The SMCC Beacon 3-3-2015

Campus News

3 SMCC’s “Dirtiest Dorm”

Op & Ed

Op & Ed

6

Arts & Features

7

Anti-Vax Fallacies

Sports

8

Textbooks Bibles In Class

12

Metal Up Your A**, Part 2

THE BEACON SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE | For the students, by the students

Seawolves in Elite 8

March 3, 2015 Volume 12 Issue 11 mbeacon@smccme.edu

theSMCCBeacon.wordpress.com

fb.com/thebeacon.smcc

youtube.com/user/SMCCBeacon

twitter.com/SMCCBeacon

Seawolves Represented Well in the Elite 8 Both Squads Get to Finals Fall Short, Still Headed to USCAA Nationals

By Beacon Sports Staff mid-February, the Seawolves basketball teams traveled to Concord, New Hampshire (2/18 - 21) to participate in the Yankee Small College Conference, Elite 8 tournament. Central Maine Community College, New Hampshire Technical Institute and SMCC all host the tournament on a rotating basis, as this year’s tournament fell into the trusted hands of New Hampshire Technical Institute.

Anticipating an incoming weather system, the team bus rolled away from the Hutchinson Gym around 12:45 in order for the Lady Wolves to take the floor in the 2nd game of a 4 game card for Thursday’s quarterfinal games. The Lady Wolves opened up the Elite 8 against Vermont Tech following the College of St. Joe’s/UMaine - Machias game, and before the NHTI/UMaine–Augusta and CMCC/EMCC games.

The winner of the women and men’s tournament would receive an automat-

ic invitation to the USCAA nationals in Uniontown, PA. For both teams, the tournament tested their resolve, as they would face some of the better YSCC teams.

On both sides of the court, the women’s and men’s side, the tournament essentially followed the logical script of elimination play with no major upsets until the Vermont Tech men took the floor against CMCC on the men’s first day of play.

The game proved to be one that should go down in YSCC folklore as Vermont Tech not only held their own, but also prevailed over defending YSCC champions and USCAA runner ups CMCC. The Mustangs had not only the last shot, but the last 3 shots, all from within 7 feet, needing 2pts to send the game into overtime, only to find themselves returning to Auburn sooner than anticipated as they came up empty.

The basketball powers would smile upon

excels at vocals. He doesn’t confine himself to a genre and could quite possibly be the best dancer in Maine (you have to see it to believe it). Foster is a method writer who develops his message through improvisation to manifest philosophical energy. He’s also “got a knack for creating a vocal hook that will get lodged in your brain after a few listens,” as described in an article in the Bangor Daily News, who did an interview with Foster in February.

I recently sat down for a Q & A with Darrell Foster and we discussed Portland’s local music scene, how Five of the Eyes falls into it, the enlightenment of pure creativity and a few other things.

How long have you been singing?

I’ve been singing since I was 8 or 9 and I remember my sister would yell, “If you don’t know the words, DON’T SING!” I think I was singing to Backstreet Boys or something ridiculous. And it was around that time I learned to forget what other people say and to do what feels good, do what you want, sing whenever and wherever you want.

How long have you played the synth?

Actually, not that long, only about six months. I’ve been playing around with keys my whole life, but I’ve always been a guitar player. When I joined this band there was just no need for another guitar so I decided to find something else to contribute. I’ve always enjoyed samples and weird ambient

IN

Atencio Martin accepts the Runner Up award for the YSCC Basketball Championship.

Five of the Eyes

side. Five of the Eyes is a self-described alien funk band with Latin influences, and have been compared to The Mars Volta and The Fall of Troy.

FotE consists of band members: Tim Meehan (guitar) Ned Rich (guitar) Peter G. (drums and bass on “Abyss”) Tom Meehan (drums and bass on “Abyss”) Darrell Foster (lyrics and synth) Foster is a well-rounded musician who

More than Five Questions for their Lead Singer Darrell Foster

By Frank Coletti Communications & New Media Major

P

ortland has a population of over 63,000 people and for its relative size, it is a music fan’s heaven. Watching shows at Merrill Auditorium, Longfellow Square, State Theatre, Port City, Empire, SPACE Gallery or Asylum can provide you with ample genre-fication. Whether you are looking for a local or a touring band, whether you are looking for rap, indie, funk, folk, metal, adult contemporary, a jazz band, or whether you are looking for a theatre or a bar, you have that luxury in Portland.

SMCC students need to artistically exercise the right to dig music, whether it’s with following the local band scene or performing in it. Darrell Foster, an SMCC student and the lead singer of Portland-based funk band Five of the Eyes, is on the latter SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

(Continued on Page 11)

Darrell Foster and Tom Meehan. Photo courtesy of Darrell Foster.

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

(Continued on Page 5) •

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

THE BEACON

OnCampus

Page 2 • March 3, 2015

The Arctic Warriors of the Spring Semester

By Carlin Whitehouse Communications and New Media Major ne of the best vistas on the whole campus is standing in the Culinary Arts dining room, looking out the expansive wall of glass. These days, the panorama is dominated by a gargantuan mountain of snow that really has to be seen to be believed. And with every new snowfall, it literally grows tons more massive.

Coined after the building that once occupied the piece of property, “Mt. Rotunda” stands as a symbol for what Grounds & Equipment Supervisor, Bobby Morrissey, calls “a monumental task.” The two-fold mission of the SMCC Facilities Maintenance Department is to keep the SMCC campus safe, and keep it operational. Considering that the roadways and walkways

most frequented by students and faculty are just a fraction of the square footage that must be cleared of this season’s unprecedented amount of snow, the task takes on proportions that would make a Greek hero balk.

Nearly everyone in New England has a personal saga to share about getting snowed in, spending hours shoveling out of their apartment, or getting their car stuck in some god-forsaken snowbank. Those efforts are dwarfed by any one of the Facilities team whose job description transforms above and beyond their everyday janitorial and maintenance duties every time it begins to snow. The alarm sounds around 2am; they throw down some breakfast and take care of their own home, then head straight to campus where they punch in for a 14 to

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE | For the students, by the students

THE BEACON

O

Art Director Graphic Designers Illustrator Digital Media Editor Managing Editor Photo Editor Sports Photographer

SECTION EDITORS Arts&Features Op&Ed Other World On Campus Sports

Alexander Brooks Cody Cook Craig Stanley Jennifer Lague Garrick Hoffman Nickolas Evan Acker Nickolas Evan Acker F.A. Coletti Garrick Hoffman Rebekah Marin Erik Squire The Beacon Staff

CONTRIBUTING Ashley Berry

WRITERS Will Craig Patrick Doyle Jonathan Lugay Lahana Palencia Koren Sullivan Carlin Whitehouse Ian Ziller

ADVISERS Chuck Ott Rachel Guthrie

16 hour shift of powering snow out of the public way.

John Theroux, Daily Operations Supervisor, shared the exhaustive list of locations that must be checked off for every storm: “Fire hydrants, gas meters, emergency exits, dumpsters, oil tanks, sprinkler systems, roofs… It’s an active campus with residents, and open to the public,” with the expectations that practically every nook and cranny of the property be accessible.

“We’re here ‘til we feel that the campus is comfortably tucked in,” says Theroux.

Perfection is not attainable in the winter of 2015, though. Some amount of allowances have to be made.

“Parking sucks on a good day! But now we’ve lost 50 to 75 parking spots anyways,” jokes Morrissey. He’s seen how a day’s work can barely put a dent in the astounding volume of snow they’re up against. A couple Saturdays ago, they transported 35 dump truck loads from a giant heap behind the Health Science Center, to Mt. Rotunda.

“It was like a drop in the bucket,” explained Morrisey. “You couldn’t even tell we did anything.”Yet, none of this stops them from getting up the next day and doing it all over again.

“I’m proud of our team,” said Trade Supervisor, David Balberchak. “Look, we all know what has to get done… we’re beat up like hell at the end of the day, and it hurts.You’re going home and you’re falling asleep in your dinner… There’s no two

ways about it. It takes every one of us to get ‘r done.”

Next time you see one of these guys driving up the road, or toiling away with a shovel, acknowledge their Herculean efforts and share your gratitude that you never have to worry about the conditions here on campus.

SMCC SNOW! Fun Facts

35+ full-time employees in Facilities – 12 of whom are the “shovel brigade” Shifts start at 4am and run as late as 7 or 8pm Campus is divided into seven plow routes that cover every square foot of road 14-vehicle fleet – several pickup trucks (two fitted with salt spreaders), 2 skid-steer Bobcats, 1 Kubota bucket loader, 1 Caterpillar loader with 14foot pusher blade 150 tons of salt, and several pallets of bagged Ice-Melt delivered (so far) Swirling maritime wind gusts exceeding 65mph require clearing the same drifts 5+ times per storm Go-to weather reports are gathered from Weather Underground (wunderground.com) & National Weather Service - Gray office (weather.gov/gyx)

How Students & Faculty Can Help Facilities Management “Get ‘R Done” BE AWARE! Whenever possible give a wide berth to equipment. Whether on foot or in your own vehicle, keep a safe distance and don’t make sudden or unexpected movements (and for goodness sake, look up from your phone!)

Don’t assume that you are seen. Snow-caked equipment has limited 360° visibility. Try to make eye contact with operators before crossing their path Pay attention to and heed PARKING BANS! In one swipe, the Caterpillar can do the same work of four trucks - but “it doesn’t stop on a dime.” If you want the parking lots cleared, please move your car Wear winter BOOTS. Be prepared for whatever Mother Nature is going to throw at us! Under the best of conditions there will always be patches of ice & snow

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

THE BEACON

OnCampus

March 3, 2015 • Page 3

High on Faith & Low on Funds

By Erik Squire Education Major ola mi amigos! You only have to hold out a little longer for spring break, yeehaw! I don’t know about the rest of you studious folks, but I’m getting out of Maine for my break. Heck, I would sure like to go to the Bahamas after battling all of this snow, but I’m allergic to sand and porpoises. Also, I can’t quite afford it on the salary given to me by The Beacon (because it’s non-existent). Speaking of empty banks accounts, the Student Senate has recently run out of their Student Organization fund.

To get a better look into what caused the Student Senate to run out before the new fiscal year, The Beacon conducted a couple interviews with some of the top dogs in the Senate.

As a point of reference, each year the Student Senate manages an $80,000 budget. This fund is made up of your Student Activity Fee and it is allocated out as follows: $32,000 for student organizations, $32,000 for activities, $7000 for the student newspaper, $4000 miscellaneous, $4000 for Writ, and $1000 for Chorus.

The Beacon reached out to Student Senate Vice-President Danni Olsen and asked what her thoughts were on the budget being used up before the end of the fiscal year.

Olsen explained: “Last year we didn’t run out as quickly as we did this year. Last year it was more lax, we had less clubs, and we didn’t have as much student involvement. It was growing, but it wasn’t as fast as it is now. We had a steady flow; people understood how the guidelines worked and how requesting money worked. We had a Senate full of ‘lawyers’; they tore apart everything so nothing was getting funded as quickly as it is now. Things were being argued, being tabled, being discussed. Every request for funds that was put out was being torn apart. Granted it was lax, but when it came to money, it was super structured at that point, maybe even overly structured.”

In this year’s financial issues, Olsen stated: “At this point, I think we need to bring back that structure, because now we have nothing. We have nothing for any of the clubs starting out this semester. We ran into the issue where we had caps for clubs, about food; you were only allowed to do one or two food events in a semester. And because the nursing club fought against it, we don’t have that anymore. So now we have clubs requesting almost two grand for food.”

She continued, “We also have clubs requesting $4,000 for something that looks good for the school, but at the same time you’re taking activity money. And it’s not anything that would even benefit students.”

Olsen feels that the money is properly used when it goes to clubs that are going to spend it well. She then talked about a few clubs that she considered good examples: “A lot of clubs are open to all students, like the gaming club for instance; we have a good thirty members that come consistently, and we have new people coming in and other people going out. It’s open to all, like (as another example) Anime Club, Cosplay Club, and Baufing Club, all the clubs that are going to our planned Boston trip. We advertised it open to all, the only thing we asked was that people come show up to the club, that’s it. It made club attendance go up, and it caused people to join in on the

H

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

community. Things like that, I think clubs should do, but (others are) not.”

Olsen described what she considered to be an example of a club that shouldn’t have received Student Organization funds.

This particular club disappeared after a receiving a significant amount of money.

Olsen expressed, “The Robotics Club was a complete and utter failure. They came in, and they were there for a while and they requested so much money, $1840 in all.

And where has it gone? It hasn’t benefited anybody. So that’s a decent chunk of money wasted. We’re having that issue, and we’re just trying to figure out where to go, because we’re stuck in the middle. It went from structured, to no structure, to half structured. From last semester to this semester, the Student Senate’s getting bigger but at the same time it’s getting crazy.”

The Beacon then asked what Olsen thought to be the leading cause for running out of funds prematurely, to which she replied: “No one talks, no one asks for discussions. Everyone’s like, ‘Oh yeah that sounds cool, let’s go with it’; no one brings anything to the table. No one explains

anything because no one asks. So it’s like, ‘Sure, sure, sure, let’s go, yeah, approve, approve, approve; throw money their way.’

That’s pretty much what it is, and I want it to change. There is a problem with clubs taking advantage of the super chill environment, and now that we’re getting bigger it needs to stop.”

Finally, we at The Beacon interviewed Faiz Sabean, the newly elected Student Senate Treasurer. Sabean was asked how he planned to reduce the future risk of running out of funds, and this was his reply: “I definitely feel that the funds should be exhausted by the end of the semester, but not this early when we still have another 12+ more weeks to go. The silver lining to this issue is that it’s a good indicator that our clubs are active and are actively initiating new activities to benefit the student body.”

Sabean further stated: “There are several ways to reduce the risk of prematurely running out of funds.

We can add in new language in the Student Senate Constitution to put a cap to the

Surfsite Exposed

into the dorm yelling nonsensical things.

They then joined in on the interview.

“In here, we are kind of isolated, and we have our own counter culture going on,” stated one of the group members. “We do know that all the folks at Spring Point (Residence Hall) wish like hell they were here with us, ‘cause we’re super chill.”

“Don’t you have to be ethnic to be counter culture?” someone else asked sardonically.

We then asked what one of the worst things to happen in Surfsite was.

“Losing all our shit was one of the worst things that’s happened here,” said Dylan.

“People from Spring Point took our pool table from us,” added in another guy.

A couple others from the group joined in on the question, stating, “Sometimes there’re 5-6 people wasted outside yelling, or people slamming on other people’s doors drunk.” Then another resident shared, “Some guy split his head open and he thought he was going to die. He fell down the stairs. I’ve never seen so much blood in my life.”

The next question on our list was how many cigarettes the guys smoked in a day.

“I literally just came down here looking for a cigarette,” stated one of the guys.

Then another exclaimed, “I had nine cigarettes yesterday!”Yet another explained, “Everybody smoke cigarettes here. It’s a great way to meet people.”

I then asked Dylan what a typical day looked like for him, to which he

Inside SMCC’s “Dirtiest Dorm”

T

By Erik Squire Education Major

he Beacon has covered outstanding clubs and upstanding students, but we thought it was high time we took a look inside one of SMCC’s very own dorms, dubbed “Dirty Surfsite.”

My co-interviewer, Lorelei Hipkins, and I made our way up to Surfsite to nab an interview with one of the dormitory’s residents. I knew I had the perfect interviewee when I saw a car speedily rumbling past me into Surfsite parking lot. The student had his hood held down by two jerry-rigged safety pins. The student’s name was Dylan (he didn’t give his last name).

While we walked into Surfsite with Dylan, he introduced us to a few of his friends, Cory and Wild Bill (as he called himself). Dylan then proceeded to tell us a little about life in the dorm: “It’s pretty dirty, no one cleans really.

The pool table is out of use, things get taken away, these couches are junk; it kind of sucks, actually.”

The average GPA of Surfsite residents back in 2011 was a 1.98. With that in mind, we asked what they believed was the major cause for the low GPA. “It’s definitely a smaller space,” said Dylan.

“There are no ladies, too,” Wild Bill added.

“We need to pull our heads out of our butts and get our grades up,” Cory also pointed out.

The Beacon then asked if they thought the community life was different due to it being an all-male dorm.

“Yeah, there’s no tension between people. Everybody loves each other,” Wild Bill proclaimed.

“But there are girls that are regulars here,” Dylan pointed out.

Mid interview, a couple of guys came

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

amount of funds a new club can be approved for, improve the vetting process of fund requests to ensure that funds are appropriated in the best way possible, and make certain that clubs in the future adhere to certain policies (submitting roster, meeting time and place, budget) before being able to request for funds. It’s definitely a fine balance between reinforcing structure on the club level without making it too hard for clubs to get the funds for the activities they are passionate about.”

responded: “I get up at 9, do some homework if I have any, smokes a few cigarettes, and go to class. It’s pretty boring actually, if you just stay here and don’t go out, but I mean there’s always things to do.” Then another resident added, “Occasionally we improvise some games. Like ghetto hockey.”

When asked what they would like to see improved in their dorm, they readily replied: “They should redo the bathrooms,” expressed Dylan, and almost simultaneously two others chimed in: “Yeah!” and “Yeah, it’s pretty gross.”

“Also,” one of the guys stated, “some rooms have black mold in them.” This sentiment was met by a chorus of people exclaiming “Yeah!” Dylan went on to say, “When I got my orientation, and they were giving us the tour, they didn’t show us in here.” Lastly, the residents expressed discontent with not being able to have toasters or plate warmers.

Despite the struggles that a lot of the dorm residents face, they all explained that they work hard; however, their first semester is always a little rough. They had to learn new skills like washing dishes and laundry (for some of them). On top of inexperience, everybody was pretty broke; one guy had $10 in his bank, and another had 30 cents. Though they realized that there were opportunities to make money on campus, most of them didn’t feel the urge to pursue the work. As one of them casually stated, “All I need is a place to eat, sleep, and shower.”

Surfsite, though perhaps not the best dormitory in the universe, at the very least offers all three of these accommodations.

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

THE BEACON

OtherWorld

Page 4 • March 3, 2015

How, How Often, and Why to Backup Your Files

By Jonathan Lugay have a lot of files in our computers. Over time, those files may not open properly or it will get lost.

Backing up your files ensures that you have a spare copy of the original file. It is an important thing to do if you don’t want to lose your files. Think of backing up your files as making a physical copy of a file, but doing it on the computer. There are a couple ways to backup your files. Also, you backing up your files is simple enough.

How often you should backup depends on what you are doing.

There are a few ways to backup your

files. One way is to buy USB flash drives from any electronic store or online to backup your files. USB flash drives are really cheap to buy and usually come with around 8 Gigabytes of space or more. If you don’t have a lot of files to backup, then USB Flash Drives is right for you.

You can also buy external hard drives from the electronic store or online to backup your files. External hard drives are more expensive than USB flash drives, but they have more space to put your files in. On average, an external hard drive would have around 500 Gigabytes of space or more. I recommend getting an external hard drive if you have a lot of files to backup.

Another way is to backup them in a Cloud Storage. Cloud Storage is where you backup your files over the internet.Your files are backed up in a server that a host company has. Some of them are free, while others you have to pay for in order to backup your files. If you want to backup your files on a cloud storage, do some research on which one you want to use.

WE

TV Junkies

By Koren Sulllivan Art Major onesing for the next season of Game of Thrones? Maybe you wanna get your Girls fix? How about living vicariously through the atrociously funny Kenny Powers of Eastbound & Down?

Whatever the case, you’re probably already familiar with HBO GO. For those of you who don’t watch TV because you’re too busy reading-- let me share with you two things: 1) no one believes that line about you not watching TV, and 2) HBO GO is HBO’s on-demand service that allows you to watch any of their content on your computer or mobile device whenever you want. It’s all free if you’re an HBO subscriber.

But, hey, wait a minute...what about those of us who are too cheap to subscribe to HBO?! Can’t we just watch HBO for free? We sure can. I mean, c’mon, you know Grandma isn’t really using her HBO password to stream TV shows to her computer. So just snag her password and you’re golden! Even though it seems a little sketchy and it might make you paranoid that someone’s about to kick through your dorm room door and sue you for every

J

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

Once you acquire a way to backup your files, it is simple to back them up.

For USB flash drives and external hard drives, just plug it in on your computer, find your external hard drive or USB flash drive icon on your computer and open it.

Once you have it open, you can drag your files to that drive. The computer will make a copy of them. Depending on what the size of your file is, it will either be quick or take a long time. While your computer makes a copy in that drive, do not unplug your external hard drive or USB flash drive. If you do, it would mess up your file.

After you are done copying and putting your files in your external hard drive or USB flash drive, you can unplug it.

The reason why we need to backup our files is because every day, there is a small chance that the file you want to open, won’t open anymore. If you don’t backup your files and that happens, you are out of luck. Backing up the files ensures you a copy of the file just in case something goes wrong.

How often you want to backup your files depends on what you are doing. I recommend backing up your files once a week or everyday if you create an important file.

Every day we are creating a lot of files.

If we don’t backup those files, they will be gone forever or they won’t open anymore.

Jonathan Lugay is a member of the Computer Technology Senior Seminar course and is planning on a career in Computer Engineering.

The online version of this article is at jonathanjlugay.net/Beacon-Article.php

last cent that you made waiting tables last summer, you needn’t worry.

The CEO of HBO GO, Richard Plepler - in a brilliant move last winter - made a seemingly offhand comment in regards to not being concerned about sharing of account passwords. Plepler basically gave the green light to those who’ve been watching HBO GO with borrowed credentials. Said Plepler, “It’s not material to our business, number one. It’s not that we’re unmindful of it, but it has no real effect on the business.” (So he just said it was cool that we’re borrowing passwords, right?)

But think about it: folks at that level don’t say those sorts of things by accident.

What HBO did by “accidentally” giving permission to those who would share HBO GO logins was to get an immediate feel for the market and consumer demand.

People started sharing passwords like crazy and everyone got hooked on HBO shows.

Fast-forward to just a few months later when anxious fans with—and without— legal means of accessing HBO GO crashed the site as they all tried to login to watch the season finale of True Detective and again, a month later, during the Season 4 premiere of Game of Thrones.

It hardly seems coincidence that in Oc-

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

tober 2014, some six months later, HBO officially announced a new standalone HBO streaming service that won’t require a cable subscription. It will be an á la carte service, the release of which, by all indications, will be timed to coincide with the Season 5 premiere of Game of Thrones this April.

And don’t think they’re going to allow you to keep using Grandma’s credentials if you want to watch.

Feeling played? That’s because you kinda were. It’s okay; you aren’t alone. Let’s look back...what was it exactly that HBO’s CEO said? You know, last year when he said it was totally okay to borrow someone else’s HBO GO password? Oh yeah, now we’re remembering... During that same interview, Plepler also said, “[Password sharing] presents the brand to more and more people and gives them an opportunity, hopefully, to become addicted to it... and what we’re in the business of doing is building addicts - building video addicts.”

People were just so excited about not getting into trouble for sharing logins that they didn’t stop to wonder why they were being allowed to share. Meanwhile, Richard Plepler was just hanging out, drinking his aged bourbon and waiting for us all to get hooked on the crack he’s been selling.

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Randy Pierce

THE BEACON

OtherWorld Pierce, hiking is about the journey.

He told a story about reaching the top of a mountain at sunset and listening to the friends around him describe a magnificent view: the beautiful, vibrant shades of orange and purple illuminating the surrounding mountains in shades of blue, as the bright orange sun sank on the horizon.

Afterward he asked any person in the audience to raise their hand if they couldn’t picture the scene he had just described. He then joked by saying that he’s yet to see a hand up

Achievement Through Adversity

By Rebekah Marin Liberal Arts/English Major n the Thursday evening of February 19, Randy Pierce came to SMCC to give a motivational speech about overcoming adversity. Pierce has hiked all 48 of the 4,000 foot mountains of New Hampshire in one season, he competes in road races, was inducted into the Football Hall of Fame as a Patriots fan, and is an expert in martial arts. Shortly after he graduated from the University of New Hampshire at the age of 22, Pierce was diagnosed with a neurological disease that caused him to become legally blind only two short weeks after the diagnosis.

He acknowledges that he may have lost his sight, but he still has a vision. For

O

Five of the Eyes effects, so I bought a MIDI rig and haven’t looked back.

Can you play any other instruments?

Yeah, I’m not a master at any specific instrument; my main craft is my vocals, but if it makes noise, I can make music. Not necessarily good music, but music (haha).

What’s your favorite band (besides FotE)?

This seems like an impossible question.

It really depends on my mood. I listen to a lot of classic rock, like everyone else that has a radio, but I also like a lot of indie and folk music. Recently I’ve been listening to Cage the Elephant, The Mars Volta, Lake Street Dive, and Arctic Monkeys.

What was your first album?

Ha, I’m not 100% sure. The cool guy in me wants to say “Aenima” by Tool, but I think it was more like “Dookie” by Green Day, or quite possibly “Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water” by Limp Bizkit.

How long have you guys been playing?

The other members of the group formed the band in early 2014. I joined in May. Whats does FotE mean?

It means that a sentient being from a distant galaxy is on its way to destroy the planet. Or it’s an acronym for Five of the Eyes.

Do you write the lyrics? Do you have ideas for songs in mind or the music inspires you?

I do write the lyrics, but none of it is premeditated. We have a pretty solid recording setup that allows us to track the songs in good quality at practice. Then I’ll take it home and record different ideas and lyrics, just kind of improv over it until something sticks. Honestly, a lot of times I’ll come up with something, and it will be like, yeah that’s really awesome, but what the hell am I talking about? After I think about it for a while, that something will develop a meaning to me that was never intended. It’s times like those that cause the existential side of me to ponder if I’m even writing the parts, or if it’s all some weird SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

to this day when he asked that question.

And then it clicked. Being able to physically see the world around us isn’t the where sight has to stop.

Pierce brings to light the importance of setting goals, having a vision, and not letting things get in the way of achieving those goals. I admire Pierce’s perseverance; if I was dealt the hand in life he’s been dealt, I’m not sure I’d have been strong enough to turn my life back around into something so phenomenal.

Pierce chose to take the high road, or in his case, the highest hiking trail, and live life to the fullest with the

gifts he still has. Pierce adapted to hiking and doing other physical activities with the help of a guide dog, and the support from his family and friends. He talked about looking at things from a different perspective, and thinking critically about situations to open up all possible outcomes. His wisdom spoke volumes. There have been so many times in my life where I’ve been unhappy and instead of doing something about it, I become caught up taking pity on myself. Pierce refused to settle with his circumstances, and going forward in my life I will carry his story with me as a reminder that there is always a way around obstacles that seem to stand in the way.

To learn more about Randy Pierce’s life, his hiking adventures, or his upcoming events, check out his website at www.2020visionquest.org.

I love the “Eos” acoustic bridge.

Have you guys tried an unplugged setlist?

We haven’t tried that yet, but it’s been discussed and will probably happen in the future. It’s a shame we aren’t truly able to recreate that bridge live with a real acoustic guitar. I’ve been working on genetic manipulation to get Tim to grow two more arms, but it may take a while.

What’s your favorite FotE song?

“Hell Hotel.” It will be released on our full length, but if you want to hear it now, you’ll have to come to the Port City show.

When can I get a FotE t-shirt?

Hopefully soon! We’re looking for someone to help us with designs and ideas.

I’m trying to get a fan art submission thing going, but for now, if anyone likes the music and feels inspired to draw something up, feel free to send it to us on Facebook!

Should we have an SMCC FotE show?

Does a dude in a shark suit not give a crap about choreography? Absolutely.

Well you heard it here, folks: if you want to check out some of Portland’s finest local music, come to the Empire on May 1st.

Photo By Kennith Reddinger

subconscious crap. Like shutting your brain off and streaming dream thoughts out loud.

It has to be a really comfortable space to allow this to happen, or your mind will get defensive about what kind of nonsense is coming out of your mouth, and the people listening will think you’re some kind of strange psychopath. Maybe I am? This is why I write most of it alone at my house.

Where can I find your album?

Right now the EP we released on Tuesday is on Bandcamp and can be downloaded at a “pay what you want” price. We have it linked to our website, so you can get it by going to: www.fiveoftheeeyes.com. Next week it releases on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon, and a few other music distributors, but these will not have a “pay what you want” feature.

Was the FLAC file option a conscious decision?

Bandcamp automates that file type. We actually uploaded .wav files for the highest quality, but that means each song is about 123 MB. Bandcamp converts them to FLAC for a better online streaming service. It’s a smaller file, but has a touch better quality compression than an MP3 would offer.

How do you like playing in Portland?

I love Portland, and I love playing in Portland. I’ve lived here for about seven years, and the support I’ve been given in this town musically has been unreal. When I was just starting out I was blown away by just how many local venues wanted to help me get my feet off the ground.

Especially Ken Bell, who used to run the Big Easy when that was still a thing. It was such a shame to see that venue go the way it did. The people there were a musical family. These days, we’ve kind of taken up residency at the Empire, doing most of our headlining gigs there. It’s just got such a cozy feel to it for a medium sized venue.

The lights and sound are awesome and the staff are probably some of the best people on this planet.

Did you take dance lessons? (Go to the show and you will know why I asked this question.)

I took salsa lessons once, but everything else just comes from years of dancing at parties and a deep love for all things MJ and James Brown.

(Continued from Page 1)

March 3, 2015 • Page 5

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

THE BEACON

OpEd

Page 6 • March 3, 2015

The Anti-Vaccination Movement is its Own Worst Enemy

By Will Craig Part Time Student ut of the host of anti-establishment conspiracy theories that is unfortunately common amongst those less inclined to formal logic comes the Oedipal beauty of the anti-vax, or anti-vaccination, movement. Oedipal because of the psychological mechanics of the anti-vax movement: a hatred of what is seen as an overbearing society, and the grotesque and infanticidal results of naively blundering into the field of medicine with a picture of a dead baby in one hand and some Bible verses about “the end times” in the other.

Anti-vaxers make a vague, and often pitiful attempt to support their position, which can be basically summarized as: “Vaccines are evil and big, mean Pharma is trying to poison my innocent babies.” The reason for wording their beliefs in such general terms is because the more you get into the specifics of their beliefs, the more they tend towards nonsense. The largest modern concern within anti-vaxxers seems to be the relationship between vaccination and autism. This was first suggested by a 1998 paper published in Lancet by Andrew

Wakefield, which had a sample size of 12. The paper has since been described as “an elaborate fraud” by the British Medical Journal. The ubiquity of vaccinations has allowed anti-vaxxers to connect vaccinations to virtually any ailment their child could have from autism to obesity.

But that’s all quite irrelevant to anti-vaxxers. The vast conspiracy theories become alluring catastrophe porn, and legitimate scientific inquiry appears boring and tedious in comparison. Who doesn’t like a good scream and a picture of a dead baby on their Facebook feed with some comic sans text shouting down the big evil man upstairs at Big Pharma?

Although it is true that pharmaceuticals profit from vaccinations, and so oversell their value, it is not the pharmaceuticals we need to worry about. If a vaccination is unnecessary, or dangerous, that will be backed up with research, and insurance companies will simply stop paying for them to be administered. However,

O

thanks largely to the anti-vaccination movement, clusters of parents are causing small epidemics of once completely unheard of diseases. This is exemplified in the fact that new cases of measles are overwhelmingly found in unvaccinated children.

According to the CDC, vaccinations for measles resulted in a 75% decrease in deaths between 2000-2013. And yet, some parents elect out of the measles vaccine.

Parents are choosing to risk their children’s lives to stick it to “The Man” or “Big Pharma” or some other enemy they have little ability to comprehend, let alone combat.

As the hysterical anti-vax tirade continues, the more the federal government is pushed to enforce vaccination out of a fear of

larger outbreaks. If the dystopian end-times of forced vaccinations against abhorrent personality types does come, it will come in riding on the backs of the enraged, moralistic, and naïve who rightfully convinced the federal government that Americans could no longer be entrusted with the most basic responsibilities of childcare and parenthood.

Illustration by Craig Stanley

Leader of the Pack Students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to nominate qualified Southern Maine Community College students to be recognized by the Center for Student Involvement and Leadership’s Leader of the Pack award. bit.do/leaderofthepack

Outstanding RA

Advisor of the Year

Student, staff and faculty are encouraged to nominate a current Resident Assistant (RA) who is a role model for other students and staff, has demonstrated strong leadership skills, and who has positively impacted the resident halls and campus community.

Student Organizations can nominate their advisor to be recognized for the Center for Student Involvement and Leadership’s Advisor of the Year Award.

The winning advisor will receive lunch for 2 at the Culinary Arts Dining Room.

bit.do/outstandingRA

bit.do/advisor_of_year

For full details on requirements for each award, visit the links above.

Award nominations are due Friday April 10th by 5:00 pm.

The Leader of the Pack awards will be held on Wednesday April 29th.

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

Organization of the Year

Program of the Year

Emerging Leader Awards

Student Organizations can nominate themselves to be recognized for the Center for Student Involvement and Leadership’s Student Organization of the Year Award.

The winning organization will receive $250 credited to their student organization’s account.

Student Organizations can nominate a program (event, trip, or other project) to be recognized for the Center for Student Involvement and Leadership’s Program of the Year Award.

The winning organization will receive $250 credited to their student organization’s account.

Students, staff and faculty are encouraged to nominate students for this award who have positively influenced a program or organization from behind the scenes with a positive attitude, a willingness to help in whatever capacity necessary, and a commitment to excellence. In particular this award is for students who are new to the college or taking on a leadership role for the first time. bit.do/emergingleader

bit.do/org_of_year

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

bit.do/program_of_year

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

THE BEACON

OpEd

Creationism in the Classroom

biology; it is the main idea of life science; it is the fact of life.” Nye emphasizes the peril in curtailing critical thinking of the natural world if creationism were to be implemented in school curricula.

A study was recently conducted by a Beacon staffer over a month period to ask surveyors about their thoughts on creationism being taught in schools. The survey asked, “Should creationism be taught in schools?” Although the number of respondents was less than ideal, results were nonetheless generated, and the data is included in the corresponding graphic. Respondents were also given the opportunity to elaborate on their answer. This is what they had to say: “Let the kids decide for themselves.”

“Separation of church and state/ public schools. Harder to say for private schools, but I would still say no.”

“Generally speaking there is fact to support science. Creationism is a fantasy at best but is the belief of some therefore should be mentioned.”

“Evolution. People disclaim the world’s smartest minds because an old book says everything was created in a week. If we let that type of ideology slip into schools, maybe a long time from now instead of creationism people will be

...and its implications

By Garrick Hoffman Liberal Arts Major you subscribe to the separation of church and state, it’s likely you’ll be disappointed to learn that many - not some, but many - schools in America are essentially replacing textbooks with Bibles by implementing creationism into their curricula. And according to a January 2014 article on Slate.com, not only is there no need for the teachers to be surreptitious about teaching it, but “taxpayer money is funding creationist private schools through state tuition voucher or scholarship programs.”

Creationism is the belief that Earth, life, and the universe are a product of divine creation. Within the lexicon of young Earth creationist (contrast from old Earth creationist) beliefs are: the universe is less than ten thousand years old (compared to the scientific consensus of over 14 billion); the Bible is to be taken literally; and the “theory” of evolution is and should be rejected. (Theory is quoted when we consider the late astronomy/science luminary Carl Sagan’s bold proclamation in his book Cosmos: “Evolution is fact, not theory.”)

Predominantly taught in public schools in southern states such as Tennessee, Louisiana, and even in many private schools in Florida, creationism is an integral component of school curricula, and in some cases, is replacing science in curricula altogether.

In 2014, one public school in North Carolina was exposed and subsequently criticized “for allowing church-funded Bible classes to be taught to its elementary school students” in which “instructors of the class were presenting the story about how the earth was made in seven days [is] literal fact,” according to sociopolitical news website AddictingInfo.com.

So why is teaching creationism in public or private schools so bad?

Neil deGrasse Tyson, a renowned astrophysicist and the host of the Cosmos TV show reprise, says that the religious influence of science, or substituting it altogether, will create a “generation of people who will not understand what science is, and they will be intellectually crippled from contributing to what the centuries have demonstrated to be the most efficient engine of economic growth that has ever been devised, and that is innovations in science and technology.”

Furthermore, one of America’s most recognized scientists, Bill Nye, says, “The problem is we have adults who have very strong conservative views that are reluctant to let kids learn about evolution. ...Evolution is the fundamental idea in all of

IF

pushing to learn about aliens and thetans and the great lord Tom Cruise.”

“If creationism is taught in schools, it should be done in a social science setting alongside other religious/cultural views of how Earth was formed and how people came to be on it (i.e.

Native American theories, Ancient Greek theories, Toltec theories, etc.)”

“Creationism should be taught in church only as there is no rational basis behind it.

Learning creationism will not help you get a job or get into college. It will likely do the opposite in fact.”

“I treat the Bible as a historical document.”

Ultimately, creationism in the science classroom is both inappropriate and irrelevant and has serious implications, unless it’s only introduced as a theory. However, religion being taught in religion or history classes isn’t by any stretch inappropriate or irrelevant; in fact, it can be incredibly

informational and even important for understanding. Nonetheless, children - our most impressionable demographic - and teenagers should be exposed to authentic, empirical science in science classrooms, and creationism is neither here nor there for these kinds of lessons. Imagine scientists becoming church members solely to enforce their own agendas - something that religious members of education boards actively do.

Observing the stark parallels of the inanity of evolution skeptics and the inanity of climate change deniers, we can almost marvel at how bizarre it is to see scientific fact so controversial and divisive. To quote Neil deGrasse Tyson again: “Imagine a world in which we are all enlightened by objective truths rather than offended by them.”

Yes, and it should be presented as fact Yes, but only to be presented as theory with scientific theories given more merit Yes, but it should be presented alongside scientific theories without giving one more merit than the other No, it should not be taught in schools at all 20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Why 2014 Was theYear We Should HaveTurned “Le Page”

By Ashley Berry Liberal Arts – Political Science

he year 2014 brought the State of T Maine the opportunity for a fresh start, by removing a governor who cares more

about businesses than about his constituents. During Governor LePage’s time in office, he has displayed questionable and appalling behavior that continues to taint the impression of Maine to the rest of the country. If he continues to run the state this way, he will continue to make a fool of us for the next four years.

LePage is becoming notorious for displaying bad taste when addressing the public. He once threatened to blow up the Portland Press Herald building while testing a flight simulator at a defense contractor’s.

While this apparently was meant to be a joke, it was completely unfunny. If it was actually a joke, that is probably worse because he is making light of a horrible catastrophe which in no way should be made trivial. Unfortunately, we live in a world where threats must be taken seriously. It really shows poor judgment, especially when our country is so heavily criticized for our continued drone strikes. When our leaders make these types of crude comments, it only heightens the problems we can expect

Money in Politics

not completely rule and that your vote can matter. However, the best way to make a difference is not in the general election.

Voters who are registered with a political party have the chance to vote in their parties’ primary and the chance to choose who is best to represent the party and be the presidential nominee.

Whatever party that you are part of, you should vote because the choice of whether or not the candidate that is chosen is one with more money and influence than others is something that does need to be looked at, and you have to choice to vote for someone who does not represent the corporate interests.

By Ian Ziller Political Science Major he money in politics is a big problem.

For example, the Koch brothers (two billionaires with strong conservative ideology) plan to spend $900k or more in the 2016 election campaign.

They have been giving a large amount to presidential candidates on both sides.

This is a problem because this kind of money can corrupt the political process.

What can be done about the corruption? Well the best way is to vote. Voting is the best way in a democracy to make our voices heard and show that the money does

T

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

March 3, 2015 • Page 7

•

THE BEACON

•

to see throughout our communities.

Another ridiculous statement he recently gave stated, “Everybody looks at the negative effects of global warming, but with the ice melting, the Northern Passage has opened up.” While yes, it is true that the increased ice melting has allowed companies to use the Northern Passage for shipping during the summer months, there are so many things wrong with this comment that it honestly comes off as borderline delusional. The world is on the brink of a crisis due to increased carbon production; the repercussions are not only negative, but they’re disastrous and could mean the end of our planet. The fact that he obviously does not grasp the concept of global warming puts to question his abilities to lead our state in the direction it so desperately needs to be removed from office.

LePage has also attracted attention at the federal level. Investigations that started in 2013 from the U.S. Department of Labor Office of the Solicitor General concluded that LePage and his administration pressured Department of Labor employees to favor employers instead of employees in unemployment cases. The conclusions of this report show that he is a governor that is more for businesses than his people.

However, despite the fact that I think

that a toad could probably run this state better, he has won election and reelection, which means he must have some redeemable qualities. During an interview with the Maine Sunday Telegram he said, “You can only get things done if you challenge the impossible.” This is an admirable way to live and an even better mission to run a state on. With all of that being said he is a person who is very business-minded, which is fantastic quality for someone who runs a business but less desirable for the leader of our state. There is a lot of truth in saying that running a business is like running a state, and oftentimes politicians were or are in business at some point in their lives.

Running also involves people, not just interacting with people but knowing that there is a whole state’s worth of people that depend on you.

What this state needs is someone who will work in favor of people instead of businesses. His latest in questionable decisions include The Maine Capital Investment Credit and the ousting of the President of the Maine Community College System.

These aforementioned incidents are just the tip of the iceberg, and this series will delve beneath the surface and examine the actions that made him one of the worst governors in the nation.

Formatting Research: Citations and Quotations Robert Vettese Mon, Mar 16th 12-12:30

In Your Own Words: Paraphrasing Properly Gerry Zarrilli Tues, Mar 24th 11-11:30

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

THE BEACON

Arts&Features

Page 8 • March 3, 2015

Metal Up Yr Ass, Part 2

before entering the ring. It’s also one of my favorite songs. The riffs are simple, but have a supremely badass and pugnacious weight to them. That first post-chorus riff gives my fancy a good tickle.

Fade To Black: No doubt one of my favorite RtL tracks, but one of my favorite in Metallica’s catalogue.

Although the song is primarily melody-driven and even a bit soulful - described as a “power ballad, in fact - “Fade” turns into this high-velocity riff fest. Both the music and the lyrics have a morose feel to them, with the lyrics touching upon depression and thoughts of suicide: “Life it seems will fade away...I have lost the will to live...need the end to set me free.” The solo at the end, though still maintaining the Metallica shred, is both beautiful and technically impressive.

Trapped Under Ice: No, he’s not singing “I’m trapped under rice!” This is why we look up titles and lyrics, people. I once thought this was a bit of a filler track, but after innumerable plays on Guitar Hero IV back in the day, both on guitar and drums, I’ve warmed up to it significantly. I love the fierce relentlessness of “Trapped.” Exhausting double bass and super catchy and equally exhausting guitar riffs are the highlights. By the way, I dare you to play guitar and drums on this song in Guitar Hero IV on expert.

Or, you know, the real instruments.

Escape: If “Trapped” took the crown as the filler track originally, it’s been usurped by “Escape.” It’s my least favorite track on RtL. The silver lining? The chorus

By Garrick Hoffman and Patrick Doyle Liberal Arts & Liberal Arts English Majors

Review of the Issue: Ride the Lightning July 27th of last year, Metallica’s ON Ride the Lightning turned 30. It’s still one of their most celebrated albums and it boasts such legendary songs as “For Whom The Bells” and “Fade To Black.”

Garrick’s Take: Fight Fire With Fire: RTL’s first song begins with an acoustic intro to wet our whistles, and then almost capriciously erupts into a fury of trashing and headbanging music. It’s an aggressive opener, and I love that one part where Lars’s stretch of double bass gallops over the sustained guitar. We catch our breath from the riffs in this moment, but the double bass keeps our heart galloping with it.

Ride the Lightning: “Ride” starts strong with a simple but catchy and equally haunting riff, like we’re about to storm a castle with hellfire and brimstone. Unfortunately the song is taken into a disappointing direction, as we’re taken to the Land of Mediocrity. The music - mostly the guitar - sounds uninspired. What the song mostly has going for it, however, is relevance.

“Ride the Lightning”...Texas, anyone?

For Whom The Bell Tolls: A legendary song that sounds like what UFC fighter Chuck Liddell listens to while he pumps himself up in the locker room

has a nice, melodically sanguine sound, and it has some touching lyrics you might find taped on a 20-something’s wall or laptop.

But the bulk of the song falls under the “meh” category for RtL. Creeping Death: ...Will creep up

the instrumental aspects of this album have way more depth and are passing the stages of development that are very apparent in the first. This impression came more with the title track as opposed to the opener.

“For Whom the Bell Tolls” is maybe my favorite Metallica song. It is about the Hemingway novel. Heavy metal about Hemingway. Ernest Heavyway. Imagine Metallica totally shitfaced reading Hemingway.

To be honest songs like “Fade to Black” are so lame and almost bro-y like Joe Rogan style existentialism in that way Tool fans are. This makes me feel so awkward. I’ve heard this song at work before and had near anxiety attacks by how atrocious this song is. I just feel like if Metallica are telling me how lonely they are and how terrible everything is then I’d rather listen to MyWar by Black Flag (released the same year, 1984) where the agony actually seems real and tangible.

Okay as bad as this is, this is leagues ahead of Kill ‘Em All, although in the spectrum of either of Metallica they are “different sides of the same coin.”

Speaking of the year 1984 earlier, a Google search (after turning up little in my head) of metal in 1984 shows to me a rather slow year for metal in general for records. Powerslave (Iron Maiden), Fistful of Metal (Anthrax)…the standout for the year in this field of recording is the first Saint Vitus album, a self-titled Sabbath worship fest “Trapped Under Ice” is unremarkable so I’m looking at these things.

Not to be a complete jerk but sans the title track and “Bells” then, is this album really that much better than Kill ‘Em All? Sure, Ride the Lightning has way more technical prowess and songwriting capabilities, but the spotty, frayed sounds of KEA make that album more accessible to me.

“Escape” is another piece of fat that should be trimmed.

“Creeping Death” just came on. This is one of the bangers. Could this be the saving grace for the last three snoozefests or anxiety producers? This is such a good thrash song. I’d definitely ride big hills on a bike to this. I’d change a tire in a bodyshop to this.

I’d eat yr family to this.

The closer “The Call of Ktulu,” an homage to Lovecraft, started. This track has a campy and sinister feel that I am digging more than the other slower/’progressive’-style and more lead guitar oriented tracks. Can’t stop thinking of Lovecraft during this. Imagine what he’d think. He’d probably sweat so much if he heard this.

This is fully instrumental too, which I feel is appropriate. One song with blatant literary references containing lyrics per album, Metallica…

So, Ride the Lightning is over and while the standout tracks beat Kill ‘Em All by a landslide IMO (in my opinion, fool). There are gaps (the opener, the three song shotin-the-leg starting with “Fade to Black” and ending with “Escape”) that hinder this from being what I remember it as. Then again, I don’t feel like these albums are meant to blow me away at all. My ideas aside, this album is like its predecessor, a good template for this style of music. Even the tracks I didn’t like play into the mood/feel the album has very well.

Up next is Master of Puppets, generally heralded as their masterpiece.

Highlights: “Ride the Lightning,” “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” and “Creeping Death”

on you and bang your head for you if you’re having troubles yourself. It’s undoubtedly a highlight RtL track, and when it dawned on me that it seems to be a set list staple, I looked up “most played Metallica songs live.” Number two? “Creeping Death,” right behind “Master of Puppets” and one ahead of, well, “One,” according to Setlist.fm. If their figures are accurate, it’s been played 1428 times live. It’s just...so...HEAVY! Your challenge upon reading this is to listen to the chorus, and I’ll personally buy you a beer if you’re able to resist banging your head. No minors need apply.

Call of Ktulu: Metallica’s second instrumental, “Ktulu” contains a main driving riff that has this ominous, medieval sound to it. The song serves as a solid conclusion to Metallica’s 1984 album that went platinum six times. For a better Metallica instrumental, I’d sooner opt for Master of Puppets’s “Orion.”

Overall impressions: Ride the Lightning is without hesitation a strong album, and it has produced some of their most played live songs to this day. For me personally, the album is still secondary to their later albums, but it’s bounds and leaps more enjoyable than Kill ‘Em All, and a huge step in the right direction for Metallica.

Patrick’s Take: At 11:17PM on February 19th I put on Ride the Lightning by Metallica to follow their debut Kill ‘Em All. Like Kill ‘Em All it’d been maybe a good decade before I’d heard this album in its entirety. At the age of thirteen I would’ve said this was my favorite Metallica album. Here are my conclusions/ thoughts as I listened to their sophomore album: “Fight Fire with Fire” has an intro where I thought, “Metallica had matured; this intro wasn’t on the previous album in sound or basis.” Then it stops and we’re back into thrash metal. This song is referencing nuclear war...cute. The solos sound different, less metal-y and more like metaly classic-y. Don’t worry, it’s the only thing so far that is different.

Title track just fell on top of me like a bunch of people in guitars dropping them from the Empire State with me in a helmet holding on top of it a massive flat bulls eye.

“Flash before my eyes/Now it’s time to die”...okay so Metallica still liked saying “die.”

Even two tracks in I sort of feel like SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

Next up: Master of Puppets •

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

THE BEACON

Arts&Features

March 3, 2015 • Page 9

Marin Squire at the Movies Waste Land

By Erik Squire Education Major ello my fellow SMCCites. This week I have commandeered our movie review section regular from fellow section editor Rebekah Marin. After watching a remarkable documentary in my Intro to Visual Art course, I simply had to write a column about it. The documentary that captured my interest, entitled Waste Land, depicts one artist’s epic as he turns trash into treasure, quite literally.

Waste Land journals world-renowned artist Vik Muniz and his ambition to help a poverty-stricken community whose members spend their days working in the world’s largest landfill. Muniz sought to accomplish this goal by making art, and what was the medium for this art? Why, it was garbage.

The film begins with Muniz’s personal story and how he achieved his success. Originally from Brazil himself, Muniz made his way to New York with the money that compensated him for being shot in the leg. Muniz took to photography and made a name for himself; as a short biography states: “Often working in series, Vik has used dirt, diamonds, sugar, string, chocolate syrup and garbage to create bold, witty and often deceiving images drawn from the pages of photojournalism and art history. His work has been met with both commercial success and critical acclaim, and has been exhibited worldwide.”

The documentary then shows Muniz as he considers an altruistic endeavor to benefit those in need, with the help of his art. Muniz finds his perfect inspiration in Jardim Gramacho in Brazil, the largest dump on Earth. Muniz finds that he is taken by the “Catadores” (a group of people working in the landfill, picking and sorting through the recyclables). After spending time with the Catadores and viewing firsthand their day to day lives, Muniz becomes

H

enthralled with helping them improve their lot in life.

The filming process took over three years to complete, all the while Muniz integrated himself into the community. The first step was to find models and laborers for the project. The workers then had to sort through the landfill and find pieces of trash that could be used to create the portraits; they were of course paid for their efforts.

The next step was setting the scene. One of the artistic scenes recreated was that of The Death of Marat, a painting of French Revolutionist Jean-Paul Marat, by Jacques-Louis David. Muniz would then capture the moment with a picture. It was masterfully and beautifully done. Finally, Muniz instructed the models to recreate his photography large scale, almost entirely out of garbage. The end products were self-portraits that (in my opinion) rivaled Frida Kahlo’s work.

Throughout the film, I was deeply disturbed by the working conditions for the Catadores. However, I was also touched by the camaraderie that they shared and the happiness that seemed to prevail despite their circumstances. It was saddening yet not despairing; there was still beauty and hope.

The documentary finishes with Muniz’s work being sold at an auction house in England. Each piece of his work was sold in the tens of thousands of dollars; every cent was then given to the Catadores who helped create the art pieces.

As for Muniz, his altruistic aspiration only helped increase his prominence. “His solo show at MAM in Rio de Janeiro was second only to Picasso in attendance records,” states the same biography. “It was

Drop What You’re Doing and Listen to These Albums

By Lahana Palencia Liberal Arts Major now that it’s been the New Year long enough for us to realize those resolutions we made are as extinct as the Flappy Bird app, we can start to focus on the important things like pop culture. (I mean how else would we know what to consume?)

Let’s break it down and talk music.

There’s so much of it out there that it’s getting harder to keep track of what’s cool.

(Is “cool” even cool?) So I went on Wikipedia to check out the albums released so far this year, because even though I’ve been alive for a couple decades, I’m relatively unaware of what “these kids nowadays” are listening to.

For popular artists’ new releases, I noticed Meghan Trainor released her new album Title back in January, which for some reason re­features that one song we all know that shall remain nameless.

Marilyn Manson released The Pale Emperor which made someone happy (or maybe charged with anguish, but in a happy way).

We also see Tetsuo &Youth by Lupe Fiasco (which I actually expected to do better than it has), Non­Fiction by Ne­Yo, Full Speed

by Kid Ink, and a new Fall Out Boy album, American Beauty/American Psycho, that ruined my Tumblr dash for a few months.

There are also a few comeback albums such as The Decemberists with What a TerribleWorld, What a BeautifulWorld, Guster’s Evermotion, which isn’t really a comeback, but their last popular song, “Satellite,” came all the way from that foreign land we call

2006.

The most exciting album was hands down No Cities to Love by Sleater­Kinney, a late 90s/early 2000s all girl indie rock band that dare I say helped define the genre. I could go on, but I’m going to keep it short and sweet.

There are a lot more albums than the ones I mentioned, but to provide a decent working selection of what’s come out so far this year I’ve composed a list of five albums that I think the general populace would enjoy. This is based on what I hear blaring from dorm rooms and cars full of people who think they’re cool. In no particular order I offer: Infected Mushroom - ­Friends on Mushrooms Kat Dahlia - My Garden Mark Ronson - Uptown Special Belle and Sebastian - Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance Dan Mangan - Club Meds These are all on Spotify, so listen to your heart’s content. I’ve also created a short list of the albums this year that I specifically would pick for my own ear, and it goes again in no particular order: Sleater Kinney - No Cities to Love The Decemberists - What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World Guster - Evermotion Murder By Death - Big Dark Love Title Fight - Hyperview So please be that annoying person who always says they heard it first and go music it up.

SO

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

here that Vik first exhibited his ‘Pictures of Garbage Series’ in Brazil.”

For information on how to get involved with helping the Catadores, please visit: www.wastelandmovie.com.

Information gathered regarding Muniz was collected from the Waste Land movie’s website.

By Patrick Doyle Liberal Arts – English Major

A POEM FOR ALL THE WOMEN I’VE WRITTEN PUBLISHED POETRY FOR WHO SHORTLY THEREAFTER BROKE IT OFF WITH ME The disco ball spins away, reflections of images of me and the women I write poems for.

Except the cord snaps and shatters.

The dance floor is nothing but bloody feet.

It happens every time a love poem gets published publicly somewhere. Take for example the love poem where even under the title I put “For ____, duh!”

Duh…heh.

A day or two before that lit mag hit the printers, she cut the string lose, me falling into a pit of broken glass.

Here it is, a love poem for someone who doesn’t even explain why, ceases all contact from me and now forever in print is a love poem for them.

What a tangled web we weave that chokes us to death emotionally.

I learned my lesson about putting their names in it.

No way. Never again.

Well, maybe, if I really feel it for them.

I bet I do it again.

I can’t help but try to show affection through the written word. Show love, admiration. Make you like me.

Emotions are strong with me, I feel like a car that is overheating and cooling rapidly without warning. Sometimes I wanna find all the issues of that publication with the “Duh” in it and burn them.

It happened again recently and days before it hit the printers, again, the affair ended.

When I read it now I want to vomit on the page and then vomit on all the issues. Maybe them too.

Didn’t put their name in it though, must’ve had my head straight somewhere, right beneath a guillotine.

Alright, we’re setting a time limit from now on.

Six months together before you get a poem that gets put somewhere, be it The Beacon, a lit mag, any public place.

Alright, fine, four months.

Two weeks.

A week and that’s final.

Twenty four hours. …Do you have a pen and paper on you?

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

THE BEACON

Sports A Real Presence

layups, pushing SMCC up 4. Jamal Hughes answered, hitting on a 3pt shot bringing the Knights within 1 (58-57). The Knights would not be able to hit again as Carlos Gonzalez would put SMCC up 3, and Tyheem Simon would sink one of two free throws to secure a SMCC win and spot in the championship game.

Both games Sunday proved to be everything that any basketball fan could wish for. The Lady Seawolves and Fightin’ Saints played a game that was of extremes. St. Joe’s would build a 16pt lead in the second half, only to watch it evaporate before their eyes and relinquish the lead at the 2:48 mark.

In the men’s game The Fightin’ Saint would match everything SMCC threw at them, eventually getting the Seawolves big man Carlos Gonzalez to foul out then exploiting SMCC’s weakness in the middle while draining 3pters at key moments in their comeback.

The first 10minutes of the women’s game saw each team battling it out and staying close as the score was knotted at 23.

St. Joe’s would go on a scoring spurt out pacing SMCC 17-6 until Abigail Neilsen drained a 3 at the buzzer to pull SMCC within 8 (40-32) stealing some momentum going into the locker room.

The second half saw St. Joe’s go on the offensive, building a 16pt lead in the first 3minutes of play. Four minutes later SMCC had cut the lead to 10 on a Jaimi Poland layup (40-50) and again when Offensive Player of the Tournament, Amira Jones hit underneath (52-42).

(Continued from Page 12) course of the first 8 minutes, SMCC would maintain a 6-8point lead until the 4:42 mark when Abigail Neilsen’s free throw put the Wolves up by 10 (57-47). CMCC then rattled off 4 quick points (57-51). Shortly after, Alicia Hoyt hit 2 free throws, padding the Seawolve lead to 8 (59-51).

With 3minutes to go CMCC’s Gabby Foy hit for 2 (59-53), Jordan Turner responded with one from the free throw line (60-52), after which CMCC pulled with in 2 after rattling off 5pts. Jordan Turner and Alicia Hoyt both got to the free throw line, sinking a free throw a piece to give SMCC a 4pt lead and a hard fought victory over CMCC (62-58).

Game highlights include: a box score that reads practically identical except for free throw percentage where CMCC outshot SMCC 74.1% (20-27) to 44.8% (1329), CMCC shooting a dismal 28% (18-64) from the field, and going 2-12 from behind the 3point line, and SMCC shooting 38.3% (23-60) from the field, while Amira Jones and Alicia Hoyt both scored 15points.

A few short hours after the Lady Wolves walked off the court with their second win of the year over CMCC, the Men Wolves walked on the court to play Vermont Tech in the first men’s semi-final game of the night. The College of St Joe’s would handle UMaine-Machias (74-68) in the last game of semi-final play.

If there was any thought of Vermont Tech being worn out after surviving a hard fought battle against CMCC the night before, they were quickly dispelled as the Knights stayed with SMCC throughout the game, even grabbing a lead in the early stages of the second half.

SMCC did establish a 9pt lead by the 9:24 mark only to see Vt. Tech reverse the momentum, tie the game at the 4:36 mark (22-22), and grab a 4pt lead with 2:59 to play (26-22). The Wolves responded tying the game at 26 (1:52 left), and again on Atencio Martin’s layup with 1:10 to go (2828).

Highlights from the first half include: both teams shooting a combined 2-21 from 3pt land, Vt. Tech shooting 9-11 from the free throw line and SMCC going 3-4, both teams grabbing 17 rebounds, limiting turnovers: Vt. Tech-5/SMCC-4, and the Knights shooting 37.5% from the field as SMCC shot 36.4%.

The second half opened up with both teams trading two rounds of baskets after which Vt Tech jumped out to a 7pt lead (40-33, 14:56 left). The Seawolves immediately responded as Chase Soares and Josh Tuplin drained 3pters, and Jordan DeRosby connected on a 2pt shot, giving SMCC a 1pt lead with 13:36 to go.

Vermont Tech stand out Jamal Hughes (YSCC Player of the Year) tied the score at 41, SMCC again hit for 6pts as Tyheem Simon drove the lane twice, and Chase Soares followed with a jumper, giving the Seawolves a 6pt lead with 9:01 left.

In the next 4 minutes of play, SMCC again gained breathing space with a 6pt lead (54-48) when Jack Tolan connected underneath (4:41 left). Vt. Tech responded again when Jamal Hughes completed an old-fashioned 3pt play. sinking a free throw after being fouled on a made shot, tying the score (2:14 left).

Again it was Seawolve Tyheem Simon driving the lane and scoring on consecutive SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Over the next 12minutes The Lady Wolves would claw their way back into the game, out-scoring St. Joe’s 22-11 taking a 64-63 lead with 2:43 to play.

The basketball powers would not shine on SMCC down the stretch as St. Joe’s got to the free throw line, scoring 7 of their final 9pts.

While SMCC was denied the opportunity to cut the nets down, the comeback from 16pts down was a sight

Seawolves, Elite 8 (Continued from Page 1) Vermont Tech that night, sending them to a semi-final showdown with the Seawolves.

The women’s first day of play saw the Lady Seawolves taking care of business, as the Saint’s of the College of St Joe’s, the CMCC Mustangs, and UMaine-Augusta also did.

The second day of the tournament started with the YSCC Awards Banquet, where all the teams participating in the tournament met to share a meal, share accomplishments, and be acknowledged for outstanding play and coaching.

After a hearty lunch and much laughter, the formal awards ceremony got underway with team and individual award recipients being acknowledged. Individually, SMCC’s Amira Jones and Atencio Martin were selected All YSCC 2nd Team and All YSCC 1st Team respectively. SMCC’s men’s coach Matt Richards was the recipient of the Men’s Coach of the Year Award and the men’s team was recognized as the regular season champions.

The energy and atmosphere throughout the course of the banquet was one that came across as being based in mutual respect, friendship, and camaraderie.

Later on Friday, the men Wolves •

THE BEACON

•

March 3, 2015 • Page 11

Jordan Turner had four assists, four steals, six rebounds, and nine points the Lady Seawolves’ win against rivals CMCC, winning 62-58.

to see. Lead by Amira Jones’ 12pts, seven other Lady Wolves contributed to the comeback. Missed free throws, fouls and turnovers haunted SMCC’s bid to stay close and steal the win.

In the men’s game everything seemed to be going SMCC’s way in the first half as the Wolves worked tenaciously to build a 9pt lead at half. Atencio Martin drained 3 foul shots with no time on the clock after being fouled on a 3pt shot that missed. Chase Soares lead SMCC in scoring, posting 11pts as Atencio Martin and Tyheem Simon each had 7 at halftime.

The opening of the second half saw SMCC jump out to a 13pt lead behind the scoring of Atencio Martin and Greyson Waterman. The Fightin’ Saints would then go to work, eventually tying the game at 44 with 10:39 left. After another 5 minutes of play the score was knotted at 53. Over the course of the 13minutes when SMCC was up 13 and the 53pt tie at the 5:27 mark, St. Joe’s had drained six 3pters.

In the end the basketball powers that are would not shine brightly on SMCC. The box score says it all: a dismal 14.3% from 3pt land (4-28), and Carlos Gonzalez fouling out with 4:37 to go in the game. The bright spots for SMCC would be: a total team effort when Carlos Gonzalez fouled out and

Atencio Martin’s and Tyheem Simon’s (Offensive Player of the Tournament) offensive contributions.

The Beacon wishes both squads the best in their USCAA Nationals adventure. Play well and may the basketball powers shine on you brightly.

opened up the tournament against Eastern Maine Community College, which was the second game of the day after UMA played St Joe’s of Vermont, and before the NHTI/ UMaine - Machias, and CMCC/Vermont Tech games.

Thursday and Friday proved to be solid days for both SMCC squads as they won their quarterfinal and semi-final games, earning them a spot in the championship game. Both squads from the College of St. Joe’s would also win their games, pitting the Saints against the Seawolves in Sunday’s championship games.

In-depth coverage of the Seawolves adventure in the YSCC Elite 8 will be found on the pages of the sports section. Please look for the ISSUU version of the Beacon online, as we are planning on having an additional 4 pages highlighting all the Elite 8 games.

Sunday’s finals proved to be games of high caliber and intense play where both teams worked their hardest to get the advantage and secure themselves an automatic bid to the USCAA Nationals in Uniontown, PA. After 80 minutes of play, the Saints of St. Joe’s would stand victorious as both squads defeated defiant SMCC squads, who also had their eye on the prize of the tournament’s title holder.

It should be noted here that the Lady Seawolves fought back from a 2nd half

16point deficit to tie and take the a brief lead before falling to the Saints. It was an incredible comeback to witness as the levels of intensity, focus, drive and resolve were notched up quite a bit by the Lady Seawolves, all of which gave St. Joe’s cause for concern as they found themselves in a hard-fought battle.

On the men’s side of the court, the Seawolves found themselves in one of the more intense battles of the year as St. Joe’s fought diligently and tenaciously to erase a 10point half-time deficit, forcing overtime and earning the right to cut the nets down.

While it may sound disingenuous to say both squads have nothing to be ashamed of, the truth of the matter is that both squads have tons to be proud of, from building a stronger sense of confidence in knowing that they belong on the court with the best of the USCAA teams, to seeing a greater potential.

The Lady Seawolves open the USCAA on Thursday at 7:30 against Penn State Lehigh Valley, and the men open their USCAA adventure at 5:30 on Thursday against a team to be named.

With the help of the CeSIL Office, SMCC will be screening the games in real time in Jewett Auditorium and in the Physics Auditorium 102 of Hildreth Hall.

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

Jack Tolan hit the glass with three rebounds and four points in the Seawolves Semifinal battle against VMT, winning 61-57.

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

SMCC SPORTS Good Luck Ladies and Men's Basketball Teams in the

USCAA Nationals in Uniontown, PA All games streamed live via USCAA web site.

Men’s Basketball March 3 - 5:30 vs TBA Women’s Basketball March 3 - 7:30 vs Penn Stats Lehigh Valley

Seawolves a Real Presence in Elite 8 Tournament

and 11pts respectfully. SMCC also out rebounded EMCC 48-36, as Carlos Gonzalez grabbed 9 boards, and out-stole EMCC 11 to 7.

Semi-final play got underway at noon on Saturday as UMaine - Augusta took on St. Joe’s in the first game. St. Joe’s would dispatch the Lady Moose of UMA 67-58, earning the Fightin’ Saints the first spot in the finals.

Shortly after St. Joe’s ended UMA’s time in the tournament, the Lady Seawolves took the court against CMCC. The first 5minutes of the game started off fast and furious for SMCC as the Lady Wolves jumped out to a 14-4 lead, 8 of which Amira Jones netted. CMCC out scored SMCC 9-2 over the next 3minutes to get back within 3 (16-13). The last 12 minutes of the first half saw the Lady Wolves out-score the Mustang’s 23-10, taking a 39-23 lead into the locker room.

SMCC’s lead was cut in half in the first 10 minutes of the second half when Mustang Kat Styles drained a 3pt shot pulling CMCC within 8 (45-37). While the Mustang’s outscored SMCC 14-6 over the

Come up short in finals despite valiant efforts

By Beacon Sports Staff hen the final buzzer sounded at the YSCC Elite 8 tournament, the SMCC basketball teams had finished their tournament run falling shy 6 and 7pts needed to capture the title. The women and men fell to the College of St. Joe’s 72-67 and 73-67 respectfully.

As Sunday proved not to be SMCC’s day for cutting nets down, the tournament as a whole could easily be seen as a solid positive for the teams. Season and tournament wise, the Seawolve squads compiled an impressive list of accomplishments: combining for an over-all record of 43-11, going 4 for 5 against CMCC, both teams making it to the YSCC finals, and both being invited to the USCAA Nationals in Uniontown, PA. At the tournament’s end, the Lady Wolves finished with a well-respected 20-8 record including: two victories over CMCC, one over highly touted Dean

W

Maria Veino ended her game against St. Joe’s with five points and two rebounds, both of which were offensive.

College, and winning the 9 games prior to the YSCC championship. The Men Wolves posted a 23-3 record, including wins on CMCC’s court, going undefeated in the YSCC regular season, and being recognized as the regular season YSCC champions.

The Lady Wolves opened against Vermont Tech, 5 days after playing and winning in Randolph, VT. SMCC would double the Lady Knights score, walking off the court with an 81-40 victory. Amira Jones, Alicia Hoyt and Maria Veino would lead the scoring attack for the Lady Wolves, netting 18, 12, and 10 respectfully.

After the Knights opened the game with a 3pter, Jordan Turner’s 3pter ignited an 11-2 Seawolves run. The first ten minutes of the game saw SMCC build a comfortable lead while Vermont Tech tried to stay close. With 13minutes to play, SMCC held an 18-12 lead when Samantha Griffin and Kendra Kagiliery combined for three 3pters, padding the Seawolves lead to 13 (27-14). SMCC would continue to build their lead, expanding it to 25 (39-14), and continue to the point that when the halftime buzzer sounded SMCC lead by 33 (56-23).

The 2nd half saw the Lady Wolves maintaining their lead, outscoring the Knights 25-17, despite their field goal shooting percentage dropping to 35% from the 56.1% they shot in the first half. SMCC

Jack Tolan slams home a two-handed dunk against St. Joe’s; he finished with six points, and two-for-two from the line.

went 7-12 from 3pt land in the first half while shooting 1-8 in the second half.

Individual highlights include: Amira Jones going 8 for 9 from the field for the game, grabbing 6 boards, and picking 2 steals. Samantha Griffin and Tiana Burton contributed 9pts a piece while Zyrah Giustra picked VT Tech’s pocket 5 times.

24 hours later the Men Wolves would take the floor against EMCC and jump out to an 8-0 lead before the Golden Eagles scored. The first half was a half of runs, countered by larger runs as SMCC built a 19pt half-time lead. At the 9:22 mark with SMCC up 17pts (24-7), Eastern went on a small run trimming the deficit from 17 to 7 (24-17). The Seawolves would close out the first half by out scoring EMCC 15-2, aided by 6pts from Josh Grimley.

The first two minutes of the second half saw SMCC grab a 25pt lead (54-19) after a 6pt run. The Eagles responded by out-scoring the Wolves 11-3, 8-3, and 16-10, crawling within 7 (61-54). EMCC’s final run was answered by a Chase Soares’ 3pter, which sparked a 10pt run by SMCC that EMCC would not recover from.

At game’s end, the Seawolves had secured a 17pt win and a showdown with the winner of the Vermont Tech/CMCC game.

Tyheem Simon, Chase Soares, Alexander Hartfort, and Atencio Martin lead the Wolves in scoring as they netted 18, 12, 12

Tyheem Simon ended with nineteen points, five rebounds, and two assists in an excellent performance in the finals, going 5-for-7 from the free throw line.

Amira Jones had a stunning performance against St. Joe’s, ending with twenty-one points, fifteen rebounds, and five steals.

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

•

THE BEACON

•

SOUTHERN MAINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE