Buzzsaw’s 10th Anniversary issue
Buzzsaw has been around for 10 years; questioning authority, mocking culture, reviewing bands you’ve never heard of and pointing out hypocrisy at Ithaca College. You could call it an institution.
From its inception, Buzzsaw has existed on the fringe of the campus community. Every semester the issues pile up in The Ithacan boxes, waiting to be read by the dedicated reader or the curious passer-by, but Buzzsaw doesn’t exist for the masses. Buzzsaw exists for those who can see through the bullshit, those who are tired of our two-faced society, those who want to get away from force-fed entertainment. It’s a pompous, self-congratulatory thing to say, but it’s the truth, and the truth is what Buzzsaw strives for.
From the Founders
Messages from the creators of Buzzsaw: Bryan Chambala, James Sigman, Sam Costello, Cole Louison, Thom Denick, Abby Bertumen, & Kelly Burdick-Chambala.
Paradox Found
Searching for a progressive soul in Upstate New York
By Meagan Murray
Oh, Upstate New York. The image of dim-witted, Carhartt-sporting dairy farmers, too stupefied by their own reflections in the frozen tundra of the land laid out before them to know which way is up comes to mind.
At least, this is the projected stereotype of most people downstate. I was, until recently, one of the many who regarded such “demographically-challenged” lost souls inhabiting the upper regions of New York State (including myself) as severely lagging behind in the evolutionary process. Then I had a somewhat stress-induced epiphany, but an epiphany no less—and voilá, the focal point of this article was born.
Letters from the Editors
These are the first Comments (or letters from the editors), printed in the first two issues.
Juice for Jesus
The Mate Factor proprietors and their unique lifestyle
By Erika Spaet
Suzanne Watin was a Jewish dental hygienist from Union, N.J. She and her now ex-husband had their daughter late in life, moved around a lot and always had enough money; they lived what could be seen as an ordinary, upper-middle class life together. But when fate knocked on Watin’s door six years ago, she decided the comforts of her home and the life were a little too ordinary.
Editorial: Defining Terrorism
Does the War on Terrorism have an achievable objective, or is it an abstract conflict with a perpetual, faceless enemy? News+Views Editor Matthew Farrell looks for a definition of “terrorism” and a clearer picture of what, exactly, we’re looking to defeat.
By Matthew Farrell
The Rise and Fall of the Miniskirt
The miniskirt’s move from empowerment to objectification
By Briana Kerensky
In 2008, the mini-skirt is an article of fashion that seems to be reserved for a few different types of people. These include but are not limited to: women just “trying to put themselves through college,” women working too hard for attention, models, drag queens, and Photoshopped pictures of Sarah Palin.
War is Woefully Un-Complex
The pain, hardship and horror of the worst card game ever
By Marc Calderaro
War is stupid. I like to think I understand games well enough to be objective, but the fun aspects of this card game elude me. I used to think that it simply rewarded good shuffling skills; then I learned that shuffling is illegal. What does this game actually entail? I found out.
Broken Megaphones
The paradox of restricting free speech at political conventions
By: Jenna Scatena
Tension had been building throughout the country for months. Tumultuous events—vast protests, cultural upheaval, assassinations—during the first eight months of 1968 turned the entire nation into a spectacle of turmoil of historic proportions. Watching to see what would happen next, America turned to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago during August of 1968 for the crescendo.
Philosophizing Torture
It’s wrong, no matter how you argue it.
By Craig Duncan
To people who oppose torture, the response is always the same. “Ah, so you’re against torture? Well, what would you do if you had in your custody a terrorist who has planted a ticking nuclear bomb somewhere in Manhattan, and he refuses to tell you where it is? Wouldn’t you do anything, including torture him, in order to try to save millions from that bomb?”
No Longer Listed as “In a relationship “
So don’t post, advanced post, poke or super poke again
By Mike Berlin
I left Facebook last month. It was the toughest decision I’ve ever had to make—one of life and death with ramifications even more difficult to live with afterwards. There would be no more virtual gifts, no more Facebook apps., no more minifeeds, no more “friends,” no more wall posts, no more Mark. It began, innocently enough, with a Facebook message:
“Hello, I am Mark Zuckerberg, overlord of Facebook. I request that you join my group ‘I totally friended Mark Zuckerberg… and your MOM.’ There are only 120,000 people in this group. It’s kinda exclusive, but I really like your taste in music (‘everything except country’) and think that you’re really funny, LOL. Ttyl, Mark.”
Green, White and Blue
The new American workforce
By Mike Berlin
In the vacant lobby of 239 Cherry St., I hesitantly pen my name on the unattended sign-in sheet, though it doesn’t seem mandatory. From the street, the building is indistinguishable from the other boxy, grey industrial-looking ones around it. Inside, it’s clinical and corporate. I sit at the head of a long table set with shiny, varnished wooden chairs until Jason Salfi, CEO, co-founder and partner of Comet Skateboards, emerges from the door behind to greet me.