The reality of reality shows

I have always found reality shows to be entertaining, mostly because of the type of reality shows I was watching. When I watched Oprah, Jude Judy, Wheel of Fortune or Who's line is it anyway, I did not automatically think, “I'm watching a reality show,” I thought “wow, this is really entertaining.”

Today when I hear the phrase reality show, I think of people acting stupid, being drunk, causing unnecessary fights. Basically showing the more stupid side of our society. Shows like “Jersey Shore,” or “keeping up with the Kardashians,” are just just false images of what peoples lives are like, and to be honest, WHO CARES?

I wanted to write about a subject that I have found to be a growing problem.

It just seems like you give a producer and director a random topic, like coupons, and they'll make an outrageous reality show out of it. Add some actors, some ridiculous drama, throw some cash around to keep the actors happy and you got yourself a teenage television hit.

Oh, and television executives are cheap and think viewers are morons. Sorry to pull back the curtain and reveal this harsh truth to you, but I feel it is my journalistic duty to be honest and expose frauds whenever I see them. Pulitzer, please

Seriously, though, it’s not like any of this breaks startling new ground, but it’s still interesting for anyone who hates reality television as much as I do and wants an excuse to yell and scream about it a little. The worst one I worked on in terms of manipulation was probably a dating competition show.

That one basically just put some oversexed drunken kids in a house and let them go wild. Sometimes the producers would ask a contestant something like, “what do you think about Steve? You don’t like him?” And the contestant would say, “no, I’m not going to say that I don’t like Steve.” And the producers would ask us to cut everything except, “I don’t like Steve.”

Now, most of us know that's how shows work sometimes, but if we are so engulfed in it and find it entertaining, why would we care about it? It's funny, it doesn't deal with our own drama, and we get to see people talk about others behind their back.

One example I find humorous is the show called, “Bad Girls Club.” Basically the show is a bunch of hussy girls 21-30 years old running around in a fancy mansion, drinking, partying and fighting. Literally, that sums up the show. And like most reality shows they do the whole, “I hate her, she's dumb,” “this girl needs to grow up,” all that jazz. And then when they have a reunion with all the girls, they are some how all fine and friends and have kept in touch.

How is this possible and even remotely logical if the things they said on the show are RECORDED and put out in the public? Are they shut in some room for months while the show airs and they aren't allowed to watch?

But in all honesty, people who watch these shows are not going to think about things like this. This is why I wanted to shed some light on this topic. You can't watch something on television and find some truth to it, because without knowing it you could make it a part of your everyday life.

 I wont lie, I got addicted to watching “Bad Girls Club,” and after a while I started talking sassy and mean, more than a usually do, because I thought it was cool and I had been entertained by the same thing. That can be a bad combination for anyone.

Alcohol Abuse, a rising problem

Alcohol remains the favored substance of abuse on college campuses by far, but the abuse of prescription drugs and marijuana has increased dramatically since the mid-1990s, according to the study released today by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University.

According to a study done by USA Today, nearly half of America's 5.4 million full-time college students abuse drugs or drink alcohol on binges at least once a month, according to a new study that portrays substance and alcohol abuse as an increasingly urgent problem on campuses across the nation.

Although heavy episodic drinking in college is a major public health problem, the majority of college students do not binge drink or drink heavily. In contrast, students who binge drink three or more times in a 2-week period consume very large quantities of alcohol.

White students are more likely to use drugs and alcohol than minority students, and students at historically black colleges have much lower rates of substance abuse than other students, the study found.

The percentage of students who reported smoking marijuana heavily — at least 20 days during the past month — more than doubled, from 1.9% in 1993 to 4% in 2005.

The percentage of students who reported using illegal drugs other than marijuana, such as cocaine and heroin, in the past month jumped from 5.4% in 1993 to 8.2% in 2005.

A study done by Sober Recovery, a rehab for people with alcohol problems, stated that, “with respect to alcohol abuse in higher education, many reactive AND proactive measures have been initiated at some colleges and universities that have reduced the availability, acceptability, and irresponsibility of alcohol use on and off campus. The result: a noticeable, if not a significant reduction in alcohol-related problems manifested by students.”

Since the holidays are here, the amount of gathering together and having fun will be higher than ever, especially on New Year's Eve. There is hope that everyone will be safe during the holidays and be aware of what is going on.

The Black Curtain Society proudly to presents, "Comedy Syndicate."

Someone once said that laughter is the best medicine, and with the help of the Black Curtain Society club, laughter is guaranteed. The Black Curtain Society is a theater club at Linn-Benton Community College. The Black Curtain Society was formerly known as the Theater Club, that is until performing arts teacher Dan Stone stepped in.

The B.C.S has been working hard to keep the club going. Anyone is welcome to join and participate. The club has been working diligently to raise money for the theater department.

The club had recently put on a variety show. It involved everything from music to sketch comedy and more. The show that was performed was titled, “Comedy Syndicate.” The show was put on by the theater club members. 

This was the B.C.S.'s first comedy show they are put on for the public.

“I had never heard of the Black Curtain Society at LBCC, I knew they had a theater department but I didn't know they had a club,” said Albany resident Monica Hollings who had attended the show. “I use to do theater in high school and so I love everything about it.”

Hollings had grown up in Southern Oregon and had always had a passion for the arts.

“I have always loved improv and plays so I was very excited to hear about this,” said Hollings, “I thought it was absolutely hilarious and incredibly well put together.”

“I would say we are funnier than Mad T.V.” said Denzel Barrie, a member of the Black Curtain Society and also a performer in the show.

“We are hoping to make this a regular thing,” said Kim Willaman, another member of the club. “We want to make it a monthly event.” Willaman has been in multiple theater plays at Linn-Benton Community College and is also in a few other performing arts groups such as the Concert Choir on campus.

“We are hoping that this show helped raise awareness about our club and also raised our funds,” said Willaman.

The Comedy Syndicate took place on Saturday, November 17^th. They had a dinner available to the public for an extra price which started at 6:30pm. The show started at 7:00pm and was held at the Eagles Club in down town Albany.

Anyone that is interested, or wants to see what the drama club is about, can join. They often meet in the theater and hold weekly and/or bi-weekly meetings. For more information contact Dan Stone.

Dan Stone

Instructor Website

Email Dan Stone

Office Phone:

541-917-4566

Everyone is welcome to join Black Curtain Society, if you have a passion for drama and love being with theater groups, this club is for you.

A night of terror, FrightTown brings shivers to Portland

It's a time for spooky noises, dark alleys and scary costumes. Drapes rustle, candles flicker and the moon is high in the sky. Halloween is upon us and there are more than enough events to capture the holiday spirit. Aside from the copious amounts of candy creating sugar induced comas for all ages, there are many ways to enjoy the night. One the scariest ways is haunted houses.

The coliseum is dark inside, with few lights on, just enough to walk around and not run into anyone. There are screams of fright and enjoyment right as you enter.

People stand in groups, while zombies, vampires and face painted characters walk around, jumping at you to scare you, running after you, or just popping up behind you quietly.

People stand in lines waiting to enter the haunted houses. Anxious and scared, while hearing frightened screams from the other side. All for fun and entertainment, these haunted houses are full of fright for anyone.

Baron Von Goolo's “FrightTown” in Portland, Oregon has been named one of the best haunted houses event in Oregon. Horror culture magazine, Rue Morgue, has called FrightTown, “one of the best haunted attractions on the whole continent!”

And with three indoor haunted houses at one location for just one ticket, “FrightTown is also your best value for Halloween entertainment this year.”

“This is FrightTown's 11th year running,” said executive director, Dave Helfrey. “our all new haunt, The Contagion, drops you into the heart of a city ravaged by an unstoppable zombie plague! There's something to scare everyone at FrightTown!”

FrightTown is located in the Exhibit Hall at the Rose Quarter, on Portland’s east side between the Broadway Bridge and the Steel Bridge. FrightTown is below the Coliseum: in fact, you enter FrightTown off of the courtyard in front of the Coliseum.

WHAT:

FrightTown Portland
October 5-7, 10-14, 17-21 and 24-31
7-11 p.m. Fridays & Saturdays
7-10 p.m. All Other Nights
Tickets are $20 | All Ages 

WHERE:

Veteran’sMemorial Coliseum
1401 N Wheeler Ave
Portland, OR 97227 

“This year was my first year going,” says local resident, Jerry Range, “I'm all for zombies and everything, so before I even walked into the coliseum and saw a guy outside with a chainsaw I already knew I was going to love it.”

FrightTown is open the whole month of October. It first opened on Friday October 5,. It stays open 21 nights through Halloween. They are closed every Monday and Tuesday except for the last week of the month leading up to Halloween.

The doors open at 7pm every night, closing at 11pm on Friday & Saturday and 10pm on all other nights. For more information and a chance to win free tickets, go to frighttown.com.

While haunted houses are for fun, they are not for everyone.

“As Baron Von Goolo would say "You can pay for a babysitter tonight or a therapist tomorrow,” said Helfrey. “Haunted houses are about being scary and we are very good at what we do. While we have no age restrictions at FrightTown, the management does not feel that FrightTown is appropriate for very young children.”

“The makeup was amazing, zombies had fake blood on their faces, things would jump out at you,” said resident of Albany, Kara Baugher. “There were a few times where we would come up to a dark room around a corner and I would make someone I didn't know go in front of me.”

FrightTown offers disturbing and often risqué humor. The first haunted house, “The Contagion,” is intensely scary and graphic full of zombies and graphic scenes.

“This year we were fortunate enough to actually have one of the makeup artists from the television show Grimm, help with special effect makeup,” said Helfrey.

The Black Box features scenes of gore and mayhem. Finally, there is the Museum of Horrors. Where you discover the sewer-licious abominations that dwell within this new exhibit, “The Storm Drain of Ultimate Stank!” 

“The set up, the costumes and the makeup was absolutely amazing. I am definitely going to try and get more people to go next year,” said Range.

Helfrey said that they have had four year old kids go through our haunts and have a lot of fun, laughing and smiling. While forty year old adults have gone through and literally soiled themselves.

“This is a very subjective call and we will always rely on the judgment of the parents or guardians,” said Helfrey.

If you are ready for a night of fright and the time of your life, take a trip up to FrightTown. Where zombies are abundant, vampires are thirsty and there enough scare to last a lifetime.

Saving students money

 Saving students money

The lines stretch for miles, the wait seems endless and patience seems wavering. During the first week of each term, the Linn-BentonCommunity College Bookstore is always abundant with loud chatter and people everywhere. Students are all in line waiting to buy books and supplies for their upcoming classes. There is always help in the bookstore for students looking for books or classroom requirements.

Kayleen Justensen, a junior at LBCC, has been going to the bookstore to buy books for about three years. She talks about her process of buying books from the store.

“Typically, I print off my schedule and take it in to the bookstore and the helpful staff help me find my books.” said Justensen.

However, some students pay for books out of pocket or with financial aid, which in some cases can be difficult considering some of the book costs. Workbooks and textbooks can range from a couple to a couple hundred dollars depending on the class and the textbook.

“They change a few pages and make new editions causing the price to rise or making it hard or impossible to find online,” said Laniesse Sherman, a new student to the LBCC campus, “they also charge a huge price for an online code where you don't even get anything out of it because it is a one time use.”

The first week of a new term at the bookstore always seems the most tedious. The waiting line seems to stretch forever with students waiting to buy books. There is comfortable music being played, and you are able to stand with friends and chat, but the wait is not for everyone.

A couple students had a few ideas of how to make the bookstore line move a little faster and smoother.

“I think they should let more than just two people in a time, or just make a bigger bookstore,” said Angie Erickson-Witwicky, an attending junior at LBCC.

“Perhaps they should open a second bookstore,” said Justensen.

According to Lawrence LaJoie, the LBCC bookstore manager, the bookstore has been working hard to accommodate the needs of students dealing with prices of books and ways to save money. They are proud to announce that for Fall term, they saved the students $138,747 through 2 major initiatives:

1) Their aggressive 5% off for everybody and 10% off when they texted in LBCC to their unique number. Approximately 3,400 students took advantage of the texting discount. The discount was good on almost everything in the store, including textbooks. This saved the students over $89,000 on their course materials, supplies and more.

2) They rigorously expanded their textbook rental offerings from 25 titles last year to almost 100 titles this year. They rented over 1300 books this term, saving the students over $49,000 versus buying the books.

The employees worked hard to provide the best service possible to our students, to give them a great start to the new academic year. The 2 initiatives were done throughout all campuses.

While they will continue to provide as many rental options as possible for students going forward, it is yet to be determined whether they will continue to discount the entire store every term.

________________________

At a glance:

Lawrence LaJoie
LBCC Bookstore Manager
Linn-Benton Community College
(541) 917-4953 Office
"There's more in store, even better than before, at the Linn-Benton Bookstore"

http://www.bookstore.linnbenton.edu/lbenton/default.asp

Taking the Challenge

Taking the Challenge

There are times in life, when hope can seem a little scarce, and it feels like there is very little places to turn. Do not fear, Teen Challenge is here. The Willamette Valley Men's Center (formerly called Lebanon Men's Program) is now settled in the small community of Shedd, Oregon and is privileged to be a part of America's largest and most successful residential drug and alcohol program. They offer a faith-based Christian Discipleship Program for people who suffer from life-controlling problems such as drugs or alcoholism.

This Teen Challenge Men’s program has served the Pacific Northwest region for more than 23 years. Executive director, Ron Wenning has been helping with Teen Challenge since 1995. He began as a counselor for Teen Challenge and moved up to be executive director in November of 2006. Wenning has been working with the Lebanon Men's Program for almost 22 years now. 

“It really lights my fire,” said Wenning. “We work with students 18 years old and over recovering from drugs or alcohol.” Wenning had begun his path as a pastor in Albany and was recognized by a fellow pastor in Scio, Oregon in 1989 who had been the director of Teen challenge at the time.

It is called, “Teen Challenge” from the work of man named David  Wilkerson. Wilkerson is known as the founder of the international drug rehabilitation program that has one of the highest success rates anywhere in the world. Wilkerson had gone out on the streets of New York and got involved with teenage gangs to try and help with through the ministry to get them on a healthier path. Teen Challenge is not only located all over the United States, but can be found 68 other countries around the globe.

Residents of the program reside on site in Shedd, Oregon. They are given work tasks and work around the community. “They are able to earn passes to wonder around,” said Wenning, “but they are constantly under supervision and surveillance 24/7.” The students are provided with one on one counseling and group counseling which usually consist of 10 people. The mission of the Teen Challenge is to get people back on the right path.

The Teen Challenge program has an upcoming banquet titled, “Western Shindig.” The theme of the banquet is a western vibe. There will be chuck wagons, singing, pulled pork and tin plates just like in Western times. This banquet all goes toward Teen Challenge and help provide the help needed for the students. “We would love to have people come and check out our facilities” said Wenning. The banquet will be held on October 20, starting at 5:30pm with the banquet at 6:30pm. All festivities should be over by around 8:30pm.

“All of the residents have been hurt and have some of their hopes crushed before they get here,” said Wenning, “the greatest reward when working with the students is seeing hope in their eyes after we work with them.”

At a Glance:

________________________________________

Teen Challenge Banquet

“Western Shindig”

October 20^th, 5:30pm

________________________________________

Willamette Valley Men's Center

Ron Wenning, Executive director 

www.teenchallengeusa.com

31700 Fayetteville Drive
Shedd, OR 97377

Phone: 541-491-1002
Fax: 541-491-1005

Email: info.wvmc@teenchallengepnw.com

The LBCC choirs sings songs of innocence.

Everytime someone walks by the choir room there is a resonating sound of voices coming from the music room. The sound swells and builds and practically fills the entire balcony and filters down to the courtyard in a harmonious tone. The voice blend and melt together like that of an angel chorus from the heavens.

Usually when we hear about a choir concert we think of a very strict dress code, opera like voices and some people only dread to hear such a performance. At LBCC that is not the case at all. The choirs at LBCC performed a wide genre of music.

James Reddan is the director of multiple choirs at LBCC that include, Chamber Choir, Concert Choir and the Women's Choir. At the concert there were a couple of acapella groups that performed as well such as an all male group named Blue Light Special and an all female group named, The Sirens.

"I was very impressed with each group that performed," said Sally Beattie, a guest who attended the concert. "Each group sounded different in their own way and brought a little bit of their own flavor, I would have to say it was one of their best performances."

The 2012 winter concert was entitled, "Singing songs of innocence." The Chamber Choir and the Concert Choir both performed different styles of music including joyous Latin pieces such as "A festive sanctus," and spirituals including, "Ezekiel saw da wheel."

This year the Concert Choir did something a little different than they ever have before in a concert, they performed a ballad from the play "Candide" from the finale entitled, "Make our garden grow."

"Compared to the other pieces we sang, I would definitely say that the song, "Make our garden grow," was one of our hardest to learn and sing," said Diana Soltero, a first year choir member in the Concert Choir at LBCC. "There was a lot of blending that needed to be done and there was a lot of overlapping rhythms but it was an amazing piece."

There was an nice turn out for the concert, there was a lot of friends and family from the groups along with community members who enjoy the music program at LBCC.

"Usually each of our concerts gets sold out, so that's what we were hoping for this time," said James Reddan, "people who come to watch us just shows a lot of support."

The energy that came from both the public and the performance of each group was incredibly high all night which made for a productive evening, and everyone is prepared for brand new songs and entertainment for the spring concert.

At a glance:

________________

"Singing songs of innocence."

March 15, 2012

LBCC Choir Concert:

Concert Choir

Women's Choir

The Sirens

Blue Light Special

Chamber Choir