The Connection Vol. 57 Issue 5 04/14/2011

The Connection The student voice of Cosumnes River College since 1970

Volume 57, Issue 5

April 14, 2011

www.crcconnection.com

CRC PRESIDENT TRAVIS: ‘We are very fortunate’

BY THE NUMBERS:

3%

The percentage of salary roll back faculty district-wide will face, effective July 2011

$36

$24.6

The per unit tuition students can expect to pay as Gov. Jerry Brown approved SB 70

The net loss Los Rios can expect in the best available scenario with no tax extension

(million)

Campus can expect cuts to impact campus less than sister colleges Cory Fong Connection Staff Of the three scenarios proposed by the Office of the Chancellor of the Los Rios Community College District, two paths remain and one appears imminent. The most likely scenario seems to be a cut of $24.6 million district-wide as the prospect of no June tax extension nearly a foregone conclusion.

While no cut is openly welcomed by any institution, Cosumnes River College students and faculty can rest a little easier knowing that – due to a stipulation laid out by the California Code of Regulation and a decision made on behalf of the district – the See BUDGET, Page 8

‘Hands’ event aims to promote unity Dorian Love Connection Staff In hopes of raising money to aid California’s community colleges, students and faculty will join together in the event “Hands Across California” on April 17.

Cosumnes River College Associated Student Government President, Albert Gomez, 19, a business administration major, is serving as the CRC campus Captain for Hands Across California.

Gomez is leading the event in hopes that CRC students will show their support.

“We will be joining hands in efforts to raise $100 million dollars statewide,” said Gomez. “That is our campaign goal.”

Hands Across California is geared toward aiding deserving students with scholarships, so they can achieve their endeavors in college.

Community colleges throughout California are also participating in the hand holding event, which will stretch 1,000 miles.

Students will join at CRC to form a line extending from Sacramento to Central San Joaquin Valley.

According to Foundation for California Community Colleges, “Hands Across California will bring together an estimated 1 million people including celebrities, students and elected officials to See HANDS, Page 8

Carlo Dela Cruz | The Connection

ESL instructor Marlo McClurg-MacKinnon donates to the ‘Hands Across California’ movement during a bake sale in the Fountain Quad on April 12.

Students and faculty weigh in on e-books Dorian Love Connection Staff

As we are living in a digitalized age, technology is becoming more pervasive in the way we collect and process information.

Electronic books, also known as e-books are beginning to revolutionize the way student’s access printed text.

E-books are different than your average textbook. Rather than flipping through pages of a textbook, information can be

found with a simple click.

But, will e-books replace traditional textbooks?

Currently, Cosumnes River College students have the option of buying or renting traditional textbooks, but this may change in the future.

“Officially e-books will take over” said CASSL coordinator, Robert Snowden, who also teaches Radio, Film and Television Production.

“They are effective for media classes. The only concern I have is the burden they have on

student’s who don’t have access to a computer.”

Snowden like many other CRC professors claimed that EBooks don’t work for all students because. In order to use the online book, one must have access to the Internet.

“The student’s time to study and access my information are limited,” said Snowden who emphasized that the e-books don’t work out for student’s that may not have computers at home.

“I don’t assume every student has a computer,” said Snowden.

Not all professors are in favor of e-books.

I’m not a fan of e-books,” said Anthropology Professor, Shannon Mills.” I like the idea of textbooks because students can highlight and take notes inside of them.”

“I don’t prefer them,” said Professor Maureen Moore, who teaches humanities. “We do a lot of reading in my class and if students don’t have a laptop they cannot participate in class.

Moore is against switching See E-BOOK, Page 8

Philosophy professor to chair session at conference Branden Wiens Connection Staff Philosophy Professor Dr. Rick Schubert was recently given the honor of chairing the session “Interdependence: Logic and Duality” at The 2011 Annual Conference of the Society for Asian and Comparative Philosophy, taking place at the University of Hawaii’s East-West Studies center, on Saturday, May 28.

“The session that I will be chairing on ‘Interdependence: Logic and Duality,’ will involve three presentations,’ said Schubert. “A session chair keeps the session going on time, so warning a speaker if they’re out of time, as well as moderating a question and answer session that follows.” Schubert compared this to being a professor in a classroom, “Someone has to determine who is acknowledged, when we should move on. It’s the

chair’s duty to recognize when it’s time to redirect to the next person with a question. Similar to what a professor does during class.“ In addition, on May 27, Schubert will also be presenting his paper, “Things and Kinds in Zhuangzi: Virtue, Transformation and Interdependence.”

“Chair positions are traditionally prestigious positions,” added Schubert, “This is the second time I’ve been asked to chair a session. A sign that the

Society considers me a senior member. When I was a junior member, I wasn’t asked to chair sessions.”

Schubert spoke to how his education likely played a role. “ The session is titled ‘Logic and Duality,’ and logic and dualism are characteristic of Anglo-European analytic philosophy, and my Ph.D is in Anglo-European analytic philosophy. This likely played a role in the selection process. “

Campus loses staff member Varsha Narayan Connection Staff

Precious Craft, the director of the Cosumnes River College Gospel Choir passed away Sunday, she was 79.

Craft taught at CRC for 15 years and was the Gospel Choir’s first ever director, according to an e-mail sent out by the President’s Office.

Along with directing the Gospel Choir, Craft also taught piano at CRC and enjoyed working with students and teaching, which she loved.

Despite suffering from health problems, Craft was energetic and passionate about teaching. She was looking forward to coming back in the Fall.

A public viewing for Craft will be held on Thursday, April 14 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Thompson Rose Chapel.

The funeral service is scheduled for Friday, April 15 at 10 a.m. at St. Marks United Methodist Church.

Opinion

2

Transition: from newspapers to web

EDITORIAL

CRC students lack involvement in ASG According to the Cosumnes River College website, there are over 16,000 students on campus, yet roughly 1,000 vote in student elections, and even less are involved in on campus organizations.

Student involvement on the CRC campus is miniscule at best.

ASG, The Associated Student Government, is an organization at Cosumnes River College that acts as the voice for students.

The student officers are elected by their fellow students on a yearly basis. For weeks, candidates hand out fliers, talk to students and AT A GLANCE plaster posters on walls around campus hoping to attract a following and gain more votes.

The Issue: Students don’t But, how effective is it? participate in campus votHow can the student ing. government be the voice of the students when the students don’t Our View: Students need care enough to vote? to care about their voice.

The number of students who complain about various Why don’t you vote? issues around campus outweighs Send comments to the number of students who get involved with the school and try connect@crc.losrios.edu to make a change.

There is a strong correlation between student involvement and future success. According to the University of Florida’s website, students who get involved in campus organizations gain more knowledge pertaining to the real world. They gain the organizational and professional skills needed to succeed in today’s professional world and more successful academically.

Being involved on campus and being educated on the issues allows one to voice their opinion and be heard by fellow students and faculty.

For many students, their lack of involvement has to do with being unaware of the vast opportunities on campus. Campus clubs range from anime to philosophy. Students are bound to find one that catches their interest.

Many students don’t see the benefits of joining a school club or voting in a student election. Joining a club provides one with valuable life skills, new interests, professional experience, and an overall rewarding experience. Voting in school elections allow you to elect officers who share the same beliefs as you.

Learning not only occurs inside the classroom, but outside the classroom as well. The more involved you are on campus, the more you learn about different aspects of life and the more you’ll learn.

The more involved a student is on campus, the more pleasant their college experience will be.

Instead of complaining about what you don’t like, get involved and try to change it. Find an organization you’re passionate about or a club you’re interested in. Getting involved on campus in not a waste of time. It’s a way to jumpstart your future and expand your knowledge.

The Connection Co-Editors-in-Chief News Editors Opinion Editor Features Editor Sports Editor Photo Editor Online Editor Production Manager Faculty Adviser

Staff

April 14, 2011

Tashia Brantley Joe Conradsen Adam Hally Dorian Love

Cory Fong & Branden Wiens Cory Fong & Branden Wiens Stephan Starnes Varsha Narayan Johny Garcia Unique Pierre-Cody Carlo Dela Cruz Tracy Gilkerson David Weinshilboum

Theresa Moore Gabby Mungaven Daniel Newport Alyssa Novak

David Obisanya Osay Ogbebor Vinita Singh Raynisha Taltoan

The Connection is an award-winning newspaper published bi-weekly by the Journalism 400 newspaper production class. Editorials and opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the students, staff or faculty of CRC or the Los Rios Community College District. The Connection is a member of the Journalism Association of Community Colleges (JACC).

Letters to the Editor must be typed, signed and include first and last name and a phone number. They must be 200 words or less and may be edited for length, clarity or taste.

Telephone Fax Website E-mail Address

Or drop by

916.691.7471 916.691.7181 www.crcconnection.com connect@crc.losrios.edu The Connection Cosumnes River College 8401 Center Parkway Sacramento, CA 95823 LRC 109 on the first floor of the Learning Resource Center

Stephan Starnes Connection Staff

Newspapers will always exist. But they won’t always exist in the way they do now.

“We do not think print is dad, it’s transitioning,” said Cheryl Dell, president and publisher and of The Sacramento Bee. Editor’s Note: Dell was right: it will not die.

First Place award winNewspapers ning article from the are transitioning 2011 Journalism Assointo smaller ciation of Community publications, Colleges state conferwhich will led ence for On-The-Spot people online to Opinion Writing. find what they wish to learn April 7-9, 2011 about.

The online aspect of journalism is thriving and it will only continue to pull people away from print issue of newspapers.

Newspapers generate a lot of advertisements and can catch people’s attention, but even advertisers are learning to make the move to the online world.

Online ads have “exploded exponentially” in the last couple of years, Dell said.

The biggest attraction of online is the exact thing that Dell said was one of the main facets of news publications: connecting with the communities and social interaction.

Visit any article online and you will notice the user comments. People debate, argue and agree with one another’s point on every topic that you think of.

Print editions don’t have the instantaneous effect of sharing their opinions with the world.

Yes, you can send letters to the editor and they may respond, but you get more from the internet.

There are many cases where people follow certain writers online, and they interact with the writer in the comments section frequently.

Another point is that online has many ways to share information across the world.

When the earthquake hit Japan, I was watching a live feed from CNN and another hosted on YouTube, as well as instantaneously reading people’s comments in chat rooms provided by the websites.

As Dell said, papers need to reinvent themselves.

The future will see smaller print issues, which are summaries of the best stories.

They will get people interested and direct them to the website.

The web offers more choices of how to present the information (such as written stories, audio clips, videos, audio slideshows, photo galleries or any combination of them).

Also, online offers many choices for websites to link to one another and generate traffic for each other.

The Sacramento Bee, for example, features many blogs that had existed online, which leads to increased traffic for the blog sites.

Print issues will become gateways to the online world, which will allow people to find information in the way that want that will link to further information that they are interested in through other articles, databases and even Google searches.

With things like the iPhone, it is becoming even easier to have access to all of the websites at the swipe of a screen, rather than having to carry around even something as light and portable as a laptop.

Print is definitely not dead, it’s just being reinvented to fit with the current, more technologically based times.

Media—Oversexualizing young girls Daniel Newport Connection Staff

There has been a large controversy about a product Abercrombie and Fitch is marketing. A “push-up” bikini top is being marketed to girls to help them out a bit. Yet, the controversy is not over the product, it is over the fact that it is marketed to girls as young as seven.

This is not the first time the company has pushed a product for tween age consumers. According to The Globe and Mail, “over-sexualizing tweens is not new ground for Abercrombie, which stirred up controversy when it started selling thongs to pint-sized customers in 2002.”

What type of message is this for girls growing up at such a pertinent period in their life? There are no positive effects of wearing products like these, other than sexualizing a child. Nearly every parent I have talked to about this responds with a negatively surprised look on their face and say “wow….”

Media is far too focused on sex, and the effects it is having, especially on younger kids, is leading to serious consequences.

“We live in a hyper-sexualized culture where the prevailing message is: Sex is like fast food, gorge on it thoughtlessly and damn the consequences.”

Said Jane Velez-Mitchell, CNN opinion writer.

Velez-Mitchell wrote about when police arrested 18 boys and men, ranging from 14-27, in the alleged gang rape of an unnamed 11-year old girl.

What is more shocking is the fact that people are actually blaming this little girl.

Some residents of the town “told reporters that the girl hung out with older boys at the play ground, liked to dress older than her age and wore makeup,” Velez-Mitchell wrote.

The attorney for some of the suspects said that the girl was a “willing participant”. A girl who is 11 years old cannot be a willing participant so such a brutal act. What a ridiculous claim.

Velez-Mitchell has a point. In movies it is not uncommon to see a sex scene, or nudity. Teen movies have blatant nudity scattered all throughout the film.

When the “Shrek” series alludes to innuendos.

Companies don’t look past the business end of their marketing, to the extremely negative effects it is having on us, and more importantly, youth.

Garbage in, garbage out. Many people, including myself, are guilty of mindlessly consuming what we see and hear in media. You cannot deny the fact that girls and women suffer from eating disorders, low self-esteem, bullying, etc. because of the views of women being portrayed by companies such as Abercrombie. There is so much more than simply their bust size, waistline, and appearance. Still numerous women are stuck with having to portray themselves in this way to get attention.

Pay attention to what you are watching or listening to, because what you do listen or watch, does mould you as a person either positively or negatively.

CRC Library building, the future’s key Tracy Gilkerson Connection Staff

Blink in the library building, you’ll miss the actual library. It’s crammed upstairs and out of sight, a skeleton in the closet. The MESA Building was being renovated and enlarged, and it was even smaller than what it is now. MESA students were using part of this building for classrooms. Now, these rooms are not only offices for the staff, but also storage for more published media.

It should not be called the Library Building. It is not just a library. A proper name would be the

Reference Hall. There are classrooms, counselors’ offices and other functions that seems to take precedence over the library in the building. The library is for studying, reading and using computers to do research papers. It’s not for classrooms, transfers and everything.

This isn’t enough. With modern technology, people are moving away from the days of paper and ink. There are now the Kindles, iPhones and eBooks. Some might think that libraries may someday become obsolete, but we are in a transitional phase.

There are rare books that aren’t in eBook format, that are carried in print copies. We can’t leave libraries behind altogether.

Opinion

April 14, 2011

3

A modest proposal: don’t change the age of consent Johny Garcia Connection Staff Currently in California, the legal age of consent is 18.

However, after a scandal involving a 16-year-old and a coach, some people have been urging the state to lower this age. Instead of wimping out as a society by lowering the age of consent, let’s take a stand and call for absolutely no teen pregnancies.

The United States has “the highest rates of teen pregnancy and birth among comparable contries,” accoring to thenationalcampaign.org.

This is where the United States currently ranks with the age of consent at 18.

If the age were to be lowered, youth would get the idea that sex is okay for anyone to have without consequence. So lowering the age of consent would be wrong.

However, keeping the age of consent at 18 wouldn’t help the ultimate goal­­—eliminating teen pregnancies. Therefore, raising the age of consent to 20 is the only viable option.

The first way to do this is by enforcing the chastity belt.

Yes, the chastity belt seems extreme at first glance. However, an effective chastity belt would be far more effective than any other contraceptive method we currently use.

Condoms, although they can have spermicidal lubrication, are not 100 percent effective.

On the back of a box of “Trojan” condoms there is a warning stating that less than two out of 1000 women get pregnant per year after using their condoms on a “typical” basis.

Plus, condoms can of course break during the heat of the “moment.”

There are other birth control methods, but unfortunately they are known for causing all sorts of horrific side effects, including death. Today’s teenage sex-maniacs shouldn’t have

A satire to raise the age of consent their bodies forever changed, or even killed, in order to stop teen pregnancy from occuring.

Chastity belts, on the other hand, have nearly any side effects.

Yes, in history, these “chambers of secrets” were made out of clunky, dirty metal that made the wearers of one stand out like a sore thumb.

But with our modern society, we can create these out of strong bulletproof material that will not only allow any penetration whatsoever, all the while being hidden underneath the teen’s clothing of choice.

Of course all these belts would cost money, and this is where all of the curent contraceptive companies come into affect.

With the countless jobs that these companies offer, closing them down is not a reasonable thing to ask. Instead, these companies would be brought togethr and given the same amount of money that they are currently making, in order to manufacture the best chastity belts that money can buy. Then, no jobs would be lost but they would still be doing what they set out to do—stop pregnancies.

With the age of consent raised to a reasonable age, 20, an a new chastity belt put into effect, the United States will finally be able to forget about ever dealing with teen pregnancy ever again.

If, as a society, we want to make radical changes in our society will work.

Stephan Starnes Connection Staff

A satire to lower the age of consent

After a recent scandal involving a coach and a 16-yearold girl in Elk Grove, California’s age of consent has been questioned.

Of course California’s age of consent sits at 18, which is far too high a number.

Less than a third of the states have the age of consent set this high.

Most states’ age of consent is set at 16, with not even a fifth of them set at 17-yearsold.

At least most states have close-inage laws.

California just lessens the punishment if you’re close in age—but it’s still considered rape.

One big problem with the age of consent being in the teens is teen pregnancy. Everyone complains about it.

Why only leave it to teens, though?

Bodies begin developing before the teen years, on average.

On average, girls have their first period by age 12, according to womenshealth.gov.

This means that girls’ bodies are ready at that age.

Why would their bodies be ready if they’re not?

The only logical thing to do is to lower the age of consent to 12 for girls, the average age girls are ready to have sex.

And boys, being boys, are always ready, or at least willing, so there is no need to limit their ages for sexual activities.

Of course, there will also be a variant of the close-in-age law: as long as there is proof the girl has

had their period then the law can be flexible to allow for exceptions.

All the major things kids can’t wait for are all in the same age range: driving at 16, voting, smoking and some gambling at 18, and drinking at 21.

Of course sex falls in those ages as well.

Letting sex be introduced so close to drinking leads to years of careless, inexperienced sex that overlaps with drinking, causing such horrors as the drunken hook-up.

We need to spread out the responsibilities and give kids the least dangerous responsibility earlier than anything else.

Pre-teens get angry when they are treated like children, and there is nothing stopping us from giving them more things to think about.

And this can help lower the problem of teenage pregnancies.

Those will get fewer and fewer as the number of pre-teen pregnancy rises—that’s exactly what we want, teen pregnancy to be reduced.

This also deals with another thing that is plaguing us. With such a downturned economy, many adults would take jobs that teenagers have.

The adults need jobs more than teenagers do.

Yes, we understand that teenagers want jobs. Well this solves that problem. What’s more fulfilling than being a parent?

And so many schools are overcrowded, so all of the new parents will have to be homeschooled, clearing up room for the students who choose not to have kids.

All in all, this situation will do so much for society in so many ways, so let’s start working on lowering the age of consent right now.

It would help society in more ways than you realize.

Celebs reduce news impact CRC Child care needs work Carlo Dela Cruz Connection Staff There is trouble overseas, both environmental issues and an ongoing fight within a country, and unfortunately it seems that people are unnecessarily paying more attention to a celebrity getting into trouble than anything Celebrities like Charlie Sheen and Lindsay Lohan have been consistently in the spotlight for their outrageous activity in their lives. They have gone from being promising performers to destroying themselves.

While they are humiliating themselves, Japan is still struggling with the nuclear reactor crisis and many countries are fighting in the Libya conflict. Some people however seem to care more about celebrity troubles.

Sure, news about their downward spiral might have significance, but should be in front of more relevant situations?

There are many things to blame, including the spreading of news through social networks.

For example, Twitter allows people to post the news as fast as possible and with tools such as

hash tags. Information can spread like wildfire.

Television programs such as Entertainment Tonight, Inside Edition, and other shows will capitalize it to an unquestionable level. News outlets need to prioritize what’s important or else we are going to see more unnecessary celebrity news pop in during times of trouble.

Robert Downey Jr. who has been previously known for drug abuses, has shown that recovery is possible. These celebrities have to help themselves get better to for everyone’s sake.

However, some do appreciate this newfound attention. Charlie Sheen is a great example of this.

He is more or less humiliating himself for the worse and we are making fun of him for doing absolutely insane things.

The biggest issue that I have noticed is that the coverage will never stop. Even if Sheen or another falls by the wayside, someone else will take that spot continuing the long cycle of controversial publicity.

Something has to be done to prevent, or at least lessen, Hollywood gossip.

Alyssa Novak Connection Staff Cosumnes River College is supposed to be an open access college experience, as stated in CRC’s mission statement. It’s time someone spoke up about the walls parents hit as incoming and continuing students at CRC. Currently, the only resource available at CRC specifically for students with children is the oncampus daycare center. They have five classrooms; two rooms have 12 slots and three have 24. It’s not enough considering how many students with children, are in attendance here.

In the process of enrolling your children, there is an application packet with a portion where you fill out your class and/ or work schedule.

If you are a single parent household, you are the only one attending school and/or working.

In a two-parent household both parents need to be going to school or employed. The only problem with this requirement is the waiting list and low number of available slots. If both parents are working or attending school they

are still placed on the waiting list according to their income, rather than first come first served.

On top of the limited availability, there are age requirements. Since 2009, the minimum age for children accepted has raised from 18 months to 2-years-old in Fall 2010. In the fall semester, this age limit will be raised, yet again, to 2 ½ years old. With the age limits rising it’s going to be more difficult for parents to begin going here.

The closest and least expensive childcare center is Kid’s Camp.

With their rates, a parent with one child and school five days a week for around six hours a day will pay around $800 a month, with food provided.

The recent budget cuts weigh into CRC’s lack of resources for families.

However, there could be at least a few more slots available, especially for lower income families that need the use of this facility to further their education.

Allowing the lack of resources available to students with children continue to dwindle away, CRC is making it extremely difficult for parents to attend here.

HAWK TALK

How will the tuition increases, from $26 to $36, affect you?

Adam Lee, 25 Geography “A lot, due to being a full time student.”

Justin Ramirez, 20 Mechanical Engineering “I am on BOG, hopefully I get it. But if I don’t, I will get financial aid.”

Alex Young, 18 Physical Education “I do feel bad for those who don’t have financial aid, yet I have financial aid so it won’t affect me.”

Richard Sabin, 21 Psychology “Not really going to affect me much, my aunt and uncle pay for my schooling, but it still sucks.”

Compiled by Daniel Newport.

Photos by Raynisha Taltoan.

Features

4

April 14, 2011

Earth Week 2011 impacts CRC David Obisanya Connection Staff In 2007 it was shown that we as Americans use 60,000 plastic bags every five seconds. There is no way the Earth can survive if we continue to treat it the way we do.

“A day doesn’t go by that I don’t reflect on how I can reduce my impact on the planet” said geography professor Debra Sharkey, founder of Earth Week at Cosumnes River College Campus. “I originally got involved, and remain so, because I am passionate about this planet and wanted to inspire others to pause and appreciate Earth and the many gifts we receive from it on a daily basis”.

Professor Sharkey started CRC’s Earth Day Celebration 10 years ago, and since then it has grown into a weeklong event filled with festivities designed to encourage students and faculty to make lifelong decisions that will benefit our planet.

“Just as we have the obligation to be respectful and responsible to each other, we also have that same obligation to our Earth and our planet and our environment”, said Biology Professor Julie Oliver. Professor Oliver said she first got involved with the Earth Week program to better educate students and faculty about the alternative to lifestyles that can benefit our planet.

Earth Week features a variety of events designed to educate people about the impact we’re having on the planet’s finite amount of resources and encourage them to make the right lifestyle decisions that will help to preserve Earth.

One of the events taking place, is a tour of CRC’s Winn Center. The new architectural and engineering building is expected to be a model in “green” technology and will be the first of its kind on the campus.

There will also be a stargazing party on Wednesday April 13 between the Southeast Office Complex and the Child Development Center.

There will be a keynote address from Dr. George Somero, a Marine Science professor at Stanford University, on Thursday April 14th in the Library Forum, L-111. The week wraps up with a Creek Clean-Up day on Saturday April 16th.

“I am super excited about the architecture thing”, said Professor Oliver, “and also Dr. Somero’s talk. I think Dr. Somero’s talk will be really interesting for people to hear about the effects of climate change and are affecting the Antarctic which is a place we don’t even think about really.”

The only difference this year that separates it from past years is that there aren’t as many off campus vendors participating because of budget cuts.

Professor Sharkey however prefers to look at the positive and notes that now that there aren’t as many off campus groups, there should be more people from different disciplines working on the events, which means greater student and faculty participation.

Among other things, Earth Week sends the message that whether you’re environmentally conscious or completely unaware of the daily damage done to the world’s ecosystem, Earth Week has something for you.

We tend to look at all the problems the world is having and because it’s so big we think that our decisions don’t really make a difference, but the world is a collection of individuals, if one changes that can make a much bigger impact than we tend to realize. It’s the individual that makes the difference.

“Students are the future decision-makers who will guide environmental policy”, said Professor Sharkey, “If they, and others like them around the world, don’t recognize the importance of limiting consumption and humanity’s negative impacts on Earth’s natural systems, I fear the fate of our species is doomed.”

EARTH WEEK EVENTS Lecture: “Collapse of Civilizations” LRC 105 4/12 @ 9 a.m. - 10:20 a.m.

Virtual tour of Winn Center Recital Hall 4/12 @ 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Film: “The Whale Warrior: Pirate for the Sea” SCI 106 4/12 @ 3 p.m. - 4:45 p.m.

Earth Week Displays Main Quad 4/14 @ 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Film: “Food, Inc.” Recital Hall 4/14 @ 10:30 a.m. - 11:50 a.m.

Keynote Speaker: Dr. George Somero L111 4/14 @ 1:30 p.m. - 3 p.m.

Stargazing Between SOC and CDC 4/13 @ 8:15 p.m. - 9:15 p.m.

Creek-Clean-Up 4/16 To Participate, contact Robert Skillen skiller@crc.los

Green Scene film is uplifting and empowering Branden Wiens Connection Staff Planting a tree seems like a simple task for most of us, such an act would raise no eyebrows, but for Wangari Maathai, it drew her international attention.

As the second of four films in the ongoing “GreenSCREEN” series at Cosumnes River College, as well as in honor of Women’s History Month, the 2008 documentary, “Taking Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai was shown on Wed. Mar. 30.

The documentary focused not only on Wangari, but also those in the Green Belt Movement she founded in 1977 as a way of empowering Kenyan women to push back against a government that allowed rampant deforestation by simply planting trees.

“Without firewood, people changed how they cooked,” Wangari said in the film, “When women said they had no firewood, I asked if they

knew how to plant trees.”

The film detailed the movement, and how it went from one about tree planting, to one that tackled the broader concept of women’s rights in Kenya.

“You cannot protect the environment, unless you empower them [women] to protect their resources.”

In addition to her environmental activism, in Feb. of 1992, she was involved in a hunger strike that took place in a section of Uruhu Park they named “Freedom Corner” to free political prisoners being held by the Kenyan government.

The film uses news reports to document the aftermath, after the police violently broke the protest up three days later. The police also later released the prisoners.

At the end of the film, we learn that through the Green Belt Movement, over 35 million trees have been planted as of 2008, in addition, Wangari became the

first African woman awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for, “for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace” according to the Nobel Peace Prize website.

In addition, in 2002 she was elected to the Kenyan Parliament, specifically as Assistant Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, with 98% of the vote.

“It’s amazing the passion that one person can show, shedding blood, sweat, and getting up and doing it again the next day,” said Matthew Turner, a 25-year old photography major, “She fought for something she didn’t have to, she fought for everybody.”

“It’s interesting how one voice can inspire change,” said Debra Sharkey, CRC geography Professor, “It takes one person sometimes to empower people. She could’ve easily been thrown in jail, or disappeared.”

Features

April 14, 2011

5

YouTube helps aspiring stars launch their careers Stephan Starnes Connection Staff YouTube has become a platform for the stars of tomorrow to show off their talents and get recognition in various ways.

YouTube has been the starting point for a lot of celebrities in today’s society.

Shane Dawson is an example of a modern breakout star. The comedian is estimated to make $315,000 a year in advertising revenue alone, according to socialtimes. com.

“YouTube celebrities” have the opportunity to be compensated for uploading videos if they attract a big enough audience.

Elle and Blair Fowler are sisters who started posting makeup tutorials, product reviews and tips after looking on YouTube themselves for reviews of products.

Their success led them to be featured in Seventeen magazine.

Music is one area where stars are popping up left and right.

Justin Bieber started posting videos of himself covering songs by artists such as Usher and Justin Timberlake. Ironically enough, both artists were interested in signing Bieber when Scooter Braun discovered him.

He ended up signing with Usher, and the rest, is history.

People who get signed to major record labels aren’t the only ones making a name for themselves, though.

Tyler Ward is a popular musician on YouTube who has his own independent record company, Tyler Ward Studios.

He frequently posts videos singing solo, with others, and spotlights others in his “Featured Artists” videos.

“I started posting videos of songs that I liked, and

then mashing them up with other top 40 songs,” Ward said via e-mail. “I got to where I am by just being myself and putting my originals and my version of cover songs out there. I never would have imagined people would respond the way they did.”

Ward declined to comment on how much money he makes from YouTube, but said that he is a YouTube partner.

Partners get special tools on the site and make money through ad revenue.

Ward says that on average, he gets 650,000 hits a day on his page.

According to a note he posted on Facebook, he has turned down “I got to where I am by just five record deals and being myself and putting my originals and my version makes enough money through of cover songs out there. I his music on never would have imagined YouTube to people would respond the make a career out of it. way they did.”

Dezmond Castner, betTyler Ward ter known Youtube Musician as AzuriteReaction on YouTube, had been into video games, especially rhythm games, drumming and video editing for years.

When Rock Band came out, the combination of my real life drumming ability, rhythm game ability and video editing experience led me to try making videos for Rock Band about a day after the game had come out,” Castner said via email.

‘Huck Finn’ is a well written delight despite trivial flaws

Having seen videos for a game called Beatmania where it would show the game chart, as well as the player’s hands, Castner decided to try for a similar affect.

“I tried making a design/camera layout of my own that showed me playing the drums, the drum chart, and the score (and my foot in a separate frame) all at once,” Castner said.

“When this video came out, it was something not many people had seen before, and something that allowed both non-rhythm game players and hardcore rhythm game players to enjoy the video, as even if you weren’t into rhythm games and didn’t understand what was going on, you could see me drumming and put two and two together.”

Rather than breaking his streak after, he continued to put out similar videos, gaining subscribers and millions of views on some of his videos.

Castner was “discovered” and sponsored, thanks to his exposure on YouTube. Goodwoods Pads and Destroyer Pedal both send him equipment for his rhythm gaming.

He is also a director with Machinima, where he helps to create game content for users who subscribe to the Machinima Network.

Anyone can post on YouTube, but with so many people using its service, you have to know how to stand apart from the others.

“Find a niche. Meaning, look at yourself and your skills and see if there’s something you can do that none of your friends can do,” Castner said. “Do videos of it, and tell your friends about it, and there’s a decent chance people will watch it.”

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Branden Wiens Connection Staff “Well howdy y’all,” says a welcoming voice with a southern accent. The lights in the dark theatre come up, and a young man steps onto the stage, Welcome to the Cosumnes River College Theatre Department’s production of “The Adventures of Huck Finn.”

Directed by Cheri Fortin, professor of theatre, and chair of the CRC Theatre department, the production is an adaptation of Mark Twain’s novel, “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” written by James DeVita.

The primary focus of the story is on Huck Finn, played by Michael Pahlas, and his runaway slave companion Jim, played by Joseph M. Vanenburg as they journeyed down the Mississippi river in search of freedom from their respective lots in life.

Contrary to what might be expected, the play focused on the plight of Jim and Huck, while Tom Sawyer, played by Elliot Herzer, took a very supporting role.

Pahlas’ and Vanenburg’s acting shines, as both are able to embody their characters with a sense of realism and hope as runaways, and for the most part their work was convincing, as the audience was able to understand their plight.

However their acting wasn’t the best of the show.

A major highlight of the production was the innovative use of lighting.

During several scenes, lighting was able to simulate the effect of a prop, and the show was better for it, as it forced the actors to convince the audience that they were interacting with said prop, rather than relying on the prop itself.

The sets were also well done, and the detail work and design was simply outstanding.

In addition to the good acting exhibited by both Pahlas and Vanenburg, they were joined by an excellent supporting cast, including con man “Vick-The-King” as brilliantly played by Joshua Carranza, and Vick’s partner in crime, “The Duke,” played by Alexander Lucas.

Lucas and Carranza excellently served as

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effective hinderances to Huck and Jim’s journey, and were as believable as they were cunning and devious.

The production wasn’t without its serious flaws however.

The majority of the time Huck and Jim’s interaction was believable, but, there were times that a scene felt both wooden and forced.

Not to take away from the work that was here, but there were a few scenes where the supporting cast was more believable than the two main actors.

The lack of chemistry between Pahlas and Vanenburg showed through at times, and the production suffered for it.

Again, the acting wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t the best either. In many a case, there wasn’t enough emotional “punch” delivered throughout the production by the entirety of the cast.

Despite its shortcomings, “The Adventures of Huck Finn” proves to be a well-written and directed piece of theatre.

Fortin has done an excellent job of bringing the characters to life, and by doing so, has not only done justice to DeVita’s work, but Mark Twain’s as well.

Budget crunches may have other schools cutting courses, but Brandman is expanding.

We’re adding business classes to meet the increasing demand.

Brandman partners with community colleges to make transferring credits simple, and that can make earning your business degree a lot more affordable.

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Sports

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April 14, 2011

Bicycling for AIDS, another way to save lives Johny Garcia Connection Staff

A 50 mile bike ride sounds daunting to many people, but for a local coach it is merely a warmup for a yearly tradition.

For the past few years, Cosumes River College’s Women’s Basketball Coach Coral Sage has endured the 330 mile, four-day NorCal AIDS cycle, all in order to raise money for the fight against HIV and AIDS in Northern California.

Last year, despite having a knee injury, Sage was still able to participate in the event by helping out the riders as a crew member.

May 12-15, less than a year after her surgery, Sage is determined to get “back on the bike” for the event.

“Eight months ago I was lying in a hospital bed and this May my goal is to finish the 330-mile ride,” Sage wrote on a handout with information about the event.

Over the four day span, cyclists will start in Folsom, cruise along the banks of the Sacramento River and ride downhill along Cache Creek before eventually heading back to the steps of the State Capitol, according to norcalaidscycle.org.

And for those who are dedicated but busy, there is “the weekender.”

“The weekender” allows riders to join on May 13 during the evening and ride approximately 140 miles over

the following two days, according to norcalaidscycle.org.

And, although the ride is intimidating, the event organizers “pretty much do everything they can to get you set up to succeed and finish the ride,” Sage said. This includes providing the cyclists with bicycle workshops and nutrition workshops.

But the riders aren’t out there by themselves. They roll with a crew of helpers.

Compared to last year, there are

“twice as many crew members,” Sage said.

The crew members move riders’ luggage from camp to camp, set up rest stops and even provide medical assistance.

As opposed to other AIDS cycles, the NorCal AIDS cycle was “ designed to keep the money in Northern California.”

“Every night, the people that get the money, the beneficiaries, come in and speak about what the money does, what it goes to, and how it helps,” Sage said. “It’s always so moving to hear that what you’re doing is really making a difference on

someone.”

And this year’s event should be better than last year’s.

“The last few years we’ve had 40 riders or so. This year I think we’re up to 60 riders, which is phenomenal,” Sage said. “We’ve raised the most this year than we ever have, so we’re looking for raising quite a lot of money this year.”

For more information about participating in the event or donating money, call 916-600-1954 or visit norcalaidscycle.org.

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A DEGREE OF DIFFERENCE Carlo Dela Cruz | The Connection

Unique Pierre-Cody Connection Staff The Woman’s softball team hit hard, Winning a six inning game ,9-1 against American River College on Sunday.

“We have been doing pretty well this season,” said Coach Schroeder. “ If we finish strong I am pretty sure we will make it into the play offs.”

The woman’s Softball team is 21-9 over all and 11-4 in conference.

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Sports

April 14, 2011

7

WHAT THE @%#$!

(IS THAT REALLY TRUE?)

1 IN 2 Sexually Active Young People will Get an STD by 25— Most Won’t Even Know It. MOST STDS ARE CURABLE ALL ARE TREATABLE Unique Pierre-Cody | The Connection

(8) Colby brenner (18) Brain Murphy (21) Jeff Boulware

CRC Hawk's Men's Baseball April Schedule Day ursday Saturday Tuesday ursday Friday Tuesday ursday

Date 14 16 19 21 22 26 28

Opponent Modesto Jr College Santa Rosa Jr College Santa Rosa Jr College Sierra College Sierra College Diablo Valley College Diablo Valley College

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CRC Hawk's Women's Softball April Schedule Day Saturday Tuesday Saturday Tuesday

Date 16 19 23 26

Opponent Sierra College San Joaquin Delta College Sacramento City College Santa Rosa Jr College

Location Sierra CRC CRC Santa Rosa

Time 12/2:00pm 3:00pm 12/2:00pm 3:00pm

HAWK TALK

Do you think the Giants will make it to the World Series?

Compiled by Daniel Newport. Photos by Adam Hally

“Honestly, every year you have to start from scratch, so I am not to sure.”

Chris Barlin, 20 Sociology

“ Yes, they are my favorite team.”

Antoine Rivers, 21 Psychology

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“ It’s a possibility, the A’s got a new pitcher though, but i do like the Giants.”

“ No, i dont like the Giants.”

Johnathan Stige,21 Music

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April 14, 2011

Hands: students E-book: some students feel and faculty press traditional textbook is best importance of awareness Continued from page 1

Continued from page 1

join hands in a line up and down California in support of the state’s nearly 3 million community college students.”

“We have literally joined 112 community colleges,” said Gomez, who hopes the event gains vast public awareness.

Dr. Winnie LaNier, Campus Life Coordinator, said this event was first announced during the Student Senate Assembly Faire last fall.

The goal for Hands Across California is to get people involved and “work toward raising scholarships for the California Community College Foundation,” said Lanier.

CRC Students are showing their support by bringing awareness to the event.

“I was really interested,” said Head of the Communications Committee, Christina Alvarado, 24, a psychology major. “I took on advertising Hands Across California on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter.”

Alvarado claims that advertising on sites like Facebook have been successful because it helps bring awareness to student’s on social networking sites. “The number of people visiting the ‘Hand Across California’ page has

increased,” said Alvarado. “More than 40 people have “liked “it on Facebook.

“For every mile, we would need a thousand people,” said Gomez. The event will be held at CRC and people will be joining hands from Sacramento to Central San Joaquin Valley.

There has not been an event, like Hands Across California since 1986. The original event was called “Hands Across America,” which extended throughout the country.

Both Gomez and Alvarado stressed the importance of participating in Hands Across America.

“This is a chance for our generation to be more involved because it’s money for our future,” said Alvarado, who doubts there’ll be another event like Hands Across California. “If there is another event like this our generation won’t see it.”

For students interested in joining they can sign up in the Student Development Office or register online.

“Double the power, limitless awards,” said LaNier as she cheerfully expressed the event being opened to everyone. “Be a part of making history, contribute to the school.”

to e-books because not everyone would be comfortable using them.

“I’m not for it,” said Moore.

“It might be because I’m old school, but I haven’t figured them out yet.”

Physical textbooks and e-books do offer their share of benefits.

“Some people like to keep

their books when they are done with the semester,” Mills said.

Many students also agreed that traditional textbooks are better because e-books can easily create distractions.

“It would be too hard to stay focused,” said Michelle Zhu, 21-year-old business major. “I prefer physical books.”

Like Zhu another student prefered something physical and attributed it to her generation.

“I’m old fashioned, so I like textbooks better,” said Fatima Umbashi, 29-year-old journalism major. “I think a student’s generation and age play a factor in this because not everyone is technological inclined.”

Vinita Singh | The Connection

CRC hosted a non-profit Free Tax Preperation Program on campus that began in March and ended on April 8 and was funded by the IRS. The program was open to the public and student volunteers helped people file taxes at no charge. This program also returns next tax season.

N A T I O N A L

U N I V E R S I T Y®

Budget: faculty remains critical of Transferring? budget situation Finish School YOUR Way! campus will not be affected as severely as its sister colleges.

CRC receives a base funding of $3.5 million because it slightly exceeds a threshold of 10,000 Full-Time Equivalent Students. If further cuts were to hit the campus, CRC’s FTES numbers may fall below and the campus would lose $500,000 from the general fund.

“It is true that CRC grew fast enough in the last ten years to just over that 10,000 FTES threshold,” said CRC Faculty Union President and history professor Jason Newman. “The importance of holding to that threshold means that we won’t get further cuts.”

Sandra Carter, an English as a Second Language professor, reiterated Newman’s assessment.

We’re going to be favored in the district because we have to maintain a certain number,” Carter said. “We’re not going to lose as many students.”

At a budget forum that took place at CRC on April 5, CRC President Deborah Travis said the actions taken on by the district leave CRC and its sister colleges in a favorable position, considering the nature of such cuts.

“We are very fortunate to be in a district that knows how to plan, that knows the knows the value of dialogue and knows how to be prudent with their financial

resources,” said President Travis at the forum.

The news comes only weeks after Gov. Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 70, which effectively raised California community college tuition from $26 per unit to $36 to alleviate some of the financial burden that will be placed on the institution. The bill is set to take effect July 1.

The district plans to address the cuts by instituting a number of measures, such as enacting faculty salary roll backs by 3 percent across the board. The decision has left certain faculty conflicted.

“Some people think we’re being very generous,” Carter said. “I don’t think so.”

Carter believes students will be carrying an unfair amount of the burden.

“If you look at the income students have and how much is gutting from their income to address the raise, that is a big cut,” Carter said. “I don’t think the sacrifice is equitable for all involved.

Newman believes the legislatures inability to come to a decision is a contributing factor to the unfavorable situation.

“We are seeing so much indecision by the legislature that we really are in a holding pattern until the legislature passes a new budget,” Newman said. “Then we will know much more.”

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