The Independent Student Newspaper of Boston College Established 1919 Vol. XCI, No. 35
THE HEIGHTS THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2010
Columnist offers views on leadership WSJ’s Noonan speaks in Robsham BY DANIEL TONKOVICH AND MORGAN HEALEY For The Heights
Peggy Noonan, columnist for The Wall Street Journal and best-selling author of eight books on American politics, history, and culture, addressed the Boston College community on Tuesday as part of the Winston Center’s Clough Colloquium speaker series. Noonan shared her views on leadership characteristics and flaws as exemplified by five presidents of the United States. Noonan began her speech with tales of her time as a writer for President Ronald Reagan, speaking of the former president as a man capable of public speaking and engagement. Noonan said that although he publically showed interest in the issues at hand that provoked reaction, he was a person of
occasional detachment and was best in small groups. “In my view, Reagan was the last genuine man of American politics,” Noonan said. “He had great personal grace and public warmth. He never treated others as help. He employed old school courtesy.” Noonan contrasted Reagan with President George H.W. Bush, whom she praised for his diplomacy and engagement in personal matters, but criticized for his failure to attend to public matters and recognize the importance of major events and opportunities. “[Bush] was a diplomat, sensitive to the position and predicament of the Soviet leaders when the Berlin Wall fell,” Noonan said. “He didn’t want to rub it in, but he should have given thanks to the American people for funding almost 50 years of war, cold and hot, and the heroes of policy. With Bush, there was a failure of historical imagination, a failure to see the impact of major events in the context of history.” Noonan used Bush’s failure in these
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SPECIAL REPORT
Campus culture may deter assault reporting Some sexual assaults might go unreported
BY MOLLY LAPOINT Heights Staff
The following is the first part of a three-part series on the issue of sexual assault at Boston College. ANDREW POWELL / HEIGHTS STAFF
Peggy Noonan, columnist for ‘The Wall Street Journal,’ spoke on past American presidents. respects to stress awareness and innovation. She asserted that successful leaders at all levels must not only be intelligent, but creative, intuitive, and in tune with the needs of the people at the time of their leadership. “A great political leader has more in common with an artist than an economist,” Noonan said. Related to her views on the importance of creativity in leadership, Noonan again used Reagan as an illustration of
See Noonan, A4
Between 2006 and 2009, there were 44 cases of sexual assault reported by Boston College under the Clery Act. Under the act, institutions of higher education that receive federal funding are required to make public statistics regarding violent crimes that occur under their respective jurisdictions. However, varying statistics cited by a number of University officials indicate that nationally, between 20 and 25 percent of women attending college will be sexually assaulted before they graduate. This discrepancy between reported and perpetrated assaults is caused by a number of factors, some of which may be particular to BC’s campus, those officials said. “There’s definitely a stigma just gener-
UGBC fields Homecoming complaints from students BY DANIEL MORRISON For The Heights
A number of students who attended Saturday’s Homecoming have criticized the manner in which the House of Blues staff handled the admittance of more than 1,500 students. The majority of student complaints were regarding the staff’s management of a line that was packed with students squeezed shoulder-to-shoulder across the length of the sidewalk and down Lansdowne Street.
INSIDE
Students who arrived first at the House of Blues around 8:45 p.m. said they did not find the line of students waiting outside to be unusually long. “The line was not that bad when we got there,” said Sarah Hamilton, A&S ’12. She said that there were no more than 100 students in line. Twenty minutes later, after several more buses had arrived, a line of students stretched down the sidewalk, blocking the entrances to the restau-
See Homecoming, A4
ally in society, in that there’s a tendency to blame the victim,” said Kaitlin Vigars, Forensic Nursing Program coordinator and BC ’08. “Victim-blaming attitudes are a big reason why people don’t report.” Alison Rhodes, director of the Sexual Assault Network (SANet) and GSSW ’17, said she agrees that victims on campus often do not receive the support they should. “Sometimes the perpetrator is supported more than the survivor,” she said. Often, victims are blamed by others because of how they were acting or how they were dressed at the time of their assault, Vigars said. This may cause some to be hesitant to report their assault, and is an attitude that must be changed in society, she said. “People should be able to go out and do whatever they want and not be assaulted,” she said. “If there were a better social environment that was more supportive of people
See Assaults, A4
LOCALCRIME
Student struck by car near Upper Campus BY DANIEL TONKOVICH For The Heights
DANIEL TONKOVICH / HEIGHTS STAFF
A student was hospitalized after being struck by a car while crossing at the Hammond St. (above) crosswalk.
Margaret Evangelakos, 50, of Newton, has been issued citations by Newton Police for striking Adejire Bademosi, A&S ’14, with her vehicle on the morning of Tuesday, Oct. 12, and for leaving the accident scene. Evangelakos was cited for allegedly leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident with personal injury and
failing to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk. Bademosi has since recovered from her injuries and has returned to Boston College. According to the police incident report, Bademosi was hit by a vehicle while crossing Hammond Street in a marked pedestrian crossing just north of Beacon Street. She was transported via ambulance to
See Hit and Run, A4
WALL ST. TO BE ADDRESSED AT BC
CAMPUS POLITICS
SPORTS
Men’s soccer rallies for 2-1 win against Harvard, A10
THE SCENE
Economy a key issue at annual political debate Dems face off against Republicans in Murray Room
Busting the Myth: Presidents can be on TV, B1
MARKETPLACE
BY ADRIANA MARIELLA For The Heights
Afghan government holds talks with Taliban, B10 Classifieds, A5 Crossword, A5 Editorials, A6 Numbers to Know, B10 Police Blotter, A2 What We’re Watching, B2 Thumbs Up / Thumbs Down, A7 Forecast on Washington, B7 Weather, A2 On the Session, B4
KEVIN HOU / HEIGHTS EDITOR
The College Democrats and College Republicans of BC held their annual debate last night.
Last night, the College Democrats and College Republicans of Boston College (CDBC and CRBC, respectively) hosted a debate that included issues in the upcoming midterm elections and the American political scene. The debate was aimed at educating student voters and giving them information to effectively participate in the election. The debate covered topics such as the economy and its future, immigration, health care reform, the U.S. public school system, and the politics of the midterm elections. In their opening statements, CDBC representatives said that the Democratic Party has continuously been committed to college students. They said that Demo-
See MBTA App, A4
AP FILE PHOTO
Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) will be joining former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker in a panel on campus next Monday that will address Wall Street reform. crats promote fiscal responsibility, have successfully implemented an economic recovery act, and seek to continue with their policy of rational politics. CRBC representatives said that the Republican Party is the party more aligned with the cause of college students. They said that Republicans are fiscally conservative, wish to implement practices that encourage job growth, and want to move away from the failed economic stimulus package. The Tea Party Movement, new taxes on businesses, tax cuts for citizens, and the effectiveness of the stimulus package were also discussed when the floor was opened up for audience questions. “In today’s political climate, it can
be somewhat difficult to gain a full understanding of the issues at hand,” said Kristoffer Munden, president of the CDBC and A&S ’11. “A debate such as this presents the perfect opportunity to hear from both sides.” Tomas Castella, president of the CRBC and A&S ’11, said the economy is among one of the most important issues for students. “Absolutely, the economy,” Castella said. “The economy’s future, fiscal responsibility, and job growth are all very important to students. I, personally, am concerned with getting a job in coming months.”
See Debate, A4