Volume 41 Issue 01

The Art of Making Friends

What you need to know to get involved, meet new people and have some fun.

PAGE 5

NASA Intern

See how senior Jennika Laird spent her summer at the Apollo Mission Control Center.

PAGE 5

Women’s Soccer

Played their second match up of the season, taking on Eastern Kentucky U.

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Wednesday, August 25, 2010

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

By: Kelly McLendon & Thomas Motter

Vol. 41 Issue 1

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The Communicator | August 25, 2010

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

news

►Reefer From Page 1 By: Kelly McLendon & Thomas Motter

Some know it as K2, spice, dragon smoke, genie or many other slang terms. No matter what name you use for it, they are all synthetic marijuana’s. Stores sell it as herbal incense; users purchase it as a means to get high. Students Against Violence Everywhere began a heated debate over the subject of banning K2 in the Fort Wayne Allen area this summer. The Allen County City Council hosted an open forum to hear both sides of the debate late in July. City Council has said the ordinance against K2 will be a $2500 fine to those caught selling it and $1000 fine to those caught using it.

The main component or argument against K2 or spice, which was created in the mid1990s, is the striking resemblance its properties hold to marijuana. Organic chemist John Huffman, who works at Clemson University, made the key ingredients of the substance.

According to the WhatisK2, Huffman said his research was conducted to help find new pharmaceutical drugs, not to help people get high. THC, the ingredient that gives marijuana users their high, is not found in K2. However the synthetic ingredients in K2 get you “very high...It’s about 10 times more active than THC,” Huffman said in an interview with LiveScience.

He published his research on synthetics in a paper in 1995. It contained the ingredients and the method the researchers used to make the synthetic substance. After that, it is thought that people started spraying the compound he created onto tobacco and herbs. A few years later, Huffman found out people used it in China as a plant growth stimulant and it was also being smoked in Europe.

Now it’s made its way all the way to Fort Wayne—for better or for worse.

Because of this, for the “less chemically inclined, it means you can smoke a lot less K2 to get just as high,” according to the Greenville Dragnet, a crime news source based out of

Greenville County, South Carolina. can make a person end up in the emergency room.

One reason for the large popularity is that But a blog post from the Libertarian Party before all the bad press it was not able to be drug of Allen County expressed disagreement with the tested for, which made it the ideal substance for proposed ban. “Experience shows that official people who want to get high and keep their job at discouragement of a drug usually only serves to the same time. increase demand. Some young people have such But even Huffman, the creator, doesn’t an instinct for defiance that I shudder to think think people should be smoking it. what would happen if Congress passed a law “People who use it are idiots,” Huffman against jumping off a bridge,” blogger Robert told CBS News. In his lab, on mice, the effects of Enders wrote. the synthetic cannabinoid produced “a lower body While the ban would give Allen County temperature, partial paralysis and the temporary officials a better idea of who is selling and who inability to feel pain,” the report said. is purchasing the product, people will likely still There are deaths reported to have been use it regardless. Users could just go to other caused from using the substance, whether or not counties, therefore taking potential revenue away these deaths are directly caused be the substance from Allen County. or if they are mere coincidences has yet to be Fear of being “caught” is also beginning to determined. Take for example the story of 18 happen. More than one dozen students surveyed year old Iowa resident David Rozga, who smoked by The Communicator who use K2 refused to K2, became paranoid and then went home to kill comment on the record. However, an additional himself. Although some of his friends reported Communicator survey showed that outside the K2 he may have been depressed and suicidal before subculture, a few are still unaware the substance taking the drug, his parents disagreed. exists. Out of 53 IPFW students polled, 10 had Due to their petitioning efforts and their never even heard of it. feeling that the drug was highly harmful, K2 was deemed illegal in Iowa in July.

But there is no way of proving the K2 was solely responsible for Rozga’s death.

Banning the substance may not be the best option, since some legal prescription Out of 53 students surveyed: drugs that people use daily can cause a myriad of harmful side effects as well.

Some patients who have taken Chantix, a drug used to help stop smoking, have DID NOT reported feeling suicidal when they stop taking the medication, KNOW WHAT according to the pill’s safety K2 WAS Web page. Therefore, even legal, unbanned substances can have harmful side effects that

POLL QUESTION: Have you ever used K2?

40 3

Judicial Review By: Joe Townsend

In the world of politics we are all too familiar with heated elections. This election cycle is no different. In fact, there are more contested races for November than many have seen in their life-time. One particular race worth mentioning, due to the high level of media attention it has received lately, is the race for Allen County Superior Court Judge: Criminal Division.

The incumbent in this race, Judge Kenneth Scheibenberger, was appointed in 1992 by then governor Evan Bayh, replacing retiring Judge Moellering. Since his appointment he has only been challenged in one election and that was in 1998 when he was challenged by Michael McAlexander. Despite strong opposition, he was still able to sail to victory with 63% of the vote.

The strongest opposition to the current Judge, Wendy Davis, has been a prosecuting attorney for almost 20 years. She touts her bi-partisan support as a strong point for her, being that

this is a non-partisan race. She has the outspoken support of three Democrats (Pape, Hines, and Goldner) and three Republicans (Didier, Brown, and Harper) on City Council. From the list of supporters she has, it is clear that Davis will be Judge Scheibenberger’s toughest challenge yet. Davis has made it clear that she is not running against Judge Scheibenberger, but for the future of Allen County.

12 common citizens wanting to enact change have made news coverage with their petition to remove Judge Scheibenberger from the ballot. They are contesting his candidacy based on Indiana Code IC 33-33-2-10 which states that a judicial candidate “may not previously have had any disciplinary sanction imposed upon the person by the supreme court disciplinary commission of Indiana or any similar body in another state.” Their argument is that since Judge Scheibenberger has two Supreme Court reprimands that based on this statute, he should be removed from the ballot. Judge Scheibenberger

NO

10

YES

is arguing that this statue applies to lawyers, not current Judges.

Even if the Indiana Election Commission allows Judge Scheibenberger to remain on the ballot, it will be interesting to see how voters react in November. Wendy Davis and her committee want everyone to know that none of them are the ones filing the petition. Whether Judge Scheibenberger remains on the ballot or not, they believe Wendy Davis is the best choice for Allen County, given her service as a prosecuting attorney. “I just want to keep Allen County safe,” Davis is famous for telling people.

To make an educated decision about whom to vote for this all important position, please visit both campaign websites for further information: Judge Scheibenberger’s: http://www.reelectjudgeks.com Wendy Davis’: http://www.wendydavisforjudge.com

The Communicator | August 25, 2010

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

politics&money INADEQUATE SPENDING

By Howard Rich

In a column published earlier this week in The New York Times, Princeton economics professor Paul Krugman condemns recent attempts to inject some common sense into what has become an epidemic of mindless government growth in America and around the world. With the global economy teetering on the brink of another slowdown (due to excessive government borrowing associated with Europe’s failed welfare state), Krugman and other Keynesians – including U.S. President Barack Obama – are now lobbying aggressively for additional government “stimulus” spending at home and abroad.

They say they want to protect a “fragile recovery,” but Americans know better.

With no new jobs, deteriorating consumer confidence and unexpectedly low retail

reports putting a dent in the markets and on Main Street, the truth is there is no recovery – there is only an attempt to justify more government growth.

Specifically Krugman blasted several world leaders (although obviously not the leader of the “free world”) for what he called “preaching the need for belt-tightening when the real problem is inadequate spending.”

And no, that is not a typo. He actually said “inadequate spending.”

According to these “New Keynesians,” the unsustainable government growth that preceded the most recent economic downturn apparently was not enough. Nor was the unprecedented barrage of bailouts, taxpayerfunded guarantees, freshly-printed greenbacks and deficit spending that Washington threw at the problem over the last two years. And let us not forget what has

been heaped on top of all that “stimulus” spending – a $2.5 trillion socialized medicine plan that represents one of the largest expansions of entitlement spending in American history.

Amazingly, despite the clear failure of the “stimulus” – and despite the fact that excess entitlement spending is what has driven the eurozone to its present precariousness – the rallying cry of these big government backers appears to be “we have only just begun to spend.”

Let’s examine the efficacy of that mantra for a moment, shall we?

Even prior to the onset of the “Great Recession” in December 2007, government at all levels in the United States was growing by leaps and bounds. For example, state and local spending soared from $1.74 trillion in 2000 to $2.66 trillion in 2007. Even after adjusting for inflation, that is a 23.7 percent

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increase. Similarly, federal spending jumped from $1.79 trillion in 2000 to $2.73 trillion in 2007 – a roughly identical 23.5 percent increase after again adjusting for inflation.

Obviously, this upward trend was placed on steroids when the downturn began. For starters, more than $13 trillion has been spent, lent, printed or pledged on “recovery” efforts alone over the last two-and-a-half years. Also, Washington’s two most recent federal budgets have added more than $3 trillion in deficit spending to our skyrocketing national debt, with trillions of dollars in additional red ink projected over the coming decade.

Accordingly, when we add post-2007 spending to the total tab for the decade, the government growth rate has more than doubled – to 52.4 percent.

By comparison, total government spending in the

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1990s grew at a much slower rate – by approximately 17.4 percent – which enabled more economic activity and the creation of more wealth up and down the socio-economic ladder. In fact, per capita personal income during the 1990s grew by 23.6 percent, adjusted for inflation. By comparison, per capita personal income during the first decade of the new millennium has grown by only 4.6 percent – a sad testament to the failure of the Keynesian philosophy that Washington continues pursuing with reckless abandon.

This is not rocket science, it is common sense. The more government grows, the more the economy suffocates. Conversely, the more government contracts, the freer we will be as a nation to prosper.

The author is chairman of Americans for Limited Government.

That which is seen and That which is unseen

By Luke Kenworthy

The terrorist attack on September 11, 2001 was the most destructive and devastating event in America’s recent history. So can you believe that some people actually saw this day as an opportunity? Some saw the terrorist attacks, which completely destroyed lives, two World Trade Centers, and much of the surrounding area, as an “economic” opportunity. People like Paul Krugman, a columnist for The New York Times, said the event had potential to give the American economy a boost. Many political figures, like Ben Bernanke and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, follow the same economic philosophy as Krugman, who makes the same argument for nearly every war and disaster.

Why? Because they have fallen for the fallacy of Keynesian economics, from John Maynard Keynes, advocating that destroying wealth also creates wealth, which is taught in most public schools as if it is fact. Keynes’ ideas were most prominently applied under President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal and are the cause for the claim that World War Two brought the world out of the Great Depression. Fredrick Basitiat provided a rebuttal long ago with his parable of the “broken window” theory that destruction cannot also be construction. Destruction does not build wealth, it destroys wealth.

The story starts with a baker’s careless boy who breaks the window of his bakery. Most people would as-

sume the boy should get in trouble for breaking the window. Under Keynes’ theory, however, the young boy would get praised. Since the boy broke the window he “created a job” for the glass maker to replace the window.

The glass maker will use that money to spend in the local economy.

Bastiat explained this is wrong because it ignores what would have happened if the window had not been broken. It is that which is seen, the job it created, and that which is unseen, the money the baker lost as well as a job that would have been created. If the boy would not have broken the window, the baker could have used the money to buy a suit instead. This would give a job to the tailor, who would have also put money into the local economy. Now, the town would have been richer because the baker has a new suite and the tailor stays in business. If the window is broken, there is no suit or tailor, just a window like before. The town has in fact become poorer instead of richer.

The same idea goes for government spending. That money is spent on road signs and new windmills. This gives people jobs, right? Yes, but the money had to come from somewhere. It comes from tax payers. If the government takes your money, you have less money to spend on a new car, or maybe a new solar panel. This would give a job to an engineer and a construction worker. But if you don’t have that money because the government took it away, what happens to those jobs?

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The Communicator | August 25, 2010

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

politics&money

What do you really believe, or are you just following what you’ve been told?

By: Kelly McLendon

Our country has witnessed a decline of politically informed and civically engaged college students.

“This generation of college students is cynical and distrustful of government, apathetic and indifferent toward public affairs, unknowledgeable about politics, self-centered, and generally unconcerned with society,” Carol Hays found in her study, “Alienation, Engagement and the College Student.”

Seems harsh, right? But for some, it may not be too far from the truth.

“Our democracy depends on an informed and engaged citizenry, one that acquires the knowledge and skills needed to become politically involved and then participates actively,” Thomas Ehrlich wrote in Civic Engagement. There is seemingly no room for apathy toward public issues, if you really consider yourself a contributing member of the community.

Here are three ways to make sure you aren’t just following what you have been told from others about politics:

Develop your own opinion Workers who make phone calls for political campaigns have reported upsetting reactions from decided voters. There are women of an older generation who, when asked who they will be voting for, respond by saying, “Oh, I’ll vote for whoever my husband votes for.”

The women who make these statements cannot be considered informed voters. Part of being an informed voter includes being able to evaluate what a candidate is saying and develop your own opinion. If you follow what your significant other says, you probably do not know all of the issues and you are just jumping on the bandwagon.

According to The New York Times, the journal of the American Political Science Association published a study that surveyed nearly 7,000 college students that determined that parents and family are the most important influences for swaying voter opinions.

Know the issues Researching the candidates is pretty easy, right? All you do is go to their official Web site.

So why is it that many people do not do so? They

instead tune into the news, which could be biased, or in some cases, even wrong. It is important to hear the issues from the candidate’s own official source.

But the research does not end there. You really have to go beyond just looking up policies.

“Even when people think that they are thinking in political terms, they are usually operating behind a veil of political ignorance. They simply don’t understand, as a practical matter, what it means to be “fiscally conservative,” or to have “faith in the private sector,” or to pursue an “interventionist foreign policy,” Louis Menard wrote in his New Yorker article, The Unpolitical Animal.

Get informed so you can vote While it is true that you should not vote if you don’t know what you are voting for, it is your job to get informed so you can vote. Not voting because you do not know about the issues falls on you. Taking a little bit of time to sit down and analyze the issues will ensure that when you do go to the polls, you will be making the best decision for society.

Daily excursions into the world

By Maja Sljivar

Five years ago everything I knew about Indiana was limited to basketball. Specifically the 2002 World Championship when Serbia (my country!) played the United States in the finale. As I held my breath in the second overtime I remember wanting nothing but to be in that very same arena, in that tiny spot on the globe where time stopped. Years passed and my athletic zeal has, unfortunately, almost disappeared.

I still like to think, though, that my wish in those final seconds has something to do with me coming to Indiana of all places.

So here I am, a foreign student from Europe, beginning my sophomore year at IPFW. As the summer is rapidly waning down and I am readjusting to quotidian bustle of activity new school year brings, I find myself longing for some kind of magic that would make the days

longer. I mean, honestly, there is so much one can do in 24 hours, guys.

I kid, but you could say that my life has dramatically changed in the past 24 hours. Moving in to student housing is a completely different degree of independence than any I have previously experienced. Suddenly I became responsible for my own bills, laundry, and time management and (scarily enough) cooking. You may not think it is that big of a deal, but I have evacuated entire buildings because I set the microwave timer for popcorn on for 33 minutes.

I cannot say the big day proceedings ran smoothly. There was definite nervousness about sharing my life with three complete strangers. I may or may not have lost my credit card and locked myself out without a key at least twice. And there may have been a slight crisis over the absence of the internet. Luckily my virtual social life did not suffer from a dayleave from Facebook. In a way it

VISION 2020

By Thomas Motter

During such trying economic times, it is often our first instinct to look to government for a solution.

After all their efforts and stimulus bills the economic situation is no better today than it was a year ago.

National unemployment is at a stifling 9.5% in July.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics gave Fort Wayne unemployment rate a preliminary report of 10.3 as of June 2010. To worsen things, northeast Indiana since 1995 has seen a 15% drop in per capita income relative to the national average. With a downward trend in northeast Indiana’s per capita income regional leaders have come together to form the Vision 2020 Regional Chamber of Commerce, which, according

was liberating, I had more time to Additionally, I stopped another comfocus on actual interactions with my plete stranger simply to tell her I fellow humans (hello!) and have met liked her hair. The second time we quite a few wonderful people in the met in the hallway I invited her to meantime. hang out. In the past three hours she So here is the advice I would like has learned how to cook crepes and to leave you with– shut down your I have been introduced to Wicca. computer and get involved. And if Keep your eyes and minds open and you absolutely cannot press the off friendships, followed by awesome button, at least use it to check what’s adventures, will spontaneously haphappening on campus. I was too pen. After all, college is as much tired after moving to go slip-n-slide about having fun and experiencing on the move-in night, but I was defi- new things as it is about accumulatnitely there for the free ice-cream at ing new knowledge to be used in the clubhouse. While hanging out professional careers. with my roommate at the Freshman Fest I was approached by three girls who after had a quick ques4pm Cheese Slices $2 tion that turned into every an hour long con$2 Drafts tuesday versation. I met a girl from Korea and 816 South Calhoun Street another one from 260-423-6600 Nigeria. Cool, huh?

to their website, “won’t change our past but it will position us to leverage our strengths and assets as a region to achieve long term success.”

Mike Packnett , President and CEO of Parkview Health, and Keith Busse, President and CEO of Steel Dynamics are co-chairing the Vision 2020 project.

Vision 2020 is a group of community representatives from education, business, government, and foundational industry sectors working together to establish a vision for the northeast Indiana region. The ten counties included in this project are Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Huntington, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, Wabash, Wells, and Whitley. Vision 2020 is working towards making Northeast Indiana a better place to live and work.

With the help of local businesses and foundations, Vision 2020 has done research to find out what

attracts companies and individuals to specific areas.

Their research has shown that the perception of an unreasonable union labor force in northeast Indiana is the number one reason why companies do not move here. Where the companies are the workers go.

This has caused a huge outflow of college students from northeast Indiana. The retention of Indiana’s future leaders is of high importance to Vision 2020.

The Vision 2020 Regional Economic Summit pulled in over one thousand concerned citizens. With indepth interviews, regional outreach meetings, focus groups, and most importantly the economic summit, the insight gathered will give Vision 2020 a broad perspective into the areas of concentration that will give northeast Indiana what it is missing.

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The Communicator | August 25, 2010

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

student issues

IPFW Senior spends her break interning with NASA

By Maja Sljivar

‘Apollo 13’ is one of those cult movies everyone has seen. Most of us have watched it in a movie theater or in the comfort of our homes. Jennika Laird, however, has not only viewed the film in the historic Apollo Mission Control Center, but had the opportunity to meet the capsule communicator of the original mission, Joe Kerwin. While the closest that the majority of us mortals can hope to get to NASA is by coming upon the frequent mention of the space agency in science fiction, Jennika spent her summer break at the National Space Biomedical Research Institute. She was one of the 19 NASA interns selected from 250 applicants from across the United States.

This was not Jennika’s first experience working with NASA. This highly driven senior had spent the summer after her sophomore year interning with a different NASA program. This experience led her academic advisor to suggest the highly competitive NSBRI program, where she would be helping develop strategies to overcome the physiological difficulties of space travel. Jennika recalls feeling nervous as she turned in the application for this, along with three other NASA internship programs.

Even though she was accepted by the other three, she knew from the beginning that NSBRI internship was her first choice, a chance to “test-drive a potential career,” as she puts it.

Although her past internship experience and IPFW classes had prepared Jennika well for the tasks expected of her at the biomedical institute, she notes significant differences between the professional world and that of academia. “You never really know the value of what you have learned until it has been put to the ultimate test in the professional world,” she states. In order to inspire practical learning, NASA interns are encouraged to work as autonomously as

NSBRI Intern Jennika Laird poses next to the Portable Unit for Metabolic Analysis (PUMA)

possible, and only turn to their mentors as a last resort.

Jennika spent the majority of her time working on the Portable Unit for Metabolic Analysis (PUMA), a battery-operated, wearable device which measures and graphs metabolic rate in real time in clinical, field or extreme environments. Expanding the scope of her original summer project, Jennika worked on translating the programming language IGOR which PUMA uses to interface with a computer into a JAVA software package. This would greatly increase commercialization of PUMA, subsequently expanding its application in the field of healthcare.

As Jennika returns to IPFW to finish up her

making new friends

undergraduate education, she plans to continue her work on PUMA software development in her Senior Design project. She zealously undertakes this project with excitement despite its time-consuming nature.

As she readies herself for the upcoming job search, she prepares her resume and revisits the extensive network of contacts she has established through her work with NASA. In the upcoming semester filled with academic and professional challenges, she can say one thing with certainty: “You bet I will be applying at NASA.” And we wish her the best of luck.

By Kaitlyn Lucas

With the start of school comes returning to class, homework, and good friends. Also comes a new class of Mastodons. And new friends to be found. While making new friends comes easily to some people, for others it is not so easy. So here are a few tips to help you make some new friends, taken from your fellow students.

“Do not put on a false face/ show and try to be something you are not. Falseness comes through very quickly. Be willing to speak to anyone who speaks to you and do not judge a person by their appearance.

Take people at face value until their actions tell you different. Be honest and straight forward when dealing with new people. Be willing to help others if asked and you have the time and ability,” says Steve Coy. If you aren’t acting true to you, how are people going to get to know you? Fake people are not cool. They are putting on a face they think other people want to see.

BE YOURSELF

GET OUT AND TALK TO PEOPLE

“Join a club, or join a book club at the local library,” says one person.

Another way: Attend a sporting event, or go to theatre. Most likely, someone playing or in the production will be in your classes. Talk to them about it.

Conversation might just flow. “Talk to more people and get out more,” says Leah Watson.

GET SOME PEOPLE TOGETHER

FOR A PICK-UP GAME People love sports. If they see you kicking around a soccer ball or tossing a Frisbee, they might ask to join.

Sports is an easy way to bring people together.

SHARE ABOUT YOUR CULTURE

Here at IPFW, we have exchange students from all over the world. Binh Le says “I think the simplest and easiest way to make new friends is actively sharing with them about our countries and cultures. Sharing different cultures and views about the world is the fastest and friendliest way to get to know each other. The reason for that is because everyone enjoys giving their views and receiving new perspectives about study, work, and cultures among each other.”

Photo by Monica Gerdeman

People who give back to the community are generally friendly people. They are all there together to help out. An easy way to volunteer your time would be at the humane shelter or the zoo. Find out about charity events such as walk-a-thons or fundraisers. There are tons of community things going on here in Ft. Wayne. You just have to find them.

VOLUNTEER

So, don’t be shy. You cannot walk around your whole life like a ghost. Stop and say hi! People here are friendly, so get out and talk to them.

The connections we make in college are connections we will have for the rest of our lives. We hope.

Arts&Entertainmen

Pizza and a side of... Fries?

By Dan Mohr

The first thing one typically thinks of when presented with an iconic restaurant name such as Pizza Hut tends to be a slice of warm, cheesy pepperoni pizza. Or perhaps even a box of garlic breadsticks with a side of marinara sauce. Many delicious options come to mind, but I am willing to bet that the last thing that enters your brain is a cheeseburger with a side of fries.

Starting this semester, the Pizza Hut that resides in the Stomping Grounds is getting a slight menu makeover.

Now when you walk up to order, traditional pan pizza is not your only option; instead, you now get to consider spending your money on burgers and french fries. Sound a little strange? Absolutely, but it might just be what the university’s only pizza supplier needs to better their business and appeal to a greater, less pizza-savvy crowd.

“As a company, Pizza Huts all around the country are currently able to sell items that aren’t pizza related on their menus, but many choose not to,” said current Walb Pizza Hut employee, Joseph Wright. “We were contacted by corporate who gave us the green light for this decision.”

After discussing the matter with Wright, it was revealed that the university Pizza Hut decided to start selling this massive menu change on the basis that they could appeal to more students. Taco Bell, which resides right beside Pizza Hut in the lower level of Walb, gets a decent amount of business from hungry students on their lunch breaks between classes. But what makes students more apt to gulp down burritos over breadsticks? The price difference, of course.

Although Pizza Hut offers a wide variety of food choices, their prices are a tad bit steeper than their neighboring competition, hence the reasoning behind

introducing hamburgers and french fri With this new variety of food, more reached as there are not any other venue offer the classic hamburger. And if you a the price of this new item, never you fe the same price as a personal pan pizza, breadsticks, you can try one of these n The price is nothing to be scoffed at s affordable as any other item on the menu “We were a bit put off at first about th hamburgers and fries are so vastly diffe but all in all… I feel as if it’s going to be a said Wright.

A good business decision, sure, but th reaction to the changes happening in W is the most important factor. In terms decision, the only way to tell if this will w

Hip-hop ar with newes

Geeky good fun at Gen Con

By John Kaufeld

You just saw three people outfitted in full Jules Verne steampunk attire, a dance routine by several teens dressed as anime characters, and one guy in a perfect duplicate of the Master Chief armor from the Halo video game. You are about to play a quick board game before lunch, and then swing through the art show and the exhibit hall before an evening of role-playing.

You are at Gen Con, one of the largest game and pop culture shows in the country.

This year’s Gen Con took place in Indianapolis, August 5-8, stretching through the Convention Center and several downtown hotels.

The show marked its 43rd anniversary by setting a new attendance record. After many years in the mid-20,000 range, this year’s Gen Con broke the 30,000 person mark, posting a grand total of 30,046 attendees.

Guests of Honor at Gen Con 2010 included Felicia Day and several of her fellow cast members of “The Guild,” actor Wil Wheaton, Ohio-based fantasy romance author Elizabeth Vaughan, and fantasy artist Tom Baxa.

The show featured events and tournaments for every type of tabletop game, plus video and computer games, anime showings, Geek Bling movie screenings, Photo by John Kaufeld a costume contest, and much more. One attendee described it as “a wonderland of geeky good fun.”

Highlights of this year’s Gen Con included over 470 companies showing their wares in the massive exhibit hall, major tournaments for Magic: The Gathering and other popular collectible card games, plus huge halls filled with board games, miniatures games, and roleplaying games galore.

By Devin Mi

Indiana has never been k hop music. The Midwest in handful of stars in comparis hop artist, King, is making st Not to mention that he takes h it took him 5 long years of h with his new album.

King’s new album, The T to hip hop’s foundation. Maki hop songs with a bit of funk out in the underground hip h with big 90’s hip hop artists The Wu-Tang Clan, Digable do not hurt either. If anyone hip hop was better in the 90’s your man.

Not only is King a musici music for many years. He nam because he is a role model to take this so seriously that he edit his record so it would be audiences. “I have taught mu

CHANGE THE WORLD

BY CHANGING THEIRS.

TEACH.

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The Communicator | August 25, 2010

6-7

?

is to go straight to the source: the students.

After discussing this change with a few people around campus, the outlook was overall pretty good. Most students said that they would be open to trying Pizza Hut’s newest menu addition, but one student, current IPFW sophomore, Jason Staltz, said otherwise.

“Pizza Hut serving hamburgers and fries just isn’t natural. Nothing about the name of the company says, ‘Hey, we sell hamburgers.’ I don’t think people will be willing to shell out the money when they can just go off campus to McDonalds like usual,” said Staltz.

Only time will tell how this new change will appeal to the student body, but until then, why not hustle down to he student body’s the Stomping Grounds and try out a burger for yourself?

Walb’s lower level And who knows, maybe before long, Taco Bell will start s of judging this offering sushi or even meatloaf to their menu to keep up warrant positivity the friendly competition.

ies to the menu. students can be es on campus that are worried about ear. For roughly or even a box of new hamburgers. since it is just as u. he decision, since erent from pizza, a good decision,”

rtist KING shows versatility st masterpiece

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known as a home for hip general has only seen a son to other regions. Hip trides against this notion. his music so seriously that hard work to feel satisfied

Teacher, takes things back ing jazz genre worthy hip in them helps him stand hop scene. Collaborations s such as members from Planets, and 2LiveCrew e is still complaining that s golden era, then King is

ian, but he has also taught med his album The Teacher o the kids he teaches. He made sure to completely more suitable to younger usic for a number of years

and I enjoy helping kids realize their own aspirations,” he says.

King states that this new record is his masterpiece, which is why it took 5 years to make. It is more mature, more self aware, and shows growth. “I pride myself on my versatility,” he says. “Some people think that it s real hip hop to sound the same on every single song, but to me that is just boring and shows a major lack of creativity.”

One thing he is most excited about is his new live band, appropriately titled King City. “I got together some of the greatest funk/hip hop musicians in Fort Wayne and from the first practice I knew it was meant to be, “ he says. The band features a drummer, a bassist, two guitarist, and two DJ’s to fill the entire stage with energy. Hearing this all play out live is phenomenal, especially if you appreciate good quality jazz music.

King is determined and King is wise. He easily holds the title of one of Indiana’s best rappers, and more than that, he is an artist who is bringing back a sound that was once forgotten. His new CD, The Teacher, can be found at Wooden Nickel. A select few songs are up for listening to on his myspace, www. myspace.com/mrroyaltytheking.

$30,000 FELLOWSHIP

By Devin Middleton

Well school may be back in session but before the summer weather fully goes away, let us take a look at a few songs that have made this summer as enjoyable as it is. This is the summer playlist of 2010.

KANYE WEST – POWER

►First off, who can forget when Kanye West’s comeback single ‘Power’ drove the music boards crazy. Sampling King Crimson and full of punchlines, this song definitely gave Kanye the attention he wanted until of course he got a Twitter account and started updating every two seconds.

KID CUDI, VAMPIRE WEEKEND AND BEST COAST ALL SUMMER ►No pun intended, but I was seriously

listening to this all summer long. It is the perfect combination of some good up beat indie rock and a little hip hop on the side. This song was made for sunny days, water bottles, and recreational sports with your friends who are terrible at sports.

THE BLACK KEYS – TIGHTEN UP ►Will these guys ever stop making absolute gold? I saw them at Lollapalooza right before I saw The Strokes (front row nonetheless), and they were absolutely amazing. This song was a summer anthem.

M.I.A. – BORN FREE ►The punk inspired song came out of nowhere with very weird artwork. What was even weirder was the accompanying music video that was apparently banned on TV, though her performance of this song on Letterman was nothing short of genius.

N.E.R.D. – HOT N' FUN ►I wonder if this album will ever come out. First, they got a new member and then they let her go, then they completely scrap what they were working on, but if this means we get more grooving basslines like this, then it will be worth the wait.

RATATAT – DRUGS ►Crazy. That says it all.

MASTER’S DEGREE ONGOING SUPPORT Apply now—October 13 deadline!

www.wwteachingfellowships.org

The Woodrow Wilson Indiana Teaching Fellowships

RICK ROSS FT. KANYE WEST LIVE FAST, DIE YOUNG ►I love hip hop music, sue me all right. This song embodies everything a rap collab should be. Both put their own personalities and signatures into it, the beat is the perfect music to drive to, and the chorus, THE CHORUS!

JUSTIN BIEBER ANYTHING HE HAS EVER DONE ►Let’s not get foolish, the Biebz runs things around here.

The Communicator | August 25, 2010

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

sports

8

First class equipment there for you Gates stepping up equipment – Gates provides opportunity to get buff

By Logan Pea

Okay freshman, how long are you going to walk around campus looking noticeably scrawny? Don’t waste any more time. Start walking towards the construction on the northeast side of campus. All you need is your student I.D. Once in, the world is yours. In the Hilliard Gates center, there are all sorts of ways for you to exercise and get big.

Featuring an indoor track and three full court basketball/volleyball courts, Gates always has room for you.

Some equipment includes elliptical machines, treadmills, and many muscle building stations.

In its entirety, Gates is 68,106 square feet. It is a three-level facility with five racquetball/handball courts and a huge fitness center. The fitness center includes state-of-the-art Life Fitness Bikes, treadmills, elliptical EFX Cross Trainers, Stairmasters, Concept II rowing machines, and Airodyne bikes.

The construction, while inconvenient, will be worth it in the end. The finished product will feature a new and improved indoor track. Gates will also be connected to Walb Student Union, creating easy access between buildings. It is set to be completed in 2012. Gates is also home to the Men’s and Women’s volleyball matches, and select Men’s and Women’s basketball games. All parking by students must be done in the parking garage. All spaces in the parking lot are reserved for faculty and staff.

Photos by Karrine Thornton

SPRING AIR MATTRESS SALE Closeouts and overstocks at up to 1/3 the cost of retail Queen Mattresses Starting At Just $75.00 Bring This Ad And Save $50 Off Any Set Over $350

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FREE Fitness and Nutrition Assessment $65 Value

IPFW Campus Language Arts Building, Room 35A 12 Weeks only $99 Free Information Day: Thursday, September 9, 12-1 pm Program Beings 9/16-12/9 Free Information Day Tuesday, September 14, 6-7pm Program Starts 9/21-12/7 www.kachmannmindbody.com 260-436-2040- Call and Sign up Today!

Learn the secret of how to live a healthy lifestyle through exercise, stress reduction and eating unprocessed nutrient dense whole food. Join Dr. Kachmann and the Kachmann Mind Body Institute Wellness staff on a 12 week journey toward a healthier you.

9

The Communicator | August 25, 2010

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

sports

What you missed while you were out In case you missed it By: Logan Pea

It was a long summer in sports.

Long, exciting, and unforgettable.

That said, hopefully this is just a quick review to catch you up to date.

We will start off with the biggest event of the summer: the 2010 FIFA World Cup. For one month, the entire populations of many countries seemed to hold their breath watching their team duke it out on the field for ninety minutes at a time. The one country that was fortunate enough to hold their breath the longest, before one very, very long exhale was Spain. In the World Cup final, Spain downed Netherlands 1-0 to crown themselves champions. USA was not as fortunate. Although performing well, and taking home an ESPY for their performance, the Americans were knocked out of the tournament in round of sixteen by Ghana. The chance for redemption will have to wait until 2014, when the World Cup will be held in Brazil.

In other news, the Los Angeles Lakers are NBA champions again, Kentucky star John Wall was taken by the Washington Wizards as the first overall pick and Shaquille O’Neal moved to Boston. But even a toddler could tell you that these things were not the biggest NBA news flashes this summer. Everyone

knows that the biggest news in basketball is on the Pacers lottery pick Paul George. Right? No! The Pacers had the opportunity to pick up the best of the best, and they picked Fresno State forward, second team all WAC, Paul George. Don’t worry though Pacers fans—he is a sleeper.

The real big news comes out of Miami, where it is becoming very, very hot. LeBron James and Chris Bosh signed on to team up with Dwayne Wade and the Miami Heat for the 2010-2011 NBA season. It will closely resemble you beating up on your younger brother on the court in the driveway—it just won’t be fair. I know I will be watching, because once one of the games comes down to the final shot, there is only one thing I want to see and that’s who is taking the shot.

We all remember how exciting the Olympic Hockey tournament was. Thanks to that incredible gold medal game in Canada, the NHL playoffs finally got tons of attention from fans at home. It seemed they were satisfied. It was another goal to win it all. Four minutes and ten seconds into overtime, Patrick Kane’s childhood dream came true.

Kane drilled a shot into the back

Women’s Soccer

By Monica Gerdeman Last Wednesday the woman’s soccer team played their second match-up of the season, taking on Eastern Kentucky University. The game was played at IPFW’s Hefner Stadium but the home field advantage did not help: the game ended in a 1-1 knot.

EKU made the initial move, scoring in the first pe-

of the net that gave the Chicago Blackhawks their first Stanley Cup crown since 1961.

Lastly, Major League Baseball is heating up. Multiple division races are becoming more and more intense as we quickly creep up on September.

Oakland and the ChiSox are locked in a tight one in the American League Central, the Texas Rangers are still on top of the American League West and the Yankees are still the Yankees. The Cincinnati Reds are on

riod, and when IPFW was unable to answer back, Kentucky kept the lead through the entire first half. (1-0) Finally at the end of the first period of the second half, junior Felicia Jones accepted an assist from freshman Elise Mamanu-Gray and scored on a nine yard shot with her left foot, for the last score of the game.

IPFW ended with 15 shot attempts and nine shots on goal. EKU ended their evening with only one and seven. The Mastodons will return the green Sunday August 22 in Mount Pleasant, Michigan as they take

the verge of making the playoffs if they can keep their cool. Recently, the Reds’ Brandon Phillips spoke out about how much he “hates” the St. Louis Cardinals, and sparked a first inning melee on August 10. Be excited baseball fans, it is about to be a very exciting finish to the 2010 regular season. Sports fans, if this did not get you excited, hold on just a little bit longer. College football is just around the corner.

on Central Michigan, and again on Thursday August 26 at Hefner Stadium.

10

The Communicator | August 25, 2010

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

sports

Fall Intramurals create fun for everyone By: Logan Pea

vs.

By: Lucas Fisher and Logan Pea

10 9 8 7

6 5

4 3 2 1

Mets at Braves

►Fish-Braves-Team to beat in East ►Pea-Braves-Great at home

Tigers at Blue Jays

►Fish-Blue Jays-Bautista continues streak ►Pea-Blue Jays-Morrow pitches great again

Tigers at Twins

►Fish-Twins-Home W’s close gap ►Pea-Twins-Tigers disappointing

Rockies at Giants

This fall, there are multiple opportunities to get out and be active on campus. Intramurals provides athletics for students, faculty members, and staff of all skill levels.

Tennis, sand volleyball, and flag football are three highlighted team sports that can be played by students this semester. Each sport provides a fair opportunity for students to continue to play team sports after their glory days of high school have passed.

For tennis, a team must consist of at least five players. Two of the three must compete to avoid a forfeit. A singles player may not play both singles and doubles in the same match.

In sand volleyball, the games will consist of two matches to eighteen points. “Rally” scoring is used in this intramural, and once a team exceeds eighteen points, they must win by two.

In flag football, there are seven

teams made up of at least seven players. A team may consist of as many players as desired, but only seven will play at a time. Five players must be present to start a contest. Games consist of two, twenty minute halves with a five minute half time. The clock will run for the first eighteen minutes of each half.

Intramurals are a great opportunity for students to get out on campus and be active outside of class. All you need to do is find your team. For most intramurals, scheduling games around classes or work is not an issue. On your registration forms, you provide your best available time for games, and they schedule around you. Each sport also ends each season with a tournament. Everyone loves to win, so get out and be competitive. There is a complete list of the intramural sports at www.ipfw.edu/intramurals where you can also find registration forms.

►Fish-Giants-New additions help ►Pea-Giants-Defense prevails

Phillies at Dodgers ►Fish-Phillies-Dodgers slumping ►Pea-Dodgers-LA never goes away

Phillies at Padres ►Fish-Padres-Continue to surprise ►Pea-Phillies-Pitching wins great again

Braves at Rockies ►Fish-Rockies-No Chipper will hurt

I N D I A N A U N I V E R S I T Y – P U R D U E U N I V E R S I T Y F O RT WAY N E

Omnibus Lecture Series

Sean Astin Actor and Activist

On Acting, Leadership, and Other “Very Important” Stuff Tuesday, September 14, 2010 7:30 p.m.

Rhinehart Music Center

Twins at Rangers

Actor Sean Astin will always be “Mikey” in the popular classic, The Goonies, and will forever be remembered for portraying Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Yet, the character and film for which he singularly identified is Rudy.

►Fish-Rangers-Great all around

FREE TICKETS ARE REQUIRED FOR THIS LECTURE

►Pea-Rangers-Texas is for real

• Tickets will be available beginning on Monday, August 30, 2010.

• Tickets MUST be picked up in person at the Schatzlein Box Office located in the lobby of the Rhinehart Music Center.

• Box office hours are noon–6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

• There is a limit of six tickets per person.

• Reserved tickets will hold seats until 7:15 p.m. on the day of the event.

►Pea-Rockies-ATL shaky on road

Yankees at White Sox ►Fish-Yankees-Stay in race with Rays ►Pea-White Sox-ChiSox in big race

Series Sponsor: English, Bonter, Mitchell Foundation

Red Sox at Rays

Media Sponsors: Northeast Indiana Public Radio and WANE-TV NewsChannel 15

►Fish-Rays-Knock Boston out of contention

American Sign Language Interpreter provided upon request.

►Pea-Red Sox-Bean Town starts to roll

IPFW is an Equal Opportunity/Equal Access University.

www.omnibuslectures.org ▼ 260-481-6808

The Communicator | August 25, 2010

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

An in-depth look at

HULU PLUS

By Craig Lloyd TechOlive.com

Hulu’s new paid subscription service marks a revolutionary step for watching television content online. $10 a month gets you entire seasons of numerous TV shows and the ability to stream them in HD, as well as watch content on your iPhone, iPad, and PS3. However, is it good enough to ditch your current cable/ satellite provider? I’ll find out, thanks to the guys over at Hulu, who gave me an invite to check out their new service.

First off, Hulu Plus is not a separate hub from the free Hulu that you know and love. It is built into the website mixed in with the free content, which I like.

All you do is login and it automatically switches over to Hulu Plus (assuming you paid the $10 first).

One of the most significant features in Hulu Plus is the ability to watch content in 720p HD. I knew Hulu would be bringing HD streaming eventually, and finally we get to experience that.

However, not all paid content is in HD. There are quite a few shows that only have their most recent season in HD—all the others were in 480p standard definition. So, don’t expect the ability to watch everything in HD.

The quality of the HD streams is pretty decent. Not great, but decent. Then again, you cannot expect perfect quality out of an HD stream anyway.

Of course, I also hooked up to a 32inch HDTV to see what that was like.

Again, the quality was decent, but not great. However, I was ecstatic to be watching an HD stream of a Family Guy episode that actually looked good (even if it was still in the 4:3 aspect ratio).

Now, let’s talk about Hulu Plus for the iPhone. I decided to put together a quick video walkthrough of the Hulu Plus app for the iPhone and iPod Touch. You can view it at www.tinyurl.com/ huluplusapp.

Not only is Hulu Plus available on the iPhone/iPod Touch and the iPad, but it will also be available for the PS3 and newer Samsung TVs and Blu-ray players when Hulu Plus officially launches later this month. They also plan to add Hulu Plus to the Xbox 360 for Live Gold subscribers sometime in “early 2011″ and to newer Sony and Vizio TVs and Blu-ray players this fall.

The big question that I asked myself (as I am sure most people will) was, “Would I ditch my cable and just go with Hulu

Plus?”

The simple answer is, “Maybe.”

A gripe I have is that Hulu does not have all of my favorite TV shows. It does not have any CBS shows, nor does it have anything from the Discovery Channel, TLC, or the History Channel, to name a few. Granted, Hulu links you to different network websites where you can watch these shows on their own websites, but that is not as fun and can be more restricting with less features.

Then again, I would only be paying $10 a month, instead of several times that for cable. And instead of being restricted by cable TV to certain shows at certain times, I can watch anything (within Hulu’s catalog) at anytime, no questions asked.

So, I am still up in the air about whether or not I will keep paying $10 a month for Hulu Plus. Chances are I will spend the rest of my life deciding, and in the mean time I will still be spending the monthly fee.

Currently, Hulu Plus is invite only. So if you feel lucky, you can head on over to Hulu’s email submission page at www.hulu. com/plus/invite and pray you get in, but don’t come crying to me if you are left in the dust: my job ends here.

Check out www.ipfwcommunicator.org to read about HYPERMILING.

Free

Software

By Alex Axthelm

Computer software required for courses can be very expensive. Even with student discounts, a new student setting up a computer may pay more than is comfortable. Luckily, most students can get what they need to succeed without paying anything.

Instead of Microsoft Office ($20 at IPFW bookstore), use Google Documents (included with IPFW Email).

Microsoft Office, which includes Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, is one of the suggestions for new students, but there is a free solution that, for most people, works just as well if not better.

Included as part of the Google email that is available to all IPFW students, the Google Documents suite replicates the basic functions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Furthermore, because it an online editor, it is accessible from any computer with a web browser, meaning that if your computer crashes, your big essay didn’t die with it.

It does have some limitations, in that it will not perform some of the more advanced functions of MS Office, but most users won’t miss these. The other major limitation is that to use it, you have to have a steady internet

tech

11

connection. However, if you can get over these, Google Docs is a sufficiently well-featured office suite than can easily replace Microsoft Office.

Instead of paying for texting (varies with provider), use Google Voice (voice.google.com).

If you spend a lot of time in front of a computer screen, Google Voice is one of the best tools you can have for your phone. It offers transcribed voicemail, call filtering, and has many other features, but one of the places it really shines is in providing free SMS texting. While it may not replace your texting plan completely, it may let you downgrade to a cheaper one.

Instead of Photoshop Elements ($10 at IPFW bookstore), use The GIMP (www.gimp.org).

If you use Photoshop as part of your career, this one is probably not worth replacing. If you only use it occasionally to mess around with an image though, The GIMP can save you a lot of money.

It has most of Photoshop’s features, but without the price tag that normally comes with them.

Instead of Adobe Reader (Free) use Foxit (www.foxitsoftware.com/ pdf/reader/).

I know it seems silly to replace one free software with another, but this replacement is worth it. Foxit is lighting fast, and performs all the other functions of Reader as well.

12

The Communicator | August 25, 2010

letters to the editor

www.ipfwcommunicator.org

To the Editor: A publication of Indiana-Purdue Student Newpapers, Inc.

EDITORIAL STAFF Editor-in-Chief Kelly McLendon Managing Editor Alisha Humbert Ad Manager Bill Richman Graphic Designer Elyse Boutall Copy Editor Amanda McCann A&E Editor Hana Hawash

There is a recent policy change of which students need to be aware as it will impact on their ability to function successfully this academic year.

I am referring to the decision by the Administration to end unlimited printing in the campus computer labs and to implement immediately an 800 page printing per semester limit with pages 801 and above costing five cents a page.

This was apparently approved or agreed to be implemented by the IPSGA Executed Officers last spring after they met with the Administration.

Unfortunately, the four Executive Officers did not feel it was necessary or prudent to submit this change to the Student Senate for their input.

Please let your student body representatives know how you feel this will impact your ability to be successful this academic year. In addition, please support your student body leaders in their efforts to get this ridiculour policy change rescinded.

Politics & Money Editor Thomas Motter

Patrick Deacy, Anthropology-Senior

Sports Editor Logan Pea Web Editor Craig Lloyd Publisher Matt McClure

CONTACT US IPSN Inc. Walb Student Union 215 2101 Coliseum Blvd. East Fort Wayne, IN 46805 Newsroom/Editor (260) 481-6584 contact@ipfwcommunicator.org Advertising (260) 481-6583 ads@ipfwcommunicator.org Publisher (260) 481-6585 publisher@ipfwcommunicator. org Official Web site: http://www.ipfwcommunicator.org Do you have a story idea?

Let us know! contact@ipfwcommunicator.org

Dear Readers, It is my immense pleasure to introduce you to The Communicator, Volume 41, and unveil our theme for the 2010/2011 school year – storytelling.

This simple word describes the goals that we wish to fulfill with every issue that we publish— telling interesting stories that affect the lives of the IPFW community. It is also our mantra, because we at The Communicator do not just report the news: we tell stories.

We are free to tell stories of debate, innovation and self expression. We are free to tell stories that hit close to home. We are free to tell the stories of your lives.

-Peter Schnellenberger, PR/Marketing Intern for The Communicator

EDITORIAL POLICY Editorials are the opinion of The Communicator. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IPFW, its employees or its student body. A column is solely the opinion of its author.

The Communicator welcomes responses. Letters to the Editor must be signed, dated and accompanied by a current address, telephone number and class standing/major or title (if applicable). Letters not meeting these requirements will not be considered for publication.

All submissions made via e-mail will be verified by telephone or in person.

Addresses and telephone numbers will not be published.

Submissions must be typed and no more than 700 words.

The editorial board of The Communicator reserves the right to edit all submissions for length, grammar, style, and clarity. Letters deemed potentially libelous by the editorial board will not be published under any circumstances.

We Need News Dear Editor-in-Chief,

I am writing this letter to ask for a profoundly significant favor from the Communicator (and its staff members). From my knowledge, the Communicator views itself as a “news organization.” My favor is, if reporting “news” is the true objective of your organization, then please let that (noble) task actually be the primary concern of your newspaper.

Over the past few years I have noticed a bazaar and detrimental nationwide tendency for news media outlets to confuse the term “news” with the terms: “sensationalism”, “ideo-blogging”, “demagoguery”, “profiteering”, “propagandizing”, “rabble-rousing”, “ignorance-enabling”, and not least of all, “hate-speech forum.” I have witnessed the shaky foundation of news reporting begin to crack and crumble under the weight of immorality, the expectance for unnatural expedience, and the aforementioned equivocations.

Very often, when I turn on the news or pick up a paper, I do not tend to get facts (the long lost cement of the news reporting groundwork). Instead, I get poorly regurgitated opinions, obscured dogmatic perspectives, and derisive dramatizations concerning facts (know or unknown). I get anomalously angry talking-points and slanderous spin on metabolic steroids.

I get polls about peoples’ opinions on subjects they know little to nothing about (Global economics anyone? “So you must be Paul Krugman!”). I no longer get information about what is going on in the world; I get what hatehopped-up partisans and the misinformed think about what might be going on in world (if they had to guess, based on their “gut,” of course).

My request is that the Communicator be aware of these ever-growing occurrences in the “news” world and steer clear of joining the broken bandwagon of bad journalism. I am aware that I may be just another shrill sound in the rapacious white noise of our ever loudening society. And perhaps for that I should apologize (however, I hope my words seem less like the destructive single-minded savagery of Jack, and more like Ralph and his everlasting concern for the smoke signal: the hope for salvation through sanity and civility).

I thought it was necessary to illuminate what I see to be one of the keen killers of the sanity in our already over-emotive and sensationallysilly culture. The fragility of our social order (and or disorder) can only withstand so much “bad news” heaped on its back. Who’s to say that bad reporting is not the final straw? I am asking you for your help in this matter.

Thank you for your time.

Imperatively, Nathan B. Wooleen Jr.