vol105issue06

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

http://clubs.ccsu.edu/recorder/

Volume 105 No. 6

Sports

CCSU Hockey Season Opener Pg.8

Entertainment

Rock Band 2 Pg.11

News

Strides Against Breast Cancer Pg.2

University President Refuses Amethyst Initiative Amanda Ciccatelli News Editor

Central’s Next Top Model

College presidents have signed the Amethyst Initiative, a proposal in favor of reassessing the legal drinking age, across the United States, however the CCSU university president has declined to give his stance and has abstained from signing the document.

The proposal to re-assess the legal drinking age of 21 in hopes to lower the legal age back to 18 years old is backed by a group of 130 college presidents. They’d like to research exactly how the rules should be changed in order to lower the legal drinking age in the U.S. and develop a way to educate college students how to drink responsibly.

Seven Connecticut college presidents who have signed the pro-

Amanda Ciccatelli News Editor

Design Club at CCSU is preparing for their second annual winter fashion show. Model Auditions were held on Monday, September 29th and October 6th to recruit seven female models and three male models for a total of ten models for their upcoming fashion show.

After the craziness of last year’s fashion show, design club member Filip Berdek explained that this year the club members had to make to changes and drastically cut down on the number of models walking on the fashion show runway. According to Berdek, “Last year was crazy, there were so many models.”

The theme of this December’s fashion show will be Winter Doll House characterized with sweets and candy of the holiday season according to the design club members.

“Think Candy land,” said Berdek.

“Very colorful,” he said.

As for the costumes, design club member Kristin DeCapua will be doing most of the sewing and creating of the outfits for all the models.

DeCapua and Harvey will work together to create styles and outfits for models to wear by sketching, DeCapua will do all the sewing herself. “This year we are also having more local designers, either from different schools or around here, in our show, and also sponsors from popular stores,” said Harvey.

“The clothes this year are going to be playing off of the doll theme, so puffy dresses, pinks, blacks, pretty much all colors, ribbons & bows and fun, bright, youthful looks,” she explained. Harvey explained that the

posal include those of the University of Hartford, of Fairfield University, Goodwin College, Mitchell College, Saint Joseph College, Trinity College and University of New Haven.

President Jack Miller of CCSU has not signed the proposal to lower the legal drinking age. Miller said he does not know enough about the subject to have the responsibility of signing a statement like the one proposed.

As the president of a university, Miller wants to be confident in knowing that lowering the drinking age to 18 would be beneficial for students and to ensure their safety on and off campus.

“I don’t know whether people would drink more or less if the drinking age is lower or higher,” Miller said.

Some argue that passing the Amethyst Initiative is a mistake and See Drinking Age Page 3

female models will be dressed in puffy dresses and other styles like pants and T-shirts, while the male models will have a modern, soldier look with a military style jacket that resembles a nutcracker to go along with the holiday theme. Harvey envisions the male models to resemble toy soldiers, or nutcrackers wearing a “structured military jacket.”

The design clubs auditions took place in the Sprague Room of the student center where the Design Club President Tamika Harvey instructed potential models to walk up and down the room twice as if they were walking on the runway along with upbeat music in the back round.

There were some specific rules that Harvey and the rest of the club members clearly stated to each model.

“They must bring their heels, they walk, pose and we then make a choice,” Harvey said.

Once the models finished their audition, Harvey listed the rules that See Top Model Page 3

Study Shows Women, Minorities Take Longer to Earn Doctorate Degree Shivani Alamo

The Oracle University of South Florida

(U-WIRE) Women and minorities typically have to wait a while longer than their white, male counterparts before adding “Ph.D.” to their names.

A report by the Council of Graduate Schools stated that 25 percent of women nationwide completed their doctoral degrees sometime after their seventh year and before their 10th, compared to 18 percent of males who finished in seven to 10 years.

The University of South Florida follows this trend, with women and minorities taking five to eight years to earn their doctorates. Meanwhile, the university’s average for all students is six to seven years.

According to a seven-year study of

graduate students who started their school year at USF in 1996, about 47 percent of males graduated within seven years while about 36 percent of females graduated in the same time frame, said Debbie Hayward, an employee in the Office of Decision Support.

A USF administrator credits this disparity to outside factors, such as raising a family and dealing with difficult economic situations.

Many women pursuing their doctorates are starting families and having to juggle academic and domestic demands, said Joan Homes, dean of the Graduate School.

“Women usually have to accommodate for their families, children and work while enrolled in school,” she said.

Though women take five to eight years to earn their doctorates, there are more women enrolled in the

school than men. For every white male, there are two white females.

For every black man, there are three black women and for every Hispanic male, there are four Hispanic females.

Not all women, however, take longer than five years. Chivon Mingo, 28, is getting her doctorate in aging studies and is on a five-year track to her degree. She is beginning her fourth year and is on track to earn her doctorate in the planned five.

“I did not come from a family of degrees, so the mentorship benefit with the fellowship program truly allowed me to complete my degree on time. Without it, it would have been more difficult, if not impossible,” she said. “The amount of information I have learned in the past four years, I wouldn’t have been able to attain any other way.”

See Doctorate Degrees Page 2

2

News

THE RECORDER Wednesday, October 8, 2008

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 Melissa Traynor managing editor Peter Collin Art director Geoffrey Lewis Associate layout editor Edward Gaug Copy editor Aril Grain entertainment editor Nick Viccione lifestyles editor Jane Natoli news Amanda Ciccatelli Sports editor Kyle Dorau Opinion editor Marissa Blaszko editor-at-large Karyn Danforth Web editor John Vignali illustrator Stefano Delli Carpini

Staff

Brad Cooper Ryan Yeomans Sarah Bogues Mallory Costa Caroline Dearborn Lindsay LeFort Steve Packnick Jeanne Bujalski Misbah Akbar P.J. Decoteau Sean Fenwick Michael Walsh Shauna Simeone Gabrielle Pierce Mike D’Avino Doug Duhaime Colette Gallacher Ryan Robinson

About

The Recorder is a studentproduced 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.

Hartford is Making Strides Against Breast Cancer kARyn dAnFORtH editor-at-large

Three thousand volunteers from businesses or area residents congregated in Bushnell Park this past Sunday, braving the early morning’s chilly, wet conditions to celebrate survivors and walk against breast cancer.

The American Cancer Society’s Making Strides is a noncompetitive walk to raise awareness and funding to fight cancer. Sunday’s walk raised $400,000.

The walk averages a distance of three to five miles, and in its 15th year at Hartford, individuals walked around the outskirts of the Bushnell, filling the inside grounds with tents tailored to different events where art-

ists and bands played motivational songs.

At the stroke of 9 a.m. an opening ceremony was conducted and the walk commenced. While the drizzle turned into a downpour, groups clad in light pink memorabilia marched onward with umbrellas, flashing enthusiastic smiles and screaming encouragements to each other.

Cancer survivors wore pink beauty pageant-styled sashes with “survivor” displayed in bold. Most survivors had their entire families in tow.

CCSU’s own cheerleading squad attended the event and supported the cause while they trekked across the trail with the Capital building residing behind them.

Volunteers painted faces at a children’s activity tent, set up by co-

Doctorate Degrees Continued from page 1 Minorities also take five to eight years to earn their doctorates, and Holmes said that a culture shock sometimes causes these students to fall behind prematurely.

“Some minority students have to go through a cultural adaptation, where it is more difficult to acclimate to the [graduate school] environment,” she said.

Clausell Mathis, 27, pursuing a doctorate in physics, is one of the few black students in his field.

“I can feel somewhat out of my comfort zone at times because you don’t see many people like yourself, but there are good people within the department who will support you and get you on track to the finish line,” he said.

Economic and social circumstances are also big factors in the time it takes students to complete their degrees.

“After the fifth year of graduate school, funding tends to diminish,” Holmes said. “A lot of the minority students who are first-generation graduates don’t have the financial support from their families and must work, which prolongs their studies beyond seven years.”

USF’s Graduate School, however, has a higher-than-normal enrollment rate for minorities, Holmes said. Of the 8,968 students enrolled, 9 percent are black, 8.5 percent are

Hispanic and 5 percent are Asian, which exceeds the national average of 5 to 6 percent minority enrollment in graduate school.

Among the various populations examined by the report, international students seemed most adept at completing their doctorates quickly.

More than two-thirds of those who entered doctoral programs earned their doctorates within 10 years, and they were half as likely as domestic students to need more than seven years to finish.

At USF, however, Holmes said it’s difficult to compare international students to domestic students.

“A lot of international students are sponsored by their countries, allowing them to study for a period of time,” she said. “And some are simply trying to get back to their countries to return to their lives and because of these factors, the time taken to earn a degree is much faster.”

The council’s research also states that 60 percent of those who entered doctoral programs in the life sciences earned their doctorates within 10 years, leaving them tied with white doctoral students in this area. In other fields, however, black students fared much worse. In engineering, mathematics and physical sciences, they were substantially less likely than white, Asian or Hispanic candidates to complete their doctor-

ordinator Sue Papallo, and handed out novelties such as play dough and coloring books. CCSU student, and Papallo’s daughter, Danielle, volunteered.

The popular emblem to be painted on the walkers’ faces was the pink ribbon to symbolize breast cancer awareness.

According to the American Cancer Society, a breast cancer diagnosis is expected for 2,640 Connecticut residents this year and of that number, 480 women will lose their lives to the disease. Donations from the Making Strides walks help fund essential research and improved screening and treatment options.

Breast cancer advocacy has had a considerable success, lobbying Congress and state legislatures for millions of dollars to fund an early

detection program administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The program helps uninsured, low-income women who would otherwise be unable to get the treatment needed.

Papallo is hopeful that a Making Strides walk will be organized and held at and around the CCSU campus.

“I’m currently working with others to make it happen,” she said.

“It would be really amazing.”

Those interested in seeing a Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk happen on campus, should contact Papallo at susan.papallo@cancer.org.

ates within 10 years, according to the report.

“Women are grossly underrepresented, along with minorities, in the math, physics and science departments,” Holmes said.

Fields of study such as education, life sciences and social sciences have the highest proportion of enrolled minority students.

“The reason that minority students do so well in those disciplines

of education, life (science) and social science is because of the higher percentage of minorities within those fields,” she said.

The Council of Graduate Schools’ report was based on a study of 19,000 students from 24 universities in the U.S. and Canada.

CCSU Police Department’s Adult Arrest/Citation Log Nicholas Deaky, 20, of Trumbull, Conn. was charged with possession of alcohol by a minor on a public street on Wednesday, Oct. 1. Deaky has an Oct. 10 court date.

Vincent W. Morcaldi, 18, of Hamden was charged with use and possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a controlled substance or less than 4 oz. of marijuana on Sunday, Sept 28. Morcaldi is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 10.

Mihir J. Patel, 21, of Glastonbury, was charged with permitting a minor to possess alcohol on Wednesday, Oct.1. Patel has an Oct. 10 court date.

Benjamin G. Solari, 18, was charged with failure to carry registration/insurance ID card, failure to obey a control signal and Possession of a controlled substance or less than 4 oz. of marijuana. Solari has an Oct. 10 court date.

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 8, 2008 / NEWS

Top Model Continued from page 1

each model had to follow if they were chosen for the fashion show. She explained that models are not aloud to bring anyone to practice with them on Mondays, they must always bring heels to practice, and a model cannot choose what he/ she is wearing for the show. Most importantly, she said, “I you miss three practices you will be cut from the show.”

“I feel like as a president I ran things sort of backward. Our first show we aimed for a really big production instead of doing something smaller and then going to something bigger,” said Harvey. After the design club’s first fashion show, the club found that they did not plan specifically and the show was unorganized. Last year’s fashion show consisted of 25 models ,which burdened the club members with a lot of extra work that they were not expecting. “This year I feel as a president and as a club we have

Drinking Age Continued from page 1

Christie Leverette poses during her audition for the fashion show.

Edward Gaug / The Recorder

would ultimately cause more alcohol-related deaths among youth ages 18 to 21.

According the University of Michigan’s annual “Monitoring the Future” study, an 18year-old’s behavior has showed a 14 percent decline in drinking since 1991, while the percent of 16-year-olds who drink has decline by 23 percent.

A press release was sent out on Friday, Oct. 3 stating that a large party occurred on Stanley Street where most of the partygoers were under the legal drinking age.

“The New Britain Police Department has been proactively attempting to address the underage drinking problem around the area of CCSU due to the fact that the area has been the source of numerous alcohol related crimes,” the release stated. Officers counted 36 out of 48 students who were under the legal drinking age of 21.

Vice President of Student Affairs Laura Tordenti is on the same page as Miller and has developed a stance through her experience with a younger legal drinking age. “I am not in support of lowering the drinking age. It was 18 when I went to college, but it is just a different ball game now,” she said.

Ever since the other seven Connecticut college presidents have been in the news for signing the Amethyst Initiative, the CCSU community has been curious what Miller’s views are on the subject. According to Miller, he received a letter about six months ago asking him if he would be interested in supporting lowering the legal drinking age.

3 learned what to do and what not to do,” Harvey said. She and the club collectively decided to plan a smaller show because it would be easier for them to handle.

Harvey and the design club want to focus on timing for weekly practices and make sure all the models know exactly what to do, their order or walking, what they are wearing and the song they will walk to. “We are having some choreography here and there so we will be teaching them that as well,” she said. The club will be holding weekly practices through the date of the show, Saturday, December 5th for models and design club members every Monday night from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Nine models were chosen after holding two auditions for recruitment. The models who will be showing off Central’s design club fashions are Laurie Viviian, Larry Wooten, Valerie Drinkova, Marc Brown, Ruth Sarfo, Alexandria Dowdy, Christie Leverette, Xuemei Li, and Portia Oware.

Miller explained that he receives letters every week that ask him to sign on to some cause or change.

“Unless there is something I want to make a real commitment to and know the back round, I don’t sign them,” he said.

When the drinking age was 18 years of age Central had a place in the Student Center where students could buy beer, Miller said. Miller looked into the situation more deeply and found that it was simply because the bar on campus lost business.

“From what I have been told, it was not a decision on the part of the university to do away with that, not on some anti-drinking moral grounds; it was like any other establishment that went out of business because there were no customers,” he explained.

When the drinking age law changed from 18 to 21, “it wasn’t like the university said, ‘well it’s wrong for students to drink on campus.’

Instead, they lost all of their customers,” Miller said.

Students who lived off-campus went somewhere else to buy alcohol or go to bars, instead of coming back to the CCSU campus, while the majority of students who lived in residence halls were and still are between 18 and 21.

Discussions with the community surrounding CCSU’s drinking history have been evoked in the past when area residents cited the on-campus bar’s closure as the reason for more student drinking on their property.

Miller pointed out that certain people of age can still legally drink within the legal boundaries of Central under special circumstances, such as alumni and faculty events. “But if you are under 21 you cannot drink,” he said.

Looking into the future of a possible lowered drinking age Miller suggested that a bar is far from reality.

4 THE RECORDER Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Editorial

Editorial/Opinion

The college presidents’ action proposal, the Amethyst Initiative, hasn’t gotten as much attention as the 130 co-signing presidents probably would have liked. Although it deals directly with lowering the legal drinking age to 18 years old, it has hardly been a topic on the minds of CCSU students.

A lowered legal drinking age would, of course, mean that the majority of Central students could legally – and more importantly, conveniently – buy alcohol. But this doesn’t necessarily mean that the school’s president, Jack Miller, voted against the interest of students.

The fact is, lowering the legal age to 18 wouldn’t be as simple as repealing a number of other laws. It

Letter to the Editor Thank you so much for publishing an article in memory of Brian O’Connell.

We have actually started the Brian O’Connell Fund and are just short of endowing a scholarship and lecture series here at CCSU to leave a lasting legacy.

Donations are appreciated to support the Brian O’ Connell Fund to provide for future “CCSU Lecture Series and Student Scholarships” in memory of Brian.

Please mail your donations to: CCSU Foundation, Inc., Brian O’ Connell Fund, PO Box 612, New Britain, CT 06050-9921 or online donations can be made by logging onto: www.ccsu.edu/ BrianOConnell.

For more information about the Brian O’Connell Fund, please contact Laura V. Marchese: 860-8322554 or email: marcheselav@ccsu. edu.

Thank you!

Laura V. Marchese, BS-ED’86 Major Gifts Officer Central Connecticut State University

would most likely alter the way everything surrounding drinking is handled, from DUIs to selling alcohol to minors.

Theories exist that claim the number of over doses would go down, that the number of parties would shrink, and that the roads would be safer.

But in the April 22, 1982 issue of The Central Recorder, editors Brian Miner and Tracey Longo asked several students on campus, “What do you think of the Connecticut legal drinking age being raised to 19?”

Student Terry Parese claimed, “statistics show that it does prevent abuse.” Paul Lombardo said, “They’re all going under the pretense that it will lower drinking fatalities and mi-

nor drinking.” The issue also featured several WFCS members raising their drinks in a toast on the front page.

The jury, it would seem, is out as far as abstract psychological effects go. But there are immediate, tangible changes that would affect college students even more directly.

First, car insurance would probably go up. Between student loans, gas prices and tax inflation, this alone might be enough reason to get the under-21 crowd to support Miller’s decision.

Taxes, one would imagine, would probably also rise. More drivers with access to alcohol would probably mean more need for law enforcement; on campus, that’d mean more Public Safety or higher

tuition. A honey-moon period of the law change, which would probably mean an initial increase in drinking, might open up the door to a series of legal suites.

But insurance, an idea that not only directly affects the way CCSU runs but even student tuition, is something all state-school students should be thinking about. With what would probably amount to hundreds of drunken college students stumbling around the campus every Thursday night, the property insurance of CCSU would increase more than marginally.

There isn’t even an expectation that Central would become a wetcampus, making the law fairly impractical for anyone living on campus

who doesn’t have anywhere to party within stumbling distance of the dorms. Instead, students would either have to drive back to the dorms, or stay in some of the worse sections of the city – both of which may be worse than having them sneak around with vodka in water bottles.

Lowering the drinking age probably won’t do anything to help students. Moral issues aside, allowing students to drink on campus, or merely tempting them with the 18 plus qualifier, just isn’t practical and Miller is justified in avoiding a proposal such as the Amethyst Initiative.

Variety Is More than Just Pizza Toppings Colette Gallacher Gabrielle Pierce Staff Writers

Over the years we have seen repeated reports on the growing obesity problem and surrounding health issues within the United States – and yet, our own cafeteria is doing very little to help resolve the problem.

Grumbles and groans can regularly be heard throughout Memorial Hall as students are faced, yet again with the decision of burger, pizzas or the same sandwiches they’ve eaten for the past five weeks of school.

Quite simply, the same foods every day are providing anything but happiness for the students. Students want change, but the question is, what do students want and what do students need?

It has been proven that the foods we eat have a significant impact on our mood, behavior, health, growth and even our ability to concentrate. This begs the question as to why the cafeteria still insists on regularly serving the same monotonous foods such as pizzas, chips and burg-

ers, foods that are predominantly high in fatty acids thus causing a feeling of lethargy and giving rise to potential health issues in later life.

Surely amongst the cafeteria team, there is a nutritionist, somebody who knows exactly what kind of foods the students are putting into their bodies and the long lasting effects these foods will have.

Burgers, chips, pizzas, all regular ‘fatty foods’, are high in saturated fats which cause atherosclerosis (plaque buildup in the arteries), coronary heart disease and high cholesterol. These health issues may only become apparent later on in a person’s life, but the fatty deposits from these foods begin to build up within people’s arteries and other parts of the body during their younger years.

It is fair to say that the dining options do provide the healthy options of sandwiches and a salad bar; however, there are only so many different sandwiches and salads a student can stand to eat.

As for the vegetarian options, the food is more or less the same thing every day. It is frequently some un-

healthy variant of pasta, cheese and rice. While there are some other healthy food options offered, such as salad, the choices are generally slim and often not what would be considered a healthy meal.

Hearing from many students on the subject, the largest complaint would the inconvenient hours on the north side of Memorial Hall.

For those students who are nonresidents, the North Side generally features the more varied and healthier options for dining. When the North Side isn’t open, the South Side simply offers burgers, sandwiches, salad, and pizza. What this means is that students whose schedules do not coincide with North Side’s hours have no healthy option in terms of what they can eat.

There is dire need for a change in vegetarian options at these dining halls. It is not fair that a university which forces a meal plan on their residents does not take into consideration the health and nutrition behind the food that is being served.

Students want variety and varying the topping of pizzas does not

count. Having spoken to a number of students who eat at the cafeteria regularly, the agreement has been reached that most would like to see healthier foods such as fish and more vegetables on a regular basis alongside meatloaf, chicken pot pie and steaks.

There have been suggestions of a wider range of fruits and fruits salads, a better range of potatoes, baked potatoes with proper fillings such as tuna and cheese and for breakfast just a change in cereal once in a while would suffice.

These are only a few suggestions but surely through surveys and correspondence with students more food ideas can be reached.

Unfortunately, not all students who wish to voice their opinions and provide valuable ideas can make the food committee meeting; maybe Sodexo should try to contact the vast majority of students who cannot make food committee via email, a resource which students use on a regular basis.

Take Down The Great Firewall of China Marissa Blaszko Opinion Editor

Even though the ideal of Marx and Lenin are fairly comatose in the Asian country, Mao has been able to keep censorship alive and well in China by using the banner of Communism to justify the CPC’s actions.

Late last week, the BBC reported that the government had taken a new leap in their war on information sharing: the Government has begun spying on its citizens’ instant messages through Skype, an international messaging service.

Somewhere, a government database exists that holds more than 150,000 messages – all of which have been stored automatically because they include words such as “democracy”, “Tibet” or phrases relating to the banned spiritual movement, Falun Gong. Skype, the BBC reported, has agreed to go along with the government’s request for information.

Of course, the Web-based company is not alone in their efforts to satisfy Mao’s regime. A side-by-side screen shot comparison of standard Google and Chinese Google surfaced on Digg.com several weeks ago, showing that two very different sets of search results when users image search “Tiananmen Square.” The American Google contained pictures of the famous student massacre, as

tanks rolled through the streets; the Chinese, pictures of families taking pictures and laughing in front of the ancient landmark, making it a symbol of China’s rich history.

Yahoo! has been criticized the most strongly by many in the media – a field that has been, for very obvious reasons, rather interested in the happenings – because of an episode in 2005 where the Internet mogul turned over emails to the Chinese government. A journalist was eventually arrested because of this, and sentenced to 10 years in prison for sending information out to a New York-based Chinese language newspaper.

Possibly one of the strangest attacks thus far, at least from the outside, was when Mao’s government shut down iTunes for a week during the Beijing games because of the “Songs for Tibet” compilation that was released through the music retailer.

WIRED Magazine reported on the event, pointing out that if Apple were to appease China, they would loose sales elsewhere – making this the only case where a profit motive has actually helped the Chinese people.

The root of all this is Mao’s socalled “Communism” and what the dictator has assured people is in the prescription for a healthy workers’ state. In the Communist Manifesto, Marx clearly advocated “hurling the

traditional anathemas against... bourgeois freedom of the press.” Mao, as well as Stalin, somehow determined that this meant it was okay for a leader to restrict people’s freedom of press, as well as speech.

Under closer analysis, however, one realizes that Marx was instead rallying against a modern “Rupert Murdoch freedom”, which grants freedom of the press only to those who own it.

The idea was to dissolve the corporate media in favor of an independent one that would be controlled by the people through their direct control of the government. Thus, state media would be completely independent of anyone’s influence but the people’s.

However, in a state where the Chinese people don’t control the government and in a time where information as well as opinion has been virtually socialized by the Internet, Mao has once again squared himself against the idealistic communism the Chinese people fought for in the revolution.

All parties involved in these cases are part of the oppression. With big government and big business continuously pushing to keep freedom out of the grasp of millions of Chinese Internet users, the only help the Chinese people could expect to get would be, somewhat ironically, through the Internet itself.

Private hackers and programmers have already begun distributing flash drives with circumnavigators – search engines and browsers that are not only free of any outside filters or interference, but don’t save any information.

Bloggers all around the world have begun reporting on the Chinese government, and Digg and del.ic.ous users have made sure these articles and blogs are being read. These individual and communal attempts at freedom are not only social by their very nature, but the human spirit at its best.

Mao fails to see this not only fundamental point of communism, but one of the philosophy’s founda-

tional blocks. Maoist censorship is stifling the freedom of his people, as well as enraging governments and workers all over the world.

The CPC’s efforts are not only failing but backfiring, proving not only they have lost all-purpose and reason for existing. Now, more than ever, is the time that workers, students, hackers and bloggers all over the world will have to come together, both online and off, to finally tear down the Great Firewall.

Search: “Tiananmen Square”

5

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 8, 2008 / OPINION

Let the Free Market be Free Shauna Simeone Staff Writer

Free-market capitalism is responsible for making the United States of America the economic superpower that it is today. Yet, as of late, politicians and members of the mainstream media have created a false consensus that the economic problems facing Americans today are the result of conservative fiscal policies that were implemented without restraint.

The deregulation of the economy is part of the problem, but the blame for the start of this crisis should be placed on the government and their tampering with the housing market.

The bursting of the housing bubble and the subsequent start of the sub prime mortgage crisis that began in 2006 was the first glimpse of the economy taking a turn for the worse.

In 2006, 28 percent of all mortgage originations were sub prime loans and currently, 14 percent of all outstanding home loans are sub prime. This demonstrates that banks and loan-

ing institutions were not highly concerned about the high-risk investments that they were taking part in.

Government policy was responsible for this recklessness. In 1995 the Clinton administration modified a piece of legislation called the Community Reinvestment Act, which requires banks and loan establishments to offer credit throughout their entire market areas, including low-income areas that wouldn’t normally be offered credit.

Then in 1999, with pressure from the Clinton administration, Fannie Mae created a program to significantly extend loans and mortgages given to people with less than ideal credit.

Banks were willing to follow suit because they would simply sell the rights to their risky mortgages to investors, and they would be relieved of the risk.

This isn’t the full story. In the secondary mortgage market Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were the intermediate agencies that would buy the mortgages from banks and sell them to investors. Since Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are

quasi-governmental agencies, they placed a federal guarantee on the loans that they sold to investors. This stated that even if the original owner of the loan defaulted, the investor would still be paid interest in full by Fannie and Freddie.

The problem with this is that it eliminates the investors from having any risk when buying the loans. They can buy an extremely risky loan and not worry about the homeowner defaulting because the government would still pay the investors interest. This defeats the purpose of the free-market. There needs to be risk involved in order to keep the market in balance. If the investor knows that the government will back up the payments, they will be reckless with the loans they choose to buy.

The Federal Reserve, under the leadership of Ben Bernanke, made another big mistake. Bernanke artificially kept the interest rate low and this contributed to the creation of the housing bubble.

In 2001 Bernanke cut the Federal Funds rate nine times to a low of 2.5 percent. This was the lowest Federal Funds rate since 1962. The interest rate remained low, never reaching above 4 percent, until the end of 2005.

The problem with this is that banks were able to give out loans with extremely low inter-

est rates and consumers became bound to mortgages that they thought they could afford, as long as the housing prices continued to rise. Of course, eventually the value of homes began to decline and many people were stuck with mortgages that they could no longer afford.

Keeping the interest rates low is another policy change that goes against the workings of the free-market. If you artificially keep interest rates low, a surplus of credit is created. By making credit so affordable, inflation on houses increased dramatically.

The lack of insight here on the part of the government is astounding. They saw no problem in dramatically lowering the qualifications for loans to be given out. They were also blind to the risk involved with handing out sub prime loans and tampering with the free market. This led to massive inflation in the housing market, and once the prices started to decrease, many families were left with loans that they are not able to make payments on.

Poor leadership caused this crisis, and they should not be permitted to have further control over our financial institutions. In order for the free market to work, the government must stay out of economic affairs.

Inactive Isn’t Exactly Fraud Doug Duhaime Staff Writer

The Department of Justice will back the Republican effort against voter fraud in preparation for this year’s election by pressuring states to silence hundreds of thousands of voters this November.

The International Endowment for Democracy reported that the GOP has no problem with voters showing up at the polls only to be turned away.

Citing the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, an act designed to increase voter registration, the DoJ is initiating legal action against 10 states where voter registrations outnumber eligible voters. In an attempt to counteract overzealous Democratic recruiting results, Republican activists have spearheaded a “voter purge”, which may tip political scales in swing states.

Voter fraud became a focus for right-wing activists in 2000, when hundreds of voters from inner-city St. Louis, Mo. were turned away from polls after their names were eliminated from voting lists. When Republican Senate nominee John Ashcroft ran and lost to Mel Carnahan, the state’s Democratic governor, Republicans blamed Ashcroft’s loss on a Democratic-backed initiative that had prevented GOP voters from voting.

In an effort to tighten its Voting Section sanctions, the DoJ has pressured states to maintain more current active voter lists. Most states monitor their voting lists by mailing non-forwardable letters to voters who did not participate in the last federal election to ensure the

voter’s address is still valid. Individuals who don’t respond become “inactive,” and individuals who do not vote or respond for two years can be removed from voting lists.

The trouble is, it is estimated that between one quarter and one half of “inactive” voters are still eligible voters. Incorrectly addressed voter confirmation letters, postal delivery mistakes and voter relocation all contribute to the purging of active voters.

Democratic proponents are concerned that the DoJ has only threatened legal action against 10 of the 18 states where reported registered voters outnumber eligible voters.

“To me, it’s a very clear view of the Republican agenda,” Joe Rich, former chief of the voting section of the DoJ, told IED. “The GOP agenda is to make it harder to vote. You purge voters. You don’t register voters. This is ripe for partisan decision-making. You pick the states where you go after Democrats.”

Other Democratic sympathizers note that the GOP has targeted states with large minority populations – or groups who tend to vote Democratically.

“Voter fraud is actually less likely to occur than lightning striking a person,” reports New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice, underscoring the politics of the GOP-driven policy.

Although only a handful of voter fraud cases have affected elections in the past, the upcoming election stands to be dramatically reshaped by a lack of voters. If the DoJ successfully purges eligible voters from contested states’ voting lists, this November may witness a Democratic “return to sender” of the Republican battle-cry: Fraud!

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Sports

6 THE RECORDER Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Brown’s Hat Trick Lifts CCSU Past Bryant CCSUBlUedevilS.COm

Sophomore Christopher Brown scored three goals and senior captain Yan Klukowski added one goal and two assists to lead the Central Connecticut men’s soccer team past Bryant University.

Junior forward Raphael Guimaraes also scored his second goal of the season in the 5-0 victory over the Bulldogs.

Blue Devils 5 Bulldogs 0

Conrad Akier / Special to the Recorder

Although the Blue Devils were dominating the first half, with a 12 to one advantage in shots, they could not manage to get on the board in the first period. Freshman goalkeeper Andrew Snell recorded five saves for the Bulldogs in the opening period.

CCSU also held an advantage in corner kicks, with four to Bryant’s one.

The second half proved to be a different story when Guimaraes headed in a Klukowski cross just six minutes into the second half. The scoring continued when junior defender Mersad Sahanic made a terrific run going forward and was taken down inside the penalty box only three minutes later. The Blue Devils were awarded a penalty kick and Klukowski put it away for his second PK of the year and team leading sixth goal of the season.

In the 64th minute junior Hadji Diop headed a ball past the defense and Brown came on to finish to the left side of the net for his first of three goals that afternoon. Brown struck again when Klukowski played him a long through ball and found himself one-versus-one with Snell. Brown put it away to put the Blue Devils up 4-0.

Only four minutes later the sophomore forward received another long pass down the sideline, this time from senior Ben Howe. Brown chipped it over the keeper at an impossible angle and the ball grazed the cross bar before ending in the back of the net.

Klukowski and Brown are now tied for the team lead with six goals apiece, while Klukowski leads the team in assists and total points with four and 16, respectively. Klukowski

came into last Wednesday’s game tied for 23rd in the nation in goals per game with 1.71.

The MAC Hermann Trophy candidate was also tied for first in points for the Northeast Conference, with 12, before last Wednesday’s game.

Junior goalkeeper Paul Armstrong made two saves for the Blue Devils while keeping a clean slate. Snell finished with six saves for Bryant, while Chris Bronski recorded one for the Bulldogs.

CCSU is now 6-2-1 on the season and will have a week off before traveling to St. Francis in New York for their next game on Friday October 10 at 3 p.m. Bryant falls to 1-9-1 this season and will be hosting Long Island University this Friday, October 3 at 3:00 p.m.

Tregear’s Fourth Goal, Herd’s Sixth Shutout Lead Blue Devils to First NEC Victory CCSUBlUedevilS.COm

Sophomore Clio Tregear scored her team-best fourth goal of the season and senior Erin Herd posted her sixth shutout of the year as the Central Connecticut women’s soccer team won its first Northeast Conference game of the season, 1-0, at Robert Morris on Sunday.

With the win the Blue Devils improve to 4-4-4 overall and 1-1 in league play this season.

Herd posted her sixth shutout of the season and stopped a pair of shots in the process. The Blue Devils also made one team save in the game on three Robert Morris shots on goal.

Central Connecticut outshot the Colonials 9-3 in the game in shots on goal. CCSU had 23 total shots in the victory.

Tregear’s goal, her fourth of the season, came early in the first half at 11:55. Teammate Lauren Salvia’s shot hit the post and Tregear fired the rebound past RMU keeper Caitlin Dilal for the one-goal advantage.

Central Connecticut had three corner kicks in each period and held a 6-3 edge in the game. The Blue Devils held a 23-13 advantage in total shots.

The victory is the first in conference play for the Blue Devils, who now stand at 1-1 after their confer-

Blue Devils 1 Colonials 0 ence-opening weekend in Pennsylvania. It snapped a four-game winless streak for the Blue Devils who were 0-3-1 during that span.

The Blue Devils return home for only the second time this season on Friday at 3 p.m. hosting Mount St. Mary’s on the CCSU soccer field.

They will also be home on Sunday hosting Monmouth at 1 p.m.

Conrad Akier / Special to the Recorder

7

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 8, 2008 / SPORTS

Pick Your Poison

NFL Predictions for Week 5 Each week the following four editors will put their pick prowess on display against fellow CCSU students. Think you can do better? Send us YOUR picks before the start of the games each week and we’ll print the results. A leader board will be published and the leader at the end of the semester goes off to Christmas break with all the bragging rights and a prize to be announced.

Send comments or questions regarding this weekly feature to ccsurecorder@gmail.com

Peter Collin

Kyle Dorau Sports Editor

Associate Layout Editor

Entertainment Editor

Chicago

Chicago

Chicago

Chicago

Indianapolis

Indianapolis

Baltimore

Indianapolis

Minnesota

Minnesota

Minnesota

Detroit

New Orleans

New Orleans

New Orleans

New Orleans

N.Y. Jets

N.Y. Jets

N.Y. Jets

Cincinnati

Managing Editor

Chicago at Atlanta Baltimore at Indianapolis Detroit at Minnesota Oakland at New Orleans Cincinnati at N.Y. Jets

Edward Gaug

Nick Viccione

Carolina at Tampa Bay

Tampa Bay

Carolina

Carolina

Carolina

St. Louis at Washington

Washington

Washington

Washington

Washington

Miami at Houston Jacksonville at Denver Dallas at Arizona Philadelphia at San Francisco Green Bay at Seattle

Miami

Miami

Miami

Houston

Jacksonville

Denver

Jacksonville

Denver

Dallas

Dallas

Dallas

Dallas

Philadelphia

Philadelphia

Philadelphia

Philadelphia

Seattle

Green Bay

Seattle

Seattle

New England at San Diego

San Diego

San Diego

New England

San Diego

N.Y. Giants at Cleveland

N.Y. Giants

N.Y. Giants

N.Y. Giants

N.Y. Giants

Seattle def. Green Bay

Miami def. Houston

N.Y. Giants def. Cleveland

The Seahawks were just plain embarrassed by the Giants last week.

This week they return home and if they have any pride then a banged up Aaron Rodgers could have a pretty rough go of it.

In the spirit of goodwill, I will be donating the point I earn from this pick to Peter Collin, who had another dismal week. The Dolphins win on the road by a field goal.

After last week’s disaterous pick, I will finally drop my G-men grudge and pick them to beat the Browns on the road. Eli Manning will continue to put on a clinic as the Giants advance to 5-0.

Pick of the Week

This Week’s NFL Prediction Leader Board Rank

Name

Total Points

Current Week

1

Kevin Petruzielo

46

8

2

Kyle Dorau

45

9

3

Ed Gaug

44

7

4

Carey Brimmer

43

8

4

Anthony Gonsalves

43

9

4

Nick Viccione

43

9

7

Gary Berman

42

7

8

Marc Chouinard

40

9

9

Jason Beaumier

38

5

10

Edward Homick

36

7

11

Ryan Kennedy

35

7

12

Peter Collin

29

8

13

Alex Waters

25

4

14

Melissa Traynor

21

6

Bye week def. Kansas City In a season where all hope is basically lost, the Chiefs will use the bye week to start scouting who they will choose with the first pick of the NFL Draft. I fully expect Tony Gonzalez to slip on a banana peel in the training room and tear his ACL.

8

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 8, 2008 / SPORTS

Central Revokes Colonials’ Charter

Blue Devils 5 Colonials 1

Kyle Dorau Sports Editor

Heading into the CCSU hockey season opener at Newington Arena on Saturday, the focus was on the new talent making their Blue Devil debuts. In the end, it was the returning veterans who once again made their presence felt. Team co-captains Joe Dabkowski and Kevin Butler each had a goal, as Central skated past the Western Connecticut State University Colonials 5-1.

Despite the four-goal difference in the final score, it was a hotly contested affair, as the teams were scoreless after one period and Central Connecticut led just 2-1 after the second. Both teams played tight offensively early on, but there was no lack of physical play as the game contained a total of seventeen penalties.

“You know it’s going to be ugly,” said head coach Jim Mallia. “The one thing you want to do is just get out of here with a win, and that’s what our focus was.” The first period certainly was not pretty, as the Colonials outshot the Blue Devils 13-8.

Central got on the board in the second period, as the top line broke through and senior winger Mike Diclemente scored the first goal of the new season midway through the second period. The group of junior forward Joe Dabkowski flanked by Rob and Mike Diclemente saw the bulk of power play time, as it was tough to rotate the normal lines together with the penalty box acting as a revolving door.

Western took advantage of a Blue Devil penalty in the second, as forward Michael Ryan scored the only Colonials tally of the night, tying the game at one apiece.

Coach Mallia couldn’t argue with the results that the special teams provided, as CCSU scored three power play goals on six-man advantages. Central managed to kill ten of the eleven penalties called against

Edward Gaug / The Recorder

Sophomore defenseman Jake Vitali fires one of Central’s 40 plus shots on goal. them, and scored a pair of shorthanded goals in the process.

Rob Diclemente answered the WCSU goal just a minute later with one of his own, which turned out to be the game-winner. His first goal of the season was the sixth game-winning goal of his Central Connecticut career.

The next veteran to get on the scoreboard was senior defenseman Kevin Butler, who took a puck played by junior goaltender Carmine Vetrano and went coast-to-coast to find the back of the net. “It’s nice to get the monkey off the back in the first game,” joked Butler, who didn’t

score last season until the eighteenth game of the year.

He and his teammates’ strong physical play helped provide Vetrano with a solid foundation in the final two periods. “The first period definitely ticked us off,” said Butler.

“They were dropping bodies left and right in the neutral zone.” Once Central responded in kind, the offense began to produce.

Despite the improvement in the second half of the game, Mallia still thinks the team can throw their weight around a little more. “We’ve got big physical guys that hit more in tryouts and practice than what you

saw here today,” said Mallia. “That’s something we’re going to focus on why we didn’t give it to another team when we can give it to ourselves in a practice situation.”

Vetrano commended the effort his defense put in front of him. “The play in front of me was unbelievable,” he said. “Pucks were getting out, I saw shots, that was big.” The secondyear Blue Devil made 33 saves on 34 shots for the victory. Vetrano’s assist on Butler’s goal was his first point as a Blue Devil.

Junior centers Dabkowski and Kevin McConnell, who combined for eight of Central Connecticut’s 22

penalty minutes, each had third-period goals to put the game away.

Before the game, the Hockey Club honored former CCSU coach and WCSU Assistant Ken Robinson III, who passed away this past May. There was a moment of silence and a jersey presentation in his honor in a touching ceremony.

CCSU hockey returns to the ice on Friday against Montclair State in New Jersey, the start of a three-game road stretch. On Saturday at 9 p.m. the Blue Devils take on the University of Connecticut Huskies at Bolton Ice Palace to close out the weekend action.

“We’ve got big physical guys that hit more in tryouts and practice than what you saw here today”- Coach Jim Mallia

Junior forward Joe Dabkowski lays a hit on a Colonial.

Edward Gaug / The Recorder

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 8, 2008 / SPORTS

Blue Devils Roast Seahawks

Roberts Seasons Birds with Two Touchdowns

9

Blue Devils 35 Seahawks 10

Edward Gaug / The Recorder

Sophomore wide receiver Paul Josue returns a kick.

Kyle Dorau Sports Editor

A strong defensive effort combined with three passing touchdowns helped power the Central Connecticut State University football team past Wagner on Saturday by a score of 35-10 at Arute Field.

Blue Devils quarterback Aubrey Norris was a perfect four-for-four in passing, completing a pair for touchdowns and earning 100 yards of passing on the day as Central routed the Seahawks in the opening game of Northeast Conference play.

CCSU led 14-7 at the half, as Wagner kept tabs on Central’s star running back James Mallory, limiting the junior to just 35 yards in the first two quarter.

“We kind of got stagnant on offense in the second quarter,” said head coach Jeff McInerney. “We had

Edward Gaug / The Recorder

some three-and-outs. You have to give Wagner all the credit in the world.”

Defensively, the Blue Devils were strong throughout the game and made life miserable for Wagner quarterback Adam Farnsworth, who was sacked three times and was hurried constantly by blitzing Blue Devils.

Early in the first quarter, a Farnsworth pass was tipped by Seahawks wideout David Crawford and landed right in the hands of Central senior Ernie Greywacz.

“I was ready to tackle him and then the ball was tipped. I looked down, and it was right in my arms,” said Greywacz. “I got so pumped up.”

The Devils took the gift from Wagner and cashed in, as Mallory managed a 17-yard run to get Central into scoring position. From there, Norris had one of his two scores on the day, as he found senior wide receiver Jermaine Roberts in the end

Edward Gaug / The Recorder

zone to put CCSU on the scoreboard.

Joe Izzo converted the extra point to make it 7-0.

As Wagner threatened offensively later on in the first quarter, turnovers once again proved to be fatal. A Seahawk fumble in the red zone was recovered by Blue Devils’ senior linebacker Michael Bailey that abruptly ended another Wagner drive.

Junior quarterback Hunter Wanket entered the game for Central, continuing his platoon with Norris, and promptly found junior tight end Tyler Rossnagle for the touchdown, capping a five-play, 60-yard drive in an efficient 2:18.

“Tyler Rossnagle really had to step up this week,” said Wanket.

“Tyler did a great job and caught every ball. That was part of our game plan.” Rossnagle had 3 catches for 43 yards on the day.

The Seahawks managed to get on the board in the second quarter.

Wagner tight-end Morgan Mizell caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Farnsworth to cut the deficit in half.

The Blue Devils were held scoreless for the remainder of the half, but dodged a bullet as the Seahawks could not manage the clock in the red zone, and were unable to spike the ball in time for one last play at the end of the half.

An Eric Ortiz 29-yard field goal in the third quarter would bring Wagner within four points, but that is as close as they would get. Central went on to score 21 unanswered points en route to the victory, improving to 4-1 overall and 1-0 in conference play.

The Blue Devils were aggressive in the second half offensively, scoring touchdowns on a fourth-andgoal play, a reverse, and a 69-yard pass from Norris to a wide-open Nick Colagiovanni. The junior wideout did not have a defender within ten yards of him, and cruised down the right sideline for a touchdown, closing the scoring and icing the game for Central Connecticut.

The Blue Devils head to Albany this week, as they play conference match-ups the rest of the season.

“We’re gonna go up there, put our hand on the ground,” said Coach McInerney. “If we don’t have any more motivation than getting beat 49-14 out here for the championship [last season], I can’t supply any more than that.”

Game time is 1p.m. on Saturday.

10 THE RECORDER Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Entertainment The Streets “Everything is Borrowed” Vice Records October 14, 2008

myspace.com/thestreets

TV on the Radio has been, if not the most steadily successful American band of the past few years, at least one of the most steadily interesting. Able to jump genres like Hayden Christensen’s career (except without sucking), TV on the Radio is not easily classified, and as a result not easily accepted by mainstream music listeners.

That’s all bound to change with the release of their new album, “Dear Science”, which lightens the mood of their signature atmospheric production and knack for oddly catchy (but consistently dour) tunes, presenting one of the best pop albums of the year.

The opening track, “Halfway Home”, is a stunner, brilliantly mixing together acid-pop and beach boys-esque rock that slowly builds to a chorus line both immediate and memorable.

It’s a shame that it also happens to be the best song on the album, because the otherwise strong release seems average by comparison.

Don’t be fooled. Songs like “Crying” and “Love Dog” rank among the group’s best and exemplify how they’ve managed to translate their mood-drenched sound into a more radiofriendly approach.

While the band’s previous releases, “Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes” and “Return to Cookie Mountain” that sought to shy away from their catchy hooks and party funk, hiding them in fuzz-soaked reverb and minor notes, “Dear Science” embraces them, opting for cleaner production and a more positive perspective.

Though not as thrillingly fuzzed-out fluid (for lack of a better term) as DYBB or as sporadically ingenious as RTCM, “Dear Science” finds TV on the Radio ready to be accepted by the mainstream without giving up their ability to use experimentation in sound to their advantage. It’s a genre-mashing sound I like to call rockafunkyacidsoul, and it’s very good.

P.J. Decoteau / Staff Writer

TV on the Radio “Dear Science” Interscope Records September 23, 2008

Unearth “The March” Metal Blade Records October 14, 2008

Unearth have been around long enough, and have released enough records that fans know what to expect from each release. “The March”, which will be released in stores on October 14, does a wonderful job fulfilling my expectations, and I am sure it will do the same for other fans.

Unearth is generic, but if anything, they have been doing the generic thing for longer than most bands in this genre, and even with a few changes in drummers over the years, they have consistently released solid records, and have made a name for themselves. I would argue that Unearth has carved out their niche in what is still left of the

Mike Skinner should think about changing his MC name to something more appropriate.

Perhaps “The Suburbs” will do. As it is, Skinner’s first moniker, “The Streets”, seems a bit too edgy for his new demeanor. After all, it was under this name that Skinner first broke onto the music scene, and after three albums of straight mayhem in the form of cockney-dribbled lyrics about drunken nights and drug binges, it appears that the man has simply grown up.

Kudos to him for getting his shit together in a personal sense; unfortunately, the cliché that sex and drugs harvest the most compelling music is still alive and well - and very apparent after listening to the new Streets album “Everything is Borrowed”.

On the new release, Skinner pontificates on everything from religion to chance, love and “underground” metal scene as the most “famous” of the metalcore bands.

“The March” is filled with traditional song writing with all of the elements that fans have grown to love from Unearth. Ken Susi and Buz McGrath continue to belt out infectious riffs as they keep on improving their soloing ability.

The drumwork from new drummer Derek Kerswill is standard, but gets the job done.

There is nothing revolutionary about “The March”, but that was to be expected. The last time Unearth released something that broke ground, it was back in 2001 with the “Stings of Conscience”. Since then, they have released three more full-lengths (including “The March”) all of which are basic, but extremely catchy and fun to listen to. I was a fan in the “Above the Fall of Man” days and will continue to be a fan until they disappoint.

Nick viccione / Entertainment Editor

Trivium “Shogun” Roadrunner Records September 30, 2008

Vocal hooks, vocal hooks and more vocal hooks. I have no idea when Trivium decided to write catchy choruses and incredible melodies, but it shines immensely in their new album, “Shogun”.

Built around these hooks are intelligently constructed songs.

Every instrument works with each other to make the song better, something that I never sensed from the band’s previous releases.

Another high point for the album is the lyrics. Yes, I know it’s metal and lyrics are not exactly a strongpoint, but on more then a few occasions I found myself singing along to songs such as the politically driven “Down From the Sky”, or the Japanese-themed “Kirisute Gomen”.

Mythology also plays a prominent role in “Shogun” and its lyrically influenced as songs involving Scylla and Charybdis, Prometheus and Callisto are also featured.

“Shogun” climaxes with a 12-minute eponymous epic. This song features the best clean vocals yet and includes acoustic guitars and a solo that seems inspired by David Gilmour himself. You won’t notice how long the song is as it progresses at a steady pace with a decent buildup and climax.

Unfortunately, there is a major downfall to “Shogun”. The harsh vocals, or what Matt Heafy thinks are harsh vocals, are atrocious. They are incredibly forced and devoid of any natural feeling. I guess this is a rare case of an artist listening to fan complaints. On their last album, “The Crusade”, harsh vocals were ditched for a more rhythm-based James Hetfield approach. The fans were disappointed, the band wanted to please everyone and the result shows.

Despite the little mix-up of not knowing what good harsh vocals sound like, nothing but praise can be expressed for “Shogun”. They’ve proven on this album that they aren’t a typical metalcore band anymore. Through the years they have gained great compositional skills and are starting to define what makes Trivium great.

Mike D’Avino / Staff Writer

friendship, and if these themes sound a bit more tame than usual, that’s because they are.

On “The Strongest Person I know” Skinner waxes poetic about the nature and beauty of a woman who, despite her quiet and unforced manner, is – you guessed it – the strongest person he knows. On the unlistenable track “Sherry End” he spouts off line after line of pure cheese about how “till the sherry end, we’ll be just as friends”. Kind of sounds like a Sesame Street song, doesn’t it?

Despite the uncharacteristically light and, dare I say, optimistic mood of the album, Skinner is able to slip in a few nuggets of his old self. In “On the Flip of a Coin”, by far the best track of the set, he tells the story of a young man who lives his life by the flip of a coin because it’s the way his father told him to live. The stellar beat, almost like a carnival song, provides one of the more interesting foundations Skinner’s had the privilege to rhyme over, and the track succeeds because of it.

The big change is that the track does not succeed on his delivery and lyrics alone. In fact,

Bleeding Through “Declaration” Trustkill Records September 30, 2008

Bleeding Through has been on the metal scene for a while now and they are still not recognized as much as they should be. With their new album “Declaration” they plan to change all of this.

Most bands pick an awesome-sounding title to make their music sound fierce right from the moment someone walks past the CD. With a title like “Declaration”, Bleeding Through should back up their boastful claim with some heart throbbing metal that will keep them on the top of your mind when ever you think of metal or anything brutal. The good news is, Bleeding Through is brutal and all the tracks of this album back them up.

Bleeding Through decided to go for broke, the guitarist switched to eight string guitars, the drummer took his talent to a whole new level, even the keyboardist emerged from the shadows and showed the guys that she can lay down some thunder. Throughout the entire album it’s clear that Brandan Schieppati (vocalist) let himself lose and decided that he was not going to sit back either. The first track “Finnis Fatalis Spei” is a two-minute declaration of their new direction and their climb to the top of the metalcore scene. “Finnis Fatalis Spei” shows off the talents of the entire band, from splintering guitar solos to graceful piano tones, Bleeding Through is making sure that they do not get forgotten.

“Declaration” showcases the skill that these musicians have. Each track when broken down is filled with compacted guitar riffs, plenty of range in the vocals department, graceful breakdowns and it is all crafted together by professionals. This is a great metal album to bang your head to.

Sean Fenwick / Staff Writer

Buckethead “Albino Slug” TDRS Music September 17, 2008

Ever since I stood in awe watching Buckethead perform live on Halloween night of 2005 I’ve been engaged and hooked by every single one of his brilliant recordings.

“Albino Slug”, the 24th solo studio album by guitarist Buckethead, begins with the KFC bucket and Michael Myerslike mask wearing guitar virtuoso at the top of his game. Opening track “The Redeem Team” is a seamless piece of guitar brilliance. The track, which touches on a few of Buckethead’s distinguishable styles, is a beautiful combination of the big man’s elegance as a musician and his downright ridiculous ability to shred.

The second track on the all-instrumental album is a continuation of this example. “Siege Engine” is an eight-minute tour de force of heavy and hooking riffs and guitar solos. The

none of them do. Even the better songs on the album like “Alleged Legends” and “The Escapist” present a Skinner more willing to adhere to the beat instead of lazily drawl the words in slang and hope that the two remain somewhat in line. Although this aesthetic sounds like something that would drag a song down, it is one of the main reasons The Streets was so unique and intriguing to begin with. His obedience to metric structure is just another example of how he seems to be playing everything a bit too safe.

Though “Everything is Borrowed” remains a somewhat enjoyable listen, I can’t help but miss the old, drunken, fun-loving version of The Streets. What’s obvious it that Mike Skinner may have come from the streets, but he’s obviously outgrown that life and should pick less of a misnomer for his new, safe sound.

P.J. Decoteau / Staff Writer

album’s fourth track “Dawn at the Deuce” slows everything down for four wonderful minutes and is in the vein of Buckethead’s more melodic albums like “Colma”.

My only gripe with “Albino Slug” is that it can’t finish the way it started. After the fourth track of the album no song passes three minutes. While it’s not unlike Buckethead to have shorter tracks, there simply weren’t enough longer tracks to keep me completely satisfied.

Considering the unique creativity of the man behind the mask, a few of the shorter almost filler like tracks had endless potential to have become much larger and greater than they were.

Buckethead, who is best known in the mainstream for his stint with Guns ‘N Roses and his impossibly difficult contribution of the song “Jordan” to the video game “Guitar Hero II”, succeeds again with “Albino Slug”. While it may not be his most accomplished effort in his career that features a gigantic catalog of both solo and collaborative projects, it’s still an album fans will enjoy.

Mike Walsh / Staff Writer Whether or not this album is worth anything is highly questionable.

The songs are upbeat but the lyrics make me wonder why am I listening to man sing about a place called Effington where everyone is “effing”? I would rather watch a porno than hear a song about it.

It must be mentioned that “Way to Normal” popped out of nowhere. Ben Folds… just Ben Folds? Could this be any good given that apparently he had other solos and this is the first one I’ve heard about? In fact, I wouldn’t have even known that he went solo if this album had not of been suggested for review.

The only good news that I can offer for Ben Folds fans is that he didn’t stray too far from his days in Ben Folds Five. His songs still have some, do I dare say, grooviness to them and his lyrics are the kind that makes you hit the repeat button so just in case you didn’t get the message the first time you will get it the second time or maybe the third. All in all, “Way to Normal” seems to be still in the norm for Ben Folds.

I didn’t struggle going through this album or else I would say it was trash. Some of the songs are actually decent yet there are some that keep me straddling the fence on whether or not the album has any merit to it.

If you are considering this album at all I suggest that you check out some of the tracks on Youtube.com or iTunes before you commit yourself to this purchase. Honestly, if you take anything away from this review and you still want to buy the album find out if it’s your cup of tea before you drop a couple bucks.

Ben Folds “Way to Normal” Epic Records September 30, 2008

Lindsay leFort / Staff Writer

11

Rock Band 2

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 8, 2008 / ENTERTAINMENT

‘Blindness’ Not Meant for Everyone’s Eyes

www.washingtontimes.com

Ryan Robinson Staff Writer

There’s not much these days in powerful movies that make us empathize with the characters on screen and think how things would be if the event were real. Fernando Meirelles, know for his Academy Award-winning movie “City of God”, brings to life Jose Saramago’s dark and intense novel “Blindness” on the big screen.

“Blindness” tells the story of a possibly epidemic where everyone in the world goes, well, blind. The people are put to the ultimate test of survival as the government locks them all into quarantine and the sanity of the victims deteriorates. It opens us up to the thoughts of how well we can trust our world leaders in times of crisis and even if we can trust our own military set out to protect us. The movie shows how these groups become the enemy by treating the blind as if they are in a concentration camp instead of in a free society.

Julianne Moore and Mark Ruffalo star in this film with a great performance of a doctor and his wife and the troubles their relationship faces in extreme conditions. The film also stars a surprisingly well-acted part by Danny Glover as an old man with one eye and Alice Braga as a prostitute who’s maternal instincts kick in when she meets a young orphan boy (Leonardo Magalhaes). The cast was at its best when placed into quarantine and had to work together to survive against the military and other “inmates”.

Moore has the tough role of playing the only person in the facility who can see. She be-

comes the caretaker and leader of all the blind while witnessing the same horrific images we as the audience have to see.

Meirelles also uses lighting and editing to bring home the feeling of being blind. Through out the movie the film cuts between scenes using a bright flash of white light. He makes the camera go out of focus throughout the scenes to make us unable to see everything that’s in front of us. We as an audience transcend our own reality and become as the characters in the film, blind.

“Blindness” offers little escape from the horrors of a world-wide epidemic. Meirelles throws us directly into the devastation as the first person becomes blind and makes the audience wonder who every character is. We end up knowing very little about the characters pasts – just the basics of their connections to one another and their careers. Instead we come to know these people as victims of degradation, violence and rape.

It is that intensity that may hinder the movie. The imagery is harsh most of the time through whether it’s the people using the halls of the quarantine center as a public toilet or see everyday dogs starved enough to start eating the humans that have died during the epidemic.

This graphic illustration of disaster might make the viewing audience go and see “safe” movies like “Beverly Hills Chihuahua”. I recommend this film for anyone who wants an intellectually provocative film that is sure to inspire much curiosity and debate into what would happen if an epidemic of this size were to happen today.

Super Stardom Starts in Your Dorm Room Gabrielle Pierce Staff Writer

Just when you thought Harmonix had put out the best rock and roll band simulator they wow their audience with the sequel to their award-winning video game, “Rock Band 2”.

The original “Rock Band” launched music simulator video games into a completely different realm by merging guitar, drums and singing into one game. With their new release “Rock Band 2”, you can experience this same pseudorockstardom with improvement and add-ons that bring the gaming experience to the max.

The main purpose and appeal of the game has remained exactly the same however the new features, instruments and songs have given this game an edge over any other game of this category on the market.

One of the most notable features of “Rock Band 2” is the ability to integrate nearly all of the songs form the first “Rock Band” disc. There is no need to switch between the old game and the new one in order to play those songs with which you fell in love a year ago. Harmonix succeeds where others have failed and allows you to download all of the first disc’s songs onto the hard drive of your console (with apologies to those of you playing on the PS2 or Wii) so that they are available to you any time you’re playing “Rock Band 2”.

Furthermore, the wide rang of songs within the game provides everyone with a chance to imitate important names from their favorite genre. With songs such as “You Oughtta Know”

by Alanis Morissette, “Hello There” by Cheap Trick, and “Rebel Girl” by Bikini Kill, there is certainly something appealing to anyone who wishes to play the game. Harmonix has also

promised a grand total of 600 songs available to play in the game by the end of 2008. These would include the songs from the old disc, the new disc and all download content.

The game has lost the traditional oneplayer tiered mode, however, in place of it are instrument-specific “challenges” which one plays through in order to unlock any song in the game. Therefore, in order to beat the game on guitar you can avoid having to play some of the drum-oriented songs, which are not as interesting for other instruments. Harmonix puts out new challenges to players every week in order to keep the game fresh and immediately tells you where you rank in terms of everyone else who has played that challenge. All in all, the game is far more interesting and will take much longer to feel old.

The new controllers, which are leaps and bounds better than those that came with the last pack, are now available. Most notable of these improvements would be on the 2/3 scale Stratocaster. Aside from the new “wood” finish, the strum bar is more responsive and easier to use, the start button is masked in order to avoid accidentally hitting it and ruining your streak and the buttons are harder to keep down which gives just the right amount of response to keep you on track.

“Rock Band 2” delivers a powerful stardom experience much like the first game. The bundle that includes a drum set, microphone and guitar is to be released in November. The stand-alone game is available for purchase right now. “Rock Band 2” is compatible with all of the instruments from all of the other music simulator games so if you want to live up the dream of being a member of a rock band then get this game as soon as possible.

‘Nick and Norah’ Drown in Indie ‘Playlist’ Joe Zajac Staff Writer

“Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist” is the latest mainstream indie film to be hoisted upon the public with increasing and frightening frequency in the new century. It stars waifish boy wonder Michael Cera and Kat Dennings, who is about a few dabs of makeup short of a circus clown throughout the film. Further padding the film is ice princess Alexis Dziena and various other actors in their twenties masquerading as teenagers.

The plot revolves around the heartbroken and newly single Nick (Cera) yearning to win back his lady love, Tris (Dziena), who has recently cut him loose after presumably finding someone with a more believable masculine inclination. Her single friend Norah (Dennings), feeling the pressure of the cruel and heartless high school world, briefly whores herself out to Nick in order to show-up mutual acquaintance Tris at Nick’s band gig. But wait! Norah is already acquainted with Nick through the mix CDs he had made to win back Tris, and decides that he may just be the one. Thus begins the invariable love triangle between the three as Tris’

jealously gets the better of her when she sees Nick and Norah together, setting in motion the major events of the movie. For those lost: just pluck any tedious and poorly written tale from some 14-year-old’s Livejournal account, and apply it to this movie.

But “major events” may be overstating them a tad in this movie. The teenage tomfoolery which audiences have come to expect from any Michael Cera-driven film, though here, takes a backseat to the focus on the New York music scene and general “indie” façade which infests it. The film is one of those more interested in dwelling upon just how hip it is than actually delivering the goods. As the title indicates, the film wastes no time in gorging itself on the placenta of every marketable pop culture reference available.

But the actual extent of the depravity reached in this film goes much, much deeper. It is not so much self-consciously hip as the insufferable “Garden State” was, but rather is what thirty-somethings think teenagers think is hip.

Because of this, a dozen fads are heaved at the audience in much the same way feces are against a wall, hoping that one will stick, but instead, only a smeared stain is the result. The target de-

www.allmoviephoto.com

mographic, which both lacks driver’s licenses and believes Communism is a workable ideal, is made clear in the first ten minutes. Stay away adults, because you can’t possibly understand what us teenagers are going through.

The film’s biggest draw is clearly Michael Cera, in all his sexless, prepubescent charm. He lacks a distinct and amusing foil in this film, and as a result, the entire film rests upon his peculiar mannerisms and farcical acting ability.

This questionable choice in casting, leaving Cera alone in a role he is woefully unable to make work, leaves this reviewer to believe that something else was occurring during the screening process…

“Are these cut off jean shorts really necessary, Mr. Casting Director?”

“Yes, Mikey, they are. Now as a test of your acting ability, say the next line while spinning around.”

“Am I doing well, sir?”

“Mmm…oh yes, I’m sure you’ll be a shoe in. Now be a dear and pick up this pencil I just dropped.” …

Pass, unless you’re a desperately lonely and single teenage rebel who needs to live vicariously through the laughably unbelievable romantic situations Michael Cera always finds himself in.

12

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 8, 2008 / ENTERTAINMENT

CALENDAR WEEK OF OCTOBER 8

MUSIC 10.8 The USA Is a Monster @ Weird Diner Bloomfield, Conn.

8 p.m. / $2 The USA Is a Monster - the Brooklyn duo of multi-instrumentalists Colin Langenus and Thom Hohman - are the dudes most daringly dancing over the spliff-thin line between bordering subcultures, the bros most brazen with their veggie burritos and schizophrenic record collections. They’re Akron/Family with different screws loose and altered mores in the foreground: Like Crosby, Suzuki, Rollins & Young in halves, they roar in confrontational salvos before drifting into pastoral hums, those bents occasionally merging in the form of technical but jarring prog-and-psyche excursions.

10.11 Quiet Life @ People’s Center New Haven, Conn.

7 p.m. / $8 It looks like Quiet Life is packing it up and moving out west. Very sad news indeed. For years we’ve had the luxury of having these guys close to us, and now, who knows when we’ll see them again. If you’re a long time fan, or if you’ve never seen them before, do yourself a favor, and come to the People’s Center (37 Howe St, New Haven, CT). We’re working with Manic Productions to help send these guys out in style, and we need you there to make that happen.

FILM

ART

10.11 - 10.15 “Man on Wire” @ Real Art Ways Hartford, Conn. $6.25 / 7:30 p.m.

Through - 10.12 Reka Reisinger @Real Art Ways Hartford, Conn. $3 / 2 p.m.

10.12 Chuck Ragan w/ Ben Nichols and Tim Barry @ The Space Hamden, Conn. $15 / 7 p.m.

10.9 GWAR @ Toad’s Place New Haven, Conn.

8 p.m. / $12

GWAR (an acronym for God What an Awful Racket) is thrash metal’s answer to the more mainstream satire of Spinal Tap. Gory, sexually perverse and scatological in the extreme, GWAR was formed at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond as an experiment in marketing strategy by several musicians, art students, and dancers. The group claims to consist of all-powerful interplanetary warriors, descended from aliens stranded in Antarctica and initially created from the lowest filth in the universe, who have come to Earth to sexually enslave and/or slaughter the human race.

10.11 Atmosphere @ Toad’s Place New Haven, Conn.

5 p.m. / $20

The former Hot Water Music frontman has become a musical troubadour, writing strippeddown acoustic songs that retain the same passion evident in his punk rock career. Feast or Famine, his debut studio album for SideOneDummy, beautifully captures the sound of a gifted singer/songwriter as he journeys into the next chapter of his musical life, with an acoustic guitar in hand.

10.12 Man Man @ Heirloom Danbury, Conn. $12 / 7 p.m.

Before the world came into existence, all was a chaos, unimaginably limitless and without shape or form. Eon followed eon, particle became mass: then, lo! out of this boundless, shapeless mass something light and transparent rose up and formed the heavens. And from the heavens fell five shapes, loud and heavy and jumbled, and from these rough forms were shaped and sculpted the first firsts: Honus Honus (the High-August-First-Voice), Sergei Sogay (the Divine-Center-of-Four-Strings), Pow Pow (the August-Beat-Divinity), Critter Crat (the Divine-Twang-and-Everything-Else) and Chang Wang (the Other-Twang-andWondrous-Everything-Else).

10.13 Fucked Up w/ Vivian Girls and Hostage Calm, 76% Uncertain @ Heirloom Danbury, Conn. $10 / 7 p.m.

Atmosphere are a hip-hop group from Minneapolis centering around rapper Slug (aka Sean Daley). The son of a black father and a white mother who divorced when he was a teenager, Slug became entranced with hip-hop, graffiti, and breakdancing, and formed the Rhymesayers collective with two high-school friends -- Siddiq Ali (Stress) and Derek Turner (Spawn). After some early gigs as Urban Atmosphere, where Slug DJed behind Spawn’s rhyming, the pair hooked up with producer Ant (Anthony Davis), as well as likeminded locals such as MC Musab, Mr. Gene Poole, and the Abstract Pack, forming an underground hiphop clique dedicated to freestyling, clever and complex lyrics, and anti-gangsta positivity.

While Canadian punk provocateurs Fucked Up play aggressive and incendiary music, that’s hardly where their desire to stir up trouble begins and ends. The group strays far from the standard template of four-four punk stomp, incorporating extended instrumental workouts, unusual arrangements, and lengthy experimental passages along with the furious guitars and ranting vocals.

James Marsh’s dazzling, invigorating documentary “Man On Wire” tells the story of a truly inspiring figure. In the early 1970s, a fiery young Frenchman named Philippe Petit wanted to shake up the world. When he saw the World Trade Center being built in New York City, he found his mission. Petit was a trained high wire walker, and his goal was to set up a wire between the two towers and give the world a show it could never have expected. As is often the case with these endeavors, the actual highwire walking was the easiest part of the plan.

Through 10.12 “In Search of a Midnight Kiss” @ Real Art Ways Hartford, Conn. $6.25 / 7:30 p.m.

From filmmaker Alex Holdridge and the producer of Before Sunrise and Dazed and Confused, In Search of A Midnight Kiss is a funny and bittersweet look at love, sex, and modern romance.

10.12 “WALL-e” CAN Movie Night @ Torp Theatre (Davidson Hall) FREE / 8:00 p.m.

Reka Reisinger makes life-size cardboard cutouts (often self-portraits) and re-photographs them out in the world. She does not use any digital manipulation to composite the pictures, but makes the cutouts by hand and re-photographs them in a specific location or situation using a view camera. While the pictures are direct documents, their space appears collaged and altered, often resembling an image from the early days of photoshop. Her photographs explore the sometimes indistinguishable relationship between the real and fake to question the logic of image-making.

Through - 10.12 The Bizarre and the Beautiful: Fantasy as Visual Pleasure in Renaissance and Baroque Prints @ Davidson Art Center (Wesleyan) Middletown, Conn.

FREE / 12 p.m.

Like the swirls of ornamental grotesques that adorned architecture, metalwork, and textiles, the boundaries between beauty and strangeness were extremely fluid in Renaissance and Baroque art.

Through - 11.09 Pop to the Present @ Wadsworth Atheneum Hartford, Conn. $5 / 11 a.m.

After hundreds of lonely years of doing what he was built for, WALL-E (short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) discovers a new purpose in life (besides collecting knickknacks) when he meets a sleek search robot named EVE. EVE comes to realize that WALL-E has inadvertently stumbled upon the key to the planet’s future, and races back to space to report her findings to the humans (who have been eagerly awaiting word that it is safe to return home).

10.12 - 10.14 “The Pool” @Cinestudio Hartford, Conn. $7 / 7:30 p.m.

In “The Pool,” a recurrent image that develops into a symbol of the gap between affluence and poverty shows the waiflike Indian protagonist, Venkatesh (Venkatesh Chavan), perched in a tree, gazing longingly at a private swimming pool on the other side of a hedge. A skinny, 18year-old man-child who longs to dive into the water, Venkatesh ekes out a living cleaning hotel rooms and selling plastic bags on the street with his 11-year-old sidekick, Jhangir (Jhangir Badshah).

Featuring major works from the Atheneum’s extensive collections, this exhibition examines the multiple avenues of artistic exploration from the 1960s to the present. With the explosion of new modes of representation and new artistic, social, and political concerns that became central to the language of art during this time, Pop to the Present will celebrate the amazing varieties of form that proliferated during the last third of the twentieth century and that continue into our own time.

Did we miss something?

E-mail us with your weekly campus event listings at ccsurecorder@gmail.com.

13

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14 THE RECORDER Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Lifestyles

CT Renaissance Faire Muddy at Best

Tavern Rocks Thomaston with ‘Better Lifestyles Burgers’ Caroline Dearborn Staff Writer

Located on Main Street, Black Rock Tavern & Restaurant is nicely situated in downtown Thomaston, Conn.

The atmosphere inside the Tavern is outstanding, and I recommend stopping by, if you find yourself in the northwestern part of the state. Upon entrance, one can either go right into the bar area, or left into the luxurious twopart dining room. The dining room is dimly lit – mostly by candles ornately displayed on racks hanging from the walls. This makes the dining room the perfect place for a reunion with friends, a romantic date, or in my case, a get-together with my father and his girlfriend.

The wait staff was not only attentive, but also outgoing, making myself and my companions feel as though we were a priority. Our complimentary bread was served with a tasty olive oil and a side of green olives in smaller square dishes set on a charming rectangular plate.

The beauty of the Tavern is that you really receive your money’s worth. For example, my father ordered what he referred to as his usual, the Black Rock Overstuffed Nachos. The portion was huge! He eats this appetizer as an entree and was even able to take half of it home. I sampled some of this cheesy dish that was stuffed with tomatoes, scallions, jalapenos, salsa and sour cream and found it exceptional for the world of nachos. This whole platter was $8.50 and for an additional $2 one can add chicken or chili, or for an additional $1 guacamole. To me this was a good deal, especially considering the fact that my father was going to get two meals out of this “appetizer”.

If a mountain of smothered nachos is not your ideal appetizer before a meal, you can try the bruschetta, overloaded potato skins or panseared sea scallops, to name a few. The Tavern’s extensive menu lists 17 kinds of Red’s Wings”or chicken wings, which are served with celery and bleu cheese dressing. To go along with these wings, or to eat by themselves, are curly fries, onion rings and mesquite BBQ chips.

The mesquite BBQ chips, thin potato slices with mesquite BBQ seasoning that are then deep fried, were a tasty side dish that came with my meal. My father had suggested the Three Bald Men Burger when I mentioned I wanted a burger. I could choose from 14 kinds of burgers or I could build my own. The Tavern’s burger menu pretty much reflects the norm; although I feel that my burger was a steer steal.

For a mere $10, the half-pound Three Bald Men Burger consisted of USDA prime beef that came from Laurel Ridge, a local farm that grass feeds its beef.

Laurel Ridge Farm GrassFed Beef is located in Litchfield, just one town away from Thomaston. According to its Web site, Laurel Ridge compares grass-fed beef to grain-fed beef saying that their beef can have 75 percent less fat and two to four times as many omega 3 fatty acids as grain-fed beef.

Furthermore, the Laurel Ridge Web site explains, “There is widespread agreement that we need to keep farmland from development, but it makes no sense to preserve farmland without making it economically viable for farmers to farm the land. The National Resource Conservation Service (part of the USDA) has stated that grazing livestock is the most environmentally friendly form of farming there is.”

My “better lifestyles burger” was served with the mesquite BBQ chips and coleslaw. For $10, I thought this was a very good deal. In addition, this burger was probably the best that I have ever eaten, in my life, as it was so tender.

My father’s girlfriend opted for the Angel Hair Caprese, which was just one choice of an entire page full of pasta entrees. It looked very appetizing, made with garlic, basil, extra virgin olive oil, mozzarella, and tomatoes; this $14 dish was good. The pasta was not dry at all, but moist and not too soggy; however, although this dish was a pretty big portion, I felt the price was mediocre, as some restaurants offer chicken parmagiana for less.

The Black Rock Tavern & Restaurant also serves Black Rock Hot Rack Entrees, which are served on a granite stone. New York Strip and Shrimp on a Rock and Filet on a Rock” to name a couple. These dishes range in price from $18 to $30. Not so bad considering all entrees are served with soup or salad, fresh mesquite BBQ chips and a choice of dipping sauce.

The Tavern also serves a 14 oz. Frenched Pork Chop ($17); half-rack or full rack of Red’s Smokin’ Ribs ($14-20); 8 oz. Filet Mignon ($26); Medallions of Veal ($20).

For vegetarians, no need to fret. The Tavern serves Fresh Lemon-Pepper Salmon, Sesame Encrusted Ahi Tuna and Pip’s Lobster Roll, to name a few seafood dishes. There is also an entire page on the menu dedicated to soups and salads.

As our meal concluded, my companions and I decided that we would like some tea, coffee and dessert. We opted for traditional tea and coffee, although the Tavern has a whole section full of coffee and other specialty drinks. They serve specialty drinks from cappuccinos to keoke (brandy, kahlua, and dark crème de cocoa).

When the tea that I had ordered came in a clear mug, it was the perfect touch to the dimly lit room, giving a feel of modern and chic, yet traditional.

We had all split a piece of Toll House cookie pie, the dessert special of the day. The dessert menu, however, boasts nine choices that are “all made daily on the premises by our pastry chef.”

To enjoy a burger, some fresh fish or even just a dessert, Thomaston’s Black Rock Tavern & Restaurant makes for a great pit-stop along any road that one may be traveling through the Northwestern corner of the state.

Jane Natoli

Lifestyles Editor

The Connecticut Renaissance Faire, held at the Hebron Fair Grounds for four straight weekends in late September and October, attracts lords and ladies, knights and squires, princesses, fairies, and a lot of scantily clad women in bodices and skirts with bare feet and a lot of makeup from all over the New England land.

Renaissance Faires are typically reenactments of agricultural festivals from medieval times over 400 years ago. These modern day attempts boast events such as jousting, sword swallowing and fire eating. This Renaissance Faire claims to hold the largest medieval marketplace where artisans of all crafts offer their goods to fair goers. These included items such as ribbons on a stick, painted wooden swords, medieval-looking jewelry and lots of costume clothing with cloaks, long skirts and tight shirts for sale – or rent, if one is looking to participate in the festivities temporarily.

For most of the attendees, the Renaissance Faire seemed to be their fair of choice, even in the 21st century. Young and old streamed through the gate in costume and accents of times past. Actors wandered through the muddy streets dressed as axe-men, white witches, ghostly princesses and peasants of all kinds selling flowers and hand-made headbands, all pointing visitors to the latest events held in the various “courts.”

But don’t be misled; medieval is not the only period represented. Pirates and Oriental tradesmen also took turns wooing the crowds to participate in their showings. The food and drink, although sold by vendors in costume, was quite modern. One could find hamburgers, hot dogs, pizza ($5 a slice), lemonade and lime fizz, huge turkey legs and fried dough as one could at any fair. This was a disappointment, as it would be appealing to try something at least labeled “fried dragon’s feet” when walking around this old time faire.

Unfortunately, the faire itself does not warrant much acclaim. It would be nice to believe the excuse that the rainy morning washed out the normal festivities, but we found the food over priced and lacking quality – not unlike any other fair, and the events and actors were pretty much sub-par and couldn’t keep the audience’s attention. But the worst part was the scantily clad women in bad shape parading their bodies around in costumes as if they were the main attraction.

If you are into fairies and goblins, knights and ladies and medieval themed trinkets and costumes, the Conn. Renaissance Faire is for you. It carries on rain or shine until October 19 and is open on Columbus Day, but beware that the hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. so this isn’t a night out at a typical agricultural faire. The ticket price also is a bit steep at $16 a head, so be sure to visit their Web site, www.ctfaire.com, to print out a dollar off coupon before you go.

Edward Gaug / The Recorder

15

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 8, 2008 / LIFESTYLES

Career Services and Co-op Program Successes Jane Natoli

Lifestyles Editor

Finding a job for the first time, or making a career change both can be scary events in your life. There are many challenges to face: researching job options, perfecting your resume and preparing for the interview. The co-op program and Career Services counselors can help you with all of those things or more, whether you are in the middle of college, ready to graduate or an alumni. CCSU students, past and present, appreciate Career Services for different reasons.

Ahmet Erdogan, now a CCSU senior, first heard of the co-op program at CCSU when his friends were talking about it. He also looked into and signed up for the program and took the required career class, which he says turned out to be beneficial. He is currently on a co-op work block at a company called UNAPEN in Wallingford, Conn. and is finishing the last two classes for his degree in International Business while working full time.

“Co-op is a good opportunity,” Erdogan said. “In Turkey, where I come from, we don’t have this opportunity. You have to find jobs by yourself.” Erdogan recommends that anyone who has an interest in the program should take advantage of it.

He describes the co-op program as a bridge between college and the work place. “It prepares you and gets you ready for life,” he adds, “If I had a company, I wouldn’t hire someone with no experience, but [the worker] has to get that experience somewhere. And the co-op program gives you that opportunity.”

For Erdogan, his co-op work block is the first time he’s worked for a formal company, which is often the case with college students looking to move into their careers.

An advantage of participating in the co-op program as an inexperienced college student is that the jobs include real responsibilities.

Erdogan must communicate and make connections with UNAPEN’s clients and be resourceful in working with the people around him in his role as a project administrator.

“In this job, I am learning Microsoft Project Web Access,” he said, “when you would normally have to pay to learn it. This will be beneficial if I apply for a job as a Project Administrator at another company because I have that experience.”

Erdogan describes the co-op program as “one step for me to get to the next step ahead.”

“I’m happy I took co-op. I’d love to do another co-op, at this company or another, to get more and more experience,” he said.

While it is hard to begin networking and finding opportunities for yourself when you come from another country, it is no easier to do so when you come from another state. Eben Blanchard, a recent CCSU graduate, grew up in upstate New York and came to CCSU to play football. After panicking before graduation, he saw a presentation on Career Services and went to talk to Sally Cobrain at Career Services. She told him about the required co-op career class and about different companies that participated in the co-op program.

The companies she listed, including GE, Stanley Tools, and Pratt & Whitney, impressed him and he joined the program, ultimately landing a co-op position at Pratt & Whitney in the Customer and Community Relations department.

“How can you get your foot in the door at big companies? It is easier to do that when there

were 15 applicants through the co-op program,” Blanchard said.

He hadn’t looked at his resume since high school and didn’t remember how to write one, something that is covered in the career class, along with how to get ready for an interview.

Blanchard actually delayed his graduation by a semester in order to complete a second work block at Pratt & Whitney and then accepted a full-time job there after he graduated in the summer of 2007.

“You get a job by who you know, and when you are from out of state, what do you do when you don’t know anyone? I wouldn’t know where to start with a big company,” Blanchard said. He adds that co-op is an “easier way to break into the working world.”

Blanchard says he wishes he stopped by Career Services earlier, when he was deciding what to major in. Many athletes, like Blanchard, don’t declare a major until they have to, and many feel pushed into their major once they have to choose one, he said.

CCSU’s Career Services’s reach isn’t limited to graduation. Any CCSU alumnus is always welcome to come back and talk to a career counselor, use the programs available, get their resume critiqued and find out about job opportunities.

Maureen Strong, a CCSU alumna, started using Career Services through the co-op program, which she says had always been well-advertised to the students. Strong entered the co-op program because she had been studying accounting in college and hadn’t had any experience in the field. The co-op program afforded her that experience that could help launch her career.

Strong says the co-op career class that is required of students before they can participate in a co-op work block was very helpful.

“If you go on an interview and the interview goes wrong, you don’t get feedback from it,” she said. But the Career Services provides feedback on students’ interview skill by inviting real business people to come to campus and hold “mock” interviews with students that are taped and then reviewed by the Career counselors with the students individually. The mock interviews began as an offering for co-op students only, but now are open to any interested student looking for some interview practice.

She participated in a co-op work block during her last semester of college and then secured an internship at Connecticut State Auditors, which led to a full-time job there.

After four years, she felt that it was time for a change and re-contacted Pat Deloy, the director of Career Services, for help finding a new job, this time as an alumna of CCSU. Deloy was able to review her resume, tell her about job fairs coming to Central and provide her with direction on her job search.

Strong listed other benefits from being involved with Career Services as learning how to refine a job search and having access to the job listings on the Web site. She eventually got a job through networking, which is a skill worked on in the co-op class. Strong says that it is good to know there is a place to go to learn about jobs even if it seems too early or students don’t know if they’d like to make a change.

Top 10 Tweets Marissa Blaszko Opinion Editor

Are 140 characters not enough to get a Twitter fix? Even with Twitearth screensavers and Twitpic add-ons everywhere from MacBooks to cell phones, innovations and discoveries linked to the social-networking site continue to pour out. Now, with CNN anchors and Main Street bloggers over the world Webcocking their Twitter accounts like it’s the key to their 15-seconds of fame, The Recorder has cut through the crap to round up the top ten tweeters actually worth following. darthvader: Thinking of changing my registered trademark from Dark Lord of the Sith to Evil Orphan Annie™.

The first pick might seem odd to readers.

However, considering that a large proportion of Twitter users are probably more interested in computers and science fiction than would be considered healthy, maybe not. Still, darthvader’s tweets generally have less to do with obscure Star Wars references than with general humor. Anyone who has a vague idea of who Vader is should probably consider following the account, lest they risk missing out on some serious literary gems; “Just realized I could totally go SCUBA diving right now if I wanted to, no special equipment needed. It’s good to be me.”

FakeSarahPalin: CINDY JUST TOLD HER ACCOUNTANT TO COME TO THE BUS AND STUFF HER CASH IN THE SEAT CUSHINS. IS EVERYTHING OKAY?!

This particular version of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is, hands down, the funniest political parody online. The best feature is probably live-tweeting events, in which case “Palin” sends users play-by-play commentary during debates – a feature that is also arguably the best part of the debates. The fact that the account is an independent Obama fundraiser cheapens the idea slightly, but FakeSarahPalin’s style is admirable.

TheRecorder: SPORTS: Men’s soccer defeats St. Bonaventure: http://tinyurl. com/4b2qyl.

Although the CCSU club server has been down for a few weeks, killing the paper’s ability to maintain a Web site, TheRecorder has been steadily posting issue links, as well as some stand-alone stories. Soon to come: live sports coverage, breaking news and from-the-office TwitPic. A must-have for Central students, most of which are off of campus for a majority of the day.

HenryRollins: folding tshirts on bed.

Although the ex-Black Flag front man only updates once in a great while, he periodically provides text updates about his speaking tours in Asia and general thought processes. Hopefully more celebs will take notes and jump on the bandwagon, or actually update their twitters since May. (We’re looking at you, Colbert.) drewtoothpaste: Listening to police scanner: freight elevator at Macy’s just got stuck.

9/26 NEVER FORGET. From the man who gave birth to the semi-epic Web comic Toothpaste for Dinner, comes one of the strangest accounts to follow. Half personal blog, half pop culture and half TFD news, drewtoothpaste is both a strange look into the artist’s life, as well as probably one of a few truly funny accounts online. Currently, Drew, along with wife DrNatalieDee, has been regularly updating followers on what his police scanner has picked up.

AJUS08: McCain struggles to pronounce Ahmadinejad. Luckily, a meeting is not on the agenda.

It takes a serious news source to comment, via text, on a politician’s inability to speak at the midst of a debate. Al Jazeera’s 2008 election coverage follows a simple equation: take Foxlike credibility, Onion-like commentary and find a sense of partisan-balance by pointing out every mistake of both parties. Quite seriously, Al Jazeera has featured some of the boldest, most honest and most creative coverage of the election season online – partially, one would assume, because of their readership’s high stakes in 2008. Adding live debate tweets and replacing CNN’s talking heads with actual foreign dignitaries makes it the least-followed and possibly most important must-follow here. quotesblog: “Everybody needs to believe in something. I believe I’ll have another beer.”

– spotted at a Rooster’s.

Although quotesblog updates only a little more frequently than HenryRollins, there’s little excuse not to sign up. Because who doesn’t need a text-message witticism once in a while? The tiny pick-me-up quotes are less motivational posters than they are eye-rolling humor, which is probably a good thing. The day Robert Frost appears on Twitter is probably the day that users need to erect the headstone.

WIREDScience: [Education] In Your Classroom: “The Business of Disease (Restless Legs Syndrome)” http://tinyurl. com/3t7ebs.

WIRED Magazine makes science, business and education infinitely more fun than 90 percent of the professors in Copernicus. The fact that WIRED relies on our generation as a steady clientele ensures that it continues tweeting only articles relevant to college students’ lives.

Perfect for tech geeks, science majors, artists, news junkies and anyone with a natural sense of curiosity. twitter: We’ve restored 99.6% of following/ followers that disappeared. Numbers & profile pics in sidebar may not be accurate until tomorrow afternoon.

Anyone who updates more than three times a day—like say, a certain Recorder editor— should probably be following the site’s official account. Twitter updates users randomly on the site’s status, projects and general how-tos. Still, it’d be nice to get a tweet now and again about the programmers’ personal lives to give the account a bit of human interest. woot: $299.99 : Neuton CE 5.2 BatteryPowered Lawn Mower http://www.woot. com.

Anyone with the stamina to get through over 4,000 characters of text about Twitter, instead of the typical 140, probably needs to be following woot. The online retail outlet offers insane one-day-specials that range from flash drives, to coffee makers, to USB-powered foam missile launchers. Although religious Woot.com users tend to snatch up the best deals at the products’ midnight releases, Twitter now makes the site more available to the sectors of the public who have moved out of their mothers’ basements.

Are you following any interesting people on Twitter?

Let The Recorder staff know. ccsurecorder@gmail.com

Angelico’s THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 8, 2008 / LIFESTYLES

of New Britain

Classic Food Close to Home

Caroline Dearborn Staff Writer

New Britain’s Angelico’s Restaurant makes for the perfect lunch spot for Central students. Located just a few miles away from school, across from Papa’s Dodge, this restaurant is an ideal pit-stop on your way back to school or a convenient outing for students who stay on campus over the weekend. Bottom-line: it is close and cheap.

My friend and I visited Angelico’s for a Saturday lunch and found ourselves mostly alone in the raised dining room. The small Saturday lunch crowd consisted of mainly senior citizens, which made me feel good immediately after I sat down.

I knew after seeing the clientele that the service must be pleasant and the food, at the least, edible if so many older folks were enjoying themselves, and most likely affordable.

My assumption was correct. The wait staff was exceptionally friendly and polite – very attentive to the customers, yet not overbearing.

As a side note, the restaurant was hosting a surprise anniversary party, or so I imagined. We could over hear the wait staff giving one another the heads up that it was a surprise party, and everyone was taking such care with all of the preparations. Later on in the afternoon, we heard the “surprise” being yelled out, and one older woman appeared to be pleasantly shocked.

Angelico’s advertises lunch, dinner, banquets and catering, so it was nice to see the banquet option in action with the surprise party.

Furthermore, the menu also boasts its convenient menu to-go, for those who cannot take a lunch break. The menu declared, “Just give us a call and place your order ‘To Go.’ We’ll have it ready for pick-up within 15 minutes.”

This might make for a good option for CCSU students on the run who do not have time to sitin to eat, but still wish to have a substantial lunch.

This restaurant had one of the most extensive lunch menus I have ever seen. Entrees included a $9.95 Vegetarian, consisting of slightly fried eggplant in tomato basil sauce and mozzarella; an $11.95 Broiled Scallops Nantucket, consisting of broiled scallops in casserole with sherry, seasoned breadcrumbs and

butter; and a $14.95 Barbeque Baby Back Ribs, consisting of a full rack of pork ribs, accompanied by fries and coleslaw.

The restaurant’s specialty sandwiches include a range of tuna to cheese steak. Three specialty sandwiches that particularly stood out were “Manny’s Treat” or turkey, baked ham and swiss cheese on a hard roll with lettuce and tomato, and bleu cheese dressing on the side, the Bronx Bomber or roast beef, turkey and corned beef, topped with coleslaw, lettuce, and tomato, on rye bread, for $7.95 and the Monte Cristo, which is turkey, baked ham, American cheese, and tomato on French toast for $7.50. All of these are served with french fries, coleslaw, and a pickle.

The menu also included a sizeable appetizer selection and a section devoted to burgers.

Soups, salads, wraps, and club sandwiches are also options.

I opted for a turkey club sandwich. For $7.25 it was a good deal, although the bacon was very skimpy, and even though the menu did not specify that it came with cheese, I expected it, since it was a cold cut sandwich. However, it came with no cheese on it, but it still tasted perfectly fine to me and came with a sizable amount of mediocre French fries.

My friend chose to get a bacon cheeseburger, which she said was very good and thought that the French fries were wonderful.

Throughout the eating of our lunch, the waitress was attentive and made sure that we were satisfied customers.

After lunch, I could not help but want a dessert, as the menu offered cakes and pies all under $4. My friend and I decided to split a piece of mud pie. Although the portion size was excellent, the cake itself tasted very freezer burnt – like it needed to have been thawed out a little more before being served. And the chocolate crust was barely existent. Overall, dessert was a disappointment.

My lunch experience at Angelico’s was average. Although the prices were very good, the food was not award-winning quality. However, in matters of convenience, Angelico’s ranks high on the list. It is easy to find, easy to park, very close to school and offers the option of take-out. The convenience makes it worthy of consideration.

Edward Gaug / The Recorder