The VanCougar: January 26, 2009

8/14/2019 The VanCougar: January 26, 2009

1/12

After a considerable hiatus,KOUG radio has broken radiosilence. The VanCougar spoke withSpring Atkinson, Program Manager of KOUG, on Wednesday January21 regarding the current activities of the station. Lately, progress has beenkicked into high gear.

Zane Wagner and several other enthusiastic students have takena lively interest in the progress of KOUG since last fall. [Wagner] hasreally stepped into a leadership role atKOUG, says Atkinson. Right now,we are all contributing in order for our re-launch to be a success.

Wagner applied for the positionof Station Manager last Fall, butwas not con rmed by the StudentMedia Board (SMB) during theDecember meeting because membersof the Board felt that the positionwas inadequately advertised. It isextremely important to establish goodleadership for KOUG, says Atkinson,Without it, recruitment and keepingstudents involved at KOUG will beineffective.

Atkinson said that after Wagner was con rmed as Station Manager at the January 23 SMB meeting,the station will take applicationsfor Music Director, TechnicalDirector, Promotions Director, andProgramming Director. Where weare with KOUG at this point in time,says Atkinson, lack of experienceis no problem since we are all tryingsomething new.

According to Atkinson, just thisweek we have returned to broadcastingin conjunction with our training after along series of planning meetings.

We will be heavily advertisingour of cial air date around campus,says Atkinson, so I hope thateveryone will take the opportunityto listen to KOUG.

The planning meetingsAtkinson mentions are open to allstudents, and those interested inattending can contact the stationvia e-mail at [email protected].

At the time of writing,the radio station may only be

streamed via an on-campusinternet address, accordingto Michael Hatch, one of KOUGs DJs.

Students interestedin applying for a job withKOUG can contact thestation at the same e-mailaddress. Also, saysAtkinson, keep a look out for yers in regardsto applications,training sessions,and other KOUGsponsored events.

By Kati Hughes T he Van C ougar

New surge of interestsparks advancement

Washington State University Vancouver January 26, 2009 Issue 10 www.vancougar.com

KOUGRadio

gets afreshstart

Page 8Page 4Page 6 Page 8

Former WSU employeedisplays her artwork in Vancouver galleries

Jodi TrippsDigital

Photography WSU-V students spent theday doing communityservice projects

around Vancouver

MLK Jr.Service Day

I n t h i s i s s

u e :

Local bands play freeconcert for students

at Get to Know You Tuesdays

WSU-V Band Concert

Cougs at the capitoland budget cuts

among topicsdiscussed

From thePresident

Zane Wagner, recently conrmed Station Manager of KOUG Radio, hopes to have the station on the air waveswithin the next couple months.

Im excited to see so much interest in the radiostation. We have 14 DJs right now, and were looking toadd more.

Zane says KOUG Radio will be available as an off-campus stream from the KOUG website within the nextcouple weeks.


2/12


3/12

Our goal is to submit 5,000 emails by midnight today. That number will put us ahead of every other grassrootsmovement that has submitted commentsto the Obama administration and willensure that our issuegets the attentionit deserves.

This quote comes from an e-mailmessage from a friend, who received itfrom a friend of another friend. Thesewomen are all concerned about lettingCerti ed Professional Midwives contin -ue to deliver babies in womens homes.(In case youre interested, the group hasa Web site, www.TheBigPushForMid-wives.org, and its mot-

to is Envisioning asafer, less-costlymodel of maternitycare in the U.S.)

But it doesntmatter what the is-sue is. Many peoplehave issues [sic], and they all seem towant rst consideration by the Obamaadministration. Up until Jan. 20, around2:00 pm Eastern Time (right after Obamas inauguration), the of cialObama transition Web site encouragedcomments about every issue. After theinauguration, a visit to the www.change.gov Web site gave me this message:The transition has ended and the newadministration has begun. Please join

President Obama at whitehouse.gov.Because a former job requiredme to visit the www.whitehouse.govsite---and many other government Websites---fairly often, I can compare theObama and Bush versions of the site.The new site is more inviting, informa-tive, and user friendly. It includes Mi-chelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden as partof the administration, with brief biosabout the two women as accomplishedindividuals rather than dutiful adjunctsto accomplished men. And it allows for

participation: Just as Candidate Obama promised, President Obama promises to post non-emergency legislation publiclyfor ve days so everyone can commenton it before he signs it.

More importantly, we can still send

messages to Obamas staff, just as wedid at the change.gov site. The link ishttp://www.whitehouse.gov/administra-tion/eop/opl/ (Of ce of Public Liaison),and the OPL promises that more oppor-tunities will become available shortlyfor further participation.Even more interesting is the listof issues Obama will be addressing,with our input, in the coming weeksand months. The agenda page (http://www.whitehouse.gov/agenda/) pro-vides links from each issue to pagesof detailed information about Obamas

proposals for addressing them. Theresno link for Science on that page, butthere are links to Technology andEnergy & Environment, which cov-er many of the issues of scienti c re -search.

Additionally, if you follow theAdditional Issues link, youll nd aScience paragraph which points out

that we must ap- ply new creativ-ity to solvingcurrent problemsof energy, HIV/AIDS, and cli-mate change. The

concluding para-graph gives hope for science teachersand researchers: President Obama andVice President Biden believe federallyfunded scienti c research should playan important role in advancing scienceand technology in the classroom and inthe lab.

Also hopeful is the paragraph onSportsmen, which acknowledges thecontributions of hunters and anglers tothe preservation of wildlife reserves,wilderness areas, and clean waters inthe U.S. That paragraph allows thatAmericas hunters and anglers are akey constituency that must take an ac-tive role and have a powerful voice inthis coalition.

I went to the whitehouse.gov Website to post a message to the administra-tion about my own pet science issue, butafter reading the Obama-Biden agenda, Irealized they have all my bases covered.Likewise, my friends friends friendswho want more freedom for womenshealth-care choices may nd hope onthe Women page. If not, all they haveto do is send their message directly tothe Obama administration. I hope youlldo the same, whatever your issue.

January 26, 2009 3OPINION

As the economy continues tolook grimmer by the day, more andmore people are looking back atthe last year and asking a reason-able question: what happened? Acommon opinion in the mainstreammedia that was shared by PresidentObama during the campaign wasthat the collapse was due to a lais-sez faire economy that had little or no governmental oversight.

But was the present crisis re-ally caused by the free market?While there is an element of truth tothe narrative, the real story is muchmore complicated and comes to avery different conclusion.

The story of the market col-lapse must begin with two govern-ment-chartered businesses- FannieMae and Freddy Mac. Fannie Maewas created during the New Deal toincrease the amount of money avail-able for mortgages so that mortgagecompanies would be willing to takemore risks and loan to less quali edapplicants. To do this, the companywould borrow funds from the capi-tal market and buy mortgages frommortgage rms. This removed themortgage and the risk from that

company and allowed it to sell moremortgages.

The company worked in thiscapacity until 1968 when it was

privatized. However, the compa-ny retained its government char-ter and continued to have many of the advantages it had as a govern-ment agency. The company was

perceived by its stockholders tostill be backed by the governmentif anything went wrong. FreddieMac eventually joined Fannie Maeas a nearly identical organization toadd diversity tothe secondarymortgage mar-ket.

In 1991,Fannie MaesCEO James A. Johnson proposed toCongress that the company be al-lowed to borrow essentially unlim-ited money at just slightly higher rates than the U.S. Treasury. Mem-

bers of Congress went with thedeal because it would allow FannieMae and Freddie Mac to increasethe number of mortgages availableto their constituents and would in-crease their chances in the next elec-tion. Congress added an affordablehousing mission to the charter of Fannie, which led to the implicitguarantee that the governmentwould back the rm if it had nan -cial troubles.

Immediately, both companies began making commitments of mil-

lions and eventually trillions of dol-lars to increase home ownershipamong less fortunate Americans.During the 90s, Congress contin -ued to remove oversight from Fan-nie and Freddie and the mortgagemarket as a whole to promote lend-ing to less quali ed buyers. Add inthat Freddie and Fannie spent mil-lions on lobbyists, and the resulting

poor oversight is perfectly predict-able.

Another piece of the puzzle isthe Community Reinvestment Act

( C R A )in 1977that re-q u i r e dm o r t -g a g e

companies to do business in the en-tire geographical area that they op-erated. The intention was to forcecompanies to give loans to the inner city as well as the suburbs. In the90s, it was discovered that therewas a higher rejection rate for mi-nority loan applicants. This hadnothing to do with racism and wasthe result of the creditworthiness of the individuals, but legislation be-gan to put stress on lenders to lendequally to all ethnic groups, despitecreditworthiness.

The result of all this was thatloans were made to applicants whocould not pay. The dubious mort-gages were then bought by Freddieand Fannie and repackaged as secu-

rities and sold to investors. Whenthe housing bubble nally did pop,the damage was far more wide-spread than it would have been hadit not been for extreme governmentregulation.

This said, there was a lot of stu- pidity in the business sector as well.The mortgage companies shouldhave seen that the bubble created byarti cially low mortgage rates andrequirements could not last, and thatwhen the bubble did pop the govern-ment would be unable to patch upthe damage. Also, there were thosewho unethically used the market totheir advantage: buying houses, us-ing the equity, and foreclosing withlittle or no consequences.

And it is surprising just howmany very intelligent Wall Streettypes had their blinders on. Thefact is that when the mortgage crashdid happen, no one was really sur-

prised. What did surprise peoplewas the extent to which it affectedthe world market. The fact is thatmany people saw the crisis coming

but the wealth of the moment wasmore alluring. So they continued togobble up the pro ts and pray thatthey would be unaffected when theend did come.

So while there is much that can be blamed on human nature, it is ul-timately the interference of govern-ment in the mortgage market that

bears the brunt of the blame for the present economic crisis.

The Sluice Box

By Matt Hunter T he Van C ougar

Why Do You Ask?

By Louise Wynn T he Van C ougar

Is free market to blame?

The act is that many people sawthe crisis coming, but the wealth o

the moment was more alluring.

Whats your issue?

Many people haveissues and they allseem to want frstconsideration by theObama administration.

By Jake Kleinschmidt T he Van C ougar

Man on the StreetHow do you feel about the 44th President?

Jeremie HargetDTC

Im hoping he can deliver thechange he promised the last two

years. But I still am skeptical be-cause just like any other politician

he has his own agendas.

It was hard not just to sit and stare with a blank face inspired and awe- struck. He doesnt try to say he is going to try to do everything, which

makes his goals seem realistic. In turn he puts some of those goals on meand it makes me want to set myself realistic goals and accomplish them. And make a lasting change for the positive, and try to serve something

larger than myself.

Natalya GruntkovskiyAccounting

I dont think it will make much of a difference with Obama, I dont mean that in a bad way.. just the

whole controversy with him being the frst black president. Im curi -ous to see what this will mean for

later.

Gina BaconUndeclared

Its a big day for America. Iminterested to see what changes areactually made since Obama is all

about change.

Brandi LeEnglish

I feel good, I think its a good thing, Im excited to see what he does, how

he can help our country go in theright direction. So Im excited.

Nick FerdererEnglish/Public Afairs/Human Development


4/12

The VanCougar4 ASWSUV

Fellow Students,

As you may know from readingcampus or community media, public

institutions of higher learningin Washington State

including Washington StateUniversityare facingextraordinarily large budget cuts this year.

Specifc numbers aside,the proposed cuts tothe institution andto state-sponsored

fnancial aid pose avery real, very signifcant

threat to students seekinghigher education. These

cuts come at a time when the state is experiencingincredible budget shortfalls, but as our Chancellor,Hal Dengerink, observed, This is not the time to

be cutting the solution to our problems.In this climate, nothing is more important than

voicing our concerns, our fears, and our worries.Our administrators will listen! Our Board of Regents will listen! Our legislators will listen! Butit remains our civic duty to speaka fundamentalright and responsibility that is not often exercised

by college students.ASWSUV will be launching a letter-writing

campaign over the next several months, in whichwe will make it as easy as possible for you tocontact your legislators to urge them to protectaccessibility to higher education. Please join us intelling our legislators that students will not balancethe budget with high tuition increases. Look for

yers and more detailed advertisements in the near future.

Additionally, we will be attending Coug Day atthe Capitol on February 16th. This is an event inwhich Cougs from all over the state will join hands inOlympia, meeting with legislators and representingWSU. All are welcome and encouraged to attendthis event! If you are interested, please contact theASWSUV Director of Legislative Affairs, Sommer Knight, at [email protected].

If you have questions about the state budgetand how it will affect students, or wonder wwhatelse ASWSUV is doing to represent studentneeds in Olympia, please contact me at [email protected].

-Peter Sterr

From the President:

Washington State University will conduct a public hearing on revisionof WAC 504-28 Policies and Regulations Applying to All StudentOrganizations on February 5, 2009 at 4:00 p.m. in Lighty Student ServicesBuilding, Room 405, Pullman, WA 99164. Notice of this public hearingis hereby given in accordance with provisions of RCW 34.05.320(4).The University intends to amend the WAC rules and language regardingregistered student organizations, to accommodate a multi-campus system,and to clarify requirements for participation and membership in such

organizations.The University will adopt the amendment based on the statutory

authority found in RCW 28B.30.150.

You may review the proposed amendments in the Of ce of Procedures,Records, and Forms, Information Technology Building, Room 3089, or bygoing to the website at http://www.wsu.edu/~forms/ProposedWAC.html.You may testify at this meeting. You may also direct written commentsto Ralph Jenks, Director of Procedures, Records, and Forms, RulesCoordinator, mail code 1225, Pullman, WA 99164; e-mail forms@mail.

wsu.edu; fax 335-3969.

Submit all written comments by 5:00 p.m., February 5, 2009.

PUBLIC NOTICE

Hearing on Proposed Amendment to theWashington Administrative Code

WSU Student Organization Policies and Regulations

Send a Valentine!

Your ad will be placed in the VanCougarfor everyone to see!

Send a letter to your loved one or a shout out to a friend.

Just $5 for afty word love note.

Email us at [email protected] with your letter!


5/12

Vancouver, Wash. - The Center for Social and Environmental Justiceat Washington State UniversityVancouver presents its third annual

Spring Research Colloquium, whichincludes faculty, graduate student andundergraduate presenters. The SpringResearch Colloquium also includes

presentations by staff of the YWCAClark County, and by members of theCowlitz Tribal Council, who will speak about their ongoing research, as well asresearch needs and interests.

All of the presentations are freeand open to the public, at 12:00 p.m.in the Multimedia Classroom building,room 6. Parking is available in meteredspaces or in the Blue Lot for $3 per day. For more information on the CSEJ,visit http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/

programs/csejustice/.

Jan 22: Kathy Kniep, ExecutiveDirector of the YWCA Clark County,will provide an overview of theYWCAs programs, research needs andother opportunities for collaborationwith WSU Vancouver faculty, staff andstudents.

Feb. 18: Taylor Aalvik, CowlitzIndian Tribe, member of the CowlitzTribal Council, director of NaturalResources, biologist and historyresearcher, and masters student inenvironmental science and regional

planning; and Steve Kutz, R.N.,

M.P.H., member of the Cowlitz TribalCouncil and manager, Cowlitz IndianTribal Health Clinic, speaking on theongoing research and research needsand interests of the Cowlitz IndianTribe.

March 5: Thabiti Lewis, assistant professor of English, WSU Vancouver,Sam Greenlee: Re-articulation of Revolt in Ellisons Invisible Man. SkyWilson, Ph.D. candidate in Americanstudies, The U.S. War of Terror HasGotten Yo Mama: Talkin B(l)ack toCritique, Confront and Combat Racismand U.S. Imperialism.

March 24: Clare Wilkinson Weber,assistant professor of anthropology,WSU Vancouver, From Commodityto Costume: Productive Consumptionin the Making of Bollywood FilmCostumes. Sue Peabody, professor of history, Race and Free Soil inComparative Perspective: Furcy andDred Scott.

April 8: Gretchen Rollwagen-Bollens, clinical assistant professor of marine ecology, Assessing the FactorsIn uencing Cynobacteria Blooms inVancouver Lake, Wash. Brian Tissot,associate professor of marine ecology,Deep Impacts: Effects of Fishing onPaci c Continental Shelf Ecosystems.

April 28: Adam Carpinelli, Ph.D.candidate in world history, HistoricalRe ections on the Globalization of Dams. Steve Fountain, assistant

professor of history, WSU Vancouver,Symbols of a Bad Land: Horses,Humanity and History.

January 26, 2009 5FEATURES

ComedySportz premiered thenew Magenta Theater on MainStreet last week with their first

public performance in Vancouver.The improv troop performs everyweek in their own venue in Portland, but last weeks shows marks thefirst time they have provided their

brand of interactive comedy for anon-private Vancouver audience.

Id seen them before, saidWSU-Vs Dr. Sue Peabody whoattended the sold out 7 p.m. show,theyre great. The 9:15 p.m. show,added when 7 p.m. sold out, alsofilled rapidly making it clear thereis an audience on the north bank for uproarious comedy. ComedySportzhas the track record to bring it on;they have over 15 years experiencein Portland, offering shows Friday,Saturday and Sunday evenings.

ComedySportz is a unique blend

of competition and improve similar to Drew Careys WhosLine Is It Anywaythat getsdownright wild and wacky. Atthe Vancouver shows two teamsof three actors each battled for

points by acting out situations or improving on words provided bythe spectators. Sometimes audiencemembers were included on stage.

The two teams performingat Magenta, red (representingPortland) and blue (representingVancouver), ran in close contest for the duration of the show. A referee(quite funny himself) judged theimprove and the audience votedwith red and blue flyswatters after each game. In the end the Vancouver team won.

Might ComedySportz be greatentertainment at WSU-V? I wasthinking it would be a totallyexcellent thing, said Peabody. Theyalso provide teambuilding activitiesfor groups. For more informationand Portland location and showtimes check out ComedySportz atwww.portlandcomedy.com.

By Greg Zschomler T he Van C ougar

Downtown Vancouver is fullof small activities for locals

Magenta Theater premiere

Gran Torino solidi es one thing for

certain: Clint Eastwood is the master of the hilariously crotchety old man. Onewell placed close up of his ominouslynarrowed eyes can dissolve an audienceinto laughter; but he can also emanatean unparalleled malice, creating a

portraiture of a man no sane personwould mess with.

Eastwood stars as the acidic WaltKowalski, a tortured Korean war vet,recently widowed. He lives in a rundown and gang ridden neighborhoodwith his loyal dog and a collection of guns. His family, particularly his petulantgranddaughter, are nearly satirical intheir insensitive, condescending, greeddriven meddling. Walt dismisses themwith venomous ease, seemingly contentwith his prickly isolation.

Walt does love one thing: his 1972Gran Torino, which he keeps cloisteredaway in the garage. The car ultimately

prompts a chain of events that introduceshim to his neighbors, teenaged siblingsThao and Sue Lor (newcomers Bee Vangand Ahney Her), who must contend witha volatile Hmong gang.

Sue serenely ignores Walts snarlinghostility and racist remarks, dismissingthis unfriendliness as old man bravado,and even affectionately nicknames himWally. Meanwhile, Walt purposely

butchers the pronunciation of Hmong

names, stubbornly calling Thao Toad.While Sue is feisty and domineering,Thao is passive and reserved, inducingfunny scenes where Walt teaches him to

be a man.The content grows progressively

darker as the lm proceeds, and theending isnt too dif cult to guess, butits engrossing from beginning to end,mostly due to the subtle complexitiesof Eastwoods performance. Walt isntactually racist nor as hateful as he

pretends, but is rather weighted down by an unbearable guilt. His angry, profane demeanor is a faade and ashield, which inevitably wilts when hewinds up unexpectedly caring aboutsomething.

The performances from the youngnewcomers have been lambasted inother reviews, but they shoulder someincredibly dif cult material withcare and conviction, and have greatchemistry with Eastwood, who wanted

a cast of unknowns. Another standout isthe dutiful Father Janovich (Christopher Carley), who promised Walts wife thathed get the contemptuous old grouchto attend at least one confession.

Often funny, occasionally touching,and always entertaining, Gran Torinois a fantastic movie that masterfullyuntangles the psychological nuancesof a dif cult man. It portrays therelationships with the refreshing honestyexpected with a protagonist like Walt.

No smarmy, saccharine sweetness. Nononsense.

The movie is 116 minutes long andrated R for language and violence.

Racing to theaters to see Gran Torin

By Rosie Bartel T he Van C ougar

A movie with action, comedy,drama and relationships

Vancouver, Wash. - In conjunctionwith the University Honors program,WSU-V offers a series of lecturesMonday nights from 6 - 7:30 p.m. inthe Administration building, room110. Parking is available in the BlueLot for $3.

Jan. 26: William Guilford,University of Virginia, Engineeringa Safer Pregnancy in the DevelopingWorld

Feb. 9: Barry Hewett, WSUVancouver, What PediatriciansCan Learn from a Cross-CulturalPerspective on Infancy

Feb. 23: Suzanne Smith, WSUVancouver, Discipline among theHutterites

March 9: Pavan John Anthony,WSU Pullman, Family, Culture andPerceptions of Disability in India

March 23: Marcelo Diversi, WSUVancouver, Brazilian Street Youth:A Systems Theory Perspective

April 6: Denise Lewis,University of Georgia, Culture,Aging, and IntergenerationalRelations: Rethinking Meanings of Exchanges across Generations

April 13: Michele Gamburd,Portland State University, CareCrisis in the Global South:Demographics, TransnationalMigration and the State

Honors program lecturesWSU-V o ers family adviceto the public on Mondays

Spring lecture series beginsWSU-V o ers family adviceto the public on Mondays


6/12

Kathleen Denlinger, a WSU-Vstudent, found herself writing cards to

patients in hospitals on Martin Luther

King Jr.. Day and quite a few other WSU students went to work that day,too. The occasion was the rst WSU-V sponsored Martin Luther King Jr.service day which drew 250 participantsand seven different service activities.

Volunteers started arriving at 9 a.m.and were ushered in by staff at everycorner on their way to the FirstenburgStudent Commons. Once inside,volunteers signed waivers, registeredfor an activity, and were treated todonuts, coffee and juice.

I came because it is the nice thingto do, said Kathleen Denlinger. Whenasked why she chose to help withcomfort cards that are going to peoplein hospitals she replied, I brought

my boots for tree planting and was prepared for quilting, but comfortcards was the place where they neededthe most help.

The activities that volunteers couldchoose from included quilting for theneedy, elementary school beauti cation,

landscaping with Habitat for Humanityin yards and along roads, sorting cannedgoods at a food bank, planting treesin watersheds and creating comfortcards.

The presentation that followedregistration was powerful and full of moving language. Arianna Gouveia, asinger from LA. who happened to be intown, sang acappella, Lift Every Voice& Sing, which ended let us march ontill victory is won.Professor Jorge Lizarraga from WSU-V then told a powerful story of growingup in East LA as a minority, and whatDr. King meant to his family and theChicano Civil Rights Movement. Theday after Dr. King was shot, his singlemother dropped him and his brother off at a local doughnut shop beforeschool as she had often done before.He recalled the racist comment, in thetype of language that this paper can not

print, made by of one of his favoriteemployees. His high opinion of that

person diminished that day.Lizarragas overall point was that

young people today take for grantedwhat Dr. King did and meant and whatPresident Barrack Obamas electionmeans, especially here in the Northwestwhere racism is not as prevalent asin the South. His presentation wasfollowed by a video clip of Dr. Kingsfamous I Have A Dream speech.After that was over, volunteers headed

out to their service activities.Volunteers whose activities required

them to leave campus received a water bottle and granola bar before leaving.Two activities stayed in the studentcommons: quilting for the needy andcomfort cards. The Clark CountyQuilters Guild sponsored the quiltingevent; they brought all of the material,supplies and sewing machines.Volunteers helped by picking outsquare pieces of cloth and putting themtogether, which were then sewn andironed before nally being put together with the other layers of the quilt. Peoplemaking comfort cards had a largeselection of materials to work withwhich included colorful paper, colored

pencils, markers and foam stickers.The service day was a great success

to staff that planned it and participated.Someone posted information onfacebook about the event, I received e-mails from the Move On Organization,and we even had an article written inThe Columbian, Carol Lopez-Gustinsaid, one involved student.We originally were hoping that 50

people would sign up. We had 200 people signed up the day before [theevent] and 250 people show up, saidBola Majekobaje who was in chargeof coordinating the event along withDerence Walk. The success of theevent was due in part to the 2 months of

planning and the publicity it received.

The VanCougar6 CAMPUS NEWS

C A M P U S N E W S

UPCOMINGEVENTS

The Arts @ WSU Vancouver

Who: All WSU Vancouver studentswho would like to showcase theirart or craft

When: Event held April 10, 20093:30 p.m.

What: Local arts and craftsvendors, including community,students, sta and faculty.

This event hopes to bring aware-ness to the community of thecampus rotating galleries andpermanent art pieces.

We plan to use this event to raisefunds to support the WSU Van-couver Art galleries, DTC Programand Fine Arts department.

Contact: Lea Pfau in the o ce of Development and Alumni rela-tions 360-546-9600 or [email protected]

Martin Luther King, Jr. service day

By Eric Bahnmiller t hE VAn C oUGAr

Over 250 people spentthe entire day completingcommunity service projects

1.

2.

P h o t o s

b y : C r y s t a l a n

d D a v

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7/12

WSU Clark County Extension, alarge association that helps to informlocal communities about their research,held a Meet the Farmers event onthe WSU-V campus on Wednesday,January 21.

Using this event to educatecitizens about Community SupportedAgriculture (CSA), farmers from allover the Vancouver area displayed their agricultural goods in the FirstenburgStudent Commons. According tothe United States Department of Agriculture, Community SupportedAgriculture consists of individuals

purchasing shares of a farm or garden.These individuals agree to supportthe farms and share both the risks and

bene ts of natural food production.Spending, on average, $500-$600

a season for a full share of the crops,CSA members receive a box of goodseach week from their farms. The

shareholders do not necessarily knowwhich crops they will receive, nor dothey know the exact amount that will be

produced. According to a brochure fromWSU Clark County Extension, citizensshould buy local farm products becauseit provides fresh, nutritious food, keepssmall farms in business and supportsthe local economy, conserves resources,and protects the environment throughresponsible land stewardship.

As for Extension itself, WSUshas been since 1913. The association provides opportunities for uncreditededucation and degree opportunitiesto individuals and communitiesstatewide. With programs in categorieslike 4-H, agriculture, nutrition, foodsafety and quality, national resources,environmental stewardship, andeconomic vitality, there are many areaswhere locals can become involved.There are also three additional familyand youth programs.

For more information on WSUClark County Extension, visit http://clark.wsu.edu. If youre interested inlocating a CSA near you, visit http://farm nder.wsu.edu/.

January 26, 2009 7CAMPUS NEWS

CSA event held on campus

Story and Photo by Katie WellsEditor in C hiEf

Local farmers display cropsfor Vancouver residents

Pro essor Theirs was one o the many that attended the CSA Meet the Farmers event heldat WSU Vancouver.

1. Planting trees was one o the most popular projects worked on. 2. During the clip o IHave a Dream, participants silently watched the screen. 3. The watershed received a muchneeded aceli t at the event. 4. Children were eager to help out the community and evenlearned to sew in the process. 5. Evergreen Habitat or Humanity assisted WSU-V in fndingprojects to work on. 6. Get Well Soon cards were created or hospital patients in need o

support.

3.

4. 5.

6.


8/12

The ASWSUV ambassadors hosteda series of musical artists as their January event for Get To Know YouTuesdays. The architects of the affair

were ambassadors Rachel Hasemanand Mason OLennick. Headlining theevent was Gebular, an up and coming

band from Olympia. Warming up thestage for Gebular was local band,The Red Spades, and solo artist, RyanBissom, opened the event.Bissom serenaded the audience with

a series of original acoustic tunes,his sound somewhat reminiscent of

Dashboard Confessional. Playingmostly original songs, he found hisstride through open chords that madeuse of the entire fretboard. The resonantsound was rich with hammered andacute rhythm, accompanying withvocals. Bissom concluded with a

cover of Free Fallin,encouraging a sing-a-longchorus, which was under

participated in. Bone up onyour Tom Petty people, heis a national treasure.The afternoon took

a funky turn as TheRed Spades steppedinto the performancespace. Combining theexploratory sound of theGrateful Dead with themelodic sensibilities of Paul McCartney, The RedSpades took the audienceto a groovier place. A

phenomenal bass player,who had too few chances to stretchhis legs and show off for the audience,

grounded their musical creationssoundly. Makingthe most of thesurf beat, this

band blew the topoff the StudentCommons.Closing down

the event wasGebular. This bandcrafted a slightlyharder soundthan the previousmusicians. Their employment of a driving rhythmcontrasted nicelywith the laid-back

beat of The RedSpades. A high level of musicianshipwas evident in the tightness of thesound. Cody Reed, the lead guitarist anda student at WSU-V, was the strengthof the performance with articulate andexpressive leads.

This event was well-organized andreasonably well attended. Get To KnowYou Tuesdays are monthly events oncampus. The next event scheduled bythe ambassadors is Love Fest. Thisaffair is planned in anticipation of Valentines Day, is meant to providestudents with the opportunity to meetother students with whom they maywant to celebrate this day, and isscheduled for February 2nd.

The VanCougar8 ARTS, CULTURE & ENTERTAINMEN

UPCOMINGEVENTS

Club fair hosted in the FSCJanuary 27 - WSU-V rom 12p.m. to 2 p.m. in the First-enburg Student Commons.Food will be provided.

WSU Vancouver Displays WayneHerndons Colorful PaintingsJanuary 12 - March 13 in theEngineering Li e Sciencesgallery.

Snow camping at Mt. St. HelensJanuary 31 at 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.camping trip at Mt. St. Helens.Costs $10.00 per person.Limited space Sign up at therecreation ofce FSC 136.

Bissom, Red Spades and Gebular performStudent ambassadorevent featured local bands

By Hannah Walker T he Van C ougar

Photography featured in WSU-V gallery

In 2005, WSU-V Professor of Management and Operations, Dr. TomTripp moved with his wife Jodi andtheir two children to Switzerland, whereDr. Tripp began teaching Negotiationand Strategies courses. Jodi took theopportunity to explore the countrysideand world famous mountains. Inspired

by the Swiss landscape, Jodi founda renewed passion for photography.When the Tripps returned to the UnitedStates, she set out to discover the beautyin her own back yard.

Her landscapes are full of life andexpress a cornucopia of emotion avivacious style that is colorful and

bold. (Tripps series on barns illustratesher ability to command emotionthrough imagery; to have a moodgiven to them by lighting and color.and to capture energy and distill it intoa single image.)

In Red Barn Corn a single barn beams under the ever present dark-grayclouds of the Paci c Northwest. The power of the clouds is revealed through

a tear in the sky allowing light to slipthrough and warm the lone structure..

Tripp says that Laundry Barn isamong the most popular photographsin her barn series. In this photo,

laundry wafts in a cool summer breeze

as a sun bathed white barn rests under the warmth of the sun. The crisp bluesky and lazy rolling lawn inspiresrestful ease.

Tripp has been taking picturesmost of her life. She started workingat a school newspaper and becameinterested in childrens portraits,and then later, party photography.Her passions allowed her to travelin the Southwest United States,taking portraits and learning.

Nowadays, she tends to keep her joy of photography a bit closer tohome.

Tripp says she enjoys showingher artwork just a few feet downthe hall from where she used

to works the cafeteria manager,

during WSU-Vs edgeling days.Jodi says the market for local art

has diminished along with the slowingeconomy. But she says do what youlove and the money will follow. Jodi

offered words of encouragement to

students and graduates saying get outthere and meet people-network. Shesays knowing people can make allthe difference, so its important makeyourself known. Persistence is the key.

WSU-Vs art gallery is on the rstoor of the Administration Building

(VADM) a short walk down the hallfrom the cafeteria. In the board roomon the second oor, Jodi is featuringselected works of abstract digital

photography.Her work is also on display at the

Aurora Art Gallery in downtownVancouver, the new Firstenberg Tower at Southwest Washington MedicalCenter and at the Vancouver Clinic.Her digital gallery can be found at

www.JodiTripp.com.

By Mark Medina T he Van C ougar

Former WSU-V staf

member displays abstractphotography

Jodi Tripp, who is originally rom urban Cali ornia, says she is inspired by the beauty o thePacifc Northwest.

A R T S

, C U L T U

R E &

E N T E

R T A I N M

E N T

WSU Vancouver Librarywww.vancouver.wsu.edu/library


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Apparently, the keys to the secretsof the universe are right under our nos-es. They are contained in a collectionof stones and rods lying in the court-yard outside the library. They dontseem to serve a purpose, but a closer look shows they have a reason for be-ing there after all.

Some are aware that it is Braille.However, knowledge beyond that has

been left to the imagination. This ACEeditor set out to nd some answers asto the true nature of these stones. TheVanCougar spoke with Erin Dengerink Madarang, the campus gallery director,about the stones outside the Library.

Its great public art and my favor-ite piece, said Madarang, You canwalk on it, sit on it, or interact with itin any way you wish. The name of thestone art is Opening the Secret. Thename itself leaves an impression thatthe art is supposed to be discovered.However, it may be more dif cult to

gure out the answer. Madarang said,Opening the Secret is more about thethings that few people will ever know.This means that the chances of ndingthe secret are near impossible.

The problem would be that the artis actually Chinese Braille. To deci-

pher the art you need at least two people to gure out what is written on the

stones.What we all want to know is if there

are at least some hints as to what the bronze rods on those rocks are actuallysaying to us. If you go into the library

and look straight ahead there are twowhite panels near a window facing thestones. That is the artists statement.The answers must be there, right?

Not quite. The artist leaves onlymore intrigue as to what the stonesmust say. In 1998, Jo Hockenhull andAnn Christensen, both professors of the arts, traveled to China and wereintroduced to Li Xiu Qin, a sculptor.They took her back to the United Statesto create some art. The volcanic basaltstones were taken from the rock queryand split for her to place the bronzerods into the rocks.

Li Xiu Qin said that the rocks be-ing split are to represent the opening of history of Vancouver and/or the release

of energy. The shape of the concaveand convex forms of the stones isto be seen as yin and yang. The se-cret messages, said Li Xiu Qin, arefound in American and Chinese Brailleon the inner pages of the opened stones.When you open the pages from your sense of touch, it is my hope that the

pages will open the universe of your heart and soul. Li Xiu Qin says the artis to show that we are all equal, as weshare the same place in the universe.The art is to honor emotion, commu-nity and cooperation.

So thats the secret of the stones.The translation of the braille remainshidden to the students of WSU-V.

C o u g A r t

January 26, 2009 9ARTS, CULTURE & ENTERTAINMENT

Jodi Tripp: Laundry Barn

Former staff member at WSU-V Loves taking photographs of the Northwest.

Strange stones stay silent

An investigative pursuitleads to a new mystery

By Jake KleinschmidtaCe e DITor

Joe Creager:AlexStudent: History Major

Loves to take candid photographs of human behavior.

Tim Batchelor

Student: Biology Major Held a photography business for 2 years, been shooting since age 11.

Want your art here? Tell us!Email the ACE Editor at

[email protected]

With on-going Americaninvolvement in Iraq, many people onlyunderstand the country from a wartime

perspective. This is one reason why theMarquee Diversity Event Committeedecided to bring this

production to WashingtonState University-Vancouver (WSU-V). Bola

Majekobaje, AssistantDirector for StudentDiversity, stated that, MostAmericans dont knowmuch about Iraqi cultureand even less about Iraqiwomen. Hopefully thiswill give attendees a new

perspective. PlaywrightHeather Raffo has createda piece that delves intothe many con icting aspects of whatit means to be a woman in the age-oldwar zone that is Iraq. An unusuallytimely meditation on the ancient, themodern and the feminine in a countryovershadowed by war as described

by local director Louanne Moldovan.

Raffo was unable to provide further

insight into her piece as she is nearingthe due date of her rst child.Although the play depicts a wide

and numerous range of all femalecharacters, each is performed byone woman, Luisa Sermol. As if thisdoesnt provide enough incentive tosee the piece, Majekobaje says it hasreceived amazing reviews and it is anaward winning piece. Clearly, this is aunique play which depicts the images of a people rarely portrayed in the theatreor on lm. Awards and all, this playis still the utmost presentation of an

insightful and timely theme.Majekobaje emphasized thatwhat most people knowabout Iraq, its culture and

people, are what they see onthe news or hear from our government. I think this will

bring humanity and a faceto the people and women of Iraq.

The performance isscheduled for January 28thin the VADM building room110. Doors open at 5:30 andthe play will start at 6:00.

Admission is free and open to the public; however the seating is limitedso arrive early! Majekobaje hopes thatthis piece will offer WSU-V studentsand community members a new

perspective and possibly an interest inlearning more, about Iraqi culture and

experience.

One woman show9 Secret Lives of Womencoming to WSU-V

By Kayla Page T he Van C ougar


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January 26, 2009 11SPORTS & RECREATION

2009

J o i n o u r W S U V a

n c o u ve r T e a m T o d a y ! ! !

Everyone is welcome!!

The more the merrier!!

Sign up at [email protected] by January 30

2008 Relay Team (Eighties Theme)

By Will & Greg SUPER BOWL XLIII

Will: Well, here we are, back at the VanCougar. Our pre- and post-Super Bowl columns were always popular, we were invited backjust or a couple guest appearances.

Greg: Yeah, Im back or more torture, dude. I have fnished my degree requirements, but dont wauntil May, so I thought Id take a couple classesjust six credits.

Will: And that makes you eligible to contribute to the VanCougar, and take more well-deserved verbabuse rom me.

Greg: I cant wait. Hit me.

Will: Fast and below the waist. Have you devoted any o your emtosecond attention span to ootballyear? Or did you just go to NFL.com and review the playo s so you could ake the column like norm

Greg: What an accusation! Ive watched a game or two, but quite rankly, Super Bowl 43: Iunderwhelmed. First o , I couldnt care any less about the Cardinals. Or the Ravens or that matter. I mhave ound the clash between the Steelers and the Eagles interesting, that being a cross state rivalry.

Will: First, Playo games: Ravens vs Titans. Boring! A Punter Ping Pong Game. It was like two hermountain goats with ootball helmets. Theyd butt heads three times and punt the ball. And it seemevery play there was an injury. This is a tough game, but I hate it when it turns brutal. One minor tuor twist, and a pro athlete receives a ew more pounds o pressure on a critical joint. I was sad to semany injury timeouts. However, I was pleased to see the outcome o the Carolina and Arizona gameto 13, Cardinals on top!

Greg: Youre a Cardinals an? I thought you ollowed the Seahawks.

Will: Yep. Thats why I wanted Kurt E. Warner and his Cardinals to make it. The early Hawks had a ruback named Curt E. Warner. Curt with a C umbled so o ten it was REALLY hard to be a Seahawkswanted the Cardinals to make it to the Super Bowl just to watch Curts namesake take a pounding.

Greg: Thats harsh, man!

Will: Yeah. And Im proud o it. I wanna see Kurt Warner go home with Some Assembly RequiredSteelers making it to the Super Bowl is icing on the cake.

Greg: Does that mean youll be rooting or the Steelers? You DO have an o cial terrible towel, no?

Will: Oh yeah! And I waved it with aerobic vigor as Pittsburgh made the Ravens eat crow. So nowCardinals and Steelers. For the frst time in ages, Ive got an emotional attachment to the Super Bowl. like to see a score o f ty to zero. I want Kurt Warner to get sacked so many times that the game endin a di erent time zone. I want long bombs that explode when caught.

Greg: But weve got a problem. For only the second time in TAG history you and I agree on somethAnd or the frst time in our Super Bowl columns weve picked the same team. This is a disaster! Cthe National Guard. Call out the Associated Press!

Will: Call out or pizza! Or in your case chili dogsyoure attending that monstrous bash again? Incase, Im chillin without the chili at my riends.

Greg: Call George Pike!

Will: Our riend and guest writer rom last summer who lives in Pittsburgh? Ill bet hes totally jazespecially as hes been a Bruce Springsteen an since day one.

Greg: So were both agreed then: The Cards mustyea, will betarred and de- eathered. Though admit, I side with Pittsburgh only by de ault. Not my avorite team by any means, but better than mowould have liked to see the Colts go all the way. It saddens me the Dungee has retired; my avorite coas he did not swear or verbally abuse his players to get what he wanted. However, the Cards have a deccoachyoungest ever to go to the Super Bowl.

Will: You have been paying attention! Im impressed. And I DID say Springsteen? As in the hal -show? Youve heard o him maybe?

Greg: The Boss!? Are you kidding? I didnt just all o the turnip truck yesterday, I was BORN in thFinally, a hal -time show that could be more than sub-decent. They (the hal -time show planning peoare not pairing him with someone like the Goo Goo Dolls are they?

Will: Nope, some outft called The E Street Band. So we have two o the key ingredients in place oexciting game. Show me some worthy commercials and my joy will be out o bounds.

Greg: Im just glad the game isnt between the Ravens and the Eagles or the Ravens and the CardinaThat would make a Superbowl or the birds. Now there would be a nice hal -time show. Are theyaround?

Will: Who, the E Street Band or the Goo Goo Dolls?

Greg: The Byrds, birdbrain! Okay, commercialswhat we watch the Superbowls or: Theres bounbe a big bad Bud spot, and either Coke or Pepsi will have a good one. Most likely Pepsi as they are launca new logo campaign. Hope ully, another trunk monkey will not pop up or I might take a wrench to myMy better than ever TV, now that I got the box.

Will: Ill keep track o the commercials as in times past, since you tend to miss so many with your trietch chips. And by box are you re erring to the converter box or the digital conversion in Februa

can count on a couple o ads on that topic.

Greg: Yeah, the digital to analog converter box that will be needed by February 17 i you dont haveHDTV or cable. By the way, the box really improved my reception and clarity on my old TV. AND thseveral additional digital channels. For example OPB has three! But I digress.

Will: Its your specialty.

Greg: The point Im trying to make is that i you cant convince the wi e you need a new 50 LCPlasma HDTV (prices are way down) to see the Superbowl, youve got the eminent conversion as additfrepower. 1.5 million TVs will be sold in the weeks be ore SB XLII.

Will: The commercials will look a lot better on that Plasma, too. See you in two weeks, dude.


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The VanCougar: January 26, 2009

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Transcript of The VanCougar: January 26, 2009