The Antioch Radical Rag

Crisis...

2008-07-08T06:47:00.000-07:00

So, I'm putting this on all my pages, I might as well here. We have ran after problem, after problem, after problem money-wise since getting to Antioch. Besides issues with our GI Bill working out (it did... but it took FOR-EV-ER). The term ended at Antioch around the 26th of April. Our plan was to transfer to Wright State. They didn't start until June 16th. Then we found out Matt would have to pay out-of-state-tuition, which is double.... then a whole other financial crap storm in the form hit us and has rendered us nearly penny-less, and none of our bills will be paid this month... to make a long story short, and to spare all the ugly details, the most important bit is that my babies both have birthdays this month. Tessalie turns six July 12th, and my son Rein turns two on the 16th. I'd really like for them to have a decent birthday - a friend suggested a "DONATE!" button from paypal... (I'd give my address for gifts/giftcards, but that prob'ly isn't safe... HEY CREEPS, OVER HERE! Here's my beautiful children... and here's their ADDRESS! you get the idea)

So if ya got it great, if not, cool - no need to be apologetic or anything... I TOTALLY get it :)

The button is over there to the left.... :)

At Community Meeting Today...

2008-04-01T18:42:00.000-07:00

what a hoot!

The Antioch servers are down, so I can't post the letter I wrote on the community forums. For now, I'll just post here since a whole lot more people than just the Antioch students heard my mouth fly open after being told to shut up. Then I apologized for it! Well.... lemme just post the letter:

Today at community meeting, after an hour of fun, laughter, and the response from one of our community members, Ellen, on all that has happened over the past weekend Anjez stood up (ahead of the stack) and told everyone that he had somewhere to be and that if we wanted to hear him talk, then he had to do it now (ahead of the stacks). I personally was happy to
see him go since he wasn't there for much of the meeting, and on more than one occasion hasn't respected the community's way of organizing these meetings. Others were also happy to see him leave as well, but out of a certain amount of fairness and decorum, he was allowed to speak.

What followed were the exact quotes the community has heard over and over and over again from the constant press releases from LaPierre - the university's PR gal (amusing). I raised my eyebrows when he called Ellen a liar (interesting).

I found it uproariously funny when he got to the PR quote I had just read the night before about a "hostile takeover of the university". I laughed my butt off (as did the rest of the room), turned to look at him, and he looked at me and said, "shut up". For half a second I saw my son's face, and looked at my flabbergasted partner.

In that moment I became OUTRAGED. My mouth opened, and I without even thinking found myself standing up for my voice and the rights of others with, ya know, a voice. As he turned to stomp out of the meeting, he pushed aside a gentleman and more angry words followed. I looked down at my son again who was upset, and moved to calm him. I realized suddenly that I had stood up in front of a room of people and a camera and opened my mouth letting my rights tumble out. And I was mortified.

I apologized for "loosing my temper". I hadn't had time to think. And I was scared shitless of what "the University" was going to do to me, and what repercussions that might have on my family and I, and on the college. I was hurting and wondering if I had given fuel to some fire... I wasn't sure if I would wind up "punished" in some way for my voice.

And now I have had time to think. And the thoughts I had immediately follwing Anjez tantrum (my nearly two-year-old son likes to stomp off when he's mad too) and my subsequent reproval of him as a pissed off woman, mother, and community member make me realize even more clearly:

I AM NOT SORRY FOR LOOSING MY TEMPER.
I said it later on in the meeting, and I'll do it again now: ANYONE WHO IS TOLD TO "SHUT UP", SILENCED, OR TOLD THEY HAVE NO VOICE HAS EVERY RIGHT TO BE OUTRAGED. I AM OUTRAGED. I AM NOT SORRY FOR THAT.

The loudest thought in my head besides simple outrage was that I WILL NOT TELL HIM TO SHUT UP. I WILL NOT BE THAT LOW.
What I did do is to tell him in no uncertain terms that he was not to tell me to shut up, and that he was, in fact, interrupting and should really just wrap it up (read: today you aren't going to monopolize all of our time while shitting on us all, then walking out as per usual) nothing that I said was out of line except my apology.

There is a time for keeping quiet, a time for decorum. Being told to "shut up" in front of my community and my family from a college president/ceo who continued on to nearly assault another in his way (he pushed someone on his way out) is not the time for quiet or decorum.

Women are taught that their anger is bad. I have been told that my whole life. To survive I learned to blend in, and to be quiet. It was a hair-trigger reaction for me to be mortified at my display of anger at being told to shut up, and my very appropriate reaction to it.

I have grown, lived, and learned not to give my personal worth and power away by allowing another to tell me to "shut up".

And neither should anyone else.

Yellow Springs: Place for Military Games and Planning

2008-03-30T20:53:00.000-07:00

The title explains it all.

I believe in the power of the internet, and the power of repetition. Insiders/watchers of the Antioch University scandal... observe the methodical and calculated bad press put out on Antioch College by the University's PR piece-o-scat...

I've included two links everyone must see - footage of the Homeland Security exercise that was forced on the College by the University (and a very brief history of how the university has purposefully sabotaged the college for it's personal monetary gain).... and another documenting the presence of the regional military & commercial development meeting in conjunction with BRAC (Base Realignment and Closure) HOSTED BY MCGREGOR.... AKA "ANTIOCH UNIVERSITY". (I will forever use the name Antioch in relation to the university in quotes... they don't wear that esteemed name very well) and the students thrown out of the meeting where channel 2 news media was allowed. ...

ANTIOCH CONFIDENTIAL

"LEARNING SPACE"

Pass it on. Blog it. Put put the links in comments if you can.

What I have learned thus far... (post dedicated to Scott Warren)

2008-03-19T10:40:00.000-07:00

Pre-blog thought:
Speaking of pompous a-holes and quasi-liberals, who was that guy at the Cincinnati meeting (that was actually in some weird small place in Kentucky) who stood up, spoke, insulted the BoT, insulted Antioch College, and then (heh "as an alum") stated that what we're looking for isn't (insert something about support from alums) but that we're looking for "rich philanthropists" and marched out? (to which no one blinked an eye to and the meeting continued on like he wasn't there). Remember that guy? Anyone?

Onward:

Last term I threw myself into the battle to save Antioch College - while still being a student. My studies faltered, and I found my heart repeatedly ripped out by the scandal that some outside of the situation look at so dispassionately and comment from far away in blogs and news websites - "As an alum, and a professor at such-and-such college or university, I can't believe the failure of the flagship campus has anything to do with some scandal from the University... it has to be about money". I can't imagine how so many are able to help us - you're all super-meta-human-super-heroes, I'm convinced. And greatful.

I've taken a long break from immersing myself in it, and have learned from my struggles, and have come out a person who has been better able to navigate the (until now) mysterious realm of politics, bureaucracy, and fake people. I used to have great disdain for the previous, and it made me struggle greatly in life. If nothing else, I am becoming a more and more successful person in day-to-day interactions and struggles because I am intimately acquainted a situation full of it. I would NEVER have learned how to navigate this large and ugly part of life on my own. And I am now so very glad of it. Antioch Education in so many more ways than one teaches success. Especially, I think, when it's tough.

I dedicate this post to Scott Warren for teaching me and others in his Critical Thinking class the beauties of Informal Logic and refreshing us all on logical fallacies. It has made my brain grow and understand more about the world around me.

Onto the rest of the blog:

Pompous a**holes indulging in an over-used fallacy - argumentum ad vercundiam - also known as the appeal from authority - are doing nothing but stroking their own egos and feeling rather important because they are big professors at some college or university, and because of that and the fact that they are alums at the college in crisis, you should listen to them and their opinion matters.

Well Mr. listen-to-my-unhelpful-and-all-important-opinion who takes the side not of the college that nurtured their assent into professordom, but of the BOT and Toni Murdock (things such as the shutting down of a 155-year-old-college NEVER HAVE TO DO WITH SCANDAL OR SABATOGE). I mean, of course the BOT have our best interests at heart, right?

WORDS TO LIVE BY FOLKS.... THIS MAY CHANGE YOUR LIFE.... MAKE IT YOUR MANTRA, IN FACT.....

OPINIONS ARE LIKE ASSHOLES, EVERYONE HAS ONE (AND MOST OF THEM, OTHER THAN A RARE DELECTABLE FEW) STINK

Please, Mr. listen-to-my-unhelpful-and-all-important-opinion, please stop throwing around your crap. At least hear both sides. Don't Google Antioch College, read a few newspaper articles put out by way of that dumb bleach blond dip Mary Lou LaPierre (the University's PR person in charge of damn near everything) and throw around your professorship/alum status like so much dead weight.

And last but not least, thank you to those still carrying the torch for students who are tired, frustrated, and just trying to either graduate, and/or hang on to a cause they believe in to their core. I know it's the only reason I'm here. I NEED to hear this encouragement like I need water, and it's wonderful to see those efforts among a sea of articles-written-from-press-releases-by- LaPierre. I only wish that before throwing out their over-bloated and self-important opinions, people would actually read the Antioch Papers website, and talk to those who are fighting for it... not just hear the side of rich bureaucrats and decide they must automatically be right (since they are on the board/part of the university/part of Antioch/whatever) and therefore must care more about the college than money, right?? It's this whole "if it's in the News, it must be true" way of thinking that has kept our war going, and put Dubyah in the white house. There are other, better ways of learning facts. While I believe in the internet's power for good, lazy thinking, I must say, is one of its downfalls.

Quasi-liberals piss me off more than the right-wing-bush-supporters.

Website Articles that spawned this blog:

Can Antioch here survive woes at flagship campus?
This is LaPierre waving dollar bills in the Seattle Times paper creating a money C R I S I S (bum bum buuuuum). I wonder where exactly this figure comes from.... anyone....?
"Antioch Seattle has been propping up the faltering Ohio campus with more than $250,000 a year, according to administrators. Each year, the deficits in Ohio — and the demands on the satellite campuses — have grown."
Beautiful in its function. I will say she does her job well. Ah, to be making your dough off of people who only get their news from the paper. If the world is really run by a small handful of ridiculously powerful people, I bet they are professional press-release writers. (hmmm, or not... i bet they hire people for that.... ) Correction: ahhhhh.... to be a puppet.

An Open Letter About Antioch's Future
Thank you, thank you, thank you so much for this wonderful article on the 'Inside Higher Ed' website. I, and so many others needed it.

And here's one stinky pompus a-hole opinion I take issue with:
"... One problem with this argument is that it says nothing about correcting the problems that caused Antioch College’s decline in the first place...It may be a choice between bringing the whole multi-campus university down vs. cutting the losses while there is still time. I also attended the June 2007 meeting as an Antioch alumnus and my impression was that the Board was doing the best it could with a very difficult situation, while many of the alumni were demonizing and scapegoating them as a means of denying the College’s real problems....But if they fail, I do not believe it will be because of some devious plot on the part of the University board."
Ted Goertzel, Professor at Rutgers University at Camden, at 9:30 am EDT on March 18, 2008

First of all, one would assume (at least I would assume) that anyone reading this article is on the "up and up" and has done their homework about why people are "demonizing" the University.
This article shouldn't have to list all the reasons why Antioch College declined in the first place. It isn't an analysis of that. There are plenty of places to read about this. If this guy did his homework, instead of making his analysis of the article based on the fact that he "also attended the June 2007 meeting as an Antioch alumnus" and his "impression" (what is this guy, clairvoyant?)maybe he wouldn't be spouting crap he's read from articles written straight from press releases written by LaPierre - the University's PR person (and dumb, bleach-blond dip).

If you read onto the other comments, plenty of other people addressed this comment much better than I ever could. Thank you to you folks too. Oh, and thank you for basing your analysis on facts and not just that you may work at the college/teach at the college/are a part of saving antioch/are professors and have "impressions". Though that is in no way an attempt to undermine the clairvoyant impressions you may or may not have.

All other comments were good (I especially loved the one pointing out the BoT/University Leadership Council demonizing the alumni, faculty, staff and students who are trying to save their college) , but this brought tears to my eyes:
" Unfortunately, for those of us involved in the struggle to save Antioch College, Professor Goertzel’s close alliance and support of the University Board of Trustees is well known. As is his apparent disdain for the last thirty years of graduating classes from Antioch College. Those alumni who regard the college with antipathy do so on the very basis of the thing they now defend: creation of the university exhausted the resources of the college, diverted the attention of the trustees and placed the faculty at an ever greater remove from what should be its rightful place at the center of governance and the curriculum. Dr Goertzel and others like him refuse to accept that the decline of the college occurred inversely to the rise of the university. There are many legal issues surrounding emancipation of the college, but we have literally thousands of lawyers among the alumni and we have raised over $18MM (not including the $9MM pledged by the board of the ACCC) so we can afford lawyers. The real issues standing in the way of a free college is the hostility of the university Chancellor and certain (non-alumni) members of the board to the college. This battle is a more than just about Antioch’s future. It is about the future of small independent liberal arts colleges. Those who lead Antioch University have stated repeatedly that they do not believe in the residential model and that the “market” for students is in so-called adult, nonresidential education. Yet there are hundreds of financially stable private liberal arts colleges in the United States. What do they have that Antioch College does not? A board dedicated to their survival and capable of raising large enough endowment to decouple tuition revenue and viability."
Travis Sanford, Class of 1994 at Antioch College, at 1:50 pm EDT on March 19, 2008

THE ANTIOCH COLLEGE RADICALS OF TODAY... WHAT HAPPENED TO ANTIOCH AND WHAT'S UP WITH THESE STUDENTS TODAY??? from student to alum, with love

2007-11-07T13:19:00.000-08:00

Ok, I lied. I'm not done, and there's something else on my mind that didn't belong in the last post. This little bird keeps landing on my shoulder and whispering things. He's a passive-aggressive little jerk... he doesn't believe in putting things out there, and out in the open.

I do.

I have something to say to "some" Alums. In a bit, you will know if you belong in this group or not. I'm calling no one out, because I don't know most of you... but I've heard some utterances about:

PIERCINGS - I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND!!! ?
QUEER? TRANNY? WHAT?!
WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON WITH THIS GRAFFITI???
WHAT IS GOING ON WITH THIS CURRICULUM? IT WASN'T LIKE THIS WHEN I WAS HERE!

And the ever-popular (though I'm fairly positive this didn't come from an Alum, but maybe it did - hard to tell anymore) COMCIL??? ADCIL??? THE INMATES ARE RUNNING THE ASYLUM!!!

It seems as if Antioch Students have run amok. Things here just aren't like they were in "my" day. It isn't the same education, it isn't the same thing. The Antioch that I knew and loved isn't here anymore.

And why do they have to go to every stupid demonstration there is? They're just too RADICAL.

If any one of these things resonate with you, it's you I'm talking to.

I hope those of you that feel this way can take some things into consideration, that I'd like to put forth.

In your time... whatever time that was... YOU I believe... WERE RADICAL TOO.
And you more than likely went on to do AMAZING things in your life that took HARD WORK, DEDICATION, SACRIFICE. Many of you BUILT SOMETHING OUT OF ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.

Some of you became doctors. Others are PhD's, authors of wonderful books, scientists, have done important work for society. I know some have headed up wonderful charities, and organized hundreds of people to also do great things. Some are lawyers. (tongue slightly in cheek)

But while I'm no kind of history major, I have a bit of education, and I know that:

*Women smoking, and wearing Pantaloons was RADICAL.
*Poor people gaining an education... RADICAL.
*Black people allowed to eat, go to the same bathroom as, and going to school with whites.... VERY, VERY RADICAL. (not to mention the entire scope of the black movement that is beyond the scope of this simple student blog entry)
*Rosie the Riveter was strong, independent, representative of the workforce while men and boys were away at war, and... RADICAL.
*The co-op education... RADICAL.
*Words like "golly geez"... at one time RADICAL.
*Marxism... RADICAL. (ok, ok, it still is - but does anyone remember the times of the hollywood blacklist?! My god!)

This is a poor, poor list. I bet there are so many wonderful stories out there. Wonderful stories of that RADICALISM that changed the world, and did so for the better. I hope I can add to this list by hearing first-hand accounts instead of just thinking of some things off the top of my head.

We are only wanting to follow in YOUR footsteps. To do what I'm sure so many of you set out to do: to change your lives and the lives of others. To win those victories for humanity that each one of us has been charged with and strives for. Many things are different - but the most important thing is the same. We all (the students) believe in the Antioch Motto with all our hearts and live by the Antioch Honor Code.

"Antioch College is a community dedicated to the search for truth, the development of individual potential, and the pursuit of social justice. In order to fulfill our objectives, freedom must be matched by responsibility. As a member of the Antioch Community, I affirm that I will be honest and respectful in all my relationships, and I will advance these standards of behavior in others. " (italics/emphasis mine)

So... what's up with graffiti? Find out! The answers may surprise you. While I sadly cannot say that I am a part of that incredible movement in our society... creating public works of art, most times temporary art, to send out powerful messages... I appreciate the messages being sent out that may otherwise not be heard. I attempt to listen to them and understand. I attempt to study what that movement is about instead of instantly degrading its worth because it is foreign to me and I do not understand, and a large sect tells me that is is wrong.

Queers? Trannys? What?! Talk to some. Their stories my enlighten and inspire. It's ok not to understand. They are here to both learn and teach, as each and everyone of us is.

SOPP?! This is something near and dear to me. And it takes a process to understand. It came from Antiochians before me who have been through horrific experiences and sought to make a change. It is reviewed and changed every two years to reflect the current needs of the student body.

I believe one thing I learned today from a teacher of mine was that it was Arthur P. Morgan - a man who spent six weeks in college - that predicted that half of Antioch faculty would be Academics, and half would be activists. What a powerful combination. How very well-rounded. I'm so thankful this place prepares me even more for the world than any other institution could. In today's job market college graduates are coming up short on work-experience (as well as the maturity life-experience brings). No one at Antioch will come out of here without a clear idea of what they DON'T want to do, as well as what they DO want to do, and with a "high-speed" resume for their field of choice to boot. Without the faculty we have to provide this education.... the AWESOME ACADEMICS AAAAND THE "DOERS"/ACTIVISTS... this place becomes another unmarketable pop-up college just like every one lining col glen hwy and all over the Dayton-metro area... and the millions in the US. I'm not here for "adjunct" teachers. I want the ones who ARE ANTIOCHIANS AND WHO BEHAVE AND ARE TREATED AS SUCH. I can get adjuncts anywhere.

I'm drifting off the subject at hand.

It would mean the world if the Alums who disapprove of us because we are different than they were would peer back into their college days for awhile and remember the ground-breaking, radical VICTORIES they helped shape for humanity, and the legacy of Antioch you left to inspire us Antioch Students now.

Swallowing

2007-11-07T12:36:00.000-08:00

I'm in a state where I'm simply swallowing it all, and its a lot to swallow.

I'm so happy and thankful that we've bought some time, and have the opportunity to make some huge and amazing changes in our school. There is the opportunity to deconstruct the current crap reality at Antioch College, and to reconstruct it into something that represents what Antioch truly is to all Antiochians. We put the University in check, and buddy-oh-boy, they pulled a switcheroo and castled on our azzes.

Check.

Our move.

(you wouldn't believe the mental relief playing chess this week with Matthew has had on my poor tired, overwhelmed, and stressed brain. the ultimate meditation for the current situation at hand. try it, it just may help you too)

I understand the fear, sadness, confusion, and utter tiredness felt by so many of my fellow Antiochians. While in may ways I am an "other" at Antioch - meaning I am an older student, with many different priorities that being a mother who has taken a VERY long break from my community - I also know that there are staff members, faculty, and a large array of all different kinds of students that I share concerns, loves, passions, and gripes with. You're somewhere out there anyway. I continue to write as if someone is reading. :)

But I'm also dismayed in some ways. Maybe it's there, and I don't see it... I can't make it to every type of meeting there is (community meeting, adcil, comcil, faculty meetings, town meetings, etc etc.) I don't see the optimism I was hoping for with the decisions that have been reached. Yeah. THEY EFFING SUCK AND I WANT TO TEAR MY HAIR OUT!!!! GET RID OF THE BACKBONE OF OUR INSTITUTION?! THE LOUD VOICES... OUR TENURED FACULTY AND OUR WONDERFUL, GIFTED, CARING COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT ARE OUR STAFF??? WE'RE CUT TO THE BONE AS IT IS! And here they are continuing to gut us while everyone is becoming divided, and upset over a decision that I don't understand how anyone could have been surprised about. I feel like many are still taking the BoT at face value and only listening to their words and not looking at the entire picture and seeing what is implied. I have more reading to do on the issue - I am not and have never pretended to be a subject matter expert - but an "agreement" to keep the college open while maintaining this financial exigency farce and firing more people is ludicrous even to the most casual of observers. I don't understand why there's so much division, although I'm not in the center of the big arguments.

This is a game folks, and nothing has changed. Not the primary goal of all Antiochans, and not the goal of the Board of Trustees. These are just moves in a much larger game. We CAN NOT BE DIVIDED AMONGST US. I can't judge, but I know that one thing. Whatever it takes, please. One Antiochian student to all other Antiochians. Work it out and work it out quick. Everyone has shown incredible spirit and is fighting for something that is so much bigger than our little liberal arts college in the middle of yellow springs, Ohio. YOU ARE ALL WORKING TOWARDS THAT VERY ANTIOCHIAN DREAM THAT INSPIRED US... WHETHER IT WAS MANY, MANY YEARS AGO, OR SIMPLY MONTHS.

YOU ARE MAKING A VICTORY FOR HUMANITY. RIGHT NOW.

Sound hokey? It's not. We have inspired all other campuses to have their own board of trustees so that their needs are also adequately addressed. Higher ed is looking at us RIGHT NOW. We are shining examples of god-knows-how-many faculty members out there to organize for their rights. We are inspiration to dozens and dozens of other high-school students who want more out of life than to go into debt just to sit behind a desk at a "higher education institution" and be handed their education by someone sitting behind a desk who isn't any real part of their lives or community, that answers to a bunch of G. DAMN BUSINESS ENTREPRENEURS WHO REALLY, REALLY DON'T CARE ABOUT ANY OF THE CASTE BELOW THEM THEY'RE HANDING THEIR CRAP COMMODITY TO.

This is what it's all about. This is why I'm here. Why are you here?

Give me more, I'm still hungry. This radical can take all you can give.

and then some.

and then barf it all up in the laps it belongs to.

(um... I'll stop now. blaming it on sinus medicine today)

LAYING OFF OUR FACULTY???

2007-11-04T19:24:00.000-08:00

(Judas kissing some Jesus ass)

ARE YOU EFFING KIDDING ME????

Sorry, I hate to be the only naysayer (no, really, I do) but I've been dealing with screwed up people my whole life. Seriously, I'm an expert, and a practitioner. Matthew and I have been talking about what the best strategy for the University would be if "we were in their shoes" and sure enough, here we are. The university board, assuming they were bent on closing the college down to make their own pockets even bigger had a few choices. I'm writing this assuming anyone reading this is well aware that there is a small group of people bent on opening a mall, or strip mall right on correy street, right behind Antioch College.

I'll say it right here and right now: I feel as if I'm taking a risk, since many students shy from talking to the media: many have already been expelled for speaking out (in the words of one student who shall remain anonymous and refused to talk to the local public access channel for fear of the same treatment when asked about how they would feel if the college was closed down and what the college meant to them). Honestly, I took a risk coming here at all, and this is why without abandon I voice my feelings here today and will continue to regardless of consequences.

The very ambiguity the University board of Trustees have been handing us that every Antiochian has been subject to deal with has made my a-double-ass homeless. I have a family consisting of my partner and two small children. If anything happens to me as a result of me voicing my opinion, you better believe you, dear reader, and every news station and every lawyer family member will hear about it, and since I have nothing else besides this larger in my life besides the family which I care about more than anything at risk, so will any higher authority willing to listen.

Come on people. I'm glad we have the step-up given to us to keep us from shutting down. But we have to be realistic. The U. Board had some choices. One: keep college open (they'd be hero's and yadda-yadda, but out the money invested in us closing, or Two: keep college closed... and have a big-ass and extremely legal lawsuit on their hands, Three: stall (and have a big-ass lawsuit on their hands OOOOOORRRRRR..... (the choice I must admittedly admire for the sheer intelligence of it...) PRETEND TO BE ON OUR SIDE, AGREE TO KEEP THE COLLEGE OPEN BUT ON THE CONDITION THAT WE FIRE WHAT VERY, VERY, EXTREMELY LITTLE WE HAVE OF OUR FACULTY AND STAFF BECAUSE WE ARE IN SUCH DIRE STRAIGHTS.

Apparently, that $18 MILLION dollars that was raised in a few short months wasn't enough to keep that institutional memory we've all been talking about since the beginning.

Damn, these screw-heads are smart. If we get rid of the backbone of our institution, in the name of "financial hardship" (forgetting the very CREATIVE way the books have been cooked) then our INSTITUTIONAL MEMORY... THE VERY THING WE'VE BEEN FIGHTING FOR THAT THEY'VE BEEN ATTEMPTING TO ERASE... will be gone, and there will be no one left to fight for the very Antioch that we know and love...

But at least we'll be able to put our prescriptions at Wallgreens instead of the Drug Store in Yellow Springs.... There will be a glorious strip-mall that will flourish for a number of years before going out of business in rural YS like many, many other places in other towns now suffering... there will be short-term growth that will warrant the addition of new coal-fire plants and 50-year agreements CMEX... a coal-fire plant well known throughout the US for screwing over the citizens in the area it works in to increase profits at the expense of the "little people" living around it. I won't burden the casual reader of this blog with background of this issue, but simply google CMEX, and go from there, and you'll see what I'm talking about. YS boasts, as I've heard from at least one city council meeting that YS is a community of "highly educated citizens" that don't allow themselves to be duped by (insert current insidious plot here). We shall soon see if YS can uphold the high standards they like to so much of.

I want to believe justice will be done. But I've been screwed over too many times to realize that this is always the fact. It will come to show how people are willing to fight for they believe in, and how many are willing to stand aside to watch 155 years of progressiveness for humanity to go down the toilet because they just can't stand a little conflict.

I still stand in awe at the fact that though we won a victory for Antioch College, too, too few seem to be willing to stand up and say out loud THAT IT IS ABSOLUTELY PREPOSTEROUS that we are willing to make a deal at the expense of our FACULTY AND STAFF... CUT DOWN TO THE QUICK TO THE POINT OF NO RETURN... in order to stay "open"...
I hope it's just more strategy. Peace and love to you all....

DID THEY WIN???

I suppose we shall see soon...

We will rise, muthafukahs...

NONSTOP ANTIOCH... TO INCLUDE OUR STAFF AND FACULTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WE LOVE YOU!!!
I LOVE YOU!!!

INTRODUCING "ANTIOCH LIVES!"... this article is by Rowan Kaiser

2007-09-26T22:35:00.000-07:00

This is something shared with us in our Leadership class. This is a type of newsletter with a very specific format. It is printed only on one side and is always in black and white, and 400-600 words. This is for ease of distribution. A few "Antioch Lives!" publications are already running around. One is An analysis of the Renewal Plan. Anyone can write one. My notes are extremely sparse this evening, so I will go around to collect the rest and make a page for them, to keep ya'll posted. More specific details later since my eyes are crossing at almost 2am. Enjoy!
(click on the pic to view the article)

Absorbing

2007-09-25T10:53:00.000-07:00

"Just keep swimming, just keep swimming..."

It's been one of those days.

So I had a presentation in my Sustainable Economics class today. It will be my second in that class. We have each picked a country that we will study throughout the entire term. (Mine is Chad) My first presentation was rather weak, so even though time is a valuable commodity for me at the moment - I'm still moving into my house, unpacking, signing up for this program and that, and figuring out part-time work... all while studying - I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning putting together facts to present to my class about my country. I really wanted to make up for the last one, and was fairly proud of some facts I had found. Long story short: out of ink for my printer. Dutifully send notes to teacher on Moodle, and find it easier to simply send assignment by way of email to myself to print out in the Library right before class. Easy 'nuff, right? I was stressed enough running a tad behind this morning, but as I entered the library about 5-10 min before class none of the computers were on. (this is no big deal, saving energy - cool by me) I sit down and power up the ol' Mac. I sign in. Click on Firefox. Nothing. Then I'm told the connection has timed out. Fine. I try another site. Nothing. I do a series of fruitless mouse-clicks. Nothing.

THERE WAS NO FREAKING INTERNET IN THE LIBRARY THIS MORNING.

For crying out loud. It isn't enough that WE HAVE NO TECH SUPPORT. Our "tech support" is ONE.... ONE!!! FWSP position, and this poor overworked girl is constantly on calls. It isn't enough that the connection sucks anyway. No, WE CAN'T EVEN GET IT! I don't know what happened with it. I didn't want to be any later for class. (I'm late at this point) I told Duffy - he suggested calling the help desk (no one was there) and I left a message. Apparently the internet was "spotty" yesterday as well.

You know, it is all my fault. I should never have considered that I could rely on the SCHOOL'S INTERNET CONNECTION for something like my important school work. I'll be fine, really. I will have to go find an ink cartridge for my printer and give my presentation during the next class. But it's frustrating.

I find myself choking up from time to time, my eyes starting to brim with tears. If life has taught me anything, it's that life isn't fair. But this school's place in my life is to give real hope, and to teach that each one of us, in fact, can change the world and can change our lives. The more I learn about the place that I call home, the more in awe I am of it, and the more surreal it seems that a very small group of people would dare attempt to close an institution of such importance and that has been such a fundamental part of history. Midst the whirlwind that is classes, meetings, getting settled there is an ache in my heart. Coming into the library this morning was like a smack in the face. I realize that mud-slinging and bureaucracy are happening all around us mixed with subversive tactics, smothered in lies and deceptions, with a lovely dash of hypocrisy to boot. But it's hard not to see the University taking our Tech Support as those in charge simply being mean and nasty. The University didn't need to take it ALL. In light of them deciding to close us down - hastily and out of the blue - that we would be treated a little kinder. (All of us who are a part of Antioch College, not just students) But speaking as a student... "just" a student - we're just trying to go to the school of our choice. We love it here - even if it is mixed with times of intense frustration. It's just us growing, and that can hurt.

I'm going off on another tangent again.

I haven't written in awhile, as I've mentioned, because I'm ridiculously busy. I'm stressed the f&*k out and so is everyone else here. I'm trying to learn and be involved in the community, and raise my family. I'm trying to save Antioch.

Damn, this is hard.
But I still wouldn't have it any other way.

***I was browsing blogs, and I really liked this one:
"Revisiting Antioch" by an Alumn who was visiting on his way through.

P.S
I've asked all my professors about podcasting their classes/webcasting. All are on board with most everything, though one requested that the class not be recorded. This is because he is concerned with himself and others acting in a different way while knowing they will be recorded, and thereby affecting class discussion. He is, however, right on board with posting his syllabus and handouts. This weekend I did some research. None of it seems like brain surgery, and would have begun acquiring material, except that I lost my microphone. I'll have to check my budget and see if a few various pieces of equipment are in my future. I'll let ya'll know.

Here's to our heart's not breaking...
-Amanda Mayhem

In case you were wondering...

2007-09-18T22:03:00.001-07:00

It's 1 o'clock in the morning, and I just finished my assignments. Well, what I could get done anyway! I fully intended to write full blogs today, but right now a brief summary will have to do. I just got Internet access in my house - yippee!!! And we just got our stuff delivered (half of it, anyhow lol), so I have my PC back and all the gadgety-toys that go with it... and THAAAT MEANS:

*Most discussed topics this last weekend:
PODCASTS!
A STUDENT WEBSITE DONE BY OUR CLASS FOR STUDENTS!
THE MYSPACE FOR ANTIOCH! (SEE BELOW)
THE ADOPT-A-STUDENT PROGRAM... it's been here for, like, three months. No one's been using it... more on that later. Very important. Check back here for more on that soon.

AND MOST IMPORTANT:
EVERY EVERY EVERYBODY MUST SIGN UP FOR THE "MYSPACE FOR ANTIOCH" PLACE FOR THE ENTIRE ANTIOCH COMMUNITY... GET INVOLVED! SIGN UP! IT'S ALL THERE, WAITING FOR US.
www.portal.antiochians.org
Yours truly is not quite signed up for it just yet, but you will see me there soon. Like maybe tomorrow. But here's what I understand you can do there:
~network, network, network
~have your own space ANTIOCHIAN STYLE
~blog
~have your own email
and best yet...
NONE OF IT IS CONNECTED TO THE UN-SECURE ANTIOCH-COLLEGE WEBSITE!!!!!

Fun Discussion

2007-09-10T20:01:00.000-07:00

I had an impromptu discussion in a class of mine recently. We had a new student come join our class, so we all had to go around and introduce ourselves one by one and tell the person a bit about ourselves. Of course, as these things go, we started with our names and what year we were - some joking about being here for quite awhile.... "I'm a, uh, fifth year, lol" and, naturally if we plan on graduating here or not. It came around to me, and I laughed about how I'm a third year, but just entering my second credit-wise. And since everyone else's last bit was on if they would or would not graduate with the college closing, I began to tell everyone that no, in fact, I would not be graduating since I have far too few credits. But then it hit me...

"No, I'm sorry - I'm wrong. I WILL be graduating here at Antioch. I CAN say that this college IS NOT going to close and that I am confident in saying that. MY career is NOT on the line. I WILL BE GRADUATING FROM HERE, SPRING OF 09, IN FACT - MAYBE EARLIER!"

(Of course, I suppose that could be argued considering the current climate of fear around campus lately. But I still have to say that it would be mighty hard to throw me out simply based on my opinion of the University "leadership"... i use that term loosely here, of course)

Anyhow, another student very fairly wanted to know that based on the "biiiiiig" and "pooooowerful" people who are pretty set on closing us down, how in the world could ANYONE be optimistic?

That spurned a wonderful discussion and a wonderful fact-sharing session in our class. I'm confident that my professor would not have shared their opinions if they weren't able to be shared, but I'm going to keep things somewhat anonymous since I don't feel as if I can be too careful 'around here' and I didn't specifically ask them. Most, if not all of this information is public anyhow.

First of all, my teacher said that though at first things seemed very dim to them, BUT that after witnessing the enormous amount of energy and organization that has come together in such a short amount of time and has done so very much for our College that every day and with every meeting they attend they are heartened more and more. And as we asked many questions that we were unclear on, the teacher answered them to the best of their knowledge.

A disclaimer here: In the middle of a huge amount of homework this term, and the very active leadership group that I am on, I am still slowly catching up on old Records, and pouring through information on the Antiochians website. I have provided links to research all information, but this is not the place I am going to necessarily back up every single piece of information - this is an informal Blog after all, though I will do my best to keep things as accurate as possible. I feel free to cite what I deem as credible sources.

Back to regular programing:
From my scribbled notes:
First thing on the top of my scribble-y page is that the MONSTROSITY that now sits on the edge of Yellow Springs COST 13 MILLION DOLLARS TO BUILD.
And just how did they pay for it, one wonders...
ANTIOCH COLLEGE WAS PUT UP FOR COLLATERAL!!!!!
And what's even more interesting is that in order to make this little deal look sweeter, THEY CLAIMED THAT ANTIOCH WAS VERY STABLE AND CLAIMED THAT WE HAD 750 STUDENTS ENROLLED!!!!!!
I have the name Barbara Danly scribbled at the top of this information. The question was asked, WHOSE FREAKING IDEA WAS THIS?!
Well, that ugly building was HER pet project. Apparently, it has been known for awhile that even though McGregor was using our facilities at night and on the weekends, she simply didn't "like" Antioch College students, and wanted a separate building, and wanted McGregor completely separated from Antioch college. This person was able to convince the Board of Trustees that this was a good idea.
Hmmmm. For those unable to process sarcasm... this is sarcasm:
Could this maybe be the reason for the University's "hasty decision" to close down the college???
None of the other schools, to include McGregor, actually own any of these things:
(more note scribbles)
*liabilities
*assets
*literary (the library? or the accreditation? one in the same?)
*Endowments

So. For the new McGregor building to be built, and to MAKE US COLLATERAL, we were a thriving college with a healthy student body of SEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY STUDENTS! Then AAAALLLL OF A SUDDEN, we were a FINANCIAL DRAIN TO THEIR (THEIR THEIR!) university! And therefore, us, the College (WHO CREATED THEM, IN ORDER TO SUPPORT OUR INSTITUTION!!!), had to close!
...SO WE CAN HAVE OUR ASSETS SPLIT!
For what, I wonder? A cool 13 mil?
People keep saying over and over and over again that Glen Helen is a law-protected land, and that there is no way it can be bought or sold, ever. I have to see these laws myself. Because over and over and over again I keep hearing it referred to as an "asset". I'm no economics major, but as far as I see it, assets can be liquidated.

Now, bear with me through this next bit. This is the attempt of someone completely ignorant of school accreditation trying to keep up and understand it in a discussion not necessarily meant to educate on that specific subject... any corrections in error are welcome...
And apparently, there is another matter or two that must be considered when thinking about our college closing - we own the library (an asset) that holds our Accreditation. It is through our library that all of the other college campuses to include McGregor GET their accreditation. This is a reason why the other campuses consider us a "drain". They are required to pay us a small percentage for this service - the service that makes it possible for their institutions (that WE created) to hand out degrees. McGregor has this service through us, AND the benefit of using our facilities and library. (Though this is done with disdain on the part of Barbara Danly)
Oh, by the way. I need to find out the exact figures, but it has been said that the University hasn't paid us their bit that THEY owe US in YEARS!

Now their plan has been found out.

This, in agreement with Rick Daily, TURNS MY STOMACH.

My teacher mentioned him in our little discussion also. They said that he was coming at his conclusions through the eyes and mind of a lawyer. My teacher reminded us that he talked about "buying our way out". (Even if it takes 100 million dollars) I must say that with this information in light, I suppose I could understand his position, though I still don't agree with it's implications. I wanna believe in ya, Rick, I do.

One student piped up and said, "That's indentured servitude."
No kidding.

I just don't think ANY of the people DIRECTLY RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS INJUSTICE need to have ANY PART in our college. From what I understand, there are two plans in place. One involves keeping McGregor with us. The other does not. I think that if we are considering keeping McGregor open (how funny, the way things have turned out) THE LIKES OF BARBARA DANLY, TONI MURDOCK, ART ZUCKER, AND ANYONE WHO HAS STAUNCHLY STOOD BY THEIR SIDE HAS TO BE ABSOLUTELY, UTTERLY, AND COMPLETELY OUT OF THE PICTURE.

This is no little oops mistake. This is serious. Families and lives have already been destroyed, not to mention the damage done to the college itself by their little "hasty decision".

Oh, and it was confirmed by this credible source that
TONI MURDOCK WAS INDEED FIRED FROM HER POSITION AT ANTIOCH IN SEATTLE. I've asked people over and over again how in the world someone who got fired with a "vote of no confidence" at one Antioch GETS A RAISE AT THE NEXT FREAKING ANTIOCH TO CHANCELLOR OF THE UNIVERSITY!!!!

SOMEONE PLEASE ANSWER ME THIS - I'M JUST SIMPLY CURIOUS:

WHO IS TONI FU#%ING???

I mean, I have some experience with the military. Screwing people over, and screwing your way "to the top" as a means to get your way seem to be an integral part of the military culture, and since she's on a MILITARY ADVISORY BOARD....

Oh, I'm just saying.

Maybe she's, uh, "poly". Yeah, that's the ticket.

Anywho, it's getting late, and I have an early class tomorrow. I also have more to write about Peace as a cycle and ways to succeed.
And I'm not sure if it's relevant anymore, but I still have that impromptu interview about BRAC.

Goodnight by boyles and ghouls...
amanda mayhem

Operation Shock and Awe

2007-09-07T10:52:00.000-07:00

So...

Some very interesting things have come to light. Apparently, Rick Daily has been working very very hard on the Revival Fund and has been with us from the beginning in keeping our college open. I had a short discussion with a colleague this afternoon, and mentioned the information I have very recently learned.

You coulda shocked the hell outta me.

I will remind newcomers to my blog that I am here only to voice my own opinions - that of a seriously concerned Antioch College student. I have been away from campus for... uhhhm, a "few" years now (lol) and only arrived back on campus the day before orientation.

That meeting last night was the first time I layed eyes on the guy - and maybe I missed him at the Cincinnati meeting.

When I heard he was one of "us" my first thought was, "oh great, and here I go - pissing off the very people who are here to help."

But then I thought of the meeting again, looked over my notes, and the blog I wrote. My colleague said, "A lot of people and students are mad.... he said some scary things."

So while I judged him harshly, I have to stand by my impressions of the guy. We're talking about MY livelihood and my family's here as well, and I take it pretty personally when someone is threatening that. So I won't backpedal on what I said. He did, indeed, say some mighty scary things. I do know absolutely that I was not the only one in the room thoroughly pissed.

HERE I PROMISE: I WILL ABSOLUTELY EAT MY FOOT IF I'M WRONG ON THIS ONE.

But I don't believe I am.

I suppose time will have to tell. You'll see it here if I am, and if that becomes the case he will have my humble and utmost respect. But as I've mentioned before, DON'T FORGET WHO HAS LIED TO YOU. Certainly forgive, if that is your nature. People do change. From reading tho old Records, it appears that Steve Lawry did pleanty NOT to help us in the beginning. And then he CHANGED. Sadly, though he may have almost too late. I do hope that the injustice done there gets resolved.

So now all I know is that there's a treasurer who has worked very hard to keep our college open and to be on our "side". A treasurer whom I, as "just an Antioch student", couldn't distinguish from JUST ANOTHER UNIVERSITY TALKING HEAD.

Remember that people change, and PAY ATTENTION. I only hope this person's intentions are truely in the best interest of our College and all that it is about. (And I will continue to take better and better notes. Please, dear readers, continue to correct any incorrect information.)

Check back often TO SEE IF I HAVE TO EAT MY FOOT!!! (Fun eat my foot graphic coming soon!)

PLEASE READ POST CORRECTIONS BELOW!!!

2007-09-07T08:43:00.000-07:00

Thank you so much to Matthew Baya and "Anonymous" for correcting the title to my post and giving me accurate info!!! (saves me from going around saying, "Hey you, were you at the meeting.... what about you....?"
Reactions to such in a moment...

Notes From a meeting starring the Treasurer for the University Board of Trustees

2007-09-06T17:57:00.000-07:00

CORRECTION TO TITLE!!! THE STAR SPEAKER WAS RICK DAILY! TREASURER TO THE ANTIOCH ALUMNI ASSOCIATION. He is, one of "Us".

If you read the comments, it was also stated that... "he really is part of the "WE" and not just a spokesperson for the evil empire." also:

" ...working on the Revival Fund and following the unanimous resolution to keep the college open past July 1, 2008."

SEE GUYS! I CAN CHANGE!!!

My first impressions of this slovenly and disgusting creature before me were of pity. Looking at him, I was reminded of those turkeys who look up at the sky when it rains and drown.

He was either well-read on our public websites or had been pumped full of information by one who is well-read on them, but he repeatedly used the word "us" and called for a need for "transparency". One of the biggest complaints on behalf of the faculty is that there is far too much secrecy - especially about the lack of school budget information - though the college has been and still is repeatedly spoken of in the media as "a financial drain to the University". This is simply not true. What is true, is that though the college has been required to make a yearly budget, they have been required to do so completely blind to any financial information concerning the college or university.

This monstrous waste of space had the guts to stand in front of a room full of people he has to encounter daily and state that the, "University needs the college. Without the college there will be nothing. The University would be financially responsible... (for the college)" He also stated something about how many of the university's pension checks were wrapped up in the college. Someone asked, "So when the university made its 'hasty decision' to close down the college, this wasn't taken into account?!"

This windbag said yes.

To further the raucous entertainment, he mentioned a "swinging door" between the University and the College, and that the University was placing people with us to be "eyes and ears" for the University. He talked sweetly of building trust again. He admitted that mistakes had been made and that admitting those would be oh-so hurtful. He stated that he had lost his temper in a voicemail to one of "ours" (my term, I will find out who very soon) and was deeply regretful of that.

But, dontcha see?! Things can change now! We can all work together!

The "superwoman" (his word) that is Toni Murdock will have the Army Corps of Engineers come to evaluate the campus so that Antioch could be rebuilt.

"Oh please oh please United States Army, will you come to our Radical Left-Wing College to help us rebuild? Oh yeah, and while you're here, why dontcha check out the awesome real-estate opportunites while you're here???"

***** CORRECTION: I LATER SPOKE TO A CREDIBLE SOURCE ABOUT HOW ONE PERSON COULD HAVE ENOUGH INFLUENCE TO BRING THE FREAKING ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS DOWN TO OUR LITTLE COLLEGE... IT WAS MENTIONED THAT HE 'MISSPOKE'. HE WAS SPEAKING OF A DIFFERENT ORGANIZATION. SADLY, I DON'T REMEMBER WHICH ONE, BUT TALKING ABOUT THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS IS A PRETTY LOFTY CLAIM. A MISTAKE, EH? *****

He also stated, and I quote, "part of the 'incubator idea' is to build a community for seniors out of the edge of...(unclear)." It is no secret that whispers abound that Yellow Springs would be a charming retirement community for retired army folks. BRAC has had an interest in the areas around YS, and has been adding money to it. The treasurer spoke of how very very much Toni was in love with Yellow Springs and all it has to offer, citing how it is already a very popular tourist area.

Of course, that scenario would certainly be preferrable to the inevitable "incubator project" that could very well involve National Security Measures and Biological testing sites. We're talking about the Freaking US ARMY. AAAAA RRRRRR MMMMM YYYYY!!!!!!!

I guess that may have been yet another oversight when the university made its "very hasty decision" to close our college. They couldn't have hand ANY IDEA that the little ol' town of Yellow Springs wouldn't want their "pinko town" turned to a RETIRED CONSERVATIVE MILITARY COMMUNITY? (a new ultimate-favorite overused label in many blog comments I've read "Pinko" - isn't it GRAND?)

What an ass.

The question was then raised of "Who exactly is in charge of publicity?". A fair question considering the same person who is in charge, was the very same person who worked on the college "renewal plan" a few years back that was a colossal failure. A woman stood up, identified herself, and answered another question of why the college hasn't gotten any good PR for the students who are currently on campus now. She simply stated that it was very hard for her to be "pulled away" from her office, and mentioned that the great things that are happening on campus could be written about in The Record. You know, because the college PR apparently rests on the students shoulders who are studying and working at the Record for journalism credits....
not, the... uh.... PR DEPARTMENT.
I mean really. What assumptions our little college makes.
Pshaw.

***** I HAVE ANOTHER THOUGHT TO ADD HERE, OPINION ONLY: I BET IT IS MIGHTY HARD FOR HER TO BE "PULLED AWAY" FROM HER OFFICE. SOMEONE HAS TO BE WRITING THESE PIECE OF CRAP PRESS RELEASES THAT SPAWN THE DAILY DELIVERIES OF CRAP REPORTING TO MY GMAIL NEWS ALERTS. THEY'RE COMING FROM SOMEWHERE, FOLKS. *****

This must have been yet another an oversight when considering the "very hasty decision" to close our college as well. I mean... why would a small liberal arts college in Ohio need any PR?

I have to say, my favorite highlight of the evening was after speaking about how we're all going to raise 100 million dollars the University (after reviewing our success with our Alums) is confident we can do that. I'm confident of it also. However, when asked, in light of this new 'transparent' attitude by the University, where exactly this 100 million dollar deficit came from - especially considering that at the time of the renewal plan, about four years ago we were only in debt 7 million, and could they please help us understand where this number came from, this jerk mutters something about how many of those numbers were "inaccurate" and that we can't get tangled up in pointing fingers about whose fault is what, and that "we" (meaning who exactly, I must wonder) "did a lot of borrowing from Peter to pay Paul."

First, we needed. 7 million dollars. Then 12. Then 50. Now, it's 100. But they can't/won't/don't wanna/don't care to show us how EXACTLY they've come up with these numbers.

They have all these great little sound bites they say that sound great, but are complete lies and half-truths. I only hope our gifted leaders and alumns can see through this monstrous amount of bullshit.

One person in front of me leaned over and said to another, "Are they heaping their debts on us?"

Good question.

Hassan R. reminded them that he was privy to documents that had numbers completely contradicting everything they were saying. (This is not an exact quote) He reminded them that they, under contract, were required to be paying Antioch College around 7.4% of a slice of money that came to over, I think, FOUR MILLION DOLLARS THAT THEY OWE US. It may have been as much as seven. As soon as possible, I will check sources and make sure that these statements are completely correct. I am identifying each one that I am not sure of.

Someone needs to speak clearly around here.

What really gets my goat, is how this is just days after the Steve Lawry was fired and escorted off campus, the development office was placed on lockdown so no one in the College had access to any of the information they need to raise money for the College (and we have a two month deadline!) and they are STILL refusing to let us talk to Steve, or hand over any budget information or tell us EXACTLY why and how the millions of dollars that we "need" is getting bigger and bigger by the day.

Oh, and that reminds me. Does anyone think that the REMOVAL OF OUR SERVERS TO ANOTHER STATE was a little suspicious, considering the timing and other possible 'unrelated' events surrounding it???????

I wonder how that big ol' brand-new, state-of-the-art building cost them that they are building on the edge of town. A town that has been anti-sprawl for years.

I wonder how in the hell these people can sleep at night.

THAT'S ALL FOR NOW, I HAVE A BUTT-TON OF HOMEWORK. BUT STAY TUNED FOR A REVEALING INTERVIEW WITH AN EX-MILITARY MEMBER WHO WORKED CLOSELY ALONGSIDE A COMMANDER IN IRAQ WHOSE CIVILIAN JOB WAS WITH THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS.

ANTIOCH IS STAYING OPEN!!!! or Join our secret society, we have capes!

2007-09-05T20:41:00.001-07:00

I couldn't decide on a title.

Damn. Damn damn damn damn damn. This whole process is so frustrating. Matthew Fuentes has often been heard saying, "The only way out is through."

I think my biggest complaint is the fact that THOSE IN PREVALENT STRUCTURES THAT GOVERN AND MAKE DECISIONS ARE OPERATING ON A LEVEL OF WHAT I CAN ONLY DESCRIBE AS A BUNCH OF CO-DEPENDENT BULL CRAP!!!!!

What is co-dependency, you ask o dear reader-o-mine?

Well, read the damn book on it. Co-Dependency No More.

Seriously though, what I'm specifically referring to is the INABILITY to talk to each other in a clear, concise, and direct way DEVOID OF SUBVERSIVE MEANINGS.

No one says what they mean and mean what they say. It's driving me nucking futs. I'm an Aries. What you see is what you get. But what am I getting in return for my efforts at clear, concise, and direct way of communicating??? People just seem to look for what I "really" mean. Because that's our current 'culture' right now... not to mention THE TONI MURDOCK AND HER TRUMPETING BUTT SUCKING TEAM has created these little ways of trying to shut us all up.

RIGHT NOW PEOPLE WORKING FOR HER AND THE COLLEGE FACE LOOSING THEIR JOB IF THEY TALK TO ANYONE.

LOOK AT WHAT HAPPENED TO STEVE LAWRY.

I won't tell you where I got my information. And I'm no primary source. But trust me, he was escorted off campus and fired. Plain and simple.

Don't believe me because I said it. Open your ears. Wide. Ask questions. Be nosy. READ READ READ READ everything you can possibly get your hands on.

DEFINATELY WATCH PEOPLE'S ACTIONS. KNOW WHO IS LYING TO YOU AND DON'T EVER FORGET THAT WHEN YOU INTERACT WITH THEM.

Please, please, please go to meetings. Any meeting. If you are an Antiochian, or wish you got to be one, or want to be one FIND A MEETING. You can ask me. Leave a comment, whatever, and I can try to find you one or put you in contact with someone who can find you one.

THE UNIVERSITY HAS A WELL-TRAINED AND EFFECTIVE PR DEPARTMET. GIVE THEM A RUN FOR THEIR MONEY. BE ANTIOCH'S ANTI-UNIVERSITY PR. IF YOU SEE A NEWS ARTICLE THAT IS EXPRESSING INACCURATE AND/OR MISLEADING INFORMATION, WRITE TO THE EDITOR!!!!!

Be the voice of those who have been silenced. THEY MUST "RUN THE COLLEGE 'AS IF' IT IS STILL CLOSING, BUT WE DO NOT HAVE TO! SPREAD THE WORD... WE ARE WINNING, WE WILL WIN. THIS COLLEGE IS NOT CLOSING.

I REPEAT, ANTIOCH COLLEGE IS NOT CLOSING.

Tell someone that every day. You will find that your opinion is not the minority on this one. But with the 'culture of fear' on campus, that one strong smile and voice may make the day of someone else who is also feeling the unfair and unreasonable pressures put on us all.

Make a blog. We're working on a more efficient way as we speak, but if you already have an Antioch Blog, gimme a link. I'm adding a list of blogs - I've already found quite a few. If you are too busy to go to meetings, try to make time to make a blog. Doesn't have to be anything fancy. Use a template at a free site, like the one I'm using here. I find blogger extremely easy to use, and it works right along with google (who offers a plethora of useful and free of cost and free of spy or adware programs) and picasa - programs favorites of mine.

If you have time, distribute information from credible sources. Google BRAC (Base realignment and Closure), and find out about Toni Murdocks link to the Military... did you know she is on the military advisory board? That her husband is in land development?

And if nothing else, man, fly a sign! Make one, or get a Save Antioch sign. Put in your yard, in the window of your business, in your car.

FIRST SUMMARY OF LEADERSHIP MEETING THURSDAY AUGUST 30, 2007

2007-08-31T21:38:00.000-07:00

Sadly, at this meeting, your most incredibly incredible blogger extraordinaire did not take very good notes. I absolutely promise that I will from here on out so I can report back to you, dearest reader extraordinaire, to your utmost and complete satisfaction.

I sit here late at night with my second Killians Irish Red for the evening, and recall the events following fondly as such:

This Wednesday was our first official meeting. We had two exciting guests with us who helped facilitate the meeting, and a wonderful woman who graduated last year who is organizing the whole thing. At our first meeting, we brainstormed ideas about what things each one of us would most like to gain from our participation in this group. Obviously, fundraising was A-number-one on the list following things like learning to be effective leaders and (follow later with details after consulting with a note-taker)

Today, however, some solid ideas were brought to the table. I think we are all in agreement with starting our own effing PR campaign to include countless letters to editors and newspapers who have been dancing on our grave before we're even dead - even the ones that seem to tout the College's outstanding past and reputation are doing little as of right now (soon to change!) to help keep us open. Some are just shoddy reporters and simply have reported wrong facts. Also, many practical and useful ideas were brought to the table. Committees were created, and yours truly volunteered for the online campaign (which works NIIIICELY with my Media and Social Change class taught by Bob Devine - yes the Public Access Guru of All Time) and committee to contact/get to know/thank passionately from the bottom of our hearts and on our knees the Village of Yellow Springs, the Antioch Alums, and anyone and everyone else sympathetic and in support of our cause. We are working on a zine, and easy-to-understand and easy-to-read literature letting everyone we can know all about our cause and how they can help. Yes, we need gobs and gobs of dough, but we also need anyone and everyone from any walk of life who can donate anything at all to our cause: a strong voice, special skills, a sense of humor, extra time, a great smile, artists, writers, PR people, managers of non-profit groups, fundraiser, anyone who would be willing to host a workshop to help instruct our leadership group in what you know best. Also, let it be known: SYMPATHETIC FOLKS ARE MORE THAN WELCOME TO SIT WITH US OR EVEN BE A WORKING PART OF OUR GROUP! Please email me with questions regarding our group specifically. Later, a complete list of contacts will be available.

If you are a part of this group, and see something I've missed in this first impromptu summary, please, by all means, email me, or go ahead and comment below.

So.... what soul-less nincompoop would really want to see THE ORIGINAL LIB'RAL ARTS COLLEGE that has stood for 155 years of social and progressive change bite the dust to the University THAT THE COLLEGE ITSELF CONCEIVED??? Not to mention the rest of the Antioch Schools and Antioch Communities throughout the U.S and the rest of the World.

Stay tuned. I'm not done here yet... there is SO MUCH MORE TO COME. Stay tuned for a telling story on the jerk-offs who are full of what one alum called MALE BOVINE FECAL MATTER.

So what the hell am I doing?

2007-08-31T20:34:00.000-07:00

I am simply adding to the blogsphere as yet another person in support of keeping ANTIOCH COLLEGE OPEN. I am vhemently against the 2012 plan as it is ridiculous - sinister, even. The views in this blog are mine, and mine alone. I will list the 'official' blogs that I urge anyone to go to in order to get the skinny on 'official' dealings as they change daily. Here, in my own blogsphere, I can scream loudly in protest in one of THE LARGEST RAPINGS OF LIBERALISM TO HAPPEN IN OVER 150 YEARS.

Please, if you come across this blog, I implore you to read, research, see what is happening to THE GREATEST LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGE of all time. I will also attempt to create a space for discussion and easy-t0-read information on this scandal, and daily updates on everything I know. This is brand new, so please check back often.