The Anchor - October 15 2018

Volume 92/Issue 6

THE

Rhode Island College

Established 1928

October 15th, 2018

ANCHOR

Goretober, page 7

From the Archives, page 6

Samantha Scetta Editor-in-Chief

of Teachers (AFT).

The campaign is focusing on three central issues: faculty wages, infrastructure on campus being renovated and the RI Promise Scholarship being offered to The Community College of Rhode Island, but not RIC. The RI Promise Scholarship is a grant offered to graduating high school students with a 2.5 GPA or above that guarantees free tuition for the first two years at any CCRI institution in the state.

Clusterfackt, page 8

WWE in Saudi Arabia, page 19

Picketing & Promises: Faculty are still underpaid, and the RI Promise Scholarship is still not promised to RIC

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hode Island College’s student enrollment is down, as are faculty member’s yearly salary.

Last Thursday, Oct. 11, faculty members could be seen sporting blue RIC/AFT t-shirts and holding up signs picketing these issues at the Mount Pleasant entrance to RIC. The informational picket was part of a campaign to “Respect RIC,” organized by the American Federation

Story continued on page 11 Dennis Branchaud and Dr. Brandon Hawk

Diana Marcum visits RIC for Pulitzer Prize-winning feature: The drought in California Story continued on page 5 Erica Clark Asst. News Editor

S

Diana Marcum; Photo courtesy of The LA Times

urvival isn’t a given indeed, especially for those facing natural disasters. On Oct. 11, Diana Marcum, a journalist for The Los Angeles Times who covered the 900-square-mile Central Valley and pursued the drought stories in between chasing fires, visited Rhode Island College in Alger Hall. Marcum won the 2015 Pulitzer Prize in Feature Writing for her series of stories in The LA Times about the impact of the drought on people living in California’s Central Valley. She and photographer Michael Robinson Chavez

knew from the beginning that they wanted to explore the impact of the drought in an assertive way.

In a quick credit to photographer Chavez, he described his experience as, “the planet becomes your backyard.”

She began her career in Palm Springs, where one of her earliest jobs was a stringer for a small newspaper. In 2015, she won the Pulitzer Prize in Feature Writing for her narrative portraits of farmers, fieldworkers, and other Californians in drought-stricken towns in the Central Valley.

Throughout her multiple scenes of the California dust bowl, Marcum stated the overall theme was

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The Anchor is student-run and published weekly during the academic year. Editorial decisions for The Anchor are made by a majority vote of its student editorial board. No form of censorship will be imposed by the college. Any material found to be unsuitable or unacceptable in the board’s opinion will not be published. The views expressed in The Anchor, unless otherwise noted, are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent those of The Anchor or of Rhode Island College’s faculty, administration or student body. The Anchor is not funded by and is independent from Rhode Island College. The first copy is free. Each additional copy is $2.25. Newspaper racks on the Rhode Island College campus are the property of The Anchor Newspaper. Only The Anchor Newspaper publication will be permitted on these racks. Any other publication or advertisement that is placed on the racks will be given one (1) warning for violating this policy. After two (2) violations, the business/publication will be billed at the rate of a full page advertisement.

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News Rising temperatures and risks for planet Earth Aaron Isaac Staff Writer The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a report last week detailing what the world needs to do to avoid the effects of climate change.

The average global temperature of the planet has increased by approximately 1 degree celsius between 1880 and 2012. The Paris Agreement in 2015 set a goal to hold global temperature increases to 1.5 degrees celsius. In what IPCC chair Hoesung Lee says is one of the “most important reports ever produced by the IPCC,” the report details what the IPCC believes must be done to limit temperature rises and the costs of failure.

First, their bad news: between 2006 and 2015, human activity has risen temperature by approximately 0.87 degrees celsius and continues to increase rapidly

due to ongoing emissions.

If temperatures continue to increase at the same rate, the Earth’s temperature will have increased by 1.5 degrees by around 2040. Even if the Earth reached zero carbon dioxide emissions, the remaining emissions in the atmosphere would still cause some temperature warming due to feedback effects of the past.

The IPCC say it is “very likely” that cold days and nights have decreased globally as warm days and nights have increased. Current observations show that droughts and floods have been increasing since 1950, but only in some areas.

Droughts have increased in the Mediterranean and West Africa, while flooding has increased since 1950 in some sections of South America, the United States and Australia.

Climate related risks are higher if the Earth’s temperature increases by 2 degrees rather than one and

Photo courtesy of Wikkicommons a half, which may result in the irreversible loss of ecosystems and higher risks of droughts and floods. At 2 degrees, the IPCC projected the rise of sea levels to be lower than it would have been at 2 degrees by 10 centimeters.

There would also be less species extinction, smaller losses in crops and water shortages would decrease by 50 percent according to the report.

Now, the good news: it is still possible to only increase 1.5 celsius in time to stay below 2 degrees. The IPCC had

“medium confidence” that it will take longer than previously estimated to reach 1.5 degrees. This means more time to install renewable energy systems to provide 70 to 80 percent of the world electricity by 2050. The report puts emphasis on the need to build carbon absorbers such as trees, as well as developing technologies to pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.

These advancements are going to require “transformative systemic change” towards gradually moving

towards solar, wind and electrical storage technologies. Despite knowing it is still possible to reverse some effects, many countries are not on track to limit warming.

Developing countries will need help from both developed countries and non governmental agencies to install renewable energy systems. The largest economies are also not on track even though the IPCC estimates they stand to benefit most from limiting temperatures.

matters regarding Donovan Dining Center. In 2016 the number one complaint about the dining services was the poor quality of the food with a comment claiming there was mold in the food. However, Meriwether says the dining center has been working hard over the last two years to ensure high quality food and to provide students with an array of options.

One of the recent steps taken to improve Donovan was to reach out to businesses to get

them to offer their services here at RIC. Despite reaching out to many businesses, especially local businesses, only Subway responded.

The current plan is to bring in Subway, which will hire RIC students and will not bear substantial costs to the college.

To contact Hughes, email qhughes@ric.edu. To contact Meriwether, you can go to the Student Success Center in Roberts Hall 120.

Vice President of Student Success speaks to student body Aaron Isaac Staff Writer Vice President of Student Success Jason Meriwether and the president of Rhode Island College’s American Federation of Teachers Union, Dr. Quenby Hughes, visited Student Community Government to talk about issues at the college on Wednesday, Oct. 11.

Hughes talked about the “Respect RIC” campaign which hopes to put a spotlight on RIC as she says it has been overshadowed

and forgotten by the recent Promise Scholarship for the Community College of Rhode Island. Hughes explained that some of the reasons RIC is overlooked is because “URI is seen as the research institution” and its requests for funds are more easily justified in budget hearings.

“It affects students when their faculty has to work overtime in order to make ends meet,” Hughes said.

Professors have less time for mentoring, advertising, research and supporting

student clubs.

Meriwether talked about RIC’s enrollment numbers which have steadily declined since 2009. Despite being one of the most affordable colleges in New England, RIC has had a hard time recruiting new students. To increase enrollment numbers, Merriwether talked to SCG about a plan to extend RIC’s messaging highlighting its low costs, its diversity and its quality in the form of postcards, emails and high school visits.

Meriwether also spoke about

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News

Nikki Haley, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, resigns before midterm elections Tim Caplan News Editor

One of the most consistently visible members of the Trump administration has tendered her resignation.

On Oct. 9, United States ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley sent in her resignation letter to President Donald Trump, which he accepted. Haley’s resignation will be effective on Jan. 1, 2019.

Nikki Haley was nominated as ambassador to the U.N. on Jan. 24, 2017 by a vote of 96-4 in the senate. Before this job, Haley served as the representative for South Carolina District 87 from 2005 to 2011, and then as the first female (116th) governor of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017.

Haley’s resignation shortly before the midterm elections can be speculatively perceived as a political move against the president, who, while praising Haley’s actions at times,

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also had public disagreements most notably about the political relationship with the state of Russia.

Haley used her platform as ambassador several times to contradict the statements of President Trump. During March of 2017, Haley told “USA Today” that she “would never support a Muslim ban” that President Trump had proposed and that it was completely “un-American.”

The ambassador let her feelings about Russia be known almost immediately, imposing sanctions on Russia until they return the annexed Crimea territory to The Ukraine. Haley had strong feelings about the human rights violations of Russia, and held no punches when she told Republicans at a policy conference in early February that “Russia is not our friend.”

Her position was a polar opposite of President Trump’s attitude toward Russia, expressed in a tweet

from July 16 in which he claimed “our relationship with Russia has NEVER been worse thanks to many years of U.S. foolishness and stupidity and now, the Rigged Witch Hunt!”

Nikki Haley’s most notable moments came when she announced the United States’ plan to move the embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in May of 2017, recognizing Jerusalem as the “undivided” capital of the state of Israel.

Later that year, a large group of ambassadors at the U.N. signed a petition condemning the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. She spoke at the U.N. and suggested, "as you consider your vote, I encourage you to know the president and the US take this vote personally. The president will be watching this vote carefully and has requested I report back on those who voted against us."

Haley also spoke out strongly against the perse-

Photo courtesy of CNN cution and killing of homosexuals in Chechnya by the Putin-backed dictator Ramzan Kadyrov in a press release from April stating, “we continue to be disturbed by reports of kidnapping, torture, and murder of people in Chechnya based on their sexual orientation and those persecuted by association. If true, this violation of human rights cannot be ignored – Chechen authorities must immediately investigate these allegations, hold anyone involved accountable, and take steps to

prevent future abuses.”

“We are against all forms of discrimination, including against people based on sexual orientation. When left unchecked, discrimination and human rights abuses can lead to destabilization and conflict,” affirmed Haley.

Haley has not revealed intentions to continue her political career at this point and a replacement for her position is still to be announced by the president.

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News

Diana Marcum visits RIC for Pulitzer Prize-winning feature: The drought in California Continued from cover “survival isn’t a given.”

Three student panelists, Sabrina Brum, Antonia Bianchi and Michael Dwyer were nominated by various professors at Rhode Island College to interview Marcum. Diana was asked various questions including what inspires and motivates her journalistic work and covering the Central Valley drought.

Marcum is significantly known for the way she represented the Central Valley farmers, saying how hard it is for locals on the East

involved in the study “spent their whole lifetime studying California’s water” due to how complex situation of the West Coast’s water supply.

Marcum described that as a journalist “freelance is hard” and that she had to sacrifice to be where she is today.

Marcum’s parents died when she was a teenager, and she described her journalistic career as not always being in the limelight: “it’s us who came from the other

“survival isn’t a given” Coast to truly comprehend the experience of what this drought is causing. Marcum described the complexity between small and big farmers as being “culturally and economically different.”

Most of our fruits and vegetables for the entire country come from these exact farmers.

Describing the farmers in Central Valley she mentioned the “way people took care of each other” and that left Diana with “knowledge that now carries throughout existence. I had nightmares.” Marcum even stated, “I was too aware of all of it… It shook me.”

Marcum stated the drought was never officially declared over by the government, but she knew when there was a ton of rain that it would soon be over. Diana even mentions “pumping so much water” and realizing it’s technically over. She described the drought as “not seeing any rain or snow for a long time.”

Uncovering the California drought caused “a lot of politics” and the people

side.”

When Marcum was asked what led her along this path she was quick to say it was not school. Diana said she had to ask the newspaper to hire her because she knew “when things got hard I knew I wasn’t going to school.”

Marcum stated about

Diana Marcum; Photo courtesy of mybckyardnews.com her budgeting life as an upcoming writer: “I didn’t always eat what I wanted to, [or] when I wanted to.”

Marcum was asked by the panel of student judges what it took her as a journalist to open up. Her

humorous response gave out a laugh with a quick reply, “No one should be afraid of me!”

Marcum’s main purpose as writer she says is the thought of “doesn’t everybody in here want somebody

to hear their story?”

Diana Marcum is currently in the process of writing her second novel, a new book about a butterfly field.

Scenes from California Dust Bowl; Courtesy of La Times

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This archived article is from the September 29, 1997 issue of The Anchor.

Catherine Enos Opinions editor As midterm season creeps up on us, we’re given the opportunity to examine how well (or how poorly) we’ve been doing in our classes. This also gives us the chance to reflect on things that helped us get as far as we’ve gotten: our friends, our family, our hard work -and caffeine, of course.

Though writer Scott LeFess’ ode to caffeine was not specifically related to midterm season, one can imagine that his gratefulness for caffeine likely skyrocketed during this time of the semester.

Many of us can relate to LeFess’ undying appreciation for caffeine -- according to a 2013 UNH study, 40% of 18-24 year olds drink coffee daily. Maybe some of us, however, would prefer not to partake intravenously or via caffeine pills, but to each his own.

As you get ready to take your midterm exams, remember to drink (or whichever other way you intend to ingest) caffeine in moderation-- LeFess warns of “caffeine overdose,” which can result in a multitude of uncomfortable and dangerous side effects. More importantly, make sure to study, eat healthily and get some sleep before your exams, but only if you have time between your caffeine breaks.

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Health & Science Goretober: does science justify your favorite horror scenes?

Lucille DiNaro Business Manager

As a continuation from our last issue, The Anchor’s second installment of this column will continue to search for the truth behind filmmakers most grotesque horror scenes. To what extent does the silver screen translate to our everyday lives?

“The Last House on the Left” Dennis Iliadis, 2009 This 2009 remake of Wes Craven’s film of the same name is the story of a family vacation gone terribly wrong. John Collingwood and his family are tormented by a teenage boy and his sadistic companions, Krug, Francis and Sadie. As the movie meets its climax, John paralyzes Krug from the neck down and places his head in a running microwave oven. Krug is barely able to realize what has happened before the electromagnetic

waves cause his head to explode, resulting in his death.

In a microwave oven, an alternating current forces atoms reverse polarity at an extremely high rate, creating violent friction which causes the water in your food to vibrate and heat up. This process is what causes food to cook and produce steam. Iliadis cleverly uses this concept to help the viewer draw visual parallels between Krug’s head exploding to the more common pressurized-steam explosion of a microwaved potato.

Fortunately for Krug, this entire scenario can be debunked by the simple fact that most modern microwaves

can not operate without a door. Even if they could, the skin effect--the tendency of a high-frequency alternating current to flow through only the outer layer of a conductor--would effectively protect Krug during the limited time he spends under the microwave.

Human skin can withstand microwave frequencies to some extent, but Krug’s skin would suffer severe burns. The blood vessels in his retinas would likely fry, rendering him blind and his ears would not be able to withstand the microwave’s electromagnetic pulse energy.

While a microwave may not seem like a particularly terrifying deathbringer in this scenario, that doesn’t mean we can eliminate microwaves as a weapon altogether. The United States Department of Defense has studied the lethality mechanisms of radio frequency and high power microwave technologies since the 1980’s.

Interestingly enough, research has shown that the United States could be headed towards an entirely new class of directed energy weapon systems. Maybe directors can consider these if there ever is another remake.

“Hereditary” Ari Aster, 2018

One of the more shocking scenes to appear on screen this year was the death of Charlie.

After months of movie promotion which framed Charlie as the centerpiece of the film, viewers were astonished when she was decapitated a mere 30 minutes into the movie. Suffering from anaphylaxis, Charlie stuck her head outside the car window in the hope of catching her breath. Her brother, already in a panic, swerves to avoid a deer, driving Charlie right into a telephone pole.

What is so unnerving about this scene in particular is how closely it mirrors real life. We each live so certain

of what is next to come, ignoring the fact that chaos and tragedy are but one bad decision away. Charlie’s death in this movie is a finality both on and off screen. Decapitation and internal decapitation almost always amount to a loss of life.

Forensic pathologists approach decapitations differently if they occur post-mortem or antemortem. Postmortem decapitation is often the result of a hanging and rarely occurs in the modern day. Antemortem decapitation is often accidental, or the result of suicide or homicide.

An autopsy of a man whose death was quite similar to Charlie’s found that the larynx, pharynx and parts of the lungs and heart were removed with the head upon decapitation.

As Charlie’s body came in contact with the indirect force of the telephone pole, we could expect a similar result. Maybe think twice before sticking your head out the car window, and always wear a seatbelt.

Toni Collette; Herediary (2018)

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Health & Science

Nowadays, facts come at you fast. Truth is in jeopardy. Clusterfackt is an ongoing series that asks readers to question everything. Each week readers will have a chance to win free ad space by correctly identifying the falsehood hiding in plain sight. Don’t repeat something you read here without doing your research.

Good luck!

Mike Dwyer Anchor Staff Using acoustic analysis, a group of researchers collected samples of human screams from online, in cinema and from 19 volunteer screamers in a lab sound booth and then exposed others to the shrieking in order to judge their behavioral reactions.

Their researched showed that humans process screams differently than other sounds.

Normal auditory stimuli register between 4 and 5 Hz and are sent to a section of the brain dedicated to extracting meaning, but screams, which spike between 30 and 150 Hz are sent directly to the primitive amygdala, resulting in an acute sense of fear and a heightened awareness for both listener and screamer.

The team of researchers said they found listening to and analyzing the sounds of humans screaming a pleasant and amusing change of pace from their usual laboratory work.

The mark of the beast is a triangular number. The practice of carving jack-o-lanterns began in Ireland and was inspired by a folkloric character named Stingy Jack, a blacksmith who tricked the devil into paying for his drinks.

The earliest accounts of vampires from the middle ages might have come about when rural villagers, spurred by superstition and ignorance, exhumed the bodies of the deceased believing them to be responsible for some recent misfortune.

Laypeople had little understanding of the human body during life or after death and would have been startled by the appearance of unearthed corpses undergoing

intestinal decomposition, when bloating can force blood up into the mouth, making it look like a dead body has recently sucked blood.

Menacing pygmy clowns made Egyptian pharaoh Phak Tes-Falsiti laugh to death in 2500 BCE, a court jester to Emperor Qin Shih Huang is said to have persuaded his sovereign to paint the Great Wall of China with the blood of conquered armies, while the Ancient Roman senate kept a stock fool known as “stupidus” who took part in the assassination of Julius Caesar mistaking it for a practical joke.

However, the modern conception of clowns as whitefaced, red nosed fools was the brainchild of English pantomime-player Joseph Grimaldi, whose contribution to clowning is still commemorated annually

by a church in East London where congregants attend a Sunday service in full clown regalia.

A widely reported study from the University of Sheffield in England found that most children dislike clowns.

Coulrophobia, the unhealthy fear of clowns that is present in about two percent of American adults, is thought to be closely related to a psychological phenomenon known as the uncanny valley effect- an unsettling sense of anxiety and mistrust for figures that look human but “aren’t quite there”. Similarly, the creators of the 1978 slasher film Halloween used this effect to their advantage.

With a little spray paint and some adjustment to the eye holes, the lovable death mask of William Shattner became the expressionless face of fictional serial killer Michael Myers.

Joe Grimaldi

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Arts&Entertainment

Superhero Central: Origin of a man with no backstory Jonathan Weaver Asst. A&E Editor A Joker origin movie is coming out starring Joaquin Phoenix. This is interesting because the character canonically does not have a true backstory. Arguably, he has a few but they are (almost) always told by the man himself and he is historically a unreliable narrator.

A notable exception when it comes to his origin being unreliable is the story posed in Alan Moore’s The Killing Joke. In the graphic novel, The Joker is a depressed plant worker who tries his hand at being a comedian but fails. Things transpire, and the man comes face to face with Batman during an attempt to break into his

old job and he falls into a vat of chemicals, disfiguring him. This seems to be where Joaquin Phoenix’s movie is drawing most of its inspiration from.

Beyond The Killing Joke, the origin of the Joker becomes much murkier. Some stories claim to be the man who killed Bruce Wayne’s parents, driving Batman into a rage until the real Joe Chill (the true murderer) winds up dead and his body is recovered. He has also gone by the name of Jack Napier on multiple occasions. Jack was once a gangster who pulled a lot of weight in the criminal underbelly of Gotham.

In the 1989 movie, Batman, Jack Nicholson plays Jack Napier, who falls into a vat of chemicals, becoming the Joker.

Scott Snyder added a few twists to the mystery of the identity of the Joker during his New 52 run on the main Batman title. In it, The Joker tells a few of his own tall tales. Batman however, begins to question if the Joker was immortal. He contacts an assassin named Uriah Boone, who has been alive since the foundation of Gotham during the time of the pilgrims. Uriah’s answer is not revealed, however it is later alluded to that the Joker, or the “pale man,” has always been stalking Gotham. That he is in fact a being drawn to the black magic of the place (a whole other topic for another Superhero Central column!)

It is later revealed that there are three incarnations of the Joker that seemingly all

The relationship between King Zog and Bean is one of my favorite, because they are always clashing ideals. She always wants more than what she has as a princess, to just be a normal girl, while Zog, in his own weird way, just wants her to be safe. His main concern is Bean, however, he also wants to the Elixir of Life, that constantly drives him to do crazy things. His voice is one of the highlights of the show, with his gravelly, worrisome voice, but at many points being a robust, angry and over-the-top voice that would just shout at Bean.

My absolute favorite character, the stand-out of the show, is Elfo. Elfo is an absent minded, happygo-lucky elf that stumbles upon Bean and her new demon, Luci. Elfo constantly reminds the audience

his name, and cannot make decisions to save his life.

His foolishness gets him and the others in trouble, but he always means well. His awkward humor consistently makes me laugh, making you feel bad for a bit but also laugh out loud.

For Groening, this is a new territory. The final few episodes is when the show starts to pick up to the true serialized show it wants to be. Despite it lagging, trying to remain closer to Groening’s previous work, it reaches the point it wants to be at with plot twists in the final two episodes.

Those last two episodes are the best in regards to the story, however, the episodes in the beginning of the season are the ones that are the funnier. I recommend watching this series, because it can only go up from the point that it currently is at.

Disenchantment: Season 1 review

Enrique Castaneda-Pineda Anchor Staff Created by Matt Groening, best known for creating the “Simpsons” and “Futurama,” “Disenchantment” branches out from his typical episodic television shows to a serialized show.

This show consistently moves forward with its plot, though it may feel like it stays in one position for a few episodes of the series.

The characters start at zero, with the main focus being on Princess Tiabeanie, or Bean for short. Bean is a short-tempered, foolish, naive girl that is always getting herself in trouble but is always true to her values.

She never settles for what her father wants for her, King Zog, who is always trying to change Bean.

Graphic: Greg Capullo co-exist within the DC continuity, further burying the character beneath questions and confusion, which seems to have nothing but a positive impact on the character,

so it will be interesting to see how well received the new movie is for proposing a definitive origin story.

Photo courtesy of IMDB

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Picketing & Promises: Faculty are still underpaid, and the RI Promise Scholarship is still not promised to RIC

Continued from cover

The most publicized and perhaps surprising issue that is focused on by the RIC/ AFT Union is the fact that faculty at RIC are being paid a whopping 17 percent less than faculty at similar institutions nationwide, such as Bridgewater University, and 30 percent less than faculty at University of Rhode Island that have similar degrees and professional experience.

These figures were determined by a salary report written by an outside consultant.

On top of faculty not being paid adequately when compared to sister institutions, there has also been a sharp decline in student enrollment this year.

In 2017, enrollment was at 8,174 for both undergraduate and graduate students.

This year the enrollment has declined by 403 students to 7,771.

Currently the in-state tuition at RIC is $8,197, which means that RIC lost over $3 million in only tuition dollars this year, not taking in account out of state students or room and board.

The administration at Rhode Island College is not directly attributing the de-

clining enrollment at RIC to the RI Promise scholarship, or any one cause.

A statement from President Sanchez regarding the scholarship is as follows:

“We supported the RI Promise when it was first proposed and we support the expansion of it to RIC and URI in the future.

In the meantime, we are exploring a number of options to increase enrollments, beginning with Guaranteed Transfer Pathways with CCRI, to make it easier for students who went to CCRI with the Promise to transfer to RIC seamlessly to get a 4-year degree.

We have also received approval to expand our MTP tuition rate to much of the Northeast.”

Photo courtesy of UpriseRI

fairly compensated? No one can say just yet.

Faculty and administration are both supportive of the RI Promise being extended to RIC, however, faculty are attributing the decline in enrollment directly to the RI Promise scholarship not being offered at RIC as well as CCRI. A statement from facResidents of Connecticut, ulty on the RIC/AFT website Long Island & Metro New reads: “Too often recently RIC York City, Maine, Massahas been ignored when the chusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont now receive a state budget is developed. special discounted rate to at- URI has benefitted from its tend RIC, as an effort made status as the state’s largest by the college to increase public research university, enrollment. and most recently CCRI Will an increase in enwas given a massive boost rollment, or the RI Promise with RI Promise, which scholarship being offered to RIC lead to faculty being directed many students who

might otherwise have benefitted from a fouryear RIC education to attend CCRI. This means that RIC’s budget has suffered, despite the fine work that Vice President Jason Meriwether and his enrollment team have accomplished, and departments have found themselves making the best of a very bad financial situation.”

it’s something that I’d like to try to go at again in the second term.... I think they would be better and the state would be better if we helped them out with the cost of RIC.”

It is estimated that offering the RI Promise Scholarship at both URI and RIC as well as CCRI would cost $30 million annually according to a report Raimondo issued in Jan. 2017.

President Sanchez also made a statement regarding the faculty According to a Providence labor negotiations, stating: “Rhode Island College Journal article from May 2018, Gov. Gina Raimondo faculty are the heart of our stated “I tried to get that institution; their work is

done [RI Promise being critical to the success of our offered to RIC and URI] students. Our administration and I wasn’t successful, is committed to addressing the fact that, as indicated by a recent salary review, our faculty has been under compensated for many years.

We are unable to comment further as negotiations are in progress.”

Being compensated fairly for their work is something that every individual deserves, and this issue is much broader than the walls of Rhode Island College.

Visit ricaft.org for more information on the motivations for the “Respect RIC” campaign as well as upcoming events and what we can do as students to support our faculty.

Photo courtesy of UpriseRI

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Arts&Entertainment Sims 4: Reliance on DLC

Alex Cogswell Anchor Contributor “The Sims 4” is one of my favorite games to play. I love designing my Sims and their houses, but what I don’t love is that to make my Sims look as cool as they deserve, I need to shell out at least ten dollars to get it.

Here’s how the DLC packs work in “Sims 4:” at the very bottom of the price range (the aforementioned ten dollars) you can buy a Stuff Pack, which usually only has new clothes and things for house building.

Next, there is the Game Pack. This has all of the things the Stuff Pack has, plus something that adds a new feature to the game, like a washing machine or archeology. Expansion Packs cost the most and add the most to the game.

And this is how EA gets you -- at least, that’s how they got me.

I have bought all the DLC available for the game, but it

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took a while. As I waited to have enough money to get the new Game Pack, an Expansion Pack had come out meaning that I was missing out on a vital new game mechanic. I spent $40 on that Expansion and then another $20 on the Game Pack just for good measure.

The way to have fun in the game is to buy the DLC, and EA knows that we will pay for it. They know they can milk at least $500 from their consumers! My actual number was higher, but I don’t want you to judge me, even though $500 is still pretty bad.

The main question is if it’s worth it. Is this game really worth buying, playing, and falling into the DLC hell that comes with it? Well, let’s look at the most recent Expansion Pack to answer this question.

“The Sims 4: Seasons” came out a few months ago

but I only bought it in the past week. Before I had the money to buy the new DLC, which allowed new weather conditions, I was still playing the game. I was making a new Sim, as one does, and noticed that swimwear wasn’t the last category of clothing anymore, and that two new ones had been added. Hot weather and cold weather categories were tagged on at the end.

So to enjoy the game better with more clothes options, I had to buy the new expansion.

Was it worth it? Well I love the game and I am willing to pay, so for me it was.

There are many people who would disagree. Some people don’t want to pay for DLC, but if someone likes the game then whatever, buy all the DLC you want.

Photo courtesy of Wal-Mart

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Arts&Entertainment The Cantina Rumors of unlimited power

Jonathan Weaver Asst. A&E Editor Rumor time! And also maybe spoiler time? There is some speculation about the upcoming final installment of the sequel trilogy following a leak by an unnamed source. So if that is enough to ruin the movie for you, stop reading this.

Although the subtitle of this article gave away what I could be referring to, there is rumors an old villain returning to the big screen in Episode IX. It is possible Kylo Ren and Rey will come face to face with Emperor Palpatine in the next movie. Technically speaking, if the leak is accurate it seems that Palpatine is still very much dead.

Rey is seen holding a holocron (an object not unlike a holographic answering machine or tape recorder) which projects a hologram

of the Emperor himself.

Now, it’s no secret that while Palpatine wanted to rule the galaxy, however, his primary goal was to cheat death and become invincible. This was a major factor in Palpatine’s ability to turn Anakin to the dark side of the Force in Episode III. This was made even more clear in the excellent Aftermath novels which tell the story of the events of the aftermath of the Battle of Endor and lead all the way up to the events of The Force Awakens. Particular emphasis is placed on Palpatine’s contingency plans he had in place in case of the unthinkable. It also showed his utter fascination with the unknown aspects of the Force beyond the light and the dark.

On the planet of Jakku, where we first meet Rey, there is an observatory

Photo courtesy of Pinterest built into the sands by the Emperor, this becomes the last stand of the Empire during the Battle of Jakku.

The observatory was built on the supposed location that an extremely powerful force user dubbed the Consecrated Eremite lived.

The Eremite lived thousands of years ago, but was said to not adhere to either Sith or Jedi doctrine. The Emperor was fascinated with this figure. Not only that, but an extremely dark force from the Unknown

Regions was calling to Palpatine so he built his observatory there, to watch and listen to this force calling out to him. This was not his only observatory dedicated to this purpose, either. He also had countless vaults and libraries, containing ancient Jedi and Sith artifacts and literature. Is it possible all this additional lore is leading up to a reveal as to what he was searching for in the Unknown Regions?

There’s a lot to the character of Palpatine that has remained unanswered since

the conclusion of the original trilogy. And Disney is taking great care to flesh out his motives beyond that of simple galactic conquest, with all that effort it would not be that far-fetched to see one more appearance of the man seeking unlimited power. At the very least we get Ian McDiarmid back in the saddle. One can hope.

Rhode Island College’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1928 |

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Arts&Entertainment

Marisa Lenardson Online Media Manager

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| Rhode Island College’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1928

Opinions Let’s talk about professor evaluations Lauren Enos Assistant Opinions Editor I’m talking about those end-of-semester evaluations that probably never even get looked at after you’ve filled them out. I’m of the opinion that they should be serious, legitimate evaluations that hold professors accountable.

Being evaluated is a large part of being a professional, no matter what your profession. While professors are already evaluated by their superiors, I think the information that their students could provide would be just as useful.

The vast majority of the professors I’ve had throughout my college career have been exemplary. I knew that they had relevant experience in their field and were doing their best to prepare me for the professional world. But I have also had a few that I feel don’t belong in a classroom. Whether they had clearly given up, no longer

had relevant experience from the field, or were just plain rude, they probably weren’t ever told that. Or maybe they were (perhaps on one of those teacher evaluations), and just didn’t care or never saw it. Good or bad, students can provide valuable insight to professors from a point of view that their superiors can’t.

Students are the paying customers of the college and therefore should have a say in the product that they’re receiving. Their word deserves to have an impact.

I couldn’t tell you what results from those evaluation forms at the end of the semester.

The various department heads take them, glance at the scores to questions that aren’t even indicative of teacher performance, and then what? Do they put them on file? Do the

professors see the results?

Do the results actually mean anything, or are the evaluations purely to placate students and make them feel like they have a say?

Here are some popular questions on those evaluation forms: Was class was held at the time specified?

(Yes, isn’t that expected?)

Did the professor cover the material listed in the syllabus? (Technically yes, but did they do it well is the real question.) Did the professor provide feedback on your assignments?

(Yeah, but time-frame is an important bit here!) Was the professor knowledgeable?

(Well, I sure would hope so, but how would I know?)

So according to these surveys, as long as the professor held class and covered the material then they’re golden.

A student could have had

an awful class experience but have an evaluation covered in the highest ratings because the questions are absurdly basic and biased; they ask about logistics of the class itself instead of the effectiveness of the professor. Instead, all of students’ true concerns are directed to the comments box, which, do we really think those are being read?

I just don’t think those

evaluations do a great job encompassing students’ opinions, and I don’t think you would be hard-pressed to find a student that agrees with me. There’s much more to being an effective professor than those evaluations measure. Not to mention, I doubt the results make it back to the professor, let alone have any real impact.

“Students are the paying customers of the college and therefore should have a say in the product that they’re receiving.”

The views expressed in The Anchor, unless otherwise noted, are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent those of The Anchor or of Rhode Island College’s faculty, administration or student body.

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Opinions

To all the boys I never loved before

Ariella Jeter Assistant copy editor

Sorry fellas, this one is for the ladies. The saying “you don’t need a man to be successful” or “to be happy” or to “feel loved” is one that has been chirped into my ear for as long as I can remember. You too can probably relate. I always pushed this saying aside as if it was common knowledge -- never let a man get in your way of achieving all you want out of your life. I told myself I never would… but then I did.

Our society is flooded with “relationship goals,”“couple goals” and about a million other pointless goals that take up an unnecessary amount of space in our minds. How about personal goals? Or more importantly, mental health

goals? I know these won’t look that great on your Instagram, but when you are smiling like you’ve won the lottery frequently and have everything you need in order, it’s probably best that you forget about Instagram because what you’re doing is real. It is beneficial to you and your future-- unlike the last picture you posted in which you’re pretending that no one was actually paying attention and received a subpar 76 likes.

Today, nobody realizes how important self-love actually is. Once you achieve that self-love, literally nothing can stop you. I know you think the guy that broke your heart three times already is the one for you, but sweetie, once he breaks your heart the first time, gather

your things and leave.

It is expected in our society that we need love to be happy but, coming from experience, you absolutely do not. In order to love another being to your fullest, you need to be capable of loving yourself first.

You need a big old foundation of self-love and success, even if it is just the tiny success of getting out of bed in the morning and coming to class.

Too many people think

we need to be codependent on another person to be successful and happy, but this truly is not the case.

Build yourself up, reach your short term goals and find a place in life in which you feel comfortable in.

Start doing more things by yourself: traveling, going to the movies, taking yourself out for coffee or anything else you feel brings you joy. Once you learn to be able to be comfortable with yourself and who you are,

that’s when you can build a rewarding relationship with another person.

I know it sucks losing someone who means a lot to you, more than you might think. But each loss is a gain. You are gaining the strength to pick yourself back up again and learn to be who you are without that person. That way, when the right person does come along, you will be happier than you thought you ever would.

Start doing more things by yourself: traveling, going to the movies, taking yourself out for coffee or anything else you feel brings you joy. Once you learn to be able to be comfortable with yourself and who you are, that’s when you can build a rewarding relationship with another person.

The irony of new technology Alison Macbeth Anchor staff As we continue to advance technology, we seem to regress in our use of it. More people are talking about using their phones less, but phone producing businesses aren’t worried. In fact, manufacturers are capitalizing on the bandwagon of buzzwords like “minimalism” and “a need to unplug.”

If you updated your iPhone with the newest software you may have noticed a new feature Apple calls screen time. This feature allows the user to schedule downtime, limit app use, regulate what apps can be seen and block content. It also breaks down how much time your screen is on for activities such as social networking, productivity and reading/reference.

It’s an interesting bat-

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tery-sucking feature. In the convenience of this new iPhone capability lies the ironic fact that people need their phone to help them to stop using their phone.

And the satire on technology doesn’t end here. A new phone called the Light Phone is a device that many would call useless. It only makes calls. However, the company founders Joe Hollier and Kaiwei Tang feel that their product was born when “it became obvious that the last thing the world needed was another app.”

According to The Light Phone website, “So many products are claiming to ‘make our lives better’ ...

Light was born as an alternative to the tech monopolies that are fighting more and more aggressively for

Photo courtesy of Stylecaster our attention.”

However, it fails to recognize that the Light Phone is still another piece of technology to help us monitor our technology use. It connects with a smartphone and allows the user to “unplug”, so to speak, by having a phone in case of an emergency. Because the last thing the world needs is another

app - the world actually needs another phone.

Meanwhile, the Light Phone promises to make us happier, more fulfilled, and rogue from the corporate world.

While it is important to be mindful and aware of how you manage your time (and I truly believe that phone use is an essential thing to think about when

discussing a healthy lifestyle), don’t let the next tech thing become your rescuer.

New features, apps, and slim phones are only more ways to get sucked into the technological drama. Just be smart with your smartphone.

The views expressed in The Anchor, unless otherwise noted, are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent those of The Anchor or of Rhode Island College’s faculty, administration or student body.

Opinions

What Brett Kavanaugh’s appointment means Catherine Enos Opinions Editor In many ways, the appointment of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court of the United States only confirms what has been occuring in this country for a while: we, as a society, ignore women’s legitimate complaints against harassers.

I’m not inferring a judgement about whether Dr. Christine Blasey Ford is telling the truth or not. But this much is true: a large part of the Senate (Republicans) was dismissive about these charges from the start and specifically sought out information that would confirm their beliefs.

The first thought that occurred to me was: why Kavanaugh? After he was accused, why didn’t Senate Republicans ditch Kavana-

ugh and find another equally conservative judge? The answer to this has two parts.

The first part is that Donald Trump was figuratively breathing down the Senate’s neck for a speedy confirmation. In Trump’s eyes, losing this confirmation would only display gross incompetence: the GOP is in the majority in the Senate, the House of Representatives and the Presidency, yet they can’t agree?

The second (and most important) part of the answer, however, is the fact that midterm elections are in a few weeks. It would be impossible to find another nominee and go through the process again.

I, a liberal female, feel hopeful about some of this information. I’m not excit-

ed about Kavanaugh being confirmed to the Supreme Court, nor am I excited that Senate Republicans (seemingly) could not care less about legitimate accusations of serious sexual assault.

I think the fact that Senate Republicans were absolutely scrambling to get this done before midterms sends a clear message: “we’re scared we’re losing power.”

This is a definite possibility-- the GOP barely has a majority over Democrats.

The more Republicans do to grasp at straws, the more people will see through the facade. This confirmation is only the beginning of the GOP’s fight for relevance and power. This is the dim light at the end of a long and dark tunnel.

Photo courtesy of The Cut

Government in America: a broken system Derek Sherlock Anchor staff Two events this past weekend have proven to me that our government does not care what the people have to say. Not only has Brett Kavanaugh been sworn in as the newest Supreme Court Justice, but here in Providence, I witnessed white nationalists and neo-fascists marching in large numbers with the protection from both state and Providence police.

Witnessing both of these events proves to me that without a doubt, the entire system just does not give a damn about us at all. In the case of Providence, just seeing the police protect the fascists after they started brawls with many of the counter-protestors, they crawled back to safety behind the police once we stood up to them.

In the eyes of the police, the fascists did no wrong

and we were the villains on Saturday. To make things worse, the cops also pointed assault rifles at us and had snipers on the roof of the State House pointing down at us. It shows us that they do not want to protect us from fascism since the police are one of the biggest supporters of fascism.

Brett Kavanaugh’s swearing in shows us that mostly old white men do not care that women were sexually assaulted, because it will ruin the life of another white man. The Republican party is telling women and girls that you can be sexually assaulted and they do not care about it because it will ruin the life of some young man, but only if he is white.

They are telling young men and boys that you can pretty much rape someone and get away with it because (surprise!) the GOP do not

Photo courtesy of Pixabay care about women unless they are creating the next generation of soldiers to go off and fight their wars for them.

The whole political system, as well as the police and prison systems, needs to be destroyed. The whole racist system that white America benefits from needs to be burned to the ground. As a white person, I do benefit

from this racist system in which we lock up Black and Latinx Americans for crimes that whites get a slap on the hand for-- but it needs to be destroyed and something new needs to be built in its place.

I want a system that will value black beauty as equally as white beauty instead of telling black and latinx girls that having white features

and acting white is what you need to strive to be. I want a system that will value trans people or people who are within the LGBTQ+ community instead of just the cis-heterosexuals. I want a system that will combat racism and say that it does not belong in this society.

But I don’t believe we will ever see that type of system.

The views expressed in The Anchor, unless otherwise noted, are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent those of The Anchor or of Rhode Island College’s faculty, administration or student body.

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Sports

The WWE, Saudi Arabia and the women’s revolution Joshua Percy Anchor Staff In March 2018, WWE signed a ten year deal with Saudi Arabia for approximately $45 million per year, that’s $450 Million dollars over ten years. The first paper view in Saudi Arabia was called “The Greatest Royal Rumble” which took place on April 27th, 2018.

The second paper view is called “WWE Crown Jewel” which is scheduled to take place on November 2nd 2018. WWE is collecting a lot of money in this deal, and it is very clear on how they plan on using this money. WWE has lured Brock Lesnar back for another match in Saudi Arabia, and he is scheduled to bring in a

seven figure pay day. WWE has also used that money to pay the Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels to come out of retirement to perform in Saudi Arabia and future WWE Events.

What is the down side of a deal this large? Well due to the Islamic customs of Saudi Arabia, WWE women superstars are not allowed to perform, be promoted, or seen during the event.

How does a deal like this help promote the current women’s revolution? That question can go two ways, women do not get the same huge pay days as the men for performing in Saudi Arabia, however this deal has forced WWE into creating the first ever all women’s paper view. However, the Saudi Arabia deal is looking

like a multiple paper view per year deal. Is that going to lead to multiple all women’s paper view events in one year? In the short term,

this deal may make it seem like WWE is dismissing all their women performers just to get a large sum of money, but in the long term, WWE

will use this as a way to give women a chance to shine on their own stage.

‘McGregor vs Khabib’, Photo courtesy of Coverthespread365

Eric Reid’s return and reaffirmation on social justice Joseph Griswold Anchor Staff What comes first? The end of racial discrimination and oppression: Or the loss of will of National Football League owners to keep those protesting racial discrimination and oppression out of the game.

That answer, at least partially came from the signing of former San Francisco 49er safety Eric Reid by the Carolina Panthers. Reid, a pro-bowler in 2013 and one of the league’s most hard-hitting safeties has been out of football following last season, seemingly due to his political activism.

Reid was the first player to kneel alongside former teammate and current friend Colin Kaepernick, protesting racial oppression and injustice. The action ignited a political firestorm that would divide most of the

country.

Sunday, in his return to the field, Reid reaffirmed his beliefs and continued to kneel during the national anthem. Following their 33-31 victory over the New York Giants, Reid made it clear that he believes he serves a greater purpose than just playing football.

“I feel our country is moving backwards. The only way to change that is to keep talking about it, keep raising awareness [and] keep doing what we’re doing”. The rehiring of the officer that killed Tamir Rice and the election of new Supreme Court justice Brett Kavanaugh were among Reid’s examples of why the fight needs to continue.

Following his protest, many teammates voiced their support, while head coach Ron Rivera answered the first of, what will be weekly queries on the

Photo courtesy of NBCSports protest by stating, “I’m not going to talk about a guy exercising his first amendment rights. I’m going to talk about what happens on the football field.”

Unfortunately, for coach Rivera, Reid’s continued protest will continue to draw questions, especially since he plans to keep his joint-collusion lawsuit with

Colin Kaepernick against the NFL despite being signed by the Panthers.

Following the Panther’s victory, In a post-game interview Reid said, “It’s bittersweet, I won the game, but Colin is at home with my kids. He should be playing.”

Reid finished his first game back with three tackles and will no doubt be a valuable

addition to an already talented Carolina Panthers team.

Reid is part of a growing wave of outspoken athletes that are using their public platform to speak up against the inequalities in society.

Sadly, these athletes may have to choose what is most important, the paycheck or the cause? Eric Reid knows where he stands.

18| Rhode Island College’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1928

Sports

RIC athlete spotlight: Grace Zangari Jake Elmslie Sports Editor Grace Zangari has known nothing but winning in her time as a member of Rhode Island College Women’s Tennis. Since joining the program as a freshmen last season RIC has yet to lose a single regular or post season match. Last year the Anchorwomen rode a 15-0 regular season all the way to a Little East conference championship and became only the second team in Little East history to win a match in the NCAA Division III women’s tennis tournament.

Also as of the writing of this article the Women’s Tennis team has completed their second undefeated regular season in a row and are poised to enter the postseason as the number one seed in the conference.

Zangari has been far from a bystander to all of this success, she seized

the number two singles spot shortly after joining the team. She compiled a 15-1 singles record on the year and earned First Team All-Little East honors on top of four separate conference rookie of the week awards.

Alongside this Zangari also helped set a program record for single season doubles wins with 17.

When asked how she responded to being entrusted with such as key role right at the start of her collegiate career Zangari told The Anchor “I got a lot of what I do from the upperclassmen, I took everything they did and tried to do it.” Zangari now considers herself a leader on the team explaining that “I definitely bring a very fun and uplifting attitude and that helps the other people on the team play well and have fun.”

Zangari believes much

of her collegiate success is owed to head tennis coach Adam Spring. She spoke glowingly of her coach gushing that he is a “very good coach, tells you exactly what to do, how to win, how to not get down and how to keep going and play as hard as you can” and that he is “energetic and believes in us, he tells us all the time how good we are and never says anything bad.”

Inversely when asked about Zangari’s importance to the team Coach Spring lauded his player explaining that “Grace was our MVP last year, she has continued to develop her game and she’s a big part of keeping our team at the top.”

Zangari and The Anchorwomen will compete for their second straight championship this weekend when RIC hosts the Little East women’s tennis playoffs.

Grace Zangari; Photo courtesy of Britt Donahue

RIC Women’s Tennis clinches 4th straight regular season title Jake Elmslie Sports Editor With an 8-1 Saturday afternoon win over the University of Southern Maine Huskies the Rhode Island College Women’s Tennis team will finish the regular season with a conference best record and the number one seed in this years playoffs. This is the 4th straight regular season title for the Anchorwomen and they will be looking to repeat as conference champions for the second year in a row, after winning the Little East in 2017.

Having the number one seed spells a few benefits for the Anchorwomen.

First they will not have to participate in the first round of the playoffs this

Tuesday afternoon when the 3rd through 6th seed battle for the right to move on. Secondly RIC will host the entirety of the playoffs including the semi-final and championship rounds this Friday and Saturday afternoon respectively. When asked about the importance of having homefield in the playoffs head tennis coach Adam Spring stated that he is “excited to be playing at home through playoffs.”

According to figures around the team winning the championship this year will not be nearly as easy as in 2017. When asked about the level of competition in the conference this year number one singles player Grace Zangari told The Anchor “The Little East is definitely harder than last year, these

teams come back better and stronger which is kind of a shock, but it gets you to play harder than you normally would.” When asked for more detail on the strength of the conference Coach Spring explained

Grace Zangari; Photo courtesy of Britt Donahue that “there are four teams that can win it all. Besides us those are Plymouth State, Salem State and Umass Dartmouth.”

RIC students can watch their tennis team compete

for a championship right here on campus, Friday afternoon at 2pm. If the Anchorwomen are able to move on to the championship match that will be held Saturday morning at 11am.

Rhode Island College’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1928 |

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During this week in history...

Jake Deblois Anchor Staff

October 15 (Mo): 1964: Nikita Khrushchev, leader of the Soviet Union is replaced by Leonid Brezhnev.

2008: Dow Jones Industrial Average plummets 733.08 points, second largest percentage drop in Dow’s history.

October 16 (Tu): 1793: Queen of France, Marie Antoinette is beheaded by guillotine during French Revolution.

1998: Former Chilean dictator, Augusto Pinochet, is arrested in London for extradition on murder charges.

October 17 (We): 1244: The Sixth Crusade ends when an Egyptian force nearly destroys a Frankish army at Gaza.

1933: Albert Einstein fleas Nazi Germany to The United States due to rising anti-Semitism.

October 18 (Th): 1867: The Alaska Territory is formally transferred to the U.S. from the Russian Empire.

1912: The First Balkan War breaks out between the Balkan League–Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece and Montenegro against the Ottoman Empire October 19 (Fr): 1812: Napoléon Bonaparte begins retreat from Moscow 1949: The People’s Republic of China is formally proclaimed October 20 (Sa): 1818: United States and Britain established the 49th parallel, marking the border between the U.S. and Canada.

1941: German troops near Moscow.

October 21(Su): 1917: The first U.S. troops enter the front lines of the Great War under French command.

1967: Drawing 50,000 protesters, The “March on the Pentagon,” protests American involvement in Vietnam.

1967 March on the Pentagon; Photo courtesy of The Washington Post

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