CAMPUS POLICE CONTROVERSY

Issue I, Volume CXXXII

September 8, 2014

www.theoakleafnews.com

THE SRJC NEWSPAPER

CAMPUS POLICE CONTROVERSY

Meet the new faculty Hungry or bored?

Page 5

Center spread

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September 8, 2014

Calendar

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Transfer Admission Guarantee Workshop provides information regarding requirements and counselor assistance, 2-3:30 p.m. at the SRJC Transfer Center. santarosa.edu/transfer.

The fifth annual Fiesta de Independencia celebrates Mexican Independence and Latino culture, 1-6 p.m. at Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, 50 Mark West Springs Road. Free. wellsfargocenterarts.org.

Petaluma Cinema Series screens “The Philadelphia Story”, 7 p.m. in the Carol L. Ellis Auditorium at SRJC Petaluma campus.

Optional lecture at 6 p.m. petalumafilmalliance.org/ cinema-series.

12 SRJC women’s soccer team plays against San Francisco City College, 3:30 p.m. on SRJC Cook Sypher Field.

Editors-in-Chief:

Julie Lee and Stephen Radley Managing Editor:

Jarrett Rodriguez Section Editors: Copy Editor | Alex Randolph Layout Editor | Chantelle Bogue A&E Editor | Devin Marshall Features Editor | Nate Voge News Editor | JoshuOne Barnes Opinion Editor | Nathan Quast Sports Editor | Robert Marshall Sports Photo Editor | Joseph Barkoff Multimedia Editor | Stephen Radley

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SRJC football team plays Butte College, 5 p.m. on SRJC Bailey Field.

Enter the magical world of 16th-century Fenford Village at “Much Ado About Sebastopol,” 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sept. 1314 at Ives Park, 7400 Willow Ave. Admission to the Renaissance faire is $16 for general, $10 for seniors and students and free for children under 10.

18 Transfer Admission Guarantee Workshop provides information regarding the requirements and counselor assistance, 2-3:30 p.m. at the SRJC Transfer Center. santarosa.edu/transfer.

SRJC wrestling team competes against Delta, 3:30 p.m. in Haehl Gym. SRJC men’s water polo team plays San Joaquin Delta College, 5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 17 in the SRJC Quinn Aquatic Complex outdoor pool.

Petaluma Cinema Series screens “Kundun” in the Carol L. Ellis Auditorium at SRJC Petaluma campus.

Optional lecture at 6 p.m. petalumafilmalliance.org/ cinema-series.

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Photographers Joesph Barkoff JoshuOne Barnes Jeanine Flaton-Buckley

Transfer Admission Guarantee Workshop provides information regarding requirements and counselor assistance, 9:30-11 a.m. at the SRJC Transfer Center. santarosa.edu/transfer.

SRJC men’s soccer team plays against San Francisco City College, 4 p.m. on SRJC Cook Sypher Field.

“Mars” offers an investigation of the roadblocks facing those who would attempt to colonize the red planet, 7 p.m. in the SRJC Planetarium, Lark Hall Room 2001. Admission is $8 for general and $5 for ages 5-13, students with ID and seniors at the door. Cash only.

527-4465. santarosa.edu/ Planetarium.

20 Women’s soccer team plays against Feather River College, 2 p.m. on SRJC Cook Sypher Field.

“Mars” offers an investigation of the roadblocks facing those who would attempt to colonize the red planet, 7 p.m. in the SRJC Planetarium, Lark Hall Room 2001. Admission is $8 for general and $5 for ages 5-13, students with ID and seniors at the door. Cash only. 527-4465. santarosa. edu/Planetarium.

Redwood Empire Food Bank delivers fresh produce for students with low-to-no income and/or financial aid 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. every Wednesday between the bookstore and Administration Richard Call building on the SRJC Petaluma campus. First come first serve. Bring bags.

Volunteers welcome. 778-3919.

Advertising William Rohrs

Web & Social Media Chantelle Bogue, Julie Lee, Stephen Radley, Jarrett Rodriguez

Admin Assistant Mike Sjoblom Multimedia Stephen Radley, Joshuone Barnes, Jeanine Flaton-Buckley

Contact Newsroom: 707-527-4401 Ads Office: 707-527-4254 Anne Belden, Adviser: 707-527-4867 abelden@santarosa.edu

Distribution Brennan Cole, Nikko Edwards, Sal Gebre, Deanna Hettinger, Andrew Lino, Mike Sjoblom, Pio Valenzuela, Nate Voge

EMAIL oakleaf-ads@santarosa.edu oakleafonline@gmail.com oakleafpr@gmail.com

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ONGOING EVENTS

“Sym.bi.osis: Art and Science intersect” holds an opening reception, 4-6 p.m. at SRJC Robert F. Agrella Art Gallery. The show features the works of Bay Area artists, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 1-4 p.m. Saturday. The exhibit runs Sept. 15 to Oct. 16. santarosa.edu/artgallery.

Staff Writers Claudia Aceves, Haley Bollinger, Anne-Elisabeth Cavarec, Brennan Cole, Nikko Edwards, Faith Gates, Sal Gebre, Arthur Gonzalez-Martin, Mari Guevara, Deanna Hettinger, Hannah Kooistra, Andrew Lino, Kelsey Matzen, Alex Randolph, Ben Steinberg, Pio Valenzuela

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR We appreciate your feedback.

Send us your letters to oakleafonline@gmail.com or to the Oak Leaf office. They should include your first and last name and be limited to 300 words. Letter may be edited for style, length, clarity and taste. Libelous or obscene letters will not be printed.

Editorials do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the students, staff, faculty or administration.

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News

September 8, 2014

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left SRJC CAMPUS POLICE CONTROVERSY Quake unscathed

SRJC District Police under investigation

Claudia Aceves Staff Writer

JoshuOne Barnes

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News Editor

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anta Rosa Junior College is investigating its own police force on allegations of promoting a hostile work environment, sexual harassment, padding overtime hours and possession of child pornography, according to anonymous sources close to the investigation.

The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) filed hostile workplace and sexual harassment grievances on behalf of six District Police employees in the early summer. In response, attorneys representing the college hired Santa Rosa-based private investigator Chris Reynolds to look into the allegations.

Reynolds declined to comment on the specifics of the ongoing investigations and said his report is expected to be complete in the next 30 to 45 days. Reynolds also declined to discuss what his investigation may end up costing the school, but said his rate is $140 an hour.

According to sources within the department, the troubles came to light after a District Police dispatcher discovered another employee’s personal thumb drive that contained child pornography, which allegedly came from a case officers handled in January of 2013.

Three police employees have filed sexual harassment complaints against the department over exposure to the child porn.

At least two district employees are on leave due to fear of retaliation from the chief and other department

Joseph Barkoff/ Oak Leaf

SRJC District Police are under investigation for promoting a hostile work environment, among other things.

employees, and are awaiting the outcome of the investigation. At least five and as many as nine employees have individually retained legal representation.

The allegations of padding overtime hours stem from the alleged failure on the part of senior officers in the department to deduct their sick leave and vacation time from the timesheets they turned in. The three sergeants each collected between $8,300 and $10,500 in overtime pay last year, according to transparentcalifornia.com.

In a July email sent to all faculty and staff, SRJC President Dr. Frank Chong assured the college that the administration was taking the allegations seriously and that the

school was conducting a thorough investigation. Dr. Chong requested in the email to direct any questions or concerns about the matter to Doug Roberts, vice president of business services.

Roberts refused to comment on the investigation or how much it is costing the district, citing the fact that it is a personnel matter.

SRJC District Police Chief Matt McCaffrey said, “I have a high degree of confidence that when these investigations are done, we are going to find that no employees had acted inappropriately.”

But others disagreed. “It’s been a dysfunctional department for a number of years and based on the

number of complaints and information I’ve gotten, the current leadership isn’t making the problem any better,” said Robert Edmonds, former student trustee on the SRJC Board of Trustees and vice chair of the Sonoma County Community and Local Law Enforcement Task Force.

Anonymous District Police employees said morale is at an alltime low. “The department is split.

People are feeling intimidated and afraid. Two people have gone on leave because they are afraid to go back to work,” one said.

With the investigation by Reynolds under way, the chief is said to have told employees and officers not to talk to anyone under threat of termination.

Petaluma Public Safety Incident Prompts Faculty Concerns JoshuOne Barnes News Editor

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RJC Petaluma campus faculty and staff are voicing concerns about the lack of police presence on the campus after an April 2014 incident in which a faculty member had to wait 45 minutes for District Police to arrive to control an aggressive and unruly student who had refused to leave the classroom.

SRJC English professor Johnny Sarraf said he called District Police to report a disruptive student who had ignored his standing suspension from the class. During the 45-minute wait, the student became extremely agitated and violated the professor’s personal space, grabbing a test out of Sarraf’s hands. Other students in the class had to wait while the incident was taking place. The student fled the classroom before police arrived.

Petaluma faculty addressed the concerns of a minimal police presence at a Faculty Forum meeting in late April attended by District Police Chief Matt McCaffrey and SRJC President Dr. Frank Chong.

During the meeting Dr. Chong agreed with the faculty that safety

should come first, Sarraf said.

Around two dozen faculty who felt the chief had dismissed their concerns wrote a letter to Dr. Chong and signed a petition requesting that he address the sense of insecurity due to the lack of police presence on the Petaluma campus. In the letter, several faculty expressed grave concerns about the situation.

“The message seems to be that each of us will need to fend for himself/ herself if an emergency should occur,” wrote SRJC history professor Dr. Allison Baker.

SRJC biology professor Dr. Kirstin Swinstrom wrote, “I no longer feel safe calling on the SRJC police and would call 911 instead.”

Dr. Chong said he will not directly address these concerns, but instead relied on Chief McCaffrey and the Vice President of the Petaluma campus Jane Saldaña-Talley to solve the situation.

“The police were where they needed to be when they needed to be there,” Saldaña-Talley said. She recalled a later incident during which the police were waiting for the student as he tried to re-enter the classroom. A 15-minute struggle with the police ensued, and the student was arrested.

Chief McCaffrey reassigned

Lieutenant Dave Willat, secondranking officer in the department, to the Petaluma Campus to address the faculty’s concerns and to avoid redundancy at the Santa Rosa department.

Lt. Willat declined to comment and instead referred questions to Dr. Chong or Doug Roberts, vice president of business affairs.

Lt. Willat is on duty from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. as the only sworn officer who patrols the Petaluma campus. Two unarmed Community Service Officers (CSO) also patrol the campus, but lack arrest powers and are limited in what services they can provide.

Julia McDermott-Swanson, adjunct professor of communication studies at the Petaluma campus and one of the original signatories to the letter and petition to Dr. Chong, said the changes have only made the campus safer for a limited number of hours.

“I’m not sure we’re at a point yet where I believe that the safety of faculty and students who are on campus after regular business hours is really being taken seriously by the District Police,” she said in an email interview.

Sarraf said, “We need someone beyond the 4 o’clock shift. Until they do hire someone, it is essential to

send one of the five or six officers they have at the Santa Rosa campus.” He added that decisions should be more democratic and transparent. “This idea of all the authority going to one person is a problem. When the chief is making all the decisions, there has to be some accountability,” he said.

Chief McCaffrey said calls for service drive staffing decisions. Sending officers to the Petaluma campus when there are considerably fewer calls is inefficient when they may be needed in Santa Rosa.

The chief added the department is in the middle of recruiting an officer or officers on a short-term, non-continuing basis to cover the evening shifts, but could not give an estimation of when those officers would be on campus.

The lack of a marked police car available on the campus after 4 p.m. has prompted CSOs to file a grievance with Human Resources.

They cite an agreement with the department to provide the CSOs with the necessary equipment to do their jobs. McCaffrey said his department is aware of this issue and plans to address it by providing a decommissioned patrol vehicle from the Santa Rosa fleet.

anta Rosa Junior College sustained minimal damage from the 6.1 magnitude South Napa earthquake Aug. 24, but the quake served as a wake up call to ensure that safety standards are upheld.

Aside from a broken water line serving Bailey Hall and a brief electrical outage that caused alarms to go off, no damage was reported, said Doug Kuula, manager of environmental health and safety. The water line has since been repaired.

SRJC facilities managers, Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) control technicians and electricians evaluated that both campuses, Shone Farm, Public Safety Training Center and Southwest Santa Rosa Center were ready for occupation the following Monday.

Even so, school district officials urged employees to watch for unusual conditions, such as cracks in the infrastructure or foul odors.

“Something that was working normally yesterday could turn out to be damaged today, especially with our many older buildings and the possibility of aftershocks,” said Ellen Maremont Silver, communications and marketing director.

The older buildings constructed in the 1930s includes Tauzer Gymnasium and Pioneer, Garcia, Analy and Bussman Halls, which stayed strong during the Napa quake, just as they did during the 1969 Santa Rosa earthquakes of magnitudes 5.6 and 5.7.

“It appears that most of the buildings that were severely damaged in the Napa earthquake were built in the 1800s,” Kuula said. “It is difficult to predict what magnitude it would take to affect these buildings.”

Lists identifying the Building Safety Coordinator (BSC) and Area Safety Coordinator (ASC) for each campus, center and building will be made available soon, Kuula said.

“I am grateful we were not seriously affected. Please let this be a reminder to everyone to review safety procedures, both at SRJC and home,” said SRJC President Dr. Frank Chong.

SRJC will participate in the Great California ShakeOut where everyone will “Drop, Cover and Hold On,” Oct. 16, while a limited number of faculty will evacuate classrooms and report to the appropriate emergency evacuation area.

“Over the last couple of years we have been laying the groundwork to make significant progress in emergency preparedness and response,” Kuula said, “and this year you will begin to see the fruit of these efforts.”

www.theoakleafnews.com

Police Blotter Kelsey Matzen

September 8, 2014

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Grant brings the world to SRJC Mariana Guevara and Pio Valenzuela

Staff Writer SRJC auto theft An SRJC student reported around 9:30 p.m. Aug. 27 that his vehicle parked at the northeast corner of the Emeritus parking lot had been stolen.

He had left his key in the ignition due to mechanical issues. A search around campus failed to locate the vehicle.

While patrolling the area between Mendocino Avenue and Steele Lane, District Police officers noticed a vehicle at the Chevron gas station that matched the description of the missing vehicle 10 a.m. Aug. 29.

After confirming that it was the same vehicle and that it was still reported stolen, the officers called for backup and continued to keep surveillance.

The occupants, male and female, walked into a mini-mart. Officers lost sight of the male suspect, but apprehended and identified the female suspect as Jennifer Marie Zwicker. Zwicker, 30, was found to be in possession of a glass tubular pipe and small bag containing a white crystalline substance, which was tested at the scene and found to be methamphetamine. Further investigation identified the male suspect as Sonoma resident Blake Michael Lamudge, 22.

A District Police officer observed Lamudge charging a cell phone near the entrance to Big Lots on Mendocino Avenue 7:50 a.m. Aug. 31. Aware of the “stop and hold” alert in effect for Lamudge on behalf of the vehicle theft, the officer contacted and arrested him for vehicle theft, possession of stolen property and violation of probation.

He was booked at the Sonoma County Jail, along with Zwicker, who was charged with possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and providing false identification to a peace officer.

Drug and bicycle theft arrest SRJC District Police arrested a man for possession of a controlled substance during a routine traffic stop on Aug. 21.

An officer stopped Mark William Baker on Mendocino Avenue near Bear Cub Way around 9:31 p.m.

During a probable cause search, the officer found Baker had a capped syringe containing a clear liquid and two small bags containing a substance later confirmed to be methamphetamine.

After placing Baker in custody, officers realized that he matched the suspect description of a bicycle theft from a private residence one block east of SRJC. The victim of the incident had provided District Police with a copy of a private security video which revealed distinct markers of the suspect.

Baker’s crisscross tattoos on his right forearm matched those belonging to the suspect. He also possessed articles of clothing matching those of the suspect in the video.

Baker was booked in the Sonoma County Jail for possession of a controlled substance and violation of probation. He is currently under investigation for the bike theft.

News

Staff Writers

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anta Rosa Junior College’s growing international student program received a federal grant to host 13 students from eight developing countries through the Community College Initiative (CCI) program.

The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural

Affairs (ECA) led the initiative, which promotes intercultural exchange by sponsoring foreign students to study in American community colleges.

CCI aims to train students from developing nations to return to their home countries as global citizens with the knowledge and skills to build a better future for themselves and their respective countries, according to the ECA. “Eligible students come from underserved populations otherwise unable to participate in study abroad programs,” said Peg Saragina, director

of the SRJC international students.

The 13 students come from Colombia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Pakistan, South Africa and Turkey. They share a desire to contribute to their countries by acquiring skills necessary for success.

CCI business student Kwena Eunice Motsoko, 24, said, “I would like to be my own boss and create job opportunities for the youth.”

Unlike most SRJC international students, CCI students work toward obtaining certificates in agriculture, automotive technology, business

Jeanine Flaton-Buckley/ Oak Leaf

International student Kwena Eunice Motsoko attends an event hosted by the college to welcome new exchange students.

or child development instead of transferring to a four-year university.

“We had never gotten a grant like this before,” said Ganesan Srinivasan, co-writer of the grant proposal and dean of SRJC agriculture, natural resources and culinary arts department.

SRJC is one of four community colleges in the country and the only community college in California to receive the CCI grant this year from the International Research and Exchange Board.

The benefits of CCI are both academic and cultural, Saragina said.

The students will bring home a new perspective on the U.S. in addition to an education.

SRJC hopes to expand its international program. This year 127 international students are attending SRJC, an increase from 88 in 20132014, according to the student program’s office.

“I see these international students in the quad, and it changes the culture of the college, the complexion of the college, which is a good thing,” said SRJC President Dr. Frank Chong.

Vice President of Student Services Ricardo Navarrete and Vice President of Academic Affairs Mary Kay Rudolph gave words of encouragement at the International Student Meet and Greet reception Aug. 26.

“We want you to be successful at SRJC because we are proud of you and we want you to represent yourself and your countries well,” Rudolph said.

Both Rudolph and Navarrete said it is an opportunity for international and local students to learn about each other’s cultures.

SRJC gets $2.65 million to develop Hispanic programs Claudia Aceves Staff Writer

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anta Rosa Junior College is one of 11 higher learning institutions in California to receive a $2.65 million Title V grant by the U.S. Department of Education (DOE).

The 55-page grant application started last fall and was submitted in May. Three deans wrote it: Catherine Prince of instruction and strategic program development, Kris Abrahamson of liberal arts and sciences and Victor Cummings of language arts and academic foundations.

During the writing process, the grant became known as Meta4, as meta translates to “goal” in English, and there are four main goals. The six-year limit for a student to receive financial aid made especially clear the importance of helping students transfer more quickly.

“One of the things we noticed among the Latino students was that there was a higher percentage of them not finishing in three years, but

finishing in six years, so one for five years each, the length of the goals is to lower the six- of time the grant is expected to year completion rate and get last. However, SRJC is required students in and out quicker to submit a report to DOE at and efficiently,” Prince said. the end of each year to prove Meta4 is designed to increase that the grant has achieved academic opportunity for and specific goals to receive the attainment by Hispanic and amount for the following year. low-income students, increase The Developing Hispanicenrollment of English-learning Serving Institutions Program students, provide (HSI) made the access to new grant available technology that Of the $2.65 million, to SRJC due will serve as to its Hispanic the grant is allocated p o p u l a t i o n an electronic counselor and assist in hopes of at $525,000 for five in the beginnings expanding of Mi Casa, a years each, the length e d u c a t i o n a l multicultural opportunities of time the grant is center yet to be for Latino and expected to last. planned. low-income D O E students. representatives told Eligibility SRJC officials for HSI that the first year applying for funding requires enrollment the grant is usually considered of undergraduate full-time a planning year and they students at a higher learning wouldn’t actually get funding. institution be at least 25 percent It came as a surprise when they Hispanic and 30 percent lowwere told in August that SRJC income students two years was granted the maximum prior to application process. amount applicable, which Although SRJC consisted of Prince said is rare.

24.8 percent Hispanics in the Of the $2.65 million, the 2011-2012 year, the number grant is allocated at $525,000 grew the following year to 27

percent, while 36 percent of SRJC students were receiving financial aid; thus Prince proved that the number of Hispanic and low-income students continues to rise.

“Every single student in the district will benefit from some part of the grant because we have four different goals and everybody will be touched by at least one of those,” Prince said.

The funding will not serve students specifically, like scholarship money does, but will support the changes necessary for an institution to better support student academic programs.

DOE granted 11 other schools HSI funding; only SRJC and San Diego Mesa College received the maximum amount of $525,000 per year.

“We eagerly welcome the grant and what we will be able to achieve with the additional resources to serve the unique needs of the Latino community in Sonoma County and the North Bay,” SRJC President Dr. Frank Chong said in a press release.

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September 8, 2014

Features

www.theoakleafnews.com

Meet the new faculty Twenty-six new faculty members join SRJC

Guillermo Garcia Student Counselor Q: What drew you to SRJC? A: There is diversity and a shared governance and faculty collaboration.

Q: What inspired you to work in your chosen field?

A: I am El Salvadorian and was the first in my family to go to college. I want to support the minority communities.

Q: What does learning mean to you?

A: It requires engaging in school materials, asking questions and not being passive.

Q: What is the sound track to your life?

A: The Doors because Jim Morrison is at one with his music, and that’s how I like to live my life.

Kevin Sea Agriculture/Wine Studies Q:What drew you to SRJC? A: SRJC wanted to bring a little more chemistry to the program.

So they hired someone in with a chemistry background in addition to some wine background.

Q: What inspired you to work in your chosen field?

A:You get to be out there in the vineyard watching the grape vines grow, but then you get to come in and make this fairly complex product that is of course highly esteemed by consumers. So there is just this fascinating spectrum of investigation and inquiry.

Q: What does learning mean to you?

I just love continuing to learn and to understand why things work the way they do. That’s one of the reasons I like chemistry because you get down to the molecular level about understanding everything from that matter that makes up this desk to how the neurons fire in the brain at the chemical level.

Q: How do you like your eggs?

A: I like my eggs soft-boiled.

Jared Howard Student Counselor Q: What drew you to SRJC? A: SRJC has the best reputation in the Bay Area and is ahead of the game in implementing new school policies.

Q: What inspired you to work in your chosen field?

A: I love to be a part of all of the stages of self-discovery students may experience while attending SRJC. Q: What does learning mean to you?

A: I prefer a holistic approach to learning, emphasizing interconnectedness and not just academics.

Q: How do you like your eggs?

A: Scrambled.

Rianna Vargas Disability Resources Q: What drew you to SRJC? A: I worked 40 hours a week for free, and that’s how I fell in love with disability resource counseling. I never in my life thought I would be doing this type of counseling but I am so happy that it worked out this way.

Q: What inspired you to work in your chosen field?

A: Two of my students had schizophrenia when I was interpreting in LA, and those two inspired me to continue.

Q: What does learning mean to you?

A: Life is a long time learning experience. I think everyone comes from different backgrounds whether its cultural, linguistic or academic.

Learning about others, in the end, you learn more about yourself.

Q: What is the sound track to your life?

A: I’m a huge Linkin Park fan. Not a lot of people know that about me but I’m a huge Linkin Park fan and I think that their very first album “Hybrid Theory” got me through a lot of hard times in life.

Amanda Greene Student Counselor Q: What drew you to SRJC? A: The SRJC campus is magical, and the students want to be here.

Q: What inspired you to work in your chosen field?

A: I try to help students the way I needed it when I was in their position.

Q: What does learning mean to you?

A: It is collaboration between students, resources, the teachers and outside support systems.

Q: What is the sound track to your life?

A: The Beatles’ song ‘‘Let It Be.” I want students to be able to slow down enough to enjoy the journey.

Manasori Iimura Chemistry Q: What drew you to SRJC? A: My own college education started at a community college. So in the back of my head I always knew that I was coming back to community college eventually to teach.

Q: What inspired you to work in your chosen field?

A: My general chemistry professor at the community college was amazing and unlike the way I was taught, you have to memorize everything, he tried to explain the why. He entertained all my why questions.

Q: What does learning mean to you?

A: Learning one thing always leads to more questions. So it’s kind of like a never-ending journey.

And I may not find the answer to everything I want to learn about but that’s the reason I’m alive, I guess.

Without that curiosity, I might as well be -- that’s how I feel -- I might as well be dead.

Q: How do you like your eggs?

A: Sunny-side-up… I don’t eat to live; I live to eat.

Jerome Fleg Music Q: What drew you to SRJC? A: I was really drawn to the diversity of people and culture.

Probably the last thing is the outdoors, the mountain biking and the surfing.

Q: What inspired you to teach in your chosen field?

A: I have a passion for music. I want to share that with others and I want to see others grow as human beings though music.

Q: What does learning mean to you?

A: Learning means growing and increasing your impact on the world.

Q: What is the sound track of your life?

A: Radiohead’s “OK Computer” because it’s the intersecting of many different worlds.

Christopher Hilton Nursing Q: What drew you to SRJC? A: They wanted somebody with an anesthesia background. That’s how I got involved in it and then the people were so nice. The place takes care of itself. It answers all of its own questions.

Q: What inspired you to work in your chosen field?

A: I accidentally fell into it. I started off actually washing dishes in a kitchen of a hospital and ultimately got interested in the patients who we were taking food to.

Q: What does learning mean to you?

A: It is an adaptation process I think between where you are and where you want to be. You are able to incorporate things around you.

Things in your environment that can be used to help you.

Q: What is the sound track to your life?

A: It depends on the moment. I always listen to classical music in here from London. Or it could be the Grateful Dead or it could be jazz or it could be Bollywood.

Timothy Melvin Math Q: What drew you to SRJC? A: It’s a good job but a good way to give back also. I was away and I wanted to come back to Northern California too.

Q: What inspired you to work in your chosen field?

A: I just kind of liked math. I kind of kept going, I did pretty well in it, so I got a degree in it. It wasn’t until years later when I went to grad school that I focused.

Q: What does learning mean to you?

A: You don’t want to take things at face value or assume things, which is hard to do because we are just buffeted with information on a daily basis. So, questioning things.

Q: What is the sound track to your life?

A: Andrew Bird… Cake… Later Beatles. I’m fairly open.

Muwafaqu Al Asad Health Sciences Q: What drew you to SRJC? A: I like people, it’s challenging and I just moved from the fast paced Bay Area to the most relaxing environment.

Q: What inspired you to work in your chosen field?

A: I come from a medical background, and I have an M.D. I used to be a student myself, and I can see how students struggle getting from one point to another.

I just want to be sure that I can facilitate the process and help them to succeed.

Q: What does learning mean to you?

A: It is acquiring or enforcing existing knowledge, behaviors, skills. It is shared by humans and animals. It is progress over time. It follows the learning curves.

Q: What is the sound track to your life?

A: I like jazz, and I like classical music. I like energetic music in the morning. It just gets you going.

Check out the rest of our new faculty members in our next issue Sept. 22!

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A&E The Champ is here

September 8, 2014

Theater arts preview w

Jarrett Rodriguez Managing Editor

Alex Randolph Copy Editor

T

he Santa Rosa Junior College Theater Arts program presents two musicals and two plays for the 2014-2015 season.

First up is “Prelude to a Kiss,” which runs Oct. 3-12.

Rita and Peter are young twentysomethings madly in love with each other. On the day of their wedding, an elderly man asks for a kiss from the bride. This allows the man to transfer his soul with hers. Playwright Craig Lucas wrote a funny, sexy comedy that also explores serious themes of aging and sickness in loved ones as Peter struggles to sustain his love for his wife when she’s in an unattractive body.

In order to put a greater emphasis on the characters and their interactions, the performance will be in Newman Auditorium, an intimate venue with limited use of props or lighting, instead of the usual Burbank Auditorium.

“The Phantom of the Opera” runs Nov. 21-Dec. 7. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s famous musical adaptation of the classic novel and one of the most successful productions in history borrows heavily from operatic tradition to tell the famous story of love, obsession and unforgettable music.

The actors trained under vocal director and professional opera singer Jody Benecke to prepare their roles. The theater department took creative steps to overcome the challenges of having a smaller stage and budget than Broadway, resulting in a unique production.

Music fans should see the SRJC Music departments’ midterm and final exams; individual classes will show their progress in ticketed performances. Midterms for this semester are Oct. 13-17, and finals are Dec. 8-12.

In addition to the fall semester, SRJC Theater has an early preview for spring. “American Night – the Ballad of Juan José” is a hilarious and thoughtful examination of what it means to be American. It runs March 6-15.

“Footloose,” the classic ‘80s movie adapted for stage, runs April 17-May 3. The end of spring sees the 2015 Dance Show, which runs May 8-10.

Admission for “Prelude” is $14 for students and seniors and $18 for general audiences. “Phantom” is $16 for students and seniors and $22 for general audiences. Current Associated Students Programs members get one free ticket.

Auditions are open to everyone interested regardless of major, and students can also work backstage building costumes or setting up lights in exchange for class units.

www.theoakleafnews.com

Review

I

t’s football season, and that means one thing — “Madden” has released on consoles again. The question on everyone’s mind is: are they going to take advantage of the new-gen consoles? To answer it briefly, sort of.

“Madden” gets a release every year so it is no surprise to see it hit the shelves. Last year saw the subpar “Madden 25” release for last-gen consoles before hitting the PS4 and Xbox One later on.

The game was not as polished as people expected, letting a lot of fans down. So EA was smart in building hype around “Madden 15” this year, touting it as the first true new-gen football experience, built from the ground up.

The first thing you’ll notice when you start the game is the beauty in the graphics. From small details like tattoos and scars on the players to the way the grass looks, everything screams new-gen.

However, there are some weird textures as well, the weirdest being the one you play in snow. The animation just doesn’t look right, but this is nitpicking; the game is gorgeous.

Unfortunately, looks will only take it so far. Gameplay is where

Photo courtesy of EA sports Roger Sherman from the Seattle Seahawks tries to intercept the ball from San Francisco 49ers offense player Michael Crabtree in this years “Madden 15”.

“Madden” both innovates and stalls. EA has been talking a lot about how it has changed the defense mechanics this time around. Playing defense is no longer a chore of picking a play and waiting to see if it works.

Now you have more control over the action, especially with the new defense camera, which zooms in on the player for a more personal view as you tackle. The downside to zooming in is that you can’t take in what is happening around you, opening you up for more mistakes. While it’s fun to use for

a few rounds, if you take the game seriously you will be using the classic style of play.

As far as playing offense goes, it is still the same as other Madden titles, just a bit tighter in the controls.

Audibles are easier to run and the with the new coach suggestion options that uses an algorithm to determine the best plays for your situation, you’ll feel like a pro.

Alas, unlike other “Madden” titles in the past, going in as a newbie is a lot harder. This is the first “Madden” title that assumes that you know football right off

Boyhood: an incredible but long journey Sean Curzon Staff Writer

Review

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ritten, directed and produced by Richard Linklater, “Boyhood” is a 12-year journey that follows Mason Evans, Jr. (Ellar Coltrane) as he grows up from a 6-year-old boy to a college freshman. The film features great, convincing performances by a singular set of actors throughout all 12 years, but the three hours of realism grow tedious towards the end for audiences. For better or worse, the film reflects and captures the sometimes mundane

and directionless experience of growing up.

Coltrane stars alongside Patricia Arquette, Lorelei Linklater and Ethan Hawke as Mason’s on-screen family. The acting is amazing; characters act like real people from start to finish. Hawke in particular does a good job capturing the growth of a man struggling to get his life together and become an exemplary father. Mason’s encounter with the recognizable markers of adolescence such as facial hair, acne and young love seems authentic because it was for Coltrane — the boy who grew up on-screen.

The film doesn’t have a traditional story arc, as characters flow in and out without clear resolution as

people do in real life. Unfortunately, this can be difficult to watch. The nearly three-hour running time combined with the episodic nature of the film can make it a bit of a chore to sit through in a theater.

It may be better to watch at home because it feels like you can just pick up where you left off the next day and not lose track of the narrative.

What makes the film are the little moments. When young Mason asks his dad if magic is real, Hawke’s character waxes prose about how he feels magic in a whale song.

A confused Mason abruptly says he just wants to know whether elves are real or not. It’s really cute and captures the spirit of the film perfectly. “Boyhood” is about the little moments that shape our lives.

the bat, so jumping in with littleto-no knowledge of the sport will aggravate you to no end. Kudos to EA for giving their fanbase what they want but they may have turned it into a niche market.

That being said, if you love football, there’s no other option out there, which is not necessarily a bad thing, especially if you have a PS4 or Xbox One. For the last gen players out there, you may want to skip out on this one, as the older hardware can’t seem to handle the gameplay very well. For the rest of you, welcome back to football.

Petaluma Cinema Series lineup Sept. 10: “The Philadelphia Story” (1940) by Greg Cukor Sept. 17: “Kundun” (1997) by Martin Scorsese Sept. 24: “Network” (1976) by Sidney Lumet Oct. 1: “A River Runs Through It” (1992) by Robert Redford Oct. 8: “Blazing Saddles” (1974)

by Mel Brooks Oct. 15: “Lone Star” (1996) by John Sayles Oct. 22: “The Kid” (1921) by Charlie Chaplin Oct. 29: “The Silence of the Lambs” (1991) by Jonathan Demme Nov. 5: “Lynching Charlie Lynch” (2011) by Rick Ray Nov. 12: “Brave” (2012) by Mark Andrews & Brenda Chapman Nov. 19: “Rear Window” (1954)

by Alfred Hitchcock Dec. 3: “The African Queen” (1951) by John Huston

Photo courtesy of http://boyhoodmovie.tumblr.com

Ellar Coltrane grows up on-screen as Mason, a reserved and curious boy, alongside Ethan Hawke, who plays his father.

Dec. 10: “The Namesake” (2006)

by Mira Nair

Sit-down restaurants 1. Hang Ah ($$): Don’t believe the drive-thru signs, and go in for the dim sum.

2. Gaia’s Garden ($): You don’t have to sacrifice taste for health any longer... at least not completely.

3. SEA Thai Bistro ($$): Don’t let the acronym of this fusion Asian restaurant de-SEA-ve you; it stands for South East Asia.

4. Las Palmas ($): A great bang-for-your-buck food joint with the best tacos.

5. SuperBurger ($$): Choose from a variety of hand-mixed shakes and malts to compliment a huge grass-fed beef burger.

guide to highly recom

6. Goji Kitchen ($$): This fusion Asian restaurant is pricier than other Vietnamese restaurants, but where else will you find delicious, organic goat cheese spring rolls in town?

7. Crepevine ($$): A mouth-watering brunch destination for those with a free morning or afternoon.

8. Adel’s Restaurant ($$): Breakfast for dinner until midnight? Give us all the bacon and eggs you have!

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9. Hank’s Creekside Restaurant ($$): Their eggs Benedict are a perfect hangover cure for those who can afford it.

Open after 10 p.m 10. Joey’s Pizza ($$) & The Belvedere ($$): Grab drinks at the Belvedere and climb the stairs for some late-night pizza.

11. Heritage Public House ($$): Maybe a five-minute walk from Emeritus Hall. Totally worth it.

12. Sprenger’s Tap Room ($$): Trivia nights on Monday with dollar-off draft beers Tuesday make this a popular hangout.

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13. Third Street Aleworks ($$): Look out for $2.50 pints on Tuesday nights and happy hour specials like a $3 personal pizza.

Shopping 14. Treehorn Books ($$): Find used hardbound first-edition books in this nostalgic alternative to corporate bookstores.

15. Outer Planes Comic and Games ($$): Packed with nerds of all kinds on any night. If you like Magic: The Gathering, you’ve found your people.

16. Whistlestop Antiques ($$): Poke around this two-story maze of knick-knacks to find a unique gift.

Coffee shops 17. Flying Goat Coffee ($$): Better coffee and loose leaf tea.

Plus that hipster je ne sais quoi.

18. A’Roma Roasters ($$): Better atmosphere with plenty of seating, pretty fairy lights and the occasional live music.

Movie Theaters 19. 3rd Street Cinema ($): Only $3 to catch that movie that you totally meant to see but didn’t.

20. Roxy Stadium 14 ($$): Come for the blockbusters and the $10 cult film series every Thursday.

Food on-the-go 21. Awful Falafel ($): Don’t let false advertising keep you away from this Middle Eastern treat.

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PLACES OUTSIDE SANTA ROSA ROHNERT PARK/COTATI

1. Shari’s Restaurant & Pies ($$): Apparently SSU students study here. Just go for the pies. Open 24/7.

mmended places in

2. Double Decker Lanes ($$): Bowling, plus arcade games, karaoke, pool tables and a bar.

3. Sonoma Mountain Village ($$): Features a new, promising event center with an outdoor theater.

4. Oliver’s Market ($$): Grab a hot or cold lunch here. Good salad bar. Great burritos.

5. Reading Cinemas ($$): One of the nicer theaters in Sonoma County. If you happen to be in Rohnert Park, try to catch a flick.

PETALUMA

1. The Sitting Room Free: You may not find Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein in this feminist library, but it offers tea, comfy seating and free WiFi.

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2. Taps ($$): A locals-approved brewery on the river with great beer and delicious food.

4. The Phoenix Theater ($): Affordable shows in a colorful — in every sense of the word — concert venue.

5. Petaluma Cinema Series ($): Great chance to watch well-curated films in a state-of-the-art auditorium for $5. No concession stand, though.

6. Petaluma Village Premium Outlets ($$-$$$): Cha-ching.

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7. Lagunitas Brewing Company ($$): Birthplace of amazing beers like Censored and Little Sumpin’. There’ss no better place to enjoy them.

8. Thai Issan Restaurant ($$): A higher-end dining experience for those looking for a nice atmosphere and great Thai food in Petaluma.

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SEBASTOPOL

1. Screamin’ Mimi’s ($): Best ice cream ever. Don’t question it; just go.

2. Aubergine Vintage Emporium & Cafe ($$): Vintage store by day, full bar and live music by night.

OTHER AWESOME PLACES

WINDSOR Omelette Express ($$): Breakfast lovers can’t do much better than this place, with its amazing omelettes and friendly staff.

SONOMA Sebastiani Theatre ($$): The last single-screen theater in Sonoma County.

GUERNEVILLE Dick Blomsters ($$): Crazy-weird, crazy-good Korean-inspired fusion menu featuring Korean Fried Crack — sorry, it’s just chicken — and vanilla ice cream with pop rocks. Who knew?

MONTE RIO: The River. Need we say more?

SAN FRANCISCO

The sky’s the limit once you hit the Golden Gate, and Yelp will be your friend.

www.theoakleafnews.com

A&E

September 8, 2014

10

A light in the dark from Aubergine to 755 Devin Marshall

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A&E Editor

fter Aubergine Café and Aubergine After Dark were closed for nearly a year, the music venue has relaunched under a new name: 755 After Dark.

Aubergine Café and Vintage Emporium, located off Highway 116 in Sebastopol, is a vintage clothing store and café by day and a bar and nightclub… after dark.

Previous patrons may be surprised to see that the venue has changed drastically between its closure Sept. 2013 and reopening this July.

Bands once squeezed onto a two-tiered stage that resembled an old dinghy with brass portholes and stained wood.

It was difficult to fit all of the bands’ equipment, much less the members themselves.

“Our band played at Aubergine about a year ago,” said Will Reyes, guitarist of local band Waxwyng. “The stage was small for a five person group, but we made it work.

It’s definitely smaller so the crowd you can have is limited, but overall it was a positive experience for all involved and a fun time.”

The new stage, much more spacious and replete with metal frames and a suspended array of light fixtures, is just one improvement from the reopening.

“We expanded the bar, the venue is almost twice as big as it was, and we added a bathroom and upgraded the kitchen,” said owner Todd Mezzulo in a

phone interview. “New sound system, new lights, new stage.”

Mezzulo said the venue’s vision is to appeal to a wider audience across the county.

With these new provisions, 755 has the potential to bring in a much larger crowd than ever before, and its new name could help separate it from its previous reputation.

Promoter Jake Ward has stepped in to book shows for the new 755 After Dark.

“My understanding is that it basically shut down because it was losing money,” he said.

“They went through a few promoters and the restaurant was overly ambitious.”

Now that one of the previous owners has left, and the restaurant has gone through reform, new co-owner Phill Dorsett has come onboard to help run it.

“I’m the catalyst that reopened the venue,” Dorsett said. “I have put a lot of time and thought into creating what we consider to be Northern California’s true music and entertainment venue.”

After a reopening party, the venue is now in a soft opening phase. They are investing on a lot of improvements, Ward said.

“Now that the capacity is 300 and there have been improvements to the sound and infrastructure, the plan is definitely to push it to be more of a destination for touring bands,” Ward said.

While Aubergine was predominantly geared toward the over-21 crowd, 755 shows are mostly all-ages. The more inclusive venue now attracts

Jeanine Flaton-Buckley/ Oak Leaf

From left to right: Steve Hernandez (18), Parker Dean (19) and Christian Ohlin (16) of “Legal Disaster”, from Petaluma.

a wider audience and allows more people to see the touring acts.

“The previous bookers did more of one type of show, but now we have heavy metal, hiphop and punk: a lot of genres that most clubs don’t really cater to.” Genres range from hip-hop to what is known as “intergalactic afro-cowboy world beat.”

Local groups are now only part of the plan for the venue.

Ward has reached other groups that are experienced with nationally touring punk bands to set up shows, such as the Nor Bay Pyrate Punx with Angry Samoans and Green Jellÿ.

Ward said even though 755 welcomes young audiences, adults can still have fun, too.

Patrons with ID can access the full bar, a rarity in most venues.

“It’s really important to serve alcohol to make profit and hit profit margins and have a successful show,” he said.

755 After Dark hosts events almost every night of the week. It’s closed on Mondays, but every other day it’s open at 4 p.m. with happy hour running through 7 p.m. Every Wednesday is open mic night.

Tuesdays and Thursdays usually feature local bands.

Fridays and Saturdays tend to have shows bigger than other events.

In addition to live music, 755 offers a variety of evezznts

Jeanine Flaton-Buckley/ Oak Leaf

“Smak City” from Chico, plays at the newly re-opened 755 After Dark.

each month. Just two from September are a free “afterburn” Burning Man decompression party and a monthly Beaucup de Bellies bellydance showcase.

755 After Dark is a work in progress, but this is in no way the end of the story. The relaunch has just begun, Ward said. “It’s sort of just coming together, little by little.”

UPCOMING 755 EVENTS:

Electro-pop/rock artist Supertaster debuts his new album “Life With Oxygen” with a release party 8 p.m.midnight Sept. 11. Cover is a $5-10 sliding scale.

Ashleigh Rose Walker/Contributing Photographer

Left Photo: White Wall Bassest Aidan Collins-Smith playing at Aubergine After Dark. Right Photo:White Wall playing a show prior to Aubergine After Dark’s closer and re-opening.

Reggae group Sol Horizon performs with guests Dysphunctional Species 8:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. Sept. 12. The cover is $10.

There is a hip-hop show with SCARUB of Living Legends and a Pure Powers CD release part Sept. 13. The cover is $5-10 sliding scale.

Free Peoples, a selfproclaimed “intergalatc afrocowboy world beat” band, performs 9 p.m.-1 a.m. Sept.

18. The cover is $10.

The Nevada-based psychedelic gypsy art rock band, Samvega, performs on tour 9 p.m.-2 a.m.

Sept. 19. The cover is $8.

Propensity and Boilermaker perform as part of a mixedgenre showcase of young local musicians 8 p.m.-1 a.m.

Sept. 25. The cover is $5.

Classic punk/comedy band Green Jellÿ performs on tour and features members of the band GWAR 7:30 p.m.-1 a.m.

Sept. 26. The cover is $10 advance and $13 door.

Local funk/blues/rock band Uncle Wiggly performs 8 p.m.-1 a.m. Sept. 27. The cover is $8.

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September 8, 2014

Opinion

The steep price of education

www.theoakleafnews.com

EDITORIAL

Anne-Elisabeth Cavarec

B

Staff Writer

e ready to shell out $264.50 for the new edition of your business communication textbook required for class — and know that picking up a copy of “Nutrition for Health and Health Care” will set you back $200 in no time.

It’s absurd. The U.S. Government Accountability Office estimates that the price of college textbooks rose 82 percent from 2002 to 2013.

Unfair prices jeopardize students’ access to education. Sixtyfive percent of students choose not to buy at least one textbook per year based on price alone, according to the U.S. Public Interest Research Groups’ 2014 report “Fixing the Broken Textbook Market.”

A fair figure would satisfy both the publishers’ demands and the students’ budget, while keeping other costly student expenses in mind. Some students even spend more money on textbooks than on tuition.

As college students, textbooks are not a product we can decide to buy or not because we simply cannot study without them. This leads to inequalities between students who have the means to buy them and those who don’t.

There is an alternative solution with precedence: Santa Rosa Junior College economics instructors mobilized to negotiate the price of their textbook by customizing it according to students needs. The new custom version costs $162.50 instead of the $299.75 original.

Another way to reduce textbook prices is to adopt the openaccess textbook system already in place at several universities, which allows students to use the textbook online.

Antonella Andrade, textbook coordinator at the SRJC Bookstore, said, “We are doing our best to be competitive and provide better services than online companies.” I believe her intentions, but prices are still repulsive.

Must the general evolution of the book industry move toward online purchases? Do e-books lead to the disappearance of bookstores? Websites certainly offer more affordable prices, but also dehumanize the industry by forgoing direct advice from booksellers.

Equal access to education is integral to creating a fair society. Students, teachers and bookstore staff should show solidarity against publishers’ prices.

Map courtesy of the Earthquake and Hazards Program – Association of Bay Area Governments: http://quake.abag.ca.gov/earthquakes/sonoma/

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s one walks around the Santa Rosa Junior College campus, one can’t help taking in its history. The brick-and-mortar architecture holds the level of dignity found more often at an Ivy League school than a community college.

The same bricks giving SRJC’s buildings their charm make them vulnerable during an earthquake.

SRJC needs to prioritize retrofitting these older buildings to preserve their historical value and the protect the students and faculty who use them daily.

The Earthquake Country Alliance defines “unreinforced masonry” buildings as any with walls built out of bricks, stone or any material without an internal support structure. The six oldest buildings on campus were built before 1940, and the mortar holding those bricks together cannot survive a powerful

earthquake.

SRJC has historically taken steps to comply with legislation like the Field Act, which set earthquakeresistant design standards for all of California’s public schools.

The oldest building on campus, Pioneer Hall, was completely rebuilt in the 1960s to meet these requirements. Newer buildings, including the Doyle Library and the Bertolini Center, incorporate a brick “shell” over an internal steel frame, allowing the buildings to blend with older school infrastructure and perform with modern specifications.

While the Aug. 24 quake had a 6.0-magnitude at its center near Napa, it had lost much of its destructive power by the time it reached SRJC, causing no significant damage. Such a powerful earthquake with a closer epicenter

could devastate Santa Rosa — and there’s a faultline capable of delivering such a quake not a half mile from SRJC. The Rodgers Creek Fault belongs to a broad network of faultlines in the Bay Area. In 2008, the United States Geological Survey, along with several Californian earthquake groups, produced a broadcast predicting earthquake probabilities through 2036. The Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast (UCERF) predicts that the Bay Area as a whole has a 63 percent chance of having one or more quakes of at least 6.7 magnitude in that time period.

Of the major faultlines, Rodgers Creek had the highest probability for these earthquakes at 31 percent. The next highest was the infamous San Andreas fault, epicenter of the 1906 San Francisco quake, at

just 21 percent.

Over the summer, the SRJC Board of Trustees agreed to place Measure H on the Nov. 4 ballot, asking Sonoma County voters for a $410 million bond. The board has posted a list of several items Measure H could fund; the list includes earthquake safety.

In light of the recent quake, retrofitting the oldest buildings and maintaining the new must take precedence over anything else.

Money spent on new computer labs and high-tech facilities will only turn into expensive rubble if the facility building collapses during an earthquake.

Even if Measure H doesn’t pass an unlikely scenario, given SRJC’s respected status in the community - the board must still consider earthquake safety a top priority.

Binging together brings people together

Stephen Radley and Julie Lee Co-Editors-in-Chief

Click the red play button, and the blue dots circle around the black browser page. Only the glow of the laptop screen illuminates your eager face. You settle into an optimal slouching position. Ah… Next thing you know, the sun

is rising. You tell yourself, “Just one more episode.”

Before you muster up even the slightest bit of self-control, the screen blinks. “Next episode playing in 15 seconds,” it reads.

You really don’t have a choice.

Binge-watching provides the feeling of sudden bliss, the inevitable crash and the overwhelming desire to reach that euphoric stage again and again — just one more time — and again. It’s another extension of our “I-want-it-now” culture.

Not only do we want it, but we get it, whether we like it or not.

And we sure do like it.

Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime, HBO Go and online piracy supply our demands, contributing to a growing cultural

phenomenon that enables this seemingly shallow and impatient way of consuming media.

It’s not shallow; it’s not impatient; it’s evolution. English 19th-century readers waited each month for the next chapter of “David Copperfield.”

American television audiences of the 1950s gathered around each week to watch the new episode of “I Love Lucy.” Now anyone anywhere anytime can binge-watch the entire series of “Breaking Bad” online.

Binge-watching intensifies the viewing experience by enhancing the shows’ continuity and immersive effect. This inspires fans to share their reactions, both immediate and analytical, to season finales on

social media platforms, making spoilers rampant. While the shared activity brings people together, spoilers can easily tear them apart.

But really, what is the appropriate wait time before it’s OK to discuss major plot points?

This early anarchical stage of anger and confusion is part of any cultural evolution. Once the World Wide Web explicitly defines the unspoken rules of conduct for binge-watching, Twitter, Tumblr and Facebook will be spoiler-free. We’ve always found ways to adapt to new trends; hopefully we find them soon.

www.theoakleafnews.com

Opinion

12

September 8, 2014

Politics trumps humanity

The price of playing for free

JoshuOne Barnes News Editor

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resident Barack Obama should alleviate the suffering of Latin American refugees seeking relief from drug cartel violence by making the immigration law changes that he had promised . The corrosive political environment in Congress has led to inaction by the nation’s lawmakers on a number of key issues, but this is one that demands executive action.

We are a nation of immigrants.

Every generation of Americans has had to make due and make room in this vast land bursting with resources for the next surge of immigration from one part of the world or another.

Every generation of Americans has found a way to marginalize one group of immigrants based on religious, cultural or ethnic prejudices; it is wrong and hypocritical.

Currently, a vocal and caustic group of Americans have thrown a monkey wrench into the works of the Congress with abusive and corrosive language used to marginalize immigrants from Latin America, the latest immigrants to bear the brunt of xenophobia. This time, the victims are mostly children who are escaping brutal and deadly conditions in Latin American countries.

To deport them en masse is deplorable and would be subjecting them to inhumane conditions in

Jarrett Rodriguez Managing Editor

T

their home countries. Drug cartels have been stepping up the already high levels of violence in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras and other Latin countries, according to Ted Galen Carpenter, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute. Given the current circumstances, an advocate for closing our borders and sending the refugees back is an advocate for dehumanization and torture.

To the delight of immigration reform activists, President Obama said he was done waiting for Congress to act and promised in June to take action by the end of the summer to address the crisis of increased border crossings by the youngest and most vulnerable of refugees.

A RT H E

President Obama announced Sunday that he would in fact not be taking the promised action until after the November mid-term elections. Obama made his statement in an interview with Chris Todd in an interview on NBC’s Meet The Press.

President Obama denied that the midterm elections played a role in his decision, but given the grief that he had received recently from Democratic representatives that were facing difficult re-election challenges, this is hard to believe.

To politicize human rights and deny the refugee status of thousands of children fleeing torture is a dereliction of our duty as the champion of freedom and democracy that we as a nation would like to think that

we are.

Any idea that we are lacking resources to deal with this challenge is manufactured and ignores the fact that the largest American corporations succeed in depriving the nation of hundreds of billions of dollars in tax revenue every year.

We are a rich country. We are a safe country. We should be a welcoming country. It is high time that America renounces the vitriol and abusive language a few Americans spew so that our lawmakers can do the jobs they were elected to do, namely promoting justice and extending human rights to all the world’s population, regardless of how powerless or poor.

A U KE Q

!

SRJC students and staff share their reactions to the Aug. 24 tremors “I woke up and I actual ly think I felt th e wave. Originally , I thought it was only ten second s, but I found out la ter from my mom that I slept throug h half of it; it was lik e twenty or thirty seconds.

At first, I thought it was thunder , which is funny because I always thin k thunderstorms ar e earthquakes.”

- Daniel Kong, Novato

ia two years n r fo li a C to d “I move ths my first ear a w is th d n a ago, quake. in a hog in y ta s y ll a I was actu and I wasn’t o c is c n a r F n lt tel in Sa ppened, so I fe a h it n e h w p aslee g. the whole thin s happena w g in th e m I knew so few seconds a e m k o to it ing, but s. I wasn’t a w it t a h w t to figure ou it interesting d n u fo I t u b scared, though. as in Michiw o h w , m o My m panicking s a w , e m ti gan at the e kept calling h s e s u a c e b , though s on silent. I a w e n o h p y me and m re her.” had to reassu on, - Nikki Brons ffice Curriculum O e Assistant v ti a tr is in m d A

oke up, “When I first w w flashes I immediately sain ows. I of light in the wme dso rt of think it was soing. atmospheric th shaking the After el my stopped, I could fe house swaying. was The first thing I .”did text my girlfriend - Zak Gruey, Santa Rosa

“I woke up when my bed started shaking, and the first thing I did was check on my dogs.”

- Sarah Stan ley, Santa Rosa

here you are, playing the game you’ve sunk hours into, finally ready to make it the next stage of the game.

An ad pops up, prompting you to spend more money just to keep playing.

This is the scam of free-to-play games that flood the market on phones and consoles.

These so-called “freemium” games started out as a way to get causal gamers to spend money on games they would not normally spend time on. But after the rise of “Angry Birds” and “Candy Crush” — games that have made millions from people who want to make it to the next level before they get off the toilet — bigger game companies have adopted this microtransaction process with full force.

Companies have found a new way to maximize revenue from gamers. Playing games like “Call of Duty” or “Assassins Creed” makes this very evident, as these games offer different color options for weapons and character voices for those willing to spend money. Gamers already pay $60 on average for a game to play on console or PC. Now we have to spend even more money in order to get that cool-looking skin.

It’s not just customization available for pay; some games allow players to buy their way into the top rankings by paying to be ranked at a higher level. Competition becomes no more than a question of who has the most money to win.

The free-to-play scams saturate the market and try to get the casual gamer’s money, ruining the very purpose of games are in the process.

There have been small movements against them. However, Google Play Store has removed the name free-to-play from these games and informs people of subsequent microtransactions.

These games are becoming the new model, and it needs to stop.

Gamers should be able to pay a price for a game and enjoy it in its entirety, not just a small part before an ad pops up demanding a toll to continue playing.

Gamers should refuse to spend extra money on content that should be free. Only then will developers learn that squeezing every little penny out of their customers will alienate the fan base that has made them so popular.

13

September 8, 2014

Sports

www.theoakleafnews.com

UNLEASHED : Bear cubs open with a win Joseph Barkoff

confidence in his fresh squad, on fourth and two, in the first drive of Sports Photo Editor the game, Wagner gave the “go for it,” and the Bear Cubs did just that.

McAlvain scrambled for the first anta Rosa Junior College Bear down and for more on a busted pass Cubs football players have play, eventually running in the first scrimmaged enough. The Bear Cubs touchdown of the day with 9:08 left boarded their offensive and defensive in the first quarter. busses bound for Stockton to open By the end of the first quarter, the the 2014 season Saturday, Sept. 6 score was 21-0, heavily in favor of against the Delta College Mustangs. the Bear Cubs, but there was plenty Delta was not on of football left, the schedule last and no one in this year, and so the day’s division could be adventure headed discounted.

“If we can clean into the unknown.

The opening up some of these Before the game, drive of the things we are SRJC’s head coach second quarter gonna get better.”

Lenny Wagner said culminated in an he knows any team impressive Bear -Lenny Wangner in his division is Cub 45-yard field a contender and goal by placekicker that Saturday’s Cody Waterman, game would be no followed by a different. He said he is sure of one kickoff 7 yards deep into the end thing: the Bear Cubs are ready for zone, negating any chance of a Delta their first opponent. return. With 13:30 left in the third Delta won the toss and elected to quarter, there was plenty of game receive the game’s first kickoff, where left. the they proceeded to go three and After a fumble by Desmond Nisby, out.

Delta converted to a touchdown, SRJC took the field with Christian and SRJC’s momentum began to McAlvain under center in his first waver with 10:29 left in the first half. start for the Bear Cubs. Showing Delta scored another touchdown

S

Young talent, big expectations Ben Steinberg Staff Writer

T

he Santa Rosa Junior College wrestling team hits the mats with high expectations this season after finishing ninth at the State Championship last fall.

With few returning wrestlers the Bear Cubs are building a new foundation with incoming freshman.

“We have some older mature wrestlers, who aren’t your typical freshman, some returners and some from other sports,” said Coach Jake Fitzpatrick.

“My biggest ambition is winning state at 184 pounds and assisting my teammates,” said freshman wrestler Taryn Christensen from El Molino High School.

Christensen returns home to Santa Rosa after competing at Wartburg College.

2013 saw the Bear Cubs finish 9-5 in dual meets, fourth in Coast Conference and fourth in the Northern California duals.

Not all of the team is new

to SRJC. Richard Morris was a state place winner at 141 pounds and Freddy Duerr, 24, played football at SRJC previously and is a first-year wrestler.

“Everything here is at a fast pace, everyone keeps pushing you,” said freshman Freddy Duerr. “No one is going to baby you here.”

With a cast of new wrestlers, Fitzpatrick is still figuring out which young athlete will compete at which weight.

“We have some wrestlers who at this point in the season are not at their peak per say,” Fitzpatrick said.

“We don’t have our natural 165 pounders right now but in due time we will have our guys running in top shape.”

Following duel matches on Sept. 5, the starting lineup will be figured out.

“After Friday we will have a better idea of who will be at what weight and where everybody is at,” Fitzpatrick said.

Following the conclusion of the duel meets, SRJC will be ready to make some noise.

The first matches are at 11 a.m. Sept.13 against Shasta and Delta College in Hayward.

on their next possession, leaving 5:19 still on the clock in the first half.

The Bear Cubs botched coverage on the ensuing kickoff, resulting in a turnover and Delta’s ball on the SRJC 21-yard line.

The first half ended SRJC 24-Delta 14.

Despite the first possession of the second half, the 225-pound Nisby plowed through Delta, pushing the score to 31 in the Bear Cubs’ favor.

Even with faltering concentration the Bear Cubs were able to hold onto their lead, taking a victory over Delta with the final score of SRJC 31-Delta 21.

“I feel good because we made a ton of mistakes and we still were able to get away with the win,” Wagner said.

“We have really good examples to show them why we need to improve because we let that team back in the game based on some of the mistakes we made.”

He added that the team has good conversations about where they need improvement.

“So really it’s kind of a win-win to be able to have all that stuff and have the victory,” Wagner said. “If we can clean up some of those things we are Photo by Joe Barkoff/Oak Leaf just gonna get better.”

Quinten McCoy intercepts the end of the game hail-mary, putting an end to Delta’s hopes of catching the Bear Cubs in their season opener Saturday, Sept.

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September 8, 2014

Moneyball part two

Robert Marshall Sports Editor

Staff Writer

U

nfortunately for the Oakland A’s, their most valuable player is no longer wearing green and gold.

On July 31, A’s general manager Billy Beane made one of the biggest blockbuster trades baseball has seen in the last decade. Swapping superstar for superstar is something that America’s pastime simply doesn’t do anymore, but the game’s longest tenured general manager had a different approach.

Every year on July 31, all 30 Major League Baseball franchises are faced with a number of important questions. Is their team within striking distance of making the playoffs? Is there team completely out of contention? Is it worth risking the future for a “rental player”?

On July 31, 2014 the Oakland A’s owned baseball’s best record, having given up a total of 374 runs, with the Dodgers giving up the next least at 403.

Offensively, the A’s had also scored the most runs in the league. Add the two together and these two overwhelming statistics had the A’s everybody’s World Series pick. Yet Beane was not complacent with his current team and decided to pursue one of the game’s most prominent and accomplished left-handed pitchers: Jon Lester.

With a depleted farm system, it wouldn’t be easy to make such a big blockbuster. Their only missing component was a legitimate ace to their starting rotation. Beane decided to throw his chips all in, trading arguably the team’s most important all-around player for Lester; Yoenis Cespedes.

Since losing Cespedes, the A’s have gone 13-17 in addition to dropping out of the top spot in their division. The rival Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have made a recent surge and currently sit six games up on the A’s.

The A’s offense has vanished, with averaging nearly less than a run per game since the departure of Cespedes.

In the month of August the team batting average was .224, while averaging 3.6 runs per game and slugging .351.

In the previous 107 games their slugging percentage was .405 with 5.0 runs per game.

Needless to say their offense has been missing the offensive sparkplug. Not to mention, their lone threat in the lineup has been All-Star third baseman Josh Donaldson.

Fortunately for Oakland, there are plenty of games left to make up for this month-long rough stretch; but if they are going to do so, they ought to start producing runs sooner, rather than later. If not, the Angels will continue their tear and run away with the division.

www.theoakleafnews.com

Men’s soccer bounces back to win two straight

Brennan Cole

Opinion

Sports

T

he Santa Rosa Junior College men’s soccer team bounced back after its loss to win 6-0 against Skyline College Sept.

2, and win 1-0 against San Diego Mesa College Sept. 5.

The Sept. 2 game was scoreless until Omar Nuno scored one of three goals, with the first one coming in the 35th minute with assists from Angel Azevedo and Roberto Macias.

Nuno’s second goal came a few minutes later with assists from Nick Klimenko and Dantae Garcia, putting the Bear Cubs up 2-0 in the first half.

The second half was scoreless until Guilherme Aires scored at the 67th minute, getting assists from Azevedo and Nuno, making the score 3-0 SRJC. Nuno’s third goal came during the 70th minute mark, unassisted.

Andrew Carlile made it 5-0 when he scored in the 72nd minute with help from Aires and Brian Izaguirre.

“It was a statement game for our guys to show what we’ve got,” Izaguirre said. “We had control of the game from the get go and we wanted to prove to ourselves that we could be lethal in attack and organized in defense.”

Manuel Alanis scored the final goal with assists from David Mwinga and Carlino, making the

Photo by Joe Barkoff/Oak Leaf

Omar Nuno rifles a shot on net past a diving defender against Merrit College Friday Aug. 29 at Sypher Field, Santa Rosa.

final score 6-0.

“We all came into the game thinking that we had to get a good result after the previous loss,” said Diego Benitez.

Benitez went on to say that the with the team’s high-scoring game, it will boost all of the team’s mentality and help them score more goals.

“We handled them defensively very well and could have had some better penetrating crosses, but overall we played well,” Klimenko said.

In the Sept. 5 game, Bear Cubs’ Andrew Carille scored the only

goal of the game in the 47th minute with assists by Nuno and Andrew Tepping against San Diego Mesa College.

In the Aug. 29 game, the Bear Cubs lost 1-0 against Merritt College, with the lone score coming with five minutes left by Merritt’s Jesus Maldonado.

The Bear Cubs are now 3-1.

The next game for the Bear Cubs is at 4 p.m. Sept. 9 against DeAnza College in Cupertino.

The Bear Cubs are home at 4 p.m. Sept 19 to take on San Francisco city college.

Upcoming Soccer games Woman’s: Sept. 9: @ Mendocino City College, 4 p.m.

Men’s: Sept. 9: @DeAnza College, 4 p.m.

Woman’s: Sept. 12: vs. San Francisco City College 3:30 p.m.

Men: Sept. 19: vs. San Francisco City College, 4 p.m.

Women’s soccer loses valiantly Sal Gebre

Staff Writer

T

he Santa Rosa Junior College women’s soccer team lost team captain Hollie Depina en route to a 3-1 loss to defending state champions Cerritos College.

Depina was injured right before the end of the half and didn’t return from an apparent knee injury.

With goalkeeper Morgan Jernigan out of the game with a concussion, Bear Cubs freshman keeper Jayci Mariani stepped up big time. Cerritos had a direct kick about 25 yards out that looked like it was going in before Mariani tipped it over the crossbar for the save.

In the first half, midfielder Holle Depina dribbled around a defender and played a through ball to split the defenders. But before freshman Julia Lambert could connect with the ball, a Cerritos player slid to get a touch on the ball to redirect it out of bounds for a Bear Cub’s corner kick.

Another opportunity arose with 5 minutes left in the half when Depina took a great first touch forward to beat the defender for a one-on-one with the goalkeeper.

On the other end, SRJC center defender Chelsea Frostick made a huge save when she slid and tackled the ball out of bounds from a Cerritos forward. The Bear Cubs

responded by creating their own chances when Lambert recovered a loose ball out of the goalkeeper’s hands and quickly got a shot that veered far right.

Cerritos forward, Nayele Raquejo laid the ball off to midfielder Ashley Anaya-Webb, who scored for a goal minutes before the end of the half.

The Bear Cubs had kept the No. 1 nationally ranked team scorless for nearly 43 minutes with only three subs.

An unintentional handball on Mar Alinas resulted in a penalty kick, which the Falcons converted for a 2-0 lead.

With the Bear Cubs down two, they cut the lead in half when two Falcon defenders along with the goalkeeper collided, as Kayleen Belda kicked the ball forward to Lambert, who capitalized, making the score 2-1 CC. Cerritos College scored an insurance goal in the last 30 seconds of the game, making the final score 3-1.

“We just need to do what we can at training and on game days to stay focused and positive regardless of the issues that are happening off the field,” said head coach Tracy Hamm.

The Bear Cubs are now 1-1.

SRJC returns to action at 4 p.m.

Sept. 9 against Mendocino College Photo by Joe Barkoff/Oak Leaf and 3:30 p.m. Sept. 12 against San Kayleen Belda absorbs a Lassen slide tackle while maintaining possession of Francisco City College. the ball against Lassen Community College Thursday Aug. 28 at Sypher Field.

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