Official Student Media of Valencia Community College NEWS > 2 OPINION > 5 FEATURES > 7 SPORTS > 10 APRIL 14, 2010 1 September 22, 2010 VOLUME 10 • ISSUE 2 VALENCIAVOICE.COM Official Student Media of Valencia Community College Military men accused of murder By Craig Whitlock charging documents, rogue mem- they were under attack, tossing a gations against American soldiers The Washington Post bers of a platoon from the 5th Stryk- grenade on the ground. Then oth- since the U.S. invasion in 2001. er Combat Brigade, 2nd Infantry ers opened fire. Members of the platoon have been JOINT BASE LEWIS-McCHORD, Division, hatched the idea. Then, According to charging docu- charged with dismembering and Wash. - The U.S. soldiers floated a one day last winter, a solitary Af- ments, the unprovoked, fatal at- photographing corpses, as well as plan as simple as it was savage: to ghan man approached them in the tack on Jan. 15 was the start of hoarding a skull and other human randomly target and kill an Afghan village of La Mohammed Kalay. a months-long shooting spree bones. civilian, and to get away with it. The “kill team” activated the plan. against Afghan civilians that re- Don Purlinson / Valencia Community College For weeks, according to Army One soldier created a ruse that sulted in some of the grisliest alle- Continued on page 4 Patricia Smith performing her brand of poetry. Poet recites at VCC By Shannon Scheidell [email protected] ”Poetry has the power to move us from a place inside our heads, to a safer place,” Patricia Smith said Thursday, Sept. 16 while performing in the Student Lounge of the Winter Park Campus. Smith is the author of Blood Dazzler, her fifth book and most recently published book of poetry. Last week, she stood in front of a group of more than 80 students, all eyes glued on her, as she read a few of her pieces. Some of them were straight from her book, others were recited from beneath closed eyelids. Army photos, c/o The Washington Post Continued on page 8 Corp. Jeremy Morlock, left, of Wasilla allegedly took part in three murders of Afghan civilians perpetrated by five members of the Army’s 5th Stryker Combat Brigade. September 22, 2010 Official Student Media of Valencia Community College NEWS > 2 OPINION > 5 FEATURES > 7 SPORTS > 10 2 Economy comes around Research committee declares normalcy By Kevin G. Hall The fact that the bureau needed almost 15 McClatchy Newspapers months since the recession’s official end to de- clare that it was over speaks to the economic With little fanfare, the National Bureau of Eco- challenge the United States faces. The bureau’s nomic Research declared Monday that the so- Business Cycle Dating Committee waited to called Great Recession is over, determining that make a final decision until key government data the U.S. economy hit bottom in June 2009 and be- revisions had occurred to gauge what had been gan a long, sluggish rebound. the gross domestic product _ the broadest mea- “In determining that a trough occurred in June sure of the production of goods and services _ 2009, the committee did not conclude that eco- and gross domestic income. nomic conditions since that month have been The committee noted that while growth and in- favorable or that the economy has returned to come were up from last year’s lows they were well operating at normal capacity,” the bureau said below the peaks of 2007. in a statement Monday. “Rather, the committee Recessions often are described as two con- determined only that the recession ended and a secutive quarters of economic contraction, but recovery began in that month.” they’re more a period of falling economic activ- Get down to The bureau officially dates recessions, and con- ity across the economy and lasting more than cluded that this one was the longest on record, a few months. The bureau’s researchers evalu- save for the Great Depression. The so-called Great ate data on income, employment and industrial business with Recession lasted 18 months, two months longer production, as well as sales. than the recessions of 1973-75 and 1981-82. In what could provide some cover to the For many Americans, it still feels like reces- Obama administration, struggling with the Columbia College. sion. The unemployment rate has been stuck perception that it hasn’t done enough to boost around 9.6 percent for months, almost 15 mil- employment, the committee members noted lion Americans are without work and dozens that the bottom in hiring usually comes many “Columbia College’s price was right, schedule more are working two jobs or are in jobs that months after a bottom in contraction. was perfect and location was convenient. pay less than their previous ones. After the 2001-03 recession, employment bot- Columbia College had everything I was “I think this (statement) will forever cement tomed 21 months later, and employment hit its looking for and more.” economists as being out of touch. This is cold com- low six months after the end of the latest reces- Marie Linda Celestin ‘06 fort for someone who is still unemployed, and it’s sion, the bureau said. Bachelor’s degree in business administration more a matter of getting the accounting right for The bureau, headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., economic history,” said economist Douglas Holtz- also said that economic activity could remain be- Eakin, a former director of the Congressional Bud- low normal for some time after a recession. On campus. Online. Or both. get Office and the president of the American Ac- tion Forum, a center-right policy research group. — MCT Campus Toll free: (877) 999-9876 • www.ccis.edu/realpeople 2600 Technology Dr. • Orlando, FL NEWS September 22, 2010 3 VCC recruits voters By Sabrina Alvarez elections in November. [email protected] If you didn’t register to vote during the voter’s driveon Thursday, don’t worry, public libraries all Many students today do not realize the im- around Orlando, have voter registration applications portance of registering to vote. Jeanette Cruz, a available to the public. All you have to do is print, sign worker from the Orange County supervisor of and send the applications through the mail. elections, promoted a voters’ registration effort “It only takes two minutes to register, it is as easy as at Valencia Community College’s West Campus, buying lunch at McDonalds,” said Cruz. directed toward students. Wislande Petit, a student, said she thinks she can “We should allow ourselves to be heard,” said make a difference by just registering. “It’s impor- Cruz. “Why not take the opportunity to vote, since tant to know what candidates are going to represent it is our right?” you,” Petit said when The Voice interviewed her. The booth was located in front of the Student Hurry up and register to vote. The deadline is Services Building, hosted by Cruz who encour- October 4, and voters can also register online at: aged students to register to vote for the state www.ocfelections.com. Russell Griner, Valencia Voice Wislande Petit registers to vote at one of the many stands that were set up around Valencia, enticing students to register. Official Student Media of Valencia Community College NEWS > 2 OPINION > 5 FEATURES > 7 SPORTS > 10 September 22, 2010 4 U.S. soldiers can’t cover up hunting civilians for sport in Afghanistan Continued from page 1 nade exploded, prompting other soldiers to open fire on the villager as well, killing him. The subsequent investigation has raised accusa- In statements to investigators, the soldiers in- tions about whether the military ignored warnings volved have given conflicting details. In one state- that the out-of-control soldiers were committing ment that his attorney has subsequently tried to atrocities. The father of one soldier said he repeat- suppress, Morlock said that Gibbs had given him edly tried to alert the Army after his son told him the grenade and that others were also aware of the about the first killing, only to be rebuffed. ruse beforehand. But Holmes and his attorney said Two more slayings would follow. Military docu- he was in the dark and opened fire only because ments allege that five members of the unit staged Morlock ordered him to do so. a total of three murders in Kandahar province be- “He was unwittingly used as the cover story,” tween January and May. Seven other soldiers have said Daniel Conway, a civilian defense attorney for been charged with crimes related to the case, in- Holmes. “He was in the wrong place at the wrong cluding hashish use, attempts to impede the inves- time.” tigation and a retaliatory gang assault on a private Morlock, Holmes and Gibbs have each been who blew the whistle. charged with murder in the shooting. Attorneys The accused soldiers, through attorneys and fam- for Morlock and Gibbs did not return phone calls ily members, deny wrongdoing. But the case has seeking comment. already been marked by a cycle of accusations and On Feb. 14, Christopher Winfield, a former Ma- counter-accusations among the defendants as they rine from Cape Coral, Fla., logged onto his Face- seek to pin the blame on each other, according to book account to chat with his son, Adam, a 3rd documents and interviews. Platoon soldier who was up late in Afghanistan. The Army has scheduled pre-trial hearings in the Spec. Adam Winfield confided that he’d had a run- case this fall at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, home Family photo, c/o Washington Post in with Gibbs, his squad leader.