Renee DaviesTHE WESTERN FRONT

Chilling temperatures and increas-ing rainfall did not stop more than 30 bus drivers and other county residents from standing outside the Whatcom County Courthouse Thursday morning to rally against proposed service cuts to county bus routes.

While protestors stood outside hold-ing signs and danced in the street to

songs such as “I Will Survive” and “Car Wash,” the Whatcom Transporta-tion Authority board members sat in-side discussing and listening to public opinions on the possible cutbacks.

The cuts could potentially include all Sunday routes, along with some weekday and Saturday routes as well. According to Mark Lowry, president of Amalgamated Transit Union, Local Union 843, said the WTA, funded 90 percent by sales tax, is proposing the cuts because of a decline in WTA funds.

“Our view is that a drastic move like this needs to be done as a last resort, and

we haven’t rolled every rock yet,” Lowry said. “It’s too early to do this, and that’s why we’re out here with signs and flags and banners and making some noise.”

Protestors consisted of ATU mem-bers, citizens affected by the cutbacks and members of other organizations such as Jobs with Justice, a national organization that works to promote workers’ rights.

Protestors began showing up at ap-proximately 7:15 a.m., but some moved inside to share their opinions once the 8 a.m. public hearing began.

By 8:30 a.m., approximately 12 pro-testors remained on the corner of Grand Avenue and Lottie Street holding signs such as “Transit the right choice,” and “Keep transit rolling.”

Protestors were in high sprits, shak-ing pompoms and wearing blinking red lights on their jackets and hats, as cars

The Western FrontFriday, November 20, 2009 Volume 148, Issue 17

An independent student newspAper serving western wAshington university since 1970 | westernFrontonline.net

Keegan ProsserTHE WESTERN FRONT

The Bellingham City Council has ap-proved an ordinance adopting a plan for redevelopment of Samish Way that will be finalized Nov. 23.

The ordinance, which was passed unanimously Nov. 9, includes changes to the zoning of the Samish Way district as well as development regulations that

will allow the heavily trafficked area to be converted into a community-friendly public space.

“It’s what the neighborhood wants to do with the area they live in,” councilman Gene Knutson said. “And the city sup-ports that.”

This is the second time the ordinance has been presented to the council. The ordinance was first approved at a public hearing Oct. 5 on the condition certain re-

visions be made. Council members asked staff to in-

clude specified zoning and design stan-dard provisions in the next draft.

These provisions will dictate how commercial spaces and single-family homes are to be developed on and near Samish Way in the future.

If the final proposal is accepted, the city will begin drafting a master plan for redevelopment.

Eric Ericsson, team sales manager for ProStock Athletic Supply, located at 110 N. Samish Way, has attended several pub-lic forums about the proposed rezoning and development of Samish Way.

He said redevelopment of Samish Way would be good for the community, especially for the Western students who live on Sehome Hill but have little desire

WTA resorts to sales tax increase

County residents rally against route cuts

City says yes to Samish redevelopment plan

see SAMISH page 4

see RALLY page 2

”

We haven’t rolled every rock yet. It’s too early to do this, and that’s why we’re out here with signs and flags and banners and making some noise.

- Mark Lowry, President of Amalgamated Transit

Union, Local Union 843

“

Linda, WTA driver of seven years, protests the WTA's proposed route changes. Linda asked that her last name be withheld.

Jessica BaderTHE WESTERN FRONT

The Whatcom Transportation Authority board voted 6-2 at a public hearing Thursday to include a sales tax increase on the April 2010 election ballot.

The WTA executive board proposed the sales tax in-crease of two-tenths of one percent as a way to avoid a 14

percent service cut to the transit system.WTA General Manager Richard Walsh said if voters ap-

prove the tax increase, it will be implemented in October 2010 and there will be no service reductions.

If voters do not approve, service cuts will begin next September, Walsh said.

Bellingham resident Rick Hannam, 61, who uses the bus occasionally, said he did not want to see a sales tax increase. “If you have to make cuts – make the cuts; if you have to lay off drivers – lay them off,” Hannam said. “Average citizens who don’t take the bus are not here to subsidize [WTA].”

CRITICISM SUPPORT

Mark Lowry, WTA bus driver and Presi-dent of Amalgamated Transit Union Lo-cal 843, said the tax increase is equiva-lent to a penny on a $5 purchase. “When people weigh the pros and cons, the [sales tax] increase is very small, but the pain and suffering of [transit services] being dismantled is greater,” Lowry said. “So many transit riders will have their choices limited in a negative way.”

WTA board member Jim Ackerman, who set forth the motion, said it is only fair to give voters the opportunity to decide between having limited trans-portation options or paying a higher sales tax. “We represent the taxpayers and the voters,” Ackerman said. “If we put it on the ballot, it’s fair to everyone. But if we don’t, I feel like I’m making the deci-sion.”

MIDDLE GROUND

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see HeARINg page 4

Protestors denounced the WTA board's initial plan to cut extensive county routes

STUDENT PHOTOSFEATURED ONSEATTLE SKYBRIDGE

SENSEI SETS SIGHTS ON STATE TOURNEY

PAGE 10PAGE 6

NeWs2 | Friday • November 20, 2009 | The Western Front

See more online at www.westernfrontonline.net

THe WesTeRN FRONTWestern Washington University

Communications Building 251Bellingham, WA 98225

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Editor in chief ............................................................ Rebecca Rice, editor@westernfrontonline.netManaging editor ..................................... Audrey Dubois-Boutet, managing@westernfrontonline.netNews editor .......................................................... Nicholas Johnson, news@westernfrontonline.netNews editor ............................................................. Kipp Robertson, news@westernfrontonline.netArts & Life editor ................................................ Chris Collison, artsandlife@westernfrontonline.netArts & Life editor ......................................... Elizabeth Olmsted, artsandlife@westernfrontonline.netSports editor ............................................................. Kevin Minnick, sports@westernfrontonline.netOpinion editor ....................................................... Tristan Hiegler, opinion@westernfrontonline.netPhoto editor ............................................................... Skyler Wilder, photo@westernfrontonline.netOnline editor .............................................................. Alex Roberts, online@westernfrontonline.netCopy editor .................................................................... Julia Means, copy@westernfrontonline.netCopy editor ............................................................. Jeremy Schwartz, copy@westernfrontonline.netFaculty adviser ........................................................................... John Harris, john.harris@wwu.edu

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The Western Front is published twice weekly in the fall, winter, and spring quarters and once a week in the summer session. The Western Front is the official newspaper of Western Washington University, published by the Student Publications Council and is mainly supported by advertising. Opinions and stories in the newspaper have no connection with advertising. News content is determined by student editors. Staff reporters are involved in a course in the department of journalism, but any student en-rolled at Western may offer stories to the editors. Members of the Western community are entitled to a single free copy of each issue of the Western Front.

Cops Box

University Police

Nov. 17• At 1:33 a.m., University

Police stopped two people carrying chairs with inten-tions to watch a meteor shower off east campus.

• At 9:19 p.m., University Police responded to a sounding intrusion alarm in the Humanities Building. When police arrived at the scene, they found a class in session and deemed the area secure.

Nov. 18• At 10:17 p.m., University

Police cleared roofing from Viking Gardens off the roadway near south campus.

Bellingham Police

Nov. 17• At 2:40 p.m., Bellingham

Police responded to a report-ed robbery at knife point at Whatcom Falls Park.

• At 7:21 p.m., Bellingham Police arrested a 72-year-old man under suspicion of driving under the influence on Barkley Boulevard and booked him into Whatcom County Jail.

Cops Box compiled by Willy Delius

lights on their jackets and hats as cars drove by honking their horns in support.

“The more energy you have, the more you get noticed,” said Cathy Holland, a WTA bus driver who was seen frequently dancing across the street.

Music came from a nearby boom box sitting atop a car decked out in not only protest signs and balloons, but also a nearly life-size Pink Panther stuffed ani-mal stuck to the back of the car. The Pink Panther also held a protest sign.

Don Meador, a WTA bus driver, said the rally was not just about the bus routes at risk, but WTA jobs too.

“I’m here because of the impact on the community and because 28 jobs are on the line here too,” Meador said.

Mike Toner, a mechanic for WTA,

said he was also concerned about people losing their jobs due to the cuts in bus routes.

“[If routes are cut] I’d see people that I work with lose their jobs, lose their live-lihood,” Toner said.

Lowry said the potential loss of jobs could stretch beyond just WTA employ-ees. He said it could affect people who are dependent on public transit, such as many people with special needs, the elderly and those who cannot afford to drive.

Jedi Moerke, the president for the Northwest Chapter of the National Fed-eration of the Blind of Washington, said the cuts would especially put the disabled at risk for job loss.

“People commute from the county area, which are some of the cuts that are being proposed,” Moerke said. “If we can’t commute to work, we can’t compete

in the job market.” Moerke said the unemployment rate

for the visually impared is at 70 percent. She said many visually impaired people rely on public transportation to get around.

“We are transit-dependent people…if Sunday services are cut, we would liter-ally be bound to our homes,” Moerke said.

WTA drivers Tiffany Hodge (left) and Robin Ceranova (right) stand outside the Whatcom County Courthouse advocating support for Whatcom Transportation Authority and contin-ued service with other drivers and bus regulars on Thursday morning.

photo by Hailey Tucker THE WESTERN FRONT

RALLY: Morning rally challenges WTA tax hearingfrom 1

Western senior Carson Johnston stopped to snap a camera-phone picture of the fallen tree in front of the Fine Arts building Thursday. “It’s insane,” said Johnston, who used to work in the art building every day.

photo by Skyler Wilder THE WESTERN FRONT

NEWS | 3westernfrontonline.net | Friday • November 20, 2009

science professor discusses: water on the moon

What does this mean? Can we extract the water?They don’t tell us a lot. It tells us there is water in this one crater but it doesn’t tell us how much or its extent. We know it’s close to the surface. It’s certainly promising and would help with any manned stations on the moon.

Why look for water on some place as distant as the moon?

How much water is on the moon?

The moon is a very curious object. The moon tells us a lot about the history of the Earth. The moon was actually created by a body roughly the size of Mars impacting Earth. Another big reason is that getting anything to the moon is expensive. So if you send astronauts to the moon they can take their water with them, but it costs a lot of money to transport water there. If you can just get the water from the ground while you’re there, it’s a lot cheaper to do.

It’s very hard to say. The findings came from impacting a 5,000-pound rocket into this cra-ter. It gives us a good feeling how much water is in that one spot but not over the entire moon. There are other studies indicating that there may be lots of water, but it is probably distributed unevenly over the surface of the moon like it is on Earth. Now we can defini-tively say there’s water on the moon but not how much or where it is. There are other NASA satellites mapping where there may be water on the moon, such as India’s first-ever moon satellite. It’s built from Indian and U.S. parts.

On Oct. 13, NASA confirmed the presence of significant amounts of water on the moon. The discovery came after a 5,000-pound rocket launched from the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite impacted near the moon's southern pole at approximately 5,400 mph.The Western Front sat down with Western assistant professor of physics and astronomy Ken-neth Rines to talk about the water on the moon.

Sakeus BanksonTHE WESTERN FRONT

photo by Sakeus Bankson THE WESTERN FRONTWestern assistant professor of physics and astronomy Kenneth Rines

SEE PAGE 3 IN THE WESTERN FRONT FOR OUR ONGOING SERIES "DISCUSSIONS WITH PROFESSORS"

4 | NEWS Friday • November 20, 2009 | The Western Front

to stop on Samish Way because of the lack of retail or housing.

Ericsson said one of the issues that could be addressed through redevelopment is the high-density traffic on Samish Way.

“If I could cross Samish Way without having to dodge cars across five lanes of traffic, I think it would be a good thing,” Ericsson said.

The city and the Sehome Neighbor-hood Association have been working to-gether on gathering information and draft-ing proposals for the redevelopment of Samish Way for approximately two-and-a-half years, Knutson said.

The council’s unanimous decision to approve the ordinance is a result of the continued cooperation between the city and the neighborhood, Knutson said.

Currently, most of Samish Way is zoned as auto-commercial. Areas zoned in this way do not allow for residential build-ing, said Tara Sundin, the special projects manager for the city’s Planning and Com-munity Development Department.

In 2006, councilwoman Barbara Ryan chaired a series of Bellingham Communi-

ty Growth forums designed to address the forecasted growth of 31,600 new residents in the Bellingham urban area and 62,000 new residents in the county by the year 2022, Ryan said.

The forums helped city officials plan growth within the city limits, rather than elsewhere in the county, through the cre-ation of urban villages, Ryan said.

An urban village is a type of urban planning that mixes commercial and resi-dential space, implements strong public transit systems and enhances accessibility to public spaces for pedestrians.

Councilwoman Louise Bjornson said the city has plans to incorporate several urban villages within city limits over the next decade.

Bjornson said Samish Way is current-ly in sore need of redevelopment.

“It doesn’t look good and it’s a waste of land,” Bjornson said. “[Redevelop-ment] could get us a nice urban village where people could live.”

The proposed urban village sub-area plan incorporates wider sidewalks, a di-verse mix of retail and professional ser-vices, tree-lined streetscapes, increased parking and expanded residential neigh-

borhoods.Currently, Samish Way has a low

density of residential living, Ryan said. Ryan also said most of the businesses

in the area are franchises based out of oth-er states, fast food restaurants and motels.

Ryan said the rezoning and redevelop-ment of Samish Way will allow more local businesses to be accessible to the community.

This would benefit the economy be-cause profit from local businesses remains in Bellingham.

“In my opinion the [Samish Way] area is somewhat blighted,” Ryan said.

Knutson said the actual redevelop-ment of Samish, as permitted by the re-zoning ordinance passed Nov. 9, is pro-jected to take at least 20 years.

WTA Vice Chair Mel Hansen and board member Jack Louws opposed the motion to send the request to voters. Louws said the WTA had already overextended its financial capabilities to the com-munity by raising the sales tax three-tenths of one percent in 2003.

More than 25 Whatcom County residents who spoke at the hearing including Western students, WTA employees and other members of the community said service cuts would have a great im-pact on their abilities to get to work, school, the hospital and church.

Whatcom County resident Bern Haggerty, 44, said paying the higher sales tax would benefit the community more than cutting public transportation services.

“Bus services are a basic need for hundreds of people in What-com County,” Haggerty said. “As a taxpayer I’m willing to pay higher taxes for a good transportation system, and I think most tax-payers would agree.”

Hansen said he did not think many people would support the sales tax increase.

“In this economy, knowing that there are lots of people without jobs, a tax increase is probably going to be difficult to sell,” Hansen said.

But Mark Lowry, WTA bus driver and President of Amalgam-ated Transit Union Local 843, said if cuts are made, more than two dozen WTA employees, including drivers, dispatchers, mechanics and maintenance workers, will be out of a job.

Not only would WTA employees be out of a job, but Western students and other Whatcom County residents would be much more limited in how and when they go to work, reducing economic poten-tial for the transit-dependent, Lowry said.

“We take [students] to and from work,” Lowry said. “If we cut services it’ll impact the way they get there.”

Mike Toner, a WTA mechanic, said he fully supports a sales tax increase over service reduc-tions.

“This is a time where public transit is really needed,” Toner said, “And it’s important that we keep it going.”

HEARING: Proposal cuts Sunday routesfrom 1

from 1

SAMISH: Redevelopment plan two-and-a-half years in the making

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Illustration by Elizabeth Olmsted THE WESTERN FRONT

Regulations for development of single family homes in Samish Way Urban Village

Current 'Snout house' design

Proposed regulations design

2-car garage abuts street

2-car garage set back

60 ft. sq.

Samish Wayillustration by Nicholas Johnson THE WESTERN FRONT

This is a birds-eye view of single-family home designs under current and proposed zoning of Samish Way. The Samish Way Urban Village Sub-Area Plan includes land within the Se-home and York Neighborhoods. These regulations will apply to single-family homes built on residential streets abutting Samish Way, such asAbbot St., 34th St. and Consolidation Ave.

cut by 1/3 cut by 1/3

Proposed route cuts

The map (right) shows the routes suggested for cuts by the WTA board's 2010 budget proposal.

NEWS | 5westernfrontonline.net | Friday • November 20, 2009

After serving 11 years at Western as executive assistant to the president, Buff

Schoenfeld will be resigning her posi-tion Friday, Nov. 20, for a new job in California.

Schoenfeld will take the position of assistant vice president and secre-tary to the Board of Trustees at the Keck Graduate Institute of Applied Life Sciences in Claremont, Calif.

Western's president’s office hosted a reception for Schoenfeld Tuesday in Old Main in the Old Main Solarium.

“I loved working at Western,” Schoenfeld said. “Working here is

like being a part of a close community. I’ll miss the people I’ve been working

with. They’ve been good friends.” Sherry Burkey, Western's associate vice

president for university relations, will lead the search, typically lasting a few months, to fill the position of executive assistant to the president, Western President Bruce Shepard said.

Replacing Schoenfeld will be difficult be-cause of her contributions to Western, Shepa-rd said.

Schoenfeld said most of the situations she has dealt with are confidential. She de-

scribed herself as a behind-the-scenes type of person.

Schoenfeld is best known among her peers for being humble. Schoenfeld tried to help others suc-ceed, but would not take any credit for it, said Joseph Garcia, Bowman Distinguished Professor of Leader-ship Studies and director of the Karen W. Morse In-stitute for Leadership.

Shepard said being the executive assistant to the president is a challenging job because the person in the position needs to be flexible enough to take on dif-ferent roles and tasks.

As executive assistant to the president, Schoen-feld’s responsibilities were to research issues and policies for the president, follow up on initiatives and serve as a liaison for several positions that report to the president’s office. Schoenfeld said she served on the President’s Council.

She said she also conducted several executive searches, such as the one for the vice president of ex-ternal affairs, the vice president for advancement and the equal opportunity executive director. Schoenfeld served as liaison for the president on various commit-

tees as well as the Campus Community Coalition. Schoenfeld said she edited and wrote public statements and

speeches for Western President Emerita Karen Morse. Shepard, however, prefers to write his own, Schoenfeld said.

“She is a woman of considerable talent, expertise and knowl-edge,” Morse said. “She was an excellent representative of the president’s office.”

Morse said she spoke with the president at Keck and recom-mended Schoenfeld. Morse said Schoenfeld’s talent made her a strong candidate for the position.

Schoenfeld worked hard to make sure Morse was prepared for an event and knew about her audience, Garcia said. When the media contacted Morse about a certain issue, Schoenfeld researched the topic to update the former president, Garcia said.

“[Schoenfeld] was responsible for issues that might impact the entire university,” Garcia said. “Whatever was happening dur-ing the week, she had to be prepared to research the issue.”

Larry Estrada, Fairhaven professor and director of the Ameri-can Cultural Studies program, said he admired Schoenfeld’s ef-forts to increase diversity on campus by working with people in the administration for support.

Western sociology professor Jay Teachman said the long-term assignments he worked on with Schoenfeld include the waterfront development committee, an accreditation commit-tee and the development of bylaws for the Critical Junctures Institute. The committee works to ensure Western gets the of-ficial approval needed so it can remain an accredited university with valid degrees, Teachman said. He said Schoenfeld was able to reach a compromise when it was difficult for both parties to agree.

“It was Buff that really allowed us to come to a resolution,” Teachman said. “I should be so lucky to have that ability.”

Catherine Riordan, provost and vice president for academic affairs, has been working at Western since August 2009, and said Schoenfeld made the transition to her new position and environ-ment easier.

“As a newcomer, you can go to events and not know anyone,” Riordan said. “She connected me with people at Western and in the community. For example, she introduced me to [Dan Pike], the mayor of Bellingham, a Western alumnus from Huxley.”

Schoenfeld said she took the position at Keck because she will get to experience a new environment at a smaller school. She said she is excited about the opportunity to work on a more per-sonal level and learn more about the faculty and students.

“I’m looking forward to being in a new place and getting to recognize every single face,” Schoenfeld said. “I’m also looking forward to being in a growing private institution. The board mem-bers at Keck are leaders in fields that I know nothing about yet. It opens up a new world to me.”

Buff says goodbyeShepard's right-hand woman

resigns for California job

Andrea Davis-gonzalezTHE WESTERN FRONT

“Working here is like being a part of a close community. I’ll miss the people I’ve been working with. They’ve been good friends.”

Buff Schoenfeld,executive assistant to the president

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Chelsea KennedyTHE WESTERN FRONT

The project started with a simple assignment: black and white winter photographs, no close-ups. Just one problem: winter had not yet begun.

“Winterscapes,” a collection of landscape photography by Western photography students, is currently featured on the downtown Seattle Macy’s department store skybridge over Third Av-enue. The collection will be displayed from Nov. 12 to Nov. 27.

The students in Western’s introduction to pho-tography 290 course created 22 large-format land-scapes that are featured on the skybridge, said pho-tography professor Garth Amundson, who teaches the introductory course.

“I encourage my students to exhibit their work anywhere they can,” Amundson said. “But to have their photos shown in Seattle will gather more viewers in a week than showing them a year in Bellingham.”

All 18 students from the photography class are featured on the skybridge. The images were created to work with Macy’s “North Face” promotion.

Western junior Mireille Melki said she worried her fall photographs would not convey the winter

theme. Eventually, she said she chose a photo she took this past summer of two trees in Winthrop that perfectly conveyed a “majestic” winter. The photo centers on two gigantic trees and gives the viewer the feel of craning their neck upward and looking into the sky. Although there is no snow in the photo-graph, the black and white makes it feel like winter is just around the corner, Melki said.

“When [Amundson] assigned the project, I was kind of worried because I didn’t know what I would take pictures of,” Melki said. “The picture I actually used was taken during summer, but by looking at my photos you wouldn’t know I took them then.”

The photographs went through a peer selec-tion after students took them, Melki said. Students came to class with four photos for peers to choose from, and from there two or three were selected to go to Pierre Gour, Macy's downtown store visual manager. After phone conferences with Gour, stu-dents were notified which of their photos would be featured on the skybridge.

In addition to the skybridge, Gour picked two Western students to be featured on Macy’s street-level windows: junior Paul Summerson and senior Kai Caemmerer.

Western sophomore Carmen Daneshmandi said she plans to go see her photo with family and

friends over Thanksgiving break. “I feel pretty excited about seeing it, although I

think my mom is more excited,” Daneshmandi said. Amundson said the project stressed the ven-

ture into commercial photography from fine art photography.

This is Amundson’s second time working with Macy’s to publish student work. His previous col-laboration was last spring’s “Portraits,” for Macy’s “Summer of Love” promotion.

Photography students said they saw this as a very gratifying and professional experience.

“This project inspired me to take things fur-ther with my photography,” Melki said. “I feel more motivated to enter my work into other art exhibitions.”

—Fairhaven terminal to downtown Seattle terminal$14 to $20 (depending on how soon tickets are purchased) one way2 hours90 miles

—Fairhaven terminal to downtown Seattle terminal$20 to $25 one way2 to 2.5 hours90 miles

—Bellingham to Seattle$9 to $10 average (depending on mileage and gas prices) one way1.5 to 2.5 hours (depending on traffic)90 miles

—Bellingham International Airport to Seatac$119 one way40 minutes 90 miles

Rod LotterTHE WESTERN FRONT

The holidays are upon us, which means the mass migration southward for

many Western students. While most will drive or hop on the Greyhound,

there is one often-overlooked option—public transit. While a public bus adventure

may take a little longer than other travel options, depending on the destination, it is

definitely cheaper. It is also a handy option for procrastinators, as seats on Grey-

hound buses and train seats sell out early. So grab a book, make a bag lunch and

enjoy the wonderful landscape of Western Washington, via Interstate 5. Be aware:

many of these routes run weekdays only and are cancelled Thanksgiving day.

ARTs & LiFe6 | Friday • November 20, 2009 | The Western Front

The Western Front recommends leaving the Bellingham bus station either at 6:40 a.m. (Seattle arrival 9:31 a.m.) or 3:15 p.m. (Seattle arrival 6:19 p.m.)

photos courtesy of Garth Amundson

LeFT: Western senior Kai Caemmerer took his photo, which is being featured in the Seattle Macy's street level windows, at Twin Lakes by Mount Baker. He was snowmobiling and noticed everything looked beautifully half frozen and decided to jump on the assignment. "I've never had any sort of exposure like this—I am excited to go see my photo downtown," Caemmerer said. RIgHT: Western junior Paul Summerson, in the industrial design program, took his winter photo at Mount Baker after one of the first snows of the season.

Snapshots capture Macy's attention

Meaghan CoxTHE WESTERN FRONT

Just five hours before the second in-stallment of the "Twilight" series, "New Moon," was released, Western students gathered in Arntzen Hall room 100 to listen to panelists present the flaws of the "Twi-light" saga. Here is what they had to say.

photo courtesy of Mireille MelkiThe downtown Seattle Macy's skybridge displays student work as part of a winter promotion.

To read the full story, visit www.westernfrontonline.netResponses to "Twilight": Panel weighs in on popular series

"One-point-five percent of me was jealous that my boyfriend doesn't

stalk the crap out of me. I wanted this so

bad—which of course is a problem."

Devlin O'Donnell Kristen French

"How much of the proceeds is Stephenie

Meyer sharing with the Quileute? How

much is she giving to their schools?...There

needs to be respect and responsibility for

telling stories."

"I think the problem with romance is that there is such a domi-

nant script. When really there is not just one way for people to

be in love."Jen Lois

Associate professor of sociology Crime and Sexual Assault Services coordinator Assistant professor of elementary education

—Fairhaven terminal to downtown Seattle terminal$14 to $20 (depending on how soon tickets are purchased) one way2 hours90 miles

—Fairhaven terminal to downtown Seattle terminal$20 to $25 one way2 to 2.5 hours90 miles

—Bellingham to Seattle$9 to $10 average (depending on mileage and gas prices) one way1.5 to 2.5 hours (depending on traffi c)90 miles

—Bellingham International Airport to Seatac$119 one way40 minutes 90 miles

Rod LotterTHE WESTERN FRONT

The holidays are upon us, which means the mass migration southward for

many Western students. While most will drive or hop on the Greyhound,

there is one often-overlooked option—public transit. While a public bus adventure

may take a little longer than other travel options, depending on the destination, it is

defi nitely cheaper. It is also a handy option for procrastinators, as seats on Grey-

hound buses and train seats sell out early. So grab a book, make a bag lunch and

enjoy the wonderful landscape of Western Washington, via Interstate 5. Be aware:

many of these routes run weekdays only and are cancelled Thanksgiving day.

Skagit Station: 8- to 18-minute waittransfer to route 90X to Everett45 minutes33.42 miles$2

Arrive downtown Seattle bus stationTotal length: 90.78 milesTotal cost: $6.50 one way

Everett Station:15- to 20-minute waittransfer to route 51051 minutes30.03 miles$2.50

illustration by Elizabeth Olmsted THE WESTERN FRONT

Downtown Bellingham Station: route 80X to Mt. Vernon45 minutes33.42 miles$2

ARTs & LiFe westernfrontonline.net | Friday • November 20, 2009 | 7

The Western Front recommends leaving the Bellingham bus station either at 6:40 a.m. (Seattle arrival 9:31 a.m.) or 3:15 p.m. (Seattle arrival 6:19 p.m.)

For more information: www.ridewta.comwww.soundtransit.orgwww.everetttransit.orgwww.skat.org (Skagit Transit)www.greyhound.comwww.amtrak.comwww.alaskaair.com (Horizon Air)

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To read the full story, visit www.westernfrontonline.net

"Pop culture is com-pletely political. A

series like this is going to be about

larger issues."Andi ZeislerKristen French

Assistant professor of elementary education Editorial/creative director—Bitch magazine

8 | arTS & liFE Friday • November 20, 2009 | The Western Front

Kayley RichardsTHE WESTERN FRONT

Eighteen-year-old Nick Clark and his friends Cody Cayou and Travis Tom were in trouble. The three La Con-ner High School students, who grew up together on the Swinomish reservation 35 miles from Bellingham, were struggling with drug and alcohol issues and had been in and out of treatment programs for years.

But in 2007, Clark and his friends were given the opportunity to make a film with Native Lens—a pro-gram that introduces young people to filmmaking as a way of preserving Native American culture and bring-ing about social change.

Two years later, their hour-long film, “March Point,” which documents the friends’ journey as they learn about the environmental issues threatening the Swinomish res-ervation, has received widespread acclaim at national and international film festivals. The documentary had approx-imately one million viewers when it aired nationally on PBS November 2008.

Clark, now 20, came to Western Nov. 18 with mem-bers of Native Lens to participate in a panel discussion at Through a Native Lens—a Western event where “March Point,” and another Native Lens film, “Canoe Pulling: A Lummi Way of Life,” were shown.

Clark said his experience with Native Lens helped him discover a passion he never knew he had.

“I learned that I love filmmaking,” he said. “Now I want to continue and work on even bigger projects.”

More than 100 students packed the Academic Instruc-tional Center West lecture hall to attend the event, which was co-sponsored by Western’s Native American Student Union and Western’s Social Issues Resource Center and Environ-mental Center.

Western sophomore Ahmed Abdirizak, an intern at the Social Issues Resource Center, said he was not sur-prised the event drew so many Western students.

“Western students are really self-driven to attend out-reach events like this,” he said. “This [crowd] is the result of our outreach efforts combined with student motivation to come out and see these films.”

“March Point” follows Clark, Cayou and Tom as they investigate the impact of two oil refineries located on March Point, which was once a part of the Swinomish reservation. The refineries now threaten the health of the waters that the Swinomish Indian tribe use for crabbing, clamming and fishing—the basis of the tribe’s livelihood.

“This project changed my view on my culture,” Clark said. “Before making this film, I didn’t know anything about March Point. When I learned that it was part of our tribal land at one point, that was a big issue for me.”

Clark said he credits his experience with Native Lens for helping him realize his priorities in life.

“My life was going down the drain,” he says at the end of “March Point.” “If I [hadn't gotten] involved with Native Lens, I don't know where I'd be at right now. Prob-ably on the street somewhere or locked up.”

The Social Issues Resource Center has multiple copies of the film available for students to check out for free, Abd-irizak said. It can also be purhcased from iTunes for $9.99.

Film brings native issues into focus Young documentary makers capture culture, address environmental concerns facing tribal lands

photo by Kayley Richards THE WESTERN FRONT

"March Point" filmmaker Nick Clark (far left) listens to a question from the audience during a panel discussion following the showing of his film Wednesday at Western.

OpiNiON | 9Friday • November 20, 2009 | The Western Front

See more online at www.westernfrontonline.net

The electric car is certainly enjoy-ing a surge in popularity. Nov. 19 and 20, Nissan and Chevrolet are previewing new electric car models in San Diego, accord-ing to the San Diego News Network.

One can already go online to purchase an Alias, a three-wheeled electric car from the ZAP Company. Tesla’s Roadster Sport will begin shipping in July 2009, accord-ing to their Web site.

However, even as these new electric cars hit the market, there are still problems with them that need to be addressed. Many electric cars are expensive, and there need to be more models produced by compa-nies. Private corporations and the federal government have to start spending more to get this kind of technology fully inte-grated into the modern world. Oil won’t last forever, after all.

Tesla’s Roadster has a base price of $101,500, which includes a $7,500 federal tax credit for battery-powered cars. The

tax credit is helpful, but it does little to take the sting out of the Roadster’s hefty price tag. ZAP’s odd little electric car, the Alias, is going for $35,000, but its three-wheel design is probably not something that’s going to catch on in the U.S. any time soon.

If the federal government truly want-ed to support electric car production and sales, there would be a much more robust tax credit system in place. Fully electric cars are expensive and out of reach to low-er income groups who drive much of the time when possible—groups such as col-lege students. Allowing students, work-ing-class families and others who can not afford a Roadster or hybrid Prius to have easy access to electric vehicles will cut down on greenhouse gas emissions across the country.

More companies need to start manu-facturing electric cars. Nissan, Chevy, Tesla and others are progressive in this area, but other major companies such as Toyota and Ford need to jump on the elec-tric bandwagon. Manufacturing hybrid cars is a temporary measure. They still

emit greenhouse gases and use gasoline. Even if the whole world starts driving hy-brid cars and only hybrid cars, we will run out of gas. It will just take longer. Wide-spread manufacture of zero-emission ve-hicles, like electric cars, is a must.

Electric cars are certainly not perfect. Their battery lives give them a limited range before they have to recharge, cus-tom in-home installations of the car char-ger might be necessary and they are still expensive to the average consumer.

However, if the United States is seri-ous about protecting the environment and finding alternatives to oil, it needs to spend more on research for electric cars and sub-sidize companies who are pursuing this type of vehicle. One day the world will be without oil. It’s better to be prepared for that future now rather than watch the doomsday clock tick down to midnight.

The Editorial Board is comprised of Editor-in-Chief Rebecca Rice, Managing Editor Audrey Dubois-Boutet and Opin-ion Editor Tristan Hiegler.

FrontlineOpinions of the Editorial Board

Federal investment in electric cars is critical to clean energy

Viking VoicesOpinions from around campus

What are your favorite things to do during a power outage?

Compiled by Jeremy Smith

Andrea Davis-gonzalez THE WESTERN FRONT

Roommates, we’ve all had them: the weird one, the shy one, the obnoxious one, the one whose boyfriend/girlfriend is always over, the couch potato, the video gamer, the slob and the perfectionist, to name a few. Sometimes you can live with them, and sometimes you’d rather jump out the window than find another pile of dirty dishes in the sink. But sometimes living with a roommate isn’t so bad, and hey, it’s cheaper. Other times problems will occur.

You may wonder why a few packs of Top Ramen suddenly vanished into thin air, or why the bed you made perfectly earlier now has more waves in it than the Atlantic Ocean during hurricane season. If only people always behaved the way the way they did you met them during that first, friendly encounter, everything would be much easier.

Living with someone you don’t know can be an awkward experience, but in some ways, it’s better than living with friends. At least when you live with a stranger there’s a chance you can become friends. If not, no harm, no foul. If you live with a friend, you may end up losing that friendship.

Unfortunately, not all living situa-tions are enjoyable, no matter whom you live with. One of the basic problems en-countered includes cleanliness. I had a roommate who said she had recently de-veloped a mold allergy. Ironically, she would leave her dishes in the sink for so long the mold she was growing looked like a science project. Each morning, she would drink a half cup of coffee and leave the rest wherever she pleased. Maybe the only allergy she had was to being clean.

A second problem is conflict. After

having an argument, it's difficult to have to share a space when trying to calm down.

Problems can also arise when some-thing goes missing. You swear you left your bus pass on the coffee table, and now it isn’t there. Only one other person could have moved it. After assuming your room-mate took it, you find it on your dresser. Suddenly, it dawns on you. You set the pass there when you came home to study and completely forgot about it.

Another common problem is com-patibility. While hanging out with friends is great, living with them may not be the best choice. However, some may argue they lived with a friend and got along famously. That’s because they were com-patible. A night owl may not necessarily be a good match for someone with an 8 a.m. class. Maybe your roommate can rock out like Rush drummer Neil Peart, which would be impressive but is incon-siderate at 3 a.m. At that time, you’re secretly hoping the drum sticks would

break in half and catch on fire, so you wouldn’t have to catch up on your z’s during tomorrow’s lecture on the his-tory of modern linear algebra—yet again. As with any relationship, communica-tion is key. Set boundaries. Compromise. Let him or her know what bothers you. Don’t be afraid to talk about the little things before they build up and are re-vealed during a big argument. Although communication in its best form cannot al-ways solve every single situation, it’s bet-ter to know you tried than to keep quiet.

In the end, if things still aren’t work-ing well, find another roommate. While roommate-hunting, put effort into finding the best possible fit. The objective is for the both of you to be considerate and pa-tient with each other and, hopefully, the rest will be history.

Andrea Davis-Gonzalez is a Western senior majoring in journalism.

Cartoon by Alan Crow THE WESTERN FRONT

getting along with your roommate requires finding the best possible match

Jubilee Mattix Junior

"My favorite things to do would be to light some candles and sit around with friends, telling stories, singing songs and generally having a good time."

Julia Pena Sophomore

"I just like to light a few scented candles and maybe play Yahtzee by candlelight."

Sara richards Freshman

"The best thing to do is you light a bunch of candles in your dorm and you play

truth or dare until your RA walks in, and then you get in trouble because it

is a fire hazard."

Sani Vrbanjac Junior

"I like to play Tetris on my phone."

spORTs10 | Friday • November 20, 2009 | The Western Front

See more online at www.westernfrontonline.net

Caleb HuttonTHE WESTERN FRONT

Munsey ties the belt around his waist for the fi rst time.

He kneels beside a dozen or so students who are dressed in white. They wait for their sensei (teacher) to speak. The last time Munsey was here, his belt was white—the color for beginners.

“It just feels different having a green belt down there,” Munsey said. “It felt like everyone was kind of looking at me. I felt watched the whole prac-tice.”

Munsey is a member of Western’s Judo Club. Twice a week, the club meets in the Wade King Student Recreation Center to practice. They con-dition as a group, counting sit-ups and other ex-ercises in Japanese. Then they work on throws and chokes with partners, followed by lessons in judo technique.

“Right when I started, I found it hard,” Munsey said. “I’d come home with bruises and stuff because I didn’t know how to land.”

Head sensei Mark Glaser said although the word “judo” can be translated as “the gen-

tle way,” it is not always the gentlest sport. Injuries are common, especially with beginners.

A maxim of judo is to achieve maximum effi ciency with minimum effort, Glaser said.

“It’s kind of like physical chess,” he said. “You’re not try-ing to pound your way through it. As you get better and better, you use less energy.”

Glaser has been teaching the club since he came to Western as a student in 1987. At the 2009 Senior Na-

tional Judo Championships, he took home a gold med-al in his weight division for 45- to 49-year-olds.

Club President Derek Scott said he was drawn to judo because it is more competitive than most martial arts. Scott said during his three years of training in Aikido, another martial art, the emphasis was on self-defense; in judo, the emphasis is on competitive spar-ring (randori).

“I do it for the exercise, but more than that I do it for the competition,” Scott said. “The whole point is getting a good throw on someone. It’s really satisfying.”

Almost all the club members started doing judo with-in the last year, but some have already competed in tourna-

ments. The club will host a state tournament at Western Feb. 20.

Sensei Joel Carlson said he would like to see at least 10 stu-dents from the club participate.

Western senior David Huynh was the club’s only rep-resentative at the most recent regional tournament, the 2009 Rainier Cup in Lakewood on Oct. 10.

Huynh said he started the tournament with a win in his fi rst match, but injured his shoulder in the next match and

was beaten two times in a row. During practice sessions, white belts will sometimes

spar with black belts. Parkinson said the emphasis of the club is on learning judo rather than winning

matches, so sparring with upper belts is not dis-couraged.

New members are welcome to show up and see if they are cut out for the physical work that goes into judo.

“Judo’s pretty rugged, so I’m not going to get a lot of people to stick with it,” Glaser said. “But we defi nitely are willing to have anybody come by and try it out.”

Western senior Karlson Miller (bottom) taps his hand to let Bellingham Technical College senior gary gokey know he needs to release his choke during practice Nov. 11 at the Wade King Student Recreation Center.

photo by Hailey Tucker THE WESTERN FRONT

"The gentle way": not so gentle

Western sophomore Jake Munsey slips a traditional white judogi over his T-shirt. He takes a

thin, green belt in one hand and quickly bows before stepping barefoot onto the vinyl mats.

Western's Judo Club meets weekly to compete in what sensei Mark Glaser describes as "physical chess."

Judo club meets Mondays and Wednesdays from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. in Wade King Student Recreation Center room 201. Members pay a $25 fee each quarter

SPorTS | 11westernfrontonline.net | Friday • November 20, 2009

Jordan SteadTHE WESTERN FRONT

Western junior Eric Jensen and his brother Cameron Jensen have made more than $9,000 in the past three months. Their work hours are flexible—mainly because they are their own bosses.

They have earned all this through their budding empire—an online nutrition supplement Web site called Quicksupps .com, which they founded together in Au-gust 2009. The brothers’ site is shaping up to what could be a successful “dot com” story.

In a recent partnership, the brothers have extended a non-contract sponsor-ship to Western’s Strongman Club. On Nov. 21, Quicksupps.com will provide product samples and T-shirts for a power lifting competition hosted by the Strong-man Club in the Wade King Student Rec-reation Center.

The Jensens’ Quicksupps.com ad-vertises more than 3,000 popular health supplements from such industry leaders as BSN and Optimum Nutrition.

The idea for the Web site came in May 2009 while Eric Jensen was at home in Gig Harbor for spring break.

“I’ve always wanted to be a business owner, even from a young age,” Eric Jen-sen said. “Health and nutrition products make up a billion dollar industry—we wanted to serve consumers the quickest and with the best deal.”

Both brothers have extensive knowl-edge about health, conditioning and supplements, and they decided that they

would use this insight to start the business, Eric Jensen said.

Eric Jensen said his academic expe-rience has provided him with a logical, grounded approach to how the business would be handled.

“Business is good, but naturally, it’s difficult to start,” Eric Jensen said. “Our product is something people can go with-out in a time of depression, so it’s hard to [keep people buying].”

Eric Jensen said he is undecided on whether he wants to major in business management or finance while at Western.

“[Because of my academic interests], I understand what it takes to own a busi-

ness,” Eric Jensen said. “There are differ-ent aspects of operation management you need to know to own, and understanding what being ethical is in business com-pared to life is crucially important.”

Both brothers use their iPhones to keep the business rolling while on the go, checking e-mails constantly and answer-ing product orders.

“Before we started the site, I didn’t even have a PDA, so once we started I had to get one,” Eric Jensen said. “If I didn’t have one, I’d have to be on my computer all the time.”

In the early stages of Web site devel-opment, the Jensen brothers asked their

close friends for feedback on the Web site’s appearance and appeal.

“I really approached my friends with questions as an outsider looking in [on the site], like a potential consumer,” Eric Jen-sen said. “My friends helped us decide things from a different point of view, not just our own.”

By August 2009, the brothers had signed contracts with various supplement suppliers to distribute their products.

Quicksupps.com ships products to customers from six warehouses located around the U.S., Cameron Jensen said.

Supplemental IncomeWestern junior and brother apply knowledge of nutrition

and conditioning to the business world—with healthy results

Western junior eric Jensen (center), co-owner of nutritional supplement site Quicksupps.com, has recently partnered with Western’s Strongman Club, headed by club president Chris Lee (right) and vice president Jake Renouard (left) for a powerlifting event Nov. 21 at Wade King Student Recreation Center.

photo by Jordan Stead THE WESTERN FRONT

see STUDeNT BUSINeSS page 12

“Business is good, but naturally, it's difficult to start.”

eric Jensen,Quicksupps.com co-owner

Their main supplier allows the brothers to use these warehouses for the Web site.

Along with speedy product delivery, the brothers said they pride themselves on a close company-to-consumer relation-ship.

The Web site features a trainer who is available for e-mail answers to customer questions within an hour. Cheaper-priced supplements found elsewhere on the In-ternet will be matched in price, Eric Jen-sen said.

Quicksupps.com has more than 5,000 followers on Twitter, some of whom order directly through Twitter’s method of shar-

ing—called 'tweeting,' Eric Jensen said. Eric Jensen said he usually receives

around 10 orders per day. He said his best day to date was when he took 30 orders.

“The daily operations of [Quick-supps.com] – like e-mails and orders – has taken up a whole lot of my free time,” Eric Jensen said, “but I make sure to set some time aside for my social life, too.”

Quicksupps.com has sponsored three athletes, including Washington state’s strongest woman—or “Strongest Ap-ple”—Audra Boltin. A fourth sponsored athlete is soon to be announced online.

Western’s Strongman Club founders, junior Jake Renouard and senior Chris Lee, said they are grateful for the Jensens’ support.

“[The Jensens’ site] is a lot like the Strongman Club,” Lee said. “[Neither of us] have a lot to offer yet, but we can help each other along the way.”

Despite the brothers’ involvement with athlete sponsorship and Strongman

Club affiliation, Cameron Jensen stressed that Quicksupps.com is for anyone.

“We’re not trying to reach a specific target audience,” Cameron Jensen said. “We want to reach everyone, and that’s why we stock everything from your basic B-vitamin to bodybuilding creatine.”

Recently, the brothers have been searching for more exposure through both advertising and additional sponsorships.

The brothers operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and the time spent to-gether has brought about a shift in the way the two men interact, Eric Jensen said.

“[Cameron] and I have gotten a lot closer because of the site, working togeth-er and dealing with business—we’re more professional to each other,” Eric Jensen said. “I’m more mature with him; we’re business partners now. There’s definitely still regular brother time, though.”

As the business rolls in, the brothers are slowly moving toward their eventual goal.

“At some point, we want attention from someone that will want to buy us out,” Cameron Jensen said. “But that’s a long way off—until then we want to spon-sor more athletes and have more people get involved.”

12 | SPorTS Friday • November 20, 2009 | The Western Front

VPX - NO SHOTgUN V.3“This product is designed to be taken as a pre-workout supplement. The 'NO' stands for Nitric Oxide. This provides a 'Pump' that the avid bodybuilder looks for when he is in the gym. When you take a product like this, it's going to give you a lot of sustained energy for your entire workout.”

Dymatize - elite Whey“Whey protein helps repair and build muscle after your workouts. Not only does whey help repair muscles, studies have shown it also strengthens the immune system. Without protein, building muscle for various sports would be a much harder and longer process. True strength gains happen during recovery.”

Controlled Labs - green Magnitude“This increases stamina in the gym. This product transports water to the muscle tissue, allowing all of your body's nutrients to feed your muscles and aid in growth. This is a creatine product. It's used to boost the quality of your workout by reacting chemically with your muscles to make them fatigue more slowly.”

Universal - Animal Pak“When you work out, your body uses essential vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids and amino acids, so you need to replenish your body with these compounds. The majority of people never come close to getting the ideal amount of vitamins and minerals in their diets so this will aid with that as well.”

Afterworkouts

Beforeworkouts

Forstamina

Theessentials

Quicksupps.com's top products, according to eric Jensen

STUDENT BUSINESS: Seeks growth through sponsorships, ads

from 11

Quicksupps.com will provide T-shirts and

product samples at the Viking Powerlifting

Competition, which begins at 11 a.m., Nov. 21,

at the rec center

“I really approached my friends with questions as an outsider looking in [on the Web site], like a potential consumer. My friends helped us decide things from a different point of view, not just our own.”

eric Jensen,Quicksupps.com co-owner