Cal State Fullerton students are put into at least one class with more than 50 students during their educational career. These are usually general education classes meant for a large number of students to take essential college-level subjects.

As a student progresses in their major, class sizes decrease to more intimate groups to allow for more student-to-professor interaction. Students like Areli Gonzalez, 19, a Latin American studies major, prefer the smaller class sizes.

“There’s not enough attention for the students,” said Gonzalez. “If there’s a hundred plus students in the classroom, how can they address all the questions?”

Gonzalez said she felt the professor-student relationship was important to her, and having the

ability to talk one-on-one with her teachers allows her to understand the material better. She said that regardless of what the subject was, this would probably be true for any student, whether it’s math or history.

Large classes are not just tedious for students; they also increase the workload for professors who

have to grade the work of hundreds of students.To Gonzalez, it is more of an atmosphere situation.

If the environment is not suited to learning effectively, she gets frustrated and begins to lose focus.

Independent examiner addresses four main issues surrounding the incident, including whypolice were called to the scene and the contents of a backpack Thomas had in his possession

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February 22, 2012Vol. 91 Issue 12

Fans say ‘farewell’ at Whitney Houston’s Memorial

Whitney Houston fans went to the Beverly Hilton Hotel to pay homage to the late legendary singer.

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Private investigator Michael Gennaco answers questions at Fullerton City Hall. He gave the first public report on the investigation of the altercation that led to the death of Kelly Thomas.WILLIAM CAMARGO / Daily Titan

KELLY THOMAS INCIDENT: FIRST OF THREE REPORTSCalif. creditrating on the mend

Campus parking a bargain late in semester

STATE | S&P upgrades

California’s credit rating outlook was raised from “stable” to “positive” last week by Standard & Poor’s. The U.S.-based financial services company acknowledged that despite having a negative outlook just eight months ago, California could be poised for an even higher rating in the near future.

The revision comes after Gov. Jerry Brown’s promotion of a ballot measure that would raise income taxes on those who earn more than $250,000 annually and raise taxes statewide in a combined effort to avoid cuts in education. The state’s rating is the lowest given by S&P to any state, but it still is an improvement.

For Cal State Fullerton students, this upgrade for the state credit rating could mean more credit card usage on campus. It could also mean more approvals for those who applied for credit cards in the past, but were denied.

Bonnie Hebert, a child and adolescent development major, 19, did not have much luck with her prior credit card applications.

“I applied for one, but it did not work out too well,” said Hebert.

The ‘positive’ rating may now allow people to use the state as a solid and dependable reference when applying at banks for credit cards.

“(The banks) have rules on who they give credit cards to, but maybe they feel safer now, or they’re not as worried about it,” Hebert said about the new credibility the state has earned.

Others are not as optimistic as Hebert. Senate Republican Leader Bob Huff cautioned in a statement that some progress still needs to be made and this rating increase could be premature.

“It’s nice that the outlook has improved, but the report also notes serious questions about whether the enacted budget’s spending reductions and other budget assumptions are really going to materialize,” said Huff in a statement.

Those budget assumptions are based on Brown’s projected numbers for the aforementioned increase in sales and income taxes. However, Brown’s projections in his last budget were not met, the actual amount collected in taxes was $528 million less than anticipated.

“It’s not the upgraded rating that California really needs because we still haven’t fixed our structural budget gap. Our rating is still near the bottom when compared to other states. While this is movement in the right direction, Californians should delay celebration until we’re closer to the top than the bottom,” Huff said in the same statement.

Joy Shiba, 19, a kinesiology major, said despite the state’s progress, students should avoid credit cards if they can.

After months of silence on the Kelly Thomas incident, a new report was released Tuesday at the Fullerton City Council meeting by independent consultant Michael Gennaco on the Fullerton Police Department’s actions in the Thomas case.

Gennaco, chief attorney for the Los Angeles Office of Independent Review (OIR), was hired by the city to investigate and respond to certain questions that arose in the aftermath of the Thomas incident.

Thomas, 38, a mentally ill

homeless man, died five days after an altercation July 5 with six Fullerton Police officers that left him severely beaten and clinging to life.

In his 30-minute report to the council, Gennaco addressed four issues: The circumstances surrounding the call that brought police to the scene, the contents of Thomas’ backpack, the controversy surrounding the booking photo released to the media after the incident and the circumstances of the police officers’ injuries.

Police initially claimed they were responding to a call concerning a man trying to break into cars near a

bus depot in downtown Fullerton. Many in the community doubted such a call took place.

“There is a recording of the call for service,” said Gennaco. “Our independent review of that recording indicated that a call was made on July 5 to a (Fullerton Police) dispatcher regarding an individual who had been observed by the female caller.”

Gennaco said the caller was recorded saying the individual was “roaming the parking lot, looking in cars and pulling on handles.” The female caller also indicated that she knew the individual by the name Kelly, Gennaco said.

Police were dispatched to the location shortly after the call was received, according to raw Fullerton Police Department records used in Gennaco’s report.

After the July 5 incident, Fullerton Police said Thomas had a backpack containing stolen property.

In his report, Gennaco found that Thomas possessed a backpack he had found. Inside was an attorney’s discarded mail. Neither the backpack nor the discarded mail were reported stolen, Gennaco said.

The popular idiom, “Better late than never,” definitely has its benefits, especially when it comes to Cal State Fullerton parking permits.

Parking permit prices dropped from $220 to $165 Monday, and will continue to drop at a prorated interval each month until the end of the term. The prorated intervals are between 30 days, and during each pricing interval the price will drop 25 percent.

If a CSUF student chooses to purchase their permit during the final interval, starting April 20 to the end of the term, they will be paying $55, a whopping 75 percent off from the original price.

Marian Alvarado, 23, a fine arts major, who was surprised by the reduction fee, said she sees the reduced price as tempting, but would not trade paying the full price and convenience over the uncertainty of finding parking elsewhere.

“I don’t know how I would work around it,” said Alvarado. “Even if I (didn’t) get one from the beginning, where would I park? How much will I spend on a daily permit? I guess I’m okay with paying because I’m going to school from the beginning to the end. I’m not okay paying a lot of money, but I would have to pay the fee anyway because I have to go there and it would be an inconvenience to park somewhere else and have to walk all the way to the school.”

Alvarado also said she was curious to know why the parking and transportation department does not advertise the prorated costs when the parking permits are initially purchased.

The parking rates are not necessarily showcased, but they are not hidden. Director of Parking and Transportation Joe Ferrer said these rates occur every semester.

Students who feel this is not fair, and worry the influx of cars will overwhelm parking spots as the semester progresses and prices decline, do not fear. Ferrer said the ratio of students buying permits after the prorated rates kick in is minimal.

“We do have students who purchase permits after proration, but the significant portion of permits sold are sold by the first week of class,” said Ferrer. “Those who choose to park on the campus have purchased the permit earlier, or at least the first week of school semester because permits are required to park on campus.”

The reduction of permit prices does have its benefits for students who look for other parking alternatives, students like Karina Ramirez, 19, a health and human services major. Ramirez, who said the initial steep price of the permits doesn’t fall into her budget, admits that knowing prices are $55 dollars during the last month of the semester might persuade her to purchase a permit.

Fullerton PD investigated

See PARKING, page 2 See CREDIT, page 3

See REPORT, page 3

CAMPUS | Course populations

See CLASSES, page 3

dailytitan.com/?p=51118

SEAN VIELEDaily Titan

HAILEY MORANDaily Titan

State’s rating still lowest of any state, but “positive” rating seen as improvement

MICHAEL MUNOZDaily Titan

Permit prices drop 25 percent every 30 days and cost $55 by end of the school year

JOHN SOLLITTODaily Titan

Some students prefer smaller classes for one-on-one attention from instructors; others don’t mind company

Dozens of students take their seats for Management 300 in a Mihaylo Hall lecture hall.ANIBAL ORTIZ / Daily Titan

Students selective on class sizes

The 2012 presidential election season is underway with Mitt Romney and other hopeful Republicans battling to run against President Barack Obama in November.

Romney leads the delegate count with 127. Newt Gingrich has 38 delegates, while Rick Santorum has 37 and Ron Paul has 27. The number of delegates needed to secure the nomination is over 1,000.

A Gallup poll released Tuesday shows that Santorum has the upper hand over Romney with likely voters. Among nationwide Republican and Republican-leaning voters, Santorum leads with 36 percent of voters supporting him, while Romney has 26 percent.

However, the Republicans are trailing Obama. Nationally, Obama leads Romney 49 percent to 43 percent and leads Santorum 50 percent to 43 percent, according to a Real Clear Politics poll.

Another survey places Obama and Romney closer together. About 47 percent of voters lean toward Obama and 46 percent lean toward Romney, according to a Gallup poll.

“Obama will likely win if the economy improves, but he could lose if it worsens,” said Matthew Jarvis, a Cal State Fullerton political science professor.

“Presidential elections are a referendum on the incumbent president, if they are on the ballot. Obama is, so November will boil down to whether people want four more years of Obama or not. And that’s determined by the economy,” he said.

With this theory, Romney might be able to defeat Obama if he can show that Obama is harming the economy. Only 22 percent of voters are satisfied with the way things are currently going in the country, according to a Gallup poll.

Jarvis said that to secure the nomination, the candidate usually will get the support of party elites, who connect the candidate with money, endorsements and volunteers.

“Romney has the clear lead in all three of those categories, but simply has not been able to seal the deal yet. That said, none of the other three (candidates have) even gotten close. At the end of the day, Romney is going to be the nominee … It’s just going to be a much longer and harder slog than anyone would have expected,” Jarvis said.

Sergio Rocha, 19, a sophomore, said his favorite candidate is Ron Paul because he is a fair and confident

politician. He would vote for Obama if Romney becomes the Republican nominee because he agrees with Obama’s health care plan, which he described as “compassionate.”

“(Obama’s health care plan) is humanitarian. It gives people who wouldn’t otherwise have health insurance a chance to get covered and be healthy,” said Rocha.

Rocha added that Obama has had a lot of good ideas to help the economy improve, like his Cash for Clunkers program, a 2009 program that gave people a financial incentive to get rid of their old cars.

“Those kinds of things are almost like a coupon … a project to save you money, which is beneficial,” Rocha said.

Gustavo Rodriguez, 20, a math major, said the next president should promote higher education.

“(Higher education) basically is preparing people for jobs, and if you don’t promote education, there’s only so many jobs out there that do not require an education,” said Rodriguez.

Rodriguez said he does not like Romney because Romney tends to reverse his positions on issues.

Santorum has won three of the five primaries and caucuses this month — Romney won the other two. Santorum won Colorado’s caucus with 40 percent of the vote, Missouri’s primary with 55 percent, and Minnesota’s caucus with 44 percent.

Maine’s caucus Feb. 11 allowed Romney to end Santorum’s streak, with Romney winning the state with 39 percent of the vote. Paul placed second with 35 percent. Jarvis said candidates with more grassroots support in caucuses usually do better.

“Caucuses … reflect depth of preferences, whereas primaries reflect breadth of support,” Jarvis said.

The GOP candidates are currently preparing for the Arizona and Michigan primaries, which will be held Feb. 28. CNN is hosting a debate among the four remaining candidates in Mesa, Arizona Wednesday.

Super Tuesday, the traditional full-scale beginning of the election year, is March 6. Then the

Republican front-runner will need to consolidate power to face Obama, the Democratic incumbent.

California, which has its primary June 6, usually votes Democrat.

Obama is projected to significantly defeat Romney in California with 55 percent to Romney’s 35 percent, according to Real Clear Politics.

Obama has the upper hand in campaign funds. He has raised $125 million and has $81 million cash on hand. Romney has half that, with $56 million raised and $20 million cash on hand, according to The Wall Street Journal. Obama currently has an approval rating of 44 percent and a disapproval rating of 48 percent.

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NEWS2 February 22, 2012

GOP candidates vying for nomination

TIM WORDENDaily Titan

Rick Santorum has increased his lead on opponent Mitt Romney

Candidate Ron Paul holds a supporter’s baby at American Shooters, a store in Las Vegas.

LUCIO VILLA / For the Daily Titan

The website dedicated to software training by video tutorials, Lynda.com, was introduced to the Cal State Fullerton student portal in August, and has since been growing in popularity.

Lynda.com is gaining accounts among students, faculty and staff at an average rate of 443 new accounts per month, said the Associate Vice President for Information Technology/CTO & Academic Technology Officer, Chris Manriquez.

“This is one of the biggest bang for (your buck) that the institution has received thus far, and I think you’ll hear a bigger and bigger bang as more and more people come on board using it,” said Manriquez.

Manriquez said this is the first full semester that Lynda.com is available to students.

Data provided by Manriquez showed 3,422 open accounts between students and faculty. An average of 443 new accounts are created per month based on statistics collected over the last six months.

The divisions of IT and Academic Affairs fund the service of Lynda.com for CSUF students.

Manriquez said the retail cost for one year of student access to the site would cost $375, but under the school’s multiyear contract, the cost for access is less than $3 per student.

In January, there were 17,101 views of individual videos, which

totaled 1,356 hours of viewing time for the month.

The top five accessed courses were for essential training videos for Access 2010, Moodle 2 for Teachers, Excel 2010, JavaScript (2011) and SQL Server 2008.

Manriquez said usage of Lynda.com has come primarily from classes in departments such as the Information Systems and Decision Sciences, Art and other technology-oriented departments.

The feedback the IT department has received has been positive, Manriquez said.

“I think this has been one of the more positively responded to things we released on campus,” Manriquez said. “It’s something the students are actually using and for us that’s really what matters inside IT because we do a lot of things with the students in order to address the needs that you have because we realize how costly it is to purchase books and how costly it is to have the materials that have ramped up over a period of time for higher education. So, this is something, I think, that we’re able to provide that doesn’t cost a lot.”

However, some students in other departments have yet to become familiar with the site.

Monica Sanchez, 22, a child development major, said she has never used the site. In order for

other students like her to know about Lynda.com, there has to be more talk about the website, by students and teachers or through advertisements and emails, she said.

Some students have not fully utilized the site, but know about it.

Abraham Ko, 19, a business major, said he has heard of Lynda.com through his club, the Association for Information Technology Professionals.

“I’ve used it, but for the most part we’ve just gone over during our club meetings discussing it, that’s about it,” Ko said. “A couple of semesters ago, I think, one of our chairs was discussing how to use Lynda.com to understand, I think, some of the programming codes/languages. I haven’t really looked at it though, much.”

However, Manriquez said using the Lynda.com service will benefit all classrooms.

“As more and more faculty become more exposed to how they can use it in a classroom. It’s a very big win for them and the students in the classroom,” Manriquez said.

There is a lot to benefit from Lynda.com, especially the fact that the program will save where any CSUF student has last left off, Manriquez said.

The campus agreement with the website Lynda.com is valid through July 2013.

Lynda.com user base boosts in popularity

VANESSA MARTINEZDaily Titan

Account numbers for the tutorial site have consistently risen since November

“The permits are too expensive,” said Ramirez. “So instead, I park at the Brea Mall and take the bus to school. I would consider it a lot more. I would actually purchase it, especially for finals week.”

Purchasing daily permits, which are $8 per day, might not be as convenient during the last semester. The stress level of the last month of the semester is relatively high with term papers and finals; finding parking could be a stressful habit that students could avoid — a sentiment that Ferrer said could bring students to purchase permits and avoid the hassle of finding parking elsewhere.

“I would not be surprised that, as we get closer to finals week, students that park off campus may choose to buy a parking permit,” Ferrer said.

The parking permit deduction is not solely for students, but also for faculty and motorcyclists.

Students can purchase parking permits by going online or visiting the Parking and Transportation Department in person.

PARKING: Finals get factored in

...Continued from page 1The permits are too

expensive. So instead, I park at the Brea Mall and take the bus to school.

Karina RamirezHealth and Human

Services Major

Lynda.com is open for all Cal State Fullerton faculty and students to use for whatever tutorial available on the website at a low cost that amounts to about $3 a student.

Photo illustration by ANIBAL ORTIZ / Daily Titan

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Popular shock jock radio hosts John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou, of the “John and Ken” show, have been suspended for their comments concerning recently deceased singer and actress Whitney Houston, according to the Orange County Register.

A statement made by KFI/640AM said the pair was shelved “for making insensitive and inappropriate comments about the late Whitney Houston.”

The suspension is in response to a comment made on air made by Kobylt, who referred to Houston as a “crack ho.”

The singer-turned-actor died Feb 11. She was found dead in a suite at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California prior to the Grammy Awards ceremony.

In lieu of the suspension, Kobylt said in an apology, “We made a mistake, and we accept the station’s decision. We used language that was inappropriate, and we sincerely apologize to our listeners and to the family of Ms. Houston.”

The program, which airs 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays, will return to the air Monday. In the meantime, several hosts of other KFI programs will fill in for the duo.

John and Ken Suspended

Brief by Lance Morgan

Greece received a $173 billion recovery deal Tuesday from Eurozone finance ministers in an attempt to stabilize their declining economy.

However, the deal doesn’t necessarily mean Greece’s financial troubles are over. According to CNN.com, the Eurozone bailout deal is projected to trim Greece’s debt to 121 percent of the gross domestic product by 2020. They currently stand 160 percent in debt of its gross domestic product.

The purpose of the rescue package is meant to stimulate Greece’s floundering economy and help it avoid becoming default. It was meant to give Greece “space to improve its competitiveness”.

Greece’s financial minister Evangelos Venizelos defended the deal before negotiations with Eurozone began, saying the package was vital for Greece and “a matter of national dignity and a national strategic choice.”

This year marks the fifth year of Greece’s recession. Last year, the country’s GDP fell another 6.8 percent.

Bailout to Prompt Greek Economy

Brief by Michael Munoz

A California man is in trouble for lying about serving in the military.

The U.S. Supreme Court is set to take a case that will decide whether or not it is illegal to lie about receiving military honors.

Xavier Alvarez was caught lying when he said he was a retired Marine and had received the Medal of Honor at a public meeting in Pomona.

The Supreme Court will be looking in to see if Alvarez’ lie is protected under the First Amendment as “free speech.”

In 2006, Congress put the Stolen Valor Act into effect to ensure that lying about military honor was a crime. Alvarez was fined $5,000 when caught.

However, his defense in the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals was that “everyone lies,” and that won him the case in a 2-1 vote.

Many are concerned that ruling these lies as not protected under the First Amendment might make the government become some sort of “truth police.”

The John Roberts-led court has ruled in favor of First Amendment rights recently, so Alvarez may in fact go free.

Phony Marine to be Tried in Court

Brief by John Sollitto

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NEWS

3February 22, 2012

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Writing test required to graduate

The Examination in Writing Proficiency (EWP) is an essential part of every student’s time at Cal State Fullerton. Titans must take this exam in order to graduate from the university.

However, many students like Robin Nguyen, 21, an entertainment and tourism management major, go about their time here at CSUF without even thinking about the EWP.

“Actually, I pretty much just forgot about it,” said Nguyen. “I’ve never thought that it’s too hard of a test or taken it too seriously. I’ll do it later when I have to.”

The EWP consists of one essay that tests a student’s ability to write clearly and effectively, while demonstrating writing proficiency. The entire testing session lasts about two hours, with the option of having a dictionary or thesaurus if necessary. Each student is given 90 minutes to write and revise the essay.

The California State University Board of Trustees stated that each student must exemplify a certain level of writing efficiency in order to

graduate with a baccalaureate degree. While the CSU board may feel strongly on the matter, many students don’t seem to be intimidated by the EWP in the slightest.

“I heard it was pretty easy from most of my friends that have taken the test,” said Adrian Haran, 21, a graphic design major. “I’m not worried about it at all. I’ve actually just been (too) lazy to take it. I don’t really want to come in on a Saturday either.”

According to the EWP guide, the best time to take the EWP is after a student has completed about 60 credits in the university or is of junior standing. Delaying in taking the exam is discouraged, although some students just end up taking the test in their senior year and get by with that.

“I just took the EWP in my senior year,” said James Barron, 24, a civil engineering major. “It was never high on my agenda or a priority. It never crossed my mind until I absolutely had to get it done. It actually ended up being really easy, so that was great.”

Registering for the EWP is done through the student portal on the Titan Online tab. The ‘Test Information’ box has instructions to get signed up for the exam. A $20 test fee is required of all students as well. While it is no surprise the university would charge for this exam, many students like Nguyen and Haran feel that with the tuition and all the fees already

tied up in the school, the EWP should not have to be paid for.

“I didn’t even know they charged you $20 to take the test,” Nguyen said. “I think they should eliminate that because I don’t want to have to pay to take the easiest test in my life. The school’s charging us for everything I guess.”

Haran feels strongly about the charge as well.“I feel like the $20 charge is a little bit too

much just to take a test you don’t really want to take. I wouldn’t mind paying $5 or $10, but if most people pass it then I don’t even know why we have to take it in the first place,” Haran said.

If a student fails the EWP, they are advised to go to the University Testing Center and make an appointment for a review of the test results with an English instructor before retaking the exam. Undergraduate students who fail the test for a second time may apply for a non-credit course (English 199, Intensive Writing Review). If this class is passed with a “C” or better, it is the same as passing the EWP.

“I honestly don’t know anybody who has failed the test twice though,” Barron said. “I get that some people forget how to write structured essays after a while, but it shouldn’t take anyone more than two times to pass this thing.”

The next available day to take the test is April 14, with March 30 being the deadline date to register. The second test date will be June 2, with May 18 being the deadline date to register.

ANGEL MENDOZADaily Titan

Every Titan must clearly demonstrate that they caneffectively write an essaybefore getting their diploma

CREDIT: California rating improves

...Continued from page 1

“I have some friends who are starting to get them, and I know a few who have applied and have gotten rejected. If you are still with your parents, I do not think you need one. You will just get in trouble with it,” said Shiba.

Credit card companies don’t let anyone get a credit card, but for students who want to apply, the US Bank on campus has a few options. For those who want to build their credit, the bank offers the Secured Visa Credit Card. It’s main purpose is to help students establish, maintain and understand their credit.

Katie Claburn, 22, a sociology major, sees the state’s progress as a chance for people, particularly students, to be more responsible with their credit cards.

“If you know someone who already has (a credit card) and they are facing the whole debt problem, I don’t think you are going to want to go and put yourself in the same position. You’re more likely, I think, to be more conscience about what you are spending and making sure you are not in debt, making sure that if you do spend that you can pay it off, and making sure you’re not going to get yourself in a hole that you can’t get out of,” said Claburn.

Brown was proud of the state’s progress in a short amount of time.

“The fact that California’s ratings outlook has shifted from negative to positive in less than a year is a powerful vote of confidence in our state,” said Brown in a statement.

For current credit card holder Sasha Malbrough, 21, her credit card is there for emergencies, despite the temptation to use it more often.

“It’s always an option if I don’t have actual money — then I just spend more, and it just goes and goes, but I try and stay pretty good about it,” said Malbrough.

Credit cards and credit history do not affect student financial aid. However, if a student looks outside government assistance for money, to a private lender, for example, then their approval would depend on their credit score.

The credit score, which is an objective measure of credit risk, depends on payment history, amounts owed, types of credits used, length of credit history and new credit. A person’s credit score is easily damaged by a lack of responsibility when using a card, such as not paying back what is owed.

The state of California was given an A rating, meaning they have a “strong capacity to meet financial commitments, but somewhat susceptible to adverse economic conditions and changes in circumstances,” according to the S&P website.

CLASSES: Variety of sizes offered

...Continued from page 1

Gonzalez said she is able to pass courses like these, but if she had any questions for the professor specifically, it would be hard for her to get some one-on-one time outside of the professor’s office hours.

Kalen Eidenschink, 21, a mechanical engineering major, has a different perspective.

He said the larger lecture classes don’t bother him much, and that to him it’s just a matter of focusing on the material and doing the work on his own.

“It’s just another lecture to me,” said Eidenschink. “I mean, if I just pay attention and take care of myself, everything is okay.”

Eidenschink said due to the size of certain lectures, there was more work he would have to do himself since he wasn’t able to ask questions during class. In his studies, he said he has to teach himself a lot of the material anyway, and the size of the class isn’t the problem; it’s the quality of the professor that determines whether or not he learns anything in the class.

Kellie Applebee, 19, a child and adolescent development major, has a similar view to Eidenschink.

“Personally I really don’t have a big issue with it,” said Applebee. “I think it really just depends on the person and whether or not they can learn in that type of atmosphere and from the teacher that you’re taking and whether or not you can deal with that.”

Applebee said she had a large biology lecture class she really enjoyed, and she felt the teacher did a great job with the large number of students that were in the room. She, like Eidenschink, focuses on herself during the lecture, and tries to ignore the other people in the room if they are being disruptive.

Gonzalez said it bothers her that some students in the larger classrooms don’t pay attention.

“They don’t do anything! They just sit there and they don’t care,” she said.

Applebee also said she thought she would do just as well in a large class as she would do in a smaller class. The biology class she took was for general education, and Applebee said the size of the class didn’t play a factor, but if it was one of her major courses she would want to take it in a smaller, more intimate setting.

While there are mixed feelings on classroom sizes, more CSUF students appear to think that it’s actually more important to take care of themselves in the class and do more work on their own, rather than rely on the teacher.

“The evidence is to the contrary that Mr. Thomas stole the attorney’s mail or that he stole the backpack. At worst, Mr. Thomas retrieved what appeared to be a lost or discarded backpack,” Gennaco said.

After Thomas’ death and the media storm that ensued, Fullerton Police released a mug shot of Thomas taken after a 2009 trespassing arrest. Many of Thomas’ supporters did not believe that the picture was actually Thomas, but a picture of someone else used to present Thomas in a negative light.

Gennaco said independently-researched records and fingerprints connected Thomas to the 2009 booking photo.

But Gennaco asked the question of whether or not it was advisable for the police

department to release the photo considering the circumstances surrounding the case. He said perhaps the family should have been brought into the discussion before the photo was released. The Fullerton Police Department has no written policy concerning this issue.

Gennaco’s final issue in the report involved information about officer injuries.

Shortly after the incident, Fullerton police reported to the media that two of its officers had suffered possible broken bones. When these reports were corrected, and it was found that there were no such injuries, many thought the Fullerton Police Department intentionally made up these reports to gain sympathy from the public.

This brought up the issue of how much information to release after a high-profile incident, Gennaco said.

It would have been advisable to either delay

the release of such information or make clear to the public that the information was very tentative and subject to further assessment by doctors, Gennaco said.

Once finished, council members asked Gennaco questions and relayed their own feedback on these issues.

“I agree very much with your conclusion that it’s important to get the information right and not release it unless it is right,” said Councilman Bruce Whitaker.

This was the first of three reports that Gennaco will give. His second report, which is set to come to the council late March or early April, will be a review of the police department’s overall policies and procedures.

“Gennaco and I are right on track with each other on all issues thus far,” said Ron Thomas, Kelly Thomas’ father. “The way it’s looking, there is justice for Kelly up ahead.”

REPORT: Gennaco sheds light on reports from Fullerton Police Department

...Continued from page 1

WILLIAM CAMARGO / Daily TitanTwo men wearing Guy Fawkes masks hold signs in support of Kelly Thomas Tuesday during the report given in the Council Chambers of Fullerton City Hall.

If there’s a hundred plus students in

the classroom, how can (the professor) address all the questions?

Areli GonzalezLatin AmericanStudies Major

The recent ethnic studies ban in Arizona can be summed up in three powerful words: racist, ignorant and ethnocentric. If Arizona is an example of what we are as a nation, then we are moving away from diversity in education towards a heavy ethnocentric curriculum — a future much dimmer than the one we could be facing.

Tom Horne, recently appointed Arizona attorney general and former superintendent of public instruction, wrote the bill that passed in May 2010 and went into effect January 2011 in the Tucson Unified School District.

The bill bans any curriculum that promotes the overthrow of the U.S. government, promotes resentment toward a race or class of people, are designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group and advocate ethnic solidarity instead of treating pupils as individuals. An audit by Cambium Learning in May 2011 found no evidence to suggest the Mexican American studies programs in the district violated any terms of the ban before it was even enacted.

Even with the state-commissioned study, the law still remains enforced with John Huppenthal, Arizona superintendent of public instruction, who has been pulling books from schools, citing that they violate the section of the law containing material causing “resentment toward a race or

class of people.”It’s impossible to understand

history without acknowledging the oppression and marginalization of certain groups in the United States. The struggles and achievements by people of color need to be studied by every American, starting in middle and high school. Instead, Horne would rather “whitewash” history and the current state of race in America. In an open letter to Tucson, Horne wrote, “Students should not be divided by race, with each race (only) learning about … its own contribution,” and went on to state that ethnic studies promotes separatism instead of unity.

I can’t imagine anything more divisive than the ban itself and what it entails.

At least seven books in the program have been put into storage, including Rethinking Columbus, a popular history book detailing the “other” side of the Columbus story. There are more than 100 books in the Mexican American studies program facing a similar fate. Two books in particular in the program, Always Running by Luis Rodriguez and Two Badges by Mona Ruiz, are memoirs I have read. They are about former gang members who turned their lives around. Perhaps lawmakers could recognize that these books, among many others on the list, provide students with a perspective

that can help young people, leading to an enrichment of society as a whole.

Perhaps Arizona would be better served by focusing on the very real problems facing the future generation, and not by the needless distraction of a racist agenda.

According to a recent report, Arizona paid $10 million more for private prison beds between 2008 and 2010 than it would have for equivalent state beds. In the past three years, private prisons in Arizona have experienced at least 28 riots and more than 200 other “disturbances” involving as many as 50 prisoners.

Another report by the United States Justice Department found Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, known for his hard-lined, anti-immigration stance, had committed wide-ranging civil rights violations against Latinos, including a pattern of racial profiling and heavy-handed immigration patrols based on racially-charged complaints.

Since authorities in Arizona’s public education are blinded by their own prejudices, they are failing to see the potential dire consequences of their actions.

Public education bigwigs may not recognize the consequences, but the national educational community does. There have been thousands of educators and students decrying the removal of ethnic studies and subsequent book ban. Tony Diaz, a professor from Texas, is leading the call with an action called Librotraficante, where hundreds of educators, demonstrators and students — calling themselves “book traffickers” — are to hand out banned books and hold reading circles as a response to the recent ban.

According to USA Today, ethnic studies all around are becoming targets of budget reductions and slashes. Nationally, university programs are facing budget cuts or are being phased out. Last year, the University of California, Santa Cruz eliminated its ethnic studies programs, citing budget cuts. The newspaper also wrote that the University of California, Berkeley, the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Texas at Austin have reduced funding.

The nation would appear to be on the same track as Arizona, as schools are not placing priority on a culturally rich education.

Contact Us at dtopinion@gmai l .com

OPINION4 February 22, 2012

LETTER TO THE EDITORThe Daily Titan welcomes letters to the editor. All letters must

include the sender’s first and last name. Students must include their majors and other writers must include their affiliation to the university, if applicable. Letters must refer to an article published within the last week. Once a letter is submitted it becomes property of the Daily Titan. Publication of letters is based on the validity of content and may be edited for length, grammar and spelling. Letters may be sent to dteditorinchief@gmail.com.

JUAN BUGARIN / For the Daily Titan

As the United States transitions into the political primary season and inches closer to the general election, something seems different than in years past. And something certainly is different: Super PACs.

Political Action Committees have been around for years in America’s political landscape. However, in the year 2010, corporations, unions and individuals were allowed to make unlimited contributions to these political organizations.

This decision by the U.S. Supreme Court makes true the old maxim, “Whoever holds the gold makes the rules.” In many ways, the presidential election and other concurrent elections are fundraising competitions, and that is not right in a country where democracy and the equal voice of all citizens is supposedly cherished.

The avalanche of new funds from corporations and interest groups in elections originated from the 2010 Supreme Court case, Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.

Most of us have seen the bumper stickers that read, “Corporations Are Not People;” these political

statements are in direct response to the controversial decision made by the United States’ highest court.

The facts of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission involved a film concerning then presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton, and the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act’s attempt to regulate “big money” campaign contributions. But the key holding in the case was that under the First Amendment the federal government can’t limit how much corporations can spend for political purposes.

The majority opinion of the 5-4 decision was written by Justice Anthony Kennedy. Kennedy is considered by many as the lone moderate on the court, and often is the swing vote in the Court’s most controversial and politically charged cases. This makes him among the top most powerful men in the United States, if not the most powerful.

The Court’s decision threatens the ideal that all individual “people” (flesh and blood people, not corporations) should have an equally powerful voice in important political processes.

Justice Kennedy changed a very large portion of election law, and by doing so thus changed the structure of political campaigns. Like many other controversial Supreme Court cases, he did it in one sentence, which was nonessential in deciding the case.

Kennedy wrote in the majority’s

opinion, “We now conclude that independent expenditures, including those made by corporations, do not give rise to corruption or the appearance of corruption.”

Kennedy’s opinion in Citizens United allowed corporations and unions to contribute large amounts of money from their general treasury funds to fund political advertisements that specifically call for the election of a candidate.

Before the court decision, such contributions by unions and corporations would have to be funded by voluntary contributions raised by Political Action Committees affiliated with those companies.

Since the 2010 decision of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, several liberals and conservatives alike are wondering if the unlimited donations to candidates are creating a plutocracy in the U.S.

Remember in high school when the person who won the ASB had the richest parents and was able to give everybody free candy and T-shirts? How frustrating was that? The best candidates were overlooked because of flashy campaign slogans and well-funded public relations work.

Instead of parents, the United States’ political system has conservative corporations and die-hard liberal unions, and the all-powerful T-shirts and candy are replaced with virtually unlimited political monies.

Sooner or later, candidates that have great debating skills, leadership and the experience to be the next commander-in-chief will wither in the windfall of contributions that corporate-backed candidates can pull in.

So the question is: How much money does it take to buy the command of the president of the United States of America? Perhaps in this next election cycle America will know the answer.

Everyone remembers the packed-lunch days of preschool — a brown paper bag filled with a sandwich, chips, some fruit and maybe a juice box. Sounds good, right?

Well, apparently it’s not good enough, at least according to North Carolina’s Division of Child Development and Early Education at the Department of Health and Human Services. Their requirements state that all school pre-kindergarten program lunches have to meet the U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines, including packed lunches from home.

A North Carolinian 4-year-old had arrived at school with her packed lunch as described above, only to be told it wasn’t “healthy enough.” She was then given a prepared school lunch, of which she only ate a few chicken nuggets, and her mother was charged $1.25 for the food.

Now, $1.25 isn’t too much for a cafeteria lunch, but that’s not the point. The real problem is school officials being able to dictate what is acceptable for children to eat for their lunch. There are so many issues with this, it’s hard to figure out where to begin.

It’s not clear who declared the

lunch to be unfit or why, but it doesn’t make sense. According to the USDA guidelines used in this incident, lunches must consist of one serving of meat, one serving of milk, one serving of grain and two servings of fruit or vegetables.

Now that’s a great standard, especially for school-made lunches, but the idea that this requirement has to be forced on lunches brought from home starts to cross the line of government interference. What parents decide to give their children for lunch should not be dictated by schools or government agencies.

Encouragement of healthy eating certainly isn’t a bad thing.

However, if our government wants to keep children healthy, they can start with making the school-provided lunches follow their own standards. I’m sure the chicken nugget meal passed the requirements, but how is processed chicken meat and a cup of prepackaged fruit any healthier than a homemade sandwich, a banana and a juice box?

To make matters worse, they charged the mother for the meal.

If mandates on food healthiness are what the government want, then they can start with removing the unhealthy food from the lunches they provide, rather than from parents.

That said, it’s hard to trust the current government to get even that part right. It was only last fall that

Congress blocked an initiative by the Obama administration to increase the standards on what counted as a “serving” of vegetables.

The result: Pizza and french fries can still be counted in that vegetable serving, sodium restrictions are lessened and not as many whole grains are required.

Who benefits from this? The makers of cheap, processed junk foods who can keep selling their unhealthy lunches to schools without having to increase standards (and costs) on their production. Who opposed these restrictions? The food industry.

There are two scenarios here, and it seems like the wrong choices are being made in both of them. On one side, there’s a government that wants to force healthy food on kids, even if that means declaring personal lunches unfit for consumption. But on the other side, we have a Congress that votes down nutritional requirements for federally-funded food and leaves pizza and french fries in the lunch lines.

It should be just the opposite. Healthy eating is a good idea, but you can’t force it on people. Government money should be spent on healthy foods; we have a big enough problem with obesity in this country without our schools helping. At the same time, the government should have no say in what parents want to give their children for packed lunches because that’s none of their business.

by AMBER STEPHENS

“Politically liberal musingsfrom a former corporate slave”

What’s Left

Erasing our history

Super Political Action Committees threaten democracy

LANCE MORGANDaily Titan

Regulation of our children’s lunches won’t keep them fit

MATT ATKINSONDaily Titan

No thank you, Justice Kennedy…

Dishing up absurdity

Last year, The King’s Speech dominated the Oscars with four wins for Best Picture, Best Actor (Colin Firth), Best Director (Tom Hooper) and Best Original Screenplay.

This year, The Artist, The Descendants, The Help and War Horse will probably be its successor in attaining the best picture award, the highest distinction in the film world. Other nominees include Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Hugo, Midnight in Paris, Moneyball and The Tree of Life.

“I think it will be between The Artist and The Descendants … but I think I’m going to go with The Descendants,” said Philippe Perebinossoff, a radio-TV-film professor at CSUF.

Perebinossoff also thinks The Descendants will win the Oscar’s second-biggest prize as well.

“I think George Clooney’s campaign will pay off and he’ll win (best actor) because he is playing his age and because people like him,” he said.

Selyna Razo, 18, a freshman business major, disagrees. She said Brad Pitt can win best actor for his portrayal of Billy Beane in Moneyball.

Jean Dujardin (The Artist) is another best actor contender.

In addition to Moneyball, Razo said she likes The Help “because it shows the true story of what (black maids in the South) went through.”

But this year’s nominee list has excluded some movies people think should have received more nominations, such as Super 8, Harry Potter and Drive.

“Super 8 was amazing,” said Cambria Edwards, 21, radio-TV-film major.

Edwards enjoyed the nostalgic feel of Super 8.“(Super 8 is) so original, (it’s) the old Spielberg — the

‘70s Spielberg — where films had a lot of heart and soul to it,” Edwards said.

As a J.J. Abrams fan, she said it was amazing that a group of kids could keep the viewers entertained for two hours.

“(It was a) good, wholesome movie,” she said.Perebinossoff said Drive should have been nominated

for best picture and supporting actor (Albert Brooks).“A lot of people were upset that Albert Brooks wasn’t

nominated for Drive. He plays a bad guy … which is against type. I’ve always thought that if you take a beautiful person ... and you make them ugly … that’s

acting,” he said.Perebinossoff, who worked at ABC for 20 years as a

programming executive on The Oprah Winfrey Show, said the show is lacking a blockbuster nominee.

“I’m a programming guy and I think in terms of the ratings ... you’ve got to have popular movies like Titanic, otherwise people won’t care. This year, people like George Clooney, but how many people have seen The Descendants?” he said.

Perebinossoff said the Oscars tend to emphasize limited-release movies that few people have seen, while excluding the larger, more popular movies.

The Best Actress nominees are Glenn Close (Albert Nobbs), Viola Davis (The Help), Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady) and Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn).

Edwards thinks Mara deserves the nod.“(She had the) best female acting performance I’ve

ever seen,” Edwards said.“I would like Rooney Mara to win, but she wont; I

think Viola Davis will,” Perebinossoff said.Edwards said she liked this year’s X-Men: First

Class, Harry Potter, The Adventures of Tintin and Super 8 soundtracks, but only Tintin’s soundtrack was nominated. It will compete against The Artist, Hugo, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and War Horse.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 became the highest-grossing film of the series (and the third-highest-grossing film of all time), pulling in $380 million in the domestic box office, but only received two nominations for Visual Effects and Art Direction.

Billy Crystal will host this year’s 84th annual Academy Awards Sunday at 4 p.m. on ABC.

Cal State Fullerton will play host to some Civil War-era ghosts starting Friday. The Theatre and Dance Department is going to kick off its spring season with The Spoon River Project.

The Spoon River Project is a musical adaption of The Spoon River Anthology, which is a series of monologues from the dearly-departed spirits of a small town as they talk about their lives. With the help of the show’s director and professor of directing at CSUF, Mark Ramont, and a group of student cast and crew, the ghostly inhabitants will aim to inspire CSUF students with their stories.

Ramont said he is looking forward to seeing the audience’s reaction to the play.

“We joke about it being a play about dead people … but the stories are just these wonderful little gems about people. They are so finely created that they show us aspects of ourselves that we can relate to,” said Ramont.

This is Ramont’s first year teaching at CSUF. He has previously directed shows at the Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., The Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas, the Circle Repertory Company in New York and many more.

“What I love about the students in this department is that they are highly motivated … they have a really amazing faculty that really pushes them very hard to do the best work they can, and I think the results you get are hardworking students that have a tremendous amount of talent,” Ramont said.

Some of the talent being debuted will come from freshmen and sophomore students — who normally do not get a chance to appear on stage until later in their college careers.

Graduate student of directing, Travis Donnelly, is the assistant director, stage manager and choreographer of The Spoon River Project. He thinks students will react positively to the play.

“This show is sweet and simple, with no intermission. You are in and out in under an hour and twenty minutes and get to leave having a wonderful theatrical experience,” said Donnelly.

The cast and crew are currently rushing with rehearsals to get everything just right for the performance Friday.

“It’s always wonderful to be launching the season for the department. It obviously comes with time constraints, as we quickly put together a stellar performance. Yet, those pressures have only helped motivate everyone involved,” he said.

The cast and crew also faced the challenge of creating relationships out

of a series of monologues. “What are the other characters

doing while the monologue is going on, how are they listening, how does it affect them, and how does the whole thing move forward,” said Ramont.

The Spoon River Project was not the first or second choice for Ramont (who prefers plays with more character interaction). As a new faculty member, this play fell into his lap. “That’s been a challenge, but it is a challenge that I enjoyed taking on,” Ramont said.

Antwone Sylvester Barnes, 18, a first-year theatre major and cast member, thinks that The Spoon River Project will engage the audience in conversation.

“This is going to be a play that brings up the question, ‘If you had one last thing to say to the community of the living, what would it be?”’ said Barnes.

DETOUR 5February 22, 2012

dai lyt i tan.com/detour

Spring theatre kick-off The Spoon River

Project is set to debut Friday at 8 p.m.SEPIDEH NIADaily Titan

Some favorites not part of the 84th Oscars Blockbusters from 2011 did not

seem to tickle the fancy of the Academy this time around

TIM WORDENDaily Titan

You’ve got to have popular movies like Titanic, otherwise people won’t care.

Philippe PerebinossoffRadio-TV-Film Professor

Best Actor2010 Colin Firth (The King’s Speech)2009 Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart)2008 Sean Penn (Milk)2007 Daniel-Day Lewis (There Will Be Blood)2006 Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland)2005 Philip Seymour Hoffman (Capote)2004 Jamie Foxx (Ray)2003 Sean Penn (Mystic River)2002 Adrien Brody (The Pianist)2001 Denzel Washington (Training Day)

Best Actress2010 Natalie Portman (Black Swan)2009 Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side)2008 Kate Winslet (The Reader)2007 Marion Cotillard (La Vie en Rose)2006 Helen Mirren (The Queen)2005 Reese Witherspoon (Walk the Line)2004 Hilary Swank (Million Dollar Baby)2003 Charlize Theron (Monster)2002 Nicole Kidman (The Hours)2001 Halle Berry (Monster’s Ball)

Best Picture2010 The King’s Speech2009 The Hurt Locker2008 Slumdog Millionaire2007 No Country for Old Men2006 The Departed2005 Crash2004 Million Dollar Baby2003 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King 2002 Chicago2001 A Beautiful Mind

DETOUR

6 February 22, 2012

Contact Us at dtdetourdesk@gmai l .com

Is the PS Vita worth it?

The PlayStation Vita made its debut Wednesday, and many eager shoppers are hoping to find out if it will be worth the $250 price tag. Sales in Japan have been horrible, and industry critics are saying it will be a quiet launch for the “handheld to change all handhelds.”

While Sony has never dominated the video game market, seemingly trailing Microsoft in gaming system sales and Nintendo in handheld sales, they’re looking to change that with the PS Vita. The Vita comes with WiFi connectability, web browsing, a touch screen, a rear touch pad, dual analog sticks, the ability to connect to the PlayStation Network and HD graphics.

One of the main selling points

for the Vita is that gamers will be able to play multiplayer matches on their Vita with those on a PS3. With a huge selection of games available for launch, many of them are also available for the PlayStation 3.

A few of the games coming out also have an augmented reality

feature as well. The PS Vita will use the front and rear-facing cameras that are fixed to the system so you can play games like Reality Fighters in real locations you’re actually in, placing the characters in the park or on the bus with you.

It’s nifty little things like this that will help distinguish the Vita from

its predecessor and the Nintendo DS and 3DS.

While the launch library of games will be large, some appear to be novelty titles or a portable version of their PS3 counterparts. Sure, it will be good to know that some quality games will be on the PS Vita, but it’s a shame that not many new games will be available for some time.

The ones that are new seem to be novelty games to show off the Vita’s capabilities, and previous launches have shown us that those games wear thin after the first or second month of ownership.

However, there are two major flaws with the Vita. The first is the price — for $250 you can just buy a PS3 and have access to all the games that have come out in the last few years.

If you have little games on your phone, Apple device or laptop, then you honestly don’t need a miniature PS3 to take with you because the games for that will be more expensive than the mobile ones.

The second flaw is that the Vita also banks on you constantly

traveling or being in a place where you can play without being interrupted. If you’re frequently on a bus, plane or long car ride, then the Vita will be fine for entertainment until you arrive.

If you’re able to go to a park or some other place that isn’t your house,

where you’ll be able to have a steady Internet connection or good WiFi without being hassled by people you know, then the Vita is your machine. If you don’t fit any of those categories, then you might find yourself getting into a game only to have your ride end or someone interrupting you.

Then you’ll be forced to stop playing and actually have some human interaction.

Do you really want to spend $250 for a 30-minute to an hour experience when you could just as easily wait until you get home and play your PS3 to your heart’s content?

Sony’s PlayStation Vita comes with a price tag comparable to a PlayStation 3

JOHN SOLLITTODaily Titan

Sony hopes to dominate the handheld gaming scene with PlayStation Vita’s WiFi, web browsing, touch screen, a rear touch pad, dual analog sticks, HD graphics, and the ability to connect to the PlayStation Network.

Courtesy of MCT

One of the main selling points for the Vita is that gamers will be able to play multiplayer matches on their Vita with those on a PS3

If I had to describe The Darkness 2 in one word, I would call it “monstrous.”

As players make their way through the short, but gripping campaign, they will become a six-limb extension of the devil himself. They will suck the light from New York’s crime-infested underground, paint walls and ceilings with gore and dismembered limbs, send swarms of bees at their foes and cut people in half with car doors.

The Darkness 2 makes Gears of War 3, a game in which you can chainsaw lizard men in half in a fantastic geyser

of blood and flailing limbs, look as tame as a Saturday morning cartoon.

Violence and inevitable controversy aside, The Darkness 2 is an excellent, cinematic first-person-shooter experience that fills this sparse spring game release season.

While I would not recommend shelling out $60 for this single-player driven game, it would be worth buying once the price drops in the used-game market.

The plot follows the story of Jackie Estacado, a New York crime boss who has been cursed with the powers of the Darkness, a force that allows him to sprout snake-like arms from his shoulder blades and regenerate health in the dark. If Jackie is caught in the light, the Darkness that possesses him is rendered useless. However, this power comes at a price — it has an agenda

of its own, and if it isn’t controlled it will destroy the life of its host. Jackie has kept the Darkness contained for two years after the events of the first game, but when he is assaulted by a rival gang, he is forced to unleash the Darkness in order to survive.

As the story escalates, it strikes the same emotional chords as the original. The love and grief Jackie feels for his dead girlfriend, Jenny, and his bleak internal struggle with the conniving Darkness are constant and powerful themes throughout the narrative.

Thankfully, the game leaves behind many underwhelming plot elements of the original, such as levels in the “Otherworld,” a dimension of hell where World War I never ended and players are forced to fight through waves of Germans. (Do all games really have to include an iteration of a

Nazi or a zombie? I digress...)To be honest, I didn’t expect

much from The Darkness 2. While its predecessor was entertaining, it was riddled with issues such as horrible enemy AI and repetitive game-play mechanics, such as forcing the player to shoot out hundreds of lights to maintain the power of the Darkness.

The Darkness 2 is one of the most satisfying shooters I’ve ever played. I truly felt like an unrelenting, murderous force of carnage as I played through the six-hour campaign. Enemies become progressively more difficult to defeat, using giant flashlights and even powers of the Darkness against you.

The game’s cell-shaded, comic book style fits much better with the narrative and looks beautiful to boot. While its title may not suggest it, this game

basks in gorgeous lighting effects. The environments have been rendered with care, creating an experience that immerses the player entirely.

The animations and weapon models are some of the best I have ever seen in a first-person-shooter. It is a morbid joy to watch Jackie cut enemies down with the powers of the Darkness while simultaneously dual-wielding submachine guns.

The game is top-shelf quality, but it simply does not provide enough value to warrant a $60 purchase — therein lies the tragedy of The Darkness 2. Granted, it includes a four-player cooperative mode that is fun and addictive, but unless you have friends that have bought the game, it might be more of a novelty than a full, multiplayer experience.

The Darkness 2 provides exactly what

its developer intended. It consumes the player in the dark, bloody world of Jackie Estacado. The plot is developed perfectly and the cinematic quality and style of this game truly sets it apart from the run-of-the-mill war shooter that many publishing companies are using as a crutch. The game is innovative and it has character. These qualities are rare in the current FPS landscape of Call of Duty clones.

So if you have morbid fantasies of ripping mobsters apart with giant arms that come out of your back while simultaneously filling them with bullets, car doors and even the rare ventilation blade, take the plunge and buy The Darkness 2.

If this doesn’t appeal to an immediate, prurient interest, then wait for the inevitable price drop that will occur within the next three months.

ANDERS HOWMANNDaily Titan

The Darkness 2

A gory first-person shooter to break the Call of Duty mold

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Daily Sudoku: Wed 1-Feb-2012

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February 22, 2012

Aries (March 21-April 19) You find yourself full of vital-ity, getting more done in less time. Spend extra time moving your body outdoors, especially in the company of someone special.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) Practice makes perfect, so go over it again. Double-check the facts. Even though it seems like you’re doing it twice, it’s an improvement.

Gemini (May 21-June 21) Lively discussions ensue. Solicit an older person’s advice. They have a wider per-spective and open a new view. Take a walk to keep your motor purring.

Cancer (June 22-July 22) A secret’s itching to be shared. Others encourage you to take on a challenge. You’re con-fident, creative and motivated for love and beauty. Take action.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) You feel good, you look good and you have plenty of energy. Get out there, and do some-thing with it! Stash away any bonuses you earn. Plan to enrich your legacy.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Physical exercise works won-ders. Passions propel a project forward. The more you get to know a friend, the better you get along. Call home if you’ll be late.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) Organization can be extremely helpful. Take time to put your ideas in order and to see what you’ve been missing. Fulfill a fantasy.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) Don’t be afraid to toss your hat, to leap over fences, to climb mountains, especially with someone you love. Search out the information that makes a change.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) It’s okay to fail and make mistakes, as long as you learn from it. It’s the best way. Make a list of what you want, and go for it. Adjust trajec-tory.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Include your partner from the get go, and keep listening. Adapt to the shifting cir-cumstances with patience and persistence. Seek multiple options.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) You have extra energy to complete projects that were resisting themselves before. Fix whatever is broken, and don’t worry about it. You’re doing fine.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) Your love’s empowered, and so is your creativity. Don’t be afraid to express your feelings. Choose relaxation over stress. Embrace new opportuni-ties.

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis

FOR RELEASE JANUARY 6, 2012

ACROSS1 You might do it

after making awish

5 Equallyundesirable

10 Sitting around14 Stopped sitting

around15 “10 Things __

About You”:1999 comedy

16 Symbol ofcourage

17 *Major financialconcern

20 Already old, with“so”

21 Words before“Do I have to?”

22 *Numbers field?25 Quits28 Caring but strict

approach32 Get ready for a

concert34 Orch. section35 Noted 16-Across

portrayer36 Put away37 Some awards40 “Dracula” director

Browning41 Kid’s reward,

maybe43 __ Dhabi44 Electronic music

genre46 Certain settler’s

tract49 “It’s nobody __

business”50 *Fantasized52 Dispossess55 Japan and China

are in it59 *Misrepresent, in

a way62 “You said it!”63 “Exodus” actor64 “The __ Affair”:

Jasper Ffordenovel

65 Squabble66 Fired, as a

cartridge67 Epitome of

thinness

DOWN1 Songwriter

Jacques2 Crazy, in a Ricky

Martin song

3 Baja bears4 Lost it5 Name meaning

“beloved”6 Slowest to mix,

perhaps7 Hint for

understandingthis puzzle’sstarred answers

8 Flightcoordinators:Abbr.

9 “Gloria inExcelsis __”

10 Hostility11 Rect. bisector12 Run easily13 Massachusetts

motto opener18 Confesses19 Whip part23 Native Rwandan24 Everglades

wader25 Put away26 All, in Asti27 Graveyard shift hr.29 Promising words30 “Pop Up Video”

airer31 Subject of the

biography “TheMan Who LovedOnly Numbers”

33 Prefix with -pus

38 Retired39 Apparently do42 Insignificant

amount45 Grime fighter47 ’60s-’70s

Japanese leader

48 Make reallyuncomfortable, ina way

51 Fancy neckwear52 LAX postings53 Siren54 Big name in

furniture56 Lid trouble57 “Able was __ ...”58 Fired60 Thinking-on-

one’s-feetindicators

61 It may be left ona table

Thursday’s Puzzle SolvedBy Ki Lee 1/6/12

(c)2012 Tribune Media Services, Inc. 1/6/12

To view our online

Classifieds, visiT

dailyTiTan.Com

An integral part of most college campuses are the athletics and sports programs. However, not all student-athletes are competing in front of thousands of people, or are on national television. Some just play strictly for the love of the game.

The Student Recreation Center at Cal State Fullerton is offering students, faculty and staff the opportunity to participate in sports activities on a competitive or recreational level through the Titan Recreation Intramural Sports program. Activities like coed softball, dodgeball, flag football, men’s and women’s soccer, 5 by 5 basketball, 4 by 4 volleyball and bowling are all being offered for the spring season.

Intramural Sports Coordinator Farron Fowler says the reason this league is set up is to have fun and give students the chance to play the sports they love and have a passion for.

“Intramural sports is completely for the love of the game and the excitement that students

bring to it,” said Fowler. “Everything that we do is engineered toward having fun and enjoying ourselves.”

League registration is processed through a first-come, first-served basis. To sign up, each team must pay a fee depending on which sport they’re planning to compete in. Basketball is the most expensive at $70 per team. Softball, flag football, soccer and volleyball are all $60 per team. Rounding out the lot is dodgeball and bowling with fees of only $50 per team. For those who do not have a team, the free-agent process makes it possible to get picked up by a team.

So far there are about 300 students already signed up in the basketball and soccer leagues alone. Many students are fired up and can’t wait to get the games underway.

“This is my first time out there and I’m pretty excited,” said Kyle McCain, 23, a communications major who will be joining the 5 by 5 basketball league. “I can’t wait to get out there and play and see what the competition is like.”

Although there is no cash prize awarded to the winners of each championship, pride and bragging rights is a big incentive to a lot of these players. Losing is the last thing on their minds.

“Last year we made it to the playoffs, but we lost in the first round, so I’m hoping we win

it this time,” said John Abueg, 25, a business finance major who is participating in the 5 by 5 basketball league. “Go big or go home … I’m pretty competitive and I hate losing.”

Playing in these intramural leagues can also be a bonding experience for a lot of the players on each team. The life of a college student isn’t what most would call “laid-back,” so having some free time away from school or work is welcomed by players like McCain.

“I actually heard about the league from some of my fraternity brothers. I don’t see them a lot because we’re all busy with school and other things, so it’s a good time to be out there together,” he said.

While basketball and soccer have generated a lot of interest, Fowler hopes to see all women’s sports garner more participants. Although women do seem to be signing up for the coed sports on a consistent basis, Fowler hopes to see more women sign up to the point where they can develop their own leagues and teams with enough participation.

The goal of Titan Recreation Intramural Sports is for all athletes to play and have fun, but the experience of the program is also a priority.

“Our motto right now is to ‘expect greatness,’ so that’s what we want to provide for you and expect as a student,” Fowler said.

THE COURSEWORK TO KNOW WHAT LIES WITHIN.THE EXPERIENCE TO LET IT OUT.

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SPORTS8 February 22, 2012

Contact Us at dtsportsdesk@gmai l .com

The Cal State Fullerton men’s and women’s golf team finished in third and second place, respectively, at the 54-Hole Second Annual Folino Invitational Men’s Golf Tournament at Industry Hills Golf Course at Pacific Palms Resort Tuesday.

Host team CSUF started the final round in fourth place, shooting a 290 in the final round for a total score of 882, which propelled them to a third-place finish.

Teammates Dokota Duerr and Carey Gard led the charge, shooting a 218 total for the entire tournament.

The men’s team was one stroke shy of reaching second place from Pepperdine and three strokes away from title winners Long Beach State.The women’s team final score was 910.

They started the final round four strokes behind Gonzaga, 604 to 608, but the Bulldogs pulled away, finishing with a final score of 897.

Titan Taylor Fowler earned second place for the women’s individual title, finishing one stroke shy from first and the title.

Fowler shot 221 while title winner Tara Green from Montana shot 220.

The men will be traveling to Fresno March 5 to compete in the Lexus Classic. The women will also be playing in the Classic March 11.

MEN’S & WOMEN’S GOLFFinish Third and Second, Respectively

Brief by Michael Munoz

DTBRIEFS

There are people who, once they play the game of baseball, can’t get it out of their system. It gets in their blood, causing what is better known in some circles as baseball fever.

This leads to the inevitable symptom of becoming dedicated to the sport they love for the rest of their lives.

This affliction may help to explain why some very dedicated young men on campus have spent the

last two years getting their baseball project up and running.

In 2010, two students who had played high school baseball, junior Andy Aguirre and sophomore Bryan Malhiot, decided they wanted to find a way to continue playing the game they loved, so they began the process of forming the Cal State Fullerton baseball club.

“I started the club because I noticed, of all the clubs on campus, there had never been a baseball club,” said Aguirre.

“Other sports like rugby, lacrosse — you name it and there was a sport — but not having baseball seemed a little misleading to me because we have such a good program here, Division I wise … I figured there were another 20 guys who wanted

to play baseball here. For me, I’ve got to play baseball,” Aguirre added.

They figured that with a university of this size they could find other players who felt the same way, and locate ex-players who would want to renew their baseball-playing days by becoming part of the inaugural baseball club.

“I started by posting fliers on campus, and started with five players — then that grew to 10, then 20,” Aguirre said.

They applied for club status at the National Club Baseball Association in 2010, but were not recognized until the 2011 (good through 2012) season was half-way through. They were only able to pick up some scrimmages that first year.

Aguirre, a health science major

and the club president, and Malhiot, a criminal justice major and the club vice president, along with junior Estaban Granados and senior Ross Morrow, have been waiting two years for this weekend.

They finally got to see the fruits of their labor pay off as the CSUF baseball club took the field for its first three-game series over the holiday weekend against Pacifica College.

After two years of organizing and planning, the team was ready to play.

Unfortunately they were unable to come away with a win, leaving them 0-3 to start the season. They will be playing in the Southern Pacific South Conference this year, which includes teams from UCLA,

USC and Cal State Long Beach.“It was definitely a learning

experience. It was our first few games ... I guess we had the Friday-night jitters,” said Malhiot.

Granados, who is majoring in civil engineering and is the club administrator, said he has had a lot of fun with his new teammates.

“So far (the club) has introduced me to a bunch of guys who mean a lot to me … I made a bunch of friends — great guys,” said Granados.

Morrow would like to see them put a competitive team on the field for each game, with a goal of winning their conference.

“This year is our first year ... and if we win our regional area then we get to go and play in the World

Series tournament in Georgia,” said Morrow.

The squad will be using California High School for their home games, since both Aguirre and Malhiot played high school baseball there, and the school is letting them use the field.

The final roster has not yet been set, and the team is still looking for enthusiastic players who want to have fun.

They will be holding open tryouts Sunday.

While they were swept in the three-game series by the Pacifica Gladiators, it didn’t curb their passion for the game. They are playing for the pure enjoyment of the game, and most importantly, they had a good time while doing it.

Interest grows for inaugural baseball clubCLUB SPORTS | Baseball

MARK PAYNEDaily Titan

The CSUF baseball club’s team began its inaugural series this past weekend

Intramural sports offer fun escape

ANGEL MENDOZADaily Titan

Students get opportunity to participate in recreational sports on campus for fun and to find time away from studies