenous opioids) were involved in the upregulation of this internal pain-modulating system.

My ten-week fellowship was spent sectioning the brain tissue on a cryostat, fluorescently staining tissues using immunohistochemistry, analyzing the intensity of this fluorescence, interpreting these results, quantifying the data, presenting the results, and surfing the web.

The hypothesis of my experiment was upheld: a visible and quantifiable increase in tyrosine hydroxylase (TH – a known precursor to dopamine and norepinephrine) was observed in the exercised cohorts compared to the sedentary group. What this means will need to be further explored through people that have more than ten weeks to do so. As my mentor, Dr. Tamara King said, “Science

...without ever leaving the classroom!

Tutors are located in many departments across campus: Anatomy & Physiology Recitations Architectural Engineering Design

Automotive Business Computer Science Computer Technology Communications New Media Early Childhood Education Electrical Engineering Technologies & Pre-Engineering Fire Science Microbiology Recitations

For a detailed schedule, visit: smccme.libguides.com/ department_tutoring

builds on science; people spend years and can conduct a hundred different experiments that all build off one initial experiment.”

After my ten weeks was up, I had to compile my data and build a poster to present at Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory in Bar Harbor, during the INBRE/NSF Student Science Symposium. This was held in late July, and a beautiful time of year to be in Bar Harbor. Every student had to either take part in a poster presentation or a lecture-style presentation in front of a bunch of real scientists. I opted for the poster. However, it was at this event that I had my epiphany and decided on yet-another career about-face.

The guest speaker was Dr. Sidney McNairy, an aspirational scientist/politician who had a career change of his own. He started his career as a chemical engineer, and worked for some prestigious colleges and corporations, but left the field to work for the government. It was through the government he saw the avenue to impact the world, and help others like him, and myself, who came from modest beginnings. Dr. McNairy went on to work for the National Institutes of Health, and was instrumental in the INBRE program’s inception and administration.

With all of my duties mentioned, surfing the web was where much of the time was spent. Yes, some of it was experiment-specific, but most was not. In the real world of science, you often set up one experiment and let it run; depending on the experiment, this could be hours or days. Most lab workers multitask, and set up another experiment or help a lab partner. However, for the most part, there is a lot of downtime. There were a lot of hurryup-and-wait scenarios, and I am too active for that type of situation.

Nonetheless, this fellowship did exactly what it was supposed to do, and exposed me to the real-world of science. I came back to college to position myself to make an impact on this world, and have realized that this can be done whenever you apply yourself. And it should be done in whatever field interests you the most. For me – and for Dr. Sidney McNairy – it turns out, this was not science, but politics.

By Jason Glynn

PHOTO BY THE BEACON STAFF

Art Director Graphic Design Photo Editing

Tammy Huisingh Alex Brooks, Jennifer Lague Jennifer Lague, Lauren Michelle

Section Editors

Erik Squire Campus News Maisarah Miskoon The Other World Garrick Hoffman Op & Ed Patrick Doyle Arts & Features Sam Coombs Sports

Contributing Writers

Tayler Chretien, Francis Coletti, Dierdree Glassford, Jason Glynn, Kelsey Hehir, Rebekah Marin, Ryan Plouffe, Rachel York, Ian Ziller

Photographers

Kenneth Reddinger, Lauren Michelle

Web Master

Jennifer Lague

find us Advisers

Chuck Ott, Rachel Guthrie

where it’s at www.thesmccbeacon.wordpress.com southern maine community college

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Sailboats Beached

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fter a fall that has been relatively quiet, weather wise that is, a Nor-easter visited the coast of Maine over the course of a few days, October 22nd to the 24th.

Sometime before 1:30pm Thursday the 23rd, two sailboats were torn from their moorings, or broke free from docks and were pushed up against the SMCC seawall at the end of Fort Road.

Thankfully no one was injured during this unmanned excursion from the sailboats resting place to the seawall. However, classes that were to be held in the Art Studio and

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Fish Building were cancelled at the request of Central Maine Power. The reason, the mast of the sailboat that was beached behind the Fish Building was leaning up against the power lines, prompting CMP to make the request for the safety sake of students who had classes in these buildings.

By Saturday morning classes had resumed and the boats had been removed. All is well again along the SMCC seawall, until the next Nor-easter rears its ugly head and makes compliant play toys out of these beauty seagoing vessels.

By The Beacon Staff

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THE

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CCleaner

Making Your Computer Run Faster

IS

your computer working slower than it should?

Try using a free program called CCleaner also known as Crap Cleaner.

There are two editions that an individual can choose, one being the edition that can be costly, and the other edition being free which tends to work just as well as the costly edition. This program will speed up your computer by deleting files you never knew you had, but it also has other cool features.

CCleaner deletes the junk files you don’t see in the background and it also deletes your web browser files you don’t see, such as your history, and temporary internet files. CCleaner will delete some files you do see, such as emptying your recycle bin. Some of the cool features for CCleaner are that from Tools you can uninstall programs you don’t need by using the Control Panel on a Windows computer.

PHOTO BY THE BEACON STAFF

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ther World

Another positive is that you can also control what programs start-up when the computer turns on. There is also a file finder option to make looking for a certain file quick and easy.

If you’re donating your computer, you can use CCleaner to delete everything without worry by using the Drive Wiper option.

You can also right click your recycle bin and you can run CCleaner, so your items will get deleted. Deleting your personal files through CCleaner is more reliable and trustworthy for knowing that a file has been deleted permanently. Warning, running CCleaner will log you out of sites you’re logged into, so make sure you have/know your passwords!

You can download CCleaner free at: https://www.piriform.com/CCleaner/download. You click the download button in the first row, which is the free edition of CCleaner. Once you hit download, the CCleaner will start downloading it onto your computer.

When it is done, look at your downloads for ccsetup and double left click on it to start the install. A window may come up asking if you want to run the installer for this program, you would left click on yes.

A window will pop up saying, “Welcome to CCleaner (the version number) Setup,” next select what language you want the program to be, the default is English, then click next. A new window will pop up for the install asking about install options, the defaulted options are checked, you can uncheck the options you do not wish to have.

After you’re done unchecking, or leaving it, click Install. The program will start installing, after it is done, a final window will pop up asking clarification questions about the checked items you wish to see, uncheck them if you want the first one which is to “Run CCleaner (the version number),” and the second one is the release notes for that version of CCleaner. After you uncheck or left it checked, click finish and it will show or not show depending on what you picked.

CCleaner is easy to use; all you do is left click the icon wherever it may be. The program will start and you will automatically start with the cleaner tab. On the lower right hand side, there are two buttons “Analyze” and “Run.” The Analyze button will show you what might get deleted and the Run button will just start deleting items that you don’t need, or data you don’t see. You can always uncheck things under the ¤

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windows tab, or the applications tab, so they won’t get deleted.

If you want CCleaner to automatically start when you turn on your computer go to the left hand side and click options with a picture of a gear.

Left click on the gear and then left click the setting button. Now all you need to do is check “Run CCleaner when the computer starts.” Those short and simple steps will ensure that the next time you start your computer, the program

will automatically run, so you don’t have to remember to do it.

By Ryan Plouffe

Ryan is a member of the Computer Technology Senior Seminar course and is planning on a career in Computer Hardware and Networking. You can see what Ryan is doing in Senior Seminar course by going to www.ryanplouffe.com

November is NaNoWriMo! Never heard of it? No worries – lots of people are new to National Novel Writing Month!

During November 2013, 310,095 people from across the globe registered for NaNoWriMo and took on the challenge of becoming novelists in just 30 days.

Why not join their ranks and make 2014 the year you tell your story?

Visit nanowrimo.org to learn more or register In the meantime, visit the Learning Commons to check out your favorite novel from the Library or improve your writing at the Writing Center. Inspiration is everywhere!

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rts &Features

20 Years of The Shawshank Redemption

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TARGETED WRITING SESSIONS

ake a look at the IMDb Top 250 list on its eponymous website - a list dictated by users, not just critics or hierarchal IMDb staff - and at the #1 position is not The Godfather, Citizen Kane, or Titanic. Situated at this spot is, instead, The Shawshank Redemp-

tion.

Twenty years have now passed since its release. It initially landed on the market to very tepid reception that is, in numbers. Its revenue didn’t hit the desired target, especially in accordance to its budget, and the the-

The Writing Across the Curriculum Committee is excited to offer the following 30 minute information sessions on aspects of academic writing and reading.

The sessions are free and open to students, faculty, and staff. No reservations necessary. Stop by and sharpen your skills!

All sessions will be held in the Writing Center area down the right hallway from the entrance to the Academic Achievement Center (in the Library).

In Your Own Words: Paraphrasing Properly Gerry Zarrilli 11:00am - 11:30am Tuesday, November 11

The Literary Analysis: A Research Paper in Disguise Mike Bove 12:30pm - 1:00pm Thursday, November 20 For further information, email Amy Havel at:

ahavel@smccme.edu

Exclusive Offer for Southern Maine Community College students, faculty & staff

No overdraft fees.

No monthly fees.

No hassles.

Any SMCC student, faculty or staff member that opens a Hassle Free account at the MillCreek KeyBank Center between 10/21 & 11/21 will be eligible to win a Kindle Fire HD

FMI - Contact Libby Reynolds at (207) 767- 5991 To be eligible to enter to win a Kindle Fire you must open a KeyBank Hassle-Free Account or other qualifying KeyBank checking account between 10/14/2014 and 11/14/2014 and make direct deposits within 60 days after account opening. Direct deposit transactions are limited to payroll, Social Security, pension and government benefits. The value of your gift will be reported on Form 1099-INT. The Kindle Fire can be picked up at the MillCreek KeyBank Center located at 25 Market Street, South Portland, ME. Offer is not available to individuals who have had a KeyBank checking account.

If you close your account within 180 days of account opening, you will be charged a $25 account early closure fee. Accounts overdrawn or closed at the time of gift fulfillment are not eligible for this offer. Accounts titled as Trust Accounts, Estate, Non-Individual, and No Access are excluded from eligibility.

Offer is subject to cancellation without notice and cannot be combined with any other offer. Other miscellaneous charges may apply. In addition to the KeyBank Hassle-Free Account all other personal checking accounts except the Student Checking Account qualify for this offer. Normal account service charges apply to these other checking accounts. ©2014 KeyCorp. KeyBank is Member FDIC. ADL7206.02

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ater turnout was less than spectacular. Fast forward to 2014 and its #1 position on the IMDb list still seems to be unrivaled. It has occupied this spot since the 1990s.

The highly-acclaimed film, adapted from Stephen King’s novella “Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption” in his book Different Seasons, centers around the tale of Andy Dufresne, a banker from Portland, Maine who is accused of murdering his adulterous wife and her lover. Andy, played by Tim Robbins, is sentenced to life in Shawshank State Penitentiary where he befriends a man named Red, an inmate played by Morgan Freeman who was imprisoned for murder and who serves as the go-to guy for myriad contraband.

Red, upon Andy’s arrival as a “fresh fish,” is certain Andy would be an easy target - he appears fragile, soft.

And indeed, Andy is initially bullied, beaten, and tested. But Andy remains oddly composed and level-headed, somehow finding serenity in a place where there should be none. From nearly the beginning, Andy is assimilated into Red’s band of friends, and he goes through the motions of prison life over the years, but in a considerably unconventional way. He creates a prison library, cultivates reverence from the otherwise diabolical guards and inmates alike, and even begins to handle the warden’s taxes and financial accounts.

But he also isn’t innocent as he’s perceived to be. Andy surreptitiously handles contraband, conducts mutinous acts with undisguised avidity, and under the iron fist of the nefarious warden, he finds himself in solitary confinement more than once, despite their ostensible friendship.

From the beginning and throughout, Andy’s enigmatic temperament leaves us curious and hungry for more. We are enthralled by his mystery and the story itself, always wondering whether Andy’s guilty or not, always

wondering what will unfold next.

Shawshank is a movie that harbors so many wonderful qualities that it takes no fool to see why it went on to garner a plethora of awards and nominations, an abundance of admiration, and seemingly infinite replay on cable television. It’s a film that doesn’t just tell a story about its hero. It’s a film that can’t be described as just some “run of the mill” prison flick. It’s a film that conveys a grand multitude of emotions: hope and hopelessness, humor and sorrow, sympathy and contempt, the macabre and the tender.

We watch with poignancy the intimacy of Andy and Red’s relationship in the haunting institution that it rests in. We feel this vicarious pain, exasperation, and sometimes elation through the characters; we share their emotions throughout their many trials. And in the end, we deduce that the movie is a testament to one thing in particular: patience.

King himself notes his love for the movie, and some of the movie’s cast, including both Robbins and Freeman, have remarked that it had the best screenplay they had ever read. Now people regard it as being tantamount to a spiritual experience. As an arguably infallible movie that provokes a sense of introspection in its audience, The Shawshank Redemption has earned its “#1” title.

So if you’ve never seen it, do yourself a favor. Or, as Andy says, “Get busy living or get busy dying.”

By Garrick Hoffman

Achievable Solutions (Continued from page 1)

this process. We should all be communicating with the Student Senate, and even joining the Senate, to express our needs and desires. As it is, the Senate only has 3 out of a possible 20 student body representatives (the rest are club reps).

A team must have fully functioning members to succeed. We must all look for solutions, give as much effort as we can, and work together. Only then will we be able to face our challenges.

When we are in class we need to hold ourselves to higher standards, we need to offer our classmates assistance, and communicate with our teachers.

When we’re at school we should get involved with a club, volunteer as a tutor, or give a hand at the Captain’s Cupboard. It is proven that when we become more involved on campus, we

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do better academically! Not to mention we will be happier! Yes, it is extra “work” that isn’t required of us, but we should expect this kind of effort from ourselves.

It is the difference between being okay with just skating by, and not accepting status-quo. Are you in?

Please bring your ideas, concerns, question, and answers to the Student Senate or the Student Welfare Committee. E-mail them at: swcsmcc@gmail. com

By Erik Squire (The aforementioned national percentage rates apply to two year public colleges).

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Marin On Movies

rad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman, and Michael Pena… could David Ayer have chosen a better leading cast for his newest drama “Fury”?

I was certainly more than thrilled to watch this killer foursome interact on the big screen. It’s April 1945, the allies are pushing through the last bit of the Eastern Theatre, and Wardaddy, played by Pitt, leads his five man crew with the new addition of Norman, played by Lerman, into a life threatening mission through Nazi occupied Germany.

The tank crew led by Wardaddy had been together since the beginning of the war traveling through Africa, France, and Belgium, so they were somewhat reluctant to consider Norman one of them right from the start.

However, with coaching and tough love from Wardaddy, Norman gets acclimated to the incredibly harsh conditions they’re under and overcomes his initial shock, while finding his own

place within the tight knit crew.

Each actor in the crew plays a crucial part in the film, but Pitt as the tough-loving leader, and LaBeouf as the spiritual leader, stood out as incredibly powerful and unforgettable roles. It was their commitment to the crew, to doing what they came to do, and to their country that left me breathless and in tears by the end of the film.

I’ll be honest here: I’m not usually one for war films. However, knowing who the hunks starring in “Fury” were, I still somewhat reluctantly decided to give it a shot and to my surprise I don’t regret it at all. Coming from someone who just admitted I might spend more time watching Rom-Coms than dramas you might not believe me when I say this was the best war film to date, but have a little faith in me, and I think you’d agree.

The film depicts the brutal reality of the events that soldiers had to live

Dining Out on a Students Budget Back Cove BBQ & Pizzeria

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ave your midterms got you in a slump? Do you just wish it were summer again, so you could kick back and relax? Do you wish it were Super Bowl Sunday already? Me too!

Recently I have found myself feeling bored, stuck in the routine of school and seeking a bit of fun. One of the best things about summer and the Super Bowl is the food by far, and at my most recent visit to Back Cove BBQ & Pizzeria over at 89 Ocean Ave, I was brought back to some of the best game time meals I’ve ever had!

Back Cove’s rustic charm warms you right up. A no mess, no fuss restaurant that serves an incredible amount of food found on its diverse and exciting menu, Back Cove BBQ will hit just the right spot. Greeted with cheer by the great staff, you feel extremely comfortable in this casual dining setting, and whether you are sitting in, or taking out, the food will stop you in you tracks! Specializing in American cuisine, Back Cove has some great and familiar meal options, like their Crispy Finger Lick’n Wings that come in all types of flavors like Chipotle BBQ, and Sweet Thai Chili, or their to die for fresh dough pizzas!

There is a certain charm to a place that prides itself on fresh food and good service, and this place has got it.

With every meal made to order, you know that you are going to get the freshest, crispiest fries around, and your food will never come out cold.

With a creative menu of pizzas to choose from, you could make your next pizza party the talk of the town, with crowd favorites like Meat/Veggie Lovers, and more unique choses that I have never seen anywhere else like the Big Mac Attack, you wont have a mouth go hungry! They also have gluten free pizza available now!

One of the best deals in town is the Back Cove “Great Deal” Combo, which includes an entree off of the menu, a southern maine community college

side of fries and a fountain drink, all for $9.99, making it an unbelievable deal for students on a budget!

My partner in crime and I decided to go for completely opposite meals and see what would come of it. Pure delight is the answer! Ordering the Thanksgiving Gobbler for myself, in respect for the upcoming holiday and substituting out the fries for fresh house made coleslaw, my first bite was a delicious combination of fresh perfectly tender turkey, tart cranberry sauce, and stuffing. It was a dream (I’m a sucker for Turkey day sandwiches).

My man friend grabbed himself a scrumptious pulled pork sandwich, with the fries of course, and it looked so good I stole a bite for myself. Smoked on site in a giant smoker/grill, the meat fell apart in your mouth in all the right ways. After a long day of errands, this was the place to be for a relaxed and homey meal made with care and pride.

Now I saved the best part for last. With a valid student I.D you can purchase any meal and receive a 10% discount at the register. That extra buck sure saves my pockets, how bout you?

Not only that, but Back Cove has a great deal on delivery: no matter how much you order, the delivery charge stays the same, meaning when you start planning your next big event, Back Cove Catering has got you covered!

Business meeting need a bit of a pick me up, or do you have a birthday to celebrate sometime in the near future?

Back Cove will be glad to whip you up something great!

So the next time you have a hankering for some bomb pizza creations, or just a great American meal, feel free to visit Back Cove BBQ & Pizzeria in Portland. You won’t regret it, and neither will you wallet!

Till our next bite,

Page 5 ¤ November 4, 2014

through and witness daily during World War II, all the while focusing in on a true tale of brotherhood and dedication on so many levels.

The action kept my eyes glued to the screen, with each scene more jaw-dropping than the previous one.

It was both heartbreaking and inspiring to watch the tired crew fight until they had given all the fight they had left in them up for the cause.

The last leg of their journey together happens in their broken down tank, Fury, where both outnumbered and outgunned they stick together in an

attempt to take down the Nazis for the last time. The attack is grueling, but the five of them work together to put up a heroic fight against the Germans and it was one that was certainly worthwhile.

By Rebekah Marin

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oetry doesn’t come easily for me. Analyzing it, understanding it, writing it – I’ve always endured a lot of difficulty with it, even despite my title as an enthusiastic writer with an affinity for the craft. Every time I produce a poem, at the end I feel like what I really wrote are lyrics to a song (I’m also a musician after all; perhaps there’s a connection).

Nonetheless, here I am occupying the Poetic License column with a poem. The ever-gracious Patrick Doyle, the Arts & Features section editor who typically is occupying this space, has allowed me to commandeer the role of the Poetic Licensee, and I lend my thanks to him for it.

I wrote this when I was living in Hawaii spending an inordinate amount of time reading. I had a lot of free time. I was reading “Apt Pupil,” a novella found in Stephen King’s Different Seasons (oddly enough, I mention this same book of short stories in another column in this issue), and one specific moment in that story inspired me to write this. The trademark ominousness of King’s work is undoubtedly the catalyst of this poem’s macabre nature.

My former Creative Writing professor described it as very “Poe-ish.”

I hope you enjoy it!

The Digger

The dark made the digging hard The only light was sent from the stars But still he dug to muffled screams Coming from the box of struggle and muted pleas “Shut it!” he belted, the spade driving into the ground, As his victim close-by was both blinded and bound, “Or I’ll aim for your neck and you won’t make a sound!”

But the trapped continued to weep And his grave was now five feet deep Death, becoming real, was surely looming By a digger with a zeal so hot and unmoving Suddenly the digger was under arrest He dropped his spade and clutched his chest The world around him began to spin Just like him, as he collapsed and fell in The trapped finally fell silent The heavens he’d later see remained sky lit The digger lay gasping, reaching for the stars His vision faded, and Hell’s door stood ajar Gone now, his mind, heart, and limbs He decayed slowly; his body grew thin And just like that, he atoned for his sin Inside of a grave that was not meant for him

Dining Dierdree

Garrick Hoffman

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America’s Feeble Infrastructure

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ugust 1, 2007, remains a date of haunting memories for many.

During the evening rush hour in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the nearly 2,000 foot-long Mississippi River Bridge, carrying scores of commuters, shuddered and collapsed into the river. The collapse killed 13 people and wounded 145 others.

In the wake of the destruction, the alarm was sounded to examine all infrastructure in the states. It also provoked the question: What other components of our infrastructure are being neglected, have grown feeble, and/or are potentially doomed to collapse? This includes roads, highways, bridges, ports, tunnels, and dams.

According to an article published

by The Economist on June 28 of this year, “Much of what was built [during the post-World War II infrastructure boom] was only designed to last for 50 years and now needs replacing. That includes almost half the country’s bridges.” In a 2011 report presented in the same article, America was listed behind eight other countries in road investment. We spent around 0.5% of GDP on roads. Public construction investment constitutes around 1.5% of our GDP today.

Currently, the U.S. ranks 19th in regards to the quality of its infrastructure, the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report claims. In the annual Infrastructure Report Card issued by The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the U.S. received a D+, stressing that “the investment shortfall will grow to $1.1 trillion by 2020.” It also claims that we already currently need $1.66 trillion to spend on infrastructure. The Report Card goes on to say that “aging and unreliable infrastructure will increase costs by $1.2 trillion for businesses, and $611 billion for households” under current investment trends. If we spend $157 billion a year on this critical need, the Report Card says, we can eschew tremendous losses in GDP, consumer spending, and jobs, among many other things.

Since the 2008 recession, states have aimed their focus on lingering debt payment, rather than on big capital projects. Even with home sales increases, job growth, and GDP augmentation since the recession, our investment in infrastructure continues to fall short. Economists argue, however, that with money being allocated for infrastructure replenishment, we would see job growth, business investment, and an overall healthy economy.

With many other of our nation’s problems stealing the spotlight, infrastructure continues to be cast into the shadows of our awareness. And if these weary structures continue to be neglected, we will see more and more plights arise - not only at the cost of the economy, but, as the Mississippi River Bridge collapse showcased, at the cost of human lives.

By Garrick Hoffman

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ngs orki W e Th ide the Ins con Bea C C SM

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am Underwood is a student here at SMCC who spent his fall season canvassing for the Maine Democratic Party. I recently had the pleasure of interviewing him to discuss his experience. This is the first of three installments.

You’ve been working for the Maine Democratic Party this season. Can you give any details about what that job entails?

Mostly it’s the same stuff that I was doing [for the Equality Maine Foundation]: voter outreach, fundraising, voter mobilization. We call it “Get Out The Vote” (GOTV).

You might see that acronym tossed around a lot. That’s when you just scatter shot anyone you think will support you. This is true of any campaign or candidate. Anything that you do throughout the entire campaign up to the end - it all comes to a head. You find out whether it worked or not when you do get out the vote.

What attracted you to the Maine Democratic Party? Why did you want to pursue that one?

I think that we all remember 2010, and a lot of us are really disappointed with the results of that race. Going to work for the democrats is, for me, really a public service piece. It’s a little bit easier because I’m paid staff and that’s cool. But I think even if I weren’t I’d still be supporting Congressman Michaud in the race. Just like [the marriage equality initiative], it’s about doing something for the state or the community or the people in your life who could really be affected by some of the issues out there. When I got into marriage equality, my mom couldn’t marry the person that she wanted to be with. That can engender the kind of resentment that can eat you alive if you let it. So going to work for her wasn’t about me. I got into this line of work by accident so it’s not like I’m set on some kind of career in politics. If anything I’m getting out of it after this race. I’m going to look for a different career in another field. I don’t think I’ll ever get away from it completely, but going to work for the democrats is about going to work for my state.

Do you think its like fulfilling your role or duty as a citizen?

Absolutely.

So what do you believe is the role or duty of the average citizen?

I think the responsibilities of a citizen in this free republic are to stay informed, to think critically, and to take action in the best interest of themselves and their community. The only way they can do that is if they stay informed and think critically. You have to get the information first, then you have to analyze it and pick it apart and understand, and then go out with the information that you got and make the best choice you can. A lot of the time Americans treat voting as if it’s their opportunity to go out and grab whatever they can for themselves and shout from the top of their lungs in favor of what they want personally. But really I think that the electoral process here ¤

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is more complicated than that because there are people who have less than I do, who have fewer advantages and fewer privileges, and if I’m not taking into account what I can do for them

when I cast my ballot, I’m really not meeting my obligations as a citizen.

How did you attain the position that you have right now? Did you need any merits or accolades, or did they just look at your experience?

When I got hired, my political experience definitely played a role in that.

You don’t need to have a background in politics to start working in politics; that’s one of the amazing things about it. You can start fresh off the boat, so to speak, and work really hard and advance up the chain. I wear a couple different hats, but my primary responsibility is to contact voters. You don’t need any kind of previous experience to do that. A good organization will train you up and get you competent to have those conversations because it’s really about what you’re bringing to the table yourself. It’s about your personality and your personability and how you can identify with and create meaningful connections with people you’re talking to.

So your position would be pretty desirable as an entry-level position into politics for anyone who would want to get involved. At the risk of sounding demeaning, do you think it’s the “bottom rung of the ladder” to climb into politics?

I wouldn’t say thats demeaning at all. And I would also say it’s correct.

Would you need to supplement your career or resume with college to be able to climb to the top, or do you think just starting there could enable you to climb to higher office or a higher position?

I’ll start by saying that it is always a good idea to get your education. It is never going to hurt you to get more academic qualifications or degrees. If you have the opportunity, and you can do it without backing yourself into a corner in terms of financial debt, it never hurts to have an education. Having said that, there are plenty of people who start just as a field canvasser, which is my primary responsibility. I’ve been doing

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this for a while, so I’m pretty good at it.

But you can start doing that, you can go to school part time while you’re doing it, take semesters off to make sure you hit those elections, and the rest of the time go to school part time and get your education that way. There’s no reason why you can’t advance up the chain; sky’s the limit. It’s up to you how far you go with it. That said, if you really want to have the most opportunity to make the biggest difference, and also the most opportunity for advancement, what you really want to do is be a field organizer. Field organizers reach out to volunteers and actually mobilize volunteers.

Do you only call registered voters? Or do you call people to encourage them to both register and vote?

What I can tell you is that any organization that canvassses will target registered voters. Depending on the organization, the organization might prepare you to actually assist an eligible voter by pulling out a registration card to get you registered in the event that you encounter someone like that in the field. When I worked for Equality Maine, there was actually a question on the ballot about same-day voter registration, which is a really crucial, really awesome feature we have in the state in which you can go to the polls on election day, register there and then vote.

Is same-day voter registration not something found in other states?

I don’t have a tally for you, but at the top of my head I can tell you it’s not something found in all fifty states.

The voter registration laws [in Maine] are not strict, and there are people who would tell you that’s a bad thing. I’ll tell you right now that the incidents of voter fraud in Maine are negligible, practically non-existent.

Do you only know when you’re successful with the job when you see who gets elected, or when you see the voter turnout?

I would say it depends on how you’re defining success. Obviously you want your candidate to win, and it sucks when they don’t. This is my first time working for a candidate. I’ve never worked for an organization that didn’t succeed. I’ve worked for solid organizations that took good care of me with knowledgeable, senior staff who knew their stuff and set realistic goals and then blew them out of the water. In terms of success, yeah, you want your candidate to win. You also want to enfranchise the electorate. You want to get young people involved when you can.

Because the fact is that even if your candidate doesn’t win this round, a couple years down the road you’re probably gonna be doing it all over again, potentially in the same place if you’re a local like me. And the people you mobilize the first time - they’re still gonna be there. They’re gonna want to see some continuity. So if you can deliver that for them, even if you don’t win every election, if you’re a local organization or a local politician, you wanna deliver that continuity so they can have faith in you to ultimately achieve what you want to achieve.

By Garrick Hoffman

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Arrogant Dogmatism in American Media

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his essay The Problems of Philosophy, Bertrand Russell uses a term, “arrogant dogmatism,” to describe the personality of someone who has never “travelled into the region of liberating doubt.” He examines the separation of practical men from philosophical men, stating that practical men focus on providing food for the body with material goods, while philosophical men focus on providing food for the mind with knowledge. And, while practical men look for definite answers, philosophical men ponder the uncertainty of the universe. According to Russell, the practical person is “The man who has no tincture of philosophy. Therefore, he goes through life imprisoned in the prejudices derived from common sense. From the habitual beliefs of his age or his nation, and from convictions which have grown up in his mind without the cooperation or consent of his deliberate reason.” This is someone who has never traveled into the “region of liberating doubt” because they have never philosophized. To travel into the region of liberating doubt is to philosophize, because philosophy “is able to suggest many possibilities which enlarge our thoughts and free them from the tyranny of custom.”

A person who expresses arrogant dogmatism is a practical person with a set system of thinking. Because of this closed-minded way of thinking, they believe strongly in their own opinion and assert what they believe as if it were fact. A modern example of someone who expresses arrogant dogmatism is Bill O’Reilly. He is an author and the host of his own political commentary program on Fox News Channel, “The O’Reilly Factor.” Fox News Channel is

widely criticized for biased news, and Bill O’Reilly is often targeted for his controversial commentary.

Similar to Russell’s description, Merriam-Webster dictionary defined dogmatism as, “A viewpoint or system of ideas based on insufficiently examined premises.” Basing conclusions upon insufficient amounts of information often leads to biased ideas. As well as leading to biased ideas, closed-mindedness can also cause prejudiced beliefs.

A few years ago, on the September 19th, 2007 edition of “The Radio Factor,” Bill O’Reilly talked about a dining experience he had at a Harlem soul food restaurant, Sylvia’s. He states, “And I couldn’t get over the fact that there was no difference between Sylvia’s restaurant and any other restaurant in New York City. I mean, it was exactly the same, even though it’s run by blacks, primarily black patronship.”

He added, “There wasn’t one person in Sylvia’s who was screaming, ‘M-Fer, I want more iced tea.’” These statements are not only prejudiced, but ignorant.

Bill O’Reilly’s arrogant dogmatism has caused him to make preconceived judgments of people of a different race than he and then to be surprised when his judgments are wrong. Although he is examining ideas foreign to himself, he is not entering a region of liberating doubt because he is continuing to make biased judgments and ignorant remarks. To philosophize is to ponder perennial questions, not to make conclusions based on personal opinion.

Arrogance is often displayed as having an exaggerated focus on one’s self importance. Bill O’Reilly constantly displays arrogant behavior by asserting his opinion by speaking to others in

Edward Snowden, Part I The Man Behind The Name

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he name Edward Snowden was once virtually unknown. The man behind the name lived in Hawaii with his wife and kids and worked as government contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA). He was perhaps just an average Joe, an ordinary family man who toiled away, like any

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American, in the banalities of the daily grind to support himself and his family.

Then in June 2013, like an overnight YouTube star, he capriciously became an international figure. His face appeared on news broadcasts and his name was tossed around in a tug-of-war of characterization between heroism and treason. The media frenzy that followed came as a result of his now-famous (or to some, infamous) act: Snowden leaked thousands upon

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a degrading tone or cutting them off mid-sentence. He disrespects guests on his show who have different beliefs than he. From the same September edition of “The Radio Factor,” Bill O’Reilly states, “I think black Americans are starting to think more and more for themselves. They’re getting away from the Sharptons and the Jacksons and the people trying to lead them into a race-based culture. They’re just trying to figure it out: ‘Look, I can make it.

If I work hard and get educated, I can make it.’” First off, this quote is another opinion-turned-fact, Bill O’Reilly has no idea what another person is thinking, regardless of their race. He is very arrogantly making himself seem superior to another entire race, basically indirectly stating that black Americans have been incompetent in the past years and are now “trying to figure it out.” Lastly, he is contradicting himself by criticizing others for promoting a “race-based culture” while he is doing it himself.

Bill O’Reilly and Fox News Channel have been criticized over the years multiple times for biased news and controversial remarks. On his television show, “The O’Reilly Factor,” he displays himself as very over-confident and assertive in his opinions, regardless that they are not fact. Bill O’Reilly is widely acknowledged by the public and media for his arrogant dogmatism by the amount of criticism he receives because of controversial statements.

One could even argue that as someone working in the media industry, Bill O’Reilly displays arrogant dogmatism for a reason: publicity. Regardless, a trip to the region of liberating doubt would benefit him and the rest of the public.

By Rachel York

thousands of classified U.S. intelligence documents. He now sits in the league with other recently distinguished whistleblowers like himself, such as Chelsea Manning and Julian Assange.

What Snowden revealed is a world eerily reminiscent of George Orwell’s 1984, a dystopian novel in which the government oversees every minute

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Democracy:

Why is it Hard in Africa and the Middle East Compared to Western Europe?

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some nations, democracy has become a long-standing tradition. In countries like the U.S., democracy is such a tradition that we think of it as a core of who we are. Other countries, like the ones in Europe, also have a long history of democracies. However, not all countries that are democracies are like the U.S. and European ones, and countries in both Africa and the Middle East have found democracy to be challenging.

There are likely several reasons why the U.S. has had a more stable democracy and a long democratic tradition. One reason that some countries seem less likely to create and maintain stable democracies is that these countries’ only exposure to democracy has been through the Western eyes. In contrast, the U.S. and European nations got some of their ideas from the philosophers of the enlightenment. In these countries, they were surrounded by a lot of European philosophy and ideas of government. The classical democracies of Rome and Greece came from Western Europe as well so it is a part of western culture, whereas African and Middle Eastern countries do not have democracy in their culture.

Westerners have grown up to think that democracy is a right, while some people do not have these same ideas. When it comes down to it, people tend to accept the status quo, and if you are not a democracy then the norm is not to be a democratic nation and so there is less resistance to tyranny.

However, if a tyrant took over in the West there would likely be more resistance than in the Middle East and Africa. People can be a little skeptical of change, and for some, this makes them a little concerned about democracy.

By Ian Ziller

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A Little of This; A Lot of That

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t’s that time again SMCC; time for more stellar news about our fabulous campus. This edition we will be exploring a bit about Path to Graduation, or as the cool kids call it, P2G (I know, pretty hip, isn’t it?). We will also make our way over to New Orleans (well, mentally anyway) and learn about Intervarsity Christian Fellowship’s service project of rebuilding a place in need.

The Beacon connected with Michele Pavitt who is an advisor and peer-mentor trainer for P2G.

As Ms. Pavitt explains, the program was made possible by a $500,000 donation from Key Bank. It enabled the college to hire two “success coaches,” herself and Kristi Kaeppel, to serve as secondary advisors for SMCC’s cohort of students. (Each student was also assigned a faculty academic advisor.) Pavitt and Kaeppel are both working with about 45 students, who are all first-time, college-ready, full-time, and committed to completing their degrees within two years. Each of the students will receive a $500 scholarship each semester for his or her first three semesters. They are also eligible for a $1,000 scholarship in their final semester, provided that they are on track to graduate. In return, each student has

agreed to serve as a peer mentor for one incoming SMCC student next fall. Pavitt and Kaeppel will provide peer-mentor training to prepare the students for this important role.

Keep a heads up SMCC, the program will be expanded from 90 students to approximately 150 students next year.

The Beacon also met with Joel Wentz who is a full time campus staff member for Intervarsity Christian

d e s o p x

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By Erik Squire

Fellowship (IV).

Two years ago, Joel was hired to start an Intervarsity chapter in the Portland area, and that’s when he started SMCC’s chapter. Joel is also an adjunct professor and teaches an Academic Success class here, he oversees other IV chapters in the area, but mainly his time is spent overseeing the SMCC Chapter.

Intervarsity is a faith based non-profit organization. Their goal is to see healthy communities on campuses that encourage spiritual conversation.

Joel stated that the question of faith is one of the most important questions we face, and it’s important to address it no matter where we land on it. He believes that IV helps address that question.

Essay Contest Community College Week and NISOD are proud to announce the annual Scott Wright Student Essay Contest in honor of Scott Wright, past editor of Community College Week (1995–2000), recipient of the 1998 Award for Excellence in Higher Education Journalism, and the reporter who brought national attention to developmental education and the unique mission community colleges possess in providing an accessible education.

Student authors are asked to describe an actual faculty member, staff member, or administrator, who encouraged him or her to complete a course, finish a semester, or graduate from college, and describe how that encouragement helped him or her reach their goal. ●● One winning student author will receive a $1,000 check. ●● The faculty member, staff member, or administrator featured in the winning essay will receive a $1,000 check. ●● NISOD will provide a complimentary membership to the winning student author’s college.

Submissions are due by:

11:59pm CST on 1/30/2015 For complete details, visit:

nisod.org/studentessaycontest southern maine community college

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Though they come at it from a Christian perspective, they try to be open and welcoming to any and all beliefs. Joel also noted that it was a personal goal of his to have people of multiple beliefs present during meetings because, he feels, it enriches the conversation. That being said, anybody who wants to hold a leadership position would be expected to be a Christian.

IV meets regularly for bible studies and they also meet once a week to plan community time, where they figure out how to meet new people and how get others involved. For example, they’ll hold a table at the campus center or host a movie night; things of that nature.

That’s just the regular week-in/week-out stuff.

IV does two big events and they occur during the fall and spring semesters.

Every fall they have a retreat/conference in NH. They meet up with other chapters from NH, VT, and ME to gather at a camp for a weekend. There’ll be about 150 students who attend this fall.

Then in the spring the biggest thing that Intervarsity does is head down to New Orleans during spring break for a service trip. Joel says it’s a lot of fun and it takes a ton of work but it has been an extremely encouraging program.

SMCC’s chapter goes down there with all the other IV chapters in New England. The program lasts a total of five weeks to accommodate the different spring break dates that each partici-

pating college may have. A bus goes to all the different colleges and picks up students during their break, so a decent mix of students will likely pile on the same bus, and it can be lot of fun.

While there, Intervarsity works with non-profits in the city. As Joel explains, “they know a lot better about what needs to be done, rather than us coming in and calling the shots.”

As an example of what IV does, they’ve previously worked with Project Homecoming to renovate houses that had been left vacant for the last eight years since the hurricane. IV has also worked with another organization named Journey Nine. Journey Nine found that just by repainting houses, the houses become less likely to be noticed by drug dealers and therein are less likely to have drugs sold in them.

Intervarsity has been doing this since Hurricane Katrina hit in 05; it started as a relief project and has carried on to this day. This is something that Joel says he is particularly proud of.

He further clarifies: After the media attention dies down the aid starts to leave as well. But the city still needed so much work. In fact, before Katrina even hit, New Orleans already needed a lot of help, but the storm sort of exposed what was going on under the surface. So we (Intervarsity) will keep coming back, no matter how long it takes. And we’ve been doing so coming up on nine years.

SMCC

Shawna Rand

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Southern Maine Community College she is an adjunct professor for the English Department.

Outside of the school, she is a writer, editor, and publisher. She is also an adjunct professor for the Creative Writing Department at Southern New Hampshire University where she teaches fiction and publishing courses, as well as mentors/supervisees a few student internships.

Professor Rand says of SMCC, “I like the campus on the ocean, my co-workers, my boss Kevin Sweeney (a fine poet as well), and of course the students.” She explains that teaching keeps her connected to her own writing.

She is from Maine, and her family moved around Maine a lot. She is primarily from Millinocket, Dover-Foxcroft, and Portland.

She started college in 1985 at University of Southern Maine (USM), however, that didn’t work out well.

She ended up leaving school, working full-time for four years in Portland, and realized she wanted to go back to school. She applied for a job at USM, and was hired in 1991. She attended night classes for years there until finally deciding to go full-time and finish school. She graduated with a bachelor’s in Media Studies with a concentration in writing, as well as double minors in Educational Studies and Creative Writing. Rand exclaimed, “Out of all that schooling, USM squeezed in another degree for me, an Associate’s Degree in Liberal Arts.”

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FACULTY INTERVIEW

Finally, Professor Rand was accepted to graduate school at Columbia College Chicago. Then, as she puts it, life happened, and she ended up staying in Maine while taking care of her Mom who had cancer. During that time, USM started the Stonecoast MFA program in Creative Writing. She attended that program and graduated from the Inaugural Class of 2004.

When she was younger, she wanted to do something with writing, not so much becoming a professor.

She didn’t want to become a professor until she was a junior in college.

She states: “Some of my fellow undergraduate classmates and I had dreams of taking over the English Department at USM one day, and becoming like the amazing professors we had at the time. The person I have become today, I owe to my mom, grandmother, and the rest of the family and friends who helped my mom raise my brother and me. I also had a phenomenal experience with my professors.

I think going back to school at USM made me want to become a professor.

I have to give my husband, Jim Rand, credit for being supportive of me all the time. He’s not a writer, but he understands me even if he doesn’t understand me, if that makes sense. Jim gives me space and time to write when I go into a ‘zone.’ He reads my writing, gives me encouragement, and he just gets me!”

By Tayler Chretien

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SMCC’s Outstanding Programs Horticulture

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he Beacon stopped in to have an interview with David Palm, one of the professors in the Horticulture program. Mr. Palm has been with the program for six years.

Mr. Palm says that the program was started in the mid-70s. The main emphasis at the time was teaching nursery skills and landscaping. Over the years, however, things have changed; there’s been a shift of student interest in hard-

scaping and landscaping side of things, to farming and agriculture.

Horticulture is a general two year degree, and Palm always jokes that they have their perennial and biennial students. Mr. Palm said with a laugh, “We have our biennial students who stay two years and go off, and then the perennial students who stay three years and beyond. A lot of our student do tend to be three plus years.”

Some of the classes that Hort (short for Horticulture) offer its students are:

Rudy the Campus Cat

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outhern Maine Community College’s mascot is the Seawolf; but many would say our real mascot is Rudy, the campus cat. Rudy is the famous cat that can be seen roaming the campus grounds any time of day.

Kevin Sweeney; who has been an English professor here at SMCC for the past 32 years is the actual owner and caregiver of Rudy. Twelve years ago, Kevin found Rudy as a stray kitten who would visit his house regularly.

Kevin called the shelter to ask if Rudy was a lost cat after some time.

When he found out Rudy was not a lost cat, he adopted him with his wife and got him all of his shots to make sure that he was healthy. Rudy started going outside often and made it a habit to play with all the neighborhood cats.

When spring arrived somehow Rudy

vanished from Mr. Sweeney’s property and was seemingly lost.

Professor Sweeney got worried and started asking people if they had seen a missing cat on campus. Kevin went to the Tech building and found out that there had been a couple of reports of a missing cat.

Mr. Sweeney called the shelter to see if someone turned in Rudy after hearing about a missing cat report.

The shelter told him that a girl had called in saying that she had found a cat at SMCC at night and took him home because she thought he was a stray. Unfortunately the girl did not leave her name or any information except for that she worked at the SMCC.

Mr. Sweeney decided to investi-

Edward Snowden (Continued from page 7)

bit - even the most private - of civilian activity. 1984, published in 1949, proved to be acutely prophetic, and in reading the novel now, one might feel they themselves reside in the book’s world.

Our government, our “Big Brother,” as Orwell dubbed it, can now liberally monitor your life down to the most trivial fabric, and Snowden took it upon himself to expose this truth.

Snowden had met with two journalists in Hong Kong to reveal the documents, and in this location he was filmed to explain his acts, who he is, and why he did what he did. He also used the time to explain what was and still is happening behind the curtains of the NSA.

Since then, Snowden has been living in exile in Russia, where he has been given three years of asylum. He is now an extremely wanted “fugitive from justice,” as John Kerry put it. He has been dubbed a traitor and is charged for violating the Espionage Act and for theft of government property. Many political commentators, politicians, and civilians have fervently discussed Snowden in the most unflattering of terms, saying he is a traitor who betrayed his country and that he should face his (ostensibly) warranted justice - which could be up to thirty years in prison. Perhaps, with the pronounced exasperation of the U.S. government, the punishment could be worse.

On the flip side of the same coin, Snowden is heiled as a hero and patriot, a revered martyr for his country who was willing to sacrifice his own freesouthern maine community college

dom (not to mention his stable, joyous life in the paradise that is Hawaii) to stand up for America and its people.

Many people - American and non alike - have extolled his efforts, lauding him for being brave enough to go through with such an act, and for exposing the insidious truths of the U.S. government that the public would otherwise be veiled from ever knowing.

Snowden has now appeared on numerous broadcasts, from interviews with The New Yorker and with Brian Williams from NBC, to a discussion on a featured TED Talk. In each appearance the viewer gets a glimpse of Mr. Snowden, learning what his intentions were and what sort of change he wants to see unravelled. He invariably affects a quality of modesty, dismissing the debate of his hero-traitor characterization and saying this is improper discussion; constructive discussion, he asserts, is found in the more pressing of issues.

But he also affects a disposition of graveness, thereby informing the viewers not only that we are in a situation of considerable gravity, but that Snowden himself is sincerely concerned about the country that he, in fact, admires.

What led to his decision? What were his intentions? Why did he seek refuge in another country, leaving his family behind without word? What was he trying to accomplish, and what kind of message did he want to convey to America, to the world?

In the next issue, these topics will be broached.

By Garrick Hoffman ¤

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Page 9 ¤ November 4, 2014

Nursery classes, Horticulture classes (where students learn about pruning trees and how to assess trees for any issues), a class on climbing trees, a Sales class, and they also teach an Integrative Pest Management class (their emphasis is to try to be as organic and environmentally friendly as possible so they talk about pesticides but don’t use them here.)

They also offer classes around landscaping such as Surveying and Mapping Landscape Design. Landscape

gate and asked all around campus if anyone had seen Rudy, including students in his classes. The girl that ended up taking Rudy was in the one class Mr. Sweeney did not ask. Eventually the girl contacted Mr. Sweeney and told him that she was the finder of Rudy.

They ended up meeting half way from the mall and Rudy was returned back.

After this incident of Rudy roaming around campus at night, it became a regular visit of his and he started coming back to campus daily. Mr. Sweeney would get calls saying that Rudy was walking on the beach and everyone knew Rudy by then. People would see him at the beach and the lighthouse constantly. Rudy originally lived with his family anywhere from May to August. The latest he has stayed on campus is December 20th.

If it snows Rudy will stay at home and not come to campus. Rudy started coming to campus daily since he was one year old, sleeping over at the security office at night by himself. Rudy is an adventurous cat, being that he has run away multiple times. One night Rudy went missing and the next day he was reported in Free Port Gardener and was kept at Animal Control in Brunswick.

Now Rudy has a chip in his back so whenever he goes missing his owner can track him down to see where he is located. If you ever see this fluffy little cat on campus make sure to pet him and say hello. Rudy loves the campus and everyone on it. But remember Rudy has a home that he returns to and so we should all try to make this a safe home away from home for him.

By Kelsey Hehir

Management classes, where students learn how to properly plant trees, and do hardscaping (hardscaping is building land patios, putting in stone walls, and stuff that’s hard on the back Palm joked). Finally, they offer classes on how to put in irrigation systems as well. Professor Palm adds, “The program’s really well balanced in a lot.”

When asked how they utilize the greenhouse, Palm said that they do Botany classes in the greenhouse and Greenhouse Management classes as well. They’ve also started doing hydroponics to suit the academic needs of their students.

One doesn’t have to be a Horticulture major to take Hort courses, there’s quite a bit of cross pollination as Cheryl Rich, head of the program, added in (the pun was intended). Because anybody can take courses with them they get a fair amount of students from Construction Tech, Culinary Arts, Architecture and Engineering design and even the Sciences. They also see a number of students from the Health Science program who take courses while they’re waiting to get into their nursing courses.

As to the jobs one can go into after graduation, Palm says some students are already working on farms, some have a family farm that they are going to go into after school, and a lot of people want to get back to the earth and grow their own food.

They have a nice group of multi-generational students, as well non-traditional students such as doctors and lawyers, Palm added. With the program being as small as it is, with only 89 students, Palm says they do become a family. As he explains, “It’s not like other programs, spread all over campus, their building is their class room.

They spend a majority of their two years there.” He teased that it was a dysfunctional family at times, but went on to say that students help each other out.

Finally, Palm says: Farming and having a greenhouse is a romantic business but in reality it is hard work. You really have to have a passion for plants, because this is a passion career not a get rich career.

Being able to look at this tomato or that patio and say “I made that,” students find it very rewarding when they see that finished product. It’s a labor of love. You have to have dirty fingernails, and be willing to break a few; it’s a prerequisite! The work is hands on, intimate, and down to earth (no pun intended).

By Erik Squire

Informal Meetings on Mondays We will be answering questions related to Alpha Chi Nu, the Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society chapter at SMCC, and talk more about CollegeFish.org, the scholarships website for students.

Ross Tech Center, Room 104 12:00noon – 1:00pm

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IMAGE COURTESY OF BEACON STAFF

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Today in Sports History: November 4th, 1989 David “The Admiral” Robinson makes NBA debut

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avid Robinson had one of the most interesting paths to making his NBA debut in the history of the game. Robinson didn’t even start playing organized basketball until his senior year in high school when he grew to 6’ 6” inches tall. He put up great numbers his senior year but had little interest from colleges for basketball.

Robinson chose then to attend the Naval Academy, which was a choice that was well respected in his family. His father was in the Navy when David was growing up and it was something Robinson was familiar with.

At first, when playing basketball for Navy, Robinson had no intentions or thought of playing in the NBA until he started growing more and getting better. He was going to the Navy for mathematics and originally pictured himself having a career in the Navy.

By the end of his college career he had grown to 7’ tall, and putting up huge numbers.

Many NBA teams were scouting him and hearing buzz about this guy - David Robinson. No one from Navy had ever put up numbers like this

and it wasn’t the type of school that had nationally recognized athletes.

Robinson was indeed a unique kind of player.

While playing for the Navy Robinson would land on the Consensus All American Team in 1986 (2nd team) and 1987 (1st team). The 1986 through ’87 season would prove to be an incredible one for The Admiral as he was named the AP Player of the Year, the NABC Player of the Year, the Sporting News Player of the Year, and the UPI Player of the Year, the USBWA Player of the Year, while winning the Naismith Award, Wooden Award, and the Rupp Trophy.

After his career in the Navy, Robinson was eligible to enter the 1987 draft in which he was drafted 1st by the San Antonio Spurs. At first, the Spurs were hesitant to make this selection because Robinson was going to have to serve 2 years mandatory in the Navy upon graduation. The Spurs went ahead and made the decision knowing this and it ended up panning out for them. For the two years Robinson was out of basketball he was a civil

engineer at a Naval submarine base but continued to work on his game.

When Robinson finally signed with the Spurs and joined the team, this was a guy who had 4 years of college basketball under his belt, and two years of practice after that. A pretty experienced rookie to say the least. His first game in the NBA was against the Los Angeles Lakers and he made a huge impact right away.

He was the leading scorer for the Spurs scoring 23 points and 17 rebounds.

After one game the Spurs organization could see that his basketball services were going to be worth the wait. Robinson went on to win NBA Rookie of the Year that season and achieving many other accolades throughout his professional career.

Robinson is a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame.

He has won 2 championships, a MVP Award in 1995, 10 time

All Star, the Sportsmanship Award, and the list goes on. He is known as one of the greatest people and players the league has ever seen and is greatly respected.

By Sam Combs

Madison Bumgarner Lifts Giants to World Series Victory

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moments. He made two starts getting one win and a no decision, proving to be a pitcher that is tough to hit because of his uncanny throwing motion.

Bumgarner and the Giants went on to the World Series with ease winning the series against the Nationals 4-1, and squaring off against a team who came into the series on fire.

The Giants met the red hot Kansas City Royals who were yet to lose in the postseason and were looking to get their first championship since 1985 when George Brett was their key player.

Bumgarner pitched an astounding 21 innings in this series for the Giants only giving up a single earned run and finishing the series with a 0.43 ERA, while pitching into the late innings in both starts.

Bumgarner’s performances made headlines fast and you could see he was in a rhythm and wasn’t going to stop. He got better as the postseason went on and that was evident in the World Series when he went into another gear on the mound.

In game 7 the Giants had Tim Hudson on the mound who only

lasted 1 ⅔ innings until Giants relief came into the game. With only two days rest, Giants skipper Bruce Bochy called Bumgarner out of the bullpen in the 5th. Two days prior he had pitched over 120 pitches and fans weren’t sure if he was going to pitch to one batter, or for an inning, and for how long.

Bumgarner ended up finishing out the game without allowing a run and capturing the 5 inning save for the Giants and the World Series title. You could see the focus in his face when on the mound and there was no way the Royals were going to get a run off him.

Bumgarner finished the postseason 4-1, pitching a MLB postseason record 52 ⅔ innings only allowing 6 earned runs and striking out 45. This was one of the best stretches by a pitcher in MLB postseason history as Bumgarner essentially put the San Francisco Giants on his back carrying them to their 3rd title in 5 years.

By Sam Coombs

Woman’s Basketball

EVENTS

UPCOMING

an Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner had a very historic run this postseason on route to the team’s 3rd World Series victory in 5 years. This regular season was Bumgarner’s best of his career finishing 18-10 with 209 strikeouts and helping his team reach the playoffs.

He has had success at every level he has played. He tallied a Minor League record of 33-7 before coming to the majors in 2009.

This postseason, the Giants had to play in a one game playoff to even make it into the Divisional Series. The Giants faced the Pittsburgh Pirates where Bumgarner absolutely dominated from first pitch to last. He pitched a complete game 4hit shutout to lead the Giants into the Divisional Series against the Washington Nationals. The Giants ended up winning that series and making it the NLCS to play the St. Louis Cardinals in a matchup where he would prove his strengths in big

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Nov 5 - Maine Maritime, 6pm Nov 8 - Berkeley - NYC, 1pm Nov 9 - Berkeley - NYC, 1pm Nov 15 - Vermont Tech, 1pm

Men’s Basketball

Nov 1 - Navy Prep, 1pm Nov 5 - Maine Maritime, 8pm Nov 8 - Berkeley - NYC, 3pm Nov 12 - at Bridgton Academy, 6pm Nov 15 - Vermont Tech, 3pm

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SMCC Basketball Tips Off Can-Am Tournament Starts Off Season

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wolves basketball teams would walk away with 2 victories. Sunday’s games would prove to be a clearer litmus test for the squads as the women fell to the University of New Brunswick-St John’s (UNBSJ) 61-55 and the men found themselves in a battle with UNBSJ prevailing in a 63-59 victory.

When asked, what do you think the women’s squad needs to work on, Julia Howe responded, “We need to work on becoming better communicators on the court and being able to play a high intensity, up tempo pace for 40 minutes.

We certainly have the talent we just need to get some of the intangibles.”

In the first half The Lady Seawolves somehow managed to hold a 2pt lead, 28-26 at halftime despite turnovers and sloppy play. When the 2nd half opened a reenergized UNB-SJ team outscored SMCC by 21pts gaining a 58-39 lead with 5:01 remaining. With time running out SMCC found its offensive flow, which was sparked by a daunting full court press, and went on a 9-0 run.

The run was sparked by an Alicia Hoyt

he 2014-15 Ladies and Men’s Seawolves basketball seasons officially got under way October 25 as both teams traveled to conference rival, CMCC’s Kirk Hall to participate in the Can-Am tournament. The Lady Seawolves tipped off against Cegep Champlain St. Lawrence (CCSL) in the opening game, and the Men Wolves followed suit in the second game when they took the court against Saint Thomas University.

The Lady Wolves opened the season with a number of fresh faces that over time should blend well with the upbeat lookout that Coach Julia Howe is approaching the season with.

The Beacon reached out to Coach Howe asking her what she sees as the team’s biggest strength. “Our biggest strength this season should be our size and ability to create mismatches against other teams. We have depth at the position and we have 5’8” guards... not a lot of teams in our conJORDAN TURNER DRIVES AGAINST ference can matchup with that MONICA NEWMAN OF UNBSJ type of height,” Coach Howe stated.

The height of forward Alicia Hoyt proved to be an advantage for the Lady Seawolves in their 66-48 victory over CCSL, as she lead the team in scoring with 11pts and grabbing 8 rebounds. Returning veteran Jaimi Poland also grabbed 8 rebounds and scored 9pts as Jordan Turner, a freshman scored 10pts as fellow freshman Kendra Kagiliery hit the scoring column with 9pts.

On the Men’s side of the court, returning players, Atencio Martin, Alexander Hartford, Josh Gormley, and Justin Robbins find themselves on a SMCC team that is the tallest it’s ever been. Newcomers layup and three made free throws by Thomas Enerva - 6’9“, Carlos Gonzalez Jordan Turner.

– 6’7”, and 6’6” Jack Tolan add height

The Lady Seawolves closed out the to a team that has been highly competopening weekend of the new season itive over the last few years which they 1-1, but most importantly with a clear have lacked in. understanding of what needs atten Matt Richards, Head Coach of the tion. “I expect my girls to be working Men’s Seawolves squad stated, “Right hard every day so that we can go to the now our biggest strength is our work ethic and rebounding. I see those being conference championship this season.

I will look to my 2 third year veterans staple marks of our team,” when asked and captains, Jaimi Poland and Alicia what he thought were the largest posiHoyt, to lead this young team and set tives for the team. good examples for how my newcomers

In the season opener against St. should be acting on and off the court,” Thomas University the Seawolves said Julia Howe. grabbed 48 rebounds, out-rebounding

The Lady Seawolves traveled to the Tommies by 10 in the 66-58 victory.

Bunker Hill Community College this Returning veteran and team captain past Saturday securing a 76-48 win.

Atencio Martin netted 15pts while Freshman center Amira Jones recorded grabbing 7 rebounds both team high. her first double-double, (20pts 16reSeawolves center, Thomas Enerva put bounds), as shooting guard Samantha in a note worthy performance draining 9pts and snagging 5 rebounds as fellow Green netted 14pts and center Jennifer Genthner, returning after a pre-season front liner, small forward Tyheem Simon added 10pts coming off the bench. injury, drained 11pts and corralled 8 Veteran Josh Tuplin, who returns to the rebounds.

After 3 games The Lady Seawolves squad after a few semesters off, found find themselves at 2-1 and facing Berkthe bottom of the net for 8pts, 3 of ley College (NY) in their home opener which were a 3point shot with 1:34 left on Saturday November 8th at 1pm. that put the Seawolves ahead by 6.

For the men, while surviving the

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JORDAN DEROSBY FIND A SEAM AGAINST NAVY PREP IN SATURDAY’S DOUBLE OVERTIME VICTORY

Can-Am Tournament and escaping with a spotless record, the second game of the tournament proved to be a battle against UNB-SJ (63-59) that would only be outdone by the double overtime victory against Navy Prep on November 1st.

Again it was the work on the boards offensively (27 total) that helped the Seawolves walk away with a victory against UNB-SJ. Carlos Gonzalez grabbed 6 offensive boards that led to 14second chance points for the Seawolves.

When asked how Coach Richards is preparing his squad in the early stages of the season he responded by saying that, “… I need our guys to understand the importance of details. Once we have a good understanding of the importance to small details then later on in the season we can make greater strides with our team improvements. Little things like checking out, closing out on shooters, etc. will be very important to master early on.

Those little things will allow us to win games as we develop our team offensively.”

The Men Seawolves home opener proved to be quite an exciting game regardless of the opening minutes. After 7 minutes of play both teams managed to score 18pts with SMCC crawling out to a 6pt lead. Over the course of the next 5 1/2 minutes the men Seawolves would build a 16 pt lead behind Grayson Waterman’s two 3 pt shots.

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The final 7 minutes of the first half saw Navy Prep chip away at the SMCC lead and going into the locker room trailing by 12pts (63-24). The second half saw Navy Prep work away at the SMCC lead and finally tie the game at the 11:42 mark, 46 apiece.

The remainder of the 2nd half stayed close with neither team able to build, or sustain a lead. The largest lead came with 3minutes remaining when SMCC scratched out a 5pt lead. Again Navy Prep fought back outscoring SMCC 9-4 sending the game into the first overtime.

Again, neither team could gain any type of momentum, or lead as the score stayed close. With 2 minutes remaining Navy Prep gained the upper hand with a 2pt lead, 73-71. Missed free throws, layups, blocked shots and turnovers plagued the final 2 minutes until Atencio Martin drove the baseline pulling up for a short jumper and subsequently sending the game into its 2nd overtime.

The Men Seawolves would prevail finally after 50 minutes of play mainly because of getting to the foul line and draining 5 out of 7 opportunities and timely made shots by Kevin Fabian, Thyeem Simon, and Atencio Martin.

The men return to the Hub gym for their next 2 games against Maine Maritime Academy, November 5th, Berkeley-NYC November 8th, then travel to Bridgton Academy on the 12th and return home to face conference foe Vermont Tech on the 15th.

By The Beacon Staff

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The Captains Cupboard Gets Haunted!

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Page 14 ¤ November 4, 2014

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