The Observer, Volume L, Issue 18, 2/8/19

the

Case Western Reserve University volume L, issue 18 friday, 2/8/2019

Observer CWRU EMS expands their hours

Courtesy of CWRU EMS Facebook

Members of CWRU EMS during a training drill. The student-run service will be adding 24-hour coverage on Thursdays.

Grace Howard News Editor

Beginning this month, Case Western Reserve University’s student-run Emergency Medical Services (EMS) will be expanding their hours to have 24-hour coverage Thursday through Sunday. The standard coverage for CWRU EMS prior to February was 5 p.m. to 8 a.m. Monday through Thursday and 24 hours Friday through Sunday, but with this increase in hours, CWRU EMS will be available to help in cases of campus emergencies at hours they previously could not.

CWRU EMS was first imagined in the 2003-2004 school year by thensecond-year student Ari Rabkin and then-first-year student Joseph Grover.

The idea was to provide quality care at CWRU with a student-run volunteer EMS, like those established at other

peer universities. CWRU EMS now works in conjunction with the Cleveland Heights Fire Department and carries out shifts with the aid of a vehicle, ensuring that they can reach the entire campus expeditiously.

Members of the EMS can work a wide range of hours depending on experience. On average, less seasoned volunteers contributed between 10 and 12 hours a month while more senior members may assist between five and 20 hours per week. Becoming a member of CWRU EMS requires an EMT certification that is valid in Ohio, certifications in CPR and Hazard Communications training, bloodborne pathogens training and knowledge of the National Incident Command System.

Being a member of CWRU EMS offers a unique opportunity to learn and use medical skills, then put them into practice with members of the campus community. Assistant Chief of Oper-

ations and third-year chemistry major Anna Swetz emphasizes the independence students experience as part of CWRU EMS, because “once members become certified EMTs and pass our internal testing and promotion process, they take on the responsibility for all care and decisions made on an emergency call.”

Swetz acknowledges the dual nature of the student-run organization, as “EMS experience teaches not only medical skills but decision making and operational problem solving, while the club aspect of our organization allows members to build strong friendships with peers and learn from older members. We do serious work but we also definitely have a lot of fun together.”

Although CWRU EMS has only recently expanded their hours into weekdays, they recognized the need for extended service hours last year. Swetz says that “we transitioned to being dis-

patched (notified of emergencies and sent to respond to them) via smartphone app last year, and the transition allowed us to see that it is very common for people to need EMS during the day when we do not normally have shift.”

As the EMS program has grown and become better established, they have set their sights on expanding coverage of campus. Though CWRU EMS currently has 15 hour coverage Monday through Wednesday, Swetz says, “our long term goal is to expand to 24/7 coverage of campus. Expanding hours now allows us to move towards this in manageable increments and troubleshoot difficulties that may arise in changing who is on shift between class periods, and having shift meet on the quad to accommodate members’ class schedules.”

Later this year, CWRU EMS hopes to eventually expand to 24-hour coverage on Wednesdays as well.

NRV Starbucks now on Tapingo Jack Heneghan

Tapingo is a Case Western Reserve University student necessity. The campus restaurant ordering app just became more vital as students can now use it to order

from the North Residential Village (NRV) Starbucks. The Starbucks is located in NRV House 3A facing E 115th Street and is open from 7:30 a.m. to 12:00 a.m.

Tapingo is an app that was created in 2012 and, according to their website, was established with the purpose of creating a “better way to eat.” It is an app designed

for college campuses that allows students to view menus and order food for delivery or pickup. CWRU students can also use CaseCash and meal swipes in the app to pay for their orders to further streamline the experience. Over the seven years that it has been a company, Tapingo has expanded to 150 campuses and processes

tens of thousands of orders per day.

Students who use Tapingo to order from NRV Starbucks have a variety of orders to choose from. This includes coffee, tea, espresso, frappuccinos, breakfast and lunch items, as well as baked goods.

News

A&E

Opinion

Sports

pg. 2 Law scholars debate

pg. 5 Jay Sean throws it back with UPB

pg. 9 Thinking about second chances

pg. 14 Wrestling dominates

Staff Reporter

TO STARBUCKS | 3

news School of Law hosts prominent scholars discussing recent Supreme Court decision Nathan Lesch Staff Reporter

On Tuesday, Jan. 5, Case Western Reserve University School of Law welcomed Robert Alt and Martin Malin to lecture on the 2018 Janus v. AFSCME Supreme Court ruling.

In the Janus decision, the Supreme Court ruled that labor unions’ mandatory agency fees for public sector employees are unconstitutional. In a 5-4 majority, the justices determined mandatory agency fees violate the fee payer’s First Amendment rights, because those fees are used to finance a political opinion not necessarily supported by fee payers.

With this ruling, the Supreme Court narrowly overturned 41 years of precedent stemming from the 1977 Abood v. Detroit Board of Education ruling.

The lecture was held in the CWRU School of Law’s Moot Courtroom. Approximately 50 people attended, many of whom received Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credit, which is mandated in Ohio for practicers of law. The lecture was also recorded for CLE seek-

ers unable to attend in person.

With a moderator feeding questions, the lecture was structured like a debate in order to take advantage of Alt and Malin’s differing perspectives on the Supreme Court decision.

Alt is the president and CEO of The Buckeye Institute, a right-leaning think tank based out of Columbus, Ohio that has national influence. On the other

hand, Malin is the co-director of the Institute for Law and the Workplace at the Chicago-Kent College of Law and was appointed as a member of the Federal Service Impasses Panel by President Obama in 2009. He served in that role until 2017 when President Trump removed him along with the other members appointed by Obama.

Alt supported the Court’s interpreta-

Observer Archives The School of Law hosted Robert Alt and Martin Malin. The pair discussed the 2018 Supreme Court ruling Janus v. AFSCME and its effect on unions, particularly those in Ohio.

tion on the premise that it is impossible to separate political questions from union actions.

“Collective bargaining in the public sector looks a lot like lobbying,” he said.

On the other hand, Malin was concerned about inconsistency caused by this decision. He lamented “[the] total disregard of 41 year precedent.”

Additionally, Malin believes the court created instability when it deviated from its traditional approach of separating the government as an employer from the government as a sovereign.

Janus v. AFSCME has implications for Ohio, one of the few states where union membership has increased in recent years. Ohio’s union membership rates have consistently been above the national average since 1989, when the Bureau of Labor Statistics began keeping comparative state data.

As of 2017, 12.5 percent of Ohio’s wage and salary workers were union members and an additional 1.1 percent were represented by unions. However, the Janus decision only applies to public sector unions.

Crew team, engineers work to prevent training injuries with wearable tech Anna Guilbileo Staff Reporter

In recent years, wearable technology such as Fitbits and Apple Watches have been increasing in popularity. In addition to allowing users to see in real time their activity levels and track heart rate, steps and quality of sleep, people now have access to information they could previously only garner in a lab or healthcare setting.

The use and application of that information to find solutions to realworld problems is currently being addressed by the Simulation and Applied Informatics Lab at Case Western Reserve University. Partnering with Case Crew, the rowing team, they are tracking whether data analytics gathered with wearable technology could be used to prevent injuries caused incurred during training.

Headed by Dhruv Seshadri, a second-year doctoral student, biomedical engineering students outfit the rowers with VivaLNK Vital Scout sensors to track bodily responses to physiological determinants. These include sweat rates, stress levels, heart rates and the intensity of the workout.

Samantha Magliato, a fourth-year student on the rowing team partici-

pating in the study, hoped the data could be used to find the area of peak performance for each athlete, preventing injuries such as soft tissue tears.

The rowing team’s structured training program and disciplined 6 a.m. practices allows for standardized data that can be widely applied outside of just their specific sports team.

The overarching goal of the data collection and research, Seshadri explained, is to eventually apply the findings to the context of more contact-based sports, in addition to those concerning youth and professional teams, so that it can be catered to individual athletes in safe and efficient ways.

The research team hopes for successive research to uncover applications beyond just those of athletics.

Ideally it could also be applied to help those people who are not at the peak of their athletic abilities, unlike athletes. From those with cardiac conditions to high-risk pregnancies and end-of-life management, Seshadri said “the findings of such studies with wearable devices are incredibly clinically relevant.”

No matter what applications result from this research, this program shows the importance of collaboration between medical professionals and engineers, so as to be able to best augment the strides made in each field.

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Universities discuss, provide mental health services Virginia Behmer Staff Reporter The Council on Foreign Relations hosted a conference call on Jan. 30 to discuss mental health on college campuses.

The conference call involved colleges from around the country, including Case Western Reserve University, Virginia Commonwealth University, San Diego State University, Ohio State University and Johns Hopkins University. Students, faculty and community members were able to listen in and ask questions.

As stated on their website, the Council on Foreign Relations is an independent, nonpartisan organization committed to helping citizens “better understand the world and the foreign policy choices facing the United States and other countries.”

With an increased focus on mental health, this call aimed to discuss how universities are looking for ways to balance finances, student growth, campus resources and education accessibility.

“It would be great if people … could be more aware of the stress and anxiety that students face,” said Sylvia Burwell, president of American University.

“There is a natural stress that’s some-

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STARBUCKS

On top of that, there are various layers of customization to go through when ordering many menu items. However, that customization might not be ideal for the customer according to NRV Starbucks barista Ian Oddo. Baristas are able to provide assistance that an app can’t, “if [someone] order[s] in person, we have a much more immediate and in-depth knowledge of what [ingredients] we have and what the customer actually wants,” Oddo said.

With the dozens of customization options and thousands of combinations, it can be easy for a customer to get lost.

Oddo advises that “we can help guide [the customer] to make sure [they]’re getting what [they] actually want as opposed to a bunch of stuff that looks cool.”

However, if a customer already knows their order, then Tapingo might be a little easier, as Oddo notes, “[with Tapingo,] it’s a little easier for [customers] to get in and out.” Another benefit to Tapingo is that it

times about learning. But clearly, there was something more and something different, perhaps, from what we’ve historically seen.”

Burwell previously served as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under the Obama Administration. She is currently the first female president of American University.

“In my first year as president of American University, I met with students from a variety of backgrounds and quickly learned that they have a great deal of insight into why they experience more stress and anxiety than previous generations,” said Burwell. “The answer boils down to three factors: safety, economics and technology.”

According to Burwell the mismatch of inflation between the economy, wages and tuition; a new post-9/11 concept of safety compounded by gun violence and discrimination; and a constant curation of identity via technology are the main differences for current students. These differences transfer to mental health.

Thirty-nine percent of college students experience symptoms of anxiety or depression, according to the 2016-2017 Healthy Minds Study, a national study on mental health on college campuses. The study also reported an increase of suicide

ideation from six percent in 2007 to 11 percent in 2017.

Despite the copious amount of campus events with therapy dogs, CWRU has “encountered the same [national] trends,” says Dr. Jennifer Wright McCarthy, executive director for University Health and Counseling Services (UH&CS). Specifically, the increased prevalence of anxiety and depression.

“All three of [Burwell’s factors] probably exert a different level of challenge for each individual student,” said Stephen “Skip” Begley, co-director of Residence Life at CWRU. The importance of a university remaining “nimble” to ever-changing problems, including the over-admittance of students and exhaustion of resources, was repeatedly touched on by Burwell.

“How one at the university has flexibility and capability [to accommodate changes] is something we all must focus on, and I think that universities more broadly need to work toward being more nimble,” Burwell said. “Whether that’s when you have an influx of a larger group of students coming in or there are changes that you need to make—such as [needing] to take into account mental health, perhaps in a different way than [they] currently have.”

CWRU efforts to combat over-admittance and resource exhaustion were described by McCarthy and Begley.

“Some exciting changes include development of the Wellness Ambassador program; students who are interested in promoting wellness on campus can join, with no minimum time commitment. Student input and leadership are the key to successful wellness programming. In addition, UH&CS has increased the number of psychiatry and nutrition appointments available,” said McCarthy.

Begley elaborated that Residence Life has increased “staffing to accommodate an increased number of students in the entering undergraduate classes.”

UH&CS also began an effort last year to include a culture of wellness on campus, and a suicide prevention program called QPR (Question, Persuade and Refer) has also been established.

“Promoting awareness of mental health and the importance of seeking help is everyone’s responsibility,” said McCarthy. “The university has professionals who can assist students in need.

Promotion of self-care is also very important—scheduling time for exercise and social connection helps maintain well-being.”

displays all the options so a customer can get creative with their order; this results in many “interesting” orders for Oddo and other baristas.

Anyone who visits The Den by Denny’s on a weekend night can attest to the fact that Tapingo is a popular service.

Students praise the app for its convenience. Lani Fagbemi, a second-year student, says “without [Tapingo] I wouldn’t order from half the places that are around campus simply because it wouldn’t be as convenient.”

Fagbemi has ordered Starbucks from the chain’s app before at locations around campus, but NRV Starbucks does not use the Starbucks app. Oddo explained that NRV Starbucks “is a franchise store, owned by Bon Appétit, [so] we have a different computer system than a regular Starbucks.”

Tapingo has been successful enough in recent years that they were bought by Grubhub. Grubhub is a takeout delivery service worth more than $1.5 billion. In a Grubhub press release, Daniel Almog, the CEO and co-founder of Tapingo, said, “By joining forces with Grub-

hub’s network of over 85,000 restaurant partners that offer online delivery and pickup, we’ll continue to serve our loyal diners long after they graduate from college, which has always been our aspiration.”

Tapingo may never replace a real per-

son, but it does offer the benefits of convenience and is a great way for customers to get their food.

Oddo said that “it’s a good thing that people get to try out all their favorite drinks and get whatever they want, especially through Tapingo.”

Engineering dean endowed large donation Katharine Toledo Staff Reporter Case Western Reserve University recently received a $5 million pledge to endow the Charles H. Phipps Dean at the Case School of Engineering. The pledge came from alumnus Charles Phipps, a 1949 graduate of the Case Institute of Technology.

The $5 million pledge to the Case School of Engineering is the third gift that Phipps has given to the school. In 2005, Phipps and his brother John gave a large sum of money to CWRU for the Myron Phipps Dean’s Discretionary Fund, in honor of their late father. Again in 2011, Phipps gave another $2 million to create the Phipps Endowment Fund in honor of his late wife.

The $5 million that Phipps gifted to the university in 2018 will endow the chair held by the new Dean of the Case School of Engineering, Venkataramanan “Ragu” Balakrishnan.

Balakrishnan joined CWRU last fall.

He previously served as a professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University. Balakrishnan received his bachelor’s degree in electronics and communication engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Madras, India before receiving dual masters degrees in statistics and electrical engineering and a doctorate in electrical engineering, all from Stanford University.

The $5 million will be given to Balakrishnan to use at his discretion to foster research and new programs within the Case School of Engineering. Specifically, the dean hopes to create a program that helps first-year students to learn the fundamentals of engineering through a series of hands-on labs as he described in a recent article in Crain’s Cleveland Business.

Other priorities for Balakrishnan include expanding funding for interdisciplinary studies as well as growing the Ph.D. program within the Case School of Engineering.

fun

4 | fun page

Ken Ken

The aim of the puzzle is to fill the whole grid with numbers. The only numbers you are allowed to use are 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. No number may repeat in a column or a row. Each “cage” (or a shaded box) contains a target number and the arithmetic method needed to be used to obtain the target number.

Easy

Hard

1/18/19

Horoscopes The signs as constellations

Aries Taurus Taurus Leo Gemini Pisces Cancer Sagittarius

Sudoku Normal

Leo Virgo Virgo Gemini Libra Scorpio Easy

Difficult

Scorpio Aquarius Sagittarius Capricorn Capricorn Libra Aquarius Cancer

We’re looking for contributers!

If you would like to write, take photos, or serve on the public relations committee, email us at observer@case.edu.

Pisces Aries

arts & entertainment Editor’s Choice

Jay Sean performs at the first UPB concert of the semester

Sunayana Jampanaboyana Staff Reporter

This past Friday, University Program Board (UPB) hosted Jay Sean in the first UPBeats concert of the semester. Best known for throwback hits including “Down” and “Ride It,” English singer and songwriter Jay Sean, born Kamaljit Singh Jhooti, entertained students in Tinkham Veale University Center.

Sean explored his interest in music even at a young age. At the age of 11, he and his cousin banded together to form a hip hop group known as “Compulsive Disorder” and gained the attention of local DJs. Later, he considered pursuing medicine, before dropping out to pursue a singing career. Back when he was releasing his second album, “My Own Way,” Sean stated that as an artist, “It’s [an] opportunity for people to hear your words. I respect that fact

that I have this opportunity.”

UPBeats Concerts Co-Chair Shivalika Keni explained that “the decision to host Jay Sean specifically was because his music is a good blend of both these genres [pop and R&B], he continues to release good music, and also has some massive throwback hits, so we anticipated that he’d be popular with the student body and draw in a large crowd.” With this, the decision was made to hold the event in a larger venue as opposed to the regular venue, the Jolly Scholar.

Sean entertained the crowd with a combination of older hits and newer pieces, interrupted by stories and comments of appreciation. Notably, he performed “Down” and encouraged the crowd to sing full sections.

He even noticed that third-year student Himica Kalra was singing along to every song right at the front and recorded a message for her on her phone.

“I had a lot of fun,” said third-year student Janani Kanagasundaram, en-

Courtesy of Darrell Rhodes Miller/Flickr

joying the chance to experience an artist she had discovered before high school with college friends. This was a shared sentiment across a large pool of students.

Overall, the first UPBeats event of the semester drew almost 600 students, the overwhelming majority of which enjoyed dancing and singing along to old and new melodies.

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N R A .

E D L A E L .

E R CA

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Why I can’t stop watching “Lindsay Lohan’s Beach Club” Michael Wu

Staff Reporter

Once it was announced, I knew I was going to watch “Lindsay Lohan’s Beach Club.” As Lohan has retreated from public life in recent years, the MTV reality show offered the chance of catching up with this once-familiar face. It promised the type of uncanny first-hand access to the celebrity and celebrity-adjacent spectacle offered by a Kardashian or a “Real Housewives” franchise. I was immediately sold.

The premise is simple. “Lindsay Lohan’s Beach Club” is essentially “Vanderpump Rules” but instead of Lisa Vanderpump lording over a restaurant, the menacing boss role is filled by Lohan overseeing the daily operations of a beach club in Mykonos, Greece. And instead of contrived drama supplied by restaurant employees, it comes courtesy of a group of young Americans “handpicked” by Lohan and her business partner Panos Spentzos to serve as the club’s “VIP hosts.”

The VIP hosts’ roles are left—likely intentionally—vague and ill-defined. The job seems to be part bottle service, part brand VIP host and part host/hostess. But for the most part, the VIP hosts’ main responsibility is to look hot while breezing through the beaches and nightclubs in Mykonos, all while constantly being pumped with alcohol and plugging Lohan Beach House.

It’s undoubtedly a strange assignment for the cast but ultimately unimportant. The cast is part of a game, and they understand exactly why they are there. By episode four, which supposedly takes place a mere week after the VIP hosts arrive on the island, they have already been given two days off.

They use this downtime to go to clubs, hook up and get into fights with one another.

“Lindsay Lohan’s Beach Club” would not exist without the machine that made Lohan: the fascination with fame and the people who propelled her

to the previous apex of her celebrity.

The VIP hosts tend to be transparent about their motivations for joining the show with most wanting to promote their personal brands. They want to skyrocket their social media following or to gain clout to open their own clubs once they head back home.

While the VIP hosts have their sights securely set on building fame, Lohan seemingly wants to use her time on the show to help steer the VIP hosts in the right direction. Additionally, the show is helping to unveil the mental and emotional damage done by the tabloid culture that targeted Lohan and similar young stars.

Lohan reveals that she chose to open her club in Mykonos only after her ex-fiance, Egor Tarabasov, assaulted her on the very beach where the property now stands. The incident was captured by paparazzi, and the photos made their rounds on the internet.

Lohan insists she’s left the incident in the past, and she is now laser-focused on making the club a success.

The show aggressively pushes the narrative of Lohan being the steely boss, happy and thriving in her new home and career. However, it’s clear that the club is a result of, and will likely always be associated with, a place of immense pain and humiliation for Lohan.

This is the most frustrating thing about the trashy reality show “Lindsay Lohan’s Beach Club.” It comes so close to being something more. Take for example, VIP host Mike—all VIP hosts are known as and referred to exclusively by their first names. He is a bartender from Los Angeles who articulately and patiently explains the fluidity of his sexuality to the cameras, as well as to his housemates. The show, of course, simplifies his entire experience to a much easier to digest reality TV premise: which of the mixed-gender housemates will Mike hook up with? Will it be hunky Alex or blonde bombshell Jules?

No part of my world will change with learning the answer to this question. Yet, I desperately wanted to know if Mike would hook up with hunky

Courtesy of Wikipedia

Alex or blonde bombshell Jules. I audibly gasped when Mike and Alex started drunkenly making out at a club, despite Alex spending much of his screen time talking about how he misses his boyfriend back home.

But, in keeping with the breakneck pacing “Lindsay Lohan’s Beach Club” very liberally employs, this major storyline is soon eclipsed by another. VIP hosts Jonitta and Gabi are at odds because Gabi greeted Jonitta’s date by kissing him on both cheeks.

Gabi’s argument is “that’s what they do in Europe.” Jonitta rebukes her to not be thirsty.

Here’s the thing: No matter how far the human race advances, I will always fall for the inherent shock and entertainment value of a reality TV fight. There is the undeniable appeal of watching two people who are smart, capable and level-headed in any other situation come to physical blows under the surreal pressure-cooker environment of constant producer prodding and camera surveillance.

In that beautiful and lively seaside villa that somehow still feels cold and artificial, in that villa ostensibly funded by Lohan herself, Jonitta smacked Gabi in the face. And I loved it.

How 21 Savage could represent the American Dream Chris Heermann

Social Media Editor By now we’ve all heard the story and seen the memes.Rapper 21 Savage has been arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents for reportedly overstaying his visa by 13 years.

If this comes as a shock to you don’t worry, you are not alone. Millions were left reeling by the news that Atlanta-based 21 Savage was not born in Zone 6—of which he raps about frequently—or even the United States. According to his lawyer, 21 Savage was born in London as Sheyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph, and was brought to Atlanta at the age of seven.

This means that when his visa expired the following year, he was still a child.

This qualifies him as a Dreamer under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).

President Trump announced plans to phase out DACA back in 2017 but those plans were never implemented due to holds by Congress and other courts following public outcry.

21 Savage has been an amazing influence for Atlanta. He hosts yearly back-to-school drives where kids can get free haircuts, clothes and school supplies. He helped with an anti-bullying campaign and started a scholarship program for low-income students.

Recently, 21 Savage performed one of his more popular songs, “A Lot,” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. At the end of the song, people were surprised to hear updated lyrics about kids stuck at the border and

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Flint, Michigan still needing water.

Discussing the border crisis on national television days before getting arrested sparked a fire in the conspiracy corner, leaving many people wondering if the two events were related.

Immediately following his arrest, meme artists took out their phones and began making memes. Jokes were made about his verses such as “I got shooters dressed in red” with a picture of British soldiers. Some thought that memes like this were humorous, while others believed them in poor taste.

Two people who thought them funny enough to repost were Chris Brown and Demi Lovato, both of whom were subsequently bombarded with negative comments by commenters and other celebrities alike. Lovato even deactivated her Twitter account after getting messages shaming her for her

history of drug abuse. Atlanta-based rapper Offset tweeted and called out Brown, saying 21 Savage’s family depends on him.

Since all three of 21 Savage’s children were born in the United States, they have full legal citizenship, as do many of his relatives. Savage is reportedly in the process of attaining a U Visa, which can lead to becoming a lawful permanent resident. A U Visa is a nonimmigrant visa given to victims of crimes, allowing them to stay in the U.S. while they assist the police with the case. Savage was a victim of a shooting back in 2013, almost dying of blood loss.

If 21 Savage gets released, then he is the pinnacle of a Dreamer. He grew up in the U.S. and went from rags to riches, then gave back to the community that supported him.

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We deserved Maroon 5’s bland Super Bowl halftime show

Matt Hooke

Development Editor Maroon 5 is the white bread of music.

They are so plain and inoffensive that it is hard to hate them, but it’s also hard to love them. There have been few bands as ubiquitous and longlasting in the realms of top 40 hitmakers while also lacking any flavor and substance. Much like how no one has ever said “my favorite food is white bread,” the phrase “Maroon 5 is my favorite band” is a rare one to hear.

Maroon 5 is a pastiche of a million different pop-rock bands turned into the Frankenstein’s monster of pop music, checking off every box of a hit-making band without bringing many original thoughts. During Sunday’s Super Bowl halftime show in Atlanta, singer Adam Levine displayed a strange attempt to emulate the danger and energy of prime rock ’n’ roll with a couple guitar solos and even an attempt to replicate punk’s shirtless stars like Iggy Pop. Unfortunately, Levine’s tattoos resemble the result of a tattoo artist throwing up the lyrics to a bad Red Hot Chili Peppers song across some poor soul’s unfortunate body, with tattoos like “CALIFORNIA” making him more of an unintentionally comedic figure than a sex symbol.

The Super Bowl halftime show had a chance to redeem itself with one moment, but failed instead by giving us one of the worst teases in recent pop culture memory. For a brief moment, we were offered the first few notes of the Spongebob classic “Sweet Victory,” from the episode “Band Geeks,” in which Squidward tries to turn the residents of Bikini Bottom into a marching band. The horn section from the song graced our screens to build the anticipation.

Travis Scott yelled “it’s lit” as my heart prepared itself for Maroon 5 covering “Sweet Victory” with Scott ad libbing and Big Boi rapping a verse. Alas, this was not to be, as Scott instead shifted to “Sicko Mode,” which made little sense since Drake, the other artist featured on the track, was absent for the night.

Big Boi’s too short performance of “The Way You Move” in a giant fur coat after riding up to the stage in a Cadillac was as great and memorable as one would expect. Big Boi yelling “Atl Hoe” was one of the few human moments of the corporate night and one of the few times the rich musical history of Atlanta was mentioned.

Big Boi and Scott’s presence didn’t make any sense in light of the headliner. Big Boi, former member of Outkast, and Travis Scott are two of the most innovative figures in hip-hop, representing two different

Courtesy of Wikipedia

generations of Southern music. Why shackle them to the bland and out of date Maroon 5? What is the point of forcing three artists from completely different genres who have never collaborated before to work together for a single concert?

Many critiqued the three artists for accepting the gig in the first place.

Pop superstars Cardi B and Rihanna boycotted the event as a show of support toward Colin Kaepernick, former San Francisco 49ers starting quarterback. Kaepernick, in an echo of the blacklisting of the “Hollywood Ten” during the 1950s Red Scare, has been exiled from the NFL since he kneeled during the national anthem in protest of how police dispropor-

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tionately target African-Americans in this country.

Perhaps that’s why the show was as bland as it was. The show marked one of the most controversial in the league’s history, so it was only natural to get the least controversial band possible to perform. The halftime show could have been a great showcase of the rich, diverse musical history of Atlanta, a history that was hinted at

by Big Boi, but we instead got generic top 40 hits.

Since the NFL treated Kaepernick with abject disdain for protesting the deaths of innocent people and our country’s racial inequalities, the NFL deserved much worse than a lukewarm Maroon 5 performance.

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Playlist of the Week Jackson Rudoff

What to do this weekend Yvonne Pan

Arts & Entertainment Editor

Opinion Editor

After the State of the Union, we were definitely a bit frustrated with what was presented to us as the current state of this union. With the sheer number of controversies and seemingly insurmountable gridlock plaguing the government, it’s left us wishing that we could just be reabsorbed by the commonwealth. In honor of this sentiment, we’ve compiled a mix of British bops that fit both our mood and generation.

Mr. Brightside - The Killers

Although the Killers are American, “Mr. Brightside” has been on the U.K. singles chart since its re-release in 2004. For many, this is what they first think of if you bring up sad-boy alternative rock. It is immediately recognizable from its opening guitar riff, excessive use of pronouns and opening declaration that singer Brandon Flowers is “coming out of [his] cage.” Right now, though, it’s more doubtful that “we’re doing just fine.”

Wonderwall - Oasis

From the opening rift to its whiny chorus, “Wonderwall” remains a classic that too many people learn as their first song on guitar. Noel Gallagher tells us that we’re “maybe the one who’s gonna” save him, a vaguely emo cry for help in a refrain that created a formula for success for later Britpop artists. It’s simple, well-orchestrated and has a backbeat that makes you to nod your head in time with it. It sets up nicely for the succeeding track, which is a bit of an intense departure from lighter Britpop.

Wannabe - Spice Girls

This song is iconic and needs little if any description. The bouncy backbeat, effervescent vocals and instantly memorable chorus make this a song that few of us have not loudly sang with our friends at some point. Although it is difficult to tell exactly what the Spice Girls are saying in the chorus at first listen, one thing comes through immediately: they want to be with someone new, which is exactly how we feel a few days removed from President Trump’s address.

Friday, Feb. 8 What: Orchid Mania Where: Cleveland Botanical Garden When: Friday and Saturday 10 a.m.5 p.m., Sunday noon-5 p.m.

Get a taste of spring at the Cleveland Botanical Garden this weekend at their annual Orchid Mania show.

The show features over three thousand orchids, including some of the world’s most exotic flowers. Don’t worry if you can’t make this weekend, the show is running through Sunday, Mar. 10.

What: 4th Annual Cleveland Tattoo Arts Convention Where: Cleveland Convention Center When: Friday 2 p.m.-midnight, Saturday 11 a.m.-midnight, Sunday 11 a.m.- 8 p.m.

Got your eye on a tattoo design and looking for an excuse to get the permanent ink? One of the world’s largest tattoo convention tours comes to town this weekend for the 4th Annual Cleveland Tattoo Arts Convention. Travel to the Cleveland Convention Center and explore a variety of jewelry, clothing and artwork by local, national and international tattoo artists.

What: Pink the Rink Where: Wade Oval Rink When: Friday 3-9 p.m., Saturday noon-7 p.m., Sunday noon-5 p.m.

Scrambling to find plans with your significant other this Valentine’s Day after L’Albatros booked up?

Make your way to The Rink at Wade Oval this weekend, where the ice will be tinted pink in honor of Valentine’s Day. Admission is $1 and skate rentals are $2 for students.

What: Circle Mirror Transformation Where: Fribley Commons When: Friday 8 p.m. and Saturday 8 p.m.

Bitter Sweet Symphony - The Verve

This track is famous for a number of things— including a lawsuit by the Rolling Stones that caused The Verve to lose all royalties—but its orchestral lead-in melody is what defines it. The simple, four-bar strings pattern sets up for a song that still stands as a figurehead in the Britpop genre. Fair warning: it will get stuck in your head, but whether or not this is a problem is all a matter of taste. Richard Ashcroft’s resolve in stating that “[he] can’t change his mold” is certainly evocative of a certain leader’s behavior over the past few weeks and especially on Tuesday.

Players’ Theatre Group presents “Circle Mirror Transformation.”

Written by playwright Annie Baker and directed by third-year student Giuliana Conte, the comedy follows four New Englanders in a six-week long community-center drama class.

Tickets are free, but there is a suggested donation.

Saturday, Feb. 9 What: Chinese New Year Celebration Where: Asia Plaza When: 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

Celebrate the Year of the Pig at Li Wah inside Asia Plaza. The restaurant presents the Kwan Lion Dance, a traditional dance to ring in the new lunar year. Legend has it that a lion chased monster away, so villagers dressed up in a lion costume the following year, to scare the monster away themselves. Spend the afternoon at a mesmerizing performance and get dim sum at Li Wah after the performance.

What: Yule Ball Where: Thwing Ballroom When: 8-11 p.m.

Join CWRUcio at their biggest annual event, Yule Ball. Held in the “Forbidden Forest,” the Harry Potter-themed dance will feature free food from the Jolly Scholar, quests, live music from student bands and DJs and more. This is a formal event, but robes are encouraged. Tickets are $7, or $5 for groups of 4.

What: The Charity Show Where: Eldred Black Box When: 11 p.m.-midnight Come to the Black Box this Saturday to see IMPROVment perform as they partner with SpartanTHON 2019 to present The Charity Show. Although their weekly shows are typically free to attend, there is a suggested $5 donation for this event. All proceeds will go to SpartanTHON 2019, to support Rainbow Babies and Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. SpartanTHON will be held on Feb. 16 at noon in Tinkham Veale University Center and registration is still open.

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There She Goes - The La’s

To conclude this week’s mix, it’s another title suitable for our mood regarding the state of this union. “There She Goes” has appeared in a number of commercials and movies, which makes it familiar even on your first conscious listen. Like “Wonderwall,” it’s got the whiny vocals, well-formed production and vaguely melancholy lyrics that define “good” Britpop. Reminiscing upon a girl that Lee Mavers probably once dated, it describes the “feeling that remains” even after she has gone. It’s a song that longs for the better days, something that Tuesday’s speech left many of us doing.

Find all these tracks online with our weekly Spotify playlist at observer.case.edu All photos courtesy pluspremiers.us, genius.com, directlyrics.com, and wikipedia.com

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opinion 9

observer.case.edu

opinion The problem with second chances

Editorial Young adulthood is often referred to as the period for making mistakes.

Stupid decisions regarding our appearances, reckless activities and other general acts of irresponsibility are just part of us “figuring ourselves out” or bumps in the road to being a functioning adult. After all, how can we grow up if we have nothing to learn from?

This belief is especially critical to our lives as college students, where we are caught in the limbo of being considered a kid and an adult. We’re allocated pretty much four years to decide our plans for the rest of our lives, which only builds up the pressure to make the most correct choice possible. It instigates mistakes not just in the classroom, but those outside of it, many of which we will laugh about with those who remember them years later.

Along the way, through these varied mishaps, we will receive a number of second chances to prove ourselves.

Through all the embarrassment and confusion, our development isn’t stifled by a few poor grades or minor student code of conduct violations.

This line of thought, however, has evolved dangerously over the past few years. With how the development of

social media has influenced reporting, hiding what you considered your private history has become nearly impossible.

And as past problematic behavior has become increasingly difficult to hide, the boundaries of what constitutes a second chance have grown for the worst.

For a long time, “digging up dirt” was often considered a political tactic.

What’s become common in this age of informational availability are almost weekly revelations that someone important had once committed an illegal or inappropriate act. Often times, these come in form of allegations of sexual assault. Regardless of what the accusations concern, with the number of platforms at anyone’s disposal, these reports can be everywhere in a matter of hours.

Concerns over validity aside, what often becomes the central point of discussion is whether this person deserves, by our estimation, to be forgiven for these actions.

There is often a large contingency that would say no and advocate for the “cancellation” of the person in question, often through boycotts and resignations.

But when such reports refer to incidents that occurred during the perpetrator’s teenage or young adult years, there will often be a swift life of defense crying: “they were just a kid and kids make

mistakes.”

The accusations against Brett Kavanaugh were a monumental test of not just what we take as evidence, but how we respond to it. As his illicit behavior outside of a sexual assault accusation became more apparent, a contingency of his supporters still wrote much of it off as immaturity. In fact, there were many who felt that a sufficiently substantive allegation of sexual assault still shouldn’t inhibit his appointment.

Two years ago, teams in Major League Baseball were faced with a similar ethical dilemma when news spread that a hightier draft prospect named Luke Heimlich plead guilty to child molestation when he was 15. Immediately, his stock dropped, and he ended up going undrafted. But there were many who believed that this was unfair and set an unfair precedent.

How is it fair to judge him as he is now, for what he did then?

Unfortunately for subscribers to this mindset, illegality doesn’t change with age. The severity of punishment might, but there is a distinct difference between a mistake and something truly unlawful.

It’s simply disingenuous to equate a misstep with an act that has life-altering consequences for the victim.

There are non-illegal actions that reflect poorly on your character through

time, however. Recently, a photo on Virginia Governor Ralph Northam’s page in his medical school yearbook showed someone in Ku Klux Klan attire and another individual in blackface.

Although he would later confusingly deny it was him in the photo, it begs the question whether this sort of mistake can be career-ending, given it occurred back when Northam was still a student.

This is again where the difference between a mistake and an actual offense matters. Northam was in medical school in a diverse state and certainly should have known the issues with such a costume by that point in his life. It’s unjustifiable to say that he couldn’t and shouldn’t have known better by that point in his life.

As with Kavanagh and Heimlich, there comes a time where you must face consequences for your actions. In their cases, their situations would constitute such a moment.

While Northam hasn’t resigned yet, his prospects of staying in office are not looking great. But if we’re resetting the precedent for when someone deserves a second chance, this is how it should be.

We need to make sure that we extend forgiveness to errors in judgment rather than enable unconscionable behavior as a form of youthful miscalculation.

On the evolution of politicians I Spit My Truth and It’s Brown

Viral Mistry Do you want to know how I’m certain we are living in a perpetual nightmare?

Like clockwork, as soon as the 2018 midterm election season ended, the coverage of the 2020 presidential election began. Suddenly, every movement by major politicians is a code to be cracked by the mainstream media.

Apparently, becoming president is the only reason anyone would bother going to Iowa. When I told my partner that, she noted that it’s pretty insulting to Iowans.

But the race has begun, and the Democratic Party, cast into the wilderness after an emotionally devastating defeat in 2016, is hungry. With no clear frontrunner, everyone and their mother seems to be interested in the nomination. There are already eight announced candidates, with a whopping 14 additional individuals expressing varying degrees of interest in running.

Almost a year out from the Iowa caucus, it’s an exercise in futility to figure out who will still be standing by the time votes begin accumulating, and that doesn’t even begin to address what they will be running on. It is becoming clear

that many of the party’s rising stars wish to court a more progressive audience by championing issues like Medicare for All or the Green New Deal.

As someone who sincerely believes in these issues, I’m glad to see them get attention and support. But I’m also caught in a bind. I obviously want people who previously did not support these issues to change their minds and support them. But have these politicians actually changed their minds, or are they supporting these ideas out of political expediency? How do I know I can trust them?

Unfortunately, many of the party’s young rising stars have a contradictory history that reveals their political opportunism. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.) made waves last year when she became the first sitting U.S. Senator to call for the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). When she was in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2007 to 2009, however, she supported ending sanctuary cities and expanding the reach, labor force and authority of ICE. Sen. Cory Booker (N.J.) now says he supports Medicare for All, despite having a long history of advocating for the pharmaceutical and health insurance industries.

Former U.S. Rep. Robert “Beto” O’Rourke (Texas) inspired liberals

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nationwide by running an unabashedly pro-environment and pro-immigrant campaign in the 2018 U.S. Senate race in Texas, despite voting to expand oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and to hire 5,000 new Border Patrol agents at lower hiring standards. Sen. Kamala Harris (Calif.) has recently called for sweeping criminal justice reform, including measures like ending the death penalty and legalizing marijuana. As the California Attorney General, she declined to support a bill that would require her office to investigate police officers who shot civilians, and as San Francisco District Attorney, she laughed at people who opposed her locking up parents of color for their truant schoolchildren.

Maybe these politicians’ opinions have changed. Perhaps dialogue and discourse with the everyday people affected by those policies have swayed their minds.

But it is also possible that these politicians made those decisions because they thought it would advance their careers.

Now that progressive values are in vogue, they will adopt the branding they previously rebuked. If for some reason in the future this tide shifts, they will drop the progressive sheen they have put on without a second thought.

I agree with much of what these candidates say and claim to support today.

But ultimately, I still need credibility and authenticity. I need to believe that you aren’t simply saying these things in the hopes of getting elected, that these policy positions and moral positions represent a part of a core belief in a better and more equitable world.

The true test of character is what you do when doing the right thing and the popular thing are different. Some individuals choose to do the popular thing in the moment and later regret it, and change accordingly. We should be supportive of that change.

But a leader’s moral compass doesn’t change with the wind, it changes the wind with its own resolution. As we look to 2020 with the hopes of breaking out of this perpetual nightmare, we should be skeptical of every politician’s record. We should ask ourselves, when the options are to do what is right or what is popular, what will this person choose?

That should be our litmus test for the leader we need.

Viral Mistry is a fourth-year biology and cognitive science double major who is also minoring in chemistry, history and philosophy. He wears many figurative hats around campus, but if you ever see him, you can guarantee he’d rather be in bed reading a good book.

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10 opinion

2/8/19

Quickly losing youth Wish You Luck Erya Du Just as math instructor Chris Butler predicted during our first math class this semester, the weather in Cleveland was terrific until we came back. These days are just so cold that I have to drag my Canada Goose coat out every day so that I don’t get too chilly. However, the jacket only covers my upper body, and I don’t have any pants as thick.

The wind rushes through my pants and kills my legs.

I still remember the days when I could handle winter with a pair of summery jeans and no boots. But ever since my 18th birthday, I feel cold just by seeing other people wearing thin shirts and pants.

And it’s not just me, either. My roommate also got herself a pair of wool knee protectors so that her legs would not feel sore when sleeping at night.

“I am like a grandma now,” I’ll say to myself, before taking comfort in the warmth contained by my thermos.

It never occurred to me that aging occurs this early, and it is not only happening to our bodies but our minds as well.

The other day, when my friend and I were discussing current popular songs, we suddenly found that we were already like our parents, knowing little about contemporary pop songs. We only keep up with stuff from our era, just like our

parents did years ago. My mother used to recommend ABBA and many other either Chinese or European bands to me.

I didn’t hate it, but I was more likely to listen to songs by younger singers, who mostly have become has-been pop stars. I didn’t realize I was behind the times until finding out that the newest album I know well is “Shape of You” by Ed Sheeran. I even had to Google it so that I can make sure that I spelled the name of the singer right.

It is happening all around us. Just listen to what people sing around campus. You would never hear “Baby” by Justin Bieber nowadays, and Justin Bieber, who has stayed a sixteen-year-old boy in my memory, already got married.

People around me call this early aging, indicating I am no longer young. So what does youth mean? Is it just a biological display of your age? Or does it mean an intrinsic critical view of the system of culture or other forms of introspection? Is youth just a hormone secretion of consumer ideology that is closely linked to pop culture?

Regardless, time has passed, and I am no longer under 18. Feb. 6, my birthday, just passed. I am 19 now.

Hopefully, I will become young and excited again and stay a teenager during my last teenage year.

Erya Du is a first-year prelaw student double majoring in international studies and economics.

Her birthday is Feb. 6, and she wants everybody to know that.

Courtesy of Eva Rinaldi/Flickr It’s easy to start feeling old when our favorite artists fade into obscurity. Ed Sheeran is one singer who can make us feel old even as he’s retained relevance.

CORRECTION The Observer has two corrections to make. In last week’s issue, the subheadline of the front page story stated the incorrect dates of the closure of the university.

Case Western Reserve University was closed from Jan. 29 to Jan. 31, not Jan. 28 to Jan. 31. Also in last week’s issue, a picture of James Harden was misidentified as Russell Westbrook. The Observer apologizes for the errors. If you would like to submit a correction, email observer@case.edu with “Correction” in the subject line.

Art for the ages Assorted Dastardly Schemes Steve Kerby

Recently, I’ve been preoccupied with the subject of art. Most people, whether they know it or not, create art in some form, and even though it’s unrelated to my professional goals, I’m neck-deep in creation. I write, practice karate, try to create theater and strum the string bass.

In the midst of all this, I wonder why we make art. I have started to settle into a philosophy about art, and I want to share it with you. It informs what sort of art I aim to create, and I hope that it will help you put a little bit more art in your life.

All art, I think, has three motivations to varying degrees.

These reasons are “Art for the Artist,” “Art for the Audience” and “Art for the Art.” I want to dissect each reason with examples from my artistic experience, informal and amateur as it is.

What is “Art for the Artist?” This is art created for the satisfaction of its creators. My martial arts practice is this type of art alone. I practice karate so I can improve myself and stay fit, while the other reasons are secondary. Those small poems you wrote in your middle school journal or the sketches doodled in the pages of an optics notebook are also “Art for the Artist.” Not all self-centered art is so informal, though. A student

group can produce theater with the sole aim of scratching that addictive theatrical itch, not losing too much sleep over the quality or appeal of the art itself. “Art for the Artist” aims to enrich inner creative or emotional strength.

What is “Art for the Audience?”

This is art aimed toward affecting a change in those who consume it.

This newspaper is for the audience; its components written and compiled for the benefit of the community.

Improvised comedy is almost entirely for the audience’s cheap laughs, having no premeditated meaning beyond entertainment. I do not suggest that audience-centered art is somehow betraying highbrow culture. Even blockbuster movies that rake in millions but are quickly forgotten are still meaningful art.

Consider “Avatar,” James Cameron’s 3D epic: the highest-grossing movie of all time is now a footnote in cultural history, but it sure left an impact. “Art for the Audience” aims to change or redirect the lives of everyone who experiences it even if only for a few hours.

What is “Art for the Art?” This art is designed to push the boundaries of its method, showing the world something new and brave. Many experimental forms of theater and music are this type of art. A few years back I went to a show in a small bar in Chicago that was hours of entirely improvised instrumental music. That pushed the boundaries of musical performance, and I respect it for that, even if I was bored out

of my mind. In the past two years, I’ve spearheaded the completion of a science fiction musical, mainly to push the boundaries of musical theater into new genres of story and sound. “Art for the Art” tries to discover new ways of expressing human creativity, never mind judgement or cost.

Art can still fall short of all of these aspirations. When artistic endeavors become social outings, or just satisfy the desire for recognition, achievement or approval, they lose drive. I’ve seen this happen, on personal and organizational levels.

I’ve known talented musicians who react angrily when they didn’t receive what they thought was their due. I’ve known several theatrical endeavors that have weakened over time because creating art became mechanical. They became theater out of habit, not passion.

The death gasps of “American Idol” are likewise stuck in these swamps of mediocrity. The art continued to flow, but is unfulfilling to the community, to art as a quest and to any artists with higher aspirations than routine production.

Each of the three reasons for doing art also illuminates a route towards failure if attention is not paid to each element. Art that has no regard for the audience’s experience or enjoyment falls quickly into neglect. Art that forgoes the needs and humanity of the individual artist grinds up participants, driving them away and throttling expressive ability. Art that strives to push

no boundaries fades quickly into obscurity, lasting no longer than the end of the show.

Artists inherit traditions that stretch back millennia, and the survival of an art form to the next generation is not guaranteed.

Individual pieces of art contribute to this longevity successfully when all three of the motivations for art are present. Only then is the lineage of the art form continued.

“Art for the Audience” keeps the general public interested in the art form. “Art for the Artist” ensures a thriving community that continues to contribute creativity and energy to new pieces. “Art for the Art” broadens artistic horizons and creates unexplored territories which future generations explore.

I want to partake in art motivated by all three, and I hope you do too.

Every piece of art I create should be satisfying to me, experiential for an audience and passionate and brave in the heritage that instructs it. Even if your art is random doodles, show it to friends. Your silly limericks have a place on some blog, somewhere.

Maybe there’s a new type of sculpture waiting in your head just waiting to be formed into reality.

I hope you can find it in yourself to pursue art for yourself, for others and in the name of art itself.

Steve Kerby is a fourth-year student, almost ready to go study astronomy in graduate school. He knows you’ve got beautiful art waiting to leap into the world.

opinion 11

observer.case.edu

Did someone say lake effect?

Asking the Real Questions Jason Richards It was mid-afternoon on Monday, Feb. 4 when a rainbow sprouted out from the east side of Case Western Reserve University as a cool mist brought down near-60 degree beautiful weather to a comfortable breeze.

Just four days prior, campus was shut down among minus 30 degree wind chills and Antarctic levels of freezing climate.

So either Punxsutawney Phil is a better meteorologist than most professionals and amazingly predicted the early arrival for spring, or we’re just living in Cleveland.

As it turns out, Cleveland is a mixed bag of emotions in the realm of weather. Being from Pittsburgh, the climate isn’t much different. But what differs the most is the constant need for someone to mention “lake effect” in making small talk about the weather like they’ve become an expert in the surrounding climate of Lake Erie.

The break in wintery weather is definitely nice to look out the window at

while studying in Kelvin Smith Library glued to the same chair for nearly eight hours—we’ve all been there.

But don’t worry: snow plans to come back in the coming weeks, so if you were disappointed you weren’t going to get to say lake effect anymore, fear not. You can continue with your exceptional ability from your selfgifted meteorology major and talk about sideways rain and big words like blizzard.

At the end of the day, being snowed in isn’t the worst case scenario here.

The beauty of our campus really shows when blanketed with snow.

Also, you’re lying to yourself if you say that you haven’t brought the ol’ reliable lake effect phrase home with you and used it on your parents when they say “how’s the weather up there?”

It’s a perfect smart-word that only really works if your hometown isn’t along the lake, because I guarantee they’re tired of it if it is.

Jason Richards is a second-year computer science major. He invented rap music, the fountain pen and fire.

He also tells great stories—most of which aren’t true, such as the ones in this bio.

Observer Archives The lake effect can be blamed for some of Cleveland’s weather volitility. Many think they understand it but very few actually do. It’s easy to blame with near 90 degree temperature fluctuations over the past few weeks.

Cory in the house

Booker stands out among 2020 candidates Unsolicited Opinion

Won Hee Kim When I saw that Democratic Sen. Cory Booker announced his intention to run for the presidency in 2020, I was excited. It’s not because he grew up in Harrington Park, New Jersey, only miles away from where I went to high school. It’s only partially because I want the glorious pun that comes from the “Cory in the House” of Disney Channel fame. But mostly, I was excited because Booker is someone who has demonstrated time and time again that he cares about his constituents.

Booker, 49 years old, is the current New Jersey senator and a former mayor of Newark, New Jersey. He was born in Washington D.C. and traveled coast to coast during his education, going to Stanford University and Yale Law School. He is a Democrat, and someone once made a documentary about him. Booker does good deeds all around: opening his home up to strangers after Hurricane Sandy, saving dogs from the cold and even running into a burning house to save a woman. He has an aura around him that makes him seem like the kindhearted protagonist of a novel.

Of course, Booker isn’t actually perfect. Opposers point to the Newark Watershed scandal, where allegations of corruption flew freely, and Booker was suspiciously absent in overseeing the Newark Watershed and Development Corporation. They can point out his lackluster results working as the mayor of Newark, when crime and taxes both increased during his years in office. They might even dig deep and talk about the op-ed he wrote as a student at Stanford University when he says that he groped someone when he was 15 years old. They might say he’s

Public domain Sen. Cory Booker (N.J.) giving a speech in 2015. Booker is running for the Democratic nomination for president in 2020.

too focused on his public image.

Some of these arguments are valid. There never was a satisfactory ending to the Newark Watershed event, and the data shows that crimes and taxes rose. But if Booker becomes the President of the United States, he will be put in a position with a higher level of accountability than before, and the data about crime and taxes ignores how Booker helped boost economic and population growth. Regarding the op-ed, actually reading the article shows how he published it to provoke a conversation about how

sex and coersion are linked together in society and to fight rape culture.

As for his public image, that is one of the core reasons I support Booker.

Because of the president’s position as the head of the country, the general public looks to the president as a role model. Under President Donald Trump, the country became more openly hateful toward people of color, people of different religions than Christianity, LGBT people and other groups of people disliked by the president. Citizens of the country who harbored negative emotions felt free to act on them, and this even

happened on Case Western Reserve University’s campus. I personally don’t think Booker acts just for publicity, as people don’t typically risk their life and health to save someone in a fire. Even if he does, Booker’s image as someone who cares for the minorities of America makes him a great candidate.

The American people deserve someone who cares about them after the hurt of these last several years.

Won Hee Kim is a third-year English major with minors in creative writing and economics.

12 opinion

2/8/19

Our return to 1939: It is time we learn from history

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain One could draw a parallel from the Jewish refugees onbaord the MS St. Louis and the Latinx refugees. Both attempted to enter the U.S. and have so far been turned away.

In Case It Matters

Jordan Reif “First, they came for the Communists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Communist Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a trade unionist…”

By 1939, Adolf Hitler had successfully come to power in Germany, circulating radical Aryan propaganda and stripping Jews of their civil rights. The previous fall, under orders from the Reich Minister of Propaganda, 1,000 synagogues were burned, 7,000 Jewish properties were looted, 30,000 Jews were sent to concentration camps and 100 were killed on the spot as part of Kristallnacht (“the Night of Broken Glass”).

The continued rise in strength of Hitler and his Nazi party exacerbated safety concerns for German Jews.

So on May 13, 1939, a German ocean liner—the MS St. Louis— left Hamburg for Cuba with 937 passengers, all of whom were Jewish except for six.

The passengers would soon come to suffer the ultimate consequences for America’s failure to protect those in need. Our government today has again chosen to isolate and reject immigrants seeking refuge in the United States. It is time we listen carefully to the testimony of those aboard the MS St. Louis 80 years ago, for history does repeat itself.

Cuba, experiencing financial turmoil from the Great Depression, expressed their economic frustrations through anti-Semitic actions. Upon arriving in a Havana harbor 14 days later, only 28 passengers were let off the ship. The remaining refugees were forbidden from entering Cuba.

Growing worried about their fate, one refugee even “slit his wrists and threw himself overboard out of sheer desperation,” according to a BBC article. As a result, the captain agreed to sail the liner to Florida to seek asylum in the United States.

To the rest of the world, America

was a shining beacon of hope. The refugees thought “America was a magic word, we knew America would not let us down.”

Upon approaching the States, several passengers sent a telegram to then-President Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) requesting support and asylum. As the St. Louis approached Florida, the only response was U.S. Coast Guard ships patrolling the waters to ensure no one, including the ship itself, made it to shore.

The State Department—including then Assistant Secretary of State, Breckinridge Long, who was known for his strong anti-Semitic views— told the Jewish refugees, many of whom had already qualified for

only to extend to overthrowing democracies in Latin America.

Last November, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau released a statement of apology on behalf of Canada for the rejection of the passengers aboard the MS St. Louis. To this day, the U.S. has failed to do the same or even acknowledge our actions.

Instead, we seem to be repeating history with our rejection and condemnation of refugees, especially those from Latin America. The Trump administration has done everything in its power to inhibit immigrants and refugees from seeking protection or feeling welcome in the U.S. Seven days after his inauguration, Trump signed Executive Order

“When immigrants are turned away or deported by the US, they are potentially being sentenced to death.”

- Jordan Reif, on compassion for undocumented immigrants American visas, that they must wait their turn on a list before trying to qualify for immigration visas.

After rejection by Canada, the passengers were out of options, and returned to Europe, with entry split among four willing countries. By the end of World War II, 254 of the passengers would be murdered in a concentration camp.

While FDR had many praiseworthy policies and practices, he also managed an “American-first” approach with the Jewish refugees.

Like Cuba, the U.S. was suffering from severe economic stress from the Great Depression and wanted to focus all resources and opportunities on Americans. For what seemed to be the first time in our history, the U.S. did not feel the need to intervene; our “responsibility” to meddle seemed

13769, which suspended admission of refugees from seven predominately Muslim countries. He then terminated temporary protected status for hundreds of thousands of people from El Salvador, Honduras, Haiti, Nicaragua, Sudan and Nepal.

Trump caged young children and separated them from their parents, some of whom still have not been reconnected due to a failure to keep records. And most recently, he held the American people hostage while pleading for up to $70 billion to spend on a wall along the southern border. The Trump Administration appears to be mirroring the worst aspects of FDR and his decision to ignore almost 1,000 Jewish refugees.

In her book “Undocumented,” Aviva Chomsky, professor of history at Salem State University,

writes: “given the choice, nobody would risk his or her life walking through the desert to enter the country illegally [or the] constant fear, discrimination, and threat of deportation that comes from being undocumented.”

Thousands of Latinx are fleeing their homes due to violence, partially caused by U.S. intervention policies. In response, the U.S. government is spewing hateful rhetoric and spending money on walls and cages, making migration more dangerous instead of stopping it.

When immigrants are turned away or deported by the U.S., they are potentially being sentenced to death.

Manuel Antonio Cano-Pacheco, escorted across the border at age 19 after spending 16 years in the U.S. and qualifying for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), was killed three weeks after returning to Mexico.

Laura S. had lived undocumented in the U.S. her entire adult life. As she was being deported, she told the Border Patrol agent, “when I am found dead, it will be on your conscience.” She was murdered by her ex-boyfriend immediately upon returning to Mexico. Nelson Espina, a 28-year-old who was part of the “migrant caravan” last fall, was shot to death by gang members one week after being deported.

Perhaps instead, it is time we carefully reflect on Lady Liberty’s inscription, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” If we ever hope to be the America of dreams and opportunities, we must first learn compassion.

Compassion is ending for-profit detention centers responsible for the detention of 34,000 immigrants on any given day, offering a path to citizenship for those undocumented, welcoming asylum-seekers and refugees and opening our arms to all of our brothers and sisters in need. “…Then they came for the Jews, And I did not speak out, Because I was not a Jew Then they came for me, And there was no one left, To speak out for me.”

(Pastor Martin Niemoller)

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Getting ready for March Madness

Courtesy of Keenan Hairston/Flickr Duku teammate celebrate during a game earlier this season. The Blue Devils are competing with Tennessee and Virginia for the No. 1 overall ranking.

Andrew Ford Staff Reporter

The NFL season has officially wrapped up, which means it is time to look forward to the next great sporting event of the year: March Madness.

If you have been focused on football or the NBA, you may not know much about the top college teams in the country. With a little more than a month until the Big Dance, here is a quick breakdown of the best teams in the nation.

The No. 1 team in both the AP poll and the USA Today coaches poll is the Tennessee Volunteers with a record of 20-1. The Volunteers have not been an elite team in recent years by any measure, but they are led by a solid group of upperclassmen. They boast the best player in the Southeastern Conference (SEC): third-year forward Grant Williams, last season’s SEC Player of the Year. Williams is averaging 20 points and eight rebounds per game on an efficient 58 percent from the field. He is joined by fourth-year player Admiral Schofield, a hefty guard who can get to the rim and knock down a three. As a whole, Tennessee is an extremely well coached team with one of the best offenses in the country. According to kenpom.com, the Volunteers have the second best offense in terms of adjusted offensive efficiency, a measure of a team’s points per 100 possessions adjusted for the opponent.

Undoubtedly the Volunteers will be a contender in the NCAA Tournament.

The Duke Blue Devils are ranked second in both polls, just behind Tennessee. Chances are you have watched

them on TV, since ESPN airs almost every one of their games. From both an entertainment and basketball perspective, Duke is as good as it gets.

They arguably have the two best players in the country with first-year guard RJ Barrett and first-year forward Zion Williamson, who average 23 and 22 points a game respectively. Plus, they have two more skilled first-year players in Cam Reddish and Tre Jones.

They definitely have the most talented team in the country, but with Williamson’s freak athleticism and immense size (6’7”, 285 lbs.), they are the most fun to watch as well. The analytics back them up as well, with the team ranking fourth in both adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency.

Ranked No. 3, you most likely remember the Virginia Cavaliers for becoming the first-ever No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament a year ago. Although Virginia has many of the same players, they are a much better team. Their only loss this season came at Duke by two points. Per usual, the Cavaliers have lockdown defense; unsurprisingly, they have the best defense according to kenpom.com. What is not expected of a Virginia team, though, is a capable offense. This year, they have that missing piece: the fifth best offense in the nation analytically.

Indeed, this team has the offensive weapons to make a deep tourney run, unlike last year. Their staple motion offense and pack-line defense may not be fun to watch, but this season it is stifling opponents. After a disappointing performance last season, don’t be shocked if the Cavaliers make a run to the Final Four and even the championship game.

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13

Spartan swim and dive teams victorious over Notre Dame College Claire Nordt Sports Editor

The Case Western Reserve University men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams returned to the pools last weekend to compete against Notre Dame College. Both teams were able to claim a victory with the men winning with a score of 144-63 and the women with a score of 145-58. Together, the teams won 22 out of the 26 events, with men and women each winning 11 first place titles.

Highlights for the men’s team include first-year swimmer Nicholas Schoenig who won the 50-yard freestyle after recording a time of 22.60.

In addition to that title, he also finished first in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 53.18. Third-year swimmer A.J. Quinn won the 1,000-yard freestyle with a time of 10:15.27 and second-year teammate Will McDonald took the 200-yard freestyle after finishing with a time 1:48.21. Both Quinn and McDonald joined third-year teammates James Pierre and Eli Rose in the 200-yard medley relay where the team earned first place with their time of 1:39.47. Additional swimmers who saw victories were fourth-year swimmer Brody Schmidt in the 100-yard individual medley, first-year student Ryan Gilbert in the 100-yard freestyle and first-year student Kelvin Tay in the 100-yard backstroke. First-year Spartan Neil Wible also claimed a title after completing the 500-yard freestyle in

4:55.96.

For the women, the team also saw victory in the 200-yard medley relay.

The team was composed of fourthyear swimmers Bhavya Kumaran, Alli Drohosky, Alexa Simoneau and Suhan Mestha. The quartet recorded a time of 1:51.93. In addition to her relay win, Mestha also took the 100-yard individual medley and 100-yard freestyle with a time of 54.15 in both. In the 1,000-yard freestyle, first-year swimmer Sarah Krueger had a time of 10:50.97 which earned her the title. Other first place finishers for the Spartan women include fourth-year student Kelsey Holmberg in the 200-yard freestyle, third-year student Olivia Picchione in the 100-yard butterfly and third-year swimmer Sienna Picchione in the 500-yard freestyle.

Fourth-year student Renee Decker and first-year student Skye Fogle each finished in the lead in their events which were the 50-yard freestyle and the 100yard backstroke, respectively.

The diving team also saw success.

Second-year diver Cassiel Yuzik took first in both the one-meter dive and the three-meter dive. He scored 232.45 in the one-meter event and 218.45 in the three-meter event. First-year student Hailey Seibert also won both the onemeter dive and three-meter dive with scores of 185.05 and 208.90, respectively.

The Spartans next compete on Wednesday, Feb. 13 at the University Athletic Association Championships at the University of Chicago which continue through Feb. 16.

CWRU ELDRED THEATER

PRIVATE EYES

by Steven Dietz

February 15, 16, 22, 23 at 7:30 p.m.

February 17, 24 at 3 p.m.

Love, and the theater, can be rife with imagined realities, deception, and betrayal.

In award-winning playwright Steven Dietz’s contemporary drama, the play’s characters and audiences alike question reality as the (dis)illusion of truth unfolds.

For tickets call 216.368.6262 or visit our website

theater.case.edu

Directed by Jeffrey Ullom

14

sports

2/8/19

New England Patriots extend dynasty in lowest scoring Super Bowl ever Team captures sixth title since 2002, all with quarterback Tom Brady

Eddie Kerekes Executive Editor

In the middle of the third quarter of the Super Bowl, announcers Tony Romo and Jim Nantz joked that the highlight of the game was a recordsetting 65-yard punt from Los Angeles Rams punter Johnny Hekker.

At that point in the game, they were probably right.

With the New England Patriots at the time leading just 3-0 in a game featuring two of the highest scoring offenses in the league, it was the punters who were seeing the most action. Hekker and Patriots punter Ryan Allen combined for 14 punts during the historically low-scoring affair, with Hekker at one point ending eight consecutive Rams drives.

The Patriots eventually won the contest 13-3, capturing their sixth Super Bowl title and third in the last five years. The combined 16 points at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta were the lowest in Super Bowl history, breaking the record of 21 total points set in 1973.

For all six titles dating back to 2002, Head Coach Bill Belichick prowled New England sidelines and quarterback Tom Brady led the Patriots’ offense. Brady’s six Super Bowl victories are the most for any player, and Belichick tied the record for most NFL titles for a head coach.

“I was happy it didn’t come down to the last, last play like it has so many other times,” said Brady in a postgame press conference. “But it feels great to win.”

Brady, a four-time Super Bowl MVP, did not win the honors this year because he finished with just 262 yards and no touchdowns. The honor went to wide receiver Julian Edelman who finished the game with 141 yards on 10 catches and seemed to be on the receiving end of nearly every Brady pass.

Despite Edelman’s big game, the whole Patriots’ defense performed well enough to receive the award.

They held the Rams to the lowest point total in Super Bowl history— three, tied with the Miami Dolphins in 1972—and came up big with a key interception late in the fourth quarter.

Courtesy of Brook Ward/Flickr The New England Patriots won 13-3 over the Los Angeles Rams in the last Super Bowl. The win is the third Patriots’ Super Bowl victory in the last five years. Rob Gronkowski (above) has been one of Tom Brady’s favorite targets.

With the Rams just 27 yards away from the game-tying touchdown and only four minutes to go, Los Angeles quarterback Jared Goff threw deep to Brandin Cooks. But an unblocked Duran Harmon pressured Goff to throw off his back foot and the number one overall pick underthrew Cooks. The pass went right into the hands of cornerback Stephon Gilmore, practically sealing a New England victory.

Goff completed just 50 percent of his passes and barely eclipsed 200 yards for the game. As a team, the Rams rushed for only 62 yards and running back Todd Gurley managed just 35 yards on the ground. The Rams converted just three of their 13 third down attempts, a rate under 25 percent.

“Our defense [played] incredible,” said Brady. “It’s a team game; we needed everyone out there.”

That defense couldn’t have started the game any better, limiting the Rams to just 47 total yards in the first half. It was the other two fac-

ets of the game in which the Patriots struggled. Brady threw an interception on his first pass of the game that ended a drive in deep in Rams territory. On the next drive, kicker Stephen Gostkowski missed a 43-yard field goal attempt. Then, with just over a minute to go in the half, New England failed to convert a fourth down attempt at the end of a relatively successful drive.

With their normally dynamic offense sputtering, the Rams defense kept the team in the game. The team sacked Brady once and forced a fumble but were unable to recover the loose ball. Star defensive tackle Aaron Donald recorded five tackles, including one hit on Brady. Overall, the team knocked him down four times in the game, and he was held without a touchdown first the first time in his nine Super Bowl appearances.

“We’ve been seeing it all through the playoffs, so we knew what to expect,” said Donald after the game.

“We just fell short.”

In the defensive struggle, the game’s first, and only, touchdown came in the fourth quarter. The Patriots sustained a solid drive with Brady completing four consecutive passes to get the team into the red zone for the first time. Sony Michel plunged ahead for two yards and the Patriots went up 10-3 and seemingly put the game out of reach.

A Gostowski field goal with just over a minute left in the game put the Rams down two possessions, and a miracle Los Angeles comeback fell short when kicker Greg Zuerlein’s 48-yard attempt fell to the turf wide left with five seconds remaining.

With the victory, the Patriots’ dynasty continued another year and doesn’t look to be coming to an end any time soon, despite the ages of both Belichick (66) and Brady (41).

That might be the only takeaway from this Super Bowl that, as political journalist Dan Rather tweeted, “will be memorable for how forgettable it was.”

Just don’t tell that to the punters.

Wrestling dominates on Senior Day Andrew Ford Staff Reporter

The fourth-year wrestlers from Case Western Reserve University ended their careers in Horsburgh Gymnasium in style, leading the team to three dual match victories on Saturday, Feb. 2.

Fourth-year grapplers Gavin

Dersh-Fisher and Brian McNamara were recognized during the Senior Day matches for their hard work and dedication to the program.

The first dual match of the day pitted the Spartans against Defiance College. CWRU emerged victorious, winning 23-20. Dersh-Fisher earned a win by decision, 8-2, and McNamara won by forfeit. Thirdyear wrestler Isaac Collier secured the win with a pin.

The Spartans followed up their

clutch victory with another team win, this time against Penn State Behrend, 27-16. Dersh-Fisher and McNamara claimed two early victories for the Spartans, both via decision. This time it was first-year wrestler Jack Chipps who clinched a victory for CWRU with a pin of his own.

The final match of the day was against Kent State University-Tuscarawas. Underclassmen led the way, with second-year wrestler Bri-

an Kent and first-year wrestler Duncan Clayton recording pins, as well as a technical fall victory from firstyear wrestler Brandon Callow. The Spartans once again came out on top with a 35-18 win.

Next up on their schedule is the University Athletic Association Championships on Feb. 9. The event this year is hosted by CWRU. New York University and University of Chicago will also compete for the conference championship.

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15

Athlete Spotlight

Second-year basketball player aims to follow in parents’ footsteps Niko Kamlet Staff Reporter

Michael Volkening is a secondyear student and guard on the Case Western Reserve University’s men’s basketball team. He has seen the court in 19 games this year, averaging 7.3 points and 2.1 assists per game. Outside basketball, Volkening has a strong passion for entrepreneurship; thus, he is currently pursuing his degree in finance. He loves to hang out with friends, and even play more basketball in his free time.

What is your favorite part of being on the basketball team? Why? The best part of being on the basketball team is the relationships you make. You get to know alumni, fans, coaches and most importantly you make life-long friendships with your teammates.

Where did you get your passion for basketball? Any good stories?

My passion for basketball came from

my mother. The most memorable thing I can think of from my career is her unwavering support. I can remember ever since I was little she has always been preaching to me about hard work. I truly believe she is one of the main reasons I am where I am today. Not necessarily in a basketball sense but life in general.

Do you have any games that you remember being particularly special?

Why? Winning the sectional title my senior year was pretty special. It was the first Sectional championship for Marengo [Community High School] in [over] 15 years.

Why are you majoring in finance? What interests you about it?

Ultimately with my degree I hope to start my own company. The reason I have this aspiration is because of my father. Him and my mother started their own business and just a few years ago I became increasingly interested in it. I can really tell that the business is something that my father prides himself in and hopefully someday I can have the same experience.

What are your favorite free time activities?

Why? In my free time I like to hangout with friends, relax, work at LaunchNet and play basketball.

Aside from basketball, what else are you involved in on campus? What quote inspires Can you explain what you? you do in them?

Something that I am pretty involved in is [CWRU] LaunchNet. It is an organization that helps cultivate students entrepreneurial spirit and ideas.

Something that has inspired me since I was young is the Bible verse Romans 8:31. “If God is for us, who can be against us?” It tells us that if we believe in God we shouldn’t live in fear but rather in hope.

Courtesy of CWRU Athletics

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Spartans’ struggles continue through Throwback Weekend David Chang Staff Reporter

Although most students were relieved to have two days off due to cold weather, the Case Western Reserve University women’s basketball team’s rough schedule did not allow for any breaks. The Spartans dropped two games at home last weekend, finishing 60-54 against the University of Chicago and 81-62 against Washington University in St. Louis (WashU).

The Spartans previously faced both opponents on the road last week where both games resulted in Spartan losses. The home court advantage at Throwback Weekend did not assist the Spartans, who are now on a five game losing streak.

Chicago got off to a quick start scoring the first six points, but the Spartans quickly caught up and took the lead 9-8 after a jumper by firstyear guard Abbey Lawrence with just two minutes remaining in the first. The game remained tight in the second quarter, with both teams trading leads while staying within one for the first minutes of the quarter. The Spartans pulled ahead after a jump shot by fourth-year student Hillary Hellmann and a three pointer by graduate student Kara Hageman, bringing their lead to four. Chicago was able to push back and close the gap to even the score at 30 with 24 seconds remaining in the half.

The Maroons brought the heat following the first half, ending the third quarter with a 53-41 lead af-

ter outscoring the Spartans by 12 in the quarter. Third-year guard Alicia Marie Gonzales made a three pointer to bring the Spartans within ten with 8:55 remaining in the game. Despite a 10-0 run to tie the score, the Spartans were unable to gain the lead and ultimately walked away with the loss.

Against WashU, both teams started the game pushing the ball and attempting to go on a run to gain the lead. Gonzales took advantage of the Bears giving her room to shoot and made two threes. After trading points until the middle of the second quarter, WashU exploded for a 20-0 run.

Hellmann and Hageman attacked the basket in return to trim the lead back to 11 heading into halftime.

In the second half, the Spartans tight zone defense bothered the Bears, getting into passing lanes and forcing turnovers. WashU did not hit a shot until four minutes remained in the third. However, like the Bears, the Spartans struggled to set up their own offense. The Spartans managed to find rhythm and went on a 7-0 run.

First-year guard Alyssa Hyland took matters into her own hands, making two out of four threes in the quarter.

The Bears continued to play uptempo in the fourth, sending long passes into the paint for layups. The

Spartans played tight defense, but the Bears still managed to hit their outside shots, ultimately coming away with the win.

Hagemann lead the team offensively and defensively in both games, preventing drives and altering shots, highlighted by the two blocks in the third against WashU. She recorded 17 points and 10 rebounds against Chicago and finished the WashU game with 22 points and 13 rebounds.

The Spartans will look to break their losing skid on the road against New York University on Friday Feb. 8, and Brandeis University on Friday Feb. 10.

sports Men’s basketball loses twice on Throwback Weekend Sanjay Annigeri Staff Reporter

Christopher Heerman/Observer The Spartans lost to both the University of Chicago and Washington University in St. Louis last weekend during the basketball team’s Throwback Weekend.

The Case Western Reserve University men’s basketball team played in the historic Adelbert Gymnasium this past weekend, facing two University Athletic Association (UAA) rivals that they had just competed against the previous week. The results were different this time, with CWRU dropping both games. They lost to the University of Chicago (Chicago), 81-72, on Friday, Feb. 1 and then dropped a close game to Washington University in St. Louis (WashU), 66-63, on Sunday, Feb. 3.

The team fought hard against Chicago. The Maroons came out at the start of the game hot, hitting six three pointers in the first six minutes to take a 20-9 lead.

CWRU got back within five points, 22-17, with first-year forward Solomon Wells’ layup that capped off an 8-2 run.

However, Chicago would increase the lead again, bringing it to 38-26 with under three minutes left in the half.

The Spartans ended the half with a quick 6-0 run off of layups by Wells, second-year guard Ignas Masiulionis and first-year forward Brady Flynn, cutting the lead to 38-32.

Second-year guard Michael Volkening scored five straight points in the start of the second half to cut Chicago’s lead to five points with around 17 minutes left.

The Maroons kept up the heat bringing the score to 61-50, but firstyear forward Ryan Newton made a three-point jump shot to keep the Spartans close.

Chicago once again pushed back and built their lead to 14 points with under five minutes left in the game.

CWRU was unable to come back and ultimately ended the game with a loss.

Against WashU, CWRU was able to pull a late comeback but unable to complete the upset.

The Spartans took advantage of a

shooting slump by the Bears to take an early 10-2 lead.

The team continued maintaining the lead with Masiulionis hitting a three pointer during the middle of the first half, bringing the score to 20-8.

With under eight minutes left in the half, the Spartans grew the lead to 15 points after third-year forward Connor Nally made his three free throw attempts. But the Bears rallied back and cut the lead to 32-25 at halftime.

The Bears opened the second half on a 12-0 run, taking the lead just three minutes into the half.

CWRU got close a few times with timely three pointers by Nally, which cut the Bears’ lead to 37-35, and thirdyear forward Michael Hollis, which cut the Spartan lead to 43-42.

The teams kept battling back and forth, with WashU remaining in the lead the entire time, but the Spartans staying within striking distance.

Flynn helped the Spartan hopes by scoring five points to trim WashU’s lead to two, 63-61.

CWRU couldn’t make a gametying bucket, but Masiulionis made a layup with 12 seconds left to keep the margin at just two points.

WashU missed one of the two free throws at the line, giving the Spartans a chance for a game-tying three pointer.

Second-year guard Antonio Ionadi missed the first attempt, but Hollis collected the offensive rebound. He ended up missing the buzzer-beating gametying shot and the Spartans lost.

The Spartans finished the week with two losses, bringing their overall season record to 9-11 and UAA record to 2-7.

The team will continue facing a tough UAA schedule, traveling to New York University (NYU) on Friday, Feb. 8 and then onto Brandeis University on Sunday, Feb. 10.

“We need to compete against [NYU and Brandeis] and keep battling,” Head Coach Todd McGuinness said.

“We are close but we need to win the close ones. We need to learn to win the games at the end.”

Track and field teams claim third and fourth at Denison Claire Nordt Sports Editor

The Case Western Reserve University men’s and women’s track and field teams traveled to the Bob Shannon Invitational in Granville, Ohio.

The event was hosted by Denison University and the Spartans arrived ready to compete which led to strong finishes by both teams. The men came out with a third place finish out of the 13 teams competing at the meet, ending with a total score of 66.5 points.

The women’s team was able to secure a fourth place finish with a score of 94 points.

Third-year sprinter Jonathan Hal-

ing won the 400-meter dash, finishing with a time of 51.23. Additionally, he placed second in the 200-meter dash, crossing the finish line at 23.60. Second-year student Luke Taverso competed in the pole vault, finishing with a mark of 3.81 meters which earned him second place. Fourth-year pole vaulter Drew Zapor was two spots behind, taking fourth place with a mark of 3.66 meters. On the track, secondyear student Daniel Grasing placed third in the 3000-meter run with his time of 8:59.07 and first-year student Logan Singer finished the one-mile race in 4:30.83. Second-year longjumper Jordan Butler also had a top finish, contributing to the Spartans with his third place finish in the long

jump with a jump of 6.44 meters.

For the Spartan women, graduate student Cassandra Laios stood out with her two first place titles. She earned her win in the weight throw with her mark of 16.73 meters. Her other first place title was in the shot put where she finished with a mark of 13.79 meters. Following her stellar performance, Laios was named the University Athletic Association (UAA) Athlete of the Week for women’s field. Laios currently ranks seventh among all shot put competitors and eighth amongst all weight throw competitors in Division III this season. This title marks Laios’ 10th UAA Athlete of the Week honor during the span of her career.

Additional top finishers for the Spartan women include third-year student Samantha Kelts. She earned a first place title in the triple jump with her jump of 10.68 meters. In the 200-meter dash, third-year student Bari Love crossed the finish line at 27.68 which earned her second place in the event. In addition to Laios, second-year student Taylor Jackson also placed in both the weight throw and shot put, earning third in both with marks of 14.53 meters and 11.84 meters, respectively.

The Spartan men and women will travel again this weekend, either to compete in the Mid-February Meet on Friday, Feb. 8 or the Indoor All-Ohio Championships on Saturday, Feb. 9.