A football coach in Minnesota was wrongly accused of having child pornography on his phone.

Coach Todd Hoffner was arrested and charged with using minors in pornographic images and possession of child pornography.

However, Hoffner was acquitted of the charges when a closer look at his technology revealed the images were simply of his own children in the bath tub.

Although Hoffner’s charges were dismissed, he was suspended and eventually lost his job following the accusations. The situation is tricky. On one hand, you want to address any potential child abuse immediately for the child’s safety and health.

Informing authorities of a person possessing or making child pornography is a very important step for the children involved. Especially with recent examples of coaches (such as Jerry Sandusky at Penn State) abusing their positions, it seems that such positions are developing a stigma.

AP Photo / Mankato Free Press, Pat Christman:
Todd Hoffner was reinstated as the Minnesota State-Mankato Head Coach in April 2014 after he was charged with two felonies for having photos of his children in a bath tub. Above, Minnesota State interim football coach Aaron Keen welcomes Hoffner back. Athletic director Kevin Buisman is to the right of Hoffner. In 2012 Hoffner was wrongfully accused of child pornography and fired.

With that stigma, though, comes the risk of a dangerous generalization. Any coach or gym teacher at any school can be eyed suspiciously by parents and boards simply because of the position held. While it is true that the position has often been abused, it is not true that every person holding it will do so.

With that in mind, I feel that if a person is going to make a charge on someone as implicating as one of child pornography, there should be very clear confirmation of the charge on the person.

In other words, the person should not be convicted of a crime unless there are no doubts to he or she having convicted it. I can understand wanting to keep an eye on the person to prevent the potential abuse of other children, but until a person is one-hundred percent confirmed to be abusive it doesn’t seem fair to charge them with such crimes; a person’s life could very easily be ruined once he or she are convicted, so before making such decisions I think it’s worth verifying the person actually is guilty.

A more thorough look at the photographs on the phone before making such charges would have told the school what they needed to know; once the judge saw Hoffner’s videos he noted they were “playful and silly,” according to TIME.

While it is good that the person reporting the photos was initially concerned, and while letting someone with more power know is very admirable, I do question the legal process that went on behind the scenes of the case.

It is important for such actions to be swift, but they should also be very careful and verify what they are seeing. In general I feel the situation was a perfect set of events aligned with the right timing.

Post-Sandusky’s allegation, the hype around coaches and gym teachers has increased; Hoffner is a coach and had photos of children in a bath tub. The correlation is very easy to mistake, so I don’t particularly blame the school for their behavior; their decisions, while overreacted, were out of good intentions.

Overall, I think this might be a lesson for people to be more thorough in investigations. I also feel there might be a bit more ease on the coaching and gym teaching stereotypes, at least for those who do not abuse their positions. In any similar situation, though, the most important action to take is to make sure action is taken.

Anthony Munoz can be contacted at amunoz@keene-equinox.com

The United States Department of Home Security advised people to change their passwords and security settings in response to the threat of hackers seeking to take advantage of the Heartbleed bug.

The Heartbleed bug basically leaves certain software and security vulnerable; anyone on the Internet is able to read certain data we send and receive if they have the tools and knowledge to do so. If persistent, hackers can access passwords. Internet users have been advised to heavily check the use and login history of their internet accounts. For the most part, the bug is slowly seeming to be resolved. However, I wonder how safe we really are.

I feel this is an unfortunate risk we take in our current age. As incredibly useful and convenient as the Internet is, we are only kidding ourselves if we think we are always going to be 100 percent safe. By now, it is well-apparent that our security is compromised. From the National Security Agency to Facebook’s creepy advertisement tracking, and now to this, it seems the Internet is becoming less and less of a reliable entity (assuming it ever was).

The more that happens with it, the more I want to revert to the 90’s with only a landline and Windows 95 to interact with the world. Of course, in no way am I saying there is no place for the Internet. Its ability to provide limitless information and connect us with one another has proven to be a tool that I do believe has changed society for the better, in spite of its setbacks.

But at this current point in time, I am feeling as though our dependency on this technology has meant using it for functions that were always meant to be private and secure. One has to wonder about the security of banking applications, health insurance apps and even something as simple as purchasing items on Amazon.

At this point in time most banks use Internet and software that is supposedly heavily protected, but one might question for how long. Although I love being able to check my debit balance from my phone at Walmart to make sure I have enough money for the upcoming purchase, I feel that I’d much prefer the inconvenience of keeping and tracking a paper trail if it means keeping my money safe.

It’s nice to believe that no one would want to take on the identity of a meager 22-year-old, but at this point it seems that no one is truly safe. I know I probably sound extremely old-school right now, but maybe it’s time to think about minimizing our web use; not necessarily the amount of time we spend on it, but what we are using it for. Putting complete faith in technology at this point is becoming less and less realistic. If a person is not an expert on the technology and science behind what they are using, it seems silly to fully trust it anyway.  The bottom line at this point seems to be that whatever a person puts on the internet is at risk. However small it may be, it can still be discovered by another’s eyes. Maybe it’s time to start considering what we are risking because at the end of the day, the person who cares most about your own interests — is you.

Anthony Munoz can be contacted at amunoz@keene-equinox.com

The CEO of Firefox, Brendan Eich, stepped down from his position after much media scrutiny.

Eich reportedly donated $1000 to Proposition 8, a bill that would attempt to re-amend California’s current allowance of gay marriage.

The issue was first brought to light by OkCupid, a dating website that informed its viewers of Eich’s donation and suggested they use a different browser.

The overall incident has gained attention with social media, and it has been debated whether or not the decisions made were justified.

AP Photo:
Former CEO of Firefox, who has stepped down after reportedly donating to Proposition 8.

On one hand, as a CEO of an organization, I think Eich should be aware of the decisions he makes and how it might impact his career.

Because of the nature of his position, it only makes sense to understand that every move he makes can and will be seen by the public eye.

Being at that level of a company which so many people regularly use, he should know that his personal life belongs to those willing to look into it.

On the other hand, I feel that all he really did was express an opinion.

He didn’t donate to Prop 8 in the name of Firefox; he donated to it in his own name.

His opinion isn’t the same one I have on gay marriage, or the opinion many people have, but I think he has every right to his own perspective.

If he wants to donate to a cause that appeals to that perspective, that is his choice.

It is fine to want to know who benefits from the dollars that you spend and what that money goes toward – in fact, voting with your dollar seems to be the best way to show input.

But Firefox is an internet browser; if anything, it would be the advertisers who would have more concern.

Had it not been for the publicity that OkCupid brought, most people probably wouldn’t have even known.

Even after the announcement, I wonder how many people actually made the effort to download Google Chrome.

That being said, when OkCupid made an announcement to their users to stop using Firefox, I felt like their intentions were much more political and for publicity than out of genuine concern.

Eich didn’t inflict violence on anyone; he didn’t make a public display of offensiveness to anyone.

All Eich really did was donate to a bill he believed in, giving more of his own say to the government.

Maybe more people should do the same for their own causes?

I think it really comes down to the fact that most people probably would not have been aware of what Eich had donated to had it not been for the publicity; in turn, this leads me to wonder what causes other leaders are supporting.

I honestly couldn’t tell you what the CEOs of Dunkin’ Donuts or Walmart are supporting, and perhaps I should before I continue my regular patronage towards both.

Of course, technically Eich wasn’t forced to resign— according to Mozzilla.

He stepped down because of the pressure he was under.

In a sense, he is the one who surrendered his voice. If he really wanted to, he could have fought for his position and made an even bigger deal out of it.

In the end, maybe this should be a lesson to pay more attention to what we purchase.

Perhaps we should actually take some time to research the higher-ups of Starbucks and McDonald’s— it’s not much different than researching an employer before an interview or looking at a person’s Facebook before a date.

If we find that what we’re considering buying into is supporting causes we strongly oppose, perhaps we should consider not buying into it.

Anthony Munoz can be contacted at amunoz@keene-equinox.com

Visiting musicians and KSC students perform together

The United States Army Field Band and Soldiers’ Chorus brought pride and community to the Redfern Arts Center on March 29.

The Army Field Band and Soldiers’ Chorus is comprised of active duty soldiers who perform around the country. The band was officially formed in 1946 and has performed in all 50 U.S. states, as well as various other countries.

The opportunity to perform at Keene State College arose very suddenly, with about a two-week turnaround, according to Director of the Redfern Arts Center, Shannon Mayers.

Tickets were free, but the concert sold out. “I think, in a way the suddenness and opportunistic quality of the programming was exciting for our community, especially since we’ve had such a lousy winter,” Mayers said.

Haley Erdbrink / Equinox Staff: The United States Army Field Band and Soldiers’ Choir performs at the Main Theatre of the Redfern Arts Center in Keene, N.H., on March 29. The concert tickets were free, and the show sold out.

The concert additionally enlisted 14 music students from the college to perform John Philip Sousa’s “El Capitan” with the army.

Students from the choir were selected to perform with the chorus, while the college’s band selected its members from students who volunteered.

“I quickly volunteered and was able to be one of the lucky eight instrumentalists,” Robert Cooper, a KSC student who played trumpet during the concert, said. “Altogether my preparation time was about two hours,” he added.

“The performance was a wonderful experience,” Emily DeAngelis, a vocal performance student who sang soprano with the chorus, said.

“I have never been able to have the experience of working with such highly-trained musicians. There was a high level of professionalism and the music was incredible,” DeAngelis said.

Both DeAngelis and Cooper said students were emailed the music they were to perform and practiced individually before the concert. On the night of the performance, they also had the opportunity to meet members of the army band.

“I met the conductor who was very welcoming to us musicians participating,” Cooper said. “I also spoke to a horn player about how she got into the band and the process regarding auditions for the ensemble,” Cooper further explained.

“I greatly enjoyed getting to speak with the woman who was part of the Soldiers’ Chorus,” DeAngelis said.

“It was interesting to discover that many of them have the same degrees in music that me and my fellow students are currently pursuing,” DeAngelis continued.

Mayers said many war veterans attended the program.

“There were a lot of veterans with hats from different wars, and it was very nice to see,” she said. “It was an event that could be multigenerational. In that sense the event was very community-building,” Mayers stated.

The concert covered a wide repertoire of songs, including patriotic music, jazz and pieces from West Side Story, according to the event program. “They’re quite various in what they do,” Mayers said. “There was a lot of choral work in the performance. It was pretty broad and the audience really liked that.”

“From a musician’s standpoint, everything the band played was right on pitch,” Cooper said. “It was rhythmically accurate and balanced. I hope the audience heard that.”

According to Mayers, the performance was well-performed and well-received.

“The audience took great pride in what they were participating in that night, and you could tell the feeling was genuine,” Mayers said.

Mayers continued, “They did the Battle Hymn of the Republic at the end and the audience just stood up. It was incredible. There was a lot of electricity.”

Anthony Munoz can be contacted at amunoz@keene-equinox.com

Last month, I reviewed the book Divergent. A fan of the book myself, I went to see the film adaptation on opening night. To follow up with what I had speculated in my last review, I am pleased to say the film met my own expectations and was incredibly enjoyable to watch.

One thing to remember when seeing a film based on a book is to keep an open mind to the film for what it is. Divergent is a two-and-a-half-hour film. That being said, there had to be scenes taken out from the book’s story to keep the length appropriate. There were a couple moments and scenes from the book that were removed, and some of the development between certain characters was trimmed down.

The sequels may need to re-explain or re-approach those missing items, but from what I have heard those scenes were at least filmed and intended to be in the final product. I felt the characters were perfectly cast. Shailene Woodley’s portrayal of Tris was not only exactly how I would have envisioned her while reading, but also very well performed.

AP Photo: Maggie Q, left, plays Tori and Shailene Woodley as Beatrice “Tris” Prior, in the film, “Divergent.” The film released on Friday, March 21, 2014.

Her portrayal felt organic and was powerful during emotional scenes. The character playing Four also captured the character well, with his clear toughness but also vulnerability. Even in appearance, I thought they all resembled their character descriptions well. The supporting actors played their roles well. Although they did not get as much development as their novel counterparts, they still drove the story just as effectively and added flavor and humor to the script.

The climax of the book was also altered a little. This I felt actually worked well for the film medium. I remember the book’s climax moving from place to place to place — the film condenses that into fewer locations to keep the pace at a reasonable momentum, but the information given in the book is still there. The final confrontation was also altered, but again, in a way I felt worked for the film.

That being said, nothing is perfect. There were aspects of the movie I thought weren’t as effective as they could have been. The film begins with a voiceover to establish both the world and the main protagonist’s mindset at the beginning of the story; this I felt took away from the film.

It wasn’t necessarily the voiceover itself that bothered me as much as it was the length of it — there was a point when it felt like it had said enough, but then kept going. I do understand that the voiceover’s purpose was geared toward audiences who hadn’t read the book, and as a reader, it was nice to have that visual guide to the film’s setting; I just wonder if its content could have been made more concise.

The soundtrack also felt out of place at times. Maybe if I was younger or more of an emotional person, it would have appealed to me, but there were moments where I felt its tone did not fit with where it was in the film, or was just simply too much. That, as well as some moments in dialogue, made the film feel corny at parts. But in a way, I think that adds to the entertainment value.

Divergent is worth seeing. It is a nice adaptation of the books and still has entertaining surprises. If you have not read the books I still recommend seeing it.   The story is engaging and supplies likeable characters and intense action. I will certainly be seeing it again.

Anthony Munoz can be contacted at amunoz@keene-equinox.com

We all know them: the church that harasses funerals, events and now, the Internet.

Westboro Baptist Church is a problematic group, yet it is interesting to wonder what the groups real intentions are. The Westboro Baptist Church pickets funerals and concerts, as well as any cause they feel contributes to America’s tolerance of homosexuality, which in their eyes is what brings tragedy to our country.

Their signs often read, “Thank God for Dead Soldiers,” “God Hates Homosexuals” and “America is Doomed.” Their rationality is that God is giving us dead soldiers, AIDS, cancer and all of the world’s problems as a consequence of being accepting of the gay community.

They also use social media to spread their message. On their website are parodies of pop songs, rewritten to remind us God is going to burn us. From “Rumor Has it God Don’t Love You Christians No More,” to “Hear Him Roar” (yes, as in Katy Perry’s “Roar”), to even their own version of Frozen’s “Let It Go” Westboro’s efforts feel quite humorous to listen to, even if their message is disconcerting. The church now also has a Vine account. On this Vine are small snippets that are all somehow tied back to the fact that God hates homosexuals or even America. This behavior really makes me wonder how many of them seriously believe in what they are doing, and how many of them are just simply attention-seeking, tasteless trolls who care only about their own group.

AP Photo:
Fred Phelps, founder of the controversial Westboro Baptist Church.

What is disconcerting about this group is the children being used in their Vine songs. This clearly shows they don’t have the rest of the world or even their own children in mind when perpetuating their beliefs. They are willing and able to convince their children to either believe or act in their “principles” they continue to force on everyone. If the church’s true intentions are to gain attention, they are only held by the founding members of the church. Westboro’s leaders, notably the Phelps family members, have experience in law.

That being said, they know how to find loopholes in order to abuse their freedom of speech; it is no secret that assaults on the church members at funerals have earned them money in court cases. This means they either manipulate their members for their own entertainment and financial gain, or they are just truly hateful people who lead even more hateful people. Either one is extremely upsetting.

Most members of the group will be stuck in that mindset, and will never, ever get out of it. In that respect, I feel sorry for the wasted potential of human beings. In the end, that is what they are. I feel for them regarding Fred Phelp’s death, and even though they deny caring (one member said “We do not worship the dead”), a loss is a loss. I think the hope in this situation, is that most people see this church as an appalling organization.

A group called the Freedom Riders, along with many others, often stand in front of the protests to obstruct them from the families of funerals. Members of the church have also left on their own accord, and lead lives of happiness while trying to do good for the world around them in order to make up for their actions; these members also try to convince their families to stop their actions.

When Fred Phelps himself passed, the first funeral Westboro Baptist Church members picketed were met with signs reading “Sorry For Your Loss,” an act of both empathy and forgiveness. While the Westboro Baptist Church community may be full of negative human beings, it is safe to say they do not represent even the slightest portion of humanity.

Their actions will persist, but in no way will they be taken with more than a grain of salt.

Anthony Munoz can be contacted at amunoz@keene-equinox.com 

Facebook is the ever-changing platform that many love to hate. From changes in layout to their push advertisements, the social media platform allows us our own customization, while at the same time, peeking into our privacy.

Recently, Facebook has begun to take in consideration its younger audience when they tightened policies to prevent illegal gun sales.

A new policy has been released to put age restrictions on Facebook and Instagram posts and pages for guns, alcohol and other adult-oriented items. The idea is to prevent people from selling guns to one another over Facebook; for instance, a person can’t advertise on a gun page that the sale requires “no background check.” Specifically, Facebook is also aiming to ensure these sales don’t go to children.

The age restrictions and efforts to prevent illegal public transactions makes sense. In fact, I find it questionable that people were able to make such sales so blatantly in the public eye in the first place.

Erin D’Aleo / Graphics Editor

If a person is going to break the law, it only makes sense not to do it in a public post. This policy at least prevents young gun enthusiasts from seeing such posts on their respective pages.

Obviously, there are loopholes to Facebook’s current policy; for instance, not everyone specifies an actual birth date, and just because a person doesn’t advertise publicly about gun control laws does not mean they won’t mention such privately.

But, I think Facebook has taken a good step towards the general goal, which is to prevent illegal gun transactions and sales to minors.

Representatives of Facebook have also acknowledged their current predicament, noting that they want to allow people to express their interests, but also need to be able to look into illegal sales that may be taking place.

The perhaps unfortunate reality is that Facebook’s audience is going to include children — I say this with recollections of my own preteen Myspace days, and the acknowledgement that I was on Facebook as a freshman in high school. Today, I’m sure that audience has extended to even younger ages. Nothing as popular as Facebook can go without a younger audience wanting to join to be like “the big kids.” Facebook, which has changed a lot over the years to adapt for its primarily adult audience, may consequently have to reconsider many of its current policies and mechanisms for the safety of its young users.

So overall, I think the recent effort being made is logical. It acknowledges its younger audience and how to keep society safe by reducing illegal sales. It is positive that Facebook is taking responsibility for its own platform.

However, with this younger audience and change of policies comes the question of what direction Facebook is heading into.

A mixing of generations might raise many more questions about what is appropriate and what is not for an audience wanting to express its identity while protecting its youth. This is an issue Myspace faced. We all know what happened to Myspace.

Regardless of policies and audience, it’s important to remember one thing that has stayed true, even before Facebook came into existence: everything you post, no matter how and where, is going to be seen by someone outside of your intended receiver.

Anthony Munoz can be contacted at amunoz@keene-equinox.com

Performance displays controversial topics and delivers a story rich in morals

The Keene State College Theatre and Dance Department brought lessons, laughter and new viewpoints on sexual assault with their production of How I Learned to Drive. The play, written by Paula Vogel, focuses on protagonist Lil Bit and her relationship with her sexually abusive uncle, as well as her family’s history and their candid sexual activities. 

The story was told in non-chronological order and structured itself with flashbacks, narrations and voice- overs reflexive of driving lessons.

Directing the play was Peggy Rae Johnson, a theatre and dance lecturer at KSC. Johnson had first experienced the play’s material when acting in it herself in a previous production. “I’ve always loved the play and wanted to work on it from the director’s point of view,” Johnson said. “It’s beautifully written, meticulously well-structured and very creative and imaginative in its arrangement and metaphors and use of language. I hope the play  increases awareness and sensitivity towards a new perspective and gets people talking a little bit more about the subject,” Johnson said.

According to Johnson, the cast had a short run of 17 rehearsals before opening. “These students have papers, reports and lives, so to be in rehearsal six to seven days a week until midnight is a lot of work,” she said. “But it was a great cast. They worked so well together and never complained. They were very supportive of one another.”

Michael Portrie / Contributed Photo:
The cast of Keene State College’s production of How I Learned to Drive. Students tell a story of sexual abuse using the metaphor of learning to drive.

The play explored themes of child abuse, incest, sexuality and forgiveness. Meanwhile, the protagonist narrated, steered and shifted to reverse, delving deeper into her past, her family and her relationship with her uncle.

“The play is about forgiveness and I think that that’s a very generous perspective for this topic,” Johnson said. “The intention was not to encourage the concept of victim and predator, so that is what we had to consider when exploring that kind of relationship, because it ends with hope and joy for the main character, and that’s a pretty miraculous journey for a person to take.”

How I Learned to Drive premiered at the Wright Theatre at the Redfern Arts Center on Tuesday, February 25, to a full house, selling out each night of its five-day showing to the college’s campus and community.

“It was really well done,” Abby Darin, a senior sociology major who attended the play, said.

Darin had seen the play performed elsewhere and wanted to see how it would be retold. “The plot was very intense, but it was told at an interesting pace,” Rissa Grady, a recent KSC graduate who attended the play in support of a crew member, said. “The sets were also great,” she said. “The work that goes into a production is extremely arduous and to have people come and support your work is really a gift,” Johnson said. “We’ve all been really appreciative of the Keene State audience that sold us out.”

Anthony Munoz can be reached atamunoz@keene-equinox.com