Recent Posts

• Frats and soros compete for ‘Greek Week Champion’ title: Close to a year of planning put in to ensure success of this week’s Greek Week festivities

  News1 March 25, 2010 at 9:53 am Comments are Disabled

  By Ethan Vaughan, Asst. News Editor George Mason University boasts students from all 50 states and 130 countries, but, this week at least, the Greeks are taking over. A cartoon-themed Greek Week, dubbed “Greekelodeon” by event organizers, began on Sunday evening, March 21 with a kick-off rally held on the SUB I quad where participants were treated to a professional DJ and free food. Greek Week will continue until March 28, with students from the 36 fraternal organizations on campus competing in a series of contests to win the title of Greek Week Champion, a title which confers yearlong bragging rights to the ultimate victor. Each event carries a number of points for the winning chapter, ranging from a mere 10 awarded at the end of the T-Shirt Competition to a whopping 200 for the fraternity or sorority that comes out on top in Greek Sing, an hours-long skit competition that is the most coveted jewel in the Greek Week crown. “That’s all very secret,” said senior government major Kellen Rosenfelder, on the routines being practiced for Greek Sing. “Everyone wants to be able to outdo everyone else.” Rosenfelder, a member of Delta Chi, is one of the four co-chairs […]

   

• Tomato pricing woes hit campus: As tomato prices rise nationally, students now have to request the red fruit

  News1 March 25, 2010 at 9:49 am Comments are Disabled

  By Sonya Hudson, Managing Editor Always forgetting to ask for your sandwich without that tomato? Well, now you don’t have to. Tomatoes at dining facilities across campus will now be available only upon request. During the prolonged January cold snap, Florida farmers, the main source for fresh winter tomatoes for almost the entire country, lost about 70 percent of their crop. According to a Feb. 25 United States Department of Agriculture report, about two-thirds of the tomato crop in the major southwestern production region was destroyed. This means an increase on the prices of tomatoes nationwide. A year ago, the average wholesale price for a 25-pound box of tomatoes was $6.50 compared to today’s price of $30. Reggie Brown of the Florida Tomato Grower’s Exchange, a tomato farmer cooperative in Maitland, Fla., told The Associated Press that normally Florida’s growers would ship about 25 million pounds of tomatoes a week, but now they are only shipping about a quarter of that. In an effort to save money George Mason University has chosen to offer tomatoes upon request only. “We’re not going to just put tomatoes on every sandwich,” said Denise Ammaccapane, resident district manager of Mason dining. Ammaccapane emphasized that […]

   

• RSA hosts ‘Haiti Awareness Talent Show’: Students will be encouraged to donate during the event via text message

  News1 March 25, 2010 at 9:47 am Comments are Disabled

  By Yasmin Tadjdeh, News Editor Students looking to help Haiti will soon have the opportunity. On Wednesday, the Resident Student Association at George Mason University will be hosting the Haiti Awareness Talent Show, where students will be encouraged to text donations to the disaster-stricken country. Taking place in Dewberry Hall in the Johnson Center from 9 to 11 p.m., the event has been in the works since late January. “Initially we were trying to find an event to put on [but] after the earthquake [in Haiti, it gave us the idea to put it on for them],” said Rufaro Mandizvidza, a sophomore economics major and representative of the RSA. “I personally had a couple of friends there, and it inspired me. I could have lost some friends, and they had so many experiences [that needed to be shared]. I wanted to use the resources I had and the resources RSA had and the influence to raise awareness.” At the show, attendants will be able to watch students make use of their various talents. Singers, dancers and poets will share the stage, according to Neal Landers, a sophomore biology major and member of the RSA. The event will also feature an […]

   

• Professors participate in health care debate hosted by Economics Society: ‘Separation of health and state’ to be discussed during Wednesday event

  News1 March 25, 2010 at 9:45 am Comments are Disabled

  By Matthew Harrison, Broadside Correspondent President Barack Obama’s Friday visit to the George Mason University Patriot Center injected new fire into the health care debate on campus. With the spotlight on health care issues, Mason’s Economics Society said it hopes to answer some of the questions faculty and students have regarding the reform process. The society will host a debate on the role of government in health care on Wed., March 24 in Room 80 of Enterprise Hall. Dr. Bryan Caplan, a Mason faculty member, will debate against economist Dr. David Balan on the issue. Professor Robert Hanson, a Mason economist with expertise in health care, will serve as moderator. “We would like the students to hear both sides of the arguments presented by professionals,” said Liya Palagashvili, vice president of the Economics Society. Debates and town hall meetings on the controversial topic have been heated. With members from both political parties presenting different and sometimes contradictory ideas, some feel that finding objective and balanced information has been difficult. The Economics Society said it hopes that this week’s debate will provide the in-depth discussion that is allegedly lacking in the media. “We want to get more of an academic view […]

   

• SODEXO WORKERS SIGN PETITION

  News1 March 25, 2010 at 9:40 am Comments are Disabled

  By Emily Sharrer, Editor-in-Chief Sodexo workers at George Mason University are in the process of gathering testimonies and signing a petition to demand more affordable healthcare options, better working standards and the right to form a union — an entitlement, which a group of employees alleges has led to hostile working conditions and harassment on the job. “The reason why we are doing this is because we know that a lot of things that are being done by the company is against the rights of the workers,” said Andres Ujueta, who works in Southside. “There are a lot of things that need to be taken care of.” Since last fall, workers for Sodexo across the nation have been petitioning to combat low wages, discrimination and other grievances against management at their respective working locations, and several weeks ago Mason Sodexo employees decided to join in the fight. According to Fabricio Herrera, a lead organizer at the Arlington branch of the Service Employees International Union, or SEIU, Mason Sodexo workers have been discouraged by employers from joining a union, though the National Labor Relations Act guarantees workers the right to join unions without fear of backlash from employers. According to charges […]

   

• Health care reform passes House

  News1 March 25, 2010 at 9:39 am Comments are Disabled

  By Ethan Vaughan, Asst. News Editor aIt was a close one, but the United States House of Representatives made history Sunday evening when the chamber narrowly passed President Barack Obama’s health care reform bill. The piece of legislation, which cleared the Senate late last year, squeaked through the lower house as Democratic leaders, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi, rallied support among lawmakers to attain the 216 votes needed for passage of the controversial measure. The bill, which has an initial cost of $940 billion, is estimated by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to reduce the national deficit by $143 billion over the course of ten years. Opponents of the landmark legislation have dubbed it a government takeover of the American health care system and claimed that it will fundamentally restructure one sixth of the U.S. economy. When President Obama appeared on the campus of George Mason University last Friday to speak at the Patriot Center, however, he was quick to dismiss such notions. “You’ve heard that this is a government takeover,” Obama said to the crowd of more than 8,000. “You’ve heard we’re going to kill granny. You’ve heard that most of this will benefit illegal immigrants. Those are crazy ideas. […]

   

• Forensics team wins big at world tournament: Group takes highest honors at tourny for second year in a row

  News1 March 25, 2010 at 9:38 am Comments are Disabled

  By Evan Benton, Staff Writer The George Mason University Forensics team traveled to Germany last week to take part in the International Forensic Association tournament, held at the Park Iron Hotel in downtown Berlin. In addition to winning the team sweepstakes award (effectively the championship) for the second straight year, Mason also had five world champions: Samantha Sapienza for Informative Speaking, Katie Miller for Poetry, Jen Torres and Tyler Dailey for Duo Interpretation, Danielle Ohrenberger for Prose and Mickey Cox for After Dinner Speaking. The IFA promotes the diversity of forensic competition in countries around the world, where up to 35 colleges and universities attend and compete. Last year’s IFA tournament was held in Montreal, where the Mason team brought home their first Championship trophy since entering the tournament for the first time in 2008. Basically, this means that the team has swept the only two years they’ve been in the tournament. For Mason Forensics, this represents one more victory for a team that has produced 35 national champions since 1975, and has a trophy case of more than 14,000 trophies. “Well the university just continues to be so proud of the forensics group and the job they’re doing representing […]

   

• Tensions rise as AG’s visit nears: Protest planned in light of Cuccinelli's recent legal option

  News1 March 25, 2010 at 9:36 am Comments are Disabled

  By Kevn Loker, C2M Executive Editor When an elected official — or any other successful public figure — returns upon invitation to his or her alma mater, they usually receive a warm welcome. Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli’s situation is a bit more complicated. A potential 200 Mason students, faculty, alumni and community members will be on site to protest Cuccinelli’s law school visit slated for 5 p.m. Tuesday evening, according to Robert Pilaud, past president of the George Mason University School of Law (GMUSL) Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Law Association (GALLA) and current secretary of the Lambda Alumni Chapter of the George Mason University Alumni Association. The protest comes over two weeks after a letter the attorney general wrote to Virginia universities was leaked to the public. In the letter, Cuccinelli gave a legal opinion advising the state institutions to remove ‘sexual orientation,’ ‘gender identity’ and ‘gender expression’ from the language of their nondiscrimination policies on the basis of current Virginia state law as determined by the General Assembly. [An op-ed written by the attorney general defending his position can be found in today’s Opinion section.] The letter sparked an onslaught of outrage across the state, with online social media […]

   

• Vargas

  Lifestyle March 9, 2010 at 1:54 pm Comments are Disabled

  The Obama Campaign in the recent Presidential Election harnessed mass media technology as away to get votes. Social networks Facebook, YouTube and text messaging became campaign platforms. Washington Post Reporter Jose Antonio Vargas http://www.joseantoniovargas.com/ on a CSPAN video conference talked about how politicians were beginning to interact with voters through new media.                 Vargas said the Obama campaign’s strategy of using new media would influence how future elections would be run.                 “The Obama Campaign in many ways was ground breaking,” said Vargas. “They realized that you can’t just run a campaign anymore you have to build a movement around you. You have to somehow convince a very big, very diverse country of many demographics. And what the brilliance of the Obama Campaign was to really try to attract as many people as you could to the movement.”                 Some political thinkers said the Obama Campaign could credit their victory to their use of new media. The daily phone calls, text messaging and late night e-mails with vote for Obama YouTube videos from the presidential nominee caused the second-biggest turnout from young voters. This movement caused a craze of “Obama Mamas” and voters who wanted to “Barack your World.”                 […]

   

• MLB Season Preview

  Sports March 1, 2010 at 2:48 pm Comments are Disabled

  Donald O’Mahony, Staff Writer Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor AL East: New York Yankees The defending champions will be difficult to dethrone this season. Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui and Melky Cabrera are all gone along with a few pitchers from the bullpen. But, as usual, the Yankees did not shy away from new player acquisitions. They upgraded their pitching staff with Javier Vazquez, who has pitched over 200 innings in five consecutive seasons, finishing second in the 2009 Cy Young voting. They also brought in Curtis Granderson, who hit 30 home runs for the first time in his career last season, to replace Johnny Damon. The key for the Yankees this season will be to find the chemistry they had last year again. With so many changes on the roster, it may be difficult at first. It has become their tendency to get off to a slow start. However, you can count on the Yankees being in a good position at the end of the season. AL Central: Detroit Tigers The Tigers have developed one of the best young pitching rotations in baseball. They will count on their young guns to carry them deep into the season once again this […]