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Super Bowl 50 preview

By: Jamal Smith 
Sports editor

JamalColor

Mark your calendars, clear your schedule and take Sunday, Feb. 9 off of work for Super Bowl 50. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m.

Whether you tune in just for the commercials or host a block party, Super Bowl mania has officially arrived. Five months and 266 NFL regular season and playoffs games are in the books and two teams remain: the Carolina Panthers and the Denver Broncos.

It has been said that defense is what wins championships, and that will certainly be true when the winner of Super Bowl 50 is crowned. According to ESPN’s defensive efficiency metric, the Denver Broncos are the NFL’s No. 1 rated defense and the Carolina Panthers are the No. 2 defense.

The main storyline for the game will most likely be about the two teams’ prolific quarterbacks, Denver’s Payton Manning and Carolina’s Cam Newton. Manning, now at the ripe, old age of 39, is at the tail end of his Hall of Fame-worthy career, and some sports analysts believe that this game will be his last.

But Payton proved his naysayers wrong in the AFC Conference Championships with a 20-18 victory against the New England Patriots.

“There’s no question, this is a sweet day. This was a sweet victory,” Manning said after winning the AFC Conference Championship. “To me, this victory sort of is a great example of what this entire season has been like. It hasn’t been easy.”

Newton, in his fifth year in the NFL, has had a break-out season, leading the Panthers to a league-best 15-1 regular season record and also winning the 2015 NFL Most Valuable Player award and Offensive Player of the Year award by the Professional Football Writers of America.

The Panthers’ regular season success doesn’t make a difference in playoffs, and yet, even in the biggest moment of his young career, Newton embraced the pressure and lead his team to a 49-15 beat down of the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC championship game.

“Yeah, we are going to the Super Bowl. We are not going just to take pictures,” said Cam Newton after the NFC Championship game. “We are trying to finish this thing off.”

It is that belief in himself and his teammates, a cockiness similar to that of Floyd “Money” Mayweather, which has given Newton and the Panthers an edge all season long.

So, who has the edge? An experienced Broncos team or the new kids on the block? According to Las Vegas sports books, which sets the betting lines for sports competitions, Carolina is favored to win the game by 3.5 points. Also, according to ESPN’s Football Power Index, which takes into account each team’s strengths and weaknesses, the Panthers have a 55.6 percent chance of winning the Vince Lombardi trophy.

Last year’s Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks had all the drama and excitement expected of the biggest game in the world. This year looks to be the same as the two best football teams go head to head in the bright lights on the biggest stage in the world.

14 Oregon mascots under scrutiny

By: Jenna Beresheim 
News Editor

AmityWarriorsColor

The Oregon Board of Education recently amended a previous ruling requiring 14 of Oregon’s public schools to pick non-Native American mascots.

Originally, all public schools with Native American mascots would have had to choose completely new, culturally-appropriate mascots by 2017.

Thursday, Jan. 21, the board approved a new amendment allowing schools to retain mascots under the condition that permission is given by one of Oregon’s nine tribes.

The original ruling, which occurred in 2012, threatened to remove state funding from schools that did not comply.

Before that, the Oregon Board of Education had spent years analyzing the state’s schools for discriminatory mascots after prompting from Native American leaders beginning in 2006.

The ruling requiring tribal consent had originally been considered in 2014, but was dismissed in a unanimous decision in May 2015.

Since then, state officials have spent time discussing the idea with each of Oregon’s nine tribes to create a middle ground where schools would be able to keep mascots while agreeing to teach students tribal histories and cultures, reported The Oregonian.

“The nine tribes don’t speak for every Native American person in Oregon or the students who have to go to these schools,” refuted Sam Sachs, the former chair of Portland’s Human Rights Commission for The Oregonian.

“The use of these names and mascots have a negative impact on students, especially their self esteem. There’s no research that says these mascots empower Native American people,” concluded Sachs.

In 2012, the list of 15 schools with Native American mascots were as follows: Amity Warriors, Banks Braves, Lebanon Warriors, Marcola Mohawk Indians, Molalla Indians, North Douglas Warriors, Oakridge Warriors, Philomath Warriors, Reedsport Braves, Rogue River Chieftains, Roseburg Indians, Scappoose Indians, Siletz Warriors, North Wasco County Eagle Indians, and Warrenton Warriors.

Nearly every mascot for these schools portrayed a Native American Brave in some shape or form, or the use of cultural symbols such as arrows and feathers.

Already a growing group of at least five Native American students plan to file a lawsuit against the Oregon Board of Education this upcoming spring, according to Sachs.

There are many conflicting thoughts in regards to the change.

“Proud to go to a game and holler, ‘Scappoose Indians!’” said Cliff Collins, a Scappoose resident for 40 years, to KATU.

“My kids went to school here, graduated here. It’s always been the Indians,” Collins continued.

On the other end of the spectrum, Barbara Bolster, who also lives in Scappoose, disagrees with Collins.

“It’s common sense in my opinion. Let’s be respectful of those people,” Bolster said to KATU.

Reyn Leno, a tribal council chair of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, will be a crucial player in making decisions for nearby school districts looking to change mascots.

“Now we’ll have the opportunity to say, ‘you change it or you get rid of it,’” Leno told KATU.

“We are native people. We’ve been here forever and hopefully we will be here forever in the time to come. We should be making these decisions,” finished Leno.

Sarah Palin discusses Trump endorsement with Wolves

By: Katrina Penaflor 
Managing Editor

Sarah Palin and her gun slinging, rapid rhyming, sweater-that looks-like it’s-made-of-needles ways are on a fast track of promotions for presidential hopeful Donald Trump.

After her recent endorsement during a speech in Ames, Iowa, Palin met with two wolves–yes, animals–to discuss why she thinks Trump should be our next president.

The wolves graciously asked me to type up the article because they are wolves and don’t understand how to work a computer.

Here is a retelling of their interview with Palin.

“I feel very comfortable with you,” said Palin, upon meeting the wolves. “You feisty-like-me animals, you soft, loving creatures, you hard workers, always the ones to lend an ear when I’ve got somethin’ to say.”

The wolves nodded in response before they asked Palin why she is supporting Trump. Or what about his campaign led her to her endorsement.

“I’ve seen through my oddly frameless eyeglasses at least 65 percent of the episodes of ‘The Apprentice,’” Palin said. “And not the regular one, the celebrity one. That was enough to convince me that this man could run our country.”

She then winked back at Trump who stood awkwardly behind her. Although, due to his stance, it may or may not have just been a cardboard cutout of him.

“We need a Commander in Chief, Chief Keef, Kiefer Sutherlund-type to take control of our country,” added Palin.

The former Alaskan governor continued to shout out acronyms that sounded oddly similar to names of drugs before she finished the interview with, “Yes, I would absolutely make an excellent Vice President alongside Mr. Trump here.”

But this final response confused the wolves because they had asked Palin where she purchased her sweater.

When they tried to ask the question again, Palin pointed her fingers like guns and said “Pew, pew,” before shaking the wolves’ paws and leaving the interview with a smile on her face.

The accuracy of these events may be skewed due to the wolves’ poor penmanship and their inability to retell events. For questions regarding this story please contact TheseAreNotRealEvents@omgmail.com

Veteran’s Center helps student vets reintegrate

By: Conner Williams 
Editor in Chief

Western’s Veteran Success Center has a new coordinator and is looking to revamp its image and purpose amongst the WOU community.

“I want to help reintegrate student veterans into society while still accommodating where they’re coming from,” said Andrew Holbert, coordinator for the department. Holbert served in the Marine Corps for four years and did a tour in Iraq in 2008 and 2009. He graduated from Corban University in Salem and became the coordinator for the veteran’s services office at WOU shortly after.

“We provide an academic setting to vets coming from different backgrounds than traditional students, as well as advising for veterans,” said Holbert as he spoke about the functions of the department.

Holbert said that he doesn’t want student veterans to have to ditch their identities as veterans during their education and reintegration into society. Cody Knight, student veteran liaison for the department, reiterated the notion of helping veterans acclimate to everyday social environments without sacrificing their backgrounds and identities. Knight served in the Army for five years and was deployed to Afghanistan in 2010 and 2011.

“I think the environment here used to be that you would come here and hide in the hole away from people before you went to school,” Knight said. “We’re trying to be more inviting to students […] If somebody wants to come and talk to us, we are more than willing to talk to people […] We don’t want to be looked at as crazy veterans that are separate from society.”

Knight noted that while the individuals at the department are not certified counselors, they want to make themselves available to have conversations with those that need to talk.

“It’s more of a veteran-to-veteran type of thing,” said Knight.

“You know that when you come here, you’re coming to an area of shared experiences,” added Holbert.

“I’m trying to be focused in on the pulse of the vets on campus,” Holbert said. “This program is trying its best to make sure that [veterans’] time here at WOU is successful.”

When asked about the recent incident in Hawaii involving the reported death of 12 Marines after two helicopters collided, Holbert and Knight spoke about the relative frequency of training accidents and how they compare to other events that affect the military community.

“While we in no way want to take away from the memory of Ty Hart and the grief his family feels, the reality is that these things do happen,” said Holbert.

He then noted that an average of 22 veterans commit suicide every day.

“There’s a lot of groups out there trying to be proactive in helping veterans,” said Holbert.

Knight noted that the widespread media attention that the incident in Hawaii received was probably due to it being reported by a civilian and the fact that it occurred stateside.

“[Training accidents] do happen and they are often less acknowledged,” said Knight. “A lot of times it has to do with poor equipment or training, or guys that haven’t slept in 36 hours.”

“The reality of it is that if a bug hits a propeller, it might throw you off to the right or something,” said Holbert about possible variables that could cause accidents to occur.

Holbert and Knight did not speak about the incident in Hawaii in an insignificant manner, but they showed concern that widespread media attention might take away from the value of the lives of other service men and women around the world that lose their lives every day.

The Veteran Success Center is located in WUC 108 on the bottom floor.
For more information, follow the department on Facebook at facebook.com/wouvets

Nintendo Prepares for an exciting 2016

By: Ashton Newton
Staff Writer

Nintendo has a big year planned for 2016. Fans have a lot to be excited for, including a new system, the NX, which is shrouded in mystery. Nintendo first officially announced the NX back in March 2015, saying that the NX is a “dedicated games platform with a brand new concept” before going silent.

Since then, rumors have begun popping up all over the Internet about NX. Rumors say that Nintendo will release a handheld in 2016, with the full console coming in 2017.

Rumors have also surfaced that the NX will be able to pair with mobile devices and PS4’s. As to what this means specifically, the general public is not sure, but there are hopes that this will be a means to share games between the devices or use them as second screens.

Fans of The Legend of Zelda have something to get excited for too, with “The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD” releasing on the WiiU March 4.

“Twilight Princess” came out in 2006 for the Gamecube and Wii, and has held a solid fan base since.

A brand new Amiibo will be releasing with “Twilight Princess HD.” Amiibos are Nintendo’s line of collectible figurines that grant bonuses when paired with their games. Amiibos feature Nintendo characters, and the one releasing alongside “Twilight Princess HD” is Wolf Link, a character from the game.

Also in 2016, Nintendo’s “Legend of Zelda WiiU” is scheduled for release. Although not much is known about the next installment of the Zelda series, a few screenshots of the new game were revealed at E3 2014.

Nintendo promises that the players will have more freedom than ever before and that they’re “rethinking the conventions of Zelda.” Fans can be on the lookout for new information soon.

Additionally, Nintendo will be releasing “Pokkèn Tournament,” “Star Fox Zero,” and the well-received PC game “Kerbal Space Program” for WiiU in the first half of 2016. As well as Mega Man creator’s releasing “Might No.9” later this year, after several production delays.

Even with lower hardware specs than the Playstation 4 and the Xbox One, Nintendo’s WiiU has remained a competitor for both systems since launch.

Nintendo’s previous President, Satoru Iwata, who passed away in July 2015, is quoted as saying “Above all, video games are meant to be just one thing: fun. Fun for everyone.”

Fun is largely Nintendo’s goal for players, and there is a lot of fun to be had, both announced and unannounced, for 2016.

Netflix doesn’t chill with 2016 release schedule

By: Ashton Newton
 Staff Writer

Netflix has become a huge player in the television industry. The US alone has 40 million Netflix subscribers, and 61% of subscribers binge watch a series every few weeks.

With so much success, it’s hard to believe that I go on Netflix after a long day and can’t find anything to watch.

Maybe I’m just picky, but luckily Netflix has a solution with an amazing lineup of shows for 2016.

Starting in February, Netflix is releasing the long awaited “Full House” reunion, “Fuller House.” The show will bring back almost all of the original cast members. Also in February, Judd Apatow’s original series “Love” will be coming out. “Love” is said to be a “down to earth look at dating” adult comedy.

March will bring season four of “House of Cards” and the second season of Marvel’s “Daredevil,” which will add The Punisher and Elektra to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

In April, “That 70’s Show” stars Ashton Kutcher and Danny Masterson will be returning for the new Netflix original “The Ranch.” Also in April, the second season of “The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” will be coming out.

Lastly, season four of “Orange is the New Black” will be released on June 17, just in time for a summer binge-watching session.

As for Netflix’s upcoming content without a definitive release date, there is a lot of content to be excited for in the second half of the year. Marvel’s third superhero will be jumping into the mix with “Luke Cage,” in which Mike Colter will be reprising his “Jessica Jones” character in the title role. “Jessica Jones” will be returning for a second season as well.

“BoJack Horseman” will be getting a second season, along with “Narcos” and “Marco Polo.”

Netflix will also be releasing a television adaptation of Lemony Snicket’s “A Series of Unfortunate Events.” Rumors have surfaced that Neil Patrick Harris will take up the role of main villain Count Olaf.

A list of codes recently surfaced that you can type into Netflix for extremely detailed categories. Some of these categories include “Soccer movies” and “Deep sea horror movies.” You can find a list of some of the codes by hopping onto netflixcodes.me, but there are hundreds to view online and even more that haven’t been found yet.

With all of these options and new ways of finding new content, Netflix users should be excited that 2016 is turning out to be a truly prolific year.

Descend into the “Darkest Dungeon”

By: Declan Hertel
Entertainment Editor

I like my games to hurt.

I have no interest in waltzing through a modern “press A to win” game. I don’t want to be told I’m great just because I sat down and pressed start. I want to be tasked with proving it.

The booming market for indie games has begun to supply me with the beat downs I crave, and one of my favorite entries in the “brutal-difficulty-as-fun” genre just got a full-release on January 19 after a very long period of early access: Red Hook Studio’s debut game, “Darkest Dungeon.”

“Darkest Dungeon” casts you as the heir to a gothic mansion (and all the dungeons and catacombs beneath it) that happens to be infested with all manner of creepy creatures. To take ownership of the house, you must recruit adventurers from all over and send them into the depths to clear out the beasties.

The game is an interesting mash-up of genres: the main meat of the gameplay comes from sending parties of adventurers into the randomly generated dungeons, and the game plays out like a standard RPG. But it also shares some similarity with sports simulation, wherein you have a roster of “players” you can outfit and upgrade to better fight the monsters below.

In addition to the physical damage your men will take, “Darkest Dungeon” is unique in presenting the psychological toll that confronting horrifying abominations bound to take on your heroes. Heroes have a meter that represents their mental health and letting the stress pile up as you adventure may just drive them insane, causing them to desert, cower, or even attack their compatriots. The small hamlet outside the mansion has all manner of amenities to help your adventurers regain their heads, for a price.

“Darkest Dungeon” is a fantastic example of subtle innovation in video games; it mashes mechanics old and brand new together with an unlikely genre combination and puts it all in a beautifully dark environment. Instead of trying to create something totally unique, they created a great game that feels familiar, yet does things no one has even tried before. I love it.

“Darkest Dungeon” can be purchased from darkestdungeon.com through the Steam platform.

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Western Oregon University in Monmouth, OR is located within the traditional homelands of the Luckiamute Band of Kalapuya. Following the Willamette Valley Treaty of 1855 (Kalapuya etc. Treaty), Kalapuya people were forcibly removed to reservations in Western Oregon. Today, living descendants of these people are a part of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Community of Oregon and the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians.

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