September 15, 2015

SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

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THENORTHERNLIGHT.ORG

UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA ANCHORAGE

Opinion

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Denali trumps Mt. McKinley

Beautiful shots lost on terrible narrative

Rising together: Obama’s welcoming party

Community leaders, cultural displays, important issues and no president

David Weaver tackles housing renovations

“Something phenomenal”: A four-part series on UAA Housing’s efforts to enhance the housing experience

By Nathan Burns

nburns@thenorthernlight.org

On a sunny Monday afternoon outside of the Alaska Airlines Center, over a thousand Alaskans came together to welcome President Barack Obama to their state. At 5:30 p.m. the doors opened and the lines already started to push back on. The event ran out of tickets days before the event and parking spaces couldn’t be found within miles of the building.

These people had two things in common: First, they saw ‘Rising Together,’ a celebration put on

by Bridge Builders, proudly displaying performers and speakers from every culture in our state, as they came together in a show of dance, song and Alaskan issues. Second, they did not see the president.

The FAQ released on Facebook by the Bridge Builders on Aug. 27 confirmed that the president was likely not coming, despite all previous expec-

PHOTO BY KELLY IRELAND

Paint crews work on the Main Apartment Complex’s face lift.

By Nolin Ainsworth

sports@thenorthernlight.org

PHOTO BY ADAM EBERHARDT

President Barack Obama gives closing remarks at the GLACIER Summit Conference.

tations. This information took some time to fully disseminate, as even standing amongst those standing in line, there was a wide variety of expectations.

“It would be disappointing, for him to come to Alaska and

not have at least one opportunity for all of us to see him,” said Vickie Dodge-Pamplin.

“So we’re holding out – hope he comes,” added Antonia Fowl-

SEE OBAMA

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The Money What David Weaver won’t admit is the fact he has probably one of the most challenging jobs at the university. As the director of University Housing, Dining and Conference Services, Weaver’s job responsibilities vary from managing campus vending machines, to looking after 16 residential facilities, to managing his own staff team.

However, Weaver is happy to admit something else: the love of his job. It is conveyed whenever the UAA alumnus begins talking about a future housing project, or how great of work his staff does.

“I love this university. I love the residential campus,” Weaver said.

In the two-plus years Weaver has served as director for UAA’s housing and dining operations,

SEE HOUSING

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UAA’s new Engineering and Industry building unveiled in ceremonial ribbon cutting: September 10

PHOTOS BY KELLY IRELAND

The Engineering and Industry Building’s ceremonial ribbon cutting was on Sept.

10 nearly two years after the groundbreaking ceremony.

By Victoria Petersen

vgpetersen@thenorthernlight.org

Under construction since 2013, the new 78.3 million-dollar Engineering and Industry Building is now open and ready to be populated.

4 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 10 marked the ceremonial ribbon cutting for the new addition to the Anchorage campus, almost two years after the groundbreaking ceremony on Sept. 13. Those who attended had the opportunity to explore

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View of the Engineering and Industry Building from Providence Dr.

the four stories, over 80,000 square feet and over 20 new and cutting edge laboratories that the building offers. Students and staff were present and on-hand to answer any questions about the building and the new technology included.

Engineering students and staff alike are excited about being able to learn and teach in the new facility. Associate Professor Andrew Metzger is looking forward to taking advantage of the new facility.

“There are no cons about the new building. I think it is safe to say that we are very grateful to have the build-

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ing with its modern facilities and stateof-the-art teaching infrastructure,” said Metzger.

Some of the teaching infrastructure included with the building is a brand new video teleconference system, designed to aid with distance learning students.

Metzger is expecting to see a lot of students enrolled across the state as well as out of state students.

“We will be able to accommodate many more students outside the Anchorage, Mat-Su region; even outside the state! As an example, I have a student enrolled in one of my courses that lives in

thenorthernlight.org

the state of Maine,” said Metzger.

Metzger isn’t the only one excited though, professor Osama Abaza will be teaching in the new facility and is eager to conduct research in the new laboratories.

Abaza points out that, “It will be much easier to get grants considering the new facilities in the new building and our students will get hands-on experience working in the labs.”

The Engineering and Industry Building will allow the engineering programs at UAA to further expand.

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NEWS

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

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OBAMA: President doesn’t show up to his own party CONTINUED FROM COVER er.

“I hope we get lucky and see him, It’ll be a great experience for my daughter,” said Jeanna Duryee.

“Otherwise it’ll be a great experience to see all of the cultural groups we have up here.”

“I won’t be too surprised, [Bridge Builders] did say he might not be there,” continued Dodge-Pamplin.

“It’ll still be great, I love seeing all the groups coming together.”

One of the issues that people were most concerned with was global climate change. People standing in line hoped that the presidential trip would focus on and bring attention to how climate change is affecting Alaskans.

“I think he should keep his focus on climate change, he’s already addressed it in his speech to the state department gathering in the Dena’ina Center.” said Albert Csazar about the president’s visit to Alaska “It’s a great opportunity.”

“I think he needs to travel,” said Fowler. “He needs to go outside of Anchorage to see the evidence of climate change everywhere, to see the trash in Prince William Sound, he needs to see how big Alaska is, that’s the only way to understand how hard it is to solve problems in our state.”

“Climate isn’t just an Alaskan issue,” added Duryee,

who hoped this visit would get Alaskans more involved in climate change. “It’s also a world issue.”

The event itself was a wild mixture of cultures, speakers, and performers. Speaking in the president’s place was the Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewel.

“We feel climate change more here in Alaska than anywhere else in the nation. The Arctic regions are warming twice as fast, permafrost is melting, we have challenges here that are changing the way of life for Alaskans,” Jewel addressed the crowd, citing the need for both the United States and Alaska to take lead on tackling climate change, and to put aside our differences for the common good. “We don’t all agree on everything, but I think we can all agree on one thing: The tallest mountain in North America is Denali,” Jewel said to raucous applause.

Other notable speakers included representatives of Alaska’s Filipino, Samoan, Hispanic, Polynesian and Native Alaskan communities, as well as Mayor Ethan Berkowitz and Governor Bill Walker.

The President, whilst unable to attend, did send in a video to be played at the Alaska Airlines Center.

“I am so sorry I can’t be there in person, but it turns out as president you can’t always do what you want. But for you to have drawn together so many people from such different backgrounds in Anchorage, this is such a wonderful thing,” said President Barack Obama. “One of my biggest priorities, one of the reasons I’m here, is to speak directly with the Native Alaskan

community about the effects of climate change. We’re seeing the devastation that’s taking place to the Native ways of life as a consequence of rising sea levels, storm surges, melting ice, the impact on the wildlife, and as a consequence the traditional ways of living on this land.”

Following the President’s Address, the Alaska Native Heritage Center dancers took the stage to treat the audience to traditional Alaskan song and dance.

They were followed by Xochiquetzal-Tigun, a Mexican Folklore Group dancing in full regalia, as well as the Samoan Catholic Community Services Youth Dance Group, then the Alaska Federation of Filipino American Dancers and finally the Anchorage Unanagax Dancers.

After the President’s address made it clear that the president could not attend, people gradually left the event, with only about a fourth of the audience remaining at adjournment. Those that stayed were still positive about the event.

“I enjoyed the event, but I must say I was disappointed that the president wasn’t there, he was the reason we went.” said Jerri Dreyer, “I’m still glad we went.”

“I really liked it,” said Taylor Dreyer “Getting to see all of our different cultures, how different they were, but they had the same basic values like love and family.”

Pictured: Jeanna Duryee and Daughter holding a flag from when President Barack Obama was running to be the Democratic nominee.

HOUSING: David Weaver looks to improve campus housing 2014 CONTINUED FROM COVER July • Weaver meets with AHFC Chief Finance Officer Mike Strand and the 40-year-old has made it his creed to, “see the residential campus become something phenomenal.”

During the summer of 2014, a coworker of Weaver mentioned he had recently refinanced of his home (changing the terms of a loan). Later in the day, Weaver came across the amortization schedule for the $33 million loan the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation financed the university to build the residence halls in 1998.

Before long, Weaver placed a call to AHFC Lending Officer Eric Havelock with the following inquiry: “We think we have around $17 million in equity — can we cash out some of that equity, ‘refinance our house’ so to speak, extend the length of the loan by a few years, and keep our payment the same?” Weaver recalls asking.

This would give UAA Housing the capital to make wide-scale improvements to the residential campus without raising student rates.

After a series of meetings with senior university administrators, the Board of Regents, UAA Facilities Planning, students and others, the loan restructure was approved last May. Weaver explained to administrators the residential halls and apartments had fallen into a “deplorable state.”

Eventually, last October, the Board of Regents approved a $7 million UAA Housing restructure.

Weaver, UAA faculty and students are beginning to see that money put into use.

The Main Apartment Complexes were given a fresh coat of paint over the summer.

Over half of the university apartments have newly replaced carpet and furniture, with MAC 2 and 3’s scheduled for next summer.

Next week’s article will look at East, West, and North Hall’s lounge renovation.

•

Senior Lending Officer Eric Havelock about potential of refinancing loan Weaver meets with school administrators and garners support for the financial move.

September 2014 •

UA Board of regents unanimously approve UAA Housing’s debt restructure plan.

October 29, 2014 •

AHFC Board of Directors approve $7 million UAA Housing Loan Restructure.

May 29, 2015 •

Loan closes with AHFC

•

Phase 1 of major project planning and implementation: MAC 5 remodeled w/ paint, flooring and new furniture MAC exterior fixed and painted Residence Hall lobby remodel beginning September 2015

Summer 2015 to Present

FEATURES

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

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Postmodernism:Only you humans could dream this up In the year 2013, an alien brain slug from one of the galaxy’s most feared empires crash-landed on Earth and assumed control of a lowly reporter at this newspaper.

These are his stories.

By Klax Zlubzecon

Translated by George Hyde The people of planet Earth are strikingly unique among the many species that the Slug Empire has encountered.

I’ve never seen a race so full of ingenuity, creativity and yet, so much profound stupidity all at once.

For one, George is taking a class this semester dedicated entirely to the philosophy, politics and lore of the “Harry Potter” universe. That’s nuts. Not the fact that there’s a “Harry Potter” class, though, that is pretty nuts, but rather the fact that the “Harry Potter” septet has so much stuff worth talking about.

Most “intelligent” species we’ve come across are still in that “simple stories

around a campfire” phase, and you guys are telling stories about wizard schools and flying cars. That’s so wonderfully weird.

Well… I can think of a few more intelligent civilizations out there that do have flying cars. But that’s beyond the point!

There’s one area of human storytelling and creativity that briefly tied into one of the class’ lectures that I’d like to touch on in particular and that one area shines as the one element of human creativity that — no pun intended — stupefies me the most. And it has such a boring, unassuming name: postmodernism.

Look at the picture above. What is

that? Is that a pipe? Is it a picture of a pipe? Is it a paper with a pipe printed on it?

That picture sums up postmodernism as best as I can tell. Even the most academic people who are familiar with the subject can’t think of a definition.

Humanity has reached the level of storytelling where they can invent a new literary device that almost has no definition.

People call it weird, or silly, or stupid.

But I think to best understand what the hell I’m blabbering on about, it’s a good idea to think about what came after what humans call “modern.” After all, that’s really what the word “postmodern” really translates to.

As you all probably remember from your history classes, the modern era of human history began after the industrial revolution. Gone was the era of horsedrawn carriages and outlaws of the west – the train and the automobile began to take hold and revolutionize the way humanity transported itself. Eventually, a world war broke out with a brutal efficiency unlike any war humanity had previously seen. And less than three decades after that spark had died out, another world war was triggered that was even more ruthless than the last one. After that flame eventually expired, the threat of war never went away and yet technology continued to work forward at a blinding pace.

Artists of the era began responding to this rapid change in human thinking by questioning the way they thought in the first place. Stories that used to focus on a single protagonist now had a vast army of characters for audiences to sympathize

with. Urinals and pop art were thrown into museums as if they were actual art.

Mature stories like “Watchmen” were being told through immature mediums.

And even today, one of the most popular superheroes, Deadpool, takes regular superhero tropes and hilariously subverts them.

This brings us full circle to what I said a good seven or eight paragraphs ago.

There’s no way a fantastical wizarding world with vampires and dragons could have complex political systems and internal teenage struggle, right? Well… yes, it can. And that’s part of the postmodern prank.

That’s what makes it so fascinating. It’s an artistic genre with a definite mischievousness surrounding it. It demonstrates the rebellious nature of those living today. And yet, with that childish playfulness, it still manages to be high art with complex themes. “Harry Potter” is humorous and filled with child-like wonder, to be sure, but beneath that veil is a world just as cruel as our real one, if not more so.

So next time you’re at a museum wondering why the hell there are soup cans on display, that’s the reason. Embrace the inherent weirdness, but also don’t be surprised if it exposes something about yourself, like all art does.

Rather like a complex artistic discussion in a sci-fi space-slug column, I suppose. I guess that demonstrates the point too.

RESISTANCE IS FUTILE.

EMBRACE THE SEAWOLF SLUG.

College Cookbook: Pumpkin spice mug cake

By Victoria Petersen

vgpetersen@thenorthernlight.org

The sun may be shining and the leaves still green, but fall is among us. To bring in the semester and the fast approaching season, a three minute pumpkin spice mug cake is the perfect autumnal treat. You only need a mug and a microwave, making it the most ideal and delicious dessert to make in your dorm room.

Ingredients: ½ cup of cake flour ¼ cup of milk 1 tbsp of oil 1 tbsp of pumpkin spice 1 tsp of brown sugar 2 tbsp of sugar 1 pinch of salt

A handful of butterscotch chips Gather all your ingredients and stir into an average sized mug, approximately 12 ounces.

Once the ingredients are thoroughly mixed, place the mug into the microwave and cook for two minutes and 15 seconds.

Optional — Sprinkle a small handful of butterscotch chips on top of cake once the cake is done being cooked.

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THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

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ALBUM REVIEW

‘Midnight Snack’ embodies all it claims to be

By Taylor Hodges

KRUA 88.1 FM Music Manager

Nearly every promotional album that KRUA receives comes with an insert or sticker extolling its virtues. I do my best to ignore these often-deceptive, always-flowery pseudo-descriptions and form a complete judgment of the album by myself before looking at it. I happened to

glance down at a sticker this week and nearly choked on the water I was drinking. “Similar Artists: Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Mac DeMarco, Ducktails.” Well, whoever wrote that must have been extremely confident in this album, and rightly so.

Homeshake’s new album, “Midnight Snack,” manages to blend each artist together and fashion a sensual experience out of simplistic R&B guitar melodies, light airy vocals and minimalistic drum tracks. “Midnight Snack” is the type of album to play late at night, when the party dies down and it’s just a few friends hanging out on the porch looking at the stars.

Early in the album, Homeshake impresses with the song “He’s Heating Up.” If you’re not in the know, the phrases “he’s heating up” and “he’s on fire” come from a popular basketball video game, “NBA Jam.” Alongside those phrases come “from downtown” and “jams it in” more catch phrases from the game, and Homeshake weaves all these references together to form a heart-achingly beautiful song.

With song titles like “Under The Sheets,” “Move This Body,” and “Give It To Me,” listeners should know pretty much what to expect when it comes to the content of the lyrics. Not to say the lyrics grow stale as the album goes on. It is quite impressive how Homeshake’s lyrics remain fresh as the tone of the album remains relatively consistent. Finally, the album rounds

out with “Goodnight,” an instrumental that matches the feel of the album. When you feel that the night is dying down and it’s time to chill out, throw this album on and sit next to your significant other. You will not regret it.

Track List: What’d He Look Like Heat He’s Heating Up! I Don’t Wanna Faded Love Is Only A Feeling Under The Sheets Real Love Move This Body Give It To Me Midnight Snack Goodnight

ARTIST Homeshake ALBUM “Midnight Snack”

GENRE Alt Rock+ R&B LABEL Synderlyn

RELEASE September 18, 2015

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THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

MOVIE REVIEW

“Paprika” dazzles

By Jacob Holley-Kline Contributor

In his otherworldly swan song, “Paprika,” director Satoshi Kon captures what makes dreams so strange and so familiar all at once. It’s rare that a movie so deftly captures the isolation and familiarity of dreams. To capture this delicate balancing act, Kon doesn’t just blur the line between reality and fantasy, he erases it altogether.

A genius man-child, Tokita Koshaku (Toru Furuya, “Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods”), invents the DC Mini, a device which allows people to share dreams. His colleague, Dr. Atsuko Chiba (Megumi Hayashibara, “Rakuen Tsuiho: Expelled from Paradise”), steals it to treat her psychiatric patients, one of whom is detective Kogawa Toshimi (Akio Otsuka, “Uchuu Kyoudai: Number Zero”). After a rash of murders related to misuse of the DC, Toshimi begins to investigate, and the lines between reality and fantasy blur.

Equal parts psychedelic, beautiful and horrifying, every frame of “Paprika” pulses with life. While it’s often incoherent, not a scene goes by that isn’t visually arresting.

That being said, the focus of “Paprika” is not the narrative so much as the themes.

Organized thematically, Kon plays with structure in intricate ways.

Make no mistake, there is a narrative here, but it’s hidden behind an intricate web of dreams and nightmares. As the movie progresses, dreams and nightmares become harder to discern. Characters’ bodies, and the very ground they walk on, morph nightmarishly, and eventually, it’s not important what’s real and what’s not.

What becomes important is how the real and the unreal combine to make something hyperreal. In short, it’s hard to tell just what the hell is going on a lot of the time, but the movie is not lesser for it. In fact, “Paprika” operates so heavily within its own rules that it comes to feel like the real world. The effect is dizzying and beautiful all at once.

From start to finish, “Paprika” is a perplexing puzzle. Absolutely stunning art elevates the film to something of a surreal masterpiece. At times, it feels overcomplicated, but it’s never overwhelming. Director Kon went all out for his final feature, balancing reality and fantasy so deftly that they become inseparable. Structure and narrative become dreams in themselves, and thanks to a combination of familiar and otherworldly conventions, viewers simply won’t want to wake up.

TITLE “Parika”

RELEASE DATE Nov. 25, 2006

DIRECTORS Satoshi Kon

GENRE

Animation COUNTRY Japan

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THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

Technical wizardry can’t save “Kidnapped”

By Jacob Holley-Kline Contributor

The Spanish home invasion thriller “Kidnapped” is a prime example of how well a movie can be made, and how badly it can falter anyway. Through 85 cruel, hollow minutes, viewers will be bored and exhausted, treated to all manner of violence in 12 impressive unbroken shots. The technical mastery on display is evident, but there’s no emotional core to it all and no reason to care.

Even with that, the movie manages to cut through the apathy with a suffocatingly mean spirit. The result is a short, miserable experience that feels far too long. Backwards and front, “Kidnapped” is an unadulterated bummer.

On their first night in a new house, husband Jaime (Fernando Cayo, “El desconocido”), wife Marta (Ana Wagener, “Hidden Away”) and daughter Isa (Manuela Velles, “Al final todos mueren”) are set upon by a trio of masked assailants.

Technically, “Kidnapped” is a masterpiece. It’s a wonder to watch director Vivas glide through each sequence. He’s an efficient craftsman, and a ruthless practitioner.

Much of the movie’s power comes from where he plants his eye. This is by design, however, as the characters hold little weight of their own.

What little development they are afforded is clichéd. The husband works hard, the wife can’t connect with the daughter and the daughter is willful to a fault. Sadly, their arcs are more-or-less negligible by the end of the movie, which leads one to wonder:

what’s the point?

Vivas frames the movie beautifully, but the content doesn’t deserve it. What starts out as a harrowing and realistic home invasion thriller lapses into a bland nihilism.

Infused with a vicious spirit, “Kidnapped” is replete with empty cruelty, but it lacks the cleverness or innovation to justify that cruelty. The result is a labyrinthine portrait of just how misguided a movie can become. It’s not exactly exploitation, but it doesn’t do enough to set itself apart from that genre.

The movie is a struggle to get through. It has the technical mastery to be arresting, but none of the narrative drive to be truly interesting. Despite its tight running time, the movie feels overlong and overly cruel. With no interesting characters to fall back on, “Kidnapped” becomes just another nasty, mean-spirited and pointless thriller.

TITLE “Kidnapped”

RELEASE DATE Sep. 25, 2011

DIRECTORS Miguel Angel Vivas

GENRE Thriller

COUNTRY Spain

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THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

GAME REVIEW

‘The Phantom Pain” is the best and worst “Metal Gear”

By George Hyde

gchyde@thenorthernlight.org

Hideo Kojima is arguably the most amateur game developer on the planet. While his “Metal Gear” series has had the mask of a hardcore macho action series, they’ve had an underlying humor with odd, postmodern elements. It’s known for strong stealth gameplay and cutscenes up to 71 minutes long, and while some dislike the massive cutscenes, fans of the series have always acknowledged their charm.

“Metal Gear Solid V” tries its best to maintain its “Metal Gear” DNA, and in many respects, it does. It feels like the culmination of the constantly evolving “Metal Gear” gameplay, fusing “Metal Gear” elements with mechanics from other stealth series and creating a stealth experience on a whole other level from other games of its kind. But at the same time, it abandons many “Metal Gear” hallmarks on the quest to refine the gameplay as much as possible. Those who want a complex, complicated story (read: most “Metal Gear” fans) will be disappointed.

The game has shifted to an open world setup, and it fits the “Metal Gear” formula remarkably well. The environments from the first few “Metal Gear Solid” games were already somewhat open, so merging that with the more rigid, mission-based structure from “Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker” makes for a distinctively “Metal Gear” experience, while still feeling like it treads new ground. The lands of Afghanistan and Africa are chock full of Easter eggs and side quests, but players who want to ignore that can simply follow the mission structure as usual and still have a great time.

Since the story revolves around the building of a mercenary group, many of your incoming mercenaries have to be captured on-site. This gives players a viable reason to play non-lethally, in a stealthy manner, in order to capture enemy troops alive. The

building of your group’s Mother Base is fun in its own right, giving fans of base management mechanics something to do as well. There’s something in “Phantom Pain” for everyone, and the remarkable thing is that it’s still able to do this while maintaining its “Metal Gear” heritage.

The price to pay for all this, unfortunately, is a lackluster story, which will catch veteran players off guard. The series’ infamous codec conversations and cutscenes have been relegated to optional cassette tapes, most of which are long-winded and full of boring exposition. This sounds like par for the course for a “Metal Gear” game, but the characters aren’t nearly as interesting as in other games, making the option to listen to the cassettes a chore. Those who want to get into the story are left with a thick and subpar narrative compared to the others, and those who don’t, I feel, are missing one of the biggest points to playing a “Metal Gear” game in the first place.

Thankfully, though, the game is absolutely worth playing, so if you can ignore what is most likely the worst story in a franchise renowned for great stories, there’s at least a fantastic game underneath all that. It’s undoubtedly the best “Metal Gear” game to play in the entire series. If you can ignore the fact that the story is going to be very light, it’s still a great time.

TITLE “Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain”

PLATFORMS PS4, PS3, XBO, 360, PC

DEVELOPER

GENRE Action

Kojima Productions

RELEASE DATE Sptember 1, 2015

SPORTS

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

Reaching greatness: Two senior volleyball players rewrite record book as team continues to win

By Nolin Ainsworth

sports@thenorthernlight.org

In hockey, it’s the slap-shot. In basketball, the slam dunk.

Likewise in volleyball, arguably the most emphatic play is the spike. For the last three years, UAA’s Katelynn Zanders and Julia Mackey have mastered this skill. The proof? That’s in the record books. Zanders and Mackey are currently ranked 4th and 10th respectively in all-time kills for the UAA Volleyball program, and look to climb higher. The two seniors still have most of their season ahead of them.

This season, the volleyball team is off to one of its hottest starts in program history.

As of press time, the Seawolves are 8-0. As a result, the team jumped up to No. 14 in NCAA Division II poll by the American Volleyball Coaches Association following the season’s opening week.

For the Seawolves to continue their current success, it seems the whole team — not just two of its veteran hitters — will have to play well. After all, head coach Chris Green only has a dozen players on the roster compared with 14-16 in years past.

“Its worked out pretty well,” said Green of his roster size, “A smaller group means those twelve get more reps.”

The Seawolves return to the Alaska Airlines Center next Thursday when they host Montana State Billings.

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OPINION

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

| 11

She’s beautiful, all 20,310 feet of her

By Samantha Davenport arts@thenorthernlight.org

I don’t try to get involved in politics.

Wow, everyone says that. I get it.

Really, though. I ignore Facebook fights about abortion or Twitter scraps between Donald Trump and anyone he feels threatened by. Instead, I watch from the sidelines, scrolling through people’s ridiculous statements for entertainment while snacking on popcorn.

When I heard that the U.S. Department of the Interior announced the name change from Mount McKinley to Denali, I was ultimately happy. I was born and raised in the 49th state, and our mountain was called Denali; I myself had never called it McKinley.

Then, social media exploded.

Well, let me specify that.

GOP and Ohio politicians exploded.

I understand that the mountain was named after William McKinley. When I was sifting through negative comments on social media Monday, I wasn’t fazed by it until I saw what Donald Trump said: “President Obama wants to change the name of Mt. McKinley to Denali after more than 100 years. Great insult to Ohio.

I will change back!”

Trump tweeted hours after the news spread of the title change.

Okay, let’s set something straight.

First off, McKinley wasn’t the official title of the mountain until 1917, making it a 98 year-old name.

I’ve got some questions for you, Trump.

Is Ohio insulted because McKinley was born in the small, podunk town of Niles? Are we not going to be considerate of the Alaska Natives who have called it Denali for thousands of years? How about everyone who lives in Alaska, too?

Would you change it back because you think it’s the right thing to do or because you do the exact opposite of what Obama does? Do you honestly think you’re going to become president?

I got heated after seeing Trump’s tweet. Honestly, it makes me sick that he has stayed in the race for so long.

In just the past month, Donald Trump has managed to insult Mexicans, Asians, women and anyone that isn’t a rich white man like himself.

Several weeks ago in Boston, two Caucasian men assaulted a homeless Latino man. They urinated on him, hit him, and were put in jail. The two men threatened police as well as urinated on the cell door.

The men claimed they were inspired by the man himself, Donald Trump.

After hearing about the situation, Trump responded to the event.

“I will say the people that are following are very passionate. They love this country, they want this country to be great again, and they are very passionate,

I will say that.”

Are you going to let Caucasians continue to beat and abuse other races because they’re passionate?

Talk about white power. It amazes me how someone can overlook racism as passion.

This man will never rename our mountain, for the record.

Not too long after that incident, Trump was at a campaign rally in Iowa. He was discussing negotiating with Japan and China. He then imitated them, speaking in broken English.

“When these people walk into a room, they don’t say, ‘Oh, hello! How’s the weather? It’s so beautiful outside. Isn’t it lovely? How are the Yankees doing? Oh, they’re doing wonderful, great. They say, ‘We want deal!’”

After Trump said this, the crowd roared in laugher.

I don’t know what is more frightening, the fact that he is STILL leading in the polls or that thousands of supporters reveled in his blatant racism.

I laugh when I see “Great insult to Ohio!” on Trump’s twitter feed. If Trump is insulted about the name of a mountain going back to its original title, imagine how insulted Mexicans, Asians, African Americans and women feel about the politician himself.

In early August, Donald Trump attended the GOP Debate only to be crushed by moderator Megyn Kelly. After the debate,

Trump attacked Kelly on social media.

In an interview following the event, Trump bashed on the Fox anchor, yet again.

“Well I just don’t respect her as a journalist; I have no respect for her. I don’t think she’s very good, I think she’s highly overrated…I get big crowds, I get ratings, they call me the rating machine. So she gets out and she starts asking me ridiculous questions, and you know you could see there was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her whatever.”

That happened.

Mind you, that these three instances have all happened within a month.

“Condoning the mistreatment of minorities, mocking several different races, and claiming that a woman had gone rogue because she was menstruating is exactly the president I want!” said nobody ever.

Donald Trump will never understand this country, let alone Denali.

I look at Denali every day. I see her when I drive to work. Sometimes, I sit at the Talkeetna lookout with friends and watch the colors change from the sunset.

I watch the northern lights dance around her. I watch the clouds build up sometimes to the point where I can no longer see her, but I still know she’s there.

This is not your mountain to rename, Trump.

It has always been Denali to us.

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