Lizzie Martinez

Senior reporter

“Every moment and every event of every man’s
life on earth plants something in his soul.”

-Thomas Merton

College is full of life-changing moments. For senior Luke Rembold, junior Andrew Webber and sophomore Yasi Ordoubadi, college has been a time for
spiritual discovery.

“It’s part of the whole ‘establishing an independent identity’ when you are away from your family for the first time,” Chaplain David Massey said. “It’s a common dynamic to strike out in a new [spiritual] direction.”

Massey said his job is to journey with the students as they explore new and old traditions. He said the journey does not often end until a person is in their mid-30s.

“It’s a natural part of life,” Massey said. “Students are asking, ‘Who am I? How do I relate to the world?’”

Spiritual investigation in college has led these three students to deepen their faith in a variety of traditions, from Christianity, to Judaism to Buddhism.

“You can do no great things, just small things with great love.”

- Mother Theresa

As a freshman, Rembold said if you told him the person he was going to become, he would never have believed it. Though he always identified himself as a Christian, he said he finally feels as if he is living the life of a true Christian.

Barefoot, as usual, and wearing a “Jesus was homeless”
T-shirt, Rembold is humble about his faith journey.

“I like to think I have changed,” he said. “It’s definitely not a one-step-and-done process. Christianity is a lifestyle.”

Rembold’s involvement with Campus Crusade for Christ, then as co-founder of Salt ‘N Light, has led him on a journey to discover what he values and how it
differs from mainstream Christianity.

Campus Crusade emphasizes finding the “lost” on campus and bringing them the word of God, but Rembold said he was uncomfortable with that mission. He said he prefers to emphasize components of Christianity such as mercy, forgiveness, social justice, compassion, caring for the poor and love.

“To me, as a Christian, that’s what Jesus did,” Rembold said. “One of my frustrations [with Christianity] is it defines itself as things [it is] not as opposed to things it is, like showing mercy and love.”

This realization did not come easily to Rembold, and he said he still struggles with being in the minority since the most vocal Christians focus on saving
the “lost.”

Rembold is passionate about social justice, building community and making
every small action count, whether it is smiling at someone or talking to a
homeless person.

After graduation, Rembold said he simply wants to help people.

“I want to show forgiveness and love, help those who have nothing and letting those things permeate my life no matter what my profession, or lack thereof, is,” Rembold said. “Regardless, it is a journey that is definitely a continual process
of questioning.”

“Contemplation is the highest and most
paradoxical form of self-realization,
attained by apparent self-annihilation.”

– Thomas Merton

From his beginnings as a political science major, Webber felt drawn toward the study of religion. He said he has always explored different elements of spirituality throughout his life, but Linfield offered him the chance to engage in the academic study of religion.

Now a religious studies major, Webber approaches Judaism with thematic questions he can explore.

“I look at every class as a different level of analysis for the same set of questions,” Webber said. “With every question you ask God, He answers with another question.”

For students seeking new spiritual journeys, there often seems to be a deliberate choice of what religion to study. However, Webber said he felt called to Judaism.

“It’s not me picking it,” he said. “It’s really important for me to have a religion or a spirituality that complements me, and that I complement. [Judaism has] helped me know myself.”

During his first Shabbott, or Sabbath, dinner at the house of an Orthodox rabbi, Webber said he immediately felt a connection with the community and the traditions, two important components of the Jewish religion. He especially felt drawn to the support system he found in searching for answers and for discovering new questions.

“What I’m doing now is immersing myself deeper and deeper in the community whenever possible,” Webber said.

This summer, Webber spent six weeks studying modern Hebrew at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Israel, on a non-Linfield affiliated study abroad program.

“The experiences I had were very meaningful, and I can’t describe them in words,” Webber said.

Converting to Judaism can take anywhere from one to six years, Webber said, and he has just begun his journey.

“Whatever relationships you have attracted in your life at this moment are precisely the ones you need in your life at this moment.  There is a hidden meaning behind all events, and this hidden meaning is serving your own evolution.”

– Deepak Chopra

Growing up in Iran, Islam dominated Ordoubadi’s life from a young age. She said her father is very religious, and she was immersed in the Muslim culture
everyday at school. As a child, she studied the Koran and learned Arabic. She rose at 5 a.m. for the first of five daily prayers. Despite the continual pressure to be Muslim, Ordoubadi said she never believed.

“Even though I studied it in the books, I never felt the presence of any god,”
she said.

Because of the closed nature of the country to other religions, Ordoubadi never had the chance to explore other faiths until she came to the United States.

While attending a Deepak Chopra speech in San Diego, Cali., with her uncle, who is Buddhist, Ordoubadi said she immediately felt called to Buddhism.

“I had to come halfway around the world to discover Buddhism, when Iran is so close to Tibet,” Ordoubadi said, smiling.

She immediately began reading Chopra’s books and exploring the faith and now considers herself a Buddhist, though her family in Iran does not know.

“You could say I am a beginner, but I am very determined,” Ordoubadi said. “In Buddhism, the emphasis is on yourself; you are in charge of your own life.”

Ordoubadi is now working with others to start a Buddhism club on campus where students can gather for meditation and discussion.

“Buddhism is not so much about practicing rituals,” Ordoubadi said. “Buddhism is about every day life.”

Compiled by Dominic Baez

Managing editor

Barack Obama

Ways to support the campaign and the Democratic party

On Campus:

The Democrats Club is just beginning its activities this year because of a late start but is still active in the elections.

Sophomore Jake Masin, president of the club, campaigns for voter registration every Friday and is involved with Get Out The Vote, a canvassing effort that also focuses on collecting voter information and trends. Also, four to five club members actively call voters at the Obama Headquarters in McMinnville.

Masin said registering to vote and staying on top of the elections are important parts of participating.

“Just make sure to be informed,” he said. “Some people didn’t even know the difference between Hillary and Obama at the end of the primaries.”

How to volunteer:

www.barackobama.com

With little time remaining, grassroots effort will be a deciding factor, so sign up now to volunteer.

Campaign for Change McMinnville Office
448 NE 3rd St.

Campaign for Change office hours are:
Monday-Thursday: 9 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Friday: 9 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Sunday: 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.

How to sign up:

Sign up on the Web site. You will be contacted as needs arise in your community.

What else you can do:

Join the My.BarackObama.com social network or use the Neighbor to Neighbor tool to reach out to voters. Visit the Vote for Change Web site to make sure you and all your friends are registered to vote.

Events in Oregon:

Voter Registration at the GREEK FESTIVAL!
Oct. 3 at 10 a.m.
Portland

Washington County Phone Bank
Oct. 3 at noon
Beaverton

Sen. Obama Persuasion Phone Bank
Oct. 3 at noon
Portland

John McCain

Ways to support the campaign and the Republican party

On Campus: 

“I’m pretty happy with what we have,” senior Josh Planton, president of the Republicans Club, said. “We have a committed group of around 10. I am hoping to get more involved, though. We are trying to broaden our reach through community service.”

Planton said he suggests students contact their particular headquarters for more information on how to become involved in activities such as
creating signs and making phone calls.

“Do it with friends the first time,” Planton said. “This will help if you don’t feel comfortable doing it by yourself.”

The Republicans Club will staff a voting registration booth at Linfield Oct. 14. 

On Oct. 10, Republican candidates from Yamhill County will talk to students in Riley Student Center, room 201, at 7:30 p.m.

How to volunteer:

www.johnmccain.com

To aid in the campaign, help recruit undecided voters by directing them to the Web site for more information.

Portland Headquarters
15350 NE Sandy Blvd, Unit D
Portland, OR 97230

Contact field representative
Kelly Stevens at
kelly@orgop.org
or call 503-752-9321

Open Monday-Saturday
9 a.m. – 9 p.m.

How to sign up:

Sign up on the Web site for more information about how to get involved.

What else you can do:

 - Recruit friends

- Register to vote

- Spread the word

- Host an event

- Attend an event

Kelley Hungerford

Copy editor

Ever wondered what an episode of the “Real World: Linfield” would be like? Always wanted to know what adventures would ensue while searching for HoHos after a campus-wide famine? Or perhaps you are looking to learn about the production aspects of movie-making or are hoping to see your script on screen? Look no further than Wildcat Productions right here on campus.
Wildcat Productions is Linfield’s student-run film production club. They are also responsible for the television series, Linfield Link.
All installments of the Link and of Wildcat Productions are written, produced and put together by students. This year, the group hopes to take WP in a new direction, sophomore club vice president Andrew Sherman said.
“We”ve been [filming], in the past, like a news show,” he said. “We”ve been working on turning it into an arts show, more of a creative outlet.”
Whether a short film or a music video, he said these outlets can be funny or serious.
Sophomore club president Sean Lemme said he loves filming comedic material most.
“Satire is a lot of fun,” he said. “When I got [to Linfield], the stuff I did was mainly trying to poke fun at having a weird roommate.”
Lemme said his favorite piece to film was a Link episode in which the roommates had a desk chair race across campus.
“It was a lot of fun to film,” he said.
“I would have to say I particularly enjoyed the short series that Sean acted in last year about roommates,” Sherman said. “There was a porn one, an existentialist crisis one.  I’d have to say those were pretty good.”
While the members do have a blast filming and producing, Lemme said this year has been something of a struggle. Only two members, Lemme and Sherman, remain on board from last year’s production team. The former club president, junior Ashley Swanson, is abroad this term and many steady members graduated.
“The club kinda fell apart in the spring [last year],” Lemme said.
However, he is confident that Swanson’s return will spark more club activity.
The Linfield Link, a series of television episodes which made up the bulk of the club’s undertakings last year, used to air on public access television. This semester, unfortunately, it has been put on hold because of scheduling conflicts within the club. Instead, they are in the beginning stage of writing a “mockumentary,” the main project for the year.
“A mockumentary is [when] you take something kind of funny and make a satirical version,” Sherman said. “We’re just in the brainstorming stage right now and haven’t really come up with a topic yet, but whatever we come up with will be entertaining, I’m sure.”
Sherman said he hopes putting together one large project as a club will be more of a hit than members filming their own, individual endeavors, as the latter have been somewhat unsuccessful in the past.
Nevertheless, the lack of the Link this term does not deter the club, Lemme said.  With about 10 consistent members, he said he hopes to show the group the ropes before getting back into any major productions.
“The whole purpose of the club is to get people involved in all aspects of the video-making process and to have a good time,” he said. “This year, since we don’t have the show, it’s a really laid-back group. If anyone is interested in learning how to do this stuff, this is the semester to do it.”
Those interested in joining do not need to have any previous experience, just a curiosity, Sherman said. They are not only looking for people attracted to video making but also literary types wanting to see their ideas on screen.
“We try to encourage people who aren’t necessarily interested in video production to come help out,” he said. “If they have a script, they can come and we can easily turn it into a video.”
To get involved with Wildcat Productions, e-mail Lemme at slemme@linfield.edu.
WP meets Mondays at 4 p.m. in Renshaw Hall 212. Episodes of the Linfield Link can be seen on the web at www.youtube.com/user/LinfieldLink.

Lizzie Martinez

Senior reporter
By age 18, Assistant Professor of Philosophy Jesus Ilundain discovered two of his greatest passions in life: philosophy and sports. Since then, he has pursued them with relentless enthusiasm, sharing his love of philosophy and cycling with Linfield students every day.
“He gets so excited about philosophy,” junior philosophy major Casey Tharp said. “He does such a good job of tying the philosophy in to its implications in real life.”
After studying philosophy during his last two years of high school in Spain, Ilundain decided to move to the United States to learn English and to study philosophy. In America, he discovered his passion for sports. 
Including cycling, swimming, tennis, medieval sword fighting and running with the bulls, Ilundain has explored a variety of sports. He relates it all back to philosophy and tries to incorporate it into his teaching.
“Philosophy gives you license to look into everything,” he said. “I’ve taught philosophy of ‘Lord of the Rings,’ of humor, of death, of sports.”
Many students may imagine philosophy as the study of arcane theories, Ilundain said it is anything but that.
“It’s not simply sitting in an ivory tower thinking,” he said.
Rather, Ilundain said he likes to relate philosophy to all matters of life, such as the Olympics, one of several topics he is researching.
Even though Ilundain chose to pursue philosophy because of the intellectual challenge and the thrill of the classroom, he knew sports would never be far from his life. In Pamplona, Spain, Ilundain grew up watching his relatives and fellow citizens run with the bulls, but said he never felt any pressure to join in.
Though foreigners flock to his hometown each year to prove their courage by running with the bulls in the famous festival of San Fermin, Ilundain said locals do not consider this a sport. The July running is the most publicized, but Ilundain said the bulls run through the streets up to eight times each year.
At 21, Ilundain participated in the running and continued for more than eight years, and he said most tourists do not realize the significance of the event.
“Foreigners come for the macho thing,” he said. “For us [locals], it is something of a personal reason.”
The challenge for each runner is to get as close as possible to the bull, without touching it, in order to try to lead it. If done right, Ilundain said, the bull will perceive you as his ÒbrotherÓ and follow you, like herd animals do.
If you are not close enough to get hurt, Ilundain said, then you have not run with the bulls. However, because of the increase in tourism, Ilundain said he has stopped running.
“There are so many people now,” he said. “There’s too many people to do it the right way.”
Though few activities seem as extreme as the annual running of the bulls, Ilundain said cycling and sword fighting are also intense sports.
During his time teaching at a community college in New Mexico, Ilundain connected with people trained in medieval renaissance sportsmanship, specifically sword fighting. Using both wooden and real swords, they learned a curriculum and studied techniques.
“I never knew people did that,” Ilundain said about discovering the sword fighting group. “I used to spend my allowance on swords when I was a little boy in Spain.”
After taking the job at Linfield, Ilundain turned back to  his passion of cycling, racing with other amateur cyclists in competitions all over the world.
His longest race was two years ago in Spain, in which he traveled 13o miles in one day. The course wound through country hills, one of Ilundain’s favorite parts of cycling. In the end, he placed 15th out of the 3oo participants. But long distances do not mean tough, Ilundain said. His toughest races have been those in which he competes with professional cyclists who race for a living.
“You hurt so bad [after the race],” Ilundain said. “In a different life, I would have loved to [be a professional cyclist].”

Though Ilundain said he will probably never give up cycling, he is now interested in learning archery or sharpshooting.
“see cycling as a lifestyle rather than a sport,” Ilundain said. “It’s how I relax.”
Although his ride to work has become fairly short since he moved into the Legacy Apartments, Ilundain said he rides anywhere from one to 1oo miles on any given day. The variety keeps cycling interesting and keeps him injury free, he said.

Brianne Ries

Assistant editor

      As autumn leaves set campus ablaze, it is clear that the days of summer bliss and reading simply for pleasure are behind us as homework and responsibilities add up.       With the “Twilight” series holding its grip on best-seller lists across the country, it is hard to think there is anything else on the shelves worth reading. Talk to professors and students in the English department, though, and you will get enough book recommendations, none of which deal with vampires, to last you the entire year. Anna Keesey

Assistant professor of English Anna Keesey said she tends to read selections recommended by her writer friends or books that were influential to her favorite writers. Keesey also said she reads a lot of nonfiction and books that are not very popular right now. “I tend not to read newly written books,” Keesey said. “I tend to read those five to 10 years later because there’s just not enough reading time in a lifetime, so I don’t want to read something that’s not worth my time.” Keesey pulled these recommendations directly from the shelves that line her office walls and tried to find ones that students would not run across in school or find easily at a bookstore. Three fiction books Keesey recommended are “So Long, See You Tomorrow” by William Maxwell, “The Fountain Overflows” by Rebecca West, a favorite of Keesey’s, and “Endless Love” by Scott Spencer. “I always recommend ["Endless Love"] to college students, because I think that it is one that maybe you need to be young to really love,” she said. Keesey also recommended various nonfiction books that were influential to her when she was young. Two of those books are “Cadillac Desert” by Marc Reisner, a book on the politics of water in the Western states, and “And the Band Played On” by Randy Shilts, a book about the AIDS epidemic. “[Shilts' book] is [one of] the [most] page-turnyist nonfiction books I’ve ever read,” Keesey said. “It’s written in a really exciting way. You get to see all the people who are involved in it from the very beginning. It’s just fascinating.”

Book recommendations:

1. The Boys of my Youth – Jo Ann Beard 2. True Grit – Charles Portis 3. Flaubert’s Parrot -Julian Barnes 4. The Mountain Lion – Jean Stafford 5. The Corrections – Jonathan Franzen

Q: What books would you take with you on a deserted island? A: Give me Moby Dick, the collected poems of Emily Dickenson, Hamlet and the Bible, and I’m good. Laura Allison

Senior Laura Allison would put “The Great Gatsby” on her list of recommendations, along with historical fiction and comic books. “I like ‘real books.’ You know, like, ‘The Great Gatsby’ or books you read in high school [that] you didn’t really get,” Allison said. “You go back to it again and you’re like, “‘Oh, this is really good.’” One title she would recommend is “The Watchman” by Alan Moore, a novel about superheroes during the Cold War era. “They are really interesting characters psychologically because theyÕre kind of screwed up, flawed characters, but they’re still heroes trying to save the world,” Allison said. When it comes to finding a good book, Allison said she goes through a bookstore, finds the ones that look interesting and adds them to a list of books she wants to read. Allison said she is drawn to books that make the reader care about the characters and have interesting prose and plot twists.

Book recommendations:

1. The Other Boleyn Girl – Philippa Gregory 2. The Watchman – Alan Moore 3. The Illustrated Man – Ray Bradbury 4. Anything by Jhumpa Lahiri  5. The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald

Q: What books would you take with you on a deserted island? A: The Other Bolelyn Girl, The Watchman, [and] The Illustrated Man. Lex Runciman

Professor of English Lex Runciman’s office, like Keesey’s, is also overflowing with books. He was prepared to recommend three books he read during the summer: “The Namesake” by Jhumpa Lahiri, “Bodies in Motion” by Thomas Lynch and “What Narcissism Means to Me” by Tony Hoagland. “Summertime reading for me falls into two categories,” Runciman said. “The first one is reading books I’m pretty sure I won’t teach, and the [second] is books that I might teach and I need to find out whether I should or could or want to.” From the humorous-yet-touching essays of Lynch, an undertaker in real life, to the contemporary account of what it is like to live, to the offbeat poetry of Hoagland, Runciman’s summer reads cover a variety of topics and tastes. How Runciman finds these books is quite simple. “I ask people like you what they’re reading,” Runciman said. Taking a tip from one of his advisees, he began reading “Anna Karenina” by Leo Tolstoy at the beginning of the summer. “I started it in June and finished it three days ago,” Runciman said. “But at some point I was liking it so much that I was rationing how much I was reading because I wanted it to still seem like summer every time I picked it up.”

Book recommendations:

1. The Namesake – Jhumpa Lahiri 2. Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy 3. Bodies in Motion – Thomas Lynch

Q: What books would you take with you on a deserted island? A: The collected poems of Elizabeth Bishop, collected [works of] Shakespeare and Moby Dick.

  Thomas Ross

Senior Thomas Ross said one of the best books he ever read is “Nothing in Sight” by Jehns Rehn. “I read it all in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down,” Ross said. “I started it in the afternoon, and I read very, very slowly, and I read it through the night.” The novel is about a German and an American soldier who end up stuck together on a buoy after blowing up each other’s vessels. “It’s a really powerful novel [and] a lot about the difference between being dead and dying,” Ross said.

Book recommendations:

1. White Noise – Don DeLillo 2. Nothing in Sight – Jens Rehn 3. The Confessions of Max Tivoli – Andrew Sean Greer 4. Timoleon Vieta Come Home: A Sentimental Journey – Dan Rhodes

Q: What books would you take with you on a deserted island? A: I’d probably take “White Noise” and “Gravity’s Rainbow” by Thomas Pinchin, books that are huge that I’d probably need to read again. “Nothing in Sight” [as] it would represent my situation very well, and a book of James Tate’s poetry.

Spice up a room simply by adding color. Despite rumors around campus, students are not allowed to paint their own rooms. Adding fabrics and tapestries to the walls or windows puts in an element of texture and makes an instant difference. Splashes of color can be added to couches or beds with pillows or blankets.

In rooms with open closets or high beds, use a curtain to hide boxes or as a quick way to clean up a mess; or add functional pieces that serve as storage and additional seating. This instantly makes a room look more put together.

Be creative: Add elements that you make yourself; embellish simple pieces, or utilize items that can be reused as something other than their intended purpose.

Alternative lighting sources are great ways to not only for additional lighting but to add elements of interest and focal points to your space.

Having pictures on the wall or in frames gives a personal touch to your space and can serve as a reminder of friends and family when exam time comes around.

Placing plants in the rooms that are most used adds a sense of hominess and can instantly uplift a gloomy mood.

Rachael Palinkas

Features editor

For many Linfield students, decorating their living space may not seem important or worthwhile, but for some, decorating is a form of self-expression and serves as a comfort when escaping to a peaceful, cozy place. Though the college puts restrictions on students and limits what they can do to their rooms, there are plenty of ways to accomplish decorating tasks without the use of prohibited items.
For seniors Jasmine Klauder, Whitney Cole, Kendall Moriarty and Rachel Logan, decorating their living space, Hewlett-Packard Park Apartment C303, is more than making it look nice; it is a way to express one’s self, which is important because so much time is spent indoors, they said. For Cole, having a decorated space works as an up-lifter in the middle of the rainy season.
The girls spent only $30 on their living room. They used items that each had previously and some things they borrowed from home to collaborate on an idea for the design.
“We shopped the clearance sections at Ross [Dress For Less],” Klauder said. “And we recycled old stuff to make it look new again.”
Klauder was the brains behind the design, but the decisions were made in cooperation with her roommates. The women gathered design inspiration from magazines and stores such as Bed Bath & Beyond and Pier 1 Imports.
Klauder’s bedroom is also stylishly decorated.
“It looks like something out of a magazine,” Moriarty said.
A useful tip the girls gave was to recycle materials and think of new, creative ways to use things. Cole, for example, took unwanted T-shirts and made pillowcases from them.
“Doing your own crafts adds so much to a room,” Klauder said. “It is about taking something that is used or a little run-down and making it look better.”

Sophomores Tasha Cooper and Stephanie Anderson had it a little easier when it came to meshing two styles into one room. They lived together in Grover Hall their freshman year and had the opportunity to learn each other’s design style.
For both girls, it is important to have a space that reflects who they are.
“It’s our home for the year.,” Anderson said. “We want some place that is welcoming and inviting for our friends. You take little pieces of things you like and then put it together to make a room that represents you.”
Cooper agrees that design makes their space feel like home.
“We wanted some place that was different from everywhere else on campus,” Cooper said.
The girls each have their own style, which is reflected on each side of the room, but comes together with interesting elements in a cohesive design.
The girls spent about $50 on bits and pieces they added to their room, such as the curtains and decorative flowers.
Everything in Elkington 215 is held up with sticky hooks nothing is tacked or nailed in.
In the dorms, it is hard to separate living space from work and dressing spaces. Anderson and Cooper had the idea of adding curtains to extend the look of the wall and to separate the sections of the room.
“Having the curtain creates layers in the room,Ó Cooper said. ÒIt makes the space we live in much more homey.”
Seniors Justin Roisom and Sam Barker think decorating a living space is important because of the instant impact it has on the feel of a room. It is, after all, their home away from home.
“It makes it be a place to live in and not just at,” Roisom said.
For the guys in Hewlett-Packard Park Apartment C102, it was not so much inspiration that guided the decorating of their room but the desire to make what they had work. Since they didnÕt plan beforehand, it took a little time to gather all the things each person held onto, to take what looked well together and then to buy items to finish it off.
Both recommend shopping at Ikea.
“It is affordable, do-it-yourself and stylish,” Roisom said.
Barker completely agrees.
“You can go around and get ideas about how you want your space to be, and then go down to the warehouse and find everything you want,” Barker said.
The guys estimated they spent no more than $40 on their living room. They found good deals and reused items from past years, such as a TV stand Barker made in high school.
Roisom and Barker said they recommend adding objects to the walls because it adds warmth to the room. Additionally, adding a simple area rug can tie a whole room together and hide carpet that is not so pleasing to the eye

Brianne Reis

Assistant editor

Colleges nationwide argue to re-open debate on drinking age

A recent movement was unleashed calling for a change of the current legal drinking age.

In late August, the Amethyst Initiative came onto the scene, petitioning for debate on the reevaluation of the national drinking age. According to its Web site, www.amethystinitiative.org, there are 130 college presidents across the U.S. who support the petition, including signatures from the presidents of Lewis & Clark University and Willamette University. It is important to note that these signatures do not necessarily represent the view of the entire institution. So where exactly does Linfield fall on the matter?

“I think it is probably unwise for Linfield to take a position on the matter,” Hansen said. “I think we would have an interesting debate on our own campus.”

No doubt it would be a debate covering issues of health and the social risks of lowering the age to 18.

“I think for a lot of people they are looking at it from the perspective that most people move out at 18,” junior Alethea Samerotte said. “That’s kind of when you are an adult, so why not be able to make your own choices?”

Janet Jones, head of the Yamhill County Prevention Program, said she believes the drinking age of 21 is fine where it is.

“Lowering the drinking age is not defensible,” Jones said. “We don’t teach those who are of age to drink responsibly.”

The Amethyst Initiative cites the incidence of binge drinking among underage students as one of the key reasons why there needs to be a reevaluation of the law.

Hansen said surveys suggest that Linfield is in the middle range of schools that experience binge drinking and that there are harmful effects on the students who do decide to binge drink.

“We have considerable data that shows students who binge drink have more academic difficulty, more physical difficulty and they encounter behavioral issues at greater rates than others,” Hansen said.

Jones said it doesn’t matter what the age is because students who are 21 still binge drink because it is legal.

Students across the country fight for smoke-free campuses

Age defines countless aspects of the American culture. At 16, we have the freedom to drive, at 18 the right to smoke, at 21 the right to consume alcohol.

Across the nation the problems of tobacco use and alcohol consumption have been at the center of college movements. Riddled in debate and controversy, these issues are fueling student and administration discussion, and there are no signs that it will slow down anytime soon.

While these issues may not be making big headlines at Linfield, discussions are happening surrounding the smoking and drinking habits of our students. For example, at Wednesday’s Alcohol and Drug Abuse and Prevention Team (ADAPT) meeting, colleges focused on the effects of secondhand smoke and colleges moving toward a smoke-free campus.

Particularly in regards to smoking, junior Alethea Samerotte said she did not realize smoking on campus was a big deal.

“I see a few people on campus [smoking], but I didn’t realize it was that bad,” Samerotte said.

According to the American Lung Association of Oregon, 24 states have colleges with smoke-free campuses, including five colleges and universities in Oregon.

Last year, a survey distributed to Linfield students and faculty found that 38 percent of the Linfield community would support a smoke-free campus, 27.9 percent would somewhat support it, 16.9 percent oppose the idea and 17.1 percent highly oppose the ban.

Anonymous comments made during the survey said that some opponents of the idea threatened to transfer schools if it became a reality.

Samerotte said during ADAPT a speaker said one-third of the students on campus have lung problems that are set off by cigarette smoke.

“It doesn’t really affect me now, but if they were to ban it, I think we would be better off,” she said.

Dean of Students Dave Hansen said while most Linfield students do not smoke, they more often than not support the rights of smokers.

“The way I read the current student reaction is that they are much more forgiving of allowing a person to smoke as long as the secondhand effects don’t spill over.” Hansen said.

Linfield’s current policy states smoking must take place 30 feet away from all buildings.

“I don’t see that ban as likely to occur in the very short term,” Hansen said.

Farmers’ Market provides an alternative market of which students should take advantage

Rachael Palinkas

Features editor

Local’s come together every week to give the community an opportunity to by fresh and locally made goods. Featured at the market are a number of different types of vendors, including local farms’ produce, handmade goods, such as soaps and lotions, preserves and honey, as well as sellers who focus primarily on food prepared to eat on-site. The McMinnville Farmers’ Market is held every Thursday from 1:30 to 6:30 p.m. starting the last week in May and running until mid-October.

Foodstuffs

Oakhill Organics is a main produce vendor at the Farmers’ Market and is set up to participate in the full 19-week period. They have gained much from their  experiences with the market, understanding that has helped to shape their business.

     Katie and Casey Vulla are the founders of Oakhill Organics and see the Farmers’ Market as more than just a marketing opportunity. By having direct interactions with their customers,  they have been able to build relationships that have often grown into friendships.

     “It’s value-added produce; it’s simple but it’s powerful,” Katie said. “The market provides the opportunity for us to have lower prices because we get to keep every dollar that we get.”

     Katie and Casey expressed that they have not really seen many Linfield students coming out to the market, but that those who do are loyal.

Homemade Goods

            Many of the booths  at the market feature goods that local families and businesses produce. Candle, Bath & Spa Co. is a staple in this area.

Owners Deborah Young and Chris Smith have been with the market for two years now. The Farmers’ Market has provided an avenue through which they have been able to modify their products in order to cater to  the needs of their now broad customer base.

   They rely on the McMinnville Farmers’ Market and other farmers’ markets as the primary way to distribute their product. They also use the Internet, catalogs and are beginning to sell in stores downtown.

On-site Chow

Haagenson’s Catering & BBQ, owned by Craig Haagenson, has been a feature food vendor for four years and has gained tremendous amounts of valuable material for the store, as well as for the market. 

“The convenience of the market is what I think most people  appreciate,” Haagenson said. “It’s about grabbing something like pulled-pork that is slowly cooked and walking down the street to get bread and veggies for dinner or even to get you through the weekend.”

For Haagenson’s, the market has helped to show the community the types of products that are available to them through its catering and to-go services. They have learned to adapt their menu at the market to cater to the environment.

Haagenson said he definitely expects to sees an increase in Linfield students  and parents at the Farmers’ Market during the last two months of the market season.

 “It has helped promote to Linfield our student discount that is [offered] on our to-go menu,” Haagenson said.