Golden Gate Xpress Fall 2011 Issue 14

Guy Arevalo sets up Wi-Fi for the Occupy SF encampment Nov. 10. Arevalo invented the “penny phone,” which provides free Wi-Fi, phone service and internet to those camping out in Justin Herman Plaza.

PHOTO BY GREGORY MORENO

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GOLDEN GATE XPRESS

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STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER PROUDLY SERVING THE SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY SINCE 1927.

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7 VOLUME LXXXXI ISSUE 14

Lecturers often find themselves at the whim of their departments and have less job security. The CFA is currently fighting for improved job conditions.

Under pressure

CFA STRIKE Nicholas Baham leads a group of striking teachers down Carlow Bee Blvd. at California State University, East Bay Nov. 17.

The California Faculty Association called for the statewide strike to protest budget cuts to higher education.

PHOTO BY ELIJAH NOUVELAGE

Students find themselves stressed balancing classes and other responsibilities.

BY BRIAN BALISI

bbalisi@mail.sfsu.edu

She hypnotically stares into her MacBook while constructing a book for her design class and unwillingly lending an ear to the professor lecturing about Asian American studies. The MacBook is strategically hidden so the professor never notices her disobeying his ban of laptops.

Being busy has become normal for SF State student Altarose Calaguin, 22, as she juggles school, work and her sanity in hopes of graduating next spring with a design degree.

In order to graduate in the spring, Calaguin said she has to take 15 more units and work on her senior thesis. The 15 units is the easy part. It’s the thesis that makes her cringe.

She has watched many design classmates lose hours of sleep and gain bloodshot eyes while working on theirs. The thesis consists of extensive research about a problem in the community, evaluating the existing solutions then coming up with a better solution.

Calaguin said she plans to structure her thesis around the Asian American autistic community. She became inspired after watching a show on TLC about autistic children.

Calaguin has this semester to focus on in the meantime.

“I’m constantly bombarded with school SEE TENSION ON PAGE 4

SOME TEACHERS LIVING A HARD KNOCK LIFE

T

BY JUAN DE ANDA | juand@mail.sfsu.edu

HERE’S MORE TO BEING A teacher than time spent in the classroom -- there are office hours, lesson planning and grading assignments, and that’s not even considering the various committees they may choose to be on. For some, being a professor at SF State requires big sacrifices. And some are being forced to sacrifice even more to continue working the job they love.

According to the California Faculty Association, lecturers are often the hardest hit, and may need to take second jobs in order to make ends meet. This, in turn, has made lecturers some of the strongest proponents for change in the relation between the California State University system and faculty.

According to Sheila Tully, lecturer and CFA vice president, many professors resort to spreading themselves thin and teaching at different campuses in the Bay Area.

“There are professors I know that have to teach at Skyline or Diablo Valley or other universities because you are so hungry for work that you have to take classes, even if the time schedule is not convenient, because work is disappearing for lecturers,” Tully said.

Phil Klasky, SF State American Indian studies lecturer, lives a fast-paced life with barely a moment to breathe.

Monday and Wednesday, he has three of his four classes in Burk Hall 253 from 11:10 a.m. to 3:35 p.m. back-to-back. He only has 15 minutes between SEE LECTURERS ON PAGE 2

2 CAMPUS

SF SPEAKS OUT WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS RELATIONSHIPS?

11.30.11 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

LECTURERS WORKING TO MAKE ENDS MEET TEACHING DESPITE IT ALL: Phil Klasky, an SF State American Indian Studies lecturer, speaks to students during his Images and Issues in the Mass Media class.

PHOTO BY CINDY WATERS

Since I commute I pack my own lunch and try to go to the Healthy U place.

ANTHONY PHONGBOUPHA BUSINESS , SOPHOMORE

Not only are they not honoring a contract, they will not meet with us in good faith. classes to quickly swallow a sandwich What they want is take-backs, take-backs before resuming his busy schedule. that include less security and less money After his block of classes, he offers offor lecturers.” fice hours that can go as late as 8 or 9 p.m.

But aside from the lack of security, lecThis is only the beginning of a tight turers at SF State aren’t being compensated schedule of commitments that includes fairly monetarily, according to Tully. more than what is listed in the job descrip“The range for lecturer salaries is retion as a lecturer. But with the lack of an ally broad depending on a lot of different approved labor contract, job security and circumstances but on average a lecturer income are uncertain. makes about $5,000 a class,” Tully said.

There are a total of 737 other lectur“So when you are hired in as a lecturer, ers like Klasky of the 1,505 total faculty that means it has nothing to do with tenure who often go above and beyond what is and I’m part-time temporary employee, required of them. which means I have to reapply for my “I love teaching here and the Unijob every semester with no guarantees, versity is a very stimulating place, but it whereas a tenure track faculty member is so depressing to watch forces outside will teach three courses and is considered of the University that do not understand full-time, I teach four classes and I’m still the importance of the University to try to considered part-time.” degrade what we do,” Klasky said. “We According to the CFA, most lecturers have a contract that is not being honored. make an average of $20,000 a semester.

“Let’s just average my salary, which is about $5,000 a class per semester, to say that at the end of the semester I made $20,000 gross. In fact, many lecturers don’t make that in the CSU and I’ve never seen A student asked police to help locate their $40,000 at the end of the year,” missing, drunk friend Tuesday, Nov. 15. The Tully said. “Usually from the drunk friend was found semi-conscious near CSU, I’ll be lucky if I make the Creative Arts building. The two friends $30,000 and that is with a Ph.D. looked to each other, singing, “reunited and it feels so good.” The drunk friend was not in from UC Berkeley and I have to need of medical assistance and was left with collect unemployment insurtheir best buddy. ance in January and the summer months I’m not working. I never thought that at this point of my career I would depend on unemBeing a taxi driver is tough, especially ployment insurance.” when drunk people are vomiting in the back, According to Wei Ming while talking about “Breaking Dawn.” One Dariotis, SF State CFA chapter person, who was barred from returning to president, living in the Bay Area campus the day before, took a cab to SF State and refused to the pay the driver. Police is so expensive that the salary responded and cited the cheapskate for received isn’t adequate. returning to campus.

“I started off as a lecturer 10 years ago at SF State and I was working on three different campuses in the Bay Area so A student reported that their bike I could just stay afloat,” said was stolen from the bike rack in front of Dariotis, a tenured professor. the Humanities building November 16.

“Even with my current salary, The estimated cost of the bike was $975.

I meet poverty level status in Hopefully the student asked Santa for a new one come December. the city and qualify for many of the government-help initiatives from the mayor’s office. Being a teacher in San Francisco is There was a car accident involving a tough.”

University courtesy shuttle November 17.

Unlike tenure-track profesWhile no injuries were reported, the incident sors, lecturers have to wait till blocked traffic, causing campus police to after three days of instruction assist with traffic control. For the first time to know if a class is cancelled in history, taking Muni may be safer. or not.

“If I’ve taught a class before and I’m at a certain salary range, then when that class is offered again I have first choice,” Compiled by Aaron Williams Klasky said. “What the adminCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

The salad bar is good, and Healthy U is OK. I try to stay away from sugary drinks and fried food ANDY MARKS KINESIOLOGY, JUNIOR

CRIME BLOTTER FRIENDS STICK TOGETHER

I go to the salad bar.

There’s not really healthy food here. I try to stay away from the burrito place, that’s really dangerous.

ASSAL JOUZDANI BIOLOGY , SENIOR

FREE RIDE

MORE BIKE THEFTS

Cesar Chavez has a lot of good food, it has good Thai food.

I stay away from Subway and if I go to the salad bar I stay away from the chicken tenders.

ALDEN CHANG KINESIOLOGY, SENIOR COMPILED BY BRIAN BALISI PHOTOS BY HENRY NGUYEN

COLLISION!

11.15 through 11.17

istration is trying to do is to absolutely give me no seniority in the system so that if they get a recent graduate student or lecturer at a lower pay rate, they can hire them instead of me, yet I have the experience.”

According to the SF State faculty manual, lecturers are asked to teach two to four classes and offer a set of office hours to help students with understanding course material. It is up to tenure-track faculty to be in charge of advising students on their major.

But many lecturers assume this role nonetheless.

“I made more money as a social worker for the city of San Francisco than I’m making now as a lecturer,” Klasky said. “My salary is insufficient compared to the work that I do. I have 175 students plus I’m the coordinator of the Ethnic College’s Student Resource and Empowerment center because I care for my students and I want each and every one of them to succeed.

It pains me to hear the stories of students dropping out because they couldn’t get help.”

Ainihkiwa Barr, an American Indian studies major, said she wishes lecturers like Klasky would receive more compensation for their work.

“In a perfect world lecturers like Phil would get more, but sadly they don’t despite the constant care and dedication,” Barr said. “Many lecturers genuinely care and go out of their way to to help each student succeed and excel in school and life.”

Dariotis said the CSU system and administration have lost touch with the faculty and don’t provide fair treatment to employees.

“Being on campus is like being in my village square: You are being part of the fabric of the community and when people are dehumanized and turned into cogs of a machine instead of being allowed to fully participate as complete human beings, then we are all missing something,” Dariotis said. “And this is disheartening and we don’t want them to be treated like secondclass citizens. We want to be able to stand together because one of the goals of of this campus, social justice, is about humanizing people and being fair. We are not information delivering widgets, we are people.”

Tully asserts that although it would appear lecturers are getting the short end of the stick that the struggles of the CFA are cohesive and unite all of its members despite different class brackets.

“I’m always cautious about saying we (lecturers) are getting hit the hardest because that divides the faculty and one of the things we are trying to do is stand together and recognize we all have struggles and each one of them is different,” Tully said. “But what we have in common is a commitment to students and high-quality education.”

CAMPUS 3

11.30.11 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG PART SIX IN A RELATIONSHIP SERIES

WEDDING BELLS DON’T ALWAYS RING BLISS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE Being married while trying to finish college can put added pressure on couples as they struggle to manage communication, financial stress.

BY RUBY PEREZ | rubyp@mail.sfsu.edu

Flower arrangements, seating charts and bridesmaids dresses typically don’t go hand in hand with homework, group projects and finals in a young college student’s thoughts.

But SF State student Leona Bouzidi, 29, was 19 years old when she decided to elope and get married to her now ex-husband after knowing him for only six weeks.

The marriage itself lasted seven long years and Bouzidi is happy about her decision to eventually get a divorce. She understood the reality of marrying so young and said that it was for the best in the end.

Marriage at a young age seems like a thing of the past with society encouraging the youth to explore and define their own identities before they enter traditional concepts of marriage.

“Marriages that do occur at that age tend to not be very stable,” said SF State sociology professor Christopher Carrington. “There’s lots of factors, communication skills, financial stresses. It’s a period of time for young people when their aspirations and sense of self are in a rapid transition. And sometimes, that transition moves faster than the relationship.”

According to Bouzidi, 20-year-olds are still growing and understanding their core values and establishing an identity, which can become difficult when balancing a marriage.

“I think that you at 35 is also going to be different than you at 50 and there’s going to be some part of whether you have the value of keeping a marriage together despite differences and learning to work through those and compromise,” Bouzidi said. “But I

think that when you make that decision when you’re 30 you’ve already established what your core essential values are. You might have slight changes in growth and maturity as your grow older, but from what I am today at 29 versus what I was at 19 I have cemented very differently.”

The average rate of marriage among undergraduates is relatively high with nearly 40 percent of female undergraduates reporting to be married and/or have children, according to the American Council on Education.

“I think people have misconceptions about marriage in general. It is seen all the time in the media and people are taught to think that marriage is to be tied down, no more freedom, that you have someone to constantly answer to,” said SF State junior Nicole Mischke, 20, who is getting married the summer of 2013. “Yet, at least with myself and my fiance, marriage is not like that. We are growing together, changing our minds about schools and careers and going every which way with support of each others independence.”

Mischke will soon join the minority of undergraduates who are under 25 and married.

According to the American Council on Education, only 14 percent of female undergraduates who are younger than 25 are married.

Reasons for marrying so young can range from seeking independence to an individual’s personal aspirations.

“Romantic love, sometimes the effort to achieve independence of parents, social independence, financial independence or pregnancy often will drive a

marriage decision at that age,” Carrington said. “But sometimes it’s about individual aspirations, ideals, how they see how their life is supposed to be like... all of these things are contributing factors to marriage at this age.”

Bouzidi understood the reality of marrying so young and how her coming of age affected the marriage.

“I think that for the majority of my marriage I accepted that compromise, accepted that sacrifice, because I was really in love with him,” Bouzidi said.

“But eventually though I matured to the point that I was becoming more of myself and he was really becoming more of himself and we were radically different to begin with.”

Sociologist Michael J. Rosenfeld said this phenomena in which the age a couple gets married has increased throughout the 20th century, according to Carrington.

“This sociologist (Rosenfeld) makes the case that one of the things that’s happened in the late 20th century and continues, is that young people have this extra decade... because of health, nutrition, and advances in medicine and reproductive technology people have put off thinking about fertility and child bearing. There’s this sort of new, what he calls, the age of independence,” Carrington said.

Though she understood the complications of marrying young, Bouzidi holds no regrets about her decision to marry as young as she did.

“Even though it was a hard year for us I would have adamantly defended my decision to be married as young as I was,” Bouzidi said.

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4 CITY

11.30.11 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

The Career Center: Providing a helping hand to students The on-campus facility offers assistance with writing resumes and getting internships in order to help students better plan for their lives after college.

BY KRISSA STANTON | kstanton@mail.sfsu.edu

FUTURE FINDER: Kirsten Liaz, a student assistant at the Career Center, completes paperwork at the end of the day. The career center is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

PHOTO BY HENRY NGUYEN

W

HILE STUDENTS STRUGGLE to find careers after graduating from college, not all of them are taking advantage of the resources available to them on campus.

According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the unemployment rate among college students has climbed to 4.4 percent in October from 4.2 percent the previous month. The nation’s unemployment rate also saw little change in October, falling to 9 percent, from 9.1 percent the previous month.

For students on SF State’s campus there are many opportunities they can take advantage of that will give them an edge over others when diving into the job market.

As a result of the difficult job market, Alan Fisk, director of the Career Center, says he has seen an increase of recent alumni coming back to seek help from the career center because they were either recently laid off or still haven’t found a job.

“We are seeing students who graduated a couple years ago and either got a job and then got laid off coming back to us, or students who graduated and still haven’t found a job. So it is tough out there, but their are things students can do to really prepare

themselves,” Fisk said.

Students have the opportunity to participate in workshops like resume writing, job and internship search strategies and “how to make a job fair work for you”.

Other services the career center provides are career expos and jobs fairs. This allows students time to meet with employers during these recruiting events and learn about jobs, internships and career opportunities. This spring the Career Center will also offer a career symposium, which is a mini career fair with an educational component.

Students can also meet with career counselors one on one to find out what career would be a good fit for them based on their interests, passions and personality. Assessments can be given to accurately choose the major and career best suited to fit them.

“Their are a lot of undergrads who don’t know what majors to go into so we have classes that help them to find out what their interests are and point them in the direction that would fit their needs,” said Kirsten Liaz, a student assistant at the Career Center, who has been working there since August.

As the result of budget cuts the Career Center currently only has two counselors, compared to three or four years ago when they had five.

One of the biggest challenges the Career Center has faced is how to get the word out to students that they do exist and that they are here to help. Also to educate students about the services that are offered that can help prepare them for the transition from the academic world to the work world.

“I don’t know much about it. I’d like to know more about it. I need to figure out my career and stuff,” said Paige McKinley, a junior at SF State, who has never used the services provided by the Career Center, nor has she even really heard of it.

If given more information McKinley said she would like to take advantage of the career counselors that would point her in the right direction of a major and classes.

“If their were career counselors that would help to point you in the right direction of some things you are interested for the correct career that would be nice. If they do that already I don’t know,” said McKinley.

Career counselors are available by appointment or during drop-in hours Tues. through Wed. from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Student Services Building, Room 206. Drop-in hours are also available in the evening on Mon. and Tues. from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Student Services at the One Stop, window seven.

Tension builds for students CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

work. I’m so stressed, but I have to do what needs to be done,” Calaguin said. “I don’t even want to think about how busy I’m going to be next semester.”

Calaguin said she starts every day on campus at 8 a.m. visiting the copy center where she prints out blueprints and designs for at least one of her six design classes. Design classes involve creating posters, videos, logos, designing magazines and building interactive maps.

She’s also enrolled in two Asian American studies classes for her minor. The Asian American studies classes require her to read long, text-heavy academic journals regarding Asian American experience in the United States.

In between attending those classes she works at the College of Education computer lab in Burk Hall.

She logs in about 10 to 15 hours a week assisting students with their projects, maintaining computers and computer parts, updating software and helping faculty members become accustomed to the computer

systems.

She usually finds time to catch up on sleep when the lab is closed. Sleep has become a rare commodity.

“In a perfect world I’d get sleep, but it’s OK right now because I’m getting by with naps here and there,” Calaguin said.

Stress can become common for students during the semester, but it may play more of a factor as students get ready for finals. Student health services health educator Albert J. Angelo said students need to slow down and understand they’re not going to be stressed forever.

“Students have to understand there is an endpoint to their stress,” Angelo said. “Once there is an acceptance to the stress you can begin to determine the amount of resources you can devote to a project, a paper or a final. Breaking it down will make things easier. Today students are asked to be more than just students. They need to have a job, be a parent and sometimes they have to take care of their parents.”

Calaguin said when the stress gets unbearable she

likes to unwind by watching her favorite TV shows such as “CSI” and “Hawaii Five-0” or enjoying a hot fudge sundae from McDonald’s.

“I would love to keep up-to-date with my shows,” Calaguin said. “But it gets hard to find the time. It’s difficult to find the time to do anything. When I don’t have time to go out and get food I’ll just leech off my co-workers.”

Calaguin said her co-worker and fellow design major Eric Ramirez knows all too well the struggles she has had to go through.

Ramirez said he admires how Calaguin has handled the stress of being a worker and a student.

“She stays on top of everything,” Ramirez said.

“She is very consistent in the way she works and I’ve learned a lot from her.”

Calaguin said she will be the only child on her father’s side to graduate from college.

“Graduating is very important for him and I,” Calaguin said. “I think he would be very proud and it’s something that I’ve always wanted.”

11.30.11 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

CAMPUS 5

The Foodies club brings cooking skills to the table A new club on campus created just for food lovers offers cooking classes to provide its members with interactive, fun activities.

BY RUBY PEREZ | rubyp@mail.sfsu.edu

S

OCIALS IN THE CITY, TRIPS TO DIFFERENT eateries, workshops and tours all revolving around food: What more can a student ask for?

One of this year’s recent clubs on campus, The Foodies, offers food-tastic activities that range from baking classes to nutrition education according to Kimberly Sae-Ung, co-founder of the group. SHARING: Josephine Siu, co-founder of the SF State Foodies Club, passes out pieces of the “Kitchen Sink Cookie” to club The club formed as a response to the lack of members at Off the Grid Nov. 16 at the first Foodies social event of the school year. PHOTO BY CINDY WATERS organizations on campus that focus specifically on the restaurant industry. The Foodies wanted to see something different Senior Mariel Ayao keeps track of the new members, list of calendar events and brought to the table. important dates.

“The first time we had the idea was early last semester in February, when other “Right now we’re looking at monthly meetings,” Ayao said. “But there will be hospitality clubs were accepting members,” Sae-Ung said. “Josephine (the second socials and workshops happening all the time.” founding member) and I felt that they lacked in the restaurant industry.”

Earlier this semester the group members planned cooking classes on red velvet The Foodies hopes to offer hands-on events such as cooking competitions like cupcakes, cake-pops and a pie making class right before the Thanksgiving holiday. the Food Network series “Chopped,” according to Sae-Ung. A membership fee, which ranges from $15 per semester or $20 for a year, is “I think it’s a wonderful idea for a club,” said SF State junior Josiah Flores. required to join The Foodies.

“San Francisco contains people who love food immensely, so I could see this being “We do fees so we can fund workshops and buy the supplies,” Sae-Ung said. successful.”

“Members will get priority for workshops and tours, all of which will be free for Using Facebook and Tumblr to recruit members, the group also uses the sites them.” to regularly post recipes. That way, members can try new meals when they are not Those who do not want to become a member but would like to attend a workmeeting. shop with The Foodies may do so for a few dollars, according to Sae-Ung. “It seems like a great way to meet people,” said SF State junior Gabby Battista.

As of now, Foodies have finished up for the semester but plan to start up work“Everyone loves food. It would be cool to learn gourmet recipes or even just how to shops again in the spring. make a good cheeseburger and fries.”

6 CITY

11.30.11 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Ample fungus lies among us

SF State professor Dr. Dennis Desjardin’s newest fungi discovery, the Spongiforma squarepantsii, was named after the cartoon Sponge Bob Squarepants.

PHOTO BY MONICA QUESADA/ SPECIAL TO XPRESS

Annual fair will showcase hand-picked mushroom specimens from the Bay Area in exhibits and live demonstrations.

BY LISA CARMACK | lcarmack@mail.sfsu.edu

Late fall is the time for the fleshy bodies of fungi to find their way to the moist, earthy surface.

This time of year, mushroom specialist and biology teacher JR Blair can be often found at McClaren Park with students from SF State collecting hundreds of species of mushrooms for the much anticipated Fungus Fair.

“All of the mushrooms are collected the Friday before the fair,” Blair said. ”Between 100 and 200 species of mushrooms are sorted and brought to (the exhibit)

by Friday night.”

Blair was featured by KQED’s video series Science on the Spot, foraging around McClaren Park sniffing, tasting and delicately handling the mushrooms to identify the species.

“It’s like an Easter egg hunt,” said Blair in the Quest video. “You hear squeals of delight off in the woods.”

The collected mushrooms are spread over several tables and meticulously labeled, providing an elaborate mushroom gallery of all shapes, sizes, colors and smells.

The Fungus Fair has been an annual event for 41 years with exhibits that show mushroom hunters how identify edible species and workshops that demonstrate

how to grow your own on pieces of wet newspaper.

Around 200 volunteers, comprised of UC Berkeley and SF State students, help to gather mushrooms and run the different exhibit stations.

The fair includes live cooking demonstrations, informational exhibits on poisonous, hallucinogenic, medicinal and microscopic mushrooms.

The event will also feature family-friendly workshops on how to make spore prints.

“I think everyone should go to the fungus fair,” said volunteer coordinator Stephanie Wright. “But I’m biased.”

This is Wright’s fourth year helping out with the Fungus Fair and her job wrangling college students is not one she takes lightly.

An incredible amount of planning goes into the fair each year, but the rewards of the fair are worth it to those dedicated to spreading the mushroom love.

“Foraging for mushrooms puts me in touch with nature, slows me down,” said mushroom enthusiast and Fungus Fair coordinator Lisa Gorman. “I’m stopping, breathing more deeply and observing. The process compels me to attend to a world and kingdom other than my own.”

The fair will take place Dec. 3 and 4 at the Lawrence Hall of Science in the Oakland Hills from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and costs $15 at the door.

SF State buildings may not be ready to quake

WHAT: The 42nd annual Fungus Fair WHEN: 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Dec. 3 and 4 WHERE: The Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley

For more information about exhibits and transportation, visit the Mycological Society of San Francisco website.

Some campus structures not up to safety standards could pose problem during a predicted major earthquake; preparedness crucial says expert.

BY KATHERINE YAU | kyau2022@mail.sfsu.edu

It could happen at anytime, anywhere. It starts with distant rumbling followed by the subtle sway of the ground beneath, the superficial evidence of a tumultuous tectonic tumble seething underground.

San Francisco has experienced several earthquakes during the past few months, with three at or above 3.8 magnitude during October.

“I’ve been here for three months and I’ve already felt four earthquakes,” said Megan Donnelly, a recent SF State transfer student from Vallejo, living in Parkmerced. “We’re on the tenth floor, so it was really scary.”

San Francisco lies directly in between the San Andreas and Hayward fault lines, the latter of which is responsible for the city’s historic 1906 quake of 7.8 magnitude and the most recent shakes.

“The Hayward (fault), that’s the one that’s been busy lately,” said John Caskey, associate professor of geosciences specializing in neotectonics at SF State.

Caskey, who often works closely with the U.S. Geological Survey, said that earthquakes of a magnitudes of 3 were no cause for alarm.

According to the USGS, there were 13 earthquakes in the Bay Area in the last week alone.

“Sometimes it’s good, we have small little shaking to release energy,” said Cheng Chen, an assistant professor of civil engineering specializing in earthquake engineering.

While the San Francisco building codes constantly evolve, many structures may not be retrofitted to current safety standards. In 2006 SF State drafted a campus master plan that deemed the science building, the Creative Arts building, and HSS building as “building systems in poor condition.”

The last seismic improvements to any of the buildings on campus was in 2003, according to the SF State Capital Planning, Design and Construction department website.

Chen said the new library will be the safest building on campus once it opens, since newer buildings must

SAFE PLACE: Though many buildings on campus have been deemed to be in “poor condition,” officials say the new J. Paul Leonard Library will be the safest building on campus in the case of an earthquake because it is being built according to the newest safety codes. PHOTO BY GODOFREDO VASQUEZ

be structured according to the most up-to-date safety codes.

Despite the city’s frequent earthquakes, most injuries occur from events other than falling buildings.

“People get hurt by non-structural components, for example, bookshelves falling, glass windows breaking,” Chen said. “In major earthquakes the ceiling caves in.”

Chen, who specializes in structural and earthquake engineering, recommended the old adage of finding a

desk to take shelter under as a tried and proven method for preventing injury from most quakes.

According to the USGS, there is a 63 percent probability that there will be a major earthquake of 6.9 magnitude or more within the next 25 years. But Chen was quick to make sure the probability did not cause alarm.

“I don’t want to be misinterpreted,” Chen said.

“Panic is not the right word, but people should just realize that earthquake preparedness is important.”

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11.30.11 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

NOT YOUR PARENTS’ PROTEST ANY LONGER In the recent swell of social rebellion, one thing sets this civil disobedience apart from their predecessors: technology that brings them together.

A

BY KC CROWELL | kcrowell@mail.sfsu.edu

NYONE WHO HAS ATTENDED protests or been involved with activism in the last few years can tell you: The times, they are a changin’.

Tools of activists used to include self-published pamphlets and posters. Networking happened in person at organizational meetings.

These days, in a time of advancing and evolving technology, the tools have evolved as well.

Where direct action used to mean blocking intersections, now it can also be used to describe defacing websites.

This isn’t a new idea. From religious reformers in 16th century Europe using printing presses to distribute bibles to activist-run mailing lists during the early days of the Internet, activists have been quick to adapt new technology to their needs. However, the rise of tech-savvy activism has also spawned a new movement, especially in the Bay Area. They call themselves “hacktivists.”

The term is subject to a fair amount of controversy, but that doesn’t stop SF State senior Gregg Horton from identifying as a part of this diverse movement. A student in SF State’s Conceptual/Information Arts program, Horton describes hacktivism as “socially conscious technology.” According to Horton, examples of hacktivism can range from a hacker defacing a website with a message of their own to creating independent media outlets.

“The concept has existed before the term,” Horton said. “The wedding of hackers and activism isn’t that far-fetched. They kind of go together.”

A member of a loosely-organized movement called Hackbloc also sees that connection. Hackbloc is part zine and part news and networking site.

Ringo, who wished to only use his first name, serves as the administrator for Hackbloc.org.

“If you look at who the heroes of the hacker culture are, they all embody some level of defiance of authority and many also embody anarchist social values,” Ringo said.

Horton has also been directly involved with connecting activists with technology.

HACKTIVISM: A man records the Occupy SF general assembly in Justin Herman Plaza Nov. 10, 2011. The livestream allows for anyone with Internet to watch the general assemblies and other Occupy SF happenings from anywhere. PHOTO BY GREGORY MORENO.

He and a group of volunteers recently hosted a conference called Hackmeet. The two-day event attracted activists, hackers, artists and more. Talks covered topics from electronic civil disobedience to knowing your digital rights.

“People were very much into it,” Horton said. “I think it connected a lot of people who didn’t know each other.”

Horton also noted that the ongoing Occupy protests helped energize the conference.

“It would have been a much different experience if people interacted and then had nothing to put that energy into,” Horton said.

One of Horton’s ongoing projects is a sound system that can be mounted on a bicycle trailer and mobilized.

Horton has dubbed the system the “iRiot.” It frequently appears at critical mass rides, and has also used as a PA system during general assembly meetings at Occupy Oakland.

Hand-built systems like the iRiot aren’t the only

Love fuels the laughs

M

BY SPENCER DEVINE | spencerd@mail.sfsu.edu

OST PEOPLE HAVE HAD A RELATIONSHIP THAT THEY would consider “F!#&ed up,” whether it was the constant bickering, problems in bed or his obsession with “Knight Rider,” but a local improvisation group has found a way to turn the issues of the past into the future of humor.

San Francisco improv group Endgames, which teaches and performs improv throughout the city, is continuing a strong run of the show “F!#&ing Free Fridays — Your F!#&ed Up Relationship.”

The show offers quick, energetic improv scenes related to a real-life story of a messy relationship from an audience member. The show is free and quickly fills its 50-person capacity every Friday night.

The show was founded by six members of Endgames, although they have lost one of the original actors and added on two more.

Max McCal, one of the original members, said that the show was inspired by the style of the improv group Upright Citizens Brigade: fast, fun and furious. He said relationships were an easy choice to attract attention.

“It’s approachable to everyone, because everyone has had a relationship and everyone thinks their relationship was fucked up,” McCal said. “We find that most people think their relationships are more fucked up than they actually are, but we’ve had some real good ones.”

James Folta, one of the cast members who was added later in the run, started by doing lights for the show but said once he saw it he knew this was the improv in San Francisco he’d been looking for.

“It is so fun and accessible and that’s what I love about improv,” Folta said. “I hadn’t found the kind of improv I like in the city until I saw this show and I thought ‘This is it.’”

This joy and spontaneity is something Folta feels is much stronger in other cities, but Endgames is attempting to bolster SF’s improv identity.

“SF seems like the city that would have a super rad improv scene but it’s not and we’d like the scene to be robust, and so we do this,” Folta said.

mutant protest-enabling machines out there. Jake Sternberg, a local self-taught engineer, recently constructed two bicycle-powered generators for the Occupy Oakland and Occupy SF camps.

The generator was used in Oakland until police confiscated it during the Oct. 25 raid on the camp at Frank Ogawa Plaza. A similar generator is still powering Occupy SF’s camp.

“Geeks are a subset of humanity,” Sternberg said.

“Geeks are predisposed to deep understanding of specific technical fields, and are highly motivated to use that power for the benefit of their community.”

Whether you call them geeks, hackers or hacktivists, it’s undeniable that they are having an impact on activism.

“We expect lawyers to donate their time to the public good and doctors to give a Heimlich maneuver to a choking person near them in a restaurant,” said Ringo of Hackbloc. “Why can’t we have this same expectation of hackers?”

Local improvisation comedy group turns to bad relationships as fodder each week in hopes of raising the visibility of area shows and troupes.

McCal said the reason the show is free is because he wants to introduce improv and what Endgames can do to as many people as possible. He says that getting improv out is important because there’s a special connection improv makes with its audience.

“We’re not out to make this be ‘Oh look, a show,’ but we use it as a tool to show what improv can do,” McCal said.

“People get off on discovery and they know when the audience and performers are discovering together and when they’re not,” he said.

Newest cast member and SF State alumna Keara McCarthy said what distinguishes the show, besides it being free, is the cast.

“I think we have a good rapport with each other and have good chemistry on stage,” McCarthy said. “Improv can be awkward on stage sometimes and we do a good job of avoiding that.”

At one recent show, the crew hit the audience with a series of quick, witty and fun scenes revolving around the relationship story of Sarah Bierman, who used to date a one-time porn star and cry baby. The material was meaty and full of humor, inspiring everything from a dominatrix in a Dunkin’ Donuts to a Craigslist stamp collector meeting ladies at bus stops.

“They were really enthusiastic and positive, and that’s great improv,” Bierman said. “They were definitely on a roll.”

Brandon Knapp, another audience member, said it was something he really enjoyed watching because it was fresh and innovative.

“I loved it. It was hilarious,” Knapp said. “They’re really quick and they were all on the same page. It’s incredible stuff.”

Endgames wants to make their show as accessible as possible for anyone to show up.

They do this by greeting audience members personally before the show and offering donation-suggested drinks because they believe improv is the present and the future of live comedy.

“The thing about improv that sets it apart from other live comedy is its spontaneity,” Folta said. “It may sound stupid in its obviousness, but it’s always new.”

See the show each week at The Alcove Theater at 414 Mason Streeet at 10:30 p.m.

8 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

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RICHMOND EDITION

Multicultural student-run exhibit celebrates the different techniques of preserving family history throughout antiquity.

The Richmond district, only a quick bus ride from SF State, is a quiet residential neighborhood peppered with a few major commercial boulevards that are home to a variety of restaurants.

You can find everything from Korean to Greek food in this laid back hood. Though the weather is almost always dull and foggy, the food is lively and vibrant.

SWEET TOOTH

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(TOP) One exhibit allows guests to design their own leaf and pin it to a collective tree .

330 Clement St.

CHEAP EATS

(ABOVE LEFT) The head of Amarna Princess displayed in the Tree of Life: Preserving 3,000 years of Family History museum exhibit .

PHOTOS BY JESSICA GOSS.

EATS (ABOVE) Nineteenth century photographs displayed in the exhibit, which is open Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. until December 7 in Hum. 510.

TREE OF LIFE: MAINTAINING MEMORIES

T

Arts & Entertainment

ate program performed the restorations, set up the exhibit and are responsible for making sure that it runs smoothly. They can be found in restoring pages and bindings in Victorian and Civil War era photo, or touching up paint on the scroll.

“I hope [visitors] walk away with the importance of family heritage across time and cultures,” said Melinda Hickman McCrary, a museum studies graduate student who helped with the exhibit. “To want to preserve your family heritage is a basic human activity, whether we practice that in stone, metal, or paper.

Some cultures went so far as to preserve the actual body of their family--in the case of mummification.”

The students and faculty want students to participate and feel welcomed to the museum, and the exhibit involves activities that visitors can interact with and add to. There’s a top hat, white wig, vest and throne, for example, where guests can dress up, and sit perfectly still for two minutes to experience what taking a picture was like in the past.

“We want to encourage a lot of interactivity,” said Christine Fogarty, the other co-curator of the exhibit.

“We want them to feel like they’re a part of our family just by stopping by.”

Tree of Life: Preserving 3,000 years of Family History is open Monday through Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. until December 7 in Hum. 510.

ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD PREVIEW

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50 Clement St.

ROMANTIC

BY CAILIE SKELTON AND HUNTER MULICH | skelton@mail.sfsu.edu/hunter@mail.sfsu.edu

HERE IS A MUMMY IN THE Humanities building. And the reason it’s there is actually a bit cute.

Before there were digital cameras and online photo albums, people kept track of their family histories in different ways: millennium-old coins, miniature stone sculptures, and yes, mummies. A new student-run museum exhibit on campus, called Tree of Life: Preserving 3,000 years of Family History, shows these techniques.

“The idea behind it was how people document ancestry and relatives,” said Linda Ellis, a co-curator who helped design the exhibit. “We wanted to show how different cultures documented family history in different times.”

The showcase is home to Roman coins with chiseled imprints of emperors, velvet-covered family photo albums from 19th century America, the many painted sarcophagi of Nes-Per-N-Nub, and a 12-footlong Chinese scroll, which are all artifacts owned by SF State.

Ellis got the inspiration for the exhibit while teaching an archives class. And while faculty designed the exhibit, the students of the museum studies gradu-

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Not just a poet by any other name Recent Pulitzer Prize and National Book Critics Award winner works with students to promote her craft.

R

BY CAILIE SKELTON | skelton@mail.sfsu.edu

AE ARMANTROUT ALWAYS knew she wanted to be a poet.

From the time she was young and her mother read her poetry from an anthology of children’s poems, she knew what she wanted to do when she grew up. She wrote her first poem when she was 6. However, at the time, she admits she was unaware that there were still any living poets.

“I, of course, found out later that there were poets who were very much alive,” Armantrout laughed.

At UC Berkeley, she studied literature and creative writing and went on to receive her master’s degree in poetry from SF State. Now at 64, Armantrout has published countless poems and two books, winning her the Pulitzer Prize as well as the National Book Critics Award.

Armantrout has returned to campus before to workshop writing with student poets and has done readings downtown.

“It’s fantastic,” said Jason Johnson, 39, who is earning his master’s degree in poetry. “It’s fantastic to see someone who has gained such success returning to their roots.”

And Steve Dickison, who works for the Poetry Center, agrees.

“It’s encouraging to students who are in the same program,” said Dickison about having an alumni who has received such acclaim. Dickison has played a large part in getting Armantrout on campus.

“Her work is very strongly consistent,” Dickison said of her work as a student. “You can track her work back to SF State.”

Armantrout appreciates the time she spent at SF State, and although creative writing careers aren’t known for their job security, Armantrout wasn’t worried about the job search after graduation.

With San Francisco’s rich literary scene, Armantrout was able to become a published poet and author before moving to San Diego for her husband’s job.

Shortly after moving, a friend of Armantrout suggested she pick up a part time job teaching at UC San

WELL-VERSED: SF State alumna Rae Armantrout has won the Pulitzer Prize as well as the National Book Critics Circle Award. She recently came to campus to do workshops with creative writing students. PHOTO BY ERIK JEPSEN/ COURTESY OF UCSD GUARDIAN

Diego.

“The more I worked the more I wormed my way in,” said Armantrout about becoming a professor at UC San Diego. “It took years.”

Armantrout has seen a lot of success since then, including winning a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Critics Award for her book “Versed” in 2010. Although she does admit that the new found fame took some getting used to.

“I didn’t expect all the media attention,” Armantrout said. “Poets don’t really get famous the way pop stars do.”

Although she was happy to win the awards, she said that it was coupled with some winner’s guilt.

“You never really feel like you deserve it. I know a lot of poets who are just as good as I am and they didn’t win,” Armantrout said.

Kit Robinson is working with Armantrout on the project “The Grand Piano,” which focuses on poets in

the Bay Area in the late 70s. Robinson enjoys working with her because she is easy to work with and he enjoys her poetry.

“Her poetry is mysterious without being mystical,” Robinson said. “She writes short poems about everyday events, but there are gaps in the poems that make them mysterious.”

The creative writing department is looking forward to having Armantrout back on campus, not only because of her skill, but because of the positive impact it will have on campus.

“Seeing any poet is a good experience,” said Maxine Chernoff, the chair of the creative writing department.

“It can be inspiring and give hope to students.”

Armantrout sees a lot of students who are skeptic about studying poetry and creative writing these days, which she attributes to the rough state of the economy.

“People have become very careerist,” Armantrout said. “But I just kind of fell into it, it was lucky.”

For this writer, the play’s the thing Playwright and SF State graduate student already on his way to fame with readings as far as New York City.

BY CAILIE SKELTON | skelton@mail.sfsu.edu

F

OR MANY STUDENTS, THE IDEA of starting to self-promote and get out in their fields is a goal that comes after graduation or graduate school.

However, graduate student Braden Marks has already jumped the gun and had his recent play “The Latch” read at Velro, SF State’s weekly student-curated reading series, where other members of the audience acted out a scene from his play. The play was also read at a theater in New York last summer. He is already working on another play as well.

Marks, who is currently getting his master’s degree in playwriting through SF State’s creative writing department, fell for theater as a child growing up in Colorado. He became a fan of the community as well as the group effort it took to put on a play.

However, Marks soon fell out of love with his previous idea of becoming an actor when he started college and found himself looking for different ways to express himself but still be involved with theater arts.

“As a kid and a teenager I really liked acting and so I was involved in theater,” Marks said. “And when I went into my undergrad, I went in for acting and I don’t know, I just really didn’t like acting anymore, but I still missed the theater so I ended up thinking of other ways.”

Instead, Marks put his focus toward writing plays while still studying acting.

“I think it’s important and they should get used to promoting themselves,” said Jason File, 29 and a graduate student in the Creative Writing department. “You have to do that a lot to be a writer.”

NOVEL IDEA: Graduate student Braden Marks poses in the poetry room of the Humanities building. He has written three full-length plays and was featured in a recent Velro reading on campus.

PHOTO BY GIL RIEGO JR.

“The Latch” was also read at Theater for the New City in New York, where he knew a friend in residence.

He chose that location to share his work with New York

City’s prolific theater community because of that friend, although he isn’t sure if anything more will come of the actual reading.

The play was inspired by a combination of his interest in the arts as well as his real life.

Elements of the play were close to home for Marks.

He always wanted to write about his father being a Vietnam veteran, similar to a character in the play, and “The Latch” pulls together making art and how people heal through creating art. “’The Latch’ is somewhat complicated and better explained by seeing the play itself,” Marks said. “But I can say that the play explores themes of trauma and loss and the way that an individual’s experience of trauma is inherited and/or shared by their family. So ‘The Latch’ in some ways refers to that mechanism that holds family together, for better or for worse.”

Marks is doing what he can to try to get more involved with the theater community in the Bay Area by doing readings and becoming more noticeable in the theater scene.

“I’m really impressed with the creative writing department because the faculty is really amazing and supportive,” Marks said. “It has a really open approach that really allows you to explore. I feel really well prepared for what I’ve done so far.”

Although Marks is still working toward his master’s degree, he feels as though the department has prepared him for the theater work he has done outside of school so far.

“He’s a very benevolent ruler when masterminding one of his readings,” said Dara Silverman, who has read roles in “The Latch.” “He’s a pleasure to work with.”

After graduation Marks plans to keep writing and sending work to other theaters, hoping that more work will come of it. He said he would also like to teach a theater-related class in the future.

“It was just a really cool place,” Marks said about why he fell in love with theatrical arts. “It’s a really cool art form with all these people coming together and getting to show off a little bit.”

11

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12 S P O R T S

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Wrestling sophomore Andrew Reggi has been chosen as the Xpress Player of the Week after he won an individual title in the 197 weight class at the Menlo Invitation Nov. 19. Reggi won all four of his matches, two by decision and two by falls. He also won two other matches against McKendree (Ill.) and EmbryRiddle (Ariz.) at the Menlo Duals Nov. 18.

PHOTO BY TYLER DENISTON/SF STATE SPORTS

KAPOW: Kickboxing instructor Jackelyn Ho leads SF State students through a free workout session in the gym Nov. 17. PHOTO BY GREGORY MORENO.

Workshops promote fitness

BY JAMIE WELLS | jrwells@mail.sfsu.edu

Students interested in shaping up can take free classes to help them look and feel better to overcome insecurities and beat the competition.

That girl you don’t like, your twin, your health, your self esteem — what is your motivation? Whatever you answered, SF State’s Group X classes are designed to help students meet their fitness goals.

This was the case Nov. 17 when instructors Jackelyn Ho and Erika Eugenio combined their TurboKick and Guts n’ Butts classes for a special workshop based on helping participants find and use motivation.

“It’s just really cool to see everyone come together,” said co-instructor and undergrad student Jackelyn Ho. “This is probably like the biggest class we’ve put together.”

What Is Your Motivation, held in the gym, was the second workshop put on this semester; the first, which took place in September, focused on the Operation Beautiful movement, which helps women view their bodies in a more positive way.

The last workshop picked up where the first one left off. Participants wrote down their motivations on sticky notes and added them to a large poster board.

The group sat in a circle at the beginning of the class to discuss the topics.

“My motivation was that I want to be in better health than the girl I hate. I just want to beat her at something, one-up her,” senior Kimberly Sae-Ung said with a laugh. “That’s the perks of it, for me, but I just want to beat that girl.”

Sae-Ung hadn’t been able to take a Group X class, free to students and faculty, prior to this semester but she’s been making up for lost time.

“I consistently go to the classes,” Sae-Ung said.

“I attend Stretch & Flex, Cardio Kickbox and Guts n’ Butts.”

Class attendance varies greatly.

“It depends on the classes, and it depends on the teacher. I go to Stretch & Flex and it’s a calmer situation,” Sae-Ung said. “Sometimes it’s really low numbers but it’s a really great class.”

For this program, Ho said they relied on Facebook and word of mouth to market the class to students.

“A lot of it was through the classes so we would just tell our students, ‘Look, this is happening Thursday. You guys already come to work out, so just come to this,’” Ho said.

Still, it’s usually the same people that attend the events.

“I think most of the kinesiology students and people who visit the gym and are more active will proactively look for it but if you were just a person walking through the quad you wouldn’t know about

“

It’s so much fun. There are days where I come in and I’m like, I just had a horrible midterm or I’m having a horrible day but once you see everyone and everyone’s here and for your workout, you just forget about yourself.

JACKELYN HO GROUP X INSTRUCTOR

it,” Sae-Ung said.

Tamar Wilkins, a study abroad student from England, feels the same way. “I think they should be advertised more, and advertised as free. I almost wasn’t going to go and then I found out it was free and then I was like, ‘I’m definitely going to go,’” said Wilkins, who has taken Guts n’ Butts and Yoga.

With or without a large class size, the instructors get out just as much as they put into it.

“It’s so much fun,” Ho said. “There are days where I come in and I’m just like, I just had a horrible midterm or I’m having a horrible day but once you see everyone and everyone’s here and for your workout, you just forget about yourself.”

It’s the same for University graduate Eugenio, who teaches cardio kickboxing in addition to Guts n’ Butts. She works at the Village Fitness Center as a group fitness instructor and personal trainer.

“I love doing fitness,” Eugenio said. “I love motivating people, it doesn’t matter what age.”

She liked that the two classes were combined because it gave the students the viewpoints of other instructors.

“They get to see both of our energy levels and both of our passions for the same purpose that we have and the same goal, which is overall fitness, health and wellness,” Eugenio said.

Ho, who taught the first part of the class, loved being able to teach with Eugenio.

“It’s cool because we feed off of each other’s energy. To be able to get both of our range of students in one class is really cool too, because you have her demographic and my demographic and they all just come together for one big party,” Ho said.

As for the future, both plan on individually teaching Group X classes again next semester with more workshops as well. A full list of Group X classes and meeting times can be found on the University’s Campus Recreation site, http://www.sfsu.edu/~recsport.

S P O R T S 13

11.30.11 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Transfers bring Division I savvy to B-ball

BY KEALAN CRONIN | kealan@mail.sfsu.edu

New advances have been made to SF State men’s basketball team as the squad embraces nine new faces, including three Division I transfers. Despite being new to the school, these latest additions have settled in and established themselves as a contributing force to the team.

Griffin Reilly, James Albright and Casey James transferred to the Gators this year from Division I schools and have already had significant impact on the team’s success. Although their stories are very different, these players united because of their reason for transferring to SF State: they love to play basketball.

“I came to extend a year of playing time,” Reilly said. “And when I heard about the bond the guys had on and off the court, I knew it would be a good fit.”

The three players saw the transfer as a way to lengthen their playing time and continue their love of the game. At their previous schools, the three players didn’t get enough playing time.

“They just wanted an opportunity to play,” said head coach Paul Trevor. “We have a lot of new guys this year and if we learn to work together we’ll be successful.”

The Gators, who lost their home opener game against the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos, are on track to team success and unified play.

The team had an early win against the Academy of Arts Urban Knights and a close loss to the Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks in which Albright scored 32 points. Reilly had a season high of 21 points against the Simon Fraser Clan, and both players were named to All-Tournament teams at separate games.

“Everyone feeds off each other’s positive attitude,” Albright said. “We’re learning to work together.”

Albright is a junior from Oakland who transferred from Cal State Bakersfield. Trevor influenced Albright to join the Gators with the

chance to play more and have a home at SF State. With only a few games as a Gator under his belt, Albright leads the Gators with 88 points.

Reilly leads the team in minutes and rebounds, and James has a perfect shooting percentage from the free throw line. Although originally from Southern California, James has made the biggest transfer coming from University of Pennsylvania where he spent his first two years.

“It’s definitely a big change,” James said.

“I like everything better here and it’s nice to be back in California.”

James plays at guard while Albright and Reilly contribute to the forward positions. Reilly transferred from Loyola Marymount University as a marketing major. As a senior Reilly felt an added pressure to be a team leader and contribute to the team collective play.

“There were expectations to come in as a leader and a pressure to work hard to earn respect,” Reilly said. “I think I’ve done that.”

Reilly’s high rebound average has improved Gator defense, but all three players agreed that the team’s defensive ability needs improvement.

James said in the last few games defense has been the team’s weakest area and needs development.

“We can be good defensively,” James said.

“We just need to hold other teams to fewer points.”

The team is still learning to work together, but Trevor is comfortable with the progress the team has made. He recognizes that all the new faces brings talent, but also hard work as the team learns to work together by utilizing each other’s talents.

In the Gator’s next game is Thursday, Nov. 1 against Chico State at 7:30 p.m.

“With all the new guys there are ups and downs, things we need to improve over the season,” Trevor said. “We just need to work through it to be successful.”

GATORS’ SPORTS SCHEDULE THURSDAY, DEC. 1 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SF State vs. Chico State at 5:30 p.m.

San Francisco, Calif.

MEN’S BASKETBALL SF State vs. Chico State at 7:30 p.m.

San Francisco, Calif.

SATURDAY, DEC. 3 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SF State vs. Cal State Stanislaus at 5:30 p.m.

San Francisco, Calif.

MEN’S BASKETBALL SF State vs. Cal State Stanislaus at 7:30 p.m.

San Francisco, Calif.

WRESTLING SF State at Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Las Vegas, Nev.

SCORES FROM THE LAST WEEK OF GATOR SPORTS

FRIDAY, DEC.2 WRESTLING SF State at Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Las Vegas, Nev.

SUNDAY, NOV. 6 WRESTLING SF State at Mike Clock Open at 9 a.m.

Forest Grove, Ore.

MEN’S BASKETBALL LOSS

LOSS

LOSS

Nov. 18 SF State vs. Concordia University (Calif.)

75-90 Nov. 19 SF State vs.

Simon Fraser University 69-81

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL LOSS

Nov. 23 SF State vs. Cal Poly Pomona 36-44

LOSS

Nov. 25 SF State at Grand Canyon University 43-68

LOSS

Nov. 26 SF State vs.

Missouri Science and Technology 39-51

Nov. 23 SF State vs. Cal Poly Pomona 59-73

LOSS

Nov. 27 SF State at Saint Mary’s 52-86

WIN

Nov. 28 SF State vs.

Jacksonville State 71-68

press yourself...

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14 O P I N I O N

11.30.11 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

POLICE: TO PROTECT AND SERVE, NOT PEPPER SPRAY AND TEAR GAS

A PUBLICATION OF SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY KELLY GOFF

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF editor@goldengatexpress.org

SARA DONCHEY

ONLINE MANAGING EDITOR managing@goldengatexpress.org

CAITLIN OLSON

PRINT MANAGING EDITOR managing@goldengatexpress.

NATALIE YEMENIDJIAN ART DIRECTOR nataliey@mail.sfsu.edu

AARON WILLIAMS

WEB DIRECTOR aarOn@mail.sfsu.edu

MICHELLE OLSON

OPINION EDITOR opinion@goldengatexpress.org

SCOTT GRAF

A&E EDITOR entertainment@goldengatexpress.org

JUAN DE ANDA

CAMPUS EDITOR campus@goldengatexpress.org

JENNIFER TERMAN

CITY EDITOR city@goldengatexpress.org

CASSIE BECKER

COPY CHIEF cassbeck@mail.sfsu.edu

MEGAN TAROS

BREAKING NEWS EDITOR ch3no2@mail.sfsu.edu

ERIK VERDUZCO

PHOTO EDITOR photo@goldengatexpress.org

GODOFREDO VASQUEZ

SPORTS EDITOR sports@goldengatexpress.org

GIL RIEGO JR.

MEDIA EDITOR griegojr@mail.sfsu.edu

HENRY NGUYEN

ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR nenhenry@mail.sfsu.edu

W

and students, to review what happened that Friday. After a 30-day HILE IT HAS BEEN ALMOST TWO investigation it will give recommendations. In addition, a UCweeks since the pepper spray incident at sponsored investigation will be led by former Los Angeles Police UC Davis, the excessive actions taken by police against unarmed protestors remains Chief William J. Bratton, and the Yolo County Sheriff and district attorney will lead another probe into the whats of that day. ingrained in the minds of many.

To hire an outside source to find out what happened that day About 200 students were in the quad seems pointless. Just watch the YouTube video and see from four of UC Davis Friday, Nov. 18, at about different angles exactly what happened. Peaceful protesters were 3:30 p.m. when between 10 and 15 students sat, arm-to-arm, pepper sprayed sitting in the quad that their tuition money helps to blocking a walkway to the Occupy Davis encampment. They were maintain. pepper sprayed by university police Lt. John Pike, known on the A power trip by the cops is not a good reason to have to treat Internet as the “pepper spray cop.” He is now on leave along with 11 people for injuries and send two to the hospital. university police Chief Annette Spicuzza and another unnamed Let the protesters camp to prove their point. officer.

Demonstrators shouldn’t need a permit to do this; it defeats the The police were wrong to pepper spray the non-violent protestmessage of defiance. ers who were exercising their And isn’t defiance the First Amendment right to peacereason why law enforcement fully assemble. The events of that exists? day disregarded basic civil rights It should know how to and the foundation our country handle these situations withwas built on. out casing more harm.

Students put the Constitution The police, the people into action to fight tuition hikes who are supposed to be and higher education cuts and protecting students, are the were sprayed like weeds on a ones who seem to be hurting sidewalk. them the most.

This overreaction showed Instead of keeping a the world that the police and the watchful eye, police are university have no tolerance for inserting themselves into dissenting voices. Note the tear these situations. They are gas at Occupy Oakland, or the supposed to keep the peace, batons jammed into midsections not become one of the agat Occupy Cal as further evidence gressors. of inept police “enforcement.”

They should be retrained To make matters worse UC to deal with protests. The Davis Chancellor Linda P.B. ART BY SARA DONCHEY | sdonchey@mail.sfsu.edu demonstrations as of late Katehi can’t make up her mind have not been seen in cities about her role in the pepper spray and college campuses since incident. She called for the police action against the protest in the first place, but takes no responsibil- the ‘70s, and the dynamic of this generation is completely different. ity for the actions that happened as a result of the police presence.

Unfortunately Chancellor Katehi and the police officers of the She is now retreating from her original stance to stop the proUC Davis incident have become the example of what not to do tests because her plan blew up in her face and on YouTube. during a protest. The question of the “right” way to protest has After the events she claimed the expression and safety of stubecome a difficult one to answer because no matter how peaceful dents is “paramount.” or hostile the protest, there is still a risk of being sprayed, gassed Since when is a chemical agent in the face and throats of stuor prodded. dents promoting a “safe” environment? What is it opposites day at A suggestion for police: say it, don’t spray it, unless all other UC Davis? options have been exhausted.

Katehi has appointed a task force, compiled of faculty, staff

CAILIE SKELTON

ASSISTANT CAMPUS EDITOR skelton@mail.sfsu.edu

RACHELE KANIGEL

FACULTY ADVISER kanigel@mail.sfsu.edu

SCOT TUCKER

PHOTO ADVISER tucker@sfsu.edu

EVA CHARLES

ADVERTISING & BUSINESS echarles@mail.sfsu.edu

MONICA QUESADA

PRODUCTION ggxads@mail.sfsu.edu

JUSTIN OROZCO

CIRCULATION jaorozo@mail.sfsu.edu

ARUN UNNIKRASHNAN I.T. CONSULTANT arun@mail.sfsu.edu

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IT’S HARD TO STAY FOCUSED WITH ADD

S

BY MICHAEL BEBERNES | bebernes@mail.sfsu.edu

OMETIMES I WONDER IF I MYSELF HAVE autism. My mom thinks I probably have dementia.

You’d never hear anyone casually musing with self-diagnosis of serious mental disorders, unless that disorder is Attention Deficit Disorder.

I was diagnosed with ADD as a tween and it has been a part of my everyday life as long as I can remember.

Just to set the record straight, I don’t frequently go running off in the middle of a sentence to chase squirrels, though it did take me a damn long time to write this piece.

I am one of millions of children who were diagnosed during the boom years of the ‘90s. Today we have grown up, but not grown out of the difficulties of living with ADD. It was one thing when I struggled to get through my sixth grade vocabulary quiz. It’s quite another when my ADD acts up in a professional environment.

Having ADD is decidedly less hilarious than the jokes you hear. In fact, it sucks. Not the way cancer sucks or blindness sucks, but sucks nonetheless.

Though the diagnosis of ADD continues to rise, the disorder has slipped from the nation’s consciousness. For a period of time, every kid who sneezed in class was handed a bottle of Ritalin.

Over-diagnosis and general rabid media coverage created a haze of misinformation.

It became normal to speculate about whether anyone had ADD, but a simple test: If you don’t know that you have it, you don’t have it.

ADD is not some general feeling of boredom that comes when something doesn’t interest you. It is a medical inability to focus on almost anything. I get distracted doing normal, engaging activities: playing sports, watching a great movie, even having sex.

There’s also a contingent who believe that ADD is made up.

I’ve had teachers laugh in my face when I told them about my condition.

God I wish it were true. I wish my disorder was just something Mom created so I wouldn’t feel bad for missing the honor roll.

I wish I could stop taking these damn pills.

I have spent a significant amount of my life hopped up on amphetamines. I hate them.

They mess up my sleep patterns, give me headaches and alter my appetite. Sometimes a pill gives me a bad trip and I spend the next two hours trying to stop my hands and teeth from shaking like a coked-out rattlesnake.

I call this Attention Surplus Disorder. The drugs are also exceptionally difficult to obtain because they are classified in a category alongside cocaine, meth and opium.

It’s safe to assume chasing the dragon has never once helped anyone finish a term paper.

Doctors are only allowed to prescribe a 30-day supply of ADD stimulant meds, and are forbidden to write refill prescriptions. A pharmacy can’t call up a doctor to get verbal approval for a refill either.

In order to get my pills, I must have a new hand-written prescription every single month. Do you think my insurance covers 12 non-emergency doctor visits a year?

I’ve learned to manipulate the system.

I get prescriptions from my old pediatrician who originally diagnosed me.

Sadly the old doc retired this year. I’m currently living off of a stash of Ritalin I acquired from the much more rational Australian medical system.

Sadly, everyone who needs the pills are seen as tweakers in the eyes of the law. These powerful pills shouldn’t end up in the wrong hands, but mine are the right ones.

When the Australian pills run out, I frankly have no idea what I’ll do.

ADD is a genuine medical condition. So next time you see one of your classmates staring glazed-eyed at the ceiling or twitching feverishly at their desk, understand that they may be medically predisposed to such behavior. Ask me in person what it’s like and you’ll get my full and divided attention.

11.30.11 | GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

DON’T LET YOUR DEPRESSION GET YOU DOWN

BY CASSIE BECKER | cassbeck@mail.sfsu.edu

Getting out of bed is rough for any college student. But it’s nearly impossible if you have depression.

The condition is rampant in college. According to a recent article on depression statistics by Therese J. Borchard, one out of every four college students or adults suffers from some form of clinical depression.

I’ve suffered from depression for nearly six years, since I was 16. It runs in the women of my family and we all have our occasional “episodes.” I know I’m having one when I fantasize about slitting my wrists and slowly bleeding out into an empty bathtub.

But it’s not the end. When you’re depressed, it’s like there’s nothing you can do, but really there’s nowhere you can go but up. Just take it one day at a time like I do.

It helps that I’m not the only one struggling; 44 percent of college students have reported feeling some of the symptoms of depression.

Common symptoms include feelings of hopelessness, loss of energy, loss of appetite or overeating, and insomnia or constant fatigue,

which are all normal for college students.

But if any of the above are accompanied by feelings of worthlessness, loss of the will to live or lack of interest in things you used to care about, it’s time to tell someone.

It could save your life.

Twelve percent of students involved in a 2010 health study conducted by Johns Hopkins Children’s Center and the University of Maryland said they had thought at least once about committing suicide, and nearly 25 percent of that group reported they’d thought about it repeatedly.

It’s a slippery slope. Thinking about it can lead to planning it, which can lead to doing it, or at least trying to.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for college students. According to the same study, 1,100 depressed college kids kill themselves every year.

But not all hope is lost. It’s possible to come back from the edge.

Identifying that you have depression is the first step.

It doesn’t get any easier from there but, with help from people who care about you, it doesn’t have to interfere with your life.

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NOTICE

In compliance with the Education Code, Section 89900 and Title 5, Section 42408, The University Corporation, San Francisco State Audited Financial Report for the scal year ending June 30, 2011, may be reviewed at: http:// ucorp.sfsu.edu/publicinfo/ UCorpFsFinal0911.pdf

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