vol105issue22

www.therecorderonline.net

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Brian Jonestown Massacre at Pearl Street Night Club Massacre’s musicians reunite for a night of psychedelic jams

Volume 105 No. 22

Dorau the [Sports] Explorer Women’s Lacrosse Losing Streak Shows Program Needs Change of Direction

Page 10

Page 7

SGA Finance Chair Stipend Author Gets Personal Dispute Remains Unsettled as Way to Reach Out to Listeners, Readers Matt Kiernan news editor

Sen. Christina Liudvinatis runs the finance committee meetings on Mondays.

CoLette GaLLaCher Copy editor

Jason CunninGhaM entertainment editor

Recent disputes within the Student Government Association regarding Senator and finance committee chair Christina Liudvinaitis’ $1,000 stipend have still not been resolved.

Regarding what her exact role is, whether she has performed treasurer responsibilities correctly and how much she should be awarded, the Senate still remains divided.

The SGA meeting on April 1 proved to be highly charged with much of the meeting centering on the issue of Liudvinaitis’ stipend.

Two senators expressed wishes that $100 of their stipends would be issued to Liudvinaitis if she was not rewarded with the full $1000.

Another senator put forth a motion that SGA pay $600 as compensation to Liudvinaitis, while also issuing her the $400, which every senator is eligible for, depending on their SGA commitment throughout the semester.

“The plan of action depends on who you talk to. Some want to give her partial compensation instead of

edward Gaug | the recorder

her stipend. As a senator she’s eligible for $400, as treasurer she’s eligible for $1,000,” said SGA President Alexander Estrom.

He said that he and Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Laura Tordenti are closely going through the Senate minutes in hopes to accomplish a good understanding of Liudvinaitis’ role and responsibilities in the Senate.

They’d also like to find out what she believed she was being paid for her work.

“Based on the recommendation and the grounds that she had been given, she can’t technically be on the See SGA Stipend Page 3

University Receives $600,000 Gift for New Britain Students tonYa MaLinoWsKi news editor

Central Connecticut State University received a substantial gift from a private donor to provide scholarship support to students from the greater New Britain area.

Anthony Bichum, 93, founded the Helen G. Bichum fund in his late wife’s name and donated $600,000 to the University on March 31. Bichum, a lifelong New Britain resident, previously made the largest donation ever by a private citizen last spring.

“I believe highly in education because I never had it,” Bichum said

when presenting the gift last year.

“Maybe my giving will inspire others to do the same, because those who benefit from education have an obligation to help those who follow.”

The fund is specifically for students from New Britain and surrounding areas, with 20 percent earmarked for those with disabilities.

The previous donation was made to the School of Engineering and Technology, who memorialized a laboratory in honor of the Bichums’ generosity. “[Mr. Bichum] has already been extremely generous,” University

News

President Jack Miller said. “This really couldn’t come at a better time.”

Bichum, a lifelong New Britain resident, is the son of Russian immigrants and spent most of his life working in the tool- and die-making industry. His formal education ended at age 13, and he later served in the U.S. Army in Europe during World War II. “He never went to school, so to give other students the opportunity is something he feels really strongly about,” Fund Executor Paul Gianaris said.

See University Gift Page 3

She thinks that society promotes personal privacy, which is in some ways good, but in others it can promote an atmosphere whereby people are unable to be open. For many years she had to keep her parent’s secret. After releasing her thoughts, Pranger stopped contact with her sister and parents, feeling that the most important thing to take care of in life is yourself.

Michelle Pranger discussed her book A Child’s Voice and the troubles of growing up with financial and personal disadvantages last Tuesday, and how she overcame such difficulties.

Pranger, a 5th grade teacher and author, grew up with physically and mentally abusive parents.

She was subject Pranger to sexual assault believes that at a young age people need to by her father learn love and was reguthemselves for larly beaten who they are with a belt while and realize growing up in that they don’t her home in need to be Jamaica. someone else .

“We have “What to forge ahead you see as imwith our life to perfection, triumph,” said other people Pranger during will find her discussion unique,” in the Center Pranger said. for Africana Michelle Pranger is the Pranger Studies. author of A Child’s Voice. said that she Living believes in selfwith abusive parents was something Pranger concentration. Everyone should thought all children went through set aside time twice a week for an until she reached college. At college hour to reflect, she said, and think she realized she had to deal with about themselves - if there isn’t enough time during the day to do problems that had been kept secret.

One of the most important fac- it, it should be rescheduled. This tors of improving how you deal with time should be without distracdaily living is finding a person you tions such as television or music, can trust. Pranger found that in col- therefore the person is solely conlege with her guidance counselor. centrating on their thoughts.

She says that if people need to “You’re canceling the most revisit what has happened in the past important person and that’s yourthen they should do it – if they cry it’s self,” Pranger said in regards to not perfectly natural. giving yourself time to reflect durPranger said, “Learn from it, ing the day. but don’t be ashamed of it.”

Pranger, who has now Pranger said that even in a per- moved o the United States, reson’s darkest hour there is still a flick- ceived her undergraduate degree er of light that keeps them strong. She from Queens College and graduate advised that people should write degree from Hofstra University. down good qualities about them- She used education and her studies selves as a reminder of who they are. as an escape from the pain she was Growing up she thought she feeling following her parents’ lacked talent in anything and would abuse. wonder why her other friends were Pranger promotes education successful at their hobbies. Pranger as very important and believes that came to realize that her talents were it all goes back to the parents in recooking and taking care of her inforcing that for their children. grandparents.

This Issue Opinion

Sports

Upgrade

Student Obesity Rates and Fast Food

More Students on Campus May Not Be Beneficial

Blue Devils Grab Winning Week

Adventureland Better than Superbad

Page 3

Page 5

Page 12

Page 8

News

2 THE RECORDER Wednesday, April 8, 2009

the recorder

student Center 1615 stanley street new Britain, Ct 06050 t 860.832.3744 F 860.832.3747 ccsurecorder@gmail.com therecorderonline.net twitter.com/therecorder

editor-in-Chief Melissa Traynor Managing editor Peter Collin art Director Geoffrey Lewis associate Layout editor Crystal Maher Photo editor Edward Gaug Copy editor Colette Gallacher news editors Matt Kiernan Tonya Malinowski entertainment editor Jason Cunningham asst. entertainment Michael Walsh Nick Viccione sports editor Kyle Dorau asst. sports Christopher Boulay opinion editor Shauna Simeone asst. Lifestyles Charles Desrochers

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.

Meetings for The Recorder are held on Mondays at 12:30 p.m. in The Recorder office.

advertising

If interested in placing ads, please contact The Recorder’s Ad Manager at ccsurecorder.ads@ gmail.com. For more information including our rate card and more details, please visit www. therecorderonline.net/ advertising.

Women’s Center to Hold SelfDefense, Rape Prevention Education Session tonYa MaLinoWsKi news editor

Sexual assault has been a persistent problem on college campuses for several decades, but together the CCSU Police Department and the Ruthe Boyea Women’s Center are hoping to prepare women to face potential attackers.

The Rape Aggression Defense program is being held this month to help teach participants risk reduction, avoidance measures and basic self-defense tactics. A 14-hour program broken into four parts, RAD aims to help prevent women from being the one-in-four who statistically will be raped in their college career.

“It really teaches you how to handle all different kinds of scenarios,” Coordinator of Women’s Programs Jacqueline Cobbina-Boivin said. “It’s important for young women to recognize they may be in a situation like this and know how to handle it.”

According to the American Association of University Women, 32 percent of rape victims are between the ages of 18 and 25 years old. RAD offers basic awareness tactics, such as not talking on the phone while walking and always looking under your car as you approach it, to help women avoid being the victim of a violent crime.

“I still remember everything I learned and all the techniques,” said Cobbina-Boivin, who has taken the

class three times. “It has definitely stayed with me.”

The sessions will be held Saturday, April 18 and 25 in the Marcus White Living Room and are free of charge for all female students, faculty and administration. The program is offered at eight different locations around Connecticut and over 500 nationwide.

CCSU senior Heather Reney thinks the program is a great idea and can really help women learn valuable lessons.

“This is stuff every woman should know,” she said.

“Unfortunately, it’s a scary world we live in and you never know when you’ll be faced with a situation like that.”

The course includes lecture and discussion followed by simulated attack situations. Students suit up in protective gear and learn how to defend themselves from various angles and eventually to break through and be able to run for help.

Some forms of the program also offer instruction on properly using pepper spray and what to do if the defense should fail.

“I hope [the program] will be a success,” Cobbina-Boivin said. “The women who take it always come away with knowledge they will have the rest of their lives.”

Peter Collin contributed to this article.

Stipend Dispute Unsettled

edward Gaug | the recorder

Continued from page 1 finance committee, she wasn’t elected as a treasurer. She was elected as the chair of the finance committee and then it turned into intern, now it’s treasurer,’ said Sen. Milan Rasheed Taylor.

Sources within the SGA have also made the claim that Liudvinaitis wasn’t fulfilling her responsibilities as the finance chairperson.

They said that she was unable to provide them with an accurate account balance to allocate funds. An assessment of the accounts is a factor in order to appropriate money to club budgets.

“I’ve treated her no differently than the past three treasurers. I truly believe the Senate as a whole asked her to fulfill the responsibilities of treasurer. We even called her treasurer during meetings with no objection from the Senate. I don’t ever recall anyone rejecting her title while holding the position.”

The other arguments against Liudvinaitis receiving the full $1,000 for her duties this semester include the fact that she is a part-time student and does not pay activity fees herself, and has not fully completed the responsibilities of an SGA treasurer.

“I don’t want to see her to step down, but in the case that she did step down, I’m fully confident in my constituents to allocate money to the clubs successfully,” Taylor said.

“We’re pretty well versed in allocating money; the senate isn’t going to fall apart. Not to put her down, she’s a nice person to have around, but I’m confident we could go on without her as of now.”

The debate over the finance chair and treasurer stipend and responsibilities has also sparked a discussion about loopholes in the Senate’s constitution.

“Yes there are loopholes in our constitution and right now we actually forming an ad hoc committee, or a separate committee to just evaluate, pretty much, the loopholes and problems and holes in our constitution,” Taylor said.

Although the Senate has not yet approved the minutes from almost two weeks ago and is still split over the final decision of the total of Liudvinaitis’ stipend, it is hoped that a conclusion will be reached at the next SGA meeting on April 8 at 3:30 p.m.

Cambridge Debate Sides with Belief in ‘Separation of Church and State’ tonYa MaLinoWsKi news editor

The 22nd Annual Cambridge debate, held last Wednesday in Alumni Hall, argued the separation of church and state and was a commanding victory for the proposition.

Four visiting Cambridge University students, two on each side of the debate, and four Central Connecticut State University students comprised the teams. The proposition, arguing for a secular government, won on a 13 to seven audience vote.

“It’s just great to be here and have the chance to match wits with people of different viewpoints but such common interests,” Cambridge student Sam Dobin said. “Now if only I could learn to drive properly on American roads.”

The unconventional debate style featured eight-minute presentations by each of the debaters with other participants allowed to stand and interrupt. The presenter had the option of deferring the interruption with a simple “no, thank you”.

The participants on the opposition, for a non-secular government, admitted they were presenting an argument contrary to their personal beliefs.

“It makes it more challenging to argue against your own opinion,” Cambridge student Mary Nugent said. “You rely only on logic and it really helps you examine the issue from a new angle.”

Moderated by CCSU student Pam Majidy, the debate became heated when tuxedo-clad Cambridge student Sean Koh presented the argument that a non-secular government gives leaders a false idea of “divine mandate”.

“Religion cannot effectively govern a state, and leaders that think they are carrying out the work of God lose the ability to think pragmatically.’ Koh said. “Then they go out and do things like invade Iraq.”

CCSU students on the opposition Kelly Fournier and Chris Leahy relied on the history of religion in America, religious morality and personal belief to present their case to an audience which included President Jack Miller and his wife along with other administrative staff, faculty and students.

“I speak of Christianity because I am a Christian and it’s what I feel in my heart,” Fournier said. “When my God and my government both say ‘do not kill’, I can’t see them as separate.”

Two debaters from each side presented their initial arguments then a question and answer session preceded the closing four. The audience voted anonymously on debate style and quality of argument.

CCSU senior Peter Krol argued for the proposition, citing the Constitution and taxpayer consider-

ation as reasons to support a secular government.

“Under the First Amendment, we are allowed to choose what to believe and how,” Krol said. “Taxpayer dollars will have to go to church funds of a religion you don’t support.”

The event ended in good spirits with handshakes and hugs across teams. The Cambridge students will close their debate tour at Yale before heading home to England.

3

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, April 8, 2009 / NEWS

Student Obesity Rates Linked to Proximity of Fast-Food

University Receives $600,000 Gift Continued from page 1 Gianaris, a CCSU graduate of the class of 1970, said he encouraged Bichum to donate the money to CCSU. From his humble beginnings as a shoeshine boy at a New Britain brokerage firm, Bichum overheard the men discussing investment and stock market tips and decided to begin investing himself at age 18.

Central Conn Summer ad 2009

His unprecedented success in the stock market is what allowed Bichum the opportunity to give back to the community of New Britain and eventually travel extensively through Europe and the United States.

“We really just can’t thank him enough,” Miller said. “It’s really incredible.”

3/20/09

9:34 AM

Page 1

Start Next Fall with more Credits and more Coins!

Save 50%

or more off University prices.

Take transferable courses at Tunxis this summer.

Registration begins April 1 CALL: 860.255.3500 or visit us online at:

tunxis.commnet.edu/summer4 Tunxis Community College 271 Scott Swamp Road, Farmington, CT 06032

Edward Gaug | The Recorder

Vanessa Liu

Washington Square News | NYU

(UWIRE) - A new study suggests that the closer you are to fast food, the higher your risk of obesity.

In the almost decade-long study of three million ninth-grade students, economists at Columbia University and the University of California-Berkeley found that students whose schools are within onetenth of a mile (roughly a block) of a fast-food restaurant were more likely to be obese than others whose schools are a quarter of a mile or more away.

The study is a working paper of the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Researchers adjusted variables such as race, income and education, and ultimately determined there was a 5.2 percent increase in the obesity

rate at schools that were within a block of fast-food outlets.

Rogan Kersh, a Wagner associate professor of public service, believes the study can be applied to NYU students, especially when it comes to making responsible choices.

“Though I think the study is a powerful one, it confirms what most us knew all along,” he said, citing the link between increased fast-food consumption and bad health. “NYU students can make healthy choices if they wish to.”

Some policy experts believe zoning laws that limit the number of fast-food restaurants in school neighborhoods are necessary, but Kersh doesn’t see this happening around NYU. “The idea to apply these regulations to college students would strike most people as not the best use of government resources,” he said.

Kersh and other Wagner, Steinhardt and Medical Center professors are conducting a study on the effectiveness of New York City’s new calorie labeling law.

Brian Elbel, an assistant professor medicine and health policy at the NYU Medical Center, said the conclusions of the study point to the potential for more awareness. “[The study] shows the influence that restaurants could have on many people,” Elbel said. “I think it will spur more interest for people to be aware about what they eat. It will spark more debate.”

Freshman Victoria Chuang was not surprised by the study’s findings.

She said she understands why some students would be tempted by unhealthy dining options in the city.

“The unhealthy choices are more available than healthy choices,” she said. “If you want to be healthy, it should be a personal choice.”

Making a Place for Women in Science Matt Kiernan News Editor

In the field of science, women are not taken seriously. Speaker, author and science education consultant Sheila Tobias discussed how this stigma has changed over the years.

The lecture held in the Philbrick room near the Women Studies department, gave Tobias a chance to delve into the obstacles she believes many women encounter while studying for an education. She eventually came to Wesleyan University to help change how women were treated while gaining an education in science.

For many years the train of thought in the field of science has been that in order to excel in science, students needed to have had a strong interest in the subject since a young age.

Tobias said, “It’s not about women or sexes but about people in general and their early entry.”

She says that when people excel in science, they often have a special “smartness” about them that other people might not have. The stigma is that once they being their scientific studies, they begin to have a onetrack mind about it because they’re not able to accomplish anything else in their lives besides their studies.

Tobias said that before the women’s movement, women were hesitant to take higher levels of science because they thought they had been given weak math courses even though they had done well with their grades.

When Tobias arrived at Wesleyan University in 1970 there

were only seven women out of 238 faculty members and when she became Associate Provost she felt it was her job to make things easier for women to enter the school.

“Theoretically if a girl asks for a chemistry set, she may still not get one,” said Tobias. Many parents are embarrassed if a child of theirs is a girl and she’s interested in science.

“We can’t judge tomorrow’s scientist by judging her on her elementary period,” said Tobias.

She thinks that society finds it all right for people to have different interests if they study history or of liberal arts and also be interested in geology, but it’s not all right to have multiple interests when people study a science. This can shut women out from studying in the field because they have to worry about raising children and supporting a family, which can be time consuming.

Many women signed their names with initials so they wouldn’t be treated differently. When surveyed for if they faced discrimination they said no to carve a path for themselves in science.

After the movement, women raised questions about secondary classing and occupational segregation. One of the advancements in creating equality is the change in the Rhodes scholarship so that women are allowed to participate in gaining the scholarship, which for many years hadn’t been the case.

Tobias believes that post-industrialization has helped to create less segregation and that if people do segregate women from science, it could lead to many scientific questions not being explored.

4

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, April 8, 2009 / OPINION

Editorial On April 3, 2009 the Hartford Courant reported that Democrats in the state legislature have put forth a new budget proposal that would extend the 6 percent sales tax to the purchase of textbooks.

Combined with tuition increases, this would prove to be an added financial burden on students at CCSU and elsewhere.

Politicians everywhere continually stress the importance of a strong education in building the nation’s future. In an attempt to gain revenue, this new tax will be discouraging students from purchasing the necessary materials that they need to learn to the best of their ability.

Editorial/Opinion Students already try to buy only the absolute minimum amount of textbooks due to their high costs and go out of their way to seek out used or relatively inexpensive copies from friends and online booksellers. When an additional cost is added on, many students will probably just refrain from buying textbooks even if their teachers recommend them or make them required texts.

Unfortunately, it seems as though the faculty does not help their students’ financial situation to the best of their abilities when it comes to textbooks. Many professors insist that students buy the newest edition of the texts that they assign because

it’s more convenient and the publisher already provides them with a free copy. This prevents students from buying used books and older editions, which are always less expensive.

It also prevents students from being able to sell back their books at the end of the semester since the professors will be assigning a newer edition for the next semester or school year.

Professors should not upgrade to the newest edition until the material in the book is totally outdated.

Typically, versions of textbooks that are one or two editions apart contain little or no difference, other than relatively insignificant information.

More Students on Campus May Not Be Beneficial

Illustration: Geoff Lewis | The Recorder

Shauna Simeone Opinion Editor

At an open forum that occurred in March, President Jack Miller addressed that CCSU had received 700 more applicants than the previous year.

A previous Recorder article reported that President Miller said 500 more applicants had been accepted for the next year compared with the 2007-2008 school year. More students at the university may become a hindrance to the student body as a whole.

One issue that should be considered is the available facilities.

While the student enrollment may expand rapidly, the physical space and buildings on campus are not.

According to the College Board, 22 percent of CCSU students live on campus. This means that the majority of students commute to school. As a commuter myself, I know that on some days and at certain times I have a very hard time finding a parking space. Parking is especially full on Tuesdays and Thursdays around the middle of the day.

Many times I won’t be able to find a spot in either of the student

parking garages and I am forced to park near the football field. I’m concerned about the overcrowding of parking areas when more students are attending the school. This is an issue that would affect a large portion of the student community.

Also, residence halls may be faced with the same issues. Many students, freshman especially, may not get a bid for on-campus housing.

Commuting is unrealistic for students who live far away from campus and the unavailability of housing could create a huge inconvenience for those students.

Besides living and transportation, academics may face difficulties with an increase in the student body population. Class sizes are most likely already going to increase due to the lower number of available classes because of economic hardships the school is facing.

With more students, the demand for classes could increase even more and students will have less of a chance of getting into the classes that they want. One part of CCSU that proves we are already at a reasonable size is the fact that class sizes are reasonably small and students can have personal contact with all of their pro-

fessors. It would be unfortunate for this personal environment to decrease due to a greater number of students.

CCSU should also be mindful of the fact that graduation rates are sluggish and may not provide much room for new students. The added weight of new students under the already burdensome graduation rates is something that I hope the administration is taking into account.

Funding is another serious issue that will arise when more students enter the school. We cannot expect more funding help from the state due to budget cuts and due to the fact that other the other CSU’s have accepted more students as well.

Less aid money may be available to students and fewer services will be offered for each student.

CCSU is a great school and I have always felt like services and help were readily available. I hope that this does not change as more students are accepted to the university considering that funding is becoming tight.

I urge that the university try to do all that it can to keep CCSU an accessible and helpful school for all of its students.

Another suggestion would be to reduce the overall assigned books.

Professors could help their students by only assigning textbooks that students will use. There are countless instances where a professor will assign numerous textbooks and the students will only need to use very few, or none of them at all.

And everyone knows, once students peel back the plastic seal of a brand new edition, the value automatically goes down or they are totally unable to return or sell back the book.

We hope that professors make a serious effort to selectively choose appropriate textbooks, and that they

THE RECORDER Wednesday, April 8, 2009

reuse them every semester for as long as possible or avoid assigning hardcovers.

There are other effective and inexpensive ways to teach besides out of a book. The Internet and the databases on the library Web site have many useful resources that students could use as class material. Some professors simply assign online articles, which only forces students to pay a smaller printing fee to use them in class.

The new tax that is being proposed on textbooks will be detrimental to students so we hope that CCSU professors and the administration do their best to lessen the burden that will be placed upon their students.

Letter from The Recorder’s Editorial Board While we are often reluctant to comment on ourselves as members of The Recorder, especially so for matters that we regard as internal issues, it is no longer acceptable for us to remain silent.

We are under the impression that some or part of the campus community may be misled by rumors circulating via email that the former Opinion editor of The Recorder was fired under false circumstances. This is not the case and we seek to comment upon the matter, regardless of whether those individuals want to listen or not.

In the most direct language we can assemble to address the former Opinion editor of The Recorder, we must emphasize that she was not fired for her personal beliefs, values, political leanings or otherwise. Likewise, this is not a free speech issue, nor was the Opinion Editor’s removal from office an attempt to quiet an individual.

The facts are these: The Recorder, as a newspaper with an accepted code of ethics – one that we use daily as a guide to steer us away from potential conflicts of interest and – abides by such a code and we enforced it the day we chose to remove the former Opinion editor from office. As a position that must guide and direct individual opinions and the editorial stance of the paper, it is not acceptable for that editor to act on any political leanings, lest it create a real or perceived conflict of interest.

Much like professional journalism outlets, The Recorder subscribes to the idea that as an editor of a newspaper, whose function is to report on and provide commentary for issues of relevance to CCSU, they should labor to make himself or herself transparent and thoughtful, as well as work to eliminate all conflicts of interest.

As The Recorder strives for objectivity, something that all journalists should work towards, the former Opinion editor thought objectivity as an idea below the position and the editorial board decided to remove her for such reasons. When a member of the paper, an editor no less, represents herself or himself as such in public – from rallies or protests to political events or panels – it creates the opportunity for all viewers and readers to believe that the paper has a certain leaning.

We also encountered problems on a weekly basis with the former Opinion editor’s performance in terms of completing work relevant to CCSU. We firmly believe that if she had strictly cover CCSU events, something we had repeatedly ask all editors to do, then many of the issues we have recently discussed would not be problems today. We also came to the unanimous consensus that certain op-eds needed to be scaled back and made relevant to CCSU.

It was time for a change in the direction of relevant, meaningful and well-written op-eds, and we believe that removing the Opinion editor was a part of achieving those goals.

Several times the Opinion editor signed her name as such on petitions and for protests that The Recorder was not aware of, which, we believe, is absolutely grounds for firing. It was a clear violation of the code of ethics, which she had been given months to read, review and ask questions about.

Let us explain further that it is not a single or set of personal beliefs, values, religious attitudes (or lack thereof), race, gender, sexual orientation or any other labeling factor that determines whether or not a person can become a part of The Recorder.

However, we would be remiss if we did not point out that as an editor, political beliefs and leanings that are acted upon in public are not tolerated.

In the past, other Recorder editors have been forced to choose between organizations such as the Student Government Association and the College Republicans, and have chosen The Recorder because their eyes were open to the perceived or real conflicts of interest.

In an attempt to be fair and open about the situation, executive editors of The Recorder gave the former Opinion editor the opportunity to dismiss her political and external activities and focus on her position at The Recorder and covering and commenting upon local events, as the position entails. She left us no choice, after no response, but to terminate her.

On a side note, we are aware that the terms “fire” or “firing” can be confusing and misleading, since these are not paid jobs in the strictest sense, but we would like to take the opportunity to clarify the language.

The Editor-in-Chief fired the former Opinion editor, which was supported by the entire editorial board. We use the term “fire” because we feel that no other word accurately describes what happened: it was not a forced or willing resignation; the former Opinion editor was not “let go”; and “removal from office” is a close second, but there is room to interpret that the events happened amicably, which they did not.

Furthermore, The Recorder gave the former Opinion editor fair warning in the form of several discussions that her external activities were not welcome or acceptable while holding a position with The Recorder.

While we also understand that our response or explanation will be refused by some, The Recorder will not abandon its stance and the former Opinion Editor will remain as such.

As a member of the CCSU community, she is eligible to submit op-eds, articles, photos or any other form of content to The Recorder, and is welcome to.

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, April 8, 2009 / OPINION

Student Volunteer Service Should Be Exactly That: Voluntary Shauna Simeone Opinion Editor

Barack Obama and his administration have emphasized the importance of service and giving back to the community. Ideas for new laws and mandates have been proposed that could have a large impact on the lives of college students and a large portion of school-aged children.

A new bill entitled the “Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act”, or simply the “GIVE Act” passed the house two weeks ago. The bills aim is to “reauthorize and reform the national service laws”. An amendment in the bill that mandated service for children was removed, but the idea of mandatory service has not been completely forgotten.

On the White House Web site, the President’s goals for service reform are listed. The integration of service into education was greatly emphasized. He hopes to require 100 hours per year of service for college

students in exchange for a $4,000 tax credit. Another goal of his is that “all middle and high school students complete 50 hours of community service a year”.

It seems that mandating service diminishes the purpose of it in the first place, which is for people to willingly donate their time to help others and the community. CCSU student Katherine Bossardet agrees with this statement.

“When students are forced to take part in service some of the students will inevitably hate it and become troublesome,” she said. “Service would be more productive with students who genuinely want to volunteer.”

It is also important to consider the view that students will have of service after they were forced to take part in it. Giving back to the community will become a chore. Another CCSU student Kevin Tiernan believes that mandatory service would change students’ ideas about volun-

teering and they would be less apt to take part in it in the future.

Many college kids may find this mandatory obligation is a severe burden to them and it may even affect their education. Anthony Marceau is a CCSU athlete and explained that his schedule is extremely busy already.

“Athletes already have eight hours a week of mandatory study hall. In the mornings I have lifting, then classes, practice and homework.

I also have meets on the weekends,” Marceau said.

He doesn’t think it would be reasonable to force college students to complete 100 hours of service even with the tax credit. Many college students hold down jobs as well to pay for their living expenses. How can we expect them to give up their time when they are already struggling to pay off their own finances and expenses?

As for high school and middle school students, I believe the same problems arise. In high school many

students take advanced placement classes and partake in sports year round.

CCSU student Ben Lazarus thinks that 50 hours is excessive. He generally likes the idea of service but thinks that the service may have to exclude middle school students, for example, because they are less likely to have their own source of transportation.

This is a valid point because many students have both of their parents working and rely on the school bus to get them home. Transportation would become a big issue for them and also put added stress on their parents.

Freshman Harrison Katz has a different view on the subject. He thinks that mandatory service is a good opportunity.

“It keeps kids out of trouble and teaches them the idea of giving back to the community,” he said.

“The fact that college students get a tax credit makes it more like a part

5

time job and teaches them about responsibility and time management”.

Service is a beneficial part of our community, but mandating it is still a worrisome idea.

“Students should spend their time learning and studying. If they want to do it on their own time that is great, but they shouldn’t be forced into it,” Marceau added.

Our country would not be what it is today without the countless volunteers and citizens who provide services to our country. The beauty of volunteering is that people do it because they want to. It would be unfair to expect students to donate their valuable time without compensation.

Mandating service for students would be a huge violation of our freedoms as Americans. College students in particular have extremely busy lives. Our priorities may lay elsewhere and the government should not be allowed to tell us what we are required to spend our time doing.

6

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, April 8, 2009 / SPORTS

SPORTS STARTS ON BACKPAGE

2009 Bracket Standings

If we knew that the title would be decided from last issue, we would have let you know. Who knew that UConn would lose, thus ruining just about everyone’s championship picks? Who would have thought that UNC would have destroyed Michigan State in the final? The only person that gained points this weekend, was our Assistant Sports Editor, Chris Boulay, who correctly picked Michigan State to be in the title game. Congratulations to Sean Chacho, who finished in first place with 78 points. Chacho wins a DVD of Glory Road.

Thanks to everyone for playing. Be on the lookout for the NFL Pick ‘Em in the fall.

Blue Devils Go Bear Hunting

Continued from page 12

the highlight of a seven-goal explosion that sealed the game for the Blue Devils. CCSU also dominated possession for the majority of the game, with most of the action taking place while the Blue Devils were in their opponent’s zone.

Nick Schute had two goals for the Blue Devils, while Satti, Jon Camacho, Matt House added a goal and an assist each, Brendan Onthanke, Conrad Meunice, Huang Vu and Cullen Bostock all added a goal for the Blue Devils. Minelli also had an assist for the home side.

The Blue Devils had 61 shots in the victory.

Statistics for Bridgewater were not available by print time.

Next up for the Blue Devils is a home game on Thursday April 16 at 7 p.m. against Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Current standings as of championsip: Sean Chacho

78

Chris Boulay

73

Charles Desrochers

72

Michael Walsh

71

Tonya Malinowski

70

Peter Collin

68

Anthony Gonsalves

68

Earle Nelson

63

Laura Altieri

63

Andre Ciccarelli

62

Brian McKeown

53

Melissa Traynor

41

points

40

50

60

70

80

Women’s Lacrosse Continues Freefall Continued from page 12 over 47 minutes of work before she was pulled in favor of backup Erin Delancey, who gave up seven goals and made two saves for the remainder of the game.

Ashley Mara, Stephanie John, Ashley Perkoski and Lyndsey Mastandrea all had a goal for the Blue Devils, while Michele Conway had a goal and an assist in a losing effort.

Conway scored with 26:35 remaining in the first half to tie the game at 1-1, but this would be the closest that CCSU would come the entire game.

For Monmouth (6-6), Molly O’Brien, Shawn Evans and Megan

Brennan all had four goals for the Eagles, while Ali Pollock added three and a whopping seven assists. Kaitlin Feeney added two goals, while Sam Lillo, Brit McLaughlin, Perry DeWitt and Carissa Franzi all added a goal.

Monica Johnson saved seven and gave up three goals for the Eagles in the first half, while Kirby Mundor made a save and gave up two goals in the second half. Monmouth outshot CCSU 37-15. CCSU committed 20 turnovers to Monmouth’s 10.

Next up for the Blue Devils is Thursday at Robert Morris at 4 p.m.

They will play again at home against Manhattan on Tuesday, April 14 at 7 p.m.

edward Gaug | the recorder

Top: Senior Rob Satti fires a shot on goal against Bridgewater State’s goalie Ben Westgate.

Bottom: Freshman Conrad Meunice rockets one of 61 shots on goal from outside the crease.

edward Gaug | the recorder

Split with Wagner Gives Blue Devil Baseball Winning Week Continued from page 12 needed to be, getting quality performances from Dan Markoya and Chris Chagnon, who held URI off the board in the last two innings as the offense was generating its comeback.

Chagnon got the win, improving to 3-0 on the season. He retired all three batters he faced and kept his ERA on the season unblemished for the time being. Central improved to 9-6 with the victory, while Rhody fell to 14-7 with the loss.

As exciting as the victory was, the four-game conference opener against Wagner loomed large this past weekend. Central lost each end of the series, while sweeping the Saturday doubleheader.

On Friday, CCSU suffered a 10-1 loss at the hands of the Seahawks.

Blue Devils starter Todd Savatsky was shelled in his third start of the season, giving up fourteen hits in just four and a third innings of work.

Bright spots despite the lopsided score included an inning and two thirds of hitless relief from Donny White, and Richie Tri’s third home run of the season.

Central was able to snag a pair of games on Saturday. The victory in game one was thanks in large part to a complete game effort by Ken Kerski, the senior lefty’s first win of the season. He received offensive support from infielders Mitch Wells and Sean

Allaire, who each drove in a pair of runs.

In the nightcap of the doubleheader, Central hung on for their second 10-9 win of the week. Wagner scored four runs in the bottom of the seventh, but the Blue Devils were able to hold off the rally for their second win of the day. Casey Walko and Tommy Meade each hit home runs.

Taylor Kosakowski earned the victory on the mound for CCSU. In the series finale, Central led 4-1 at one point, but ten unanswered runs by the Seahawks were the Devils’ undoing. Markoya took the loss, his second of the season, suffering five earned runs in just two thirds of an inning. Anthony Scialdone went 3-4 with an RBI in a losing effort.

The Blue Devils return home for a four-game set against Sacred Heart this weekend. All the games take place at Beehive Stadium in New Britain.

Game times are Thursday at 7 p.m., Friday at noon and a doubleheader on Saturday at noon.

Right: Freshman Pat Robinson looks on as sophomore infielder Pat Epps attempts tagging a basureunner into third. edward Gaug | the recorder

7

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, April 8, 2009 / SPORTS

Dorau The [Sports] Explorer Women’s LAX at a Crossroads Ombudsman is a position in which complaints, inaccuracies and fairness are part of an overall evaluation of an entity. Most commonly utilized in journalism, it’s a position that every media outlet should have, especially us here at The Recorder.

As an observer of CCSU Athletics, it’s hard not to assess the state of each program. Being in this position as Sports Editor is about as close to being a Blue Devils ombudsman as one can get.

That is what brings me to an evaluation that has been ten Kyle Dorau years in the making.

Sports Editor Something needs to be done about the women’s lacrosse team here at Central.

While this could be considered kicking them while they’re down, it is evident that there is something lacking in the program. Whatever the issue may be, it has firmly implanted itself into what has become an entire decade of losing.

Obviously, growing pains are expected when a sport is introduced at any school. It was no different here at Central, where the team won a single game in each of their first two seasons. Improvement was shown, as CCSU won four games each of the following two seasons.

Unfortunately, four victories is the plateau for winning in a single season when it comes to Blue Devils women’s lacrosse.

Last year, the team went 1-13 overall with a 1-7 record in the Northeast Conference. That lone victory came over an even worse St. Francis (PA) program that just broke a 49-game losing streak this season. The problem is, nearly half of those losses were by ten goals or more. It is clear that this is not a team that was just a couple of good bounces away from contending for a conference championship.

This is the fourth season in the tenure of head coach Rachel Tringali. Currently, the Blue Devils stand at 0-12 following a loss to her alma mater, Monmouth. Her playing career for the Hawks was impressive, to say the least: four-

year starter, two years as a captain, was third in the nation in assists in 2000.

But does that success as a player carry over as a coach? With the results of the last four years, it is enough to make one wonder. While she helped lead Springfield College to an 11-5 record in 2004 as an interim head coach, there isn’t much of a tangible background to draw from outside of a stellar playing career.

I’m not saying we all rise as one and march up to Kaiser Hall with pitchforks, torches and pink slips.

Earlier this semester, in response to the Jim Calhoun paycheck brouhaha, I wrote, “These coaches, just like the coaches here at CCSU, are motivating the athletes to do their best in every aspect of their lives. The impact of such mentors cannot be measured in a paycheck.” True as that may be, there comes a point where mediocrity and accountability collide.

Make no mistake, a coach’s guidance and influence is an important factor in their profession, but winning is the primary objective. Why has the women’s lacrosse program seemingly regressed in recent years? In what other industry does someone with a success rate of less than 13 percent still have a job?

Whether the team’s inability to win is a problem with the coaching, recruiting or just the athletes themselves, it’s surprising to see that there have not been any changes made.

This is more than just a couple bad seasons. This is a program that has never reached the postseason. Never finished higher than a tie for fifth in the NEC. Never had a winning record. It has been a decade of disappointment.

Building a program has never been easy. Ask any good college coach, and they will tell you it takes hard work and patience.

The problem is, the program has been mired in disappointment for ten years now. Four of those years should be enough time to at least see some improvement. The building process is not going as planned. Maybe it is time for a new architect.

Edward Gaug | The Recorder

Left: Senior goalie Alice Lee looks for a teammate down field.

Bottom: Goalie Alice Lee and senior Jill Pomposi go after a lose ball in front of the net.

Edward Gaug | The Recorder

8

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, April 8, 2009 / SPORTS

Men’s Track Competes At UConn Invitational CCSUBlueDevils.com

Freshman Matt Berube placed second in the long jump and put forth a bronze medal performance in the high jump, while the Central Connecticut men’s track and field team competed at the University of Connecticut Alumni Invitational on Saturday.

Berube recorded a distance of 6.72 meters in the long, while jumping a height of 1.89 meters in the high jump.

Other freshmen Tristan Roberts and Nick Trifone also placed in field events at the meet. Roberts took third place in the triple jump with a mark of 13.01 meters, while Trifone was 10th in the long jump, recording a distance of 6.0 meters.

Robert Weston and Anthony Gonsalves both placed in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. Weston was sixth, crossing the line in 10:08.07 and Gonsalves placed eighth in 10:27:36.

Brian Lowe finished the 100 meter dash in 11.26 seconds to place fourth for the Blue Devils. Shawn Buchanan added an eighth place finish in the 400 meters, finishing in 51.69 seconds, while R.J. Simone was seventh in he 800 meter run, recording a time of 1:56.86.

Clinto DePaolo was the final CCSU top 10 finisher as he was 10th in the 110 meter hurdles, crossing the line in 16.2 seconds.

Central Connecticut will next be competing at the University of Massachusetts Six-Way Meet on Saturday April 11.

Photo Courtesy of: CCSU Blue Devils

Men’s Track Picked 8th In Coaches’ Poll

CCSUBlueDevils.com

The Central Connecticut men’s track and field team was selected eighth in the Northeast Conference Preseason Coaches’ Poll for the outdoor season, released today.

The Blue Devils finished 9th out of 11 teams at last year’s NEC Outdoor Track & Field Championships, but were fourth this winter at the NEC Indoor Championships.

Monmouth was selected to finish first by the coaches, receiving six first place votes. The Hawks were runners-up in last season’s outdoor championships after winning the NEC Meet for four consecutive years.

Monmouth was also the runner-up at this year’s indoor championships.

St. Francis (PA) and Sacred Heart, last year’s NEC Champion, received the other five first place votes and were picked second and third in the poll, respectively. St. Francis (PA) won the NEC Indoor meet this winter.

Long Island, Robert Morris, Mount St. Mary’s and Fairleigh Dickinson round out the teams slot-

CCSU Loses 5-2 in Both Games of Northeast Conference Doubleheader at Quinnipiac

Photo Courtesy of: CCSU Blue Devils

ted ahead of CCSU in the poll, while Quinnipiac, Wagner and St. Francis (NY) represent the nine through 11 spots.

The Blue Devils are led by a group of four upperclassmen on the track and a group of four underclassmen in the field events. Seniors Matthew Whalen and Sean Smith, as well as juniors Ry Sanderson and R.J. Simeone scored points for CCSU at the NEC Indoor Championships this year.

Whalen placed second in the 800 meter run, while Smith took home fifth in the 400. Sanderson won the 5,000 meters and placed third in the 3,000 and Simeone took fourth in the 500 this winter.

Freshmen Matt Berube, Nick Trifone and Tristan Roberts, along with sophomore Eric Rathbun put forth top 10 finishes at the NEC Indoor Championships.

Berube recorded a silver medal performance in the high jump and placed 10th in the long. Trifone was third in the high jump, while Roberts took home sixth in the triple jump. Rathbun was ninth in the high jump and 10th in the triple.

Photo Courtesy of: CCSU Blue Devils

CCSUBlueDevils.com

Central Connecticut (6-19, 2-4) lost a pair of 5-2 Northeast Conference games at Quinnipiac (821, 3-3).

Junior Jaclyn Logan and sophomores Kendall Sours and Katherine Knowles all had a hit in the opener. Junior Tiffany Erickson paced the Blue Devils in game two. She had two hits, including a solo home run.

Quinnipiac put four runs on the scoreboard in the second inning of game one. It proved to be enough for the win. The Blue Devils trimmed the margin in half with two runs in the third inning.

Erickson walked to get things started for CCSU. Sours and Knowles singled to load the bases, and Logan drove in a run with a ground

out. Sours scored the second run on a passed ball.

Bobcat freshman Heather Schwartzburg relieved junior starter Jaimie Iaquinto with nobody out and the bases loaded in the third. She did not allow a hit - and walked just two over the final five innings.

Quinnipiac added a run in the sixth off Central Connecticut senior starter Rachel Brenneman.

Brenneman surrendered five runs, four earned, on 12 hits. She had two strikeouts. Schwartzburg struck out eight.

Freshman Jessica Amenda led the Quinnipiac offense with a 4-for4, two RBI-day at the plate.

Erickson led off the second game with a home run, the first by a Blue Devil this season. Central Connecticut extended its lead to 2-0

in the third inning. Erickson had a bunt single to start the third.

Sours singled, and Logan followed with a walk to load the bases. Schwartzburg, who started game two, walked freshman Kelli Griffiths to make it 2-0.

Quinnipiac took the lead for good with three runs in the third inning. The Bobcats added two in the fifth for the final margin. Four players had two hits apiece for Quinnipiac.

Griffiths and junior Sara Budrick each doubled in the loss.

Sophomore Elizabeth Montemurro gave up five runs, three earned, on 10 hits in the loss.

Schwartzburg again struck out eight in the win. She gave up five hits in the complete game effort.

THE RECORDER Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Upgrade

9

Warning: Adventureland Not As Advertised, But Better Michael Walsh

Asst. Entertainment Editor

In the trailer for Adventureland, the booming voiceover announcer lets the viewer know that the film’s director and writer, Greg Mottola, was the director of the huge 2007 smash hit comedy Superbad. But he didn’t write it.

The stigma of being known as “the guy who directed Superbad” follows Mottola into his semi-autobiographical coming-of-age comedy about James Brennan (Jesse Eisenberg), a recent college graduate, and his summer spent working at his local amusement park and chasing one particular girl, Em Lewin (Kristen Stewart).

For all intents and purposes, Adventureland is not Superbad. It isn’t the gut-busting, laugh ‘til it hurts teen sex romp as it was advertised to be. Unfortunately, this may disappoint some looking for just that type of film. As far as I’m concerned, the end result was for the better.

Instead of a simply funny but not so inflicting film, viewers are treated to an absolutely delightful, likeable and resonating film. To say this is Dazed and Confused of today would be a rather fair statement.

Adventureland is a very funny film. It’s smart, witty and wise. What make the film work are the characters themselves. Mottola gives thought to each and every one of his characters, including lead character James Brennan, who Mottola said he put a bit of himself into.

The characters, and their relationships with one another, work at such a grounded and realistic level that it’s absolutely astonishing to watch play out in the dramatic and emotional way it does.

Part one, and it is an important part, of the characters working well is Mottola’s experiential writing. The other credit goes to the entire cast. Eisenberg is absolutely wonderful as the sometimes unsure and awkward James Brennan. Stewart, fresh off her rise to fame thanks to her portrayal of Bella in Twilight, couldn’t have played Brennan’s summer flame Em Lewin better. Stewart’s performance will probably go overlooked come next year’s award season, but it shouldn’t, as she makes the audience care more and more as the film moves towards its later romantic and drama-laden stages. Adventureland undoubtedly marks the coming-out party for Stewart as an actress to be reckoned with.

What becomes increasingly obvious as Adventureland progresses forward is that the majority of the characters, whether goofy or

Jesse Eisenberg as James Brennan (right) and Kristen Stewart as Em Lewin (second to right) in Adventureland

not and whether important or not, have their own deeper set of motivations and problems.

Such holds true for the character of Em, whose troubled home and relationship life is delved into. I think Sean Burns of the Philadelphia Weekly put it best when he said Adventureland is like a John Hughes film directed by the great French new wave director Francois Truffaut.

It’s so deep and emotionally touching yet charming, cool and down to earth on all levels.

Eisenberg and Stewart are aided by a great supporting cast of known and unknown talent.

A constant reason of laughter can be credited to SNL cast members Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig, the couple that manages the park’s employees. Hader and Wiig add to the goofy, odd and sometimes off beat humor found throughout the film. Then you’ve got Ryan Reynolds, as the resident creepy older guy. Think Matthew McConaughey’s character in Dazed and Confused, except married.

If you add in names such as Martin Starr as Joel, the nerdy down on life type, Matt Bush as Tommy Frigo, the embarrassing screwball character who thinks a good joke consists of punching you below the belt, and Margarita Levieva as Lisa P, the perfect girl in the mind of all the park’s employees, the film is left with an appealing and likeable mixture of characters, all who add to the film’s emotional drama and humor in one way or another, large or small.

All this comes full circle back to Mottola and the extraordinary job he did in crafting this fine and rare comedy. The awkward teen comedy genre might be something we’re used to, but Mottola adds such conflict and affliction to his characters and the actors portray them so well that I didn’t care that I might have seen a somewhat similar plot about a guy chasing down the perfect girl over the course of a summer here and there before.

Amid all the recent Judd Apatow produced, directed and written films and the other

Photo Courtesy of: Mirimax Films

typical cast of comedies in mainstream cinema, Adventureland stands out in the crowd as something else. The film invokes the passion of youth and to our amusement lets it all play out over the course of a summer inside an amusement park.

I for one am glad the film wasn’t Superbad slightly grown up as advertised. Mottola works wonders behind it all, creating a funny, intelligible, smart and plain enjoyable film. I realize it is only April, but Adventureland is the first great film of 2009. It has everything a fan of the genre can ask for and more, as the film leaves the cardboard character world to develop legitimate and genuine character relationships in an active, humorous and relatable carnival world.

Hopefully Mottola’s terrific and compassionate original screenplay won’t be forgotten come Oscar time. If a film as terribly unrealistic, cliché and awful as Juno can get nominated for best picture and best original screenplay I see no reason as to why Mottola’s well-deserved efforts for Adventureland can’t be recognized either.

Repackaging ‘Resident Evil’ for A Fifth Game

Photo Courtesy of: IGN

Charles Desrochers Asst. Lifestyles Editor

There’s been a recent complaint over “Resident Evil 5”, developed by Capcom for the Xbox 360, and how almost all the zombies are dark skinned and how the protagonist shooting them has the appearance of a Backstreet Boy on steroids.

An all American boy who could easily pass as the quarterback for USC shooting brown natives in the name of justice.

Well, that’s not how it is. As the character Chris Redfield, you shoot people of all ethnic backgrounds indiscriminately. It just so happens that most of the zombies are African because the game is set in Africa and the developers apparently went to a minstrel show to find out about its culture. This is the “Resident Evil” series we’re talking about and it’s never been known for its political correctness.

As far as it’s the apparent racism is concerned, I can’t imagine there being malicious intent on the cartoonish portrayal of any people

in this game. As ridiculous as it may be, it still doesn’t hold a candle to the Grand Theft Auto series. Does that make it right? No, it doesn’t.

Sadly it’s just how video games are.

It’s hard to believe that “Resident Evil 4” is already three-years-old. When it came out on the Nintendo Gamecube it revitalized the franchise with two simple things; a movable over the shoulder camera and more action oriented game-play.

Capcom’s new addition to the series, Resident Evil 5, is much in this vein. It’s the first of the series to be on any of the next generation consoles, not counting the Wii’s re-release of RE4.

It’s also the first of the series to have online or co-operative features. I can’t afford Xbox Live and I’m the only person in my circle of friends who still plays videogames so this review won’t be on either of those.

But just because you don’t have any friends doesn’t mean you won’t have the pleasure of having to tug along a big breasted, gun toting and more or less useless sidekick for the entire game. While your character will be fighting the hordes of zombies and other stereotypes from Abbot and Costello presents Africa Screams, your partner will be fighting the never-ending battle of “How do I get around the table?”

When she dies in the game you also have to start over from your last checkpoint. At this point that the player starts to wish the game be more realistic by letting your character just get on with his life. Besides this major annoyance, the game plays quite nicely.

Despite missing a reload button for the weapons, whic would come in handy when a

man with a sack on his head brazening a chainsaw is running at you, most of the controls make sense and aren’t very counterintuitive. Another big complaint is that when enemies are shot in the head their reactions seem as if you were flicking staples into their eye, but then again this is a game where green herbs heal bullet wounds so I suppose we take the good with the bad on this one.

The game is as aesthetically pleasing as every other first person shooter these days because it’s all stunningly brown and grey. Apparently most game developers never get out of their basement to realize that the world doesn’t look like it has been sprinkled with cinnamon whilst in constant overcast.

“Resident Evil 5” is not a bad game, really it isn’t. For the most part it plays exactly like “Resident Evil 4”. And there’s nothing wrong with being a repackaging of the fourth “Resident Evil”. If there is a game in the zombie genre that is worth copying, that is it. But “RE4” was such a success because it was so different from the first three.

Really, what makes this new game poor is the possibility of the franchise reverting.

“Resident Evil 5” retains what made “Resident Evil 4” good, like the movable camera, but it recalls things that made the previous three games lousy. The item inventory is small and forces the player to unnecessarily prioritize and instead of going for an ironic or campy sense of horror it has fallen into its old habit of trying to scare players.

If you have ever been scared by a video game please take the time now to go to a mirror and start yelling emasculating things at yourself.

10

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, April 8, 2009 / UPGRADE

Chris Cornell Scream Interscope Records March 10, 2009 Experiment and change can be good for the body and soul.

Well, in most cases at least. This is the name of the game for famed

MSTRKRFT Fist of God March 24, 2009 Downtown Records

After countless remixes and a week debut album, MSTRKRFT seems ready to break into the ranks of pop mainstream.

Fist of God is a departure from their 2006 release, The Looks. Where Looks might have been cleaned and polished ready for a night on the town, Fist of God is stumbling out of the bar after last call, looking to score some blow.

It follows a trend of other house groups in its production and lends its songs to other artists voices in what seems to be an attempt at cracking the charts.

It’s gritty, it’s catchy and it makes me miss when member Jesse F. Keeler played bass for Death From Above 1979. But it seems like the DFA 1979 days are long gone, so to anyone who is waiting for an electro version, my advise to you is t not waste your energy, because MSTRKRFT will never be that.

Fist does offer more grit than their previous remixes but some of it seems forced and misplaced. The distortion and dirt that I had been looking forward to was nauseating by the seventh song.

“Vuvuvu” offers no substance other than a way to make the track before it seem longer. It doesn’t accentuate or echo what makes “Bounce” good.

grunge vocalist Chris Cornell’s newest solo album.

For Scream, the vocalist’s third solo album in a long career of belting lyrics out for illustrious groups such as Soundgarden, Cornell seeks the help of super music producer extraordinaire, Timbaland. It’s a shame his name isn’t Timberland because “Timber!” is exactly what you’d be yelling as you hear this well-respected vocalist’s career gets cut down and falls flat on its face.

Alright, that’s a pretty bad joke and a pretty harsh statement.

Actually, you know what, it isn’t. I like Cornell and his musical past, but ever since he claimed that Timbaland lent a lot to the albums so called “psychedelic aspect” (which isn’t existent) that compares to Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon and Queen’s Night at the Opera, I had my doubts about Cornell’s current state of mind.

Scream is basically Cornell’s best attempt at being Justin Timberlake. He just doesn’t fit the mold. With all due respect to his new career path, it’s difficult to separate such a name from the music that made him who he is today.

The other half of it is that the music just isn’t good. A few of the songs, such as the lead track “Part of Me” could potentially be catchy radio tracks, but it’s nothing that is going to withstand the test of time. And while I’m not a fan of Timberlake’s music, whenever I was subjected to hearing a song of his on the radio, it wasn’t even close to the level of torture Cornell’s half-assed attempt at being a pop star forced upon me.

What we have here is an iconic voice of the rock industry gone soft.

The music is mundane and boring.

The album, minus any exclusive bonus tracks, is 14 tracks too long if you count the hidden track. As I stared a

It builds on repetition without any major pay-off using a minutelong intro to draw out our patience and attempting to be one of those songs that is constantly building up, yet with it’s constant tempo and lack of layering turns out to be a 4-minute waste of time. It seems that MSTRKRFT’s method was to make thirty seconds of music and then bullshit the remaining three minutes.

In this regard it makes Fist seem exactly like The Looks.

I’d like to believe that this was the way they made this album because it’s offensive to think someone spent more than three weeks making a record like this.

After listening to it in it’s entirety, you will find yourself not knowing what just happened. It’s just that each song is so much like the last with minor peaks throughout that you will forget about almost immediately.

This album gets old very quickly. Even the second song “1,000 Cigarettes” ends up being played out by the end since it comes back to haunt us as the last track, only this time it features Freeway.

If the latter is good enough to be on the album then the instrumental should either be a B-side or left off because the only purpose it serves is padding. For whatever reason MSTRKRFT is in their element when there are using other peoples material. Their remix of Metric’s “Monster Hospital” is much more enjoyable then almost any of their songs on the Fist of God. Is it bad that this group can’t create decent original works? I don’t think it is, I truly do enjoy their remixes. It’s not like the group makes much money off these records either.

It merely gives them an excuse to continue touring with stops at Ministry of Sound and Coachella, where the majority of their set will most likely be remixes.

Dinosaur Jr. Tears Up the Iron Horse

Charles Desrochers Asst. Lifestyles Editor

six-minute song in the face, I wanted nothing more than for the album to end.

None of it was a joy to listen to.

Repetitive beats set to some of the lamest lyrics I’ve never wanted to hear come out of this man’s mouth.

Seriously, Cornell, you pass singing “That bitch ain’t a part of me” roughly eight times in a span of 30 seconds off as a chorus? What about this is there to love for fans of Cornell’s Soundgarden days?

And that’s another thing I’ve never been able to understand. That thing is this particular genre of music. While I have always respected people for their tastes in music, or anything for that matter, I’ve never found the appeal for songs that are far too simple and repetitive for even wheel-spinning lab rats to enjoy. I feel like I’ve heard this music before on the other albums Timbaland has produced.

Dinosaur Jr. frontman J. Masics at Northampton, Mass (Nov. 18, 2008).

Matt Kiernan News Editor

Dinosaur Jr. played with opening band Awesome Color at the Daniel Street club in Milford, Conn. to a crowd of young and old fans looking for an alternative spin on classic rock music.

“We’re not going to be playing anything off that album tonight,” said Dinosaur Jr. bassist Lou Barlow to a crowd of disappointed fans screaming “Boo!” in regards to songs from their upcoming album Farm.

Instead the band decided to play many of the songs from their backcatalogue of albums.

“Feel the Pain”, “Sludgefest”, “Freak Scene” and many of the songs from their 2007 release Beyond were all performed with amplifiers turned to maximum volume which filled the

small club. One of their biggest hits “Freak Scene” was played to thrilled fans who shouted, “Cause when I need a friend it’s still you!” when the lyrics came up.

People attending the show were given the choice of getting a 7” or music download code for free that contained the songs “I Don’t Wanna Go There” off of Farm and a live version of “Tarpit” from their 1987 release You’re Living All Over Me. Lead singer and guitar player J. Mascis played his electric guitar as if it were as easy as tying his shoes while he swayed back and forth while Lou Barlow hovered over his bass guitar and drummer Murph was sweating up a storm thundering on the drums.

A mosh pit broke out a few songs into Dinosaur’s performance with a group of fans thrashing themselves across the center of the floor

If Cornell wants to write off his fans’ dislike for the new album as fear of change, so be it. Meanwhile, I’ll stick with the opinion of Nine Inch Nails front man Trent Reznor, who used Twitter to diss Cornell’s new venture. Reznor truthfully made a post asking fans the following: “You know that feeling you get when somebody embarrasses themselves so badly you feel uncomfortable? Heard Chris Cornell’s record? Jesus.”

I don’t want to yell sellout, I don’t want to yell fake and I don’t want to yell poser. That would be ultimately unfair. Everyone makes mistakes and deserves a second or third chance to amend those oversights. Cornell got one thing right though: The name of the album. I screamed a lot.

Michael Walsh Asst. Entertainment Editor

Photo Courtesy of: Flickr

and crowd surfing, which caused a few members of the audience to get kicked out of the show. One member was tossed out for allegedly kicking someone in the head.

Awesome Color performed songs from their new 2008 album Electric Aborigines, which included, “Eyes of Light”, “Already Down” and “Taste It”. The group gave off an Iggy Pop and the Stooges feel without the self-mutilation and stage power that the Stooges had.

The lead singer and guitar player Derek Stanton brought riffs and guitar solos at a rapid rate while playing their songs but seemed to be trying a little hard to impress. Stanton became flustered for a moment when he realized lead singer Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. was standing in the audience to watch the last few songs of their set.

Brian Jonestown Massacre and Asteroid No. 4 Pair Up for Psychedelic Performance Matt Kiernan News Editor

Photo Courtesy of: Flickr

Brian Jonestown Massacre frontman Anton Newcombe

The psychedelic experience of the Brian Jonestown Massacre and Asteroid No. 4 was performed at the Pearl Street Night Club in Northampton, Mass. where fans were able to see the reuniting of some original members of the Massacre band.

Leader since the beginnings of the band, Anton Newcombe was accompanied by guitarist Matt Hollywood and tambourine player Joel Gion who tour with Massacre when time allows.

Hollywood and Gion seemed to have not forgotten their old songs they helped to write during the 1990s as

they played with ease, even with the new songs Newcombe wrote after they left the band.

Hollywood and Gion originally left the band in the late 1990s when Hollywood got into a physical fight with Newcombe and Gion felt the band couldn’t be taken further as seen on the 2003 released documentary Dig! The documentary followed Massacre and their rivals the Dandy Warhols over several years and showed the loss of friendship between the two bands and eventual destruction of the original lineup of the Massacre.

“Servo”, “When Jokers Attack” and “Nevertheless” were highlights of their performance and Massacre

even included songs from the shoegaze days of their first 1995 album Methodrone including “That Girl Suicide”. A collective “woo” sound filled the room when “That Girl Suicide” reached the ears of ecstatic fans.

Hypnotizing guitars paired with Gion’s dance and tambourine shaking in front of the microphone provided psychedelic jams with a ‘60s feel where fans slipped into peaceful head nodding of approval.

The concert was either helped or worsened by the fact that Massacre and Asteroid decided to drink onstage including beer and from a bottle of Jim Beam in between songs. Gion showed love for the audience by sa-

luting them with his bottle every time he took a sip.

Massacre’s buddies of the Asteroid No. 4 group gave a strong performance that was very similar to sound that the members of Massacre strive for.

While performing psychedelic and 1960s feeling songs, they seem to lack the originality and strength that Newcombe and the other members of Massacre have when writing songs.

Asteroid’s performance included a light show and background of various things such as passing cars and dancing fairies.

Both theatrics did well to set a mood in the club along with their “nod your head” music.

11

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, April 8, 2009 / UPGRADE

CALENDAR 4.8 - 4.15.09

MUSIC 4.8 Big Words Jazz Trio @ Semesters Student Center FREE / 11 a.m.

4.8 Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s @ Toad’s Place New Haven, Conn. $15 / 8:30 p.m.

for note, cut for cut - you have to hear it to believe it!

4.11 ArtSpace Underground @ Artspace New Haven, Conn. $5 / 8 p.m.

Kid Ginseng is performing. He produces kind of crazy, electronic beats with some funk thrown in and it’s definitely danceable. He’s the child of two Talking Heads bandmates and husband-and-wife duo Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth (Tom Tom Band), so you know he’s good.

Eula has been around the New Haven, Conn. scene for a bit - they opened up for Kiss Kiss two months ago and will continue to frequent the area for the next month or two.

4.11 Battle of the Bands Semi Finals @ The Space Hamden, Conn. $10 / 6:30 p.m.

4.14 Florida=Death w /Open Star Clusters Panda and Child @ Cafe Nine FREE

A band with eight incredibly different members who play an eclectic assortment of instruments can’t help but produce a distinctive sound. Bands so vast rarely churn out mediocre music. They either succeed greatly or fail miserably. In the instance of Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s, the indie folk octet from Indianapolis hits way up on the brilliant side with their latest album “Animal!”

4.8 GZA @ Pearl Street Nightclub Northampton, Mass. $23 / 8:30 p.m.

4.8 Bradley Hathaway Backseat Goodbye E for Explosion @ The Space Hamden, Conn. $10 / 7 p.m.

4.9 Vinny Caruana The Tired and True Lach @ The Space Hamden, Conn. $10 / 7 p.m.

4.10 Classic Albums Live: Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon @ Mohegan Sun Uncasville, Conn.

8 p.m. 21+

Classic Albums Live takes the world’s greatest albums and recreates them live on stage using the world’s greatest musicians. Note

Copeland, Coldplay, and Jimmy Eat World, they consistently wow crowds with their energetic live shows.

FILM 4.8 Paris Film Festival: Vagabond @ Cinestudio Hartford, Conn. $7 / 7:30 p.m.

The sole woman director of the New Wave, Agnès Varda is an icon of intelligent, innovative filmmaking. Made 30 years after her first film, Vagabond won Best Film at the Venice Film Festival for its unsentimental portrayal of a young woman (Sandrine Bonnaire) who chooses to live as a drifter. Living on the outskirts of society, she is remembered by the multiple lives she has encountered along the way. 105 min.

Ana Geislerova as Marcela, the beautiful & bored wife who lives with her husband above his (illegal) chop shop. When her husband is sent to jail for stealing a Volvo, Marcela meets the car’s wealthy, silver-haired owner and jumps on a possible escape from her gritty life. Once ensconced in his sunny Tuscan villa, Marcela enjoys the safety and comforts of capitalism until her still lovestruck husband is released from jail.

With music by Prague chanteuse Raduza and songs by Glen Hansard/Marketa Irglova, last seen in the Irish indie hit Once.

4.15 -18 Slumdog Millionaire @ Cinestudio Hartford, Conn. $7 / 7:30 p.m.

4.9 Paris Film Festival: Battle Cries @ Cinestudio Hartford, Conn. $7 / 7:30 p.m.

Karin Viard (La Haine, Delicatessen) won a César Award for Best Actress for her moving performance of a 30 year old woman whose joy at being is shattered with a diagnosis of breast cancer.. Like The Sea Inside, Haut Les Coeurs! is a story of personal courage that has rarely been seen from a woman’s point of view – in this case, first time Icelandic director Sólveig Anspach.

ART 4.9 Art Happy Hour @ New Britain Museum of American Art New Britain, Conn.

FREE / 5:30 p.m.

4.10 - 15 Were the World Mine @ Real Art Ways Hartford, Conn. $6.50 / 7 p.m.

4.15 Lucero Titus Andronicus @ Pearl Street Nightclub Northampton, Mass. $16 / 8:30 p.m.

“Tom Gustafson’s artfully considered film delights in channeling the ethos of Shakespeare: Here, the play is the thing, and with the wild, potion-spewing pansy Timothy wields, he makes everyone around him a flamer. The material has been playfully updated, made into a parable of gay desire and wish fulfillment, but its significance remains the same, right down to Timothy’s understanding that free will must ultimately be restored.” - Ed Gonzalez, Slant If you had a love potion, who would you make fall madly in love with you? Timothy, prone to escaping his dismal high school reality through dazzling musical daydreams, gets to answer that question in a very real way. After being cast as Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, he stumbles upon a recipe hidden within the script to make the play’s magical love flower.

Armed with the flower, Timothy puckishly imposes a new reality by turning much of his narrow-minded town gay, beginning with the rugby jock of his dreams.

4.15 Fly Upright Kite This Car Up @ The Space Hamden, Conn $10 / 7 p.m.

Fly Upright Kite is an indie rock band based out of their Boston, Massachusetts area.

With a sound that is influenced by bands like

Join us on the second Thursday of every month for an evening of art and a conversation in the galleries. Complimentary light refreshments will be served from 5:30-6 p.m. followed by a program from 6-7 p.m. Free with general admission.

Thursday’s will be a Gallery Talk with The Eight and American Modernisms curator Elizabeth Kennedy, “Modern Art of One Kind and Another.”

Through 4.23 Sustainable? @ Chen Gallery Maloney Hall, CCSU FREE / 1 p.m.

4.12-14 Beauty in Trouble @ Cinestudio Hartford, Conn. $7 / 2:30 p.m.

Jan Hrebejk, like Czech filmmakers Milos Foreman, Jiri Menzel, and Ivan Passer before him, is a master at mixing up a potent blend of dark humor, political commentary, and unabashed sexuality. Hrejkís newest film stars

4.6-8 Ostertag Prints @ Student Center Lobby 9 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Sports 4.8

12

THE RECORDER Wednesday, April 8 , 2009

Blue Devils Go Bear Hunting Women’s Lacrosse

Continues Freefall ChristoPher BouLaY asst. sports editor

The CCSU women’s lacrosse team fell to 0-12 on the season after being embarrassed at home by NEC rivals Monmouth 21-5 Sunday at Arute Field.

Junior midfielder Steve Costes makes a run for the goal in CCSU’s 16-7 win over Bridgewater State.

ChristoPher BouLaY asst. sports editor

CCSU men’s lacrosse scored the most goals of the season when they defeated the Bridgewater Bears 16-7 Sunday night at Arute Field.

CCSU (2-1) was led by Eric Chartier with four goals and an assist, and Matt Harter with three goals and two assists in the rout.

According to defender and team captain James Arpaio, the game

was the teams best effort of the season.

“The game was very competitive, very hard hitting. The face-off guys were unbelievable. Everyone just clicked,” he said.

Netminder Nick Gaeta made seven saves in a winning effort. “[Gaeta] played very well. Our offense was settled. Chartier, Harter and Rob Satti also were great today,” Arpaio said. “The Bridgewater goalie also was good.”

See Women’s Lacrosse Page 6

edward Gaug | the recorder

The Blue Devils had 61 shots in the win.

CCSU, the defending Pioneer Collegiate Lacrosse League Champions, impressively committed only one penalty the entire game; Michael Minelli, an illegal body check with 5:21 left in the second quarter.

The game was put out of reach in the third quarter, when a goal that rolled into the Bridgewater net was See Blue Devils Page 6

edward Gaug | the recorder File

Senior Goalie Alice Lee blocks a Quinnipiac shot earlier this season.

Split with Wagner Gives Blue Devils Winning Week KYLe Dorau

This week in SPORTS

Men’s Track Competes At UConn Invitational

sports editor

The Central Connecticut Baseball team went 3-2 overall in a wild week.

The Blue Devils won a nonconference thriller against Rhode Island on Tuesday, and followed it up with a split against Northeast Conference foe Wagner.

Tuesday’s slugfest resulted in a 10-9 walk off win for CCSU over the URI Rams. Central overcame deficits of 5-0 and 9-5 to come back for the victory. With the game tied at nine and Sean Allaire on third base, URI hurler Luke Demko uncorked a wild pitch that snuck under the legs of the catcher. While the ball rolled to the backstop, Allaire scored to win the game as the Blue Devils dugout emptied.

Offensively, CCSU was led by Casey Walko. The senior outfielder went 3 for 5 on the game and was a double short of the cycle, netting five RBIs in the process. His fifth inning two-run home run was his first of the season and gave Central some much needed offensive momentum.

Allaire contributed three RBIs in the victory, and Tommy Meade got his tenth of the season with a sacrifice fly, one of two on the day for Central.

Central received an abbreviated start from Pat Robinson, who went just three innings, but did not allow an earned run. He struck out three batters and walked none. The Blue Devils’ bullpen was strong when it See Split Page 6

On a windy afternoon, the Blue Devils were down 9-3 at halftime, only to be outscored in the second half 12-2 in what was the worst loss of the season.

Goaltender Alice Lee made nine saves and gave up 14 goals in just

CCSU Loses 5-2 in Both Games of Northeast Conference Doubleheader

Men’s Track Picked 8th In Coaches’ Poll Page 8

edward Gaug | the recorder

Freshman pitcher Pat Robinson threw three innings, giving up four hits, two runs both unearned and struck out 3 versus URI.

Download The Recorder therecorderonline.net