The Lumberjack — Issue 6 — Spring 2013

LUMBERJACK The

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NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT

INSIDE Life: Monsoons drag show p. 12 A&E: Tubagrams p. 26 Sports: Women’s basketball p. 21

VOICE SINCE 1914 • VOL 99 • ISSUE 6 • FEB. 21 , 2013 - FEB. 27 , 2013

Kathryn Jim (center), president of the Northern Arizona Pride Association and five-year supporter of the Civil Rights Ordinance, is overjoyed with the news of the ordinance passing on Feb. 19. (Photos by Amanda Ray)

BY GARY COLLINS

O

n Feb. 19, the Flagstaff City Council met to consider, among other issues, a civil rights ordinance.

After much revision and discussion, backers of the ordinance hoped a vote would finally be taken.

The ordinance was crafted to provide legal protections for citizens in the areas of sexual orientation, gender identity and for veterans in employment and public accommodations. Religious-based organizations,

expressive groups such as the Boy Scouts, government agencies including Coconino County and businesses with fewer than 15 employees are excluded from compliance with the ordinance.

The ordinance imposes a fine of no more than $500 for the first infraction and no less than $900 or more than $2,500 for three or more infractions. The ordinance comes with the provision that the matter can be resolved with a conciliator and closed on that basis.

The council chamber was nearly filled to capacity for the session, with many citi-

zens offering passionate input.

Flagstaff Mayor Jerry Nabours opened the discussion period by asking those who were about to speak that they confine their comments to specific details of the ordinance, not on whether they were for or against the ordinance. He expressed his opinion that the views of the citizens were well-known to the council. He stressed he was in no way wishing to stifle the rights of citizens to speak their mind.

“It’s just time to get down to the nitty gritty,” Nabours said. see ORDINANCE page 5

Flagstaff resident Scott Meyers speaks with police after disagreeing with the audience’s opinion on the Civil Rights Ordinance.

Go to Jackcentral.com for daily updates, multimedia packages, extra content and stories before the issue hits the stands.

PoliceBeat Feb. 17 At 1:28 a.m., an officer of the Northern Arizona University Police Department (NAUPD) encountered a male and a female who appeared to be arguing.

Upon investigation the officer determined the female was just teasing the male. No report was taken.

At 2:48 p.m., a small dog was seen running past the NAUPD building.

Officers made a search of the area but the canine wasn’t found.

At 8:59 p.m., staff at Reilly Hall called in to report a vehicle was illegally parked in a handicapped spot.

Uniformed Student Aides responded to the scene and issued a parking violation notice.

Feb. 16 At 7:02 a.m., a resident of Reilly Hall called in to report her boyfriend (not an NAU student) had broken her computer during an argument.

Officers responded.

They took the suspect into custody and he was then transported to the Coconino County Sherriff’s Office where he was booked on a charge of criminal damage.

At 10:39 a.m., a student called to report from Lot 64 that her tires had been slashed and a window was broken.

Officers responded and the case was closed with all leads exhausted.

CommunitySpot

BY GARY COLLINS

At 9:49 p.m., a call came into NAUPD reporting fireworks were exploding around lot 40.

After officers arrived on the scene, they located five subjects in the Gabaldon Service Drive. They deferred two subjects for administration handling.

Feb. 15 At 10:43 a.m., a call was received by a Walkup Skydome employee regarding a subject who had been banned by the Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) from attending high school sporting events.

Officers were dispatched to the scene. They cited and released the suspect for theft of services, alleging he did not pay the required entrance fee. He was further warned against trespassing campus-wide and from AIA events.

At 6:49 p.m., a campus blue phone was activated.

The caller reported suspicious activity; several subjects were moving a soccer goal.

The responding officer determined everything was fine and there was no foul play.

Feb. 14 At 1:41 p.m., staff at the University Union called in to report the finding of an anonymous suicide note.

Investigation of the note determined it referred to an incident from October 2011 and any current threat was unfounded.

2 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

At 8:23 p.m., staff at Sechrist Hall called to report the odor of marijuana.

The responding officer cited and released a suspect for the possession of drug paraphernalia.

Feb 13 At 6:54 p.m., a call was received at NAUPD regarding a student who was going in and out of consciousness at the Field House.

Guardian Medical Transport, Flagstaff Fire Department and NAUPD responded to the call.

The student was transported to the Flagstaff Medical Center for evaluation.

Feb. 12 At 4:39 p.m., a Parking Services employee called to report a student who was using a fraudulent parking permit.

The case remains open pending further investigation.

At 8:34 p.m., an NAU employee called into report two men were directing offensive language at passing females from the forested area just south of Gabaldon Hall.

When officers arrived on the scene the suspects had fled. A search of the surrounding area produced negative contact.

SEE MORE POLICE BEAT ENTRIES FROM THIS PAST WEEK AT JACKCENTRAL.COM

Events Calendar Calendar Events THURSDAY, FEB. 21

SATURDAY, FEB. 23

NAU School of Music Annual Jazz Festival [All day/Ardrey Auditorium]

4th Annual Winter Pancake Breakfast [8 a.m./Federated Community Church]

Hot Topics Cafe [5:30 p.m./HLC]

32nd Annual Big Brothers, Big Sisters “Bowl for Kids’ Sake” [9 a.m./Starlite Lanes]

Science on Tap: Advances Toward Our Microbial World [6:30 p.m./Green Room]

Horizon Concert Series [7:30 p.m/Ashurst Auditorium] A Festival of Trumpets [7:30 p.m/Ardrey Auditorium]

TUESDAY, FEB. 26

Green Room 5-Year Anniversary [6 p.m./Green Room]

College of Arts and Letters Film Series [11:15 a.m./ Performing and Fine Arts Building]

FRIDAY, FEB. 22

SUNDAY, FEB. 24

13th Annual Peaks Interdisciplinary Conference [9 a.m./University Union]

Taco Tuesday [5 p.m/Green Room]

Dead Man’s Cell Phone [2 p.m./NAU Studio Theatre]

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 27

NAU Latin Dance Sunday Social [6 p.m./Tranzend Studio]

Ladies ‘80s [8 p.m./Flagstaff Green Room]

Dead Man’s Cell Phone [8 p.m./NAU Studio Theatre] Luminaires [9 p.m./Flagstaff Green Room]

MONDAY, FEB. 25 Better World Film Series “The Big Fix” [7 p.m./Gardner Auditoriuml]

Cotton Jones and Them Savages [8:30 p.m./The Orpheum]

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FromTheEditors

THE GREATEST SUMMER OF YOUR LIFE

CAMP PONTIAC

H

ere at The Lumberjack, we can all agree that the city of Flagstaff is a rather open and accepting town.

Just a few days ago city council unanimously voted to exceed both state and federal laws to create legal protection for the LGBT community and military veterans in both employment and public accommodations. At this meeting NAU students spoke out in favor of the proposed ordinance and succeeded.

Last week drag queens were welcomed with open arms for a performance benefitting the Flagstaff Pride Association to a crowd of more than 150 (see page 12 for the story).

While Flagstaff may seem progressive, not every city is like this one and it’s something we often forget. Not every city, state or country is as accepting and open — some would even execute their citizens for what are considered rights here. Ultimately, what one believes is irrelevant but it is the human rights aspect that matters. With this issue, keep in mind how lucky we are to have the freedom and ability to fight for our rights as you see students and the local community doing exactly that.

Is coming to NAU! Located in NY State

Camp Pontiac, a premier co-ed overnight camp in New York, is looking for fun, enthusiastic and mature individuals who can teach and assist is all areas of athletics, aquatics, the arts, or as a general bunk counselor.

Interview times: Tuesday, March 5th 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM Wednesday, March 6th 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM

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Thank you for reading,

Kierstin Turnock, Editor-in-Chief

Bree Purdy, Managing Editor

LUMBERJACK The

Jackcentral.com

Phone: (928) 523-4921 Fax: (928) 523-9313 E-mail: lumberjack@nau.edu P.O. Box 6000 Flagstaff, AZ 86011

Editor-in-Chief Kierstin Turnock

Creative Directors Jessie Mansur Jessica Bruce

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Feb.21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 3

C NEWS “I’ve made some great connections on campus.

My freshman year I met a lot of great friends on my floor, one of which is my roommate now as a senior.”

4 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

InTheNews

Flagstaff fights fossil fuels

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Jim McCarthy gives an inspirational speech to the Flagstaff City Council for the Civil Rights Ordinance on Feb. 19 about his grandfathers troubled racial times and how important equality truly is. (Photo by Amanda Ray.) from ORDINANCE page 1

During the time for discussion, 20 people spoke. Of those 20, 16 advocated for passage while four expressed opposition. While the measure includes for protection for veterans, no one spoke regarding that issue.

Scott Meyers, a Flagstaff resident, spoke to the council about how he had never heard of anybody being discriminated for their sexual orientation.

“It just seems really far-fetched. I don’t think it’s something useful for the city to be involved in,” Meyers said.

While not directly responding to Meyers, Jennifer Cody, a Flagstaff resident, offered her personal testimony.

“I have been discriminated based on my identity,” Cody said.

She expressed those who had not suffered it could not know how humbling and degrading it discrimination could be.

Oregon McDiarmid, an ASNAU senator and member and ASNAU sponsor of People Respect Individual Sexual Minorities (PRISM), also spoke. While he is gay, he spoke against the pending bill.

“So, for my view on the whole ordinance, yes it does serve the purpose of fighting for equality and seeing that the rights of the individuals are super important, but at the same time isolating any group of individuals and giving them specific protection is not fair to the whole. It also does not cover a large group of individuals whose its intent could cover,” McDiarmid said.

“For instance, a heterosexual individual who would be a cross-dresser or someone who identifies as another gender than that of their biological classification would not be covered in the LGBT classification of people, which is used in the ordinance,” McDiarmid continued. “Also, even though it is in good intensions it looks like they are trying to separate out the LGBT community from the rest of society and treat them differently than any other person by specifying that group out of the whole, this is not acceptable by my views. Separate but equal has been used before and has been shown to fail.”

Those speaking in favor of the legislation were met each time by applause. This prompted the mayor to ask those in attendance to refrain. He was concerned this open support might be intimidating to those of the opposing viewpoint.

This request was not heeded.

It was this that occasioned the only disruption of the proceedings. Meyers, who had spoken against the ordinance, called out from the back of the chamber asking the assembled to respect the mayor’s request for decorum. When the mayor told Meyers that comments from the audience were to be given from the podium, Meyers took this as an invitation to come to the front.

Before this got out of hand, the mayor discreetly signaled to the two Flagstaff Police Department officers in the back.

All ended peacefully and Meyer relinquished his position.

At the end of the discussion period, the council took over. After the adoption of two options in the bill, the ordinance was passed at 8:22 p.m. without objection.

BY HANNAH SANDERSON

his is the cry of the Fossil Free NAU Campaign,“Be a leader!

Stay a leader! Divest now!”

On Feb. 17, a small group of ralliers gathered outside Flagstaff City Hall to express their opinions on NAU’s current investment choices concerning fossil fuels. This campaign was held at the same time as the larger-scale divestment campaign held in Washington, D.C., which was announced through 350.org.

In the prepared speeches given by the leaders of the local movement, Fossil Free NAU makes their wants clear.

“We are asking our university’s foundation and endowment board to freeze any new investment in fossil fuel companies, and to divest within five years from direct ownership that include fossil fuel equities and corporate bonds,” said Kelsey Morales, a junior majoring in environmental science and policy administration.

Bill McKibbin, environmental activist, founder of 350.org and author of the book Earth said, “It makes no moral or practical sense to pay for the education of students by investing in companies whose business plan guarantees they will not have a planet to enact that education on. If it is wrong to wreck the climate, it is wrong to profit from the wreckage.”

The protest expressed disappointment with certain NAU affiliations.

“Investing in companies such as Peabody Coal directly ties NAU investment to the degradation of the planet and the exploitation of people,” said Nina Porter, a senior chemistry education, secondary education and women’s and gender studies major.

Protestors opposed NAU’s conflicting environmental agendas.

“NAU was one of the first universities to implement an environmental emphasis in curriculum . . . this is a movement that over 250 universities have gotten on board with. We know that NAU can continue to be a leader in sustainability and we want to work with our university so that this crisis of climate change is brought closer to an end,” said Frankie Beasley, a junior environmental studies major.

The signs and speeches successfully captured the attention of passersby. Multiple cars honked their horn to show their support while others hollered out windows protesting against the movement.

Ralliers continued to voice the importance taking steps to sustain the Earth’s climate.

“I feel really strongly that we need to start taking action towards mitigating climate change,” said Marty James, a second-year graduate student in the sustainable communities program.

Making the decision to divest has the capacity to not only prolong the planet’s lifespan, but it also provides justice for those living on it.

“In the liberation of South Africa during the mid-1980s, approximately 150 campuses withdrew investment from any company doing business in South Africa. This divestment helped break the back of the apartheid government and allowed the nation an opportunity to lay the foundation of today’s social democratic state. Divestment has the potential to bring justice now and ensure justice, peace and the planet for our future,” Porter said.

This campaign will continue to send out petitions and hold more conferences like these in the future.

Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 5

InTheNews

Walnut Canyon encourages youth exploration

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Health care, immigration run close in new bill

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Ranger Erin Cox shows students how to use the sun to make special shadow effects on paper. (Photo

by Natalia Guzman)

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BY MITCH KULLOS

ecently, America’s Promise Alliance named Flagstaff as one of the 100 Best Communities for Young People. Many members of Flagstaff have been helping to celebrate the achievement, with Walnut Canyon as a major contributor. In combination with Coconino’s Coalition for Children and Youth, Walnut Canyon National Monument put on family and children oriented events on Feb. 16 to encourage youth exploration of the outdoors.

The mild weather that gave Flagstaff a glimpse of spring allowed visitors to come out in droves to the park. Many of them came specifically for the community events and some were simple pleasantly surprised to see fun, educational opportunities for Flagstaff ’s youth.

Charlie Gray, park ranger for Sunset Crater, the sister park of Walnut Canyon, was assisting the community event and explaining activities saying.

“This is the solar viewing portion of it. We’ll be looking at the sun through a solar scope and we have some solar filters. We also have some other activities that the kids and parents can get involved with the idea [for sun prints] is that they are basically going to expose items that they put on this print and they absorb the sun’s rays and make a really wonderful design,” Gray said.

As the day progressed, more and more parents and their children flowed into the open space rushing to learn about the sun and make sun prints or beads.

6 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

Sara Feldt, education technician at Walnut Canyon, described the park’s connection to the community.

“It’s the second year in a row that Flagstaff has been voted one of the top one hundred communities for youth in the United States and so we wanted to become involved, and Walnut Canyon is a great place for youth to come out and have a good time. So, we set up some activities and we’ll have a junior ranger hike about wildlife. We just want the Flagstaff community feel like this is a place where they can come with their kids and have a good time,” Feldt said.

Many parents showed their support as they lined up for sun prints, sun bead activities and an hour-long nature hike.

Two participants were the father-daughter team of Jeff Jones, an NAU and CCC instructor, and second-grader Bree Jones.

“I think it’s nice that they make events like this for kids in Flagstaff in a town like this and folks don’t have to spend a lot to be entertained,” Jeff Jones said.

Bree Jones spoke of her excitement for the upcoming junior hike.

“I think it’s just going to be fun,” she said.

The event staff echoed the participants’ enjoyment. The rangers were passionate instructors, the parents appreciated the educational aspects and the kids enjoyed the activities because of the sheer fun they were having.

While partnering with the city, local parks, especially Walnut Canyon National Monument, create an environment to foster youth development.

BY WILLIAM BROWN

n a state where both immigration and health care issues have been controversial, a bill is currently pending that would result in changes for both.

HB 2293, proposed by State Rep. Steve Smith (R), would require hospital personnel to inquire and report on the immigration status of patients who do not provide insurance information and are also believed to be illegal immigrants.

Smith said his bill is intended to determine health care expenses incurred by the state in treating uninsured illegal immigrants and is not intended to stop health care for anyone.

“We’re not doing anything with that, we’re not having any violation, all we’re doing is just sending a report,” Smith said. “We want a dollar number, they can black out the person’s name — if they even give a name — but we just want what was the treatment, was it a person who was reasonably considered to be in this country illegally and what’s the total.”

State Rep. Bob Thorpe (R), a supporter of HB 2293, agreed with Smith and said the bill is only intended to gather information.

“We’re trying to collect data and ask people when they come in for health care, ‘Are you a citizen or are you not a citizen,’” Thorpe said. “It’s not even asking are you not a citizen, it’s a checkbox that gives them the opportunity of stating whether they’re legally here in the country.”

The language of the bill indicates more is involved than simply determining expense and gathering data. While nothing is said about stopping treatment for anyone, if hospital representatives cannot confirm a patient’s citizenship status, they are required to report the incident to a federal immigration office or local law enforcement.

Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) said the data Arizona legislators are looking for already exists and shows a different picture of state expenses on the uninsured.

“Under the issue of uncompensated care, all hospitals keep that data,” Grijalva said. “That data is readily available and what has happened consistently when that data is read, understood and accepted as fact — it’s coming from major hospitals and providers in this community — is that the majority of uncompensated care is from uninsured American citizens or legal residents that have no insurance that use emergency aid as a means to get urgent care.”

Stephen Nuno, a political science professor at NAU, said he thinks the bill could make some people wary of visiting hospitals.

“I think it’s pretty clear why they want to collect that data and I think it has a chilling effect on the population out there, not only amongst the immigrant population but their family members as well,” Nuno said. “If your child is in danger and has an illness and who may be a citizen but the parent may not be, that can have some negative effects on American citizens.”

Under the bill, hospitals are also required to submit an annual report detailing how many patients they treated who did not show “proper documentation” as well as how many of these cases they referred to law

InTheNews

Parking and Shuttle Services suggests improvements

6 Bedroom, 3 Bath, Kachina Village $500/month per room

BY GARY COLLINS

P

lace & Plexus Consulting, LLC (PPC) compiled a report of recommendations for Parking and Shuttle Services (PSS). Commissioned by NAU the report aimed to both improve service and balance revenue with expenses.

The suggested improvements were essentially minor. The proposals included moving parking kiosks to the interior of the campus, revamping the permit framework, adopting a parking ambassador program and making organizational adjustments to improve efficiency.

“Our mission is to provide excellent customer service to students, faculty, staff and visitors [using] accessible parking, transit and travel while on campus. The pillar in all we do, first and foremost, is service,” said Erin Stam, director of PSS. More pressing is the issue of balancing revenue with expenditure. PSS spends more each year than it takes in through permits and transportation fees. The PSS fiscal year 2013 budget projected revenues of $4,530,000 and expenditures of $5,430,853.

In recent years, NAU sought to make better use of its land space while improving the campus through the commission and implementation of a master plan. While an important reason for this was to enable the construction of new facilities within the university core, it also advocated removal of a campus eyesore: the numerous surface parking lots.

David Bousquet, vice president of student enrollment and student affairs, recounted what the campus looked like in the past.

“When the master plan was done . . . the planners made note of how many acres of surface parking we had, and quite candidly the place felt like a community college,” Bousquet said.

Another reason to eliminate surface parking was to create open space for students. The area directly west of the Health

and Learning Center is an example.

“It looks nicer. It feels nicer. It feels like a college campus, when, in fact, earlier it didn’t because of all the parking lots,” Bousquet said. “The recommendation of the planners was to stack up the parking rather than spread it out.”

This led to the construction of the Riordan and San Francisco Parking Garages, although this further impacted cost factors.

When the planners made their suggestions, and the university followed through on them, the economy was sound. Then came the recession and, the state found itself in a budget crisis. The funding to the state’s three universities was slashed, and NAU leadership had to assess priorities and the main priority was education.

NAU President Haeger related the issues to economics.

“As an institution, we budget all monies, budget the priorities. The top of the priority list is always the academic position,” Haeger said.

Prior to the recession, NAU was able to assist PSS with the central fund, maintenance costs, shuttle expenses, the debt from the two parking structures and other incidental expenses.

The assistance that the university provided PSS was discretionary because the department is an auxiliary unit of NAU. “ . . . A university auxiliary is expected to cover their costs and there had been a time when those expenses were covered centrally,” Bousquet said. “Those costs were appropriately moved from central expenses over to parking services, and parking services is expected to cover those.”

It is specifically the debt service of the two parking structures that now burdens PSS. Together, the yearly expenditure for the debt on these amounts to $2,833,000 per year.

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Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 7

Editorial&Opinion

A Pope by the Harkins move inconveniences students people and for

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the people

STAFF EDITORIAL

n agreement between the City of Flagstaff, Harkins Theatres and the Arizona Department of Transportation will move the Flagstaff Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) office to where Harkins Flagstaff 11 is currently located. Plans are in place to have a new theater on the east side of the city.

This is a part of a massive project to connect Beluah Boulevard to University Avenue, which is set to be realigned to create a four-way intersection with Beluah extending through to where the current MVD office is currently located. This is in-line with a bond package approved

by Flagstaff voters in 2000, in order to make one of the more dangerous intersections in Flagstaff safer.

According to the Flagstaff Police Department’s 2011 annual report, there were 28 collisions at the intersection of West University Avenue and South Milton Road. The intersection had the sixth-highest amount of collisions in the city. In the past, the number of collisions at the intersection has been as high as 37.

It is clear something has to be done to alleviate the amount of car accidents at this intersection. However, this particular plan will inconvenience many moviegoers, especially those from NAU, who often walk to the theater and do not have vehicles. It seems like the city council took the first solution that fell on their lap instead of considering other options.

If the current location closes this summer, the people of Flagstaff will be deprived of a local theater until the new location is built. According to boxofficemojo.com, summertime is when many theaters make a large portion of their profits. This being the case, it seems closing the theater without the new one already built would be a poor business decision, regardless of the university school year.

On top of that, this will force Flagstaff residents to drive down the windy road to Sedona to get their fill of summer blockbusters and Pixar releases. This being the case, it only seems logical that the Flagstaff Harkins forewarn their smaller Sedona brother theater in the inevtiable onslaught to premieres. If they would go so far as to arrange a shuttle for current residents, Flagstaffians would be much obliged.

While the exact location of the theater has not been announced, it is expected to be on the east side of Flagstaff farther from the NAU campus, and is rumored to be as far as or even past the Flagstaff Mall. Based on past considerations on the part of Harkins, the theater chain would inadvertently alienate students. Students who own vehicles may not be so eager to drive across town just to see a movie that they could wait for to come onto DVD. It is important to raise the question of how the MVD office would utilize a facility the size of the theater. According to The Daily Sun, the city plans on repurposing the theater space. After it has been modified, it may house offices for MVD and the Flagstaff district office for the Arizona Department of Transportation. Still, it is hard to fathom why such a large space would be needed. Transforming a theater space able to hold a screen up to 30-feet high appears impractical and a waste of space.

The city and Harkins should consider the impact decisions such as these will impact students, as they are a large driving force in the Flagstaff economy.

Editor’s note: Associate Web Editor Daniel Daw wrote this editorial on behalf of the staff.

8 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

I

t’s that time again, and what a rush! For the next five weeks, the world’s billion plus Catholics will have to face the trials and tribulations of giving up some of their favorite pleasures in observance of Lent.

While traditional sacrifices during this ancient Catholic writ include chocolate, alcohol and coffee, the leader of the Catholic church, Benedict XVI, has charted a new path by NICK sacrificing for good KINTOP the position of Pope Though it’s landmark enough that a Pope — a position that has an almost unbroken tradition of being a for-life office — has resigned, what’s going to prove more significant by far is the mystery-box of exactly who will be given the mantle of his successor. In Rome, a secret conclave of 117 of the Catholic church’s most influential and powerful figures will meet and proceed to be locked in a room until they emerge with a decision that could easily prove to be one of the most essential and historic papal elections in the church’s millennia-long history.

The Western world’s oldest church stands at the increasingly-familiar crossroads of deciding whether to cling to tradition in the face of a rapidly changing world or to redefine itself by embracing this change and catering to its growing, non-traditional base of support.

Whether defined in the public eye by charity, compassion or child molestation, the Catholic church of today remains the foundation of Christianity, yet it’s a foundation that is showing signs of severe cracks in its identity. The demographics of the Catholic church have, within the span of a century, undergone radical changes.

Political Cartoon by Brian Regan Traditionally a Caucasian, Western European faith, these two regions now hold only a third of the world’s Catholics, and their memberships are shrinking. By contrast, Catholicism in Latin America (that now holds nearly half of the world’s Catholics,) Asia and Africa is veritably exploding. While the upper echelons of the Church are still composed of mostly familiar personas, the fact that nearly half of the papal frontrunners hail from these developing regions is indicative of the rapidly changing face of practicing Catholics.

Two of the candidates who deserve special attention from Catholic scholars and common folk alike are Cardinals Peter Turkson and Luis Tagle, hailing respectively from Ghana and the Philippines. Both of these men of faith stand out from the other frontrunners not only due to the symbolism of their place of origin, but their remarkable capacity to adapt age-old Catholic beliefs to modern issues.

Tagle is known for skillfully using the power of media by showing the admirable capacity to invite local homeless to dine with him, yet keep an active page on Facebook. Turkson

has made strides in regards to the acceptability of contraceptives for couples where one partner is HIVpositive with an attitude of progressiveness that would undoubtedly cause an arched eyebrow from the recent ex-Pope.

The Catholic church needs a leader with the qualities and talents of men such as these. The church is changing not only in the ethnicities of its base, but in that base’s moral tolerance and openness to change. An ever-increasing number of Catholics are showing greater tolerance on issues such as homosexuality, with more and more openly homosexual pastors being accepted every year in spite the church’s recent slough of molestation scandals. Discourse on the possibility of women joining clergy is also becoming more vocal.

Catholicism needs a leader who can navigate the many obstacles of adapting one of the world’s oldest faiths to modern times that it may reestablish itself as a global leader in charity, compassion and moral integrity, lest the office of the pope reinforce its label as the guy with the big hat who believes condoms are the tool of Satan.

Editorial&Opinion Border Patrol guns down Mexican teenager

J

Political Cartoon by Brian Regan

Arizona legislature disregarding civil rights act

W

ith the arrival of Arizona’s 101st birthday, the state’s legislature continues to uphold our reputation as a group of bigots and radical conservatives. With the passing of HB 2283 by the House Government Committee, congress has made it evident their campaign to thwart the acclimation of Hispanics into Arizona citizenry will persist.

With the approval of this bill, Arizona would halt the issue or dissemination of non-English government documents and only have them in an online format. This would result in Spanish-only speakers not receiving the same resources as their fellow citizens. While Rep. Steve Smith, the sponCOLTON sor of the bill, has claimed his intentions DARGER are to reduce government spending, the myriad of anti-immigration bills he has sponsored reveals his true objectives.

By using language barriers as a mechanism to fight illegal immigration, Smith has shown he is willing to deny Spanish-only speakers the right to participate in the political process in order to pursue his own personal agenda.

Regardless of how Arizona previously declared English its official language, this proposed English-only bill is a clear affront to the Civil Rights Act and destined for years of litigation. Rather than waste time with clearly biased bills that will ultimately be struck down by the Supreme Court, legislators should compose legislation which will actually solve the issues of rising deficit and illegal immigration.

According to the Civil Rights Act, agencies which receive funding from the federal government must refrain from discriminating against people who lack proficiency in English. Obviously, halting the tangible publication of government documents in non-English languages would be discrimination against a particular group of people,

who are essentially not receiving the same resources as their English speaking counterparts. While the Arizona constitution does recognize English as the official language of the state, lawmakers still have a legal obligation to adhere to federal law. Therefore, Spanish speakers in Arizona have the right to be able to participate in government proceedings without radical right-wing politicians attempting to block them from the process.

As noted by Rep. Doug Coleman and reported by azcentral.com, if the true intentions of this bill are to save the money of Arizona taxpayers, then all government publication should only be disseminated in an online format.

This is obviously an unrealistic proposal, but it would be the only way of ensuring that no discrimination is taking place. By calling for the continuation of English publications, Smith has made it evident he is not concerned about the costs associated with the documents.

If Smith is truly concerned about the amount of government spending in Arizona, then it would be much more logical to overhaul policies for issues which account for a higher percentage of the budget. Considering the insignificant amount of money that will be saved with this bill, it seems idiotic for the legislature to waste their time enacting it.

If the Arizona legislature intends on solving legitimate problems facing the state, they must refrain from producing such ill-conceived legislation. Relative to how much money is spent on programs like Medicaid or even the state’s prison system, it is clear the amount of paper and stamps to send out government publications is not contributing significantly to overall spending. By wasting time on measures that are destined for rejection by the Supreme Court, they are putting their constituents’ well-being on the backburner and are undeserving of the paychecks they are receiving.

ose Antonio Elena Rodriguez, a 16-year-old from Nogales, was killed this past year when the U.S. Border Patrol opened fire on a group of rock throwers in Mexico. An autopsy by Mexican authorities showed the teen was shot at least seven times from behind. The family is considering a lawsuit for the murder of their son.

Both the family’s attorney and Mexican authorities believe the Border Patrol used excessive force in gunning down Elena Rodriguez. Border Patrol claims the group Elena Rodriguez was a part of is a team of drug smugglers. According to the patrol, the group fled back across the border into Mexico and “began assaulting the agents with rocks.”

This act was extreme. The individuals inNATASHA volved, smugglers or not, were assaulting the REEVES officers with rocks — not knives, guns or even swords. There was no reason for the patrol to resort to the gun violence. The American justice system does not use the shoot first, ask questions later method. Considering the number of bullet wounds left in the victim, there is no mistaking this shooting as an accident. Furthermore, the patrol shot the group while they were on Mexican ground, which is not their jurisdiction.

Mexico’s Foreign Relations Department issued a statement saying it “forcefully condemned” the shooting, calling such deaths “a serious bilateral problem.”

There should be consequences for those involved in the shooting. If the police massacred a group of American citizens without investigation, arrest or proof of being in mortal danger there would be retaliation for their actions. This event is no different; officials representing and carrying out the law of the U.S. killed people without due process. There have been multiple occurrences where Border Patrol has shot and killed undocumented immigrants without a valid reason.

In 2010, a 15-year-old boy was shot on the border of El Paso, Texas and Juarez, Mexico when an officer was trying to arrest him. The boy fled across the border and began throwing rocks at the patrol. Another incident occurred in 2011 when a 19-year-old man was climbing over the fence into Arizona and was shot three times. This young adult didn’t even harass the officer or even make it into Arizona.

These reckless shootings need to stop. While we should protect our borders from smugglers and other harm, we can’t just go around shooting illegal immigrants just because they are trying to cross the border. There is a reason for deportation and arrest. It means the country follows through with its immigration laws, but is still humane in treatment of human beings.

Another factor that goes into these incidents is families of the victims try to sue and their cases are thrown out of court due to judges claiming that U.S. law gives the government immunity when accusations arise in a foreign country. These issues cannot be ignored and shrugged off. These problems are not just Mexico’s, but ours too. Americans shouldn’t want this shameful act to linger as foreign representation of what the stars and stripes stand for, especially when it’s a far cry from the humble country founding fathers set out to build some two-hundred and seventeen years ago.

Feb. 21 , 2013 - Feb 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 9

Editorial&Opinion

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Point/Counterpoint: Two Lumberjack writers tackle two sides of one topic. This week: U.S. involvement in Syria

Point:

U.S. involvement in Syria unnecessary

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s I write this, the United States is still recovering from the political and cultural trauma of a solid decade of war. We still have troops in Afghanistan, we still have military bases and private contractors in Iraq and we’re witnessing in real time the consequences of the NATO action in Libya. It seems inconceivable that we’re considering yet another incursion into yet another sovereign Arab nation. Yet many are advocating exactly that: direct military action against the Syrian government and its leader, Bashar alMILES Assad. Those who believe the SCHNEIDERMAN U.S. should take a hand in the crisis in Syria are, for the most part, simply responding to a horrible situation with the best of intentions. Unfortunately, having compassion for other human beings isn’t always the same as doing the right thing. Military intervention in Syria would be a catastrophic mistake, a clear indication that America still refuses to learn its lessons.

For almost two years, the uprising in Syria has been characterized by extreme violence on the part of the Assad regime and the Syrian military. The death toll since the conflict began is approaching 70,000 and the count of displaced refugees is larger, with the United Nations reporting 5,000 people fleeing across Syrian borders every day. Some people are calling it a true civil war. On a purely emotional level, it makes sense for anyone with a humanitarian bone in their body to ask why the U.S. and the UN have not intervened already. On a rational level, there are rock-solid answers to that question.

One of those answers is the UN Security Council, which has failed to come to a consensus on Syria. Russia and China have vetoed all proposals for an international military action against the Assad regime. The reason for this is primarily to do with another Arab nation: Libya.

Muammar Qaddafi was certainly an authoritarian dictator, but since NATO got involved in the Libyan uprising and Qaddafi was killed, life for the Libyan people hasn’t exactly been wine and roses. The country is fractured along a number of different political and religious lines, and there are weapons everywhere with soldiers who know how to use them. More

than 500 armed militias remain abroad in today’s Libya, leading to a continuation of the fighting and an escalation of suffering. In particular, people who were loyal to Qaddafi have been the victims of physical and psychological torture by the militias, who don’t have anyone to rein them in. Libya may be free of dictatorship, but the country remains in a state of chaos. Moreover, Qaddafi’s ouster led directly to the recent rebellion of the Tuareg people in Mali, a conflict that is still unfolding today.

As we debate action in Syria, Libya stands as a warning of what can happen to a region when foreign powers come in to try and solve its problems. Nations are not isolated; intervention in one area will lead to consequences elsewhere. That is why Russia and China are so reluctant to give another gung-ho Middle Eastern rescue effort their stamp of approval.

To his credit, President Obama has been similarly reluctant; Defense Secretary Leon Panetta recently admitted that a plan formed last year to arm the Syrian rebels was rejected by the White House. Unless Russia and China relent in their determination to veto, a Syrian intervention would violate international law. The logistics are questionable, as well, since our weapons could end up in the hands of terrorists rather than the Free Syrian Army. For that matter, the Free Syrian Army has proven to be something less than noble heroes fighting bravely against an oppressive regime; they’ve committed their own atrocities over the past two years, many of which have been documented on video. And if we help them take their country back from Assad, we then have to deal with the question of what happens next.

The biggest deterrent, however, is that America can’t take another war right now. We don’t have the political will, we don’t have the money and we don’t have the right. Syria is a sovereign nation. The things happening there are horrible, but they’re still happening in another country, meaning that we don’t get to decide the outcome. It’s time the U.S. gave up the idea we’re some sort of global police force, keeping the innocent civilians of the Arab world safe from evil dictators (who we placed in power so we could get cheap oil). There is no magical American solution to this uniquely Syrian problem.

10 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

Counterpoint:

U.S. intervention in Syrian war crucial

he civil war in Syria is a two-year conflict that began as protests demanding increased civil rights and greater representation in their government. After unfulfilled promises and aggression from the government, violence escalated into what has become a conflict with possible regional complications and one that warrants increased action from the U.S. and its western allies.

Washington may not have an immediate economCLARK ic or philosophical reason to MINDOCK intervene in the Syrian civil war, but the conflict has the very real possibility of spreading into neighboring states in the Middle East. Bordering Syria are Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan — three fragile nations that could easily be drawn into their own civil war should the situation in Syria branch out.

Individual civil wars neighboring Syria would be bad enough for economic interests the U.S. holds, but things could get worse. The already ethnosectarian makeup of the Middle East puts these countries at risk of mixing into a regional war. If a regional war were to break out between groups like predominantly Shi’ia Iran (who have been supporters of Syria) and Sunni Iraq and Jordan (rebel forces share this belief set), then economic interests would be injured. There is also a possibility that Israel, a major ally of the U.S., would be drawn into a regional conflict.

The Syrian civil war is also of concern for human rights reasons. The U.S. often presents itself as the nation that champions human rights for all people. A civil war started against peaceful protesters who demanded human rights they were promised, but never given is a prime example of people in need of help.

The death toll in Syria the past two years is at 70,000 as of this month; this is nearly 15 percent more than was reported this past January. Other figures, such as those cited

by Secretary of State John Kerry, have the number closer to 90,000 deaths. According to UNICEF, 500 of those deaths were children and a reported 400 children had been detained and tortured in Syrian prisons as of

February of this past year.

Both sides of the conflict have been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Syrian government owns a much bigger portion of these crimes against humanity than the rebel forces do, according to interviews and data collected from inside sources as well as refugees displaced by the war who are leaving the country.

The Syrian army is able to carry out these crimes in part because of their superior fire power that includes tanks and plane capabilities. It is worried that the Syrian government, which has access to chemical weapons, could also begin to use those in what would be a mass slaughter of rebels and likely civilians as well.

The U.S. could take measures to both end this violence and potentially stabilize what could become a regional conflict if left unchecked.

During the Croatian and Bosnian conflicts in the 1990s, the U.S. trained rebel forces in those nations. This strategy is important because it has a unifying effect on the forces being trained and gives better focus and discipline on how to win the war. This, as we have seen in those past examples, carries out into the days after the war. Nation building is not a simple matter, and the U.S. has the capabilities of training the rebels in Syria to become effective and relatively levelheaded once they have won the war.

In addition to this training, the U.S. should take measures to tip the scales in the rebels’ favor so the war can be brought to an end quickly. No-fly zones, like the one used in the Libyan 2011 civil war and widely regarded as a success, would be a great help to rebels.

Though paralyzing the Syrian government’s air capabilities is a start, more sophisticated anti-tank weaponry would be needed as well.

As the Syrian government loses its edge in technology, the rebels would win through their numbers (Alawites, the ethnic group that makes up the Syrian Government, constitutes 10 percent of the Syrian population).

The U.S. has already made its position clear on who it wants to prevail in Syria. The next steps are to make sure this group wins and that conflict is ended in the best way possible.

ComicSpot

Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 11

Life Monsoon

LEFT: Tyra Tequila Marie, Isaac Hernandez, lip-syncs to her song during her performance at Monsoons downtown. RIGHT: Coco St. James does a spin on stage to entertain the crowd on Saturday Feb. 16. (Photos by Andi Sanchez)

BY CHRISTIAN BOOZ

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lue, duct tape, makeup, foam, jewelry, feathers, fur, heels and lots of hair: all of these items go into creating a night full of entertainment and pride; all of these items go into the creation of a drag show.

On Feb. 16, the “Halos and Horns: After Valentine’s Drag Show” rocked downtown in the name of charity. The proceeds benefited the High Altitude Roller Derby team and the Flagstaff Pride Association, a local lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights group responsible for the Pride in the Pines celebration every summer.

The show — held at Monsoon Downtown — featured

12 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

four beautiful queens, known by their stage names of Afeelya Bunz, Tyra Tequila Marie, Grecia Montes D’occa and Coco St. James, all who delved into the world of drag at different ages and for various reasons.

D’occa, who is Ms. Phoenix Gay Pride 2012, began drag at the age of 18 because her friend needed a back-up dancer in a show.

“I fell in love with myself when I looked in the mirror,” D’occa said about her drag beginnings.

Both Marie and St. James fell in love with drag after attending their first show and since then have “found themselves through the art,” while Bunz got involved accidently when helping out with drag fundraisers.

“The best part, for me, is everyone going crazy for my performance. I love the rush,” St. James said, Arizona’s premier Lady Gaga impersonator.

All the while, the queens are performing a balancing act between entertaining the Arizona masses and having full-time jobs such as being an executive assistant at an accounting firm or being a server at a Mexican restaurant.

“Having a full-time job keeps you grounded, it’s not impossible to perform drag and work,” Marie said.

The “Halos and Horns: After Valentines Drag Show” was a great example of the mutual love that Pride and the City of Flagstaff share for each other.

“Flagstaff is a very gay-friendly town and the people

Life here always treat me well; the college town culture creates a very loving and open place,” Bunz said.

Flagstaff ’s love for the LGBT community was represented at the show. A packed house of more than 150 people danced, sang along and tipped the queens generously.

The drag shows are done for charity on a regular basis. Perfomers accepted tips with a smile or hug and, for the larger bills, a kiss.

“I enjoyed watching the performers kiss the audience members when exchanging tips. I was not expecting that,” said Jenny Tighe, senior visual communication major.

Drag shows are full of outrageous and downright hilarious moments and this show was no exception. With constant comedy, fabulous dance moves and tremendous wigs, the show was packed with impressive moments.

“I loved when one of the drag queens pulled an audience member up on stage and spanked him with a belt,” Tighe said. “The crowd went wild!”

Many people who had seen drag before could not resist the show, and neither could the people who wanted to experience a show for the first time.

“It’s a lot of fun; people wear smiles on their faces, it’s an all-inclusive environment and everyone can have a good time [being] out and feel safe at the same time,” said Clara Beard, member of the High Altitude Roller Derby.

All kinds of people with various sexual preferences attended the drag show and the queens made everyone feel welcome with the crowd cheering for all sexual orientations.

Bunz put it best when she said, “Gay, straight, bi, tri; I don’t care, I love all of you!”

The show did what it set out to do: entertained an entire room, opened minds, raised money for charity and made people forget about their drama for two hours.

“Who doesn’t want to see a Lumberjack in a dress?” St. James asked.

Most will agree, the answer is no one.

Afeelya Bunz, Rich Zavala, pleases the crowd during her first song and second outfit at Monsoons Downtown on Saturday Feb. 16. (Photo by Andi Sanchez)

from Sweden to America

H

BY CARIN BENGSSTON

ello, America. My name is Carin and how you choose to pronounce it is up to you; Karen, Corrin — they are both wrong, but I will answer to anything. This is because I am a Swede and my name is Swedish, but for the rest of the semester, Flagstaff is my home and English is my language.

Sweden is the oblong country in northern Europe where we put tobacco under our lip, where the most popular brand of cat food is called Pussi, where we assume strangers talking to us are either insane, drunk or American, where our rooster says kuckeliku instead of cock-a-doodle-doo, where a dime is a chocolate candy and not a form of currency, where the King goes to strip clubs and where we actually expect an answer to, “How are you?”

Yes, we do have our own language and, contrary to some beliefs, no, we do not have polar bears walking down the streets.

I am an exchange student living in Flagstaff in order to finish my last semester of college at NAU. My major is media and communication science; however, I have yet to decide what I want to do with a degree in this field.

So, why Flagstaff? I could have gone to Florida, Mexico or Singapore, where it is warm and where I could walk around in shorts showing off my blinding-white legs, but no; I chose the only place in Arizona where it is cold. To be fair, Flagstaff was not my number-one choice — it was my sixth.

The process of getting approval to come to this country was exciting, but it was the hardest and longest process I have ever endured — I would not even wish my worst enemy to go through it. So many documents I did not even know existed are apparently very important in America. I answered questions such as, “Do you intend to be a prostitute, drug dealer or terrorist here?” The biggest surprise, however, was finding out that America does not accept my Swedish health insurance. It is true, Sweden is spoiled with free healthcare and the fury I

felt at losing this is shining through right now, but I share this feeling with many international students.

So, the first experiences I encountered with America were not the best, but that was long before I ever stepped foot here.

The whole process of applying, getting accepted and actually getting here took me a year.

If anyone would have told me that ahead of time, I probably would not be here. I am going to keep this secret from future exchange students, however, because being here is absolutely worth it. I have almost forgotten about all the whining I did before I got here.

Since arriving in America, it has come to my attention how verbal everyone is here. I look exactly the same here as in any other place on earth, but I have never felt so attractive. Everywhere I go, there are people giving me compliments, especially about my hair. I was not expecting that, but apparently it is not as common for a girl in America to have really short hair.

Of course, people compliment each other in Sweden as well, but not to complete strangers. Most of us have too much pride to make someone feel beautiful aside from ourselves.

The random flattery threw me off guard at first, but my surprise was nothing compared to when I used a public bathroom here for the first time. There is a massive gap between the stall doors and the rest of the stall. From my own experience, Americans tend to be a lot more verbal and share private thoughts in an early stage of a friendship or even in a random conversation; however, I cannot find an explanation to sharing your happenings in the bathroom. I hope I am not the only one who finds it awkward when catching eye-contact with someone else on the other side of the door. What is worse: being the one sitting on the toilet or the one looking in? What are you supposed to do when your eyes meet during that odd moment? Should you nod in agreement? For me, the bathroom is one of the most sacred places; it equals privacy, but hey, maybe not in America!

Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 13

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14 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

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Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 15

Life

Robert Barnes stars as Gordon Gottlieb in the upcoming play, Dead Man’s Cell Phone, which premieres Feb. 22 in the NAU Studio Theatre Room in the Performing Arts Building. (Photo by Sean Ryan)

BY ALYSSA TILLEY

T

hese days, having a cell phone is like having the world at the palm of your hand. With texting, Facebook, e-mail, Google Maps, restaurant finders and more, it is hard to imagine life without such a device. Dead Man’s Cell Phone, the first of NAU Theatre Department’s two main stage productions this semester, tests the importance of this technological lifeline.

After 20 years in the world of theater, Rob Barnes, a senior theater and graphic design major, has landed the lead role in this influential show and is ready to portray the deceased character of Gordon Gottlieb.

“I came to NAU because I really liked the environment,” Barnes said. “When I showed up and did my auditions here, when I met the people, they were so much more warm and welcoming than ASU or UA. I’m also a snow boarder, so I love the mountain.”

Acting has been a part of Barnes’ life since the age of four.

He started performing in shows at his church and eventually moved up to community theater, out-of-state theater, touring shows and more.

“It’s an art-form, and I feel like I’m a creative person in that sense,” Barnes said.

Barnes also plays music and creates art, but his true pas-

16 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

sion is acting.

“You can step out of yourself; you can be someone else for a little while and it’s okay and it’s fun,” Barnes said. “It’s challenging because it’s finding that balance between what you can bring to the character from your own personal experience, but also not showing yourself at the same time.”

Dead Man’s Cell Phone is about a woman in a café who answers the cell phone of a man who she thinks is ignoring his phone and allowing it to disrupt the entire café. However, what the woman, Jean, is unaware of is the man has just died of a heart attack. Jean then becomes a part of the dead man’s life through the use and implications of his cell phone.

“Metaphorically, the show is about how technology today has brought us so close together to the idea that we can literally send someone something from anywhere with our cell phones and be in constant contact . . . but at the same time, it also keeps us further apart because how much quality time, or inperson time, are we really spending?” Barnes said.

Even though Gordon Gottlieb — who Barnes described as “a good balance of business savvy tycoon type with a little bit of lovable evilness” — is dead at the beginning of the show, his character is revealed in the second act in order to give insight to his past.

“The show is classified as magic realism,” Barnes said.

“The idea of magic realism is that people who are dead can

come back. The essence of time or place is kind of just imagined versus very physical and straight forward.”

The cast, which is comprised of both experienced and new actors, has been preparing for the opening night this Friday since the second week of the spring semester; they have endured long and rigorous rehearsals in order to not only entertain the audience, but move them as well.

“I think that people are going to walk out of this thing going, ‘Wow,’ because there is so much content and so much depth in what these characters are saying and the issues they are facing,” Barnes said. “The piece is definitely more of a performance art piece rather than an entertainment art piece . . . it’s meant to be a canvas, an art-form, that you walk in and go, ‘Wow, how do I feel about this painting? What do I think about what they said? Do I find this morally justified, or is it okay for him to do this? Is it bad?’ It’s definitely one of those things where you have to choose sides when you walk out.”

Barnes and the rest of the cast of Dead Man’s Cell Phone will showcase their hard work beginning Feb. 22 in the NAU Studio Theatre Room in the Performing Arts building. The Flagstaff community can relish in the performers’ talent and decide for themselves what side they are on through March 3.

Tickets are $2 for students at the Central Ticketing Office in the University Union and at the door.

k c a j r e b m u Thehern ALrizonaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Student Voice Since 1914 Nort

Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 17

Class

Class Description

Class #

Instructor

1500 1503 1571 1962

Klesman,C Sommerness,M Minkler,S Mitchell,L

1470 1471 1472 1474 1475 1476 1477 2040 1479 1480 2054 1481 1483 1486 1488 1499 1420 1505 1510

Lei,R Lei,R Neumann,M Faust,R Long,C Schutten,J Umphrey,L Mahaffey,J Long,C Sommerness,M Staff (ends 6/28) Umphrey,L Hardy-Short,D Baker-Ohler,M Short,C Torn,J Sommerness,M Neumann,M Mitchell,K

1470 1475 1476 1477 2040 1481 1484 1487 1501 1502 1506 1544 1508

Sommerness,M Long,C Schutten,J Umphrey,L Mahaffey,J Umphrey,L Short,C Hardy-Short,D Torn,J Helford,P Russo,K Thull,J Sinaga,S

Pre-session - May 13 - May 31 EMF 129 JLS 104 PHO 181* VC 101

Introduction To Screenwriting Grammar & Style Communication Photography Communication Design

Summer Session I - June 3 - July 2 ADV 207 ADV 310 COM 101 COM 131 COM 200 COM 200 COM 200 COM 200 COM 301 COM 400 CST 111* CST 351 CST 424 CST 477 CST 572 EMF 122 JLS 105* JLS 106 VC 161

Introduction To Advertising Advertising Media Selection Communication Analysis Writing For Comm Channels Basic Communication Theory Basic Communication Theory Basic Communication Theory Basic Communication Theory Race, Gender, And Media Mass Comm Regulatn/responsblty Fundamentals of Public Speaking Interpersonal Comm Theory Gender And Communication Mediation And Conflict Mgt Organizational Communication Introduction To Media Studies Intro To Journalism Intro/documentary Studies History Of Visual Comm

Summer Session II - June 8 - August 6 COM 102 COM 200 COM 200 COM 200 COM 200 CST 315 CST 472 CST 524 EMF 328W EMF 382 JLS 131 PR 272 PR 371

Mass Media And Society Basic Communication Theory Basic Communication Theory Basic Communication Theory Basic Communication Theory Bus & Professional Speaking Organizational Communication Gender And Communication Writing/producers & Executives The Art Of Cinema Basic Reporting Intro To Public Relations Pr Case Studies & Research

18 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

* classes In-person

Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 19

ESTRADA RUNS SECOND-BEST 5K TIME IN NATION NAU Tune-Up provides final chance for Big

SportsReport

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Sky Conference championship qualification

C

BY ALLI JENNEY

losing out its final home indoor track and field meet of the season, the NAU team showed love comes in all forms, as it hosted the NAU Tune-Up on Feb. 14.

Redshirt senior distance runner Diego Estrada clocked in a 13:37.01@ (altitude adjusted) time in the 5,000-meter run, and now holds the second-fastest time in the nation for the event.

The men’s distance team — both current and former members — demonstrated the strength and unity of the program, as 2012 alum John Yatsko, redshirt sophomore Brian Shrader and sophomore Alejandro Montano helped pace the 2012 Olympian to achieve his respective time.

“I really appreciate all those guys, hats off to them,” said director of track and field and cross country Eric Heins. “Then Diego just did everything in his power to get himself to where he knew he needed to be. He was hoping for sure top-five, and then it comes out he’s top-two time in the country, so it really sealed his fate to the national championship.”

In addition to his top-five 3,000-meter time from the Husky Invitational on Feb. 9, Estrada now sits with the third-best time for the indoor 5K, beating out NAU alum and fellow Olympian David McNeill. Estrada also sits eight seconds behind his own NAU record, which he set at the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2010.

Shrader clinched his second sub-four minute mile finish this season, taking first with a time of 3:59.52@. Sophomore Vernon Jamison not only placed second in the men’s 60-meter hurdles event, but in Big Sky Conference (BSC) as well, with a career best time of 8.05@. Redshirt sophomore Cody Reed captured a personal record in the men’s 3K run at 8:31.49@ on his way to a first place finish.

From the men’s sprinting squad, redshirt senior Arnaud Froidmont and freshman Cameron Coleman secured BSC qualifiers with times of 48.13@ and 48.69@, respectively in the 400-meter; the first qualifying mark of Coleman’s career.

“Cam is just a great story. That’s probably one of the best parts about being a track and field coach — year in and year out, you have a walk-on that comes out and surprises you,” Heins said.

“They motivate the rest of the team, so someone like Cam inspires a guy like Diego, it’s just fantastic to see the kid running so well.”

For the women, freshman Rolonda Jumbo and sophomore

Diego Estrada won the men’s 1-mile run on Feb. 2 at the Mountain T’s Invitational. (Photo by Napua Kalani)

Shamelle Pless had stellar performances in their respective events.

Jumbo nabbed her second BSC qualifier, winning the women’s 1-mile run with her collegiate best time 4:57.28@. Pless raced for her personal best, taking first in the 60-meter dash at 7.62. “[Pless has] really been working, and I realized once we get her to get her start right, then she’ll put up a pretty good race together,” said assistant coach for sprints and hurdles Kenny McDaniel. “To go 7.5 twice today, that’s huge. For her to run two [personal records] in one day, that’s really remarkable.”

McDaniel acknowledged the change in expectations heading into the BSC Indoor Championships on Feb. 22 in Bozeman, Mont. at Montana State’s Brick Breeden Fieldhouse.

“When somebody gives you a makeover for your face or your hair, you don’t know what it looks like until you look in the mirror.

So, that’s pretty much my outlook,” McDaniel said. “I don’t know what it’s going to look like until I get done with the makeover, and I look in the mirror.”

SportShorts Track and Field

Women’s Basketball

• Big Sky Indoor Championships

• vs. Sacramento State

Feb. 22 and Feb, 23

6:35 p.m. on Feb. 23

in Bozeman, Mont.

at Walkup Skydome

20 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

Division III hockey heads to nationals

Go online to JackCentral.com to read recaps of men’s and women’s tennis, the Division II IceJacks’ last games of season and a column about El Clásico.

BY TYLER CHILDERS

he NAU Division III IceJacks advanced to the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) national tournament for the first time since NAU split its hockey program between two divisions.

The fifth-ranked IceJacks earned their trip by winning two games at the ACHA regional tournament in Springfield, Ill. The team defeated fourth-seed College of the Canyons (COC) Feb. 16, 7–1, after beating eighthseed University of Nebraska (UN) on Feb. 15 in overtime 5–4.

COC was in trouble early as the IceJacks had a comfortable 3–0 lead 10 minutes into the game. With the game out of hand, COC earned three major penalties for fighting and a few more game misconducts in the final 10 minutes of its season. The message on NAU’s bench was simple: don’t get sucked into the fights; they’re done for the year; we have a national tournament to play for.

“It got super chippy late in the game,” said head coach Kris Walsh. “They were trying to hurt us.”

The opportunity to play COC for the national bid was due to junior forward Greg Hughes, who netted the overtime goal to defeat UN the night before. Sophomore forward Jack Manning passed across the slot to find Hughes, who made no mistakes, one-timing the puck right above the UN goalie’s blocker.

“It was probably the greatest hockey moment I’ve ever had,” Hughes said. “I saw the puck go by the goalie and just [felt] complete happiness.”

Regionals were a huge victory and the IceJacks are now on a 10-game win streak as they head to the national tournament in MediaCom Ice Park in Springfield, Mo. on March 12-16. They haven’t seen any of their national tournament opponents this season, so expectations are unclear at this point.

“It’s not going to matter who we’re playing, what division they come from,” said assistant coach Joaquin Rivera. “We know every team at nationals is going to be one of the best teams in the country. I think we’re going to be a tough out no matter what happens.”

The IceJacks are the fourth seed in pool B and will face Central Florida, Hope College and Neumann during pool play. If all goes well, the IceJacks will play in the semifinal game on March 15.

Follow the Lumberjack Sports reporters on Twitter Lumberjack Sports: @LJ_Sports Cody Bashore: @CodyBashore Alli Jenney: @allijenney Brian Gosset: @Gosset41

SportsReport

MEN’S HOOPS HAWAII BOUND FOR ESPN BRACKETBUSTER

T

he NAU men’s basketball team (10–16, 7–9 Big Sky Conference (BSC)) will make its first trip to Hawaii to play the University of Hawaii (UH) Warriors (15–11, 9–6 Big West Conference) on Feb. 23, as part of ESPN’s week-long BracketBusters.

Flagstaff is 2,942 COMMENTARY miles away from the Aloha State, six to seven hours by plane. The Lumberjacks are coming off a thrilling 74–72 overtime win over the University of North DaBRIAN kota (UND) on Feb. 16.

GOSSET “Some guys have been playing a lot of minutes lately and [we are] not sure when we’re going to get Stallon [Saldivar] back,” said head coach Jack Murphy. “We’re really going to have to rest our legs these next two days and get ready for that long journey over to the islands.”

Saldivar sat out the game against UND with an ankle sprain.

There will be a quick turnaround following the game. The Lumberjacks finish the season playing four games in 10 days, starting with a home game against Idaho State on Feb. 28. In addition, they still have to play Weber State and Montana, both of whom already clinched the top two seeds in the BSC tournament.

The Warriors, who are in their first year in the Big West after spending the previous 36 seasons in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), have the obvious size advantage. With 16 players on their roster, they accumulate over 1,200 inches in height with an average little over 6-feet, 5-inches per player. The Lumberjacks, with only 11 on their roster, come in with 831 inches and an average height of 6-feet, 3-inches.

“Hawaii is an outstanding team coached by Gib Arnold, who’s one of the most respected coaches on the West Coast. They’re playing well in Big West Conference play and it’s going to be a great chance for our guys to not only play an outstanding team, but to also get out to Hawaii,” Murphy said. “I think [this trip] is great preparation for the last two weeks of the season.”

Senior guard Gabe Rogers has been

the best player so far for the Lumberjacks.

Rogers has scored 20 or more points in five straight games and in eight of the past nine. He is averaging 24 points per game in that span and 17.4 on the season, best in the BSC. Freshman forward Isaac Fotu, senior center Vander Joaquim and junior forward Chris Standhardinger are the big three for the Warriors. Standhardinger leads the team with 15.9 points and 8 rebounds per game. The trio has 20 doubledoubles on the year while averaging 39.3 points and 22.5 rebounds per game. Fotu, a fan favorite, has been coming off the bench as of late after beginning the season as a starter. The freshman from New Zealand has played on its national team and stands 6-feet, 8-inches (7 feet if you include his afro).

Let’s hope the Lumberjacks can concentrate more on the game-plan than having a good time in a place where it never snows. Though Murphy may let his guys enjoy themselves just a little by going to the likes of Waikiki Beach, Ala Moana and Diamond Head, hopefully the players do not eat too much shaved ice and traditional plate lunches.

Another difference the Lumberjacks will get the pleasure of experiencing is a change in weather. Currently, the Flagstaff forecast has been around 25 to 40 degrees during the day and in the teens at night. Hawaii averages anywhere from 75 to 80 degrees, while the lowest temperature is around 60 at night. They also have trade winds, which makes for a nice breeze on a hot day.

“The Big Sky Conference is a great conference, but [there aren’t] warm temperatures on some of these road trips,” Murphy said. “The guys are looking forward to that. It’s been quite chilly so we’re looking forward to enjoying some sun out in Hawaii and getting the job done on Saturday.”

NAU and UH had a chance to play each other in the 2010–11 season when both teams made the CollegeInsider.com Tournament. If both teams had won two games, it would have set up a quarterfinal matchup. Instead, Hawaii lost in the second round to San Francisco by three and NAU lost to the eventual champs, Santa Clara, by five in the opening round.

Senior guard Amy Patton leaps toward the basket against University of Northern Colorado on Feb. 14. Patton averaged 15 points during the homestand. (Photo by Matt Valley)

Women’s basketball survives OT scare

W

BY CODY BASHORE

ith Big Sky Conference (BSC) tournament hopes dwindling with every loss, and the careers of the four seniors nearing an end, the NAU women’s basketball team took a step in the right direction with a 64–60 overtime win against University of North Dakota (UND) on Feb. 16.

After UND (10–15, 5–11 BSC) hit a 3-pointer to open the overtime scoring, NAU rattled off a 7–0 run to close out the game thanks to a pair of jumpers by senior center Aubrey Davis and senior guard Amy Patton.

“At this point in the season, our focus is on playing well,” said head coach Sue Darling. “We made free throws that counted, we made shots that counted, we got defensive stops that counted and that’s what counts.”

The win moved NAU (7–16, 6–9 BSC) into a tie with Southern Utah University (SUU) for the seventh and final BSC tournament spot.

The game remained close, with the schools tied at 28 heading into halftime. The Lumberjacks built a five-point lead with a little more than three minutes remaining in regulation, but UND hit a pair of free throws with 12 seconds left to tie the game at 57.

“It’s a little pressure just because we are in the

thick of things, so every game matters,” Patton said.

“We stuck it out, stuck together and got the win.”

Patton finished with 16 points on 8-of-15 shooting and grabbed 10 rebounds for a double-double.

Sophomore forward Erikka Banks topped a career-high in points scored and rebounds, totaling 18 and nine, respectively.

“Coach wanted us to attack so that was my mindset before the game; just attack and get to the rim,” Banks said.

Banks also reached the free-throw line 15 times, hitting 10 of her attempts.

“I think [Banks] is the best [power forward] in the conference. The girl is so quick; I have to guard her in practice and I hate [it],” Patton said. “It helped us out so much and hopefully she can continue to do the same.”

In total, only five players scored for the Lumberjacks.

After shooting 1-of-15 from 3-point range on Feb. 14 against the University of Northern Colorado, the Lumberjacks followed with another awful performance from outside, shooting 1-of-13. Combined for the two games in Rolle Activity Center this past week, the Lumberjacks shot 2-of-28 for seven percent.

The Lumberjacks will return to the Walkup Skydome to face Sacramento State on Feb. 23 at 6:35 p.m.

Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 21

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Arts&Entertainment

SEDONA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

brings Oscar Shorts to Flagstaff

W

BY DANIEL DAW

ith films such as Lincoln, Les Misérables and many others receiving the Oscar buzz, Flagstaff got a chance to experience lesser-known films that will also be honored on Oscar night.

In a presentation from the Sedona International Film Festival (SIFF), the five live-action short films that are nominated for Academy Awards were screened at Harkins Theatres on Feb. 13. The short films — Death of a Shadow, Henry, Curfew, Buzkashi Boys and Asad — were screened as a part of the festival’s monthly Flagstaff Cinema Series.

According to the executive director of the SIFF, Patrick Schweiss, the short films are often forgotten by many watching the Oscars.

“Normally, this is a category that people kind of scratch their heads [over] or get up and go to the bathroom during the Oscars because they’ve never heard [of] or seen these films — and now you will have been able to have seen them,” Schweiss said.

This was the first time Oscar-nominated films were screened prior to the Academy Awards as a part of this series. The screening was able to happen because of the positive relationship between the festival directors and Magnolia Films, who distributed the films in this fashion.

Some in the audience, like Melissa Smith, a senior electronic media and film major, appreciated the dramatic nature of the films.

“I loved all five of them; they were really good this year. I always like dramas.

I think that’s why I was pleasantly surprised that these were all very dramatic and serious films. I like things that give you the feels and all of these did that for me,” Smith said.

All five films were strong in their own right. Some took the audience into different cultures, like the South African film Asad. This film documents the experience of living in the villages of Somalia through one small child who is training as a fisherman but yearns to be a pirate until he comes across a yacht that his friends had attacked and after investigating, he finds that no one onboard survived except a cat wearing a sailor costume. The young fisherman brings the cat home with him.

Others challenged our views on death. The first film, Death of a Shadow, follows the story of a ghost who collects silhouettes of the dead as their death is reenacted. He does this to earn the chance to return to life to be with the woman he loved the most, until he finds she fell in love with another man shortly after he had died.

Matt Goodwin, philosophy professor at NAU, led a discussion following the last of the five films and discussed deeper meanings within them. They began the discussing of films in this series because cinema can provoke thought and merit in a philosophical discussion.

“They were great; I love short films and they really provoke a lot of deep thought, because so many people feel that the movie ends and they all kind of part ways and they all have to kind of think about it on their own with whoever they came here with. This way, we get people to stick around afterward and then they are able to get some of the ideas out together,” Goodwin said.

The Academy Awards are set to take place on Feb. 24 starting at 6:30 Mountain Standard Time on ABC.

24 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

TOP: Melissa Smith and Rob Wilkinson purchase their tickets from Beverly Hurff for the Live Action Oscar Shorts on Feb. 13 at Harkins Theatre. Both are electronic media and film majors at NAU. BOTTOM: Students and residents of Flagstaff gather to view the Live Action Oscar Shorts. (Photos by Holly Mandarich)

Arts&Entertainment

Ska punk heats up The Orpheum for Valentine’s Day

room yelled as they danced to the ska rhythms.

The Toasters did not play a long set, although, after 30 years of perfecting their signature ska sound, they definitely have enough music to keep it going all night. It was a good thing, because almost no one in the crowd could resist the bouncy ska rhythm that makes people forget almost everything except how to move. There was not a person in the crowd who could stand stationary as they played. They even kept the energy up as they slowed it down with the much more reggae-like song, “Run Rudy Run.” Front man Rob “Bucket” Hingley promoted the ska ideology, stating the key to a good life was beer and good friends.

The energy would not subside after the band left the stage, and they were called out for an encore. The second song of their encore, the horn players for Mrs. Skannotto joined The Toasters to perform “Mat Davis.”

The energy was only amplified when The Toasters trombonist soloed within high-fiving distance of the front row.

Overall, The Toasters made it a memorable performance for everyone in attendence. Joe Hinz, a sophomore forestry major, found the show to be a hit. “They had a really solid set. They played a lot of the classics. That is awesome, because everyone loves the classics, so you can’t go wrong there.

I’d say, all in all, everyone enjoyed the show completely,” Hinz said.

Third wave ska has come a long way since its humble beginnings in the 1990s. This performance proves the lasting power of ska music in pop culture today. The blend of ska punk at The Orpheum gave couples and non-couples alike a reason to heat up the holiday.

The Toasters' trombonist, Chapman Sowash and saxophonist, Jon Degen perform music from their latest album, 2 Tone Army at The Orpheum on Feb 14. (Photo by Jing Wang)

W

BY CALEB MCCLURE

hile most were out on the town wining and dining their love interests into a stupor, The Orpheum hosted a Valentine’s Day show for those looking for a little less love and a little more ska.

The first group, The Blissins, are a three-piece punk band lead by vocalist and guitarist Gabe Keetso. The band describes their sound as distorted harmony — a perfect description. Everything is distorted but their harmonic choruses and melodic guitar give it a more poppy sound.

“When I first started writing songs, I wasn’t trying to be a punk rock band or anything like that. Once I got involved with my cousins and brother, they were more into the punk rock stuff, and it just came out punk rock,” Keetso said.

“This one goes out to the crooked politicians and authority figures who exploit their power,” said James Privett, the mohawk-clad bassist for the band No Paradigm before launching into their first song, “We Won’t Go Away.”

No Paradigm is a female-fronted punk band from Cottonwood; they have a very ‘80s hardcore punk sound, more aggressive and less harmonious than The Blissins.

During the ‘90s, there was an influx of bands that were highly influenced by punk rock and alternative music creating a third-wave of ska. Mrs. Skannotto was one of these bands, forming in 1994.

“Ska is always the jumping off point, and then everyone kind of fuses that with whatever they’re into,” Daniel Mullens, a Phoenix resident, and freshman Danielle Ridgellsaid singer Joe Harmon.

They combine soulful vocals with punk rock reverb and horns. This sound is much different than Perry dance with a friend at The Toasters’ concert at the Orpheum The Toasters’ smooth, rhythmic, more traditional ska. Their set was lively with punk rock choruses; the Theater on Feb 14. (Photo by Jing Wang)

Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 25

Arts&Entertainment

T O TA L LY T U B U L A R :

Tubagrams take NAU by surprise

are not averse to having a specific song chosen as long as they are given enough time to prepare. Some of the songs listed include: “Earth Angel,” “You Belong with Me,” “Kiss the Girl” and “A Whole New World.” One song is even a designated barbershop quartet arrangement. Based on preference, the tuba and euphonium players can also play “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” to your special someone.

“We enjoy arranging pop songs and Taylor Swift is fun to play. We usually prepare songs for about three weeks so, as long as you give us enough time to get ready, we could even do some requests,” Miranda said.

The musicians do not take sole responsibility for their success.

“The musicians of Flagstaff Tubagrams would really like to thank our faculty sponsor Dr. Alexander Lapins as well as the director of the school of music Dr. Todd Sullivan. Without them, we would not be able to perform,” Miranda said.

Orders for Tubagrams can be requested via e-mail to flagstafftubagrams@gmail.com to request the set list, in addition to a date, time and place of the performance. Tubagram performances on campus cost $5 and are $10 off campus.

FROM LEFT: Randy Thomas, Forrest Griffith, Ruben Miranda and Stuart Wegner pose for a photo in the Performing Arts building on Feb. 14. (Photo by Domenique Pennacchio)

A

BY KATHLEEN KOMOS

quartet of tubas is certainly a strange sight to see, even stranger when they serenade unsuspecting audiences in public. The tuba may be a rather unorthodox instrument to utilize in Valentine’s Day grams, but the thought did not stop Ruben Miranda, a senior music education major and euphonium player, from creating Flagstaff Tubagrams in order to raise money for the Southwest Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference. Miranda found the idea when talking to a friend who had done a similar event for his school several years earlier.

“We also want to get out of the music building and to represent the music school. This is a relatively new thing this year so we didn’t advertise very much, but we plan to next year. This time we mostly relied on word of mouth and fliers. We do this for the advocacy and to show people what the tuba and euphonium can do,” Miranda said.

This will be Miranda’s third conference, but it will be the first for many of the other tuba and euphonium players. His instrument, the euphonium, is very similar to a tuba. It is slightly smaller and the differences between the two are very much like the differences between a viola and a violin.

The reaction of NAU and Flagstaff was positive; most of the quartets have been very busy, especially due to the recent passing

26 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com

of Valentine’s Day. With nine students in total who play in quartets, the groups must occasionally be mixed and matched. School and work schedules make it a bit challenging to have the same quartets perform every time.

Katherine Ritsko, senior music education member and tuba player, really enjoyed surprising the recipients of the Tubagrams.

“The reactions are the best. It’s not every day you get to serenade someone with a group of tubas,” Ritsko said.

Tubagrams are not just for Valentine’s Day. The musicians behind the grams want everyone to know they will perform for many events including birthdays, proposals and other special occasions. However, a tuba is not the instrument you would expect someone use in an attempt to serenade.

“Tubas can do more than just fill in the deep sounds in an orchestra, they can serve a different, gentler purpose,” said Forrest Griffith, junior music education major and euphonium player.

Anthony Lake, a senior music education major, really loves playing for faculty members and other students.

“We went to go play for someone in the science building, and it turned out to be a really interesting surprise. We started playing, and apparently there was a physics test going on. The teacher just closed the door and we continued playing,” Griffith said.

While the Tubagram players do have a specific set list, they

FROM LEFT: Forrest Griffith and Ruben Miranda ser-

enade an NAU student in the Performing Arts building on Feb. 14. (Photo by Domenique Pennacchio)

Arts&Entertainment A Good Day to Die Hard

SoundCheck Artist: The Spinto Band Album: Cool Cocoon Genre: Alternative Indie

W

BY ANASTASIA HARPER

hen lead man Nick Krill adopted his grandfather’s unused lyrics from the back of a Cracker Jack box, a group of aspiring musicians, known as The Spinto Band, emerged onto the alternative music scene. Since their inception in 1995, the band has self-produced seven albums. The band’s increasing fame has transformed their sound from a highly energized, angst-ridden theme to one more soft-spoken and introspective.

Their latest album, Cool Cocoon, echoes the whimsically alluring tune of their previous album Shy Pursuit. The quiet ease of instrumentation makes this album more conceptual than past albums.

While Cool Cocoon continues with a light-hearted melody, soulful lyrics delve into a deeper examination of the mind’s endless quandaries.

On the surface, the melody of “Shake It Off ” leads listeners into a sense of blissful ignorance. The lackadaisical piano chords along with a fast-paced rhythm impress a quiet peacefulness worthy of any walk-in-the-park compilation.

However, the grounded lyrics expose the disillusionment of a broken relationship as vocalist Nick Krill croons, “I’m unhappy with dreaming.” Much like the relationship described in the song, the melody expresses the dream-like beginnings of love while the lyrics address the hard reality that usually follows.

Critically observing the flaws of over-intellectualizing, “Memo” pointedly scrutinizes vain attempts at rationalizing life. Instead, the song suggests searching for the meaning of life takes away the

meaning all together. Spoken like the careful criticism of a friend, “Memo” points out why “you got no reason to feel any better.” Words “you write poems about nothing” show the song’s lyrical capacity to reflect on the loss of inspiration that comes when obsessing over the cold facts of life.

Opening with a beautifully simplistic series of chords, “Look Away” acts as a response to the dilemma presented in “Memo.”

Rather than drowning in the confusion of life, this song describes stepping away from struggles in order to examine them from a distance. The beautiful imagery enhances the lyrical message with lines like “I look because the light won’t stop shining in my eyes/I’m by a window but I look away ‘cause it makes rain fall in my eyes.” By arranging an eerie quietness with profoundly poetic lyrics, this track gives an engaging, introspective edge to the album.

Serving as a conclusion to the conflicts described through the album, “Breath Goes In” binds the album together as Krill declares, “all of the bloods been drawn/out of the light of dawn.” While giving a glimpse of the other side, the swaying melody and the optimistic manifestation leaves listeners with an answer to their endless quandaries.

With an array of wistful melodies, Cool Cocoon doesn’t shy away from the intimidating questions that can arise when facing a broken heart. Its inquiring observations on how to survive spiritually transitory times makes it a refreshing album worth listening to on any given rainy day.

Best Tracks: “Look Away” and “Memo”

Directed by: John Moore Starring: Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney, Sebastian Koch Running time: 97 minutes Rated: R

BY PAUL BEIMERS

B

ang goes the gun, down goes the thug and Bruce Willis walks away without any serious wounds to speak of. Rinse and repeat until you have a franchise.

A Good Day to Die Hard marks the fifth appearance of Willis’ roughtalking, rule-bending policeman John McClane, back once again to shoot his way almost single-handedly through yet another terrorist plot. As to be expected, John Moore’s contribution to this long-running series does not deviate much from the formula that made the previous installments so successful.

There is one minor difference to be found in this latest exercise in shoot‘em-up action and fiery explosions and it’s bad; it’s very bad.

This time around, our favorite one-man army has traveled to Moscow, there to help estranged son Jack (Jai Courtney) after his arrest for the murder of a Russian official. During the younger McClane’s trial, in which he agrees to testify against political prisoner, Yuri Komarov (Sebastian Koch), a terrorist plot to capture the latter is put into motion, one that gets both fa-

ther and son involved in a scheme that could spell disaster for the rest of the world. The pair is subsequently pulled through a string of increasingly overthe-top set pieces as they try to — what else? — save their beloved America from the grip of malicious foreigners.

In order to do this, however, they must work together, which will require both to confront past wrongdoings and settle old feuds if they wish to win the day.

Loud noises and balls of flame can only carry a movie for so long, and they fail to see this one through to the end. Considering A Good Day to Die Hard runs for a scant 90 minutes, one would think it would at least move relatively quickly; this is not so. Despite its truncated length, it manages to grow tedious surprisingly quick, due to the clear lack of any real storyline to glue the many stunts together.

The bulk of the film consists of shaky camerawork, bursts of gunfire and the wanton destruction of anything remotely breakable, which, in this case, means just about everything.

The cinematography is so jittery it’s oftentimes impossible to tell what’s happening on-screen, leaving many scenes an overwhelming mess of noise and

blurry images. The dialogue is no less crass, with the characters stuck repeating the same snarky one-liners and shouted expletives over and over again.

It isn’t surprising, then, the actors suffer from two-dimensional portrayals, offering no emotional punch or realism. The relationship between the McClanes, one of the film’s primary themes, is so simplified it offers nothing interesting. Starting with hostility and gruff sarcasm — which becomes tiresome very quickly — and evolving into gooey sentimentalism that is so heavy-handed by the final few scenes it’s almost nauseating.

A Good Day to Die Hard does have its good moments: bits of the dialogue are laugh-out-loud funny and some of the more over-the-top action sequences are admittedly well-shot and entertaining. However, as a whole, the film is nothing more than brainless amusement, too deafening and too tumultuous to be effective in any kind of meaningful way. As an action flick, it’s perfectly serviceable, but anyone looking for even a bit more in their moviegoing experience is going to leave disappointed.

QuickFlick Stand Up Guys

S

BY LAURA THOMPSON

tand Up Guys moves as slowly as its geriatric characters. Acting legends Al Pacino, Christopher Walken and Alan Arkin play these stereotypical characters and, sadly, their talents do not make up for the deadend plot.

Stand Up Guys follows retired mobsters, Doc (Walken) and Val (Pacino) as they relive one last day of glory.

Val has just been released after 28 years in prison to find his old mob colleague, Doc, there to pick him up. Immediately, they are ready to break out their

other comrade, Hirsch (Arkin) form a nursing home and get back to their old ways. However, one detail is hanging over their heads — Doc must kill Val by 10 a.m. the next day. The order comes from their former boss, who is getting revenge on Val for killing his son.

This is where it gets fuzzy. It’s mentioned that Val is a stand-up guy because he kept his mouth shut and went to prison. Did he really kill the boss’s son? The audience never finds out. The movie’s subplot, while weak, involves some sort of emotion — which is exactly what the main plot

fails to do.

Stand Up Guys is completely devoid of music and timing. It moves so slowly, it takes 45 minutes for any sort of story to become apparent. Even worse, what the viewer perceives to be the climax turns out to be the end and viewers are left with unanswered questions.

Pacino’s, Walken’s and Arkin’s talents are showcased well here. Their banter is funny, but slow and understated. The caliber of these actors does not make up for the lack of story. There is no climax, no resolution and no satisfaction in this film.

Feb. 21, 2013 - Feb. 27, 2013 | The Lumberjack 27

extended Campuses

28 The Lumberjack | Jackcentral.com