One last, last thing!

When one thinks of student news organizations at Ithaca College and Cornell University one thinks of the Ithacan and the Cornell Daily Sun respectively. But what many students who eagerly await the new issues of the papers every Thursday morning don’t realize is that there is a whole other world of anti-establishment student publications out there. These underground publications allow those who are experiencing college life in Ithaca to tell the news and share their views more creatively than the age-old bastions of student news that have been in place for decades. For my final Ithaculture post of the semester (sheds tear), I’ve brought you all a list of alternative student news publications to check out:

1. Imprint Magazine – Imprint is an up-and-coming online zine that has its e-board based at Ithaca College, but has staffers everywhere from Kansas to Florida. Imprint is where you need to go if you want pop culture and world events from the perspective of witty college students with lots of opinion and snappy prose styles.

2. Kitsch Magazine – Kitsch, based at Cornell University but with a burgeoning IC contingency, is a good old-fashioned glossy magazine that comes out once per semester. But the content is certainly not old-fashioned. Kitsch features prose, poetry, local stories and big ticket news items, all told by IC and Cornell kids with a knack for telling the news in an expressive and artistic fashion.

3. Buzzsaw Haircut – Buzzsaw is an Ithaca College-based alternative magazine that prides itself on its alternative-ness. It covers the kookier aspects of Ithaca College and the town of Ithaca (of which we know there’s no shortage) with playful writing and gorgeous artwork. They put out can issue every month, and never fail to inform their readers and tickle their funny-bones simultaneously.

4. 360 Degrees Magazine – 360 Degrees is a new magazine, done by Ithaca College students. The idea of the magazine is to tell stories from every angle, therefore, 360 degrees. The magazine is incredibly appealing, as each story is told from a highly personal point of view that is rarely seen in traditional news publications, and is especially never seen in the seemingly instant news of today.

5. Cake – Cake is another new magazine, put out by music enthusiasts at Ithaca College. In spite of its small budget, Cake delivers all that’s awesome in the world of independent music on a monthly basis without fail. In addition, Cake brings acts that they find buzzworthy to the Ithaca College campus.

I decided to cover independent alternative student media for my final Ithaculture post because I’m afraid that the art of creative news storytelling is dying. In this age, as previously mentioned, in which a demanding, on-the-go public needs its news now. To make a long story short, the world needs more new journalists like Tom Wolfe, because there is no better way (in my humble opinion) to commemorate incredible events on the world’s stage (or in this case, on the somewhat smaller stage of Ithaca, NY) than with a creative and beautifully-written story.

It’s been a great semester, and a great time gallivanting around Ithaca finding subjects for this blog every week. I’ll sorely miss feeling the Fringe Benefits on a weekly basis. Thanks for reading!

Shu-no heiwa (peace be with you, in Japanese),
Norah

…One last thing

I’m not quite finished yet. Remember this video from last year?

How is it that individuals could have been so enthusiastic, so rowdy over a particular person’s victory in a presidential election, and then subsequently stop paying attention to any of his policies?

Now, I’m not talking about the entire IC population here, nor am I even providing statistical evidence to prove my point. However, anecdotally speaking, I have conversed and debated with a number of students on campus about issues of various political concerns and I have to say, most of them seem to focus on specific forms of anti-Obama rhetoric (which we do see much of today, particularly in conservative media), which they render unproductive.

I wouldn’t disagree with that thought, but what about their own criticisms and admiration of Obama’s Administration? I’ve read blog posts, heard discussions, and perused Facebook statuses that attempt to show the world an opinion, but none of them seem to extend beyond superficial analysis that really tells me “I’m not authentically invested in this issue.”

Saying you don’t “understand why Obama received the Nobel Peace Prize” or why “he’s sending troops” and then ending the dialogue there does nothing for both yourself as an individual, a college student, me as a responder and reader, and the society in which we live as a whole.

I would also like to use this blog as a call to action to both myself as a participant of equally hypocritical behavior at times in my life and you as viewers. Engage in politics if you would like to discuss them and attempt to understand other perspectives. If you want to claim apathy, that’s fine, too, but remember, the personal is always political.

I don’t mean to sound preachy, if that’s how I come off, but honestly, let’s keep in mind the ways in which we have portrayed ourselves as politically active college students in times of an election and not forget that the world of politics doesn’t cease to exist after a Republican has been denied the White House.

Peace, love, and all that jazz,

Chris.

Temprorary Ithacans: A Timeline

Here at Ithaculture, we take full advantage of the never-ending stream of distinguished

guests who visit Ithaca and the Finger Lakes region each year. Here are our top ten

favorites from 2009, in nifty interactive timeline form:

Temporary Ithacans on Dipity

Fringe Benefits, In Retrospect

I’ll be honest, it’s been a slow week for Fringe Benefits-related news items, and a harried week for the Fringe Benefits author. As a result, I’m going to be shamefully uncreative and unabashedly rip off of my esteemed co-blogger’s latest wrap-up post. Here we go with a (hopefully as informative) review of my semester covering all that is weird, wonderful and entertaining about Ithaca.

What I’ve noticed most during my time blogging for Ithaculture is the community’s ability to steer clear of the trends that are plaguing the rest of the country in these tough times. Ithaca is wonderfully unlike the rest of the country in that small businesses are doing comparatively well. Faceless corporate robber barons like Wal Mart and McDonald’s are staying out of the downtown area and lingering on the outskirts of Route 13 where they belong. Stores selling their fantastically freaky wares like Jabberwockee and the House of Shalimar remain open and prosperous because Ithaca consumers like to see fellow community members do well in business ventures, and seem to be willing to pay the few extra bucks for goods that aren’t made in outsourced factories. In this way, Ithacans are far more patriotic than other regions of the country that showboat their patriotism and equate being liberal with being a self-hating American. Ithacans are contributing to their own economy, and to the American economy and to each other’s pursuits of happiness.

In short, Ithacans like to see other Ithacans do well. Whether you’re opening an authentic Austrian pastry shop or slamming opponents in a roller derby match, you can be sure that your fellow community members will cheer you on through your entire venture.

Adieu,
Norah

Ithaca, as a whole.

As we reach the end of what has been an overworked and overwhelming semester for college students, I have decided to take a brief moment this last week of classes and review what I have learned from my experience blogging about Ithaca’s liberal tendencies:

Ithaca is liberal, but there is no such thing as one form of liberal politics.

That’s it; plain and simple. No ornate language, no fancy photographs of some left-wing-driven protests. Ithaca merely manifests itself in not one particular brand of liberal politics unique only to this geographic region, but in many. Ithaca has its inhabitants who do not fall into the category of “liberal,” or may under conventional standards but choose to reject any form of labeling. The point is, however, from the DSA to the Afghanistan protests, from gay clubs to gay-phobias, Ithaca has political and cultural diversity, even if the majority of it seems to be (or at least, often is) perceived as liberal politics.

And it works for Ithaca, honestly. Ithaca, New York is a college town, a loaded title for places that seem to enjoy serving their time as liberal havens. Nevertheless because of Ithaca’s idiosyncracies and personal touch on the political spectrum, no one can say Ithaca is just “one of those liberal places.” Committing to such a description would reap Ithaca of its individual charm and qualities, the good, the bad, the ugliest of liberal confrontation. I say, let’s embrace Ithaca for what it is, and maybe criticize what it isn’t (or could be).

Overall, I’ve enjoyed this journey, and hope to continue blogging about it in the future (when time is permitted for the, as mentioned, overworked college students like myself, who is merely one among many).

Peace, love, and all that jazz,

Chris.

IC’s Story of Thanksgiving

The Sky Woman from the Haudenosaunee creation myth.

It’s that time of year once again, when the arctic winter that all Ithacans know and definitely don’t love creeps back into town and when students go home, to see their families and get their yearly dosage of tryptophan (the amino acid in turkey that makes you sleepy!). It’s Thanksgiving, an American tradition that provides Ithaca College’s hardcore socially conscious population with an opportunity to teach students, faculty and anyone cares a lesson.

On Wednesday of this week, catching all the vegetarians and vegans before they head home for tofurkey, ICES (Ithaca College Environmental Society) hosted a Thanksgiving Vegetarian Teach-In. In addition to some vegetarian holiday delicacies, a guest speaker from a new vegan restaurant in town (more on this story as it develops!) lectured on the effects of keeping a vegetarian diet on the environment. A short film all about food was also shown.

The anthropology department also got in on the unconventional Thanksgiving celebration action. Perry Ground, a storyteller and member of the Turtle Clan of the Onondaga Native American tribe, visited the campus on November 14 to share the history and beliefs of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) people. In addition to telling the Haudenosaunee creation myth, in which the world itself was begun on a turtle’s shell, he told of the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving tradition… which as you’ve probably guessed doesn’t involve stuffing oneself and watching football.

While Butterball turkey, stuffing and endless hours of TV specials are, don’t get me wrong, an essential and wonderful part of the Thanksgiving experience, I for one am glad that Ithaca College works to provide its students chances for intellectual growth on this decadent holiday!

Give thanks today and everyday!
Norah

One World. Many Voices.

In celebration of week-long festivities educating the student body at Ithaca College about the international student experience, the One World Concert on Friday, Nov. 6th served as a grand finale and beautiful reminder about not only what it means to be an international student at IC, but what, in general, it means to be an individual in this world –  a place full of rich diversity, culture, and various forms of the human spirit.

Please take some time to watch our video on the One World Concert and what it means for IC and the greater community:

Reviewing Past Mistakes: Students & Opposing Viewpoints

Just a few weeks after the visit of liberals’ all-powerful queen of left-wing politics and independent media, Arianna Huffington, the Park School announced that it’s next visitor would be Richard Lowry of the conservative news and opinion magazine, “National Review.“

Frankly, I’m surprised and impressed. Although Park, and the College in general, attempt to supply a number of diverse and interesting speakers ever year for students to listen to, enjoy, and ask questions, they rarely strain from individuals with liberal-based biases or similar ideological origins. 

Hopefully IC will be able to prove its accountability in terms of respect when it comes to listening to other perspectives by acting maturely  during Lowry’s visit. I remember hearing about Utah Valley State College  students’ outrageous response when the school opted to bring in liberal filmmaker and staunch anti-capitalist, Michael Moore to speak with students. As seen in the documentary about the situation, This Divided State, the students and community attempted to prohibit the visit, which is not only rude and disrespectful, but additionally discredits these students for not willingly listening to another perspective. These students were ridiculous and I know IC will do much better!

Even if IC students go into the presentation with their own personal perspective strongly intact and in mind, let’s hope they at least go in as open-minded as possible.   

 

Peace, love, and all that jazz,

Chris.

Cinemapolis: Let’s Learn Something

In true Ithaca fashion, there’s a non-profit independent movie theater in the center of the Commons. It’s called Cinemapolis, and it would be a crying shame to miss this oddly tucked away and conveniently located gem of subterranean entertainment.

You won’t be seeing the latest big-budget releases like 2012 and Disney’s version of A Christmas Carol. Foreign, documentaries and independent films are abound. Right now you can see Michael Moore’s latest documentary Capitalism: A Love Story or Hillary Swank’s latest apparent Oscar nomination bid Amelia, in which she portrays (you guessed it) Amelia Earhart. But on my first excursion to the recently renovated theatre, mes amis and I watched Audrey Tautou’s latest film Coco Before Chanel. I won’t bore you with my personal thoughts on the movie, but know that even though it was a little slow at parts, Audrey Tautou is still one of my favorite actresses, and I’ve found a new girl power icon in the timeless and eternally fabulous Coco Chanel.

But I adore Cinemapolis for reasons besides the obvious fantastic selection of movies and that smallish, olden day movie theater charm. There’s a series going on called Exploring the Art of Film that will be showing coveted and beautifully made films, all from different decades, that directors and screenwriters alike will look to for inspiration as long as there are movies (hopefully). The latest is Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, starring my favorite actor of all time, Jimmy Stewart. Following each screening, there is a talk by Stuart McDougall, who is a former university professor and distinguished scholar of film.

As an avid moviegoer, I’ve begun to notice that high-profile blockbusters are becoming less and less about great cinema and more and more about drawing large numbers at the box office with unnecessary gratuity and controversy without the substance. The extra $2 or so that I’d be spending to see a movie at Cinemapolis (as opposed to the painfully cookie-cutter Regal Cinemas at the mall) is going to a marvelous cause… one that promotes learning (which will never not be important!) and truly wonderful movies that are beautifully made and convey beautiful messages to their viewers.

Au revior and bon chance,
Norah

10 Cultural Gems in Ithaca

Most people don’t manage to get lost in Ithaca. The famous college town is not exactly geographically comparable to any of the other “big cities” in New York – the City, Buffalo, Syracuse, etc.

Nevertheless it is easy to avoid a truly Ithacan experience by ignoring all of the personal staples and small-town businesses and cultural establishments this “gorges” place has to offer (excuse the cliché; it really is beautiful).

Here at Ithaculture, we have provided ten cultural gems in Ithaca, NY you cannot miss – the best food, the best art, and the best experiences are all here on one handy-dandy map. Please take some time to scroll your mouse over the screen and write down a few areas of interest. We promise it will make for an exciting and unforgettable weekend!

Peace, love, and all that jazz,

Norah & Chris

View Larger Map