El Va uero l e n d a l eCC o m m u n i t yCC ollege GG lendale ommunity ollege
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Volume 98, Number 6
ASGCC ELections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
occupy l.a.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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greek myth lives on in ‘the immortals’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . armenian culture day celebrates tradition. . . . . . . . .
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November 23, 2011
Trustees Extend Lindsay’s Contract, Approve Classes By Lillian Wu
EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER
T
he board of trustees passed the side letter agreement and memorandum of understanding between the Glendale Community College District and the California School Employees Association and extended superintendent/president Dawn Lindsay’s contract of employment at the Monday meeting. After commencing at 4 p.m., the board opened the floor for public comments. They went into a closed session 10 minutes later to have a conference with labor negotiators, discuss the discipline/ dismissal/release of an employee, and discuss a public employee performance evaluation. Board of Trustees President Anita Gabrielian had to return to Kreider Hall at 5 p.m. to announce that more time was needed. When the members returned to the public session after 6 p.m., Gabrielian reported that all five members approved to extend Lindsay’s contract of employment. The side letter was an agreement of the wages for the fiscal 2011-2012 year. The memorandum stated the CSEA will work a 4/40 work schedule during the winter session from Jan. 9 through Feb. 10. The campus will be closed on Fridays. Board of trustee members Anthony Tartaglia and Vahé Peroomian congratulated CSEA representative and union president Saodat Aziskhanova for coming to the table and bringing a [See Trustees, page 2]
IN THIS ISSUE News.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4, 6-7 Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Arts/Entertainment.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-10 Opinion.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Vaquero Views. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Photo by Richard Kontas
AIRBORN: The GCC men’s basketball team is off to a fair start with a 2-2 record so far. Shown above is Vaquero freshman guard Robert Henry
soaring on his way to another bucket against Santa Barbara during the Tip-off Tournament held in Verdugo Gym on Nov. 11 and 12. The Vaqs won both games during the tourney, beating Santa Barbara 78-62 and Compton 90-82. They lost to San Diego Mesa 72-67 Monday night.
Occupy LA at GCC holds Informational Teach-in By Angel Silva
EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER
O
ccupy LA at GCC held a teach-in at the faculty lounge on Nov. 10 to inform students of the events and policies leading to the dissent of the American public and the creation of the movement in general. “The ‘Occupy the World’ movement is a social protest movement that is consistent with America’s core values at their best. [It] addresses the tremendous and growing class inequality,” said history professor Gordon Alexandre. Alexandre opened the teachin, explaining the purpose and history of teach-ins and what the GCC teach-in was meant to achieve.
Alexandre gave a brief backHoover Zariani, Center for tion that have allowed corporaground about his history with Student Involvement director, tions to warp the face of politics protests in the ‘60s and added opened the teach-in with a lechis own personal experience to ture on the changes in legisla[See Occupy, page 2] the lecture, recalling the teachins held at UC Berkeley and those where political activist Tom Hayden spoke against the Vietnam War. Hayden is known for his role in the antiwar and civil rights movements of the ‘60s. “[One of the] predecessors we had for [today’s] teach-ins were those held against the Vietnam War,” said Alexandre. However, Alexandre expressed the importance of patience when it comes to revolution. Photo by Lillian Wu “You can’t expect a young movement to attract thousands OCCUPY THIS: Occupy LA at GCC has held a teach-in and a rally of people overnight,” said Al- to show solidarity with the national Occupy movement which strives to exandre. achieve economic justice for the “99 percent.”
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NEWS
Board of Trustees
El Vaquero
[Trustees, from page 1]
EDITOR IN CHIEF Jessica Bourse
resolution. The board also approved the following proposed courses: ADMJ 201 Introduction to Homeland Security, MEDIA 213 Cinematography II and SOC 103 Introduction to Deviance and Criminology. All will be offered in fall 2012. Additionally, they ratified certificates of achievement for architectural technology. The certificates available are commercial drafting and design, computer aided design, drafting and portfolio development, and residential drafting and design. The board also announced that it was attending the celebration of the life of former Mayor Larry Zarian at the Alex Theater in Glendale at 7:30 p.m. Zarian passed away
COPY EDITOR Agnes Constante STAFF WRITERS Eric Bourse Vanessa Duffy John Ferrara Alex Gonzalez Marlon Miranda Isiah Reyes Verzhine Nikoghosyan Angel Silva Derek Stowe Lillian Wu
STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS Ian Cervantes Richard Kontas Seneyda Rodriguez Tex Wells
PRODUCTION MANAGER
Jane Pojawa
DESIGN ADVISER Charles Eastman FACULTY ADVISER
Michael Moreau
[Occupy, from page 1]
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on Oct. 13. In an effort to get to the event, they postponed special presentations from the dean of student affairs Paul Schlossman, director of the Science Center Jean Lecuyer and acting planetarium director Jennifer Krestow until the Dec. 12 meeting. Mark MacDonald, a legislative advocate for McCallum Group, Inc., presented an update about the current legislation in Sacramento. The group analyzes the laws to see how they will affect will Glendale. MacDonald said colleges should expect to be in Tier 2, which means a fee increase plus an additional $72 million cut to colleges. The next board of trustees meeting will be on Dec. 12 at 5 p.m. in Kreider Hall.
Photos by Richard Kontas
FIGHT THE POWER: The Occupy movement is heating up with
tensions between protesters and police at an all-time high. See related features “Occupy LA at GCC holds informational teach-in” on page 1, photo feature pages 6 and 7, and online slideshow at www.elvaq.com.
According to Zariani, in 2008 Citizens United, a conservative nonprofit organization, wanted to air a film criticizing then-presidential nominee Hillary Clinton around the time of the presidential nominations. The Federal Election Commission banned them from releasing the film, since they said it conflicted with the regulations of the McCainFeingold Act, a bill preventing the release of broadcasting political material funded with corporate money around the time of political events like primaries. Citizens United decided to sue, said Zariani, and the case made it to the Supreme Court, which overruled the commission’s decision, saying that corporations had the same free speech rights as corporations. It became legal for corporations to give money to nonprofit organizations that support candidates willing to pass legislation favorable to corporations. “It’s basically buy-a-politician, to be blunt about it,” said Zariani. In addition, corporations can anonymously donate
money to nonprofit organizations like Citizens United, said Zariani. “How many people can they reach? They can potentially reach the whole nation,” said Zariani. “They have unlimited power.” Zariani also explained that there was a loophole in which foreign countries can contribute to campaigns via company shareholders in other countries. The FEC states that foreign countries cannot donate money to campaigns. However, since the nonprofit organizations don’t have to disclose the identity of their donors, there is no way to tell where money comes from. Zariani also gave statistics on where the members of the Senate and the House of Representatives stand economically. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan research group, more than half of US senators and members of the House belong to the top 10 percent of nation’s wealth holders. However, Zariani is hopeful that things will change. “Money is influential, but it’s not everything when you have stupid candidates (on the Republican side),” said Zariani. “Money’s always going to influence things but there’s always things we [See Occupy, page 3]
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Wednesday, November 23, 2011
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‘The 99 Percent’ Call for Economic Justice [Occupy, from page 2] can do to change that.” Guest speaker and KPFK radio host Ankur Patel spoke next, stressing the importance of being informed and of participating in the political process. “We graduate people from high school who can’t read or do math,” said Patel. “[The One Percent] want to keep us dumbed down and medicated.” Patel, who hosts a show called “Civic Circus” on KPFK radio dealing with Los Angeles politics, says that politics has become a joke. “It’s amazing to me that we’re giving such stupid candidates media time for their sex scandals,” said Patel, referring to sexual harassment claims brought up against Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain. Corporate greed has tainted politics from all sides, said Patel. “It doesn’t matter what the color of your skin is if the only color you think about is green,” said Patel. He called the ‘Occupy’ protesters an army, waiting to be mobilized. “We have to understand the scope of the game,” said Patel. “The One Percent writes the laws. The 99 Percent should be writing the laws.” Next was Esteban Gil from Students Occupy Los Angeles, who started with a “Human Mike Check” — a chanting exercise developed to combat megaphone restrictions and promote crowd unity. “MIKE CHECK!” Gil shouted, and the crowd chanted back,
“MIKE CHECK!” After the mike check, Gil gave a small history of how revolutions in Europe and South America formed the general assembly used in the Occupy movements today. “When you enter into a general assembly, you need to set your [perspectives] aside,” said Gil. A general assembly, according to Gil, is how leaderless movements come to a consensus on decisions. A person makes a proposal to an issue and the crowd responds and debates the merits and faults of the proposal. Then, a new or reworked proposal is brought up, and people debate it again until a general consensus is reached. “The idea is to ensure participation,” said Gil. Gil also explained hand signs that told people the atmosphere of the crowd — waving one’s hands back and forth for approval of ideas, arms crossed and raised for a “hard block” sign of dissent, and the self-explanatory “irrelevant elephant” — making a trunk with one’s arm and waving it. “It’s silly now, but wait until you’re talking about politics to 18,000 people,” said Gil. Occupy LA at GCC education committee members Luke Ponnet and Tom Wales then gave a speech on the effects that the economic downturn has on society. “The system is ill,” said Ponnet. “The One Percent controls 25 percent of the country’s wealth.” “That One percent is the true evil,” said Ponnet. Stating that people like David and Charles Koch (better known as the Koch brothers) were to blame for the
current economic plight. The “The national unity that this Koch brothers are the holders of country had is now gone. We’re the largest private company in the very segmented,” said Wales. “I US, Koch Industries, and are avid don’t want the Occupy movement supporters of conservative poli- to be short-lived, to kill ourselves cies and politicians, raising mil- before we’re killed.” lions of dollars to pass legislation Alexandre returned for a disand elect officials sympathetic to cussion on the long-term goals of their views. the Occupy movement and what “It’s an abuse of our Democrat- he felt should be demanded by the ic and Republican democracy,” movement of Washington. said Ponnet. “Trickle-down ecoIn order for the movement to nomics don’t work.” survive, the Occupy movement As a result of legislation passed needs to “remain independent favoring corporations, spending from Republicans and Democuts affecting the general public crats,” continue occupying pubhave reduced lic spaces and the standard having public Those in of living, events, said said Ponnet. Alexandre. will do For example, Among the funding for several things three things. They education that Alexandre keeps getcalled for were will first ting cut, and the reinstatestudents ment of the and the are the ones Glass-Steagall movement, then they’ll Act, which who pay the price. would create try to the “From greater control the 1960s over banks, to around the passage of 2001, the the Employee –Richard Kamei California Free Choice community Act, which college system was the best in the would make it easier for workers United States,” said Ponnet. “Now to form and organize unions, proyou have students with $25,000 to mote universal healthcare, reduce $35,000 in debt by graduation.” student debt, and reverse the Citi“In order for change to occur, zens United vs FEC ruling. the populace can’t conform to Sociology professor Richard what’s going on,” said Wales. Kamei was the last speaker, wrap“I want you to challenge every- ping the teach-in with a discusthing, to think about everything sion of the economy and how that everyone said,” said Wales. it led to the current state of the To ensure the movement lives, country. there needs to be a sense of unity. “[There has been] too much
“ power
dismiss ignore
smash movement.”
spending and not enough regulation,” said Kamei. Kamei also stated that the One Percent will attempt to harm the movement. “Those in power will do three things,” said Kamei. “They will first dismiss and ignore the movement, then they’ll try to smash the movement.” “Those in power tend to overreact,” said Kamei. A question and answer session was held by Alexandre and Kamei to conclude the teach-in at 3 p.m. The teach-in, organized by Occupy LA at GCC events committee members Sarah Gould and Jessica Farrell, brought in approximately 150 students throughout the day with the room being full at 40 to 60 students at a time. “I understood better about what the Occupy Movement was,” student Gabby Isidro said. “After going to the teach-in, I felt like getting involved more and attending the Occupy LA and their general assembly.” “I believe students need to know about the movement,” said Gould, “because it’s an umbrella of other issues such as rising tuition, the war and current politics.” Alexandre said that the Occupy movement and the reasons for its existence would remain an issue for a long time. “The Occupy Movement isn’t going away,” said Alexandre. “It’s essentially outside of colleges. It’s a worldwide movement.” “I call it the purging of our idiocy,” said Gil. Angel Silva can be reached at ASILVA827@student.glendale.edu
Campus Comments What is your opinion of the recent decision by the California Medical Association to call for the legalization of cannabis (marijuana)? David Archer 24
Jennifer Chavarin 20
Jose Hurtado 21
Social Science
Nursing
Business Administration
“I agree that it should be legalized because it comes from nature and anything that comes from nature is good.”
“It could improve the economy, but I don’t think it would benefit the young.”
“Go ahead and legalize it for the benefit of everybody.”
Michelle Thomas Alcohol and Drug Studies “If you’re going to legalize, don’t penalize.” —Compiled by Tex Wells
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NEWS
Students to Hold Spring 2012 Elections students will get a chance to learn more about the candidates. EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER “We want the students to know he Associated Students we are here for them,” Sargsyan of Glendale Community said. “They need to know the College election for Spring 2012 faces of the people that represent will be held on Nov. 29 and 30. them. When we do elections, it With 25 candidates running for is important to take the time to the student government, students listen to the people, not only to can vote for their representatives. vote but to actually know what Tzoler Oukayan, adviser to the results are.” ASGCC, said she participated For vice president of in student government and administration Bianca Saleebyan, the lessons that she learned this is her first semester on carried into her career and other student government. She is involvements. running for vice president of “I think you have to make your campus activities in the spring college experience worthwhile,” 2012 election. she said. “This is the time to do She was originally planning things that you never thought that to transfer this year, but it did you could do.” not work out. Because she has Before a student can become another year and has completed a candidate, he or she must be most of her classes, she decided to an associated join ASGCC. student, She has also meaning joined 11 We want it to be an the student clubs, some paid for of which registration she is on fees. The cabinet, and part of your life and student must is a student when you are gone, register ambassador. in at least “I wanted you can say that nine units to be as active GCC made a and have a and give back cumulative as much I 2.0 GPA. could to the Additionally, school before he or she I leave,” she will enroll said. and I made a in or have Oukayan completed difference in GCC. said that S t u d e n t depending —Tzoler Oukayan Development on some 171, a positions leadership development course. and the event, students spend an The candidate will also need to average of four to six hours per fill out a nomination petition and week working in the government. have 100 students sign it. Next, Rashon Washington, vice the candidate needs to attend a president of campus relations, mandatory orientation and submit has been a part of ASGCC for a statement. one semester. He said he was a The 19 vacant positions are part of the honor society Alpha vice presidents and senators of Gamma Sigma but was not very administration, finance, campus active before getting involved activities, campus organizations with student government. Now he and campus relations. says he loves it and wishes that it An election committee, would never end. which consists of Oukayan and “I’ve definitely exceeded that. three student representatives, I’m here at 6:30 every morning oversees the election to ensure and I don’t usually leave until that the process and the voting is 9 or 10 a.m.,” Washington said. successful and fair. “During that time, I am working Suzanna Sargsyan, ASGCC on the ASGCC newsletter, trying president and student trustee, to come up with new events with said it is important to have the my committee, making phone students go out and cast their vote. calls, and sending e-mails. There’s Through classroom presentations, just so much that goes on.” campaigning, instructors’ He said the members want announcements and a forum, students to know that they care
By Lillian Wu
T
“ important
difference in my life ”
Photo by Lillian Wu
CANDIDATE FORUM: Current senator of campus activities Juan Llano speaks about his goals for the committee if elected as vice president of campus relations during the Nov. 22 forum at Plaza Vaquero.
about students. Their goal is to try to implement any request that students have. “We definitely put in a lot of time,” Washington said. “We are very committed even though this is voluntary. I think it shows people that we are willing to do this out of the goodness of our hearts rather than for a paycheck.” Juliana Kim, vice president of campus organizations, has participated in ASGCC for three semesters. She had always wanted to be in student government in high school and decided to try something different after moving from Brazil. “When I graduated and came to GCC, I thought, ‘It’s a new beginning, so why not just try to come for interviews?’” The semester after high school, she was appointed as a representative, which allowed her to gain new experiences. She later ran for and became senator and vice president. “I got to know a lot of things that I wouldn’t have known,” Kim said. “The experience that I got I wouldn’t give up.” She said there is no requirement for a student to be a representative in order to be on the committee. However, it would be beneficial to someone who is running for vice president because he or she would know what to expect. “You meet 25 new people
when you join,” Kim said. “The power and the knowledge that you get, you are able to make a change. You know what is going on in your campus.” Kim, who is running for the same position again, said her committee recently passed out feedback sheets to ask what students thought about the Inter Organizational Council meetings and how they can improve. “If I do get elected again, I am going to consider how to improve the meetings and what they think,” Kim said. “I think it’s important to know not just what the insiders think about the meetings but what the campus [thinks]. I will answer according to their comments.” Saleebyan has two goals that she would like to see happen. The first is to get people more involved in school by promoting ASGCC and student organizations. “Students here have this mentality where we are going to come take our classes and leave campus,” she said. “But there are a lot of opportunities here. [There are] a lot of great staff members and teachers that you can really form relationships with.” Because her committee is in charge of advocacy, they have been researching government bills that will affect education. Her second goal is to push a ballot initiative for next year to become
a proposition. It would tax oil in California, which would raise money for colleges. A certain amount from the tax would go to education for colleges and K-12. “There are a lot of changes that is taking place in the educational system right now, so I would love if people were more aware of what is going on,” said Saleebyan. Those who have joined student government have made lasting friendships. “ASGCC is an experience on its own. I feel that if students get involved, it will make their college life more precious,” said vice president of campus activities Andrea Megerdichian. “We are all a family. These are the people I will keep in my life for the rest of my life.” The polls will open on Nov. 29 and 30 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the Plaza Vaquero. Results will be posted by Dec. 2. “I think for so many students it’s a commuter campus, but for students who are involved, it’s much more than that,” Oukayan said. “We want it to be an important part of your life and when you are gone, you can say that GCC made a difference in my life and I made a difference in GCC.” Lillian Wu can be reached at lwu415@student.glendale.edu
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Wednesday, November 23, 2011
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FEATURES
International Student Office Helps Ease Transition By Verzhine Nikoghosyan EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER
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ast week, the U.S. Departments of State and Education celebrated the 12th annual International Education Week. According to Connecting Our World, an organization that promotes international education, colleges and universities all over the world organized activities to celebrate the benefits cultural diversity brings to campuses. Glendale College has a high international student population, with approximately 500 F-1 visa international students from more than 50 countries. Because of the big number of international students enrollment, Glendale College organizes a number of activities through the International Student Office, to help students with cultural transitions. “We start with orientation to help students out and then all new students are required to take student development 103. In that class, they talk about all the different offices, student services, about culture or American education system,” said Anh Nguyen, senior coordinator in the International Student Office. “We are lucky to have academic counseling, activities, admissions, immigration counseling all under one office. Here we are all housed and work closely.” One of the issues facing international students has been housing. After a number of complaints, the college was considering building dormitories, but the program is on hold and is still in the process of approval. Despite this, international students continue to enroll, enriching the college’s ethnic makeup. Yan Yan Cho, 19, a public relations major from Hong Kong, finds her life as a college student here exciting. “When I studied in Hong Kong, all my friends were Chinese. But here, they are from different countries so I think its great. I feel happy that I experience something that I couldn’t experience in my country.” Even though Cho was nervous when she came here first, she soon learned about the culture living with her host family. She also feels good to be given the opportunity to share her culture with others.
Cinthy de Cuba, 22, psychology, from Aruba, who has been here for a year has expressed her excitement to be able to study in a big country. “My country is very small, so I actually enjoy big city life,” said Cuba. “It’s awesome. I got used to it very fast. I found my way easily by walking around and asking.” Even though the education system is completely different to what many foreign students are used to, they find it gets easier by time. “The credit system is totally different. And when I studied in my country, I only had to worry about the midterms and exams but here I have tests all the time,” said Anushik Malkhasyan, 21, political economics/economics. “English was my third language, so when I first came here, I didn’t understand a word. I could understand the written language, but when they talked, I didn’t understand a word.” Often, international students find the education system challenging and different from what they are used to, so the language becomes a challenge. It can go beyond that when students have trouble understanding the class requirements and their professors. “Not only the language but the culture was different, people were different and it was hard to find friends,” said Malkhasyan. “People don’t like long relationships, they are only friends for a week or a month but for me, friendship is forever.” Often professors are not aware of the special needs of the students and they require the same level of participation from their international students. However, sometimes foreign students need extra guidance in their homework, which is not given at times. “Many professors never ask the students about their background or what country they come from. They require the same things like from local students. I found that I had to study more, work harder to keep my grades high and professors never know if you have any difficulties,” said Malkhasyan. Some of other challenges that students go through is the tuition increase, which affects internationals as well because they pay more than local students. International students also face
enrollment issues. Often, because of the immigration regulations, they arrive only 30 days before the enrollment dates and sometimes there are not enough classes for them to enroll, said Nguyen. This is one of the hardships that internationals have to go through especially when the classes are being cut. “They not only deal Photo by Tex Wells with the assessment INDUSTRIOUS INTERNATIONALS: Chunwai Wong, Hyacinthe Decuba and testing, academic Siuyuen Luk, Vice President of Glendale Community College International Students counseling, finding Association, await buyers to take advantage of their hot chocolate, coffee and pastries housing, immigration sale, November 15. Funds generated by the sale will be applied toward scholarships for details,” said Nguyen. international students. “They may not get they never regret coming to the the minimum 12 unit of classes countries and cultures. and when the classes fill up “I will encourage new foreign U.S. “I love it. It’s a great campus, early, some of them get very students not to give up and to it’s safe, there is international discouraged. We had students continue because I think that this diversity, there are a lot of people drop out and go back home to country encourages our efforts,” from many other countries. I change the place of study.” said Malkhasyan. “Whenever you enjoy it,” said Cuba. International students have work, you will not lose. Don’t be more challenges than locals, disappointed and keep working, but despite these challenges you’ll get there.” they manage to stay and Even though international Verzhine Nikoghosyan can be reached at become bridges between the students face many challenges, VNIKOGH308@student.glendale.edu
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LAPD • O CCUPY LA PROTEST ERS T Photos by Richard Kontas
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ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
‘Eclipse’ Inspires Literary Lovers at Ruskin Art Club sour […] I know a place to shun the leaden hour” (Eclipse 2009). Audience member Stephen Taylor, who teaches GCC’s creative writing workshop, said he was especially moved by the poem and liked all the readers. For students who want to write and read, Taylor’s advice is: “Do it. Trust your material and keep working. I think it’s necessary for writers to learn to read [publicly].” Eight of his creative writing students attended the Ruskin for extra credit, and some commented that they actually learned from listening to the readings. “Things we talked about in class really came to life for them,” he said. English major, Courtney Luengo, 21, said a high-quality poem should have a good voice and an interesting topic. Aviation major, Edgar Gasparyan, 23, said idea, arrangement and tone are all very important. “If you write and read what you know, it comes through as genuine,” said creative writing student MaryAnn McGann, 53. “Take a chance and write about
By Derek Stowe
EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER
T
he antique-laden Ruskin Art Club in L.A.’s posh West Adams district turned out to be a fitting venue for the Eclipse literary journal poetry reading presented by the Red Hen Press on Nov. 13. Seven poets and one fiction writer recited their works to a full house. More than 50 people gathered in the elegant living room with a quaint atmosphere. “I get the feeling that lots of past writers’ souls still congregate here,” said Eclipse founder Bart Edelman, who has taught English at Glendale College for 36 years. Edelman handpicked the eight readers to celebrate the journal’s 22nd anniversary. They ranged from the youngest emerging poet to the most seasoned veteran author. Eclipse publishes mostly poetry but also fiction and an occasional one-act play. It has included writers such as Red Hen-published poet Gaylord Brewer and authors from Canada, Germany, Ireland, Israel and India. One fifth of its pages are reserved For me, a great for GCC student submissions. story is like becoming a child “We really want students to submit again: eagerly taken by their works, especially poetry and fiction,” the hand to enter through an said Edelman. “A good poem has a clear voice, provocative use door, and then led into a room of words, language that makes you want full of familiar and strange to read it again, and a wonders where you universal theme.” Two of the are both presenting poets were from Glendale and . College. David — Rolf Yngve Hovhannisyan, who has been published in three separate Eclipse issues, what you’ve lived through.” Six of the readers were recited his 2011 poem “Yankee Rose” with the refrain: “Abandon professional writers who were fortunate enough to be chosen out hope and let addiction reign.” The poem embraces of the 5,000 submitions each year indulgence: “Impulsive actions with the hope of being published breathe to entertain, / discharging in Eclipse. As each reader prepared to blood with new viscosity” speak, a respectful hush would (Eclipse 2011). Student Mary Estrada, whose fill the room. Though some poets work appears in two issues, read were very soft-spoken or lightning “The Leaden Hour” about the fast, audience members seemed satisfied to glean whatever death of her 19-year-old son. “To live is like a grave that phrases they could catch. William Archila, whose family grows no flower […] With sips then gulps of grief, you taste the fled El Salvador in 1980, read his
“
reading
irresistibly beautiful
entertained disturbed ”
Photo by Scott Stalnaker
POETRY READING: English Professor/Poet Bart Edelman jubilantly introduces an eclectic array of recently
published Eclipse authors to read their poetry and prose at the Ruskin, not pictured: William Archila, Lory Bedikian, Jackie Tchakalian, David Hovhannisyan, Rolf Yngve, Mary Estrada, Charles Harper Webb and Douglas Kearney.
bleak poems with an articulate rhythm and subtle rhyme scheme. The somber mood of being a stranger in a strange land rinsed out any optimism that may have been hovering in the decorative hall supported by massive mahogany beams. He spoke of schoolmates, soccer teammates and lifelong neighbors that had wound up dead on the streets of El Salvador during the civil war. His tone was so serious that the art club guests hung on his every word. “…by the roadside a woman / will moan over the body of a man / shrunken, stretched on the earth, that God / will finger the forehead of a dying country” (“The Art of Exile” 2009). English major Nick Gilbert, 21, who especially liked Archila, said, “I could tell he was real about living it. He had just the right amount of character.” To give the 90-minute poetry reading event some breathing room, Edelman put a short story reader in the middle. “A good, provocative story should provide a clear set of conflicts and be so beautifully written that you feel as though you’ve just seen a movie right before your eyes,” he said. Having condensed an 4,500 word story about missing cat “Billy” down to 1,800 words, fiction writer Rolf Yngve rifled through the text to squeeze it into his 10-minute time slot. He called himself a “fiction-eer” to distinguish himself from the poet wordsmiths.
“I was hoping no one would compare my work with their artistry. I build with a hammer, these poets build with golden thread,” he said. “For me, reading a great story is like becoming a child again: eagerly taken by the hand to enter through an irresistibly beautiful door, and then led into a room full of familiar and strange wonders where you are both entertained and disturbed.” Comic relief was provided by Cal State Long Beach professor Charles Harper Webb, who used excepts from the movie “Jackass” in a poem. His poetry book “Amplified Dog” was published by Red Hen in 2006. “Reading makes you a better writer because you are more aware of the impact your words really have,” he said. Former student Amy Cordero said, “Compared to reading a poem, when you’re at a reading, you can actually feel what the writers intend. When you read on your own, you put your own ideas into it. For example, Douglas Kearney was so animated it made me feel in a different place.” Kearney, author of “Fear, Some” (Red Hen Press, 2006) and “The Black Automaton” (2009) closed out the reading explosively with two awkward subjects: “Miscarriage” and “Lil’ Monkeys,” a theatrical poem in which he mocks racism. Kearney said he knew he was destined to be a poet by age 22. “I decided I wasn’t as interested in telling stories or
finding out what happens to a character as I was about really investigating how language works with its sound and sense.” He advised writers not to get caught up in writer’s block or reader’s cringe. “Writing and reading are part of the same continuum,” he said. “They have to feed each other. It’s not a product and a consumer. It’s a dialog; it’s a discourse.” Judging by the ample applause for each author, this reading was a dynamic experience for all. Afterward, books were available to buy and free refreshments were served. Authors were glad to sign books and chat. Managing editor Kate Gale said, “I like working at Red Hen because I am working to change the world, and I’m crazy about good books.” Edelman’s newest book of poems published by Red Hen, “The Geographer’s Wife,” is due out in February. Creative writing student/ accounting major, Amanda Fear, 31, said she was above all motivated by her poetry prize-winning role model Lory Bedikian. Before she began reciting her poetry, Bedikian, who is married to Archila, addressed the poets in the audience: “Go for your dreams because they are possible to achieve with hard work and dedication.” Derek Stowe can be reached at derekgem@yahoo.com
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Wednesday, November 23, 2011
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ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT / REVIEWS o o
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Greek Myth Lives On in ‘Immortals’ By Eric Bourse
EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER
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ans of Greek mythology who are still reeling from the pain from last year’s snooze fest, “Clash of the Titans,” shouldn’t avoid this year’s visually stunning but flawed fall blockbuster, “Immortals.” “Immortals” is directed by Tarsem Singh (“The Fall,” 2006). The screenplay is by sibling duo; Charley and Vlas Parlapanides and is adapted loosely from the ancient Greek mythology of Theseus. The film stars Henry Cavill of the “The Tudors” as the film’s hero, Theseus, a peasant trained by an old man, played by John Hurt (Ollivander from the “Harry Potter” films). That old man is actually Zeus in disguise, played by Luke Evans (“The Three Musketeers,” 2011). The plot thickens when King Hyperion, played by Mickey Rourke (“Iron Man 2,” 2010) who is on a quest to find the
Eprius Bow and unleash the Titans to destroy the Olympians and claim himself as a god, raids Theseus’ village and kills his mother and makes him a slave. Hyperion isn’t exactly an ideal house guest. Theseus escapes with the help of an oracle, Phaedra, played by Frida Pinto (“Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” 2011) and a thief, Stavros, played by Stephen Dorff (“Bucky Larson,” 2011). The trio then embarks on a journey to slay Hyperion. Singh continues his signature style from his previous films, “The Cell” (2000) and “The Fall,” and creates a visually stunning movie. From the gold and sparkling costumes, the large set pieces cleverly blended with CGI and striking cinematography, Singh’s art direction is a constant treat for the eyes. Singh offers a contrast to the gorgeous imagery with its beautifully choreographed yet brutal action scenes. Most of the fight scenes move at a brisk and
ARMED AND DANGEROUS: Theseus, played by Henry Cavill, is one angry peasant bent on revenge in Tarsem Singh’s visually stunning new epic “Immortals.”
violent pace. There are also quite a few scenes in slow motion but it isn’t overdone and is mostly used when the gods partake in the
battles. Despite being eye candy, the storytelling and editing aren’t as graceful. Unlike Singh’s magnum opus, “The Fall,” “Immortals” lacks character development as well as exposition. Although established in the mythology, Theseus’ relation to the gods is only explained as “he’s been touched by the gods.” Audiences unfamiliar with Greek mythology might be confused with the names of the gods as most of their names aren’t mentioned. There are major changes to the mythology as well. Theseus’ famous battle with the minotaur is in the film but it’s context and scope is significantly changed to match the rest of the film’s plot. There are also deaths of Greek gods in the film which are drastically different from their fates in the ancient tales. Although these changes may come across as disappointing to some viewers, the changes are understandable considering the convoluted nature of the mythology as well as simplifying
and condensing a story for a twohour movie. The editing towards the end stumbles. Some of the transitions between the three major battle scenes that occur at the same time prevent the viewers from becoming emotionally invested in each one. There is also a very noticeable continuity gaff during the death of a major character. His mouth is covered in blood in one shot, then the next shot shows his mouth clean, and then back to being covered in blood again. It is by no means a perfect film or completely faithful to the mythology but succeeds in creating a visceral and visually satisfying experience. Most importantly, it’s entertaining. The movie runs 110 minutes and is rated R for strong bloody violence and a scene of sexuality. 3 out of 5
Eric Bourse can be reached at ebourse741@student.glendale.edu
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Wednesday, November 23, 2011
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BOOK REVIEW
‘Iron Man’ Reveals Heaven and Hell The book goes into just enough detail on the topics it covers. Most chapters are anecdotes that are only a few pages long. With 90 chapters, Iommi covers the recording of every album and each tour, clearing up the mystery behind how things were handled. It goes from the early ’70s when the band was enjoying the thrill of it all and trying to breakout, to the mid ’80s when the band was slipping away from fame and feeling trashed and lost forever, to hearing the call of the wind
By Isiah Reyes
EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER
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humorous way. Some of the chapters are just hi-jinks between band members, like when Iommi lit up Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward’s beard on fire just for a laugh, or the times Iommi would drop off lead singer Ozzy Osbourne at a house that looked like his own in the early hours of the morning after gigs. With Osbourne being half asleep, he would knock on the door thinking it was his, falling for it every time. Iommi also gets sentimental when he talks about his several marriages and divorces, which he has not been too open about before. He describes his relationship with his daughter and the custody battle he had to go through to take her back from her home in Los Angeles to his home in England. All in all, “Iron Man” is a must-have for any music fan. It recounts the history of one of the most influential rock bands from the point of view of the Godfather of Heavy Metal himself. Without Iommi’s technique and memorable riffs, and Black Sabbath’s doom, gloom and attitude, music would not be the way that is today. The book was released by Perseus Books/DeCapo Press in early November and is available in stores and online.
egendary Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi chronicles his life and history of the band in his memoir “Iron Man: My Journey through Heaven and Hell with Black Sabbath,” covering every cornerstone of the band’s illustrious 40-year career. As the only member who has been a part of every one of Black Sabbath’s 18 studio albums, Iommi is the best source when it comes to recounting the journey through all the joyful I went through a terrible ecstasy, evil women, period of sabotage and paranoia that has surrounded the because I was convinced that band on its hard road my guitar playing days were to success. The 370-page for good. I went to hardback begins in Iommi’s hometown of dozens of different doctors Birmingham, England, and hospitals and they all in the late 1940s. Iommi was so poor his said, “ t. You’re not parents couldn’t afford going to be able to to buy him a school uniform. Since there again. was not much else —Tony Iommi to do in a town still recovering from the effects of World War II, Iommi and feeling born again in the stayed home and practiced mid-’00s when the members of playing his guitar. Later in the “Heaven and Hell” album his late teens, he worked at a reunited with Ronnie James Dio, leading the way to critical factory to support his family. On the last day on the job acclaim. But what separates this IRON HANDS: Tony Iommi recounts memorable experiences in his life and with the at the factory, before joining autobiography from a history band in his new memoir “Iron Man: My Journey through Heaven and Hell with Black Isiah Reyes can be reached at Jethro Tull on a European haisikin@gmail.com book is that it is told in a very Sabbath.” tour as a guitarist, Iommi accidentally sliced off the tips of his middle and ring fingers while cutting sheet metal. As a reflex, he pulled his hand back and the tips of fingers were cut off. Iommi recounts the thoughts he had and the images he saw vividly. He said he saw the bones sticking out and blood was everywhere. Afterward, he JOURN 102 - Reporting the News: Receive the know- JOURN 107 – Magazine Writing: Are glossy pages created homemade fingertips your thing? Learn how to find and develop story ideas how in this introductory course! Learn the basics of from melted plastic and leather and write feature-length magazine articles. gathering and newswriting, as well as media styles, from his jacket so that he could editing and law and ethics of communication. JOURN 110 – Photojournalism: Learn how to play — a form of prosthetic he take photos that can get published in newspapers, JOURN 103 – Student Publications Staff: Become a still uses today. magazines and online. journalist on the El Vaquero staff! Focus your skills Because playing guitar hurt on writing news, feature and sports stories, headline JOURN 210 – Advanced News Writing: This course his fingers, he detuned his and caption writing, and learn the ins and outs of offers an in-depth look at reporting public affairs, as guitar and used light-gauge newspaper production. Writers, photographers and well as communication laws and ethics. strings to ease the tension. This graphic artists welcome! JOURN 250 – Visual Communication: As we are created a dark, sinister sound. JOURN 104 – Student Publications Editor: Can’t get constantly bombarded by images in the mass media, This new sound coupled with enough El Vaq? This advanced course offers an init’s important to gain visual literacy. This course will lyrical themes about drugs, depth newspaper production experience, editing and teach you how to analyze images. sorcery, religion, depression, interpretive reporting. death, heaven and hell resulted in the creation of heavy metal.
“
depression
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There are plenty of journalism classes to be thankful for…
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Wednesday, November 23, 2011
11
SPORTS
Women’s Golf Finishes Second in State By Alex Gonzalez
EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER
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fter leading by four strokes on the first day, the Glendale Community College women’s golf team finished second to Palomar College, falling back by one stroke at the California State Championships in Hanford. In the five-year history of the golf program, the Vaqueros made their first appearance to the State Championships. On the first day of the event Glendale had a four stroke lead
over Palomar College, but head coach Greg Osbourne was not disappointed about the play from his team. “I thought we could not have played any worse but we were still leading after the first day,” said Osbourne. “It’s a tough course and we were leading and we take nothing for granted. Bottom line is that they gave it their best effort.“ As the second day progressed, it seemed that no shot that the Lady Vaqs made was going their way. At the same time, Palomar College college had opposite luck and showed that every shot the
team took went in its favor. “Nothing went in for us but it went in for them,” said Osbourne. “When it all turned out, when we added the score we lost by one.” Going into the final hole at the course the Lady Vaqs had a two-stroke lead over Palomar. But with a double-bogey from Glendale’s Pattraporn Silawanna, it only took a 25-foot putt for a birdie from Palomar to seal the deal. “We gave it to them; they didn’t beat us we gave it to them,” said Osbourne. “But we had a great year and the girls are fantastic.”
Despite the runner up finish, the Vaqueros did have individual accomplishments. Sophomore Hannah Lee and freshman Silawanna made AllAmerican. Lee placed second in state and Silawanna placed first in regionals, and was named conference player of the year and came in fourth, shooting a 79 for the tournament. Vicanda Ma and Thanawan Sriratchaya tied for 13th with a final score of 166. Osbourne, who won coach of the year in conference, had winning a state title on his mind. “Every year we have state as
our number one goal.” Osbourne, however, is not done with golf for this year. He is also the head coach for the men’s team. Their season starts at the beginning of the spring semester. Despite the loss, Silawanna, Ma, and Sriratchaya are freshmen. Throughout the season they all learned new things and gained enough experience for next year. So when the season starts again for the womens golf team, they hope to repeat as conference
Alex Gonzalez can be reached at agonzal251@student.glendale.edu
OPINION
NBA Fans Fear A Winter Without Basketball By Alex Gonzalez
EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER
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fter negotiations failed, the outlook for the coming NBA season looks bleak. With no NBA season, what can we do? Where will we turn for entertainment during winter? What will happen to the fans and the businesses surrounding these teams areas? On Nov. 15, the National Basketball Players Association and team owners still have not agreed on a deal splitting NBA related income. In four months, they will be looking toward the Supreme Court to settle their differences. If this was going to happen and everyone knew that this was going to happen, how come the players and the owners didn’t decide to go to court when this all started? Because they are selfish. The owners want more money for themselves, and the players want some of that revenue. Neither side is going to give in, and with that, we — the fans — are out of luck for a season in 2011-12. With all this drama surrounding the players and the owners, no one looks at the most important thing: the fans. We are the ones that sit in these multimillion dollar arenas and spend hundreds on tickets. The fans are the reason why the NBA generated all the money in the first place. The owners are taking our hard-earned money
like if they were taking candy from a baby. Watching professional basketball games is entertainment for us. Cities such as Los Angeles (where there are two NBA teams) are affected because L.A. does not have an NFL team of its own. Living in basketball cities, what are we supposed to do when the NFL season is over? Normally we are used to watching the Lakers play on Christmas morning, but with the looks of the lockout that isn’t going to happen. Business surrounding these franchises, like restaurants and sports bars, generate most of their money during the season. These businesses will suffer dramatically because no one will be coming down to the arenas. Anything and everything that involves basketball in some way is affected by this lockout. Sean Condon, owner of Buzzer Beater Sports in Hermosa Beach, has said that business has suffered the consequences of the lockout. “With football here we haven’t felt the sting yet, but when January comes that’s when we will feel the sting in business,” said Condon. “I blame both sides for the lock out.” Condon is optimistic that there will be a season this year. “Owners like Jerry Buss, owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, wants the season to start already,”Condon continued.
THE MEN WITH THE KEY: NBA Commissioner David Stern, left and NBPA Executive Director Billy Hunter, right, are the only two that can come up with deal to end the lockout.
Condon sells sports apparel and memorabilia at Buzzer Beater. Hats, jerseys, and picture frames are some of the things that you can find at the restaurant. But with no season Buzzer Beater faces lack of sales and struggles to provide a product. The NBA lockout has now reached over 140 days and all games have been cancelled through Dec. 15. That’s 324 games in total that have been cancelled. That equals to 26 percent of the season. So who’s to blame for no basketball this year? At first you want to blame NBA commissioner David Stern and
the owners because all they want is more money for themselves. But in retrospect, we are pointing our fingers to Billy Hunter, Executive Director of the Players Association. We should also look at Derek Fisher, current Los Angeles Lakers point guard and NBPA President. Stern’s latest offer to the players of a 50/50 split of basketball revenue to the NBPA, which was rejected, was the best offer they received. Hunter and Fisher probably think they can get a better offer from Stern, but they are wrong. They should have taken that offer, closed the book on the deal and
started the season. But no, they are being greedy. A 72-game season is better then a 50-game or a no season. Going to court is not the right way to solve this. Now that lawsuits are being filed, its going to take even longer for a deal to be made. All that we can do is sit and watch what’s going to happen next. There’s nothing that we can do but hope that there will be a season in 2012.
Alex Gonzalez can be reached at agonzal251@student.glendale.edu
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Wednesday, November 23, 2011
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VAQUERO VIEWS
Armenian Culture Day Celebrates Tradition
Photo by Tex Wells
IDENTITY IN DIASPORA: Levon Marashlian, professor of history and political science and adviser of the Armenian Student Association, left, Arsen Shirvanyan, ASA President.and Rafi Manoukian, Glendale City council member enjoy barbecue, dancing and informative cultural displays in Plaza Vaquero.
By Verzhine Nikoghosyan EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER
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he enticing smell of flame-grilled barbecue and sounds of Armenian music filled the Vaquero Plaza on Nov. 10 for Armenian Cultural Day, sponsored by the Armenian Student Association. Armenian Cultural Day has been a GCC tradition for many years, giving students a chance to explore the Armenian history, literature and food. “Students have been organizing this for 30 years to show everything about Armenian culture. The purpose is to educate the public about the rich background of Armenian people whether it’s music instruments, architecture or history,” said Levon Marashlian, professor of history and political science and adviser of the ASA. The cultural days are common in college and these are good opportunities for every ethnicity to present their own culture. For the rest, it is a chance to get to know others better. “While diversity is one of the most important aspects of American life, it’s important for students to present information about every culture and their
history to their peers and friends,” said Rafi Manoukian, Glendale City council member and guest of the event. These kind of events are important for non-Armenians who can know about their friends, their neighbours and their colleagues. It can also alleviate issues and perceptions that people have toward each other and other cultures, said Manoukian. While students lined up for food, involuntary tapping their feet to the music, people passed by wondering about the event. Huge posters were lined on both sides of the plaza, silently telling about the history, literature, religion and the background of Armenian people. “I am Armenian and I love the fact that we can show the real Armenian culture to others so that people know who we are and what kind of history we had before reaching here,” said Vanuhi Shahnazaryan, 20, neuroscience. “There are so many misrepresentations in media that people need to know what real Armenian culture is by knowing the facts.” The cultural events like these are beneficial, they show the richness of the America as a multi-ethnic country and Armenians are one component of that rich picture, a
piece of the mosaic, said Marashlian. While many non-Armenian students were passing by uninterested, there were many who were not only interested but are also part of it. Melissa Montano, 18, music, being non-Armenian but living in Glendale has come to know Armenian culture and love it. “I love that everyone tries the food and sees the artifacts that I saw when I was in Armenia so its like the real taste of it,” Montano said. “I think everyone should get a taste of everyone’s culture. I think people should accept them in a way, instead of judging them and that is why I am here, I want to spread the culture and I want everyone else love it as well.” Having an Armenian father, Tiara Gazarian, 19, is excited to explore her Armenian origins by taking history classes. She thinks that one of the things that Armenians make best is food and she finds this event is a great way to bring everyone together and to bring others to eat with them. Everybody was excited for different reasons. Some were glad to share the culture, others enjoyed the food and music and others wanted to share why they want to keep the Armenian identity alive.
“Being of Armenian origin I think its important to show others our culture that we had for about three millennia and to show how beautiful our culture is and how we strive to keep our identity in diaspora,” said Arsen Shirvanyan, 20, president of ASA, Middle Eastern studies/peace and conflict studies. The line of students making the barbecue was a true representation of Armenian culture in action. The warmness and uplifting mood was another ingredient of the event. “As a person, I’d like to express my passion about Armenian culture with nonArmenians who are curious and want to know more. It’s a really great experience for me,” said Arsine Torosyan, 18, marketing and advertising. ASA’s barbecue was one of the many cultural events that take place on campus every year, displaying a multiude of Glendale’s diversity and an appreciation for cultural awareness.
Verzhine Nikoghosyan can be reached at VNIKOGH308@student.glendale.edu