EDITOR’S DESK BLOG: MISOGYNY IN COMEDY (OR WHY RAPE JOKES AREN’T FUNNY)

Originally posted on Feb. 13 at www.lanthorn.com.

This is my first blog post as editor in chief, and while I will be updating this Editor’s Desk blog weekly to talk about the story behind the stories at GVSU, I have something more important to discuss in this inaugural post.

Like many of my fellow Lakers, I attended the Last Laker Standing semi-finals and Friday night and laughed with my friends as the 10 comedians did their admirable best trying to entertain the crowd and win their votes.

However, I noticed an alarming trend during the competition that didn’t seem to bother my classmates as much as it bothered me. At least two of the 10 comedians made jokes about rape during their sets, and three devoted time in their set to jokes about child molestation and pedophilia.

Just in case the problem with that last sentence isn’t immediately obvious (and it should be), I’ll be clearer: rape and other forms of sexual assault are not funny. Period. The end. There is no “except,” “unless” or “but” that follows that statement. Sexual assault and abuse are not, and never should be, a punch line.

When it comes to humor, I’m not one who’s easily offended. As a general rule, I like comedy that’s vulgar, boundary-pushing and inappropriate. But rape jokes are different.

The FBI defines rape as “the penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.” Are you laughing yet?

PROPOSED BILL WOULD GRANT UNDERAGE DRINKERS AMNESTY IN EMERGENCIES

GVL / Eric Coulter

Originally posted on Feb. 9 on www.lanthorn.com.

The responsibility to call 911 when someone shows signs of alcohol poisoning seems obvious, but when one or more of the people involved have been drinking underage, the situation is far from black and white.

For many students, the possibility of receiving a minor-in-possession charge is a deterrent that can delay or even completely stop them from seeking help during alcohol-related medical emergencies.

However, legislation that entered the Michigan House last month would remove the fear of consequences from the situation.

At Grand Valley State University, minors who call for assistance from the Grand Valley Police Department while inebriated do not receive minor-in-possession charges or face legal action, said Sgt. Craig Zoulek. “It’s an unwritten policy that we follow, but if people call for help on campus, whether it be an alcohol incident or narcotics, we don’t cite the parties involved,” he said.

EN ROUTE

Grand Valley Lanthorn 'Photo of the Issue' (1/26/12)

BANNING BENEFITS

Credit: michigan.gov. Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder addresses the legislature.

Institutional editorial originally posted on Jan. 19, 2012, at www.lanthorn.com.

Everyone from college students to the state government are pinching pennies these days, but some of these legislative measures take swats at some of Michigan’s most vulnerable citizens: the LGBT community.

On Dec. 22, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder signed House Bill 4770, which prohibits public employers from providing medical or fringe benefits to same-sex or domestic partners with the exception of higher-education institutions, which operate with constitutional autonomy, and members classified state civil service, who, under the constitution are responsible for setting rates of compensation and regulating all conditions of employment in the classified service.

Since the bill was passed, demonstrations (including Wednesday’s) have been held on the Lansing Capitol building steps in protest of the domestic partnership benefit ban, and the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan has filed a federal lawsuit against the ban, saying the law was unconstitutional. And they’re right, to an extent.

LAKER VIES FOR ‘KING OF THE WEB’

GVL / Samantha Butcher

Originally posted on Dec. 8, 2011, at www.lanthorn.com.

ALLENDALE, Mich. – Jon Garcia perches his video camera atop an oversized, empty container of Utz Cheese Balls, adjusting the lens as he sits at his dining room table. Finally centered in the frame, Garcia begins the long and sometimes arduous process of recording for The Minute Vlog, his YouTube channel.

The process is a familiar one for Garcia, who began recording and uploading videos to the popular website in August 2010.

“I had this idea because I’d always liked the idea of people making videos and putting them on the Internet, and this was my first summer after college,” he said. “I had a really tough summer where I couldn’t get a job for a while, I started to struggle with depression and things like that where I felt like I wasn’t at home anymore
away from school and away from all my friends. I felt like I was split between two places and I knew about vlogging and had tried my hand in it before, … but I got this idea of staying connected with people on some level.”

Garcia, a Grand Valley State University junior, is running for King of the Web in an online, user-voted contest at http://www.kingofweb.com. The contest, which awards monetary prizes between $7,500 and $100 for competitors who place in the top nine, holds elections for “King” each month. If he is ranked ninth or higher, Garcia plans to donate two-thirds of his winnings to the International Justice Mission, a nonprofit organization that fights human trafficking.

“One of the reasons I started looking into King of the Web is because I’m not that financially viable,” Garcia said. “I’m keeping up with rent, but that’s about it. There are so many more opportunities out there, and if I got the couple thousand dollars that I didn’t donate (to IJM, from winning first place), I could catch up on rent and start paying back student loans and go to some more (YouTube) conferences.”

At press time, Garcia was in 11th place with 3,892 votes, trailing the next-ranked contender by 1,200. Users must register to vote and can vote 10 times per day as well as earn bonus votes for voting multiple days in a row.

INCREASED CALLS TO FIRE DEPARTMENT CREATE PERSONAL CHALLENGES FOR ALLENDALE FIREFIGHTERS

Credit: Grand Rapids Press

Originally posted Oct. 17, 2011

Billowing black smoke clouded the dreary Allendale sky as sirens wailed and fire trucks zipped down Lake Michigan Drive on Thursday.

A team from the Allendale Fire Department unloaded into the field, unwinding their hoses as they combated the flames that threatened to devour stalks of corn. After several hours of effort, the fire was out.

The incident was one of the more than 800 fires that the AFD respond to each year. The number of incidents that the department responds to has grown in recent years as the township’s population increases. Calls to the department are up from about 700 incidents two years ago.

“As a fire department, it’s going to get busier,” said Mike Keefe, AFD fire chief. “We’re already seeing increases and it’s going to be a challenge to meet those needs in future years and make sure we’re still operating the way we are. That’s what the challenges are, and we’re going to have fun doing it.”

Chris Holmes, a firefighter and paramedic with the AFD, said calls such as Thursday’s create a rewarding but hectic lifestyle for Allendale’s 14 paid on-call firefighters.

“We live our lives the best we can normally, and when the fire pager goes off, we drop what we’re doing and go to whatever call we got, whether it be a structural fire, a medical emergency or a car accident,” Holmes said.

Keefe had one word for his firefighters’ dedication: “Awesome.”

ALLENDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT EXPLORING NEW ONLINE COURSE VENDORS

Originally written Nov. 21, 2011.

ALLENDALE, Mich. – Online courses are nothing new for Allendale public high school students, but starting Monday, the school district will switch to two new course vendors.

On Oct. 14, the Allendale Board of Education voted to switch to Plato Learning and Avanta Learning for online courses, a move away from the previous vendor, education2020. Scott MacDonald, president of the board, said the district opted to combine vendors to provide students the most comprehensive list of choices. Between Plato and Avanta, students will have the option of 130 online courses, including remedial, elective and Advanced Placement classes.

“A little bit of quality of courses (with e2020) and a lack of engagement with some of the students has made it necessary to look at some additional vendors to see if we can get more quality, more engagement with the students, etc., etc.,” MacDonald said.

All students in Allendale Middle School, Allendale High School and New Options, the township’s alternative high school, receive computers through the school.

Mark Coscarella, assistant director of the Office of Education Improvement and Innovation in the Michigan Department of Education, said that although the state does not require high schools to report the use of distance education tools like online courses, it has been a growing trend in education.

“… Lots of schools are looking for different ways to not only cut costs, but also meet the needs of their students, and online learning is one way to accomplish both of these goals,” Coscarella said.

VOTERS TO DECIDE FATE OF THE GROVE IN FEBRUARY ELECTION

GVL / Eric Coulter

Originally posted on Oct. 9, 2011, on www.lanthorn.com.

ALLENDALE, Mich. – The Allendale Township Board voted on Sept. 26 not to appeal a Grand Haven judge’s ruling to place the potential rezoning of land for student apartments in the hands of voters during a February election.

The decision is the final step in a two-year battle over development of The Grove, a $20 million construction project funded by Campus Crest Communities that would add 648 beds in 248 units to the northwest corner of Lake Michigan Drive and 48th Avenue.

Greg DeJong, a real estate agent working with Grove landowner Stuart Becker, estimated that the deal would generate $500,000 in property taxes for Allendale public schools; however, vocal opponents of the deal, including Township Trustee David Morren and owners of other apartment complexes near Grand Valley State University, say the density calculations used to approve The Grove give the complex unfair competitive advantage.

The density calculations used for The Grove were different than those used in the development of Allendale’s most recent housing additions, such as Meadows Crossing and The Village at 48west.

Glen Turek, property owner of Meadows Crossing apartments, said the housing market in Allendale is already “saturated,” with significant vacancies in most complexes.

EVANGELIST PREACHER ON CAMPUS CREATES CONTROVERSY

Originally posted on Sept. 18, 2011, on www.lanthorn.com.

GRAND PROMOTION CAUSES CONFUSION: UNCLEAR LANGUAGE LEAVES STUDENTS UNKNOWINGLY INELIGIBLE

GVL Archives

Originally posted on Sept. 29, 2011 on www.lanthorn.com.

ALLENDALE, Mich. – Unclear language that left number of seniors unknowingly ineligible for the Grand Finish grant during its promotion created confusion on campus, but Grand Valley State University officials said the grant is now available to all students who earn 90 credits within their first three years in school.

Fine print on the scholarship qualifications states that the first class of recipients must earn their 90th credit in the winter semester of their junior year. Students who had already surpassed 90 credits, including students who had taken a significant number of spring/summer classes at GVSU or tested out of courses through AP or IB exams, were not eligible since they had earned their 90th credits prior to the winter semester.

That stipulation is not a part of the qualifications for students who reached or will reach 90 credits after Winter 2011.