Volume 108 Issue 08

AWA R D-W INNING CENTR A LR ECOR DER .COM Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Central Connecticut State University

Volume 108 No. 08

CCSU Professor Arrested On Fraud Charges JuStin muSzynSki

In the warrant, police say Shankar claimed that he had only purchased four tickets to the game totaling $342.40 and any other tickets on his credit card were unauthorized.

Then in a later interview with Detective Densil Samuda and Lt. Dercole of the CCSU police, Shankar admitted that he did in fact purchase all the tickets that were charged on his credit card in hoping the game would be a sell out and he would make a profit, according to the warrant. Also, that he reported the purchase as fraudulent because he lost $30,000 in another investment that was in the stock market and that his credit card debt totaled over $70,000.

Allegedly, Shankar called the CCSU IT lab and asked them to erase his hard drives that were being stored there because the police advised him to do so. When Detective Samuda received an email letting him know Shankar was attempting to get the hard drives erased, he responded saying not to erase them and that no one from the CCSU police

the Recorder

Associate Professor of English Ravi Shankar was arrested on September 17 on four charges, including fraud and attempting to tamper with physical evidence.

According to the arrest warrant, Shankar purchased over $20,000 worth of tickets to a soccer game in New Jersey with his Discover credit card and later claimed the charge was an unauthorized purchase. He faces two felony charges and two misdemeanors that include: attempt to commit larceny in the first degree, two counts of false statement in the second degree and criminal attempt to tamper with or fabricate physical evidence.

Mark McLaughlin, the associate vice president of Marketing and Communications at CCSU, said Shankar was placed on paid administrative leave and will remain so until all his legal issues have been worked out. He could not comment on what would happen to Shankar’s teaching position should he be convicted of anything.

Library Attendence Doubles After Renovations JuStin muSzynSki the Recorder

photo | ccSu enGLiSh depaRtment

TEACHER FRAUD | ConT. on 3

Big Sean Brings Down Welte nick RoSa

the Recorder

Rapper Big Sean performed at the CCSU Fall Concert in Welte Auditorium this past Saturday to a sold-out audience of 1700. The night was marked with Big Sean performing many of his hits, including “High”, “I Do It” and “Bull Shittin.”

My anticipation for the concert was through the roof. The preoccupations of the day pressed for time: getting out of work at 5 p.m. and having to pregame and get ready before 7 p.m. when the doors open became

challenging. The suite mates and I did what everyone attending did before the concert: listen to Big Sean’s Finally Famous and Finally Famous Mixtape Volume 3, while keeping our glasses and lungs filled—if you catch my drift.

Going to the concert in that state is what Big Sean wanted us, and everyone else, to do.

Grabbing our seats on the ground level, the alcohol was settling within the crowd, and I could just feel it was about to blow up when Sean hit the stage.

“BOI, I DO IT, FINALLY FAMOUS OVER EVERYTHING.” Every last person stood up and the auditorium erupted with

cheers, hands up in the air. Big Sean jumped around; spazzing out on the stage getting the crowd more pumped up.

“Who’s smoking that good tonight?” Of course, the crowd cheered back loudly.

Big Sean performed many of his hits right off the bat. “High”, it began, “I don’t give a fuck about anything, that you’re telling me, Cause right now it’s all, irrelevant, I’m so high I won’t, remember it.” The crowd went off the wall for that song and many other smash hits of his like, “I do it,” “Too Fake,” “Bull Shittin,” “Ass,” “My Last” and ended it with “Marvin BIG SEAn | ConT. on 6

Since the renovations were made to the Elihu Burritt Library, they have seen the attendance nearly double comparing the statistics of the month of September in 2010 to 2011.

According to the library’s statistics, they received 26,447 visitors in September of 2010 and in the same month in 2011 that number jumped to 48,484. Kimberly Farrington, the access services librarian, says she believes this is mainly because of the great job that was done with the renovations.

“From day one, we noticed more people without even using statistics,” said Farrington. “We saw students doing exactly what we hoped they would do. Looking around at all the new furniture and work tables, it was very exciting.”

While the attendance numbers are up tremendously, the actual amount of things that get taken out of the library have only increased slightly. In the month of September 2010, 14,578 items were taken out and in 2011, that same month saw 14,982 items checked out.

Farrington says this can be attributed to what students use the library for today.

“It’s less of a place where students just come to take out books and more of a group study area,” said Farrington. “What I see is LIBRARY| ConT. on 3

Big Sean performed in front of a sold out crowd at Welte Theatre on Saturday night.

Follow Us On Twitter: @TheRecorder

danieL SaundeRS | the RecoRdeR

2

NEWS

THE RECORDER Wednesday, October 19, 2011

‘Bring Our War Dollars Home’ Rally Marches On State Capital Gunsaro Nguyen The Recorder

Protesters marched from Hartford City Hall to the state capital Sunday afternoon under the banner of “Bring Our War Dollars Home” in opposition to state and federal tax dollars spent on military ventures in Iraq and Afghanistan, mirroring a movement that began in Maine, inspired by CODEPINK. The Hartford rally was coordinated primarily

by Tokuji Okamoto, a former CCSU student and veteran of anti-war protests.

“Bring Our War Dollars Home” united several local political movements around the state, including Connecticut United for Peace, United National Antiwar Coalition, Veterans for Peace, Teamsters, Middle East Crisis Committee, as well as local politicians such as Councilmans Luis Cotto and Larry Deutsch. The movement has also enjoyed broad support from national groups.

The march, which moved from the Hartford City Hall to the state capital, was largely subdued and was restricted to the sidewalk. Only three police cars

A group of protestors at the ‘Bring Our War Dollars Home’ rally.

were needed as extra detail to act as traffic coordinators during the march as protesters chanted and carried signs. Traffic was largely unaffected except for news vehicles and photographers.

“Bring Our War Dollars Home,” an antiwar movement centered primarily on protesting the expenditure of the money spent in overseas military engagements and redistributing it on education, jobs, housing and healthcare, has benefited from large support across the New England area, as well as national support from organizations such as the ANSWER Coalition.

The movement seeks to pressure local state and city officials into passing a nonbinding resolution in opposition to the United State’s military ventures. The full resolution passed by the Hartford City Council condemns the loss of life in military conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan and the fiscal expenditure of military ventures while decrying the downturned economy of Connecticut and high poverty level of Hartford (31.9%) and Connecticut (14.3%).

According to the calculations by the Hartford City Council, $28 billion of Connecticut’s money has been spent overseas supporting the engagements, $453 million of which came from the city of GUNARSO NGUYEN | the recorder Hartford, money that

they contend is better spent on Connecticut’s economy. In March, the city of Hartford was the first state capital to pass the nonbinding resolution.

A largely subdued affair, the protesters numbered in the hundreds as speakers from local peace and antiwar movements and schools, including CCSU, took turns at the podium to speak on a wide range of subjects, with the primary theme of bringing troops home at the forefront, while touching corporate corruption in politics, corporate personhood, immigration reform, Palestinian oppression, Muslim oppression and other complaints against the government.

The activists set up initially on the second floor of the Hartford City Council building where speakers rallied the group with stories of government and social injustice.

Notable speakers included Joanne Bauer of the United National Antiwar Coalition, Dave Ionno of Veterans for Peace, Christine Gavreau of Connecticut United for Peace, Tokuji Okamoto of Our Peace of the Pie, Councilman Luis Cotto, Councilman Larry Deutsch and former mayor of Norwalk Steven Heller. In addition, the Hartford theater group Hartbeat Ensemble performed Mark Twain’s “The War Prayer.”

Several entities were called to task, including but limited to the U.S. government, corporations as a whole, the International Monetary Fund, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. These groups were largely held accountable by the demonstrators and speakers as responsible for the vast majority of social injustice in the world. The IMF and NATO were repeatedly referred to as “the deadly duo” by several of the speakers, and were accused of “ushering in the next epoch of global tyranny,” according to Christine Gauvreau.

Speakers at the demonstration urged protesters to donate money to fund transport for Connecticut demonstrators to get to Chicago in March for future anti-war protests.

‘Occupy’ Demonstrations Gain Popularity At CCSU Jonathan Stankiewicz The Recorder

With the media just starting to cover Occupy Wall Street seriously, along with the other national and international Occupies, it might be hard for some to know what it is that the demonstrators want.

If you haven’t seen the demonstrations in Hartford, Wall Street or nationally you may be in the dark. The media sees it one way and the people who are there, on the ground and trying to get things done, know what’s really going on.

Last Monday, the Faculty Senate passed a resolution that they “stand in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street and Occupy Hartford demonstrations.” The Senate supports the protestors and urges “students, staff, and faculty to discuss these issues on campus, to participate in peaceful protests, and to demand economic justice.”

The national American Association of University Professors had recently supported it and a number of unions in the state have gotten behind the protests, said Faculty Senate Secretary Burlin Barr. “We thought we can be as fast as these guys.”

“We think of young people as the heart and soul of CCSU, but it’s not exclusively CCSU because we have all kinds of people here,” said Barr. “We thought it would really help our students, graduate and undergrad by legitimizing this and saying, ‘Yes, what you are doing is important.’”

Chris Hutchinson, a member of the CCSU Youth for Socialist Action, has been at Occupy Hartford every night and was a part of the initial organizing effort. He said that most of the people come at night for “general assemblies” to discuss politics.

“It’s a fight back against the economic crisis. Thousands of young people are ending school without any jobs feeling really helpless and they want to do something,” said Hutchinson. “They want to participate.”

Hutchinson confirms that from seeing every meeting in Hartford “at least one high school student gets up and says, ‘I’m worried about my future. I’m here and I want to do something about it.’”

CCSU needs to call a “general assembly”

GUNARSO NGUYEN | the recorder

Members of the Occupy Hartford movement. on campus, said Hutchinson. From what he has seen the student body is really open to it.

“Whenever I’ve gone out passing out fliers there’s a different level of interest that wasn’t there last year,” said Hutchinson. “People are trying to engage and figure out these things for themselves and I think that’s really helpful.”

Hutchinson, an activist for 10 years, said this “fightback to the global economic crisis caused by capitalism” is really what this is all about.

Kevin Yessian, a senior, got involved because to him “it’s people coming together in frustration over the influence that Wall Street has in politics.” He saw the ad in Adbusters,

a not-for-profit anti-consumerist, proenvironment magazine. The ad asked, “What is our one demand?” and at the bottom had “#occupywallstreet” with a date and the words “Bring Tent.”

Both Yessian and Hutchinson have been waiting for this to happen. Hutchinson said he’s been waiting for people to be inspired and “mobilize in the street because that’s where the real power is when people are mobilizing and marching,” to build a democratic process now, not every four years. Yessian said he “finally woke up” and that he “decided it’s time to do something about it” and is really excited to be around people that believe in the same thing

and think the same way as he does.

What OWS and OH will accomplish is still up in the air. They have the world’s attention now. Hutchinson admitted that this will be “anything but smooth, but that’s okay, that’s all a part of starting a movement,” and that capitalism is doing a fine job of bringing down it’s own demise.

“If it renews the spirit of community and that’s the only thing it accomplishes, that’s something.” Yessian said.

Currently, Hutchinson is in talks with other student groups to try to build something on campus to get his voice and others’ voices heard.

3

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 19, 2011 / NEWS

The Recorder Student Center 1615 Stanley Street New Britain, CT 06050 T 860.832.3744 editor@centralrecorder.com centralrecorder.com twitter.com/therecorder Editor-in-Chief Nicholas Proch nproch@centralrecorder.com Managing Editor Kenny Barto kbarto@centralrecorder.com Art Director Ashley E. Lang

LIBRARY | cont. FROM 1 mostly students that come into the library and use the first floor, groups working on a project or just students who need a place where they can study for an exam.

Now, if they’re using the resources provided here that I don’t know but my guess is some do and some don’t.”

With all the student traffic increased in the library, one might wonder if that has influenced anything else in the building; one example maybe, Jazzman’s Café and Bakery.

Don DeGrutolla, the general manager of CCSU dining services, says this is the case. In sticking with the formula of comparing September of 2010 to September 2011, the income for the month went from $7,338 all the way up to $14,276.

“Personally, I think they did a great job with the library, the layout on the ground floor with all the places for study groups, that configuration certainly gets more students there,” said DeGruttola.

“When people meet in those groups, it lends itself to ‘hey let me get a cup of coffee.’”

Renata Vickrey, library technician of special collections and archives, says she’s noticed more students coming into the special collections section but encourages all students to come if they are working on a project or a paper.

“I have probably seen more

News Editors Jonathan Stankiewicz Kassondra Granata, Assistant Justin Muszynski, Assistant news@centralrecorder.com Entertainment Editor Danny Contreras entertainment@centralrecorder.com Upgrade Editor Kat Boushee upgrade@centralrecorder.com Sports Editor Brittany Burke sportsed@centralrecorder.com Photo Editor Daniel Saunders, Assistant dsaunders@centralrecorder.com Copy Editors Maxine Eichen Sara M. Berry, Online

Staff Writers Matthew Clyburn Gunarso Nguyen Nick Rosa Peter stroczkowski About The Recorder is a student-produced publication of Central Connecticut State University and does not necessarily represent, in whole or in part, the views of CCSU’s administrators, faculty or students. The Recorder articles, photographs and graphics are property of The Recorder and may not be reproduced or published without the written permission from the Editorin-Chief. T he pur pose of T he Recorder is to approach and def ine issues of impor tance to the students of Central Connecticut State Universit y.

Staf f meetings for T he Recorder are held on Mondays at 7:30 p.m. in the Blue and W hite Room in the student center and on T hursday at 4:30 p.m. in the Recorder off ice.

Advertising I f interested in placing ads, please contact T he Recorder’s Ad Manager at adver tising@centralrecorder.com. For more information including our rate card, please v isit w w w.centralrecorder.com.

The newly renovated first floor of the library offers new seating areas and flat screen TV’s. students come in this semester but not many people know about our special collections,” said Vickrey.

“If you’re working on something for class instead of just going online and searching for it, you can come here and possibly look at the

first edition of it. That way, you get more than just reading something online.”

While Farrington says she believes one of the main reasons the first floor was redone in the first place was because the building

wasn’t very handicapped accessible, she also says the decision to redo the whole floor was a good one that was executed very well.

“Before the remodel, if you needed to use the elevator it required a key,” said Farrington.

KENNY BARTO I THE RECORDER

“It’s so great to see everyone able to use the library, no matter what physical limitations they have.

Overall, the first floor is much more user friendly for everyone, which is why I think it’s so popular now.”

TEACHER FRAUD| cont. From 1 advised Shankar to do that.

This caused Detective Samuda to believe that Shankar was trying to get them erased because they may have contained evidence crucial to the case, according to the warrant.

He was able to attain two copies of Shankar’s stored hard drives from the IT lab and tagged them as evidence.

As far as what would happen to Shankar as a Professor if he were convicted, Anne Alling the Chief Human Resources Officer at CCSU says that each case is different and a decision will have to be made in accordance to State Regulations and the AAUP collective bargaining agreement.

“I can’t comment on this individual case as it is still pending,” said Alling, “but I can tell you that there is no cut and dry policy in place and a decision will have to be made which will ultimately have to go through the president of CCSU.” Shankar has been released from custody on $25,000 bond that was paid in cash according to the State of Connecticut’s Judicial Branch website.

Shankar’s is scheduled to appear in court on October 25 at New Britain Superior Court.

Jazzman’s Cafe & Bakery has seen double the amount of income since the renovations were completed.

DANIEL SAUNDERS I THE RECORDER

4

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 19, 2011

CCSU At A Glance RachaeL BentLey the Recorder

Junior CCSU student Pernell Edwards admits that he didn’t know much about CCSU when he first applied.

“I knew it was a good school, with a well known physical education department and that it had student housing, but I never really researched it before I eventually decided that I wanted to go here”, he said.

What many students might not know is that information is just a few clicks away.

The information can be found by scrolling over the “About” tab on the CCSU homepage.

Resources like the US Census and CCSU’s Admissions Office can provide prospective students, current students, alumni (and anyone just curious) with tons of information and statistics about CCSU and other CT schools. Students in high school searching for that ‘perfect fit’ college could also use the data to help narrow down the search.

CCSU provides “Fast Fact” information on their website in the form of a single page which has information from student enrollment to the breakdown of how many students are in each academic school.

The School of Arts and Science has the largest student enrollment, claiming a little over 40 percent of CCSU’s declared majors. In second is the School for Education and Professional Studies with 24 percent; the School of Business and the School of Engineering and Technology come in the running with 16 and 12 percent.

The Office of Recruitment and Admissions, and the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment both have links on their web pages to statistics and information.

The U.S Census releases a study every 2 years with national data about colleges

and universities that can be narrowed down to each state. Connecticut has a total of 45 degree granting institutions, compared to Massachusetts, which has 125 schools and the US total which is 4,495.

The Census also released a study that discovered 35.1 percent of people 25 years and over living in CT have completed a Bachelors degree. This was based on data collected from 2005-2009.

Nicole Peterson, a CCSU Junior, took time out of her studies in the library to reflect on some of the statistics provided about her school. When told that CCSU had 47 percent of students enrolled under the age of 22, she said, “It’s not very surprising that the majority of the student body is so young, but its nice to know that CCSU also has a decent percentage of people who don’t fit into that demographic.

It’s what makes CCSU so unique”.

CCSU students may be impressed with some of the data collected by the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment.

CCSU monitors the employment of graduates after graduation through an alumni survey conducted through the System Office, as well as through participation in a study conducted jointly by the Connecticut Department of Higher Education and the CT Department of Labor. Their research revealed that 86.3 percent of 2008-2009 CCSU graduates became employed within a year of graduation, compared with 76.9 percent in 2006-2007.

When learning about this statistic Edwards seemed pleased. “If I had known about this kind of research I’m sure I would have used it to make an informed decision, but it seems like I made the right one”.

These studies and research are collected because there are certain laws that require universities to release data on topics like graduation rates and student aid under the “Student Right To Know Act”.

From the SGA

Fall 2011 Election Results

Posted by Eric Bergenn on October 15, 2011 Thanks to all who voted in the Fall 2011 CCSU SGA elections, and congratulations to the winners. Here is the list of the voting results by votes received. Winning candidates are listed in bold. For more information, contact mysga@ccsu.edu.

Winning Candidates are listed in bold.

At-Large Senator Raul Gomez - 136 votes Donna Chambers - 73 votes Bepin Mgushi - 63 votes Jonathan Johnson - 53 votes

New York Times Question Do you enjoy having access to the New York Times on campus?

Yes - 277 No - 48

Commuter Senators Erika Dawson-Head - 94 votes Kory Mills - 86 votes Javier Fernandez - 84 votes Christopher Marcelli - 78 votes Cordell Bell - 75 votes Kim Towler - 72 votes Charity Chambers - 69 votes Senior Class President Erika Dawson-Head - 35 votes Allison Palombo - 21 votes Freshmen Senators Alexandra Kitchener - 60 votes Dean Ott - 59 votes Simms Sonet - 54 votes Lynda Morrell - 48 votes Board of Regents SAC Representative Nick Alaimo - 160 votes Katelyn Boushee - 84 votes (alternate) Christopher Marcelli - 60 votes

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel to contact the Student Government Association at mysga@ccsu.edu

Tired of the Same Old Routine?

Spend your SPRING BREAK abroad and change your world!

BRAZIL CHINA CZECH REPUBLIC FRANCE GERMANY AUSTRIA JAMAICA NICARAGUA SCOTLAND SPAIN MOROCCO

Scholarships available!

Deadline for Spring Session 2012 Course Abroad Programs DECEMBER 1, 2011 Questions? Come to the Center for International Education Barnard Hall, Room 123 Open daily 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Information Sessions In the Blue and White Room Thurs., Oct. 20th Tues., Nov. 1st Wed., Nov. 9th Tues., Nov. 15th Wed., Dec. 7th

George R. Muirhead Center for International Education “After this experience, I now look at the world differently, and I am so grateful I had the opportunity to go on this trip” First Year Student Passport to Global Citizenship, London www.ccsu.edu/cie ▪ (860)832-2040

OPINION EDITORIAL

5

THE RECORDER Wednesday, October 19, 2011

SGA Not To Blame For Low Voter Turnout

In this country, we’ve fought for suffrage many times. This extends between races, genders and, in the beginning, for anyone.

If you jump to 2011, we are all expected to vote. Young adults are holding the reigns to control our democracy, but voter turnout is sometimes low in our demographic.

Why? It may be because of the lack of importance that we, as a political machine that is called the United States Of America, put on elections and democratic processes outside of election seasons. When was the last time that you voluntarily watched C-SPAN when Congress was in session?

If you are one of the seven on this campus who answered yes to that, then we applaud you, but most of us have not. This perceived unimportance, which infiltrates our office as well, is unfortunate. Beyond that, it’s a problem.

Did anyone see any campaigning for the fall SGA elections on campus? You can

probably think back and say to yourself, “no I did not.” This isn’t because there wasn’t any present, there was a small amount which we’ll talk about in a minute, but because there is no reason for any student to pay attention to it. We, as voting members of society, are used to being bombarded with campaign commercials, posters, flyers and radio advertisements. In that process, we’ve lost our looking ability.

To give credit where credit is due, we’ve seen Dawson-Head and Alaimo for the Board Of Regents position posters all over campus. At The Recorder, we’ve talked about campus involvement time and time again. Commuter school this, commuter school that. If you want students to vote you have to at least try to campaign, no?

Yes, this is a commuter school and yes students aren’t on campus all the time, but we are so tired of that excuse.

Where is the competition? Where were the megaphones and posters? Look at the

current GOP debates, they are fighting and challenging each other every chance they get. Why does CCSU have to be any different?

Not all of the blame can be put on the SGA and the elections. Students have to want to be involved and care about who is going to represent them. This election had an even bigger significance. As students we vote for who is going to represent us as commuters and residents alike.

However, this semester students were also able to vote for who would represent them in the Board of Regents as a student representative from one of the 17 schools under the Regents’ umbrella.

Higher education is supposed to be a preparatory step before you are released into the work world. That should include campaigning as well. Why not make it a requirement to have an actual campaign with visible effort? This would do two things for the SGA: raise awareness of

their organization and ensure a higher voter turnout.

For those who were informed and interested in who was running, there was very little to research. What are their platforms or what do they plan to do with important issues? Do they support club funding? Budget reforms? Anything?

We feel cheated. These fall elections didn’t feel like elections. Checking a name of someone you don’t know doesn’t feel good and it never will. When we vote for our towns, state and nation we know who we are voting for. This election for the SGA was a huge let down.

We don’t think the expectations were more than what could have been met. A certain investment had to be made for these elections and most of the candidates fell short. It may be because of the practices that we have from the top of government, but it’s not too late to change that at our level.

The Recorder

The time has come and gone that the public can handle using anonymity. There was once a time when a source could remain hidden to protect themselves and only in those situations was their name hidden.

We’ve now reached a point, in both social practice and technology, that remaining unnamed is an obvious problem.

Letters to the editor at a newspaper publication are checked. They are fact checked. They are then checked to make sure that they came from whose desk they claimed to have been penned from.

These levels of journalistic security provide some relief for the readers, publishers, editors and, most importantly, those who are writing these letters. When you send a letter to the Hartford Courant, you can rest assured that you will receive a phone call or email making sure that you wrote it.

There is a large problem with the tech generation in our attitudes towards what is appropriate and what is not. Namely, we can’t handle public commentary. Too many people handle comments on blogs and other user-driven news sites as if they are forums for cheap and uneducated banter.

A student who has taken “Ethics Of Journalism” would tell you how important libel is and the rules to abide by to stay out of trouble. Whether or not they are just spitting back information or have actually learned that information is unknown, but they can certainly repeat it back to you.

They will tell you public defamation is a practice that will result in a lawsuit. Most of the time, you will not win this battle. ‘Public Defamation’ is a phrase that isn’t in a lot of people’s vocabulary when they go on to a blog or online news site.

A website like Topix, where users can submit their own stories, started as a great idea. It was a way for people to report on their towns. It allowed writers to cover the stories they wanted to. There was room for comment and criticism. This exemplified citizen journalism.

This type of journalism was what our modern-day publications were founded upon. At their infancy, newspapers were the voice of the people. They published personal tales of oppression and questions of public policy. It was meaningful comment. Criticism had grounds to stand on. It worked.

As Topix evolved, along with other similar sites, problems began to show. Lives have been changed by what others are writing on their sites, sometimes without a by-line. Rumors have spread out of control and have even been picked up by national publications as stories of cyber-bullying and defamation.

If you go to your local internet search engine and type, “public defamation topix,” you can see a variety of articles written about issues surrounding cyber-bulling and whether or not it is fair comment and criticism. It’s not just a local issue. A lot of people are talking about this.

Those who have taken classes and understand the elements of journalism through experience or from the classroom should be outraged at what is now considered “reporting.” Real journalists cannot stay anonymous. That’s not how it works. It’s a sham.

There was once a time when you could have asked me if I believed that all newspapers would eventually fold and I would have told you that I think they eventually will. I can no longer stand by that statement. The general public is beginning to realize that citizen journalism, with no guidance or education, is not a reputable source of information.

These sites help in natural disaster situations and when the presses can no longer be trusted, but those situations are few and far between. Nothing will ever replace a well reported and balanced story. If you want to be taken seriously, put your name on your criticism. At least then we can believe you are being fair and honest.

There is no more room for these practices in what has become a very competitive market for information. Hopefully we can realize that we’re crossing the line of absurdity in the media before we’re well past it.

Email editor@centralrecorder.com

nicholas proch

Come turn heads.

When We’ve Crossed The Line

Not Seeing what you want to see?

EDITOR’S COLUMN

6

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 19, 2011 / UPGRADE

REVIEWS

CCSU Is Given A Wild Performance By Big Sean

BIG SEAN | cont. FROM 1 Gaye and Chardonnay.”

Every single person was dancing and having a great time. Nothing tops the night for when “Ass” was played. Here I felt the actual connection Big Sean made with audience because this capitalized the night. Everyone went wild and Big Sean really made that song special for the crowd because he knows, just

as much as everyone there, that ‘Ass’ would make people feel some type of way, especially while under the influence.

The special effects, the lighting and no delay or technical difficulties made the Big Sean concert the best I’ve seen at CCSU alongside the J.Cole/LMFAO concert. The atmosphere and the hype remained fun all around.

To those in attendance, we can’t forget about the one fan that hopped up on stage and ripped his shirt off for his five seconds of fame. Didn’t last long though, he was slammed by Big Sean’s beast of a bodyguard.

Probably drunk, he didn’t feel much, but I bet he was feeling it in the morning.

Ending the show, Big Sean was going into the crowd taking pictures with them, signed a

DANIEL SAUNDErS | the recorder

Belanova

Sueño Electrico II

Universal Latino September 6

danny contreras The Recorder

To those not familiar with Spanish music, Belanova is a Mexican synth-pop group signed to Universal Music Group.

The Guadalajaran natives have released five studio albums and their last two productions prior to this one, Dulce Pop (Sweet Pop) and Sueño Electrico I (Electric Dream), have broken through the Billboards Latin Pop charts at #8 and #9, respectively.

Their fifth studio album, Sueño Electrico II, continues their tradition of catchy, easy-to-follow pop. But what really makes the album standout is the fact that they breach the Spanish-English language barrier with some really smart, up-tune beats that will leave the listener with some catchy riffs. This album will provide fodder for humming on sunny days.

Sueño Electrico II is an album filled with melancholy, anger and heartbreak, in addition to contrasting emotions such as lovesickness, first love and confusion.

The songs are really deceiving; many of them contain fast beats and catchy choruses. A closer look at the lyrics reveals that the lyricist, Denise Guerrero, is just a heartbroken woman slowly moving on from a long-term relationship. Whether her intent lies there or not is up for discussion.

The album begins quickly with “Mariposas,” a very experimental song, even for the band. What remains constant is Guerrero’s voice, which is nasally yet melodic. Her words are slurred, becoming an instrument complimenting bassist Ricardo Arreola and keyboardist Edgar Huerta. The lyrics from “Mariposas”: “Doesn’t matter what could happen, I just want to navigate with you. Asteroids inside my body, everything is movement; I am movement,” showcase her ability to write ideas that are abstract and open to interpretation. The song was chosen as the lead single of the album for a reason; it truly begins with a bang.

“Todo Mi Amor” is the album’s third song. The synth-driven piece creates a surreal atmosphere, where the listener is transported from earth to space. In this song, you will feel stars dancing inside of you, and galaxies kissing creating planets all around. Huerta did an amazing job of combining dirty bass lead synths with bells and dust effects on his keyboard. Compared to the other songs, Guerrero makes this one a love song, a sonnet written by her to him, declaring her unconditional love for him over and over. “Don’t lose time, you know how I feel and its a true feeling. You know I’ll explode, what we have is for the eternity,” she sings in the chorus. Yet, there is a feeling of longing in the song, as the person she is writing to is truly not there, bringing back that feeling of melancholy.

Finally my favorite song of the album, “Infame,” is a song of extreme anger.

Guerrero speaks to an insecure, pompous jerk whose face bothers her. And while the lyrics are beyond cliché, “my heart is free from your lies, now I can see the truth,” the standout performers in this piece are Arreola and unofficial band member Campanita

lighter and throw it into the crowd, and finally thanked the crowd and walked back stage and tweeted how hype CCSU was for the show.

Big Sean had a great concert. For those students who chose not to attend or waited till the last minute to buy tickets, I feel bad for you, because you missed one wild performance.

DANIEL SAUNDErS | the recorder

(Little Bell) as the drummer. The bass lines are deep. I’m guessing drop C, a tuning used by metal bands like Metallica, Slipknot and Cradle of Filth. It adds to the sentiments projected by the lyrics; she is moving on and destroying everything in the process. Arreloa captures that exceptionally well. Campanita makes the song danceable, which is extremely interesting given the nature of the song. He does a typical 1,2,3,4 beat. The bass drum is hit every beat, the hi-hat on the 2 and 4, and the snare on 1 and 3. It’s simple, but gives an amazing layer of depth to the song. Huerta

does a good job with the synths but they go largely unnoticed as the bass and drums give the rhythm to the piece a lot more often.

This album is a great addition to their list.

It’s up-beat, catchy and fun. For new listeners of the band, they’ll feel like they need to catch up because of the amount of layers the songs have. But they don’t, this is how the band has been performing the whole time they’ve been out. The catchiness of pop, smart lyrics and very deep music is what makes them standout from a lot of others synth-pop groups. Sueño Electrico II exemplifies this.

PHOTO | myspace.com/belanovaspace

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 19, 2011 / UPGRADE

Footloose: Strong Without Bacon

ashley e. Lang The Recorder

I’m not going to lie to you. I have never seen the original Footloose.

For all of you Kevin Bacon fans out there, I am sorry. But what I can tell you is that the remake of the 1984 cult classic will leave some of youdrooling over Kenny Wormald and his sexy everything and some of you dreaming of Julianne Hough forever wishing you were Ryan Seacrest for a day.

It’s a simple story: a young man from Boston moves to Beumont, Georgia to live with his uncle and his family after his mother’s passing.

This small town, unsurprisingly close minded, has a rule for everything; curfews, no loud music and especially, no public dancing if you are under the age of 18. The town, still reeling from the effects of a tragic accident that left five teenagers dead, remains stubborn and hell bent on protecting its youth. Beumont’s religious leader, Rev. Shaw Moore, played by Dennis Quaid, runs the show. His daughter, Ariel Moore, played by Hough, is your typically “good girl gone bad” who goes back to good, so to speak. An altercation in the end leaves me with the feeling she’s still feisty no matter what. Rev. Moore, broken hearted from the death of his son Tommy, learns the hard way the consequences of living in the past and trying to control the

really such a bad thing?

Wormald does a superb job channeling R e n MacCormack.

It is no surprise that his chiseled features coupled with his native Massachusetts accent appeal to women, but his acting is noteworthy, proving that he is not just a pretty face on the silver screen. Sure screen shots with his leather jacket and grin catch your attention, but his skills on the big screen and on the dance floor shine Photo I Paramount Pictures through.

Julianne Hough, known future. Ren MacCormack, played

by Wormald, comes to town and most famously for her role on turns everything upside down, Dancing With The Stars, shows challenging Rev. Moore and the law she can do more than just dance. against public dancing. But is this Hough captured Ariel’s teen angst

Netflix It:

The Secret In Their Eyes

effortlessly. Sneaking around with a scumbag racecar driver (played

by Patrick John Flueger), who her father most certainly would not approve of, riding shirtless in the back of a truck and publicly dancing with MacCormack (still against the law even though he is a fox), Hough proves she has both the moves and the skills to thrive in the industry.

Quaid captures the pain of Rev. Moore perfectly; channeling the grief of a father morning the loss of his son, and showing challenges of trying to piece together not only a community torn, but a family striving to hold on to the past-Quaid at times is a little tough, a little brash, but by the end, will melt your heart.

In a more surprising twist, Willard, played by Miles Teller, steals the show. The comedic sidekick of MacCormack, an uncoordinated farm boy, equipped with cowboy boots and all, will keep you smiling in every shot he is in.

From his dancing to his brawling, Teller grabs the reins. While not meant to be the teenage heartthrob like Wormald and Hough, Teller’s character most certainly edges his way into your heart and refuses to budge. Maybe it is his dopy wit or his two left feet, but whatever it is, he is an unexpected star.

The dancing was impressive when it comes to MacCormack and Hough.

MacCormack’s

7

moves channeled that of his 80’s counterpart (yes, I had to YouTube it), but it was a refreshing break from the booty shaking. Hough, also professionally trained like Wormald, knows how to seduce, not only with her bright blue eyes (and I mean bright blue, go see for yourself) but with her moves as well. And last but not least Teller takes his two left feet and puts them to the test on the dance floor, edging even more towards heartthrob status. There is something about a man who learns to dance for his lady that steals my heart.

Some scenes were reminiscent of the gritty dancing found in rap videos that stream on MTV, but then again, MTV did help produce the remake. While I could have done without the uncomfortable crotch shots of dancers and occasional booty grinding on props resembling poles, Footloose is an entertaining movie that will leave you wishing you knew someone as cool as Willard, someone as sexy as Ren and someone as angry as Ariel.

All in all, Footloose is a fairly decent remake. I know most diehard fans will be hard pressed to give it a shot, but what the hell, you have nothing to lose. If anything you will be left with the nostalgia of the theme song by Kenny Loggins.

“Loose, footloose. Kick off your Sunday shoes…” Come on…it’s okay, you can sing along.

Not An Original ‘Thing’

danny contreras

drunk best friend—who worked with him in the original investigation.

Esposito uncovers some truths that It is no wonder I’m a fan of foreign reveal why the events of the movie occurred movies. Movie-makers outside of the U.S that way. He begins to connect missing do not abide to traditional Hollywood pieces and brings back characters from movie making. Instead of making hot the earlier side of the story that wished to leads and explosion filled movies, which remain undisturbed. Regardless, the movie I moderately enjoy, foreign creators craft carries on and ends with a twist of events stories with powerful characters and that will make you want to watch the movie engrossing plots. again.

A film that falls into this category is What makes this movie so amazing is the Juan Jose Campanella’s The Secret in their cinematography and story telling. Halfway Eyes. The film takes place in both modern through the movie, we’re provided with one day place Argentina and mid 70s Argentina. of the best chase scenes in cinematographic The lead, Benjamin Esposito, is a retired history. No cars, no planes or boats; just public officer trying to write his first novel. people running through Argentina’s Not entirely sure about the story, he toys biggest football stadium, Monumental. with the idea of writing Shots in the “present” it about the rape and story were taken from a murder of a beautiful distanced position, not girl he investigated in allowing you to connect 1974 in Buenos Aires. with any characters.

Esposito brings his However, once the story idea to Irene Hastings, in the 70s begins, it is a Cornell graduate and more personal, more attorney general of the claustrophobic.

The country. He explains scenes will give you some that the investigation, anxiety, for sure, but that the court proceedings is what makes the movie and the results of the so compelling. The fact prosecution still haunt that being distanced from him, and he wishes to the characters keeps you Photo I Sony Pictures find closure with the from making judgments writing of the novel. until you begin to see the He finishes the first half of the novel real story and feeling behind the characters up to the prosecution of the murderer. In is what truly drives the movie forward. it are the moments prior to the murder, Story wise, you have one of the best the promises he makes to the widowing noir stories in recent years. Both the old husband making sure the perp gets life in investigation and current one, are given to prison and the events of the court case. you concurrently with different elements of Esposito hasn’t found closure and wishes detective stories. This difference in methods to seek documents, real-life testimony of gives a sense of growing up between the those involved. Hasting explains to him characters. Many of them acted immaturely that invoking dead spirits would come back in the old investigation, while in the new to haunt him. But he proceeds with the one the sands of time have given them more book. than just gray hair.

On a side story, Esposito and Hastings Over all, this movie is one of the best are in a detrimental relationship that cannot I’ve seen. Unfortunately, it is not available develop further. She is a married woman for instant streaming, which is a shame, with kids, and he is an extremely depressed because this movie is a gem hidden deep in person. He cannot fulfill his love to her, and the treasures of Netflix. neither can she. Esposito is dealing with his mom’s separation of his father, and his The Recorder

Photo I UNIVERSAL Pictures

Nick rosa

The Recorder

John Carpenter’s 1984 The Thing is one of my favorite horror films, with its intensity and great special effects. The new Thing has the intensity but lacks Carpenter’s level of horror and experience.

This 2011 version is a prequel to Carpenter’s film, taking place right before the beginning of the 1984 version. The film begins with the initial finding of the alien space craft and that leads to finding The Thing frozen in the ice. Kate played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, (Live Free or Die Hard, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World) is the paleontologist who is called upon to study the creature.

Director Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. seems to try and mimic R.J. Macready from the original. When removed for examination the ice thaws at the research center and the thing breaks loose causing the ensuing chaos.

Kate is chosen by Dr. Sander Halversen (Ulrich Thomsen) and referred to by close friend and assistant to Dr. Halversen, Adam Goodman (Eric Christian Olsen) to head up this find. For those of you unaware of what the thing really is, it’s an alien species that imitates its prey by absorbing them. The alien cells replicate human cells to take form of whoever it attacks.

This is what the film has going, with plenty of “gotcha” scenes making you jump and having your heart drop. While paranoia sets in on the crew at the research station out in the middle of Antarctica with no help for miles, the dangerous puzzle game of knowing who is who begins after the first victim is killed.

The one thing that was disappointing was that it lacked character development

compared to the original in 1984. We had no one really to relate to compared to Macready, Childs and Windows from the original. You don’t see Adam Goodman and Winstead’s characters’ relationship develop. All you see is Goodman’s character hide behind Winstead and Thomsen’s character. Thomsen is played very well as the crazy doctor who is successful in keeping the mission to themselves and no one else, no matter the cost.

The original had an amazing soundtrack and great effects. The CGI in this new prequel made the alien look like all other films these days. The alien was different and effective monster for the film but nowhere compared to being as terrifying as the original, with its gooey and gory effects. In the original we saw much less of the alien but that makes it much more frightening than seeing the alien in CGI during every attack. The score in this new one is just as good, even having some of the original score within the film. Both films have intense flame thrower scenes where everything is doused in flames, burning everything to a crisp.

The supply of non-stop entertainment within the film will keep you on the edge of your seat, no doubt about it. It’ll get you thinking what is going to happen next and has you trying to predict who is actually infected.

Long dark corridors of the space craft, the dark storage rooms within the facility, could be hiding the ‘thing’, ready to pop out at any moment. Characters are consistently going off by themselves, giving us a harder way to judge, who is really the ‘thing.’

The ending leads us into the original film, which I recommend seeing first before this new one. It’s not the original, but it’s still a movie that will keep you guessing, jumping and on the edge of your seat.

8

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 19, 2011 / UPGRADE

Professor Showcases Book On Jane Fonda

‘Big Year’ Shows Potential For New Ideas In Remake Market

rachael Bentley

rachael Bentley

Taking place in Marcus White Living Room on Tuesday, 11 October 2011, and sponsored

by Peace Studies and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Dr. Jerry Lembcke, author of The Spitting Image: Myth, Memory and the Legacy of Vietnam was the key note speaker at the lecture: “Hanoi Jane: War, Sex and Fantasies of Betrayal,” based on his newest published book.

Attendance of the event stood at around 50-60 persons, with people standing along the side of the room just to fit in.

Lembcke’s stance on Jane Fonda’s 1972 trip to Vietnam is both unique and controversial.

In his book, and during his lecture, Lembcke deconstructs the myth of Hanoi Jane, and claims it originated because some Americans felt a need to explain their defeat in Vietnam through stories of a home front betrayal and “the emasculation of the national will-to-war”.

One of the many incidents that were rumored around POW camps was that Fonda had spat on visiting POW’s and called them “baby-killers”. Other rumors stated that after the POWs attempted to sneak notes to her with their Social Security numbers written on them she had then turned them over to the North Vietnamese, which led to prisoner abuse at the hands of the North Vietnamese. Lembcke argues that because Fonda was such an icon to many POW’s, they felt even more betrayed when the rumors started circulating.

During the lecture, Dr. Lembcke provided a slideshow of images ranging from comic book clips to Lady Gaga’s Rolling Stone

The Big Year, featuring Jack Black, Steve Martin and Owen Wilson-- as three men with a hobby for birding (bird watching) that venture all over North America-reminded me of The Bucket List and Rat Race. These three men, from three very different lifestyles, meet on their journey to “The Big Year,” the world’s most prestigious Birding award, all with the hopes of leaving each other in the dust.

The movie is narrated by Jack Black, which was refreshing and endearing considering some of the roles he has portrayed in other major films have come off as quite annoying. Both he and Steve Martin bring a sense of humility and compassion to each of their characters, and a well-rounded sense of humor between the two of them. Both actors are known for their great physical and whimsical comedy style, and to see them play such down to earth and relatable roles was just what I was hoping for.

It lets the viewers know that they do still know how to act.

Owen Wilson’s character on the other hand, turned out to be unfunny. To me, it seems to be

The Recorder

The Recorder

PHOTO | University of Massachusetts Press

cover, sporting two massive guns, to make his point very clear.

Dr. Lembcke is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the College of the Holy Cross, and is the New England Representative

of Vietnam Veterans Against the War. His opinion pieces have also appeared in the Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle and he has been on several NPR programs including ‘On the Media’.

a great waste of talent. He gives Kenny Bostick, reining champion of “The Big Year”, a face for viewers to remember, and one or two funny one-liners, but I was far from blown away by his performance.

This movie perfectly illustrates how hobbies and passions can bring happiness and joy to a persons life but also how easily it can get in the way of the really important things, like family and friends. There was a great balance of conflict, humor and insight during the film, although it did seem to drag on a little bit during the first half. In the writer’s defense, if the movie had been rushed it would not have been nearly as thought provoking and heartfelt as it was, and that in the end was what really made this movie worthwhile for me. It seems these days there are too many remakes of movies like Footloose and Fight Night.

The Big Year was a breath of fresh air and a sign that there are still original writers out there, still trying to give viewers something new to chew on, such as how invested some of these Birders are, and the lengths that some are willing to go to just to see that one Snowy Owl in the middle of Minnesota during a freak blizzard.

20 Under 20: CT Whale Hockey This weekly segment features ideas of fun things to do that are $20 or less and under 20 miles from CCSU. Brittany Burke The Recorder

CAreer trAining. money for College.

And An entire teAm

to help you

suCCeed.

Serving part-time in the Air National Guard, you’ll have an entire team of like-minded individuals who want to help you get ahead. You can choose from nearly 200 career specialties, and develop the high-tech skills you need to compete in today’s world. You also train close to home, all while receiving a steady paycheck, benefits and tuition assistance. Talk to a recruiter today, and see how the Connecticut Air National Guard can help you succeed.

Hartford hockey and the CT Whale are officially back for the 2011-2012 season, and they are only a mere 11 miles and 18 minutes away from CCSU. In its first full season as the CT Whale, formerly known as the Hartford Wolfpack, the New York Rangers farm team returns to the XL Center in Downtown Hartford for at least 38 fun filled hockey nights!

The Whale is an affordable taste of professional hockey, for as low as $7 you and your friends can enjoy 60 minutes of fast-paced and hard-hitting hockey. The upper level of the XL Center begins at $7, but ticket prices don’t exceed $25, which could get you right near the glass and up close and personal with the Whale athletes.

This season Whalers Sports and Entertainment has plans to bring back college I.D. discount nights. This means on selected nights throughout the season, ticket prices are reduced to as low as $5 with a college I.D. It’s just one other use for the CCSU Blue Chip card.

Aside from professional level hockey, the new season also means a new slew of free giveaways, and what college student doesn’t love free stuff ? Fans have a chance to win sponsor prizes by participating in games done throughout the game. Think ‘Minute to Win’ it meets the AHL. Walking distance from some of the best bars downtown, going to a CT Whale game is a fun and affordable weekend night out for any college student; you don’t even have to like hockey to enjoy yourself.

Want to advertise in The Recorder?

Contact advertising@centralrecorder.com

9

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 19, 2011 / SPORTS SPORTS BEGINS ON BACK PAGE

Join The Recorder

VoLLEYBALL | ConT. FRom 12 the most determined player on the court today,” Sagnelli said. “She was able to fight through some sloppy points, and put the ball down when we needed to put the ball down.”

Cochran finished with a team high 18 kills and finished second in digs, with 12. It seemed that time after time, the setters went to Cochran in favor of the other hitters on the court.

“We could have controlled the better off of the first pass,” said Sagnelli. “I think our passing was really up and down, which made things really difficult today.”

The closest calls in the match seemed to go to the Blue Devils, but St. Francis fought back regardless.

After the victory in the third set, some players on the Terriers’ bench were heard saying, “Really, we won?”

“A lot of credit goes to St. Francis,” Sagnelli said. “They really fought and scrapped on every ball, they definitely went after it today.”

The Blue Devils will hit the road, traveling to Sacred Heart and Bryant on Saturday and Sunday.

The Pioneers sit in first place with a 7-1 conference record, while the Bulldogs sit in sixth place with a 3-6 record.

Coach Linda Sagnelli high fives Brittany Schumacher before Sunday’s game versus St. Francis (N.Y.).

HoCKEY | ConT. FRom 12 they came back we’re no strangers to overtime this year.”

His second goal of the night, and first shorthanded goal came 18 minutes into the game while Ryan Stanley served two minutes in the box.

Coco managed to keep UConn off the board for the first 32 minutes while CCSU catapulted to a 4-0 lead. Coco finished the 65-minutes with 32 saves for 36 shots.

While the Huskies allowed for the Blue Devils to score four unanswered points, the home team kept fighting and eventually began to close the gap. Beginning with the late second period goal, the Huskies went on to tie the game with three third period goals.

“Blowing a four goal lead is never acceptable,” said Adams. “In this game that overtime was tough, we should have finished that game off with a W in regulation, as far as the other overtimes [on Friday and Saturday] they were hard earned.”

The final goal for the Huskies came with under three minutes to play in the game and while CCSU kept the puck moving, neither team managed to bury the puck, forcing the five-minute sudden death

overtime.

“I think our guys just have to do a little bit better at settling down and blocking shots,” said Adams. “When they have opportunities to get pucks out they have to get them out there, can’t be an excuse as to why it didn’t and these kids are going to have to look within themselves and figure out that no team is going to just rollover and no team is gonna stop coming and give you a lane and they’re going to have to figure out what you need to get it done.”

The extra five minutes came and went with both teams still at four a piece. Since the league doesn’t go beyond the extra minutes the score remained and the Blue Devils ended the weekend where it had begun, in a tie.

“We basically played an extra period this weekend with all the overtimes,” said Knobloch. “We just got to learn to just close it out I think eventually we’ll get there, it’s still early in the season so it’s not a time to panic.”

The Blue Devils have now played five games, with four of the five going into extra minutes. CCSU will see action again on Saturday Oct. 22 at 9 p.m. to take on the Boston College club team.

Suffer with frequent belly pain and in the bathroom many times a day because of

diarrhea?

Diagnosed with or have the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)?

Are you between 18-79 years of age?

You may qualify for a clinical study near you.

Need Advice? ask Ellie!

Send your questions about love, sex, money, school - anything - to: upgrade@ centralrecorder.com

Danbury Clinical Research, LLC Danbury, Connecticut 203-616-2710 Chase Medical Research, LLC Waterbury, Connecticut 203-419-4415

Visit: www.bellypain911.com

kenny BaRto i the RecoRdeR

FOLLOW THE RECORDER ON TWITTER @recordersports foR BReakinG Gameday newS, muLtimedia and Live tweetinG

www.bellypain911.com

10

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 19, 2011 / SPORTS

Men’s Soccer Wins On The Road

COLUMN

Keep Up The Fan Support

BRittany BuRke the Recorder

I spent a lot of time in a hockey rink this weekend. Three hockey rinks, four different games in three days and I loved every minute of it. While each game is always different, there was one interesting link; each of the four games went into an overtime situation.

With as much hockey as I sat and watched this weekend, I also couldn’t help but let my eyes wander to the other fans sitting in the bleachers. I have never seen as many fans at a CCSU hockey game as I did on Friday night, and it was not only amazing but loud.

CCSU students filled the rink-side bleachers. They yelled, pounded on the glass, insulted the opposing team and most importantly cheered on a team that was representing their school. As the game went on and word got around that a fan on the opposing team was tapping the glass behind CCSU goalie Greg Coco, the fans only got louder directing their screams at the University of New Hampshire goalie as payback.

Personally at that point I thought the crowd had reached its peak, but then the game was tied with eight seconds left and overtime was forced.

The crowd went wild, the Newington rink was filled with noise and I couldn’t help but thinking about how a crowd could affect the outcome game.

While it is the athletes who are playing and will ultimately cause who walks away with the win, loss or tie, the fans play just as big a role. Having a large, boisterous crowd can lift the spirits of the athletes when they’re down and fuel their momentum to keep going. Knowing that people are there pulling for you, cheering can definitely lift morale. Hell, it doesn’t even have to be a huge crowd, a few loudmouths would even do the trick.

I drove home from the rink that night thinking about just that, then the next night as I sold 50/50 raffle tickets at the first CT Whale home game and the crowd of 8,900 made noise for the team I thought about it again.

There’s a reason why so many organizations continuously try to get the fans involved, and why being at home equals an automatic advantage … the fans are that extra something that could really make a difference.

Whether or not the home team walks away from the game with a win, the fan created atmosphere still matters.

The importance of the fans is why everyone should support athletics. This weekend I saw first-hand the power fans have over a game, so why wouldn’t you want to help the team you support? If no one supports the athletes, show they care, what reason do they have to give it all they have each week?

It’s only midway through this fall season and I’ve already seen an increase in the amount of CCSU fan support, for both NEC and club sports. Now that the support has begun, it has to be kept up, especially during the tail end of the football season and into the start of basketball.

danny contReRaS the Recorder

The CCSU men’s soccer team went on the road last weekend at Bryant and walked away with a 4-2 win over the Northeast Conference rivals.

The Blue Devils won its fourth game in a row following three Jesse Menzies assisted goals from Thomas Obasi, Aaron Durr, in the first half, and Steven Walmsey in the second.

Bailey also got his name in the scoresheet as he scored a free-kick from 30 yards out.

Bryant University managed to get two goals in the second half to prevent Anthony Occhiliani and the Blue Devils from getting a third consecutive shutout.

“Offensively, I think it could’ve been 8-2.

Again our defenders stepped it up big time, Aaron Durr with a great header, too,” said Head Coach Shaun Green.

Placed dead last in the league, Bryant University searched for an opening goal early in the game. Two minutes into the match, the Bulldogs had already created its first chance; one which did not trouble Occhialini.

It was the second placed team in the league, CCSU, who would open the scoring first.

Following a left corner kick from Menzies, Obasi scored the first goal with a header into the top right corner of the goal six minutes into the game.

Bryant University had another chance on goal after its midfielders and forwards combined in the 6-yard box to create a good chance from the left side of the goal. The ball was lofted up in the air and almost made it in had it not been for the heroics of CCSU’s Occhialini.

Although Bryant managed to break away twice, CCSU did not let go of the pressure and increased the lead to two following another Menzies corner kick. The ball went directly to the head of Aaron Durr who centered the ball and beat the keeper to make it 0-2.

The half finished with a great possession from CCSU who kept creating chances, but could not find the back of the net.

Following the half-time break, the Blue Devils tormented the Bryant defense with some incisive passing. Mamoudou and Alpha Dioubate, and Obasi terrorized with their positioning, dribbling and passing skills.

The second half began as the first one ended, with CCSU outplaying the Bulldogs completely. A Bryant midfielder fouled Obasi on the 30-yard for a free-kick taken by Bailey.

The right-back’s accuracy was again in display following a volley that ricocheted on the top bar into the back of the net to put CCSU 0-3.

CCSU’s defense faltered for a moment and allowed Bryant back in, although controversially. The Bryant defense kickstarted a counter-attack that caught the Blue Devils off-guard.

However, there was a pass from the midfield that went off the field, but was not caught by either the linesman nor the official, allowing the Bulldogs to cross the ball, and score from it; effectively ending Occhialini’s 1-3 CCSU. “[Paul Wright and Christian Benjamin

have] are very positive, very positive.

Christian with the goalkeepers have given them confidence, playing at a high level. We cannot blame them for those mistakes and Coach Wright has been amazing tactically.

The players respect him immensely; he was a former player here, top scorer in the country and went on to become a professional, and they respect he knows what he’s doing and has a bright future,” explained Coach Green about his coaching staff and their influence over the players.

The Blue Devils kept searching for goals and eventually found the net again. Bryant tried to play a ball across that was intercepted

by Menzies; the midfielder carried the ball to the 23-yards, passing it through to Steven Wolmsey on the right. Wolmsey carried the ball down to the 6-yard box and score to put the Blue Devils 1-4 ahead.

The game wasn’t over yet, Bryant scored a consolation goal to cut the lead down by half, but as the time ran out, so did the breaths.

CCSU outplayed Bryant completely and earned three deserved points to take them to the top of league.

“We gave up a couple of goals that should’ve have gone in, but 4 goals, you can’t really complain with that. We’ve won four games in a row; we’ve been riding a wave.

We look strong, and we don’t wanna crash anytime soon—it feels good,” said Durr.

The Blue Devils will face Long Island University in yet another table-tops vs. tablebottom battle. Winning the game would give the Blue Devils a temporary two point advantage over current leaders FDU who lead the NEC League with 13 points out of a possible 18, as CCSU sits at second place with 12 points out of a possible 1

Advertise your business here!

Email advertising@ centralrecorder. com

Need a job after Graduation?

Of course you do, and we want to help. The Connecticut General Assembly is accepting applications for the Legislative Internship Program. During your internship you will: • • • •

Be a part of State Government Gain invaluable experience Develop the skills that employers are looking for Earn college credit, learn first-hand, and build relationships to give you an edge in the job market

If you are motivated and willing to take on a challenging yet rewarding experience then we encourage you to apply for this opportunity.

Applications are Due November 1

For more information go to www.cga.ct.gov/isc/ or contact Steve Marcelynas at Steve.Marcelynas@cga.ct.gov Scan for a list of campus advisors

Follow the Connecticut Legislative Internship Program on Facebook

Scan to go to our website

A Taste Of The Big Time kenny BaRto the Recorder

I’m fortunate. It’s that plain and simple, I’ve been extremely lucky when it comes to my career.

Up until this weekend, the biggest game I had ever covered was the Connecticut Whale’s outdoor hockey game at Rentschler Field, but the work that night was for The Recorder.

So, when I found out that I would be shooting UConn Basketball’s “First Night,” I found myself nervous for the first time as a photographer. I wasn’t nervous because I would be standing in front of 10,000 people, I was nervous because of the client.

When my friend and fellow photographer, Steve McLaughlin, booked me for the Friday night event, I really didn’t know who we’d be working for. But, when I met up with Steve on Friday I found out that we were working for a marketing company, who was working on a Nike ad campaign.

Primarily, our shoot list consisted of getting anything containing Nike’s famous logo, but it wouldn’t be easy. The major shot they wanted was a banner that would be unveiled while the lights were off, with a spotlight shined on it.

So, we set up a time lapse on a stationary camera on the opposite end of the arena.

I was shooting with bigger zoom lens, and my photos came out so-so, but the time lapse was awesome. I had never done anything like that before, but Steve’s idea worked.

With the tough part of the shoot done, the fun part began. I was able to get close to Ray Allen, Jim Calhoun, Geno Auriemma, as well as shoot the three point contest and dunk contest from down low. It was exhilarating, and I was able to witness how a large program operates.

This thrilling and rewarding experience was only the first half of my weekend.

On Saturday, I was able to assist Steve again, but this time it was a top 10 Division-1 hockey match up. The third ranked Denver Pioneers were playing the eighth ranked Boston University Terriers at Agganis Arena in Boston.

For the second night in a row, I was able to shoot a top ranked program, but in a different sport. I like hockey, and I got to see some of the best talent in the country. About half of the players that played on Saturday had been drafted and will play in the NHL some day.

I ended up meeting another photographer who was my age, Andrew Fielding, who traveled to Boston from Denver. He shot for U.S. Presswire, and has done work for the Pioneers as well as the Colorado Rockies, and huge events like the 2011 Orange Bowl between Stanford and Virginia Tech. The best part of it was that he was the photo editor of Denver University’s paper, The Clarion. When I planned on writing this column, I planned on talking about how the two programs had awesome fans and great attendance, but instead, I just wanted to say that meeting Andrew was a breath of fresh air. It showed me how far I have to go and refocused my mind on what I need to do to get there.

I admit that I was a little high on my horse going into the weekend, and it seems that life found a way to get my mind where it should be. It got me to focus, and I was able to prove to myself that I’m good, but I’m not great.

Ultimately, it’s given me the ability to strive for more accomplishments similar to Andrew’s. At the same time, I sort of know now that my dream of possibly shooting at Yankee Stadium just might come true.

This breath of fresh air has given me a new perspective on my career. This is why I love traveling to work and why I always enjoy meeting new people.

CCSU may always be my home, but I will forever cherish the opportunity to visit a new destination.

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 19, 2011 / SPORTS

Hockey Ends In A Draw

11

brittany burke The Recorder

The Newington rink was filled with cheers as the Blue Devils hockey club team came from behind in the last minutes of the game against the University of New Hampshire to tie the score at five.

This forced the first of three overtime situations of the weekend for CCSU. “I thought we were the better team in overtime,” said Head Coach Ben Adams. “In the third and overtime it was our game and I was just happy to get to overtime being down two, and for us, at this point a tie is as good as a win. With our loss last weekend at William Paterson, when you play within your league a point is a point and it’ll help at the end of the year.”

With 51 seconds left to play in the third Ryan Stanley managed to close the two goal gap to one and renew the energy for both the team and the fans with his first goal of the season. Then with hope still alive for the tie, Matt Siracusa notched CCSU’s fifth and final point of the game.

“Those are our go-to guys and when we need goals that’s who we look to and it’s good to see Stanley got on the board tonight because he hasn’t got on the board yet and Cuse is a consistent player, he works hard and his hard work leads to a lot of opportunities,” said Adams.

Siracusa had scored the final regulation point in CCSU’s first home game against the University of New Haven, which the team had won in extra minutes. He

CCSU’s Jack Johnson celebrates one of his two goals on Friday night against New Hampshire.

Ryan Stanley scored his first goal for the Blue Devils with 51 seconds left in the third period against the Wildcats on Friday night. finished the game with four points, adding three assists to the last-minute goal. As the goal was called the noise inside the rink heightened, the team celebrated on ice while the crowd made sure to cheer and shake the glass from the bleachers.

“I’ve never been one for caring about points too much, but if the puck is on my stick I’m gonna try to give my team the best chance to win and throw the puck on net,” said Siracusa. “It was nice being with [Ryan] Stanley out there, we grew up together and probably have 10 seasons under our belts playing together on the same line, so it felt really nice being out there

with him again so hopefully we could keep it rolling.”

Unlike the game against the Chargers, the Blue Devils couldn’t pull out a win, but will still get a point for the tie.

Coming off a 10-3 loss against William Patterson in New Jersey, CCSU was down 2-0 early in the first period off two UNH power play goals. It wasn’t until there was 8:20 left to play until the initial intermission that CCSU’s Jon Knobloch managed to get the team on the board.

Freshmen Jack Johnson tied the game at two a piece midway through the second, but just as the Blue Devils got up so did UNH.

The UNH tally was doubled within 1:20 when the opposing team notched two quick goals.

Johnson scored his second goal of the game early in the third to try and close the gap once again, but UNH countered his goal with a fifth of its own.

“It was a great experience to be able to help out the team. It’s good to get in there and do what I can to be able to help the guys,” said Johnson.

While CCSU had the momentum entering the five minute, sudden death overtime it couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity, ending the game at five all.

In his first home game of the season as goalie, Greg Coco was looking to rebound off the loss against William Paterson, where he let 10 goals get past him. In the game against UNH Coco stopped the Wildcats 40 times out of 45 shots.

“It was a little mentally tough because we gave up two power play goals at first and I’m just looking for my first win still, so it was a little frustrating, but it was nice that the team came back and it was nice that I made some saves because it was the first real good game since my surgery,” said Coco.

At the beginning of the

DANIEL SAUNDERS I THE RECORDER

DANIEL SAUNDERS I THE RECORDER

summer Coco had surgery to repair a labral tear in his hip, but was able to start the season on opening weekend.

The hockey team is still affected by too many penalties, which is something that was prevalent throughout the entire weekend, and cost the team a possible win.

“I think we’re in the box a little too much,” said Siracusa. “We play better against almost anyone five-on-five, so if we really focus on taking the penalties down and keeping our mouths shut a little bit on the ice … and stay out of the box we should have a pretty good season.”

12

THE RECORDER / Wednesday, October 19, 2011 / SPORTS

Volleyball Sweeps Weekend Action Kenny Barto The Recorder

The CCSU volleyball team lost just one set in two weekend games, adding two important conference victories to its season.

On Saturday, the Blue Devils (14-7, 6-2 NEC) dominated Fairleigh Dickinson (14-7, 4-3 NEC), beating the team in straight sets 25-23, 25-12, and 25-16.

“I thought on Saturday we had good rhythym,” head coach Linda Sagnelli said. “We passed the ball well, and we were able to work as a team to beat them in straight sets.”

The Knights never hit over .100 for their hitting percentage during the match. In set number two, they hit -.026, with nine kills and ten errors on 38 attempts.

Sunday’s action brought on St. Francis (N.Y.), a team that FDU beat in straight sets. Although CCSU came off a strong showing against a decent team in FDU, the Blue Devils didn’t seem to have the fire that they had just 24 hours prior.

“We seemed to struggled through the match,” Sagnelli said.

“We never seemed to find the right rhythm, and our goal is to create our rhythm.”

The last place Terriers (1-24, 0-9 NEC) put up a decent fight in the first set, falling short 25-18. The Blue Devils then bounced back, and seemed to be on the way to a sweep with a 25-13 win in set number two.

St. Francis (N.Y.) had not won a set in five straight games, the last coming against second-to-last place Quinnipiac on Oct. 1 when the team lost 3-2 against the Bobcats.

The Terriers have only won 11 sets in 25 games. While it was obvious that the Terriers were not at CCSU’s level of play, they were able to beat

CCSU’s Brittany Schumacher goes after the ball during action on Sunday. She earned NEC Defender of the Week for her performance against Fairleigh Dickinson and St. Francis (N.Y.) the Blue Devils in set three 25-21.

The Terrier hitting percentage was .306, while holding the Blue Devils to .161.

“It’s focus, it really is,” Sagnelli.

“Some of it depends on the servers you’re facing. Sometimes we have trouble with just one kid, in the end

it’s just focus.”

The Blue Devils redeemed themselves in the fourth set winning easily, 25-16. Despite the team’s

KENNY BARTO I THE RECORDER

struggles, Sagnelli was sure of one thing.

“Emily [Cochran] was by far VOLLEYBALL | cont. on 9

Blue Devils Blow Four-Goal Advantage Brittany Burke The Recorder

The CCSU club hockey team played its third game in as many days against the University of Connecticut and, for the third straight game, the team was forced into an overtime situation, ending in a 4-4 tie. “[The team] doesn’t want to lose and regardless of the score, they play hard and that’s a testament to the last two games,” said Head Coach Ben Adams. “Tonight I think we made too many mental mistakes and we stopped doing what was working for us and fully let [UConn] back into the game and they had a slow start and they ended up finding their magic.”

Coming off a home loss in extra minutes against New York University on Saturday night, the Blue Devils traveled to Freitas Ice Forum at UConn to try and get its first win of the weekend.

CCSU got the early advantage in the first with a goal from Conor Stanley and just two minutes later the initial deficit grew to two due to a shot taken by Jon Knobloch with 11:38 to play until the first intermission.

Knobloch led the team in goals against the Huskies, notching three goals for the hat trick, and a total of four points.

“It feels great you know especially so early in the season it’s good to get the goals off your back,” said Knobloch. “It’s a good feeling, but we played a tough game. We played good the first two periods then kind of fell apart a little bit and HOCKEY | cont. on 9

CCSU forward Jon Knobloch scored a Hat Trick during Sunday’s game at UConn.

KENNY BARTO I THE RECORDER