Volume XXX - Issue 1 September 1, 2011 www.theskylineview.com

Bomb scare on campusOfficials called to investigate mysterious object

Building 3 was evacuated due to a mysterious object which was located in the boy’s locker room

Students who signed up for the emergency text system received a text at 1:18pm stating:

“A suspicious object was located in Bld.3. Building 3 is evacuated. San Bruno PD is on site. All other areas on campus are safe. Update to follow.” At around 1:00.

And later received another text at 2:54 stating:

“SKYLINE: The suspicious package has been removed from Building 3. The incident is over. Skyline Campus is safe. Mike Ce-leste Dir. Of Public Safety”

The 911 call came in at 12:26 p.m. The object was described as a white cylinder pipe that was 7 inches by 1 inch with a wire sticking out.

High ranking officials on the scene were the interim Vice Presi-dent of the school, Joseph Madri-gal, Lt Victoria O’Brien of the San Mateo Bomb Squad, Mike Celeste/Brian Tupper of Public Safety office

all of whom were either not available for a comment at the time or were not allowed to give any further info than what was sent via text.

All classes within the building were cancelled and students were not allowed inside until 2:56pm when officials started leaving. By 3:00pm officials had left the scene. Several areas in Building 4 were closed off as well as a precaution.

The bomb squad official arrived on scene at 2:00pm and entered the building at 2:29pm. They didn’t know whether or not the object was dangerous so they destroyed it with Hydro projectiles according to Tupper. The bomb squad came back out at 2:38pm.

According to Brian Tupper it was apparently a class project in locker number 54..

According to Lt. Victoria O’Brien of the San Mateo Bomb Squad they are no longer involved.

It is now in the hands of the San Bruno Police Department and the school who might launch a joint investigation.

by JJ Valdez

JJ Valdez The Skyline View

The Bomb Squad arrives, and has the caution tape lifted by a San Bruno Police Officer so the Bomb Squad can enter the scene.

Child Care center holds a “Welcome back walk” for preschool Skyline’s children explore the campus

The Child care center in an effort to familiarize students with the campus decided to hold a “Wel-come-back walk” for the children of some Skyline Students.

16 Child care center students were given the opportunity to walk around Skyline on August 23 to feel more at ease and get some exercise while their parents were in class.

“It was a beautiful day so we decided to make today be our “Welcome back to school walk” so that they can get familiar with the campus where their parents go to school,” said Martina Center, a teacher at the Child care center. “They can see that they’re not that far away from their parents.”

The walk began at around 10:15

and the children got the chance to walk through the campus, including the quad and outside of the newly opened building 4. The children were instructed to hold hands at all times so that they wouldn’t get lost.

At one point during the event the group stopped at the quad where Club Rush was taking place, some children even danced to music that was provided at the event.

One of the main reasons for the walk was to show students how close their parents were in an attempt to make them feel safe and secure.

“For this age group it’s good for them to know that they are safe where they’re at and their parents are not too far away,” Center said. “In case something were to happen or that their parents can come and

visit them during the day.”This could be seen throughout the

walk when various children would stop and point at buildings followed by them saying, “That’s where my mommy works.”

One little girl for example by the name of Daliah liked the idea of go-ing to see where her mother works while she’s away.

“[Today was] good because I like my mom,” Daliah said. “And she likes me, but . . . I worry about her.”

Center herself is no stranger to how it feels to be a mother working to get her education.

“I’m a product of Skyline Col-lege,” Center said. “So I feel as though it’s good for us to give back to our community. I was a teen

parent so I know when I came to Skyline College I needed child care. A lot of our families are young and low income so I feel as though it’s great to give their children a place to come so that they can continue their education.”

The other main reason for the “Welcome walk” was to get the children some exercise. This was accomplished by letting them run around the grass behind Building 4 and letting them roll down the grassy hills.

“Physical development is healthy for them, it’s very important, they enjoy the outside [and] the nice day,” said head teacher Nataliya Gamburg. “They can move around a lot. . . . We don’t really have a nice playground, it has a lot of cement so it’s nice for

the kids to play on the grass”One child by the name of Ani

found the nice change of scenery to be enjoyable saying “We like playing. . . . I like rolling down the grassy hill.”

Gamburg said that doing these welcome walks have always been good for the children on so many levels whether it be for reassurance, exercise, or the fact that walking in a college environment is good for them.

This could be seen at one point during the walk when she took a child by the hand, pointed at one of Skyline’s buildings and said, “If you work hard enough you can work there too.”

JJ Valdez The Skyline ViewThe students of the Child Care Center gather for a group shot in front of the mural just outside of the newly opened Building 4.

by JJ Valdez

Read about how dog sees god on p. 4

Read about Geralt of Rivia’s latest adventure on p. 7

Gear up with the men and women of Trojan soccer on p. 8

� September 1, �011Skyline ViewThe

N e w s

Welcome

As part of Welcome Week, the Associated Students of Skyline College held a barbecue in the caf-eteria. The student governing body gave out five hundred burgers on August 19 in an attempt to reach out to students and raise awareness of its role on campus.

“We want people to know about the Associated Students and that we’re here to support them, but we also want them to feel welcome on campus,” said Heidi Hansen, Presi-dent of the Associated Students of Skyline College.

Students began serving food at 11:00 a.m. Students and faculty had their choice of a burger, chips, drink, and a cookie, all free of charge.

“I think it’s good that students come to open doors, especially new students,” Hansen said. “They’ll start to see the community . . . so Welcome Week is just to try and make them feel comfortable here.”

New students like Karen Jakobs, a first-time Skyline student from Germany, found the event to be a friendly welcome.

“I like [Welcome Week]; we don’t have this in Germany,” said Jakobs. “I like the free burgers. Everyone is really nice here”

Hansen also wanted to stress that as well as welcoming back students both old and new, this and future events are a way of reminding stu-dents that the student government is there for them.

“I hope that they know who and

what the [Associated Students of Skyline College] is. . . . We’re here to serve them,” Hansen said. “I think that a lot of people know us for our Welcome Weeks, and they expect us to keep going. It’s a reminder that the [Associated Students of Skyline College] is still around and still kicking.”

Ryan Ledesma, a returning stu-dent who remembers past Welcome Weeks, thought that the event was a nice way of starting the new aca-demic year.

“It’s going to be a very hectic year with school, work, time management . . . but if every day were like this, I might stay longer,” Ledesma said jokingly. “This is cool. I mean we’ve had free food before, but burgers re-ally set the mood.”

The event was scheduled to go on until 2:00 p.m. or until the food ran out. The event ended at 12:30 p.m., officially running out of food an hour and a half into the event.

“I am happy that the event went so well; everyone seemed to like it,” Hansen said. “People seemed really excited.”

Although the event ended earlier than expected, Hansen felt that even within that short amount of time, the intended message of “Welcome back” came across clearly.

This was helped by Hansen herself taking orders and handing out food directly, but not before saying; “Compliments of the student body.”

Free burgers for everyoneStudent government welcomes everyone back

by JJ Valdez

Despite the fact that they were not provided food, students made their way to the cafeteria on Mon-day August 22 to learn about ser-vices provided by different school departments.

As part of Welcome Week, Stu-dent Activities had its third event with a Program Services Fair where various programs on campus talk to students about free opportunities available to them.

“I think that some of our students haven’t had the opportunity yet to learn about different programs like financial aid, EOPS, the childcare center, and various resources they can get for free,” said coordinator of Students activates Amory Cariadus. “…so we like to have the opportu-nity for everyone to be in one place so the students can walk around and see what’s available to them.”

The event took place at 9:00am with various departments attending. Departments in attendance included; Financial Aid, EOPS, Public Safety, ESOL, Spark Point, EDD, Transfer Career Center, DSPS, Early Child-hood Education, San Mateo Credit Union, Student Activities Office, and Women In Transition.

Cariadus was present at the event managing the Student activities booth. Her presence there was not by coincidence as she felt that the message of the day was vital.

“For me as a staff member I think it’s always interesting find-ing out what [resources] all the other programs and learning com-munities have…available to other students,” Cariadus said. “I like to talk to people in other areas and

find out what’s going on in their de-partments so that when come to me and ask questions I can refer them appropriately.”

Spark Point (coordinated by Ad-olfo Leiva) was also there to help provide people with information about how to increase their income and build their assets.

“So many [people] who come to Skyline are in need of assistance,” said Leiva. “So we’re here to help [the community] increase their as-sets by providing financial coaching, providing them with services...that will help them continue to go to school to actually get a career and be successful.”

When asked whether the event benefited newer or older students the every single department answered with either “both” or something along the lines of “it helps every-body”

“I think it benefits everyone,” said Cariadus. “I think [for] new students it’s the first time they’ve seen these things and returning students it’s an opportunity, maybe something in their life has changed where they need more resources and this gives them the perfect opportu-nity to that.”

Other departments felt the same way in that by and large, each depart-ment helps not only students, but Skyline as a community.

Certain booths attracted more students than others. For example, Financial Aid was particularly popu-lar with students both old and new wandering up and asking about Financial Aid services.

One such student was Roy Gon-zalez, a 5th year part time student.

He has used financial aid in the past and thought that the event was sig-nificant for students.

“I think [this is] very important because… I actually applied and went through it”, said Gonzalez. “[and] they actually provided a good amount of money which helped me with my school stuff that I needed like pay for gas, pay for classes so it’s very helpful to have [this] because many students don’t know that those opportunities”

Other students in attendance found some of the departments did in fact provide information that was previously unbeknownst to them.

Students like Irma Deleon, a 3rd year full time student, learned what courses to take from the Early Child-hood Education booth.

“When I was going to high school I used to actually do volunteer work at my old elementary school and I was really intrigued with kids so I want to become a pre-school teacher,” said Deleon. “I’m going to take courses over here; [The ECE] gave me information of this person to talk to establish what exact courses I need.”

Prior to the event Deleon had no idea that Skyline had an Early Child-hood Education department and felt that the Program Services Fair really helped her out.

“I think it’s great just because they’re putting information out there,” said Deleon. “I feel that if a lot more students were to approach them or had a little more interest in what’s going on and what the booths are for that they’d actually get a lot from it instead of just walking around”

Student Activities welcomes all departments

by JJ ValdezDifferent Skyline programs talk to students about free services

Editors note:The first official event of ‘Welcome week’ took place on on August 18 where students were given free pizza.

The articles that follow were events two through five.

JJ Valdez The Skyline View

The line for the free burgers was quite long while they were available.

JJ Valdez The Skyline View

Students show up to find out what services are available to them.

�September 1, �011 Skyline ViewThe

N e w sThe Staff

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Editor-In-ChiefMarc Arguello

News EditorJJ Valdez

Features EditorJJ Valdez

Opinions EditorJJ Valdez

Entertainment EditorDaniel BeckmanSports Editor

Blair HardeeCopy Editor Liz McMahonNina Smirnov

Estrella Benavides

Photos Editor-Vacant-

PhotographerEstrella Benavides

Jonathan ChanRoxanne Wahab

Graphics EditorAlyssa KoszisCartoonist

JJ ValdezAlyssa Koszis

Online EditorStephen Benoit

Multimedia Editor-Vacant-

P.R./Business Manager-Vacant-

Staff WritersJuliana LeonJay JohnsonMatt Pacelli

Lea NaqishbendiMilan Subedi

Camille WielandDaniel Beckman

Dean Kevin SantosTerence ChinJoe Barrack

Willaim Nacozui

The Skyline View is a First Amend-ment Publication. The Skyline View

is published bi-weekly during the spring and fall semesters by the jour-nalism students at Skyline College. The Skyline View is a member of the Journalism Association of Commu-nity Colleges. Opinions expressed

in the paper are those of the writers and should not be interpreted as the views of Skyline College, SMCCCD,

the faculty, administrators or the newspaper adviser. Additionally, the

paper does not endorse any of the products or services advertised.

The Skyline View welcomes Let-ters to the Editors; letters must in-

clude full name, address, and phone number for verification. The Skyline View reserves the right to edit letters

for length, libel, clarity, and taste.

Week

Welcome Week is about show-ing students both old and new what Skyline has to offer so for the fourth day of the event the student run clubs got to show students what’s available for them.

Following Program services fair Student Activities held an event on August 23 in the quad showing off the different clubs here at Skyline in an effort to get students to be more involved.

“The club fair is designed so that our campus clubs and organizations can do outreach to the student body, let them know what our clubs are about, when they’re meeting and to recruit new members,” said Amory Cariadus coordinator of Student Activities. “[The main focus is] letting students know of all the dif-ferent ways they can get involved in student organizations and take advantage of volunteer and leader-ship opportunities that we have here on campus.”

Both Amory and Heidi Hansen president of Associated Students were present at the event at their own booth with Hansen sometimes work-ing the microphone letting students know what clubs were available.

The event begun around 9:00am with different clubs coming and going as they please. According to Danielle Palengat the assistant to the Coordinator “No clubs will be turned away.”

Almost every club has some form of free prizes to those attending their booth but one in particular was the cosmetology booth which gave away free haircuts, curling, straightening, and manicures to whoever stopped by.

Laurie Biagi the Advisor of Cos-metology wanted student to know this day was for students to know about the importance of clubs and the benefits that come with it.

“Students need to know that they have a place and they can go

somewhere to be able to talk to other people that need the same things they do. So clubs are very good during school and after school,” said Biagi. “We’re all one team, everyone is here for the same reason to get an education and make everyone a success.”

For many the event was not so much promoting clubs but promot-ing a way in which students can network themselves and get to know other people in their respec-tive fields.

“[Today] provides great oppor-tunities for students to network and get involved in their campus, making sure their voices are heard when pol-icies and decisions are made,” said Amory. “the more relationships you build [you’ll] have greater contact with people, it opens up the doors of opportunities to you...to better yourself and your community.”

Many club people in attendance shared this idea of networking can benefit students. One student who was keen to this idea was Camille Espiritu the Vice President of Beta Theta Omicron who felt that it’s more important for people to get involved in clubs.

“I think, as a business major, that networking is really important,” said Espiritu. “I know a few people that I actually met through clubs that I talk to and they’re my friends, so it feels like camaraderie.

One student attending the fair was Rebekah Litton who either didn’t know about any of the clubs or had never seen any of them in person prior to coming to the fair.

“It’s a good way to inform stu-dents about the different clubs that Skyline offers. You get to mingle with other people and you get to meet other people in the community who have the same viewpoints as you,” said Litton. “I think you can take anything that you learn [here], even from a club you took at skyline for one semester with you through-out the rest of your life.

Skyline clubs get the chance to promote themselves

by JJ ValdezIn one last final effort to welcome

students to Skyline, the Associated Students held its final event in the quad where Administration, staff, and faculty served students a free breakfast.

Providing students with free pancakes remains a Skyline tradition during Welcome Week. The intent behind the event was to get students interacting with other members of the community to close the week with a sweet treat.

Amory Cariadus Coordinator of Student Activities was in attendance at the event mingling with students and encouraging any and all to par-take in the pancake gobbling.

“So this morning we’re serving a free pancake breakfast to the student body just as a ‘Hi, thanks for being here’,” said Cariadus. “[Students] get a chance to get a free breakfast, meet everybody…it’s a social thing.”

The breakfast marked the end of Welcome Week and according to Cariadus the message of unifica-tion in the community came across successfully.

“I think [Welcome weeks] gone pretty well,” said Cariadus. “I think people have had a good time: They’ve been given access to some resources on campus, they’ve gotten to meet people through clubs, and student organizations, and I think overall it’s been a success”

The event started on August 24 at around 7:30am in the quad and ended at 9:41am with the faculty catering the event. Administration, staff, and faculty served the food and gave out Bio-degradable forks and knives.

1100 individual pancakes were served with each student getting their choice of two pancakes, two sausages, and some juice. Within two hours they were down to 85 pancakes.

Some students present at the breakfast attended to get a free

meal but others did so because they had been to other Welcome Week events and wanted to continue par-ticipating.

Students like Noel Arauz a first time student who had been to previ-ous events like Club fair and the free pizza event felt that the event and indeed Welcome Week in its entirety made him feel welcome at Skyine.

“I just think this really shows that [They] really care…I think it’s just a really good way to show stu-dents a good time,” said Arauz. “It’s just really nice like other schools don’t have this for two weeks so I just think its show that they’re really here for students.”

Staff members served the food and talked to the students in order to get both staff and students interact-ing with each other as soon as pos-sible for the benefit of both parties.

“[Serving pancakes] has been something that the staff and the fac-ulty enjoy participating in as well. They like to come and meet the stu-dents in a different form other than behind a desk or in a classroom,” said Cariadus. “I think it’s [also] good for students because they get to meet people on a different level …it’s nice to have different interac-tions in our community where we can all get to know and appreciate each other as individuals.

Due to her background in child development, Kate Williams Brown, the program coordinator of the ECE program, really felt a passion and understanding for the importance of this student/staff interaction.

“It’s all about relationships, if a teacher makes a good relationship with their students, the student is more motivated to learn. It’s true when you’re two, its true when you’re 22, it’s probably true when you’re 102,” said Brown. “Skyline can become a caring community of learners, and this is part of what builds the community. We all get to sit around and eat together.”

by JJ Valdez

Welcome Week concludes with faculty giving away pancakes

JJ Valdez The Skyline View

The line for the free burgers was quite long. JJ Valdez The Skyline ViewStaff volunteers are busy preparing food for student.

� September 1, �011Skyline ViewThe

Features

Dog Sees God

It is unclear what Bert V. Royal may have had in mind when writing a drama which finds the original cast of Charles M. Schulz’s Peanuts en-trenched in the throes of adoles-cence, a theme not uncommon in dramas like Teen Wolf and Dawson’s Creek. One explanation may be that perhaps Royal meant to answer questions that left Peanuts readers wanting.

“Will Pig Pen ever take a show-er?”

“Jus t how many bus ts of Beethoven’s head hide inside Schro-eder’s closet?”

And of course, the eternal burn-ing question:

“When will Charlie Brown fi-nally kick that damn football?”

High school student Charlie Brown (played by Bentz Valio), who is now known simply as CB, re-mains the same diffident blockhead portrayed in Schulz’s 1950s comic

strip. Just as puzzled and insecure as he was as a child, CB now faces all the daunting misfortunes attributed to most male leads in teen dramas. The play opens with CB writing to an anonymous pen pal. He is writing to his pen pal to inform him of, wait for it, his dog Snoopy’s death. The stage is eerily silent but for CB’s verbally describing finding Snoopy rabid and cowering in his doghouse with Woodstock’s mangled body beside him. This is only the first example of issues that catapult CB into his renowned musings on the nature of life. Much of the first half of the play consists of CB asking other characters the same question: “What do you think happens when we die?”

CB is not the only one going through these somewhat contrived and familiar issues. Linus, now known as Van (played by Tyler Suenaga), is a Buddhist stoner who peppers the dialogue with price-

less morsels of wisdom that reek of marijuana smoke. Peppermint Patty and Marcy are now Tricia and Marcy (played by Michelle La Chance and Sara Rovai), a charm-ing duo that amuse themselves by gossiping and spiking their milk during lunch. Matt (played by Ben Rampley), formerly known as Pig Pen, suffers from several phobias, including a phobia of germs.

(Tricia: I don’t get it. This is the same kid who used to wallow in filth. A virtual cloud of dirt followed him everywhere he went and now he’s like some germaphobe.)

CB’s younger sister (played by Jennifer Tam), who played a more minor role in the Peanuts strip, is perhaps the character who most closely exemplifies the central theme of the play. She is in a con-stant state of change, switching from one personality to another in every scene. Each character undergoes an individual struggle with the changes

that come with growing up. (Van: Dude, we all have to let go

of things from our childhood.)These characters have known and

loved each other through childhood. The loss of childhood comes paired with the loss of innocence. Grap-pling with that is difficult for youth all over the world.

“It’s really easy to relate to because we’re playing teenagers. We’re young and people here are young. The people we are playing are real people,” Angelino Simbu-lan said.

Royal’s “Dog Sees God” may be a tale stitched with grim themes. However, the play is also threaded with hope and the solidarity of friendship, which imparts to the au-dience a deep sense of empathy and compassion. The play closes with a soft nod toward friendship and what it means to us in dark times.

“I hope the problems of the char-acters hold onto you long after you

leave; I hope they help you value the friendships you have, inspire you to rekindle the ones you’ve lost, and incite you to befriend someone that you might otherwise not,” writes director Sarah Boone in the director’s notes.

The theme of friendship perme-ates off stage as well.

“When I first got here, I didn’t know any people. And now these are all my best friends. If you really want to make some good friends, this is how you do it,” said Lisa Olson, who plays Lucy.

Although Royal attempts to dis-cuss grand philosophical and social controversies almost as appropri-ately as Charlie Brown can kick a football, there is an intrinsic integrity to the play that is communicated by the connections displayed by the cast and crew on and off stage.

by Nina Smirnov

You may have felt the earthquake on the evening of August 23 (the epicenter was in San Leandro). The earthquake was one of four that hit the greater Bay Area last week, and although it was only a 3.6 in magni-tude, it still gave a shake that startled some and incited curiosity about when the next big one will hit.

Skyline geology Professor Mel Zucker says last week’s earthquake was just “one of many like that. Dozens every year take place, and it doesn’t indicate that there will be a bigger quake as a result of that one, rather just a reminder we live in earthquake country. We in Northern California live in a place where there is a major fault system with recur-ring earthquakes because we have both Pacific and North American plates. They actually help people to

prepare for larger magnitude earth-quakes. It’s real here.”

The Richter scale is an exponen-tial scale rather than an arithmetic one, which is used to measure mag-nitude of an earthquake. Using this scale, a 2.0 quake is 10 times more powerful than a 1.0 quake, 3.0 is 10 times more powerful than 2.0, and so on. As an example, compare the epicenter of the earthquake on the East Coast, which was a 5.9, to the earthquake off the coast of Japan, which caused the tsunami this year and was a 9.0. This means that the earthquake in Japan was slightly over 1,000 times more powerful than the one on the East Coast.

In the San Mateo County and closer surrounding counties, we apparently are due for one statis-tically; according to the United States Geological Survey, there is

a 62 percent probability for one or more magnitude 6.7 or greater earth-quakes between the years 2003 and 2032. There is a 10 percent chance the quakes will happen on the San Gregorio Fault, a 21 percent chance they will happen on the San Andreas Fault, and a 27 percent chance they will happen on the Hayward Fault.

These statistics aren’t printed here to cause panic but rather to cause awareness.

“You cannot predict an earth-quake, but if you prepare you can minimize damage. By preparing for earthquakes, it will significantly decrease the amount of damage done to buildings and lessen rhw amount of injuries too,” Zucker says.

“I think it’s better to have mul-tiple small earthquakes because it helps relieve the pressure to not build into one of a large magnitude,”

says Skyline student Nick Popielak. “As far as being prepared, I’m not sure how to prepare for a big one.”

There are many different com-ponents in being prepared, includ-ing preparing the home itself and knowing where to be inside your home during the earthquake. Making sure heavy furniture such as china cabinets, entertainment systems and such are fastened to the wall will prevent them from causing injury during an earthquake by falling or even flying.

Equally important to preparing your home for an earthquake is pre-paring for after one as well. Ensure that you have a designated meeting spot for you and your loved ones in case you are not reached by an emer-gency team, and make sure there is a supply of water and food to sustain you and those in your household for

a few days (and in the worst case, weeks). Having a few flashlights (instead of candles) is also important in case a gas line breaks.

“In the event an earthquake hits, it’s best to be away from windows (because of glass) and either under a door or alongside a wall until it is over,” explains Skyline’s Chief Sergeant, Brian Tupper. “If an earthquake were to happen while students were on campus, it’s best to be away from windows and un-der a desk. We are prepared for an earthquake if one were to happen. As far as buildings being prepared, six and four are most advanced, and thus we would mobilize in build-ing four. From there we have a P.A System to announce information and instructions. In October we will be having an earthquake drill where we go through the evacuation process,”

by Lea Naqishbendi

Earthquake awareness and preparednessDo you know what to do in an earthquake?

A cult classic with a twistPeanuts like you’ve never seen it before

JonaThan Chan/The Skyline View

A letter is read at the end of the play. From left to right: Marcy, played by Sara Rovai; Tricia, played by Michelle La Chance; CB’s Sister, played by Jennifer Tam; Van, played by Tyler Suenaga; CB, played by Bentz Valio; Beethoven, played by Angelino Simbulan; Van’s Sister, played by Lisa Olson; and Matt, played by Ben Rampley.

5September 1, �011 Skyline ViewThe

OpiNiON

California initiative may save our future

Thumbs Up:Labor Day coming soon

“Party time, people.” --William Nacouzi

Thumbs Down:Death by brain

eating amoeba

“It happens to southerners more than it should.”

--Matt Pacelli

Thumbs Up:Christmas

“I love to decorate and the fun of shopping!”

--Estrella Benavides

Thumbs Down:Pokemon Black & White Edition.

“Do I gotta catch ‘em all?”--Joe Barrack

Thumbs Down:100% Cacao Chocolate

“The charcoal of the chocolate family.”

--Stephen Benoit

Thumbs Down: The 49ers’ quarterbacks

“They don’t win us games!”--Terence Chin

Thumbs up:Halloween Costume parties

“Dress up, drink up equals thumbs up.”

--Dan Beckman

Thumbs Up: Wacom Inkling

“Funky drawing awesome-ness!”

--Alyssa Koszis

Thumbs Down:Michele Bachmann

Being completely crazy was cute for a while, but it’s really concerning that so many people take her seri-ously as a presidential candidate.

A ballot initiative known as 1481 is struggling in having enough signatures to make it onto the ballot. We at The Skyline View wish to ask you to show your support for this bill and help by signing it for yourself.

The bill is also known as the Rescue Education Initiative, and it’s just what it sounds like. It’s a bill intended to preserve our education as Californians and students. Students have been getting turned away (even from community colleges) in record numbers as the result of steep cuts to education over the years. Things aren’t projected to get any better either. The California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office projects 670,000 community college students being turned away because of the latest budget passed by the state.

Because the state has its hands tied from Proposition 13 from 1978 (which requires you to have a two-thirds majority for both houses of California’s legislature to increase any tax or revenue), we’ve been stagnant. As a result, Californians have decided to tackle the problem themselves by creating this initiative. Odds are, if you are reading this, this tax will not affect you.

The Rescue Education Initiative places a 15-percent tax on oil extraction in California (a type of severance tax). Thirty percent of that money will go to K-12, 48 percent will go to community colleges, and 11 percent will go to the UC and CSU system.

Fifteen percent may not seem like a whole lot for “rescuing education,” but it’s projected to bring in two-to-three billion dollars of revenue. When talking about that much money, there’s bound to be some serious opposition. If this initiative does make it to the ballot, you can expect plenty of opposition in the form of television commercials. A lot of the opposing arguments will be very typical.

We might see taxation of Californian oil companies, which could persuade them to leave for other states where they’re not taxed; this is probably going to be the main argument against the initiative. We say let them leave. Oil is not a limitless commodity; the oil companies will come back for it eventually when they’re running out of options, and that would drive up the demand for oil, causing the state to earn even more revenue as a result of the initiative. Because of the language of the initiative, even if the bill were to make a lot more revenue than the state anticipated, that money would be guaranteed to go towards the schools.

Oil drillers would also be prohibited from passing on the costs of the tax, so local businesses that are relying on that drilling shouldn’t see an increase in their costs. California wouldn’t be alone in this either; we wouldn’t be the only state with an extraction tax. Under Sarah Palin, Alaska’s extraction tax was raised to 25 percent, which drastically boosted the state’s revenue. Even Texas and Wyoming have extraction taxes; perhaps similar action in California could address our budgetary issues. It’s not like we haven’t tried before: We voted on extraction taxes before, and it went down in flames. We can only hope that history does not repeat itself.

So think back to the free education that was available to you from kindergarten through your senior year of high school; think about your future at Skyline, your family’s future, and your future family’s future. We implore you to give back to the schools that taught you so much. Sign the petition for the Restore California Initiative. If you can’t find someone around campus trying to collect signatures, or if you’re too busy, you can download the petition at www.rescueeducationcalifornia.org and mail it in. Instructions for mailing it in can be found on the website.

It feels good to be back on The Skyline View staff. While I’m acting as the editor-in-chief in this issue, I’ll only be doing this once this se-mester. I’ve been on the staff for two years now, and it’s probably been the most educational experience I’ve ever had in school, period.

Starting back in 2009, I didn’t know how to write a news article. I had little to no idea how to really conduct myself in an interview. I definitely had no clue how to run a newspaper staff, or even how a news organization actually runs. All of these things I learned while on staff at The View.

During my time as editor-in-chief, I got to direct people to try new things and challenge themselves. It was rewarding when I encouraged and helped newer students to write articles for the paper, especially when they thought they weren’t up to the task. New students are often worried that when writing an article for the first time, they’ll screw some-thing up big time. Oftentimes they have no idea how to write in news format at all.

Trust me: No one at The View was a professional reporter when joining the staff. We all learned the same way: through classes and

hands on experience. Writing news articles is deceptively simple; you just have to unlearn all of the habits English teachers have taught you throughout your life. Whereas in essay writing you’ll often try to be as verbose and descriptive as possible, writing for news is all about being short and to the point. This holds true not just for news and features stories, but for opinion articles as well. The objective is to get to the point, not to impress someone with length or artistic flair.

As always, I encourage anyone with even a passing interest in journalism to come down to the

newsroom and hang out with us. Writing for the paper has been an extremely enjoyable and educational experience, and I’ve made countless friends in the process. Spots for Journalism 690 are always open for freelance writers and photographers. Having your work published looks great on a resume; several staff members have landed jobs with their current employers by having jour-nalism experience. Our doors are open every afternoon on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday--that is, un-less we’re out covering a shooting, fire, or any mixture of the two.

6 September 1, �011Skyline ViewThe

OpiNiON

by JJ Valdez

HEAL

HURT

Topic: This year’s ‘Welcome Week’

Heal: Older students

“It benefits everyone, but also older students because there might be some who still don’t know about some of the stuff Skyline has.”

--Radha Mora

Heal: Me

“I feel good. I mean, it’s my first year. It really felt like they were looking out for me.”

--Robert Rutledge

Heal: Students

“It was helpful for some students, but to me it didn’t really do much because I didn’t go to any of the booths.”

-Rosely Marquez

Heal: Me

“It was nice. I’m a freshman here and I felt very welcome. They were friendly. It was a warm welcome despite the weather.”

-Brandon Santamaria Guilles

Heal: Student morale

“It gives the year a good kick off. It really gets the school spirit going. It makes the first week of school seem more welcoming.”

--Stacy Hanssen

Heal: Students who paid attention

“It’s good for new students, but there were a lot of people who didn’t know what was go-ing on. It was hard to understand the student president through the microphone. It’s good for students who were actually paying atten-tion.”

--Kelley Kennedy

Heal: New students

“It’s a lot more welcoming to see people with such commitment. It shows new stu-dents who are intimidated how nice it is here.”

--Fred P

Heal: New Students

“It helps a lot of new students get bet-ter acquainted to the school. It really helps them learn about transferring and make new friends.”

Abby De los Reyes

Books, books, and more books, money, money, money! What to do when your dollar doesn’t stretch too far and financial aid comes in late?

Your professors expect you to have all your materials, but getting them can be tricky when you set out to look for them, find out that the used ones are still expensive, and the supply of rentals is insufficient. We’d just rather not buy them at all! To make matters worse, we can’t turn to the library, given that we’re not even allowed to take the book out of the facility. If we have long projects, we don’t have the ability to keep it long enough due to the library’s limiting schedule.

But not to worry! There are alternatives, saving you time and ef-fort, finding you affordable options.

Check out Amazon.com, Chegg.com, Craigslist and Half.com. They sell both new and used books, which are in relatively good condition and more often than not, signifi-cantly cheaper in comparison to your bookstore. Through compa-nies like Chegg, Barnes and No-ble, and Amazon, you can purchase eBooks.

The best part is that you don’t even have to own a device like the Kindle, as the eBook software can easily be downloaded to your com-

Dear Johnny

Dear Johnny,

This summer started great; I met a guy, he treated me with respect and we have grown very close. The problem I am facing is he leaves for Seattle in September. We have been so close all summer and I am freaking out, what can I do to make this last?

-Summer Fling

Dear Summer Fling,

Meeting someone in the summer time is one of the best things in life to experience. Hormones go crazy, infatu-ation takes over, and you find yourself knee deep in romance. The problem that summer romances often face is the dreaded last day of summer. What can you do to fix this problem? To start with, when starting one of these whirlwind romances, you can establish some ground rules and gather some basic information that will prepare you to have a successful summer relationship.

First thing is first, “Where do you live?” is the most important question you can ask someone you have met during summer vacation. This will prepare you for what is going to unfold throughout the summer, and also give you somewhat of a reality check if this person is not a local. Just because the person you meet is not local does not mean you should not pursue romantic involvement. Summer romances can be some of the fondest memories you will retain in your life and can also teach you very important things about yourself. What attracts you to this person? What drives you to want to pursue something other than friendship? What about this person makes you feel as if you can be so intimate in such a short amount of time? Make sure to pay attention to all of these things so that you can learn from this experience.

One last point, have the time of your life! When you feel this kind of connection with someone and have taken the time to understand exactly what it is and when it’s going to end, then you can feel free to get caught up in the summer romance. In regards to you specifically, Summer Fling, you need to let it go. In most cases long distant relationships do not work and can be very wearing on both individuals involved. The reason I default to breaking it off is because the guy you met neglected to tell you that he was not local; this is very troubling to me especially since you two have become so intimate over the summer. He could have not wanted to ruin what you two had by breaking the news or he could have wanted nothing but a summer fling from the beginning, either way his actions do not lead toward a long distance relationship.

I know how hard it is to break up something so organic and romantic, but it’s the best thing for you. Learn from what you have experienced this summer and experience more during the fall. Having a great summer with someone special is not a bad thing and worst case scenario you get a new long distance friend you might visit in the future sometime. Bottom line is to enjoy what you had, say goodbye, and revel in the fact that you enjoyed something that many of us long for--true, organic, spontaneous romance.

Many of you out there are wondering what to do when it comes to your relationships, jobs, or life. So let me introduce myself. My name is “Johnny” and I would like to help you. There are some basic relationship issues everyone deals with, issues like: “Why doesn’t my significant other pay more attention to me?” or “Why does he always hang out with his friends?” or, here’s a common one, “Why doesn’t he brush his teeth regularly?” These are just a taste of the curveballs life throws at us on a day to day basis and exactly what I would like to give you advice on. Think of me as Deepak Chopra, Oprah, or even Ferris Bueller. I’m just someone that wants to help with your issues. I am going to start this column with a problem that was recently shared with me. If you would like to share you issue with me and get advice email me at advice.johnny@gmail.com.

(None)

When book expenses surpass your tuition

Options for school books

“Books get more and more ex -pensive, and the bookstore doesn’t offer many alter-natives.”

--Juliana Leon

puter. It is indispensable for you to do your research because sometimes

copies are avail-ab le th rough P D F o r v i a Google Books if they are of pub-lic domain. In the end, it comes down to the cost of a book cost-ing you a full time salary or being even more expensive than a full-time stu-dent’s tuition. Don’t be flus-tered, because

there is a way to make things work for you and keep within budget.

by Juliana Leon

“Fright Night” doesn’t disappoint and brings the fear

by Julianna Leon

“Witcher 2” slashes its way to the top; dragons bewareMonsters from tales our parents

told us to scare us lurk around every corner in The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings. Not just monsters from stories of our elders, but new mon-sters that come from the deepest bowels of our nightmares.

The original Witcher game was quite good despite the fact that it was incredibly predictable for the smarter gamer. The only unpre-dictable moment of the game was the very ending in which my jaw dropped to the floor and I had trouble sleeping that night. The Witcher 2 completely blows the first game out of the water.

The Witcher 2 is an action-based RPG based off a series of fantasy novels by the famous polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. The novels fol-low the story of a man named Geralt of Rivia who was once a human, but is mutated by chemicals from secret ancient formulas to become the ideal monster killing machine like many Witchers before him.

The Witchers serve a very impor-tant purpose: they kill monsters that pose a threat to the common folk. While typically staying away from politics, their line of work constantly tangles them up in the matters and lives of the noble class.

That’s enough explanation about the lore, however, if you want to learn more you should definitely pick up the game for yourself.

The gameplay is intense and very difficult for the right reasons. It’s not difficult because of bad controls or interface, it’s difficult because the combat requires finesse and doesn’t coddle you. It harkens back to the days of old where games weren’t toned down to appeal to children

with sluggish reflexes. But the game doesn’t just stimulate reflexes, it stimulates philosophically and intel-lectually.

Do you side with the radical freedom fighters with questionable methods? Or do you side with an oppressive force for the sake of keeping peace and order? Or are you going to end up like me and play through several times to see the difference your choices have on the world? There are 16 different endings so you’d better get started soon if you hope to see them all by the end of the year!

The game doesn’t take itself too seriously either. There are moments

of humor in the game that will have you literally laughing out loud. For example, perhaps after a night of heavy drinking you’ll end up with nothing but your underwear on the shore of a river with a tattoo of a bare-chested woman wielding sword and shield on your neck. Perhaps you’ll also find out that same night you rode a whore down to the river, tied her to several other whores and tried to float them across the river like a raft. Perhaps the name of the quest associated with these events is called “Hung Over”, a possible reference to a certain movie.The game is full of fun minigames like arm wrestling, bar room brawling

for money, knife throwing and vari-ous quicktime events during boss fights.

I clocked in at 39 hours with a single play through of the game, so you shouldn’t feel like you’re getting gypped like with a lot of other short single player RPGs, especially with seeing the game on sale lately. The developers recently announced a new patch; toted as a “2.0” that adds a new difficulty and a new game mode to the game. Most surprising of all is that this is free considering the rampant trend of premium DLC that has gotten so popular around the gaming world.

Overall it’s an amazing game. It

kind of makes me sad because this sequel really shows me what Dragon Age 2 COULD have been. So far I’d have to say it’s my favorite game this year, and probably my favorite game since Dragon Age: Origins. I may even like it a little more than my beloved Dragon Age. It’s definitely a 5/5 stars in my book, and I truly mean to give it the highest possible score I can.

If you’re interested in playing the Witcher 2 I’d highly recommend shopping around for the original first as it’s nice to go into the game with some knowledge about what’s happening, but it’s not absolutely necessary.

by Stephen Benoit

STephen BenoiT/The Skyline View

Geralt of Rivia, witcher extraordinaire, braces himself to do battle with a dragon that has haunted his steps since the beginning of the game.

(which is a walking contradiction to the vampire’s nature), you are in the wrong place. Colin Farrell plays the lead, delivering an admi-rable performance, sneering when inhaling, twitching in impatience and crouching in expectancy; every mannerism a tendency of his merci-less character.

Also starring Toni Collette and Imogen Poots, this movie is every-thing but honey coated. Starting off with old-school horror music gives it a sense of haunting--a device that sets you up in anticipation. The film

Although this is a remake of the 1985 original, these are different times which allow for a contempo-rary adaptation and new perspective, so leave all preconceptions at the door. What was then was, what is now is. However, this is one of the few movies of its genre in years that satiates that thirst for a fulfilling ex-perience of thrill, exploits your sense of revulsion, and plays on your fear all at the same time.

The vampire has redeemed itself! So if you’re looking for a sparkly, undernourished hunky bloodsucker

sweeping through this mundane neighborhood, filling the theater with a sense of dread.

The impacting cinematogra-phy and impressive method acting backed up by in-your-face gore give this movie an edge, so it’s time for all you horror devotees to enliven!

Targeted for an audience who enjoy gruesome, over the top Rh fac-tor spillage who want to revel under the twisted killer charm (literally) of Farrell’s intimidating gaze that penetrates your being.

revolves around the fanged threat who moves in next door to Charlie Brewer, (Anton Yelchin, Terminator: Salvation) who has moved on from his “dweeb” days and lives a pretty uneventful life until he must prevent those who matter to him from facing vampire Jerry’s wrath.

Clearly not an option for the faint-hearted, this film is very graphic. Every detail is depicted vividly. Consequently our toothy friend has you digging deeper into your seat. Any trace of will you had to unglue your eyes from Farrell’s portrayal of satanic Jerry (a vampire who has an uncanny talent of being equally malignant and appealing in a macabre fashion) is erased.

Quite quickly (thirty minutes into the movie) the true intentions of this blood thirsty monster are disclosed. It becomes a race for survival as Jerry betrays nothing of what he stands for. The way in which he consumes his victims with greed and voraciousness define him as an insatiable gourmand.

With a ha-ha now and then, the bloodshed laden scenes make it the

perfect blend of comedy overflowing with startling scares and resulting in many hold-your-breath moments. Keeping its fast-paced thread all throughout, director Craig Gillespie does a great job setting the film in a secluded cul-de-sac of a town in Las Vegas, creating an intimate feel, making the events seem all the more plausible.

As soon as the vampire comes on scene he is commander of your emotions and you know that he’s going to wreak havoc like a tornado,

imageS CourTeSy of dreamworkS ii diSTriBuTion

7September 1, �011 Skyline ViewThe

eNtertaiNmeNt

SportsSkyline

Upcoming Games9/2 @ Monterey Peninsula College 4 p.m.9/6 @ Santa Rosa Jr. College 1 p.m. (DH)9/9 VS Modesto Jr. College 2 p.m. 9/13 VS Mendocino College 1:30 p.m. (DH)

Women’s Soccer9/6 VS Shasta College 3 p.m.9/13 VS Delta College 3:30 p.m. (DH)9/15 @ Foothill College 1 p.m.9/17 VS Feather River College 11 a.m. (DH)

Men’s Soccer

ROXANNE WAHAB/THE SKYLINE VIEW

by Terence Chin

Skyline soccer players warm up for practice.

Students observe as hiting coach John Quintell explains the importance of squaring up to the ball.

It’s been a long eight months for student athlete soccer players, but the Skyline College men and women’s soccer teams are ready to take the field again.

September marks the beginning of soccer and the fall sports season.

Wrestling Volleyball9/9 VS Alumni (Scrimmage) 7 p.m.9/17 Sac City Tournament 9 a.m.9/26 VS San Jose State 7 p.m.10/8 Modesto Tournament 9 a.m.

9/2 MJC Tournament @ Modesto 10 a.m.9/3 Skyline Classic 12 p.m.9/7 @ Los Medanos College 6:30 p.m.9/9 @ College of Marin 6:30 p.m.

Trojans prepare to take the fieldHowever, both soccer coaches have been practicing with their teams for weeks already. The lady Trojans, led by head coach Kevin Corsiglia, have been training since early August.

“Training begins on August 1st, and we’ve been practicing for four hours, two times a day,” said Corsiglia, in his 11th year as head

coach.Returning player and sophomore

leader Arianna Picazo embraces the soccer season, and is confident and ready to give her all to the sport she loves again.

“I enjoy the speed, being out-doors, or when my teammates or I score a goal. You feel proud of

yourself and your team because you all worked together as one,” Picazo said. “We’re all expecting to play as we know how... as a team, not individually”.

Men’s soccer coach Daniel Link, like Corsiglia, will be entering his 11th season as the head coach. After so many years of involvement in the program, Link is still passionate about coaching the Skyline men’s soccer team. However, he recog-nizes that success in soccer is largely up to the players.

“Soccer is a unique sport. It al-lows and athlete to be creative and make many decisions on their own. As a coach, you hope to prepare the individuals and team properly in practice, so they can make the proper decisions in competition.... It is a player’s game. Witnessing this development and maturity of the student athletes is the best thing about coaching.”

The men’s team will have a fresh start this season, with only four returning players. The youngest team in at least 15 years, 21 of the 25 players are freshmen. According

Skyline sports for everyone

Skyline College may not have any Division I intercollegiate teams, but it does offer a program that many private four-year universities do not. Skyline makes available to its entire student body, the chance to participate in team sports.

“This program has been offered since the school began,” says Ath-letic Dean Joe Morello.

The Skyline College course catalog offers skill-development courses in a myriad of team sports from baseball to basketball and even soccer. However, the often inhospitable climate at Skyline Col-lege plays a significant role in team course offerings.

“As you can tell by our weather we don’t do a ton of outdoor ac-tivities,” laments Dean Morello. “We get more people signing up for indoor soccer than for outdoor soccer.”

But the crummy weather doesn’t stop the Skyline athletics department from offering a few courses that get the students outdoors.

“We have a flag football class,” says Morello. “And it’s fun. Students learn a lot about conditioning and fitness and all that. The instructor, Mike Fitzgerald, is the permanent quarterback. So there’s no worrying about who the quarterback is.”

Apparently some of the classes are more physically demanding than others. Skyline student Joe Stoval, who played sports in high school, admits that the Skyline team course in baseball is a pretty thorough and intense program, but that he joined

for a different reason. “I joined because I love base-

ball,” says Stoval.Coach Dino Nomicos is the

instructor in charge of skill develop-ment in baseball.

“Team classes are for anyone that wants to hone their skills”, says Coach Nomicos. “It’s not just a specific class for the Skyline baseball team. In the fall it’s open to everyone.”

The baseball course usually contains a mixture of students who compete or will be competing with the intercollegiate team in the spring, along with new participants from the general student body.

“They get the opportunity to learn the college game,” says Nomi-

by Joe Barrack

No man’s land refers to land that no man controls for fear or uncer-tainty of losing control to someone or something else.

According to the Physical Educa-tion Effectivness report for the years 2005 and 2006, 2,460 students took Physical Education classes. This number has increased slowly until it reached 3,730 students for 2009 and 2010.

To you, this fact may not be im-portant, but have you ever wondered if anyone among them has ever taken more than one team sport?

Joe Morello, dean of the athletics department, says he is unaware of any student who is currently par-ticipating in more than one sport. He says that in his experience, students in the past have expressed interest in the idea but have given up within a few weeks after the start of classes.

Let’s face it: Doing more than one team sport is not a walk in the park. After all, each of the sports that Skyline offers requires different skills to be learned and applied while on the field, both in practice sessions and in games.

If you think about it for a mo-ment, why would any person want to do more than one team sport? The team sports that Skyline Col-lege already offers such as baseball, basketball, wrestling, badminton and soccer, have nothing in common besides the fact that they all require a person to be physically fit. So why do it? Is there something we don’t know? Is there a hidden secret? The

answer in the end depends on your objective.

Dean Morello says the reason no one has done it before is that the sports offered here at Skyline are not similar enough. Participating in multiple sports wouldn’t necessarily allow a student to learn the same set of skills and apply it to both sports that he or she is doing.

Danny Link, head coach of the soccer team, said that he would en-courage the idea only if students are able to maintain good grades and put in the time for each sport.

Playing two team sports has both advantages and disadvantages, some of which are listed below:

If a player is equally skilled in both sports, it should provide an individual the chance to be recruited in either sport.

If students are looking to just play for fun or can’t make up their minds, participating in two sports would be an opportunity to play the games they love without making a choice. The only requirement is that the player is good enough to compete.

It would allow a student to be exposed to diverse teaching methods and different sporting cultures.

Students doing two sports will have to learn two completely differ-ent sports and skill sets before reach-ing their full potential in either.

A dual athlete will do more train-ing compared to someone who does only a single sport.

cos of his new students. “They love it. Kids that have gone on to Cal, USF, SF State, write me five years later saying how much they enjoyed the experience.”

While the team sports classes do offer an element of enjoyment, Morello says the name of the game is really about educating students when it comes to health and fitness. Skyline College makes a point of this by having physical education as a requirement in order for students to graduate.

“It’s part of the curriculum,” says Morello. “We look upon it as not just a recreational thing, but that you’re learning something along the way about the importance of exercise and what it means about your health.”

No man’s land

JONATHON CHAN/THE SKYLINE VIEW

All students have the opportunity to get involved

to Link, there was a great amount of interest in joining the men’s soccer team this year.

“We had over 50 athletes come out for the squad this year. We will be keeping 25 on the roster, with five to ten redshirt [practice] players.”

Link understands that having a very young team can be challenging, but still looks forward to coaching young student athletes.

“This team seems to have a great attitude to learn, necessary for development of the individual and team,” said Link.

The women’s soccer team will play their first pre-season game against Monterey Peninsula this Friday, September 2. The women will begin their regular season for conference games beginning on September 15 against Mission College.

The Trojan men will look for-ward to their first match on Sep-tember 6 against Shasta College. Men’s soccer will open the regular season conference at home on Fri-day, September 23, against De Anza College.

Skyline soccer gets the ball rolling with the upcoming season approaching

Few students attempt to take more than one sport at Skyline

by William Nacouzi