The Oak Leaf Newspaper, Issue 4: Oct. 29, 2012

thE oak leaf • october 29, 2012

2

He’s a national wrestling champion, three-time all-American and an Arizona State University legend. He is one of the top wrestlers in the nation and a testament to what can happen when dreams come true. His talent is a shock to some, an inspiration to many and if he could be summed up in one word it would be unstoppable.

Anthony Robles is nothing short of amazing. Born to a 16-year-old single mother, many people thought nothing would come easy for Robles. Not because of his teenage parent, but because he was born without his right leg.

Doctors could never fi gure out why this happened, but it has never mattered to Robles. It has never been his “disability” or “handicap,” it’s simply the way God made him, he said.

“We are all born diff erently, we all have our challenges,” Robles said. “It is just a matter of how you respond to the challenge.”

Robles’ older cousin introduced him to wrestling and he took up the sport at 14 but “wasn’t very good.” Fast forward to his last two years of high school with two state championships and a high school national title under his belt, Robles walked on to the ASU wrestling program after receiving an academic scholarship to attend the Division I school.

In his fi ve years at ASU, Robles’ overpowering love for the one-on-one competition of wrestling earned him three Pac-10 champion honors and all-American status. His senior year he capped a 36-0 perfect season with the NCAA national wrestling title.

This top collegiate honor is the pinnacle of wrestling success. For college wrestlers there is no next “professional athletic” step. It’s not like heading into the NFL or NBA; for every college wrestler, the NCAA fi nals are where you dream to be.

“To wrestle in the national fi nals after 10 years, in my fi nal match, was just an amazing honor and a dream come true,” Robles said. “It was scary, in front of 20,000 people in the arena. But I had

trained too hard to be in second place. It was nice to fi nally win.”

After graduating from college in 2011 Robles was awarded the Jimmy V award for perseverance at the 2011 ESPY awards and inducted into the national wrestling Hall of Fame. When Robles decided to leave the mat for good, he knew exactly what he wanted to do with his life: become a motivational speaker.

However, an opportunity arose to tell his story and help inspire others to achieve their dreams and overcome their challenges Robles knew his story would inspire. Partnering with Sports Illustrated’s Austin Murphy, Robles released “Unstoppable, From Underdog to Undefeated: How I Became a Champion” earlier this month.

“Unstoppable” chronicles Robles childhood through his wrestling career. The book talks about the hard times in his life, but it’s more than just an inspiring sports memoir: it’s a story about setting a goal and sticking to it, no matter what type of adversity stands in the way.

SRJC student stabbed at satellite campus

PAGE 4

Sports

news

Editors-in-Chief:Isabel BaskervilleHouston Smothermon

Managing Editor:Keshia Knight

Section Editors:A&E Editor: Cassidy MilaCopy Editor: Isabel BaskervilleFeatures Editor: Andrew McQuiddyNews Editor: Drew SheetsOpinion Editor: Peter NjorogePhoto Editor: Erik RamirezSports Editor: Thomas De Alba

Staff :Deborah San Angelo, Nathan Quast, Jimmy Merrill, Jenna Burkman, William Rohrs, Spen-

Clo Classic win for Bear Cub Football

PAGE 6

Arts & Entertainment

Center Spread

Scary movies for a perfect Halloween fright

PAGE 14

cer Harris, Domanique Crawford, Jose Gutierrez, Nadav Soroker, John Fox and Dimitri Nazarian

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UnstoppableTABLE of CONTENTs

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opinion

The tree is a liePAGE 13

National wrestling champion tells SRJC community about overcoming adversity and finishing on top

Erik Ramirez / Oak Leaf

Anthony Robles came to SRJC Oct. 24 to talk about the diffi culties he has overcome and to promote his new book “Unstoppable.”

Keshia Knight

Managing Editor

Election Propositions: What you should know

PAGE 8

Sports

Continued on PAGE 7


3

Santa Rosa Junior College offers health care services each semester for all SRJC students but only a quarter of students use the in-person services.

Student Health Services (SHS) assistant director Bert Epstein said only 25.5 percent of students use SHS even though they all pay the required $18 fee at the start of the semester.

SHS offers a wide range of services such as: flu shots, birth control, antibiotics, over-the-counter medications, psychological services and feminine hygiene products. SHS also holds two workshops every month.

Students automatically pay for the services when they enroll in credit classes at the beginning of each semester. There are no additional charges or co-pays at the clinic, which accepts both walk-ins and appointments.

Chad DeLarca has been with the Petaluma Campus health clinic for three years. He works as a medical assistant and also trains faculty and students in CPR. DeLaca said that the clinic is “tight lipped,” meaning that students do not need to feel fearful of their personal information being given away to others.

SRJC student Whitney Lucas said she “had a very positive experience” at Student Health Services on the Santa Rosa campus. Her friend had sprained his ankle and the clinic staff members quickly assisted him with ice and Advil.

They offered her friend more than they had expected.

“They were very helpful,” said Lucas, who plans to use SHS again.

Student Health Services may only reach one-fourth of the student body through face-to-face visits, but it reaches thousands more through its online magazine, “Student 101.” Accessible through students’ online cubby, the online magazine gives students facts and information regarding personal health. Epstein said Student 101 had 5,000 hits throughout last year.

The Student Health Center has reached out to more than 1,500 students through in-class presentations and hundreds of more students through the workshops it conducts twice a month. Recently, SHS received a government grant for a peer support program. The peer support program is a group of SRJC students who will reach out to other students to support and counsel them. The peer support group had its first meeting Oct. 3 and hopes to reach a great number of students, Epstein said.

“Simply accessing any part (of SHS) can help, even if students are not in need of immediate health care,” Epstein said. “Studies have shown that students with good health and resources for good health, do better in school.”

DeLarca said, “I hope even more students will start coming and utilizing our services.” Student Health Services is located in the Race building on the Santa Rosa Campus and in building 600 on the Petaluma Campus.

Students pursuing careers related to education get a boost this spring with the launch of the SRJC Teaching Fellows scholarship program.

“In my brief time in Sonoma County, I have encountered many SRJC alumni who fondly recall ‘a teacher who made a difference in my life.’ It’s now time to begin development of the next generation of great SRJC and Sonoma County faculty,” wrote SRJC President Dr. Frank Chong wrote in an Oct. 9 letter to faculty announcing the innovation.

“It’s a prestigious award,” said Dr. Robin Fautley of Life Sciences. “Students will be selected through a competitive process, be able to add being a Fellow to their resume, plus they will receive a monetary incentive.

Students will be partnered with a faculty member who will mentor the fellows by providing them with teaching opportunities, providing first-hand experience and a look behind the scenes.”

Chong chose Fautley for an ad-hoc committee instructed to create the Teaching Fellows Program, the latter financed by a $5 million anonymous donatation in Spring 2012. Fautley’s

many qualifications include current president of the Academic Senate, a member of the Curriculum Review Committee, implementing the Student Success Task force guidelines as well as teaching Biology 100 this semester.

Other members of the committee included people from the Financial Aid and Scholarships departments, the All Faculty Association, three deans and Joel Gordon, director of Early Childhood Education. Gordon will also direct the new program.

The Teaching Fellows scholarships, up to $1,800 each, pair each student with a matching teacher to mentor them through hands-on practical experience in many areas of the academic environment.

“Teaching fellows will meet regularly with their SRJC mentors and will also have monthly meetings with others participating in the program,” the college announced in a press release Oct. 24.

“The students will learn about best practices in teaching methodology in educational settings, working with diverse populations and about educating students in a changing world.”

Careers listed on the application include teaching college, grades K-12 and early childhood education, plus librarian, school counselor, disability resource specialist, school psychologist

or pursuit of another “appropriate education-related career.”

Qualified students must prove an overall 3.0 GPA or better for their minimum of 24 units at SRJC by the end of Fall 2012, at least half of which were applicable to their degree. They must enroll full-time here for the Spring 2013 semester and obtain a one-page letter of recommendation from a faculty member.

Faculty mentors are expected to “prepare Teaching Fellows for optimal observation and interaction by sharing written materials about rules, course syllabus and other relevant information,” serve as role models, provide guidance

and “supply a breadth of activity for the Teaching Fellows.” This includes exposing the students to teaching methodologies in community college classrooms, laboratories and/or libraries, as appropriate to their given curriculum.

“This year it’ll be only a one-semester program,” Fautley said. “In the future it will be a year-long program. I am excited about the program and its potential, I think this is an amazing opportunity.”

Students interested in applying for the Teaching Fellowship program should visit the scholarship page on the SRJC website. Applications are due no later than 5 p.m. Nov. 8.

news

The People Empowering Each other to Realize Success (PEERS) Coalition is an organization whose goal is to raise awareness about mental wellness and the health benefits available to the SRJC community.

The coalition provides support and training to active students, club leaders, interns, staff and faculty with the goal of enhancing mental wellness around campus.

PEERS coordinator Rebecca Fein, said, “According to the National College Health Assessment, more than three out of four SRJC students report having felt overwhelmed by all that they had to do in the past year. The PEERS Coalition is focused on bringing out the student voice around issues of mental wellness in the campus communities.”

PEERS devotes its efforts to eliminating any negative implications or stigma associated with mental wellness.

The Coalition provides a comfortable and judgment-free environment where peers can get together and provide support for one another and participate in activities the Coalition may host, as well as raising awareness of mental health issues through media campaigns.

The coalition also wants to let the SRJC community know about

the health benefits it provides to its student body.

“We work to raise awareness of all of the available resources around campus and throughout the community that contribute to mental wellness,” Feins aid.

At the beginning of each semester every student pays an $18 fee for health services. Not many people realize what they are paying for.

The services provided include control of communicable diseases, short-term clinical care for illnesses and injuries, contraceptives and preventive health promotion, crisis intervention and brief counseling for mental health concerns.

Health care for chronic, long term conditions is not within the scope of the department’s services, though referrals and community resources are provided for students who need them. Collaboration with community service providers is central to the model.

The Coalition holds monthly meetings in which community organizations, students, club leaders, staff and faculty members are provided training on healthy relationships, suicide prevention communication skills, diversity and more.

“The first meeting was all about actual students talking to actual students. Everyone was really involved,” said Joe Wagner PEERS Coalition intern.

For more information about Cal MHSA, please visit www.calmhsa.org.

SRJC Health Services looking for the other 75 percent

Shay Smith

Contributing Writer

A new SRjC teaching program pairs interested students with faculty mentors

Andrew McQuiddy

Features Editor

SRJC implements Teaching fellows scholarship Program

Spring 2013

SRJC Teaching Fellows Program

Student Application

This is a merit-based award designed for students who wish to explore teaching and scholarly careers (Pre-K through higher education) in a hands-on mentorship program with a Faculty Mentor at SRJC.

One of the most rewarding aspects of this program is the educational and practical experience Teaching Fellows receive by interacting with a faculty member at SRJC. These interactions add to the depth and breadth of the Teaching Fellows’ learning experience, providing enhanced exposure to a profession in education.

AWARD AMOUNT:

Up to 25 awards for up to $1,800 each for the Spring 2013 semester

TEACHING FELLOWS SELECTION CRITERIA*:

! Minimum overall SRJC GPA of 3.0

! Completion of a minimum of 24 units (12 degree applicable) at SRJC by the end

of Fall 2012

! For students who plan to pursue careers in education such as:

o College teacher

o K-12 teacher

o Early childhood education teacher

o School librarian, school counselor, disability resource specialist, school

psychologist, or other appropriate education-related career

! Must enroll full-time at SRJC during Spring 2013

! A one-page letter of recommendation required from an SRJC faculty member

! This is a merit-based award. However, students receiving Federal Financial Aid this year must have “remaining need” in their financial aid package to receive this award (i.e. Direct Loans and/or Federal WorkStudy awards may need to be reduced).

*If you do not meet the requirements as stated, a policy appeal must be completed. Filing a policy appeal does not automatically place you in the selection pool.

Deadline: Application and letter of recommendation must be submitted

by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 8, 2012.

Photo Courtesy of SRJC Scholarship webpage

The SRJC Teaching Fellows Scholarship application is available on the scholarship page at www.santarosa.edu. The application is due no later than 5 p.m. Nov. 8.

SRJC Peers coalition seeks to aid student wellness

Domanique Crawford

Staff Writer


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It’s not too late to catch one of SRJC’s Work Experience seminars this Fall.

Each semester, the Career Center and Work Experience departments collaborate to put together around 35 interactive seminars. Held at both SRJC campuses, the seminars are open to the entire SRJC community.

“These seminars are cutting edge 21st Century work skills that all SRJC students need to stand out, be hired and promoted in today’s tough labor market,” said SRJC administrative assistant Annette Dobson.

Topics include,“How to Choose Your Major” and “Using Social Networking for Career Planning.” Other topics, such as “Resume Writing” and “Interview Skills” are repeated each semester.

The presentations identify resources and services to help students make a career decision, get realistic ideas about opportunities in a tough economic climate and learn how to put their best foot forward in job searching.

“Our intent is to make students employable and promotable and more confident in their ability to be successful,” said Career

Services advisor Suzanne Papa. Each event features

presenters who are experts in their fields. Occasionally, this includes SRJC graduates who have achieved their goals and come back to share their experiences with others, as well as SRJC instructors and members of the business community. The Career Center also invites nationally-known authors and executive career coaches to speak on their area of expertise.

On Nov. 7, students can catch, “Following Your Passion to Success,” presented by a distinguished panel of local employers who will share their individual journeys to success as well as tips about what kind of employees they hire and promote. Some of the panelists include Mark and Terri Stark, owners/chef of Stark Restaurants, as well as Scott Hopkins and Scott Kennedy, managers at Trader Joe’s. The presentation will begin at 4 p.m. in room 4875 on the third floor of the Bertolini Student Center and attendees are encouraged to bring their own questions.

There are eight seminars left this semester. All seminars are free, no RSVP is required and students enrolled in Work Experience courses will earn credit hours for attending.

news

SRJC student Oswaldo Fajardo was stabbed around 9:30 p.m. Oct. 16 by the husband of another student while they were talking after class in the parking lot of the Southwest Center, an SRJC satellite campus.

The suspect, Miguel Garcia-Asencio of Santa Rosa, was arrested that night, charged with attempted homicide and is currently in Sonoma County Jail being held with no bail due to an immigration hold. He is the not a student himself.

“I know initially he was booked for attempted murder and an immigration hold, so he can’t get out, I would say in the short term I would not worry about this individual coming back out,” SRJC district Police Chief Matt McCaffrey said. “This wasn’t a random act; he had someone very specific in mind so we don’t see him as a threat to the student body.”

The satellite center offers a variety of mostly non-credit classes and primarily used by ESL (English as a second language) students who hope to eventually move on to credit classes.

SRJC Coordinator of Non-Credit Matriculation Hector Delgado explained the campus is utilized by multiple programs.

“In the evening we have normally six classes, Monday through Thursday and a few classes on weekends as well. The classes are mostly non-credit ESL (English as a second language), we have GED prep classes and we also have community education classes along with solar panel installation certificate classes,” Delgado said.

Delgado did not witness the incident or personally know any of the people involved, although he did confirm the victim and the suspects’ wife were students who were

taking an ESL class.“I talked to a couple of people that I

know who leave at around that time and they explained to me that they didn’t see anything,” Delgado said.

Fajardo is enrolled in the higher level ESL courses and was well liked at the center. Linda Hauser, a longtime SRJC ESL instructor teaches the class that the victim and suspects wife is in.

“Oswaldo is a good student; he takes course 716, a very high level, one of the students who would be headed to the main SRJC campus. The students were concerned about him so the first thing we did in the lab was look at the Press Democrat article from yesterday so they could read about what happened. I imagine we’ll do something for him when he comes back,” Hauser said.

“Oswaldo is friendly and joking all the time; he is a good person. I feel sad for Oswaldo because he’s always happy, smiling and always talking with everyone,” SRJC student Maggie Romo said.

Garcia-Asencio is not an SRJC student and is still in custody. He is expected to enter a plea on a charge of attempted homicide and an immigration charge Nov. 13 at Sonoma County Superior Court.

The official center parking lot is located on the north side of grounds and is clean and well lit with about 50 parking spaces. On the south side of the school there is a large parking lot nestled in between a vacant part of the school and an old soccer field, both of which are not technically part of the Southwest Center.

The south parking lot where the stabbing occurred is isolated and very dark at night.

“I’m scared of that parking lot because it’s very dark and it’s far from the other one,” Romo said.

Hauser said most people at the Center are aware that safety is a concern.

“At the beginning of the semester we tell people don’t ever walk across that yard to the south lot without going in a group or at least with one other person,” Hauser said.

The South lot does have some limited lighting but it is on the soccer field side and the majority of the lot after sunset is shrouded in darkness.

One possible challenge with improving the lighting is that even though students regularly use the south parking lot, it is technically not part of the Southwest

Center, so facility improvements may fall into a grey area.

“I don’t like what happened at the Southwest Center and even though there was probably nothing we could have done to prevent it, I

want to make sure people feel safe out there and that they feel that they can call us for anything in the future. I’m going to talk to the facilities operations guy about the lighting,” McCaffrey said.

The Clery Act is a federal law that requires all colleges to follow certain protocol regarding crime on and around campus. Some requirements are an annual security report, public crime log, timely warnings about Clery Act crimes, emergency response notification, fire safety data and policies and procedures for missing students.

At the district police homepage on the SRJC website, there is an Emergency Text Alert System called ALERTU, which people can sign up for to receive the same notifications that all of the SRJC instructor

computers on the school server receive in case of an emergency or immediate threat.

“Our notification system is ALERTU. I’m actually looking at a new method, a software system called Nixle, similar to ALERTU but much more user friendly. The downside of it is the same as ALERTU, its only as good as the number people signed up for it,” McCaffrey said.

For most incidents including the stabbing, recent car thefts and the sexual assault last semester, the crime alert flyers are used. Posted on the district website and around campus, flyers notify people about crimes on campus.

At the Southwest Center some students may be hesitant about reporting a crime because fear of their legal status.

“A lot of people who came to this facility are not even citizens, so they have a fear of being deported or being stopped or having their car taken away. The fact that there was a stabbing, people’s fear can intensify and these are things that me and you may not be able to understand because it doesn’t happen to us,” Delgado said.

The SRJC district police want to encourage more people to come forward if they are a victim, witness or just want to report any suspicious activity around campus.

“If you’re the victim of a crime, if you’re the witness to a crime, immigration status is not relevant, we don’t care, it doesn’t come up, it’s not an issue,” McCaffrey said.

Personal responsibility is the best course of action for protecting yourself from being the victim of a crime. People can sign up for ALERTU and take the time to read crime alert flyers as well as call campus police if they feel they are in danger.

“Be better safe than sorry, be the squeaky wheel, there’s no call too small, be aware of your surroundings and don’t be afraid to call us,” McCaffrey said.

Alex Campbell

Staff Writer

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SRJC student stabbed at Santa Rosa Satellite Campus

Attempted murder shocks ESL Department students

“If you’re a victim of a crime, if you’re the

witness to a crime, im-migration status is not relevant. We don’t care, it doesn’t come up, it’s

not an issue”- SRJC Police Chief Matthew McCaffrey

Workshops work experience and career Center

help students become employable

Brooks Blair

Web Manager

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RSVP FOR AN INFORMATION SESSION TODAY!

TRANSFER TO DOMINICANAND BECOME PART OF THEDOMINICAN DYNAMIC!•Over30undergraduateandgraduateprogramsintheartsandsciences,

healthsciences,businessandinternationalstudies,andteachereducation.•Meritscholarshipsareofferedexclusivelyfortransferstudentsandrange

from$5,000to$10,000ayear.•Transferapplicationsareacceptedforbothfallandspringsemesters.•Generaleducationrequirementsmaybe

completedbeforeorafteryoutransfer.

An Educational Experience You Can’t Find Anywhere Else

fall and spring semesters.

OFFICE OF ADMISSIONS50 Acacia Avenue

San Rafael, California 949011-888-323-67631-415-485-3204

[email protected]

Employees - Part-Time Accounts

Bookkeeper and Representatives

Payable/Receivable:

Good communication and

organizational skills.

Send resume to: turbine1820@gm ail.com


6

SRJC men’s wrestling put their hard work and dedication on display at the Northern California Duals tournament Oct. 20 at Haehl Pavilion. The team finished with a 3-1 record, and placed fourth overall.

The team opened up with its first win of the day against Delta College, ending with a score of 47-6. They then battled Sac City, their only loss of the tournament, falling 6-40. However, the players were able to finish the day strong with two more wins, defeating Skyline by a score of 48-4 and Chabot with a score of 47-4.

The team has been on fire this season due to the players’ competitive edge and determination to succeed.

According to SRJC wrestlers, it takes much more than an interest in the sport, but a passion and strong will power to succeed at what they do.

Andrew Wolocatiuk, the opening match competitor, has been wrestling for more than eight years and is a sophomore.

“We had an early season start, and a strong dedication right away from all of our players,” Wolocatuik said.

The SRJC wrestling team has to worry about cutting weight so some wrestlers may compete in their desired weight class. “I haven’t eaten anything since Wednesday Oct. 17 and I stopped drinking water on Thursday.” Wolocatuik said.

Ivan Turner is another wrestler on the team who goes through the same intense preparations as Wolocatuik. “Since Friday I have had no food or water, but right before my match I had a Gatorade and McDonalds’ to gain some energy,” he said.

Blake Borges has a different recipe for success. “You have to look good to

wrestle good.” He explained his method for making weight, “I work out three times a day, cut down on a lot of food and just eat healthy with plenty of water intake.” Borges summarized his diet to be based on protein, whole grains and fruit.

Coach Jake Fitzpatrick is a contributing factor in the team’s success. Fitzpatrick has coached the players tough since the beginning of the season and explains how cutting weight is all part of the process. “It’s an obstacle they have to meet and they overcome it,” Fitzpatrick said. The wrestlers go through a body weight testing in the beginning of season, which helps determine which weight class they should compete in.

“Most of our guys aren’t cutting weight, and if they are, they are never to go below 5 percent body fat so it is not a significant weight loss,” Fitzpatrick continued.

The team has worked hard all season long and has responded well to Fitzpatrick’s demanding work regiment. “The coaching staff is great and our assistant coach provides us with tough workouts.” Wolocatuik says.

“The coaches turn up the level each practice and it pays off.” Turner said.

Fitzpatrick expresses his support to his players after the Northern California Duals Tournament, “They did pretty well. We finished fourth place and we beat the teams we were supposed to beat,” Fitzpatrick said.

The team looks to continue its success after improving to a 9-1 overall record. With their recent victory against Chabot, they remain 2-0 in conference.

The team will compete in either the Lassen tournament in Reno, Nev. or the San Francisco Tournament in San Francisco.

The SRJC football team dominated both sides of the ball resulting in a 37-10 win over Foothill College in the 11th annual Clo Classic Oct. 20 at Bailey Field.

The Bear Cubs took control of the game at the end of the first quarter when Garrett Guanella intercepted a pass for a 62-yard touchdown return, giving the team an early 7-0 lead.

SRJC scored two more touchdowns in the second quarter: one on a 15-yard pass from quarterback David Sowards to wide receiver Logan Valencia and another Sowards 68-yard pass to Jordan Bergstrom.

In the second half, the Bear Cubs kept the momentum going when Sowards threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Terrance Drew, making the score 34-3 with 2:03 left in the third quarter.

The Bear Cubs’ win was a collective effort from the offense, defense and special teams. “Every game we play, win or lose, is a collective effort by all three phases of the game,” said head coach keith Simons.

Sowards took control of the offense, throwing for 371 yards and three touchdowns. Contributing to the offenses’ success, running back Spencer Morrow had 16 carries for 92 yards, averaging 5.8 yards per carry. “I know I could have had more yards, but I was making the wrong reads early in the game,” Morrow said. “But the game went good overall.”

Simons expressed another opinion about the offense, “I think our offensive line played their best game by far as a

group and that really showed. We had over 500 yards on offense and they played pretty good.”

SRJC’s defense played a vital role with two interceptions and 4 total sacks. Also, kicker Lee Aranda tied an SRJC record going 3-3 in field goal attempts (30, 39, 25).

This win was crucial for SRJC as it marked their second league game, leveling their record to 1-1 in conference. “We needed this win badly,” Simons said. “This puts us tied for second in conference and we basically control our own destiny the rest of the way.”

Hoping to win their second straight game the Bear Cubs took on De Anza College Oct. 27 at Bailey Field.

The Bear Cubs took an early lead with a 5-yard Sowards pass to Bergstrom and another 18-yard pass to Drew leaving the

score at 14-0 with 1:35 left in the first quarter.

The Dons rallied back with a 6-yard pass from quarterback Josh McCain, however the two-point conversion rush by Trevor Pardula failed. Less than five minutes later De Anza scored again when McCain ran for a 2-yard touchdown.

The Bear Cubs managed to kick a field goal and maintain the lead, but De Anza pulled things together and scored three straight touchdowns to leave the score at 34-17.

The Bear Cubs scored twice more with 36 seconds left in the contest, but the squad’s last-chance effort was not enough, finalizing the score at 34-31.

The Bear Cubs fell to 1-2 in conference and 3-5 overall after the game. The team’s next game will be at San Francisco City College at 1 p.m. Nov. 3.

sports

Soccer

Men’s

Nov. 2, vs. Delta @ 3 p.m.

Women’s

Nov. 2, vs. Delta @ 1 p.m.

Volleyball

Oct. 31, vs. Cosumnes River @ 6:30 p.m.

Football

Nov. 10, vs. College of San Mateo @ 1 p.m.

Wrestling

Nov. 4, vs. Chabot @ 7 p.m.

Upcoming home games

SRJC Bear Cub football brings a win for annual charity gameThe Clo Classic

Jenna Burkman

Staff Writer

Wrestlers on a roll at Norcal Duels TournamentBrittany Jones

Staff Writer

Thomas De Alba / Oak Leaf

The Bear Cubs face off against Foothill College at the 11th annual Clo Classic Charity football game.

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7

Continued from PAGE 2“It’s one thing to share my story and

try to inspire people in 45 minutes of talking, but it’s a whole other level to write my life story out in a book and let them read about the challenges and the times I was defeated and came back from it,” Robles said. “It’s a huge tool for me to do what I feel like I am called to do, which is to help others.”

In partnership with the SRJC wrestling program and Copperfi eld’s Books, Robles came to SRJC Oct. 24 for a few words of

encouragement and promotion for his new book. Tauzer Gym was packed full of wrestling fans and SRJC community members waiting to hear Robles speak.

For Robles, coming to SRJC felt like coming home, a chance to bond with his “wrestling family” out here.

“We call it the wrestling community. If you’re a wrestler it doesn’t mater who you are or where you’re from; if you wrestle you’re in with us,” he said.

Robles said he was excited to speak before the wrestling team because he

knows what members go through as athletes.

“Wrestling was my sanctuary. When things were going bad at home or in my personal life, whenever I stepped on a wrestling mat everything just disappeared,” Robles said. “It is a common bond we have and it’s a special thing I want to share with them.”

He walked onto the mat in the middle of Tauzer Gym to applause and shared his story of struggle and triumph. His message was short and sweet, but resonated with many. SRJC wrestling head coach Jake Fitzpatrick watched Robles compete at the NCAA championships and was honored to have him speak before his team.

“Anthony has a very signifi cant story to tell. He has overcome tremendous obstacles to compete and win at the highest level in the toughest collegiate sport,” Fitzpatrick said.

Many of the SRJC wrestlers met with Robles, posed with him for pictures and had him sign copies of his book.

“I was really excited to meet him [Robles] before our match against Skyline,” said SRJC wrestler Andrew Wolocatiuk. ”I got him to sign my book and I’m looking forward to reading it.”

Robles will continue his book tour then return home to Arizona. But he doesn’t expect much downtime. As a Nike-sponsored athlete and ESPN commentator, Robles will be very busy. But he will continue speaking to people and hopes his words of inspiration help

people get what they want in life.“We all wrestle with our own

challenges, whether it be physical or family things. We all have our own obstacles, our own opponents we wrestle with in life,” Robles said. “I want people to know that they can be unstoppable throughout it. You just have to have that mind set to where you tell yourself, ‘I’m going to make the most of it. Bad or good, I’m going to get through it.’”

It has been a very interesting October for the SRJC Hockey Team.

After going 3-0 to start the season, the Polar Bears have dropped four straight games including two at Snoopy’s Home Ice to Division III teams, a fi rst in recent club history. Luckily for the team, SRJC played in Idaho this past weekend, going 2-1 in three games.

The team had suff ered two losses in Colorado and a cancelled match against Stanford University before coming home to Snoopy’s Oct. 13 to face UC Davis. SRJC hoped to feed off the high-energy atmosphere of the home rink but were sluggish to start and lacked a cohesive strategy.

Despite their struggles, a resilient Polar Bears team managed to tie the game at seven when forward Josiah Nikkel scored his third goal of the night with a minute and a half to go in the game. But with 14.2 seconds left on the clock Davis tipped in a shot to take the game 8-7.

“This game was not the typical SRJC hockey game,” said Polar Bears forward John Hutton. “We played below our instensity level and let Davis score early. We came back but never caught up.”

Armed with pink sticks in support of the team’s Breast Cancer Awareness Night, the Polar Bears took the ice Oct. 20 but the same misfortunes awaited. SRJC faced its American Collegiate Hockey Association rival Santa Clara University, a team the Polar Bears have not seen since a 9-3 win in 2010.

From the moment the puck dropped both teams looked lost, but Santa Clara managed to pull it together long enough to score the fi rst goal of the night. A

minute later Polar Bears forward John Keshishian tied it up with an assist by Nikkel, who followed it up with a goal of his own to give the Polar Bears a 2-1 edge.

Unfortunately, that was the only lead SRJC would have all game. Santa Clara tied it up soon after and kept adding on all night. Keshishian and Nikkel added two more goals to the Polar Bears score, but it was not enough. Santa Clara won the game 7-4.

“Santa Clara’s goalie played remarkably, “ Hutton said of the Broncos player, one of two female players on the team.

Nikkel’s assist on Keshishian’s goal brought his point total up to 20. The freshman forward has been a good addition to this Polar Bears team, putting up points in six of the fi rst seven games and leading a generally struggling SRJC team this last month of play.

The Polar Bears were determined to end October better than the team had started with three games in Idaho Oct. 26-29.

Hoping for a surge of energy, SRJC took the ice Oct. 26 against Brigham Young University. The Polar Bears managed to garner a 5-4 win with a goal

by defenseman Matt Schaben.“After last week’s loss I had to do

something to change my game. So I cut my hair, shaved my beard and clipped my nails to turn our luck around. Seemed to work,” Schaben said. “Scoring the game winner was sweet but getting the win was the most important part.”

The next game was also another 5-4 win for SRJC. The team faced a hard-hitting Boise State University team. Boise has only lost two games so far this season and are a Division II club.

But the Polar Bears came together and pulled out a confi dent win.

The team’s last game in Idaho was against the Western Washington University and the team ended its consecutive win streak. But the team has seemed to turn around its game and things look brighter for the next month of play.

The Polar Bears will take on Fresno State in a two-game series Nov. 2-3 at Snoopy’s in Santa Rosa. SRJC will also host its second annual Wine Country Collegiate Classic Nov. 8-10 featuring Sacramento State University, Metro State University at Denver and Northern Arizona University.

sports

after a month of painful losses hockey team wins two on the road

Polar bears thaw losing streak in idaho seriesKeshia Knight

Managing Editor

Thomas De Alba/ Oak Leaf

The SRJC Hockey team faces off against the Santa Clara University Broncos Oct. 20 at Snoopy’s Home Ice in Santa Rosa.

2012-2013 Home Schedule

w w w . s a n t a r o s a h o c k e y . c o m

SANTA ROSA JUNIOR COLLEGE

ICE HOCKEY

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iy

ADMISSION IS FREE!

Sept. 14 UC Berkeley 8:30pmSept. 15 San Jose State 8:30pmSept. 22 Sacramento State 8:30pmOct. 13 UC Davis 8:30pmOct. 20 Santa Clara U. 8:30pmNov. 2 Fresno State 8:30pmNov. 3 Fresno State 8:30pmNov. 8 Metro State Denver 6:30pmNov. 9 Sacramento State 5:30pmNov. 10 Northern Arizona U. 5:30pmDec. 14 San Jose State 8:30pmJan. 11 UC Santa Barbara 8:30pmJan. 18 UC San Diego 8:30pmJan. 19 Santa Clara U. 8:30pmJan. 26 Stanford 8:30pm

All home games are played at: Snoopy’s Home Ice 1667 West Steele Lane Santa Rosa

Unstoppable...

Courtesy of Cooperfi eld’s Books

“Unstoppable” by Anthony Robles is the inspi-rational book about overcoming the odds.


8

What is it?Proposition 30 is a tax initiative that,

if passed, will raise approximately $6 billion annually to help fund California schools and community colleges. The tax initiative, more formally known as “The Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012” is proposed by Governor Jerry Brown and will raise the personal income tax rate for seven years and state sales tax for four years.

Individuals making an annual income of more than $250,000, $300,000 and $500,000 will see a 1 percent, 2 percent and 3 percent increase in their personal income tax, respectively, from the current rate of 9.3 percent. Proposition 30 will also increase the sales tax for everyone by one quarter of a cent. The increased taxable income rates would apply to income earned as early as Jan.1, 2012 and the sales tax increase would take place at the start of 2013. Lastly, Proposition 30 would put an amendment into the California Constitution that would require the State to continue paying for public safety programs that the local governments have been made responsible for since realignment in 2011.

Revenues gained by Proposition 30 will go to a special account called the Education Protection Account (EPA) and will reserve the money for K-14 schools. These funds would go towards fulfilling Proposition 98. Proposition 98 was passed in 1988 and says that the State must guarantee that a minimum of 40 percent of California’s general fund goes towards K-14 education funding and that the portion of money given to schools must increase with economic growth or with higher attendance.

These new revenues would fulfill the requirement and subsequently free up the rest of the money in the General Fund to go towards other public services and programs such as health services, environmental programs, and correctional programs, among other things.

The money could also be used to help balance the budget. Of the money that goes into the Education Protection Account, K-12 schools would receive 89 percent of money generated, while community colleges would receive 11

Nashelly Chavez

Contributing Writer

Jeremy Hoskins

Contributing Writer

percent. Annual audits will track how school money is being spent.

Pros/ ConsAdvocates for Proposition 30 say

passing the tax initiative will ensure that K-12 education, higher education institutions and other programs that receive funding from the General Fund do not face $6 billion in cuts. The 2012-2013 State Budget Plan assumes that Proposition 30 will pass and it takes into account the revenues that would be gained from the initiative. If Proposition 30 does not pass, these ‘trigger cuts’ will automatically take place in order to account for the missing revenues. K-12 and community colleges are expected to face the majority of these cuts; roughly $5.35 billion in cuts according to the California Legislative Analyst’s Office.

According to advocates, Proposition 30 would provide secure funding for schools. The funding would prevent increases in tuition costs, increases in class size and w o u l d p r o v i d e teachers a n d students w i t h materials. Pat Sabo is a teacher at Healdsburg Junior High School and a member of the California T e a c h e r s Association, a pro-minent supporter of Proposition 30. She describes major disadvantages that she and teachers state- wide have encountered over the past few years such as classes growing from 28 students per class to as large as 36 students and a loss of instruction days. If Proposition 30 does not pass, the state legislature has approved cutting the school year to 160 days of instruction for the next two years. This is 15 less days from the already lowered 175 days.

“That’s three weeks of school [lost] each year. Over a 12 year period, you’re talking about 36 weeks. That’s actually a loss of one full year of your

schooling from K-12. It would wipe out a year from your education. Which year would you want to wipe out?” said Sabo.

Opponents of Proposition 30 remind voters that the sales tax will apply to everyone, not just the wealthy. They also argue that California already has the highest sales tax in the nation, with the state average being 8.4 percent.

“We believe that California needs reform and change, not an increase in taxes,” said Eric Eisenhammer, the Director of Grassroots Operations at Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association. Eisenhammer adds that there is money available but it is just not being spent efficiently. Instead of adding taxes, there should be a change within the school system.

Those in opposition to Proposition 30 also believe that the tax initiative will hurt an economy that is on its way to recovery. Small business owners that file their business’s earnings under their personal income will be faced with large amount of taxes, and will therefore not be able to create

new jobs. “We need to have an economy that is producing

jobs for students” said E i s e n h a m m e r.

This could a l s o d i s c o -u r a g e p e o p l e f r o m s t a r t i n g n e w

b u s i n e s s e s in California. California has ranked poorly in business c l i m a t e , coming dead last in Chief

Executive’s Best and Worst States to do business in

for 2012. Lastly, there is great criticism from

the opposition about how the new revenues will be used. Opponents claim that no new money will go to schools because politicians will be able to take money that would have gone to schools and use it for other purposes, and then replace that money with the revenues generated from Proposition 30. This is referred to as backfilling. Opponents also criticize Proposition 30 because the money generated will be spent however local school boards deem necessary, rather than being set

proposition 30

proposition 32

aside for specific areasSupporters and OpponentsSupporters for Brown’s proposition

include The California Teachers Association, The California Federation of Teachers, Californians For Higher Education and several UC and CSU campuses. Other non-academic based groups that support Proposition 30 include the California League of Women Voters, California State Sheriffs Association and the California Council for Environmental and Economic Balance. Opponents of Proposition 30 include Howard Jarvis Tax Coalition, Small Business Action C o m m i t t e e PAC, as well as individual i n v e s t o r s and business o w n e r s . S t u d e n t Impact

S t u d e n t s will directly be impacted by the $5.35 billion in cuts that will occur automatically if Proposition 30 fails. Je-ssica Jones, the current SRJC ASB P r e s i d e n t , said that if that happens cuts will have to be made. Jones elaborates by adding that the district can expect a 16 percent staffing reduction if Proposition 30 does not pass, as well as less courses and funding for full-time students. This means fewer teachers, and larger class sizes. Students who plan to transfer from a community college can also expect increases in tuition at UC’s and CSU’s if Proposition 30 fails, in order to make-up for the cuts that these schools will face.

Funding Pro/ConAccording to Maplight.org,

funding for Proposition 30 is at $51.7 million with the largest contribution coming from the Service Employees International Union with a contribution of over $8 million. Opponents of the proposition have raised almost $40 million dollars, with Charles T. Munger Jr., brother to Molly Munger, providing the top contribution at almost $21.9 million.

What is it?Proposition 32 will halt union

garnishing of wages to support political campaigns, ban donations to candidates and candidate-controlled committees by unions and corporations and halt corporations with government contracts from donating to the politicians who award them the contracts. There is a lot of money for Sacramento to lose on this proposition but the trade off appears to be the returning of contri-bution power to the working class.

Proposition 32 will have a large financial impact on California’s politicians and indeed on the next elections for senators and all major seats in governments within California.

Pros/ConsMost of the contributors to

California legislators’ campaigns are from outside of their district and Proposition 32 aims to limit this influence as well. Supporters believe

in putting the power back in the hands of the people by making sure that all political campaign contributions are voluntary.

“Individual union members are free to directly support the candidate of their choice or contribute voluntarily to their union’s PAC. Employees of large corporations are free to directly support the candidate of their choice, or contribute voluntarily to the company’s PAC,” argues yes on 32.

Opponents say this proposition is a well-written deceptive piece of legislation to silence union members and keep them out of politics, while others say Proposition 32 will do just the opposite and give individual union members the ability to control their contributions.

Those against Proposition 32 cite several problems with the proposition. The first is that it does not limit the

power of LLCs, real estate trusts or individuals. Therefore, thousands of business entities are not blocked by Proposition 32. Though the proposition would block payroll deductions, Proposition 32 opponents say, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, corporations spend 15 times more on political campaigns

than unions do and Proposition 32 would actually limit the unions from having the same financial footing in politics that corporations have.

Most corporations do not use payroll deductions to con-tribute to campaigns so Proposition 32 would not affect them. But many unions do use payroll

deductions for their political influence so their influence would be stunted by Proposition 32. Every person in a union has the right to contribute to campaigns on a voluntary basis, as it is a constitutional right.

“Proposition 32 actually restricts that right. It adds a new requirement that even voluntary contributions from

teachers, nurses, firefighters and other union members must be accompanied by annual, written permission to use the funds,” according to an article for the organization No on 32 titled “What 32 Says and What It Really Means.”

Proposition 32 does do one thing that it seems both sides would support in the bill. It bans corporations holding government contracts from contributing to politicians that grant them those contracts. Both sides seem to agree that this is a practice that must be stopped and that it interrupts the economic setting of the state should it be allowed to continue.

Supporters/opponents?Supporters of Proposition 32

include the Citizens for California Reform, The California Republican Party, California activist Charles Munger Jr. and former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz.

Opponents include the League of Women Voters, the California Democratic Party and the California Labor Federation.

Who's funding it?California billionaire activist

Charles Munger Jr. has dropped more than $22 million into the campaign to support Proposition 32.

"Individual union members are free to directly support the candidate of their choice or contribute voluntarily to their union's PAC. Employees of large corporations are free to directly support the candidate of their choice, or contribute voluntarily to the company's PAC," argues

yes on 32.

Photo Ilustration & IlustrationDaniel Barba Almeida / Graphic Designer


9

Photo Ilustration & IlustrationDaniel Barba Almeida / Graphic Designer

proposition 34 proposition. Prop. 34 is also supported by

organizations such as the League of Women Voters of California and individuals such as retired Judge LaDoris Cordel and Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa of Los Angeles, while former Governor of California Pete Wilson opposes Prop. 34.

Student ImpactProp. 34 would have little to no

impact on California students, aside from the redistribution of funds. $100 million the proposition would direct from California’s general fund to law enforcement agencies, although the proponents argue that the long-run savings to the state would be far greater.

Funding pro and conProp. 34 has received approximately

$7 million worth of support from individuals and organizations as of Oct. 24. The Atlantic Advocacy Fund has contributed $1 million, while five separate chapters of the ACLU have together given nearly $370,000.

Individual contributions in support of the proposition include $1 million from Nicholas Pritzker of the Hyatt Hotel chain legacy and $250,000 from Netflix CEO Reed Hastings. Employees of Google and Oracle have also made significant contributions.

Opponents of Prop. 34 have contributed less than $1 million, with the largest contributions coming from the Peace Officers’ Research Association of California with contributed nearly $190,000. Other law enforcement agencies like the California Association of Highway Patrolmen and the Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs have made numerous smaller contributions.

California the first state to require labeling for GMOs. This could send ripples through the country’s corn and soybean industries.

Pros/ConsGenetically modified

crops, particularly corn and soybean, have come under heated debate in California and across the country. The USDA has found the crops safe for co n s u m p t i o n , h o w e v e r companies like Monsanto spend millions of dollars each year lobbying the USDA. That money has in essence guaranteed the company a perpetual green light. “We’re not banning anything, and we’re not talking about a warning label. It comes

down to our democratic right to know what we are buying for ourselves and our families,” said Assistant media director for California Right to Know, Zach Kaldveer.

It ma-kes sense

that Northern California would

be at the forefront of the labeling debate.

For residents of the Golden State, odds are that even if you don’t buy organic produce you know what it is. But what will the measure mean for students?

“This is much more than a simple

labeling measure, so look beyond

that,” said No on 37 spokeswoman Kathy

Fairbanks. “If it passes, grocery bills are going to go

up. Times are tough and if the cost for groceries go up, students will be left with less income for things like tuition, books and rent, costs we’ve all seen go up.” A study funded by the

Julia Somers

Contributing Writer

Danette Ellsworth

Contributing Writer

What is it?Californians will cast their votes

next month on Proposition 37, a ballot initiative that would require labeling on food made from genetically modified organisms.

In the past months, Proposition 37 has gained national

media recognition. The Huffington

Post called the measure “a closely w a t c h e d test of c o n s u m e r a t t i t u d e s about the merits of genetically engineered crops.” If passed, the m e a s u r e would make

proposition 37

proposition 33

campaign estimates that if Prop 37 passes, the average family will see a $400 increase in yearly grocery costs.

When asked about the potential increase of costs, Kaldveer said, “At the very most the increase will be a dime a month,” citing the constant reprinting of labels by food companies and the gradual integration of the measure.

Student impactWhen asked why students should

vote Yes on 37, the response spanned economic, philosophical, political and environmental implications.

“Studies have shown that since the advent of GMO crops 400 billion pounds of pesticides have been introduced,” Kaldeer said. “What we’re beginning to see is a kind of “pesticides arms race” resulting in super weeds and super bugs resistant to pesticides.”

Who's funding It?Billion dollar oligopolies like

Monsanto and PepsiCo have come out as primary investors for the No on 37 campaigns. So far, they have spent over $30 million to try and stop a measure that has struck a chord with state residents.

At the end of the day both sides proposed the same question: Who do you trust?

What is it? Proposition 33 is the auto

insurance industry’s initiative statute that bases prices on the history of a driver’s insurance coverage.

It changes the current law and allows insurance companies to set prices based on whether the driver previously carried auto insurance coverage with any other insurance company.

It allows proportional discounts for drivers with some prior coverage as well as increased cost for drivers who don’t have continuous insurance coverage.

Pros/ConsA vote on this measure means

insurance companies could offer new customers a discount on automobile insurance premiums based on the number of years in the previous five years that the customer was insured.

A vote on this measure means insurers could continue to provide discounts to their long-term automobile insurance customers, but would continue to be prohibited from providing a discount to new customers switching from other insurers. We have yet to see conclusive evidence that a lack of continuous insurance coverage correlates with being a riskier driver. This makes Proposition 33 fundamentally unfair and impossible to support, opponents say.

Supporters of Proposition 33 say that Californians with car insurance

earn a discount for following the law. But if you switch companies you lose the discount. Proposition 33 allows you the freedom to change insurance companies and keep your discount. Proposition 33 makes insurance companies compete, helps lower rates, and will insure more drivers.

People who are against Proposition 33 say that it is another deceptive insurance company trick. Insurance companies spent millions to pass a similar law in 2010—voters defeated it. Proposition 33 allows auto insurers to raise premiums on responsible drivers up to $1,000, unfairly punishing people who stopped driving for legitimate reasons. Consumer advocates oppose Proposition 33.

Terry McHale from the 2012 Auto Insurance Discount Act in Sacramento said, “A person should vote yes because if you follow the law you get a discount, so the consumer controls the discount.

It also helps struggling people gets discounts for such things as being out of work. It helps people get insured and get insured at a lower price.”

Jaime Court of the Consumer Watchdog Campaign said “When was the last time an insurance company executive ever spent $16 million dollars on a proposition to save you money?”

Supporters/Opponents?Proposition 33 supporters are

members of the insurance industry while opponents include the California Democratic Party, Consumer Watchdog, several unions and many other consumer organizations.

Who's funding it?George Joseph, chair of Mercury

General insurance company, has contributed more than $16 million to pass this proposition. The rest of the funding has come from other insurance companies.

Darcy Fracolli

Contributing Writer

What is it?When California voters decide

the fate of Proposition 34 this fall, they will also decide the fate of current and future death row inmates. Proposition 34 repeals the death penalty as the strictest punishment for convicted murderers and, according to the 2012 California official voter information guide, “replaces it with life imprisonment without possibility of parole.”

The proposition applies retroactively to those already sentenced to death while ensuring that those found guilty of murder work while in prison, with their wages “subject to deductions to be applied to any victim restitution fines or orders against them.”

The law also assigns an additional $100 million to law enforcement agencies specifically for the “investigations of homicide and rape cases.”

Pros/ConsThe proponents of Prop. 34 argue

that there have been more than 100 cases of innocents people sentenced to death and that some of those innocents have been executed. The proponents also argue that “an impartial study found California will save nearly $1 billion in five years” by replacing the death penalty with life imprisonment due to the extended appeals process

afforded to death row inmates on the taxpayers’ dime as well as the elimination of special housing for death row inmates.

Those in favor of the proposition also argue that “almost half of all murders and over half of all rapes go un-solved” every year, and that the funds spent on death row inmates could be better spent on solving these crimes. They also state that “every person justly sentenced to life in prison w i t h o u t

possibility

o f parole since 1977 is still locked up or has died in prison.”

Opponents argue Governor Jerry Brown has stated that innocents on death row in California are not a reality, while former California Finance Director Mike Genest says the $100 million dollars the proposition details for law enforcement comes from the state’s general fund and that “Prop. 34 will cost taxpayers millions more annually by guaranteeing murderers lifetime

housing and healthcare benefits.” Opponents also argue that the

work requirement can be met by basic physical education and that it denies justice to the victims’ families. They also argue that less than 2 percent of murderers are sentenced to death and those who receive the death penalty have committed crimes so heinous as to be shocking to the jurors who unani-mously deliver the sentence.

Supporters and opponentsLaw enforcement officials have

landed on both sides of the debate over

Proposition 3 4 ,

w i t h t h e

Peace Officers’ Research Association of California, the California State Sheriffs’ Association and the California District Attorneys Association in opposition to the proposition, while Jeanne Woodford, former warden of San Quentin State Prison, Gil Garcetti, former district attorney of Los Angeles County, and Hon. John Van de Kamp, former California attorney general support the


10

Special Election Edorsements

Mike thompson for the 5th Congressional district

Local councilman best bet for 10th district ASSEMBLY SEAT

2ND DISTRICT CONGRSSIONAL SEAT, BEST IF HELD BY HUFFMAN

After consecutive interviews with incumbent Congressman Mike Thompson and his opponent Randy Loftin, the Oak Leaf is confident that Thompson is the better choice for California’s 5th District seat in U.S. Congress.

Democrat Thompson has spent two terms in the state senate and 14 years as a congressman, serving on a terrorism subcommittee and as a member health care, education and tax reform committees.

By contrast, Loftin is inexperienced. A tax and financial planner from Napa, Loftin, a Republican, has never held elected office. He believes the secret to America’s success, economically speaking, is the private sector.

If elected, Thompson promises to keep higher education a top priority. He believes that reforming No Child Left Behind will greatly help education as a whole. He opposes Vice Presidential candidate Paul Ryan’s proposed budget slashes to higher education. The public education system is changing and it is important the federal

government is invested in it, he said.Loftin is more concerned with

balancing the federal budget through releasing federal land holdings in California and generating income through property taxes. He wants to develop potential oil fields in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, claiming the area holds more proven oil reserves than the rest of the world combined. Loftin’s campaign website advocates reverting back to the gold standard.

On the issue of medicinal marijuana, Thompson would prefer that the federal govern-ment withdraw its effort to enforce federal marijuana laws in states that have passed laws permitting medical marijuana. “I think we need to redo the California laws so that we don’t stay the laughing stock of the nation, and people who have serious medical problems can have access to medical marijuana and that it’s grown properly so it doesn’t destroy the environment,”

Thompson said. The medical marijuana issue is “a

political hornet’s nest,” Loftin said. “Personally I think that if a doctor for legitimate reasons prescribes it, it is a good thing. The federal government has a role to protect us, but I think in this respect

they’ve gone too far.”Thompson approves

Obamacare, but believes there is room for improvement. He wants to mandate that insurance companies allocate 85 percent of their profits towards healthcare, not

administration fees and commissions. Loftin

opposes Obamacare and believes market-based solutions that compete in the private sector are key

to regulating healthcare.Thompson supports the California

Dream Act and said he co-authored every Dream Act bill in Congress. Kids brought to America need to be able to get an education and become a part of

the community, he said. Loftin’s solution to the immigration problem is to have an immigrant labor program that allows people to get into the country legally, giving them a right to work here.

Thompson supports a full regulation of banks and Wall Street in order to prevent a repeat of the events that led to the recent fiscal crash. Loftin said he doesn’t want to make Wall Street the whipping boy. In his opinion, the financial crash was caused by banks loaning money to people who didn’t qualify for loans.

Thompson supports a federal law that allows gay marriages. Loftin is opposed, saying that it is a state decision and it was wrong for federal court judges to overturn the California decision not to permit it.

Congressman Thompson convinced the Oak Leaf that he is more qualified to represent college students in Congress. Thompson’s experience, combined with his views on issues that matter to California students – education, the economy, immigration, gay marriage, medical marijuana – proves he will be able to make the connections he needs to push his legislation through the House and onto the president’s desk.

William Rohrs

Staff Writer

Spencer Harris

Staff Writer

William Rohrs

Staff Writer

The race between Assemblyman Michael Allen and his challenger, San Rafael Councilman Marc Levine, for California’s 10th District seat in the State Assembly is a fractious Democrat-on-Democrat battle.

Allen’s assembly district was recently redrawn and he was forced to relocate to Marin County to stay within the new district. Consequently, most of his funding comes from Sacramento and outside the district, while most of Levine’s was donated by local residents and business owners.

After interviewing both candidates, the Oak Leaf is convinced that Levine has a better understanding of issues in the newly drawn district. Though he is a political underdog, the Oak Leaf thinks he is a more qualified candidate to represent Sonoma County students.

Levine, 38, grew up in the Bay Area and acquired firsthand knowledge necessary to accommodate the community’s needs. “I know how water is treated, how sewer lines connect to your house, how roads get paved. I know who budget cuts affect. Local service is valuable at this level,” he

said.After college, Levine traveled the

world to develop humanitarian, award-winning software designed to encrypt sensitive information about human rights abuses. In 2008, he joined Hilary Clinton’s Nevada caucus and then Obama’s campaign in Illinois. He was elected to San Rafael’s City Council in 2009. As an assembly candidate, he advocates increasing the use of reusable energy and protecting and rebuilding K-12 and higher education in California.

Both candidates hold similar Democratic positions valuing education above other issues, and there is no debating that Allen has more political experience than Levine. But Allen was also fined for ethics violations, something the editorial board found disturbing.

The Oak Leaf was impressed with Levine’s sustainable and balanced approach toward revamping California’s schools on all levels. After graduating from Cal-State Northridge, it took Levine nearly three years to climb out of credit card debt due to student loans. The cost of higher

education in California is increasing and he hopes voters will pass Prop 34 repealing the death penalty to return more funding to education.

“Since 1970, one UC has been built in California while 17

prisons were built in the same amount of

time. We’re spending a lot of money on incarceration and not giving people the ability to pursue education,” Levine said.

Levine also s u p p o r t s Proposition 36, which if passed, would alter

California’s three-strikes law allowing offenders

whose third strike was neither serious nor violent to avoid being sentenced to 25 years or longer.

“We need to create programs that ensure people can be successful in life. We can take the money out of incarceration and put it into education,” Levine said.

Allen’s response to helping students finance college education was to reintroduce the Middle Class Scholarship Act, which would eliminate a corporate

tax loophole allowing certain families to qualify for a two-thirds reduction in educational fees. The act is a great solution, however it does not focus on the broader problems of budget cuts.

Both candidates support California’s medical marijuana laws and oppose the federal government policing them. “We need to decriminalize marijuana. It’s a no-brainer for me; it’s not what law enforcement needs to be worried about,” Levine said.

Allen prefers drafting a letter to the federal government suggesting it get out of the way. He also supports the legalization and taxation of marijuana.

Both Allen and Levine support the California Dream Act. “We cannot turn our backs to California’s youth,” Levine said. Allen urges the federal government to provide a pathway to citizenship proclaiming all Americans immigrated at one time or another.

The Oak Leaf appreciates Mike Allen’s dedication to public service but believes Levine is more in touch with the needs of Sonoma County students, along with the agricultural community. While Levine may not have as many ties to Sacramento, the Oak Leaf believes he can forge bonds to untangle California’s budget deficit and rebuild our educational systems.

After interviewing California State Assemblyman Jared Huffman and opponent Dan Roberts, the Oak Leaf is confident Huffman’s campaign platform holds the best interests for SRJC students for the 2nd California District seat in U.S. Congress.

Huffman has served in the California Assembly since 2006. During his career as a state legislator, he authored or co-authored nearly 60 pieces of successful legislation, including support for education, preservation of the environment and assistance for integrating undocumented residents through the California Dream Act.

“I’ve proven myself as a legislator. If you’ve done it before, particularly if you’ve done it well, then that should count for something,” Huffman said.

Roberts has no prior political background. “I am a private citizen that heard the call, and I have things to say that are important for the constituents to hear,” he said.

Roberts runs a small broker dealership firm out of San Francisco. A Vietnam veteran, he was shot in the war and now works alongside the Disabled Veterans program. His platform focuses heavily on improving veteran rights.

Most important to SRJC students, Huffman has a double-edged plan to help students pay for their education. He wants to keep tuitions low and affordable while providing wider access to grants and scholarships. Second, he wants to provide relief to students who pay off their loans by capping their payment terms based on their gross income instead of a flat rate. “I want you to have a job, but I also want you to have lower tuition and accessible student loans,” Huffman said. He supports Propositions 30 and 38.

Roberts believes that competition will improve education. Cutting funds that go

through educational bureaucracy, he said, will provide schools with more money to reintroduce elective programs into the curriculum. He is against Propositions 30 and 38.

Regarding Obamacare, Huffman thinks it should go further. He wants

insurance companies to compete with a federal provider,

believing that competition will keep prices fair and coverage optimal. Roberts opposes Obamacare; he thinks the federal health insurance plan is dysfunctional and relies

too much on taxpayer money to justify its services.

Huffman supports the Dream Act on both federal and state levels. He opposes instant amnesty, but wants the government to allow

DREAMers to be able to apply for citizenship. Roberts opposes the Dream Act, but proposes that anyone who wants citizenship should earn it by serving in the military.

Huffman wants to regulate Wall Street

and its banks and re-instate the Glass-Steagle Act to make the banks invest with their own money rather than the peoples’ money. Roberts also wants federal regulation of banks and Wall Street, but he does not hold them responsible for the economic meltdown and supports removing Glass-Steagle.

Huffman does not support a federal law permitting gay marriage because he believes the constitution already permits it. He wants to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act. Roberts also opposes a federal law permitting gay marriage but for different reasons. He believes that it is a state issue.

Huffman and Roberts both believe it is a woman’s right to choose to carry children or have an abortion. However, Huffman is shocked that there are still attacks on Planned Parenthood’s federal funding. Roberts thinks it is unethical to take tax money from someone who opposes abortion and send it to an organization that practices it.

The Oak Leaf agrees unanimously that Huffman will better represent the interests of SRJC students in Congress and is far more qualified for the position.


11

Special Election Coverage

Know your food:After having

served as president of Santa Rosa Junior College for the past 10 months, I have come to quickly realize and appreciate how truly important SRJC is to Sonoma County. Since the college’s

founding 94 years ago, SRJC has

continuously provided quality instruction, student services and a pathway to prosperity for thousands of our students. Consider this: 75 percent of all Sonoma County high school graduates who attend college will attend SRJC.

I’m amazed when speaking to Rotary clubs, Kiwanis groups, chambers of commerce and other Sonoma County audiences and I ask, “How many of you or your family members have attended SRJC?” Virtually all of the hands in the audience are raised. My response is, “All of you turned out all right!”

The college’s unwavering commitment to deliver quality education to Sonoma County residents is now being threatened by staggering state budget cuts. SRJC has experienced a 12 percent reduction in permanent funding since 2009, and if Proposition 30 does not pass Nov. 6, SRJC will face an additional $6.3 million in reductions, equivalent to another 8 percent permanent reduction to our general fund budget. This means an estimated 530 class sections eliminated and 2,920 students shut out of classes.

Our college community has made personal sacrifices during these difficult budget times. Administrators, faculty and staff have taken cuts in salary and benefits. We have implemented a re-engineering program to help cover vacant positions, decreasing our workforce size while still staffing the most critical jobs. SRJC has been forced to reduce course offerings for older adults, and has had to cut classes by 25 percent in the last three years.

It distresses me to hear this semester from students that a lottery was held to see who would be asked to leave a math or a biology class because students were sitting on the floor and overflowing into the

hallways.Sonoma County employers notice the

clogging of the pipeline for our future workers. The Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce’s Building Economic Success Together (BEST) program recently surveyed over 100 employers and their number one concern was to find qualified trained workers to fill positions in their companies. All of us working towards an economic recovery should be concerned if we are increasingly unable to provide residents with the educational access they desire and deserve.

My response to those who question whether one needs a college degree during these uncertain economic times is to cite a recent study by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. It found the unemployment rate for high school graduates is 24 percent and the unemployment rate for recent college graduates is 7 percent.

I want our current students to have the same opportunity that previous generations had to benefit from an SRJC education. A generation ago, America led the world in college completion rates, and today we rank 16th! When asked what is unique about SRJC, I often respond that the children of farm owners go to school with the children of farm workers. Community Colleges are the great equalizer.

At a recent Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce meeting, I was asked about the difference between Proposition 30 and Proposition 38. I responded by saying that Proposition 38 only supports Pre-K and K-12 programs. Because Proposition 38 provides no support to higher education, as a funding solution for California’s schools, I would have to give Proposition 38 a grade of “incomplete.” If Proposition 38 prevails, where will high school seniors go after community colleges, CSUs and UCs have their budgets slashed further?

The SRJC Board of Trustees, Press Democrat and the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce have all endorsed Proposition 30. Let’s invest in the entire educational pipeline for the future benefit of all of Sonoma County!

**This opinion piece was first published in The Press Democrat on Oct. 19.

Proposition 38: Grade “Incomplete”

In the middle of campus on Monday Oct. 15 at SRJC, some students sat, some relaxed and others rushed to class. There was a voting registration booth near Bertolini but no one ran in to ask questions, register or gain election information.

“I don’t think voting really counts,” said SRJC student Rose Nunez as she sat on a bench near the bookstore texting. “I’m open to people having their own opinions.”

Across the U.S., 89 percent of 18-to-29-year-olds say the economy impacts their day-to-day lives. Such a statistic should-presumably-directly motivate students old enough to vote to go out and make a difference.

Though a majority of students on campus lean toward the Democratic caucus and plan to vote, there remains a minority who either prefer not to participate or lean Republican respectively.

National polling results from Generation Opportunity, a non-profit organization with the mission of educating, organizing, and mobilizing 18-to-29-year-olds on the

economic challenges facing the nation, deeply show the concerns of students, and graduates alike, on some of the prominent challenges facing them today.

With four million fans on Facebook, the organization is currently a major force in poking at the sleeping giant of students who are unsure or choose not to vote in the upcoming elections.

With a broad focus on students and their particular life situations, Generation Opportunity has given a voice to many issues young people face today. Under a poor economy, students and anyone between the age of 18 to 29, have had to cut back spending in their lives. This means driving less, changing living situations, selling personal items and even adding a second job.

Voting can seem like a bleak chance at change during hectic times, but it can directly effect the election if a minority joins the majority. “Students mainly focus on the top of the ballot. They can have an impact on the local level too,” said Julie Combs, who is running for a seat on the

Santa Rosa City Council. “Everything comes down to policy,”

said Paul Conway, president of Generation Opportunity. “The power and creativity of young people isn’t something to be ignored.”

Conway worked under four U.S. presidents and three governors. He served as chief of staff for the U.S. Department of Labor, the Office of Personnel Management and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

His motivation to reach as many young people as possible

through social media is something to take note of. By reaching more than a billion individuals on Facebook, Generation Opportunity has a perpetual growth in its ability to create awareness of the issues that matter most in this election.

Students who vote for either party need to remember that local elections matter too, and those who aren’t participating should reconsider how much impact they can have. “People should realize their own power,” Conway said.

A vote can go a long way and affect many things. Propositions can play a negative or positive role in your life and affect the majority, or get thrown out the window all together. Job prospects can look better, or they can remain the same due to a lack of policy change or complete do-over in a particular department.

Voting does a lot more than you’d expect; it’s one more voice for something that matters. “First, let me just say propositions can be confusing. I think the most important one is 37. Labeling our food is essential. I want to know exactly what I’m putting in my body,” SRJC student Becca Payne said.

The voting booth at the Petaluma campus had 25 registrations and SRJC’s had 189. Students stopped by at different times during the day, which opposed the relaxed atmosphere that was present earlier in the day. “We saw a lot of first-time voters register to vote at SRJC. A lot of students who have moved and needed to re-register due to change in address,” said Jessica Jones who’s Associated Student Body president at SRJC.

As a wise man once wrote, “You can’t be neutral on a moving train.”

Peter Njoroge

Opinion Editor

Student VotersDespite public opinion, participation makes a difference in 2012 election

“The power and cre-ativity of young people

isn’t something to be ignored.”

- Paul Conway, President of Generation Opportunity

$36 million has been spent to bombard the airways with scare tactics that labeling of Genetically Modified Organisms will be too costly or litigious. Monsanto, Dupont, Coca-Cola, Bayer Crop Science and other chemical and junk food companies have plenty to lose if Prop 37 wins; however, putting a little ink on a food label won’t raise food prices. In Europe, there were no changes in food costs when labeling of GMOs was mandated.

The current Food and Drug Administration policy, created in 1992, states that the agency is not aware that GMOs are “significantly different”; therefore, “no safety studies are necessary.” But in 1998, a lawsuit forced 44,000 pages of FDA secret internal memos into the public domain. From those documents, it became clear that the FDA had been lying. The overwhelming consensus among the FDA’s own scientists

was that GMOs are dangerous. They urged their superiors to require longitudinal studies, but

their pleas were ignored.Monsanto and the FDA have had a

revolving door relationship for well over a decade, via Michael Taylor. Taylor was originally Monsanto’s attorney, then was in charge of policy at the FDA, then returned to Monsanto as vice president and now is back at the FDA as U.S. Food Safety Czar. With Taylor in charge, Monsanto and the biotech industry were handed FDA policies that create the illusion that the FDA regulates GMOs, when in fact they are not. Instead, companies like Monsanto can produce their own pseudoscience. “Industry studies,” or studies conducted by Monsanto on their own products, typically last less than 90 days. (Do the effects of products consumed regularly, for years, manifest within 90 days?!) This self-regulating industry is allowed to simply avoid longitudinal studies. If the FDA asks for further information, they’re usually ignored. Ultimately, the FDA reminds Monsanto that it is Monsanto’s responsibility to determine if GM foods are safe. Then Monsanto’s GMOs go to

market. There has only been one human

feeding study on GM foods, which found potential problems that were never further investigated. Studies by the American Academy of Medicine determined that GMOs are unsafe, yet the only studies cited by the FDA have all been conducted by the biotech industry itself. A study by the Institute of Science in Society of the soil bacterium Bt, which GM industry injects into corn as an internal insecticide -- the toxin breaks open the gut of the insect that eats the corn, found that Bt also destroys human kidney cells and bursts cells in human gastrointestinal tracts (‘leaky gut syndrome’, a modern epidemic). Meanwhile, the biotech industry’s studies claim that this toxin only affects insects.

GMOs boast of being “Roundup ready” crops. These crops were engineered to withstand the onslaught of the herbicide Roundup without dying themselves. But numerous studies of this herbicide indicate it is harmful to animals like cows and pigs, destined for human consumption, whose diet consists of Roundup sprayed corn or soy; it causes birth defects and other reproductive disorders. Lab animals that ate Roundup lost numerous offspring or became infertile. Genetically Modified crops have led to a 404 million pound increase in overall pesticide use from the time they were introduced in 1996 through 2011 (“Environmental Sciences Europe”).

Many weed species are now resistant to Roundup. Spraying millions of acres every year with a single herbicide has given rise to a plague of Roundup-resistant super-weeds, forcing farmers to apply more and more Roundup and also resort to far-more-toxic products (Tom Philpott, “Genetically Engineered Foods”).

Why is the U.S. one of the last industrialized nations that does not yet label the GMO content of its foods? Might there be a billion-dollar industry in the U.S. that controls the FDA and influences elections?

Dr. Frank Chong

Opinion

vote yes on Proposition 37By Carla Deicke Grady, Philosophy Dept.


12

It’s almost impossible for us to fathom how people could vote against Proposition 30. It’s a no-brainer for voters and polit icians to get this proposition passed, and letting it fall through the cracks would show a complete disregard for education in our state.

Saying no to $5.5 billion is simply a luxury we cannot aff ord. If there is any chance you are considering no on 30, then please allow us to educate you on the consequences we face at SRJC if the proposition does not pass this November.

A lot of students who still attend SRJC were here when the school lost 12 percent of its funding in 2009. Since then, it has become increasingly diffi cult each year for students to enroll in the classes they need to graduate. It’s fair to assume the majority of SRJC students aren’t planning to stay for four years but they may have to if Proposition 30 fails.

It’s no laughing matter when students are faced with losing more classes here at the JC. If 30 fails, the JC will take a $6.3 million hit in funding. A cut this big amounts to about 10 percent of our schools fi nancial resources as a whole. Losing that much money will immediately eliminate 530 class sections as early as next semester. In addition, an estimated 2,920 students won’t be able to attend the JC all together.

How are students supposed to move on

with their academic careers if we can’t get the classes we need to graduate, let alone attend school in the fi rst place?

Without Proposition 30 it will not only be harder to get classes, but harder to pay for them. That’s right, more tuition hikes. The UC system expects to raise tuition upwards of 20 percent, and the CSU system expects to admit signifi cantly fewer students after their tuition hikes.

The opposition claims that small business owners will face large tax increases on their personal income. This is a complete overreaction, as people who are making more than $250,000 a year, but less than $300,000 will see an increase to 10.3 percent from the original 9.3 percent. And people making from $500,000 to $1 million a year will see an increase to 12.3 percent from the original 9.3 percent. This is chump change for people making such copious amounts of money.

Other opponents believe that schools haven’t cut enough. Any lawmaker who can say this with a straight face deserves an award for the greatest poker face of all time. With all joking aside, it is erroneous to conclude we could possibly aff ord to cut more from our schools.

It’s diffi cult to see the harm in such miniscule taxes, considering it will raise an estimated $6 billion for California schools at the expense of the wealthy paying an

extra buck on their iPhone 5s.We need these classes and we need

somewhere to go after we graduate. No one wants school to become less aff ordable, so let’s do something about it. Vote yes on 30.

OPINION

Abolish slavery

After two torturous series, the San Francisco Giants swept the American League Champion Detroit Tigers in 2012 World Series. While all the focus now is on the World Series win, the Giants will soon need to turn their attention to the 2013 season.

When the Giants returned to the playoff s this 2012 season, most baseball experts and writers expected them to be eliminated in the fi rst round. Despite coming back from a 0-2 defi cit in the NLDS, experts predicted the Giants would fall to the defending World Series Champion the St. Louis Cardinals. Now the Giants are World Champions for the second time in the past three years. Many people compare the 2010 team to the 2012 team, but the only real common denominator is that Giants general manager Brian Sabean put them both together.

Sabean is currently the longest tenured general manager in Major League Baseball and he continues to prove why that is. When Sabean traded for New York Mets centerfi elder Angel Pagan, it didn’t make any headlines. After Sabean acquired infi elder Marco Scutaro from Colorado, baseball experts fi gured Scutaro would be used in a bench role. Now Pagan and Scutaro are the driving forces at the top of the Giants lineup, coming up with clutch hits and providing Gold Glove defense.

Scutaro was named the Most Valuable Player of the National League Championship Series and Pagan set a new San Francisco Giants franchise record with 15 triples in the regular season. Sabean made two trades that were not considered “blockbuster,” but you can argue that Pagan and Scutaro have been the two best trades in baseball this year.

Pagan and Scutaro will be free agents at the end of the 2012 season. Sabean and his team will have to try hard to retain the pair. However, with both having the best years of their careers, it will require multiple years and a large pay raise to hang on to them. Sabean has made it clear that his intention is to keep both in the orange and black

beyond 2012.Sabean recently spoke to the San

Francisco Chronicle’s national baseball writer John Shea about the impending free agents. “We want Pagan back. We want Scutaro back.” Sabean said.

When asked about the situation in left fi eld, Sabean quickly dismissed any notion that recently suspended outfi elder Melky Cabrera could be roaming the outfi eld in San Francisco next year. “We’re not going to get into Melky,” Sabean told Shea.

So what will the Giants do in left fi eld? Will they trade for an outfi elder? Could Gregor Blanco be the starting leftfi elder? As of now, we don’t have the answers to those questions. But one outfi elder in the 2013 free agent class would make a huge impact to the San Francisco Giants.

Josh Hamilton has put together quite the resume since returning to baseball after years of struggling with drugs and alcohol. Since joining the Texas Rangers in 2008, Hamilton has hit 142 homeruns, collected 506 RBI and batted .305. He was also named the American League Most Valuable Player award in 2010 and led his team to back-to-back World Series appearances.

The Giants have lacked a true power hitter ever since infamous No. 25 took his last at-bat in 2007. The team must take advantage of the opportunity to add a hitter with Hamilton’s credentials. It would be an uncharacteristic move of Sabean, but signing Hamilton could change the entire outlook of the National League.

Hamilton will likely want a contract lasting fi ve years with an average annual salary of $25 million a year. After 162 consecutive sellouts at AT&T Park and a lot of merchandise sales, the Giants defi nitely have the money to sign Hamilton. According to ESPN baseball writer Buster Olney, several top National League executives expect that Hamilton will land in the city by the bay come 2013.

It is obviously too early to tell if Hamilton will sign with the Giants, but once the World Series ends, the fl oodgate of rumors will open. Hamilton and the Giants will be linked to each other the entire off -season until Hamilton actually signs somewhere.

So will Josh Hamilton actually be a San Francisco Giant next year? Who knows, but it is sure fun to speculate.

Photo Courtesy of AP

Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers may be the true power hitter the SF Giants are looking for.

Proposition 30The obvious choice for the future of our schools

Giants: World series and beyondJimmy Merrill

Staff Writer

By Dr. Davis J. Mannino

“Neither slavery nor involuntary ser-vitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly con-victed, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” These words open the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the amendment that abolished slavery in 1865.

Human traffi cking is a brutality. It is the most severe form of human rights violation, child abuse, torture and human exploitation in our country today. Sharmin Bock, Alameda County Deputy District Attorney, in support of Proposition 35, stated: “There’s no bigger bang for your buck, no better job opportuni-ty than to sell children for sex. It is far more lucrative than selling drugs. There’s none of the risk, and none of the overhead. So why not?”

One of the major purposes of Proposi-tion 35 is to stiff en California laws in human traffi cking. Considering how progressive California often is, one would think laws per-taining to human traffi cking would already be tougher than elsewhere. Not true. Under federal law, a convicted sex traffi cker re-ceives a sentence of 15 years to life, whereas under California law the same crime receives a sentence ranging from 3 – 8 years. In Cali-fornia, the burden of proof for sex traffi cking of minors is the same as for adults, which is inconsistent with federal legislation.

Thus the importance of Proposition 35 is not only to bring anti- traffi cking laws more in line with Federal laws, but to also expand them. If approved by state voters, Propo-sition 35 will: (1) increase prison terms for human traffi ckers; (2) require convicted sex traffi ckers to register as sex off enders; (3) re-quire all registered sex off enders to disclose their Internet accounts; (4) require criminal fi nes from convicted human traffi ckers to pay for services to help victims; and (5) man-date law enforcement training on human traffi cking.

A review of statements in support of Proposition 35 are presented below as a rep-resentative sample:

- “In California, vulnerable women and children are held against their will and forced i nto prostitution for the fi nancial gain of human traffi ckers. Many victims are girls as young as 12. Human traffi ck-ing is one of the fastest-growing criminal enterprises in the world, and it’s happen-ing right here on California’s streets and online where young girls are bought and sold.”- “A national study recently gave Califor-nia an ‘F’ grade on its laws dealing with child sex traffi cking.”- “Prop. 35 protects children from sexual exploitation. Many sex traffi cking victims are vulnerable children. They are afraid for their lives and abused—sexually, physically, and mentally. The FBI recog-nizes three cities in California—Los An-geles, San Francisco, and San Diego—as high intensity child sex traffi cking areas. That’s why we need Prop. 35 to protect children from exploitation.”- “Prop. 35 holds human traffi ckers ac-countable for their horrendous crimes.”- “Prop. 35 helps stop exploitation of children that starts online. The Internet provides traffi ckers with access to vul-nerable children. Prop. 35 requires con-victed sex off enders to provide informa-tion to authorities about their Internet presence, which will help protect our children and prevent human traffi cking.”- Victim Leah Albright-Boyd is quoted in the voter guide saying, “At 14, I ran away from a troubled home and into the clutches of a human traffi cker. For years, I was traffi cked and abused when I was still just a child. As a survivor of traf-fi cking, I’m asking Californians to stand against sexual exploitation and vote Yes on 35.”The story that victims of human traffi ck-

ing tell, except for the purest of good for-tune, could be our own story. No proposition currently on the 2012 California ballot is more deserving of our support than Propo-sition 35.

The Oak Leaf also rec-ommends voting Yes on the following Prop-

ositions:• Proposition 34• Proposition 35• Proposition 36• Proposition 37• Proposition 40

The Oak Leaf strongly urges voting No on the following Propositions:

• Proposition 31• Proposition 32• Proposition 33• Proposition 38


13

“I should’ve drunk my carrot juice earlier

that morning,” I thought to myself.

“I should’ve drunk my carrot juice earlier

that morning,” I thought to myself.

Down with career politicians

featuresOPINION

Life’s absurdities never cease to amaze me. While looking at a rather sturdy tree on my way to class last week I started to think of the tree’s existence and its place in everyone’s objective reality. The fundamental question here was whether the tree was real because we were looking at it and making that so, or were we looking at it because it was indeed real?

Even though I didn’t have much time to gaze at the tree, the question followed me throughout the day. I attacked the question from diff erent philosophical perspectives.

From a skeptical point of view, I’m the only one who saw the skinny, leafl ess, sturdy and bizarre tree in the corner of campus. The only way the tree was there is because I perceived it as such. Nothing more. Everyone else saw what he or she thought they saw.

After that, I tried Martin Heidegger’s approach in where the only thing I was sure about was the fact that everyone else, myself included, were there; the

tree was irrelevant to that fact. For a moment I thought I had lost my mind again; it seems to happen quite often on long walks to class. “I should’ve drunk my carrot juice earlier that morning,” I thought to myself. Though my carrot juice had nothing to do with anything, I continued thinking about the tree.

I went through various modes of thinking until I realized I couldn’t get a correct answer. This was because the tree and everyone else were stuck in the same existence. To say that it was - as fact- still there would be a fallacy and the same as to say that it wasn’t there. The people walking to class and the lonely tree were both impermanent things existing momentarily at the same time.

In other words, the tree and I were there when I looked at it but I can’t say much after seeing it because I simply

don’t know for a fact that it’s still there. That is appropriately classifi ed as an educated assumption.

However, this experience with the tree gave me a deeper understanding of our existence. Apart from the perplexing thoughts, just having the freedom to question and think that way reminded

me of the many mysteries of our brains and life at large. We always want to know and we always ask why at every turn. The lesson for that day: it’s OK not to know.

In short, life isn’t always about acquiring knowledge. We should take the time to look around in awe and realize we have, at best, 100 years to fully experience the wonder of this planet and our

existence. Look at a tree and smile, because you

truly have no concrete idea of what’s really going on no matter how well you might delude yourself.

Ignorance, in this specifi c existential context, is OK and perhaps even wise.

These are the days that Thomas Jeff erson and John Adams warned us about. The professional political class has taken over our government. The American people have lost control. We can see that the American political system is more diverse now than ever before. But the culture of politics itself is careerism, which is not what it was originally designed to be. Holding political offi ce was meant to be temporary.

The Founding Fathers intended to protect us from oppressive governments and societies that they experienced fi rst-hand. The reason they didn’t address the issue of limiting how long a person served in offi ce was because they did not foresee that politics would become a career for so many people.

The average salary of a congress member is more than $175,000 per year, not including perks, benefi ts, lavish expense accounts, plush pension plans and the best medical coverage that money can buy. Their lifestyles are often lavish.

These are great jobs if you can get them. It’s easy to understand why they’re so coveted. Offi ce holders use public funds to pursue their political ambitions. They become savvy at doublespeak, spinning each other’s words and mastering language that disguises and distorts. They hire lawyers to fi ght the growing grassroots movement toward installing term limits, and pay for them with taxpayer money. Is it reasonable to call this a representational government? These are the people who are guiding our country. Are they more concerned with our interests or with those of the distinct, career-minded ruling class that they have become?

The reality is that most Americans aren’t policy buff s. Most prefer to outsource their problems and issues to political actors. As long as the U.S. population is served up its daily dose of reality TV, celebrity scandals and live sports, it remains docile.

Mark Twain said, “Politicians are like diapers; they need to be changed often and for the same reason.”

The principle that people can govern themselves lies at the heart of our Constitution. Fresh outlooks and new perspectives will reinvigorate our system. Any reasonably interested and well-educated citizen would be more representative of their communities than any one of our elite class career politicians.

A strong argument can be made for the value of experience. Eff ectiveness usually requires a learning curve. That’s why seasoned politicians should have the option of staying on as mentors, at reduced salaries, when their offi cial terms have ended. If they’re sincere, this won’t be a problem. Getting re-elected would no longer be a part of their job. But there should be a place for those who truly have a calling.

The philosophy of this nation’s Founders is thoroughly buried and it needs to be rediscovered. “Men are naturally divided into two parties: those who fear and distrust the people and wish to draw power from them into the hands of the higher classes, and those who identify themselves with the people, have confi dence in them, cherish and consider them as the most honest and safe, although not the most wise depository of the public interest,” Thomas Jeff erson said.

The American people are responsible for and have the right to fi x what’s broken. Our democracy is far from being a fi nished product. We have yet to deliver on the promise of a classless society.

philosophers agree, The tree is a liepeter contemplates the nature of existence

Peter Njoroge

Opinion Editor

Deborah San Angelo

Staff Writer By Rhonda Findling, SRJC Counselor

California’s current Three Strikes law, passed by voter initiative in 1994, mandates a sentence of 25 years to life for a third felony conviction, even if it is a minor crime.

For example, felonies as small as possession of tiny amounts of drugs are part of this law. As a result, drug addicts and shoplifters are serving life sentences, costing taxpayers tens of millions of dollars a year. Thousands of men and women are spending their lives in prison for non-violent crimes.

In fact, almost half the inmates sentenced to life under Three Strikes did not commit violent crimes. Thus, California is shamefully throwing people’s lives away without any opportunity for rehabilitation or restitution.

We may believe that this type of harsh system of punishment is enacted only in far away places with extremist governments, when actually, it exists right here in our own state. Proposition 36 would reform an unjust and illogical sentencing system in California that many argue constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. Under the current Three Strikes law, even 16-year-olds can col lect “strikes” that can lead to a lifetime in prison for a minor crime.

Proposition 36 would amend the current Three Strikes law to exclude non-violent, non-serious crimes as potential third strikes, thus focusing the life sentence only on violent or serious felonies such as rape, murder or child molestation.

In addition, Proposition 36 would allow approximately 4,000 men and women sentenced under Three Strikes, but whose strikes are non-violent and non-serious, a chance to be re-sentenced if a judge determines they do not pose a risk to public

safety.While Three-Strikes laws exist in

dozens of other states, California is the only state where a non-violent, non-serious third felony activates the mandatory life sentence.

Let’s demand “justice” in California’s criminal justice system.

Yes on Prop. 36Reform California’s three strikes law before we strike out


14

art & Entertainment

halloween horrorsthe oak leaf staff recommends two oldie-but-goodies and a couple of new frightful

flicks for your viewing pleasure-A&E Editor Cassidy Mila and Features Editor Andrew Mcquiddy

A horror movie with originality and superior production values is hard to find nowadays, but “Sinister” is able to deliver both. A story about a writer who specializes in murders isn’t a very original idea, but the twists and turns in this movie keep it fresh and interesting.

When the main character, Ellison, decides to move his family into the house of the victims of his next book, he realizes that mistake may cost him.

The discovery of Pagan symbols bode poorly for Ellison, even more so when it is discovered that the symbols are of Bughuul. Bughuul is the eater of children’s souls, killing their families and taking the child into his netherworld.

The significance of the “Super 8,” an old type of film used in home movies, film was a good writing tool. Ellison watches murder victim’s home movies to establish events from the past, giving the scenes an atmosphere a simple flash back could not accomplish.

In classic Tim Burton fashion “Frankenweenie” manages to give a mixture of happiness, sadness, humor and an unmistakable brand of demented horror.

The story is about a young scientist named Victor Frankenstein whose father makes him learn to play baseball. In his first game he hits a homerun, and his dog Sparky runs through the street to fetch it, where he’s hit by a car and killed. The young scientist decides to raise his dead pal through a science class inspired experiment.

Soon Victor’s classmates visit with their diseased pets. The experiments go haywire and Victor and Sparky are blamed for what happens. Apparently too much of a good thing can bring unintended consequences.

There is little chance that Frankenstein and his monster will ever stop getting “reanimated” in some way or another, but Burton’s films always give a fresh, new and slightly disturbing take on any story.

In a cinematic world where special effects leave nothing to the imagination, 1960’s classic “Village of the Damned” forces the viewer to confront his or her most personal fears, leaving nearly everything to the imagination.

Soon after everyone in an isolated British village mysteriously collapses, the women learn they are pregnant. The resulting children possess uniform blonde hair, super intelligence and the ability to read thoughts. The spooky tykes’ group-mind controls the willpower of others, and their collectivism may metaphorically condemn the pressure for social conformity, a shattering of the “childhood innocence” myth or simply join the slew of Red Scare films of the day. Once again, the filmmakers allow the audience to interpret the meaning.

The U.S. print differs from the original British edition in one key way: the iconic characteristic of the children’s icy glare, left untouched in the U.K., gets optically enhanced for American audiences.

Any serious horror movie fan usually ranks “The Shining” near the top of their all-time best list.

In 1980, Jack Nicholson was nearly a decade out from the start of his current self-parody spree, unless one views every performance of his career as self-parody. Nicholson steals the show, whether simmering with barely caged fury or hacking through the door with an axe, trumpeting a Nicholsonian blast on Ed McMahon’s iconic introduction for Johnny Carson.

Director Stanley Kubrick delved into his darker side, scratching at the scab of every author’s worst nightmare: writer’s block. One of the best adaptations of a Stephen King story, “The Shining” has novelist Nicholson escaping with his family to the isolated Overlook Hotel as caretaker for the off-season.

The potent mixture of visual poetry (from sweeping natural vistas to intense focus upon an elevator slowly disgorging its sanguine contents), high tension and comedic outbursts continues to draw new and returning admirers.

Laughter filled the Bertolini Student Activities Center as empty-space play “Trust” completed a whirlwind production with a great response last weekend.

More than 150 people saw the show, a collaboration between the SRJC Theatre Arts Department and the SRJC Student Theatre Guild that opened Friday night and closed Sunday afternoon.

“Trust” was produced as a minimalist theater production in a small space, with basic costumes and makeup, in an intimate setting that provided the actors a chance to shine.

The production was financed evenly between the theatre department and the Student Theater Guild. The theater department paid $500, half the production cost, for licensing the script for the weekend and paying for actor nominations to the American College Theater Festival (ACTF). The Student

Theatre Guild met the other half of production costs, which went toward paying for props, costumes, makeup and other expenses.

Student director Skylar Evans was pleased with the production and believed it was a great success from an educational standpoint. He gained experience in directing, and was allowed to sit in on the auditions of the main stage productions for this semester. This gave him insight into how to run an audition and what directors look for in an actor. He also thinks it was an excellent experience for the actors.

“It was legitimately the best acting I have seen from some of those actors,” Evans said.

SRJC Theatre department chair Laura Downing-Lee was instrumental in working with the Student Theatre Guild to produce the show and helping the students make the show a success. She helped decide which script to use and acted as a sounding board and mentor for Evans. She also functioned as a safety net

for the production, which allowed the cast and director to experiment a little more and try things they might not have.

Profits from “Trust” went to the Theatre Guild for future projects. Due to “Trust’s” financial and educational success, Downing-Lee foresees more student productions in the future, ranging from being an official part of the theatre season to being completely produced by the Theatre Guild.

The production this semester was aimed to fill the gap that appears in the theatre department season. The department is required to produce large cast plays and musicals that give experience to as many students as possible. The empty space project had a small cast in a minimal environment and a production crew of only nine people, which sets it apart from the larger productions, which often have a crew of over 50.

“I very much want to have something like this, a second stage project, to happen in our department,” Downing-Lee said.

In addition to the financial and educational success, the play had an adjudicator from ACTF, who evaluated the actors and was guaranteed to nominate at least one to compete at the festival. Alice Glass and Madison Scarbrough have been nominated to attend the competition in the spring.

“trust” success SRJC theatre arts department and newly reinstated srjc student theatre guild come together for the first time to produce a hilarious little, low-budget play

Nadav Soroker

Layout Manager

Photo Courtesy of Dana Hunt

Skylar Evans is the first SRJC student director.


15

Photo Courtesy of SRJC Theatre Department

Tia Starr in “Trouble in Mind” performing her role as the mammy, a stereotypical role for African American women during the Civil Rights Era.

art & Entertainment

Oct. 29

Paranormal Activity LIVE

admission 13+

2800 Cleveland Ave, Santa Rosa

Showing from Oct. 29-31

7:30-10:30 p.m. / Free

Oct. 31

The Exorcist with Eric Thompson

Cinema Series

Carole L. Ellis Auditorium

6 p.m. / $4-5

Nov. 2

SRJC Chamber Orchestra

Glaser Center

547 Mendocino Avenue, Santa Rosa

8 p.m. / donations welcomed

Nov. 2

Bennett Friedman Quartet

Newman Auditorium

8 p.m. / $5-10

Nov. 7

Using Social Networking for Career Planing

Career Services

Career Center, Bertolini Student Center, 3rd floor

10:30 a.m.-noon / Free

Nov. 9

Pianist: Rudolf Budginas

Chamber Concerts

Newman Auditorium

7:30-10 p.m. / $15-25

Nov. 15

Roberto Chavez, Paintings and Drawings

Robert F. Agrella Art Gallery

10 a.m.-4 p.m. / Free

In the know

Hello, halloweenThe Petaluma Pumpkin patch provides local

community members with halloween pumpkins and access to farmyard fun, from duck races,

face painting and a straw mountian to the biggest attraction, a corn maze.

“I couldn’t wander my way to the exit. I had to leave the way

I came in. The corn maze was just too much for me.”

-SRJC Student Alex Shirwo

After 9/11 Santa Rosa Junior College Counselor Luz Navarrette began what is now a Santa Rosa tradition at the Old Court House Square.

Navarrette’s niece died in the Twin Towers and she was mourning the recent loss of her little girl and a close cousin.

“Following the 9/11 attacks I could feel the community was in fear and was paralyzed,” Navarrette said.

Navarrette feels guided by the spirit realm and it is for them she began the annual ritual of creating a community Dia De Los Muertos celebration and altar at the Old Court House Square in downtown Santa Rosa.

She says she had to do a lot of soul searching and consulting with the surrounding community which took her to professionals, spiritual leaders and families suffering the loss of loved ones to bring about a tradition

that in Mexico usually takes place at a cemetery.

Navarrette says a lot of students as well as herself could not return to Mexico yearly to sweep, decorate the tombs and prepare special meals for their dearly departed.

“The event has grown over the years and much planning goes into it,” Navarrette says. “It is a community effort and everyone pitches in. This celebration goes beyond class and race because death is all inclusive. We all have it in common. It’s a wonderful way to come together and talk about death.”

One woman has been coming to remember her son’s death since the inception of the celebration at the Old Court House Square. She started coming because there was no place for her to go when her son, who was a student at Sonoma State, died; there was no place to find support or understanding about death.

Navarrette says it takes $9,000 to $10,000 a year to create the community altar and much of it today is made by donations and a yearly

calendar that is sold to fund the Nov. 1 and 2 celebrations at the Old Court House Square.

Many outside groups come to the committee and want to buy their way into becoming a sponsor for the event, but Navarrette says it has to be approved and in theme with the purpose of event. That’s why you don’t see any large corporate banners decorating the event or groups with messages that would take focus away from the event’s purpose.

This year’s event will be on a tight schedule with several performers and arts and crafts activities. A community mural will be painted with the guidance of Sonoma State Instructor Dan Lopez, as well as rites and rituals by invited guests.

Navarrette thinks about her little girl everyday. She says her grandson was nine months old when she started this event and that he does not know of a November without the Old Court House Square Dia de Los Muertos Celebrations. It’s a tradition now.

Luis Gutierrez

Staff Writer

Yearly day of the dead celebration brings community together

Photos by Nadav Soroker

K e n w o o d P r e s s • P h o n e 7 0 7 - 8 3 3 - 5 1 5 5 • F a x 7 0 7 - 8 3 3 - 5 1 7 5

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The Oak Leaf Newspaper, Issue 4: Oct. 29, 2012

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Transcript of The Oak Leaf Newspaper, Issue 4: Oct. 29, 2012