The Oswegonian 4-20-18 by The Oswegonian

Look Inside: A6 Discover what had Oswego State students laughing and chuckling last week.

Friday, April 20, 2018 VOLUME LXXXVII ISSUE XVVXIV SINCE 1935 www.oswegonian.com

Men’s club sports take budget cuts SA makes funding changes to avoid Title IX violation Kassadee Paulo Incoming News Editor kpaulo@oswegonian.com Oswego State Student Association voted to approve next year’s budget for clubs April 18, but with a major change to the funding for club sports teams: the men’s and women’s teams of the same sport will receive the same amount. Men’s club sports teams have historically been funded more than their counterparts, resulting in the Equal Pay for Equal Play movement, which d e m a nd s e q u a l o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r women in athletics and in general. This year’s budget granted $37,500 to men’s club ice hockey and $7,200 to women’s club ice hockey, which is a difference of $30,300. The change in the budget took the funding from this year for both teams, added them together and then split the funds in half to dole out to both teams. This caused the men’s club ice hockey team to lose $8,500 and an increase of $22,199 for women’s club ice hockey from the amount they received this year. Both teams will now receive $29,399 for next year, which is $19,601 less than what the men’s team had requested for next year.

Kassadee Paulo | The Oswegonian

Men’s club ice hockey head coach Christopher Timmons expressed concern with the cut in the budget. Timmons said the players for his Div. I team already pay dues, and this will cause them to have to pay more out of pocket to cover for officials and ice time. “We don’t want to take anything away from women’s club hockey at all; we would love to see them keep growing as an organization,” Timmons said. “We are behind [gender and pay equality] 100 percent, but when it comes to club sports, we felt as if it should be based more on the investment of the club and its mem-

bers within it.” The team must follow standards set by the league it is part of, which costs more than not being part of a league. Timmons said although they have adjusted their budget, he sees the budget cut as an injustice. “We believe that the prior evaluation of club sports was pretty accurate, based on the size of the club, how much was invested into certain clubs,” Timmons said. “For us, it’s kind of eye-opening because other clubs don’t charge player dues.”

Rita Coburn, Francisco Suarez: diversity speaker program ends Jessica Wickham Incoming Chief Copy Editor jwickham@oswegonian.com Education and inclusivity were key themes at the press conference held with documentar y filmmaker Rita Coburn and Oswego State assistant professor Francisco Suarez at 5:30 p.m. on April 17. Coburn’s most recent documentary, “Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise,” was the result of a long career spent working with Angelou for Oprah Radio. The film was shown to Oswego State students at 6 p.m. on March 27 and discussed as part of Tuesday’s “Voices of Diversity” speaker series on campus. At the press conference, Coburn said the numerous perspectives that each person provides requires acceptance to make progress. “We have to be diverse because we have so many points of view,” Coburn said. “Until we have many of those points of view out in the media and out in the communications world, we have a skewed picture of who we are as a people.”

Francisco works in the Department of Communication Studies at Oswego State and organized the main event for the evening. He echoed Coburn’s message and said the current climate has become divisive in an unproductive way. “We live in a world, in moments, that are ver y difficult for ever ybody, where we don’t seem to have the willingness to really listen to each other,” Suarez said.“When we lo s e t h a t w i l l i n g n e s s , w e a re i n trouble.” Education is the solution to this issue, Coburn said, and Angelou is emblematic of this concept. “Maya Angelou never attended c o l l e g e ,” C o b u r n s a i d . “ S h e w a s largely self-taught, but she so believed in education, and I too feel that education gets us past the squalls of life.” Coburn said what inspired her to tell Angelou’s story, and others like it, through her work in radio and film was the desire to bring minorities into media.

See OSWEGO, A5

See WOMEN’S, A5

Sustainability Office celebrates Earth Week, not Day Oswego students reach out to peers to share ways to help save planet Colin Hawkins Staff Writer news@oswegonian.com

CONTENT

April 22 is Earth Day, but on campus, the Sustainability Office is holding Earth Week at the Marano Campus Center from April 23 to 27 to honor Oswego’s commitment to sustainability. E a r t h W e e k i s a “c e l e b r a t i o n of [Oswego’s] yearly accomplishments,” said Peterly Jean-Baptiste, campus outreach intern at the Sustainability Office. Jean-Baptiste said the focus is on the impact of our programs such as Bus Share and Save The Trees. T h ro u g h o u t E a r t h We e k , e a c h day will focus on a different college sustainability program. Monday will feature Save The Trees, where the office asks students to fill out a pledge to reduce paper waste on campus by digitally submitting assignments or reusing old papers for notes. One way the Sustainability Office suggests saving paper is to

Calendar...................... C2 Classifieds................... C6 Crossword................... C6 Contact Info................ A2 Laker Review.............. C1 News............................. A1 Opinion........................ B5 Sports........................... B1 Sudoku......................... C7

microwave your notebook. With the product Rocketbook Wave, a special notebook that allows users to scan their pages to a cloud service of their choice can be microwaved up to five times to remove all highlighter, marker and cer tain pen inks from the notebook pages. These notebooks are a personal favorite of Theresa

Personna, the public relations intern at the Sustainability Office. “I get so hyped by not only informing people about this groundb re a k i ng [ no t e b o ok ] b u t a l s o f o r the look on their faces when I talk a b o u t p u t t i ng t he ph y s i c a l b o ok in the microwave,” Personna said.

See STUDENTS, A4

Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian “Voices of Diversity” program came to a close with the visit to Oswego by Rita Coburn (left) .

Weekend Weather in Oswego FRIDAY

Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian

HIGH: 42° LOW: 34°

SATURDAY

HIGH: 44° LOW: 33°

SUNDAY

HIGH: 47° LOW: 45°

Extended Weather Forecast on Page 2

Weather forecast provided by Lucas Reilly from WTOP-10

Peterly Jean-Baptiste (right) speaks to an Oswego student about Sustainability Office programs while tabling.

Sports BASEBALL BOUNCEBACK

Austin Dearborn | The Oswegonian

Opinion UNJUSTIFIED CRIMINALIZATION

Image from Pixabay

Laker Review INFINITY STONES MAP

Image from Marvel Entertainment

Oswegonian.com UP AND THE DRUG TASK FORCE

WEB Web

Samantha Flavell | The Oswegonian

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THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

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Extended Forecast Monday

H: 55 °

L: 40 °

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Tuesday

H: 62°

Wednesday

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H: 58 °

L: 43 °

70%

MONDAY, APRIL 23 THROUGH FRIDAY, APRIL 27 Thursday

H: 58 °

L: 39 °

Friday

H: 55 °

80%

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NEWS

QUOTE OF THE WEEK We live in a world, in moments, that are very difficult for everybody, where we don’t seem to have the willingness to really listen to each other.”

- Francisco Suarez, an assistant professor at Oswego State

THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

College custodians form relationship with students The Oswegonian thanks Rivera, Gilman, Grimshaw-Lyons for their work Cole Parzych Outgoing Editor-in-Chief cparzych@oswegonian.com Two custodians, Clue Gilman and Jorge Rivera, frequently pop their heads into The Oswegonian office, making conversation and forming friendly relationships with students while carrying out their daily tasks. If you have spent time in the Marano Campus Center, especially around The Oswegonian office and The Compass, you have likely seen one, or both, of these members of the Oswego State custodial staff hard at work. Their shifts run from 2:30 p.m. until 11 p.m. Gilman works Monday through Friday, and Rivera clocks in Tuesday through Saturday. “It’s a good job,” Gilman said. “Sometimes it’s thankless. You have people looking down their nose at you, but it’s a good job. It really it is, and you meet different kinds of people.” A few of their responsibilities include the obvious tasks: cleaning bathrooms, emptying garbage bags, vacuuming carpets, locking up the building and disinfecting surfaces. Others are not so obvious, like monitoring room activity, snow removal, cleaning the hockey locker rooms and emergency cleanups, just to name a few. “Somebody putting me on a task and actually finishing it and having it look good [feels good],” Gilman said. “To actually have somebody come in knowing what the room looks like before and after, and they’re going ‘you

Planetarium Show: “A Trillion Planets,” 3 p.m., Friday in Shineman Center, Room 223

Crafts, Circuits and Creation at the Library, 1 p.m., Saturday at Penfield Library

Cole Parzych | The Oswegonian (Left to right) Rivera, Gilman, Grimshaw-Lyons are three of Oswego State’s custodial workers.

guys did an awesome job.’ I like that.” Of course, there are horror stories of bathroom trips gone wrong. Rivera says they mostly occur in the handicap stall. “Everybody likes to use the stall that’s more comfortable,” Rivera said. An example of those “emergency cleanups” was on Jan. 6, when Oswego State men’s ice hockey hosted Manhattanville College and a pane of glass broke during warmups. Rivera was right in the middle of that cleanup. Rivera is one of the cleaners Gilman oversees. Gilman is considered a janitor and an s-grade seven, which classifies her pay grade, although she said she prefers custodian. Rivera is an s-grade five. “I’m proud of my job. I’m proud of the work that we do,” Gilman said. “I always strive for everyone else to do what they are supposed to do.”

Cole Parzych | The Oswegonian Rivera works Tuesday through Thursday, 2:30 p.m. to 11 p.m., often visiting The Oswegonian.

Gilman and Rivera are both supervised by Julia Grimshaw-Lyons. She is an s-grade 11 and supervises eight buildings, 10 janitors and roughly 20 cleaners. “Campus is getting 24/7 now,” Grimshaw-Lyons said. “It’s getting bigger and bigger and bigger. We need 24-hour coverage to get everything done.” Despite the hectic work schedule, Gilman and Rivera said they both appreciate their jobs and make the most of everyday in the Marano Campus Center. “Your day will go a lot faster. You’ll have better stories to tell than if you’re miserable all the time,” Rivera said. “Whatever looks bad, try to make a positive out of it.” Rivera said he also gets to work campus events, citing his excitement for the upcoming A$AP Ferg concert at OzFest. Others include hockey games, Shaun Cassidy Fan Club and the gospel chorus. “You do get to watch these activities but keep in mind that you’re at work,” Rivera said. “So, you want to make sure your job is being done as you’re watching.” Rivera is currently on a standard 52week probation with his current role. If he has no complaints and passes evaluations, after that 52-week period he will receive benefits and job security. He talked about his aspirations to move up and said this job offers opportunities to do so, which is one reason he took it. “I like what I do right now, and it’s for what I do right,” Rivera said. “I’m going to move up eventually. Hopefully, I can rub off my energy on people and they can pass it on. You should learn a lot from everybody you meet.”

approval, the budget will go to SUNY in Albany.

The Student Association voted to pass the budget for the 2018-2019 a c a d e m i c ye a r. S eve n t e e n s e n a to r s vo t e d to approve it and one abstained from voting. The budget determines how much funding each club and organization recognized by Student Association will receive for t h e y e a r. T h i s b u d g e t will now be sent to President Deborah Stanley to approve, as it is her responsibility to give the final say. Following, the

Before the budget was voted on, clubs had the oppor tunity to come to the meeting and appeal to have their budget for t h e y e a r a l t e re d to re f l e c t t h e i r f o re s e e a b l e needs for the next year. The clubs that came inc l u d e d S t o r y Te l l e r ’ s G u i l d , W i nd E n s e m bl e , Brothers and Sisters in Christ, and the International Student Associat i o n . E a c h a s ke d f o r a

Softball v. Brockport, 1 p.m., Sunday at Laker Softball Field

Theater Production: “Urinetown: The Musical,” 2 p.m., Sunday in Tyler Hall, Waterman Theatre

Documentary: “Tomorrow: Take Concrete Steps to a Sustainable Future,” 4:22 p.m., Sunday in Marano Campus Center, Room 164

Yards for Yeardley, 10 a.m., Monday at Hewitt Union Quad

Talk: “Landscapes of Accumulation,” 3 p.m., Monday in Marano Campus Center, Room 132

Red Cross Blood Drive, 11 a.m., Tuesday at Hewitt Union

Senior Capstone Performance, 7 p.m., Tuesday in Tyler Hall, Room 50 d i f fe re n t a m o u n t t h a n what was in the proposed budget.

T he re w a s a t y p o i n the Story Teller’s Guild, w h i c h b ro u g h t a n a c count in their budget from $2,000 to $200. This was rectified and the club was granted the original amount. Wind Ensemble had their equipment acc o u n t c u t f ro m $ 5 , 0 0 0 to $1,000, and after their appeal, was raised to $4,000.

The clubs that could not appeal for a different amount in their budgets were the club sports who received equal funding as their team counterparts.

With the passed budget, this brings Student Association to a net loss of $198,683.76. SA has cut budgets and raised student fees to attempt to address this loss.

NEWS Summer camp for Oswego locals receives grant Due to Shineman Foundation donation, children's program expected to expand Julia Tilley Incoming Asst. News Editor jtilley@oswegonian.com For the children who attend the Sheldon Institute, the summer program will soon be expanding, due to a $1 million donation from the Shineman Foundation. The Sheldon Institute is a twoweek education summer program with classes and activities for children from grades two through 10. Not only will the program be able to expand, but it will also be renamed the “Sheldon Institute for Barbara Shineman Scholars” to pay homage to Barbara Shineman, a former Oswego State alumna, professor and founding member of the Sheldon Institute program. “On behalf of the foundation, we are very, very excited about this because the

very first gift that the foundation gave when it was formed in 2012 was the $4 million gift to the college for the naming of the Richard S. Shineman Center,” said Mary Goetz, executive director of the Shineman Center. “We’re really excited to now be able to give a gift to the college once again, but this time for something that honors Barbara Shineman and something she was personally very, very involved with from the beginning of the creation of the Sheldon Institute.” According to its mission statement, the Shineman Foundation seeks to “enhance the quality of life in Oswego County." It will engage in charitable activities with integrity, honesty and compassion, and will pursue excellence through the highest professional grantmaking standards. This donation is different than previous ones, though, due to the institutions’ connections to each

Photo provided by Office of Communications and Marketing/Jim Russell The Sheldon Institute received a $1 million donation to benefit local children during the summer.

other through the Shineman family. “The Sheldon Institute program will grow substantially by the funds available from the Shineman Foundation gift. The gift provides general guidelines about the types of program enhancements that were suggested to be made, but exact details are being worked out by the Sheldon Institute leadership in coming weeks,” said Mary Canale, Oswego State vice president for development and alumni relations. With the $1 million donation, the Sheldon Institute should be able to provide more programs for students for years to come and help continue the work Barbara Shineman started around 40 years ago. "The generosity of both Richard and Barbara Shineman has created a tremendous foundation that is doing exactly what the mission of the foundation intended, which was to use the funds to be a catalyst for change in our county, and we do that by supporting organizations that are doing great things or starting new programs that will then benefit the community,” Goetz said. The renaming of the Sheldon Institute and the donation are planned to occur in April as a way to celebrate Barbara Shineman’s 90th birthday. “For four decades, she has contributed to the institute’s success through her curriculum development and her unwavering support of the children, sharing in their excitement at learning new subject areas and encouraging their hands-on, minds-on exploration of diverse subjects,” said Deborah Stanley, Oswego State president. “We thank the Shineman Foundation for its investment in that most precious of resources: our children.”

Students pledge engage in sustainable actions

Awareness activities planned by Sustainability Office throughout Earth Week SUSTAINABILITY from COVER

lion plastic bottles from entering the waste stream, Adams said. “Students together make a big difference,” Jean-Baptiste said. The Sustainability Office is dedicated to encouraging students to participate in reducing waste, he said. “People tell me, ‘hey I’m doing this now [to be more sustainable],’ and I’m like, ‘yes!’” Personna said. Personna said seeing others get involved is rewarding for her. “Thursday is a nice culmination of events and collaboration,” said Michael Lotito, the sustainability engineering coordinator at the Sustainability Office. Thursday features documentary screenings and guest speakers at Shineman during the afternoon and evening. “Beneath the Surface” will screen with director Mark Eischen and document the history of Onon-

daga Lake. The first screening is from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at 170 Shineman Center, with a “We’re giving away one as a raffle prize second showing from 7:15 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. for being part of our Exploration Study.” at 122 Shineman Center. For Tuesday, the Sustainability Office Guest speaker Hilary McManus will lead is focusing on sustainable transportation a talk titled “Mother Earth Needs Our Help" initiatives such as BusShare and Bikeabout the environment, women in STEM Share. According to Sustainability planfields and global efforts to heal our planet. ning coordinator Jaime Adams, the SusMcManus will be in 175 Shineman Center tainability Office is looking to implement from 6:15 p.m. to 7 p.m. on April 26. These a dockless bicycle sharing system, which special guests are particularly exciting to typically involves using a mobile app to Adams and Lotito, as they represent how track shareable bikes on standard bicycle sustainability can cross curriculums to inracks and unlock them for rental through clude fields of STEM, Women Studies and the app. History. Wednesday is when the Sustainabil“[It] really gets to what we’re trying to do: ity Office will set up their table at Mago beyond science and eco to reach across rano Campus Center for a day dedicated disciplines,” Lotito said. to campus involvement and celebrating Friday caps off the week with results student efforts in sustainability. These effor the year’s programs. Jean-Baptiste said forts include students saving over 1 milthis finale is about sharing with students their accomplishments, such as the impact of student efforts to utilize reusable water bottles, reducing carbon through BikeShare and paper saved by student commitment to Save The Trees. Friday is about celebrating “what we’ve already done,” Adams said. Jean-Baptiste said students make a big difference, where the small habits of waste or conservation by individual students add up to a larger impact. “We’re always looking for dedicated students,” Jean-Baptiste said. “I’ve seen the growth from every corner. Students will be Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian more mindful because we’ve been tabling Students can commit to taking the pledge to Save the Trees by reducing the amount of paper they use. and doing outreach. It’s been rewarding.”

THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

A5 NEWS Women's, men's club sports receive equal funding City plans to beautify Fort Men's club ice hockey team head coach speaks out, claims injustice Ontario entryway with mural THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

MEN'S from COVER Kimberly Hirsch, the current co-treasurer for women’s club ice hockey and president for next year, said Div. II team will now be able to join a league and afford to go to two tournaments per year. With the current funding, the team scraped together funds through a can and bottle drive, and fundraising through Fajita Grill and YoBerry, to attend tournaments. “My freshman year, we were part of a league,” Hirsch said. “Then, for the past two years, we have not been. Unfortunately, that was just something we couldn’t afford. For this upcoming season with our b u d g e t i nc re a s e , w e’ ve b e e n a ccepted into the ACHA Div. II league.” It was generally understood the u ne q u a l f u nd i ng b e t w e e n me n’s a n d w o m e n’s c l u b s p o r t s t e a m s does not violate Title IX. However, a SUNY legal representative recently readdressed the federal civil rights law in relation to Student Association and deemed that the funding was indeed in violation. “Title IX requires institutions to provide equal access and equal opportunity in terms of funding and facilities to club spor ts and not to fund on the basis of history or other traditions that might result in inequitable funding for women's club spor ts,” said Jerri Howland, associate vice president for student affairs, dean of students and advisor to SA. Each year, the proposed budget must be signed by President Deborah Stanley before it is moved on to SUNY in Albany. Posed with the legal issues of Title IX being violated, Stanley would not sign the budget until a major change such as this was made. Without her approval, there would be no budget, and therefore, no funding for clubs. “This isn’t the most ideal position we wanted to be in, but it was make this kind of big change or not have a budget for next year,” said S t u d e n t A s s o c i a t i o n D i re c to r o f Finance Miranda Kryskow. “Someone was going to be unhappy either way, but at least in this way, we are no longer liable to the law. It’s not the best situation; we understand that, but for this year, it was the best situation we could create for us to have funding for next year.” However, this is not a long-term solution. SA is currently speaking to Campus Rec about handing it the overall funding for club sports and placing the responsibility of distributing it through Campus Rec members. Emily Stasko, who is public relations coordinator for Student Association, is both on the women’s r u g by t e a m a n d i n vol ve d i n t h e Eq u a l P ay f o r Eq u a l P l ay m ov e ment. Given her involvement in these three organizations, she said she has multiple perspectives on

Noah Blake Staff Writer news@oswegonian.com

Kassadee Paulo | The Oswegonian

the equal funding of men’s and women’s club sports teams. “From a women’s rugby perspective, I am happy with the change in getting more funding, but from my position in the movement, I don’t know that this is the best course of action,” Stasko said. She said where she can see the frustration expressed by Timmons, but talks of equal opportunities for the women’s club sports teams were no secret. There was an open forum about the topic, and she said that no one had initially put up much opposition. Equal Pay for Equal Play did not have a hand in deciding the solution in SA, just in setting the discussion into motion. Stasko said, as a member of Equal Pay for Equal Play and of women’s rugby, this was not the best solution. She said it is important for women in athletics to first achieve equity and then equali t y. S he a l s o s a i d t he s ol u t i o n to have Campus Rec handle the funds should help to achieve equity. Women’s rugby was one of the club sports teams that felt the inequality of funding. The team had asked for a new scrum machine, but had only received half of the money necessary to replace the needed piece of equipment. This year, the w o m e n ’s r u g b y t e a m w a s g i v e n $7,300 in funding, where their counterparts got $18,950. Both teams will be receiving $13,775.

“Equality is the end goal,” Stasko said. “Right now, we need to be equitable.” While the co-ed sports clubs teams were not as affected, every single club and organization funded by Student Association took a budget cut of at least five to 10 percent. The reason for this is that for several years, SA has been dipping further into the reserves. To remedy this, club funding was cut, the SA fee is increasing by $3 per semester for each student, and the SA president, vice president, directors and other paid students had their salaries sliced in half. Jack Tofallos, president of roller hockey, expressed his suppor t of the men’s club spor ts teams. The roller hockey team, though it welcomes every student, consists of all men. “ I b e l i e v e a l l c l u b s d e s e r v e to be given equal opportunity, and as pointed out by Chris Timmons, this does not mean equal funding,” Tofallos said. “With the new budget proposal, teams are not receiving equal opportunity, as this is in favor of women’s club sports teams.” Before SA voted to pass the budMaria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian get bill April 18, clubs had the abiliThe Fort Ontario tunnel entryway will be spruced up with a mural that will be chosen by a competition among residents. ty to attend the meeting and appeal their budget. However, the spor ts clubs teams who had their funding made equal to their counterpar ts could not appeal.

Oswego State hosts filmmaker, assistant professor Maya Angelou documentary, diversity, acceptance discussed RITA from COVER “One of the things that really was curious to me was that I looked at my parents and I looked at the books that I had…and I didn’t see me in them,” Coburn said. “Everybody needs to be able to see themselves in a book or some form of story.” Suarez said this harkens back to celebrating what makes people unique in society and working to make everyone feel welcome. “The word is ‘inclusivity’ because we are all diverse,” Suarez said. “We are all different. It’s not about diversity; it’s about how I accept who you are even with the difference that you have.” College is the place where students can spend time with individuals from multiple cultures and learn how to respect one another’s differences, Coburn said. “College is a wonderful opportunity to open yourself up to learning about other people,” Coburn said. “It is probably one of the first times in life that you leave a community that you were in and realize that everybody doesn’t live like you.” Coburn said since people cannot change their race or culture, it is crucial to focus on how people can see past and accept their differences.

“We can’t change the colors of our skin,” Coburn said. “We can’t blame white people for being white or black people for being black. We need to come to a humanity of acceptance and working together.” The way that sort of inclusivity can be achieved, Coburn said, is by each person choosing to change their behavior to promote acceptance in steps. “What is going to have to change in all of our communications level is

The city of Oswego announced a mural competition that will be held to beautify the historic site of the Fort Ontario Entryway tunnel, located at East Seventh Street in downtown Oswego. The community decided on this idea because it would give people the oppor tunity to make a difference within the city and help attract tourists. Fort Ontario has been listed und e r t he U . S . N a t i o n a l R e g i s t e r o f Historic Places since Dec. 18, 1970. The fort was originally built by the British colonizers in 1755, and they destroyed by the French militia under General Marquis de Montcalm in 1756. The fort was rebuilt and destroyed three more times before it was permanently erected in 1844. During World War II, For t Ontario was used as a temporar y refugee site for Holocaust victims. In total, a wave of over 1,000 Jewish refugees poured in as a result. Today, the site is a common tourist destination, especially during the summer months. The Fourth of July and Harborfest attract many visitors to the site. The competition was opened in March for anyone to participate. All

submissions must be made digitally to the city of Oswego’s economic development by June. In addition, the number of submissions is unlimited. The selection of the most favored mural will determined in early August, according to Mayor Billy Barlow. “We left it open ended to ensure submissions are as creative and as elaborate as they can be. We’ve allocated $35,000 total for this project, including the mural and other small enhancements in the area," Barlow said. “Beautifying the For t Ontario Tunnel entryway was one of the beautification projects in my State of the City Address that I believe is a worthwhile endeavor that reaches out to our local arts community and allows us to showcase some of the talent we have right here locally,” Barlow said. Barlow said the entryway sees traffic from residents and visitors entering the Fort Ontario complex to visit the Fort, Safe Haven, the Players Theatre, the city pool and the city ice rinks. "This entryway is an easy improvement that can highlight our r i c h h i s t o r y, e x u d e c o m m u n i t y pride and enhance a small section of public space as we look to make strategic investments on the east side of the City,” Barlow said.

people are going to have to decide that they want to be fair,” Coburn said. “As more of us communicate…we start to see each other, and we start to respect each other…It’s actually going to be one person at a time.” “Voices of Diversity” was the result of intercultural student teams that created artwork, fashion and documentaries based on the stories of international students at Oswego State, all put on display at the event.

Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian Coburn, Suarez discuss a documentary about Maya Angelou, which was showed earlier this semester as part of a program.

A6 NEWS Shaun Cassidy Fan Club invites guests for comedy summit THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

Photo Briefs Clothesline Project raises awareness

Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian

Decorated T-shirts appear on the windows of the Marano Campus Center Ice Arena every year during Sexual Assault Awareness Month. These are decorated by people affected by domestic violence and sexual assault to bring awareness of the issue to the Oswego State college campus. The Clothesline Project purpose is to "display messages that show the long-lasting impact of violence on individuals' lives," according to an informational flyer. It has been a national campaign

since 1990 when it was star ted in Massachusetts. According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, "20 percent to 25 percent of college women and 15 percent of college men are victims of forced sex during their time in college," and "nearly two thirds of college students experience sexual harassment." Survivors of abuse and violence can contact the SAF crisis hotline 315-3421600 or visit a SAF advocate at 125 Mary Walker Health Center if they would like to participate in this display.

Del Sarte dances to recital date

Improv groups from SUNY Geneseo, Cornell University bring laughter to Oswego Julia Tilley Incoming Asst. News Editor jtilley@oswegonian.com

Thanks to the Shaun Cassidy Fan Club improv troupe, Oswego State held a night of collaborative comedy on April 13 in Sheldon Ballroom. Joined by SUNY Geneseo’s No Laugh Track Required and Cornell University’s The Whistling Shrimp Improv Comedy Troupe, the Shaun Cassidy Fan Club hosted its second annual comedy summit. The comedy summit was led by cocoordinators Henry Liebentritt and Adam Sommer, as well as other members of the Shaun Cassidy Fan Club. “Planning the comedy summit was a large undertaking. It started back in the fall semester when I chose my second in command [Sommer] and my committee heads,” said co-coordinator Liebentritt. “They then chose their respective committee members. We kept open communication as we did our allotted tasks. Eventually, I invited the troupes, set a date and place, and prepared for the day.” Both Liebentritt and Sommer hosted the night and introduced the groups. “I wanted to help host the comedy summit because it's a great opportunity for us to branch out to other improv troupes,” Sommer said. “We were able to build connections with other schools that have improv troupes that are just as passionate as we are. We were also inspired to host the comedy summit because of RIT's Improv Jam, which we visited in previous years to perform at.” The night began with Sommer and Li-

Julia Tilley | The Oswegonian Shaun Cassidy Fan Club, The Whistling Shimp, and No Laugh Track Required combined talents to showcase their improv.

ebentritt welcoming the other improv troupes. The first performance was given by SUNY Geneseo’s No Laugh Track Required, a long-form, audition-based improv troupe. Geneseo often performs Armando-style improv, which begins with an improvised monologue inspired by a suggestion from the audience and ends with scenes inspired by the monologue, and Harold-style improv, which begins with an opening, word-association game started with a word from the audience, and morphs into monologues and scenes based off the words. “This is only the second show I’ve done with the troupe, so it’s fun to have the one at home and then taking a little field trip," said Jess Giordano, a member of No Laugh Track Required. "We got to meet so many different people, and it’s fun to see other people’s takes on their improv troupes.” Next to perform was Cornell University’s The Whistling Shrimp Improv Comedy Troupe, another audition-based troupe specializing in long-form improv,

Austin Dearborn | The Oswegonian The three improv comedy troupes performed separately and then combined efforts for a final game, "House Party."

that meets for practice three times a week. “There’s less pressure, I think, when you’re traveling because you don’t necessarily know everybody in the room, so even though it can be nerve-wracking to perform in front of people you’ve never met before, you’re with people you trust and love, so it’s easy and it’s fun,” said troupe member Jocelyn Cubstead. Then, the Shaun Cassidy Fan Club performed short-form improv games, including “Step Left,” where each member stands in a square and steps left when told to, creating a new scene with their new partner based off suggestions given by the audience. The show closed with an all-encompassing game of “House Party,” where members from all three improv troupes had a chance to come together and perform. “Shaun Cass itself has benefited from the comedy summit in that we get to collaborate with other like-minded comedians,” Liebentritt said. “SUNY Oswego benefits as a whole because it gives students opportunities to witness a type of comedy that isn't emphasized as much. The visiting troupes enjoyed their time in Oswego, the crowd got into the comedy, and all three troupes were able to work together in our closing House Party segment. It was a great night for comedy.” As for the upcoming years, both Sommer and Liebentritt said they hope the Shaun Cassidy Fan Club is able to continue putting together and hosting comedy summits annually. “Our slogan is ‘Love, Laughter, Friendship,’ and the comedy summit is a great way to display the bond improv has given all of us outside our normal shows,” Sommer said. "We don't usually have special events so this is kinda like our Superbowl in a sense.”

Oswego students awarded by SUNY for excellence SUNY Chancellor's award given for service to community, scholarship

Photo provided by Del Sarte

Del Sarte Dance Club at Oswego State has been preparing for their spring recital, "Pump Up the Jamz," all semester. Student dancers in the club choreograph performances, gather other dancers and teach it to them to be showcased at their show each semester. The dance styles include, but are not limited to, lyrical, contemporary, jazz, tap, hip-hop, Irish Step and Bollywood. Dancers often participate in more than one dance,

varying in number of performers, music and style. Each dance has weekly rehearsals in Lee Hall and lasts all semester before the big show. This semester's recital will be Thursday, May 3 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, May 5 at 2 p.m. at the Ralph M. Faust Theatre at Oswego High School (2 Bucaneer Blvd). Tickets are currently on sale at the Marano Campus Center Box Office. Tickets are $1.00 with a student ID and $2.00 General Admission.

Nicholas Simmons Contributing Writer news@oswegonian.com Among the students who have been nominated for the 2018 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence, there have been five who have been chosen to receive the awards. The 2018 Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence was held on April 10 in the Albany Capital Center. According to Holly Reitmeier, one of the students who received the award, it was the first time they have had the event there. T h e C h a n c e l l o r ’s Aw a r d i s t h e highest honor within the SUNY system. It honors students that achieve accomplishments such as academics, campus involvement, athletics, community service and performing arts. The students chosen for the award from Oswego State have a wide spectrum of the attributes needed to receive the award. A lot of them have committed hours to community service, sports and especially their GPA, so it is fitting that they receive an award that recognizes their hard work. Many of the students seemed to be thrilled to receive the Chancellor’s Award, especially Zachary Hiris. Hiris, who is a meteorology major, said he was not even expecting to receive it. “I was nominated, I filled out an a p p l i c a t i o n i n J a n u a r y, a n d I j u s t filled it out hoping for the best,” Hiris said. “Not only was it a surprise, it was incredibly rewarding just to be chosen by a bunch of SUNY higherups means a lot to me.” Hiris was nominated by one of his professors like other nominees who received the award. He is the president of the Meterology Club, has been a member of the Golf Club for three years and is currently working internships within Oswego State. He is still able to help out with local charities, such as the hockey team’s toy drive. S t e p h a n i e Fa c c h i n e i s a n o t h e r student who is among the five to receive the award. Facchine, a zoology major, said she was excited as well

when she heard the news. “ I t ’s j u s t a g r e a t h o n o r t o a l l things I’ve attributed over campus and the achievements I’ve made over the course of my college career,” Facchine said. Fa c c h i n e d e d i c a t e d h e r s u m mers to internships and community service. She spends most of her time at the Newman Center, a Catholic church at Oswego, which plays a huge factor in Facchine’s success. “They’ve really given me an opportunity to learn how to balance school work and my personal life,” Facchine said. Facchine has been involved with Newman since her freshman year. Facchine’s next goal after she graduates is to be in a field of wild conservation or the conservation of water resources. From spending a summer at a biostation, Facchine found out that she really enjoys the water. She even has a paid internship in northern Michigan. “I’ll be staying in northern Michigan and doing lake surveys,” Facchine said. “I really love water and I want to hopefully protect it for everyone one day.” Holly Reitmeier is another recipient who has built a name for herself

at Oswego State. Reitmeier, who is majoring in human computer interaction, also found out she was nominated in January, then applied and eventually was selected from Albany. “ I w a s no m i n a t e d by o ne o f m y professors here in Oswego. After that, I was contacted to fill out an application for myself saying all the things I’ve been involved in,” Reitmeier said. Reitmeier is involved in many projects, including working with a CEO out of Boston, and she is currently working with one of her professors on a project called Algorithm Observatory. The purpose of the Algorithm Observatory is to see if there is any connection as to why certain advertisements target a specific user. Reitmeier is also involved in volunteering for the American Hiking Society, which took her to Virginia in the spring. “ We w o rke d w i t h t h e A m e r i c a n Hiking Society to repair mountain biking trails for a local school in Richmond. We did various projects and assisted any way we could,” Reitmeier said. Reitmeier will attend the Digital Humanities Summer Institute in British Columbia and obtain a career in the competitive marketing industry.

Photo provided by Office of Communications and Marketing/Jim Russell Oswego students were nominated and chosen to receive the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence at Albany.

OPINION FINALS OVERHYPED

B5 Photo provided by English106 via flickr

VOLUME LXXXVII ISSUE XVVXIV • www.oswegonian.com

SPORTS

Brainstorming with Ben:

THE OSWEGONIAN

SPORTS B3

ROLLING TO FARGO

Photo provided by BC Photography

FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

Baseball not worried after weekend loss

Lacrosse focuses on Syracuse natives

Ben Grieco Incoming Sports Editor bgrieco@oswegonian.com

Ben Grieco Incoming Sports Editor bgrieco@oswegonian.com It is no secret that New York is one of the birthplaces for the wonderful sport of lacrosse. Native Americans played the great game to determine land possession, different battles and the like. But, throughout all of New York, lacrosse sticks out like a sore thumb in the city of Syracuse. Literally in the center of the state, all of lacrosse’s great memories in New York trickle down to a city about an hour away from Oswego. This history is not only shown in the dominant local colleges, such as NCAA Div. I powerhouse Syracuse University, and other strong smaller programs such as Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, but in the high school level as well. Schools like West Genesee, Baldwinsville and Skaneateles are top contenders for the New York State Public High School Athletic Association championship every year. It is hard to compete with these teams since there are numerous training camps and legends of the sport reigning in the city and surrounding suburbs. A lot of colleges tend to recruit out of the Syracuse area for their respective men’s and women’s lacrosse teams. This trend has been followed by coaches all over the country. Those coaches include Britt Howard of the Oswego State women’s lacrosse team, and Drew Bezek of the Oswego State men’s lacrosse team. On the women’s team, 12 of the 22 players are from what could be considered the Syracuse area, primarily from the Bishop Ludden and Bishop Grimes high schools. For the men’s team, five players are from Syracuse, including a couple from Tully. This trend of focusing recruiting in New York State, predominantly in the Syracuse area, has to be one of the strongest decisions these coaches have made. While the women’s team features more local talent than the men’s team, both teams have seen success from their Syracuse athletes. On women’s lacrosse, four of the top five point leaders are from the Syracuse area, with Teresa Shattuck, a Bishop Grimes alumna, leading the team by more than 20 points. As of April 18, Shattuck leads the team with 62 points. On the defensive side, Angela Ponto, an alumna of West Genesee, has proven to be a top goaltender for the Lakers since her freshman season, when she came in as an immediate starter. Since then, she has accumlated 530 saves. That number is still climbing. The senior has over 100 more saves than second-place Shannon O’Brien (388) who graduated in 2009. The men’s side has not seen as much domination from Syracuse kids this season, however. Mark Niechial, a West Genesee alumnus, is eighth on the team with eight points (6g, 2a). For a team like women’s lacrosse, which is trying to have a winning season again, and for a men’s team, who is looking to make the SUNYACs for the first time since 2009, these Syracuse kids can really boost a team’s lineup. Luckily, Oswego State is close to home for student-athletes so they do not have to travel far away, and it also has close proximity to Onondaga Community College, a common place where many local stars from the area transfer from. As long as Syracuse high schools keep producing quality talent, and Oswego State keeps fighting for the local talent, the lacrosse programs will see success in the near future on both sides of the ball.

Shea McCarthy | The Oswegonian

Kraken perform well in St. Louis, defeats Clemson in final Ryan Zalduondo Asst. Sports Editor rzaldundo@oswegonian.com Eight hundred and ninety two miles separated the Oswego State Kraken men’s club volleyball team from the first National Volleyball Championship Federation title in the club’s history when they traveled to St. Louis for the annual tournament. A three set (29-31, 25-22, 15-12) win over Clemson University, who play their NCAA sports in the Atlantic Coast Conference, in the championship match gave the club an accolade that it had been unable to attain in its history. The team, unaffiliated with Oswego State’s athletic department, had to travel over 13 hours by rental car to reach the three-day tournament, where they would compete against some of the top competition that the nation’s club volleyball teams have to offer. “There’s a lot of background that goes into it that people don’t really know about,” said Mark Fyvie, club president and junior outsider hitter. “We have to register for the tournament late in the fall semester and we have to set up the rental cars and book the hotel rooms.” Since the team is not affiliated with the school’s athletic department, players use funding from the SUNY Oswego Student Association and coordinate their own accommodations through a

board that is voted on by other members in the club. Senior middle hitter and secretary Cam Gambler was the one in charge of coordinating the travel and hotel before the trip to ensure the Kraken would be able to reach St. Louis and play the most important week of the club’s season. “My role was to take care of the hotel reservations and the car rentals,” Gambler said. “I also wanted to make sure I was physically capable.” The physical aspect of training for the tournament was a priority for the Kraken because they practice multiple times a week in preparation for the tournaments they play over the course of the fall and spring semesters. The Kraken’s start to the tournament was slower than they hoped, going 1-5 in the first round and bracket qualifying matches. Registered in the Div. IAAA tier, the Kraken were bumped to the copper tier, the lowest of the four AAA brackets. This bracket, consisting of three matches, was where the Kraken would find its most success while at the tournament. Heading into their first copper bracket match against American University, the team was sitting on a fourmatch losing streak. But the challenge of playing against teams from much larger universities than Oswego State motivated the nine members of the club who made the trip to work harder

and get back in the win column. “It’s actually pretty cool,” Fyvie said. “You’re like, ‘Wow. This is a huge [NCAA] Div. I school, they’re going to kill us.’, Then, you start playing, and it’s like you can compete and your adrenaline just starts running.” After a tight 25-21, 25-23 win over American University, the Kraken amped up their momentum for an easier win against another large school, Ole Miss, to advance to the title game. “Once you get one big kill, you are in the zone and ready to play,” Fyvie said. “That’s how we are able to beat teams like that.” The mental hurdle was the biggest one for the Kraken, who fared much better than they anticipated against the larger schools. “It’s definitely scary, like, ‘Oh, we’re playing Clemson, this is scary,’” Gambler said. “But then, you’re like, ’Wow. We just beat Clemson.’” Gambler credited the Kraken’s mishaps early in the tournament as a reason for their success later on, ultimately leading to the championship win. “We did really bad, so we got into the copper bracket,” Gambler said. “By being put into the copper, we were able to do better, so we were able to win.” The club hopes this is the first of many championships at the annual tournament, as members have already began looking toward next year’s rendition taking place in Denver.

For the first time since 2016, the Oswego State baseball team lost a weekend SUNYAC series. After topping The College at Brockport on April 13 by a score of 14-4, the Lakers lost both games the next day during the double header. Oswego State now sits at 18-8 overall. In 2016, the Lakers were swept by SUNY Cortland later in the season, with the final game on senior day. Oswego State was limited to four runs during the weekend and gave up 18 runs. John Barnes, a sophomore at the time, went 1-9 during the weekend and was walked twice. Barnes, now a senior, said the team will be working hard the rest of the week to end the season on a strong note. “Baseball can be a cruel sport. Sometimes you have bad games,” Barnes said. “You’ve got to hand it to Brockport. They came out tough and beat us.” Since the series loss, Oswego State has won 10 straight conference weekends, including a series win against SUNY Cortland in 2017, winning two of the three games. Head coach Scott Landers said there are no concerns, and the team will be able to rebound after a bad weekend. When the Lakers were swept in 2016, they went 19-90 as a team, posting a .211 batting average for the entire weekend, not just the double header. In the two losses, a lack of hits was a deciding factor for the team’s fate, batting 12-59 collectively. Other unsuccessful aspects included crucial fielding errors and a poor opening pitching performance in game three. “We played pretty well game one,” Landers said. “Bottom line is we got in the hole, and it took a while for the hitters to get going.” In game three, the Lakers tried to rally against the Golden Eagles. The attempted comeback was sparked by Ryan Enos, who had a three-run home run. While it was the second of his career, his first being hit in Florida earlier in the season over spring break, Enos was glad to hit his second at the Laker Baseball Field. At the time of the home run, the Lakers were trailing the Golden Eagles 9-1. Enos was able to knock in Lukas Olsson after his single earlier in the inning. Landers said Enos has been a strong player, especially as a freshman.

See CARDINALS, B4

Bad weather prevents outdoor practice; golf still competitive Luke Scoville Sports Editor lscoville@oswegonian.com

Photo provided by Mark Fyvie The Kraken had a tough round robin, but came back to win the copper bracket over Clemson University.

Golf in the Northeast is an annual frustration and adjustment in terms of course conditions and the amount practice the players get going into competition. Something that Oswego State golfers and its regional competitors are accustomed to by now, but were faced with a steeper obstacle this spring as the weather has failed to cooperate. Only getting some time to hit golf balls in a net at the Romney Fieldhouse, the Lakers’ first action on a golf course came in last week’s Keuka Spring Invitational, where they placed third out of 10 teams. “It’s unfortunate that the weather is so bad,” head coach Mike Howard said. “And this has been one of the worst we’ve experienced in my 23 years of coaching, where we’ve only been outside maybe three times in the course of a month and a half. It is a little discouraging, but it is what it is.” Oswego State’s home course, Oswego Country Club, was in stable

enough condition for the Lakers to practice for the few days after the Keuka Invitational leading up to the Empire 8 Spring Championship in Hershey, Pennsylvania. “Just knowing everyone’s in the same boat with all the guys you’re facing, you just got to go out there and try your best,” senior Stu Winn said. To go with a lack of reps already this spring, the Lakers had to travel over four hours in temperatures 40 degrees warmer than Oswego and a difficult golf course like Hershey Country Club, which they have never played on before. “It just increased the challenge for the guys,” Howard said. For the team, the challenge kept increasing as they competed without their top guy from the fall season, junior Sean Paul Owen, who took the spring semester off to study abroad. “You only get that opportunity once in a lifetime,” Howard said. “[Owen] took it and that’s what being a Div. III athlete is all about.”

See EMPIRE, B4

Shore Report

THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

SUNYAC Standings

Baseball

Cortland Oswego State Brockport New Paltz Oneonta Fredonia Plattsburgh

Men's Lacrosse

Oswego Scoreboard

Overall

Conference

26-6

11-1

W18

18-8

8-3

14-14 13-12 9-17 12-11

8-6 6-5 5-9

2-8

W1 W2 L1

7-18

1-11

Overall

Conference

Streak

8-6

3-1

Brockport Plattsburgh Geneseo Oneonta

5-6

3-1

3-8

2-1

6-5

1-2

4-7

1-2

4-8

1-2

8-4

1-3

Women's Lacrosse

Conference 5-0 4-1

Overall

Cortland Brockport Geneseo Oswego State Buffalo State Oneonta Potsdam New Paltz

10-4 5-7 11-2

Fredonia

Softball

4-2

Geneseo Cortland Oneonta New Paltz Oswego State Plattsburgh Buffalo State Brockport Fredonia Potsdam

Streak W5

4-2

7-7 6-6-1

3-2 2-3

L1 L2

4-9

1-4

5-7

1-5

0-12

0-5

L12

12-10 13-14-1

6-4

12-10

5-5

12-11 6-13 11-11

4-2 4-4

10 8 8

1-5

7-17-1

1-8 0-4

Men's Lacrosse

COR: (13-14, 6-2) NPZ: (13-14-1, 6-4)

12 12

BPT:

ONE:

Sexton: 2-5, 2 RBIs, 2 runs Corbett: 2-5, 2 RBIs, 1 run Ruiz: 2-5

OSW:

Women's Lacrosse Wednesday, April 18

6 Pastore: 3-6, 1 RBI, 2 runs Kretzler: 2-5, 3 RBIs , 3 runs Miceli: 2-3, 2 RBIs, 2 runs Barnes: 2-5, 1 RBI Enos: 1-3, 2 RBIs 2 runs

Men's Lacrosse Wednesday, April 18

GEN:

Doody: 4 goals Marafioti: 2 goals, 1 assist

OSW:

Alford: 4 goals, 2 assists Wilkom: 3 goals, 1 assists Bacon: 3 goals

OSW:

Shattuck: 2 goals, 3 assists O'Kane: 2 goals Regin: 1 goal, 3 assists

GEN:

Pratt: 2 goals, 6 shots Malone: 1 goal

Baseball

Saturday, April 21

Women's Lacrosse Saturday, April 21

12:00/3:00 p.m. (DH)

1:00 p.m.

OSW: 18-8 (8-3) PLA: 7-18 (1-11)

COR: 10-4 (5-0) OSW: 8-4 (4-2)

@ 1:00/3:00 p.m. (DH)

BPT: 11-11 (1-5) OSW: 12-10 (5-5)

Men's Lacrosse Wednesday, April 25

@ 7:00 p.m.

POT: 4-8 (1-2) OSW: 8-4 (1-3)

Laker Athletes of the Week

Women's Lacrosse

POT: (4-8, 1-2) BPT: (5-6, 3-1)

Kevin O'Donnell of the Oswego State men's lacrosse team gave up just three goals in their 5-3 win over SUNY Geneseo. This was the fewest goals the Lakers have given up in conference play since 2009 when they defeated Morrisville State by a score of 12-3. O'Donnell recorded 12 saves on 15 shots faced, and his .800 save percentage is the best single-game percentage of his career.

Vilchez: 2-5, 2 RBIs, 1 run Vertuccio: 2-5, 2 RBIs, 1 run

Sunday, April 22

Around the SUNYAC Softball

Saturday, April 14

OSW:

Softball

Points 14

7-1 6-2 6-4

3-15

8-4

Conference

Saturday, April 14

Upcoming Events

L2 W3

Overall 18-4 13-14

Baseball

Softball

Streak

Cortland

Potsdam Oswego State

NPZ: (5-7, 1-5) BUF: (7-7, 3-2)

In their 19-2 blowout victory over SUNY Fredonia, the Lakers women's lacrosse team had four players record a hat trick. Montana Garrett had five goals on the day, while Toni Laneve and Brigid Regin had four. Late in the second half, Gemma O'Kane tacked on another goal with an assist from Teresa Shattuck to give herself the fourth hat trick for the Lakers and her fifth of the season.

Erik Schleicher

Tylea McCarthy-Walker

This weekend, Schleicher and his teammate Corey Marshall were recognized as Second Team All-Conference golfers. He shot and 80 an 89 over the course of this weekend, propelling the Lakers to second place in the Empire 8 Championship, even though it was Oswego State's first season in the conference. His score of 80 on Saturday placed him in the top 10 amongst all competitors. Schleicher was just one over par on all par-3 holes, which was the lowest score in the entire field.

On Friday, April 13, McCarthy-Walker set a program record with her 5.72 meter long jump at the Cortland Please Stop Snowing team challenge. Her distance was the fifth best long jump in the nation this season and was 2 feet further than the runner-up. This was, also, her new personal best. She surpassed her previous distance of 5.56 meters, which was set in March of this year. The sophomore was granted 10 of the 51 Lakers' points on the day, which placed Oswego State sixth out of eight schools.

Oswego State softball pitcher and outfielder Rebecca Vilchez recorded 15 hits in eight games this past week. She had a hit in every single game, including a total of seven doubles on the week. Because of her 15 hits, she had a .517 batting average along with eight RBIs. Her performance led to a 4-4 record for the Lakers, boosting their record to 5-5 in the SUNYAC.

Oswego State women's lacrosse attack Gemma O'Kane recorded her 100th career goal during their 11-9 victory over No. 15 SUNY Geneseo. With the April 18 victory, the Lakers improved to 8-4, while SUNY Geneseo dropped to 11-2. Toni Laneve and Brigid Regin had hat tricks on the day, while senior goalie Angela Ponto stood tall in net as she recorded 12 saves on 21 shots.

Golf Sophomore | Elma

15:

Women's Track and Field Sophomore | Marion

100:

SPORTS

Boyd returns, sparks run to North Dakota

Laker roller hockey earns first nationals win, but loses to no. 1 seed

FRIDAY, September 10, 2010

A-9

THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

Photo Brief

B33

O'Kane Joins Elite Group

Maria Perricozzi | The Oswegonian

Photo provided by BC Photography Wilson Kane (88), who finished with eight points all season, celebrates a goal with his linemates at the national championships in Fargo, North Dakota.

Matt Watling Incoming Asst. Sports Editor mwatling@oswegonian.com This past weekend, the Oswego State men’s roller hockey team competed in Fargo, North Dakota, for a chance to win its first national championship. The season started the weekend of Oct. 7 in Feasterville, Pennsylvania, with three exhibition games. Oswego State started the regular season off fairly well, winning two of three at the Grove City, Pennsylvania, tournament. Because many teams do not have access to roller rinks, the sport is dependent on weekend tournaments. The Lakers are one of these teams that do not have access to a rink, so they only had four practices, with their first during winter break. “You can really [see] the disadvantage we had over other teams,” captain Jack Tofallos said. “We don’t move the puck nearly as well [as other teams.]” Despite a lack of practice, the Lakers finished above .500 with an 11-9 record because of a strong run during the second half of the regular season after starting the season 5-6. After the first nine games of the season, the Lakers had allowed 54 goals, 4.91 per game. In the final nine games of the season, the Lakers shaved 1.35 goals off their average as they gave up 3.56 goals per game. “The practice helped us a ton [for the games after winter break,]” Tofallos said. “We got [goaltender Michael] Boyd back. He did not play for the first semester. He is a big locker room guy and is a big reason why we went to nationals last year, this year too.”

The improved defense coincides with the return of Boyd. He helped propel the Lakers to the National Championships, as they shot up the standings to seventh of 13 teams in the Eastern Collegiate Roller Hockey Association. “The defense did not really do anything different [during the second half of the season]," Boyd said. "Just having a veteran presence behind them gave them that much more confidence. They just [knew] what to do rather than thinking about it.” Despite a strong push to end the season, the Lakers missed the regional playoffs. Oswego State had to wait a month for the selection show to see if its resume was strong enough to earn it an at-large bid. Fortunately for the Lakers, they received a bid in the tournament and were going to nationals. “It was just crazy,” Boyd said. “We worked so hard and we ended up missing out on regional playoffs, [but] we believed we could compete nationally and deserved to be there.” This time, however, the expectations the Lakers put on themselves stretched far beyond a nationals birth. “Last year, we were not expecting to make the playoffs, but we did,” Tofallos said. “We went on a run [during the playoffs,] so we thought ‘OK, maybe we could do this again next year.’ We had high hopes, [and although we missed the playoffs,] we always expected to get back to nationals after last year.” Because last season was the first nationals appearance in the history

of the program, the Lakers had low expectations. On the other hand, this season was the year the Lakers wanted to take the next step. “Last year, Fort Myers [where nationals was held,] felt more like a vacation than a hockey tournament,” Boyd said. “This year, the moment we practiced, it was nationals or bust.” Fast forward to this past weekend, and the Lakers were battling some of the best teams in the nation. Despite losing their first round robin game 6-2 to Endicott College, the Lakers dominated their final two opponents. They took down the University of Akron by a score of 8-1. It was a relatively quiet game for Boyd, as he only faced 10 shots. In their next game, the Lakers took on Sam Houston State University and defeated them 6-4. With two round robin wins, the Lakers had a bye during the playin games and were scheduled to play No. 1 Northeastern University in the Sweet 16. Unfortunately for Oswego State, their run ended here, as the Huskies won 1-0 en route to their second championship game in two years. “Northeastern is a team we’ve always had trouble with,” Boyd said. “But in order to win a national championship, you have to play some really good teams, and why not go up against the number one team in the country?”

On April 18, senior attack Gemma O'Kane recorded the 100th goal in her collegiate career against the SUNY Geneseo Knights. Her freshman year was quite successful, as she scored 20 goals in 15 games; however, her sophomore year really stood out. O'Kane scored 32 goals in just 16 games and helped the Lakers to a 12-4 record. That year, the Lakers won a playoff game for the first time in several years. It was the first of two goals she scored on the day, propelling the Lakers to a 11-9 victory over the No.

15 team in the nation. With just over two minutes remaining in the first half, Oswego State took its first lead as Toni Laneve scored her 31st goal of the season. Teresea Shattuck picked up her 43rd assist on the goal, as she leads the team in assists by 33. Senior goalie Angela Ponto stood tall in net with 12 saves on 21 shots against. The win improved the Lakers' record to 8-4 and 4-2 in SUNYAC play.

Shea McCarthy | The Oswegonian

Regin brings ability for lacrosse, athleticism, to help rebuilding program

Transfer junior from OCC amongst leaders in goals, points with other upperclassmen on roster Ben Grieco Incoming Sports Editor bgrieco@oswegonian.com The final score for the Oswego State women’s lacrosse team may have shown team domination against SUNY New Paltz after a 14-5 win, but that was not the headline. Brigid Regin, a junior midfielder, scored seven goals all by herself - outscoring the Hawks single-handedly. Her five-goal second half matched the entire game effort of SUNY New Paltz. This year is Regin’s first season as a Laker after transferring from Onondaga Community College in Syracuse. Regin saw tremendous success as a Lazer during her two seasons at OCC. During her freshman campaign, the team lost in the National Junior College Athletic Association National Finals to Monroe Community College. Her sophomore year, they lost in the national semifinals to Howard Community College. During her career at OCC, she not only racked up numbers on the score sheet, totaling 100 career points, but she also gained numerous accolades, such as All-Region Team and NJCAA All-Academic Third Team. Alongside her for the two seasons was current teammate Toni Laneve, who also played at OCC. Regin said she transferred to Oswego State because of friends and others on the team, as well as the campus being closer to home so that it was not a long trip for her family. However, Coach Britt Howard was happy to recruit someone else with such a strong ability for the game.

“Last year, we had great athletes, but this year, she strings along the first midfield line,” Howard said. “To have Montana Garrett, her and Toni Laneve all on that line, they have great speed, and Brigid really steps up in that leadership role.”

I think she finally got her confidence, in SUNYAC play, especially." - Britt Howard, Oswego State women's lacrosse coach

It was not until recently that Regin’s success started to appear on the radar of opposing teams. While she has been consistent all season, averaging 3.4 points per game, her strong offensive performance is due to her strong shot. Howard said that Regin is a strong shooter in both practice and the pregame warm-ups, and it was not until the game against SUNY New Paltz on April 10. Howard said she has an extremely strong shot outside of the 8-meter arc. “It reminds me of a guy’s shot, just the way she releases the ball,” Howard said. Before the game against the Hawks, Howard said that she suggested to Regin that she shoot the ball more. Howard said she gets a lot of opportunities to get a shot on goal, but she is always a little

hesitant to shoot. “I think she finally got her confidence, in SUNYAC play, especially,” Howard said. “Her athleticism does wonders for her.” Her strong playstyle did not stop after the game against SUNY New Paltz. In a 19-2 win against SUNY Fredonia on Sunday, April 15, she tied the second-most goals in a single game this season. Regin had five points, adding four more goals to her season total. Regin, who is used in all aspects of the game including the draw, now has 32 goals and is second on the team. But the top four goal scorers, which include Regin, Laneve, Gemma O’Kane and Garrett, are all within five goals of one another. While Laneve has the lead for now, Howard said that all four players, including Teresa Shattuck, who has 39 assists, are top performers due to a team effort. Howard said every player is different in their own way, which helps everybody on the team. She also called them selfless, and they are always looking to pass to set each other up and have solid team chemistry. “My teammates [are always] looking out for me, clearing spaces for me, giving those passes when I’m open and letting me finish,” Regin said. As the regular season starts to hit the final stretch, with two SUNYAC games and one nonconference game remaining, the team is hoping to use its

momentum to finish out the season. They currently sit with a 8-4 record. Regin said she is hoping for a strong finish in the regular season after defeating No. 15 SUNY Geneseo on April 18 with a final score of 11-9. The team now looks to face SUNY Cortland on April 21 and Buffalo State on April 24. The Red Dragons currently sit atop

the SUNYAC standings, with the Bengals one spot below the Lakers in fifth place. “I really hope that she continues growing on her [confidence],” Howard said. “Cor tland is going to be great competition for her. Buffalo State, also, that’ll be a great matchup.”

Maria Perricozzi | The Oswegonian Regin is among the top goal scorers for Oswego State, trailing Laneve, who has 32 goals this season.

SPORTS B4 Campus Recreation Report: dodgeball action Golf finishes second in Empire Dodgefathers, Team Phoenix take control of respective leagues 8 with strong outing from Winn THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

Morgan Meaney Contributing Writer sports@oswegonian.com Dodgeball has been heating up with a brand new week filled with more ducking and dodging action. In the first game of the week in the men’s recreational league, Fishsticks fell to Beef Brisket by a final score of 3-1, but the initial champ fell quickly to The Dodgefathers in a close game of 3-2. Beef Brisket was able to capture another win over We Are Fun by a score of 3-0. The Dodgefathers captured another victory over Fishsticks (3-0), who also fell to Team Phoenix with 0the same score (3-0). Despite an early loss, We Are Fun was able to bounce back and capture victories over both Team Phoenix (3-0) and Fishsticks (30). Beef Brisket was handed its second loss of the week by Team Phoenix, who is demonstrating great dominance in this men’s recreational league. Continuing with their winning trend, the Dodgefathers picked up two more victories over both the Muff Divers (40) and Fishsticks (4-2). Still, the Muff Divers were able to grab a victory over the Red Head Mafia (4-2), who, later in the week, were able to dethrone the Dodgefathers and end their winning

streak (4-3). In the women’s league, Voll is Life was the big winner of the week with victories over Lady Lakers (3-2), The Mighty Duckers (3-1) and Chix with Stix (3-1). Despite an early loss, however, Lady Lakers were able to pick up two victories over the Mighty Duckers (3-0) and Chix with Stix (3-0). In the corec competitive league, Off Multiple Times picked up two wins over OFC Dodgers (3-0) and Average Hoes (3-1). The OFC Dodgers were able to obtain a win over the Average Hoes (3-0). Finally, in the men’s competitive league, Barely College Athletes defeated both Catch these balls (3-2) and Muff Divers (3-1). Muff Divers took down Catch these balls with a score of 3-2, while Catch these balls bounced back with a victory over Red Head Mafia (3-2). In the softball corec tournament, more teams were eliminated from the tournament as more teams established dominance on the field. Scared Hitless defeated Dingers and Dongs in a score of 14-2, while Quit Your Pitching fell to Phil’s Last Ride (18-6). Ice Cold Pitchers defeated Fake News Bears (13-7), leading to their elimination from the tournament. In the final game of the week, I Love all My Pitches took down

We’re Gonna Lose (14-4). We are now in the first week of flag football competition, and it is bringing its fair share of ups and downs. In the men’s 7v7 tournament, The Faikeys delivered a loss to the Cleveland Frowns (41-13) in a very dominant fashion. In a similar way, the Cooper Manning Fan Club defeated Boonk Squad (29-6), while Pheonix took down Scrambled Legs (33-12). The Hong Kong Combat Orcas fell to the Sauce Gods (30-12), while in a very close game, OX JUICE BABY fell to The Replacements (2524). Despite early dominance, The Faikeys suffered their first loss at the hands of Phoenix (25-6), and Sauce Gods continued their win streak by shutting out Cooper Manning Fan Club in a final score of 19-0. In a relatively close game, the Townies and Juju’s Bike battled it out with the Juju’s Bike being crowned as the victor (19-12). Our only championship game of the week was the handball league’s final game. Kappa Sigma took Barely College Athletes for the shirt. In a very close game with a final score of 4-3, Kappa Sigma claimed victory and became the 2018 handball league champions.

Cardinals first challenge before SUNYACs

With playoffs on horizon, Plattsburgh, Cortland targeted by Lakers CARDINALS FROM B1 “I was just trying to get on base to start something up because we were down pretty big,” Enos said. “[The ball] ended up going out.” N e w Yo rk w e a t he r h a s no t b e e n k i nd to t he L a ke r s , w i t h n u me r o u s c a nc e l l a t i o n s t h i s s e a s o n . T h i s p a s t w e e k , g a me s a g a i n s t E l m i r a C ol l e g e o n A p r i l 1 7 a nd C l a rk s o n U n i ve r s i t y o n A p r i l 1 8 w e re a l l c a nc e l l e d . Despite the cancellations, Oswego State has been able to find a rhythm with its weekend rotation in addition to its strong offensive lineup. This weekend, the Lakers take on Plattsburgh State, who is currently last in the SUNYACs. Even with the series loss against The College at Brockport, plans for this weekend do not change, Landers said. “We’ve just got to go about our business and go out there and win,” Landers said. After the series against the Cardinals, the Lakers have a non-conference matchup against Ithaca College on April 24. But for the Lakers, the big series is against SUNY

Austin Dearborn | The Oswegonian Oswego State still remains in second place in the SUNYACs despite dropping two games to the Golden Eagles.

Cortland (26-6, 11-1) on April 27 and 28. The Red Dragons and the Lakers are first and second in the SUNYACs, respectively. Last season, the Lakers finished in first place and were given the SUNYAC title, due to the tournament’s cancellation. T he s e r i e s c o me s a t a c r i t i c a l t i me f o r b o t h t e a m s , s i nc e i t i s t he l a s t s e r i e s o f t he re g u l a r s e a s o n . U nd e r m u l t i p l e c i rc u m s t a nc e s , t he re i s s t i l l a c h a nc e f o r t he

L a ke r s to t i e o r p o s s i b l y ove r t a ke t he R e d D r a g o n s i n t he S U NYAC s . “We’ve been looking forward t o [ t h e s e r i e s ] a l l y e a r,” B a r n e s said. “We knew that they were at the end of the season. I’m sure they’re looking forward to i t j u s t a s m u c h a s w e a r e . I t ’s a big series. Everyone loves it. We’re taking it one game at a time and hopefully playing our best baseball when they come t o O s w e g o .”

Shea McCarthy | The Oswegonian

EMPIRE FROM B1 T he cha lle nge wa s a cce pte d, though. T he L a ke rs we re re a dy to go to work de spite the a dve rsity. Junior Kyle McCloskey ste ppe d into the rota tion for the L a ke rs to compe te in pla ce of Owe n a s they he ld the se cond-pla ce position from the fa ll Empi re 8 Cha m pionship. D e pth ha s b e e n key for H owa rd’s te a m the la st fe w se a sons, ma king his j ob more diffi cult i n a good way. Juniors Owe n, Corey Ma rsha ll a nd N ick Gra mgulia have b e e n the fore front of L a ke rs golf this se a son, b ut i t wa s the usua l con siste ncy of the se nior W inn tha t wa s key for the m ove r the we e k e nd a t H e rshey Countr y Club . “Just focusing on minimizing the da ma ge ,” W inn sa id. “You ca n’t le t one b a d shot ruin the hole or ruin the e ntire round.” W inn shot 83 -85 (1 68 tota l) to le a d the L a ke rs for the spring cha mpionship a nd ma i nta in se c ond pla ce position for the m in the ir ina ugura l se a son a s me m b e rs of the Empire 8 Confe re nce . “ Y e a h , d e f i n i t e l y,” H o w a r d s a i d . “ H e ’s b e e n s t e a d y. H e ’s a good player and has a good mindset. He doesn’t get ratt l e d t o o e a s i l y, s o i t w a s a g o o d s p o t f o r h i m .” As me ntione d, they may have b e e n a dista nt se cond to Empire 8 powe rhouse , S t. John Fi she r, b ut a s ne w me mb e rs to the con-

fe re nce , it wa s a ste p in the ri ght di re ction for a n improving progra m tha t ha s b a ttle d. “ I t ’s f e e l s g r e a t ,” H o w a r d s a i d . “ I t ’s g o o d f o r o u r p r o g r a m t o come in and be runner-up in a conference and show we can ‘c o m p e t e .’ We ’d l i k e t o c o m p e t e a little more with the firstplace team [St. John Fisher], but in time I’m sure we’ll close t h a t g a p .” To go with the second-place finish, Marshall and Schleicher were both named to the Empire 8 Second Team All-Conference for their combined performances in the fall and spring championships. “ O v e r a l l , f o r o u r f i r s t y e a r, we’re pleased with the way we transitioned into a legitimate c o n f e r e n c e ,” H o w a r d s a i d . The spring season may be short, but is still important with the conference championship implications carrying over from fall competition. Oswe go S ta te will look to e nd the se a son full of torre ntia l con di tions this spring with positiv ity. T hey will compe te i n the El mira S pring Invita tiona l on Apri l 2 4 a nd host the 1 2 th Annua l L a k e r S pring Tourna me nt on April 2 8 a nd 2 9 a t Oswe go Countr y Club to close out the ca mpa ign. “We a re inte rcha nge a ble a nd we ca n improve on tha t,” H owa rd sa id. “H ope fully we ca n ge t some kids in he re i n the fa ll to compe te with our guys.”

OPINION

THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

One issue, two Hypnosis given bad reputation One issue, two perspectives: Valid therapy option given malicious reputation by media perspectives: Money from SNAP least of our concerns

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Derek Smith Opinion Editor dsmith@oswegonian.com With a White House and Congress controlled by Republicans, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is finally in their crosshairs. State lawmakers and bitter uncles have long complained about the freeloading “welfare queens” sucking America’s tax reserve dry by spending their government food subsidies on junk food and spending their own money on drugs. The simple solution, t he n , w o u l d b e to a d m i n i s t e r d r u g tests to anyone receiving SNAP or similar welfare benefits. If they fail the drug test, they are disqualified from getting the financial assistance to purchase food. There are countless issues with this line of thinking, based on the stereotype that those who receive subsidies are freeloading dope-smokers. Suppose some SNAP recipients do indeed use drugs. Should that deprive them or their children from assistance that feeds them? Many people on food assistance already feel shame or embarrassment for having to turn to the government to pay for meals. This sort of provision would discourage them even more from seeking the help they need. The whole idea behind any social safety net is to give people a tiny bump in the right direction by providing them the most basic goods they could not easily come by themselves. Few people who are too poor to afford food or water would have enough money to spend on drugs or booze.

Many people on food assistance already feel shame or embarrassment for having to turn to the government to pay for meals If cold-hard dollars is the chief concern, cutting SNAP benefits is the last place to turn. Drug user or not, no single mother is going to bankrupt the United States’ budget buying Doritos and Mountain Dew with the limited money SNAP doles out. Taking a big chunk out of the military budget and the government could provide surf and turf for the whole population twice over. What is more, administering drug tests to the few million individual SNAP applicants will prove costly and inefficient. It would require a whole new stack of paper work, lawyers and notoriously uninviting public servants (think the DMV). Also, one would assume that any person clever enough to game the SNAP system for thousands of dollars’ worth of grocery items could find a way to fake a passing drug test. All this in mind, it is no surprise the Trump administration is tossing around this idea. It is straight out of his playbook: prescribe a seemingly commonsense solution to a nonexistent problem that his groupies think is destroying the country at their expense. It makes obvious his dwindling suppor t in Washington D.C. and inability to collaborate with other power brokers to come up with any concrete solutions to complex issues. It matters little to his base, however, and he knows that. So long as he keeps kicking around ideas like this, based in vague prejudice and false assumptions about fellow Americans, his suppor ters will cheer. Luckily, if nothing else Trump has proven to be all talk, no trousers on everything, especially public policy.

SNAP program promotes drug abuse

Anna P. Frost Contributing Writer opinion@oswegonian.com “You are getting sleepy” is a quote that quickly stirs up several images. We picture a cartoon-ish man waving a pocket watch in front of someone’s face and making them cluck like a chicken at the snap of a finger. Hypnosis is portrayed as a magical ability to brainwash people into acting, however, the hypnotist designs. The recent (and very popular) horror film “Get Out” featured a mother that could control the main character’s thoughts with a spinning spoon and her words. An episode of “Gotham” featured a cracked hypnotherapist that hypnotized people into murder. This theme of brainwashing people to act against their interests persists in everything from children’s cartoons to horror movies. Because most people do not know much about hypnosis, these media representations affect people’s beliefs in how hypnosis works. These misconceptions create fear around a real psychological tool that therapists can and do use for their patients. Hypnotherapy is an important option within therapy practices. When people are scared of it, they will not accept treatment and use the benefits. Therapists can teach their patients to hypnotize themselves to help ease anxiety or talk themselves out of habits they do not want to partake in, such as nail biting, alcohol use and overeating. It can also be used to remain calm while examining traumatic memories and talking things out with therapists. In reality, hypnosis has similar benefits to taking some medications, according to the Mayo Clinic. The only dif-

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ference is that the person is actively doing things or talking while in that calm, focused state. The most common example of falling into trance is doing an activity done every day and forgetting it has been done after completion. For example, one might take the time to brush their teeth, but wonder if they did immediately after doing it because they were daydreaming so much. Hypnosis can also be an intimate or romantic experience. People cannot be made to do anything they do not want to do, so they would want to participate in hypnosis with someone they trust. The other would have to know the types of things they would like to do and the types of words that will bring them under a trance more easily. Some people are talked under by a countdown, whereas some prefer body focus, like in meditation. A small example of a hypnosis script might go something like this:

“As you read these words, you will feel more relaxed. You will take a deep breath and relax your shoulders. As I count down, each number will help you feel more calm. When I reach one, you will have entered trance. Five…calm…four, more relaxed…three, deeper…two…and one… drop down into that calm feeling.” Once the subject is feeling calm enough, the hypnotist could then describe calming environments for the subject to imagine or ease the transition into sleep. While calm and focused in trance, it is easier for the person under trance to picture and imagine scenarios. Not everyone enjoys being talked into trance, but almost everyone is capable of doing so if they want. It is a much simpler and more pleasant experience than many people realize.

“Finals Week” not that stressful

Binging coffee, energy drinks not really needed to pass classes Michael Reilly Circulation Director mreilly@oswegonian.com

Twice a year, a week comes along that is jam-packed with papers, exams and a helping of overdramatics. It is commonly known around college campuses as “Finals Week,” where students cram in study sessions, a boat load of energy drinks and coffee. Speaking of caffeinated beverages, it is important to keep track of how much caffeine you consume. While smaller amounts will in fact improve focus and keep you awake, excessive amounts can actually bring unwanted stress, which is the absolute last thing students who get worked up about the big week want to have happen. For some, the week might just be a couple days, but those two days might involve a marathon of up to three tests in a 24-hour period. Others might have a more spaced-out schedule that will last the whole week. Either way, it is definitely an event students do not look forward to. Having gone through three years’ worth of this process, I must say I have never found “Finals Week” to be the tornado storm of fear and stress popular opinion would suggest it is. I have also had my share of finals weeks that included a series of test and papers jammed into three or four day periods and I have to say that I am not buying the hype. I do not think finals week is easy, but I also do not to find it be something worth stressing over. When you really think about, it is pretty stupid. For example, the basic idea of having so many exams, papers and projects clustered into such a short period of time seems like an awful idea. By having so much to do and remember in such little time, no matter how much one may study, it seems nearly inevitable that their grade will not be the best it could. This is espe-

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cially true if the finals are cumulative, as opposed to just being based on material taught in the second half of the semester. That is almost a whole two months’ more material to review. Now, I am not ultimately suggesting that “Finals Week” should be done away with completely (although it would be nice). With that being said, “Finals Week” does have a legitimate reason for existing (other than to spring terror on students’ lives). Its general purpose is to be a reflection of how much material we know from the course that was taught throughout the semester, but trying to cram in all that information for a number of classes pretty much seems to be a disaster waiting to happen. Therefore, I can

see why some people get themselves all worked up and stressed out. Perhaps without even realizing it, the actual reason for the existence of “Finals Week” is not mainly to mess with students’ grades, but rather to put them through a test of stress, balancing so many tasks as once. This is a skill that can be very beneficial while progressing into adulthood. Overall, whether you are someone who is laid back and just lets “Finals Week” take its course or you want to rip your hair out then take a nap until the week is over. At the end of day, its existence has benefits, despite being so widely hated.

Alexis Hanna Staff Writer opinion@oswegonian.com Recently, the Trump Administ r a t i o n i n t ro d u c e d a S NA P f o o d change, in which recipients for welfare and food stamps will have to meet certain requirements for eligibility to continue receiving them. This policy will require those who seek welfare assistance and food stamps to cooperate with new stipulations to qualify. Recipients will be limited to a shorter time period to receive benefits unless they work 80 hours a month or attend educational and training seminars. Recipients in the proposed bill will be required to pass drug tests before being eligible to receive welfare assistance. These new requirements have been both commended and ridiculed. Some claim it is harsh and “unreasonable” to make residents seek work, put in a mere 80 hours a month or participate in other forward-moving activities. A number of citizens also believe it is unfair to require recipients to pass a drug test, asking the question, “Since when was food a privilege?” However, states will be given the option to create time frames for recipients. It was originally three months of receiving welfare before meeting requirements based on individual circumstances.

This policy will require those who seek welfare assistance and food stamps to cooperate with new stipulations to qualify These new changes are extremely necessary and logical. The argument that it is unfair to drug test welfare recipients seems to be simply a reach to find any reason to complain about a Trump policy. The drug epidemic in America is out of hand, and we absolutely should be taking steps to fix it. This is one of those steps. This does not mean “food is a privilege,” rather a necessity. It is an attempt to make drug users consider: food or drugs? It may be a very hard decision for some, and it can certainly be difficult to overcome the dependency users form for drugs, but it is a sensible tactic for conquering the drug epidemic. Allowing welfare recipients to receive help without requirements has only worsened the poverty and welfare rates in this country, according to Forbes. Why seek a job or stop using substances when everything you need is handed to you anyway? There is no motivation to search for jobs or overcome addiction if there are no consequences for being unemployed, either by choice or drug use. It is unfair to those hard working Americans when those who are unemployed and using drugs are receiving government help to be comfortable with their own decisions. A normal work week is 40 hours, but this only requires 80 in the entire month. That is less than what an average working American works per week by 50 percent. There is no reason a healthy American on welfare cannot or should not seek employment. Requiring welfare and SNAP recipients to pass drug tests and work 80 hours a month or attend educational or training activities is a logical, necessary step to take. To complain about a policy as this one is a stretch to complain about Trump’s decisions.

OPINION WELFARE BENEFITS

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OPINION

VOLUME LXXXVII ISSUE XVVXIV • www.oswegonian.com

“Congress shall make no law... abridging the freedom of speech or of the press.”

How are you preparing for finals week?

? “Try not to stress too much, make sure I eat, and stay hydrated.”

Mark Fyvie finance, junior “I lock myself in a room somewhere.”

Nora Walsh human development , sophomore “Coffee!”

Allison Hearn biology, sophomore “Get sleep and make sure that I study.”

Joseph Roy studio art and creative writing, freshman “I don’t have finals... I’m getting the leg work done for my final projects.”

Leah Wolf journalism, junior

THE OSWEGONIAN

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G UIDELIN ES

We want your thoughts on our coverage, campus and local issues, or anything regarding the Oswego State community. Email all letters as Word attachments to opinion@oswegonian.com or mail submissions to 139A Campus Center, Oswego N.Y. 13126 All writers must provide their real name, address, academic year, major and phone number (which will not be published). Members of organizations should include their title if their letter addresses an issue pertaining to the organization. For publication, letters should be 250 words or less and submitted by the Tuesday prior to the desired publication date. The Oswegonian reserves the right to edit and reject letters and cannot guarantee that all letters will be published. Opinions presented are solely those of the author and do not always reflect those of The Oswegonian.

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SPORTS SUNYAC CONFERENCE

B3 Maria Perricozzi | The Oswegonian

FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

STAFF EDITORIAL

With this issue of The Oswegonian, we come to a close for the 2017-2018 school year. The Oswegonian staff would like to thank our readers for supporting us. This organization is comprised of students doing what they love: reporting, taking photographs and leading the sections that interest them. With the end of another year comes the introduction of a new staff. The Oswegonian’s incoming staff christened their new positions by stepping into their new roles to make this issue. As a staff, we work hard to bring breaking news to our campus and the surrounding community. Each year, we as an organization work to make improvements and change to accommodate the world around us and better serve our

consumers. It is also important to remember a news organization is strengthened through the feedback from our community. As we end the school year, remember we want to hear your thoughts. Send in letters to the Editor and reach out to staff members when you have questions or complaints. Readers should feel able to have an open dialogue with their local news organization. You trust us to provide you with factual and timely news, and we trust our audience to voice their First Amendment rights to respond, whether in agreement or in argument. We at The Oswegonian utilize our First Amendment rights daily, every time we produce a piece of news, commentary or

opinion. We encourage our readers to do the same, to provoke thought and dialogue with the community through the platform we provide. Our opinion section is open to anyone with a thought about current events and an angle to share. Writers are welcomed weekly, and our Letters to the Editor section is open year-round if you wish to reply to something we published. While our opinion section is meant to spark discussion and thought, our news section is meant to inform. We work hard to ensure our news is accurate, fair and balanced. We look forward to our continued work as we serve the Oswego campus and community in the coming years.

IN THE OFFICE

Marijuana not criminalized for public safety

Studies show prohibition of the illicit drug was racially charged

It is April 20, which is, of course, the infamous “stoner holiday” in the U.S. and abroad. This “4/20,” take a moment to reflect on why marijuana is illegal and what that means for the U.S. Marijuana was made illegal in the 1930s through a series of state and federal laws that regulated it further and further. But marijuana had been legal for long before then. The Foundation for Economic Education reported that cannabis was grown in Jamestown, Virginia, an early English settlement in the New World, and that the Spanish had grown it in their South and Central American colonies as well. So, why was it made illegal? There are a few reasons that marijuana was outlawed, none of them as cut and dry as they were made to appear back in the early 20th century. Marijuana was a cultural tradition to Mexicans, who were coming into the country following the Mexican Revolution. While the cannabis plant had been in the U.S. for years and was present in many medicines at the time, according to drugpolicy.org, the Spanish term for it, “marihuana,” was foreign to most Americans, as was the concept of smoking it. Many Americans did not recognize that marijuana was already frequently used in their daily lives, and isolationist, anti-immigrant sentiments tied marijuana to the new Mexican immigrants. This ban on marijuana was further pushed for by the Bureau of Prohibition, which had been responsible for the alco-

Alexander Gault-Plate Incoming Managing Editor aplate@oswegonian.com hol ban through the 1920s. However, in the early 30s, alcohol was relegalized, and the department had nothing to do. CBS cited that its leader, Henry Anslinger, had previously said that cannabis was not a problem and reportedly called it an “absurd fallacy” to insinuate that it made people violent. However, when alcohol prohibition ended, Anslinger saw a new purpose in cannabis. He claimed that cannabis would turn someone into a “wild beast” and set his sights on a boy, Victor Licata, who had murdered his family with an axe in Florida. Anslinger claimed that the boy had been driven to these actions by marijuana. He even wrote to 30 leading scientists to ask if cannabis was dangerous. Twenty-nine wrote back to say that it was not dangerous according to an article by the

Huffington Post. Anslinger took the one scientist who said it was dangerous and cheered him on in public. The media cheered him on too, and public opinion, as well as legal regulations on marijuana, began to reflect the negative views. It was outlawed, and the U.S. even began to force other nations to outlaw marijuana as well. Mexico was one of those nations. The Mexican government decided to have its drug policies written by a team of doctors, who all agreed that marijuana did not need to be outlawed. The U.S. retaliated by withholding trade of all legal painkillers to Mexico. Mexican citizens in hospitals died in agony, and Mexico began to regulate marijuana just as the U.S. asked. There are many other reasons that marijuana was made illegal. The paper trade saw hemp, a cannabis derivative, as a threat and insisted it be outlawed. Some lobbyists called for it to be prohibited, stating that marijuana made white women want to sleep with black men, and that was something that needed to be stopped. In a nutshell, cannabis regulations were formed in a time when racism in America was rampant. Because marijuana was used by immigrants, it was caught up in that racism. If you decide to celebrate “4/20” this year, remember why it is illegal in the first place, and remember that so many people of color are still disproportionately jailed for using it.

Media does not cause violent acts

Violent video games scapegoat for larger issues

Alexis Hanna Staff Writer opinion@oswegonian.com Video games become a part of life generally at an early age and tend to stick for many years. They can range from innocent games such as “Mario Kart” or “Monkey Ball” to mo re i n t e n s e g a me s l i ke “ C a l l o f Duty.” They are a hobby, sometimes a profession, a way to blow off steam and a way to kill time. In recent years, studies have tried to prove that playing violent video games leads to violence in the real world. In the “Call of Duty ” game, the player is in control of a soldier fighting in a gruesome war. This entails shooting at the enemy strategically, resulting in kids spending hours watching and par ticipating in online violence for fun. The argument is that children are unable to differentiate between reality and the world where they can commit this violence. They become desensitized

Tip of the hat...

Today. Some can maintain it better than others, while some utilize video games to maintain it. Video games have been around s i nc e 1 9 7 2 . A g g re s s i o n a nd v i o lence have been character flaws and have criminalized emotions for much longer than 40 years. Before video games, violence was linked to mental instability and anger management issues. Serial killers and mass shooters were considered insane, and anyone who showed signs of violent tendencies was sent to rehab and anger management classes. Video games should not change the way we app ro a c h v i ol e nc e a nd a g g re s s i o n in kids or adults. If anything, the ability to play violent games helps lessen aggression in real-life situations, as it allows players to relieve stress in a virtual world. The claim that video games lead to a reality of violence is ultimately a flawed excuse to disregard the mental inPhoto provided by Pixabay stability problem in America.

to the violence, therefore becoming more likely to become violent in reality. The truth is video games do not lead to a lifetime of violence, as these studies like to suggest. There are so many gamers, many of whom pl ay v i ol e n t g a me s , a nd fe w h ave ever been violent in their lives toward real people. Video games are a stress reliever, not a stress inducer. Aggression is not something one is taught, but rather something one is born with, according to Psychology

◊....to racially motivated marijuana regulation. ◊....to the stress of “Finals Week.” ◊...to the poverty issue in America.

◊....to celebrating Earth Day. ◊....to the custodial staff. ◊....to the Shineman Foundation.

Wag of the finger...

INSIDE

Marvel shows others C4 Infinity Gems: Where are C7 What does Marvel really think of its creators? how it is done they, what can they do?

FRIDAY April 20, 2018

LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

What Marvel does that others fail to replicate Kevin Feige was able to crack code that other studios are struggling to figure out

Garrick Groover Staff Writer laker@oswegonian.com Ever since Nick Fury waltzed into Tony Stark’s living room in 2008’s “Iron Man,” fans have been salivating at the prospect of a fully connected cinematic universe featuring Marvel’s greatest heroes. Ten years and 18 films later, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has become the current highest grossing film franchise of all time, surpassing everything from “Star Wars” to “Harry Potter.” We now live in a world where even C-list heroes like “Ant-Man” and “Doctor Strange” can prove to be successful properties. However, Marvel’s success has not gone unnoticed. Every major Hollywood studio wants a franchise, and the “hottest” way to achieve that goal in today’s film climate is through the use of a cinematic universe. Despite many jumping on this potential cash cow, no studio has matched the heights of the MCU for two very big reasons: leadership and planning. Strong Leadership vs. Strong Ineptitude Every scripted television series has a showrunner. These individuals act as the creative control behind the show and set a distinctive feel for the program. This job can be attributed to film franchises as well. Every cinematic universe needs an architect to keep everything on track and set a

definitive style for the franchise. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has Kevin Feige, who acts as both producer and president of Marvel Studios. Under Feige’s eye, the MCU has moved along rather smoothly. Rival cinematic universe, the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), has struggled with this. “Batman v Superman”: Turn Off the Dark At first, DC’s “Kevin Feige” appeared to be director Zack Snyder (“Justice League”), who helmed both “Man of Steel” and “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.” Snyder’s direction with the DC universe was divisive to say the least. Many fans were turned off by his style over substance delivery. After “Batman v. Superman” failed to connect with both critics and audiences, Snyder was gradually removed from his position, and parent studio Warner Brothers created DC Films, its answer to Marvel Studios. After the shakeup at Warner Brothers, Geoff Johns (Chief Creative Officer of DC Comics) and Jon Berg (former WB executive vice president) were brought in to take the reigns of the DCEU. Despite DC Films claiming to have a “director-driven” mandate, the productions of its next films would prove otherwise. “Suicide Squad”: The Scorned Smash Hit In light of the criticisms faced by “Batman v. Superman” for being too dark, studio heads pushed director David Ayer (“Bright”) to make “Suicide Squad” more light-hearted

and humorous. This signaled film pundits everywhere that Warner Brothers wanted to craft its own response in the wake of the success of “Guardians of the Galaxy.” In short, “Suicide Squad” was going to be about a group of lovable misfits that go on adventures, bond and beat baddies to a soundtrack of classical hits. “Suicide Squad” was a success for the studio, but once again, the film was met with negative reception. Margot Robbie’s (“Peter Rabbit”) performance as Harley Quinn became a cultural icon, while Jared Leto’s (“The Outsider”) Joker was ridiculed in the shadow of Heath Ledger’s (“The Dark Knight”) superior portrayal as the Clown Prince of Crime. But hey, the film did win Best Makeup and Hairstyling at the Oscars. “Wonder Woman”: The Diamond in the Rough The next film in the DCEU was “Wonder Woman,” directed by Patty Jenkins (“Monster”). Despite being helmed by a rather talented filmmaker, “Wonder Woman” was met with initial skepticism. To many, Gal Gadot (“Justice League”), while beautiful, is no Meryl Streep (“The Post”), and past female superhero films (“Supergirl,”“Catwoman,” “Elektra”) are usually the kind of cinematic vomit one would find in a dumpster behind a Taco Bell rather than on the silver screen. To the surprise of many, “Wonder Woman” was not only a fantastic superhero film, but it was also a fantastic film on its own merits. It was the film adaptation Princess

Image from Marvel Entertainment via YouTube.com Josh Brolin’s Thanos in the upcoming “Avengers: Infinity War” hopes to break the infamous Marvel villain problem.

Image from MovieClips Trailers via YouTube.com Jared Leto is the biggest example of DC’s many problems with the universe.

Diana of Themyscira deserved and needed. Director Jenkins worked with the best she had and created one of the best films of the summer and a film to inspire women everywhere. “Wonder Woman” reignited audience’s interests in the DCEU again, or so people thought. The next film in the cinematic universe was “Justice League,” and the tower came crashing down. “Justice League”: $1 Billion or Bust Once again directed by Zack Snyder, “Justice League” was meant to be the culmination of everything built up over the past four films. This was going to be DC’s answer to “The Avengers,” one of the most successful superhero films of all time. The project was met with huge setbacks. Snyder left the project, rightfully so, after the death of his daughter. Joss Whedon (“Avengers: Age of Ultron”) was brought in to finish the film and do reshoots. The result was a film that critics felt was a vast improvement following Snyder’s direction, but nonetheless, audiences felt dissatisfied and ultimately disinterested. The film’s special effects were also a source of mockery, with Henry Cavill’s (“Sand Castle”) mustache removal becoming an online meme. As a result, “Justice League” became the lowest-grossing film in the DCEU with a worldwide total of $658 million. To put that number in perspective, “Black Panther” made an astounding $1.3 billion at the box office, more than double of

“Justice League.” A film that had the potential to make a billion dollars was dethroned by the King of Wakanda. The Future of DC: “Aquaman” & “Shazam!” Finally, the key to the DCEU was left to Walter Hamada, known for producing horror films like “The Conjuring” and “Annabelle.” Supposedly now having a clear showrunner, the effects of this shakeup will not be felt until December’s “Aquaman” and 2019s “Shazam!” The future of the DCEU might seem bleak compared to that of the Marvel variety, but fans are still eager to see their favorite comics come to life on screen again. The Secret to Marvel’s Success Compared to the chaos surrounding Warner Brothers and its DC properties, Marvel Studios appears to be cool as a cucumber. “Avengers: Infinity War” is expected to be a smash hit, and July’s “AntMan and the Wasp” also seems destined for greatness. As implied above, Marvel’s secret to success is strong, consistent leadership. Kevin Feige is the clear head honcho, and the fruits of his labor are ever present in the films he produces. Marvel also tends to not get quite ahead of itself. Compared to DC or even Universal’s Dark Universe, Marvel tends to be reserved in its upcoming film announcements. In short, strong leadership is everything when attempting to craft a cinematic universe.

LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

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MCU film that too many fans often forget about Connor Brennan Staff Writer laker@oswegonian.com

More than any other Avenger, the Incredible Hulk seems to have been shortchanged of his potential in terms of standalone movies. His only solo adventure is one that has been largely forgotten in the eyes of Marvel fans and the moviegoing public. Even “Iron Man 2” is remembered by fans of the franchise for how inferior it is to its predecessor. It is actually quite mournful because “The Incredible Hulk” is a good piece of superhero filmmaking in its own right. The film starts with the gamma radiation experiment that turns Bruce Banner (Edward Norton, “Isle of Dogs”) into the titular character and causes him to go on the run for five years. However, he is constantly chased by General Ross (William Hurt, “Captain America: Civil War”) and Captain Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth, “The Hateful Eight”). His only hope now is to return home, and with the help of his exgirlfriend Betty Ross (Liv Tyler, “Wildling”), find a cure for his condition.

One aspect that sells the film successfully is the performances. Norton channels the humanity of Banner with a tortured performance that allows viewers to see his desperation for a cure. Roth convinces as well, though he is sadly underdeveloped like many other MCU villains and undeserved when he finally becomes the Abomination, Hulk’s archenemy. Hurt brings the right kind of determination to Ross, and it is easy to see his selfishness in trying to capture Banner. Tyler, a self-proclaimed fan of the Hulk TV series from the 1970s, is merely acceptable. Her chemistry with Norton does not always work, but it is better than what Eric Bana and Jennifer Connelly had in the 2003 Ang Lee film. The action is fun to watch, and it feels satisfying at times to see the Hulk smash buildings and vehicles. But what is important is how Banner’s time as the Hulk affects him. Throughout, he flashes back to the destruction he causes and is reminded almost every day of what kind of problem he has inside him. Its tone is more serious than many other MCU films, so those expecting

a comedic affair with the Hulk, like in “Thor: Ragnarok,” will be disappointed. It is still something to appreciate in regard to trying to give depth to the proceedings. At times, it feels more like a B-horror film, especially in the scene where Hulk fights Blonsky in a soda factory; the shadows conceal Hulk, and the cinematography is appropriately claustrophobic. The film falters in the CG for both Hulk and Abomination. It is quite hit-and-miss, half the time looking like bad cartoon figures and looking like realistic beings during the other half. Also, Tim Blake Nelson is probably the only member of the main cast who is truly bad; he is more campy than anything. There is also an attempt to make Banner’s condition too realistic. There is a rule that if his heart rate reaches 200, he transforms. Honestly, it is redundant when there is already the issue of getting too angry. Easter eggs are quite insignificant. If it was not for namedrops for Nick Fury, S.H.I.E.L.D., the Super Soldier Program and Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr., “Avengers: Infinity War”) appearing in the last scene (which should have

been after the credits), one would not even realize that this is an MCU film. In terms of where the film stands in the franchise as a whole, the only important factor that carries through the later films is that Banner supposedly can control his Hulk transformations. Even with Hurt reappearing in “Civil War,” casual fans would not have missed anything by skipping this film. With all of that, it is not hard to see why MCU fans forget about it and why it is usually downplayed compared to the other films. What should be taken away from this, however, is how the film works on its own terms. The performances from most of the cast, serious tone and attempts to delve into Banner’s psyche show that direc-

tor Louis Leterrier wanted to do a good job working on this film, and for the most part, he succeeds. An added bonus for the nostalgia are the references to the 70s TV series, ranging from namedrops like Jack McGee (Jack Colvin’s reporter character who always tries to capture the Hulk) to the “Don’t make me angry” line, to the “Lonely Man” theme, to a TV clip with Bill Bixby (David Banner in the series) and giving Lou Ferrigno (the Hulk in the series) a cameo and having him say the Hulk’s dialogue. This film may not be for MCU fans, but Hulk fans should appreciate this film, both as a standalone superhero film and even a cinematic remake of the TV series.

Image from MovieClips Classic Trailers via YouTube.com Hulk is mad that no one seems to remember his solo movie within the MCU.

Outsider’s perspective on Marvel Cinematic Universe Reggie Debrah Staff Writer laker@oswegonian.com The Marvel Universe is a very fascinating movie franchise. The way the franchise evolves the storyline through new movies is a great way to tell the story of all the different heroes that reside within the MCU. Of course, the franchise is not perfect, and some movies are better than others, but it is amazing to see how much time and effort goes into developing the

storyline year after year to excite fans enough to create one of the biggest fanbases in the country. The MCU is great, or so I think. I must admit the MCU is an amazing franchise that draws in millions or even billions of fans, I am just not one of them. To anyone, it is undeniable that the Marvel Cinematic franchise is a huge success, simply based on the fact that it draws in hundreds of millions of dollars for each movie that is released under the Marvel name. As an outsider, all I really know

Image from Marvel Entertainment via YouTube.com Spider-Man shows that even with casual Marvel fans, there is something to love.

about the Marvel Universe is what I hear from others. I get the reviews of all the newest Marvel movies from my friends that are hardcore followers of the franchise. It is also difficult to ignore when these movies make frontpage news. The Marvel franchise is so big that everyone will immediately know how good the most recent movie is when I go on the internet and see headlines that read “Black Panther is the Best Movie Ever” or “Age Of Ultron Could Have Been Better.” However, while I am not exactly a “follower” of the MCU, I am also not a complete stranger to its work. I have seen some of the Marvel movies and have built opinions based off what I have seen. Two of the movies that I have seen that come to mind are “Captain America: Civil War” and “Spiderman: Homecoming.” Throughout both of these movies, I found things I liked and thought were very exciting. There were also things that I could not fully understand, which I found could turn away newcomers if they do not have a full knowledge of the Marvel franchise.

“Captain America: Civil War” was a movie that revolved around multiple heroes in the Marvel Universe. The fight scenes in the movie and many other visual aspects were beautiful and amazing to look at. The characters, such as Captain America and Iron Man, both came off as likable. Even though they were on opposite sides, they both brought up reasonable arguments for their respective sides, which made it easy to care for the characters and get more interested in the movie. While the movie was great to see, the main problems were with the storyline. While I do understand the movie takes place in the middle of the Marvel storyline, I found that many things could be hard to follow unless one has already seen one or multiple of the past Marvel movies. There are things that are hard to understand, like the relationship between Captain America and Bucky, and how Iron Man knows about Spiderman’s powers even though they have never met. Certain plot holes like these could confuse the viewer

and make it hard for newcomers to the Marvel franchise to understand. “Spiderman: Homecoming” revolved around Peter Parker, the 15-year-old alter-ego of Spiderman. While this movie was not as exciting and action packed as “Civil War,” there are still many iconic moments. The storyline is much less complex, which may be a result of the Spiderman storyline still being new to the Marvel Universe. This movie does have some plot points connected to earlier movies, but Spiderman was introduced in “Civil War,” a movie that I have already seen. This only enriched the plot of the movie, knowing that it was being connected to something much larger. I can see why Marvel has succeeded where many other franchises failed. For many that are huge fans of the Marvel franchise, including comic books, television shows and much more, it is exciting to see all the heroes in one huge Universe, fighting either together or against each other.

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FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

LAKER REVIEW

SOUL STONE Location and Abilities: Unknown

REALITY STONE

Abilities: Manipulates reality, covers universe in eternal darkness Location: With the Collector (Not for long)

MIND STONE Abilities: Controls people’s minds, gives them powers, creates A. I. ? Location: In Vision’s forehead (definitely not for long)

LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

TIME STONE

Abilities: Manipulates time Location: In the Eye of Agamotto, hidden within the Santum Santorum in Kamar-Taj

SPACE STONE Abilities: Creates portals Location: With Loki (not for long)

Image from Filmic Box via YouTube.com

POWER STONE Abilities: Blows stuff up

Location: With the Nova Corps on Xandar (not for long)

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LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

Infinity stones crash course: their history, abilities Dominic Rizzi Incoming Laker Review Editor laker@oswegonian.com Going into “The Avengers: Infinity War,” a common recurring trend on the internet has been the famous “Where is the Soul Stone” meme. This refers to the sixth Infinity Stone, which has been absent from the Infinity gems that have popped up on screen so far in the vast and constantly expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe. These stones are going to play a major part in the upcoming gigantic team-up movie, but the questions still remain on a lot of people’s minds: What exactly are the Infinity Stones, why are they so important to Thanos’ grand plan and, most importantly, why should audiences care so much about them? To start at the beginning, the Infinity Stones were originally conceived, like most of everything else Marvel related, by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in the 1960s. They were designed as outlets of major sources of power to be utilized by the mad titan Thanos in his ultimate quest to court death, as that had been his modus operandi since the beginning, to kill off as much of the universe as possible in order to appease the personification of the Grim Reaper. The Reaper has notably taken on many different forms within the Marvel universe, most familiar as the goddess of death, Hela, played recently by Cate Blanchett in “Thor: Ragnarok.” There are six stones, each a different color, representing a different power aspect: time, soul, reality, power, space and mind. These six entities have translated over to the film side, as they have been popping up within the Marvel Cinematic Universe ever since Phase I. Although, they were not referred to by their name until 2014 in the first “Guardians of the Galaxy,” when The Collector (Benicio Del Toro, “Sicario”) explained the origin of the stone, which was the subject of most of the film. The Space Stone, the blue

stone and the first Infinity Stone seen on screen in the MCU, was first introduced in a post-credits scene at the end of the first “Thor,” in which Dr. Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard, “The Avengers: Age of Ultron”), was briefed by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson, “The Hitman’s Bodyguard”). The stone, which was contained in cube form and known as the Tesseract, was explored further in both “Captain America: The First Avenger,” and “The Avengers,” where it was the subject of the villain’s plans. It was first used by the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving, “Hacksaw Ridge”) in the former to power all of Hydra’s weaponry and then by Loki (Tom Hiddleston, “Thor: Ragnarok”) to open the infamous sky portal that led to the Chitauri invasion of New York City at the end of the latter. Afterwards, it was imprisoned once again in Asgard’s vaults, at least until Loki stole it again at the end of “Ragnarok.” Then, there is the Reality Stone, which has a much shorter history of events. The red stone posed undercover as the Aether, a mythical substance that was used by Malekith the Accursed (Christopher Eccleston, “The Leftovers”) and the Dark Elves to cover the universe in darkness until they were stopped by Odin’s (Anthony Hopkins, “Thor: Ragnarok”) father. Afterwards, it was hidden in an interdimensional portal for thousands of years until it was found and inhibited by Jane Foster (Natalie Portman, “Annihilation”) in “Thor: the Dark World,” and then it was removed from her by Odin. After the battle and defeat of the Dark Elves, it was given over to the Collector by Lady Sif (Jaime Alexander) and Volstagg (Ray Stevenson), where it has remained ever since. The Power Stone is the purple stone, which as many fans would know was the entire subject of the first “Guardians of the Galaxy” movie. This one does not need as much of an explanation, as the first “Guardians” is one of the more popular, well-known and memorable entries within the MCU.

Image from Marvel Entertainment via YouTube.com The Infinity Stones are what the first 10 years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been revolving around.

If people remember, it was stashed “safely” within the vaults at the Nova Corps. The world “safely” is used in quotes because it is very apparent that the entire Nova Corps is no match for Thanos, who appears to have that stone first in all of the press footage for “Infinity War.” The Mind Stone, the yellow stone, is another one that has had a lot happen to it since its introduction. Despite the fact that it has been around as long as the Space Stone, as it was contained within Loki’s infamous mind control scepter in the first “Avengers,” it was not actually revealed to be an Infinity Stone until the sequel. There, it was revealed it could do a lot more than control people’s minds. It was first manipulated by Hydra into giving powers to several sets of people, most notably the twins Pietro (Aaron Taylor-Johnson, “Nocturnal Animals”) and Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen, “Ingrid Goes West”), also known as Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. It was also used to give rise to the Vision (Paul Bettany, “Captain America:

Civil War”) and has remained suckered into his forehead ever since, leading fans to speculate that he will die in the upcoming “Infinity War.” The Time Stone, the green, final stone that has been seen on screen, was last seen in “Doctor Strange,” contained within the Eye of Agamotto and used by Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) in order to stop the interdimensional demon Dormammu (Cumberbatch) from invading Earth. After this, it was placed back inside the Sanctum Sanctorum in Nepal when Strange took up residence in New York and has remained there ever since. That was a brief recap of what the Infinity Stones are

and where they are. Granted, none of those locations really matter, since Thanos is going to destroy god-onlyknows how many locations throughout space in order to get to them, and the coming attractions show him definitely getting his hands on at least two, the Power and Space Stones. As for the remaining stone, the golden Soul Stone, there have been many theories as to where it is, most likely that the stone is in Wakanda, Black Panther’s country. All will be discovered, however, when the final war for the Stones begins in “The Avengers: Infinity War,” which will be released in one week on April 27.

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LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 20, 2018

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Marvel has problems trusting its writers, directors Dominick J. Lioto Laker Review Editor dlioto@oswegonian.com People often forget that Jon Favreau laid out the groundwork for the Marvel Cinematic Universe with 2008's “Iron Man.” It is a great movie with a lot of heart, swagger and humor that is just as entertaining 10 years later. It feels like an actual movie, which is a weird statement to make. There is a real sense of filmmaking in both “Iron Man” and “The Incredible Hulk,” which came out the same year. Aesthetically speaking, they are gorgeous films, and more so than most Marvel movies that came afterward, Favreau and “Hulk” director Louis Leterrier capture real human emotion in their respective films despite the extraordinary situations of a superhero film. To explain, Favreau started filming “Iron Man” before a script was even finished. But with a vision, Robert Downey Jr. in a nearperfect role for him, a talented cast and crew, and what seemed like trust from Marvel, a great film was crafted. It is unfortunate Marvel has not done this more often. Maybe Marvel Studios rushed a little bit to get its first movie in a planned universe out in the world. These comics have been around for decades, and it is a shame nobody has made them work on film yet. Marvel lucked out with the result of “Iron Man,” but its movie-

makers should have trusted Leterrier like they did with Favreau. Leterrier was working closely with acclaimed dramatic actor Ed Norton on “The Incredible Hulk.” Norton starred as Bruce Banner, but, he was heavily involved on the production side of the film. Like “Iron Man,” he wanted to portray true humanistic internal struggles, and Hulk is the perfect monster to play with that theme. He had a longer cut of the film with flashbacks to Hulk’s origin, while the studio preferred a shorter version. Marvel won every creative battle on this project, which in turn caused Norton to barely promote the film after the fact. “The Incredible Hulk” is one of the wasted opportunities in the MCU thus far. It is shameful to see potential greatness halted by the studio, even though the final product is still wildly underrated. But after those first two Marvel Studios movies, they felt more and more like products, finely polished and safe without much risk or reward, until a lot further down the road. The MCU’s third entry in 2010 was “Iron Man 2” with returning director Jon Favreau, but the final product felt a lot like “The Incredible Hulk” in that there were glimpses of greatness when the studio was not in the way. “Iron Man 2” was also missing that true film aesthetic, as Marvel went digital at that point. Favreau has stated that he felt micromanaged on this project and the studio forced more of “The Avengers” setup, which cut back on developing

the villain, Whiplash, another potentially great performance from Mickey Rourke. Favreau passed on directing “The Avengers” and “Iron Man 3.” He still reprised his role as Happy Hogan, Stark’s driver, and produced some of the projects but never got behind the lens for one again. From 2009 to 2012, there are arguably no good Marvel movies, pre- or post-“The Avengers.” They range from “absolute garbage” to “OK” but there are no completely “good” ones. They were overly polished, predictable, stale and simply not compelling. Marvel struck gold with the Russo brothers directing the Captain America sequel, “The Winter Soldier,” and James Gunn’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” in 2014. That sense of vision and originality was back. Both were bold and wonderful in their own unique ways, especially Gunn’s “Guardians.” The blend of great music, flashy visuals and idiosyncratic characters felt totally foreign to the Marvel Universe. The “Guardians” movies in particular are unlike the rest of the universe with the theme of accepting outsiders and finding one’s own group. There is something very special and touching about that. “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” is even more personal. It is a story about fathers and sons and what family truly means. Sure, there ends up being a big villain battle at the end, but Gunn’s style and flashes of an acid trip make his vi-

sion for his portion of the MCU the most creative. “Captain America: Civil War,” “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” “Thor: Ragnarok” and “Black Panther” continue this tradition. But not every MCU film since the 2014 comeback has been perfect. “Doctor Strange” had amazing visuals but felt like a fantasy version of “Iron Man” throughout its generic qualities. “Age of Ultron” did not advance “The Avengers” like a sequel should have, but, the biggest missed opportunity from Marvel is when it lost Edgar Wright. Wright was excited to make “Ant-Man” for Marvel. He was going to go the same route as James Gunn and break the mold. Even though Wright wanted to make a Marvel movie, Marvel did not want to make a Wright movie. Wright is one of the most in-

novative, witty, fascinating creators working today. “Shaun of the Dead,” a romantic comedy masquerading as a zombie film, was his first film. Everything that came afterwards advanced him as a writer and visual director. Wright always tries to top his last project, and honestly, he usually does. Because “AntMan” fell through, Wright was I able to make “Baby Driver,” and as great as it was, “Ant-Man” would have been mind-bending with Wright behind the lens. Marvel needs more Edgar Wrights working for it. Let the director have a unique vision and carry it out. Even if it does not fit into Marvel’s overall projection, let the individual projects stand as their own works of art other than being forced into being a corporate product.

Image from 20th Marvel Entertainment via YouTube.com Wright's scrapped "Ant-Man" film could have been the most unique in the MCU.

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