While students jumped, screamed and cheered to the hip-hop, R&B music styling of Clipse, Kelis, and Sean Paul, they were left with a painful wait for Cam'Ron at Baird Point last Friday.
While the holdup was only a minor hitch in a relatively successful Fall Fest, it is inconsiderate of Cam'Ron to leave his fans and employer waiting. Whether an artist like Cam'Ron wants to have a rebel or bad-ass persona, he must still realize there is a certain amount of professionalism needed for a paid gig, namely, showing up on time.
This year's Fall Fest was not the first to have 'fashionably late' performers, leading to questions about how SA is running the operation. Each year the performers are under contract and measures against tardiness should be stressed in at least the fine print. This subject of being late and unprepared may be in the contract and just not enforced. It could also be that a late policy is missing entirely and must be corrected. Either way, the SA needs to get the issue under control. A paid performer should have to follow through with their contractual commitment and the SA shouldn't put up with any flak from their hired services. Through student fees the SA pays good money for their fest performers and everyone deserves a night of fun, free of problems and delays.
Fashionably late is not an excuse. Performers like Cam'Ron need to get off their prima-donna pedestals and realize that the fans make the celebrity, not the other way around.
Unqualified to be protected
Niagara County gets snubbed in homeland security funding
As the fifth anniversary of 9/11 passes, President Bush claims that the country is 'safer, but not yet safe' from the threat of terrorism. In light of that, the Department of Homeland Security has been providing adequate funds to Buffalo and Erie County, but for Niagara County homeland security is a lot of talk, with a startling lack of action.
Just recently the federal government provided bomb-sniffing dogs and other bomb-controlling equipment to Buffalo and Erie County, but Niagara County was left empty handed with little explanation. According to federal regulations, Niagara is not qualified to receive such equipment and must rely on calling the Erie County or Batavia police departments.
Not qualified? Niagara County contains the world's largest hydroelectric plant, multiple chemical facilities, and three bridges that cross the border into Canada. How is Niagara not a priority?
Local governments and politicians thought it was a priority. They put in a request for a $69 million budget for homeland security and received a measly $3 million. While Buffalo was recently granted an additional $3 million worth of protective suits and aquatic inspection supplies, Niagara was brushed off, receiving only a dozen hazmat suits and an IOU. Although Buffalo is more densely populated than the Niagara region, geography should be considered as well. Niagara hosts the greatest number of border crossings along the 4,000-mile shared border with Canada. The lack of funding is unacceptable for any region, but more so in such a border crossing hotspot.
Overburdened and overstretched, the federal government continues to cut back on funding for the region leaving our borders unprotected and our energy facilities unchecked. Lately Bush has assured that his administration's efforts have gone a long way, but he is right about one other thing. We are 'safer, but not safe yet.'
Photo: Breadchastick / Wikimedia Commons
