That seems logical.  But what happens if we look at those who support this bill and who do not?  Who has to gain from it?

According to open Congress, if one looks at who supports the Protect IP bill, which is the bill originally sent to the Senate and passed earlier this year (Washington Post).  Various specific interest groups are found in support, like the Ford Motor Company, American Association of Independent Music, American Federations of Music, Microsoft, Major League Baseball, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, Warner Music Group, CBS Corporation, Walmart, Comcast and even the National Association of Theater Owners.

Now that we have a clearer picture of the organizations supporting this group—big powerful corporations that would like to hold their position which lose $135 billion in copyrights each year—we can understand why they would support it.

However, these websites do not even have to be violating any copyright at all.  They can just be “suspected” of violating copyrights (CNET/).

So, you know all of those videos on youtube that you like and enjoy so much?  If these bills pass, they might go away overnight.

It should be noted that this bill does not simply just focus on music, but it also covers a broad range of industries, and is far-reaching which should concern anyone who is worried about their civil liberties in this day and age.

In the earlier version of the bill, Protect IP did not force ISPs like Comcast andAT&T to block access to the websites.  Carey Sherman, the head of the Recording Industry Association said that it would be used to deny “access to only the illegal part of the site.” It seems, however, that if the bill was passed the industry would have the ability to to shut down the sites that would be doing more than just that.

My verdict:  the protect IP and SOPA will be giving the government the power to shut down websites that are suspicious of violating copyright laws.  Copyright laws have never been protected by the first amendment so the reasoning that this bill stifles free speech does not ring true to me.

However, this bill could do away with a lot of the things that we enjoy right now and change the way the Internet is.  Youtube, metacafe and all other sites like it might only be allowed to show “official” content while fan-made content and individualized content become severely restricted under the guise of copyright infringement.

Will fansites be able to exist anymore?  Just how far will this go?

It seems to me that the industry is looking to protect itself from the competition it fears so much and that it will do whatever it can, by any means necessary, to secure its profit.  Protect IP and SOPA seem to benefit the industry by aiming for security, but, unfortunately, it could undermine and change the way the web is today.

Yet, for some odd reason I do not feel sorry for urinating in my back yard, amongst some bushes, in the pitch black, when all my house bathrooms were occupied. My guilt is most certainly undeniable, but we all know “when ya gotta go ya gotta go.”

Laws are laws. They are put in place to maintain safety, and provide healthy living for their inhabitants. Yet, I, along with most every other healthy human being, break laws on a daily basis (yes, even police). Those who enforce laws (police), as humans, must be able to see around certain laws a la J-walking across PA Ave or soberly peeing completely out of the public’s eye in one’s own back yard. Enforcers must evaluate humanity before they slap handcuffs on an 18 year old freshman sipping their first beer at a college party.

In a most conventional sense, police are the ultimate checkers and balancers of their jurisdictions— campo for McDaniel and Westminster PD for off campus. Yet, very rarely is their supreme power checked or balanced within the realm of just what the hell makes sense.

Every Free Press issue I take the liberty of musing at the stupidity of college students like myself and all the ridiculous ways that they find themselves appearing on the campus safety blotter. I can honestly say that I have been treated with respect and fairness by campo here at McDaniel. In my experience, with few exceptions, campo does a good job of evaluating harm and understanding that college students are going to party and drink. Students that are not harming themselves or others are usually let off by campo with a, “Don’t be a dumb ass and pour that drink out.”

Students that act belligerent towards officers usually get written up, but that seems fair.

My advice to students who come into contact with campus safety while breaking any law: be cooperative, smart, and try to act as sober as possible.

Yet, campo is campo and the Westminster police are something different. The city police find college students a nuisance that need to be taught a lesson.

My advice for students who happen to come into contact with city police: run.

It’s truly a tight line that students on and off campus must walk. On campus students are within the realms of what is just and fair. Yet strict drinking and partying regulations have most students heading off campus on Thursday and Saturday nights for fun. Issues not only with violence (remember a few off-campus incidents last semester including a sexual assault on a student by a non-student), but also being at the mercy of city police with a completely different agenda than campo becomes a serious problem.

Partying is fun and it will forever be a college tradition and outlet for students everywhere, including us here at McDaniel. Controlling partying is A if not THE job of campus safety. Its maintenance is vital to the student-college relationship and this power rests in campo’s hands. When the duty of controlling college students is passed off to Westminster PD or other off-campus police, the knowledge/understanding of student-college relationship is out the window, and safety and care for our students is voided.

A scary thought for the parents of incoming freshman

We live in a world that is so vastly separated from the world that is around us: the United States. Little do many of us realize how, and on what scale we are effected by the language we speak, the media that surrounds us, and the place in which we live. Our thoughts and ways of communication, and how we interact with one another is inevitably shaped by the culture in which we grow up, whether we realize it or not.

We are influenced by everything around us, from music to food and drink, the programs on television, the shops and stores that help our community and economy flourish, the sports teams we root for, down to the simple mannerisms and ways of addressing our peers. Not only does this strengthen the bond that we have with other citizens but it also entraps us in our ever-growing ethnocentric culture.

In my view, our ethnocentric culture is problematic, especially in a society where the minority is rapidly growing and in the near future we will be forced to merge the majority culture with the dominant minority culture, which is Latinos. The Latino population is a subculture that has already begun to spread out across our nation. Although some think of this as a bad thing, in fact, it is something positive, as it is teaching us to better adapt to and accept our constantly changing surroundings.

For one to submerge oneself in another culture brings one into a whole new perspective on the world. From having been abroad in Spain, as well as currently living in the Spanish house now, I firmly believe that every student should try to experience a foreign culture in one way or another. Even doing something minor, such as living the Spanish house, will have an effect on an individual.

Embarking on a pathway to becoming more culturally diversified is something you owe to yourself and to the global community of the world in which we live. Mark Twain once said, “whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.” This is an issue on which I have reflected a great deal and I have come to conclude that my culturally diverse perspectives and reflections were formed through my study abroad experience as well as living in the Spanish house.

Living in the Spanish has some requirements in order to make its residents practice their Spanish and earn credit. One of the conditions for living in the Spanish house is that its students are acquired to attend weekly “tertulias” which are our weekly meetings where we gather together twice a week and partake in an activity relating to Spanish.

Our director, Renata, a 26 year old woman from Cordoba, Argentina; puts together games where we play Spanish card games, read Spanish comics, learn colloquialisms, listen to music, watch Spanish movies, or cook a cultural dish from a Latin American country. We speak only Spanish while doing these activities. Additionally, we are always required to speak Spanish to one another in the house common areas.

It is not just the Argentinean director or the frequently playing Spanish music that makes the house culturally diverse from other living situations on campus. It is also the fact that constantly there are international students over at the house, some of who come from France, Germany, and Portugal.

It is through the experiences that we’ve had with our international students that we come to learn about other cultures. Although we may not be in another country, the house embodies cultural diversity, thoughts and ideas are shared about commonalities and differences of life in another country, and in the United States such a cultural reflection is enlightening.

The most important thing about the language house experience is what you take away from it; and being exposed to new foods, music, ideas; language helps one to gain is a newfound respect for other cultures. It is fundamental that we open up our hearts and minds to the world around us, which will enable us to break down the negatives such as the pre-conceived stereotypes we might have about of other people in other cultures. It frees us of our narrow mindedness and into experiencing new traditions that before we might have been unwilling to accept before. By being more open minded to other cultures and accepting of others, we will change the world into a more peaceful place a little bit at a time.

Diverse McDaniel students

There are many negative stereotypes geared towards minorities, such as the stereotype that both African Americans and Hispanics are poorly educated and doomed to forever live in poverty. However, the students at McDaniel College do not fit into these boxes. McDaniel College does a good job of making sure that the college has a diverse student population because it has more minorities than most of the same sized schools here in Maryland and there are plenty of clubs that introduce different cultures.

At Goucher College in Towson, Maryland, there are 174 black students compared to McDaniel College’s 270 black students. Another small liberal arts college by the name of Hood College which is in Frederick, Maryland, has 238 black students. Goucher College has 77 Hispanic students compared To McDaniel’s 80 and Hood has 82 compared to McDaniel. Finally, Goucher College has only 50 Asian students compared to McDaniel’s 106 Asian students; Hood College has sixty Asian students. (“Race/Ethnicity“) Although Hood College may have more Hispanics than McDaniel, these numbers still show a significant increase.

Not only are the number of minorities at McDaniel College high but McDaniel College has partnered with the College Bound Foundation to identify and recruit inner city low-income minority students from Baltimore City. Additionally, McDaniel offers six-to-eight full tuition scholarships to highly qualified Baltimore City students annually. McDaniel also continues to partner with College Visions from Providence, Rhode Island to identify and recruit students of color. Lastly, college staff participates in college fairs conducted by 100 Black Men of Maryland, National Council of Negro Men, National Hispanic Fair, and the Hispanic Latino Fund. In contrast, Hood College uses the Go to High School, Go to College Fair in Prince George’s County to expose more than 600 students in Maryland and D.C. to various college preparation services, including the admissions process, academic preparations, and financial aid (“Recruiting Diverse“) but the amount of focus that’s on minority students is unknown.

McDaniel has many cultural clubs such as the Black Student Union, the Asian Community Coalition, and the Multicultural Club. During my first meeting of the BSU, there were many shades of brown, but to my surprise, there was an Asian, a Hispanic, and a Caucasian student there. It was a room full of openness and freedom, and for once in my life, race wasn’t a taboo topic. The ACC has students of different ethnicities such as blacks (Nigerians in particular) and Caucasians. The Multicultural club aids students in learning about the traditions, religion, and even fun things such as food from backgrounds around the world.

It seems as if McDaniel College has a high number of minorities, or at least more than competing colleges. Yet again, there are clubs that encourage diversity, but maybe this is a one-sided or superficial view of looking at things. Does anyone really sit down and talk to the students about the subject of race? In interviews that I conducted, some students said that they were unaffected by being a minority. One Ghanaian student said that she has “experienced racism” but she really “doesn’t care” because in “most of her classes” she is the only black person. Even in the Psychology of Women, it states, “Female students of color are especially ignored in the classroom.” One African-American student said that it was a “culture shock” and one Hispanic said that he has not experienced racism but he “wouldn’t be surprised if it happened because you cannot simply disregard the fact that you are part of a minority group and there are always extremists that will call you out because of your race…” Most students feel as if they are not racist but a little biased because all of their lives, they have grown up around people like themselves. While race is a hard factor to ignore, McDaniel has so many unique backgrounds that there is no way students who attend this college won’t learn to think in creative ways that they’ve never had to before.

Mahlia Joyce, who is the director of Multicultural Affairs at McDaniel College, has always seen herself as part of this college and part of what this school could do differently. She taught Spanish at local, alternative high schools in Carroll County where the majority of students were Caucasian and had certain perceptions of minorities. She felt as if her job was not to teach a language, but understand more about the culture itself. She confirms that McDaniel has had an increase in minorities. The class of 2015 is comprised of 25% minorities and as a whole 14 to 15 percent are minorities. However, she says that some students still feel isolated and disconnected. She believes that regardless of numbers, students should feel a part of the majority and it is not only up to the Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs (ODMA), but the students and the college as a whole. As a student, community member, worker, and alum of McDaniel College, she has always wanted to be a part of the solution.

There is absolutely no reason to be skeptical about being a student at McDaniel College. It is understandable that many freshman students may not know what to expect during their college experience because they are venturing away from home and most of them have grown up in one place all of their lives with one view of the world around them. Slowly, but surely, college will be easier to adapt to because students will take classes, join clubs, and travel with people that have the same interests and race won’t matter. A blogger by the name of Aaron Thompson who is a professor of sociology at Eastern Kentucky College says that diversity enhances self-awareness, expands worldliness, and enhances the multiple perspectives developed by a liberal arts education.  McDaniel College exemplifies diversity in a positive and life changing way.

The last couple of weeks have been very difficult. Everything from deaths in the family, to mid-terms, to midnight work shifts. I have finally hit the heart of the Fall Semester. It is not hard to sit in class and listen to lectures or take care of my son, but it is hard to find time to complete school work and wake up on time for class the next morning.

So far this school year I have not been able to complete an assignment for any of my classes before 3 in the morning. Late nights are the only time I have to complete assignments and sometimes that isn’t even enough.

A couple of weeks ago I had an assignment due that nearly caused my head to explode like an atomic bomb. The assignment itself was not difficult, just time consuming, which for me is worse because I have so little time to get things done. It was a Tuesday night, and this particular Tuesday will be one that I remember for a very long time.

I had to work a normal shift that day, 2:00 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. Everything at work was normal and it was a relatively slow day. Since the day was slow and I knew I had an assignment due the next day, I figured that I would get a head start writing my paper at work on my phone so I didn’t have to stay up all night writing it.

Every time the store was empty (which was frequent) I was on my phone writing my paper. On my break, I was writing my paper. Every chance I had I would pull out my phone and start writing my paper.

My son Aidan was staying at his mother’s house for the night so I figured that I would be done with the paper around 11 p.m. and watch a little bit of TV before I went to bed. At 8:45 p.m, just before the store closed, I received a text from Aidan’s mother saying that she isn’t feeling well and asking if I could take Aidan for the night. I told her that I had a paper to write, but she was saying that she didn’t think she was capable of taking care of him that night.

I thought to myself,  “Okay, I have been writing this paper this whole time and have about 4 out of 6 pages already finished, plus I don’t want her to get Aidan sick (because sick babies are the most difficult to take care of).”

“Okay, I’ll be over after work to get him,” I told her.

After work I went to get Aidan to take him home with me. When I got home Aidan was fussing because it was his bed time, so I took him upstairs and put him to sleep. It was now 10:15 p.m.

I thought to myself, “This worked out well.”

I then went back downstairs to type what I had on my phone on the computer so I could then finish my paper. I was sitting in front of the computer, looking down at my phone, typing a little bit, then looking at the computer to make sure I typed correctly, then back at my phone. The first half of the first paragraph was finished (much less than half a page), but this process was taking a little longer than I expected, so I came up with a great idea. I called my older sister into the room and asked her to read to me what was on my phone so I could just listen and type. This would cut the time spend typing in half for sure. I gave my sister the phone to read what I had written down on my phone. My phone screen (like most phones) has a 15 second period before the screen goes black and you have to turn on the screen again. Fifteen seconds go by and my screen goes black.

My sister looks at me and says. “How do you turn the screen back on?” I say to her, “Hold on, let me finish write the part that you just read to me and then I’ll tell you.”

She said, “Okay” and started messing with my phone to turn it on. She slides my phone open and then slides it closed. The screen turns back on, and EVERYTHING IS GONE! Hours of typing at work, four pages of words gone in a matter of seconds. My brain overloads as my heart sinks simultaneously. All my work vanished. I spend about 15 minutes trying to get it back on my phone, and nothing. The realization that I had to start from scratch started to sink in. My brain couldn’t withstand the unexpected added pressure and shut down. My ability to think and use my mind was gone. I told my family that I was going to bed and that I’d finish the paper later. I laid in bed with my son feeling like I had missed a buzzer beater to the championship game.

I thought to myself, “This kind of thing has happened to me before,” but never with the amount of stress I was currently dealing with, but lucky for me the paper was due at 6:50 the next night.

The next day at school I ended up finishing the paper in between classes and felt relieved, but the high from feeling relieved was nowhere near the low of feeling stressed. All was well turning in my paper, but while the teacher took the paper from me I thought to myself, “There is no way she knows what I went through writing this paper.”

An annual survey produced by Harris Interactive expresses that three-fourths of the American population suffer from unhealthy levels of stress.

It’s nice to know that mostly everyone else is stressed, too.

Art time in class can still send a ripple of excitement through the classroom, even at college.  The goal? Create a poster that would be an advertisement for our honors class, titled Worldview and Privilege: Why Colorblind Means You Can’t See Me.  Our professor, Julia Orza, split the class into three groups.  Each group was set up with posters and materials.  My group settled down to planning.

Our professor had given us a challenge to advertise our class, and we set forth to complete the task.  It’s strange that we never stopped to wonder why.  It may have something to do with Dr. Orza dangling extra credit in front of us for the best poster design.

After some debating on how to meet the challenge, my group decided to follow a suggestion made by our group member, Yichong Li.  She suggested that we construct a human body using black and white photos from the magazines we were provided to represent colorblind.  In class, we’ve been learning that when someone tries to be colorblind, they may unintentionally ignore another person’s background.

On our poster, outside of the figure made of black and white photos, we glued color photos showing our reality.  In our world, people are different.  It’s wrong to treat people with prejudice and hatred, but we can’t treat everyone exactly the same.

We can’t be colorblind.  People are not the same and do not have the same experiences, and it’s ok to treat people different by being aware of their background and acknowledging their culture.  If we ignore their culture and worldview, we are not giving them the respect they deserve.

As our group struggled to complete our poster by the deadline, everyone was cutting pictures frantically.  Each person had a job, either finding pictures and words in the magazines, cutting them out, or gluing them to the poster.  Yichong mainly directed the making of the poster and made sure our work came together.  Everyone had a part and there was a sense of accomplishment when Dr. Julia Orza called “time.”

Turning from our poster, we began to observe the others and noted a severe difference among the posters.  At first I wondered why the other groups had decided against using their magazines.  The first group had drawn a giant eye that said “Worldview,” where the blue iris was the “o” and the pupil was an image of planet Earth.  The entire poster read “Worldview and Privilege” in gray and blue.  The eye represented an individual’s view of their world.

The second group had a picture of Earth, drawn in colored pencil, working on a puzzle.  Below were the words, “Let’s Piece Together Your Worldview.”  The puzzle pieces represented the parts of an individual’s worldview.  Puzzle pieces had words representing parts of one’s worldview, such as social class, language, race, age, and sex.

It looked like the other groups hadn’t put very much effort into their posters, and I couldn’t understand why they decided against using magazines and markers.  Turns out, they didn’t have magazines or markers.

My group had been presented with a bag full of scissors, glue, markers, magazines, stickers, everything but the kitchen sink.  So, as we turned around, we got a bit of a shock finding one group with merely colored pencils, and the final group sporting pencils and a blue crayon.  While the students from my group turned around oblivious, the other groups had a better grasp of the situation.  Looking at the posters, Dr. Orza questioned whose was better.  Most students spoke up saying their own was better.

Dr. Orza observed that the group with the fewest resources “were the loudest about saying how good  [their poster] was.” They felt they had to “defend and speak up for their group more than the others.”  Dr. Orza equated this with people of less privilege feeling the need to defend themselves.  After surveying the posters, Dr. Orza chose my group, the one with the most resources, as the winner.

So what happened?  Our groups had been presented with varying craft materials as a demonstration of privilege and differences in available resources.  The definition of privilege is “a special right, benefit or advantage given to a person not from work, effort or merit, but by reason of membership in a majority group with the power.”  The amount of privilege a person has may influence the resources available to that person.

Someone with socioeconomic privilege, who lives in an upper-class area, can print out a professional resume and has a computer to search for jobs, but a person who does not have that privilege, and who may be living on the streets, probably does not have a computer, much less a printer.

The poster project reflects the limited resources that some people have to face on a day-to-day basis, and the advantage of resources that people with the privilege and power have.  Slowly, we began to dissect what had occurred.

Yichong noted, “It [seemed] like none of our group realized that others had less supplies.”  I certainly didn’t notice, and I think our group received the biggest surprise to find that other people didn’t have the same resources.

Kristin Harjes, a member of the group with the colored pencils, stated, “I did not see the under-privilege of the lowest group.  I only envied the privilege of the higher group.  My oblivion, when it was pointed out to me, was shocking.”

There was some debate over Dr. Orza’s choosing the poster created by my group as the best one.

“I saw immediately that we were at a disadvantage,” said Jason Stein, a member of the group with the fewest resources, “but I thought she would put each of our groups into perspective when analyzing extra credit.  I thought she would be judging over creativity, [using what we had], as opposed to overall appeal.”

“I was upset that she picked the [group with the most resources] to prove a point,” Kristin explained.  “The materials didn’t bother me, just the final decision.”

“We had an awesome idea of designing that went into the poster,” said Yichong, “not only because we had more supplies, but also we had ideas, our artistic intuitions.  Privileged people feel their ability being overlooked because of their privilege.”

When I asked Dr. Orza about choosing our group, she said, “I thought the other ones were good for what they had,” but she believed the poster that my group had created was truly the best.  Normally, she wouldn’t see the creation process.  If this was an actual assignment and the group with the fewest resources had turned in their poster, she says would have been like, ‘Really? You did that with just a few pencils?’”

Dr. Orza gave an example, saying that an elementary school teacher giving the assignment to a class can’t see what’s behind the scenes.  One student may go home to a computer with graphic designs, or a large array of glitter glue, stickers, and colorful paper.  Another student whose family is in a low socioeconomic class may have to rustle up a crinkled piece of paper and a broken crayon.  The child’s parents may not be available to assist the child because of the need to work long hours.  The two children return and the teacher assigns grades based upon the end results.

While observing the process, Dr. Orza noticed that the group with the least resources could only have a few people working on the poster at a time, and there were a lot of people standing around.  However, the group with the most resources “never [had] a moment when people weren’t doing stuff.  There was more energy.” She even caught herself becoming involved with my group, saying, “I felt I was going over to your group to make sure you used more of your stuff.”  Having never tried the activity before, it came as a surprise.

Even knowing everyone’s limitations and the effort placed into the posters, Dr. Orza still expressed a preference for my group’s poster based on the end result.

Remembering the treat that was originally offered, a student asked if my group would still be getting extra credit.  “Yes,” was the answer, sending a new ripple of conversation into the class.

Sarah Holbrook, member of the group with the least resources, said, “I felt really upset that they had gotten extra credit that I hadn’t gotten the opportunity to get.  That made me reflect about what opportunity I [do] get that others [don't].”

A student in my group expressed feelings of guilt for receiving extra credit because our group had an advantage in resources.  On the other hand, Yichong considered, “I almost don’t feel the guilt because I felt the reason we won was because we had good ideas and it’s not just because of supplies, it’s because we had good ideas.”

From the poster activity, we brought away what?

Jason Stein, said, “I didn’t think it was the most informative project to begin with.  I only realized after, when I saw the reactions of the other groups,” the affect of privilege.

Sarah Holbrook said, “It makes you more aware to the amount of difference there is in what you have available to you in resources.  You grow up around people in society and don’t realize how far away others are.”

“I love that she included this in our class experience, it made me aware of privilege through real life experiences,” said Yichong Li.

Kristin Harjes said, “I think it’s fairly reflective of what we see in the real world; people see when they’re at a disadvantage, but don’t always realize when they’re the privileged ones.”

The awkward moment that you were hoping to avoid, but you know you can’t. Maybe if you quickly head down another sidewalk they will not notice you. Maybe.

Let’s be honest you already made the awkward eye contact so the only thing now is to wave or to pretend it never happened.

But it did happen. It actually happened last night. You went to a party and met a cute and conveniently single person and proceeded to hook up with them. It was fun at the time, but now as you are passing each other in Red Square you are not having fun at all.

So what do you do in this situation?

On a campus as small as McDaniel’s the only thing you can do is face your hook up with confidence.

For many people this becomes a normal debate. Most people on this campus said that they would at least say “hi” to their fling and try to pretend like nothing happened. Males at McDaniel were more likely to find humor in the situation, because the only ones who know about the hook up are usually the ones involved. For girls, the thought a run in on campus seemed a little more horrifying. A sophomore girl said that she would “say hi the first time, but if they did not respond she would ignore them in the future or just try to act normal.”

To girls, a run in after a hook up seems a lot more strategic than it is for men.  One senior female said she “always waves just to make sure that they remember her.”

Ensuring that they remember you is a clever strategy, but in some cases you may not want them to recollect previous events. It is easier to pass by a recent hookup and pretend you do not remember anything so you do not have to worry about holding that awkward conversation. At the same time, it is nice to know that they can recall the experience, and (hopefully) the fun and enjoyable evening they spent with you.

Whether you stay seated in Glar while your hook up gets their food or always take the long way to class, for most people it is easy enough to avoid your hookups. One junior male said that “they generally live in his building because it is easier to hook up with someone you live near, but in the long run it just leads to many more awkward run ins.”

So maybe this run in is not as awful as we expect it to be. Perhaps these situations are blown way out of proportion. If people are friendlier to their one-night-stands maybe the hook up could become consistent enough to make walks through Glar and Red Square less awkward.

I went into this school semester knowing that it would be my hardest semester yet. Not because I was taking challenging courses or because I was commuting for the first time, but because this is the first semester that I am a single father, manager at work, and full time student all at the same time.

My first day of class was unlike any day I’ve ever endured — class from 9:10 in the morning to 8:20 at night, then work from 9:00p.m. until 1:30 in the morning. I got home that night at 1:45a.m. and checked immediately on my baby boy. Aidan was sleeping peacefully in my room because my mother had put him to bed earlier that night. So, I took a shower and went to bed.

As I finally got in bed at 2:15, I thought to myself, “What a long day.”

Little did I know it wasn’t over just yet. As I slowly approached stage one of sleep, Aidan woke up and started to cry for food. It took the rest of my energy to make him a bottle.  Four ounces later he fell back to sleep, and I rolled over and closed my eyes.

That was just day one of fall semester 2011.

Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that I would be a father at the age of 22.

It’s not like I was against having children, I just always dreamt that I would have a steady job, my own place to live, and a wife before I had my first child. But things just didn’t work out that way.

One month into my last semester of school and my body feels exhausted. Every muscle feels numb from lack of sleep and constant work. I try not to complain to people about how exhausted and fatigued I am because that does not help me get through the pain.

You probably also ask yourself at times, “How do I make it through each day?”

I ask myself the same thing each day. My answer is that I have to change my lifestyle mentality. What I mean by this is, before Aidan came along, I always used to be focused and thinking about my future.  I used to constantly think months in advance about what I was going to do, how I was going to make money, and how my future would turn out.

Now all I think about is the hour that is at hand. If I think about my next three days, I simply get overwhelmed.

Every hour in my life there is something to do — whether it is work, childcare, or school. Relaxation is rare nowadays and, before Aidan was born, relaxing was my favorite thing to do. But now that Aidan is here, being with my baby boy is my favorite thing to do.

At least I know I’m not entirely alone when it comes to being a single father. Approximately 1.7 million men in America are single fathers.

I’m proud to be part of that population.

The flyer posted around campus advertising the Campus 411 discussion on the smoking habits of students.

I’m not really a big fan of smoking. It smells pretty bad, it’s unhealthy for smokers and nonsmokers alike, and when I was eight my dad and I were rear-ended by a guy who was lighting a cigarette while driving, causing me enough physical injury that I had to go to physical therapy for a year. So through this negative association, the concept of smoking does not make me too happy.

I don’t enjoy having to get into Hill Hall as quickly as possible in the mornings simply to avoid my exposure to the stench of smoke. It forces me to eliminate a few more precious moments that could be spent breathing in fresh outdoor air.  It even limits the number of people I can greet before class. Even if people smoke 15 feet away from the building like they’re supposed to, it’s still quite difficult to avoid the smoke. And, as an English major, this isn’t something I want to have to do for the next four years of my academic life since I’ll be spending most of my time around that building.

On Oct. 13, the question of if smoking should be banned on campus was discussed in the forum. Before I went to this meeting, I thought that a ban on smoking might be the best option for this campus. It would certainly reduce the amount of smoke I’m exposed to. But since, I’ve slightly modified my stance in part because, though the administration could probably enact a campus-wide smoking ban, it would not be met without resistance.

“I think that one of the risks that the school would run with trying to impose a ban is the problem with implementing a policy that won’t be followed and then the administration just having to deal with the fact that they’ve now put up one rule that won’t be followed,” said one female student.  Another female student likened a smoking ban to Prohibition.

Furthermore, a smoking ban would not necessarily result in people quitting smoking. It would only force them to find new places to smoke.

One female student expressed concerns that a smoke-free campus would result in smoking students having to go to Pennsylvania Avenue to smoke. “I don’t feel comfortable going down to the outskirts of campus to smoke,” she said. “I feel like my safety would be compromised if a smoking ban were proposed on campus.” She later said that if students had to go off campus to smoke, residents of those areas would complain. Additionally, a male student said that by increasing the foot traffic on Pennsylvania Avenue, the risk of crimes committed against students would also increase.

A few students who spoke at the meeting expressed feelings that banning smoking on campus would negatively affect admissions. Although I feel prospective students who smoke would not like this, prospective students who do not smoke would. Even when I toured this campus as a prospective student, the fact that smoking is a big thing on campus was really obvious.

Though forcing people to stop smoking through a ban is not the best idea, I still would like to see smoking disappear from this campus. I want people to stop smoking for their own sakes, not only mine. I want people who smoke to realize that smoking is not healthy to their bodies or the bodies of others and to recognize that there are better things to do than sit around and smoke.

I do not believe that people who smoke are inherently bad people. People at the 411 meeting who smoke discussed their opinions very graciously and with a lot of class. One male nonsmoking student even said that the people who smoke at the discussion were the nicest smokers he had ever met.

I’ve met plenty of nice and interesting people on this campus, and I care about their health and well-being. A few of those people happen to smoke, and it’s disappointing to me that they do so. It makes me sad to see good people waste their health and money on what I see as a silly and harmful thing to be addicted to.

Therefore, I want to see this campus take the initiative to end smoking on campus. If we can recognize that smoking isn’t good for any of us, then we can work together to stop it.

A freshman male nonsmoker who does not support a campus-wide ban on smoking said that when it comes to smoking on campus, “I think there are a lot of great cultural changes on campus we can make, a lot of great policies we can enforce.”

The college has attempted to take steps in the past to get people to quit smoking. According to McDaniel Coordinator of Fitness, Intramurals, and Wellness, Scott Singleton, “We did try to get something off the ground for stopping smoking and using tobacco products earlier this semester. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough sign up for the Health Department to come over here to conduct the program. We would love to put together those programs for those individuals who are interested in trying to quit smoking, and the good news is the Health Department is very supportive, offers those programs free of charge, and they happen often.”

Singleton also mentioned, “There’s a Great American Smokeout which is taking place in November, and that’s something that we have an opportunity to be a part of as a campus, both students and our employees.”

“We’d like to help those individuals who would like to stop smoking,” said Singleton, citing that 70 percent of smokers want to quit but only five to 10 percent are able to do so on their own, according to the American Cancer Society. “So we need to provide the resources for those that are interested, and it’s not an easy process,” he said. “But these programs are available and we’ll keep at it until we’re successful.”

Programs to quit smoking need to be more heavily promoted. It is not enough to promote a smoking cessation program through the campus email announcements; the people in charge of these programs also need to create fliers and posters in order to make people as aware of these programs as possible.

Prevention of smoking is also a key issue that should be addressed. McDaniel freshmen are now required to complete Alcohol-Wise, a third-party alcohol abuse prevention course. It would be a reasonable idea for the college to find or develop a course that similarly addresses health and social issues regarding smoking and tobacco use and require that incoming students take it.

Students can also be responsible for ending smoking on campus. For example, it would be a great issue to bring up in Choices at the start of each new school year. Perhaps other events and performances can take place throughout the year to encourage people not to smoke or to quit smoking.

Until we can minimize smoking on campus, there are things we can do to make smoking less irritating for those who do not smoke.

A lot of people who have an issue with smoking on campus cite that those who smoke do not follow the established rules for smoking, like standing 15 feet away from buildings. Those who smoke should be the ones responsible for enforcing those rules. However, we need to improve the communication between smokers and non-smokers in order to further enforce the rules.

A female student said things would be better if “we had signs by the door to remind people they need to be a certain amount away from the door. If someone is too close, and you tell them ‘hey, you need to move back’ you have a sign there to back you up.”

A number of members of the campus smoking population who attended the 411 meeting said that they would like areas with covering and other for-smoking areas, so long as these areas would be numerous and convenient. That way, students who smoke in between classes would not have to go out of their way to smoke and then be late for class.

While I would like my exposure to smoke be as limited as possible, I’m not such a big fan of these ideas. First of all, I don’t want to see the College devote a lot of money to the construction of overhangs just to cater to one group on campus. More importantly, I would not want to see any more “segregation” on campus occur. As a relative outsider to this college, it seems that the various student populations on campus are very divided, and they would become even more divided if students who smoke were cut off from the rest of campus.

A lot of those who smoke said that they smoke or began smoking for social reasons when they arrived to McDaniel. I recognize that it’s really important for students to make friends and be social; it’s certainly important to me. But I have to wonder, why aren’t more students turning to student organizations on campus as an outlet for friendship? The college should be focusing more effort on promoting student involvement than on making it easier for people to smoke on campus. Perhaps the college can organize more events for students to meet each other and socialize.

I don’t know how effective the surveys sent out by the college are, but I think a logical next step to addressing the issue of smoking would be to send out a survey asking students whether or not they smoke and what their feelings about smoking on campus are. This would probably give a much more accurate reflection of student opinions on smoking than did the 411 meeting, which was attended by a limited number of people.

It’s really important to keep discussing the issue of smoking on campus and for smokers and non-smokers alike to communicate whatever issues they have. By no means should the smoking discussion end at the Campus 411 meeting. However, with cooperation and the involvement of both students and the administration, we can come close to putting a voluntary end to smoking on campus for the benefit of all.

Sex on television is a difficult thing to get done. Because of the FCC controlling the airwaves, there is a set of rules. We’ve all seen the side-boob. That sliver of skin right before the artfully cut shirt or bathing suit. And if you’ve ever seen a show on the CW, you know that they sell sex, or at least the premise of sex, heavily on their shows. It’s a lone episode when someone doesn’t take their shirt off, male or female. For example, The Secret Circle has been on for only a handful of weeks, and on many of those episodes, the same character has taken off his shirt. But, one could argue that that’s what viewers want to see on the CW.

Sexy characters make an appearance on all of the big five networks and on cable. If you’ve ever watched an episode of The Secret Life of the American Teenager, sex is mentioned about 50 times in every single episode. Secret Life, however, is a ridiculous television show, used by ABC Family (and therefore Disney) to show the hazards of sex, and the overcomplicated relationships of teenagers in high school. But on a lot of shows, talking about sex is all that anybody does.

Recently, the new fall show The Playboy Club was cancelled by NBC. Not because it was too sexy or racy, but because it’s viewers weren’t high enough to justify making more episodes. It’s particularly interesting for this show, because it was supposed to be so risky and sexy, and it ended up being a huge flop. I don’t know if people were turned off by the sexy characters in this show, or if they thought there wasn’t enough sex. Either way, the show was cancelled, and we won’t be seeing anymore scantily clad bunnies hop their way across our TV screens.

MTV is infamous for its ‘sexy’ shows; shows that feature oversexed, under-clothed people running around trying to have sex with each other. One such show was Skins, which was the remake from the heavily popular UK version. The UK version is still ongoing and has quite a bit of a cult following here in the states. MTV’s version of Skins, however, was cancelled after only ten episodes. MTV was also subject to a lot of censoring of the show by its corporate sponsors, especially over concerns that MTV was actually making child pornography, and not just sexy television. The Parents Television Council actually filed a letter with the Department of Justice, asking that child pornography charges be brought against the series. While MTV has not been branded with any child pornography charges, the implication was still there, and most likely contributed to the show getting cancelled. Another factor was that people just weren’t watching it, and you can’t justify keeping a show on the air if it’s not being watched. And despite all the controversy, some critics claimed that the US version of Skins was far tamer than its UK counterpart.

So are people really afraid of sex on television? The Parents Television Council certainly thinks so. What about everybody else? Do we really care that the women of Desperate Housewives are having sex every week? Do we give a crap that women (and men) routinely run around in swimsuits fighting crime on Hawaii Five-0? Some people do. Some people would rather just see two characters go into a room with a bed and dim the lights, kissing before the show cuts to a commercial. Some people would rather watch as the characters go all the way, moaning and groaning under the artfully placed blankets. Even more would like to watch HBO, as the characters go all the way without the artfully placed blankets. Some people watch premium cable for this reason alone. I like HBO and Showtime because their storylines are usually just so much more twisted than the big five network shows. There is also the fact that there are no commercials on the premium cable.

That brings up another point. Broadcasters have to be careful of what they put on TV, because they have to make sure their sponsors and advertisers don’t pull out, otherwise they won’t be able to keep a show on the air. Premium cable doesn’t have this problem. Cable shows have to worry about this less, because their shows are already ‘edgier’ and marketed to a specific audience as such. These shows are on later, decreasing the chance that children will hop on and see these shows before they’re ready to watch ‘sexy’ television. They’re allowed to put more sex on TV. They’re even allowed to show more body parts – on Sons of Anarchy for example, bare butts are seen, as well as scenes of characters having sex instead of just implications of it.

Sex has evolved over the years of television, just as society has evolved. We’ve gone from watching parents sleep in two separate beds to teenagers as young as 14 having sex and feeling the repercussions by gaining STDs or having babies. It’s no small feat that we’ve evolved this far, but we also get repercussions. Oversexed teenagers are the norm now, and we see the effects of that on shows like 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom.  Alongside this, we also have the objectification of both men and women becoming more and more of an issue in today’s culture. That’s not to say that there’s never been objectification of men and women before, but it’s a lot easier to do today on a larger scale, than it was even ten years ago.

The truth of it all is that sex is a part of life. Television shows are just fictionalized accounts of life, albeit, sometimes a more exciting life than we actually have. As long as TV continues to imitate life, sex is going to be on TV. Everyone will have to get used to it, or just watch shows that don’t involve sex. May I recommend the Disney Channel?

While most ordinary people may not have the ability to facilitate extraordinary change that does not mean they should give up completely. Leo Tolstoy said it best: “Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.”

Perhaps, in order for the world to be effectively altered for the better, change has to first come on a more personal level.

If somebody were to say that a large percentage of American citizens are not up to date on international current affairs, they would not be too far off. In fact, educated citizens of other nations seem to be just as informed to what goes on in American politics, as Americans themselves are. Some would argue this is the case because American domestic politics have a more substantial effect on the international realm. However, as the society we live in becomes increasingly globalized, the events that occur in far away nations become more and more relevant to the United States. The more knowledge Americans have about substantial overseas events, the more effectively Americans could elect public officials that will make the appropriate decisions.

The simplest way that the world can change is through people becoming more internationally aware. The major problem that is keeping many young adults from reading the news or exposing themselves to media is that they find news to be boring, irrelevant, or not directly accessible. It’s safe to say that while many of these young adults are online the “news” that they are ingesting are things like status updates by someone from their Spanish class, or a picture comment from their aunt. While these may be important to someone in the social realm, they should not be found in a “newsfeed”.  To be fair, social networks like Facebook and Twitter allow users to “like” or “follow” news sources so they can get all their information in one place. However, the news these people are getting is coming from sources that have the possibility of just bolstering the person’s views on a topic. Aside from news stations being criticized for having a bias on a majority of issues they too cover things that should not be considered news. They discuss things that are essentially domestic tabloid stories because they are cheaper to cover and bring eyes to the screen.

What if Facebook and Twitter users made statuses and updates about international issues in order to intellectualize the conversation? This would surely result in different views being presented in a realm where friends would be logging on several times a day. There is also the possibility of starting up a second Facebook or Twitter account which is devoted solely to news gathering and sharing. One example of this is the Twitter account known as @Aim2InforM. The account’s primary objective is to “Provid[e] links from various news sources [in hopes] that followers will be more informed about issues that are not commonly found in mainstream media.” The account posts articles from sources like BBC, Foreign Policy, Al Jazeera English, The National Interest, The Washington Post, The Economist, as well as several others. The reason that these were chosen among the many was because of reputations for being some of the least biased names in news. If it became the norm for users to post articles they found relevant and then engaged in intelligent conversations with their friends and followers, then the US would seem to be less isolated because of the knowledge they possess.

Karl Popper, who is regarded as one of the greatest philosophers of the 20^th century, believed “The most violent element in society is ignorance.” More knowledge about international events will certainly not result in world peace however; it will lead to the growth of tolerance. With information and clarity, the world would be a safer, less hostile place.

The Free Press has been going through a lot of changes lately.  You may have noticed the downsizing of our print efforts and more frequent posting to the website.  This is in an effort to join the ranks of other college and real-world media organizations in exploring what online journalism has to offer.

Three staff members went to the Journalism Interactive conference in College Park a couple weekends ago, and brought back so many ideas.  Our staff has been researching what other college newspapers are doing, and we’ve been brainstorming solutions to the problems that everyone is currently facing: How do we adjust deadlines to reflect the immediacy required by online journalism?; How do we handle the new ethical issues brought about by new media?; What does this mean for print?; and more.

To our readers, we appreciate that you have stuck by us through these changes, and hope that you continue to be patient as we continue to learn with the industry.  Surely, even more changes are ahead.  We ask you to remember that this is a student-run publication.  We are all learning while working together to reach a common goal.

During this process, we ask you to help us by giving us feedback.  What changes do you like?  Where can we improve?  What content do you want to see?  Do you find our content relevant?  You can always submit a Letter to the Editor or send us an email, or find an editor and talk to us in person.  But right now, we’re trying to make it a bit easier by putting out this survey: https://mcdaniel.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_ai9f3ma1IrXPPog  Oh, and whoever takes the survey will be entered to win an awesome prize.

One should first look at the tea-party–a movement that is fiscally conservative, for states’ rights and happens to be strict constitutionalists.  Ron Paul is considered by many to be the godfather of this movement as he has been advocating many of these same positions for 30 years that he’s been in office, and the GOP debates are only now turning their attention to issues like the federal reserve (the organization that controls our nation’s money supply), the TSA (about airport security) and whether certain programs are constitutional or not.

Candidates like Michelle Bachmann, Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry are borrowing Ron Paul’s anti-Federal Reserve rhetoric; even some candidates who aren’t really against it are attacking the Federal Reserve because it’s so disliked right now.  The Federal Reserve has gotten rather unpopular among conservatives and certain progressive elements because of the 2008 bailout where Obama bailed out Wall-Street banks.

If you’re a tea-party Republican, you need to come out against government programs like the department of education, favor flat tax (like Herman Cain), favor a balancing of the budget (like Gary Johnson and Newt Gingrich) and go against “Obamacare”.

Mitt Romney has come under fire for supporting a health care plan similar to Obama’s on a state level.  Rick Perry has come under fire for having supported “HilaryCare” when that was introduced.

If you don’t support conservative economic positions you run the risk of getting called out as a RINO (someone who acts like a Republican but is believed to actually be a Democrat) like John Hunstman.

Foreign policy wise, the GOP is split between interventionists on one side and non-interventionists on the other like Gary Johnson, Ron Paul, and Michelle Bachman.  These Presidential candidates believe that the United States is stretching itself too far and that it shouldn’t try to overextend its foreign policy.  They aren’t anti-military.  They just have more of a defensive minded approach to foreign policy.

The neoconservative wing of the Republican Party has more of an offensive approach to foreign policy.  Today it includes Mitt Romney who wants to increase military spending and Rick Perry who believes in challenging nations that are perceived existential threats like North Korea and Iran (http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/08/05/whats_rick_perrys_foreign_policy).

Rick Perry has often criticized Obama for not meeting with our traditional allies and alienating Israel in the Middle-East.  Rick Santorum is even more extreme with calling for a war with China (http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-10-12/politics/30269418_1_trade-war-china-governor-huntsman) and for believing we have been at war with Iran since 1979.

This wing of the GOP party is where Bush came from; these people believe that we should fight Iran, North Korea and other countries that it believes are evil or threatening.  There are also people who want to analyze foreign policy analytically such as Herman Cain that would like to have their foreign policy ran by experts (http://www.politico.com/blogs/politicolive/1011/Cain_foreign_policy_would_lean_on_experts.html).

Most Republicans, except for the libertarian wings of the GOP, favor the Patriot Act and tolerate violations of privacy because they believe that it’s necessary to fight terrorism.  The Patriot Act was passed after the attacks on the Twin Towers gave the government the ultimate authority in fighting crime and terrorism at home.  It has created controversy over giving the government access to your online records, library records and employment records.

The current Republican rhetoric regarding “freedoms” and “individual liberty” should not be misconstrued as to portray that Republicans are suddenly in favor of getting rid of the Patriot Act.  Most Republicans are not.  That’s something libertarians would be against.

While many other Republican views have been changing, their social views are still the same.  The most recent congress just voted on a major bill on 13 October, 2011 (http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-10-12/politics/30269418_1_trade-war-china-governor-huntsman) that would bar federal funding for abortions.  This is not just one bill but a symbolic action that shows Republicans are still unified on social issues.  So while all of these other dynamics are changing in the Republican Party–it is important know that one keeps this in mind as the election cycle approaches.

Some elements remain constant.

As McDaniel students, we want to be as involved in the local Carroll County community as much as possible. There’s one local film group that is always looking for new volunteers. Come check out Film Lovers in Carroll County (FLICC) and you’ll be in for a nice treat!

In 2007, FLICC was created in order to meet the needs of the Carroll County citizens who love film. FLICC shows a variety of foreign and independent films that inspire hope and entertain audiences.

Member Frank Baylor says “attendance for film presentations at the Arts Center had been erratic since the Center was opened in 2002. There seemed no rhyme or reason to what the community wished to see. Showing film at the Arts Center was always considered to be a part of the programming mix but it should be able to support itself with enough attendance to at least break even. The intention for creating a group, which became FLICC, was to try to present films that would appeal to the Arts Council members and the rest of Carroll County.”

What kind of impact has FLICC had on Carroll County? Mr. Baylor stated, “I hope we have brought more of the community into the Arts Center by providing an alternative film experience that is not available nearby. If you wish to see small budget, independent or foreign language films on the big screen you would otherwise have to travel to Baltimore, Silver Spring or Gettysburg.”

In the past, FLICC has shown The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series (which is hugely popular) and sentimental foreign pieces like “The Way Home.” Please join FLICC at the Carroll Arts Center for A Touch of Spice on Friday evening, November 18th 2011 at 7:30 PM. Cost: $6 adults / $5 CCAC Members, Seniors 60+, Students under 18. Check FLICC out on Facebook and visit the Carroll Arts Center website at www.carrollcountyartscouncil.org

He was an American citizen and he was essentially assassinated at the stroke of a pen without being given his right to due process.

An executive order is an order that is issued by the executive branch with the force of law. They are constitutional because of the text in article 2, section 3 (according to www.thisnation.com). It’s part of the President’s power to enforce and carry out the laws. The President cannot issue executive orders when they exceed his powers or as in this case when they violate the US constitution.

The 5th amendment says that a citizen’s life, liberty and property cannot be taken away without due process of law. According to President Obama’s logic, the government can just kill anyone if it issues an executive order to do so. Is that really the way we want to go? Anwar-Alaki was a US citizen who was essentially murdered by an executive order. Do we really not want to give people fair trials?

Critics of the Obama administration believe that the US government should not kill without a fair trial because anyone can be killed if they’re suspected of murder. Ron Paul, a Republican candidate, says that “It’s sad that the American people accept this blindly and casually. Nobody knows if he’s ever killed anybody. The United States has never been specific about the crime.” (www.cnbcnews.com).

Ron Paul wasn’t the only Presidential candidate to question the Obama administration’s stance on the issue. Gary Johnson said the American Constitution doesn’t just apply to people that we like, but it applies to everyone, and this is a question that has to deal with due process.

If killing Anwal-Alaki is considered okay, then it might set a precedent in the future where preventive killing (killing people who are suspected to be terrorists without trying them) becomes the killing of American citizens without trial. I don’t know about you, but that just seems like a slippery slope to me.

The Obama administration’s decision to kill Anwar-Alaki sharply contrasts with the fact that terrorists like Khalid Sheikh Mohammad were readily given access to lawyers and the opportunity for a fair trial.

The Balaton trip was really fun. We got to see some Roman ruins on the way there, and there we saw an old church, a palace, and a cave. We rode a boat on the lake because we had such nice weather there. We also tried some wines made in Balaton (Balaton is famous for its wine producing) and on the way back, saw the Herend porcelain factory, one of the most famous porcelain factories in the world.

The weekend after Balaton, most of the group went to Prague for the weekend. I stayed behind because I had a cold. Having a cold is no fun anywhere, but especially when you’re some 6,000 miles away from the comforts of home. The rest of the group told me that they had a good time in Prague, so it sounds like a place to visit for anyone who is considering going abroad.

Earlier this month, my parents came over for a weeklong visit. It was very nice seeing them after a month of just Skyping over the computer, and we had fun seeing the city together. I showed them most of what I had seen already and we did some new stuff. We toured the Opera House, which is said to be one of Europe’s finest, and went to Monument Park, which features old relics from the Communist Era.

Now, as the semester goes on, the weather is rapidly changing. It seems much colder here than it ever did in October in America that I can remember. Also, midterms are fast approaching, and with them our Venice and Vienna trip right after midterms. The group was extremely bummed upon learning at orientation that we will take an 11 hour bus ride from Budapest to Venice; I think everyone had hoped for a train.

The Internet connection here has been a struggle. The first Internet that we got was really slow, so we ended up getting new Internet, but that has now stopped working, so now we’re back on the mobile Internet. It amazes me that, in a day and age where so many things are being done online, that it is so hard to find Internet connection that works here.

I hope everyone on the Hill had a good Fall Break and is having a good semester so far. And shout out to the sixth best place to tailgate in America!! Way to go McDaniel!!

If so, congratulations! You’ve been brainwashed by the corporate machine! (I’m probably one of you.) And you’re about to be rewarded for your blind brand obedience: the new cafe in the library will sell Starbucks. Yes, it’s true.

But why Starbucks? Why not Seattle’s Best? What are the factors at work here? I do find it a little odd that the only other big corporate name on campus is Barnes and Noble, and Barnes and Noble makes it a point to advertise that they sell Starbucks at the cafes in their bookstores (Google search “Barnes and Noble” and “Starbucks” together).

Did some reps from these two corporations get together and plot yet some other means of cornering the always valuable, always caffeine-starving college student market? Maybe. Probably. But is that really a bad thing? It’s certainly nothing new.

The real argument I want to make here is that college students should be conscious, but not necessarily wary, of appeals to corporate interests on their college campus. If too much marketing of a product takes place here at McDaniel, I believe that students who are conscious of such marketing will recognize whether or not it is too much—if it is unfair, unjust, etc. And right now, Starbucks isn’t selling coffee everywhere on campus or even advertising their availability in the upcoming café, apart from a small sign in the front of the library.

So, just look out everyone. And remember: the good news is there are already two other Starbucks locations in Westminster, so there won’t be people coming in from all around to get their fix—which, in Westminster, is definitely a good thing.

Gregory Nolen on a boat out on Lake Balaton in Hungary.

Getting up early and racing to catch trains and buses to get to school. Sounds like I’m a kid in New York City, right? No, I’m actually in Budapest, Hungary, with ten other McDaniel students studying abroad for the Fall 2011 Semester.

How did I get to be here? I first visited in January, when I went on the 2011 January Term trip here with the SASS office. I liked it, and after much thought, decided to spend a semester here. I had originally hoped to study abroad with my brother, who is at a different college but had been approved to study abroad in Ireland. However, those plans fell through, as he had to withdraw from his program. Though I felt sad for him, I decided to continue with my plans to study abroad.

After months of packing and summer vacation, it was time for me to leave the United States. I was scheduled to fly out on August 27, 2011; however, it looked as if those plans might change as Hurricane Irene tore up the East Coast. Remarkably, I was able to fly out on time, and arrived in Budapest the next day. Other students had their flights cancelled by Irene and got in later.

The first few days were a whirlwind of orientation, and rescheduling of activities in the wake of other students having not arrived due to Irene. Moving into the apartment was a fun challenge. Of all the apartments, mine had the door that would not open, so I ended up waiting outside for an hour with my roommate, Giorgi Pashalishvili, while the real estate company tried (and failed) to get the door open. Eventually, they just kicked in the door, and ended up breaking a lock.

After we all got here and moved in, classes began and the routine of a normal college semester has started to kick in again. Recently, I went with the group to Lake Balaton, a popular vacation spot nicknamed the “Hungarian Sea.”

While I have been enjoying my semester so far, I miss my friends back at McDaniel terribly and am awaiting my return to campus in January.

This year, the Free Press will be continuing its drive to become a more web-oriented news source with a full multimedia experience. The size of our web staff has grown considerably in comparison to previous years and a newly appointed video editing staff has been added to bring a visual representation of our life here on campus to the World Wide Web. Furthermore, the Free Press will beginning this year be offering online advertising opportunities for local businesses in the Westminster community. Finally, the Free Press has pledged to transform our newspaper into an online news source to which items of interest are added daily so that students, faculty, staff, and alumni can find up to date coverage of everything happening here at McDaniel.

The Free Press has not abandoned its printed editions entirely, however. On a regular basis throughout the year, the Free Press will be releasing special edition print issues focusing on a topic of considerable and particular interest to the McDaniel College community. The first will feature our newly created Arts and Culture Section, featuring reviews, previews, and notices of artistically and culturally significant events on and off campus from theater productions and art exhibits to cinematic releases and new albums from local and international musicians.

As always, the McDaniel Free Press is most interested in hearing from you, our readers. If you have suggestions or feedback regarding the changes coming to the Free Press or would simply like to get involved, keep an eye out for surveys to be released throughout the semester asking for your advice and opinions. Or, if you are too impatient to wait, contact Nathan Wuertenberg (npw001@mcdaniel.edu) or Hanna Barker (hmb002@mcdaniel.edu), our co-Editors-in-Chief, or simply email us at freepress@mcdaniel.edu. Thank you and good luck over the coming semester.

As an identifying gay male, the idea of a fraternity with a specific agenda of raising LGBT+ issues is intriguing. However, I am curious to see how it will be received on campus. The potential founders, Wesley Weicht and Eddie Blankenship, said, “The driving force behind wanting to bring a chapter of Delta Lambda Phi to campus is rooted in a sense of community and in diversity.”

I feel this aspect of diversity is something that needs to be explored more on campus, though I wonder if DLP will be able to accomplish this without a certain stigma. We need integration on this campus, not segregation.

As a potential social fraternity, is DLP really going to tackle cultural expectations effectively? Or, will it turn into more of a support network for LGBT+ aligned men and their supporters?

Having spoken with both potential founders, I am confident that they both plan to legitimize the organization beyond the definition of “that gay frat.” I simply worry that the group’s substance is being lost in translation. So much crafting has gone into how they are choosing to word their pitch that their message is clouded.

Simply put, while I appreciate what the potential Alpha-class of Delta Lambda Phi is doing, I think they may be selling something McDaniel is not up for taking right now. It’s time to throw political correctness out the window. I don’t need a mission statement.

What we need to hear is how this could be a frat for anyone. What I want to hear is the bare bones, no bullshit truth about what they want to do and how they plan to do it.

June 30: Get where you want to go, everyone else be damned.

The first thing I learned today:
The number four is unlucky in China because the Chinese word for “four” sounds
like the word for “death.” Some buildings in China don’t have fourth floors for the
same reason that some American buildings skip the 13th floor.
Eight is lucky because the word sounds like a word that means “to suddenly get a lot
of money.”

The first thing I did today:
We visited a one thousand-year-old Buddhist temple site. The strangest part was
being given a tour by a Buddhist monk while people were at the temple praying.
In the same square foot there would be an American casually looking at a statue of
one of Buddha’s incarnations and a Chinese woman kneeling in front of the statue
in reverent prayer. It felt like seeing someone go up to the altar at church to drink a
soda and take a look around during mass.

The monk tour guide had extremely long eyebrows. How can someone grow their
eyebrow hairs? Eyebrow hair growth isn’t something a person can just will into
happening…unless they’re a Buddhist monk I guess.

The traffic laws in China are as follows:
Get where you want to go, everyone else be damned. This law applies to cars,
motorbikes, and pedestrians. If I die in China it won’t be from disease, natural
disaster, or political upheaval, it will be due to some asshole on a bike.

Things I did that were relevant to the research project:
We visited several Tiehua retailers, looked around, and took pictures and notes.
Later, the group broke off into smaller groups and walked up to people on the
street to interview them about Tiehua. In our group, Apple* would snare passers-
by, and then I would subject them to poorly spoken Mandarin, while Dr. Flute’s
daughter filmed us. The best part was watching the faces of people who saw Apple

approaching them. They knew they were about to be solicited and either looked
bewildered or pissed. The bewildered ones usually agreed to let us interview them
and the angry ones waved their hands at us and kept walking. I wouldn’t have
stopped if someone had come up to me either so I couldn’t blame them for their
reaction.

The dog situation in Wuhu is interesting. Dogs are almost never accompanied by a
human. With the exception of a surly-looking husky, all the dogs I saw today were
on their own. They didn’t look mangy and starved like strays, but seemed healthy
and happy as if they had just chosen to live lives of independent doghood.

July 3: Middle School

The local paper in Wuhu ran an article about our study group. The article includes
a picture of me standing with our group with a dumb look on my face. There’s also
a short interview of me talking about my impression of Wuhu and Tiehua. My name
was listed as “Daniel.”

Today we were invited to a middle school to show a Chinese class what an American
class is like. All of the kids were so excited to see us. Each of us chose a group
of seven kids and talked to them about their lives, our lives, America, etc. The
point was to allow them to practice English. They were so cute and happy and
impressed . . . nothing like American middle school kids.

Before we left, all the kids mobbed around us asking us to write down our names
and email addresses for them.

Things my group knew about the US:
-Justin Bieber
-Michael Jackson
-Avatar
-Statue of Liberty (“The queen with fire in her hand”)
-White House
After lunch some of us went to a crowded smelly shopping street. I bought two
notebooks and a pen because they were so cute. I bought one paper fan because
it’s hotter than hell in Wuhu. In every store we went to the shopkeepers, and other
shoppers sneakily crowded around us to stare, but they weren’t as sneaky as they
thought. On two occasions old men at the shops recognized our group because they
read the article about our research project in the paper.

July 10: The Void

Today I became a man. I know what you’re thinking. I ate a bowl of testosterone

for breakfast. You’d be close, but you’re wrong. I’m a man because I climbed a
mountain, Yellow Mountain, the most picturesque (common opinion) and trying
(my opinion) mountain in all of China. A sign on the mountain said, “If you can’t
climb this you’re not a man.” Yellow Mountain called me out and I answered, “I AM A
MAN!”

At several points on the mountain we were so high up that we were standing in
clouds. When I looked out over the edge all I could see was White Void. After a
certain altitude I had to stop looking outward and could only look directly down at
my feet and the steps underneath them or I would get the shakes and start crying.

Every time Dr. Flute or the guide said, “The next part won’t be so bad,” they were
lying. Every time I thought, stairs can’t possibly get any steeper than this, I was
wrong.

Toward the top of Lotus Peak, the highest summit in the Yellow Mountain range, the
stairs were so steep and narrow, I had to bend forward and hold on to the steps as I
climbed them. The Yellow Mountain stair builders didn’t deem it necessary to build
their stone guardrails any higher than mid-thigh level. Mid-thigh level is the perfect
height to pivot a human body over the edge of a tall precipice. The Chinese clearly
have no fear. Some people were lounging on boulders that hung over the edge of
cliffs like they were at the beach. Some people were smoking. Kids were running
around without a care in the world.

I can’t remember any more details about the climb because my brain was shrouded
in mountain fog and delirium. This was the first and last time I’ll ever climb a
mountain. NEVER AGAIN! Now that I’m securely not on a mountaintop I can
appreciate having been on one.

July 13: Beijing

Beijing’s metro is the best I’ve been on in any city. It’s bright, clean, and easy to
navigate. There’s a safety wall that divides the platform from the metro tunnel so
people can’t accidentally or on purpose fall on the tracks. The metro map inside the
train lights up to show you which stop you’re at, which one you’re heading toward,
and which ones you’ve been to. The only downside is that on some trains you’ll be
packed in like a sausage, where the people are the sausage meat and the train is the
sausage casing. So I suppose the tunnel is the mouth of the man who is about to eat
the sausage whole.

We walked around the Great Hall of the People and saw big things. Big rooms. Big
chandeliers. Big paintings. One of the rooms had a Tiehua piece in it (also big) that
we spent some time studying and photographing. Obama had been in that room on
his visit to China. I probably breathed Obama air when I was in that room.

At Tiananmen Square there were cameras and guards everywhere. Some of the
guards were “undercover” and wore gardener outfits. They gave themselves away
by standing stock still near bushes at regular intervals with piercing, nosy eyes. But
then again maybe that’s just how Chinese gardeners roll.

*Names have been changed.

“Since joining, the Free Press has sent me to media conferences, helped me to get an internship, and, of course, helped me to build my portfolio of writing samples,” said senior Megan Robinson (Web Editor).

Whether you are an incoming freshman or a returning student yearning to become more involved on campus, the Free Press provides the chance for you to gain valuable experience. It also allows you to interact with other hardworking students in a welcoming environment.

You can write casually as a staff writer or you can work your way up to holding a leadership position. The best part is you pick your own stories!

The most important element of the Free Press is the teamwork involved with creating every issue. Every contribution is appreciated and there are always section editors there to help you whenever you are having trouble with your story. There are also staff meetings every week where we go over each issue budget and share new ideas.

“I think that getting involved in the Free Press has given me confidence in my writing,” said sophomore Lauren Murray (Copy Editor). “I was never involved in a newspaper before I came to the Free Press and after only one semester I feel like I can take on big pieces without being intimidated.”

The Free Press isn’t only for students interested in journalism. It is for everybody. You can be an avid film buff and write movie reviews. You can be an athlete and write sports articles. You can even be interested in blogging and join the web editing staff.

“I originally joined the Free Press because I wanted to be a journalist and gain experience writing articles for a college paper,” said senior Jacob Siegel. “Over time my areas of interests have expanded.”

At a critical time like this for journalism, worldwide newspapers have to make the transition online. The Free Press is not left out in this initiative; it has made the journey to its own website. On mcdanielfreepress.com, we will be publishing each issue of the Free Press and sharing videos, blogs, and news stories written by you! Why not join us as we forge new ground?

The Free Press is also a gateway to meeting faculty and staff at McDaniel College and becoming more involved in campus activities. You will find yourself quickly becoming wrapped up in the latest news and events as you write more for the paper.

I believe the best way to make your college experience more enriching is to join the Free Press. I couldn’t imagine my life at McDaniel College without it.

Kim Williams with her freshmen roomate Cindy.

The two of us have been roommates for four years (including a semester in Budapest) and so as our time on the Hill comes to an end we’ve come up with a few tips that made the past four years together not only bearable but amazing.

1. Forget about the little things. Roommates tend to let little, minor details and annoyances get on their nerves when they don’t have to. If something is really bothering you, let them know in a polite way, and they’ll make note of it. They’ll probably let you know of something you do that bothers them, too.

2. Be considerate (obviously). If you know you can’t sleep with the light or music on, for instance, assume your roommate can’t either. Always ask them if they mind you doing something before you do it. It shows them you care, and then they’ll do the same.

3. Try to get to know them. Some of the best friendships come from roommates. It makes things a lot less awkward if you more than just their first name. You don’t have to be best friends, but try to make conversation sometimes.

4. Include them. You don’t have to be joined at the hip, but offering invitations makes your roomate feel appreciated and can lead you on some pretty awesome adventures— and the shared room means you can reminisce about it afterwards.

5. Use downtime/nighttime as bonding time. It might only be this way for girls, but when you’re both laying in bed at night, treat it as a sleepover; meaning, exchange stories, laugh, gossip, etc. I know some of the best moments and conversations I had with my roommate were at night when we were supposed to be sleeping.

6. Respect their privacy. Even if you don’t always get along, gossiping about your roomate or sharing intimate details about their life that you are privy to is unacceptable. You should be each other’s allies and remember that there are things about yourself that are better left between the two of you.

7. Offer your help. Whether it’s cleaning, redecorating, carrying something heavy, schoolwork, etc., help out your roommate out if they need it. Sometimes they won’t ask, so offer it yourself and see what they say. Because no matter how busy we get, supporting each other is vital if we’re going to make it through.

8. Don’t ignore them; acknowledge them. Show them you are aware of your “special bond” that comes with being roommates. Say hi to them, smile, stop for a chat when you see them outside your room. If you bring friends over, introduce your roommate and your friends to each other. If they do something awesome, like win an award or perform in a show, congratulate them. Go watch their games, presentations, or performances. Let them know you noticed. I love being able to say, “That’s my roommie!” when she does something great.

Keep a Positive Attitude: It is of the upmost importance to tell yourself, “I can do this,” especially when things are a little bit harder then you expected. Some days, even just getting up for that 8 o’clock class is a hard task of its own.

Keep a planner: If you think you can rely on pure memory for managing assignments, meetings, practices, rehearsals, etc, you are very, very wrong. Keep an organized planner at your side at all times.

Time Management: This may be the most important aspect of being successful in the college envi-ronment. Make specific time slots for studying, planning, writing papers, and most importantly, SLEEPING. Most students are so caught up in working, they forget to sleep. When you have free time between classes though, try to get work done, so in the evenings, you can hit the sack a little earlier.

Create a proper studying environment: Studying and completing assignments should be done in a place with no distractions. Most students prefer the library or quiet lobbies. In your room, there are televisions, food, and usually people to distract you. Venture off to more discreet places to complete work.

Know your limits: Sometimes, it is necessary to ask for help. Most of us cannot do everything alone, so please ask your teacher, professors, and advisors for help when things become overwhelming. Even the smartest students need help somewhere among the line.

Know your resources: There are various resources available to all students on campus. The writing center is a great resource for almost all assignments, no matter what stage you are currently residing. There are students and teachers available, so be sure to ask for help, and make appointments ahead of time!

Self-Control: You are no longer under the watchful eye of your parents. Every decision you make is completely your responsibility. You need to exercise good judgment when it comes to staying up late, partying, and procrastinating. “Think before you act” are your watchwords.

Adapt and Adjust: College is a completely different environment then anything you probably have ever experienced. There is much more studying and paper-writing involved, more people to deal and live with, and a lot more responsibility. You must constantly adjust your habits to find what works best for you.

Balance: Oh, this one is very important. Adjacent to time management, you must keep a healthy balance between work, studying, eating, resting, sleeping, and having free social time with your friends. If you tip the scale too much, college will be hell.

The Carroll Arts Center marquee.

For a little town, Westminster is pretty centrally located near really cool places. Freshmen, if you haven’t got a car, make friends with someone who does for some of the spots on this list.

Baugher’s Orchard: Lucky for us, the Market portion of this family business is right at the bottom of the hill. But if you’ve got a car and a day to spend, check out the Orchard up the road. Seasonally, they offer hayrides into the Orchard itself where you can pick your own produce (or pumpkins in fall!) This location features a super-sized version of the market and a petting zoo, as well.

Downtown Westminster: Grab a few friends and explore the town. There are unique shops and eateries scattered up and down Main Street and you’ll get a better picture of what Westminster has to offer.

The Owings Mills Metro: Take the metro down to Camden Yards on a Friday for $5 student tickets to baseball games or into Baltimore for a bit of shopping, or maybe a concert.

Check out the Arts Council: Elsewhere in this issue, there’s a bit of an explanation about the happenings at the Arts Council, but it’s safe to assume there is always something going on worth checking out—movies especially. You’ll find something interesting and/or foreign you’ve never seen before, shown in a nicer, cleaner theatre, for cheaper. Worth it.

Thunderhead Bowl: About 20 minutes up the road in Taneytown is Thunderhead Bowl. It’s the closest bowling alley we’ve got (and is also where the bowling class is held—yes, that’s a real class for gym credit, in case you didn’t know).

“Mom,” I stated, “this is my last hamburger.”

She nodded, amused, because I make blanket statements like that pretty much weekly. In high school I’d rush in the door, heave my backpack onto the kitchen table and proclaim my new calling in life. Once I got to college, it became phone calls at weird hours that began with something like, “No, I promise I’m not drinking, I just needed to tell you that I’m teaching English in Thailand after I graduate. Sorry for waking you up.”

Vegetarianism, though, turned out not to be a fleeting fascination or topic of research for me. I had talked the talk, and I’ve spent the last year happily walking the walk and avoiding meat.

My foray into the land of meatlessness was not difficult, but it did happen to coincide with the first time in my life that I didn’t have access to my own kitchen. I spent first semester picking through the salad bar, oftentimes a little put off by the wilted lettuce or lack of standard vegetarian fare, like tofu or beans.

Luckily for you guys, though, Glar was remodeled in the spring, and while I’ll maintain that dessert is really the only thing that our cafeteria does well, there are now more options for people with restricted diets.

While the salad bar and Glar in general offered more options once the remodeling finished, I did end up making a lot of food in my room, so I’d like to pass on some wisdom from a former dorm room diner.

Take time to figure out how often and what you’ll be eating in your room; then, go buy the utensils and tools you’ll need.

Tupperware was crucial to me because I ate on the go pretty often. A friend of mine had a blender and a bunch of us would chip in yogurt or fruit for a weekly smoothie night. Keurig coffee machines are also a great investment because they are low-maintenance and great for brewing that one cup of coffee you might need before running out the door for class. Also, a few weeks of eating in Glar and evaluating your schedule should make it clear how many forks or bowls you might need.

Be prepared to wash dishes.

By the end of first semester, I had a tub that housed dirty dishes so that I could carry all of my cups and bowls to the bathroom without being scared that I would drop and break everything. Keep dish washing soap and sponges on hand as well! If you don’t stay on top of this, some pretty funky smells will become apparent, which leads me to my next point:

Be courteous to your roommate.

Walking into your room and finding out that your roomie has exploded something in your microwave is never pleasant. Clean up after yourself, cover your foods, and don’t let things go bad in the refrigerator. If you plan to do a solid amount of cooking in the room, you may want to talk to your roommate at the beginning of the year and establish rules about cleaning and sharing food or communal items like coffee makers.

Be careful what you keep in your room.

If there is a bag of M&Ms sitting by your desk, you just might empty that sucker in the time that it takes to type a paper without even noticing. Buy snack foods in limited quantities or not at all. Some of my staples included hummus, grapes, oatmeal, applesauce and V8.

Though three locations typically come to mind when students think of places to eat on campus, Glar, the pub, and the Green Terrace, keep in mind that there is one more! Eating in your room can save money and time, and whether your diet or your schedule lead you to skip the typical dining options, remember that your dorm room isn’t just your bedroom. It can be your kitchen, too!

I never want to be that girl. Or that one. Why is every girl in this video naked?

“And when it comes to condoms, put two on.”

And why is there an old lady playing pong in this video? That’s pretty unrealistic. Like, you’d never see anyone over 25 at a college party, right? And I really hope-

“I just want to be Asher Roth,” my friend muses, distracting me from the diatribe in my head. Unlike me, he’s totally jamming out to the music video for “I Love College.” I’m a senior in high school, and all that this video has done for me is make me terrified of falling asleep with my shoes on.

Over a year has passed, and today I can definitely tell you that Asher Roth’s version of college is slightly exaggerated, even though you totally can dance your ass off and get some girl completely naked if that’s your thing.

The one stroke of brilliance in that song lies in the lines “I can’t tell you what I learned in school / but I can tell you a story or two” because that is exactly what college is about. Yes, you’ll be in the classroom a lot, but I guarantee that when you’re reflecting with your friends at the end of this year (and that will come so fast, so enjoy your time!), you definitely won’t say, “Hey, remember that one lecture? Man, I love college.”

You might, however, reminisce about that one time that you had a hill rolling contest on the golf course hill. Or sledded down the golf course hill. Or had a serious conversation on the golf course hill. My very first time hanging out on the hill was in the middle of cross country pre-season with my roommate and a mutual friend at around three in the morning, and I remember feeling really free and giddy and scared all at one time and running down the hill because I didn’t know what else to do with myself.

You might also talk about the time (or times, because I did this a lot) that you spent two hours at a time in Glar, people watching and being introduced to friends of friends and making milkshakes and eating your second and third lunches as the time ticked by.

You’ll talk about that time that you played a murder mystery game at your FYS professor’s house in the fall, the Monday night that you stayed up way too late making paper snowflakes with your roommate to hang on the ceiling when first semester was winding down, and recall with a smile the day in the spring when you spent all afternoon making chalk drawings outside of Whiteford.

Flashes of that time you hiked the AT trail, that one lecture that moved you to tears, the hiccups induced by laughing and the hugs shared only by the best of friends will make you want to skip summer and start Sophomore year right away.

Your freshman year may not be akin to the picture that Asher Roth paints, but regardless of how you choose to spend it, the year come will be unlike any of those before it. It will be a year of newness, a year that will change you, a year that will be impossible to forget.

A cozy place to study in Hoover library.

1. Anywhere in the Library!

It’s the weekend and your roommate has had his friends over all day playing XBOX. You have a big exam for your Introduction to Sociology course on Monday and you haven’t had any peace and quiet to study. You pack your laptop and books in your book bag and walk to the library. Inside you find the silence of many students studying and researching. Every floor and room is like this, so now you just have to choose which spot you want to study in. Get used to the quiet- your roommate won’t be coming by any time soon.

2. Budapest Café

You had a long night reading and realize you are about to have a long morning too when you see that you still have a few chapters left before class. Instead of fighting the urge to sleep in your bed, you leave your dorm and head to the Budapest Café, where you sit on a sofa chair under a lamp’s light that is just dim enough for you to avoid a headache and just bright enough for you to see what’s on the page. You order a coffee and you’re all set.

3. The Quad

You sit in your room with the window open, writing an essay for your First Year Seminar. You feel like you can’t breathe and need some air. Outside it’s sunny and just warm enough for shorts and a T-Shirt. You pack up your laptop, grab a blanket, and head towards the Quad. There, you lay out your blanket and sit down with your laptop. You look around and see other students taking advantage of the good weather and studying. Out here you can breathe. Out here you can study!

4. Library Commons

You talk to your friends after class, telling them how long a night you have ahead of you. You have three midterms to study for, an essay to write, and (to make matters worse) your roommate is going to bed early. We’ve all been there and we all know where you need to go to crank out all that work: the library commons. You walk in with a full book-bag and look around you. Many students, not just you, are pulling all-nighters. The commons is open all night and has vending machines and a bathroom, so you settle in. It isn’t the most comfortable place, but when you are in a bind, you’ll be thankful you had it.

5. GLAR

You have your math test in thirty minutes and you forgot to finish your problems last night. It is lunchtime and you haven’t eaten breakfast. Your stomach rumbles. You can’t avoid it, so you go to GLAR and sit down with your friends wolfing down chicken tenders. Instead of rushing yourself, why don’t you pull out that math book and a piece of paper and get to work on those problems while you eat. As a college student, you will always be crunched for time. It doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of meals though. Happy Chicken Tender Thursdays! And Happy Studying!

Check out the clubs on campus!

Are classes really the most important part of college? Sure, the entire purpose of going to college is supposed to be about learning and earning your degree, but being involved outside of the classroom is equally as important.

Classes and academics should be the focus of students. But McDaniel, a liberal arts college, also prides itself on its many clubs and organizations on campus. Involvement and interest outside of the classroom is critical for both learning and enjoying your college life. Everyone says it, but as freshmen you should take such advice seriously to become involved.

There are more than 100 clubs and organizations on campus. Organizations range from academic clubs, ethnic and cultural groups, to mentoring, political, service, affinity, and religious groups. There are also fraternities and sororities, sports and recreation clubs, student government, media, and honor societies. You can even start your own club rather easily!

Whether you want to have a leadership position, play on an intramural sports team, or simply have a place to talk to people about current issues or a certain topic, there is an organization on campus for you.

To learn more about all of the many clubs and organizations on campus, come to the Involvement Fair during the first week of classes on Wednesday, August 31 from 5 to 7 p.m. The fair will be located outside with a DJ and will be a laid back and fun way to meet club officers and members and learn more about McDaniel organizations.

Your college years will fly by so spend your first year meeting new people and transitioning to college classes, but also be sure that you make time to learn about and maybe even join a couple of organizations during your time on the Hill.

Check out Pictures Speak Louder to see a gallery of bunny pictures! Photo by Krystina Shultz.

A stampede of bunnies plastered their shadows all around campus sometime during the night of May 1. Students awoke on Monday, May 2 to find bunny images covering the buildings of McDaniel campus.

From North Village to the pillars of Big Baker to the cornerstone of Alumni Hall, bunnies hopped, danced, and sunned themselves.

It was overheard that someone had counted over 200 bunnies across the campus. Bunnies appeared on trash cans, walkways, stairs, and wood fences. They were found above windows, in Red Square, on the steps of Little Baker, and even on the porch of President Casey’s house.

The students of McDaniel played spot-the-bunny throughout the day, wondering how the little bunnies learned to leave their shadows behind.