Monitor 2008-4-10

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Softball team hands coach 700th win.

Fremont, California

Vol. XXXVII No. 10

Please, grandmas, act your age.

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OPINION

Meet next year’s ASOC candidates.

SPORTS

NEWS

FEATURES

Chinese dancers to visit Ohlone.

April 10, 2008

President search: then there were three Committee narrows pool to three finalists

By BARRY KEARNS Features editor After months of searching for and interviewing 37 candidates, the choice for the next President of Ohlone College has been narrowed down to three finalists. They are Dr. Laurence Spraggs, Dr. Cecilia Cervantes and Dr. Gari Browning.

Currently, Cervantes is the president of the College of Alameda, Spraggs is the president of Broome Community College and Browning is the vice president of Instruction at College of the Desert.

The search for a new president began last semester and is led by consultant Pamila Fisher. Current President Doug Treadway took the position in Spring 2003, and will retire in June.

Browning received her master’s and Ph.D. from UCLA and has traveled and taught in the Dominican Republic and Hawaii. She is bilingual - fluent in Spanish and English.

Browning has a variety of experience from teaching at almost every level with a focus on community colleges. While Associate

Gari Browning

Laurence Spraggs

Cecilia Cervantes

Vice President, College of the Desert

President, Broome College

President, College of Alameda

Director at the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges Western Association of Schools and Colleges, she was involved in developing the current standards, including Student Learning Outcomes.

Cervantes received her master’s in Education at the University of Texas at El Paso and her Ph.D. from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Cervantes has served as a director, dean, associate vice president and vice presi-

dent for the past 25 years. Cervantes has been appointed to the Public Arts Commission, and was elected to the Board of Directors of the American Association of Community Colleges Hispanic Council.

Spraggs earned his master’s in biology from Wayne State University and his Ph.D. at Idaho State University. Spraggs has experience teaching from high school to university.

Spraggs has served as president of the Titus-

ville Campus of Brevard Community College and from 1996 to 2001, he was vice president at Red Rocks Community College.

The finalists are scheduled to appear at an open forum on Monday, April 14 from 1 to 5 p.m. The forums will be heldat the Fremont campus, in Room 2133, and the Newark campus, in Room NC1100. The forum will be streamed live over the web for 24 hours following the event.

Board can’t agree about report of divisiveness

By Andrew Le Staff writer The Board of Trustees addressed the findings of last month’s accreditation review at yesterday’s Board Meeting.

Out of the seven recommendations listed in the accreditation report for improvement, four dealt directly with the Board. The response issued by Board President Garrett Yee was presented initially on behalf of the entire Board.

“During the workshop, the Board as a whole did some soul-searching and concluded that we could not disagree with the recommendations presented in the Accreditation Team Exit Report,” said Yee. Following Yee’s statement acknowledging the accreditation recommendations, several Board members voiced disagreements.

A few Board members raised concerns that the statement was spoken primarily from Yee’s perspective, and as a result did not represent the

collective feelings of the board.

In addition, certain board members, such as Trisha Tahmasbi, voiced reservations concerning the accreditation team’s, Monitor’s and Argus’s unfair portrayal of the Board as a team divided. After the Board concluded they were divided on Yee’s acknowledgement of the accreditation review, they elected to postpone their collective acknowledgement of the recommendations until July, when the full accreditation report will be available.

Another topic of discussion involved the condition of the fields, which have been a 15-year problem for Ohlone. Although the baseball field has now been restored to a working state after being closed for a short period of time last fall, the problems causing its closure still exist. These problems have to do with drainage, as well as the way the fields were constructed.

Of particular concern is the clay under the grass that saturates with water and becomes soft. As a result,

it takes five to seven days after a rain for the fields to dry. The fields also suffer from water from the hillsides.

Along with the ongoing maintenance costs that go along with any grass field, the proposed solution is the installation of artificial turf that would remedy most of these problems. The board subsequently adjourned their session to investigate the condition of the fields. More discussion on the subject will follow at the next Board meeting.

mentioned that there is an upcoming math competition in Monterey and requested additional funds for transportation costs and fees.

ASOC Advisor Renee Gonzales announced the arrival of the Chinese Students visiting Ohlone and said there would be a meeting between the visiting students and the ASOC in the Cafeteria at 7 p.m.

Election Committee Chair Maria Louise Javier announced that there are some restrictions to campaigning for students running for executive positions; while campaigns are allowed to use paper, word of mouth and instant messages, the use of Facebook and other websites are not allowed and could result in disqualification. The ASOC elections day is April 29. The ASOC approved the $500 money request for the visiting

Chinese students from the Zhejiang Vocational Academy of Art. Zuhal Bahaduri of the ASOC Awareness Committee announced that there would be a tabling event next week where students can come to fill out surveys regarding Ohlone and campus activities. The ASOC is also looking for a new chair for the Marketing Committee. The Marketing Committee is responsible for publicizing the ASOC. The Curriculum Committee reported that the Deaf Studies class which has been offered in catalogs but has never actually had a class due to alck of enrollment has been deactivated.

Student Member, Board of Trustees Ken Steadman announced that there will be a Rock the Hill event featuring hip-hop performances

and break dancers. Steadman also announced that there would be an open-dance contest preceding the event, and that all are welcome to compete for a prize of $100.

Newark Facilities Committee Chair Dan Zhou announced that the microwaves at the main campus cafeteria are due for replacement and that there will be a money request for this coming shortly. Zhou also spoke about the meeting that he had with Director of Purchasing, Contracts and Auxilary Services Mark Robbins and Fresh Choice representative Alex Castro, where they discussed price discrepancies between the two campuses and the future of the cafeterias. Zhou concluded by saying that he plans to arrange a “face lift” for the cafeteria, and putting together a dollar

menu in the hopes of attracting more students. The ASOC receives 7 percent of the profits made by the cafeteria.

The ASOC also heard the money request made by Journalism Instructor Bill Parks for the printing costs of Midnight magazine. Parks mentioned that the magazine had recently won seven awards from the Journalism Association of Community Colleges.

Parks said that funding for the magazine this semester would come from the Ohlone Foundation but that he was looking for a more stable source of funding. He added that his plan for funding would require $5,000 from the ASOC, $3,000 from the college district and the remaining $2,000 from annual advertising.

New clubs for ping-pong, Polynesians and photos

By Barry Kearns Features editor

Plans for the future of the cafeteria and the upcoming elections were discussed at the Associated Students of Ohlone College (ASOC) meeting Tuesday.

ASOC Vice President Jackie McCulley announced that the Inter-Club Council has approved three new clubs: the Photo club, the Table Tennis Club and the Polynesian Club.

Math Instructor Geoffrey Hirsch spoke during the public comments portion of the ASOC meeting, thanking its members for their financial support of the Math Club and announcing that in the last competition, Ohlone College ranked seventh in the nation. Hirsch also

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monitor April 10, 2008

Associated Collegiate Press / National Scholastic Press Association All American 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 Regional Pacemaker 1988 Journalism Association of Community Colleges General Excellence Fall 1994 General Excellence Fall 2000 General Excellence Fall 2004 General Excellence Fall 2005

Opinion Editor in chief: Anna Nemchuk News editor: Eric Dorman Features editors: Sandeep Abraham, Barry Kearns Sports editor: Tomás Ortega Opinion editor: Andrew Cavette Photo editor: TBA Online editor: Barry Kearns Staff writers: Inez Black, Brian Chu, Tseten Dolkar, Rachel Funk, Andrew Le, Elise Leon, Jerome Nepacena, Joe Nichols, Jacque Orvis, Ryan Richmond, Kyle Stephens, Max Stephens, Kathy Sung Photographers: Pei Ju Chen, Japneet Kaur Johar, Danielle Rivers Ad manager: Jacque Orvis Adviser: Bill Parks Printer: F-P Press

Offices are located in Room 5310 on campus, 43600 Mission Blvd., Fremont 945395884. Call (510) 659-6075. Fax: (510) 659-6076. E-mail: monitor@ohlone.cc.ca.us Opinions expressed in the Monitor are those of the respective authors and are not necessarily those of the staff, the college or the Associated Students of Ohlone College.

Unsigned editorials reflect the majority view of staff members. Advertising material is printed herein for informational purposes and is not to be construed as an expression of endorsement or verification of such commercial ventures by the staff or college.

The Monitor is funded by the district, by the Associated Students of Ohlone College, and through advertising revenue.

The Monitor is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press, Journalism Association of Community Colleges, Community College Journalism Association, California Newspaper Publishers Association, College Media Advisers and Society of Newspaper Design.

Your clothing might speak for itself.

Opinions

Plastic surgery for teens unnecessary and unwise

By Joe Nichols Staff writer I have always wondered how young is too young when it comes to plastic surgery?

According to the American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, of the 11.7 million procedures performed last year, 21 percent of patients were between 19-34 years old.

What’s worse, 234,000 procedures were performed on people 18 and under last year alone.

If it’s reconstructive surgery, that’s different, but if it’s just some 17-year-old who doesn’t like the fact that her chest is small or the way his nose looks, then I think it’s not a good idea.

When you’re 18, your body isn’t done developing, so why should you try and change it? People develop different ways at different times.

Why would someone undergo major surgery when the risks are very high in most cases?

Advances in medical science keep complications from something like a breast augmentation down to a minimum, but why take the risk?

Plastic surgery should take place in the hospital, so if there are any complications, they can get taken care of. If you want to prevent death that results from complications, the government should not allow this kind of surgery to be done in any place but a hospital. In the event of complications, the proper equipment, medicine and doctors needed would be close at hand.

Old people today are too darn young

By Max Stephens Staff writer Whenever I go into work, my break is held ritualistically at the in-store café.

Sitting down and resting my already hurting legs, I enjoy staring out and watching people do their shopping.

I try to casually glance at these two old ladies who sit down and eat their brunch.

I do this because in more ways than one, these old ladies are a dying breed.

I see them with their high-waist band pants, light, airy colors in clothing and Sunday jewelry -- a family heirloom passed down from generation to generation.

The white, easy Velcro shoes and old flowery handbags make them easy to see from two aisles down. I see fewer and fewer

of them these days and that is a shame.

Instead, I see old ladies trying to be young, “spring chicks” as my own grandmother would say.

The tides of the different generations are changing, from conservative and neatly dressed, to track suits with “Grandma” across the rear end.

These new old ladies keep in touch with their grand children via texting as easily as they rock the Blue-Tooth headset. This change in our elderly folk is detrimental to our society.

The little old lady, the iconic America symbol who needs help crossing the street, is a wealth of live history, wisdom and understanding.

Soon, the hip-hop singing granny from “The Wedding Singer” will have no comedic value because the old folk of the future will have grown up too young.

This simply is not the way to go. Grand-

parents, seniors, the elderly or whatever you wish to call them (and please do call them, they miss you) have always been a source of wisdom, knowledge and experience.

The great thing about your grandmother is that she has already made the mistakes of her youth (and the youth of your parents) and she has learned from them.

Why would we want a generation of “80year-old young people” acting as foolishly as we do?

Who would we learn from if everybody is young?

From what I’ve seen in my short 19 years, the newest generation always screws up.

Call it the “de-evolution” of our society; from horrendous wars between countries to “Star Trek: Enterprise,” it just keeps getting worse and worse.

Rather than letting old ladies grow young and stupid, society needs to stay the course.

Keep the old, old. It’s good for us all.

Also, testing should be done to make sure that there are no genetic defects that could cause complications.

As we get older, we will grow into our looks.

The awkwardness will fall away; our features will sharpen or fill out.

More than that, given time, we will become comfortable in our own skin and this is the most physically attractive thing of all.

We are young, we run free with our teeth nice and clean - at this age anything else is just silly.

Monitoring Ohlone renews its Food Service Agreement on June 30. Monitoring asks Director of Purchasing Mark Robbins, the ASOC and VP Ron Travenick to make a small thing a big issue. Namely, corn starch.

With a green Newark Center newly opened, it makes sense to require whichever company receives the new contract (be it Fresh & Natural or otherwise) to use readily available, biodegradable, corn starch-based packaging for all its to-go food containers.

If you agree, email: mrobbins@ohlone.edu and the ASOC at: campusactivities@ohlone.edu Monitoring wants your help. Point it out to us at: monitor@ohlone.edu

Campus Comment > > >

What will be the title of your autobiography?

Kevin Padilla

Karla Ramirez

Bao Nguyen

Rushee Judge

Michael Muela

PSYCHOLOGY

UNDECLARED

“Struggling.”

“My Pin Stripes.”

“Descent Into Greatness.”

“The Crazy Life of Rushee.”

“I’ve Always Been Bad at Titles.”

OPTOMETRY

NURSING

ENGLISH

News

April 10, 2008 monitor

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Meet the candidates running for next year’s ASOC The following candidates are hoping to become members of ASOC next year. Elections will be held April 29.

Lauren Baca Running for: Student Member, Board of Trustees

Zahul Bahaduri Running for: Student Member, Board of Trustees

Kevin Feliciano Running for: ASOC Vice President

justin hamady Running for: ASOC Vice President

Jackie McCulley Running for: ASOC President

Hello, my name is Lauren Baca and I am running for the Board of Trustees. The Board has taken great strides in making Ohlone a better college and with your help I would like to be a part of these positive changes and continue to make Ohlone a thriving environment.

Prior to coming to Ohlone I held a similar position in my high school leadership program, so I understand the importance of this position and I accept the responsibilities that come with it. I ask for your help in giving me the opportunity to make our school a better place.

Throw me a challenge and I’ll go the extra mile to get it accomplished.

Currently I am the ASOC Representative at Large and a Certified Student Leader. I’m also founder and Chair of the Parking Committee. Let’s not forget my involvement in the College Council and holding several campus-wide surveys to represent the students’ voice.

Experience should not be the only factor in this election, but passion.

Passion is the key for a successful Student Member Board of Trustees and I can provide that. So vote for me, Zuhal Bahaduri.

My name is Kevin Feliciano and I’m running for ASOC Vice President.

I joined the ASOC in Fall of 2007 as a Senatorandwithinweekswasappointed ASOC Treasurer, where I reorganized the way ASOC handles its finances.

I’m the organizer for Earth Week, Secretary of the Liberated Individuals for the Environment, Vice President of the Gay/StraightAlliance and the Secretary of the Inter-Club Council. I am deeply committed to serving the students. Your concern is my concern. My goals are to generate more student activities and enhance students’experience at Ohlone College. Vote for experience!

I’m Justin Hamady! It’s my 3rd year at Ohlone and I’m running for Vice President of our ASOC. As VP I want to make your needs a reality. I will bring new life and a fresh perspective to the ASOC. I’m President of the Interact/ Rotaract club, I’m the Special Events Coordinator of 5170 Interact District Council and I’m an experienced speech competitor. As Events Coordinators, I led a team of 20 to fundraise $49,000 for educational programs in Tibet, Ghana and Panama. I’m confident my experiences will enrich ASOC and lead us to a successful year. Let’s work together and believe in the power of “We.”

I am running for ASOC President.

I began serving the students of Ohlone as a student government member two and a half years ago. As your ASOC VicePresident,myexperienceincludes: Inter-Club Council Chair, Academic Appeals Committee member, College Council member, Asian Pacific American Student Association Vice President and Treasurer, Senior Peer Mentor and ASOC Marketing Chair.

I am dedicated to serving students. If elected, I will ensure the students’voice is heard by surveying students, hosting open forums and promoting awareness of student government activities.

Hanna: low-tech security threats are greatest risk

By Chen Lin Staff writer Cybercrime was the topic of the Brown Bag Seminar presented last Friday by History Instructor Steve Hanna. The talk covered the threat of identity theft in both high and low-tech forms.

The idea for the original presentation came to Hanna after some faculty voiced privacy concerns concerning the distribution of birthdays through a staff mailing list, concerns which he believed were unwarranted. According to Hanna, most identity-theft crime is

carried out without the aid of technology.

“The point [of the presentation] is to help people learn enough about technological threats to protect yourself against the real threats and not the esoteric threats,” said Hanna.

Included among the “esoteric,” low-tech threats Hanna described in his talk were dumpster diving, social engineering and pick-pocketing. Hanna advised the audience to shred all sensitive information before discarding it.

Hanna also offered advice on how to safeguard private information on the internet,

Council focus: budget

By Kyle Stephens Staff writer Monday’s College Council meeting focused on the ongoing construction, budgeting and legal affairs, the selection of a new college president and the progress of the Technology Committee’s assessment and cataloging of school computers and related equipment.

College President Doug Treadway said the College Board of Trustees would be taken on a tour of the school grounds in the near future, namely the baseball/softball fields, in order to show the Board their current state and to illustrate their need for repair.

The college will also be getting new legal counsel after five years. Treadway said of this that the shift was good, a “change in expertise as times change.”

As it stands, the state legislature has yet to produce a budget for educational funds for the state. The state assembly favors funding community colleges, while the senate sides with K-12.

In any event, the state budget deadline is June 30. Until then, California schools need to make their best guess as to how much money they will get and where. Funds are allocated for certain areas, like equipment or staff salaries, and these streams cannot cross.

One of the growing sources of income for the school is international students.

International student fees, much like outof-state student fees, are much higher than California resident fees, because these nondomestic and out-of-state students and their

families have not been indirectly paying for their education all their lives through taxes.

International students, not being U.S. citizens, have not paid U.S. federal taxes, so their rates are even higher than out-of-state students.

The important upshot of these funds is that they go directly to Ohlone, with no filtering through the hands of the state or national governments.

There will be a forum for the three finalists applying for the position of college president on April 14. The forum will be held in Room 2133 at Ohlone, and teleconferenced live in the Newark Campus in Room NC1100.

Technology Committee Co-chair Jeff O’Connell and IT Director Bruce Griffin were present to describe the state of affairs of Ohlone’s technological arsenal.

They discussed a rating system for assessing existing and future computers, as well as the need for a budget-independent technology plan, which the rating system would facilitate.

As stated by O’Connell, the case inevitably occurred that someone needed new computers but funds were not available, and when the department happened upon funds, via grants or budgeting, they did not know how to effectively use the money.

Improvements and implementation of the Technology Master Plan (TMP), currently being revised and mentioned at the meeting by Griffin, will bring an end to this.

For more information, see the Technology Committee Website at www.ohlone.edu/org/ techcomm.

by using complex passwords and avoiding fraudulent or unreliable sites. But, said Hanna, it’s more important to be wary of low-tech threats. Having credit card information stolen is a thousand times more likely to happen with an unscrupulous waiter or waitress than over the internet.

Hanna also teaches the Cyber Crime class on campus, which he recommends for those students interested in learning more.

The class, which is not available until next spring, is an Administration of Justice course designed for police officers investigating cyber crime.

For students interested only in modern cryptography, however, Hanna recommends the book “Crypto” by Steven Levy.

Friday’s talk was Hanna’s second Brown Bag. His first was in 1999, on the History of Science. He has no plans for any future Brown Bags, unless he is solicited for another.

The last Brown Bag of the semester will feature speaker Karl Allmendinger, a former astronomer who also teaches at the Alsion Montessori school. The presentation will be about the construction of the Hubble Telescope. The talk will be held on April 18, in Room 3201 from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.

Steadman knocks foul-mouthed band off Hill

Photo by Japneet Kaur

The Rock the Hill concert was the scene of some tension Thursday after ASOC Student Member, Board of Trustees Ken Steadman, far left, asked the concert’s second act, Claude Q. and the Eskimoe Boiz, to leave the stage halfway through the band’s expletive-laced second song. Though Claude Q. himself and several band members left the stage immediately, three Eskimoe Boiz finished the song, even after the power to the amplifier was cut. The next Rock the Hill concert is planned for today from 1 to 4 p.m. in the amphitheater.

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monitor April 10, 2008

Weighing Anchor

By Eric dorman News editor

Hasta la Vista, baby Vice President Dan Quayle once pointed out, “The question is whether we’re going to go forward into the future, or past to the back.” Though the circumstances surrounding this eloquent statement are now in the past, this question could have been addressed to Bill Gates concerning the failure that is Windows Vista.

More than a year after Microsoft launched Vista, it’s becoming increasingly clear that “upgrading” to the newer operating system is really a ticket “past to the back.” On Monday, Microsoft itself admitted that Vista’s hardware requirements are so great that it will be Windows XP, not Vista, that will run on small, lowcost laptops through 2010.

There is no question that Vista is far slower than XP—according to testing by Computer Reseller News, Vista takes almost twice as long to restart and requires far more system resources to run optimally than XP. This in itself is understandable, since newer operating systems almost always require more resources to run, but this sacrificed performance comes with little or no benefits; some cosmetic user interface upgrades and an unsatisfactory security system is all that separates the system from the older and far more stable operating system.

And as if Vista needed another nail in the coffin of its consumer dissatisfaction, for the first time users have been “downgrading” their brand-new Vista-running computers to XP. As of June 30, this will be the only recourse for those who prefer XP, as users will no longer be able to purchase new computers with XP preinstalled.

Does Microsoft have the right to create a new, inferior operating system and discontinue selling the old one? Absolutely. But they should also suffer the consequences of selling their shabbier product. Instead, Microsoft is reporting record profits, and its 92 percent share in the world operating system market has not budged a percentage point.

This lack of financial repercussions from a bug-ridden and bloated software release is telling of the stranglehold Microsoft exerts on the world software market.

Ideally, users looking for an inexpensive, fast and reliable computer would be able to find one easily; as it is, buyers are faced with the choice of buying a slow and unstable PC running Vista, an expensive Mac or a “downgrade” to XP. It’s no wonder that so many users are choosing to step “past to the back.”

Advances are necessary and inevitable, especially in a market as large as that of the personal computer. “Upgrades” that really send us backward in terms of computer performance and stability are unacceptable.

Features Ohlone to host Zhejiang dancers

By Sandeep Abraham Features editor With the snap and rhythm of American hip-hop and the unmistakable spunk of Chinese pop expressed in the swoops and dips of their limbs, the delegation of dancers from China’s Zhejiang Academy of Arts spoke to Ohlone’s students in the only language they both understood: dance.

Both troupes met in Instructor Janel Tomblin-Brown’s Dance Rehearsal class on Tuesday, April 8 in a scene vaguely reminiscent of movies like “Step Up” and “Save the Last Dance,” but with a more diplomatic atmosphere. Even the Academy’s website refers to the visiting students as one of its international “delegations,” implying an underlying semi-political desire to foster relations not just with Ohlone, but with the United States in general.

As part of an exchange program, Ohlone will host dancers until April 16 - their visit will climax in per-

Photo by Sandeep Abraham

Zhejiang Academy of Arts Vice President Zhang Hongyan presents Ohlone with gifts through President Doug Treadway as a symbolic gesture of good will. formances in the Smith Center on April 11, 12 and 13. Ohlone’s own dance students visited the academy in the city of Hangzhou last semester

and Ohlone is reciprocating this semester, thanks to the organization and hospitality of Professors Jasper Gong and Xisheng Fang of

Ohlone.

The visiting students have been enamored of Ohlone, noting that it is smaller than their campus, but with more wide-open spaces. Ohlone student Sandra Wang has been one of their guides to the campus, making sure little is lost in translation and observation.

One of the visit’s chief organizers, Professor Li Renliu of Zhejiang, through translation by one of Zhejiang’s English professors, Mary Guo Huaping, commented that they and the students had found Ohlone “very beautiful, rich and hardworking” and that they appreciated the advanced equipment with which they were supplied.

The weekend shows will feature traditional Chinese dances, songs and Shaoxing opera.

The Friday show will begin at 7:30 p.m. Saturday will feature two shows, one at 2 p.m. and the other at 7:30 p.m. and the Sunday show will begin at 2 p.m. Tickets will be $25 each, with group discounts available.

Students attend Tibetan protest

By Tseten Dolkar Staff writer Hundreds of Tibetans and Tibet supporters protested and marched in San Francisco on April 8, one day before the San Francisco Olympics Torch Relay. Also present were Falun Gong practitioners, Human Rights campaigners and other groups to criticize the city for hosting the torch run.

The protest began at the UN Plaza with speeches by San Francisco

Board of Supervisor Chris Daly and prominent Tibetan writers and politicians. The group then marched to nearby City Hall where they chanted for an hour, calling for a “Free Tibet” and “No torch through Tibet.”

The protesters continued their day with a march to the Chinese Consulate.

Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) Executive Director Lhadon Tethong, a local Burmese Association President and a local Taiwanese Love Association’s president de-

livered speeches.

Protesters headed back to the UN Plaza where, after a short break, the protest transitioned into a rally with a candlelight vigil and a miniconcert by Bay Area Tibetan group Chaksampa. Two of the evening’s more popular speakers were Hollywood actor and longtime Tibet supporter Richard Gere and Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town Desmond Tutu. The two delivered heartfelt speeches to the crowd. Tutu led the group into chanting “Don’t

Go!” asking President Bush and other world leaders to boycott the opening ceremony. Gere read a letter from the Dalai Lama, in which he emphasizes and advises the Tibetan people and all supporters to protest nonviolently, and to “not allow [their] most precious and deeply held values to be compromised” even when provoked by intimidating circumstances.

The day ended with hopes for a successful and peaceful protest the next day.

Board President Yee writes first book

By Chen Lin Staff writer Though Ohlone Board of Trustees President Garrett Yee wrote his new memoir, “Greetings from Iraq!” while a lieutenant colonel in the current Iraq War, it is not written as a war memoir. The book is, instead, a collection of letters and journal entries that Yee wrote for his family.

In contrast to many soldiers’

memoirs, the work does not convey the grit of war, or its bloody excesses but is an original perspective from the point of view of the white collar soldier.

Yee’s duties in Iraq were largely non-combative. His stories describe a broad range of experience -- from meeting the Governor of Kirkuk, to exploring the landscape of Afghanistan, to missing his daughter’s birthday. The book also has dozens of pictures he took while in Iraq,

which he sent home regularly. The photos, according to his family members, “don’t look the same as on TV,” but “Iraq is a big place,” commented Yee. Some are exotic, others are surreal, like one of Yee, decked out in seemingly the most advanced body armor civilization can afford, posing next to the ruins of Tal Afar.

Yee will host an author talk in the Fremont Main Library this Saturday, April 19 at 10 a.m.

Garrett Yee, author

Features Canines grant sight beyond sight

By KATHY SUNG Staff writer Thomas Matthews began training man’s best friend to become the best friend of a blind person in February 2007. He joined a program called Guide Dogs for the Blind at the suggestion of his mother. So far, Matthews has trained one guide dog and is beginning to raise a second one.

According to the program’s website, the process begins with an interview with the prospective dog trainers in their home. The trainers must meet certain requirements before a puppy will be given over to their care. The main caregiver must be at least nine years of age, provide the puppy with a place to sleep inside and agree to leash him in non-secure areas.

The dog must be trained to listen to commands such as sit and stay and learn to be even better toilet trained than other puppies. A trainer is in charge of teaching “them to not beg for food, eat things on the floor or get distracted by anything and everything”. Most puppies stay for 14

to 16 weeks with their trainers.

Matthews, after training Biscotti, switched to Rusa in February.

Biscotti will now go through more intensive training including learning how to stop at a curb and in front of stairs and avoiding obstacles.

Matthews believes one of the most important things the guide dogs learn is to disobey an owner’s command when there might be danger to the blind person.s The kennel chooses the dogs’ names. Usually, there’s a person with a long list of names and every dog is systematically assigned a name. Matthews commented that his previous dog, Biscotti was better behaved. After his experience in raising and training dogs, he said he is surprised that owners allows their dogs to be so badly behaved because after going through the program, he realized that “you can pretty much change any problem for a dog.”

Some memorable moments Matthews related involving his dogs include a time when he was walking into a track meet and a person jumped at him and told him

Photo courtesy of Thomas Matthews

Thomas Matthews sits with a ‘student.’ to go away. He had to go back to the meet without the dog in order to be admitted. According to California state law, serving dogs are allowed anywhere except on escalators. However, when it comes to guide dogs in training, the decison

is generally up to the shop owners or school.

Another memory involved a friend of Matthews who decided to close his eyes and simply follow Biscotti around. His friend followed the puppy around in circles. Unlike some people assume, the dogs don’t know where to go or how to read road signs. They just follow their owners around, protecting them from dangers such as cars and sudden changes in elevation.

Matthews believes training guide is an important thing to do. “When people are blind, it’s really hard to do things. People are so visually oriented, it’s really hard. Cars, things like that…dogs allow them to get out and do things. It really changes someone’s life”. These dogs go out to all countries in the world. At one of the graduations for guide dogs Matthews attended, one of the dogs was assigned to an owner in Japan.

These dogs completely change the lives of their owners.

For more information on how to help out and start raising a guide dog puppy, go to www.guidedogs. com.

KaLiZay, a starlet in the making

By Max Stephens Staff writer Ten years of music experience, a full-time student and mom and Lila Salinas, stage name KaLiZay, still finds time to perform her music.

KaLiZay’s name comes from two parts. Kali, for California, and Zay, for her son Isaiah. A singer, composer and solo artist, KaLiZay found music as her own way of expression growing up.

While other people expressed themselves through tagging and other illegal activities, Salinas decided to write her own music.

She performs in English, Spanish and French.

She is the first person in her family to go to college and work with music. Not all of her family backs her music, but that doesn’t stop her.

Today, KaLiZay lives in San Jose and recently played in one of Ohlone’s Rock the Hill concert.

She is hoping to win so that she can make more of a name for herself by getting a music video out.

This year, she has focused on promoting her music and has been playing mostly in the South and East Bay, with plans to move around the Bay and beyond.

Stylizing in Reggaeton, house, rock and pop, KaLiZay said she is looking for her own niche. She is also hoping to become the first artist to hit with Reggaeton music in the Bay Area.

KaLiZay said she wants to see more of a Latin music scene in the Bay Area, which houses a large Latino population.

To help promote herself this summer, she will release four different singles to several local radio

stations: Live105, 104.9, 106.1 and La Kalle (105.7). She has released her song “Chiko BayBee” on her MySpace at www.myspace.com/ kalizay.

She has also listed her upcoming performances on the page and will be playing at many Bay Area venues in the near future.

She has considered using iTunes as a means of distribution for her music, but is currently busy mastering more songs, which should be out by next month.

This summer she turns 21 and will be able to play in more 21 and over clubs to help with promoting her summer releases.

KaLiZay’s next performance at Ohlone will be on RaZa Day on April 18. However, her next performance for a general audience will be on May 10 at Hunters in San Jose.

with three friends. “We were going to Magic Mountain, and we said we might as well try to get on ‘The Price is Right.’”

The next morning, they got up at 5 a.m. and went to the CBS studios on Fairfax and Hollywood Boulevard. They had to stand in line for two and a half hours to get “priority numbers,” then come back at 12:30 p.m. to wait in line again until 4 p.m.

to get into the studio.

“When we got inside, I was acting kind of crazy, and that probably got me on the show,” he said.

After he won the poker table, Ortega said he almost won a Chevy HHR. Ortega said the car was worth $18,210, but he guessed $18,995.

Ortega said after his part of the contest was over, he was arguing with members of the City College

of San Francisco softball team about which team was best, theirs or the Ohlone team. “I was doing something stupid, but I heard from a friend later that Drew Carey (the host of the program) told me to ‘shut up.’ I didn’t hear it, though.”

Will he do it again? Ortega said the rules say he isn’t eligible until 10 years from now. Will he do it then? Ortega said “Maybe.”

all ages on how to start reforming the balance in their lives, the community and the world. They provide food and music as well.

“Before I went to the Latina Leadership Conference, I was thinking about dropping out of school,” she said. “Paying for my units and school supplies is becoming too expensive for me,” she said. Castillas hopes to become a registered nurse.

Judge Katherine Lucero was one

of the many speakers at the 21st annual conference. “She inspired me to keep my mind on positive thoughts.

I feel more confident about myself,” said Castillas. “I realized that I’m not alone in my struggles; now I see my struggles as investments. I know they will pay off.”

Lucero opined that if there was a secret to the strength of a Latina leader, it would consist of three ingredients: heart, discipline and credentials.“You have to have

perseverance, hope, faith, if you know you’re doing the right thing, you can keep going,” said Lucero as she closed her speech.

To maintain a hopeful sense of the future was the message of all the speakers. Latinas came together to share their struggles.

“It exceeded my expectations,” said Ana Rodriguez, another student from Ohlone, “The workshop helped me to deal with my stress in a positive manner.”

Photo by Japneet Kaur

Lila shows her vocal range at Rock the Hill.

Student scores $500 on ‘Price is Right’

By Ryan Richmond Staff writer If you tune in to “The Price is Right” on CBS April 24, the contestant who guesses the price of the poker table will be Tomas Ortega, the Ohlone student who ended up winning $500.

Ortega, 20, a broadcasting major, went to Hollywood on March 23

Ohlone Latinas learn leadership lessons

By Esmeralda Leon Correspondent “The more you struggle in life, the more you appreciate your accomplishments,” said Erica Castillas, a student from Ohlone, explaining her experience at the 21st annual Latina Leadership Conference held recently in San Jose.

Every year the Latina Leadership Conference organizes workshops and presenters to inform Latinas of

April 10, 2008

monitor

5

Devil’s Advocate

By Anna Nemchuk Editor-in-chief

Just say it.

I’m Russian. We’re a blunt people. When the soup sucks, my father does not hesitate to inform my mother. In response, my mother does not hesitate to beat my father over the head with the soup tureen.

Though I have now spent more than 15 years in California and love it dearly, I still periodically run into culture shock.

Like the time in third grade, when I told a classmate that I thought the PE teacher was a poopyhead. (He made us run 3 miles. Man was a sadist.) She tattled on me. I was aghast. Tattling? To adults? That could get you KILLED in Russia. Literally.

There’s a wonderful 1983 Russian movie, “The Scarecrow” about a young girl who pretends that she was the one to rat out something instead of a boy she likes and is cruelly shunned by her classmates. Hardcore shunned. They burn an effigy of her at the stake.

Yet Americans encourage tattling.

Strange.

Toddler bikinis. If you even put underwear on a child under the age of six in Russia, you’d be laughed off the beach. In the US, barring nudist beaches, a newborn without swaddling is considered obscene.

Smiling. Everybody smiles.

You hate, you love, you’re constipated - you smile. In St. Petersburg, you smile if you mean it. If you’re not happy, you don’t act it.

So when, at one of my jobs, there appeared out of thin air a memo that my boss had stepped down and relocated to a menial job in a different branch of the same company, I wanted answers.

This man is one of the most accomplished leaders I know.

Friendly, outgoing, a fervent student of human nature, he was the last person I would ever imagine abandoning his job - or being forced to. I wanted answers, damnit. From him, from his boss, from the other bosses, from my coworkers.

They are not forthcoming.

Memos, however, are. Countless, tired, grammatically-deficient, empty memos. They mean nothing, they say nothing. They’re driving me crazy. Nobody will say what happened.

This man, who has been a key part of my life for the past few years, has simply disappeared and no one feels the need to explain why.

Is this, ladies and gentlemen, the American policy of privacy, corporate hanky-panky or just plain screw-the-employees business practices?

Am I too idealistic to think we are owed explanations? I think not. ‘Cause, really, there’s something to say for Russian bluntness here. “He was fired because he stink. Now you get back to work before you fired, too. Idjiots.”

Fair enough. After all, in Russia, job fire you.

6 MONITOR

April 10, 2008

CHIROPRACTOR Dr. Robin Buckwalter has been practicing in Fremont for 21 years.

Introductory offer: Examination and first treatment $25 ($125 value)

TREATMENT INCLUDES FULL SPINE ADJUSTING AND MASSAGE THERAPY Most insurance accepted

(510) 656-1192, 43353-B Mission Blvd Across the street from Ohlone

News

Campus Events CLASSIFIEDS PIANO FOR SALE -- Upright, rosewood Chappell piano in excellent condition. Made in England. $1,200. Call 510-790-1139 or email souzafive@comcast.net.

1 9 8 7 M er c u ry cougar $800 OBO -- Vehicle is in good working order, will get you where you need to go. Automatic transmission. Power everything.

2dr Gold. Hood and roof paint are faded. New tires, front pads, plugs, wires, cap and rotor, starter solinoid, battery, battery cables.

Asking $800 OBO. Call 510-790-1139 or email jackieorvis@gmail.com.

JOBS For more information visit Transfer & Career Services.

April 10, 2008 monitor

administrative assistant needed -- Perfect for students. Part time administrative assistant needed for developing supercomputing company. Approximately 15-20 hours a week to start. Flexible times. $12-15 based on experience. Send resumĂŠ to ksenff@hotmail.com.

April The GSA (Gay Straight Alliance) -- Meetings are every Thursday @ 2 p.m. in SC-116.

Everyone is welcome.

16 Spring Health Fair -Visit Building 1 Lobby for the Spring 2008 Health Fair from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

18 Building of Hubble Space Telescope -- Presentation by Astronomer Karl Allmendinger @ 11:45 a.m. - 12:45 p.m. in Room 3201.

Read the Monitor Online at http://ohlone.edu/org/monitor

The Monitor invites your comments. Letters should be 250 words or less and include your name and relationship to Ohlone. Letters become property of The Monitor and may be edited for spelling and length. Campus Events listings are free for college-related events.

To have your event added or to place an ad, contact Jacque Orvis at (510) 659-6075 or e-mail monitorads@ohlone.edu

7

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Triples Alley

By Tomás Ortega Sports editor

Small Giants So all is bad in San Francisco.

The Giants are near rock bottom in the National League in hitting.

Their pitching hasn’t been as good as most fans have anticipated with Cain walking nearly as many hitters as he’s struck out (9 BB/10 K).

There are only two teams who have scored less than San Francisco. That would be the Rockies, who are yet to impress this season. The worst team in the runs scored category would be the Detroit Tigers who, even with all the power they have, are still looking up at the Giants, of all teams, in the scoring department.

But there is quite a difference between the two ball clubs. The best hitter in the Giants lineup is a toss-up between Aaron Rowand or Bengie Molina, neither of which is going to consistently light up any box score.

The “best” hitter on the Tigers roster goes by the name of Miguel Cabrera who, even with the big contract he just signed, has only put together two hits for the last-place Tigers.

You can see the difference among those names in your sleep.

It's a cold hard fact that Cabrera is good for a .300/35/120 season.

Rowand or Molina? Anyone at all?

So if great, even good hitting isn’t to be expected by the team on the Bay, what is? It has to be a “little victories” type of season for them. They may not go off and win 80 or more games. But we could see the progress of kids like Lewis, Ortmeier and Velez.

When 10 p.m. comes around, and I’m checking the box score for the Giants, I make sure to take a look at those three names. Did Lewis or Ortmeier have multi-hit games (yeah, right) and did Velez steal more than one bag? The latter is more likely to happen than Ortmeier or Lewis getting multiple hits.

Also, Velez isn’t the only kid who has potential for multiple stolen bases a game.If center fielder Rajai Davis can bump up his hitting and break into the everyday lineup, he and Velez could run circles around NL lineups.

Speed is the one thing the Giants team can try and rely on to win this season. Especially with a park the size of AT&T. Right-handed hitters will not be successful if they try and send the ball the distance to left.

So hold on tight. Lincecum looks like he will be a dominating force for them. Cain will have to dust himself off a bit from his recent outings. And notice, I did my best not to mention Zito here. For no wins and a big check every two weeks, why would I?

Page 8

Runyon picks up 700th win

By Jerome Nepacena Sports writer The Lady Renegades gave Coach Donna Runyon reason to celebrate, as she picked up her 700th career win in the game against DeAnza College Tuesday afternoon.

After the game, Runyon was congratulated by her team and presented with flowers and an ovation by the crowd that was at hand to witness a solid win by the Renegades softball team.

Speaking of the game, the Renegades wasted no time and seemed very determined to help their head coach reach the milestone in what has been a very memorable season.

Kelly Colker impressed the crowd with a great performance, pitching a no hitter, striking out the first three at-bats and finishing the game with 10 strikeouts and 0 walks.

Through 6 innings, it seemed as if first base was off-limits for any DeAnza player; the one hit they got was off an error at second base when DeAnza’s Lauren Esteban was able to get their first base hit.

Ohlone still ended up winning the game 7-0 to boost their record to 32-7 and 19-0 in their league. “I feel like I’m pretty lucky,” Runyon said after the game, “ I enjoy my job and I enjoy my players. I feel very proud…32 wins is a lot of wins.”

Runyon was all smiles after the game, when she took pictures with all of her players to capture the moment. Other solid performances in the game included Katt Sumner,

By Jerome Nepacena Sports writer

Times tickin’

Photo by Tomás Ortega

Softball coach Donna Runyon heads back to the office to add to her 700 wins. who finished 2-4, with 1 stolen base and an RBI and Danielle Cameran, who was 2-3 with 1 RBI, as well as Brittney Langs, who was able to get the last hit of the game and get a runner in to seal the win for the

Lady Renegades.

The Renegades play next at home on Thursday against City College of San Francisco, where they look to get started on Coach Runyon’s next several hundred career wins.

Baseball win over DeAnza

By Nate Gill Sports writer Ohlone squeezed out a tough 6-4 win over De Anza on Tuesday afternoon. The coaches, the players and the fans were all on edge as they watched each play, knowing that in a close game, any big play could be the deciding factor.

Both pitchers were dominating, not allowing either offense to touch them until the fourth inning, when both teams’ bats woke up. De Anza drew first blood with a lead-off triple, followed by an RBI single to put them ahead 1-0. Pitcher Shane Murchison kept his composure and got out of the jam with some solid defense and a huge strikeout.

In the bottom of the fourth, it was time for the Renegades to go to work. David Luna and Justin Lunday came out with powerful back-to-back doubles. Lunday went on to score on an RBI single

by Braxton Miller to put Ohlone ahead 2-1.

With a lead-off walk to start the bottom of the 5th, Matt Langseth had a booming triple to cash in another run for his squad. The boys did some more damage in the 6th putting up a two-spot, taking advantage of De Anza’s defensive mistakes. Murchison seemed virtually untouchable after giving up the one run in the 4th. The only small blemish in his day came in the 7th inning, when he got into some trouble as his defense made a few errors behind him. The inning

Unanimous decision

Photo by Tomás Ortega

Shane Murchison goes 6.3 strong frames in the win. looked like it was taking a turn for the worse, but relief pitcher Kevin Radach came in and shut the door on De Anza, getting a huge strikeout and a much-needed ground ball to end the inning. Shane Murchison finished the game with 6 1/3 innings pitched, 5 hits, 3 walks and 6 strikeouts, picking up his 8th win of the season. In the bottom of the 7th, when the boys needed some insurance, Langseth led off the inning with a single to get the rally started. Pinch hitter #14 Ryan Harmon came through with his first hit of the season, moving Langseth over into scoring position. Langseth used his speed to get an extra 90 feet, stealing third base.

Then Lunday came through again in the clutch with a sacrifice fly

to put much-needed pressure on the offense of De Anza. Relief pitcher David Luna dominated through the 8th inning with solid defense and a huge strikeout. The top of the 9th was a nail-bitter. Closer Kurtis Sherer looked strong, striking out his first batter and getting the next to ground out to the second baseman.

Then he got into trouble, hitting a runner with two outs. That led to back-to-back singles and a run scored. The coaches were screaming, the players were chanting and the fans were grinding their teeth.

Then Sherer came out with a huge strikeout to end the game and give his team their much-needed 17th win. After the game, Coach Tom Kunis said. “We are fighting for our lives.”

Last Monday, the Bay Area’s favorite team of high flyers and big shot makers were able to keep their season alive with a win over the Sacramento Kings.

The only problem was that the team they’re competing with also won big, against the Los Angeles Clippers. Before the season started, Bay Area residents were convinced that the Golden State Warriors would be able to build on the success and excitement of last season and translate it into a Phoenix Suns-type year where they’d literally run other teams off the floor.

But an 0-6 start and some inconsistent shooting through the course of the season helped to keep that from happening.

Which brings us to now, tied for the eighth spot with the Denver Nuggets. Each game is huge, but none much bigger than tonight’s matchup against Denver.

The game can do a lot to show NBA fans what the future holds for both teams. Many argue that Golden State has been lucky the last few days, that the Nuggets have dropped some very winnable games including a double overtime loss to Seattle on Sunday.

Losing to Dallas last week wasn’t just another loss to a good team, it was a loss of momentum and a bit of a downer. What happened to last season, when they swept the Mavericks in the regular season and proceeded to pull off one of the biggest upsets in NBA history?

This year, the Warriors are 1-3 against Dallas and it gets me thinking, was it all just a fluke?

Was Charles Barkley actually right when he talked about the Golden State “Munchkins” as too small of an NBA team to actually contend? Again, I try to be optimistic, but now I’m just downright nervous.

If the Warriors lose tomorrow, Barkley’s words are going to end up ringing louder and louder in my ears. A loss won’t mean that Golden State is out of it, but it will mean that the doubters are going to make themselves look smarter. Hopefully the Warriors will prove the doubters wrong.

Please, Warriors, don’t waste what could be your first 50-win season in years as well as Baron Davis’ first healthy season in what feels like forever.

Here’s hoping that they bring back the Matt Barnes Mohawk and the yellow “We Believe” t-shirts, but most importantly, here’s to hoping they bring back the “proving the doubters” wrong habit they picked up last year, because we all know how much fun they can be when they do that.