Thursday, January 6, 2011

Vol. 45 Issue No. 11

Bright Colors, Gray Zone

The story of an unregulated designer drug, p. 10
 Public Discourse
STAFF
Editors-in-Chief
Public Discourse
Jenny Cain
Arianna Puopolo Does the legality of a drug affect your decision to use it? Why or why not?
Managing Editors Compiled by Rosanna van Straten & Prescott Watson
Julia Reis
Alejandro Trejo

Copy
Melinda Széll, chief
Molly Kossoff
Rachel Singer

Production
Tess Goodwin, design director
Emily Chisholm
Hilli Ciavarello
Samved Sangameswara

Campus News
Arianna Puopolo, editor
Julie Eng, editor
Rosela Arce
Rosa Castañeda
“No, it doesn’t, because I think the decision “Yes, I guess so, because it’s illegal. But I
Elaine Ejigu to use a drug comes from a deeper place than wouldn’t do drugs either way, because they are
Laurel Fujii society’s perception of that said drug.” bad for you.”
Kara Foran

City News
JESSY MANUEL KAREN BOBIER
Blair Stenvick, editor THIRD-YEAR, PORTER THIRD-YEAR, COLLEGE NINE
Mikaela Todd, editor ECONOMICS MARINE BIOLOGY
Chelsea Hawkins
Stephanie Meade
Michael Mott
Nikki Pritchard

Sports
Joey Bien-Kahn, editor
Elizabeth Arakelian
Sasha Yovanovich

Arts and Entertainment

Asa Hess-Matsumoto, editor
Gareth Rees-White
Rosanna van Straten

Politics and Culture

Jenny Cain, editor
Pearl Perez
Maja Vojnovic
“It never has affected my decision in the past. “No, because whether or not the drug is illegal
Web Hypothetically, if you’re smart about it, you’re it’s still up to me. It’s not like they are unavail-
Timothy Lindvall II, developer not going to need the law to keep you in able because of their illegality.”
check.”
Photo/Illustration
Morgan Grana, editor
Isaac Miller, editor RACHEL FORMAN CHARLIE KIM
Matt Boblet FOURTH-YEAR, STEVENSON THIRD-YEAR, COLLEGE NINE
Rachel Edelstein FILM BIOCHEMISTRY
Salvador Ingram
Muriel Gordon
Louise Leong
Kyan Mahzouf
Bela Messex About Us Contact
Nick Paris
Molly Solomon
Kristian Talley
City on a Hill Press is produced by and for UCSC students. General editorial Send letters to
Ryan Tuttle Our primary goal is to report and analyze issues affecting the (831) 459-2430 City on a Hill Press
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cityonahillpress.com | 3
Table of Contents

P. 5 A MAJOR PROBLEM:
AMERICAN STUDIES
SUSPENDED
By Rosa Castañeda

P. 7 SANTA CRUZ WRAPPED

UP IN PLASTIC BAG DEBATE
By Nikki Pritchard

P. 10 DELVING INTO
THE MURKY WORLD
OF 2C-I
By Rosanna van Straten
P. 13 NEW GOVERNOR
TACKLES OLD PROBLEMS
By Mikaela Todd

P. 14 ARTISTS’ WORK SPEAKS:

“THIS IS SANTA CRUZ”

Table of Contents
By Asa Hess-Matsumoto

P. 16 THROUGH OUR
LENS
By Staff
P. 18 WHAT “SARAH PALIN’S
ALASKA” SAYS ABOUT
POLITICS
By Blair Stenvick
&
LETTER TO THE EDITORS

P. 19 EDITORIALS: SENATOR
TURNS GRATEFUL DEAD
ARCHIVE INTO DIRTY
POLITICS
&
UNIVERSITY EXECUTIVES’
CHOICES DEFINED BY GREED

P. 20 SLUG COMICS
By Bela Messex
Upper illustration by Rachel Edelstein/Lower photo by Nick Paris
&
WHO THE HELL ASKED YOU?!
Compiled by Rosela Arce
& Nick Paris

COVER ART BY
RACHEL EDELSTEIN
4 | Thursday, January 6, 2011
 Campus

American Studies Eliminated

Department faculty votes to suspend admission to the major
By Rosa Castañeda
Campus Reporter

The American studies faculty has voted

to suspend admission to the American
studies major as of July 1 this year.
Since the 1970s, the American studies
major has given students an interdisci-
plinary and historical context in which to
study the United States. It allows students
to study the diversity within its political,
social and cultural institutions. The de-
partment’s mission is to prepare students
to think critically, be effective writers and
responsible citizens.
The faculty voted to recommend to
the academic senate that the program be
suspended for one or two years. This is
“not a cancellation” of the program, said
vice provost and dean of undergraduate
education Bill Ladusaw.
Declared and proposed American
studies majors should not have any dif-
ficulty completing their degrees, said Eric
Porter, professor and head of the depart-
ment, in an e-mail to students affiliated
with the department.
The academic senate committee on ed-
ucational policy, which has authority over
all undergraduate matters, will decide
whether or not to cancel the program.
There are currently around 125 de-
clared American studies majors. In the
2008–2009 academic year, 36 students
graduated with degrees in American
studies.
The feminist studies and linguis-
tics departments, which are also in the
humanities division, also granted around
30 to 60 degrees in the 2008–2009 school
year. In the same academic year, psychol-
ogy granted 422 degrees. The molecular
engineering department granted three.
Currently the American studies
department has only five faculty mem-
bers. Literature, the largest department in
humanities, currently has around 40 fac-
ulty members. The linguistics department
and language studies program has around
11, philosophy has seven and feminist
studies six.
The limited number of faculty mem-
bers is the primary reason for suspending
the program, Ladusaw said. But because
other departments are already stretched
thin, the American studies department
cannot count on them to provide neces-
sary professors to maintain the major.
Hiring new faculty is not an option,
because the process is very slow, Ladusaw
said.
“The wise thing to do is to take a time-
out, [rather] than bring more students in
than we can serve,” he said.
Porter, the head of the American stud-
ies department, assured students who
received the e-mail that students currently
Sal Ingram
THE AMERICAN STUDIES major will be suspended in July this year. Students who have already proposed or
declared the major will be able to complete their degree, but the major will be closed to new applicants.
declared or proposed in the major will be
able to complete their major and obtain
their degree in “a timely fashion.” He ad-
vised proposed American studies majors
to take the courses required to declare
their major by spring quarter. Courses
such as Introduction to American Studies
will be offered for the last time this spring.
Fourth-year American studies and
psychology major Elena Brown said she
is unhappy with the murky fate of the
American studies department. 
“It sucks, and I’m upset about it,”
Brown said. “It’s really frustrating. They’ve
already cut community studies. Humani-
ties are just not important here, appar-
ently — where you learn to think critically
about big issues like multiculturalism and
diversity.  American studies is the closest
thing to ethnic studies, and now it’s being
targeted.” 
The decision to suspend the un-
dergraduate major will affect graduate
students as well.
For Adam Reed, second-year gradu-
ate student instructor and history of
consciousness doctoral candidate, the
dissolution of the American studies major
means that finding work as a teaching as-
sistant or graduate student instructor will
be more difficult.
“American studies has been a place
for history of consciousness [graduate]
students to get TA-ships, and we’re get-
ting incredibly fucked,” Reed said. “So
Continued on p. 6
cityonahillpress.com | 5
Campus

American Studies Major Put on Hold

Continued from p. 5
if American studies is gone, there are not going to be any other
programs for students to TA.”
Reed’s graduate focus on race in the United States makes him
the perfect candidate for a TA in American studies, but not for
other departments. He said eliminating the American studies
department would mean the loss of valuable academic research
and resources. 
“We’re pretty much closing down a whole important field
of knowledge that students are really interested in and is really
important,” Reed said. “And it’s just going to be gone.”
Magaly Monroy, fourth-year American studies major, said
that the suspension sends a very discouraging message about
what kinds of programs the university values.
“It makes me feel that the university is telling me that what I
want to be learning is not as important as either math or science
majors,” Monroy said.
Brown said one of the key ideas of public education is sup-
posed to be that all students should be able to choose to study
any discipline they are passionate about.
“That’s the beauty of going to public university — the diver-
sity between disciplines and people — and it’s becoming less
and less diverse,” Brown said. “It’s really frustrating, because I
don’t think students care.”
An informational meeting will be held on Monday in Hu-
manities 1, Room 202. American studies students will have the
opportunity to discuss further plans for the major and will be Sal Ingram
given information about how to proceed. STUDENTS ATTEND the first
Ladusaw said that the two main goals of his office are to day of an American studies class
serve the current students and to engage in active conversa- on Chicano and Latino culture.
tion on how to sustain the American studies program in The major will be suspended at
the future. the end of the year.

6 | Thursday, January 6, 2011


City Council Considers
Ban on Plastic Bags
Newly elected council members support
proposed policy change, anticipate obstacles
By Nikki Pritchard
City Reporter
The city and county of Santa
Cruz are grappling with a major
policy change intended to cur-
tail damage to the environment
and preserve the beauty and
health of local beaches.
The policy would ban single-
use plastic bags. In Sept. 2010,
the Santa Cruz City Council
moved to conduct research on
the environmental impact of
the proposed ban on single-use
plastic bags.
If enacted, the ban would
prohibit the use of plastic bags.
A 10-cent fee on paper bags is
part of the proposal.
Since plastic bags often find
their way to the oceans, many
consider the policy essential for
the preservation of the Monterey
Bay.
The Santa Cruz County
Board of Supervisors reviewed
the proposed ordinance in an
April 2010 meeting. AB 1998, a
comparable measure, failed on
the state level in August.
The magnitude of environ-
mental damage due to plastics
has caught the attention of many
governing bodies. However,
newly elected city council mem-
ber and UCSC alumna Hilary
Bryant said the policy faces
obstacles.
“In the past, the ban has
failed not because of the lack of
broad-based popular support
but because of strong lobbying
on the state level,” Bryant said.
Of those opposed to the
bill, the American Chemistry
Council garnered the public’s
attention with radio and televi-
sion ads against the state ban.
A Virginia-based company,
the ACC represents plastic bag
manufacturers, including Exx-
onMobil.
All three recently elected city
THE PLASTIC BAGS people use to line their garbage cans,
hold their dogs’ waste and litter the ground everywhere might
soon be banned in Santa Cruz County.
council members support the
ban, saying they would support
it on a statewide level as well.
City council-member David
Terrazas said Santa Cruz is
obligated to deal with the plastic
problem.
“As a coastal community, we
have a responsibility to find a
solution,” he said.
Because statewide Proposi-
tion 26 passed, the ordinance
must be revised or passed with
two-thirds of a local vote. City
council member Lynn Robinson
said a statewide measure would
be beneficial. However, she fors-
ees potential problems with the
policy language in its compli-
ance with Proposition 26.
“Local municipalities can’t af-
ford to get sued,” Robinson said.
“Before you put a policy forward
you need to make sure it works.”
Bryant said a statewide
measure would make the policy
more successful.
“A statewide consistent effort
would have a larger impact and
would be easier to implement
because of its uniformity,” she
said.
Some countries and mu-
nicipalities have enacted similar
policies already. South Africa,
Ireland and China have imple-
mented fees or bans on plastic
bags. While no U.S. state has
passed a ban, the municipali-
cityonahillpress.com | 7
City
Nick Paris
ties of San Francisco, Palo Alto
and Malibu have passed such
ordinances.
Opponents of the ban point
to economic reasons. Busi-
nesses will be affected by the
demand for alternative methods
of transporting their products.
Taquerias, Chinese take-out res-
taurants and supermarkets are
among those affected. Council
member Robinson said this is a
major difficulty with the policy.
“The biggest challenge is how
it does affect the businesses,”
she said. “People want to do the
right thing, but you have to do
it in a way that doesn’t make it
more difficult for the small busi-
nesses to do the work they need
to do.”
In Santa Cruz, some vendors
have already switched from plas-
tic to paper. New Leaf Commu-
nity Market, for example, only
provides paper bags.
They encourage customers to
bring in reusable bags by donat-
ing to local sustainable organiza-
tions with each bag filled. Coun-
cil member Bryant supports
such community efforts.
“I would be in favor of bans
on the use of plastic bags to be
voluntarily implemented by
local residents and businesses
regardless of when or if a state
or local legislative ban is passed,”
she said.
8 | Thursday, January 6, 2011
cityonahillpress.com | 9
Feature

Who Said ‘Lucy’ Could

Be the Only Girl with
Kaleidoscope Eyes?
By Rosanna van Straten Taking a trip down the lane of
Arts and Entertainment Reporter
Ilustrations by Rachel Edelstein ‘new-wave’ designer drug 2C-I

H
e sits relaxed in his foldable chair in a tropical spot in Mexico. Lines of palm trees decorate the
white sand beach behind him and he is wearing a blouse and linen pants, obviously appropriate
attire for such a place and time. Calm and composed, and not at all looking the way an older
man who has “guinea-pigged” over 230 psychoactive drugs is expected to look, Alexander Shulgin is
interviewed by Luc Sala, a Dutch author that does most of his research on psychedelic drugs.
“You have to realize what I’m searching for, which is not for altering consciousness, or been made illegal. However, no deaths have been
for having fun or for enjoying this or for discovering that,” Shulgin said. “I’m looking for reported.
the tools that can be used for studying the mind and other people then will use the tools in In order for 2C-I to be banned, it would have to
finding out the aspects of the mental process and how it ties to the brain.” meet certain specific requirements, McEnry said.
Psychedelic drugs and Alexander Shulgin. It’s nearly impossible to refer to one without “Based on my research, it appears that for
the other. Known as “the godfather of ecstasy,” Shulgin popularized MDMA and created, or prosecution under the act the key would be ‘intent
as he calls it, “synthesized,” over 230 psychoactive compounds. 2C-I is one of them. for human consumption’,” McEnry said. “This can
Users doing their own “research” — through experimentation with these drugs — are be proven in a variety of ways, including the way it
responsible for the relative legal ambiguity of 2C-I. is sold, methods of marketing and representations
The limited laws that pertain to 2C-I, the ease of accessibility through online purchase, made by the seller or provider of the substance.”
and the relatively little history of the drug create a legal gray area that makes “new-wave UCSC sociology chair Craig Reinerman, who
psychedelics” — well — trippy. focuses his research in drugs and society, said psy-
2C-I, known to chemists as 2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodophenethylamine, and to Alexander chedelics are difficult to analyze. The easiest way to
Shulgin as one of his “babies,” is slowly breaking out of its “underground shell” and making describe them, he said, is as “the technology of the
its way into the drug world. Not just the medical and scientific drug world, but a world of self,” a term coined by Michel Foucault. Foucault
psychedelics that is classified as “designer drugs.” was a French sociologist and philosopher fascinated
Mescaline, the principle active agent in peyote, was the first known psychedelic. It was by the human mind.
used for thousands of years among Native American tribes, ritualistically and medicinally. Reinerman said that people viewed psychedelic
Indigenous tribes all over the world called it the “sacred medicine,” and used it to combat drugs through the lens of the cultural context in
spiritual and physical battles. However, mescaline was not synthesized as a psychedelic which they were introduced.
drug until 1919 and did not emerge until the 1960s when experimentation with psychedel- “LSD was a new drug, introduced at a particu-
ics became prevalent. lar moment of social upheaval, rebellion and so it
Mescaline belongs to a family of compounds known as “phenethylamines,” which became associated with a feared group, which is
includes the 2C family and more well-known drugs like MDMA, MDA, and amphetamine. the same for all other drug scares and drug wars,”
Phenethylamines are structurally close to dopamine, which is naturally occurring in the Reinerman said.
brain, and is involved with the sensing of pleasure and “reward.” This description also expresses the fears that
2C-I belongs to a family of 29 “2C” compounds, which include the more notable 2C-B, have become apparent due to the popularization of
2C-E and 2C-T-7. These are designated Schedule I drugs, or “dangerous with a high abuse designer drugs.
potential and no known or accepted medicinal applications,” according to the Food and “[Users were] people who were questioning basic
Drug Administration. American values. These were people who were
Designer drugs, as defined by Donald Cooper from the Drug Enforcement Association, protesting against American’s foreign policy.
are often drugs that are “designed” to get around existing drug laws by modifying or These were people who were attacking capi-
tweaking the molecular structures of already established illegal drugs, or finding an talism and the corporate order,” Reiner-
entirely different chemical structure that produces a similar effect to an illegal recreational man said. “These were not just seen
drug. Between the late 1990s and the early 2000s, such substances were sold as “research as misguided victims who became
chemicals.” addicted to something.”
2C-I falls into a gray zone. Special agent Casey McEnry from the San Francisco field Luc Sala, the Dutch author
division of the DEA, explains the drug’s ambiguous legal situation. fascinated with psychedel-
“2C-I is currently not scheduled under the Controlled Substance Act,” McEnry said. ics, asked the famous
“However, if it is determined to be structurally similar to 2C-B, which is a Schedule I drug designer Alex-
controlled substance, it could potentially be prosecuted under the Controlled Substance ander Shulgin how
Analogue Act.” his fascination
If 2C-I were to become a Schedule I drug, it would mean that it is not considered le- with psychedel-
gitimate for medicinal use or human consumption. Other drugs that fall into this category ics started. He
include marijuana, heroin and mescaline. described
In several countries in Europe, such as England, Germany and France, 2C-I has already his first-ever

10 | Thursday, January 6, 2011


experience with “that other world.”
“I suddenly found myself in an extraor-
dinary, physical world around me, visual,
sensory world of color, of interpretation,
of motion, of form, of shape,” Shulgin said.
“The drug allowed me to realize, express,
to appreciate. It was there all along and
I was totally blind to it. It catalyzed the
opening of my own viewing, and that
caught my fantasy.”
Often used recreationally, 2C-I is an
overtly LSD-like psychedelic, tending to
have more visual and intellectual effects,
users say.
Hana Lurie, a fourth-year psychology
student at UC Santa Cruz, experienced the
effects that Shulgin described when she
first experimented with 2C-I. She was with
a close friend who was more experienced
in the use of psychedelic drugs the first
time she tried the drug. She had not tried
any psychedelic drugs before.
Lurie adjusts herself in her chair, with a
pensive look in her eyes. Her face becomes
serious as she starts talking about the trip.
“The first thing I noticed was that I
could feel my breathing … I’m trying to
find a word … It was much more notice-
able,” she says. “It felt good to breathe — I
could feel the oxygen floating through my
lungs and pumping through my body […]
It came on very slowly, and I was still re-
ally aware and functional.”
“It is difficult to distinguish between a
university researcher and some kid who
is looking for a fix.”
— Greg Smith*, owner of an online
company that sells research chemicals
Illustration by Rachel Edelstein
Feature
Lurie struggles to find the right words Lurie said she was never worried about to keep his name and the name of his com-
to further describe her experience. She the legality of using the drug, trusting her pany anonymous for security.
pauses and hesitates, mumbling a bit. After friend at the time — he had purchased it Smith said that although distinguishing
a few moments of silence, she takes a big online. Later, Lurie purchased it herself between research and recreation use is dif-
gulp of her coffee, laughs and continues. together with a friend. Cost-wise, Lurie ficult, his company regulates the purchase
“God, it’s so hard to describe that feel- said it is an “investment” but definitely not of 2C-I and other designer drugs based on
ing, it’s so difficult to describe psychedelic out of reach for her student budget. certain criteria customers must meet.
drugs,” she said. “Everything I touched “I wasn’t worried about getting in “It would be naive to think there aren’t
and felt would shoot through every cell in trouble, but I was absolutely shocked people who use the products we sell for
my body … It’s really about how easy it illicit purposes,” Smith said. “However, we
hard to articulate.” “I suddenly found myself was for us to pur- take every precaution we can in preventing
It is strange to sit
in the coffee shop
in an extraordinary world, chase, ” Lurie said.
“I was somehow
the chemicals from being used in an illicit
manner. If we’re provided with a name
where we are sitting, physical world around expecting the which matches one of our customers, and
talking about another
world of conscious-
me, visual, sensory world website owners
to do some sort
we’re told they’re using the product illic-
itly, the account is immediately banned.”
ness. Life is so normal of color, of interpretation, of check, a check However, he said, the website is pro-
here while students
study and baristas
of motion, of form, of that we were
actually using
tected.
“We also don’t allow our products pages
serve up lattes behind shape.” it for research to be indexed by search engines to try and
the counter. Lurie is
quiet. Her eyes light
— Alexander Shulgin, purposes and not
recreationally or
prevent individuals who may be looking
for chemicals for illicit purposes from
up when the back- the “godfather” of ecstasy for selling pur- finding our products easily. I would rather
ground music triggers poses. But no.” those individuals buy from a competitor.”
a thought, a memory Greg Smith*, The legal paradox of 2C-I is made evi-
—“Viva la Vida” by the owner of dent through the willingness of sellers who
Coldplay starts playing. an online company that sells a variety of responded — or didn’t — to queries about
“I ruled the world on 2C-I,” Lurie said. research chemicals, including 2C-I, said participating as sources for this article.
“It’s weird how when you have a drug trip, that verifying the intentions of 2C-I buyers An anonymous representative from
afterwards you remember the exact feel- is not always feasible. EastCoastChems stressed via e-mail the
ings, but a few years later you only remem- “It is difficult to distinguish between a importance of expressing this issue in the
ber very specific parts of it, like the parts university researcher and some kid who is right light.
that affected you the most, you know?” looking for a fix,” said Smith, who wishes “We wish the important potentialities
Continued on p. 12
cityonahillpress.com | 11
Feature
A Look at Designer Drugs
Continued from p. 11
of 2C-I were more
emphasized over
its mere availability.
In fact, we really wish
research chemical articles
were limited to scientific jour-
nals rather than being placed
publicly where hyper-conservative
folks will be outraged, or where
criminals will be tempted to acquire
some for the wrong reasons.”
Whether the legality of this drug stems
from a good place is hard to identify. The
12 | Thursday, January 6, 2011
online seller Smith
explained:
“The inventor of a
drug has a period of uncer-
tainty to bring the product
to market and sell it commer-
cially before other chemical and
drug manufacturers can make
generic versions of the chemical.
“That’s where the majority of my
customers are — taking part in research-
ing the products properties to ensure
lawmakers and policy-makers can make
informed decisions regarding where and
if the chemicals should be scheduled or
controlled.”
This may be the stage that designer
drugs are now in: The laws are ambiguous,
there is no definitive or developed user
culture, not enough history. 2C-I is not
only straddling the line of legality, it’s also
straddling the “make it or break it” line as
a psychedelic substance.
Alexander Shulgin explains that the
fact that designer drugs are so ambiguous
and there really are no rules may solely ac-
Illustration by Rachel Edelstein
centuate the potentialities that 2C-I has in
its current legal state. To him, it is a good
thing, whatever side of the legal line 2C-I
might end up on.
Despite public antagonization and gov-
ernmental opposition, Shulgin’s scientific
integrity has remained intact.
With all the confidence in the world
that his way is the right way, still relaxed in
his beach chair in Mexico, he simply says:
“Sometimes you have to disrupt some-
thing to see how it works.”
*Names have been changed

Governor Takes On
Higher Education Struggles
Brown considers new state ‘master plan’
By Mikaela Todd
City Co-Editor
Newly elected California governor Jerry Brown was
inaugurated this week, ready to tackle the $82 billion in
debt accumulated over the past year alone — but is skep-
tical about how much he will be able to take on in the face
of the statewide budget crisis.
This debt figure has already begun plaguing talks
about reform as the state’s fiscal situation takes the front
seat, leaving topics like higher education in the dust. But
the governor will still try to address those problems ac-
cording to his inaugural speech.
The governor’s plan for higher education was clear
during campaign season, but whether he can keep his
promises during one of the worst economic times in his-
tory remains to be seen.
“Recent state budgets have raised tuition drastically,
reduced the number of new students … cut class sections
so that students cannot get basic classes they need, and
driven good professors to other states,” Brown said on his
campaign website. “This situation calls for a major over-
haul of many components of the postsecondary system.”
Brown plans to stage this overhaul by creating a new
state “master plan,” meant to provide better college access
and success for the long-term, he said. He also aims to
introduce more online learning and “extended university
programs.”
“Technology can increase educational productivity, ex-
pand access to higher learning, and reduce costs,” Brown
said on his website.
UCSC will begin to implement online courses in
Politics & Culture
March of this year, along with all of the other UCs in
California.
Politics professor Daniel Wirls is skeptical of
UCSC’s initiatives to create online courses.
“Such courses are best for a limited number of
subjects taught in a fairly particular fashion, such
as mathematics with machine-graded exams,” Wirls
and in an e-mail. “So far the primary purpose seems
to be revenue-generation rather than cutting costs
or increasing affordability. Greater revenue does not
necessarily translate into greater affordability for most
students.”
Donna Blitzer, director of government relations,
said in an e-mail that she is looking forward to work-
ing with Brown on the subject of higher education.
She said he is well informed and qualified on the
topic.
“We understand he is intending to confront a seri-
ous state budget challenge,” Blitzer said, “and we hope
to work with him cooperatively on that in a way that
preserves the important contributions the UC makes
to California.” Illustration by Matt Boblet
Another way Brown hopes to help higher edu-
cation in California’s current state of crisis is by cation issue, but it will not be what all Californians may
stopping state transfer of monetary support from those hope for in the face of the state’s financial crisis, he said.
institutions to pay for prisons. He called prison expansion “The budget I present next week will be painful, but
“unnecessarily expensive” and said it would add “substan- it will be an honest budget,” Brown said in his inaugural
tially to our state’s deficit.” speech Monday. “Choices have to be made and difficult
“We can do this without sacrificing public safety,” decisions taken. Our budget problem is dire, but after
Brown said. “By relentlessly pursuing similar cost savings, years of cutbacks, I am determined to enhance our public
we can channel needed funds to our higher education schools so that our citizens of the future have the skills,
system.” the zest and the character to keep California up among
Brown has yet to speak as governor on the higher edu- the best.”
cityonahillpress.com | 13
Arts & Entertainment
Painting and Sculpting the Face of Santa Cruz
From the familiar to the fantastical, local artwork reflects artists’ view of the county
As the handful of art aficionados and
neophytes wandered about the Santa
Cruz Art League’s gallery, their silent and
thoughtful gazes were only interrupted by
the occasional approving smile or au-
dible “cool.” But “cool” simply doesn’t do
justice to the Santa Cruz Art League’s first
exhibit of the year, “This is Santa Cruz.” In
a showroom that includes bizarre sculp-
tures, fused glasswork and more — all
contributed by Santa Cruz County artists
— you can see not just Santa Cruz art but
Santa Cruz defined by its artists.
The free, non-juried, open-submission
show spotlights the work of 97 local
artists. The exhibit, showcased by the
non-profit Santa Cruz Art League, opened
to the public Dec. 11. It will remain open
until next Thursday.
The pieces, varying in both form and
shape, were priced from $75 to $10,000.
“We really got a lot of submissions
from the community, many of whom
were not members [of the Santa Cruz Art
League],” exhibit coordinator Carol Jeneid
said.
Waving a hand across the art hanging
14 | Thursday, January 6, 2011
By Asa Hess-Matsumoto
Arts & Entertainment Editor
about the gallery walls, Jeneid smiled, “Santa Cruz has such a brilliant art — it provides a sense of place.”
pleased by both the quality and the quan- community,” she said. “It’s booming, really. Lining the walls were photos, paint-
tity of art in the exhibit. I think the ocean is what draws people in ings and sculptures clearly inspired by
the natural beauty of the Monterey Bay.
The bright, smudged strokes of “It’s Arch
of Santa Cruz” and the complex weave of
“Shell on Driftwood” are clearly drawn
from the wonders — large and small —
found along Natural Bridges.
Yet, amid the expected acrylic and oil
renditions of recognizable beach spots,
wave breaks, and boardwalk stretches,
there also appear the weird and wacky
forms of creativity one would only expect
to encounter in Santa Cruz. One sculp-
ture shelved an assortment of clay heads,
mimicries of local speakers who appeared
in columns from Good Times. Another
piece, a wood carving of a bug-eyed white
alien, conveyed the wisdom: “If you can’t
impress them with your brilliance, dazzle
them with bullshit.”
Cindy Liebenthal, editor of the Santa
Cruz Art League’s newsletter, was im-
ARTISTS WERE PROMPTED to create art to show what makes the pressed at both the number and variety of
county theirs. This piece of basketry, by Larry Worley, is woven around contributions made to the exhibit.
a piece of driftwood from the Santa Cruz coast. “This exhibit was host to a number

of first-time entries and we’ve seen
some of their pieces already sold,” she
said.
Russell Brutsche, artist behind the
futuristic imagery that is “San Loren-
zo Rivermouth Circa 2080 A.D.,” said
he appreciated not only the opportu-
nity of the exhibition itself but what
the Santa Cruz Art League does for
the art community in general, noting
the classes that the League holds for
developing artistic talent.
“I’m a big believer in encourag-
ing children into art and drawing,”
he said. “Some people say that you
either have ‘it’ or you don’t, but you
don’t get ‘it’ if you don’t cultivate ‘it.’
I really like what [the Santa Cruz Art
League] does. Its grassroots origins
and volunteer ethic allow exhibitions
like this one to take place.”
Standing in the gallery’s entryway,
an abundance of Santa Cruz creativ-
ity behind her, Jeneid said she was
pleased about the show’s artistic
turnout:
“This exhibition really goes to
show how creative the community re-
ally is — how we define ourselves.”
Arts & Entertainment
Photos by Prescott Watson
LEFT: Open to the public, the exhibit “This Is
Santa Cruz” features local artwork depicting
everything from beach scenes to alien
societies.
ABOVE: Not all pieces were available for sale.
Darnell Walton’s “Trophy Stand” was donated
from his private collection.
cityonahillpress.com | 15
Photography

THROUGH Baby, it’s cold outside ...

1. South Lake Tahoe — Sal Ingram
2. Ann Arbor, Mich. — Prescott Watson

OUR LENS
3. South Lake Tahoe — Sal Ingram
4. Truckee, Calif. — Ryan Tuttle
5. Union Square, San Francisco — ­ Isaac Miller
By Staff Photographers 6. The Red Square Bar, Las Vegas — Nick Paris

1 2

3
16 | Thursday, January 6, 2011
4
 Photography

6 cityonahillpress.com | 17
Opinion

How Palin Took Alaska

The way location shapes identity in politics

By Blair Stenvick
City Co-Editor

S
ome friends and I have been watching “Sarah Palin’s Alaska” lately,
because — well, what else is there to do on Sunday nights during the off-
season of “Mad Men”? The show is hilarious, ridiculous, infuriating and
repetitive — basically any word you can think of to describe Palin also works
for her reality program. But there are a few moments of each episode that I
can enjoy in a completely un-ironic fashion, and those are the panoramic shots
of the snowy mindfuck that is the state of Alaska. All I have to do is shut out Sarah’s
grating voice-over explaining for the umpteenth time how nice it is to get the heck
away from evil bloggers and enjoy some quality time in the great outdoors with her
family and her rifles, to remember what really matters in life, and I can appreciate the
unfathomably huge and beautiful mountains and glaciers. Illustration by Muriel Gordon

Alaska is a cool place, and I should be able to
acknowledge that without the implication that I also ad-
mire its former governor. But that’s impossible, because
what Palin is attempting to do with her show is associ-
ate herself inextricably with Alaska — the title even
suggests ownership, as if the state wouldn’t be the same
without her — and that worries me. TLC constantly
shows the Palin family camping, hunting, dog sledding,
rafting and climbing all over the expansive and danger-
ous terrain, as well as humbly interacting with everyday
folks, and the message is clear: Sarah Palin embodies
Alaska, and therefore is independent, extraordinary
and unique. Never mind her obvious ineptitude and
divisiveness — she’s just misunderstood by the lower 48,
much like her beloved home state.
The idea of letting origins define politicians is
certainly nothing new, and in recent memory the GOP
specifically has excelled in this endeavor. “Sarah Palin’s
Alaska” is basically one long, extended sequel to the
clip of former President George W. Bush clearing brush
on his Crawford, Texas ranch, which made the rounds
during his presidency. And that video was probably
inspired by pictures of President Ronald Reagan relax-
ing on his own ranch, leaning against a white picket
fence and wearing a cowboy hat. Reagan and Bush both
played at the image of the independent, strong, Ameri-
can cowboy, and it worked well enough to get them
each elected for two terms. Palin has a lot going against
her for her inevitable 2012 run, but she definitely has
the same down-home persona that could help her defeat
sterile competition such as fellow Republican Mitt Rom-
ney. Her reality show is helping to solidify that image.
While Palin’s show is helping her, politicians can also
use a location as a negative issue to poison their en-
emies. The remarkably low approval ratings of Speaker
of the House Nancy Pelosi probably have something to
do with Republican rhetoric constantly linking her to
her district in San Francisco. Since we all know the City
by the Bay is full of nothing but unscrupulous queers,
homeless people and potheads, it isn’t any surprise that
Nancy Pelosi and San Francisco were negatively fea-
tured in ads for Republican House candidates all across
the country during the past midterm elections.
President Barack Obama’s election was historic
for racial reasons — and also because he was the first
urbanite to be elected president since President John
F. Kennedy from Boston took office. As the backlash
against Obama grows, led by Republicans and especially
the Tea Party, the biggest binary divide in America
might turn out to be not black versus white, religious
versus secular, or straight versus gay, but urban versus
rural. Palin’s Alaska signifies integrity and strength,
while Pelosi’s San Francisco means arrogance and
strangeness. And often it isn’t even genuine rural values
that are being put forth by conservatives. The Tea Party
is a facade of excitable citizens being manipulated be-
hind the scenes by businessmen such as the Koch broth-
ers, who want nothing but money, money and more
money, as well as politicians seeking personal gain. This
concerns me as a liberal city-lover, but it also concerns
me as an American, because people with good ideas
should be respected in Washington, no matter how
many crevasses they’ve climbed over or lattes they’ve
sipped.
When choosing whom to vote for, the question
shouldn’t be where a person comes from but the
direction he or she is looking toward, and despite the
incredible landscapes, Sarah Palin isn’t looking toward
anywhere I’d like to be.

Letter to the Editors

I wanted to send a special thank-you to City on a Hill Press and Kara Foran for
your efforts to publicize the Student Health Center’s new self-directed testing for
sexually transmitted infections (Dec. 2). Your assistance in reaching students about
this important issue demonstrates your commitment to the well-being of the com-
munity.
I have one important clarification. For those students who have the student health
insurance plan (USHIP and GSHIP), we have succeeded in obtaining complete cover-
age for the cost of these tests. About 8,000 students are covered under these plans.
This means that students with SHIP insurance can be tested with no out-of-pocket
expense. This required quite a bit of negotiation with Anthem Blue Cross. As a result,
we have removed one more important barrier to getting people tested. I hope you will
help us publicize this. Inadvertently, this important fact was omitted from the article.
For students who have other forms of private insurance (not SHIP), the tests are
available for a $20 lab fee plus the cost of each individual test. These tests range from
$1.43 to $11.40. A student with no insurance who wants all four tests would have a
maximum fee of $51.50.
We are concerned that the article may have left students with the idea that they will
all face charges for these tests. In fact, only those without SHIP insurance would have
out-of-pocket expenses. In many cases, the private insurance companies may reim-
burse students who submit these charges to their carrier.
It is sad to think that this generation was born in a time when there are so
many dangerous risks from unprotected intimacy. Anything we can do to promote
safer sexual practices and prompt identification of disease is critical. Once again I
appreciate the work of City on a Hill Press to make our community healthy.
Beth Hyde, NP
Family nurse practitioner
Patient care coordinator

18 | Thursday, January 6, 2011

 Editorials

UC Executives Bleed University Dry

Full-salary retirement benefits would accrue even more debt for UC

F
ull-ride scholarships to a UC for 196 students.
Fifty-five thousand textbooks. Health insurance for
454 families (maybe the ones who make less than
living wages cleaning the bathrooms in your dormitory).
The salaries of 40 well-paid professors (maybe the ones
who lost their jobs in the languages, community stud-
ies or American studies programs). For $5.5 million, the
UC could have any one of these things — not to mention
beginning to pay off its $22 billion deficit.
But for 36 UC executives,
that money would be
better spent on retire-
Illustration by Patrick Yeung
ment benefits. Their annual salaries — which exceed a
quarter of a million dollars — just aren’t enough. The
group demands full-salary retirement benefits instead of
pensions based on a $245,000 federal cap. These proposed
benefits would cost the UC $5.5 million annually.
Those leading the charge say the UC broke a promise.
Politicians, unions and the University of California Office
of the President, however, say the UC just can’t afford to
pay the extravagant pensions these executives demand.
The Master Plan was developed to provide a public
research university system that any qualifying student
could attend regardless of income or socioeconomic
background, free from tuition. That is not our reality.
It is the responsibility of UC
employees to advocate for
and protect students and
educators’ best interests.
While the 36 UC
executives threatening to
sue may have legal grounds,
they are morally corrupt.
You can’t put a price tag on
accessibility or progress, but
an annual $5.5 million toward
the university could help put
the UC back on track to be-
ing one of the leading public
universities in the world and
improving the lives of tens of thou-
sands of students.
Christopher Edley, Marie Berggren and J. Thomas
Rosenthal are just three of the 36 petitioning for full-
salary retirement benefits. In 2009, Edley, Berggren and
Rosenthal earned $336,511, $637,824 and $729,186,
respectively. Edley is dean of UC Berkeley Law School,
Berggren is chief investment officer, vice president of
investments and of Office of the President and acting
treasurer of the regents, and Rosenthal is chief medical
officer at the UCLA Medical Center.
The letter-writers claimed it would be “unprecedented”
for the university to not provide the benefits discussed in
the past.
But the reality is that the UC has broken many prom-
ises in the last decade. In November, the UC Board of
Regents voted to increase out-of-state student enrollment.
Programs are being cut and class sizes are growing. Union
employees work for less than living wages. Professors and
teaching assistants are out of work. And students are run-
ning out of patience.
But not once during rallies have students or workers
called for increased spending for executives. And we’re
the ones paying administrators’ salaries.
This time at least, the UC is protecting the integrity of
the university. Promise or no promise, the priority of the
UC is to provide high-quality, accessible higher education
to California’s students, not to pay for tropical vacations
and extravagant retirements.
Salary information provided by sacbee.com and a
UC salary database compiled by Bay Area News Group.

Why We’re Not ‘Grateful’ for Tom Coburn

Oklahoma senator unfairly targets UCSC for spending on archive

S
en. Tom Coburn (R-OK) recently came out with a
“top 10” list of wasteful government spending. No.
4 on the list was the $615,000 federal grant given
to UC Santa Cruz to digitize the library’s Grateful Dead
archive. Although it is important to identify unnecessary
costs during this recession, Coburn unfairly singled out
UCSC and misrepresented the facts about exactly where
the money was going.
The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)
awarded UCSC the federal funds to digitize Grateful
Dead “photographs, tickets, backstage passes, flyers, shirts
and other memorabilia,” according to Coburn’s list.
This is true, but what Coburn fails to point out is that
the digitization that the archives will undergo is an inno-
vative process that earned the title of “National Leader-
ship Project” by the IMLS. This process will also help
protect and archive other non-Grateful Dead related texts
and literature.
As UCSC librarian Virginia Steel told the Santa Cruz
Sentinel, the project received a grant not because of the
Grateful Dead but because of the archival digitizing itself.
“The goal is not the digitization of the Grateful Dead
Archive but to create a socially constructed archive which
allows individuals access to material,” Steel said in the
Sentinel. “Then people can help in the identification of
materials and also upload their own relevant materials.”
Coburn was wrong to underplay the importance of
updating libraries to remain relevant and useful, but
there was also a problem with the entire top 10 list: All
of the spending projects he identified are discretionary.
Discretionary spending goes to different projects every
year, which Congress votes on without needing to change
any laws.
Non-discretionary spending, on the other hand,
includes items like Social Security, Medicare and other
expenses that are built into law. The senator undoubt-
edly created the list in hopes of being seen as a budget
hawk — a true fiscal conservative who is serious about
reducing spending.
But all of the projects on the list are discretionary
spending, which only makes up about a quarter of all
government spending.
If Coburn were truly serious about cutting spend-
ing, he’d target non-discretionary programs, as well
as the huge money suction tubes that are the wars
in the Middle East, rather than small library
grants. Coburn’s website and political ads bill
him as a budget reducer. If he’s serious about
that, he should go after substantial amounts of
spending, an action which might not be popu-
lar in Congress, instead of taking easy shots by
demonizing the purportedly wasteful hippies at
UCSC. It’s clear the Oklahoma senator cares more
about politics than fiscal responsibility. Illustration by Louise Leong

cityonahillpress.com | 19
Who the Hell?!

Who
the Hell
Asked
“Pamela Anderson, because of Mötley Crüe.”

You?!
“Sarah Palin, because she’s Sarah Palin.”

KYLE MCCRACKEN ISAÍ BALTEZAR

SECOND-YEAR, PORTER GRADUATE STUDENT
PATHOLOGY INDIVIDUAL MAJOR EDUCATION

Who would be the

worst person to kiss
on New Year’s?
Compiled by Rosela Arce & Nick Paris

“Rush Limbaugh. It’s self-explanatory.” “President Yudof. He’s very selfish.”

LAUREN NIXON CINDY LEONG

FOURTH-YEAR, STEVENSON THIRD-YEAR, OAKES
HEALTH SCIENCES FEMINIST STUDIES

Slug
Comics
By Bela Messex

20 | Thursday, January 6, 2011