September 2007 - Bergen Community College

THE TORCH
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF BERGEN COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Online at: http://www.bergen.edu/pages/880.asp
September 2007
MySpace URL: http://www.myspace.com/bcctorchnewspaper
Vol. XII
Issue 7
Bergen Bans Smoking:
Campus Breathes Fresh Air for Good
BY MICHELISA LANCHE
COPY EDITOR
COURTESY OF/BCC
Bergen Community College President, Dr. Jeremiah Ryan
Getting to Know
BCC's New President,
Dr. Jeremiah Ryan
BY AMANDA FERRANTE
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Among the many new additions
at the college this fall, a new president may be the most promising.
Dr. Jeremiah Ryan, former
President of Raritan Valley
Community College, took office
this past July and gave The Torch a
glimpse of what to expect under his
presidency in the coming months.
Dr. Ryan's tenure at the college is
beginning with an obvious start—
getting to know the campus population.
"What I want to do is meet as
many people as I can...and ask a lot
of questions and listen,” Dr. Ryan
said with a smile. “Bergen is an
excellent institution.”
He seems genuinely concerned
with the student body and with
student’s ability to succeed. More
importantly, he said he is extremely concerned with academic problems students may encounter.
When asked what his priorities
consist of, he said, "[Math] is the
number one academic concern I
have…Everything [else] is second
priority.” According to a recent
report by the Middle States
Association, the accrediting organization that evaluates academic
programs, BCC’s math department needs to improve.
“Like all comprehensive community colleges, the institution serves
a very large portion of students
who require developmental programs to improve their chance of
success,” the report stated. “There
is significant evidence, however,
that for many students, the institution’s current remedial math program is an obstacle, not an avenue,
to academic success.”
President Ryan said he believes
the faculty will be able to resolve
the issue.
"What I would hope would happen is for the math department to
become the leaders in solution,” he
said, noting that math comprehension is a national issue and does
not only exist here at Bergen.
“Faculty, in the end, are the ones
that really need to fix this."
The primary issue, Dr. Ryan says,
is who is teaching remedial math.
“Developmental math should be
taught by developmental math
teachers. Changing that could get
the pass rate up.”
In addition to his academic concerns, Dr. Ryan places a great deal
of emphasis on the importance of
student activities. Dr. Ryan said he
would like to meet with the
Student Government Council, as
well as with every other club on
campus, and to take time to answer
any questions they might have.
Dr. Ryan's name might even
show up in the registration booklet
in the coming semesters as he feels
the best way to get to know students is to teach a class. While
See Dr. Jeremiah Ryan . . page 2
On
January
1,
Bergen
Community College will officially
become a smoke-free campus,
which means all smoking is
banned from all school property
both inside and outside including
parking lots and walkways.
The policy takes effect following
surveys by both the Student
Government Council (SGC) and
the Board of Trustees. Currently,
smoking is permitted at a distance
beyond 50-feet from school buildings. No smoking is allowed inside
the buildings.
“Two things to keep in mind:
This is not a popularity contest.
This is a health care issue,” Stephen
J. Moses, the board’s chairman said
in an interview. “There unquestionably is a large number of people
[who disagree with the policy, but]
whether they form a majority or a
minority is irrelevant. What’s relevant is that we feel an obligation to
make the campus as healthy as possible, to make the campus as clean
as possible,”
Chairman Moses noted that this
was an issue brought to the board
by the elected officials of the student body. “And we wanted to
indicate to them that we took
them seriously,” he said.
At the end of the spring 2007
semester, the SGC conducted a
“Smoking Survey” through email
asking students, faculty, and staff
to choose one of the following four
options: (1) Bergen should be a
smoke-free campus. (2) Bergen
should leave the smoking policy
the same. (3) Bergen should permit
smoking in designated areas of the
parking lot. (4) Bergen should
allow smoking only in private vehicles. 1418 students and 395 faculty and staff responded to the email
and took the survey. 53% of the
faculty and staff and 52% of the
students chose option one.
Francisco Marin, SGC’s president
for the 2006-07 school year, presented the board with the results. It
was extremely impressed with the
students’ effort; however, its members wanted to make sure these
results were accurate. They commissioned a wider survey to be done by
the Division of Student Services.
“The survey [done by the
Division] was [conducted in] the
same [way], and it basically uncov-
ered the same information,” said
Vice President of Student Services
Raymond Smith. “That then
prompted the Board to say that we
need to move towards a smoke-free
campus.”
Students and faculty have shared
different views on whether this policy is a positive or negative change.
Jonathan, a full-time student at
Bergen, thinks the policy is beneficial to everyone on campus. “I personally don’t like the constant
smoking in my face, not to mention the obvious health risks from
secondhand smoking and things
like that,” he said.
Some students who smoke, like
David, wouldn’t be affected much
by it because they’re “in class half the
time anyway, so it’s not a big deal.”
On the other hand, Lisa, another
student smoker, doesn’t agree with
it. She believes that everyone
should have his or her own choice.
“Even when I decide to quit smoking, I still won’t think it’s (the policy’s) fair to the smokers,” she stated.
Faculty members understand that
the policy addresses a huge social
issue, but Chairman Moses said
See Bergen Bans Smoking . . page 3
Is Bergen a Cell-Out?
T-Mobile to Build Cell Tower
on Top of Ciccone Theater
BY ROBERT TORRES
STAFF WRITER
Several Bergen Community
College faculty members and local
area residents expressed concern at
an open forum last month to discuss the anticipated construction of
a T-Mobile cell phone tower on top
of the Ciccone Theater.
The tower was approved in a
meeting by the Board of Trustees
in October 2006 and by the
Borough of Paramus in August of
2007. A final open forum on the
matter is scheduled for Sept. 27 at
2 p.m. in the Ciccone Theatre.
The August 7 open forum held by
Bergen took place in the auditorium
of the Ciccone Theater and included about 100 people, including
engineers who discussed the tower.
However, there was no oncologist
(medical doctor who studies cancer)
present to provide specific healthrelated answers. No board members
were present at the forum.
Among the engineers attending
was Chief Technical Officer Dan
Collins of the Pinnacle Telecom
Group, a consultation firm hired
STAFF PHOTOS/LOUIS CAMPOS
Cell Phone Tower to be placed above Ciccone Theatre
by T-Mobile’s parent company
Omnipoint
Communications.
Omnipoint is the company
responsible for building the tower.
Collins said he checked to ensure
the level of radio frequency electromagnetic radiation (RF) complied
with the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) standards for
a safe environment.
Collins said the placement of the
tower is safe. It will be placed on
top of the Ciccone Theatre building, and will be covered by walls,
which block out RF. He said the
only way to tell that there is a cell
tower would be from a bird's eye
view, so it would be practically
See Is Bergen a Cell-Out . . page 2
What’s Inside:
BCC News . . . . . . . .p. 3 This & That . . . . . . .p. 4 Arts & Entertainment . . .p. 9 Sports . . . . . . . . .p. 12
“For The Record” Series Features Sen. Bob
Menendez, Three of BCC’s Finest Participate
in Environmental Symposium at U.N.
Is This Love That I’m Feeling?, Hey,
Teachers, Leave Those Kids Alone!
September’s Music Picks, For Those Who’ve
Got the Blues but No Rhythm
Calling It as We See It: A Guide to the 2007
- 2008 NHL Season, Torch Sports Top 10
THE TORCH
PAGE 2
SEPTEMBER 2007
BCC News
“For The Record” Series Features Senator Bob Menendez
BY JILL BARTLETT
“We need to know who is here to
live the American dream and who is
MANAGING EDITOR
here to destroy it,” Menendez stated.
Secure borders, north and south,
U.S. Senator Bob Menendez
called for a federal “earned legaliza- were also stressed by the Senator.
tion” program for illegal aliens at He reminded us that while the
an open forum last month spon- majority of Americans are more
sored by The Record and hosted by concerned with our borders to the
south, at least 60,000 people traBergen Community College.
New Jersey’s first U.S. Senator of versed the Canadian border last
Hispanic ancestry said he does not year. The infamous “millennium
favor outright amnesty but sup- bomb” also entered the country
ports a legalization program. It through Canada. In addition,
would include criminal back- Menendez said the nation needs
ground checks both here and in guest worker programs, as the
the immigrant’s country of origin economy is unsustainable without
and payment of any back taxes. An them, especially New Jersey’s farms.
The forum, held in the Anna
ability to speak English would also
Maria Ciccone theatre on Aug. 8,
be required, he said.
was the third installment in The
Record’s “For the
Record” series of
open
forums.
Previous guests of the
forum have included
Governor Corzine.
Moderated by The
Record Editorial Page
Editor Alfred P.
Doblin, the forum
was a chance for the
community to convene in a comfortable
setting and find out
just how it’s senator
feels about today’s
STAFF PHOTOS/JILL BARTLETT
vital political issues.
Senator Robert Menendez at the Ciccone Theater.
The evening began with just over
an hour of questions posed by
Doblin. Menendez spoke of the
“intransigence of the President”
regarding withdrawal from Iraq,
and reminded the audience he was
one of the few senators to have
voted against the war from the start.
In response to the children’s
health care crisis, Menendez said
he believes universal coverage is
not only a “desirable goal, but a
moral imperative.”
Doblin then asked the senator if
he could choose one piece of legislation to implement without contest, what would it be? Although
Menendez did not like the idea of
choosing one issue, he thinks the
most important issue is to gain
energy independence, so that his
generation
could
bequeath
America’s children a country that
will be able to survive.
“We need to incentivize wind,
solar, ethanol, butanol and other
new technologies,” he said, affirming that fueling foreign governments
who “just happen to be sitting on
oil, but have very different views
from ours” is a dangerous prospect.
When the floor was opened to the
public, the war in Iraq was the most
prevalent of issues on the minds of
those who stood up to the microphone. Menendez said he will not
support simply defunding the war,
noting that it would hurt those still
Dr. Jeremiah Ryan
Continued from Cover
president at Raritan, he usually
taught at least one class.
His favorite subject is Political
Science -- after all, his Doctoral
Dissertation was about the subject.
Surely, he can provide information
from his experience in politics as
his primary resource.
Dr. Ryan said he encourages
expansion of shared governance at
Bergen to include not just faculty,
but students, board staff, and management staff.
“I do believe in shared governance,” Dr. Ryan said. “[It] has to
produce a fair and unbiased result
in an expedited time period.”
Dr. Ryan is eager and willing to
build on Bergen’s strengths and
keep the standard set high as it is
ranked the number two community college in the nation. Because
politics are so prominent in higher
education, Dr. Ryan was asked
whether he would be able to overcome the looming stigma of “dirty
politics” in higher education. In an
institution so vast and diverse,
there will always be different opinions; thus, there will be debates
and controversy, but Dr. Ryan is
optimistic about the future.
“I would hope that the administration, trustees, and faculty could
work together to minimize the
negative impact of the always present creative tension of politics
among the students," he said.
Dr. Ryan emphasized the importance of his role on campus and
wants students to feel as if they can
go to him in any instance as his door
is always open. "I really want students to stop by my office with their
problems,” he said. “I’ll do my best
to help them out. I want them to feel
comfortable to come and see me.”
Dr. Ryan was selected by the
Board of Trustees after a nationwide search conducted by the
Presidential Search Committee.
He is a graduate of Hamilton
College (A.B.), Stanford University
(M.A.), the State University at
Albany (M.S.), and Nova
Southeastern University (Ed.D.).
Is Bergen a Cell-Out?
Continued from Cover
invisible to those walking on the
campus grounds. Also, he states
that there is a great distance from
the tower to the ground (about a
few hundred feet) which adds to
the safety factor.
The school will receive approximately $33,000 a year for hosting
the cell tower. It also means TMobile users will get better reception. There is potential for other
towers to be built, possibly five
more in the near future.
Many people at the forum
seemed to be concerned about the
possible negative health effects of a
cell tower on campus. They noted
various reports on RF related sicknesses caused by cell phone towers.
After the meeting, a professor
quoted a report headlined "Cancer
Clusters at Phone Masts," from the
Sunday London Times on April
22, 2007 that stated, "One of the
studies in Warwickshire showed a
cluster of 31 cancers around a
single street. A quarter of the 30
staff at a special school within sight
of the 90 foot high mast have
developed tumors since 2000,
while another quarter have suffered significant health problems."
Community members were distressed that they were without
counsel and unprepared for the
forum. They questioned why there
wasn’t an earlier open forum about
the cell phone tower being built on
BCC
campus
grounds. They said
"It's unproven [to be safe], so back in May 2007, a
why take a risk for $33,000?" One town hall meeting
place; however,
professor asked after the meeting. took
only a few people
attended due to last
Besides concern for the health of minute notification. At that time,
students and staff, forum attendees participants who attended the
expressed concern for the children meeting were also angered by the
attending daycare classes at the decision that they could only ask
Child Development Center in questions and not make stateEnder Hall. The distance from the ments. Some frustrated attendees
Ciccone Theater to Ender Hall is reportedly walked out in disgust.
about a 15 minute walk, making it
At press time, it appeared the
relatively in range of the tower.
decision to build the tower is final.
Many individuals at Bergen and Construction will begin this fall by
within the Paramus community Omnipoint Communications Inc.,
who know about the soon-to-be after the second and final open
tower said they are in opposition to forum on September 27. No word
it, citing there is no need for it and yet whether a second or more towthat they're not willing to take on ers will be built.
the health risks.
Menendez and moderator Alfred P. Doblin listen to a question from
an audience member.
serving overseas. He said while
some would like to see the war defunded, they would not wish to see
it put into action while their own
son or daughter is overseas.
Menendez evaded a question
about whether the recent scandals
among elected Democrats in New
Jersey might taint the Democrats
ability to win elections this year.
Instead, he referenced the new ethics
bill the House of Representatives
recently approved which includes
some of the “toughest” lobbying
reform laws passed to date.
One of the last questions of the
evening before the Senator departed came from a woman who wanted to know if he would support the
impeachment of President Bush.
He replied that this would lawfully
leave Dick Cheney to lead the
country for the next year and three
months, which he said he views as
a prospect that is “not appealing.”
The audience applauded and
laughed, seemingly in agreement.
Bergen Community College
Faculty Receive National
Award for Teaching Excellence
Dr. Laura Ochoa
Bergen Community College faculty
members Dr. L. Laura Ochoa
(Associate Professor of Psychology)
and Professor Mary Clifford
(Associate
Professor
of
Communication Arts) were awarded
2007 Excellence Awards from the
National Institute for Staff and
Organizational
Development
(NISOD). The award ceremony took
place in May at the NISOD
International Conference in Austin,
Texas. As previously announced in a
BCC press release, the BCC Office of
the Academic Vice President, Dr.
Gary Porter, nominated the award
recipients in collaboration with the
Division Faculty and Dean. As part of
the award selection process, the BCC
Faculty Development Committee
selected their paper “Psychodrama:
Use of Interactive Theatre in Teaching
Psychology” that was presented by Dr.
Ochoa and Professor Clifford at the
NISOD Conference.
Dr. Laura Ochoa has taught at
BCC since 1993 and is a long-time
member of the Faculty Senate. Dr.
Ochoa earned a B.A. from Barnard
College (Columbia University), and
an M.A. and Ph.D. in psychology
from New York University. A
licensed psychologist in New Jersey
Professor Mary Clifford
and New York, she teaches both traditional and online courses in psychology. She has presented on subjects such as psychological disorders,
cognitive behavior therapy and the
teaching of psychology at numerous
conventions.
Together
with
Professor Clifford, Dr. Ochoa is the
co-founder of the Psychodrama
Workshop, an annual event at BCC.
Professor Mary Clifford has
taught at Bergen Community
College for 17 years. A noted theatre scholar, she earned a B.A. from
Marywood College and a M.F.A.
from Brandeis University. As
founder of the Bergen County
Young Playwrights Festival and cofounder of the Psychodrama
Workshop, Professor Clifford has
enhanced the College’s theatre
department through extracurricular
activities. As an actor and director,
she has participated in OffBroadway, regional and summerstock productions. Also a playwright and a long-time member of
the Geraldine R. Dodge Project for
Playwrights and Teachers, Professor
Clifford has authored plays that
have entertained audiences in
numerous locales.
SEPTEMBER 2007
PAGE 3
Three of BCC’s Finest Participate in Environmental Symposium at U.N.
BY JILL BARTLETT
MANAGING EDITOR
Global Warming, more recently
referred to as Global Heating by
those who wish to instill a deeper,
harsher awareness, is one of the
fastest growing issues of our era.
Whether we can significantly
reduce and control our global output of greenhouse gasses within the
next fifty years has begun to shape
the future of our fate as a people.
Three Bergen Community
College students, through the
efforts of our own Professor Win
Win Kyi, had the opportunity this
summer to take part in a three day
global symposium held at the
United Nations headquarters in
New York City. The forum was
designed to bring students and
young professionals together to
gain perspective on the United
Nations Millennium Development
Goals. I was one of the three students to attend.
Co-sponsored by the Alliance
Toward
Harnessing
Global
Opportunities (ATHGO) and
United Nations University (UNU)
New York office, this year’s event
focused on Millennium Goal
number seven: ensuring environmental sustainability.
Through international forums,
internships, financial grants, and
symposia, ATHGO International
works tirelessly towards transforming the way young individuals
envision the future, enabling them
to effect visible changes in the way
“breathable” pants, starch
their collars, and leave
their jackets and ties at
home.
The campaign gained a
following among nongovernmental agencies
culminating
in
a
460,000-ton reduction in
CO2 emissions from rates
measured in 2005, the
equivalent volume of
CO2 emitted by about
one million households
for one month.
Oppenheimer spoke about the role
of the international community,
global environmental funds, energy saving houses, and systems that
reward companies who promote
environmentally safe practices.
Oppenheimer is Professor of
Geosciences and International
Affairs at the Woodrow Wilson
School and the Department of
Geosciences
at
Princeton
University, a scientist and a member of the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC).
At the end of three days, a rather
lengthy 20+
page resolu99 percent of electronics such as tion was
produced. It
cell phones, iPods and digital
was edited
cameras are recyclable.
and re-edited, argued
upon
and
e-mailed
around
Dr.
Mbuende
of
through
the
course
of
two
weeks
COURTESY OF WWW.POLISCI./MERCYHURST.EDU Namibia explained that
until
it
ended
up
as
a
seven
page
United Nations Headquarters
solar energy is the energy
testament
to
the
willingness
of a
of the future in Namibia,
in New York City
generation
to
cooperate.
It
as they are “blessed with a
includes
words
and
ideas
that,
if
companies do business and govern- lot of sun.” In subsequent panels,
heeded,
have
the
ability
to
effect
ments write policy.
ambassadors
from
Iceland
The three day event was scheduled expressed the use of hydrogen. In major global change. The resolufull of presenters and speakers from Finland, wind energy is the choice tion strongly recommends a 60%
reduction in greenhouse gas emisaround the world. Of the many dis- form of sustainable energies.
tinguished presenters, Ambassador
John Shegerian, Chairman and sions by 2030. We understand the
Takashiro Shinyo of Japan gave us CEO of Electronic Recyclers, why; it is the how that will take
an insight into the out-of-the-box informed us that 99 percent of most amount of work.
One of the most promising ideas
concept of “cool biz” in Japan. Cool electronics such as cell phones,
included
in the resolution is a “carbiz is a campaign formulated by the iPods and digital cameras are recyJapanese Ministry of Environment clable. These items and other sim- bon calorie” measurement consistwhich regulates government build- ilar electronics make up an impres- ing of 1 carbon calorie per 100
ings’ thermostats be kept at 28 sive estimated $30 billion dollar - metric tons of carbon dioxide output. This system would implement
degrees C (about 82 degrees F) until and growing- renewables market.
Sept. and for employees to wear
Keynote Presenter Michael a color classification system to
Bergen Bans Smoking
Continued from Cover
that “that’s secondary to the
healthcare issue.”
Neither faculty nor students deny
the fact that the policy’s enforcement is going to be difficult.
Fred Sahlberg, Bergen’s Director
of Public Safety, said once the policy takes effect, Public Safety will
alert any violators to the new policy.
“We’ll tell him that he’s in a nonsmoking area,” Director Sahlberg
said. “If it comes to Public Safety’s
attention that he is knowingly and
chronically disobeying the policy of
the college, we will take that person’s
name and forward it to his supervisor to take the appropriate action.
Public Safety only enforces the rules
and regulations. We don’t penalize.”
Public Safety also plans to
enforce the policy by placing signs
outside saying, “NO SMOKING
ANYWHERE ON CAMPUS”
and posting the policy on the tele-
visions inside the college. With
enough advertising, he said every
student and faculty member will
know of the policy, leaving no
excuse not to follow it.
Ultimately, Director Sahlberg is
hoping
for
“cooperative
compliance.”
To smooth the transition from a
smoking to a non-smoking campus, the Wellness Center, with the
assistance of the Office of Health
Services, is going to start programs
that will help people quit smoking.
According to Barbara Buff,
Bergen’s Residential Nurse (RN),
smoking cessation programs were a
complete failure about three years
ago.
“Nobody signed up,” she said.
“They had a one-on-one counselor—they had it all set up.
Nobody came. Nobody kept
appointments. It was all over campus. The response was awful,”
Nurse Buff disclosed.
STAFF PHOTO/ALON MELAMED
A student happily abiding by the current smoking policy.
Bergen isn’t the first college to
become a smoke-free campus.
Last January, the County College
of Morris (CCM) became one of
the first public institutions in New
Jersey to permanently ban smoking
on its campus. Students and faculty, however, were still allowed to
smoke in the privacy of their cars.
If a person were to be caught
smoking on campus, then he or
she would receive a $25 fine.
Prior to the actual installment of
the policy, Jake Jacobs, a staff
writer for CCM’s student newspaper, The Youngtown Edition, elaborated on the student apprehension
towards the smoke ban.
“Many consider this to be an
infringement of personal rights.
Many say a few (members of their
Student Government Association)
are ruining the whole (student
body), much like a diligent student
throws off the bell curve during a
test,” he wrote.
In an opinion article published a
month after the ban, Meredith
Beck complained about the “tiring
and dreadful” walk to the car one
must endure in order to light up.
Other than that, however, students
were relatively compliant simply
because they did not want to
receive the $25 fine.
Vice President Smith empathizes
with the students. He used to be a
smoker himself, and he knows it’s
very difficult to stop.
“But if someone said you have a
choice between having an
unhealthy environment to breathe
as opposed to a healthy environment to breathe, I’m sure that
everybody would choose the
healthy environment,” he said.
measure the carbon output of
manufactured products with red
being the highest, orange being
moderately high, yellow being
moderately low, and green being
the lowest. This method aims to
achieve greater consumer awareness ultimately affecting how
goods and services are purchased
on a day-to-day basis.
Doug Corcoran, Director of
Special Projects, said that his company, Waste Management, has
been active in researching new
sources for cleaner burning renewable fuels. When asked if he could
estimate when implementation of
this research would begin, he was
unable to give a definitive answer.
He hopes within the next five to
ten years.
This invaluable experience
afforded this writer the opportunity to listen to an assembly of my
peers, scientists, ambassadors,
business owners, politicians, and a
unique discussion group of fourteen young professionals who
brought their many opinions and
walks of life into one truly inspiring resolution.
To view the summary resolution
or to learn more about ATHGO
please visit www.athgo.org.
Remembering Michael Orlando
Professor Michael Orlando, a
much-loved faculty member and
tireless supporter of the English
Basic Skills program, died this
past summer. He was 58.
Prof. Orlando was the coordinator of the English Basic Skills program at BCC for more than 20
years, guiding the program’s
roughly 3,200 students and many
faculty members. In addition, he
headed up the college’s AIMS
program, served many years on
the Faculty Senate, was involved
in professional organizations and
also managed to teach classes. At
one time, he headed the BCC
Testing Center and he remained
involved in testing both on campus and across the state.
Colleagues described Prof.
Orlando as a man who wore
many hats at the college, and he
wore them all well. He was the
consummate professional, working from early in the morning
until late in the day, yet never losing his cool and always willing to
listen, said Dr. Carlo Annese, a
longtime friend and EBS professor. He recalled that a line of students could be at his door, a stack
of requests on his desk, and yet he
remained calm, giving each his
undivided attention.
“He was fair, understanding to
Michael Orlando
the point of compassion,” said Dr.
Annese. “I never knew him to
have an enemy or to have someone speak ill of him, even if you
disagreed with him. He just had a
competence about him, a respect - and he engendered it in others.”
He was the kind of person who
possessed an encyclopedic knowledge of the programs he led, and
was much relied on by staff,
“making everyone’s job easier,”
said Dr. Carol Miele, head of the
English Department. Yet, he put
people first.
“He always cared more about
people, about faculty and the students,” she said. .
A devoted husband and father,
he was deeply involved in his four
children’s school activities. “He
was so very proud of them,” Dr.
Annese said.
If you have news to share,
let us know at
[email protected]
THE TORCH
PAGE 4
SEPTEMBER 2007
This & That
Guest Column:
Changing Ways
estly getting tiresome. At first, I
decided she was just old-fashioned
GUEST WRITER
and I should just ignore it, but the
“Joel, when are you going to cut day came where I just couldn’t keep
that hair? You’re starting to look like quiet any longer.
One day, when my hair had grown
a tigre” my mother asked me. Tigre
is a Dominican slang reserved for long enough, I told my mom I was
street-savvy people who are usually going to the salon to have my hair
up to no good. I was being stereo- braided or made into cornrows.
typed by the least expected culprit: Given her previous statements, her
reaction was not at all that shocking.
my mother.
“Do you really want to be like
It all began the summer before my
freshmen year in high school, and I those kids on the street corner? “she
was ready to leave behind every- asked me. “Tell me, ‘cause I’ll pack
thing elementary, including my hair your bags right now so you can realstyle. High school was my second ly be a street corner thug.”
I respect my mother, and I never
chance to start a new look for
myself. During the late 90s, braids think to answer her back, but this
and cornrows on boys were as was something I felt right about. I
prominent as flashy and flamboyant needed to let her know it. I asked
clothes in the 80s. They were worn her if she thought my father was a
by the people I looked at everyday: “thug on a street corner” when she
met him because from
the pictures I had seen
I was being stereotyped by the from their past, he
least expected culprit: my mother. sported a huge Afro -maybe double the size
of mine -- and still she
rappers in music videos on TV and married him and they had three
the kids from around the block. kids together. She was speechless;
Braids and cornrows were clearly my mother is a loud talker and
the new “cool” hairstyle, and after a always has an answer. Hearing
life-time of short hair, I decided I nothing from her felt weird. But the
surprise of my backtalk got her to
wanted to go long.
I saw letting my hair grow as a way thinking and, ultimately, to reason
to change my straight-laced image with me. I told her she was stereoand look cool, without doing some- typing me. She agreed, but then,
thing really crazy and putting my she told me that she was just worhealth at risk. Peer pressure had ried about how people would neganothing to do with it. I have never tively perceive me just because of
been the type to crumble under the my hair. I understood her, but I
pressure of my peers. I’ve had explained that I have to feel good
friends who smoked, did all sorts of about myself first before worrying
drugs, and even sold drugs, and not about society’s reaction to me. I
once did I follow in their footsteps finally convinced her to let me go to
in an attempt to fit in. I have always the salon. I can still see the disapbeen a good student who worked pointment in her face when I
hard, so I didn’t look at letting my returned with my cornrows. I guess
hair grow long as an acceptance of she realized I was no longer the
blonde-haired baby I once was – the
the so-called bad life.
But that’s not how my mother saw agreeable five-year-old whose picit. At the time, all my mother could ture she still kept in her wallet. It
see was that her eldest, role-model was tough for her, I’m sure, but it
son was sporting the same type of was a jubilant moment for me.
It’s now 2007, and I’m hoping to
hair style as the thugs on the street
corner. Should would not let a day get a tattoo soon, not because it’s
pass without her telling me how cool – well, maybe just a little -- but
much she disapproved of my ever- really because I want a tattoo to
growing hair. I must admit, my hair express something that’s meaningful
was getting scary. Some days I to me.
I just hope my age plays a bigger
looked like I had just been electrocuted. Other days, I looked like I role now than it did then -- because
had just come straight out of a scene while my Dad once had an Afro,
in one of those black exploitation unfortunately for me he never had a
movies from the 70s in which the tattoo.
main character has an ass-kicker
Juan Grullon is a sophomore at
name like “Dynomite.” Still, hearBergen
who wants to be a radiologist.
ing my mother tell me the same
thing over and over again was hon-
BY JUAN GRULLON
Is This Love That I’m Feeling?
BY LIANNA ALBRIZIO
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Why do people yield to the urge to
say "I love you?" A psychological
explanation suggests it is a human
need to proclaim love. Perhaps this is
why the phrase has been clichéd to
meaninglessness—it is simply said
too many times, no doubt with a distinct lack of passion. But if this conjecture is bogus, do we ever really
mean what we say?
The term "love" is used commonly
among young people in relationships
as a way to communicate the validity of their feelings to their beloved.
Most of the time, this is done in a
terse and hasty, not to mention
ridiculously redundant, manner. "I
like you" suffices for the cheesy,
heart-shaped emblem posted on an
AIM profile.
Subsequent to the inevitable, ever
dramatic break-up, comes the plethora of poems entailing bitter resentment, shame, and the proclamation
of, "I'll never love again." These
words are cried by the distraught (to
say the least) angel tear bearer to her
best friend who is up to her neck in
consolation for weeks or however
long it takes the distressed darling to
come to grips with the fact that she is
losing her sanity... over a male!
As young adults, it is crucial to be
blunt, to resist the urge to be stubborn like the headstrong Taurus, and
grab the truth by its horns and ask
ourselves: Was it really love, or just a
childish infatuation? Yes, sharing
interests, laughs and strong drinks
make the couple susceptible to intimacy, but are they enough? Surely,
love is defined as the
"soul's recognition of
its counterpoint in
another" (ala tearjerker
scene in Wedding
Crashers), but was it
really love? By saying you "loved"
someone, did you mean you fell for
him or her, or you simply liked that
person a lot? To clarify confusion,
what is love without trust and predictability? If you really saw yourself
with that person, and you’re willing
to spend the rest of your life with
him/her (which is one of love’s
sacred obligations), could you have
seen the infidelity coming at full
throttle with a machete to your core?
Without question, putting your
whole heart into a person is undeniably the reason for it "breaking," soto- speak. "Love hurts" should be
considered over the phrase "I love
you" for investing seemingly wonderful thoughts and countless hours
on that pig who broke it.
Don't over analyze. Don't try to
understand or make sense of what
happened—it's just a headache. In
lieu of jumping into a long term,
committed relationship in which
love becomes an eventuality, ponder:
"Why say 'I love you' if I'm really
setting myself up for heartbreak and
uncertainty about my true, overall
feelings for this person which are, in
all honesty, more along the 'like'
regions anyway?" Answer: it is
human need.
Do we ever really
mean what we say?
As human beings, it is understandable that we need to love and be
loved. However, how literally do we
mean it? After all, could you realistically picture yourself with that person forever, as the union of marriage
mandates? More importantly, can we
picture anything forever? Perhaps we
assign far too much power and intelligence to ourselves with regard to the
future, and more simply, tomorrow.
It's no wonder love has lost its
meaning. It's buried under contradictions and false claims of affection
brought upon by masked uncertainty geared strictly toward having certain "needs" met. From an aggravated romantic whose love was denied
from an apathetic devastation artist:
“Don't sell yourself short for the juggernaut of emotions; keep your emotions and the alleged ‘apple-of youreye’ at bay- at least until the sorry sap
pops the question, and the cork
screw to the bottle of Pinot Grigio
he uses to celebrate.”
Hey, Teachers, Leave Those Kids Alone!
(Those in the back, that is.)
BY AMANDA FERRANTE
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
ever heard of social anxiety? This is a
prime example. Some introverts just
can't handle being close to the front,
closer to the center of attention. It is
easier to learn in an environment
where one feels comfortable.
Have you ever felt nervous about
giving a lecture? Perhaps during your
first classes as a teacher, you took a bit
of time to adjust to the fact that you
are, in fact, the core of the room. It
may be nerve-wracking for a student
to sit up front, especially if he or she
is new to college or any other higher
education institution in general.
Now, in the professor's defense, it is
Upon arrival to one of my classes
last spring, a syllabus was handed out
which included a list of how NOT to
do well in the class. Crowning the
silly items was a disappointing advisory: Sit in the back of the classroom.
This prompted a thought: Do teachers discriminate against students who
sit in the back of the classroom? If so,
this is silly for multiple reasons, and I
implore the (not to be named) blushing professor guilty of this advice to
read further to understand why.
First and foremost,
there are a limited
Think about it: someone has to
number of seats in the
sit in the back of the classroom.
room, sometimes not
enough for all the students participating in
class. When the rows closer to the true that many students who sit in the
front fill up, choice becomes limited. back may be there to keep out of
Think about it—someone has to sit plain view so they can text message
in the back! More importantly, some and eat all sorts of snacks purchased at
students simply feel more comfort- the nearest vending machine. Let's
able seated in the back. Have you not forget those who were voted
“Chatterbox” in high school and continue their reign throughout college. I
shall exclude these types from my
hypothesis because it's understandable how a professor might feel disrespected in such cases. Discrimination
is then not misplaced.
This is an appeal for the students
who genuinely want to listen and
learn, but simply prefer a back seat.
We feel the wrath of "back of the
classroom" discrimination. We are
typecast as disrespectful, but we’re
really not. We are truly worthy of
your knowledge. So please, before
you stereotype, think twice--that is,
if those backseats are deserving of
your second thought.
Why Does Sad Music Move Us? A Discussion with Dr. Marcel and Professor Krikun
BY CHRIS MAYS
STAFF WRITER
For the beginning of or the
return to the “Schoolhouse Blues,”
students must consider: What
makes music sad? Dr. Marcel, a
prominent music professor here at
Bergen, was quick to question
what the word “sad” means. She
mentioned that a sad piece is a
“composition that explores the
deepest emotional abyss.” For centuries, composers have brought
people to this moving emotional
state, and as listeners, we have the
right to explore these dimensions
with discussion and thought.
Culture gives us a broader protocol
for determining what shapes our
taste. Cultural identity plays a big
part in what’s in and out of the
norm. Moreover, it decides what can
emotionally affect us the most in
certain social institutions. For example, if you are a right-wing conservative Christian, a rap song about
abortion may drive your emotions
more effectively than a song about
say, a Cadillac with slamming rims.
Professor Krikun, another musical professor at Bergen, talked
about components of sad music
such as the minor keys, slow
rhythms, and certain lyrics within
a piece. Still, these items do not
necessarily create a sad feeling
among an audience. Sadness
evoked from a composition not
only revolves around musical technicalities, but it also depends on
other aspects such as one’s circumstances and experiences. The fact
that a sad composition is heavily
based on all three of these items is
what distinguishes it as being
“sad.” They combine with the
composer’s ultimate production.
Dr. Marcel discussed the holy
chants of Islam. These are powerful; they can move large groups of
people and make them come
together in a time of crisis or grief.
Marcel elaborated on this by mentioning that “they are created to
inspire the human soul.”
Krikun tied this thought into the
way that groups have memorized
important material throughout the
ages. He brought up the Vedas, the
oldest Hindu text, and Homer’s
Iliad and Odyssey, which have been
memorized by generations of
actors in forms of song and poetry.
“Rhythm is a good way to memorize something,” he concluded on
the subject.
Another contextual and cultural
phenomenon is words and how
they shape feelings that a song
emits. “Words change the nature of
melody,” Krikun said. Dr. Marcel
brought up the Beatles’ song, “She’s
Leaving,” in response to Krikun’s
daughter going to college.
According to Krikun, music is
tied to emotions and is “organic.”
Certain feelings we get from music
are hard to push aside because of
its natural effect on our psyche,
soul, and feelings overall.
If a piece of music strikes you
emotionally, it hits you, and this
effect proves that you are alive.
These feelings can prove a lot to
ourselves: what drives us and what
makes us feel a certain way. We can
then use music in order to manage
our emotions and thoughts. Dr.
Marcel left the discussion with the
question, “Why can certain songs
be so magical and touch the
heart?” The Torch would love to
hear your responses sent to
[email protected]
THE TORCH
SEPTEMBER 2007
PAGE 5
Science Made Easy: What Happens After Sex?
BY MOSES AGWAI
STAFF WRITER
Summer, the hottest time of the
year, is the time when girls and
guys get a natural tan. Around this
season, one is likely to meet someone new, or perhaps hook up with
an old friend. Sometimes, this
involves sex. If one does decide to
partake in sexual activity, it is recommended that he/she employs
the use of protection.
Getting to
know our bodies and how
they work is
important.
There’s a lot to
cover, but the
good news is
we
have
Science Made
Easy to the rescue! Science
Made Easy will
use events in
our everyday
lives to explain
the scientific
phenomena of
the reproductive
system.
Although
addressing this
subject
in
Science Made
Easy should
not be considered a substitute for classroom lectures or textbooks, its purpose is to act as a
channel for making scientific facts
and their correlating stories more
understandable. To test this, ask
yourself these questions before
continuing: Do you know what
somniferous tubules are? What are
seminal vesicles? What is a
prostate gland? What are bulb urethral glands? These are some of the
many aspects of reproduction
Science Made Easy will attempt to
explain.
The Facts:
Male Reproductive System:
Imagine there is a small world,
much smaller than ours, located in
the external male genitalia. In this
world are warriors much like the
Spartans of ancient Greece, and
they exist for one reason only: to
FIGHT. Just as we are called
“humans,” they are called sperm.
The basic structure of the sperm is
made up of a head with a helmet
known as an acrosome, a forehead
called a nucleus filled with DNA
(genetic information), and a neck
and body which serve as its mitochondria (basically the
cell’s power sources). Just
as humans have roads,
sperm travel and receive
resources through several
ducts. The homes in which
they live are called testes, which
are protected from the outer environment by a sac known as the
scrotum. In the testes, spermatogenesis, or the production of
sperm, is made by a group of somniferous tubules.
Female Reproductive System:
The female reproductive system
consists of a set of ovaries and
fallopian tubes, a uterus (womb),
and the vagina. Just as there is
spermatogenesis, formation of the
female sex cell is known as oogenesis. While males produce many
sperm throughout their lives,
females are born with a fixed number of eggs. Compared to the
sperm, ova are giants. They live a
simple lifestyle in which a solitary
ovum (mature egg) bursts from its
corresponding ovary to travel
through the connecting fallopian
tube in search of worthy opponents to conquer her. If there are
none, the ovum slips away from
the Endometrium and falls into
the vagina. This whole procedure
explains the process of menstruation.
The Battle:
Let’s examine how the battle really ensues. During sexual intercourse, the male external organ can
be regarded as the Trojan horse.
Here, the Spartan sperm have
sharpened their DNA and are
ready to attack. Upon ejaculation,
countless amounts of sperm dive
into the female reproductive tract
in a mixture of fluid known as
semen. Semen is the sperm +
secretions of the seminal vesicles
and the prostate and bulb urethral
glands. Secretions of seminal vesicles provide its milky appearance
while secretions from prostate and
bulb urethral glands provide its
sticky appearance for a better
brawl.
What then happens when the
male and female sex cell (gametes)
come to together? The battle of the
millennium.
Sometimes, the male wins,
merges with the ovum, and is
henceforth called a zygote (two
sex cells in one). This joint
venture will culminate in their ascension to the womb
(pregnancy). For
other battles, the
ovum beats the
sperms and emerges
victorious. Sperm
cells attack in herds, and the maximum amount of time they spend
inside the female uterus looking
for or battling with the ovum is
five days. Sperm cells work together in unison. These millions of
sperm cells act in unison towards
the goal of just one sperm cell penetrating the ovum’s shield in order
for them to ascend into greater
beings called babies. So, this is the
strain those beings down below go
through just to become us with
flesh and blood.
After reading the article, ask
yourself: what are the functions of
somniferous tubules? What are the
functions of seminal vesicles and
prostate and bulb urethral glands?
If you can answer these questions,
Science Made Easy has just taught
you the basics of the reproductive
system.
Where’s the Human in Humanity?
BY MICHELISA LANCHE
COPY EDITOR
It’s 10:15 a.m. on Monday, April
16, 2007. You don’t attend
Virginia Tech, but you’ve heard
about the shooting that happened
there three hours earlier. You
think, “Wow, that’s crazy,” then
immediately continue with what
you were doing—procrastinating
on Facebook, a popular online
social network among college students. At the top of your MiniFeed (which lists the most “important” things your friends have done
on Facebook in the past hour) you
see these words: “27 of your
friends have joined the group
Praying for the Victims at Virginia
Tech.” Fortunately, the group name
is hyperlinked so that you are given
the opportunity to join the group
as well. Now that’s funny…
Apparently, joining superficial
groups on social networks compensates for, if not outdoes, other
forms of lamentation and sympathy.
Myspace and Facebook are the
King and Queen of the Internet.
According to Hitwise, “the world’s
leading online competitive intelligence service,” Myspace and
Facebook were the most frequently
visited social networking sites from
January to February of this year,
and the statistics haven’t changed
much since. This past July,
ComScore reported that Myspace’s
visits increased by 72% and
Facebook’s visits remarkably
increased by 270%. Unfortunately,
humanity is losing its integrity at a
similar exponential rate.
The intended function of online
Tom is everyone’s friend on Myspace
social networks is to complement
in-person interactions, regardless
of whether they are personal or
professional. For example, they
allow one to network with people
who either have similar interests or
work for the same company by
providing access to their profiles. A
profile contains just enough
(sometimes more than enough)
information for one to be familiar
with a particular person—kind of
like a “virtual” first impression. On
Myspace and Facebook, the user
can post pictures, a brief synopsis
of his character, and intimate
information like his sexual preference and relationship status. With
access to this information, one can
choose whether he would like to
pursue a relationship (not necessarily a romantic one) with the profile
holder.
The actual function of online
social networks is to be able to
upload provocative pictures of
oneself, exaggerate positive character traits while neglecting negative
ones, and, my personal favorite,
tell dead people one feels sorry for
them.
There’s always a familiar face on Facebook
People’s online odes to victims
and recent deaths are absolutely
repulsive. First of all, contacting
these people via the Web is completely irrational. If that person is
dead, he is not going to be able to
use his computer anytime soon.
(Unless the afterlife is like
Starbucks radiating with WiFi
access, but this idea is very unlikely.) Second of all, posting comments packed with web-jargon and
emoticons like “omg (oh my God)
jenny u (you) were my bffl (best
friend for life)…imma (I’m going
to) miss u soooooooo much =(”
hardly reflects true sentiments of
grief and mourning. This hypothetical person took the time out
to spell words neither correctly nor
completely—sincerity couldn’t
even be remotely attached to this
message. People are essentially
using online odes to broadcast how
they feel about what had happened
to the individual and how they are
affected by the death. They could
really care less about the actual victim. What they really want to do is
advertise to the world, or at least to
a large number of their friends,
that they have known the victim.
In doing so, they will have gained
more attention and recognition
from people. They will have
become popular by association…
to a dead or victimized person.
As a high school student, I
attended Northern Valley Regional
in Old Tappan with peers hailing
from Old Tappan, Northvale,
Norwood, and Harrington Park.
In July 2006, I had heard about the
Jennifer Moore murder, but it didn’t affect me much—I didn’t know
her. Others, on the contrary, were
deeply affected by it, and they
decided to post in their profiles
something along the lines of
“R.I.P. Jennifer Moore.” I was naturally curious, and I wanted to
know how one of my friends was
associated with her, so I asked her,
“How did you know her?” to
which she replied, “We used to be,
like, best friends in middle school.
We stopped talking in high school
though because she went to a different school.” I didn’t know best
friends lose contact if they don’t go
to the same school—acquaintances, perhaps, but not best friends.
Anyway, I noticed that other people began to put similar statements
in their profiles, and when school
started, they formed little “Jennifer
Moore” cliques in which they
would talk about how they knew
her. These attracted an audience of
people who were either indirectly
associated with her or simply curious. This lasted for about a week,
and she was hardly ever mentioned
again.
Similarly, the VTK incident
aroused much attention, then it
quickly died out. People, as mentioned at the very beginning of this
article, joined groups like “X
University: Today, we are all
Hokies” and “X University sends
condolences to Virginia Tech.”
About as early as two weeks later,
students started leaving these
groups: “John Smith has left the
group Praying for Virginia Tech”
and “Susie McBride has left the
group All College Students Support
Virginia Tech.” My goodness. Even
staying in the group and forgetting
about it is better than actually leaving it. Leaving acknowledges the
fact that one no longer cares much,
if at all, for the incident and the
victims involved, and he only
joined it because, well, he wanted
to “jump on the bandwagon” to
put it colloquially.
Where’s the human in humanity?
Call the families of the VTK incident; write them letters. Send
flowers to the Moore family; visit
them. The Internet expedited the
way in which we receive information, but that does not mean it
should do the same for our compassion.
THE TORCH
PAGE 6
SEPTEMBER 2007
From Berlin to Madrid: What I Did Between Summer II and Fall ‘07 Semesters
BY DOUG SMITH
STAFF WRITER
It was around noon and I was sitting
in my last class of the last day of summer session II when the excitement really started to set in. I was overwhelmed
with a mixture of fatigue and anticipation because I had booked a European
trip that would span almost the entire
time between summer classes and the
fall semester. In terms of school, I definitely bit off more than I could chew,
but as I sat in Professor Datema’s literature class, I knew that I was done with
my obligations and ready to move on.
(That is after packing, taking a nap, and
trying to arrive at the airport within
only seven hours!) So, off I went.
The flight there wasn’t the most pleasant experience. Everyone knows that
airports can be a hassle, but one thing I
realized is flying from JFK to Paris’s
Charles de Gaul is even worse (as it also
was on the way back). They’re both
some of the most traveled destinations
on each side of the Atlantic, and if I
would have known that, I would have
flown directly to Berlin and paid the
extra money. You live and you learn.
STAFF PHOTOS/DOUG SMITH
Doug Smith (left) and his brother at the atop of the Eiffel Tower
“Zapata” is one club on Amsterdam. If you like to eat and
Oranienburger one has to check out drink well for a decent price, visit priswhen in Berlin. The front of the build- tine parks and historic monuments,
ing looks like an old structure with and love the city but hate the fast pace
some cafés in front. Walk into any of of major ones, than you’ll love
these places, and you’ll Brussels. One personal plus was that I
realize that they all lead got to practice my French, and I was
"Contrary to popular belief,
to an outdoor courtyard pleased to see how well it worked.
and about five more Brussels is the capital of a country that
Parisians do actually eat while
bars. If you ascend the is half French speaking and half
they walk, but only if they’re
stairs inside, you’ll see, Dutch; however, the capital city is
floor after floor, incredi- basically all French partially due to the
eating a baguette."
ble murals of graffiti. fact that French is a world language.
When you get to the top The reason why I found it so easy to
I was six hours behind schedule, but two floors, you’ll find a rooftop bar speak French there was because
with no loss of cheer, my brother and I and, under that, various art shops although the city is French, it is actualarrived at Berlin Tegel Airport and owned by some of the people who dec- ly located in the Dutch (or Flanders)
grabbed the next bus to our hostel, a orated the inside of the building. region. This meant that many of these
hotel for backpackers who want to save Apparently, the building was inhabited French speakers weren’t actually born
money by sleeping in a big dorm. It’s by squatters (people who inhabit un- there and were immigrants from other
the only way to travel if you’re young inhabited buildings) and beatnik artists parts of Europe and Africa. Because of
and looking for an experience). Bad both of which stayed on the upper this mixture of different dialects, they
luck struck again when the bus broke floors and legitimized their craft. A spoke extremely slow and clear.
The Brussels night life was great. My
down, and my brother was finally whole evening can be dedicated to the
forced to use his four years of high- exploration of this building. Sooner brother and I hit the streets with a girl
school German to tell the taxi driver then we would have liked to admit, we from our hostel, and after we ate dinner,
we found a random Irish pub (these are
we hailed at the nearest corner. Well, had to leave. Next up: Amsterdam.
Amsterdam is a den of iniquity. When in EVERY city in the world) which
for those of you who studied language
in a North Jersey high school, you you go there, you have to stay in one of hung photos of famous IRA soldiers. It
know that, even if you do really well, the flying pig hostels. It’s common was echoing with drunken people jovialyou learn basically nothing. So, I was ground for backpackers because of their ly singing along to the songs in the backpleasantly surprised when my brother great reputation and excellent common ground. After that, we found ourselves
told him where we were going in room/bar. In Amsterdam, there are a in an awesome club called “Ethnic” (a
Berlin and was understood. From few nice things: the Van Gogh Museum fitting name for such a multi-cultural
there, everything started to go up-hill. (great paintings, but the crowds are so city). It was in a gazebo covered with a
Berlin is beautiful. It’s surprising how large it’s hard to see anything), the vari- tarp that was transformed into a club
well the Berliners maintain a perfect ous canals, and the Anne Frank House. with a full bar for the summer festival
balance of their history and the new I recommend all these things as “must- that was taking place. That was another
face of Berlin. The latter is a myriad of dos,” but I also have to warn you, there reason why Brussels was such a great
immigrants and foreign workers who is a plethora of marijuana, mushrooms, time: We were partying in the midst of
bring their own versions of art and gas- and prostitutes vying for your attention the annual summer festival. During the
festival, there were random stands that
tronomy. For example, the stereotype of at every corner.
I don’t recommend renting a bike in sold beer, wine, and the famous
German cuisine being overly heavy and
starchy is not true. However, Munich, I Amsterdam--it’s like seeing a bullfight European French fries, “Pommes-frites,”
hear, is the city one would go to for in Spain; although everyone does it, it’s topped with unique sauces. It was a
stereotypical German eating and drink- still silly. Every street has bike lanes, shame how we couldn’t spend more
ing.
Here, the Currywurst and but they’re designated alongside thou- time in such a great city, but we knew
Schnitzel were well prepared and many sands of pedestrians, trams, scooters, we needed to save as much time as postimes served with some vegetables. (I’ve and even cars. In other words, it’s best sible for Paris. Never-the-less, we were
seen way worse than that at a 4th of July to walk or take the tram. There are also moping all the way to the train station.
After a surprisingly nice train ride, we
Barbeque.) If you still don’t like the some pretty cool clubs in Amsterdam,
food, the vast amount of Turkish kebab including one called “Club Eleven.” arrived in Europe’s most famous city.
places will hold you over with the large It’s like a secret- you have to walk Paris’s vast subway system brought us
around the train station over a pier, get within blocks of our hostel. It was locatMiddle Eastern selection.
Aside from eating and drinking, to a building that looks abandoned, ed in a decent neighborhood situated on
there’s an incredible amount to see in and take the elevator to the “eleventh” the quieter side of the hill of the artsy
Berlin--the three and a half days floor. Here, you end up in a posh Montmartre district. The hostel, on the
weren’t enough. We started out at the house-club with overpriced drinks but other hand, wasn’t as nice as the area. It
Berlin Wall, and from there, we head- an amazing view of the city. If you lack was clean, but it lacked a bar which is a
ed to the Brandenburg gate. We made self control, don’t spend more than a staple when hostelling and backpacking
through Europe. Hostel bars are where
our way down through the Unter den few days in Amsterdam!
It was during our two measly days in you meet fellow travelers with whom
Linden and to the Museum Island
where various monuments, statues, Brussels when we realized that we had you usually go out after socializing over
and buildings scarred with bullets made a mistake staying longer in a few drinks. Soon after our arrival, we
from World War II can be seen. With
a limited amount of time in Berlin,
that’s definitely the route you want to
take because it’s so condensed with
culture. The next day, we decided to
rent a bike to see the rest of Berlin with
our group of new friends from the hostel. Renting a bike in Berlin is a must;
bike lanes have less traffic than both
Amsterdam and the “Teirgarten,” one
of the most beautiful parks in Europe.
Once night falls, the new German/Expat hybrid can be seen in full swing a
couple blocks away on a street called
“Oranienburger.” Here, nightlife tour
guides giving something called the “pub
crawl.” The pub crawl is a tour of the
city’s nightlife during which the guides
take you to about three bars and drop
you off at a club with either a free shot
or drink at each place. They’re really
good for enormous cities (New York,
Paris, London etc.) where one doesn’t The crowd at “La Tomatina” festival eagerly anticipating the tomato
always know where to go
throwing
ventured into the Paris evening and able to get some rest and meet some
ended up in the Quartier-Latin (Latin cool people with whom I had dinner
Quarter). This neighborhood is quite and a couple bottles of wine.
The next morning I was off to my last
famous, but it’s overly touristy. It’s a
great place to go to in order to see Paris’s destination: Madrid. Now I was really
monuments, fountains, rivers (specifi- excited because, having taken a trip to
cally, the Seine River), various sidewalk Madrid last year, I had fallen in love
cafes and bistros, and the Notre Dame with it. The problem with Madrid is
and Sorbonne university grounds, but that it has the same reputation of being
its central location makes it more of a boring like Brussels. However, if you go
place for wide-eyed tourists than true to the Prado, Madrid’s biggest museum,
Parisians. Montmartre is where we you can spend the whole day there withfound the real Parisians living their day- out rushing because it’s just the right size
to-day lives, having a meal at the various with no lack of famous works. If you’re
sidewalk cafes and walking around with into soccer, Madrid has the most famous
their customary baguettes. Seeing that team in mainland Europe. All museum,
both proved and disproved two stereo- parks, and palaces aside, the Madrid
types: (1) Parisians do actually walk nightlife is incredible. The inhabitants
around yielding baguettes as if they were of Madrid are known to do everything
knights proudly carrying a sword and later. If you’re there eating dinner before
(2) Contrary to popular belief, Parisians nine o’clock, then you’re considered an
do actually eat while they walk, but only “out-of-towner,” so don’t expect any
action before midnight. The nightlife in
if they’re eating a baguette.
The following day my brother and I Madrid is fun and not nearly as pretentook a walking tour that showed us all tious as that of New York; that is, the
around the center of Paris from the girls aren’t the only ones dancing and the
Quartier-Latin to the Louvre Museum guys aren’t wallflowers who stand aside
and boulevard Champs-Élysées. I and try to look tough. I actually saw a
highly recommend this tour to anyone guy dancing on the stage with a ruffled,
going to Europe. (FYI: The same com- half unbuttoned business suit. (He obvipany operates in about five different ously went out right after work.).
cities and leaves heaps of their big red Madrid’s lifestyle is historic and elegant
flyers throughout the hostel recep- by day and care-free by night.
My trip was supposed to end here,
tions.) It’s called the “Free Tour”
because what you do is just tip the tour but two days before my flight home,
guide based on how satisfied you are these two Canadian girls told me that
with the service. Ours was great, so my they wanted to go to the “La Tomatina”
brother and I gave him 30 Euros each. festival, but they weren’t sure how to do
This company also ran a pub crawl, so because it was 200 hundred miles
which was much needed because if you away and all the trains and buses were
only have about three days, Paris is too booked. At first, I wasn’t sure because
big to find good places to go to at all I wanted to do was relax, but after a
night; it gave a discount to anyone few hours of discussion (which built up
who had taken the free tour earlier that a level of anticipation), we decided to
week. Despite seeing
the Mona Lisa, ascend"I don’t recommend renting a
ing the Eiffel Tower,
and eating at the restaubike in Amsterdam--it’s like seeing
rant from the movie
“Amelie,” I definitely
a bullfight in Spain; although
did not have enough
everyone
does it, it’s still silly."
time in the city of
lights, and I plan to go
do it. After recruiting four more travelback there soon.
After Paris, I was on my own. My ers from the hostel and a two hour nap,
brother had to leave earlier because of the two Canadian girls, a Floridian, a
school, so I was off on a discount Ryan Chilean, an Australian, and myself
Air flight to Barcelona. Although rented a car (with no international driBarcelona is one of the most loved cities ver’s license mind you, but they didn’t
in all of Europe, I didn’t really enjoy it seem to care) and left for the annual
and ended up leaving earlier than Tomato fight outside of Valencia.
La Tomatina is a festival in a small
expected. However, the city does have
beautiful architecture. The Sagrada town called Buñol in Valencia where the
familia and the other famous architec- local population swells from 9,000 to
tural works built by Gaudi are breath- 40,000 for the annual tomato fight. It’s
taking; you wonder how they’re even a week long festival that started about 40
standing. I also had a lot of fun going years ago, and it ends on the last
out with some locals who took me to Wednesday of August. The mayhem
begins with a contest during which
some bars far from the city’s center
I gave Barcelona a chance: I stayed for some random festival goers climb a
a solid two days, walked around and greased pole and attempt to bring down
took a tour, but I was still frustrated. a ham that is placed on top of it. When
Now it could be a mixture of my broth- the ham is brought down, a large dump
er leaving me and the fatigue from walk- truck filled with tons of tomatoes begins
ing and pub crawling through Paris, but to traverse the street while people in the
I’ll state my reasons for why Barcelona is truck bed pelt the crowd with squishy
overrated. The first reason is that while tomatoes. It’s completely insane! What
it has its own culture and language results is similar to a mosh-pit. The
(Catalan) outside of mainstream crowd shifts to let the truck pass by, and
Spanish, it’s hard to see this culture since after about an hour, the streets run with
they chose to rebuild all of the main a salsa of squashed tomatoes that people
tourist areas with a “Miami Jet-setter” splash around in and throw everywhere.
feel instead of a “European city” feel. Afterwards, local residents laugh as they
Many people say that Barcelona is really hose down the “tomatoed” people from
artsy and “European.” What I found is their porches, and the local fire departthat the city tries too hard to live up to ment hoses down the dirty streets.
During the festival, my shirt was torn
certain expectations, and most of the
time, it comes up short and seems a bit by some Spanish teenagers. (I didn’t
tacky. It’s also the only city in which I know why they did this, but apparentdidn’t feel totally safe even in compari- ly, it’s customary for the guys to go
son to Amsterdam where I was almost shirtless.) I was almost trampled, but
mugged (something one expects in that all in all, it was totally worth it. It was
type of city). The universally-loved an experience I will never forget, but as
Barcelona had more “notsofriendly” the guy from Florida who came with
people loitering on the streets than in us said while picking tomato from his
both Amsterdam and New York com- hair, “It was great, but this might be
bined. While I ran around the streets at the first and last time.” I think I agree.
In about two days, I was on my way
night everywhere else, I only saw thirdworld prostitutes and creepy figures try- back to the States, totally drained but
ing to sell me a six pack of beer in ready for the fall semester. Ready
Barcelona. On my last night, I left early because I knew that the time I spent
between the daily grind of work and
and took a night train south to Seville.
Seville was nice; I was only there for school was not wasted.
Lastly, I’d like to thank Professors
a day, but it was enough to see all of
the famous Moorish architecture built Carlos Acosta, Claudia Acosta, and Dr.
during the Moors’ reign of southern Sadock for the great travel advice.
Spain and expanded under the Spanish Their wealth of knowledge in both
monarchs. Everything in that city is traveling and teaching is unsurpassed.
old and enormously grand, but in
August, not everything is open because
it is usually unbearably hot and many
residents go on vacation during that
time. The hostel was decent, and I was
THE TORCH
SEPTEMBER 2007
PAGE 7
Eleventh Annual
Native American
‫ﱙﱘﱗﱖﱙ‬
Heritage Week 2007
Keepers of Our Mother Earth
September 24-29, 2007
Monday, September 24
12:30 p.m. - 1:25 p.m., S-134
BergenLit Brown Bag Lecture Series
Native Storytellers in a Postmodern World
Join the Bergen Literature Club for a discussion of contemporary American
Indian literature, led by Dr. Diane Krumrey.
Joyce King
Keynote Speech
Tuesday, September 25
11:00 a.m., Ciccone Theater
Haudenosaunee Speaking for the Voice of Creation
Joyce King, known as Tekahnawiiaks, a member of
the Mohawk Nation, Turtle Clan, is the Director
of the Haudenosaunee Environmental Task Force.
She will share the traditional environmental knowledge of the Iroquois
(Haudenosaunee) that has been handed down for thousands of years, explaining
how this ancient knowledge can center our own environmental movement.
Environmental Protection Workshop
Tuesday, September 25
1:40 p.m., C-325
Joyce King will lead a workshop on the environmental principles underlying
the Haudenosaunee Great Law of Peace.
Natasha
Smoke
Santiago
Wednesday, September 26
11:00 a.m., C-325
Artist in Residence
Natasha Smoke Santiago (Turtle Clan, Mohawk Nation) comes from a family of
Native Artists and Artisans. Inspired by her history, culture, and life, she paints,
draws, works in clay, and creates art installations. Her work has been exhibited at
the Iroquois Indian Museum and St. Lawrence University. Natasha Smoke
Santiago will show and present an in-depth discussion about her artwork.
Panel Discussion
Wednesday, September 26
1:40 p.m., A-104
Environmental Crisis: The Ramapough Lenape Indian Nation
and Its Fight with Ford Motor Company
A panel discussion with guest speaker: Jan Barry, staff writer, The Record,
Hackensack, NJ. The Ramapough Lenape Indian Nation blames a series of
ailments, from nose bleeds to cancer, on the waste left by the Ford Company
during the 1950’s and 1960’s.
Birds of Prey
with Jennifer
Pena
Thursday, September 27
11:00 a.m., Student Center
Back by popular demand, Jennifer Pena returns with Flight of the Raptor, a privately
run organization dedicated to heightening awareness of the importance of birds of prey
in our environment. The presentation will include two raptor flight demonstrations
and the birds will be on display all day.
Joanne
Shenandoah
Thursday, September 27
1:40 p.m., W-226 (West Hall)
Joanne Shenandoah, a Wolf Clan member of the Iroquois
Confederacy, Oneida Nation and a Grammy Award
winning singer and songwriter, will conduct a workshop
about contemporary Native American music. Ms. Shenandoah has performed with
renowned singers Jackson Browne, Rita Coolidge, and Willie Nelson and more. She
has also sung at The White House for Hillary Clinton and Tipper Gore.
Joanne Shenandoah in Concert
Thursday, September 27
7:30 p.m., Ciccone Theatre
Joanne Shenandoah to perform. Ms. Shenandoah’s original compositions combined
with a striking voice enable her to embellish the ancient songs of the Iroquois by
blending traditional and contemporary instrumentation.
Tickets are free for the College’s students (credit only) and are available to the
public for $10. There is a two-person ticket limit.
From the Heart
of Little Hawk
Saturday, September 29
3:00 p.m., Ciccone Theatre
Stories, Songs & Legends
Kenneth Little Hawk is a Native American storyteller of
Mohawk and Micmac heritage. He brings his traditions
to life with song, dance, sign language, and stories.
Tickets: $10 – Adults; $8 – children 17 & under
Committee Members:
Andy Krikun
Diane Krumrey, Chair
Pat Lauro
Susan Baechtel
Laurie Lieberman
Ralph Choonoo
Anne Marie Prendergast,
Donna Coane
Linda Robins
Joan Dalrymple
Bill Yakowicz
Virginia Heagney
Artwork by Natasha Smoke Santiago
For additional information, email [email protected] or contact the Office of Student Life at: 201-447-7215
Native American Heritage Week is co-sponsored by The Office of Student Life and The Office of Community and Cultural Affairs.
Vendors Monday through Thursday in the Student Center
Designed and edited by the Office of Public Relations at Bergen Community College, 2007
Spiderwoman’s
Grandchildren
THE TORCH
PAGE 8
SEPTEMBER 2007
Opinions & Editorial
Letter to the Editor
OPEN DOOR - BUT . . .
Dear Editor,
Advising at registration this
August was a heart-wrenching
experience for me. The harsh realities that were waiting for students,
almost at every turn, stemmed
mainly from the absence of seats in
mandatory remedial courses and in
courses prerequisite to required
degree courses. The students kept
arriving, but there was precious little we could do to overcome the
roadblocks.
The predominant issue was that
effectively no seats in remedial math
remained. Why? Because so many
of the students who scored above
average on the placement test, statistically speaking, but below the
cutoff score, had already registered
for seats needed by the in-person
registrants, many of whom were in
true need of those seats because they
scored below average on the placement test. Placing students into
remediation who score above the
mean on the placement test raises
serious validity issues for most college programs. Also, the facilities
resources (classrooms) of the college
and the educational opportunities
accessible to our students become
seriously skewed as a consequence
of these aberrations.
The often-heard argument that
all this remedial math is essential
for student success is not a valid
argument in most majors and for
most careers. An informal validity
study that illustrates this is to consider all of the eminently successful
employees at BCC who, by the
Central Limit Theorem, would
have a placement score distribution with the same mean as our
student population on the same
placement test. This is a fact
derived from the theory of
Mathematical Statistics. It is by no
means idle speculation.
My own data analysis indicates
that for the majority-cohort under
math remediation, only about 12%
of these students successfully complete the prescribed sequence of
remedial math requirements. In the
normal course of program evaluation, this deep-mined information
is left buried, and instead, superficial aggregates of single-course pass
rates are presented. True assessment, therefore, assessment that
uncovers truths that can point to
strategies or remedies, does not
takes place. We are left to rely largely on opinion or on consensus.
Finally, class size is not a valid
pedagogical “excuse” within the
context of a program that disqualifies a large percentage of students
who lose “eligibility” for the Exit
Exam while the courses are still in
progress, and hence the eligibility
to pass the course, sometimes
weeks or months before the course
is completed. When you look at
the significantly smaller final class
size at the end of the course, you
recognize that class size needs to be
defined differently here, not by the
beginning class size. The “effective”
or “time-distributed” class size (in
the aggregate) is around half of the
initial class size by virtue of this
early “eligibility” attrition.
Two interesting extensions of the
preceding paragraph come to
mind. First, many of the previously
disqualified repeating students
(who have registration priority over
new students) register for seats
needed by our first time registrants,
thus exacerbating the seat deficit.
Second, if we allowed variable entry
dates, these students who needed
seats to repeat and/or complete
only a limited number of their
course objectives from a previous
semester could be served by being
provided access to the vacated seats.
Is the open door truly open? I
commend The Torch for its leadership last semester in reporting on
broad and tough issues, and I am
very appreciative of having this
forum in which to participate.
Sincerely, Mauro Marzocco
Mauro Marzocco is a professor in
the Department of Mathematics
and Science
Editor-In-Chief
Managing Editor
Copy Editor
Layout Editor
Entertainment Editor
Sports Editor
Office Manager
Amanda Ferrante
Jill Bartlett
Michelisa Lanche
Louis Campos
Alon Melamed
Danny LaFaso
Doug Smith
Staff Writers:
Moses Agwai
Chris Mays
Robert Torres
Doug Smith
Contributing Writers:
Lianna Albrizio
Juan Grullon
Advisor
Pat Winters Lauro
Mailing Address:
400 Paramus Road
Paramus, NJ 07652-1595
Room L-115
Phone: 201-493-5006
Fax: 201-493-5008
[email protected]
The Torch, a member of the Associated College Press and the College
Media Association, is the official student newspaper of Bergen
Community College. The purpose of the The Torch is to report on
the events at BCC and the local community and to offer the BCC
community a forum for the expression. The opinions expressed in
The Torch are not necessarily those of The Torch. All the materials
submitted to The Torch become property of The Torch.
Online at:
http://www.bergen.edu/pages/880.asp
MySpace URL:
http://www.myspace.com/bcctorchnewspaper
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THE TORCH
SEPTEMBER 2007
PAGE 9
Arts & Entertainment
September’s Music Picks
BY ALON MELAMED
ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
This summer featured some wild
rides and bumps. Bon Jovi discovered their Lost Highway, Rihanna
noticed it rained a lot and constantly used her "Umbrella," and if your
name is Delilah, the Plain White T’s
must have made you feel very good
about yourself.
What is in store for the fall? Some
more love medicine from James
Blunt, a highly anticipated music
duel between Kanye West and 50
cent, and a Finnish band’s popularity
becomes increasingly powerful.
James Blunt/All the Lost Souls:
Expectations are very high for this
fine, young, average-looking British
lad. Just a few months ago, Blunt
was named the biggest selling artist
of this millennium in the United
Kingdom and is already generating
quite a buzz regarding his second,
upcoming album.
A perfect anecdote for the approaching chilly, fall-winterish weather, he
already released a first single, "1973,"
and it should not be long before we
start hearing the song all across prime
time television.
Having reached success with the
ever-so-popular song, "You're
Beautiful," Blunt’s song became the
first single since Elton John’s
"Candle in the Wind" to reach the
number one spot on both American
and British billboard charts. The
song has even received special attention from satire music guru, "Weird"
Al Yankovic, as he performed his
own version of the song, "You're
Pitiful."
With All the Lost Souls, Blunt
hopes to gain a more optimistic
point of view towards life as his first
album, Back to Bedlam (2004), was
somewhat gloomy and murky.
Indeed, "1973" has more rhythm
with its melody.
In addition, special attention has
been given to Blunt’s CD cover as it
is a unique collage made by designer
Nip Bose. It features James’ face
made of more than a thousand photos captured throughout his life.
The album has both a regular
release and a CD/DVD format, featuring additional behind-the-scenes
footage about the making of the
album.
Kanye West/ Graduation and 50
Cent/ Curtis: Two rappers, encouraged by the support of countless
fans, will each release albums on
September 11th that could be one of
rap's greatest heavyweight matches
since 2Pac vs. Notorious B.I.G.
Curtis James Jackson III, a.k.a. 50
Cent, showcases Curtis, an all
around hip-hop ambition with stars
like Akon and Eminem having his
back, while Mr. Kanye Omari West,
who was also heavily involved with
the production, released Graduation.
The seventeen tracks are a collective re-invention of popular music
samples featuring contemporary
artists’ voices that contribute to the
fresh sound we expect from Kanye.
Featured on the track entitled
"Homecoming," is Coldplay's lead
singer Chris Martin.
In addition to the popular voices,
West takes bits and pieces of popular
music and inserts them in his own,
creating a whole new vibe. A perfect
example of this mixture can be found
in his single, "Stronger," as it features
samples from Daft Punk's "Harder,
Better, Faster, Stronger."
Both controversial in their actions,
this is one battle-rap the music
industry is hoping will make some
consumers actually buy an album.
Bring it on! In the midst of such a
high profile battle, the rappers
played their business cards right as
they are both featured on the cover
of Rolling Stone Magazine’s September
20th isssue above the headline
“Showdown! 50 Cent Vs. Kanye
West, Who Will be the King of HipHop? 50 insists that if West sells
more records, he will retire- we’ll see
if it’s just a bluff.
HIM/ Venus Doom: Love Metal
has never looked so gory.
Finland's HIM has been playing
for quite some time now, forming in
the early 90s as the European counterpart for the American grunge
movement. It was not until their
2005 effort, Dark Light, that they
started getting radio airplay here in
the States.
It is hard to describe a band with so
much passion led by the voice of
Ville Valo. In fact, as of today, HIM
is the only rock band to have a certified gold album both in Finland and
in the U.S.
Having achieved massive success in
Europe with their original interpretation of metal, Venus Doom is set to
be their heaviest ambition to date.
The song "Passion's Killing Floor,"
was featured in the movie
Transformers. As for the album
itself, Valo seems to be a bit more
intense, as the band's first single,
"Kiss of Dawn," was written in
memory of a close friend of his who
committed suicide.
An album from a band that knows
how to show its emotions and not
hide behind them, is a recommendation for anyone who wants to listen to something a bit different but
still stay classy. HIM has been featured on one of this summer’s
hottest tours, Projekt Revolution,
headlined by Linkin Park. This just
adds another tally mark on HIM’s
newfound U.S. credibility scale.
Editor's Pick: Epica/ The Divine
Conspiracy: Lately, many gothic
metal bands want to conquer the
city of New York. Bands like Within
Temptation, Leave's Eyes, Epica,
and many more have performed
here, expanding their fan base. As
true as this may be, the case with the
following band is a little different.
Because this is the second time the
Dutch band Epica comes to NYC,
they now have plenty of material to
promote and introduce to the new
crowd. Having to deal with the relationship between beliefs in different
civilizations, this latest effort has
evolved to become a concept album
about just that.
Musically, with the release of their
latest single, "Never Enough," the
band sounds a bit like an operatic
version of Evanescence, yet the band
has much more than a sassy, empowered woman’s voice leading them.
Founder of the band, Mark Jensen,
lends his own voice on multiple
songs throughout the album. You
need to make clear Mark’s role in the
band… founder/lead singer/both?
Why is it special that he lends his
voice? Is he not a member of the
band?While hearing his voice, you
may think a beast has taken control
of his body. However, this is why
Epica sounds the way they do.
Mark's grunts and growls appear to
be the male side of emotion on the
album, while delicate Simone
Simons’s effort to complement his is
apparent and appreciated. The term
"Operatic Metal" is a very loose term
used to classify Epica’s sound, yet
songs like "Death of a Dream" and
"Menace of Vanity" both exemplify
the juxtaposition of voices ending in
a "battle" between male and female
dominance.
At first, the album may be very
hard for people not familiar with the
sound and image of the band to listen to. But after a few listens there
might be a change in approach and,
dare I say, admiration that follows.
In addition to the promising list
above, new Nelly, Eve, Natalie
Imbruglia and Foo Fighters albums
are on the shelf this month. Kid
Rock returns louder than ever, and
even The Cure rise to the occasion
with an impressive eighth studio
album, their first since 2001.
For Those Who’ve Got the Blues but No Rhythm
BY MICHELISA LANCHE
COPY EDITOR
Rhythm and Blues (R&B)
albums of today are about three
things: sex, drugs, and “dranks.”
New artist Ray Lavender, for
example, tells us how his girl has a
girlfriend, but that that’s okay—
“he’s gon’ make it do what it do.”
(Whatever that means.) The R&B
artists of today definitely have a lot
of rhythm; however, they seem to
be forgetting about the blues. If
you’ve got the blues but can’t find
the rhythm to which they correspond, soothe your soul with these
classic innovative beats.
John Legend Get Lifted (2004)
John Legend/Get Lifted (2004)
and Once Again (2006)
John Legend’s freshman and
sophomore LPs Get Lifted and
Once Again perfectly complement
each other as they tell the story of
an individual who journeys from a
“player” to a true romantic. Get
Lifted reveals his exhibition of sexual infidelity as well as spiritual
freedom with songs like “She Don’t
Have to Know” and “I Can
Change.” Once Again reveals a
newly reformed individual. In this
album, the mature content and
lyrics of his songs imply how he
has finally discovered his true love.
In “Heaven,” for example, Legend
John Legend Once Again (2006)
admits that his relationship is not
exactly the happiest: “Last night
was the worst night, the beginning
of the end.” However, he decides
that everything, especially love,
deserves a “second chance.” While
addressing the very sexual nature
of today’s American pop culture,
both albums do so in a musically
tasteful and creative manner (a
quality that is lacking in most of
today’s music). By joining nostalgic 50s jazz beats with contemporary hip-hop and R&B rhythms,
this couple makes Legend’s music
easy on the ears for both old and
young generations.
with his girlfriend. Finally, the last
track, “You Be Alright,” optimistically consoles his recently broken
heart. Innovative in every way,
Musiq’s lyrics and mo-town, neosoul beats make this album
absolutely timeless.
D’Angelo/Brown Sugar (1995)
Sweet and unrefined, Brown
Sugar demonstrates the art of
courtly love—R&B style. No track
sounds the same, making it impossible to get sick of this album.
Songs like “Me and Those
Dreamin’ Eyes of Mine” and
“When We Get By” make a
woman feel confident and sexy.
D’Angelo also conveys the image
of a gentleman, without stripping him of
his masculinity; that is,
he presents a confident, sexy man to
complement a confident, sexy woman.
With the smooth
sounds of the legendary
Smokey
Robinson reminiscent
in D’Angelo’s voice,
Brown Sugar (and
spice) makes everything nice.
D’Angelo Brown Sugar (1995)
Musiq Soulchild/Aijuswanaseing
(2000)
If Donny Hathaway and Stevie
Wonder had a child, his name
would be Talib Johnson. His stage
name would be Musiq Soulchild,
and his music would be completely
ahead
of
his
time.
Aijuswanaseing (I Just Want to Sing)
demonstrates the progression of a
relationship, from its development
to its finish. “Just Friends,” track 4,
details the “dating” phase—he’s
just trying to get to know the girl.
In track 7, “Love,” the former
friendship becomes more serious as
Musiq describes both the ups and
downs of his intimate relationship
Musiq Soulchild Aijuswanaseing (2000)
THE TORCH
PAGE 10
SEPTEMBER 2007
KoRn’s Komeback:
Finally, One Worth the Wait!
BY AMANDA FERRANTE
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Perhaps it’s their switch to Virgin
Records enabling a more creative
edge, or maybe it’s their new guitarist and drummer, but something
gave as KoRn has released its bestsounding album since the old school
days of Life is Peachy and Follow the
Leader.
KoRn’s new disc, Untitled, is a
product of a new musical maturity
and greater band chemistry (KoRn
lost guitarist Brian “Head” Welch to
born-again Christianity in February
2005 and drummer David Silveria
has been on hiatus since 2006.) On
the band’s MySpace page, Singer
Jonathan Davis says the record is
“about us growing up and our minds
opening up more.”
“We weren’t necessarily worried
about ‘oh, is this too poppy? Or too
this or that?’ he says. “We started
thinking that way when “Got The
Life” came out and we thought, ‘oh,
we can’t put this out, it’s got a disco
beat and it’s too dancey.’ It made us
scared. But that’s something we like
doing. If we do a song and put it out
and we’re not scared about it, I guess
we’re not doing it right, because we
always want to evolve, experiment
and change.”
Apparently, “getting scared” is just
what the doctor ordered- as both
1999’s “Got the Life” and 2007’s
“Evolution” have earned great radio
play and general appeal for a recipe
of success.
The metal veterans seem to have listened to the fans on this album as the
sounds of the old KoRn resonate.
“Ever Be” discusses Davis’s feelings
Korn Untitled Virgin Records 2007
about ex-guitarist Brian “Head”
Welch citing, “You're all that's
wrong; with your dumbass song; yet
that's all that you will ever be; nothing you can do 'cause; that's all that
you will ever be.” It’s definitely a shift
from their usual interviews showing
nothing but love and support for
their former friend. Perhaps, following the typical KoRn formula, Davis’s
emotions are the fodder for a great
record oozing with emotion and passion. The riffs and general sound are
that of typical older KoRn. “Ever Be”
is a morbid, dark track with Davis
howling like a werewolf and Shaffer
peering in and out with an easy to
like generic riff- the beautiful bass
sound never fails as Arvizu is easily
one of the greatest bassists of the last
fifteen years. Untitled takes you on a
Jekyll and Hyde fantasy ride with
melodic sad love tunes like “Kiss,”
and angry schizophrenic innuendoes
with the band’s latest single “Bitch,
We Got a Problem,” (chosen by a fan
poll!) All kudos are given to KoRn for
their newfound edge, and props also
go out to KoRn’s backing band for
easily transitioning without any sign
of stage stress.
On the band’s recent tours, there
are some new “animals” rocking out
on stage. Zac Baird provides the
backup vocals to Davis’s sophisticated set of pipes that, frankly, have
never sounded more beautiful and
edgy all at once. Kalen Chase,
known as “the one who wears a rabbit mask,” has been touring with
KoRn since last year on percussion,
guitar, and backing vocals; Joey
Jordison of Slipknot is keeping the
drum set hot as David Silveria rests
his wrists. Quite frankly, Joey is giving David a run for his money as
fans among the crowd chanted
“Joey’s better than David at the free
show in Manhattan ât Southstreet
Seaport back in July. Something was
missing in Silveria’s slams; perhaps
it’s the Slipknot flavor that adds just
a dash more heavy metal sprinkled
atop KoRn’s already musically delicious cake.
KoRn has been coming and going
since 1994 when they began their
long journey as Nu Metal pioneers,
but this comeback shows precision,
poise and originality. Proper marketing, meet and greets, and the
usual free show in Manhattan were a
few tactics that also made KoRn’s
awaited return worth the wait.
Untitled debuted at number two
on the Billboard charts, only to be
beat out by Common’s latest disc,
Finding Forever. To my distaste, each
has been beat out brutally by the
High School Musical 2 Soundtrack.
Damn it, Disney! Check out
MySpace.com/KoRn for tour dates.
STAFF WRITER
Calling Sicko a “must see” is an
understatement. In spite of your
feelings about Michael Moore,
whether positive or negative, the
focus of his newest film is an issue
that spans all walks of life;
HealthCare. It may not seem like a
big deal at first, but how many
people do you know who have had
financial troubles due in part to
medical bills? Well, if you answer
anything over zero, then this is a
film you ought to see.
Moore starts off slowly by
explaining that the film’s main
focus, contrary to popular belief, is
not about Americans without
health insurance, rather American
people with health insurance and
how they’re not really as secure as
they may think they are.
that type of crime. Apparently, she
was right: the allure of making
record profits by spending less
money has apparently been placed
front and center in the medical field.
After dissecting the issue here in
the U.S., the cameras
us abroad to
Sicko shows a myriad of first hand brought
the countries that
accounts of medical horror stories. apparently have a
more advanced medical system than we
Sicko shows a myriad of first hand
do to see exactly what we’re missaccounts of medical horror stories
ing. Well, without giving away
from the patients who suffered them
anything, all that seemed to be
and health care professionals who
missing was political will. As our
admitted to committing the pla cing
country searches for a company to
of profits before care. One of the
pay for needed public services, like
woman interviewed by Moore’s
medical care, every other westerncrew is later shown testifying before
ized country just employs the doca congressional committee. She
tors and pharmacists without a
admitted that because her job was to
third party. The only obstacle here
deny certain medical treatments to
is that most Americans think that
keep the insure company’s cost to a
they can’t do anything to make a
minimum, she caused the death of
difference, and those who are in
at least one patient who died immetune to politics believe that if the
diately after being denied a life-savgovernment controls anything, it
ing yet costly procedure. After
will be a strike against freedom.
admitting that she was positive of
What Sicko shows is that although
her guilt, she also lamented how it’s
it’s hard to make a change and easy
sad that there’s no punishment for
September 17 – December 22, 2007
Monday
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Effective: 9/17/07
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Michael Moore’s Sicko:
A Gravely Entertaining Wake-Up Call
BY DOUG SMITH
FREE SWIM HOURS
for a government to mess up something, there is a way to ensure that
all Americans get provided healthcare if it is paid for by taxes at no
cost to the American people.
Before the film ends, Moore
brought his crew back home where
we find sick and injured 9/11 workers who have either run up a life
threatening medical tab or simply
have yet to be treated. The location
where they eventually had to get the
treatment was ironically bittersweet,
showing the sad state of a for-profit
medical system. Apparently, heroes
don’t receive a discount.
The film’s theme is sad at best,
make no mistake about it, but its
mood is surprisingly light. Most
filmmakers know that people
would never voluntarily see something that would make them
depressed, so there ends up being
many
moments
that make you
laugh--call the film
a satirical documentary. By calling
our system of
Healthcare a joke,
it was easier to
open up the wealth
of damning information within the
film. For those who
may be skeptical on
the accuracy of the
facts within the
film Moore provides a bibliography that anyone
can look at on the
Sicko
movie
w e b s i t e
( h t t p : / / w w w.
michaelmoore.com
/sicko/checkup/).
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THE TORCH
SEPTEMBER 2007
New York's Knitting Factory
Hosts Three Rising Stars
BY ALON MELAMED
ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
The Knitting Factory in New York has
been the home of many upcoming artists
dating back to the first year it opened in
1987. For the past twenty years, it has hosted alternative and well known music acts
that were, at the time, working on their now
phenomenal popularity.
Acts such as Sonic Youth, Yo Le Tengo,
and more found a solid fan base within the
Knitting Factory’s walls, a fan base that later
expanded to nationwide success.
On another warm and cozy August night,
three artists seemed to have formed their
own fan base, hoping a shared success story
would follow them.
Los Angeles based Ernie Halter opened the
night with a shy yet romantic exhibition of his
talent. For some reason, every time he performs,
he wears a dull gray cap. Oddly enough, among
the merchandise offered, an “official” Ernie's cap
is available. As for his music, shades of soul are
clearly heard in his voice within titles such as
"Love Look at Me Now." "One You Need" hints
the dude needs some tender lovin' care. His
debut album, Congress Hotel, is sold in stores.
Following his act, Kate Voegele enters the
stage. A Cleveland native, she actually has a
supporting band behind her. With her naiveté
and excitement as her more prominent assets,
she starts playing a song dear to her heart,
"Chicago." Throughout her set, she combines
catchy melodies and easy-listening lyrics to
get a hold of a crowd already fascinated by her
youthful look. Recently, she has signed a
record deal with MySpace Records. Songs
from her first album, Don't Look Away, have
already been featured on television
Closing the night was Tyrone Wells, another Californian export who, by the positive and
eager cheers he got from the crowd, was distinguished as the main act everyone was waiting for. It has been a long time since an artist
and his band shared an on-key combination
with hardly any mistakes [at The Knitting
Factory]. His band was on cue with him for
every song he sang. When he performed his
songs alone, his only distraction was the air
coming out from the empty ceilings.
Wells’s voice sounds like Stevie Wonder’s,
yet some of his songs include guitar rock
riffs. He showcased some of his musical
influences with a medley of covers featuring
songs by Lauryn Hill and Mary J. Blige. The
crowd, comprised mostly of college girls, was
taken by his voice. When he played two of
his better known songs, "Sea Breeze" and
"Falling," the crowd chanted the words with
him as if he were a priest at church.
Signing with Universal Music records last
year has made him a high prospect for
becoming a DJ's new favorite for massive
airplay. Wells has released already three long
play CD's with his latest album, Hold On
(2006), re-released through Universal.
That August night, the Knitting Factory
hosted three more individuals wishing to
become "The Next Big Thing" in music
today. Whether all or none of them do, in
fact, succeed, the music scene created by this
renowned New York venue will still be host
for many quality upcoming stars.
Singer Kate Voegele Reaches for the Stars
BY ALON MELAMED
ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
With a world so dependent on
computers, many artists use
MySpace and other social networking sites to gain some initial attention.
Such is the case with Kate
Voegele, 20, from Cleveland,
Ohio. After signing with MySpace
Records in October of 2006,
Voegele significantly upped her
potential of becoming music's
newest pop star.
Growing up in an environment
where music was a way of life, Kate
said she owes a lot to her father, a
guitar player, who sang alongside
her
at
Riverside Church’s
Children's Choir when she was
younger.
In addition, she says that the
music her parents listened to on
the radio, most notably Carole
King and Patty Griffin’s "Up to
the Mountain," remain major
musical influences on her.
Writing music became more
important during her high school
years. It was then that she began to
write lyrics that express common
life experiences. Yet some of her
songs still have an unusual, comic
appeal. The idea for the song "One
Way or Another," came to her
during a flight from Cleveland to
Los Angeles. Voegele, sitting in the
middle seat of the airplane, had to
climb over a sleeping lady while
her tray lay open supporting a
bunch of Sprite cans. “One way or
another,” she managed to climb
over her and record the song in the
bathroom.
That’s typical of Voegele’s character: very hyper and energetic, hoping to make her own difference in
the world. Some of her accomplishments to date include her participation in the 2004 and 2005
Kate serenades the crowd with her song and sweet disposition
Farm Aid Music Festivals alongside
artists such as Dave Matthews and
John Mellencamp.
Voegele has also won numerous
music awards, most notably a USA
songwriting competition award for
"Only Fooling Myself,” and a New
York Songwriting Circle competition for "I Won’t Disagree."
Her first LP, "Don't Look Away,"
was released in March of 2007.
The album was
For more info about Kate and her
music check out her website at
www.katevoegele.com
10 Quick Questions For Kate:
1. If you were to be anything but
a singer/songwriter, what would
you be?
"I would have become a visual
artist. I studied it in school and
had to drop out of it. I will really
miss it."
2. What do you find attractive?
"Funny, spontaneous people and
actions."
3. What part of your lifetime
would you like to return to?
"I really miss the days when I was
five. I wish I could act like a kid a
little more."
4. If you had a genie granting
you three wishes, what would you
choose?
"I honestly don’t know. I wish I
could have answered this question
better."
5. What word describes you the
best?
– "Loud and Energetic!"
6. What part of you would you
change?
"Pretty much nothing. Maybe a
better sports athlete, although
what really matters is who you are
and what you do."
7. What makes you smile?
"My friends and the loving people around me."
8. What makes you cry?
"When my friends and family get
hurt."
9. What is your greatest fear?
"I don't think about it; in the
end, things work out."
10. What is your greatest dream?
"All I want to be and do is be
happy and have a positive effect on
the people besides me and the ones
listening to my music."
PAGE 11
THE TORCH
PAGE 12
SEPTEMBER 2007
Sports
Calling It as We See It: A Guide to the 2007 - 2008 NHL Season
BY DANNY LAFASO
plays nowadays. Goalies, Cristobal
Huet and Jaroslav Halak, both struggled last season; neither is anticipated
to play up to potential again. Futility
shall continue to be the ‘word of the
day’ for the Montreal Canadiens.
Let’s not leave out last year’s winners,
the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres were
major losers in the off-season, as well as
a disappointment during their playoff
run last year. Once Ottawa eliminated
Buffalo in last year’s conference finals,
any chance Buffalo had for continuing
dominance was left in the hands of the
front office, which absolutely dropped
the ball. Although selling out each
home game they play offers outstanding overall attendance figures, don’t
look for more excitement than this
from this year’s squad of Sabres.
SPORTS EDITOR
With so many unanswered questions
about the upcoming NHL season, any
prediction made by anyone, who’s
either a fan or an expert is still just a
shot in the dark. This does not mean
that The Torch Sports page will shy
away from making predictions for the
2007-08 NHL campaign.
Here you will find a division by division outlook of the Eastern Conference.
Whatever the outcome, this year’s fight
for the cup promises to be one of the
most unpredictable, exciting, and
nerve-wrecking seasons that any fan,
whether you are a casual onlooker or a
crazed fanatic, will ever endure.
We begin things with the always
unpredictable Atlantic Division, in
which the New York Rangers have
made perhaps some of the best moves
this off-season. The Broadway
Blueshirts landed two of the most coveted free agents on the market in Chris
Drury and Scott Gomez. They have
also cut ties with center Matt Cullen,
who performed poorly during his only
season in NY. Defense is still an issue
for the Rangers, as they lost their potential power play quarterback in Karel
Rachunek. Having many rookie and
second year defenders on their blue line
may also cause some trouble. However,
the buzz around 34th Street is whether
this year’s squad will be a force to be
reckoned with in this division, as well as
a major Stanley Cup contender.
Pittsburgh has not been a powerhouse hockey city in quite some time,
but look for all that to change as Sidney
Crosby and crew enter their third full
season. Last year provided Penguin fans
with a first glimpse of just how special
this team could be. It also showed how
truly young and inexperienced they are,
falling to Ottawa in the first round of
the playoffs. Look for Pittsburgh to
perhaps take a small step back, as these
young teams sometimes do.
Division winner New Jersey has suffered off-season losses before, but never
the likes of what took place last year.
Losing Scott Gomez and Brian Rafalski
on the same day may have done more
damage than GM Lou Lamoriello cares
to believe. Adding center Dainius
Zubrus helps, but Zubrus is not a
defenseman, which is where the Devils
will surely feel the sting of losing Brian
Rafalski to Detroit.
The Philadelphia Flyers will certainly
turn some heads this season after suffering an abysmal last year. Daniel
Briere will provide the puck moving
skills that were lacking, while young
offensive tools such as Scottie Upshall
and RJ Umberger will continue to dazzle fans inside the “City of Brotherly
Love.” Goaltender Marty Biron is sure
to be an important addition. Look for
Philadelphia to be a serious contender
for the division crown.
The NY Islanders? Well, what can we
say? They’re the Islanders.
TORCH Atlantic Division WinnerNY Rangers
The Northeast Division may be the
best division in the entire NHL.
Stanley Cup finalist Ottawa is
favored to repeat as division winner
and rightfully so. Dany Heatley seems
to score at will, Captain Daniel
Alfredsson has been a big time leader
and player for a while now, and
Goaltender Ray Emery can keep the
puck out with the best of them.
Defenseman Wade Redden always
knows just where to be on the ice and
how to put the puck where it’s supposed to go. Opponents beware: the
Ottawa Senators are for real!
Last year’s Toronto Maple Leafs
squad missed the playoffs on the very
last day of the regular season, losing
out to the Islanders who stand no
chance this season. This year, Toronto’s
squad has a bit of a different look.
Andrew Raycroft, who was once a
Calder Trophy winner as rookie of the
year, is no longer a top tier goaltender.
Vesa Toskala will make Raycroft earn
his spot as the number one, which may
heighten Andrew’s play. Former
Islander Jason Blake will bring his goal
scoring ability to a team that seems to
run on only one line, year after year.
Bryan McCabe and Tomas Kaberle are
stalwarts at the defensive position, and
second-year player Pavel Kubina will
most likely acclimate to Toronto’s
scheme a little easier this time around.
Boston will most likely look to its
baseball and basketball teams for
excitement this year. The Bruins offseason addition of Manny Fernandez
does not exactly strike fear into the rest
of the division; conversely, owner
Jeremy Jacobs’s track record thus far is
loaded with loss after loss after loss. Do
not expect much from the Bruins,
sports fans.
Montreal continues to flourish on
the power play each season, but this
will only get them so far. The NHL’s
playoff system is made neither for
teams that can only score while up a
man nor a regular season in which you
get as many penalties as you do power
TORCH Northeast Division
Winner- Ottawa Senators
Finally, we visit the Southeast division, where the Atlanta Thrashers had
the lowest point total for a division
winner last season and were swept out
of the first round by a surging NY
Rangers squad. While Atlanta’s fire
power remains intact with Kovalchuk,
Hossa, and Holik back next year, goaltending is still a sensitive issue. Even if
they win the division again, goaltender
Marian Hossa played dreadfully in last
year’s playoffs—perhaps he is fated to
have “A. Rod-like” luck in the post-season. An overrated defense corps only
adds to the worries of Thrashers fans.
Alexei Zhitnik and Nicolas Havelid are
both past their prime; expect an odd
man rush on behalf of the opposition
every time this pair leaves the ice.
Tampa Bay, while holding two of the
most dynamic cards in the league in
Lecavalier and St. Louis, has been
plagued by one serious problem since
become a legendary benchmark within
the documentary genre.
4. The Natural- Delphi II- 1984.
Robert Redford teamed with director
Barry Levinson to make one of the foremost baseball films in history. Roy
Hobbs (Redford) comes out of nowhere
to help the Knights baseball team contend for the pennant. With the help of
the bat he created from a lightningstruck tree as a child, Hobbs immediately becomes a legend. Although the
novel’s ending has him striking out and
weeping in the locker room, Hollywood
needed a happier spin on this story, and
they certainly found one.
3. Miracle- Disney- 2004.
In 1980, a group of rag tag college
kids stole the show at the winter
Olympics by dethroning the Soviet
hockey team and eventually winning
the gold medals. Kurt Russell is stellar
in his performance as the USA coach,
Herb Brooks. The rest of the cast does
not consist of actors who play hockey—they are hockey players who act.
Feel the goose bumps build as one of
the greatest sporting triumph in
American history is retold.
2.
Remember
the
TitansBruckheimer Films- 2000.
Even the manliest of men will find
their tears hard to contain watching this
one. Filled with a terrific cast, great football scenes, and a heartwarming story,
this movie was an instant classic the
moment it was released. Denzel
Washington plays Herman Boone, a
high school coach given the head coaching position at a school where African
American players and coaches are not
welcome. Few football films have the tear
jerking ability this film has, and who
knows if another ever will. “Training
Day” may have won Washington the
Oscar he desired for so long, but his per-
winning the Stanley Cup in 2003:
goaltending, goaltending, and, of
course, goaltending. Marc Denis and
Johan Holmqvist are hardly starters on
AHL squads, and this is the tandem
that will vie for the starting job in
Tampa. New ownership will certainly
have their hands full with this
Lightning team, unless they rectify
their goalie situation quickly.
Who would have expected the
Florida Panthers to have such a productive off-season? Tomas Vokoun will
solidify the goalie spot in Florida,
while Jay Bouwmeester makes his
return from knee surgery. Captain Olli
Jokinen has always played to his full
potential, and although Radek Dvorak
is no superstar, having another veteran
will bolster the locker room of the
Panthers (and add a bit more scoring).
Michael Nylander will certainly have
fun distributing the puck to budding
superstar Alexander Ovechkin in
Washington. However, even with the
dynamic talents of Ovechkin, no team
can survive with only one line that can
score. Olaf Kolzig can keep the puck out
of the net as long as his defense allows
him the space to maneuver, and the
Capitals’s defense has never been good
enough. Expect nothing more than
mediocrity from our nation’s capital.
TORCH Southeast Division winner- Florida Panthers
So there you have it, sports fans. The
Torch certainly does not claim to have
all the answers, but we feel that our
assessment of the 2007-08 NHL
Eastern Conference is spot on. Prepare
yourselves for one of the most exciting
hockey seasons in recent memory.
Be sure to check out The Torch and
all our sports happenings at
myspace.com/thetorchnewspaper.
Torch Sports Top 10
BY DANNY LAFASO
SPORTS EDITOR
All right, sports fans! It’s time for the
newest installment of Torch Sports Top
10. Each issue of The Torch will consist
of 10 new things related to sports, and
we will place them in order from 10 to
1. Check us out at Myspace.com/bcctorchnewspaper, and either give feedback or let us know what top 10s you
want to see. Also, look for the upcoming Torch Sports Blog!
For this issue, Top 10 lists the best
sports films of all time! And here they are:
10. Soul of the Game- HBO Films1996.
This film delves into the lives of
three of the Negro Baseball League’s
most recognizable names: the immortal Jackie Robinson, wacky pitcher
Satchel Paige, and troubled slugger
Josh Gibson. Blair Underwood shines
as Robinson who broke Major League
Baseball’s color barrier in 1947 with
the Brooklyn Dodgers. Delroy Lindo
plays the aging hurler, Paige, and
Mykelti Williamson portrays Josh
Gibson, who many agree was the
Negro League’s “Babe Ruth.”
9. Tin Cup- Regency- 1996.
Kevin Costner and Rene Russo make
golf seem appealing to even the most
avid of non-players in this 1996
romantic comedy. Costner portrays a
former hot-shot college golfer whose
bravado gets the best of him one too
many times. Russo is a psychiatrist dating Costner’s old college teammate
who is a big time PGA star. This film
is a sure fire hole-in-one.
8. Invincible- Disney- 2006.
Mark Wahlberg plays long shot Vince
Papale in the story of a bartender turned
NFL pro. Papale went from playing
pickup with his buddies to training
with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1976.
Greg Kinnear plays Papale’s coach, Dick
Vermeil, who took a chance on the local
bartender, then went on to an illustrious
coaching career himself. We can all
agree that far too many football movies
are made year after year, but this one
actually pulls in the viewer with its
human interest plot.
7. The Rookie- 98 MPH
Productions- 2002.
Dennis Quaid plays a Texas baseball
coach who gets a chance to live his
MLB dream as the pitcher for a Major
League team. If the human interest
plotline in “Invincible” doesn’t quite
do it for you, this film sure will.
6. Bad News Bears- Paramount1976.
What can possibly be said about this
timeless film? Walter Matthau and his
gang of misfit little leaguers have made
countless audiences wet themselves
with laughter since the film debuted in
the late 70s. Every film made after
“Bad News Bears” that has portrayed a
raggedy, has-been coach teaching
morality to a team of local miscreants
has paled in comparison to this classic.
5. Hoop Dreams-Indie-1994.
Originally meant to be a half-hour long
short film, “Hoop Dreams” turned out to
be a terrific documentary depicting the
lives of Arthur Agee and William Gates,
high school basketball players who hope
to make it to the NBA. A heartwarming
and endearing tale, “Hoop Dreams” was
never meant for success, but it has
formance in this film is just as deserving
of that great gold statue.
1. Field of Dreams- Gordon Co. 1989.
Think of anyone in your life who
does not know this line: “If you build
it, he will come.” You can’t do it, can
you? That’s because “Field of Dreams”
is that one sports film that will forever
live in the hearts and minds of film
lovers. Kevin Costner and James Earl
Jones have made other important films
throughout their careers, but anyone
that meets Jones on the street may be
tempted to tell him, “People will come,
Ray.” Many sports films come and go,
but “Field of Dreams” will always be
there. “The one constant through all
the years has been baseball,” reflects
Jones towards the film’s end, and the
same is true for the film itself.
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