Deaths at Fort Hood

September 15, 2020 COLUMN/CAMPUS 3

Congress to investigate Fort Hood deaths

Dave Freeman Staff Writer

There is a vexing problem at Fort Hood. A series of tragic deaths and brutal crimes that have been long ignored have attracted international attention and the probing eyes of Congress.

Clearly, with a soldier death toll mounting at one of the world’s largest military bases, there is an urgent need to find out exactly why our men and women in uniform keep dying at an alarming rate at or near Foot Hood. Finally, after 28 deaths this year alone, according to The Associated Press, we may get some answers that are long overdue.

On Sept. 8, Congress announced a formal investigation into the recent string of sexual assaults, murders and suicides involving soldiers stationed at Fort Hood, which is in Killeen – half way between Waco and Austin. U.S. Reps. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., and Jackie Speier, D-Calif., sent a letter to U.S. Army Secretary Ryan D. McCarthy requesting documents and information about the deaths.

In its letter, Congress cited an average 129 felonies committed on the post from 2014 to 2019, including five homicides, sexual assault, kidnapping, robbery and aggravated assault. The disappearance and brutal murder of Spc. Vanessa Guillen and the discovery of Pvt. Gregory Morales’ remains caught national attention earlier this year. Their apparent murders were cited as examples of depravity.

Maj. Gen. Scott Efflandt, commander of Fort Hood, was slated to transfer to Fort Bliss in August to assume leadership of the 1st Armored Division. In a prepared statement, the Army said that Efflandt will now stay at Fort Hood while Army leaders investigate systemic problems at the base and determine who should be held accountable.

Brig. Gen. Matt Eichburg was assigned to

Isjina Luckett

Staff Writer

With the merger of all seven colleges into the Dallas College system, the Richland Honors Program, now called the Dallas College Honors Program is now available to students on all campuses. The new Dallas College Honors Program gives students the chance to graduate or transfer to a four-year university with honors and gives them the opportunity to earn scholarships along the way.

The Honors Program allows high-achieving students to participate in engaging, community-based learning experiences and take part in interactive discussions with their classmates and professors.

“High-achieving students really enjoy [being] in the class with other high-achieving students. They find it very rewarding,” said

The body of U.S. Army Sgt. Elder Fernandes is returned to Massachusetts on Sept. 1. command the 1st Armored Division at Fort Bliss “until further notice,” according to Army Col. Cathy Wilkinson, while the investigation is conducted and the fate of Efflandt is determined.

Is Efflandt is ultimately responsible for what goes on in and around Fort Hood? In a word, yes. But a problem of this magnitude isn’t caused merely by one man at the top. There have been 28 deaths at Fort Hood alone this year, but this trend isn’t anything new. A recent history marred by active shooters and missing soldiers has brought justifiable scrutiny to the Dr. Kathleen Stephens, Honors Program coordinator at the Richland campus.

The program requires students to do 10 hours of co-curricular activities and six hours of extra-curricular activities upon graduation or transfer.

To join the Honors Program, students must have a minimum 3.3 GPA based on at least nine credit hours of college course work. If a student does not yet have college level course work, he or she must have been among the top 25% of their high school graduating class.

In some instances, students who may not have the minimum GPA but are close to it are encouraged to apply.

“I think sometimes those students who are very close and would like a chance, sometimes those students are our hardest workers. So, you know, as long as you are close to the requirements, I would encourage a student to go command climate and culture, not just at Fort Hood, but to the tenant commands headquartered there.

It took 28 deaths to bring national attention to the problem. There is without question something fundamentally wrong down in Fort Hood. The bigger question is this: Has the Army been stretched too thin over with the past two decades by continuous U.S. wars and peacekeeping efforts? Have standards become too relaxed over time to meet operational commitments and recruitment shortfalls?

The majority of the victims are in their ahead and apply,” Stephens said.

Stephens said the transition of combining all campuses programs into has been a challenge, but finds it rewarding.

“I’ve enjoyed getting to know honors students at other campuses. I believe that the honors opportunities should be available to students at all campuses for access and equity,” she said.

The Honors Program is hosting a Scholarship Workshop Sept. 16 from 11 a.m. to noon to provide information on upcoming scholarship opportunities for both honors students and non-honors students at Dallas College. Those interested can join the conversation on Blackboard Collaborate at https://bit. ly/35vp9MA

More information about the Honors Program is available on the Dallas College website at https://bit.ly/32l6QYg

Photo The Associated Press

twenties. These are young adults who could just as very well be attending classes at Richland like every other student on campus. Instead, they opted for a different path. They opted to defend the country. Yet, more are dying in in the United States than on a distant battlefield on the other side of the world.

It is a shame it is taking direct Congressional oversight to get to the bottom of this issue. It should not have come to this. And, hopefully, with the eyes of our nation trained on Fort Hood, we have seen the last tragedy on or near

The Honors Program expands to all campuses

that base for the rest of this year and beyond.

Scholarship Workshop September 16 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Featuring winners of the: Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship + more.

833-860-0030 PIN: 691 504 4569 or use Blackboard Collaborate at https://bit.ly/35vp9MA

This event is hosted by the Dallas College Honors Program and is open to all Dallas College students.

‘Peninsula’ brings more zombies to the big screen

Al Pacino, left, and Logan Lerman star in “Hunters.” Photo courtesy IMDb.com

‘Hunters’ captures attention, interest in historic setting

Ricky Miller Entertainment Editor

Al Pacino stars in the Amazon TV series “Hunters,” about a group of vigilante Nazi hunters in New York in the 1970s. Pacino is generally a good actor. This might shock some people, but ever since he won his Best Actor Oscar for the overrated “Scent of a Woman” back in 1992, the majority of his performances have gone off into the deep end of the swimming pool. The cases I can point to are in abundance, but the one exception I give him is Mike Newell’s “Donnie Brasco” (1997) wherein he played the wise-guy Lefty Ruggiero with a quieter and more subdued tone. Pacino played great off of Johnny Depp, whose character worked for the FBI. I have the special edition of this gem in my collection. I’m keeping it because of the commentary track. Even the Blu-ray special edition does not have this feature!

The main star in “Hunters” is Logan Lermann, who plays Jonah Heidelbaum. Viewers might remember Lermann from the fantasy flick “Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief” from 2010. He played the same role three years later in “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters.”

The rest of the hunters include Carol Kane

The cinematography will definitely take fans cessor, the action sequences and stunts make and Saul Rubinek as married explosives experts. Also in the troupe are Josh Radnor, Kate Mulvany, Tiffany Boone and Louis Osawa.

“Hunters,” an exclusive for subscribers to Amazon Prime, is a cross-hybrid of fiction mixed in with some fantasy elements a la Quentin Tarantino or Ira Levin, whose “The Boys from Brazil” was made into a feature with Laurence Olivier facing off against Gregory Peck. Like Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglorious Basterds,” it took a fictional spin on the Nazi culture and twisted it on its head.

In “Hunters,” it’s almost like “Donnie Brasco” director Newell pulled Pacino aside and instructed him to play a subtle character. In this captivating series, the viewer witnesses a plethora of Nazis meeting their demise.

Going back to my critique of Pacino as a performer and actor, in this tale his persona plays both sides of the fence. His role here does not allow him to go too grandiose, except in the latter acts of this engaging tale.

What is nifty about this story is the accuracy it represents in said time. This tale is set in 1977. Like in all those Marvel-based comic book movies that have been around for the past 20 or so years, I can’t give too much away without spoiling it for everyone. I like to give readers just a taste of what they are in store Grade: A

Ritchie Manalastas

Staff Writer

“Peninsula” is the long-awaited sequel to the 2016 zombie thriller, “Train to Busan,” which captivated audiences worldwide and was the highest grossing Asian film at the time.

Director Sang-Ho Yeon returns with this next chapter of his post-apocalyptic world with an entirely new cast. Dong-Won Gang stars as a soldier who managed to escape the apocalyptic wasteland. He relives the horror four years later when he is assigned to a covert operation to retrieve a delivery truck loaded with cash. The tables are turned when his team stumbles upon survivors who may reflect the best or worst of human nature.

I recommend viewers not spend too much time comparing “Peninsula” to “Train to Busan.” Unlike its predecessor, the setting of “Peninsula” is on a much larger scale so audiences can expect less of a claustrophobic experience. While the story’s concept may have its differences, it does share similarities that may take fans back to certain moments of “Train to Busan.”

back to that time and while it may not have the tear-jerking and intense moments of its predefor.

up for it, with there being a car chase scene and the survivors pulling stunts to distract the zombies.

To my disbelief, a couple of these survivors are a teenager and a child. While the zombies are the main antagonists in the film, there are actually a handful of characters who also play an antagonistic role.

Out of all the scenes in the film, there was one that stuck to me most. To avoid spoilers, all I will say is that the editors and producers had fun making the final decisions for this scene and made it a tease to the first film for those who haven’t seen it.

I highly recommend watching “Train to Busan” before seeing “Peninsula.” It is available on Netflix and Amazon Prime. One factor audiences may enjoy about both films is that, unlike American zombie films, the characters in both films are three dimensional. Viewers can really feel the emotion in each scene. Grade: B+

A scene from“Peninsula,” the sequel to “Train to Busan” (2016).

Photo courtesy IMDb.com

Wilford Brimley (1935-2020)

“The China Syndrome”

(1979) – Jack Lemmon headlined this tale about a man standing up for his rights at a nuclear power plant. Jane Fonda was Oscar-nominated for her role as the reporter. Wilford Brimley played a strong role as Ted Spindler, who works at the plant. A-

“Absence of Malice”

(1981) – In this gripping Sydney Pollack-directed drama, Brimley played Assistant U.S. Attorney General James A. Wells. Paul Newman and Melinda Dillion were Oscar nominated in this tale of corruption when newspapers were the primary source of daily news. A-

“The Thing” (1982) – In this great John Carpenter-directed tale, Brimley was Dr. Blair, one of the scientists who discovers what “the thing” is. He’s part of an ensemble cast, with Kurt Russell leading the way as MacReady, the self-proclaimed leader in a desolate outpost in Antarctica. A

“The Natural” (1984)

– This amazing Barry Levinson-directed drama featured Brimley as Pop Fisher, one of the denizens cheering for Robert Redford’s baseball player, Roy Hobbs.

“The Firm” (1993) –

In this Sydney Pollackdirected tale, Brimley portrayed an antagonistic role as William Devasher, one of the baddies working at a law firm with Tom Cruise’s character. I recently watched this movie again, and it still enthralls.