Heights 10-07-10

The Independent Student Newspaper of Boston College Established 1919 Vol. XC, No. 33

THE HEIGHTS THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010

www.bcheights.com

Dustbowl closes for construction Admins and students plan for space constraints

BY ERIN FORD

For The Heights Construction vehicles appeared in the Dustbowl early Monday, marking the beginning of what will be a two-year project to build Stokes Hall.

The first week of work “will focus exclusively on widening the pedestrian walkway that will serve Middle Campus throughout construction, and on installing the fence that will line the perimeter of the construction site,” said University Spokesman Jack Dunn.

While the perimeter fencing, which is set to encompass the majority of the Dustbowl, has be-

gun to go up, the construction area is not yet fully enclosed.

The closing of the Dustbowl, a major outdoor recreational area, has brought about concerns regarding what will happen to student gatherings that previously utilized the space.

“We have been in conversation with the UGBC [Undergraduate Government of Boston College] and other organizations who have had annual events on the Dustbowl,” said Vice President of Student Affairs Patrick Rombalski.

Replacement locations for events formerly held ANDREW POWELL / HEIGHTS STAFF

See Construction, A5

Construction workers began the set-up of a the fence that will enclose the Dustbowl until the spring of 2012 this week.

Campuses respond to teenagers’ suicides Responses to bullying incidents seen at universities across the U.S.

BY PATRICK GALLAGHER Assoc. News Editor

KEVIN HOU / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Noise complaints by local residents surrounding last year’s Homecoming in the Mod lot led to this year’s dance being held at the House of Blues in Boston, UGBC organizers said.

Homecoming dance to be held at House of Blues Noise complaints lead to change in dance location

BY MICHAEL CAPRIO News Editor

Following noise complaints by local residents about last year’s Homecoming, the Undergraduate Government of Boston College (UGBC) has changed the location of this year’s homecoming dance to the House of Blues in downtown Boston.

One Cleveland Circle resident vexed by the noise produced by last year’s dance, held in the Mod parking lot, traveled to

SPORTS

INSIDE

For one field hockey player, the time to shine is now, D1

THE SCENE

The Scene tracks evolving trends in movie posters, C1

MARKETPLACE

campus around midnight on the night of the dance to film the noisy goings-on.

The cameraman posted the video on YouTube, with a comment, “Once again, the ‘festive’ needs of the Boston College undergrad took precedence over the entire rest of the Brighton / Chestnut Hill community.”

Members of the UGBC said that the incident last year prompted event planners to move the venue to an off-campus location.

“The incident that happened last year with the local resident bringing the camera to the event and complaining about the noise did ultimately lead to Homecoming being moved off-campus this year,” said Michael Kitlas, UGBC executive director of campus entertainment and A&S ’12.

Following last year’s Homecoming, Tom Keady, vice president of the Office of Governmental and Community Affairs, fielded complaints from over 50 residents at an unrelated neighborhood meeting the Tuesday after the dance.

“His apology was accepted and appreciated by neighbors,” said University

See Homecoming, A4

HOCKEY PREVIEW

Get a look at the upcoming season for men’s hockey, B1 Classifieds, C5 Videos on the Verge, C2 Editorials, A6 Editors Picks, D3 Police Blotter, A2 On the Session, C8 Thumbs Up / Thumbs Down, A7 Forecast on Washington, D7 Weather, A2 Numbers to Know, D8

AP PHOTO / REENA ROSE SEBAYAN

Mourners gather at Rutgers University to mourn following a freshman student’s suicide.

Prosecutors told reporters that they are still weighing whether to charge the two with a hate crime.

Also in the past three weeks, Billy Lucas, 15, of Greensburg, Ind.; Asher Brown, 13, of Houston, Texas; and Seth Walsh, 13, of Tehachapi, Calif., all committed suicide after being bullied and taunted by classmates for being gay, according to

a report by the Associated Press.

Bullying and insensitivity related to students’ sexual orientation is likely underreported at BC, said Vice President of Student Affairs Patrick Rombalski.

“I see the acts of insensitivity at BC,” Rombalski said, adding that the issue

See Harassment, A5

ResLife director to take new post

Humphreys to leave for MIT

BY ANA LOPEZ Heights Editor

ANDREW POWELL / HEIGHTS STAFF

ResLife Director Henry Humphreys will be leaving his post this year.

After eight years at the helm of the Office of Residential Life (ResLife) at Boston College, Henry Humphreys is leaving the University to take a position across the Charles at MIT, where he will function as one of two senior associate deans of student development.

In contrast to his time at BC, where responsibility for student life organization is divided among several departments, Humphreys’ new job will require him to oversee every-

thing from dining services to facilities management to Greek life at the university.

Humphreys said his decision to change institutions was not prompted by any aspect of his job at BC. “It was only in March that I defended my doctoral dissertation and I was sent an invitation to apply for this job at MIT,” he said.

“My initial reaction was ‘No, I’m happy here at BC.’ I’ve been here for eight years now but some people that I really respect at BC told me,

See Humphreys, A4

New class boasts record CAMPUS CELEBRATES NCOW AHANA enrollment Record 30 percent of Class of 2014 is AHANA

BY TAYLOUR KUMPF Asst. News Editor

Ecuadorian President trapped in hospital by police, D10

In the wake of the suicides of five GLBTQ teens in the past three weeks, Boston College students and administrators said the University must work collectively to address the harassment they said likely goes undocumented at BC. Last Wednesday, Raymond Chase, a 19-year-old student at Johnson and Wales University, became the latest such teen to commit suicide.

While it is still unknown whether he had been the victim of bullying, four previous cases, most notably that of Rutgers University freshman Tyler Clementi, are known to have come about as a result of ongoing harassment.

Clementi took his life after his roommate broadcast over Twitter that Clementi was engaged in a physical relationship with another man.

The roommate and another Rutgers freshman have since been charged with invasion of privacy by the Middlesex County, NJ District Attorney.

The freshmen class of 2014 brings with it a 4 percent increase in AHANA students from the past year, including in its overall total 6.7 percent AfricanAmerican students.

“The current freshman class includes 714 AHANA students, which is 30 percent of [its population],” said John Mahoney, director of Undergraduate Admissions.

“This year we also have the largest entering freshmen cohort of African-American students at 160.”

“The previous year, the percentage was 26 percent, so there’s been a significant jump up,” he said. “Over that last four to five years, though, we’ve stayed in the range of 25 to 30 percent. Thirty percent is the new record, but we had been at 28 percent in the past.”

Mahoney said that, from an admissions standpoint, Boston College has not done anything different to promote this increase. “Our methods of attracting students have remained exactly the same,” he said. “The secret to BC’s success lies

in the fact that everyone on the staff has the responsibility to attract AHANA students.”

The admissions program staff spends the beginning of the school year traveling to schools around the country, Mahoney said. Time is spent visiting prep schools, private Catholic schools, and boarding schools.

“We also target inner city schools, where kids perhaps are not in great schools, but have tremendous ability.”

Vice President for Student Affairs Patrick Rombalski said he could think of a number of reasons why AHANA students are attracted to BC. “I would think that there are a number of influencing factors,” he said. “Number one, we are a well known, prestigious institution. Second, we continue to meet full need – we are one of very few schools who do that. Also, we have a number of unique programs, including the Options Through Education (OTE) program, which is a summer transitional program [for AHANA students].”

See AHANA, A4

SANG LEE / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Student panelists spoke on the issue of bisexuality on campus in the Cabaret Room Monday night. For more on this year’s National Coming Out Week (NCOW), see page A3.

TopFive

Thursday, October 7, 2010

THE HEIGHTS

things to do on campus this week

Profits and Prophets

1

Top Girls

Beyond Ricci

Today Time: 5 p.m.

Location: Heights Room

Professor Paul Knitter will speak on the topic of “Profits and Prophets: Economic Development and Interreligious Dialogue.”

2

Today Time: 7 p.m.

Location: Devlin 008

Watch a documentary written, produced, and directed

by Rev. Jeremy Clarke, S.J., about Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci, released 400 years after his death.

3

Opening Boston’s Closet

Today Time: 7:30 p.m.

Location: Robsham

Top Girls is a drama about the changing role of women in recent years, their success in the workplace, and the compromises made in the process.

4

Today Time: 8 p.m.

Location: Lyons 207

Come to Opening Boston’s Closet, an NCOW event hosted by the GLC at which GLBTQ students at BC will tell their coming out stories.

Show Your Love Day

5

Friday Time: 12:55 p.m.

Location: Quad

As the final event for NCOW, show your support by wearing your “Support Love” shirts and joining in on the flash hug mob in the Quad.

IntheNews

FEATURED ON CAMPUS

Facebook use examined

FOUR DAY WEATHER FORECAST TODAY

69° Partly Cloudy 46°

FRIDAY

Sunny 50°

SATURDAY

On Tuesday, the California Supreme Court heard arguments in a case over whether a state law that allows illegal immigrants to be charged in-state tuition violates federal immigration law, according to a report

by The Chronicle of Higher Education. According to the report, several of the justices indicated that they would support upholding the state statute, which would reverse a 2008 California court of appeals decision saying the statute violated federal law. Currently, nine other states have similar laws.

63° Sunny

University Supreme Court debates law granting in-state tuition to illegals

67°

44°

SUNDAY

65° Sunny 49°

SOURCE: NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE

A Guide to Your Newspaper The Heights Boston College – McElroy 113 140 Commonwealth Ave. Chestnut Hill, Mass. 02467 Editor-in-Chief (617) 552-2223

Local News Caritas, Cerberus reach agreement regarding St. Elizabeth’s

CECILIA PROVVEDINI / HEIGHTS STAFF

On Tuesday, The Boston Globe reported that a tentative deal has been reached between representatives of Caritas Christi Health Care and Cerberus Capital Management that, when finalized, will ensure St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center in Brighton remains open for at least the next five years. The talks initially snagged after Caritas found that it had been $45 million short in its estimated unfunded pension liability. However, the sale of Caritas to Cerberus has been tentatively agreed to, according to the Globe report.

More than 500 million people use Facebook worldwide. Of those users, 65,420 graduated from or currently attend BC.

BY DRAKE HAYWOODE

Technology Resource Center For The Heights viewing her friend’s responses to her latest status update: Facebook, the Web site “Downing energy drinks in that was the focus of the Bapst SO COLLEGE.” “But it’s a great way to stay blockbuster The Social Network, boasts 500 million users in touch with everybody,” she worldwide. Of these users, said. “It’s a great way to stay 65,420 are U.S. citizens who connected with people who have graduathave graduated ed and seeing from Boston College.

“It’s a great way to what jobs they not getB C ’s r i s stay in touch with are ting.” ing number of everybody, to stay Annie Orboth student a n d g ra d u - connected with people lowski, A&S ’12, said she ate accounts represents a who have graduated, c h e c k s h e r national phe- and seeing what jobs Facebook pron o m e n o n o f they are not getting.” file about four times each day the widespread – a habit that use of the so—Colleen Koser, feeds procrascial networking tination. “I mega site. Over A&S ’11 d o n ’ t re a l ly 90 percent of college students in the coun- get tempted until I open my try have Facebook accounts, laptop computer,” Orlowski according to statistics from said.

“Whenever I open my lapits tracking site, allfacebook. top, it’s just available. It’s com.

Some BC students have something I’m tempted to said that Facebook can hinder open.”

Professors and organizaproductivity in their classwork. “Absolutely, it can,” tion leaders on campus have said Colleen Koser, A&S also taken to using Facebook ’11, as she sat in the Campus to increase their reach to stu-

dents and members.

Charles Derber, a professor in the sociology department, created a Facebook page on which former students of his war and peace class can follow recent developments in the subject.

Stephanie Winiarski, director of public relations for the Undergraduate Government of BC (UGBC) and A&S ’11, said that Facebook’s effectiveness surpasses that of any other communication tool the UGBC has ever used.

“UGBC started using Facebook … for the same reason we use it today, which is the simple fact that it’s an effective way to communicate with the student body,” Winiarski said. “It is a high impact way to reach out to the students at BC.” The only drawback to using Facebook, Winiarski said, is the necessity of event titles to be clear and attention grabbing.

“When we send out more than one message per day, some messages get overlooked,” she said. “But this a problem that’s not exclusive to just Facebook.” 

On Campus Burns Library hosts exhibit in honor of Chilean independence The Burns Library is hosting an exhibition in honor of the 200th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of Chile that will be on display until Dec. 15, according to a release from the Office of News and Public Affairs. The display is composed of a number of watercolors, prints, books, medals, historical letters, and significant documents that have been loaned to Boston College by Paul W. Garber and Philip C. Garber, Honorary Consuls of Chile in Boston. The exhibition first opened on Sept. 20.

National Robert Burck, New York’s “Naked Cowboy,” to run for president NEW YORK (AP) - New York’s “Naked Cowboy” is looking for some new exposure as a presidential candidate. Robert Burck is familiar to any Times Square tourist as the man standing in the heart of the “Crossroads of the World,” playing a guitar and wearing only tighty-whiteys, boots, and a cowboy hat. But he wore a suit and tie Wednesday as he announced his intention to run for president in 2012 as a member of the conservative Tea Party movement. He proclaimed he was running “in defense of individual liberty” and criticized President Barack Obama.

Editorial General (617) 552-2221 Managing Editor (617) 552-4286 News Desk (617) 552-0172 Sports Desk (617) 552-0189 Marketplace Desk (617) 552-3548 Features Desk (617) 552-3548 Arts Desk (617) 552-0515 Photo (617) 552-1022 Fax (617) 552-4823 Business and Operations General Manager (617) 552-0169 Advertising (617) 552-2220 Business and Circulation (617) 552-0547 Classifieds and Collections (617) 552-0364 Fax (617) 552-1753 EDITORIAL RESOURCES News Tips Have a news tip or a good idea for a story? Call Michael Caprio, News Editor, at (617) 552-0172, or e-mail news@bcheights.com. For future events, e-mail, fax, or mail a detailed description of the event and contact information to the News Desk.

Sports Scores Want to report the results of a game? Call Zach Wielgus, Sports Editor, at (617) 552-0189, or e-mail sports@bcheights.com.

Arts Events The Heights covers a multitude of events both on and off campus – including concerts, movies, theatrical performances, and more. Call Kristen House, Arts and Review Editor, at (617) 552-0515, or e-mail review@ bcheights.com. For future events, e-mail, fax, or mail a detailed description of the event and contact information to the Arts Desk.

Clarifications / Corrections The Heights strives to provide its readers with complete, accurate, and balanced information. If you believe we have made a reporting error, have information that requires a clarification or correction, or questions about The Heights standards and practices, you may contact Matthew DeLuca, Editor-in-Chief, at (617) 552-2223, or e-mail editor@ bcheights.com.

CUSTOMER SERVICE

Police Blotter

Voices from the Dustbowl

10/1/10 – 10/2/10 Friday, October 1 9:11 a.m. - A report was filed regarding a tree that fell and struck a motor vehicle on Brighton Campus.

10:22 p.m. - A report was filed regarding vandalism to Cheverus Hall. A search of the area yielded no suspects. A work order was filed for the damage.

10:42 p.m. - A report was filed regarding an underage intoxicated party in the Dustbowl.

The party was transported by ambulance to a medical facility.

Saturday, October 2 1:35 a.m. - A report was filed regarding a suspicious party in the Mods. The party was identified, issued a written trespass warning, and escorted off BC property.

1:46 a.m. - A report was filed regarding the arrest of Alexander Barza for assault and battery on a police officer, trespassing, disorderly person, and resisting arrest. The party was booked at BCPD headquarters.

5:27 p.m. - A report was filed regarding a suspicious person in St. Ignatius Gate.

The party was identified, issued a written trespass warning, and escorted off BC property.

7:29 p.m. - A report was filed regarding a party who was ejected from Alumni Stadium for possessing an alcoholic beverage.

The party was issued a verbal trespass warning barring them from re-entering Alumni Stadium.

10:11 p.m. - A report was filed regarding a suspicious motor vehicle on Shea Field.

The owner was located and the vehicle was sent from the area.

“What is your favorite dining hall meal?”

“Definitely the Honey Q wrap.”

—Kenny Ierardi, A&S ’13

10:18 p.m. - A report was filed regarding an underage intoxicated party at Alumni Stadium. The party was transported to a medical facility in the medical van.

10:47 p.m. - A report was filed regarding a party who was placed into protective custody at Alumni Stadium. The party was escorted to the operations post for processing.

“Cheeseburger.”

—Tom Jennings, A&S ’14

11:10 p.m. - A report was filed regarding a student who was placed under arrest for assault and battery on a police officer, disorderly person, and larceny under $250.

The party was escorted to the command post for booking.

“The Honey Q is delicious.”

—Josh Coyne,

—Source: The Boston College Police Department

CSOM ’14

Delivery To have The Heights delivered to your home each week or to report distribution problems on campus, contact John O’Reilly, General Manager at (617) 552-0547.

Advertising The Heights is one of the most effective ways to reach the BC community. To submit a classified, display, or online advertisement, call our advertising office at (617) 552-2220 Monday through Friday.

The Heights is produced by BC undergraduates and is published on Mondays and Thursdays during the academic year by The Heights, Inc. (c) 2010. All rights reserved.

CORRECTIONS Please send corrections to editor@bcheights.com with ‘correction’ in the subject line.

A3

The Heights

Thursday, October 7, 2010

GLC celebrates National Coming Out Week

By Ji Hae Lee For The Heights

This week is National Coming Out Week (NCOW), an awareness week during which the campus community discusses issues of sexual orientation.

The GLBTQ Leadership C o u n c i l (G LC ) c e l e b ra te s NCOW every f irst week of O c to b e r a n d h osts eve n ts each day throughout the week.

NCOW is intended to give people a chance to come out, celebrate their sexualities, and share their experiences of being GLBTQ at Boston College, its organizers said.

“Students at BC are most often very friendly toward the gay community,” said Kelsey Gasseling, GLC president and A&S ’11.

“Administrators sometimes face obstructions in helping us when they feel that the GLC activities are not aligned with Jesuit principles. But they are usually supportive of us.”

Natalie Isaksson, vice president of the GLC and A&S ’11, said she agrees with Gasseling.

“I think that there are many students at BC who have not had much exposure with gays, but that has usually not deterred them from being receptive of gays. The student body in general is quite friendly.”

Isaksson said that there is sometimes a divide at BC between administrators who want to advance the GLC’s goals and those who want to adhere to Catholic doctrine.

“Our school is more open to gays compared to some other Catholic institutions such as Notre Dame, and the administration has given us much help in coming this far,” Isaksson said. “We were able to have our first gala in the spring of 2009 and start selling ‘support love’ t-shirts in 2008.”

To celebrate NCOW, the GLC has been hosting various events throughout the week.

On Tuesday, the group hosted a panel on bisexuality, dur-

ing which five undergraduate students from BC spoke about their personal experiences and the issue of bisexuality on campus.

“People often tell me that I should just be straight because I have more options, that I should lean more toward the opposite sex,” said Rachel Graves, one of the panelists and A&S ’11. “But I wouldn’t want to do that because that is not being who I am. I would not be honest with myself if I claimed that I am either straight or gay.” “ Bo t h gay a n d st ra i gh t communities tend to have some misconceptions about bisexuals,” Graves said.

She and other panelists said they felt that some people think bisexuals claim that they are so because they are either going through a “phase” in which they feel uncertain about their sexuality, or do not want to come to terms with the fact that they are homosexual. “ Th i s m i s c o n c e p t i o n i s sometimes an encumbrance when dating because the partner feels insecure about the bisexual’s sexuality, and thus, the relationship in general,” Graves said.

“The panel was very interesting because it explored an identity that is often overlooked in the GLBTQ community,” said Clifton James, CSOM ’12, who attended on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the GLC hosted an event called “Guess Who’s Gay,” in which the audience tried to figure out if a panelist is straight or GLBTQ. Members of the panel were behind sheets through which only their silhouettes and voices were discernible.

Tonight, there will be an event called “Opening Boston’s Closet,” during which students will gather and talk about their sexual identities.

Friday will be “Show Your Love Day” across the campus.

People are encouraged to hug as many people as they can between classes. n

Sang Lee / Photo staff

Michael Caprio / Heights Editor

The GLC will celebrate National Coming Out Week with a series of events throughout the week, including a panel that explored what it means to be bisexual, a “Guess Who’s Gay” competition, and a discussion in which GLBTQ persons were able to share their coming out stories.

Allston-Brighton Crime Reports 9/23/10 – 10/2/10

Man lends a hand, becomes victim of fraudulent checking On Monday, Sept. 23, 2010, a man reported to Boston Police that he was the victim of fraud.

The previous Thursday, the man was approached by “Rudy Diamond,” who asked for help with a towed vehicle. The victim assisted Diamond and, in gratitude, Diamond, gave the victim an $800 check. The victim deposited the check, then withdrew $700 for Diamond, leaving $100 for himself. However, the bank later notified the victim that the check was fraudulent. Diamond has not been located.

Police still looking for suspect in break-in Boston Police responded at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2010 to a call in Allston. A single woman had just returned home from work and found a man in her bedroom holding her jewelry, claiming the victim “owed” him. The suspect hastily returned the items when he heard others entering the house and fled the scene. Police are still looking for the suspect.

Harvard Ave. restaurant victim of armed robbery Camino Real Resturant on Harvard Avenue was the victim of an armed robbery on Wednesday, Sept. 29, 2010 around 11:30 a.m. The alleged thief entered through the rear kitchen door, ran down to the basement, and stole $9,120 from the unlocked safe. A chef attempted to stop the suspect in the act before the suspect produced a knife. The suspect escaped from the restaurant with the chef chasing him down Harvard Avenue. The suspect eventually got away and is still missing.

Vandalism covers underground garage, suspect appears to live there On Thursday, Oct. 2, 2010 Police arrived at an underground garage on Harvard Avenue at 10:15 a.m. The suspect was a 45-year-old man, who was living with his belongings scattered in the corner of the garage. Graffiti of green and white paint and red marker covered the walls near the belongings, which were sitting beside a pile of feces. The suspect denies doing the graffiti, claiming that he “knows how to get rid of evidence.” The police told the man to permanently leave the garage and he was not charged. The suspect had been previously arrested in August for “tagging” property in Brookline.

Suspect steals jewelry from yard sale At 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 2, 2010, at a yard sale, a suspect stole “precious” vintage jewelry from a 60-year-old woman who was holding a yard sale in Brighton. She reported to the police that she was the victim of larceny. Reportedly, she was explaining to a man that a circle pin had real pearls and semi-precious gems. Soon thereafter, the man and the circle pin were gone. Neither has been found.

Woman reports ransacked glove compartment Police responded at around 9:25 a.m. on Sept. 28 to a report of a woman who said her car appeared to have been broken into. Upon arrival, the officer was met by the owner of the vehicle, who stated that she found the contents of her glove compartment had been strewn about the floor of her car.

There was no apparent damage done to the door, trunk locks, or ignition.

Clerks prevent Stop and Shop theft Officers responded to a radio call at around 2 p.m. on Oct. 1 that two female shoppers were in custody at the Stop and Show located at 60 Everett St. in Allston. The store manager told officers that the two females attempted to leave the store with $273.70 worth of groceries. The manager reported that the suspects used the self check-out line to scan $10.05 worth of the groceries, but were detained by store employees when they tried to exit without paying for the rest. The duo was transported to the District 14 police station and booked for shop lifting.

- Courtesy of the Boston Police Department, District 14 / Gathered by Kendall Bitonte

A4

Thursday, October 7, 2010

THE HEIGHTS

Student affairs aims to adapt to demographic AHANA, from A1

The fact that BC is able to provide financial aid to many students was a factor that Mahoney cited, as well.

“BC is totally need-blind, and that is absolutely instrumental in our being able to enroll 30 percent AHANA students,” he said. “Not too many institutions can say they meet the full demonstrated need of every student.”

“There were almost 9,000 AHANA applicants [out of 29,900 total] last year. Once we accept them, the next step is yielding them. One thing we host is Destination BC Weekend, during which we invite AHANA students to come for the weekend. This past year, over 100 students took us up on the offer. The weekend helps us yield some of these great students we accept,” he said.

Regarding the selection process, Mahoney said BC considers the total package when admitting students. “Race is one among many factors that we consider when looking at applicants,” he said. “[According to the 2003 Supreme Court ruling on Affirmative Action,] race can be used as one of many factors in a holistic review process, which tries to identify gifted, capable students, but also those who will bring with them a diverse array of talents and backgrounds to enrich the campus.”

“The selection process is dictated by the fact that we are an extremely selective institution,” he said.

“There are so many qualified students that apply each year, but there is only a finite number of spots available. We look at the rigor of a student’s high school program, their performance in that program, and standardized test scores. The rest of the process is extremely subjective and extremely arbitrary. There’s no formula, no key for making admissions decisions. It takes a great staff of people to read each application with care.

“At any place that calls itself selective, we have the luxury of being able to choose who we want in order to craft a community of scholars.”

After students are enrolled at BC, Rombalski and the division of student affairs assume the responsibility of insuring that students are getting everything they signed up for.

“We look to embed the whole concept of diversity within our program,” Rombalski said.

“Problems are handled best in residence halls,” he said. “We think that working these issues through our residence communities is really a critical piece for us.

If we do that really well, it could help us profoundly.”

With that idea in mind, Rombalski said that his staff “spent a lot of time this year during RA training conducting an education program on [AHANA transitions], to make sure our halls are welcoming places.” “[Aiding in the transition process is also a] big reason we

KEVIN HOU / HEIGHTS EDITOR

John Mahoney, director of undergraduate admissions, said that this increase in AHANA students is not the result of a change in Boston College admissions policies. have the OTE program, and the Office of AHANA Student Programs (OASP) focuses in on these students to make sure we have a good retention rate with AHANA students,” he said.

“At BC there’s less of a gap between AHANA student retention and other student retention.”

“OASP plays a leadership role, but it’s not the only office – they can’t do it alone,” Rombalski said.

“It’s the responsibility of the University to encourage engage-

ment across [organization] lines.

We want to hit this up hard in residence halls. We’re planning on starting a new pilot next fall to mix it up a little bit. We have enough diversity on campus that people pay attention to what we do and don’t do.”

The pilot program will be geared toward freshmen. Rombalski said that he and his staff “will be much more intentional about how we build communities within residence halls. Important discussions will be embedded

within community life and will help build the community at BC that we want.”

“We’ve made remarkable progress in the past 20 years as far as AHANA enrollment,” Mahoney said.

“I think students come here and see the diversity on campus. As director of admissions, I want to be able to walk down to the Plex each day and see the diversity. [That’s how prospective students judge the diversity,] by looking around and saying, ‘Do I

see a real mix of people here?’”

He said that is why he encourages students to visit the campus to see what BC is all about. “You can look at numbers, but numbers don’t always tell the whole story,” he said.

“For some AHANA students the number is comforting, for some it comes as a shock,” Rombalski said. “It depends on the student and their perspective. I still think most AHANA students are here because it’s a dang good education.” 

“The incident that happened last year with the local resident bringing the camera to the event and complaining about the noise did ultimately lead to Homecoming being moved off campus this year.”

— Michael Kitlas, UGBC Executive Director of Campus Entertainment and A&S ’12

Homecoming dance to feature White Panda duo Homecoming, from A1 Spokesman Jack Dunn in a previous interview with The Heights.

Dunn said that last year’s change in DJ contributed to some of the problematic noise.

“For the past five years, this Homecoming dance has been held on campus without incident,” he said. “This year, the DJ that was hired played music at a level that disturbed some of our neighbors.

We apologize for the inconvenience that the dance caused and

ANDREW POWELL / HIEGHTS STAFF

Humphreys said that he was reluctant to go to MIT until his BC colleagues encouraged him to pursue the new position.

Humphreys to oversee MIT dining, Greek life in new role Humphreys, from A1

you know what Henry, it doesn’t hurt to look.”

After taking the advice of colleagues, Jesuits, and friends, Humphreys applied for the job, knowing that, if hired, it would mean diversifying his role as a college administrator significantly.

“One of my colleagues here at BC that’s a former MIT person, when she heard I was applying, said, ‘That’s a really big job there, because it takes up a big chunk of what student affairs does,’” he said.

MIT also functions under a different housing structure than BC, having successfully employed the faculty-in-residence model for the past 100 years.

“I think it’s one of the very good models [for student housing],” Humphreys said. “It is the system that schools founded 200 or 300 years ago used and MIT happens to be one of those places where it works well. The faculty are very involved with

students’ lives outside of the classroom.”

Humphreys said that he felt, from a purely academic standpoint, it would be a unique experience to work within this historic system. “For me, I love educational history, so I get to go back to a system that doesn’t really exist much nowadays,” he said.

Humphreys will also be responsible for overseeing MITs Greek system.

With regards to the possibility of a Greek system ever being viable at BC, Humphreys felt it would not be supported. “I don’t know if BC needs it, to be honest,” he said. “Greek life, to me, is a form of a living and learning community and a way to acclimate in a large institutional setting. I don’t think BC needs a Greek system to create that sense of community.”

Humphreys’ familiarity with the field of residential life began decades ago when he served as a residential director for Westfield State University in western

Massachusetts. “I told people I was only going to be an RD for a year and then I was going to get out, that I wanted to do student activities instead,” he said. “It was 1988 that I said that.”

However, his attraction to the field has only grown over the years, as he said the work of ResLife allows him to see “all sides of students.”

“You get to see them at their worst when they need the most help and assistance, but you also get to see them at their best, like in RHA [Resident Hall Association] or when they are putting on phenomenal programs,” he said.

For his predecessor, Humphreys stressed the importance of becoming acclimated with the BC culture. “It’s one of the strongest senses of community I’ve ever seen. For BC students, it is important to live on campus and be together and a lot of colleges don’t have that,” he said.

“It’s unique, it’s beautiful, and I would never change a thing about it. You have to respect it for what it is.” 

pledge to rectify the issue for next year’s dance.”

The event will feature the mash-up duo White Panda. Tom Evans and Dan Griffith, the members of White Panda, perform the majority of their sets at colleges and universities.

The UGBC will be providing transportation to and from the event, Kitlas said.

When students board buses, they will exchange the tickets they receive from the Robsham Theater box office for separate

tickets that will allow them entry into the House of Blues, requiring students to take bus transportation to get to the event.

Ticket sales will be staggered, with seniors eligible to purchase tickets this morning from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Juniors will be able to purchase tickets on Friday during the same time period, while freshman and sophomore ticket sales will be from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 12. All tickets will be $25 and will be sold through the Robsham Theater box office. 

The Heights

Thursday, October 7, 2010

A5

Construction creates campus space scarcity that Stokes will bring to our campus.” in the Dustbowl will include the The construction manageBapst lawn and O’Neill Plaza. ment plan, which outlines how Rombalski said the plaza in front construction vehicles and workers of Conte Forum may also be a will enter and exit the site, has potential activity area. been submitted to the Newton Micaela Mabida, UGBC presi- Planning Department and quick dent and CSOM ’11, and Pat- approval is expected, Dunn said. rick Raab, UGBC vice presiAs the fences go up and realdent and A&S ’11, ity sets in, students “We are sad to have voiced differsaid they have met with administrators lose a site so filled ing opinions reregularly since the garding the closing start of the semes- with memories, but of the Dustbowl. ter to discuss these One stuanticipant of the changes. d e n t , C h r i st i a n added resources O’Rourke, A&S ’12, Administrative officials have also that Stokes will said he was sadmet with members dened by the arrival bring to our of the Residence of the fences.

Hall Administration, “It’s unfortunate campus.”

Mabida said. for the upperclass“Many great sugmen because we’ll gestions were made — Micaela Mabida, have a construction at the first State of UGBC President and site in place of the the Heights in SepDustbowl for the CSOM ’11 tember regarding rest of our stay at the Stokes and Gasson construc- BC,” O’Rourke said. tion projects,” Mabida said.

Jessica Trainor, A&S ’12, said “We would like to see several that her feelings were more of of those suggestions put into ac- “indifference since there are other tion.” green places on campus.”

These suggestions include “Plus, this means more space utilizing the perimeter fence for for meetings and classes as well students’ advertising needs, Ma- as administration which we really bida said. need,” Trainor said.

She said that she will be sad to The administration has assee the Dustbowl go. sembled a Web site dedicated “I think this is a bittersweet to the Stokes Hall construction, situation for students,” Mabida which may be found at www. said. bc.edu/stokeshall. Here, students “We are sad to lose a site so and faculty may find construction filled with memories, but an- updates posted on a weekly basis, ticipant of the added resources Dunn said. n

Construction, from A1

andrew powell / Heights staff

Students walk alongside the Dustbowl as construction workers erect the fence within which Stokes Hall will be constructed. The project will be finished in 2012.

Student leaders call for more anti-harassment measures

ap file photos

Students hold vigils (left) and “lie-ins” (right) for Tyler Clementi, a Rutgers University student who commited suicide after his roommate filmed him having relations with another man – one of several recent incidents of bullying-related suicides.

Harassment, from A1 is not measurably better or worse at BC than at any universities where he has previously worked.

“Over time, at all of these campuses, it’s a better environment than 10 years ago,” he said. “As a whole campus, though, we certainly have room to improve.”

Kelsey Gasseling, president of the GLBTQ Leadership Council (GLC) and A&S ’11, said that the most common examples of insensitivity come in the form of snide or suggestive remarks.

“A lot of what I’ve encountered was basically people trying to be cool or make jokes to be more at ease with themselves,” Gasseling said. She said that some of the most offensive comments come in the form of judgments and stereotypes.

“What’s hurtful most to me is when they even jokingly attribute things that I do to my sexuality,” she said. “Very limit-

ing comments like that are hurtful.”

Often students may say something offensive without meaning to or knowing what they said was hurtful, said Diana Nearhos, president of Allies at BC. “For those who haven’t had that experience, sometimes they do not seem to be so conscious of how offensive they might be without meaning to,” Nearhos said.

“And then there are ones who don’t flat out care if they’re offensive, and that’s what I think is the worst kind.”

Rombalski said he thinks the most crucial time in the fight for increased tolerance among the student body is the beginning of a student’s college years.

“For me, that first six months is critical,” he said. “There’s a lot of momentum that is built there.”

He said that the Office of Residential Life (ResLife) places much of the burden on resident assistants, resident directors, and resident ministers to monitor for any signs of bullying of all types, including

that related to GLBTQ students.

“I think the best way to get a handle on an environment is to rely on people who live in that environment,” Rombalski said.

Rebecca Edwalds, A&S ’11, said that ResLife doesn’t place a high degree of emphasis on training its RAs to handle bullying and harassment, although it does ask those RAs to be on the lookout for instances of roommate conflicts and changes in an individual’s behavior.

Edwalds, now entering her third year as an RA and her second year serving on Lower Campus, said that last year she experienced a case when one of her residents was being harassed by his roommates for reasons unknown to her.

“This had been going on all year and he never said anything to anyone until the end of the year,” she said. “When this kid came to me and said it was happening I was shocked.”

She said that RAs are instructed to

“just keep an eye out” for any changes in a resident’s demeanor, but with as many as 80 residents on a floor, it is difficult to keep in regular contact with everyone.

“You’ve gone through training but it’s a lot different in person,” Edwalds said.

“They talk to us about all that other serious stuff and roommate conflicts. I don’t actually recall them ever addressing bullying specifically,” she said. However, she said, “It definitely happens.”

Gasseling said she commends the work of the University Counseling Services and the Office of Student Affairs, but also said that BC has room to improve, and could implement more programming designed to increase awareness across campus.

“I would love to see the University implement a first-year seminar and a Safe Spaces campaign,” she said. “The point is just to be knowledgeable, and that message hasn’t gotten across.”

Rombalski said that, at times, the

University’s mission as a Jesuit Catholic institution can conflict with the mission of the GLC and other student organizations.

“This should be an environment of the highest level of respect,” he said.

“You’re right. There’s a tension there within people who are Catholic and try to take their faith seriously. You have competing values.”

Nearhos said that if the University were to take more of a stance against the bullying of GLBTQ students, a higher number of students would rally behind it in support of their classmates.

“It would be helpful if the administration could take more of a stand,” she said. “Some students are discouraged by the fact that they don’t know that them taking a stand would be effective because they don’t expect the administration to change. When we as students think we can’t change the environment we live in, it becomes very disheartening.” n

UCAL professor speaks on US Islamic political identity

By Daniel Morrison For The Heights

University of California at Davis Professor Sunaina Maira spoke Wednesday night about the political identity of American Muslim youth amid broader American suspicion of Islamic culture.

Maira’s lecture, which kicked off Boston College’s Race and Culture After 9/11 Lecture Series and Symposium, focused on her latest book, Missing: Youth, Citizenship, and Empire After 9/11.

“My work attempts to connect the experiences of these [Muslim] youth to the imperial feeling of post-9/11 America,” Maira said.

Maira shared her interviews of Muslim high school and college students living in New England and California that aimed to capture their feelings of marginalization and repression.

The students interviewed by

Maira often revealed feelings of discomfort and alienation from their community in the wake of Sept. 11.

“There is a conflict of psychological and political belonging for many of these youth,” Maira said.

She introduced the concept of dissenting citizenship to illustrate the internal tensions existing among those she interviewed.

“It is an engagement of the nation state that is based on a critique of its politics and policies that is not always in compliance with the state.”

“It [dissenting citizenship] is inherently paradoxical,” Maira said. “It’s a desire to question the state from within the state, while grappling with the idea of some type of national belonging.”

“I tried to look at how these youth grapple with these feelings in the context of family, school,

and work,” Maira said.

Recent scares of homegrown terrorism have sparked efforts by the FBI to spy on Muslim groups, further sharpening a sense of political separation felt by Muslim communities, Maira said.

“A focus to ferret out a presumed domestic terrorist threat has sometimes led to the government’s use of informants who have been recruited to infiltrate mosques and induce Muslim men to declare radical politics,” Maira said.

In some instances, many of the recruits are Muslim and are sought by the government to gain information about Muslim groups labeled as a threat to national security.

“Unknown numbers of [Muslim] minors have been drawn to the dragnet of counterterrorism operations,” Maira said.

Eleven college-aged Muslims living in California responded to

the probes by the FBI and voiced not exceptional.” their feelings of disenfranchise“The war on terror is an exment by protesting a speech by tension of subjugating dissenting the Israeli Ambasdomestic groups, sador to the United while extending he“It is an States, Michael gemony overseas. engagement of the Oren, Maira said.

“It’s part of a These protes- nation state that is longer history of tors, accused of groups based on a critique suppressing disrupting Oren’s perceived as aiding speech, were ar- of its politics and the enemy at the rested. moment,” Maira policies that is “The discipline said. not always in of these protestors Maira said the has led to Muslim internment of Japcompliance with youth’s reluctance anese Americans the state.” to engage in acas an example of tivism on college American hostilcampuses,” Maira — Sunaina Maira, ity toward such said. groups.

Professor, UCAL Pu b l i c m i s The source of Davis trust of a particumistrust and relar group within sentment evidenced American society is not unfa- by the FBI raids and the arrest of miliar in the country’s history, the college-aged protestors is she said. “The backlash against a belief that Muslim youth are Muslim Americans after 9/11 is incompatible with a Western

lifestyle, Maira said.

“Often, there is the belief that Muslim youth are antithetical to Western modernity and potentially deviant and exceptional to the social order.”

Learning from African-Americans’ struggle for civil rights is critical to challenging the current mistreatment of Muslim youth, Maira said.

“A grassroots movement of civil rights is a necessary and strategic response.

“Community empowerment and participation in representative government are key to defending the civil rights of repressed Muslim youth,” Maira said.

Maira said students should have a broadened outlook when considering delicate issues such as the political identity of Muslim youth living in America.

“It’s important not to have a nano-definition of the political.” n

A6

The Heights

Editorials

Etymologies

A call for reconciliation In light of the recent tragedies among young GLBTQ individuals, ‘The Heights’ suggests a shift in focus for the conversation on our campus.

This past week, five young GLBTQ Americans committed suicide after being tormented by their peers.

Pernicious Internet bullying took us back to the days of Matthew Shepard, except this time, the abusers didn’t even have to be physically present. A brutal and callous disregard for the feelings and privacy of others ultimately became oppressive enough for these students to enact violence upon themselves.

The time for the discussion around GLBTQ issues to move forward is now. We feel that Boston College, as a Jesuit liberal arts university, is an ideal location for the discussion to be reinvigorated. As the years have gone on, the debate has become polarized, politicized, and abstruse. This debate is ultimately about real people, something political arguments forgets. We have forgotten what it means for the debate to play out in the lives of individuals we know walking around here on our campus.

What does it mean to identify as both GLBTQ and Catholic? How can an institution preach a gospel of love and, at the same time, ignore the fact that rhetoric that does not support GLBTQ persons often ends up harming them?

Must all Catholic GLBTQ persons be prescribed lives of celibacy and renunciation, never fully allowed to be a full participant in society?

Not all individuals who identify as GLBTQ on campus are Catholic. We empathize with students who were raised Catholic but who have been driven out by homophobic attitudes. The Church has to realize that its intolerance may deter people who do not identify as GLBTQ, as well.

Our society’s debate over the issue of GLBTQ rights has always been political, but it has also always been religious. While the Catholic Church may not be the most nimble and tractable of organizations, it has always been deeply concerned with the lives of its members.

Lex orandi, lex credendi, an old saying goes – the law of prayer is the law of belief. The Church has to face the fact

that there are thousands, maybe millions of Catholics out there praying for some real discussion about the deeply personal struggle in their souls. This is, perhaps, the great theological question of our time, and BC, if it aspires to be a leader in the Catholic world, should explore ways to submit the question to rigorous examination.

The Catholic Church has one of the world’s greatest religious-intellectual traditions. Faith and reason sometimes make a tenuous pair, but for thousands of years people in the Church have found ways to wed the two. We hope that at BC, intellectuals of all sexual orientations may come together and work toward fostering discussions about the intersections of faith, love, and sexuality. GLBTQ rights are a matter of mind and emotion. The Catholic mother or father who has always been staunchly against gay marriage may have something new to pray over when their son falls in love with another man. What does the Church have to say to these people?

It seems that doctrine may tell us one thing – that the Church opposes homosexual unions – but the lives of Catholic people tell us another. Lex orandi, lex credendi.

The Church can no longer choose to speak abstractly about this reality in the lives of Catholics. There are persons on this campus who choose to continue to practice the Roman Catholic faith despite the Church’s unwillingness to address the condition of their sexuality. BC needs to become a place where the tangled knot of Catholic moral theology on GLBTQ issues can be unraveled and debated by intelligent, thinking believers.

We, like all who have heard of the tragedies of the past month, are shocked. What we wonder is whether or not we can use the special nature of the place we are in to say something helpful. No one can know what drove these young people to take their lives. what we hope is to find new ways to speak to those who are most in need.

Diversity increases

This year’s freshman class is 30 percent AHANA, marking a huge increase over previous years and positive steps for the University.

This year, more than 700 members of the freshman class are AHANA students. That 30 percent mark represents a new record high for admissions, and is up from 26 percent last year. In addition, the 160 African-American students in the Class of 2014 signify the most in a single class in the University’s history. Overall, 25 percent of Boston College’s undergraduates are AHANA. All of these increases have taken place without any major changes in recruiting tactics. The work of admissions officers is reflected by the numbers: Last year, almost 9,000 AHANA students applied to BC. We are glad that more AHANA students are considering BC, and we hope that they will continue to be drawn by the high academic standards and scholastic and extracurricular opportunities – that the University has to offer, BC has positioned itself to continue to draw a more diverse group of applicants.

Also of significance has been the University’s ability to continue its policies of being fully need-blind in admissions and of meeting the full demonstrated need of every student.

These ongoing policies give students who otherwise wouldn’t have been able to afford a BC education the opportunity to enroll, and should be commended.

Now, it is important that the University not become complacent.

There are still improvements that can

be made in BC’s faculty, where just over 14 percent of all full-time faculty members are AHANA, compared to the national average of 19 percent, according to a report last spring by The Boston Globe.

It is equally important to acknowledge that 10 years ago, roughly 10 percent of the faculty at BC was AHANA, which demonstrates a marked improvement over the last decade.

Moreover, The Heights recognizes that when discussing a faculty’s diversity, the criteria is not limited to AHANA professors. BC has a high number of international faculty members, and all of its faculty members bring with them a wide range of experiences and expertises.

With the breaking of ground on Stokes Hall this past week, BC has continued to take steps toward its goal of becoming one of the premier liberal arts universities in the country. When completed, the buddy will likely be a great addition to the campus. However, the University will continue to be defined by the strength and diversity of its student body and faculty. Over the past several years, there have been noticeable improvements on both counts, to the testament of the University’s administrators and its admissions staff. It is up to them, and to all the members of the BC community, to continue to promote BC’s values and mission so that ultimately, critics will see BC as the well-rounded institution that we know it has already become.

The Heights The Independent Student Newspaper of Boston College Established 1919 Matthew DeLuca, Editor-in-Chief John O’Reilly, General Manager Darren Ranck, Managing Editor

Contributors: Kevin DiCesare, Diana Nearhos

Monday, October 7, 2010

Broscursion (bro•scur•sion) (v) 1: When a group of young gentlemen, generally underclassmen, who might be identified as exhibiting “broish” tendencies leave campus in large groups to search for a party.

Example: I couldn’t get on the bus because a huge group from Upper was out on a broscursion.

Mary Kate McAdams / Heights Illustration

Letters to the Editor Response to shuttle system criticisms I am writing to respond to the article “Bus woes go unaddressed” that appeared in the Sept. 23 issue of The Heights. In the article, the author presented a biased and somewhat sensational account of the Boston College bus service that relied heavily on unsubstantiated statements of Boston Coach employees.

The Office of Transportation and Parking routinely monitors capacity, service, and behavior. Our research and input from riders, drivers, UGBC, and QLSC indicates most students have positive experiences and that capacity issues similar to the ones described are limited to peak hours on weekend nights.

Students are expected to behave appropriately when

using the bus service. If they do not, appropriate disciplinary action will be taken through BCPD and ODSD. We have confidence in our system and constantly look for ways to improve service. The issues raised in the article are very serious and we are following up accordingly.

We encourage constructive suggestions to be submitted to shuttle@bc.edu or by calling 617-552-0151.

I hope this helps to clarify concerns that might have been raised in The Heights article. We look forward to providing the best possible service for the students at BC. Paul Cappadona Manager, Transportation and Parking

Knowing about believing William Mooney Sloneker The Pew Research Center caused a bit of a stir last week when it released its findings for a study on religious knowledge. The survey consisted of 32 elementary questions about both Western and Eastern religions as well religion’s role in the American public sphere. Somewhat surprisingly, atheists and agnostics out-performed all other groups on the quiz, but that still was not the real story.

The report concluded that Americans generally know very little about religion. A majority (53 percent) of Americans missed more than half the questions. Even the top three highest scoring demographics – atheists, Jews, and Mormons – averaged under 21 correct answers.

A “D” in letter grade terms.

Given the United State’s prominent religiosity as a developed nation, the findings naturally raised some eyebrows. How could a society that invests so much time, energy, and money into its religious institutions and characterizes itself as being religious know so little about, well, religion?

Still, certain anecdotal evidence suggests that these statistics did not just come out of left field. Americans have demonstrated a failure to grasp even the most elementary aspects of religions in recent years. A couple years ago, Ann Coulter once used her theological “genius” to classify Christians as “perfected Jews,” and Congressman Lynn Westmoreland dopily failed to name the Ten Commandments in a Colbert Report interview.

More recently, in January, a plane en route to Louisville was grounded due to a misunderstanding of an

Orthodox Jewish prayer ritual, and the latest polls have showed that, contrary to substantial evidence, a fifth of Americans believe Barack Obama to be a Muslim.

Students at Boston College, however, are regularly confronted with questions and controversies of religious concern. From the crucifixes in classrooms to contraceptives in Cushing, countless issues have arisen over the years to prompt heated, yet meaningful discussions regarding religion’s place in the modern world.

This, plus a theology core requirement, cultivates in students the ability to intelligently process controversies of a religious tenor, and it equips them with a heightened level of religious literacy upon graduation. The culture clash between the liberal student body and inherently conservative administration subtly fosters this.

Of course, most Americans do not have this same exposure to religion as BC students. Moreover, most Americans do not acquire the same amount of education as BC students, key factor for increasing religious savvy.

One certainly does not require a bachelor’s degree to retain information about and confidently understand the concepts of major world religions, but something more is definitely needed.

Domestically speaking, the invaluable diversity of the U.S. rests on the bedrock of understanding. Recognizing and appreciating the differences in a multiplicity of creeds and cultures has fostered not only the capacity for coexistence, but also the creativity and ingenuity at the foundation of American success and innovation.

A gradual loss of that understanding could steer us in the direction of

The Heights welcomes Letters to the Editor not exceeding 200 words and column submissions that do not exceed 700 words for its op/ed pages.

The Heights reserves the right to edit for clarity, brevity, accuracy, and to prevent libel. The Heights also reserves the right to write headlines and choose illustrations to accompany pieces

William Mooney Sloneker is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences

submitted to the newspaper.

Submissions must be signed and should include the author’s connection to Boston College, address, and phone number. Letters and columns can be submitted online at www.bcheights.com, by email to editor@bcheights.com, in person, or by mail to Editor, The Heights, 113 McElroy Commons, Chestnut Hill, Mass. 02467.

Business and Operations

Editorial Kaleigh Polimeno, Copy Editor Michael Caprio, News Editor Zach Wielgus, Sports Editor Jacquelyn Herder, Features Editor Kristen House, Arts & Review Editor Daniel Martinez, Marketplace Editor Hilary Chassé, Opinions Editor Ana Lopez, Special Projects Editor Alex Trautwig, Photo Editor Margaret Tseng, Layout Editor

Floridian pastors who think burning the Qu’ran is a good idea.

Moreover, American interests abroad stand to benefit from upping the collective religious IQ. Religion remains a powerful force in the Middle East – the place of two American wars – as well as India and China, the emerging world powers of increasing importance to the U.S. Successful alliances and partnerships with these nations will depend on an emphatic familiarization with their cultures, an effort that was not so difficult with Europeans of similar customs and shared histories.

Granted, the importance of religion is steadily diminishing in the U.S. and Europe, so developing a more informed conception of religion loses relevance in a society trending toward total secularization. Nevertheless, the principles and practice of various faiths have helped sculpt the national identity.

With this in mind, a collective sense of embarrassment ought to permeate the public conscience in the wake of the Pew survey. Religion has not defined Americans per se, but it has certainly shaped it considerably through its entire history. This country was born partially out of colonies founded with religious motivations, grew alongside personalities like Jonathan Edwards and Billy Sunday, and today stands with institutions as disparate as the Creation Museum.

So for the sake of the future of the U.S., I pray that we can up our religious literacy – because I’m concerned for the welfare of a world power that doesn’t know that Indonesia is a Muslim-majority state.

Michael Saldarriaga, Graphics Editor Christina Quinn, Online Manager Laura Campedelli, Multimedia Coodinator Brooke Schneider, Assoc. Copy Editor DJ Adams, Asst. Copy Editor Patrick Gallagher, Assoc. News Editor Taylour Kumpf, Asst. News Editor Maegan O’Rourke, Assoc. Sports Editor Paul Sulzer, Asst. Sports Editor Kristopher Robinson, Asst. Features Editor

Zachary Jason, Assoc. Arts & Review Editor Allison Therrien, Asst. Arts & Review Editor Matt Palazzolo, Asst. Marketplace Editor Kevin Hou, Asst. Photo Editor Lindsay Grossman, Asst. Layout Editor Rachel Gregorio, Asst. Graphics Carrie McMahon, Editorial Assistant Zachary Halpern, Executive Assistant

Joelle Formato, Business Manager David Givler, Advertising Manager Brynne Lee, Outreach Coordinator Brendan Quinn, Systems Manager Madeline Demoulas, Local Sales Manager Daniel Ottaunick, Collections Manager James Gu, Asst. Ads Manager Dara Fang, Business Assistant

THE HEIGHTS

Thursday, October 7, 2010

A7

OPINIONS

Calling for accountability

Thumbs Up Candy Corn – Nothing says Halloween is coming like these multi-colored sugar nuggets.

The return of these little insulin suckers is accompanied by the return of other fall favorites such as caramel cider in the Chocolate Bar and Pumpkin Protein from the good folks at Odwalla. Something must be in the air.

Kickoff – Rejoice, Superfans!

The 2010 national champion men’s hockey team is about to start up once again, and it’s kicking off the season with an seasonticket sale event in Lower where we can all get free t-shirts (!) and meet the team. If it’s opening exhibition game was any indication (9-zip), then we’re in for big things.

Security – Although some may grumble about the Walsh swipe-in desk, their complaints will only be met with cheerful smiles as the security guards make headway toward winning the hearts and minds of their sophomore charges.

We see your game, sirs, and we like it.

H.o.B. – After last year’s Youtube Homecoming debacle, the UGBC has moved the annual event off campus.

But as opposed to selecting a cheesy conference center or other prom-type locales, the selection of the House of Blues guarantees a good time.

Wicked – More like defying price gouging! But really, the UGBC is offering students the chance to see the musical at a ridiculously discounted ticket price. So be sure to head to Boylston the 14th to check out this lavish Broadway show (lax bros, this is directed at you).

DINEEN BOYLE Rutgers University freshman Tyler Clementi committed suicide last week after discovering that his roommate had secretly filmed him having sex and broadcasted it live over the Internet.

Clementi is just one of several college students who have taken their own lives in the past few weeks. The story of his death and the actions of his fellow students has sparked intense outrage throughout the media and should prompt all college students to ask many questions. Namely, why have these events occurred and what actions can be taken to prevent future ones like them? In order to begin to solve these issues, we must take a critical look at an entity that has become inextricably entwined into our culture: the Internet. And subsequently, we must also examine our society’s hesitancy to discuss the topic of suicide.

Suicide rates in the United States have increased drastically in the years since 1970. What has changed from that time? The Internet has become more American than apple pie. The correlation between cyber bullying and teen suicide is nothing new. We are made constantly aware of it.

A study by UCLA psychologists states that three out of four teens admit to being bullied online.

Steps are being taken to combat this, and after the suicides of two high school students, the Massachusetts legislature recently enacted tough penalties against bullying.

Despite the recently garnered media attention regarding bullying, suicide remains a taboo topic.

According to the American Associa-

JOHN BLAKESLEE

Devlin – Because there wasn’t enough construction happening, the front walkway near Devlin has been partitioned off from the roaming masses of students trying to do crazy things such as get to class on time. The administration seems hell bent on making traversing the campus as difficult as possible, so let’s just cut our losses and not venture out of our cozy dorms for a few class days.

Chowdah – The fall weather is upon us, perhaps less crisp and more on the soggy side than hoped for, but with temperatures down into the 50s, students are looking for a way to warm up at lunch time. Those craving the hearty New England comfort of clam chowder will be sorely disappointed. Now is not the time for tortilla soup, Dining Services.

Columbus – Sure, he was a man of questionable cultural sensitivity, but any port in a storm when it comes to reasons for a three-day weekend.

Perhaps we ought to take this time on Columbus Day not to honor the explorer but commemorate the land and people he exploited. But we’ll probably be too busy sleeping in.

I was wasting time on Facebook the other day when I noticed something curious on a friend’s status.

It announced a day of fasting at his college to raise awareness about world hunger. I asked him how it worked.

Apparently he and members of his group planned to wear t-shirts and sit in the school’s dining halls, all the while garnering attention for their cause. The goal of the fasting day would be twofold. First, they wanted to bring attention to the problem of world hunger. Second, they wanted to empathize – on an admittedly small scale – with the hungry of the world.

Being a guy who never misses a meal and who is apparently only aware of social justice efforts through social networking sites, I commend them for their passion and commitment. World hunger is a serious problem that is often overlooked because it is a problem that has always existed. Hearing news reports of people in the third world starving is something to which we have grown numb. It is wonderful when people like my friend remind us all that the problem is not just a statistic in our textbooks, but an actual nightmare for millions of people.

However, I suggested to my friend that the next time he and his group decide to have a day where they empathize with the hungry, that they try something new. Depriving themselves of food for a day does not fully

Party Time

BY BEN VADNAL

simulate the experience. Instead of denying themselves food, they should be actively trying to procure it. However, they would have to set several limitations on themselves. First, they must empty their wallets. They would not be allowed to purchase food with any of their own money. They would be allowed to ask strangers for money, but they could not tell the stranger that this is a simulation. They are just a student looking for money to buy food. Before you could receive any money, it would have to go through a person who acts as a mediator. This mediator would first be required to remove about half the donation. Then the mediator would have to divide the money by the total number of participants in the simulation. The money would then be handed over to an administer who would decide what food could be purchased and where the participants would have to go to receive it. Also, this administer is not required to purchase the food at all.

In fact, if he wants to, he is allowed to pocket the money.

By now you probably realize what I am getting at. The plight of the world’s hungry is not simply a problem of lack of food. Poverty, inefficiency, corruption, and a system that renders them utterly dependent and helpless is the real problem.

When we talk about the problem of world hunger, we tend to focus on hunger specifically. When we talk about poverty, we talk about poverty specifically. The same applies for corruption, tyrannical governments, infrastructure, etc. We compartmentalize the problems and, in doing so, lose sight of how to effectively address them. These problems exist in a malignant symbiosis. Poverty prevents people from buying food. The

MARYE MORAN

people’s weakness empowers authoritarian governments. Since the autocrats are the only stable institution, they are in an opportune position to profit from foreign aid. Understanding that the people’s weakness is making them rich and powerful, they prevent the proliferation of economic and agricultural infrastructure. The lack of this infrastructure perpetuates poverty. Add the ravages of war and natural disasters, and the problems of the world’s poor become extremely complicated.

I admit, the above simulation is an oversimplification. But it does show that approaching the problems of the hungry or the poor must be approached macroscopically. Systemic afflictions call for systemic remedies.

This is not to say that short-term efforts like donating to the Red Cross or international aid are worthless. On the contrary, they are absolutely necessary to help those who are suffering. But without a long-term strategy to deconstruct this system of dependency, short-term efforts will never be able to effect any meaningful change. Efforts like micro-finance, by which banks lending money directly to low-income people, have shown to be extremely effective because they empower the individuals economically. Educating the people and helping them build an agricultural infrastructure is necessary for third world countries to overcome these crippling problems. Most importantly, reforms like these must take place in the context of a much larger plan that also addresses the other problems afflicting the third world.

Surfergirl9: hey! how’s school been??

Mame12: ahh it’s been so much fun!

You? Just from the beginning of our AIM conversation, you’d guess that my friend is nine years old and surfs, and that I’m a 12 year old named Mame.

Screennames can be deceiving. When I was 12 and made my account, I went by the nickname “Mame,” and when my friend was nine and made hers, she thought surfing sounded cool. No, she’s never even touched a surfboard.

But still, after years of accumulating our buddy lists, neither of us would bother to change our screennames.

Once you make an online account, whether it is with AOL, Facebook, or any other site, you are making your identity permanent.

Now that there is no longer an age limit for getting a Facebook, a profile that you make as a preteen, or even younger, will stay with you through college, and even beyond. The average age of a Facebook user is 44, and if that trend continues, the online persona that we are forming now will be with us for 20-plus years. Sure, you could always delete your old pictures and wall posts, but is anyone really going to go through every one of the 180 pictures from ninth grade and untag them all? No, all those “freshmen year!!! =)” albums are here to stay.

Sure, we forget about them, and that awkward phase falls mostly behind us. But when someone presses the back button one too many times while creeping on your profile pictures, they’ll see photo number 37, the selfie taken in front of the bathroom mirror in ninth grade, with the peace sign and kissy face. It’s still out there.

It’s certainly fun to reminisce over these throwback photos (and laugh at the blackmail potential out there), but there’s also something sad in the fact that a fresh start is now virtually nonexistent. Coming in as freshmen, we all friended our roommates before September, and inevitably judged them. While college is supposed to be the ultimate new beginning, all of your new friends can check out your profile and see what you were like before BC. Facebook defines our identities, making us spell out in black and white (or blue and white) what our interests, musical tastes, and top friends are. Even the most basic Facebook page will show the number of friends that a person has. Optional features show superlatives that others gave us, whether that is “nerdiest” or “most dateable.” So those brainiacs hoping to break free of that reputation are going to have a pretty tough time.

Online profiles make us judge our “friends,” and although these profiles are sometimes genuine, often the conclusions we draw from them are not the whole truth.

I’m definitely not saying that I wish we didn’t have these social networking outlets. I’m glad I have that AIM account, and Facebook is great for talking to (and stalking) our friends (and that really hot guy who sits in front of you in lecture, whose name you found out from the Agora classmate roster photo pages … yeah, you know you’ve done it). However, it would be nice to have a completely new beginning every once in a while. I guess, for better or worse, the past is here to stay.

So no matter how much I’ve changed since I was 12 and made my screenname, that former self will stay with me. As long as I keep instant messaging, I will always be Mame.

John Blakeslee is a staff columnist for The Heights. He welcomes comments at opinions@bcheights.com.

Marye Moran is a staff columnist for The Heights. She welcomes comments at opinions@bcheights.com.

Big problems, small world

Thumbs Down Homecoming – Now, as the name implies, this annual dance should usually coincide with the football team returning to play at home after being on the road for several weeks, and should not fall on the only date we were able to book the venue. We know, we know, we’re a picky bunch, but we know you’ll get it right eventually, UGBC!

be suspended for reckless driving, perhaps one’s Internet access should be suspended for severely abusing the Web. Reckless driving is an offense because it endangers the safety of others. Similarly, Internet behavior that greatly impinges upon the mental well-being of others should be considered equally offensive. For the purpose of these arguments, there is an important distinction between criticism or disagreement, and downright degrading humiliation and invasion of privacy. It is arguable that the Internet is used for educational purposes and is therefore a right, rather than a privilege. But what should we do when these rights impinge in a profoundly negative way upon the lives of others?

The anonymity of the Internet makes for an environment with little or no accountability. A world devoid of accountability is not a place in which I want to live. I recognize that the topic of censorship is a slippery slope, and I do not mean to encourage limitations on free speech. However, Internet commentary and actions intended solely for the purpose of inflicting pain and humiliation upon others are unacceptable and must stop. The legal charges, in addition to the horrible outcome of their actions, that now face Dharun Ravi and Molly Wei, the students accused of taping Clementi, will serve as a lesson for the consequences of online behavior. For now, one’s left to wonder how cyber ethics, or the rampant lack thereof, will come to define our RACHEL GREGORIO / HEIGHTS ILLUSTRATION generation. How many more tragedies like the death of Tyler hol education, they must also instate Clementi will occur? It is time that we, positive mental health education as a society, say that enough is enough. and increase awareness of programs aimed at suicide prevention.

Prevention of suicide not only begins by promoting discussion, but Dineen Boyle is a staff columnist for The also with increased cyber accountHeights. She welcomes comments at ability. Just as one’s license may opinions@bcheights.com. tion for Suicide Prevention, suicide is the second leading cause of death among college students. An average of 3,971 people between the ages of 15-24 commit suicide, and it is estimated that 500,000 suicide attempts (about one per minute) occur yearly within the U.S. With such startling statistics, it is surprising that there is such little dialogue on the topic.

Our hesitancy is understandable, as suicide is an incredibly dark subject.

Yet, through silence, we are doing its victims a disservice. It is possible to learn from suicide in a way that is both constructive and respectful of victims’ friends and family. Just as schools have instated drug and alco-

Online footprints

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The Heights

Thursday, October 7, 2010

The Heights

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Hockey Preview the heights

thursday, October 7, 2010

Think Fast after speeding through the frozen four, BC is on the move to repeat Alex Trautwig / Heights Editor Michael Saldarriaga / Heights Photo Illustration

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cross to lead defense after battling injuries

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Muse chooses a quiet approach in between pipes

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The line reunites for a chance to get even better

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Kevin and women’s jimmy hockey hayes join welcomes BC’s band of back its pair of brothers silver medalists

B2 HOCKEYPREVIEW

Thursday, OCTOBER 7, 2010

The Heights

“Instead of them putting a target on our back, we’re going to look at them and say, ‘Hey, we’re going after you.’ It doesn’t matter who it is.”

The Consummate Teammate

By Paul Sulzer

attributes have been just what you expect from a leader. He’s a terrific role model for other players, particularly in the rehabbing of his knee.

“His leadership has been evident since he came ommy Cross wrote a letter to Jerry York when he was 12 years old. Cross had to BC. His play has just not been reflective of how watched a NESN special called “A Season good he can be. This year is going to be a really good Inside BC Hockey” about the 2001 Boston year for him.”

Just how good is he? Good enough for the Boston College national champion team. He wanted to be a part of the program. He asked the head coach if he Bruins to move up three spots in the 2007 NHL draft to select him with the No. 35 pick, despite concerns could be an Eagle.

“I watched the show,” Cross said, “every minute over his knee.

Cross certainly has the physique to play at the of it. I fell in love with the program. That’s when I knew I wanted to come here. I was lucky enough to next level. At 6-foot-3, 215 pounds, he is built like get the opportunity to do so. Once they called, it a linebacker. On the fastest team in the country, he provides much-needed muscle. was really an easy choice.”

Cross has spent the past four summers training Fast-forward nine years. Cross, a junior defenseman, is the assistant captain of the defending with the Bruins in their developmental camp, playnational champion Eagles. BC is coming off its ing with current NHL stars David Krejci, Tuukka third title in a decade and has a massive bulls-eye Rask, Phil Kessel, and Milan Lucic. Although he on its back heading into Saturday’s season-opener was limited by injuries in the first three of those at Northeastern. Last time the Eagles won a cham- summers, he still got to meet with the coaches and pionship, in 2008, they struggled through a disap- experience a professional working environment.

This past summer, he was healthy and parpointing 18-14-5 season. Cross was a freshman on that team. It’s his job to make sure that doesn’t ticipated fully. He was one of the oldest players at the camp, which helped him refine his leadership happen again.

“We know what it’s like to win like we did last style. Instead of actively advising his teammates, year, and we know what it’s like to have an unac- he chose to be more of a resource, answering their ceptable year like we did our freshman year,” he said. questions and making them feel comfortable on the “We’re used to playing with a target on our back. team. The camp prepared him for his increased role We know people are gunning for us, and that’s fine. at BC, where he will be trusted to mentor a young defense.

We wouldn’t want it any “I’m a strong believer that other way.

“They all look up to him. They it’s easy to lead when things “As a result, we’re recognize the trials he’s had to are going well,” Cross said. going to target other “When you’re winning, it’s people. Instead of them overcome just to get easy to rah-rah, do all that putting a target on our to where he is now.” stuff. At the same time, true back, we’re going to look leaders show their true colors at them and say, ‘Hey, when things aren’t going as we’re going after you.’ It -Jerry York well. Over the course of the doesn’t matter who it is.

Head Coach season, it’s so hard to have We know that every team in our league is tough. Going on the road is tough. everything go your way. There’s going to be some Winning at home is tough. We have to show up every tough stretches. There’s going to be some adversity, some injuries. That’s when the leaders emerge.” night and compete hard.”

Asst. Sports Editor

T

Aggravating Injuries Showing up every night has been tough enough for Cross, who has undergone three operations on his right knee since the summer before his senior year of high school. The three-inch scar that runs down the right side of the knee is a remnant of an errant slide into third base in an American Legion baseball game. The other two operations, which left nearly-invisible needle-wide dots on his kneecap, were for hockey-related injuries while at BC. After aggravating his initial injury from high school, Cross missed the final 12 games of his freshman year. Midway through his sophomore year, he hurt his knee again in a collision with a Maine player.

The injury, which was unrelated to the chronic problems he’s had since the high school baseball game, was supposed to keep Cross out six weeks.

He came back in three.

Finally, nine months later, Cross is 100 percent healthy. His body feels “good” and “strong,” he said.

“Physically, he’s been unable to be a really dominant player for us,” York said. “But all his other

Emerging Leader Talking to Cross, it’s hard not to come away impressed. There’s a reason others always turn to him to lead. He’s a man’s man. His handshake is firm, and he looks you in the eyes when he speaks. Leaning back in his chair, he projects an air of confidence.

That’s why he’s captained virtually every team he’s been on, from youth national teams to BC. He even served as class president as a senior at Westminster, the boarding school he attended in his hometown of Simsbury, Conn.

“In our situation here, I think the team sees me as a guy who just cares about his teammates so much and cares about the program,” Cross said.

“I’ve completely bought into what Coach York is all about and what he preaches here. It doesn’t take a letter on my jersey for me to be a leader.

“My teammates know I’d do anything for them.

They know at the end of the day that I’m not the only one who feels that way. That’s what makes us such a good group.”

“They all look up to him,” York said. “They rec-

alex trautwig / heights editor

alex trautwig / heights editor

ognize the trials he’s had to overcome just to get to where he is now.”

Cross gets his instincts on the ice from his father, who played at Dartmouth, and his uncles, who played at Holy Cross and Providence. When his father, Tom, built a rink in the backyard, Cross began skating as a 3-year-old and fell for the sport his family loves.

“My parents are from upstate New York,” he said.

“My dad and my uncles all played growing up. It’s kind of in our blood.”

Cross followed BC as a kid before he saw that NESN series about the 2001 title team. He actually attended the championship game that season in Albany. Once his good friend and future teammate Ben Smith became an Eagle, Cross frequently attended games with his uncle, who is a season ticket holder.

As Cross started playing high school hockey, he received little interest from BC or any other top program. Part of the problem was that he spent his summers playing baseball instead of playing for special, select hockey teams in tournaments.

Teams started contacting him in his sophomore year of high school, which is later than it sounds for hockey recruits. Initial interest came from small schools. Cross worried that marquee programs wouldn’t want him. Eventually, though, they came calling. Once BC got involved, he said, his decision was easy.

After coming to Chestnut Hill and experiencing the high of last year’s championship run and the low of the previous year’s unfulfilled expectations, Cross has the proper perspective to lead the Eagles.

He had three outstanding role models to emulate in Matt Price, Ben Smith, and Matt Lombardi, who were last year’s captains. They set the standard to which all other team leaders will be compared with their work ethic and even-keeled approach. They were vocal, yet they were always approachable, a balance that Cross said he prides himself on achieving. They were also focused on the present and not on the future, which kept the team from getting ahead of itself.

This is an important lesson Cross thinks won’t be lost on a team returning 20 of 25 players.

“Sometimes, once you go through a playoff run like they did in ’08 and we did last year, it’s such an experience, so much fun, so many memories, that you have that image of April, of going to the

regionals, of going to the Frozen Four so fresh in your mind,” he said. “You want to get back there so bad that that’s what you think about [now].

“But you can’t. That’s what we’ve learned.

Right now, we need to be thinking of Northeastern and that’s it. Maybe you can think about October, but keep it week by week, because if you just think about March and April, then you don’t get to March and April.”

Making Memories The shared experience of winning a title in April bound Cross even closer to his tight-knit classmates.

The eight juniors – Cross, Jimmy Hayes, Barry Almeida, Paul Carey, Edwin Shea, Chris Venti, and Cam and Tommy Atkinson – have lived together since freshman year. Hayes and Cross are especially close friends, dating back to their time on youth national teams. They’ve been direct roommates since they arrived on campus.

“We’re just a super close class,” he said. “We all live together. We do everything together. That’s made part of my BC experience so special, just having a close group of friends like that. We get along so well, and we’re so close, that it’s like having brothers.”

When they aren’t on the ice, the eight juniors are probably supporting other BC sports teams (especially soccer and football) or at Bruins games.

They have intense Call of Duty and NHL ’11 tournaments, too. Cross doesn’t like playing video games as much as the others do, but he does enjoy the camaraderie he feels when hanging out with them in the common room of their suite in 90 St. Thomas More Road.

Cross has come a long way since he wrote that letter to York as a child, asking the veteran coach to take him on when he was old enough. He has become an Eagle in every sense of the word. Like the majestic bird, Cross carries himself with dignity at all times. His words take on greater meaning because he imbues them with thoughtfulness and conviction.

He understands that complacency can undo all the work he’s done since setting foot on campus. He won’t make that mistake.

“We realize people have short memories,” he said. “You’ve only won for so long. Before you know it, there’s going to be a new winner. We want that to be us.” n

a look at the hockey east Northeastern (16-16-2, 11-14-2 Hockey East) BC opens the season in Matthews Arena against Northeastern. The Huskies finished in a disappointing ninth place last season, and Greg Cronin’s crew is looking to get back to the conference tournament.

Young goaltender Chris Rawlings had a phenomenal freshman year, but Northeastern had trouble finishing off opponents. Wade MacLeod and Tyler McNeely will be charged with doing that in 2010.

Merrimack (16-19-2, 12-13-2 Hockey East)

New Hampshire (18-14-7, 15-6-6 Hockey East) After garnering a No. 10 ranking during preseason rankings, the Wildcats tied 3-3 during their opening exhibition game against St. Francis Xavier. It’s just preseason, but that may be a bad omen for the start of the year. After losing their top scorer, Bobby Butler, Mike Sislo will try to replace him at captain, while goalie Matt DiGirolamo will be stepping up to tend the majority of games. UNH won the regular-season conference title, but were upset by Vermont in the tournament.

Vermont (17-15-7, 9-11-7 Hockey East)

Boston University (18-17-3, 13-12-2 Hockey East) The Terriers are entering this season ranked No. 14 nationally after a mediocre performance last season.

Longtime head coach Jack Parker hand selected captains Chris Connolly and Joe Pereira as opposed to the usual team vote. Goalies Kieran Millan and Grant Rollheiser will likely be vying for starting positions during the first few games of the year.

The first Battle of Comm. Ave will take place on Jan. 21 at Agganis Arena, followed by the annual Beanpot two weeks later.

Providence (10-20-4, 5-18-4 Hockey East)

After the Eagles dismantled Merrimack in every meeting last year, they may have to worry more about Merrimack this season. The Warriors squeezed into the Hockey East playoffs with a losing record, but gave BU a three-game fight before bowing out. A team on the rise, Merrimack didn’t lose anyone of note, and hopes to return the dividends of playing an underclassman-laden team in 2009 this year. They aren’t perennial cellar dwellers anymore.

The Catamounts didn’t place in the national ranking due, in most part, to the graduation of their three top scorers, Brayden Irwin, Colin Vock, and Brian Roloff. To be fair, Vermont is next in line to the Top 25, recognizing some respect for this upstart unit.

After losing, 3-2, in an exhibition game against New Brunswick, this year is shaping up to be another struggle. Kevan Miller captains and Rob Madore will be returning to goal.

The Friars never found their rhythm last year, finishing last in the conference. Goaltenders Alex Beaudry and Justin Gates, both of whom finished last year with a sub-3.00 goals-against average, lead Providence between the pipes. The offense, however, remains Providence’s problem. Kyle MacKinnon and Matt Bergland return to attempt to improve the scoring, which is an absolute must if the Friars hope to climb the Hockey East ladder.

UMass Lowell (19-16-4, 12-11-4 Hockey East) The River Hawks have a profound sense of loss entering the 2010 season. Six of their eight point leaders have graduated, leaving them desperate for a playmaker. To make matters worse, both goaltenders, including stud Carter Hutton, are also gone.

Scott Campbell brings back 34 points and adds a captain title to this young squad, which has been known to give BC trouble with its scrappy play and trapping defense.

Maine (19-17-3, 13-12-2 Hockey East) Placing seventh in the preseason poll, the Black Bears are rebuilding to reclaim the East this year. Maine gave BC a scare in the Hockey East championship, losing a backand-forth battle in overtime, 7-6. Although the loss of starting goalie Scott Darling may be an initial stumbling block, his replacement will only need to focus on consistency to better his predecessor. The return of junior Gustav Nyquist will keep Maine strong offensively while the defense finds its feet.

Massachusetts (18-18-0, 13-14-0 Hockey East) The NHL picked apart UMass’ three dynamic scorers, meaning the Hockey East won’t have to deal with James Marcou, Casey Wellman, or Justin Braun. Who steps up to fill their place will determine just how far this offensive-minded team can go. UMass was the only team unable to win a game during the Hockey East tournament, falling twice at the hands of BC. Paul Dainton sits between the pipes with a new ‘C’ on his chest, but he had a shaky campaign last year.

Thursday, OCTOBER 7, 2010

The Heights

HOCKEYPREVIEW B3

Quietly Rising Up

The humble John Muse refuses to take his starting job for granted

By Greg Joyce Heights Staff

S

ometimes all it takes is one chance. One opportunity is all a star needs to shine. For John Muse, who believes that everything happens for a reason, his chance to be a starting goalie came from his new coach when he was a sophomore in high school. After his first few games between the pipes, Muse had taken off, and there was no looking back.

In his freshman year at Falmouth High School, Muse didn’t even get the chance to try out for the varsity team, and had to settle for playing JV hockey.

“I don’t think it hurt my confidence, it was just kind of disappointing,” Muse said. “I think everything happens for a reason, and that definitely happened for a reason, to give me the opportunity to leave.”

After his freshman year at Falmouth, Muse got the chance to transfer to Noble and Greenough High School, a boarding school in Dedham, Mass. Muse called it “the best move” he’s ever made, and Noble and Greenough head coach Brian Day saw enough in Muse to start him as a sophomore over the incumbent senior goalie. Muse took this opportunity from Day and started all but four games his sophomore year.

“He earned the job,” Day said. “He asserted himself as the kid who was gonna give us the best chance to win.”

Muse led his team to conference titles during his first two years, and was an All-Independent School League selection all three years.

“He came in quietly, went about his business, did a good job in the classroom, did a good job in the community, and did a good job on the hockey and the baseball teams,” Day said. “He began to open up a lot more and he began to assert himself more as a leader.”

Going into his senior year at Noble and Greenough, the East Falmouth native was the only one among his classmates who had not signed somewhere.

Muse was even beginning to look at colleges to play baseball. It was at the start of his senior year, however, that Muse began to receive interest from schools for hockey, including Boston College, Harvard, and UMass.

“We’d always watched him a little bit,” said BC head coach Jerry York. “He was always on our radar.”

Right before a Christmas tournament at Noble and Greenough, Muse committed to BC, which was lucky timing for York, as Muse’s skills were on full display at the tournament.

“I remember going into the Christmas tournament at Flood-Marr, he was unbelievable in it,” Day said. “I was talking to Jerry after one of the games, he was so excited that he’d had the commitment, that the commitment was made prior to [the tournament], because everybody would have been all over John at that point in time.”

“Two national championships later, we made the right choice,” York said.

But even after Muse committed to BC, it wasn’t certain that he’d be on campus the next fall. The starting goalie at the time, Cory Schneider, was a junior, and there was a possibility that he’d leave to go pro, but nothing was definite.

“We didn’t want to bring him in and have him sit and play three or four games and Cory Schneider play 95 percent of the games,” York said. “There was always that chance that Cory might turn pro.”

“I was told from the start when I was getting recruited by BC that if Cory left after his junior year, I’d come in right after my senior year, and if he stayed I’d go play a year of juniors,” Muse said.

Thinking that Schneider was staying, Muse went out to Indiana during the summer after his senior year and completed the training camp tryout that was necessary to play juniors. He was all ready to move to Indiana when he received a call from York saying that Schneider was going pro, and that he’d be coming in to start first semester at BC in a few weeks.

Muse was depended on right away, starting all 44 games of his freshman year in 2008, including the national championship, which he and his teammates won.

“It was pretty surreal,” Muse said.

“I never imagined that I’d come in and start every single game and play in every single game. But when I came in, I wanted to be the starting goalie right away, and I definitely worked as hard as I could to be in that position. Luckily, we had a great team, a great group of guys, and it kind of went from there.”

During his freshman year, Muse also set the school’s single season record for saves with 1,171.

In his sophomore year, Muse again started every game of the season, and

The Tough Get Going

Goaltender John Muse has never lost in the postseason, taking a 15-0 record in the Hockey East tournament and NCAA tournament into his final year between the pipes.

michael saldarriaga / heights graphic

While Muse has not been a sieve during the regular season, he becomes rock solid in net when BC can’t lose. Here are his save percentages during the regular season (left) and postseason (right) for each title-winning year. finished with a record of 18-14-5, allowing 2.72 goals per game.

After the season, Muse was diagnosed with a labrum tear and bone impingement, which forced him to have arthroscopic surgery. Because cartilage was destroyed, the doctors also had to create a stress fracture by poking holes in the top of the bone. It was this last part that put the soft-spoken goalie on crutches for nine weeks instead of just three.

“It was kind of a long process,” Muse said.

Due to the extended length of his recovery, Muse only started 29 games in his junior year while working his way back and battling for playing time with freshman Parker Milner. York said that the hip may have still bothered Muse during the year, possibly accounting for why he had his fewest starts that season.

“His hip operation took a little longer than he thought to get back to 100 percent,” York said. “I thought as the year progressed he felt much more that his hip was back to where it used to be. I think, as we got deeper into the season, with the wear and tear on it, he felt, ‘Hey this is pretty good now.’ That helped him down

the stretch. The hip bothered him during the year. The rehab was a little longer than he thought it was gonna be.”

The extra weeks away from the ice tormented Muse.

“Obviously, you can ask any goalie, they want to be in there,” Muse said.

“But when the other goalie’s playing well, obviously they’re gonna stick with them. Luckily I got a chance to play, and

“Two national championships later, we made the right choice.”

-Jerry York Head Coach I ended up playing pretty well and got to keep playing throughout the playoffs.”

Muse returned to his clutch style of play toward the end of the season, reminiscent of his freshman year. He went 7-0 with a 2.40 goals-against average during the postseason, including a stellar 0.50 mark in the Frozen Four. In his last game

of the season, the national championship game, Muse recorded 20 saves in a shutout of No. 3 Wisconsin.

Looking back on his outstanding postseason, Muse remained humble as always.

“I think I did everything the same as I had been all year,” Muse said. “It wasn’t only me. My defensemen and forwards were unbelievable in that stretch as well.”

His words sounded nearly identical to his comments right after the championship win last season, when Muse was just as modest, a defining characteristic of the goaltender.

“It’s really not only me,” Muse said in the championship game post-game press conference. “It’s everyone in the locker room. You can see how everybody’s blocking shots. When I let up a rebound, my defense is right there to clear it out of the way. We get tremendous back pressure all game long from our forwards.

And you know when they get the puck in the zone, our defense and forwards break the puck out the best in the country.

“I can’t take any of the credit, really, when I get 20 shots a game.”

If Muse refuses to take the credit, at least his teammates were there to give him the praise he deserved.

“Johnny is way too modest,” said 2009-10 captain Matt Price following the championship. “I’ve said it over and over again, the guy’s a performer in big games. He’s such a competitor. When the lights are brightest, he shows up. You’ve seen how many goals against him in the Frozen Four? One. That’s not bad. He’s that kind of guy. And we owe a ton to him. Your goalie’s got to be your rock.

And Johnny’s been that for us.”

No matter what the situation is, Muse has always remained humble during his time at BC, always making sure to give the credit to his defense whenever he has a good game.

“I think it’s better when the whole team has the spotlight, just because not one single person does everything,” Muse said. “We all have to pull our own weight in order to do our best as a team. I don’t think it’s fair to give one person the spotlight when you have 26 guys working all season long to fulfill our goals.”

It is in this quiet way that Muse leads his team on and off the ice. Muse is not a captain, as goaltenders are rarely captains at the college level, but that hasn’t stopped him from being a leader.

“I think obviously the younger kids look up to you,” Muse said. “I think it’s important for us to stay focused on what we need to do each and every single day. If they see us going to class, they’re gonna know that they have to go to class. There are more priorities out there than just hockey. I think going to class and getting your work done and getting good grades and stuff like that is one of the top priorities here, as well as being responsible and a role model on the campus.”

Muse’s reticence hasn’t detracted from his influence on others, which York has noticed.

“John’s always been a quiet leader for us, he kind of leads by example,” York said. “I think he’s doing the same thing this year. He’s competing maybe even to a better degree on the ice also, and I value that, his competitiveness.”

That preparedness, however, didn’t suddenly start in Chestnut Hill.

“He prepared as well as any kid I’ve ever seen at the high school level,” Day said, looking back on Muse’s time at Nobles. “He was always at the rink early, he was always working on his hand-eye coordination. He was prepared, whether it was a game against a big opponent, whether it was a game against a lesser opponent, whether it was a practice. I think that kind of leadership was what he brought most to our team, seeing a kid who was an elite athlete show up and be prepared to play as well as he possibly could.”

Muse has drawn praises from other coaches as well, including Northeastern’s Greg Cronin, who called him “one of the most underrated and most decorated goaltenders in college hockey.”

“As a goalie, he’s the kind of kid who asserts himself not necessarily through his words, but through his play,” Day said. “I’m just very proud of him. I’m very happy for him. Johnny’s a kid who plays his best. He always rises to the occasion,

“I think it’s better when the whole team has the spotlight, just because not one single person does everything. We all have to pull our own weight in order to do our best as a team.”

-John Muse Goaltender

Kevin Hou / heights editor

no matter the game. I’m not surprised that he’s been able to be in a position to be a backbone on an unbelievable team at an unbelievable program.”

But no matter how much praise he gets or many national titles he wins, Muse has not forgotten about the people who helped him get to where he is today.

“I can’t ask for anything more from my family and friends back home,” Muse said. “Everybody is extremely supportive, and I think that’s one of the main reasons that I do so well, because not only my friends, but my family as well. I don’t think I’d be in this situation, in this spot, if my family wasn’t as supportive as they are.”

It seems that no matter what context he is in, Muse only knows how to speak humbly. After being underrated and overlooked multiple times throughout his hockey career, maybe this is how he’s always been.

But after being between the pipes during two national championship seasons, it may be time to finally take some credit. n

B4 HOCKEYPREVIEW

THE HEIGHTS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010

Head coach Jerry York felt he needed a change last January. What he devised was one of the most potent scoring lines in Boston College history.

C

am Atkinson is the self-proclaimed MVP of Call of Duty. Or at least he’d lead you to believe that.

“Gibby, he’s still kind of a rookie in the game,” Atkinson said with a smile. “He’s been practicing a lot. He’s definitely improved, so I’d give him most improved player, but I’m still MVP.” “Oh, my God,” Gibbons interrupted, rolling his eyes and smirking. “I’ll take that, but Joe is by far the worst. He is the worst I’ve ever seen. It’s like suicide missions. I can’t even watch him play sometimes. It’s embarrassing.”

Whitney, not in the interview, defended his honor the next day.

It’s all about chemistry. It’s what takes three different individuals and makes them the closest of friends. Chemistry is how Atkinson can say he is the MVP of Call of Duty, how Gibbons can call Whitney the worst, and how Whitney knew he would have to dispel that notion.

And it’s what takes three talented forwards and makes them an unstoppable line.

Atkinson, Gibbons, and Whitney make up the men’s hockey team’s most prolific scoring line, combining for 148 points during last year’s championshipwinning season. Atkinson led the way with 30 goals, Gibbons totaled a team-best 34 assists, and Whitney produced a balanced 17 goals and 28 assists during the 2009-2010 season. And while their individual talent cer-

tainly contributed to Boston College’s second-half offensive explosion, it was the trio’s willingness – and enjoyment – to spend time together on and off the ice that created the Eagles’ most powerful line.

“The chemistry between you and your linemates is everything,” Gibbons said. “You could

IN 18 GAMES BEFORE NEW LINE

have three of the most skilled forwards, but if you’re not passing the puck and you don’t understand what the other person is going to do, then it’s not going to work out. One person can’t beat five guys by himself.

You need your linemates out there helping you.”

“That’s on and off the ice,” Atkinson added. “You need to be good buddies, in the weight room, in the classroom, and that brings it all back to the ice. If you have good chemistry, you’re going to succeed and you’ll have more fun.”

The three of them weren’t put on the same line until midJanuary, but scored 40 goals in three months together.

Just imagine how much fun they’ll have with a full season.

Head coach Jerry York was fed up. His team dropped two decisions in the Wells Fargo Denver Cup, then followed it up with a loss to Boston University at Frozen Fenway. A change needed to be made.

The Atkinson-Gibbons-Whitney line was born.

“He wanted a little of a change,” Gibbons said. We got back from the Denver Cup and we lost both games, and we had lost the Frozen Fenway game, and we didn’t play that well, so he wanted a change to spark it up.”

The spark started against Providence. Whitney recorded a goal and two assists, and Atkinson and Gibbons each added a goal and an assist of their own in the 4-1 win. The new line worked to perfection – and it was only the beginning. In the 18 games before the three were united on one line, Atkinson scored

10 goals, Gibbons dished out 12 assists, and Whitney had a combined 12 points. In the 24 games after the creation of the new line, Atkinson doubled his goals scored to 20, Gibbons logged 22 more assists, and Whitney tallied 33 total points, nearly tripling his starting total.

More importantly, the team was benefitting in a big way. Before the line change, the Eagles were struggling at 10-6-2. With the Atkinson-Gibbons-Whitney line leading the offense, BC was 19-4-1, including its 8-0 domination down the stretch through the Hockey East and NCAA tournaments.

The three forwards simply clicked. Though they all admitted that this team is so deep they could play with anyone and the team would succeed, York recognized their joint similarities and attributed that to their success.

“It’s three players who can really play the game,” York said.

“Their hockey IQ is off the charts, all three of them. Sometimes you look for a playmaker, a goal-scorer, and a checker on a line, but we put three players who do a lot of things, but most important is they are very unselfish. It’s three players who enjoy playing each other, understand the value of passing the puck, and their chemistry is excellent.”

That’s the value of chemistry on the ice. Each of them know where the other will be, and each of them can get the puck in the right place for a goal. Luckily, each of them isn’t as eager to light the lamp like Atkinson is.

“I’d rather him score than me score,” Gibbons said. “He’s a goal-scorer, he can finish, and it’s my job to get him and Joe the puck, and I love that role.”

Atkinson was clear that he loves getting the feed from his linemates.

“I love to score goals,” Atkinson said. “I love seeing that red light come on.”

But he understands he wouldn’t have the chance to beat the goalie if it weren’t for Whitney and Gibbons.

“The reason why I think I did so well last year was getting put with Brian and Joe,” Atkinson said. “They made me a better player than I was, and like Brian said, he likes to pass, and he’s pretty good at it. I just need to get open for a split second, and he puts a tape-to-tape pass, whether it’s back door or puts it in my wheel house.”

Naturally, with Whitney out of the room, Atkinson had to take another shot at his captain. “Joe doesn’t really know how to put it in my wheel house, but

THE HEIGHTS

“We like to have fun and goof around. We know when to get serious, when it’s time to crack down, though,” Atkinson said.

That ability to discern when it’s time for a prank and when it’s time to get serious allows a seven-month season to fly by.

It makes going to the rink for another grueling practice less difficult. Every team, however, doesn’t own that inherent ability. It starts with the leaders of the team, and the leaders of the offense live on one line.

BY ZACH WIELGUS | SPORTS EDITOR

“I gave [Gibbons] a hard time the other day, because I knew they were going to bash me,” Whitney said with a smile. “I said they better be careful. I can honestly say that Cam is definitely the worst, and me and Gibby are probably similar.

I think I have a slight advantage on him.

“That was just Cam talking. To himself.”

HOCKEYPREVIEW B5

Triple Threat THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010

Brian is pretty good at it,” Atkinson said with a laugh, drawing another chuckle from Gibbons.

There are only two senior forwards on the Eagles, both are captains, and both play on the same line. Once gritty freshman contributors and quiet observers, Whitney and Gibbons have emerged as undisputed leaders – a role they are pleased to have grown into.

“As one of the leaders of the team, there are things I need to improve on that I got away with last year that I can’t this year if we are going to have success,” Gibbons said. “The freshmen are

That’s something you will notice about the players on this team: they like to have fun. There’s a new personality to this batch of Eagles, as Whitney, Gibbons, and defenseman Tommy Cross replace last year’s graduated captains, that focuses on not only working hard but also having fun while doing it.

“Everybody works their butt off in the weight room and in practice, but when it’s time to goof around, we sure take advantage of it,” Whitney said.

“You can’t do anything without someone giving you a hard time about it,” Gibbons said.

“It’s a good thing.

It keeps us loose and wanting to come to the rink every day. They have computers in the locker room, and you can’t leave your Facebook up – it’s bad news sometimes. It’s fun, it’s nothing too serious.”

That goes for the entire team, but especially the sophomore class, according to Gibbons and Whitney.

“The sophomore class is the guys you have to look out for,” Gibbons warned. “Those guys are trouble.”

“Samuelsson and ‘Weyzy’ [Patrick Wey] are the worst,” Whitney said with a laugh. “They are the ultimate pranksters.”

The men’s hockey team knows how to keep it light, transforming a tense practice into a funny moment at the turn of a joke. It brings them closer together, as Atkinson put it. But that doesn’t mean when it’s time to get serious that everyone is too busy joking around.

looking up to us, so we need to set good examples in practice, in games, off the ice. We need to make sure we set a good example for them to follow.”

“All four lines are capable of producing and putting up points, [so] I’m just trying to make sure everyone is working hard and doing the right thing, because I know how talented the guys on our team are,” Whitney said.

York prefers to let his players choose their captains, but admits he has seen Whitney and Gibbons grow before his eyes since their freshman year. Adding another veteran in Atkinson to the line, and York believes that their line is one after which his other lines can model.

“I think, no question, they are all veterans who have had terrific success in the past. Their work ethic is outstanding. I can talk about IQs and chemistry and likeability, but they really work hard.”

The trio gets only 45 seconds to show how hard they can work, but they all agree that when their skates touch the ice for a shift, they have one thing on their mind: not score, but leave everything on the ice. Atkinson, Gibbons, and Whitney are quick to admit that they don’t expect to carry the offense – “No matter who you play with, that will be a very good line,” Gibbons said – but relish in the role of being on the ice when BC needs a score.

“Those are the desperation times in the game, and you reach back and find that little extra you didn’t know you had,” Gibbons said.

“For sure. I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Atkinson added.

They all want the puck when it comes down to crunch time, and they’ve all proven they can score when the team needs them.

They want to set an example for the rest of the team to follow, happy they have the chance to lead one of the best hockey teams in the nation. They want to score, and they want their teammates to score.

For Atkinson, Gibbons, and Whitney, all of this starts with chemistry. And that chemistry grows with time off the ice.

“It’s become like we are almost brothers,” Whitney said. “We see each other almost 23 hours out of the day. We are very used to each other, and that goes a long way during the season.”

“We see each other every day at the rink and in the weight room, we all eat dinner together, and a lot of times we go hang out in each other’s rooms,” Gibbons said. “We’re not sick of each other, I love them to death. I wouldn’t want to be hanging out with anyone else.”

If all that results in goals and wins, they don’t need to change a thing. 

ALEX TRAUTWIG / HEIGHTS EDITOR AND MICHAEL SALDARRIAGA / HEIGHTS PHOTO ILLUSTRATION

THREE FRAMES OF MIND

IN 24 GAMES AFTER NEW LINE

“As one of the leaders of the team, there are things I need to improve on that I got away with last year that I can’t this year if we are going to have success.”

Brian Gibbons

“The chemistry between you and your linemates is everything.

You could have three of the most skilled forwards, but if you’re not passing the puck and you don’t understand what the other person is going to do, then it’s not going to work out. One person can’t beat five guys by himself. You need your linemates out there helping you.”

ALEX TRAUTWIG / HEIGHTS EDITOR

“Everybody works their butt off in the weight room and in practice, but when it’s time to goof around, we sure take advantage.”

DAVID GIVLER / HEIGHTS EDITOR

“I love to score goals.

I love to see that red light come on.”

-Brian Gibbons, Assistant Captain

Cam Atkinson ALEX TRAUTWIG / HEIGHTS EDITOR

DAVID GIVLER / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Joe Whitney

B6 HOCKEYPREVIEW

thursday, October 7, 2010

The Heights

A Family Affair Hayes brothers join forces on hockey team

By Maegan O’Rourke Assoc. Sports Editor

T

h e Haye s b ro t h e rs f ro m Dorchester are an unmistakable duo.

At first glance, the hockey brothers could easily be mistaken for one another. Both play forward and tower well over 6 feet, with Jimmy coming in at 6-foot-5 and Kevin close behind at 6-foot-3. From there, though, the differences are pretty clear.

Jimmy, who is outspoken and charismatic, is a powerful forward that scored 13 goals for the Eagles. Kevin, who appears more reserved and soft-spoken, is a dynamic scorer who recorded 55 points for his high school team last season.

“Jimmy is more physical, what I call a power forward, where Kevin is more a playmaker,” said Boston College head coach Jerry York. “One would be a point guard, one would be a rebounder.”

Luckily for BC hockey, the Eagles have both Hayes brothers on their team.

Dorchester. But because of his grandfather, Jimmy and Kevin both started playing hockey in Charlestown. As the brothers got older, they started playing in the Dorchester Youth League, as well as with the St. Mortiz Devils in the Metropolitan Boston Hockey League (MBHL) and the South Shore Kings.

Growing up, Jimmy and Kevin both attended Saint Ann’s School, just 50 yards away from their house in Neponset, before moving on to The Noble and Greenough School in Dedham, Mass., to play hockey in the Independent School League (ISL). While Jimmy left Noble after his sophomore year to attend Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, Mich., and play for the U.S. Development team, Kevin stayed at Noble and last year was named the Prep Player of the Year before joining his brother at BC. Although the brothers, who say they grew up going to the Beanpot Tournament every year, have traveled far and wide for hockey, they say playing for BC in their hometown has been better than they could have imagined.

“Growing up in Boston, you want to play for a Beanpot school,” Kevin said.

“Obviously, BC is the elite school around town, and to get a chance to go here is kind of a dream come true.”

“It’s a Family Affair Out Here” There may only be two Hayes brothers on the BC hockey roster, but there’s usually at least five more Hayes siblings Hometown Roots The Hayes brothers hail from the in the stands cheering on the Eagles.

Headed by dad Kevin Neponset neighborhood and mom Shelagh, the of Dorchester, Mass., “Growing up in entire Hayes family, which born and raised in the Boston, you want includes sisters Genevieve, city of Boston. Jimmy got 23, Eileen, 22, and Justine, his start in hockey after to play for a 19, is involved with the his grandfather, James Beanpot school.” brothers’ careers.

“Crash” McNeil, conWhen asked about how vinced the boys’ father many games his parents to let him play. Kevin, -Kevin Hayes went to, Kevin had a simwho is just two-and-aFreshman Forward ple answer. half years younger, soon “Every single game,” followed Jimmy onto he said. the ice.

“My dad has never missed a game,” “My dad didn’t really want me to play,” Jimmy said. “He was more into Jimmy explained further. “The only time baseball, basketball, and football, and he’s missed a game is last year when we then as I started playing, and [Kevin] were playing on two different teams.

At the time, he just didn’t travel with saw me growing up playing.”

“It was kind of just like he was going us when we went away but he came to to the rink and I was like, ‘Okay, I’ll go every game, and this year he’s already and just skate at the other end,’” Kevin booked all his flights. My mom’s with him, too. I think, as we grew older, our explained.

While Jimmy was born in Charles- sisters got more involved. They go to town, another neighborhood of Bos- local schools around here, so they are ton, the Hayes family soon moved to more involved, and they come to a lot of

games. It’s pretty cool, it’s like a family affair out here.”

Jimmy and Kevin both say they loved growing up in a large family with the kids being so close in age. But as in any family, there’s always sibling rivalry between the Hayes children.

“He’s the most competitive kid in the world,” Kevin teased about his older brother.

“I’m really competitive about everything that I do,” Jimmy admitted.

“But I think other people see that it’s like boys versus girls pretty much – me, Kev, and my dad versus my three sisters and my mom.”

Kevin agreed.

“If we don’t want to do something, my mom just goes, ‘Ask your dad,’ and if the girls don’t want to do something, my dad goes, ‘Ask your mom.’”

Two Eagles Become Blackhawks The entire Hayes family also got to experience the NHL Entry Draft together in Los Angeles this past summer, when Kevin was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks with the 24th pick overall.

“My whole family, my aunts, my godmother, my dad’s best friend, my best friend, my cousins [were there],” Kevin said.

If the family was excited for Kevin’s success, they would get more good news later in the day, when Chicago announced it was trading its 43rd pick to the Toronto for an unnamed, unsigned prospect. Jimmy, who had been drafted

by Toronto with the 60th overall pick in 2008, had a feeling both Hayes brothers would be heading to Chicago.

“It was funny, because we were all sitting there at the draft when they announced it that Chicago traded their 43rd pick to Toronto for an unnamed, unsigned prospect,” Jimmy said. “So I looked at my dad and I was like, ‘That could be me.’

And he was like, ‘I think it is.’”

Jimmy and his father’s prediction proved true, as Toronto announced the unnamed player was indeed Jimmy.

With Chicago holding both brothers’ rights now, Jimmy and Kevin attended the Blackhawks’ prospect camp in July together, where they played on the same line and were even roommates.

“Chicago was awesome,” Jimmy said.

“It was my third prospect camp and it was his first. Being older, I had more experience, I knew what to expect. It was a lot of fun, but he seemed like he fit in really well right away.”

“It was a lot easier, even at BC, it’s a

alex trautwig / heights editor

bruce bennett / ap photo

Jimmy (top) caught fire during the postseason, and Kevin (bottom) was drafted by Chicago. lot easier to just have him here,” Kevin said. “He’s gone through it. We kind of just didn’t leave each others’ side the whole summer.”

An Unplanned Reunion When it came time to decide what college to play for, Kevin said he settled on BC without too much influence from Jimmy. Now that he’s at BC, though, Kevin appreciates having his older brother on campus with him. “[Jimmy] kind of stayed out of [the decision], I think my parents told him to stay out of it, make it my own decision,” Kevin said. “He told me the goods and the bads of every school. Having him here makes it a lot easier. I love him being here.”

York has also noticed how Jimmy has made the transition to BC easier for Kevin.

“I think no question [Jimmy has helped Kevin],” York said. “Not as much on the ice, but more off the ice. Dorms, academic life, that sort of stuff. That’s the benefit of having a teammate and a brother.”

While Kevin benefits from having Jimmy on the team, both brothers agree that the entire hockey team is close, which creates an extended brotherhood

for all the players.

“Our team is really, really close. It’s probably one of the closest teams I’ve ever been a part of,” Jimmy said. “It’s just everyone’s always helping each other out. Everyone feeds off one another, which is just unbelievable.”

“If I have a question, he’s the first guy I’ll go ask,” Kevin said. “The guys are always together. I mean eight of them live with [Jimmy], eight of the sophomores live one doorway away from each other, all the seniors live together.”

Coming off the national championship this past April, with Jimmy playing a prominent role and Kevin watching every game with the rest of the Hayes family, the brothers are poised to help BC win once again this season. At the same time, though, Jimmy and Kevin acknowledge the importance of how they are viewed off the ice as well.

“I just want people to think of us as good hockey players, but I also want everyone to think of us as good kids and we’re respected in the community,” Jimmy said. “I think that’s more important. I don’t want people to think that we’re just trying to be athletes, I think I want us to be marked as the brothers that were great guys and that played hockey pretty well.” n

No plans for a sophomore slump

By Jake Burg

ome might view difference as a bad thing.

They might say that it easily causes tensions or conflicts. Well, whoever believes that has never met Steven Whitney, Chris Kreider, or Pat Mullane. There cannot be three more different players, on and off the ice, on the Boston College men’s hockey team than these three sophomore forwards.

Let there be no mistake that it hurts the team, because it is their differences that make them such a dynamic group, and it is their differences that allow them to succeed.

Whitney, at 5-foot-7 with dark eyes and dark hair, is a quiet player. He is without a doubt reserved in his demeanor, and he chooses each word deliberately.

It makes for an interesting combination with his roommate of two years, Mullane, who is anything but quiet. With blonde hair and a big smile always running across his face, he is willing to give you his opinion on anything (with a joke tossed in, but only, of course, if the timing is right). And then there is Kreider, the tallest of the bunch at 6-foot-2, who knows what he wants to say and says it without any qualifications. He aims for clarity.

The three forwards also have completely unique styles of play.

“All three of us are entirely different,” Mullane said. “Steve is a small, crafty forward. Chris is a power forward who can skate like the wind and score goals. And I’m the guy that hangs back and makes the plays happen.”

Regardless of how each plays, they all know what success feels like. As freshmen, they were not just along for the ride as the Eagles won the 2010 National Championship. They were, in fact, helping drive the bus.

Kreider finished atop the group in goals, with 15, including three game-winners and three scored in the postseason. He added in eight assists for a total of 23 points on the year.

Mullane and Whitney, on the other hand, shared an almost eerie roommate stat line: Each finished with 28 points, with 21 assists for Whitney and 20 for Mullane. Both agreed that being roommates was, and is still, an invaluable experience.

“When I could get Steve to talk,” Mullane said with a laugh, “we would talk about the games, what we did well, what we did wrong, what we had to improve on. We’d watch video together in our room, and I think that really helped us in the later parts of the season because we knew where each other would be

alex trautwig / heights editor

alex trautwig / heights editor

Heights Staff

S

on the ice. We just kind of have that chemistry.”

“We have similar game routines because we live together,” Whitney said. “We have a pregame nap and meal. So we kind of do the same pregame rituals together. It definitely translates to the ice.”

It is possible that the chemistry will expand at some point during the season to include Kreider, if all three sophomores were placed on the same line.

“It would be a great line,” Kreider said. “We just have entirely different skill sets, but we get the job done.”

“That line has a unique blend of speed and a lot of skill, creativity, and playmaking,” Mullane said.

“Everything you could look for in a line.”

Whether they are on a line together or stay split up, all three recognize the need for them to continue to develop as players and contribute to the Eagles’ success.

“Now they’re coming back and we’re asking them to play a more significant role for our team,” said head coach Jerry York. “Collectively, we feel the three will all show significant improvement this year.”

In order to fulfill more significant roles, each of them has set out goals to make themselves better players, and more effective weapons for the team.

alex trautwig / heights editor

“It would be a great line. We just have entirely different skill sets, but we could get the job done.”

“I passed the puck maybe a little too much. If you have a shot, you have to take it.”

“Someone once said to me, ‘I’ll never be a cheetah, but I can be a really fast turtle.’”

-Chris Kreider

-Steven Whitney

-Pat Mullane

In particular, Mullane acknowledges that one area of his game he needs to improve upon is his skating.

“It’s about being smart and being in the right positions,” he said. “Just working on my stride in practices, that will help. Someone once said to me, ‘I’ll never be a cheetah, but I can be a really fast turtle,’” Mullane joked. “So everyday, it’s just working on those little things to get better.”

York and Mullane also discussed his need to improve his conditioning in order to stay out for longer shifts and help make a greater impact on the ice. So far, Mullane has succeeded brilliantly.

“He’s made great strides in his physical strength, and his conditioning is clearly a notch above where it was last year,” York said.

For Whitney, both he and York agree that he is capable of scoring more than seven goals.

“I’m going to shoot more pucks, cause, yeah, that’s how you score,” he said with a laugh. “I think last year I passed up a lot of shooting opportunities.

I passed the puck maybe a little too much. If you have a shot, you have to take it. I also want to be ready to help the team, and be used in several different ways, whatever the team needs me for.”

That is the kind of selflessness that Kreider takes to heart.

“We’re in the business of trying to win as many games as possible,” Kreider said. “If that means blocking shots or scoring goals, then so be it. I was actually talking to my mom the other day and I was saying how I wanted to get 70 points. And she said, ‘Well, you know, that’s a pretty lofty goal for one player in college hockey.’ And I said, ‘No, I want 70 points, that’s 35 wins.’”

Despite how different they are, all three sophomores ultimately have the same exact goal: win a second national championship. And that focus generates a great team atmosphere and chemistry.

“We definitely hold each other accountable,” Whitney said. “And I think the comfort level on the team allows us to keep pushing each other. There aren’t going to be any hard feelings.”

That drive to win a second straight national championship has not wavered. Whitney’s older brother, Joe, experienced firsthand what it was like to win one year and not even qualify for the NCAA tournament the next season.

“We definitely addressed that as a team,” Whitney said. “Last year is over. We have everything to prove.”

Luckily for the Eagles, they have three completely different and dynamic forwards to help the team make it to St. Paul, Minn., for the Frozen Four.

“We’re just pushing each other forward,” Kreider said.

Though different in so many ways, Whitney couldn’t help but expand on Kreider’s statement.

“I think we picked up where we left off from last season,” Whitney said. “We’re rolling right away.” n

Thursday, October 7, 2010

HOCKEYPREVIEW B7

The Heights

“For all the young players at BC, and from a leadership standpoint, coaches love to have kids like [Schaus and Stack] in the locker room.”

-Mark Johnson, Team USA Head Coach

Back in Familiar Territory

After taking a year off to play on the Olympic team, Kelli Stack and Molly Schaus are happy to be home

By DJ Adams Heights Editor

U

nfamiliarity.

It’s a feeling normally reserved for those without experience. In collegiate terms, we know them as the freshmen. When jobs finally approach, they are deemed the interns. When marriage sweeps them off their feet, it’s the newlyweds. Each uncharted journey becomes a chronological process toward expertise. One begins with doubt, but learns, grows comfortable and finds success, and finally leads others down a similar path. A routine, if you will.

For two esteemed members of the Boston College women’s hockey team, though, that is far from the case.

At BC, forward Kelli Stack and goaltender Molly Schaus are both seniors and team captains, titles synonymous with both experience and leadership. But just nine months ago, the two were taken from their comfort zone and thrust into a new, exciting environment, this time as members of the U.S. national team that participated in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.

Suddenly, it was like they were freshmen on Upper Campus all over again.

“The role was completely different,” Schaus said of her first Olympic team experience. “Here at BC, I’ll be a senior captain, I’ve been through it all the past three or four years. You know what to expect, what to do and what not to do.

Then you take us to the Olympics, and we are the rookies on the team.

“Like they always said, the Olympics are way different. You get there and you don’t know what to expect or what to do. So you kind of lean on the veteran leadership there. It’s kind of role-reversal for me. Here I am the leader, there I am a follower.”

Stack agreed the transition was strange at first, but stressed that having a familiar face on the sidelines made all the difference in getting accustomed to a different system and a new team.

“It was nice knowing that I had somebody from my college team to experience it with,” Stack said of her teammate. “We would both be leaving together, and had each other there for support. I think it made everything a lot easier, and it was nice to share it with someone who I had already been playing with.”

As two of the most important Eagles on the great 2008-09 squad, which reached the NCAA quarterfinals before suffering a 4-3 defeat to the University of Minnesota, Schaus and Stack redshirted last season and took a year of leave from BC in order to pursue the national stage.

For both, it was making a dream come true.

“Pretty much ever since I started playing girl’s hockey, and since the ’98 team won the gold medal, I decided then that this was going to be my ultimate goal with hockey,” Stack said of the Olympic roster spot. “I felt like making the Olympic team and winning a medal would be the best thing I could do in my sport.”

“For me, that was a lifelong dream,” Schaus revealed. “When we had tryouts in August, and then I found out that I

courtesy of USA Hockey

The Eagles are pleased to welcome back Molly Schaus, the school’s all-time wins leader.

made the team, I called the coaches [at BC]. It was really a no-brainer. You can’t turn down that kind of an opportunity.”

Head coach Katie King, a three-time Olympic medalist herself, encouraged the decision, but knew it was one that would negatively affect the team for the 2009-10 season.

“Obviously it’s tough when you take away your top scorer for the last three years and your best goaltender,” King said. “That is definitely something you have to learn to get over, and move through it.”

The Eagles lost quite a resume in Stack, who had won two Hockey East Player of the Year awards, and Schaus, BC’s all-time career leader in wins, and it showed. The team couldn’t move past their absence, and rather treaded its way through a long winter, finishing a lowly 8-17-10 on the year.

“We had those games where we were competitive, but couldn’t quite score that goal to win, or hold [the competition] back,” King said. “You never know, you can say ‘had we had them back’ or ‘what if,’ but yes, I think we definitely missed them last year.”

The two captains might not have missed the New England weather or homework and term papers, but throughout the winter, they longed to be back with their more familiar team, too.

“Definitely seeing my teammates everyday,” Stack lamented when asked what she missed most about BC. “I would just say my friends.”

“Hanging out with my teammates,” Schaus also replied. “Rooming with them, going to class with them, I mean you are with them 24/7. Just to be removed for a year, you miss them. You wonder what’s going on with their lives.”

But everyone knew what was going on in Stack’s and Schaus’ life. The U.S. national team rapidly climbed the Olympic bracket, only to fall to Team Canada on its home turf in the gold medal game. Once again, the two received a heavy dose of unfamiliarity.

In all of their previous national team appearances, Stack and Schaus had won it all. Then, after the immense preparation it took to reach the Olympic stage, they settled for the lesser silver shine.

“At first it was disappointing because we set our expectations to win a gold medal from the start,” Stack said. “Being two-time world champions, we didn’t see

ourselves as the underdog. We saw ourselves as the No. 1 team in the world.

“After the fact, though, it was awesome to come away with a medal. Even though it wasn’t the one we expected, it’s definitely something to be proud of.”

Mark Johnson, the head coach of the national team, thought they have plenty more to be proud of in terms of how much they learned.

“I think when you are with world-class players in women’s hockey, you can look at those individuals, not only to how they are improving as players but how they conduct themselves off the ice, and it can really help young players out,” Johnson said. “It’s a priceless situation for kids to be in, certainly for Kelli and Molly, because they grew and learned so much.”

“Everything is just a little bit quicker,” Schaus said of the learning process.

“They read the plays quicker. It’s the same game of hockey, but I think it is brought up a level. Just practicing every day with 20 of the best players in the world, it forces you to get better. I learned to read the game quicker, and I developed a lot last year.”

After taking in as much as they possibly could the past winter, now the captains are back at BC. And they brought along their knowledge and skills to do the leading themselves.

“Coming back here, you are now used to playing at a faster pace, so I can hopefully make the people around me better by making them a little bit quicker, too,” Stack said.

“I think it was a big experience for both Kelli and I to see last year,” Schaus agreed. “Playing at the world’s biggest stage, you get to see a lot of different leadership aspects come out. Staying cool under pressure, taking one thing at a time, and the importance of sticking together as a team. That goes for every sport, and every team. I can teach that here.”

Still a very young team, both Johnson and King are aware how much it means to BC and its future for these two to return to Kelley Rink. The coaches stressed that occasional unfamiliarity can be a great way to spread the wealth of knowledge.

It creates a desire for teammates to learn from each other, no matter what new experiences they encounter.

“For all the young players at BC, and from a leadership standpoint, coaches

heights file photo

love to have kids like [Schaus and Stack] in the locker room,” Johnson said. “The year that those two have had, they can bring back what they have learned, and what made them successful last year. It will just help the entire organization get better because of what they have gone through the past six or seven months.”

“They have now been on both sides of the spectrum,” King said. “Leadership is such an important thing in the college level. To have a successful team, you need to have great leaders in place. We have Katelyn Kurth coming back as a captain, and we have these two who were gone for a year. They can use each other to make some good decisions for our team.”

The Eagles are ranked No. 9 in the preseason polls, and things are finally starting to look familiar again for the entire BC team. But there is one last place that both Kelli and Molly would like to see again at the end of this season before they consider everything to be back to normal.

“We have a pretty good team on paper, and we are looking forward to just getting on the ice and playing some games,” Schaus said. “But obviously our goal is to get back to the Frozen Four. I was fortunate enough to be there as a freshman, and I would love to go out as a senior in the same way, and hopefully, win it all this time.”

One more moment of unfamiliarity they would love to learn and grow from. n

Motherwell builds a new niche “Ashley works extremely hard, and I was happy with the way she was able to step up and take over a role. She was kind of thrown in.”

-Katie King, Head Coach

By Diana C. Nearhos Heights Senior Staff

A

shley Motherwell led the women’s hockey team in assists last year with 14, five more than anyone else. That combined with her five goals put her in second in points.

Impressive numbers for a freshman to put up.

It should not be surprising, considering that Motherwell has been playing hockey since she was 4. None of her four older siblings played, but the brother closest to her in age did.

“I wanted to do everything my brother did. So, I pretty much forced my parents [to let me play],” Motherwell said.

And so her career began – though, at the time, no one could have known where it would go or that hockey would take her halfway across the country. Motherwell left her hometown of St. Charles, Ill., to attend Lawrence Academy, a prep school in Groten, Mass., for her junior and senior year.

“The hockey was better out here,” Motherwell said of her decision to move out east.

Motherwell is not the only BC hockey player from Lawrence Academy. Current men’s hockey players Joe and Steven Whitney also hail from the same school.

Her play there caught the eyes of some local reporters and hockey gurus, including those at BC. Knowing what it took her to get to the point where she is now motivates Motherwell, who started playing hockey just for fun.

“Growing up playing hockey, playing street hockey, I never [expected] to be here at a D-I school playing D-I hockey,” Motherwell said. “Thinking of how grateful I should be and that I need to keep working hard [motivates me].”

A player with that motivation was just what BC needed last year. Two seniors had left to play in the Olympics, and five others had graduated.

“We needed some players to step up last year,” said head coach Katie King.

“Ashley works extremely hard, and I was happy with the way she was able to step up and take over a role. She was kind of thrown into many different situations, and sometimes without being given the chance to slowly make her way in. She was kind of thrown in.”

Motherwell’s attitude may be the best thing she brings to the ice. She walks into every practice and every game with a smile, looking to do whatever she can to help the team. She gives her all on the ice, but leaves it there after the game, never letting one performance or part of a performance get to her. “[My goal is] just to play every single game as hard as I can and to not regret any game, just leave it all on the ice,” Motherwell said. “I try not to get down on myself. We could be losing by five goals, but you never know, in the third period we could come back.”

Physically, Motherwell contributes a lot as well. Her first goal of the year came in a shootout against Maine early in the season. She was the last player to take her shot, she skated right at the goal, and stuck the puck between the goaltender and the post. She also creates opportu-

nities, as evidenced by her 14 assists.

“She’s a pretty powerful skater, and I think she needs to continue to use that to her advantage,” King said. “She’s going to get to the net, and she’s going to make things happen. But on the other side of that, she can play defense, too. She’s a power forward, but at the same time we can put her back on the blue line and she’ll be okay with it.”

After having a successful season last year, the expectations are there for her to do it again. The expectations are high for the whole team, which has the two Olympians returning, as well as a heralded freshman class. Those who played well last year are looked to for continuity.

“For many players, sophomore year is almost the toughest year,” King said.

“You come off a good freshman year and they have expectations for themselves and the coaches have expectations.

It’s definitely a tough year, and if she can continue to work hard, it should be exciting.”

There is no doubt that Motherwell’s teammates will be there to help her this season. Getting along with her teammates goes beyond team chemistry. She lives with five upperclassmen teammates and spends much of her time with them or others from the team.

“She gets along really well with her teammates,” King said. “She carries that over to the ice. She really loves hockey, she really wants to be successful and wants to be good. It seems like an easy thing, but you have to have that desire

and that love for the game.”

Motherwell’s upbeat attitude and the “Ashley quotes” adopted as team sayings may help the girls maintain a positive outlook, but Motherwell does have a breaking point.

The Eagles played five games against Boston University last season, the first time Motherwell has played in the rivalry though she knew it before. The series started off with a win at BU, but then featured a shutout at home before three more road losses. That experience left a sour taste in her mouth.

“To be beat by BU at your home ice was not fun,” Motherwell said. “When they come back here we’ll be ready.”

Impressive statement from a sophomore. n

alex trautwig / heights editor

Ashley Motherwell was asked to help carry the women’s hockey team offensively after it lost seven seniors to graduation and the Olympics.

alex trautwig / heights editor and rachel gregorio / heights photo illustration

The Heights Thursday, October 7, 2010

MUSIC

FASHION NEXT WEEK

RYE RYE: ONE ON ONE BRENNAN CARLEY INTERVIEWS THE EMERGING HIP-HOP ARTIST PAGE C8 DRINK

THE SCENE TEAMS UP WITH LOCAL RETAILERS FOR A VERY STYLISH WINTER FASHION PREVIEW

ON THE SESSION

ZAK JASON BAR HOPS HIS WAY DOWN BRIGHTON AVENUE PAGE C7

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010

POSTERS UNDER THE KNIFE A LOOK AT THE INTRICATE ART AND ADVERTISING OF MOVIE POSTERS

BY K R I ST E N H O US E | A RTS & R EV I EW E D I TO R , Z A K JAS O N | AS S O C. A RTS & R EV I EW E D I TO R , A N D A L L I S O N T H E R R I E N | ASST. A RTS & R EV I EW E D I TO R WHAT’S WRONG WITH NATALIE PORTMAN’S EYES? THEY’RE BORING INTO MY SOUL. WHAT’S THAT WINGED EYELINER? SHE’S STILL STARING. Like Soviet propaganda art, the official poster for Darren Aronofsky’s The Black Swan has begun to seize the collective conscious.

Most haven’t seen the trailer, some don’t have a clue about what the film entails, but everyone has seen those dimly glowing, demonic, transfixing red eyes. On the subway, embedded in the Op-Ed pages of The New York Times, in restaurant bathrooms – everywhere you turn, the eyes bore into you. And the eyes alone will get you into the theater.

CREATING A MOVIE POSTER IS A DELICATE, INTRICATE, AND PERVERSIVE ART. A DIRECTOR CAN CRAFT THE MOST INNOVATIVE FILM OF THE CENTURY, an actor can present the performance of a lifetime, a screenwriter can scribe the the most relatable story, but if a poster can’t connect with its audience, no one will take note. At least in the past, that’s how it was.

The Scene examines some current trends and some historical shifts in the poster business.

SEE POSTERS, C3 MIKE SALDARRIAGA / HEIGHTS PHOTO ILLUSTRATION

Thursday, October 7, 2010

The Heights

C2

An independent frame of mind

+Editor’s Corner

Please, let it get better

arts events calendar, October 7-10 thursday

For the sake of being upfront, I’ll admit that I am a chronic reader of Perez Hilton.

I avidly watch the unfolding of HollyKristen House wood’s trials and triumphs through the eyes of his scathing site. Yet, the past few weeks’ visits to Perez’s blog have proven to be incredibly bleak. Interspersed between gossip tidbits, Hilton has posted videos in support of gay youths as a part of the Trevor Project, encouraging youths in the GLTSTQ community to reach out to people around them. These videos come in light of the horrific stream of youth suicides linked to bullying over sexual preference (which also make their way to the site). This outpouring of support has never been more necessary.

It’s incredibly disturbing to look at the innocent photo of 13-year-old Seth Walsh, in a blue hoodie, with shaggy dark hair, and an easy grin.

This young Californian was driven to take his own life by peers who taunted him about his sexual orientation. Rutgers freshman Tyler Clementi also took his own life after a homosexual encounter was streamed live on the Internet by his roommate and a conspirator. There have been approximately five similar cases nationwide that, at the beginning of National Coming Out Week, couldn’t be more of a dent to morale.

Enter the celebrity scene. The celebrity as a role model has undergone many incarnations over the years, from Marilyn Manson goth followers to the Little Monster disciples of Lady Gaga. But inspiration is taking on the role of hopeful lifesaver. Recently, there has been an outpouring of support from the entertainment community, including Tim Gunn, Anne Hathaway, Kathy Griffin, Dane Cook, Glee’s Chris Colfer and, of course, Perez Hilton himself, urging people to see beyond the bleakness of their current life.

Unquestionably, tolerance like this should not need to be taught, and those who believe homophobic slurs are acceptable, or that something as wretched as the Rutgers case is “just a prank,” need to reevaluate their grasp on respect and human dignity.

Luckily, those in the limelight have chosen to exploit their fame in a wonderful way. Project Runway’s Tim Gunn, for instance, discussed his own suicide attempt at the age of 17, dredging up his most painful memories in the hopes that others who suffer will understand that there is life outside of prejudice, bullying, and hatred. Dane Cook addressed his message to the bystanders of bullying, urging them to intervene and override such hatred.

Colfer stressed that he, too, knew what it was like to be bullied by those who were ignorant or afraid. My Life on the D List’s Kathy Griffin, on a rare serious note, recorded a message that put the blood on the hands of politicians who promote discriminatory laws like Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

In her mind, bullying today is an effect of “Trickle Down Bullying.”

The beautiful thing that is hidden in all this darkness is the community support that has come part and parcel with the celebrity response.

Everyone from a bisexual young woman from Nebraska to the adorable couple Dan Savage (of the love advice column “Savage Love”) and his partner Terry (along with their incredible son DJ) have joined the cyber fight to support anyone who feels different.

For better and for worse, celebrities are role models, and hopefully this outpouring of responses will be proof enough that no person should ever feel that bullying has brought him or her to the end of the road. We are all entitled to a life full of respect from others who, even if they fail to understand, will treat those who are different with the compassion they deserve. These videos and this column can’t do anything to reverse the actions of these departed teenagers, but I can hope for a different outcome next time. Trust me, those who bully will not end up on top.

It gets better.

saturday

sunday

Top Girls Robsham, 7:30 p.m.

Top Girls Robsham, 7:30 p.m.

Top Girls Robsham, 7:30 p.m.

top girls Robsham, 2 p.m.

Literary Lives McMullen Museum

Literary Lives McMullen Museum

Literary Lives McMullen Museum

Literary Lives McMullen Museum

The walkmen Royale Boston, 7 p.m.

fountains of wayne Paradise Rock, 7 p.m.

Paul F. Tompkins Brattle Theatre, 8 p.m.

The XX The Orpheum, 7:30 p.m.

cotton jones TT The Bear’s Place, 11 p.m.

Godsmack Tsongas Arena, 7 p.m.

Mike Posner Dunkin’ Donuts Ctr., 11 p.m.

The Wall TD Garden, 8 p.m.

tv close-up

screenshot courtesy of nbc.com

Joel McHale plays the overconfident, underproducing lawyer who gets put in his place after his lack of credentials is exposed to the public.

‘Community’ serviceman

I

Kristen House is the Arts & Review Editor for The Heights. She can be reached at houseka@bc.edu.

friday

By Joe Allen

For The Heights

n the NBC comedy Community, the egotistical Jeff Winger (Joel McHale) waltzes around the campus of his community college, criticizing everyone he meets. After his fellow lawyers learned that he didn’t actually get his degree from Columbia University, but from the country of Colombia, Jeff must return to school to become a legitimate lawyer. The anti-student instead spends all his time with a group of misfits who form a makeshift study group. Jeff functions as the leader of the group, albeit an unusual one. Throughout the first season, Jeff makes passes at women in his group, acts as a terrible father figure to the younger members, and generally approaches his friends’ dreams and ambitions with a roll of the eyes. Even though his self-obsessed antics often lead to hilarity, Jeff’s newfound friends exert a humanizing force on him, happily counteracting his cynicism.

bc tube

The gospel according to television Let’s talk about something upsetting. Last night on Glee, the crew of misfit crooners used song to teach the audience a lesson about religion.

I’ll sum it up like Darren Ranck this – the children sang to express what their thoughts and words alone could not. Ever-dimwitted Finn mistook the grill mark on his grilled cheese for Jesus, and thought that he actually had an encounter with the Messiah. He called “him” Grilled Cheesus. Once everyone ridicules him for his ridiculousness, though, he questions his faith with a rendition of the R.E.M. classic “Losing My Religion.”

How timely and apt! Who better to deal with this issue than Michael Stipe?

In response to Finn’s epiphany, the glee club takes extreme religious stances. Either they side with religious zealotry or atheistic cynicism. If you’re like diva Rachel Berry, though, you take the opportunity to sing a selection from Barbra Streisand’s Jewish opus, Yentl. Regardless of personal opinion, the extremist way in which Glee dealt with religion was more than a little offputting. I need to remind myself that it’s television. Subtlety, while greatly appreciated, isn’t the norm, and with a program like Glee, no warning is necessary to know topics will be handled outlandishly.

Religion is tricky to portray on television, though. More often than not, it can be construed as preachy and silly.

Our generation’s first exposure to such hackneyed storylines came in 1996 with 7th Heaven. The Camden family, led by patriarch Rev. Eric Camden, espoused conceptualizations of God and scripture in their everyday life, but the profusion of moralistic tales felt all too burdensome. For example, one arc portrayed daughter Mary as a troublemaker who does such dastardly deeds as paint graffiti on the gymnasium wall. The Camdens dealt with the issue by holding an intervention and calling her faith into question, asking if she felt disconnected from God. Mary does not need a religious intervention. She needs her car taken away, a few weeks of grounding, and a stern, “I’m not mad, just disappointed.” While it’s not entirely out of the question that God is playing a part in Mary’s turmoil, why does 7th Heaven discount secular reasoning to take a moral high road?

More recently, preteens are getting interesting conceptions of religion from

Photo Courtesy flickr user alan light

The Camdens came into the homes of millions of teenagers every week, teaching them essential moral and ethical lessons. Ok, maybe “essential” is a bit of an overstatement.

ABC Family’s Secret Life of the American Teenager. In one of the most absurd scenes I’ve witnessed on television, uber-religious Grace comes face to face with her mother after the death of her father. She tearfully blames herself for her father’s car accident because she lost her virginity out of wedlock. Actually, she says, and I quote, “Dad died a horrible death because I had incredible sex.” Most frightening of all is that her mother doesn’t quell her fear. She chides her for committing sin. While some might call it a bold assertion of Christian values, one could argue it vilifies Christianity more than anything.

Television doesn’t often comment on the lives of good people. It’s easy to say the most entertaining television characters are sometimes the most sinful, but is it truly impossible to have a realistic and compelling religious conversation on television without resorting to extremes? For the present, that might be the case. The original trailblazing sitcom of the ’70s, All in the Family, dealt with issues like religion with the right mix of delicacy, skepticism, and human-

ity. Unlike some of the shows mentioned, it never tried to appeal to the high road.

It appealed to those trying to put religion in the context of turbulent times.

On last night’s Glee, religion became another Ryan Murphy plaything, a method to allow his characters to sing of the importance of accepting, or accepting the decline of, faith. I am not against bringing a deeper conversation on such matters to television. I think television is one of the only shared voices in our society. It needs to be handled in a less extreme fashion, however. Faith is delicate and personal, and it should be handled in an appropriate way, not through a morose choral performance of Joan Osborne’s “One of Us.” That’s not to say I didn’t learn a thing or two from last night’s Glee. For instance, I was woefully unaware that Billy Joel’s “Only the Good Die Young” was about a young man trying to get into a Catholic girl’s pants. Oh, the more you know.

Darren Ranck is a Heights editor. He welcomes comments at ranckd@bc.edu.

The indie queen

Name a well-reviewed indie movie from the past five years, and the odds are that Catherine Keener was involved Brennan Carley in some way, shape, or form. Director Spike Jonze has been known to hail Keener as his “utility player when I need a creative brain,” funnyman Jonah Hill has professed his love for her, and neurotic screenwriter Charlie Kaufman treats her as a muse. The two-time Academy Award nominee is simultaneously one of the most prolific actresses in Hollywood and one of the most unknown among the common man. “Isn’t she the 40 Year Old Virgin chick?” a friend replied when asked if he knew of Keener (the answer is yes).

Just who is the real Catherine Keener, and why is it so hard to peg her? I think that’s one of my favorite things about her. She’s an everywoman in every sense of the word. No other actress is able to jump so seamlessly between roles, moving from the wife in a loveless marriage (Please Give) to the mother of a teenage girl targeted by an online predator (the upcoming Trust).

This summer, Keener stunned in two wonderfully different movies. In the Duplass brothers’ Cyrus, she appeared as John C. Reilly’s ex-wife and closest confidant. Appearing in only a select few scenes, Keene’s impactful performance changed the movie for the better. Without her grounded and lovable Jamie, I think the movie would have spiraled off into farcical nonsense. Her character offers ample opportunity for Reilly’s bumbling John to mature.

Keener’s subtly brilliant performance pinpoints the reasons why John was wrong for Jamie and so obviously right for Molly (Marisa Tomei). She offers a blink-andyou’ll-miss-it performance, one so nuanced and startlingly emotional that you have to stop and admire the woman.

In last year’s widely underappreciated Where the Wild Things Are, Keener appears in the first and last few minutes of the film as young Max’s mother, Connie, but as in Cyrus, she makes her mark.

I’m biased because I adore her, but I think Keener is one of the most emotive actors in Hollywood.

Her face tells its own stories.

When she snaps, “What is wrong with you?” at the impish Max, her tone is so raw and hurtful that the viewer feels like he or she has done something wrong, too. It’s akin to listening to your mother discipline you, and only a phenomenal actress can make you feel so much in such a short time.

Keener took the reins in this summer’s totally under the radar Please Give, a story of a New York couple that runs a consignment shop. With Oliver Platt as her husband, Keener stole the movie right from under everyone else’s feet. The playful way that her eyes light up at the prospects of scavenging through a dead neighbor’s apartment for antiques is beyond funny, and serves as a stark contrast to her emotions in a later scene. While shopping for jeans with her pubescent daughter, Keener plays it cool (“I think those are in, anyway!”). Seconds later, she turns fiery-tongued and fierce after facing some daughterly sass.

I think what fascinates me so much about Keener is how absolutely normal she seems. I know it’s cliche to say this about famous folks, but she just seems like “one of us.” In interviews she comes across as bubbly and intelligent while maintaining a sense of normalcy. In a New York Magazine piece about her that came out earlier this year, Keener segues between munching on French fries with chicken wings and discussing the finer points of phrenology.

Isn’t that the kind of person you just want to be friends with? With her fine blend of quirky genius and affable approachability, Keener is one of those Hollywood gems that I get the feeling will continue to shine for years to come.

Brennan Carley is a staff columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at review@bcheights.com.

The Heights

Thursday, October 7, 2010

eat, pray, posters

less is more: why minimalism has become movie poster gold

our all-time favorite movie posters

I

f you’ve recently been standing at the Roggie’s bus stop and looked to your right, you’ve seen a large white poster with one big, block-lettered question: “Still a virgin?”

Below is a “help line” for such people (which the poster assures is “toll free”). To the unknowing individual, this is either hilarious, bewildering, or completely inappropriate.

If you’re in the loop, though, you know that the apparent advertisement is in actuality a movie poster for the upcoming The Virginity Hit, which finds yet another group of teenage boys on an epic quest toward their long-awaited “first time.” But the buzz this movie is generating has little to do with its admitted similarities to its teen comedy predecessors. Instead, most of the movie’s buzz surrounds the marketing genius of its poster, which represents a new trend toward clever and thought-provoking movie advertising.

One of the most noticeable trends to anyone who has ever looked at movie posters over the years is that while they were once constructed to represent an the virginity hit (2010) image that summarized the film – main characters positioned in the center, perhaps pictures of various scenes from the movie behind them – that is no longer the format for the posters that we consider most striking or memorable today.

One of the most successful current trends has been to utilize minimalism in movie posters, since the most arresting posters are often the ones with a simple yet striking quality to them. Rather than attempting to include each of the film’s main characters, a picture of the setting, and various screen shots, they present a singular, staggering image – perhaps of a single main character or scene, or even just the movie’s title arranged in some memorable way – and we can’t help but stop and look. It catches our attention not necessarily as an advertisement, but as a piece of art. We want to stare at it for a second and imagine what it is telling us about

then and now: a look at the transformation of movie posters

D magnolia (1999)

perfume (2006)

uring the ’30s and ’40s, movie posters were rare commodities. They did not come in mass-produced metric tons to a Dustbowl poster sale and were not hung in local shopping malls next to Macy’s and The Walking Company. In fact, they were so rare that there was often only one poster, which would travel around by bus to the various theaters with the movie reels that would be housing the film for the next few weeks. It was less of a minute fish in a sea of papers and more of a communal holy scripture of entertainment.

While the movie poster no longer lives the life of a glamorous roadie, bound for destinations around the nation, it remains equally treasured, untouched by the inflation of its production. The heart behind the crafting of a poster remains unchanged.

There was the same careful, methodical artistry put into a poster for Roman Holiday in 1953 as there is today for Salt or the seventh Harry Potter installment. We have done away with the hand painted masterpieces that willy wonka (1971) also tried to give a complete plot synopsis. Now, posters look to capture that edge of mystique, hoping to distinguish themselves from the flood of films around them and become the one that gets displayed in a room.

A noticeable difference between the images of mov-

charlie & the chocolate factory (2005)

harry potter i (2001)

harry potter Vi (2009)

the movie itself. Holding back such information creates a sense of intrigue that would not necessarily be generated by a poster that gives you an all-encompassing image of the movie before you even see the preview.

This move to minimalism has manifested itself in a number of genre-specific ways. It is easy to see it in posters for superhero comic adaptation films, which take advantage of the fact that their audience already knows most of the superheroes they are planning on depicting. A poster that simply shows the universal symbol for Spiderman, Superman, or Batman – just the symbol and nothing else – is often the most effective way to generate the initial sense of excitement and intrigue that grows over the course of the movie’s promotion. To promote disaster epics like The Day After Tomorrow, it is most effective to show one colossal image of destruction. Show the out2012 (2009) come of the calamity without showing the people or events involved in it, and again, the viewer is left with a million questions that can only be answered by seeing the film itself.

It’s these kind of meaningful, staggering, or thought-provoking images that not only motivate interest in films before they are released, but also make movie posters iconic pieces of art for our time. —AT

Silence of the lambs (1991)

American Beauty (1999) saw vi (2009)

x-men 3 (2006)

Spider-man 3 (2007)

ies from earlier days and now is the aforementioned trend of depicting scenes from within the movie on the poster – a veritable le cauchemar de trailer in the absence of dracula (1958) YouTube and the Internet.

Nowadays, imparting some sort of synopsis is not the main focus of poster art. It seems to have become a game of an arachnid, like one who hopes to trap a viewer in its net and consume their interest.

Beyond the differences are also the similarities. What brought people to see a romantic comedy in the ’50s seems to have been a little different from what draws audiences today.

A poignant shot of two lovers, neck and neck a la Titanic, The Notebook, or Casablanca is all the hook you need. Our sense of romance may have since become shellacked with new designer trends, but the urgent stare of star-crossed romantics transcends time.

The horror film poster has gone through many incarnations as well. Older posters (and older horror films in general) have less of a tie to realism, but now, the closer you can ally absurd horrific events to plausibility, the better (the Saw VI poster, for example). It’s no longer acceptable to rely on the visage of Dracula, mummies (Brendan Fraser knows this), or even something called The Wolf Man as your only form of marketing. Today’s poster aficionados are looking for the gruesomely surreal to be made real.

The poster has assumed the role of iconic art in its own right. The most consistent aspect of movie posters between then and now is the strength of an image to captivate our conscience. To first be seen and then become beloved. —KH

the day the earth stood still (1951) In the loop (2009)

the day the earth stood still (2008)

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THE HEIGHTS

+Music

NEW RELEASES

Archuleta razzling and dazzling ears

BY CHARLOTTE PARISH

B For The Heights

illy Fynn has a point when he says that life is all about the “razzle-dazzle.”

It seems like every artist has their gimmick, usually involving auto-tune, and pop music is moving away from the natural sound each artist can create and orchestrate, instead trusting synthesizers and computers to make a song. David Archuleta, though, fits more within the smooth sound of the Chicago jazz era, rather than this new synthetic pop. The trademark sound he perfected on American Idol comes out clearly again on Archuleta’s sophomore album, The Other Side of David.

His voice is always pitch perfect, and cannot be better described than easy listening. All of his songs are soft on the ear, melodic, and reliant on simple harmonies that showcase his spectacular vocals.

There is not a whole lot of growth in style from Archuleta’s first, self-titled album, although many more of the tracks fall on the bouncy side, rather than the slow, lyrical tracks that dominated his first album. This is a sound that Archuleta has completely laid monopoly to, and brings out once again in “Falling Stars.” But it’s the tracks on which he finally breaks the mold that Archuleta really shines. “Elevator” calls to mind the sound of Train’s most recent album, whimsical and sunny with a nonsensical pre-chorus that keeps anyone from taking this song seriously.

Archuleta should continue in this vein in order to gather back some of his

LIL WAYNE I AM NOT A HUMAN BEING

THE OTHER SIDE OF DOWN DAVID ARCHULETTA PRODUCED BY JIVE OUR RATING 6.5/10

SUFJAN STEVENS THE AGE OF ADZ

CHART TOPPERS SINGLES

older fans. He comes up with another great track in “Look Around,” on which he continues to play with different sounds. Employing instruments outsideof his familiar piano and acoustic combination without trying so hard to be different, these songs both hint at the untapped talent that a change in styles can bring out of Archuleta.

Maintaining his good, wholesomekid-from-the-neighborhood image, none of Archuleta’s songs are racy or particularly melancholy. In fact, “Things Are Gonna Get Better” could be the next version of “Kumbaya My Lord” with its inspirational, let’s-getalong lyrics, “ Life is gonna get better, yeah we’re gonna be fine / And I know there’s hope /…With a little bit of love, we can see the light.” This song features a heavy gospel influence, including a background chorus and rhythmic clapping. However, the track falls just shy of corny, and no one feeling grumpy should listen to this extremely opti-

PHOTOS COURTESY OF AMAZON.COM AND FLICKR USER DJDROGA

‘American Idol’ runner-up David Archuleta comes up with a wholesome and sweet - if not a bit bland - album with his new release ‘The Other Side of Down.’ mistic track. It is truly like that early morning, peppy person you unfortunately meet before you’ve had your coffee.

The other trap that Archuleta falls into on occasion is the sticky, syrup pop that gives “Something ’Bout Love” a trite and horribly Bieber feeling (please shudder in unison). Also, there is an awkward moment in “Stomping on Roses,” as the guitar intro is strangely similar to one in a Kelly Clarkson song.

While it makes sense for Archuleta to channel the most successful former Idol in his genre, he needs a different enough sound that listeners will not confuse the two. The youthful Archuleta already got enough comments

already from Simon about his sounding like a female.

Still, Archuleta does end the album on an upswing – both “My Kind of Perfect” and “The Day After Tomorrow” are sweet combinations of garage band lyrics about that high school sweetheart and refined power vocals. This is what defined Archuleta’s original claim to fame: his ability to be genuine and youthful while controlling his voice with the skill of a much older performer. But, no matter how lovely his voice is, this album does not have the selling power of other current pop stars. Archuleta is too bland for most not in the tween girl demographic, although he seems to have a good grip on that market.

1 Just the Way You Are Bruno Mars 2 Teenage Dream Katy Perry 3 Love the Way you Lie Eminem feat. Rihanna 4 DJ Got Us Fallin’ In Love Usher feat. Pitbull 5 Dynamite Taio Cruz COLLEGE ALBUMS 1 The Powerless Rise As I Lay Dying 2 Horseshoes & Hand Grenades Disciple 3 When Angels ... Dance Pod 4 Together New Pornographers 5 La La Land Plants and Animals SOURCE: Billboard.com & CMJ.com

Melodic savant Mars underachieves on debut

BY KATIE LEE

For The Heights By now, almost everyone has heard of Bruno Mars. He has dominated the Billboard Charts of 2010, just recently released the No.1 single “Just the Way You Are,” and sings the hooks on Travie McCoy’s “Billionaire” and top-selling “Nothin on You” by B.o.B. This week, he drops his debut single album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans, a project (not surprisingly) full of the same cutesy, girl-targeted pop. Even from a listen to DOO-WOPS & HOOLIGANS BRUNO MARS PRODUCED BY A&M OUR RATING 6/10

the first few tracks, it is clear that Mars tailormade the 10-track album to seamlessly blend in with radio hits and Billboard toppers.

What has made Mars so immediately successful and well liked, you might ask? The only answer to that question is his undeniable charm. In short, Bruno Mars is a melodic savant. He has the ability to capture his designated audience’s attention with his smooth, soul-

inspired vocals and all too catchy tunes. From even a quick listen, it is obvious that the songs will become popular hits. Mars approaches each of the record’s 10 tracks with a target audience and a plan in mind, and in that regard the album is incredibly successful. He even explores a few different genres throughout the album.

There are pop songs, ballads, and some reggaeinspired tunes. For example, the track “Liquor Store Blues” features Damien Marley, who helps to gives the song a reggae influence and composition. Due to the variety of catchy songs, there is no doubt about it – the album will sell.

Yet despite its appeal, Doo-Wops & Hooligans just furthers the notion that Mars’ talent could be put to better use. The first two songs on the album, both recently released singles have such a similar sound that the first time I listened to the album in full, I had to make sure my iTunes was not on single-song repeat. Also, the album exemplifies how Bruno Mars hides his meaningless lyrics and subject matters behind. For example, the lyrics of the song “Count on Me” sound like they were written for a kindergarten class to sing along to: “You can count on me like 1 2 3 / I’ll be there… / and I know when I need it I can count on you like 4 3 2.” If that’s not bad enough, in the track “The Lazy Song,” he sings, “I’ll be lying on the couch just chillin in my Snuggie, click to MTV so they can teach me how to dougie.” To say the least, Doo-Wops & Hooligans is anything but innovative. It is unclear what kind of substance he is more

PHOTO COURTESY OF DONNA LOU MORGAN

Chart ruler Bruno Mars (“Just the Way You Are” holds the no. 1 spot) comes out with ‘Doo-wops and Hooligans.’ concerned with, musical substance or a little white powder of which he was recently found in possession.

One thing is certain: Doo-Wops & Hooligans is sure to be heard blasting over every preteen’s iPod speakers in a room full of Justin Bieber and Hannah Montana posters. Yes, it is important to emphasize that Bruno Mars will have a

place on the Top 10 for a while, yet by the looks of it, his less than innovative style will surely be one that is never characterized as individualistic. The only recognizably musical aspect of the album is the way in which it will surely strike a chord in the hearts of almost any teenage girl with a weakness for overly cheesy lyrics and sing-a-long melodies.

Tunstall has the eye of the tiger on eclectic new album

BY ALLIE BROAS For The Heights

Following three years of only live performances, Grammy-nominated singer KT Tunstall has released her third studio album, Tiger Suit. The album, recorded at Berlin’s renowned Hansa studio, where both David Bowie and U2 have recorded albums, strays from Tunstall’s usual, folky light rock and presents itself as somewhat of a pop / techno TIGER SUIT KT TUNSTALL PRODUCED BY VIRGIN RECORDS OUR RATING 7.5/10

album. Although the album doesn’t highlight Tunstall’s strength as a solo singer, as most of the songs feature background vocals or strong electronic beats, she creates a fun, likeable club-album that still showcases her talent as an artist.

The album kicks off with the exotic “Uummannaq Song,” an apt introduction to the “nature techno” genre that Tunstall claims this album

falls under. The song throbs with club beats and features background vocals, which at times disappoint merely because they distract from Tunstall’s powerful voice. “Glamour Puss” also features beats that produce a catchy dance song, and the background whistling makes the song a dance equivalent to “Young Folks” by Peter, Bjorn, & John. Despite the new direction of both of these songs, Tiger Suit provides Tunstall fans with songs that echoe her previous albums. Fans will most likely gravitate towards “Push That Knot Away,” a song that melds her bluesy vocals with an electric beat, showing that she can stay true to herself in a completely different sound. “Golden Frames,” much like “Push That Knot Away,” reminds fans that Tunstall hasn’t completely abandoned her blues background – while the song is slow, it is strong and will likely appeal to her stalwart fan base.

Possibly the album’s lowest point, “Difficulty” seems unmemorable in comparison to the rest of the album, featuring an odd mix of electronic beats, yodeling, and rock singing that highlights the predicament that Tunstall likely encountered while trying to mesh her traditional style with this album’s clubby sound. The album’s lone ballad, “Lost,” begins well with vocals a la Stevie Nicks, but ultimately

lacks the substance for which Tunstall clearly was aiming. While the lyrics are sweet, the song is really just that – a sweet, sappy song that doesn’t stand out. Fortunately, she recovers in style with the song “Fade like a Shadow,” the album’s first released single and perhaps its catchiest tune.

The electronic sound isn’t overpowering, allowing Tunstall’s strong vocals and acoustic guitar-playing to shine.

One of the album’s standouts (and perhaps the one most likely to withstand radio overplay), “Come On, Get In,” brings back the beats and fun nature of her 2005 hit single “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree,” while its lead single in the UK, “(Still a) Weirdo,” has already begun its climb up PHOTO COURTESY OF FLICKR USER PETER RHYMES

the UK Billboard Charts. The latter won’t have fans missing the old style of Tunstall, as the crossover isn’t too drastic and the background music fits in perfectly with Tunstall’s voice. The song “Madame Trudeaux” provides the return of background vocals, which prove to be less annoying than on the first track. The song is still a bit aggressive and at times the sound is muffled, but the rock and roll feeling is a nice break from the techno.

The album closes with “The Entertainer,” featuring strong vocals by Tunstall and a beautiful run of acoustic guitar. Though its title suggests it will be another fun, upbeat tune, the song is slow and meaningful and a fitting end to the record.

While many of her songs strongly feature electronic beats, songs like “Golden Frames” and “Come On, Get In” sound like the traditional KT Tunstall of bluesy folk sound, which may leave listeners confused as to what Tunstall is trying to accomplish with this semi-crossover to “nature techno.”

In the end, while she may have created an album that fails to fit nicely under any specific genre (including Tunstall’s self-created genre of “nature techno”), such eclecticism merits much appreciation in a world that is monopolized by complete rap or alternative albums. New and long-time fans will thrill to Tunstall’s immense vocal control and talents, even while Tiger Suit proves lacking in enough memorable performances to make the album roar.

CLASSIFIEDS

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THE HEIGHTS

Thursday, October 7, 2010

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With gratitude, Roseanne and Tim. BABYSITTER NEEDED. Looking for an experienced babysitter on Thursdays for a 1 1/2 year old now through November. Hours approx.

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MISCELLANEOUS Interested in blogging for The Heights? Contact Dara Fang at fangda@bc.edu for more information. Want to submit a post or a tip?

Visit theb-line.tumblr.com or email blog@bcheights.com.

“Don Draper wouldn’t drink water.”

“Don Draper has the liver of a goat.”

Directions: The Sudoku is played over a 9x9 grid. In each row there are 9 slots, some of which are empty and need to be filled.

Each row, column and 3x3 box should contain the numbers 1 to 9. You must follow these rules: · Number can appear only once in each row · Number can appear only once in each column · Number can appear only once in each 3x3 box · The number should appear only once on row, column or area.

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THE HEIGHTS

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Thursday, October 7, 2010

The Heights

+Culture

A frame out of cardboard

A sit down with Rye Rye

By Brennan Carley For The Heights

On Tuesday, Oct. 5, I had the opportunity to sit down with M.I.A.’s mentee and opening act, Rye Rye, moments after her set finished.

The following is an account of our meeting.

Q: What were your first experiences with music? Did you play an instrument or sing as a kid?

A: I never played anything, but I used to watch music videos with my sister and I would imitate the dance moves I saw. I used to write a lot of poetry and my sister was friends with Blaqstarr [M.I.A.’s frequent producer and collaborator] so she hooked me up with him. I Photos courtesy of boopernation.com called him up and left him Rye Rye talks poetry, M.I.A., and realizing that she wanted to be a singer. a voicemail with one verse on it that had started as just one chord, you know? during those music awards saying how I would cry if I turned it into a whole song and just left it on his he sang that song because I think he’s good. I really voicemail [laughs]. I didn’t know if he liked my voice love little kids doing their s—t, it’s tough. or something but obviously it worked out!

Q: I know you’re a big dancer. You put on these amazing live shows where you’re basically flying around the stage. Do you think you prefer dancing or singing, and why?

B: You know, sometimes I like dancing more because I feel like that’s what my plan in life is. It’s one of those things that I just have in me that’s such a big part of me. But at the same time, I love to make music that makes me dance. So I’d say if I had to choose really, I’d pick dancing, but I’m not saying I don’t love rapping!

Q: Do you think anything’s changed about your musical style since the birth of your daughter? I know you had planned to have your album [Go! Pop! Bang!] out early 2009 but plans got kind of derailed, and I noticed on your new single, “Sunshine,” a definite shift in tone.

A: After I had my baby girl, I felt a sort of pressure, like, “How do I come back out?” When I set out to make the record, I was first really feeling dance, and even though my sound has changed since then, I still want my first album to be fun and dance-y because that’s who I am as a person and I know it’s what the fans want to hear. “Sunshine” is a change because it isn’t too dance-y but the rest of the album is definitely very “me.”

Q: Obviously, you and M.I.A. are quite close, and I know that in addition to touring with her for a while, you’re also signed to her label and she produces your stuff. Can you talk about what it’s like to work with her? Is she the type who lets you do your thing and then gives you advice or is she with you every step of the way?

A: Well, with Go! Pop! Bang! she was with me, pregnant, every step of the way. She says that she spent her whole pregnancy in the studio with me [laughs] but you know, she was really involved in every track.

She directed me through it. I started touring with her before I was actually her artist, so we’ve been tight for a while, which meant there was no sort of pressure from her in the studio. She’s like my mom.

With “Sunshine” specifically, M.I.A. was the one who pushed me to make a song that’s not a “Rye Rye track.” She encouraged me to be willing to try anything and everything, and I think it all ended up being a real success. We kept it fun.

Q: A couple of months ago, you performed with Ke$ha in New York, which leads into my next question about “pop” today. I’ve gotta ask, what do you think of people like Ke$ha and Miley Cyrus who’ve kind of dominated the charts the past few years?

A: Well, I’m really into pop a lot these days, it’s kind of turning dance, like a crossover that’s really cool. I have to say that Miley Cyrus is a talented young girl and I have so much respect for her. With Ke$ha, at first I was like, “What’s this all about?” but then I started listening to “Your Love is My Drug,” and I was like yeah, this is hot. Listen, it’s so hard to be a part of the industry these days, so anyone who’s doing anything positive I have nothing but respect for.

There’s no reason to hate or anything, I’m just out here grinding just like they are and that’s great.

Q: I’m gonna throw a few more names out there to see what you think of them: Nicki Minaj, who’s obviously been one of the most noteworthy and present female rappers this year, and Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber, who both own the charts.

A: I love Lady Gaga! I love listening and watching when her videos come on. She’s so artistic. I’ve been asked about her ever since M.I.A. said that stuff about her [M.I.A. told reporters that Gaga’s journey “wasn’t that tough” and said she thought Gaga was “a good mimic”] and I got nothing but love for her.

Same with Nicki, I respect her so much. There was no female rapper in the hip-hop lane for a while, and she speaks to a very specific crowd, these girls who feel strong and all “I’m a boss b—h.” She’s a good role model who relates to the culture these days. I got misquoted by reporters because I said she wasn’t a lady back when I saw a picture of her with her legs spread and her junk spilling out, but she’s really become a lady, she raps and is a really nice person.

She figured out she doesn’t need to show her goods to do her thing. Bieber? [smiles and giggles] That’s my baby! When that “Only Girl” song came on the radio in the car, I squealed and my mama looked at me like “What’s wrong with you?” I was Tweeting about him

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Q: Heading back to the topic of producers, I saw that you’d Tweeted about working with The Neptunes on something. Was that for your new album? How was it collaborating with Pharrell?

A: Well you know, usually you would feel pressure working with such big mainstream producers, but Pharrell knew my style and it felt good. We did a few tracks, they ended up sounding sort of like [M.I.A.’s] “Boyz” and “Bird Flu,” but he kept me in my comfort zone. You know his manager’s my manager, too?

Q: I had no idea! I’m actually seeing him open up for Gorillaz tomorrow.

A: Yeah, my manager’s flying in tomorrow to see him and I’m like yeah, yeah I see how it is [laughs].

Q: Well, speaking about studio time, could you clue me in as to how you approach recording? I know a lot of rappers like to write out their verses before they record and some like to let their creative juices flow.

A: Well me, I like a beat to just be on repeat in the studio so I can vibe with it. Most of the time, I can write at home, I just get really distracted … I’ll even go out and run as a distraction! But when I’m in the studio I usually just knock it right out. A lot of producers are surprised to see how quick I am in the studio, they say I’m mad easy to work with.

Q: You mentioned distractions. Would some of those distractions be things like Twitter and Facebook?

M.I.A.’s new album is heavily geared towards a discussion about technology and the “up to the minute” culture of today, so what are your thoughts, as an artist, about social media?

A: Well, the Internet is definitely changing the ways the music industry thinks. Twitter is such a good way to reach out to your fans … they want to feel your personality, and if you don’t ever reach out to them, it’s fake. It’s just fake, and I hate that. With Twitter, they get to know exactly who you are. I don’t like to cover that stuff up so it’s nice. It’s so easy to get in touch with celebrities these days.

Q: One of the most interesting things about your performance at HARD NYC, and also tonight, was your introduction to your song “Witch Doctor.” In New York, you asked the audience who liked to smoke weed, and responded hilariously, “Well I don’t do that s—t but you do what you gotta do!” [She laughs] What is the song about, in your eyes?

A: Well [thinks for a minute], it was recorded in Chicago with DJ Maino, MIA’s friend, and basically I just thought of it on the fly. The beat I heard basically had a knicker-knacker sound like some old toy balls clacking together, so I went with it. The first verse is basically all about weed and the second verse I kind of hit you with a “put that s—t out” message. It’s like I’m leading you on and then shutting you down!

I know it’s a way of life, like M.I.A.’s dancer Whyteboi was like, “Why you gotta shut us down on that second verse?” We love to joke around backstage.

Q: I’m glad you brought up backstage antics because I was just going to ask you about performing and preshow jitters. You’ve been touring with M.I.A. for a really long time now, but do you ever get nervous before you hit the stage? You kind of hit the stage with a grin on your face and the energy never seemed to fade from there.

A: Yeah, no backstage stuff goes on really. I love to relax before a show, kick back with my computer. I really should start stretching or something [laughs]. I like performing a lot, just like to kinda pop out there.

M.I.A. used to call me out on stage and force me out there back in the day so I could get used to it, so I’m really thankful for that.

Q: Well, it’s about time I let you go, but before I do, I have to ask this really cliched question because it’s something I really want to know. Where do you see yourself in five years?

A: Well yeah, I still see myself making music and being a songwriter, because I actually write a lot of R&B songs. Me though, I just go with the flow and I’m very spur of the moment. I want to do it all, no limits! I do want to maybe go back to school, opening a daycare at some point. What’s that line Miley Cyrus sings? “Tomorrow is the day I never plan.”

That’s how I live my life.

The long night of museums What did you do on one of Oklahoma City’s strong suits. Other than a Saturday night? If we’re science museum, which I visited regularly as a kid, talking about this Saturday and the Cowboy Hall of Fame, which I have visited night, then I’d hedge a bet once, there’s not much. The city’s only art museum that you packed yourself just reopened in 2002. I still remember going to the into Alumni Stadium and Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan in sixth screamed your heart out grade and being blown away. I knew next to nothing in the vain hope that your about the art, but I did know that I was in the pressupport would lift this ence of great things. I don’t think I was born with year’s football team into its an appreciation for art. Nor do I think my parents’ former glory against Notre encouragement did more than give me a taste for Kristin Canfield Dame – and by former, what I now can’t get enough of. Incidentally, I have a I mean, before last year. I wish I could have been friend who told me recently that his plan to make his there. I needed something to erase the taste of last kids love books as much as he does is to limit books year’s disappointment, but instead I watched the when they are young, but allow them to watch as game online in the middle of the night, alone in the much television as they want. While I’m not sure this living room of my drafty Viennese apartment.

Cosby-esque strategy will work, it is interesting that But before this specmy friend is already tacle of shameless dedithinking about how to cation to my Eagles, I cultivate his children’s had the chance to check relationship with the out an annual event in arts.

Austria: The Long Night The most fascinatof Museums. For slightly ing part of Saturday more than the entrance night for me was not fee for one museum, the exhibits themone gains access to over selves, but the level 100 museums from 6 of attendance by the p.m. to 1 a.m. The event Viennese. This was doesn’t take place just a big deal in Vienna in Vienna, but in places and definitely not like Graz and Salzburg, just for tourists. More as well. They even have Germans surrounded free shuttles between me on Saturday night museums to help one than any other time maximize what I would since I’ve lived here. like to call cultural conEven in my idealistic, tent efficiency. I thought English major world, I seriously about seeing know times are tough, how many museums but we cannot turn I could visit in seven our backs on the arts. hours, but I just couldn’t Now is not only the bear the thought of rushtime to continue the ing by late Picassos in support of the arts by the Albertina to ensure I those who already do, got to the Marzipan Mubut also an excelseum. What is marzipan lent opportunity to kristin canfield / for the heights anyway? Whose idea was A museum in Austria, which hosted The Long Night. extend their reach it to grind almonds and by demanding more sugar together to make paste? Who thought a pink events just like this one. The arts don’t have to be marzipan pig would make a delicious treat? Maybe inaccessible and highbrow. If you’re like me, then you I’d know if I’d gone to the museum. can even get your daily dose of museum culture and What this really makes me think about is art still make it home in time to don your Boston College appreciation and its origins. Sometimes living in beads and an Oklahoma Sooners hat so that you Europe makes me feel distinctly uncultured and could effectively cheer on not one, but two college pedestrian. My parents did their best to expose football teams well into the long night. me to culture. My father introduced me to classic movies and my mom supported the art scene in Oklahoma City, filling my childhood with ample trips Kristin Canfield is a Heights contributor. She can be reached at arts@bcheights.com. to the philharmonic and theater. Museums are not

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Thursday, October 7, 2010

+Fashion and Food CHRONICLES OF CAMPUS FASHION

A campus style visionary

S

BY KAILEY KRAMER | FOR THE HEIGHTS

amantha Tilney, A&S ’12, graciously answered a few of my questions this week pertaining to her personal style. This WZBC officer always catches my eye whenever and wherever I encounter her. The main reason I decided to feature her this week is because she’s fearless when approaching fashion. Sam isn’t afraid to take a risk, and everyone could learn a thing or two from the confidence she exudes through her style.

Kailey Kramer: How would you describe your personal style?

Samantha Tilney: I’m always yelled at for wearing bags, so I would say I definitely dress more on the masculine side of feminine dress. I can’t stand super girly stuff on myself, I feel really awkward. I definitely like androgynous style – actually love, it’s so versatile.

KK: What are you earliest memories of fashion?

ST: I would say shoe shopping at Macy’s in NYC with my great aunt when I was probably four. She was this little old lady that wore floor length fur coats every day and always had a glass of red wine with cream soda and ice cubes in her hand. Talk about New York born and bred!

Rocking the argyle ankle sock, Sam pairs a colorful scarf with a graphic dress-tee.

KK: How has your style evolved over the years?

ST: Well, I definitely used to be that weirdo in elementary school that somehow managed to dye my hair purple and blue, and I never liked blending in. I’m surprised my mom let me leave the house sometimes. I remember pairing this cute yellow shirt with a distressed tank top and yellow arm warmers, and I thought it was the coolest, but I’m pretty sure all my seventh grade friends were in shock. Now,

I feel my style is more muted. I still like to wear some “out there” pieces, but they usually don’t consist of crazy patterns or saturated colors. I still don’t like plain outfits, so I usually just play with shape and layering.

KK: What are your favorite pieces within your wardrobe?

ST: These brown khaki-esque pants that are baggy and so comfy. My Topshop leather “Peter Pan” boots – I make my dad polish them whenever I’m home. It’s so important to break in leather shoes by polishing. It gives it a vintage look and a rich, deep tone without spending a lot. Also, a fox coat from my aunt. There’s not much you can do to imitate real fur, and unfortunately the real stuff comes with a pricey tag – but that’s what great aunts are for.

KK: You spent the summer in Taiwan, right? What was your experience with fashion there?

ST: Yes, Taiwan has amazing menswear. All the guys wear dress pants, nice shoes, and sleek shirts, and give it their own spin. I don’t mesh well with the women’s wear there. It’s so girly and there’s pastels and glitter everywhere. I didn’t really shop too much, but my friend Julian bought an

DORM-COOKED SAVORY SIDE DISHES

DIANA C. NEARHOS / HEIGHTS SENIOR STAFF

BY DIANA C. NEARHOS

and fennel. Fennel is a vegetable not many people use.

It has a large white bulb and feathery leaves. You only use the bulb, and you do not want to use the core of We have all been told about the importance of the bulb. Fennel has a licorice-like taste, but not as eating a balanced diet since childhood. Our parents strong as the candy, and when roasted it becomes a said it, our teachers may have taught it, TV programs little bit sweet. talked about it. And we all know that a balanced meal For this recipe, you want equal parts sweet potato is part of a balanced diet. and fennel. Peel the potato, core the fennel, and A balanced meal traditionally includes a protein, chop both into chunks about 1/2 inch by 1/2 inch by a vegetable, and a starch, with some variation. That 1 inch. It does not have to be an exact measurement, is where side dishes come in. Additionally, a meal of but you want them all roughly the same size so that just one type of food gets boring, so it is nice to have they cook evenly. a couple things on your plate.

Coat the chopped sweet potato and fennel in olive One of my go-to side dishes is asparagus. I never oil, salt, and pepper and roast them for about 40 really liked steamed asparagus all that much, but minutes. Again, this may seem like a long time, but my mom started grilling it and it became one of my you do not have to be standing over the stove for the favorites. Because not everyone has a grill (and a duration. Throw it in the oven and go work on homeGeorge Forman does not always do it quite right), I work, do some of that reading you have been putting started sauteing my asparagus. off, and just stir it occasionally. Test the vegetables The first step is to break off the white-ish part at with a fork until they are tender. the bottom of the spear. If you hold the asparagus in Another vegetable dish we all had as a kid is broctwo hands and bend, it will naturally break at the part coli, though some of us were not huge fans. You can do you want to eat. It is better to break the asparagus a few things to the “little green trees” to make them than cut it because you can be sure that you found more interesting to eat, rather than playing with them the right part and the end result will not be as stringy. on your plate like you did back then.

Then just throw the asparagus in a pan with a little I like my broccoli with a little bit of cheese, parolive oil on medium heat until slightly browned. mesan or cheddar, and some chopped almonds. Start Rice provides a good starch to accompany many by steaming it like usual, then finish it in either the dishes, and works well with asparagus. I do not like microwave or oven to melt the cheese. If you are using plain rice that much, so I mix it up with tomatoes a microwave, do not cook the broccoli all the way and and a vinegar sugar dressing. This works best with take it off the stove while it’s still a little bit tough, a basmati rice, which has longer grains and is more because it will cook further in the microwave and no flavorful (I use the Texmati basmati). one likes mushy broccoli.

The rice takes some time to cook, but you do not Just mix in a bit of cheese and nuts, and then melt have to stand at the stove. Once you bring it to a boil, it for a few seconds in the microwave or put it in the you just bring it down to a simmer, cover it, and leave oven for a minute or two. You might be able to put it for about 40 minutes. Slice up some tomato and the cheese directly in the pot, but then it will be very basil and mix them together with rice, wine vinegar, difficult to clean. sugar, and olive oil. Once the rice is done, mix it all If you steam your broccoli in the microwave, cook together and serve. it most of the way before adding the Sweet potatoes are another good cheese, or else you it will melt too starch side dish, probably my favorite. much.

WANT TO MAKE DIANA’S They offer more complex carbohyPick one or two of these to go with SIDE DISH RECIPES drates, fiber, and vitamins than regular any meal and it will instantly become YOURSELF? CHECK OUT potatoes. There are many ways to serve more interesting and healthier. None of WWW.BCHEIGHTS.COM/ sweet potatoes: baked, caramelized these recipes are very difficult, though ARTS FOR THE SPECIFIC with brown sugar, and roasted are the rice and the root vegetables do take RECIPES FEATURED probably the most popular. some cooking time. I promise you they IN THIS WEEK’S My favorite is roasted sweet potato are worth the wait. Enjoy!

RECIPE OF THE WEEK. Heights Senior Staff

entire new wardrobe. Overall, everyone there looks put-together no matter what.

KK:: Lusting after anything in particular these days?

ST:: Always lusting. The Cheap Monday “Dakota Vest Washed” in black. I’ve been looking for a pair of Marie Antoinette-esque shoes with rhinestones on them – a tough find. Also, a classic diamond ring or earrings. Diamonds are my birthstone, and I think there’s nothing better to add to a plain outfit. I have the same pair of diamond studs from when I was a baby that I wear every day. I really like pieces like them that have a story. Even if no one can see the meaning behind the piece, you still are wearing these stories that are a direct reflection of your being.

KK:: Do you have any sources of inspiration?

ST:: Freja Beha has been an absolute favorite for me for a while. I also love the wardrobes in Lucky Number Slevin and Sophia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette. V Magazine is amazing, especially Natalie Portman’s shoot they did. I also saw this girl on Newbury who was tall and skinny with a shaved head. She was so owning her look and I fully respect that she went totally out there, throwing all gender roles aside.

KK: Favorite shops?

ST: Black Hearts Brigade in Williamsburg and Opening Ceremony, and Marc Jacobs. Also, my sister’s closet.

We buy the strangest things, but two years later it ends up being bomb.

Like this great Michael Kors mustard

KAILEY KRAMER / FOR THE HEIGHTS

Sam goes bold with a bright yellow Michael Kors blazer and a textured scarf. blazer that we’ve been taking turns with for about four years.

KK: Favorite brands? Designers?

ST: I love Cheap Monday. I am a sucker for Chanel – especially the mint seafoam color from fall 2009.

Not that I own any. Also, Alexander Wang, Phillip Lim, Top Shop, H&M, and even Gap.

Kailey Kramer is a Heights contributor.

She can be reached for comment at arts@ bcheights.com.

ON THE SESSION

Brighton Ave. bar hopping We have the attention span of a squirrel in a Planters peanuts factory. Like the squirrel, we bounce from nut to nut, never fixating on a single one, and also realizing that we probably could care less about peanuts. If we can’t read 10-page packets of material without texting five of our friends and checking ZAK JASON Wild Man Timmy’s Facebook, how could we sit at a bar stool and interact with nothing but another human for four hours? We can’t. If we want a full night out, we need a place to bounce from bar to bar.

Brighton Avenue is that place.

Just eight stops down on the B Line, Brighton Avenue hosts some of the most varied and eclectic bars in the city. It is an area aggressively devoid of pretension, complete with a Burger King, a pet shop whose owner keeps the dogs locked inside overnight, and a handful of eighth-rate Chinese restaurants. On Newbury Street, you face the herd of fashion slaves and the waves of people shackled to their scarves, complex skirts, and skin-suturing shirts as they try to fit into the swanky shops and restaurants.

By Faneuil Hall, you submit yourself to a dress code of either J. Crew or Boston sports attire. But on Brighton Ave., a road of unabashed normalcy, you don’t even have to change from class clothes to nighttime clothes. (Though, for the sake of your dignity and out of respect for your fellow man, never go out in Boston College sweatpants.)

The normalcy ends, however, within the bars. Pay your first and your longest visit to the Sunset Grill and Tap, or, as most people know it, “The Place With All The Beer.” It’s not just one of those monikers that people capitalize for fun: Sunset serves 112 beers on tap and 380 bottle brews. With such an elephantine stock, Sunset prints a menu just for its beer, updated weekly and organized by category. Organic, steam, bier method champenoise, Belgian triple, oatmeal stout, pumpkin brew, kriek, hefe weise, dunkel weizen – if you can think of a food that probably shouldn’t mix with beer or can create a random German word, chances are Sunset has a beer category for it. Some beers have upwards of 20 percent alcohol. With so many beers, Sunset splatters its walls with beer paraphernalia – old fashioned taps, neon signs, oars. One room, a converted bank, features an old ATM and vault rendered into beer decorations.

Such a selection and atmosphere has gar-

nered a contingent of beer extremists. A recent BC graduate based the selection of his apartment based on its proximity to Sunset. One caveat: somehow they don’t serve Bud Light.

If you need to get your jollies from Bud Light, stay in Cleveland Circle. But for the beer snob or anyone who enjoys trying something weird and new, venture to Sunset.

Beyond the brews, Sunset cooks some of Boston’s best bar food. Barbecue pulled pork sandwiches, a smorgasbord of burgers, and potato skins mark some of their staples. One item Sunset lacks, however, is a selection of great wings. For those, you must walk 100 yards down the street to Deep Ellum.

If Sunset Grill is the pontoon, the flashy, mammoth party boat of Brighton Avenue, Deep Ellum is the dignified schooner, the streamlined vessel that refuses to adjust in these modern seas. Though opened in 2007, Deep Ellum gets its name from a lively music and bar section of Dallas in the early 1900s, an aesthetic that Deep Ellum captures throughout the building. With a mahogany bar and tables, a giant steer skull, and brick walls, the place invites you to sit and drink well-crafted drinks and chat with your friends about simple but important matters.

Its bartenders concoct some of the most exploratory and meticulous cocktails in the city: the Hemingway Daiquiri, the Boomerang, the Black Devil, and its own twist on the Old Fashioned. Though not as mind-boggling as Sunset, Deep Ellum also offers an impressive global selection of beers, from German microbreweries to the local High and Mighty Beer of the Gods.

But if you enjoy wings, you come to Deep Ellum for the wings. This is a bar column. It’s about cocktails and bartenders and beer. But the wings at Deep Ellum satiate the soul so much that they deserve significant mention in this space. Eating the Deep Ellum Hot Damn wings, available in spicy buffalo or sweet and spicy barbecue, is very much akin to popping a tribe of miniaturized Polynesian warriors into your mouth, Polynesian warriors who poke your taste buds with spears and perform intricate tribal dances on your tongue.

Brighton Ave. also hosts Big City, a bar teeming with professional billiards tables, and Harper’s Ferry, one of the best places to see up and coming bands. If you’re looking for a place that caters to your pinball lifestyle, head to Brighton Ave.

Zak Jason is assoc. arts editor for the Heights. He can be reached at arts@bcheights.com.

PHOTO COURTESY OF SUNSETGRILL.COM

SPORTS THE HEIGHTS

Thursday, October 7, 2010

D1

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010

Soccer team seeks vengeance

BY DIANA C. NEARHOS Heights Senior Staff

On Sunday, Boston College’s women’s soccer team suffered its first loss of the season to the University of Virginia. Now, the Eagles are rebounding, watching film, and leaving the game behind them.

This season, BC had been getting away with little mistakes, the kind that they were only marginally aware of, and that had not yet affected the outcome of a game. Those mistakes caught up with them in Virginia. “[The loss] makes everyone take a look at things a little more under a microscope,” said head coach Alison Foley. “No one likes to lose, but sometimes you need a little sting.”

Upon looking through the microscope, Foley noticed the team losing marks inside the box and not entirely focusing on defending the back post. Now that the Eagles have the taste of a loss in an otherwise undefeated season, she hopes they will tighten up those areas.

Coming off that loss, BC prepares to take on

yet another tough ACC opponent in Maryland.

“Part of showing how good of a team you are is being able to put a loss behind you and coming out with your next game a win,” said captain Hannah Cerrone. “I think it will be a good test for us as a team that wants to continue to go forward.”

This year, the Terrapins travel up to Chestnut Hill, where the Eagles look to avenge a tough game last year. The contest may have gone into the books as a tie, but it has been viewed a loss by the Eagles, who have been itching for revenge.

“We lost to them, or we tied them last year in a rainy, rainy game away,” Cerrone said. “And we just want so much revenge because it was one of those games that we should have won.

It’s one of those teams we need to make sure we come out on top against.”

For a team that expects to play perfectly, a tie in a game it thought to be winnable is nothing short of unacceptable.

“We look to get three points off every opponent,” Foley said. “The team is pretty critical of themselves. We look to shutout our opponent. So, even games we’ve won 3-1 this

year, we look at that goal pretty critically.

Sometimes after a 3-1 win, we’re not satisfied because someone scored on us or we tied and we take it like a loss.”

This year is different. The game is home, the forecast does not call for rain, and BC is ranked No. 4 in the country.

“Last year was a complete mess of a game,” Cerrone said. “Our mentality this year is different and I think that plays a huge part in it.

We’re a year older, a year more mature, and can handle adversity that comes toward us.”

That adversity comes in the form of the recent loss and a series of tough ACC opponents.

No. 8 Maryland comes into the game with only one loss on the year. The Terrapins have outshot their opponents 206-82 and scored 31 goals to their opponents’ 10.

Foley believes that her team has the variety of attacking options necessary to challenge the strong Maryland defense. Every one of her forwards and midfielders has a different “attacking personality,” ranging from fooling defenders, to speed, to power.

See Maryland Preview, D3

ALEX TRAUTWIG / HEIGHTS EDITOR

BC is aiming for a win after suffering its first loss of the season Sunday.

Players aren’t ready to give up on season Putting Notre Dame in the proper context

Veterans rally team heading into Raleigh

BY IAN BOYNTON For The Heights

With the return of Mark Herzlich, the maturation of a young team, and a quarterback with a year under his belt, fans expected the Boston College football team to be primed for a successful season in 2010.

After four games, though, the Eagles sit at just 2-2, having lost the last two at home, the first time since 1998 that they have lost two consecutive home games. With the defense giving up 21 points in just one quarter, and an offense that was unable to sustain a long drive against Notre Dame, fans have quickly abandoned the season, and are prepared to call it the worst in recent memory.

“The performances thus far have been unacceptable, that’s the bottom line,” said senior captain Wes Davis. “Right now there are problems that need to be fixed.”

Among fan’s hysteria, the mass disappointment, and overarching disapproval,

PAUL SULZER

See NC State Preview, D2

Saturday, 12 p.m.

Live blog on bcheights.com/sports

ALEX TRAUTWIG / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Max Holloway and the Eagles refuse to get down on themselves despite a tough start.

“From sheer depth and talent, BC is as talented a team that there is in the country, and it could be one of those teams that challenges for the moniker for the best teams of all time.”

Greg Cronin, Northeastern Head Coach

Eagles understand great expectations

BY STEVEN PRINCIPI For The Heights

The gray slate floor of Conte Forum is now covered with a sheet of ice, and that can only mean one thing: hockey season.

The Boston College men’s hockey team will take the ice in a meaningful game for the first time since early April. The Eagles travel to Northeastern to face the Huskies in an early-season Hockey East match-up between two very familiar foes.

“I’m looking for some excitement,” said head coach Jerry York. “We are starting something brand new. I want to see a lot of energy on the ice, and this starts the pursuit of a league championship. It starts with game number one.”

Normally beginning the season with a few non-conference games, the No. 1 Eagles uncharacteristically jump right into Hockey East play, and while it is hard to believe that everyone will be playing up to their full potential in the opening game, York also stressed the importance of the first game.

“For us, this is game one of 27 in Hockey East,” York said. “It’s an early October game, and it’s a great chance to pick up two points.”

Expectations are as high as ever this year for the maroon and gold, as this year’s team may possibly be the deepest and most talented team in recent memory. BC isn’t the only school to think so.

The team has drawn praise from numerous other programs, including Northeastern’s head coach Greg Cronin.

Cronin said that the Eagles were possibly a 40-win team.

“From sheer depth and talent, BC is as talented a team that there is in the country, and it could be one of those teams that challenges for the moniker for the best teams of all time,” Cronin said.

While such praise is sure to raise a few eyebrows, York isn’t about to let it go to his team’s head.

“You don’t listen to the outside noise, you just do what the right thing to do is,”

See Great Expectations, D3

I NSIDE SPORTS THIS ISSUE

Since the Notre-pocalypse on Saturday, I’ve been trying to contextualize the 31-13 loss. The annual game against the Fighting Irish is more important to Boston College fans than it should be.

To call it meaningless would be heresy.

I’ll stop short of that. But if the Eagles don’t learn from the mistakes they made against Notre Dame, their season could very quickly become meaningless.

The best way to put a game like this in the proper perspective is to evaluate it in relation to other painful losses.

How does it compare, for example, to Tom O’Brien’s annual WTF losses?

In 2005, the Eagles lost 16-14 to North Carolina (5-6). A year later, the Eagles lost 17-15 to NC State (3-9) and 17-14 to Miami (6-6). These were losses, to frustratingly inferior teams, that kept good BC teams from being great. Wins in all three of those games would have vaulted the Eagles into the ACC Championship Game. Considering

that BC won the Atlantic Division title in 2007 and 2008, the team would have won four straight division titles if those games had broken its way.

This loss to Notre Dame doesn’t fall in that category. Losing by 18 points to the Fighting Irish was definitely disappointing, but it wasn’t surprising.

The Eagles looked terrible the previous week against Virginia Tech. Plus, Notre Dame is independent, so the loss doesn’t affect the ACC standings.

The Eagles can still make the ACC title game, though their goal should merely be bowl eligibility at this point.

There’s really only one loss that this one compares to: Syracuse in 2004.

That game was arguably the worst loss in program history. With an outright Big East title and a trip to the Fiesta Bowl on the line, the Eagles laid an egg against the Orange (6-6), 43-17.

Cornerback and third-string running back Diamond Ferri forever seared his name into the memories of BC fans by running for 141 yards and two touchdowns and returning an interception for a touchdown.

To avoid hyperbole, this comparison has to be limited. The stakes were obviously higher against Syracuse. A win in that game would have been a

See Proper Context, D2

For Kozniuk, the time is now

BY ROBERT T. BALINT Heights Staff

It’s Saturday in Durham, N.C., an hour before game time. Emily Kozniuk takes a seat at Duke’s Jack Katz Stadium, in the same spot she sits at every away game, and surveys the field. The song changes on her iPod, and “My Time” by Fabolous floats through the headphones.

Two hours later, the Eagles have their first ACC win of the year in the bag, thanks to the game’s lone goal, sent into the net by Kozniuk. It’s the third time this season that she’s scored the go-ahead goal for her team.

“She’s a winner, that’s really important,” said head coach Ainslee Lamb.

“That’s why she’s got three game-winning goals. She wants the ball.”

So far, it’s clear: This season has been Kozniuk’s time.

The senior captain has maintained an omnipotent field presence from an early age. Kozniuk is a native Canadian, born and raised in North Vancouver, British Columbia. Her mother, Jane, had played field hockey in college, and first exposed her to the sport.

The long list of accolades that her daughter racked up made it clear that the field hockey gene had not skipped a generation. A five-year starter at Argyle Secondary School, Kozniuk held a captaincy and earned MVP honors for her last three seasons. She also became a rising star on the national circuit, taking a spot on the British Columbia provin-

Football Notebook

Freshman Bobby Swigert steps up, while Chase Rettig tries to ready for the ’Pack.............D2

ALEX TRAUTWIG / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Kozniuk, a two-year captain and native Canadian, leads the Eagles on and off the field. cial team, where she helped to win two national championships, one of them coming after a thrilling overtime win against rival province Ontario.

“It’s a level above, it’s very competitive,” Kozniuk said of her time on the provincial squad. “It was a great opportunity for me to practice and compete.”

She received numerous offers from U.S. programs after playing in several California tournaments, but settled on Boston College for a few reasons.

“It was the best opportunity to take at that time,” Kozniuk said. “A lot of girls just stay home, so it was a good opportunity to get out and still play at a high level.”

BC vs. NC State Breakdown

See who the editors think has the advantage in each facet of Saturday’s game...................................D2

Lamb was more than happy to welcome her onto the team. In Kozniuk, she saw a player with the physical attributes to withstand the rougher brand of field hockey played in the United States, yet with the skill that only a top junior player in the more finesse-focused Canadian leagues could have.

“She’s a good organizer,” the head coach said, “and keeps things on the field organized and poised.”

Although Boston is on the other side of the continent from North Vancouver, Kozniuk made a relatively smooth transition into American life.

See Kozniuk, D3

Editors’ Picks..............................D3 BC Notes.....................................D3

D2

Thursday, October 7, 2010

The Heights

Boston college vs. NC State When BC runs the ball

As bad as the Eagles’ run game has been this season, it’s still better than the NC State run defense. Montel Harris broke practically every record in the book when he rolled up 264 yards and five touchdowns against the Wolfpack last year. Expect the ground game to get back on track.

Advantage:

When BC passes the ball The Eagles need Chase Rettig to play on Saturday. The offense was moving with him at quarterback before he got hurt in the second quarter of the 31-13 loss to Notre Dame. Backup Mike Marscovetra holds onto the ball for too long and checks down too quickly.

Advantage:

When NC State runs the ball Mustafa Greene, the Wolfpack’s underutilized running back, tore up Virginia Tech for 91 yards on just 10 carries last game. Quick and dynamic out of the backfield, Greene looks like a young C.J. Spiller. The Eagles have an excellent run defense, but they struggle with shifty backs.

Advantage:

When NC State passes the ball Russell Wilson has thrown for 300 yards and three touchdowns in three straight games and four of the past five. He likes to spread the ball around – five receivers average at least two catches a game, yet none average more than four. BC is known for its soft zone coverage, so Wilson should feast.

Advantage:

Special teams

ALEX TRAUTWIG / heights editor

Montel Harris racked up a career-high 264 rushing yards against NC State last year. The Eagles will look to exploit the ’Pack’s run defense again this year.

Change of venue welcomed NC State Preview, from D1

the Eagles find themselves at an important threshold, or as Davis put it, “we need to win [against North Carolina State].”

With each game critically important, the Eagles, who boast 26 underclassmen on the two-deep, find themselves looking for experience and leadership to navigate them through these turbulent times.

One of those experienced leaders is Davis, who is now in his fifth year at BC and has been witness to the trials and tribulations of college football.

“You are always a lot closer to being in this situation than you ever know … In 2007 we were rolling, and then two straight losses to Florida State and Maryland, that should have been beaten,” Davis said. “Football is always that one inch away from being 2-2, 3-1, and that is why you have to keep things in perspective, especially with young guys. It’s just as bad as when you are winning and you think you are great. It is just as detrimental when you are losing and think you are terrible.”

While maintaining that perspective is of the utmost importance for a young team, Davis understands that at this critical point in the season, it is his role as captain to take a more vocal, prominent role.

“I am going to speak to [the older players] today,” Davis said. “Even though you may be trying hard enough, are you doing it in a constructive way, what are you doing to improve, and like I said, there are a lot of young guys that don’t know how to improve and might need to be told how to get that done. So now, we are going to do a lot more telling about how you need to get it done.”

With BC heading on the road for the first time in 2010 against what Davis called arguably the best offense in the ACC, the young Eagles squad will be forced to learn on the spot, placing an even higher premium on the team’s senior leadership.

“It’s a new environment,” said freshman receiver Bobby Swigert, who had a breakout game against Notre Dame with seven receptions for 137 yards and a touchdown. “I don’t really know how the road schedule works, or

how we travel, or who I am rooming with …

It’s going to be rough.”

Freshman quarterback Chase Rettig, who injured his ankle in the second quarter against Notre Dame, practiced with the team for the first time this week on Wednesday, leaving open the possibility for him to start on Saturday against the Wolfpack. Rettig, like Swigert, acknowledged the challenges of what will be his first college football road game.

“It is definitely going to be something that is a learning experience for me,” Rettig said.

Of the 26 underclassmen on the twodeep, 17 are expected to have a significant amount of playing time this week against North Carolina State. Of those 17, eight have yet to play in a stadium other than Alumni Stadium as a member of the BC football team. For a team that has yet to show stability at home, the test of a road game is a tough one. Hopefully for the Eagles, seniors such as Wes Davis will be able to guide BC on its first flight away from its home nest. n

Contextualizing the loss to Notre Dame Proper Context, from D1

monumental step forward for the program. A win against Notre Dame would have been little more than a step toward bowl eligibility.

But delving deeper, there are some interesting similarities.

In each game, a highly-touted freshman quarterback made his debut on national television against a very beatable opponent. Matt Ryan was that quarterback in 2004, and Chase Rettig is that quarterback now.

Will Rettig learn from losing his first career start just as Ryan did?

The play around the quarterback was identical, too. The receivers, normally sure-handed, dropped everything thrown their way. The run game was nonexistent because the team fell behind by three touchdowns early.

Even on defense, the parallels are clear. The normally stout BC run defense was shredded with startling efficiency

by Ferri and Armando Allen of

Notre Dame. The pass defense was rarely tested even though the opponent put up a ton of points.

The Eagles had a month to stew about that game before playing North Carolina in the Continental Tire Bowl, which they won 37-24. Right now, however, they don’t have the same luxury of time, as they are going on the road Saturday to visit their old friend O’Brien at NC State, one of the Atlantic Division favorites. The schedule doesn’t get any friendlier a

week later at Florida State. The Eagles could easily lose four in a row for the first time since 1998, when they went 4-7. Vegas has BC pegged as 10-point underdogs. A win this week would be a pretty big upset.

Then again, O’Brien’s teams always find a way to lose to a couple of teams they should beat each year. Why should this season be any different?

Paul Sulzer is the Assistant Sports Editor of The Heights. He can be reached at sports@bcheights.com.

BC and NC State both have average special teams units, with the exception of Ryan Quigley at punter for the Eagles. He’s been relying on fortuitous bounces in averaging 42.9 yards per punt, though. This battle will come down to whoever makes fewer mistakes because neither side has a gamebreaker.

Advantage:

Coaching and intangibles Former BC coach Tom O’Brien needed four years to turn around the NC State program, but he’s finally doing it. Meanwhile, Frank Spaziani is at a crossroads. These past two weeks have been the worst of his tenure. The second-year coach will be under immense pressure to pull out a victory.

Advantage:

football notebook

Swigert shines against Fighting Irish

By Drew McKay For The Heights

After a disastrous showing against Notre Dame, the Eagle faithful took solace in one thing – the breakout performance of true freshman wide receiver Bobby Swigert.

The Louisville, Ohio product put up decent performances against both Kent State and Virginia Tech. After raking in three catches for 44 yards against the Golden Flashes and two catches for 22 yards in a loss to the Hokies, Swigert felt more comfortable and confident on the field against the Irish and truly excelled.

“I’m feeling a lot more relaxed on the field and just having a feel for the speed of the game,” Swigert said.

“Definitely, I’m always going into the game being positive and thinking something like that is going to happen.”

H i s p o s i t ive t h i n k i n g helped him put up astonishing numbers on national television against Boston College’s biggest rival. Swigert caught seven passes for 137 yards and a touchdown. Swigert was pleased with his individual accomplishment, but disappointed in the team’s result.

“It was good getting on the field and everything, having a good game for me personally, but it doesn’t really mean anything not getting the W,” Swigert said. “That’s the only thing that counts, obviously.”

Although the offense as a whole couldn’t find a groove, Swigert and his fellow true freshman, quarterback Chase Rettig, who earned his first collegiate start against ND, seemed to click. Rettig hit Swigert for a textbook, perfectly timed 58-yard touchdown near the end of the first quarter.

“Chase saw me real easily, put a perfect pass on it and I didn’t have to slow up at all or anything, it hit me right in the chest,” Swigert said.

“I was wide open, one of the easiest receptions I’ve had in a while.”

Despite Rettig’s injured ankle and uncertain playing status against NC State this

Saturday, Swigert describes their chemistry as a “tremendous connection” that is “something we are looking forward to and I’m sure a lot of other people are, too.”

Change of Scenery Some might see the Eagles first road contest after opening the 2010 campaign with a rare four straight home games as particularly worrisome. The football team, however, eyes its trip to Raleigh, N.C. as a useful change of scenery, especially for the younger players.

“Going on the road is a great experience, it’ll be the first time for a lot of these guys and that’s what college football is all about,” said senior captain and free safety Wes Davis.

“Going down to NC State, 65,000 down there, everybody hating you, but you know, we’re gonna get ’em focused.”

Sophomore linebacker Luke Kuechly, who leads the country with 13 straight games with 10 or more tackles, also looks at games on the road as good opportunities “Going on the road is def initely a challenge sometimes,” Kuechly said.

“You gotta f ly down there, get up early, but you know, I definitely like playing road games. Like Wes said, you get to change up the scenery, get to experience something new, might give us a little energy.”

Quarterback Situation After Rettig went down with an ankle sprain in the second quarter of the Notre Dame contest, sophomore Mike Marscovetra stepped in to lead the offense on 10 drives totaling only 71 yards.

Marscovetra also threw two picks.

Last year’s incumbent, Dave Shinskie, said his benching against Notre Dame was “nothing compared to being released from baseball.” Shinskie and Marscovetra have split first team reps through the week’s first two practices while Rettig was sidelined with his bum ankle. Rettig returned to the practice field Wednesday, but his playing status Saturday is still unknown. n

THE HEIGHTS

EDITORS’ PICKS

Thursday, October 7, 2010 The Week Ahead

Standings

Women’s soccer hosts Maryland while the men’s team travels to Clemson.

The men’s hockey team opens its season against Northeastern. Football looks to avoid its third straight loss at NC State. The game of the week is Michigan State at Michigan.

D3

Heights Staff

10-10

Maegan O’Rourke

9-11

Zach Wielgus

9-11

Paul Sulzer

7-13

Football disappointed against Notre Dame, while men’s soccer and field hockey picked up ACC wins against NC State and Duke, respectively.

Women’s soccer lost its first game of the year to Virginia. Oregon rallied to beat Stanford.

Guest Editor: Pat Gallagher Assoc. News Editor “How ‘bout them Yankees?”

Zach Wielgus Sports Editor

Maegan O’Rourke Assoc. Sports Editor

Paul Sulzer Asst. Sports Editor

Pat Gallagher

Assoc. News Editor

Women’s Soccer: Boston College vs. Maryland

BC

BC

BC

BC

Men’s Soccer: Boston College at Clemson

BC

BC

BC

BC

Men’s Hockey: Boston College at Northeastern

BC

BC

BC

BC

NC State

NC State

NC State

BC

Michigan State

Michigan

Michigan

Michigan

Football: Michigan State at Michigan (-5)

Men’s Basketball Senior forward Joe Trapani of the Boston College men’s basketball team has been named to the John R. Wooden Award preseason list. Trapani is one of 50 players that have been named to the list for the most prestigious award in college basketball.

The Wooden Award is given to the nation’s best player who is on track to graduate with a GPA of at least 2.0. Last year for the Eagles, Trapani averaged 14.1 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. The Connecticut native also earned AllACC third team honors. Trapani is one of eight ACC players on the preseason list.

Women’s Basketball

This Week’s Games

Football: Boston College at NC State

BCnotes

Recap from Last Week

Carolyn Swords of the BC women’s basketball team is one of 30 players that have been named to the preseason list for the women’s John R. Wooden Award. The list is based on last year’s individual performances and team records.

This is Swords’ second straight year being named to the preseason Wooden Award list. The 6-foot-6 center led BC in scoring and rebounding last year, with 14.5 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Her rebounds per game led the ACC. She also led the nation in field goal percentage (66.4 percent). Swords was a co-captain on last year’s team.

Resilient Kozniuk captains field hockey team Kozniuk, from D1

“Boston and Vancouver are very similar,” she said.

It was hardly the same at other schools. The official visit she made to Louisville, for instance, gave her far more of a culture shock. She quickly adjusted to New England life and immediately began making a name for herself as an Eagle.

Fresh from a summer on the B.C. Provincial team, during which she was selected for the All-Tournament team, Kozniuk wasted no time in establishing herself as an integral part of the BC defense. She scored her first collegiate goal against Holy Cross on Sept. 2, and started in the first 17 games of the season.

Seventeen proved to be Kozniuk’s unlucky number, however. In the Oct. 21 game against New Hampshire, the defender tore her ACL while diving for a loose ball.

“I heard a pop,” Kozniuk said, which was immediately followed by waves of pain. Just three games away from completing her first season, the freshman faced one of the most difficult sports injuries from which to recover.

“Any time one of your athletes gets injured, it’s just so devastating,” Lamb said. “You really feel for them. The worst part hasn’t even begun. The day they blow it out is horrific, but the rehab is far worse. All that time, and commitment … it’s not good.”

ALEX TRAUTWIG / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Kozniuk (center) has scored three go-ahead goals this year. The senior captain has recorded a team-leading six goals through 11 games.

Kozniuk had a tough call to make.

“It was a decision I had to make at the time, whether I was going to try to grind through, stay in shape,” Kozniuk said.

Once she made that decision, Lamb said, she attacked the rehab process with the grit characteristic of a leader.

“She was so determined to be back,” Lamb recalled. “She exceeded all the

standards. What was scheduled for week five, she was doing during week four. We had to slow her down because she was progressing so quickly.

“We had to be like, ‘Emily, you can’t be playing in two months,’” Lamb said with a laugh. “Her determination, she just believed every day that her rehab was going to make a difference.”

That determination helped Kozniuk through the arduous path to recovery.

“Mentally, it was probably one of the hardest things that I’ve had to do,” she said. Since returning, Kozniuk has made the most of her time. After leading the team in assists her sophomore year, she was named co-captain with former BC star Chelsey Feole, and then assumed the

captain role again her senior year.

“As a captain, I need to make sure I have a high standard so that the lowerclassmen follow my example,” Kozniuk said.

Day in and day out, Lamb confirmed, the captain has been someone that the other players can look up to.

“There’s a lot of different leadership styles,” Lamb said. “She’s a leader by example. We’ve been working with her to be a more vocal leader, and in this senior year, she’s seen more of a balance [between the two].”

After graduation, Kozniuk plans to return home and compete on the Canadian national team, which begins the qualifying process for the Olympics this coming February. Before she gets there, however, she still has six more weeks at BC. With time running out on her college career, Kozniuk is bringing more focus to her team than ever, striving to “make sure the lowerclassmen are on the same page as us [the seniors].”

As far as the Canadian captain’s concerned, there’s nothing else to focus on but the team’s next game, a match-up against No. 1 UNC. “We’re very excited, we have nothing to lose, and we’re not supposed to win this game,” Kozniuk said. “If I walk off the field knowing that there’s something more I could have done, it’ll kill me at the end of the year.”

Watch out. This is Emily Kozniuk’s time. 

Message of redemption resonates with Eagles Maryland Preview, from D1

ALEX TRAUTWIG / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Joe Whitney and Brian Dumoulin celebrate after Cam Atkinson scores for BC. The Eagles open their season Saturday.

“One of our biggest strengths is that our attack as individuals, they present different issues,” Foley said. “Sometimes people are all just fast or all just technical, but we have a really different blend of attacking personalities so that becomes difficult for a back four to stop.”

Maryland is also having its best year as a program, coming from only winning 13 combined games from 2007-09, and it brings many difficulties with that success.

“They’re riding a lot of confidence,” Foley said. “They’re a very athletic team. They’re a team that has great speed up top. We’re not unfamiliar with their personnel, but we have to be prepared to contain that speed.”

The important thing is for the Eagles to set the tone, to make the Terrapins play BC’s game and not the other way around, Cerrone said.

“It’s going to be a battle,” she said. “In the ACC, its so competitive no one wants to lose twice in a row and one of us is going to have to.”

The Eagles have something extra riding on this game. They have dedicated the game to Julia Bouchelle’s father, who died of ALS this past summer. The team has had one gold game a year since her father was diagnosed and has held a fundraiser to benefit ALS research.

“You want to do it for Julia, and you want to do it for her family,” Foley said. “We’re a family so we come together and support people at times like this, so it definitely will add some energy to the game.” 

Eagles tune out praise Great Expectations, from D1

“Last year was a different year for them,” York said.

“They didn’t make the playoffs, and they are going to York said. “Whether a team says you are a terrific try to set a tone for their club. We are going to get a team or a lousy team, that’s all peripheral to us. That’s team that is rebounding off what they perceived as an aberration not making the playoffs.” not a factor.”

Despite giving praise to the Northeastern team, Part of York’s concern may be a result of his team’s recent troubles playing at Northeastern’s Matthews York made it clear that he was not overly concerned Arena, where the Eagles have struggled mightily with specific players on the Huskies’ roster, stating that it was too early over the past few seasons. to worry about things like BC has not won a game strategizing for specific at Northeastern since guys on the ice.

March 2008, losing three “We are more concerned times in that stretch. at this stage with how well Northeastern has rewe play,” York said. “We portedly already sold Saturday, 7 p.m. want to look at our team out Saturday’s game, Live blog on and look at what we want to prompting York to bebcheights.com/sports do. As the year progresses, lieve it will be, once teams will come up with again, a hostile and difsome past tendencies, but this is a fresh look at some ficult environment in which to play.

“It’s going to be a raucous crowd,” York said. “It’s of our new players.”

Saturday marks the beginning of a new season at always a challenge for us because their venue favors the Heights. As expected, York and his players are the home team. It’s a big crowd, lots of noise.”

Though Northeastern had a disappointing season especially eager for a chance to win their first game.

“For sure, this is the start of something,” York said. and failed to make the Hockey East tournament, York knows that the Huskies squad is different than this “There’s a lot of emotion going into that first week … but we are going to be very excited to start.”  year’s team.

DAVID GIVLER / HEIGHTS EDITOR

Senior Hannah Cerrone (right) and the No. 4 Eagles will face the No. 8 Terrapins tonight at Newton Campus Field.

D4

THE HEIGHTS

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Thursday, October 7, 2010

THE HEIGHTS

D5

Game is too soon, disrespectful

ON THE flip side

SETH FICHTELBERG

THE ISSUE:

In the upcoming Medal of Honor videogame, developer EA Games originally included an option for players to assume the role of a Taliban militant attacking U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan. However, EA was widely criticized for the option and the Pentagon even banned sales of the game on U.S. military bases. EA ultimately decided to drop the option and replace the Taliban with generically labeled “Opposing Forces.” Is the playable Taliban option educational or insensitive?

Option is thought-provoking “From the games out there ... nothing simulates being on a real op. Medal of Honor is going Last year’s wildly popular to be different,” a Tier 1 conCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 sultant states in a trailer for the was met with intense criticism game. The goal was not to idealfor the inclusion of the “No ize the war, as many opponents Russian” level, in which the claim. Rather, the studio aimed player joined a group of Russian to “put players in the boots of terrorists to massacre civilians today’s soldiers,” according to at an airport. During the openAmanda Taggart, a senior PR ing scene of the level, the player manager for the game. is told to “follow Makarov’s [the Furthermore, Meredith’s head of the terrorist organizaemotional outcry omits an tion] lead.” important detail: the Taliban is When the level loads, Ma- only playable during the multikarov and the player portion other terrorists of the game.

Video games have slaughter the Such matches been portraying civilians with are designed their high powcompetiplayers as Nazis for with ered weaponry. tion, and not years in competitive storytelling, in International outcry led Inmind. Video multiplayer modes finity Ward, the games have without incident. game’s develbeen portrayoper, to censor ing players as this content for releases in many Nazis for years in competitive nations. multiplayer modes without These versions had portions incident. Seth Schiesel of The or even all of the level removed, New York Times points out that obscuring the plot of the game the ever-popular Counterstrike for players in these countries. has had players assuming conMany chose to import the U.S. trol of generic terrorists since version.

2000. He writes, “The actual In what seems to be emergidentities of the combatants are ing as an autumn tradition, this no more meaningful than the year’s video game controversy choice of black and white in a involves the reboot of the Medal chess game.” of Honor series. The game first The rationale for the inclugarnered national attention sion of the Taliban is complex.

The developers were probwhen the game’s developers, Danger Close Games, anably motivated by a desire to nounced that the video game distinguish their product from would be set during the War in competing offerings, like the Afghanistan instead of World aforementioned Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. The best way War II, which has been a staple for the Medal of Honor franchise to do so, they reasoned, was to and the industry as a whole. push the envelope of what was The controversy really ignited, socially acceptable. It’s a tactic that has succeeded in the past. however, when it was further revealed that players would be Nine years ago, Mortal Kombat able to take control of Taliban became immensely popular in forces in online multiplayer arcades across America because games. it featured graphic depictions of violence. Modern Warfare 2 Criticism came quickly from the media. Fox News conducted sold 4.7 million units in the first an interview with Karen Mere24 hours despite, or perhaps dith, who lost her son in Iraq. “I because of, “No Russian.” just don’t see that a video game That is not to say that the developers were only motivated based on a current war makes any sense at all, it’s disrespectby profit, either. Though Danger ful,” she said.

Close Games was not trying to Far from disrespectful, “educate” anyone in the tradiDanger Close Games took pains tional sense, the inclusion of the Taliban was intended as a to treat the topic with all due gravity. The studio worked springboard for discussion: What closely with Tier 1 Military were our motivations for the war?

Consultants, special forces What are its consequences? How operators in Afghanistan, to is the war perceived by those in Afghanistan? Most importantly, ensure the game was aligned with actual experiences abroad. it places the player in the un-

DAVID COTE

comfortable position of being a member of the forces that defy the U.S. Often, it is easy to demonize our enemies in wartime.

Take the Japanese internment camps during WWII or the antiMuslim backlash after Sept. 11, for example. Medal of Honor offers a unique opportunity to see our enemies in a new light, as human beings who happen to fall on the other side of the ideological line.

As Jeff Brown, a spokesman for the game, told reporters, “I guess this is the same reaction that readers had when they opened All Quiet on the Western Front and read about a squad of German infantrymen in World War I.” The game’s publisher, Electronic Arts, recently stated that the Taliban had been removed from the online multiplayer, replaced by the generic “Opposing Forces.” What has changed? Effectively, all it has accomplished is to rob the game of a thoughtprovoking, creative statement.

David Cote is a Heights staffer.

He welcomes comments at marketplace@bcheights.com

The controversy surrounding the release of the new Medal of Honor video game, set for release on Oct. 12, is proof of an era in the development of video games that is both uncreative and disturbing. Desperate and unoriginal game developers have been moving in all the wrong directions to please their audiences, approaching this type of controversy rapidly over the past decade. In the misled minds of these designers, science fiction fantasies, historical settings, and any amount of interesting fictional environments can’t stand up to the real life battlegrounds our American soldiers and their allies encounter with every day. Game developer EA Games is deservedly under fire for its controversial “play as the Taliban option,” an idea that is neither educational nor acceptable and goes against every ounce of American patriotism pumping through the veins of our country’s citizens.

When Medal of Honor began as a historical video game series based in a World War II setting, controversy was nonexistent.

The game was, in fact, lauded for its historical accuracy in terms of weaponry and strategy.

However, as the franchise floundered around without success and used up all the World War II options they had, they came closer and closer to what we have today – a video game based on a war that is currently happening.

In the nicest terms, it is extremely insensitive for EA to produce such a game. The American soldiers in the game aren’t just historical soldiers, they represent the 140,000 U.S. and North American Treaty Organization (NATO) soldiers who are currently in Afghanistan fighting for our nation.

The concept of the game is tactless and totally ignores the feelings of those families in America who have fathers or brothers or

sons overseas. It is demeaning families who are struggling with to equate the daily struggles of the war in a more personal way. those soldiers to a simple game In a similar fashion, Canada played by teenagers. In real life, Defense Minister Peter MacKay a soldier can’t sign off for the told reporters that “he finds it night. In real life, there are no wrong that anyone, children in respawns. particular, would be playing the Beyond being insensitive to- role of Taliban.” ward the families, the option Defenders of the Taliban to play as the option claim Taliban is exit as “eduThe ‘Medal of Honor’ tremely unpadevelopers should have cational,” triotic. Hopewhile citing fully it hasn’t had far better judgment numerous slipped from other games in releasing a game the minds of that have inpertaining to a conflict cluded similar o u r c i t i ze n s that, nine options, such that is still so close to years ago, our as Call of America’s heart. c o u n t ry wa s Duty Modern in an uproar Warfare 2. against al-Qaeda and all of its In terms of education, there supporters, including the Tal- is no value to the play as the iban, for a heinous attack against Taliban option. Young Ameriour country. cans should not learn what it’s Every day, the Taliban are like to kill American soldiers. responsible for more and more While it is beneficial for them acts against the U.S. and its alto learn more about the Afghani lies. As U.K. Defense Secreculture, a video game is certary Liam Fox put it in a Washtainly not the right setting for ington Post interview, “At the that type of education. After hands of the Taliban, children all, video games are made for have lost fathers, and wives the pure entertainment of their have lost husbands.” Playing as audiences, not as informative the Taliban in a video game, or documentaries. EA believes even giving a player the option that the only reason they have to do so, is simply un-Americome under such heavy fire can. is because they were the first The simplest question for game to attribute the name TalEA Games is, “Why?” Why the iban to the forces, while other obsession with the current war? games used generic names. This The Medal of Honor game is just is not a simple misstep by the too soon. In 50 years, would a developers of Medal of Honor. game option like this run into They should have maintained the same controversy? Probthe same foresight the earlier ably not. But it is still 2010. games had and left the name The Medal of Honor developout from the get-go. In doers should have used far better ing so, they might have saved judgment in releasing a game the reputation of a game that pertaining to a conflict that is should be chastised by all still so close to America’s heart. American citizens. Perhaps it In recent months the game is time for game developers to has garnered much attention move in a more creative direcfrom the top officials of the tion and away from their obsesUnited States, Canada, and the sion with America’s current United Kingdom – a testawars and the environments our ment to its increasingly bad own soldiers struggle with day reputation. According to The in and day out.

Washington Post, the Pentagon Seth Fichtelberg is a guest colbanned the sale of the game umnist for The Heights. He welin any of its shops on military comes comments at marketplace@ bases, citing anti-American sentiments and the feelings of bcheights.com

PHOTO COURTESY OF GAMERINVESTMENTS.COM RACHEL GREGORIO / HEIGHTS PHOTO ILLUSTRATION

‘Medal of Honor’s’ reboot, planned for release Oct. 12, has come under fire for its “play as the Taliban” option.

Brazilian presidential election will go to runoff on Oct. 31

BY MICHELA GACIOCH Heights Staff

Brazil’s presidential election took place Sunday without any candidate securing the 50 percent of votes necessary to clinch the presidency. The two candidates with the highest percentage of votes, Dilma Rousseff and Jose Serra, plan to prolong their respective campaigns and go head-to-head in a runoff later this month. Until the elections are final, current president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will remain in the seat of power, a position he has held since 2002.

Lula, an enormously popular figure among Brazilians, has thrown his support behind the ruling Workers’ Party candidate Dilma Rousseff, recipient of 46.9 percent of the popular vote, whom he hand-picked as his former cabinet chief to manage Brazil’s flourishing economy. Lula told reporters that the days leading up to the runoff are another “30 days to fight” for his protege. Rouseff, the former leader in the election polls as well as a former Marxist and guerrilla leader, was expected to sweep the election, but a recent corruption scandal likely affected voters’ decisions.

Erenice Guerra, Lula’s chief of staff and successor of Rousseff, resigned Thursday amid a frenzy of local news reports that

accused her of participating in a special interest group run by her son in order to help businesses gain access to contracts and state bank loans for public works projects in exchange for money, some of which was allegedly used to help finance political campaigns.

Guerra is fervently denying the allegations, and maintains that the scandal is the underhanded work of the opposition party.

Despite the popularity of the ruling party, the combination of such a scandal and Rousseff ’s controversial views on abortion

in such a predominantly Catholic country most likely catalyzed her loss of the majority, and, consequently, the necessity of a runoff.

While the ruling Workers’ Party is distressed by such close election results, supporters of the 68-year-old opposition candidate Social Democrat Jose Serra, were thrilled by the news of the impending runoff. Serra, who received 32.6 percent of the popular vote, was a founder of Brazil’s Social Democrat party and served as health minister

to the country under President Fernando Henrique Cardoso from 1998 until 2002. As both candidates head into the runoff, it does not appear that either past successes or experience will be the factors that persuade voters.

Instead, citizens are focusing on the future of Brazil.

Valdeci Baiao da Silva, a native security officer, revealed that strong economic times had inspired him to believe in both his country and Lula as a leader, yet he voted against Rousseff in the recent election. “I think she

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION RESULTS

Politician

Dilma Rousseff

Jose Serra

Marina Silva

Faction

Worker’s Party

Social

Green

Percent Won

46.8%

32.6%

19.7% FELIPE DANA, ERALDO PERES / AP PHOTO

might even disappoint [Lula],” he told reporters. While he was able to place his trust in the opposition candidate, Serra, other citizens were unable to decide between either of the well-known candidates, thus Brazil’s third and less-popular political faction, the Green Party, gained momentum in the polls.

Green Party candidate, Marina Silva,who garnered 19.7 percent of the popular vote, will most likely affect the outcome of the runoff election. The 52-year-old former Amazon rubber tapper and one-time environment minister, although no longer in the election herself, will undoubtedly affect the voting decisions of her supporters, who include environmentalists, educated young professionals, and a group of anti-abortion evangelical Christians. Silva has made it clear that she plans on waiting at least 15 days to reveal whether she will back either candidate in the Oct. 31 vote.

Both Rousseff and Serra have already began pursuing her via telephone with the hope of convincing her of their respective party’s credibility. Alfredo Sirkis, Green Party director, described the upcoming runoff as a “spectacular result,” allowing the Greens to force the remaining candidates to focus on environmental issues, especially changes to the forestry code and the country’s view of

climate change. Silva’s supporters tend to have higher incomes and more education than the average Brazilian, and are more likely to support Serra than Rousseff in light of the recent ruling party scandal.

Christopher Garman, director for Latin America at the Washington-based researcher organization Eurasia Group, predicts that even without the support of the Green Party, Rousseff will become Brazil’s first female president. “Dilma is so close to winning that she doesn’t need many votes from Marina,” he stated.

Current president Lula agrees.

“I’m convinced the majority of people want continuity from the government,” he told reporters.

While Rousseff ’s lead in the percentage of votes does support this statement, it is unlikely that either candidate would alter the government drastically when considering the prosperous economic times the country is currently encountering. In either event, the presidential inauguration on Jan. 1, 2011, will be noteworthy. Whether the significance will be because of the installation of the country’s first female president or a result of the exchange of power from the Workers’ Party to the Social Democrat Party will not be determined until the runoff vote on Oct. 31. 

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Thursday, October 7, 2010

THE HEIGHTS

Correa’s attempt to quell protests leads to police escalation Ecuador, from D8

concern of political analysts that Correa would use the possible Although Correa, a leftist and coup to further consolidate his close ally of Venezuela’s presi- power. dent Hugo Chavez, has mainA day after the events in Ecuatained that the events of Sept. 30 dor, chancellors from the Union were an attempted of South America coup, some memNations (UNASUR) “I watched the bers of the media left for Quito with news and the have questioned instructions to supthe authenticity shootout between port President Corof Correa’s claims, rea and denounce the police over saying that the idea those who led and of a coup was exag- those were trying p a r t i c i p a t e d i n gerated and that potential coup to defend [Correa] the Correa is attemptd’etat. UNASUR, ing to make himself and those who were representing the look like a victim. of Argentina, trying to get him.” states Ecuadorian Bolivia, Chile, Con e ws p a p e r c o l lombia, Peru, Venumnists have ex- — Kelsey Kilponen ezuela, Uruguay, plained the events and Brazil, released A&S, ‘12 as a conspiracy of a press statement Studying abroad in c o n d e mning the the extreme right, Ecuador while opposition eve nts a n d a s newspaper columserting that Latin nists have written that Correa America would not tolerate put both Ecuadorian democracy attacks against democratically and himself at risk by supporting elected governments. In response problematic legislation. Media to any potential new threats, sources have cited Correa with UNASUR concluded that a new making conflicting statements breach of constitutional order about those behind the coup. Ec- would lead to the closing of fronuadorian newspapers have stated tiers, the suspension of trade and that Correa blames Fidel Araujo, air traffic, and the discontinuaa retired colonel and former head tion of energy services of the police, for the attempted One week after the incident, coup, while The Wall Street Jour- other troubling reports of the nal reported that Correa blamed events on Sept. 30 have emerged. former president Lucio Gutierrez In an opinion column, Wall Street with being responsible for the Journal editor Mary Anastasia events.

O’Grady cited two patients, two Adding to the international doctors, and one nurse at the confusion over the incident on hospital where Correa was allegSept. 30 was Fernando Cordero, edly entrapped as disputing that Congress president and member he was held against his will. They of Correa’s ruling Alianza party, insist that Correa was allowed to who announced on November 5 leave with an armed escort but that Congress would raise police refused it. Overall, while Ecuador and military salaries. And, in a appears to be politically stable positive turn of events, Correa for now, the events and repercusofficially dropped his threats sions of the incident will continue to dissolve Congress and rule to be contested.  by decree on Nov. 4, ending the

DANNY MARTINEZ

MATT PALAZZOLO

MIKE SALDARRIAGA

HILARY CHASSE

Could Hillary Clinton become Obama’s vice president for a possible second term?

That would be so wrong for so many reasons. And Joe Biden is so entertaining!

Yes, someone needs to answer the White House phone at 3 a.m.

Could she? Sure, but it would depend strongly on who she’s running against.

Which party is more to blame for the current hyper-partisanship?

I think it’s more of a product of mass media than anything.

Fox News. Rupert Murdoch and his minions are a party unto themselves.

The right-wing of the GOP. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen such contempt for discourse.

I would hope Obama is smarter than that, but maybe he thinks anyone is better than Biden.

Will China back down on recalibrating the yuan?

Yes, I am sure they are deathly afraid of Timothy Geithner.

China has a monopoly on U.S. bonds, so it could recalibrate our dollar instead.

Do you think American voters agree with Sarah Palin that abortion is an “essential” issue?

Liberal democracy is great because it has a “to each his own” philosophy on what matters to the voter.

Probably not, it’s tough to match the intelligent perspective of someone who reads all the newspapers.

Marketplace Editor

Asst. Marketplace Editor

D0LORES OCHOA / AP PHOTO

Ecuadorian police are protesting a recent benefits cut by their government.

Graphics Editor

Opinions Editor

Not unless they want to destabilize their economies and diplomatic relations.

Abortion has always been an extremely useful political tool. Why would it be any different with Palin?

It takes two to tango, but probably the GOP, who spawned the Tea Party demon.

The PRC is not really in the business of backing down.

American voters have demonstrated that they generally aren’t the savviest bunch.

PATRICK REALPE / AP PHOTO

Protestors outside a hospital held Ecuador’s president for over 10 hours.

Cuba offers release, exile to select political prisoners

BY GABRIELA LORIDO For The Heights

ADVERTISEMENT

According to leading human rights activists, Cuba’s government has offered early release to about a dozen inmatesso long as they go into exile. The islanders must chose between prison and their homeland. If such a deal is in fact realized, it would be the government’s second major release of political prisoners this year. While the Cuban government’s motives for implementing such actions are still uncertain, it might be viewed as an attempt to mend relations with the United States.

In recent days, agents from the Ministry of the Interior visited the inmates and proposed the conditions of their possible freedom, said Elizardo Sanchez, head of the Cuban Commission on Human Rights and National Reconciliation.

This past July, Cuban president Raul Castro agreed to the release of 52 political prisoners, including community organizers, human rights activists, agitators, and journalists who have defied state regulation on local papers.

This historical event was supported by officials from the Cuban Roman Catholic Church and Cardinal Jaime Ortega Alamino, archbishop of Havana, who supported the deal in favor of better conditions for prisoners of conscience. Since July, 39 prisoners have been released and sent to Spain with their families, with the exception of one who was exiled to Chile. With the remaining few awaiting tentative release, this could mean that all 75 of the top activists imprisoned during the “Black Spring,” a period of government crackdown on organized disobedience in March 2003, would be freed.

Cuba’s Roman Catholic cardinal, Jaime Ortega, reports that at least five of the prisoners who were given release under the July agreement are reluctant to leave. This may possibly harm the prospect of future releases. However, if all 52 are finally freed, the only other prisoner that will remain unreleased is a lawyer named Rolando

Jimenez Pozada. He is considered to be a “prisoner of conscience”

by Amnesty International after he was arrested in 2003 for dissidence, disrespect for the law, and unveiling government secrets.

While the number of political prisoners unacknowledged by the Cuban government is always up for debate, Sanchez released a list of about 105 other names.

Only about 40 of them, though, could be defined as nonviolent political prisoners, while others have been charged with more violent crimes, such as hijacking and murder. Sanchez’s list includes the name of three men: Francisco Reyes Rodriguez, Lazaro Avila Sierra, and Leudia Arce Romero.

They are serving life sentences for hijacking a plane from Cuba’s Isla de la Juventud in 2003. The one exception to the list was Pavel Hernandez, who was sentenced to six years in jail for attempting to flee the island illegally.

At least five of the 12 prisoners to be newly released are reluctant to accept the offer if it is finalized. According to a founder of the Ladies in White group, the prisoners say they refuse to be forced to move to Spain as a condition of the agreement, but that some say they will accept release solely for reasons related to their age and health. Hector Maseda, who will serve his full 20 years, has decided that he will remain on the island. His wife, Pollan, reports that many sectors of the internal opposition are charging the Cuban authorities with manipulating what is supposed to be a better situation for the prisoners and their families by granting their release only if they leave to Spain.

Berta Soler, spokeswoman for the Women in White, told reporters, “The government is applying psychological pressure to those remaining in prison because they want to see them out of the country.” Her husband, Angel Moya, is staying to serve his 20-year sentence.

Of the group of five prisoners who plan to turn down the release under such conditions, three men are suffering from critical health

FRANKLIN REYES / AP PHOTO

Raul Castro is the president of Cuba. issues. Among them is Pedro Arguelles Moran, who has arthrosis, advanced cataracts, and circulatory problems. The advanced age of some of the inmates is also a critical issue. Ramos, who at the age of 68 is the oldest of the group of 52 being released, is anxious to be freed but is worried about being forced to travel to Spain because he and his wife are too old, his wife told reporters. The remaining prisoners want to be released, but without the condition of having to leave Cuba. This includes Oscar Elias Biscet, who in absence received the Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush in 2007, and is still serving his 25-year sentence. In a telephone conversation from Biscet’s house in Havana, Biscet’s wife told reporters, “My husband has suffered many pains and health complications, but he is holding his ground. He is a man of his word.” The government’s refusal to release the prisoners who wish to stay on the island has caused their families much pain and anxiety.

Elizardo Sanchez told reporters that the release will allegedly take place during the first weeks of October. He has also added that there may be yet another release of a larger group of prisoners, but only under the condition that they leave Cuba. Therefore, the issue of potential future releases also depends on the European Union Council, who should meet this month to discuss the issue. However, this may not be a definitive priority for the EU in terms of global scope, says Joaquin Roy, director of the European Union Center at the University of Miami, told reporters. 

The Heights

Thursday, October 7, 2010

American cultural imperialism via globalization is in full force

D7

Pakistan left to deal with pressing issues Pakistan, from D8

michael saldarriaga / heights photo illustration

Globalization, from D8 way and experience multiple slices of American culture and business as though I had never left home, save for the British accents asking, ”What kind of sauce would you like, sir?”

It appears as though we freely export our culture. When I was in India, the young people I encountered watched Seinfeld and listened to Jay-Z. However, a distinction does exist between corporate and cultural exportation, and we must step back to examine this, especially as the next logical step is “cultural imperialism.”

Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines “globalization” as “the development of an increasingly integrated global economy marked especially by free trade, free flow of capital, and the tapping of cheaper foreign labor markets.” This definition does not include any mentioning of the tide of values, ideals, traditions, and thoughts, which follow the same current. To that end, “cultural imperialism” constitutes the processes involved in promoting a more powerful culture over a less known or desirable culture. Critics of the U.S. believe that the globalization in which we play a central role involves much more than the transportation and consumption of consumer goods.

They argue that we are also transporting our culture. In the same way as our American products, musicians, and television shows take precedence over the indigenous, so too does our culture usurp the existing ones. The impact of globalization in regard to culture has been viewed in a mostly negative light with the elimination of unique cultural identities, resulting

in an increasingly homogenized and westernized culture of consumption.

In a study, the DDB advertising agency found that Australians do not feel threatened by American dominance and rather resent the ways in which we discount their equally modern and sophisticated culture. Furthermore, people around the world feel, with some accuracy, that Americans are ignorant of worldly matters, isolationistic in their refusal to adopt practices like the metric system, and arrogant in the manner in which they impose their standards and regulations on other countries. This also has the effect of making our genuinely altruistic outreach seem economically motivated. On the other hand, countries that are fast approaching or have arrived at the global economy such as China, India, and Singapore, view our capitalistic nature positively.

They dislike, however, America’s tendency to “bully” economically inferior countries and subject them to incongruous marketing initiatives.

There are a number of reasons for this. The first and most commonly cited is the idea that Americans are convinced of the superiority of their culture and lifestyle and feel the need to fulfill the manifest destiny of American expansion. In addition, a combination of Protestant work ethic, luck, and circumstances has afforded our country some of the most powerful corporations in the world. Having exhausted the U.S. market, these groups of capable individuals seek international expansion as a means to an end. Supply chain advantages result in products that are generally of comparable quality but have lower prices (e.g. fast food). They are effec-

tively marketed, as products should be, and experience strong sales.

Furthermore, critics of globalization portray American government and corporations as indomitable entities that relentlessly enter markets, conver locals, and push out local businesses. In this view, corporations are the conquistadors cutting their way through the jungles of Central America. The fact remains that, in both instances, the recipient (the indigenous population) has “agency,” defined as “the capacity, condition, or state of exerting power.”

They are not passive mutes and have a choice whether to accept the newcomers and the changes if they are compatible with their culture.

For example, the opening of the first Kentucky Fried Chicken in India was met with opposition and protestors who burned chickens outside the establishment in retaliation. Speaking as someone who intends on going into advertising, marketing can only achieve so much against deep-rooted beliefs and values.

To rectify our deficiencies, perhaps our education system should stress our place in the global economy and that we are a part of a process rather than the sole leader of the world. In addition, developing countries can establish tariffs and quotas on American-produced goods to maintain the competitiveness of their local products. Perhaps we should all just start doing things like watching the BBC, an act that expanded my international knowledge to no end.

Ameet Padte is a staff columnist for The Heights. He welcomes comments at marketplace@bcheights.com.

border. Because of this, it would appear that Zardari is losing his grip on the populace. Allowing what many Pakistanis term as “an enemy of Islam” to engage in combat in their own country could potentially backfire, both politically and socially. However, many U.S. government officials have stated that they have the right to target terrorists who are arriving in Afghanistan through the Pakistani border. In addition, America has attempted to alleviate worries by trying to limit civilian casualties as much as possible. Levin said that there was a “significant improvement in accuracy,” but acknowledged that there would still be mistakes.

This escalated tension was on display last week when Pakistan closed a NATO supply route in protest over a NATO helicopter attack, that killed three Pakistani border guards. The foreign presence is becoming ever more evident in Pakistan, with four more attacks on stalled convoys since then.

It would appear that the interests of both the U.S. and Pakistani governments are not aligned at the moment.

While there is some concern, many do not view the present issues between the two as threatening. Daniel Markey, a Pakistani expert at the Council on Foreign Relations and a former State Department policy planner, is one of them.

“This is one more step in a drum beat toward a harder line against Pakistan, but it’s not, as far as I can tell, a fork in the road or something along those lines,” Markay told reporters.

“What we may be seeing increasingly, particularly in the counterterrorism community within this administration, is a greater willingness to push the envelope, because they have less patience with the prospect of actually transforming Pakistan’s strategic behavior.”

Furthermore, the Obama administration has dealt with complications arising from reports of former Prime Minister Pervez Musharraf ’s return from exile to Pakistan. Although Musharraf was forced to flee the country because of impeachment charges, there have been rumors of Musharraf gearing up for a 2013 presidential run. Domestic political observers are still skeptical as to whetherthink that Musharraf could drastically change the sociopolitical and economic climate in Pakistan. They believe he is restricted in the sense that he left the country with his own fair share of enemies, and they will be looking to pounce upon him when he returns.

Much to the chagrin of the Obama administration, it remains to be seen whether a political figure can arise and navigate the country through its perpetual state of chaos and maintain a solid relationship with the United States. n

Aaron Favila / ap photo

A lone Pakistani citizen examines an oil tank that was attacked by militants in Rawalpindi.

Election Central

Incumbent senators have good reason to dread midterms John Glynn According to the national media, a critical theme in this year’s midterm elections is said to be the furious anti-incumbent sentiment held by voters in places all across the nation.

The U.S. Senate seats in Utah, Arkansas, and Wisconsin are filled by senators who have held their posts for multiple six-year terms, and yet are at the mercy of their constituents this year to degrees very unlike any of their previous re-election bids.

Of the three races profiled here, the senate race in Utah has produced the most severe setback for an incumbent. Bob Bennett has been a senator for 18 years and was seeking the Republican nomination for a fourth term back in May 2010.

In a traditionally Republican state, Senator Bennett is the son of a former Republican senator from Utah, and from issue to issue is what some call a rock-ribbed conservative. A member of the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS) in heavily-Mormon Utah, he served as a LDS chaplain in the Utah National Guard. Bennett’s only serious challenge in past Senate elections occurred in his first bid for the seat, when he won the Republican primary by just two percentage points. Against Democratic opponents, Bennett has been a lock for victory in all three general elections for which he has been on the ballot.

Bennett’s vote in favor of the Wall Street bailout bill in

October of 2008 was used by fellow Republicans against him.

His support of the bailouts for American automakers in late 2008 also did not help his stature in Utah. At the state Republican Party convention in May 2010, Bennett could not get enough delegates to even qualify to further seek nomination. Only the two candidates with the most delegates are allowed to run in the Utah Republican Party primary, and Bennett finished a distant third.

The Senator was able to garner support from only a quarter of the delegates. Bennett’s defeat has been traced to a very active Tea Party organization at work in Utah. The founder of the Tea Party’s Utah wing stated at the convention in May, “The whole reason I started the Tea Party of Utah was because of Bob Bennett,” citing Bennett’s failure to keep his word that he would only serve two terms, as well as his inability to bring true change to Washington politics.

In another Senate race, Democrat Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas is seeking her third term and has endured plenty of flak already in her efforts to continue her tenure. Lincoln came to Washington in 1982 as an aid in an Arkansas Congressman’s staff, and 10 years later she defeated him for the same seat. After several terms in the House of Representatives, Lincoln handily won a seat from Arkansas in the U.S. Senate in 1998 with 55 percent of the vote.

Senator Lincoln’s plight stems from the unpopular and poorly timed decisions she has made in recent years. To the disappointment of many Arkansans, and like her Sen-

ate colleague Bennett, she voted in favor of the Wall Street bailout in 2008. Lincoln casted her vote in favor of President Obama’s stimulus package as well, further earning the ire of the more conservative and fiscally cautious elements of her state. Lincoln then alienated her more liberal supporters by taking a hard line stand against a public option in the healthcare bill crafted last year, then voted against the bill in its final format, joining Ben Nelson and Joe Lieberman as the critical votes in the Democratic caucus in the Senate who voted against the bill.

In June 2010, Senator Lincoln faced stiff primary competition from Lt. Gov Bill Halter. Halter ran on a more liberal platform than the Senator, courting labor union support and forcing a tight vote in the primary. Lincoln only won by a 52-48 percent margin. Sen. Lincoln trails her Republican opponent, John Boozman, by roughly 20 points, though she has trailed by as many as 40 in recent months.

Senator Russ Feingold of Wisconsin is far removed from enjoying the level of popularity he had just in 2008, when he even considered a run for the Oval Office. Seeking a fourth term, the Democrat is well-known for championing efforts to reduce the influence of particular special interest groups in Washington. The McCain-Feingold Bill, bearing the Senator’s name, is the latest significant attempt by Congress at campaign finance reform.

Senator Feingold’s time in Washington has been marked by a maverick approach to

important issues faced by the federal government. Recently, he voted against the Wall Street bailout bill with only 25 other senators. This last summer, he voted against the Financial Overhaul Bill because he felt that the legislation wasn’t doing enough to curtail the practices that led to financial institutions getting themselves in the position where the federal government needed to save them. His votes against bailouts as well as his vote against the financial overhaul and appeal to stricter regulation of big business, unpopular though it is in many circles, show his inclination to hold steadfast to principle. This principled stand, however, has cost him friends and support.

Like Bennett and Lincoln, Feingold has had to field serious questions about his length of term in office. At one point, the Senator seemed to lose his cool when answering a question about the fact that he has been involved in Wisconsin politics for nearly 30 years.

When asked if the Senator felt that his choice to be a career politician was a negative against him, Feingold replied, “If the question is, ‘Have I chosen a career as a legislator?’ the answer is yes. If somebody wants to put a label on it and call it a politician, that’s like saying a doctor is a quack or something. You can use a negative term for it if you want, but to me, public service is an honorable thing if you do it honorably.”

John Glynn is a staff columnist for The Heights. He welcomes comments at marketplace@bcheights. com.

Charles Dharapak / ap photo

Charles Dharapak / ap photo

Harry Hamburg / ap photo

Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas (top), Russ Feingold of Wisconsin (middle), and Bob Bennett of Utah (bottom). All three will face competitive reelection races.

MARKETPLACE THE HEIGHTS

Thursday, October 7, 2010

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010

MARKET REPORT

FROM THE BLOGOSPHERE

American cultural hegemony

AMEET PADTE COURTESY OF ETFTRENDS.COM

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If you do find yourself with a little extra in your pocket after working all summer long, investing in exchangetraded funds, more commonly known in the stock market world as ETFs, can be a very lucrative idea.

I know, I know–a long wordPadte and a –Ameet fancy acronym are kind of scary, Interested in reading more? Checkbut there’s no reason to at worry. out the entire article www.An ETF is defi ned as being a fund that tracks bcheights.com/marketplace/thean index, but can be traded like a road-less-traveled stock. See? There’s nothing to be scared of when it comes to ETFs. ETFs offer a combination between stocks and mutual funds. While ETFs are commonly followed and traded on the market, they offer the same kind of solace that mutual funds do through investing in general areas/ sectors of the market. ETFs, however, do not have the lofty minimum investments, the maintenance fees, or the tax disadvantages associated with mutual funds. Instead, ETFs are treated just like stocks with no minimums or maintenance fees.

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Check out the entire column at theb-line.tumblr.com

and several banks were robbed. Due to safety concerns, schools and businesses were closed, and people were advised to stay home to avoid unchecked criminal behavior.

Kelsey Kilponen, A&S ’12, is currently studying abroad in Ecuador and witnessed some of the events described by the media. “I watched the news and the shootout between the police over those who were trying to defend [Correa] and those who were trying to get him,” Kilponen said, adding that she had been told that three police officers had been killed by rubber bullets. Confirming reports of widespread criminal activity, Kilponen said, “I was a little nervous and I wasn’t able to leave my house because there was no police in the streets and people were being robbed left and right.”

Those who know me know that despite being a finance major, I intend to pursue a career in advertising. I would ideally love to work in international brand strategy, helping corporations convey a unified and consistent message across multiple cultures, languages, and continents.

My interest in this field was piqued when I began watching Formula One racing. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the sport, F1 is the highest class of automobile racing in the world with an audience of more than 600 million viewers. The level of technology and competition is truly staggering and requires a commensurate budget. For instance, top-tier teams like Ferrari and McLarenMercedes can spend more than half a billion dollars every year with such blue chip sponsors as Vodafone, Diageo, UBS, Hugo Boss, Mobil 1, Bridgestone, Hilton Hotels, TAG Heuer, Siemens, and Red Bull. All of these prestigious and powerful multinational corporations participate in this sport despite almost negligible viewership in the United States. Why is that? The answer must be because we are not nearly as important as we think.

Are we, though? A year ago, I recounted my experiences in India.

I flew there in a Boeing, was ferried from the airport in a Ford, worked at the Leo Burnett advertising agency (based in Chicago), ate meals with Heinz ketchup, and sat at a Dell computer, running Windows software with an Intel processor. I also reflected upon an epiphany in Piccadilly Circus in London when a cursory examination of my surroundings revealed that McDonald’s, Burger King, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Apple, Banana Republic, GAP, and Bose were all highly accessible. Within a minute, I could step through a door-

See Ecuador, D6

See Globalization, D7

DOLORES OCHOA / AP PHOTO

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa was rescued in dramatic fashion by loyal army troops after a standoff with protesting police forces.

Police protest in Ecuador

President Correa held hostage in hospital, rescued by army

BY ANDREW MITTEN For The Heights

On Sept. 30, Ecuador declared a state of emergency as protests by police and military members led to nationwide unrest and accusations of a coup d’etat. The Ecuadorian police, currently protesting a recent benefits cut, are accused of surrounding a hospital where Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa was being treated. He was held hostage for over 10 hours before a dramatic rescue by army troops. Correa claims to have been verbally and physically threatened during a visit to police barracks, and then to have gone to the hospital for treatment after inhaling tear gas while in the barracks. After a dramatic showdown at the hospital, the army emerged with a safe Correa, ending the president’s entrapment. Correa, an economist educated

in the United States, assumed power in 2007 as a member of the Alianza political party and was reelected for a second term in 2009. The unrest in Ecuador follows an unfortunate trend for the nation, as no Ecuadorian president has finished a full term since 1996.

Most media outlets have reported that the trouble began in Ecuador early Thursday when military and national police walked off the job in protest of the wage and benefit cuts. The situation began to spiral out of control as members of Ecuador’s air force blocked off the runway at the international airport in Quito. Surrounding cities joined in protest throughout the day. The police continued violent activity, including taking over government buildings, setting cars on fire, and emitting tear gas.

Without a police force, looting, roadblocks, and rioting became widespread

Pakistani-U.S. relations threatened by war effort

IN THE NEWS

Pakistan has seen its fair share of tragedies in the past several years–the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, the resignation of then Prime Minister Pervez Musharraf, and the severe floods that have ravaged much of the nation. Current President Asif Ali Zardari has been no stranger to criticism during his time in office. The assassination of his wife, Bhutto, in 2007, left Zardari in a precarious political situation. Eventually, he ran for president as a member of the People’s Party and was victorious. Since then, Pakistan has ahd its share of difficulties. In terms of foreign relations, recent militant attacks on NATO-

backed supplies have questioned the legitimacy of U.S.-Pakistani relations. On Monday, militants set 20 NATO oil tankers aflame in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad, and six people were reported dead. This was the second of the tank attacks, with the other coming on the previous Friday. Taliban militants attacked 27 NATO supply trucks in a southern province of Pakistan, burning them as well.

These attacks, coupled with the complaints regarding American drone strikes, have drawn the ire of several top U.S. officials.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin (DMichigan) lashed out against the Pakistani government, claiming that, “they have gone after some terrorist targets inside Pakistan,

but the ones they go after are the ones that threaten the Pakistan government.” His words echo the Obama administration’s view, that Pakistan has not been as forthcoming about its role in counterterrorism as it should be. President Obama has consistently stated that in order for the war in Afghanistan to be considered a success, Pakistan must play a significant role.

This strained relationship with Pakistan has led the United States to attempt to regain control over the situation. In the past several weeks, the CIA has ratcheted up missile attacks against high-ranking al-Qaeda operatives, many of whom reside in areas around Pakistan’s MOHAMMAD SAJJAD / AP PHOTO

See Pakistan, D7

Drivers look on at NATO containers. In an act of protest, Pakistan recently shut down a vital U.S.-NATO supply route.

POLITICS

ECONOMICS

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Faisal Shazad, who attempted to detonate a car bomb in Times Square earlier this year, was sentenced to life in prison. Though he confessed, Shazad adamantly defended his actions.

The Treasury Department reports that the TARP bailouts will cost 85 percent less than expected. The bill originally allocated $350 billion, but will end up costing only $50 billion.

The Department of Energy announces a plan to have solar panels installed on the White House. The panels will be used to power the hot water and electricity of the First Family.

The Supreme Court begins hearing arguments in Snyder v. Phelps, a case involving the picketing of a military funeral by religious protestors.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke expresses concern over the current budget deficit, warning that the country is on an unsustainable spending path.

A federal judge fines Apple $625 million for copyright infringement. The specific violation involves the display of documents on a Mac, iTouch, iPhone, or iPad.

I NSIDE MARKE TP L A C E

THIS ISSUE

On the flip side

400

Number of children killed by lead poisoning in Nigeria since March.

The lead came from gold extraction, a process carried out locally in homes.

140

Millions of dollars spent by California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman. The former eBay CEO has mainly used her own wealth.

This week On The Flip Side will explore both sides of the issue of roleplaying the Taliban in video games....................................... D5

IN QUOTES

Heights Staff

IN NUMBERS

BY KARN KHUNGER

“ I am not a witch ...

I am you. ” – Christine O’Donnell Delaware Senatorial Candidate in her latest campaign ad

Election Central..................................D7 Cuban Political Prisoners.....................D6