Recent LBCC Confessions sparked interest when students posted
on the social networking site that they were harassed by campus security while
smoking in their car.
“Use of all tobacco products on any college
property other than shelters established as designated smoking areas shall be
prohibited,” reads the Administrative Policy of LBCC found on their website.
There are five designated smoking shelters on campus and security is
enforcing this policy.
“Smoking etiquette really is a big issue,” said Bruce Thompson, Loss
Prevention Coordinator. “A little courtesy goes a long way. Every indiscretion
fuels the fire for a smoke-free campus.”
Many colleges have already declared their entire campus smoke-free. Neighboring
OSU is one. There are dangers to allowing smoking on campus.
According to Thompson, fires constantly start in trash cans as well as bark
fires during the summer from carelessly discarded butts. In fact, LBCC lost an
entire building about 11 years ago because of a trash can fire that escalated and
burned it to the ground.
If caught smoking outside of the shelters, there is no fine. However,
according to Thompson, repeated violations of the policy can lead to filing a
disciplinary report on the offender.
Smoking shelters have been strategically placed where elements that can
catch fire are not present. Smoking in a car raises concerns because if a fire was to
spark near vehicles it could be catastrophic. However, campus policy does allow
students to smoke in their car.
“Smoking in your car is permitted,” Thompson confirmed.
Security officer Jason Wells said, “If (students) are in their vehicle
I will not approach them but if I see someone throw a butt out the window, that’s
going to be an issue.”
Student and smoker Ben Gray recalls seeing people smoking in the parking
lot being approached by concerned staff. He partly agrees that smoking in the parking lot may
not be the right thing to do on behalf of the non-smoker.
“If I was a non-smoker I wouldn’t want ashes on my car or the smell of
smoke coming in,” said Gray.
On the other hand, student and smoker RJ Frederick said, “(A car) is
personal property so I say it should be fine. It’s just as far away as the
booths.”
Cameron Barber, student and smoker, agrees with Frederick and said “During
rainy days we shouldn’t be hassled in our cars, we’re trying to stay out of the
rain and be warm.”
According to Wells, where he most finds people outside of designated
areas is at the bus stops and the sidewalks leading up to the smoking shelters.
Smokers are to stay off all sidewalks by the shelters as courtesy to non-smokers
walking by.
LBCC is complying with the Oregon Indoor Clean Air Act (OICAA) by
regulating smoking on campus. The purpose of OICAA is to reduce health hazards
to persons inhaling cigarette smoke whom choose not to smoke. OICAA is included
in the Oregon Smoke Free Workplace Law.
The 2010 Surgeon General Report states, “Low levels of, including second-hand smoke, lead to rapid and sharp endothelial dysfunction and inflammation (control
of blood coagulation), which are implicated in acute cardiovascular events and
thrombosis (heart attack and stroke).”
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention accounts for almost 50,000
deaths a year from second-hand smoke, specifically lung cancer and heart
disease.
To smoke or not to smoke, that is the choice. Trying
to balance those two choices and making everyone happy is a challenge.
Currently LBCC, unlike OSU, allows students the freedom of choice. Continuing to respect campus policies and staying
within designated areas will bring less attention to the on going discussion of going completely
smoke-free.
When potential harassment from security was brought to his attention, Thompson
asked that any student approached by security about smoking in their car should
relay that information to him.
“I’d be very interested in having a chat on a confidential basis,” he
said, regarding the name of any security officer that violates the students’
right to smoke in their car.
We are going to be talking about my viewing of an episode of the TV show Modern Family. Specifically, how it mirrors society, shows changes in our culture and who exactly the show is targeting based off of commercials and innuendos.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Since its premiere
in 2009, Modern Family has won 1 Golden Globe, 4 Primetime Emmy’s, 4 SAG Awards,
56 other wins and 153 nominations.
FUN FACTS
Modern Family was created by Steven Levitan
and Christopher Lloyd, both creators of TV hits in the 90’s. Levitan was
a creator of Just Shoot Me! and Lloyd for Frasier. Ed O’Neill
(Jay) was one of the most iconic working-class men on TV, Al Bundy,
on Married with Children from
1987-1997. O’Neill was drafted by the Pittsburg Steelers in 1969 but was cut in
training camp. Colombian-born Sophia Vergara (Gloria) was discovered walking on a beach. She became a Latin American runway model then a famous co-host on a TV show. She is naturally blonde but is
typically asked to keep her hair dark to appear more authentic. Her first US appearance
was on Bay Watch in 1999. She was
named the face of CoverGirl in 2011.
PLOT
All connections
revolve around Jay. The father of grown children Claire and Mitchell, Claire is married with three kids and Mitchell is in a gay partnership. Jay’s new,
much younger and Latina wife has a son. The show goes back and forth between
the three houses and their interactions within their own household and with the
extended family.
CHARACTERS IN THIS EPISODE
Delgado-Pritchett family:
Jay (father of
Claire and Mitchell), Gloria (wife, mom), Manny (son)
Dunphy family:
Phil (dad), Claire
(mom), Haley (eldest daughter), Alex (daughter), Luke (son)
Tucker-Pritchett family:
Mitchell, Cameron (partners)
ADVERTISEMENTS DURING THIS EPISODE
Toyota RAV4
Waterscapes (Jacuzzi
and Spa)
Ford Escape
Oregon’s FOX
(channel advertisement)
Walgreens
Vampire Academy (movie
release Feb. 7)
Yoplait
Verizon
Turbo Tax
That Awkward Moment
(movie release Jan. 31)
Modern Family (next
episode preview)
M. Jacobs Furniture
Oregon Lottery
J&K Auto Repair
(President of Papa’s Pizza as the spokesman – cross marketing)
Cosmos: A Spacetime
Odyssey (series premiere Mar. 9 on NatGeo, owned by FOX)
Amica Insurance
DWP Attorneys
Bob’s Wiener Stand
Armadillo Roofing
SUMMARY OF THIS EPISODE: EGG DROP
Luke and Manny have a school
project to make a container that can safely hold an egg when dropped. Alex has already done the project in school and Luke wants her to tell
him what she did, but she won’t. Luke and Manny work out a scheme to get their
projects made by their parents.
Phil just became
part of a real estate agency and has a big presentation. With Jay and Claire
busy helping the boys, he enlists the help of Gloria and Haley. His presentation revolves around their assistance. Gloria and
Haley decide they want to get manicures before the big event. At the salon
their car is towed, resulting in them missing the presentation.
Mitchell and
Cameron are trying to impress a potential surrogate that may give her child
up for adoption to them. They schmooze her with feng shui and singing.
ANALYSIS
With the growing acceptance
of biracial couples and same-sex couples, Modern Family is exactly what it is
titled. It highlights the multicultural influence in their family
and also the very real epidemic in America of divorce and re-marriage.
Furthermore, May-December relationships are a reality (Hugh Hefner anyone?) and the show includes
this into the colorful character collection. The characters range from a working man, bombshell wife, flamboyant gay man and stay-at-home
mom. It's a believable family situation in modern-day America. Their houses are middle-class homes in cozy neighborhoods and the issues are
relatable to the average American family; work, school, and relationships. I
would venture to say the show is one of a kind on current Primetime TV. The network
took a risk with a show touching on social issues that surround us today and it has been well
received by mainstream audiences.
There are several
stereotypes in this episode. Gloria is dressed sexy in all
scenes highlighting her Latin flair. She has a thick accent and trophy wife
appeal—her husband is a decade or two older. Haley is a typical teenager, worried about impressing boys and, in one scene,
taking a “selfie” to send to her crush. Mitchell and Cameron fit into their assumed
role of bubbly and stylish. The show also includes two
of the characters being overweight, often the image of Americans to those in other countries. Claire plays the overly attentive, nurturing and a little neurotic
mom-role that has been exploited on TV since its conception. There’s even a
white picket fence. Oh wait, there wasn’t a dog! There should have been a dog.
This show is reaching out to a female and teenage audience. With the exception of the three
commercials to promote FOX, the other 17 were obvious regarding the values that
were being relayed to the audience. Those
values are: safety, family, home decor and saving money. Here are a few specific
examples. The Oregon Lottery commercial showed images of using life jackets,
helmets and seat belts before saying “play safe.” The cars advertised were the
size needed for a family and the Ford Escape commercial was based around the
excitement of a female getting to customize the color online. The Yoplait
commercial was a mom and son eating together. Of course, Bob’s Wieners and the
teeny-bopper movie commercials were for the minors watching with their moms.
I have already
determined that this show mirrors society as mentioned in several examples above.
However, I feel everything is a bit exaggerated.
To an extent everything is enhanced on TV, but the trophy-wife image of Gloria
and the flamboyant image of Mitchell and Cameron were a little uncomfortable at
times. Maybe that’s the point. Families can make you uncomfortable, after all. Or
were scenes designed to be uncomfortable because some Americans are still bothered
by these things? Possible. I personally like
the diversity of the show. I find it refreshing and needed on mainstream TV. I
support the need for humans to be as they are; good, bad or indifferent—we all deserve
recognition. Plus, it’s funny. Who doesn’t like to laugh?
I hadn't watched this show before this episode but I
was familiar with it by name. Now that I have watched it, I feel society
is taking a step forward by embracing it. When a network like FOX, owned
by News Corp. (one of the six mega-media companies), puts their stamp of
approval on a show that is so socially aware it’s a big statement. The Brady Bunch, Step by Step, Family Matters; those are a thing of the
past. Mixed races and diversity are the future. In the 2010 census nine million
people identified themselves as biracial. That number has grown by 23% in the
last decade while those claiming single race has declined by 9% in the same time period. A study by the
UCLA School of Law estimates another nine million Americans identify
themselves as gay, lesbian or bisexual. Modern Family is capturing a very large
audience from those happy to celebrate their own diversity on Primetime TV.
HOW DOES THE SHOW PORTRAY AMERICANS
It may seem a bit jumbled and maybe chaotic to someone viewing from another country, but that's America, we embrace the freedom to express. I think the show touches on a few stereotypes based on how people in other countries may perceive us. We are seen overall as a mixture of cultures lacking one specifically of our own thus our culture could be described as a lack of culture. The mixture of race, orientation, accents and lifestyles in the show represents this collection and puts them all into one package. I think the image of Americans is often that we are materialistic, arrogant and a bit intrusive. All of these traits are displayed in the show to one extent or another. For example, the young people wanting things that entertain them and the need to look good. It shows the image of the "American dream" which I mentioned in the layout of the houses, yards and neighborhoods often perceived as how all Americans live. And the fact that the families were in each others business whether invited or not similar to our portrayed image as a society of the "world's police."
FANS AND
CRITICS RAVE!
“So how much
do we love the show? Enough to name our dog after the show.” – blogged by
Matt
“I crack up
all the time while I watch this show!” – fan club post by Edward
“With its
deft writing and sharp performances, the show is a telling snapshot of how
families live now.” – Leigh H. Edwards, PopMatters
"It's funny, it's vicious, it's
politically incorrect--in other words, everything that 'Community' wants
to be and isn't." - Linda Stasi, New York Post
"Modern Family works because it does something the network sitcom hasn't
managed in years: It offers a comic equation for almost every audience
segment, while never blanding out the characters for mass consumption." - Ken Tucker, Entertainment Weekly
When reading critiques on the show I found many of the same opinions as my own. I looked at reviews after I had completed the show and had written my analysis and interestingly enough I found phrases I used in my analysis that were similar to those of critics. For example, the quote by Leigh Edwards sums up how the show is a reality of how families are living now. I made this point several times in my analysis. Also, I talked about how the show at times made me uncomfortable with the flamboyancy or sex appeal which was similar to the quote by Linda Stasi regarding political correctness. Lastly, Ken Tucker touches on the subject of how this is a different network sitcom being that it focuses on raw characters as opposed to cookie-cutter characters. I also mentioned this when making statements about how socially aware the show is and the risk the network took to bring it to mainstream.
The green
lawns, gushing fountains and warm classrooms of LBCC are just five miles from
I-5. Known as the “West Coast Track” for human trafficking, I-5 leads from
Canada to Mexico—right through Albany.
On Dec. 31,
2013 Barack Obama made a Presidential Proclamation declaring January National
Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. “This month, I call on every
nation, every community, and every individual to fight human trafficking
wherever it exists,” Obama wrote.
Two words hold a big meaning. Human Trafficking: most commonly for the purpose of sexual slavery but also forced labor, commercial exploitation, extraction of organs or tissues and forced surrogacy. The issue is global as well as domestic. An estimated 300,000 American children are trapped as sexual slaves and being moved in and across US borders. Cities considered
“hot spots” on the West Coast for trafficking are Seattle, San Francisco and
Portland. I-5 carries unwilling passengers to and through Albany,
making them part of what is known as modern-day slavery. With a population of just over 50,000 residents, Albany is not too small to be impacted. "Has it occurred in Albany? Yes it has," said Det. Sgt. Steven Dorn of Albany Police Department. "There was a recent federal (indictment) of a man that resided in Albany." That man is Steven Anthony Kidd, age 20. He was taken into custody on Dec. 21, 2013 for allegedly forcing a female minor across state lines to engage in prostitution. He is charged with sex trafficking of a minor and interstate transportation of a minor.
Kidd is only
one offender that has been discovered locally. According to National Human Trafficking Resource Center official reports, Oregon had 46 calls made in 2012
reporting trafficking to their tip hotline.
The majority
of those calls were for sex trafficking, the bulk of them in the Portland area.
According to a study by Portland State University the actual number of Portland
youth being trafficked is in the hundreds.
Just 70
miles from LBCC, Portland has all the ingredients of a preferred “hot spot” in
trade of humans. With a high population of runaway and homeless youth, a city
cluttered with strip clubs and located off I-5, Portland is a hotbed for the
second largest and fastest growing criminal industry in the world.
“As a
parent, it is every parent’s nightmare,” Dorn said, about the danger of abduction
lurking in the community. “We are setting up shelters [so] we can take victims.”
One of those
shelters is The House of Engedi serving Linn and Benton counties. When asked
if local awareness seemed to increase after President Obama made the proclamation, Josh Armentano, the Executive Director at The House of Engedi, had a positive response. “This month in particular we have had many individuals reach out to us
about volunteering and getting involved in the work we are doing.”
Tayrn
Offenbacher, the Communications Director at Shared Hope International, said,
“The interest in engagement has increased from media
attention and website visitors,” referring to after the declaration was made by President
Obama.
Shared Hope
International, whose mission is to prevent abductions, restore survivors into shelters, and bring justice to traffickers has headquarters in Vancouver, WA but fields calls from all over the country. They rank
all states on a report card system, according to Offenbacher. They use 41 key legislative
components to grade individual state laws, specifically involving child welfare
and trafficking. Oregon is ranked eighth in the nation according to their
findings.
The higher the rank, the better. “Oregon
leads with an 85 percent, which is great, because over half the nation has scored C’s,
D’s and F’s,” Offenbacher said. "As a state, we need to look out for the
welfare of our children.”
Where Oregon lacks, according to Offenbacher, is in the laws citing that a minor can be charged with prostitution. In many states, laws say that a minor cannot be charged in sex trafficking. Instead, the organization or person of coercion is charged.
According to Portland State University findings, the youngest identified victim of human trafficking in Portland was eight years old. Oregon law says that no matter the age, a minor can be considered coherent enough to make the decision. Shared Hope International begs to differ, according to Offenbacher. Adjusting this law would increase Oregon's report card.
Communities can be powerful when they come together to fight crime. Naming January an awareness month for human trafficking is the first step. "Right now our hope is for community members to be exposed to the seriousness of this problem, and be educated on how they can responsibly get involved," said Armentano.
-At a Glance- What: Human Trafficking Awareness Month Declared by: President Barack Obama Local Awareness: Albany Police Department, (541) 917-7680 Local Shelter: www.houseofengedi.org National Tip Line: (888) 373-7888
Photo courtesy of LB International Consulting, LLC
By the end of February LBCC will
have a new Student Council President. For the first time since 2010
students will elect leadership by exercising their right to vote.
In the past, the process for
Student Council President was appointed by the Student Leadership Council . An
applicant applied, the current SLC members interviewed them and then a
majority vote determined the appointment to presidency.
LBCC will now have an election
process based off votes from the students. This makes LBCC unique among most
other Oregon community colleges, according to Mike Jones, the SLC
Legislative Affairs Director.
Jones explained that the change came about when
there was a big push from last year’s SLC to give the students their choice. He added that studies have shown students do better when they have more power.
After listening to what the students wanted, LBCC approved the new election.
“The president and vice president of LBCC have been 100% behind us in
this change,” Jones said.
What does this change mean for students? Theby-laws for SLC state that voting members of the SLC can only serve two
consecutive terms. Current President, Amanda McCown,
will be ineligible to run since she is completing her second term. With the power to elect the best candidate, students will have several things to consider.
Staff that regularly interact
with the SLC President made it clear that the SLC President has a specific
obligation to the students. Greg Hamann, President of LBCC, said they need to
be someone he can rely on to be an interface between him and the student body.
“We
count on them to make sure student perspective is being brought to us as an
institution," said Hamann.
The Student Activities Coordinator, Barbara Horn, agrees with Hamann.
“They are a voice for the student, able to look for student needs and see the
big picture,” said Horn.
Duties of the SLC President revolve around the management of the SLC. They direct official business; ensuringby-lawsand the constitution are followed. They lead weekly SLC meetings, appoint necessary subcommittees, and prioritize and coordinate the work of SLC. They also represent the student body at monthly LBCC board meetings.
Outside of their admin duties, the president's main objective is to be an advocate of student issues. They take the concerns of the student body and push for action in improving the quality of student life on campus.
The new SLC President doesn’t
need to have a particular background or major to do the job. According to Horn, qualities they should have are: being a person who is a
natural leader, having good communication skills, the ability to listen to
others, problem solving skills, organization, and passion.
“This is a
working office and the skills they learn here will be life-long," said Horn.
The deadline to apply at the
SLC office has been extended to Jan. 31. As of Jan.16 there are two applicants. Names of the applicants will be disclosed after the deadline.
As part of the campaign, candidates will be given an opportunity to have a debate for students to attend. The tentative details of the debate will be in the Forum during mid February, according to Jones.
Students will cast their votes the week of Feb. 24. Terminals to vote will be set up in the Hot Shot Cafe on the LBCC campus and at the Benton and Lebanon Centers.
By electing the next leader, students are directing their future voice. When asked what he is most excited about when working with the
new SLC President, Hamann said, “I hope most that they will partner with
me to make students feel part of the campus community.”
-At a glance -
What: Students vote for LBCC Student Body President
Applicant Deadline: Jan. 31
Voting: Week of Feb. 24
Where: Hot Shot Cafe on LBCC campus, Benton and Lebanon Centers
SLC Office contact: 1st Floor, Student Union Building - (541) 917-4475
