The Oswegonian 4-26-19

Look Inside: A6 SA election bylaws change

Friday, April 26, 2019 VOLUME LXXXIV ISSUE IX SINCE 1935 www.oswegonian.com

Marketing office explores branding possibilities Alexander Gault-Plate Managing Editor aplate@oswegonian.com Oswego State has begun to take a look at its branding and is beginning a process to create a new, more curated public image.

Wayne Westervelt and the college marketing office recently sent out a questionnaire to the campus community via the OswegoToday bulletin, which can be found online at Oswego.edu/brand, that asks respondents about how they define and what they feel about the college.

Westervelt said that the questions are specifically open-ended, short answer rather than multiple choice to ensure that there is no bias in the results.

“It’s so important to make it about all of us, instead, for example, the marketing office and my team just going in and building a brand on our own,” Westervelt said.

“If we did it that way, in the end, it would just be my brand or my team’s brand.”

Westervelt said that the push

for a cohesive brand comes, in part, from reported disunity among the college’s different departments and public relations projects. Currently, the college is officially referred to as SUNY Oswego, yet some apparel and other marketing materials refer to it as Oswego State or Oswego State University.

Westervelt said that the time is right for a branding push, as Oswego has worked hard to update itself and keep the college dynamic and competitive.

“There’s a lot of pride in how Oswego has elevated itself in recent years,” Westervelt said.

He said that Oswego is now a leader in the SUNY system in capital improvement, spending millions to upgrade campus facilities in recent years, with current plans in the works for renovations in Hewitt Hall and Funnelle Hall.

Westervelt said that Oswego State is working toward becoming a premier destination for students and has already progressed down that road fairly far.

See FIRST, A4

SA president announced Strachan steps up to position after election investigation

Kassadee Paulo News Editor kpaulo@oswegonian.com After weeks of uncertainty regarding Oswego State’s next Student Association president, current Vice President Edward Kelly announced April 17 that Takeena Strachan, director of civic engagement and legislative affairs, will be sworn in as president in May. “I’m really confident that it’s going to be a good upcoming year,” Strachan said. “I’m really excited to ensure there’s progress being made on campus overall.”

Kelly emailed the student body the results of the presidential election investigation by the SA Supreme Court.

Following a grievance filed against the presidential election for campaign violations, the court did not validate the results of who won the election. The original results of the election have still not been released to the student body.

See STRACHAN, A5

Photo provided by Takeena Strachan Takeena Strachan will be Oswego State Student Association’s president next year.

Oswego State discusses climate change Panel of five professors share perspectives, solutions Kassadee Paulo News Editor kpaulo@oswegonian.com

CONTENT

Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian The current logo of the college includes an illustration of the Sheldon clocktower.

Calendar...................... A3 Crossword................... C6 Contact Info................ A2 Laker Review.............. C1 News............................. A1 Opinion........................ B5 Sports........................... B1 Sudoku......................... C6

A panel of five Oswego State professors from various departments discussed the effects of climate change April 24 as part of “Climate Change: A Wider Lens,” one of the events throughout Earth Week on campus.

The Campus Environment Advisory Council worked with the Sustainability Office to gather these professors to talk about how climate change is seen not only through a scientific lens but also through many aspects that contribute to society and the world.

Moderated by creative writing and English professor Leigh Wilson, the panelists included global and international studies associate professor Lisa Glidden, meteorology assistant professor Michael

Kassadee Paulo | The Oswegonian Leigh Wilson moderates the discussion panel about the effects of climate change.

Veres, political science assistant professor Allison Rank, philosophy assistant professor Mark Zelcer and economics professor Elizabeth Schmitt.

Wilson began the discussion with an anecdote from her childhood.

See COLLEGE, A4

Sports

Opinion

Laker Review

Oswegonian.com

SHATTUCK SHATTERS

DRUG COMPLICATIONS

FINAL ASSEMBLY

EARTH DAY

B1

Photo provided by Casey Stone

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Image from Flickr

C4

Image from Marvel Entertainment via Youtube

Web

Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian

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NEWS

QUOTE OF THE WEEK That is connecting, sharing knowledge, adding up what we know and storing it up so we can act upon it and go out and pay it forward to the future.”

THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

- Leigh Wilson, from A4

A3

Campus police start traffic safety week

Special UP patrols on lookout for unbuckled seatbelts Tomas Rodriguez Contributing Writer news@oswegonian.com The University Police Department is participating in an intensive campaign to ensure that students and faculty buckle up during their commutes. The program has been a success for the past 12 years.

Police are looking for violations on campus, though the traffic stops may be made off campus.

As part of the nationwide Buckle-Up Day And Night campaign, University Police will have special patrols out looking for motorists who are not wearing their seatbelts.

People not wearing a seatbelt are 30 times more likely to be ejected from a vehicle. Assistant University Police Chief Kevin Velzy has been involved with University Police for 30 years.

“Because we are a police department on a college campus, the majority of our drivers are of college age. We do have some older people, older drivers, that are employees or some people just passing through campus,” Velzy said.

According to the New York State University Police Department, motor vehicle accidents are the number-one cause of death for those up to 54 years old in the U.S. It has been proven by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that just wearing a seatbelt

“Arcon” Gaming Convention, 5 p.m., Friday to 6:30 p.m., Sunday at Marano Campus Center, Chu Atrium

Oswego Softball vs. SUNY Cortland, noon and 2 p.m., Saturday at Laker Softball Field Tomas Rodriguez l The Oswegonian University Police has special seatbelt enforcement patrols for national traffic safety program.

reduces the risk of death or injury by 50%. As a matter of fact, airbags are not a substitute for seatbelts.

More than half of teenagers ages 13 to 19 and adults ages 20 to 44 who died in crashes in 2015 were unrestrained at the time of the crash, according to the CDC. Men are more likely than women to be unbuckled, according to the CDC. “The crashes have dropped. Our compliance rate, what they also look for in these grant programs, has gone way up,” Velzy said.

“When we first started our compliance, rate was about 75%, which means 75% of the people that are

required to wear a seatbelt in the front seat of a vehicle. Seventyfive percent of them were, and 25% were not.”

The compliance rate on campus currently lies at 93%.

A ticket for unrestrained motorists is $50 with no points initially added to the license, whereas distracted driving is worth five points on the license in addition to a fine between $50 and $200.

According to the NYSUPD, unrestrained motorists involved in a crash are almost four times as likely to suffer a traumatic brain injury compared to those wearing a seatbelt.

Oswego Baseball vs. SUNY Fredonia, noon and 3 p.m., Saturday at Laker Baseball Field

Oswego Men’s Lacrosse vs. SUNY Oneonta, 1 p.m., Saturday at Laker Turf Stadium

Planetarium Show: History of Telescopes, 7 p.m., Sunday in Shineman Center, Room 223

Yards for Yeardley, 10 a.m., Monday on Marano Campus Center Lawn

2nd Annual Casino Night, 7 p.m., Monday in Tyler Hall Lobby

Panel Discussion on Virtual Reality, 5 p.m., Wednesday in Marano Campus Center, Room 225

“Writers Speak” Seth Wallace on Upstate Journalism, 12:45 p.m., Thursday in Marano Campus Center, Room 114

The Oswego Women’s Center presented its appeal for its pending 2019-2020 budget from the Student Association activities fund.

According to the Women’s Center, its 2018-2019 budget from SA was around $8,000 while the new budget for next academic year is about $5,000.

The club requested an additional $4,000 to its budget as it said their organization was growing and needed the funds to sustain its events.

The Women’s Center hosts two events like the Women’s March and dinners on campus where students can network professionally and celebrate women in leadership roles on campus.

Student Association Director of FinanceMirandaKryskowpresented her 2019-2020 SA budget along with

her campus advisors Mike Flaherty, general manager of Auxiliary Services, and Daniel Roberts, director of Campus Life.

The budget comes after a $200,000 deficit for several years. SA has a budget of about $1.8 million, meaning SA over-funded student activities by around 10% every year since about 2014.

SA had about $824,000 reserved in 2014, but only around $313,000 will remain by the end of this academic year and will overdraft by over $100,000 come summer.

The new budget is a significant departure to how SA allocated funds in recent years. Student organizations submitted their budgets with justifications for all expenses, as opposed to receiving money based on their past budgets. Kryskow and her budget team investigated the costs and determined which expenses could be approved.

This process saw clubs receive substantially less SA funding than previous years but brought the deficit from $200,000 annually to about $60,000 next year, Kryskow said.

Organizations can appeal their budgets, but in light of SA’s finances and the extensive budgetary vetting process, SA will be hesitant to grant them and clubs will have to raise their own funds.

The IMAGE Step Team contingency request to reimburse the cost of a competition at Stony Brook University on April 13 was amended and passed.

The bill was amended from $447.44 to $120 to reflect fundraising efforts taken by IMAGE. The request was to cover transportation costs, including the rental of two vans and the fuel and toll fees required for the trip.

The Student Association Programming Board, which runs events on campus, notably Ozfest and smaller weekly events like trivia nights, requested an increase to its budget next year.

SAPB submitted a budget for around $300,000 but was approved for about $205,000.

As Ozfest represents $220,000 of its budget, SAPB asked Student As-

sociation to increase its budget to at least $238,000 to preserve Ozfest and some campus programs. SAPB said these events allow students to remember college as more than just classes. This new budget would mean the end of Ozfest, as concerts require a certain level of buyingpower to attract artists that students want to see.

After debate, citing the merit of Ozfest, SA narrowly passed an amendment to the budget to increase SAPB funding to around $238,000. While amended, the budget as a whole has not been passed and may be amended further.

Oswego Club Baseball requested $676.65 from the contingency budget for end-of-season costs.

According to the club, the team is likely to make playoffs for the first time, after five games this weekend.

The additional funding would cover field and hotel costs by the close of their season.

This will be the final contingency funding request of the year.

A4 NEWS College departments analyze environment First phase of program Panelists of different disciplines describe global future looks at name recognition THE OSWEGONIAN

FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

OSWEGO from COVER

She said she would join her grandmother in attending quilting bees with strong, stubborn and opinionated older women. Together, this community of women created beautiful quilts for charity. She tied this story in to the present need for the community to come together to come up with solutions for climate change.

“This, right here, all of us, is our community doing what it’s supposed to be doing,” Wilson said. “That is connecting, sharing knowledge, adding up what we know and storing it up so we can act upon it and go out and pay it forward to the future.”

Glidden discussed how scientific literacy contributes to the issue of finding a good solution to climate change factors. She said, among her years instructing students, she noticed many of them have had grand ideas but did not think about the reality of achieving those goals.

“On my optimistic side, I know we can reshape the world,” Glidden said. “In reality, we are all going to have to face these impacts.”

Glidden gave examples of how the world is already experiencing climate change, including cities in Florida preparing for an influx of people from the Caribbean and southern Florida seeking refuge because those areas will become so hot, they will be dangerously uninhabitable.

“Even places like [Oswego], where the price of houses is quite low and the price of land is quite low, will begin to feel the pressure because we have the fresh drinking water right here in our backyard,” Glidden said.

Veres led the audience through the physical scientific evidence of climate change through the average global temperatures. He said the last five years have experienced the highest temperatures since 1880. He also said the last time the level of atmospheric carbon dioxide has been this high was 3 million years ago.

“Over the last decade or two, warming has actually been about .2 degrees Celsius per decade,” Veres

said. “That may not sound like much, but in the context of global warming, that’s pretty significant.”

Among the effects of climate change are the expansion of deserts and sudden floods due to changes in precipitation patterns.

He said it will be possible to have both droughts and floods in one location. Other effects of global warming are an increase in sea levels, heat waves, depletion of coral and competition between natural and invasive species.

“The longer we wait, the more extreme changes that we’ll need to make,” Veres said. “The next decade itself is going to be very crucial.”

Rank talked about how political science plays as a factor in climate change. She used three concepts from her field: framing, the Overton window and standards for judicial action. Framing focuses on how an issue is constructed, including the language used and its image. She said using the term “global warming” and the image of the “starving polar bear on the melting ice caps” did not work in politics. Now, it is shifting to being linked to the aftermath of natural disasters.

“The Overton window refers to the range of ideas that are considered reasonably up for political debate by political actors,” Rank said.

She said politicians seeking office try to stay within that window and advocates try to push that window to make their ideas more standard. In regards to judicial action, Rank said there have been court cases questioning atmospheric trust litigation and why the government does not consider the atmosphere a public resource that needs to be protected.

From a humanities take, Zelcer said the relationship between people from other professions and philosophers include an exchange of information and then creating further questions based on the data.

“We have a whole lot of ways we can address the problem, but what we know is that each solution has a cost,” Zelcer said. “We’re going to have to confront a whole lot of philosophical issues.”

He also discussed risk assessment of the possible solutions to

climate change and the questions of how to assess it. He said we do not know exactly what will happen or when because Earth is so complicated, so it is difficult to assess that risk. Another philosophical question he discussed was who exactly will be paying for or sacrificing to solve the problem of climate change.

“The questions of global justice come to the front when we try to ask ourselves who should be sacrificing,” Zelcer said. “What should we be sacrificing? How much of it should we be sacrificing? How do we convince people that it’s worth sacrificing for other people?”

Schmitt discussed the difficulty of finding a good solution to climate change from an economics point of view. She said industrialization allowed for enormous benefits for society because it helped to increase the quality of life but at the cost of the environment.

Schmitt explained how everything has a cost but not everyone bears it equally. She said humans often make bad decisions because they do not have to deal with the consequences right away.

“We don’t always make good choices when the consequences are far away,” Schmitt said. “As scientists make a very compelling and frightening case, the distance of the consequences from our decisions are causing the problem.”

Schmitt said there need to be incentives for people to actively work together to begin fixing the problem. A solution she discussed was the carbon tax to force people to pay for the cost they push onto others to bear. She said this would influence people to stop negative behavior toward the environment.

She also proposed positive incentives such as solar panel rebates.

The panel discussion then moved into Q&A where community members asked them to further discuss their perspectives on climate change and the role humans play in it. The discussion was one of the various events on campus on the topic of the environment, climate change and sustainability to celebrate Earth Week, an extension of Earth Day, April 22.

Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian

MARKETING from COVER He spoke about how recent graduates have reported that interviewers have recognized the Oswego name, and it has helped them get a job.

Westervelt said the branding program will be broken into three distinct phases, and they are currently in the discovery phase. In this phase, the school is looking for data on how people feel about Oswego State and what they associate with it.

The second phase, coming over the summer months, will be when Westervelt and his team collate responses, look at current branding strategies used by various campus departments and develop a report about what is being done so far and how effective it is.

The final phase, which Westervelt says will come in the

fall, will be when the final branding guidelines will be drafted, different creative and visual elements will be implemented and a concrete program will be put into place.

Westervelt said that the changes the campus will see cannot be predetermined until after the end of the second phase, when all the information is transformed into a readable report. Westervelt stressed the point that the brand extends beyond a mascot or a logo, into the specific things that the college highlights in their marketing materials and how the college presents itself in the wider market.

For now, Westervelt is asking students, faculty, staff and alumni to fill out the brand exploration initiative questionnaire on the Oswego website to give his office more data to understand how Oswego State is perceived by those who interact with it.

Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian Oswego State is asking students their opinions on the current branding and logo of the school.

A5 NEWS Oswego County faces climate change Strachan to focus on agenda, Report assesses possible season, precipitation changes issues next year during SA THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

Nick Ketter Contributing Writer news@oswegonian.com Data from last year’s Fourth National Climate Assessment revealed Oswego County could be greatly affected by climate change over the next century.

The assessment predicted that the northeastern United States will experience differences in the lengths of the winter and summer seasons and more intense, less frequent precipitation.

Oswego State assistant professor of climatology Michael Veres explained that Oswego may already be experiencing gradual climate change.

“Global temperatures have been frequently setting records over the past two or three decades, and while it has not been as consistent, the four warmest years in New York since 1895 have been in the past two decades,” Veres said in an email. “Eight of the nine warmest years in that period have been since 1990.”

Veres predicts that Oswego is likely to see more notable effects of climate change in the mid-century, but he also suggested that Oswego should be preparing for these future climate change events.

“While the shorter winter might have some positive impacts on city budgets, the overall impacts are likely to be negative,” Veres said.

According to Veres, Oswego’s infrastructure and economy could be at risk due to climate change events. Heavier rainfall and warm-

er weather for longer periods could lead to frequent flooding, increased runoff and stress on native species in the ecosystem.

WTOP-10 meteorologist Liam Healy drew similar conclusions from the Fourth National Climate Assessment. Healy said climate change in the area over time will result in changing time frames for seasons and less frequent but more intense precipitation.

Healy said lakeshore flooding is already a problem in the area. Intense precipitation and constant wind could bring severe flooding, and flood damage could hurt the town’s infrastructure and roads.

“If you start to see more frequent changes in temperature from warm to cold, it can destroy the roads,” Healy said. “This could result in the town having to put more and more money into fixing the roads.”

Veres said Oswego should prepare for these future events.

Upgrading and investing in infrastructure to better accommodate severe weather events would be beneficial to the town, he said.

“Policies should be put in place to assist young, elderly and disadvantaged residents in preparing for warmer temperatures and extreme heat events,” Veres said.

In response to the climate change data, Oswego State has taken many steps in recent years to become more environmentally conscious.

“Climate change is a continual conversation on our campus, driven by our approach to sustainability,” said Oswego State Chief

Communication Officer Wayne Westervelt in an email.

Westervelt said climate change is important to Oswego state. He listed events, policies and projects that the campus participated in, including the bike and bus share program, LakerPrint, installing electric car stations and building the Richard S. Shineman Center for Science.

The Shineman Center has many environmentally friendly features, according to Westervelt.

The building includes state-of-the art foam insulation and curtainwall construction that helps seal the building, innovative windows and shades that optimize daylight and energy savings and many more green features.

“President Deborah F. Stanley committed our campus to being carbon neutral in 2007 when we became one of the first signatory members of the American College and Universities President’s Climate Commitment and created one of the first and most ambitious Sustainability Offices in the SUNY system,” Westervelt said.

Oswego State is consistently recognized by “The Princeton Review” for its environmentally responsible practices.

“One hundred percent of all buildings constructed on the SUNY Oswego campus have been and are now built to create healthy and efficient space since the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standard was recognized as a global symbol of sustainability achievement,” Westervelt said.

SA from COVER “Due to this investigation, the results were unable to be validated until the investigation had been concluded,” Kelly said in the email. “The investigation has now concluded, and as a result, both candidates [Baldwin Lawson and Omar van Reenen] have rescinded their candidacy for president.”

According to Chief Justice Brian Monahan, there will be no more steps in the investigation of the grievance that was filed.

“There was no grievance hearing,” Monahan said. “The Supreme Court and all parties involved had pre-hearing meetings.”

Current President Omar van Reenen announced earlier in the month that he stepped down from running for president when the grievance against the presidential election was filed. Lawson refused to comment.

“I believe the court carried out the process fairly and investigated their appeals with the candidates involved thoroughly,” van Reenen said. “I believe it’s not the turnout the students wanted nor the mission of my campaign, yet I will remain steadfastly committed to completing both the promises of my 2018 and 2019 campaigns - to ensure we push our campus forward.” van Reenen will continue the rest of his term and carry out the remainder of goals on his Laker Justice Agenda.

These include extending library hours, providing free Centro services for the summer and winter, removing plastic cups, installing menstrual products, expanding gender-neutral bathrooms and signage, better Blue-route services, food waste recovery for meal provision for off-campus students, codifying the Equal Pay For Equal Play movement into SA law, flying solidarity flags, a new SA website and developing an SA financial and departmental strategic plan.

“I truly hope SA continues to build off the platform of standing up for not just diversity on our campus, but inclusivity of Lakers from all backgrounds,” van Reenen said.

Strachan ran unopposed for vice president and, due to SA’s bylaws, was next in the line of succession. She said she has a

few people in mind to choose to be vice president and will make a decision in time for the next wave of SA leaders to take over their new positions. Strachan said she is looking for someone who is understanding of all student opinions and can represent those opinions even if it does not match their own.

“I am more than overjoyed and ecstatic that Director Strachan will become madam president and the first black woman president of SUNY Oswego SA,” van Reenen said.

“Director Strachan has worked hard with her fellow Cabinet members to fulfill our ‘Laker Justice Agenda’ and push for an inclusive campus that advocate for issues at the heart of our Lakers.”

Since learning she would be president rather than vice president, Strachan has revised her list of goals to accomplish in SA next year. She said she has begun formulating an agenda of issues to focus on.

Among these goals, Strachan said she wants to keep their athletics liaison, add a Greek life liaison, extend voter registration to understanding the process more, have student organization evaluations, review the Centro transportation contract, expand GET Food options and revamp SA social media pages.

An issue SA faced this year was its low number of senators in comparison to years past. In order to meet quorum and begin a meeting, it is necessary for 12 senators to be in attendance, and there have been occasions this year when SA could not meet because there were not enough senators.

To combat this issue, Strachan said she will review how SA is advertised to students.

“A lot of students join really because they want to be the voice of students,” Strachan said. “Let’s start meeting with more clubs, more hall councils, because how I joined Student Association was through my hall council to be a liaison for that.”

She said she also wants to reach out to transfer students, commuters, off-campus and nontraditional students.

“It’s difficult for us to say we represent all these students when we are really only using a handful of students on campus,” Strachan said.

Shea McCarthy | The Oswegonian

Alexander Gault-Plate | The Oswegonian The Student Association president’s office will be taken over by Takeena Strachan next year.

NEWS A6 Oswego state showcases Student Association examines rules projects in sustainability Senators update election bylaws, voting for modern day THE OSWEGONIAN

FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

Savannah Norton Contributing Writer news@oswegonian.com Oswego State students and faculty are contributing to sustainability initiatives on campus with new projects and campaigns.

The Office of Sustainability runs many campaigns to help reduce the campus’s carbon footprint. According to Sustainability Planning Coordinator Jamie Adams, sustainability is about more than just the environment.

“Sustainability goes beyond environmentalism,” Adams said.

“We’re really focusing on things like the economy and social justice and how our consumption specifically here in America has impacted our environment in a broader scope.”

The office will be promoting some of its current projects at this year’s Earth Week, beginning on Monday, April 22 until Friday, April 26 at Marano Campus Center, according to Adams. The office will be tabling all week to inform students of programs such as BikeShare and BusShare, as well as letting the campus community know the results of reduction through executing such programs.

There will also be a panel of faculty members across the curriculum discussing potential solutions to climate change and the impact we have had on the environment, Adams said. A new water reduction project that a student has been working on will be displayed on the last day of the event. For his project, Director of Sustainability for the Student Association Lucas Grove has been using 3D printers to turn plastic cups into water faucet aerators.

“We take the plastic cup, woodchip it down into less than 5 millimeters on any sides that then goes down into a filastruder,” Grove explained. “The filastruder basically melts it and pushes it out a small nozzle, which will then make a long string, and that string is then used in 3D printing.”

Grove’s interest in 3D printing combined with his knowledge of plastic from other sustainability efforts led to his idea for the project. The faucet aerators made from the 3D printer will be given out during Earth Week, Grove said.

“We are 8,000 students, both on campus and off campus,” Grove said.

“If we all have a sustainability mindset, then it will push us out into the world to be more sustainable.”

Another recent sustainability initiative is the “Leave Your Mark” campaign, a recycling program for writing utensils started by Math Specialist for the Office of Learning Services Kate Spector. While teaching math classes and working in the tutoring center, Spector noticed that she was going through a lot of dry erase markers from writing on the whiteboard and wanted to find a way to recycle them.

Spector said she initially placed bins for recycling writing utensils in the tutoring center and the main office of the math department, and due to their success, she wanted to expand the recycling program campus wide.

“I wanted to offer this opportunity to the students to be able to be responsible about their use with these markers,” Spector said.

As a result, the campus part-

nered with Terracycle, a company that recycles the “non-recyclable,” according to its website.

Spector then collaborated with Daniel Tryon and his students in his manufacturing systems technology class to make the recycling boxes. The students chose to use wood from the old bleachers in the Swetman Gym to make the 200 recycling boxes and came up with the name for the campaign, according to Spector.

“The team that worked on this spent a long time thinking not just how to build the box or what to build it out of, but they spent a significant amount of time thinking about how to make this box, so it would really get used and so it would be obvious what it’s for,” Spector said. “They really did a great job. I’m really impressed by their work.”

The boxes can be found in classrooms throughout all academic buildings on campus, along with a large central recycling bin in Marano Campus Center, according to Spector.

For students that are interested in getting involved in sustainability, there are many opportunities to, according to Assistant Director of Sustainability for the Student Association Ceseley Mulligan.

Students can go into the Office of Sustainability at 126A Hewitt Union and get involved in current projects, visit the office’s tables at Marano Campus Center on Tuesdays or download the Fill it Forward app.

The campus partnered with Cupanion to participate in using the Fill it Forward app, which lets users track how many plastic bottles they are saving from going into a landfill by using reusable bottles instead, according to Mulligan. Students can go into the office to get a free reusable bottle that is scannable on the app, and users would scan their bottle every time they refill it.

“It tracks how much as a campus we’re doing for the earth, how much we’re saving from being in a landfill or lake,” Mulligan said.

Mulligan is currently working to form a Oswego State campus chapter of the Food Recovery Network. The Food Recovery Network is a not-for-profit organization started by students. “[It] works with a food needypartner such as Salvation Army, food pantries and soup kitchens in the local communities and takes food that would otherwise be thrown out by the dining halls and donates it to those food-needy partners so that it can be distributed throughout the community,” Mulligan said.

Mulligan has been working toward this goal since Earth Day of last year, but she is still not discouraged.

“As students, our voice is so powerful. Being in leadership positions showed me how powerful our voices are,” Mulligan said.

Mulligan urged students to get involved in sustainability efforts on campus.

“I would like students to learn that even the smallest things they can do make a huge impact, especially when it catches on and more than one person is doing that small thing, and we’re just thinking about ways that we can be more environmentally conscious all the time,” Mulligan said.

Maria Pericozzi | The Oswegonian Trash and recycling cans around the Oswego State campus separate what truly cannot be recycled.

Colin Hawkins Asst. News Editor chawkins@oswegonian.com Oswego State Student Association passed several changes to its bylaws April 16, with many pertaining to how SA will handle elections in the future.

While the SA elections for president and vice president were held in early March, the election results were not announced until April 17 amid investigations by the Student Association Supreme Court after receiving complaints about campaign violations by candidates, according to an email sent out by Edward Kelly, current SA vice president.

The bylaw changes passed on April 16 were written and submitted by Matthew O’Donnell, an SA senator representing Johnson Hall and chair of the Rules and Judiciary committee. O’Donnell said it was time to update the election rules, as many have not been changed since SA was founded.

“These bylaws, the brunt of them were made in the late ’60s early ’70s,” O’Donnell said. “We need to update them because some things just don’t work anymore.”

Kelly agreed the update was needed to reflect the current needs of students.

“It’s good to review your bylaws every few years just to ensure you’re up to date,” Kelly said. “If we operate on things from the ’60s and ’70s, are they still relevant to our campus? We were finding the policies we were operating under were not.”

The changes included a bill altering the definition of a polling site to include personal electronic devices as distinct polling places, as many students vote online by LakerLife instead of the designated voting areas provided

by SA. Previous SA election rules required candidates to remove all campaign material from areas within 20 feet of polling sites the day before and during the election. It included personal electronic devices as polling sites.

“There was a need [to review the rules]. In observing the past election, if there were certain things that, for example, if there were any posters that were left up, somebody could be in violation because anybody’s polling site is their phone,” Kelly said.

This means a candidate could violate election rules inadvertently due to the widespread use of personal electronics, making nearly every campaign poster on campus the responsibility of the candidate to remove in a short time period.

“It’s impossible for someone to take down posters all around campus in one night,” O’Donnell

Kassadee Paulo | The Oswegonian Oswego State Student Association senators pass resolutions for changes to be made on campus.

said. “There should be electronic polling sites that you do on your phone, and there can be physical polling sites.”

O’Donnell submitted a bill, which passed, outlining how SA would operate these physical polling sites. At least one site would be offered and would be operated by two senators that were not candidates to ensure fairness.

According to O’Donnell, only about 1,100 out of about 8,000 students voted in the 2018 election, and changing how voting is done may get more students involved in the process.

“I think we can get these numbers up,” O’Donnell said.

Another change was to restrict the use of official SA email addresses for campaign purposes.

As the use of an official email system would be unfair to candidates challenging a sitting executive, only personal email accounts can be used for campaign purposes.

O’Donnell said he plans to submit another election bylaw change relating to social media posts.

With current rules, social media posts could be treated as campaign material and would have to be removed before the election, which may not possible if the candidate did not make the post.

“We already entered [the age of social media], and we need to adjust our bylaws,” O’Donnell said.

“One of the big problems we have that my community has brought up to me is when people are post-

ing [campaign material] when polling has already started. Under our current bylaws, we have to penalize the candidate.”

Under current rules, candidates that violate campaign rules may face disqualification from the election.

“I think it’s more fair,” said Sarah Nashak, a senior at Oswego State. “If you’re not running, why does it matter? You’re just supporting a friend, so it’s fair to leave it up.”

Raising awareness for the election was also a positive move, Nashak said.

“As a student, I don’t really know what goes on unless I’m actively involved in it,” Nashak said.

“I think seeing those posts will actually make me want to go vote.”

SA taking social media into account is important for Kenny D’Amico, an Oswego State junior, but he said he worries whether students could be too easily impacted by social media posts.

“A lot of people don’t know what’s going on ... they’ll see one post [and be influenced],” D’Amico said.

Another student, junior Daniel Frawley, agrees with updating the election bylaws.

“The candidate having to police social media and have it on themselves to take care of that kind of thing is unrealistic,” he said. “If it’s something the candidate did not post themselves, I don’t think I can hold them responsible for something someone else put out there.”

OPINION NOTRE DAME REPARATIONS

B5 Kassadee Paulo | The Oswegonian

VOLUME LXXXIV ISSUE IX

SPORTS THE OSWEGONIAN

SPORTS B3

WINNING STREAK

Nicole Hube | The Oswegonian

• www.oswegonian.com

FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

B1

Teresa Shattuck adds to family legacy for Oswego State women’s lacrosse Senior attack now holds record for most points in program history with 319, counting

Shea McCarthy | The Oswegonian

Matt Watling Asst. Sports Editor mwatling@oswegonian.com On Wednesday, April 17, Oswego State defeated Buffalo State’s women’s lacrosse team by a score of 18-1. Despite the large margin of victory, the biggest numbers stem from what was in the box score.

On the game-opening goal, at 28:49 in the first half, Toni Laneve received a pass from Teresa Shattuck. Laneve would fire the ball past Janae Nelson and into the back of the opposing net.

Laneve’s first of five goals on the day marked a monumental moment for the Lakers.

Shattuck’s assist on the goal was her 305th point of her career as a Laker, which broke the record for most points all-time, a record that was previously held by Kathryn Stead. Later in the contest, Laneve would score goal No. 100 on her career, and she is three goals shy of breaking into the top 10 in program history. For Shattuck, that seemingly meaningless blowout is her favorite memory as a Laker so far.

“It was last week when Toni got her 100th goal the same time I got my points,” Shattuck said. “It was just amazing. I can’t even describe the feeling we had.”

The duo of Shattuck and Laneve has been striking fear

into the hearts of defensive units for seven of the last eight years. Prior to their time at Oswego State, the two spent four years together playing on the same lacrosse team as they both went to Bishop Grimes High School in Syracuse.

The tandem were coached

by Shattuck’s father, Mark, who coached his team a myriad accomplishments. Shattuck was the main recipient of these personal accolades, as she was a two-time all-league first team member and a first team allCNY member and, in her four seasons, she ranked top five in scoring and assists in central New York.

After graduating, Shattuck began her time at Oswego State while Laneve had a one-year stint at Onondaga Community College. While Shattuck had a phenomenal high school career, she knew from the start that she was supposed to be a Laker.

“I was definitely always [a] Div. III [player], never really looked at Div. I, never really went to camps. I kind of just played,” Shattuck said. “My sister went here before me, so that mainly brought me here. I visited a couple times and just loved it.”

Shattuck’s sister, Erannan, played for the Oswego State lacrosse team from 2013-16 and currently sits at No. 3 in all-time points with 235. Being

three years older than Shattuck, Erannan played on the same college team as her sister for only one season. While they did not play on the same team frequently, Erannan practiced with Shattuck and instilled the work ethic that made her the player she is today.

“She challenged me in every single way,” Shattuck said.

“I just wanted to be exactly like her and drive to the goal. She taught me so many things, how to work. My work ethic is basically all from her.”

Of Shattuck’s 319 points, she scored 79 points as a freshman alongside Erannan. That same season, in 2016, Erannan set a career high with 77 points. 2016 was a very impressive season for the Lakers as they reached the SUNYAC semifinals. That year, Shattuck and Erannan were the top two scorers for Oswego State. Since then, the team hired a new coach, Britt Howard, in time for Shattuck’s sophomore season. Howard was able to watch Shattuck in her freshman season, as Howard was an assistant coach with The College at Brockport. While she only saw Shattuck play live once, Howard knew she was watching someone special.

“I kind of knew what her and her sister had [in terms of] potential as athletes,” Howard said. “And being able to coach her was a great ex-

perience because she is a phenomenal athlete.”

Since then, Howard has been able to challenge Shattuck to play better and better. The improvements are evident in nearly every statistical category. Shattuck’s point totals have increased each season, with her career high coming in her junior season when she scored 88 points in 17 games.

Shattuck has also developed her game off the ball. She has forced 34 turnovers throughout her career, and that number has improved each season as well.

This has enabled her team to pick up ground balls, typically in the offensive end, which leads to high-caliber scoring chances. Howard attributed Shattuck’s improvements to her growing confidence.

“Her confidence has really grown and knowing what she can do on the field and making sure she knows she can do it too,” Howard said. “Every player knows their talent, but they liked to be pushed, and she is one of those players that is looking to do the extreme and she has the potential to do it.”

Shattuck’s biggest change in style occurred in her freshman year of college. In high school, she was a skilled goal-scorer.

While she is still able to put the ball in the back of the net, as shown by her 101 goals, she decided to focus on passing the

ball. Since then, passing has become her best attribute.

“In high school, I felt I had to drive more, but when I came to Oswego, I found my spot as the passer, and it really fit,” Shattuck said. “I realized there are so many great players on our team that can put the ball in the back of the net and not really a lot of passers that give them the ball.”

Shattuck shattered the program assist record last season when she recorded her 126th assist, which surpassed her sister, Erannan, who sits at 125. Since then, Shattuck has stretched her lead to 93, as she has 218 assists. Howard said she finds Shattuck’s assisting abilities to be tremendous and it stems from her vision on the turf.

“Her vision of the field is phenomenal,” Howard said.

“She can see an open player on the field within seconds, and I can say not many people are like that.”

With one regular-season game remaining and the potential for three SUNYAC playoff games, Shattuck is looking to make the most out of her final opportunities to put on the green and gold.

“It’s an honor to have my name here in Oswego,” Shattuck said. “I love the school, I love this team, and to put this team on the map for Oswego is really awesome.”

Track, field prepares for end of ‘very good’ outdoor season Team has multiple first-place finishes, LeClair with 2 at SUNY Cortland meets

Shea McCarthy | The Oswegonian

Brian Rudman Sports Writer sports@oswegonian.com The Oswego State track and field team has had an impressive outdoor season, but the Lakers are not done yet. With just one meet left before the SUNYAC meet, the team is looking to build on its already impressive resumé.

Following two trips to SUNY Cortland, one over the weekend and one on Tuesday, the team is looking to build off its impressive marks. Head coach Evan Magnussen spoke on the season and how it has progressed since

the beginning.

“It’s been a very good season,” Magnussen said. “It was a very good start to the season at Widener, and we’ve really just kept that level of expectation all outdoor season. No one has really run off their mark, per se, since then, and everyone, almost everyone, has continued to move forward from there, even for a really quick turnaround from Saturday to Tuesday. We had some very solid marks [Tuesday] as well.”

Some of the best marks from the meets at SUNY Cortland came from junior sprinter Shaniece

Gregory, who set a personal record in the 200-meter dash, and from senior distance runner Nick LeClair, who won the 800-meter dash in Tuesday’s meet.

For Gregory, it was her first time breaking 26 seconds in the 200-meter dash. When asked about her recent success, she credited the progress that she has made throughout the season.

“It makes me feel accomplished,” Gregory said. “So, going into that and dropping two seconds makes me see that all this progress that doesn’t happen right away, that it’s gradual, that it really works.”

Gregory is not the only one who believes in the training.

LeClair also spoke about how the training results in success.

“For me, it’s just trusting the training,” LeClair said. “Going in every day, doing what you’re supposed to, hitting the practices hard and everything, and then it pays off in the meets.”

Training to better each individual seems to be a theme for the team, working during every practice in order to get better with each meet and improve personally.

“I take the team component completely out of it,” Magnussen said. “I want each individual to run as fast as possible.”

But, despite all the success, both for individuals and as a

team, there is still work to be done. With just one meet left at St. John Fisher College coming this Saturday, before the SUNYAC championships, runners are starting to look forward to the higher-pressure situations.

But, while the runners know that these moments may have more at stake, Magnussen does not want there to be pressure put on his runners.

“I treat every meet the exact same,” Magnussen said. “Whether it’s the very first meet we had in December or the national championship, I don’t want anyone to put any more pressure on any single meet.”

While some runners sometimes feel the pressure, they also acknowledge that each

meet should be given the same amount of effort.

“You should leave everything on the track every single time,” Gregory said.

Even with this focus, there are still goals to be reached in the upcoming races. As for his expectations for the SUNYAC championship, LeClair, who will be finishing his senior season in the upcoming weeks, is very focused on his goals.

“I think, for me, the big thing is I want to medal, which is top three,” LeClair said. “I’ve never done that before, so that would be a big accomplishment. If not that, I want to get a nice [personal record] and kind of go out with a race that I’m proud of for my last race.”

Shea McCarthy | The Oswegonian

SPORTS B2 Despite no regular practice schedule, roller hockey reaches final four THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

Oswego State finishes season with just three losses, lose in NCRHA tournament to California

Photo provided by Michael McCormack Oswego State’s roller hockey team reached nationals for the third consecutive season, this time in Rochester where family and friends came to watch the Lakers reach the final four for the first time in program history.

Ben Grieco Sports Editor bgrieco@oswegonian.com The Oswego State club roller hockey team finished fourth in the National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association Div. III championship in its third straight national tournament appearance.

The team did not lose a game in the first half of the season and lost two in the second half – one to Yeshiva University and another to Endicott College, who won the Div. III national championship.

But Oswego State has a large disadvantage during the regular season compared to a lot of the teams it faced in the national tournament. The Lakers do not have a rink to practice on during the season, meaning the preseason tournament and four practices over winter break on Long Island are the only opportunities for the team to make any changes in game plans or corrections.

“We don’t have any real team workouts because everyone’s schedules are all over the place, so we try to tell everyone to get in the gym as much as possible,” team

president Jack Tofallos said. “[We meet] over winter break in Long Island because everyone is from down that way.”

This season, Oswego State was bumped from Div. II to Div. III since the league that it is in, the Eastern Collegiate Roller Hockey Association, moved a lot of its Div. I teams down to Div. II. Since the Lakers cannot practice during the season, Tofallos said that it was best the team move to Div. III. There are possibilities for the team to find a practice slot on campus for next season, but Tofallos said he was not able to talk about it.

“Our mindset was: come in, be the top in our division, win regionals, go to nationals and go from there,” Tofallos said. “As long as the league doesn’t force us to move up, we’re probably going to stay at Div. III.” Oswego State had a lot of key returners, including the team’s captain, Joe DeMarco, who had 24 points on the season. Head coach Mike Boyd also said senior Chris Hood, although he was on the team for two seasons, was a major factor as well.

“He quickly adapted to playing a

team game, as this was his first time playing organized hockey,” Boyd said. “[He] was able to put up some highlight reel goals.”

Boyd was a five-year goaltender for the Lakers before graduating and said he was not sure what to expect from the team who would ultimately need a new goaltender this season. Matt Levy, a freshman, played in 14 games this season, posting a 13-1-0 record, with a 2.71 goals against average.

Hopefully next year, we’re in the championship or even win it. [We are] trying to do a little better every year.”

Jack Tofallos -Roller hockey team president

In both the Sweet 16 and the Elite 8 of the Div. III national championships, Levy made 26 saves, including some “monster saves” in the game against the University of Denver in the Elite 8.

“He quickly dispelled any doubts I had from preseason when I saw him take the ice in the second semester,” Boyd said.

After the best start in program history, Oswego State earned a bid to the national tournament. In their two previous trips to the national tournament, the Lakers had gone to Fort Myers, Florida, two years ago and Fargo, North Dakota, last season. This season, the Lakers only had to drive an hour and a half down Route 104 for their third trip to nationals in Rochester.

This tournament was the closest the Lakers have had all season.

Tofallos said all the team’s tournaments have been at least four and a half hours away this season. With the close proximity of the tournament, some Oswego State fans were able to attend.

“We had to fundraise a little bit, but not nearly as much as we did the last two years,” Tofallos said. “A lot of people’s families don’t come to a lot of games, and they actually made their way out, too.”

Following the end of the season, Oswego State is only losing two players, DeMarco and Hood.

DeMarco is a graduate student who used all five years of his eligibility.

Hood is a senior who is not returning for a graduate program. Other seniors, like Tofallos, are using their fifth year of eligibility next year as a graduate student.

Trying to recruit players is always a challenge for the Lakers.

The team has seen multiple siblings, like Tofallos and his brother Joe, play at the same time. But, with recent trips to nationals, the team has been able to get on the map. Tofallos said a big part of the recruiting has been social media.

“I think it’s important for all of our guys to look to themselves to be the best that they can be,” Boyd said.

“As for on the ice, we have been in talks with a couple recruits who are coming to Oswego in the fall.”

In all four of Tofallos’s years, the team has improved. From being the “joke of the league” his first season to a trip to the final four his senior year, he said he hopes the team can continue to make strides even after he graduates next season.

“Hopefully next year, we’re in the championship or even win it. [We are] trying to do a little better every year,” Tofallos said. “I’ll view my five years in the organization as a success if that’s the case, even if we don’t win the championship.”

Campus Rec Report: spring intramurals well underway as semester ends Dodgeball, softball seasons coming down final stretch, flag football tournament champion crowned How’s That Fair? (9-5). In the closest game of the week, Softball Guy defeated Zero Bunts Tonight (9-8).

OFC continued to assert its dominance with a win over A Whole Enchilada (13-4). Bueller Boys picked up another win with a victory over Beisbol (18-5). Continuing their fight for the championship is How’s That Fair?, who defeated Softball Guy in a close 7-5 win. In the final game of the week, Brew Crew defeated OFC in a close victory of 20-18.

In the CoRec tournament, Storm defeated ALL RISE (8-3). In another nail-biter of a game, Pitches Be Crazy defeated Horns Up (87). Washed Up Seniors dominated over You Got Rec’d in a final score of 20-1. Horns Up handled Hodge-

Photo provided by Campus Recreation The intramural season is well underway and with the playoffs right around the corner, teams are looking to battle their way to championship T-shirts.

Morgan Meaney Contributing Writer sports@oswegonian.com Dodgeball, softball and flag football were the sports of the week at Campus Recreation. The men’s competitive dodgeball league continued with a large amount of games throughout the week. Rona Season stood out this week with five total wins over That Liam? (30), 501st (3-1), Balls to the Wall (3-2) and Ram Ranch Oil Rigger Bois (3-2).

Ram Ranch Oil Rigger Bois also had themselves a week, defeating 501st (3-1), Rona Season (3-1) and OFC (31). Picking up two total wins each were Balls to the Wall over 501st (32) and That Liam? (3-2). Team Phoenix defeated Global gym (3-1) and Almost College Athletes (3-1), OZ Golf defeated Can of Corn (3-0) and Global gym (3-1), and Global gym defeated Almost College Athletes (3-2)

and Can of Corn (3-1).

In the CoRec recreational league, Mother Duckers got off to a great start, taking home wins over The 5 D’s of Dodgeball (3-1), Ballsagna (3-1) and Team Yeth (3-0). Hot Dawg Smoothies also had a nice streak, winning three games over Team Yeth (3-0) and Varsity Barkers (3-0). Winning two games each was Ballsagna, defeating Team Yeth (3-0) and The Village People (3-0); the 5 D’s of Dodgeball, defeating Team Yeth (3-0) and Ballsagna (3-0); and Prestige Worldwide, defeating Ballsagna (3-0) and The Village People (3-0). Balls to the Wall took home their 11th win over Almost College Athletes (4-2).

Also adding to their win total was Team Yeth, who defeated the Village People (3-2), Petri-dish Babies (3-2) and Prestige Worldwide (3-1). Despite falling to Team Yeth, The Village People bounced back

with a win over Petri-dish Babies (3-2). Also coming back strong was Prestige Worldwide, who defeated The Village People (3-0) and Petridish Babies (3-2). Team Phoenix brought home a win with a 3-2 victory over Global gym. OZ Golf continued to dominate with three more wins this week over 501st (31), Global gym (3-0), and Can of Corn (3-0). Can of Corn, despite an early week loss, defeated Ram Ranch Oil Rigger Bois. Team Phoenix added to the win count with victories over Balls to the Wall (3-0) and Rona Season (3-0). In the final game of the week, Rona Season defeated Almost College Athletes (3-2).

In the men’s competitive softball tournament, OFC picked up the first win of the week taking down A Whole Enchilada (15-5). The Bueller Boys continued to look strong, defeating Beisbol (12-0). Brew Crew also picked up a win, defeating

podge Helmets with a final score of 25-8.

The flag football tournament is ever-popular, and this year was no exception. In the men’s tournament, The Replacements ended All Madden’s chances of winning, defeating them 43-0. Metards took home a win over Jedi Council (27-24) but fell in the second round to Rona Szn (41-31). Krispy Tenders took down Shanghai Warriors (21-18) but in the same fashion fell to Rona Szn (490). Fitzmagic won their first round game against Hellhounds (20-0) but fell in the second round to Townies (18-6). Townies dominated the tournament, as they have in the past, defeating both Fitzmagic and The Replacements (20-6).

B B33 SPORTS Softball win streak ends at 9 after loss to Saxons THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

Photo Briefs REGIN LEADS SENIOR SENDOFF

Photo provided by Casey Stone

Emotions were present both on and off the field for the Oswego State women’s lacrosse team on April 20, as the team faced SUNY Oneonta in a crucial SUNYAC matchup.

Before the game, the team recognized its eight seniors, including the new record holder for points, Teresa Shattuck. The other seven seniors honored were Brigid Regin, Taylor Aiello, Sarah Frandsen, Toni Laneve, Zeina Akl, Marisa Engelbrecht and Danielle Walker.

In the same game that Shattuck got the record for career points against Buffalo State, Laneve scored five goals. She also registered her 100th career tally, just the 18th player to do so in Oswego State women’s lacrosse program history. Shattuck is also on that list, now with 319 points, as of April 24.

In the senior day game against SUNY Oneonta, the game went to

overtime after the teams were both tied at 13 following the end of the second half.

The Lakers never led in the game against the Red Dragons but kept the game close the entire time. The largest lead SUNY Oneonta had in the game was three goals, and that was toward the beginning of the game when the Red Dragons scored three straight goals to open up scoring.

In overtime, on a free-position attempt from Montana Garrett with 1:44 left in the overtime period, Garrett was able to get a pass to a streaking Regin right in front of the net for the gamewinning goal. SUNY Oneonta had a free-position goal, but it was waived off by the referees since the player picked up her stick before the referees OK’d the stick after dropping it.

Oswego State has one game left in the season against SUNY New Paltz before the SUNYAC Championships.

SEASON FINALE

Oswegonian file photo from 2018

The Oswego State men’s lacrosse team has the opportunity to earn a .500 conference record for consecutive seasons with one conference game left in the regular season.

The season finale will also determine if Oswego State will secure the final spot in the SUNYAC Championships.

After falling 19-7 to SUNY Cortland on April 24, the Lakers fell to a 2-3 SUNYAC record.

Oswego State’s last chance to hit the .500 record is against SUNY Oneonta on April 27 at Laker Turf Stadium.

This season, the Lakers opened up their conference schedule with two wins, one against The College at Brockport and one against SUNY Potsdam.

Against the Golden Eagles, Oswego State won 11-8, and against the Bears, the Lakers were victorious 11-9.

That following weekend, the Lakers faced rival Plattsburgh State and fell in a low-scoring matchup 7-6 in a triple overtime

contest. Oswego State lost its next two conference matchups to SUNY Geneseo by a score of 14-13, and then the aforementioned loss to SUNY Cortland.

Coming into the game on Saturday, SUNY Oneonta is also at 2-3 in conference and will be battling for the final playoff spot. The winner in the game will seal the sixth seed in the championships.

The Red Dragons won their most recent game on April 20 against SUNY Potsdam by a score of 18-7 and are on the one-game win streak.

The last time SUNY Oneonta attended the SUNYAC Championships was in 2015 when the Red Dragons finished with a 3-3 conference record. If they win against the Lakers, the .500 conference record would be the best SUNYAC record SUNY Oneonta has obtained since that 2015 season.

In recent history, Oswego State has won the last three matchups against SUNY Oneonta, primarily in all close matchups. The three games have a five goal-differential in favor of Oswego State.

Team now No. 3 in SUNYAC standings, just ahead of New Paltz Aaron Valentino Sports Writer sports@oswegonian.com After a slow start to the season, the Oswego State softball team won nine games in a row and is 17-17, and 11-5 in conference. With that, the Lakers have clinched a SUNYAC playoff spot.

The streak was ended in the second game of a doubleheader against Alfred University on April 25.

The Lakers had high hopes coming into the season after making the SUNYAC playoffs with a record of 19-15, before losing in the first round, but they started the season very slow, going 8-16 overall and just 3-5 in SUNYAC play.

During the streak, however, they have flipped a switch, as they worked their way up to third in the SUNYAC and are going to the postseason. In those nine games, the Lakers scored an impressive 68 runs while their opponents only scored 20. That is good for 7.5 runs per game while the team’s ERA was 2.75. Head coach Abby Martin has seen the team’s mindset change during the winning streak.

“The mentality of that conference is everything,” Martin said.

“Since we have started playing conference games in general ... we have just been playing. That’s been our focus, starting conference games and having that different mentality of now we have to be at our best.”

Senior Angela Frampton said the Lakers are finally playing to their potential.

“In the beginning of the season, we were saying that we are a good enough team to do these things. Instead of saying those things, we finally just started doing them, literally just making the plays instead of just talking about making them,” Frampton said.

Senior shortstop Erin Sweeney said the team is not talking about the success; they are just playing softball.

“We are kind of keeping qui-

Nicole Hube | The Oswegonian Oswego State has one series left in the regular season against SUNY Cortland on April 27.

et, not talking much about anything, just playing softball the way we know how to play,” Sweeney said. “I think that’s been beneficial, just not thinking, just playing the game.”

As one would expect, the confidence level around the team has been great during these last eight games. Martin said it has been “positive” and “uplifting.”

“We have been believing in each other more,” Martin said.

“This team is a little more result oriented, so now that we have been getting the results, there is just an overwhelming feeling. …

We’re feeling good because we are playing good.”

Sweeney said players are finally doing what they are supposed to be doing.

“I feel like people are doing what they need to get done, and it’s working, so I think the confidence levels have definitely grown,” Sweeney said.

The Lakers have struggled with defense, as they are second in the SUNYAC in errors with 72.

Before the eight-game winning streak the Lakers made a total of 58 errors, which is good for 2.5 errors a game. The Lakers have the third most unearned runs at 53, behind only SUNY Potsdam and SUNY Fredonia. However, over these past eight games, they have

made eight errors, which is just one error per game. Martin said that has been a big part of this hot streak.

“We have played just better defense,” Martin said. “Our hitting has been pretty consistent. Up and down is normal in softball.

It’s a pitching-dominate game, but really, the defense has really gotten so much sharper, and it really has made the difference. I think just attacking more defense in practice and keeping up what we have been doing offensively has really been a key for us.”

With the Lakers clinching a playoff spot, the team is ready for SUNYACs. “We have to keep doing what we have been doing,” Martin said. “The three things we have been talking about, we have to have all three every time we take the field, and that’s pitching, defense, offense, and when we have all three going, we are really tough to beat.”

The players are focused on winning. Sweeney said the team is hoping for the best and that she hopes the team can keep the win streak going and potentially win SUNYACs. Frampton echoed that statement.

“We want to win and we want to do what we have to do to get there,” Frampton said.

Shore Report

THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

SUNYAC Standings

Baseball

Cortland Oswego State Fredonia Brockport Oneonta Plattsburgh New Paltz

Softball

Cortland Geneseo Oswego State New Paltz

Oswego Scoreboard

Conference 17-0

Streak

23-12-0 11-18-0 15-19-0 17-18-0 11-18-0 11-17-0

11-4 8-7 6-11 6-12 5-10 3-12

W1 L1 L3 W1 L1 L3

Overall 22-13-0 27-7-0

Conference 13-3

Streak

Overall 28-9-1

W10

11-3

L1 W6

17-17-0

11-5

L1

22-9-0

9-5

L1

Oneonta

13-18-1

L3

Buffalo State Plattsburgh Fredonia Brockport Potsdam

17-15-0

8-6 6-8

12-16-0

Men’s Lacrosse

Cortland Plattsburgh Geneseo Oswego State Oneonta Potsdam Brockport

17

NPZ: 8-6 (4-4) BPT: 12-3 (7-1)

MOR:

Hughes: 1 goal, 1 assist Bice: 13 GA, 6 saves

GEN:

Cook: 4 goals, 1 assist Pratt: 3 goals, 1 assist Wetzel: 13 GA, 6 saves

OSW:

Laneve: 6 goals, 6 SOG Shattuck: 4 goals, 1 assist Sanchez: 7 GA, 5 saves

Baseball

Wednesday, April 24

5

Hertz: 1-3, 2 RBIs Rieth: 2-4

11-19-0

6-8

W2

12-20-0

3-13

L1

8-26-0

1-15

W1

6-0

W6

7-7

4-1

W1

6-9

3-2

W2

7-5

2-3

7-8

2-3

L3 W1

4-9

1-4

L3

5-8

0-5

L2

Conference

Streak

8-0 7-1

W8 L1

7-1

W1

5-3

W4

4-4

L3

4-4

L2

2-6 2-6

L1 W1

1-7

L1

0-8

W1

Baseball

2

6

FRE: 11-18 (8-7) PLA: 11-18 (5-10)

1.58:

During the women’s track and field invitational at SUNY Cortland on April 19 and 20, Catarina Burke won the long jump with a season-best 1.58 meters. This was the first win for Burke in the event since Utica College in February and her fifth victory this season. Teammate Sarah Yansen was right behind at 1.55 meters.

1

8

BUF: 17-15 (6-8) COR: 22-13 (13-3)

9:

Oswego State softball’s winning streak reached nine games before losing to Alfred University on April 25. The Lakers had a rough start to the season, going 8-17 before the winning streak. The team is now 17-17 (11-5) with only a doubleheader against SUNY Cortland remaining.

6

7 OSW: AU:

Vilchez: 3-4, 1 RBI, 2 R Frampton: 3-4, 2 RBIs, 1 R Harrington: 2.2 IP, 7 H Saucedo: 2-4, 1 R Wilcox: 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R

Upcoming Events Women’s Lacrosse Saturday, April 27

Men’s Lacrosse Saturday, April 27

@

@

1:00 p.m.

1:00 p.m.

OSW: 16-16 (10-5) UPD NPZ: 8-6 (4-4)

Baseball

ONE: 7-8 (2-3) OSW: 7-5 (2-3)

Softball

Monday, April 29

Monday, April 15

@

@

1:00 p.m./4:00p.m.

FRE: 11-18 (8-7) OSW: 23-12 (11-4)

12:00 p.m./3:00p.m.

UPDOSW: 16-16 (10-5) COR: 22-13 (13-3)

Laker Athletes of the Week

Teresa Shattuck

Women’s Lacrosse Senior | Syracuse

Softball

Softball

Thursday, April 25

4

ROC:

12-4

13

7

Bacon: 6 goals, 1 assist O’Donnell: 14 GA, 13 saves

W1

Streak

Tuesday, April 23

OSW:

6-8

Conference

Women’s Lacrosse

14

13

L4

Around the SUNYAC

8

Saturday, April 20

Enos: 2-4, 1 R Chilson: 1-4, HR, 4 RBIs Jacobs: 4 IP, 3H, 0 ER

Women’s Lacrosse Overall Geneseo 12-4 12-3 Brockport 10-5 Cortland Oswego State 9-4 New Paltz 8-6 8-8 Oneonta Buffalo State 6-9 6-10 Potsdam Fredonia 4-12 Plattsburgh 2-14 Women’s Lacrosse

Men’s Lacrosse

OSW:

Overall

B4

Rebecca Vilchez

Softball Junior | Franklin Square

Shattuck broke the Oswego State program record of most points in a career on Wednesd a y, A p r i l 1 7 , w i t h h e r 3 0 5 t h point. Since then, she propelled the Lakers to a 3-0 record with wins over Buffalo State, SUNY Oneonta and Morrisville State. Shattuck scored an imp res s ive 15 p oints over the three-game span with six goals and nine assists.

The junior per formed well both at the plate and on the pitcher’s mound as she accum u l a t e d s eve n h i t s t h i s p a s t week. Off those hits, she recorde d f i ve R B I s a nd s c o re d f o u r runs. She also started and won three games, surrendering just one run in 21.2 innings pitched.

Her strong efforts won her the SUNYAC softball pitcher of the week accolade.

For the Oswego State baseball team, defense has been a huge priority between its pitching and defensive positioning. Eighteen of the Lakers have a 100% fielding success rate. Overall, the team is tied for third in the SUNYAC for errors, only registering 47 so far this season.

Teresa Shattuck broke the Oswego State women’s lacrosse record for points, which was 304. Her 305th point came off her 47th assist of the season, helping Toni Laneve get a goal against Buffalo State on April 17. Shattuck now has 319 points in her career, shattering the 16-year-old record.

18:

319:

OPINION

THE OSWEGONIAN FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

B5

Ideologies Notre Dame burning devastating loss Earth Day of politicians Money donated to repair building could be used in better ways more than main concern social media everyone else admires the art- easily donate to a building being work and the structure itself. restored less than a week since Over $1 billion has been raised its destruction? or pledged since the building There is something very caught fire on April 15. Francois wrong and immoral with this The Notre Dame Cathedral in Pinault started the pledging. Af- situation. We need Earth to Paris, France, has been one of ter Pinault pledged, his alleged thrive for us to thrive. We need the most historically, artistically rival and the richest man in Eu- to find sustainable solutions for and religiously significant build- rope, Bernard Arnault pledged the many activities that contribings in the world since its com- twice Pinault’s amount, roughly ute to pollution, overpopulation, pletion in 1345. Recently, the ca- 224 million, reportedly ‘‘just to overfishing and mass farming.

We need to make affordable the thedral caught fire as a result of rival’’ Pinault.

Must be nice to pledge over solutions we have found so far what investigators believe to be a malfunction in the newly con- $200 million for a building’s res- for these issues. We need to prostructed elevator system. The toration with the intent to out- vide shelter, food and compasfire began in the center of the bid your wealthy rival. A lot can sion for those who are on the building’s roof and tore through be said about the over $1 billion streets. We need to do better as a the rest, causing the iconic spi- pledged for Notre Dame in less species, protecting and enhancral to collapse - one of very mini- than a week since the fire oc- ing our own and our home rather mal relics lost to the hapless fire. curred, but what should be said than donating to a building. We need a major morality check.

The Notre Dame Cathedral is simply, “Really?”

We really have over a billion This tragedy is no holocaust, is a beautiful building that took many years and a lot of dedica- dollars raised for a building in Rwandan genocide or a povertytion to build and holds invaluable less than a week of its tragedy. stricken town. It is not the death art within. The fire is undoubt- Yet we continue to ignore the of the human race or a threat to edly a tragedy. The cathedral’s people who are homeless, in pov- anyone. It was simply an accidenfame and importance within erty and suffering. We continue tal burning of a cherished, material Catholicism definitely adds to to ignore the dwindling health building. We continue to ignore our the despair people are experi- of the environment and climate own race and the devastation of our encing in regards to the losses change. We continue to disre- home yet jump to save, restore and from the fire. Losing parts of this gard the issues with equality, keep growing material things and gorgeous and priceless piece of stability and safety. But we can buildings, based on material value. art, or even just teetering on the edge of losing it is devastating.

It is not, however, the worst thing earth and the human race has experienced. Most of the artwork within - the epitome of the building’s significance - survived the fire. The stained-glass rose windows survived. The Notre Dame Bells, the Tunic of Saint Louis and the Great Organ are among the saved artwork, as are the statues of the Twelve Apostles and several priceless paintings, including the Mays of Notre Dame. Although not everything survived, a great number of artwork was saved and restored.

A number of very rich people and organizations have pledged to help rebuild the Cathedral.

One may think this is a noble use for money. The building has been a beautiful structure Kassadee Paulo | The Oswegonian in the heart of France for centuries. Catholics worship it, and The Notre Dame cathedral still stands but lost a great portion of its beautiful architecture.

Alexis Hanna Staff Writer opinion@oswegonian.com

Photo from U.S. Army Corps of Engineering via Flickr

Francesca Miesner Opinion Editor fmiesner@oswegonian.com Every time election season rolls around, politicians who plan to run are put under a microscope. The media watches their every move, digs up dirt on their past and tries to find out any information that would make them “cancelable.” When the dirt is dug up, it is plastered around social media to let the potential voters know that one time 30 years ago, this candidate picked their nose in public.

Obviously, if the information revealed is something serious like an assault or rape allegation, they should no longer be considered for a position of power. Oftentimes, it has to do with voting against or for certain policies in the past that contradict their current viewpoint or views of their party.

Part of what potential voters need to understand is that modern American politics is a game.

Politicians say what people want them to say, believe what will get them elected and act however they are expected to. Lately, the expected behavior is being followable on Twitter, posting memes and roasting politicians with no fear of a clap-back. Now everyone is behaving this way on social media, including the president himself. By doing this, potential voters see that politicians, too, are people. Do the politicians look foolish acting this way when they are in a position of power like this? Absolutely.

Does it garner them more attention and maybe more votes? Yes. That is not to say that the average politician has no moral compass. Politicians not being open with the public about their ideas shows a stronger moral compass. Many are willing to lie about what they believe so that they can hold a position of power and achieve what they want to achieve.

Mud-slinging politicians, either from those who they are running against, the opposing political party or potential voters, does not help in the voting process. Unless the political figure in question did something that could warrant legal action or is morally unsound, the public should focus on their political beliefs over any decisions they have made in the past.

If a person who is running for office now once said that LGBTQ people are not equal to non-LGBTQ people but now claims the opposite, that should not be a deal-breaker, not because LGBTQ rights do not matter, but because people can grow and learn. Some people are raised incorrectly but, later in life, are able to turn around and understand that their parents were wrong. It is all right to change beliefs. In fact, it is expected of each individual to change in order to grow.

Some might argue they did not actually change their mind but instead only claimed to change their mind in order to get more positive attention. It does not matter. If a politician secretly thinks that abortion should be illegal but is publicly pro-choice and votes for women to have the right to their bodies, does it matter what they think in secret?

What matters is that they are voting how they promised.

Politicians are corrupt. Even the best and most morally sound politicians have layers of dirt underneath their kind exterior.

It is the job of the American public to choose the politicians who correspond to their values and seem the least corrupt.

Student loan forgiveness impractical Not having to worry about loans stalls emotional growth Samantha Flavell Editor-In-Chief sflavell@oswegonian.com Sen. Elizabeth Warren is in the process of unveiling a student loan forgiveness proposal that she claims will cancel up to $50,000 of debt for more than 42 million Americans. This is another example of superficial claims being used to draw in voters by using its appeal of free education and America’s failure to consider the logistics of the plan.

Cost of tuition is a common issue for students across the country who are seeking a higher education. Warren is also known for her plan for free college tuition at two- and four-year schools. Both this plan and the tuition forgiveness are nothing more than attempts at appealing to the masses.

Part of what students learn through the higher education process is how to be resourceful and a good problem-solver. It is far more useful for students to apply for scholarships, work for their grades and submit essays to earn the money they need to cover education than being granted free education. There are plenty of resources and solutions that challenge students rather than handing them the education.

It is unfair to the students who work hard for their grades and scholarships or work multiple jobs while studying for exams and classes to then offer the opportunity for anyone to be granted a free education.

This is not to say that education should not be made accessible to those who desire it. It is commendable for people to strive to better themselves through education and opening themselves for new opportunities. However, allocating tax money to cover or, as Warren states, “canceling” the debt is not the way to do so.

Photo from studentaid.ed.gov Student aid is an appropriate way to help people get their college education.

As appealing as a “free education” is, this is not something that should be provided by the government. Higher education is optional, and those who desire to pursue it need to plan, problem-solve and actively work to make it a possibility for themselves. The most growth comes from the adversity of figuring out for yourself how to make it a possibility.

Another issue with Warren’s plan is that, similar to TAP and FASFA, it is dependent upon household income. Eligibility should not be dependent on a parent’s earnings, whether that be for tuition benefits similar to TAP and FASFA or for Warren’s proposed plan.

Individuals are responsible for themselves. There is nothing in life that is handed to us.

Whether in education or the

workforce, people need to get used to working hard and problem-solving for themselves. Budgeting money, being realistic about what one can afford and working toward one’s goals are invaluable skills that will be lost if free education or debt forgiveness is granted to everyone who says please.

Education should be made affordable to those who desire it by providing them with the opportunities to afford it. Laozi, a Chinese philosopher, once said, “Give a man a fish and he has dinner for a day, but teach a man to fish and you have fed him for a lifetime.” It is far more valuable to equip our citizens with the creative problem-solving to work toward and afford their education than it is to simply forgive them of their debt or provide free education.

Photo from Pixabay

Maria Pericozzi Photo Director mperricozzi@oswegonian.com With this year’s Earth Day came the “thank you, Mother Nature” posts clogging up Facebook, Twitter and Instagram feeds.

These posts came from people who use their reusable water bottles once to take a Snapchat of saving the planet and find the cutest filter with a little happy planet earth on it. People post their gorgeous sunset photos, landscape photography or hiking trails during the summer, with a sweet message about Earth Day and loving the planet.

What about the other 364 days of the year?

Too many people focus on just one day to appreciate our planet.

They become an advocate for taking care of the environment through their single yearly post when they should be doing it all year round.

Little things, such as picking up after yourself or others at the park or using a reusable alternative instead of a single-use disposable item, can be incorporated into your daily life to help the planet all year round. It will show more concern for the environment than a one-sentence and four-photo post on social media.

Refuse the plastic straws at the restaurant and show those around you that you care about the cute sea turtles. Bring your own coffee cup to your local coffee shop for your morning fill-up and do not add to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Whatever level you would like to contribute, there are things that can be done to show others you actually care about the environment.

Walk or bike to work instead of taking your car every single day. Obviously, there are things that can be done to positively impact the environment that help more than posting a photo on social media. Some more extreme changes could include living a zero-waste lifestyle, donating money or time to places that work on cleaning oil spills and other environmental issues and regularly volunteering in your community to clean up parts of the city that are forgotten about.

Whatever level you would like to contribute, there are things that can be done to show others you actually care about the environment outside of your social media posts.

Instead of taking one day of the year to appreciate the beauty of the earth around you, take a moment each day to appreciate a piece of Mother Nature. Maybe the wind blows past, cooling you down on a warm summer day.

Maybe as you are driving to your 9-to-5 job that sucks the life out of you, you catch a glimpse of the sunrise, moving your day in the right direction. Either way, appreciate Mother Nature every day of the year. Our planet is a beautiful place that deserves to be appreciated every day of the year, not just one.

NEWS ENVIRONMENT PANEL

A5 Kassadee Paulo | The Oswegonian

OPINION

VOLUME LXXXIV ISSUE IX • www.oswegonian.com

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

SPORTS B2

FINAL FOUR

Michael McCormack | The Oswegonian

FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

LETTER TO THE EDITOR To The Editor: I was worried when Trump hired Mick Mulvaney to not only be his Budget Director, but to also serve as his Chief of Staff. I’ve heard from several reliable sources that it is largely Mulvaney who is behind Trump’s current budget proposal which would deeply cut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.

Mulvaney is also behind Trump’s efforts to abolish the ACA. When he was a Congressman, Mulvaney was widely-known for saying that Social Security is a “Ponzi scheme” and “pyramid scheme” that

is unconstitutional and should be abolished. He was a favorite of “The Tea Party.” He is an example of the growing number of national conservatives who are actually (but won’t publically admit it) “Survival-of-theFittest” Social Darwinists and whose ultimate goal is to see all federal government social programs abolished.

They don’t believe that the federal government should spend one cent on helping anyone (except for corporations, of course). In addition to the Koch brothers (who at least openly admit that they want Social Secu-

rity to be abolished), other such Social Darwinists can be found in “The House Freedom Caucus” and among “The Movement Conservatives” (which includes Paul Ryan, Ted Cruz, and Mike Pence).

This is why there are many “liberal/ progressive” Democrats like myself who do NOT want to see Pence become President and actually prefer Trump over Pence even though we have a very low personal and professional opinion of Trump.

Sincerely, Stewart B. Epstein

IN THE OFFICE

Legalization of marijuana brings complications Those still in jail for marijuana-related crimes must be released In January, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said legalizing recreational marijuana in New York was one of his priorities during his State of the State address.

Cuomo cited how cannabis laws disproportionately affected communities of color as a reason to change New York’s legal code. It is true cannabis codes hit these communities hardest. Eighty percent of New Yorkers arrested for marijuana violations in 2016 were black or latino, despite cannabis use being common across demographics, according to the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA.) However, while the status of his plans remains unclear, as legalization was not included in the 2019 state budget, New York lawmakers must address how they will handle New Yorkers with legal records of marijuana offenses.

While it is rare for a society to embrace an activity it previously punished, marijuana is an uncommon situation. Despite the federal government outlawing cannabis use for over 80 years, surveys conducted in 2017 by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, found that 52.7% of respondents ages 18 to 25 had tried marijuana in their lifetime, and 34.9% used marijuana in the past year. The NIDA surveys show only 0.6% of Americans in the same age range used heroin in their lifetime, 3% had tried methamphetamine, 12% cocaine and 1.3% crack cocaine. Older Americans use marijuana as well, with the NIDA survey finding 47.5% of Americans over 25 years old tried it in their lifetime and 12.2% within the last year. Marijuana use is not like other drugs, as American adults use cannabis on a much larger scale, particularly while college-aged.

New York decriminalized simple possession of marijuana in 1977, where possession of small amounts of marijuana would carry a fine of $100 for first offenders rather than a criminal arrest and prison time. While New York’s decriminalization was a step in the right direction toward correcting the problem of a common act hitting certain communities hardest, publicview possession remained a misdemeanor and an arrestable offense. AcThe independent student newspaper of Oswego State since 1935 cording to DPA, New York state is the cannabis-possession arrest capital of the world, with almost 800,000 arrests We want your thoughts on our coverage, campus and local issues, or anything for small possessions of marijuana over the last two decades. Decriminalregarding the Oswego State community. ization that leads to 800,000 arrests comes across as a token effort. If New

Colin Hawkins Asst. News Editor chawkins@oswegonian.com York intended to change how it handled marijuana, it failed.

These alone are excellent reasons to investigate how New York handles marijuana codes, but current New York laws leave college students particularly vulnerable. According to the website of Daniel A. McGuinness, a criminal defense lawyer practicing in New York City, state drug laws can have a big impact on student gateways to success because anyone convicted and incarcerated in the U.S. becomes ineligible or unlikely to receive government financial aid for college while in prison.

However, drug offenses have additional hurdles, such as ineligibility for federal aid after release and requirements including rehab or passing drug tests. The first offense costs a student a year of ineligibility and eventually permanent ineligibility after the third offense. Losing a year or more during a four- or five-year college program can be devastating.

Offering American students financial aid with some stipulations is reasonable, but the problem lies with how New York handles marijuana. According to McGuinness’ website, marijuana possession in New York is not a crime but is still treated as a drug violation by the federal government and makes

New York students ineligible. New York laws make this possible, so New York lawmakers are expected to fix it.

New York ostensibly treats marijuana possession as a fineable offense, but a traffic offense often carries a fine greater than $100 without potentially costing students the thousands of dollars they rely on to attend college. Losing financial aid for a year can mean students simply cannot attend college for that year, which could cripple their chances of finishing their degree.

Cuomo and New York lawmakers have taken steps to make college available to disadvantaged students, creating programs such as the Excelsior Scholarship. This scholarship offers free tuition to state colleges for students from lower-income families, provided the students adhere to certain academic requirements and stay in the state for a period after graduation. If lawmakers find merit in accessible college and providing paths to a degree, allowing that path to be shattered by something ostensibly noncriminal brings doubt to their dedication to New York students.

If New York lawmakers want to legalize marijuana statewide and increase access to college, they must address the New Yorkers who are facing consequences for something that would now be legal and acceptable. New York students are getting left behind. From clearing the records of New Yorkers carrying state drug charges to reducing another barrier to education facing New York students, state government can change that. Even if lawmakers cannot help New Yorkers in this situation already, their constituency deserves to hear how they can stop it from continuing.

THE OSWEGONIAN G UIDELIN ES

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).

Photo from Flickr If marijuana is legalized, then all of those currently in jail for weed-related crimes should be released.

Lilly

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.

See web exclusive Opinion articles at www.oswegonian.com/opinion

Photo provided by @J_Christ98

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INSIDE

C2 How The Incredible Hulk C3 Why ‘Iron Man 3’ remains C5 Why ‘X-Men’ should go

AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS

fell from grace

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controversial today

AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS AVENGERS

to Disney+ streaming

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FRIDAY April 26, 2019

AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN AVEN

LAKER REVIEW

C2

LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

Incredible Hulk not so incredible following first ‘Avengers’ film

Image from BestClips via YouTube The Incredible Hulk is reduced to a punchline in MCU efforts like “Thor: Ragnarok.”

Brandon Fallat Assist. Laker Review Editor laker@oswegonian.com The year is 2012, and the summer is being kicked off by the most anticipated movie event in recent history: Marvel Studios’ “The Avengers.” This film was the largest crossover event in movie history, bringing together four separate superhero franchises into one film. After its release, it broke every box office record, earned one rave review after another and had one character who managed to steal the entire film, easily becoming the crowd-pleasing fan favorite.

That character was none other than the green machine himself, the Hulk.

Originally created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby as a play on the classic “Jekyll and Hyde” storyline with a bit

of “Frankenstein” horror thrown in for good measure, the Hulk first debuted in May of 1962 in his first comic series titled “The Incredible Hulk.” Scientist Bruce Banner was a physically weak, socially withdrawn and emotionally reserved physicist who specialized in gamma radiation. One day, an experiment went wrong, causing Banner to be accidentally exposed to the gamma rays, resulting in the creation of a green-skinned, muscular humanoid with a bit of an anger issue.

Throughout history, the Hulk has been one of Marvel’s most iconic characters. Before Iron Man, Captain America and Thor became household names, there was the Hulk. While Spider-Man and X-Men both launched successful superhero franchises in the early 2000s, Hulk was the only character for whom

Marvel still had the production rights to land with fans, even if his feature film debut, Ang Lee’s “Hulk,” was a bit of a dud.

Even before that, however, Lou Ferrigno and Bill Bixby brought the character to life in the late ’70s with “The Incredible Hulk” TV show.

Fast forward to 2012, however, and fans were finally treated to the enormous green rage monster they deserved, with Mark Ruffalo’s incredible portrayal of the character having served as a replacement to Edward Norton, who portrayed the character in 2008’s “The Incredible Hulk.” Ruffalo embodied all that was Bruce Banner – shy, neurotic, reclusive genius – and all that was his green counterpart as well – angry, unhinged, destructive and an unstoppable force of pure rage. That is who the Hulk is: unstoppable rage. Every time Hulk is hit or shot, he only gets angrier, and like the famous saying goes, “You wouldn’t like him when he’s angry.” The more angry he gets, the stronger he gets, the harder he punches and the more damage he causes. This is something that “The Avengers” captured perfectly but has also not gotten right since.

Ruffalo’s second appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” was disappointing to say the least. To start with Banner, he was given a forced romantic subplot with Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow, a character who does not need a love story in any way to make her interesting. Hav-

ing these two already-established characters who resented love and intimacy and smashing them together may have sounded good on paper, but in execution, it was a waste of the Widow’s time and added nothing to Banner. As for Hulk, apart from the visual effects taking a huge step down this time around, he was only there to show just how cool Iron Man’s new Hulkbuster suit was. The film also covered the same thematic territory of the first film, with Hulk not being accepted by society.

In “Thor: Ragnarok,” fans were “treated” to a Hulk that talks like a toddler, showing off his smooth green tushy, causing all the third-graders in the audience to roll over laughing and, once again, only being there to show how powerful Thor is without his hammer.

The film introduced an interesting arc for Banner and Hulk, having both sides trying to cling to the host body and fighting amongst each other in a weird psychological battle, but it is too underdeveloped. Just as well, the visuals continue their downward trend as he looks even worse here.

In “Avengers: Infinity War,” the climatic coming-together of all Marvel’s heroes from over 10 years of films, the filmmakers took an interesting approach to the character by having him just not show up. For starters, Hulk is only there to show just how powerful Thanos is, cementing Hulk as the punching bag of the MCU, as, if a hero can beat up the Hulk, that means

they are cool and powerful too. Furthermore, fans were left with Bruce Banner, who also decided not to show up, and actor Mark Ruffalo chose to just be himself for a whole film. The gags of him slapping himself and tripping in a Hulkbuster suit are funny, yes, but Bruce Banner is not a “funny” character. Marvel has plenty of those guys and does not need anymore.

What ever happened to Bruce Banner - awkward, intelligent, shorttempered and, in his own words, “always angry” - from 2012’s “The Avengers?” Whatever happened to Hulk, the gamma-infused monstrosity that only became more dangerous each time he got smacked down? Why is he just a stepping stone for another character’s strength Marvel is trying to promote? Why is Ruffalo frolicking around the fields of Wakanda in a big CGI suit, which is yet again another downgrade for the visual effects department, and not acting like the character?

In the upcoming “Avengers: Endgame,” the rumor is that Banner, who apparently is acting so weird because of being the Hulk for two years (lame excuse), and Hulk are going to join together to create one big identity, known in the comics as Professor Hulk. If this is true, then that means the one and only time we ever got to see the Hulk as the Hulk and Banner as Banner was in 2012. And that is unfortunate because hearing him say “Hulk Smash!” while destroying anything and everything is who the Hulk is, not a punching bag.

After anticipated ‘Avengers: Endgame,’ where does Marvel go next Alex Kent Staff Writer laker@oswegonian.com

Ever since 2008, people have been waiting for the culmination of some of their favorite characters’ story arcs, known as “Avengers: Endgame.” The visual spectacles that have filled the MCU’s phases have been an honor to witness. The combination of A-List stars, creative twists and beautiful CGI have all contributed to the massive fanbase that has accumulated worldwide. The inevitable end to an era will be difficult for the universe to rebuild afterward.

No matter what, we will lose significant heroes that have become cultural icons. After “Endgame,” there is no clear direction for Marvel President Kevin Feige to take. “Spider Man: Far From Home” is going to be the first movie following the events of “Endgame.” This implies that the ending of “Infinity War” will not

stick and Thanos’ snap will not have any resonance. The MCU has grown so fast, and eventually, the central focus narrative of the original Avenger films will be difficult to maintain.

This predicament is not necessarily a negative because this will allow new characters to begin their own evolutions. The lesserknown beings of Marvel might emerge after we lose a mainstay in the franchise. Finding out if these characters will become beloved is a huge risk for the universe if done the wrong way.

Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch, “Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle”) will probably become a big part of phase four, which would be a cool way to showcase the difference in leadership between his predecessors. Black Panther, aka T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman), also must be highlighted as a key figure for diversity and representing the inner strength of an individual.

The fresh restart that Marvel could work with might lead to a strippeddown approach for filmmakers.

The MCU has been heavily criticized for not taking advantage of the unique visual styles from accomplished directors. Even though the Sam Raimi Spider-Man films have their corny moments, they still include the exclusive signatures that Raimi employs. The best way for Marvel to get back to their roots is allowing the crew to be more experimental toward the source material.

A controversial subject among Marvel fans is the Fantastic Four and X-Men’s role in the world. For years, Fox owned the rights to these legendary works. A recent business deal merged Disney and Fox, allowing for their inclusion in the MCU. Taking full advantage of this transaction would be a perfect way to establish a baseline toward setting a new massive conflict in years to come.

Image from BestClips via YouTube The remaining team members unite for one last adventure in “Avengers: Endgame.”

At the end of the day, Marvel films still are a feast for the eyes.

Fanboys will always be divided over certain things, and the division over these aspects will leave a certain level of displeasure. It seems that, whichever way the MCU goes long term, it will be done in a manageable way. The amount of intelligent brains mixed with a substantial

amount of money guarantees success. The chemistry the stars possess on and off screen gives off an extreme sense of unity. As George Harrison sang, “All things must pass.” Unfortunately, the original Avengers will somehow disassemble, but audiences will be treated to a whole new era to eventually look upon many years from now.

LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

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Marvel Cinematic Universe still limited despite mass acclaim

Garrick Groover Staff Writer laker@oswegonian.com

Consistency is what drives a franchise. When audiences walk into a movie that belongs to a certain franchise, they have expectations. When people walk into a James Bond movie, they expect a spy thriller with a suave protagonist, white-knuckle action scenes and a sexy female co-star. Now, the James Bond film series has been active for close to 60 years, and it has, for the most part, dealt with a standard formula that involves international espionage. Some films have modernized for the times (take “Casino Royale” for example), but all in all, consistency is key.

For over 10 years now, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has maintained a strong consistency. This is not accidental, as every installment in the franchise is essential to push the overarching narrative along.

There are no unneeded organs in the MCU, as everything is part of one huge machine. All of

Image from Warner Bros. Pictures via YouTube The MCU has never been good with how it handles deaths, with one example being Quicksilver in “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”

this has been the work of Kevin Feige, the current president of Marvel Studios. His work has elevated the MCU toward a level that no other superhero franchise has ever achieved. We live in an age where an “AntMan” movie has the potential to make more money than a “Justice League” movie. That trend is likely to continue with “Avengers: Endgame.” However, the MCU formula may be more damaging to the franchise than

one would think.

The MCU formula is far from complex. Take a Marvel superhero, make him fight a poorly developed and forgettable villain and later insert a midcredits scene that teases the next film in the franchise, with a couple PG-13 jokes tossed in to lighten the mood. Some films try to shake up the formula by experimenting with different genres, such as the “Captain America” movies, which have

become more like spy thrillers, as well as the “Guardians of the Galaxy” movies being humorous, heavily character-driven space operas. Despite these exceptions, the formula is usually kept the same.

The biggest problem facing the MCU is with stakes. Take characters like Spider-Man and Doctor Strange. Both these characters die in “Avengers: Infinity War,” yet audiences know these deaths are meaning-

less. How? Well, “Spider-Man: Far From Home” is due to release in a few months, and the trailer clearly shows Tom Holland (“Avengers: Infinity War”) swinging around. “Doctor Strange 2” is in development with Benedict Cumberbatch (“Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle”) set to star, and the list goes on and on with every dusted character in “Infinity War.” Fake deaths are the worst aspect of the MCU formula. Sure, it is completely nonsensical to kill off popular characters for the sake of losing money, but why play up the drama when we all know they are going to come back anyway?

This drawback can be remedied by the mindset that the journey is better than the end result but when a movie is the culmination of 10 years’ worth of movies, the end result has got to be solid, and fake deaths are not the way to go. Maybe “Avengers: Endgame” will break this trope, but the MCU has got to learn how to deliver real death if it wants to move forward.

‘Iron Man 3’ deserves second shot, deeper than initially thought Nathaniel Ahart Staff Writer laker@oswegonian.com Many complaints have been made about “Iron Man 3” since its release in 2013, most of which include the liberties taken with the character of the Mandarin, the decision by Tony Stark of giving his address to the world and the fact that it did not feel like a normal MCU film.

Most importantly, however, people take issue with the fact that Tony was not wearing the Iron Man suit for a chunk of the film. However, there are some that would contest that is the film’s greatest strength, proving Tony Stark does not need the suit to still be Iron Man. First off, much respect to Shane Black for doing something different and, of course, for bringing his comedic senses he has become known for through the film’s insanely clever dialogue. One thing everybody can agree on at least is how charismatic Robert Downey Jr. is as the genius

billionaire playboy philanthropist. Coupling these two together provides for not only hilarity but also surprising depth and character progression.

The traumatic experiences from the alien invasion of New York have caused Tony to stay up for hours on end and lead to a lot of tinkering with new suits. When he seemingly does go to sleep, however, he wakes up in a terrible nightmare, thus

causing his suits to come to his “aid,” potentially putting his love, Pepper Pots, in danger.

Putting all of this time into this venture has led Tony to believe his suits are synonymous with his person, with him saying, “they’re a part of me.”

After his villa gets destroyed, his suit sends him to Tennessee, loses power and opts him to find a place to fix it up. Through these actions, Tony

infiltrates the Mandarin and defeats a few of his cronies almost single-handedly, but most importantly, without his suit.

Sure, he uses an abundance of Iron Man tech in the final fight against the actual Mandarin, but that is not what matters.

It is how he got there by using an incomprensible level of intellect and reliance on other people to help him regain control of his suits, thus securing

Image from Marvel UK via YouTube “Iron Man 3” received mixed reviews upon initial release in 2013 but has developed more of an appreciation in the last couple years.

victory. Although some may think that Tony seemingly out of nowhere decides to get the regulator taken out of his heart at the end of the film, it really is clearly a decision brought about after an eye-opening journey by the character. Tony realizes that, despite the fact that the regulator led to the birth of Iron Man, he has grown far beyond that and Iron Man is synonymous with Stark not because of the what the suit did for him, but because of what he can do without it.

Sometimes audiences forget about how great the character work is in this film and how impactful it makes the line in “Spider-Man: Homecoming” when Tony tells Peter Parker, “If you’re nothing without this suit, then you shouldn’t have it.” That is character consistency at its finest and is incredibly important when building a universe filled with so many distinct characters. Perhaps audiences will see the effects of “Iron Man 3” carry over to “Avengers: Endgame.”

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LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

Why ‘Thor: The Dark World’ unjustly sits at bottom of MCU Francesca Miesner Opinion Editor fmiesner@oswegonian.com “Thor: the Dark World” is not the worst Marvel movie. In fact, it is not even a bad movie.

Perhaps the plot is not very interesting, and Malekith might be the worst superhero villain besides Ares from “Wonder Woman,” but as far as character development and relationships go, “Thor: The Dark World” is very strong.

Superhero films follow a specific format. That is, of course, not to say that all superhero films are copy and paste. The plots can vary, and so can the characters. “Thor: The Dark World” has a very predictable plot and a rather basic villain.

However, the conversations between Thor and his brother Loki almost make the film. The last time people saw Loki, he was being a bland and out-of-character antagonist in “The Avengers.” He does typical villain things, such as trying to take over the world through aliens and craving power. In “Thor:

The Dark World,” Loki is given the chance to have a threedimensional character, which many fans were excited about.

He has his comic book sass and chaotic-neutral personality, as opposed to the really awkward characterization we saw in “The Avengers.”

The hardest relationship to write in screenwriting, playwriting or fiction writing is a sibling relationship. Each set of siblings has its own slang or mannerisms, so what one sibling might say, the other might not. The writers for this film nailed the dialogue perfectly.

Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston have the perfect banter and sibling dynamic. Often, the timing of their spats is not ideal, which only adds to the organicness of the situation.

The argument here is not that “Thor: The Dark World” is the best Marvel movie. That title goes to “Captain America: The Winter Soldier.” However, to say that “Thor: The Dark World” is the worst MCU movie is to imply there is nothing to a superhero film other than the action

Image from Marvel Entertainment via YouTube Chris Hemsworth (left) and Jaime Alexander star as Thor and Lady Sif in the film’s opening action sequence.

scenes. The worst Marvel film is “Iron Man 3.” Something that all superhero films lack is the capability of allowing men to experience and show emotion. This is why a lot of people who like Tony Stark were excited for “Iron Man 3.” The promise was that Tony Stark would have posttraumatic stress disorder from his previous experiences in other films he has been in. However, the film mentions that he has post-traumatic stress disor-

der and shows it briefly through how it hurts those around him, and then, he is cured. The villain from “Iron Man 3” is incredibly forgettable, and the relationship between Stark and Pepper Potts is one of the least organic relationships in the whole series. Potts is constantly fed up with Stark’s bologna and says as much, but then his actions do not have any actual repercussions on their relationship.

Part of an action film is, ob-

viously, the action. What makes people love an action film is the characters, the relationships and how it adds to the potential trilogy or series that it is a part of.

This is something that “Thor: The Dark World” does supremely well.

Both Thor and Loki in this film are lovable and well-developed.

By the time the end rolls around, audiences care about the characters, which is more than can be said for some of the others on the list of Marvel’s most hated.

Marvel’s Mad titan Thanos far less complex than fans think Stephen Novak Staff Writer laker@oswegonian.com Thanos is only appreciated by pretentious knowit-alls that pretend to understand resource management and try to actively disagree with the professor in their classes. People think he has this wild fantasy with this relatable motive for sustaining life, but it is a pretty simple equation. If everyone on Earth wants tickets to “Avengers: Endgame,” well, they do not have the resources for everyone. Granted, one could instill the virtue of patience and still erase people who like to spoil movies online and the problem will sort itself out in a few years, but Thanos does not have time for rational solutions.

The only thing he has going for him is the fact that he could mess up the Avengers, but honestly, so could Disney.

But who could forget that he is the “strongest in the uni-

verse”? The guy is really just a beefcake Josh Brolin.

“Oh, but he worked so hard for the stones!” But did he really, though? Thanos was not the guy trying to pull the Time Stone from Doctor Strange. He sent his ugly buddy to do it while he beat up the Collector, a much easier target. Michael Scott has a better work etiquette than this purple loser.

What else did he actually do for his cause? Throw his daughter off a mountain?

There are a ton of people that would do that even without the Soul Stone up for grabs.

Everything else is done by either his magic gauntlet or his nearly endless army.

Thanos would be nothing but an angry nerd tweeting at Marvel without those.

Who knows? Maybe now that he has the sun shining on a grateful universe, he can finally open up his account.

Granted, the Avengers only have 0.000007% (according to Doctor Strange)

Image from Marvel Entertainment via YouTube Villain Thanos had a complicated plan with a misguided motive, yet fans still praise the moral question he poses.

chance of beating him, but thankfully, most audience members are in the single dimension where they probably do. Come on, do you really think “Endgame” is coming toward a miserable failure? And all it takes for the Avengers to win is for YOU (yes you) to buy an $8.00 ticket at your local theater. How is that for resource management?

People say he is sympathetic, but really? The moment your henchmen are referring to people as meaningless humans, you are probably not winning boss of the year. What are even the benefits of working for the guy? 401k? Dental?

Healthcare? That last one is not going to matter if you do not get excluded from the 50/50 snap.

In reality, Thanos is just a two-bit villain with a semicomplex goal. His personality is that he simply will always do the thing that gets him what he wants, even if it makes him sad. Marvel has something going on with the whole “are we overpopulating” thing, but it is being spearheaded by a lame 40-year-old dad who should probably stick to Fortnite.

LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

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MCU Team-up efforts not solid, could use correction

Image from Marvel Entertainment via YouTube War Machine's fall in "Captain America: Civil War" is one of many problems within MCU team-up effort.

Charlie Shipley Staff Writer laker@oswegonian.com The current state of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is nothing short of a powerhouse, with three out of the last four movies grossing over $1 billion worldwide and even its lowestgrossing films being held in higher regard than most superhero films. Marvel has carefully crafted a legacy around films that are so interconnected it would take a lifetime to dissect all the secrets and find all the Easter eggs that are hidden and be near impossible to appreciate the scale at which these stories have been told over the last 11 years. So, Mar-

vel fans should enjoy it while it lasts because it will not last for long.

One of the most prized aspects of the Marvel films has been the way in which they can seamlessly interweave characters so that any hero is likely to show up in any film, but none more so than the “Avengers” films and “Captain America: Civil War.” The best parts about these movies are the character dynamics and development based off their interactions with one another, but these are also the worst parts of the MCU as a whole. The thing that average moviegoers see when they watch Captain America fight Iron Man and Black Panther with the help of the Winter Sol-

dier is a well-crafted action sequence and dialogue that build these characters’ relationships with one another.

That is the problem moving forward with the MCU post “Avengers: Endgame.” How are people supposed to understand the characterization of a complex and storied character such as the Winter Soldier when they have only seen him through the lens of one of the most simple characters to exist in “Captain America”? How are audiences supposed to accept Doctor Strange taking on a role in future Avengers teamup films (most likely filling the Tony Stark role based on their similar story arcs centered around redemption and having an ego check) when “Avengers: Infinity War” was the first time he has even interacted with other members of the Marvel Universe? The issue is that the Marvel team-up movies only work because of the development of these characters within their own solo films building up to these major events.

The perfect example is the first “Thor” film, which led the title character perfectly into the first “Avengers” film. These moments help audiences relate

to these fantastical heroes and feel earned in earlier team-up films through what was four years and five films.

Then it came time for the next team-up film, and rather than the solo films aiming to build to “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” they took on the task of continuing our heroes’ selfjourneys and developing their own worlds, which then reflected in the fact that “Age of Ultron” was ultimately a garbled mess. Not only do the threats the heroes face in their solo films ultimately make the big team-up threat that is Ultron feel much less pressing, but it also ends up throwing the entire MCU for a loop, as it simply makes no sense why none of the other Avengers members showed up for any of the phase-two threats given their scale.

Rather than learning from its mistakes, Marvel did the same thing with “Civil War,” which, though not technically an Avengers film, has 90% of the team in it. Marvel again recycles the concept that this event will change our heroes for films to come, rather than having our heroes evolving through their natural progres-

sions and then having Civil War be the cause of all of these heroes resolving to disagree with each other. It is much more interesting to watch Steve Rogers go from the allAmerican boy to a fugitive over the course of several films as opposed to half of one.

This is why Disney+ feels like the best-case scenario for a majority of Marvel’s superheroes. Now, rather than trying to fit 43 character arcs into one film, a feat which will inevitably lead to clutter like Infinity War, with Disney+, this will not be an issue. Winter Soldier or the Falcon can be developed further before they have to take up the Captain America mantle. Disney+ can develop Scarlet Witch and Vision’s relationship, so when it comes time to unplug that talking toaster, it does not leave audiences wondering why are we arguing over this matter when the fate of the universe is at stake.

The fact of the matter is that Marvel team-up films can work.

With all the flaws the first film had, it still had the heart and soul of a film where individuals have to work together as a team, which is what these films need to be and sadly are not.

'X-Men,' 'Fantastic Four' would work best on new Disney+ Zak Haines Staff Writer laker@oswegonian.com For all those who live under rocks and have somehow not heard the news, Disney has recently finished its purchase of 20th Century Fox, and with that, the properties of the X-Men franchise, Deadpool and the Fantastic Four have officially returned home to Marvel where they belong. With this purchase of over $70 billion, this leaves only Spider-Man, Hulk (solo movies) and Namor the Submariner as the only Marvel properties not in the Mouse’s clutches. With all the heroes in just the X-Men universe and powerful characters from the Fantastic Four comics, the question for Marvel and Disney is where to put all of these big names. The obvious answer here is to stock up on the new streaming service, Disney+.

With Disney already announcing Marvel shows, such as “Loki,” “Falcon and Winter Soldier” and

“WandaVision,” for the side heroes who deserve some more screen time, it makes more sense to add the X-Men onto the streaming service as well. Having big-name characters, such as Cyclops, Jean Grey, Beast and, of course, Wolverine, in their own live-action TV series funded

by Disney seems like a much more sensible plan than to overload the movie schedule MCU already has planned out. Just as well, it will only help to bolster Disney’s new platform. Setting the X-Men in a more personal setting will help the character development go a long way. It can help clear a lot of confusion going from Fox’s universe to Disney’s new TV universe. Although some characters like Deadpool, Cable and Domino will be staying on the big screen, along with other eventual XForce movies, Disney has a chance to build up its X-Men fan base on a more personal platform.

For the Fantastic Four, this gets a bit tricky. The Fantastic Four have never been a cinematic powerhouse.

Even the 2005 movie, which arguably is the best version of the group, falls short compared to other superhero movies, especially in that era. Perhaps it is time for a change of platform. Although this idea has potential, the powerful villains of the Fantastic Four have too much cinematic potential. A Doctor Doom showdown against the Avengers and Fantastic Four that creates an entire new direction for the MCU or the ever-looming threat of Galactus vs Fantastic Four more so on the cosmic side of Marvel are both options that would work in Marvel cinematic format. The best way to use the Fantastic Four in a TV setting is to have the enemies grounded. This would not only be the best solution for the Fantastic Four but might also have the potential to bring back the former Netflix Defenders back under the full control of Marvel Studios.

Having a Fantastic Four/Defenders team-up against enemies in New York would be the best way to help the overly cinematic Fantastic Four

and the not-so-ready-for-cinema Defenders come under one roof.

This has been mainly speculation.

Nothing is definite, as Marvel has not announced anything related to X-Men or Fantastic Four and probably will not until the last of the Fox movies are finished. But there is a trade-off for these well-known and loved properties. Marvel has proven time and time

again that it can take any hero and make them well known to the world.

Characters like Scarlet Witch, Vision and Winter Soldier have been able to become everyone’s favorite supporting characters and are finally getting the time they deserve on the screen.

For fans of the X-Men and Fantastic Four comics and franchises, their day in the sun is coming soon.

Image from ABC News via YouTube Disney+ seems to be the safest bet for X-Men and Fantastic Four properties.

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FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

Crossword Puzzle

Sudoku Fill in the grid so that each row, column and 3x3 block contains 1-9 exactly once.

Down 1. Smell 2. Persia, now 3. Mexican music type 4. Mouse’s kin 5. Exist 6. Opposite of bro 7. Sewing guide 8. Wanderers 9. Lincoln, et al.

10. Skeleton part 11. Solidifies 17. Hairspray type 19. Common article 22. Kind of exercise 23. Holdup 24. Before, in poems

25. Angry 27. Polar water formations 28. Rowing blade 29. 2nd amendment lobby 32. Built 35. Least wild 37. Cooking vessel 40. Urgent abbr.

41. Inform 42. Bread spread 44. Negatives 45. Hearty soup 47. Wall-climbing vine 48. Neckline shape 49. Make a mistake

Across

1. Edge 4. Grating sound 8. Apprehends 12. Period of note 13. Pavarotti solo 14. Bassoon’s relative 15. Lobe site 16. Last will and ___ 18. Make a sweater 20. Taunts 21. Discoverer’s cry 23. Cow crowd 24. TV host 26. Wearing away 30. Cheer sound 31. Bridle straps 33. Station wagon 34. Magazine VIPs 36. “Phantom of the ___” 38. Egg on 39. Toss 40. ___ energy 43. Hamilton bills 46. Picky 50. Spoil 51. Pub beverages 52. Continually 53. Mild exclamtion 54. Flower bed 55. Tinter 56. Compass pt.

For this week’s puzzle answers...

Go to Oswegonian.com and click on the Laker Review tab!

LAKER REVIEW

FRIDAY, April 26, 2019

Student Artwork

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Flashback Friday As this weekend marks the release of Marvel Studios’ highly anticipated “Avengers: Endgame,” it also marks the anniversary of the studio’s third feature film, “Iron Man 2.” On April 26, 2010, the film first premiered in Los Angeles. The film was directed by Jon Favreau and starred Robert Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow, who will both be returning to star in “Avengers: Endgame.” The film currently holds a 73% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Artwork contributed by Zach Ericson

Image from YouTube Movies via YouTube

Oswego Cinema 7 Fri. April 26 - Sun. April 28 Avengers: Endgame 10:00 a.m. 10:50 a.m. 11:50 a.m. 1:50 p.m.

5:40 p.m.

Avengers: Endgame 12:50 p.m.

3D The Curse of La 12:30 p.m.

Llorona Shazam!

10:25 a.m.

2:40 p.m. 3:40 p.m.

6:30 p.m.

7:30 p.m. 9:30 p.m. 10:20 p.m.

4:40 p.m.

8:30 p.m.

2:50 p.m.

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7:10 p.m. 10:05 p.m.

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