Month: February 2014

Alarums, Excursions and Politics in Thailand BY NATALIE VAN BOOVEN _____________________________________ Many people know Thailand for its elephants, its extremely spicy food and its style of kickboxing. Now, its political crisis joins the list. In the latest development, after Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra met with the Election Council, the government decided to hold elections on Feb. 2, notwithstanding the protests, violence and boycotts by the opposition that have racked the country for the last several months. Just the week before, when anti-government protesters overran polling stations in an attempt to stop early voters, one person was killed and about 12 others were hurt—just a few of the 10 casualties and the 577 people hurt since Nov. 30. On the other side, former deputy ...

You’re Missing Out on the Excitement BY WILL BASLER ___________________________________ High- flying and sharp-shooting Bearcats are truly an exciting team to watch. *** Over the weekend, the Bearcat men’s basketball team lost at Southern Indiana 90-74. Looking at the score, an onlooker may infer that the game was a blowout, but the Bearcats actually led at halftime and, if not for the Screaming Eagles having a great shooting half, the game may have ended differently. This was only the fourth time in 2014 that the team had scored less than 75 points. This year’s team is scoring 16 points more per game than last year’s team, and their 83.2 PPG is more than any McKendree team since the 2007-08 season. The team has a good mix of guards and big men that can put up over 100 points in any one ga...

Brand New Bearcats BY LAUREN APETZ __________________________________________ This year, McKendree University began a new sports program: men’s volleyball. This team is young, with 15 freshmen making up the roster. Nicki Sanlin, who is assisted by Ben Duckworth, coaches the Bearcats. Because the team consists of freshmen, there is a lot of room to grow and develop as a team. This season serves as a growing season for the program and the only direction this team can go is up.  The Bearcats began the year by going to three different venues. The first venue was Ball State University (Muncie, Ill.) on Jan. 24. Ball State proved to be a tough match for the Bearcats, who unfortunately lost their first game ever three sets to none. The Bearcats then took on Dominican University (River Forest, ...

McKendree Speech and Debate Opens Spring with Strong Performances BY JOSEPH BLASDEL, PhD __________________________________________ The McKendree University speech and debate team began its spring semester of competition with strong performances at both University of Utah’s Mile High Swing and Webster University’s Gorlok Gala – reaching quarterfinals in debate at Mile High and advancing six events to finals at the Gorlok. “It was a great start to the spring,” said Joe Blasdel. “I think it gives a lot of momentum heading into the final stretch of the regular season and nationals.” Thirty-one colleges and universities, including the University of California at Berkeley, the University of Oregon, the University of California at Los Angeles, and Rice University, attended the University of ...

New Year – New Degree Options at McKendree! BY STEPHANIE QUINN, PhD JOY SANTEE, PhD __________________________________________ As technology continues to permeate all aspects of the 21st century work environment, employers are demanding college graduates who excel at professional communication. In fact, effective written and oral communication skills are consistently ranked among the top skills employers expect of job applicants. However, being able to send a clearly written email or create a Microsoft Word document is no longer enough. Employees can spend anywhere from 50-80% of their work day communicating in both verbal and written formats, so you can set yourself apart from other job applicants by developing key communication skills during your time at McKendree. One of the best ways t...

Make Mindless Eating Work for You BY REBECCA COLLIER, MS, RD Registered Dietitian Adjunct Instructor, Health Promotion and Wellness __________________________________________ Does the thought of "going on a diet" make you cringe? For most, this means cutting out your favorite foods and battling cravings all day – a less-than-exciting prospect for almost everyone. But new research points to a more effective, less drastic approach to adopting a healthier diet. "Mindless eating" centers on the idea that our everyday environments strongly influence what and how much we choose to eat. When your stomach rumbles or you get the boredom munchies, you are most likely to go for what is in reach. It is easy to grab another piece of candy when it is sitting on your desk or to munch on a few (or more th...

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...and the Grammy Goes to... BY BRITANI BEASLEY ___________________________________________ On Sunday, January 6th of 2014, musicians of many different backgrounds and genres arrived to a night of dancing, speeches and fashion for the 56th Annual Grammy Awards. Hosted by the talented LL Cool J, this was a night that the stars and the fans will remember! After Beyoncé and Jay Z opened the night with a performance of her hot song, “Drunk In Love,” Katy Perry entertained with a shady performance of “Dark Horse.” Pink majestically flew through the air and showed her emotional and physical strength during her dual performance of her popular song “Try,” and her duet with Nate Ruess of “Give Me a Reason,”. These were not the only chart-toppers making news at the 2014 Grammy Awards; Chicago also s...