Articles by: skline

 

• The Hunger Games

  Lifestyle February 27, 2012 at 3:48 pm Comments are Disabled

  Synopsis – The Hunger Games is a televised competition where one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 must compete in a fight to the death in an outdoor arena until only one survivor remains. The games are punishment for a rebellion that took place before the start of the story and that caused the destruction of the 13th district. The story specifically follows Katniss Everdeen, a 16-year-old who volunteers to enter the competition in place of her younger sister, who had been chosen through the lottery. Then there’s the love triangle between Katniss, Peeta and Gale. Don’t fret, though. Whereas the focus of the “Twilight” series was on the sickening love triangle between Bella and her boy toys, “The Hunger Games” takes a much more interesting approach to the way emotions play out amongst people in a kill-or-be-killed situation.   By the Numbers – There are over 2.9 million copies of the “The Hunger Games” in print. Originally, only 50,000 copies were printed before eventually increasing to 200,000 and then expanding further. The book is available in 38 countries with 26 different foreign editions going to print. It spent over 100 consecutive weeks on the […]

   

• Look it up on Fairfaxpedia

  Lifestyle February 27, 2012 at 3:46 pm Comments are Disabled

  Freshman economics major Frank Muraca knows Fairfax. Considering Muraca’s thorough understanding of Fairfax County policy issues, one would think he has studied the region for many years. Actually, Muraca is 18 years old and has been studying at Mason for less than a year. A graduate of Monticello High School in Charlottesville, Va., Muraca never lived in Northern Virginia for any substantial period of time before attending Mason. Yet just this year, Muraca developed Fairfaxpedia, an online encyclopedia of Fairfax County. “It’s free, unbiased information about local issues,” Muraca said, describing his website. Muraca first thought about creating Fairfaxpedia last summer while working in his hometown for nonprofit news website Charlottesville Tomorrow. “Charlottesville Tomorrow created Cvillepedia, which is like Wikipedia but for Charlottesville,” Muraca said. “I thought I could do the same thing in Fairfax.” To date, Fairfaxpedia contains over 100 articles. “It’s still young and just getting started,” said Muraca, who has spent over four months building the site. “I didn’t know how far I wanted to take it.” The most daunting obstacle that Muraca overcame was his lack of web design experience. “I had no knowledge of servers and web posting,” Muraca said. Considering that MediaWiki, a free […]

   

• Head Phones On: Zee Avi

  Lifestyle February 27, 2012 at 3:45 pm Comments are Disabled

  Zee Avi’s music makes me want to be on a beach. Right now. Seriously. I’m now furiously scrolling through the travel section of Pinterest, trying to envision myself on these amazing beaches. Her music is that relaxing and persuasive, which is probably why it got a satisfying 4.5-star fan rating on iTunes. On the 25-year-old Malaysian singer/songwriter/guitarist/ukulele player’s newest album, “ghostbird,” released on Aug. 23, 2011, she offers up another soothingly folk-pop set of songs.  This album is the follow-up to Avi’s 2009 self-titled debut album, which still holds a five-star rating on iTunes. Avi is a true YouTube phenom, who just four years ago posted a  video which ended up being praised by strangers for showcasing her effortless singing ability. Her music was quickly passed on to respected music video director Emmett Malloy, who then signed her to Brushfire Records. (Fun fact: Brushfire Records is partly owned by popular folk-rocker Jack Johnson.) The first couple of songs are the epitome of tranquility, as ukulele and guitar chords are softly strummed behind Avi’s voice which floats along with the beat. A few bongo-sounding drums are even infused in songs such as “Milestone Moon.” The most popular of Avi’s songs on […]

   

• Button Mashing: Asura’s Wrath

  Lifestyle February 27, 2012 at 3:40 pm Comments are Disabled

  After playing the demo of Capcom’s “Asura’s Wrath,” I found myself taken aback. I never would have thought that a game such as “Asura’s Wrath” could compete with the same farcical game play that is seen in Sega’s “Bayonetta.” If you haven’t played the demo, I highly encourage you to do so. Some of the scenes in “Asura’s Wrath” will have even the most jaded gamers raising an eyebrow in disbelief. Our acrimonious hero, Asura, has hit the trifecta: betrayed by his seven demigod comrades;  banished and cast down from Heaven for a whopping 12,000 years; and to top it off, his daughter has been kidnapped. Now, with a long-stewing thirst for vengeance, Asura has awakened — and he wants some payback. The storytelling elements behind “Asura’s Wrath” are infused with a plethora of anime elements: the classic, brief intermissions that most anime have; the standard pitch-black screen with “to be continued” in both English and Japanese in the corner; and finally, the end-of-episode synopsis of the upcoming episode. Combat is fluid and simple. The O/B button performs Asura’s basic melee attacks. Holding the circle buttons commands Asura to do a dash attack. The square/X button is used for long-range […]

   

• R-Rated Comedy at its Best

  Lifestyle February 27, 2012 at 3:34 pm Comments are Disabled

  I’m not a math major, but when I see the equation of Paul Rudd + David Wain (director of “Role Models” and “Wet Hot American Summer”) + a commune of hippies, I expect the solution to be a laugh-my-ass-off comedy. Good thing I can still do basic problem solving. “Wanderlust” stars comedy vet Paul Rudd and the no-longer-quite-a-box-office draw Jennifer Aniston as a couple of Manhattanites who suddenly find themselves without a place to live after Rudd’s character George loses his job unexpectedly. The couple is then forced to move in with George’s brother in Atlanta, but along the way there they stop at a bed and breakfast and that’s where the movie really kicks off. I’m so thankful for the modern R-rated comedy. Whereas it used to be a dumping ground for puerile stoner-comedies, filmmakers like Judd Apatow, Evan Goldberg and even the likes of Rudd and Seth Rogen have proven that you can have a hilarious film with a rich story at the center. Even without the presence of the usual suspects like Jane Lynch, Ken Jeong or Bill Hader, the supporting characters of this film steal most of the gags. That’s not to say that there aren’t […]

   

• Elephants Aided By Government Interference, Vote Against It

  Editorials February 27, 2012 at 3:31 pm Comments are Disabled

  When the term “conservative” comes to mind, so do the ideas of prohibiting gay marriage and the distribution of contraceptives alongside less government interference and a hatred for programs that foster government reliance. What’s so surprising is that residents of the most conservative states — those people who elect the hard-line conservatives who in turn promise to ban government interference — receive 21.2 percent of their income from the federal government, as opposed to 17.1 percent for residents of the most liberal states. Currently, the GOP is more conservative than ever before, going all the way back to 1879. Therefore, it is logical that the Republican candidates are strongly opposed to increasing the safety net also known as government reliance. The American public has witnessed the way life has unfolded under the Obama administration. According to GOP candidate Rick Santorum, one of the most prominent issues that Obama fosters is America’s addiction to “the narcotic of dependency.” Despite what Santorum believes, Obama hasn’t set out to radically expand the safety net. Rather, the poor state of the economy has reduced personal incomes to such a level that more and more people are becoming eligible for unemployment benefits. We must then […]

   

• The Carousel Rider – The Rule Book for All Brilliant Women

  Editorials February 27, 2012 at 3:30 pm Comments are Disabled

  The world is really cold without a cute pair of mittens. And life is pretty hard without a simple guideline to living happily. No one has all the answers as I sure as hell don’t. However, many pieces of received wisdom have been whispered down the grapevine and finally — we have answers. So what are the rules that brilliant women should live by? Envy no one. Once a woman begins feeling envy toward another woman that’s the second she has forsaken her ability to support and empathize with her sister. More importantly, when you’re focusing on another individual’s successes and failures you forget to recognize your own. Essentially, you’ve lost sight of what truly matters — bettering yourself. One sentiment to travel with: Your life is not a “Mean Girls” remake. Write a mission statement. It doesn’t have to be long. It could be one word that encompasses your reason for being the brilliant lady you are. It could be a long poem that represents you. As you grow, your mission statement should be refined to fit your needs and desires. Every woman’s mission statement should have the underlying theme of bettering herself and the world, even if it’s […]

   

• Nuclear Proliferation Threatens Us All

  Editorials February 27, 2012 at 3:29 pm Comments are Disabled

    This past week George Mason University students Michael Jordan, Joe Butt, Elena Bragg, Natalie Niemeyer, Erica McKenney and I attended the “Reaching Zero Conference” at Yale University. The conference was a meeting of ambitious minds coming together to discuss the most reasonable route to zero nuclear weapons. We met at Yale hoping to liberalize knowledge and share ideas that better help us achieve a world without the threat of a nuclear holocaust. We took our seats Saturday morning in the art gallery within a sea of notable politicians and diplomats, conversing casually with them about the dangers of nuclear weapons. Sitting to my immediate left was Hans Blix, formerly head of both the International Atomic Energy Agency and of the U.N Monitoring, Inspection and Verification Commission. Ahead of me was Yale’s president, Rick Levin, and to the right were Bruce Blair, president of the World Security Institute and co-founder of Global Zero, along with Matt Brown, former secretary of state of Rhode Island and the companion founder of Global Zero. President Levin began the conference with a presentation in which he warned us of the dangers inherent in ignoring nuclear proliferation. The first panel consisted of Blix, chief negotiator […]

   

• Obama’s Birth Control Mandate is Nothing More Than a Trojan Horse

  Editorials February 27, 2012 at 3:28 pm Comments are Disabled

  I’m sure President Obama thinks he’s doing me a huge favor by offering me “free” birth control. Well, Mr. President, thanks but no thanks. The truth is, I’d much rather shell out 20 bucks for a pack of Trojans than deal with the plethora of unintended economic consequences this mandate will inevitably breed. For starters, the birth control mandate has “moral hazard” written all over it. A moral hazard occurs when people overuse a beneficial resource because they don’t pay for it directly. Currently, when women are deciding what type of birth control to purchase, they likely factor in cost as a major consideration. For example, a woman who isn’t very sexually active might use condoms in lieu of the pill in order to save money. Or she might decide to use the generic version of a birth control pill rather than the name brand version because it’s less expensive. Once birth control becomes “free,” however, price will no longer be a consideration. If you’re paying for dinner with the company credit card, why order the Caesar salad when you can get the filet mignon? Similarly, if you aren’t footing the bill for your own birth control, why bother with […]

   

• Protestors: The Plague of George Mason

  Editorials February 27, 2012 at 3:27 pm Comments are Disabled

  You know what I love? I mean really just love? Being accosted on my way across campus. Picture this: It’s an average day outside. I’m looking fresh with my dinosaur backpack, making my way to the Johnson Center  to not study or do anything productive. Suddenly, a little commotion catches my eye. My nostrils dilate as I detect the scent of a pack of them on the prowl. It’s a group of those obnoxious protesters promoting this or protesting that. I stealthily conceal myself behind some bushes and watch the interactions take place. Protester: “Hi — yes — have you heard about [insert stupid cause here]?” Innocent passerby just trying to get to class unscathed: “No, I sure haven’t.” Protester: “Well, let me just tell you a little bit about it. Here’s a pamphlet, which you will crumple up as soon as you walk away from me and throw in the nearest possible trashcan. We are out here today to make people more aware of blah blah blah blah….” It’s at about this time, if not sooner, that you stop paying attention. These people are the absolute worst. If you are one of them, I’m sorry, but no one likes […]