THE
BROWN DAILY HERALD vol. cxlix, no. 107
since 1891
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2014
R.I. prepares for third U. sees second-largest early decision pool numbers for marijuana dispensary Application PLME remain constant as Following 2006 legalization, number of patients registered grows to over 9,000 By MEHER ALI STAFF WRITER
The Summit Medical Compassion Center, Rhode Island’s third and final medical marijuana dispensary, will soon open for use by registered patients in the state. Though the Providence Journal reported last week that the center would open Nov. 10, Terence Fracassa, Summit’s legal counsel, confirmed that the actual opening date remains to be decided but is tentatively slated for the end of next week. “It was just a miscommunication,” Fracassa explained. Delays and setbacks are nothing new for Rhode Island’s dispensaries. As Napoleon Brito, Summit’s general manager, put it, they’ve had their share of “growing pains.” Rhode Island legislators approved the medical marijuana law in 2006, and three dispensaries — the
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maximum number allowed by R.I. law — were approved in 2011. But the program was suspended for a year by Gov. Lincoln Chafee ’75 P’14 P’17 over concerns that state employees could be prosecuted under federal law prohibiting marijuana distribution. After revisions were made to the medical cannabis law to lessen this risk, Rhode Island’s first dispensary, the Thomas C. Slater Compassion Center, opened in April 2013. Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center in Portsmouth opened about six weeks later. “There were all sorts of setbacks, and it took us four years to do it, but since we’ve been open it has been smooth sailing,” said Seth Bock, Greenleaf ’s founder and CEO, of the lengthy process of opening the business. According to the Rhode Island Department of Health, the number of registered patients in the state has been growing rapidly, jumping from 6,720 to 9,668 patients in the past 11 months alone. RIDOH figures show that the number of patients currently using Slater and Greenleaf far exceeds the original projections for each dispensary, with 4,781 patients at Slater and 1,647 at Greenleaf. » See DISPENSARY, page 3
overall pool dips slightly from last year By STEVEN MICHAEL SENIOR STAFF WRITER
The University received 3,016 applications for admission to the class of 2019 under its binding early decision program, a 2 percent dip from last year’s record high, said Dean of Admission Jim Miller ’73. Though smaller than last year’s pool of 3,088 early decision applicants, the number of students vying for early admittance this year is the second-largest in University history. International applicants made up 17 percent of the applicant pool, a 2 percentage point jump from last cycle. Miller attributed the rise in international applicants to “a significant amount of international recruitment” by the Admission Office, but he cautioned against drawing sweeping conclusions based on the relatively small size of the early decision applicant pool. “I long ago stopped using early decision to predict regular decision,” he said. Minority students accounted for 33 percent of the early applicant pool, equivalent to last year’s percentage, Miller said. Early applications for the Program
Source: Office of Admission EMMA JERZYK / HERALD
in Liberal Medical Education were up slightly to 410, from 406 in last year’s early decision cycle, Miller said. Early applications for the Brown | RISD Dual Degree Program dropped to 59, down 23 percent from 77 applications
last year. But Miller said dual-degree applicants still make up roughly 2 percent of the applicant pool. The number of early decision applicants to the dual-degree program has fluctuated in the past. » See ADMISSION, page 2
occurred when Garland received an invitation to play a recital in San Francisco while he was still at the conservatory, and Loewy volunteered to accompany him. Independently, Garland has performed across the country with the Boston Lyric Opera, the Boston Baroque and Rufus Wainwright at the New York City Opera in 2009. According to his website, Garland has won a slew of competitions, including the Washington International Music Competition and the Opera Columbus Competition. In February 2013, he released his fourth CD, “American Portraits,” with Loewy. Loewy started playing piano when she was six years old and continued throughout high school for every choir and musical she could find. Arriving at the State University of New York at Binghamton, Loewy recalled, she firmly believed she wanted to major in chemistry until she received a terrible grade on her first midterm. From then on, Loewy took classes across the music, psychology, theater and literature departments, finally turning her focus to music and earning a bachelor of arts in the subject. Loewy continued on to receive a masters in accompanying from the University of Cincinnati, where she has taught since 1976, she said. Loewy’s work has carried her all » See RECITAL, page 2
speaks as part of Trans Week
Andrew Garland, Donna Loewy present collaborative, modern music production By GABRIELLE DEE SENIOR STAFF WRITER
The babble of approximately 20 audience members faded as baritone Andrew Garland, teaching associate for the music department, and accompanying pianist Donna Loewy set foot on stage to perform “American Portraits,” a recital featuring a repertoire of 20th- and 21st-century songs, Monday night. The perforated walls of the Grant Recital Hall resounded with Garland’s impossibly long phrases, ranging from a whispered pianissimo to a booming forte. Loewy’s piano responded accordingly, transitioning between a quiet hum and crashing chords in a matter of seconds. “A Reverie,” a selection from Senior Lecturer in Music Paul Phillips’ “Battle Pieces,” expressed thundering excitement that was as apparent in the reverberating music as it was on the performers’ faces. After each song, Garland and Loewy seemed to wake from a trance, their furrowed brows giving way to proud smiles at
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ARTS & CULTURE
SADIE HOPE-GUND / HERALD
Monday’s performance in Grant Recital Hall included primarily American compositions from the 20th and 21st centuries. the audience’s applause. The baritone Garland has played the piano since before junior high school, and he began singing with his school’s chorus during that period. When he began at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Garland recalled, he did not know he wanted to pursue music, but he auditioned for the chorus to continue singing as an extracurricular. As soon as his audition ended, Garland said his professor immediately accepted him into the group and insisted that he take voice lessons.
At 8 a.m. the next morning Garland received a call at his dorm from the director, asking again: “Did you sign up for voice lessons?” “In one half-hour of voice lessons I made more progress than I did in 11 years of piano,” said Garland, who graduated with a degree in mass-music education and voice performance. To further his musical career, Garland pursued his masters at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where he met his coach Loewy, who is an accompying pianist. Their first professional engagement together
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Commentary
Roundup: Winners talk transitions, Healey writes op-ed, pundits discuss runoff elections
Thayer Street will soon welcome new restaurant, replacing Thayer Street Cleansers and Launderers
Grapengeter-Rudnick ’17: We should properly recognize WWII veterans
Mills ’15: People use Mason jars only for aesthetic purposes, as opposed to their intended usage
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Professor brings ‘American Portraits’ to Grant Recital Hall Ryka Aoki
Professor of English and gender studies discusses storytelling, advocacy in intimate talk By GABRIELLA REYES CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Ryka Aoki, an esteemed trans writer and professor of English at Santa Monica College and of gender studies at Antioch University, addressed a small group of students in an intimate talk at the Brown/RISD Hillel Monday evening. Aoki’s lecture was the keynote address for this year’s Trans Week. Stories and biographies emerged as recurring motifs throughout her talk. Aoki discussed the difficulty of determining what to include in her biography, tying that challenge to something larger: the struggles trans people face in achieving autonomy over telling their » See TRANS WEEK, page 4
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2 university news » RECITAL, from page 1 across the globe, teaching everywhere from Israel to Italy, according to her website. Loewy said she prefers playing classical music, as well as contemporary American and English songs with a romantic sound. “I don’t like playing by myself,” Loewy said. “It’s lonesome. I get my thrill out of playing with other people.” Garland said he primarily performs concerts, including other singers and a full orchestra, operas, in which costumes, lighting and a pit orchestra create a more dramatic performance or recitals, in which he and an accompanist perform an approximately hour-and-a-half-long set. Though he said choosing a favorite mode of performance would be akin to choosing a favorite among his children, he is most widely recognized for his recital work. Though performing an established piece in a recital does not leave much opportunity to create new motifs or lyrics on the spot, collaborations are inherently improvisations, Garland said, referring to the way musicians respond to the nuances of their partners’ work for every performance. “You might analogize it to a trapeze,” Phillips said. “With both performers, one is flying through the air and one is catching. They have to be aligned or else catastrophes will happen.” Both the pianist and the singer
» ADMISSION, from page 1 A quarter of applicants indicated plans to concentrate in the life sciences, followed by 22 percent each for fields in the physical sciences and social sciences, while 15 percent plan to concentrate in the humanities. The remaining 16 percent indicated that they were undecided. The most popular intended concentrations were biology, engineering, international relations and business, entrepreneurship and organizations,
must find a balance between accompanying and coming to the forefront of the performance in order to draw the audience in, he added. “We have something special by virtue of trust,” Loewy said. The best collaborations arise when both musicians know exactly what the other is doing, Phillips said, adding that the audience benefits from Loewy and Garland’s extensive background performing together. Because Garland lives in Boston and Loewy teaches in Cincinnati, the duo does not often rehearse together in person. Garland and Loewy last performed Monday’s set in Boston in July. Their preparation consists only of briefly playing through the whole material and then going over the most complex parts together more thoroughly. Garland and Loewy have been performing together for 13 years and have released two albums together over that period. Garland and Loewy both said that live performance holds more excitement than recording sessions. The constant, unseen presence of a recorder puts enormous pressure to create a perfect track, Garland said, adding that no feedback or applause from the audience punctuates the performance. “You’re just in a dark room by yourself, playing in the air.” With live performances, the connection between the performers and the audience is tangible. Loewy said she thrives on the spontaneity of the moment and the communication
between her and her audience. “You can feel it in the air when you’ve got the audience in the palm of your hand, when you’ve dangled your phrases and they’re just waiting for the next note,” she said. Garland said he has always been interested in teaching music at the university level. At Brown, he focuses on students’ vocal techniques through individual private voice lessons. Before Monday’s performance, he also taught a master class alongside Loewy. In master classes, an expert in a certain field teaches a group of students during a short workshop conducted in the presence of an audience, Philips said. Garland performs at Brown once every two years, which ensures his recitals are infrequent enough that he does not “wear out his welcome” on campus, he said. Monday’s set revolved around works from the 20th and 21st centuries, including music composed primarily by living American composers. The repertoire is based in the classical tradition, but it incorporates improvisation and flavors of folk and jazz, Garland said, adding that the performance demonstrates how a genre influenced by old traditions can still have contemporary relevance. “There are different specialties in playing piano — some people play solo repertoire, some people play concertos, but this art of playing with a singer takes a special talent,” Phillips said.
Miller said. Applicants hail from 49 states and 63 countries, Miller said. Applicants from the Mid-Atlantic comprise 25 percent of the pool, while those from New England comprise 18 percent and those from the Pacific region comprise 16 percent. Applicants from the South, Midwest, Mountain states and Central states make up 12, 8, 3 and 1 percent of the pool, respectively. California, New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Connecticut were the most represented
states, in that order. In recent admission cycles, California has consistently been the most-represented state. The University saw the most international applicants from China, Canada, South Korea, Singapore and India, in that order. Some applicants said they were attracted to Brown because of the open curriculum. “Brown really allows people to forge their own path,” said Kelsey Powers, a high school senior at Boca Raton Community High School in Boca Raton, Florida, who applied early decision. Powers said Brown would prepare her for her dream job designing theme park rides as the curriculum allows students to combine the arts and sciences. Powers plans to double-concentrate in engineering and theatre arts and performance studies. Nicolette D’Angelo, a senior at West Milford High School in West Milford, New Jersey, said she applied through the early decision process because the open curriculum was what “most liberal arts (curricula) are trying to embody.” D’Angelo, who plans to concentrate in psychology or international relations, added that she wanted to improve her chances of being admitted by applying through the early decision cycle. Though last year’s early decision acceptance rate of 19 percent was more than double the regular decision acceptance rate of 8.6 percent, Miller attributed this difference largely to recruited athletes who overwhelming apply during the early decision process. “If we pull (recruited athletes) out, the admit rates for early and regular decision are very similar,” he said. The Admission Office will notify applicants of their admission decision in mid-December, Miller said. The acceptance rate will be “driven by the quality of the pool, which tends to be really strong,” he said.
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2014
Post-Election Roundup BY KATE KIERNAN, METRO EDITOR One week after Democrats swept elections across the state, securing the gubernatorial and Providence mayoral seats as well as many smaller offices, winners, losers and pundits have already started discussing Rhode Island’s potential over the next term.
Raimondo readies agenda Governor-elect and General Treasurer Gina Raimondo met with Gov. Lincoln Chafee ’75 P’14 P’17 and with voters over the past week to discuss her upcoming agenda, preparing to be sworn in to the governor’s office in January. Raimondo has advocated increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 during 2015, focusing on I-195 redevelopment projects and developing a more “outcome-oriented” state government, the Providence Journal reported. She appointed three people to lead her transition team from general treasurer to governor: two former chairs of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, Jon Duffy and Carol Grant, and Rep. Joseph Shekarchi, D-Warwick, WPRI reported. Raimondo is the first Democrat elected to the governor’s office since 1992. WPRI reported that she also received the second-lowest number of votes since 1930 for a new gubernatorial candidate in the state, garnering only 41 percent of the vote.
Elorza appointments and advice Providence Mayor-elect Jorge Elorza should “under-promise and over-perform” in his new position, said Mayor Angel Taveras when asked what advice he would give his successor, the Journal reported. The rest of his advice will be left in a 40-page letter for Elorza to read when he arrives at City Hall. Elorza, a former Housing Court judge, has said he plans to focus on the city’s economic recovery, stabilizing the municipal budget and carrying out development projects, including high-speed rail and Kennedy Plaza construction. Elorza has chosen Lisa Ranglin, vice president at Bank of America, Victor Capellan, an education consultant, and Sally Lapides, president and chief executive officer of Residential Properties Ltd., to co-chair his transition committee, according to a press release from spokesperson Marisa O’Gara. The release also announced that a new website, Transition PVD, will be launched to notify citizens of the steps Elorza’s team will take in the coming months.
Healey editorial Providence improvements Robert Healey, the losing Moderate candidate for governor who generated national headlines by winning over 20 percent of the statewide vote last Tuesday while spending under $50 on his campaign, released an op-ed in RI Future yesterday, outlining his vision to “restore Rhode Island to prosperity.” He suggested implementing a statewide teacher contract funded by income taxes, a state-owned bank, state control over the production and distribution of marijuana and state election reform with instant-runoff voting. As of Oct. 28, Healey spent only $35.31 on his campaign and received 69,070 votes, the Journal reported. By comparison, Raimondo spent $5,455,291 to obtain 131,452 votes, and Republican candidate Allan Fung, mayor of Cranston, received 117,106 votes after spending $1,780,234 on his campaign.
Runoff elections Since the election, both political commentators and some candidates have suggested that it might be time to bring a runoff voting system to Rhode Island. Like Chafee, Raimondo won the election despite winning less than a majority of the state’s vote, which Fung said illustrates the need to consider implementing runoff voting. Scott MacKay, political commentator for Rhode Island Public Radio, noted that having viable gubernatorial candidates from more than two parties in both the 2010 and 2014 elections raises the question of whether plurality victories will become more common in future election cycles. In 2010, Chafee beat out three other major candidates despite winning less than 40 percent of the vote.
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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2014
» DISPENSARY, from page 1 “We’ve never run out of medicine, so I guess we’ve done well,” Bock said. “But it has been challenging at times … It’s a very unique industry, and with it comes some challenges that are pretty unique as well.” These challenges include having to work with caregivers to distribute medicine. Legal and logistic challenges have delayed Summit Medical Compassion Center’s opening over a year longer than the other state center openings. Fracassa explained that when the governor suspended the program, Summit was unable to hold onto its original site and had to relocate. Within the limits of its licensed area, the center had difficulty finding new real estate for both the dispensary and the cultivation facility, especially during “a time when it was difficult to find landlords and owners,” he added. The new dispensary is now located at a facility in a commercial plaza in Warwick. Customer projections for Summit have subsequently been adjusted down from 8,000 planned customers within three years to 1,610 in two years, according to the Journal. But “as times change, and as patients and people become more educated about medicinal marijuana as an alternative pain medicine, I think people are looking at it as a more viable alternative to opiates,” Fracassa said. Rhode Island is one of 23 states, in addition to the District of Columbia, that allows the state-regulated sale of medical marijuana. The RIDOH lists certain “qualifying debilitating medical conditions” approved for treatment by the drug; these include cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis C and chronic or debilitating conditions resulting in severe pain, nausea or seizures. Traci Green, assistant professor of emergency medicine and epidemiology, whose research experience includes drug abuse and addiction, said the drug can also help control weight and regulate obesityrelated disorders.
HERALD FILE PHOTO
Though there were many setbacks in the opening of Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center, the state’s second medical marijuana dispensary, it has seen “smooth sailing” since, said Seth Bock, founder and CEO. The state’s third dispensary is slated to open next week. In Rhode Island, criticism of the medical marijuana program and more recent legislative efforts to legalize marijuana for recreational use often center around the harm the drug poses to adolescents. At a forum held at the Ray Conference Center in Providence this September, a panel of medical experts cautioned against accepting marijuana as “harmless,”
saying that states permitting medical marijuana have seen an increase in recreational use as well, the Journal reported. Green said that in debates about marijuana legalization, it is important to recognize the difference between medical marijuana use and recreational use. “We don’t have enough information yet” on the effect the
availability of medical marijuana will have on public perception of marijuana use, especially for adolescents, she said. “Ultimately I think that we can do a lot to mediate that by clarifying the harms for young people and being straightforward. There is plenty of science that says young minds are negatively affected by marijuana, but also that there are great benefits for
minds and bodies with chronic diseases and pain.” The bigger concern, Green said, is making sure patients get access to their medication, whether that medication be “opiates or marijuana or whatever else.” “The more controlled this process is, the harder it is for patients to get their benefits,” she added.
4 arts & culture » TRANS WEEK, from page 1 own stories. A “directive to focus on certain aspects of our identity is forced on us,” she said. While trans people know who they are, she added, they often have to define and justify themselves — a tiring vigilance that takes time away advocacy and other activities. Aoki used this motif of stories and self-definition to frame the overarching theme of her talk, which was a call to action. While she lauded safe spaces — citing her talk as one — as places for trans people to find refuge, she said such spaces cannot serve this purpose alone. Safe spaces need to be used not only to react to societal injustice, but also to address it through action, she added. Aoki criticized what she called a culture of hero worship in the queer and trans communities, citing Laverne Cox as a high-profile individual who is often praised for her activism in the trans community. “There are always a few people who are badass and do everything,” she said. “That cannot last. We’re burning people out.” Instead, she emphasized that teamwork is essential to effect change. “We’ve got to let people take a break.” Aoki exhorted students to channel their “Ivy privilege” for the sake of advocacy. While it is unfair in some ways, she said, many Brown students will become leaders in their fields simply due to their status as Brown grads. She added that students do earn this privilege to a certain extent, and rather than rejecting it, they should take advantage of it to incite change.
“You know hard work. Some of you sickos actually enjoy it,” Aoki said. “You need to channel that. … That’s what we need.” Aoki followed her talk with a reading of two of her poems and a questionand-answer session. Students asked her about issues of community, identity and reconciling being a private individual with public advocacy. Aoki said though she does not write for the sake of advocacy, “when I write my poetry, a trans person is going to find me.” “By being yourself, that can sometimes be the greatest gift of strength you can give to others,” she said. Sometimes, she added, leading a happy, fulfilling life is itself an act of rebellion. She also emphasized the importance of not letting a single aspect of one’s identity eclipse every other part of an individual. “You can enjoy making scrambled eggs without it being some gendered thing.” Trans Week, which is run by GenderAction and sponsored by various organizations on campus, is currently in its fourth year. The week “was started because of the lack of visibility within the queer community and the general campus for people who are trans or don’t identify as cisgender,” said Sana Teramoto ’16, one of GenderAction’s leaders. Trans Week continues through this week and into next. Events include a film screening and discussion about Laverne Cox on Tuesday night, a workshop entitled “Beyond Pronouns” on Thursday and a workshop on cissexism led by Minority Peer Counselors next week.
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2014
GABRIELLA REYES / HERALD
“By being yourself, that can sometimes be the greatest gift of strength you can give to others,” said Ryka Aoki, professor of English at Santa Monica College and of gender studies at Antioch University. Teramoto cited the importance of Trans Week for educating Brown students. “Instances of transphobia even happen at a place as generally great as Brown,” they said. “We as a campus need to do a lot better.” Teramoto asked Aoki specifically to keynote Trans Week because she is
a trans person of color. “Even within the trans community, those of us who are people of color often get left out, so we really wanted to bring in someone who could speak about that experience.” Aoki herself expressed support for Trans Week, describing it as a “signal beacon” — a way of exposing
GenderAction to the wider Brown community. She explained that making students aware of the trans community on campus will help more isolated trans students. “Even if they never come to the queer events, they’ll know they’re not alone,” she said.
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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2014
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SATELLITE DINING JOSIAH’S Steamed Dumplings with Dipping Sauces BLUE ROOM Mango Chicken Curry, Cauliflower and Potatoes Makhani Soups: Organic Butternut Squash, Turkey Sausage, Three Bean Chili ANDREWS COMMONS Pizzas: Bacon Chicken Ranch, Spicy Five Cheese and Garlic, BBQ Bam Bam
DINING HALLS SHARPE REFECTORY LUNCH
DINNER
Chicken Cutlet Parmesan Sandwich, Vegan Roasted Vegetable Burrito, Tater Tots
Lo Mein Noodles with Sesame Oil and Red Pepper, Quinoa with Kale, Cajun Apple Cake
VERNEY-WOOLLEY LUNCH
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Buffalo Wings, Zucchini Parmesan Sandwich, Cranberry Chocolate Blondie Bars
Grilled Rotisserie Chicken, Vegan Stuffed Acorn Squash, Thai Basil Pork Stir Fry
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DAVID DECKEY / HERALD
Students enjoy the unusually warm weather Monday by heading outside with frisbees at dusk — a potentially sharp contrast with the snow forecast for Friday.
comic Cat Ears | Najatee’ McNeil ’17
RELEASE DATE– Tuesday, November 11, 2014
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle c rNorris o s sandwJoyce o rNichols d Lewis Edited by Rich ACROSS 1 Tibetan holy men 6 Voice above tenor 10 Boy or girl lead-in 14 Traditional saying 15 Sound of pain 16 Scientology creator Hubbard 17 Big Bang, to a physicist 20 Snarky state 21 What comes before beauty? 22 __-weensy 23 Show stopper 27 Greeter and seater 30 Frozen drink brand 31 Started the pot 32 Commercial suffix with Motor 33 Pop’s favorite root beer? 37 Old man’s place, in Hemingway 38 One of two gridiron borders, and what the last words of 17-, 23-, 52- and 62Across can have 42 Sock part 43 Hair line 45 Aegean island 46 Beachcomber’s beat 48 Selma or Patty, to Bart 50 One of the 3Down 52 Like some August sales 56 Cop __: bargain in court 57 Actor McKellen 58 Partners of cons 62 Alabama Slammer liqueur 66 Gen. Robert __ 67 Truck maker with a bulldog logo 68 Mentor’s charge 69 Fizzy drink 70 “Terrible” age 71 Single-master DOWN 1 Some are chocolate 2 Arabian Peninsula port 3 Gift-bearing trio
4 Stir up 5 Hill VIP: Abbr. 6 Pamplona pals 7 One who eschews company 8 Bag marker 9 Lennon collaborator 10 Let out, say 11 Singer Lopez 12 Siberian industrial center 13 In the blink of __ 18 2014 N.L. East champs 19 Fancy party 24 Formally relinquish 25 Rural skyline feature 26 Diagnostic test 27 Door fastener 28 Most fit to be drafted 29 Guide for the 3Down 32 Parts of lbs. 34 Physics particle 35 Explorer on Nick Jr. 36 Detected 39 Barcelona boy 40 Web address parts
41 Name on some Canadian pumps 44 Break for a meal and a beverage, in Britain 47 Lending a hand 49 Four Corners state 50 Strikes sharply 51 Prefix with sphere 52 Fenway corners 53 Speed skater __ Anton Ohno
54 In the loop, with “in” 55 __ de Mayo 59 Tiller lead-in 60 Black-and-white treat 61 Setup instructions word 63 911 respondent, briefly 64 Rarer than rare 65 Places with peaks and passes: Abbr.
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
xwordeditor@aol.com
11/11/14
calendar TODAY 4 P.M. SEXUAL ASSAULT TASK FORCE FORUM
11 A.M. CANS 4 CUPCAKES
The Task Force on Sexual Assault will host a public forum where undergraduates can voice their feedback, suggestions and concerns on Brown’s current sexual assault policies and procedures. Salomon 001
Any student who brings a can of food or non-perishable food item to donate to the Rhode Island Community Food Bank will receive a cupcake and hot cocoa. Main Green
4 P.M. ‘THIS NONVIOLENT STUFF’LL GET YOU KILLED’
12 P.M. GARY TAUBES ON ‘WHY WE GET FAT’
Civil rights scholar Charles E. Cobb Jr. will describe the role armed self-defense played in the protection and liberation of black communities during the southern freedom movement in the 1960s. Brown Bookstore, 244 Thayer St. 7 P.M. ‘DUMB AND DUMBER TO’ SCREENING
Brown Motion Pictures will offer a free advanced screening of the “Dumb and Dumber” sequel starring Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels. Avon Cinema
By Pam Amick Klawitter (c)2014 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
11/11/14
TOMORROW
Gary Taubes, author and co-founder of the Nutrition Science Initiative, will deliver a lecture titled “Why We Get Fat: Calories, Carbohydrates and Insulin Resistance” as part of the Alpert Medical School’s Food + Health initiative. 222 Richmond St., Room 170 7:30 P.M. ‘MISS REPRESENTATION’ SCREENING
Amnesty International at Brown will screen the awardwinning documentary that explores women’s representation in the media and in positions of power, with Skype guest speaker Jihane Bergaoui. J. Walter Wilson 303
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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2014
CORRECTION
EDITORIAL
FIFA’s dalliance with fighting racism In soccer-crazed countries, issues and controversies surrounding the sport serve as relatively accurate reflections of important social issues. Accordingly, the resistance to Europe’s influx of immigrants over recent decades has been evident in the continent’s small football pitches and prominent stadiums, alike. While sports and racism are linked throughout the world, the spotlight shines on football in Europe because of its recurring episodes of racism involving fans, players, coaches and officials. The International Federation of Association Football has recently made efforts to combat racism within the game by prioritizing their “Say No to Racism” campaign. However, the persistence of racism and the lenient fine and ban punishments call into question the efficacy of this campaign and the greater role of sports organizations in dealing with socially pervasive issues. Earlier this week FIFA handed a six-month ban to the president of the Italian Football Federation, Carlo Tavecchio, marking their harshest sanction for racist conduct yet. During his campaign for president this past August, Tavecchio criticized his own league for accommodating African players — like the fictitious player he named Opti Poba —, who were previously “just eating bananas.” Despite such comments, Tavecchio swept the elections and was cleared of any wrongdoings by internal investigations. This incident captures the strains of racism in Italian society, as well as the concerning unwillingness to punish this type of conduct, a point underscored when comparing the punishment in this incident with the ramifications levied on former Los Angeles Clippers’ owner Donald Sterling for racist comments just a few months prior. This egregious comment by one of FIFA’s high-ranking officials is, unfortunately, not uncharacteristic of the federation. In fact, the organization’s chief, Joseph Blatter, has notoriously called into question the organization’s commitment to fighting this issue by publicly stating that “racism can be solved with a handshake on the pitch” and that serious sanctions like docking points or relegating teams would affect the engagement with fans. Beyond the attitudes and remarks of officials, racist attacks — derogatory chants or bananas tossed onto the field — have been especially targeted at African and South American players in Spain, Italy, England and Russia, among other countries. And players have also spurred racist incidents, such as Luis Suárez’s pointed insult towards Patrice Evra and Giorgos Katidis’s Nazi celebration. Acts of racism within the sport not only jeopardize the safety of players and fans and threaten the ease of the game, but also perpetuate a grave societal issue by providing the perpetrators an unmatched global audience. Soccer, due to its international nature and low barriers of entry, has the ability to bring people together, no matter their racial, socioeconomic or geographic differences. But diversity has not been warmly welcomed, and the sport has done little to effectively counter it. There is indeed incredible room for improvement, and the continuous ineffective and hypocritical actions by FIFA should motivate dramatic change in the approach to combating racism within the sport. Offensive slurs and other forms of overt bigotry are clearly not the only manifestations of racism, and efforts to combat discrimination cannot stop at prohibiting overt attacks. But if FIFA cannot bring these incidents to an end within its own governing body, it seems unlikely that the organization would be successful or even willing to address deeper and more nuanced issues, such as the structural racism plaguing many of the league’s participating countries.
Due to an editing error, an article in Monday’s Herald (“U. signs Dynamo House lease,” Nov. 10) incorrectly stated that the South Street Landing project is a Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce project. In fact, it is not. The Herald regrets the error.
Q U O T E O F T H E D AY
“There are always a few people who are badass and do everything.” — Ryka Aoki, writer and professor
See trans week on page 1.
Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial page board: its editors, Alexander Kaplan ’15 and James Rattner ’15, and its members, Natasha Bluth ’15, Manuel Contreras ’16, Baxter DiFabrizio ’15, Manuel Monti-Nussbaum ’15, Katherine Pollock ’16 and Himani Sood ’15. Send comments to editorials@ browndailyherald.com.
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commentary 7
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2014
Properly celebrating our veterans MEGAN GRAPENGETERRUDNICK
opinions columnist
The United States celebrates Veterans Day to commemorate those who have fought in various wars on behalf of our country. While this day honors veterans clumped into a mass, many vets of older wars, like World War II, have never been personally recognized. Recently, in an effort to give them the direct recognition they have not received since sinking back into civilian life, there has been a push to find the vets hidden among the American population. This is laudable, of course, and should be a more widely adopted trend. Each one of us owes something to those who fight for us, but this can be more than just some words printed on our calendars and a “Happy Veterans Day” phone call. There are several individuals who have displayed what doing more looks like. Air Force Col. Steven Liddy will go into retirement shortly, but rather than be honored by a ceremony dedicated to his career, as was planned, he is opting to devote his rite of passage to World War II veterans. There are few remaining, and most have slipped under the surface of civilianism — a life without much more than a chilly, gray November day to give the bulk of veterans the recognition they deserve. Liddy finds these WWII vets through word of mouth. His objective is to award them the
recognition and medals they may have earned after the war, but did not receive. Most of the young men returning from combat after the war did not receive any sort of commendation, simply due to a lack of communication resources, and as is characteristic of members of the Silent Generation, most of these vets did not speak up for recognition. Their names were lost in a sea of papers, their records remained incomplete, and their faces descended into the civilian population. Liddy hopes to fish these names and faces out and reward them as they
forts resulted in a ceremony in Cook’s backyard, where he was finally given the medals he had earned. Liddy is in the process of honoring another WWII veteran: my grandfather, Uwe Grapengeter. Grapengeter served in the 87th Infantry Division and became a representative for the Tactical Military Government. Liddy called my grandfather out of the blue to see if he had received all his medals upon return to the United States. Liddy researched and verified Grapengeter’s military history and has since begun
Each one of us owes something to those who fight for us, but this can be more than just some words printed on our calendars and a “Happy Veterans Day” phone call.
should have been decades ago. One of the WWII veterans whom Liddy has sought out and rewarded was Donald Cook, a man who served in the Army Infantry. In a remarkable discovery, Liddy spotted a photo of Cook on Cook’s daughter’s desk, prompting him to ask if her father had received all of his medals and subsequently launch a campaign to give Cook the closure he deserved. His ef-
organizing a ceremony similar to Cook’s, with a senator sponsoring a flag to be flown in his honor. Comparable to Col. Liddy’s endeavor is that of MLive Media Group, working in collaboration with the Michigan Veteran Affairs Agency and the Michigan World War II Legacy Memorial. This Thursday, two days after Veterans Day, these groups will culminate months of
research celebrating the Michigan WWII veterans with a sizable event in their honor. This event will entail an open house where veterans can meet one another, followed by a session in which reporters will document their stories. “It’s a service to the veterans that should encourage everyone to step up. It’s such a small thing in comparison to what they did for us,” said Debi Hollis, president of the Legacy Memorial group. In the Washington Post last week, Neely Tucker published a piece as a direct tribute to Washington’s WWII veterans, retelling the remarkable stories of multiple individuals accompanied by their portraits. Gradually, the veterans are being profiled and their stories are being shared, accomplishing what should have been done years ago when it needed to happen. Unfortunately, most WWII veterans have passed away, as the youngest ones are breaching their nineties. Nonetheless, the remaining brave veterans deserve the honor they may not have gotten when it was pertinent. Recognizing Veterans Day is great; celebrating the sheer heroism of these individuals through campaigns that strive to give them the awards they earned is especially commendable. Only in momentous gestures like these can we take baby steps toward properly acclaiming these individuals.
Megan Grapengeter-Rudnick ’17 will be attending her grandfather’s award ceremony to thank him and as a gesture to other veterans like him.
A crisis of containers WALKER MILLS opinions columnist
Mason jars. I know you’ve seen them used as cups at parties, in dorm rooms and in campus kitchens. Or perhaps you’ve seen them starring in your Instagram feed. They’ve become a ubiquitous accessory for anyone trying to buck the mainstream. There is much less of a chance you’ve seen them where they belong: at a home canning store, in the basement of an older relative’s home or possibly in a museum. According to a Washington Post article, Mason jars became trendy in 2011, as evidenced by a massive spike in Google searches for “Mason jar.” In fact, Ball — one of the main producers of the receptacle — reported this year that as a result of the dramatic increase in sales, “in the past year alone, enough Ball brand canning jars were produced to encircle more than 90 percent of the planet Earth.” That is a lot of jars, but let’s be clear: Drinking from jars makes considerably less sense than drinking from bottles, cups, glasses, goblets or mugs. It’s like eating peas with a fork — you can do it, but don’t pretend it’s better than using a spoon. The Mason jar was created by John Landis Mason in 1858 for the purpose of home canning. If you fill the jars with hot foods or liq-
uids and screw on the two-part cap, the lid forms an airtight seal as the food cools. The invention helped popularize home canning across the United States as an easy way to preserve fruits and vegetables for consumption during the winter. The jars also underwent a surge in popularity during World War II when the government encouraged families to grow more of their own food and preserve it at home. But while the resurgence of Ma-
for the jars and lids made to fit straws and pitchers modeled after the classic jar shape. In fact, you can even customize your jar to the point where it has little in common with the original Mason jar except that it’s made of glass and feels vaguely old-timey. But those aesthetics are huge, right? You wouldn’t dare be mistaken for the kind of person who drinks out of a Poland Spring or Nestle Pure Life bottle or, God forbid, a travel mug.
bottles are ruining the planet and contributing to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, while your use of glass is saving the world one sip at a time, right? Wrong. I say “sense” because according to Postconsumers.com, though there is a large variance in the amount of time it takes disposable plastic bottles to biodegrade depending on the type of plastic used, the average amount of time it takes is between 400 and 500 years. But shockingly, glass jars
Let’s be clear: Drinking from jars makes considerably less sense than drinking from bottles, cups, glasses, goblets or mugs. It’s like eating peas with a fork — you can do it, but don’t pretend it’s better than using a spoon.
son jars has nothing to do with their originally intended use, the trend has garnered enough attention that it’s been written about in media outlets including the New York Times, the Onion and BuzzFeed. There are whole Pinterest boards dedicated to the humble vessel. Jennifer Condon, the wedding style director at Brides Magazine, told the Washington Post that this year “probably 75 percent of weddings ended up with Mason jars.” You can now buy sippy-cup lids
The crux of the issue seems to be the aesthetics. People who drink from jars want their beverage containers to define them and to broadcast their lifestyle choices to everyone who has a chance to watch them sip casually from their chalice of cool. I would also add that people who drink from jars have the sense that they are being environmentally friendly by using them instead of a regular bottle. All those unenlightened students with plastic water
could take over one million years to biodegrade. That means glass takes about 2,000 times longer to break down than plastic — not a good reason to pick the jars. Oh, but you’re going to reuse the jar? I can reuse my bottle, too. I have also heard concerns that plastic bottles can leach harmful chemicals into the liquids they are carrying. While this seems true in theory, almost all disposable plastic bottles are made with a plastic called polyethylene terephthal-
ate, which has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration as safe for single and repeated use, even though an email hoax in 2003 asserted contrary ideas. So there is no conclusive evidence that your Mason jar is any safer than my plastic bottle. You’re better off worrying about your strategy for cleaning broken glass off the carpet in Smitty-B. Let’s be honest with ourselves: Mason jars are no safer, more environmentally friendly or more convenient than plastic bottles. Also, they aren’t any cheaper than reusing a bottle of water you already bought — unless all you hipsters are actually using jars from your grandma’s house and not buying them at Target or Wal-Mart. I’ve even heard of people who thought Mason jars had become too mainstream and instead opted for reusing salsa jars — but unfortunately, they couldn’t get the taste out. Mason jars are about aesthetics. You want to look like you’re thrifty and clever, but I just want to ask you for your strawberry jam recipe. And hipsters, if you need just a little bit of a bigger push to lose the jars, Seven-Eleven now offers slurpees in Mason jars.
Walker Mills ’15 thinks you should put your money where your mouth is and put some pickles or preserves in your jar. You can contact him at walker_mills@brown.edu.
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2014
THE
metro
BROWN DAILY HERALD
New storefronts set to bring change to Thayer landscape Owner of Shark and Shanghai will open a third restaurant, but cuisine remains a mystery By LAUREN ARATANI CONTRIBUTING WRITER
After the closing of Tedeschi Food Shop in 2012 and Symposium Books, Sahara Hookah and Squires Salon — among others — in 2013, Thayer Street is continuing to see business turnover. A new restaurant will soon occupy the space that used to house Thayer Street Cleansers and Launderers between Angell Street and Fones Alley, while Shades Plus will soon close its doors and leave its property vacant. David Boutros, co-owner of Shark Bar and Grille and Shanghai Restaurant, will open the new restaurant, though he declined to provide details as to the type of food it will serve. “We’re keeping it confidential,” he said. Boutros said he and business partner Ray Hugh are eager to take advantage of the space that became available when Thayer Street Cleansers and Launderers closed its doors after its owner “just got tired” after 40 years in business. Tealuxe manager Amie Kesson said she is not concerned about the new restaurant detracting from her business
ASHLEY SO / HERALD
The Thayer Street Cleansers and Launderers space is in the process of being revamped into a new restaurant, to be opened by the owner of Shark Bar and Grille and Shanghai Restaurant. The new restaurant is one of several changes on Thayer, including the impending closure of Shades Plus. through increased competition, but she said she is worried “that (the new restaurant’s) food is going to make our place smell.” Au Bon Pain manager Mahamet Ba also said he is not concerned about competition. “I don’t think it’s going to affect us at all,” he said of the new eatery. Students expressed excitement about a new eating option close to campus.
“There are already so many restaurants on Thayer, but still, it’s nice to see something new,” said Tassos Sapalidis ’18. Asia Nelson ’15 said she enjoys when new restaurants open up on Thayer because campus food can “get boring,” but, she added, “I would like to see more convenience stores open up and let students have more options.” While many students interviewed
Help us reach 250+ donations! Celebrate the 250th day of Brown’s 250th Anniversary by participating in Cans 4 Cupcakes
were happy about the new restaurant, the closing of costume and novelty shop Shades Plus — which is currently selling all its inventory — provoked disappointment. “I love Shades Plus. I’m so sad that it’s closing,” said Jessica Zambrano ’17. At Shades Plus, students would often purchase “random stuff, like fake mustaches,” for fun or special holiday
occasions, added Zambrano, a Herald contributing writer. Donna Personeus, executive director for Thayer Street District Management, said despite recent closures, businesses are working as a team to keep the area vibrant. “Business is a cycle, it comes and goes,” Personeus said. “We’re changing, we’re evolving, and it’s all positive.”
Cans 4 Cupcakes is simple – bring a can of food (or other non-perishable food item) and we’ll give you a delicious cupcake! We’ll share our tally at 2:50pm! Cans 4 Cupcakes is sponsored by Brown’s 250th Anniversary in partnership with Brown Catering, Brown Dining Services, the Class Coordinating Board, Swearer Center for Public Service and the Staff Advisory Council.
N OV E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 1 4 11:30 AM - 2:30 PM T H E M A I N G R E E N , N E A R T H E B RU N O S TAT U E *
All donations will be given to the Rhode Island Community Food Bank. 250.brown.edu #brown250
*Rain location will be Salomon Center for Teaching lobby.