The Griffin

samiral al-saidi

I attended the forum hosted on the Iraq War on Wednesday that was hosted by the Phi Alpha Delta, Young Democrats, College Republicans and International Affairs Society and was filled with rage at some of the ignorance that exists. There were a lot of misconceptions and terms that were used and in my opinion the men who spoke did not know the meanings of certain things. I will begin with the terms that are widely misused, which are Jihad and Islam. Islam is the act of one submitting oneself to God. The root of the word comes from salam, which means peace. We Muslims are descendents of Abraham and his teachings, just as Christians and Jews are. In regards to he second term, Jihad, I actually looked up the definition online and realized that perhaps another ignorant individual typed up the definition of Jihad. So here is the definition of Jihad from a practicing, peaceful Muslim. Jihad is the internal struggle for an individual to maintain faith and spirituality and to reach a moral state of being. It is not a concept for war, Jihad does not condone terrorist activities,and Jihad is not an act of physical aggression. Jihad is the emotional, psychological and physical struggle to maintain a healthy spiritual lifestyle and the act of striving to be better human beings.
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shauna pantano

Do you enjoy working with children? Does the thought of being happily married someday with cherubic children flocking around your white picket fence ever cross your mind? Or what about during the holidays, those pesky little cousins of yours always getting in between you and the football game that’s on television. I have an ever better question: what’s the difference between those “normal” children running around your picket fence and a child who has disabilities? None. There is no difference.
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By Catrin Hughes
Life & Arts Writer

London is many things: a multicultural melting pot, a shopping mecca, a center for culture, but one thing London is not is cheap. So for all you Canisuis students who will be studying abroad or just going on vacation to the British capital, here is your guide for doing London on budget.

Now, remember, there is one good reason to go to London and that is the drinking age is 18. But drinks are expensive with an average price for a bottle of beer being £4-£5.50 ($8-$10).  Here is a tip for all you beer lovers: get pints instead of bottles. You get more for your money and they are cheaper, averaging around £3. Every weekday night, the majority of bars and clubs in London will have a happy hour where drinks will be half-price. Happy hours vary from bar to bar; some are just an hour long, but bars like the Gardeners Club near Convent Garden Market start happy hour at 5 p.m. and finish at 10 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday and at 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.  The Gardeners Club also holds London’s longest-running student night on Mondays—with a student card, house spirits are £2.
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By Sadie McManus
Life & Arts Writer

Canisius was honored to have local poet Carl Dennis read from his book New and Selected Poems Tuesday. The book was published in 2004 and it includes Dennis’ poems from 1974 to the present.  At the presentation, sponsored by the Canisius English Department and alumni John Kolaga and Judy Kubiniec, Dennis read a variety of selected poems from his newest book and gave the audience brief interpretations, describing how the words personally affect him. The reading was followed by a book signing and many people stood patiently in line, waiting to chat with the man responsible for such literary brilliance.
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By Katie Alfaro and Katherine Wutz
Copy Reader and Life & Arts Writer

Editor’s note: Copy Reader Katie Alfaro will be studying abroad at the same school that Life & Arts Writer Katherine Wutz is currently attending.   Katie asked the questions, to which Katherine responded.

What’s the food, honestly, really like?  Will I plead to my parents to ship over sustenance every now and then, or is the food one of the selling points of Ireland?

The food isn’t awful. Indian food seems to be very popular here, which threw me at first.
I personally have become addicted to the chocolate-covered digestive biscuits they have here, as well as the incredible french fries (or as they would call them, chips).

The vegetables and fruits tend to be more expensive than in the States and not as fresh.  The dining hall on campus isn’t as good as Chartwell’s, but there is an okay salad bar and you can always get soup or something to fulfill that veggie requirement.

There are a few greengrocers in town as well and there’s a health food store nearby that sells frozen organic vegetables and all sorts of things to keep you fit and healthy over here.

I do, however, recommend asking your parents to ship you boxes of Kraft Mac and Cheese. They don’t have it anywhere here, and I think it’s the one thing my roommates and I miss the most.
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By Katie Alfaro
Copy Reader

They’ve made a total of 75 cents and don’t like to be categorized.  Meet The Bear, a new local band that drives to be original.  You want to know the secret to their success?  They don’t care.

Senior Mike Lovering, who plays the guitar, started the band as a joke.  He thought it would be funny to be in a band and make fun of other bands and types of music.  Along the way, their music became a kind of parody of other music.  Their music is, what I would like to call, “subtly satirical.”
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If your birthday was yesterday, you share it with Maggie Gyllenhaal, if today, with Martin Scorsese. Yesterday, in 1532, Pizarro seized the great Incan Emperor Atahualpa after a battle at Cajamarca, in the country we call Peru; today in 1973 President Nixon declared to the nation at a press conference, “I am not a crook!” Sometimes we think our days are strange, full of promise and pleasure and sometimes we know it.
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By Tracey Penner
Sports Writer

The Canisius College women’s volleyball team swept Niagara to win their 20th match of the season, a record number of wins since 1987.  The win improved the Griffs to 20-9 overall and 14-4 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.  On Saturday, six Canisius seniors were given their  framed jerseys to celebrate their last game at the Koessler Athletic Center.

Senior Mary Boller posted a match-high 15 kills, giving her 401 kills in the regular season and making her the seventh player in school history to post 400-plus kills in a single season.  Fellow senior Leigh Launhardt added 14 kills to go along with a solo block and six block assists.

Senior Aislinn Hayes recorded eight kills, seven digs and three block assists, while senior Jen Smith was credited with six kills, six digs, five assists and two service aces.  Senior Emily McNabb had three kills and a block assist and senior Lauren Brosius added nine assists, two digs, one kill and a block assist in her first start of the season.

Canisius will compete in the 2006 MAAC Volleyball Championships this weekend.

By Heather Mitchell
Copy Reader

The Canisius College men’s and women’s cross country teams wrapped up their 2006 season at the NCAA Northeast Regional race Saturday in Bronx, N.Y.

Finishing first for the men was junior Christian Volk, with his 36:06 earning him 167th place overall. Sophomore Brett Finnan ran the 10K in 36:58 and finished in 192nd overall, while fellow sophomore Justin Weldon placed 199th with his 37:18. Other strong performances for the Griffs included Matt Butters and Vasilis Kariolis. The men’s team took 31st overall out of the field of 38, compiling 940 points.
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Freshman Josh Heidinger’s two goals and one assist against Air Force earned  him the Atlantic Hockey Rookie of the Week honors, making it the second time this year that he has been given this award.

Leading the team with 15 points, Heidinger is also tied for fourth in the league in points and is second on the team with four goals. The freshman has had at least one point in nine of eleven games this season for Canisius and has scored a point in all seven in-conference games.

Canisius is now the only team in the country to have Rookie of the Week honors for five weeks out of a possible six. The other Griffs that have had Rookie of the week honors this year are goaltender Andrew Loewen, defenseman Carl Hudson twice and Heidinger on one other occasion.

Heidinger and the Griffs take on rival Mercyhurst twice this weekend. They play  at 7 p.m. tonight at the Amherst Pepsi Center and are away at 7 p.m. Saturday night in Erie.