Tuesday October 20, 2015

Tuesday October 20, 2015

The Student Voice of California State University, Fullerton

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IRA’s travel cap grounds study abroad programs

College Park elevators are slated to get upgrades

One of the four elevators in the College Park building is closed for maintenance, and the renovations are expected to lead to shorter wait times and minimal energy use.

Each elevator will be repaired one at a time, and each renovation is expected to take between eight and 12 weeks, said Frank Mumford, executive director of Cal State Fullerton’s Auxiliary Services Corporation.

“We are totally re-doing all the mechanical and analytical part of the cars,” Mumford said.

The elevator renovation will cost $689,968 and will include new hardware, new car operating panels and new visual door edges to indicate when the car is opening and closing.

The renovation is expected to keep the elevators up to date for the next 30 years.

Although a previous Daily Titan article reported that the repairs had to be done by July 8, ASC has been in constant communication with the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR).

Volume 98 Issue 27

Existing International: $1,500 New International: $1,000 Domestic: $500

Travel budget per student

9 programs funded out of 11 that applied

IRA decides to impose travel cap for IRA programs.

$36 student IRA fee leads to more available funds for study abroad programs.

18 programs funded out of 23 that applied NATALIE GOLDSTEIN / DAILY TITAN

An influx of applicants forced the IRA committee to further divide up funds, forcing the committee members to impose a $1,500 per-student travel cap on international programs. The travel cap left programs under-funded, leaving students with a much higher travel bill.

Some international programs never got a chance to depart DARLENE CASAS Daily Titan Communications professor Jeffrey Brody was shocked when last year’s Instructionally Related Activities (IRA) committee didn’t fund his proposal for a new 2016 program, one that meets the university president’s expectations for

academic programs.

The Vietnam Mission program was a collaborative effort between the College of Communications, the Nursing School and the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.

Four students from each school would participate in a week-long humanitarian mission during the spring to serve the people of Vietnam.

Brody said this program is a “service learning” study abroad program that meets President Mildred García’s vision for

high-impact practices.

“Students not only learn journalism, nursing and language skills; they become humanitarians. They learn compassion. That’s what this class is about,” Brody said. “It’s amazing that the IRA committee can overlook it. It’s just shocking.”

However, Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) Vice President of Finance, Laura Romine, who was one of the students in the IRA committee last year, said they were unaware of the details of the new Vietnam Mission program.

Romine said they decided not to fund the new Vietnam Mission program because there was confusion with program titles, and the proposal description seemed similar to Brody’s long-running Vietnam Project, an international journalism program.

Brody gave a presentation in front of the committee and sent emails to the ASI Director of Financial Services, Jeannie Mollenauer, to clarify his proposals. He was willing to cut his proposal for a new Spanish international journalism course in order to fund both

the new Vietnam Mission program and his long-running international journalism class.

The International Journalism Program has previously taken communication students to Vietnam, Cambodia and Guatemala. The class, which is going to Costa Rica this fall, has received $17,290 of funding from the IRA this year.

The program received less IRA funds compared to last year’s budget of $26,650 because of the influx of programs applying for IRA funding.

SEE CUTS

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Program aims to cultivate friendships Freshmen learn and bond at the Getty Museum LIZETH LUEVANO Daily Titan A group of over 300 freshmen chanted “CSUF” and proudly executed the “CSUF clap” in front of the J. Paul Getty Museum on Friday.

This group spent the day bonding with each other and experiencing historic art outside the classroom setting.

The Office of First Year Experience, formerly the Office of Freshman Programs, was able to provide a trip to the museum with a grant that they received from IRA funds. The office received close to $8,000 in grant funding to provide students with the trip, which included transportation, food and entry to the museum, said

Christina Acoff, Ed.D., the Office of First Year Experience’s program coordinator and supervisor.

The program had about $400 less this year than it did last year for the trip which Brent Foster, Ph.D., the Office of First Year Experience’s interim director, said is a “co-curricular and a high-impact practice.”

In the previous years that the program has done this trip, it got a couple hundred students to attend and had plenty of room to spare. This year, however, the trip attracted more students and the number of students who could attend was maxed out.

“Here we are using the smaller amount and impacting more people. But, at this point because we did such a good job marketing it this year, we’ve had to turn some people away or put them on the waitlist,” Foster said.

The Office of First Year

Experience serves 576 freshmen; 320 signed up to go on the trip.

“That’s a pretty good response rate to have that many on a Friday say, ‘Yes I will join you from 11 to seven o’clock at night,” Foster said.

From this trip, he hoped students would get to know each other better.

“A trip to the Getty has to do with learning something about culture and art … It’s also about relation-building,” Foster said.

“Our office is very invested in retention … essentially from my history as a teacher for 16-plus years, what I know about retention is retention has to do with relationships, and the more you feel comfortable with me or we feel comfortable together or I mentor you, the more you will feel connected to this institution.”

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LIZETH LUEVANO / DAILY TITAN

A group of over 300 freshmen visited the J. Paul Getty Museum on Friday. The trip, provided by the Office of First Year Experience, allowed students to experience culture and historical art.

Tucker Sanctuary hosts bats and crafts

Amazon’s lawsuit goes after the wrong people

2015 men’s basketball season set to tip off

Families gathered to participate in activities and learn about Orange County’s nocturnal wildlife Satur4 day evening

Over 1,000 paid reviewers are being sued by the online retailer, but Amazon should be suing the sellers hiring 5 the reviewers

The Annual Blue-Orange Scrimmage will show how the Titans’ fresh talents and veterans will fare in 8 the new rotation

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Cuts: Provost’s task force to assist IRA CONTINUED FROM

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However, Brody said he was mostly concerned about his new Vietnam Mission program that was left completely unfunded, the first time this has occurred for one of his programs.

Romine said the committee was unaware that Brody’s international journalism program had gone to Guatemala in the past, because it was not mentioned in the proposal’s description. She is considering reformatting the request application to help both professors and committee members.

“If we were a standing committee that had the same people every year, I can understand why you would only want a brief description because everyone already knows about the issue,” Romine said.

“But we are new people every year, so I think there should be a page with an actual full description.”

Brody sent several emails to Mollenauer in May explaining the differences between his proposals, but Romine said the committee was not informed about these emails. They did not further discuss the new Vietnam Mission program after they decided not to fund it in April 17.

IRA committee minutes from April 17 show that the committee rejected the Vietnam Mission proposal because they thought it was the same as International Journalism program.

“If they did not consider my programs because they made a mistake, they need to make amends and fund it,” Brody said.

Romine said Brody was on her list for contingency requests and hopes to have the 2015-2016 IRA committee formed by November.

Mollenauer said there was also a service learning program going to Vietnam directed by history professor Lynn Sargeant.

“It is fair to say there was confusion,” Mollenauer said.

IRA COMMITTEE APPLIES TRAVEL CAP

committee took an additional 5 percent off all programs, except for athletics and administration. Minutes show that athletics did not get cut because the funding is a part of a directive, while the administration budget is set at 7 percent.

Bonuso said her biggest concern is that IRA funds also support programs that students need to graduate, such as Geology Field Camp, which takes geological science majors to Montana. If IRA travel funds are further cut, geology students will have to face bigger financial burdens, she said.

CSUF students pay $550 for this course, but the same course taught by other Universities would charge them $3,500, said Geology Department Chair Phil Armstrong, Ph.D. The Earth Science Issues in Thailand (ESIT) program is unlikely to run next summer, Armstrong said. Their funding dropped to $17,100 from $50,782 last year.

“I don’t know what we would do if that had been cut the same as the ESIT program was cut,” Armstrong said.

Geology professor Brady Rhodes, director of both ESIT and the Science and Math Research in Thailand (SMRT) program, shared similar concerns.

The change in funding would now require students to pay $5,000 to participate in the ESIT program, with airfare costing up to $1,700, he said. Rhodes, who is retiring, also said that his departure would make it difficult to find a new director as familiar with the program as he is.

Rhodes said there is a disassociation between the administration, which is trying to increase high-impact study abroad programs, and the IRA committee.

Rhodes said the committee did not evaluate the value of the study abroad programs, which are the most expensive, “at a time when the university is trying to increase the opportunities for students to have these kinds of experiences.”

SMRT, which is run by the

dean of the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, had their budget decreased from $54,910 to $30,115.

“We are no longer going to take the students that are best fit for the program; we are going to take the students who can afford to go,” Rhodes said, who developed the class in 2013 to serve students interested in earth science issues that are not research-oriented.

Rhodes said the geology department does not have the kind of funding to replace the nearly $35,000 the IRA had cut. Applying for scholarships from the university can be highly competitive and it would likely only be awarded to a few of the 12 students who attend the six-week summer program.

The SMRT program has partnered with the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program for several years, and LSAMP director and chemistry professor Christina Goode said it was unreasonable to apply a travel expense cap to study abroad programs.

“It is one of our strategic initiatives and yet the money has been cut,” Goode said.

“It’s going to rule out the majority of students because of that cost.”

“It was never part of the responsibility of this committee to decide one program is more worthy than another,” Mollenauer said. “We have evaluated the applications against the criteria; if we tried to rank these we would have to go all the way to the president.”

TASK FORCE & FUTURE OF THE IRA COMMITEE

Romine said she is excited to receive more guidance from the university through a proposed task force organized

by University Provost José L. Cruz; Executive Director of ASI David Edwards; Vice President of Student Affairs Berenecea Johnson Eanes; and Emily Bonney, Chair of the Academic Senate.

Romine said the committee received feedback on how

their travel guidelines seemed unfair, and she hopes the new task force will provide them some guidance because it is difficult for students to try to value one program against another. She has received emails from a former committee member saying the process of randomly looking at each individual IRA program request is ineffective.

“The fact that in 2011 they were already thinking that — we are long overdue for an update,” Romine said, adding that the process makes it difficult to see how the budget is allocated.

Cruz said the task force will be a separate group composed of students, staff and faculty members. The group will assess the IRA’s current procedures and organizational structure to see if it matches campus policies and standards at other institutions. The task force will also ensure the IRA committee is in full compliance with risk management standards.

The Academic Senate Executive Committee will identify new faculty members to appoint to this year’s IRA committee. The faculty members will be chosen from those programs not applying for IRA funds in the current year.

Cruz said he hopes the task force will use the remainder of the school year to form recommendations for the 2016-2017 IRA committee.

“I think the committee that will be working this year will be mindful of some of the lessons learned from last year,” Cruz said. “But the major ideas on how to reform the process will come from the task force.”

“Each and every IRA program provides experiential learning opportunities to the students, real learning experiences that have the potential to positively affect their entire academic lives,” Bonuso said. “How does one quantify which high-impact practice is better than another? This is something the future IRA committee will really need to take a long look at.”

“We tried to be really fair to all the new programs and everyone is welcomed to apply for contingency,” Romine said.

Mollenauer, who has provided staff support for the IRA chair for seven years, said these travel expense guidelines were put in place to fairly evaluate travel requests across all programs, including those with a long history of success and high-impact practices.

This year’s IRA budget for study abroad programs was $366,510, which is $80,112 more than last year, and included seven new study abroad programs. These new programs were budgeted a total $142,500.

Romine said the committee decided on a per-student travel budget guideline in order to avoid deficits.

“I wish there were unlimited funds for these great things,” Mollenauer said. “But that’s not the case.”

Mollenauer said the IRA committee has always had plenty of money to fund programs. In the past, she would urge advisors from different departments to apply. “This is the very first year we had this kind of challenge.”

Geology professor Nicole Bonuso, who sat on the IRA committee for seven years, said they based their funding model on ASI student research grant guidelines. This resulted in $500 per student for domestic travel, $1,500 per student for international travel and $1,000 per student for new international programs.

Bonuso, also the official applicant for Geology department programs, said that after the travel cuts were made, the VISIT US AT: DAILYTITAN.COM/NEWS

NEWS

PAGE 3 TUESDAY OCTOBER 20, 2015

RENZY REYES / DAILY TITAN

A work crew replaces the hardware at the base of the elevator shaft inside the College Park building. The upgrades and renovations began just before the semester began and each elevator is expected to take up to eight weeks to finish. Officials said that only one elevator will be worked on at a time, leaving three elevators operational at all times in the building.

Facelift: Work to last through spring 1

The DIR has faced understaffing issues that have resulted in requested inspections taking anywhere from six months to a year to complete, said Jim Alexander, director of property development. The DIR understands that the work will be done, and they have granted ASC an extension for the repairs, he said.

Paola Laverde, public information officer for the DIR, confirmed the elevators were inspected April

17 and that all four elevators needed to have their hoisting ropes replaced.

Mumford and Alexander said that all four elevators have since had their hoisting ropes replaced.

The permits will be updated individually after each elevator undergoes renovation and inspection, Mumford said. The first inspection for the current elevator undergoing renovation was scheduled yesterday, Oct. 19.

Based on inspector findings that Laverde cited,

previous Daily Titan articles reported that PM Realty owns College Park.

However, ASC owns the

“

Mumford said.

A representative from PM Realty said that the building belongs to the

We are totally re-doing all the mechanical and analytical part of the cars.

“

CONTINUED FROM

FRANK MUMFORD Executive Director of ASC building as a 501-C3, a nonprofit public benefit corporation, and its only purpose is to assist in the mission of the university,

campus.

When asked why there was no response about previous questions from the Daily Titan, Alexander and

Mumford said they had not been contacted, and if the Daily Titan had come to them and asked about the permits, they would have responded, “yes it says ‘expired,’ but we’re working with an agency,” Mumford said.

“We always haven’t been on the best of terms (with The Daily Titan), if you will, to a certain extent, and we sort of said, ‘well, it needs to go through our public relation folks,’” Alexander said.

A reporter from the

Daily Titan did try to contact ASC in the past about the elevators, however, somewhere along the lines of communication the inquiry was intercepted by former media relations official Christopher Bugbee.

ASC encourages those who do not want to wait for the elevator while renovations are taking place to access the stairwell located on the west side of College Park, until all four elevators are completely renovated. The project will continue into the spring of 2016.

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FEATURES

PAGE 4 OCTOBER 20, 2015 TUESDAY

‘Bat Night’ teaches about wildlife Families learned about nocturnal animals Saturday evening JENNIE VU Daily Titan Five minutes away from the Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary, kids ran around and explored in a nearby field while their parents — Cal State Fullerton alumni and faculty members — waited for a shuttle to take them to “Bat Night.”

CSUF’s Natural Sciences and Mathematics department held the event Saturday night at the sanctuary.

Approximately 900 people were in attendance.

Eric Ey, the sanctuary’s resource developer, said that even though the event is called “Bat Night,” it is meant to educate visitors on other animals as well.

“It’s kind of hard to say ‘Nocturnal Animal,’ it gets pretty long on the flier, but ‘Bat Night’ allows us to give people the idea that we are going to come, we are going to do some fall activities and learn a little bit more about creatures of the night,” Ey said.

Upon entering the sanctuary, attendees encountered two white wolves and one black wolf resting behind a fence.

Maria Hernandez Figueroa, who works in the Center for Scholars at CSUF, attended “Bat Night” for the first time after hearing about it through the event’s student volunteers.

“I love it. I’ve never seen a real wolf before and it was beautiful,” Figueroa said.

Kimmi Kraus, Project Wildsong executive director, was there with other animal trainers to educate the

JENNIE VU / DAILY TITAN

Forrest McNeill admires a snake at Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary on Saturday night during the sanctuary’s annual “Bat Night.” About 900 people attended the event, including Cal State Fullerton alumni, faculty members and families. Arts and crafts tables kept children entertained with face painting and pumpkin carving throughout the night.

guests on the wild animals.

She described what kind of wolves were there, what they do and what they eat while in captivity.

Project Wildsong is an organization that specializes in education, collaboration and conservation of wolves and other indigenous wildlife, Kraus said. The wolves they have were “handraised” from as young as six to 12 weeks old, she said.

The wolves are “wolf dogs,” which means they are not pure wolves.

All of the wolves they have raised are trained for the purpose of education, film and photography. One

of the wolves, named Domuse, has been in four music videos so far, one of which was with Lindsey Stirling, a YouTuber known for her violin covers.

Project Wildsong collaborates with schools, universities and nature observatories year-long to educate students on the importance of wildlife animals.

At the event, families were invited to interact with the wolves. They could pet them and even pose for a picture with them.

Later, guests continued walking down a trail with the help of the glow from a string of yellow lights on

the fences. The next activity was a talk given by Paul Stapp, professor of biology at CSUF. Stapp debunked myths surrounding bats and educated the audience as to what they are really like.

Aside from the educational aspect of the event, crafts and entertainment were also provided. Children carved and decorated pumpkins, made bat necklaces and spider hats and had their faces painted. Kids left the painting station with butterflies, pumpkins and snakes adorned on their faces.

There was also a

storytelling group where kids hung onto every word the storyteller said and periodically yelled, “Boo!” along with the story.

“I think it’s a great event.

Kids are definitely loving it. I like that it helps get them interested in the science of everything,” said Brett Wiseman, who took his son, Oliver Wiseman, to the event.

The creepy-crawly animal theme continued throughout the event with snakes slithering in containers at the Reptile Rescue Orange County table. One worker even wore a yellow snake around her neck.

Later at a barbecue dinner, there were glass boxes containing snakes and newts. Opportunities for kids to learn about the animals were everywhere, entertaining children throughout the night.

“I like the wolves. I like the bats. I like the snakes. I like bingo and the crafts,” Oliver said.

Figueroa was impressed with the event and its educational goals.

“This is a great event and I’m so happy that Cal State Fullerton and Tucker Wildlife worked together for families, for community,” Figueroa said.

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LIZETH LUEVANO / DAILY TITAN

Freshmen visited the J. Paul Getty Museum on Friday. The Office of First Year Experience, formerly the Office of Freshman Programs, provided the trip with a grant they received from IRA funds.

Getty: Office hopes to make an impact CONTINUED FROM

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1

Natalie Betancourt, Student Services professional at the Office of First Year Experience, said that this trip is important for building the community. Students were allotted a couple of hours to explore the museum as they wished.

“This trip allows you to meet other freshmen that you didn’t know were in the program,” said senior peer mentor Christy Martinez.

Betancourt and Martinez were both in Freshman Programs during their first year at Cal State Fullerton and they both found it to be foundational and helpful.

“I felt like I had a lot of support from faculty and the program and from people that I was meeting, especially my peer mentors,” Betancourt said.

All of the students who

join the program enroll in University Studies 100, which teaches time management, learning strategies and resource use on campus. Each of these classes have a peer mentor as additional support for students.

“It’s very hard to transition. So, having someone that has been through that and that knows the way around the school, that’s what got me into being a peer mentor,” Martinez said.

Samantha Grady, nursing major, has found that the program is helpful in guiding her through resources on campus and is also a great way to meet people.

Anabel Garibay, health science major, said that Ginamarie Scherzi, her University Studies 100 professor, has an energy that she finds contagious.

“All the faculty that we

have (in the program) do it out of the kindness of their heart or the desire to help freshmen students.

That really speaks a lot to us that there are professors that are really dedicated and passionate about these first-year students having a successful transition,” Betancourt said.

The Office of Freshman Programs will transition to the Office of First Year Experience by fall 2016 in an effort to support more students.

“As the office begins to impact more people — freshmen and transfers — we want to continue to look for opportunities to create study away and these kinds of relation-building experiences for more freshmen and transfer students,” Foster said.

It should be noted that the Daily Titan reporter took the bus ride with the group to the Getty Museum.

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OPINION

PAGE 5 TUESDAY OCTOBER 20, 2015

Drone use needs regulation Questionable aircrafts will soon require legal registration JESSICA BUTALLA Daily Titan Registration of drones is needed for the safety of others, the country and airspace.

Although many people use drones for recreation, the use of drones has brought about safety concerns throughout the country.

Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and Federal Aviation Administrator Michael Huerta announced Monday that for the first time, drone operators will be required to register their aircrafts, according to The Washington Post.

Because drones often go unnoticed by radars, registering them will be useful to help law enforcement officials track down drone operators who use their devices unethically.

While recreational use is not seen as an immediate threat, some drones have been at the root of incidents that are the cause for growing apprehension.

“Nuisance drones across

the country have interfered with firefighters, flown into tall buildings and crashed into bystanders on the ground.

Criminals have used them to smuggle contraband into prisons,” according to The Washington Post.

More than 700 drones have been sighted by pilots in the air and 18 sighted above wildfires, according to ABC News.

These recreational aircrafts should never be seen crossing paths with airplanes or interfering with firefighters.

“The signal we’re sending today is that when you’re in the national airspace, it’s a very serious matter,” Foxx said.

Even with recreational use, some safety precautions need to be taken into consideration.

In September, a New York City teacher who crashed a drone into an unoccupied seating section at the U.S. Open was arrested and faced charges of reckless endangerment, according to ABC News.

Drones can be extremely dangerous if the owner does not fully understand how to use the aircraft or does not follow the instructional guidelines.

COURTESY OF WIKICOMMONS

The Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration announced Monday that they plan to require drone owners to register their devices so that they can be traced back to the owner in the event of illegal usage.

Operators are not allowed to fly their aircrafts above “400 feet or within five miles of an airport without permission,” according to The Washington Post.

Requiring owners to register their personal drones will hopefully increase safety for all.

Plans for an unmanned aircraft registration program are

expected to be in effect by Christmas. New owners will register their purchases online, according to ABC News.

The size and the kind of drone will determine if it has to be registered. Most light drones can reach 1,000 feet.

People have taken advantage of the availability of unmanned aircrafts and their useful capabilities and, if left

unchecked, it could easily get out of control.

A $1.9 million fine was proposed by the Federal Aviation Administration last week against a Chicago drone company, SkyPan. SkyPan had flown dozens of unauthorized flights over Chicago and New York starting in 2012, according to NBC News.

There is no excuse for drone operators not to fly their drones responsibly. Owners should be educated completely as to all safety regulations and should continue to have respect for federal laws. Recent incidents regarding the behavior of drone operators have threatened public safety, and with hope this new regulation will put an end to that.

US should not contribute to war crimes Saudi-led coalition against Yemen uses U.S. resources GINO RICCARDI Daily Titan Last week, Michigan Representative Debbie Dingell, along with other liberal members of Congress, issued a formal letter to President Obama vocalizing concerns over U.S.-aided Saudi military campaigns in Yemen.

The letter follows the publicized Saudi bombing of two wedding parties in two

weeks. The recent airstrikes demonstrate an ongoing trend of bombs that fall far from military targets.

“More than 2,100 civilians, including at least 400 children, have been killed in the conflict,” according to Amnesty International.

In a time when the United States purports to play an integral role as an arbiter and peacekeeper in the middle east, the Saudi-led coalition to back exiled Yemeni president Mansour Hadi against Houthi rebels has been largely fueled by American resources.

“The Saudi-led coalition has been guided by U.S.

intelligence, flying American fighter jets and dropping U.S.-made bombs,” according to Public Radio International.

The fact that the American artillery used in the bombing campaigns is bought and paid for doesn’t let the United States off the hook for the collateral damage incurred during the attacks. Besides intelligence that is beyond monetary value, the United States inserts moral clauses into contracts attached to weapons deals.

“When foreign governments purchase weapons from the United States,

they do so under a set of rules spelled out in legislation … the (law) prevents the United States from providing training or equipment to foreign countries whose forces violate human rights,” according to PRI. Not that it’s anything new, but the United States has blood on its hands and, as usual, it has everything to do with oil.

The rebel force in Yemen threatens to destabilize political alliances in the region, and its geographic position in the area is of concern to neighboring countries.

“Yemen is strategically

important because it sits on the Bab al-Mandab strait, a narrow waterway linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden, through which much of the world’s oil shipments pass. Egypt and Saudi Arabia fear a Houthi takeover would threaten free passage through the strait,” according to the BBC. Besides taking an aggressive stance against their immediate neighbors to the south, Saudi Arabia has been among the wealthy countries in the region that refuses to help alleviate the massive crisis currently plaguing Syria.

Meanwhile, Turkey, the

United States, Lebanon, Egypt and Germany continue to take in refugees and deliver aide.

It’s true that politics make strange bedfellows, and there is no stranger bedfellow to the United States than the Saudi government, with its continuing record of human rights violations and outright refusal to help stabilize its own region.

American citizens should follow the example of Debbie Dingell and begin a large-scale letter writing campaign to President Obama to cease hypocritical behavior as a proxy warlord in the Middle East.

Amazon’s lawsuit targets the wrong people Paid review writers shouldn’t be blamed for sellers’ offense GABE ESPIRITU Daily Titan Amazon has aimed a gun at the wrong people’s heads as the company recently filed a suit in King County Superior Court in Washington State against more than 1,000 people for offering to post fake reviews on the online retailer’s site.

The move, which has foolishly focused solely on the reviewers, has been deemed by some as “one of the most aggressive attempts yet by a major U.S. e-commerce company to fight back (against fake reviews),” according to U.S. News & World Report.

The Amazon sellers paying off these reviewers, however, are being given a break that they don’t deserve.

A Forrester Research study showed that approximately 45 percent of online shoppers

consider a product’s reviews before purchasing an item, according to U.S. News & World Report. However, users posting fake reviews for profit is nothing new.

The seemingly archaic act, sometimes called “astroturfing” has led to Amazon using complex computer algorithms and hired investigators to scour its users’ postings.

Adversely, it has also led to various tools being created to aid sellers in finding people willing to post reviews that Amazon deems “false, misleading, and inauthentic.” An example is Fiverr.com, a website that allows internet users to offer various services for as low as five dollars.

The 1,114 defendants targeted in Amazon’s lawsuits, all currently identified as “John Doe,” are facing legal action for writing five-star “awesome” reviews for products they have likely never even used or purchased.

“Suing the reviewers is a way to discourage them from doing it again,” said Michael Pachter, analyst for the

security firm and investment bank Wedbush.

However, merely victimizing those who offer their praises for profit won’t stop the wave of false reviews from pouring into the site. It takes two to tango, and Amazon seems to be failing to target the real culprit: the products’ sellers.

A gun is nothing without a trigger finger, and a variety of Internet postings offering fraudulent services is nothing without an employer willing to shell out money for his or her products’ high ratings.

Amazon is wasting profits and resources pursuing harmless postings of people desperately hoping to make a quick dime.

Amazon’s rules prohibit paid or fictional reviews, according to ABC News. However, Amazon’s lawsuit alleges that those posting on websites such as Fiverr are the ones reaching out to the sellers and offering to write the reviews under their names.

The sellers are still the ones actively hiring those

COURTESY OF WIKICOMMONS

Online retailer Amazon filed a suit against more than 1,000 review writers that were paid by Amazon sellers, but the suit should really target the sellers themselves.

reviewers, going as far as agreeing to send them empty envelopes to make it seem as if the reviewers purchased the products.

Amazon also has to find a solution to its problem of anonymity in the fraudulent reviews. Some paid reviewers

promise to use multiple accounts and IP addresses to leave the reviews, meaning the only information Amazon knows about their target is their online handles, according to NBC. Finding the sellers, however, would be easier for the

company since they would be registered within the website.

Ultimately, the discretion of a review is left up to the consumer. As Forrester analyst Sucharita Mulpuru said, “Online shopping is a leap of faith.”

Updating you from the newsroom and around the campus.

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OPINION

PAGE 6 OCTOBER 20, 2015 TUESDAY

TITAN TOONS

NATALIE GOLDSTEIN / DAILY TITAN

Interseeion

2016

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December 19 - January 22

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Session B

January 4 - January 22

3 weeks

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CLASSIFIEDS

OCTOBER 20, 2015

PAGE 7

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Achieving your career objectives or finding your life’s purpose grows more crucial now as your ambitions intensify. You may even turn obsessive, fearful that you might miss your chance if you don’t drive yourself hard.

LEO

(Jul. 23 - Aug. 22)

You think you need to work diligently these days so you can earn more money, but financial success will lose its importance in the weeks ahead. Luckily, you aren’t in a hurry now because you secretly believe that your patience will ultimately be rewarded.

SAGITTARIUS

(Nov. 22 - Dec. 21)

A recent shake-up of the status quo might have seemed exhilarating in the moment, but now you realize it will only take you so far. Others may not fully approve of your need to create change because they only see what’s working well.

TAURUS

(Apr. 20 - May 20)

A relationship grows more complex if your friend or partner is as inflexible as you are today.

Fortunately, you can transform the tense dynamics by resolving to meet others halfway, instead of making them adapt to you.

VIRGO

(Aug. 23 - Sep. 22)

You might feel as if you’ve been operating within a protective bubble lately, but tensions still lurk in the shadows. You may be clever enough today to avoid an open conflict with someone close to you, but there’s still a world of difference that separates you from each other.

CAPRICORN

(Dec. 22 - Jan. 19)

You have a welcome opportunity to retreat from your usual responsibilities today, giving you valuable time to reassess your overall direction in life. Normally, your legendary ambition drives you on an upward path toward your career aspirations.

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GEMINI

(May 21 - Jul. 20)

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Perhaps you recently demonstrated your flexibility by encouraging the people you love to pursue their own interests. But now the tables are turned and you may need to defend your personal agenda.

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You know exactly where you are going and what you are doing today, but you don’t want to make a big fuss about it. Even if someone tries to tap into your wisdom and experience, you might avoid engaging in a lengthy conversation.

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Although your emotions float dangerously close to the surface while the Moon visits your sign, you have the presence of mind to keep sensitive issues to yourself. Instead of talking strategy today, you’re ready to act on your feelings while courageous Mars harmonizes with passionate Pluto.

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Regaining clarity about your long-term goals rejuvenates your spirit today. However, your intense feelings about a relationship might not be so well received by someone else. Your message is very important now.

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SPORTS

PAGE 8 OCTOBER 20, 2015 TUESDAY

Sports this week

5

Women’s Soccer Vs. Cal State Northridge

• Home, Titan Stadium • Sunday, Oct. 25th at 5 p.m.

Men’s Soccer Vs. Cal State Northridge

• Home, Titan Stadium • Wednesday, Oct. 21st at 7 p.m.

Vs. UC Riverside MATT CORKILL / DAILY TITAN STOCK PHOTO

Third-year Head Coach Dedrique Taylor will see how well his team’s chemistry evolved in the offseason when veterans and incoming talents play in this year’s preseason match.

Titans to tip off annual Blue vs.

Orange opener Men’s basketball will mix its new and old players in scrimmage BRENT CABATAN Daily Titan The Cal State Fullerton men’s basketball season is scheduled to get underway Oct. 24 with the Blue-Orange Scrimmage at the Titan Gym. The Titans look to improve from their disappointing 9-22 season record under Head Coach Dedrique Taylor and Associate Head Coach John Smith, both going into their third season of coaching.

The starting lineup will look different after the team lost four starters in the offseason, including the squad’s leading scorer and former senior guard Alex Harris, who averaged 15.8 points per game.

Another notable starter who won’t be returning is forward Steve McClellan.

McClellan was the leading rebounder on the team, averaging 8.1 rebounds per game, and was second in blocks, having 10 throughout the entire 2014-2015 season.

Remaining starter, senior Kennedy Esume, is the only player listed as a true center, standing at 6 feet 10 inches. Esume led the team in blocks, with 19 throughout last season, but only averaged 3.3 rebounds per game and must improve that number in order to make up for the rebounding that McClellan once provided.

The players who will most likely fill the scoring void left by Harris are the new backcourt duo of junior Tre’ Coggins and senior Malcolm Brooks. Both guards redshirted with the Titans last year after quality seasons with each of their respective former teams.

Before coming to Fullerton, Coggins averaged 16 points per game. He shot 38.7 percent from beyond the arch and 78.4 percent from the free-throw line during the 2013-2014 season on the Air Force team.

Brooks played for Pepperdine during the 20132014 season, averaging 10.3 points per game and shooting just shy of 40 percent from the three-point line. He made the most of

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his free throws by hitting a very respectable 81.5 percent from the charity stripe.

One young player to keep an eye on throughout the season is 6-foot-4-inch freshman shooting guard Khalil Ahmad. He is a local raised in Corona who graduated from Centennial High School. The two-star recruit ranked in the top 100 at his position in the entire nation, according to ESPN. While the promising freshman boasts an impressive high school résumé, Ahmad will still have to earn his minutes on the team. Some of the returning veterans, as well as the scoring backcourt tandem of Coggins and Brooks, occupy the guard spots and Ahmad will undoubtedly have to fight for his spot.

With a returning coaching staff and well-balanced mix of veteran players and young talent, the CSUF men’s basketball team is primed to compete at a high level this season.

CSUF will tip off the 20152016 season with the Blue-Orange Scrimmage between the Titans on Oct. 24 at 11 a.m. at the Titan Gym.

• Home, Titan Stadium • Saturday, Oct. 24th at 7 p.m.

Women’s Volleyball Vs. UC Irvine

• Home, Titan Gym • Friday, Oct. 23rd at 7 p.m.

Vs. UC Davis

• Home, Titan Gym • Saturday, Oct. 24th at 7 p.m.

Men’s Basketball Blue-Orange Scrimmage

• Home, Titan Gym • Saturday, Oct. 24th at 11 a.m.

Titan Ice Hockey Vs. Montana Tech

• Home, East West Ice Palace • Friday, Oct. 23rd at 9:15 p.m.

Vs. San Diego State

• Home, East West Ice Palace • Saturday, Oct. 24th at 9:15 p.m.

Women’s Tennis CSUN Fall Invitational

• Location TBA • All day Friday Oct. 23rd to Sunday Oct. 25th

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