By William Corsi
OSWEGO, N.Y. — The trees are changing color, pumpkin spice is back, and Halloween is right around the corner. Students at SUNY Oswego shared their excitement with Reporter William Corsi.
Of the 27 people who were polled about their plans for Halloween, 19 of them said they were going to dress up for Halloween and 16 of them said they will be going out to get candy and celebrating with friends.
Student Marina Pantoliano said that she likes Halloween is one of the only holidays where people really get into it besides Christmas.
Some students said certain aspects of halloween make them feel uncomfortable.
“People running around in masks kind of creeps me out,” Student Dalton Bisson said.
Halloween takes place on Tuesday this year.
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Styrofoam and Smoking On Public Property Ban
OSWEGO, NY—On Monday, October 27, Mayor Billy Barlow and City Hall officials unanimously voted to ban the use of styrofoam and smoking on public properties.
A concerned member of the community took the opportunity to speak about the effect of smoking on the community.
“Discarding cigarette butts constitute the majority of litter on beaches, playgrounds, etc. The reduction of use results in reduced clean up costs for the community,” said the woman.
Cigarette filters, e-cigarette pods and plastic wrappers all contain toxic chemicals that can leak into water supplies and are non-biodegradable. These products can also pose a major threat to children and small animals.
“That’s the bottom line for me is quality of life. There will be improvement for us, as current residents as well as the future residents,” said Council Member Robert A. Corridino.
SUNY Oswego students also expressed their support for the ban, but adding more can and should be done.
“To have them all be more encompassing and have a more robust ‘Keep Oswego Clean Initiative.’ I feel like besides just banning styrofoam products they should too expand it to ban other single use plastic products as well…” said former Student Association President, Omar van Reenan. “Then we also have to take that responsibility to heart and act on that responsibility to protect not just the people but the environment of the city of Oswego as well.”
Now that it has been passed, the initiative will go into effect on April 22, 2020, which is also Earth Day.
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A Word’s Worth
by Stefanie Sciolaro, WTOP10-TV
They say a picture is worth 1,000 words. Well members of SUNY Oswego’s Student Association took that saying even farther in their 1,000 Words Campaign on Thursday. The event was held in room 133 of the Marano Campus Center from 10AM to 4PM with another event later in the night in the Marano Auditorium from 6PM to 7PM. The afternoon event consisted of an activity students could do to help promote positivity and hope on campus.
Students would come in and choose any quote that means something to them. After choosing a quote, they’d decide where they wanted it to be written on them. An event volunteer would then write the quote on the student and a picture of them would be taken in front of a black back-drop. The student would then fill out a form with their information, and a member of the Student Association would email those pictures to them after the event. If a student did not want to have their picture taken, there was also a white board that students could write their quotes on.
Allif Karim is one of the students who took part in the event. He explained the reasoning behind why he chose the quote, “ Don’t change to be, be the change”.
“Growing up I used to be the typical kid trying to change myself, you know trying to see what fits, what’s hip. Now I understating that you don’t really have to do that, be someone who influences others,” said Alif.
Later that night the event held in the Marano Auditorium showcased all the pictures of students that had participated, along with guest speakers who explained the stories behind their quotes.
With evident tension between people within society today, this event was aimed at bringing the people of SUNY Oswego back together again. The student body has become separated, to a concerning degree, by views over recent events that have occurred in the United States. The 1,000 Words Campaign event was a way for students to positively express themselves through the inspiring words they each individually stand by, and share them with each other.
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Northern Arizona Shooting Leaves 1 Dead, 3 Wounded
One is dead and three are wounded after a confrontation outside of a residence hall causes a student to shoot four people in what has been the second reported “mass” shooting in a month.
18-year-old Steven Jones produced a handgun and shot four students after it is reported that two groups of males took part in a fight outside one of the residence halls.
The Arizona Board of Regents prohibits people from carrying guns around campus, but they are allowed to stow them in their cars.
This incident comes on the same day that President Barack Obama was scheduled to meet with families of the victims of the events at Umpqua Community College in Oregon, a shooting which took place just 8 days ago.
In a statement President Obama made regarding Oregon, he said “Somehow this has become routine. The reporting is routine. My response here at this podium ends up being routine.”
For many that hear about these two school shootings in 8 days, it is hard to think of it as anything but routine.
