Bud Fans: Beware

Beer. Some people hate it, others love it. While beer in college is usually related to wild "frat parties" in copious amounts of irresponsible craziness, there are a select few college students who like to actually taste our beer, not inhale it.

For the adventurous beer drinkers like me, here's a few I highly recommend.

Caution: If you're strictly Bud or Miller, do not attempt to try these beers.

5. Craft beers are finding their way to major supermarkets, such as Publix and Winn Dixie. Flying Dog, which is being featured at Publix, features multiple variates ranging from
Porters to Ales. "Good Beer. No Shit." Try my favorite, "In-Heat-Wheat."

4. Eye of the Hawk. A great one for an afternoon tailgating. "The Harley Davidson of American beers" boasts the Mendocino Brewing Company. Rich body and deep flavor.

3. St. Pauli Girl. "With three special brews, there's a St. Pauli Girl for you!"An imported German beer. My favorite, St. Pauli Girl Special Dark, is smooth with a rich malty taste. (Be prepared with your date of birth to enter the web site- 21 and up only.)

2. Modelo. You Corona lovers have to try this one. Related in origin (soy de Mejico), Modelo is known in Mexico as the "elite of beers" (la crema de la cerveza). For extra umph, try Modelo Dark.

1. Val-Dieu Brown. A Belgian beer for those who love thick, dark beers. Almost a meal, the mouth is bombarded with coffee, mocha and chocolate tastes. At 8 percent alcohol volume, a few of these and you'll be set. You can find this gem at Beer World in Boca Raton.

Me and my number one (below).

Mother Nature Marks her Territory

Sophomore Carlos Matias carefully sits down on a thick sea wall behind his condo just north of Lantana beach.Strong ocean winds whip around the small 15-by-15 back porch as waves lap along the cracked white wall where the beach has disappeared (above).

"It's extremely unfortunate. The sea wall here at the Imperial House has sustained such major damage during recent storms that it just gave in," Matias explains. "And as a result of the collapsing wall, my backyard itself has sunken three feet. It can be scary at times."

Matias is seeking his degree at Florida Atlantic University through the Environmental Sciences certificate program. "My passion is in environmental health. It's a hands on issue, and the program here at FAU allows students to research and explore environmental topics through a broadly-based interdisciplinary program."

Matias walks barefoot through the sinking grass to his concrete patio, where roommate Kristine McKean looks at old photos of the Imperial House.

Leafing through the tattered brown album McKean says, "my grandfather and grandmother purchased this condo in the 1960s. I love living on the beach, but the state and county need to agree on a permanent solution to this erosion. It's a serious matter that has plagued this area for years."

Such solutions are what Matias wants to per sue after graduation. "I basically want to mediate the fight between Mother Nature and human life.Whether its erosion or pollution, I would enjoy a career that addresses these problems," says Matias.

Along Lantana Beach, the ocean has almost swallowed all of a dune system that Palm Beach County constructed to shield the condos from the pounding surf. In June, 6,750 cubic yards of sand was placed from the south end of the Lantana municipal beach to the Horizon East condo near the northern limit of South Palm Beach. Now, 96 to 97 percent of the project had been washed out.

"When working with or in a marine environment your work conditions and tasks vary from working in the marine environment itself, gathering information and or specimens to working in a laboratory studying microorganisms under a microscope. In this profession, it is not uncommon to spend weeks aboard are search vessel working around the clock," Matias explains.

"It's a broad line of work. Close friends of mine that have already graduated have found successful careers in environmental conservation, fisheries protection, water management and environmental consultancies," says Matias.

Becoming a marine biologist doesn't happen overnight. "It takes years of hard studying, a soul for the job and dedication," advises Matias.

And as for the fractured sea wall, Matias point out, "For the time-being, the county has decided to ask the state Department of Environmental Protection for permission to rebuild the dune system this winter."

Beach erosion is an endless battle between humans and Mother Nature. As humans we create our environment and expect it to be as is— forever. But this is not so and we need to realize it. The truth is erosion will torment us for as long as human kind roams this planet and we will eventually have to accept it.

Our beaches are constantly eroding every day, slowly and steadily. Sometimes even right before our eyes. People panic and expect some sort of solution to fix or prevent the matter. The fact of the matter is there is no real permanent solution to stop or fix this. A sea wall can be put up; sand can be pumped from out of state to replace a beach that was once there; jetties and rocks can be placed to divert current and water flow in an area to help slow the erosion process, but all in all it is something that we just need to deal with and most of all-understand. In my opinion, we are in the hands of Mother Nature and we need to play her game not ours.

Questions for the President

In high school, we were told to be quiet, listen, believe everything and question nothing.
In college, we are taught to speak out, think for ourselves, trust nothing and question everything.

My mind has never been able to fully wrap around the concept of "pro-life" versus "pro-choice." Is the term "pro-life" a term coined by a right-wing conservative that had hopes of making "pro-choice" believers look as if they are "pro-death?" Who knows.

But I do have some serious questions for the man in the White House.

In 2003 you signed the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 (shown below). Did you not realize the Act contained no exception to protect the mother's health? Also, this picture worries me. A group of men, laughing and patting each other on the back-- not a woman to be seen.

What's the deal with the anti-abortionists bombing abortion clinics? Couldn't that be translated to-- you should have been aborted x-number of years ago?

But here's a tough one for our president. You are pro-life when it comes to abortion, even revoking funds for stem-cell research due to its "moral issues." Yet, you support the death penalty. In your five years of governor of Texas, the state executed 131 prisoners-- far more than any other state. It doesn't add up. How can this be explained?

Abortion was made legal for a reason, we all know the story behind Roe vs. Wade. If it were ever overturned, it would only mean that those seeking abortion would end up in clinics that aren't inspected by health services, with "doctor's" that don't even need degrees. Thus only making matters worse, and endangering the lives of women who simply cannot have or care for a child for whatever reason.

A Different Perspective on Britney

Anyone in the past month who has turned on the TV or signed online has most likely been bombarded with “Britney News.” It’s always the same negative criticism and disapproval.

She drinks too much.
She’s out too late. She’s in and out of rehab.
She’s getting fat. She’s simply an all-out train wreck.

It’s as if we all are skinny, drop-dead gorgeous saints. Enough is enough.

Britney bashing has become an epidemic here in the United States.

But really it’s the latest blow to Britney that really got my wheels spinning. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a fan of the 25 year-old pop singer, but I’m sure as hell not one to kick someone while their down. But now ex-husband Kevin Federline now has custody of their two sons, 2-year-old Sean Preston and 1-year-old Jayden James after Spears was found driving without a valid California license.

Is this because Federline (left) never drinks? Does he never drug? Surely he never parties till the break of dawn, right?

Yeah, right. But hey, it’s ok if he does it.

Also, what was up with the twice-weekly drug tests that Spears was ordered to submit, while Federline had zero?

This is one bizarre ruling.