Recent Posts

• Letters to the editor – Sept. 20 issue

  Editorials September 20, 2010 at 6:15 pm Comments are Disabled

  Moore and the spaghetti monster Mr. Moore’s insulting attack on the Flying Spaghetti Monster is both troubling and disturbing to those students that have been touched by his noodley appendage. The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or Pastafarianism, is just as real as any other religion and very relevant. In a pluralistic society that prides itself on inclusion and religious tolerance, Mr. Moore’s article has no place in polite circles. Attacks on the belief structure of any other religion would be met with disapproval by other student organizations. I can only hope that there is a similar outcry against this senseless attack on the followers of the FSM. Perhaps Mr. Moore needs to realize that we are a secular society and that a belief in something without any empirical evidence does not qualify him as a spokesman for anything. The Secular Student Alliance does believe in fostering tolerance between religious faiths, it simply does not believe in the need for divine intercession to determine good behavior. Christians in particular are quick to call anything that doesn’t give deference to a non-existent sky fairy an attack on their faith. It is not; it is simply a statement of belief. I […]

   

• Activists fight for Appalachia: EAG wants you in the fight against mountaintop removal

  Editorials September 20, 2010 at 6:04 pm Comments are Disabled

  From Sept. 25-27, members of the Environmental Action Group will be participating in Appalachia Rising, a mass mobilization in the District of Columbia to end mountaintop removal mining, a devastating form of coal production. Unlike traditional mining that extracts coal from underground, mountaintop removal mining does exactly what the name implies: The tops of mountains are blown off in order to reach the seams of coal underneath. Not only is mountaintop removal mining an environmental catastrophe, it is also a violation of human rights x it destroys the homeland of coalfield residents and damages their health through toxic substances that contaminate their air and water. To date, more than 500 mountains in Appalachia have been destroyed, over 2,000 square miles of streams and rivers have been buried and an estimated area in excess of 1 million acres lies in ruin. The goal of Appalachia Rising is to demand a permanent end to mountaintop removal and a just transition to a clean energy economy in Appalachia. Appalachia Rising will consist of two major parts. The first part will focus on providing participants with the skills they need to be effective allies in the fight against mountaintop removal mining. On Saturday, informational […]

   

• Obama’s health care farce: President needs to stay true to promises

  Editorials September 20, 2010 at 6:03 pm Comments are Disabled

  On March 19, President Barack Obama graced this campus with his presence. His topic was the health care reform bill that was to be voted on that weekend. It passed by a razor-thin margin and was signed into law. Now, almost six months later, are the promises he made to this university and the American people panning out like he said they would? Throughout the push for this law, he repeatedly made the claim “If you like your doctor, you’re going to be able to keep your doctor. If you like your plan, keep your plan.” However, while there’s no explicit provision in the law that mandates this, the law of unintended consequences is running rampant throughout and this is no exception. That month, CBS featured a small-business man from Pennsylvania who owned a 120-person business. Under the law, he would be mandated to meet the government’s prescribed standards for insurance or face a $750 per worker fine. He offers generous coverage now. However, in an economy where businesses are cutting costs, it would be much less expensive if he dumped his employees’ coverage and took the penalty. The problem is that the workers would lose their coverage whether they […]

   

• Suing AEP ‘undeniably wrong’: Lawyers only care about money, not the people involved in their cases

  Editorials September 20, 2010 at 6:01 pm Comments are Disabled

  Two weeks ago, Broadside featured a story about an incident involving three students who were injured in a car accident caused by another student, prompting a lawsuit. The story “Riding in cars with boys” was pitched by the lawyer of the person filing suit, who is referred with the alias Lindsey White. On the surface it seems that the defendants in question are getting their just desserts but after digging a bit deeper, that just might not be the case. The defendant was found at fault for the accident by the Fairfax County court system and he absolutely should be responsible for the medical bills and monetary loss due to injury of everyone involved. People must take responsibility for their actions. However, suing Alpha Epsilon Pi, the local chapter and its president for $20 million is undeniably wrong. Perhaps White felt she deserved more compensation, but my guess is her lawyer convinced her she was entitled to it. This is a growing trend in our society. Too many people think they deserve riches beyond their wildest dreams because of tragedy. From suing McDonald’s for hot coffee to bringing a lawsuit against the Winnebago company for not advising a driver that […]

   

• Love it or hate it, Michatalie is here to stay: Broadside’s defense of the controversial column

  Editorials September 20, 2010 at 5:58 pm Comments are Disabled

  Thank you, diligent readers, for the recent influx of letters to Broadside regarding the vulgar and apparently hard-to-love columnist duo, Michatalie. There hasn’t been this much buzz surrounding Broadside since Alan Moore began penning columns for us. So far, the pair has made us laugh, cringe and drop our jaws as they let freshmen know the major do’s and don’ts of college and told readers how to achieve the perfect ChipOrgasm — much to the chagrin of many of you readers. Here’s what we think our readers are missing about Michatalie’s column: they are not being serious. Yes, they are vulgar, use foul language and aim to shock, but they do it all for laughs. So when they say you should attend every fraternity party in one night or not purchase $5 veggie cups, they want you to laugh with them and have enough sense to know you shouldn’t actually aim to be the latest girl in a guy’s beer-stained bed. In a letter to the editor this week, John Morgan questions Broadside’s standards since we choose to print this column. Yes, we do have standards, ones that we try to uphold vehemently every week. We swear by our style […]

   
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  Commuter challenge to kick off this week

  News1 September 20, 2010 at 5:54 pm Comments are Disabled

  Wednesday marks the start of the commuter challenge, a competition between George Mason University and the University of Maryland, to see which school can most reduce commuter traffic. The challenge, which runs through Oct. 22, will have participants log how they travelled to campus each day, said Josh Cantor, the director of Parking and Transportation at Mason. He said participants are split into teams, with prizes awarded to both the individual and team that saves the most trips. In addition to the contest prizes, there are other prizes which are exclusive to Mason participants. The challenge will involve faculty, students and staff from both schools and will make use of a commuter service called Zimride. The service organizes carpools, allowing users to find a carpool partner and is based off criteria such as commute location and time. Criteria for the challenge include the number of trips saved, the most carbon dioxide reduced and the most new Zimride users, Cantor said. Parking will hold a kick-off event from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday at The Pilot House with raffle prizes. The event will feature a panel conversation as well as a presentation of the Campus Transportation and Traffic master plan. […]

   

• New dormitory quirky, but ‘cool’

  News1 September 20, 2010 at 5:49 pm Comments are Disabled

  In spite of problems and “new building quirks,” a ribbon cutting for the Hampton Roads dormitory went off to the sound of a brass band and the acclaim of George Mason University President Alan Merten on Thursday. The dorms are “another success for [Mason],” said Merten. “We have created another village on campus.” Students and faculty walked through a soft drizzle to The Pilot House, where ceremonies were held and an enormous cake shaped like the new dormitory was sliced and mobbed by a student body eager for fake trees and roofs made from hard icing. Some students reported a few problems with the dormitory. “The elevator breaks down a lot,” said sophomore undeclared major Andrew McLarty. “Other than that, it’s pretty cool.” “The water in the shower used to be freezing,” said junior economics major Robert Kramer. “The shower handle would not go up all the way. When I turn it up, though, the water often becomes scalding.” Residence assistants said they could not comment on the building’s technical troubles, but two other residents complained about the water temperatures. “It’s just a new building,” said Bradley Menard, assistant director of the Office of Housing & Residence Life. “It’s common […]

   
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  Journalist Beinart discusses Obama’s foreign policy

  News1 September 20, 2010 at 5:47 pm Comments are Disabled

  What kind of foreign policy is President Barack Obama employing abroad? Journalist and political commentator Peter Beinart addressed Obama’s foreign policy in the Johnson Center Cinema, saying Obama’s preferred approach is using the “soft power” of the U.S.’s economic strength to sway countries. But constrained by the ailing economy and out-shone by rising fiscal juggernauts like China, Beinart said Obama’s “honeymoon” phase where his popularity can be leveraged is likewise running out. Now he is forced to deal with America’s domestic and international issues head-on. Obama sees the world in terms of an international community, Beinart said, drawn together by common causes like global warming, hunger and disease. But his agenda has also been constrained by military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. So Obama is left to play “belt-tightener,” a situation where he has to look at the economy — the source of U.S. “soft power” — and decide where America can cut costs. And he is looking at the military. “Obama is like the real-estate agent that tells America, ‘by the way, our $1 million house [America] is only worth $500,000 … We are going to have to tighten our belts,’” Beinart said. But will the president even have […]

   

• Out of the box: Alice in Chains to play at the Patriot Center

  News1 September 20, 2010 at 5:35 pm Comments are Disabled

  The 1990s was the era of long hair, flannel and ripped jeans. Bands like Pearl Jam and Soundgarden sold out stadiums around the world, combining guttural vocals with scorching guitar licks. The time of grunge may have ended in the mid-1990s but for many bands, the rock did not stop. In the case of Alice in Chains, performing Sunday at the Patriot Center, even the saddest story in grunge music could not keep the band down. Alice in Chains rose to national prominence in 1990 with the release of Facelift. The album featured the band’s signature song, “Man in the Box.” Critics and fans were intrigued by the traditional grunge sound infused with the combination of vocalist Layne Staley’s garbled vocals and guitarist Jerry Cantrell’s smoother style. While the band seemed unstoppable following 1992’s Dirt, things did not stay that way. Staley’s well-documented heroin addiction stalled the band’s recording process and prevented Alice in Chains from touring. A handful of commercially successful albums followed, culminating in the band’s performance on MTV Unplugged. However, their 1996 performance would be the band’s last for nearly a decade. Staley never officially quit the band, but he did not tour and spent the last […]

   

• Book it to the festival: After a dozen years, Fall for the Book is a Mason tradition

  News1 September 20, 2010 at 5:34 pm Comments are Disabled

  The six-day Fall for the Book festival enters full swing this week, with visits from 150 authors on subjects ranging from literature to non-fiction. The ever-growing event will feature authors, skits, dance and storytelling to present literature in a fun, engaging atmosphere. The literary festival that began 12 years ago to advance children’s education has expanded to a week-long event and continues to spread from George Mason University to Northern Virginia, the District of Columbia and Maryland, and includes major names such as Greg Mortenson, the author of Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace … One School At A Time. “Over the dozen years we’ve done it, we have seen it become a tradition on campus where the faculty and students look forward to it,” said William Miller, director for the festival and Mason’s graduate writing program. The festival is a “double win for faculty and staff,” Miller said. “Some of our events are patterned very specifically for classes, and we match the events to classes wherever possible. … The students bring to the event their inquisitive minds.” The high-visibility event actually began as an annual literary event in Charlottesville run by Mason’s former rector Randolph […]