Classified staff asks Board for ‘fairness’ Threat of layoffs and reductions leads to finger-pointing among staff
Brandon Mann / Examiner
While classified staff (left) show their solidarity with blue t-shirts, the Board (right) votes 3-2 in favor of issuing layoff notices. By Natasha Castro Staff Writer The hallway outside of SSV 151 was full half an hour before the Board of Trustees Regular Meeting on April 11, as classified staff gathered to contest two items on the agenda. The Antelope Valley College Federation of Classified Employees and its supporters dressed in blue, and stood in unison, whispering and awaiting what seemed to be their impending doom. Communications No. 135 and No. 132 were the items looming in everyone’s mind, as they meant possible layoffs and reductions for 54 full-time classified staff members, and a difficult decision for the Board. Communications No. 132 (Resolution to reduce or eliminate classified services) and No. 135 (Resolution to reduce hours), as they read, are a “request to authorize the issuance of 45-day notices to the employees holding the classified positions outlined in the attached resolution.” They go on to state that should the layoffs be unnecessary, the District “has the option to rescind layoff notices.” One by one, members and supporters presented
their thoughts on these resolutions, many asking that the Board postpone voting on the items to give more time for negotiations. “This has caused so much stress on campus; wait on the letter of intent until there is an opportunity for negotiations—consider all of the possibilities before taking any action,” said Shirlene Thatch, a classified employee for 34 years. “Take into consideration families and lives that are affected with just a letter of intent,” requested Sara Stanton, a classified staff member who works in the Student Services building. Joseph West, also a classified staff member, suggested that by delaying their decision, the Board would be “demonstrating their willingness to work with classified staff.” Their pleas, however, were denied in 3-2 votes on both Communications. “[The Board] has worked very hard to resolve this issue, but it is not easy—not at all. We did not cause this. If you want to point fingers, point to San Francisco. This was a very difficult decision, but we have to move forward,” said Dr. Jackie Fisher, President of AVC and Superintendent of the Board. “We have a responsi-
bility to keep this college open, we have no other option but to issue those notices,” said Vice President of the Board Betty Wienke. Wienke said she is sympathetic, as she was a classified employee herself for 32 years. “If there was any way possible [to avoid this], I would fight with my life.” “I’m extremely disappointed in today’s decision,” said ASO President Enrique Camacho. He added, in a separate interview, that ASO fully supports the classified staff. The Board’s decision has brought up many concerns throughout campus, particularly regarding seniority of staff listed to receive layoff notices. Although unaffected, Mary Margaret McGuire, a fulltime tenure faculty member said the list was arbitrary. “It seemed as if the names were pulled out of hats…There is a need for transparency.” Additional staff explained that the layoff notices may go to the wrong people, causing unnecessary concern. Michael Shane Turner, Vice President of Human Resources, in a separate interview explained the procedure for layoffs, according to the California
Education Code. “When we think of layoffs, we think of laying off a person, but that is not accurate. We lay off positions. The district decides we don’t need [a given] position, and then the person is notified.” As for issues with seniority, Turner said that employees of the same position have the option to displace someone of less seniority in order to keep their position. Additionally, there has been a lot of what many deem “finger-pointing” among staff. Accusations that the faculty has yet to step forward and offer solutions were met with frustration. “Faculty is in negotiations. [We have] taken quite a few cuts in overload and adjunct, and are willing to negotiate and do whatever it takes to save as many jobs as possible,” said Dr. Susan Lowry, president of the Antelope Valley College Federation of Teachers. On April 12, letters of intent were sent to 54 classified staff members. It reads: “On April 11, 2011, the Board of Trustees of the Antelope Valley Community College District adopted a resolution reducing certain classified services due to a lack of work and/or lack of funds. This letter constitutes no-
tice that your position…has been affected by this action and will be reduced as indicated below effective at the end of the working day of June 3, 2011…” AVCFCE President Pamela Ford, said she feels the language of the letter indicates the finality of the Board’s decision. “These are not letters of ‘intent’, which is disheartening,” she said. “It’s a very, very difficult time. I’m very sympathetic to the classified staff,” said Board trustee Steve Buffalo. Pamela Ford expressed her remorse in a conclusive statement at the April 11 meeting. “You have not just lowered the morale of the classified staff, you’ve devastated them. They’re worried.” “The reason we’re here is for the students, [and by cutting classified staff] we’re hurting the people we’re here for.” The question now, Ford said in a separate interview, is what will happen next. As of press time, the Board and classified staff are in negotiations and are discussing a proposal brought forth by classified employees. Though he was unable to disclose any details, Turner said it was “creative and solution-oriented.”
Order 66 at Mel Booker’s
“Safety is No. 2 at AVC”
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News Poppy Festival blooms in the Antelope Valley Page 2
April 2011
“We don’t have the numbers tallied yet, but this is by far the hugest festival we’ve had, [with] about 350 to 400 booths. We try to have something different every time, and sometimes that’s hard to do, but we did really well this year,” he said. Daniel, a young long-time resident, voiced his surprise
however. The kids had access to wooden Thompson machine guns and PVC bows and arrows, preAV residents and visitors sumably to scare the daylights out came to the 20th Annual of their parents with the later. Poppy Festival, a celebraScattered throughout was a tion of the strange and curichoice selection of children’s atous sights that make up our tractions and carnival games. homestead. Also presented was a unique look The festival, a two day soiat rain forest animals, where kids rée held at the Lancaster City and adults both could come into Park, completely transformed close contact with a capuchin the scenery into a milling monkey, emperor scorpions, throng eager to take in the coatimundi, emu and a very sights, scents and tastes. sleepy kinkajou. The sights were many: a Indeed, animals had quite whole galaxy of booths pedthe spotlight including a petdling their wares, from redting zoo with alpaca, goats wood signs to the standard and Shetland ponies, as well selection of T-shirts (comas puppies up for adoption. plete with band logos and Concession stands sold evvarious witticisms), wooden erything from sausages to clocks, wind chimes and balsamic oils and spices, and home made quilts. made the air thick with aroma Wind chimes, in fact, in nearly every part of the seemed to be out in force park. Natasha Castro / Examiner with three different booths The Festival offered a wide offering a wide variety. Local Patrons show their creativity on a variety of music and dance on businesses like the Antelope chalkboard provided by the Lancaster several stages: solo performValley Press and the Lancaster Museum/Art Gallery. ers, a rendition of Alice and Performing Arts Center were Wonderland and belly dancshoulder to shoulder with the Natasha Castro / Examiner ing. Swing bands, dulcimers big companies like Costco and T- support their various denominaLemonade vendors stays busy as people tried to beat the heat. and percussion could be heard Mobile. tions. from anywhere in the park. The flight industry, a long SOAR High School was also “The music is what really standing backbone for the com- represented, selling soft drinks Dutton, who was also present about the event. got me,” said one visitor, “I was munity’s economy, was also pres- and water. at the booth. “This is my first time com- looking over all the booths, and ent with its very own section of“Business is good,” said stuMedia and sponsor contact ing,” he said. “Every time it came yeah, they’re great, but I got to fering an insight into modern and dent Xavier Trejo. “All of the for the City of Lancaster Jeff around I was busy, or I would just see a lot of acts that I would not historical aviation. Religion was proceeds go to the Associate Stu- Campbell was impressed with drive past it. But the booths are have if I hadn’t gone. It’s pretty represented as well, offering free dent Body – the students, in other the turnout. interesting.” cool.” Bibles and stationing booths to words,” added Principal Michael The fun wasn’t all for the adults, Pretty cool indeed, madam. By Ben Fassett Staff Writer
Sex, trash and vandalism: students abuse campus facilities By Kevin Kramer Staff Writer Some Antelope Valley College students have abused and vandalized various campus facilities such as the library, instructional media center and cafeteria. Recently, the AVC library was vandalized when unknown students used libraryprovided dry erase markers to write graffiti and other things on the walls. Most of the vandalism was found in the upstairs study rooms, where students can group together to study for assignments, tests and projects. Each of the study rooms has a dry erase white board attached to one of the walls. Dry erase markers were provided by library staff so that students would be able to write on the boards as they studied, much like how instructors sometimes write important concepts or terms on the board during lectures. Some students have abused this privilege as is evident by the graffiti in nearly
every study room. There are green, red, and brown smudges on the walls where attempts have been made to clean up the graffiti. There are also several more fresh markings. Not all of the graffiti appears to be gang related. There are some classic bathroom-wall phrases such as “For a good time call…” scrawled on the study room walls. As a result of the vandalism of the study rooms, the library staff no longer provides dry-erase markers to students. There are signs posted in the study rooms and throughout the library that read, “Due to vandalism [sic] dry erase markers will no longer be allowed in the study rooms.” Students must have an AVC identification card to procure the use of one of the study rooms, but because the library staff cannot check the
Brandon Bird / Examiner
As a result of the vandalism of the study rooms, the library staff no longer provides dry-erase markers to students.
rooms after each student leaves, they cannot attribute the damage to any specific student. The vandalism extends beyond the study rooms. The inside of the elevator was also defaced, as well as the stairwell next door to the elevator. The stall in the men’s restroom was also kicked down. There have been other misuses too. “Students use the library as their meeting place,” said Dawn Vargas, a library staff member. “They’ll just sit there and talk and chat and play cards, play games.” Theft has also been a problem. In one instance, a student replaced a reserved book with a reference book, destroying it in the process, in attempt to smuggle the reserve book out of the library. Also according to Vargas, some students have been caught using the study rooms for sexual activities. “There used to be smaller windows on the (study room) doors,” Vargas said. “They would take a piece of paper and put it over the window.” Using campus facilities for sexual activity seems to be a recurring theme. It has also happened in the instructional media center. The instructional media center houses several computers for students to use for educational purposes, as well as several rooms that students can use to view instructional media, such as films. “We have to monitor our rooms… and just make sure that they’re not in there using it as a motel room,” said Instructional Media Coordinator Shirlene Thatch. “We have, on occasion, found students in the rooms really not even using the media, but using (the rooms) as a little love nest.” Thatch articulated that it was hard to keep an eye on the students using computers and the ones using the viewing rooms because the media center is understaffed. Some hourly paid employees have received
cutbacks in their work schedules. It is also difficult for the staff to determine if the students are using the media that they requested appropriately. “They can ask to watch a feature film, but I don’t have the curriculum for their class to see if it’s on the list for their class,” Thatch said. Another abused facility on campus is the cafeteria. Unlike the library and instructional media center, the cafeteria is a place where students are allowed to congregate, eat, study and socialize. The abuse of the cafeteria comes in the form of trash. Students often leave their trash on the tables or floor, instead of throwing it away. “People don’t have places to go or sit, but that’s no excuse for not cleaning up after yourself,” said Food Services Supervisor Debra Smith. According to Smith, an AVC employee of 21 years, students not throwing their trash away have been a problem for many years. The problem is also more than just aesthetically displeasing. “(We’re) constantly picking up French fries and packets of ketchup and stuff like that that become safety hazards,” Smith said. “People can fall, slip. It doesn’t take much for that to happen.” Smith makes it clear that the majority of students that frequent the cafeteria are not the problem. “This is a place for the students to gather,” Smith said. “It’s a good time to get together with your friends, to maybe even talk about a test or whatever you need to do, so its good, it can be a positive thing.” “We appreciate the staff and students’ business, but we’d also appreciate it if people would take a little more pride in what we do have, ” Smith added. Vargas echoes Smith’s sentiment that the majority of students are not at fault. “It’s unfortunate,” said Vargas, “that there are a few individuals here at the college that ruin the ability for students who actually need to use the services.”
Features
April 2011
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‘Source Code’ leaves us dazed and confused By Josh Sanchez Staff Writer You aren’t going to get any spoiler warnings in this review because this movie is just that bad. No, this review is really for all those millions of people who watched this movie and said it was awesome. I think I am one of the few people who didn’t like this movie, and the fact that it climbed to number seven in the box office this week makes my skin crawl. “Source Code” is rife with plot holes and unanswered questions. If I could sum up this entire movie in one word, it would be “frustration.” The movie starts with our hero Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) waking up in a Metro-Link train after a few minutes of stumbling around and asking some very strange questions when the train abruptly explodes. Next he wakes up in a crashed helicopter or a simulator. He then encounters Colleen Goodwin, who instructs and brings him out of his temporary amnesia. Armed with a tiny bit of new knowledge, they send him into the Source Code (something to do with Quantum Mechanics, because we’re all physicists so we can relate). What the Source Code is, exactly, is a way to transplant someone’s mind into the body of someone else’s for eight minutes at a time. That’s the basic premise of the film: time travel. The plot is equally simple: find out who the bomber was so the authorities can catch him before he nukes downtown Chicago. Like I said, this review is more to explain why this film sucked for me rather than give a pro verses con analysis. So if you want the Cliff Notes version, here it is: don’t see this film. First of all, why didn’t they tell him anything? Wouldn’t it have been better to have just briefed him from the beginning like he wanted? Wouldn’t that help him
provide the information that they actually wanted sooner if he knew what he was actually looking for? Throughout the first 30 minutes of this movie the audience is hanging clueless as to what is happening because we have no back-story and no reference to base anything off of. They’re counting on us to play the guessing game of “Whodunit” and stare at the pretty effects. Second, what is a captain in the Air Force (Army? Which is it, folks?) doing flying rescue missions in Afghanistan? He went into Officer Candidate School, possibly got backed by a congressman and went to West Point – just to fly a chopper? That may be considered nitpicking, but come on. Most Captains in the military command troop movements and air strikes. They’re getting paid, at the very least, $6,000 a month. I’m sure they aren’t doing that by flying choppers. Third, I figured out that this guy was dead about the second time that he came out of the Source Code. It’s so obvious it’s almost pitiful; you can tell just from the operator’s expression when he asks perfectly logical questions (e.g. “why is there hydraulic fluid leaking in here?”), and she has no idea he’s going on about. And when the “capsule” freezes over you can just tell it’s a representation of his mind and that each time he goes in it messes with him. Fourth, the two villains in this movie have the weakest motives I have probably ever seen. The brother (Michael Arden) just wants to show off his amazing ability to build a dirty bomb, and Dr. Rutledge (Jeffery Wright, who is way over the top in this movie) just wants his science experiment funded. I’m not exactly sure why, either. Does he honestly care about helping people? Does he just want a Nobel Prize in quantum mechanics? Is he just a gimpy mad scientist? I’ll go with the last one, since I like cartoons.
Courtesy photo / Vendome Pictures
Jake Gyllenhaal matches our confused expression scene for scene in this maddening film. Finally, the ending: our captain is put into Sean Fentress’ body – the guy who he’s been using this whole time. Okay. What the heck happened to Sean then? Is he dead? Did he get pushed into someone else’s life? Could you honestly live with yourself knowing that you stole this man’s very life from him? Not only possibly killed him, but stole his girlfriend, home, family, and job? His cat and dog (if he had a cat and dog)? What about his livelihood? Does he remarkably know how to teach history at the university now? Not only that, but how many times did he jump into the Source Code beforehand? Remember how many times he survived? At least three – think about how he completely ruined the memory people are going to have of him. The film should have ended when the bomber was caught. Rut-
ledge should have just wiped Colter’s memory clean and then kept him the way he was, because that’s what he wanted. The military would have done the same thing too; “the needs of the many before the needs of the few.” Ring a bell? Or better yet, they could have done nothing. In the past we’ve seen that he’s completely at their mercy, and in future missions he’d have experience to draw off of, making him that much more effective. Now I have to admit that I did like some things about the movie. Aside from Rutledge’s over the top antics, the acting was superb. The visual effects and cinematography was also top notch. I have to give a resounding applause for being a movie that isn’t a sequel or a remake of something, such as the tripe we’re being forced to watch most of the time nowadays. The golden moments were there: the
Captain talking on the phone with his father was very real, as was the kiss freeze frame. The whole premise works really well too, and it does engage the viewer until some of those ugly plot holes rear up their ugly head. Do I recommend this movie? Absolutely not. I don’t care if it’s going to end up on a lot of top ten lists for the best movies of 2011 I think it’s stupid gimmicky and leaves a lot to be desired, is it one of the worst movies? No, it just isn’t doing enough, there was so much more that could have been done, so many avenues that could have been explored but were just left hanging mid air. I know I said it’s good because it’s an original license, but come on Hollywood. You can do better. Please, we’re begging you, give us better and original stories; hold the paradoxriddled storylines, please.
‘Order 66’ and more shred faces at Mel Booker’s By Brandon Bird Staff Writer
Brandon Bird / Examiner
Alex Fletcher rocks the mic at Mel Booker’s.
It’s been said that rock is dead. Well on April 1, 2011 at Mel Booker’s Music rock came alive and in full swing. Four hard rockin’ bands showed off their talents at Mel Booker’s music shop for their fans, and all for only $6 admission. Pulling into the parking lot, the excitement of an impending audile assault was already running through my veins. Roadies and band members were pulling gear to the stage from trucks, trailers, vans, and anything else that can possible hold equipment. With the lights on, the microphone checks sounded off, the excitement intensifying. Getting closer to show time, the fans started lining up and piling into the small local music shop. The first band to showcase their talents was Order 66, and they righteously kicked the show off with good spirits, roaring guitars and emotional-
ly strong, eclectic vocals. The show was put on by No Bull Promotions, ran by Jesse Davidson and cofounder Seth King. “We try to accommodate local students by providing low cost shows,” Jesse said. “A lot of us are local students and we all understand the financial challenges that [school] comes with.” A big part on providing the low cost show was owner Mel Booker, for offering a rent-free space for the night. And well, the admission fees, it was donated to Red Cross, raising over $750 for the night. The show included great music, with awesome choreographed performances by All Hail the Crimson Kings. Cthulu really got the crowd amped with some serious, bone crushing mosh pits. And Knights of the Fallen Empire played like they’ve been together for years, with a new lead singer playing with them for the first time. All in all it was a great show for all ages, right here in the A.V.
Brandon Bird / Examiner
Alex Fletcher, Johnny Mendoza and Don Bakeman at work.
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Features
April 2011
By Russell Spencer Staff Writer There are a number of cool visual effects in just about everything except radio and to be honest, I’m a huge fan of neat looking things. The picture to the right shows a few tweaks I made to my desktop interface which might make you think, “That doesn’t seem too impressive.” What you may not know is that it’s actually running Windows 7. Rainmeter is responsible for all the gadgets in the top right corner which are actually functional widgets form-fit to what I want to know about my system. The big gauge-looking thing is actually a clock that displays the time and date. Next to it are a few other gadgets like network traffic and RAM/CPU usage along with hard drive activity. Russell Spencer/ Examiner
The hero is just a man, but the interface is a smooth operating pimp daddy.
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Russell Spencer / Examiner
Demonstrating the Windows Key + Tab function for a streamlined, efficient effect.
Along with the neat visual effects of the desktop, switching between windows in full screen is subject to the classic alt tab function, or you can use the Windows key + Tab which is very cool in my opinion.
We’ll never put your business degree dreams on hold. Budget crunches may have other schools cutting courses, but Brandman is expanding. We’re adding business classes to meet the increasing demand.
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Russell Spencer / Examiner
Brandman partners with community colleges to make transferring credits simple, and that can make earning your business degree a lot more affordable.
The end result is a cool, efficient and easy-to-use interface that looks amazing. This is the interface I set up for my laptop. Same thing as the one at the top utilizing Rainmeter and Objectdock, though the dock and the icons are much cool on this one in my opinion. There are plenty of resources out there on the web about how to build your own Rainmeter gadgets and where to find premades. The same applies to Objectdock.
Corrections
Due to an editorial error, “Open Mic Night” was in fact called “Coffee House Night,” and the photograph utilized was actually from an “Open Mic Night” article featured online.
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Opinion
April 2011
articles that unlock knowledge i.e.... Which Campus Computer Lab has the best quiet study or how the IMC can print out a Student Report that informs a campus advisor on progress when appealing for F.A.O or a coach if you are on some type of Academic Probation. I applaud the staff writers for their subjects but I believe Feedback produces intelligence and perfection. -Chantevia Griffin AVC Examiner Editor: Great editorial on gas prices in the most recent edition of the Examiner. The picture really drew me in visually and made me want to read the article. Excellent job, Courtney! -Brian Bailey Thanks for the compliment on the photo! However, credit also goes to our Online Editor Russell, and our Opinion Editor Chris, for the artistic masterpiece; theirs are the minds behind the madness. -Courtney
Hi Examiner Staff this is my critique. I read through the entire Examiner. I was extremely shocked to see every article articulate and well thought out. GO AVC!! However I think that they should get more feedback from the campus point of view as a whole with things that pertain more to us as a student body! Pieces that pertain to finances, transfer day, and faculty things that we can grasp and hold. I would like to see more
In every issue we as a staff strive to find articles that we feel will appeal to a broad spectrum of the student and faculty bodies. Before we print every issue, we check our inbox for feedback from the students and faculty. Feel free to write us at avcexaminer00@gmail.com with any ideas for articles. We want to hear from you - Chris Gonzalez Opinion Editor
Dear Editor, The story on the AVC summer classes being cut is unfortunate. I knew about budget cuts and classes being cut, but I did not know to what extent. The Examiner was very informative about the lack of summer classes at AVC this year due to budget cuts. It is bad for not only the students who were counting on taking those classes, but also the teachers who were counting on teaching this summer for income. I also enjoyed reading about ‘Beauty and The Beast’ at the Pantages. It was nice to read something that is fun and exciting and less serious like the budget cuts. - Lisa Monaco I am excited to hear that you are enjoying our paper - Chris Gonzalez Opinion Editor
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Opinion
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April 2011
Safety is number two at Antelope Valley College this year By Christopher Gonzalez Staff Writer What I have to tell you is a bit frightening. The operating permits for the elevators in the Business Education and Applied Learning buildings are expired and have been since Dec. 16, 2010. Fire extinguisher inspections have been allowed to expire as well. Inspections and permits are an annual occurrence
for most public buildings. At AVC, on the other hand, they must think inspections and permit renewals are a “luxury.” Frankly, I object. Disabled students have need of fully functional elevators. They have a Courtney Unander / Examiner right and a priviSome fire extinguisher and elevator lege to ride in an elevator that they permits have been expired for can be assured has months on the main campus.
been tested and inspected for safety and operational stability. Ensuring that all elevators are inspected regularly and on time is a priority. In addition, all students on campus deserve to have tested and charged fire extinguishers on campus in the event of a fire. Student safety should come first. When I arrive on the AVC campus, I
expect that the college president and the board of trustees have my best interest at heart. When I see the signs in the elevators and all over the fire extinguishers, I see exactly how much regard for my safety is given at AVC. Four months have passed. How many more until this becomes a priority? It’s been long enough already.
When have we given Editorial Cartoon the world enough? In the midst of an economic meltdown nationwide our fine state of California seems to be having quite a few more issues pertaining to students. Whether you’re at the community or university level is almost trivial when it comes to getting the short end of the political stick. In the past few semesters we at AVC have seen unit costs go up and now there is talk of another increase. Whether the increase is a legitimate proposal is irrelevant at this point because even a rumor of it is cause to stir the pot. Students are traditionally broke because the money we got from scholarships/grants/ parents/jobs tends to go to tuition costs, books, and materials needed for class. Some students choose to use financial aid on beer, drugs, partying and the like, though the majority of us do use the money given to us to better ourselves and in turn the world. If talk of unit cost increases weren’t bad enough, the state government is also talking about cutting funds for community colleges. We understand that the state doesn’t have any money, we get it, promise. The thing we can’t seem to grasp is why we’re getting
the shaft. Is it because colleges have lost the intellectual ability to organize and protest? Are we simply so wrapped up in what’s going to happen next on “Jersey Shore” to notice how much harder things are getting? No. The simple answer is no. Students are faced with two options in these trying times. Keep your head down and continue on hoping that our elected officials will deal with the problems we elected them to deal with, so that we can get back to studying and passing the few classes we were able to get into this semester. Or we, like the rest of history’s greatest changes, can choose to make our voices heard and fight the good fight. This is not a simple rebellion. This is not a war to be fought with guns and bombs. This is a call to arms for every student who’s tired of eating junk food because that’s all they can afford. This is a call to arms for everyone who’s been told they can’t transfer because the one class they need isn’t being offered this semester or it’s full. We just want our right to education. Let’s make our voices
Examiner Staff Editor in Chief Brandon Mann
Copy Editor Jordan Lofgren
Managing Editor Sarah Niemann
Senior Writers Wes Horowitz Joshua Sanchez
News Editor Natasha Castro Opinion Editor Chris Gonzalez Features Editor Ben Fassett Sports Editor Benjamin Min Photo Editor Courtney Unander Online Editor Russell Spencer
Writers Katrina Green Kevin Michael Kramer Staff Photographers Brandon Bird Jason Hemsath Advisers Jim Burns Charles Hood Advertising Manager Sebastian Jones Advertising rates (661) 722-6300 x6996
Illustration / Amber Lucido
heard, let’s change the game. Let’s show the state and the world that we will not sit idly by and watch the world burn because of some squabbling old men in capitols. Write to your senators and congressmen. Regardless of which side you’re on, this is wrong. Fight the good fight and don’t stop until you’ve exhausted
every ounce of your final strength. We know it’s hard enough to get homework done on time with everything else going on in our lives but this is a very necessary step toward reclaiming education in the name of those who fought and died for it along with those who have yet to breathe their first breath.
Letters to the Editor Guidelines
Letters to the Editor should include a clearly printed name, address, telephone number and major and/or occupation. Letters should be 300 words or less. Letters may be edited for space and clarity. Libel will not be printed. Letters received become property of the Examiner and may be published or reproduced at its discretion. Address all correspondence to: E-mail: avcexaminer00@gmail.com Editor, Examiner 3041 West Ave. K, APL104 Lancaster, CA 93536 Telephone (661) 722-6300 x6496
Antelope Valley College’s Examiner is published by AVC Language Arts classes, typeset on campus and distributed Wednesdays during the school year. Examiner editorials and editorial cartoons are the opinion of the editorial board. All other opinion and editorial page material is the opinion of the individual writer/artist, not of the Examiner. Views expressed in the Examiner do not necessarily reflect those of the advisers, faculty members, administration or the Associated Student Organization, although they are reviewed for publication by the advisers. Requests for news or feature coverage or concerns about editorial or advertising content should be addressed to the Editor in Chief. The Examiner is published under the auspices of the Antelope Valley Community College District Board of Trustees; however, sole responsibility for the content rests with the Examiner editorial board. The Examiner is printed by Aerotech News & Publishing.
Sports
April 2011
Minor loss, major gain By Avi Ithier Staff Writer
In Major L eague Baseball, there a re interleague games and the fans get to exper ience unique games that other wise would be just topics of conversations in a ba rbershop in the Bronx, a linger ing question in a pub in downtown Chicago and in the dreams of Los Angelinos fans. Interleague games a re games between the A mer ican and National L eague teams that wouldn’t play
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“I really wasn’t concer ned with winning or losing. I just wanted to have a good time and ta ke this exper ience with me,” said A r t Gutier rez the Ma rauders infielder. “It gives you a look at where we m ight end up at, Division I school or m inor league li ke the JetHawks.” Gutier rez, who has a .260 batting average and a .40 0 slugging percentage in conference games, reached base by getting hit by a pitch against the JetHawks and ended up 0 -3. The Ma rauders had some success on the
Avi Ithier / Examiner
Art Gutierrez who swings against the Jethawks is the first baserunner for AVC. each other until the World Ser ies and became a reality in June 1997. These games a re much more than a regula r baseball game. It is a bragging r ight for the fans and hopefully an answer to those questions in ba rbershops, pubs and dreams. The New York fans can
mound. The sta r ting ace for AVC was Steven Trem lin who pitched one inning and allowed one r un on two hits and scored the Ma rauders fi rst str i keout of the day. “It was exciting. I str uck out a m inor leaguer and no one can ta ke that away from
N A T I O N A L
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Cory Stanton strikes out two and allows two home runs in the seventh inning. see the Yan kees play the Mets in the Subway Ser ies. Chicago can see the Cubs play the W hite Sox and in Los Angeles, the Dodgers can play the Angels. AVC has its own hometown r ival. Since 20 06, the Ma rauders have played an exhibition game with the Lancaster JetHawks. The Lancaster JetHawks a re a Class-A Houston Astros affiliate and play in the Califor nia L eague. In thei r past six games, the JetHawks have dom inated ever yone. In thei r last encounter on Apr il 5, the JetHawks blan ked the Marauders 11- 0. W hat the scoreboa rd doesn’t show is the im measurable exper ience the Marauders gained.
me,” said Trem lin. “This should build our confidence to continue in the remainder of the season and finish strong.” “It was a fast game. I wish we could’ve played the full 9 innings.” Brad Sailor pitched the second inning and matched Trem lin’s effor ts allowing one r un scored and one str i keout. Freshman pitcher Zach Myas str uck out two batters closing the thi rd inning. The JetHawks fi rst home r un came from Kody Hinze in the bottom of the fifth against the Ma rauders’ r ight-handed reliever Wes
See Baseball, page 8
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Sports Underdogs step up in the NBA Playoffs
Page 8
As the first round of the NBA playoffs shifts to the homes of the lower seeded teams, it has become more interesting than anyone could have anticipated. The top two Western Conference teams, the Los Angeles Lakers and the San Antonio Spurs, have given up a game each on their home floors and are all even in their series against the New Orleans Hornets and the Memphis Grizzlies respectively. The Eastern Conference also had its share of an upset with the Orlando Magic splitting the first two games with the Atlanta Hawks. With three teams forfeiting home-court advantage, the first round has become a lot more interesting. By Benjamin Min Staff Writer
April 2011
length to their advantage in order to take an easier route to their third consecutive championship. Although a team with a player like Chris Paul has a good chance of winning on any given night, the experience and length of the Lakers will ultimately prove to be too much for the young Hornets. Lakers in 5 Dallas Mavericks vs. Portland Trailblazers (2-0) Unlike the Spurs and the Lakers, the Mavericks took care of business on its home floor against the Trailblazers, tak-
trick of upset in the Western Conference, but fell just four points shy of doing so. Just as it started to seem as if the duel between the fourth and fifth-seeded teams could fall either way, the Thunder silenced all of their doubters by blowing out the Nuggets in game 2 assisted by the stellar plays of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant. As the series heads to Denver, the Nuggets will have to crank up their intensity in order to slow down the all-star duo of the Thunder. Unfortunately, I don’t see Westbrook or Durant slowing down anytime soon. Thunder in 4
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San Antonio Spurs vs. Memphis Grizzlies (1-1)
Spurs in 6 Los Angeles Lakers vs. New Orleans Hornets (1-1) The second of the top-seeded teams in the west, the Lakers, also gave up the first game of their series to the Hornets. Instead of playing like the team that went 17-1 after the All-Star break, the Lakers looked more like the team that lost five games in a row prior to the playoffs. However, the Lakers turned it around in the second game, doing a better job slowing down Chris Paul and getting Andrew Bynum going early on in the game. As the series heads to New Orleans, the Lakers will have to use their size and
The big three of Dwyane Wade, Lebron James, and Chris Bosh has managed to come together at just the right time. Although the 76ers gave the Heat a scare late in the first game, the star power of the Heat proved too much for the 76ers. The second game wasn’t much of a competition as the Heat torched the 76ers by 21 points with the big three combining for 64 points. As the series heads to Philadelphia, the 76ers will have to find a way to slow down Dwyane Wade and company which I don’t see them doing. Heat in 4
West
The top-seeded Spurs didn’t look like the team that won 61 games during the regular season during the first two games of its series against the Grizzlies. The absence of Manu Ginobili played a huge role in the Spurs’ poor outing in the first game but the Grizzlies deserve a lot of credit for not crumbling under the pressure of playing a top-seeded team filled with veteran players. As the series heads to Memphis, the Grizzlies front court of Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol have to play the way they did in the first game of the series in order to keep the experience of the Spurs to a nonfactor. Still, I don’t see the Grizzlies advancing to the next round of the playoffs with Ginobili back in the lineup.
Miami Heat vs. Philadelphia 76ers (2-0)
Courtesy photo / nba.com
ing a 2-0 lead on their opponent. Still, Dirk Nowitzki struggled against the smothering defense of the Trailblazers while Jason Kidd stepped up in a big way to will his team to a win, scoring 24 points. The second game however was a different story as Dirk Nowitzki poured in 33 points and proved to have put his game 1 performance behind him. As the series heads to Portland, the Mavericks cannot get another poor performance out of Nowitzki if they want to walk away with a win in the hostile environment of the Rose Garden. I expect the Mavericks to struggle a bit in Portland but will ultimately advance to the next round. Mavericks in 6 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Denver Nuggets (2-0) It seemed as though the Denver Nuggets could steal one on the road in game 1 against the Thunder and completing a hat-
East Chicago Bulls vs. Indiana Pacers (2-0) Like many of the top-seeded teams in the playoffs, the Bulls seemed to struggle in the first game of their series against the Pacers as they barely escaped with a victory thanks to an MVP-like performance by Derrick Rose. They escaped with yet another win in game 2 but both games were way too close for comfort. The Bulls were expected to blow the Pacers out of each game but it has become evident that the Pacers are a team to be reckoned with. As the series heads to Indiana, the Pacers hope to do a better job closing out games with their home fans to back them. Unfortunately, the Bulls now know that the Pacers will have to be taken more seriously and will close out the series in Indiana. Bulls in 4
Baseball Continued from 7 Hor n. Hinze, who was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 20 05 and is in his fi rst season with the JetHawks, gave the Marauders words of encouragement after the game. “They a re a good team,” said Hinze. “They need to put in the time li ke we did.” Closing for AVC was freshman Cor y Stanton who allowed back-toback homer uns in the bottom of the seventh but str uck out the last two batters for the JetHawks. The Ma rauders, who have had a rough season and a re cur rently ran ked eighth in the Foothill Conference with a 5-16 record, look to build on this loss with a roster full of talented freshmen and a season of ha rdship. The last game of the season will be a doubleheader on Apr il 28 at noon when the Ma rauders will host Mt. San Jacinto.
Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks (2-
The Celtics aren’t the team they were a year ago with the original big three not getting any younger and with Kendrick Perkins now with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Still, they managed to squeeze out a win in game 1 with a 2-point victory and another one in game 2 with a 3-point victory. In the absence of Chauncey Billups, Carmelo Anthony bumped his game up yet another notch but fell just short of making a game-tying 3-pointer in game 2 to tie the series. As the series heads to New York, Billups is expected to make his return and will reenergize the Knicks along with the fans at Madison Square Garden. Expect the Knicks to push the defending Eastern Conference champs to the brink of elimination. Celtics in 7 Orlando Magic vs. Atlanta Hawks (1-1) The one team I expected to make an upset in the first round are the Hawks and they didn’t disappoint winning one on the road against the Magic. Although they couldn’t come away with another win in game 2, the Hawks now have the homecourt advantage in the series as the series shifts to their court. As the series heads to Atlanta, the one constant of the Magic is the play of Dwight Howard. However, other players such as Hedo Turkoglu and Jason Richardson will have to step up and take some of the load off of Howard’s shoulders in order to win a game as the visiting team. Hawks in 6