The Observer, Volume L, Issue 19, 2/15/19

2.75%

Spring career fair features many new employers

Nathan Lesch News Editor

This Monday students attended the Get Experienced Career Fair. Held annually in the Veale Convocation, Recreation and Athletic Center, this fair helps kick off the spring recruiting season. This year’s fair featured around 100 employers, a significant increase from the 80 employers that attended last year.

The employers represented a wide range of industries and included both small and large firms, non-profit organizations and government entities. Manufacturing, advertising, consulting, technology and the healthcare industry were represented among others.

Brian Matthews, the assistant director of experiential learning, offered some advice to students regarding the Career Fair.

“I recommend that students view the Career Fair as an opportunity to network with employers, learn about what positions exist and to come with an open mind,” he said.

As assistant director of experiential learning, Matthews works with students on career counseling, employer engagement and securing experiential learning opportunities.

Grace Howard News Editor

In an Undergraduate Student Government (USG) general assembly meeting this past Tuesday, Provost and Executive Vice President Ben Vinson III addressed students concerns about an increase in tuition.

Vinson reported that the 2019-2020 tuition would be $50,450, a 3.8 percent increase from the $49,043 tuition of the 2018-2019 school year. This is an especially impressive increase considering that the tuition increase for the 2017-2018 school year was only 3.25 percent to $47,073. Provost Vinson mentioned the unique timing of this year’s tuition discussion, as Vinson’s Strategic Planning Think Big project began in January. Through this initiative students’ concerns and ideas regarding tuition will have an outlet for expression connected directly to administrators.

The Provost was joined by his Chief of Staff Lisa Camp, Vice President for Enrollment Management Rick Bischoff, Vice President of Campus Services Dick Jamieson and Vice President of Student Affairs Lou Stark in order to more comprehensively address questions and concerns students may have had.

Jameson announced that room and board will increase 2.75 percent for the next school year and attributed this to inflation related to cost of labor, goods and services and to fund additional projects for the year. Additionally Jameson announced a new meal plan, the Greek Life “supplemental” meal plan, would be added next year.

Camp discussed the “facilities race” that has started across the country at institutes of higher education aimed at attracting new students and raised the question of who would be the first institution to decide not to participate in this costly competition.

The floor was opened to questions

from USG members and attending students. Some students wondered about the purpose of the mandatory meal plans that first and second-year students must be registered on. Jameson explained that building community is crucial for first-year students and fundamental for a successful academic career. However, he acknowledged that the mandatory meal plan for second-year students does not serve the same purpose, as most second-year students have suite style living arrangements, and was receptive to working together with the student body to reach a sustainable solution.

Vinson called attention to the paradox that is created with rising tuition: as families and students pay more to colleges they have higher expectations, which cost more. It’s easy for students to feel alienated by a system that seems to take advantage of students for profit, however Vinson assured students that “We may be an industry but we’re far from a business.”

There is not one specific set of actions all students should take to guarantee success at the Career Fair, according to Matthews, but proactive engagement, research and preparation are good places to start. Additionally, Matthews recommends students take advantage of resources offered by the Office of Post-Graduate Planning & Experiential Education.

Although he recommends all students attend the Career Fair, Matthews also provided a rationale for underclassmen.

“Many employers look to build early relationships through creating summer leadership programs that give students the opportunity to experience their culture, rotating through various departments and interacting with leadership. In many instances, this is done before full-blown internship opportunities are offered and gives both students and employers the chance to see if there is a potentially good fit,” he said.

The office also hosts a larger fair every fall semester, typically around the first week of October.

Katharine Toledo Staff Reporter

On Thursday, Feb. 7, Case Western Reserve University School of Law welcomed Cleveland Bishop Nelson Perez for the annual Judge Frank J. Battisti Memorial Lecture. Perez spoke on the topic of “Immigration and the Dignity of the Human Person.”

The annual lecture is named after Battisti, a federal judge for the district court of the circuit of Northern Ohio, and is presented by his former law clerks. Battisti, the child of Italian immigrants, was specifically known for his handling of controversial cases including the racial segregation of various public schools in Cleveland, the case of the eight members of the national guard who shot students protesting the Vietnam War in 1970 and the case of an Ohio autoworker accused of committing war crimes in Nazi Germany.

Perez was invited to speak at this year’s Battisti Lecture in honor of Battisti’s devotion to the Roman Catholic Church. In the words of Harlan Karp, an

attorney and former law clerk of Battisti, “the late judge believed in human dignity and in morality.”

Karp said that “[Judge Battisti] couldn’t divorce his Catholic upbringing or views and just abandon them at the door. He was honest. We view things through the prism of our experiences. Just as he grew up in a union household and among Italian immigrants, the law and judging reflected his own life experiences.”

Perez’s lecture marks the 23rd year of the Battisti Lecture. The first lecture, which took place just a year after the death of Battisti in October of 1994, brought Judge Jack B. Weinstein, from the District Court of the Eastern District of New York, to CWRU. Other noteworthy guest lecturers from previous years include President Lee Bollinger of Columbia University, the late Professor Jean Bethke Elshtain of the University of Chicago and Fred Gray, a famous civil rights lawyer and the first African-American president of the Alabama State Bar.

This year Perez, who cleverly described himself as “made in Cuba, unpackaged in Miami,” shared his own fam-

ily’s immigration story with the audience.

“Most immigrants are looking for something better or running away from something bad. It’s good to remember where you came from,” he said.

Perez reminded the audience that “we are all migrants, whether we understand it or not,” and ended with a plea for greater kindness towards immigrants both in Cleveland and from around the world.

Courtesy of Catholic Diocese of Cleveland Bishop Nelson Perez spoke at Case Western Reserve University on Feb. 7 . Perez talked about immigration and the dignity of people in his speech.

KSL new authentication system, newspaper archive

Maryam Iqbal Staff Reporter

The Kelvin Smith Library (KSL) has recently taken steps to improve user experience online. Two new developments include the recent archivization of CWRU student newspapers dating all the way back to the mid 1800s, as well as a new authentication system online that makes signing in remotely easier.

The new authentication service, the OpenAthens software, was brought on because of flexibility and security. A shift towards Single Sign-On (SSO) has been encouraged as it eliminates the need to install a Virtual Private Network which can be blocked and isn’t always user friendly or compatible.

Using the SSO, it will be easier to pinpoint instances of unauthorized use and access and thus prevent cyber fraud and crimes. For Jose O. Diaz, associate director for Academic Engagement Services at KSL, information security is a prime concern. Research libraries can face a variety of cyber threats, including the unauthorized use of library

resources, which is why OpenAthens works. Users only need to remember one username and password and will be less likely to forget or write it down and compromise security. The new software will not require CWRU students to download, install or run any software, which will increase user security.

This was especially important for the staff when discussing campus wide implementations. As Diaz explained, KSL’s Research Services Librarians are currently working directly with each academic department to reach faculty and students. Reminders of this new service have been published both online and in print media, and KSL staff are ready to help CWRU’s community.

In addition to improving security for its users, KSL has increased access to information.

A new database of newspaper archives has been released that contains searchable PDFs of newspapers from 1862 to 2010. From the Western Reserve Souvenir to The Observer, it is now possible to glimpse history that occurred on campus through online access. Helen Conger, Archivist at Case

Western Reserve University Archives, explained how the mass digitization project came to be.

While assisting a Freedman Fellow with article scannings, archivists began scanning full newspapers of articles being requested from 1968. Conger explains that “newspapers in the past were printed on highly acidic paper that becomes very brittle over time. This means that they crumble and tear very easily. We decided it would be better to handle the newspaper once and not have to go back and scan different parts of it as more requests were made over time.” Hence the pilot project began in the Spring of 2016. In a combined effort, staff members prepped the newspapers and did quality assurance while student workers did the actual digitization for the years of 1968-1975.

Seeing the success of the initial project, the archivists decided to digitize a total of 6,263 issues numbering 55,769 pages. In 2018, deciding that the scanning was taking too long, KSL decided to accelerate the digitization by outsourcing it. The Library funded the outsourced digitization and multiple

companies worked on the project with Hudson Archival digitizing the remaining issues from microfilm copies. Veridian provided article segmentation and created PDF files for each issue.

The project was recently finished, and KSL is keen to showcase how their efforts will benefit users in the community. Now that people do not have to physically go to the archives, students will see the benefits. Some classes that regularly use archival sources for projects or research papers, or graduate and undergraduate students using archival sources for their theses, dissertations or capstone projects will now have better access. Conger emphasized that the archive is also a great time management resource as students can plan their research time in the University Archives to focus on archival sources that have not been digitized yet.

As for future plans, Conger sees possibilities of future digitization of campus newspapers that are published for faculty and staff as well as other digital material—images, yearbooks, commencement programs—available in Digital Case.

Power of Diversity lecture discusses racial equity

Jordan Reif Staff Reporter

Last Tuesday, Feb. 5, the Office of Inclusion, Diversity and Equal Opportunity (OIDEO) welcomed Estela Mara Bensimon, Ph.D. to campus as part of their Power of Diversity series. The yearly series, first started in 2010, includes two nationally and internationally acclaimed speakers, and four CWRU faculty speakers.

Marilyn Sanders Mobley, Ph.D., vice president of the OIDEO, says that when she started the series she believed the “greater visibility of and exposure to the diverse spectrum of topics and perspectives would enable students, faculty, and staff to be more mindful of the value of diversity.”

Bensimon is a professor of higher education at the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education and the founder and director of the Center for Urban Education. Her work has primarily focused on increasing racial equity in educational outcomes for students of color. In efforts to help administrators and faculty take action, Bensimon developed the Equity Scorecard, a process and data tool that strives for institutional change to shift “campuses toward cultures of inclusion and broad ownership over racial equity.” Mobley hoped Bensimon could direct CWRU and administrators from other universities on how an “equity lens” can be used as another layer of accountability when promoting diversity, inclusivity and equity.

Near the start of her lecture, “Reclaiming Racial Justice in Equity,” Bensimon showed an image of Dutch artist Jens Galschiot’s “Sur-

vival of the Fattest.” The sculpture depicts a frail, starved man trying to stand with a large, morbidly obese man on his shoulders. The piece’s inscription reads, “I’m sitting on the back of a man. He is sinking under the burden. I would do anything to help him. Except stepping down from his back.”

The sculpture is a commentary on the relationship between the Western and non-Western countries and

room, who drops out of the course, who comes to office hours, who do I choose to work with in my lab. Administration need to examine their hiring structure, the job application and the questions they ask prospective faculty members. Emphasizing the need for a new system, Bensimon said, “there is an almost universal quest for structural solutions that leave whiteness untouched.”

Bensimon continued to discuss the fallacy that problems in class are caused by ill-prepared students. Instead, she suggested professors acknowledge when there is a correlation between certain students understanding the concepts well, while others are consistently not grasping the information. She encouraged faculty members to study the language of their syllabus and gradebook for patterns of student success.

If CWRU hopes to be a more equal institute, Bensimon proposed change starts first among the faculty. “We as faculty are who spend the most time with students,” she said. “It is in the classroom where passing and failure are mediated.”

then she asked one student about her STEM classes, which are more common among CWRU students. The student responded that desks in the science, technology, engineering and math classes were not organized in the same shape.

Mobley reports that the OIDEO plans to “continue discussions with Provost Ben Vinson, the Diversity Leadership Council, Student Success, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, as well as with members of the Minority Affairs Committee of the Faculty Senate on ways to bring greater accountability to our work in diversity and inclusion, not only for better outcomes for our students, but also on more inclusive pedagogy and classroom climate.”

Bensimon reported that people used to say: “The problem of the 20th century is going to be color blindness.” Her response was, “P.S., we’re in the 21st century and this is still our problem.”

whites and minorities. Bensimon then altered the inscription to apply to educational institutions, “I want more racially minoritized staff to be hired. I will do whatever it takes. But I am not willing to accept that our hiring process reproduces whiteness.”

“The systems we revere and reproduce are the same as the sculpture,” Bensimon said, calling for universities to analyze the reality of racial equity among their institutions. She stated that faculty need to ask the difficult questions: who is in the

While Bensimon stressed the importance of top-down change, alterations to the hiring process and a close analysis of tools used by faculty in the classroom, she also suggested simple ways to engage students in learning. Speaking to a group of students sitting in the front of the room, Bensimon asked them what class brought them to the lecture and how their desks were organized in that class. Their response was a gender studies class, and they sat in a circle or horseshoe shape in order to foster discussion and respect for other students. Bensimon was not surprised that such a class had a positive learning setup, but

For Bensimon, being equityminded means noticing racial inequalities; acknowledging when certain conventions do not work; understanding inequity as an institutional problem based in faulty structures, policies and practices; questioning assumptions, stereotypes and implicit biases and taking action to eliminate widespread inequity.

The wide gap between outcomes for students of different races is not an institution-specific issue. It happens everywhere, including CWRU, an institution where 49 percent of undergraduate students and 75 percent of faculty identify as white as of Fall 2017. Bensimon encouraged administrators, staff, faculty and students to recognize and investigate the problem, form coalitions and act.

“Instead, she suggested professors acknowledge when there is a correlation between certain students understanding the concepts well, while others are consistently not grasping the information.”

- Jordan Reif, on Bensimon’s advice toprofessors

PRIVATE EYES

CWRU, City of Cleveland attempt to reduce juvenile crime

Anna Giubileo Staff Reporter

Case Western Reserve University is extending its partnership with the City of Cleveland and two Cleveland police departments through training and implementing strategies concerning intervention and family services with a focus on reducing juvenile crimes.

The Cleveland Metropolitan Housing Authority Police Department and the Cleveland Police Department (CPD) have been awarded a grant totalling close to $1 million so that they can create a “first social responder” taskforce to intervene with juvenile offenders and their families.

With the help of local company Beech Brook, whose services range from job training, financial advice, family counseling and general intervention, programs will be provided for the program participants.

Mark Singer, the Leonard W. Mayo Professor in Family and Child Welfare at the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, has worked with the involved departments for similar initiatives in the past.

“The earlier you can intervene when someone has committed a crime, the more likely you are to help that person turn their life around,” Singer explained to the Daily.

The grant also allows for police

officers to provide additional training in working with at-risk youth, another method used in juvenile crime prevention and intervention.

Thomas McCartney, commander of the CPD’s Third District, said, “Hopefully, this program will help limit crime at its source by providing what’s needed to families.”

Rather than working to penalize and discipline youth involved in il -

- Mark Singer, on working with at-risk

legal activities and crimes, this grant will allow Cleveland to provide the resources necessary to step in and help find a resolution to the problem of juvenile delinquency.

“In a police officer’s belt, he or she has a gun, Taser, a baton, handcuffs, a flashlight—all this equipment,” Singer said. “This partnership hopes to add few more tools to the toolbelt.”

LEAD.LEARN. CARE.

Interested in a Career in Health Care?

Nurses are the most trusted and sought after health care professionals, and graduates of the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University are found in the hospital and the board room.

FPB’s Graduate Entry Nursing Program is specifically designed for students with non-nursing undergraduate degrees who are ready for a career in nursing. This graduate degree prepares students for practice as an advanced generalist registered nurse and to lead interprofessional, evidence-based initiatives.

“The earlier you can intervene when someone has committed a crime, the more likely you are to help that person turn their life around,”

youth

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.

Horoscopes

Horoscopes as pickup lines

Aries

Are your initials

NASA? Because you’re out of this world.

Taurus

Was that an earthquake or did you just rock my world?

Gemini I’m not a photographer, but I can picture you and me together.

Cancer

Sudoku Normal

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

I’m not a psychic, but I see you in my future.

Leo

Are you tired? Because you’ve been running through my mind all night.

Virgo

Are you The Observer? Because I’d pick you up anytime

Libra

Hey, tie your shoes! I don’t want you falling for anyone else.

Scorpio

Are you a thief? Because you stole my heart.

Sagittarius

If you were a library book I would check you out.

Capricorn

Can I take you to the Cleveland Museum of Art? Because you’re a masterpiece.

Aquarius

Have you been to the doctor lately? Because I think you’re lacking some vitamin me.

Pisces

Are you an overdue book? Because you’ve got fine written all over you!

Poetry for People Who Hate Poetry

in the poem, referring to the poet’s name, the wish to act, the auxiliary verb (as in “I will”) and a euphemism for both male and female genitalia.

We 21st century readers may not register these slier, slangy connotations without some scholarly help. So brief is the shelf life of most slang that we miss the dirty jokes that had the Elizabethans snickering into their ruffs.

It’s happening again.

Even as we speak, elsewhere—in a college dorm, maybe, or some recess of the internet—a word is changing.

Just as “cool” evolved in AfricanAmerican jazz circles of the 1930s and 40s, coming to refer to musical temperament instead of temperature, so this word—whatever it may be— will change now.

In two years I’ll complain about hearing it from my students. In three years I’ll be saying it myself.

This is the trajectory of slang, that unofficial but essential wellspring of our language. The aspects of English we were never required to spell or diagram, and some we weren’t allowed to say in class at all.

When the word “slang” first appeared in English, in 1756, it named “the special vocabulary used by any set of persons of a low or disreputable character; language of a low and vulgar type.”

The historians of the language at the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) can trace the word’s evolving definitions, but even they are unsure of its etymology. “Slang” began, it seems, as slang: faddish, vogue, forgettable.

Yet it endures, “low and vulgar”— and in the work of great poets.

Shakespeare, for example, coined or repurposed hundreds of words (“dwindle,” “lackluster,” “swagger”). In Sonnet 135, he shows off the versatility—in standard and slang usage— of just one:

Whoever hath her wish, thou hast thy Will,

And Will to boot, and Will in overplus [. . .]

So thou being rich in Will add to thy Will

One will of mine, to make thy large Will more.

The scholar Stephen Booth counts thirteen instances of the word “will”

Slang endures because of—not in spite of—this changeability. In his essay “Slang in America” (1885), Walt Whitman describes slang as the democratic aspect of poetry, the material by which anyone, elite or coarse, might make of their own vocabulary a pleasure and an art:

“Language, be it remembered, is not an abstract construction of the learned, or of dictionarymakers, but is something arising out of the work, needs, ties, joys, affections, taste, of long generations of humanity, and has its bases broad and low, close to the ground. Its final decisions are made by the masses, people nearest the concrete, having the most to do with actual land and sea.”

Whitman admires “the daring and license of slang”: in Tennessee, he writes, undiluted alcohol is “barefoot whiskey”; a plate of ham and beans in New York is “stars and stripes.” What the OED calls “low and vulgar” Walt Whitman treats as a commons, a reserve in the realm of language where anyone can meet anyone else.

At least in theory.

After all, as Michael Adams argues in “Slang: The People’s Poetry,” slang is “rooted in [. . .] the complementary needs to fit in and to stand out.”

One function of slang is to communicate with some (a teen clique, maybe) what it conceals from others (parents, teachers, other cliques); in this way it also communicates its own status as privileged dialogue.

Slang stakes our claim to belong to a particular group and establishes a position within that group. The creativity of slang, Adams writes, “asserts our everyday poetic prowess.”

This is just what I mean when I argue that we live with poetry all the time. Even if you haven’t read a poem since high school, your slang contributes to the artistry of language. In your own words, this thousand-year-old mongrel tongue becomes renewed.

As it is in the words of the teenagers who speak Gwendolyn Brooks’s poem “We Real Cool”:

the pool players. seven at the golden shovel. We real cool. We Left school. We Lurk late. We Strike straight. We Sing sin. We Thin gin. We Jazz June. We Die soon.

In the poem’s teen lingo we can see the poet’s formal mastery.

Listen to the long vowels of the monosyllabic words as they walk the edges of their short lines. At the end of those lines—all but the last—Brooks strands each “we,” syncopating the rhythm of these curt, declarative sentences. (Listen to Brooks read the poem aloud and you’ll hear it clearly.)

What do they mean by “We / Jazz June?” We may think first of the musical form—a noun—but “jazz” can be a verb too: “to make a mess of, to ruin”; “to excite or thrill”; “to stimulate or intoxicate”; “to enliven”; “to have sexual intercourse with”; “to trick or tease.”

These possible meanings could apply to the month of June or a woman named June. We don’t—we can’t— know. But that’s the point of the pool players’ slang: their “we” does not include us.

Brooks said she imagined the young men in the poem speaking as if graffitiing their names on the wall to prove they were there. They say “we” to convince us and to convince themselves who they are. The poem tells us they may die before they ever know.

The slang and sentence structure of

“We Real Cool”—like so much exciting linguistic invention in contemporary language—derive from AfricanAmerican English. Too much of this innovation continues uncredited; too many white speakers of “Standard English” appropriate Black slang in one breath and dismiss “Ebonics” in another.

But slang can also be a tool for marginalized groups to reclaim power over the words used to stigmatize them. As socially relevant as poetry can be, slang is where some of the most political work of language occurs.

Think of the use of the word “queer” to shame sexual minorities, and more recently as a means of empowerment adopted by some of those same groups. The word can even function as a verb: “to queer a text” is to read it from the perspective of queer theory.

The word “bitch” follows a similar path from its Anglo-Saxon origins as “the female of the dog” to a pejorative term for a woman a few hundred years later to the title of a feministminded pop culture magazine by 1996. “Bitches get stuff done,” declared Tina Fey and Amy Poehler on “Saturday Night Live” in 2008.

In such instances slang fulfills Whitman’s ideal of a democratic poetics. To change the way we use a word is to change a small, but significant, part of the world.

Listen for slang in the different parts of your own world—at home and at work, with friends and family or with colleagues. You may catch yourself in the act of making the language new again.

You may listen for slang, but what you’ll hear is poetry.

Dave Lucas

Dave Lucas is the author of Weather which received the 2012 Ohioana Book Award in Poetry. In 2018 he was appointed the second Poet Laureate of the State of Ohio. He lives in Cleveland.

Courtesy of StockFreedom

Playlist of the Week

Ryan Yoo Staff Reporter

In celebration of Singles Awareness Day (Feb. 15), we bring you these songs about not being in love from halfway across the world. Enjoy these K-pop hits that will keep you warm in this cold, cold winter.

What the Spring - 10 cm

In the spring of 2016, the indie duo 10cm announced that they would be releasing a sweet love song about the nervous excitement of falling in love. However, in the song, the singer Kwon Jung-yeol calls out people’s relationships for being shallow and fleeting, and like the cherry blossoms they admire, their relationships are doomed to fail. This song is perfect for the type of person who hates seeing couples around campus.

Editor’s Choice

Reviewing designs of the new emoji

Ryan

Yoo

Staff Reporter

The Unicode Consortium, the non-profit organization that develops, maintains and promotes software that standardizes digital text internationally on all software platforms announced on Feb. 5 the sixth major update to the emoji list since 2014. The update introduces 59 distinctive new emoji and 230 new emoji overall.

Run Devil Run - Girls Generation

In this song from their 2010 studio album

“Oh!,” Girls Generation moved away from the innocent, feminine aesthetic that they were known for and adopted an edgier, darker and sexier image. This very much showcases the group’s versatility and shows why many people consider the girl group to be one of the classic K-pop groups.

I Will Show You - Ailee

“I Will Show You” begins as a soft orchestral ballad where Ailee sings about the man who mistreated her. Don’t mistake this for a sad breakup ballad, because the song quickly transitions into an up-tempo dance beat. The meaning of the song is enhanced by Ailee’s vocal talent and shows her versatility, as she is able to sing both slow ballads and up-beat dance-pop tunes. This song certainly showed her fans what she is capable of.

L.I.E. - EXID

EXID puts a dark spin on the idea of their lover on their infidelity and wrestles with the feelings of coming to terms with it in “L.I.E.” In the song, the group wishes the worst on their ex-lover, telling them “I pray that you keep this up until you die, and go to hell, go to hell.” These unforgettable lyrics are paired with a catchy pop-electrobeat chorus and dance break that will leave this song on your mind for weeks.

I Don’t Care - 2ne1

Considered by many as a “classic K-pop” song, “I Don’t Care” is a throwback tune for many people. The song came out in 2009 to critical acclaim, topping the music show Music Bank for five weeks. Unlike the group’s previous songs—such as their debut song, “Fire”—which showcased their edgier side, this song shows a more emotional side of the group. Although the song isn’t exactly crying over the loss of a lover, the song does wrestle with the emotions of dealing with a cheating lover and shows the true vulnerability of relationships.

Find all these tracks online with our weekly Spotify playlist at observer.case.edu

The emoji set both expands on the current existing emoji, adding various pairings of same-sex couples, as well as introduces new emoji such as guide dogs, a man and a woman in a wheelchair, blood drops, a sloth, an onion and an ice cube.

The Good

This new set of emoji is thought by many as a positive step toward increased representation for underrepresented minorities, especially the LGBT community, women and those with disabilities.

The new emoji set expands on the couple emoji by introducing a variety of skin tones across all gender pairings, as well as gender-neutral emoji for individuals who do not identify with the gender binary. This move has been applauded by many people who call for more representation of LGBT people of color.

A “drop of blood” emoji has been added to the emoji lineup with the new update. The emoji comes after lobbying by Plan International UK, a U.K.-based children’s and girls’ rights advocacy group, in an effort to de-stigmatize menstruation.

“Emojis play a crucial role in our digital and emotional vocabulary, transcending cultural and country barriers. A period emoji can help normalize periods in everyday conversation,” said Carmen Barlow, digital strategy and development manager at Plan UK, in a statement.

Another group that gained major representation in this update are those with disabilities. In its proposal for emoji representation, Apple noted that “adding emojis emblematic to users’ life experiences helps foster a diverse culture that is inclusive of disability. Emojis are a universal language and a powerful tool for communication, as well as a form of self-expression, and can be used not only to represent one’s own personal experience, but also to show support for a loved one.”

The Bad

Emoji are mainly used to communicate messages through the small cartoons, and thus, the emoji that are added should be commonly used. Emoji such as the Mate, a caffeine-infused tea consumed in South America, and the straight razor don’t seem to have much use in daily conversation and should not be

included in the list of the emoji added. Instead, the Unicode Consortium should introduce more emoji that the public would regularly use.

Another issue is that some of the generic emoji are poorly designed. For

instance, the faces of the three emoji of people in the wheelchair look flat, even though their face is seen from the side. This is especially noticeable when compared to other emoji facing from the side, such as the man and woman walking emoji.

Additionally, the meaning of the emoji should be clear by looking at it. The newly introduced falafel emoji looks like potato. According to Jewish food website “The Nosher,” the falafel emoji “bears little resemblance to the deep-fried chickpeas we know and love.” Some of their staff members suggested that the emoji look like “German marzipan potatoes”.

However, it is important to note that many software companies, like Google, will produce their own version of these generic emoji, so these design issues shouldn’t be a problem in the long run.

The Downright Weird

One emoji that has received criticism online is the newly introduced pinching hand emoji. According to Emojipedia, the emoji is “used to suggest that something is small, or to gesture a small amount.”

Many around the world, however, are convinced that the emoji specifically refers to the inadequate size of male genitalia. In an interview with Buzzfeed News, Emojipedia founder Jeremy Burge admits that the presumption is valid. “In context, having an emoji … to refer to a small amount of something seems like it might be helpful,” said Burge. “But I can definitely see how the gesture out of context does seem to imply a man’s small package.”

Although the emoji have been approved by the Unicode Consortium and the data files have been published, the Unicode Consortium will not release Unicode 12.0 until March 2019. Unicode 12.0 will contain code points that allow software producers such as Apple to add these emoji to their lineup. After the code release, companies will start adding the new emoji to their lineups.

The good, the bad and the downright weird of Unicode 12.0

“But I can definitely see how the gesture out of context does seem to imply a man’s small package.”

- Emojipedia founder Jeremy Burge on the implied meaning of the pinching hand emoji

“Games of Thrones” in space

Henry Bendon Staff Reporter

On Friday, Feb. 8, all three seasons of “The Expanse” appeared on Amazon Prime. “The Expanse” is based on a book series by James S.A. Corey, the pen name for Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, who also write for the show. The books and show are set in a future in which a United Nations-governed Earth and a militaristic Mars are at odds with each other, each drawing resources from the asteroid belt, a region with a splintered identity of its own.

The entire solar system has existed for years in a Cold War style arms buildup between Earth, Mars and the Outer Planets Alliance (OPA), a coalition of militant groups that advocate for the rights of the citizens of the asteroid belt. Their uneasy peace comes to a crashing halt as the series begins, however, starting with an ice trawler carrying the main characters of the show—who are off-ship responding to an emergency beacon—being destroyed by nuclear weapons by a mysterious stealth ship.

From this point, which occurs about 10 minutes into the first episode, the show gets so complicated that it makes more sense to just watch it. This sentiment is shared by many others, who responded to the show’s cancellation after season three by starting a Change.org peti-

tion that received almost 139,000 signatures asking for Netflix or Amazon to jump in and save the show. The petition, aided by several science fiction heavyweights, including “A Song of Ice and Fire” author George R.R. Martin, was successful, as Amazon announced last May that it had successfully purchased the rights to the show.

The story of “The Expanse’s” home network is almost as complicated as the show itself. The first three seasons aired on Syfy, a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, but their contract was only for first run broadcasts. Syfy did not manage to secure streaming video or international rights—international rights went to Netflix, and that put enough pressure on the show’s first run success numbers that a season three ratings decline forced Syfy to kill the show.

This opened the door for Amazon to get a second shot at securing the program, which is a favorite of CEO Jeff Bezos. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Bezos was upset the first time Amazon missed out of the show’s rights, and it was with visible glee that he personally announced the show’s revival last year.

Season four will have 10 episodes and is scheduled to be released some time this year. Until then, the first three seasons are streaming for free on Amazon Prime, and there is a lot of catching up to do.

This summer, I’m going to:

Take CWRU Summer Session courses

Conduct research in a lab/library/studio

Prepare for the MCAT/GRE/LSAT

Learn another language

Write my novel/play/article

Intern or work for

Listen to live music

Catch a baseball game

Spend time on the lakefront

Think Summer 2019

summer.case.edu

Apply for 2019-20 financial aid, including Summer 2019, by March 1

(What are you thinking of doing this summer?)

Registration begins: March 25 for graduate students April 1 for undergraduate students April 9 for for visiting and non-degree students

Tuition for courses numbered 100-399 is half the price of fall and spring semesters

Summer Session 2019

May Term: May 13 – May 31

8-week session: June 3 – July 29

5-week session: June 3 – July 5

4-week session (1): June 3 – June 28

6-week session: June 17 – July 29

4-week session (2): July 8 – August 2

Monday nights at Case Western Reserve University are usually slow and uneventful, bogged down by work and fatigue. But this week, almost everyone on campus suddenly found themselves wide awake thanks to a series of Rave alerts.

At approximately 12:16 a.m., multiple people around campus reported hearing shots fired. While there was initially wild speculation as to where they came from, students on campus were sent texts telling them to either shelter in place or seek shelter immediately. A few minutes later, an email sent similar but more specific instructions, including that doors should be barricaded and lights turned off. The reports of shots fired were not confirmed for another eight minutes, but until the all clear was given at 12:44 a.m., campus remained in total lockdown.

It was an incident that, of course, brought back memories of the shooting that took place the previous semester outside of Phi Delta Theta. However, there was a critical difference that

Commending alert improvement time

especially differentiated the two.

Instead of a relatively long period of time between the incident and the security alert, the entirety of campus was informed of a potential active shooter only a few minutes after gunshots were heard. While little was known regarding what was actually occurring, everyone was aware of possible danger in the area and knew to remain indoors.

After last semester’s shooting, CWRU Security received criticism for what was seen as an inadequate response. The initial report of shots fired after the incident came much too late, and little information was given regarding where they had been heard. After the fact, it was revealed that one of the assailants had exchanged fire with University Circle Police near Uptown. A Facebook Live session with University President Barbara Snyder did indicate CWRU wished to implement greater security measures across campus, but also disclosed a number of thenunknown inadequacies, such as the existence of only four Safe Rides at the time.

The state of these improvements took

a small hit in legitimacy in early January, when an email detailed a failure to alert campus to reports of shots fired. In it, Frank Demes, executive director of Public Safety, both apologized and ensured that measures would be taken to prevent another lack of notification.

Given the rapidness of Monday’s response, it is safe to say CWRU has learned from its past errors. An email the following morning from CWRU Police listed the first reports of shots fired coming at 12:13 a.m., which meant that an alert to all of campus was sent a mere minutes later. This is a dramatic improvement over the close to 40-minute gap between incident and Rave alert during the shooting of the previous semester. While the university stressed accuracy of information as its reason for a delay in informing students last November, it is safe to say that the near-immediate decision to send an alert was much preferred.

But while the infrastructure for student security is certainly stronger, there could still be minor improvements when it comes to presentation and quantity of information given to

students.

The Rave messages received were highly ambiguous and startled many around campus. It was unclear what the degree of danger was, or what was causing it. The follow-up email only exacerbated concerns, as it made whatever might be occurring seem more anomalous. A series of clarifying messages were sent later, but there was a period of time that was anxiety-inducing for many, and the exact location of the incident was not given until the next morning. In the future, it would be nice to get pieces of information that might cut down on panic.

However, it can still be said that the university handled reporting of the situation much better than in the past. Even though there appears to have been no present danger, there could have been many more problems had students been roaming around unaware of a potential safety hazard.

Altogether, it’s a step in the right direction and will hopefully lead us toward being an even safer, more prepared campus.

Searching for an identity through history

Despite the best efforts of this university’s marketing department, the identity of Case Western Reserve University is hard to pin down.

On all of the logos, as well as the seal, of Case Western Reserve University, a year of establishment is listed: 1826. The year 1826 even appears in one of the most recent additions to the CWRU campus in an unexpected place, as the name of the personalized salad station in the food court in Tinkham Veale University Center. Subtract 1,000 from the year and you get 826. The name of the eatery? 8Twenty6.

But why does the university trace its history back to that specific year? It’s because, of the schools that eventually formed CWRU, the first founded was Western Reserve College in 1826.

Yet at that time in the early 19th century, Western Reserve was the only school established that would eventually form CWRU. And it wasn’t even in Cleveland but rather Hudson, Ohio. The founding of the Case School of Applied Sciences, which became the Case Institute of Technology, was in 1880. Case Tech, as it was also known, federated with Western Reserve University decades later.

The school as we know it today, Case

Western Reserve University, formed from that federation in 1967. However, even that statement isn’t entirely true. Until 1988, alumni still received degrees from their respective schools. Starting in 1989, after the merging and restructuring of the undergraduate colleges, all undergraduate diplomas finally read “Case Western Reserve University.”

As an engineering student, I often hear the school simply referred to as Case. Whether it’s from alumni, the official alumni magazine, my engineering honors fraternity or just looking at some of the old signage on buildings, I both see and hear about the greatness of Case.

But I don’t just go to Case. I also take classes in the College of Arts and Sciences, the spiritual and often literal descendant of Western Reserve University. Even I struggle to identify the school I attend. I want to be associated with the rigor and prestige of a Case education, but I also don’t want to disrespect the other institutions contained within this university.

It’s no wonder many other students struggle to name the school they attend when returning home and speaking with relatives. Without knowing the history behind the 31 characters that make up the name, it’s hard to fathom why an

The Observer is the weekly undergraduate student newspaper of Case Western Reserve University. Established in 1969, The Observer reports news affecting students and provides an editorial forum for the university community. Unsigned editorials are typically written by the opinion editor but reflect the majority opinion of the senior editorial staff. Opinion columns are the views of their writers and not necessarily of The Observer staff. For advertising information, contact The Observer at (216) 302-4442 or e-mail observer-ads@case.edu.

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institution of higher learning would give itself such a long identifier.

The university itself even tried to confront the problem by simplifying down to just Case in 2006. After all, that is how most Clevelanders refer to the entire school. The effort went over poorly with alumni, mostly those associated with Western Reserve University. A blurb in Cleveland Scene said, “Case Western Reserve’s alumni are curtailing their donations over dissatisfaction with the college’s use of the brand name ‘Case.’”

Perhaps in response to the multimillion dollar snafu, the university’s Editorial Style Guide now states, “Do not use “Case” or “Case Western” in copy, as these names do not represent our university’s full history.” That is also the policy we follow at The Observer.

However, the university does fail to represent its full history.

In April 2018, CWRU hosted Legacy Week: Better Together, a week-long celebration of the 50-year anniversary of the federation of Case Institute of Technology and Western Reserve University. The event was highly publicized. Yet there was no universitywide celebration of the 190th anniversary of the founding of Western Reserve in 2016. I doubt there will be a bicentennial

celebration in 2026 unless there is a surge of donations or support from alumni and students.

While our history is a big part of our identity, it isn’t the only factor. It also depends on feeling. Perhaps, it’s best to identify yourself differently in different situations. For instance, in job interviews with engineering firms, I can simply state I am a Case graduate. But when I’m reminiscing about my time on The Observer with students from all majors, I can claim the leadership of the student newspaper of Case Western Reserve University.

Perhaps I shouldn’t even try to pin down an identity. When I walk across the stage to receive my diploma in May 2020, I’ll be with all of my fellow graduates, regardless of their school. We’ll have all achieved the same goal. And when we leave, we’ll all have a Bachelor’s degree from a school that traces its history back to 1826. Whether we call it Case Western Reserve University, CWRU, Case or some other combination of those four words, it’s all the same school.

Despite the solid history, the identity remains as hard to pin down as ever.

EDWARD J. KEREKES Executive Editor

news designer LESLIE SERN

KonMari isn’t minimalism and for good reason

Zhu’s Clues

Caroline Zhu

Following the release of her Netflix show, “Tidying Up with Marie Kondo,” Japanese organizing consultant and author Marie Kondo made a sudden return to pop culture. But the response to her show and her philosophy reflects a distinctly Western take on Eastern cultures and minimalism.

While Kondo’s philosophy has been compared to the movement of minimalism in the Western world, the two come from very different sources and ultimately create different environments.

The KonMari method of tidying, created by Kondo, centers around five categories familiar to those who watch her Netflix series: clothing, books, papers, komono (miscellaneous items) and sentimental objects. Kondo also has a series of rules to accompany the organizational categories, which center around the mindset one approaches tidying with. She ends with the question, “does it spark joy?” which has quickly become a cultural touchstone on the Internet.

As Kondo’s television series gained traction, the uniqueness of her design philosophy within the context of the West became increasingly clear. Although both arise from similar concepts of decluttering one’s life to achieve a measure of contentment and happiness, the two do not share the same origins nor the same effects upon individuals. KonMari has its roots in Shintoism and its focus on the flow of energy which is visible in the connections between the individual and a possession that KonMari prompts people to evaluate. Conversely, minimalism is focused on the individual and attempting to free oneself from the restrictions of material goods.

While they seem similar, consider the problems that the two

philosophies are trying to solve. Minimalism can be read as a response to Western wasteful materialism and reliance upon capitalism, where KonMari is based in Eastern spiritualism and represents a respect for our possessions that has no Western equivalent. However, even in message, minimalism struggles to maintain its original motivations, as the movement has largely been coopted by the wealthy in America for its aesthetics and convenience.

One of the major criticisms of minimalism is the implicit classism embedded within the movement, which is not present in Kondo’s philosophy. In minimalism, individuals are prompted to divorce themselves from the need for material items, involving keeping only what is necessary in the household. However, the definition of “necessary” differs from high-income to lowincome households, particularly in its relation to the context-specific definition of “disposable.” These are concepts inextricable from income, as low-income families cannot

dispose of goods as easily by buying and replacing goods as high-income families. To take a simple example, where a low-income family may opt to buy pens in bulk to save money, high-income families are able to buy pens as necessary, with little regard for the additional costs incurred.

While Western minimalism cannot be separated from issues of income disparity, Kondo’s Konmari method is accessible to all, as it relies upon the individual evaluating their relationship with the objects in their household. Specific forms of Western minimalism also involve this process, but often not to the level that Kondo prompts individuals to consider their connection to the items they own.

Her question, “does it spark joy?” has been repeated in pop culture to almost redundant effect, but provokes genuine thought from the individual. Her explanations of what to let go of are simple and almost economical in nature: If something once gave you joy and no longer does so, there is no need to feel guilt over removing it from the house—the fact that it

somehow brought you happiness means that it has fulfilled its purpose. Ultimately, Kondo’s method is best described as seen on her website: “empathetic.” While Western audiences have found her dialogue with inanimate objects to be childish or strange, her gratitude towards the objects in her home is vital in cultivating a system of connections built upon respect in the household. Where Western minimalism involves a system of possessions that can only be truly achieved by those who find everything disposable, Kondo’s method is entirely based upon that which is not disposable, which has a strong enough connection to the person to make them keep it close. It is a kinder philosophy than any other and must maintain its own identity without taking on the connotations of minimalism.

Caroline Zhu is a first-year computer science and economics major with a deep and abiding love for Shakespeare. She is currently asleep and cannot take any messages.

Zen and the art of 80 hours of pizzicato

Assorted Dastardly Schemes

Steve Kerby

I play the bass. No, not the bass guitar, the old-fashioned bass. No, not the jazz bass, the classical string bass.

It’s the boring one, though it can take solace in being the grooviest instrument in the string orchestra. Come on, are violas really any competition?

For most of the past eight years of serious orchestral playing, I’ve been the only bassist in several small string orchestras. From the upperlevel orchestra at my high school to the Case Camerata Chamber Orchestra here at Case Western Reserve University, I’ve spent most concerts and rehearsals strumming along happily in the back, all by myself.

I’m the butt of many jokes about lacking a stand partner, and you don’t want to know how many times I use the old “first chair and last chair” line. Being the only bassist in a small string orchestra has its perks, and I’ve taken a lot of life lessons from my time bringing up the rear.

The bass is a core part in a string orchestra, providing the bedrock of

the lower register of sound upon which everything else is built. Bassists keep tempo, because sometimes when the conductor wants to go one way, the orchestra wants to go another way. Then, the bass gets to negotiate a truce, a job that falls squarely on my shoulders as the solo bassist.

Playing the bass might not garner hundreds of virtuosic solos, but it’s an important job. It’s the subtle vitalism of bass parts that informs my first few lessons of orchestra life.

It’s important to give 100 percent when other people are depending on you. When the other musicians lean on bassists to anchor the acoustical output of the group, the bassist’s job becomes even more important. This isn’t limited to music. Responsibility is a promise, especially when you’re the only person who can fulfill your duties. I don’t have backup when I’m the only bass, making my reliability crucial.

Just because a job isn’t celebrated doesn’t mean it’s not important. There’s a lot of satisfaction in putting solid effort into an endeavor that supports other people but isn’t itself paraded around. The most important jobs in our society are often the least celebrated. I am

not audacious enough to compare playing the bass to collecting trash or directing traffic, because playing the bass is much easier, but I can empathize.

Sometimes, you have to make your own fun. Bass parts are hideously boring compared to any other stringed instrument, sometimes sporting hundreds of measures of silence in a short piece. I’ve completed entire songs playing nothing more exciting than a quarter note. You’d think I’d die of boredom, but I’ve learned the art of making my own fun. Combine the groove of the bass with the freedom from stress and easy music, and you’ve got a recipe for enjoying a fulfilling musical experience. Pizzicato, plucking the strings instead of bowing them, normally a recipe for boredom and pain, is a conduit into easy bass-line enjoyment.

Even in famous, exciting pieces of music, there are moments where I can make art out of simplicity. In the second movement of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, there are a few notes that I call “Bass Love Notes.” I think they’re A-flat quarter notes. These notes are nothing more than chords at the ends of phrases, the most standard fare for stringed

musicians. To me, though, they are an opportunity to infuse emotion and meaning into otherwise bland sections.

Finally, music is supposed to be enjoyable to everyone involved, the audience and musicians alike. I’ve never had the stomach for playing solos. I played a single concerto at a competition at my high school, won third place, and called it quits. It was an amazing experience, but very stressful, and I connect with music most when I have a solid supporting role.

Some classical music isn’t palatable to the general public, even though it provides opportunities for dazzling technical work by a soloist. Music belongs to everyone, soloist and bassist alike.

These are the lessons I’ve learned from my admittedly modest musical aspirations. Still, doing a simple job well and having fun supporting the rest of the orchestra is incredibly satisfying to me, and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

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

Courtesy of RISE/Flickr

Marie Kondo’s design philosophy has garnered considerable internet fame. But while many are labeling it minimalist, this may misrepresent her views on household posessions.

Love is revolutionary

I Spit My Truth and It’s Brown

Viral Mistry

Most of my single friends think Valentine’s Day is a joke. A shallow holiday exploited by corporations to convince us that love conveniently means buying the products they make.

Meanwhile, my friends in relationships think Valentine’s Day is just stressful.

“What do I get?”; “Where should we go to eat?”; “Should I make something versus buy something?”; “Oh no the restaurant I think they would like is completely booked” and “Are flowers and chocolates too cliche?”

Where did we go wrong as a society?

A day meant to celebrate love has become one full of personal misery and shallow consumerism. Not to mention, it’s become unavoidable. This time of year, every store and commercial is talking about how to make this Valentine’s Day special for the person you love.

I can see why my single friends are so pessimistic about love; the endless barrage of meaningless pink and red hearts everywhere is exhausting and reinforces the idea that love is a transaction between two people. But it’s really not. Love is one of the most powerful human emotions there is, and it deserves to be reclaimed.

I understand that sentiment can feel empty, but forgive me for being a hopeless romantic. Growing up, I watched Bollywood movies that showed love as the greatest force in the world. The Bollywood movies of the late 1990s and early 2000s taught me that love between people is a connection so powerful that can dissolve all other divisions. I grew up to stories of people falling in love in spite of class, race, religious and cultural differences and using their love for different people to dismantle systems that divide us. Is it a surprise I see so much power in love?

I have been fortunate to be in a loving relationship with my partner for over three years now. It’s the first serious, adult relationship I’ve ever been in. It’s one that has molded and shaped me over the years, one that has taught me an incalculable amount about myself. It’s helped to give me a more powerful, all-encompassing understanding of love, for her and for others.

That understanding of love inspires everything I do, from my passion for my work, my passion for my ideals, to my love for my friends and family, to my love for myself in my own skin. Love gives us the strength to approach each and every day with a renewed vigor for ourselves and for humanity. It’s spirit can be attacked by a relentless consumerism trying to make it devoid of any meaning

Aisha’s Law could save lives

Leo Thuman

Last week, Ohio House Rep. Janine Boyd announced that she intends to draft legislation to help prevent domestic violence. The law is named for the late Aisha Fraser, a Shaker Heights teacher who was violently stabbed to death, presumably by her ex-husband, Lance Mason. Mason is a former Ohio state representative and senator, Cuyahoga County judge and Frank Jackson ally.

The law seeks reform of Ohio’s domestic violence statutes to identify and protect people who are at a high risk of abuse. Prior to her violent killing, Mason pled guilty to charges of attempted felonious assault and domestic violence against Fraser. Her injuries were so severe that she won a civil settlement of $150,000 for reconstructive surgery.

Despite the ferocity of the assault and the grave nature of Fraser’s injuries, courts failed to deny Mason visitation rights to his children. Police stated that Mason stabbed his ex-wife outside his home after she had dropped the children off for a court-mandated visit.

Aisha’s Law offers reforms that could have saved Fraser’s life. Firstly, it implements protocols based on the “11 Questions” assessment. This process evaluates probability of further serious domestic violence through a questionnaire designed to identify risk factors. One affirmative answer of the first three questions would trigger a protocol referral. Of the remaining eight, protocols would be enacted if four are answered affirmatively. Following referral, victims are provided resources for housing, safety and rehabilitation.

This process has proven successful elsewhere, most notably in Oklahoma when the House of Representatives

overwhelmingly passed a similar bill in 2014.

Additionally, this legislation would make it impossible for plea deals to be given to domestic abusers with violent records. Convicted offenders will receive longer sentences and less court-permitted contact with their victims. Passing this legislation will send a message that Ohio will protect victims and justly punish abusers.

I’m confident that Boyd will be joined enthusiastically by her Republican colleagues. These laws tend to be popular with conservatives: Oklahoma and Indiana saw such policies enacted when Republicans were in the legislative majority and the Governor’s office, after all. Further, the current administration seems dedicated to tackling this issue. Gov. Mike DeWine has taken laudable initiative to prevent domestic violence; in his first weeks in office, he signed an executive order to protect state employees who are at risk of domestic violence.

Eliminating leniency towards abusers is a valiant cause. Yet, more must be done. For one, high mandatory minimums sentences should be instituted to punish offenses. To increase reporting and reduce abuse, a public relations campaign should be mounted to educate Ohioans on available resources for victims and the consequences offenders face. Laws must be strengthened to ensure faithbased and localized resources are available to victims, providing them needed aspects of family, spiritual, and community support.

Disregarding current deficiencies, Boyd’s proposal will demand the strong backing of the General Assembly. Such legislation will prevent domestic abuse and punish abusers. For this reason, it should be a major priority for the General Assembly in 2019 and beyond.

Leo Thuman, Class of 2020

or context, but love pushes on. People can try to tell us who and what we can love, but their efforts are futile. Love only knows humanity in their infinite capacity for love.

Valentine’s Day may be over now, and maybe that’s a relief for some of you. But remember, love isn’t a static moment, a singular gift or a night out. Love is perhaps the strongest social experience humans face. Let’s start treating love like what it

is: crazy, empowering, mind-boggling, terrifying, energizing. But most importantly, revolutionary.

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.

Democrats

face

an oversaturated 2020 primary

Christian Reyna Case Embraced

Whether we like it or not, the 2020 presidential campaign race has started. The Democratic party is desperate to win back the Oval Office, and I am in favor of their efforts. Personally, I believe President Donald Trump hasn’t done a great job, only causing greater divisiveness in our country and generally acting poorly as a leader. It’s time for another party to take charge for a little while.

At the time of this writing, 11 Democrats have officially announced that they are running to be president of the United States and many others are considering a run. Although this is a large list of Democrats running, there are a couple who stand out most to me. As a result of the sheer number of choices, I won’t be able to cover them all.

First is Sen. Cory Booker from New Jersey. He is one of the big names on the list. Recently, he has focused on criminal justice reform and has a good fundraising base. He is a gifted orator and kindhearted man but has some imperfections during his time as the mayor of Newark, New Jersey.

Julian Castro from Texas, the housing secretary under President Barack Obama, is also running. Some of his main platforms are universal pre-kindergarten as well as pushing for immigration reform. He is a big Hispanic candidate but may have some difficulty fundraising in Texas if former-Rep. Beto O’Rourke also runs.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand from New York is one of the leading liberal voices in the Senate. She was the first senator to publicly call for the abolishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. She has a conservative history but has leaned more and more left recently, which may actually cause problems regarding ideological unification.

Sen. Kamala Harris from California is recognizable to many Democrats. She

is a powerful senator whose questioning of cabinet and Supreme Court nominees made her a household name. Her plan for a middle-class tax cut may gain her some momentum from middle-class voters, but being a California Democrat will probably hurt her chances of getting moderate independents to vote for her.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren from Massachusetts is another high profile name. She is one of the most recognizable Democrats in the country who is not afraid to fight Trump. She is a major opponent of big corporations but does have a weakness in her recent claims of her Native American heritage, which has only incurred more of Trump’s wrath.

These are the current big names who have officially announced a presidential run. Other figures such as former Vice President Joe Biden, O’Rourke and Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) may enter the race.

Despite the wide variety of candidates, I think it is a horrible idea for so many Democrats to run at once. Having too many people run distracts voters. Voters will feel overwhelmed during the primaries, and it leads to them voting without having done their research.

If the Democrats want to have a winning chance, they need to quickly figure out who has a genuine chance to win the Oval Office. Personally, I believe it may come down to Biden, Harris and O’Rourke.

I believe these three individuals have enough political power and good platforms to beat Trump in the 2020 general election. Whoever gets the Democratic nomination, I hope he or she runs a good campaign with goals that will benefit all Americans.

Only time will tell, though, what will come from this list in the coming months.

Christian Reyna is a first-year biomedical engineering major who is also planning on obtaining a Spanish minor. He absolutely loves dogs and probably procrastinated in writing this article.

Courtesy of fanpop.com

The most famous scene from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995). The famous lines from this scene go “I’ve learned this since seeing you, sweetheart, that love is crazy, sweetheart.”

Letter to the Editor

A new football league begins

The Alliance aims to supplement the NFL

Andrew Ford Staff Reporter

The football void of February to August is normally a waiting game for pigskin lovers; while the NFL Draft and free agency are fun, they don’t carry the same joy of actually watching a game.

A new professional football league is attempting to fill that hole with a product that will attract NFL fans who want to continue watching the uniquely American sport.

Co-founded by Charlie Ebersol, a wealthy filmmaker, and Bill Polian, a former NFL executive who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the Alliance of American Football played its inaugural regular season games on Feb. 9 and 10. Those involved believe the Alliance will become a successful business venture.

The Alliance is not designed to be a competitor to the NFL. While earning a profit is obviously the main goal, from a purely football perspective the idea is to serve as a developmental league for the NFL. The program hopes to offer players who could not make it in the league a second chance to build and showcase their skills in hopes of earning an NFL contract. The Alliance is filled with former NFL coaches to ensure that players are learning what it takes to prosper at

the highest level.

Delving more into the concrete details, the Alliance features eight teams in eight cities across the southern portion of the country. Among the rosters there are some notable names, like former Heisman Trophy running back Trent Richardson, who never found success in the NFL, and former second round quarterback Christian Hackenberg. The majority of players, however, are likely unrecognizable for even the most devoted football fans. All players are given a three-year, $250,000 non-guaranteed contract with an opt-out clause to go to the NFL.

The rules are almost exactly the same as the NFL’s with a few exceptions. The game is slightly shorter, creating a more fast paced game than the NFL version. To shorten the length of broadcasts, there are no TV timeouts and fewer commercials. The biggest changes regard the kicking game. There are no kickoffs or extra points; when a team scores, they must go for two, and after scoring the ball is simply placed on the 25-yard line. Field goals still count, so kickers are not forgotten entirely.

After watching every game of the opening weekend, a couple takeaways stood out. First, capable quarterbacks are extremely rare. Even against lesser competition, most of the quarterbacks struggled to hit open targets. But that

leads to another takeaway: the offensive line play was embarrassingly bad. I understand that the teams have only had limited practice time, but it was atrocious how few running lanes there were and how many times quarterbacks were rushed to throw. I am sure every coach will be hammering offensive line prepa-

dream job added a level of intensity to the game that is not always found in the NFL. From a quality of play perspective, there’s obviously room for improvement, but overall I liked it.

Perhaps the best entertainment feature of the Alliance is microphones. Almost everybody involved with the game is fitted with a microphone. The players, the coaches, the referees and even the replay officials are audible. The transparency of hearing the replay official talk through what they see was immaculate. Listening to coaches instruct their players brought you inside the game; the only downside was the somewhat frequent silence when the station had to mute out cursing. I would love to see the NFL adopt some of these entertainment changes because they undoubtedly bring the viewer closer to the game.

ration heading into the second week. A third, more positive conclusion is that the games were actually enjoyable to watch. Sure, it wasn’t NFL quality, but even given the poor play from the offensive lines and lack of quarterback accuracy, I loved watching a new, different football league. Plus, knowing that these guys are fighting for their

Yet, despite its success on its first weekend, the Alliance still has much to prove. Will it have staying power? Will viewers continue to tune in to a secondary football league? Will any players actually succeed in making it to the NFL? All of these questions will be answered soon, and they will determine the viability of the Alliance.

If you’re interested in checking it out for yourself, week two begins Sat. Feb. 16, when the Birmingham Iron will host the Salt Lake Stallions at 2 p.m.

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“Knowing that these guys are fighting for their dream job added a level of intensity to the game that is not always found in the NFL.”

- Andrew Ford, on the Alliance

First-year swimmer remembers the “sweet” moments

Niko Kamlet Staff Reporter

Daniella Rupert is a first-year student and freestyle swimmer on the Case Western Reserve University’s women’s swim team. In just her first year swimming at the collegiate level, she has already earned multiple first place titles at meets, including against Baldwin Wallace. When out of the pool, Rupert is pursuing a biomedical engineering degree and has recently become involved in Kappa Alpha Theta.

What is your favorite part of being on the swimming team? Why?

My favorite part is the people on the team. I have met so many wonderful, driven people who I have come to know and love. I have definitely made some lifelong friends.

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

my arm so I joined a summer league team for rehab. I did not like swimming at first, I kept saying that I was going to stop after the end of the season. Then, I had my first meet, and I won my heat in one of my races and got a lollipop. I loved that feeling of competition and the possibility of winning, so I haven’t looked back since.

Do you have any meets that you remember being particularly special? Why?

My first college swim meet was super special for me. It was an away meet versus John Carroll [University] and we had such a good time because we were all swimming really well and were really cheering loudly for one another. I also had a concussion the week before, so I was super nervous [about] how I was going to compete but the meet ended up being a blast.

Aside from swimming, what else are you involved in on campus? Can you explain what you do in those

organizations?

I am just getting involved with Greek life at Kappa Alpha Theta since I am still currently a new member. I am also a swim team representative for CASA (Case Association of Student Athletes) and slightly involved with the Newman Center.

Why are you majoring in biomedical engineering? What interests you about it?

[My first] year [of high school], I loved my biology class [and was] thinking I was going to be a biology major. I also ended up loving my physics class when I took it my junior year [of high school]. I think that [I chose] biomedical engineering because it would be the perfect combination of my love for physics and biology, as well as my love for art and being creative.

What are your favorite free time activities? Why?

I love hanging out with my friends, either watching movies or going exploring around town. I also love reading and hanging out with

What is your favorite quote or what inspires you?

“May today there be peace within. May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith in yourself and others. May you use the gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you. May you be content with yourself just the way you are. Let this knowledge settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us.” -Mother Theresa

Men’s basketball loses heartbreaker at Brandeis

Sanjay Annigeri Staff Reporter

The Case Western Reserve University men’s basketball team played back-toback road games last weekend, losing to New York University (NYU) 81-71 on Friday, Feb. 8, and losing a nail biter against Brandeis University in overtime 71-66 on Sunday, Feb. 10.

Second-year guard Ignas Masiulionis and first-year forward Ryan Newton paced the team throughout the game against NYU. Masiulionis kept the team close with 11 points in the first half.

CWRU jumped out to an early 10 point lead in the first five minutes after a layup by third-year forward Michael Hollis.

However, NYU recovered, putting together a scoring run that ultimately led to them taking the lead with around four minutes left in the first half. They would take this lead into halftime with a score of 41-32.

The Spartans kept the game within striking distance in the second half. Free throws by second-year guard Michael Volkening brought CWRU within one, with a score of 64-63 and just over four minutes left in the game.

NYU ended up increasing their lead to double digits, and CWRU was unable to make a final push, leading to the loss.

Against Brandeis, the Spartans were able to battle hard in a back-and-forth second half and force overtime.

CWRU trailed by 10 early, but clawed their way back to cut into Brandeis’ lead. With just under four minutes left in the first half, the team put together a quick 6-0 run off of three Brandeis turnovers to

bring them back to trailing one behind, 31-30. They went into halftime down 3430.

A Hollis three point play and a jump shot by Masiulionis gave the Spartans their first lead of the game 35-34, in the first two minutes of the second half.

The teams exchanged leads. With under eight minutes to play, third-year forward Connor Nally hit a three pointer to give CWRU a two point lead. He then hit another three with under seven minutes left to extend the Spartan lead to five points.

Brandeis came back to tie the game at 56 with under three minutes left and later took a one point lead on a free throw. The Spartans were unable to score for a span of two minutes and then turned the ball over with six seconds left in the game. Brandeis hit both free throws to make it a three point lead. With that limited time left, Newton was able to corral a loose ball at center court, take one dribble and launch a deep three pointer that went in. It tied the game at 59 and sent it to overtime.

Brandeis started the overtime period by taking the lead, but it was tied once again by Hollis and Volkening.

The Judges hit three more free throws in the span of just over two minutes, as both teams were unable to score from the field. Masiulionis hit two free throws with 17 seconds left, keeping the Spartans down one, 67-66. The Judges would hit four more free throws as CWRU was unable to score from the field.

The Spartans finished the week with two losses, bringing their overall season record to 9-13 and UAA record to 2-9.

The team will end its season with three conference home games, starting

with Emory University on Friday, Feb. 15 at 8 p.m. and the University of Rochester on Sunday, Feb. 17 at noon.

“[Emory and Rochester] are very well coached and have very good players,”

Head Coach Todd McGuinness said. “Emory plays at a very fast pace so we need to get back on defense and Rochester is very patient in the half court with a lot of cutting.”

Courtesy of Jon Schwartz

The Spartans faced two losses last weekend against NYU and Brandeis. They will finish their season with three conference home games.

Courtesy of CWRU Athletics my family.

Individual, relay successes stand out for Spartan track and field

Clair Nordt Sports Editor

The Case Western Reserve University men and women’s track and field teams sent a group to compete in the Mid-February Meet on Friday, Feb. 8. The event was hosted by Baldwin Wallace University in Berea, Ohio. The Spartans were able to finish the meet with a third place finish for the men and a sixth place finish for the women, both out of nine. The men scored 71 points and the women scored 62 points.

Highlights for the men include a second place finish by third-year Brian Holden in the weight throw with a mark of 13.31 meters. Second-year runner Eric Rachita also claimed a second-place victory after completing the 3,000-meter run in 9:07.28. Third-year Spartan Michael Klein and second-year teammate Thomas Patton both placed third in their respective events. Klein competed in the 5,000-meter run and crossed the finished line at 16:00.69 and Patton competed in the 800-meter run and finished with a time of 1:58.68.

For the women, fourth-year Spartan Maryellen Heebner took third in the 55-meter hurdles with a time of 9.30. First-year student Jana Fisher also placed third, as did fourth-year Hayley Kline. Fisher competed in the one-mile run, finishing with a time of 5:28.87 and Kline finished the 400-meter dash in 1:04.70.

On Saturday, the men and women’s teams traveled to Westerville, Ohio to compete in the 2019 AllOhio Indoor Championships at Otterbein University. The Spartan men ended the day with a fourth place

finish out of 18 competitors, and the women took fifth. The teams earned 70.5 and 63 points, respectively.

Contributing to the fourth place finish were second-year competitors Trey Razanauskas and Jordan Butler. Both Spartans took first place in their events. Razanauskas earned victory in the 5,000-meter run with a time 14:58.97, and Butler topped long jump with his mark of 6.77 meters. Third-year runner Michael Hradesky claimed second in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:57.43, and fourth-year Spartan Ananth Suresh took third in the triple jump with a jump of 13.35 meters.

The men also saw success in their relays. The distance medley relay composed of first-year students Logan Singer, Bryden Moxley and Daniel Grasing and Hradesky crossed the finish line in third with a time of 10:34.76. The 4x200-meter relay team also earned a third-place finish after completing the race with a time of 1:34.13. The team was made up of third-year Spartans Jonathan Haling and Darius Inzar, second-year student Musa Hakim Jr. and firstyear teammate Juan Perez. Haling, Hradesky, Perez and Singer worked together to claim the fifth-place spot in the 4x400-meter relay with a time of 3:31.98.

The Spartan women also finished the day with multiple placing finishes. Graduate student Cassandra Laios claimed victory in the weight throw with a mark of 18.05 meters. Her performance earned her the school record in the event. Laios had set the previous record last season at the All-Ohio indoor championships with a mark of 17.92 meters. In addition, Laios claimed first in the shot

Spartans bounce back on the road

David Chang Staff Reporter

The Case Western Reserve University women’s basketball team snapped their six game losing streak with a win over Brandeis University 67-55. The Spartans fell to New York University (NYU) 83-72 before their triumph.

Against NYU, the Spartans took the lead early on in the first quarter. A jumper by third-year guard Kendall McConico extended the lead to 7-2. CWRU held a one possession lead throughout the quarter until NYU guard Lauren Koyama scored a layup to claim the lead. NYU forward Katie Foos scored two threes to increase the deficit for the Spartans. Despite a three pointer made by first-year guard Abbey Lawrence, the Spartans were unable to regain the lead they had early on and the quarter ended 24-17.

Foos started red hot, scoring 15 points in the quarter alone.

The second quarter consisted of both teams trading baskets, with both teams shooting 61 percent from the field. The Spartans nearly evened the score at 35 following free throws by second-year forward Emma Cain with just under three minutes remaining, but NYU responded with a three. In the second half, NYU kept shooting threes, but fourth-year Spartan Hillary Hellman responded with two of her own, cutting the lead to six at 60-54. The climax of the quarter was an NYU player making a half-court shot. The Spar-

tans were unable to stop NYU’s consistent shooting.

The Violets maintained a double digit lead throughout the last quarter. NYU shot a ridiculous 57 percent from the field as a team.

“We played a mix up of man and zone, face guarded some players … Coach made a lot of good adjustments, but they still shot 48 percent from three,” said Hellmann.

Determined to end the dry spell, the Spartans clawed their way through a tough first quarter against Brandeis. Hellmann and graduate student forward Kara Hagemann opened the game with threes, but the Judges caught up 15-14 in the last two minutes of the first, before Cain made a buzzer beating jumper to tie the score.

Hellmann and Hageman continued to dominate, carrying the Spartans on a scoring run. Brandeis was unable to recover from the double-digit deficit. The Spartan’s defense held the Judges to a 29 percent field goal percentage.

Hellmann led the team with 20 points, eight rebounds and three blocks. Hagemann recorded 17 points, 11 rebounds and four steals on 6-for-11 shooting.

Hellmann said the team needs to continue to “focus on fighting for every possession, moving and passing the ball and being aggressive [on] offensive.”

The Spartans look to close out their season with a winning record at home, next competing against Emory University. CWRU hopes to break Emory’s six game win streak on Feb. 15 at 6 p.m.

put with a mark of 13.09 meters.

Additional highlights for the Spartan women include third-year student Madeline Lindemann who placed first in the 5,000-meter run after finishing the race in 17:52.89. Fourth-year runner Olivia Newman took third in the 400-meter dash, crossing the finish line at 59.98. The women’s relay teams also picked up some victories. The distance medley relay team finished second with a time of 12:50.52. Team members include third-year Spartan Vanessa Pasadyn, fourth-year runner Isabel

Torres-Padin and third-year teammates Shahed Eid and Maria King. For the 4x200-meter relay, Newman teamed with second-year student Julie Hines, third-year student Bari Love and first-year teammate Ana Scherf to earn fifth as well as a new school record with their time of 1:49.22. Newman, Hines, King and Scherf teamed up to cross the finish line in fourth at 4:12.37 in the 4x400-meter relay.

The Spartans will next head to Kent State University to compete at the Kent State Tune Up on Feb. 16.

Christopher Heerman/Observer

The Spartans competed at the Mid-February Meet and the All-Ohio indoor championships. Both individual victories and relay successes stand out among the highlights of the meets.

Wrestling makes history at UAA Championships Spartans take second at conference tournament

Andrew Ford Staff Reporter

The Case Western Reserve University wrestling team competed on Feb. 9 at home in the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championships. En route to a second place finish, the Spartans beat No. 17 New York University, their first team victory ever against a ranked opponent, but fell to No. 24 University of Chicago.

Third-year wrestler Andrew Hoover took home his second All-UAA wrestler award while first-year grappler Adam Kates earned UAA Rookie of the Year as well as an All-UAA honor. In addition, Head Coach Danny Song and his assistants won UAA Coaching Staff of the Year, the first time the Spartan staff has won the award since 1996.

“It’s a tribute to the guys,” Song said. In the match against NYU, Kates and Hoover both pinned their opponents. Fourth-year wrestler Brian McNamara

won his match via a tiebreaker. Thirdyear wrestler Alec Hoover claimed a victory by technical fall, and third-year grappler Isaac Collier sealed the victory with a pin of his own. The Spartans won 32-21.

However, Song did not want his team to relax after the huge victory; he wanted them to come out just as strong in their next match.

“I told the guys … we just climbed the mountain, we reached the summit, [now] we have to come down and reevaluate,”

he said.

The Spartans did not fare as well against Chicago, however. Andrew Hoover and Kates were the only CWRU wrestlers to win matches, both by decision. The day as a whole was successful.

“The little things we’ve been teaching were validated,” Song said in an interview with the UAA.

The Spartans now move on to the NCAA Central Regional Championships, held at Wabash College in Indiana on Feb. 22 and 23.

Spartan swimmers head to conference championship

Riley Simko Staff Reporter

The Case Western Reserve University swimming and diving teams are headed to Chicago to compete in the 2019 University Athletic Association (UAA) Swimming and Diving Championships. This year’s championships are hosted by the University of Chicago, one of the university’s top athletic rivals.

The championships kicked off on Wednesday night and will last through this Saturday, Feb. 16. They’ll be held

in the University of Chicago’s MyersMcLoraine Pool in the Ratner Athletics Center.

The Spartans will be competing against seven other teams: The University of Chicago, Carnegie Mellon University, Brandeis University, New York University, Washington University in St. Louis, University of Rochester and Emory University.

For both men’s and women’s teams, Emory University has won every Division III championship since 1999. Despite not taking any team wins at the UAA Championships in recent

years, the Spartans have seen stunning personal achievements. CWRU has claimed many individual titles throughout the years, including a few from fourth-year athlete Suhan Mestha.

Last year, Mestha took third in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 23.62 seconds and All-UAA honors in the 100-yard backstroke with another third place finish at 56.09 seconds. Mestha teamed up with second-year teammates Caitlyn VonFeldt and Vanya Ruppart and recent alumna Inez Moore.

In 2016, Spartan swimmer Con-

nor Farrell, then in his fourth year, was awarded diver of the year at the UAA Championships at the University of Rochester.

Last year, both the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams captured sixth place overall in the meet. As of press time, the men’s team is in fourth place and the women’s has yet to compete.

The swimming events kicked off on Thursday with preliminary heats. The CWRU swimmers will continue to compete until the final events close on Saturday.

Courtesy of Kevin Hulsmann

First-year wrestler Adam Kates takes on an opponent. Kates earned the title of UAA Rookie of the Year as well as an All-UAA honor last weekend at the UAA Championships.