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UniWatch Central - NEC Football Edition

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OPINION American Gays Actually Have it Better - Page 4 SPORTS MLB Playoff Review - Page 6-7 ENTERTAINMENT Xbox Staple is Still Solid - Page 11

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Volume 104 No. 5

Melissa traynor

news editor While the panelists offered two opposing solutions for the U.S. occupancy of Iraq, retired Brigadier General John Johns and Michael O’Hanlon of the Brookings Institute agreed on many topics, including the current condition of Iraq.

The War in Iraq Panel held last Wednesday, which was moderated by former democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, Ned Lamont, was focused on the troop surge, how successful the strategy is, and “staying the course.”

Johns, who authored the book Counter-Insurgency: Mission Impossible, provided his views on the current climate in Iraq and the steps taken throughout the past 15 years that have brought the United States there.

“When we decided to go there, Congress passed it; the media favored and the public favored it,” Johns said. “We had a picture of Iraq that it was going to blossom into a democracy.”

He then countered this belief by explaining that, as of today, Iraq is chaotic. He blamed the disbanding of the Iraqi police and army by the United States for the events that have occurred more recently and cited a religious “cleansing” of Baghdad.

“You can’t put Humpty back together again,” Johns said as he compared Iraq to Vietnam, and added that the option the United States’ chose to take was a dramatic surge in the troop levels.

During his speech, Johns referred to studies which have shown that U.S. military forces

See Status of War page 3

Stephanie Bergeron / The Recorder

CCSU Hillel Students Spread Jewish Culture stePHanie Bergeron

lifestyles editor

Conrad Akier / The Recorder Ned Lamont moderates the War in Iraq Panel in Founder’s Hall.

Hillel students gathered inside a sukkah they made to celebrate Sukkot, an eight-day Jewish festival of booths celebrating the fall harvest, on Monday.

CCSU students were invited to share kosher pizza and partake in a question and answer “free-for-all” with three Rabbis. Hillel, the foundation for Jewish campus life, hopes to share their culture with other students by spreading awareness on campus.

Andrew Halpern, CCSU Hillel President and sophomore majoring in Biology, wants to “spread the Jewish culture, not necessarily the

See CCSU Hillel page 15

Hartford Hawk Down Suicide Education is the First Step to Prevention stePHanie Bergeron

lifestyles editor “Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.”

– Phil Donahue

Conrad Akier / The Recorder Brittany Emin scored two goals in the 3-2 victory over the Hartford Hawks. karyn DanFortH

staff Writer Sophomore Brittany Emin scored her first two goals of the season including the game clincher in overtime, leading the Blue Devils (3-5-1) to a 3-2 victory against the Hartford Hawks (2-5-2) Sunday afternoon at Al-Marzook Field in West Hartford.

Central trailed 1-0 in the first half, having their first two shots on goal shut down by Hawk freshman goalkeeper Alexandra Baker. The second half was a miraculous turnaround, and Central dominated by scoring three goals in the last 10 minutes of the game.

“We made some changes, pushed

a few more players forward, tried to be more aggressive and gambled a little bit with the back at the same time. It definitely paid off,” explained Coach Mick D’Arcy.

Central had several opportunities during a stretch of four consecutive corner kicks, in which Emin and sophomore Ciara Crinion attempted to assist one another, but to no avail.

The Devils continued to heat things up with a shot by Crinion, assisted by Emin and freshman Beth Lloyd. With 10 minutes remaining, freshman Clio Tregear headed a ball on goal, but Baker successfully punched it out. Emin retaliated again with a cross to sophomore Leah Blayney but a Hawk defender cleared it off the goal line for another Central

See Hawk Down page 8

Suicide is one of life’s mysteries. We don’t always know or understand why people commit suicide, and when we are faced with someone we know who has, we often wonder if we could have prevented it. One way we can answer some of our questions concerning suicide is by learning more about it.

September was National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

In 2001 in the United Sates, 4,250 people between the ages of 10 and 24 died by committing suicide, according to Youth Suicide Prevention Program. Although it seems like the suicide rate has been rising, it has actually been going down since 1990. YSPP states that it only seems like rates are going up because we are reading and hearing more about suicide in the media.

On the YSPP website it states, “Reports concerning suicide are http://clubs.ccsu.edu/recorder/

religion.”

The name of the festival Sukkot refers to the booths used by Israelites during desert wanderings and constructed in the fields during the harvest season. Sukkot, said Halpern, is a time of remembrance and thanksgiving for Jewish people. It is also a very joyful time.

Halpern, along with a few other students, helped to build the sukkah standing behind Memorial Hall. According to a sign hanging on the front of the sukkah, “the roof of the sukkah is made of harvested branches and must let in enough light to see the stars at night. The sukkah is open to the wind and rain.

It is like our lives, which are also fragile and temporary.” The booth

certainly newsworthy, particularly in a state like Washington where, on average, every week two youths take their own lives. It is important that the public is aware of the magnitude of the problem.”

Perhaps it is for this reason that suicide rates have gone down. With the public more aware of suicide, and it not being hid behind closed doors, more people are learning the warning signs of suicide. This, no doubt, helps to prevent troubled individuals from killing themselves.

Many more people die each year by suicide than homicide. In fact, according to the National Adolescent Health Information Center, it is currently the third leading cause of death for adolescents and young adults.

The majority of students at CCSU fall into the category of being young adults. According to Youth Suicide Prevention, many youth who contemplate suicide believe that their problems will not go away, and that they will go on forever. They often only focus on the “here and now,” instead of the bigger, broader picture of their future.

See Suicide Education page 3

Study:

Student Loan Debt Average Up 8 Percent roBBy leWis

the Maneater (U. Missouri) (U-WIRE) -- Before every fall semester, students go through a grueling process to attain as many scholarships and grants as they can, including student loans, which are easy to get -- but not as easy to pay back.

According to The Project on Student Debt, more than 5 million students each year will have to take out some sort of student loan.

The Project on Student Debt is an organization whose goal is to educate college students on the repercussions of taking out student loans.

In 2006, the organization began analyzing data on the student debts of the class of 2005, which was obtained through 1,400 fouryear colleges.

This fall, the data for the class

See Debt Average page 3

2

News Wednesday, October 3, 2007

The Recorder

Student Center 1615 Stanley Street New Britain, CT 06050 T 860.832.3744 F 860.832.3747 ccsurecorder@gmail.com http://clubs.ccsu.edu/recorder/ Editor-in-Chief Mark Rowan Managing Editor Christopher Boulay Art Director/Designer Jamie Paakkonen Associate Layout Editor Conrad Akier Copy Editor Samantha Sullivan Lifestyles Editor Stephanie Bergeron Sports Editor Peter Collin Entertainment Editor Edward Gaug Opinion Editor Justin Kloczko News Editor Melissa Traynor Web Editor John Vignali Staff Gabrielle Byko Jessica Carraro Amanda Ciccatelli Karyn Danforth Jeff Hayden Matt Kiernan Susan Kondracki Erin McAuliffe Rob Messer Brian Morache David Pember Ryan Yeomans Joe Zajac

Kari Sledzik / The Recorder

Jena 6 Demonstration Brings Hundreds Including Mayor Perez Wesley Strong

Staff Writer More than 200 people gathered in Hartford to march on Bushnell Park in show of their support last Saturday for the Jena Six, who some regard as having been unfairly treated by the Louisiana judicial system due to their race.

The marchers consisted of representatives from over 20 different statewide organizations including several groups from CCSU. The event is the first statewide demonstration in Connecticut in support of the Jena Six and was attended by several state representatives, former Mayor Milner, current Mayor Eddie Perez and many other concerned citizens.

The event began at 9:30 a.m. with a short press conference where former Hartford Mayor Thirman L. Milner, community activist Kamora Harrington and Rev. Cornell Lewis each spoke.

Former Mayor Milner repeated the statements of the attorney of one of the Jena students saying, “This case is not about the crime, but about the career-killing of young blacks,” expressing the idea that the punishments seemed inordinate to the crimes.

Milner, when asked if he could think

whether or not this could ever happen in Connecticut, responded, “Well no one ever thought it would happen in Jena, Louisiana,” Harrington and Lewis reflected many of Milner’s points adding their own personal stories.

Harrington, a mother and activist said, “I am definitely not fine with … knowing that at 17 my child is no longer a sweet baby boy, but he is a menace, a suspect and a criminal in the eyes of most who look at him.”

At 10 a.m., the gathering began marching on Bushnell Park flanked by police cruisers.

The crowd chanted “Free the Jena Six” as they marched. The march drew the eyes of several onlookers including those of several parents whose kids were at the Carousel in Bushnell Park.

The procession ended at the bandstand in the shadow of Hartford’s State Capitol building and was followed by speakers including New Britain State Representative Tim O’Brien and current Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez.

“It’s something that you couldn’t imagine would happen … in 100 years after we’ve had so many advancements in civil rights,” said Mayor Perez, who led chants to free the Jena Six several times throughout the event.

Luis Cotto, candidate for city council in Hartford of the Working Families Party, said

“[the Jena Six case] is wrong, it’s not about what individual thoughts [someone may] have on something.”

He stated that he believed that racism was alive and well in the United States.

Many speakers addressed the laws that will be proposed as a result of the recent Cheshire home invasion and burglary case, during which two parolees murdered three people. Speakers questioned how the laws would apply to the minorities on parole as well as procedures and supervision.

Many expressed their concern as to how these would affect the African Americans and Latinos on parole now and in the future. All of the speakers called for equal justice under the law.

“I have no bleeding heart for criminals whose skin has a high melanin content,” Harrington said.

She went on to state that it was most important for equal justice under the law and that the Jena Six were unjustly punished.

Speakers called on students and youth to make the Jena Six case an issue everywhere they live, noting the national walk out day in support of the Jena Six on October 1. They urged students to walk out and show their support of the Jean Six by helping to educate others.

Recommendations Made for Students with Celiac Disease Melissa Traynor

News Editor

The Recorder is a student-produced publication of Central Connecticut State University and does not necessarily represent, in whole or in part, the views of CCSU’s administrators, faculty, or students. The Recorder articles, photographs, and graphics are property of the Recorder and may not be reproduced or published without the written permission from the Editor-in-Chief.

The purpose of the Recorder is to approach and define issues of importance to the students of Central Connecticut State University.

A Sodexho-sponsored event on Celiac disease shed light on the effects on everyday life for those living with it both in and outside of the campus community.

Nutritionist Anne Roland Lee from the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University delivered a presentation describing the effects of the food allergy on teens and younger people especially.

Celiac disease is the body’s inability to digest gluten, a protein that is commonly found in pasta, bread, wheat, barley and ryebased foods. It is a lifelong condition which affects the small intestine of the gastro-intestinal tract.

“When gluten comes in contact with the villi, or finger-like tissues, in the small intestine, it attacks the lining of the wall and ultimately flattens out the villi,” Roland Lee said.

“It makes the process harder for the G.I. tract to digest other essential nutrients.”

She said that the disease is known to occur in one out of every 100-300 people, according to studies in the United States and

Europe. However, approximately 38 percent of those who have the disease may not experience symptoms, therefore causing the disease to be more difficult to diagnose.

The symptoms, which Roland Lee said can be confused with a number of different ailments, include gas, bloating and abdominal swelling, abnormal stools, vomiting and fatigue.

Roland Lee said that formerly the disease was believed to have affected children more so than adults, but new studies between the United States and Europe have concluded that 13 percent of those with Celiac disease are diagnosed as children and 87 percent as adults.

She said that while there is no cure or legitimate medication for celiac disease, the only way to significantly reduce symptoms and the deterioration of the small intestine is to abide by a gluten-free diet.

An amount of gluten the size of oneeighth of a teaspoon can cause damage; therefore Roland Lee suggests that staying faithful to the diet is an essential weapon against the disease.

“Something as small as a crouton or the tip of a slice of pizza is going to do harm,” she

said.

She recommended several foods at Memorial Hall which are okay to eat for students affected by Celiac disease. The vegetables in the salad bar, as long as they are kept away from foods with gluten, are fine to eat. She suggested that sides such as rice be added.

“Pizza and pasta is tough because it’s made in the main kitchen,” Roland Lee said.

The Subway-style sandwich line was also a fine point for dining because the students have a chance to see how their food is being prepared and handled. She said that as long as the gluten-free bread is kept away from other breads and handled with a new pair of gloves, sandwiches are a good choice for someone with Celiac disease.

“To me, that’s exciting, and it means that there’s much more available,” Roland Lee said of the variety of gluten-free foods at Memorial.

For the 21-and-over crowd, she recommended several tips for alcohol consumption.

“Alcohol is okay as long as it’s distilled and there is no malt-substance added,” she said. “Even if there are some gluten-free choices, regular beer is always a bad idea.”

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Wednesday, October 3, 2007

U. Oklahoma Chapter of NAACP Buries the ‘N-word’ Dane Beavers

Oklahoma Daily (U. Oklahoma) (U-WIRE) -- The University of Oklahoma chapter of the NAACP took a step Thursday night to try to get rid of one racial slur.

The NAACP had a mock funeral Thursday entitled “Bury the N-Word” that began with a procession at Dale Hall and ended with a ceremony inside the Henderson-Tolson Cultural Center.

About 80 people showed up at the mock ceremony, complete with an obituary, eulogy and scattering of ashes dedicated to the “N-word.”

Durrell Hodge, OU’s NAACP president, said it was all part of a campaign to educate the campus about the history of the “N-word” and the impact it has had on American culture and society.

“The idea behind this is to educate, because we feel that, nowadays, that word has lost its meaning,” Hodge said. “A lot of people don’t realize that [the ‘N-word’] still has power. It’s still hurtful.”

Hodge, electrical engineering junior, said the NAACP hopes to challenge people on campus, as well as NAACP members, to eliminate the “N-word” from their vocabulary.

“Our main goal is just to educate people about the hurtfulness of the word, for people to know where it comes from and why it’s important that we’re sensitive to others,” he said. “We feel like the ‘N-word’ kind of gets thrown around so frequently now that people use it and don’t know its history.”

Audrea Holmes, OU’s NAACP vice president and chemical engineering sophomore, agreed.

Debt Average

and confront it.”

David Gardner, OU’s NAACP secretary and finance senior, called racism a “sickness” and said the group’s outward symbol of change would help transform the mindsets of people who attended.

“Just like cough syrup won’t cure a cold, this symbol won’t cure all of the hatred,” Gardner said. “But this was a great start.”

Hodge said the “N-word” will probably never go away, but he thinks the NAACP has done a great service to the students.

“I don’t think that people will ever stop using the word because it’s so deeply rooted in our culture,” Hodge said. “But as long as everyone knows that this hurts and they are educated about [the ‘N-word’], then it will help.”

Suicide Education

Continued from page 1 of 2006 was analyzed, and the organization found an 8 percent increase in average student-loan debt.

At the same time, the starting salary for graduating seniors increased by 4 percent.

The organization’s executive director Robert Shireman said these numbers must change, or the value of a college education will diminish.

“The excuse for having student loans is that you make more money as a college graduate,” Shireman said.

“If these patterns don’t change, the costs for college will outweigh the gains.”

According to the report, the increase can be attributed to a combination of rising tuition costs, uninformed students and lack of grant money.

Shireman said colleges can help by making sure their students have feasible repayment plans and that grant money can be used to help students with financial needs.

He said the federal government can help by increasing the value of the Federal Pell Grant Program and letting students know where they stand with their current debts.

“Any student under 24 has the option of taking up to $23,000 in federal loans,” Shireman said. “The federal government needs to inform them before they get too far in debt.”

Shireman said the federal government should require that private loans be displayed to the colleges.

Mark Oleson, director of the University of Missouri Office for Financial Success, said he feels that because this study did not include private loans, the numbers are even

“We feel the word is demeaning and hateful, and we want to get rid of it altogether,” she said. “After this, I’m not going to be using [the ‘N-word’] anymore.”

Maria Davidson, professor of African and African-American Studies, spoke about how the word has been adopted in society and how it has been used as a “double standard.”

She said it has been used as both an insult and a “calling card” by today’s youth.

Afterward, Davidson said the mock funeral was very compelling, calling it “a vision on the part of the students.” She said she thinks the people who attended the service would change the way they looked at the “N-word.”

“You have all the people who are here and they are faced with a challenge,” she said. “They’ll go out

Continued from page 1 worse.

“The numbers are misleading because it only shows federal loans,” Oleson said. “They can’t show private loans, which are an even bigger problem because the debt for these is even higher because students can go get these loans without telling the school.”

Oleson said the government and universities need to do whatever is feasible to help students with financial needs, but it is ultimately the student who needs to know how much is too much.

“Tuitions rising is obviously a factor, but it’s the mentality of students more than anything,” Oleson said.

Oleson said he believes students don’t understand their loans.

“They are Greek terms to them,” Oleson said.

Oleson, who teaches classes on financial success, believes it is smart for students to not only create an academic plan, but to also create a financial one.

“Students are more likely to fail financially than they are academically,” Oleson said. “Students should add up their resources and then check the costs, and this will make you more informed. It won’t change your options, but it lets you know what your situation is.”

Shireman said “The Project on Student Debt” will continue to analyze the numbers, and he hopes for a change in the trend.

“Students have to stay cautious, because if they aren’t, it won’t pay to even go to college,” he said.

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CROTCH SHOTS, NIPPLE SLIPS, CELLULITE LEGS! The Recorder is not looking for the above, but is looking for dedicated photographers to cover local and campus events. Contact us at ccsurecorder@gmail.com and make us forget that Britney picture.

As students, we are told that college is supposed to be the best time of our lives. Although we may look back on these years and agree, we also know it is the most stressful time. Our future depends on what we take from our CCSU experiences, and how we use that for our future.

For this reason, it sometimes becomes a lot for some to bear on top of life’s everyday problems.

Here at CCSU we have a Counseling and Wellness Center dedicated to helping students battling depression, anxiety, relationship issues and anything else you may need to talk about. Even if you are not contemplating suicide, they are there for any questions you may have.

It is important to know the warning signs of suicide. Some of

these include chronic anger, alcohol abuse, feelings of worthlessness and change in eating habits. It is also important to take any suicide threats seriously. If the threat appears immediate, the CCSU Counseling and Wellness Center’s website states the easiest method to get help is by calling 911 which will notify the campus and New Britain police.

For more information on suicide please visit www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org.

If you are contemplating suicide and need someone to speak with, please do not hesitate to call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK. It is the only federally funded hotline for suicide prevention and intervention.

Colorado State U. Parents Angry About Controversial Editorial Aaron Hedge

Rocky Mountain Collegian (Colorado State U.) (U-WIRE) -- A Colorado State University student is considering ending her education at CSU because of an editorial that was printed in the Collegian Sept. 21. The editorial that included a profane reference to President George W. Bush convinced her parents to start researching other schools.

The editorial, which read “Taser this ... F*** BUSH” with the expletive spelled out in font about twice the size of a headline, upset Cathy Ide, mother of construction management sophomore Holly Loucks. Ide was so offended that she will probably pull her daughter from CSU. “It’s just so disrespectful to our leader,” Ide, of Casper, Wy., said.

“We’re gonna be looking at other schools. It just shows how liberal the school is. I’m not sure that I want her to go to a school that would allow that.”

“My family is very conservative, not like the Collegian,” Loucks said.

Ide is also worried that tuition might go up as an indirect result of the page four editorial.

“If funds are pulled from Colorado State and that causes an increase in tuition, then I’m gonna be pulled from school,” Loucks said.

A representative of CSU alumni voiced concerns at a Board of Student Communications (BSC) hearing Wednesday night that alumni organizations are having trouble

collecting funds from regular donors because of the editorial.

“I have a buddy of the alumni association who calls for donations,” said Riley Hestermann, a senior marketing major. “He can’t even get people to talk to him because they are so upset. They’re fired up.”

Hestermann was one of 12 students and community members who spoke against the editorial and advocated for the firing of Collegian Editor in Chief J. David McSwane.

Supporters of the piece, including media studies instructor Pam Jackson, said that McSwane didn’t deserve to be fired and had effectively accomplished his goal to start debate about freedom of speech.

Eighteen McSwane supporters spoke at the meeting.

The BSC will decide whether McSwane will keep his job in a private meeting Thursday.

One CSU official said it is too early to worry about tuition increases from donators pulling support.

“I think it’s too early to tell if the alumni association will be affected,” said Dell Rae Moellenberg, a spokeswoman for the university.

“My mom is pretty torqued ... because no one’s doing anything about it,” Loucks said.

The Collegian has also received several letters to the editor from parents who have crossed CSU off the list of their children’s possible colleges.

“For the first time, I am ashamed to be a part Colorado State University,” Loucks said.

Status of War

Continued from page 1 cannot successfully go into a foreign culture to combat insurgents.

He said he agreed with the recommendations of the Baker Hamilton Report, which suggests that Iran should be involved in stabilizing the area.

“We have to start pulling the troops back to [bases]. We also need to start putting effort into bringing in Iran and Syria, who have a role in controlling violence in the Middle East,” Johns said, “Otherwise we have flooded the waters for the alligators to swim.”

O’Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C., began with saying that he does not know the correct direction forward, “but [he does] have temporary support for the troop surge.”

O’Hanlon said that in 2001 he wrote about how, if entering Iraq, the United States should be “going in big, strong and to keep peace from the start;” however, it is a different story now.

While he did suggest that U.S. counterinsurgency tactics have significantly improved since the Vietnam War and that he does see certain signs of hope, “there are a number of paths Iraq can follow to obtain stability, but at best it will still be the most violent place in the Middle East.”

O’Hanlon also expressed his belief that the United States must take responsibility to mitigate its own failure and the tragedy it has left behind.

“I’m more scared of defeat than I am confident in this victory,” he concluded.

As the question and answer portion of the event ensued, the option of introducing regional leaders to the situation in Iraq was suggested and subsequently shot-down by both Johns and O’Hanlon.

Following Lamont’s initial query, Johns announced that he was not optimistic about pulling in regional powers such as Iran.

“We have stiff-armed every attempt Iran has made to reach out,” he said.

O’Hanlon agreed and said he was not convinced that the United States could manage to receive help from the bordering country.

A visibly emotional Liz Aaronsohn of the Education Department at CCSU had requested that someone explain the mission behind invading Iraq.

“We spent the better part of four years there and were not really doing this, but the current mission is to protect the Iraqi people,” O’Hanlon answered.

Aaronsohn demanded that the topics of oil in the Middle East and the 19 U.S. bases that are proposed to remain in Iraq after the “war is over” be discussed.

“The strategic mission was to wage this war on insurgency, but going to Iraq undermined this mission. General Petraeus is the best we have and it’s a shame we didn’t have him up until now… but it’s too little, too late,” Johns said as Aaronsohn left the microphone.

Editorial/Opinion

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Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Editorial After church, government and citizenry, there are people who recognize journalists as the fourth estate, a group of gatherers who must remain closely detached from society in order to mirror it back in an independent manner. Since the Nixon era, journalists have had to combat getting arrested for not revealing important sources.

But this past week, Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) and Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) introduced the Free Flow of Information Act, which will furnish more freedom for reporters from government inquiry than ever before in the past 35 years. Though not freeing journalists from government scrutiny totally, this bill, which passed last week in the House of Representatives, is an improvement for the working lives of reporters.

It was the landmark decision in Branzburg v. Hayes that has led to the interrogation and jailing of reporters for not revealing their sources. It has since gotten progressively worse for reporters, like former New York Times reporter Judith Miller and Time Magazine’s Matt Cooper, who were punished by choosing not to testify before Congress.

A bill such as this one is vital to the unfettered circula-

tion of information, but it does not free journalists completely.

There are clauses, like submitting information that is imminent to national security, if the plaintiff can prove that the information is essential to solving a particular case, when information can’t be obtained any other way and if there is an overwhelming public interest to reveal that information.

But which kind of journalists does this bill apply to? The Specter bill reads: A person who, for financial gain or livelihood, is engaged in gathering, preparing, collecting, photographing, recording, writing, editing, reporting, or publishing news or information as a salaried employee of or independent contractor for a newspaper, news journal, news agency, book publisher, press association, wire service, radio or television station, network, magazine, Internet news service, or other professional medium or agency which has as one of its regular functions the processing and researching of news or information intended for dissemination to the public.

There is a discrepancy about student journalists, whom usually don’t get paid and are subject to this loophole. Although

American Gays Actually Have It Better erin MCaUliFFe

staff Writer “In Iran, we don’t have homosexuals, like in your country. In Iran, we do not have this phenomenon. I don’t know who has told you that we had it.”

- Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, President of Iran The auditorium roared with laughter. This is the kind of utterance that one only expects to hear in satirical context — who would be stupid enough to actually believe these words coming out of their own mouth?

After watching the clip on YouTube and talking about it in casual conversations, the first phrase slipping out of my mouth was, “I am so lucky to live in America.” It was almost as if I was thanking my heterosexual peers for not committing me to the same fate of my Iranian counterparts.

And then I wanted to slap myself. No one makes me feel lucky to be gay in America! Not even the clinically insane President of Iran.

Call me a pessimist, but I’ve always though that being gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender in America was a little shitty. Look at teen suicide attempt rates, for example: 73 percent of gay teens attempt suicide at least once, while 53 percent of straight teens do, as reported by the Gay and Lesbian Task Force in 2006.

Look at the domestic situations of our gay youth, as well, with 26 percent of gay teens reporting being kicked out of their own homes after coming-out to their parents.

Let’s consider Matthew Shepard, a college student who was beaten to death because of his sexuality in 1998. Let’s look at how many states recognize the union between samesex couples to be equal to that of a heterosexual couple: Massachusetts!

Let’s remember the amount of legal

protection that GLBT’s have on a federal level from hate crimes and discrimination: none to date.

Is America really as warm and welcoming as it claims to be? If you’re comparing us to a country like Iran where people are being executed because of their sexual orientation, then I guess so.

As Americans, we tend to view ourselves as the number one country in everything — sports, entertainment, human rights — but quite often that is merely the image portrayed by the patriarchal, white, heterosexual media who is blind to the everyday sufferings of its minority citizens.

Relatively speaking, yes, we do have it better than gays living in Iran and even better than we had it in America 40 years ago, prior to the Stonewall riots. That does not mean, however, that we are to assume we are even close to achieving equality in this country.

Dick Cheney and His Next War Brian MoraCHe

staff Writer Now that Iraq is – as the President seems to believe – so secure, the Bush administration is turning to their next target: Iran. With the president of Iran visiting New York, the administration’s rhetoric has been raised to a new level. Despite their stated goal of seeking a diplomatic solution to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, President Bush, who was in New York to address the United Nations, chose not to meet even informally with Iranian President Ahmadinejad.

Add to this the report by Newsweek that Vice President Dick Cheney has been mulling over a plan that would involve Israel provoking a war with Iran so that the United States would have an excuse to attack. The plan involved the Israelis launching a missile attack against suspected Iranian nuclear targets. Once Iran responded, the United States would have the excuse to launch an attack.

This all might seem a bit far-fetched, except that the Pentagon has suggested a much larger troop withdrawal

from Iraq than the Bush administration is considering. The Pentagon would like to see as many as 100,000 troops return home so that they can be available to respond to any “situations.” An invasion of Iran seems like a pretty obvious “situation.”

With so many Americans opposed to the war in Iraq, one has to wonder what the Vice President is thinking, and if someone who clearly is driven to war should be one step away from the White House. Is Dick Cheney out of control? Is this why impeaching George Bush would be a bad idea? After all, that would make Cheney president! Given the attitude of the Bush administration, it is not hard to see why President Ahmadinejad has concerns over Iran’s security.

While the rest of his beliefs, including those about the Holocaust and homosexuality, may be quite warped, his view of the Bush administration seems to be pretty accurate.

It could be that talk of an invasion of Iran is just that – talk. Certainly it is the job of the Pentagon to have plans and to prepare to enact any policy the White House requires

of it. However, one cannot turn a blind eye to the similarities between the rhetoric leading up to the Iraq war and what is being aimed at Iran, nor can one ignore an old adage among servicemen: “Believe 99 percent of the bad rumors and one percent of the good ones and you’ll win most of your bets.”

The administration has stated that Iran will not be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons; to what extent President Bush will go becomes unclear in light of Vice President Cheney’s plans. The Bush administration has insisted Iranians are supplying both Hezbollah and Iraqi insurgents, thus they are a nation that, in the eyes of the United States, supports terrorism.

They could use this as a basis to attack, and the War Powers Act would give the President the ability to do so without consulting Congress.

Does this scare anyone besides me? Just how much power should one man in Washington D.C. have? Somehow, I don’t believe that this is what the founding fathers had in mind.

most student reporters won’t be involved in any high sting government questioning, student journalists still do the business of interviewing people and gathering information to disseminate.

But what if student reporters have to face the interrogation of their government?

Though this bill is an improvement, it does not solve all the problems reporters face when dealing with confidential sources. Some feel the First Amendment is just as good, if not the best, defense. In an era that shows increasing hostility towards reporters, it is long overdue for something to be put into place to safeguard journalists from subpoenas. It is vital to the democratic process that under certain circumstances information can be given without revealing the source.

The Justice Department strongly opposes this shield law, and it is currently up for discussion in the Senate. It is important to keep in mind that this bill was fashioned to be convenient for the politician, not the reporter. A bill with complete freedom from the impeding government would have no chance at being passed. That is the unfortunate reality.

Taser Happy: More Fun than a Gun kari sleDZik

staff Writer In light of all of the taser incidents spilling in from the news, I have to once again call into question the legality of tasers. Until seven years ago, they were illegal; given the apparent misuse of such instruments, I find myself watching these videos and wondering why they aren’t now.

Admittedly, I often use the mainstream televised news as background noise, occasionally looking up for something new to argue with my television. These stories caught my immediate attention, prompting me to look up the videos of these incidents online for scrutiny.

There are several angles available for Andrew Meyer’s incident at the University of Florida. In a forum with John Kerry, Meyer stood up to ask some questions in rapid fire succession, the culmination of which was “Were you in Skull and Bones?”

Meyer was deemed disruptive and removed from the assembly. Eventually, after flailing about and yelling, “What did I do?” over and over, six officers subdued him. After he was on the ground and cuffed, one officer pulled out a taser. Meyer, in a fit of panic, yelled “Don’t tase me, bro!” He was shocked anyway.

Make no mistake – if anyone is creating such a disturbance that others are unable to vocalize concerns and ask questions, then it’s not unreasonable to ask him or her to leave. Meyer seemed to be creating at least some level of a disturbance, but six men were able to get him to the ground. The taser were not necessary at that point. All the while, Kerry continued in a monotone voice, passively offering to answer Meyer’s questions. If we’re relying on Kerry to speak out against excessive force, given his nonchalant reaction, we’re all doomed.

Within the same week, a video of Heidi Gill’s experiences hit the media. Supposedly, Gill was drunk and belligerent. The police subsequently resorted to tasering Gill to subdue her, but it didn’t stop there.

The officer continued to shock her.

At one point, he visibly shoved her

to the ground with his foot. Gill tried to move but stumbled and hit her head on the vehicle, screaming and flailing all the while. After she was put in the police car, she was tasered again. It’s difficult to tell from the video, but reports suggest that she kicked the back window of the cruiser and broke it. In the end, Gill was shocked a total seven times, twice after being handcuffed.

Watching these videos leads me to wonder not only if the tasering was necessary, but also if these officers were adequately trained in how dangerous “less-lethal” weapons really are. This is not to be confused with “non-lethal” weapons, as tasers have been linked to over 200 deaths, according to Stop Taser Abuse Today. There are some serious complications to consider. Pumping 50,000 volts into someone’s body within mere seconds is not something to take lightly. We’re looking at potential muscle damage and heart complications. There’s also the issue of penetration site infections. If unattended, as with any infection, these can become potentially fatal. Gill was also hospitalized after her experience, brain swelling being one of the complications. The damage of tasers is not limited to skin and musculature but also heavily affects the nervous system.

The legalization of tasers has allowed the very people who are supposed to be upholding the law to abuse the very people they’re supposed to be upholding it for. Both examples show an overt abuse of power and suggest that maybe the use of less-lethal weapons is doing more of a disservice to society than a benefit. I wonder how responsible police are, not only with our wellbeing, but also our lives.

If you have any questions or comments concerning The Recorder, please feel free to send a letter to the Editor at ccsurecorder@gmail.com Letters must include a name and should not be much longer than 200 words. The Recorder reserves the right to edit letters.

5

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Check Your Polls at the Door Peter W. Gacek

Special to The Recorder In a nation comprised of used car salesmen and celebrities, it must be comforting to know the Democratic candidates follow suit well. If anything good is to be said about the 2008 candidates it’d be, “Shit, at least most of them are trying.”

Last Wednesday night, Dartmouth College hosted the Democratic debates via Tim Russet. This is an update of the player’s rants to scrape together some sagacity. Privilege and special attention will not be given to the “Top Three” here; they’ve already had enough time above the others.

Joe Biden, a Senator from Delaware, is first on the chopping block. By the time he began, the apathy had already set in. Calling the troops “fodder” and having a back-and-forth with Dodd kept him interesting enough. Biden shows no fear calling Republican candidate Rudy Giuliani and his fellow candidates uninformed (not to say I disagree). However, Biden probably lost a couple of votes from the younger crowds when he said that alcohol should be for adults aged 21 and older. It’s too bad the “younger crowd” has probably never heard of him. Biden reminds us all a bit of a Republican who reformed, but at least he seems to have his feet on the ground.

Senator Hillary Clinton repeatedly used her other Democrats as a spring board for her arguments, each time starting off strong, but losing it to an off-guard question with a sea of “Uhs” and “Ums.” She interrupted and mowed right over Russet any time he tried to intervene, showing no respect for him or anyone else by rarely answering a question directly. Hillary also tried to make the point that she was all on her own, but on numerous occasions she would resort to her past in the “Clinton Administration.” Every bit of her political experience is

seen vicariously through Bill. She is also always out for blood with Bush. We are in a hole, much due to his administration, but let’s stop pointing fingers and just get the hell out of it.

Connecticut’s-own Senator, Chris Dodd, seemed confident at the podium; much of his time was spent pointing out the obvious and attacking Congress, but he did alright – not much for presidential material, however. His views lacked any real imagination and were hardly memorable. Dodd at least said politicians need to work together, which wasn’t even considered by the others on the stand.

The very popular John Edwards seemed confident. Although it is hard to read him, he bashes the candidates around him while agreeing with them at the same time. Edwards, much like Clinton, however, is all about celebrity. He is a salesmen and a damn good one, but what does he leave us with – metaphors using carrots? Edwards has grown up a bit, yet he has flip-flopped as well, like on universal health care. America wants to like Edwards, but he has this strange arrogance about him that makes him seem a bit untrustworthy.

A personal favorite of the night was former senator Mike Gravel. Gravel, like most of the others outside of the “top three,” got little microphone time but made some odd and honest points. While Gravel comes off a bit like a senile uncle, or a John McCain missing a couple of screws, he was still well on the attack. He told Clinton he was ashamed of her for voting in favor of Lieberman’s new proposal on branding the Iranian guards as a terrorist cell. Total genius. He even made a decent proposal about wind power with little hopes of it getting anywhere. Who cares if he went bankrupt?

Dennis Kucinich is kind of a tragic player in the game. He has experience, and when looking back at his past, he has voted against everything that has gone wrong – the big example being the only one on stage who voted against

the war in Iraq. His hope of getting out of Iraq in three months once elected is a little unreasonable, though. He has some good direction by tying up loose ends and connecting things to make our problems seem like one big problem that can be fixed overnight – Godspeed to you, Kucinich. However, I think it’s obvious he does not have a shot; his biggest moment of the night wasn’t in what he said but when he waved-off Clinton because she was interrupting.

Senator Barack Obama rounded off the top three. Obama, while calm and strong, did a great deal of rehashing. Nobody really attacks him either, which is odd, but it makes him come off as mild. He carried his opinions firmly, and while he does not have much that goes against him, he doesn’t have much supporting him, either. He is a little too nice to his fellow candidates and the current administration, so it would do Obama good to throw some mud. At least he seems nice.

Governor Bill Richardson is the last of the eight. Richardson, although not much of a crowd favorite, has a good approach; but after being around for 20 some-odd years, he still comes off as inexperienced. To think, all we have to do is leave some stuff behind to get out of Iraq! He did comment that what we really need is peace in the Middle East, and while he maintained a lot of reform, he still managed to come off weak. Richardson continued to make some unrealistic but valid points. However, even Obama was caught staring off into space while Richardson spoke. Richardson has a bit of a chip on his shoulder while striving for The Chair; too bad the only time he will see it is on a tour through the White House.

These are your 2008 Democratic candidates, folks, so caveat emptor (let the buyer beware). It’s going to be an interesting one, that’s for certain.

Hobbling Around Campus:

One Temporarily Disabled Person’s Observations Brian Morache

Staff Writer While modern medicine has come a very long way, sometimes surgery is still necessary.

This was the situation I found myself in at the beginning of this semester, requiring a minor operation to remove scar tissue that had built up around an old wound; a souvenir from the Gulf War. After the operation, I found myself using a cane for about two weeks. During this time I gained a perspective that, for many, would open eyes.

Hobbling around campus can be a real adventure given that the handicapped pathways are the longest possible way between buildings.

Just try getting from Copernicus Hall to Davidson Hall in the 10 minutes between classes, especially if you can’t use the stairs very well.

Then there are the elevators, which, as fate would have it, are on the opposite end of the building as my classes. Never mind that they take forever to move and have a tendency to

bounce just a bit at each floor. Who says a ride should be boring? The doors to buildings sometimes have handicapped options; of course getting to these switches can be difficult, if they are there. The rear doors to Davidson don’t, and fortunately I’m a male because the ladies room doors don’t have such options either.

I will say that, having heard the tales of others, the school has made improvements over the years. However, it shouldn’t take a complaint or even a student request to bring about such improvements. CCSU should be proactive in making these improvements on its own, without the need for a student request. Saying “If you ask for it, then we’ll do it,” gives the appearance of a reluctance to merely do the right thing.

I would like to commend the faculty at CCSU for their understanding of my being a bit tardy for classes at times. They have been both compassionate and understanding. Other students have shown compassion as well, offering to hold doors for me and walk with me a while

to classes if I’m gong their way. Unfortunately, I’ve also found myself pushed out of the way and had more than a few doors closed in my face. Compassion is an individual quality and while some people have learned to express it, others have sadly not.

While my disability has been temporary - I will be hopefully be tossing the cane away soon and just hobbling around a bit - for many others it is a permanent fact of life. This is something more people should keep in mind, as we will no doubt see more than a few veterans returning from Iraq with their own war souvenirs, those that include a limp, a cane or even a wheel chair. We should do more than just say we honor and thank them; we should make our campus welcoming to them and, at the very least, hold the door for them. Those who have a disability live with it every day, and while no one wants pity, they do deserve the compassion we should show any fellow human being. And for our disabled veterans, they above all people deserve it.

On Mitt Romney Joe Zajac

Staff Writer Just as the dark recesses of liberalism and secular thought threatened to tear asunder the very fabric of American society, potentially plunging us into another thousand-year dark age of superstition and oppression, there comes a figure who has the power to turn aside such challenges to our American way of life – Mitt Romney.

In such a time where leaders of quality are in drastically short supply, we as the American people are fortunate enough to have the option of electing a man whose humbleness does not overshadow his personal commitment to stand firm in the face of adversity.

His dedication to issues of substance allows him no other consideration, and strong leadership flies in the face of those opponents who would wither and fade in the face of Jihadist domination.

To condense Romney’s incredibly successful term as Governor of Massachusetts would be doing him a clear disservice, but the sheer amount of triumphs may be too much for you dear readers to properly absorb. Romney’s benevolence and good feelings invoked during his tenure of Governor of Massachusetts allowed the state to serve as a microcosm of what America could achieve – the “American Dream” as the flower surrounded by the ravenous weeds of socialism. Such positive feelings ignored borders, serving as a beacon of liberty and freedom in the face of quasisocialist nightmares of neighboring states, whose citizens suffered beneath iron-fisted state governments that burdened them with taxes and despair.

As Governor, he was not dissuaded from action by his limousine liberal detractors, but stood firm on issues that he believed to be paramount to a good society. He held-off the allied twin forces of the Godless liberals and budding Jihadists, both of whom seek the destruction of the fundamentals of American society. While it is too soon to declare these four years as a Golden Age of American society, no doubt future historians will look back onto this period favorably.

His black-and-white view of the world is clearly what America is in dire need of at the moment, as gray is much too dreary a color for such a man whose luminescence is enough to inspire even the most cynical. He is not bound by the pessimism which has engulfed the Democratic party and has not resigned himself simply to reality; good judgment would dictate him do otherwise.

As his atheist detractors have pointed out, Romney’s religion simply must play a part within this campaign. But where they mistakenly see a negative point, I see only a positive one. Persons who possess such great amounts of character and strength as Romney simply do not come out of the woodwork in our society – it is genetic. His polygamist leanings would do well to provide our country with a healthy supply of adequate leaders in the future – we certainly must savor such potential and talent.

To turn away such a man would be doing yourself, fair reader, an injustice. Certainly there is too much at stake here to allow a vote for any of the other candidates; the very continuation of what we hold dear – the liberty, freedom and justice which encompass our American way of life – will be readily and gleefully tossed aside by the false prophets of the Democratic party and Republicans willing to sacrifice their ideals to please the sadly misinformed slice of the American public.

Romney is indeed the one who has the power to part the contested waters of American policies, fostering only disharmony and antagonism in their wake, and stride through the divided part towards a better future.

Sports

6

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

American League Division Series Preview Peter Collin

Sports Editor

NY at Cleveland

BronxPride.com Alex Rodriguez hopes to win his first title with the wildcard-winning Yankees

New York Yankees

Los Angeles Angels

Last 10: Some teams have turned it on of late in their final desperate run at the postseason. So did the Yankees, only they had to do it back in May when they stood at 21-29 and looked worst than the ’62 Mets. Ever since then they’ve outplayed everyone in baseball, turning a Boston 14.5 game lead into a mere three game lead and obliterating a Wild Card deficit of eight games. The only problem is the Yanks were hot going into the postseason two years in a row and were bounced out in the first round each time.

Last 10: The Angels haven’t been playing poorly in September but they haven’t been playing World Series caliber baseball either. Due to minor injuries to almost all the everyday players, they hovered around .500 for most of the month and if not for Seattle realizing that they are in fact Seattle, the division race in the West might have been a little more exciting.

How They Matched Up: The Yanks record versus the Indians this year speaks for itself: 6-0.

With the exception of C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona, no Indian starter has an ERA under 12.00 against the Yankees. Not to be forgotten, Indians closer Joe Borowski faced the Yankees once this season and was destroyed for six runs in 2/3 of an inning including an A-Rod walk-off homerun. To contrast that New York pitchers have dominated the Indians as Andy Pettitte, Phil Hughes, Mike Mussina and Joba Chamberlain have rolled over the Tribe with a combined 1.96 ERA. What to Watch For: The Yankee starters will be the key to how deep the Yanks make it into the postseason. With the ascension of Joba Chamberlain, the backend of the bullpen has come to be a strength for the Yankees. If Chien-Ming Wang, who has not faced the Indians this season, along with Pettitte, a tired Mussina and an old Clemens can get the ball to Joba and Mo then this series will be short and sweet.

Cleveland Indians

CNN SI Roger Clemens is contributing to a questionable rotation which will be the main concern to the Yankees going anywhere this October

Last 10: The Indians stayed hot down the stretch going 19-9 in September, including sweeps of division rivals Minnesota and Detroit. Turning up the heat even more were aces C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona who combined to go 9-0 with a 2.09 ERA in September to lock up the division. The Tribe also started swinging the bats the way everyone expected them too, slugging over 31 homeruns in a month for only the third time this season.

How They Matched Up: Not well. The Tribe failed to conquer the Yankees once this season, losing all six contests to them this season while being outscored 49-17. The worst of the worst came from starters Paul Byrd and Jake Westbrook who combined to give up 19 runs in only 10.2 innings. Carmona’s starts were deceiving as the Indians threw away two good performances by their number two starter.

What to Watch For: Joe Borowski only faced the Yankees once this season but it was just downright ugly. In just 2/3 of an inning Borowski gave up six runs, including a walk-off homer by A-Rod. Indian fans should be very worried if they face any save situations against the Yankees as Borowski has been getting mashed by everyone this year to the tune of a 5.15 ERA.

Prediction

jsonline.com C.C. Sabathia is part of a rotation that has big plans for this fall. Winning the AL Central was only the beginning.

LA at Boston

I toyed with the idea that the Indians sneak out of Cleveland with at least one win from either Carmona or Sabathia, but Borowski versus the Yankees is a bad formula in the playoffs. The Yankees don’t let good relievers off the hook so there is no reason to believe that any Tribe lead will be safe with Borowski standing guard. Yankees roll 3-0.

How They Matched Up: LA can play the Sox tough, as long as their not in Fenway. They seem like a different team when playing in the shadow of the Green Monster, falling in five of the seven meetings in Boston. Staff ace John Lackey seems to go through the biggest transformation when in Boston, as he was hit at a ridiculous .408 batting average and an 8.38 ERA in two starts in Fenway.

CNN SI Manny Ramirez hopes to be 100% for the playoff after a back injury sidelined him for nearly a month.

What to Watch For: Banged up stars Kelvim Escobar and Vlad Guerrero will be keys to this series. Escobar has missed time this season with both a sore elbow and a tired shoulder. Keeping him healthy will be paramount because after Lackey and Escobar the Angels rotation gets a little thin. For Guerrero the problems have been with his inflamed triceps that has limited to a DH role. Guerrero is the catalyst for the Angels, without him this lineup is far from intimidating.

Boston Red Sox Last 10: The Red Sox looked like they were standing still for the final month of the season, but only because the Yankees were sprinting by everybody. Daisuke Matsuzaka, along with his compatriot Hideki Okajima, both hit a wall in September as they moved deeper into a season as they ever have before. But other players stepped up including third baseman Mike Lowell who hit .320 while driving in his season best of 24 RBIs in September.

How They Matched Up: Like most match-ups for Boston, if their at home great, on the road not so much. The Red Sox handled the Angels in their house this year, scoring seven or more runs in five of the seven contests. But the story was different when the Sox hit the West Coast. They dropped two out of three, with a late-inning rally helping them avoid the sweep.

CNN SI David Ortiz hopes to hit his way to another World Series title.

What to Watch For: Manny Ramirez, who missed almost a month with a strained oblique, is half of the dynamic duo that makes this offense go.

If Manny finds his stroke the Sox will be infinitely better, but if he doesn’t then this lineup will look a lot like Anaheim’s; a one man show with a cast of understudies. Ortiz pummeled the Angels with four homeruns and a .361 average this year, but won’t be able to carry the Sox by himself; he needs Manny to be Manny.

Prediction The Sox could make this a very short series, especially since they start with two in Fenway. The Angels will probably pull at least one game out at home but it may they may already be in a 0-2 hole by then. Manny will find a rhythm and the Sox starters will hold an inferior Angel lineup in check. Boston prevails 3-1.

CNN SI Vladimir Guerrero is a key reason why the Angels are the AL West Champions in 2007.

7

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

National League Division Series Preview Rob Messer

Peter Collin

Staff Writer

Sports Editor

Chicago at Arizona

Colorado at Philadelphia

Last 10: The Cubbies went 6-4 down the stretch, which was almost the bare minimum to hold off Milwaukee and clinch their NL Central title. Although they finished out on top, they need to prepare themselves to play October baseball. Believe it or not the only .500 team they played in September was the Dodgers.

Last 10: Forget last 10, check the last 17. That’s when the Mets held a seven game lead over those Fightin’ Phils, who went 13-4 down the stretch including a three game sweep over New York. During that span the Phillies didn’t lose a single series while averaging six runs per game.

Chicago Cubs

Yahoo! Images Kaz Matsui has to be happy he isn’t sitting at home with the rest of his former teammates in New York.

How They Matched Up: The Cubs played six closes games against Arizona during the regular season but only won two of them. Arizona was held to five runs or less in each of the six games played.

Jason Marquis and Sean Marshall received 12 runs of support in the two wins but the offense only put together seven runs in the four losses to negate the quality starts the other members of the rotation put together.

What to Watch For: The heart of the order is outright scary. Alfonso Soriano, who exploded with 14 homers in September, is the one of the most, if not the hottest hitters going into October. Derrek Lee sports a .317 average and is going to be one tough out every time he steps in the box. It’s not going to be easy pitching around those two when they have 100 RBI man, Aramis Ramirez behind them.

Arizona Diamondbacks Last 10: Similar to their opponents, the D’Backs let their first place lead in the West get a little too close as they played .500 ball down the stretch. They failed to beat some of the teams they should’ve beat, however they did finish with 90 wins and took the division over San Diego and Colorado.

The bats of the young team featuring Stephen Drew, Orlando Hudson, Eric Byrnes and Chris Young need to wake up and make some noise early to get them out of the funk they are in and get them playing like a first place team should be.

sportsmaven.wordpress.com Lou Piniella’s outbursts are what fired the Cubs up mid-season. Can his managing get them their first title in 99 years?

How They Matched Up: Took four out of six during the regular season. All of the four wins were the result of quality starts and superior bullpen performances. A Stephen Drew game-winning homer against them at home started an eight-game winning streak which propelled them to the top of the West where they ended up staying. Even with the lack of scoring against Chicago, they surprisingly out-homered them 171-151 during the regular season.

What to Watch For: Brandon Webb (18 wins, 3.01 ERA, 194 Ks) is going to set the tone for the Diamondbacks in Game 1. If he loses the battle to Zambrano, then it’s going to be a short series for the snakes. However, if he throws a gem and gets the win, it will fuel the clubhouse and bring out the best of the rest of the rotation. Livan Hernandez (6-2 career postseason record) and Doug Davis (13 wins) are capable of shutting down a Chicago lineup. If Arizona can get that big win in Game 1 and run support, this could be the first step in repeating what they did six years ago.

Philadelphia Phillies

How They Matched Up: The Phils had trouble slowing the Rockies bats and lost the season series 4-3. Their team ERA stood at a high 6.40. The good news is that those numbers are without Cole Hamels who did not face the Rockies this season. Not to mention that sluggers Pat Burrell and Jimmy Rollins combined to bat .373 against the Rockies with seven extra base hits.

What to Watch For: Reigning MVP Ryan Howard torched the Padres during the season series.

In seven games Howard hit .591 and jacked three homeruns to go with his 15 RBI. The Phillies need to score to win; they just don’t have nearly enough pitching. Rollins may be the fuel, but Howard is the engine that drives this lineup.

CNN SI MVP candidate Ryan Howard is by far the biggest reason the Phillies are even playing in October. Or is it the Mets?

Colorado Rockies Last 10: Colorado went crazy over the last two weeks of the season. They set a franchise record for consecutive victories with 11 and won 13 out of their last 14 to thrust themselves into the playoff picture.

The experts say momentum can’t carry you through the playoffs, but when your team bats .300 over the final month and ties for the Major League lead for runs scored in September with 168 it can’t hurt.

How They Matched Up: The Rockies can take the Phils in slugfest, as they were the top two in runs scored in the NL this season. They outscored them in the season series and the Rockies top two relievers, Manny Corpas and Brian Fuentes didn’t give up any runs in five innings.

What to Watch For: Matt Holliday put up MVP numbers this year, winning the NL Batting title and beating out Ryan Howard in the RBI race in the last game of the season. Holliday crushed Phillie pitching, knocking five homeruns in seven games.

Holliday will have to keep that pace if the Rockies hope to out hit Philadelphia.

Prediction

CNN SI Todd Helton hopes this year’s Kardiac Kids won’t die just yet.

The Phillies are a tough team to out hit period.

They have big bats up and down the lineup. Burning Josh Fogg in the play-in game hurts but the big blow will be Cole Hamels who has yet to face those highaltitude Colorado bats this season. Phillies pull it out 3-2.

Prediction The $300 million Chicago spent over the offseason will finally start to payoff this week. Despite the amazing young talent that Arizona has to offer, the members of the Cubs are so much more experienced, both in the dugout and on the field. As long as Steve Bartman stays home, I say the Cubs struggle with Webb early, pull out some wild games and end up taking this series 3-1.

Yahoo! Images Will Alfonso Soriano be able to conjure up his old postseason play and propel the Cubs to victory? 14 home runs in September seems that all signs point to “yes.”

Yahoo! Images Brandon Webb is in charge of leading a young Diamondbacks team to the promised land.

8

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Hartford Hawk Down Continued from page 1

Central goal kick.

Emin knocked the corner kick to sophomore Karise Hilt, who tied the score. Less than a minute later, Crinion passed down the left sideline to Emin, who proceeded to blast a shot into the upper left of the goal past Baker.

“After the second goal it was just the case of holding off for the last couple minutes,” said Coach D’Arcy.

In the final minute, Hartford was awarded a penalty kick, and Hawk junior Chiara Caen’s shot to the upper left was too far from Central junior goalkeeper Erin Herd’s grasp.

Just when overtime was deemed inevitable, Blayney headed the ball 12 yards into the goal with what was thought to be the game-winner. It was called off-sides and the game did in fact, go into

overtime.

“We didn’t want to get too emotional over that call, we told each other to calm down and keep playing,” said Brittany Emin.

Central went into the first overtime session with their heads high. Emin faced off with Baker at the 7:32 mark and ended it with an exciting finishing goal.

“It was unbelievable. We really wanted to win today and had it in our minds that we could do it,” exclaimed Emin. “It took us a little time to get there, but we did it. It feels great right now.”

Herd saved two goals for the Blue Devils who gathered 14 shots to the Hawk’s six. Central will return home this Sunday, October 7, for their first Northeast Conference game of the season against Quinnipiac at 2 p.m.

Left: The Blue Devils celebrate after the winning goal against University of Hartford.

Right: Sophomore Leah Blayney takes part in a relentless Blue Devil assault during the final minutes of Sunday’s game.

PHotos By ConraD akier / tHe reCorDer

Blue Devil Shorts

Sarochova Wins Medal at Shootout

Lucie Sarochova led Central Connecticut with a 78 at the CCSU/ Hartford Shootout on Stanley Golf Course in New Britain. The sophomore shot 42-36 on the par-73, 5,981-yard course to beat the field by four strokes.

Hartford’s top six players outlasted CCSU’s six best, 512-534.

Blue Devil junior Deborah Kim shot 86 (45-41) to tie for sixth, while freshmen Meghan Brunswick (41-47) and Chelsea Woods (42-46) tied for eighth with 88s.

Sophomore Natalie Jones shot a 92 (44-48) for CCSU, and senior Ashley Rake (48-54-102), sophomore Lisa McCormick (51-51-102) and junior Kerri Tracy (52-55-107) completed the Blue Devil field.

Central Connecticut will compete at the ECAC Championships on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 5-6. The tournament will be held at Kiskiask Country Club in Williamsburg, VA. (credit: CCSUBlueDevils.com)

Sport: Soccer Position: Defense Year: Sophomore Age: 19 Major: Elementary Education

Favorites: Movie: Devil Wears Prada

Women’s Volleyball Sweeps Iona Junior Amanda Olmstead led all players with 11 kills and hit .333 to lead Central Connecticut (13-4) in a 3-0 road victory against Iona (6-10).

Freshman Lauren Snyder added 10 kills and six digs, while classmate Amanda Bayer had five kills and a match-high 38 assists while hitting .625 for the Blue Devils.

CCSU opened the match with a 30-20 win and picked up 33-31 and 30-24 victories to complete the sweep. (credit: CCSUBlueDevils.com)

Actress: “I like Reese Witherspoon a lot. She seems the most real not fake.”

Junk Food: “Any kind of chocolate and fast food like Wendy’s” Athlete: Brandi Chastain

Men’s Soccer Defeated at Columbia Pump-Up Song “I always listen to Eminem before I play. It gets me angry.”

If I had a million dollars...

“I would buy a house, not anything extravagant. Then invest some of it.”

Amanda started her first career collegiate game and appeared in all 19 games of the 2006 season.

Conrad Akier / The Recorder

Central Connecticut (2-5) lost a hard fought 1-0 decision at Columbia (1-5-1). Sophomore Paul Armstrong made three saves for the Blue Devils in the defeat.

The Lions scored the lone goal of the match in 81st minute. Freshman Hayden Johns crossed a ball into the 18, where junior Tom Smith put the ball in the back of the net. Columbia goalkeeper Michael Testa led the Lions to their first win of the season, recording five saves.

Junior captain Yan Klukowski led the offensive charge for the Blue Devils with four shots. Freshman Robert Cavener saw his first action of the season, registering two shots in the contest.

Sophomore Nick Soares relieved Armstrong at the start of the second half, marking his first appearance of the season.

In the loss Central Connecticut out shot Columbia 7-5 and held the advantage in corner kicks at a 15-14 edge.

Central Connecticut will be on the road to open Northeast Conference play against Farleigh Dickinson on Oct. 5 at 3:00 pm. (credit: CCSUBlueDevils.com)

9

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

UniWatch Central - NEC Football Edition University at Albany

eDWarD gaUg

entertainment editor

Monmouth University

According to Paul Lukas, the creator of UniWatch (www.uniwatchblog.com), “Uni Watch is a media project that deconstructs the finer points of sports uniforms in obsessive and excruciating detail.” Once a person starts pointing out all the minute details in every uniform when watching sports…or even playing Madden in my case, it never ceases. Whether it is the fact that the St. Louis Cardinals’ jersey logo is chain-stitched on or that new Phillies savior Jamie Moyer is wearing the team issued “Liberty Bell” stirrups, this is the “Obsessive Study of Athletic Aesthetics.”

In this installment of UniWatch Central, I am going to dissect the uniforms of the Northeast Conference football teams, including our beloved Blue Devils.

Central Connecticut

Monmouth Athletics I take that last statement back, Monmouth wears the plainest jerseys in the conference. Solid navy blue with white type is classy looking and easy on eyes. Without being over the top with over-used drop shadows and contrasting side panels, the Hawks play it safe and win big. Extra points for having a simple helmet logo that is able to be read from the crowd.

Conrad Akier / The Recorder Despite what they look like, the Albany Great Danes are not the same team as the LSU Tigers. Everything between these two matches up, right down to the yellow and white shoulder stripes. Apparently creativity is something the athletic department at UAlbany doesn’t have. Go hire some outside design firm to redesign your team’s uniforms and while you’re at it, drop the purple and gold, it’s awful.

St. Francis University (PA)

Wagner College

Conrad Akier / The Recorder I guess the Blue Devils don’t like straying too far away from their namesake. Blue on blue? Really? Add in some blue socks and you guys can look like the kid from Willy Wonka. Along with have one of the conference’s plainest uniforms; the Blue Devils also sport the division’s worst helmet, and possibly the nation’s worst.

Text isn’t made for helmets; it is too small and unreadable from more than 10 feet away.

The Red Flash commit the same sins as the University at Albany, ripping off the logo and style of another team, this time the San Diego Chargers. The first thing you notice when looking at them is they have the same lightning bolt helmets and shoulder bolts as the Chargers. Combing that with a red, white and black color scheme that infuriates me to no end (being an ex-Southington High football player and those being our rival’s colors). The pant leg lightning bolt tops off an overall terrible uniform.

Robert Morris University

Conrad Akier / The Recorder The Wagner Seahawks almost pull off the upset in this week’s installment of UniWatch, but they have the same problem that kills the Dallas Cowboys and New England Patriots’ third jerseys, the simple fact that the color hue on the helmets don’t match up with the color of the jersey. This, sadly, pisses me off to an extent. How hard is it to pick the same color on two pieces of a uniform? Outside of this, Wagner wears some classy green jerseys with thin pinstripes on the shoulders. One last thing, pick a different numeral font, this one is already in use.

Conrad Akier / The Recorder

Sacred Heart University

Conrad Akier / The Recorder

Conrad Akier / The Recorder

Sacred Heart is nothing special. I think at least part of the 27 thousand dollars students pay annually for tuition should go into buying the football team some decent threads. While they imply a similar style to that of Monmouth, the Pioneers manage to ruin something simple looking by going with classic plain red jerseys, but completing it with gray pants with a stupid red side leg flair. If they went with plain gray pants, they would have done much better. [See The Ohio State University]

The Colonials home jerseys look pretty familiar, oh right, they are the same as the new Patriots home jerseys, minus the shine. Most people would think that would make me like them automatically, but this is not so. I hate the new style football uniforms that were first introduced by the Denver Broncos back in 1997, stupid swooping side panels included. The last strike against the Colonials is the fact that their helmet logo is too small. The design is decent, but just not large enough, which leaves too much open space.

Conclusion: Overall, the NEC is terrible on the uniform front. With a lack of creativity on just about every campus, Monmouth runs away with the prize purely because they didn’t screw up a simple concept. As you can see now, a little can definitely go a long way. In next week’s edition, it’s MLB playoff time.

10

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Pick Your Poison

NFL Predictions for Week 5

Wow, did we all do awful this week. The editors were slightly concerned they were going to be embarrassed by their terrible selections, but luckily for us everyone failed miserably. Cleveland and Kansas City were the biggest upsets of the week, although the Giants and the Cardinals certainly did their fair share of shocking. The best thing we can do now is forget this week, especially if you’re a New York Mets fan. Ouch.

Now the question is when will the undefeated teams get defeated and when will the winless teams get a win. So readers, whether or not you’re sending in your weekly predictions, let us know who you think will be the last undefeated team and who do you think will be the last team to get a W. Send your answer, a short reason and your full name to ccsurecorder@gmail.com. Send in your picks to that address too.

Mark roWan

Peter Collin

eDWarD gaUg

CHristoPHer BoUlay

editor-in-Chief

sports editor

entertainment editor

Managing editor

Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee

Miami

Houston

Houson

Miami

Jacksonville

Jacksonville

Kansas City

Kansas City

Arizona

Arizona

Arizona

Arizona

Cleveland at New England

New England

New England

New England

New England

Carolina at New Orleans

New Orleans

New Orleans

Carolina

New Orleans

Atlanta at Tennessee Miami at Houston Jacksonville at Kansas City Arizona at St. Louis

NY Jets at NY Giants

NY Jets

NY Jets

NY Jets

NY Giants

Seattle at Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh

Detroit

Detroit

Detroit

Detroit

Indianapolis

Indianapolis

Indianapolis

Indianapolis

Denver

San Diego

Denver

Denver

Detroit at Washington Tampa Bay at Indianapolis San Diego at Denver Baltimore at San Francisco Chicago at Green Bay

San Francisco

Green Bay

Green Bay

Dallas

Dallas

Dallas

Dallas

New Orleans def. Carolina

Green Bay def. Chicago

NY Jets def. NY Giants

Miami def. Houston

189

115

The total number of correct picks for this week for everyone.

0

Baltimore

Green Bay

Pick of the Week

The ERA of Tom Glavine as he completely blew any chance the New York Mets had at getting into the playoffs before recording a second out.

1

Baltimore

Green Bay

Dallas at Buffalo Why

7

San Francisco

The most correct right by one person, a season low.

The number of people who picked the Browns to beat the Ravens.

The number of people who picked the Chiefs beating the Chargers, which includes resident Larry Johnson lover, Nick Viccione.

They are bound to get a win Favre may be stealing the headeventually; they can’t go 0-4. Now lines with his conquest of Dan Marito more important matters, fuck the no’s touchdown crown; it’s the Pack’s Phillies. defense that should be getting the attention. Green Bay is only allowing 16.5 points per game to go along with giveaway/takeaway ratio of +3.

Lambeau can be a cold place even in September and the Bears already look like their going into hibernation.

This Week’s NFL Prediction Leader Board Total Points

Current Week (of 16)

Rank

Name

1

Kevin Petruzielo

41

6

2

Alyssa Smollen

38

6

3

Jon Lundie

37

6

3

Jason Beaumier

37

6

5

Kyle Robbin

36

7

5

Steve Hart

36

6

5

Kyle Dorau

36

6

8

Mike Luchene

35

6

8

Mark Rowan

35

5

10

Edward Gaug

34

7

10

Charlie Sorenson

34

6

10

Nick Viccione

34

6

10

Matthew Jurkiewicz

34

4

14

Mike McDonald

33

6

15

Marc Chouinard

32

6

15

Peter Collin

32

5

17

Christopher Boulay

31

7

18

Rob Messer

30

3

19

Joel Weisel

26

0

20

Eric Sanford

22

7

21

Brian Nocera

20

0

22

Chris Culmone

13

4

In the football equivalent of the Miami is 0-4. They have to win Subway Series, minus the fact they eventually, right? In other news, fuck both play in the same stadium and the Phillies. They don’t deserve it. there is no subway, the Jets will ruin any chances the Giants have to turning their season around. As much as I think Chad Pennington is a worthless piece of garbage, he doesn’t compare to how big of a turd Eli Manning is.

E

Entertainment

11

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

KT Tunstall

If you’re a girl, you know who KT Drastic Fantastic Tunstall is. If you’re a guy, you probably know who she is as well (if only because of your girlfriend). Her name may not ring a bell, but chances are you have heard her music repeatedly without being aware of it.

Actress Anne Hathaway pranced around in designer clothes in last year’s The Devil Wears Prada as KT’s trademark raspy voice enhanced the scene with her hit “Suddenly I See.” Trust me, you’ve heard it.

So without knowing much of KT’s music besides that song, I thought I had her style of music pinpointed. It was kind of pop, kind of rock, with almost a bit of folk or country vibe thrown in. But after listening to her latest album, Drastic Fantastic, I realized she is not so predictable.

I was impressed by the variety of the songs on the CD; some were perfect for listening to while taking a bubble bath, while others were bitter or wistful, or optimistic and about selfdiscovery. I found admirable qualities in all of them – Tunstall isn’t just a two-hit wonder (you might also recognize her hit “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree” from the radio). She really knows what she’s doing musically, and it shows.

In contrast, if you’re looking for a relaxing down-tempo slow jam, look no further than the haunting ballads of the album, “Paper Aeroplane” and “Someday Soon.” The former is one of the more profound songs on the album, with an abundance of clever lines, and the latter has a jazz feel to it, which is relaxing to sit back and listen to.

Drastic Fantastic seems to have a bit more depth to it than most popular music does these days, and to me, it was refreshing to hear.

- alison Binge / staff Writer

Dethklok

Not too many cartoon characters are known for Dethalbum making death metal albums; then again, most cartoon characters aren’t named Nathan Explosion or William Murderface. This is a different breed of cartoon altogether.

Discussing a “virtual” band with an extensive fictional background and history is proving a lot harder than originally planned. I guess it’s my duty to reflect on the music more-so than the band itself.

Dethalbum is reminiscent of Metalocolypse’s (an animated television series on Cartoon Network) usual soundtrack, but its songs have more depth and texture to them than the short versions that are played in each episode.

Explosion’s voice (Brendon Small) is as dark and deep as just about any metal vocalist out there, but the difference between him and legit front-men is the fact he also does the sometimes whiney, heavily Swedish accented voice of Skwisgaar Skwigelf, the band’s main guitarist.

Behind Explosion is the regular cast of characters, Skwigelf, Pickles the drummer (also played

by Small), Murderface and Toki Wartooth. With the exception of drums, Small is responsible for every instrument on the album, which seems like quite a feat. The drums were actually done by exStrapping Young Lad drummer Gene Hoglan.

The most recognizable song on the album, “Deththeme,” proves to be the album’s hardest track and is Metalocolypse’s theme song. Other tracks, such as “Hatredcopter” and “Briefcase Full of Guts,” are definitely the album’s strongest tracks, bringing a mix of brutal guitar solos and splashy, cymbal-filled drumming.

While most people have never heard of Dethklok or Metalocolypse, anyone with a love for metal should go out of their way to check out a fake band with one of the most original sounds out there.

- eDWarD gaUg / entertainment editor

YOUUUUUU!!!

Soulja Boy blew up this summer with Souljaboytellem.com his hit single “Crank That.” White girls everywhere were watching instructional videos learning how exactly to “superman that ho.” Next, girls put videos of themselves dancing to the hit single all over YouTube. I didn’t think it could get any worse, until I listened to Soulja Boy’s album Souljaboytellem.com.

After getting signed to Mr. Collipark’s label when the artist’s first song could be heard all over the South, it seemed like there might be a chance of the CD being good, but that hope went out the window fast. Soulja Boy is 17 years old and this album really shows it. A song about his Sidekick cell phone and his report card are two perfect examples, and there are two songs that appear to just be spin-offs of popular lines from the single “Crank That.” “Pass It to Arab” and “Bapes” have hooks that I’m pretty sure were made electronically using the lines from “Crank That.”

Besides the first single, there are really only two other songs that have a chance of being popular. “Snap and Roll” and “Let Me Get ‘Em” are both good dancing songs for the club, but that’s about all this album has going for it. It looks like a one-hit wonder summer for Soulja Boy. I don’t usually condone downloading albums but if you must listen to Souljaboytellem.com, find it online and don’t waste your money.

Soulja Boy

- steve Hart / staff Writer

New Found Glory

Only longtime New Found Glory lovers will understand, appreFrom the Screen ciate and welcome to the Stereo: Part II their new album of covers, From the Screen to the Stereo: Part II. When the first album was released in my early years of high school, I was bopping around to the catchiest version of Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” I had ever heard. Songs from movie soundtracks get rockstar makeovers in these two albums, and it never grows old.

This fresh batch of punk rock covers include guest vocalists Chris Carrabba (Dashboard Confessional), Patrick Stump (Fall Out Boy), Adam Lazarra (Taking Back Sunday), Max Bemis (Say Anything) and lots more.

Each song is so sweet and catchy, it’ll rot your teeth out. If your favorite chick flick is She’s All That, you’ll be pleased to hear New Found Glory revive “Kiss Me,” originally performed by a one-hit wonder band. Julia Roberts ala Pretty Woman fans will scream with delight when they sing along to “King Of Wishful Thinking,” as I have done for the past week whilst jumping around my dorm room.

How about “Lovefool,” from the Romeo and Juliet soundtrack? I know, right? Could this get any juicier? What had me sold in a minute was the killer breakdown in the song “Don’t You Forget About Me” from The Breakfast Club. The “Iris” Goo Goo Dolls remake isn’t so bad either. Madonna and Tears For Fears song do-overs are on the play list as well. Make sure to listen to all of them and have fun trying to figure out which guest vocalist is in each; looking at the back of the CD is cheating you out of a stellar experience.

To really mix it up, New Found Glory even experimented in the instrumental song department with a brilliant number entitled “Amelie J’y Suis Jamais Alle” from the french indie cult classic, Amelie. The mixture of guitars, drums and accordion are magnifique; and will leave you with a newfound appreciation for songs without lyrics.

Seriously, just go out and buy this already, you have 10 minutes. I’m counting.

- karyn DanFortH / staff Writer

The Weakerthans

T h i s group from Reunion Tour Winnipeg, Canada combines pop-punk riffs with folk-style lyrics to create a sound that’s sure to give fans of this kind of music a dirty little secret to add to their lists of favorite bands.

On The Weakerthans’ fourth studio album, Reunion Tour, their music measures up to their past three albums.

The band’s guitar riffs sound similar in ways to Ted Leo and the Pharmacists and the vocals sound almost exactly like lead singer of Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard.

The lyrics are much different than the usual pop-punk lyrics about love and girls. Yes, they still touch on these, but in a less-direct approach of discussing situations and people, somewhat like a folk artist would.

The group keeps the songs at a slower pace, making the tracks very easy-going and seeming to bleed into the background while listening to them. Fast-paced songs for people who like a quick fix when listening to music won’t be found, for the most part, on this album.

Reunion Tour also includes some numbers that aren’t about electric guitars and drums but about acoustics, which is something that Death Cab for Cutie also enforces on their albums. On the tracks “Elegy for Gump Worsley” and “Bigfoot,” The Weakerthans use acoustic-folk music to get their points across.

The highlights of the album are opening track, “Civil Twilight,” the song “Hymn of the Medical Oddity” and “Bigfoot” because it’s the only song on the album that fully embraces folk.

The first two are probably two of the most directly-fulfilling songs on the album.

The Weakerthans point pop-punk in a new direction that some bands should look to. Mixing folk lyrics with pop-punk is an idea that you would think other bands would have thought of already, but I guess progress has got to start somewhere.

- Matt keirnan / staff Writer With an amazing smooth voice and skilled drumming, Two Gallants Adam Stephens and Tyson Vogel do something the White Stripes haven’t been able to do: make a two-person blues album that has actual substance.

With a guitar and a drum, Two Gallants master delta blues style without any gimmicks, just lots of heart. With words like, “I don’t want to see you fall / I just want to see you fail,” it’s easy to see that Stephens is fighting with the demons of a lost love, making this a potent breakup album.

The great thing that Two Gallants brings to the table is the fact that this is an “emo” album, but it doesn’t take all the predictable twists and turns your typical sad, lovesick album takes.

There are no total outrages or cowardly threats, just powerful words that create beautiful visuals. If all emo albums were this good, then the stereotype of what is and what isn’t emo would finally disappear.

While Two Gallants probably isn’t the most accessible or easily-found album, it is completely worth your time and effort to seek this one out.

I thoroughly suggest accompanying this album with a bottle of Jameson’s because it’s gonna make you despise your ex all over again.

Two Gallants

- eDWarD gaUg / entertainment editor

Down

Down’s third album and their first Over the Under since March of 2002, has been much anticipated by the rock and metal communities. The band has been through quite a lot since the last album came out, and they don’t hesitate to let you know that on every

single track of this album. Former Pantera Guitarist “Dimebag” Darrell Abbot’s death and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina are the main focuses of this album which gives the listener unabated balls-out rock, for lack of a better term.

The album starts off with an ode to their late friend called “Three Suns and One Star,” and is one of the most powerful tracks I have ever heard to start off an album.

It is hard to say my favorite track on the album is, as it is easy to tell the amount of effort the guys from New Orleans put into this album.

Down’s last album, Down II: A Bustle in your Hedgerow, was made in a matter of days. While it is a solid album, their newest took months to produce and the extra time put in is obvious with just one listen.

Their single off of the album, “On March the Saints,” is one of the most commanding tracks, expressing the resilience of the people in Louisiana following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

Other songs on the album, such as “Pillamyd,” “Nothing in Return,” “I Scream,” and “Invest in Fear” show that lead singer Phil Anselmo’s voice is starting to hearken back to the early days of Down and Pantera after years of drug addiction really hurt the sound of both bands.

The band’s first album as part of a major label is most definitely their best attempt yet and is a must-have for fans of this band, Pantera fans and any self-respecting rock band. Go to the store and buy this album now. Hell, buy two of them.

- CHristoPHer BoUlay / Managing editor

The Good Life

As I look at my tickets Novena on a Nocturn for Tuesday’s The Good Life concert in Boston, I wish I had gotten into Tim Kasher’s music, whether it is his solo project, The Good Life, or his everyday band, Cursive, back when it was new and not in 2003 as it started to grow in popularity.

Listening to a band’s debut album after hearing their most recent stuff gives a totally skewed perspective of a band, and I find that it happens to me often. The Good Life’s first album, Novena on a Nocturn, is a brilliant combination of downtrodden yet passionate vocals telling a desperate man’s stories, and simple, effective instrumentals that flow beautifully with the vocals, not overtaking them like some other indie albums I have listened to recently.

The first words spoken on the album, “Send me to bed / My head’s drowning out / The thick and blurry sounds / Of horses on the highway / The days running down, / And I’m drowning out / This overwhelming sound,” slip from Kasher’s lips only backed by a slight static beat and a single note played on piano, which creates an eerie scene of a man, drunk in bed, praying for something better than what he has.

Not a farfetched idea for Tim Kasher, who features similar predicaments in other songs.

While I am fortunate enough to see this amazing performer live, others might not be; to them, I suggest going online and finding Novena on a Nocturn, or for that matter, any The Good Life album, and setting it on repeat for an hour or two. Just listen to the remarkable stories told through the eyes of Tim Kasher.

- eDWarD gaUg / entertainment editor

12

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

If I Did It, A Creepy Tell-All Justin Kloczko

Opinion Editor I was lucky enough to get my hands on the last copy of the O.J. Simpson confessional last week at Borders, in-between strange looks and head shakes of the disappointed.

Funny enough, I found it in the “True Crime” section.

Back in January, News Corp. halted the publication of the book because of public outcry. Many people, the family of Ron Goldman in particular, felt O.J. was capitalizing on his murders. Litigation ensued and the Goldman family acquired rights so that the profit could go to the Goldman foundation.

With the aided ghost-writing of Pablo F. Fenjves – a man who actually testified at the trial – O.J.’s narrative reads like a sick, needs-to-come-togrips-with-the-murders-he-committed, non-fiction testimony. O.J. sat with Fenjves and retold, with excruciating details, the events leading up-to and at the time of the murder. He exercised anxiety, guilt and anger when working on the book; ultimately, he approved the final transcript.

The book begins with O.J. describing the whole debacle as one big love story: “This is a love story, too. And, like a lot of love stories, it doesn’t have a happy ending.” Most pages of the book are occupied by O.J. describing Nicole Brown Simpson as an estranged, demonic ex-wife who constantly told O.J. what to do to the point of aggravation. Reading his account, I actually felt sorry for the man; he seemed like a nice guy who was made into a pushover. Contrary to media beliefs, O.J. stressed that he never wanted to get back with Nicole.

She was irrational, and at times, two different people.

O.J. also claimed that Nicole had a drug problem – cocaine, specifically. He hated her friends, who also abused, and said he didn’t want them around their children. The chapters

preceding the depicted murder become redundant – a slew of on-again, off-again encounters between the embattled couple.

Chapter six, “The Night in Question,” is what sold the whole thing to publishers; the rest of the chapters are just filler. There are even some funny parts attributed to the grizzly murders. First, O.J. decided to go to McDonald’s and scarf down a cheeseburger with Kato Kaelin right before knifing Ron and Nicole.“I just realized I haven’t eaten anything, and I’m going to run over to McDonald’s,” he tells Kaelin, who follows him around like a naive lap dog.

The book lures you into thinking O.J. is a half-decent guy who respected his housekeeper, bought flowers and went to his children’s recitals. I found myself feeling sorry for him, until I got to chapter six.

What is even more sick and twisted is how O.J. introduces a guy named “Charlie” into the whole murder scene, a guy who one day met O.J. randomly and decided to pay him a visit at 10 p.m., the night of the murders. This “Charlie” character seems to be O.J.’s symbolism of a conscience during the killings. “Charlie” is, however, a failed conscience. He plays

the part of messenger, setting O.J. off into his killing spree by saying he saw Nicole take drugs and get kinky with people. Like a good-hearted but wussy friend, Charlie tried to prevent him from becoming violent but just couldn’t.

Now, O.J. is trailblazing in his Bronco to Nicole’s. Here is the account of O.J. pulling out the knife, like some corny scene out of his Bmovies: “It was a very nice knife, a limited edition, and I kept it on hand for the crazies. Los Angeles is full of crazies.”

At Nicole’s place, an oblivious Ron Goldman comes waltzing in, fresh out of work, returning the pair of glasses she left at the restaurant.

Nicole comes outside to O.J. flipping out, tries to stop him, but loses control and falls to the ground. Then, according to O.J., Goldman went straight into Mr. Miyagi-mode, complete with karate stance. This was when O.J. lost it, taking the knife out of Charlie’s hands.

The gory juice is left out, and the next thing O.J. knows is that he has blood on his hands. The mauling put him in such a state of shock that he went into immediate denial and didn’t know what happened.

“I wondered how I had gotten blood all over my knife, and I again asked myself whose blood it might be, when suddenly it all made perfect sense: This was just a bad dream.”

He continued to live out that dream. On his plane flight a few hours later, O.J. went about his usual business of signing autographs and sleeping-off the demented realization that he had just become a killer.

It was business as usual for O.J.; once you kill a man and get away with it, you feel invincible.

This book was an interesting read, but nothing can be learned from it. Today, with his name back in the papers, O.J. might finally be getting what he deserves.

Private Practice Falls Short to Grey’s

Gabrielle Byko

Staff Writer What do you do when you are co-starring in one of network television’s hottest shows? Well, if you are Kate Walsh, you take the risk of your career and go off to star in your own show. Kate Walsh, who played Dr. Addison Montgomery Shepherd on the ABC hit Grey’s Anatomy, is testing out her solo acting abilities in Private Practice, which premiered on Wednesday, September 26 at 9 p.m. on ABC. Private Practice is the first spinoff to come from Grey’s Anatomy. The premise of the show is about a successful middle-aged woman (Walsh) who leaves behind a dream job as a neonatal surgeon at a top hospital in Seattle to pursue a job at a private medical co-op in sunny California in order to find meaning in life. Though

Walsh is the only Grey’s cast member to star on the show, she is surrounded by an ensemble of both recognizable and relatively new faces. Some of the more familiar faces are those of Taye Diggs as Dr. Sam Bennett (the ex-husband of her best friend), Amy Brenneman as Dr. Violet Turner and Tim Daly as Dr. Peter Finch (who is her potential love-interest).

The episode started off on the Grey’s Anatomy set, with the Chief of Surgery at Seattle Grace Hospital, Dr. Richard Webber (James Pickens Jr.) confronting Addison about her letter of resignation. After a brief spat, he gives her his blessing and off Addison goes, leaving Seattle Grace behind to pursue a new and very different life in California.

Shonda Rhimes, who created Grey’s, is also in charge of Private Practice, which is apparent in the shows’ strikingly similar formats.

Like in Grey’s, the show is full of unusual medical cases, comical situations and sometimes too-intimate personal disclosures amongst the cast.

However, unlike Grey’s, the cast does not arouse the same sense of intrigue and likeability. I felt myself more compelled and interested in the patients’ stories than I did in following the doctor’s struggles of overcoming personal dilemmas. As of now, besides Walsh and Brenneman, the rest of the cast seems disposable.

Diggs seems to be there only as eye candy; Paul Adelstein as Dr. Cooper Freedman seemed to have no purpose at all; and well Tim Daly has potential if they develop his character with care, without portraying him only as Addison’s boy toy.

As for the story line, so far it seems okay, but it may be hard to derive a whole series around problems involving pregnancy. Overall, the show is not horrible, but the problem with the cast is something that needs to be tweaked. Whether or not creator Shonda Rhimes will be able to keep our interest in watching Private Practice is yet to be seen, but if you are like me, you’ll stick to Grey’s Anatomy.

Third Installment of Xbox Staple is Still Solid D.J. Pember

Staff Writer Finally, after six long years, the final chapter of the video game epic, Halo, has reached store shelves.

Most are likely familiar with the franchise, as it is one of the most popular series’ ever to hit the medium, but for those who aren’t, Halo is a trilogy chronicling the end of a war between the humans and an alien collective known as the Covenant, who are bent on wiping out everyone. The title comes from a massive ancient super-weapon called the Halo, which is one of the primary focuses of the story throughout the three games.

Halo 3 does a fantastic job wrapping up all of the loose ends from the previous games; I recommend playing trough the first two games before this one because it is, at its core, just an ending. The story finally answers all the questions raised during Halo and Halo 2, while still leaving the ending open enough for some of the main characters to return for another series. The only downside to the campaign was its meager length of six hours; it felt like the game barely got started and suddenly it was ending.

The game-play is nearly identical to every other shooter on the market, although there are a couple new additions, such as the new deployable equipment (turrets, shields, etc.), as well as Forge. Forge is a new game type that allows players to edit a multiplayer map during gameplay. All players have the ability to spawn weapons, vehicles and environment objects at will. Overall, the game runs very smoothly, there is a good balance between story and game-play in the campaign, and the multiplayer is just as intense and sometimes even more so than its predecessors.

The online modes will be the lasting reasons to buy the game, from a four-player co-op up to 16man versus battles over the Internet, and people will likely be playing this game for years to come, much like Halo 2. It is basically the same multiplayer that millions have been playing for the last three years – very few things have actually changed, but a couple of the changes are rather major. All of the new game-play elements from the campaign carry over to the multiplayer, and the player now has the ability to edit the character design to give the game more variety, rather than a bunch of multi-colored Master Chiefs running around. Also, the developers added a tool to view replays of all your matches; you have complete control over the camera so you can view and save the replay with a more cinematic camera angle.

Replays can then be uploaded to the Web for others to view.

Visually, Halo 3 leaves a bit to be desired; the graphics are truly impressive, the detail is incredible, but in comparison to previous games such as Gears of War and Bioshock, it is somewhat disappointing. The sound on the other hand is beautiful; the soundtrack is all orchestral score, very epic, and the voice-overs are superb. The characters were all cast very well, all of the voices fit perfectly.

Somehow Halo 3 manages to be a stunning experience while at the same time being merely a rehash of content that’s half-a-decade old.

Not many games can pull that off so gracefully, but Halo 3 is sure to shine for years to come, if not for its fantastic story, then for is addicting multiplayer mayhem. For once a blockbuster game has lived up to all the hype – not going above and beyond – but it doesn’t leave much room for disappointment either.

13

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Jodie Foster Holds Own in Revenge Genre Danny Friar

Staff Writer The Brave One is the latest in the ever-reliable production of revenge dramas that include Death Wish, Kill Bill and Death Sentence. However, The Brave One competently manages to hold its own in this genre.

Prior to watching this film I was skeptical in regards to the film’s ability to offer something new to the popular genre. It has been done so many times before, what fresh perspective could be offered? Fortunately, my premature cynicism was wrong.

In the self-described “safest big city in the world,” radio show host Erica Bain (Jodie Foster) is walking through a tunnel in New York City with her fiancé when they are both brutally attacked. Erica barely survives, but her fiancé dies. She is totally lost in a city she once felt so safe in; so much so, she illegally obtains a gun.

Various situations in which Erica kills people are presented to the audience, each with different ethical circumstances. However, Erica is not as elusive as she thinks.

NYPD’s Detective Mercer (played by Academy Award nominee Terrance Howard) is on the case of these apparent random shootings.

The audience is treated to a cat-andmouse-type game played between Bain and Mercer; they both suspect that the other knows more then they are saying, and in this case they are both correct.

Over the past 30 years, Jodie Foster has portrayed many memorable characters. However, the character of Erica Bain could well be on par with such characters as Clarice Starling from Silence of the Lambs and Sarah Tobias from The Witness. The thing that is interesting about how Foster plays her role is the empathy that she shows for Erica’s plight. Foster expertly manages to

manipulate the audience into feeling sorry for Erica whilst at the same time not condoning her actions. This film does not scrutinize the actions of Erica, but rather the consequences of Erica’s actions.

This is an interesting film for fans of Neil Jordan as it, like his other previous films, such as The Crying Game, offers an alternative twist to the average genre. Jordan offers the audience a chance to evaluate both Erica’s and one’s own range of morality. Are the actions and scenarios in the film wrong? No. Are they right?

No. There are shades of gray, and many of them at that. This is what fans of Neil Jordan will expect and those who have not yet discovered Jordan will be pleasantly surprised.

The Brave One is essentially a thinking-man’s thriller, without flouting the conventions of a standard thriller. Aside from having you on the edge of your seat, this film will have you searching for answers

within yourself on issues ranging from vigilantism to the state of current law enforcement.

The pairing of Foster and Jordan is one of pure brilliance. On one hand, we have a brilliant avant-garde director, and on the other, you have the star power of one of the most con-

scientious and thought-provoking actresses in the industry. If you like a film that will leave you excited with your adrenaline raised to the limit that, at the same time, makes you consider issues on a wide spectrum, then The Brave One is definitely worth seeing.

Rental Essential: Rio Bravo Brian Morache

Staff Writer

The Kingdom Rules Brian Morache

Staff Writer Suicide bombers attack an American compound and a car bomb takes out part of a building. This could be just about anywhere in the world, but it happens in Saudi Arabia, otherwise known as The Kingdom. This is the beginning of the new Jamie Foxx film that blends crime drama and political intrigue with pure action.

Jamie Foxx is the leader of an FBI team sent to Saudi Arabia to investigate an attack on an American compound housing oil workers. Foxx not only has to deal with tracking down a terrorist, but also the politics and customs of a Muslim country.

Not so easy when your team is used to working in the United States and has a female team member, played skillfully by Jennifer Garner. Cultures clash as much as politics as the team tries to find the ones responsible for the deaths of over a hundred people.

In one scene, Garner’s character is

forbidden from examining Muslim victims because it is against the laws of Islam for an infidel to touch a Muslim body.

This film would be a good crime drama by itself, but the setting of Saudi Arabia puts it clearly a cut above your average crime film. The political and social conflicts only complicate the ability for Foxx’s team to do their job. Their Saudi liaison, played by Ashraf Barhoum, is caught in the middle of the political situation and his desires to not only find the killers, but to gain his revenge upon them. Justice is very different in Saudi Arabia, as he makes it very clear to Foxx that there will be no trial of these people, only death.

As FBI agent Ronald Fleury, Jamie Foxx gives a masterful performance; indeed, all the major characters do a superb job of portraying themselves as more than agents or officers. These are real people with wives, children and dear friends who live every day with the possibility of death. Their job is their passion, but

it is not the only part of their lives.

Fleury describes the best day of his life to his son’s grade school class: the day his son was born.

This film also portrays the cycle of terrorism as adults not only involve children in their plots, but also leave them with the parting legacy of “kill them all.” Quite a thing to bequeath to a child, but this is the Middle East and not the Western World.

Life is indeed very, very different in the Arab world and this film presents both sides of Middle Eastern life.

A father and son praying at the end of the day and a father sharing time with his children contrast the extreme violence that these people live with every day.

The Kingdom is a film that could just as easily be real life and in that way strikes home all the harder. It is a definite must see on the big screen, if for no other reason than to remind us that the Middle East is a very, very different world.

With the success of the remake 3:10 to Yuma, there has been a renewed interest in Westerns. Back in the 50s and 60s, the Western was king and Rio Bravo was one of the best. The film was made in 1959 and was directed by Howard Hawks, starring John Wayne as tough Town Sheriff John T. Chance; Dean Martin as a woman-wrecked recovering drunk named Dude, who is also Wayne’s deputy; young heartthrob Ricky Nelson as the new kid with a gun simply called “Colorado;” and Walter Brennan as Stumpy, an old cripple who takes care of the jail.

The trouble starts for this motley crew when the brother of the biggest rancher in the county kills a man in cold blood. Finding himself arrested for murder, Joe Burdette, played by Claude Akins, must rely on his wealthy brother to see he doesn’t hang. Bottling up the town so the sheriff can’t get any help in or get Joe out of town, the question becomes a matter of can the sheriff keep Joe in jail until the U.S. Marshall comes to take him into custody. One of the sheriff’s friends comments on his help, asking “a lame-legged old man and a drunk, that’s all you got?” Wayne optimistically replies, “That’s what I got.”

This film has all the elements of the classic Western: a simple, straightforward plot, clear-cut villains and beautiful scenery. What Rio Bravo also adds is a dash of humor and an unlikely romance between the sheriff and a female card shark, played by Angie Dickenson, named “Feathers.” The comedy is supplied not only by the main characters, but also by the talents of Pedro Gonzalez-Gonzalez as hotel

keeper Carlos Robante. At one point in the film, when Carlos and the sheriff are talking about his angry wife, Carlos proclaims, “Either she will be mad or she will be sorry. If she is mad, it will be much pleasure to make right. If she is sorry, it will be the same pleasure!” Clearly this is a man who understands women.

While the humor and romance certainly add to the story, this is a Western after all and there is plenty of action to keep things moving at a fine pace. While the shootout that brings the film to a climax might seem a predictable outcome, just how it all works out is not so predictable and is a joy to watch. Whether it’s the Sheriff’s pursuit of justice, Dude’s struggles with the bottle or Feathers’ troubling past, Rio Bravo is a film with characters that the viewer can root for.

So, if 3:10 to Yuma got you thinking about horses and cowboys again, check out Rio Bravo – especially if you want a Western that will keep your girlfriend interested. It’s a perfect blend of action, romance, comedy and the Old West.

14

Wednesday, October 3, 2007 = recommended

WEEK OF OCTOBER 4 MUSIC

10/3 and 10/7

Ratatouille

10/4

Cartel

Webster Theater / 7 p.m. / $16.50

Cartel sees themselves as minstrels of their day, offering songs about life and love that have always captured the human soul. Issuing a challenge to their cohorts, Will Pugh calls out “pop punk today isn’t going anywhere--let’s make some moves.” With their new album Chroma, Cartel definitely makes some big moves in the right direction.

Opening Bands: Weatherbox, The Honorary Title

Davidson Hall / 8 p.m. / FREE In Ratatouille, a rat named Remy dreams of becoming a great chef despite his family’s wishes and the obvious problem of being a rat in a decidedly rodent-phobic profession. When fate places Remy in the city of Paris, he finds himself ideally situated beneath a restaurant made famous by his culinary hero, Auguste Gusteau. Despite the apparent dangers of being an unwanted visitor in the kitchen at one of Paris’ most exclusive restaurants, Remy forms an unlikely partnership with Linguini, the garbage boy, who inadvertently discovers Remy’s amazing talents.

10/4

Exposure

10/5

State Radio

Webster Theater / 7 p.m. / $15 A Boston-based trio led by singer and primary songwriter Chad Urmston, formerly of Vermont jamsters Dispatch, State Radio largely manages to avoid the usual post-Phish clichés, injecting a punk-influenced sound and politically charged lyrical viewpoint while staying true to the tenets of their chosen style.

Opening Band: The Beautiful Girls 10/7

Until 12/30

FILM

Gogol Bordello

Toad’s Place / 8 p.m. / $18 “Gogol Bordello is going to conquer the world,” boasts Eugene Hutz, Gogol bandleader and agent provocateur. “Everything on the album is taken to the next level. It’s more direct, more abstract, more focused, with more dark humor. The dub parts are deeper; the fast parts are faster, its pure orgasmo hysteria.”

Opening Band: Dub Trio 10/8

Municipal Waste

Trinity on Main / 7 p.m. / $10 Born in the sewers of Richmond, Virginia during 2000, with the aim of spreading the shred, Municipal Waste played their first gig at a Richmond New Year’s Eve Keg party in 2000/2001. Blamed for inciting a small riot, Brendan Trache, Andy Harris, Tony Foresta and Ryan Waste went down a storm. As a result, the four swiftly started touring in small clubs; their blazing fast, raw thrash drew from the tradition of DRI, Suicidal Tendencies, ‘Animosity’-era Corrosion Of Conformity, Nuclear Assault and Attitude Adjustment.

Opening Bands: Skeletonwitch, Toxic Holocaust

Cinestudio / 7:30 p.m. / $6 Cinestudio presents a special, one-night screening of a new film by local filmmaker Patrice Hamilton. It is a portrait of an American neighborhood where people struggle with the idea that life is movement. When a tragedy occurs in the neighborhood, the characters in this ensemble film are forced to acknowledge what challenges they are trying to escape or overcome. Come out and support local filmmaking, now on the rise in Connecticut.

10/5

Strange Culture

Real Art Ways / $6.25 The surreal nightmare of internationally-acclaimed artist and Professor Steve Kurtz began when his wife, Hope, died in her sleep of heart failure. Medics arrived, became suspicious of Kurtz’s art, and called the FBI. Within hours the artist was detained as a suspected “bioterrorist,” as dozens of agents in Hazmat suits sifted through his work and impounded his computers, manuscripts, books, cat and even his wife’s body.

again: serial practices in contemporary art

Wadsworth Atheneum / $5 w/ Student ID again: serial practices in contemporary art features work by 15 artists drawn from a gift of 125 photographs to the Atheneum from collector Mickey Cartin, together with works from The Cartin Collection. Works from On Kawara, Ed Ruscha, Hans-Peter Feldman and Jonathan Monk anchor the central premise of again by looking at serial processes as they are articulated across media, culture and the last 35 years of contemporary art.

Wallingford American Legion / 6 p.m. / $8

The Borinqueneers

10/5, 10/6, 10/12, 10/13

Extremities

10/17-10/20

THEATRE Hole in the Wall Theater / 8 p.m.

Extremities by William Mastrosimone is a searing look at how a woman confronted by a rapist turns the tables on him and faces the violence in herself. Turned into a successful film in the early 1980s, Mastrosimone’s drama explores the chilling boundaries of truth and violence.

This play is a visceral examination of the primal human forces within us all. How far would you go?

Now until 10/14

Driving Miss Daisy

Theater Works / $35-$45 TheaterWorks celebrates the 20th Anniversary of the Pulitzer Prize-winning classic that was adapted into the beloved Academy Awardwinning film. After she crashes her car, Daisy Werthan’s son gets her a new Oldsmobile... and a driver. Resolutely opposed to the idea, the strong-willed Daisy refuses to warm up to the affable Hoke, her new chauffeur. Over the course of 25 years, a surprising kinship develops between the Jewish schoolteacher and the African-American man hired to drive Miss Daisy.

The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters

Cinestudio / 7:30 p.m. / $7

When the history of the video-gaming wars is told, the rivalry between Donkey Kong champions Billy Mitchell and Steve Wiebe will be required reading or downloading (or whatever).

Back in the early 1980s, while Ronald Reagan was busy scaring the pants off the rest of the world, Billy Mitchell ruled the arcade universe after setting a seemingly unbeatable record of 874,300 points for Donkey Kong.

10/17 & 10/21

Transformers

Torp Theater / 8 p.m. / FREE

WEEK OF OCTOBER 11

10/10 and 10/14

I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry

Vance Lawn / 8 p.m. / FREE Adam Sandler (Click) and Kevin James (Hitch) team as two straight guys who stumble down the aisle with the best of intentions in I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. Chuck Ford (Sandler) and Larry Allensworth (James) are the pride of their fire station: two guy’s guys always side-by-side and willing to do anything for each other. Salt-of-the-earth widower Larry wants just one thing: to protect his family. His buddy Chuck also wants one thing: to enjoy the single life.

MUSIC 10/17

RJD2

Toad’s Place / 8 p.m. / $20

ART

STSTRAVEL.COM

Art Faculty Exhibition 2007

Join America’s #1 Student Tour Operator

Chen Gallery, Maloney Hall 1-4 p.m. Mon-Fri Until 10/21

For the Love of the Game, Race and Sport in America

Wadsworth Atheneum / 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

“For the Love of the Game” juxtaposes The Amistad Center’s collection with the work of more than twenty artists who have addressed sport as medium and metaphor. The joy of athletic endeavors and their mass appeal as spectacles is acknowledged along with the turbulent and emotional elements of race, class and identity. Stop for some brief gallery talk with exhibition curator Franklin Sirmans on September 21 at 12 p.m.

A long time ago, far away on the planet of Cybertron, a war was being waged between the noble Autobots (led by the wise Optimus Prime) and the devious Decepticons (commanded by the dreaded Megatron) for control over the Allspark, a mystical talisman that would grant unlimited power to whoever possessed it. The Autobots managed to smuggle the Allspark off the planet, but Megatron blasted off in search of it.

He eventually tracked it to the planet of Earth (circa 1850), but his reckless desire for power sent him right into the Arctic Ocean, and the sheer cold forced him into a paralyzed state.

Did we miss something?

Know of an event we should list here?

Contact us at ccsurecorder@gmail.com.

Until 10/11

Formed in November of 2003 by singer/guitarist Ryan Patterson, Coliseum fully embraced punk rock and hardcore’s DIY ethos from the start. The band recorded their first album on an eight track reel to reel in a Louisville garage mere months after their first practices. This self-titled album saw its release in the Summer of 2004 on Level Plane Records and was a raw and primal initial statement of intent, blending early punk, d-beat and hints of crusty hardcore.

Opening Band: Robots and Empire

10/11 Cinestudio / 7:30 p.m. / $7 After noticing that Latino soldiers were “missing in action” in movies like Saving Private Ryan, directors Noemi Figueroa Soulet and Raquel Ortiz dedicated eight years of their lives to the making of a film that would honor the never-before-told story of the Puerto Rican 65th Infantry Regiment, the only all-Hispanic unit in the history of the U.S. Army. Their film explores the fascinating stories of courage, discrimination and controversy of the men of the 65th, through rare archival materials and compelling interviews with veterans, commanding officers and historians.

10/10

Coliseum

FILM

RJD2 originally began his career in Columbus, Ohio, DJing in 1993 with a pair of turntables bought from a friend. He went to high school at Fort Hayes School of the Arts and graduated in 1994. He claims his name originates from another friend who referenced him as “RJD2” in his raps, and the name stuck. Originally working the role of DJ in the Columbus rap group MHz, he later signed to Bobbito Garcia’s Fondle ‘Em label, releasing the self-proclaimed “mix CD” Your Face or Your Kneecaps.

Opening Band: Elevated Thoughts

CANCUN, ACAPULCO, JAMAICA, BAHAMAS, PUERTO VALLARTA, SOUTH PADRE, FLORIDA, CRUISES Sell Trips, Earn Cash & Travel Free

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1-800-648-4849 www.ststravel.com

Lifestyles

15

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Underground Shopping in Boston NYC Flea Market Caters to Full-Figured LGBTers greg trelski

the Campus lantern (eCsU)

Finding a great boutique is not the easiest thing to do these days, sometimes even finding the entrance requires being on “the in.” Last week I took the Greyhound bus to Boston to get some crucial shopping done.

Along with hitting up my favorite shops, I paid a much needed visit to one of the hottest underground stores, the secretive Bodega. Don’t bother looking for a sign on the building-front; this is not a store for mere shoppers.

Located next to the Christian Science Reading Room is a little corner store, or what you might call a bodega. The customary cans of cat food, chips, deodorant and all other things that might be expected to be in a shop that served as a front for a drug operation, are all found on the walls.

The Kid Dynamite posters next to missing cat flyers might raise a few suspicions over what’s inside.

Speaking with the person behind the counter is the most important step in the process of accessing Bodega.

“Yo man, I’m here for the goods.”

Expect for the person to pretend like they have no clue what you’re referencing, and just respond with something like, “Quit bullshittin’ me

man.” With a push of a button, the Snapple machine you thought would steal your dollar turns out to be the doorway to the coolest shopping experience in The Northeast.

As you step in to what could easily be one of the hottest night spots around (or a gate to a different dimension) the dark wood flooring leads to a DJ spinning in the checkout booth, high-class Nikes exhibited in an art gallery sort of way, and probably the coolest store you have ever been in.

All of these clandestine operations are to keep the highly prized and collectible Nikes in the hands of people who truly appreciate them -what I call Sneaker heads.

This secretive sneaker galley carries kicks ranging from $100$2,000, with some editions limited to 50 worldwide. There’s also an assortment of fly clothes on the rack and other pimp gear. Even with the spy game feel of the store, the best part is they always stock up to size 15.

A short ride on the T (Boston’s form of the subway) brings you to my favorite boutique in Boston, Proletariat. Its location is technically Cambridge, Mass., right in Harvard Square. Inside the huge building marked as The Garage, is one of the best stores for vintage clothing, street art clothing, skateboards and graffiti supplies.

Seeing a hipster wear the same piece of “unique clothing” from Urban Outfitters as you take a ride on T can be really annoying. Thankfully, all of the items produced at Proletariat are limited to runs of 250 or less and then discontinued. Their shirts should be viewed more as labors of love, or a piece of art that just happens to be printed on really comfortable clothing from American Apparel. Twenty dollars will buy you a limited shirt that will surely become your favorite, with pieces such as “America” – Lady Liberty with a Handgun, and “Mac Attack” – Iwo Jima soldiers raising the Golden Arches.

This clothing line is sure to become collectible. Most importantly, the same friendly faces will always be there to greet you as you starve back for more. After two years and numerous improvements to the shop, the same person has always been behind the counter.

Whether you’re looking to get a thrill out of your shopping experience, or just looking for some great pieces of clothing, the Boston underground scene can accommodate you. Bodega is located at 6 Clearway St. in Boston, with no known phone number, (www. bdgastore.com). Proletariat is located at 36 JFK St. #2, Cambridge, Mass., (617) 661-3865, (www.arevolt.com).

CCSU Hillel

Continued from page 1 is inviting with multi-colored lights illuminating its interior.

Dave Levine, CCSU Hillel Vice President, also wants to spread Jewish awareness. Levine is a history major focusing on the Middle East.

Although there is not a Jewish awareness month, Levine hopes to spread it through things like Facebook, which students frequent often. He wants to “make everyone aware of each other.”

Levine, a reformed Jew, said he is in touch with many Rabbis throughout the community who help Hillel students with their “mission” of “bringing all the Jews out.” Although he has always been in touch with his religion, he has done much more with it being in college.

“People are more open when we get to college,” said Levine. “It is like our own community. It is more laid back.”

During the question and answer “free-for-all,” as Rabbi Marshall Press called it, students and others were invited to ask whatever they wanted.

A female Hillel student asked if God could be a woman. Rabbi Jeff Glickman responded “absolutely.”

Halpern asked why Jewish people could not have tattoos. Other questions were asked concerning Yom

Stephanie Bergeron / The Recorder CCSU students enjoy kosher food outside of Memorial Hall inside a sukkah.

Kippur and what exactly kosher food meant.

Rabbi Press explained that “kosher food is food that is spelt out in the Torah, in the Five Books of Moses, that is acceptable for Jews to eat - traditional Jews.”

Rabbi Press went on to explain what foods were acceptable, and that dietary laws are not there for health reasons. The explanation he finds most logical and most meaningful is that “if a person can control what goes in here (pointing to mouth), then that individual will have control over what goes in here (pointing to ear).”

Students not only shared a ko-

sher meal, but also in Jewish song, culture and traditions. Knowledge was passed, as well as laughter and welcoming smiles.

Their sukkah will be set up until this coming Sunday. There will be a dinner tomorrow night, and Friday they will have traditional Jewish foods that are free for anyone to try. Hillel welcomes not only Jewish students, but all students alike. Currently they have a Catholic student who is part of their club. For more information please visit http://clubs. ccsu.edu/hillel/.

Hyein lee

Washington square news (nyU) (U-WIRE) - “I didn’t think these pants would fit around my ass, but they did!” a happy customer said with a laugh, as she sported a pair of flashy pink camouflage pants as she twirled on the spot.

“They look great on you,” an onlooker volunteered.

Mounds of green, pink, striped and floral fabrics sat under signs labeled from L-XL to 6XL, and plussized women rummaged to their heart’s content at New York’s Fat Girl Flea Market, held Saturday at the LGBT Community Center on West 13th Street.

“I love it,” said Rona Mensah, who trekked from Maryland with an empty suitcase ready for the shopping spree. “It’s the best thing to see women of size gathered in one place, being confident, and it’s awesome that we can all shop like this.”

Mensah was attending her third flea market this year, and many of the other shoppers became avid fans after hearing about the event through word of mouth.

“My friend heard about it, so a group of us came up from Boston for a weekend,” said Robin Matthews, who fell in love with the event three years ago. “It was life-changing to be in a place where plus-size women were all together, and I think it’s important that everyone loves their body.”

Matthews has since become a volunteer for the event who helps coordinate with other volunteers.

The Fat Girl Flea Market was inspired by Deb Malkin, who, as a plus-sized woman working in the fashion industry, wanted a place where larger women could have fun sifting through clothes of their size.

The market raises money for a yearly conference run by Nolose -- a volunteer-run organization, formerly known as the National Organization for Lesbians of Size, that strives to build acceptance for fat queer culture.

“People who want to donate clothes can give us a call, and we will send a pickup truck to take their clothes,” said Leah Strock, a nurse practitioner and member of Nolose volunteering at the event. “We also call manufacturers to buy their overstock.”

Although it has never officially been named an annual event, the Fat Girl Flea Market has been held each

year since 2002. All clothing is donated by people across the country or bought from clothing manufacturers. Flea market representatives, stationed in cities around the East Coast, function as drop-off points for donations.

Most clothing is priced around $5 to $10; an $8 entrance fee grants access for the day. All proceeds -including the sale of $1 raffle tickets -- go toward funding the Nolose conference.

“The all-day access is great, because it allows people to go in and out as they please,” Strock said.

“Most people like to go out for a snack and come back.”

Over the past few years, the Fat Girl Flea Market has developed a kind of growing cult following.

“It is totally amazing,” Strock said. “There’s nothing like it in the world, and of this magnitude, too.”

This year, a line formed outside of the event an hour and a half before doors opened, and for the first time, volunteers were assigned to crowd control.

“I know that there are smaller events like this springing up elsewhere now,” Matthews said. “And this one keeps getting bigger and bigger.” With the ever-expanding number of followers, returning shoppers and volunteers are beginning to notice a community developing.”

“It is definitely becoming more social and more about the gathering of people,” Matthews said.

“You don’t have to weigh a certain amount, or be a certain kind of person to work with us,” she added.

“We promote body positively, and that’s what matters the most -- it doesn’t matter how fat or skinny you are.”

16

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Shawn Ingraham

Staff Writer

Stephanie Bergeron / The Recorder

Karyn Danforth

Staff Writer You’re going to see your favorite artist, and to your dismay, it’s canceled due to Mr./Mrs. Popstar coming down with the sickness (disturbed reference aside). While it could be a real or fake reason, (Is too much partying in the tour bus legitimate?) you’re pissed, your money went down the hole and even worse, the chick/dude you were going to take just isn’t interested anymore. If only you went to a real concert with an amazing musician, this wouldn’t have been a problem.

The beautiful, graceful figure that is Regina Spektor stood before an inspired, awed audience last Wednesday night in the Jorgensen Center at the University of Connecticut. It was not until a half hour into the show that she publicized her sickness, she had come down with a cold. Most probably had not noticed; I hadn’t, I was too busy revelling in her powerful and completely onkey vocals, trademark boom boxing and compelling over-articulation of words that Spektor has become well-known for. To top it off, Spektor was stunning in a cute little ensemble; her curly locks draped over her shoulders. If you were writing an ad-lib for Regina Spektor and needed a noun, vixen and fox are just a few that would have fit perfectly. Every girl in the audience would have

killed to be her, let alone meet her, and the bro-dude sitting to the right of me showed more attentiveness to Spektor rather than to his own girlfriend.

Rewinding to the beginning, Spektor began the evening with an a cappella ditty titled “Ain’t No Cover,” about a woman who loves her husband, who is “eight miles high” on drugs, but she loves him regardless. Spektor made a beat by patting her hand on the microphone during this performance, and it was simply unique.

Another non-piano song was “Bobbing For Apples,” to which Spektor adorned a shiny metallic blue guitar. Although it was set to only one chord, the simplicity is what makes her shine in everyone’s eyes. When she sang the line “someone next door is fucking to one of my songs,” the audience laughed heartily.

Regina Spektor’s lyrics can be comedic, adorable and can leave you exclaiming, “I never would have thought to put that in a song.” During “Music Box,” I giggled when she sang about floating bottle caps in dishwater and how it was the “greatest voyage in the history of plastic.”

One song I was unfamiliar with was “Baby Jesus,” and while playing the grand piano with a fast vigour and a crazy look in her eye, Spektor rapidly fired off verses about a statue of baby Jesus that was in a window of a 99 cent store.

Tired of going to the same chain restaurants with boring menus? Looking for a restaurant that is welcoming to large groups, and doesn’t rush you in and out in under an hourand-a-half? If so, East Side Restaurant, located at 131 Dwight Street in New Britain is for you.

At East Side, you can experience German culture and only have to travel 10 minutes away from the CCSU campus.

The menu features a wide verity of both American and German foods. The American menu features seafood—with 24-hour notice for lobster—ribs, steak, chicken and turkey.

However, if you’re looking for the true East Side experience, the German menu is a must.

Never tried knockwurst, bratwurst, goulash or schnitzel? This is the place to give your taste buds a new experience. If you fall in love with their schnitzel, be sure to try all the varieties they offer. If you’re not part of the meat-eating population, just ask your server what vegetarian dishes they serve. Sides include your choice of potatoes, including potato pancakes, and vegetables which are served family style.

When planning a night at East Side, make sure you allow yourself plenty of time because all of the dinners are five course meals. The first course is simple: crackers with horseradish and coleslaw. The second and third courses are soup and salad - their Barley soup is a great choice. The fourth course is the main course, and then comes dessert. The desserts are com-

plimentary with your meal, although there are some that cost a little extra.

East Side not only portrays Germany’s culture through food, but it also features great music and German beers. Year-round East Side’s own accordion player performs Thursday through Sunday and Wednesdays during the month of October. He plays traditional Eastern European tunes, as well as American pop favorites. So, if you feel like singing and don’t know any German songs, feel free to request “Piano Man” or the theme song to SpongeBob SquarePants. Yes, he knows both of them.

Don’t ask for Budweiser or Coors while at East Side because they won’t have any. What they will have is a wide variety of draft beers brewed in Munich, Warstein, Cologne and other parts of Germany. The beers are served in litersize steins - they’re a meal on their own. When they are brought to you, the server yells “Ticki!

Tocki! Ticki! Tocki!” and everyone raises their beers and responds “Oy! Oy! Oy!” while the server slams it on the table in front of you. If you’re still feeling brave, ask for an after-dinner schnapps to help wash down your dessert.

Even though the restaurant is a little pricy, it is definitely worth it. You get plenty for what you pay, and it’s a great escape from the predictable, mundane restaurants we’re used to like Chili’s and Ruby Tuesdays, which are basically the same restaurant with the same repetitive menu and atmosphere.

So, branch out. Make life a little more interesting and give East Side Restaurant a try.

For more information you can visit their website at eastsiderestaurant.com.

Conrad Akier / The Recorder Spektor played most of her latest album, Fidelity, while mixing it up with a couple oldies from Soviet Kitsch. The best performance of the night was “20 Years Of Snow.” It is by far the most captivating, melodic ballad Spektor has written; she breathes life into this piece when performed.

In a brief intermission between songs, Spektor jokingly requested the school’s podium so that she could feel like a speaker at an important

school function. After a remarkable encore of 3-4 songs, to Spektor’s delight, a few good men brought out the UConn podium. Puzzled as of what to do next, she asked the audience, “What happens during one of these things?” The audience replied with the famous “UCONN! HUSKIES!” chant. This moment? Priceless. The opening act, one boy that went by the name Only Son, came out and joined Spektor at the podium. As he beat boxed into the microphone, Spektor

sang the final song. The best experience of my life came to a marvellous bittersweet ending.

I tried my hardest to leave nothing out about this concert, of course, that would leave nothing to be experienced. “Caution: Spoiler Alert!” should have been in the first sentence, but like a book with a surprising ending, you can’t take someone else’s word for it; dive in and find out yourself by seeing Regina Spektor the first chance you get.