Wednesday, April 23, 2003 by The Brown Daily Herald

W E D N E S D A Y APRIL 23, 2003

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD Volume CXXXVIII, No. 57

An independent newspaper serving the Brown community since 1891

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Title IX at Brown leads to fewer men’s walk-ons BY JEFFREY AUSTIN

Inoa said. Oredola is an assistant executive director of the Providence branch of Youth in Action, an organization dedicated to empowering at-risk teenagers, and a 1998 Central graduate. Her experience with the city’s public school system motivated her to serve on the school board, she said. “I grew up in Providence and I feel like my experience is rare, going from one of the worst public schools to an Ivy League university,” she said.

Tushar Gurjal ’06 trains with the track and field team, one of only two non-recruited distance runners to do so. Though officially off the roster at the beginning of the season, he is only eligible to compete now because injury bumped another athlete from the team. He understands why there is not usually room for walk-ons like him on the official roster — “It’s Title IX,” he said. Title IX of the 1972 Educational Amendments to the Civil Rights Act requires that women and men be provided equal access to sports. Maximum and minimum team sizes are calculated to reflect the gender breakdown of the general student body. If women’s teams do not meet their minimums, men’s teams face a smaller maximum. In practice, compliance with Title IX has put caps on the number of players on men’s teams, making it much more difficult for non-recruited male students to play on sports teams. Director of Athletics David Roach said Title IX “has certainly eliminated the male walk-on in certain sports.” Roach mentioned men’s track, cross country, crew, lacrosse and squash as teams whose ability to accept walk-ons was partially compromised by Title IX compliance. “Those are the sports where we had larger numbers of walk-ons,” he said. Both men’s and women’s coaches have experienced problems with the caps. Raphael Cerrato, assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the men’s baseball team, expressed regret that there are not more opportunities for male athletes. Cerrato estimates that the baseball team — which currently has no walk-ons — would have kept one or two if it had a higher maximum team size. Dave Amato, head wrestling coach, said the wrestling team includes two walk-ons, but he does not expect he will be able to accept any next year. “And it would be a shame,” he said, “if I actually had to cut

see SCHOOLS, page 6

see TITLE IX, page 4

Sara Perkins / Herald

APRIL SHOWERS BRING... Spring blossoms contrasted sharply with the cold weather gracing the campus this week.

Two Brown grads nominated to school board by Mayor David Cicilline ’83 BY JOANNE PARK

Two recent Brown — and Central High School — graduates were nominated April 17 to the Providence School Board by Mayor David Cicilline ’83. The nominations of Dilania Inoa ’99 and Adeola Oredola ’02 by the School Board Nominating Commission reflected the school board’s emphasis on “(finding) a way to reach the kids that are falling out of the system,” said Venus Jones, chair of the commission. “If we can’t get answers from the kids, then maybe someone closer to their age can find out what’s going on,” Jones said. Inoa, the current literacy coordinator of the Swearer Center for Public Service, supervises and trains Brown students who work with public elementary school students. “Being with teachers, principals, kids and parents everyday has made me aware of everything that’s happening with schools, positive and negative,” she said. Inoa previously contributed to the 2002 campaigns of Secretary of State Matt Brown, gubernatorial candidate Myrth York and to voting drives. Her work in community service and public schools began prior to her time at Brown, when she was a student at Central, she said. Inoa said her relative youth and previous work with children are two of her strengths that will allow her to contribute to the school board. “The fact that I’m a recent Brown graduate will not only help me with good decision-making but will help me educate people on the school board who are a little removed from the (daily educa-

tional) experience,” she said. The school board work will not interfere with her present responsibilities for the Swearer Center, as “the two go hand in hand,” Inoa said. A 1994 graduate of Providence’s Central High School, Inoa said she is familiar with the problems affecting Providence public schools. Her primary concern is for children whose first language is not English, she said. “Due to my personal experience with the (English as a Second Language) and bilingual programs, I can bring that special perspective to the school board,”

Earth Day Extravaganza kicks off Awareness Awareness week Music, games and political activism came together under dripping tents and tarps Tuesday to celebrate Earth Day and kick off Awareness Awareness Week. Twenty-five different political and environmental groups used Earth Day as an opportunity to raise money and promote activist causes. Organizations from both Brown and the greater New England area crowded under tents on the CIT courtyard as passersby stopped to peruse information packets and talk to representatives. “The rain has put a damper on things,” said co-coordinator Eric Noble ’05. “But this just shows that people still have enthusiasm.” Zara Ahmed ’06 also coordinated Earth Day events and said she was equally satisfied with the success of the day. Despite sporadic downpours of rain, people still were happy to bob for apples Sara Perkins / Herald

see EARTH DAY, page 4

Earth day kicked off despite poor weather on Tuesday.

I N S I D E W E D N E S D AY, A P R I L 2 3 , 2 0 0 3 Internet-based weight loss program helps people lose 10 pounds, says Brown study academic watch,page 3

Simmons welcomes 600 pre-frosh of the Class of 2007 at “A Day on College Hill” page 5

Schuyler von Oeyen ’05 says ignore the rain and come to Brown anyway opinions, page 11

TO D AY ’ S F O R E C A S T Three columnists give their advice to prefrosh on coming to Brown opinions, page 11

Undefeated in league, men’s tennis preps for Ivy showdown against Harvard sports, page 12

partly cloudy/windy high 53 low 47

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

THIS MORNING WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003 · PAGE 2 Pornucopia Eli Swiney

W E AT H E R TODAY

THURSDAY

High 53 Low 37 partly cloudy/wind

FRIDAY

High 54 Low 36 partly cloudy

SATURDAY

High 57 Low 39 partly cloudy

High 52 Low 38 showers

GRAPHICS BY TED WU

A Story Of Eddie Ahn

CALENDAR EXHIBITION — “The Work of Five Decades,”Walter Feldman. David Winton Bell Gallery, List Art Center, 11 a.m. LECTURE — “Hellfire Nation, The Moral Aspects of American Political Development,” Jim Morone, Brown. Seminar room, Taubman Center for Public Policy, noon. RECITAL — “World Health Organization Roundtable: Environmental Health for the Rich or for All?,” Kirk Smith, University of California, Watson Institute. Room 101, MacMillan Hall, noon. LECTURE — “Israel and Terrorism: The Balance Sheet Since 9/28,” Raymond Cohen, Hebrew University, Watson Institute. McKinney Conference Room, Watson Institute, 4 p.m.

Coup de Grace Grace Farris

THEATER — “Plutonics,” written by Sally Oswald, directed by Maria Goyanes, New Plays Festival. McCormack Family Theater, 8 p.m.

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Get rid of 6 Pequod’s skipper 10 “Famous” baker 14 __ Gay 15 Heroic tale 16 All-night bash 17 Shut-in’s anxiety 19 Way out 20 Tanzania neighbor 21 Aggression from above 23 Legendary giant 24 Actress Sellecca 26 Potato side 32 Fresno-to-L.A. direction 35 Nursery supply 36 Minsk money 37 Unlikely protagonist 39 “Don’t bother!” 41 A lot 42 __-mutuel 43 Outdo 44 Campaigning from town to town 48 Soprano Farrell 49 Baltic capital 53 Some crop dusters 57 Copies 59 Part 60 Casino regulations, e.g. 62 Lay __ the line 63 __ mater 64 Honshu port 65 Stable diet? 66 Prepared to drive 67 Informative

6 Peer Gynt’s mother 7 Cherished cigars 8 Getting on 9 “Peter Pan” playwright 10 Math calculation 11 Unrevealing skirt 12 “Metamorphoses” poet 13 Parts of matches 18 Contributing element 22 Recurring theme 25 NFL Hall of Famer Graham 27 View from a porthole 28 Capek play 29 “Yeah, right” 30 “Blondie” boy 31 Ooze 32 Stuffed shirt 33 Soft seat 34 __’acte

38 Brooder? 39 Word after “all the” or “just the” 40 Andrew or Harry, e.g. 42 Take for granted 45 Soldier topper 46 Enthusiastic corrida cry 47 Complain

50 Marriage acquisition 51 Social misfits 52 Analyze 53 Pizazz 54 Wee bit 55 Novel idea 56 It may be 35mm 58 Scientology founder Hubbard 61 Blue

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T H A N K A Y N O E G U N L T E S R P Y B O F O U E A S E T E

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DOWN Belittle Bowled over Go __ for: defend Medical facility Bridge holding

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THE RATTY LUNCH — Vegetarian Mushroom Barley Soup, Split Pea & Ham Soup, Beef Enchiladas, Vegan Burritos, Vegan Refried Beans, Corn & Sweet Pepper Saute, Raspberry Chocolate Streusel Squares

V-DUB LUNCH — Vegetarian Mushroom Barley Soup, Split Pea & Ham Soup, Beef Enchiladas, Vegan Black Bean Tacos, Vegan Refried Beans, Corn & Sweet Pepper Saute, Raspberry Chocolate Streusel Squares

DINNER — Vegetarian Mushroom Barley Soup, Split Pea & Ham Soup, Lemon Broiled Chicken, Fiery Beef, Vegan Stuffed Peppers, Spanish Rice, Broccoli Cuts, Polynesian Ratatouille, Ricotta Pepper Bread, Brazilian Chocolate Cake

DINNER — Vegetarian Mushroom Barley Soup, Split Pea & Ham Soup, Honey Dipped Chicken, Pizza Rustica, Red Potatoes with Fresh Dill, Broccoli Cuts, Polynesian Ratatouille, Ricotta Pepper Bread, Brazilian Chocolate Cake

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ACADEMIC WATCH WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003 · PAGE 3

Brown research puts tuberculosis and HIV vaccines within reach

Brown study shows Internet can help people lose weight over time BY STEPHANIE HARRIS

BY HEIDI EGELHOFF

Global vaccines for HIV and tuberculosis may be within reach, and a Brown professor is behind the technology that could make them possible. Assistant Professor of Community Health Anne DeGroot developed and patented EpiMatrix, a computer program that identifies epitopes, in the late 1990s with the help of Brown’s TB and HIV research team. Epitopes are the minimum amount of information necessary to alert the immune system to the presence of a virus. Most vaccines are based on the original virus. EpiMatrix identifies viral epitopes within the main strains of HIV, then uses them as building blocks to combine each strain’s epitopes into a universal vaccine from scratch. DeGroot incorporated EpiVax in May of 1998 on the basis of the EpiMatrix technology. DeGroot said she identified an opportunity to provide affordable vaccines for both HIV and TB to the world. EpiVax has secured grants from the National Institute of Health, the Sequella Foundation and Rhode Island’s Slater Center for Biomedical Technology. The significant volume of capital achieved by EpiVax has attracted the attention of the vaccination world, Rhode Island’s Economic Policy Council and Brown. Governor Donald Carcieri ’65 specifically noted the efforts of DeGroot in his State of the State Address in February. “We need more pioneers like Dr. DeGroot,” Carcieri see EPIVAX, page 4

Despite conventional wisdom that says people are more likely to gain weight if they spend time in front of the computer, a recent Brown study shows the Internet can actually help people lose weight. Overweight adults each lost an average of 10 pounds over the course of a year under an Internet weight loss study conducted by Deborah Tate, assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior at the Brown Medical School. Participants in the study accessed a Web site providing resources for losing weight — a tutorial on weight loss, weekly tips, charts of their progress and message boards for communicating with other participants. Half of the participants also received regular e-mail feedback from a weight loss counselor. Tate’s previous study proved the Internet provided an effective method for encouraging weight loss. But in the current study, Tate said she hoped to isolate the role of e-mail feedback from the other benefits the Internet can provide. The group receiving e-mails sent more detailed feedback to counselors, who responded with personalized recommendations and goals. They received e-mails every day for the first month and weekly for the remainder of the year. “We found that e-mail counseling improved weight loss significantly over a program that is more selfdirected,” Tate said. The e-mail counseling group lost more than twice as much weight as the basic group, averaging 10 pounds compared to four pounds in the basic Internet group. E-mail counseling participants also exercised more

and ate fewer fat calories than basic Internet participants. The results were published in the April 9 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Tate, who has a background in clinical psychology, chose to use the Internet as an alternative to clinical weight loss programs. “With over 60 percent of the adult population overweight or obese, a lot can benefit from weight loss,” she said. “But not all will choose to come to a clinic-based format. That only appeals to a small segment of the overweight population.” An Internet-based program appeals to those with busy schedules, working mothers and those who regularly use the Internet and prefer that form of communication. The Internet saves people from having to set appointments and spend time traveling to the clinic, Tate said. Tate said she would prefer that overweight adults use the time they would have spent driving to the clinic in more productive ways, such as exercise. Though losing weight through Internet programs is promising, Tate is not convinced it will replace clinical counseling. “Some people feel that they prefer communicating that way,” she said. “It’s not meant to be a program for everybody.” “We are still not getting the amount of weight loss we get during a face-to-face program,” Tate said. “I don’t think this is going to replace the way we do faceto-face treatments.” see WEIGHT, page 6

PAGE 4 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003

Earth Day continued from page 1 at the Brown Environmental Action Network table and enjoy free samples of organic toothpaste from Tom’s of Maine. Things quieted down around 6 p.m. as many people headed to MacMillan auditorium to hear a lecture by Tadesse Meskela, general manager of Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union in Ethiopia, about coffee farmers in the global economy. Earth Day begins Awareness Awareness Week, a celebration of activism at Brown that will run through Friday. Events include free transportation on Thursday to visit the Southern Community Land Trust, a group that promotes environmental education and community gardening. OXFAM will host a

EpiVax continued from page 3 said. DeGroot said she is always looking for opportunities to expand her team. “Whenever we receive additional funding, I immediately look to add someone new.” Brown undergraduates have assisted DeGroot in her research. “Brown is a really great place for this to happen,” DeGroot said. DeGroot credits her colleagues and team, including two Brown undergraduates, with much of the company’s recent success. “Each person has joined the team and taken on the research themselves,” she said. Nicole Pattamanuch ’03 has worked in DeGroot’s lab since early 2002. “Anne is genuinely interested in giving opportunities to help

Title IX continued from page 1 any walk-on that’s been on the team for more than a year.” Karen Finocchio, head coach of the men’s and women’s ski teams, said Title IX has in large part accomplished its original intent for female athletics and has allowed the women’s ski team to experience tremendous growth. But because of its effect on male athletics — effectively ruling out the possibility of the men’s ski team competing at the varsity level — “the law needs to be looked at again,” she said. Although the University’s Title IX compliance granted the women’s team varsity status, the men’s team remains at the club level. Presently, the University has 17 varsity men’s teams and 20 varsity women’s teams. But Theresa Ingram, head coach of the women’s lacrosse team, said running a women’s team under Title IX compliance has also been difficult. Larger team sizes translate to athletes spending more time on the bench, Ingram said. “People come out and realize that they’re at the bottom of the roster. It takes a very special person to keep playing. Some kids are going to think, ‘what’s the point?’

Earth Day begins Awareness Awareness Week, a celebration of activism at Brown. hunger banquet later that day in the Leung Gallery where former congresswoman Claudine Schneider is scheduled to speak. Dr. Elin Torell from Coastal Resources Center and Eve Lyman of Afghans for Civil Society are expected to speak on Friday in Brown’s Urban Environmental Lab. They will discuss the role of women in the development of healthy environmental practices in the Third World. Awareness Awareness Week will conclude Friday night with a performance by The Late Night Players comedy troupe. —Tom Reuland

students launch to greater things,” Pattamanuch said. “The work that you do with Anne is very independent.” Julie McMurray, a graduate of Rhode Island College, joined the EpiVax team and played a pivotal role in organizing the company’s data for publication and accessibility. “We’re the first to really blaze this trail,” said McMurray, who gathered samples and examined the blood of patients affected with TB and HIV over the past three years. “I see this company as not only a platform for developing vaccines for TB and HIV, but also as a way to create interest and train future leaders in the world of vaccination,” DeGroot said. The next chance to hear about the vaccine effort is May 16 at the Brown TB/HIV Research Lab at 200 Chestnut St. as part of HIV Vaccine Awareness Day.

and decide not to do it,” she said. But when female players quit because of lack of playing time, Ingram said, men’s teams are at risk for cuts. This component of Title IX compliance is widely misunderstood among athletes. Many athletic team captains told The Herald team sizes were capped as a result of league restrictions, which Roach said is not the case. “It’s not a league rule,” Roach said. “With us, it’s part of a compliance plan.” Because several years have passed since Brown implemented Title IX, he said, many students are not aware of its effects. Roach said he disagreed with the person-for-person proportionality of Title IX. “It’s a tremendous law and it’s been good for women’s sports, but I don’t agree with how it’s been implemented,” Roach said. “There’s got to be a better definition of opportunity.” Other Ivy League schools, Roach said, are not complying with Title IX as strictly as Brown, which came under fire in 1996 as a result of a court case filed by gymnast Amy Cohen ’92. “Proportionality-wise, (other schools) may not be in compliance, but the feeling is that as long as no one’s complaining, it’s not an issue.” Those schools, he said, “are rolling the dice.”

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

CAMPUS NEWS WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003 · PAGE 5

ADOCH brings 600 admitted students to campus BY ELLEN WERNECKE

By plane, train and automobile, an estimated 600 admitted students descended onto the University campus Tuesday for A Day on College Hill. The annual program, sponsored by the Office of Undergraduate Admission and the Bruin Club, is “the day that determines what Brown’s future will be,” Director of Admission Michael Goldberger told prospective freshmen Tuesday night at an official welcome in Salomon 101. “This was the most difficult year to get in in the history of Brown,” Goldberger said. The Office of Undergraduate Admission received over 15,000 applications for admission for an estimated 1,400 spots in the Class of 2007. “This is a great time to be at Brown,” said President Ruth Simmons, who encouraged prospective students to abandon fear in favor of curiosity during ADOCH. “You have the potential to add to an already rich community,” she added. “We saw in you the special promise to make the most of Brown. “There will be opportunities in your path that you could not have dreamed of,” said Simmons at her first ADOCH appearance since becoming president in 2001. For example, “you could take a writing class with (Professor of English) Pulitzer Prize-winner Paula Vogel,” she said, “which might lead to you winning a Pulitzer.” ADOCH co-coordinator Jeb Berman ’05 described the University as “a place to be yourself to the fullest extent — a liberal arts college that truly understands the

Sara Perkins / Herald

CLASS OF 2007 DESCENDS ON COLLEGE HILL (clockwise from top) More than 600 admitted students visited Brown for ADOCH; The see ADOCH, page 6 orchestra warmed up before a performance; Students performed bhangra at the talent show.

how spicy.

PAGE 6 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003

School continued from page 1 “I hear a lot of complaints about the public school system here, and I remember just wanting the cycle to stop,” Oredola said. “Just having navigated my way through the system, I want to get other people to share in that,” she said. “These are young people who’ve already been labeled failures.” Oredola previously worked with mentoring and tutoring programs in Providence, along with Yes! Foundation’s leadership development. “At some point, you want to be able to work with higher level people who can actuate the changes,” she said. “I feel like I can bring a certain level of energy and a different perspective, considering the work I do now every week with hundreds of youth who are in public schools,” Oredola said. Oredola said her time at Brown as a public and private sector organizations concentrator led her to her recent work.

Weight continued from page 3 Tate is currently investigating whether the e-mail counseling can be automated, provided by a computer counselor. The results of that study, “a much more public health type of approach,” have yet to be analyzed, Tate said. She said she is also looking at other ways technology can improve weight loss. One initiative involves participants recording a self-monitoring food diary

ADOCH continued from page 5 meaning of liberal arts. “At Brown,” he told prospective students, “you can do whatever you want to with your education.” Prospective student Mike Prentice from Garrison, N.Y. said he enjoyed the traditional video of Brown-related clips from movies and television shows shown after Simmons spoke. Allison Barkley, a prospective student from Atlanta, relished the opportunity to “meet the rest of my class” and said it strongly influenced her to commit to

“The people I interacted with at Brown were definitely a part of the confidence I had to do this,” she said. The Nominating Commission nominated Inoa, Oredola and Milton Hamolsky to the school board after a selection process that began with 24 applicants. The commission invited thirteen of those applicants to take part in a public forum, according to the Providence Journal. The nominations have rid the school board of previous controversies surrounding former mayor Vincent Cianci’s decision to bypass the nominating committee’s candidates, Jones said. “(Cicilline) put these new faces on that board. … He did not care if there was going to be a backlash from the City Council,” Jones said. “We’re happy with the selections that we made. I feel like we’re taking a step in the right direction.” The nominees will only be officially selected to the school board if the Providence City Council approves them. Herald staff writer Joanne Park ’06 can be reached at jpark@browndailyherald.com.

on their Palm Pilots. Online chat groups may also prove to be a resource for those wishing to lose weight in the privacy of their own homes, Tate said. Tate collaborated with Rena Wing, professor of psychiatry and human behavior at the Medical School, and Elizabeth Jackvony, the project coordinator at Miriam Hospital, on the e-mail study. Herald staff writer Stephanie Harris ’04 edits the academic watch section. She can be reached at sharris@browndailyherald.com.

Brown. Albert Lin, a prospective student from Chelmsford, Mass., praised the “free-based” programming that afforded the chance to interact with admitted students from around the country. “It would’ve been nicer if there were more scheduled activities (Tuesday) afternoon,” said Kristin Nado, a prospective student from San Francisco. But Nado, who has not yet committed, said she appreciated the opportunity to get a feel for the campus. Herald staff writer Ellen Wernecke ’06 can be reached at ewernecke@browndailyherald.com.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

WORLD & NATION WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003 · PAGE 7

Federal lawsuit is filed in nightclub fire PROVIDENCE, R.I. (L.A. Times) — Invoking a statute enacted following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, a lawyer on Tuesday filed the first federal lawsuit seeking damages from February’s nightclub fire here that killed 99 people. The civil suit on behalf of three victims of Rhode Island’s worst fire disaster identifies at least two dozen defendants — including the state itself and the Rhode Island fire marshal. Attorney Ronald J. Resmini contends that the state failed to properly train local fire officials. Also named as defendants are the chief fire inspector of West Warwick, where the Station nightclub was located, club owners Michael and Jeffrey Derderian and the four surviving members of the band Great White — whose concert attracted an estimated 400 revelers. The lawsuit also targets Anheuser Busch, which promoted a special beer on the night of the Great White concert, and a Providence radio station that advertised the event. An additional defendant is the American Foam Corp., distributor of the insulation used as soundproofing in the Station. Sparks from a pyrotechnic display used by Great White ignited the soundproofing material, causing the fire that swept through the club in less than five minutes. Lawyers for several of those named in the lawsuit said they would not comment on pending litigation. Nearly 200 people were injured as club-goers frantically searched for exits in the smoke-darkened establishment. Eight victims remain hospitalized, and many others have been transferred to rehabilitation facilities. Resmini said he was bringing the suit under the Multiparty, Multiforum Trial Jurisdiction Act of 2002, which gives U.S. district courts jurisdiction in civil cases resulting in more than 75 deaths. The legislation took effect weeks before the Rhode Island nightclub fire. The suit filed Tuesday in Providence is the first case to be pursued under the new statute. Two other lawsuits stemming from the fire have been filed in state court. A federal grand jury also is investigating whether to bring criminal charges. “We don’t know whether it belongs in state court or federal court,” Resmini said Tuesday. “The only way we will have it tested is to put it in the federal court and see what they do.” The large number of potential plaintiffs and defendants makes the case so complicated that “everyone has a difference of opinion about jurisdiction. None of us could agree on anything,” Resmini said. He said that under the federal statute, “if a defendant is 1 percent negligent, then he is responsible for 100 percent of the claim. So in reality, everybody here could be defined as a primary defendant.” The suit does not specify damages. But Steven Minicucci, president of the Rhode Island Trial Lawyers Association, said the statute’s vagueness on the issue of primary defendants sets the stage for a cumbersome appeals process that could complicate an already-dense legal thicket. “I have some problems with the filing of this lawsuit today,” said Minicucci, faulting Resmini for acting too fast. Minicucci’s law firm represents seven fire victims. “We’re only eight weeks down the road from this tragedy,” he said. “We feel that this should not be some type of lightning rod that victims should take as an indication that they should be running to the federal courthouse.” But Walter Castle Jr., a plaintiff in the suit filed Tuesday, said he was less interested in money than “justice for the person or persons responsible.” Castle, a 29-year-old unemployed pizza delivery driver, said smoke inhalation from the fire permanently damaged his lungs. He still has nightmares about the tragedy, he said, in which he lost 45 acquaintances.

Wally Skalij/L.A. Times / Herald

An Iraqi Shiite beats himself with chains Tuesday in Karbala as part of the traditional spring pilgrimage to the tomb of Hussein, grandson of the prophet Muhammad.

Pilgrims celebrate tentative liberation KARBALA, Iraq (L.A. Times) — Caked with sweat and blood, beating their breasts and whipping their backs, 1 million pilgrims poured through hot, bright streets Tuesday, dazed from walking and frenzied with grief and self-flagellation. “Where is the reckless Saddam now?” taunted the crowds, pushing their way toward the mosque. “The oppressors of the pilgrims to Karbala?” They limped along on blistered feet, drew swords to slash their scalps and beat themselves with chains. It was the first time in decades that Iraq’s long-suffering Shiite majority was allowed to perform its traditional spring pilgrimage to the tomb of Hussein, grandson of the prophet Muhammad. Under the regime of Saddam Hussein, the rite — held each year on the anniversary of the grandson’s death — was punished by torture, arrest and execution. “This is the victory of right over wrong,” pilgrim Irfan Asadi said Tuesday. But beneath the trappings of incense, bullhorns and fluttering flags, the rowdy catharsis of liberation was tempered by profound uncertainty. Asked about their country’s future, Shiites uttered the same two words over and over: Unstable, and unclear. “Nothing is clear,” said Kadisia Hussain Abdul Wahid, 34. “It’s a great pleasure and liberty to be here, but we don’t know what comes next.” The old government is gone, but there is no new system to replace it. Shiites are divided among themselves over whether to welcome or shun U.S. troops; over which religious leaders to follow; over whether it’s better to have a democratic government, an Islamic republic or both. “It is important to have an Islamic government,” said Watha Ali, a 23-year-old pilgrim who limped slowly toward the cool turquoise arches of Hussein’s tomb. “Democracy? I think the Islamic government will be democratic.” On streets choked tight with writhing bodies, pilgrims prayed — and called for an end to U.S. occupation. They sang of the heroic death of Hussein — and of the cowardly collapse of Saddam. They clutched pictures of long-dead martyrs—and of modern-day holy men who are locked in a violent struggle for control of Shiite doctrine. It was by turns a civic exhibition, a massive campaign rally and a call to arms. All of this is an unfamiliar, even awkward, exercise for Iraq. The nation’s 16 million Shiites have long been

crushed into compliance by the Baath Party, which is made up of rival Sunni Muslims. “Freedom has been inside us all along,” said Hamed Hussein, a baker from the southern town of Adasia. “But until now we haven’t practiced it.” Pilgrims spoke in one breath of gratitude for the ouster of Saddam , and in the next of their rage at the presence of foreign troops. “We really thank America very much, but they must leave our country now,” said 37-year-old Abu Ali Basri, who journeyed from the southern city of Basra. “Otherwise, we’ll fight. Just look at these rallies: The people are ready to fight the invaders.” Stone-faced worshippers clutched English-language signs in their fingers, and held them out wordlessly for the gaze of foreign journalists. “We want justice, freedom, independence,” read one sign. “Honorable Islamic scholars are our real representatives,” said another. In the absence of Saddam’s secular government, Shiites have begun to take charge of scattered municipal and judicial functions. They are determined, and likely, to claim a large chunk of power in Iraq’s new government. “There’s a vacuum in power,” said Saad Naji Jawadi, a political analyst at Baghdad University. “Everybody is trying to take the law into their own hands.” And in the streets of Karbala, traumatized Shiites were still struggling to shake the shadows of the past. They hesitated a bit before answering questions, and sometimes cringed when asked their names. Some admitted that they were still afraid of the old regime, and there were whispers that agents of the former government lurked in their midst. As volunteers sprayed rose water into the air to cool the pilgrims’ cheeks, a 60-year-old woman named Amina Kadhum crouched on the ground with an enlarged photograph of her slain daughter. Amina Abbas was put to death in 1982, when she was 22 years old. Her mother says the family was never told why; without explanation, the government ordered her to pick up her daughter’s corpse. “I received the body,” Kadhum said, “and I buried it myself.” Her other daughter, Sundus Abbas, said she was arrested after security forces caught her with a Shiite pamphlet. She spent eight years in prison. “Wherever we went, the police were listening,” said Sundus Abbas, now 40. “We were even finding spies behind the radish bin. We were stifled.”

PAGE 8 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003

France to U.N.: suspend economic sanctions against Iraq UNITED NATIONS (L.A. Times) — In a

surprise move, France proposed on Tuesday that the United Nations suspend economic sanctions against Iraq but continue to operate a version of its “oil-for-food” program. The proposal appeared to be a conciliatory response to President Bush’s call last week to eliminate the United Nations’ 12-year-old sanctions against Iraq, freeing oil revenues for the rebuilding of the nation. But with France’s concessions also came conditions that the White House is resisting. While France is willing to suspend the sanctions immediately, it still demands that U.N. inspectors certify that Iraq is weapons-free before trade restrictions are totally lifted. France and many other countries want to see the U.N. team verify any U.S. findings of banned weapons in Iraq, a process that would ensure that the United Nations plays a role in post-war Iraq. France’s proposal calls for U.N. inspectors to join U.S teams in the search for banned weapons to credibly verify Iraq has been disarmed, said French ambassador Jean-Marc de la Sabliere. “The lifting of the sanctions,

which is, I think the objective of all of us, is linked to the certification of the disarmament of Iraq,” de la Sabliere said. “Meanwhile we could suspend the sanctions and adjust the oil for food program with the idea of phasing it out.” Fellow opponents of the war in Iraq including Russia and Germany voiced support of the French proposal but the U.S. reacted cooly Tuesday. “Because of the dramatically changed circumstances within Iraq,” sanctions should be lifted entirely — not just suspended, said U.S. Ambassador John D. Negroponte. “We now need to work with France and other countries to see how best that can be achieved and how quickly.” U.S. officials also said they agree with France that the oil for food program, which regulates oil sales and food distribution in Iraq, should eventually be phased out but that the United States wants to control the process and the timetable. The United States is eager for normal trade to return for Iraq in order to free up oil revenues to rebuild the country. The United Nations imposed sanctions on Iraq in 1991 to punish Saddam Hussein’s regime for

invading Kuwait and to pressure it to surrender nuclear, chemical and biological weapons. The United Nations has controlled the country’s economy ever since, disbursing money from its oil sales to pay for non-military goods, and providing rations to nearly 90 percent of its 24 million people. By merely suspending sanctions, France, Russia, Germany, Mexico and others would seek to keep the U.N. infrastructure in place to help counter U.S. dominance of post-war Iraq. In addition, they want to keep Iraq’s oil revenues in an escrow account under U.N. control until a new Iraqi government is in place. The authority to spend the money would gradually be handed over to the new administration. France’s ambassador made his proposal after the U.N. Security Council met Tuesday with chief weapons inspector Hans Blix to help determine what the inspectors’ future role in inspection and monitoring could be. In the meeting, Blix noted that U.N. inspection teams have been working in Iraq for 12 years, and have experience, databases, and an aura of credibility that the United States may lack.

Flying the germ friendly skies (Hartford Courant) — The terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, alerted us to the fact that commercial airliners can be weapons. The recent spread of SARS reminds us that airliners can deliver far more than passengers, packages and duty-free knickknacks. They are a fast and efficient way to share germs. “Within the known incubation period of any known agent, you can get from the rain forest to (Boston’s) Logan Airport in eight hours,” said Dr. David Ozonoff, chairman of the Department of Environmental Health at Boston University’s School of Public Health. Humans have always moved and migrated with their illnesses. Air travel has accelerated the process. In one month, air travelers take about 130 million flights. But the speed at which a given germ can move through the air transport system depends on a number of factors — from how catchy the bug is to whether it’s more likely to infect people on airliners than in other public spaces. Ozonoff says the “hub-andspoke” airline “is made to order for these kinds of (disease) spreads.” The system brings lots of passengers together in large “hub” airports before shuttling them off to smaller “spoke” sites. For an easy-totransmit illness like smallpox, this would be a recipe for a very rapid distribution. Scholars at Johns Hopkins University created a computer model of the spread of smallpox via contagious airline passengers in the United States,

building on techniques created in the former Soviet Union and layering the particulars of smallpox over data from the 1968-69 Hong Kong Flu pandemic. In the case of smallpox, government officials would have only a few days to shut down the air travel system in order to staunch the spread of the disease, according to Hugh Ellis, a professor of environmental engineering at Johns Hopkins, and one of the authors of the computer model. Ellis said it is not known whether a healthy individual is more likely to get sick during a plane ride than in another public setting. Martha Waters, a research industrial hygienist with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health in Cincinnati, said airline passengers are in close quarters — just as bus and subway riders are. But in airliners, she said, the air around them is moving much faster. Waters, who is part of a team that has been studying the airliner environment, said cabin air is a combination of fresh air and filtered, recycled air. She noted that the mix of fresh and recycled air — and the kinds of filters used — varies with the airplane model and with the airline itself. Of course, a given passenger’s chances of getting an inflight infection depends on a host of factors, including susceptibility and the way in which the particular illness is spread. Waters notes that sicknesses that spread via droplets — like colds and, apparently,

SARS — certainly can be spread by a careless, sneezing passenger to his or her neighbor. But that doesn’t mean that airplanes become flying hot zones. “Would I take that any further and say that people shouldn’t get on airplanes?” Waters said. “Absolutely not.” Health authorities around the globe already have intervened in the air travel system, notes Ozonoff, by alerting passengers traveling from SARS hot spots and encouraging citizens to put off non-essential travel to those areas. Some measures — like the brief quarantine of a jetliner from Tokyo at the airport in San Jose, Calif., on April 1 — may be too extreme. Ozonoff said that even the hint of smallpox elsewhere in the world would cause the severing of air links to that area. But SARS is neither as deadly nor as contagious as smallpox. From the airlines’ point of view, the SARS epidemic needs to be kept in perspective. There were 3,861 reported cases worldwide as of Monday. By comparison, notes William Gaillard, director of corporate communications for the International Air Transport Association in Geneva, an estimated 100 million passengers flew during March. “We’re doing our most,” he said, referring to airport screening, passenger advisories, optional surgical masks on some airlines and plenty of filtered cabin air. In Singapore, passengers from Hong Kong and China pass through a scanner that detects a fever.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD PAGE 9

Slotsky continued from page 12 York Yankees and created a vivid and vicious “top dog/underdog” relationship with that team. The Yankees represent everything that the Red Sox haven’t achieved: The New York pinstripers have won 26 World Series championships, all since 1923. The fact that the Yankees are from New York and in the same division does not help matters. To Red Sox fans, the Yankees are the black to the Red Sox’s white, the evil overlord to our oppressed little minion. In this binary, the Yankees are the ones and the Red Sox are, sadly, the zeroes. By pretending the Yankees are the direct cause of the Red Sox’s failure, Red Sox Nation is able to blow some steam and ignore reality. As a result, New Englanders of all shapes and sizes sport “Yankees Suck!” slogans on their caps, shirts and hairy, pasty chests, although doing so has zero impact on their own accursed team’s World Series chances. The Yankees and most other teams will crush the Red Sox in the play-offs year in and year out. I’ve resigned myself to the fact the Red Sox will never win the World Series, but here’s the true kick-in-the-pants question: Do Red Sox fans even want them to? Imagine this scenario — it is November 2003, and the Red Sox have just won the World Series. Downtown Crossing and Government Center in Boston become a

mob scene with screaming Red Sox fans, and millions of New Englanders and I get blind drunk in a near-religious frenzy in the week of celebration that follows. Then, as we sober up, reality sets in: The Red Sox have won the World Series. Well, what next? The truth is, there is no “next.” There would be nothing left for Red Sox fans. The reason the Red Sox fans are so crazily dedicated to the Sox (and venomous toward the Yankees) is precisely because every year the Red Sox don’t win the World Series. The hope of this mythical World Series win is the cause of all this Red Sox hysteria and the goal of all diehard Sox fans, and if this goal was suddenly achieved, the Red Sox’s siren song would be far, far less bewitching to its audience. Being a Red Sox fan is masochism; devotion to the club comes from year after year of poor treatment, with the shining prospect, somewhere high in the ether, that next year things will be different. And so the Red Sox fans (again, like myself) are forever trapped in this chase, with the carrot dangling before our eyes but never gratified. We are endlessly devoted to a team that, because of its seared-in loser mentality, will never win the World Series and break its “curse.” I realize my role within this system, and, I hate to admit, enjoy it. I was initiated into this very odd fraternity in October 1986 when I witnessed an easy grounder bobble gently through first baseman Bill Buckner’s oldman legs, spoiling yet another

golden opportunity for a Red Sox World Series victory. I cried my eyes out while I listened to my Irish-Italian neighbors wake up all of Worcester with their swearing. From that point on, I have been a full-fledged member in Red Sox Nation, obsessively charting the June/July highs and September/October lows of every successive Red Sox season. However, my recent insight about the fate of the Red Sox (and, by extension, my own) has given me a certain detachment with which I’ve been able to see our situation with a bit more clarity. The hidden gratification, I’ve discovered, of being a diehard Sox fan is in the neverending chase, not the finale. To which I say, “Yankees SUCK! I love you, Red Sox, and may you never, ever win the World Series!”

Tennis continued from page 12 leadership following the graduation of lone senior Caroline Casey ’03. “She’s been a major part of this team. A lot of the girls look up to her. As a leader, as a senior, she’s given us her experiences in the past and having three Ivy seasons under her belt. It’s just her advice, having her there everyday working hard. I think she’s been an inspiration to everyone,” said Meath. The men’s tennis team continued its dominance over Ivy League competition this past weekend, defeating Columbia University (4-3) and Cornell University (5-2). At 18-3 (6-0), the Bears will travel to Harvard this Saturday

The men’s tennis team continued its dominance over Ivy League competition this past weekend. for a familiar situation. For the second consecutive year, both squads enter the match-up undefeated in conference play with the Ivy League title on the line. The Bears hope history will repeat itself and ensure the successful defense of their Ivy League title. Sports staff writer Brett Zarda GS covers the women’s tennis team. He can be reached at bzarda@browndailyherald.com.

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

EDITORIAL/LETTERS WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003 · PAGE 10 S T A F F

E D I T O R I A L

Eat the machine Two more Brown graduates may soon be added to the growing list of members of the Brown community in city and state government. Nominees to the School Board, Dilania Inoa ’99 and Adeola Oredola ’02, will — if approved by the City Council — join Sen. Lincoln Chafee ’75, Gov. Donald Carcieri ’65, Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch ’87, Mayor David Cicilline ’83 and his director of personnel, former Brown director of employee relations Sybil Bailey. Inoa and Oredola are proof that Brown graduates can begin contributing to the city the moment the University sends them back through the Van Wickle gates. Inoa, the Swearer Center literacy coordinator, and Oredola, the assistant executive director of Providence’s Youth in Action, have proved their dedication to Providence youth and education in a short time-span since graduating. Cicilline’s school board appointments also send a clear message that the days of Cianci-style patronage in city government are numbered. Inoa and Oredola are the definition of fresh faces — it is doubtful either was accruing influence in the city machine while matriculating at Brown. Yet both bring a brand of expertise few city insiders could claim to possess because both were students in one of the city’s most challenged public schools within the last decade. The steady decline of the city’s education system into its present state can easily be blamed on lack of money, but also lack of imagination. Additional funds may be a long time coming given the city’s current financial situation, but that only underscores the beauty of Inoa’s and Oredola’s appointments. Working with student groups at Brown and the Swearer Center and local non-profits after graduation has surely educated both appointees in doing a lot of good with a little money.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD EDITORIAL Elena Lesley, Editor-in-Chief Brian Baskin, Executive Editor Zachary Frechette, Executive Editor Kerry Miller, Executive Editor Kavita Mishra, Senior Editor Stephanie Harris, Academic Watch Editor Carla Blumenkranz, Arts & Culture Editor Rachel Aviv, Asst. Arts & Culture Editor Julia Zuckerman, Campus Watch Editor Juliette Wallack, Metro Editor

BUSINESS Jamie Wolosky, General Manager Joe Laganas, Executive Manager Lawrence Hester, Senior Accounts Manager Bill Louis, Senior Accounts Manager Joshua Miller, Senior Accounts Manager Midori Asaka, National Accounts Manager David Zehngut, National Accounts Manager Anastasia Ali, Local Accounts Manager Elias Roman, Local Accounts Manager Peter Schermerhorn, Local Accounts Manager Jack Carrere, Noncomm Accounts Manager Laurie-Ann Paliotti, Sr. Advertising Rep. Kate Sparaco, Office Manager

ANDREW SHEETS

LETTERS

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Adam Stella, Asst. Metro Editor Jonathan Skolnick, Opinions Editor Joshua Skolnick, Opinions Editor

PRODUCTION Zachary Frechette, Chief Technology Officer Ilena Frangista, Listings Editor Marc Debush, Copy Desk Chief Grace Farris, Graphics Editor Andrew Sheets, Graphics Editor Brett Cohen, Systems Manager

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Samantha Morton, Night Editor Amy Ruddle, Janis Sethness, Copy Editors Staff Writers Lotem Almog, Kathy Babcock, Zach Barter, Hannah Bascom, Carla Blumenkranz, Dylan Brown, Danielle Cerny, Philissa Cramer, Ian Cropp, Maria DiMento, Bamboo Dong, Jonathan Ellis, Linda Evarts, Nicholas Foley, Dana Goldstein, Alan Gordon, Nick Gourevitch, Joanna Grossman, Stephanie Harris, Shara Hegde, Anna Henderson, Momoko Hirose, Akshay Krishnan, Hanyen Lee, Jamay Liu, Allison Lombardo, Lisa Mandle, Jermaine Matheson, Jonathan Meachin, Monique Meneses, Alicia Mullin, Crystal Z.Y. Ng, Joanne Park, Sara Perkins, Melissa Perlman, Eric Perlmutter, Samantha Plesser, Cassie Ramirez, Lily Rayman-Read, Zoe Ripple, Ethan Ris, Amy Ruddle, Emir Senturk, Jen Sopchockchai, Adam Stella, Adam Stern, Stefan Talman, Jonathan Thompson, Joshua Troy, Schuyler von Oeyen, Juliette Wallack, Jessica Weisberg, Ellen Wernecke, Ben Wiseman, Xiyun Yang, Brett Zarda, Julia Zuckerman Pagination Staff Joshua Gootzeit, Lisa Mandle, Alex Palmer, Nikki Reyes, Amy Ruddle Photo Staff Kimberly Insel, Nick Mark, Alex Palmer, Sara Perkins, Cassie Ramirez, Jason White Copy Editors Mary Ann Bronson, Lanie Davis, Yafang Deng, Hanne Eisenfeld, George Haws, Amy Ruddle, Jane Porter, Janis Sethness, Nora Yoo

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

OPINIONS WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2003 · PAGE 11

Prefrosh: 10 reasons to come here With a few important caveats IF WE’RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT BROWN, WE’RE GOING TO talk about the food in the Ratty. (Don’t call it the Sharpe Refectory or people will beat you, or at least laugh and point.) While it’s not worthy of a Michelin rating, it’s not really all that bad. And if you go to breakfast during the week, you can read the New York Times for free. (But the V-Dub — the dining hall on Pembroke Campus, up at the other end of Thayer Street — has the Times and Belgian waffles!) The people here are nice and interesting. I’m a transfer so I know. On the downside, parking options suck ass. Like, really. My parking space is a mile and a half away from my dorm. The BPD’s parking tickets are expensive and, nota SARAH GREEN BETTER THAN CATS bene, would-be drivers — they will tow you. But to be fair, Brown does provide a shuttle and an escort service to take you to your faraway vehicle (and don’t I feel sleazy with “escort” programmed into my cell phone). And you don’t really need to drive that much anyway. On the upside, our mascot is a bear. Not an abstract color (a la Crimson or Big Green) and not a pacifist in a silly hat (c.f. the Penn Quaker). A bear. A good old-fashioned, cute-yet-ferocious, omnivorous bear. According to a recent survey, Brown has the highest rate of sexual satisfaction of any Ivy League school, with 86 percent of students reporting sexual intercourse at some time within the past year. Though this may induce you to enroll here, I feel I must tell you that 100 percent of my friends said this was crap. Perhaps I am only on amicable terms with the 24 percent of Brownies (Brunonians, if you want to be Latinate and pretentious) who are sexually frustrated. Feel free to draw your own conclusions — or just wait for Spring Weekend. Beware the Brown “stick.” Do what you want to — the work will get done. I’m convinced that during orientation, they’re going to try to lodge the infamous stick somewhere very personal. Don’t let them! Repeat after me: The Absolute Quiet Room in the Rock(efeller Library) is not my home. You don’t have to do all your homework — there may be, in fact, too much of it to finish — but college is all about learning to prioritize, and the first year is all about adjusting to life in a new place and making new friends. I’d hate for you to arrive on campus and suffer some sort of nervous breakdown and end up wandering aimlessly through the upper reaches of the Sci(ences) Li(brary) until you starve and your prostrate form is found days, even weeks later, huddled in the fetal position and still clutching your campus map. Taking a few classes on a pass/fail basis — or as we say here “satisfactory/no credit” — offers the overwhelmed student a marvelous reprieve. Brown has no general education requirements, which is an even more fantastic bounty for its students than the S/NC, ABC/NC grading options. Most other schools have at least a few things they want you to do. I transferred from a school with seven different gen ed requirements, which meant I spent a semester writing essays about my fear of math. Do not let this happen to you. Regarding the administration — you can get your own way a lot of times, but not always. But there’s never any harm in trying. You haven’t filled the prerequisite for a class you want to take? The class isn’t open to first-years? See if you can talk your way in anyway. Providence is a pretty rockin’ city — lots of restaurants and places to caffeinate yourselves (and you will need caffeination) some nice bars for when you turn 21 and have your very first taste (mm hmm) of the Devil’s Drink. And, in a disturbing, capitalistlayer-cake kind of way, the Providence Place Mall is always on hand to provide you with an IMAX diversion or your J. Crew fix. And there are some quirky little joints like the Meeting Street Cafe (cookies the size of dinner plates) and the Cable Car, a tiny cinema that serves tuna melts and great soy chai. It even has couches instead of boring ol’ movie theater seats, so when you become one of Brown’s 86 percent of sexually satisfied undergrads, you can take your boyfriend/girlfriend/other(?) there. Now admittedly, Providence might not quite be the most happening metropolis in the country. But even the most disillusioned upperclassman must admit — it’s better than New Haven.

Sarah Green ’04 lied to you about the Absolute Quiet Room. She does live there.

Is this the real Brown U? A DAY ON COLLEGE HILL IS FOR ALL SEASONS — from an open curriculum to faculty accessibility you yet somehow the visiting high school seniors arrived won’t find at Harvard — welcome to Brown during the monsoon. The rainy downpour outside on University. It is difficult in just a couple of days here for the Tuesday cast a gloomy peephole into the world of high school seniors (or pre-frosh, as we call Brown University, in stark contrast to the them) to make a candid assessment favorable sunshine and deep blues skies about Brown. There is an activities fair that shined brightly and earnestly last today featuring a march on the Main year. I’m not surmising it was good Green orchestrated by the Brown Band, weather that caused a record 60 percent there were presentations in Sayles and of the accepted applicants to matriculate Salomon lecture halls and there were last year, but it certainly didn’t hurt. student sleep-overs last night — so what The underlying real Brown University, is the real Brown? You know, the one that pre-frosh should thankfully know, can exists in actuality, and not the one on the never be rained out. That’s because it is picture brochure they hand out in the you, the future students, who decide the Admission Office? I say to you, Brown is fate of Brown. I will say that one of the SCHUYLER VON what you make of it. Its diverse commumajor reasons I decided to enroll at OEYEN ALL THINGS nity provides a solid foundation to Brown and not another nationally recogCONSIDERED accommodate people from all kinds of nized state school, the University of different backgrounds, majority and Michigan, was because of the strong student body. Students here can change things and will minority. If you want a challenge — and an unbelievchange things. What Brown offers that many other able experience you won’t forget — you found the schools don’t is a chance to stand out and be a major right place. My last advice to our visiting acceptees — talk to contributor in a number of hundreds of organizations — there is a niche for everyone, and anyone can other students. Sitting in University-sponsored leccontribute. The sad side of the story is that many stu- tures is alright, but walk around campus and talk to dents — perhaps roughly 20 percent in my estimation people. Get a feel for “would I want to hang with these — don’t take on that personal challenge. As an Ivy peoples for four years?” Figure out what they do and League university with a number of resources, aca- what opportunities Brown has opened for them. demic and otherwise, Brown offers unbelievable Their interests are probably different from yours; opportunities to those who seek them. To those of that’s great, in fact, it will provide for a learning culyou who desire an active role in your education — ture you can benefit from. That, my friends, is the real Brown University, the one we live and thrive in every day and the one I recommend you consider joining. Congratulations on your acceptance to the worldSchuyler von Oeyen ’05 loves Brown and will miss class university that is Brown. writing opinions columns over the summer.

Brown is for thugs CONGRATULATIONS, KIDDIES. YOU’VE GOTTEN of applicants, and I’m afraid to say that it’s true. into Brown. We’re going to do our best to put up Only 10 percent of Brown students actually take with you for a couple of days, and if we can get that classes, and this year, Physical Education was the under control, we might even entertain you. But only class that students took for a grade. Some have ADOCH isn’t a cakewalk, so if you want to get out of argued teaching Brown students would help foster here alive, there are hints you’d better follow. Think wealthy alumni who could contribute to Brown’s endowment, but the administration remains you can’t handle it? Yale’s right down the highway. You know all that smack you heard about Brown caught in a Catch-22 because there’s no money to when your daddy was telling you to make him actually fund classes. Cross-registration at RISD proud and go to Harvard? Well, it’s true. Brown is the remains the only way to actually take classes at poorest Ivy League school. That’s right. We’re thugs. Brown. But, there is reason for hope. Prospect Street has Raised on the streets. The Ratty frequently looks like a combat zone. Those homeless people you see on become the site of a thriving prostitution industry that gives graduate student and dance Thayer are the faculty. Two out of three concentrators the opportunity to give students are in some stage of the crimilap dances in return for money to pay nal justice system. Spatial isolation, tuition. Incoming first-years can thereunemployment and the cycle of poverty fore expect to find ample opportunities contribute to a culture of desperation to sell their bodies into sexual bondage and urban rage in the slums of Brown. in this popular work-study program. Left behind by the economic expansion Thanks to help from RISD students who of the late 1990s, Brown students are took chemistry in middle school, chemdoomed to lives of hopelessness and istry majors at Brown are learning to misery that is systematically overlooked cook smack for Ruth Simmons so that by the plutocrats in Washington who are the administration can stay high. slashing our food stamps in order to pay NATE GORALNIK ORDERS FROM THE There is even talk of developing sarin for new tax cuts. Imprisoned in Keeney BOSS nerve gas for the Syrian army, Quad, first-years learn to live by the gun. although Brown lacks the $100 that There’s also nothing to eat. For Brown would be needed to buy the necessary students, a life sentence in prison at pots, pans, spoons and laundry deterleast guarantees a warm jail cell, a clean bed and a bite to eat. Parole is a nightmare. Once, gent needed. Luckily, Perkins dorm is strategically an Urban Studies concentrator found enough pen- located near Colombia, which has facilitated a nies in the gutter to go see “Black Hawk Down,” and growing trade in crack cocaine and illegal small rumors of good weather and the chance of escaping arms, and someday Brown may figure out how to starvation led to a massive exodus of Brown stu- actually get students and drugs from Perkins all dents to Mogadishu, where many have found a bet- the way to the main campus. So, yeah, what they say about Brown is true, but ter life as date farmers in the inhospitable Somali it’s not all that bad. While most of us have been desert. I’m sure you’ve heard that, without a core cur- thugged out since we were packing heat in the riculum, Brown students don’t learn anything. This high chair, the cops haven’t caught some of us and, has been a prominent concern among the parents anyway, incarceration offers numerous opportunities for superior room and board. And even if you hate it here at Brown, your parents will probaNate Goralnik ’06 is desperately trying to transfer to bly be paying anyway. Come to Brown. We’re gangstas. a community college somewhere in Arizona.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

SPORTS WEDNESDAY APRIL 23, 2003 · PAGE 12

When soccer really gets dirty THEY’RE WILD AND PREDICTABLE. Spontaneous and bizarre. Often comical and occasionally lurid. They’re the celebrations that take place after soccer goals and sometimes they create quite a stir. The latest celebration to ruffle feathers in the soccer world took place over the weekend when French soccer player Pascal Nouma’s jubilation led him to rip off his shirt and thrust his hand down his shorts after scoring a goal for his LUKE MEIER Turkish club team, NUTS AND BOLTS Besiktas. The display was not well received by the Turkish people, who have somewhat different standards than the French regarding such matters. Yesterday, Besiktas President Serdar Bilgili, acknowledging Nouma’s actions were “definitely against Turkish moral values and traditions,” announced the player was through with Besiktas. “We’ve canceled his contract unilaterally,” Bilgili said. “We’ve decided to send him back to his country.” In other words, take the burlesque back home, Frenchie. It’s not surprising that in the world’s most global sport, cultures sometimes clash. Some were horrified when Brandy Chastain pulled off her shirt following her World Cup-winning penalty kick. Some around the world watched the oft-replayed scene of the ecstatic American in only her sports bra and saw it as confirmation of their fears about what could happen to women if you let them play sports. Few Americans took offense to the display, however, and Nike was decidedly unoffended, greatly appreciating the corresponding boost in sports bra sales. There have been several lesser-known controversial celebrations in recent years. Former Valencia player Leandro left many unenthused when he imitated a urinating dog at the edge of a field. Liverpool’s Robbie Fowler was widely criticized after he crawled to a field marking and pretended to snort cocaine. To us, though, all of these cases still seem fairly tame. But, there is sometimes that rare act of jubilation that leaves everyone appalled. Such was the case two years ago when Spanish soccer player Francisco Gallardo was so overcome with joy and admiration following teammate Jose Antonio Reyes’ second-half goal that he bent down and bit his teammates genitals. Reyes, accustomed to more traditional forms of support from his teammates, did not fully understand what was going on. “I just felt a slight pinch,” he said. “I didn’t realize what had really happened until I saw the footage on television.” When the Spanish Football Federation saw the footage they also had a revelatory experience — and launched an investigation. Whether offended or frightened, they felt the need to respond to Gallardo’s love bite. Gallardo himself was confused by the fuss. “I didn’t think what I did was very noteworthy,” he said. One can only speculate as to what sort of person finds such a thing mundane, but Gallardo stands resolved. The idea, he says, was not even his own. “A teammate gave the idea. If I’d known what a fuss it would cause … ” Luke Meier ’04 hails from Champaign, Ill. He celebrated his last goal by taking off his shirt to reveal his sports bra.

Red Sox fans won’t handle winning it all

dspics

Women’s tennis improved to 4-2 in the Ivy League with wins over Columbia, Cornell.

Tennis teams sweep, men remain perfect in Ivies BY BRETT ZARDA

The women’s tennis team lengthened its conference-winning streak to four matches by dismantling Columbia (6-1) and Cornell (5-2). With a 15-7 (4-2) record, the Bears will look for an exclamation point to the season in their finale against Yale this afternoon. A win would secure a thirdplace Ivy League finish for the Bears and increase any chances they have for an at-large postseason bid. The Yale squad, ranked just above Brown (54th versus 61st), is well within the reach of a confident Brown team. Finishing with a season-best five-game winning streak would nicely cap off a season marked by steady, yet significant, improvement. “It shows what we’ve been working

for all year,” said Kerry Meath ’05. “They are really pretty even to us. They’ve had very similar results and are a pretty equivalent team. Especially with all of us being so young, it would be an awesome way to end the season.” Win or lose against Yale, it is that youth that has the squad looking optimistically towards next year’s possibilities. “We’re really excited about next year. As long as everyone stays healthy and keeps working hard we have high hopes,” Meath said. With all but one player returning, the talent level should be more than ample to compete for the Ivy title. But the Brown squad will need to redefine team see TENNIS, page 9

Women’s laxers splits with Boston College, Cornell BY JINHEE CHUNG

The women’s lacrosse team had another action-packed week, traveling to Boston and Ithaca to take on Boston College and No. 12 Cornell. The Bears defeated the Eagles but fell to the Big Red, bringing their Ivy record to 2-2, 4-7 overall. The women dominated the game against BC from the start, taking a 2-0 lead with less than two minutes into the first period. The Eagles replied with two goals before the end of the first half, but the Bears defended their goal, leading 62 at halftime. Brown started the second half just as they started the first, netting three goals before BC had an opportunity to put in one of its own. The Eagles’ limited comeback halfway through the period allowed the Bears to maintain their lead with the assistance of a stellar performance from goalie Julia Southard ’05, who stopped 13 BC shots on goal, and a strong offense led by Christine Anneberg ’04, Bekah Rottenberg ’03 and Kate Staley ’06. Each tallied three goals

and an assist in the game. Sarah Passano ’05, Kierstan Carlson ’05, Emily Blanton ’04 and Ashley Holden ’06 also contributed to the score, earning a goal each to make the final score 13-7. On Saturday, the team traveled to Ithaca to battle Cornell. Passano led the attack, scoring two goals on the Big Red within the first four minutes. Anneberg and Holden followed her lead with a goal each, giving Brown an early 4-0 lead. But, Cornell stepped up their game and scored nine unanswered goals. Laurel Pierpont ’04 added one more to the board before the end of the first half, and by halftime the score was 9-5. The scoring was even throughout the majority of the second period with the opposing teams exchanging goals back and forth. In spite of the points added to the board by Pierpont, Carlson, Rottenberg and Holden and Southard’s strong performance in goal with 18 saves, Cornell sustained their lead, defeating Brown 15-11. The Bears’ next contest will be held at home today against No. 13 Yale.

I WAS AT A U2 CONCERT IN BOSTON LAST June and a pretty strange thing happened. After U2 finished the last of its four or five deliriously welcomed encores, the FleetCenter crowd broke out into a spontaneous and passionate cheer of “Yankees SUCK! Yankees SUCK!” The chant continued for a JUSTIN SLOTSKY solid minute with NO MAH LOSING at least 5,000 Budweiser-loosened voices screaming in unison in protest of our city’s biggest foe. At first this was a bit jarring for me — I came for the love of U2, not the Red Sox — but it all made perfect sense. The energetic U2 concert that preceded this sudden protest acted as the perfect rallying cry to send the largely Boston Irish crowd into hysterics about the town’s never-ending baseball woes. Filled with city pride, the assembled Bostonians banded together in their disgust with the hot-dogging New York Yankees and the downtrodden Red Sox’s eight-decade run of World Series failures. This bizarre event made me realize something very obvious: The Red Sox will never win the World Series. During my lifetime and those of my children and my children’s children, we will never see the World Series banner flying victoriously in our beloved Massachusetts. As a lifelong resident of Red Sox Nation and a die-hard Sox fan myself, this causes me no end of grief. But, I’ve had to come to grips with the fact that the Red Sox will never win. And why is this? The answer is simple: The Red Sox are losers. They are not losers in the sense that they don’t win games — year after year they are one of the better teams in the Majors. The Red Sox have also had well-supported teams with $100 million-plus payrolls and rosters featuring such legends as Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski and, most recently, Pedro Martinez. The Red Sox are losers because they are the world’s most celebrated choke-artists. With certain rare exceptions (the miraculous 1999 division series versus the Indians comes to mind), they are unable to win when the “Big One” is on the line. The Red Sox were not always this way — they have developed a deep-set “psychology of losing” that has forever destroyed their chances of winning the World Series. After winning five World Series championships from 1903 to 1918, the following few years the Red Sox developed a reputation, perhaps well-deserved, as a gang of luckless losers. This reputation started to take on a life of its own, and the Red Sox — and their fans — bought into it completely. Sox fans even came up with ways to rationalize away why the Red Sox never win the World Series such as the “Curse of the Bambino,” in which Babe Ruth secretly cursed the team after he was unwisely sold to the New York Yankees. “You will come to hate the day you were rid of me!” I imagine The Babe hissing at the foolish Red Sox owner while delivering his jinx with a twiddle of his fingertips. This is, of course an open-ended curse, from which no one has yet figured how to rescue the Red Sox. Because the Red Sox and their rabid fans (myself included) are so fixated on the cult of their own loser-dom, they needed to find an outlet to vent their endless frustrations. They found a perfect candidate in the New see SLOTSKY, page 9