Last post of the semester

I don’t really have any news for you today.

I just want to say thank you for reading this semester and commenting. It’s nice to know that someone gives your opinions the time of day.

This semester has been a rough one. Not just in classes, but in every way possible.

I made a decision to live a town away from campus which has helped me be late for many of classes. It has also been difficult budgeting the little money i receive from my minimum wage job. Too many expenses sometimes, they say the economy has been hit and I sure as hell feel it.

But it hasn’t all been a list of complaints. I feel I am better prepared for the world now that I’ve learned how to live in it. Every situation I’ve had to deal with: crazy downstairs neighbors that call the cops because i go up the stairs at midnight when I GET HOME FROM WORK, theft, weather, bills, making sure I have money for food, etc. has taught me something that I may need to know in 6 months when I graduate. It’s the best advice I could give to anyone scared about graduation and living on their own; figure it out now when you have friends around and people close that can help you if you need it.

The cost of a war

In 2003, Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld estimated the war in Iraq would cost $60 billion. Today the estimated cost of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars amounts to 3 TRILLION Dollars, over 10x the estimation.
*Image and video courtesy of http://www.good.is

$3,000,000,000,000
This includes operational costs and expenditures, peacekeeping costs, health care and social security for all returning veterans, building the military back to its prewar state, lost economic input, the amount of funds diverted from domestic areas, interest, and an adjustment for inflation.

But tonight, President Barack Obama will announce a surge of 30,000 troops to Afghanistan. These troops will aid in the removal of Taliban forces from Afghanistan, when there is only an estimated hundred insurgents of the terrorist group left in the country. The president will also promise a war exit strategy to be implemented in the next 3 years. Obama is expected to explain to Americans exactly how and when we can see US forces finally come home.

Living in a country that was promised change I am disappointed. The war launched after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center has hurt our economy, our pride, and our families. In a letter written to the President, filmmaker and political commentator Michael Moore writes

“When we elected you we didn’t expect miracles. We didn’t even expect much change. But we expected some. We thought you would stop the madness. Stop the killing. Stop the insane idea that men with guns can reorganize a nation that doesn’t even function as a nation and never, ever has.”

There’s still time to have your voice heard. Call the White House at 202-456-1111 or email the President.

One giant leap for mankind.  A French court has convicted the Church of Scientology of fraud.  You can view the article from the BBC <a href=”http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8327569.stm”> here. </a>

 I’d like to consider myself to be respectful of cultures, practices, and religions that I may not be familiar with or disagree with.  I am an atheist, but that doesn’t mean I’m incapable of having intellectual, intelligent conversations about religion with religious and spiritual people. But when it comes to Scientology I can’t keep an open mind and accept their beliefs and practices.  I don’t believe they are what they say they are: a religion.

 I view Scientology as a scam.  It’s capitalism, it’s disgusting, and it’s exploitation at its best. Scientology draws in people looking for acceptance and answers, and then manipulates them into spending all of their life savings because a science fiction writer knows all of the answers to life.  Oh and did I mention their sacred texts were books written by A SCIENCE FICTION write?

 I also think that it’s a little fishy that just before Scientologist leaders were brought to trial in France, an amendment was passed in Parliament that did not allow French courts to ban an organization if it had been convicted of fraud.

Former Fredonia Mayor Frank Pagano appointed to College Council

It’s been two years since former Fredonia mayor Frank Pagano left office, but he’s still making an impact on the campus and community.  New York Governor David Paterson recently appointed Pagano to the SUNY Fredonia College Council.  The College Council serves as an advisory board to the President Dennis Hefner, and works to improve community relations, academics, and construction projects across the campus.

Erica Wolfling sat down with Pagano to discuss his plans as the newest member of the College Council.

***

EW: What does this appointment entail in terms of your responsibilities?

FP: The College Council is an advisory board, mainly advising the President and administration.  We also work in the community for good college-community relations.  We let the community know what the college is doing, what functions they are taking on and what construction projects they are doing.  In other words, we are a liaison for the community to make them appreciate all the good things the school is doing.  The biggest function of the College Council is they appoint a new president if the current president retires or leaves for some reason.  The College Council then appoints a new president.

EW: Do you have any plans or anything you would like to accomplish during your term on the College Council?

FP: The term is for 7 years starting now and finishing in 2016.  It’s a governor’s appointment.  I have been active with the college for over 20 years.  This gives me an opportunity to work even closer with the school and the community to let the community know what the college is doing, and by the same token, informing the school of the community’s concerns if they have any problems so we can work out good community-college relations.  Certainly I think the relationship is good, it was good when I was there.  I’ve worked very closely with your president, Dennis Hefner. I think he’s doing an outstanding job not only in accomplishing higher academic standards on the campus, but also an aggressive building program that I’m pleased to see helping the community for employment.  The community appreciates all the money that the college spends with local contractors, and the money students all spend in the community.  If it wasn’t for Fredonia University, I don’t think that Fredonia would be as great a community as it is today.  I think that the college improves the academic and the economic environment in the community.

EW: You mentioned that you had previously worked with SUNY Fredonia-Fredonia Community relations while you were mayor.  What did you do to try and improve relations between the two?

FP: We worked closely with the college on things like underage drinking, late night parties, and problems that we had in the community with the students.  The college has always worked closely with the community to improve and work upon those problems so that they don’t occur again.  Over my years, I have found that the college has been very cooperative.   If we had a problem in the community they have tried to help us solve the problem.  If there was a problem that we created as a community I tried to work with the college to resolve any problems that we had.  The relationship that we have I can tell you first hand is a very good relationship, and that’s not always the case in college communities.

EW: Because SUNY Fredonia is a state University you were appointed by Governor David Patterson.  What process did you have to go through to get this appointment?

FP: Actually, the appointment’s office called me up.  They knew that I was prominent in the community and they asked me if I would be interested.  I’m assuming my name was submitted by somebody, I really don’t know the details of how my name got submitted.  But the governor’s office called me and asked me if I would be interested in serving.  I said I needed some time to think about it, I thought about it and called them back and told them I’d be honored to be appointed to the College Council.  So that’s how it all came about, it took about 2-3 months and then the governor made the appointment.

EW: I read that you were a business leader in Fredonia, what businesses are you involved with?

FP: I’ve been a real estate broker for over 30 years and we have some old building in downtown Fredonia.  We have the building that is the Ellicottville Brewing Company, and we have what was once called Rooneys, and is now called 41 West Main.  It was a restaurant then I guess now it’s a bar.  I also had apartments and commercial real estates which I still am involved in, and that’s what I did.

***

Pagano served as mayor from 1995 to 2007 for three consecutive terms.  Under his governance, the Village of Fredonia was chosen by, Business First, as the “Best Community in Western New York” in 2006.  Pagano was also the President of MPJ Enterprises from 1970 to 1998.  MPJ Enterprises is a real estate development and management company which helped revitalize downtown Fredonia.  He joins 8 community members and Student President, Anthony Faraco on the College Council.

Constitution Day Panel Discusses Civic Engagement

The United States Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787.

On June 21, 1788 it was ratified into law.

The American Democracy Project (ADP) is focused on higher education’s role in preparing the next generation of informed, engaged citizens.  SUNY Fredonia is one of the 220 ADP participant colleges. As recipients of federal funding; the college is obligated to celebrate Constitution Day.

In previous years, discussion topics included the role of the Constitution in: the 2008 election, campaign finance laws, and Guantanamo Bay.  This year students and professors shared thoughts on a lecture given by Supreme Court Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy at the Chautauqua Institution this summer.

“Why should a millennium generation care what the senior member of the senate thinks about the Constitution, or about a document that was written over 200 years ago?” moderator, Professor David Rankin asked the room full of students.  The four student panelists Megan Mitchell, Kelly Tichacek, Hunter Benson, and John Waring sat in the front of the room, prepared with their answers to this question.

As a citizen of the United States, the Constitution entrusts us with two types of liberty; individual liberty and civic liberty.  Individual liberty encapsulates the right to express yourself, the right to be free as an individual, to speak your mind, and think what you want.  Civic liberty is the liberty of the society as a whole, what’s best for the group, and good for the greater good.

“I think that the idea of the greater good and the idea of our personal self interest have gone away from each other.” explained Megan, “Now what’s best for ourselves, or what we think is best for ourselves does not concern what’s best for everybody as a whole.”

Meghan explained in ensuing our liberties and our freedoms, we have the option of being virtuous citizens.  Civic virtue is the moral underpinning of how a citizen behaves and is involved in society.  A citizen deeply engaged in politics at the local, state, or national level is practicing great civic virtue.  This individual’s actions are favorable to social harmony and group well being.

“Are these structures (the Constitution) conducive in encouraging public engagement?” asked Professor Jonathan Chausovsky, “…or would a different structure of Government lead to better civic engagement.”  The panelists tried to explain whether the Constitution as a document promotes civic virtue, or if the virtuosity is in the hands of its citizens.

“Most people think of democracy in terms of freedoms; freedoms of religion, of speech, religion, right to bear arms, and the freedom to map out your destiny basically.” said Kelly Tichacek, “However, we always forget there is a second type of freedom. I believe it’s the most democratic freedom we have, and that’s the freedom to participate in government.”

Kelly expressed a cynical view of society’s participation in government. “Get involved, stay informed…a lack of participation only furthers feeling of dissatisfaction.”  She believed that a democracy can only be democratic if its citizens exercise their rights mandated by the Constitution.

“If the general population disregards politics and government, it will end up being a system where the many are ruled by the few and that really doesn’t sound that democratic.”  It isn’t the sole responsibility of the government to be democratic.  Kelly says we need to work together as citizens to serve the common good rather than promote our own selfish interests.

Hunter took a slightly different stance on the role of civic virtue in the Constitution.  “While people need to be more interested (in the government) I think it is also their right not to be, and we need to respect that because if we go too far into civic virtue we end up infringing on peoples rights.”

Hunter explained that politics can be boring and democracy is a slow process.  So it’s hard for people to be interested in a process where it takes a long time to accomplish anything. “Individuals feel alienated and that their voice does not matter. And that is because it primarily doesn’t; one person’s voice really cannot change what people think without a lot of work, a lot of influence and a lot of time put into what they want to do.”  John agreed, “It’s very daunting for one person to stand up by themselves. It’s almost impossible for one person to change the system.

It is the responsibility of the Constitution to provide its citizens two things.  According to Hunter, “We need protection for the rights of the apathetic and an outlet for the enthusiastic. And I think we have both those things.” Therefore, our Constitution must not only provide means for civic engagement, but an option without consequence to remain uninvolved.

The Political Science Department will host a Convocation event titled “Dilemmas of Public Engagement with Detention and Rendition in post 9/11 America.”  Panelists will address issues and problems of engagement in a democracy.  The event will take place on Wednesday, October 21^st in S-104 of the Williams Center.

To blog or not to blog is no longer the question.

The question now: Why do people blog, what are they blogging about, and how do you make your voice heard above the crowd?

Tied with social networking as the 4th most popular online activity according to Sys-con Media, blogs have been gaining prominence on the internet. Blogs are less static and more personal than your average website. You don’t have to be experienced in HTML, flash, or java to create a blog; and websites like WordPress and Blogger provide user-friendly templates for beginners.

One in every 11 minutes online globally is accounted for by social network and blogging sites. So why is the world creating and consuming a massive number of blogs? Visual arts and New Media Professor Douglas McCord says that people blog because publication is guaranteed. “The fact that ‘hey what I write anyone can see it’…and the possibility exists, however slight that it might be ready by millions of people” Self publication is at the fingertips of anyone who has chosen to blog. Whether or not a blogger’s writing is read, it is available to anyone with internet access the minute it’s published.

Junior Communications major, Nick Gunner blogs for another reason. His first blog attempt in 2008 was inspired by his study abroad experience. “I got into it in Bulgaria. That (blog) was solely based on the study abroad experience to keep my family and friends updated” Like Nick, some bloggers bridge distances by posting family photos, or having a dialogue with someone from the other side of the world.

Nick now uses a blog and a website as a personal way of expressing himself. “Initially the big thing was to act as an online interactive resume. It is a way for me to show potential employers what I’ve done.” Using your blog to supplement your resume is encouraged by Professor McCord. He says it’s great to say to employers, “Here’s my writing sample, but here’s my website with thousands of more words I’ve written.” Blogs can be a unique addition to your portfolio or resume, but beware! Everyone on campus needs to be aware of what is out there related to their name in terms of photos, articles, videos, and audio files. McCord warns, “That’s fair game for employers in any field to look at. Whether you agree with that morally or not, that’s how it is.”

So what are campus bloggers writing about? TADA follows SUNY Fredonia’s Department of Theater and Dance. Six students regularly catalogue their experiences in the department. TADA serves as an information blog that gives insight into the program for prospective student and freshmen. The Blue Devil Blog follows the charity work of SUNY Fredonia’s athletic department.

Senior Communications major Bill Mulligan began blogging for another reason. As a host of the campus radio show Night of the Living Fred he was looking for a way to gain publicity for his show. “I wanted to do more outside work for the radio show…we thought, hey social networking is fun so we did that.” In 2008 he created a facebook page and a blog to podcast interviews with musicians that had aired on his radio show. His last post, an interview with the band Thrice, received 129 downloads to date.

Write about what you’re interested in. Cuisine, technology, animal care, political opinion, legal matters, entertainment, and sports if you can think of a topic someone in the World Wide Web has blogged about it. “The number one thing is, think about what it is your want to do and why.” Explains Professor McCord, “You could just say my blog’s to put out there whatever I want and I don’t care who reads it. If that’s what you want, that’s great.”

But how do you get your voice heard over millions of blogs? Even a regularly updated blog will only receive around 25 visits per day. “If you want to be read tradition is to say something notorious or sensational.” Professor McCord advised, “Which is not really good advice in my opinion but it’s the oldest advice. I’m sure it’s probably true for lots of things. A lot of people say a big lie is better than a small truth.”

Break news independently or be the first to comment on a breaking news story. Post a link to your blog in your comment signature. Post to forums, and comment on other blogs. Don’t expect your blog to be read by thousands of people a day.

There’s a large volume of blogs that are not read in mass. That doesn’t necessarily take away from the importance of blogging. “If you have a personal dialogue with a small group of people that’s really rewarding to you,” said Professor McCord “I think that’s great.”

What’s with the sword trend?

I have an addiction to odd news and news of the weird. Every day I check Snopes daily collection of oddball news. I noticed something sharp was appearing in many of the articles…

Sometime last week I stumbled upon an article about a person who was slain by a student from Johns Hopkins University…and by slain I mean with a sword. During the day a burglar broke into John Pontolillo’s house and stole two laptops and a video game console. When the intruder tried to break in again after midnight that same day, John grabbed his 5 foot replica of a Samuri Sword and slashed him. Twice.

Today I was surprised to find a story very upset man who was so angry he cut two of his roommates. Michael Angel Zamago found a soda can in his room, thinking someone had entered his room without permission, he attacked his roommates through a closed door.
Neither roommate was hurt but both were injured, one was cut in the armpit, the other suffered a cut to the shoulder.

What’s with the sword trend?

Words of wisdom to anyone planning to trespass on property or rooms that are not theirs. Don’t! These articles show how common it is for people to equip their homes with swords for protection. Chances are someone is going to slice you!

What’s the fuss?

On Tuesday September 8th, President Obama gave a speech that was shown in classrooms nationwide.  This speech was about the importance of education and it encouraged students to study hard, stay in school, and take responsibility.  So why did some high-profile conservative object so loudly to what turned out to be a motivational pep-talk?

In the heat of the controversy, no one threw a louder hissy fit than Jim Greer Chairman of Republican Party of Florida.  He condemned the speech calling it “Obama’s attempt to indoctrinate students.”  I read the transcript.  Obama wasn’t using a mass communication channel to push his political agenda on America’s most vulnerable citizens.  His message was one of individual responsibility and the freedom of students to fail or succeed on their own tenacity and merits.  After the storm blew over Greer even said “It was a good speech.”

Presidents and politicians alike have been talking to school children ever since America has had schools.  Even Republican Presidents – George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan – have in the past delivered similar messages to classrooms around the country.

And yet some parents were outraged by the idea of the President telling their children to work hard and stay in school.  Many schools chose to not air Obama’s speech, and many parents kept their children at home to keep them from watching.  Are we really so far removed from reality that we don’t understand the value of a president encouraging children to work hard?

Name-Calling

I didn’t vote for Obama last November.

I didn’t sign up for his text message alerts, buy a bumper sticker, or believe in his health care plan.  But that doesn’t mean I’m not offended by the Obama-Hitler comparisons Rush Limbaugh and town hall screamers have been making lately.

Come­dian Bill Maher said that since Obama took office “The Democ­rats have moved to the right, and the Repub­li­cans have moved to a men­tal hospital.”  But it’s not the average republican citizen’s fault; it’s the media machine that fuels them with misinformation, and the seeds for hate speech.  After all, Limbaugh only compared Hitler to Obama because they both  “ruled by dictate.”  But why Hitler? Why not Henry the 8th or Julius Caesar?  So why compare Obama to someone who ordered the genocide of 6 million Jews?  Because that’s what you think of when you hear the name Hitler.

Slur, hate speech, call it whatever you want.  It’s downright repulsive that political commentators are given the devine power to control the political minds of people.  No one checks their facts anymore, so an outrageous comment gets passed on from person to person until it swallows an entire nation.  Limbaugh isn’t a religion, so stop following him like one.

It doesn’t matter what news you choose to consume.  We live in a country that allows freedom of the press, and the press abuses that power.  Don’t add to the fire until you know it is true.