theSpartanDaily.com
Volume 131, Issue 39
06
2008
THURSDAYNOVEMBER
STUDENT CULTURE
Serving San Jose State University Since 1934
Propp 8 opp pponents disapp ppointed
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CD Review: Tom Gabel’s EP rocks out about as well as an ‘89 Buick Opponents of Proposition 8 rally at City Hall in Oakland on Tuesday during a statewide demonstration Courtesy of AP images organized by African-American communities and Prop. 8 opponents. Proposition 8 passed with 52.5 percent of California voters supporting it.
ONLINE
RYAN BUCHAN Staff Writer
Some students at SJSU expressed disappointment at the passing Proposition 8, which denied marriage to same-sex couples. “I don’t feel it’s OK to take away their rights because they are slightly different,” said Diana Lin, a junior civil engineering major. “They are putting religion into politics.” Amy Holesten, a junior television,
radio, film and theatre major, said it is an issue of discrimination against a minority group. “It should not have been voted on,” she said. “It’s a majority vote against a minority group.” On Wednesday, students in the group Queers Thoughtfully Interrupting Prejudice had a meeting to reflect on the results of the election. Bonnie Sugiyama, the assistant director for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual
and Transgender Resource Center, said students discussed all aspects of the election including Barack Obama’s presidential victory and Proposition 8. She said all of the people in the meeting were happy about Obama being elected, but were disappointed by the result of Proposition 8. “It was definitely a bittersweet day,” Sugiyama said. “I was really sad, angry and kind of ashamed of California,” said Evelyn
Thorne, a sophomore creative arts major and secretary for Queers Thoughtfully Interrupting Prejudice. “We just passed a prop. that discriminates against a group of people.” Thorne said she is straight, but she likes the gay community and has made many gay friends. “I want to be part of civil rights and equal rights movements for homosex-
The UAW not only represents academic student employees, but also multinational corporations, small manufacturers and state and local governments, hospitals and private nonprofit organizations. “We’ve reached agreement about number of topics,” he said. “However, as we reach the end, we found that the university is negotiating unfairly.” Academic student employees include teaching associates, graduate assistants and instructional student assistants. Clifthorne said the CSU has conditioned bargaining, telling the union to
wait until negotiations with other unions on a fee waiver benefit are over, it has not provided the information to finish negotiation, and it doesn’t have an authority to bargain and make a determinable decision in a negotiation process. “Under those conditions,” he said, “when employers won’t negotiate fairly and are breaking the rules of the game, we’re not left with a lot of choices beside to file charges … and prepare for a possible unfair-labor-practice strike.” Clifthorne said a fee waiver that the union is requesting covers the compensation for the state university
fees and campus mandatory fees. Teresa Ruiz, public affairs communication specialist at the CSU office of the chancellor, said it would cost the CSU about $8 to 11 million per academic year to implement a fee waiver that would cover all 6,000 UAW members. “It’s problematic and definitely something we’d like to resolve,” she said. “If it’s not possible because the UAW would like to strike … they have the right to do (so) if they feel it’s an appropriate thing to do.”
Preparing for life changes Student employees could walk out over contract with CSU RIE NAKANISHI Staff Writer
NEWS
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A union that represents more than 6,000 academic student employees in the California State University has filed charges against the system for unfair labor practices, which may lead to a possible strike in the near future. Scott Bailey Clifthorne, representative of the union, said United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW) 4123, the official name of the union, has been in contract negotiations with the CSU since May.
Evening accident injures 2 at 10th and San Carlos
No longer a ‘whopping’ deal
PROP 8page2
CSUpage2
Rainy weather means deliveries up, walk-ins down for local businesses RYAN BUCHAN Staff Writer
Two people were taken away in an ambulance Tuesday night after being hit by a car traveling 15 mph or faster. ADAM MURPHY Staff Writer
Two pedestrians, a male and female, were struck by a beige Acura TL Tuesday at the intersection of 10th and San Carlos streets at approximately 5:45 p.m. The vehicle was making a left turn on a green light and hit the pedestrians
at 15 mph or faster, said Jordan Barnes, a sophomore international business major and a witness of the accident. The pedestrians had a walk signal and were inside the crosswalk, Barnes said. “The guy didn’t have any observation,” Barnes said. “The guy didn’t even look.” University police arrived about
MIKE ANDERSON / Spartan Daily
one minute after the accident and an ambulance arrived approximately five minutes later, Jordan said. Both victims showed physical and audible signs of pain, but were coherent when lifted into the ambulance. The driver of the automobile that struck the pedestrians declined to comment.
As the sunny weather gives way to winter and San Jose is bombarded with rain, students have to deal with soggy shoes and wet papers. But downtown businesses don’t all feel the same effects from the change in weather. Robert Pezzaniti, manager of the Pizz’a Chicago on the corner of San Fernando and San Pedro streets, said the restaurant experiences slower business for people coming to the restaurant to dine in. Pezzaniti said the restaurant loses walk-in business but makes up for it with an increase in deliveries. On a normal day the restaurant, he said, averages 20 to 30 deliveries. When it rains, that number increases to about 60 to 70.
RAINpage2
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News theSpartanDaily.com
06 Fee waiver for student employees at center of debate in labor negotiations
CSU
Clifthorne said what is unfair is that “academic student employees are the only group of unionized employees or administrators at the California State University that don’t get a fee waiver.” Ruiz said the CSU won’t be able to assist its requests at this moment due to its tight budget. According to the California State University Web site, the CSU was provided nearly $3 billion from the state general fund this year, and $1.5 billion from student fee revenue. The budget is $215 million less than what the CSU has requested for its operational needs for 2008-09 academic year. “It is kind of apparent to ev-
eryone that we’re in the middle of the budget crisis,” Ruiz said. “We really don’t have the funding that we requested.” The contract has been extended until Nov. 7, and the union and the CSU will have an opportunity to bargain Friday. Siddaiah Yarra, a graduate civil engineering student and a student assistant at in the math department, is a member of the UAW. He said he learned about the union’s charges against the CSU through the mail. Yarra said he is satisfied with his job as well as his pay, but negotiating with the CSU about a fee waiver is a good action since there might be some academic
BURGER KING ENDS DEAL MATTHEW KIMEL Staff Writer
There’s something missing at the Burger King located inside of the Market Cafe: the giant banner promoting two double cheeseburgers for $2. “I planned to go get the twofor-two, take advantage of the offer, on Monday and found it wasn’t there,” graduate education credential student A-Jay Nicolas said. Peter Au, a Burger King employee, said the special promotion ended last Thursday. “Times are tough. The economy is bad,” Nicolas said. “It was a really good deal.” “We were losing at least one dollar on every double cheeseburger we made, and we had to cut it out because we are trying to run a business,” said Burger King nighttime supervisor Danielle Price. “You can’t run a business if you’re losing money.” Price, a senior accounting major, said the deal was offered for approximately one year. She said no data is currently available as to whether double cheeseburgers sales have decreased since the price jump. “Business has been a little slow (this week), but that could be due to the rain,” she said. “The weather has changed this week.” Now that the special has
ended, the price of two double cheeseburgers is $4.58. “Prices are going up everywhere,” Price said. “It’s part of life.” Some students didn’t agree with Price. Nicolas said he couldn’t imagine how much money the burger joint would have made if it was charging the regular price all along. “Think about it, they charge what, 80 cents for a piece of cheese?” junior computer engineer major Ryan Densberger said. Some students didn’t think taking away the special was just. Sreekar Palicherla, a computer networking graduate student, said Burger King should reconsider its “drastic” price increase. “I know many of my friends usually have the double cheeseburgers,” he said. “It’s disappointing for many of the students coming in here.” Ognian Sabev, a junior electrical engineering major, said he wouldn’t be surprised to see the price of a double cheeseburger jump to $5 within six months to a year. “I’m not sure how all this economic stuff works,” he said.” but in the long run we could see big inflation in food prices.”
SPARTAGUIDE SPARTAGUID 06
EVENTS CALENDAR
TODAY
Student Showcase Hour 12:30 to 1:15 p.m. in the Music Building Concert Hall. Contact Professor Joan Stubbe 924-4649.
Don’t Judge A Book By Its Cover Come to this workshop and take a look at the stereotypes that surround us everyday. 3 p.m. in Clark 118. Contact Veronica Mendoza at veronica.mendoza@sjsu.edu.
The Rock Are you a musician struggling in the midst of this business-esque atmosphere? Come to the Rock where you can find musicians, play music and be heard. 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the Student Union, Montalvo Room. Contact Jeremy Mallard at Maljeremy@gmail.com
Bible Study Acts 2 Christian Fellowship has weekly Bible studies on
Thursdays. 7 p.m. in the Student Union Guadalupe Room. Contact Justin Foon at jfoon1@yahoo.com or (415) 786-9873.
National Education AssociationStudent Program Join us and meet fellow future teachers and hear guest speakers. Open to undergrads and graduate students. 6:30 p.m. in the Almaden Room (3rd floor of the Student Union). Contact melissa.abreu@gmail. com or katiecamara@gmail. com
07
FRIDAY
Productive Procrastination Come and see for yourself how to beat procrastination and be productive with it. 1:30 p.m. in Clark 118. Contact Veronica Mendoza at veronica.mendoza@sjsu.edu.
Sparta Guide is provided free of charge to students, faculty and staff members. The deadline for entries is noon, three working days before the desired publication date. Space restrictions may require editing of submission. Entries are printed in the order in which they are received. Submit entries online at thespartandaily.com or in writing at DBH 209.
student employees who have complaints about their jobs. Yarra said he has no plans of signing up to join the strike. “Striking is not a good thing,” he said. “We have to decide
pus tutoring program at SJSU. “(Tutoring) is very, very helpful,” she said. “The reason I do well on my classes is because I’m able to get tutoring whenever I need to,” noting that students can’t always
“Academic student employees are the only group of unionized employees or administrators at the California State University that don’t get a fee waiver.” SCOTT BAILEY CLIFTHORNE UAW representative
something in meeting ... get some solutions talking.” Raquel Ortiz, a junior math major, is one of many students who take advantage of an on-cam-
make it to professor’s office hours. Ortiz said it would affect her greatly if the union decides to strike because tutoring won’t be available.
RAIN
Some businesses benefit from rain; proximity to campus plays bigger role He added that last Saturday, an extra delivery driver was called in to meet the increased demand. Not every pizza place in San Jose experiences the same effect. Josh McGhie, owner of Fourth Street Pizza and an SJSU graduate in marketing, said he does not think the rain makes a difference for deliveries. Dine-ins, however, decrease with the first rain of the year, he said. “If you go to San Jose State, would you want to walk a block and a half to come eat here?” McGhie said. “Maybe you hit a place a little bit closer.” Mgun Sik Chang, the owner of Peanuts on San Fernando Street near Sixth Street, said his businesses’ proximity to SJSU has had a positive effect when it rains. Another business in downtown also benefits from rain. Jerome Holmes, an assistant manager at Camera 12 and a senior music major, said that with the first rain of the year, business increases at the theater, which is located on Second Street and Paseo de San Antonio. “A lot of people like coming to a movie to just stay out of the weather,” He said. “You can’t do sunny day activities in rainy weather, and movies happen to be good in rainy day weather.” He added that business was good last weekend, but in most years business goes back to normal after it rains for a while. One student said he does not think it is worth it to go out during the rain. “There is a lot more to prepare for,” said Cesar Benito, a sophomore art major. “You have to get your umbrella, get your car. It’s harder to do things if you go out, like if you’re going to watch a movie or something. It’s a little
bit harder to do because you are focusing on the rain, on the weather, than on what you’re trying to do.” SJSU students Miguel Velazquez, Courtney Peterson and Joshua Radzikowski all said they would rather stay home and watch movies or play video games than go out in a storm. Just across the Paseo de San Antonio from Camera 12 there is a business that does not enjoy the same success as the movie theater. Alex Sanchez, supervisor at Starbucks and a senior industrial technology major, said last weekend was really slow. He thought it was partly because he and his workers had to put the patio equipment away due to the rain, which made the coffee shop look closed. If it was not for the light rail station right in front of it, Sanchez said, he thinks Starbucks would not get any business at all. “We would think because it is cold, people would want a hot drink.” Sanchez said. “But for some reason, the rain keeps them out.” Not every coffee shop follows this trend. Eva Roa, a freshman international business major who works at Bellano’s coffee shop in Santa Clara, said she sees business increase on wet days. “When it rains a lot, more people actually come to our coffee shop because it is a nice, warm place to be,” Roa said. Nestor Daniel, owner of Muchos Taqueria, said he is not sure if it is the rain or the economy that has been keeping people out of his Santa Clara street business. He said that when it has rained, his business has been really slow compared with sunny days, but in the past the rain usually did not make much of a difference.
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THURSDAYNOVEMBER
Robert Cullen, professor and supervisor of teaching associates in the English and comparative literature department, said he hasn’t heard anything from the university on the subject, but found out about the news by himself. “I’m surprised that no one in the university administration, as far as I know, has alerted me to it, so I found out very recently,” he said. “I didn’t know (fee waiver) was an issue.” Clifthorne said being an academic student employee is challenging in terms of fee benefits. “For the huge majority of people that aren’t getting their fees paid for by some other means like financial aid packages or
state university grants,” he said. “It’s poverty wages.” In preparation of a possible strike, Clifthorne said, the membership of the union has voted for and authorized its elected bargaining team to call a strike by a 98.5 percent margin if the negotiation bogs down. Figuring out when the union would go on a strike — if it ever does — entirely depends on the next negotiation with the CSU, Clifthorne said. “(The CSU) is willing to come to the table, give us the information, and (if) they stop conditioning bargaining with other unions, it’s possible to reach agreement,” Clifthorne said.
PROP 8
Lawsuit filed will challenge prop’s legality uals,” she said. On May 15, the California Supreme Court ruled that a previous restriction placed on marriage in 2000 discriminated against gays and lesbians allowing same-sex marriage in California on June 16, according to reports from the San Francisco Chronicle. The Chronicle also reported that 18,000 same-sex marriages have occurred since the Supreme Court agreed to allow gay marriages to exist. Proposition 8 passed with a 52.5 percent approval Tuesday. “After seeing Prop. 22 in 2000 pass by such a big margin, to see that divide narrow in such a small amount of time is very hopeful to me,” Sugiyama said. “For that kind of social shift in ideology in social justice is very promising to our future.” California was not the only state where voters approved
restrictions on gay marriage on Tuesday. The St. Petersburg Times reported that Florida voters passed Amendment 2, which bans same-sex marriage. NBC 12 in Arizona reported that Proposition 102 was passed, denying same-sex couples to wed in that state. The Arkansas DemocratGazette stated that in Arkansas Act No.1 passed, which bans unmarried couples living with each other to adopt or foster children, stopping same-sex couples in that state from adopting children. A lawsuit has been filed with the California Supreme Court by the American Civil Liberties Union challenging the change to the state’s constitution. “It’s not right,” said Cameron Clayton, a sophomore business management major, talking about Proposition 8. “Hopefully, it gets overturned.”
Student Culture
theSpartanDaily.com
2008
CD REVIEW: TOM GABEL’S ‘HEART BURNS’
Gabel’s EP doesn’t ‘Rise Above’ anything, but it’s good enough ANGELO LANHAM
Student Culture Editor
My car is an ’89 Buick miniboat. It has been hit by middleaged women in Acuras, has some rust spots on the roof and no longer possesses its racing strip. But it has somehow survived about five years of my neglect. And from one specific angle, the car still looks damn sexy — until you get close to it, and it is revealed to be the poor wretch of a wreck it is.
owe something to Eddie Money (of all people), “Amputations” is a solid rock ‘n’ roll number with lyrics about as deep as you’d ever need a rock song to be. This is to say that goofy lines such as “Young love, doesn’t everyone deserve to be young and in love” are balanced by fairly deep and unrelated observations such as “Amputations, coming home to mother from our father’s wars / We were just children,” crescendoing to the rous-
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Records
Tom Gabel, of “Against Me” fame, has released a sevensong EP titled “Heart Burns” on Warner Bros. Records. It is currently available.
But, Shep the Buick still gets me where I need to go. Similarly, the new sevensong EP by Tom Gabel, “Heart Burns,” sounds great during the first, casual listen. The opening track, “Random Hearts,” features a pounding beat against a manic and dramatic guitar-driven progression. Gabel’s screeching vocals join in, belting about hate, war and “random hearts in a cruel, cruel world,” whatever that means. Sounds good so far. The next song, “Conceptual Paths” brings things down a bit, with a fairly typical acoustic progression and odd, synthesized hand-claps. This pretty much encapsulates the essence of the CD — powerful moments that really work are often countered by tepid bits found elsewhere on the album, or occasionally, on the same song. The better moments come with the more rocking tunes. Even if the opening riff might
ing finale, “What kind of future are you promising us?” The lyric, “Existential weight no longer holds you back,” from “Conceptual paths,” doesn’t really mean much that I can figure out.
It’s impossible to think Gabel doesn’t believe every word he sings. I’ve never even heard the word “exceptionalism,” from “Cowards Sing at Night,” an acoustic ditty that seems to be about war, but it must be something profound, perhaps a term to be used when just plain “exceptional” doesn’t do it. “Exceptionalism” is the art of being exceptional, perhaps. I got the impression that Gabel is a fairly literate fellow by some of the words he uses.
The trouble here is that the words often sound tossed in as an afterthought. The lyrics aren’t bad, but I suspect that either he was trying to move in a deeper direction from songs he usually writes, or that he’s been writing almostsensical, vaguely topical songs for quite some time and will never get past it. Nevertheless, a casual listen will reveal numerous high points on the EP, and it’s impossible to think that Gabel doesn’t believe every word he sings, even if he might not really know just what he’s singing about. “Harsh Realms,” a melancholy acoustic ballad set to a Dylanesque progression, is haunting, one of the most effective songs on the CD. The simple refrain, “Don’t Abandon Me” is sure to be heart-wrenching to those of the disposition to have their hearts wrenched. In “100 Years of War,” a 3/4time lament of war, featuring considerable depth, Gabel sings that “When your ballot is cast, 100 years of war is promised,” leading up to a surprise Quiet Riot chorus wherein a gang of hair metal leftovers all sing “Time will wait for no one.” “Anna is a Stool Pigeon,” the track heralded on the front of the cover as the peg the CD hangs on, is possibly the weakest track. The chorus, at a glance, is a great, witty, Warren Zevoninspired affair, if you don’t look too closely. “Eric fell in love with an FBI informant” makes you stop and listen until you realize the rest of the song is a fictional account of a stool pigeon turning a hippie in to the FBI. The reason for telling us this story isn’t clear, and it becomes a mumble of too many overthought words. Butch Vig, legendary Nirvana producer who is said to have had a hand in producing this EP, plays drums on this track. I didn’t know Butch played drums, and if he had a hand in producing this CD, I don’t know why exactly he allowed the $10 Radio Shack keyboard’s drum machine/clap sounds to weave their way in and out of this album. As a whole, this album is solid enough, well-intentioned, and you will get what you need out of it, much like my ’89 Buick.
DRINK OF THE WEEK
YA-AN CHAN / Spartan Daily
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THURSDAYNOVEMBER
HAZELNUT SIGNATURE HOT CHOCOLATE STARBUCKS
YA-AN CHAN Staff Writer
It’s about time for you to see a hot beverage in “Drink of the Week” for the first time this semester. A sudden craving for hot chocolate came to me at 5:15 p.m. on a cold November day, so I walked from Barnes & Noble to next door’s Starbucks. First of all, I’m not a Starbucks fan, and I can almost count on one hand how many times I go to Starbucks per year. At school, I don’t walk all the way to Second Street for a latte when I can go to on-campus places such as Peet’s Coffee at Market Café and On Fourth next to the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library. But I’ll make an exception for hazelnut signature hot
chocolate and spend $2.85 for it to be served in a white ceramic mug. Compared with $3.25 for a tall size (which is actually the smallest size), the mug seemed to hold much more, so I thought that was nice. I looked at the mug directly from the top and saw a thin brown circle of hot chocolate surrounding the white whipped cream in the middle. The menu said that it’s a classic and creamy European-style combination of chocolate and hazelnut flavor, but I didn’t see any hazelnut.
3 That’s not it. Once you pick up the drink, you will smell a rich hazelnut scent. There’s more. Once your mouth touches the drink after you stir it, you will taste a nice blend of chocolate and hazelnut syrup. It’s not going away. Once the hot chocolate flows down your throat and into your body, you will have the taste lingering in your mouth. As the white whipped cream slowly melted into the drink, the taste of hazelnut remained stronger than the chocolate and the overall sweetness of the drink was at the right level. I would suggest, however, that it’s better to enjoy the drink in a small serving and not to have it twice a day. In a 12-ounce tall size, the hazelnut signature hot chocolate contains 360 calories and 130 fat calories if served with nonfat milk and no whipped cream — just a quick nutrition fact. I wasn’t aware that the clock read 5:45 p.m. until I looked out to the window and saw the sun had completely set. Living in the age of digital convergence, our life pace is fast. Maybe you already followed the grab-and-go routine this morning when you ordered your first coffee before class, but that’s OK. Next time, you can try taking a moment to slow down with a hazelnut signature hot chocolate before rushing to do the next set of business on your todo list.
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Sports theSpartanDaily.com
06
2008
THURSDAYNOVEMBER
Banged-up Spartans to host La. Tech MATTHEW KIMEL Staff Writer
After recording its sixth win of the regular season, the SJSU football team is now among 41 Football Bowl Subdivision teams that are eligible to participate in postseason play. Only two teams in the Western Athletic Conference, the Boise State Broncos (8-0, 4-0 WAC) and the Spartans (6-3, 4-1 WAC), have reached eligibility thus far. “What it comes down to is Louisiana Tech, Fresno, Nevada and us playing a round robin tournament for who goes to a bowl game and who gets the highest conference finish (after Boise),” said Spartan head coach Dick Tomey. “We got a leg up on all those teams right now, but we got to play them all.” Tomey did not mention Hawaii (4-5, 3-3 WAC), who automatically gets a bid to play in the Hawaii Bowl should they win 7 of their 13 games. Depending on numerous variables, there are up to five teams from the WAC that can make bowl games. However, only three slots are guaranteed. This Saturday, the Spartans will host the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (4-4, 2-2 WAC) at Spartan Stadium. “We can’t really celebrate real long,” said Louisiana Tech head coach Derek Dooley in a teleconference on Monday. “We’re play-
ing probably the most improved team that’s really pulling themselves away from the others.” The Spartans are ahead 4-3 all time in the SJSU-Louisiana Tech series, and the home team has won the last five times. “(SJSU’s) a great football team, phenomenal defense, very good on special teams and it looks like they found some answers on offense this week,” Dooley said. Even though the Spartans won last week, Tomey was not impressed by the way they played. “If the team that played Idaho shows up this week, we’ll get embarrassed,” he said. “I hope they understand that.” Junior quarterback Kyle Reed did not play last week due to a broken tailbone. “The biggest thing we can hope for is Kyle to be a backup this week,” Tomey said. Quarterback Myles Eden, also a junior, will start once again this week after leading the Spartans to a 30-24 victory against Idaho. Tomey said he was happy with Eden’s performance, but not surprised he played well. Eden won the starting role in the offseason and has not seen much playing time since Reed came in during the second half of the season opener, leading the Spartans to victory over UC Davis. Junior wide receiver Terrance Williams said the quarter-
back change made a difference in communication between the offense, with more leadership being taken between plays. “I think that the huddle offense made a big difference to where we could communicate more,” Williams said. Tomey said junior defensive end Carl Ihenacho may play more in this week’s game, after getting limited playing time last week due to an injured thumb covered by a cast Tomey said was the size of a bowling ball. The defensive front will also be missing time from senior defensive end Jeff Schweiger. Senior running back Yonus Davis is not likely to play this week due to an ankle injury that occurred in last week’s game and junior Chris Reese is expected to start in his place.
Junior linebacker Travis Jones (No.14) and sophomore safety Devin WILLIAM COOLEY / Spartan Daily Newsome (No. 24) attempt to bring down Boise State wide receiver Vinny Perretta during the Spartans’ loss to the Broncos on Oct. 24.
CORRECTION A photo from the SJSU baseball Alumni Game published in Tuesday’s edition of the Spartan Daily incorrectly identified former Spartan Junior Ruiz as SJSU graduate student Steve Connolly.
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K-8th private school seeks responsible individuals for extended daycare, P/ T in the afternoon (2:306pm M-F). No ECE units required. Previous experience with children a must. Please call 248-2464. (408)244-1968 (408)244-1968 SURVEY TAKERS NEEDED: Make $5-$25 per survey. Do it in your spare time. www. GetPaidToThink.com EARN EXTRA MONEY Students needed ASAP Earn up to $150 per day being a mystery shopper No Experience Required Call 1-800-722-4791 HELP WANTED: Waitress/Waiter for neighborhood Thai food restaurant located in San Jose near Los Gatos. We have friendly customers (techies, local residents), warm decor, and great food. Good tips and nice management included. Flexible hours, P/T. Familiarity with Thai cuisine very helpful. Call Judy. (408)691-2997
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2008
THURSDAYNOVEMBER
I’ll never fully understand ... MARK POWELL
BINGE THINKING Barack Obama will be our next commander-in-chief. And I’ll never fully understand. I’ll never fully understand why hundreds of people congregated at the John Carlos and Tommie Smith Statue on Tuesday night, just a few moments after Sen. Obama secured his spot as this country’s 44th president. I’ll never fully understand the absolute, unadulterated joy that beamed from the faces of the SJSU African-American students who made the impromptu trek from the dorms to the symbolic statue. They were in Heaven. I’ll never fully understand their angelic singing, their strong “O-ba-ma!” chants or the palpable buzz that their presence created.
I’ll never fully understand because I’ll never really know what black people have been through — no matter how many History Channel programs I’ve viewed or how many black friends I have. Honestly, I only have a couple. I’ll never fully understand because I’ll never be told by my parents that they faced racism, that they had basic opportunities taken away from them because they couldn’t control the color of their skin — that they prayed the U.S. would someday have a president that shared their ethnicity. I’ll never fully understand because I’ll never look back through my family’s history and see photos of “Whites Only” bathrooms or read accounts of expulsions from restaurants. I was born and raised in a city in California’s central valley. I’m half white, half whiter. I’m not ashamed of my background, but I’m aware that I’ve had less to fight for than people of color. I’m aware that friends from back home would prob-
ably never vote for a black man. Any black man. I’ll never fully understand why those teens from Jena, La., sought vengeance after six nooses were hung in their 21stcentury neighborhood. The placement of the racist images was stupid and racist and all kinds of backwards, but I could only feel so upset. Because of who I am, but more important, what I’ve never been through, I could only feel so much. I’ll never fully understand what the election of Obama means to AfricanAmericans and other Americans of color. It would insult them to insinuate that I do. Tuesday’s celebration at the Smith and Carlos Statue couldn’t have lasted more than 10 minutes, but to those students who lived it — who truly lived it — it was an eternal moment. I’ll never understand the true lineage from Africa, to the ships, to America, to the fields, to slaves, to free people, to not-actually-free people, to voters, to
SJSU students celebrate at the MATT MOUNTFORD / Spartan Daily Smith-Carlos Statue outside Dwight Bentell Hall after the presidential election was called for Barack Obama on Tuesday night. politicians, to teachers, to musicians, to CEOs, to mothers, to fathers, to brothers, to sisters, to equals, to the president of the United States. And although I’ll never fully understand why that lineage is so important, it is the blood that pumps through this nation’s veins. At one point during the celebration, a young woman climbed onto the gold
medal stand, and, with Smith’s statue looming behind her, shouted beyond the commotion, “I’m going to be the first black woman president!” I’ll never fully understand. But she does, and, yes, she can. “Binge Thinking” appears every other Thursday. Mark Powell is a Spartan Daily sports editor.
Give a girl some room; Why does my Facebook give me unwanted advice? come back when you’ve ANDREA FRAINIER
My Facebook thinks I’m fat. And hairy. And acne-prone. And that my teeth are yellow. OK, so maybe one of those assessments is right on the money, but I’m not saying which one. I joined Facebook recently at the insistence of friends. But now every time I log in I get bombarded with advertisements for razors, acne medicine and the Hills Diet – and, like, doesn’t everyone want to be just like Lauren Conrad? After exploring the social networking Web site, I discovered Facebook surveys a user’s profile to pull personal information that advertisers desperately covet. Facebook will look at a user’s gender, age, location and interests and then bombard them with ads for products they think the users are most likely to purchase. As a 22-year-old female, Facebook has assumed that I’m diet obsessed, losing the uphill battle against acne and would like to permanently remove my leg hair. Well, Facebook and I haven’t been friends long enough for it to know that I once ate an entire extra-large pepperoni pizza by myself, my morning facial starts and ends with a bar of soap and I only shave my legs if I’m wearing shorts.
Yes, I know I could just ignore the advertisements, but if I don’t take a stance, Facebook will continue its chokehold on me, advertising superficial products that I don’t need. And that would mean Facebook wins. Here’s another thing Facebook should know: I’m a very competitive person. So I’ve devised a plan to beat it at its own game. Underneath each advertisement Facebook provides a thumbs up and thumbs down link so users can approve or disapprove each advertisement. Facebook then asks for the reasoning behind selecting or discarding the ad.
As a 22-year-old female, Facebook has assumed that I’m diet obsessed, losing the uphill battle against acne and would like to permanently remove my leg hair. For every advertisement that popped up promoting a superficial grooming product, I gave it the thumbs down and told Facebook that it was offensive. Up pops up another ad, the supermodel diet. Offensive. How about
teeth whitening? Thumbs down. The New California Diet? Not for me. ProActive? Like I would ever buy a product that Jessica Simpson endorses. So what does Facebook think of the new me? Now I get bombarded with advertisements asking if I had just broken up with my boyfriend, and if so, there’s a company that could help me win my ex back. I guess if a young woman doesn’t buy into the beauty myth, it means there is something fundamentally wrong with her that makes her unable to hold onto a man. I’m tired of living in a society where beauty is a demand that’s used as a tool to pass judgment against others. A person’s self-worth shouldn’t hinge upon the clothes that she wears the cosmetics she uses or whatever other product a company throws millions of dollars behind in order to convince the masses that it is essential to life. I’m almost positive Facebook wasn’t thinking about the social implications when choosing ads to promote. They are just looking to turn a buck. Still, I think we can benefit from a world that cares a little less about Lauren Conrad’s diet and a little more about (insert any social justice issue here). Andrea Frainier is a Spartan Daily staff writer.
learned some manners KELLY ENOS
You’re all dressed up and out with your ladies heading to that popping club with the great music, fun drinks and plenty of single gentlemen. Right? Nope. Wrong. Those guys are not gentlemen; they are what I like to call “grabbers.” You are on the dance floor and shaking your booty like there is no tomorrow. Your ladies are all around you when all of a sudden you feel a presence behind you. You’re assuming it’s a guy, well, yes it is. He moves a little closer. The music is raging and you’re shaking your groove thing. All of a sudden his hands slide to a not-so-touchable place that is a no-trespassing zone for anyone who is not in a monogamous relationship. What gives a guy the right to think he can grab and or touch anything he wants because it’s dark and the music is blaring. Earth to the guys out there: Did you know girls have developed a system to get away from you freaky ones? We make immediate eye contact with one of our girls and they either sandwich themselves in between you and that nasty guy or slyly pull you away. Clever, right? Yes, we girls have devised a plan to weasel away from you. So men, keep this for your information and remember it
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the next time you reach for that not-soreachable place. What happened to the gentlemen who dance nicely—the guys who ask if you would like to dance before they grope you? It seems they do not exist any longer. According to an article titled “Personal Space… or Guys who grope… and the women who have to dance with them,” by Benson Wong from the Web site Dancenet.com, guys have no right to grab whatever part of a woman’s body they want. “Every woman has her own personal space, which she does not want violated. An acceptance to an invitation to dance is not permission to feel or grope your partner (I can’t believe I even have to say what is obviously common sense, though I suppose ‘common sense’ is really an oxymoron and not that common).” I went out with some friends a few weeks ago and this not-so-wonderful guy came up behind one of my friends and started grinding his penis on her. Seriously, haven’t guys heard of personal space? Whatever happened to people staying out of it? This dubious dance move is even called “grinding.” What on earth possessed people to name it something that ridiculous? It sounds disgusting. Almost robotic. There is a difference between fun, casual dancing and “grinding.” If we want to grind, trust me guys, you’ll know. Read our body language and we’ll give you subtle clues and you’ll know exactly what we want. As my grandmother once said, keep your hands to yourself at least until you know the gentlemen’s last name. After all, you really can’t hear that guy’s surname over the blaring music anyway. So guys save us the trouble, back up and move on. We don’t want any of that free attention we didn’t ask for. Kelly Enos is a Spartan Daily staff writer.
QUOTE OF THE DAY “His success alone commands my respect for his ability and perseverance. But that he managed to do so by inspiring the hopes of so many millions of Americans who had once wrongly believed that they had little at stake or little influence in the election of an American president is something I deeply admire and commend him for achieving. JOHN MCCAIN Arizona senator said Tuesday night during his concession speech.
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06
2008
THURSDAYNOVEMBER
Musician makes second appearance at SJSU, this time as solo act BIANCA deCASTRO Staff Writer
The air was cold and leaves fell from the trees surrounding the Student Union Amphitheatre. As people passed by, one student heard the sounds of an acoustic guitar that captured her attention and pulled her away from her intended route. “I love guitar,” said Claire Waltz, a junior pre-nursing major. “I think the music is really mellow and relaxing, and with all the work that I have to do, it kind of slows the day down. It’s therapeutic.” She said she was on her way to
class and was caught off guard by the sounds of the guitar. The music was courtesy of singer-songwriter Ehren Ebbage. It was an event called Music in the Union, a café style acoustic performance series that was organized by Associated Students. Playing acoustic guitar and singing songs from his debut album, “Ten Cent Souvenir,” Ebbage, from Eugene, Ore., wrapped up the series with the last performance of the semester. The guitarist and singersongwriter took to the stage and
opened the performance with “Not the Same,” a song from his album. Ebbage said his lyrics come from personal experiences and life in general. He said his inspiration for writing one of the songs he performed Wednesday came from a friend who was having some relationship trouble. “I wrote it because it was what I thought he should have been saying to his girlfriend,” Ebbage said. Ebbage said his music could be compared to indie rock and likes to think of his inspiration as coming from Aerosmith, the Beat-
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WILLIAM COOLEY / Spartan Daily Sal Merchant, a junior television, radio, film and theatre major, works on homework while listening to election coverage at a Campus Village party held by the Democratic Caucus of SJSU on Tuesday.
les, Tom Petty and other “rootsy American singer-songwriters.” Ebbage is a Bay Area native who performed at SJSU last semester with a band called “The Dimes,” in March. “I’ve moved back to the Bay Area twice since I was an adult, but I’ve never really hung out in San Jose,” Ebbage said. “I’m glad there were people here. I always feel funny about playing in a setting like this because it’s like you don’t know if you’re interrupting people’s studying, you know what I mean?” Ebbage said it has been great
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working with Associated Students and the band he plays with has been really supportive. He addressed the crowd, thanking everyone for being there and saying he hopes to return. Duncan Lange, A.S. marketing and events manager, said the performers are selected by students who listen to the music and determine which artists they would like to have come to campus. “We get regular submissions from artists and we compile those up and we run them by the A.S. programming board, and we have students help us select
which bands they like out of the collective submissions that we have, and then we do our best to book them,” Lange said. Music in the Union is a semester-long event that is part of Associated Students “Mid-Week MixUp,” aiming to provide the student community with an exciting environment by providing free shows, concerts, movie nights, barbecues and festivals, Lange said. Music in the Union will be back in the Spring semester, Lange said, and he estimated the first performance will be sometime in February.