Rough Draft

They get to take priority every quarter. Their services cost you $128.73 per year. They are currently working on getting food vendors to take debit cards. They are the Associate Students Incorporated student government.
"ASI", as it is known throughout the Cal Poly Campus, is a group of students intending to be "every student’s connection to the ultimate university experience." Their mantra of being the average student’s "connection" to the large university system seems to flaunt impossibility. Can students truly find fair representation in their fellow students, and can they trust the student-run organization to listen and fight for their wants and needs? Elusive as ASI may seem, the organization, made up of elected students and minimal faculty advisors, is doing what they can to see to it that Cal Poly students needs are met.
Within ASI, there exists several sub committees and groups; one of which is the ASI Board of Directors, made up of student representatives from each college. The Board of Directors meets bimonthly and holds an "open forum" for students to bring problems, questions and issues to the Board.
"Open forum is basically.........," says Lindsey Bauer, civil engineering junior.
Besides hearing from fellow students, the Board tackles issues extremely relevant to student life and even faculty. In fact, the most recent addition to their agenda is lowering textbook prices, which has been a primary student concern for the past few years.
"The reason textbook prices are so high is because faculty don’t turn in their textbook requests on time. If they turn in their book lists earlier, the book store can buy them cheaper. The book store doesn’t make any profit– it’s the professors who are costing students," says Martha Caldwell, business junior.
Also, if you grabbed a free cookie in the UU or outside the library a few weeks ago, chances are that you participated in ASI’s e-voting trial. This trial, organized by ASI and the Board of Directors, is a step closer to Cal Poly catching up with the rest of the university system.
"The E-vote is huge for Cal Poly........," says Bauer, "
With such exciting change floating around campus, there lurks less optimistic attitudes. Even in an era where student voices are being heard the loudest, there still remain some critics of the system and of the power of students to elicit change.
Even in the meetings of the Board of Directors, there lies a voice too passionate to ignore.
"A faculty member or a student has a snowball’s chance in hell of making changes within the university system," says Joe LoCoscio, the Advisor of the Academic Senate.
If the student Board members represented the Yang, LoCascio or "J.Lo," would be the Yin. He seemed to believe that no single person could change the system, even if they were passionate about the issue.
But where there is darkness, there must also be light. Todd Maki, the elected ASI president, is happy to expound on the accomplishments of student-inspired change.
He assures the student body that although it might be hard for one person to change, with the help of others, change is definitely possible, if not inevitable. He refers back to the same snowball metaphor as LoCascio:
" It’s more like a 50 ft snowball, but if you get people behind it, you can really make a difference," says Maki.
He also added that, "The faculty and higher-ups are extremely willing to hear the issues students bring to them Actually, the higher up, the more willing to listen to students they are."

Assignment 11

Quotes:


"Man, this movie is gunna be soooooo gooooood. Maaaaan, it’s gunna roooooock!"
(A youth behind me at the movie theater about to see Reno 911!: The Movie , he also reeked of marijuana.)
Film marketer’s appeal to youth.


"That was awkward..."
"I know, that guy probably thinks we’re nuts.
[Two girls crossing the street downtown waiting for the light to turn green, but the pedestrians waiting on the crosswalk (coming from both directions) were sort of suspended for a few seconds].
Streetlight safety/accuracy


"If you win, can I have a million?"
(A girl, after helping a man select his lottery numbers)
Lottery Winners: Before and After


"I’ve read that, and that, and that, and that, oh, not that; and that and that...nope, and that and that–"
"I read A Tale of Two Cities...."
"– and that, oh, Dostoevsky.... and that, and this...I can get you one if you want."
(A father expounding on all the fine literature he has read, to his collegiate son, in the Bargain section of Barnes and Noble)
Is America’s youth suffering from an illiteracy epidemic?

Sources

Martha Caldwell: mmcaldwe@calpoly.edu
Board member

Tracy Watson: twatson@calpoly.edu
ASI administrative assistant

Michelle Broom: mbroom@calpoy.edu
Public relations

Blog 10: PR Firms

Blog 10
Company 1:
APCO Worldwide
1. Jose Hermosillo (Managing Director and Senior Vice President);
Phone
916.554.3400
Fax
916.554.3434
Contact Email
jhermoci@apcoworldwide.com
2. APCO Worldwide, an award-winning global communication consultancy, specializes in providing targeted solutions to issues faced by clients. APCO was named 2004 Public Affairs Agency of the Year and clients include six of the top 10 companies on Fortune's Global 500.
The company's headquarters are in Sacramento, Calif., and a top executive is:


Margery KrausPresident and CEO+202-778-1010mkraus@apcoworldwide.com
The company has worked with clients from IKEA to Microsoft, to international companies and organizations. While they have a diverse clientel, they “believe an organization's reputation is the culmination of how such challenges are managed. In the end, this work builds and protects an organization's value and the value of its products and services.”
4. In 2004, their revenue was $45,200,00.00

5.
6.www.apcoworldwide.com


Company 2:
Richard Strasburg (Executive VP); (805) 772-6410
Ann Stephenson, CEO. West Coast Headquarters are located in Morro Bay, Calif.
The company focuses on revenue and growth for companies starting out or seeking to rejuvenate their public image. They offer services in marketing, speech techniques and writing programs. Clients include K/P Corporation, Neurologix, Inc., and Union Bank of Calif.
In 2003, the company's revenue was $1,934,000.00
None of the images would cut and paste !!!
http://www.stephensongroup.com/cm/Home.html


Company 3:
The Rogers Group
Lynne Doll (President) 310.552.6922
Ron Rogers: Founder and CEO; Boasts one of the largest head quarters in the west, located in Los Angeles.
Their tagline stresses “clarity” and integrity and they are committed to portraying their clients with integrity. They deal a lot with crisis management and community affairs.
In 2002, their revenues where $10,000,000.00
6. http://www.rogerspr.com/index.html


Company 4:
MWW
David Herbst; 213.486.6560
Glenda Vaquerano (account executive); headquarters are in East Rutherford, New Jersey
The agency is nationally recognized for its work in consumer marketing, corporate communications, financial communications, public affairs and government relations, healthcare and technology. It's clients include: Amazon.com, Bally Total Fitness, McDonalds, and Verizon. A lot of their clients have to do with technology and nutrition.
In 2005, their revenue was $26,500,000
www.mww.com


Company 5:
Porter Novelli
Bill Scheiber (General Manager, Sacramento); 916.443.3354
Julie Winskie ( Industry Group Leader Consumer); Company headquarters are located in Washington D.C.
This company works with consumer products and would likely be affected by malfunctioning or recalls of products. They created such programs as the Food Pyramid, the 5-a day campaign and the Truth youth anti-tobacco campaign
Annual revenue was not listed, however, I imagine it would be a lofty sum, as their offices span the world.
6. www.porternovelli.com

Assignment 9: Iran-contra Affair

Honesty is usually the best policy. Unless, of course, it's political policy.

Known for his honesty, President Ronald Reagan found his famous integrity under scrutiny after his alleged involvement in the Iran-Contra affair in the 1980's. Though the words “Iran” and “Contra” had scarcely been spoken in the same sentence, the Reagan administration brought the two together in a series of covert operations.

The “contra” portion of the scandal refers to the Central American group opposing the Sardinista regime, whose practices mimicked communism. As a staunch anti-communist, Reagan vowed to monetarily support the group because of the growing influence of Central America in the North.

After the Democrats passed the Boland Act in 1984, it became almost impossible for Reagan to help the contras whom he had been supporting. He reportedly said to National Security Adviser Robert McFarlane, "I want you to do whatever you have to do to help these people keep body and soul together." He was so adamant about their cause that he compared the Central American contras to American “founding fathers.”

The administration would have to find another way to get funds to the contras, which is where the “Iran” part of the Iran-Contra scandal comes in.

In 1985, when war was raging between Iraq and Iran, the latter made a secret request to purchase arms from the U.S. Although the U.S. had set up an embargo against such arms trading to occur between them and Iran, McFarlane assured the president that it would improve relations with the various Middle Eastern nations, specifically the strategic nation of Lebanon. Though improved relations was a bonus, Reagan agreed to the deal because it would allow the U.S. to negotiate with Iran about several hostages, even though he promised never to do such arms-hostage negotiations. President Reagan contended that “he had the duty to bring those Americans home,” regardless of his earlier promise.

The negotiations progressed and when a Lebanese newspaper printed an article exposing the arms-for-hostages deal, the American public became infuriated. Although the president denied the U.S. involvement, a single week later he retracted his statement and defended the administration's actions.

Though this left Americans in doubt of their “honest” leader, the last nail on the coffin came when the “Iran” and “Contra” issues intertwined. Apparently, of the $30 million allocated from Iran, $18 million of it was being siphoned off to the aforementioned Central American contras.

Several government officials were connected to the affair, including Lieutenant Oliver North, John Poindexter, and Caspar Weinburger, all who were pardoned by George Bush in the following years Also, higher-ups including Reagan and Vice President Bush were investigated, although no convicting evidence was found.

Most interestingly though, was that Reagan rebounded from his mishap, and wound up with the highest approval rating since Roosevelt. But the affair caused the general public to question the power of the executive branch (as Reagan did break the law), and also the congressional role in foreign policy. Today, the issues of the executive branch and the Middle East remain central to political controversy.

Sources:
http://www.pbs.org/
http://www.bartleby.com/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/269619.stm

Assignment 8

Summary:
1. Anna Nicole Smith died Thursday at a South Florida hospital after being discovered unconscious in her hotel room. The reality TV star, Playboy Playmate and former Guess model was 39.
--CNN.com
Anna Nicole Smith has shocked the public for the last time, with the news of her untimely death. After 39 years, and a torrent of controversy and personal tragedy, she met her end on the 6th floor of the Hard Rock Hotel in Seminole, Florida. She was found apparently collapsed, and after her body guard administered CPR, she was pronounced dead at 2:59 PM. Leave it to Anna Nicole to upstage her own life.

2.Until two years ago, the Roman Catholic diocese of Palm Beach, Fla., ran audits of its parishes only when they changed pastors. It was a risky, even foolhardy policy when you consider that a parish like St. Vincent Ferrer Catholic Church, in Delray Beach, hadn't changed pastors in 40 years.
--Time mag, February
We often have a special contempt for public figures that ought to garner our respect, or at least our attention. People like politicians have been known to lie and celebrities earn too much money. But Priests? It just goes to show that even the guys with “fire insurance” can get burned. That is, if they embezzle funds from the offertory.

3.Britney Spears appeared in a tattoo parlor in the San Fernando Valley with her head shaved completely bald. Video on KABC-TV showed the newly shorn Spears with tiny tattoos on the back of her neck as she sits Friday night for a new tattoo -- a pair of red and pink lips.
--CNN.com
As if Britney needed anymore attention brought to the increasing negative speculation of her divorce and the public's decreasing empathy toward her, she decided to add insult to injury by subtracting her full head of hair. She apparently went to an LA salon and asked if she could shave her own head. I wonder if they tipped her? And yes, there are photos.

Feature:
1. Just how silly is Google? Its search interface offers translations into Klingon, Elmer Fudd-speak, Pig Latin — even the lingo of the Muppets' Swedish Chef. On past April Fools' days the site has pitched Google Gulp, a drink to make searchers smarter, pigeon rank, a system whereby pecking order would determine search results, and Google Romance, a satirical site boasting a sizzling "soulmate search."
--Time Mag, Feb
On February 14, surprised web browsers that visited their favorite search engine found what appeared to be a spelling error in the site's own name. The Google graphic, which is constantly being redesigned to represent the holidays and other sorts of artistic renderings of the six letters, seemed to read “Googe.”

2. Jim Carrey is maybe two years from becoming a punch line. But he's cool with that. "Everyone gets to be the big joke for a year. That's this business," he says. "Last year it was Tom Cruise. I could be the next Kathie Lee Gifford. But you have to say to yourself, 'Wait a minute, dude, that's not you.'"
--Time Mag, February
Jim Carrey's new thriller film “23” is causing the actor and his fans to rethink his funny guy attitude. As he has shown, Carrey has worn many comedic hats, but will not stop until a few more dramatic ones are on his rack.

3. Rachel's first breathless call was to her grandparents. "Guess what, I have my own cell phone," exclaimed the cutting-edge fourth-grader through her shiny, tricked-out handset. The perplexed, interstate scowls at other end of the line were easy to envision. "Why do you need that?" retorted her disapproving elders virtually in unison. My nine-year-old didn't have an immediate answer, but instinctively and ineffably, she knew she had arrived.
--Time Mag, February
Considering the success of the cellphone among soccer moms as well as tweens and young adults, cellphone marketers have begun designing products to attract the “SpongeBob” generation. So they have designed just the service: Kajeet, which is a pay-as-you-go cellphone service aimed for children and their parentals. "We think kids are smart," said Kajeet's cofounder and CEO Daniel Neal. "Our entire philosophy springs from this one core idea. We want our kids to be agile with technology and we want to help them respond with confidence to what's happening in their world."

It's a "Ruff" Job, But Someone Has to Do It

When Dawn Curnes walked down Higuera St. a year ago, she noticed that something was missing. There were plenty of happy dog-owner couples strolling around town, but no place for them to go. “Downtown felt like an uncomfortable place for owners to take their dogs," Curnes says. But uncomfortable they are no more, for just two months later, she opened up the “Waggin' Tail Cafe and Barkery.”

Curnes, an Iowa native who has resided in San Luis Obispo for 25 years, got the inspiration to open a barkery from her own dog, Ruby. As an avid animal lover who has always dreamed of working with animals, working for animals seemed like a great idea. Curnes took some business classes to get the ball rolling, and it hasn't stopped ever since. “I just love to see the dogs and their owners happy,” she says. And happy they are, as demonstrated by an entire wall covered in dozens of polaroids of the shop's furry fans. “When dogs come in, we take their picture for the wall. In 10 months we have covered it ceiling to floor,” Curnes says.

Although the dogs themselves vary in breed, color and palate, Curnes says that her typical customers are “young couples without kids and older empty-nesters.” But there was one demographic Curnes did not expect her local business to attract: tourists. “We have a lot of out-of-towners come into the shop especially from Fresno and Bakersfield. If they came on a vacation or business trip, they are looking for a treat for the pet they left at home. They feel guilty for leaving them,” she says.

But from near or far, Curnes loves to hear the doting of the owners on their dogs. Every week, she holds socials for the owners and their pets. The dogs and their owners get to nosh on puppy and people pizza while they make new friends and participate in fun activities such as freestyle dancing, photo shoots and charity events. She even makes doggie daquiries! This coming weekend, the barkery will offer doggie psychic readings, which will cost $25 for 25 minutes-- the proceeds, of course, will benefit the Woods Humane Society. This past Halloween, the barkery held its first annual Halloween costume contest, where owners and their dogs got to compete for prizes and treats. Never a dull moment at the barkery.

Curnes loves San Luis Obispo for its “fun community” and its “love for animals.” She enjoys hearing the stories of the pets and their owners, especially when they are odd or unusual. One such account came from a man who came into her store asking if she had any Irish Setters. When she told him that no, she didn't, he proceeded to tell his tale. Sixteen years ago, he had been walking in a meadow, when he saw four feet up in the air. He thought it was a rodent, but it turned out to be an Irish setter puppy. He pucked up the apparently lost puppy and took it home to be his companion. Years later, he was walking down the street when a woman called out “That's my dog!” When he assured her, “No, it is not,” she kept insisting that it was. Since he had found the dog abandoned, it could very well have been her dog, but after raising it himself, he felt it was unfair to reclaim the pet, if it was even hers. So the two decided to let the dog choose which one he would go home with. It seemed democratic enough. (Though I still think it would have been funny to solve it in the Biblical way and split the dog in half). The two adults stood in front of the dog and called to it, each hoping that the pup would come bounding into their arms. But since the dog was familiar with the man, it obviously ran to him. Thus was how the pup was won. The owner and dog shared a lasting bond until the latter passed away. The man decided to bury him near his (the dog's) favorite rock near Morro Bay. He then told of how one of his closest friends had criticized his burial of a pet, and that he has not spoken to that friend since. Curnes herself seemed touched and also a bit appalled at this story. But mostly about the part when the man's friend asked why he would bury a dog.

At the barkery, Curnes is devoted to meeting the dietary, emotional and spiritual needs of both pets and their owners. One tale—er, tail at a time.