Play that funky music, UP! Living, pg. 7
The
Vol. 114, Issue 5
Need an escape? Take a hike! Living, pg. 8-9
BEACON THE UNIVERSITY OF PORTLAND’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER
Thursday September 27, 2012 www.upbeacon.net
Who have we become?
The past two decades have brought many changes for UP students Kate Stringer Staff Writer stringer14@up.edu Their hair was bigger, their student loans were smaller and Facebook didn’t distract them from their homework. Welcome to life at UP twenty years ago. University of Portland isn’t what it used to be, and that’s not just because we have a gutted library. Students have been evolving over the years, and these changes have not gone unnoticed by faculty and staff. Paul Myers, Director of Health Services, has been studying how students have changed in the last 19 years and said everything from the way students interact to how they use technology has shifted. Despite the changing face of the UP college student, Myers said that “the more things change, the more they stay the same.”
Being the best According to Myers, this generation of UP students feel even more pressure to succeed academically. Since middle school, students
have been getting the message from peers, parents, teachers and the media that college is competitive and students must be the best to achieve success. “It puts a lot of stress and pressure at aiming for the Ivy League,” Myers said. “If you don’t get into the Ivy League then somehow you’re not good enough; these things get internalized [by students].” UP’s data reflect this, as incoming freshman are smarter than they used to be. According to UP’s Institutional Research, incoming freshmen SAT scores are rising. In 2003 the average score was 1173. This year the average is 1195, the second highest in UP history. Additionally, GPA’s are higher, rising from 3.62 in 2003 to a high of 3.68 in 2011. Once students arrive at college, Myers said the anticipation of graduate school and the anxiety to find a job to pay off loans causes students to feel a greater pressure to maintain a high GPA. If this expectation is not met, See change, page 2
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NEWS
September 27, 2012
On On Campus Campus CPB Movie
This week the free CPB movie is Men in Black 3. The movie will be in Buckley Center Auditorium at 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Bluffoons Improv Friday at 7:30 in Mago Hunt Recital Hall, UP’s comedy group will put on an improv show. Admission is $2 per person, or three dollars for two people. Door open at 7:15 p.m. Fall Dance The Fall Dance: Explosion of Color will be Saturday at the Melody Ballroom. . Buses will begin loading at 8:30 p.m., and the line will start outside Buckely Center 163. Only clutches and wallets will be allowed. Tickets are on sale until Friday in the Commons and the Office of Student Activities in St. Mary’s Student Center. The dance will go from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Vote UP Event Tuesday at 7 p.m. MEChA will host a panel on the presidential candidates stance on immigration. The panel will be in St. Mary’s Student Center. Debate Watch Party Wednesday at 6 p.m. there will be a presidential candidate watch party in The Cove. The event is hosted by the Office of Marketing and Communications. Health Care reform presentation An informative session about the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will be in Buckley Center Auditorium on Friday from 10:30 a .m. to 12 p.m. AEM-UP nursing students will be available to answer questions.
CORRECTIONS In last weeks’ information box about ASUP elections, the business school voter participation was 30.9 percent, not 309 percent. In last week’s Portland Coffee Crawl, Willamette Week was misnamed.
Accuracy in The Beacon
The Beacon strives to be fair and accurate. The newspaper corrects any significant errors of fact brought to the attention of the editors. If you think an error has been made, contact us at beacon@up.edu. Corrections will be printed above.
CHANGE: Students are now more tech savvy Continued from page # anxiety increases. “Not all of them get to be in the top 10 percent [of their class] and they feel like failures even though they’re going to a prestigious school,” Myers said. “They’re doing an outstanding job [but] getting a 3.0 instead of a 3.8.” However, as students progress through college, many come to realize the value of an education is not in the brand name of a school. Myers said that students come to appreciate the excellent academic institutions in the Northwest, and the small student - to - faculty ratio not found among bigger schools. Senior Erin Thompson agrees that a valuable education isn’t something that’s solely found in the Ivy Leagues. “What you put into your education is what you get out, especially at UP,” Thompson said. “The majority of classes are not only challenging but you come out learning something.”
Community Oriented While students of the 1980’s and 90’s were known as the “me” generation, Myers believes the current generation of students at UP is community - oriented. “This generation is moving back in the direction of being more community focused and less selfish than in prior generations,” Myers said. “We’re seeing and hearing students much more interested in the environment and the community.” Laura Goble, director of the Moreau Center for Service and Leadership, said 3,400 UP students participated in 163,891 hours of community service during the 2010-2011 school year. Also, more students are getting their community service done in class. “A lot of students don’t have time to do service outside of class, so it’s really meaningful when it’s assigned,” Goble said. Junior Kay Bodmer agrees that UP students have heightened awareness regarding their community. “I definitely think our generation cares a lot about community and being connected with each other,” Bodmer said. “We like being involved in a cause.”
Tuned in or tuned out? There’s no doubt that with the inventions of texting, Facebook, email and Twitter, students are more connected to their world than past generations. Myers said it makes it easier for students to stay in touch when studying abroad. “People track each other all day long back in their hometown,” Myers said. “Salzburg-ers know exactly what’s going on in their hall here all day.” Whether technology creates social isolation or not, it connects this generation to their peers when geography fails to do so.
“Facebook helps slow the separation process,” Myers said. “Geography really had a big affect on who you talked to so if you moved away that really meant cutting off those relationships.” Junior Jen Burke agrees that technology plays a big part in maintaining relationships despite distance. “My family lives in California so sometimes it’s hard when we don’t see each other for months at a time,” Burke said. “Weekly Skype dates help them [my family] feel better about me living in a different state.”
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Photo courtesy of Fr. Bob Antonelli, University Archives
Academic Improvements English professor Herman Asarnow, who has taught at UP since 1979, has noticed student growth in academic ability. “We have more [students] who are really able, and every student is valuable,” Asarnow said. “It raises the discourse in the classroom. People are able to read, write and speak better as a whole.” Robert Duff, a social and behavioral sciences professor who has taught at UP since 1972, attributes the increase in academic abilities to several factors, the main one being Father Tyson’s work as UP president starting in 1990. “He changed things tremendously. He stopped accepting students below a certain level [academically]. He increased tuition but started the scholarship program,” Duff said. “The last 20 years, the character of the students has been different. They’re more competitive and more conscious of grades.” Asarnow adds that it’s not only the time spent in college students are concerned about, but the time spent after college. “Everybody wants to do more intellectual work, postgraduate and fellowships and just generally I think that’s a good thing,” Asarnow said. “Since 1990 we’ve made [UP] a richer place, richer in the sense of more interesting – that draws people naturally to it.” Freshman Emily Hance agrees that she feels intellectually challenged in her classes. “My high school was really good but I can tell that everyone is here to learn,” she said.
Diversity UP students now hail from a wider geographic range in the U.S., Myers said. UP Institutional Research says that in 2003, 26 percent of students were from Western states, with 31 percent coming from the Portland area. Now, in 2012, 32 percent come from Western states while 26 percent come from the Portland area. In the early 1980’s Asarnow recalls greater international diversity as well. “Some of my best students were those who came over from Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand,” Asarnow said. When it comes to race, different ethnicities have risen
1983
Photo courtesy of Fr. Bob Antonelli, University Archives
1982
Photo courtesy of Fr. Bob Antonelli, University Archives
and fallen in enrollment at UP over the past ten years, according to UP’s Institutional Research. The percentage of African American students has decreased from 1.7 percent to 1 percent. But the percentage of Asian and Pacific Islanders students has increased from 1 percent to 11.5 percent. The percentage of Hispanic students has increased from 3 percent to 9.1 percent. Overall, ethnicity enrollment at UP has risen by 14 percent over the past nine years.
What’s the same? Although UP students have certainly evolved over the years, much has remained the same. Myers points out that drinking habits have been a constant, especially for college freshmen. According to UP’s Core Alcohol and Drug Survey, 50 percent of underage students at UP consume alcohol. Twenty one percent of these underage drinkers partake in high risk drinking. Myers said that freshmen tend to drink more because media surrounding college lore suggest it is the norm, but usually drinking subsides as students grow older and more mature. Senior Haley Skelton agrees.
“It’s because they [freshmen] are newly unsheltered for the most part,” she said. “I used to drink a lot my first two years but now I’m over it. I’d rather just have a glass of wine.” Drinking patterns aren’t the only thing that has remained constant. Myers also said that college students are known for straying from formal religious practices and instead involve themselves more in community service. Generally after college when they get married and have children they gravitate back towards their faith. Through transformations and consistencies, Myers has been fascinated by his observations of college students over the years. “What’s so fun about the university experiment that’s been going on for 1000 years is that interplay of professors and their seasoned experience being conveyed to the youthful hopeful,” Myers said. “It’s wonderful to watch, it’s exciting and hopeful.”
NEWS
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Students show off ocean creature research
Friday Sept. 28, Crab Lab will have an open house to showcase two students’ summer projects
Jackie Jeffers | THE BEACON
Photo courtesey of Tara Maginnia
Jackie Jeffers | THE BEACON
Jackie Jeffers | THE BEACON
Clockwise from left to right: Seniors Tim Luethke and Matt Ortman collected real ocean specimens this summer to research. In addition to crabs, students also study seastars. The lab houses complete ecosystems for their purple shore crabs to live in. Hannah Kintner Staff Writer kintner13@up.edu So you spent your summer at the beach? So did seniors Tim Luethke and Matt Ortman, but they got to bring the beach back to school with them. Over the summer, Luethke and Ortman worked with biology professor Tara Maginnis as Crab Lab interns. Crab Lab is a research program Maginnis started where students can study animal limb regeneration and animal behaviors. The lab was set up last year and mainly focused on crab research. The program was expanded this year when Luethke and Ortman took it upon themselves to create miniature ecosystems in each of the holding tanks so they can take their research to a new level. “We’ve taken it upon
ourselves to just make the Crab Lab a more diverse and healthier ecosystem with more diversity of display for the general public as well, ” Luethke said. Friday, Sept. 28 from noon to 6 p.m. the UP community is invited to stop by the Crab Lab open house in Swindells Hall 128 for a firsthand look at the sea creatures and research material Luethke and Ortman have compiled. Attendees can handle certain sea creatures, check out kiddy pools filled with crabs and a starry flounder, feed some of the animals, view videos of the researchers at the tide pools and simply enjoy the beauty of star fish, urchins, anemones and other tide pool life. While both Luethke and Ortman have contributed immense amounts of time to research and the development of
Crab Lab, the students are not working for school credit. “It’s not as much about credit as contributions to science,” Maginnis said. In order to contribute to science, the students have each chosen a specific aspect of crab behavior and limb regeneration to study. Ortman decided to concentrate his research on the relationship between male aggression levels and limb regeneration. In order to study this, he collected three groups of crabs, each with their front claws in different conditions. Ortman then set up the crabs to fight, and video recorded them to analyze aggression patterns. The videos of the crab fights will be available for viewing at the open house. Luethke’s research is based on the dorso-ventral righting reflex of crabs, which is how they
naturally flip themselves off of their backs. “You know how everyone says if you drop a cat it’s going to land on its feet, so like in The Lion King, Mufasa never would have landed on his back?” Luethke said. “Crabs have a dorso-ventral righting system as well.” Luethke explained that when a crab is pushed onto its back by the tide, it instinctually begins to flip itself right side up. In his research, he filmed crabs with various missing limbs, flipped them on their backs and tracked the amount of time it took them to right themselves. Oddly enough, he has found that crabs missing their front claws have an easier time flipping over than crabs with all limbs intact. Maginnis believes that one of the benefits of working in Crab Lab is that students finish the program with a lot of experience
on how to be a scientist. “Being able to see a project through from its conception to, hopefully, its publication or at least review for publication, while having complete control over what you do, designing your own experiments, making your own mistakes, collecting your own animals, is just a microcosm of actual research that one would do in a professional setting,” Ortman said. Crab Lab is all about preparing students to be professional scientific researchers and seeking a deeper understanding of nature, Luethke said. “The ultimate goal for us is to have our research published in a research journal and to present our research at various conferences this year,” he said.
Health Center to hire new mental health specialist
The University passed ASUP’s resolution asking for a new position to help students with mental health issues Philip Ellefson Staff Writer ellefson14@up.edu Last year, students visiting the Health Center for mental health counseling were often told they had to wait two to three weeks for an appointment. This year, that will be changing. At the end of last semester, ASUP drafted a resolution asking the Health Center to hire an additional mental health specialist to counsel students. Senior Julia Balistreri, ASUP secretary, said the resolution was written because of the long wait students experienced. “That’s really detrimental to the students in general,” Balistreri said. “Finally we realized that it needed to happen.” The resolution was approved last spring by ASUP with strong support across campus.
“It got overwhelming reviews in senate, with constituents and in the Health Center,” Balistreri said.
“It will position us to better meet the needs of the student community. I think it is an example of the administration putting the University’s mission to action.” Paul Myers Health Services Director The passage of the resolution led to the creation of a new position in the Health Center – the assistant director of counseling and training. The assistant director will be a licensed psychologist working
full-time on campus. Balistreri hopes the new assistant director will be able to help students monitor medication usage for mental health problems. “That is such a touchy thing. It’s not guaranteed that the medications will work,” Balistreri said. “Someone who could monitor that more often could prevent worsening of conditions.” The assistant director will not be able to write prescriptions for students. But he or she will be able to refer students to doctors who can prescribe mental health medications, according to Health Services Director Paul Myers. Myers hopes to hire someone for the position soon. He has been interviewing candidates from as far as the East Coast. “We’ve got some good candidates,” Myers said. “I’m hopeful that the position’s going
to be filled by Halloween.” Myers estimates that the assistant director will spend half of his or her time counseling students and half carrying out administrative duties. The assistant director may work on developing specialty programs in testing, disability services or eating disorder specialization. In addition to hiring a new mental health specialist, the Health Center staff has also instituted a new triage system for scheduling counseling appointments. In this system, students can walk in at any time for a 15-minute appointment, in which a counselor will decide what kind of counseling a student needs. If needed, the student can then schedule a longer appointment. “We did some research and we made adjustments to our intake system. We have counselors
who are on duty every day to triage what kind of counseling is needed,” Myers said. “A lot of students are able to get their consultation need met right there at that appointment.” Myers said the new system, along with the new assistant director, will serve the student community well. “It will position us to better meet the needs of the student community,” Myers said. “I think it is an example of the administration putting the University’s mission to action.”
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NEWS
September 27, 2012
Teacher communication abilities: What works? The Communication Department shares their research on actual UP student and teacher communication Rachelle Leduc Staff Writer leduc13@up.edu
Q&A Yesterday, Sept. 26, professor Jeff Kerssen-Griep presented his research on “Which teacher communication abilities matter most” as the first speaker of the Fall semester colloquium series. Throughout the semester, the Communication Studies Department will demonstrate and display communication being done around campus. The school ultimately wants to start a bigger conversation about communications on campus. Kerssen-Griep sat down with The Beacon to answer a few questions about his research, Q: What did you research in your study? A: “We were looking at mostly students perceptions. We wanted to find out what’s your sense of what’s happening in your actual classes. We weren’t making up pretend scenarios. We were asking students about their actual teachers. We asked them a lot of questions they were qualified to answer for examples about their motivations or their experiences or their recollection of things they did. So we’re asking people things that are within their expertise, and also asking them what they noticed about their teachers’ responses. We’ve been doing more work from the students perspective than we have from the teachers perspective so there are a couple of ways this research has to grow next.” Q: Why did you find it important to study this? A: “This is my favorite thing. I’ve always thought that group communication is the hardest kind of communication to do well, because if you’re doing public speaking you can think of it as ‘I’m going to come, I’m going to persuade you, it doesn’t matter how I’m going to do it, you’re going to go do what I want and I don’t have to see you anymore.’ In interpersonal communication [it’s more like] ‘I’m going to develop a relationship with
you, we’re going to have nice interactions but we’re not going to do anything together, and I don’t have to worry about persuading about anything.’ [In] group communication you have to do both, and teaching is so much group communication; that’s really what its about, that’s the hard part of teaching I think, maintaining your [students] willingness to come to class. It’s communication that people can learn and do, so that’s what I got into studying. So my contribution was to take this notion of facework ( how an individual’s identity is changed through communication) from the interpersonal communication literature and apply it to the instructional communication literature where it really hadn’t been before.” Q: Who would this research be most beneficial to, teachers and professors or students? A: “All the above. I would even say to the universities that house them, because really what we’re studying here is supplying social science evidence that says ‘here’s why it matters that people feel involved in a conversation that is intentionally respectful and that you can make other choices as a teacher.’ You’ve [teachers] got authority, you can do that if you want, you can always use a hammer, but that’s a different kind of motivation and leads to different kind outcomes. So if we can offer evidence that persuades people [that] this is an interpersonal skill you’ve got already, and [can] apply in lots of settings with people you care about, [you can] apply it in the classroom. Most of our data is about what sorts outcomes result when there seems to be more of that rather than less of that.” Q: What did you find most important, and how did affect your teaching? A: It has been so affirming to realize the data really kind of affirmed my intuition. Q: What’s next? A: “The next question we have to learn about is…do you learn well from a jerk? Because I have. I have been in classes where I’ve thought ‘I hate him
and I can’t wait to come back to class.’ If we’re right about this facework stuff, why should that work? So there has to be some other filter going on in people’s thinking about facework that has to do with their expectations. That’s the next place we have to go.
It’s communication that people can learn and do, so that’s what I got into studying. So my contribution was to take this notion of facework from the interpersonal communication literature and apply it to the instructional communication literature where it really hadn’t been before.” Jeff Kerssen-Griep Communications professor Next place is to figure out so why do people learn from interpersonal jerks as well. How do those people get some of these same outcomes if they aren’t either good at this or care enough to do it? The second thing we have to do is to look more at how teachers actually accomplish stuff. Because mostly we have been looking at whether or not students perceive it to be there, and the students could be wrong. We want to look at teachers who are really good at this, and figure out how do they actually pull it off and see if we can encode that for people. We’re looking for advice that is portable but not too behavioral, so teachers get to use their own best abilities. So I think what we need to do next is give people more guidance without being too prescriptive behaviorally.”
Giovanna Solano | THE BEACON
Professor Jeff Kerssen-Griep discusses his research on how professors and students communicate. Kerseen-Griep was the first speaker of the Communication Department fall colloquium series.
Upcoming speakers in the Communication Studies Department Fall semester colloquium series • “How should I touch you? Teaching intimate touch strategies to nursing students.”- Chad O’Lynn, PhD and Loretta Krautscheid M.A. - Wednesday, Oct. 31. 12-1 p.m. •
CST Capstone Night - Tuesday, Dec. 11. 6:30-8 p.m.
Both talks will be in Buckely Center 163
The UP Public Safety Report 4
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1. Sept. 22, 10:14 p.m.. - Public Safety received a party complaint about a house at the 6700 block of N. Portsmouth Ave. The party was registered and Public Safety called the residents to advise them to quiet down. They were complaint. 2. Sept. 23, 12:06 a.m. Public Safety received a noise complaint about a house at the 6800 block of N. Fiske Ave. Officers made contact with the residents and advised them to go inside and quiet down. They were complaint. 3. Sept. 23, 12:25 a.m. . - Public Safety Officers returned to a previously shut down party at the 6700 block of N. Portsmouth Ave. where a party had started back up. Officers contacted the renters and shut down the party. 4. Sept. 23, 2:00 a.m.. -Public Safety received a party complaint about a room at Tyson Hall. The call was transferred to Residence Life. 5. Sept. 23, 3:17 p.m.- A staff member reported the theft of their bike from on their vehicle rack while it was parked outside of Buckley Center. The bike was not registered and was locked with a cable. A report was taken and the individual was advised to report the theft to Portland Police.
NEWS
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University reviews ASUP resolutions for food facts, coffee cart ASUP has passed three resolutions which could be in effect soon if the University approves Bon Appetit asked to post nutrition facts Health-conscious students may soon know just how much fat and sodium are in those crispy, crunchy Commons chips. ASUP unanimously passed a resolution last spring asking Bon Appétit to make nutrition facts for their food available However, Bon Appétit supervisor Kirk Mustain said that it is not feasible to put nutrition facts on all of their food. “Because we change our menu so frequently, we can’t go break down every item every day,” Mustain said. Mustain also said that the nutrition facts for some of the
Buckley Center greenhouse could become coffee cart
food that is served daily, like pizza and hamburgers, are available online. He said Bon Appétit would be open to posting these nutrition facts in The Commons. The resolution is largely intended to accommodate the needs of students with dietary restrictions, such as gluten intolerance or veganism, said ASUP secretary Julia Balistreri. “I’m hoping it will work for students who do have special diet of have a lot of allergies,” Balistreri said. - Philip Ellefson
Major Project Fund may be spent in the fall A resolution passed last spring allows ASUP to spend the major project fund (MPF) in the fall instead of in the spring. ASUP Secretary Julia Balistreri said this will give ASUP more time to plan and execute projects. “If you’re going to do an event or have a speaker, you want two semesters to make
sure that gets done,” Balistreri said. Last fall, students voted to change the capital improvement fund (CIF) to the MPF. This allowed ASUP to spend the $20,000 in the fund on events rather than strictly on physical improvements on campus. - Philip Ellefson
THE BEACON
Students may look forward to being able to pick up a latte before class outside of Buckley Center. ASUP passed a resolution last spring to renovate the greenhouse outside of Buckley Center. Julia Balistreri, ASUP secretary, said the resolution
was made because the space is not being used. “We have a huge space in school that something needs to be done with,” she said. ASUP is considering turning the space into a coffee stand run by Bon Appétit that may serve pastries and other
food. Although this decision has not been approved, it has been brought before administrators.
- Philip Ellefson
All automatic soap and paper towel dispensers to be replaced A year after installing battery - operated soap and paper towel dispensers, the University is switching to greener models Megan Walsh Staff Writer walsh15@up.edu The ability to wash one’s hands with soap is a necessity, especially in public restrooms. But due to poorly operating automatic soap dispensers, some students and staff have often not been able to wash their hands thoroughly this year. However, thanks to a set of new of soap dispensers scheduled to be installed on campus, this problem will be solved. About a year after installing automatic motion-detecting soap and paper towel dispensers, the University has decided to replace all of them with manual dispensers. According to Fay Beeler, assistant director of physical plant, 400 new soap and paper towel dispensers are currently in production and expected to be installed in four to six weeks. Beeler said that although they initially hoped automatic dispensers would be more sanitary since they didn’t require a physical touch, the automatic dispensers proved unreliable and required too many batteries. “They took D-sized batteries, and the batteries did not last as long as they should,” Beeler said. “The new dispensers will be absolutely, totally more green.” Beeler added that the automatic soap dispensers
emitted soap when no one needed it and ran out of soap and battery life too quickly. The new soap dispensers will require a slight tap to dispense soap. The new paper towel dispeners will have a free standing paper towel with a perforated edge and the paper towel will be easy to rip off without having to touch a lever, Beeler said. Neither dispenser will require any sort of battery or form of electricity to operate. Junior Patrick Huynh thinks this transition is positive. “I think it is a great change, it is kind of like a going green type movement when we can get rid of all the batteries,” he said. Sophomore Sarah PenceJones is also glad the University is making the change, and said the current problems with the soap are annoying. “Last year, our RA had to buy liquid soap bottles from the store to place in our hall bathroom because the automatic dispensers never worked,” she said. “It’s annoying when you go to wash your hands in the dorms or in Franz and all you can do is use water. It’s gross.” Some students, like sophomore Lane Sperry, have resorted to buying personal-sized containers of hand sanitizers because bathrooms without soap have become such a reoccurring issue. “I keep a few little bottles of
Stephanie Matusiefsky | THE BEACON
Sophomore Kaylee Turner tries to use the soap dispenser in Shipstad Hall. The automatic dispensers all over campus are being replaced by battery free dispensers. hand-sanitizers in my backpack,” she said. “The bathrooms in Franz never have soap in them, so I am excited that the school has realized this problem and is going to fix it.” Until the soap dispensers are replaced, Physical Plant has purchased batteries and will refill the automatic dispensers.
Physical Plant will also keep hand sanitizer containers filled. “We’ve also put small sanitizer bottles around in the computer labs,” Beeler said. “And we are placing them around campus too.” Beeler hopes the new dispensers will ease everyones concerns about the lack of soap.
“This will be a big improvement because there’s a lot of frustration with the soap dispensers and nobody needs extra frustration when they’re teaching, or learning or working, so this will be a really good thing,” Beeler said.
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LIVING
September 27, 2012
Students canoodle with cadavers
Anatomy Laboratory students take their learning to a whole new level as they use their knowledge of the human body to dissect cadavers
Kelsey Thomas Staff Writer thomask15@up.edu After a few weeks, you get used to seeing cadavers on the table before you. He or she begins to lose their humanity and becomes something you are working on and learning from. Your mind becomes occupied with making sure you cut only the right thing, occasionally drifting to how gross your lab coat is – stained yellow from liquid fat – or the slight smell of the preservative engulfing the cadaver. And yet moments come when Anatomy Laboratory students cannot help but be confronted with the humanness of the cadaver they spend at least three hours a week dissecting. For junior Katie Bauer, this moment came while dissecting a hand. “I had to actually hold the hand while someone else cut,” Bauer said. “Her nails were pink.” Junior John Reardon recalls the second day of lab when they lifted the sheet covering the cadaver’s face. “At first it was weird,” Reardon said. “But you get really used it and it gets to the point where you don’t really think about it being a human anymore.” The University of Portland rents cadavers each year from the Oregon Health & Sciences University body donation program.
Lydia Laythe Staff Writer laythe16@up.edu When it’s midnight and you know you have three more assignments to do, why do you suddenly get the urge to check your Facebook and text your friends? With papers waiting to be written, it’s not uncommon for students to desperately search for any excuse not to do their work. Freshman Chris Cardoza procrastinates often. “[The other day] I had the option of writing my philosophy paper and sleeping in, or watching Family Guy and waking up early to write it in the morning,” Cardoza said. “So, I opted to watch Family Guy and write it in the morning before class.” College students run the highest risk of procrastination. The combination of new-found independence and constant social interactions can make for a very unproductive atmosphere. But many people, young and old, struggle with procrastination. “Procrastination is not simply a college-oriented issue – it’s a human issue,” Br. Thomas Giumenta, counselor of learning at the Learning Resource Center on campus, said. Giumenta stresses the impor-
Select students who excelled in previous anatomy classes are invited to enroll in Anatomy Laboratory and spend a semester dissecting and examining cadavers. The students are not given the full medical history of the person, so they occasionally make discoveries of diseases or possible causes of death during dissection. “Last year there was one that you could tell by the lungs was a heavy smoker,” Bauer said. This year, students discovered a tumor. Each student performs an indepth study of one part of the body.
Bauer is studying the knees and is eager to see what the cadaver’s two knee surgeries look like. Reardon is more nervous for his body part: the face. “I’m a little worried I’ll see her face in nightmares or something,” Reardon said. “But I’m sure I’ll be fine.” Professor Jacquie Van Hoomissen loves teaching anatomy and says that human dissection is a vital component of their program. “Without the cadavers, stu-
dents are left just looking at charts and diagrams,” Van Hoomissen said. “That is fine, but that would be like learning engineering without actually ever building anything. Nobody would want to teach someone how to build a bridge without them even trying to put something together with their hands.” Van Hoomissen also teaches students that the bodies are here as a gift and deserve respect. Students must sign a sheet agreeing to a set of rules including no pictures, no bringing anyone into the lab and no putting the bodies into funny positions. “They have always been very, very respectful,” Van Hoomissen said. OHSU is one of several programs that accepts donations of cadavers for science. According to their website, OHSU received more than 10,000 donations in the past decade. Once the bodies enter the program, they are embalmed or frozen and stored until they are distributed to their location of study. The University of Portland applied to rent cadavers from OHSU in the early 1980s under the instruction of Marlene Moore, who previously worked for OHSU. Although the faculty were very excited to be able to practice human dissection, there are almost no records of how the program began. “We kept it very quiet,” Moore
said in an email. “There were some concerns that we might be desecrating the human body.” Moore accompanied the first body to campus in the back of a van. Human dissection has increased in public acceptance since then and is now regarded as an important component of most medical school programs. Although unallowed, Van Hoomissen has even received requests from people who Stephanie Matusiefsky | THE BEACON wish to donate Junior Katie Bauer is suited up in her lab coat to their bodies direct- dissect a cadaver. ly to the University The cadaver donations are of Portland. very meaningful to everyone who In the spring, the cadavers works on them. will be returned to OHSU to be “As a student and teacher of cremated or buried as the family human anatomy, I was always inwishes. credibly grateful for the gift a perOccasionally, families will son had given us of allowing us change their mind and want their to study a real body,” Moore said. loved ones back early. When this For Reardon and Bauer, the happened at the University of experience is irreplaceable. Portland last fall, the anatomy de“It’s one thing to learn readpartment had to return the cadav- ing a book or staring at a poster,” er immediately. To avoid being Reardon said. “But to actually left without anything to study, the be able to cut it open and look at department currently keeps three what you’re learning first hand is cadavers in Swindells. really cool and rewarding.”
tance of moving beyond the surface level issue that people see in an intellectual perspective, and focusing on the underlying feelings attached to it. “What procrastination really means is that one activity will probably feel differently from another activity,” Giumenta said. “And the person who is prone to procrastination will usually choose the activity that appears more pleasing.” Junior Amanda Ewing admitted that procrastination is an issue she developed in eighth grade, when she pulled an all-nighter for a final project. She also said that her social life often keeps her from her studies. “I work better under pressure,” Ewing said. “But that’s not good for studying [for a test].” Ewing admitted that her school work built up over time when she procrastinated, requiring her to set aside larger chunks of time in order to do her work. Sophomore Kelsey Campbell said, “Once [the work] builds up, it’s easier to do nothing [than to try and finish it all].” Giumenta suggests asking ourselves important questions when we feel the urge to procrastinate. “It’s a comparison of two different kinds of feelings,” Giumenta said. “And as I think that
out, I ask myself ‘what will ultimately make me feel better?’” Most agree that a certain amount of inner strength is needed to combat procrastination inclinations. However, there are other ways to help yourself stay focused while doing your work, because… “There’s an app for that!” PesterMe, Write or Die and StopDistractions are just a few of the helpful apps out there for people who need to focus. PesterMe is a helpful app designed for the person who loses themselves in social networking sites or the generally forgetful person. The program allows you to type in your message, set the frequency of alerts, and add an alarm to play with the reminder. These messages can be paused, deleted, or edited to be used for any occasion. Write or Die is an app for the mid-sentence break-taker, the “I’ll finish that paragraph after lunch” and the person who can never write a whole paper in one sitting. Write or Die is a word document program that allows you to set a word goal, a time limit, and a “punishment” if you don’t complete your task. StopDistractions, a last resort
in the means of app remedies for procrastination, is used to completely block those distracting websites, like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Hulu, or eBay. The blocked websites can be set on a timer, so that you can set a specific time for productivity. The University also has a lot of helpful tips and resources for students who procrastinate. The Learning Resource Center is an excellent place to start when trying to find a solution to procrastination. They have lots of information and resources for students. “If someone were to come visit my office [in the Learning Resource Center] at any time, I would be happy to show that per-
“I had to actually hold the hand while someone else cut. Her nails were pink.”
Katie Bauer junior
Procrastination: just do it...tomorrow
Ann Truong | THE BEACON
son how to not only access the information, but how one could use that if he or she wished,” Giumenta said. Procrastination is an issue almost all college students deal with at some point. The severity and method of procrastination may vary, but there are many ways to help the procrastinators of the world. The first step to solve a problem is admitting that there is one. “Everyone does it,” freshman Will McQuilkin said. “I’m doing it right now.”
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Students rock out to the sound of their own beat Meet the bands that are rocking The Bluff
Amanda Blas Staff Writer blas13@up.edu
Focus Motel Take two UP students, a couple of Portland State graduates and a love for the band Radiohead and you have the band Focus Motel. “Aside from music, we also love going out and getting pancakes late at night,” junior George Brockett, keyboard and vocals, said. Made up of Brockett, UP grad student Gordon Ashby and PSU graduates Jeremy Ward and Matt Tabor, Focus Motel was formed last August. The band evolved from Brocket, Ashby and Ward’s original band, Fallen Parrot, which played a different style of music. “We decided to start a new kind of project,” Brockett said. Brockett describes Focus Motel as a balance between guitar and synth, which refers to algorithm-generated electronic tones played through a keyboard. “It’s a dance rock kind of thing,” Brockett said. “But we definitely try to make it as musical as possible.” Focus Motel’s unique sound can be attributed to its wide range
The Harm The Harm’s start can be described as a musician’s version of love at first sight, when seniors Jeff Makjavich, lead vocals, and Joel Nightingale, lead guitar, were playing as The Gun Racks at the UP Coffee House last September. “I walked in and saw these guys playing and I looked at them and said, ‘The Harm’,” junior Brendan Rice, the band’s drummer, said. “I told Jeff to get some tight pants and Joel to grow a mustache.”
“It’s a combination of smooth and cruncy. It’s really like peanut butter.”
Joel Nightingale Senior
It was with this love story and Makjavich and Nightingale’s joining with UP ’12 alumnus Drew Mclauchlan shortly after Coffee House that The Harm was formed. “[Drew] came and blew our minds and the rest is history,” Makjavich said. “We all haven’t looked back.” Makjavich describes The Harm’s sound as “swanky blues rock,” with Rice attributing the band’s classy sound to Makjavich and mean twist to Nightingale. Nightingale takes a unique approach in describing this mix. “It’s a combination of smooth and crunchy,” Nightingale said. “It’s really like peanut butter.” While each of the band members has different musical influences, they all share a rock band
of musical influences. They pull keyboard influences from electropop band Lali Puna, vocal influences from the alternative rock band The Pixies and some guitar influences from singer and songwriter St. Vincent. “It’s a nice hodgepodge of influences, but I think we’re all on the same page when it comes to influences,” Brockett said. “It comes together nicely.” Focus Motel has played at venues such as Backspace, the White Eagle, Ella St. Social Club and Mississippi Pizza. Their song “Fire Door,” Brockett’s favorite, has even made it onto 107.1 KZME, an alternative radio station that emphasizes local music. “It was really gratifying to hear it on the radio because it’s a lot of work,” Brockett said. UP students may be most familiar with Focus Motel closer to campus. “We played at a lot of houses around campus and it was a lot of fun,” Brockett said. “We have a really crazy time every time we do a house show, and we really like playing for UP guys because it’s always a lot of fun and they always come out and support really well and really get into the music.”
as their inspiration. “The four of us totally love The Strokes,” Makjavich said. “But we only sound like them to a degree.” When The Harm is not out playing or practicing their music, the band stills finds themselves making it all about music. “Honestly, we go to Eastside Deli and talk about music,” Makjavich said. “It’s super nerdy.” “We decided to offer [our EP] for free because it was more important to us that people could be exposed to and share our music, unhindered by the detriment of money,” Makjavich said. “But by offering to give the physical copy with donation, we give listeners the opportunity to also take part in the shared history of our musical journey.”
Because Science
Photo courtesy of Angela Larzia
Above: Jeremy Ward and George William Brockett perform at Backspace.
Photo courtesy of Angela Larzia
Below: George William Brockett and Gordon Ashby from the band Focus Motel perform at Backspace.
Above: Because, Science plays at a UP house party.
Photo courtesy of Ian Hilger
Discover UP bands • You can check out Focus Motel’s music on their BandCamp page: focusmotel. bandcamp.com • Catch The Harm’s next performance at Ella Street Social Club on Friday, Oct. 12, or check out their BandCamp page at wearetheharm.bandcamp.com. If you choose to download their EP and donate $5 or more, The Harm will hand deliver a limited edition physical copy of the EP.
Giovanna Solano | THE BEACON
Above: Brendan Rice and Jeff Makjavich from The Harm practice for their next performas at Ella Street Social Club on Friday, Oct. 12.
Giovanna Solano | THE BEACON
Above, from left to right, Joel Nightingale, Brendan Rice and Jeff Makjavich
How did four science majors and a business major win UP’s Battle of the Bands last school year? Because, Science. That’s referring to the band, not to the explanation. Last weekend, UP students had the chance to hear senior Celia Gendron and juniors James Lange, Brendan Rice, Michael Sather and Kirk Balbfleisch play as Because, Science at Pilots After Dark’s Fall Fest last weekend. However, some upperclassmen may remember the band’s start as part of a Villa Maria dorm tradition. “James and I started playing music together when we put something together for the Man Auction,” Rice said. “We were called Sonic Death Monkey.” Lange and Rice met Sather, bassist, from Villa, and soon after, Gendron, violinist and vocals, became a part of the band after meeting Rice through their Biblical Traditions class. “We were studying one day and I started singing and he said you should just sing with us,” Gendron said. According to Rice, it was more than Gendron’s musical talent that got her into the band. “I thought her hair cut was cool too,” Rice said. Balbfleisch, the drummer and lone business major of the band, became a part of the mix while taking lessons with Rice’s old drum teacher. Gendron describes Because, Science’s sound as a mix of indie folk and rock because of the way they each draw inspiration from different bands. However, the band does have its shared influence. “I think our biggest influence is the xx,” Rice said. According to Lange, Because, Science got its name not only because all but one of the band members are some sort of science major but also because of one of the band’s inside jokes. “It’s meant to be like an answer to an open-ended question. Like, ‘Why is the sky blue?’ Because, Science. It’s just something we can say a lot,” Rice said. “It’s also the first name that we came up with that everyone agreed with so we had to deal with it.” According to Lange, the band has a noble goal. “We’re not in it to be famous necessarily,” Lange said. “We’re just all about having fun.” So what does this UP band do during their down time from band rehearsals? “We do band sushi,” Lange said. According to Rice, there is only one place they go. “Sushiland,” Rice said. “It’s just so cheap.”
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September 27, 2012
Fun in the su the g Parks and Picnicking For those who prefer a more relaxed activity, there are multiple gorgeous parks to walk through or simply sit and enjoy a cool beverage and a picnic. Waterfront Park Distance from UP: 13 minutes by car Bus accessible! Take the 44 or 35 Waterfront Park’s green lawns run along the urban length of the Willamette River downtown with great views of prominent Portland bridges. In the springtime, the trees are in bloom with gorgeous pink flowers. The park is also close to Portland’s unique Saturday Market! Lan Su Chinese Gardens Distance from UP: 13 minutes by car Bus accessible! Take the 44 or 35 This park is nestled in the heart of downtown, and it is positively stunning. The arrangement of Chinese plants among perfectly placed sculptures is wonderful to walk through, and you can even stop by the tea house for a traditional tea ceremony! Japanese Gardens Distance from UP: 16 minutes by car Bus accessible! Take the 44 or 35 to the MAX Blue Line and switch to 63 Beautiful at every time of year, the Japanese garden is a picturesque haven with a creek spanned by intricate bridges in addition to the lovely plants and sculptures.
Giovanna Solano | THE BEACON
Cathedral Park in St. Johns
International Rose Test Garden Distance from UP: 16 minutes by car Bus accessible! Take the 44 or 35 to the MAX Blue Line and switch to 63 Portland’s rose garden is a beautiful way to spend an afternoon. Although the flowers bloom most strongly in June, it’s still possible to stop and smell the roses all the way through October. - Amanda Munro
Forest Park
Bike rides in and around Portland In addition to biking at Forest Park, Hoyt Arboretum, or simply from place to place in the city, there are a few especially good bike trails that you should know about. Eastbank Esplanade Distance from UP: 13 minutes by car Bus accessible! Take the 44 or the 35 The Eastbank Esplanade is a gorgeous waterfront bike trail that stretches for 1.5 miles along the Willamette River. A must-do for any biking enthusiast!
Giovanna Solano | THE BEACON
Waterfront Running and Biking Trail
Sauvie Island Distance from UP: 18 minutes by car
Bus accessible! Take the 44 or 75 to St. Johns and switch to 17 Sauvie Island is a popular beach spot for Portland residents, but it’s also great for biking! If it’s warm enough (or if you’re brave enough) you can even jump in the river after your ride. Marine Drive, East Distance from UP: 19 minutes by car Bus accessible! Take the 44, 35, or 75 to the MAX Red Line This ride is near the airport, so bikers can see planes landing and taking off as they ride. Cool!
Giovanna Solano | THE
For more ideas, see www.portlandhikers.org or “60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Portland” by Paul Gerald. Also keep in mind that public transportation is possible, but trips are long; it might be easier to find a friend with a car! Always take a map or look up trails beforehand so youʼre sure not to get lost. Good luck!
- Amanda Munro Design by Shellie Adams | THE BEACON
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un or play in gray
E BEACON
I am surrounded by trees covered in emerald patches of moss, their spindly branches reaching out to the sky. Ferns bunch together next to a creek bubbling nearby, its water dancing gently around the rocks. Everywhere I look, everything is green. Tranquility. Thereʼs something whimsical about this place, the miles of trails that snake behind Portland into what seems like endless expanses of forest. At times like these, I feel unbelievably lucky to live in such a beautiful corner of the world.
Giovanna Solano | THE BEACON
Forest Park
Hiking Trails within 20 minutes of UP Forest Park Distance from UP: 10-15 minutes by car Difficulty: Easy to Moderate Bus accessible! Take the 44 or 75 and transfer to the 16 Forest Park is a huge forest just across St. Johns Bridge with 80 miles of beautiful trails. Though the possibilities are endless, my personal favorites are the Wildwood Trail (from MacLeary Park) and Ridge Trail. Pittock Mansion lies at the top of Wildwood Trail and has a gorgeous view of Portland. While you’re there, it’s even possible to take a tour of the historical mansion for $8.50. Hoyt Arboretum Distance from UP: 16 minutes by car Difficulty: Easy to Moderate Bus accessible! Take the 35 to the MAX Blue Line then bus 63 At Hoyt Arboretum, most of the trees are labeled so you can learn all about local Portland foliage. I recommend the four mile walk, which travels through each area of the park from shady pine trees to sunny hills
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(which are great for picnics, by the way!) Tryon Creek State Park Distance from UP: 22 minutes by car Difficulty: Easy Bus accessible! Take the 35 This is a beautiful little park with a lovely creek, perfect for a shady and less strenuous nature walk close to the city. Maple Ridge Trail is gorgeous, especially in October when the trees are on fire with color. In winter, it’s possible to see steelhead trout spawning in the creek! Council Crest Distance from UP: 18 minutes by car Bus accessible! Take the 44 or 35 and transfer to the 51 Difficulty: Moderate This trail leads to the highest point in Portland, Council Crest. On a clear day standing at the top, it’s possible to see the whole city framed by all four volcanoes. - Amanda Munro
Hiking. Biking. Camping. Picnicking. With such great trails, countless beautiful parks, and gardens so easily accessible, itʼs no secret why Portland is home to so many outdoor enthusiasts. No matter what it is you like to do, there is something for everyone in the great outdoors within 20 minutes of campus. While our current, relatively dry weather is the best time to take advantage of the outdoors, Portlandʼs nature is fun year-round and a great way to spend a sunny (or even gray) day. Adventure on! - Amanda Munro
Giovanna Solano | THE BEACON
Junior Taylor Castagnetta stops to observe a map on a trail at Forest Park.
Hiking trail at Forest Park
Giovanna Solano | THE BEACON
OPINIONS
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Take some time to pop the UP bubble Humans naturally fall into routine. At the University of Portland, the routine is easy. Get up for class, lecture, lunch, study, more class and then blowing off steam on the weekends with beer pong and a movie. With almost a third of the semester gone, the urge to isolate and withdraw from Portland grows with stacks of papers and midterms. Even amidst work, whether you are a native Portlander, or completely new to the Northwest, breaking out of the campus environment is important to real world success, fun and personal growth. The lack of a library should send students off campus to find study spots. Rather than going to the same old coffee shop you always go to, why not make your study day an adventure into a new part of Portland? Portland is a city of hidden gems; sometimes you have to mine a little bit to find them. More than Portland, Oregon and Washington have a lot to offer. Since you’re going to spend at least four years of your life here, you may as well know its points
of interest. The Outdoor Pursuits Program is one of the best ways to get in touch with the spirit of the Northwest. The University does an adequate job giving students encouragement and opportunities to interact with the greater Portland community, but it could do more. The most obvious way the University brings students beyond the barriers of North Portland is the UP shuttle, which runs to the Rosa Parks MAX yellow line stop and the St. Johns business district. The Moreau Center also gives UP students opportunities to volunteer at various Portland non-profits. Still, UP does not match other Portland colleges in terms of selfmotivated travel off campus. “The Pioneer Express,” Lewis and Clark’s student transit is a school bus that brings students right into the heart of downtown. Reed College offers monthly adult TriMet passes for $50, a full 50 percent off the regular price, whereas UP offers the same pass for $65 and Public Safety generally sells out of those passes dur-
ing the academic year. Portland State students pay only $205 for the entire fall semester to ride TriMet, and Portland Community College releases a set number of student TriMet passes for $190 for the entire semester. While you may be thinking, ‘I don’t even buy $50 worth of one way passes,’ you might consider instead how much more students at the other Portland colleges use TriMet. With either a drop off right in downtown or decreased adult passes, all other Portland schools have more access to the rest of Portland. The higher prices for UP students to get downtown and other places in Portland are a deterrent for leaving the brick façade of the University. Trips past Willamette Blvd. give you more insight for class. By leaving campus, you gain the context for the multiple movements going on in Portland and Oregon such as the slow and local food movement, gaming and comic renewal and various spiritual revivals rocking aging hipsters. Exposing yourself to Portland culture can not only
Ann Truong | THE BEACON
help you network for jobs later on, but make you realize what work you’re interested in in the first place. Rather than spinning your wheels in a vacuum of UP-centric knowledge, pop that UP bubble. Engaging in Portland and the
Northwest is one of the best ways to grow at the University.
EDITORIAL POLICY
The editorial reflects the majority view of The Beacon Editorial Board. The editorial does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the collective staff or the Administration of the University of Portland. Other submissions in this section are signed commentaries that reflect the opinion of the individual writer. The Student Media Committee, providing recommendation to the publisher, oversees the general operation of the newspaper. Policy set by the committee and publisher dictates that the responsibility for the newspaper’s editorial and advertising content lies solely in the hands of its student employees.
Pilot audio and lighting: Students working for students Garrett Athman Guest Commentary Among a myriad of resources available to UP students, one of the most common, yet often overlooked, is ourself. Need help with your homework? Hit up the learning resource center, staffed by students. Is your new roommate stealing your Top Ramen and covering your face in whip cream while you sleep? Talk to your RA. Did you drop your
Macbook down the elevator shaft of Mehling? Call your RCC (and P-Plant, because the elevator is clearly broken again.) Want to throw an awesome dance, concert, or guest speaker? You could do it yourself, but those $50 noname speakers you bought off Craigslist probably won’t cut it, and your friend of a friend won’t look too professional when “pop” you blow a speaker and lose power. Rather, contact Pilot Audio & Lighting, an ASUP service run entirely by students. Pilot Audio & Lighting (PAL), offers professional quality audio and lighting equipment and production service, as well as in-house DJ services to any
UP club, group, department or otherwise UP-affiliated event. Formerly known as CPB Sound (in 2010), PAL was restructured, funded, and upgraded through the Spring 2011 Capital Improvement Fund (now known as the Major Project Fund). With a tuition’s worth of industry standard audio and lighting equipment, PAL can handle any small to medium sized event, ranging from a guest speaker or dance, to a 12 piece band or multi-artist events, and can run 2 separate events concurrently. Though it is student run, PAL technicians are experienced and trained specific to PAL equipment and procedures, putting
safety first, and providing professionalism and quality results with equally as much concern. Past and typical PAL events include CPB Coffeehouses, Pilot’s After Dark events, Back Alley Block Party, Quadstock, Relay for Life, Luau, UP Jazz Festival, Villa Maria’s Man Auction, International Club events, Junior Parents Weekend, various distinguished speakers, and most notably for our supplemental tech crew support for the 2012 Rock the Bluff, aka Macklemore Concert. While not currently free, PAL charges absurdly affordable rates that are unparalleled by any other similar service, which go directly
THE BEACON Submission Policy
Letters and commentaries from readers are encouraged. All contributions must include the writer’s address and phone number for verification purposes. The Beacon does not accept submissions written by a group, although pieces written by an individual on behalf of a group are acceptable. Letters to the editor must not exceed 250 words. Those with longer opinions are encouraged to submit guest columns. The Beacon reserves the right to edit any contributions for length and style, and/or reject them without notification. University students must include their major and year in school. Nonstudents must include their affiliation to the University, if any.
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Subscriptions are available at $30 for the year, covering 24 issues. Checks should be made payable to The University of Portland: The Beacon. For more information about subscriptions or billing questions, contact Business and Advertising Manager Morgan Rapozo at beaconads@up.edu.
Editorial Board Editor-in-Chief.. . . . . . . . Elizabeth Tertadian News Editor . . . . . . . . . . ��������� Laura Frazier Living Editor �����������������������Rachel McIntosh Opinions Editor. . . . . . ������������� Will Lyons Sports Editor . . . . . . . . �Kyle Cape-Lindelin Design Editor. . . . . . . . . �������� Shellie Adams Photo Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jackie Jeffers Asst. Design Editor . . . ������� Emily Strocher
Contacting The Beacon
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back to PAL for equipment maintenance and supplies, as well as wages. They can’t help you with your Ramen thief roommate, or help you revive your mangled macbook, or how to calculate the mass of the sun with only 4 apples, because they don’t have to. Just like those other students, PAL is here for you, initially paid for by your student government fee, so don’t be afraid to utilize the rare opportunity at hand. Garrett Athman is a junior civil engineering and music double major. He can be reached at athman14@up.edu
Staff Writers
Amanda Blas, Harry Blakeman, Kaitlyn Dunn, Philip Ellefson, Hannah Kintner, Lydia Laythe, Rachelle Leduc, PJ Marcello, Amanda Munro, Kate Stringer, Kelsey Thomas, Taylor Tobin, Megan Walsh
Photographers
Stephanie Matusiefsky, Giovanna Solano, Kayla Wong
Staff Members
Business & Ad Manager. . .Morgan Rapozo Artist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ann Truong Web Technician . . . . . . . . . . . . Et Begert Circulation Manager. . . . . . Anne Uruu Adviser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nancy Copic Publisher . . Fr. E. William Beauchamp, C.S.C.
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OPINIONS
September 27, 2012
Cultures clash: Who’s to blame ? Explore the Northwest with Outdoor Pursuits John McDonald Guest Commentary Americans are reeling with the recent news of the deaths of an American ambassador and 3 others at the consulate in Benghazi, the protests at the American embassy in Cairo, and the attack on an American school in Tunis. Scores of protesters have been killed in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, and elsewhere in attempts to restore order. Who’s to blame? It is hard for many of us in the West, where we value free speech, to understand such an extreme response to a video. It is equally hard for Muslims worldwide to understand why someone would produce and air a video attacking the character of their beloved prophet. Those who have followed the Arab Spring have seen stories of deposed dictators resulting in regional instability and national uncertainties. We have witnessed freer elections in fledgling democracies in the Arab world. Many there, including the members of the media and press, can speak their minds with less fear. The man on the street in Tripoli can now say he opposes someone running for office; the woman newscaster on state tele-
vision in Egypt can now wear a hijab. And, again, as a result of the uprisings of the Arab Spring, countries like Egypt and Libya have governments that are currently de-stabilized. People now have more freedom to attack symbols of the United States in their countries in response to a video that insults Islam’s most revered prophet. People are now freer to hate our laws protecting freedom of speech. I doubt these lethal expressions of freedom would have occurred under the previous regimes of Mubarak in Egypt, or Qaddafi in Libya. Would there have been protests in these countries? Yes. Would there have been this scale of violence and deaths in response to this video—probably not. Look at Iran—the regime still rules in the same oppressive model as Assad and Mubarak and Qaddafi and Saleh and Bin Ali and… There are protests in Iran. In fact, protesters there are carrying signs given to them by the government. That is state control. That is what citizens in countries like Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya are trying shaking off. Maybe a better question is what is to blame? Free Speech? Yes. Hate-speech? Definitely. Misunderstood cultural values? Without a doubt. John McDonald is a professor of English. He can be reached at mcdonald@up.edu
Brian Dezzani Guest Commentary The University of Portland is close to so much natural beauty that if you get started this weekend and make a commitment to getting out at least once a week, you can see a good chunk of the amazing waterfalls, mountains, rivers, trees, moss, mud & snow of Oregon & Washington by the time you graduate. You may even form a lifelong habit that will keep your body, mind & soul fit & fresh. The staff at Outdoor Pursuits aims to get students off campus to explore the great outdoors and offers a diverse trip calendar with outings that vary in skill level and difficulty. OPP does the prep work so you can take part with relatively little effort. Whether you’re interested in an easy hiking trip or scaling a rock face at Smith Rock, you’ll find something you like. Students recently went to Sauvie Island to hike and pick fruit. Another group made a trip to the Columbia Gorge to hike to Triple Falls & Oneonta Falls (accessible only by hiking in knee-deep water!). In past years, UP students have summited Mt. Adams, 12,280 ft, , Mt. Hood, 11, 250 ft & Mt St. Helens. Future trips include backpacking at the coast
Photo courtesy of Brian Deazzani
this weekend, exploring the Ape Caves in Washington, flat water kayaking, snowshoeing, cross country skiing and more. The all-student staff at OPP knows all the great places to camp, backpack, rock climb, mountain bike and can help you plan even if you’re going out on your own. We also can’t forget Forest Park, the gem across the Willamette River from the UP campus with its 50,000 acres of forest and miles of hiking trails. If you borrow a bike from the campus bike shop, you can be over there in 15 minutes. If you have a friend with a car you can be there even faster. Sneak over to Forest Park to soak up the woods, mud & moss and silence. Brian Dezzani is the director of recreational services. He can be reached at dezzani@up.edu
Upcoming OPP Trips Sunday, September 30 Flat Water Kayaking Thursday, October 4 Urban Bike Ride Saturday, October 27 Apes Caves Friday, November 2 Iire Lookout Camping Sunday, November 4 Circuit Bouldering Sunday, November 11 Forest Park Mountain Biking For the full calendar of OPP trips please visit www.up.edu/ recservices
The State of Jefferson: An almost successful little rebellion Emily Strocher Staff Commentary Remember that time our childhood educations were crushed by Pluto losing its planet status? Our mnemonic devices were destroyed. “My Very Educated Mother” could no longer “Serve Us Nine Pizzas”. Prepare for your eight-planet universe to be rocked once more. Possibly, had it not been for the timing of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, we
could be living in one of the fiftyone states of America right now. Those of you who live in California, or even southern Oregon might remember seeing signs for “The State of Jefferson” during the lovely drive up to Portland. On my latest sojourn north, I finally bothered to look it up, if only to entertain myself for a few minutes. Until then, I had always written it off as probably being some local uber conservative re-incarnation of the Tea Party. Strange things happen the farther away you get from Sacramento, but the State of Jefferson is at least an interesting strange. In 1941, a secession move-
ment grew strength. The citizens of very north-west California and very south-west Oregon were unhappy with the amount of roads that existed at the time, which made it difficult to transport the region’s abundant timber and minerals. They were not impressed with what was going on in Salem and Sacramento, and decided to give up on trying to work out their problems with the two different state governments, and to instead form their own. That November, the Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors set aside $100 for researching the possibility of secession. A contest was held to name the
new possible state, and the lucky individual who came up with the State of Jefferson won themselves a whole $2. On November 27, a Proclamation of Independence declared that “Jefferson is now in patriotic rebellion against the States of California and Oregon. This State has seceded from California and Oregon this Thursday, November 27, 1941.” As the movement grew, the San Francisco Chronicle assigned reporter Stanton Delaplane to cover the rebellion. Delaplane went on to win the 1942 Pulitzer Prize for Reporting for his work on the State of Jefferson, as well as being credited with bringing Irish coffee to the United States.
event, and the footage was due to air the week of Dec. 8. Unfortunately, we will never know how far the movement could have actually gone, as Pearl Harbor was bombed on Dec. 7. Defending America was deemed a far higher priority than dealing with the woes of some backwoods people. The State of Jefferson still lives in the hearts of those who put up those road-side signs, and maintain the state’s website. If you ever want a new sticker to give your water bottle some added flair, check out their store. Most importantly, be glad whenever you see a flag without that awkward 51st star.
“Prepare for your eightplanet universe to be rocked once more. Possibly, had it not been for the timing of the bombing of Pearl harbor, we could be living in one of the fifty-one states of America right now.”
Emily Strocher is a sophomore secondary education major. She can be reached at strocher15@up.edu
Emily Strocher Sophomore
The movement peaked in early December. On Dec. 4, a governor for the state was inaugurated. Representatives even came up from Hollywood to film the
OPINIONS
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Feminism has more benefits than you think Corey Fawcett Guest Commentary I’ll cut to the chase: Navigating this existential bleepstorm we call life is approximately one bajillion times easier with feminism at your side, whatever your sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, color, race, height, zodiac sign, Hogwarts house or animorph may be. Mine is an owl, but I digress. Contrary to Rush Limbaugh’s recent speculations about feminism’s magical link to the nation’s decreasing average penis size (perhaps spurred on by thinly-veiled insecurity over his own genitalia, which, AHEM Rush, feminism helps you overcome), feminists are not out to get teh menz. Feminists are not seeking special treatment for women. Feminists are looking for equality in a world that is far from achieving it. I won’t waste all my space
trying to prove that inequality exists, because quite frankly it’s up to you to educate yourself if you haven’t already. But at least consider these 2012 findings from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and collaborators at Yale: In a randomized double-blind study, male and female academic scientists who were given application materials from a student applying for a lab manager position rated the applicant as more competent and more deserving of a higher salary when a male name was attached to it. Same exact qualifications, different name. A similar phenomenon has also been observed time and time again when the applicant’s race is changed from Caucasian to, well, anything else. But men and women both reap the benefits of feminism. It saves everyone from a lifetime of worrying about adhering to gender roles by putting a stop to stressing about your body, how your peers will receive your new haircut or what people will think of you for dancing to Lady Gaga in a glittery unitard. Feminism
plays an integral role in fighting homophobia and transphobia, and leads to discussions of issues like racism and ableism as well. Feminism is basically the best.
“Feminism plays an integral role in fighting homophobia and transphobia, and leads to discussions of issues like racism and ableism as well. Feminism is basically the best.”
Corey Fawcett Senior
Whether or not you consider yourself a feminist, Feminist Discussion Group has its doors open to you. Every year the club holds a Pay Scale Bake Sale, which calls attention to the wage gap. We also host Speak Out, a safe space for sexual assault victims and friends to share their stories. Last year we partnered up with Voice for Life to hold an abortion panel discussion, which had a great turnout and went almost an
hour longer than planned. This year we will host a women’s issues panel discussion to educate Pilot voters on who they’re voting for and how their policies will affect them. In a time where women’s health issues are being debated like they’re, well, something to be debated about, the time is nigh for feminists to come out of the woodwork. The world needs you! Most of what Feminist Discussion Group is, however, is a place to talk, mostly about current events relating to issues of sexism and other forms of inequality. From the lack of people of color in Lena Dunham’s Girls to Michelle Obama’s DNC speech to what Judd Apatow movies say about masculinity to France’s treatment of the burqa, we cover it all. And we want to hear your voice. Come to Shiley 124 Tuesdays at 6 and join in the discussion. Corey Fawcett is a senior english major. She can be reached at fawcett13@up.edu
Soapless bathrooms cause frustration
For whatever reason, our soap dispensers are always eiempty, or broken, or crazy. I Kirsten ther once had a dispenser shoot soap at me. Violently. I think it was Rivera aiming for my head. Yes, I might Guest be exaggerating a little, but you Commentary catch my drift. Now, I don’t blame this issue on anyone in particular. Our Hate poem to soap physical plant Soap dispenser, I hate you now. workers I hate you so much, I’ll punch a cow. are abI hate you here, I hate you there. solutely I pretty much hate you everywhere. fantastic and do a You’re either empty or you’re broke. wonderWaiting for soap is such a joke. ful job Sometimes you don’t give me enough. Sometimes you give me a tiny puff.
Sometimes you give me way too much. And with soapy hands, I hate to touch. Soap dispenser, you’re such a tool. You’re making me look like such a fool. I will not use you here in Franz. I will not use you for my hands. I will not use you, ‘cause I can’t. Now germy water runs down my pant. Soap dispenser, you make me sad. Please get fixed, then I’ll be glad.
keeping our school in the best shape they can. But, the problem still stands: my hands are not getting the germ-fighting protection that they deserve! I don’t think I’m asking for much. All I would like is to be able to walk into a bathroom without being that weird girl who pulls a package of baby wipes from her purse. I would even give up the luxury of revolutionary soap-dispensing technology! I am willing to lower my personal standard of living just to avoid another awkward conversation with a freshman who thinks we have to bring our own soap to school. University of Portland, hear my plea. Please give me soap. That’s all I ask.
Until this soap situation is resolved permanently, I’ll continue to carry an arsenal of hygiene products in my backpack. So, if you’re ever in need of hand sanitizer, baby wipes, dishwashing liquid or alcohol swabs, come find me. I spend most of my time dusting between the keys in the Franz Hall computer lab. I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one who has noticed the shocking lack of functioning soap dispensers here on campus. I am, however, almost positive that I’m the only one who decided to write a poem about it.
13
Faces on The Bluff By Jackie Jeffers
We asked: What is your favorite way to procrastinate? Brendan Birmingham, Sophomore, Psychology
“Search the Internet aimlessly until I find something.” Sommer McWhirter, Junior, Communication & Social Work
“Becoming obsessed with new TV shows. Emphasis on ‘White Collar’” Sarah Street, Freshman, Undeclared
Kirsten Rivera is a senior operational technology management major. She can be reached at rivera14@up.edu
Sudoku
Find the answers at www.upbeacon.net in the Opinions section.
“Watching ‘Doctor Who’” Tyler Gregg, Sophomore, Business
-Kirsten Rivera
“Twitter.”
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SPORTS
September 27, 2012
New Challenge: learning from loss Despite a strong win over Seattle 3-1, the Pilots must recover from their loss to Denver in time for WCC play Taylor Tobin Staff Writer tobint16@up.edu Women’s soccer hopes to use their loss to Denver on Sept. 23 as a learning experience for the rest of the season, especially as they prepare to play the Cal -State Northridge Matadors at home Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. Portland split the series last weekend—a 3-0 victory over Seattle on Sept. 21, followed by a loss to Denver, 1-3. Junior forward Micaela Capelle got the team off to a strong start against Seattle, scoring in the 19th minute off a pass from junior forward Amanda Frisbie. The Pilots kept control throughout the game with junior forward Kaila Cameli extending the lead with two more connections in the back of the net for goals to wrap up the game 3-0. Cameli followed up her scoring run with another early in the game against Denver, scoring her sixth goal of the season. However, Denver scored three minutes later, and then twice more in the second half, sealing the Pilot’s defeat. “[The goal felt] good, I wish we could have held on, but we’ll get the next one,” said Cameli. Three Pilot starters, juniors Kendall Johnson and Ellen Parker and sophomore Rebekah Kurle, were injured and unable to play in the game against Denver. Senior defender Taylor Brooke does not believe it played a big part in the loss last Sunday. “Even though we have a small squad, we have a deep bench. I
Jackie Jeffers | THE BEACON
Junior midfielder Michelle Cruz dribbles the ball across the field against Seattle University. The Pilots have a 6-2-1 record. trust anyone who steps off our bench and comes onto the field,” says Brooke. “It’s really not that much of an issue.” Brooke adds that there was a special element to the team on Sunday, despite the loss: sophomore Emily Sippel’s energy. “She was honestly our spark today. When she came on the field she lit us up and helped us,”
said Brooke. “[She] definitely put a fire in our belly.” In Sippel’s 37 minutes on the field, she made her mark—contributing three out of the six shots on goal during the game. Cameli, like Brooke, has faith that all the players on the team can perform. “We have a thin squad, but we have people who are able to play
their positions,” said Cameli. When the team is slipping into a rut, Cameli gives encouragement to her teammates. “Personally, I try to be as vocal as possible. I try to pull everyone up, because I know everybody else is struggling just like I am,” said Cameli. “That’s pretty much all I can do, give effort and see if everybody follows along.”
Coach Garrett Smith believes the thin squad affected the outcome of the game against Denver. “It’s tough to take three starters continuously out of your line up and rely on freshman and players who aren’t necessarily ready to play 90 minutes,” said Smith. “That’s what we had to do, and I think that’s what today was an example of. But there’s a million and one excuses and we’ve got to come out better than that.” Smith noticed that the players lacked a determined attitude in the game. He knows they can use the outcome as an element of learning. “It’s more of a mental approach. I think today was a wake up call for us,” says Smith. “Our team learned a lot today about how to approach each and every game. As soon as the game’s over, we leave it behind us and we try to learn from it.” Smith’s goal after the Denver loss was to prepare for the game against the Matadors. “A better performance and a better effort is one thing we can guarantee for Thursday,” said Smith. Cameli is focused on taking one game at a time. She plans to use Sunday’s loss as a learning experience, and to keep her thoughts this week on the game against the Matadors. Cameli’s long-term goal, however, consists of three words: “Score more goals.”
The future is now for freshman sensation Jaime Velasco Freshman Jaime Velasco gives insights into his inspirations for playing and being the new guy on the team
Katie Dunn Staff Writer dunn16@up.edu Scoring goals comes naturally to freshman Jaime Velasco. In high school, he set a school record his senior year, scoring 30 goals in one season and leading his team with 18 assists. After two years on varsity at East Anchorage High School in Alaska, he moved to Westview High School in Beaverton, Ore. and took his team to a state title. He was named the Oregon State Championship Player of the Game and Oregon State Player of the Year. Men’s soccer head coach Bill Irwin has had Velasco on his radar for a while. “He did very well in high school and in club,” Irwin said. “We were just happy that we identified him early enough to get him to come here.” Velasco’s love for soccer and his natural ability got him started playing at the age of five. Velasco was encouraged to play by his father, who also played soccer his whole life.
“My dad is really competitive, he’s been my coach my whole life and kept me playing,” Velasco said. Irwin’s plan for Velasco has always been for him to come play from day one and score goals. He has been a great addition to the team so far, playing in all seven games this season. Velasco scored his first goal against heated rival Gonzaga on Sept. 26, and has taken taken 17 shots and has two assists. Irwin has faith in his ability to score and knows if he puts him in a position to make a difference, he will. “He’s a threat. Teams will focus in on him and we know that,” Irwin said. “He’s created a lot of chances so far, it’s just been very unlucky that he hasn’t scored as much, but we know that’s coming.” The most impressive thing about Velasco is his ability to learn. “He’s a very good listener,” Irwin said. “He takes what you ask him and puts it into practice, he wants to get better, learn and grow. He pays attention and
whatever he’s told to do, he does it.” Velasco not only loves the Pilot soccer program, he loves the feel of campus. That’s what drew him to UP rather than anywhere else. “I just like the school, the soccer program and the scholarship helped, but basically the coaching staff, I really like them,” Velasco said. “I like the community, it’s so close and everybody knows each other.” As for how Velasco hopes to help the team? “Just be the guy who impacts the game,” Velasco said. Velasco can be seen Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. when the Pilots take on WCC rival San Francisco at Merlo Field. Velasco is looking forward to playing Santa Clara at home on Oct. 12. Santa Clara ended conference play 7-4-1 last season and the Pilots ended 6-5-1. Both teams are equally matched and it will be one of the closest games this year.
Kayla Wong | THE BEACON
SPORTS
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This week in sports
Pilots
Women’s Soccer
in the
The Pilots take on Cal-State Northridge Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. and San Diego State on Oct. 7 at 1 p.m. at Merlo Field to round out their non-conference play. UP hits the road to start WCC play against rival Gonzaga on Oct. 11 at 3 p.m.
Spotlight: Griffin Hay PJ Marcello Staff Writer marcello13@up.edu With a dominating cross country program that only seems to be getting stronger, The Beacon shines a spotlight on one of University of Portland’s freshman distance runners. Freshman Griffin Hay gives us insight into his life and what makes him tick. What is your favorite part about living in Portland? Definitely the freedom I have right now because I’m so far away from my parents. I get to do what I want a little bit more and there’s so much to do around Portland compared to Fort Collins, Colo. where I’m from. It’s so much more urban and there’s constantly concerts going on, great restaurants and things like that. I love it. Do you have any nicknames? I don’t really have a nickname yet on the cross country team here, but my old team used to call me “Princess” because they knew I’d get annoyed by it and I tend to be a stickler for details at times. Avengers or Dark Knight? Oh! Dark Knight by far! It was so much more interesting and so much more human I thought than The Avengers. The Avengers were trying to throw comedy in and it just wasn’t as powerful as The Dark Knight Rises.
Do you have a favorite quote that
Men’s Soccer
you live by? My high school coach always lived by this motto and it was, “It’s at the boarder of suffering and pain that the champions are separated from the rest of the pack.” That’s what I’ve tried to live by. When it’s hard and it hurts you have to pull through to get the great results.
The men’s soccer team faces San Francisco Sept. 28 at 7 p.m. before heading to Southern California to take on San Diego on Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. before taking on Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles, Calif. on Oct 7 at 3 p.m. The Pilots got off to a strong start in WCC play, trouncing rival Gonzaga 4-1 at home on Sept. 26.
Is there a routine or song that you do before a race for you to get prepared? Before every race, I have to listen to “Baba O’Reilly” by The Who. For some reason it gets me so pumped to run and lay everything out on the line. I grew up listening to classic rock because of my dad so I guess that’s part of the reason. It’s been part of my life for so long, like running that I always like to listen to it. So far, what has been tougher, school or running? Definitely school, because running you can go through for two hours and do everything you need to do and just be done with it, but school is uncertain you have to make sure you’re studying enough for the quizzes, you have to make sure you’re going in depth enough with your papers, and you have to make sure you’re spending enough time on your schoolwork in general so that’s been the toughest part for me. What’s your favorite class at UP? So far it has to be theology with Fr. Gordon because he makes the history and facts about all our religions so fun and he knows how to shape the story of these interwoven religions. It’s
Cross Country
The No. 5 ranked men’s cross country team heads south to Salem, Ore. to compete at Charles Bowles Invitational on Sept. 29. The women’s cross country team travels to Eugene, Ore. for the Bill Dellinger Invitational on Sept. 29
Volleyball
Stephanie Matusiefshy | THE BEACON
Freshman Griffin Hay cool to see a Catholic priest talk about the aspects of other world religions in such depth too.
miles at one time which is my ultimate goal.
What is the longest distance you’ve ever ran? At one time it’s been 17 miles but we do 16 miles on a weekly basis. Eventually I want to run an ultra marathon and those are 100
to try to get a penalty called in front of my former coach Kohler. He would give you a good reason to lie on the field and look injured if you tried to pull something like that. If you do not have grit on the gridiron, you are not having a good time. We learned to move on from mistakes and pick each other up in our defeats. If one messed up play gets the best of you mentally or emotionally, you might as well
take yourself out of the game. Or, if the man next to you slips up and you berate him, you just guaranteed your team another mistake. Just like in the real world, you have to have a short memory when it comes to your mistakes and move on to the next play. You remind yourself that you will live to see another day and you will do better the next time, dwelling on past mistakes never does anyone any good. Unfortunately, I cannot fit ev-
“I have respect for all athletes, or simply anyone who goes out and puts an effort into a sport they love. For me, this sport is football.”
PJ Marcello Senior
erything I need to say about football into one article in the back of The Beacon, but if you ever want
Volleyball continues WCC conference play tonight Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. at the Chiles Center to take on rival Gonzaga. UP also travels battle against No. 16 San Diego at 1 p.m. The Pilots are looking to bounce back from losing their first two WCC matchups on the road against No. 14 Pepperdine 1-3 and Saint Mary’s 0-3. (courtesy portlandpilots.com)
Football: The ultimate team sport Continued from page 16
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to discuss it further, feel free to contact me. With that, I will leave you with one final belief of mine. Some people say that nothing in this world is perfect, but there are a few things I would argue for: a mother’s love for her children, my Dad’s smoked salmon and football. You may never get to indulge in the smoked salmon, but I hope you all find a way to enjoy as much as you can of the other two.
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SPORTS THE BEACON
September 27, 2012
Football vs. Futbol: you be the judge
www.upbeacon.net
Beacon sports reporters PJ Marcello and Katie Dunn take a stand on which sport they believe is truly the best, not only UP and the USA, but worldwide
Futbol: The world’s sport Katie Dunn Staff Commentary It can be hard, living in America, to imagine a sport bigger than football, but travel to any other country and they’ll tell you what the most popular sport is: futbol (or as we call it, soccer). In America, football is so highly revered because it exemplifies the basic fundamentals of our country. Warfare is the basis for football; strategy is the basis for futbol. There are many reasons people say that American football is better than futbol, but most of them do not stand up to actual facts. Let’s start with futbol being less physical. Football has tackling and blocking in every play, creating more chances for serious injuries (concussions anyone?), but futbol has legal hitting, elbowing, tripping and shoving that rarely result in serious injuries. Futbol is played with no pads or helmets, just a jersey, shorts and some shin guards. When you have a game where an average of 2.5 goals are scored per match, and any goal could be the game winner or even the only score all game, the dramatics can’t be beat. It’s true that a futbol game can end in a tie but hey, even football can, even though not as often. I think this is the main reason Americans resist the game so much; We always need a winner. The thing is, when the game is important, there is a winner. Nothing can match the tension of penalty kicks needed to decide a big game. The best thing about futbol, and the thing Americans should love most, is the ability to heckle the other team. During football games, there are no large fans groups cheering the same thing, at the same time, trying to get in the other team’s head. A sport where it is seen as acceptable to harass the other team as much as cheer for your own should be
loved by everyone. As Americans, we love to show how much better we are and how much pride we have, so futbol should be the obvious choice when picking what sport to cheer for. All the aspects of futbol are present at every competitive level, from high school to professional. It is one of the only sports where people get just as excited about the women’s teams as well as the men’s. The level of play, physicality and support are constant for the two genders. It might be the only sport where people actually like watching the women more than men. There is no better example of this than here at UP. Portland is a city of futbol. You’re a Timber’s fan? Great, the stadium is about a 30-minute bus ride away from campus. Or maybe you like the Seattle Sounders. Drive 15 minutes and you’re in Washington. If you need a strong rivalry to become part of, join this one. The hatred between Sounders and Timbers fans is as big as any other rivalry you will find in any other sport. There is no contest of football vs futbol at UP since we have no football team, but even if we did I could not picture there being more support for football than our women’s soccer team. I challenge anyone to find a football team that gets a drum squad in kilts to attend every game, an entire dorm of guys who paint their chests, and a student section that can intimidate visiting teams as much as ours can. UP chants to not only our team in support, but in ridicule to the other team. There is no bigger sense of community than a school that supports their team, and here at UP, it’s soccer. If I have still yet to convince you that futbol is better than football, come to the next women’s soccer game at home. Sit as close to the Villa Drum Squad as you can, and try not to fall in love with the game. Being that close and having everyone around you so excited will make you a futbol fan in no time.
Football: The team sport accepting of everybody, yes, even you and me PJ Marcello Staff Commentary No, I know what you are thinking and I refuse to play into it. I will not be some obnoxious blowhard demanding that you understand how much better American football is and attack what we refer to over here as soccer. At least I won’t be that guy for this article. However, do not confuse this with me conceding the point. I firmly believe tackle football is the better sport and I will now share with you some reasons why. I have respect for all athletes, or simply anyone who goes out and puts an effort into a sport they love. For me, this sport is football. I have often wondered why I chose football, but I, like many other fans and players, did not choose football, it chose us. I grew up the chubby kid. I say chubby because it makes me feel better. I was not, as my mom said, “big-boned” or “husky,” no, I was the fat kid. Being the fat kid did not exclude me from loving sports. I loved sports with a fiery passion, a passion that rivals Angelina Jolie’s intense fervor for adopting foreign babies. However, unlike Ms. Jolie’s ability to adopt any kid on any given continent, I could not simply go out and play any sport I wanted. This is where football interrupted my terribly anti-athletic reality. It bumped and prodded its way into my life to the point where it could no longer be ignored. After years of disappointment on the basketball court, hopelessly trying to round the bases on the baseball diamond and taking puff after puff on my inhaler following a frantic soccer ball chase, my sport had finally
found me, and I was not alone. Fat kids, skinny kids, slow kids, kids that wore glasses, kids with asthma, we all found our home with football. We had found a place where we all had a role to fill on the team, and we were all necessary in winning the game. My weight was no longer a liability on the field of play, rather an advantage. The fact that my buddy John was not the best with his feet did not destroy his opportunity of playing. He could catch anything you threw his way and that is how he earned his place on the team. We even have an important spot for all the people who really just prefer to kick things through cross bars. Everyone is welcome in the game of football. But, as you should know, this is not even the best part of football. It was great that we are all welcome to find our places on the team, but more importantly are the life skills that this sport presents to its participants. They call it the “ultimate team sport” for a reason. We learned how to work together. Regardless of how you feel about your teammates off the field, you sure care about them when you are on the field. If one person did not do their job in the game, we all paid for it. We had to trust the person next to us to do what they were supposed to and they had to trust us equally. If we could not do that, then the play would fail or someone could get hurt. In no way is the gridiron anything like a battlefield in war, but there is a sort of comaraderie players must have in working as a unit. It is our own mini battlefield out there; you look out for your teammates because you know they are looking out for you. We learned toughness. We were taught that when someone bumps into you, even if it is harder than you prefer, you stay up and keep going. I dare you to flop See Football, page 15