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Vol. 62 Issue 7 November 11, 2015
FOCUSED ON FINANCES
CAYUGABRIEFS Auburn Campus Activities for Veterans Week ‘15
ALL WEEK Pins are available at the front switchboard. Wear these as a sign of thanks to our Veterans. (Donations are welcome and will go toward enhancing the Auburn campus’ Veteran Lounge.) The showcase outside of the Bisgrove Theater features an educational display of Military Culture. Visit to learn more about items that have special significance for those who serve. This is sponsored by the Veterans Club. The campus TV monitors will display different facts each day about Veterans Day, Modern Day Veterans and ways to honor Veterans. Find similar information on flyers posted throughout campus. Challenge yourself to see how many facts you can remember!
By Alexandra Cassick, staff writer
PHOTO BY CALEB SLATER
Aligning with Cayuga’s Vision to develop engaged citizens, the Veteran Week planning committee invites the college community and those who visit to engage in a variety of diverse learning opportunities designed to encourage respect for and celebration of our Veteran population. We hope participation will help build trusting relationships between Cayuga’s civilian and military-connected populations and help support one another for the greater good of our communities.
CCC’S NEW PRESIDENT REVEALS HIS AGENDA
Students work to jump start CHEERLEADING on campus CCC’S FIRST CHEER TEAM IN MORE THAN A DECADE WILL TAKE THE COURT THIS FALL By Caleb Slater, editor-in-chief Cayuga’s cheer team, coined “The Dance” is working diligently to prepare a routine for some upcoming basketball games. This group, started by former member, Shaquan Spencer is a dance-cheer hybrid. Cocaptain, Widzar Weshe explained the team is working on all aspects of cheer, including: dance, stunts,
TUESDAY – THURSDAY Visit the Fallen Soldier/ POW /MIA table in the front entrance alcove lounge; then write your reflections in the “Cayuga Remembers” journal. On Veterans Day (Wednesday, 11/11) Celebrate with Student Veterans during their Club-sponsored barbecue- style luncheon in the Faculty Dining Room. Cost is $5 per plate from 11:15am – 1pm. Stop by the PTSD Awareness Table sponsored by the Veterans Club. Veterans receive a free beverage from Subway during regular operating hours.
CCC’s mascot “Sparty” has provided spirit at games.
tumbling and of course, cheers. The team currently has more than 15 members, but as Weshe expressed, “We can’t count the boys, because we still have to teach them how to do stunts.” She says nearly half the team is male, so they are making the extra effort to measure up. Both Weshe other the team captain, Ashley Zuniga, have, as Weshe put it, “been cheering her whole life.” Widzar says the team is working on selecting the team’s uniforms. The team advisor is Kathy Zamniak. Zamniak is also the advisor for the Dance Club. The teams’ captains say Cayuga’s cheer team is still early in its development, so they are not quite ready to enter competitions yet. “Maybe that’s something to look into for next year, but right now we are just getting started,” said Weshe. The team practices every Wednesday and Thursday, from 5:007:00 pm in the dance room, down the hall past the café. Check it out, if interested.
New CCC President, Dr. Brian Durant, has big plans for the future of the college. Recently, President Durant addressed students and faculty in a speech he gave in the Ida Bisgrove CCC President theater on the Auburn campus. Dr. Brian During the talk, Durant Durant mentioned a few key points on ways he would like to see the college grow. Durant says he would like to see student success outcomes increase, along with the percentage of college graduates. He says there has been a decline in students completing their
“I really enjoy being here at the college and getting to know the students and faculty. It seems to be a close community and I’m excited to be a part of it now.” —CCC President Dr. Brian Durant college courses over the years, so he says it’s important to keep the students on course. Durant also says he would like to continue leveraging the K-12 program opportunities that the college is involved with. He believes it’s important to have the college partnered with local companies and businesses. He says keeping CONTINUED ON PAGE TWO
THE OFFICIAL STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER OF CAYUGA COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Norman Morrison, the Forgotten Martyr By Kevin Shutter, staff writer On November 2nd 1965, a man named Norman Morrison left his home in Baltimore, Maryland where he, along with his wife and three children built their lives together. On this fall morning, Norman along with Kevin Shutter his one year old daughter, Emily made the 40 mile drive to Washington D.C. Upon arrival to our nation’s capital, Norman scooped up little Emily, grabbed the kerosene out of the back of the vehicle and began the walk toward the Pentagon. Norman stopped 40 feet shy of Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara’s office. Upon arrival, Norman doused himself with kerosene, lit a match and was instantly engulfed in flames. Norman and his wife, Anne were Quakers. They denounced the Vietnam War and all that it entailed. In the weeks before Norman’s self-immolation he and Anne had discussed the war in great detail. Wracking their brains to find the avenue in which their pacifism could help
POLITICS
OPINIONS SNL is a SELLOUT
Caleb Slater
Last Saturday, I watched the most disgusting act by a comedy show that I can think of, in recent history. I watched as a group of writers, producers and comedians knowingly and willingly took their ability to create such imaginative and often expressive scenes and throw such talent out the window. I watched as they took away any voice and any real connection they had to the world of comedy, as well as the real world, by choosing to shut their voices and close their creative minds, simply for monetary gain. I am of course talking about last week’s Saturday Night Live and how the host, Donald J. Trump influenced it to not be an ingenious sketch comedy, but rather an hour and a half long commercial! I must say, SNL has always been and will hopefully continue to be a moment of relief. A break from the problems and evils of the world, for it is during this hour and a half long program that people can relax and learn to not just see the humor of this crazy world, but learn to cope with it as well. Comedians are some of the most insightful people on the planet, as they have a tendency and a talent to take the most convoluted issues and twist them into a more presentable form. Laughter is often called the best medicine, but I must say after last Saturday, I am feeling sick to my very core. There is no doubt in my mind that last week’s show was not a nonsensical parody, but rather a nonsensical campaign stunt. The opening sketch of the show
skewed off of tradition by not featuring the host, Donald Trump, but rather was used as a ploy to mock the Democratic Candidates. Even the first “comedy” sketch of the night seemed a little bit off, as it featured the United States in 2018, as a utopian paradise, directly resulting from Donald Trump winning the Presidential election in 2016. In addition, Weekend Update, a Saturday Night Live staple that pokes fun at the trending issues of the week, consisted of nonstop criticisms of the Republican Candidates. Conveniently enough, Donald Trump remained unscathed during the barrage of political attacks by the SNL crew. It is disheartening and disgusting to me that an entire crew would be willing to throw their moral values and what they stand for, what the show has and continues to stand for, for over 35 years and flush it down the drain, only to dry their hands off with dirty money given to them by Donald J. Trump.
bring an end to this global tragedy. Norman had been showing signs of obvious restlessness in his lack of ability to answer the questions they both had been asking themselves. Norman and Anne had done all they could think of personally to put an end to the war. Being Quakers, pacifism was one of the main pillars of their faith. They had resisted paying their taxes, took part in demonstrations in Washington D.C, and through it all, Anne recalls Norman saying, “It’s not enough. What can be done to stop this war?” The morning of November 2nd, 1965 Norman found what it was that he was supposed to do. With his wife and two older children out of the house, Norman took baby Emily in what would be his final act. To some the act of self-immolation seems crazy, foreign even, Norman had never shown any signs of mental disability, or a lack of mental capacity. I believe this single act performed by Mr. Morrison sets him atop the pedestal that is human morality. My own wife disagrees with me on this, however aren’t the actions taken by Mr. Morrison in line with all the great martyrs who put their beliefs before all else? Wasn’t it Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who after countless threats on his life and even full blown attempts to assassinate him and his family still continued to stay true to his beliefs and spread his message to the masses? Wasn’t it Jesus who was nailed to the cross due to his beliefs? It’s
not to say that Norman Morrison was Jesus, however there is a parallel between them. Since my discovery of Norman Morrison’s sacrifice one question has been resonating in my head, “Is there anything I believe in so dearly that I would go out in flames to bring it to the world’s attention?” At first I thought it was a question, like most that had an answer... maybe not a simple answer but an answer none the less. Much like the ideas of Martin Luther King and Jesus, Norman Morrison’s final act will stand the test of time and enlighten all those who speak his name. Perhaps I am romanticizing a period in our nation’s history that shouldn’t be romanticized, or perhaps this single act of martyrdom can be the example we all need to look to when it comes to the core things in which we believe. As I have stated it isn’t a simple question with a quick all-encompassing answer. It is a question that no doubt will stay with me until my last day, on this Earth. It is also my hope that upon reading this at least one other person not only asks themselves this question but also goes out in search of the answer. I ask you, the reader, is there anything that you believe in to your core that you would go out in flames to bring to the attention of the world? Martin Luther King said it best, “If a man has not discovered something that he will die for, he isn’t fit to live.” What is it you would die for?
President Durant... CONTINUED FROM FRONT PAGE
the community involved will help Cayuga Community College to be seen as an important and necessary part of community. Durant says he would like to focus on the financial health of college along with the pursuit of student housing in the upcoming year. Durant says if he could change any part of the college right now it would involve expansion. “Update the physical space of the college assuming that the resources would
be available,” said Durant. Although there are two separate campuses to Cayuga Community College along with the online learning atmosphere, Durant says he considers it all as one college body where it’s important to balance the equal opportunity of resources and education. “I really enjoy being here at the college and getting to know the students and faculty. It seems to be a close community and I’m excited to be a part of it now.”
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CALEB SLATER - EDITOR-IN-CHIEF KEVIN SHUTTER - STAFF WRITER STEVEN BREWER - STAFF WRITER ALEXANDRA CASSICK - STAFF WRITER THERESA STEPHENS - SPORTS WRITER JULIETTE ZYGAROWICZ - PHOTOGRAPHER MALCOM HUEY - DIVERGENT NATION
Republican Presidential candidate and billionaire businessman Donald Trump hosted NBC’s Saturday Night Live last Saturday. PAGE TWO
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BASKETBALL
BASKETBALL SEASON IS UNDERWAY! SPORTS GO SPARTANS! GO SPARTANS! GO SPARTANS!
Both the women’s and men’s basketball teams open up their home seasons of play last weekend against Hudson Valley CC and Adirondack CC, on Saturday and Sunday, respectfully. The next home games are
scheduled for Saturday, November 21st. Come support both Spartans teams as they look to get off to a great start at home for the 2015-16 season!
Quentin Tarantino VS. NYPD By Caleb Slater, editor-in-chief
Five Spartan Men Earn All-Conference in Soccer; McCormick Named Conference Player-of-the-Year The Cayuga CC men’s soccer team was well represented on this season’s Mid-State Athletic All-Conference Team for 2015 with five players. Paul McCormick (Glasgow, Scotland) was the leading conference vote getter and was named Conference Player-of-the-Year. McCormick was the leading scorer for the Spartans tallying 11 goals and 8 assists…and was named NJCAA National Playerof-the-Week, Region III Athlete-ofthe-Week and Spartan Athlete-of-
the-Week during the season. Last season’s MSAC Player-of-the-Year, Chris Davison (Newcastle, England) was right behind McCormick in votes and scoring…with 9 goals and 9 assists…earning him a spot on the team for the second year in a row. Newcomers Paul Coyle (Glasgow, Scotland-11 goals), Daniel Bonehill (Birmingham, England-8 goals), and Chris Barrie (Galston, Scotland-3 goals) were also recognized by the conference.
Independent filmmaker, Quentin Tarantino, known for works such as: Kill Bill, Pulp Fiction and the Django Unchained remake is under fire for calling officers “murderers.” The issue started at a police brutality rally in New York City, when the
director said, “When I see murder, I can’t stand by. I have to call the murdered, the murdered and I have to call the murderer, the murderer.” After the statement was made
the police fired right back (pun intended). Police unions across the nation are calling for an outright ban on all Tarantino films, including his upcoming, The Hateful Eight, which is expected to be released this holiday season. Critics are saying that Tarantino is a cop hater, who is just interested in the publicity. When questioned about the issue on Real Time with Bill Maher, Tarantino responded back by calling these allegations slander and saying, “If they were really really serious about this, they wouldn’t close rank what I’m obviously talking about, which is bad cops. And I’m obviously talking about specific cases, where it is murder, as far as I’m concerned. Walter Scott was murdered.”
You can lead a horse to water …
Why do so many people refuse to get the help that they need? By Steve Brewer, staff writer It is a tale that I have heard many times before, “I don’t have time to make it to the study group”, “I already failed a few tests”, “My schedule won’t allow me to sit down with you”. I have been a tutor for Accounting and Writing in the Center for Academic Success since the start of the Spring 2015 semester and have helped numerous people better understand subjects and topics that they had struggled with. Yet I know that there are many more students who struggle with the subjects who won’t seek help, but why is this the case? As I stated before I have been tutoring Accounting and Writing since January of this year, Accounting is one of the courses with the most demand for tutoring. For those of you who do not know Accounting, Business 101 & 102, is a required sequence for both Business Administration and Accounting majors and is often taken in the first and second semesters at Cayuga. I completed the sequence in Spring 2015 when I finished Business 102 and I was able to achieve a 4.0 in both Business 101 (Accounting 1) and Business 102 (Accounting 2).
Accounting came easily to me and, coupled with strong study habits, I was able to make it through the course but some of my peers found the course to be harder and struggled. I began to host a study group for Accounting during the Spring semester of 2015 and was truly shocked when I saw students who I knew needed additional help not coming to the study group. When they approached me before or after class about help I would ask them if they knew about the study group that I hosted and most of them knew about it but were not attending it. Now I know that people do have work and family which could make it impossible for them to attend my study group so I advised them to utilize the textbook developer’s website, WileyPlus, which has many resources for students to use such as tutorials, practice problems, self tests and even an e-version of the textbook among many other resources. Still there were some who would not use WileyPlus, would not make the time to attend the study group or schedule an individual tutoring session with me. Instead
they tried to get myself to do their work for them or just refuse to put the extra time in that they needed to succeed in the course. I cannot attest to why they did this but I hope to pass a few lessons to you that I have learned being a tutor which could help you succeed in subjects that you may be struggling in. These tips are: 1. Devote the time you need to succeed in a subject to that subject. There will be subjects that you easily succeed in while others you will struggle in, this is an inevitability in academia. If you do come across a subject that you are struggling in be sure to devote extra time to it so you can succeed in it. 2. Put the effort in to succeed in the subject. If you don’t study, don’t pay attention in class, don’t do the work or seek help with that subject you will not succeed. 3. Utilize all resources that you have access to. The college is kind enough to offer you FREE tutoring and study groups in the form of those offered through the CAS and many textbook developers offer resource websites. If you are struggling in a
SERVING THE STUDENTS OF CAYUGA COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOR MORE THAN 60 YEARS!
subject be sure to explore all of the resources that exist in that subject and try different resources to see which works best for you. 4. Remember tutors are meant to help you, not do your work for you. I have had people explicitly ask me for answers to problems that they were working on without them even cracking the textbook open. This is unethical for tutors to do because it is your work that you need to do and be able to understand how to do it. If we do it for you then we will be only harming you in the long run because, come test time, you will be unable to actually do the work that the homework would have helped you understand. 5. Never give up on a subject. Giving up on a subject will only make it impossible for anyone to actually help you get through the course. By giving up you are also embracing the fact that you will fail when you could opt to fight harder rather than surrender. No matter what your performance in the course is the fight to succeed in it is not over until after the course ends and your final grade is posted for it.
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2015 CMA Music Awards By Taz Taylor, contributing writer
the hype and excitement of the upcoming Star Wars film, to be released next month. Now let’s get to the awards. The first award handed out was Single of the Year. The nominees were “American Kids” by Kenny Chesney, “Girl Crush” by Little Big Town, “I Don’t Dance” by Lee Brice, “Take Your Time” by Sam Hunt, and “Talladega” by Eric Church. The winner went to Little Big Town.
and coming artists, as it sets them up for a career of opportunities. This award was clearly a hard decision to make, as there is a lot of fresh young talent among the chosen nominees, but it was ultimately decided to give the award to Chris Stapleton. Stapleton just released his latest album, Traveller. Everyone in the business agrees that this is certainly a stepping stone and quite the staple for the young Chris Stapleton, but this is an award that tends to be shrouded in controversy. Many country music enthusiasts, such as myself, feel the award should have been given to Sam Hunt, an artist who has had quite a few songs reach the top of the charts this year. Reaching the top of the charts is quite the accomplishment for an up and coming artist, and I can tell you that Hunt is a name you will be hearing more of in 2016. For being an up and coming artist though, Chris Stapleton really did make his mark on the industry and took home the gold last week, as he not only was awarded New Artist of the Year, but was also given the awards for the Best Album of the Year and Best Male Vocalist. Other award winners included: Miranda Lambert, for the Best Female Vocalist of the Year and Luke Bryan, who brought home Entertainer of the Year.
Moving forward to Song of the Year. Little Big Town showed themselves on top once again with this award, specified toward the songwriters. They won with their hot single Girl Crush. This is an award that has been a long time coming, as Little Big Town has been nominated for a variety of awards during every CMA award since 2006, but this is the first time the group has been awarded to prestigious song of the year. Next was the New Artist of the Year. This award is a big deal for up
PHOTOS BY CALEB SLATER
Country music’s biggest night was full of surprises and thrills last Wednesday. The 49th annual CMA Music Awards was a great night to recognize the biggest names that have made their mark on the country music industry in 2015. Some of the awards that were handed out that night featured: Best Single, Song, New Artist, Best Album, Best Male Vocalist, Female Vocalist And Entertainer. Each category had five nominees with only one artist walking away with an award in each category. In addition to the award ceremony, audience members were amazed by talented live performance from artists such as: Brooks & Dunn, Fall Out Boy, Justin Timberlake, Lindsey Stirling and more! There was even a guest appearance by the “Stormtrooper,” William Shatner, himself. The CMA committee made a good choice in having Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood host the show this year. They opened up the show with laughter by parodying the most trending issues of 2015. Some of the issues they poked fun at included Silento’s breakout hit “Watch Me” (Whip/Nae Nae), the McDonald’s breakfast campaign, the Donald Trump campaign and even the CMA’s could not avoid
Auburn Plaza Loses two businesses, back to back By Caleb Slater, editor-in-chief
Business just hasn’t been booming for the Auburn Plaza, located just beyond Cayuga Community College’s nature trail. The latest victim of economic hardship would be the Pet Depot, a store that has welcomed and sold all sorts of critters since November of 2003. The store is expected to close by Thanksgiving, partially due to a shortage of inventory, but all of the reasons that led up to this decision have not been released to the public. It was last Tuesday morning that store co-managers, Penny Powers and Felicia Cole were informed that they, along with the rest of the staff will be spending their Turkey Day unemployed. This abrupt change has understandably caused frustration among the employees. Store manager, Penny Powers expressed, “We don’t really know what led up to this decision. We just received the
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phone call Tuesday, saying the store will be closing.” Until the day of closing, everything in the store is on sale. Inventory is 50% off and any remaining animals will be sold at 40% off. Dog manager of the store, Felicia Cole expressed her disappointment by saying, “Unfortunately things have to change.” The Pet Depot is not the only store in the Auburn Plaza to undergo a drastic change, as of lately. Just a few doors down, the Riverbend Coffee also had to shut their doors. For a plaza that is visited by the influx of people, riding the bus, more times per day than any other stop in Auburn, they sure seem to have a problem keeping business alive. Let’s hope Kay Jewelers, who are expected to open up their doors where Riverbend left off, will have better luck keeping those doors open.
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My brother Tom by Samuel G. Phillips This is my brother Standing at attention Surrounded by airplanes Large, loud and shiny Generals around him yelling orders The plain engines are showing There fierce faces My brother Tom stands Body at attention His focused eyes Face forward His body straight Waiting his orders His camouflage BDU Starched and ironed The black boots Shining in the light Tom you make me proud It is an honor To watch you Accept the air heart award You, at this ceremony You are like America’s future
CCC students enjoy pizza while meeting with CCC President Dr. Brian Durant recently on the Fulton campus.
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WDWN TOP 20 FOR THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 3, 2015
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