Feb. 26th, 12:30 pm to 1:00 pm Haverhill Campus, 1:00 pm to 1:30 pm Lawrence Campus, Free Farmer’s Market, up to 25 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables
Daily Archives: February 14, 2019
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Feb. 19th, 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm, Spring Athletic Open House, Haverhill Campus, Spurk Building (C), Lecture Hall A
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Feb. 19th, 9:30 am to 10:15 am, Help for Students with and without ADHD. Lawrence campus, El-Hefni Building (LC), Room LC301
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Feb. 18th, NECC closed in observation of President’s Day
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Feb. 14th, 4:45 pm to 8:30 pm, Valentine’s Dinner and a Movie, open to students and faculty, Haverhill campus Hartleb Tech Center (Building TC), TC-103. Free for students, RSVP on NECC website
Vet Center lends a hand
Center helps servicemen and women gain GI benefits
The NECC Veterans’ Center, located in room 214 of the main Student Center, is a valuable on-campus resource for any NECC student who has served, or is serving, in the United States military. Here veteran students can receive academic support, career and counseling services, and access to several tools that help vets navigate college life.
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“Here veteran students can receive academic support, career and counseling services, and access to several tools that help vets navigate college life.”
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The Veterans’ Center staff consists entirely of student veterans as well. John Washington, in the second week of his work-study at the Vet Center, is a 26 year military veteran who served in the Army, Navy, and Air Force. For now, the Center operates on a walk-in only basis, and Washington said he “assists vets, as they come in.”
An NECC Business Management major, Washington spends the bulk of his workday helping veteran students obtain their certificate of eligibility for their GI Bill benefits. The Montgomery and Post 9/11 GI Bills guarantee Americans who have completed their service obligation to the military a full, free four-year university education, so long as the institution is public, or is otherwise specifically sanctioned by the military. The Post 9/11 GI Bill also provides a housing allowance, so veterans can focus the majority of their energy on their education.
Kyle Shaw, currently serving in the Massachusetts Air National Guard, and enrolled in the NECC police academy program, said he would not be able to attend school without his educational benefits. On the administrative side of the Vet Center, Whitney Scofield, a Hospitality and Tourism major, and Navy veteran, works with the Veterans’ Affairs Administration in Buffalo, NY to help narrow down exactly what monetary benefits student veterans are entitled to. “There are a lot of different subsets to what veterans’ benefits could be, especially for education, as there are a lot of different chapters (specific benefit-plan selections)” and said that staff in the Vet Center are trained and well-versed in VA policy to better assist those who have served.
Trump delivers a stately address
Not once, but a few times bellows of “USA USA” echoed across the floor of Congress, at times with voices from both sides of the aisle. While this bipartisan jubilance might easily be mistaken for a conciliatory moment, the State of the Union Address was the setting of the scene for a year of campaigning and highlighted conflicts that are sure to cut at the heart of campaigns on both sides.
Such an article as this ought open with a caveat, I personally have supported the President, and still do. Now that my personal opinion and bias is stated and obvious, my analysis of the Address will be, to the best of my ability, divorced from personal political opinion. This is about how the President performed, and what I believe he is seeking to accomplish, and how this speech will impact the looming election season.
President Trump’s speech was much longer than I expected. Despite not being an exceptionally eloquent orator, the address was well written and prepared. Given the speaker, off the cuff moments were probably inevitable and certainly discernible, but not too long or frequent to be cumbersome or distracting.
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…”the State of the Union Address was the setting of the scene for a year of campaigning and highlighted conflicts that are sure to cut at the heart of campaigns on both sides. “
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The President did make several overtures of unity, cooperation and bipartisanship, though not necessarily to appeal to his opposition. Rather, I believe the President’s aim was to show both the undecided center and unconvinced or disillusioned Republicans that he is able and willing to present a more diplomatic and political figure to the American people than his Twitter feed portrays. This political positioning is President Trump looking to claim the role of the outstretched hand at the beginning of the election season. Many would consider this gesture long overdue, and even too late for more centrist Republicans, those not as entertained, perhaps, by the Twitter wars as Trump’s younger meme-making populist support. No matter if genuine or purely political, or what opinion receives this message, it is a solid perception tactic, and may do much to unite the Republicans behind a single message and candidate.
For all talk of bipartisan cooperation, Trump did not hold any punches against his far-left opposition. In no uncertain terms he declared to the Republican’s roaring approval that “America will never be a socialist country.” Consistent with strategy that served him well during 2016, the President echoed his base as he stated that he did not believe these activists and politicians would have to live with the consequences of socialist economics and open-borders policy the way the working class would. In employing the language and arguments of the layman, the president created an image of solidarity with the blue-collar voter, which is sure to be effective with a large segment of his voter base.
I have heard it many times stated that Trump is “a money President,” and he was sure to capitalize on this label by focusing intensely on economic successes of his administration thus far. In addition to the generation and return of manufacturing jobs and a recent boom in investment, Trump was sure to point out record female and minority employment, in order to turn the mainstream media narrative of his administration on its head.
The President left the issue of late term abortions to the end, a topic which has been a consistent battleground between the further contingent of both wings of the political spectrum for a long time. The President’s appeal was strongly worded and far from equally received across the aisle, leading me to speculate that topic will be a keystone subject for both sides going forward.
Astonishingly, a CBS viewer poll rated 76% viewer approval of the speech, a decisive optics victory for the Republicans, and a thunderous opening salvo of the 2020 election.
This optics win arrives amidst a storm of controversy in the Democratic camp. I don’t want to stray too far from the topic of this piece, but an aside is important to place this speech and it’s reception in context. Virginia’s political establishment is in freefall as controversies mount, potentially threatening to flip the state red once ballots are cast. Candidate Elizabeth Warren’s nagging heritage controversy is a spectre that will hang over her for the whole of the campaign, and will hamper and drive criticism of the entirety of the party should she win the DNC primary. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal is already exceedingly divisive, and may well be the crack in the ice that will cause Democratic schism.
The State of the Union Address is a powerful tool to set the agenda and parade achievement before the American voter, and President Trump delivered an effective speech that invigorated his existing support, and made a strong display of his administration’s successes and strengths to the American public at large.
The Address was well received even by mainstream media viewers.
Should the Republicans congeal around President Trump and present a common front, with a unifying message and popular platform, they will prove a fearsome opponent for an embattled and increasingly fragmented Democratic party.
How Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins set the bar for pro gamers
NECC students are embracing the world of video game competition
Video games have for a long time been a great way to create separation from reality and gain entertainment.
If you go back in the relatively short time that video games have been around, video games were meant to entertain. Shoot bad guys with your friends, solve puzzles, compete in various different ways. There was a really small group of players who aimed to take their video gaming skills to bigger stages by showing them on streaming platforms like Twitch and Youtube and competing in real-life tournaments like Esports.
These “streamers” eventually saw growth in popularity from other players watching their streams, enlarging and strengthening this community of like-minded gamers and welcoming more as more players start to idolize and find favorite streamers. Enter Tyler Blevins.
Tyler Blevins, known as “Ninja” to those inside and outside of the gaming community took the gaming community by storm, streaming a variety of games such as PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Blackout and started his gaming career by playing competitive Halo and participating in tournaments. However Ninja is most popular for playing the popular free-to-play game Fortnite Battle Royale, where one hundred players are dropped onto one huge map to battle and survive as “the storm” pins them closer and closer together until there is only one left standing. Ninja has grown a lot of his followers from teens and adults who play the popular mainstream game because of his ability to play at a high level and entertain his viewers, and his popularity has reached the Northern Essex campus.
Student Christopher Molinari, a gamer at NECC who likes Nintendo games like the Super Mario series and Splatoon, said that he actually loves Fortnite, and that “Fortnite is interesting when you see streamers play, they do different things, I don’t particularly play to win but I do like to goof around and scream out battle cries because it’s fun”. There are people who like to play competitively on campus too, which with the growing population of students who play and the growing acceptance of video games becoming mainstream, the Northern Essex Community College announced in November that a competitive Esports team will be formed this year. Mike Donovan said of the upcoming Esports team “It’s really funny but really cool at the same time… maybe you should join it Carl (Squatrito), I know you like to play competitively and you’ll have a good time destroying kids on Fortnite” Mike finds it hilarious that I can be a lot better at video games than other people, but as he may know we have an Esports team now so there is definitely an interest filled with people who love to watch people destroying other gamers in video games, thanks to streamers that give these video gamers something to idolize, or a template to follow.
Super-Bored
Record setting Super Bowl sets the record for being the dullest
On Sunday, February 3rd The New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams faced off in the 53rd annual Super Bowl. What was expected to be one of the most exciting games of the year turned out to be one of the slowest and most boring football games I’ve ever witnessed. While I am no football buff by any means, I watch it from time to time and know enough to get by, and knew enough about this game to know that I was UNINTERESTED.
If you like defense over offense I suppose you might have found this game interesting, however the twitterverse and most NECC students feel the same; it was boring. And don’t even get us started on that halftime show…
The first quarter proved to be the slowest of all with zero points on either side, and by the halftime there was only a field goal on The Patriots side for three points (despite a first missed field goal). As psychology major and NECC student Heather McGovern put it “It was long and drawn out. There were some really boring periods with not a lot happening, and the half time show didn’t really make up for it.”
It was long and drawn out. There were some really boring periods with not a lot happening.
-Heather McGovern
Which takes us into the semi-interesting at best half time show starring Maroon 5, Travis Scott, and Big Boi. There was also an appearance by Spongebob Squarepants which while many fans begged for, felt was too short. One twitter user tweeting @juddbakertv “If that was supposed to be the @SpongeBob tribute, I’m suing. #PepsiHalftimeShow #PepsiHalftime.” It also erupted a second “nipplegate” over a shirtless Adam Levine, with one NECC student Rosielis Herrera Berroa saying, “If it we compare it to what happened with Janet Jackson which wasn’t her fault, Adam Levine took his shirt off and was applauded and glorified, but Janet they banned which I feel is sexist.”
Reactions to the halftime show were mixed (if we could really say that, most have been negative). Adam Levine, front man of Maroon 5, is aware of the negative reactions, calling out his critics by posting on Instagram “When we accepted the responsibility to perform at the SBHTS, I took out my pen and just wrote. Some of the words that came to me in that moment eventually made their way onto the incredible lanterns that flew high and low tonight,” it read. “We thank the universe for this historic opportunity to play on the world’s biggest stage. We thank our fans for making our dreams possible. And we thank our critics for always pushing us to do better. One Love.”
This takes us into the third quarter of the lowest scoring Super Bowl ever. The only exciting thing to really happen in this quarter was that the Rams finally scored. Even if it was only a field goal, the Patriots couldn’t say much because that is all we scored, and the game was officially tied again. As the game dragged on into the fourth quarter, things slightly picked up. The Patriots scored the first and only touchdown of the night, and a subsequent field goal, bringing their score to a whopping 13 points.
Not everyone is as disappointed with this type of game play however, as Communications/Journalism student Carl Squatrito put it best, “This year’s Super Bowl was definitely old school. To many people, I believe it isn’t what we normally see out of the modern game, but this game was hyped up to be ‘who’s defense can step up on the biggest stage’ and while both teams kept both offenses quiet, the Patriots certainly did a better job. I personally had a blast watching it this year, from a statistical standpoint we’ve never had a Patriots defense play nearly as good on the biggest stage. We had a lot of unpopular guys become playmakers; fantastic game.”
In the end you can’t deny that the Patriots did win the Super Bowl, and 12 records were broken overall which is undeniably a feat. Some of the records broken included oldest Starting QB: Winning Team (41) by Tom Brady. Most Appearances Head Coach: (9) by Bill Belichick. Most Wins Head Coach: (6) by Bill Belichick. Oldest Winning Head Coach: (66) by Bill Belichick. Most Appearances: (11) by New England. Fewest Points: Both Teams (16). Fewest Points: Winning Team (13) by New England. Fewest Combined Touchdowns: (1).
A large congratulations goes out to the New England Patriots for winning the 53rd Super Bowl and their sixth overall Super Bowl, all with titleholder Tom Brady leading the way. Even though it was to many, rather dull… it was record breaking and a win after all. Would I rather have watched something else and seen recaps afterwards? Debatable.
Goverment shutdown spares NECC
Many in the surrounding communities were affected, students say
“We were a bit lucky,” says Alexis Fishbone, the Director of Financial Aid at Northern Essex Community College (N.E.C.C.) , regarding the recent federal government shutdown. According to Fishbone, N.E.C.C. suffered no financial damage as a result of the now-over 35-day shutdown that began last December. The shutdown began because U.S. President Donald Trump refused to sign any congressional funding bill that did not include money for his proposed southern border barrier. The shutdown did not spare all members of the Northern Essex community. According to recent research, many in the community suffered financially (and may still continue to suffer) due to the shutdown.
The luck of the college and its students was still fantastic news to Fishbone, however, as, according to her, all students receiving financial aid received all the money there were supposed to, and federal subsidies from the U.S. Department of Education were unaffected by the shutdown.
“No student was adversely impacted in terms of receiving their funds,” said Fishbone. And even though the Internal Revenue Service (the I.R.S.), the government agency that is an essential part of distributing financial aid, was closed, “(the college) notified all of the students who applied for aid for the spring semester of all the alternative documentation that they could submit to the office so that we could … get them awarded,” said Fishbone.
But while N.E.C.C. experienced only minor difficulties as a result of the shutdown, the same cannot be said for the rest of the surrounding community. About 22% of the 91 respondents of a random selection-based poll conducted from February 4 to February 5 at N.E.C.C.’s Haverhill campus said that someone they knew was negatively affected by the shutdown. Other parts of the community felt a similar effect.
Sierra Gitlin, a Newburyport political activist and former N.E.C.C. student, has provided an account of how the shutdown impacted Newburyport. According to Gitlin, Newburyport is widely recognized as the birthplace of the U.S. Coast Guard and is home to one of the Coast Guard’s major stations. Gitlin said, “They (the Coast Guard) were not getting paid, and … a lot of local businesses were offering them discounted or free meals, services, and access, and I think that was really great. A few local organizations were taking up collections, collecting gift cards for supermarkets, and Target, and Walmart, places like that, so that people could make sure they had their essentials.”
Gitlin also added that she was proud of the community for the help it offered, but also sad at how charity work had to be taken up to pay a branch of the military charged with keeping the country safe, a responsibility she stated was “a huge deal.”
The shutdown ended on January 25, according to The New York Times’s reporting, after President Trump signed a bill to reopen the federal government until February 15: the deadline by which a bipartisan funding resolution from Congress must be signed into law by Trump or, if Trump were to veto such a bill, passed by a supermajority in both chambers of Congress post-veto. If one of these scenarios does not happen by the 15th the government will shut down again, potentially plunging hundreds of thousands into even more turmoil.
But such a reality is considered unlikely by both Fishbone and Gitlin. Both expressed faith that a compromise would be reached by federal legislators by February 15, and that there would not be another shutdown.
And if another shutdown were to occur, Fishbone has a message of assurance for all members of the Northern Essex community: “Should a student feel the need to come to us because of their situation and because of the shutdown, they should feel comfortable enough … We’re here to truly support all of the students, whether there’s a shutdown or no shutdown.”
