Ned Donovan - Ithaca ‘12

I’ve been trying for a couple weeks to address this issue here at IC.  Some background.  A piece was written by a member of the class of 2008 named Emily McNeil.  She wrote about her experience being a volunteer helping people in the West Bank, specifically she was supporting the Palestinian civilians who are being wronged by the Israeli citizens and military.  Her piece was published in the IC View, a monthly send out to parents, students, and alumni of Ithaca College.   Many alumni rose up claiming this was an anti-jewish piece, a pro-hamas piece, or many other awful things.  This pressured the President into writing a formal apology in the next IC View, as well as forcing the IC View editor to do the same, and creating a new review board for IC View submissions.  Many members of the student body have risen up about how this is essentially censorship.

The piece can be read here.  Please read it, it’s a great piece which really closely examines the awful circumstances these people are placed in.  There is also nothing inflammatory about it.  You can read the President’s apology here, and the editor’s apology here.  

I was torn as to how I felt about the piece, my first problem being that her point has been made moot.

Hey everyone,

My Father, the City Council Vice President

So I am currently in Allentown Pennsylvania, spending my last few days with my dad before I head back up to Ithaca.  My father, an Allentown City Councilman (see accompanying picture) wanted to show me some sights that I hadn’t seen yet, so he brought me to America on Wheels.  It’s a museum, documenting America’s car history, but also the way the automobile industry shaped the Lehigh Valley, and brought about Pennsylvania’s first major economic boom.  As I learned the other night, Allentown is the third largest city in the fifth largest state in the country.  The Pennsylvania Turnpike was the first major interstate highway, and it shaped the way our country’s roads and highways were formed.  I learned all of these things while in Allentown, with a lot of help from America on Wheels.

Below is a gallery of all the photos, you can also find them in the photo section of my site. 

The museum was a good blend of written history and visual stimulus.  From the section entitled “The Legends of Speed” featuring various race cars of all different shapes, sizes, and eras; to the section entitled “Deja zoom” which handled the new resurgence of the electric car, and the possibility of a hydrogen cell car.

Hey everyone,

This is a shoutout for my brother.  I’d like to offer him a warm congratulations by myself (and hopefully by extension, all of you) for his first article published by The Daily Star.  So congratulations Will, you have somehow managed to successfully begin your hopefully long and prosperous career in Lebanon, and may you have innumerable publications from now until when (if) you decide to come back to the states.  Keep kicking ass and taking names, and we will all follow with close and rapt attention.
Here is the article for you all to read, you can find it here on the Daily Star website.   Will’s website can be accessed here, where you can keep track of all that he is doing.

BEIRUT: Amid rave reviews and the glow of high-definition television screens as far as the eye could see, the 13th edition of the Levant’s Information Technology Exhibition at the Beirut International Exhibition and Leisure center is a look into Lebanon’s potential as a future technology hot spot for the Middle East.

Representing a mix of local, regional, and international companies and organizations, the conference is highlighting Lebanon’s growing market for high-end consumer electronics, high-speed Internet connectivity, and information technology services and software.