Signs of war persist for Vietnamese man

April 25, 2008

Also see:
UK Scholars filling void in Vietnamese history 
Students confront their country’s dark history 
Bridging past and present

Story by Sean Rose | Staff
Photos by Kasha Stevenson | Staff

The 58-year-old guide sat in the back of the thin boat and shook raspy, staccato laughter from his lungs.

It was an “infectious laugh,” said Peter Berres, a Vietnam veteran and an assistant dean for admissions and student affairs in the College of Health Science leading UK students on a trip examining the United States’ and Vietnam’s tangled histories.

Nguyen Thanh Nam had been guiding the group of UK students in Southern Vietnam for two days. He sat in the rear of a boat, crisscrossing the tangled channels of the Mekong Delta with Jeff Keith, a graduate student, and Will Stull, a political science senior.

Nguyen Thanh Nam, the group’s guide in Southern Vietnam and a former officer in the South Vietnamese Army, laughs as he talks to Peter Berres while riding in a van. Nguyen received military training while Berres was stationed close to Saigon, Nguyen’s home city.

Knowing some of Nguyen’s personal history along with Vietnam’s, Keith asked him why he was so cheerful.

The man, a father, husband and former officer in the South Vietnamese Army, gave a long answer.

Read more

Dancing in the dark

April 7, 2008

Photos by Elliott Hess | Staff

Spotlights silhouettes dancers on the floor at the floor at the Beaux Arts Ball on Saturday night. The annual event featured music from several artists and a drag show.

Hillary makes rounds through Kentucky

March 30, 2008

By Juliann Vachon

LOUISVILLE — Sen. Hillary Clinton’s campaign stopped in Louisville on Saturday afternoon for a rally with energetic supporters who believe, like she does, that the Kentucky Democratic primary matters this year.
“I can’t do any of this without your help,” Clinton said in front of a crowd of about 2,500 at duPont Manual High School’s gym. “You know, Kentucky counts.”
Clinton made a call to young voters, encouraging them to get engaged not only the election, but also the country’s future.
“It’s so important we get young people involved,” she said.
Manual students made signs that hung throughout the gym and read “We found our new star” and “Students for Hillary.”
Many view Clinton’s opponent, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, as the young person’s candidate. But younger voters, including UK students, lined the front row of the crowd on the floor and sat behind Clinton on stage waiting to hear her views on ending the war in Iraq, lowering the country’s debt and providing universal health care.
The New York senator’s promise to “make college affordable again” drew a big applause from the crowd.
She promised to provide more need-based aid, increase Pell Grants and forgive student loans for people who enter public service jobs such as teaching or public health positions.
Clinton also touted plans to let students borrow money from the federal government at low interest rates like she did when she was in college.
When she asked people in the crowd to raise their hands if they paid more than 20 percent interest on their student loans, one man yelled that he paid 24 percent.
A UK student at the front of the crowd said Clinton picked up on his response as well.
“She heard me yell 18 percent and repeated it to the crowd. UK representing!” said Anthony Tanner, a vocal music performance junior. “I just hope it hits home to all students that her loan forgiveness and financing programs are the best.”
Former President Bill Clinton, who won Kentucky in his 1992 and ‘96 presidential victories, was in the state campaigning for his wife Tuesday. The couple’s campaign stops are out of the ordinary for Kentucky, whose late primary date typically attracts little attention from potential party nominees.
Obama leads Clinton in pledged party delegate votes, which will determine who goes on to face Sen. John McCain in the presidential election. But Clinton said she is not done yet.
“I do not discourage easily, in case you haven’t noticed,” she said.
Clinton talked for about 40 minutes without notes and took jabs at President George W. Bush’s administration, calling it a “government of the few, by the few and for the few.”
“If you give me the honor of being your president, we will put America back on the right track,” she said.
Clinton never mentioned her opponent’s name during the speech but did allude to her campaign’s previous claims that Obama’s message lack substance.
“This election isn’t about the speeches we give, it’s about the solutions we offer,” Clinton said.
Her health care plan would allow those not covered or unhappy with their plans to opt into one of the plans offered to members of Congress while keeping everyone’s premium rates low and based on household incomes, she said.
She promised to get rid of tax breaks for companies that export jobs out of the country and provide benefits for those that keep jobs in America.
Clinton also focused on energy policy, calling for more “green-collar jobs,” such as weatherizing homes, retrofitting buildings, installing solar panels and working on alternative fuel solutions such as clean coal and biofuels.
The federal government also needs to take back control of building and maintaining its infrastructure, Clinton said, instead of outsourcing the jobs to private companies.
“We’ve got to ask ourselves, ‘what do we need to do to make sure our security is in American hands,’ ” she said.
UK student Jess Kropczynski, who attended the Obama rally at the Lexington Center in August, said Clinton has Obama beat in terms of her specific policy proposals.
“Obama was just full of empty phrases,” said Kropczynski, a doctoral sociology student. “Hillary actually came out here and had a plan.”

Writer takes small college to the big screen

March 27, 2008

Story by Autumn Harbison | Staff

Some familiar places and faces will grace the silver screen when a locally produced movie makes its debut.

“Surviving Guthrie,” a dark comedy partly shot in Lexington, premieres tonight at 7:30 at the Kentucky Theatre.

The film tells the story of Carter Guthrie - a drunk, hard-to-deal-with professor at a fictional liberal arts college - and his daughter, Ally, whom the dean has threatened to expel if she doesn’t stop her father from acting out.

Jesse Harris, a 2006 Georgetown College graduate, wrote “Surviving Guthrie” for a screenwriting class while he was still a student.

The feature film from Jesse Harris’ screenplay “Surviving Guthrie” premieres tonight at the Kentucky Theater. As of yesterday afternoon over 500 seats had been reserved. Photo by Autumn Harbison | Staff

The film is really about the fine line between being authentic and acting to please others, as well as themes like relationships and pushing limits too far, Harris said.

“When you get right down to it, it’s a man getting to know his daughter that he’s never taken the time to,” he said.

Several locations around Lexington were used during the filming - which, at one point while the crew was working at a house just outside town, led to a misunderstanding between the crew and police officers that interrupted the shoot, Harris said.

“They thought we were shooting a porno,” Harris said. “We brought them up and showed them the script. They were really nice and just doing their job.”

Many of the actors in “Surviving Guthrie” are from the Lexington area. Lead actor Joe Gatton of Lexington has been in many commercials and productions around town, and the female lead, Jesse Pennington, has starred in several of Georgetown’s theater productions.

Other Georgetown students played a lot of the smaller parts in the film, Harris said, and UK student Dane Dickmann worked as the sound editor.

Music from local bands, including Much is Given and The October, is also used in the film. Dustin Burnett, one of the members of The October, wrote the theme, “Change the World,” which plays during the credits.

The film had a small budget, and actors volunteered their time, Harris said.

“We made something that looks and sounds like a movie for the cost of a Camry,” he said.

“Surviving Guthrie” is definitely a college movie, Harris said, with scenes and types of people that will be familiar to students.

“The people talk like students, not like it’s ‘Dawson’s Creek’ and everyone sounds like an English major,” he said. “Not that I didn’t watch ‘Dawson’s Creek.’ ”

Harris said he’s been impressed by the level of support he’s seen for “Surviving Guthrie.”

“People have really gotten behind this project,” said Harris. “I’m thrilled to death.”

Tickets for the premiere can be reserved by calling The Store at Georgetown at (502) 863-8134.

E-mail aharbison@kykernel.com

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