MARCH 1, 2010—VOL 39, NO. 10

THE HOMELESS

TRADING THE CUTTING ROOM FOR THE CLASSROOM

THE WOLFMAN: A CINEMATIC THRILL RIDE

FAFSA: YOUR WISH IS ITS COMMAND

FEATURES 3 pg.5 FEATURES 3 pg.9 OPINIONS 3 pg.11

METROPOLIS IS THE FREE BI-WEEKLY STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE

WOLFSON CAMPUS. ALL CONTENT IS PRODUCED

BY MDC STUDENTS.

TEASER IMAGES:LEFT: AJ BRUNSONCENTER: UNIVERSAL PICTURESRIGHT: LAZARO GAMIO

COVER PHOTO:TII KENYA XYNN

PLEASE RECYCLE

FEATURES 3 pg.6,7HOW THEY AFFECT THE WOLFSON CAMPUS

Metropolis, March 1, 2010NEWS2

Miami Dade College’s School of Architecture will take students across Western Europe from May 12 through June 3, as part of the study abroad program.

The focus of the program is archi-tecture and interior design.

As part of the program, students will take pictures and create sketches; documenting their experiences trav-elling through Western Europe.

At the end of the trip, the students will have a portfolio and essay based on their experience.

STUDENTS GOING TO EUROPE

QUICK NEWS

WOLFSON STUDENT MAKES WAVES ON AMERICAN IDOL

Music major Mi-chelle Delamor, has advanced to the top 24 on this year’s sea-son of American Idol.

Delamor, a stu-dent at the Wolfson Campus has per-

formed at several local events in the Miami area including, Zo’s Summer Groove 2008 and Summer Fest 2008 at the BankAtlantic Center.

She is a 2006 graduate of Miami Beach Senior High.

DELAMOR

MICHAEL FINCH II

ZORAIDA PASTOR

After almost five months of construc-tion, The Wolfson Café is now open, and Off the Grille, the Wolfson Campus food vendor, has passed its final inspections.

They are working with an expanded menu, which is being displayed on tele-vision screens, attracting many students.

“I like the [TV] screens,” said Michael

South Florida Commuter Services is cur-rently working with Miami Dade College’s Earth Ethics Department to launch a car-pool program at the College. The school is currently working on a Web site that will provide students and faculty transportation information for the Wolfson Campus.

“Miami Dade College has been trying to figure out how to set up a carpool at the col-lege for our faculty staff and students,” said Colleen Ahern-Hettich, director of the Earth Ethics Institute.

Nelly Navarro, Miami Dade County Mar-keting Associate for South Florida Commut-er Services, said that students will be able to sign up on the Web site and receive a list of students who live around their area with a similar schedule with whom they may car-pool. Similarly faculty and staff will be able to find co-workers to share a ride with.

“Carpooling reduces the demand for parking at the college,” Navarro said, “regis-tered carpoolers will [also] be rewarded with preferential parking spaces.”

Some students carpool to campus in or-der to save on gasoline expenses, such as Eric Lewis, 23, an engineering major.

“I used to spend about $45 a week on gas,” Lewis said, “but now me and three

other friends ride to school together to save on gas.”

Other students, like 19-year-old Geraldine Gonzalez, see the program’s appeal in the benefit it will on the environment.

“Anything I can do to help the environ-ment is a good thing,” she said.

However, some are worried about the program’s reliability.

“What if I have a class at 8:30 and the driver shows up at 8:15,” 27-year-old biology major Diriam Inamorada asked.

“I don’t want to be late for class.”Navarro says everyone who participates

in the carpooling program will be enrolled in the Emergency Ride Home Program.

The Emergency Ride Home Program is a state funded program that provides people who use alternative modes of transportation at least three times per day with six free taxi rides home, in case of an emergency.

Eduardo J. Padrón, president of Miami Dade College, supports the program.

“Anything that we can do to save energy and protect our environment is worth every effort,” Padrón said.

Gauthier, 20, a graphic design major. “[It] makes the café look more profes-

sional, more complete.”Henrriette Siria, 24, a health informa-

tion major, said Off the Grille looks a lot nicer.

“It makes you want to come here,” Siria said.

Other modifications will consist of a new ceiling, better lighting, fans and new patio furniture that will be in vary-

ing shades of blue.The tables will have umbrellas to shade

students from the sun, Schmelzer said.However, until the Student Life Patio

roll-down gates have been replaced, the installation of the emergency lights and the stuccoing of the ceiling have been completed, the patio will not be opened.

“There is still one more inspection to be passed before seating can be placed,” said Judy Schmelzer, dean of students.

Rose PierreStaff Writer

Zoraida PastorNews Editor

WOLFSON CAFÉ REOPENS

For more information on the program, visit: 1800234RIDE.com

HERALD REPORTER TO KICK-OFF WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH

The opening cer-emony for this year’s Women’s History Month will feature Miami Herald report-er Elinor Brecher on March 9

Brecher, who was part of a team that won a Pulitzer Prize for their coverage of Hurricane Andrew in 1993, will speak to students and faculty about working in a male dominated field. The event will take place in Room 2151 at 10 a.m. at Miami Dade College’s North Campus.

BRECHER

MICHAEL FINCH II

MICHAEL FINCH II

Andrea Orellana / Metropolis Staff

JOURNALISM, ENGLISH,MASS COMMUNICATIONS,BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION,or GRAPHIC ARTS?

Are you majoring in:

GET INVOLVED!Contact MANOLO BARCO

tel: (305) 237-3477 email: MBARCO@MDC.EDU

g

WRITING, REPORTING, PHOTOGRAPHY, DESIGN,ADVERTISING, or MARKETING?

Are you interested in:

Miami Dade College was awarded by the College Board for the imple-mentation of its 10 learning out-comes.

The college is now the recipient of the CollegeKeys Compact 2010 Inno-vation Award.

The 10 learning outcomes were first implemented in fall 2007, and is now a staple in many professors’ syllabi.

COLLEGE RECIEVES AWARD

Carpooling incentive provides alternative

PREMIERE: Students wait in line at the remodeled Wolfson Café.

Main Campus: 11300 NE Second Avenue • Miami Shores, Florida 33161-6695 • 800-695-2279

As an award-winning news anchor for 610 WIOD-AM, Nathalie Rodriguez speaks to thousandsof South Floridians each morning. She credits BARRY UNIVERSITY’S communication programwith opening her eyes to the various avenues available in the field. “You can’t beat BARRY’Sone-on-one attention and top-of-the-line education. BARRY is a part of me forever.”

www.barry.edu/Communication

Barry is one-on-one attention

Bachelor’s and master’s programs in broadcast communication and public relations Real world experiences • Intimate learning environment • Dynamic, accessible faculty

Nathalie RodriguezNews Anchor WIOD 610-AM

10389_MDC:Layout 1 2/19/10 12:23 PM Page 1

Metropolis, March 1, 2010NEWS4

The deadline for applying for the May 1 graduation ceremonies is drawing closer: March 29.

Applying for graduation has many ben-efits including checking if your grades and credits are in order, and having your name and information printed in the commence-ment program.

After all applications are in, student life sends e-mails containing information for cap and gown, and ticket pick-up.

However, applying for graduation is not mandatory.

But, Euphemia Jackson, an adviser that deals with the graduation process, says that she encourages students to meet with an advisor.

“We tell students to come in and see an advisor, just in case there is something that needs to be done,” Jackson said. “It may be easier in the long run.”

At an unscheduled time before gradua-tion, a system scan is run to check who is eligible to graduate.

If the scan is done past the deadline for applying for graduation, the names of those who didn’t apply will not be in the com-

Miami Dade College’s Wolfson Campus is undertaking a variety of programs to make the campus more sustainable.

“[MDC] has been working for some time to green the campus,” said Julie Trujillo, program leader at the Wolfson Campus.

The college has implemented many “green” initiatives: light sensors have been installed to help save energy; an-nouncements for students are displayed on TV screens instead of using printed signs; the college newsletter is distrib-uted by e-mail.

Trujillo is working with the college’s Green Team. The team’s ultimate goal is to bring green strategies to the college and develop a greener curriculum that will raise awareness for students and faculty.

Biology major Carlos Guerra, 22, says he has a genuine appreciation for the environment.

“Green issues worry me,” Guerra said. “I wonder what is being done to help the environment…I wonder how green the College is.”

Earth Ethics Institute Director Colleen Ahern-Hettich and Dean of Administra-tion Judy Schmelzer worked together

mencement program.Dalton Francis, a 19-year-old hospitality

major at North Campus, said he would not have known to apply for graduation had it not been for his mother, who knew about the graduation process from when she grad-uated from Miami Dade College.

Sherry Rix, transfer coordinator at North Campus, said that many students are not aware of applying for graduation because there is no information given to students on applying for it.

Rix also said that contrary to what stu-dents think graduation is not automatic.

“A lot of people think because it shows you have completed the credits, you’re done,” Rix said, “but you’re not.”

If students miss the March 29 deadline, it does not mean they are not able to gradu-ate.

“Students can still apply afterwards, their name just won’t be in the commencement program,” Jackson said.

Extra caps and gowns are available at the graduation site if students appear the day of.

Rix said that an e-mail is sent out to those who qualify for graduation after the scan is done, but that this system is not infallible.

“You might get an e-mail,” Rix said, “you might not.”

to have aluminum and plastic recycling bins installed throughout building seven at the Wolfson Campus.

According to Schmelzer, the recycling of paper products has increased from 7 tons college-wide in Sept. 2008 to 17 tons in Sept. 2009.

The College is looking to purchase more recycling bins, placing them in easy-to-find locations.

The Student Government Association has been essential in raising awareness for the recycling programs.

“The recycling program has been pushed and pushed by [SGA] for many years,” said Christopher Migliaccio, pro-fessor of ecology and environmental sci-ence.

Currently, SGA is conducting a cam-paign to recycle old cell phones, used toner cartridges and inkjet cartridges.

The boxes are located in building one by the public safety office.

“Since the beginning of the 2009 sum-mer term, SGA has been stressing our struggle to help planet Earth,” Trujillo said.

Law major, Kaytien Franco, 19, has no-ticed the efforts.

“MDC is really active,” Franco said. “They are encouraging students, [to recy-cle more] and teachers are talking about [recycling] more.”

Rebeka SilvaNorth Campus Bureau

Zoraida PastorNews Editor

Hurdling towardgraduation

New ‘green’ policiesbeing implemented

Metropolis, March 1, 2010FEATURES 5

Mario Beguiristain taught Scarface how to be Cuban; made some missions quite “impossible” and helped give Telemundo its name.

The 62-year-old is a seasoned veteran of the entertainment industry, with more than 30 years of experience.

He’s done everything from film produc-tion and advertising, to broadcasting and television.

Beguiristain is now a film professor at the North Campus’ School of Entertain-ment and Design Technology.

“Every so often you’ll get a teacher that seems like they don’t really have the experience,” said Chris Irarrazabal, a film student at MDC, “but Mario really knows what he’s talking about. He’s been in every kind of situation, so when he says things, you know what he’s saying is true.”

Born in Matanzas, Cuba, Beguiristain earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of South Carolina in 1970.

Hoping to break into the motion pic-ture industry, Beguiristain started out as an assistant cameraman trainee for the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.

The training helped him get work on the George Roy Hill’s Slaughterhouse- Five, Robert Wise’s The Andromeda Strain, and TV series’ including The Lucy Show, Mission Impossible, and The Brady Bunch, among others.

Two years later, Beguiristain was ac-cepted into the graduate program at the University of Southern California, where he completed his master’s degree in Film Education in 1975 and a doctorate in Com-munication (Cinema) in 1978.

While working on his dissertation, Be-guiristain had the opportunity to work with the legendary Orson Welles. In 1981 he was hired to be Al Pacino’s dialect coach in the iconic movie Scarface?

“I was hired to help Al Pacino act like a Cuban,” Beguiristain said. “I had to give him that Cuban flavor and make it look authentic.”

However, the run was short lived be-cause Beguiristain had problems with the script Oliver Stone wrote.

Beguiristain believed the Spanish ex-pressions and phrases in the script did not accurately portray Cubans.

“I tried providing alternatives,” Begui-ristain said, “but Oliver Stone didn’t like anybody messing around [with] his script, so he had me fired.”

Having worked for only a third of the film, Beguiristain doesn’t take any respon-sibility for Pacino’s performance.

“The irony is that nobody really minds,” Beguiristain said. “No one brings it up. I learned my lesson.”

Beguiristain went on to become the creative director for six major national Hispanic advertising agencies and earned several awards, including five Se Habla Es-pañol awards.

He hit another rough patch in 1978, when NBC-TV commissioned his 90-min-ute late-night comedy pilot Off-Holly-wood.

The show was supposed to follow six “regulars” who wanted to be actors in California, and was set to air every other Saturday, alternating with Saturday Night Live.

“Lorne Michaels, the producer for SNL, got extremely upset and he made sure our show wouldn’t go beyond the pilot,” Beguiristain said. “He was very protective

Jeannie RodriguezNorth Campus Bureau

of that time slot.”Michaels got exactly what he wished

for. Even with enough scripts and mate-rial to fill several episodes, Off-Hollywood never aired again.

“I’m happy it never happened,” Begui-ristain said. “It would have been very dif-ficult to do 90 minutes of comedy every two weeks on location.”

It wasn’t long before Beguiristain found himself working at KVEA-TV Channel 52. He was in charge of the network’s promo-tion, advertising, and on-air look when he heard a name change was being contem-plated.

“They wanted to call the network ‘His-panet,’” Beguiristain said. “I thought that was an Anglo name and the audience wanted a Spanish word.”

Beguiristain knew of a network station in Puerto Rico called Telemundo, and one in Cuba that had the name at one time.

“I felt the name had a lot of weight al-ready, particularly with Cubans and Puerto Ricans,” Beguiristain said. “I really pushed for the network to be called Telemundo. In the end, I won.”

After hundreds of television and radio commercials and more than 40 television programs, Beguiristain became a full-time professor at MDC in 2003.

“I’d always been interested in teaching,” Beguiristain said. “I was hooked after the film society at the University of South Carolina decided to start a program to teach film making to inner city kids in the summer of 1968. It was fun and I liked it.”

Many of the people Beguiristain has in his classes are students that come back to enroll in his courses semester after se-mester.

He has taught classes such as American Independent Film, Visual Communica-

tions, Screen Writing, Film Business and Film History.

Ignacio Albistu, a film major at the North Cmpus, is one of those students.

“The difference between Mario and other professors I’ve had is that he really, really knows and has a passion for what he’s talking about,” Albistu said. “Film is what I love, and I see him as someone I’d want to learn this stuff from. I want to learn from his experience because he’s got a lot of it and it helps.”

Barry Gordon, the director for The School of Entertainment & Design Tech-nology, said Beguiristain contributes his knowledge to aid in the development of other college-wide programs helping en-rich the cultural landscape of MDC with his literary works and theatrical produc-tions.

Within the last year, Beguiristain pro-duced the science documentaries that were played and given out during the in-auguration of the new Science Complex.

A reading of Beguiristain’s play on the life of José Martí was also held this year on Jan 29. The play is currently in develop-ment for production with the Department of Arts and Philosophy.

“It is difficult to imagine the School of Entertainment & Design Technology without the enormous contribution Dr. Beguiristain makes to its programs.” Gor-don said.

Beguiristain likes to leave his students with one word in mind: perseverance.

“There’s very little job security in the advertising and television business,” Be-guiristain said. “You only get to stay in it if you’re truly delivering and performing at the very highest level, if not, out you go. There’s somebody else waiting to take your job and do it better.”

MAESTRO: Mario Beguiristain hard at work at Miami Dade College’s North Campus. AJ Brunson / Falcon Times Staff

SHOWBIZ VETERAN SHARES EXPERIENCE

!GET INVOLVED! MANOLO BARCO—T (305) 237-3477—BMBARCO@MDC.EDUContactg

Metropolis, March 1, 2010FEATURES6

EVENTSMARCH 1— MARCH 15

INFORMATION COMPILED BY MARISE JIMENEZ. ALL IMAGES BELONG TO RE-SPECTIVE EVENTS/EVENT ORGANIZ-ERS. EVENT INFORMATION SUBJECT TO CHANGE AFTER PUBLICATION. WOMEN IN DANCE

CELEBRATING OUR WOMEN

Dance critics and writers will talk about dance, and professional dancers will speak about their careers.WHEN: Thursday, March 4, 2:30 P.M.WHERE: Room 5808

SCULPTURAL INSTALLATIONBY ARTIST SUSAN BANKS

WOMEN’S VOICES

Susan Banks celebrates women and art with her site-specific sculptural installation involving the fountain by Wolfson Campus’ building one.

WHEN: Tuesday, March 9, 12:30 P.M.WHERE: Wolfson Campus’ building one fountain area

A spoken-word/poetry slam event co-sponsored by NWSA.WHEN: Tuesday, March 2, 12:00 P.M.WHERE: Room 3210

A celebration of women’s many accomplishments throughout the generations co-sponsored by student life.WHEN: Wednesday, March 3, 12:00 P.M.WHERE: Room 3210

BANKS’ BETWEEN THE CLOUDS

BANKS

THE EARTH ETHICS INSTITUTE STUDENT PHOTOGRAPHY CHALLENGE:“VISIONS OF NATURE IN SOUTH FLORIDA”

Earth Ethics Institute invites students to engage with nature and try to capture it in digital format.Entries are due March 10.For more information: visitWWW.EARTHETHICSINSTITUTE.ORG/PHOTOCONTEST.ASP

THE HOMELESS

Tii Kenya Xynn / Metropolis Staff

SURVIVOR: Jorge Valdivieso, 43, said lost his job two months ago, and now lives on the streets. He has a wife and two children; an 8-year-old son, and a 5-year-old daughter. He supports his family by selling roses made out of palm fonds to passerbys. According to Valdivieso, he learned this skill from a Jamaican homeless man.

Tii Kenya Xynn / Metropolis Staff

BY DANITHZA ZEVALLOS

Metropolis, March 1, 2010FEATURES 7

FEMALE MATHEMATICIANS:HELENA RASIOWA

Math Instructor Guillermo Guillen will give a presentation on the extraordinary journey of female mathematician Helena Rasiowa and the contributions she had on mathematics, logic, cognitive science, computer science, artificial intelligence, and Polish education.

WHEN: Thursday, March 15, 9:00-9:50 A.M.WHERE: Room 2303

GUILLENRAISOWA

THE EARTH ETHICS INSTITUTE STUDENT PHOTOGRAPHY CHALLENGE:“VISIONS OF NATURE IN SOUTH FLORIDA”

Earth Ethics Institute invites students to engage with nature and try to capture it in digital format.Entries are due March 10.For more information: visitWWW.EARTHETHICSINSTITUTE.ORG/PHOTOCONTEST.ASP

Mark, a 27-year-old homeless man, is restless as he stands in the sun, his blond hair gleaming. He balances his footing on mismatched roller blades, smiling.

“I had it all when I was younger,” Mark said.

He asked that his real name be withheld due to problems with the police.

Mark became homeless when he began using drugs, as he says, “sniffing his pay-checks” away.

Mark lives around downtown; he uses the Metromover to get around, and scavenges food from local restaurants.

Mark—like many homeless people—spends a lot of time around the Wolfson Campus.

Ernesto Santiago, a part-time dispatcher for public safety since 2001, said the home-less have been on campus for as long as he has worked there.

“It’s been a while,” Santiago said. “It’s been years.”

The homeless situation has affected many on campus, most notably in situations where the homeless panhandle.

“I get really scared and annoyed when a homeless person comes to ask for money,” said Francys Chavez, 19, a business admin-istration major. “It is not fair that while we are working hard every day, someone has it this easy, getting drunk and sleeping all day.”

Santiago says that any homeless caught

panhandling on campus property is escort-ed away.

Some feel that public safety should do more about the situation.

“I think that the homeless situation on campus should be regulated,” said SGA treasurer Florencia Ancewicz, 19. “Security should do more to kick them out.”

According to Santiago, the homeless are not really a problem. However, there have been cases where “things got out of hand,” and some homeless have had to be removed from campus.

For example, homeless people are some-times caught using the restrooms to wash and clean themselves.

“We get some homeless people [com-ing] into campus to wash themselves off,” Gabriela Narvaez, student organization co-ordinator said. “Some of them are very dis-crete, they won’t make a mess. Others make a huge mess.”

Santiago said that they usually catch many homeless trying to sneak into the restrooms early in the morning. When they catch them trying to go into the restrooms, they escort them off campus.

But Narvaez said that there are limita-tions to what security can do. “If one of them sneaks in,” Narvaez said, “they don’t have any control.”

When Mark was asked about the home-less using Wolfson Campus restrooms, he said, while laughing: “When you got to go, you got to go.”

Some students like Robert King, 20, a mu-sic business major feel lukewarm toward the homeless: “I feel bad,” King said, “but I be-lieve they did it to themselves, so they have to pay the consequences.”

It’s been a while,” Santiago said. “It’s been years.—Ernesto Santiago, part-time dispatcher for Public Safety

‘’

Sam Gil, vice-president of market-ing for Camillus House said that the issue of homelessness is not so simple.

“You have to understand that people don’t become homeless just because,” Gil said.

Gil said that most people become home-

less when they can’t afford all their expenses and sacrifice housing because it’s usually the largest expense.

He added that the relationship between substance abuse and homelessness is con-troversial; while rates of alcohol and drug abuse are quite high among the homeless, substance abuse is not the sole cause.

Camillus House has provided services to the poor and homeless population of Mi-ami-Dade County since its founding in 1960.

According to Camillus House, the total number of homeless people in Miami-Dade County on an average night is 1,347.

Some students, like Ancewicz think that the proximity of Camillus House to Wolfson

CAMILLUS HOUSE

Tii Kenya Xynn / Metropolis Staff

Campus might be the reason for the high numbers of homeless on campus.

“It’s not the nicest thing to see home-less people looking through trash and ask-ing for money,” Ancewicz said. “But I guess everything will be better once they move Camillus House up north.”

Gil thinks otherwise.“People say that because of [Camillus

House], downtown is bad, full of homeless, [and] dirty,” Gil said, “but I think that if we were not here, this place would be worse.”

Gil tells the story of a homeless man named Giovan, who at 21, was mugged and almost killed.

“He had no money, family or friends who could help him, and nowhere to go.”

“He was being put on the streets with rubber tubing dangling from his head, to drain blood from his swollen brain,” Gil said.

Camillus House fed him, housed him, and provided him with medi-cal treatment.

They even got him dentures, to fix the bro-ken teeth he received during his mugging.

It’s not the nicest thing to see homeless people looking through trash and asking for money

‘

’—Florencia Ancewicz, 19, SGA treasurer

While some homeless have brighter days ahead of them, others are not so lucky.

“If I could go back in time,” Mark said, “I would’ve never started this.”

He rocks back and forth on his mis-matched skates, looking up at the now-cloudy sky, blond hair no longer gleaming.

“Nah, It’s too late for me,” he said. “This is home now.”

For more information on how to help the homeless, visit: WWW.CAMILLUSHOUSE.ORG

GIL

Metropolis, March 1, 2010A&E8

Students rushing to class in building one may easily mistake Room 1365 for just an-other class room. However, it is part of the Miami Dade College Gallery system which functions as a venue for exhibits that ex-press the collective aspirations of the artist on display.

Inside, the white walls are lined with pho-tographs and paintings that represent a se-mester’s worth of hard labor.

Tolling over their own pieces on the wall with an analytical eye, MDC students en-joy the League for Innovation Student Art Competition and discussing their creative process together.

The opening reception for the League for Innovation Student Art Competition was held on Feb. 18 and represents the begin-ning of an exhibit which will run through March 5.

Katherine King participated in the com-petition. Her photograph “Self-portrait” showed the subject in four distinct poses. She used multiply exposures in a single frame to achieve this shot. “I used a B set-ting on the camera, shot in a room that was completely dark,” King said. “I also used an external flash.”

The reception was the first public view-ing of art selected from composition classes across all of the Miami Dade College Cam-puses.

The paintings, photographs and instal-lation pieces on display were the first pub-lic viewing of art selected from art classes across all of the MDC campuses.

According to Jorge Luis Gutierrez, MDC Art Gallery System director, the pieces are selected by the faculty.

Once they are exhibited on campus, five pieces make it into the national competition that will be held in Toronto this year.

lected from tadpole ponds near the Brah-maputra.

However, at closer inspection, the food in-stantly causes a mouth-watering madness inevitably enchanting you to devour all the contents of the restaurant.

Due to an inherent disdain for a meatless meal, I ordered the curry chicken, and the vegetarian chickpea dish, chana masala; two of the options offered then, as the available dishes change daily.

The plating was nothing artful, in fact, it was non-existent; plopping food onto in-conveniently thin Styrofoam plates hardly counts and even though I can appreciate the no-nonsense street-food approach, for an $8 price tag, I think I am at least entitled to a plastic dish and cheap silverware.

Yet, any criticism I have about Raja’s disap-pears after the first bite.

Similar to my olfactory experience upon entering the venue, the first bite transported me to another, more exotic place.

Yes, more exotic than Miami.The curry chicken was cooked expertly,

with every bite revealing a new profile of flavor. The initial bite showcased the tex-ture of the meat, which from previous ex-periences with chicken, I expected to be dry and stringy.

However, Raja’s surprised me once again: the meat was deliciously moist, with a flavor

In between a nondescript luggage shop and a cafeteria bursting at the seams with Latino pride, Raja’s Indian Cuisine attracts customers with its spice-infused air. From the sidewalk, its neon signs compete for at-tention with a code-suspect pipe contrap-tion climbing up the side of the building.

A pleasant jingle welcomes customers into what can only be described as a mael-strom of scents. Upon walking in, you are convinced that you have stepped into an In-dian spice market—that is, until the people ahead of you in line order in Spanish.

The décor consists mainly of Indian “Americana”, that is, trinkets that remind the diner that they are, in fact, eating at an Indian restaurant.

Raja’s offers a variety of lunch specials, each allowing the diner to mix and match proteins and vegetables. Apart from their $5.49 lunch special, the other two most affordable options allow either three veg-etable portions, or one chicken portion and one vegetable portion; both priced at $6.99.

Annoyingly, a drink is not included in this option, forcing the thirsty to pay an extra $1.

The food is kept behind protective glass in heated serving trays; to be honest, at first glance the food looks like assorted scum col-

distinct from the sauce that accompanied it.On the other hand, the chickpeas were a

bit too al dente. They were crunchy at first but soon after, melted into a delicious paste that cleansed the palate of the numerous spices used in the chicken.

Raja’s possesses a quality that will make many happy: the portions are enormous.

As a man whose stomach often qualifies as a separate entity, I was shocked to find that after eating at Raja’s, I was full.

Perhaps this fact will become a footnote in history: Lazaro Gamio actually became full.

The Indian décor was much more con-vincing on the way out, and the food that I initially described as pond scum now poked fun at me for besting my insatiable hunger.

Raja’s is like an eternally beautiful flower covered in dirt: it drives the squeamish away, but for those who persevere, a culinary nir-vana awaits.

Notwithstanding, based solely on the menu, Raja’s essentially serves food as ad-dictive as crack-cocaine, except the first hit was far from free.

Nastassia AuguisteStaff Writer

Stars in studentart show

Lazaro GamioEditor-in-Chief

A FLOWER FROM THE ORIENT

VARIETY: Raja’s Indian Cuisine offers a rotating selection of delicious Indian specialties, everything from chana masala to samosas.

RAJA’S INDIAN CUISINE33 N.E. 2nd Ave.Miami, Fla. 33132

Metropolis, March 1, 2010A&E 9

Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island is a nail-biter of a film.

Based on the 2003 novel by author Den-nis Lehane, it takes place in 1954, where U.S. Marshall Teddy Daniels, played by Leonardo DiCaprio (Titanic, The Aviator), is brought to a hospital for the criminally insane to investi-gate the disappearance of a female patient.

With the assistance of his new partner Chuck, played by Mark Ruffalo (Collateral, Zodiac), he proceeds with the investigation, but soon comes to realize that things are not what they seem.

Without breaking “spoiler laws”, let’s just say the end was definitely not expected. This movie will have you sitting on the edge of your chair for its duration.

The film gets the audience involved. You will try to find yourself trying to help Daniels

The anticipated remake of the 1941 clas-sic horror film, The Wolfman, hit theaters this February 12.

Although The Wolfman came in second to Valentine’s Day at the box office, it met a great deal of expectations.

The film features Anthony Hopkins (Han-nibal, Amistad) as Sir John Talbot, and Beni-cio del Toro (The Usual Suspects, Sin City) as Lawrence Talbot/The Wolfman. The duo plays a father and son residing in a town cursed with a blood-thirsty beast.

The acting was phenomenal. Del Toro channeled the Lawrence/Wolf-

man convincingly; demonstrating the out-landish curse had befallen the character.

Del Toro had impeccable chemistry with Hopkins, who as Sir Talbot, played a mysteri-ous and controlling father.

Director Joe Johnson (Jumanji) did not disappoint in making you jump and squeal in fear of the flesh-eating monster.

The cinematography might not be suit-able for those who have weak stomachs.

Scenes in which the Wolfman devours vil-

Twice a month, galleries in Wynwood open their doors to art enthusiasts for the Second Saturday Gallery Walk.

The event provides the public with an en-tire evening to explore Wynwood, viewing the artwork at a variety of venues.

Everything from minimalist art, contem-porary socially conscious art, and avant garde is available to the viewing public.

A few galleries stand out among the staple venues; however, none displayed structure and craftsmanship as well as the Locust Projects.

The exhibit entitled, An Uneven Floor, could be seen from quite a distance and drew an excited and awe-filled crowd.

The floor of the gallery was filled wall to wall with the rolling hills of an artificial land-scape, constructed of 3,000 square feet of carpet, and “tons of wood.”

The floor, which is raised in the northern corners of the exhibit, is sturdy enough for guest to walk on. The plush carpet exudes comfort. Like the carpeted floor of many homes, it invites guests to remove their shoes, walk on, or even sit on the carpeted landscape.

“The artist designed a carefully conceived plan,” said Chana Budgazad Sheldon, execu-tive director of the Locust Projects.

Leyden Rodriguez-Casanova, a New World School of the Arts graduate, created the installation, with the help of contractors

and professional carpet installers. “An Uneven Floor is a continuation of the

artist’s interest in domestic objects and sub-urban architectural elements that explore social matters,” Sheldon said.

Rodriguez-Casanova’s piece, Inaccessible Gazebo, explores architectural elements, and is on display at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.

“Employing the language of Minimalism, the plush pink carpet suggests the safe en-vironment of a domestic setting, while the unexpected elevation and descent of An Uneven Floor will create a sense of instability as visitors walk through the space,” Sheldon said. “This contradiction sets the stage for an unsettling dialogue between the viewer’s perception of a familiar object and its new context.”

The use of carpet in such a unique way to express meaning, comfort and create a surface that is both maneuverable and well constructed makes An Uneven Floor a fasci-nating conversation piece.

solve mysteries. You’ll feel his pain when his world came crashing down. As you watch the movie, you’ll have a hard time keeping still in your seat; every scene will draw you closer to the screen.

Shutter Island is a well-presented psycho-logical horror film, but at times the mind games were too intense.

This is not the type of movie that leaves you happy or sad, but confused and wanting more. You’ll find yourself thinking about the movie on your way home.

From the creepy ambiance to the brain-teasing narrative, this movie will give you a run for your money.

You might even consider watching the movie again.

lagers limb by limb were extremely graphic, showing in detail how he ripped apart the viscera of his victims.

The goriness is very close to the amount that Quentin Tarantino displays in his films, but in a different, less cartoony style.

The dark, foggy settings sent chills down my spine; setting the perfect mood for the duration of the film.

Although the ending was predictable, even for those who haven’t seen the origi-nal film, everything about it kept me on my toes.

Nothing says thriller quite like gypsies, family secrets, a town’s hunt for an unstop-pable beast, and for all the romantics out there, a love story mixed in.

This one is worth the high cost of a date-night movie.

Not only will you get to experience a cin-ematic adventure, but you’ll also have your date reaching for safety in your arms.

Dianelys DiazStaff Writer

Ailyn FojoStaff Writer

Nastassia AuguisteStaff Writer

SHUTTER ISLANDDirected by Martin ScorseseStarring Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo — 2hr 18min, Rated R

THE WOLFMANDirected by Joe JohnstonStarring Benicio del Toro, Anthony Hopkins — 1hr 42min, Rated R

No shut-eye afterseeing Shutter Island

The Wolfman is wild!An Uneven Floor is a solid experience

Courtesy of Paramount PicturesCOOL GUYS: Mark Ruffalo (left), and Leonardo DiCaprio (right), star in Shutter Island.

FEROCIOUS: Benicio del Toro stars as the terrifying beast in Joe Johnston’s The Wolfman. Courtesy of Universal Pictures

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PLEASE RECYCLE

Metropolis, March 1, 2010OPINIONS 11

If you’re a young adult in this new mil-lennium, chances are that you’ve heard peo-ple in your family berate the music that our generation claims to be delightful sound.

They complain about its decline in qual-

Ernesto FerrisColumnist

ity and the musical incompetence of those behind the mic—and with good reason. Our elders had Buddy Holly and Elvis, The Ramones and The Beatles, even Boy George and Madonna, but those singers didn’t have auto- tune, which can help give you that “perfect pitch”, and unfortunately helps to give a lot of people unearned fame.

In an age where technology is a neces-sity, the music industry is using that little double-edged sword to balance out some artists’ abilities (think of Kanye’s singing). In a way, our elders were right.

The singers of their day had to work hard and were not just a collection of pretty fac-es with catchy tunes and money to throw around. Even if the ones using voice modi-fiers are a minority, that minority is influenc-ing mainstream music faster and faster.

The whole process is fairly simple. An art-ist records his or her song and right after pops it into the studio to start work on it. A specialist loads the song onto a program such as vocoder, evo-pitch, or any other soft-ware tools that enables voice modification.

Singers can select a special effect (e.g the deepening of the voice) or can modify the parts that don’t sound well by adjust-ing them to sound clearer and perfect. The enhancements are then ready to leak onto the radio, online, and on records.

Pop music’s (and to some extent rock mu-sic’s) uniform pitch has humble beginnings; with artists such as Cher using it for a unique effect. However, most singers used their own natural talent and hard work. Where would rock music be if Janis Joplin and Bob

Many students will tell you that one of the biggest advantages of going to a col-lege like Miami Dade is the “free money”. Of course it’s not really free; like anything else that comes from the government, it doesn’t

actually come from the government but from your parents’ paychecks.

Still, the quarterly bursts of unearned cash burns proverbial holes in many pockets. $50 here and there for a metro pass, a used book or three at the beginning of each semester, maybe a monthly cell phone payment; all these costs are nothing in comparison to all the frivolous things our young minds con-vince us we need to buy.

An elaborate rock band simulator, a cou-ple of snazzy pair of jeans, seasons of Scrubs on DVD, a pricey dinner for a sweetheart; the percentage of our refund money that actual-ly goes toward something school-related is unimpressive, or rather, impressively minute.

In fact, the percentage of money spent eating on campus in a single semester is

Andrea OrellanaOpinions Editor

probably higher than that of anything else purchased for or on school.

What is it that makes so many of us allo-cate our refund money so unwisely? Is it the little kid in all of us that seems to be set free by the power of green; is it, perhaps, an act of rebellion against our “dependant status” on parents’ taxes?

I know the first thing I did when I got my first refund was spend $1 on a Tibetan bracelet on eBay just because I could and then immediately after, I ordered delivery; It felt as if something had been unleashed and my ability to own was no longer inhibited.

Of course I could have afforded spending a single dollar before I got my refund, but knowing that there was a lot more where that came from made the purchase special.

Is it possible that the reason we spend so ignorantly is due to the fact that maybe all we’re looking for is a sort of materialistic dominance and a false sense of id-generat-ed satisfaction?

Maybe we define ourselves too fervent-ly by what we own and leap at a chance to make a statement, if only to ourselves, with the money the government so kindly “grants” us.

Maybe it’s just really nice to have a Scrubs box set or two.

A word to the wise: venture away from a Walgreens when you’ve got a heavy MDC OneCard in your wallet. When you’re intoxi-cated on free money, no amount of singing bass fish will seem enough.

Illustration by Lazaro Gamio

THE GOVERNMENT GENIE

Dylan used auto-tune? We can’t see it that way because those

two, and many other individuals, brought something new and natural to the table. These days, it’s mostly used as a ‘safety net’ of sorts, and used in various pop, R & B, rock, and even rap songs.

Don’t get me wrong, a lot of artists have tremendous quality, and many of them are against voice modifiers, Jay-Z for example. But that doesn’t mean talent should be at-tained so easily, like so many new one hit wonders and instant artists seem to be do-ing.

It’s like a professional athlete using ste-roids. There just is no way people don’t frown upon that.

It’s a bit like the old story of the “Turtle and the Hare”, except this time the hare actually

PELL GRANTS GRANT MANY WISHES

THE LOST ART OF MAKINGMUSICTRADITION GIVING WAY TO VOCODER VOODOO

—VS.—KANYE ELVISwins due to his crafty shortcut.

The unfortunate road down which we may head if this persists is that music will become so standardized that it will become hard to differentiate, and will give those people who really aren’t singers a chance to become famous.

Anyone could just be the next pop star, with just the right software and look. Think about it: one can only recreate excellence so much before it loses its meaning.

The voice modifier feature has become such an everyday thing that we will soon lose the ability to tell the difference between true quality and synthetic recreation.

Do we really need singers who modify their voices and create an environment of perfection to a generation already jaded by loss of creativity? I think not.

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