10 Ways to Know If You're a Student at CSU Dominguez Hills

Here we go!  I would say that this presentation applies to about 8 out of every 10 students at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

**Edit Having never actually BEEN an undergraduate student at CSUDH, this list is compiled on a couple years of observations in my GRADUATE LEVEL classes.  Tisk-tisk, Toros, tisk-tisk.**

Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you the most accurate top 10 of all time:

10. You surf the 'net throughout class, then raise your hand asking for clarification on assignments right before class is dismissed.

9. You write with mostly incorrect grammar, spelling, and syntax.

8. You complain about professors because, you know, "they so stupid."

7. You listen to music in class.  No.  Really.  You listen to music in class.

6. The professor in your class acknowledges that you're paying thousands of dollars to listen to music in class, makes eye contact with you, and realizes, "Why bother?  They're gonna end up at Starbucks anyways," and continues on with the lecture while a handful of students sit idly by, shocked that you would play your music out loud for the world to hear as if you were at the mall.

5. You transferred over from CSU Long Beach because "all the classes at Beach were like, so impacted.  Such an impacted program."

4. You don't know how to use Blackboard.  Ever.

3. You treat professors as if they were beneath you, giving them no shred of respect for their profession, the hours that went into obtaining a Doctorate, or the countless hours that they've poured into research that will better their field.  You firmly believe that your professors are, much like your high school teachers, nuisances and babysitters.

2. You talk over your professors because, like, your life is so important and, like, you're the one paying them, so whatever.

1. You were an absolute, unadulterated, disrespectful piece of shit in high school who just barely scored your diploma from a school that passed you out of mercy, and you ended up here.

Stay Classy, Toros.

Punk Rock and Responsibility

I can't say that I grew up completely punk rock.  With both parents being employed by the San Diego Police  Department, I didn't really have the wiggle room that a lot of teens are accustomed to having (then again, a lot of cop kids end up getting into serious trouble).  What I did have was MTV and a certain late night show that highlighted unknown or emerging artists.  It was the first time a heard a band called H2O.

H2O's song called "One Life, One Chance" was an anthem for me in high school.  Hanging out with Thomas Mawson late at night, watching that video for the first time, was a revelation.  I remember repeating the name of the band in my head over and over until I was able to get home and research more.  Pre-internet, I have not a clue as to how I tracked down their third record, "F.T.T.W." (Faster Than The World), but I was able to get my hands on it.  It was either at the old Music Trader near Broadway and Mollison, or a the Sam Goody in Parkway Plaza.  Either way, I was hooked.

From there, it was a stream of bands that all had some sort of connection.  I've always listened to music (and I'm not sure if this is normal or common) by the Record Label.  If a band was on the same label, I wanted it: Fat Wreck Chords, Epitaph, Kung Fu, Nitro, and one of my favorite labels of all time: SideOneDummy.

These punk rock labels had a lot of bands that were, more or less, anti-establishment and anti-authority. With a song like "Fuck Authority," nobody was confusing Hermosa Beach's Pennywise with a band from, say, Drive Thru Records.  

More recently, however, I noticed a different tone and message in these songs.  While the air of independence and "fuck off" is alive and well, it's clear that a lot of the bands on these record labels held one common belief: personal responsibility.

Now, before we get things twisted, let's not forget that there are plenty of songs blaming others, or the situation, or the government, for their problems.  But after sifting through older releases from Pennywise, H2O, and even 7 Seconds (legendary on SideOneDummy), one can see (feel?) a reverberating sense of personal responsibility.  These bands believed, wrote, and sang about the fact that no one is control of your destiny but you.

My school preaches personal responsibility, but rarely do we see kids stepping up to the plate.  This might be because they don't hear about personal responsibility in every facet of your life.  I was very fortunate to have solid teacher, amazing parents, trustworthy friends, and positive music to fill the gaps. It's beating a dead horse, for sure, but the facts remain the same: many students are listening to positive music.  The messages are not about taking control of life, but rather, avoiding that responsibility.  

My thesis: Bring Positive Hardcore and Punk Rock to the inner-city, and let's see what happens.

Meh.  Fuck it.