September 22, 2011 - Issue 1

The Beacon

Student Newspaper of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts North Adams, Mass.

Volume 74 Issue 1 For more content, visit online at: theonlinebeacon.com

Th u r s d ay, S e p t e m b e r 2 2 , 2 0 1 1

Charon to report to Trustees

The Director of Public Safety will update the Board of Trustees on his research about arming the Public Safety officers.

By John Durkan Editor-in-Chief

Director of Public Safety Joseph Charon will present a report to the Board of Trustees regarding the arming of public safety officers on Tuesday, Sept. 27 at 5 p.m. in the Fitzpatrick Room in Murdock Hall. The meeting is open to the public.

Charon said the proposed plan will cost an estimated $25,000 for implementation and approximately $6,000 per year for firearms training, professional development training and equipment for the officers.

Over the course of the summer,

Charon continued research on a plan to arm campus officers. No physical report will be presented – nor is there any plan for a physical report.

Dean of Students Charlotte Degan expects the Board of Trustees to “potentially have some questions about various aspects,” but expects the board to agree to continue with the community meetings.

“The timing of the meetings, because it was the end of the semester, just didn’t feel [like sufficient] space for the community to consider this,” Degan said. “So, I’m sure that the Trustees will support more campus conversation.”

Two of those meetings happened in early May and a second in mid-June.

On Oct. 3, Degan and Charon will meet with the Student Government Association’s Executive Board to discuss this matter.

“We’re going to talk about it and see how we feel,” SGA President Todd Foy said.

Currently, SGA has no official stance.

“Still, formally we don’t have a position,” Foy said. “We are not for or against. We just want discussion. Students need to speak up if they don’t like it.”

Students and members of the community will have another

chance to discuss this matter. On Nov. 16, Charon will host another round of discussions. No time or location has been determined.

On June 22, a community meeting was held at Murdock Hall. At that meeting, Charon stressed the need of armed officers to prevent a potentially lethal violence.

He stated that the bottom line of the issue “could be measured in lives lost or lives saved.” In the case of preventing a situation, like a school shooting, Charon stated that the lack of firearms is an “obvious issue.”

FIREARMS, continued on Page 3

Photo by Dan Sheehan/Beacon Archives

Joseph Charon speaks at a community meeting in May.

Campus receives summer facelift Science

Center plans progress

Amsler Campus Center and Hoosac Hall undergo construction; more upgrades underway

Ground breaking ceremony scheduled for Oct. 14

By Skyla Seamans Senior News Editor

MCLA has experienced countless updates to the Amsler Campus Center and Hoosac Hall with construction still underway.

By Chris Goodell Managing Editor

Amsler Campus Center With the College’s invested money from the operating budget, their goal was to have the Campus Center open when students returned at the beginning of the semester. Since the Marketplace renovations are still taking place, students must enter the cafeteria through the athletic side of the building.

“We expect everything to be in place this December,” James Stakenas, vice president of Administration and Finance, said. “Students will then have full use of the Marketplace and cafeteria upon returning for the spring semester.”

He said while the Marketplace is being revamped, the bookstore moved to Sharky’s lounge in order to continue with construction.

“Students need to understand that the bookstore’s services will

twitter.com/ BeaconMCLA facebook.com/ MCLABeacon

Photo by Will Casey/Beacon Staff

Construction on the Amsler Campus Center will continue throughout the semester. be less,” Stakenas said. “However, they are still encouraged to continue using it for their needs.”

When construction is complete, there will be a Subway, expanded convenience store, bookstore, and quick stop café in the Marketplace. In the meantime, the C-store has temporarily moved to the lower level of Bowman.

“Subway was the most prominent choice made by students,”

Stakenas said, “and they will be able to use their declining balance points at the new Subway along with the café and convenience store.”

There will also be a new entry to the Campus Center and the back entry will be used for deliveries, although students can still access the mailroom this way, according to Stakenas.

The cafeteria was also complete-

ly remodeled, with a new dining hall arrangement and carpeting.

The dining and food preparation areas have merged into the same location and students can now watch their food be prepared.

ARAMARK has also worked to provide students with an all-youcan-eat style of dining and more food options, Stakenas said.

Yonder Mountain en route to North Adams

Volleyball team snaps five-game losing streak

FreshGrass Bluegrass and Art Festival comes to MASS MoCA

The Trailblazers win back-to-back home games on Saturday.

Arts and Entertainment, Page 8

Sports, Page 9

FACELIFT, continued on Page 2

Index

News 2-3 World News 4 Features 5 A&E 6-8 Sports 9-11 Science,Overseas 12

Plans for the Center for Science and Innovation progressed over the summer as the project is expected to break ground next month.

According to President Mary Grant, project funders and designers visited campus several times throughout the summer to meet with faculty and finalize design plans for the new Science Center.

“The whole summer was a busy time, [spent] working with faculty in the design of interior classroom spaces,” Grant said, adding that there were also several meetings with community members and alumni to discuss the plans for the new building.

“It’s so exciting to see this important project take shape,” Grant said.

SCIENCE, continued on Page 12

Letters to the Editor Campus Comment Commentary Comics Horoscopes Photo Essay

13 13 14 15 15 16

2

Thursday, September 22, 2011

News

theonlinebeacon.com

New faculty joins MCLA Faculty receives new meal plan

By Nicole Knapp Staff Writer

The College welcomed many new hires this semester, including six new faculty members who have joined various departments.

The faculty members include Mark Cohen, associate professor of Computer Science and Information Systems; Elizabeth Hartung, assistant professor of Mathematics; Ryan Krzyzanowicz, instructor for the Athletic Training program in the Biology department; Katy Miller, assistant professor of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social work; Nicholas Stroud, assistant professor of Science and Technology in the Education Department; and Benjamin Wood, assistant professor of Psychology.

“We’re really happy we have six very dynamic faculty,” said Cindy Brown, vice president of Academic Affairs. “Each of them brings expertise in their field and are excited to work with students.”

Professor Cohen came from Pennsylvania’s Lock Haven University because he said he was drawn to the natural beauty of the area and liked the small size of the campus. He also met the Computer Science faculty and thought they would be a good group to work for.

“I like the idea of a public liberal arts education,” he said. “I think that’s important.”

Cohen and his wife enjoy outdoor activities, such as hiking, fishing, and winter activities. He

By Jessica Gamari Staff Writer

Photos by Brian McGrath/Beacon Staff

Professors Elizabeth Hartung (left) and Benjamin Wood (right) are among the six new faculty members. recognized they could do these things in the area and there were a lot of other attractions, such as film, theatre, and art.

His primary goal is to get to know all the students in the Computer Science program. He would also like to get involved outside the classroom, with advising clubs and attending athletic events.

“I would like to do as much as I can on campus and outside of the classroom,” he said.

On the other hand, Professor Miller has lived in the Berkshires for twenty-six years. She originally came to the area to attend Simon’s Rock in Great Barrington and ended up staying.

Miller taught her first class at MCLA in 2000 and returned every other semester until 2005, when she decided to go back to school to get her Ph.D. After teaching at other schools, including the University of Connecticut and West-

field State, Miller returned here.

“It’s great to come back here,” she said. “I really like MCLA. I believe in a liberal arts education.”

Miller also said that MCLA has a great student body, an energetic campus, and a diverse college community. It was also a bonus to be closer to home, where she lives with her husband and two daughters.

“I’d really like to establish myself as a full time faculty member,” Miller said. “I’m looking forward to seeing what I can bring to the MCLA community.”

As of right now the faculty members are settling in, but so far, so good, Brown said. She added that this new group represents growth and the meetings of needs and programs, such as the athletic programs and the new tenure track position in Math.

“They’ll be seeing a lot of these faculty around campus is my prediction,” Brown said.

Campus under renovation FACELIFT from Page 1

Senior Kelvin Marmolejos said the new cafeteria provides a positive atmosphere for students.

“It was about time they updated the cafeteria,” he said. “It was too dark. This one gives a new, fresh look to the campus.”

Sophomore Amanda Olsen said she is impressed with the new look of the cafeteria as well.

“Everything is incorporated into one space,” she said. “There are no more separate areas, which brings a friendly atmosphere to the place.”

However, senior Doug Koziol wanted to see more improvements with the dining area.

“I feel like ARAMARK really dropped the ball on this one,” he said. “Instead of improving on the original design, it has digressed into a convoluted mess. I am now being punished for being a vegetarian; there are substantially less vegetarian options altogether this year.”

Senior Jakob Conway is also unsatisfied with the changes to the cafeteria.

“I feel as though I have gone back to high school with these bathroom passes,” he said. “I feel like I’m ten years old again.”

Along with these renovations, the Campus Center gym has a new floor. Stakenas encourages

students to attend a volleyball game and see the work that has been done.

Hoosac Hall

The bathrooms in the Hoosac Hall residence area were the first to undergo renovations this past summer, and the Hoosac Harbor recreational area in the basement is next.

According to Dianne Manning, director of Residential Programs and Services, MCLA received a $5 million bond from the Massachusetts State College Building Authority (MSCBA) to fund these projects. She stated that the money to pay back this bond will come from student room and board fees, which are not expected to increase because of these projects.

This past summer, all of the bathrooms on floors two through seven were completely gutted and repaired. The showers, toilets, sinks, mirrors, flooring, walls, and doors all have a new look, Manning said.

“The residence advisors are all impressed with the new bathrooms and think they are very fancy like hotel bathrooms,” she said.

On the current lobby level, bathrooms were built that mirror the floors above in anticipation of the floor becoming a residential floor next year, she said.

This will provide 13 new student rooms to Hoosac, which raises the overall capacity from 216 to 243 students. This project is expected to be completed during the summer of 2012.

A new entryway will also be built to the right of the current Hoosac Hall patio and will enter into the Harbor level of the building. The Harbor level will then become the main floor of the building and will house the residential advisor, residential director, and Advisory Board offices.

“It will also house the laundry room, kitchenette, multi-purpose room, meeting room, and informal lounge space,” she said.

Sophomore Andrew Martin said he is impressed with the new bathrooms, but cannot wait for the rest of the renovations to be finished.

“The bathrooms look really nice, like hotel bathrooms,” he said.

“Water fountains were removed, there is better lighting above showers, and the handicap bathrooms have greatly improved.

I just wish there was an area for students to hang out now that we can’t use the Harbor.”

Some of the recreational equipment in the Harbor will be moved to the Campus Center and the rest will stay in the multi-purpose room upon completion of the renovations, Manning said.

The faculty members at the College now have the option to sign up for a faculty meal plan.

President Mary Grant introduced the plan just two weeks ago at the Opening Breakfast.

“We’ve never had a faculty meal plan, so this is a whole new world to us,” Dean of Students Charlotte Degen said in an interview last Thursday.

With the remodeling of the Amsler Campus Center cafeteria, Director of Dining John Kozik and members of ARAMARK decided it would be a good idea if there was a faster and more convenient way for students and faculty to purchase food.

“We changed the whole campus dining program. This year we’re providing more convenient means for faculty in the Centennial Room,” said Kozik.

This new option was introduced in addition to the “all-you-caneat” program. After swiping an I.D. card at the door, students and staff can choose their meals in a buffet style. Members of the dining program won’t need to worry about carrying cash, although that is still an option.

Director of Athletics Scott Nichols said he joined the program because the Centennial Room is close to his office and it is more convenient for him than leaving

campus.

“I usually go to eat a couple of times a week in the Centennial Room, but I am sure once the winter season starts I will use the convenience store in Bowman,” Nichols said. “I’m looking forward to Subway coming in as well.”

As of last Thursday, only about 11 faculty members were signed up for the program.

“My prediction is that as the weather gets colder, people won’t be venturing out and the numbers will grow,” Director of Student Accounts Jennifer M. Ethier said.

Any faculty member wishing to join need only go to Student Accounts and sign up with a credit card, cash or check. The plan includes 20 meals, $20 Declining Balance and $20 Blazer Bucks for just $125.

“I think most faculty and staff don’t realize how low the price is if you join the meal plan,” Mark Berman, chief information officer, said. “I joined because it’s more convenient and because the food in the cafeteria is healthier than most lunch places in town. [The food is] more affordable also.”

The Blazer Bucks can be used on campus, as well as local places in town, such as Christo’s Famous Pizza, Dominos, Supreme Pizza and Wings, Village Pizza, and After Hours Laundromat. More locations may be added later in the semester.

Glenn Drohan, 59, passes away

Photo Courtesy of Gillian Jones/North Adams Transcript

On May 26, the journalism world took a hard hit when it lost North Adams Transcript Editor-in-Chief Glenn Drohan to cancer. Drohan, who was scheduled as the Hardman Journalist-in-Residence for The Beacon this semester, will be missed.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

News

theonlinebeacon.com

3

Goodbye FirstClass; Hello Google Activities Chief Info Officer Mark Berman reviewed his plans to replace FirstClass to SGA.

By Skyla Seamans Senior News Editor

At SGA’s meeting Monday night, Chief Information Officer Mark Berman reviewed plans to transition from the College’s FirstClass e-mailing system to Google Apps for Education.

This idea was previously discussed and approved by President Mary Grant and her cabinet. The transition is expected to take place this academic year.

“Google Apps for Education is particularly more comfortable and easier for students to use,” Berman said. “I have been working with other organizations who have made the transition to make sure it is in the best interest of the College.”

He said the new e-mailing system has more storage for users to send bulkier mail. Students will still use the same “A” numbers and passwords as they do for FirstClass.

“The goal is to allow students to pick their own times for when they want to make the transition,” he said. “When they do, the Web site will prompt them to simply push a button, but they won’t have e-mail access for 24 hours during the transition period.”

He said he wants users to have enough time to feel comfortable with the adjustment. During this period, people who have not made the transition can still communicate with others who

Photo by Dennise Carranza/Beacon Staff

Mark Berman tells SGA the current plans for replacing FirstClass with Google Apps for Education. have. There will be a central system that will reroute mail from FirstClass to Google Apps during the transition period.

“We will pay for the migration services,” he said, “but Google is free. There are low ongoing costs to this new system.”

Berman also talked about virtualizing hardware to make sure the cost of upgrades for technology does not increase. He also said the College’s bandwidth will double in the future.

“I don’t want to be in a position where everything slows down,” he said.

He also discussed the idea of increasing resources at the Freel Library by transporting machines from Murdock Hall. The library already has laptop checkouts but he would like there to be more resources available to students, he said.

Student Trustee Jaynelle Bellemore said she sees many students using the laptops and machines in the library.

“Not everyone is able to carry a laptop around with them at all times,” she said. “And everyone loves going to the library to have a quiet place to study.”

Berman also expressed interest in creating a specialty lab for students to access video editing equipment, perform graphics work, and other tasks not normally done in standard labs.

Senator Jason Brown said he agrees with the demand for a new specialty lab, but does not want it to be in place of Murdock’s computer labs.

“I think there is definitely a population on campus that would use this lab day-to-day,” Brown said.

“But I would think about having another specific location for it other than Murdock.”

SGA would also like students to know the mailroom has made accommodations for handicap students. Students who cannot access the mailroom and need their mail delivered to them at the front desk locations of their dormitories or townhouses can e-mail or call the mailroom at 413-662-5450.

Coordinating Vice President Jackie Nash encouraged club eboard members and general students to attend SGA’s 2011 Student Leadership Summit on Sunday, Sept. 25 from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Venable Gym. E-boards who have all their members attend the summit will be entered into a raffle to win an extra $200 for their club budget.

SGA meetings are held Mondays at 7 p.m. in Campus Center 324A and are open to the public.

Charon to meet Grant honored with Trustees

By Chris Goodell Managing Editor

FIREARMS from Page 1

“It causes us to use a plan that, in all essence, is not as good as it could be,” Charon said.

Currently, the force carries batons, pepper spray and handcuffs, all of which are non lethal. The force does not have tasers.

“You know the saying, ‘Don’t bring a knife to a gun fight.’ It’s a lot like that,” Charon said.

Tasers are not completely out of discussion, although the discussion remains on firearms, Charon said.

“We haven’t [looked into tasers], but that’s for no particular reason,” Charon said in a recent interview.

“The focus at hand is to center ourselves around the community conversations and discussion related to arming the campus police officers. But those particular issues and items remain on our agenda to look at in future situations.”

Back in the June community meeting, not everyone agreed with Charon’s position. Diane Parsons, former professor, former North Adams City Council member and Highland Avenue resident, spoke out against the move to arm the officers.

“I don’t feel safer around guns,” Parsons said. She said she worried about innocent bystanders being harmed and felt that the violence would escalate with the imple-

mentation of firearms.

North Adams Police Department Commissioner John Morocco then admitted accidental shootings do happen; however, he also said the NAPD fully supports the arming of Public Safety officers.

Dana Rapp, an Education professor and the head of the Faculty Association, said that the union met with Public Safety on Sept. 14. The Faculty Association has not taken an official stance whether it is for or against arming the officers. However, the Faculty Association has taken a stance for ongoing and public discussions and want an opportunity to review the reports, if generated, and recommendations before it goes to the Board of Trustees.

On Dec. 14, an armed robbery took place at the Flagg Townhouses. During the June 22 meeting, both Charon and James Stakenas, vice president of Administration and Finance, said that no prior incident caused this discussion.

Instead, a 2008 recommendation from the Board of Higher Education sparked the conversation.

The section titled “Recommendations for Campus Safety and Violence Prevention” listed 27 ways to improve safety on campuses across the country

President Mary Grant received an award this summer in recognition of her leadership and promotion of women in higher education.

The American Council of Education (ACE) presented Grant with the Massachusetts National Network of Women’s Lifetime Achievement Award on June 9 at ACE’s annual President’s Dinner.

“It was very moving,” Grant said. “It’s really rewarding when you’re recognized by your peers.”

According to the ACE Massachusetts Network Web site, the Lifetime Achievement award is given to a woman with a longstanding dedication to the advancement of women in higher education.

“I love the work that I do; it’s very gratifying and meaningful.”

- President Mary Grant “This award will be presented to a woman leader in higher education who throughout her long career has demonstrated significant leadership and promotion of women in the field,” the site states.

The award recipient must il-

Fair today

By John Durkan Editor-in-Chief

The Student Government Association (SGA) and President’s Office will host the Activities Fair and Ice Cream Social today on the Academic Quad from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. Many campus clubs will be tabling at the social.

“We just want people to get out and see what’s up,” said SGA President Todd Foy. In addition to ice cream, nomination papers for the 12 remaining senate seats will be readily available at the SGA table. The forms are due tomorrow and can be dropped off at room 317 of the Campus Center.

Bernadette Lupo, coordinator of Marketing and Communications, verified that the following flavors will be available: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, cookie dough, mint chocolate, Heath Bar Crunch or Snickers, raspberry, and a no-fat or low-fat yogurt.

In the event of rain or snow, the Ice Cream Social will take place inside Venable Gym.

Brown Bag Lecture: Gerol Petruzella “Confluence of contemporary neuroscience and sociology with ancient eudaimonism.”

Tomorrow, 3 p.m.

Smith House

Photo by Nate Pichette/Beacon Archives

President Mary Grant. lustrate the core principles of the ACE National Network: to identify, develop, encourage, advance, link and support women in higher education.

Denise Hammon, the state chairperson of ACE, stated in an interview with The Berkshire Eagle that Grant received unanimous support for the award from the nominating committee. “[Grant is] a tireless and edicated person who gives so much of herself,” Hammon said. “She has all the attributes of a great leader.”

According to Grant, this award was even more special because of how much she enjoys her job and is dedicated to her work.

“I love the work that I do; it’s very gratifying and meaningful,” Grant said. “When you are recognized for your work it’s very rewarding.”

National/World News 4 Obama looks to up taxes Bachmann says Obama renews political tax fight with Republican party. food industry overregulated Thursday, September 22, 2011

theonlinebeacon.com

Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama set up another clash with Republicans on Monday by proposing $1.5 trillion in new taxes aimed primarily at the wealthy as part of a $3 trillion package to shrink the U.S. national debt.

Obama’s plan has little chance of passing Congress, where Republicans control the House of Representatives. Republicans staunchly oppose tax increases and want greater spending cuts to reduce America’s debt.

The populist pitch in Obama’s speech, however, could appeal to Americans, many of whom believe the deficit cannot be reduced by spending cuts alone.

“We can’t just cut our way out of this hole,’’ the president said in a speech at the White House. He noted that he is among the millionaires who should face higher tax rates than the middle class and said: “It’s only right we ask everyone to pay their fair share.’’

Obama’s recommendation to a joint congressional committee served as a sharp counterpoint to Republican lawmakers, who have insisted that tax increases should play no part in taming the nation’s escalating national debt.

The core of the president’s plan totals just more than $2 trillion in deficit reduction over 10 years.

It combines the new taxes with $580 billion in cuts to mandatory benefit programs, including $248 billion from Medicare, the health

By Thomas Beaumont Associated Press

Photo courtsey of Reuters

President Barack Obama talks about cutting the U.S. deficit by raising taxes, from the Rose Garden of the White House. insurance program for the elderly. The administration also counts savings of $1 trillion over 10 years from the withdrawal of troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Republicans already were lining up against the president’s tax proposal before they even knew the magnitude of what he intended to recommend.

“Class warfare may make for really good politics but it makes for rotten economics,’’ Paul Ryan, chairman of the House Budget Committee, said Sunday in reaction to Obama’s tax proposal.

One of Obama’s proposals would set a minimum tax on taxpayers making $1 million or more in in-

come. Obama called the measure the “Buffett Rule’’ for billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who has spoken of the unfairness that he pays taxes at a lower rate than that paid by his secretary.

At issue is the difference between a taxpayer’s tax bracket and the effective tax rate that taxpayer pays. Millionaires face a 35 percent tax bracket, while middle income filers fall in the 15 or 25 percent bracket. But investment income is taxed at 15 percent and Buffett has complained that he and other wealthy people have been “coddled long enough.’’

Women world leaders speak out Hilliary Clinton spoke to women leaders at U.N. event Monday.

Associated Press UNITED NATIONS — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged women world leaders Monday to reach out to the new emerging democracies in the Middle East and North Africa and help ensure that the women who demonstrated, blogged and put their lives on the line are included in their country’s democratic future.

If women are left out of the democratic transformation, she said, the country “will not be a

true democracy.’’

Clinton spoke at a high-level U.N. event Monday to promote greater political participation of women at all levels of government. According to a 2010 U.N. report, women hold an average of 17 percent of the seats in parliament, and only seven of 150 elected heads of state and 11 of 192 heads of government are women.

Clinton called the global effort to give women a much greater voice in public life “one of the great pieces of unfinished busi-

Photo courtsey of iol news

Hillary Clinton (left) applauds as President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff arrives at the United Nation headquarters in New York.

ness in the 21st century.”

“If we want a safe, secure, prosperous, peaceful future,” she said, “women must be equal partners and free to realize their own Godgiven potential.”

Sitting beside Brazil’s President Dilma Roussef, with other former and current women presidents on the panel and in the audience, Clinton said “clearly as someone who tried to be a president, it is very encouraging to see those who actually end up as a president.’’

The audience of several hundred women and a scattering of men applauded the former Democratic presidential candidate who lost the nomination to Barack Obama.

Clinton, who has been a leading global campaigner for women’s equality, said it wasn’t enough for the women leaders at the U.N. to just continue their own work at home.

“It’s also important that we reach out to the new emerging democracies and societies, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa, where women have marched and demonstrated, blogged, and put their lives on the line for a future that includes them, their families, their communities, and their countries,’’ she said.

DES MOINES, Iowa — A week after the Agriculture Department announced wider testing for potentially deadly E. coli in meat, Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann said Tuesday that regulations were overburdening food producers.

Bachmann visited a 140-yearold, family-run meatpacking plant in Des Moines and took a turn at cutting ribeye steaks in a chilly meat locker as she pushed back against regulations for food makers and other businesses. She did not call for the repeal of any specific rules.

“We want to have safety,” she said. “But we also want to have common sense.”

Bachmann says, as do most of those in the GOP field, that a lightened regulatory load would allow employers to spend money on expansion rather than federal compliance. But the Minnesota congresswoman is the first to focus the argument on the food-processing industry.

“That’s part of the problem,

the overkill,’’ Bachmann told reporters during an appearance in which she posed with huge slabs of beef.

“And when they make it complicated, they make it expensive and so then you can no longer stay in business.’’

The Agriculture Department said expanding testing of E. coli in meat from one strain to seven would hasten recalls of tainted products and help officials identify more foodborne illnesses.

However, the meat industry opposed the move as too expensive without enough benefit. The USDA expects the additional testing to begin in March.

Bachmann’s backing of the food industry view that regulations are a problem follows high-profile recalls of peanuts, eggs and other tainted food products.

Officials said this week that tainted cantaloupes had sickened at least 35 people in 10 states.

Small-scale food producers often argue that their products are safer because they are produced in smaller, lessmechanized batches. Experts counter that unsafe food can be produced anywhere.

Democratic candidates agree to U.S. senate debate Associated Press BOSTON — All seven Democratic candidates hoping to unseat Massachusetts Republican Sen. Scott Brown have agreed to their first full debate.

The debate will be a key test for Elizabeth Warren, who jumped into the race last week.

Warren is largely untested as a candidate, having spent nearly two decades as a Harvard Law professor and consumer advocate.

Warren will have plenty of company on stage including

Newton Mayor Setti Warren, City Year youth program cofounder Alan Khazei (KAY’zee), immigration attorney Marisa DeFranco, state Rep. Tom Conroy, former lieutenant governor candidate Robert Massie, and Newton resident Herb Robinson.

Democrats are eager to reclaim the seat, which was held for nearly half a century by the late Sen. Edward Kennedy.

The debate is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 4, at the University of MassachusettsLowell.

Guantanamo to close Associated Press

BRUSSELS — U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder says that the Obama administration will do its utmost to close the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay ahead of next year’s presidential elections despite political opposition.

Holder said at the European Parliament on Tuesday that even if the current administration fails to close it ahead

of elections, it will continue to press ahead if it wins the November 2012 presidential vote.

Republican presidential rivals Rick Perry has said he was happy the U.S. prison at Guantanamo has been kept open.

Holder said that the administration wants to close the facility “as quickly as possible, recognizing that we will face substantial pressure.’’

Features

Thursday, September 22, 2011

theonlinebeacon.com

Irene sweeps through Western Mass.

5

By Mary Redstone Features Editor

I had been driving for twoand-a-half hours and I was still nowhere near North Adams. Just over a week had passed since Hurricane Irene made its way up the Eastern Coast and over Mass., and the routes into North Adams were still proving complicated and confusing. What was usually a ride that took just under two hours was now taking close to three. However, I pressed onward, clutching onto a paper with Google Map directions as I passed through unfamilliar towns.

Mary Redstone Features Editor

Attack of the Over-Reacting News Anchors

Evacuation Though Hurricane Irene reached MCLA before school had begun, campus was still occupied by students required to arrive early, including RAs and athletes.

Only five days into their stay, they were required to evacuate campus. Some students had to move all the way back home, a place they had left less than a week before. Senior Ken Borter, an RA in the townhouses, was one of those students. However, his own evacuation didn’t end when he got home.

“I had to evacuate RA training for 3 days,” Borter said, “and then [I] got evacuated from my home due to a threat of a dam bursting, in which it did shortly after.

I live in upstate New York and it really got messed up, not from the storm itself but from the flooding and damage after.”

Senior Jacob Wheeler was not on campus during the hurricane, but was very close by. Wheeler is a resident in the Boardman apartments on Montana St, and was living there during the storm.

“Irene really did have very little impact, at least on me and where I was living,” Wheeler said. “There was some rain, some moderate wind, but little else. I was oddly disappointed by nature’s lack of viscosity.”

Senior Todd Foy was on campus as well during the days leading up to the storm and shared similar views on the evacuation.

“Essentially, I believed the evacuation was a little extreme for the

Photo Courtesy of MassDOT

Rainwater from Hurricane Irene rips through the road at the hairpin turn on Route 2. The road is now passable, but still damaged. conditions that we experienced,” said Foy. “Having an entire residence hall emptied for some rain and wind was a bit much to me.

However, I do understand that the college administrators had our best interests at heart and it was better to have everyone safe with their families other than a myriad of liabilities.”

The Damage Hurricane Irene was diminished to a Tropical Storm by the time it reached New England and simply produced rain and wind, but it left behind sweeping damage.

Mass Department of Transportation (DOT) created a Google Map showing all of the roads in Western Mass. that have been deemed impassable or dangerous as well as individual areas of concern.

The biggest area of concern, in terms of road importance as well as distance, is a 5.8 mile stretch of road on Rt. 2 through the Mohawk Trail State Forest. The closure begins in Charlemont and ends in Florida. This closure makes it im-

possible to take Rt. 2 directly into North Adams. Instead, MassDOT recommends getting off Rt 2 in Shelburne Falls, taking Rt. 112 to Rt. 116, and then using Rt. 8 directly into North Adams, adding approximately thirty minutes to the drive. Luckily, the drive on Rt. 116 is as close as you can get to the scenic beauty of Rt. 2 through the State Forest.

Junior Tyson Luneau, however, created his own route to reach MCLA, adding about 40 minutes to his trip.

“It took me a while [to make the route]. I had to try a couple different ways,” Luneau said.

He said that it ended up getting him there, but he won’t be using it again.

“I assumed the backroads were paved. I came across one road in Buckland that [wasn’t] and it was almost completely washed away.”

Despite the amount of damage to this part of Rt. 2, not all hope is lost. MassDOT, on their map of detours and road outages, has assured Mass. residents that “The goal of the Highway Division is to

Photo Courtesy of Google Maps and MassDOT

MassDOT has provided Google Maps with information on road closures and detours. The highlighted section of Route 2 is completely impassable, with dots showing specifics of the damage. The Hairpin Turn, however, is passable but damaged. The southern highlighted route is MassDOT’s suggested detour to travel around the damage and reach North Adams.

reopen this segment of Route 2 to traffic by mid-December 2011.”

This detour may be longer than the ordinary trip into North Adams, but it is the one with the least storm-related problems. Although the famous hairpin turn on Rt. 2 is still open, it still has considerable damage. A few hundred yards winding back up the mountain on the eastern side of the turn is narrowed down to only one lane due to undermining, an occurance when dirt underneath the road errodes away, cauing the road to collapse.

Traveling from Vermont Mass. is surely not the only state in New England to be affected by the hurricane, but it is one that has had the most impact on students. Rachel Hilliard, a senior, is a Vermont resident who was lucky enough to not be on the receiving end of widespread damage.

“I was not directly affected, nor was my route to MCLA,” Hilliard said. “I live in Shaftsbury. The next town over from me [Bennington] had a good amount of flooding, and my fiancé and I could not get to his house…due to closed roads.”

Professor Robert Bence is also a resident of Vermont who had not been adversely affected by the hurricane’s damage.

“I don’t live very far in Vermont,” Bence said, “so with the closing of Rt. 8 in Clarksburg, the damage only added four minutes and two stop lights to my commute.”

While it seemed the general consensus of New England was that we were braced and ready for the storm to do its worst, and maybe even a little excited for it, everyone was undoubtedly relieved that it did not actually do as much damage as it could.

“Storms have always been hyped,” Wheeler said, “perhaps it gives meteorologists a sense of meaning in an otherwise existentialist abyss. But this was compounded by Katrina; now any storm is blown, forgive the expression, far out of proportion.”

I’m the kind of person who gets sick of network news channels very fast. I don’t enjoy sitting down and watching the news for more than 20 minutes at a time, because I start getting annoyed.

News channels, specifically weather segments, like to make people fear for their lives on a regular basis. To me, this was no more evident than in the days leading up to Irene.

On Friday, I spent a couple hours at my parents’ business. It was an unexpected visit, so I had brought nothing to occupy my time. I was left with one option: watch the television that got nothing but network news.

I sat through at least an hour of news where they did nothing but track the hurricane. While I learned a lot about what makes a hurricane move, why it slows down over cold water, and how it originated, I got sick of all of the fear.

Sure, it was a hurricane. Sure, it can wipe off your roof and tear down trees and flood your basement but what I was witnessing was a bit absurd.

The anchors, as well as the weather man, were talking more about what would happen to you if the power goes out for more than three days than where the hurricane was actually going to hit. Or, what’s in store for poor Fluffy or Skippy when the thunder and lightening makes them cower under the coffee table.

The news the next day was even worse. My father is the kind of person who not only tolerates, but enjoys watching the news for extended periods of time. As the first bands of the hurricane started making their way into New England, the news was a constant stream of what the worst could possibly be, rather than the fact that the hurricane was no longer really a hurricane, but instead a tropical storm.

In the end, a few areas of Mass. and a large area of Vermont did get hit pretty bad, but it was nowhere near the hype that was put out by the news stations. Perhaps they want you to fear for the worst so that if it does happen we’ll be ready. Instead, though, I think the message got lost in a sea of fear and an obsession with the worstcase-scenario.

6

A&E

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Upcoming Events!

theonlinebeacon.com

“Space Was The Place” coming to a close

By Nora Weiss

Today 2 p.m.

In the quad (Rain location Venable Gym)

President’s Ice Cream Social and Activities Fair Sept. 24 3 p.m.

In the Quad

MCLA Presents!

Joan Soriano: The Duke of Bachata Aug. 25 - Sept. 25

MCLA Gallery 51: Space Was the Place Sept. 24- 25 MASS MoCA

FreshGrass: A Festival of Bluegrass + Art Featuring: Yonder Mountain String Band, Del McCoury, The Infamous Stringdusters, and more!

Sept. 24 8 p.m.

XL Center Hartford, CT

Roger Daltrey Sept. 24 8 p.m.

Elf Parlor

Reggae Soul Explosion Dance Party Sept. 27 7 p.m.

Palace Theatre Albany, NY

Primus Sept. 29-30 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Maya IV

Drawing From The Body Sept. 25 Two Gallery Openings!

MASS MoCA

Jane Philbrick: The Expanded Field & Stephen Vitiello: All Thoese Vanished Engines

Staff Writer

Gallery 51 tries creating utopia through this month’s exhibit “Space was the Place,” exploring what makes society perfect through the eyes of multiple artists. The exhibit curator is Alex Young, an artist with ties in North Adams.

Gallery manager Ven Voisey explained “Space” as a result of artist-to-artist conversations.

“It’s all about failed utopias,” Voisey said. “Alex centered a lot his own work for this project around a man named King Gillette, who believed in utopian socialism.”

King Gillette, the creator of Gillette Razors, believed in a world that was ruled by corporation, where every continent would have one city seen as their metropolis. Gillette actually offered Theodore Roosevelt $1 million to run the U.S. metropolis. Roosevelt declined.

“Space” features nine artists and their visions of a perfect society. The exhibit, Young said, is meant to bring together a collection of works that addresses disdain for the present with attempts to attain perfection in the future.

“It’s meant to take you on a ride,” Voisey said. “Here is failed utopia, but these artists play historians, creative historians.

These are utopian experiments.”

Attempts at perfection are dreams often deferred, and “Space” turns a focus on such attempts. Through simple sculptures that explain the physical

Photo by William Casey/Beacon Staff

Carly Samach peruses “Space was the Place” at Gallery 51. layout of suburban cul-de-sacs to the complex idea of leaving Earth to live on the moon, the exhibit portrays the different perceptions of what people want the future to bring in terms of living.

“The exhibit shows the continual mutation of ideas that shapes our future,” Voisey said.

“While the pieces were being put together, North Adams as a whole was discussed; it’s kind of hard not to.”

As any student will tell you, North Adams is always changing. The city continues to revamp itself after the loss of industry more than two decades

ago. With MASS MoCA opening in 1999 and Main Street becoming a hub of modern art, North Adams has tried to reshape itself to create a better future. This concept plays almost directly into “Space.” It would be no surprise if someone associated the city as the immediate inspiration for the Gallery 51 exhibit.

While “Space” is coming to the end of its run on Sept. 25, Gallery 51’s DownStreet Art continues the season affiliated with the College. Visual arts professor Gregory Scheckler will showcase pieces he has been creating for the last 21 years. His drawings, photography, and new alle-

gorical paintings will be on display. A cultured artist who has studied in Italy, the professor’s exhibit “Remixed Messages” will be showcasing in Gallery 51 from Sept. 29 to Oct. 23.

Much like Gillette, Frank Lloyd Wright ventured toward utopia through invention and culture defining. Along with creating what is now known as the ‘ranch’ house, Wright also believed perfect livability for America existed in round plots for every home to be set upon. However, suburban landscapes developed differently over time, leaving the Wright belief in the dust.

Soriano performs Saturday Press release MCLA Presents! has announced that Dominican Republic native Joan Soriano will perform bachata music to open its 2011-12 season, on Saturday, Sept. 24, in the MCLA Academic Quad at 3 p.m., in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.

His recordings and live performances showcase a down-toearth, rootsy style of shantytown bachata that has garnered him considerable acclaim, according to Jonathan Secor, director of special programs at MCLA. As a young boy in the rural Dominican farming village of Monte Plata, Soriano made his first guitar out of a discarded metal box and fishing wire. Recently, he was featured in Alex Wolfe’s documentary, “Santo Domingo Blues,” and is the subject of Adam Taub’s film, “The Duke of Bachata.”

Following the critical success of his debut album, “El Duque de la Bachata” (iASO Records, Sept.

2010), and working out material for his forthcoming sophomore release, Soriano returns to the United States for a fall tour.

The Chicago Reader calls Soriano “a forward thinker as well as an old soul…playing crisp, seductively repetitive, high-velocity guitar patterns over coolly perco-

Photo courtesy Of

Joan Soriano: The Duke of Bachata performs Sept. 24. lating percussion.” East Bay Express named “El Duque” in their Best Music of 2010 feature, saying, “Joan Soriano is a bachatero with a royal touch. He plays guitar with a passion and finesse that will leave you speechless.”

Soriano’s Dominican bachata has garnered acclaim not only from world music outlets, but also National Public Radios’s “All Things Considered,” as well as La Mega, the massive FM Latin station in

New York City.

After NPR’s “All Things Considered” championed Soriano’s “clean, feathery guitar sound” and “nod to the deep history and cultural continuity that flows through this giddy, sorrowful, New World music,” New York’s La Mega 97.9 FM, one of the most listened-to Latin stations in the U.S., added Soriano’s “Vocales de amor” to regular rotation. “El Duque” also spent several weeks on the Bill-

board Top 10 Tropical chart.

Bachata is the Dominican Republic’s foremost cultural export, heard in just about every bodega (convenience store) in New York City, as it is in the Dominican Republic’s colmados (that country’s bodegas). And beyond the Dominican diaspora, the music plays in Latin dance clubs around the world, from New York and Los Angeles to Amsterdam and Milan, Tokyo and Shanghai.

According to Deborah Pacini Hernandez, author of “Bachata: A Social History,” “Soriano’s music is gorgeous. He displays a powerful voice, versatility with bachata’s style of guitar playing, and compelling, original compositions about love and loss.”

Soriano, 39, has collaborated with some of the genre’s progenitors. He plays a music that is more modern than theirs, yet still more traditional than that of younger bachateros.

Ticket prices to MCLA Presents! performances are reduced for the 2011-12 season. General admission is $10. Tickets for MCLA alumni are $8, $5 for staff and faculty, and members and students are free. Tickets may be reserved by calling MCLA Presents! at (413) 662-5204. For more information, (413) 664-8718, or go to www.mcla.edu/presents .

7 FreshGrass grows into festival at MASS MoCA Thursday, September 22, 2011

A&E

theonlinebeacon.com

Yonder Mountain String Band, Del McCoury, and The Infamous Stringdusters headline the bluegrass festival

By John Deming A&E Editor

FreshGrass. The name alone sounds enticing, but the music it brings sounds even sweeter.

FreshGrass, a festival combining art and the finest bluegrass bands around kicks off Saturday night at MASS MoCA. Yonder Mountain String Band headlines eight acts who carry on this legendary American genre, including living legend, Del McCoury, as an opener. A real recipe for pickin’ and grinnin’.

Festivities begin Saturday night at 6 p.m. with an acoustic set by David Mayfield, along with a reception for The Speed Way, a new outdoor exhibit on MASS MoCA’s sprawling outdoor campus, featuring what

Photo Courtesy of Bloximages.com

Yonder Mountain String Band will headline FreshGrass Bluegrass and Art Festival.

MoCA describes as three new works of art, and 1.5 acres of “asphalt meadow” landscaping.

Sara Jarosz, The Hackensaw Boys, and The Infamous Stringdusters fill up the rest of night, with a smooth mix of outdoor performances in courtyard C and indoor shows on the Hunter Cen-

ter stage. This outdoor dynamic coincides with the early autumn weather that turns the North Adams hills into a natural spectacle sure to add a homey touch to the homiest of music.

Day two begins early, and is booked to be well-worth missing a day of football for. At 11 a.m., a

full day of outdoor performances begins with Aoife O’Donovan of Crooked Still kicking things off in courtyard C, followed by The Ramblin’ Jug Stompers, Dave Mayfield, Del McCoury, and the main event: Yonder Mountain themselves.

Yonder Mountain String Band,

‘Grave Encounters’ comes close Latest horror movie follows the lost-footage style of horror presentation

By Mary Redstone Features Editor

Blame the “Blair Witch Project.” In 1999, it came out in theaters and scared the pants off everyone. Then again, that’s what horror movies are supposed to do: scare the pants off you. However, the “Blair Witch Project” did what only a handful had done in the past; it told you the story was real, and that someone had found their footage and was now turning it into a feature-length film and making a ton of money on it. Now, everyone is jumping on the Found-Footage genre. Some are better than others, some are frightening and some are just plain silly. “Grave Encounters” manages to be both frightening and silly, and doesn’t do too bad a job at it.

The film opens in the typical way of found-footage films: an explanation of how the footage was found. In this case, it’s the former producer of a ghosthunting type show called “Grave Encounters.” He explains that they went into an asylum in

is brought into the building and overdramatical ly stands over a bathtub in one of the asylum’s rooms, calling out to spirits and claims he was speaking to a woman who killed herself in said tub. Once he is finished proclaiming, the host of the show yells cut and the psychic begins laughing.

“Too much,” he asks, mimicking his own mannerisms, sending the whole crew into laughter.

Later, the host even bribes the groundPhoto Courtesy of bloody-disgusting.com skeeper into “Grave Encounters” is the latest movie in the saying he saw lost-footage horror genre. a ghost in the Maryland to film an episode court yard, all and never made it out, but their for the sake of hyping up their footage survived. While this is show. quickly becoming cliché, and This is a film that likes to keep almost tiresome, it is key to the all its scares in one basket, and genre. that basket is the last forty-five “Grave Encounters” takes a minutes of the film. Very few glimpse into the world of ghost- scares are seen before then, and hunting television shows that the ones that are simply jump viewers have always wondered out at you; all but yelling “boo!” about, whether or not it’s a However, once “Grave Encounglimpse based in fact. A psychic ters” begins that terrifying de-

scent into madness it doesn’t stop. There is departure from the usual scares of an asylum; playing with time and space and making the audience feel claustrophobic along with the characters. Lucky for “Grave Encounters,” not all the scary moments were revealed in the trailer. In the trailer, one shot of a girl in the corner, eerily reminiscent of the “Blair Witch Project” barely holds a candle to some of the other scares the cast encounters.

Without delving into spoilers, the ending was both expected and unexpected. It was not something that stuck with me after I saw it, though it may just be that I don’t frequently find myself in asylums on a regular basis. I definitely was scared pants-less in the final act of the film, but not to the after-movie nightmare extreme.

Of all the found-footage films coming out this year, as well as the ones of previous years, “Grave Encounters” breathes a bit of freshness into the genre.

While it did use a lot of techniques of previous films, it almost needed to in order to keep away from confusion. It was definitely scary, sometimes horrifying, but it was not something that kept me up at night. It is a film that is definitely worth a watch, if not for the laughs in the beginning of the film while watching the bumbling crew attempt to make scares where there aren’t any, and continuing to laugh when they realize they didn’t need to make anything up.

formed in 1998, is a progressive bluegrass band from Colorado.

For the past 13 years they have carried on the legacy of a genre that has lost its mainstream status, but never its authentic American sound. Along with their music, Yonder Mountain also runs Frog Pad records, their own independent label.

Alongside YMSB is an old master of the bluegrass art; Del McCoury. Originally a member of Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys in the early 1960‘s, McCoury’s long career has served as an influence to many, from banjo pickers to Phish. McCoury is no stranger to festivals either, he has played everywhere from Bonaroo to the Newport folk festival, and started his very own Delfest, annually held in Cumberland, Maryland.

MASS MoCA is building a solid repertoire of music festivals. After two consecutive years of success with Wilco’s Solid Sound Festival, MoCA is turning into a premiere festival location, mixing art and music successfully throughout their riverside complex of old factories.

To purchase tickets to FreshGrass, call 664-4481 or visit Massmoca.org.

Weekend passes are $68.

Woodstock Film Festival renews emphasis on music

WOODSTOCK, N.Y. (AP) – The 12th annual Woodstock Film Festival kicks off this week in upstate New York with a renewed emphasis on music.

The festival running Wednesday through Sunday takes place in the famous Hudson Valley arts colony of Woodstock and in nearby towns. Organizers say they are offering a line-up of nearly 150 films, panels and special events. Actors Mark Ruffalo and Ellen Barkin are among the dozens of film industry participants expected to appear this year.

Featured films this year include the U.S. premiere of ``Peace, Love & Misunderstanding,’’ which was shot in the Woodstock area and stars Catherine Keener and Jane Fonda. Barkin plays a high-strung mother in another featured film, “Another Happy Day.’’ Festival director Meira Blaustein said she’s particularly excited that works by veteran filmmakers such as Jonathan Demme are being shown along with films from newcomers.

“They’re going to be side by side with kids – kids who work at a coffee shop while having made their first feature,’’ Blaustein said.

Woodstock, which lent its name to the famous 1969 music festival, typically features a number of music-related films. Music movies are back this year along with a new musical coordinator, School of Rock creator Paul Green. Green, whose school inspired the 2003 movie of the same name, is overseeing a series of live music events throughout the festival. ``We’re adding a whole sidebar to the festival,’’ Blaustein said.

A&E 8 The Nightwatchman strikes again Thursday, September 22, 2011

Morello’s new album provides a bleak yet patriotic vision

By John Deming A&E Editor

The guitar was long ago nicknamed an “axe,” and Tom Morello (of both Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave) sounds like it’s high time he take that name literally, raise his axe over his head, and crack this world right open.

The Nightwatchman (Morello’s politically angered folk-acoustic alter ego) has released World Wide Rebel Songs, an album that digs back into his borderline anarchical verse, while showcasing why his guitar style stands alone as an aggressively perfect balance of intricacies and in your face power riffs.

While album’s title alludes to a global message, The Nightwatchman sounds ferociously patriotic, while providing a bleak outlook of American policy and quality of life. His acoustic style rings of Arlo Guthrie, Bob Dylan, and Bruce Springsteen all in one fell swoop, while his lyrics provide fed-up commentary from the view of family men, soldiers, and the average American.

The Nightwatchman is the

Photo courtesy of consequenceofsound.net

The Nightwatchman’s new album World Wide Rebel Songs. voice of the people from the start. “Black Spartacus Heart Attack Machine,” one of many songs that provide focus on short but sweet lyrics and catchy yet thoughtful rock anthems, includes the simple declaration: “Me and my people are hungry, me and my people are through.”

This sets the pace for the Nightwatchman as he tears through “It Begins Tonight,” “Speak and Make Lightning,” and “Dogs of Tijuana.” He becomes the voice of change, and a musical crusader for political reform like no

politician we’ve seen in years.

Standing alone on this album is “Stray Bullets.” This take-noprisoners tune tells the plight of a few good men sent to Iraq for 15 months. When their comrade is shot by “stray bullets raining on down” they make a “mission of their own” to kill the men responsible (their superiors) and then head home. Not since Roger Waters’ “When the Tigers Broke Free” on Pink Floyd’s The Final Cut has such a vehement discontent for military leaders been evoked. It is a righteous yet

almost treasonous patriotism The Nightwatchman sings of, and quite frankly, it’s refreshing to hear.

The Nightwatchman displays his adaptable musical prowess as well, highlighting the album with a Tom Waits-esque, creepy quality to his delivery on “Facing Mount Kenya,” as well as his mixture of reggae, soul, and folk while teaming up with Ben Harper on “Save the Hammer for the Man.” Is The Nightwatchman optimistic? Hell no! World Wide Rebel Songs is a Tom Morello hungry for change he doesn’t see arriving anytime soon; so he picks up a guitar and gets in the face of the powers that be. Morello’s consistent here-we-come attitude is a reminder of the role music must play in our world’s reform, just as it did in generations past.

Unfortunately, this generation’s Bob Dylan runs the risk of not being heard – he’s releasing music in a pop culture world with little purpose other than to amuse us to death. It won’t stop Morello, especially with his music so relative to the everyday events of a world hungry for reform and justice.

“I’m a thousand tornadoes screaming cross the plains, and Gabriel’s horn on judgment day,” declares the Nightwatchman in “Branding Iron.” World Wide Rebel Songs proves him right.

Berkshire Improv Comedy Troupe to perform Press Release Main Street Stage and the Royal Berkshire Improv Troupe (RBIT) have announced their Comedy Night performance at The Red Herring, located on Spring Street in Williamstown. The show is Friday night at 8 p.m.

Stand-up comedy and improv comedy will be featured together in one night, with Stand-up hosted by Seth Brown and featuring Thomas Lewis and Carlos Garcia.

The Improv comedy will feature RBIT. RBIT has been delighting Berk-

shire audiences with its own brand of non-scripted comedic mayhem since June of 2001. Performing a mix of theater games reminiscent of the TV show Whose Line Is It Anyway? The group also models its work on the teachings of renowned theater games/improvisation instructor Keith Johnstone.

Through audience participation, RBIT’s mission is to create entertaining scenes which explore the boundaries of theater improvisation.

Tickets are $10 at the door. For more information on the troupe please visit berkshireimprov.com

Photo by Tyson Luneau/Beacon Archives

The Royal Berkshire Improv Troupe performed at the former Main Street Stage in North Adams last fall.

MCLA Dance Company open auditions!

Sunday, Sept. 25 5:00 -7:30 p.m.

Amsler Campus Center Gym Bring your dancing shoes!!!

theonlinebeacon.com

John Deming A&E Editor

Jungle Work What the heck is Netflix’s deal?

In a country with an economy so weak that a gentle breeze could knock over the pillars of the New York Stock Exchange, Netflix is now creating two separate charges for customers: one for home delivery of DVD’s, and one for online streaming. I suppose Netflix chief executive Reed Hastings never heard the phrase “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

For anyone out there who still uses a type writer- and continues to watch their Ace Ventura collection on VHS here’s a brief history of the Netflix phenomenon: The Internet comes along and says “hey, let’s make the world easier and lazier.” Then, some folks decide to make watching TV and movies cheap by offering home delivery and online streaming. Netflix is born, and makes my ability to quote every episode of “The Office” and “Arrested Development” possible through instant online streaming. Blockbuster and Hollywood Video become dinosaurs, and magnets everywhere have a field day preying on the lifeless bodies of VHS tapes like they’re plastic “I Am Legend” vampires.

It’s an epic failure on the part of Netflix; its stock has tumbled to half its value in two months.

The two services now have different names, with the DVD by mail delivery service becoming Qwikster. This all comes on the heels of new options in movie renting services. Coinstar, which owns the Redbox kiosks we see at our local supermarkets and 7-11s, has begun to monopolize with its dollar-a-day DVD rentals that which are fairly convenient in their own right. Apple, Amazon and others are also beginning to monopolize on the convenience of the new norm in movie renting.

We in the newspaper industry, just like anyone else, know these are tough times, and adapting to it is the key to advancing the future. For Netflix, which until this point has dominated the online streaming world, to suddenly name-change and charge separately for each service is comparable to The New York Times changing its name to the New Yorkster and charging two fees: one for words, and one for pictures.

I’m still going to use their services, but one piece of advice for Reed Hastings and all the folks at Netflix/Qwikster: There’s always money in the Banana Stand.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Sports

theonlinebeacon.com

Volleyball team snaps losing trend

By Kayla Koumjian Sports Writer

This year is a unique one for the women’s volleyball team because of the ratio of returners and first year players.

MCLA’s women’s volleyball team has seven returners and nine new players. Although it may seem the team dynamic would be shaky, Coach Amanda Beckwith said the girls are closer than ever before.

“The team chemistry is phenomenal this year,” Coach Beckwith said, “best team chemistry in years.” Even with the new players, the Women’s Volleyball team acts as though they’ve know each other for years.

Junior captain Kelley Bryant agrees with her coach saying, “Although having a team mostly made up of freshman may seem like a bad thing, it is quite the opposite.”

“Even though our record may not show it, our team is the strongest it has ever been. We have so much talent and everyone can play multiple positions,” Bryant said. The volleyball team’s record is 4-9 and 0-1 in the conference.

Kelly Bryant has a lot of confidence for the team despite their record so far.

The team ended their five-game

losing streak this past weekend defeating Green Mountain and Becker College. Senior Kayla Bromback had eight kills while junior captain Kelley Bryant and freshman Allie Chang had ten digs.

“We have a lot of kids who are very experienced,” Coach Beckwith said. “At any moment, six new kids could be on the court.”

“With the talent and flexibility of our team, we have so many options for our lineup,” Bryant said.

Junior Kendra Hobbs said with all the new players, everyone has improved their skills.

“With nine first years added to the team this year our level of play is way higher than expected,” Hobbs said. “It’s a big transition in pace from high school to college and everyone has picked up new skills.”

Bryant also feels the fight for a position between players enhances each girl to play to their full potential. “With that healthy competition on our team, you see the best of every player because of the drive inspired by the limited amount of starting spots,” Bryant said.

Other teams in the conference are struggling to gain wins, according to coach Beckwith. “A lot of key players throughout the

9

Photo by Dennise Carranza/Beacon Staff

The Trailblazers reach for the win conference didn’t return. The conference is young this year,” Beckwith stated.

Coach Beckwith and her players believe there is room for improvement. Although the team chemistry is tremendous, the girls are still getting used playing with one another.

“Passing is the foundation to any play and without a good pass, you

can’t make plays happen,” Bryant said. “We just need to trust the girl next to us and know who will cover what.”

Defense is another aspect the team needs to work on. “Defense has been our main focus,” Kendra Hobbs said. “Serve receive is a big one. We have to get better passes which we do work on a lot, but there’s always room for more

progress,” Hobbs said.

Kelley Bryant also feels the team’s trust in one another’s playing abilities. “We’re still figuring out who will take charge,” Beckwith said.

VOLLEYBALL, cont. on page 11

Men’s soccer ties on Saturday

By Brendan Foley Sports Editor

It had rained on Thursday and been cold on Friday, but when the Men’s Trailblazer soccer team took the field on Saturday, the sun was warm in the sky and the breeze was cool as it blew across the Joseph Zavattaro Athletic Complex.

The weather did nothing to give the Trailblazers an edge as they battled Worcester State to a double-overtime tie.

The tie gives the team an overall record of 3-2-1 for the season.

The first half was controlled offensively by Worcester who kept the ball in the Trailblazer’s end and made numerous shots on net. Strong work by goalie Dillon Wager kept the Trailblazers in contention into the second half, where continued strong defense and more aggressive offense shifted the balance of power to favor MCLA. According to Coach Adam Hildabrand, the Trailblazers used the halftime to make important changes to their game. “We adjusted how we played at halftime.

If we had adjusted earlier, maybe we could have scored earlier.”

He later elaborated, “Soccer is a funny game. Sometimes you take a shot and don’t make it, and then you don’t get another chance for the rest of the game.”

As the game wore on and neither team could capitalize on various scoring opportunities, both verbal and physical altercations

Photo by Brian McGrath/Beacon Staff

Luke Davis dodges Worcester began to occur with increasing regularity.

Less than four minutes into the second half an intense battle for the ball between MCLA’s Ryan Shewchuck and Worcester’s Brian Cormier lead to a verbal altercation, with Cormier having to be restrained by his teammates. The referee handed out yellow cards to each side.

Cormier would continue to be an aggressive presence for the Trailblazers throughout the remainder of the game, and time

and time again the crowd of fans who had gathered at the field roared at the referee to call him on various incidents involving grabbing, tripping and thrown elbows.

As the clock ran down, clouds rolled over the field and the air grew cooler. As if on cue, the play became even more frenzied, with control pin-balling back and forth from team to team. MCLA’s defense continued to go above and beyond, with junior Scott Winslow executing a flying header to knock the ball to midfield with 26

minutes to play.

Regular play ended with no score for either team, and so the game went into a ten-minute overtime.

Worcester won the coin-flip and led off.

The ever-increasing aggression came to a head barely three minutes into overtime with Winslow being laid flat, eventually going to the ground after trying to get up and continue play. He was helped off the field to the applause of both players and fans.

Overtime elapsed with still no score, and so the game continued for another 10-minute period.

MCLA had three separate offensive charges which they failed to capitalize on, leaving the game scoreless.

“There’s a lot of intangibles in soccer,” Hildabrand said. “You need to believe you are going to score, and believe that you are going to win.”

He went on: “We call that area around the net The Final Third.

We need to be a little more patient before making the play. Some players want to rush, others want to pass and we need to find the right balance between the two.

That’s something we are going to work on.”

This game was the first MASCAC game of the season for both teams, giving both teams an opening record of 0-0-1. This leaves MCLA tied for second in the conference with Worcester, Westfield State and Bridgewater State. Of those teams, MCLA has the second best overall record, just one game behind Westfield’s 4-1-1.

As of this printing, the conference lead is tied between the 1-0 Salem State and Framingham State. Bringing up the rear are the 0-1 Mass Maritime and Fitchburg State.

MCLA’s next conference game will be this Saturday, September 24 against Salem. The game is at 1 p.m. at home.

10

Sports

Thursday, September 22, 2011

theonlinebeacon.com

Rugby returns to MCLA

By Kaitland Hager Sports Writer If there is one thing the MCLA Rugby Club can boast about this year, it’s their recognition as an official team.

With an average of 25 male members, the team has officially qualified as a DIV Central Conference team by the New England Rugby Football Union (NERFU).

“We’ve had a full guys team almost every practice,” men’s captain Peter Swain said.

Women’s captain Faith McCarthy can say the same. “We have more numbers than last year and the new players are catching on pretty quick.”

The women’s numbers are still not enough to be considered a full team, but they will play in local scrimmages over the next few months. The men’s numbers have secured them a place in the NERFU schedule against other schools like Southern Vermont College, Nichols College and Westfield State. They played their first match of the season against Southern Vermont College on Sunday September 18 and fell to SVC 7-0.

The Rugby Club has tabled heavily throughout the first few days of school. By getting the information out, it got returning and new students eager to know more and

Photo Courtesy of Cara Sheedy/Beacon Staff

Club founder and former president Peter Swain. the rugby club flourished.

“It makes it easier to practice knowing what’s going on,” Swain said. “Last year we had about four players who knew what they were doing.”

The additional experience under their belts – both from new players who have participated in other venues and returning players who learned the ropes last season – is exactly what the club needs.

Since Rugby Club is not under the direction of Intramurals, it became their responsibility to acquire their own fields, equipment, paying dues to the division, arranging their own schedule, contacting Emergency Medical

Transportation and the problem all sports suffered from last semester: the weather.

Glenn Lawson, the original faculty advisor for the club when it began in 1984, has helped with these issues, but it mostly rests on the shoulders of the club’s EBoard. A student-run athletic club might make things a little more difficult, but it also makes it their own.

Swain, who restarted the club in October of last year and is this season’s captain, has already put steps in place to keep the club running over the coming years.

In addition to the growing number of those interested, Swain has

stepped down as the club president. Instead, sophomore Tommy Chiang will lead the E-board.

“It makes for an easier transition,” Swain said. “Chiang can keep the club going and train someone to take over for him when he leaves.”

A transfer student from Maine Maritime Academy, Swain was disheartened to see that rugby was not a part of the sports or the Intramural program. After playing in high school, at MMA, and as a member of the Cape Cod Rugby League, he decided to form one himself.

“It was a lot of hard work, especially when no one knows how to play,” Swain said.

When Lawson was asked to step in as faculty advisor last October, he was skeptical.

“It’s easier to keep things going than to start,” Lawson said. When he attended the information session, he was taken-aback by the 60 or so students who showed up to find out more information and ultimately agreed to take back his former position.

It is the curiosity of the student body that Swain and the rest of the club are counting on to build a fan base. The mystery behind a game of rugby will hopefully draw a crowd in and the excitement and talent of the players will hopefully make them stay.

Dave Pallone speaks at Church Street Center Last night, best-selling author and former professional baseball umpire Dave Pallone spoke to students about sexual orientation at the ChurchStreet Center.

For coverage of last night’s event go to theonlinebeacon.com

Women’s soccer team gets first win

By Brendan Foley Sports Editor

On Tuesday night the Women’s Trailblazer soccer team broke a five game losing streak and won their first game of the season.

First year Lindsay Roy scored in the first half, the only goal either team collected that evening. The 1-0 victory over Lyndon State gives the team a record of 1-5 overall for the season thus far, with a MASCAC record of 0-1.

This victory is especially gratifying, as on Saturday the team lost it’s first MASCAC game against Salem State. The team recently graduated several seniors and is trying to fill in the gaps, as well as successfully integrate new players into the older team dynamic.

Despite these setbacks, team members have remained extremely positive about the the bond between teammates and the team’s chances of success through the season.

Prior to the Tuesday victory, sophomore Brianna Dandurant was quoted as being open about the problems but optimistic about their chances going forward.

“This year we are trying to focus a lot more on our midfield rather than our forwards. After losing a pair of forwards, Danielle Parenteau and Jessica Tietgens, due to graduation we are trying to get our midfields more involved in attacking.”

Dandurant is open about the problems the team has had to face from the start of the season.

Photo courtesy of Ian Grey /MCLA.edu

Briana Dandurant boots the ball “We weren’t really connecting as a team on the field due to many reasons like losing a lot of key players due to injury and also gaining a ton of newcomers.”

Sophomore Sara Lieneck agreed.

“We had a rough start, but that is normal for any team and we are still working on having everyone click together,” she said. “But we are working harder than ever at practice and are improving as a team. We are learning how everyone else plays and it is starting to pay off. At this point in the season the record isn’t what we are looking at, we are focusing on ourselves and improving.”

Thus far the Trailblazers have combined for a total of four goals off of 40 shot attempts. Comparatively, their various opponents have combined to scored 14 times off of 150 shot attempts.

Last season, the team finished the year with an overall record of 11-3-6 and a conference record of 4-0-3. The team shot for a total of 40 goals on 308 attempts while holding their opponents to 14 goals on 280 attempts.

The soccer team refuses to give up without a fight, and many new players seem to be impressed with the program.

Freshman Rachel Niddrie agreed.

“As a freshman, I had the expectation that once I entered this program I would be part of a family,” she said. “I expected that I would work harder than I had ever worked, I would learn the game in a whole new way, and I would become a better soccer player. And to be completely honest, while here, all of those things have happened.”

All involved agree that hard work at practice will be key in working towards a winning record.

Dandurant said, “I think our biggest strength as a team is our willingness to learn. Every person on our team is working hard and

trying to get used to the changes our team is going through and I feel like they are doing so with such an open mind.”

She continued, “Between formation changes, position changes and playing with new people we as a team are all fully embracing them [the changes] and trying to make the most of it.”

Senior Jackie Nash has similar feelings.

“The season has had a rocky start, but I feel each practice our team is learning more about the game, as well as about ourselves,” she said. “With an incoming class of 11 players, it takes a lot of bonding and patience to transition onto the field. We have been working incredibly hard in practice and we were just waiting for it to show in the games. Recently, we are proud of how much we have stepped up. The little things are coming together finally. There will be more progress made and even more success to celebrate in the coming weeks.”

Tuesday would seem to bear out the optimism and sense of hope that the Trailblazers have maintained, even in the midst of a losing streak. Whether or not they can maintain the renewed resolve is a question for the next game.

The Trailblazers will next play a conference game at Salem State on Saturday, followed by a home game against Green Mountain State.

Sports

Thursday, September 22, 2011

theonlinebeacon.com

Meet the new boss Women’s cross country coach brings the love of coaching to MCLA.

By Bobby Beauchesne Sports Writer

Brendan Foley Sports Editor

Howling Mad Sports Spot The bar is packed. Drinks sit by the wayside, forgotten, as every eye is glued to the various TVs arranged around the restaurant. The wait staff has long-since stopped serving and they stand side by side with the customers watching as the impossible plays out in front of their very eyes.

In 30 seconds, the Boston Bruins will have won the Stanley Cup. The newscast cuts to shot of Toronto players and fans with tears running down their faces, fists clenched and heads hung low.

In the morning the city will explode in outrage. Cars will burn, windows will be smashed and the masses will take to the streets to scream frustration up to the sky.

In the bar a chant is going around over these shots: “Nyah Nyah Nyah Nyah, hey hey, GOOB-BYE!” In key, too!

The pulse of the bar is quickening. People pound on chairs.

They applaud every pass of the puck. The newscast cuts to ‘TimmyThomas’ and the whole building erupts. Sonic pulses course through the wood of the bar. Press a finger to the surface and you can feel the vibrations shaking the bar to its core.

Ten seconds to go.

My shift has been over for almost an hour but I can’t call my parents, Bruins-lifers both, away from the biggest game.

So instead I spend that night in Rocco’s Bar and Restaurant, counting down the seconds amongst the staff and customers.

Old, young, skinny, fat, locals and people who have never set foot in the place before, all united and bonded by an almost indescribable sense of release.

The clock ticks down to zero and the roof blows off the joint. Hugs, high-fives and handshakes are passed from person to person like the happiest virus ever. I find myself sharing a toast with two oldtimers who have been grinning ear-to-ear for almost an hour and show no signs of fading.

My parents’ generation told stories about blown calls and shock losses, of Bill Buckner and Bucky Effing Dent.

There will be dark days for Boston sports in the near future, it’s just the cyclical nature of the beast. But in those bad times, I’ll get to tell my kids about watching the Snow Bowl from a fold-out bed in Texas. Of Curt’s bloody sock. Of Ray Allen hitting three after three after three.

And of an almost endless night in Rocco’s, counting down endless seconds with perfect strangers.

In order to meet new Division III standard, MCLA has been required to add two new sports teams to the official roster. After much deliberation during the spring and summer, the decision was made to add men’s tennis and women’s cross country as the new teams. New coach Rob Colantuono has been shaping his women’s cross country team for several weeks.

Rob Colantuono loves to coach.

It doesn’t matter the level or competition or even the sport. Beginning in 1991, he coached the women’s cross country program at Williams College. Going back even further, he has also coached at several Berkshire county high schools including Lenox, Pittsfield, and Drury. Colantuono is not just a coach, but an educator as well.

In fact, he was the principal at Crosby Middle School in Pittsfield during the mid-1990’s and most recently held the same position at Thoreau Middle School in Concord, Mass. He has a passion for guiding youths and teaching them to grow intellectually as well as physically. With all of his experience in the academic world, he holds a special place in his heart for the vocation of coaching.

“Coaching is by far the most rewarding experience of my career,” Colantuono said in an interview recently.

Now, he brings his love of coaching to MCLA. This is the first year for women’s cross coun-

Photo MCLA.com

Colantuono try as an independent team. The team lacks numbers, but not competitive spirit.

“We only have seven girls on the team right now,” Colantuono said, “but they work hard and they are a pleasure to coach.”

Coach Colantuono credits several people for his love of coaching, but one close friend helped fill and early loss and particularly stood out.

“My father passed away when I was seven years old. My friend Ed Barrett was my wrestling teammate and a tremendous friend.

He was a true inspiration and helped me through tough times.”

Barrett passed away several years ago. Colantuono keeps his memory close and tries to instill the virtues of sacrifice and team work in his athletes. He also knows that any new program faces hardship and uncertainty.

He is confident that his team will show great resolve and learn from adversity. One drawback that he points out is the lack of a track and field team at MCLA. “Usually, a cross country program can pick from track and field athletes,” he said, “but here that is not the case. That just means we will have to work harder to get numbers for our

program.”

He added, “Also, I believe that adding a cross country skiing program would help the running squad. Many athletes who cross country ski also run cross country. This would be great especially here in the Berkshires, as we have tremendous cross country skiing spots.”

Although the team might be short on numbers, they do not lack senior leadership. Caitlin Culver is a veteran runner, who competed in cross country for MCLA when the program was still co-ed.

“Caitlin is a great leader, something every team needs. Others can look up to her because they know she will lead by example,” Colantuono said about the senior.

Culver is also excited to be competing under Colantuono.

She said, ”Coach Colantuono has been nothing more than a great coach and asset to the women’s cross country program. He has brought a new type of philosophy to running and our training.

It is a philosophy that our team has been receptive to and we have seen huge improvements in our running since the start of the season.”

The women’s cross country team recently placed 13th at an event at Smith College. No one is going to get discouraged, however.

Colantuono said “We just need to focus on getting a little better each time out, and keep our mental approach.”

VOLLEYBALL from Page 9

Kendra Hobbs thinks the team it’s stronger than ever. “We have 16 strong players on our team; it feels like we have all the pieces to the puzzle, we just need to put it together,” said Hobbs.

Coach Beckwith believes their passing has improved since the beginning of the season. Her focus is on finishing, saying “What we now need to perfect is finishing.”

When asked about the future both Bryant and Hobbs seemed very positive. “In the future I expect our team to be even stronger,” said Bryant, “once we consistently pass well, we will be able to really do some damage in the front row.”

Bryant also added, “”With only two to three seniors leaving the team and the core group of freshman returning, our team has the ability to grow together this season.”

Kendra Hobbs is determined to make MASCACS, saying, “I expect more wins added to ourw record.

Our goal is to make it to MASCACS. I believe the more we play the more we learn the better we’ll get, and we will get there.”

Coach Beckwith is also very pleased to be back in the refinished Campus Center Gym. “It’s great to be back in the new gym, it really looks great,” said Beckwith.

Standings

11

(As of Press Time)

Men’s Soccer

Salem Framingham Westfield MCLA Bridgewater Worcester Maritime Fitchburg

All 4-2-0 1-3-1 5-1-1 3-3-1 2-2-1 2-2-1 0-5-0 0-6-0

Conf 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-1 0-0-1 0-0-1 0-0-1 0-1-0 1-1-0

Women’s Soccer Fitchburg Westfield Worcester Framingham Bridgewater Salem MCLA Mass. Maritime

All

Conf

6-1-0 5-1-1 4-2-1 3-3-0 4-3-0 4-3-1 1-5-0 0-4-0

1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-1-0

Volleyball All 7-5 Framingham 6-6 Worcester 3-9 Bridgewater 4-9 Westfield 4-10 MCLA 0-6 Salem Mass. Maritime 0-12

Conf 1-0 1-0 1-0 0-0 0-1 0-1 0-1

Men’s Soccer 9/24 Salem State 1 PM 9/27 @Castleton 7 PM 10/1 @ Mass. Maritime 4PM Women’s Soccer 9/24 @Salem State 1PM 9/28 Green Mountain 4PM 10/1 Mass. Maritime 1PM Men’s Tennis 10/5 @Clark 4 PM 10/7 @Springfield College 4PM Women’s Tennis 9/25 Western New England 12 PM 9/26 St. Joseph (Conn.)

3:30 PM 9/28 @Lyndon State 3:30 PM Men/Women’s X-Country 10/8 @Westfield State 12 PM/11 AM 10/15 @Western New England 12 PM/10:30 AM 10/29 @UMASS Darmouth Women’s Volleyball 9/28 @Framingham State 7PM 10/1 vs. Potsdam 2 PM 10/1 @Kean 4 PM

Photo by Dennise Carranzo/Beacon Staff

Angelica Perfido goes up for the spike.

Coach Beckwith is also very grateful for all the fans attending games.

“I’m so glad about the support and fan ship people have been showing towards our team on campus,”

stated Beckwith.

MCLA’s women’s volleyball teams have great expectations for their future and are looking forward to the growth of their team.

Rugby 9/25 @Wesleyan 1 PM @ Athletic Complex 10/2 BYE 10/9 Westfield State TBA

12

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Science/Overseas

theonlinebeacon.com

Center for Science and Innovation planned for 2013 SCIENCE from Page 1

The building of the Science Center is part of a $54 million project funded by the state’s Division of Capital Asset Management (DCAM) that also includes renovations to Bowman Hall.

“When we’re done, it will essentially be like having two new buildings,” Grant said.

Grant indicated that construction on Bowman Hall would not begin until after the Science Center is complete, however, to ensure that no classrooms or departments would be displaced.

She added that the estimated construction time for the project is approximately 18 to 21 months.

“If all goes well we’ll be teaching classes in 2013,” Grant said.

Schematics for the new building were completed by the architectural firm Einhorn Yaffee Prescott (EYP) Architecture & Engineering. According to the EYP Web site, the new Science Center will house a rooftop classroom and greenhouse and help promote sustainability.

“The three-story building, 65,000-gross-square-foot will house nine flexible laboratories and research space for Biology, Environmental Science, Chemistry, Physics, Psychology, the Berkshire Environmental Resource Center (BERC), and a start-up lab,” the EYP Web site states.

According to the DCAM Web

Photo courtesy of the EYP Web site

This artist’s rendering from Einhorn Yaffee Prescott shows the plans for the new Center for Science and Innovation. site, the new building will also have several energy-saving features, such as solar panels and heat wheels.

“The new building will include… laboratory support spaces such as prep rooms, general storage, chemical storage, machine shop [and] animal holding areas,” the DCAM Web site states.

A groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for Oct. 14 at 1 p.m. at the dirt parking lot between

Blackinton and Porter streets.

According to Grant, invitations have been sent out to speakers for the event, and more details about the ceremony will be made available as the date draws nearer.

“I think we’ll have a great turnout,” Grant said. “[There will be] lots of advocates and leaders who helped make this happen. It will be open to the whole campus. This is the whole institution’s celebration. It’s a mile-

stone for all of us.”

Grant also addressed anticipated parking concerns by noting that the newly-constructed parking areas on Ashland Street should alleviate some of the inconvenience created by the construction of the Science Center and the loss of the dirt parking lot.

“We’ll try to keep it as convenient as possible,” Grant said.

“Once people get used to it everything will turn out okay.”

Quick Facts - Part of a $54 million grant funded by the state’s Division of Capital Asset Management - Three stories tall - 65,000 gross square feet - Nine flexible laboratories - Estimated 18 to 21 month construction period - Solar panels and heat wheels, among other energy-saving features planned

Clinton calls for help Greetings from Heidelberg on global initiative

Overseas reporter Tano Holmes will contribute from Germany this semester.

By Tano Holmes Staff Writer

By Meghan Barr Associated Press

NEW YORK – Former President Bill Clinton said Tuesday that success of the alternative energy movement is hampered by a lack of financing. His comments came as world leaders attending the Clinton Global Initiative expressed fears about rising seas at his annual philanthropic conference.

The ex-president’s three-day summit for high-profile donors with deep pockets began Tuesday with a discussion about addressing global climate challenges, cohosted by Mexican President Felipe Calderon and South African President Jacob Zuma.

Frustration among the world leaders over the failure to create a legally binding world agreement on carbon emissions was obvious.

“We have seen much less progress than we hoped for,’’ said Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg.

Pointing to Germany’s successful creation of solar energy jobs as a model for other nations to emulate, Clinton said the main issue with green energy is a lack of proper funding.

“This has to work economically,’’ Clinton said. “You have to come up with the money on the front end.’’

Rising seas are a matter of life and death for small island na-

tions, Zuma said.

“Not theoretical, not in the future, now,’’ he said. “And they can’t understand why we’re failing to realize that.’’

Noting that the Kyoto Protocol on climate change is set to expire next year, Calderon said progress must be made toward establishing new rules at the United Nations convention on climate change in Durban, South Africa, in November.

Calderon said he is concerned that the world’s economic problems are overshadowing the need for action on climate change.

“I know that the world has a lot of troubles, but we are still facing the most challenging problem for human kind in the future,” he said, “and that is climate change.”

Sheikh Hasina, prime minister of Bangladesh, said rising seas would submerge one-fifth of her country, displacing more than 30 million people.

Clinton said the next countries most likely to be affected by climate change are places that are inland and hot, such as Mali, a landlocked nation in western Africa.

“A few years ago, after the south Asian tsunami, I spent a lot of time in the Maldives,” Clinton said. “I think it’s quite possible that the Maldives won’t be here in 30 or 40 years.’’

An ancient, red-roofed city spreads underneath me, punctuated by sharp church steeples and towers. The Neckar River flows slowly through the city, crossed by ornate bridges. In the distance, are signs of modernity: a glass skyscraper here, a massive factory there. Behind me rises Heidelberg Castle, almost 800 years old, an

impressive combination of fortified terraces and renaissance architecture.

Hello MCLA! I hope you all have settled into your new semester.

Currently I am studying intensive German in Heidelberg, Germany, which lies in the state of BadenWürttemberg in the southwestern part of the country.

Heidelberg is a classic German college town, which also hosts the oldest university in Germany

founded in 1386. The city itself is fairly small, with 140,000 residents, but students account for almost a quarter of the population, making Heidelberg quite lively.

Heidelberg was one of very few cities not bombed by the British or U.S. forces in World War II, and the city has a truly ancient feel.

To read the rest of this story, visit theonlinebeacon.com

FINANCIAL AID ANNOUNCEMENT ATTENTION FIRST TIME DIRECT LOAN RECIPIENTS: You must complete the on-line promissory note and entrance counseling before your loan can be disbursed!

Loans that are not completed will be canceled.

Contact the Financial Aid Office at 662-5219 for more information.

Campus Comment

Thursday, September 22, 2011

theonlinebeacon.com

13

Do you think Public Safety should be armed? The Beacon “I don’t like it. I don’t feel it’s that necessary. I feel they should have them in the police station but [having firearms] on them is a bit much.”

“I don’t know, it doesn’t really bother me. I haven’t really thought about it. As long as they don’t abuse or use them inappropriately I don’t have a problem.”

- Ben Willnow, 2013

- Meghan Davidson, 2014

The Beacon is published Thursdays during the academic year and is distributed free to the College community. The Beacon is funded by the Student Government Association, the English/Communications department and from ad revenues.

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“The students are adults and here to study. It’s distracting to these students who are here to learn.

Also the lack of a multicultural police force might intimidate some of the minority students here in thinking that the police will focus on them.”

“I don’t want guns on campus.

Having them is just another step closer to someone we don’t want having a weapon getting one.”

- Michael Feloni, 2013

“I don’t think they should. It’s a small school and I don’t think it’s necessary. And [the] North Adams Police Department is right down the street.”

“I have mixed feelings. It’s a good thing in [a] worst case scenario. It makes us feel safe. I don’t think it’s a good or bad thing though. They should be like any other police officer.”

- Gesse Etienne, 2013

- Tara Flynn, 2013

Compiled by Cara Sheeedy

you. We will all hear you. And if Student Government hears you, the administration hears you. It is as simple as that.

Arming of campus police. Major changes in the meal plan. Loss of the Honors House. Student discontent in the theatre department. These are just snippets of the things I hear in passing from you every day. Well, I am telling you now that you have the power to change all of this and more. We have lost things and feel helpless only because we have not spoken up. Now is the time.

Do not let conversations be confined to common areas or Townhouse living rooms. Do not let ideas become whispers. Instead, let all of these things ring out in SGA meetings, letters to the Beacon, and votes for your elected student representatives in a couple weeks. The power is in our hands, so let us firmly grasp it. To lose it again is something we simply cannot afford.

As your SGA President and fellow student, I am ready. I am ready to do what I was elected to do. Moreover, I am ready to do what is expected of me as an MCLA student. The question now is: Will you join me?

I hope to hear from and see you out there soon, my friends.

Todd Foy, Class of 2012 SGA President

Letters Policy The Beacon welcomes Letters to the Editor. Deadline is noon on Mondays for that week’s newspaper.

Required course pricey, unecessary For the last four years I have been faithfully purchasing all of my course materials from the Campus Bookstore and although books and materials may not be of the optimal price ranges at times, I usually do not have to shell out much more than $100 per semester. With this in mind, imagine my shock when I realized that my Computing and Communications course materials cashed in at a whopping $206.50 for just that one course.

I understand that part of the idea of a liberal arts college is to introduce pupils to a wide range of materials and courses in order to broaden the reach of their educational experience. However, I am deeply aggravated one course that has little to do with the application of my major, other than some basic Microsoft Office skills, should put such a deep

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Editorial Board

Letters to the Editor

First, let me say thank you to The Beacon staff and editors for allowing me to send in these comments. I know I am usually inundating them with letters and requests, so I am glad they have made room for these remarks.

Second, let me thank all of you who came out and voted in the spring elections. You helped bring about a change that we haven’t seen in a decade. Student Government truly stands once again for representing the students’ voice in college governance. It gives a literal meaning to “my college, right from the start.”

That said, I tell you that we face many challenges in the days and weeks ahead. Our campus is changing and evolving right before our very eyes. In this, I see hope and opportunity. We, as students with rights and privileges, have not just the ability but also a duty to shape MCLA. Our united voice as a student body is a powerful thing that cannot be ignored or silenced.

You might ask me, what can Student Government do? How can they help me? Why even bother saying what I think? Well, being a three-year veteran and now President, I can tell you that the answer is a lot. When students speak, students lead. If you attend an SGA meeting, send an email to your SGA representative, or even stop them on campus, they will hear

Signed columns and commentaries that appear on these pages reflect the views of the writers.

Letters should be kept to 500 words or less and are subject to editing for grammar and content. The Beacon will not publish anonymous or libelous letters.

- Doris Behanzin, 2014

Students have a voice through SGA

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dent in my funds, particularly as a student whom has to work multiple jobs to ensure she can afford her college fees each semester.

I understand that technology courses do require a certain amount of increased expenses, but is it really necessary to have a simple core requirement class be so costly? Considering just how technology-proficient our generation is, many of the students I know of (including myself) have already developed a sufficient enough skill set with Microsoft Office to use it properly. While I understand there is always room for some new skills with computers, I wonder if the gains of this class are really worth the rather substantial financial costs it requires.

Cat Versailles, Class of 2012

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Letters can be up to 500 words.

See our policies on the right for more information.

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14

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Commentary

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Should we arm Editorial the officers? Don’t stand on the sidelines

John Durkan Editor-in-Chief

Before we all jump and assume guns are a bad thing or assume that we’re in a perfectly safe world where nothing can go wrong, let’s take a look at this rationally, from both sides.

First, there’s a lot of reasons why people don’t feel safe around guns, namely because they’re designed to kill things, and in this case for public safety, people.

Solid point.

Let us continue with this. People accidently get shot, which is a pretty huge concern when it comes with firearms in general. At the June 22 community meeting in Murdock Hall, NAPD Commissioner John Morocco admitted that these things do happen, and have happened before in North Adams. Yikes.

(With that said, it’s important to remember that Morocco said the NAPD supports the arming of Public Safety.)

Then, in the case of a shooting, people question whether or not having an armed force would actually help. This point can go

both ways, I’ll touch upon the latter later.

If you agree with this, the reason probably is because in a lot of hypothetical situations having an armed officer wouldn’t necessarily save your life if you were in immediate harm unless if he or she were right there.

Also, some students I’ve spoken to also point out that North Adams Police Department is only a minute down the road. If there’s a standoff and not a shooting then the NAPD would make it in time and de-escalate the situation. If its a bloodbath then who knows if any police force, no matter how close in proximity it is, can help.

A lot of people believe MCLA is a safe environment and we wouldn’t ever need guns on this campus. I really agree that MCLA is a safe environment. In fact, I wouldn’t go to school here if it weren’t.

However, if the above points were enough to convince anyone, even myself, that we don’t need an armed force then there wouldn’t be so much discussion and late-night debates about the issue.

First, let’s combine two of the four points that Director of Public Safety Joseph Charon made during the first May community meeting. Point one: the campus is expanding. The officers patrol around town. The farthest building is on East Main Street. There’s

the Joseph Zavattaro Athletic Complex all the way up West Shaft Road. Now combine this with point two, the officer’s duty to react to any crime reported to them or acted in front of them.

Fair point, if there’s some sort of dangerous monstrosity being committed in front of the officer and he or she needs to react with a firearm then this makes complete sense.

Now let’s get back to the point about officers not being able to react to anything on campus in a timely manner anyway. As unfortunate as it is, having armed officers during a school shooting probably wouldn’t stop any deaths. Unfortunately and in a way fortunately, the officers can prevent further deaths with a quick arrival to the scene and with firearms.

Let’s take note too that these are not security guards, but rather trained officers, most of whom have firearm training and will receive more if this is implemented.

As for NAPD reacting to this scenario anyway – in a dangerous situation those 30 seconds to get from the station to campus will seem like minutes.

MCLA is a safe community.

Does adding firearms to the officers void us of that safe community status?

Comment and discuss on this at: theonlinebeacon.com

Upgrades good; Policy not so good Chris Goodell

Managing Editor Give credit where credit is due.

It seems the millions of dollars and the summer of construction were not wasted on the Campus Center. We have an aesthetically pleasing dining hall with more convenient serve-yourself stations than before. We have brick-oven pizza, a significant improvement on the sometimessoggy pizza creations of yesteryear. Most importantly, we have booth-style seating.

However, certain policies implemented in the new dining hall certainly warrant revisiting.

I can understand not wanting dishes and silverware to leave the Centennial Room – they have a way of being sucked into a black hole, never to be seen again.

However, when someone is told

they can’t leave the cafeteria holding their already half-eaten apple in hand, to me, that’s going too far.

The apple is going to be eaten – that’s a fact. Why should it matter whether it’s eaten inside the friendly confines of the Centennial Room or two steps outside while walking to class? It’s not as if the student in question was smuggling out an orchard of Granny Smiths in her bag. In an all-you-care-to-eat dining system, where is the harm in letting a student grab a piece of fruit or a slice of pizza to eat on the go, as long as they’re not taking any of ARAMARK’s dishes or silverware with them?

It seems that convenience has been sacrificed for security. I almost thought it was a joke the first time I left mid-meal to use the restroom and was told I would need a ticket, the equivalent of a grade school hall pass.

As a current student it is a major annoyance and inconvenience to my dining experience, and I can only imagine that a prospective student would be very turned off after hearing some of the Col-

In regards to the potential arming of public safety officers, SGA President Todd Foy put it best: “Students need to speak up if they don’t like it.”

Simply, if you don’t speak up – for or against for that matter – then this process will go ahead without you.

If you oppose this idea and truly do not want to see the officers armed, then go to the Nov. 16 community meeting – time and location to be determined. Speak your mind.

If you want to get your voice out in the public forum before that date, write to The Beacon, write to the Berkshire Eagle, write to the North Adams Transcript. You are not as silenced as you may think.

And lastly, as an option and your first amendment right, you can always form a protest. Just no Molotov cocktails please.

Every side involved in this – the administration, Public Safety, the Student Government Association, and the Faculty Association – all agree on one thing, which is

the opportunity for more public conversation.

Dean of Students Charlotte Degan said that the two meetings late last semester were not sufficient enough for public input.

She is definitely right – that alone was not enough time for the student body to get its opinion out.

One big student body concern over the summer was that this whole process was going to be wrapped up by the time the fall semester began. That didn’t happen, and now the opportunity to make your opinion directly known to those responsible for deciding whether to arm public safety officers or not has come.

This is your chance. If you want to be a key player don’t just sit on the sidelines.

As always, remember to be respectful in disagreement. As a community, we need to decide together whether to move forward with this and remember that we’re all on the same side to make the MCLA community a better and safer place.

On the Web

lege’s new dining procedures.

The Centennial Room used to be a place where all students, commuters and residents alike, could meet and socialize, regardless of whether or not they had meal plans. While it is the dining hall, it is also part of the Campus Center, and thus should be a

“The apple is going to be eaten - that’s a fact.

Why should it matter whether it’s eaten inside the friendly confines of the Centennial Room or two steps outside while walking to class?”

Photo by Cara Sheedy/Beacon Staff

Visit www.theonlinebeacon.com for video clips from the Dr. Marc Lamont Hill lecture. Dr. Hill spoke at the Church Street Center on Sept. 12.

Also online at theonlinebeacon.com place where MCLA community members can meet and mingle.

I applaud many of the upgrades to the Centennial Room and I can only hope that as renovations progress the dining experience will continue to improve.

First SGA meeting Tano Holmes in Germany Dave Pallone Lecture Additional photos

For Fun

Thursday, September 22, 2011

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Horoscopes

Aries: March 21-April 19 You aren’t at your best today, but you can still cope -- as long as you are willing to be honest and forthright. Make sure that your people aren’t being too hard on you. It’s okay to ask for help.

Taurus: April 20-May 20 Expect good news today -though you may have to wait some time for it to arrive. One of your most important people is in the process of responding to one of your requests, and you should like what you hear.

Gemini: May 21-June 21 You are feeling incredibly moody today -- so much so that you may bite the hand that feeds you! Try not to get too snarly when you don’t get your way. Sometimes you just have to grin and bear it.

Cancer: June 22-July22 Your intuitive powers are peaking -- and you feel great! Follow your nose and see where it leads you, as you might be able to get into some good trouble with someone you know and love.

Leo: July 23-August 22 You are willing to keep pushing even when others urge you to give up -- and that persistence should pay off for you today! You may expect a victory nobody could have seen coming.

Virgo: August 23-Sept. 22 Things are not nearly as dark as they seem. You’ve got more than one friend who is willing to help -- all you need to do is reach out.

This situation should bring you closer together.

Libra: Sept. 23-Oct. 22 You need to keep an even temper today, even if things don’t go the way you want them to. The odds are good that the best you can expect is a slow pace and grumpy friends, but you can improve their mood.

Scorpio: Oct. 23-Nov. 21 Big dreams mean big adventure today -- even if you don’t remember what you dreamed last night, you may find yourself following subliminal clues and making some pretty sweet discoveries!

Sagittarius: Nov. 22-Dec. 21 You are asking all the right questions today -- so don’t worry if you don’t get any answers you like. That takes time, and you simply need to wait until you’ve asked enough people.

Capricorn: Dec. 22-Jan. 19 You’re totally focused on one person today -- though romance might be the furthest thing from your mind! See if you can get yourself back on track and less obsessed, though it may take some time.

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Aquarius: Jan. 20-Feb. 18 Your emotional side is on a rampage today -- so much so that you might accidentally ruin your mood for something fun you had planned. Try to take time to just find your center and push on.

Pisces: Feb. 19-March 20 Your great energy is helping you appreciate some new music -- or maybe some older music you never really understood. Open yourself up to some serious right-brain action and see where it leads!

Horoscopes courtesy of Yahoo.com

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Photo Essay

Thursday, September 22, 2011

theonlinebeacon.com

Returning and new students of MCLA sit on benches, walk to and from classes and hang out relishing in the sunny day after a few days of rain.

Escaping from townhouse land for a bit, these students stroll to class in the sunshine.

Back to the Berkshires.

Photos by: Cara Sheedy

You can sit, stand or walk away before the work and snow gets heavy.

The bikes parked in front of Berkshire Towers.