[1]

THE BEACON03.24.11

STUDENT BILL OF RIGHTS? Matthew Cox, third year business major, speaks out on an issue that has been weighing on him for some time.

Read on about his address on grade rhetorics, syllabi, professors, and exams.

As a soon to be graduate of Business Administration, I wish to write my final column for the Beacon on something that has been on my mind for a while. Over the past 2 years that I have been here (transferred from NBCC), I have learned a lot of things that have gone on here and am grateful for the experience. However, I believe that students need more enshrined rights at this University and I think having a Student Bill of Rights is the best way to go about it.

Naturally you might ask yourself, what would this bill of rights contain? This column is not going to be an exhaustive list of that as I certainly don’t have all the answers. However I would like to propose the following ideas.

Every student that takes a course gets a course syllabus that gives the basic

information about the course and the requirements of said course. It has a section on how marks will be allocated (weighted average) for each section (projects, tests, quizzes, etc.). At the end of each term we are given our final grade. I believe that when we get our final grade it should be broken down into the various sections that make up the total grade. An example of why I think this is important is say that we have a group project at the end of the term and then a final exam. Even if you are like me that keeps track of your grades on an Excel file, you won’t know what you got until the Professor returns one of the two things back to you next term. Since Professors have to submit our grades by a specific date to the Registrar’s Department, and they have to keep a breakdown of your marks, then it wouldn’t require any additional effort on their part.

(cont’d on page 2)

Matthew Cox discusses his

proposed bill of rights with Sara and Ben in

the Commons

Publication of the CSA

Yeah, we were curious too. Who’s ill? Kathy, are you sick? If so, get better.

[2]

“Bill of Rights” cont’d from page 1...

T h i s b r i n g s m e t o t h e o t h e r recommendation for a Student’s Bill of Rights and that is that every student who submits something to their Professor to be graded, gets it returned. If there is a presentation where you are graded on, then the comments and mark also get returned by the end of the term. This is something I feel very strongly about as we are here to learn. How can we learn if we don’t know what we are doing wrong or being able to continue doing the right thing. I am sure the Professors would prefer to return our paperwork rather it collect dust wherever it gets kept or put in the trash. Not all students may want this, but that choice should be made by the student and not the Professor.

One small final item is that I would like to see get examined is take home exams. What I don’t like about some of them is that they masquerade as a take home exam while really being a project. A final exam is 3 hours long at a maximum. Ask yourself this: are your take home exams longer than 3 hours to complete it?

I hope that the above mentioned ideas will get students here to think about other rights that will benefit the student population. I have mentioned my ideas last month to the Student Council candidates and hope that President-Elect Mitchell Smith can successfully implement this for future generations of students.

By Matthew Cox

CONTENTS

For the past four years I have griped about the lack of a coffee shop nearby. I hoped that eventually there would be a l itt le cafe pop up with a relaxed atmosphere, comfy couches, and most importantly - wifi and really good coffee!

Low and behold, in the last month of my fi n a l y e a r, t h i s dream of mine has come t rue and Jitter Bean Cafe has emerged. On Wednesday, March 1 6 t h , J i t t e r B e a n opened beside Lighting Design and started serving the residents in the upper Mountain Road area (ie: Crandall students).

I stopped by before French class this past Tuesday and was so very pleased with what I found. The bright cafe is decorated with funky low hanging white lanterns, comfy leather couches and chairs, neat

wall fixtures, and a book exchange for all you novel nerds like me.

Thus far, I was thoroughly impressed. I looked at the menu and was yet, even more impressed. They serve paninis, salads, desserts, and of course, coffee. I started to talk to the lovely owner of Jitter Bean and was happy to hear that she was as excited about opening a coffee shop as I was about finding one.

I ordered a white chocolate espresso (a small came to $3.29) and stood talking a b i t l onge r abou t an adve r t i s i ng opportunity in the Beacon. She was very excited at the prospect of having Crandall students coming in the mornings and between classes. Finally, I left the cafe, got into my car (lovingly deemed Bianca if you are interested), and took the first sip of my Jitter Bean espresso. How was it? Let’s just say that Starbucks, Tim’s, or Second Cup may not see me for a while. A long while.

By Becca Judson

“...wifi and really good

coffee!”

Jitter Bean CafeCheck it out on Mountain Rd.

beside Lighting Design.

I'm pessssst I got second in formula 1 racing! But I did have the best lap like a beast. If you aint 1st ur last! Ricky Bobby Inc

Bieber Twitter

Page 1Student Bill of Rights

Page 2Bill of Right cont’dJitter Bean Cafe

Page 3Battle of the Sexes

Page 4The Spin

Page 5Fitness Room Update

Page 6Massive Attack

Page 7“B...B...Bertie”

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A couple of weeks ago, I authored an article that dealt with the realities of wooing women in an effort to win their romantic affection. I’ve gotten a lot of feedback from people telling me that the practical steps I outlined don’t work, and I am a buffoon. The people who say these things are obviously lying and this is how I know. #1: I asked my mom and she said that I’m not a buffoon and #2: I’ve tried these steps countless times and they have always worked. Now you may be thinking: “Tom, if they have always worked, why are you still single?” This is a good question and I’ll briefly answer it by saying that there are a few critical steps between wooing a girl and landing the ship that I have yet to tactfully master. This week I’m flipping the coin over and I’m going to let all you ladies know how to woo a guy. Now I’m basing these steps off of what I -as a guy- would want –from a girl- in terms of getting chased romantically.

The number one rule that you ladies need to be aware of -when you are chasing a guy- is that guys hate direct confessions of affection. If a girl came up to me and said “Mr. Morehouse, could we talk? I’ve been thinking about it and I think that I like you and may even be in love with you. What do you think?” I’d be tempted to go along with it initially because she called me ‘Mr. Morehouse’ but from the moment she said, “Can we talk?” I’d be looking for an exit strategy. Guys, no matter how gutless they are, have this innate need to be the one who does the chasing and when the girl tries to reverse the roles, it usually creeps the guy out. “How am I supposed to let the guy know I like him then?” Well the most effective way of accomplishing this is by dropping subtle hints.

Now before we go on any further, there needs to be a disclaimer here about what ‘subtle’ means. What’s subtle for a girl

and what’s subtle for a guy are about as different as a kitten and a tornado. Guys

don’t pick up on details very well so your hints will have to be a bit more forward than you would think necessary. Here’s a good example: Before school, bake some muffins. Bring the muffins to school and when you see the guy you

like, give him one. As you hand him the muffin say something like “I only give

muffins to guys I have mega crushes on.”

This hint is effective for two reasons. 1) It doesn’t scare the guy off with a direct confession of affection and 2) The guy –who is I; hopefully- gets a muffin, which is awesome (as long as it’s not oatmeal raisin- blechh!!).

Another way of wooing the guy you like is by telling him that he’s good at bass. “But not all guys play bass, do they?” If they read my last article they do. A guy needs to feel confident before he asks a girl out. The quickest way to boost a guy’s confidence is by complimenting him on his bass playing abilities. Therefore, if you compliment a guy on his bass playing skills, he is more likely to feel more confident, and thus more likely to do his duty as a man and start wooing the ladies. And if you did the muffin trick, the lady he’ll pursue will probably be you.

Wooing a guy isn’t hard. A couple of muffins here, a nice compliment about bass playing there, and the guy of your dreams should be taking you out to the newest twilight movie in no time. I’ll leave you with this one final thought that should inspire you as you begin your endeavors: I really hate oatmeal raisin muffins so if you could make me a chocolate chip or even a blueberry muffin, that would be great.

By Tom Morehouse

Gentlemen: What is the number one way to a guy’s heart?

Ladies: What is the number one way to a girl’s heart?

“What’s subtle for a girl and what’s

subtle for a guy...”

SURVEY SAYS

“To be genuine with him or burp in his face. Either will do.”

“Kindness. If you pick up a

crying child and wipe their tears. I’m

sold.”

“If you have killer eyes and

then look straight at her, you’ve won her

over.”

Ron Scott

Megan Morehouse

Ashley Kaine

TaylorMurray

"Humour. So is quoting ‘Indiana Jones’ at random times. Also, a sandwich never hurt anyone."

[4]

You may have read in the paper, saw on facebook, or noticed the jump at the pumps, but the provincial conservative party has released and started to implement their budget. The budget includes a rise in taxes on gasoline, diesel, and cigarettes. The budget put on hold an initiative to lower income taxes, but went ahead and lowered small business taxes. The budget has also required NB Liquor to find another $10 million to bring in (so donʼt be surprised if the price of liquor goes up).

To be fair, I am pretty pleased with what they have done. I donʼt smoke, or drink (although I have to admit that my husband has been known to have the occasional beer - so we might get slightly hit by that). But the b u d g e t i s g o i n g t o h u r t m y p o c k e t b o o k b e c a u s e o f t h e increased gas tax. I think my husband and I probably use more gas in a week then a long-haul trucker, and the increase will cost me a pretty penny, but I would rather gas tax go up then income tax or sales tax. Because really - at least to some extent, I can choose how much gas I use.

But our provincial finance minister has seemed to have been pretty realistic about what needs to be done, and he has a huge job in trying to reduce our provinceʼs debt (which is presently at $740 million). And maybe you donʼt think that reducing the debt is important, but itʼs easier to comprehend when broken down:

� If the province is $740 million in debt, then we owe about $1000 per person � r e s i d i n g i n t h e province - and maybe you donʼt think that is much. But that would � mean that my husband and I would owe $2000 - dangnabit, I donʼt think I have � that money sitting around in a bank account just waiting to bail my province out. � A n d what if I had kids? My dream is to have five children (I know, I am crazy) - � but I am positive that if I had five children I definitely could think of better things to �d o w i t h $7,000 then bail out the stupid c h o i c e s o f m y p r e v i o u s governments.

The real question is why we ever got in this debt in the first place. But I donʼt want your logical answers, I think this is a society problem. How many of us are in debt? I will be the first to raise my hands, and yet I am one of the lucky ones. I have had the good fortune to have had grandparents and parents who were never well off, but who thought far enough ahead and had the luxury to make savings accounts for me and my sisters. And I married a man who was also able to complete his education without a lick of student loans.

But our society seems to think that it is kind of ʻcoolʼ to be in debt. Now before you get defensive, hear me out: isnʼt it cool to have that new lululemon hoodie? Isnʼt it cool to have pictures of your spring break trip to the carribean up on facebook? Isnʼt is cool to have the biggest and best car, wedding, house, etc?

And if you pay for it with your own cold hard cash, it might be cool - but if itʼs someone elseʼs money - how cool is that?

I was sucked into credit card debt. I was told over and over that I needed a credit card if I wanted to build enough credit to buy a house. But I didnʼt realize at the time that if I maxed my credit card out, made minimum payments (or paid it off in full and then chalked up the debt again) it wouldnʼt improve my credit, it would worsen it. And it has made me $1000 plus interest further from being able to have a downpayment for a house. But I donʼt think anyone told me this - and if they did, I convinced myself that I wouldnʼt be like that - I would keep a zero balance and pay it off every month. But that was just silly, I donʼt think most of us have that kind of self control, or that much of a savings safety net.

Our society needs to be less-okay with being in debt. We need to start realizing that debt is a bad thing, and not a builder-upper. This thought that debt wi l l help us out is permeated through our society - from our governments to my own bank accounts.

And so if you are feeling the pressure of debt, or if you are worried about what is to come, I urge you to check out Dave Ramseyʼs book “The Total Money Makeover”. And if you donʼt have the money to do that, at least like the guy on facebook. I am not being paid by Dave Ramsey to hype up his book - Dave Ramsey has no idea who I am. But his book really woke me up to the realities of debt, and now my husband and I are actively working at getting in a better financial position, as I think we all should do.

So I challenge you today to take the same step that the conservatives are taking now, that Dave Ramsey took, and that I am taking: ʻlive like no one else, so that later on you can live like no one elseʼ.

The SpinBy Amy Pike

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For those who have been wondering about the gym and new equipment, I am pleased to report back that we have made some offers on kijiji. One of those offers includes a full home gym that far exceeds the abilities of our current facility. This home gym includes an entire set of dumbbells, leg press, peck-deck, universal machine(similar to existing but h igher qua l i t y ) , mu l t i -positional bench with bar and 322lbs of plates, hammer strength back machine, and all the grip accessories. For those wo r r i ed abou t ca rd io equipment, the deal does include a high-end treadmill. This is not etched in stone however I can guarantee you that before the year is over we will have new and improved equipment.

We have yet to make any final decisions but I met again today with Travis and Matt and when we have a

chance to meet with Heidi Soggie our Director of Student Development hopefully we can put things into motion. I am excited to be part of this change and I certainly hope the improved fac i l i t y ge ts to be experienced by all students, even if only for a few weeks for some of our graduates.

I also want to report that next Thursday the 31st is our annual ath let ics banquet. I want to give recognition and thanks to one o f our own

student athletes who has been working hard alongside

our AD Travis Tait to make this event a success. If you have any further questions about the banquet you can contact Kaitlin or Travis and I am certain they will assist you.

Fitness Room Update

&Athletics Banquet

By Adem Campbell

“Next Thursday the 31st

is our annual athletics banquet”

SPRING

BANQUET

When: Friday, April 1st

Time: 7:00-10:00pm

Where: The Commons

Cost: $10.00

Come see “12 Angry Jurors” and eat some good food at the same time!

Theme: Hollywood Glam

[6]

LIFE

Ya, that is right. Don’t ask Ed! Who is Ed? You know Ed? He is the security guy you see here on most weekends. The short guy dressed in a blue Walkers uniform. Ya, that guy. Well, Ed is a real nice guy, the friendly type who you are easily drawn into conversation with. And that is great.

Now, Ed tells me that sometimes as he is wandering around doing his shift, students often talk to him and occasionally ask a few questions. One of these questions went something like this: “ I wonder why the pool table has not been set up yet? Do you know why?” Come on now….do you actually expect Ed to know? Heck, there are very few people within the Crandall community who actually know the answer.

So, let’s go down that road for a minute. Here are a few questions for you, the student: “Why ask Ed? Do you not know the proper course of action to take regarding issues pertaining to the games room? Do you not really care? Obviously deep down, you do or you wouldn’t be asking the question. I’ve been around the university for a few years and have witnessed many student councils come and go. I remember one year a couple of guys had control of the games room and took a great interest in it and made things happen. Now, let me be clear, I have no idea whatsoever of who is responsible this year, so do not take offense. (Maybe I should ask Ed!). The structure of the student council has changed significantly over the years, for better or worse.

So, do you really care that you have not had your pool table this year? Are there people out there who enjoy playing pool? Have any of you followed up on it? It is fine if it is not an issue. I am not trying to make it an issue. Why would I care? As for Ed, he doesn’t mind being asked questions. Strike up a conversation with him about his family, work, his faith…stuff he knows about. But as for certain other questions……Why ask Ed?

“Do you not really care?”

Don’t

Ask

Ed!

By Laurie Douthwright

A cup full of uncounted momentspoured into my little hands

small, round, colourless transparentmy small hands hold them all -

but as I grow they drip through gaps in my clenched handsfrenzied trying to hold them still

Like sunlight they bleedthrough my hands

one by one

smashing into wondrous colour

[7]

� Many of you humble readers have probably already heard this band in some way shape or form. Despite having nearly pioneered the Trip Hop genre, they have also been known to have their songs often featured in movies (Snatch and Danny the Dog to name a few). Also, that Gregorian style techno which plays over the opening of the television show House – the very same band! They gained their notoriety in the early 90ʼs as they were one of the first groups to experiment with the ʻDJʼ rig or turntable. This ʻtinkeringʼ allowed them to produce music while exploring and incorporating a whole range of influences.

To pinpoint and accurately describe their sound would be nearly impossible; Massive

Attackʼs style falls way beyond your typical techno. It isnʼt unusual to hear actual guitarists and drummers make worthwhile appearances on their albums along with vocalists from any genre between Irish folk and Jamaican reggae. Not only do they cover a whole multitude of styles, but also do a great job at capturing

the individual characteristics of each genre.

But donʼt take my word for anything youʼve read - give them a listen. Songs like Angel, Man Next Door, and Small Time Shot Away are all great tracks that each show how capable Massive Attack are at representing

different genres through an electronic medium. Also, for you House fans, listen to

Teardrop – youʼll be in for a quite a surprise.

“Don’t take my word for

anything you’ve read - give them

a listen.”

Massive Attack

Review By

Matt McGraw

[8]

“Hey Laurie! Stop waving your pickle at me!”

“Dang my computer’s broke. I guess I’ll go to the

gym”

“I need a job”

"Did you hear that Jon Stewart was on the Daily Show last night”

“No you never mind”

“I want to play frisbee”

“Why is it snowing AGAIN?”

“One month until the end of the school year. Yikes.”

“What are you doing this summer?”

The King’s Speech is a movie that is based around King George VI’s speech impediment. This movie manages to combine an amazing cast and a historical story into one hilarious yet serious movie.

This is the story of King George VI ‘Bertie’ (Colin Firth) and how he because he was known for. After his brother (Guy Pearce) abdicates the thrown, George needs to take over and lead the nation into a war. AND HE CAN’T EVEN TALK RIGHT! After many tried and failed attempts to find a teacher that can help him, his wife (Helena Bonham Carter) finds an unorthodox ‘doctor’ named Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush). Through some very interesting methods, hopefully Lionel will be able to help Bertie before the speech that he has to make announcing WW2.

While I would not recommend this movie to any under 13 without parent supervision I would recommend this movie to anyone who likes a good

strong story. It seemed to take a little while to get into the movie but once in to the story I was captured in tears of sadness and laughter. This movie, along with Pride and Prejudice and What

a girl wants, is the best performance that I have seen Colin Firth in. His acting was superb. My advice? GO SEE IT!

I give this one 4 stars.

“B...B...Bertie”

By Brianna DeJong

“And he can’t even talk right!”