The Lumberjack - Issue 15, Volume 98

JACKCENTRAL.com INSIDE

Opinion: Obama shows no

spine, p 10 Sports: Women’s b-ball, p 14 A&E: Irish Christmas, p 19

SINCE 1914 Issue 15, VOL 98

Trash talk: Flagstaff recycling complex T

hanks to university sustainability initiatives, all rooms on campus are equipped with recycling and trashcans. Every week, residents in halls across NAU take their garbage out and dump it into large, brown and green trash containers. Yet while most students’ involvement in recycling ends at these garbage receptacles, this is only the beginning for those involved in the trash-sorting business. One such location — and the first stop for Flagstaff ’s recyclable trash — is the Materials Recovery Facility operated by Norton Environmental, Inc. Elsbeth Inglett, an instructor for the Willow Bend Environmental Education Center and the guide on the tour of the facility, said calling the building a recycling center is a misnomer, as it does not actually do much recycling itself. “No recycling is actually done here,” Inglett said. “There’s actually a first step. Step No. 1 — before you start recycling anything, everything goes into one bin, right? Can you

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AU’s student athletes are going to have a new home away from home this coming semester, as the university has received approval from the city of Flagstaff to rent a commercial building in the Varsity Shopping Center west of campus, which is home to Bookman’s, Hastings and Michael’s. On Dec. 1, Flagstaff ’s Planning and Zoning Committee met in city hall to discuss and vote on several proposals, including one from NAU to place a new athletic training facility off campus. Neil Gullickson, an urban planner for the city, gave his staff ’s report on NAU’s proposal to the committee. Gullickson said the new facility

BY NATALIE MUILENBERG

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see NAU RENTAL page 8

see CAFE page 3

see RECYCLING page 4

NAU rents space to hold Skydome equipment would be close to campus. “As the introduction noted, NAU is looking to locate a training facility — 4,100 sq. ft. — in the Hastings-Bookman’s shopping center,” Gullickson said. Gullickson said the short-term rental of the space did not necessitate changing the zoning designation from a commercial to a public lands, open space and building (PLO) zone. “The university is typically looked at as an entity unto itself,” Gullickson said. “Their moving off-site was an interesting thing to look at for [my] staff. If the university was moving and owned this property, I think we’d be recommending a re-zoning to the PLO zone — which is what the current university is. In this case, the

New ‘green’ café

university is proposing to be located in this site for a temporary period of time.” In case the university faces a situation in which the Skydome construction takes longer than expected, Gullickson said his planning staff and NAU would like a lease for a few months longer than the projected completion of the stadium. “The renovations are going on in the [Skydome], and the weight training facility is located in the Dome,” Gullickson said. “This facility is specifically for their athletes. The university has anticipated that the renovations to the Dome will take about nine months. Staff, as part of the conditional use permit, is supportive of this as a tem-

recycle your papers and plastics together? No, so this actually a sorting facility. All of the recycling comes here from Williams, the Grand Canyon and basically all of northern Arizona. It all comes here and gets sorted, and then it goes to recycling centers. Paper, for instance, will be packed up and sent down to Snowflake, where they actually do paper recycling. Our plastic and metal goes down to Phoenix right now.” Inglett said both dumps and landfills had their faults, but the latter — especially in Flagstaff ’s case — can allow chemicals to seep into the earth and water table while preventing materials within from decomposing. “Dumps are constantly decomposing — as we fill them up, they’re going down,” Inglett said. “Landfills are much more laborintensive. We dig a huge hole in the ground as big as a square block. Now, most of the times — and it’s not mandatory — there is a huge lining that goes in that hole. Now, our landfill does not have that rubber lining. What would that rubber lining prevent?

A guest on a tour of the Materials Recovery Facility on East Butler Avenue surveys a large pile of bottles. Glass is not recycled in Flagstaff but is instead crushed back into sand. (Photos by Vann Johnson)

BY KEVIN BERTRAM

Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2010

ext fall, in the new Health and Learning Center on campus, there will be a café focusing on community, health, education and sustainability. For the past year, a group of students, faculty and the action research teams in the Masters of Sustainable Communities program have been conversing about the café and focusing on making the idea a reality. Bryan McLaren, a student in the Masters of Sustainable Communities program and a mentor for the café’s action research team, said the idea started out small, and it started with food. “The café began as an extremely abstract idea, which emerged from a brainstorming session,” McLaren said. “Within the action research teams that Rom Coles and Blaise Scarnati created through the [Masters of] Sustainable Communities program and the first year seminars, the café started as a group of people attempting to create a public space on NAU’s campus. This space was intended to cultivate an atmosphere of education, well-being and sustainability. Naturally, we immediately began to visualize this space as one with food; food inherently brings people together.” Although sustainability has been addressed in conversations about the café, it is not a certainty. However, McLaren said the hope is to have the café be sustainable in a physical way — energy-efficient, carbon-neutral and LEED-certified — and in a cultural sense. “The sustainability of the café means creating an enduring atmosphere for students and community members that will focus on education, well-being and topics of cultural and social sustainability — like environmental and social justice, pollution, and consumption,” McLaren said. “In this way, the café will be sustainable because students and community members will continue to come to the café,

Center handles bottles, papers and cans BY KEVIN BERTRAM

Newman Center Interview, p7

CommunitySpot Weekend4Cast Even ts C al en d ar

Thursday

Friday

H56° L28°

H56° L26°

PARTLY CLOUDY

PARTLY SUNNY

Saturday

Sunday

H52° L23° PARTLY CLOUDY

Dec. 1 At 4:08 p.m., a subject reported a male had confronted her near the Babbitt Academic Annex and attempted to hug and kiss her. The incident occurred on Nov. 30 around 5:30 p.m. An officer was dispatched, and no further information is available.

Dec. 2 At 12:50 p.m., NAU experienced a temporary power outage affecting most of the campus. The power outage lasted approximately five minutes, and the cause is unknown at this time. At 1:31 p.m., the staff at facilities management called to report several subjects in the Ceramics Complex who appeared to be setting fire to wooden freight pallets. An officer was dispatched. The subjects were told to extinguish the fire, and they complied. At 1:45 p.m., U.S. federal marshals reported arresting a suspect in a sexual assault case that occurred this past Nov. 19. The suspect had a warrant out for his arrest. The subject was arrested and booked in Coconino County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) jail. At 9:22 p.m., the staff at Wilson Hall called to report the odor of marijuana coming from a room on the second

H53° L23° BY KEVIN BERTRAM daily updates at JackCentral.com

floor.

Officers were dispatched. Four students were deferred for the use of marijuana. Two of the students were cited for the possession of drug paraphernalia and released.

Dec. 3 At 12:19 a.m., a concerned citizen called to report a suspicious vehicle on Knoles Drive and Riordan Road that appeared to be driven by an intoxicated subject. An officer was dispatched. The area was searched with negative contact, and the vehicle was gone upon the officer’s arrival. At 12:46 a.m., the staff of Mountain View Hall called to report a female student who was intoxicated in the lobby. An officer was dispatched, but the subject was gone upon arrival and could not be located. At 12:15 p.m., a student called to report his parking permit had been stolen out of his vehicle while parked in parking lot 5. The incident occurred on an unknown date and time. An officer was dispatched. The case is closed, and all leads are exhausted. At 2:10 p.m., staff at the High Country Conference Center called to report a wireless microphone had been stolen. The theft occurred on Oct. 4 between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.

2 The Lumberjack | JackCentral.com

KJACK Show [8 - 11 p.m./ Murdoch Center] $3. Merlin’s Inferno, Light Brigade, Tha Braskies to perform.

Performance by the Dave Logan Band [8 p.m./Oak Creek Brewing Co.]

see CRIME page 3

Saturday, Dec. 11

Handel’s Messiah [7:30 p.m./First Congregational Church] Enjoy a performance by the Arizona Desert Choir and chamber orchestra. Flagstaff Poetry Slam [8 p.m./Tacos Locos] Karaoke with Simon [8 p.m./ Hotel Monte Vista Cocktail Lounge] Ages 21 and up Performance of Best Christmas Pageant Ever [8 p.m./Theatrikos] Come witness Barbara Robinson’s classic holiday play at Theatrikos.

Club] Ages 21 and up

Karaoke with BJ and Eddie [12 a.m./Green Room] Ages 21 and up

Monday, Dec. 13

Karaoke [7 p.m./ Museum Club] Ages 21 and up

SUNNY

CrimeLog

Performance of Equus[8 p.m./NAU Studio Theatre]

Thursday, Dec. 9

Pinewood Farmers Market [9 a.m./Munds Park Community Church] Holiday Giftmaking [10 a.m./

Brown Bag Lunch Lecture [12:15 p.m./Riordan Mansion State Park] Celebrate the 175th anniversary of Mark Twain’s birthday. Geminid Meteor Shower [8 p.m./Lowell Observatory]

Weekend Picks THE NUTCRACKER

(FRIDAY @ 7:30 P.M.– ARDREY AUDITORIUM) most Witness a performance of one of the es. stori s stma beloved Chri

HOLIDAY SKIES

(SATURDAY @ 7 P.M.– LOWELL OBSERVATORY) ing about Celebrate the holiday spirit by learn the wondrous cosmos.

Amateur Comedy Night [9:30 p.m./Smokehouse BBQ Restaurant] Ages 21 and up

Friday, Dec. 10

Performance by Craig Yarbrough [6 p.m./Little America] Fringe Festival [6 p.m./ Flag Arts and Leadership Academy] Watch 16 plays and vote for your favorite. 25-Cent Draft Beer [7 p.m./ Museum Club] Ages 21 and up The Nutcracker [7:30 p.m./ Ardrey Memorial Auditorium]

Willow Bend Education Center] The Lollipop Matinee [2 p.m./Ardrey Auditorium] Matinee performance of The Nutcracker. Open Mic Night [6 p.m./ Campus Coffee Bean]

Sunday, Dec. 12

Downtown Farmers Market [8 a.m. /Flagstaff City Hall parking lot] Kiwanis Christmas Tree Sale [10 a.m./Chase Bank parking lot] Food Not Bombs [12 p.m./Wheeler Park] Latino Night [9 p.m./Museum

Karaoke with Ricky Bill [8 p.m./Hotel Monte Vista Cocktail Lounge]

Tuesday, Dec. 14 Toy Drive[All day/ Flagstaff Mall] Flagstaff Tea Party Group [6:30 p.m./ Radisson Woodlands Hotel]

Open Mic Night [8 p.m./Charly’s Pub & Grill] Ages 21 and up Jazz Jam [10 p.m./Mia’s Lounge] Ages 21 and up

Wednesday, Dec. 15

Meditation Group [7:15 a.m./ Quaker Meeting House] Flagstaff Singles [5:30 p.m./Little America] Ages 18 and up. Flagstaff singles can socialize and enjoy refreshments. Ladies ‘80s [8 p.m./Green Room] Ages 21 and up Open Mic Night [8 p.m./Mia’s Lounge] Performance by Tony Norris [8 p.m./Wine Loft]

InTheNews from CRIME page 2 An officer was dispatched. The case is closed, and all leads are exhausted.

Dec. 4 At 2:40 a.m., a student called the department to report he had been assaulted outside of Taylor Hall. An officer was dispatched, and the report was unfounded. The reporting party was cited for minor consumption and released. At 2:32 p.m., a student reported his backpack had been stolen from the University Union. The theft occurred on Dec. 3 between 3:15 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. An officer was dispatched. No other information is available. At 4:59 p.m., Flagstaff Police Department (FPD) reported a theft in progress at Five Points Mobile gas station. The subjects were last seen headed east on Butler Avenue. Officers were dispatched. The area was searched with negative contact. At 6:07 p.m., FPD reported a female was choking at the Drury Inn. Officers were dispatched. The subject refused medical treatment, and everything was fine. At 6:37 p.m., the staff at Wilson Hall called to report the odor of marijuana coming from a room on the second floor. Officers were dispatched. Wilson Hall staff are handling the situation internally. from CAFE page 1

buy food and share meaningful conversations.” Caleb Phillips, another student in the Masters of Sustainable Communities program and a facilitator for the café’s action research team, said this new café can bring more sustainable ideas and projects to NAU’s campus. “Part of the café is to provide a model for the rest of the campus — then we can begin the transformation of the campus as a whole,” Phillips said. “An important aspect of sustainability is our involved citizens, and we want our students to be invested in their food and their social conversation. We need to provide an intentional space for that.” Phillips also said the café will improve the community of Flagstaff beyond the NAU campus. “The role of the café [is to] provide a bridge between the campus and the rest of the community,” Phillips said. “The café will effectively root students of NAU to Flagstaff in ways that they may not be.” Underclassmen have been contributing to the café’s progress by networking with oncampus organizations and clubs. Kelli Tresgallo, a freshman photography major, said she has

At 8:57 p.m., staff at Wilson Hall called to report the odor of marijuana coming from a room on the first floor. Officers were dispatched. Two students were arrested and booked into the CCSO jail for possession and use of marijuana. At 11:40 p.m., a student called to report an ongoing noise disturbance coming from parking lot 28C next to Mountain View Hall. She was advised NAUPD would conduct another patrol later and was asked to call back if another incident occurred. At 11:48 p.m., a subject called to report he had been robbed on the grassy area north of the Engineering and Technology building by an unknown male subject wielding a knife. Officers were dispatched. The victim was taken to Flagstaff Medical Center (FMC). The suspect has yet to have been found, and the case is still open.

Dec. 5 At 4:01 p.m., a staff member at the Walkup Skydome reported two juveniles riding bikes on the playing field with their dog. Officers were dispatched and made contact with the juveniles, who were told they were not allowed in the building and were therefore trespassing. The juveniles were identified and complied with the officers’ request to leave. At 9:47 p.m., an officer reported students drinking alcohol in Gillenwater Hall. One student was cited for minor consumption and released.

learned about social change while participating in the café’s action research team. “The café has taught me that when students come together to work to create something that is important to them, they really do have the power to stimulate change and spread awareness,” Tresgallo said. Tresgallo said she hopes the café will breed conversations about protecting the environment while also serving local and sustainable food. “The café will offer students a healthy, eco-friendly alternative source of on-campus food,” Tresgallo said. “Not only that, but it will also be a good place to spread environmental awareness and to meet people with similar views. Even if people just want to come in to have a snack, view artwork and watch performances, they will be helping the environment without even knowing it.” For next semester, the café’s action research team will be holding a campuswide meeting open to the public. Students can contact either Bryan McLaren or Caleb Phillips for involvement, or visit green.nau.edu’s “Community Engagement” link for more information.

Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2010 | The Lumberjack 3

InTheNews from RECYCLING page 1

Water pollution and soil contamination. We don’t have that — Cinder Lake Landfill does not have that.” Flagstaff residents, Inglett said, are essentially taking expensive steps to preserve their trash by utilizing the landfill method of waste disposal. “A lot of people would think things decompose in there because we put layers of dirt,” Inglett said. “But it’s basically like putting all of our trash into a giant Ziplock bag or a plastic container and putting it in the freezer.” In a 2007 report prepared by the Merriam-Powell Center for Environmental Research at NAU, an inspection and examination of the waste sent by NAU in 2007 revealed university students sent 1,655 tons — of which 960 tons could have been recycled — to Cinder Lake Landfill every year. Northern Arizona has a

different approach to recycling glass, which is the only official recycling that occurs within the facility. Inglett said because the cost of shipping it to California would be expensive, discarded glass will get a new life as what it began: sand. “Glass is not recycled here in Flagstaff,” Inglett said. “We do something else with it, and what we do is we actually return it back to what it started as — sand. So, all the glass gets collected and brought here. We wash it down, turn it back into sand, and it’s free for public use. There’s a loss of money if we were to recycle it — the nearest recycling facility for glass is in Los Angeles. If you’ve ever picked up a box of glass bottles, it’s heavy. To ship all of our glass to Los Angeles would cost a lot of money. So, instead, we don’t. Instead of throwing it into a landfill, we use it in another way.” In the back lot of the facility, a large pile of glass refuse

sat next to a machine designed to grind and crush it down to a fine, semi-lustrous material. Within the building, bulldozers pushed a generalized pile of trash onto a conveyor belt, carrying it up to two sorting rooms raised above the floor. Through openings in the ceiling, workers divided the trash into piles that other bulldozers put in a compactor, turning the recyclable material into large blocks for easier transit. Currently, the Materials Recovery Facility accepts paper, glass, metals and ‘hard’ plastics (such as milk containers). They cannot take organic materials, Styrofoam, used papers (tissues) or ‘soft’ plastics (grocery bags). As a part of the initiative they are calling “Green First Fridays,” Willow Bend will be hosting tours of the Norton Environmental sorting center on the first Friday of every month from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. The facility is located at 1800 E. Butler Ave.

TOP RIGHT: Inglett teaches members of the community about various materials that can be recycled. BOTTOM RIGHT: A bulldozer pushes paper products into a pile. LEFT: A conveyor belt carries recyclable paper from the sorting room to the facility floor. (Photos by Vann Johnson)

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By: December 17

InTheNews

Newman priest talks about plans for student housing project BY WILLIAM BROWN

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he Rev. Matt Lowry is head of the Holy Trinity Catholic Newman Center here in Flagstaff, and he spoke to The Lumberjack about the center’s activities. The Lumberjack: How do you define faith-based housing? Matt Lowry: Some people choose to go to private schools because they like the ethos of a school, so to speak, whether it’s an Ivy League school or a Christian school or a Catholic school. There’s kind of an attitude — a subculture, if you will — where certain values are promoted. Here, you have Mountain View, for example, which has its subculture of Greek Life and the events that go around that, and the service that happens, and the socials and things. A model that’s happened at the University of Illinois: The Catholic Center The Rev. Matt Lowry is the priest at the Holy Trinity Newman Center, has its own dormitory, and you know which ministers to NAU students. (Photos by Laura Phillips) it is run by the Catholics, but in the

Renovations to cost $4.6 million more than projected BY KEVIN BERTRAM

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he Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) meets today in the Student Memorial Union of UA for the second part of its two-day conference of the three state universities. Topics under discussion include more money for campus renovations, football coach Jerome Souers’ new contract and changes to NAU’s construction project plans. The agenda for the meeting states NAU had asked ABOR for nearly a million dollars more for the Liberal Arts building renovation project — money still originating from the Stimulus Plan for Economic and Educational Development (SPEED) fund, which, according to the Office of the President, consists of 80 percent revenues from the state lottery system and 20 percent university money. “Northern Arizona University requests revised Project Approval for the Liberal Arts building renovations being financed with SPEED revenue bonds,” the release said. “The revision includes a budget increase of $900,000 for outdoor exterior stairs and audiovisual upgrades. The total project cost is increasing from $8.7 million to $9.6 million.” The agenda also shows NAU President John Haeger will be soliciting ABOR for ap-

proval to spend nearly $4 million in university money on the changes to the Walkup Skydome. “Northern Arizona University requests revised Project Approval for the Skydome renovations originally being financed with SPEED revenue bonds,” the release said. “The revision includes a budget increase of $3.7 million to address foundation issues and additional code requirements. The increases will be funded with university funds. The total project cost is increasing from $21.9 million to $25.6 million.” Other notable items on the schedule include a vote by the board on the FY2011 Capital Development Plans (CDP) for the university, which NAU revised. According to the details in the agenda, the changes include the addition of three projects slated to begin in 2011, bringing the final cost of all CDP endeavors next year to $125.4 million. Of interest to NAU sports fans is the pending approval of a three-year contract extension for head football coach Jerome Souers. The vote is scheduled for 11:45 a.m. today. ABOR has released their meeting schedule for next semester: ASU and UA will host the Regents in February and April (respectively) before visiting NAU on June 16 and 17. For further updates about the ABOR meeting, go to JackCentral.com.

end, it operates like any other dorm. There are house rules and a curfew and that kind of stuff, just like any dormitory. You obviously don’t force faith on anybody — you can’t force anyone to go to church, and that’s not necessarily the idea. What you do is create a place where positive values and virtues are promoted. LJ: What values do you see being promoted in the proposed residence hall? ML: We actually sat down and tried to think of what guidelines there should be in a dormitory, and it’s so funny, because it was similar to guidelines for any dormitory. You know, no drugs and no alcohol for minors; we would probably just be a dry dorm. No co-ed dorms, and there would probably be quiet hours. The values would probably be to recognize it is a Catholic dorm, and so the people who would want to live here that would be attracted to it would be trying to live a Catholic lifestyle — or in keeping with

ASNAU Report

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his is the ASNAU Report, a new feature in The Lumberjack covering the Thursday evening meetings of the Associated Students of Northern Arizona University. This edtion of the report is from the meeting on Dec. 2

Club Recognition

Hospitality Entrepreneurs: will bring together students who want to start a business in hospitality, bring speakers to campus and improve hospitality students’ skills. Northern Arizona Fun Times Association: will bring students together to participate in outdoor games and activities designed to teach team-building skills and relieve stress. Students for Yoga/Meditation Club: will offer students the opportunity to practice yoga and meditation in a large and relaxing space.

Executive Reports

All of the items for the club headquarters have been purchased and will be arriving soon. Chief of Staff Kathleen Templin is attempting to put together a meeting with those in charge of graduation to add an additional ceremony in May, due to repeated complaints by students. She is also planning to send out a “23” fee report on where the money goes. The advertisement for the information technology specialist for the ASNAU website will be going out

that. It would also be someone who would recognize that Catholic values would be promoted here. I believe Catholic values are treating every person with dignity, respect, reconciliation, charity, integrity, truthfulness — things and values that I think we all find worthwhile and admirable. We would obviously try to promote a culture where people are striving to become better, more virtuous people. LJ: What prompted the Newman Center to push for this new residence hall? FL: There have been conversations in this regard happening for about three or four years now. The center was here before I got here, and a developer approached us with the idea that this worked back East, and [he] wondered what we would think about doing faith-based housing. I entered the conversation about a year and a half ago when I got here; the wheels were already in motion.

For the rest of the interview, visit JackCentral.com BY HANNA RUBIN

within the next two weeks.

Staff Reports

The special events committee is getting ready to place luminaries on campus and plan for the carnival in the spring semester. The New Student Organization has set up an angel tree in the Union Point. Members of the Arizona Students’ Association have signed up 18 teachers to use open-source textbooks, which are free online textbooks that come with textbook aides that students are able to purchase.

Senate Bills

SB 23-25: will give $2,000 for club headquarters to receive new mailboxes. SB 23-26: will allocate $1,200 to fund Model United Nations. SB 23-28: will allocate $1,500 to the NAU Conservatives to attend a conference in Washington D.C.

Open Access Funds

Criminal Justice Club: will bring speaker Pat McGinnis to speak to criminal justice majors and other students on campus. Model United Nations: will need funding to participate in national Model UN conferences throughout the rest of the school year. NAU Conservatives: will need funding to attend a conference in Washington D.C.

Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2010 | The Lumberjack 7

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Movers carry athletic equipment from trucks outside into the new rental space next to Bookman’s. Student athletes will utilize this gym while the Skydome is undergoing renovations. (Photos by Gean Shanks) from NAU RENTAL page 1

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porary use, but has asked the commission to a period of 14 months — the additional five months is asked for in anticipation of any number of things that could push the progress of the Dome back a couple of months.” In his brief presentation to the committee, Jennus Burton, vice president of Finance and Administration for NAU, said the university has no plans to stay beyond the day the Skydome is finished with its retrofitting. “Once the renovation is done in the Skydome, we’ll actually pack all of that equipment back up, relocate it back into the Skydome and then cancel our lease on the space,” Burton said. “We need this as basic transition space while construction is under way.” Despite the passing nature of their stay, Gullickson said there would be many changes to the interior of the rental space to make it ready to hold almost 50 student athletes at a time. “Improvements are all internal — no external improvements are proposed,” Gullickson said. “We understand that it will include weight-training machines, free weights, ice baths and floor area. We anticipate that up to 46 people will be using this at any one time — that includes athletes and trainers.” One major concern of the committee was the traffic to be generated by NAU’s latest property acquisition, both in cars on the

road and in the parking lots. Gullickson said his staff has found no reason to anticipate large amounts of traffic because of the move, and he thinks most students looking to use the facility will simply walk or ride a bike. “We do not anticipate that traffic generated by this use will be substantial, and that a fair share of it will be bicycle and pedestrian traffic from the university,” Gullickson said. “There is direct access from the university to the back side of this shopping center — actually, in the back corner where this site is located.” Burton said NAU will work with the shopping center to make sure students do not abuse parking privileges. “In regards to the parking issue, students are going to be instructed to park there when they do their workouts and to leave when they are finished,” Burton said. “If they do not, their vehicle is at risk of being towed.” The committee unanimously voted to approve the lease, adding a condition that a gate between the university and the shopping center be left unlocked for pedestrians to use. This is the second prominent lease NAU has signed this year; the university is also renting the now-closed South Beaver Elementary School from the Flagstaff Unified School District for a similar purpose: temporary space while the other major campus project of spring 2011, the Liberal Arts building renovations, gets under way.

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Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2010 | The Lumberjack 9

Editorial&Opinion

To save this economy, Obama needs to find his spine STAFF EDITORIAL

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Short

arack Obama was voted into the White House for one thing: change. But more on this later. Keynesian economics suggests high spending by governments and tax cuts are the way to get out of a recession, because they will spur job creation and consumer spending. But what happens when you walk into a recession with a boatload of tax cuts happening already, like we did in 2008? And what happens when people aren’t spending despite the high level of tax relief, especially for the rich? The answer to this is the realization that we’re a baseball team playing on a quidditch field, and like all imaginary games, we need to start making up new rules. Or at least slightly adjust them. What this rather long introduction is meant to communicate is the extending of the Bush-era tax cuts, combined with an extension of unemployment benefits, was a bad move. Because of the new political arrangement (Republican House, Democratic Senate), extending one was a caveat to extending the other. What Obeezee and the Democrats needed to do, for the benefit of the U.S. economy, was to let the tax cuts expire, and see if the Republicans really had the mettle to

Takes

$ Editorial cartoon by Isaac Caruso

pull unemployment benefits for 1.5 million Americans during the month of Christmas. But that isn’t what happened. Instead, they compromised. And what did such a compromise get us? By undergraduate math, not even a full percentage improvement in GDP, and half of that for unemployment, which will only last another year, and then we slump back down again. But this is just an issue of a

more systemic problem: the lack of a spine presented by President Obama. Harkening back to the undiscerning introduction, we voted for change, but not the kind we got. During his tenure, George W. Bush threw his political power around like it was a football in a Texas stadium built over the top of yet another failed oil well. Obama, on the other hand, is constantly caving for the sake of bipartisanship.

During the time when he had full control of both the House and the Senate, he caved to Republicans when passing his $787 billion recovery package (economists estimated the recovery needed to be somewhere around $2 trillion, and that such a low number would actually hurt the economy). Instead, he opted to give the missing dollars to the failing automotive industry. GM and Co. have since cursed his name for the gesture.

NAU basketball scores amid Skydome chaos

To be sure, Republicans and the big businesses that support them will never be on Obama’s side, because he is a Democrat named Barack who just happens to be the President of the United States. What the American people and Obama need to recognize is Republicans aren’t trying to solve the problem, either. They see the continuing hardship of the middle class as a road to regain power. Judging by the last election, it’s working. While it’s certainly better to have the House and the Senate split in political dominance, the perpetual roadblock of FOX News-fueled conservatives on the political process is putting a rather serious kink in the recovery of the United States. And this latest caving on Bush-era tax cuts, which is in direct conflict with Obama’s previously stated public position, could really be the final nail in the Democrats’ nerve. Barack Obama is a smart guy, but evidently that well-built physique doesn’t come complete with the guts to throw a punch. Either way, taxes are low, and unemployment is extended. Merry Christmas, America. Enjoy it now, because if these tax cuts eventually become permanent, they will equal a loss of roughly $4 trillion over the next decade, which could lead to yet another financial crisis.

BY NATE ALCORN

As the closure of the Walkup Skydome stirs controversy and raises questions, it is hard to find the silver lining in what students (especially graduating seniors) perceive to be a very dark cloud. Yet despite all the apparent disadvantages, I believe the NAU men’s and women’s basketball teams may come out as dark horse winners during the Skydome’s closure for renovations. For quite some time, both teams have called the Skydome their home as the turf from football season is rolled up, and the hardwood and two hoops appear. But despite having such a large venue, it is no argument that both teams have a hard time filling the stands to create a competitive environment and home court advantage for the Jacks. With their temporary move to the Rolle Activity Center, both teams will no doubt benefit from the intimate atmosphere. With limited seating that can actually fill to capacity and a lower roof to retain and echo noise, this year’s basketball teams should definitely be rethinking the statement “Dome sweet home.”

10 The Lumberjack | JackCentral.com

Editorial&Opinion

A greater appreciation for nature Sex brings pressures amanda BUNGARTZ

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ecently I finished reading Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Aron Ralston. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this title, it is the novel on which the new James Franco movie 127 Hours is based. After reading this book, along with Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild and William Faulkner’s short story “The Bear,” I find myself reflecting on the unsurpassed beauty of nature and how an appreciation for the wilderness is slowly slipping away from today’s seemingly advanced society. But I have to ask: advanced in what sense? Is it in the sense that we are taking over practically every last spot of greenery on this planet to replace it with more corporate buildings and parking lots? Our culture is so focused on

growing, creating and building that along the way, we are destroying the purest and most natural thing on this Earth — the wild. So many aspects of our present society are artificial, yet nature is the one uncontaminated thing that has the ability to relieve and revive our human spirits. These same spirits have become so consumed by stress, business, power and control. This is why people spend millions of dollars every year to walk along the edge of the Grand Canyon or sink their toes in the sands of Hawaii. It is why people simply feel the need to “take a walk” when they become upset or irritated. We humans are innately drawn to the calming sensation of the natural outdoors. Maybe it’s because we cannot control it, cannot calculate it, cannot overcomplicate it or even explain it. Whatever the reason may be, nature grants us a sense of perspective that cannot be obtained from anywhere else. We have so much to learn from the wilderness — why would we ever want

to minimize or destroy it? I think Krakauer articulates my point perfectly in his book Into The Wild: “You are wrong if you think Joy emanates only or principally from human relationships. God has placed it all around us. It is in everything and anything we might experience. We just have to have the courage to turn against our habitual lifestyle and engage in unconventional living.” Now I’m not saying we should all ditch our modern lives to go live like nomads in the forest or climb the highest mountain peak to gain a sense of perspective. Instead we should spend more time and effort every day realizing the true importance of nature and work earnestly to protect it. Just look around you — our very own NAU campus is full of natural beauty and wonder, if we take the time to notice it. Buildings will crumble and jobs may be lost, but everything natural is infinite — here long before us and, I hope, long after us.

DREAM of Congress working together aaron KENISTON

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or the fifth time this year, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and fellow Democratic senators are proposing a new version of the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act. If approved, the act would provide current illegal immigrants residing in the U.S. the chance to gain citizenship through proof of long-term residency in the states and attending college or serving in the military for two years. The only thing stopping this act from being passed is Senate Republicans, who will continue to filibuster (or threaten filibustering) the act until Democrats approve an extension of the Bush tax cuts. There is no reason for Congress not to pass this act, but once again, our nation’s leaders are more concerned with party politics than what is good

for the country. What is the problem with a bill that will award citizenship to illegal immigrants who have spent most of their lives in the U.S. and are enhancing their education or serving our country? This act will not cost American taxpayers anything; it may actually help the economy because more students will be paying for college. The U.S. is desperately in need of immigration reform, and this act could be the first step in doing so, yet Republicans refuse to support it until their tax cuts (which were one of the many sources of the recent recession) are extended. Congress needs to stop playing these give-and-take games and look at what is best for the country, not their party. Maybe if they do, legislation will actually get passed and the nation will start moving forward again. The nation cannot endure another two years like it has just had, when the minority party did all it could to disrupt the president and his party from implementing their political agenda, and very little was done.

Even if the minority party (in this case the Republicans) disagrees with the majority, they should make an attempt to assist the president and his party in passing new legislation. The American public did not elect congressmen to go to Washington and get nothing accomplished. Rightfully so, parties should battle one another on controversial issues, but for one party to say they will not approve any piece of legislation until their truly unnecessary bill is passed is absolutely ridiculous. In January, Congress will undergo a massive remodel with more than 60 Democratic congressional seats becoming Republican. The last time Congress saw a Republican House with a Democratic president was with the Clinton administration, and during that time, the country experienced maybe its greatest economic expansion under a single administration in U.S. history. With some luck, this future congress will share some similar success and not only rebuild the American economy, but also public support.

sarah AUSTIN There is no escaping pressure. We all feel it, and it’s something we all must learn to handle. It might be well-meaning pressure from our parents to succeed in school, to “keep up with the Joneses” and spend money we don’t have, to have just one more drink, to try a drug that is just a little more powerful, or to have sex. There is no way to avoid having some sort of pressure in life. Many people have lost their identities and have forgotten how to make decisions for themselves because of the strong pressure surrounding them. Sometimes pressure can push us to succeed or excel at whatever it is we are doing. On the other hand, there is a more subtle pressure that often comes from our friends and peers — the pressure to go just one step further, to push the limits just a little bit farther — the pressure to have sex. The real problem is the source of this pressure. The media bears a lot of responsibility for the way women and men alike perceive sex, and even how they view themselves. A good chunk of media lives by the slogan “sex sells”; sex is used to sell everything from cars and beer to clothing or chewing gum. It’s hard to recall a TV episode, movie or commercial in which underlying sexual tensions weren’t an issue. A female in an ad or on TV is still expected to be a sex symbol, while the male must be smart, suave, masculine and attractive. Movies and television shows that feature a character who is not the media’s definition of “beautiful” or “sexy” will most likely have a hang-up, character flaw or some sort of psychological issue. This character is typically the lonely friend or the crazy family member. We may not want to admit it, but many forms of entertainment follow this very specific formula. There are things that make each story different from the others, but if you break down the storylines, the themes are all very similar. And

the most popular themes are love and lust, adding to the mounting pressure to engage in sex. When some people are pressured to have sex, the typical motive is “everyone is doing it.” Although some people may be doing it, not everyone is having sex. The truth is many people are struggling with the pressure to have sex, and we should constantly be aware of that pressure and the consequences of giving in to it. People often don’t consider the side effects of their actions, whether those actions are having sex or having too much to drink because once again, “everyone is doing it.” If you happen to go out to a party one night and go the extra mile with somebody, there may be consequences you did not intend. Your reputation could forever be altered, your self-esteem diminished or, in rare cases, you may be feeding more than one mouth in nine months. In any situation, even if there aren’t immediate negative consequences or major implications in the future, you will be affected in some way by your one-night rendezvous. As humans, we all crave to feel loved and be seen as attractive in the eyes of others. And oftentimes, when this romantic void cannot be filled, the urge to feel loved is “solved” through sex. We have been brainwashed to believe we must have sex to find love, but the best way to find love is to simply be yourself while making smart decisions. Unfortunately, too many people feel they can’t be themselves. So they go that extra step, whether they really want to or not. They give in to the pressure. We all need to find a way to deal with the pressures we inevitably face, including sex. We need to learn how to respect ourselves and the people around us. This isn’t saying sex is entirely bad; it’s just a decision that should be made by an individual, and not through the pressure from peers and the media. We need to listen to ourselves and not to the pressures we encounter. When it comes down to it, it’s your life, and you must face any potential consequences that may come from sex.

Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2011 | The Lumberjack 11

Editorial&Opinion SoundOff

Polish statue brews controversy

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wiebodzin, Poland is now home to the world’s largest statue of Jesus Christ. The fiberglass and plaster statue is 42 feet taller than the famous soapstone statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and depicts Christ in a golden crown and with open arms. It is the realized dream of Polish Catholic priest Sylwester Zawadzki. The statue has caused controversy in the country because the enormous piece of religious art, to which thousands of Polish Catholics made a pilgrimage for its consecration on Nov. 21, clashes with the secular identity of the European Union. Poland, historically a devoutly Catholic country, has been experiencing division for decades among older citizens who have held on to their faith through Nazi occupation SINCE 1914

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at publicly expressing themselves and their passion for their faith by making less grandiose pieces of devotional art. I think if the Catholic Church spent more time clearly explaining its often-considered esoteric beliefs and replaced its flamboyant demonstrations of devotion with more tactful demonstrations of its fervor, people would better understand the religion. Maybe people would see why Catholics — and faithful people in general — find their faith to be worthy of belief and in fact beautiful, like a piece of art. A piece of good art, like the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. The other side of the issue should be understood, too. Those who do not want religion to be a part of public life have their reasons. Neither side should dismiss the other as overemotional fanatics or cold intellectuals on their way to perdition. There would be less misunderstanding between the religious and the nonreligious if both sides understood each other. Both sides need to be clear in order to work out an acceptable public policy.

what we buy. But we do not realize we have a dire problem as dangerous as a meth addiction. Sure, the encouragement to consume and spend certainly stimulates this free trade and marketing economy, but the things we as a society are spending money on are diminishing our resources and damaging the environment. Electronics with planned obsolescence are made and then disposed of after their arranged deficiency, left to sit and remain on our planet forever. Running the Numbers — An American Self-Portrait by Chris Jordan has put together astonishing research to conclude 426,000 cell phones are retired in the U.S. every day, and 1.14 million brown paper supermarket bags are used every hour. A little excessive? This problem is also a social one. We are conspicuously consuming as a collective problem, like an arms race: The more your neighbor spends, the more you must spend just to stay even. The lavish spending by people at the top of the scale sets a standard that affects everyone below. When the rich are wearing a different $20,000 watch every

day, the middle class feels they need $1,000 watches. Again, today’s consumption is also undermining our environmental resource base. It is worsening inequalities. The dynamics of the consumption-poverty-inequality-environment connections are accelerating. If these trends continue without change, today’s problems of consumption and human development will worsen. Statistics aren’t needed to prove we buy things we don’t need; common sense allows us to do that. The only reason Americans don’t own elephants is because they have never been offered an elephant for $1 down with easy weekly payments — or because the social norm has not yet made it popular. As a society, most Americans have become mentally detached with what it means to be a decent human being. So my advice is to think. Just as we “hear” spending helps us to be content as individuals and a society as a whole, my words should resonate in your ears, and you should “hear” consuming is a definite problem.

U.S. consumed by consumers

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and Communist takeover, and younger citizens who support a national identity that does not espouse any form of religion. The statue recalls this discord. The priest who commissioned the statue has not given any satisfactory reason for its construction. Like with many religious sites, the statue will probably become a mix of tourism and devotion, of materialism and spirituality. Religious art functions not only on an aesthetic level, which is what makes this statue so complex, but religious art is also meant to help believers pray and express their fervent faith to others. I don’t understand why the statue is so big, besides the fact the 33 meters of it were designed to represent the 33 years of Christ’s life. If the statue’s size represents Poland’s love for Jesus, perhaps the Polish Catholic Church could have expressed its love more eloquently by serving the community. Is the statue trying to reinforce Poland’s traditional Catholic identity in defiance of the nonreligion of the European Union? Catholics could do a better job

blaise GABRIELE

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e are consumed by consuming. America has been a nation of spenders for as long as people can remember. Consumerism has grown to become a problem in the United States, and the high levels of personal debt, the urban-home search sprawl, and general feelings of worry regarding financial issues can all be attributed to rampant consumerism. Let’s look at a day we might consider a new holiday: Black Friday. People wake up at the break of dawn and “shop ‘til they drop” for gifts. An abundance of products crowd shoppers’ vision, lines are never-ending and people fight for the last item on the shelf. We are encouraged to spend, spend, spend so our “economic problems” can be a thing of the past, and everyone can live in harmony with

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Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2011 | The Lumberjack 13

SportsReport Bittersweet birthday Women’s basketball overtime loss for Stephens-Jenkins Lady Jacks squander lead, season still young

(Stills taken from footage recorded by Rachel DeKonty)

BY STAYSON ISOBE

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he NAU women’s basketball team seemed to have its fifth victory of the season in hand with a sevenpoint lead and a minute left to play in the game. But then things went awry. The win would have equaled their win total from last season, but Utah State University had other plans, cap-

ping off their comeback with a last second 3-pointer to force overtime at 70-all and ultimately claiming victory 80–75 on Dec. 4 at the Rolle Activity Center. “We stopped executing plays, and we let them get to the [free-throw] line too much,” said senior guard Vickie Toney. “Give them credit; they executed plays well.” Overtime was no kinder to the Lum-

berjacks as their free-throw woes continued to haunt them. Despite jumping to a four-point lead in the game’s extra period, they shot just 1–6 from the line in their fourth loss of the season. “I’m so devastated and numb over it,” said head coach Laurie Kelly. “We have a seven-point lead with a minute to go, feeling pretty confident, and I felt see WOMEN’S BBALL page 17

SportShorts Men’s Basketball Women’s Basketball Badjacks • Saturday: vs. University • Today: vs. South • Friday: Open dance of Southern California in Dakota in Rolle Activity the Galen Center @ 2 p.m. Center @ 6:35 p.m. 14 The Lumberjack | JackCentral.com

class @ 6:30 p.m. in Rolle Activity Center (room 103)

BY QUINN KAWAMOTO

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ometimes the best birthday present is playing in front of a home crowd. For sophomore guard Tyler Stephens-Jenkins of the women’s basketball team, that was the case in the Jacks’ 85–75 overtime loss to the Utah State Aggies on Saturday. For as well as she played, however, a win would have been the icing on the cake. “I played good, but a win would’ve made it that much better,” Stephens-Jenkins said. “There wasn’t that much pressure. It was actually more fun just going out there and playing on my birthday.” Stephens-Jenkins had quite the day on the court, scoring 17 points, three 3-pointers and notching her most points scored this season. Coming into the contest, Stephens-Jenkins was averaging 7.4 points a game. “She did amazing,” said sophomore guard Amy Patton. “She played an all-around game. I wish we could’ve gotten a win for her since it was her birthday today. It would’ve been nice, but otherwise, I think Tyler did an awesome job, and I’m happy for her.” Head coach Laurie Kelly said she did not expect more out of Stephens-Jenkins just because it was her birthday. “I’m happy that it was her birthday, and I would’ve loved to get a win for her,” Kelly said. “Tyler plays hard and plays defense like that every single game, so I don’t think there was a difference whether it was her birthday or not. She shows up and competes every game.” Despite the loss, the team knows there are still plenty of games to play and a lot more to learn from this overtime thriller. Big Sky Conference play does not start until Jan. 6. “Our team is much more balanced than we were a year ago,” Kelly said. “Tyler is playing a lot more confidently than she had been. Coming in with a year under her belt, she’s hit a lot of really big shots for us down the stretch. I think she feels really good with the ball in her hands late, and she likes that three in the corner. She’s two or three of those in our wins, so when she hit that one, I had to say, ‘We got this.’” Stephens-Jenkins had a 3-pointer toward the end of regulation that put the Jacks up 65–60 and nearly sealed the victory. “It would’ve been better to get the win, but next time we’re in this situation, we’re going to come out with a win,” Stephens-Jenkins said. “When we go into conference, this game is going to help us out. This won’t be our last overtime game.”

OnTheWeb For previews and recaps of all NAU sporting events, check out JackCentral.com.

Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2010 | The Lumberjack 15

SportsReport

Men’s basketball wins 6th straight

A fresh face

With the news of recent signee Clint Bozner leaving the program due to health issues, the Lumberjack coaching staff began a search to fill the empty slot. The staff found Ify Umodo, who was also a member of the football team as a wide receiver. At 6-feet, 3-inches, Umodo joined the team two days before the game against Bethany College and even saw action in the contest. Heading south

During halftime of the game against Bethany, five men dressed in gold jackets, who were members of the Tucson Fiesta Bowl Invitational Committee, presented Adras with a jacket of his own after the squad accepted an opportunity to play against UA as part of the invitational on Dec. 16 in Tucson. Crashing the glass

The Lumberjacks did not have a player record double digits in rebounds, with the highest total going to sophomore forward Austin Smith, who hauled down eight. Adras recognized rebounding by committee is a big part of this team.

(File photo by Jennifer Hilderbrand) BY BRETT MURDOCK

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oming off an undefeated road trip from one end of the country to the other, the NAU men’s basketball team relished to get back to their home court and showed it in a big way, routing the Bethany College Bruins 91–50 at the Rolle Activity Center last Saturday night. The win was the sixth consecutive for NAU; conversely, the loss was the 19th straight for the NAIA school from California, dating back to last season. “It was a tough game because the opponent is overmatched,” said head coach Mike Adras. “You wonder how much the guys are going to stay focused. But I thought we did a pretty good job tonight.” Facing a severely undersized Bruins team, Adras laid out the message for his team early to get the ball inside. The Lumberjacks pounded paint,

scoring 62 points from the region and only hitting three shots from 3-point distance. Junior center Josh Lepley scored 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting, grabbed five rebounds and blocked four shots. “Coach told us we should dominate in the paint tonight,” Lepley said. “That’s what I went out to do. Block shots, rebound and score a little bit.” The play of the 6-foot, 8-inch junior did not get overlooked by his head coach. “It was terrific,” Adras said. “Give guys credit for getting him the ball, but give him credit because he was able to finish. [He] really did some nice things out there.” Other contributions from the post came from redshirt sophomore forward Austin Smith, who finished with 12 points and eight boards, and senior forward Shane Johannsen, who netted 11 points of his own.

16 The Lumberjack | JackCentral.com

Confrontation on the court

With 15:05 left in the second half and the Lumberjacks up 54–35, junior center Josh Lepley and Bethany College’s Travis Derochowski got into a bit of spat after Lepley was called for a holding foul before the inbounds pass could be made. Adras got into the action himself, arguing the call with the referee while Lepley and Derochowski exchanged words. No technical fouls were given either way, and no physical action was on display. Both players were removed from the game by their coaches immediately following the incident.

Early on, the game went back and forth, with neither team really gaining a big advantage on the scoreboard. After a jumper by the Bruins’ Travis Derochowski made the score 20–17 with 10:42 left in the first half, the Lumberjacks took off on a 24–5 run that spanned 7:41 and pushed the lead to 44–22. The run was keyed by the play of Lepley and Smith, who each had close-range shots during the stretch. In the final 20 minutes, the Lumberjacks opened up their offense a little more and ran the Bruins up and down the court. From the 15:38 mark to the 11:51 point, NAU poured a 17–2 stretch aided by BC turnovers and six straight points of Jones’ eventual total of 20. “I felt like we were a little dead and needed a spark on offense,” Jones said. “That’s my job with being a captain and being a leader — I’ve got to make plays when things are down.”

Perhaps the highlight of the game came at the tail end of the run. Following a time-out, on an inbounds play from behind the backboard, junior point guard Julian Olubuyi lofted a pass high in the air, which junior guard Durrell Norman caught and brought down with authority, putting in the alleyoop and sending shockwaves through the building. “We’d never practiced that,” Adras said. “I know how well Durrell jumps. Cam [Jones] set a great screen, Durrell did what he was supposed to, and Julian made the play because he made the perfect pass. It kind of made some noise in the building afterwards. We would have never had done that unless there was a time-out.” NAU’s largest lead in the first half was 21 points. In the second half, the team extended that to a 44-point advantage, allowing Adras to rest his starters and give minutes to every player on the bench.

NAU honored with two Academic All-Americans

SportsReport Souers offered 3-year deal; Board of Regents to decide fate BY BRANDON J. SMITH

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AU’s 13-year head coach Jerome Souers has been offered a three-year contract extension, which if accepted will retain his services through Dec. 31, 2013. The contract has to pass through the Arizona Board of Regents, which will make its ruling soon on the matter. The longest tenured coach in the Big Sky is coming off a 6–5 season, which fell short of expectations, and has an overall record of 72–75 at NAU.

Aside from the familiarity of Souers within the program, academic incentives can push his annual earnings of $105,000 to $130,000, contingent on the class work of student athletes. One positive in the Souers era is the academic performance of his athletes during the 2008-09 season. The cumulative GPA of the Jacks in 2009-10 was 2.76. One hundred athletes have been named to All-Big Sky teams in the Souers era, with 36 AllAmericans and 37 first-team selections. see WOMEN’S BBALL page 14

Seniors Kristi Andreassen and David McNeill pose for awards. (Photo courtesy of NAU Athletics) BY STAYSON ISOBE

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hich school is the only institution to have two current Academic All-Americans of the Year for the university division? If your answer is NAU, you are right. With NAU soccer senior defender Kristi Andreassen’s selection as the Academic All-American of the Year in the university division, she joined senior cross country and track runner David McNeill to give NAU the distinction of being the only school in the nation to have more than one current student athlete with the honor. “This just shows that NAU has competitive sports and great academics,” Andreassen said, whose selection was a part of the 2010-11 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Soccer Teams as chosen by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). “It’s great advertisement for our school and a lot more people are recognizing NAU. I know a lot of locals in Arizona think of ASU and UA and they don’t consider us, but now more and more people are hearing about NAU and more athletes want to come here.” Andreassen, a native of Tempe, recently completed her career as the second player in NAU soccer history to be named a three-time All-Big Sky first team selection and is the only All-American in the program’s history. This season, she was named the conference Defensive Most Valuable Player and led the team with six goals. But as evidenced with her recent award, for which more than 8,000 Division I women soccer players were candidates, she was determined excellent off the field as well. She will graduate at the end of this semester with a 4.0 GPA and a degree in exercise science. “Kristi deserved that award, but we were in awe that

she was selected amongst all the Division I women’s soccer athletes,” said head soccer coach Andre Luciano. “She’s embodied everything we’ve asked as a student athlete for our program and is a role model for every single one of our players in terms of academics. She’s been able to showcase the fact that you can excel in the classroom and on the field without taking shortcuts.” McNeill, an exercise science major with a 3.76 GPA, will also graduate at the end of this semester. He was named the Male Academic All-American of the Year in the university division back in June as part of the 2009-10 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American Men’s Track and Field and Cross Country Teams as chosen by CoSIDA. “Education is something that is really important for me,” McNeill said. “I’m not the brightest person, but I put in the effort. Whether I’m on the track or in the classroom, I always give it my best. Hard work pays off, and anything is possible.” The Melbourne, Australia native will leave NAU as one of its most decorated runners. He was recently named the Mountain Region Men’s Athlete of the Year for the third-consecutive season by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association and is a nine-time All-American with two 5,000-meter national championships. Both Andreassen and McNeill were also among 20 graduating seniors to be awarded with the Gold Axe Award that recognizes students’ outstanding academic performance, leadership and service to the university and the community. “These awards just show how much we stress upon academics,” said Eric Heins, director of track and field and cross country. “When we have student athletes like [David and Kristi], they do try to [achieve the] highest not only athletically, but academically. If you want to be an Academic AllAmerican, you have to come to NAU.”

that we started to play not to lose the game, instead to finish the game and win it. It’s devastating.” After taking a slim 32–29 lead into halftime, the Lumberjacks opened up their advantage to 12 points nine minutes into the half and were just one minute away from their fifth win in six games before the Aggie rally. Freshman forward Shay May and junior forward Katie Pratt connected for the overtime’s first two baskets for the early NAU lead, but Toney and senior forward Jenna Galloway combined to miss five of six free-throw attempts that cost them the victory. In all, NAU shot just 1–21 (52.4 percent) from the line in the game. “The stat that says it all is 11–21 from the line,” Kelly said. “You can talk about the three they hit or a turnover or a missed box-out, but the thing we can’t change is we went to the line 21 times with nobody guarding you and made 11. We single handedly lost this game at the free-throw line.” On a night in which their leading scorer, sophomore guard Amy Patton, struggled with her shot, shooting just 6–19 for 14 points, three Lumberjacks achieved season-bests in points. Sophomore guard Tyler Stephens-Jenkins led the team with 17 points; Pratt added 15 and May recorded a career-high 12 in her first career start. “There’s no question that Shay May is the future of our inside play,” Kelly said. “She was a great matchup for their big kid athletically, with her height and her ability to rebound the ball. We got contributions from everyone that played, and that’s the one [good] thing I can say. For 45 minutes, whether we made mistakes or not, we were out there fighting to win, and that’s why it hurts so much.” The Lumberjacks finished the game shooting 41.2 percent against the Aggie zone defense and repeatedly got open looks and easy layups. But when the game was on the line, it was the Aggies who came up with the key shots. “I think we executed our gameplan very well,” Pratt said. “[In] the beginning, we were making shots, but we just couldn’t make shots all around at the end. In the end, they were hitting the big shots.” NAU (4–4) wraps up their seven-game homestand on Dec. 9, hosting South Dakota. Then they play the first of three-straight road games at San Diego on Dec. 11. “I think we’re all pumped,” Pratt said. “We felt this was our best team effort, and now we know what we can do. I think we’re going to turn it around and come out stronger.”

Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2010 | The Lumberjack 17

SportsReport

JackChat

Seniors honored as swim and dive beat rival Aggies BY BRANDON J. SMITH

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AU senior swimmer Claire Ferro touched out to win the final relay that clinched a 170–130 win over New Mexico State Dec. 5 at the Wall Aquatic Center. Ferro, along with the other eight seniors on the team, was honored during the meet with a coronation of roses to send the group out in the final home event of the season. “This senior class had not beaten the Aggies ,and they’re a tough team,” said head coach Andy Johns. “We had some players toughing it out with injuries, and our divers were as good as advertised.” The meet began with the 200-meter medley, and Ferro won by two one-hundredths of a second. NAU took first place in five of the initial seven events, including freshman swimmer Emma Lowther and junior swimmer Kristin Jones finishing first and second, respectively, in the 800-meter freestyle. Senior Fi Connell won the 100-meter backstroke, and the team of junior

Krista Maier and senior Vivian Landeck placed first and second in the 200-meter freestyle. “I’m not going to say it felt good to beat NMS, but it felt good,” Ferro said. “I didn’t want to let my team down, and we all came through today.” The diving portion of the afternoon swept the 3-meter competition, and NAU took first and second place on the 1-meter. Senior diver Taryn Harris finished first in both events, and senior Megan Collier placed second in both events. “It’s really awesome to get a win today; it’s nice payback and to get these seniors a win,” Harris said. New Mexico State rallied with wins in the 100-meter freestyle and 200-meter backstroke, but NAU took the 400-meter freestyle in response. Ferris closed out the day by finishing a fraction of a second ahead to claim the 400-meter freestyle relay. “That’s what this sport is all about: It’s the excitement of the races at the very end,” Johns said. The squad will play next on Dec. 18 against ASU in Tempe.

C halk it up: • •

Junior kicker Matt Myers was finalists for the Fred Mitchell named as one of 10 Award. Senior soccer defender Kristi Andreassen has been named to the Na tional Soccer Coaches Assoc iat ion of Am eri ca (NSCAA) NCAA Division I Women All-Pacific Region Second Team.

• •

•

The Ice Jacks will be on break they will faceoff against UA @ until Jan. 14, when 8 p.m. Senior guard Vicki Toney me t billionaire Warren Buffet through the W. A. Franke College of Business .

NAU ranks third in the coun goal percentage. at 45.7 in try in 3-point field NCAA rankings released on Dec. 5

18 The Lumberjack | JackCentral.com

with Caty Huntington

junior guard

BY STAYSON ISOBE

C

aty Huntington, a junior guard on the NAU women’s basketball team, is known for her defensive intensity on the court. After averaging six steals per game in high school, she’s brought her defensive mentality to Flagstaff and is tied for the most steals in a game (nine) in school history. Here, she speaks to The Lumberjack about not only defense, but also her similarities with her coach, her love for jigsaw puzzles and her need for a soda before every game. The Lumberjack: When did you start playing basketball and why? Caty Huntington: Oh boy. I don’t know the specific age. I just know I was little, maybe in the sixth grade. I was a very hyper kid with ADHD, and sports were what I took that hyperactivity out on. Basketball was just another sport for me. LJ: Why did you decide on NAU? CH: It was close enough to home to where I could go home and my parents could come see me, so I don’t feel homesick. And the campus was just beautiful. LJ: You finished second in the conference in steals last year. Is defense your strong point on the court? CH: Yes, very. I take pride in my defense because I know that’s my specialty. LJ: What’s your key to being such a defensive presence? CH: I really don’t know. Ever since I was little, I always loved defense and being on the girl. LJ: What do you look forward to more: hitting the game-winning three or shutting down the opposition’s best player on the last possession of a game? CH: I would say shutting down the opponent’s best offensive player. LJ: During your basketball career, who’s been the most influential person? CH: I would say [senior forward] Jenna [Galloway]. She’s such a hard worker, and she really never lets anything get her down, or she never shows it. LJ: If you could go one-on-one with any basketball player, past or present, who would it be? CH: Candace Parker so I can put her in her place. LJ: Describe coach Laurie Kelly in three words. CH: Loud, fun and very excited. LJ: Describe yourself in three words. CH: Hyper, loud and funny.

(Photo courtesy NAU Athletics)

LJ: So you see a lot of yourself in her? CH: Yeah, I kind of do. There are a lot of times where I’m like, “Wow, she’s really loud and hyper right now.” LJ: So I see that you love doing jigsaw puzzles. What about them intrigues you? CH: I just like how it makes the mind work, especially those that are in the same color, like the frog one that I’m working on now. That one is really puzzling my mind right now. All of [the pieces] look alike. LJ: What’s the biggest puzzle you’ve completed? CH: A 1,000 [piece one]. LJ: What are some of your other favorite things to do in your free time? CH: I like to go to the movies, hang out with my friends and my teammates. LJ: Any pregame rituals? Superstitions? CH: I always have to have a soda before a game. It has to be a Dr. Pepper or a Coke. LJ: What would I find on your iPod at the moment? CH: Well, if I ever used my iPod, you would probably find a lot of Disney songs. I love Disney movies and their songs in them.

Arts&Entertainment

FSO brings diversity through music

(Courtesy photo)

‘Irish Christmas’ hits Orpheum BY JESUS YANEZ-REYES

S

Members of the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra (FSO) performing. Dancers from the NAU Community Music and Dance will accompany the musicians in performances of “The Nutcracker” this Friday and Saturday. (Photo Courtesy of Laura Kelly) BY MATTHEW VINSKO

F

or its 61st season, the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra (FSO) is set to broaden its horizons and combine seemingly unrelated music and performances with a pre-established set of classical hits. Though some of this season’s concerts are returning from previous years, including the holiday classic showing of “The Nutcracker,” new styles and trends are

being incorporated into the FSO’s many performances. Some of these changes include the addition of bluegrass music and a farewell symphony in which performers stand up and exit the stage until there are only two strings left playing. Laura Kelly, executive director of the FSO, said this shift in style and substance came from the relationships the FSO has with NAU and other organizations around Flagstaff. “We like the idea of partnership,

where we can share an idea with other organizations,” Kelly said. “Why don’t we marry what we do with what you do?” Todd Sullivan, director of NAU’s School of Music and member of FSO’s board of directors, said the school has worked with the FSO since its earliest days. “I think our relationship dates back to the entire history of the FSO,” Sullivan said. “Many of our faculty and students see FSO page 22

unday’s “Irish Christmas in America” blended together traditional Irish music, the Christmas spirit, and facets of Irish culture into a memorable Christmas concert experience. As the name suggests, “Irish Christmas” celebrates the culture, tradition and spirit of Christmas, but with an Irish twist. The show demonstrates its cultural heritage and pride through performing musical numbers using Irish instruments and lyrics. The audience reveled in stories about the Irish Christmas culture that gave the show a genuinely Celtic feel. Flagstaff resident Cyndi Crawley, who had recently visited Ireland, said she genuinely enjoyed the concert’s atmosphere. “It was really authentic and fun,” Crawley said. “What you saw up there was definitely the kind of thing you see going around in the clubs and stuff in Ireland.” With all five musical acts hailing from different parts of Ireland, the show displayed a wide variety of musical talent. Already in its sixth year, the “Irish Christmas” tour boasts talents such as Seamus Begley on the accordion and Oisin Mac Diarmada on the fiddle. All the instrumentalists present showcased some of the best talent in their respective fields. Nicole Ellis, a freshman photography masee IRISH XMAS page 22

MoviePicksJust a few movies playing Friday at Harkins Flagstaff 11 (1959 South Woodlands Village Blvd.) LumberQuoteOfTheWeek CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER (PG) - 10:40 a.m., 1:30 p.m., 4:20 p.m., 7:10 p.m., 10:00 p.m.

THE TOURIST (PG-13)- 11:30 a.m., 2:10 p.m., 4:50 p.m., 7:30 p.m., 10:20 p.m.

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART ONE (PG-13) - 11:50 a.m., 3:20 p.m., 6:50 p.m., 10:15 p.m.

TANGLED (PG) - 11:10 a.m., 1:40 p.m., 4:10 p.m., 6:40 p.m., 9:10 p.m.

“I’m going to falcon-kick you in the nuts.” - Features Editor Brett Murdock after a tough bout of Super Smash Bros. Melee

Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2010 | The Lumberjack 19

Arts&Entertainment

AtTheMovies

SoundCheck

He’s written more than 100 reviews for this newspaper, and he didn’t even get a f@#%ing T-shirt…

Artist: Rihanna Artist: Nicki Minaj Album: Rated R Album: Pink Friday Genre: R&BGenre: DJ/Club Mix

BY JESUS YANEZ-REYES BY GARY SUNDT

F

our years and more than 100 scores ago, I took over as film critic for The Lumberjack Student Press. The then-A&E editor, Jennifer Palmer, officially appointed me to the gig, and I became the newspaper’s first staff movie critic (at least to my knowledge, though I’m sure a retraction will be in order soon enough). Eight semesters later, I have reviewed more than 100 films in print, and even more online. If you’ve read a movie review in this newspaper, and you wanted to punch the writer in the nose for bashing your latest favorite flick, that guy was (most likely) me. That said, this is my final column as official movie critic for The Lumberjack. Next semester will (I hope) be my last here at NAU, and while you may catch me doing an Oscar-picks column or writing a filler review should somebody’s dad die, I will be stepping down in any and all official capacities. There is talk of me perhaps doing a movie review show on either KJACK

OnTheShelf

Game Review Donkey Kong Country Returns

BY TED GARDNER

I

don’t know what it is about Nintendo games, but they always put me to sleep. Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess provided this reviewer another way to take a nap, and the first level of Donkey Kong Country

or UTV62 with the new film critic, A&E section editor Matthew Vinsko, but I’m not making any promises. Looking back, being a movie critic is sort of a weird gig. Like most jobs I love, I’ve taken this one more seriously than I probably should have. While majoring in economics at NAU, I have studied cinema and the art of studying cinema more than I have done my homework in any given semester. In all that time, what have I learned? Nothing that hasn’t been worded better by somebody else before me. In his Book of Film, Roger Ebert wrote of being a film critic: “You attend one, two or three movies a day ... taking notes or not, emerging for five minutes or an hour in between to blink in the daylight, and then you try to describe what happened to you.” See, being a film critic has nothing much to do with the multitude of flicks one sees (though viewing and remembering well over 5,000 distinct movie-watching experiences can help), but instead one’s abil-

ity to articulate film grammar and convey one’s own opinion to a reader who probably doesn’t give much of a crap; these days, they mostly just want to see how their own opinion compares. After four years of doing this job, I can safely say I might scarcely know more than any professional, or even any moviegoer for that matter, but I’d say I know enough. So when I said Resident Evil: Afterlife sucked real bad, just go ahead and take my word for it, because it really did. Finally, before those of you who have hated the movie reviews for the past four years begin to chime in, I have not been, to use utterly dated parlance, “kicked off the island.” I’m proud to say that after four years, I stepped down off this overstated throne of my own volition. I am the longest-running film critic this publication has ever had, and nobody ever took it away from me. Maybe that has more to do with my personality or my tenacity instead of any actual talent or expertise, but I’d like to think I was decent. So this is Gary “GareBear” Sundt, signing off. I’m gonna go try to graduate now.

Returns gave a similar experience. My first impression of the Donkey Kong (DK) remake was filled with sighs as I traveled through tranquil beaches without a care in the world, but it didn’t take long for the game to crank up the difficulty and throw my monkey into chaotic realms of insanity. The first world was the easy path before the twisted road full of racing mine carts, exploding rockets and destructive scenery. As much as I wanted to sleep, Donkey Kong Country Returns wouldn’t allow me the satisfaction. This game is extremely entertaining, but at the same time it’s mind-numbingly hard — just like a DK game should be. I think I died at least 200 times, 30 of which could be attributed to me being dumb; the other 170 were just the game being mean or stupid. Playing DK is fun when you can beat a level in under five deaths; it’s annoying when it takes you more than 30 lives. Throughout each level, there are a few checkpoints where you re-spawn following each death. However, these checkpoints are poorly placed; more often than not, seeing the check-

point will induce rage instead of relief. If you’re doing terrible, a little pig will be waving a white flag asking if you want the Super Kong to beat the level for you, which provides a cheap thrill for DK aficionados wanting to get it on like the aforementioned primate. Donkey Kong Country Returns provides a fun romp in the jungle. It’s not your typical Nintendo game (full of “play patty cake” fun). Instead, players find themselves skating on a mine cart as bombs blow up cavern walls that send debris every which way, providing that rush of adrenaline and “OMG, I just did that” moments. And it’s all beautiful. Everything from the bananas to the crocodiles is gorgeous, and it really pushes the Wii to its limits. Donkey Kong Country Returns is one of the best Wii games this year. It’s a stunning, smooth game with chaotic level design. Gamers will feel at home with this blast from the past that even includes fully orchestrated, classic Donkey Kong songs. In the end, Donkey Kong Country Returns is a must-have for any serious gamer looking for an excuse to start up the Wii again.

20 The Lumberjack | JackCentral.com

A

lthough it may appear she’s a newcomer to the hip-hop/R&B scene, female rapper Nicki Minaj has been making waves with her mixtapes since late 2008. A label signing and more than a year of album development later, her first solo release, Pink Friday, puts forth a well-executed confluence of pop, rap and R&B sounds with a female twist on a male-dominated genre. Some of the most noticeable tracks on the album are catchy pop-styled songs accompanied by Minaj’s fast-paced rapping. “Fly,” a song that features singer and record-label mate Rihanna, is one of the greatest examples of this; although Rihanna’s vocal melodies make up a bulk of the song, Minaj’s quick and snappy rap verses enter at appropriate and welltimed moments. Without a doubt, the album’s main centerpiece is “Right Thru Me,” a mid-paced track that allows Minaj to showcase both her skilled R&B vocals and her rapping prowess. One of the most interesting things about Pink Friday is how Minaj manages to sneak in hints of emotion in her lyrics. In tracks like “Roman’s Revenge” and the album’s opener, “I’m the Best,” listeners are treated not only to well-thought-out lyrics and good rapping, but a certain style of acted-out lyric spitting that is noticeably absent from most of today’s rap releases. Even with all of these positive aspects, Pink Friday still manages to miss on some points. One of the most obvious drawbacks of the album is the fact half of the music either features or stars other artists. While these aren’t bad songs on their own, their presence does raise some doubts about the talent Nicki Minaj can bring to the table on her lonesome. It certainly speaks volumes that Minaj’s label needed to bring in six different artists for her debut release. Ironically (or maybe not so much), these six tracks happen to be some of the best on the album. Regardless of these shortfalls, Pink Friday still stands solidly as a rather enjoyable release. For fans of hip-hop and R&B, there is no doubt Nicki Minaj’s first full-length album is certainly one to purchase. But even for non-fans of the genre, Minaj’s talented vocals and fast-paced, quick-witted rapping make the album a genuinely refreshing and eye-popping release, one certainly worth a good listen.

Best tracks:

“Right Thru Me,” “Moment 4 Life,” “Save Me”

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Arts&Entertainment from FSO page 19

are part of the FSO. Our relationship is long, deep and built on history.” Kelly said the relationship the FSO has with its musicians provides the organization with opportunities to expand its reach. “Our musicians play other types of music, as well,” Kelly said. “They approach us. For our second concert, four of them came to us and wanted to play solo. We highlight internal talent in the spotlight.” So far, the FSO has had two concerts this semester (“The French Connection” and “Echoes of Vienna”) that helped illustrate a global view of music. Concerts set to take place next semester will feature American bluegrass by the Kruger Brothers and traditional Chinese music in partnership with the Shenyang Conservatory of Music. Sullivan said some of the changes in programming come from the need to entertain the ever-growing community. “We’re sharing the richness of culture,” Sullivan said. “It’s very clear the audiences appreciate it. We have a very adventurous local audience.” Elizabeth Schulze, artistic director and conductor for the FSO, said she anticipates the challenges that come with change. “I’m really excited about the collaborations this season,” Schulze said. “I think it allows us to reach new audiences and think out of the box in terms of

what an orchestra is and what it can do in the 21st century ... These collaborations will really stretch us as musicians in new and important ways.” The next show on the FSO’s schedule, “The Nutcracker” ballet, is one of the few concerts not going through drastic changes this season. But despite her tenure in the FSO, this is Schulze’s first year conducting “The Nutcracker.” “I’ve loved having the opportunity to study the work as a whole,” Schulze said. “It really flows so beautifully, and Tchaikovsky is amazing in his ability to paint the scene in sound. I’m especially looking forward to working with the young dancers and singers. This has become an annual event in Flagstaff, and I’m so glad the community has included us in their holiday celebrations.” Sullivan said students should take advantage of the opportunity and view not only “The Nutcracker,” but other performances by the FSO starting next semester. “Your years as a college student, in many ways, are the richest cultural experiences,” Sullivan said. “Students owe it to themselves. Almost without exception, after the first time, you’re hooked.” “The Nutcracker” will be shown this Friday and Saturday at Ardrey Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. A “Lollipop Matinee” will also be shown Saturday at 2 p.m. Tickets are available at the NAU Central Ticket Office or online. For more information on the FSO’s upcoming schedule, visit flagstaffsymphony.org.

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from IRISH XMAS page 19

jor, said she was awed by the performers. “I thought the music was great,” Ellis said. “The way they managed to make everything they played sound so pretty was amazing. The way they played their instruments so fast was really cool, too.” Among the Irish Gaelic and instrumental pieces performed during the show, holiday favorites such as “Silent Night” were given the Emerald Isle treatment. Traditional Irish dancing was brought to the forefront of the show by dancer Brian Cunningham, whose sporadic appearances made the show surprising and spontaneous. While “Irish Christmas” has various positive aspects, Flagstaff resident Debbie Hurst said she was disappointed by the lack of attendance at the Orpheum. “It makes me kind of upset to see that the theater was so empty,” Hurst said. “Such a wonderful

show should have a lot more people filling the seats. I wish more people would just pay attention to what’s going on here.” In addition to the dancing and singing, breaks between performances made room for audience interaction and improvised comedic banter between the performers. Throughout the show, narrator and bodhran (an Irish frame drum) player Tristan Rosenstock provided constant commentary about the Irish culture and Christmas customs. His clever narration and Ireland-based stories were accompanied by a certain brand of wit that was thoroughly enjoyable. The interesting aspects about Irish culture brought a fresh perspective to what seemed to be a one-dimensional music show. “All I was really expecting was music,” Hurst said. “But the humor was great, and I really had a good time hearing all the stories from Ireland and learning about the Irish Christmas traditions.”

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Elizabeth Schulze, Conductor

NAU Community Music & Dance Academy Ballet Troupe

Student Tickets

Friday, Dec. 10, 2010 Saturday, Dec. 11, 2010 7:30 PM Ardrey Memorial Auditorium 6:30 PM Conversation with the Conductor flagstaffsymphony.org Tickets: 928.523.5661 nau.edu/cto

(Photos by Alexis Ward) Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2010 | The Lumberjack 23

Arts&Entertainment

Obama’s Of Thee I Sing celebrates America and its youth BY TREVOR GOULD

P

resident Barack Obama is no stranger when it comes to putting the pen to paper. He has composed several award-winning publications, including The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream and Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance. Both novels are a mixture of politics, patriotism and contemplation of the American identity that defines us all. Now he has set his sights on a slightly different genre of literature: children’s books. Obama’s Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters is a tender, engaging read that celebrates the greatness of America. The storyline utilized in Of Thee I Sing takes readers throughout American history while highlighting iconic figures who helped define our great nation. Obama’s narrative voice addresses his two daughters Malla and Sasha and asks them questions such as, “Have I told you that you are brave?” and, “ Have I told you

that you have your own smith have translated song?” He uses these nicely into this simpler questions to allude to genre of literature, and the exploits of famous he infuses passion into Of Thee I Sing Americans who left a his text that gives a by Barack Obama lasting impact on our nice feeling of warmth country. Obama pays throughout the entire tribute to the artistry of story. Georgia O’Keeffe, the In children’s books, imagination of Albert words convey only half Einstein and the unthe story; illustrations yielding compassion of must do the rest. The Martin Luther King Jr. pictures in Of Thee I as he steers us through Sing are bright and colthe annals of America’s orful watercolor images history. Of Thee I Sing painted by Loren Long. rejoices in the splendor One of the highof America and all the lights includes the freedoms and opportuvisage of Sitting Bull nities it has to offer. painted into a Native I found Of Thee I American landscape. Sing to be a simplistic The continual appearand engaging children’s ance of Bo, Obama’s caread that has a patriotic message and nine-in-chief, showcases Long’s attention loving tone. Obama’s abilities as a word- to minute details via his brushstrokes.

BookReview

1 FRONSKE

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Now I’m well-aware that at this current moment, Obama isn’t exactly high atop the nation’s approval ratings. In a time when political extremism has taken center stage, it seems you either love him or hate him. There is no doubt many critics will try to vilify every single aspect in Of Thee I Sing and condemn it as a piece of “socialist propaganda” aimed at corrupting our youth. I sincerely hope readers can temporarily set aside their political bias, whether it is good or bad, so they can enjoy this book with a clear mind. Of course, this book is intended for kids under the age of six, so hopefully they don’t have any diehard political agendas yet. Obama’s first foray into children’s literature is a very good start. It isn’t an instant classic, but it is still a solid entry all of America can appreciate. Of Thee I Sing is a satisfying, patriotic take on the greatness of our country; it celebrates not only the historical icons, but Obama’s love for the youth of our nation.

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Top Picks 1 2 3 4 5 with Gary Sundt

When I was a kid, my grandfather would let me borrow a movie from his house every week. More often than not, the film I chose to borrow was the 1933 black-andwhite King Kong. I watched this film so many times, the tape began to get all static-y, and we eventually had to replace it. I was very happy, about a year before his death, to give him King Kong on special edition DVD. He smiled knowingly, probably regretting he had doomed his grandson to a lifetime obsession with the movies.

My dad took me to the theater to see Kill Bill Vol. 1 when I was 15. He sat through the opening scene, saw Uma Thurman get shot in the head, and walked out to go watch a movie about dogs. When I walked out of the theater, I was sure I wanted to make movies, and I have since produced one film and directed two others. Anyway, Quentin Tarantino has never made a bad film, but the kung fu/western opus of The Bride as she hunts down the people responsible for her attempted coup de grace is some of the best repeated viewings I’ve ever had.

Not only is this Pixar’s very best film, but it also showcases my absolute favorite onscreen couple: Wall-E and Eve. Andrew Stanton did something very special when he created that little trash compactor: He crafted an utterly timely story about our fragile ecosystem and filled it with more sweetness than any movie has a right to have. When that little robot lost his (its?) memory at the end of the flick, it was enough to make a 20-year-old college film critic nearly cry.

P.T. Anderson’s landmark film is an ensemble masterpiece. Sure, it’s about a guy with a 13-inch penis, but so is every Liam Neeson movie (or so I’ve heard; think about that the next he’s talking about midichlorians). Burt Reynolds is a porn director, Julianne Moore is his cocaine-addict wife, and Marky Mark, John C. Reilly, Don Cheadle and Heather Graham are porn stars. Does it sound very strange? It is, but it is also one of the most honest and insightful films ever made. Kevin Smith’s sophomore effort was not loved by many upon it’s initial release in 1995. However, it found its audience on VHS and DVD, and I was one of those followers. I was 13, and I remember watching Brody Bruce (Jason Lee) talk about comic books, his sexual desires and the many idiosyncracies of popular culture, and my mind was absolutely blown. I not only realized I wasn’t alone in my mindset, but that movies were allowed to be made however a filmmaker wanted to make them.

Arts&Entertainment After four years of reviewing movies, it seems fitting to sign off my beloved post by providing a list of my 50 favorite films. This list is by no means a “best of” list (mainly because those are almost completely pointless), nor is it a listing of the films in order of their quality (example: Mallrats is in no way a better film than Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind). Rather, this is a list of movies that have had a large impact on me in some form or another, and have helped shaped the moviegoer I am today. Were you to ask me about this list tomorrow, it would probably be different.

6 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004, Michel Gondry) 7 Fight Club (1999, David Fincher) 8 Pulp Fiction (1994, Quentin Tarantino) 9 The Exorcist (1973, William Friedkin) 10 Jaws (1975, Stephen Speilberg) 11 No Country for Old Men (2008, The Coen Brothers) 12 The Godfather (1972, Francis Ford Coppola) 13 Taxi Driver (1976, Martin Scorsese) 14 Where The Wild Things Are (2009, Spike Jonze) 15 The Dark Knight (2008, Christopher Nolan) 16 Halloween (1978, John Carpenter) 17 Silence of the Lambs (1991, Jonathan Demme) 18 Nixon (1995, Oliver Stone) 19 Chasing Amy (1997, Kevin Smith) 20 Adaptation (2002, Spike Jonze) 21 The Toy Story Trilogy (1995–2010, John Las-

seter, Ash Brannon, Lee Unkrich) 22 Boyz n the Hood (1991, John Singleton) 23 Apocalypse Now (1979, Francis Ford Coppola) 24 The 400 Blows (1959, Francois Truffaut) 25 The Star Wars Trilogy - Episodes IV–VI (1977– 1983, George Lucas, Irvin Kershner, Richard Marquand) 26 Pan’s Labyrinth (2006, Guillermo Del Toro) 27 Ed Wood (1994, Tim Burton) 28 Dawn of the Dead (1978, George A. Romero) 29 Clerks (1994, Kevin Smith) 30 Aliens (1986, James Cameron) 31 Bowling for Columbine (2001, Michael Moore) 32 Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn (1987, Sam Raimi) 33 Serenity (2005, Joss Whedon) 34 Se7en (1995, David Fincher) 35 Scott Pilgrim vs. The

World (2010, Edgar Wright) 36 Spider-Man 2 (2004, Sam Raimi) 37 Sleeping Beauty (1959, Clyde Geronimi) 38 Being John Malkovich (1999, Spike Jonze) 39 Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998, Terry Gilliam) 40 Citizen Kane (1941, Orson Welles) 41 A Clockwork Orange (1971, Stanley Kubrick) 42 Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle (2004, Danny Leiner) 43 Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1992, James Cameron) 44 Bonnie & Clyde (1967, Arthur Penn) 45 The Harder They Come (1972, Perry Henzell) 46 The Matrix (1999, The Wachowski Brothers) 47 Slither (2006, James Gunn) 48 Crumb (1994, Terry Zwigoff) 49 True Romance (Tony Scott, 1993) 50 King Kong (2005, Peter Jackson)

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Arts&Entertainment

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Arts&Entertainment

Build your Christmas present!

THE FIZZ OUT By Ashley Christensen & Bryanna Karakey

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(Photos courtesy AP and Creative Commons)

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13 Dempsey-dumping blond Reese Witherspoon gets Hollywood star: 1 Receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is like winning the jackpot in Vegas; it’s a HUGE DEAL. In a big city like Los Angeles, many can see why obtaining such an honor is so important. Yeah, so it’s not exactly an Academy Award (or even a Golden Globe), but hey, it’s pretty epic. After the release of her latest movie, How Do You Know, Reese Witherspoon unveiled her achievement on Wednesday with help from her two children, Ava and Deacon. As honorary as this achievement is, each celebrity has a certain set of criteria they must meet in order to be walked on by countless homeless people on Hollywood Boulevard. To receive a golden star, one must boast professional achievements, longevity of five years in the entertainment field and contributions to the community. Surprisingly, Hollywood takes some things seriously, unlike The Rock and his pointy eyebrows.

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Susan Boyle vs. Poker Faces and California GiIn

3 In the 2010 Grammy Awards, the Britain’s Got Talent runner-up is now

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competing with Gaga and Katy Perry for the Best Pop Vocal Album. Wow, I never thought the day would come when a reality talent show would pop out a 49-year-old Scottish singing sensation like Susan Boyle. It’s almost like the Cinderella story of Justin Guarini (runner-up to Kelly Clarkson) in American Idol’s 2002 season. At least we know she had a better outcome. Boyle, who is famous for singles including “Dreamed a Dream,” has sold more than 10 million copies of her new album, The Gift. I think it’s safe to say her musical career will go further than that of Vanilla Ice.

Vampire-killer may be fighting off

Mistresses unite

Former vampire-slashing actor Wesley Snipes may be fighting off orange jumpsuits after his sentence from a federal judge on Friday convicting him of negligence to file income tax returns. The Hollywood star’s bid for a new trial rejected, Snipes now faces a three-year jail sentence. Surprisingly, he’s still trying to revoke his sentencing — even though, in 2008, his appeal for a “willful failure to file tax returns” was also denied. When celebrities are told “no,” they keep pushing and pushing until they get what they want. Luckily, U.S. District Judge Terrell Hodges is sticking to his decision, stating, “The defendant Snipes had a fair trial ... The time has come for the judgment to be enforced.” Finally, a judge who abides by the rules of society that everyone else has to follow.

It appears Tiger Woods’ concubines aren’t finished with their 15 minutes of fame just yet. In conjunction with the alleged mistresses of Jesse James and David Arquette, Gina Rodriguez has created a management company that specializes in Hollywood home-wreckers. Rodriguez, a former porn star, has managed to create success out of scandal. Projects include multiple reality television series (because we all know how classy that is), adult films, a cosmetic line called “Scandalous” and in-depth memoirs describing all the juicy details of a pro golfer’s love life. Ladies, let me clarify: No one cares about you past the point of who you’ve slept with; stop trying to be stars. Besides your sexual escapades, we don’t want to see your over-done faces anymore.

Do not touch my BlackBerry! Bubba instead 4

Transformers star Josh Duhamel likes his gadgets. He likes them so much he was kicked off (politely escorted out) of an airplane on Thursday when he refused to turn off his BlackBerry before takeoff. Duhamel was on his way to Kentucky when a flight attendant asked him to turn off his phone. Duhamel, being the douche he is, replied with raucous laughter and started taunting the attendant. After a call was made for backup, the plane taxied back to the gate, and Duhamel was escorted off. Josh, have you not heard about the controversial issue of airport security? People are being groped by complete strangers in the name of national security, and you’re going to pitch a fit over someone asking you to turn off your phone? It’s almost like he thought his BlackBerry was going to transform into Optimus Prime and save him from the evil Decepticons of the TSA. Better stick to battling intergalactic robots with Megan Fox and call it a day.

I’m Chuck Norris, b------

Texas Ranger star Chuck Norris doesn’t have to pretend anymore: The 70-yearold king of badassness (yes, I know this is not a real word) is going to be honored with the title of real life Texas Ranger. Gov. Rick Perry is honoring the star and his brother by inducting them into the famed police enforcement agency throughout the state of Texas. I don’t know how to tell you this Mr. Perry, but Chuck Norris is more of a Texas Ranger than any actual ranger; he has a Ph.D in kicking ass and taking names, and no ceremony is going to change that.

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Dec. 9 - Jan. 20, 2010 | The Lumberjack 27

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