Budget cuts en-rage DCCCD faculty

Vol. XXXIV, Issue 8, OCTOBER 4, 2011 www.richlandchronicle.com

CHRONICLERichland

SGAelectionresultsPage 3 Page 8

PresidenttospeakatEastfield

Thunderducks strike again

Teams claim victories

pg 5

WWW.TAMU-COMMERCE.EDU 903.886.5000 or 888.868.2682

A Member of The Texas A&M University System

Lauren, a health and human performance graduate student, has a zeal for fitness and exercise that stems from her health-conscious

family. Thanks to the faculty and opportunities available at Texas A&M University-Commerce, Lauren has been able to turn her passion into a viable career pursuit.

“A&M-Commerce has equipped me with the knowl-edge and background I need to pursue a career in health and human performance,” Lauren said.

“The hands-on experience I have gained working with clients and teaching aquatic fitness, aerobics and yoga has proven to be invaluable.”

In the classroom, Lauren most appreciates the relevant instruction her professors provide which helps her apply new research and ideas and stay on the cutting edge of fitness technology.

After graduation, Lauren plans to pursue a career in corporate fitness or campus recreation at the university level where she can continue to share her love of fitness with those around her.

“If my students don’t like running, I work hard to find something they do enjoy, whether it’s yoga, step aerobics or just getting outside and walking the dog,” says Lauren. “I encourage them to take small steps that make them more comfortable and excited about health and fitness.”

LEARn MORE about Lauren and how Texas A&M University-Commerce can change your future by visiting:

MEET.TAMU-COMMERCE.EDU

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Image courtesy AP Photo Gerry Broome

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Drumming Up Support

GET ON BOARD!!!

Looking For Steel Band PlayersMembers Wanted C.C. Island House is Seeking Talented Steel Band Members and Drummers.All Interested Candidates Please Contact Trini

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Or mail resume to: 2205 Foreman St. Dallas, TX. 75210

WWW.TAMU-COMMERCE.EDU 903.886.5000 or 888.868.2682

A Member of The Texas A&M University System

Lauren, a health and human performance graduate student, has a zeal for fitness and exercise that stems from her health-conscious

family. Thanks to the faculty and opportunities available at Texas A&M University-Commerce, Lauren has been able to turn her passion into a viable career pursuit.

“A&M-Commerce has equipped me with the knowl-edge and background I need to pursue a career in health and human performance,” Lauren said.

“The hands-on experience I have gained working with clients and teaching aquatic fitness, aerobics and yoga has proven to be invaluable.”

In the classroom, Lauren most appreciates the relevant instruction her professors provide which helps her apply new research and ideas and stay on the cutting edge of fitness technology.

After graduation, Lauren plans to pursue a career in corporate fitness or campus recreation at the university level where she can continue to share her love of fitness with those around her.

“If my students don’t like running, I work hard to find something they do enjoy, whether it’s yoga, step aerobics or just getting outside and walking the dog,” says Lauren. “I encourage them to take small steps that make them more comfortable and excited about health and fitness.”

LEARn MORE about Lauren and how Texas A&M University-Commerce can change your future by visiting:

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Beware of the cantaloupes! Not as well-known as other fruit, canta-

loupe is a muskmelon that has a firm light brown rind and an orange middle. A sweet scent makes the melon appetizing, but the latest outbreak of listeria has caused melon lovers to look to other produce.

The number of illnesses and deaths due to listeria is on the rise around the coun-try. According to the Cen-ters for Disease Control on Thursday, 18 states reported outbreaks; Texas report-ing 14 illness cases and two deaths.

Listeria is a bacterial infec-tion that can take weeks or even months to reveal symp-toms. Flu-like symptoms such as aches and pains are an indicator of the disease. If you begin to develop any of these symp-toms and have eaten cantaloupe, see a physi-cian immediately.

According to the Centers for Disease Con-trol and Prevention, most adults can con-sume listeria and not have any symptoms. However, those most at risk are the elderly and pregnant women.

The cantaloupes being recalled are linked to Jensen Farms in Colorado. The CDC and Food and Drug Administration advised that anyone who has a cantaloupe produced by Jensen Farms should dispose of the fruit im-mediately.

Registered Nurse Sue Pilukaitis of the Richland Health Services Center offered ad-

vice to avoid consuming bacteria that may cause illnesses, in addition to listeria.

“How many of us take a cantaloupe from the store, cut it with a knife and eat it? After you’ve taken a knife and cut through the out-side, which is loaded with bacteria, you put it on the food and you eat it,” she said. “Most of us have great immune systems that can handle the bacteria, but it’s those that don’t who can get sick. Wash the outside first.”

While there isn’t an official list of retailers who sold the tainted fruit, consumers should not eat the fruit if they’re not sure whether or not the grocer they purchased it from re-

cieved the cantaloupe from the Colorado farm.

Students will be happy to know that there are no can-taloupes on campus. Subway has no fruit available except boxed apple juice. Baristas at Jittery Joe’s had never heard of a cantaloupe. The closest thing to fruit the bookstore offers is fruit gummies that

have no trace of cantaloupe.While cantaloupe is currently the food un-

der the radar, there are many others that are recalled and cause food-born illnesses. So, is it possible that infected foods could be sold on campus?

“I am sure Subway takes every precaution to serve the community as well possible. The information goes to the corporations and that information is going to filter down to make sure that food has been removed,” Pilukaitis said. “Yes, it’s always possible, but the pos-sibility is extremely slim.”

Keeping up with the media and current recalls is a way to make sure food being con-sumed is healthy and disease-free.

LAURA GARSEAEditor-in-Chief

Listeria hysteria

Image courtesy www.healblog.net

Obama to visit DCCCD LAURA GARSEAEditor-in-Chief

Students are buzzing about President Barack Obama’s planned visit to Eastfield today (Oct. 4).

The president is set to visit the DCCCD

school in the afternoon to speak on the American Jobs Act.

The American Jobs Act would deliver $450 billion in job creation measures and empha-sizes job protection for teachers.

Orignally in North Texas to attend two private fundraisers, Obama’s visit to East-field will provide a beneficial opportunity

for students, faculty and staff to listen to the president speak in person.

A question on everyone’s mind is why Eastfield was chosen to host the event.

According to Justin Lonon, vice chancel-lor for public and governmental affairs, a community college was picked as the setting for Obama’s speech.

While the details are uncertain, there are credentials that Eastfield met along with rel-evance to the topics Obama was scheduled to cover at press time.

The speech is scheduled to be delivered in the Eastfield gymnasium with 1,200 expected to attend.

For those who wish to see the president speak, a limited number of tickets are avail-able.

According to Eastfield President Jean Conway, the tickets are first come, first serve and details are distributed via email.

Classes at Eastfield will still be held during the speech, although two parking lots will be closed.

President Barack Obama speaks at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, N.C. on Sept. 14, 2011 about the American Jobs Act.

President Barack Obama arrives in San Jose, Calif. on Sept. 25.

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REVIEWS

If you are not familar with “Demon’s Souls,” it is the first of a series where players bestow the power of souls from Nexus, a great ice shrine hidden in the mountains.

As King Allant the XII, players awaken the Old One and plunge into the realm of darkness. They also come across a swarm of powerful demons that entered into the kingdom Boletaria, consuming the souls of men.

“Dark Souls” is an intense action RPG (role playing game) and is the spiritual sequel to “Demon’s Souls” that takes place in a dark fantasy universe.

Gamers experience a unique environment within dungeons, confront horrifying enemies in “Dark Souls.” It has cutting-edge online features and four co-op online play. “Dark Souls’” design gives players the chance to explore and to adapt its world. There is also a reward challenge that offers players a sense of achievement.

“Dark Souls” is available today (Oct. 4) on Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

MARY CHANNELLLayout Editor

Images courtesy Review66.com, IGN.com

Game Prev i ew :

Veteran band New Found Glory releases its seventh studio album, “Radiosurgery,” today (Oct. 4) and not a minute too soon.

New Found Glory has been producing hits for more than 12 years now. This experience has taken its performance of the pop punk genre to an unmatched level, and it’s proudly shown on this album.

This is the first new material I have heard out of the band since its 2004 album, “Catalyst.” There’s little change in sound

and style that I notice. In some cases this would indicate a stagnating, boring band, but not with “Radiosurgery.” If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.

New Found Glory continues to stay true to its pop punk roots to produce an album perfect for blaring out of your car speakers this fall. The band knew exactly what kind of sound it wanted to produce for this album, and executed it to great success.

The album’s only single, also titled “Radiosurgery,” features the distinct vocals of Jordan Pundik. Although this track may not have the breakneck pacing and energy of other tracks, the overall composition and lyrics definitely prepare the listener to

be operated on with a little bit of “radio surgery.”

“I’m Not the One” is probably my favorite track, if I had to choose. It has a tempo that picks up quickly, and then keeps rolling at a healthy pace.

This song’s lyrical content is like much of the album, mainly going over various relationship issues. While this kind of theme is often approached with melancholy and brooding, “Radiosurgery” tackles it in a fun way that stays upbeat.

In “Summer Fling, Don’t Mean a Thing,” strong drums and bass work well off simple guitar riffs. The more guitar-heavy track, “Ready, Aim, Fire!” has a normal rhythm

at first, but really sets itself apart with a powerful ending. It’s the kind of buildup that has you subconsciously turning up the volume the farther you get into the track.

Overall I found this album to be refreshingly fun and upbeat. The tracks are enjoyable even after multiple plays and seldom get old.

The band’s webpage on altpress.com offers a creative way to explore and preview the album. Listeners play a game like “Operation,” basically performing surgery on a radio to unlock tracks. Check out New Found Glory Oct. 10 at Trees as it headlines the Pop Punk’s Not Dead tour.

‘Radiosurgery’TIMOTHY POTTERStaff Writer

New Found Glory

‘50/50’ Does it beat the odds?

The past few weeks have been great for films and “50/50” doesn’t break the trend.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt takes the lead as a young man in his upper 20s who’s diagnosed with cancer.

Ironically, he takes pretty good care of himself. He eats healthy, exercises regularly and doesn’t live hard. He’s just a regular guy with whom most of us can relate.

Funnyman Seth Rogen is along for the ride and continues his normal shtick, but it doesn’t feel so stale here. With such a touchy subject, you would think Rogen would be out of place but he fills these shoes perfectly, not to mention he and Levitt play off each other so well it’s like it was meant to be.

You’d picture a film of this nature as an absolute downer, but even without the help of Rogen, “50/50” is more of a dramedy. Take a look at the poster of Gordon-Levitt shaving his head and Rogen’s silly reaction in the background. Well, is a chuckling feeling creeping in? That’s probably how you’re going to feel through most of the movie.

Don’t get me wrong, “50/50” isn’t a joke; it just takes a lighthearted approach. Gordon-Levitt chimes in with the definition

of a heartfelt performance tugging away at your emotions. One second you may want to cry, and the next you’re walking out of the theater with a smile on your face.

When a movie revolving around cancer can toy with your emotions in this manner, it has done nothing but succeed.

SCOTT JACKSONStaff Writer

Image courtesy Summit Entertainment

Image courtesy Epitaph Records

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Images courtesy Gmerinvestment.com, Community.livejournal.com, Zombiegamer.co.za

Deep fry this, deep fry that. You name it; the State Fair of Texas fries it.

“Food! Lots of fried foods, heart attacks, big drinks and plenty of napkins!” This is what engineering major Valentin Medrano says first comes to mind when he hears of the fair.

For others, another state fair staple comes to mind.

“The first thing I think of is Big Tex,” said Rebecca Haupt, an early childhood

education major “It’s the first thing that greets you when you walk in.”

Of course, there are other attractions too: rides, shows, exhibits, concerts and much more. But let’s face it, the surest way to fairgoers’ hearts is through their stomachs. Visitors line up and wait to try the most exotic fried foods.

Concession booths are ranked to be among the most popular attractions to those visiting the fair. The Bigtex.com website proclaims that fried foods are one of the top reasons for attending the fair.

“In 2010, while enjoying good times with families and friends, fair visitors spent $37 million on food and amusement rides,” said Sue Gooding, a spokeswoman for the fair.

The Texas State Fair goes above and beyond when it comes to frying foods. This year, the list includes items such as Deep Fried Pineapple Upside Down Cake, Deep Fried Texas Salsa, El Bananrito, Fried Autumn Pie, Hans’ Kraut Ball, and the Walking Taco.

“I would just try it to see if they were nasty or good, but would probably regret it later on” said Gian Machuak, engineering major.

In 2005, the state fair held the first Big Tex Choice Awards.

The 2011 award for most creative fried-food went to Justin Martinez for his Fried Bubblegum. Yes, you heard right, fried bubblegum! Concessionaire Allan Weiss took best taste for his Buffalo Chicken in a Flapjack.

“Never tried them,” said Persell Machuak, biology major. “The Buffalo Chicken sounds good. Fried bubblegum? I don’t think I would eat.”

State Fair of TexasFair runs: Sept. 30 - Oct. 23Hours: Buildings open at 10 a.m. and close at 10

p.m. on Friday through Monday. Closing is at 9 p.m. on Tuesday through Thursday. Museum and Midway hours vary. The grounds open as early as 7 a.m.

Admission Prices: General Admission: $16Kids under 48” tall: $12Seniors 60 and over: $12Children 2 and under: FreeParking: Parking is $15 on official State Fair lots.

Valet parking is available for $30.

Easy Transportation: State Fair visitors can ride the DART

Rail Green Line to two stations - Fair Park Station, located on Parry Avenue at the entrance to the fairgrounds, and MLK, Jr. Station, located south of R.B. Cullum Blvd. and convenient to the MLK fairground entrance (Gate 6) and the Cotton Bowl Stadium.

Source: Bigtex.com

GEORGINA MARTINEZContributing Writer

‘Fried food capitol of Texas’

Before the season started, both the men’s and women’s soccer teams were asked which conference team would present the toughest challenge. The answer was unanimous: Mountain View College.

On Sept. 27, the teams met at Mountain View for the first matchup of the season. The women’s team needed extra time to defeat the Lions 2-1; the men needed only five minutes to seal a victory.

Forward Malin Qvarnstrom struck first for the Lady Thunderducks (7-1-2) in the opening half. After outmuscling and fighting off her defender, Qvarnstrom finished with her left foot to beat the diving goalkeeper.

“She just outworks everybody and scores goals that way,” said head coach Scott Toups. “A lot of times it’s not real pretty, but that’s just how she plays.”

Qvarnstrom has scored a team-high seven goals on the season to go along with nine assists but refuses to get caught up in her personal achievements.

“Our whole team is playing well,” said Qvarnstrom. “It’s not one player. We play as a team.”

Mountain View had a golden opportunity in extra time when a free kick from just outside of the box caught the keeper off

guard, hitting the right-post before being cleared.

After applying constant pressure on the Lions’ defense, the Lady Thunderducks took advantage of their best scoring opportunity. Freshman defender Lindsay Gable played a ball across the box, finding sophomore m i d f i e l d e r Dani Fellows. F e l l o w s ’ o n e - t o u c h volley beat the Lions’ goalkeeper, who was battling the sun as she a t t e m p t e d to make the save.

“It’s not a goal that’s going to go in every time,” said Toups. “But s o m e t i m e s you get lucky.”

The men (4-2-1) got off to a fast start when Francisco DeAnda converted a penalty kick in the fifth minute. On the play, Lions’

goalkeeper Eduardo Macias committed a reckless challenge inside the box, prompting a call by the referee.

DeAnda calmly struck a low shot past a stretching keeper to collect his first of two goals.

M i n u t e s later, forward Victor Pinal got behind the Lions’ defense, beating a c h a r g i n g keeper with a r i gh t - foo ted shot to the far post. Pinal would add two more goals in the first half.

On a free kick just outside of the 18-yard box, the freshman played a low shot, which took a deflection off

the wall before finding the back of the net just before halftime. The Thunderducks took a 5-0 advantage into halftime.

“Every game I go into, I don’t know what

to expect,” said head coach Sean Worley. “That is probably the first time we’ve been up 5-0 at half in a long time.”

Pinal, who added his fourth goal in the second half to push the lead to 6-0, was quick to credit his team for the performance.

“Personally, I don’t really care about me,” said Pinal. “I just care about how the team played. The team played well, and thankfully I was able to score.”

In the final minutes of the game, Lions’ forward Tolliver Enoh converted a late chance to spoil the shutout and push the score to 6-1.

After a blatant take-down was missed inside the penalty area at the other end, the Lions pressed the ball forward to a sprinting Enoh, who beat back-up keeper Hector Gonzalez.

“We want perfection, and you can never be happy,” said Worley.

But the coach was quick to praise the play of his team in such a critical match. “It was a fun game. We scored a lot of goals. The guys played good, played hard.”

With the victories, both teams sit atop the Metro Athletic Conference standings. The women continue conference play with games scheduled against Cedar Valley College Sept. 30 and Eastfield College today (Oct. 4).

The men were scheduled to host Otero Junior College (Colo.) Oct. 1 before hosting Hill College in MAC play today.

ADAM CROUCHStaff Writer

‘Ducks sweep Mountain View

Image credit Adam Crouch

Fried Beer was named most creative in the 2010 Big Tex Choice Awards.

In 2009 Deep Fried Butter was unveiled and was named winner of most creative in the Big Tex Choice Awards competition.

File Photos

Image courtesy Signtasticfraphics.com

Richland forward Victor Pinal, left defends against MVC’s Kevin Antonio, center, and Christian Mendoza .

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Enriching seniors

Staff meetings: Monday and Wednesday 2 p.m. in E-020-------

Letter PolicyLetters to the editor may be edited for space. They will be edited for spelling, grammar and malicious or libelous state-ments. Letters must be the work of the writer and must be signed. For identification and verification purposes, letters also must include the writer’s classification (grade level), full name, address and telephone number, although address and telephone number will not be published.

Editorial PolicyThe Chronicle is the official student-produced newspaper of Richland College. Editorials, cartoons, columns and letters are the opinions of individual students and do not neces-sarily reflect the opinions of other individual student writers, editors, advisers or the college administration.

© Richland Chronicle 2011

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ACP Online Pacemaker Finalist, 2007, 20081st Place - TIPA Sweepstakes, 20053rd Place - TIPA Online, 2005 & 2006

Over 150 Texas college journalism awards since 2000

Richland Chronicle Editor-in-ChiefKDUX Web Radio Station Manager

Chronicle-TV Station ManagerChronicle-Online EditorAsst. Managing Editor

News EditorRadio News Director

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El Paso Hall, Room E-020, 12800 Abrams Rd. Dallas, 75243Newsroom: 972-238-6079 E-mail: chronicle@dcccd.eduAdvertising: 972-238-6068 E-mail: advertise@dcccd.edu

Fax: 972-238-6037

STUDENT MEDIA LEADERS

COVER AND FONTS

MEETINGS & POLICIES

FALL 2011 ISSUES

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August 16August 23August 30September 6September 13September 20September 27 October 4 October 11

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October 18October 25November 1November 8November 15November 29December 6December 13

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All performances are free to the public on Stage in the Richland CafeteriaConcert Schedule is tentative and subject to change

Fusion Band Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2011, Cafeteria Stage, El Paso Hall,

12 - 1 p.m.

Jazz Ensemble Friday, Oct. 28, 2011, Cafeteria Stage, El Paso Hall, 12 - 1 p.m.

Steel Band Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2011, Cafeteria Stage, El Paso Hall, 12 - 1 p.m.

Richland Guitar Ensemble Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2011, Cafeteria Stage, El Paso Hall,

11 a.m.-12 p.m.

Jazz Combo Thursday, Dec. 1, 2011, Cafeteria Stage, El Paso Hall, 12 - 1 p.m.

Jazz Ensemble Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2011, Cafeteria Stage, El Paso Hall,

12 - 1 p.m.

Go to www.richlandcollege.edu/music for latest updates.Call Derrick Logozzo at 972.238.6254 for information.

Richland College Music DepartmentFall 2011 Lunch Concert Series

Academic learning is a never-ending en-lightening process and is necessary for expe-rience and career skills. The Emeritus Plus 50 Program at Richland College is offered to retired individuals and those still working who are 50 and older. It is an opportunity for individuals to broaden their career skills, find volunteer opportunities and simply embrace learning.

Two programs, Emeritus, which started in 1989, and the Boomer program recently merged to form Emeritus Plus 50. Since then it has continued to enrich its members through social gatherings, enrichment lec-tures and classes.

Enrollment in the program is open to any-one eligible and offers non-credit and credit classes currently held in one classroom. Class times are created to work with any schedule and are available throughout the day and eve-ning.

Individuals are also able to obtain a cer-tification for arts and letters and computer literacy.

Tuition is free for individuals 65 or old-er who have lived in Dallas County for at least one year or pay property taxes in Dallas

County.“Currently we have four volunteer op-

portunities that I am very proud of. We have received the Innovation of the Year award in 1994 and 2010,” said Director Mitzi Werther.

Conversation Partners is the biggest vol-

unteer tutoring that helps Richland’s interna-tional students with English.

Werther also said Richland is the only col-lege in the DCCCD to offer such rewarding

opportunities for senior volunteers and Rich-land students.

The program expands its enlightening lec-tures to a number of retirement communities in Dallas, Garland and Mesquite. Professors and experts deliver lectures at the retirement homes and offer something new that seniors can enjoy.

Recently the program went to Gainesville and Oklahoma to see the Winstar World Ca-sino and have fun with friends in the pros-pering Texas city.

Throughout the year, various events are planned to bring new people into the pro-gram. The next event is scheduled for De-cember and features the a cappella group “Smooth Brew.” The event costs $12 and is a festive kick-off for the holidays.

In the spring the program will present Brown-Bag Dinner movies. The movies will be held on Fridays. People are welcome to bring their own brown bag meals to enjoy while watching the film.

Emeritus Plus 50 is advantageous not only for seniors but for passionate professors as well. The program is always looking for edu-cators to volunteer their time to lecture on any topic.

For information go to richlandcollege.edu/emeritus or call 972-238-6393.

REBECCA BANKSStaff Writer

Richland fitness instructor Bill Neal is con-gratulated for his certificate of achieve-ment by Rep. Carol Kent, center, Emeritus Director Mitzi Werther, left, and Richland President Kay Eggleston, right.

Image credit Anitra Cotton

Mountain View’s Astryd Valenzuela and Richland’s Malin Qvarnstrom fight for the ball on Sept. 27 at Mountain View College.

ON THE COVER

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COLumN

JOE StumpOStaff Writer

1 Bedroom, 1 Bath Walk to Richland College Washer and Dryer

Swimming Pool Covered Parking Gated Community

Large area, over 900 sq ft, plenty of storageLocated in a quiet community at: 9605 Walnut St, Dallas, TX 75243

Conveniently near Richland College, Texas Instruments & Hong Kong MarketEasy Access to 75 N. Central Expy and LBJ I-635

Applicants must not have eviction(s) or prior rental obligations, no criminal conviction(s), only non aggressive pets allowed

If the release date of “Footloose” and “The Thing” fell on Friday the 13th instead of Fri-day, Oct. 14, I would warmly welcome that day of bad luck in hopes both these movies flop at the box office.

“Footloose” is an update of the 1984 dance movie that starred Kevin Bacon. “The Thing,” on the other hand, is being called a “prequel” to director John Carpenter’s 1982 sci-fi, horror classic, which was in turn a re-make of “The Thing from Another World” (1951).

Watching “The Thing” trailer, however, the film seems to have the word I most dread hearing these days - “remake” - written all over it, from the flamethrowers the charac-ters use to battle the alien to the scene of the dogs being taken over by “The Thing,” which was similar to a shot done in Carpen-ter’s earlier work.

If there is any difference between this one and the 1982 version, other than perhaps the filmmakers’ feeble attempts to out-gross the other with computer-generated visual effects, this update features two female characters.

I don’t want to hear how excited young audiences might be about the “Footloose” remake featuring Kenny Wormald in the Ba-con role. He is a young outsider who stirs up trouble for a farming community that has outlawed dancing and rock music. Ren Mc-Cormack (Wormald) has his sights set on the daughter (Julianne Hough) of the town’s Bible-thumping preacher, played by Dennis Quaid.

The “Footloose” preview, like “The Thing” trailer, was nothing more than an uninspired replica of the original’s characters played by Kevin Bacon, Lori Singer and John Lithgow. There is one difference between this up-date and the 1984 movie. The yellow Volkswagen Beetle Wormald’s Ren

drives has a black stripe painted on the side.

If there is any reason why I no lon-ger get much joy out of reviewing, it’s that I have had all I can take of being subjected to 3-D, franchise comic book movies (“Thor”, “X-Men: First Class”), based on toys and games (“Transform-ers” and next Summer’s “Battleship”) predictable so-called real life stories that never happened, shot “Paranor-mal Activity” style like “Apollo 18” and needless remakes of old films, many of which were already perfect.

Like Congress and President Barack Obama, who exhibit no redeeming thought processes on how to handle the country’s mounting debt, “Hollyweird” is in a deep, dark, creative slump. Like the nation’s rising debt, the number of unnecessary remakes Hollyweird has lined up is increasing.

Already being prepared are redos of “The Black Hole” (1979), “Blade Runner” (1982), “The Bodyguard” (1992) “Carrie” (1976), “Dirty Danc-ing” (1987), “Firestarter” (1984), “Hell-raiser” (1987), “Logan’s Run” (1976),

“The Oster-man Week-

e n d ” ( 1 9 8 3 ) , “ P o i n t

B r e a k ”

(1991), “Red Dawn” (1984 – already com-pleted), “Total Recall” (1990), “Wargames” (1983) and what is clearly a huge slap in the face to director Sam Peckinpah, “The Wild Bunch” (1969).

This list makes me want to yell out the one word Darth Vader uttered at the end of “Star Wars – Episode III: Revenge of the Sith” (2005) after being told he killed his wife. That made Star Wars fans, depending on who you talk to, cringe:

“Nooooooooooooooo!”There really should be some rules in place

when it comes to remaking movies – like

waiting 40 years or more, if at all, before revamping a classic to make spending one’s money to see it justified. Look no further than the impressive remakes of “Casino Royale” (2006), “King Kong” (2005), “Ocean’s Eleven” (2001) “Scar-face” (1983) and “True Grit” (2010) for examples.

Today’s remakes are nothing more than curiosity pieces and a majority of them are barely worthy of a total makeover. In a perfect world, I hope “The Thing” and “Footloose” suffer the same box office fates that befell this year’s remakes of “Ar-thur” (1981), “Fright Night” (1985) and the “Conan the Barbarian” (1982) reboot, where audiences were smart enough to stay home. I was one of them.

Unfortunately, I don’t see that happen-ing on opening weekend. I predict both movies will be successful because as P.T. Barnum once said, “There’s a sucker born every minute.” And as long as there are young audiences stupid enough to waste their hard-earned money to see a redo, there will always be remakes.

So excuse me if instead of uttering the words Bacon’s Ren McCormack shouted out at the end of the ’84 movie at the se-nior prom, “Let’s dance,” I’d much rather

yell out “Fire!” inside a dark theater.When it comes to movie remakes, I am re-

minded of a quote I came across on IMDB.com that Orson Welles once said should his black and white film, “Citizen Kane” (1941), be colorized by media mogul, Ted Turner.

“Keep Ted Turner and his g-------d Cray-olas away from my movie,” Welles said.

If I made a movie as great as “Citizen Kane” today in a filmmaking world flooded with unnecessary remakes and an astounding lack of fresh ideas, my comment to the stu-dios would be similar. And I wouldn’t give a damn whom I offend.

Needless movie remakes NEVER replace the originals

Images courtesy mythicalmonkey.blogspot.com

Images courtesy worleygig.com

Images courtesy Paramount pictures

Professor Dennis Gray teaches world civilization courses and Bible History for continuing education students.

Laura Garseaeditor-in-Chief

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Image courtesy Tabeth Nkangoh

Image credit Dennis Q. Ly

As an adjunct faculty member at Richland since the spring semester of 2003, Dennis Gray currently teaches world civilization courses, as well as Bible as History for con-tinuing education.

Born in Paris, Texas, Gray has lived in Texas his entire life. He has been married to his wife, Nancy, for what he calls 32 “adven-turous” years. He has two sons, with the old-er in his last year at Texas Tech University, majoring in fisheries management.

In 1978, Gray earned his bachelor’s degree in economics from Texas Tech University, and his master’s degree in ancient and me-dieval history from Southern Methodist Uni-versity in 2000. SMU professor of ancient history, Melissa Dowling, encouraged Gray to pursue his master’s.

“Some of the history courses I had to take were not offered in the evenings so Dowl-ing helped me juggle my class schedule to

fit around my day job,” said Gray. “I’m not sure I’d be doing what I love without her support.”

D ur in g his time as a gradu-ate student at SMU, Gray took a world h i s t o r y class in the evening at Richland. Once he completed his mas-ter’s pro-gram, Gray thought he would love to teach history in an evening class. Coincidently, it turned out that after his graduation at SMU, Richland

was looking for evening history instructors.“I enjoy teaching at Richland very much,”

said Gray. “My favorite part of class is the time we spend on discussion. Whether I’m listening to the young students in my world civ-ilization class or the Rich-land Emeritus students in my Bible His-tory class, I believe I learn as much from them as they from me.”

At Rich-land, he helped with

the design of the current American history textbook Richland uses.

He also teaches a world civilization class in one of Richland’s LearnLabs. Gray said the students seem to appreciate the up-to-date technology the LearnLabs offer.

Gray spends a lot of free time reading, a hobby he finds most historians share.

He believes one can’t keep up with new discoveries and evidence unless he or she pe-riodically checks new publications.

“I also enjoy traveling to Lubbock to watch Texas Tech football,” said Gray. “For some reason I’m more of a college football fan than I am of the professional game.”

In addition, Gray started volunteering in 2005 and has accumulated about 700 volun-teer hours.

He currently volunteers four hours a week at the USO Welcome Center at DFW Air-port.

“I started volunteering because after meet-ing the great young people my son served with in the Marines, I realized I wanted to do something to assist our military men and women,” said Gray.

Professor Dennis Gray expresses love of learning through teaching

If you don’t think your vote counts, think again. One vote decided the president of the Student Government Association when the ballots were counted Friday.

The SGA election was held last Wednes-day and Thursday in the Student Lounge.

To be eligible to vote, students had to present a valid Richland ID.

Election Numbers:

President: Tabeth Nkangoh - 70 Greg Carboni - 69

Vice President: Samuel Osayomwanbo - 81 Fareeha Shabbir - 51

Senators: Dennis Ly - 74 Vangjush Gjini - 62 Matthew Goss - 61 Andrew Graf - 63 Troy Hardin - 61 Patricia Villacin - 65

For most of the voting period, the booth sat empty with no voters approaching the ta-ble. Catching someone marking a ballot was a rare sight.

Electrical Engineering Student Ube Uk-pong was one of the few who took the time to vote.

“I’m supporting my friend. I would like to see him do things to improve the campus,” he said. “I really want to help him out.”

Out of the approximate 20,000 students registered, 139 voted.

With such a small percentage of the cam-pus voting, reasons why students aren’t casting a vote are important to note.

“They don’t know, they don’t care, they think everyone else will vote. They’re leaving the job for everyone else,” Ukpong said. “To change something you have to do some-thing yourself.”

Only one vote seper-ated presidential candi-dates Tabeth Nkangoh and Greg Carboni.

The results were posted outside of the Office of Student Life early Friday afternoon, showing that Nkangoh beat Carboni 70 votes to 69.

“It feels good to win,” Nkangoh said. “Ev-ery vote counts and the next step is to thank all of our voters with an ice cream party.”

One vote decides election

Electrical Engineering student Ube Ukpong casts his vote for Student Government Association positions.

Image credit Sean Dunbar

President: Tabeth NkangohMission statement: “I believe that it is

important to continue the goal of diversify-ing leadership at Richland. Strengthening our campus in terms of clubs and organizations is one of the many priorities. It is time to ampli-fy Richland and unite the college as a whole by minimizing the gap between students and the Student Government Association (SGA); between students and the faculty. Removing apathy from our environment is key to stu-dent success and participation at Richland. The current recession and economic crisis has resulted constraints that threaten to not only increase fees, but also to reduce the number of services and classes available. In order to succeed we must make the most of our cur-

rent resourc-es- meaning we must pro-mote more student activ-ity in terms of fundrais-ing for clubs, b e a u t i f y i n g our campus and helping accommodate the needs of all students.”