The primary season is well underway and the herd is being thinned by the voters and press; the voters are making their allegiances known at the polls, primaries and caucuses while the press is beginning to focus mainly on those candidates they feel have traction. On the Democratic side, three individuals have emerged, or some might say that they have been confirmed by those with Democratic political leanings, as the potential candidates for the two top spots in the executive branch. On the Republican side, while many candidates might do well in one particular state, their showing in another leads you to believe that Republicans, nationwide, are not yet speaking with a single voice about possible top ticket options.
The Independent wants to encourage all students to become active in this ongoing presidential race, and in the selection of political leaders in general. Discuss the issues, choose a side, and vote your conscience. Your own lives, and those of your peers over in the Middle East, might very well depend on your being knowledgeable, responsible citizens and voting in a manner that shows you have investigated the truth behind the politics. Do not take the word of a single source. Do not simply listen to the comments of a particular talking head, whether that person is in the media or your workplace or your school or your neighborhood or your home. Consider it your first duty, if you have not yet done so, to go out and register to vote immediately. Correction
In the Jan 8, 2008 issue, the Independent reported in an article entitled Textbook stress that Dr. Maria Moraites would be teaching History of American Cinema in the Spring 2008 semester and would use Film History by Bordwell and Thompson as a textbook. In fact, Dr. Maria Moraites is teaching History of American Cinema II in the Spring 2008 semester and is using a new textbook called American Film by Jon Lewis that retails at Beck’s Bookstore for $59.95, according to a Beck’s employee. The Independent regrets any confusion caused by this error.It should be noted when determining Buy Back prices, Beck’s Bookstore uses three sources that are updated monthly; The Follet Blue Book, and guides from the Missouri Book Company and the Nebraska Book Company. The aforementioned Beck’s employee stated that the Buy Back price of $27 on Film History by Bordwell and Thompson is good through Jan. 27 after which the updated catalogs might require an adjustment in that figure.
It should be further noted that the Spring 2008 NEIU course catalog was published in mid-October 2007 and that Beck’s Bookstore’s Textbook Adoption Form, the form filled out by departmental instructors to inform Beck’s which books will be in use for a particular semester, included an Oct. 21 requested deadline for when the instructors and departments needed to inform Beck’s of textbook choices. According to the same Beck’s employee, who wished to remain anonymous, fewer than fifty percent of those choices were available to Beck’s by the Oct. 21 deadline. The Beck’s employee acknowledged that the hiring schedules of instructors and numerous courses with To Be Announced (TBA) instructors likely has a huge affect on these deadline issues, along with the need to know if some courses will fill up enough to warrant not being cut from the catalog after publication. That same Textbook Adoption Form includes a March 1, 2008 requested deadline for the Summer 2008 programs being offered.
Weight Update
Thanks go out to all who have sent emails and greeted the Cutting the fat editorial with personal words of encouragement. Since early December, the scale has seen a drop in weight from 265 to below 245. The switch to zero calorie sodas and increased physical activity has been doing the bulk of the job, pun intended.
The Final Word
It has been a remarkable couple of months and my time as Editor-in-Chief comes to a close. though I’ll still be around as a writer. I believe things are now back on track, membership is up, many problems fixed, and it is time to step aside for others to carry the water. My advice to the future leaders? Keep deadlines, be active at meetings and have fun!