Generation Magazine - November 16, 2010 - Will this semester ever end?! Oh, turkey!
CONTENTS
Featured Also 05 | Editor’s Letter
Waterboarding and TSA
07 | Agenda
12 12
King of Blues, Mr. Potter is back, and Joan’s Botox
Some stuff that is good. Some stuff that is bad. The usual.
You ask, we answer.
| Hit or Bulls***
08 | He Says, She Says 09 | Letters
Adonis Complex
16
We’re loving the feedback. Keep them coming.
Josh is stuck in Ireland, so we’re dish- ing out some opinion.
We forgot to mention some things in the last issue, so we’re putting them under the spotlight
Liz interviews one of the founders of our favorite music and arts space
T-Mobile’s variant of the Windows Phone 7 is here, and we’ve got a review.
10 | Opinion
14 | Spotlight
Kathryn Przybyla look at the way media affects men in terms of physical image, and discusses the effects of the Adonis Com
16 | Sugar City FRIDAY
FRIDAY
22 18
18
HTC HD7
Seon McDonald reviews the new HTC HD7, with the new Windows Phone 7 operating system. If you are tired of your iPhone, could this be the solution?
18 | HTC HD 7
19 | Literary Section Dear Tim Hortons, why do you hate me? 22 | Parting Shots
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EDITOR’S LETTER Getting Away with $#@!
Over the past two weeks, I have stumbled upon some headlines that made me question the saneness of our country. Specifically, I want to talk about some of the ways that the government, government agencies have been able to get away with things that they should be punished for. The most recent thing that has caught my eye is the return of George W. Bush to the spotlight, thanks to his new book that has sold well, and his need to pay the bills. In the book, titled Decision Points, Bush talks about some things which he refused to talk about during his two terms. More interestingly, in the book, he admits that he authorized the water boarding of detainees. Bush states that he believed that water boarding was not considered torture simply because his lawyers said so. His accomplice, Cheney, still believes it is not torture. Water boarding, if you do not know, is not your simple splash of water on the face. According to newly recovered CIA tapes, it is much more complex than just pouring water on someone’s face and causing them to feel the sensation of drowning. Due do health complications, it has evolved into specially-designed containers, saline solutions and liquid diets, to maximize the asphyxia and minimize the damage.
What Bush had seemed to forget when writing his memoir is that torture is an international crime, according to the new United Nations special reporter on torture Juan Mendez. Should Bush and Cheney be prosecuted? According to Mendez, aside from being condemned by the international community, this type of crime should usually be investigated by the government and it would be up to the United States to decide if they should be prosecuted. We shall see. He got away with it then, he will probably get away with it now. Next up, we have our lovely Transportation Security Administration. If you are a student who flies frequently, they are the guys who make your life miserable when getting on airplane. Well, it has gotten a lot more miserable in the past few weeks. They have implemented new scanners and procedures that are a clear violation of the Fourth Amendment, which protects us citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures. The backlash began with the implementation of the new AIT (Advanced Imaging Technology) full-body scanners, which are accurate to the point where the operator has a naked image of you. To demonstrate the accuracy, according to The Atlantic, a Florida TSA worker was arrested for getting into a fight with a co-worker when the AIT scanner revealed his ”modestly-sized” penis. To get on a plane, students and passengers must submit to having a security officer stare at them naked, which is frankly invasive, creepy and dangerous. The most disturbing part of this ordeal are the new procedures that TSA officers must follow if you refuse to let radioactive waves strip you naked. The new procedures require a full-body pat-down, which includes the TSA gently padding the back of their hands on your chest and groin. Michael Roberts, who is a pilot for ExpressJet Airlines, refuses to use the scanner because of its invasive nature, and refuses the secondary screening, because he, like many of us, is uncomfortable with being sexually assaulted. Some more examples of the new procedures include a wheel-chair bound Portland mother being ordered to “spread-eagle against the wall,” a young girl having to remove her nipple
rings, a 17-year-old having to expose her prosthetic leg and at the same time being groped, as she tours the country with a church choir. This is where we are at. To protect ourselves from terrorists, we have turned into torturing human rights abusers. Some argue that the water boarding and excessive screening were, and are, necessary in the post9/11 era, but are there no alternatives? I do not intend to seem biased toward a political side, because frankly, these things are a result of both parties, but Obama, who has a “sees-no-evil approach,” has been able to thwart terrorist plots without shredding any of the U.S. constitution. According to Washington Post, after detaining the Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad, authorities have been able to work with him and get substantial intelligence, without any sort of torture. Speaking of Faisal, didn’t he get through the TSA and onto a plane headed to Dubai, even after TSA had spent $200 million of our money on “behavior detection” program which, according to CBS News, has yet to catch one terrorist? As students, we should question the practices of our government. Many of us will travel by air after graduating and will have to submit to some type of TSA screening. Ask yourself: Do I want to be stripped naked or sexually assaulted to get on a plane? Also, think about interrogation torture: Is it right to have someone feel as if at the brink of death without being proven guilty? These measures, meant to protect us from terrorists, in my opinion, only propel the past success of terrorists. If we let our government freely abuse international law, and check our Fourth Amendment rights at the airport, is it safe to say that the “terrorists have won?” Think about it, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Dino Husejnovic Editor in Chief
Submit your letters and articles at ubgeneration.com, or e-mail us at ubgeneration@gmail.com
Generation Magazine 2010 - 2011 Staff Editor in Chief Dino Husejnovic
Managing Editor Kathryn Przybyla
Creative Director Elizabeth Flyntz
Copy Editor
Catherine Prendergast
Associate Editors Seon McDonald Steve Neilans Allison Balcerzak
Photo Editor
Allison Wasneechack
Circulation Director Rashid Dakhil-Rivera
Contributing Staff Josh Q. Newman Nathan Grygier Jessica Brant Allison Ruiz
Business Manager Ariella Goro
Ad Manager Tommy Zhao
Asst. Ad Manager Ted DiRienzo
Cover design by Dino Husejnovic. Generation Magazine is owned by Sub-Board I, Inc., the student service corporationat the State University of New York at Buffalo. The Sub-Board I, Inc. Board of Directors grants editorial autonomy to the editorial board of Generation. Sub-Board I, Inc. (the publisher) provides funding through mandatory student activity fees and is in no way responsible for the editorial content, editorial structure or editorial policy of the magazine. Editorial and business offices for Generation are located in Suite 315 in the Student Union on North Campus. The telephone numbers are (716) 645-6131 or (716) 645-2674 (FAX). Address mail c/o Room 315 Student Union University at Buffalo, Amherst, NY 14260 Submissions to Generation Magazine should be e- mailed to ubgeneration@gmail.com by 1 p.m. Tuesday, a week before each issue’s publication. This publication and its contents are the property of the students of the State University of New York at Buffalo 2010 by Generation Magazine, all rights reserved. The first 10 copies of Generation Magazine are free. Each additional copy must be approved by the editor in chief. Requests for reprints should be directed to the editor in chief. Generation Magazine neither endorses nor takes responsibility for any claims made by our advertisers. Press run 5,000.
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AGENDA THE ACACIA STRAIN: TO CATCH A PREDATOUR | NOV 18
Touring in support of their new album “Wormwood” which cracked the Billboard’s Top 200, The Acacia Strain promises a night of fun and clever modern metal rock music. Venue: Mohawk Place, Buffalo, NY
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CONCERT | BB KING BLUES FESTIVAL | NOVEMBER 18
The reigning King of the Blues is extensively touring America and will stop by in Buffalo to dazzle listeners with his jazzy standards and spectacular guitar showmanship Venue: Shea Performing Arts Center. Tickets $35 up
MOVIE | HARRY POTTER: DEATHLY HALLOWS | NOVEMBER 19 The beginning of the final chapter in the Harry Potter saga, Lord Voldermort has seized control of the Ministry of Magic and the film reflects these ominous turn of events with a much darker tone as embattled Harry and his friends, race to defeat “he who must not be named”.
COMEDY | JOAN RIVERS | November 160
Plastic surgery champion, controversial comedian, famous for her brash and unapologetic jabs at celebrities as well as poking fun at herself is bringing the laughs to Buffalo. Venue: Seneca Events Center. Tickets start at $40
MOVIE | BURLESQUE | November 164
Arguably one of the most anticipated upcoming movies in pop culture with headlining Divas like Cher and Christina Aguilera. Burlesque is a story about a small town girl who aims for stardom despite doubts and setbacks. File this movie in the fun and campy musical category.
TEXT US YOUR QUESTIONS! 716-201-0436 8 | ubgeneration.com
He Says, She Says An advice column divided by the sexes, starring Catherine Prendergast and Nathan Grygier
Are all the people I see on skateboards on campus douche bags? What is the ratio of douche to nondouche?
probably are doing fine. If he keeps telling you less teeth, less teeth, less teeth, etc, then you have some things to work on.
CP: Slim to none. I may be biased on this one, since I have some good friends who skateboard. But I honestly don’t think they’re being douche bags by riding around campus on their boards. Yes, it can be noisy and distracting, especially when you hear the sound from behind you and cannot tell which side they will pass you on, or how fast they’re going. Or when they’re attempting some Indy nose bone, or an ollie, or whatever, and fail miserably. But even that can be funny to an extent. At least skateboarders put it all out there, for everyone to see. What I’m worried about are those car drivers. They are hidden in their vehicle and they have a lot more power over you. I bet there are so many douche bag car drivers who roll around campus everyday, and we don’t even know it.
NG : I think I’m going to leave this to the female above, considering I only receive them and do not give them. However, a general rule of thumb is that if it bleeds, you’re doing something wrong. You should really avoid using teeth. If you really want to please your man, you’ll get your teeth removed. Then just buy a pair of dentures. Think of the perks you’ll get, no more brushing those pesky teeth, and you’re guaranteed a perfect smile!
NG: It’s really hard to tell which ones are douches and which ones are not on the spectrum of douchery. To be safe, you should probably just trip any and all of them, so that way you’ll be able to continue your day without worrying if you got the douches or not. How do I give a good blowjob? CP: As if I would ever outline in detail the exact and precise way to maneuver your head and jaw and tongue in order to give successful head. This is Generation, not Cosmo. I will say that one of the most accurate ways to tell if you are performing well is through the guy himself. If he tells you that you are fucking awesome, and says something like “yes, yes, yesss,” then you
I really like one of my friends, but I think I’m stuck in the friend zone. What can I do? CP: My most honest advice would be to STAY THERE, although it also depends on what you are looking for. If you are interested in your friend ala I want to sleep with you because I think you are sexy and we’ll see how it goes from there, then there is no harm in trying it. Make a move when you are both under the influence. You could end up having a really fun hook-up, with someone you are already comfortable with. And if he/she rejects you, you can always blame it on the alcohol, and move on. But if you are interested in your friend ala I am secretly madly in love with you and want to be your serious boyfriend/girlfriend, then I repeat, stay in the friend zone. If you already feel like your friend doesn’t feel the same way, chances are they don’t. And it sucks, but you don’t want to ruin a good friendship with your unreciprocated feelings. NG: The friend zone – cock-blocking dudes as long as I can remember. Transferring out of the friend zone
is one of the most difficult relationship tasks in existence, but it can be done. You could always get drunk together and hope for the best, though that could end up causing more problems then solutions. You can just break off the friendship, and then a little later, try to rekindle it, but this time with more romance. Or bring some girl to a party you’ll both be at and see if she gets jealous when you’re getting a handy and she’s sitting alone drinking from a red cup. Pepsi summer mix was delicious. Bring it back. CP: Generation is honored that you have assumed our powers are limitless; unfortunately, there is not much we can do concerning the seasons. Pepsi summer mix was created specifically for the warmest three months of the year. It is now November, and therefore, the mix cannot exist. Sadly we are unable to go back in time, and we have no way to extend August into winter. My apologies. NG: Well that’s kind of out of my power now isn’t it. Why don’t you write a strongly worded letter to the Pepsi Corporation and see if they’ll do that for you? Or stand in the union and hand out those little flyers that save “save Pepsi summer mix!” or something along those lines. You’ll probably fail, but at least you tried eh? You guys at the Generation seem so cool, how do we become friends? Party with me yo! CP: Why, thank you, we try, yo. Now, there are a couple ways you can win over the friendship portion of my enormous heart. The first would be to make me a delicious dinner
one evening. I am not that picky, as long as you don’t make anything with raisons, olives, or mayonnaise. Spicy food is good too, so don’t be afraid to throw in that chili powder. If you are not capable of doing this, then the next best thing would be to write me a sweet note outlining why Generation is so wonderful and why it would be an honor if I accepted your plea for friendship. Then we start off as pen-pals, summer camp style. Once we get a nice stream of letters going back and forth, and I decide that you are chill, we’ll meet up and party. If neither of those appeal to you, then I guess you could do Facebook. Although you wont be making the greatest first impression by taking the easy way. I give points for creativity. Finally, you could always just try asking another staff member, they’re probably a lot more open-minded than me. NG : Well, I suppose the first step in creating a friendship would be to find one of us on Facebook. You can then at least tell people that we are friends, even though we really won’t be. If they ask for credentials, just pull up your Facebook and be like “take that sucka!” I don’t know about the rest of the staff, but I’m always looking for ways to make extra money. So if you’re really hard up for friends, you can hire us (or at least me) to pose as your friend. We can go to some public place, been seen together, bring the lolz, and you’ll probably get laid. You know you’re interested. Editor’s Note: All suggestions expressed are for entertainment purposes only. Practice safe sex, be good to your partners and try to make wise decisions. Just sayin’.
GENERATION November 16,2010
Letters to the Editor Exceptional Alumnus By Ryan Taughrin
A few quick notes before I hop onto my pedestal here; I am a graduate student. Therefore, I really do not know how this Sub Board thing works, aside from the fact that I come from a smaller liberal arts college that only had 1 newspaper (that I happened to be the Editor-in-Chief of) Your publication is fantastic, and a great alternative to The Spectrum. I wish it would not have taken my 8 weeks to realize this. I guess that comes with a full graduate course load, a graduate assistanceship, and still learning to navigate Student Affairs here at UB. (I’m in the Student Affairs Administration program, so shame on me) I loved your “Exceptional Alumni” piece published in the November 16nd issue of Generation. However, I felt a key alumnus was missing, critical to the date of publication and nature of our country at this time. That man is former Buffalo News and current Washington Post political cartoonist Tom Toles. From what I have gathered doing some minimal research is that Toles started his career at UB at The Spectrum, until he took a post as a political cartoonist for the Buffalo Courier-Express in 1973. Not only has Toles won a Pulitzer Prize, but has become one of the most prominent
voices in 1990 while working for the Buffalo News and now is the chief cartoonist for one of the most politically driven daily newspapers in the world. His cartoons are carried by about 200 papers nationwide, and he has won several awards that wouldn’t mean much to us, but raised him to prominence and commanded respect in the journalist community He has been a leading voice in cultivating and making sense of hypocrisy from both side of the aisle. While he is a self-proclaimed liberal, his commentary on pressing issues and current events has garnered him national attention over the past three decades. His ability to capture the idiosyncrasies of today’s society are refreshing, captivating and necessary, especially for student’s in our generation to make sense of the shitstorm of coverage that certain candidates get in the media cycle. In the end, the point about Exceptional Alumni was right on point, I just wanted to make light of another alumni who would have been relevant to include on election day.
Missed a Sport
This is a quick example of some of his work (not that you couldn’t find it, or don’t know about it, but if I didn’t see this yesterday – I probably wouldn’t have been so inspired to write something in response to one of your articles.
The term “Blut!!1” (with that exact spelling) is an old Generation inside joke that goes back at least 6 years. It raises its head at least several times a year. Ask your previous editors or something if you’re unfamiliar with this inside
I am writing in response to Steve Neilans’ story on the decline of school spirit. While I’m not writing to argue that the football team is shit and that school spirit has declined I do have one complaint with the article. Steve writes, “... and the fact that not a single sports team in Buffalo is doing well: all ingredients for a horrible start to the year.” I would just caution Steve to fact check before he makes claims like that. The UB Mens Rugby team has done phenomenally this semester. The D3 (Development) side went undefeated throughout the season until their unfortunate loss against Ithaca in the State Championship match; in Itha-
Old Inside Joke By 716-698-XXXX
ca. The D1 side dominated the northeast rugby circuit and racked up a tremendous 6-0 record giving UB Rugby the #1 seed in the nation according to American Rugby News ranking system. We defeated Binghamton to win the NYS Rugby Conference Championship and advance to Nationals next spring. Maybe you should write a story about the University at Buffalo Rugby Football Club, and all their successes; that might boost school spirit. American Rugby News Sincerely, UB Rugby Editors Note: You make a good point. Look for our spotlight on the UB Rugby team in this issue and Steve’s response.
joke. Don’t kill it! By the way, I think it started in an old Generation personal (remember those?) when someone wrote in “Long Island sluts are sluts, smoke a blut!!1” And by the way i don’t mean an inside joke per se... really an UB-wide joke. I have no clue about who first wrote it, but it seemed to rapidly permeate UB culture. So don’t hate on the people writing that in to you! Generation used to write it themselves.
Send us your articles, letters and feedback. Click the SUBMIT tab at UBGeneration.com Source: washingtonpost.com
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Opinion Tracing Back the Turkey By Steven Neilans Thanksgiving break is clutch for two reasons: the first one being the fact that there aren’t any classes for a week, and the second one being the fact that only two weeks of class remain. I have been developing a wicked case of cabin fever in Buffalo this semester, and there is no better cure than to go home for a bit without any work. I have been dying to shut off brain activity as I play Rock Band 3 and Call of Duty for a week. Of course, Thanksgiving also means that a good amount of turkey is going to be sacrificed to keep my belly full. I would hate to be a turkey right around this time of the year. I even heard that tryptophan isn’t the reason that people get tired after Thanksgiving dinner anymore, so the turkey doesn’t get to have his revenge in any sort of way. Ain’t that a bitch. Thanksgiving is one of the most commercialized holidays out there. Everybody knows that Thanksgiving means Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, football, and turkey. Everybody also knows that the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday, is a recipe for disaster. Stampedes of deal-seaking moms and dads have actually killed customers by trampling over them. I hope that Furby was worth it. Thanksgiving has always been a little bit of an anomaly to me as far stories go. Halloween has horror movies, and Christmas has Christmas movies (profound, I know). What does Thanksgiving have? I know there’s a story with pilgrims and Indians in it who eat food together, but does that story deserve a holiday? And yes, for the douchebag out there going “THERE IS A CHARLIE BROWN SPECIAL DERRRRR!” then fine, you win this round. I will admit that there is a single Thanksgiving themed movie called A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. Congratulations, you are my hero. After I decided to place A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving on my Netflix, I decided that I really wanted to learn the real story be-
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hind Thanksgiving. I find it to be quite farfetched to entirely believe any story where Indians are thankful for the pilgrims. Something just seems wrong with that logic. The first thing I found out was that Thanksgiving wasn’t that big of a deal for Indians. The Wampanoag Indians, the Indians who were at the first Thanksgiving in Plymouth Rock, had daily “thanksgivings” which almost seem synonymous with what we’d call “dinner”. In fact, the Wampanoag and pilgrims may have ate together regularly before the first official Thanksgiving. Historians just have a hard time finding out the minute details to the story because only two records exist. Additionally, the first Thanksgiving dinner probably didn’t even have any turkey on the menu. It definitely didn’t have any potatoes or pumpkin pie either. According to the one account given of the first Thanksgiving, it’s likely that lobster, mussels, and plums were probably the main dish. Not exactly what most American would consider the prototypical Thanksgiving dinner… So how did the story become so distorted? In 1854, Sarah Hale got her hands on an original account of a history book from Plymouth Rock, which explained the first Thanksgiving, and decided to create holiday traditions to help sell a magazine she worked for. For example, in one part of the book there is one random mention of a turkey. It doesn’t have anything to do with first dinner; it’s just a random entry. For Hale, she believed that was good enough to create a tradition. Soon after, Abraham Lincoln would jump on board with Hale and decided to make Thanksgiving a national holiday. I’m not here to bash on Thanksgiving, but I do feel a little weird celebrating a tradition that was created by the editor of a magazine. If someone is going to tell me a story once, it better be the right story. I actually
Parking Entrapment By Michael Palange There is a parking spot over in the parking lot on UB north, the lot that is split into a visitor lot and a student lot. There is a spot there that is designed to look like a spot but really is not. The parking spot is outlined like a regular spot and is just as big as a regular spot, and my car fits there perfectly. However, when I came back from class, I noticed f i n dthat beautiful bright-yellow parking tickt h eet envelope on my windshield. story I thought “What the #$%^? How?” There is no indication or marking in the spot saying “No Parking,” or the dashed lines in the spot indicating that it is not a spot. When looking at the ticket, I noticed the time. The ticket was printed three minutes after I parked there. I have class at 9:30 and I got there around 9:20; the ticket was given at 9:23. This could mean that the parking police watched me park there and did not do anything to stop me. Also, the only reason I parked there was because someone was pulling out of it. I took pictures and I decided to appeal the ticket. When describing why I wanted to appeal the ticket to the transportation office, one of the employees came out of his office and told me he knew exactly what spot I was talking about. He said that they get appeals for that spot everyday and they never win. His reasoning? The spot is double-lined. Anyone that goes to Tops knows that every spot there is doubled lined, so does this mean we are all parking illegally and that the Amherst Police can ticket all of us? The transportation office knows that this spot is a constant problem, but also a moneymaker. After appealing the ticket and losing, I decided that every day that I happen to be in that lot, I would check
where Indians just casually help people on a day-to-day basis to be much more inspiring than the two sides coming together for one meal. It probably doesn’t make for great television, but it would be real. All stories aside, Thanksgiving does get one thing right and that’s bringing people together. I personally know that I can’t wait to go home for the week to see my friends and family who I haven’t seen in months, and I’m sure that’s the same for everybody.
to see if someone was parked there. Not to my surprise, and so far without failing, there has been a car parked there everyday since October 22nd, some of them having that bright-yellow middle finger of UB on the windshield. Apparently this spot is well known about in the Parking and Transportation Department, but is not known well by the students. I’m guessing UB makes at least $100 a week off this spot, and who knows how many times the spot turns over in one day. They could be making $100 a day. Something needs to be done about this spot, because every day, it traps an unsuspecting victim and makes UB money. When I appealed my ticket, they denied my appeal because, according to them, I was parked on grass or a sidewalk, and that a walkway sign is present. Yes, the sign was there, but every other walkway and walkway sign are so skinny that it would be impossible to even park a motorcycle there; this spot however is big enough to fit a hummer. Also, there is no grass in a parking lot and how the hell can there be a sidewalk in the middle of a parking lot surrounded by parking spaces? Shouldn’t that be a side island? I smell entrapment and I don’t like it. Someone should give me a brush and some paint and I will go out there and paint no parking so that the Gods in heaven can see it, because this is just not fair. Don’t we already pay enough money for overpriced food and rising tuition? Tuition to a school that, due to recent cut backs, is offering less classes per semester that fill up at the speed of light. I say we come together and do something about this spot to warn the public about this spot.
I know that a lot of people aren’t used to receiving a couple days off for anything besides a Jewish holiday, but this Thanksgiving will definitely do the body good. Until that body eats 6,000 calories in one day. I will admit that this Thanksgiving will have to do a lot to top the last Thanksgiving I had, but hopefully it can. And hopefully I am able to score some sweet Black Friday merchandise without accidentally killing someone. That would be nice.
GENERATION November 16, 2010
The University Heights Problem:
Poor Choices By Brian Prince Wednesday morning, before any of my classes started, I looked down at the headline of The Spectrum to find that “Greek Life Demands Safety in Heights”. After reading the following article, and the Editor’s Letter by Dino Husejnovic in the November 16, 2010 issue of Generation Magazine, I say “Keep demanding”. Dino hit it right on the nose when he said that “We all know that it is all about the money,” but after reading the crazy proposed solutions proffered by students I’ve concluded that Dino’s right for all the wrong reasons. The first thing that we all learn as kids is that “you get what you pay for”. The following are undisputed: University Heights has significantly lower rents that campus housing, University Heights has a fairly high crime rate. While On-Campus housing is more expensive, the monies paid go towards additional services provided to the residents, like security, cable, internet and electricity, to name a few. People go away to college to learn the lessons of life in a controlled setting, so here’s lesson one: weigh your costs and your benefits carefully. If you want to live in a safe area, you will generally have to pay more in rent than an un-safe area. One “grand” solution to the safety question in University Heights was to have campus police patrol the area. Isn’t that simply passing the buck along? To have campus police patrol the area would externalize the cost of the patrols, forcing yet another tuition increase on
all university students, and not the few who receive the additional benefit. In essence, the entire student population would be paying for the poor choices of few. Another “brilliant” solution proffered would be for UB to bring the Greek Life to campus with a special “Greek Only” housing section. Pretending the entire project wouldn’t be costprohibitive, such a solution would be a fool’s errand. Within a month, most of the Greeks would be kicked back off campus for serving alcohol to minors and hazing related offences. We all know how frats roll. Let’s not forget that any drinking “accidents” resulting from such a move would likely expose the university to a whole host of litigation (UB being a much deeper pocket than any single Greek Organization), once again making all of the university’s students share in paying for the mistakes of a few. It’s not surprising that no-one suggested that the Greeks relocate to the area surrounding North Campus. Such a move would be expensive, owing largely the higher property values of the homes in the, much safer, town of Amherst. But wait, there’s more. The Greeks would not want to move “up north” for one simple reason: the neighborhood isn’t conducive to Greek life. The property owners in Amherst would not look the other way when a neighboring home is packed full of drunk underage kids, blasting loud music and echoing with the sounds of drunken antics at two a.m. on a Friday morning. While my analysis of the situation may seem harsh, all it takes is a few moments of honest thought to see how utterly ridiculous the whole situation is. Number One, if you want to minimize the risk of bad things happening to you, don’t live in a cheep section of town with a high crime rate. Number Two, if you want a benefit, then you need to pay for it yourself. It’s not fair to make other people pay for services that only you receive. Would it be right to have a campus patrol drive four miles off campus to check on me in my Tonawanda apartment? The logical answer is “of course not”. If you want to retain the services of the campus police, pay the extra money and live on campus, otherwise you get the same level of police protection that everyone else enjoys.
The Adonis Complex By Kathryn Przybyla Hugh Prathner, a bestselling author and minister once said “Perfection is a slow death”, yet it is still something most people strive to achieve in their lives. When it comes to body image, and self perception, there is no doubt that media is one of the strongest influences on individuals. Women must compare themselves to stick thin models with no curves that walk the runways of fashion shows around the world. They read magazines where celebrities are butchered by Photoshop than no one really know what they look like in real life. There is a standard out there that young women today have to live up to, and it’s not an easy goal to reach. But is it that much better for the guys? Not really, according to most young male students on campus. What the media tends not to talk about is how males are portrayed in the very same magazines and advertisements that women are exposed to. Take Men’s Health for example. Some major articles on the home page include, “New Research: Belly fat makes you stupid”, “What’s your Adonis index?”, and “Ten ways to last longer in bed”. All of these, and even ones not listed here are aimed at young men to fix things that the magazine determines is wrong with their everyday lifestyle. Sounds a little bit like Cosmo if you ask me. “I think a lot of advertisements for men project the sexual aspects of human nature. There is no such thing as a fat or chubby guy in a men’s magazine… unless he lost 200 lbs due to a diet pill,” says Sal Azad, a senior marketing major. “It seems like men are expected to have chiseled and masculine features, but what about men who are pre dispositoned to be built a certain way? Advertisements never focus on mental or emotional perfection, but only the physical.” Other men’s publications like GQ and Esquire fall into the same category. They plaster male actors, singers, and artists on
their covers with a perfect 6 pack. In fact, I’m not sure that a guy can make the cover of a Men’s magazine without those nicely sculpted abs. “The media never puts ugly people in movies, and television programs. As a result, we are constantly shown images of individuals in great physical condition, good looks, and great style”, says Azad. “Ultimately I think we become conditioned to believe this is the acceptable image and subconsciously or even consciously pursue ourselves to achieve this level of “perfection” that many of us feel to lack.” Obviously staying fit an in shape is very
derweight or just average in musculature, and frequently comparing themselves with others, among other things. They strive for the perfect body type that media puts out there. This dissatisfaction with not gaining enough weight and secret desire for a 6 pack is extremely unhealthy. People need to realize that perfection is not possible when it comes to the human body. This is hard to prove though with television and movies only casting some of the best looking fittest individuals in the entertainment industry. When talking to other male students
Confidence is key in developing your wants and needs as well as getting the girl of your dreams,” important in leading a healthy lifestyle, but it’s when people go overboard that things can get out of hand. For women, serious conditions such as anorexia or bulimia can lead to complete destruction of an individual’s life. They are diseases that should not be messed around with or taken lightly. What a lot of people don’t realize is that these conditions are not just for women. Men have more recently been seeking help for them as well. The Adonis Complex can be defined as a disorder in which a person is obsessed with the idea that he is not muscular enough and fears being too skinny. This muscle dysmorphia has also been referred to as reverse anorexia nervosa. Although this condition affects mostly the male population, women can be affected as well. Some causes of this disease include bullying and teasing in school, family disharmony, perfectionism, and severe stress as well as other things. People affected with this disorder can become distressed when they miss a workout session, have delusions of being un-
here at UB, the pressure is evident. When asked how important it is to be a fit young male in society today, Shervin Stoney, a senior political science major expresses, “Really important. Have you seen Jersey Shore?” Speaking of the shore, Michael “the Situation” Sorrentino has completely changed the world with his infamous set of abdominals. Every episode Sorrentino flaunts his GTL body around, in apparently a way that MTV thinks is cool. Apparently, orange, greasy, and cocky is in this season when it comes to eligible bachelors. But “the Situation” is not alone. In a recent episode of Glee, newcomer Chord Overstreet gives advice to his fellow football players, saying how he hates himself when he eats a hot dog or misses a workout. I reality, he most likely spent months working on his body to get in incredible shape to wear nothing but those metallic gold short-shorts in the Rocky Horror Picture episode. It wasn’t just working as a high school gym, but rather a private trainer and nutritionist who kept him in check
throughout filming for this show. That’s not normal. That’s Hollywood. Other notable examples include Kellan Lutz from Twilight, whose rise to stardom has little to do with the lack of actual lines he says in the movies. And then there is Jesse Willams, the most recent resident hottie on Grey’s Anatomy, whose goal as an actor is to perform the first shirtless surgery on television; how inspiring. To be honest, I don’t find it extremely difficult to watch these shows with Abercrombie model looking guys, but I know that it’s television. They are almost supposed to be more exceptional looking than any average Joe walking the street, but that doesn’t mean they are setting a great example for young males in society. “Ever wonder why some lame looking guys are in relationships with hot chicks? Women desire confidence beyond a perfect physical image. Confidence is key in developing your wants and needs as well as getting the girl of your dreams,” says Azad. “If you want to be a real man, be confident, no cocky. Most intelligent women will choose a funny man over a juice head, any day. Be yourself, confident, and don’t be afraid of rejection.” It really isn’t all about looks, no matter what primetime dramas tell you on television. Overall, it’s clear that women are not the only ones affected by the media and the pressures to look good in society. Supermodels may rule the pages of magazines and advertisements, but real people are the ones who rule the world when it comes to everything else. If you or someone you know is being affected by any sort of eating disorder or body image problems, there are plenty of resources here in campus to help. Wellness Education Services and Counseling Services have some great people that really can be of aid in these types of situations.
UB Rugby
SPOTLIGHT
By Catherine Prendergast
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School spirit has been down for some time now. It is true that many sports teams have not been doing so well this year, which could be one of the reasons students have not been running around campus decked out in UB Football paraphernalia or been repeatedly asking their friends if they’re going to the game on Saturday. I am usually blissfully unaware of what is currently happening in terms of Division I anything, I have been to one (yes, one) football game on campus, it was my freshman year, and I think I left halfway through. Maybe it’s the fact that my high school barely had a track team that I have still not gotten into this whole big university-sports-thing. That being said, even I am a bit saddened by the lack of enthusiasm in the Buffalo air. Even though I do not attend games or follow the scores, I love the fact that I go to such a large school and we have
legitimate teams. Even if I am not necessarily part of the excitement, I love seeing students get super pumped for games, and I love how pride for Buffalo skyrockets when we win. Yes, I enjoy school spirit. I do not like it when everyone, even my college-sports-fanatic uncle, seems to be indifferent about our games. So I am happy to report that not all our teams are falling below the radar. One team may even be exceeding expectations, and that is Buffalo’s own Men’s Rugby Club. This year, the Rugby Team stands out. They are currently on a wining streak, at eight to zero; eight games played, eight games won. The Rugby Club officially competes in Divisions I and III in the New York State Rugby Conference, or NYSRC, and the season has gone exceptionally well. Until playoffs in the spring, the team will continue to practice behind Ellicott Complex. Weather is not a huge burden, as the club has access to an indoor
gym. When March rolls around, sometimes even in February, the team will make weekend trips to play their southern opponents. And then the National Championships begin. Mike Hodgins is the head coach this year. Like the players, he is very excited about how the team has been performing. “This is a great team, and it’s been a great season. We are all very proud of our ranking and we look forward to more competitions.” Hodgins’ has played rugby his entire life and although this is his first season at UB, he was right at home coaching the Rugby Club. From August when the training began, he stressed the importance of defense. “Defense is key,” he explains. “We probably focus and practice on that the most.” Mental preparation is crucial as well. “Players need to know how to make good and tactful decisions while under pressure,” Hodgins says. “And
of course we always work on basic skills, running, catching, etc.” To join, you do not need any prior rugby experience. Some members were rugby players in high school, some switched from football, while others knew nothing about the sport at all, and are now a vital part of the team. Right now, all the members are alike in their determination, confident attitude, and general excitement. “All I can say is that I just can’t wait to play more games,” says one member. “It’s going to be a good year.” I don’t have any doubts. The UB Men’s Rugby Club has a solid history in excellent strategy, strong players, and numerous victories. You may not see me on the sidelines cheering, but I look forward to hearing about how the team is playing, and I now know that UB currently has at least one team that we can all be proud of.
UB Breakdance Club By Catherine Prendergast Annoying, awesome, loud, talented, passionate…students differ on their opinions regarding the UB Breakdance Club. Whether these remarks are relevant descriptions or not, the team can be most accurately named in one simple, yet difficult to overcome word: misunderstood. This club is a fairly recent development; it was founded around the year 2005 by a guy named J.R. Noble. It started with fewer than ten official members, but quickly grabbed the interest of several other students, beginners and pros alike. The Breakdance Club is now more than five times its original size. In the beginning, the club had full permission to utilize the fla-
groom (for those of you who do not know, the flagroom is that one-ofa-kind massive open space with various flags hanging on the walls on the second floor of the student union). The room was an excellent way for the team to promote their club. The room gave them enough space to practice routines or simple steps, while prospective students could sit and watch, or potentially ask the members what they were doing. And totally disinterested, or simply in-a-hurry students, could easily keep their distance by walking in the pathway around the room. It appeared to be a win-win situation. Unfortunately for the club, there were times when students would use the room to study. Which is reasonable, as the flagroom is a desig-
nated shared space. But the quiet reading of a textbook combined with the booming beats of hip-hop music and the squeaks of sneakers sliding against the floor did not mix so well with several students. Enough complained, and continued to complain, so now the Breakdance Club is barely holding on to their Flagroom rights. Once having total access to the area, any time, any day, the team is now only allowed to freely practice there one day a week. On Sundays. The president of the club, Kevin Sonthana, along with the vicepresident, Zubair Afzal, and Victor Nachampassak, from public relations, is working hard to keep the spirit alive and the club’s purpose in check as resources are getting cut. They are aware of the reputation
the club has created for “bothering” students in the flagroom, as well as the common misunderstanding of breakdancing culture in general. “It’s unfortunate to hear that we sometimes annoy students,” says Kevin. “Of course that is not our intention. But the flagroom is really the best option for us. It’s what helped the club expand to what it is today. And now the club is at its peak, yet we only have access to the room on Sundays. The club cannot improve with the current situation.” It is difficult enough to find a free open space to practice complicated dance steps in. But even finding that is only half helpful. The flagroom is perfect because all types of students walk by, and the club has always worked to teach others about this dance aspect of hip-hop GENERATION November 16, 2010
culture and to break the misconceptions. “Breakdancing started on city streets, where people would show off their skills to others, learn new moves, or just enjoy a hobby. Often the dancers would battle each other, to see who could keep to the beat best while nailing certain moves,” explains Kevin. “The media has always seen breakdancing as a negative thing. It has, from it’s start, been portrayed as a violent activity. This steams from the fact that breakdancers were often from bad neighborhoods, and some dancers were gang members. Occasionally a friendly dance battle turned into a real fight.” The poor reputation still exists on many levels. The most ridiculous one is that the police are required to be at UB breakdancing events. When I hear this one, my jaw is almost reaching the floor. “I know,” says Kevin. “It’s so silly. People assume breakdancers are dangerous, and the school has to send police whenever we host a big event. Absolutely nothing we do is violent. It’s fun, it’s what we love doing. We’re spreading a part of hip-hop culture, that’s all.” Luckily for the club, there are some very positive things that won’t be changing anytime soon. Kevin explains how the fact that UB even had a breakdancing club led several students to finalize their decision to enroll at this school. Many universities do not have such a club, and just having the choice of joining it is very appealing. Not only that, the Breakdance club differs from standard dance teams (I know, I have called them that several times in this article for the purpose of variation, but really, team is not the right word for them.) University dance teams have strict tryouts often based on experience. The UB Breakdancing Club is welcome to anyone. If you show you are passionate about learning to breakdance or the culture itself, you are in. In fact a lot of members sign up knowing nothing at all about breakdancing, and come out as really talented b-boys. The club not only welcomes students
of all skill level, but once you are in, you are treated well. Grades are always first priority. For many members, this isn’t too hard, as they report that the club has actually kept their GPA’s up. And that makes sense – everyone needs some sort of hobby, a balance of work and pleasure, if we thought about school all day we would become complete zombies. The club is also a great outlet for networking. Apparently more so than a fraternity, but I wont digress. The UB Breakdancing Club is one of Buffalo’s most diverse organizations. If you are still not convinced how appropriate the flagroom is for them, consider that fact. Members hail from all different states, countries, and cultures. What better way to showcase how multi-cultural the club is then to practice in a room lined with international flags? It sounds perfecto to some but unfortunately the students who use the room to study have the upper hand. It is completely understandable that the flagroom should be open to all, that students should use it how they like. But the argument goes both ways. If students can use it to study, then shouldn’t the club use it to practice—especially considering they always were allowed to in the past? The UB Breakdancing Club is a genuine group that promotes hip-hop culture through passionate students of all nationalities. They are a part of UB, like the other clubs they represent us to others, and they deserve proper space if they hope to keep the club improving. The vice president puts it in another way. “Breakdancing is something you have to practice at least three times a week. We only have the flagroom on Sundays. That leaves at least two days I need to work on moves. There’s a narrow hallway in NSC…I can’t imagine that would be more convenient!”
Sweetness and Light (and RocknRoll) Fair, our anniversary party at WNYBAC, our series of fundraising dance parties at Soundlab (Bustin’ Out) and Soul night at Elmwood Lounge, Allentown Festival of Arts and the Infringement Festival. Are you directly involved with everything that happens at SC? Yes. We are a collective and a number of us help with the overall operating structure in different ways. We are also a volunteer run (not paid) group so everyone helps as they can. I am involved deeply as I am the leaseholder and am good at organizing. How many core members are there? How did you begin working together? Are you all friends? Is there a hierarchy or structure to the Sugar City decision making (and doing)? Our core groups ranges from 5-15 or so. As I mentioned we are volunteer run so everyone’s involvement varies depending on the season, school, jobs, and other activities. Some of us were friends in college and in the already established buffalo music, art, and DIY scene. We’ve made new allies along the way. We are definitely friends, we may have different interests but I don’t think we could not be friends as we are all working for free for something we all believe in. We try not to have a hierarchy. We all openly discuss issues and try to make our inner works transparent for the general community. We have learned by trial & error and rolling with the punches of actually running the best ways of doing things for the needs of our organization.
Sugar City is an all-ages “do-it-together” music and art space located at 19 Wadsworth St. in Buffalo’s Allentown. Aimee Buyea is one of Sugar City’s founding members, a filmmaker, and a graduate of UB’s Media Study program. Interview by Liz Flyntz When did you start Sugar City? Why and when did you start thinking that a space like this would be important to Buffalo’s youth art and culture scene? We officially opened a physical space in January 2009. Sugar City as an idea was rooted in a series of Attic Art parties my house hosted during our last year at UB. The basic idea was to offer a platform for localized artistic expression- that was easy to access and provided a willing audience. These events were outrageously popular. Carrying forth with this discovered need and 2 years of planning we opened Sugar City.
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Can anyone get involved with SC? YES!!!! We are based on the concept that anyone can be involved! It is how we exist as a space that is not finically supported by any government or foundational support. We regularly host volunteer meetings and offer low-cost space rental.
How do you wish people would help support SC? Come to our events and fundraisers, program your own happenings. What are the biggest difficulties you face as an organization? $$$ the bottom line is we need to pay the bills and it is HARD! How long do you think you will remain directly involved in the space? I suppose until I move away for graduate school in a year or so. Do you think SC could survive without you? Yes, it would take a transition period but I trust it would maintain some form of itself. What would you suggest to other people who are interested in starting a project like this? Be nice and open. Fundraise before you open so people know about your project for a long time. Talk to your neighbors, hang out outside a lot and smile and wave. How would you say that UB affects the community you serve at Sugar City? Is it engaged or not? We’ve been lucky with have quite a few UB student groups use the space. A group of freshman in the UB Undergraduate Academies visited to interview our founders and attend an Improv theater event. We’ve hosted Visual Studies and Media Study Emerging Practices presentations. We’ve hosted end of the semester shows for video and photography students. We were even on the cover of generation a few years ago! We seem to attract a fair amount of participation from students at UB but always welcome more! No visit from President Simpson quite yet...
What sort of programming does Sugar City do? People know that it is an allages space for shows, but what else goes on inside and outside of the Wadsworth St. headquarters? Music seems to be the most popular type of event but we do all sorts of different types of events and always welcome to community to host events. We’ve had poetry readings, film screenings, open figure drawing sessions, craft nights, potlucks, field days, artist exchanges, Dorkbot, art fairs. Outside of our headquarters we have held events at the Buffalo Small Press
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She’s so Swift By Kathryn Przybyla Her songs are like an open diary to the world that millions of people have already had a chance to read. Not everyone is a fan of country music but it’s hard to deny that she is an incredible entertainer. You won’t find Taylor Swift club hopping like some of young Hollywood prefers to spend their time. Instead, you’ll find her at swanky events, looking for inspiration for her next hit; otherwise known as her next boyfriend. Currently linked to blue eyed A-lister Jake Gyllenhaal, how could we not be jealous of her success? Her latest album Speak Now has blown up the sales charts with over 1 million copies sold just in the first week. Not bad for a girl with a guitar. But what is it about Swift’s music that appeals to so many people, and not just heartbroken 15 year olds? No one ever said she was the most incredible singer. I’m not sure she could match the range of Christina Aguilera or Celine Dion, but may-
be that’s why it works. Her songs are relatable, they are from the heart, and you can sing to them. Trust me, if I can sing along to most of her songs on key, then anyone can. She’s not trying to be someone she’s not in her music. It’s fun for the media and fans to put the pieces together with her music as well. It’s no secret that if you are brave enough to date the young starlet, be prepared to hear about it in song. Her album has only been out for a couple weeks but it’s easy to tell who has been written about already. Back to December is rumored to be about Twilight actor Taylor Lautner, with lyrics like “so this is me swallowing my pride/ Standing in front of you saying I’m sorry for that night/ And I go back to December all the time”, referring to the friendship that blossomed into a short romance. On a surprising note, Swift may also have fallen victim to musical Casanova John Mayer with the song Dear John. “Don’t
you think 19 is too young to be played by your dark twisted/ games, when I loved you so/I should’ve known”, leads one to believe that relationship (if you can even call it that) didn’t end well. In a response to the infamous VMA disaster last year, Swift came up with Innocent about supposedly “reformed” badass Kanye West. With lyrics like “it’s okay, life is a tough crowd/ 32, and still growin’ up now/ who you are is not what you did/ you’re still an innocent”, reveals Swift has pretty much forgiven him, through song nonetheless. The boys don’t get all the fun this time though. Better than revenge seems to be a jab at Camilla Belle, who supposedly stole Joe Jonas (and his eyebrows) away from Swift. I don’t really know how much we should be fighting over the Jonas Brothers, but regardless the song serves its purpose. “She came along, got him alone/ and let’s hear the applause/ She took him faster than you can say sabotage”, really says it
all. You can hate to love or love to hate her, but Miss T. Swift is not going anywhere anytime soon. This girl has staying power and will be a major player for the rest of her career. It’s time to get into the country spirit ya’ll.
HTC By Seon McDonald A smartphone is a very personal device for many people. In fact, it is arguably even more personal than a PC in the sense that it is always at hand and holds all sorts of personal information such as contacts, photos and e-mails that a person would want at a moments notice. Therefore, it is important that the interface presented to the user be intuitive, natural and easy for a user to quickly accomplish tasks on a daily basis. It should not be a desktop replacemen and should be designed from a different perspective. Apple championed these very ideals and it paid off with the hugely popular iPhone, while Google followed with Android. Microsoft and their aging Windows Mobile left a bad taste in the mouths of the average consumer who flocked in droves to other phones, as the interface was archaic and in need of a good overhaul. After years of being seemingly stubborn about the decadence in its smartphone offerings, Microsoft managed to completely scrap the old Windows Mobile and build, from the ground up, a brand new OS branded as Windows Phone 7. The skeptic in me wanted to dismiss it outright, but my curiosity and tendency to be an early adopter of new gadgets sent me to a TMobile store at 10am on launch day.
The Hardware Manufactured by HTC, one of the most popular smartphone makers, the HD7, at first glance, appears huge yet quite simple in its beauty. The sheer size of the phone is attributed to the screen measuring 4.3 inches diagonally with 3 capacitive touch buttons – back, start and search. The front of the phone is almost entirely LCD glass, with space for a small speaker grill which frames the top and the bottom. The screen is the most compelling feature, lending to 18 | ubgeneration.com
comfortable web browsing and viewing of videos on the device. It is bright and renders photos beautifully. Even though the screen isn’t as sharp as the Retina Display of the iPhone, it displays content more than satisfactorily. A handsome graphite-colored back cover cases the phone, which also features a neat kick stand that clasps closed over the camera. Overall, the build quality of the device feels sturdy, despite the battery cover being made of metallic looking plastic. Real metal is used to wrap the sides of the phone, which houses a volume rocker and camera button. The power button is on top while a mini-usb and headphone port are located at the bottom. I have had issues with the buttons being too hard to press, though I have gotten used to amount of force I have to use. The phone easily fills the palm of your hand, but remains lightweight and ergonomically well-designed. Housed inside the shell are some decent specs including a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, 512MB RAM, 16GB of internal memory for apps, games and music. Speaking of music, the phone has speakers in the front and back that are reasonably loud enough to either entertain or annoy others. Together with the kickstand, watching movies on the HD7 is a given, as Netflix and T-Mobile’s TV come pre-loaded on the phone. You would think given the media-centric appeal of Windows Phone 7, HTC would supply the phone with a battery that could last an entire day, but no. On heavy use, the battery runs low by evening which is not terrible for a smartphone, and also considering the battery takes time to condition. Moderate use can produce longer results, but streaming songs, playing games and browsing the web over Wi-Fi takes a serious toll on the battery. The choice is to either walk with your charger or purchase a spare battery or charge pack.
The Camera
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The HD7 sports a nice 5.0 megapixel camera with dual-LED flash. In theory, this coupled with a two-step camera button should produce decent shots in most cases. Sadly, this is not the case with the HD7. Aside from the fact that the camera button is a bit hard to press, once you do manage to take a shot, the picture quality is average at best. On a bright sunny day, provided you remain very still, the camera can take some decent shots, but do not expect this to replace your DSLR. Focusing is fast and flash works reasonably well, though it tends to whitewash the subjects in night shots. What I do love is the camera software itself. Microsoft implemented a way to quickly take photos even when the phone is locked, you simply press the camera buttons for a few seconds and you are whisked away to the camera app. This comes in very handy for quick snaps. Also when you take a photo, it quickly slides to the left leaving most of the screen in view-finder mode to continue taking pictures. To review the shots you took, you simply keep swiping forward from the left. The controls are intuitive, but the icing on the cake is the ability to automatically upload all photos to SkyDrive - a free 25GB account service included with every Hotmail account.
The Software What really defines the experience of the phone really is the software. Windows Phone 7 OS is breath-taking. The interface is exceptional, eschewing pages of icons in favor of gorgeous typography and minimalistic squares and rectangles. The result is quite striking and easily sets it apart from the competition. In terms of speed, the phone is very fast. There is no resemblance of lag anywhere while swiping through screens, pinching or zooming
through the web browser, photos or diving through clouds in the stunning Bing Maps app. It effortlessly responds to the slightest touch, allaying one of my biggest fears. That fear was whether Microsoft could produce an OS that is not buggy, does not crash repeatedly and is up to standards. When I told the T-Mobile associate that I wanted the HTC HD7, he looked baffled and asked whether I was really serious about giving up Android to go to a Windows Phone. I smiled, and parted from my wallet a cool $499. (I prefer to buy phones without contracts.) When he noticed I fully intended to buy the phone, he admitted that he was nicely surprised at how fast the phone was and that scrolling was as smooth as the iPhone. Naturally, he also tried to sell me everything from cases, screen protectors to an internet broadband card. Right in the store, I powered the phone up, entered my Hotmail account details and watched with bated breath as the phone came alive. I use the term “alive” as a way to describe the nuances of the home screen. The homescreen features two rows of tiles, on which animated content shimmied in and out of view as my data populated the device from the cloud. It made the phone seem “alive.” There are too many things to like about the Windows Phone 7 interface, and also too many things to cover. However, these are my favorites.
The Keyboard The HD7 features no hardware keyboard like all my previous phones, so my reliance on the software keyboard made me somewhat nervous. Luckily, I was pleasantly surprised to see how superb the keyboard performed in terms of ease of typing, auto correction, predictive text and manual correction. Within a few hours, I was typing as quickly, if not faster than on GENERATION November 16, 2010
a hardware keyboard, in both landscape or portrait mode. The text correction is easy to use, allowing you to select an entire word and quickly replace it with the correction, or manually add your own words to the predictive text dictionary. Another nice feature is the added selection of emoticons into the keyboard.
The “Hubs” A hub is an application that pulls data from various online services into one destination, in a manner that reduces the need for multiple apps. Some of the hubs are extendable, which means developers can create apps with complementary functionality that ties into the hub, providing the user with a multi-layered experiences. The design of the hubs is neat, featuring panoramic screens that you navigate through by swiping left or right for more content. The interface flows intuitively, with subtle cues urging the user to swipe for more views. There is a People Hub, for all your contacts, which features Facebook integration, a Pictures Hubs that houses all your pictures and also pulls all your photos from Facebook, and an Office Hub to edit, review and store Word, Excel or PowerPoint documents. Notes made in OneNote are automatically synced to your live account and desktop.
Music + Video Hub Windows Phone 7 shines in terms of media consumption with a feature-packed music player that integrates seamlessly with both your music and Microsoft’s Zune Pass – a music subscription service that allows you to stream and download unlimited music for a monthly fee. In fact, when I logged into the phone for the first time, I was immediately able to download and play songs without even connecting the phone to a computer. The music hub also features FM radio and direct access to the marketplace to purchase songs. Related apps also can be found here, such as Lyrics and YouTube
XBOX Live The Xbox Live hub is awesome. Starting from the Live Tile of the hub, you can see your avatar pop in and out of view in a whimsical manner. Once you go into the hub, the panoramic screen slides in, showing the collections of games that you’ve downloaded. All games you download from the app store show up here in two sections: XBOX Live games, which allows you to supplement your gamer score and play turn by turn games against friends, or regular phone games that are just as entertaining. Swipe throughout the hub and you can see or respond to game invites, read news on upcoming games or simply check out your avatar. There is an XBOX Live extras app, which allows you to cus-
tomize your avatar right on the phone. You can interact with your avatar, such as shaking the phone and watching your avatar fall down in a dizzy spell. The games are stunning. Bigger titles such as “The Harvest,” an exclusive title for Windows Phone 7, feature rich graphics and engaging game play, but are slower to load than smaller titles. Other highquality Xbox Live games include “Need For Speed”, “Flight Control” , “Star Wars” and “Guitar Hero 5”. There are some 400 games already available and over 1500 apps in the app store at launch.
Album Review: Rihanna “Loud”
HTC Hub Designed by HTC specifically for its own Windows Phones like the HD7, once you launch it, the hub treats you to snazzy visuals of flying through clouds, landing at a featured page of HTC-branded apps. The most useful of these are the weather widget, “My Account,” which shows your carrier details and usage, a notes apps for quickly jotting down your thoughts, and my personal favorite, a Sound Enhancer app, which gives the option to enable Dolby Surround Sound encoding, SRC Enhancement, or to apply a preset equalizer. It works like charm and really makes a difference in the sound.
Conlusion The HTC HD7 is a marvelous phone. At the same time, it has its share of flaws as well. While HTC made some poor design choices in terms of the camera quality, cheap plastic battery cover and a somewhat weak battery, thenew Windows Phone 7 OS almost makes you forgot these shortcomings. The OS is not perfect though, asthere is no true multi-tasking for 3rd party apps. Copy and Paste is not available yet and I have not been able to add my own custom ringtone. However for a first generation product, it is extremely stable and polished in a way that is sure to make you smile. Little things like seeing your Facebook friends updates while flicking through contacts, or being able to quickly review and edit documents right on the phone without hassle certainly augers well for consumers looking for a phone that just works. Almost everyone who has handled my HD7 was immediately impressed whether by the responsiveness, beautiful user interface or the dynamic home screen that presented glance-able information. As a college student, the phone straddles the line sublimely between work and play with its excellent email client, useful office software as well as the exclusive Xbox Live games and terrific music player. I am very pleased with the phone and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a new and fresh experience.
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By Seon McDonald Pop siren and embattled singer Rihanna, who channeled a dark and foreboding persona in her last “Rated R” album following the aftermath of her very public assault case with her then boyfriend Chris Brown, is back with a sassy new album and a spanking new attitude. Rihanna’s last album, while good, lacked the club thumping songs like “Please Don’t Stop The Music” that cemented her status as a dance princess. Thankfully she has toned down the “angry and gothic” act and is back on track with a new disc of material that’s energetic, fun and ultimately positive. The upbeat and flirty tone is immediately set from the first track “S&M,” a dance song with less than subtle lascivious meanings. “I may be bad, but I’m perfectly good at it…Sticks and stones may break my bones but whips and chains excite me” she saucily sings on the hook. It’s a song that tends to stick in your head thanks to the repetitious hook and catchy dance beats. Perhaps a promising indication that the album is poised to be a success is the next track “What’s My Name.” Currently number 1 on the Billboard Charts, the hit features superstar rapper Drake who throws a few rap lines seductively at Rihanna who isn’t afraid to throw it back. While Drake only
appears at the start of the song, Rihanna carries the torch with bravado throughout the melodious contemporary pop song. The highlights of the album include some of the more restrained R&B songs like “Fading” where Rihanna, whose vocals seem much improved since her debut, declares her love for her irresponsible lover to be waning. “Things just ain’t the same, and I’m ready for a change, Go on, be gone, bye bye, so long” she sings. She adopts a more resigned temperament than the sullen airs of “Rated R”, which is a welcome respite. In “California King Bed” strumming electric guitar flourishes behind the ballad as Rihanna earnestly tries to reach out to a lover whose engulfing distance has pining in the throes of love. The fun and jovial nature of the album kicks back into high gear with the lead single “Only Girl” a rousing club banger produced by Stargate, the team responsible for some of Rihanna’s previous hits. Rihanna mews naughtily “Want you to make me feel like I’m the only girl in the world, like I’m the only one that you’ll ever love”. It’s sassy and peppy with pulsing beats relishing the heavy rotation in nightclubs. Embracing her Caribbean accent to full amusing effect in “Man Down” Rihanna chants on heavy reggae drumming about mistakenly robbing a man of his life. “now Imma criminal criminal… Tell the judge please give me the minimal… Run out of town on the Grand seminal seminal”. Evidently Rihanna retains her sense of humor with playful wittiness that climaxes as Nicki Minaj comes in to play in “Raining Men,” a song that refutes the notion that the two independent women are anxious catch a man since its literally pouring men. Rounding things off is the ballad “Skin” and a part II to Eminem’s chart topping hit “Love The Way You Lie” on which he adds a bizarre rambling rant towards the end of the song that’s certainly brow-raising if anything. Overall “Loud” presents a vibrant and solid effort from Rihanna that heralds a return to her dance roots with cheerful music that’s sure to entertain.
LITERARY
Enough is Enough by Allison Ruiz Kara looked at Jason and shook her head. She couldn’t take the mind games anymore, two years was more than enough. “Is this how it’s always going to be?” Kara continued to shake her head and glanced down at the floor. “Are we always going to end up back here? At this point... this point that we’ve been at a hundred times before?” She looked up and stared at Jason. All she wanted was a sign. One sign that said things were going to change, that things would not always end in a fight and heartache. “I don’t know Kara. I really don’t know.” Jason broke their eye contact and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. He had to fiddle with something; just standing there was too awkward. “What do you want me to say Kare?” “I want you to tell me that things are going to change.” “I can’t do that. I can’t just lie to you and promise I’ll change. I don’t know if I can do that.” “I’m not asking you to change. I’m asking for this situation to change. It hurts Jason. Can you understand that?” Kara was fighting back tears more and more with every word she spoke. She was afraid this was how their conversation would go. Jason reached out and tried to touch Kara, but she pulled away. Their feelings were out, they couldn’t just be ignored again, they wouldn’t be ignored. “Kara... I want to be with you. I thought that after everything we’ve been through you knew that. I have given up so much just to be with you.” “Gee thanks. I didn’t realize breaking up with that freshman was such a sacrifice. I guess I should kneel down and thank Jesus.” The sarcasm dripped from Kara’s tongue with ease. He was hurting her once again. They were back to that spot again.
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“Don’t say that. You know what I mean.” Jason wanted to scream at the top of his lungs in retaliation to Kara’s sarcasm, but he couldn’t. He kept his voice steady and at a normal volume, “That is not what I meant Kara.” The aggravation was beginning to get to Jason. It was becoming clearer by the second that no matter how many times they talked things out, they would always end up fighting. Kara folded her arms across her chest and glared at Jason. She didn’t think she could take it any longer. “I’m done.” She turned from the boy she had loved for most of high school and began to walk towards the front door. “Kara! Come on, don’t do this. We fight, that’s how it’s always been. Things will be fine in a few minutes once we stop talking. Don’t walk out.” He began to follow her down the hallway. “I meant I’m done with this relationship.” Kara’s words stopped Jason dead in his tracks. There was no misinterpreting the tone in her voice, the finality of it was painstakingly clear. “But... after everything we’ve... why?” Jason couldn’t form a complete sentence in that moment if his life depended on it. Kara had always been there, she was his rock, his support system. She was the best friend he never even knew he had. Solemnly, Kara replied, “Because even after everything that’s happened between us, we can’t go more than an hour without arguing over something. And when I asked you to try and change that, you told me you couldn’t. It’s not that I want this to end Jason. Believe me, that is the last thing I want, but I can’t keep doing this. I love you, and I don’t think that will ever change. But this is just getting to be too much. We’re too old to be doing this.” Kara lifted her hand to cover her eyes. She didn’t want Jason to see her
cry. “What can I do?” Jason was stunned. He couldn’t let her just walk out of his life forever. “Please. Tell me what to do.” “It’s done Jason. I’m sorry.” There was no hiding the tears streaming down Kara’s face any longer. She stood in the doorway of Jason’s house, crying, her body outlined by the soft glow of the moon shining through the door. Jason reached out to pull Kara into a hug. She willingly stepped into his arms and placed her head on his shoulder. To both of them, the embrace felt like the safest place in the world. “Please don’t leave Kara. Please.” Jason knew there was no changing Kara’s mind at this point, but he felt a need to at least try. His heart was breaking faster than he thought possible; all he wanted was to keep her in his life. Jason wrapped his arms tighter around Kara, wresting his chin on the top of her head. “We can do this.” “I wish that was true.” The words were barely audible over Kara’s soft sobs into Jason’s chest. She didn’t want to leave his arms, but knew that she had to, for both of their sakes. Slowly and reluctantly, she began to pull away. Kara’s and Jason’s tear filled eyes met, the pain written on both of their faces. “I’m so sorry Jason.” “I love you.” Jason leaned down and kissed Kara one last time. The kiss contained four years of memories, some happy, some sad, others so outrageous words could not express them. But one thing was consistent throughout, even after all of their fights, Jason and Kara had a love so strong, nothing could break it. The only thing stopping them was the need for the drama in their lives to end. So with a kiss, the greatest love either would ever know, ended.
My Personal
Hero by Corey O’Brien
What would you do If I just walked away If I wasn’t there For you from day to day And how would you feel If I never helped again If I told you I don’t care If I wasn’t a great friend But that isn’t me Its not who I could ever be It’s the price I pay Because I just can’t say I’ve got my own problems But no one seems to see That sometimes I just need To be there just for me Im gonna be My personal hero Yeah Ive got some issues You never seem to ask So don’t seem so surprised As a friend you failed that task I hide all of the troubles And keep them all from view Ive had to be a rock Too all my friends including you I’m always here To hear you’re tears It’s the price I pay Because I just can’t say I’ve got my own problems But no one seems to see That sometimes I just need To be there just for me Im gonna be My personal hero So if I don’t pick up the phone You’ll just have to talk after the tone I’ve got some issues that you never see My personal hero, is always me I’ve got my own problems But no one seems to see That sometimes I just need To be there just for me Im gonna be My personal hero
GENERATION November 16, 2010
LITERARY G can be in Space (it continues?) by Onion Jack Lectric spring Bruce spring springing us higher and higher higher than all G’s dollars Not sas-saying you’ve seen many, but I’m talking higher than G and all his fathers Higher COMBINED than the all new jerseyman jerseyman’s poppop collars! I swear by centeney slash to two comma father farther Atmospheric wasted and waste, breaking through nonvisible nonchisable por por favor pornographic grue Admist the wavy waves of the books of mine face, Struggling, we are as high as G will go Gee G, G G G, Ho! Hoe, we be in space!
Problems by Caleb Houseknecht Personal persuasions of the past Help me to push away these problems. Prophetic proclamations, Broken promises become problems. I’m passive-aggressive, paranoid, and passionate. I’m not patient. I’m not proud, but I’ll protest punishment.
Dear Tim Horton’s: Why Do You Hate Me? by A.B. The line barely moves. Tick tock tick tock. Ten minutes ‘til class, I need coffee.
Parenthood produced few problems, Yet good performance is periodical. Pleading for peace, With Percocet, not Prozac. I don’t need a PhD to prescribe for me. I pursue then push away. I’m no Proteus, I’m a punk, a pussy, and a pill popper. Was I pretentious in performing this poem?
Tick tock tick tock. Why isn’t this line moving? I Need Coffee. This is a crisis. Why isn’t this line moving? It’s only coffee and doughnuts. This is a crisis. I’m going to be late! It’s only coffee and doughnuts, Tick tock tick tock. I’M GOING TO BE LATE! I NEED COFFEE!
Forensic Anthropology
by David Dodge
The hands were gloved in powdery latex. Into the exposed wounds of the dead flesh the fingers plunged. Alligators and Miami go hand in hand and are one in the same some say. Why are the gloved fingers going into flesh that is already dead, flesh that has massive tooth marks all over. My job is to speak for the dead.
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Parting Shots You’ve Got Mail! By Steve Neilans The first Tuesday of a new Generation coming out is a usually a pretty cool day for me. I’ll be half asleep in my bed when I get my first text message of the day from someone saying “wooooo, awesome article yo!!1!!” (yes, literally that text message). I type back “kthnxloveyou<3<3<3” and go about my business slowly melting away at UB. Last Tuesday was a little different. If any of you remember (or care), I wrote an article stating how UB lacked spirit at the moment primarily because there weren’t any winning teams on campus. I was proud of how the article turned out, and I was getting a lot of positive feedback from my friends who had read the article that morning. After I had decided to pull myself out of bed, I decided I would stop by the Generation office to talk to Dino and check my email. Being the insanely popular guy who I am, I had an e-mail! I did my gay little Irish jig that I do before I look at any new
e-mails and opened the message. “Have you heard? Apparently every sport team at UB is losing this fall. There is no school spirit and everything is all hohum. WRONG! What if I were to tell you that there is a division one sport team on campus that is undefeated this fall, won a conference title, has clinched a spot in the 16 team national championship tournament and is ranked #1 in the nation? Certainly a team that is winning all of this would be the talk of the campus. I would have heard something about that. Well everyone let me tell you about the University at Buffalo Rugby Football Club. This season has been good for UBRFC we have a new coach a fit team and a winning record to back it all up. At the beginning of the season two other schools in the New York state Rugby Union (Syracuse and St. Bonaventure) were ranked by both rugbymag. com and Americanrugbynews.com, UB was unranked. UBRFC has defeated both of these teams on the road this year. Since the year 2000 UB has had an 87% win record in conference play. We are not a
bunch of ruffians who drink all the time and sometimes play a sport. We are a dedicated group of athletes that train or compete EVERY day of the week. So next time you go all where are the winners Mr. Steve Neilans just check out UBFRC.” I didn’t know what to think. I didn’t know if I had just been insulted, or if a guy from the Rugby team just really wanted me to do a story on them because they weren’t receiving media coverage like other sports here. I was almost more excited to receive this e-mail than the typical “woooooo, awesome article yo!!1!!” text message I’m accustomed to receiving. Nevertheless, the e-mail really stuck with me for a while. I didn’t know if I should e-mail them back and ask if they wanted coverage in Generation, or if I should fear for my life because a bunch of rugby guys were pissed off at me. I must have switched my mind a thousand different times. In fairness, I don’t really follow rugby. If the Michael Jordan of rugby came up and sat next to me, I still wouldn’t know
who he was. Maybe it was laziness on my part to not know that there was a successful rugby team on campus, but you can’t blame me for not knowing about something that has received virtually no coverage so far this year. Until now. You like the cover? Ya, that’s right. You can thank me later. Or if I pissed you guys off with last week’s article to the point where you just completely hate me regardless, just email me with the subject line “rugby team wants to murder you” and I will get the point, and start writing my will. By the time you read this, I will have probably received a couple of texts from friends, and hopefully an e-mail from the rugby guys stating that my kneecaps have been spared. Remember, I’m the first person who wants to have a team to cheer for. If the rugby team can be the one team I’m able to cheer for in Buffalo, then I’m totally down.
You Never Know What You’ll See on Black Friday By Allison Balcerzak Picture this: It’s four in the morning on a Friday in late November. There is snow on the ground and it is about thirty degrees Fahrenheit. You are standing outside in the cold with your Mom, and about two hundred other people. You’re in a parking lot without a single open space, staring at the front door of a Target. You can’t feel your toes, and are about to start complaining to your mother about this when all of the sudden you see someone dressed in red and khaki walk to the front door and unlock it. Before you can even blink, you’re being shoved towards the door by the mob of people behind you who are rushing to get in, grab a cart, and start shopping. Sound familiar? Black Friday is an American tradition that you either love, or hate. Some people swear by it, and think nothing of waiting outside in the cold after Thanksgiving dinner just to score an
awesome deal. Others refuse to leave the house that day. Then there are those of us who work those insane Black Friday sales. Personally, I always enjoy working on Black Friday. Watching people frantically run around the store in search of the hottest holiday gifts makes me laugh. There is not a funnier sight than watching a woman in her seventies, literally hit a teenage boy in the back of the knees with her cane, just so she can get the last copy of an Xbox 360 game. Working at Target for three years means I’ve seen it all; from that crazy grandma, to catfights over sweaters, to fistfights over Zhu Zhu Pets. But my favorite Black Friday Moment happened two years ago. I was up front by the cash registers and had just come back from my break when all of the sudden my manager comes up to me and asks me to go back to electronics. I’m all for going into the heart of the mayhem so I grab my water and start walking
towards the back of the store. I’m just past the greeting cards when I see this scrawny, geeky, white kid being chased by my co-worker. Being the curious person that I am, I started jogging after them to see what was going on. I wasn’t the only Target employee following them. The two guys run into the sock aisle where out of nowhere, a security guard pops up and grabs the scrawny, geeky kid. They fall to the ground, and the kid tries to get away, but clearly wasn’t getting very far. Now, this in itself is amusing to see, especially when you’ve been getting bitched at all morning, but there is more to the story. My co-worker who had originally been chasing the scrawny geek wasn’t able to stop when the kid was grabbed by the security guard. Instead, he launched himself towards said geek, and landed on top of him and the security guard. The three guys couldn’t untangle themselves for a good minute and a half, which gave the
rest of us time to snap plenty of pictures. Eventually I made it to electronics, and unfortunately nothing else very exciting happened that day. But, the story is told every year by the veterans in an attempt to scare the newbies. Black Friday is something everyone needs to experience. Not only will you get some awesome stories, you’ll get killer sales too.
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