DANCE ENSEMBLE
O’NEILl V. bAPST flattened
arts and review
FEATURES
sports
The student dance group drew huge crowds for its stunning fall show ‘Illusion’, A10
Which of the two main campus libraries is the better one?, B10
Eagles got dominated in 5-0 loss to cross-town rivals Boston University, B1
Monday, November 14, 2011
Vol. XCII, No. 43
BC commemorates Veterans Day with mass, ceremony Col. David Clark recognizes service and sacrifice of vets By Tanner Edwards Heights Staff
The Boston College community commemorated the service and sacrifice of the nation’s veterans Friday morning with a campus mass in St. Igntatius Church and an honorary ceremony on the Burns Lawn. The day’s proceedings began with a Veterans Remembrance Mass presided by Rev. Anthony Penna, S.J., and veterans Deacon John St. George, BC ’67, Deacon William Blazek, S.J., and Rev. Paul McNellis, S.J.
In his homily, Penna related a story from John McCain’s experience as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, touching on the unique patriotism of one of McCain’s fellow soldiers. The soldier, throughout his time in captivity, sewed together an American flag from uniform threads, repeating the task even after being brutally beaten for the act. Penna encouraged the congregation to turn that sort of devotion demonstrated in military service to engendering peace at home. “Are you as dedicated to the gospel values as you are to the values of this country?” Penna said. “That commitment has the power to transform the world as only God can imagine.” The commemoration continued on the
Homecoming rounds out midterm season
See Veterans Day, A4
Graham beck / heights staff
Over 1,000 students (above) made their way to the Sheraton Boston for the annual UGBC-sponsored Homecoming dance last Friday.
Students celebrate 11:11 at the Sheraton Boston By Michael Caprio Editor-in-Chief
photo courtesy of newton patch
Veterans (above) gathered on the Burns Library Lawn to commemorate Veterans Day.
At 9 p.m. last Friday, over a thousand students shuffled into the Sheraton Boston’s Republic Ballroom. By 11:10 p.m., the throng of semi-formally adorned bodies was in full sway on the dance floor – a space normally used for trade shows and corporate conventions. A woman in a red dress danced in the corner, alone; a man was kissed by the French fry buffet. At
Politics of the Obama Generation
By Mary Rose Fissinger For The Heights
By Ana Lopez Heights Editor
See Obama Generation, A4
to get everyone together. What’s great about homecoming is that you know everyone’s going to be there. As seniors, we felt obligated to go. We’re not going to be able to do this again.” The dance – one of the largest events on the UGBC calendar – comes amid a University investigation into the campus’ binge drinking culture and a moratorium on all
See Homecoming, A4
Allies host Vincent Pryor for annual Gay in Athletics event
Despite disapproval, support still in polls Despite frustration with a struggling economy and what many feel is a lack of answers from the current administration, Millennials’ re-election backing of President Barack Obama is slated to continue through the 2012 presidential election, though less than half approve of his performance thus far. Referred to as the “Obama Generation,” studies coming out of the Pew Center report that Millennials (Americans currently aged 18 to 30) “back Barack Obama for re-election by a wide margin in matchups against both Mitt Romney and Rick Perry, just 49 percent approve of his job performance, down 24 points since February 2009.” David Hopkins, a professor in the political science department, attributes being in a lower income bracket and having socially liberal leanings to the younger generation’s widespread support of Obama. He also mentioned diversity as a major contributor. Reports by the Young Democrats of
11:11, the balloons came down. This year’s Homecoming dance, courtesy of the UGBC, served as a breath of air for many students, marking the end of midterm season and coinciding with the football team’s third win of the fall. “It was a tough couple of weeks with midterms, but it was a nice event to get all your girlfriends together,” said Ji Yoon Chung, an RA in Williams Hall and CSOM ’12. “Everyone has different schedules and it’s tough
annie budnick / heights staff
Students participate in BC Splash, continuing the motto, ‘Education for students by students.’
Graduate students join BC Splash effort this semester By Caroline Kirkwood For The Heights
If only the list of classes for spring registration included courses like “Political Structures and Policies in the World of Harry Potter” and “How to Hack Life: A Guide to Hyper Productivity.” Unfortunately, this is not the case. But over 800 local high school students were given the opportunity to explore these unconventional yet informative classes through BC’s third annual Splash event, held yesterday. Splash is a one day event where undergraduate and, for the first time this year,
graduate students teach classes in their areas of interest to local high school students. BC Splash is rooted in its message “education for students by students,” aiming to create a stimulating learning environment for high school students. Hanyin Cheng, president of Education for Student by Students (the group that runs BC Splash) and A&S ’12, said, “To me, one of the goals of Splash is to instill excitement in learning for high school students, who are often not allowed a lot of freedom to take classes that they are passionate about, sometimes becoming disillusioned
See Splash, A4
Former Texas Christian University linebacker Vincent Pryor recounted his coming-out experience at the Allies’ annual Gay in Athletics event, held in Fulton Hall last Thursday. From his experiences as a young boy growing up in southern Texas, to the moment he came out to his team in 1994, which preceded the self-labeled “best game of [his] career,” in which he set the team record for most sacks in one game,
graham beck / heights staff
Vincent Pryor (above), former Texas Christian University linebacker, told his coming out tale.
Pryor shared the process through which he was able to become open about his homosexuality. He began by calling his story a “What If?” story, saying that he frequently wonders how his football career would have been altered if he had come out earlier. He then told a story of one particular instance at TCU that kept him in the closet. In 1992, a new coaching staff took over the football team. Soon after, the defensive coordinator came into the locker room where all the players were seated and asked, pointing at one of the players, “Are you a homosexual?” Pryor re-enacted the moment, pretending to be the coach and pacing around the front of the room. He pointed at someone else. “Are you a homosexual? I will not have any homosexuals disgracing my team.” Pryor said he remembered being terrified that someone on the team knew he was gay and had told. “That forced me further into the closet,” he said. He then went on to recount his experiences with homophobia starting from a young age. He told of a party he went to as a fourth or fifth grader. He and his friends were playing spin-the-bottle, and the person explaining the rules said that if a boy spun the bottle and it landed on another boy, he would kiss the girl sitting next to that boy. Pryor recalls saying, “I want to kiss the boy if it lands on the boy.”
See Pryor, A4
TopTHREE
The Heights
Monday, November 14, 2011
things to do on campus this week
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the
BC vs. New Hampshire Today Time: 7 p.m. Location: Conte Forum
Bring your friends and join “Donahue’s Disciples” as they cheer on the Boston College men’s basketball team as they take on New Hampshire. The Eagles will take on the MASCOT in Conte Forum at 7 p.m.
Panel Discussion on Satire as News
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Tuesday Time: 7:30 p.m. Location: Higgins 300 Listen to a panel discussion about the reliability of satire as a news source with Tom Bodett, a professor at Boston University.
Take Charge Live! sponsored by MONEY
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Wednesday Time: 6:30 p.m. Location: Murray Room
Stop by this event, sponsored by MONEY magazine, which will feature MONEY editors in a live Q&A discussion on smart investing.
University
In s w e N
Professor walks out of class after learning no students brought snacks As reported by The Sacramento Bee, a professor of psychology at Sacramento State University refused to teach class and walked out of the classroom after learning that the student slated to bring snacks for the day failed to bring them. George Parrott, the professor, claims that he emphasized the importance of the snacks in his syllabus, which outlined appropriate snacks to bring. The professor claimed that the snacks were a pivotal way to encourage group collaboration. However, students have claimed that it denied them of time to review for their midterm.
On Campus BC Law assistant dean’s organization, Matthew 25, completes new home Matthew 25, an organization that provides rental housing to needy families based on the message of the Bible passage Matthew 25:34-40, recently acquired a new renovation project home on Chatham Street in Worcester. Rev. Frederick Enman, S.J., who is the assistant dean of students and chaplain of the Boston College School of Law and executive director of Matthew 25, said he spends three days working at BC and two days of the week at the organization. The new Chatham house, which marks the ninth renovation in Worcester, will be rented for $1,000 a month. The Louise and Fred Enman house, as it is called, will be occupied by a family of four, which was chosen by the Matthew 25 board and will move in after inspections are complete. The family will pay one third of its income toward rent, and the rest will be paid by the Worcester Housing Authority Matthew 25 has also completed one renovation in the Dorcester section of Boston.
Local News Second annual Arts & Crafts Fair held in Brighton Center, Saturday Brighton held its second annual Arts & Craft Fair in Brighton Center on Saturday. As reported by The Boston Globe, organizers said that the theme for the fair was to encourage people to ‘think outside of the [big] box’ for their holiday shopping. More than 30 exhibitors sold jewelry, decorative bags, greeting cards, ceramics, clothing, and other wares in the Veronica Smith Center’ and in the Brighton-Allston Heritage Museum. The fair was sponsored by the BrightonAllston Historical Society.
BCSSH holds annual Sex Toy Bingo By Andrew Millette For The Heights
graham beck / Heights staff
Organizers of Sex Toy Bingo, sponsored by BCSSH, facilitating the annual event in the basement of Roggie’s. said. At the end of the night, all of 22 prizes had been taken by a very competitive and enthusiastic crowd. “While a large part of sexual health is safety related, an equally large part is expressing your sexuality in a healthy manner,” Parry said. “Our event is one way to do this because it gives people a chance to discuss or ponder an area of their
lives that they may not usually focus on.” Some questions asked by BCSSH’s emcees did focus on the more traditional aspects of sexual health. Questions like, “While engaging in safer sex, it is important to realize that there are more than this many sexually transmitted diseases,” covered this topic. (The answer was 30).
Parry said another purpose for the event was to “raise awareness about how sexual health can be fun by embracing your sexuality.” Other questions such as, “A healthy sex life improves what part of the body? [Answer: the heart]” met this end. Regardless of the type of question, Sex Toy Bingo was a success because it started con-
versations about sexual health. “Everyone was getting really into learning new facts, not just winning bingo,” Parry said. Attendees of the event left Roggie’s well informed about many subjects of sexual health, including sexual assault prevention, STI awareness and protection, and general sex toy information. They also left after a night full of conversation about topics they may not have felt comfortable discussing otherwise. Though BCSSH does not have any other events planned for the immediate future, the crowd at Roggie’s will certainly look forward to them. Students showed up in numbers large enough to fill the basement, yelled out answers to all the questions, and scooped up the t-shirts that BCSSH provided at the end of the night. BCSSH hopes that the content discussed during Sex Toy Bingo will affect an audience much larger than the one that showed up on Thursday night. Parry said that part of the reason for hosting an eye-opening, unique event like Sex Toy Bingo is that “even if people don’t personally choose to attend the event, they’ll pass the message along.” n
Police Blotter
Voices from the Dustbowl
11/09/11-11/11/11
“What is your favorite Thanksgiving food?”
Wednesday, Nov. 9
Department did not respond.
5:53 p.m. - A report was filed regarding an injured party in Newton who was transported to a medical facility.
9:19 p.m. - A report was filed regarding an underage, intoxicated BC student at Robsham Theater who was transported to St. Elizabeth’s Hospital via Armstrong Ambulance.
6:23 p.m. - A report was filed regarding found property in Higgins Hall. The owner was identified and they were notified to retrieve their property at BCPD headquarters. 10:53 p.m. - A report was filed regarding four unidentified males who were acting in a suspicious manner. Upon arrival officers stopped and identified nine males who stated that they were currently students at Boston University and that they had been sent to Boston College as part of the process of pledging to a fraternity. Confiscated from one of the individuals were three cans of spray paint. The officers did not observe any signs of vandalism in the area. All of the individuals were escorted off campus.
Thursday, Nov. 10 12:56 a.m. - A report was filed regarding a suspicious person in O’Neill Library who was identified. Due to the subject’s behavior they were issued a trespass warning and escorted off campus. 4:22 a.m. - A report was filed regarding a fire alarm activation in The Gate. The cause of the alarm could not be determined. There were no signs of smoke or fire and all was in order. The Boston Fire
“At my house we eat Indian food.” —Arjun Gajulapalli, A&S ’14
11:42 p.m. - A report was filed regarding a suspicious circumstance at 129 Lake Street. An investigation revealed the problem which was corrected.
Friday, Nov. 11 1:42 a.m. - A report was filed by regarding an ill student in Cushing Hall who was transported by Armstrong Ambulance to St. Elizabeth’s Emergency Room for further medical treatment and evaluation.
“Stuffing.” —Megan O’Day, A&S ’15
1:59 a.m. - A report was filed regarding a personal safety escort which was provided to a student who reported being off-campus in an unsafe location. 4:36 a.m. - A report was filed regarding assistance provided to the Cambridge Police Dept. with a student who reported being sexually assaulted while at an establishment within their jurisdiction. The BCPD sexual assault unit will continue to provide assistance to C.P.D. with the investigation and services to the student.
—Source: The Boston College Police Department
63° PM Showers 54°
Tuesday
66° AM Showers 50°
wednesday
58° Showers 40°
“Stuffing.” —Megan Collins,
48° Partly Cloudy 33°
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 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 Taylour Kumpf, 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 Paul Sulzer, 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 Darren Ranck, Arts and Review Editor, at (617) 552-0515, or e-mail arts@ 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 Michael Caprio, Editor-in-Chief, at (617) 552-2223, or e-mail editor@ bcheights.com. CUSTOMER SERVICE Delivery To have The Heights delivered to your home each week or to report distribution problems on campus, contact Dan Ottaunick, 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) 2011. All rights reserved. “Turkey.” —Bobby Poillucci, A&S ’14
CSOM ’15
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Thursday night, Boston College Students for Sexual Health (BCSSH) packed the basement of Roggie’s for its annual Sex Toy Bingo event. Jessika Parr y, president of BCSSH and A&S ’14, described the importance of the event. “While [BCSSH] is known for its distributions on College Road, as an organization we do a lot more. This event is meant to showcase some of the other endeavors of BCSSH.” At the event, every bingo player in attendance received a mat that contained the answers to a variety of fill-inthe-blank or multiple-choice questions about sexual health. When a question was asked, any player was allowed to shout out the answer. Once the correct answer was found, any player who had the answer in one of the spaces on his or her map placed an M&M in this space, trying to complete a bingo to win a prize. The prizes, as indicated in the title of the event, were sex toys. “We’re trying to eliminate the taboo connotation associated with sex toys,” Parry
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CORRECTIONS Please send corrections to editor@bcheights.com with ‘correction’ in the subject line.
The Heights
Monday, November 14, 2011
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Obama VFA encourages entrepreneurs stands as New program launches to provide other postgraduate options best option By Samantha Costanzo For The Heights
Sean Talia For those of us who haven’t spent the past few years living in a bomb shelter, it’s common knowledge that the grassroots efforts and overwhelmingly enthusiastic support of collegeage students helped get President Barack Obama elected to the presidency in 2008. After all, two thirds of people aged 18 to 29 (that’s a record, folks) voted for the man. Has much changed since 2008? Not really, according to the Pew Research Group’s most recent study. According to the study, the Millenial generation (people born 1981-1993) still favors Obama by a margin of 26 percent for the upcoming 2012 election. That shouldn’t be surprising, despite the disappointment Obama has proved to be for so many of us. The study also showed that Millenials have more trust in the government than any other age group, are most likely to identify themselves as liberal, and are least likely to say that the “government has too much control of daily life.” Of course, this isn’t to say that we young folk are enamored with Obama in the same way we were a few years ago. His approval rating was an alarmingly low 38 percent last month, and is still hovering around a meager 43 percent, the worst for an incumbent president during the November before the next election, ever. People expected foreign policy to shy away from the neoconservative approach of good ol’ George B. and Dicky C., and thought the unemployment rate would return from its trip to the stratosphere. Neither of those happened, obviously – the number of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan skyrocketed for a time, and many of us seniors will likely be without jobs next year. Imagine the prospects for those without degrees. How can Obama expect us to once again give him our vote of confidence a year from now? Simple: It’s better than voting for anyone the GOP has on offer at the moment. The list of names makes one shudder from horror: Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Michelle Bachmann, Ron Paul, Rick Santorum, and Jon Huntsman. Romney, the man for whom the site www.mittromneyflipflops.com was invented? Cain, who has a new sexual assault accusation leveled against him every week? Bachmann, the woman who said Iraqis should be grateful to the United States for what we did for them, and that they should repay us with their oil revenues as compensation? Perry, that governor from Texas who … well, actually I can’t remember anything he’s done. Oops. Can you imagine if any of these people were to represent the people of the U.S. as their president? That any of them hold any kind of office is bad enough, but thinking about such people in the White House is downright terrifying. When it comes to choosing who faces Obama next year, Republicans probably won’t be selecting the candidate who represents the GOP best, but rather the one who causes them to lose their faith in humanity the least. Such is American politics, however. Most people, especially people our age, don’t have the time or the energy to research every candidate’s positions on all the issues, so they just do the next best thing instead: They look at pictures of candidates and how well they speak in front of a camera. If that’s really the case, can there be any doubt as to who will have our support come next November?
Sean Talia is a staff columnist for The Heights. He welcomes comments at editor@bcheights.com.
Teach for America has matched 33,000 recent college graduates with teaching positions in lowincome schools since its inception 11 years ago. Now, Venture for America (VFA) hopes to do the same thing with a different kind of college graduate. “The first step for many college graduates is not directly in the start-up world,” said Andrew Yang, founder and president of VFA. “It’s toward a more established company or professional services environment. I think right now students are groping for an alternative professionally.” That alternative comes in the form of VFA, which hopes to create 100,000 jobs by 2015 by recruiting recent college graduates, or “fellows,” to work at start-up companies in low cost cities like New Orleans, Detroit, and Providence for two years. After its inaugural year, VFA hopes to expand to Cincinnati and Las Vegas. The organization will officially launch this summer. Yang hopes to place 50 fellows in start-up businesses and has received 1,080 applications, 10 of which are from Boston College, since VFA started accepting applications in August. According to its website, VFA fellows will train at VFA’s Training Institute at Brown University
prior to their placement, receive a salary up to $38,000, and participate in lectures, assignments, and other enrichment activities over the course of their two-year placement. While most of the companies VFA has partnered with are technological in nature, Yang stresses that anyone with a passion for entrepreneurship and innovation can find an opportunity through VFA. “We’re looking to generate United States jobs so we’re looking for companies that could conceivably hire lots of people even after the fellow is placed,” Yang said. “Those companies tend to be innovative and have a tech bent…even if you are an internet company, you need a very smart econ or history major to help you build a sales channel or develop your social media.” According to a recent study by Dunn & Bradstreet, the number of small businesses in the U.S. has actually grown since the beginning of the recession. The study estimates that there were about 23 million small businesses in the U.S. as of 2010, “the highest percentage of startups in more than a decade.” For VFA, this news means that there are now many businesses looking to hire Yang’s “best and brightest.” “I started a dot com during the first bubble and saw just how difficult it was to start a company from the ground up,” Yang said. “I
was always looking for very talented, enterprising young people to hire.” Now, he thinks other businesses will be looking to do the same thing. Companies that have already pledged to partner with VFA include Audiosocket, a company that licenses independent music for use in videos, ads, and games, and Drop the Chalk, a company that strives to create technologies that will improve learning and teaching experiences in the classroom. After fellows’ two-year placements are over, Yang hopes that many of them will be hired for more permanent positions by the companies they worked with. Those that are not – or who choose to take a different path – may end up starting businesses of their own, also helping to create jobs in America. But Yang stresses that while job creation is a major goal of VFA, providing choices and opportunities for graduates is just as important. “Our goal is to make it so that seniors from national universities like Boston College are able to have genuine choices,” he said. “Right now we think … that for too many college seniors there are very default paths that aren’t actually being affirmatively chosen. We want people to be able to more carefully consider their first step, because what people do from places like BC is important for everyone nationally.” n
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VETERAN’S DAY CELEBRATIONS
OBAMA’S PRESIDENCY
This past Friday, people across the country celebrated Veterans Day to commemorate millions of men and woman who served or are currently serving in our nation’s armed forces. Historically, the day was originally called Armistice Day, and Nov. 11th was purposely chosen to pay homage to the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, which is the date of the armistice of World War I. The first Veterans Day celebrations began in 1919 during the presidency of Woodrow Wilson, but the day was not declared by Congress as an official holiday until 20 years later. The name was changed to Veterans Day in 1954, which also marked the beginning of the holiday’s focus on celebrating all veterans instead of just those who served in World War I. Throughout the United States, celebrations take place in the form of parades and remembrance events, often taking places in iconic locations like the Arlington National Cemetery, which is the site of the annual national Veterans Day ceremony. This year, all veterans were granted free admission to war museums, like the National World War II Museum in New Orleans, which hosted a Celebration of Heroes to honor all of the veterans who came to the museum. Major cities like New York and San Diego both hosted large Veterans Day parades. The San Diego Veterans Day Parade included a special commemoration for Desert Storm Veterans, many of whom participated in the event as an Honorary Grand Marshal. In New York City the Veterans Day Tribute included a performance by the New York City Veterans Day Band of Pride who honored the victims of September 11th attacks. The high profile mass band performance took place in Times Square, and was followed by the 92nd New York City Veterans Day Parade, which marched right afterwards.
As college students, we represent Obama’s target voting audience at the commencement of his campaign for the Presidency, which is reflected in recent polls that show that the majority of college-aged students are leaning towards libertarian ideals but remain fiscally conservative. Here’s a look back at a few of the Obama Administrations’ landmarks since he became president: - Instated enforcement for equal pay for women - Set limits on the access to the White House for lobbyists, and limits on White House Aides who work for lobbyists after their tenure - Removed restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research - Granted new federal funding for science and research labs across the country - Enforced legislation citing that States are permitted to enact federal fuel efficiency standards before federal ones - Increased spending on infrastructures, such as roads, power plants, and bridges - Ended former President Bush’s stop-loss policy, which kept soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan past their enlistment date - Put an end to the media blackout on the coverage of the return of fallen soldiers. In effect, the media is now allowed to cover fallen soldiers pending observance to respectful rules and approval from family. - Created a financial and banking rescue plan - Closed secret detention facilities in Eastern Europe and elsewhere across the world - Gave funding for highspeed, broadband Internet access to schools, as well as school construction - Phased out the prison at Guantanamo Bay - Created a long-term development plan for a national energy grid with renewable sources of energy, for cleaner and more efficient energy production -Anna Patrick n
Charity: water raises funds and informs By Katherine McClurg Heights Editor
sang lee / heights staff
BC Talks, modeled after the popular TED Talks series, is a student lecture series brought to campus by the organizers of BC Splash featuring 14 student lectures, continuing tonight at 5:50 in Robsham Theater.
Around the world there are currently one billion people without clean water to drink. Boston College Charity: water is a new campaign on campus aiming to inform people about the global water crisis and raise money to build a well in Ethiopia. At World Youth Day in Madrid last year, Kimmi Vo, CSOM ’14, participated on a seven-day hike from Loyola to Javier. While walking with the group, she was given water three times a day, but the extensive heat and rugged terrain led many on her trip to experience severe dehydration and heatstroke. “For the first time I experienced what it was really like to be that thirsty – it’s something no one should have to go through,” Vo said. “When I found out that one in eight people don’t have clean water, I knew I wanted to do something.” Millions of people, mainly women and children, in developing countries walk up to three hours a day to get water. The water they gather often comes from swamps, ponds, or rivers that are highly contaminated. “I can’t imagine what it is like to not have enough water and on top of that the only water you can get being dirty,” Vo said. With a group of other passionate students, Vo is bringing the mission of the organization, Charity: water, to BC. The nonprofit company aims to bring clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. One hundred percent of donations go directly to funding water projects. This enabled Charity: water to provide clean water to over two million people in 19 countries since it was founded five years ago, but there are still millions without. “The majority of us at BC have never known what it is really like
to be thirsty,” Vo said. “Here we can simply turn on the sink or grab a bottle of water; so many of us take for granted having an abundance of water that is clean and easily accessible.” The lack of water negatively impacts more than just thirst; it negatively impacts education, health, poverty and all areas of a community. Not only can the water make a population sick, but the time many people in these countries could spend taking care of their kids, getting an education, or earning an income is instead spent gathering water. After they’ve spent so much time gathering the water, it is usually filled with germs that can cause many illnesses. Because there are no other options they have to drink the contaminated water and feed it to the children who are most susceptible to these germs. Each day about 4,000 babies die from being consuming dirty water, and about 1.5 million children die a year from waterrelated illness. It is estimated that last year alone, people spent 40 billion hours gathering water. “The amount of other things that could be accomplished with that time is incredible to think about. Providing everyone with clean water can literally change the world,” Vo said. The main goal of Boston College Charity: water is to inform students about the global water crisis, get them involved in the efforts, and fundraise enough money to build a water well in Ethiopia. Working with the help of Campus Ministry they are aiming to raise at least $5,000. “If half of the school donated a couple of dollars we could accomplish this easily,” Vo said. “It’s as simple as skipping a latte or some other treat for one day. This is what BC is all about; setting the world a flame and making a difference. We can make a difference.” n
The Heights
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Monday, November 14, 2011
Well-known linguist and social critic Noam Chomsky lectures By Chandler Aitken For The Heights
On Friday night, the well-known linguist, philosopher, and social critic Noam Chomsky came to speak to a packed crowd in Devlin Hall. Noam Chomsky attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned his degree in linguistics, and is currently a professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Because of his extensive studies in the area, he is considered the father of modern linguistics and is known for his belief that all humans possess an innate capacity for language. Chomsky began his speech by expressing that the brain is a modular center with many different subcomponents that have their own particular properties. One controversial presupposition, he said, is that language is sometimes regarded as a system separate from cognitive processes—it’s an accidental connection of other systems. He emphasized that language is an independent subject, which on the surface seems simple but is actually a complex and difficult concept to study. Only until after the 17th century did scientists contemplate very simple things, like the mys-
tery behind free-falling objects. The beginning of modern science eventually spurred an interest in language. The approach towards the cognitive sciences that deal with higher mental processes, such as language, must be different than the approaches towards biology, physics, or chemistry. The approaches towards language are procedural: “You take data and organize it,” Chomsky said. Language, he said, is composed of internal and external systems. “When you study a language, you study the external parts of it: sound, arbitrary word meanings, you learn irregular verbs, and the order of the verbs,” Chomsky said. However, the internal system is harder to study because it is non-computational. Chomsky continued by noting the lack of evidence for the evolution of language. “There has been no evidence for its existence until 100,000 years ago … the evolutionary record and archeological evidence of language indicates that it is very modern.” There are two different views of the evolution of this higher cognitive function. Gradualists believe that language evolved gradually over time, while saltationists believe that it happened suddenly. Chomsky stated that this gradual
theory does not make sense. Upon the discovery of cells and genes, scientists saw that small changes in gene expression can completely change what an organism will be like. Therefore, Chomsky pointed out that around 75,000 years ago in a narrow window of time, there was a great leap forward—a sudden explosion of a complex social structure. “In some small group, in a hunter-gatherer group, some individual had a slight mutation which led to a small rewiring of the brain, which provided for a generative procedure,” Chomsky said. This mutation may have yielded some selectional advantage that transferred to offspring. “From what we do know about the evolution of language suggests that all humans have the same capacity for language,” Chomsky said. A newborn infant from New Guinea, if brought to Boston without having much contact with other humans, has the same cognitive capacities to learn the local language. “If you consider a newborn infant, the infant is full of buzzing confusion and somehow establishes this complex collection of memories out of this unorganized environment … and continues to learn
pretty much reflexively,” Chomsky said. On the other hand, “Animals can’t pick out the environment language-related data, but humans can pick out distinctive sound features that play a role in language.” One critical property of language is that each language consists of some regenerative process, which constructs an infinite array of expressions, in two systems – motor and thought. For this reason, language is infinite and there are many different expressions to communicate the same meaning. “How are words related to the external world?” Chomsky said. “When a child first sees an object, such as a cow, he or she learns the word because it sees an ‘it’ and makes an association with the word ‘cow.’” Thus, the question is, how do these associations come about? Chomsky said, “They must be internal. They’re unvarying and how they evolved is a mystery.” This mystery that language brings about can only be solved by further studies and exploration of this higher cognitive process. The fact that humans have such high mental capacities in comparison to other organisms gives a reason to believe that humans themselves can one day solve this mystery. n
sang lee / heights staff
Noam Chomsky (above) spoke to a packed Devlin Hall last Friday night.
A solemn Homecoming a success on 11/11 Splash still thriving gathering Homecoming, from A1
Veterans Day, from A1 Burns Library Lawn during a stirring ceremony honoring American veterans. The service began with the Posting of the Colors, the National Anthem, and a moment of silence for all those who had served the country in combat. As the wind blew on the crisp fall day, only the tolling of Gasson Hall’s bells could be heard during the solemn minute of reflection. Colonel David Clark, BC ’81, was the featured speaker at the ceremony. An Army Director of Foreign Intelligence, Clark spoke about lessons learned at BC, the significance of Veterans Day to him, and his hopes for making America’s future brighter through social and educational improvement. “Boston College rescued me from an uncertain future,” Clark said. “The skills and lessons I learned at the Heights allowed me to flourish.” In discussing his rise from Boston’s lower class to success in the Army, Clark cited the transformative effect of education. He touched on the need for promoting domestic prosperity, education, and well-being in order to have a robust and effective armed forces going forward. “America’s greatness is by no means guaranteed,” Clark said. “What fuels us is our economy, and that is inspired by quality education.” Clark, the director of the Department of Defense’s 60th Anniversary of the Korean War Commemoration Committee, finished by stressing the need to honor all servicemen, even those in so-called “forgotten” conflicts, like the Korean War. “Our job is, in some small way, to reverse 60 years of neglect,” Clark said, referring to the Korean War veterans he hopes to champion in his efforts. The ceremony was highlighted by the reading of the names of all members of the BC community who had lost their lives in military service. Members of the BC Army ROTC read the names of the 209 BC alumni who died in service to their country, in wars stretching from World War I to Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. After the names of the fallen from each conflict were read, a veteran from the audience rose and said they would “stand for those who gave their lives,” in military service. The spirit of remembrance transcended generations Friday, as was evidenced by the mosaic of veterans, active duty servicemen, and ROTC students filling the Burns Lawn. Marine Option Midshipman Neil Howell, posted the American flag during the ceremony and spoke of the significance of the event to him. “It was a pleasure to be part of the ceremony recognizing a day so important to our veterans and their families,” Howell said. “I think it’s great that BC takes the time to recognize those who have gone before us: those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice so that we may live today. “Their names, etched in the surface of the memorial wall remind us of the price which has been paid for our way of life. Being a part of the ceremony commemorating their dedication to our country was an honor,” he said. n
large-scale events in Conte Forum. Last year’s Fall Concert featuring Kid Cudi saw about 40 transports, while the Spring Concert – featuring J. Cole and Wale – saw about 30 transports. According to UGBC officials, there were few transports during the dance. Security guards at the door said they had confiscated only a “handful of nips” from students and turned away less than a dozen would-be smugglers. “The event went very well in terms of drinking incidents,” said Michael Kitlas, UGBC president and A&S ’12. “From my perspective, we
are showing some positive changes from the events we’ve put on so far this semester.” Drinking was not the only concern this year, though. The UGBC has worked over the past three years to perfect the model for the homecoming dance. The 2009 dance – held in the Mod parking lot – drew a number of noise complaints from neighbors, obliging University officials to reconsider the dance’s home on campus. Last year’s dance at the House of Blues also drew complaints – from students this time – about the venue’s limited space and the conduct of event staff. Going back to the drawing board, this year’s campus entertainment
staff - headed by Director Mike Zarrilli, A&S ’12 – sought a more spacious and student-friendly venue. After months strategizing around the white boards of Maloney Hall’s second floor, the group came up with a model that seemed to fit. This year’s organizing crew forwent mandatory busing to the event, allowing students to make it to the Sheraton on their own. “The feedback we’ve gotten from students has largely been positive,” said Zarrilli, adding that the UGBC has yet to solicit feedback from some underclassmen. “It was nice to let students get out and explore Boston. I think the event went very well.” n
Graham Beck / heights staff
Students filled the Sheraton Boston on Friday night for Homecoming, a more spacious and student-friendly venue.
Splash, from A1
about learning.” Along with inspiring local high students, Splash gives the student teachers an opportunity to rediscover their passions in their particular areas of study. “As an undergrad, students tend to get stuck in the mode of just learning and studying,” said Keegan Dougherty, Splash co-director and A&S ’13. “Once one teaches a class, however, this affirms that they can use their knowledge from college in a broader more meaningful context, as well as putting them more in touch with their favorite subject.” Splash also provides an opportunity for the student teachers to connect with their professors, as consultants when formulating their classes. “Splash is a great way for undergrads to get to know the faculty. They can approach the teacher based off their involvement in Splash and get feedback on their classes from these professors,” said Megan Shein, Splash co-director and A&S ’13. “It is reaffirming for the professors to see their own students so interested in their classes that they would want to teach them for Splash,” Dougherty said. The undergraduate teachers leave with a sense of fulfillment, with the possibility that they may have made a difference in these young students’ lives. Creighton Jackson, A&S ’13, who co-taught this year’s class
“Political Structures and Policies in the World of Harry Potter” said, “It was quite funny to see these kids know more about Harry Potter than me, correcting me every time I said ‘Voldemort’ as opposed to ‘he-whomust-not-be-named.’” His co-teacher Brianna Nassif, A&S ’13, reaffirmed the meaningfulness of the programming. “A rewarding part of the experience is the fact that some of the students will find it interesting and possibly explore political science down the road,” she said. The expansion of the program this year was quite remarkable, growing from 500 to over 800 students, as well filling almost all 150 classes to capacity, due to various mediums like Twitter, and representatives at local high schools. “This year, for the first time, we had representatives at high schools, which had been to Splash before, advocating the program through the distribution of flyers and talking with their high school administrations,” Dougherty said. The biggest change in the Splash program this year was the inclusion of parents of the high school students through a program for parents that included mini classes and college admissions talks. “We wanted to give the parents a window into what their students were learning through the mini Splash classes, as well as providing them useful information in regard to the college admission process,” Dougherty said. n
Politics of a generation Pryor shares his coming-out story Obama Generation, from A1 America show that nearly 39 percent of Millennials identify as non-white, making this the most diverse generation in American history. Since Obama’s election in 2008, the United States GDP has fluctuated, hitting historical lows in 2009, and the jobless rate currently stands at 9 percent. Daniel Sologuren, president of the College Republicans of Boston College and A&S ’12, feels that this will be Obama’s biggest challenge: winning over young voters frustrated with joblessness. “I came into college thinking I can wait out this recession. That didn’t work out.” Sologuren said that regardless of political party, in the general election, younger voters will migrate toward the candidate who shows potential in the economic realm. “The recession is affecting everyone. So regardless of political party, we need a solution for this,” he said. “Republican or Democrat, a good idea is a good idea – we need jobs.” The Pew Center findings back this sentiment, reporting that more so than the older generations (supporters of Eisenhower, Truman, and Kennedy) who favor smaller government, Millennials advocate for an activist government. Nicholas Doffek, president of the College Democrats of Boston College and A&S ’13, disagrees. “With regard to the economy, there’s only so much the president can do,” he said. “When Obama was elected, the bar was set so impossibly high; people are finally
realizing the limitations of Obama and the president.” In his experience leading the College Democrats, Doffek echoes the Pew Center findings that, still, over 50 percent of Millennials consider themselves Democrats. He said that though the hyper-hopeful support of Obama that marked his 2008 campaign has been quelled, support still exists. “People aren’t so much critical of Obama, their expectations have been checked,” he said. “There’s still a favorable opinion, but he’s no longer seen as the man who can change everything.” Legislation over social issues has taken center stage multiple times over the past three years, including the passage of gay marriage in several states. Doffek agrees with Hopkins and feels that Millennials will be drawn to vote for a candidate who shares their social ideology. “For the most part I believe our generation is socially liberal. Even now, radically conservative Republican candidates are rapidly losing support,” he said, citing hopefuls Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) and Rick Santorum, former Pennsylvania senator. Sologuren said that, when it comes down to it, younger voters will put jobs above social issues or any of the Obama administration’s other initiatives. “There will always be social issues, but we need to put employment first right now,” he said. “When an administration comes into office, there’s always one issues that they want to effect change in, then something they need to take care of. For Bush it was Sept. 11. For Obama, there are so many other issues, but he wants to be known for Obamacare. It’s inappropriate.” n
Pryor, from A1
He remembers far more about the aftermath of his coming out than the moment itself, he said. “One athlete stood up and said, ‘Vincent Pryor can play football and that’s all we care about.’” Pryor recounted several other similar instances in which he received support from his teammates and coaches. One coach told him he was proud of him for coming out, that he knew it took serious guts to do that. “That was so liberating,” he said. “For the first time, in regards to football, I didn’t have to worry about hiding.” It was after this that he played the best game of his career. He stressed that athletes perform to the best of their ability when they aren’t hiding anything. “Everything negative you think is going to happen is not going to happen because all your team’s worried about is whether you’re making tackles,” Pryor said. He concluded by saying that everyone should be comfortable in his or her own skin. “Once people know someone who is gay, all the stereotypes go away,” he said. n
People did not react well to that comment, Pryor said. His brother told him that he had embarrassed him. Someone else told him he was going to be a homosexual, and he was going to walk funny and talk with a lisp. “I knew I couldn’t be that guy,” Pryor said. From then on, Pryor sought out all people who fit that description and bullied them. He recalled one time he beat up a kid so badly he was called to the principal’s office. He remembers saying to the principal that he beat up the kid because he was homosexual. When his dad moved the family out to California, Pryor was excited because he had heard that lots of gay people lived in California. He wanted to meet and talk to some of them to learn what it was like to be out. Walking on the beach with his uncle one day, he spied a gay couple. However, when his uncle saw them, he said, “That’s disgusting. That’s gross. That should be illegal.” This attitude was common to most members of his family, several of whom were in the military. The first time he was able to explore his sexuality with another boy was in the sixth or seventh grade, when a boy he had been bullying realized that Pryor was gay and kissed him in the bathroom. In high school, Pryor remained in the closet. He remembers feeling uncomfortable on official football visits to colleges where women would throw themselves at him. When he got to TCU, Pryor kept his sexuality hidden because he was afraid of the consequences of coming out. He feared being rejected from the team or even losing his scholarship. But in 1993, the TCU Triangle/Allies started, and Pryor was able to use it as a vehicle for moving through the coming-out process. In 1994, TCU hosted an ecumenical exchange on campus. Several people in the Triangle planned to use it as the forum graham beck / heights staff for coming out. Pryor decided to join them. Pryor (above) came out while on the football team at TCU.
The Heights
Monday, November 14, 2011
CLASSIFIEDS A5
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“Wait, I get to be in the picture? That makes me so happy!” 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.
A6
The Heights
Editorials
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
Monday, November 14, 2011
Improvements make for delightful night
“The ideals which have lighted my way, and time after time have given me new courage to face life cheerfully, have been Kindness, Beauty, and Truth. The trite subjects of human efforts, possessions, outward success, luxury have always seemed to me contemptible.”
A change of venue and transportation methods made for a Homecoming night that was efficient and enjoyable for all
Albert Einstein, (1879 – 1955), German-born theoretical physicist
On Friday night, Boston’s Sheraton Hotel played host to thousands of Boston College students for the annual Homecoming Dance. This year’s event
By all indications, it seems as if students deem this year’s Homecoming a success, noting the speedy transportation directly from the dance back to BC’s campus as one of the night’s highlights. was one of the better ones in recent history, with no notable issues or problems to note that would overshadow the
triumph of the evening. At around 10:15 p.m., a huge rush of students flocked the hotel’s lobby, hoping to make it into the dance before the doors closed for good at 10:30. Security handled the crowds well for the entirety of the night, only tasked with turning away a handful of people—far fewer than last year. By all indications, it seems as if students deem this year’s Homecoming a success, noting the speedy transportation directly from the dance back to BC’s campus as one of the night’s highlights. The transportation to the dance, on the other hand, allowed attendees the freedom to explore and wander Boston more than in years past, a vote of confidence in the student body’s ability to make responsible choices beforehand. While UGBC is still awaiting feedback from underclassmen about the event as a whole, those who were in attendance describe an enjoyable atmosphere and an easy commute to and from the Sheraton, a wholly commendable Homecoming indeed.
Allow your methodology to be ideology When evaluating candidates in the 2012 elections, place ideas above partisanship With high unemployment and a changing economic landscape, Americans will take their economic frustrations to the voting booths in less than a year. Voters will be tasked with not only evaluating candidates for president, one-third of United States senators, and the entirety of the House of Representatives, but also an array of candidates at the state, county, and local level that have more of a direct impact on our daily lives. It is worth noting that for the 2012 election all currently enrolled at Boston College will be eligible to vote. When marking our ballots, we must be aware of avoiding blind partisan allegiances;
we must move beyond the partisan divide and pressures of partisan politics. A good idea for a pressing challenge is simply a good idea, regardless of its party of origination. Furthermore, we must reconcile our expectations and remember that there is no such thing as a perfect candidate. Instead, we should consider the merits of each candidate’s ideals and how those enacted ideas will contribute to widespread prosperity. When considering candidates and issues, we must remember that democracy is about progress, not perfection, and therefore, vote according to the ideals that promote long-term economic vitality for our nation.
Programs reveal the potency of young minds Pursuing passions is encouraged at Boston College and much can be gained by sharing results with peers This p a st we ekend ho ste d two events that speak to the greater interests of Boston College students. Both the Splash program and BC Talks gave students a platform from which they could actively engage the community
The Heights encourages everyone to consider the projects from both of these programs and focus on how personal interest can become a fully formed piece of research. both on campus and off. With some participants tackling more independent studies, often fashioned around personal interest, the student body
at large can gain both knowledge and inspiration from hearing about such findings. BC Talks showcases this mission and, in doing so, demonstrates a tangible and rewarding product of research and study. Sharing these analyses through programs like Splash and BC Talks also works to emphasize the importance of contributing to the research community. Crafting a course around personal interest yields strong response, not only from participants, but from the researchers. It does not take an intense academic background to embark on a research project. It only requires interest. The courses in the Splash program and the presentations in BC Talks make this statement perfectly clear. The Heights encourages everyone to consider the projects from both of these programs and focus on how personal interest can become a fully formed piece of research. The investment is a good one not only for the community, but for the individual.
The Heights The Independent Student Newspaper of Boston College Established 1919 Michael Caprio, Editor-in-Chief Daniel Ottaunick, General Manager DJ Adams, Managing Editor
Suzanne Severance / Heights Illustration
Letters to the Editor Long term solutions needed to curb population In Response to “One World, Seven Billion Mouths to Feed,” Gerard Ferara: Unfortunately, the population problem will not be solved by education alone (although it can surely help in the short run). Differential birth rates and some degree of heritability of values will, in time, eliminate the progress an education program has made. Instead, hard-nosed population control (i.e. cap-and-trade, etc.) is required if humanity really wants to solve this
and all of the other problems you listed. Hard-nosed policies are the only way we can control our numbers and then keep them controlled indefinitely. Education just won’t do. I question the wisdom of describing the problems you listed as “global” problems (except for climate change). True, these problems exist all over the world. But why call them global because of that? Treating these problems in this manner assumes scale effects do not exist. But they do. The more we broaden the scope of these problems, the
Tim Teresczuk CSOM ‘13
Online comments call for fact checking In response to “Jesuit Universities Rally,” by Marc Francis: “These universities...sent a letter to the Obama administration requesting an exemption from the recent mandate that calls for the distribution of abortioncausing drugs.” The Affordable Health Care Act does NOT call for distribution of abortion-causing drugs. The Affordable Health Care Act requires universities to cover all FDA-approved contraceptive methods, sterilization procedures, and patient education and counseling for all women with repro-
ductive capacity. To write that the Affordable Health Care Act will mandate universities to distribute “abortion-causing drugs” is both inaccurate and irresponsible. A lyssa H ughes In response to “Your nurse, the doctor,” by Marye Moran: How ignorant. Clearly, you know nothing of the health science professions, as not only MDs can medically screen and diag-
nose, but many other disciplines are equally competent in this regard, if not better. Not only did you belittle essentially all health professions, but you have publicly insulted the entire nursing school at Boston College (I hear the faculty aren’t happy with your article). As for your qualifications, I can attest you are quite the “actor” of medical familiarity, and definitely not a respected Heights columnist/ writer. A nonymous
Have something to say? Write a letter to the editor. EMAIL US AT Opinions@bcheights.com
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 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 e-mail to editor@bcheights.com, in person, or by mail to Editor, The Heights, 113 McElroy Commons, Chestnut Hill, Mass. 02467.
Business and Operations
Editorial Clara Kim, Copy Editor Taylour Kumpf, News Editor Paul Sulzer, Sports Editor Kristopher Robinson, Features Editor Darren Ranck, Arts & Review Editor David Cote, Marketplace Editor Ana Lopez, Opinions Editor Dan Tonkovich, Special Projects Editor Alex Trautwig, Photo Editor Lindsay Grossman, Layout Editor
more negatives we observe: misunderstandings increase, delegation increases, responsibility decreases, and wastage increases. As you mentioned, population growth exacerbates the problems we currently have, such as global warming, poverty, resource depletion, etc. Ignoring it, then, would be foolish. So, thank you for bringing this important issue into focus.
Mollie Kolosky, Graphics Editor David Riemer, Online Manager Therese Tully, Assoc. Copy Editor Katherine Doyle, Asst. Copy Editor Adriana Mariella, Assoc. News Editor Molly LaPoint, Asst. News Editor Greg Joyce, Assoc. Sports Editor Chris Marino, Asst. Sports Editor Brooke Schneider, Asst. Features Editor Brennan Carley, Assoc. Arts & Review Editor
Charlotte Parish, Asst. Arts & Review Editor Matt Palazzolo, Asst. Marketplace Editor Kevin Hou, Asst. Photo Editor Woogeon Kim, Asst. Layout Editor Alex Manta, Asst. Graphics Editor Dara Fang, Asst. Online Manager Elise Taylor, Editorial Assistant Katherine McClurg, Executive Assistant
Jamie Ciocon, Business Manager Christina Quinn, Advertising Manager Zachary Halpern, Outreach Coordinator Cecilia Provvedini, Systems Manager James Gu, Local Sales Manager Amy Hachigan, Asst. Ads Manager Seth Fitchelberg, Business Assistant
The Heights
Monday, November 14, 2011
A7
Opinions
Thumbs Up Eagles on the Warpath – TU/TD is delighted to be eating crow in support of the Eagles this Monday. Though faith in the football program’s ability to pull it together has waned over the past few months, the team pulled it together to deliver a win for the season’s last home game. Though the Superfan tailgating spirit hasn’t been deterred by the losses, it’s always fantastic to have a boost of confidence as hundreds of undergrads and alumni gear up to traverse the heartland to support the team at Notre Dame next Saturday. Hilarious Homecoming – If you have even the slightest sense of humor and had a ticket to the Homecoming dance, you had a good time on Friday night. Between endless techno beats and chicken fingers, a tragic lack of dance skills from BC undergrads, and witnessing more girls cry in corners than the prom of an all-girls high school, Homecoming 2011 was a fantastic alternative to jamming into a basement on Foster Street. And ladies, chin up, people were probably too engrossed in the nacho bar to notice your breakdown. Big 10 Unity – This weekend’s Nebraska-Penn State game marked a unique moment in college football history, as the two teams shed their rivalries and, in light of the horrifying events that have unfolded at Penn State over the past month, came together in a moment of unified prayer before the game. As Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini, who was originally opposed to playing the game, said, “The situation that’s going on is bigger than football. It’s bigger than that game we just played.”
Thumbs Down See ya, Sandler – It’s tragic but true—Adam Sandler may have peaked. The end of Sandler’s glory days were solidified with this weekend’s release of Jack and Jill, a film critics are slating as an insult not only to the comic genre, but to the actual definition of comedy. Mary Pols, a film critic for Time said, “More than 24 hours has passed since I watched the new Adam Sandler movie Jack and Jill and I am still dead inside,” and it made Rotten Tomatoes history by receiving a groundbreaking rating of 0 percent. Call us masochistic, but all this extreme smack talk really makes us want to witness what rock bottom looks like and go see Jack and Jill. Struggle Street – Though actually winning this weekend’s football game was a feat that cannot be tarnished, the climate surrounding the game left a little to be desired. The Mods were surprisingly quiet on the seniors’ last home football game—and not due to any irrational sense of loss, but merely an inability to rally after the previous night’s festivities. That, coupled with the fact that TeamOps was encouraging people to throw their purses into bushes or in the trashcan rather than take them into the game was a little too much to digest on a Saturday morning. Race to the Finish – It’s too late for midterms and it’s too early for finals—one would think these weeks before Thanksgiving would qualify as the calm before the storm, but the academic gods have other plans in mind. Up until next Monday night, expect O’Neill to be consistently filled with paper writers, exam crammers, and group project meetings. Half a week at home has never sounded more appealing. Tricky Tactics – While TU/TD is a fan of clever marketing schemes as much as the next newspaper column—and even seriously considered a monogrammed Snuggie—every half-witted salesman knows there’s a thin line between clever and downright sly that must be toed carefully. The Arrupe group that has decided to set up a bake sale right outside of Robsham where the buses let out on weekend nights is waffling dangerously close to sly. We have to wonder how satisfying it is to make profit off patrons who wouldn’t dare part with $10 if faced with temptation on a Tuesday afternoon rather than a Saturday night. @BCTUTD
Dancing around climate change
Katya Rucker As Republican debates ramp up and President Barack Obama is putting all his eggs in the 2012 re-election basket, there is one issue neither party is willing to touch with a 10-foot pole: climate change. Why? Because talking about it means talking about what they’re going to do about it. And right now, there isn’t a candidate out there who is willing to venture a coherent or solution-oriented policy despite vying for presidential office in the country with the highest per-capita carbon dioxide emissions in the world. Tactics for avoiding the issue have ranged from playing the doubt card to appealing to the higher, but increasingly elusive, goal to create jobs through the carbonenergy sector. Michele Bachmann called climate change “manufactured science” and would work to eliminate the Environmental Protection Agency. But then again, she also denies evolution theory. Obama is stuck between a rock and a hard place, trying to please conservatives with job growth initiatives while using his talent for rhetoric to placate his own party. This pressure has led him to sideline clean-energy policy, in the illusion that it will help stem the hemorrhaging loss of jobs in America. The scientific community continues to increase the compelling body of evidence detecting changes in the climate and attributing them to human activities. Perhaps even more alarming is that scientists themselves are becoming more vocal in disseminating their findings. Such vigorous public engagement is usually only embraced by outliers and skeptics. Consequentially, climate change is one of the biggest elephants in the debate room today (the other is Rick Perry). And it’s really one simple fact that’s nothing short of sacrilege in political
discourse today: carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are rising as a direct result of human activity. The politicians who continue to dispute and attack this phenomenon are acting like the skeptics who think the Apollo moon landings were a Hollywood conspiracy. But contrary to who-believes-what, this trend is irrevocably true: observed changes in carbon dioxide are showing an exponentially positive rise since the onset of mass industrialization, with accelerated rising observed to begin in the 1950s. The current carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere is higher than it’s been in over 55 million years. And carbon dioxide from fossil-fuel emissions has a unique and easily identifiable isotope that erases all doubt of it being part of a “natural” cycle. Fluctuations of carbon dioxide over the past one million years, or eight glacial cycles, have varied between 190 and 290 ppm; current levels stand at 390 ppm. We’re resting at the tip of Al Gore’s hockey-stick graph, which
is starting to look a lot like a precipitous brink on the edge of sheer climate chaos. It still amazes me that something as blatant as climate change can be turned into a partisan issue. In the current economic conditions, it seems to be a requirement that any potential GOP candidate steer clear of the topic. “Uncertainty” is a favorite excuse to justify the promise for inaction on capand-trade policy. But let’s be clear: it’s the politicians’ uncertainties, not any
misgiving of scientists. Mitt Romney is a case in point. At an energy center in Pittsburgh last month, he answered a question about climate-change legislation, saying, “I don’t know if it’s mostly caused by humans. And so what I’m not willing to do is to spend trillions of dollars on something I don’t know the answer to.” Romney, I’m sorry this is a subject you know very little about, despite the wealth of information and data available to you. It’s probably a better idea to spend trillions of dollars on something like national defense and the military. It’s much easier to know the answer to our security problems, with the obvious solution of deploying more troops to show Iran that America means business about their suspicious activities. And now we come to one of the most interesting ironies of this politicized “debate”: The United States refused to sign the Kyoto Protocol 13 years ago because it claimed that the treaty gave developing countries an unfair economic advantage. As the largest per-capita emitter of carbon dioxide, we couldn’t get over the notion that making such a commitment would deliver a sucker punch to our economy. Now, developing countries like India and China are taking leading roles in adopting carbon-reduction policies. How have their economies fared? Well, China emerged from the 2008 recession stronger than it was before. How has the U.S. done? Don’t worry, the new 1,700 mile crude-oil pipeline that’s supposed to run from Alberta to Oklahoma is sure to give our economy just the jolt it needs. Fast forward 20 years: While the people of China, Brazil, and South Korea will all be driving electric cars, showering with geothermally heated water, and enjoying sustained economic growth, the U.S. will be the underdeveloped pity-nation with high unemployment and politicians with their heads still buried in the sand. At least, this is the direction both political parties seem to be taking us. Katya Rucker is a staff columnist for The Heights. She welcomes comments at opinions@bcheights.com.
All the small things
Noora Bass While I could talk about the iPhone 4S’ latest return with Apple’s newest homegirl, Siri, I’ll spare you. We all know by now she can write your texts, coordinate your plans and even get you home. (You’re a sneaky one, Siri.) I’d like to move beyond the realm of technology and onto the grounds of the things that make us happy here. Blink 182 may have said it right: It was really all about the small things, and maybe some other things, too. My freshman year, it was all about the thrill. I can cast my memory back to May 5, 2011, when eight of us crowded around a blender in a small double creating what may have been one of the most delicious mistakes known to Fenwick 2. By the time sophomore year came around, the thrill was over but history still began to repeat itself–it became socially acceptable to hit a pinata on Saturday afternoons while dressed up in wacky outfits, laying down yet another track by Stevie Wonder. Suddenly all things became possible. The Mods were alive not with the sound of music, but with the chromatic beats of Aviici. A snow flurry hit
Boston on Halloween weekend putting a strain on girls’ outfit choices, dismissing the seasonal claim that ‘less is more’. It seemed like campus had lost the plot and yet my mind still thought back to the small things. It was in that moment that I realized life’s uncertainties were truly sweet. The small things you may be thinking. But they never really seem to go away. To some it’s the first initial roommate bonding when you realize they too owned a pager, a classic 90’s throwback paired up with your joint love for Clarissa Explains It All. For others it’s the long-awaited post gameday nap tucked under the covers when all the rest is history (including your best friends grilling skills on Shea that honestly were a little questionable). It’s not until you look back in retrospect and realize it was the small things that mattered the most. From most of the quotes that I’ve read and admired, Elbert Hubbard dropped a line that seemed to resonate in my memory: “Don’t take life too seriously. You’ll never get out of it alive.” While many of my friends argue this is my personal blue print to living my life, sometimes it’s the only way to go. Some things should be taken seriously: academics and baja chicken sandwich days, to name a few. But as for the rest of it? Don’t sweat it. There’s a reason Blink 182 went platinum. Noora Bass is a staff columnist for The Heights. She welcomes comments at opinions@bcheights.com.
Bazoomie Wagon | BY BEN VADNAL
Mollie Kolosky / Heights Photo Illustration
Common mistakes William Mooney Sloneker I hate to say it, but McElroy is simply an immensely unattractive, regrettably lackluster prism with no coherent interior design scheme and lighting so squalid that it makes every room seem dirtier than it really is. No offense to the founder of the University, but his eponymous building is so poorly conceived that I suspect the architecture itself may be somehow responsible for the decidedly inferior quality of food served within. At the beginning of this year, I logged a few too many hours there. One evening, I left that desperately dull structure to enjoy for the first time, a view of the newly restored Gasson fully illuminated against a velvety black sky. By all accounts, the refurbished, refurnished, reopened, re-everythinged Gasson is a job well done. It radiates brilliantly by day and shines like a diamond by night. Moreover, after a 15-month closure, students and faculty may finally enjoy the inside again—or for the first time for some. For all the improvements, however, one change has me disappointed. Room 112 once housed the Jenks Honors Library; now it is the Gasson Commons, and the Honors library is temporarily in limbo. The space was only slightly different two years ago. Long wooden tables filed along the bookshelves on the west side of the room. A large seminar table occupied the vast majority of the east side. Attractive, spindle-back armchairs sat beneath every tabletop and five or six exceedingly comfortable couches anchored the center of the room. Above all, books filled the shelves and surrounded anyone who entered the room. They were often tattered and hardly useful, and there was nothing to stop someone from just casually pilfering a few volumes. Still, texts lined the walls and passively created a scholarly aura. Today, a couple dozen peach, taupe, and navy blue arm chairs surround stocky, cylindrical coffee tables that loosely populate the area, while four of the original work tables protrude from bookshelves sparsely filled with photographs of foreign lands. For A&S Honors students, the changes are bittersweet. Gasson 112 is back in play, but it’s not the same. The room used to represent a special place to students and faculty in the program. It once held the offices of two professors, hosted countless seminars of Western Cultural Tradition, and served as a venue for larger events involving all members of the program. More selfishly, the space had an unmistakable stigma attached to it. For members of the program, it functioned as a cozy haven for those looking for a quaint place to work or take a midday nap in public. For others, a distinct weirdness accompanied entrance into the Honors library, so few outsiders ever managed to find comfort there. Of the limited number of real perks offered to Honors students, this de facto privacy was greatly appreciated. Presently, the program is without a hub. Sure, there is book-lined Fulton Honors Library, but that feels more like the Slytherin Common Room than a sanctuary for the humanities. It lacks the same atmosphere and tacit exclusivity, and I’m pretty sure the Carroll School charges for admission. When Stokes Hall opens next fall, A&S Honors will again have a private space, but it will be a study space about half the size of the adjacent 30-student classroom. Albeit, it will have a window facing the new “Campus Green.” Which gets at a greater issue: Stokes will bind one side of the “Campus Green”—not the Dustbowl. The University has presented naming the “Campus Green” as an investment opportunity to benevolent donors. I suppose Boston College only stands to benefit from an alumnus cutting a check for an enormous sum of money in exchange for a plaque denoting the “Ignatius Baldwin McIrishname Green.” I suppose it’s rather petty to bemoan the loss of a special study space when there are dozens of other options available. What is at stake, though, is this school’s history. Gasson, Bapst, and St. Mary’s are treasures this university is fortunate to have. Each of these historic buildings has been renovated and renewed for a modern time. They have been preserved beautifully and their integrities remain intact, uncompromised and unadulterated. The same cannot be said for Gasson 112. For one, the furniture does not befit the aesthetic. More importantly, BC’s first library is now without any books. The room deserves a more elegant and erudite outfit, not a perimeter of barren bookshelves symbolizing some sort of intellectual bankruptcy. It’s nowhere near as bad as McElroy, but it should look far more inspiring than it does right now. Everyone stands to benefit from a few modest improvements to the new Gasson Commons. William Mooney Sloneker is a staff cowlumnist for The Heights. He welcomes comments at opinions@bcheights.
The Heights
A8
Monday, November 14, 2011
Even with DiCaprio and Eastwood, ‘J. Edgar’ spreads itself too thin By Dan Siering Heights Staff
Undoubtedly his most ambitious work yet, Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar unravels the tumultuous private life of the iconic face of federal law enforcement, J. Edgar Hoover. Spanning from the conclusion of World War I to the Nixon administration, Eastwood attempts to artfully, yet J. Edgar: effectively, illustrate the alClint Eastwood most 50-year Imagine career of the Entertainment first director of the F.B.I. In order to span across seven decades, the filmmakers employ an extensive use of both flashback and facial makeup. While Leonardo DiCaprio delivers one of the most complex and riveting roles of his career, there seems to be a shortcoming behind every twist and turn in J. Edgar. The film only scrapes the surface of several defining events of the 20th century, giving the viewer only a fleeting taste of the profundity of the Hoover’s governmental role. Moreover, the film employs heavy facial makeup, a facet
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that bluntly shows the barriers that Eastwood faces when attempting to achieve his lofty objectives. The narrative begins during the Kennedy administration, an era which is defined by its turbulence and social upheaval. Now well into his 60s, Hoover (DiCaprio) finds himself engaged in a heated political struggle against Martin Luther King, Jr., whom Hoover believes to be a threat to peace in his beloved country. Sensing that the end to his extensive tenure is near, Hoover requests a writer at his service in order record his memoirs. Through the eyes of Hoover himself we are told the captivating account of the main character’s ascension in the government and foundation of the F.B.I. The tale is set on stilts comprised of crucial historical events, including the anarchist bombings of the 1920s, the Lindbergh baby kidnapping, and the Dillinger robberies. Eastwood also takes the time to dive into Hoover’s personal life, focusing on his relationships with his lifelong secretary Helen Gandy (Naomi Watts), F.B.I. deputy and close personal friend Clyde Tolson (Armie Hammer), and his prim, but caring mother (Judi Dench). Judging from the tireless listing of events
covered in J. Edgar, it is easy to understand how the film’s plot could teeter towards convolution and obscurity. So much historical relevance is packed into each take that the viewer begins to sense that every scene could have an entire film dedicated to it. The fact that, for instance, the assassination of former president John F. Kennedy, perhaps the most pivotal event in the latter portion of Hoover’s career, is only momentarily discussed is nearly blasphemous. Yet, among the muddled narrative, there are glimpses of cinematic genius from both Eastwood and DiCaprio. Employing his trademark use of minimal, natural lighting, Eastwood produces an ominous aura around his main subject, as he gives complex and perhaps controversial glimpses of Hoover’s true character. Within this framework, DiCaprio masterfully produces a calculative and emotionally detached persona reminiscent of Charles Foster Kane. Hoover’s only true, intimate relationship is with his bureau. Yet scattered among the narrative vein are cathartic scenes of Hoover’s private life in which DiCaprio delivers some of the most emotionally powerful acting of his career.
Beauty and doom collide in ‘Melancholia’
overture films / ap photo
Clint Eastwood and Leo DiCaprio reach too high in this overly amtitious historica drama. The severe discredit to DiCaprio and his supporters, however, is the makeup used on the actors as the plot spans across seven decades. The presence of the costuming is apparent immediately into the movie, as several gasps spread across the theatre when DiCaprio was shown in his elderly makeup. DiCaprio is an actor that has relied so heavily on a youthful ambiance, and I found it extremely difficult to overcome my preconceived notions. It seems
that DiCaprio, only in his late 30s, was given the ambitious task of depicting an old man a tad too early in his career. Nearing the end of his storied career, director Clint Eastwood’s ambition reaches high and mighty with J. Edgar. With a narrative that has its hand in one too many cookie jars and makeup that doesn’t quite cover the viewer’s perceptions, Eastwood seems to be stretching his talents a bit too thin. n
Box Office Report title
weekend gross
weeks in release
1 photos courtesy of allmoviephoto.com
1. Immortals
32.0
1
2. Jack and Jill
26.0
1
3. Puss in boots
25.5
3
Courtesy of Allmoviephoto.com
Lars von Trier reveals the ending early on in sci-fi film ‘Melancholia,’ lending a layer of depth to the character drama that follows. By Joe Allen Heights Staff
Every character dies by the end. Danish writer/director Lars von Trier surprises us with this not-so-negligible fact within the first 10 minutes of his new film, Melancholia. After the shock of this early revelation had worn off, one can’t help but feel wary of von Trier’s bold creative decision. If a director kills his film’s susMelancholia: pense right at Lars von Trier the outset, he Zentropa better have Entertainments an interesting story to tell. If that same director’s previous film was the grotesque trash that is Antichrist, then he probably doesn’t. Once expectations had been torn away, however, the realization that Melancholia is one of the most beautiful films of 2011 slowly became apparent. Von Trier apologies for the initial eye-rolling. Once the film establishes that every character will eventually bite the dust (yes, even Kiefer Sutherland), Melancholia backs up to focus on a young woman’s descent into misery and to further establish itself as the anti-Christmas movie. Divided into two parts, the film’s first half delves into the wedding night of the well-off Justine (Kirsten Dunst). As Justine’s surface-level happiness begins to unravel, the wedding reception descends into chaos. Skip forward a short time to when Justine, now in a state of deep, immobilizing depression, moves in with her sister (Charlotte Gainsbourg) and
B+ A
her brother-in-law (Kiefer Sutherland). The sisters’ radically different states of emotional stability begin to reverse as a planet called Melancholia comes dangerously close to hitting Earth. Will Melancholia obliterate humanity? Oh wait…yes, we learned that before the story started. Given this premise, Melancholia is far from a typical science-fiction movie and even further from a Friday night popcorn flick. In this startlingly bleak film, even a Dunst nude scene is a punishing experience. Von Trier has said in interviews that he wanted to examine how individuals suffering from depression tend to act more calmly during (apocalyptic) disasters. This storytelling goal is illustrated wonderfully and heartbreakingly, as Justine begins to think with more morbid rationality than her increasingly panic-stricken sister, Claire. And by telling his viewers the movie’s ending at the beginning, von Trier actually increases the tension throughout the entire film. Rarely have I watched something as suffocating as Melancholia’s final 30 minutes. To keep his pitch-black vision afloat, von Trier needed a highly capable actress to play Justine. Luckily, Dunst successfully steps away from her Spiderman-filled past to give the most captivating female performance so far this year. Dunst transforms the wedding scenes, which could have been dull and unmoving in lesser hands, into a worthy prelude to disaster. Even as the narrative focus shifts to Claire, Justine commands attention when on-screen thanks to Dunst.
Her ability to portray numbing depression so convincingly while barely speaking is nothing short of a revelation. Rounding out the small main cast, Gainsbourg, a von Trier favorite, and Sutherland give fine performances. Gainsbourg as Claire, the movie’s most readily relatable character, undergoes the most hard-towatch transformation as she acts out Claire’s inability to cope with her and her family’s imminent destruction. And contrary to popular belief, Sutherland can act without screaming, “Where is the bomb?!” every 20 minutes. His quiet performance as John, who adamantly believes that Melancholia will pass Earth, somehow lulls the viewers, who already know the characters are screwed, into a false sense of security. After two hours of chest-tightening tension, sustained largely through the impeccable acting, Melancholia ends in a manner that will leave you simultaneously weak and awestruck. I have never seen anything quite like the movie’s final images, and they remain in my head as vividly as if I had just watched them. Most surprising of all, the film ends in a way that highlights the characters’ humanity even as they meet their end. Being able to find the visual poetry in doomsday, this movie reminds audiences of how much filmmaking is capable of as a storytelling medium. Von Trier has openly expressed disappointment in Melancholia, lamenting that it is too ”mainstream.” Much to the contrary, I consider his film, which ends the world gracefully, to be a triumph. n
6
10
4. Tower heist
13.2
2
5. J. Edgar
11.5
1
6. A Very Harold and kumar 3d xmas
5.9
2
7. in time
4.2
3
8. Paranormal activity 3
3.6
4
9. Footloose
2.7
5
10. Real steel
2.0
6
bestsellers of hardcover fiction 1. Zero Day David Baldacci 2. The litigators Josh Grisham 3. Hotel Vendome Danielle Steele 4. the Best of Me Nicholas Sparks 5. 1Q84 Haruki Marukami
6. Lost December Richard Paul Evans 7. The Snow Angel Glenn Beck 8. Christmas Wedding James Patterson 9. Out of Oz Gregory Maguire 10. The marriage plot Jeffrey Eugenides SOURCE: Publisher’s Weekly
Adam Sandler makes twice as many mistakes in ‘Jack and Jill’ By Kelsey Damassa For the Heights
Family comedies seem to be a growing genre in the world of movies, bringing entertainment to both adults and children alike. With the holiday season quickly approaching, families are gathering together, hopefully enjoying each other’s company, and, of course, going to the movies! Jack and Jill: So it really is Dennis Dugan no surprise Broken Road that Adam Productions Sandler, being a comedian and a dad, decided to take a swing at a PG family comedy. Unfortunately, Sandler swung just a little too hard and whiffed with his latest flick, Jack and Jill, disappointing both kid and adult moviegoers this past weekend. The film’s plot is not complicated at all, and let’s just say it won’t have viewers sitting on the edge of their seats waiting to see what happens next. Jack Sadelstein, played by Sandler of course, owns an advertising agency and lives the ideal family life in California with his beautiful wife, played by Katie Holmes, and their two children. Jack has a twin sister, Jill Sadelstein (also played by Sandler),
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who flies out from the Bronx to spend Thanksgiving with her favorite brother. Jack can hardly tolerate Jill, her weird tendencies, and her obnoxious voice. This might be hard to fathom, but the film follows Jack as he ends up having to spend time with Jill throughout the entire holiday season – Thanksgiving, Hanukah, and New Years – while she gives dating a try. Surprise, surprise: Jill won’t leave.
So what does ‘Jack and Jill’ have going for it? Product placement and cameo upon cameo upon cameo. This seems pretty standard and reasonable for a family film, right? Well now we just need to bring Al Pacino into the picture. Pacino plays himself, but throughout the entire film it seems he is either on drugs or needs to be committed to a mental institution. He becomes infatuated with Jill, whom Jack then uses
to further a Dunkin’ Donuts business deal – securing Pacino as the spokesman for the new Dunkaccino. The movie continues with fighting between Sandler and cross-dressing Sandler, which did elicit some chuckles from the kids in the audience, but was far from entertaining for the adults. The racial jokes and stereotypes are nonstop as Sandler pokes fun at India, Mexico, and his own Jewish culture, among others. And, of course, it cannot be a Sandler film without a fair amount of potty humor (think Bridesmaids, but more tame and less entertaining). So what does Jack and Jill have going for it? Product placement and cameo upon cameo upon cameo. These two things are probably what allowed the movie to even be considered for release in theaters. Because Jack works in advertising, every single scene displays a product – Pepto-Bismol, Dunkin’ Donuts, Royal Caribbean, Match.com, and eHarmony, to name a few. Sandler has his usual pack of buddies in the film (surprisingly excluding Rob Schneider, but David Spade dressed as a woman makes up for that) as well as an obscene number of seemingly random celebrities ranging from forgettable reality stars to
highly respected actors. The highlight of the film might just be Johnny Depp’s cameo at a Lakers game where he wears his usual fedora, scarf, and jacket, but sports a Justin Bieber T-shirt. This was funny because it was natural humor, not forced upon the audience. Sandler needs to realize that you can only force people to laugh so much.
At some point, genuine humor needs to break through and sadly, that did not happen during the 90-minute film. So perhaps you should pass on this Sandler film and watch one of his older classics – Happy Gilmore, Billy Madison, or The Wedding Singer – as those films will genuinely make you laugh and will definitely be a better use of your time. n
Courtesy of Allmoviephoto.com
Adam Sandler’s juvenile humor is even too much for children in his infantile new comedy.
A9
The Heights
Monday, November 14, 2011
Funk energizes concert Fitz, from A10
Kevin Hou / Heights Editor
Audience members showed their adoration for the performers with catcalls mid routine and huge rounds of applause afterwards.
Versatility and precision define show Dance Ensemble, from A10 sion. Featuring a mix of songs by contemporary favorites such as Avicii and Beyonce, the piece caught the attention of the audience and even had some singing along and dancing in their seats, while the girls demonstrated their flavor and clear talent for shaking, kicking all things related. After this modern and exciting piece, the three performances that followed allowed the audience to see the versatility of the dancers in succession. “Awake My Soul” by Mumford and Sons, choreographed by Colleen Mara, CSON ’13, offered an undeniably beautiful start to the individually choreographed pieces, and was a surprising, but welcome, change of pace from “Sweet Dreams.” The soothing, acoustic music paired with the emotive and expressive lyrical dance of the girls fit together harmoniously and produced a truly moving performance. “Body Language” by Queen and choreographed by Jessica Ollhoff, LSOE ’12, was an incredibly sensual dance that highlighted the true message of the song. The regimented yet picturesque poses struck by the dancers along with their prominent snaps (and the red suspenders) gave this piece a Chicago-esque feel. Julie Krieg, CSOM ’13, and Christina Beachnau, LSOE ’13, choreographed the third, incredibly moving, and soft piece, “Yel-
low.” It offered equal amounts of expression from the dancers, while the atypical cover of the Coldplay song, performed by the Vitamin String Quartet, offered another layer of sophistication to the already beautiful ballet piece. The strikingly delicate choreography showed a true understanding of the music. Each piece had something that made it stand out from the others. The true intensity of “Trapped,” featuring tape over the mouths of the dancers and one in “chains” made it stand out for its arresting message. “Nicest Thing” was also an extremely strong piece featuring an intensely poignant song, along with an equally emotive routine. The ballet piece “Sugar Plum,” taken from Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, choreographed by Kelsey Barnes, presented the audience with a familiar song, but with a twist. This performance, in which the dancers resembled the ballerinas in a jewelry box, was slightly flirty and secretively delicate with the overly-feminine and subtly-suggestive gestures of the dancers. Being a lover of ballet, this piece stood out to me for its interesting spin on a classical ballet staple. The lighting definitely added another dimension in pieces like “Arms,” the lighting created prominent shadows, which emphasized the bodies of the dancers beautifully, adding a visual depth to the performance. In “Dance in the Dark,” the strobe light and col-
ored lights offered visual excitement for the audience, and fit perfectly with the music. A highlight of the show was the routine danced to “Heads Will Roll,” by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. For devout Yeah Yeah Yeahs fans, it was intriguing to see what BCDE would do with the indie rock band vibes. This again shows the versatility of BCDE, as they are clearly able to incorporate many different genres of music into their repertoire. The song surprisingly offered the same energy and flavor that the girls had been demonstrating throughout Illusion, and everything in that piece fit together from the costumes and the lighting to, of course, the choreography. Karen O would no doubt be proud. One thing that was made clear during Illusion was just how much love the audience, which consisted of just as many parents as it did friends, had for BCDE and the show as a whole. People were constantly cheering and offering praise for the girls while they were dancing and during intermission or breaks between pieces, making the performance again feel intimate and personal. It was no doubt a great feeling for the girls to hear so many of their supporters. Hearing a deep male voice yell out, “This is so beautiful,” during a ballet piece offered a moment of subtle laughter, but also demonstrates the overall fun, exciting and relaxed experience of the show. n
‘Blue Nights’ details Didion’s journey Didion, from A10 Her memoirs are, in fact, ferociously contemplative and artistic in her treatment of human frailty and grief. With every chapter, Didion probes the entanglements of emotion, depression, dying, and healing. Never has the meditative process of loss appeared less hysterical. Journalist, radio show host, and moderator Chris Lyden’s conversation with Joan Didion, sponsored by the Harvard Bookstore, was truly more of a reverent lauding of Didion and her work, and included an audience question and answer session at the end. When she wasn’t reading staggering excerpts from Blue Nights, Didion was decidedly a woman of few wise words. When the moderator complimented her for being incredibly courageous on the subject of frailty and “at the peak of her writing career,” Didion answered simply, “Well thank you. But I mean, I don’t actually feel that way,” elegantly folding her hands on her lap and casting her eyes to the floor. Therein lies the tranquil humility of Joan Didion. Throughout the question and answer session, it proved difficult to elicit more than five words as a response from the apparently pri-
vate Didion. One young woman asked about her current inspirations; Didion said simply, “I read all the people I’ve been reading all my life.” With an impenetrable gaze, Didion waved her fragile hand in dismissal at the end of each answer about inspiration, journaling, poetry, and even fashion and austerely said, “Thank you.” She fielded about a dozen questions in a similarly staccato, terse manner. When a woman with a thick Boston accent asked Didion about her thoughts about the postdeath “code of silence,” she replied, “Obviously, I didn’t buy into the code of silence. I kind of talked.” When a man asked her where she believed she fit in to the categories of modern journalism, she replied, “I just write. I mean I never thought of how I could fit into those categories and I didn’t believe that they were categories with any real meaning. They didn’t always work as categories. Thanks.” When an eager young man, perhaps hoping to flex the impressiveness of his metaphorical question, asked, “I think of a question, if we could imagine you, Joan Didion, on one side of a chasm which is very deep and frightening and on the other side of a rickety bridge is a blank page and an empty chapter one and what it is
in you that you might see in yourself that brings you to cross that bridge?” Didion blinked through her thick frames and answered, “Well it’s a scary bridge to cross. I don’t like to start something…Thank you.” Blue Nights definitely feels less logical and coherent than does Magical Thinking, her airtight prose sometimes slipping into wandering subjects and inconclusive points, yet there are still those pure nuggets of Didion sentences, epitomizing the pain and triumph in the human experience with all the force of epiphany hidden in the mundane. Didion read a passage from toward the end of Blue Nights. It was a memory of a very young Quintana, who had left her stuffed friend Bunny Rabbit at the hotel in Hawaii. At first, Quintana “mourned Bunny Rabbit’s cruel fate: Bunny Rabbit was lost, Bunny Rabbit was left behind, Bunny Rabbit had been abandoned. Yet by the time we taxied into the gate at LAX she had successfully translated Bunny Rabbit’s cruel fate into Bunny Rabbit’s good luck: the Royal Hawaiian, the suite, the room-service breakfasts.” How could I not still need that child with me?” Didion concluded, looking up, closing the book, her finger bookmarking the page. n
With slicked back hair, Michael Fitzpatrick pranced around the stage with the microphone in his hand, unleashing his substantial voice to the rafters and back. The sold out House of Blues ate up every moment of his rich, fulfilling tunes. Countless Top-40 stations herald Bruno Mars as the long awaited soul revivalist the country has been waiting for since the 1970s, but Fitz and the Tantrums proved that they are much more suited for the job. Many of the band’s songs lend themselves to live renditions, their billowing guitars and muffled keyboards echoing off the walls of the boxy venue. The soul-influenced indie pop of Fitz’s debut album, Pickin’ Up the Pieces, kept audiences dancing at a feverish pace. With his shock of blond hair waving about as he bobbed his head and threw his arms about, Fitzgerald frequently looked as if he was on the verge of throwing himself into the crowd but consummate musician as he was, never pulled the trigger. One of the show’s best moments was when the band finally ripped into “MoneyGrabber,” its rollicking hit song that has snared countless fans since its incarnation. Audience members threw themselves towards the stage and crowd surfed for the song’s entirety at Fitzgerald’s hearty encouragement. Noelle Scaggs, the band’s other lead singer and tambourine player, never let her infectious smile fade over the course of the night, shaking her yellow-frocked hips to the beat. Her charismatic on-stage presence was
welcome, as she encouraged every member of the venue to bellow the lyrics to the band’s cover of “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” one of the most surprising and hilarious moments of the entire set. Her voice, silky and seductive, comes packed with an emotional heft of a subtext—it’s a marvel to watch her sing as if her life depends on it. If anything should be taken away from Fitz and the Tantrums’ triumphant and wonderfully diverse two hour set, it’s certainly that the days of the saxophone in popular music are back with a vengeance. The band showcased a sax player who furiously howled with the gold plated instrument, much to the crowd’s amusement. His brief moments in the spotlight were startling. Fitz and the Tantrums’ command over the audience was impressive, calling for everyone to squat at one point, which, almost surprisingly, everyone did. It was a wonderful moment of clarity and unity during the band’s encore, but all at once, mania overtook the crowd once again as Fitzgerald screamed at the top of his lungs. At his request, the entirety of the House of Blues was once again dancing and thrashing across the dance floor, hanging off the rafters and aching for more music. Also, quite encouragingly, many audience members were in their teens and early 20s, a welcome sign that soul and funk can be embraced by multiple generations. The band’s hip outfits and almost drunken enthusiasm kept everyone grooving for hours on end, an incredible feat that certainly cements the band’s place as one of the most spectacular touring acts in the country. n
Artist’s work explores sex Brodell, from A10 in style, these pieces focus on what it was like for her to grow up in a conventional Catholic family, while, at the same time, struggle with her gender identity. Each of these drawings features a male subject, a projection of her ideal self as a man. Sometimes, she was inspired by their entire masculine persona, and other times, she was inspired by something as simple as their hair. She depicts herself as a strong, brawny outdoorsman with a rugged beard and flannel in one drawing and as a classy, urbane gentleman with a blazer and fedora in another. Both are figures that she “connected with in some way as a kid. If [she] could have grown up to be a man, [she] would have been a man like them.” Later in this series, Brodell created pieces featuring male identities – such as pop icons, toys, and saints – that one would not normally expect to see together in the same work of art. For example, Brodell’s “He-Man and St. Michael Find They Have A Lot in Common” portrays He-Man (one of her favorite childhood toys) and Saint Michael (one of the most influential characters in her Catholic upbringing) side-by-side in a friendly embrace. Other pieces present icons like Cary Grant and Gene Kelly, toys lile G.I. Joe and Barbie’s Ken, and saints like Saint Anthony. Brodell said that by merging such figures she wanted to unite her “queer side” with her religious side, which are both integral facets of her life. Brodell also exhibited to the students a series that she is currently working on. She has 10 completed and is finishing the 11th. Modeled after the holy cards that she received as a child, her “Butch Heroes” illustrate women of the past who, like Brodell, grappled with their sexuality. She drew inspiration from the colors, details, borders, and banners of the holy cards, replacing the saints with her heroes. Each possessed a different story, but all dealt with the same issue. They were women who not only dressed like men, but also identified as male. During her presentation, Brodell described the history of each “Butch Hero.” Many of her subjects were persecuted, convicted, and killed. Despite the many tragic stories, though, Brodell explains to The Heights that her series has a very specific purpose: “I hope to show, especially the queer
Courtesy of Google.com
Brodell depicts an historical butch figure. community, some role models to look up to, to show that we do have a history and that history is very extensive…though it’s often hard to find because it was hidden for so long and censored. I feel like it’s beneficial to see that they existed.” Her heroes are of several different ethnicities, including European and Native American, but Brodell said that she wished her series could be even more diverse; however, it is extremely difficult to find genuine, primary sources for subjects. Clearly, a great deal of exploration and thought goes into the creation of each drawing. She conducted much of her extensive research through the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, other online museum archives, and through the Boston Public Library. For those interested in her work, Brodell mentioned that her website will soon include access to her sources as well as to individual narratives of each “Butch Hero.” It was evident by the end of her presentation that Brodell’s art had stirred the audience to feel something, though it may have been a different something for each person. Regardless, her drawings – unique, modern, and thought-provoking – achieve what they set out to do. n
Planning a family movie night without the awkward aftermath Joe Allen After three months of the “procrastinate-freakout-party- freakout some more” routine, Thanksgiving break approaches as a kind of godsend. Finally, five days to relax, gorge yourself with stuffing, continue procrastinating, and spend some time with the family. But what activities can you do with your family while sitting and eating? Go to the movies! With regular trips to the theater being hard to manage for college students, the first extended break is an opportunity to see new releases and earn points with your parents, siblings, aunts, second cousins…whoever. But be warned! As an older brother who mistakenly took his sisters to see Bridesmaids last May, I can say that finding the movie that’s right for everyone is tough. Here are some of the films coming out within the week before Thanksgiving and their likely aftermaths, ranging from “What a great movie for this perfect holiday weekend,” to “Great, now I can’t make eye contact with Mom until Christmas.” The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 Please, let this be a joke. Out of any weekend for Summit Entertainment to
release this mess, made by people who have obviously never seen Fright Night, they had to pick the only weekend you can take your sisters to the movies. Lil’ sis claims to have outgrown those “stupid” movies, but still wants you to take her to see it because it’s going to be “like, so dumb.” Flash forward two hours to when your pre-teen sister is screaming with glee as Taylor Lautner takes off his shirt to compete with Robert Pattinson in a sulk-off, and let the regret sink in. And good luck explaining that teenage pregnancy isn’t like that to your youngest sibling who you also had to bring. Another Happy Day Nothing says “family movie night” like going to see a dark comedy in which a family consisting of divorcees, a stripper step-mom, a depressed, drug-addicted teenager, and a sociopathic grandmother fight over who can drop more F-bombs. Sure, you and your older sister might be laughing, until you both realize that seeing a movie that contains explicit sex talk, teen drug use, and “graphic nudity” will not yield fun post-viewing conversations with mom and dad. Save this sarcastic family movie to watch with anyone unrelated to you. Happy Feet Two Ok, you can’t go wrong with this one,
right? The original Happy Feet pleased both kids and adults alike with its combination of cute penguins and lively music numbers, and this sequel looks like the exact same thing. Dad will have fun guessing all the voice actors, who include Robin Williams, Brad Pitt, and Sofia Vergara among many others. Mom and the girls will be talking about the creativity behind that high-pitched rendition of “Sexy Back.” You will simply be happy that you chose a movie that doesn’t get you in trouble...until you hear heavy sighing to your left. Of course, you forgot about your moody 16-year-old brother who is currently preparing a lecture for the ride home on why this movie sucked. So. Much. A Dangerous Method/ My Week with Marilyn Knowing that your mom goes crazy for historical dramas, you take her to see one or both of these upcoming films. Both will make for an enjoyable trip to the movies with your mom, until you account for the pre and post-movie history lessons. The Artist This critically-acclaimed French film, which its leading man Jean Dujardin won the Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival this year, is finally being released
in the U.S. next week. While The Artist is appropriate for the whole family, it’s a silent film (an homage to those of the early 1900s) and should therefore be approached with extreme caution. Before deciding on this foreign film, let your family know that it contains absolutely no spoken dialogue. They will most likely say, “We understand,” to which you should reply, “No seriously, no one says a word for the entire movie.” Even if your
family still agrees to see it, prepare yourself for the, “What did you just take us to see? Do you hate us?” barrage of attacks after the movie. Who am I kidding? Just take everyone to see The Muppets and be done with it.
Joe Allen is a staff columnist for The Heights. He welcomes comments at arts@ bcheights.com.
Courtesy of allmoviephoto.com
‘The Muppets’ may be the only safe bet when trying to placate all family members this break.
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arts&review Monday, November 14, 2011
Wicked Cultured
Stefon and the subway Charlotte Parish
Ballet has scarred me. Not because I was one of those kids who spent hours on end in the studio. In fact, I didn’t make it past month one of lessons before I became bored and needed something more aggressive (soccer worked out quite well). Rather, last spring I was unaware that most of the last act of the ballet I was attending was topless. In theory, I’m fine with nudity for art’s sake. But it was incredibly strange to wonder which dancers were males and which were females since the matching outfits gave no indication, and surprisingly, the bare tops did not give any clues either. So naturally, I’ve been a bit hesitant about returning to the Boston Opera House, just in case there are any other surprises hiding behind the velvet curtains that I’m not prepared for. Hopefully, I would be safe with the perennial Christmas hit, The Nutcracker, but a recent advertisement for this season’s production reminded me that this is the last run for the show in its current iteration (next year will feature completely renovated sets and costumes, and who knows, maybe a little nudity). The range of shows put on by Boston Ballet Company at the Opera House is something of a conundrum for me. From the topless Bella Figura, to the classic Nutcracker, to a silent version of Midsummer Night’s Dream (doesn’t that defeat the point of Shakespeare’s brilliance with words?), the Opera House has witnessed any number of contrasting shows. And this is a phenomenon that has infected many of the venues in Boston. Take House of Blues, for instance. I have seen several amazing artists there, like Sara Bareilles, Grace Potter, Ellie Goulding (I have a certain affinity for the female power houses of the industry) and every show has me blown away, going beyond even my greatest expectations. But apparently, House of Blues is also opening its doors to a completely different type of act: Star Kid Potter. The University of Michigan-bred group is making their way to Boston for only two shows this Black Friday, which is problematic enough for their attendance levels (Black Friday comes but once a year, clearly a priority for anyone with a shopping addiction). But I am completely confused. Are they performing A Very Potter Musical? And if so, why on earth are they at House of Blues? Pictures of the tour show members of Darren Criss’ brainchild show (including the Boston-bred Joe Walker, who plays the hilarious Voldemort) in regular dress, which would seem to indicate that they are not performing the play and may have transitioned into a band. Oddities abound. Topping off this continuum of odd performances are the street performers, integral to every metropolitan. While New York City gets to have the beautiful, boisterous voice of Jesse J lifting up above the rumbling of the subway, Boston struggles to keep up. Instead, I bore witness to a performance last weekend that was as baffling as it was entertaining. I swear on the sanctity of the word “wicked” that Stefon of Saturday Night Live was performing none other than Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” with a threepiece band behind him in matching black jumpsuits at Park Street. His voice and mannerisms (while singing, mind you) were impeccably Stefonesque, as if he were advertising a human suitcase for your sweetheart this Christmas season. Who knows what is going on in the minds of those orchestrating these seasons (granted, only the House of Blues and the Opera House actually have control over their performers; the MBTA is fair game), but it never ceases to entertain.
Charlotte Parish is the Assistant Arts & Review editor of The Heights. She can be reached at arts@bcheights.com
More than meets the eye in ‘illusion’
With ‘Illusion,’ this fall’s BC Dance Ensemble show, countless students showcased
Dance Ensemble hits the creative mark in its fall show in Robsham Theater
T By Taylor Cavallo For the Heights
he Boston College Dance Ensemble’s (BCDE) fall performance Illusion was a dynamic display of the incredible group skill, but also the versatility of each dancer. The show consisted of 23 performances, ranging from tap to ballet, brilliantly choreographed by the members of BCDE themselves. The opening and closing dances featured all the BCDE members; however, other pieces were smaller, more intimate groupings. Although Illusion was no doubt a way for BCDE to showcase their collaborative efforts as a team, the entire
their true talents
Kevin Hou / Heights editor
at both classical and modern dance.
performance felt highly personal and individualized. Announcing the choreographer of each piece before it was performed, and the extremely detailed program (which included not only the names of each dancer and choreographer of that particular piece, but also a personal message from the choreographer) allowed the audience to truly connect with the dancers, and in turn, the performance as a whole. Movements were performed with near-military precision and each beat could be felt while dancers hit every pose, landed every pirouette, and popped every hip to near perfection. “Sweet Dreams,” choreographed by the BCDE officers, was an eye-catching beginning to the show and set the stage (pun intended) for the relentlessly high energy level that lasted throughout the two hours of Illu-
See Dance Ensemble, A9
Gender issues pervade art Local artist Brodell shares her wonderfully evocative drawings in Devlin Hall By Ariana Igneri For the Heights
Art, regardless of its style, medium, or subject, should instill an emotion in the viewer. Whether it is passion, shock, disgust, sympathy, or even a feeling completely unidentifiable, if a piece of art has made the viewer feel something, it has adequately done its job. Ria Brodell, a local artist, recently shared her emotionally evocative drawings with Boston College students, inspiring a range of reactions among those present for her talk. Sponsored and organized by the
BC Fine Arts Department, the Art Club, and BC Allies, Brodell’s presentation took place on Monday, Nov. 7 in Devlin Hall. She began by giving a brief biography. Originally from Idaho, Brodell received an extensive education in the arts; she studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, and the Museum School/Tufts University. Her work has been featured locally, up and down the East Coast, and even on the West Coast in California. Brodell’s body of work focuses on the issue of sexuality and gender identification, a topic that is extremely personal for the Boston artist. Her older work – which she displayed first during her presentation – is a collection of self-portraits. Biographical
See Brodell, A9
Joan Didion visits Boston, revisits tragedy with ‘Blue’ By Kristen House Heights Senior Staff
At the front of the First Parish Church of Cambridge in the dark evening hours of Monday, memoirist, essayist, screenwriter, and author Joan Didion sat, her physical presence no more than a spider plant. Her glasses were chunky black squares perched on her nose, a knitted purple scarf draped around her neck, and a long sleeve shirt hung loosely around her frame. In her languid, stuttering way, Didion expressed a surprising hope for her next career move: “I don’t want to write any more memoirs. I want to do something else…I mean I would like to discover
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something. Preferably about water, which has always interested me a lot.” Didion, now 76, is well acquainted with the swiftness of tragedy. In 2003, her husband John Dunne died from a sudden heart attack as their daughter, Quintana Roo Dunne, was being hospitalized for septic shock, events which were chronicled in Didion’s The Year of Magical Thinking. In 2005, Quintana died of pancreatitis, a tragedy that prompted Didion’s latest novel Blue Nights. While many would be paralyzed or doomed to frazzled sentimentality from such events, Didion is not among them.
See Didion, A9
Jack and Jill leaves audiences feeling sour
The movie leaves audiences asking: should Adam Sandler just clock in and call it a day? A8
Courtesy of Fitzandthetantrums.com
The sweet sounds of old school R&B filled the House of Blues with throngs of fans on Friday.
Sounds of soul burst at HOB Fitz and the Tantrums tear up the dance floor on Friday By Brennan Carley
Assoc. Arts & Review Editor Countless Top-40 stations herald Bruno Mars as the long awaited soul revivalist the country has been waiting for since the 1970s, but Fitz and the Tantrums proved that they are much more suited for the job during their raucous concert on Friday night. There was a harmonious and wholly enjoyable set that incorporated influences from the past while paving a new musical road. The crowd skewed calmer than most at the band’s third Boston concert of the year, but it wasn’t without the fights and frenzied dancing usually associated with the horribly restricting House of Blues. Luckily for the crowd, the band embraced the atmosphere and rolled with it, emerging on stage to shrieks suited for the superstars that they are quickly becoming. One of the night’s biggest surprises was one of its opening bands, Walking
See these movies with your family
With Thanksgiving break rapidly approaching, it’s a good idea to plan your movie watching days, A8
the Moon. Featuring a lead singer with a smiley face painted on his cheek, the band delivered a tight and concise set chock full of soul and high-pitched wails. Their high point was a cover of “Winter Hymnal,” a Fleet Foxes song that was elevated to funky heights by the soulful band. The band is nothing if not professional.
See Fitz, A9
Bestsellers...............................A8 Box Office Report........................A8
SPORTS The Heights
Monday, November 14, 2011
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Monday, November 14, 2011
Knocked off their feet Terriers trounce futile Eagles at Kelley Rink By Greg Joyce
Assoc. Sports Editor
alex trautwig / heights editor
The physical Terriers pounded the Eagles into submission during a dominant 5-0 victory yesterday.
Winning may have saved Spaz’s job
For just the eighth time in 255 meetings between Boston College and Boston 5 Boston Univ. University, Boston College 0 the Terriers shut out the Eagles, 5-0, on Sunday at Kelley Rink. The story of the game was special teams, as BU capitalized on its man advantage opportunities, while BC did not. “They just played better than we did,” head coach Jerry York said. “As a team, we weren’t as sharp as we’d like to be and weren’t as thorough as we’d like to be. BU outworked us, they worked harder than we did. Their special teams were just much better than we were tonight.”
Corey Trivino got the scoring going for the Terriers just 54 seconds into the game. The BC defense was caught with just one defenseman back in its own zone, and Trivino slipped through to put the puck into the back of the net for the 1-0 lead. Following Trivino’s goal, the Eagles had three straight power plays on which they failed to score, despite creating solid scoring chances. “They scored early, and then we had three successive power plays, and that was our chance to get back in the contest,” York said. The Terriers took advantage of a power play at the end of the first period, as Wade Megan camped outside the crease waiting to receive
See Men’s Hockey, B3
BU Scoring chart First period, 0:54 Corey Trivino (EV) First period, 19:13 Wade Megan (PP) Second period, 9:58 Alex Chiasson (PP) Second period, 15:43 Matt Nieto (EV) Third period, 18:22 Wade Megan (SH)
Seniors go out swinging
Paul Sulzer Beating NC State 14-10 on Saturday at Alumni Stadium had several ramifications for the Boston College football team. The seniors earned a victory in their final home game, a gritty display of heart for a team that could have given up on the season long ago. The home fans also saw BC defeat an FBS opponent in Chestnut Hill for the first time since Nov. 20, 2010, against Virginia. Most importantly, though, Frank Spaziani likely secured another season as the head coach of the Eagles. With this win, BC improved to 3-7. Three wins might be enough for the athletic department to chalk up this year’s struggles to inexperience and injuries. The Eagles certainly have a great deal of both. But the coaching staff has compounded those problems with, among other issues, overly conservative play-calling, especially when leading. The development of many players on the team has stagnated because the coaches are afraid to trust them. The second half of Saturday’s game is a prime example. Even though BC thoroughly outplayed NC State for most of the game, the Wolfpack were within four points from the middle of the third
See Sulzer, B3
graham beck / heights staff
Boston College (3-7, 2-5 ACC) salvaged pride by defeating NC State 14-10 Saturday at Alumni Stadium, despite registering negative total offense in the second half.
After suffering a humiliating loss to Florida State, Boston College rebounds to defeat NC State By Chris Grimaldi For The Heights
On a Senior Day filled with bittersweet farewells and nostalgia from seasons past, the Boston College football team looked to seize Boston College 14 the present in a redemption10 NC State filled contest against ACC foe North Carolina State. Over a week after suffering arguably their worst defeat of the season, head coach Frank Spaziani’s
Eagles treated the Alumni faithful to a resilient 1410 victory over the Wolfpack on Saturday afternoon. While BC’s final home game of the 2011 campaign was not always a display of crisp football, this gutty upset win may provide the Eagles with invaluable late-season momentum. “It’s a nice memory to have,” said Spaziani of the game’s meaning to his squad’s seniors, “but we have a couple other chapters to write in this season here.” Right out of the gate, the Eagles appeared poised to take control of the contest. Sophomore quarterback
Chase Rettig quickly led the BC offense down into NC State territory during the game’s opening drive, completing a timely 41-yard pass to receiver Alex Amidon. Backup quarterback Josh Bordner, whose performance running the Wildcat continued to prove his worth on BC’s offensive attack, efficiently capped the two-minute march down the field with a threeyard touchdown run. Rettig emphasized how vital BC’s early aggressive-
See Football, B3
Women’s soccer
Boston College crushes overmatched Marist Eagles advance to NCAA second round for 4th straight year; will play Cal at Stanford By Kim Schroer For The Heights
any great chances and were outplayed for most of the game. UNC controlled the play for much of the first half. The Tar Heels created chances far more often than the Eagles, outshooting BC 8-2 in the opening 45 minutes. Their efforts were rewarded in the 38th minute, when Carlos McCrary headed a ball past BC keeper Justin Luthy for a 1-0 lead. Five minutes later, the Tar Heels struck again
The Boston College women’s soccer team opened the NCAA tournament with a bang on Sunday, rolling to a 6-1 victory over Boston College 6 Marist in Newton and ad1 Marist vancing to the second round for the fourth year in a row. The Eagles controlled the pace of the game early, threatening several times and preventing Marist from attempting a single shot on goal for the first 20 minutes of play. Junior Victoria DiMartino started the scoring onslaught for the Eagles in the 22nd minute, blasting a shot inside the near post from a difficult angle to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead. DiMartino knew how important her early goal was in helping her team gain momentum. “The first goal of a game is very important,” she said. “To come out in the first 20 minutes and get the goal helped us settle down and get some pressure off our backs.” BC struck again three minutes later, when senior Kristie Mewis scored off a free kick just outside the 18-yard box, bending her shot around the wall and into the left corner of the net. Sophomore Gibby Wagner demoralized the Marist defense right before the end of the half, weaving through multiple defenders in the center of the field and finishing a powerful left-footed shot to give the Eagles a 3-0 lead at the break. After head coach Alison Foley replaced goalkeeper Jillian Mastroianni in the second half, Marist quickly took advantage, as Kathryn Hannis lobbed a header
See Men’s Soccer, B3
See Women’s Soccer, B5
alex trautwig / heights editor
Kyle Bekker registered BC’s only goal in its 3-1 loss to North Carolina yesterday.
Men’s soccer run ends just shy of an ACC title By Steven Principi Heights Staff
Boston College’s incredible run through the ACC men’s soccer tournament North Carolina 3 c a m e to Boston College 1 a halt on Sunday afternoon, as the Eagles lost 3-1 to North Carolina in the championship game in Cary, N.C. A match-up with the No. 3 team in the nation proved to be too much for the Eagles, who rarely created
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Annie Haeger feature
Get to know BC’s three-time national champion sailor......................................B5
graham beck / heights staff
Mewis broke the game open with a goal on a free kick from just outside the box in the first half.
Men’s basketball preview
The Eagles open their season tonight against the New Hampshire Wildcats.................................B2
Numbers to Know.....................B2 Quote of the Week.....................B2
The Heights
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Monday, November 14, 2011
Donahue to showcase new-look team against UNH Young men’s basketball team prepared to gain experience in Conte season opener By Andrew Klokiw Heights Staff
Year two in the reign of Boston Colleg men’s basketball head coach Steve Donahue officially begins tonight at 7 p.m., when the New Hampshire Wildcats visit Conte Forum. Many have called this a rebuilding season, and with good reason. Reggie Jackson? Gone to the NBA. Dallas Elmore? Transferred. Corey Raji, Biko Paris, Joe Trapani, Cortney Dunn, and
Josh Southern? All graduated. But for a team that was picked to finish 12th in the ACC in the preseason rankings , optimism is surprisingly prevalent. The team recently struggled through its first exhibition but ultimately fought off Division II American International, 70-66. BC’s first true 7-footer in some time, freshman Dennis Clifford, poured in 17 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the field. Classmate Patrick Heckmann put up 16 points to complement Clifford’s impres-
Graham Beck / Heights Staff
Ryan Anderson will be a major asset on both ends of the court for the Eagles this season.
sive performance. The revamped Eagles’ squad was given an added boost when graduate student John Cahill elected to return to the team. A senior last year, Cahill walked onto the team and asserted himself as a threat from behind the arc and as a steadying, older influence. The guard displayed both of those attributes against AIC, as he went 3-for-3 from deep, and was the only BC starter with any prior basketball experience on the Heights. The rest of Donahue’s starting lineup is rounded out by last year’s Mr. Basketball in California, Ryan Anderson, and a junior transfer from Oregon, Matt Humphrey. In addition, BC returns two sophomores who saw major minutes last year in guards Danny Rubin and Gabe Moton. These players are now tasked with keeping the Eagles out of the ACC cellar, as the conference itself has predicted. BC has not played UNH since the 2007-08 campaign. With some interesting parallels to this year’s team, the Eagles won that game, 67-57, on the strength of 22 and 19 points from true freshmen Rakim Sanders and Biko Paris, respectively. The Wildcats come to Conte Forum on the heels of an up-and-down season, in which they finished 12-18 - good for seventh in the America East. The squad was hurt by the graduation of 2010-11 leading scorer, guard Tyrone Conley, who finished the season with 15.4 points per game. However, head coach Bill Herrion’s team returns two doubledigit scorers from last year in guard Alvin Abreu (14.0 points per game) and
Graham Beck / Heights STaff
Patrick Heckmann, though a freshman, will be looked at as a strong scoring option for the Eagles. forward Ferg Myrick (12.1). Last week, UNH defeated Suffolk University, 85-64. Abreu led the team with 19 points. Guards Chandler Rhoads and Jordon Bronner and forward Brian Benson chipped in double-digit performances. The game on Monday evening will also mark the official debut of the BC fan group, Donahue’s Disciples. Founded this offseason, the Disciples’ mission statement involves boosting attendance
at home games and stirring up general support for the team. UNH returns nine letter winners from 2010-11 to BC’s four, but Donahue’s talented young team is one that should never be underestimated. Given some time to gel as a unit, the leadership of returners Cahill, Rubin, and Moton will be crucial, in combination with the impressive abilities of the freshman class that Donahue has unveiled, to ushering in a new era in BC basketball. n
Brown leads women’s basketball team to victory in season opener By Tim Jablonski Heights Staff
SPORTS in SHORT
With the core of the squad lost to graduation, the Boston College women’s Boston College 68 ba sket57 FDU ball team is going to spend the opening weeks of its season searching for an identity and leaders on offense. Friday morning in Conte Forum, Shayra Brown officially announced her candidacy as the Eagles’ offensive catalyst. The sophomore guard dropped 19 points in just 23 minutes of play, leading BC to a decisive 68-57 victory over visiting Fairleigh Dickinson. Brown set a career high in both points and rebounds, notching seven boards to help the Eagles start their season off with a victory. “With the roster turnover, I think it’s going to take a bit of time before we really know who we are out there,” head coach Sylvia Crawley said. “Today was a good start towards determining who we are as a team.” This team is expected to spread the wealth around more than last year’s squad. Ten different players scored for BC on Friday, with Brown and sophomore point guard Tiffany Ruffin the only players to reach double figures. While the Eagles shot just 30.6 percent from the floor (22-for-72), they were able to get up 22 more shots than the Knights, thanks in part to both BC’s defensive tenacity and Fairleigh Dickinson’s constant turnovers. “Defensively, we did a good job keeping them from settling into any real rhythm,” Crawley said. “If we’re working hard out there on defense, we can control the tempo of a game.” BC’s efforts on defense were rewarded time and time again as the Knights turned the ball over 33 times, giving the home team more
than enough chances to take control of the game. The Eagles were in the driver’s seat from the beginning, jumping out to a 6-0 lead in the first 40 seconds of the game. They stretched the lead to 9-0 before Fairleigh Dickinson got itself on the scoreboard three-and-a-half minutes into the game. After that, the two squads exchanged buckets for the rest of the half. The Knights climbed within two points on several occasions but were unable to tie the game up and went into the half down 33-28. Following halftime, the Eagles found their shooting stroke, knocking down three 3-pointers after missing on 8-of-9 first-half attempts from behind the arc. Crawley emphasized the importance of avoiding this trend of shooting in the future. “We are going to have to shoot better if we want to be competitive in the ACC,” she said. “Part of it is just a little rust – a little seasonopening jitters. We will get more comfortable with this offense as the season progresses.”
Nick Rellas / Heights Staff
Shayra Brown (20) led her squad with a career-high in points and rebounds.
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Virginia Tech Virginia Georgia Tech Miami North Carolina Duke
The one Eagle who looked truly comfortable on Friday was Brown. With BC leading by nine with less than six minutes to play, the Brooklyn native exploded for eight unanswered points in barely a minute’s time, effectively icing the game. “Shayra played very well out there this afternoon,” Crawley said. “She’s got the potential to be a dynamic player, and this game was just the start of that.” With Kerri Shields, the team’s leading returning scorer, shooting just 2-for-12 from the floor, BC had to look elsewhere for points. Along with Brown, Ruffin and sophomore Korina Chapman helped keep the Eagles one step ahead of Dickinson on offense. Ruffin set a career high with five field goals, while Chapman totaled nine points in just 18 minutes on the court. The offensive diversity is a solid sign for the Eagles as they search for their new identity. If Brown can play near the level she reached on Friday, BC may have a new player to lead this team. n
Conference 6-1 5-2 4-3 2-4 2-5 1-5 5-1 4-2 4-3 3-4 2-4 1-5
Overall 9-1 7-3 5-5 5-5 3-7 2-8 9-1 7-3 7-3 5-5 6-4 3-7
Graham Beck / Heights Staff
Freshman Courtney Castle (above) and the Eagles were unable to build any momentum in the weekend’s roadtrip.
Volleyball drops two in road trip series with Virginia and Va. Tech By Steven Principi Heights Staff
The Boston College volleyball team continued its recent struggles by 3 Virginia Tech dropping Boston College 0 two more games over the weekend. Playing at Virginia Friday and Virginia Tech Saturday, the Eagles failed to even take a set, falling 3-0 to both of their ACC foes. The losses keep BC in the basement of the ACC and extended its losing streak to a season-long eight games. Virginia Tech came out strong on Saturday night, racing out to an early 9-2 lead to start the first set. The Eagles weren’t able to find any sort of rhythm throughout the set and were beaten, 25-14. The second set started better for BC, as Krystle Higgins powered an improved attack and Virginia Tech began to cool off after a dominant first set. However, the Hokies distanced themselves from the Eagles with another big run, winning the second set, 25-16. The third set went much the same as the second, with the two teams trading points until the score was even at 15. Once again, the
Virginia Tech broke away from BC by taking the next three points and cruising to a 25-17 win. “In terms of size, we’re not a big team,” Campbell said. “Virginia Tech’s a lot bigger than we are and they’re a lot better out of system than we are. We weren’t serving really well, which got us in trouble and they were serving very well. That’s what really hurt us in the end.” Friday’s game with Virginia went no better for the Eagles, who once again found themselves unable to close out a set. The Cavaliers took the first set 26-24 after BC jumped out to a 6-1 lead to start the game. Virginia came back with an 8-3 run of its own and managed to take the set with back-to-back kills. The second set wasn’t as close, as the Cavs opened up an early lead and coasted to a relatively easy 25-18 win. The Eagles then played a great third set, opening up an 18-12 lead before Virginia went on a run to tie it at 21. The Cavaliers had match point at 24-22, but the Eagles managed to take the next three points for a 25-24 match point of their own. The teams then traded points to a 27-27 score before a BC error
Quote of the Week
Numbers to Know
9
The number of tackles for junior linebacker Luke Kuechly in the final 13 minutes against NC State.
2.8
The number of seconds left when defenseman Tommy Cross scored the game-winning goal against Northeastern on Friday night.
34
The number of rushing attempts by BC on Saturday’s game, compared to 15 dropbacks.
and a Virginia kill gave the Cavs the set and a 3-0 win. Melissa McTighe led the way for the Eagles with a career-high 10 kills and a team-high .476 attacking percentage, but it was not enough, as the Cavaliers improved to 9-17 and 3-13 in the ACC. While Campbell was disappointed with the loss, he noted that he saw some positives and thought his team was moving in the right direction. “I thought we did a lot of great things,” Campbell said. “In the end we just came up short. The first and third games were really close and could have gone either way. We did a lot of things very well but we just got a couple of bad breaks.” With their losing streak now at eight games, the Eagles are clearly in a low point of their season. Campbell believes, however, that his team will dig itself out of its rut in the last three games. “Its been difficult, there’s no question,” Campbell said. “But that’s the challenge, to be able to stay focused through these times and be able to realize the things you are doing well even when you lose. Its important to not get discourage and not to get down on yourself and overcome this hurdle.” n
“It’s a good weapon to have, but you still want to keep your identity.” Head coach Frank Spaziani, on the split between the Wildcat option and the standard offense. —
The Heights
Monday, November 14, 2011
B3
Beating NC State may have saved Spaz’s job Sulzer, from B1 quarter onward. Instead of going for the kill when they started the second half up 11 points, the Eagles turtled up. Sophomore quarterback Chase Rettig threw just 13 times, despite averaging 9.1 yards per attempt and completing 69 percent of his passes. In the first half, he made an excellent back-shoulder throw to Alex Amidon on a go route for a 41yard gain. The cornerback never stood a chance. It was one of Rettig’s best passes of the year. The first half demonstrated not just what Rettig could do, but rather the capabilities of the entire offense. The Eagles were dynamic because they kept NC State off guard. They mixed run and pass well, and they used Josh Bordner in the Wildcat formation when the Wolfpack started to get comfortable. Rettig did make one mistake in the first half, throwing into double coverage on a long bomb toward the end zone and getting intercepted. Even though the play resulted in a turnover, Rettig should be en-
couraged to play aggressively. The Eagles need a quarterback with the confidence in his arm to make any throw. Matt Ryan had the gunslinger mentality. Rettig has it too, but he’s stifled by a coaching staff that doesn’t truly believe in him. That’s perhaps the best way to explain why Bordner came out for the next series under center. Although BC could have been trying to confuse NC State with different personnel, the change felt like punishment for the pick Rettig threw. The coaches were reluctant to even let Bordner drop back. All seven plays of that series were runs from the Wildcat. The Eagles moved the ball pretty well, but the Wolfpack began keying on Bordner and Amidon, who came in motion every play for a potential zone read handoff. After those two combined for seven rushes for 28 yards on that drive, Bordner had no more carries, and Amidon had two for minus-10 yards. Once NC State adjusted in the second half, the Eagles needed more variety in their play-calling. They totaled minustwo total yards over the final 30 minutes
because they turned to the ground attack to keep the clock running way too early. For the game, they dropped back to pass just 15 times, compared to 34 rushes. At a certain point, the staff needs to give Rettig a chance to grow. His long-term development is far more important to the success of the program than a single win. This one victory, understandably, should not determine Spaziani’s future at BC. Putting too much stock into a lone win (or loss) is a poor way to evaluate his job performance. The Eagles won, and they deserve credit for doing so when they’ve already been eliminated from postseason contention. Still, they were 2.5-point underdogs at home to a middling ACC opponent. Have expectations for the program sunk to the point where this is acceptable? If Spaziani is holding the headset in BC’s first game of 2012, we’ll know the answer.
Paul Sulzer is the Sports Editor for The Heights. He can be reached at sports@ bcheights.com.
Graham beck / heights staff
In the second quarter, Colin Larmond, Jr. broke free from the coverage for a 17-yard score.
Seniors win home finale against North Carolina St. Football, from B1
Graham beck / heights staff
Alex Amidon broke free for a few solid gains on end-arounds from the Wildcat formation, but NC State adjusted and wrapped him up in the backfield.
ness was in setting the tone for the rest of the game. “We wanted to take a shot in the first quarter and let them know that we’re not going to be running inch routes,” he said. A key second-quarter touchdown pass from Rettig to wide receiver Colin Larmond, Jr. proved to be the game-winning score. Yet it was the Eagles’ defense and its containment of the Wolfpack that stole the show. Two BC touchdowns were all linebacker Luke Kuechly and Co. needed to secure a victory. Holding NC State to just three first-half points, BC’s defensive onslaught sent opposing quarterback Mike Glennon fleeing in the pocket throughout the afternoon and successfully prevented the Wolfpack from developing any sort of offensive cohesion for the better part of all four quarters. “When you can play good defense, you’re always in the game,” Spaziani said, alluding to his defensive unit’s toughness as the driving force behind Saturday afternoon’s win. An early 32-yard field goal by kicker Niklas Sade and a rushing touchdown by halfback James Washington allowed NC State to slowly crawl back into the game, but BC’s most complete defensive showing of the season squelched any attempt at a comeback. With the Wolfpack knocking on the Eagles’ door late in the fourth quarter, BC corner Donnie Fletcher
intercepted Glennon in the endzone to halt the scoring threat. After a quick BC possession put the ball back in NC State’s hands with roughly a minute to play, Eagles defensive end Max Holloway sealed the deal by batting down a fourth-down desperation pass, sending the home crowd off with a more hopeful outlook on what remains of BC’s season. “We knew how to stop the plays they were coming with,” Kuechly said, citing his teammates’ effective silencing of a formidable NC State offense. “Any time you get a win, it builds momentum.” BC’s All-American linebacker and Lombardi Award finalist registered nine tackles in the final 13 minutes of play despite suffering an arm injury, and 18 tackles overall. The valiant effort Kuechly gave in his unprecedented 32nd straight game with double-digit tackles impressed Spaziani. “The tougher the situation gets, the better he gets,” the coach said. “He’s a great football player, and I’m proud to be his coach.” Even so, Spaziani and his players understand that it will take two more collective team efforts to end their turbulent season on a positive note. Building on the strong points of Saturday’s victory will ultimately decide the Eagles’ fate as they head to South Bend next weekend. A couple more well-executed games on both sides of the ball may be a recipe for the late-season momentum that BC is looking to maintain. n
Football Notebook: Senior class goes out in style By Chris Marino Asst. Sports Editor
The football team’s 14-10 victory over NC State at Alumni Stadium was a statement game for the graduating class. On Senior Day, the Eagles seemed to bring a new energy that Superfans have not seen in weeks. Head coach Frank Spaziani understands the emotional aspect of this day; however, he is telling his players to remain focused on finishing the otherwise disappointing season. “It’s always emotional, I think, for the seniors on their last home game,” he said. “But, like I told the seniors, ‘This isn’t your last game. It’s your last game at Alumni Stadium, so it’s a nice memory to have, but we have a couple more chapters to write this season.’” The disruptive Wildcat One important aspect of Saturday’s game was the further implementation of the Wildcat offense. The main two figures of this scheme are redshirt freshman quarterback Josh Bordner and sophomore wide receiver Alex Amidon. While it is refreshing to see Spaziani get creative with the playbook, the team is still adjusting to these new plays. The Eagles overused the end-around option play to Amidon, as he was hit for losses of eight and three yards on his final two carries. Regardless, Amidon is excited by this play-calling, saying, “I really enjoy carrying the ball. It’s really fun, but it’s good to have an
offense like that, where one series you can come out with just a regular offense and the next series come out with the Wildcat. It’s a good thing to be able to change it up like that.” There were also concerns over the rhythm of the offense, due to the altering of two quarterbacks. Starting quarterback Chase Rettig looked fairly strong in the first half, especially on a 17-yard touchdown to Colin Larmond, Jr., but he looked out of sync throughout the second half when Spaziani substituted Bordner regularly into the offense. “Josh showed us some of what he could do in the Florida State game, and we wanted to utilize some of the stuff that he can do,” the coach said of the alternation. “But, at the same time, we had a rhythm that we wanted to get into with it, and we wanted to use it and need to expand it a little bit. It’s a good weapon to have but you still want to keep your identity.” Rettig indicated that the Wildcat was positive for the unit, but the team needs to stay focused for the whole game. “Offensively, we came out quick and scored a touchdown,” he said. “We moved the ball in the first half. The Wildcat keeps them guessing a little bit. In the second half, it came down to our third-down conversions. We were running the ball on the first couple of downs, so it came down to third-and-six or third-and-seven. [NC State] did a good job adjusting in the second half and playing the safeties a little further down because we were really trying to work the ball inside, so they did a
good job keeping us out of the middle of the field.” Kuechly keeps going Junior linebacker Luke Kuechly has been a force for the Eagles throughout his career. He certainly proved to any doubters that he has the capability to make big plays down the stretch. In the final quarter of Saturday’s game, NC State looked poised to take the lead on its final drive of the game. Kuechly stepped up for nine tackles in the final 13 minutes, picking up BC when it needed him most. “I started to realize what was going on with where they were trying to tackle us and what they were trying to do,” he said. “They come out in sets and you figure out, ‘This is where I have to go,’ and then you start figuring out how you can beat blocks and get to the ball. It took a little while for me to get there, but I was able to get there and figure it out.” The junior defensive captain finished the game with 18 total tackles, including nine solo stops and 1.5 tackles for a loss. This is also an impressive feat, seeing as he was forced to the sideline on an apparent elbow injury. Despite the early concern of losing the Eagles’ top defensive player, Kuechly showed his resiliency by inserting himself back in the game. While he was sporting a large ice pack on his arm after the game, he assured reporters that he was fine. This performance extended his streak of double-digit tackles to 32 consecutive games, which is the longest streak in FBS football history. n
alex trautwig / heights editor
Senior Day was an emotional affair for Colin Larmond, Jr. and his classmates. They held on for a hard-fought victory.
UNC denies men’s soccer an ACC title Men’s Soccer, from B1 with a controversial goal. Ben Speas took a free kick from 40 yards out that Luthy seemed to be in position to play. However, two North Carolina players appeared to obstruct his path. The ball bounced past him and into the net and no foul was called, angering the BC players and upsetting head coach Ed Kelly. “I’ll have to see the replay on TV,” Kelly said. “Our keeper says he was knocked down and that’s what it looked like to me. Some of the players were saying it was a foul, and if that were the case, we would have been in a 1-1 game. We wouldn’t have made some of the changes that we made which ended up costing us the third goal. The disappointing thing is, if the referee did make a mistake, it would have been really interesting to see how the rest of the game played out.” The Eagles did indeed manage to fight back into the game in the 62nd minute,
when Kyle Bekker scored on a brilliantly taken free kick from 20 yards out. And while the Eagles upped the pressure considerably in the following minutes, they could not convert before the Tar Heels put the game out of reach with a goal in the 79th minute. BC edged out Duke 2-1 on Friday to reach the championship game with Diego Medina-Mendez and Amit Aburmad recording goals. The Eagles were down early, as Duke converted on its first corner of the game. In the 15th minute, keeper Justin Luthy mishandled a ball that found its way onto the foot of a Duke player for an easy goal. BC upped the attack in the following minutes and came close to equalizing a few times. The Eagles found the elusive goal in the 25th minute when Medina-Mendez brought the ball into the box and found Colin Murphy on his left. Murphy then sent in a cross to Aburmad, who deflected the ball into the back of the net to level the score at one.
The second half had much less of a flow, as both teams played a more defensive style in hopes of preventing another goal. In the 66th minute, however, BC won a corner that proved to be decisive. Kyle Bekker took the ball on the left side and whipped in a cross to the middle of the box. Medina-Mendez was there for the Eagles, and he made no mistake, sending a one-timer into the back of the net. BC tightened up defensively and gave Duke very little to work with the rest of the game. The Blue Devils only managed one shot after BC took the lead and never threatened to score. Though it was a disappointing end for the Eagles, Kelly was pleased with the way his team performed over the last five days. “It was a good tournament for us” Kelly said. “We had a good game against Maryland and then played maybe our best game against Duke. We did very well when they went up 1-0 by coming back and scoring those two goals.” n
alex trautwig / heights editor
The Eagles struggled to break down an airtight UNC back four, which held them to a single goal.
The Heights
B4
Terriers knock Eagles off balance with five goals Men’s Hockey, from B1 the puck. Once he did, he chipped it over Parker Milner’s left shoulder, and the puck trickled down Milner’s back and across the goal line. “I thought we were in a small hole, because there’s still two-thirds of the game left to play, and we’re capable of scoring goals,” said York of his feeling after the first period. “So we just wanted to play better and come out and attack, attack, attack. We never got it started.” The Eagles began the second period on a power play, nearly cutting the deficit in half multiple times, but came up empty on the man advantage. Midway through the period, the Terriers once again took advantage of BC penalties. BU began a five-on-three power play, and less than a minute later, it took a 3-0 lead on a goal by Alex Chiasson. Before the second frame ended, BU stretched its lead to 4-0, when Charlie Coyle sent a pass from behind the net to Matt Nieto, who one-timed the puck past Milner’s stick side. BU’s final goal in the third period summed up the essence of the Eagles’ performance throughout the entire game.
On yet another BC power play, Megan intercepted a sloppy pass in his own zone and flew down the ice before blasting the puck between the pipes for the 5-0 lead. The shorthanded tally was the icing on the cake for the Terriers, and the nail in the coffin for the Eagles. BC went 0-for-7 on the power play, which came back to bite the Eagles, especially considering the strength of BU’s special teams on the night. It was also a typical BC-BU game, with physical play and 10 penalties for hitting after the whistle. In all, there were 28 penalties committed between the two teams. Despite the poor result, York said he hoped the game would provide a wake-up call for his team going forward. “Sometimes, it’s not bad to get hit right in the nose,” York said. “You lose tight games once in a while, and no one likes to lose. But sometimes you get hit square in the jaw like tonight. You can benefit from it. We’ll use it as a pretty good motivating force for us to get better here. We’ve been riding along pretty well on a wave here, and all of a sudden, bang. So you’ve got to get up off the mat and play better.” n
Monday, November 14, 2011
Tommy Cross, on his clutch shot
alex trautwig / heights editor
Senior defensemen Tommy Cross walked reporters through his final shot against Northeastern on Friday. For the full story, check our blog at http://heightssports.tumblr.com.
Hockey Notebook
Impotent offense barely tests Millan By DJ Adams Heights Editor
alex trautwig / heights editor
Penalties were a probelm for the Eagles, who conceded two power-play goals to the Terriers.
alex trautwig / heights editor
Wade Megan (18) scored two goals, including a shorthanded strike with just under two minutes left.
In recent years, the Boston College men’s hockey team has neutralized any size advantage that its rival Boston University normally possesses over the Eagles with an agile attack that weaves through defenders and finds its way to the net. On Sunday, though, the offensive pressure from BC was lacking, and Terrier goaltender Kieran Millan faced just 21 shots all game, most of which took place near the blue line or away from the crease. It was this lack of energy on the assault that ultimately doomed the Eagles to their third loss of the season. “We did not play well enough to win the game tonight,” head coach Jerry York said. “We weren’t sharp, but mostly in the attacking sense. That’s what bothered me the most. “We have been attacking better in other games. The opposing goaltenders have had to make a lot of saves, but there weren’t a lot of shots on goal tonight.” The Eagles actually had a few grade-A chances early, which if converted could have drastically altered the outcome of the night. The first opportunity came at 8:03 in the second period after a bustle near the edge of BU’s offensive zone gave the Eagles a four-on-one rush. Instead of rifling a shot from within the circles, defenseman Brian Dumoulin forced an extra pass that was broken up by the lone Terrier defender. Just minutes later, a similar story plagued the Eagles. Barry Almeida stole possession of the puck away from BU, creating a threeman breakaway with no one to beat. Slightly off-balance, the junior threw the puck to Patch Alber for the final strike. Alber sent the shot wide, though, rendering the chance
unsuccessful. In both situations, a tendency toward a patient, take-the-extra-pass approach foiled BC’s offensive potency. “No question when the puck is in that grade-A area, from the net out to the dots at the top of the circle, that’s a pretty good chance to score a goal,” York said. “You might get a better chance if you move the puck, but if you move the puck in that area, it might not be a completed pass. It might be intercepted. It might not result in a shot.
“Right off the bat, we lose the special teams battle three to nothing, and that’s a deficit that is difficult to overcome in any game.” “We have to address that. Grade-A opportunities are hard to get, but when you get them, let’s shoot the puck.” After scoring just four goals in their past three contests, including a victory over Northeastern on Friday, in which the gamewinner came with just 2.8 seconds remaining in regulation, how the Eagle attack responds to this temporary spell will be instrumental in determining the team’s success as the season continues. “We just want to play better, come out and attack, attack, attack, and get things going,” York said. Special teams not so spectacular Coming into Sunday afternoon’s contest, BC had converted 26.5 percent of its powerplay opportunities. Some elementary math
is all one needs to compute that a zero-forseven effort against BU is well below the average rate at which the Eagles put points on the board. Though BU did its part defensively, the Terriers were exceptional on the offensive end, as well, registering two scores on the man-advantage and adding a short-handed goal for good measure. “[BU’s] special teams were much better than we were tonight,” York said. “Right off the bat, we lose the special teams battle three to nothing, and that’s a deficit that is difficult to overcome in any game. You don’t want to lose that special teams battle.” With 28 total penalties in the game and a pervasive grittiness present between the two teams, the Eagles had their share of opportunities. Four chances in the first 22 minutes of the game amounted to just two shots on net for BC. “I thought that was our chance to get back into the contest,” York said of the power plays. “I thought we had excellent puck movement, but there was no attack to our mentality. Especially in the first period, we never took it to the net, and that mentality stuck with us for the remainder of the night.” Odds and ends Sunday’s result marked just the eighth time in 255 games between the two Bostonarea rivals in which the Terriers have shut out the Eagles. After allowing four shorthanded goals all of last season, Wade Megan’s score as the clock wound down in regulation was the third rendered thus far by BC in 2011-12, a 12-game span. The hockey team will prelude the Saturday football festivities in South Bend, Ind. between BC and Notre Dame by taking on the Fighting Irish in their brand new arena this Friday night. n
Cross notches game-winner with 2.8 seconds left against Huskies By Andrew El-Hayek For The Heights
Where had we seen this before? It was another hard-fought bout Friday night against Northeastern at Kelley Rink, and for the Boston College men’s hockey team, it was yet another spectacular finish. With seconds left in regulation of a 1-1 game and the Eagles on the power play, senior defenseman and captain Tommy Cross took the feed from junior defenseman Brian Dumoulin and rifled a wrist shot towards the Northeastern goal. With traffic in front of the net, the puck disappeared momentarily but somehow found its way across the goal line, trickling through upright NU goaltender Chris Rawlings’ legs with just 2.8 seconds remaining. Conte Forum erupted as desperation quickly transformed into elation and Cross’ teammates mobbed him in celebration. It must have felt like Groundhog Day for the Huskies, who four weeks ago suffered an equally crushing defeat in overtime at the hands of the Eagles and had experienced similar heartbreak in last season’s Beanpot final, also falling to BC in overtime of that contest. For Cross and BC, it was blissful deja vu. “We had really good net presence, couple guys were down there,” Cross said. “I think it hit one of their defenders’ hands in front and went straight down and went in five-hole.” The fortunate deflection gave the Eagles a 2-1 win. The Huskies were certainly game in this one, however. Coming out fast, physical, and aggressive, they challenged the Eagles early, fighting for loose pucks against the end boards and in the corners and creating their own fortune.
alex trautwig / heights editor
Sophomore forward Kevin Hayes beat Chris Rawlings top-shelf after junior linemate Chris Kreider intercepted a wayward clearing pass. At the start of the game it looked as if all the lucky bounces were falling in favor of Northeastern. Midway through the first period, Northeastern turned a solid defensive stand into a fast break as junior forward Alex Tuckerman streaked up the left wing. He deposited a centering pass to teammate Garrett Vermeersch, who had found his way past the Eagles’ defense and quickly attempted a backhand shot that
was saved by BC junior goalkeeper Parker Milner. But the puck barely left the crease, allowing NU sophomore forward Cody Ferriero (younger brother of former Eagle Benn Ferriero) to take advantage of some confusion and tip the rolling puck into the net. The strange sequence gave the Huskies an early 1-0 lead that they carried into the first intermission. It looked as if the Eagles would fall victim to more bad luck in the second period.
Following more fruitless scoring opportunities for the Eagles, a Northeastern fast break threatened to increase the lead. A quick wrist shot glanced off Milner’s shoulder and dropped right to the goalmouth. Freshman forward Joseph Manno looked to cash in on the point-blank opportunity, but Milner sprawled to his left, reaching out his glove hand and denying the NU attacker on the doorstep. Milner’s effort seemed to spark the
Eagles, who scored their first goal less than two minutes later. Junior forward Chris Kreider batted down a clearing pass with his hand in the attacking zone. With one man to beat, he made a veteran crossover move, leaving the NU defender flopping hopelessly on the ice in his wake. Then he laid the puck off to a trailing Hayes who promptly buried his shot past Rawlings, top-shelf, to tie the game. “Our team definitely prides ourselves on our unselfish play,” Kreider said. “I was in tight. I thought I would try to pull Rawlings a little and pass it over to Kevin to get an empty-netter.” The assist was Kreider’s team-leading 16th point, the result of BC’s aggressive, effective forecheck. The Eagles created several turnovers in the attacking zone that led to excellent scoring opportunities, culminating in Hayes’ goal. The final period was back and forth, with each side registering a few chances but failing to convert. Then, in the final minute, a Northeastern interference penalty opened the door for Cross’ heroics in the closing seconds. Head coach Jerry York expressed pleasure with the execution of his team down the stretch, but he also acknowledged that this team has more battles ahead. “I thought we controlled how well we played, and I feel very excited about the way the game finished,” York said. “Hockey East is just a tough, tough road from October through March, and there’s not many games that aren’t contested very hard from both teams.” No doubt there is a long way to go, but if this team continues to execute and perform in the clutch, York and BC may be experiencing deja vu again in the spring. n
The Heights
Monday, November 14, 2011
B5
Haeger battles Yale’s Dennis in sailing rivalry for third championship By Austin Tedesco For The Heights
One of the best things about sports is that they provide a realm for drama that no Hollywood script can ever realistically recreate. Sometimes they give us a story that we wouldn’t believe if we saw it on a screen or read it in a novel, going beyond box scores to entice us in ways that even the greatest fiction has trouble reaching. The sailing career of Boston College senior Annie Haeger is one of these stories, and it began in upstate New York during the fall of 2008. The Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association’s singlehanded national championship occurs every fall and usually consists of a weekend of racing, with six contests each day. Haegar, a Lake Forest, Ill. native and freshman at BC in the fall of 2008, was competing in the event for the first time. “Our team freshman year was completely stacked,” she said. “I definitely matured a lot as a sailor during that time. I was trying to prove myself to those other sailors. I had
been looking up to those BC seniors for a long time since watching them and their results in high school. I definitely wanted to prove myself.” The goal for the weekend is to amass the lowest point total, with a first place finish giving a sailor one point and all subsequent finishes having increasing point values. Haeger finished with a total of 45 points, averaged between a second and third place finish per race, came in first seven times, and defeated the defending champion, her closest competition that year, by 50 points to earn her first national championship. It was a flat-out dominant performance. “Going into the championship I didn’t have any expectations,” she said, “so it was really awesome to see that I was able to pull everything together and win by as much as I did.” Haeger put a target on her back that weekend that has stuck with her for the rest of her career, and she knew exactly who would be chasing her. Yale’s Claire Dennis, from California, is a year younger than Haeger, and the two
Alex Trautwig / Heights editor
After losing to Yale’s Dennis by a point in 2010, Haeger notched her third national title this year.
have been competing against each other since they were little. “Claire and I have known each other since we were 13, and she’s a really great girl to sail against,” Haegar said. “I consider her one of my really close friends. We can be super competitive and yelling at each other one moment, and the next moment we’ll go up and apologize and laugh and have a joke. It’s really refreshing to have a competitor you can be really close friends with.” There is mutual respect and a legitimate bond between these two greats everywhere except on the water. Dennis challenged Haeger in November of 2009 in Corpus Christi, Texas when Haeger was defending her title. “Going into my sophomore year and coming off the win freshman year, I knew she was going to be kind of the girl to watch out for,” Haeger said. Dennis fell behind Haeger by 20 points after the first day but came back, going into the third day trailing Haeger by just six. Haeger opened up the final day of racing with four straight, top three finishes, which was enough to hold off Dennis. She now had two national championships in her first two years, but her rivalry with Dennis was just getting started. 2010 would be even more dramatic. “Last year it was just her and me the entire time,” Haeger said. In Florida, Haeger and Dennis were too much for their competition. The weekend turned into a duel between the elite sailors, as if the rest of the field wasn’t even there. After finishing ninth in the opening race, Dennis rattled off eight straight first place finishes. “I was getting so nervous when she kept knocking those points off the board,” Haeger said. “I needed to step up. She was running away with it at that point.” Amazingly, Haeger kept it close. She went into the final day trailing by just nine points, an impressive margin given Dennis’ dominant streak. “Going into the final day my coach had a plan that I was going to match-race her,” Haeger said. “Match racing is just going against one individual boat. So it’s kind of like tagging her before the start of the race. In the last race, we started about a minute behind the rest of the girls. I basically forced her outside of the starting area and didn’t let her come back until a minute after everyone else started.” Haeger’s tactic helped close the gap, but in the end it wasn’t enough. “It was so tough,” Haeger said. “We fell through the entire fleet, both of us did, and I needed to put one point in between myself and her and it didn’t end up working out.
Alex Trautwig / Heights editor
Haeger uses her feel for the boat and years of experience to overcome her compeition. But she still had an amazing regatta.” Dennis clinched her first title and ended Haeger’s chance at a three-peat. It took a while, but Haeger eventually went up and congratulated her close friend. The next thing Haeger did was get right back to work. “It’s one of those things that can either knock you off your horse or push you to get back on,” she said. “I decided to use that as motivation during the summer of how I was going to change my tactics.” Over that summer Haeger coached sailing, and instead of sitting with the kids, she sailed alongside them, practicing her feel and improving her craft. It’s this gymrat mentality that has fostered Haeger’s improvement. “I have extremely good feel for the boat,” she said. “I know when I’m going a quarter of a knot faster than I was previously. I’ve been competitive in sailing since I was eight years old so just having all that time in the boat and being able to feel the speed differences between a couple boats is really important.” The championships this year were held back home in Chicago. Haeger has sailed on Lake Michigan countless times and knew the home-water advantage would help defeat Dennis this time around while so many of her friends and family watched. “It’s always in the back of your head that you know who’s going to be your closest competitor, but I really tried to focus on
what I needed to do,” Haeger said. “So I tried to take her out of the picture for a while. After the first day, we were actually extremely close. The second day I had a good night’s sleep and found myself mentally in the place I needed to be.” Haeger won nine races and clinched her third national championship, tying Old Dominion’s Anna Tunnicliffe for the most ever. This time, Dennis went up and congratulated Haeger for regaining her title. The rivalry has pushed both sailors to be better than they would be without each other, and Haeger was relieved that she closed out her career with the upper hand. “It was amazing,” she said. “I was so excited. It was an awesome feeling knowing that all the hard work I put in paid off.” Three national championships aren’t enough for Haeger. There’s still another goal in sight. “Some people want to be firefighters. I’ve always wanted to go to the Olympics,” she said. “That’s kind of the next thing on the chopping block for me. We’re going to finish this year off really strong and hopefully win a couple more team national championships in the spring, and that’s what I’m setting my next sights on is the Olympics.” The first Olympics Haeger can sail in will be Rio de Janeiro in 2016. By that time, Dennis will be ready to compete as well. Although their collegiate competition is ending, their rivalry and story still has chapters left to be written. n
BC advances to next round Women’s Soccer, from B1
Graham Beck/ Heights Staff
Midfielder Julia Bouchelle (12) competes for the ball with Marist’s defenders and goalie during the Eagles’ 6-1 win in the first round match-up.
Veterans use experience against Marist By Raychel Kruper Heights Staff
The inexperienced Marist Red Foxes were no match for the expert Boston College women’s soccer team in their debut NCAA tournament appearance. The Eagles have been in the tournament for nine straight seasons and ended Marist’s short-lived postseason play Sunday afternoon with a 6-1 victory in Newton. “We worked a lot on our finishing and getting numbers forward, and we did a really good job with that,” head coach Alison Foley said. “We had six brilliant goals, all very different in nature, and ultimately at this time of the year, you want to be able to score with different people in a different fashion.” Last season, the Eagles made it to the College Cup in Cary, N.C., and judging by their performance against the Red Foxes, they have demonstrated just how hungry they are for another run at the national title. From the opening whistle, the Eagles came out relaxed and confident in their play, prepared for the postseason after a two-week break following a rigorous season of ACC play. The team scored three of its six goals in the first half, and the rest in the second, with finishes coming from five different players representing all four graduating classes.
The first goal came from junior forward Victoria DiMartino, who led BC’s offensive surge during the Eagles’ tournament run last season. She paced the Eagles with 14 goals last year, contributing a tally in the NCAA opening round game against the Eagles’ B-line rivals, Boston University, and another in the team’s Sweet 16 game against West Virginia. “The first goal is very important in a game,” DiMartino said. “To come out in the first 20 minutes and get that goal and say, ‘OK, we can settle down now,’ and play how we play is pressure off our backs. We can play settled down and find our rhythm instead of rushing and trying to get that goal.” Another hardened veteran, Kristie Mewis, built the lead by adding the second goal on a set piece. This was an aspect of BC’s game that Foley had designated as an area of improvement during this week’s training. Senior Julia Bouchelle added the third, and final, goal of the half. The experience of the upperclassmen players not only allowed them to shine on an individual level, but as a team as well. The ability for the players with more experience to influence the younger Eagles led to a strong and relaxed performance, playing “their” soccer. “We just know to focus on one game
at a time,” DiMartino said. “Don’t focus on any other game or any other team, just focus on the game that is coming next or the game that we have today. Having seniority over the younger girls, calming them down and telling them to play how they play is really good for them, and it will help us.” The underclassmen drew off the calming wisdom from the older, returning players. Sophomore Gibby Wagner finished two second-half goals, while freshman Stephanie McCaffrey contributed one of her own to secure the Eagles’ victory. The confidence bred from experience was also visible in goalkeeper Jillian Mastroianni, who was only tested once in the 45 minutes she played but remained poised in a dangerous situation. Her resilience in the back resonates in the strong BC defenders and onwards through the team’s dominant midfield. The seasoned veterans have punched their ticket to the next round and will fly to the West Coast to take on the California Golden Bears. Drawing off years of knowledge and experience in the NCAA tournament, BC’s victory over the young Red Foxes emphasizes the team’s advantage in the area of experience and proves that the Eagles are a formidable opponent when they play their brand of soccer. n
over the hands of backup keeper Jessica Mickelson. However, senior Julia Bouchelle responded with a goal off an assist from senior Stephanie Wirth with 32 minutes left in the game. Gibby Wagner tallied her second goal of the game when she cleaned up a loose ball in the box and snuck a shot past goalkeeper Andrea Wicks. Freshman Stephanie McCaffrey ended the scoring spree for the Eagles when she slipped a shot inside the near post, giving BC a 6-1 victory. Foley was pleased with the way her team capitalized on scoring opportunities, an area that has been a problem for the Eagles throughout most of the season. “We worked a lot on our finishing and creating numbers forward, and we did a really good job of that today,” she said. “We’ve had some great opportunities in the second half of the season but our finishing hasn’t been where we wanted it to be.” The Eagles dominated every aspect of the game on Sunday, outshooting Marist 18-6 and taking seven corner kicks while preventing the Red Foxes from attempting a single corner. BC also earned the opportunity to rest some of its starters late in the game, which will help the Eagles later in the tournament. The victory also helped
them gain some confidence following a disappointing loss in the first round of the ACC tournament. With the win, BC advances to the second round of the NCAA tournament. The Eagles will travel to Palo Alto, Calif. to take on UC-Berkeley Friday night. Foley is determined to not look too far ahead and help her team stay focused on the next game. “We always take one game at a time, so we haven’t even talked about the next game yet because we were focused on Marist,” Foley said. “We’ll prepare for California exactly like we would for any other game and any other opponent.” The Eagles are exactly where they want to be entering the second round of the NCAA tournament. They are playing their best soccer at the most critical point of the season, and they are completely focused on achieving their goal of a second straight appearance in the College Cup. With an experienced senior class and younger players stepping up to provide a needed spark on offense, BC is a dangerous team that is poised to make a run in this tournament. The Eagles hope that they are able to continue the momentum from their opening round game as they head west in pursuit of their ultimate goal of a national title. n
Graham beck / heights staff
Women’s soccer players celebrate the first-round victory in the NCAA tournament over Marist.
The Heights
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Monday, November 14, 2011
campus chronicles
Tracing a Jesuit’s journey to the priesthood, and Boston College Aubrey Pringle The Jesuits. They live alongside us on campus, but how often do we take advantage of their presence? Probably not often enough. Is this because we find them intimidating, though intriguing? Do we fear that they can’t relate to us? I sat down for tea at St. Mary’s with Rev. Mario Cisneros, S.J. to find some common ground and learn what it’s like to be a Jesuit at Boston College. The Heights: So, Father, what brought you to BC? Rev. Cisneros: Well, I am from Mexico, and I came here to get a Masters degree in higher administration and education. This is my second
year here. I am doing an internship with Campus Ministry, so I’m involved with the Arrupe Program, Appalachia Volunteers, and Kairos. I want to learn how things are done here, then take this knowledge back to Mexico and adapt it to Jesuit universities there. Boston College has a good model even though Mexico is a different reality. What made you decide to become a Jesuit in the first place? Rev. Cisneros: To be honest, I never thought I would be a priest or a Jesuit. When I was younger I had a pretty normal life. I had dozens of friends, I was partying, I had girlfriends, the whole package. But I was always part of a youth group, which kept me in touch with my spirituality. The Catholic heritage was important in my family.
photo Courtesy of google.com
But during college I had a faith crisis. For over a year I stopped believing. I stopped praying. I was in love – or maybe just infatuated – with this girl. She was an unbeliever, and she lived in another city, three hours away from my university. It’s a funny story because this priest I knew asked me to establish a youth group in the same city where this girl was living. The priest didn’t know I had stopped believing. But I was like, “Yeah!” So the priest paid for me to travel to that city every weekend, and the girl and I started dating. At first, I mostly cared about seeing the girl, and not as much about the work I was doing with the young people in that city who were very poor. But when they all lost their jobs at the factory due to the corrupt government, they turned to me. I realized that I was a leader to them. So I got involved with protests, and fundraising, and fasting for their cause. I began to forget about my girlfriend and became so engaged in this political and spiritual task. It just made me so happy. I knew that I would graduate soon, and I worried about what to do next. I wrote the Jesuits, and they sent me to a week of spiritual exercises to find answers. The Jesuits asked me, ‘What is your passion?’ I knew the answer. It was helping these people. By the end of that week I had decided I wanted to become a Jesuit.
meetings with students or the Arrupe team, or Appalachia. And then I have classes in the afternoon. I have a lot of extra time to read, which I love.
How did your girlfriend, your family, and your friends react when you told them? Rev. Cisneros: When I told my family that I was leaving, my mother cried, my sisters were happy, and my friends couldn’t believe it. I was so average. I wasn’t especially spiritual or especially intellectual. I was not a golden boy. I have never been, and I’m so happy about that – it has made me free. I was sure that I wouldn’t get in [to the Jesuit Order]. So I asked my girlfriend to wait for six months, but she said no. I don’t think I regret that. At the time I felt a little bit sad, but this was my calling to be in the right place. It has been 20 years, and I can say that.
What is unique about being a Jesuit at BC versus somewhere else? Rev. Cisneros: The first thing is living right on campus. Compared to Mexico, we don’t live in the same area as students – our houses are nearby, but not this close. You have so many resources right here. Bapst and O’Neill are just steps away. And from a more personal perspective it has been the quality of the people. I have loved this opportunity to be around highly talented students and professors who stir up your ideas and boost your spiritual and intellectual pursuits. Especially the students I interact with a lot in Arrupe, Appa, and Kairos. How well developed the students are, I love to see that. I’m very glad to be part of those groups because I think I see the best face of Boston College.
Tell me about a typical day in your life here at BC. Rev. Cisneros: I get up early to pray in the morning. St. Mary’s has a gorgeous chapel. I will take advantage of that as long as I’m here. So that’s how my day starts. Then I have time to study, especially before lunch, because after lunch I normally have
What’s it like living at St. Mary’s? Rev. Cisneros: [with a laugh] There are probably too many Jesuits here at St. Mary’s. In this building there are more than 60 Jesuits, so it’s hard to be friends with everybody. But on my floor I have good friends. They are kind of like my roommates. We are Jesuits from all over the world – Jamaica, Africa, Latin America, China – and we have formed a little community together. Everyone in St. Mary’s attends daily mass, and we have community meetings on Fridays. Is it true that Jesuits don’t technically own any possessions? What’s that like? Rev. Cisneros: It’s called the vow of poverty. It means that we don’t possess things for ourselves. All that we possess belongs to the community. So we have a computer, a TV, an iPod, or whatever, but it is for everyone. We even have cars, available for anybody in the community, but to use it you have to sign up. Everyone has to make his own annual budget, so you think about how much money you’ll need in a year, and then a superior has to approve it. A check comes in every three months based on this budget.
Aubrey Pringle is a staff columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at features@ bcheights.com
From elementary school to college: Life according to ‘Super Smash Bros.’ Zamin Husein In elementary school, I was the best at Super Smash Bros. In middle school, I was the best at Super Smash Bros. In high school, I was the best at Super Smash Bros. In college, I realize how sub-par and mediocre my abilities are. Mediocre perhaps is giving me too much credit. I now realize how horrendous my skills are. Everyone has been honing their skills since elementary school, and nobody is messing around. Super Smash Bros. is not some drunken weekend ritual, but rather it is an art that people have mastered and are constantly aiming to perfect. They are aiming to perfect it against you. Super Smash Bros. essentially is an extended metaphor for my educational life up until now. In elementary school, I was under the impression that I was a genius for winning the spelling bee. In middle school, I was lauded with certificates and ribbons for science fairs. In high school, I proudly sported my National Honor Society sash and multiple cords and tassels at graduation.
But then came college, and I realized that there is nothing special about me. I fall into the realm of mediocre. Being in the top 10 percent of your class doesn’t matter any more, because everyone else was in the top 5 percent. A good SAT score means nothing, because everyone else has good SAT and ACT scores. Grades are one thing, though. Pride in your ability to use a homerun bat in Super Smash Bros. is a whole other thing. Using characters like Captain Falcon and Samus is now a sign of an amateur. And if you use a special move more than five times a game, you lose before you begin. It is not about tricks, flash, or flair, but rather it has come down to your ability to get Hearts and Maximum Tomatoes the quickest, your ability to catch the ledge, and who can time their smash moves with needle-like precision. The first adjustment to a new home is new home rules. Every group of friends plays differently, and you have to adjust as quickly as possible. If you got used to playing time games, adjust your strategy to play stock games. If you were a fan of the ray gun and hammer, learn to
use the beam sword better. And even if you are still considered pretty good at the game here, expect to be paired with the worst player when competing in team battles. The one thing that didn’t change was everyone’s favorite stages. Hyrule Castle and Fox’s Ship are still at the top, with Saffron City trailing closely behind. On the other hand, I haven’t played in Samus’ Field in such a long time that I have forgotten what it looks like. The influence of the field has an astonishing impact on people’s ability to play. People who seem like gods on the larger stages can be reduced to novice status on the tighter levels. But for the most part, there is that one kid who destroys everyone on every stage with every character. No one likes him. Of course there are also those who want to join the fun, having little to no experience with the game. (I feel bad that the grade school system failed them so poorly.) They are cute. But after three or four games, cute is not acceptable. We demand the fittest and the finest. Some people have suggested trying the Melee or Brawl versions. We don’t speak to them any-
more. Those versions rely on the flash and the flair of the characters and stages. They lack the simplicity, nostalgia, and raw skill required to play the N64 version. Smash Balls? Characters who can transform into other ones? Do I need to continue? The more additions to the game that they add, the more I want to stick with the classic. The intensity of Super Smash Bros. is only rivaled by that of one other classic N64 game: Mario Kart. The superiority of Super Smash Bros. is evident. However, an advantage that keeps Mario Kart in the race is how even the playing field is. There is not often an overwhelmingly better player. Over the course of 20 matches or so (a casual Tuesday evening), there may be a winner, but not by many games. And that winner does have a tendency to change. All in all, the two games are connected by the passionate intensity we play with, and a universal hatred for turtle shells.
Zamin Husein is a staff columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at features@bcheights. com
Breaking bread — and pumpkin pie — with faculty members By Courtney McCauley For The Heights
Can’t make it home for Thanksgiving or happen to be staying at Boston College for that weekend? Have no fear, the Thanksgiving Day Host Program is here! This year is the 20th anniversary of a program that gives professors and international students the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving together and share different cultural traditions along with candid conversations sparked around the dinner table. Most Americans tend to celebrate the holiday of Thanksgiving because it is not religiously affiliated, so it has morphed into the typical widespread American tradition. It is a time to be with family and friends and share a great turkey dinner. With that being said, most students on campus disappear and go home for the weekend and practically everything else around campus shuts down. The international students within the BC community are faced with no place to go for the holiday because for them home could be thousands of miles away. The Thanksgiving Day Host Program gives international students the opportunity to spend this holiday with professors from BC who welcome these students into their very own homes for dinner. Each year about 30 to 40 international students participate in this program and are dispersed among the 15 faculty members who sign up to be hosts. The pairings are based off a form regarding logistics, such as whether or not the student needs to drive or get a ride to the professor’s home, any food restrictions or allergies the student may have, or any other specifications. It is also more common for a single professor to host two students for dinner at once because the international students feel more comfortable going with a friend or fellow peer. The feedback received from previous years deems this program to be mutually rewarding from both sides – the perspective of the professors as well as the student participants both beam
positivity. Faculty members are able to expose their children and family to a new culture as well as teach the international students about this traditional American holiday by providing them with some background information. Numerous faculty members, such as Daniel Lyons, assistant professor in the law school, Karen Harn, adminstrative assistant in development, and Rita Vatcher, an administrative specialist in the graduate school of social work, who have been previous hosts, have all touched upon the importance of giving back and the emergence of exciting conversations as everyone shares their personal experiences, cultures and traditions. “It added a whole new dimension to the family dynamic. We were able to extend our hospitality, warmth, and unique style of celebrating this holiday. My family loved it!” Vatcher says. The international students who have previously participated in this program also have raved about not only the experience but specifically about their hosts’ welcoming nature and their gratefulness towards the generous hospitality of the faculty. The international students who participate in this program said they signed up to become involved with this great opportunity because they hoped to gain better insight as to how a typical American family functions and how they spend their holidays. This program provides international students with an in-depth understanding of the family dynamic and culture present in the United States because they are able to completely immerse themselves into the experience. Faculty and students also report that the relationships formed through this program continue beyond the single night of that one Thanksgiving dinner. The established relationships remain pertinent throughout the remainder of the school year, which supports how truly influential this program becomes to the participants. With Thanksgiving rapidly approaching, these international students and hosting faculty anxiously await Thanksgiving Day. n
photos Courtesy of flickr.com
The Thanksgiving Day Host Program allows students to spend the holiday with the families of local faculty members.
Monday, November 14, 2011
The Heights
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The Heights
B8
Monday, November 14, 2011
the real world
The history of respect: It was the best of times, it was the worst of times Dan Friedman Perhaps I am alone with this thought, but I have always found the question, “If you could live in any time period in history, what would it be?” satisfyingly romantic. The possibilities, of course, are endless. Would I have been a Spartan hoplite – a great warrior remembered forever as making a stand at Thermopylae? Or would I have preferred to be a more indulgent Athenian, playing kottabos and drinking watered down wine at a symposium? Or maybe life would be best as a Roman – right around the time when Augustus consolidated power. It would be an era of peace, and as a Roman citizen I would benefit from all the riches a sprawling empire enjoyed. My next opportunity, if we adhere to chronology, would be Shakespeare’s time. Or perhaps more specifically, Shakespeare himself. I can think of nothing I wouldn’t do if it meant I could turn back time, and even just be a fly on the wall to watch his writing process. And as the new movie Anonymous has made discussion about Shakespeare’s true identity trendy, it is worth pointing out that the discussion is practically irrelevant. What is certain is that the author, whom today we refer to as Shakespeare, was a single person and not a group. That being said, who cares if he lived in Stratford upon Avon or in China – the plays and characters, which Ben Johnson accurately described as “rammed with life,” speak for themselves.
Photo courtesy of flickr.com
What about the Enlightenment period? Sure, people like Hobbes, Rousseau, and Galileo were put in difficult positions by religious groups who tended to banish them or put them on house arrest. But the power of their works! The fearlessness! Finally, there are the late 1800s, early 1900s when a slew of literary geniuses were just coming to maturity and fame. The famed drinking parties that Oscar Wilde, Rainer Maria Rilke, and Ernest Hemingway attended must have been the height of pleasure. Similarly amusing would be Taft’s presidency, when a new bathtub would have to be installed at the White House, as our president was so large. For people shaking their head and thinking I have cherry picked what I perceive to be the most interesting parts of history and should appreciate the miracles of the modern world, let me say this: I partially agree. First, let me remind the reader of the question. It asked about ANY time period in history, so I feel entitled to cherry pick what I thought were the best times. But now the clever reader leans back and smirks. Has this kid heard of capitalism? Of air conditioning? Of vaccinations, airplanes, and iPhones/Pads/Pods? This idiot wants to go back to the Roman empire, when lead from the aqueducts mutated one’s brain and emperors like Caligula made horses into senators? Or when Nero had the power to banish a general for yawning at one of his interminably long and terrible art performances? Or the sheer luxury of free time that students at Boston College, in spite of how busy we are, still tend to have tons of? All this in harsh contrast to other children in history who were forced to work with their hands from the moment they were able to the moment they passed. And to that reader, I say touche. Those are good points. But two recent events have made me cringe at the expectations and ethos of our modern society. The first was the Penn State scandal. Let me first say clearly and forcefully that I do not support child abuse in the least. But I would prefer to stay away from the specifics of the scandal, preferring to quote a paragraph from The Wall Street Journal’s editorial pages about the broader tendencies and reaction of the media at large. Following an acknowledgment that Joe Paterno had failed his moral, if not legal duties, it opines, “This is not to endorse all the media moralizing, which revels in schadenfreude that another man of great reputation has been revealed to be flawed. We live in a culture that worships celebrity but seems not to want heroes, or even figures of respect. The icons of our age are the Kardashians.” As you allow that remarkably profound, if casual, paragraph to sink in, consider just one more thing. Peggy Noonan made this point, and I apologize if it appears that I only read the WSJ, but I assure you I do read both The New York Times and Politico and, on occasion, The Economist. I can’t help it if the good points are always made in the WSJ. In any event, describing the Rick Perry gaffe she says, “You’re out there live in front of six million people, they’re watching closely,
Photo courtesy of flickr.com
you’re under the lights, every word counts – and you blank. You forget the third element of your robotic sound bite. This is human. But we don’t want our presidents to be human, we want them to be perfectly prepped and drilled so we can make fun of their inauthenticity.” That last sentence of hers has been ringing in my ears since the day I read her column (so like a week, but still). When one considers the infinite freedom of anonymity the Internet allows, and the essential speed-of-light ability to upload what you have to say to a public forum makes us want to have things to complain about. We moan about how fake our politicians are – we make fun of Michele Bachmann and her Botox smile, and how Mitt Romney has essentially been a professional campaigner these past few years. But of course when our candidates make a mistake – when they act human – we replay the humiliation as many times as our overstimulated brains can take it. Which brings me back to the editorial comment. When Alexander the Great died, his commanders, uncertain what to do in his absence, took his clothes and arranged them on his throne. So deep was their respect, so powerful his presence in life, there was a need to somehow reincarnate him. To keep him around. That is authentic leadership, power, and respect. Something foreign to the modern sensibility.
Dan Friedman is a staff columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at features@bcheights.com.
Putting the scandal in today’s society and keeping it there Francesca Bacardi Is it just me or did the 1950s seem like a time when everything was going all right? Aside from the Cold War hanging over everyone’s heads, everything else was A-OK. The economy was booming, staying at home was all the rage, and people were comfortable. Politically, the biggest scandal was Nixon’s “Checkers Speech” and McCarthyism, but that blew over like everything else. In this day and age, we’re faced with a constant influx of sex scandals that rock our system annually.
Photo courtesy of flickr.com
Elliot Spitzer, the Democratic Party’s dream candidate from New York, spent his free time with an escort. Anthony Weiner tweeted a picture of his parts (insert necessary pun). Arnold Schwarzenegger had a kid out of wedlock 10 years ago! I could go on and on with other political figures, but I’ll wrap it up with the most current scandal – Herman Cain. As election time approaches, the guns come out. Political rivals are at each other’s throats trying to vie for the most prized position in America. No one is spared during election season – skeletons come out of the closet in the hopes of throwing someone out of the race. The newest skeleton to come out is Herman Cain’s alleged sexual harassment accusations. In what looks like the most intense rivalry among potential presidential candidates, Cain seems to be fighting the toughest battle. Denying all allegations, Cain is on the warpath to not only remedy the debacle he is facing, but also to win the Republican nomination. With all of these trials and tribulations that lie ahead of him, Cain is still fighting his heart out. So a few questions that come to mind are why do political figures stray from the moral road, and why after four years are these four women only now stepping into the limelight to indict Cain? There is obviously so much on the line for these men, yet they feel they’re above everyone and can get away with it because they hold a certain amount of power. Just like Uncle Ben
said to Peter Parker, “With great power comes great responsibility.” These men, however, didn’t follow that sage advice and alienated their families and supporters. Getting away with it just isn’t an option anymore, much to their own chagrin. Today we live in a society that is rife with media, so the odds of pulling off something like this is completely out of the question. Just last week on Nov. 4, the Penn State scandal broke. Ironically, the Penn State team found out the news via Twitter before the coaches had a chance to tell them. Clearly, media have more power than ever before. In my Crisis Communication class the other day, we were discussing all of the latest sex scandals because our focus has been apologia. The two people we studied were Kobe Bryant and Tiger Woods. Regardless of whether or not Bryant committed the crime he was accused of, the fact remains that both of these men are also part of the larger bubble that has encapsulated our world. Although these two are athletes and not political figures, the situation doesn’t change. As soon as the scandals break, they are the biggest news across the nation and they become all anyone can ever talk about. Somehow, however, athletes manage to win back their career and reputations. Political figures, on the other hand, have no such luck. Obviously, we don’t want a morally unsound person leading our country, so the decision to step down makes sense.
All of these public figures, aside from their infidelities, have another thing in common: carefully constructed apologies. It is through these apologies that guilty parties hope to win back the American people. Often we don’t buy it. Whether the person sounds insincere or the crime was too heinous to forgive, a lot of the time it just isn’t enough. What always bothered me, though, was the fact that these men aren’t actually writing these apologies themselves; a crisis manager or even a team of people are writing them on behalf of the guilty parties, so how genuine can they be? Sometimes, sorry isn’t enough, especially in the Tiger Woods scandal. So many scandals have rocked our world over the past 20 years that it’s hard to imagine a world without them. As soon as the Cain scandal blows over and becomes a thing of the past, something else will break the news that will continue to keep us not only entertained but also disappointed in the fact that the people we admire most can’t even follow a simple moral code. Ironically, Cain is still ahead in the polls. Have we become so saturated by all of these sex scandals that we’re now desensitized to adultery, or has the moral compass of this country changed?
Francesca Bacardi is a staff columnist for The Heights. She can be reached at features@ bcheights.com.
he said, she said Now that the football season is over, I’m afraid that weekends aren’t going to be as exciting and fun as they formerly were, and there isn’t really anything to look forward to. What can my friends and I do instead to continue making the most of our free time? - i’m just lookin’ for a good time
Just because the football season is over, does that mean the weekends aren’t fun? I understand the appeal of the tailgating, which unfortunately doesn’t carry over to the winter sports, but heading into the winter season we have plenty of basketball and hockey games to go to that should prove to be just as fun and exciting. It doesn’t take up the whole day or night when there’s a game, but it’s a really fun thing to do with a group of friends and it’s extremely convenient. Plus, what beats the prospect of a Boston College athletic win? That being said, some weekends are Alex still lacking in that department, so another option T rautwig is to get together with a group of your friends and pick a food destination to go to that you wouldn’t normally get to visit. It could be a famous pizza place, a secret sushi place, a famed pub or even a brewery tour (if you’re of age, of course). This can be as involved or simple as you want, but it gives you something to do and allows you to see other parts of the city beyond just Cleveland Circle. Not to mention, the journey is part of the fun. We’ve covered it a few times in this paper, but the city does not get utilized enough and picking a restaurant or bar to go to as a destination is a great way to expand your horizons and spend a day or evening over the weekend. It can be a Friday evening, or even an all-day expedition on a Saturday or Sunday. I think you’ll find, with the right group, this can be a great way to spend the weekend.
The end of the football season does not mean the end of all college excitement. Many Boston College students forget that they attend school in the amazing city of Boston. The downtown area is just a short T ride away and holds endless opportunities for entertainment. There are many tourist attractions throughout the city and just because we live here doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take advantage of them. For example, there is the Freedom Trail, Duck Tours, the Aquarium, the Museum of Fine Arts, the theater district, and plenty of great concert venues. Take some time with your friends to sit down and check out a calendar and figure out a few of the things that you would Madeline really want to do. Some of the activities will require more Demoulas planning than others, but in the end it will make your weekends a lot more fun and fulfilling. If you don’t want to venture all the way into the city, you can check out Newton Center or head down to Coolidge Corner to eat at a new restaurant or see an indie film at the Coolidge Corner movie theater. In the end it’s all about being curious and willing to try new things, but there are plenty of options in the immediate area that might not be the usual but will certainly provide a fun and memorable experience for you and your friends. Even if you just head downtown for the afternoon and walk around with your friends it will be an adventure in itself. With the holidays coming up, the city will be beautifully lit with lights and all of the shops will have fun window displays. Your four years at BC will fly by and you want to make sure you experienced as much as you could in the city.
Alex Trautwig is an editor for The Heights. He can be reached at features@ bcheights.com
Madeline Demoulas is a senior staff writer for The Heights. She can be reached at features@bcheights.edu.
The Heights
Monday, November 14, 2011
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Leaving the chalkboards and the notebooks in the past By Cathryn Woodruff For The Heights
In this rapidly evolving world, one in which professors can cancel a class via e-mail minutes before it begins, expecting the message will be received in time, keeping up to date with technology is pertinent. The huge worldwide companies responsible for the constant flow of new gadgets into the market have created a phenomenon that has been sweeping America since the invention of the first handheld device. Christmas lists are littered with hopes for iPhones that haven’t even been released yet, and stores prepare for Black Friday rushes for the “it” product of the holiday season. It has become wildly apparent that America, in this hyperconnected world, is hooked on the Smartphone. Nearly 90 percent of teen cell-phone users send and receive texts, according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, and on average, they send 50 messages per day. More Americans own Smartphones than hold a bachelor’s degree or speak another language in their homes, according to the Pew Internet Project report. Those who have purchased these modern devices, which generally cost over $150, tend to talk about their coveted Smartphones with not only praises of necessity and convenience, but also with words of endearment. At Boston College especially, the perks of owning a Smartphone make the gadget seem absolutely necessary. The app “Transloc” allows you to track the bus schedule, Google Maps acts as a GPS on your phone so that meandering through the streets of Boston becomes much easier, and the ability to send and receive e-mails from professors while away from your computer has many advantages. “Picking up packages is so much more efficient with my iPhone 4S,” says Ellie Tanji, A&S ’15. “I can simply show the package receipt on my
phone and I’m out of there in no time. Siri, the voice behind the phone, directed me around the Harvard area to the Head of the Charles a couple weekends ago.” The astonishing features offered by Smartphones are sometimes underappreciated as it is easy to forget just how much our world revolves around the technology we take for granted. Ellen Burr, member of the women’s varsity rowing team and A&S ’15, is reminded of what separates her from her peers and teammates every day. With her “ancient” Samsung Impression for AT&T, which has no Internet capabilities, she finds herself one step behind what seems like everyone else on campus. The fact that she needs to turn it on and off several times and remove and reinsert the battery frequently in order to send text messages is only one of the problems she finds herself facing. “It looks like a toddler’s play cell phone,” she says. “It is basically synonymous with a piece of crap. I’m always the last one to find out about e-mails from my coach or professor, and I get lost a lot off campus on the weekends, knowing if only I had a handheld GPS, I could be warm and on the bus back to campus. I could really use a Smartphone.” Highlighting the imperativeness of this highly technical device, Deepa Prasad, A&S ’15, laughingly says, “When I lost my phone I immediately called my parents to send me a new Smartphone. It’s as if it was part of my body that I had lost and could not have continued through my day without.” Others, however, aren’t so convinced of its necessity. They’d rather remain under their “rock of ignorance” – a rock that could be, in fact, quite comforting, without the constant bombardment of new technologies. “I’m the kind of person who doesn’t get technology until someone can convince me that it’s really necessary or extremely useful to me, and I’m not quite there yet with the Smartphone,” says Robert Stanton, a professor in the English department. Whether you choose to follow the herd
of rapidly moving mobile creatures and submit yourself to the perks and downsides of being a part of that world, or whether you chose to remain in a more simplified sphere of flip phones, you are not alone. n
Photo courtesy of flickr
BC’s two main libraries each have their own unique appeals From Libraries, B10 24 hours a day Monday through Thursday for the majority of the semester, unlike O’Neill, which has limited hours. “I’m a big fan of Bapst because it is more pure study time,” says Shannon Ingelsby, A&S ’15. “O’Neill feels more institutionalized, where Bapst feels more old-fashioned, studious, more like the inner-university feel.” “I’m not one of those people who can work really well when there’s a lot of background noise,” adds
Sabrina Flood-Wylie, A&S ’15. “So I like how quiet Bapst is, and I like the feeling like I’m in a Harry Potter movie. It always motivates me to do work.” Flood-Wylie is not the only one who is reminded of Harry Potter when she steps foot inside Bapst. “I like the tables [in Bapst] because it reminds me of Hogwarts,” says Caitlin West, A&S ’14. “I go to Bapst when I have to read.” While some undergraduates claim that the Gothic architecture of Bapst is one major aspect of the library that keeps them coming back, other students say that it is the very thing that deters them from studying there.
“Even though it’s silent, the architecture is super distracting, and sometimes when I’m on the top floor, I’m just staring at the ceiling and everything, but when I’m on the fifth floor of O’Neill, there’s nothing to do but look at a wall,” says Alissa Heller, LSOE ’15. “I’m so productive in O’Neill. I can just work for hours.” Haverly is very practical in her choice of a library, noting the uncomfortable seats in Bapst. “My preference is O’Neill because Bapst is always super crowded and the seats are hard,” she says. On the contrary, Teddy Raddel, A&S ’15, says that he would definitely sacrifice comfort when studying.
In fact, when asked about the uncomfortable chairs in Bapst, he simply replies, “It keeps me awake.” All things being said, there is no definite victor in the long-fought battle between the libraries. Neither library can be crowned the best library at BC because it truly depends on the perspective of the individual student and the nature of the homework that needs to be completed. “I’ll go to either one, but it just depends on my mood, whether I want to go and have a really good view of Boston or whether or not I want to feel like I’m in Hogwarts for a couple of hours,” says Courtney Duff, A&S ’15. n
Photos courtesy of Google
When it comes to seeking a reclusive place fit for doing homework or studying dilligently, some students find that O’Neill Lbirary (left) is a better fit for them while others seem to prefer the more tranquil Bapst Library (right).
Kane incorporates 21st century social media inside of classroom By Juliette San Fillipo Heights Staff
As generally avid Facebook users, most students remember that fateful day when Mark Zuckerberg brought the world the “News Feed.” The changes Facebook brought to the lives of cyber-stalkers everywhere is fairly unprecedented by any other Internet phenomenon. For a while, it was all anyone could talk about. Now, imagine trying to teach and hold a class’ attention during that catastrophe. “My first day of teaching was when Facebook introduced Newsfeed,” says Gerald Kane, assistant professor of Information Systems in the Carroll School of Management, in an e-mail. “My students were all upset about it, so I turned it into a teachable moment, pretty bold for a rookie teacher, if I do say. When I saw the Facebook group against Newsfeed had 300,000 members within 48 hours, I knew something interesting was happening in social media – so it sort of changed my academic path for the next five years.” It takes a resourceful person and teacher to transform the progresses and perils of social media into an applicable academic lesson, but that’s just what Kane does here at BC in his classes. As a professor of Information Systems, some of Kane’s research interests include using collaborative technologies, such as social media, for knowledge creation and sharing, the strategic use of this information technology to create business value in firms, and the role of information systems in social networks. Kane has his MBA and Ph.D in Business/Computer Information Systems from Georgia State University and Emory University, respectively. He also has his M.Div from Emory and a B.A. from Furman University. Although he is well versed in and teaches business and information systems, Kane’s former path of study was quite different. “Prior to getting my MBA/Ph.D, my academic path was theology – which was both my undergrad major and my M.Div,” Kane says. Students may also be surprised to learn that this professor’s theological interests extend beyond the classroom as well. “The fact that I was (and still am) a United Methodist Clergy person comes as a surprise to most,” Kane admits. Another surprise for students: Kane was his high school mascot. Kane also accedes to being interested in a large variety of things, taking favor to just about every subject he has learned in school, and wishes to one day learn Chinese. He grew up in Atlanta, Ga., is 39-years-old, and is currently married to a woman who was in his first grade class (they didn’t start dating until after college). He has two children, a daughter Aidan, six, and a son Connor, four. “Most of my hobbies have taken a back seat
after my kids were born. I do confess that I play Xbox from time to time,” Kane says. When he’s not playing Xbox, he engages in what seems his most fortuitous hobby: teaching. Kane began teaching at the college level in 2006, but taught in other settings for years in the circle of major Atlanta universities like the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech before coming to Boston College. “I really like the culture of the BC community. It’s just a very healthy learning environment. In my opinion, it comes as close to what I think an ideal college experience should be in my experience,” Kane says. And Kane has plenty of experience in institutions of higher learning. He has been a student himself at numerous schools, and wishes to pass some of the knowledge and wisdom he garnered from that to his own students at BC. “I see in my students more the type of student I wish I were. I didn’t take college as seriously as I should have [or] could have, and I regret that. College presents you with an abundance of life-changing opportunities, but it’s the student’s job to take advantage of them. The degree is only a piece of paper. It’s the experiences that make the education. Maybe that’s why I collected so many degrees. It took me four tries to finally get it right.” When it comes to the classroom, Kane is an essays-over-tests kind of instructor, and employs the tools of social media in the classroom setting in order to get a good look at how his students learn best. “I prefer to write essays. They are more about telling what you do know, while tests are more about findings about what you don’t know. I prefer to make my students write blogs, develop wikis, and be active on Twitter (as I do in my social media class). I think technologies like social media allow us to create new deliverables that may be a better way to actually learn and a better gauge of what students have learned in class.” Kane’s emphasis on learning also extends to his philosophy on grades. Though they tend to consume the average BC student, Kane believes they should take a back seat. “I think students are way too fixated on grades and not enough on learning. When grades are the goal, then you just jump through hoops, you don’t take risks, and you are afraid of letting the material take you in unexpected directions. Grades are cheap. Learning can alter the course of your life.” Kane loves coffee (“preferably served as an IV drip”) and gets peeved by apathetic students in his classes. “If you’re going to come to class, be engaged. Most students don’t appreciate how great of a learning environment BC is, and they’ll regret later not soaking up every great idea they can possibly encounter.” And if Kane was not teaching? “I’d be the starting pitcher for the Red Sox. [Or] Larry Page/Sergey Brin – it would be really cool to run Google for a day. Or Justin Beiber. I mean, who wouldn’t want to be a teen heartthrob for one day (but one day would probably be all I
could stand).” If he were to leave the world of academia to pursue any of those occupations, his outstanding outlook on the ever-changing world of social media and its technology, along with his passion to enable true learning, would be sorely missed. n
Photo courtesy of Profkane.com
Professor Kane uses media sites like Facebook and Twitter in his classes at BC.
features The Heights
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Monday, November 14, 2011
Monday, November 14, 2011
By Jacqueline Parisi For The Heights
There are times when you can get away with studying in your room, or on one of the comfortable chairs in the Chocolate Bar. And then there are times when you need to focus, when you have a 10-page paper due in 24 hours. For times like that, you have two locations where you can go to seriously get your study on: Bapst or O’Neill Library. Many students at Boston College have a favorite library and in their love for the one, they vehemently oppose the other. Why do they have such strong
opinions on the libraries here on campus? That is something that only BC students can explain. Students who are pro-O’Neill say that the size of the library as well as the variety of noise levels are the main reasons why they like it better than Bapst Library. “Personally, I prefer O’Neill,” says Brian Limbo, A&S ’15. “[I like the] fourth floor or fifth floor toward the windows because I enjoy the view, especially during the day when I get nice, natural light rather than artificial light.” Brandon Short, A&S ’14, agrees. “It’s kind of creepy how quiet it is in Bapst, but O’Neill has plenty
of noise, and I like how there’s more floors.” The first floor of O’Neill is home to the service desk, the vending machines, and the government documents and microform services. The second floor houses the Connors Family Learning Center, various classrooms, the Computer Lab, and the Media Center. The third floor is the main entry-level floor, and it holds the computers, printing stations, and the reference desk. Floor four is where the quiet zone begins, which continues to floor five, the quietest area of the library. “In O’Neill, you choose what level based on how quiet you want it to be,” says Christine Haverly, A&S
’15. “So, if you need to concentrate, then you go to the fifth floor. But, if you’re just doing busy work, you just go down to the first floor.” On the contrary, Bapst Library, which was named after the first president of BC and served as the main library from 1925 until the opening of O’Neill in 1984, is smaller, but more picturesque than O’Neill. It has approximately 400 quiet study spaces in both individual carrels and tables. Gargan Hall, which is on the second floor of Babst, is open
See Libraries, B9 Alex Manta / heights photo illustration
Confessions of a teenaged, distraught, broken Superfan Ryan McGuill Like so many of my fellow Eagles, I declared myself premed for a solid three weeks at the beginning of my freshman year. I’m not a doctor, and I probably never will be (unless I eventually get my act together and start working toward that Ph.D. in wumbology). That being said, I think I’m wise enough to diagnose an illness that’s currently being passed around campus. The symptoms of this so-called disease are subtle, yet severe enough to affect even the healthiest of individuals. The easiest way to catch it is by engaging in conversation, so unless you break out the bed-risers and construct a makeshift fort under your twin-sized mattress (everyone does it, it’s catching on), then you’re screwed. Of course, the wretched plague that I’m highlighting is Football Fan Stress Disorder. Although its symptoms are similar, don’t be that guy who mistakes FFSD for mononucleosis. The “kissing disease” is child’s play compared to the misery that FFSD, both chronic and incurable, will bring you. While a gallon of water and a few packets of Emergen-C are enough to ward off the cough that mono brings, there is no suggested amount of fluid to reverse the pick that Chase Rettig just threw. Hooking yourself up to an IV drip will not change the 38-7 slaughter that FSU put us through. Pepto-Bismol may treat nausea, heartburn, indigestion, upset stomach, and diarrhea, but it cannot foster any improvements in the wins column for the 3-7 Eagles. This past season has been a perfect example of the debilitating effects of FFSD. Diehard Superfans are lethargic in the student section, and the Superfans that solely make the trek to Alumni Stadium for social purposes don’t even show up. As I glanced at the tepid student turnout for Saturday’s game against NC State, I wondered if the extent of FFSD was as devastating as I had initially thought it was. Sure, a decent amount of students were displaying telltale signs of the disease (loud, guttural sighs, or vulgar exclamations upon a BC mistake), but the majority seemed invested in other issues – exams, Facebook default pictures, burgers, and Nutella cake at the post-game tailgate. In fact, most of the kids rocking maroon and gold had their necks craned away from the field and toward their own side conversations. That booming, rising clap that the Superfans issue after the band plays “O Fortuna” seemed more like a casual acknowledgment that football was being played than the engaging expression of team pride that it’s meant to be. Are students even suffering from FFSD, or has the mediocrity of this season simply caused some to not care at all? Unfortunately, the most common Superfan shows up on Saturday because “it’s what everyone else is doing,” says a sophomore student who wished to remain anonymous. “I
i nside FE ATURES this issue
Q&A with Rev. Mario Cisneros, S.J.
honestly have never been a fan of football,” she said, “but it’s fun hanging out with my friends at the tailgates before and after. And I like to get tossed up when BC scores too.” While some of the more dedicated fans would critique this student for her lack of passion, fun is necessary for a student section to truly thrive. Regardless of the success of the football team, students are definitely still inclined to be loud and in the ears of the opponent – but maybe not about pigskin-related topics. Resilient students like Mike Camus, CSOM ’14, show a degree of rationality and fortitude that victims of FFSD need to express in times of great disorder. “I’ve accepted this season as a fan,” he says. “When we lose I don’t take it as hard, but I still go and stay at all of the home games. And a lot of people are traveling to Notre Dame, so that’s a good indication of our solid fan base.” Acceptance has clearly factored into the attitudes of Superfans this season, but certain events, like the ND game, allow for our optimism to shine through. Certain students turn their attention to the plethora of successful programs at BC that simply don’t get as much attention as football. “Our hockey team is great and our basketball squad is showing a lot of promise,” says Connor Marr, A&S ’14. “I can only wait until next year for the hope of a better football season, and in the meantime I’ll dedicate my efforts to different Eagle sports.” In addition to our exciting hockey and basketball teams, students often forget that we have two talented soccer teams that are constantly at the top of the ACC. The Euro-football teams do play on Newton, which is an arduous journey for some of the more unmotivated souls living in Chestnut Hill, but at a whopping $0 per ticket, enjoyment of their games would be kinder to your wallet. While our football team is on the verge of suffering its first losing season in over a decade, students and fans alike should truly see this as an opportunity to reevaluate their definition of “suffering.” Being ranked 12th in the BCS and acquiring a 7-2 record would seem like a celebratory cause for fans of the Penn State Nittany Lions, but the recent sexual abuse scandal involving renowned defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky has stifled school spirit and will be sure to negatively affect morale in years to come. This year hasn’t worked out in favor of the Superfans, but students need to realize that there’s more to life in Chestnut Hill than our football team. The Eagles aren’t averaging too many yards per game, but then again, our campus hasn’t been rendered despondent and our football program isn’t guilty of rejecting a greater moral code. I’ll take that as a victory … wait, would that make us bowl eligible?
Ryan McGuill is a staff columnist for The Heights. He can be reached at features@bcheights.com
Rev. Mario Cisneros, S.J. talks about his life, his vocation, and his time spent at Boston College.....................................................................................................................B6
The Real World.................................B8 Campus Chronicles.........................B6