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Since 1980
Price of College Textbooks Continue to Soar
Textbook prices continue to rise and
are costing students more and more
three times faster than the
average rate of inflation.
(Popkin) The question now
money every semester. A recent
study by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics found that since 1977,
is how can a single industry
be increasing its prices by
three times the national
average but not be losing
college textbook prices have risen
any of their customers.
1,041 percent. The average rate of
The biggest problem with
With prices of college textbooks rising, students
all over the country are searching for other options
for classroom texts.
inflation for other products in the
the college textbook industry
United States since 1977 is 308
is that they know they have a
percent, showing that college
textbooks have risen
captive consumer base.
(Continued on Page 3)
Capital Punishment- What Are The Facts?
It is an extremely complex issue and one that has many opinions surrounding it. But what is the big deal about capital
punishment (more commonly known as the death penalty) anyway? In the United States Constitution, the bedrock of all
legislatures in our country, it states that “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and
unusual punishment inflicted.” (U.S. Constitution. Amend. VIII) The big question is what constitutes cruel and unusual
punishment? By inflicting capital punishment on others, are we taking away rights guaranteed to them since this country was
first formed?
In 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court was faced with what would soon become one of the most infamous cases in the courts history.
The case of Furman v. Georgia was a case between the state of Georgia and convicted felon William Henry Furman.
(Continued on Page 3)
The 39 Steps- A Bona Fide Classic
The 39 Steps is a classic mystery/suspense thriller
directed by the one and only Alfred Hitchcock. The film
originally premiered in theaters on August 1, 1935.
Written by Alma Reville, Charles Bennett, and Ian Hay
and featuring wonderful performances by such stars as
Robert Donat, Madeleine Carroll, and Lucie Mannheim,
The 39 Steps is a classic, masterpiece of a film that well
deserves its continued fame of eighty years. (Continued
on page 2)
Wes Craven “King of
Horror” Dies at 76
Wesley Earl Craven, more
commonly known as Wes
Craven, was born on August
2, 1939 in Cleveland, Ohio.
Although he would grow up
to be one of the most famous
horror film directors,
screenwriters, and
producers, Craven
surprisingly did not see
many films as a child.
(Con tined on page 2)
Wes Craven “King of
Horror” Dies at 76
(Continued from Page 1)
His parents, Caroline and
Paul Craven, were devout
members of the Baptist
church and as a result he
was only allowed to watch a
few Disney films.
(biography.com) After
completing high school,
Craven started his
undergraduate studies at
Wheaton College in Illinois.
There he studied and earned
an undergraduate degree in
both English and
Psychology. After his
undergraduate, he moved on
to study Philosophy and
Writing at Johns Hopkins
University in Baltimore.
(nytimes.com)
After completing his
studies, Craven worked as
an English professor at
Westminster College in
Pennsylvania. He was also
a professor of Humanities
at Clarkson College of
Technology in Potsdam,
New York and had a hobby
of writing short stories and
poetry before he began to
make his name as a
filmmaker. (Wooley
2011) During his teaching
career, he purchased a
16mm camera and began
to direct short films. He
was notified by a friend,
Tom Chapin, that there
was a job available in a
post-production company
owned by his brother in
New York City.
Craven moved to Manhattan
to take his first job in the film
industry as a sound editor.
He eventually worked his
way up to working as the
firm's assistant manager. It
was through this job that he
was eventually able to break
into the film editing industry.
(IMDB) During this time, he
also was married to Bonnie
Broeker. They had two
children, Jonathan and
Jessica.
For a short time, Craven
became a pornographic film
writer, editor, and director.
His marriage with Bonnie
Broeker ended in 1970. His
first feature film as a director
was The Last House on the
Left, which premiered in
1972. The film "mined human
cruelty to fuel the horrific tale
of teenage girls abducted by
deranged prisoners."
(biography.com) Craven
brought an even darker
mindset to an already twisted
industry. His focus on the pain
that evil people are able to
inflict on others was also the
inspiration for his classic The
Hills Have Eyes, which made its
premiere in 1977. (IMDB)
Craven was once again wed in
1982 to Mimi Craven. Their
marriage only lasted a couple
of years. In 1984, Craven went
on to make his most popular
work, A Nightmare on Elm
Street.
(Continued on Page 5)
The 39 Steps- A Bona Fide Classic (continued from Page 1)
Although the film
premiered in 1935, it
contains certain cinematic
elements that make it a
timeless piece of art that
continues to thrill audiences
well into a new century.
The story is intriguing.
Richard Hannay, a London
man played by Robert
Donat, is unknowingly
caught up in assisting a
counterespionage agent, the
alluring Miss Smith played
by Lucie Mannheim. But
when the agent is
shockingly killed in the
middle of the night,
Richard must run away in
order to avoid being
accused of the murder
himself and to stop an
organization of spies that
are trying to aid in the
export of top secret
information. His adventure
leads him from London to
rural Scotland where he is
relentlessly chased by the
police force. Along his
journey, he has a run-in
with a woman named
Pamela, played by the
beautiful Madeleine
Carroll. Pamela is
eventually entangled in the
same web of commotion
that Richard finds himself
in. She begrudgingly gets
taken along for the ride as
the two search to find
answers and attempt to stop
the spy group from
accomplishing their task.
The classic thriller is a rare
art form in modern cinema
with more and more films
relying heavily on violence
and spectacle to entertain
viewers. The 39 Steps was
like a breath of fresh air for
me. It showed how a film
does not need to have an
extremely high budget or
be filled with thousands of
stunts to make it enjoyable.
The film relied heavily on
its script which in the end
pays off very well. The
film contains so many
twists and turns you’ll be
squirming in your seat
trying to figure out what is
going to happen next
throughout the duration of
the entire film. You know
it’s a good movie when
there is only two minutes
left and you are still
questioning how it is going
to end.
It is no wonder that The 39
Steps was director Alfred
Hitchcock’s breakthrough
film. It is gorgeous to look
at and the production value
is top notch. Everything
from the lighting to the
cinematography is well
done. The camera
movements are especially
fascinating. Hitchcock
does an incredible job of
placing the camera at
specific angles where you
are only able to see a part
of the picture, leaving
viewers to hang in suspense
as to what could be
happening outside of the
frame. The set and
costumes made me feel as
though I had been
transported back to 1930’s
England and Scotland. The
film had the unique power
that films rarely do to catch
the audience’s attention in
the first few minutes and
never let go until the film is
over. I have never had a
quicker ninety minutes in
my life.
Do yourself a favor and
take time to see this film.
In a day and age of overbloated and over-budgeted
spectacles, it is nice to see a
film that relies solely on an
incredible story and great
acting to entertain you.
Films these days have
turned into merely eye
candy, but this film will
remind you of how the film
is truly an art form.
”Price of College
Textbooks Continue to
Soar” Continued from
Page 1
When your teacher tells you
a certain text is required for
the class, it is not going to
do much if you argue with
that professor about how
expensive the book is. They
have two hundred other
students who have already
gone out and bought the
book. The publishers know
that we have no choice when
it comes to getting their
textbooks. Buying used
books from students who
have already taken the
course is getting more and
more popular, but the
publishers of textbooks
come out with a new edition
every couple of years to
ensure that they are still
going to be making money.
From personal experience,
I have compared two
different editions of the
same textbook and seen
that sometimes all the
publisher does is change
the order of the chapters
and the wording in a few
areas and calls it a new
book, just to charge
students outrageous prices
all over again when they
buy their required text.
Ben Popkin of NBC
compared the college
textbook industry to the
drug industry in that
“[publishers] spend their
time wooing the decision
makers to adopt their
product. In this case, it's
professors instead of doctors
point did not buy one of their
required textbooks due to
financial concerns. Of that
65%, 94% of them had
Professors are not priceconcerns that by not buying
sensitive and they then assign their required textbook put
and students have no say," He their grades in serious
then continued on to say that jeopardy. (USPIRG)
“unlike drugs, there’s no
“textbook insurance” to cover So what is to be done about
the out of pocket costs.”
this situation? Some have
(Popkin) It has been reported suggested the idea of openthat the average United States source textbooks. A recent
college student will spend on article from the New York
average around $1,200 a year Times explained open-source
on their textbooks.
textbooks as “textbooks
(Weisbaum)
created under an open license,
so they can be downloaded
In a recent report by the
free or printed at low cost;
United States Public Interest
instructors can even rearrange
Research Group, they found
the sequence of material,
that in the last school year,
65% of students at some
(Con tinued on Page 5)
Capital Punishment- What Are The Facts? Continued from Page 1
Furman, whilst robbing a
house, had shot the owner
while trying to make his
escape. His initial
statement was that he had
fired the gun blindly and
accidentally killed the
owner. Later, he went on
to make a statement that he
had tripped and that the
weapon he was carrying
accidentally fired. The
inconsistency between his
two statements was grounds
for the state of Georgia to
assume that he was guilty,
and capital punishment was
sought after as the
punishment for his crime.
Furman, however,
contested the ruling and
appealed the execution.
His argument was that the
nature of sentencing for
capital punishment varied
from state to state and
lacked a solid definition.
The case itself took place
on January 17, 1972 and
the verdict was not decided
until June 19, 1972. The
Supreme Court overturned
Furman’s execution
They stated that “unless a
uniform policy of
determining who is eligible
for capital punishment
exists, the death penalty
will be regarded as ‘cruel
and unusual punishment’”.
Because of the outcome of
the Furman v. Georgia
case, a moratorium on
capital punishment across
the entire country was
imposed, making the death
penalty illegal in the United
States. However, the
moratorium did not last
long. It ceased in 1976
after another Supreme
Court case, Gregg v.
Georgia, was brought
before the court.
In the case of Gregg v.
Georgia, a man convicted
of the murder of two adult
women and a child was
being sentenced to death by
the state of Georgia. For
four years previous to the
case, the moratorium put
upon capital punishment by
the Supreme Court had
insured that no executions
would be performed.
However, in the case of
Gregg v. Georgia, Troy
Leon Gregg was found
completely guilty of the
crime. Since the Furman v.
Georgia case of 1972, the
state of Georgia had
produced additional
guidelines to their capital
punishment policy, clearly
outlining what constituted
the punishment and what
did not. Since it had been
clearly outlined by the state
and the defendant was
found to be guilty, the
Supreme Court ruled that
capital punishment would
not violate the Eighth and
Fourteenth amendments of
the Constitution. The
Supreme Court in their
verdict exclaimed that
“Capital punishment does
not violate the Eighth or
Fourteenth amendments of
the United States
Constitution provided it is
set forth in a carefully
drafted statute that ensures
the sentencing authority has
adequate information and
guidance in reaching its
decision.
So now the question is, why
all the confusion about the
death penalty? Why was it
essentially repealed in 1972
just for it to be reinstated in
1976? Why do people have
such differing beliefs about
its ethicality or
constitutionality? To this
day, it is still not clear cut
on both the national and
state level where capital
punishment stands. Every
state has differing statutes
pertaining to the
punishment. On a national
level, the constitutionality
of capital punishment varies
case by case and by the
views of each Supreme
Court Justice. The
Supreme Court recently
began a new term on
October 5, 2015.
(Continued on Page 4)
Capital Punishment- What Are The Facts?
(Continued from Page 3)
On their docket of cases to oversee, there are at least six
capital punishment cases. Not to mention a recent wave of
executions which has been keeping the justices busy with
last-minute appeals of capital punishment sentences.
(Bravin, wsj.com)
Many people are adamant about our country abolishing the
death penalty. Just two weeks ago in the state of Ohio, an
83 mile march was organized from the Southern Ohio
Correctional Facility all the way to the Ohio Statehouse.
As they walked they chanted “What do we want?
Abolition! When do we want it? Now!” (Frank,
Portsmouth-dailytimes.com) This stunt shows just how
spirited some people are in the debate over capital
punishment. They argue that over two-thirds of the
countries in the world have now abolished capital
punishment in either law or practice and that it is now
America’s turn. Others argue that it is racially biased,
citing that the majority of death row defendants have been
executed for killing white victims, even though AfricanAmericans make up half of all homicide victims.
It is argued that capital punishment is not a deterrent, and
that the fourteen states within our country that no longer
practice capital punishment have homicide rates at or
below the national average. Another point argued is that
capital punishment disregards those suffering from mental
illness. According to international law, the execution of
those with a mental illness is prohibited and dozens of
prisoners have been executed despite suffering from
crippling mental illness. (ACLU 2012)
However, with as many people as there are
fighting to have capital punishment abolished, there is just as
large of a group pushing for capital punishment to be more
accessible of a punishment for those who have committed
heinous crimes. They argue that capital punishment helps give
closure to the families of victims. Although some may argue
that there have been times that innocent people may have been
killed, DNA testing and other modern methods of crime scene
science are now able to effectively eliminate nearly all
uncertainty of a criminal’s guilt. Overpopulation in our prison
system has become a problem in recent years and many argue
that a faster track to capital punishment is the solution. (Balko,
huffingtonpost.com) At the end of this month, a man named
Jerry Correll is scheduled for an execution in Florida. Correll
has been on trial since 1985 for the murder of four family
members including his five year old daughter. It has been thirty
years since the crime has been committed and he is just now
approaching his death sentence date. (ncadp.org) Many
question why, if he was so clearly guilty, has it taken over a
quarter of a century for this day to come?
Arguments concerning capital punishment are more often than
not a debate over ethics. The arguments that people make
whether it be for or against are often a reflection of their
personal beliefs. The principles and beliefs of a person are
deeply rooted in experiences they have had in their life and the
way that they were brought up.
Wes Craven “King of Horror” Dies at
76 (Continued from Page 2)
Craven tried experimenting
with different genres such as
horror-comedy, but he did
not have another big hit until
1996 when Scream was
released. The movie grossed
over $100 million and was
just the beginning of what
would become several
sequels. In 1999,
Craven took a dramatic
deviation from his horror
films and directed a drama
starring Meryl Streep. The
film, Music of the Heart,
was critically acclaimed
and well received by movie
fans even though it was out
of the ordinary for Craven.
(CNN)
In 2004, Craven married
Iya Labunka. She went on
to be a producer for many
of Craven's films.
Craven also stepped out of
the box in 2005 when he
directed Red Eye, a thriller
about a woman who gets
caught up in a plot to
assassinate the President of
the United States. He
returned to the horror movie
genre in 2010 with the film
My Soul to Take. The next
year in 2011, Craven also
returned to the Scream
franchise when he wrote and
directed the fourth
film. (IMDB)
After having battled with
brain cancer, Craven died on
30, 2015. He is survived by
his wife Iya Labunka and his two
children Jonathan and Jessica.
Friend and colleague, Kevin
Williamson, said "He was a true
innovator. Wes has horrified and
entertained millions for decades.
His films will continue to be
touted as some of the greatest of
their genre. Knowing Wes Craven
changed my life forever. I know
the impact of his work will be
with us forever. As the Master of
Horror, he made his mark in
cinema." (Biography.com) Make
his mark in cinema he did. Wes
Craven will always be
remembered as the Master of
Horror and his films will live on
and continue to thrill viewers for
decades to come.
Price of College Textbooks Continue To Soar (Continued from Page 3)
to suit their preference.
There’s a movement to
make faculty-written, peerreviewed open-source
textbooks available to
professors and students, to
help keep a lid on the cost
of textbooks.” (Carrns)
Imagine that, having no
cost to have a required
textbook for a class or
paying a small fee to print
the entire thing. No more
having to carry heavy
books around since opensource textbooks can be
opened on devices like
phones and tablets.
According to the Student
Public Interest Research
Group, there have been
five colleges in the United
States that have piloted
this open source textbook
proposal. Thus far, the
savings for the average
student have been
significant.
A student at one of these
colleges named Jennifer
Swain was interviewed
about switching to open
source textbooks and she
said “my instructor for a
physics class used an opensource textbook. This one
is free, whereas a
comparable hard copy
physics text would cost
about $250.” (Carrns)
There really is no lowercost option available than
an open source textbook.
Although certain online
sites such as Amazon and
Chegg.com have started
reselling used books or
offering rental options,
most college textbooks still
come at a heavy price even
when they are used or
rented. Even though there
have only been five
colleges in the U.S. thus far
to pilot the program, the
hope is that it will spread in
popularity until nobody has
to pay for a college
textbook again. College
tuition is expensive
enough, why shell out
another thousand dollars
plus each year for
textbooks when they could
be free?
Bibiliography
"Capital Felony--Sentencing Proceeding." Utah State
Legislature. State of Utah, 23 Jan. 1998. Web. 17
Oct. 2015.
<http://le.utah.gov/~1998/bills/hbillamd/HB0306.p
df>.
"Pending Case: Jerry Correll, Florida." Pending Case: Jerry
Correll, Florida. 6 Sept. 2015. Web. 16 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.ncadp.org/cases/entry/jerry-correll>.
Furman v. Georgia, US Supreme Court, 408 U.S. 238
(1972)
Gregg v. Georgia, US Supreme Court, 428 U.S. 153 (1976)
IMDB. "Biography." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 25 Nov.
2015.
<http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000127/bio>.
"The Case Against the Death Penalty." American Civil
Liberties Union. 2012. Web. 14 Oct. 2015.
<https://www.aclu.org/case-against-death-penalty>.
Karimi, Faith, and Henry Hanks. "Wes Craven, Horror
Movie Director, Dies at 76." CNN. Cable News
Network, 1 Sept. 2015. Web. 25 Nov. 2015.
<http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/30/entertainment/w
es-craven-horror-movie-director-death/>.
Balko, Radley. "Why Americans Still Support The Death
Penalty." The Huffington Post.
TheHuffingtonPost.com, 28 Nov. 2011. Web. 15
Oct. 2015. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/radleybalko/death-penalty-supportamerica_b_984931.html>.
Mulhere, Kaitlin. "Is This the Solution to Crazy High
Textbook Prices?" Time. Time, 01 Sept. 2015.
Web. 27 Oct. 2015.
<http://time.com/money/4017003/high-text-bookprices-solution/>.
Biography.com Editors. "Wes Craven Biography." Bio.com.
A&E Networks Television, 2 Sept. 2015. Web. 25
Nov. 2015.
<http://www.biography.com/people/wes-craven193498>.
Popkin, Ben. "College Textbook Prices Have Risen 1,041
Percent Since 1977." NBC News. NBC, 6 Aug.
2015. Web. 27 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.nbcnews.com/feature/freshmanyear/college-textbook-prices-have-risen-812percent-1978-n399926>.
Bravin, Jess. "Supreme Court Docket Loaded With DeathPenalty Cases." WSJ. 4 Oct. 2015. Web. 17 Oct.
2015. <http://www.wsj.com/articles/supreme-courtdocket-loaded-with-death-penalty-cases1443999113>.
Carrns, Ann. "Putting a Dent in College Costs With OpenSource Textbooks." The New York Times. The New
York Times, 25 Feb. 2015. Web. 27 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/26/yourmoney/putting-a-dent-in-college-costs-with-opensource-textbooks.html?_r=0>.
Erickson, Rovi Hal. "Wes Craven." NY Times. New York
Times, 1 Sept. 2015. Web. 25 Nov. 2015.
<http://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/86179/W
es-Craven/biography>.
Frank, Lewis. "Walk to End the Death Penalty Underway Portsmouth Daily Times - Portsmouthdailytimes.com." Portsmouth Daily Times. 5 Oct. 5.
Web. 15 Oct. 2015. <http://portsmouthdailytimes.com/news/2795/walk-to-end-the-deathpenalty-underway>.
U.S. Constitution. Amend. 14
U.S. Constitution. Amend. 8
USPIRG. "Report: Affordable Higher Education." Fixing
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<http://www.uspirg.org/reports/usp/fixing-brokentextbook-market>.
Weisbaum, CNBC Herb. "Cost of College Textbooks out of
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<http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfi
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Hoboken, NJ: J. Wiley, 2011. Print.