Generation Magazine Ver.02-14

an alternative voice since 1984 an SBI publication

04242012

vol. 29 issue 14

Happiness, happiness.

ubgeneration.com

GENERATION AT A GLANCE

+ Senior Sendoffs + A Note on the Personals + Introduction by our New EIC

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4, 2012 ine - April 2 az ag M n io Generat

S T N E T CON 05 / Editor’s Letter

So long, farewell!

07 / Agenda

The Reverend Horton Heat and H U N G R Y.

/ Hit or Bullshit

Texts from Hillary and UB Memes.

08 / Interview with Travis Nemmer

An interview with the incoming S.A. president.

10 / A Note on the Personals

Josh Newman explains why we don’t have them and never will.

12 / Senior Send Offs

Erin Willis, Catie Prendergast, Bonnie Wan, and Raissa Huntley say their goodbyes.

14 / E.I.C. Announcement

Incoming Editor in Chief Ally Balcerzak outlines her new goals for next year.

23 / Parting Shots

Carlton Brock hates technology and Erin reflects on the ‘G’ word.

eneration Magazine Staff

Editor in Chief Josh Newman

Photo Editor Benny Higo

Managing Editor Ally Balcerzak

Circulation Director Rashid Dakhil-Rivera

Creative Director Bonnie Wan

Contributing Staff Carlton Brock Tyler Gagliardi

Asst. Creative Director Lin Hiu Cho Copy Editor Erin Willis Associate Editors Claire Brown Raïssa Huntley Catherine Prendergast

Business Manager Brian Kalish Ad Manager Jeremy Wolocki

Generation Magazine is owned by Sub-Board I, Inc., the student service corporation at the State University of New York at Buffalo. The Sub-Board I, Inc. Board of Directors grants editorial autonomy to the editorial board of Generation. Sub-Board I, Inc. (the publisher) provides funding through mandatory student activity fees and is in no way responsible for the editorial content, editorial structure or editorial policy of the magazine.

Editorial and business offices for Generation are located in Suite 315 in the Student Union on North Campus. The telephone numbers are (716) 645-6131 or (716) 645-2674 (FAX). Address mail c/o Room 315 Student Union University at Buffalo, Amherst, NY 14260.

Submissions to Generation Magazine should be e-mailed to ubgeneration@gmail.com by 1p.m. Tuesday, a week before each issue’s publication. This publication and its contents are the property of the students of the State University of New York at Buffalo 2011 by Generation Magazine, all rights reserved. The first 10 copies of Generation Magazine are free. Each additional copy must be approved by the editor in chief. Requests for reprints should be directed to the editor in chief. Generation Magazine neither endorses nor takes responsibility for any claims made by our advertisers. Press run 5,000.

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EDITOR’S LETTER

W

riting for Generation these past two years has been a humbling experience. I got to meet a lot of great people, write things I’ve always wanted to, and deal with the ups and downs of running a magazine. I was elated when I was offered the job last year and though a lot has changed since then I have never lost my love for writing or my enthusiasm for my job. There have been times when I have expressed discontent with parts of my position – the anxiety, the laborious task of expressing your opinion to the student body every issue, the brushes with the loyal (and not so loyal) opposition – but in the end I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

I don’t want to focus on myself, of course. This magazine is not about me. It’s about UB and our wider community. Our approach has always been to tackle an issue relevant to the student body and cover it in ways not normally done. Over the past year we have covered things directly related to UB like student protests, UB2020, the GRE, and campus architecture as well as things related to us as people like our unusual winter weather and the cult behind Ayn Rand. And we tried to sprinkle each issue with articles that we thought people would enjoy, like short stories, criticism, and our annual Oscar predictions. In James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, young Stephen Dedalus inscribes his worldview in his geography textbook: his name, his class, his school, his town, his county, his country, his continent, the World, the Universe. In the same vein, we wanted the magazine as accurately and as interestingly as possible to cover all these things. We knew, obviously, that the magazine could only go so far. But we knew that the world was out there and wanted, through journalism and writing in general, a small slice of it.

I’m very happy with the way things have gone. None of what the magazine has accomplished would’ve been possible without the help of the extraordinary staff and our contributing writers. I would like to wish the staff, all of who are leaving except for Ally, my very best wishes and gratitude for the work they have done. Claire, you were a valuable asset to the magazine. You always had great ideas and your writing was terrific. I’m glad I can call you a friend. Raïssa, you displayed such creativity and cheery insight. It was always a pleasure reading and editing your work. I look forward to seeing you

in the halls of the English department next year. Catherine, you always were a dedicated and driven member of Generation. We, as well as UB, were very lucky to have you for so long. Erin, I’m glad that I chose you as Copy Editor. Working with you was always a pleasure, and the side conversations we would have in the office are some of the best I’ve ever had. You have a great heart, which I know will take you far.

Bonnie, you’re just awesome. You have done fantastic work this year and did it with an understated aplomb I always found comforting. Working closely with you all those long production days made them worthwhile, and I know there will be many more people in your life that will say the same.

Benny, your sunny personality and enthusiasm for the magazine were always refreshing – and man, can you take photos!

Brian and Jeremy, your work for the business aspects of the magazine helped us tremendously. My best wishes for your future careers. I’d also like to thank you, Lin, for your work with us. That you did this purely on a volunteer basis says much about your work ethic and character. Rashid, thanks for being such a genial presence in the office and for working hard to get our magazine out. And Carlton, I know what it’s like to be a contributing writer for a magazine that doesn’t pay or give credit, so kudos to you! I hope you continue with the magazine next year. My thanks to everyone else that contributed to the magazine. We’ve always had a small staff; contributing writers would make or break our issues. You should all be proud. I certainly am of you.

A few personal thank you’s. I want to thank Prof. Mark Shechner for his guidance and friendly advice over the year I’ve known him. Mark, I consider you a mentor. I want to thank Ren Laforme, too, for his contributions and pointers on how to make the magazine even stronger. Ren, your tenure at Generation was challenging to live up to. And, as always, say hi to Keeley for me! Also, I must express my gratefulness to Dino Husejnovic, who set the magazine’s pace before me and did a kick-ass job. The magazine wouldn’t have been possible, either, without the hard work of the staff of SBI, especially the work of William Hooley (such a great boss!), Gale, Roe, Joel, and treasurer Josh Boston. Guys, I was honored to be your employee; I hope that I lived up to your expectations. And to everyone else at SBI and the other people that made Generation happen, my eternal thanks and good wishes.

Ally. Ally, I know the magazine will flourish under your guidance as Editor in Chief. I don’t think I’ve always said it but it was a pleasure to have you around. Your dedication to the magazine was outstanding and I’ve seen you progress in the magazine and in school for nearly a year and a half now.

Whatever you decide to do, I’d ask that you remember to respect tradition as you find newer and better ways to take the magazine forward. I know you will do an amazing job, and I for one will be looking forward to each and every issue as a regular student next year.

I’d be remiss, finally, if I didn’t thank my friends and family for their love and support over the years. My mom and dad especially. You two always encouraged me with this endeavor. I can’t tell you how indebted I feel to you both.

My grandparents, too, were always such dedicated readers. Grandma and Grandpa, thanks for reading and all those lovely complements and emails you bestowed upon me. And to everyone else that has complemented the magazine over the year, as well as everyone else that read it, thank you so much. We here really do appreciate it.

Well, that’s it folks. My time in Generation is done. I may contribute an article here or there next year but my hands are free from the publication. I’ll always remember the good times I’ve had here. Eventually, when I leave UB and maybe even Buffalo, I’ll always look back at my time with the tabloid with nostalgia and pride, from the time I walked into the office as a college sophomore to the time I finally left as a part-time graduate student.

Much love.

Sincerely,

Josh Newman.

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AGENDA:

WHAT’S GOING ON

MUSIC | THE REVEREND HORTON HEAT AT THE TRAIF | APRIL 26 The Reverend Horton Heat is playing Thursday, April 26th at The Tralf, 622 Main Street. Doors at 7pm, Show at 8pm.

Tickets are $21 presale and $23 day of show.

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ARTS | H U N G R Y// THE SENIOR THESIS SHOW | 79 PERRY STREET | APRIL 28 6P.M. - 10PM The UB Visual Studies Department Presents: H U N G R Y - a senior thesis exhibition showcasing extraordinary artwork to feed your visual appetite. H U N G R Y features 29 graduating artists & designers. The exhibition ranges work from painting to printmaking, photography to graphic design, performance art to installations.

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EVENT | FINALS! The time has come to stop procrastinating (or if you’re like us, to ramp up your procrastination levels to critical mass).

Finals week looms before us, so start stocking up on RedBull and junk food now; you probably won’t have enough time to do much but type papers and take 10 minute naps during exams.

HIT Texts from Hillary

Hillary Clinton has never been so cool. A random photograph of the Secretary of State wearing sunglasses, texting, and looking like an all-around badass achieved meme status over the past few weeks, paired up with photos of celebrities like Jay-Z or Rachel Maddow, each attempting to text Hillary, and receiving a verbal smackdown in return. Hillary 2016? We can only hope.

Spring Fest on a Sunday What is with Spring Fest being on a Sunday this year? The whole point of a Fest is to stay up insanely late with your friends, rocking out to whatever random act the SA gets, and skating the line of at least four laws. How on Earth can we do that on a SUNDAY?! Especially considering there are classes the day after and then it’s finals week. Once again the current SA E-board has let us down. Hey Nemmer, Zimnicki, and Neuwrit, consider this our request for a decent rock act on a Saturday for Fall Fest please.

Easier Parking

The one good thing about finals is easier parking. Since there aren’t almost 30,000 people trying to fit on campus everyday during finals, there are actually spaces! No more stalking someone as they try to make it to their car in one piece. No more angrily glaring at the car that “stole your spot.” For one week a semester, we can actually get a spot without having to act like Rambo.

UB Memes We know that the Facebook page UB Memes is popular with students - perhaps even more popular than (gasp!) us - but its fame doesn’t justify its meanness. The page owners have decided to make the page a vehicle to bash anything they don’t happen to like, including yours truly and especially The Spectrum. But really, with memes (a cheap and mindless form of humor) that continually try to humiliate The Spectrum and verge on racism, that voice is about appealing. The page owners have enjoyed their 15 minutes of fame, but that will pass, and they must live with the fact that they have made themselves look small.

Ally Balcerzak Makes EIC!

Congratulations to our very own Managing Editor being named Generation’s EIC for next year! It’s always very exciting to see one of our own advancing… It’s like our first child getting on the bus for the first time… *cries*s.

Another Shitty Law from Arizona Do you have a uterus? Do you plan on having sex within the next two weeks? BOOM! You’re already pregnant. AZ Governor Jan Brewer signed into a law an abortion bill that can ostensibly define pregnancy as occurring up to two weeks before conception, thereby limiting the number of weeks available for a legal abortion to 18 rather than 20. Arizona: quickly becoming one of the worst places to be a human.

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INTERVIEW WITH...

How was it to win the election when there was so much controversy around it? Especially with you being the old E&C chair and all the rules that supposedly weren’t followed?

About the rules that weren’t followed: there is no rule suppressing the Election and Credentials Chairman from running for office. I pay $94.75 like everyone else and saw that SA was taking a direction I was largely unhappy with, mostly due to institutional constraints. The job of the Election and Credentials Chair very much prohibits me from being a vocal supporter of a candidate that would change the SA. And if the same old people ran, I would have to tacitly endorse that by upholding their election, and that didn’t sit well with me. It was actually a tough decision because I love Elections and Credentials; I love rules. So I had to walk away from my job.

Recently many students have lost complete confidence in the SA due to everything going on with the current treasurer. How do you plan to reinstate that confidence in students since there’s no trust?

The fact that there’s no trust is a bit of an exaggeration. At the end of the day, the internal controls failed but the external controls didn’t. What people are really forgetting is that zero money has actually been spent, the system worked. And that’s what we’re all losing site of in our haste to decry a person. This

was symptomatic of the lack of communication between the members of the executive board. If they were able to function coherently, this never would have happened. We’re going to fix this by working cohesively as a unit. Justin had a great idea in his platform to mandate concurrent office hours for the executive board. Physically cram us into the same room at the same time and we’ve got to talk. The SA office is not that big.

You guys talked a lot about giving back to the students, letting us have more say. Is there anything in the Constitution you’d like to change to make that easier or is there anything you truly want to see change in the SA Constitution?

That I want to see fundamentally change within the Constitution? Primarily our problems aren’t rooted within the Constitution, our problems are rooted within execution. Senators and Assemblymen go into their jobs, many of them are coaxed or compelled by people looking to get a full ticket together.

This creates really an atmosphere where a lot of Senators are unaware of how to do their duties or what their duties are specifically, or how to act as Senators. The same goes [for] the Assembly if not to a greater extent. What we need is proper education for the Senators and Assemblymen on what their role is and how to maximize their effectiveness at that role to provide a coherent voice for the students. The problems are not inherent with the system, but just the way the system manifests itself in terms of how the senate and assembly work.

The Rise and Rule of

Travis Nemmer AN INTRODUCTION WITH S.A. INCOMING PRESIDENT

by Alison Balcerzak

photo by Benny Higo

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Do you plan on having them hold more Senate meetings, more Assembly meetings, so clubs don’t feel like their budgets are constantly in limbo?

Yeah, that’s a serious problem with clubs in that you have to [wait]. Let’s say I have a club, and I spend a lot of money to go to a conference, and I try to fund that through ticket sales.

I’ve got to actually wait for the money to leave my club to pay for the conference and then I’ve got to wait for that money to come back so I can have another event. So this means that I have to plan my events very far apart because I have to wait for the Senate to finally be able to move my money out of the

temporary club. We need to very much streamline that process a nd make it more efficient. And then we need to change the recognition, change it to promotions, have a club be able to promote itself. That way, they’re a temp club, they got their list of 10-15 people who are interested, we put out promotions requirements and that way when they’re recognized they might have 30-40 people, and that’s a sign of a good robust club. If we change it to promotions or just some way that the club can manifest their success, we’ll have higher club enrollment, more club success as a result of a swifter, more efficient process. Nobody loses in this case.

BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, I WANT EVERYONE [THEM] TO REMEMBER THAT ABOVE ALL ELSE, THE SA IS A SYSTEM BY THE STUDENTS AND FOR THE STUDENTS. club and back in with the ticket sales. That means a lot of rapid fire events are not possible. Like for example, I’m on the Model United Nations and we wanted to go to one conference right after another and we had the money to do it because we had the money coming in from ticket sales, but we’d have to wait for the Senate to move the money. So I had to really claw and scrape and scrap other means of ensuring the money.

I talked to my coordinators, I talked to Sub Board; I talked to the Vice President, got my co-sponsorships there. Clubs shouldn’t have to resort to foraging for money in that way.

More senate meetings are necessary if for no other reason than so clubs get their money at a reasonable time. The current system is unsustainable.

Are you going to do anything for the Temporary clubs? Because right now there’s that 2-2-2 status they all have to meet, and you mentioned changing that around. Is it going to be easier for clubs to get recognition?

Easier for the clubs to get recognition? Yes, because ideally we’re going to not force clubs to go to SA events. If SA really wants to have great events, we will. If SA really wants to have great events we’ll have our events great not by forcing students to go to our events with the vague promise of recognition in the future. Right now, we don’t have an effective means, there’s no set pattern for how [long] it takes to recognize a

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Is there anything else you’d like to say to the students about what you’re going to do? A lot of people didn’t see the platform. There was the Facebook rush, and I was able to sit in on the club meetings but there is a grand majority of the students who don’t even know who you are at this point aside from what they’ve seen in The Spectrum.

I’m going to make the same corny “get involved speech” that has been made since the SA was formed, haha. But at the end of the day, I want them to remember that above all else, the SA is a system by the students and for the students. The Student Association in its present form is fantastic in just the amount of autonomy we have. Go down the road to Medaille or a lot of the other colleges in the area, the Student Assocation is another appendage of administration and that’s not the case at the University at Buffalo. It is very much a student run program, and admittedly that has its own problems. But, I would much rather see SA maintain its autonomy and occasionally look a bit chaotic than I would have the students lose control of the money that they pay in the student activity fee. And that’s what a lot of students really need to realize. It’s their $94.75 that we spend, take advantage of it. There’s a whole host of programs available, and come talk to us if there isn’t one. We’re reasonable people, we should be able to find the means to help you out.

FEATURE

A Note on Personals

by Josh Newman

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I

n our last issue, we claimed that we were bringing back the personals. I’m sure you’re all aware now that this was a hoax. The last issue was our “April Fools” edition. All of the content except for the ads were fabricated, including the personals page.

We included a note in bold type on the bottom of the contents page saying just that. We pulled this joke because we wanted to have some fun and knew that “bringing back the personals” in particular would garner a lot of attention.

We thought it would be a hit and would flourish as hearsay and rumor. The response, however, was underwhelming.

Only a few people fell for the fake email we set up, and as far as we know there wasn’t much rumbling going on. Some students, though, did send us emails that varied in tone (some were respectful, others not so much) but said the same thing: “[please] bring the personals back.” One very polite reader told us that resurrecting the personals would be a nice graduating gift for the Class of 2012. I hate to be rude but I’m afraid we at Generation have no gifts for the class besides our best wishes and our gratitude for their leaving our office in 315 Student Union unburned. Despite the lukewarm acknowledgement from the student body, I want to take this space to explain why we don’t – and won’t – have them.

We here know that the personals, back when they were in the glossy issues of Generation (the last of which were published in 2009), were popular with many UB students. A sizeable part of the student body was at an uproar when they no longer appeared in the tabloid issues, and the resentment never completely subsided. The two Editors in Chief during that time, Josh Boston and Ren Laforme, were pelted with acrimony. They had to contend with some

really nasty responses by students who couldn’t fathom a Generation without the infamous personals, which had become such a source of delectation at UB, apparently, that they acquired a sort of cult-following. (Ironically, most of the criticism they faced dealt with the least eloquent and professional parts of the magazine, not the most.) Fortunately for me, I haven’t been bombarded with any serious requests for the personals, but every now and then I hear the shouts

Editor in Chief. Before I explain why, I want to make clear that I don’t hate the personals. I would read them during my freshman year. Though I wouldn’t call them revolutionary or a paragon of free speech, they were nonetheless there, thriving and popular, and I found some of them pretty funny. The personals had some really hilarious and raunchy stuff, which is one reason why they were both popular and ultimately banned. It’s not like I have any moral or ethical objec-

The way the personals were going, some of the content could have targeted specific people. The material was always racy and gratuitous, so SBI, our publisher, was held at a legal liability. and murmurs of certain students that eagerly wait for the section’s return; anyone who was on the UB Memes page during late February will know what I mean. Sometimes the lust for the personals spills over to general criticisms of the magazine. In other words, people consider Generation a joke simply because of the lack of personals and won’t take anything else in the magazine seriously – if, that is, they decide to even read it, which some critics I know for a fact don’t. The response to the last issue, though quaint, was just another indication of what we already know: a good amount of students (I don’t know how many, exactly) still yearn for the personals.

I have been writing for Generation ever since the “new” issues circulated in 2010. I have always believed that the personals shouldn’t be in the new magazine, and I have carried on that policy as

tions to the personals themselves. People have a right to say what they want.

If a person wants to write about how many dicks he’d like to shove up his hot classmate’s ass, then by all means let the sicko do it. It didn’t even bother me that the personals were anonymous.

Unless the content (the selection of the personals was always controlled by the editorial staff) was directed at someone specific and included private and/or unflattering information, the writer should be allowed anonymity if he or she wants it. No, these are not the reasons why the personals went away in 2010 and remained absent under my control.

Rather, we got rid of them for a couple of reasons. The way the personals were going, some of the content could have targeted specific people. The material was always racy and gratuitous, so Sub-Board I, Inc. (SBI), our publisher, was held at a legal liability. If anyone

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went too far and someone decided to go to court, guess who gets sued? The personals also were at the hands of the editorial staff, which, the staff of SBI tells me, became more risky with the vetting process as the years went on.

There’s a whole spiel about the practices of the staff preceding the tabloid issues. I’m not going to get into that; it’s complicated and three-classes old. Point is, SBI didn’t want to have to deal with this and as a company it has every right for concern and safeguards.

The main reason why we got rid of them, though, is – well, they were distracting readers from the other content of Generation. It’s fair to say that people would pick up the magazine, flip to the personals, maybe skim an article or two, and then drop it somewhere and never give it another passing thought.

The personals became a detriment to the magazine. The magazine produced some really great articles and even when it didn’t, it was always a sincere enterprise. I’m not trying to undermine the former staff’s intentions. I have gotten into spiteful exchanges with former staff members (again, UB Memes) but I still think that they were working hard and trying to shape something decent.

I know from running the magazine this year how large and frustrating a challenge that is.

But I truly believe that the personals were becoming bigger than the magazine. I don’t believe the claim that most of the readers of the personals were also readers of Generation. That’s not true. That one section seemed to have regal status among the students.

Admit it: a significant amount of the attention glossy Generation received came from the personals and other attention-grabbers, such as “I’m Right, You’re Wrong” (another section of the

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magazine hotly contested – but that’s for another article). The personals became a distraction, a gimmick, a slick and lively but redundant gag that didn’t get people interested in the magazine itself.

We wanted students to pick up the magazine because it was Generation, not because it was the bearer of anonymous messages. You can do that sort of thing on Reddit, anyway. After encouragement from the original founder of Generation, Eric F. Coppolino, as well as other former members and readers in general, we decided that it was best to remove the personals from the magazine.

I can anticipate some objections to my explanation. What’s wrong with keeping something that is clearly popular and wanted by the students? People have told me that the personals were getting people to read other parts of the magazine, so maybe my explanation is exaggerated. The people want them. They don’t hurt anyone. What’s the harm? The harm, ultimately, lies in the magazine’s character. I’ve asked myself many times whether it is better to keep something that is popular and will keep the masses happy and perhaps get them to read the other material or to be conservative and just focus on the content and not the “eye-grabbers,” if you will, even if it’s not the most popular decision. In the end, I went with the latter. I stuck to my principles. I’ve always felt that as long as we were producing sharp articles and quality writing that nothing else would matter. Perhaps I underestimated the sway and the loyalty some students had to the personals. I do realize that the policy alienated readers. But again, I agreed with SBI and my predecessors that the personals had their merits but they ultimately needed to go. They had very little journalistic value and didn’t belong in a magazine that wanted

to capture bigger and better things.

Besides, even if I had wanted to bring them back, I couldn’t have. SBI won’t allow it. Any attempt would have gotten me fired and perhaps gotten our charter revoked again – so there wouldn’t be any Generation to have the personals to begin with.

I hope you, the reader, can understand my position here and that I’m not being totally unreasonable or callous toward the wants of the student body. Generation is a magazine for the students. Students’ thoughts, queries, and criticism are always welcomed. We can always be reached at ubgeneration@gmail. com. We are open to suggestions – we really are – and we do care about the wants and needs of the students. But the personals are not a need. We hope we have provided a magazine worthy of your reading through our writing, not through printed tweets. I would encourage Ally and the Editors in Chief to come to be mindful of this. And I hope that you can understand that we’re not doing this to screw with you. We’re doing this because we believe in the magazine. The personals are gone, but Generation has always been here.

FEATURE

SENIOR SEND OFF! OUR GENERATION SENIORS SAY THEIR GOODBYES...

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BONNIE WAN Creative Director it affects our society, our politics, our popular culture and ourselves. And what’s the outcome of studying all this? We dream for a better world. We dream to live life to the fullest or to at least scream out the reality of how ugly the world we are living in is.

Every summer when I go back home, people asks me two questions: “So, what’s your major?”

Communication design.

“What’s that?”

Our program starts off with a foundation in fine arts, practicing painting, drawing, sculpture, performance art, and multimedia arts. Then we learn all of the technical knowledge behind graphic design…

At this point, the person to whom I tried explaining about my awesome major starts to fade away from me. WHY!?! I don’t understand why some people don’t care about graphic design at all or why they think that art majors are for kids who don’t want to study.

Perhaps they think art is an easy subject. It isn’t. Don’t they see that we are living in a visually-bombarded society? My major, Communication Design, is more than graphic design. While we are trained how to design packaging, logos, editorials, and typography, we also learn about our visual culture. We don’t just copyand-paste text and layout our magazine on Word. And no, good Photoshop-ing is not easy. We apply our technical skills along with our learning to understand everything you see everyday including the stupid graphic on the shirt you’re wearing now. As an art major, we study how the visualization of our society acts as a means of communication. We examine how

Here at UB’s Visual Department and Generation Magazine, I’ve met fellow passionate colleagues who have an urge to express themselves and share their thoughts to the world. In fact, not many people know what it takes to express themselves or even understand the importance of expression. It is a lonely world out there. Either you keep everything to yourself or you share it with others. Being able to speak out, whether in visual art forms, in writing, or even in music, is the first step in creating stuffs to replace the things we hate or unknown to. It is the first step to understanding your interests, your dreams, your life, and yourself. There is so much to do out there, waiting for us, and every choice we make, no matter how insignificant it might be, can gradually, unconsciously change not only us but also the world. This is why my class’ Senior Thesis Show, coming up next week, is named H U N G R Y. We are not trying to say that we are starving artists. We are 29 new, emerging artists and designers. We come from different disciplines and have different interests; however, we all hunger to search for something in the future, the past, or the present whether it’s answers, opportunities, or reflections on self or society. We have a purpose in life.

Despite the huge pressure compiling the editorial designs within the short amount of time allowed, it has been a great experience working as the Creative Director for Generation Magazine with other creative makers. This will become a valuable stepping-stone for me as I move on as an interdisciplinary artist-designer, who hungers to learn more about how people perceive visual information. In discovering effective graphic design and in educating people about the importance of our visual culture through art `and design, I want to let the world know that we need art.

We need good design. It will change your views about art or perhaps just make you smile one day when you see my work.

ERIN WILLIS Copy Editor The idea behind the ‘Senior Send Off’ assignment is to give editors a chance to discuss their experiences on staff at Generation. Excuse me, then, as I soundly ignore the assignment and write about the one thing I’ve been dying to write about forever: Thawab Shibly.

This article may end up being very embarrassing for me. I’m going to publically discuss the intricacies of female best friend-ship, which is one of the strangest things, like, ever. I feel that my relationship with my best friend, Thawab, is probably exponentially stranger than any other best friend-ship. I think it works for us though. As a friend, Jackie Friedman, once said “You guys would be really nice to have as friends on your own. But having the two of you together is [literally the best thing that has ever or will ever happen to me in the course of my life.]” Or something like that.

For those of you who don’t know Thawab, I’ll enlighten you: she’s a Muslim American, a boxer, a fashion icon, an April fool, and, most recently, a Fulbright Scholar. Since receiving the Fulbright three weeks ago, I have not hesitated to tell everyone that she is not just a recipient, but a scholar. She is also my facebook official wife/husband (this changes based on our mood) (not like that you sicko), much to the confusion of those Facebook friends who are actually my mom’s friends. People don’t seem to understand that you can have a wife/husband/best friend and a boyfriend at the same time. It’s very tricky business so I wouldn’t expect everyone to understand. Just know that I can do it.

Anyway. When I first saw Thawab G. Shibly eight years ago, she was being heckled by a particularly smelly person on the way to gym class. “Do you have a bomb under there?” he said. She responded by mule-kicking him in the gut and apparating on the spot. From that moment on, I was terrified into knew I had to be friends with her. Since our initial first meeting, where I embarrassed myself so badly that I can’t repeat the story here, we’ve grown to be best friends. Or extensions of each other.

Now, to be extremely dramatic: Thawab has affected the course of my life. Once a shy, weird looking teenager, she has changed the way that I see the world and the people within it. Her perseverance and dedication to a cause are more than admirable; they are enviable. She exhibits, as they say, “moral fiber.”

She is literally a perfect human specimen.

As the two of us move into our adult lives, it is bittersweet. While we’ve been away from each other for months before, it seems that this is the first time that we’ll face the prospect of staying together wholly on our own. Childhood homes once held us together, but now only friendship and loyalty can do that. I know that we’ll be okay, but I can’t help but say that I’ll miss her quite terribly. Skype may be incredible technology, but sometimes, it doesn’t account for the wonderful feeling of being face-to-face.

Disclaimer: the rest of this article may feel like an overzealous and nostalgic yearbook signature. But this isn’t really for you.

So, Thawab, my habibti: I love you. I’ll miss you.

But let’s be adults and shake hands and know that nothing’s really changing even when everything is.

BENNY HIGO Photo Editor Having used a Panasonic compact digital camera for a couple of years since high school, I simply realized taking photos became my great hobby. Then I met a lot of great photographers here at UB, who influenced me to get involved with the photography world. I have done various casual photo shoots but working as a photographer was literally a ‘median’ for me to get connected to people, society, and the world. Viewing the world through the lens is just exciting; I can always see something new. I appreciate this opportunity, and gladly share some of my photo work from the journeys I’ve made throughout my college life, and of course, at Generation!

RAÏSSA HUNTLEY Associate Editor

CATIE PRENDERGAST Associate Editor

I had several strange and wonderful persons, places and things to investigate during my time at Generation; opportunities I might not have taken advantage of it weren’t for the wonderful tradition of press passes. At the beginning of the year I took advantage of one such press pass to attend a runway show at Buffalo Fashion Week downtown in the convention center. I felt like a real tourist in my hippie get-up and cosmetic-less face, but I got an interesting peek into the world of fashion design (and a coupon for free laser hair removal, which I never found occasion to use).

I remember quite distinctly my interview for the copy-editor position at Generation. It was the end of my sophomore year and by this point I decided to get involved in a campus publication. I was ready to write anything purely for the experience, so when I saw that Generation had paid positions I applied instantly.

I was thrilled to get a call from Dino, the then-editorin-chief, and I prepared for my interview accordingly: I wore the only blazer I had, a simple black H&M piece, black leggings, and boots. In short, I tried to look as professional as I could with a 60 percent Salvation Army wardrobe. Once I sat down in the office, Dino across from me, holding a blank paper awaiting notes, I thought I had maybe over dressed, just a tad. But the mentality I embedded with my outfit didn’t falter: I wanted this job so I was going to dress the part, speak the part, be the part. It worked. I was hired as Generation’s new copy-editor for the 20102011 semester. I was thrilled.

During the National Historic Preservation Conference, I had an opportunity to visit General Mills’ retired grain elevators, and to learn about the importance of grain elevators in Buffalo’s economic history.

As a newcomer to this region, the story I did on the preservation conference enamored me to Buffalo’s architecture and history.

I am also grateful that working for Generation gave me occasion to attend the first lectures in the new Leslie/Lohman Queer Artists Lecture Series at UB. The year’s lectures featured very prominent artists and have set a high standard for what will prove to be a point of pride for the arts at UB. My favorite part of Generation, however, is the “Parting Shots” feature, where the staff allows itself free-reign to bitch and moan about the topic of its choice. While I occasionally took the opportunity seriously, and complained about something that really mattered (like women’s reproductive rights), at other times I abused the privilege. That said, I’m sorry for writing a parting shot about toenails. Probably no one wanted to read that and I hope that it does not feature too prominently in Google search results for “Raïssa Huntley”, lest future employers see it.

That being said, I was really happy when Josh suggested I do associate-editor work for the next (my senior) year. I can use these more serious articles as samples for my portfolio and job interviews. With the two years combined, I have been able to write about everything from a sandwich at Pistachio’s to Buffalo breweries. Besides the invaluable editorial experience, the confirmation that people are reading what I’m saying never gets old. Two weeks ago my teacher emailed me saying he saw a piece I wrote and really liked it. Last year, I wrote a bit about a sandwich (mentioned earlier) that received one very amusing letter claiming why in God’s name would Generation dedicate a whole page to a sandwich. With both reactions, liked it/hated it, came the same feeling of accomplishment. Maybe it’s just me, but every time someone told me they saw and read my article (whether they loved it or despised it) it reinforced the fact that Generation, and any campus publication, is actually read, and not only by students, but by teachers and even outsiders.

EIC ANNOUNCEMENT

by Ally Balcerzak

A

s I sit here trying to decide how to start this letter, I realize that even though next year will be my third year as an editor for Generation, it is going to be a whole new ball game. There is no more sleeping in on production mornings or leaving the office mid afternoon to go off and start my weekend early. Instead I get to sit and wait for a crisis to arise as we are editing and doing layout, and when things run smoothly (as they almost always do) I will have done nothing of great significance that day except sit in the office for ten hours.

The funny thing is, I’ve been impatiently waiting two years to be in that very position. Being Editor-in-Chief of a publication is an honor that not many people receive; it is a position earned by hard work and long hours. But once you reach it, every late night of writing seems worth the effort.

So now here I am, preparing to enter my senior year here at UB, and it is my job to lead Generation Magazine and its writers. All of the ideas I’ve had bouncing around in my head for the past two years can finally come to fruition (I hope) and I get to steer the magazine down the path I think it should be on. To be honest, that terrifies me. I’m writing this letter in the basement of Lockwood and literally had to stop so my best friend could remind me that I’m ready to be EIC of Generation.

With that slight panic attack aside, I’d like to welcome you to the year of Ally. It’s been five years since we’ve had a female at the reigns, and I plan to use that girl power the Spice Girls instilled in me while growing up to bring new life to Generation. I’ll be honest with you… the Personals are not coming back. The very fact that a large number of those reading this doesn’t know what I’m talking about is proof that they aren’t necessary anymore. But before you start calling for my head on a platter, hear me out.

The literary section is going back down to two pages and a dedicated music section is coming in. Buffalo is home to numerous talented musicians and our music scene is something I’ve loved being a part of since I was young. We are going to work hard to let you know about concerts both big and small that are coming to town, and we will do everything we can to talk with the artists constantly circling through Buffalo.

If you’re interested in joining us on the editing staff next year, be sure to head to ubgeneration.com and click on “work for us.” We are currently looking for a Managing Editor, Creative Director, Photo Editor, Copy Editor, Circulation Director, and two Associate Editors, all of which can be applied for online. We are also looking for an Advertising Manager and an Assistant Advertising Manager, which can applied for in the Sub Board I Inc. office at 341 Student Union. I encourage anyone interested in being an editor to apply whether you’re an undergrad or graduate student.

That being said, I need to ask a favor of every UB student. If there’s something you’d like to see us cover, let us know! No matter how hard we try, we’re not mind readers here at Generation (although I’ve been told that Sub Board I Inc. is close to being able to do it). The fact of the matter is if we completely forget to cover your favorite Wizard Rock band, chances are it’ll be because we never knew they existed. We are here for YOU, and we want to write about things YOU want to read. So be sure to help us out and e-mail us at ubgeneration@gmail.com or tweet us at @ubgeneration if there’s something you’d like to see in the magazine.

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Parting The Keyboard is Weaker Than the Sword We’ve all had to block a person or two on our social media accounts. “The Facebook stalker,” “the obsessive twitter follower,” or my personal favorite “that jerk who writes ‘this song sucks’ on your favorite song every few comments. I deal with people like that all the time just like you and it makes me sick! And the sad fact is this infestation is only getting worse.

It’s like a sickness on your computer, some sort of “computer virus” that effects your enjoyment of wasting time.

Dear readers, I’m talking about your favorite “key board warriors.” Those people that hide behind a keyboard because they are afraid of the real world consequences of their words, it is pure cowardice. I cannot tell you how many times I hear “I turned off my Facebook because I don’t need all that drama.”

Those keyboard warriors out there in Internet-land are in honesty effecting our individual enjoyment of the space they share with unequipped Internet civilians.

Imagine, if you will, a world where everything you said over the internet were said to that person out loud in real time.

After the millions and millions of people finished laughing, because frankly LOL is said after almost anything these days; it’d be an awkward place. And I’m not just talking about the people laughing after they say something accidental like “I’m sorry your cat died LOL” A lot of people would be put in horrible positions. Nobody would be able to get a word in edgewise due to our constant stream of information, comments, likes and statuses. Not to mention just the amount of cowardice behind some of these comments.

Scarily enough if the comments on the internet became the real life spoken word, we as humans would be in a constant state of terror. The sheer amount of people that say they would kill maim or mutilate another individual online is just as intimidating as it is impressive. Think to yourself would you trust your neighbor if he said out loud to you “I hope he gets an (expletive) in his (expletive) mouth and dies,” while talking

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by Carlton Brock

about a film director. By the way your neighbor is saying this about several people several times a day. On the off chance that they did meet a rather phallic demise, you would be an accessory to murder.

Outside of my imaginary world there is a truth that these keyboard warriors have the scathing words and burning insults spread between friends and strangers can have real life consequences. Sadly though having a keyboard as your weapon of choice can also have effects on the targets of these attacks. In an age of Anti Bullying Campaigns in schools and on the TV set, more and more keyboard warriors are turning up. Do you know what the difference between a bully and a key board warrior is? Absolutely nothing. They’re both cowards that hide behind a fallacy of power in order to intentionally hurt another person.

So this week I implore the keyboard warriors of the world to please stop being cowards and put down the keyboards. If you don’t have anything nice to say just don’t say it. But if you absolutely want to tell Floyd Mayweather he’s an expletive that you wish would die by choking on something, say it to his face and tell me the results.

Shots The “G” Word

by Erin Willis

I never had Senioritis in high school. While my friends skipped class to hang out in the library (ironic, no?), I sat through four AP classes and even came into school an hour early to study.

I’m not joking about that. I actually came into school early to study. Isn’t that sick? What was I thinking?

I suppose that’s why I’ve been hit with a particularly bad strain of Senioritis now. Instead of taking notes, I play Scrabble on my Kindle. Instead of doing homework, I look at James Van Der Memes. Instead of going to class, I watch episodes of Parks & Recreation that I’ve already seen a thousand times. I literally do nothing—and it’s becoming more and more okay with me. Talking to other seniors makes me realize that they’re feeling the same. My best friend recently was inflicted with Senioritis, and she’s a Fulbright Scholar (I’m sorry for this shameless Thawab Shibly plug, she’s just so awesome. For more, see my senior send off! Another shameless plug. This isn’t me. I’m sorry!).

The impossible last week of school feels as redundant as my neighbor’s forty second Build-A-Bear. Can’t we just be done?

Can’t they just leave us alone? Can I get a holla from 2012? No? Okay, that’s fine.

A lot of people say that I’m just having ‘end of semester’ jitters, but this feels different. Usually, at the end of a semester, I’m in fully-fledged paranoia, with finals and papers and grades whispering in my ear. Now, I don’t hear anything, even though I’m pretty sure those things are shouting at me and dancing in front of me. I can’t be bothered with anything. I was feeling okay about that, for a while, until I realized that grad school is just around the corner and after that— Oh crap.

PLEASE DON’T LET ME GRADUATE I’M NOT READY FOR THIS.

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