The Observer, Volume LIV, Issue 6, 9/30/22

Healthy holidays: Up-to-date campus vaccine and booster information

Sarah Karkoff Staff Writer

Flu season is nearly upon us, and as the seasons continue to change and the cold forces people indoors, people are more likely to get sick. Fortunate ly, Case Western Reserve University offers free vaccinations to the student body and faculty.

For walk-in COVID-19 vaccine doses, a vaccine schedule is available. They are mainly offering dates for the primary doses, but bivalent doses are available on select days. Members of the CWRU community can ensure they qualify for the updated bivalent booster by checking the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Those who have had the primary series are gen erally eligible as long as it has been at least 60 days since their last vacci nation. Wear a mask and bring a vac cination card to these appointments. Individual appointments can also be scheduled if there are no dates or times available on the vaccine sched ule. By using myhealthconnect.case. edu—or by calling 216-368-1964— CWRU members have the option to create specific appointments. If it is impossible to get vaccinated at the CWRU sites during open hours, CVS, Walgreens and Walmart are currently

offering booster doses.

The flu vaccine, which fortifies the body against four different influ enza viruses, is available on campus as well. The CDC advises that every one receives the flu vaccine annually. Much like the COVID-19 vaccine, it is important to get immunized every flu season to prevent flu-related com plications. Not only does the vaccine diminish the risks of getting sick, but it also helps reduce the negative short-term and long-term effects on the body. Flu-related complications include bacterial pneumonia, ear in fections, sinus infections and worsen ing of chronic medical conditions.

CWRU offers walk-in flu vaccines; all that’s required is for community members to present their CWRU ID to receive an influenza immuniza tion. All of the dates and locations are available on the University Health and Counseling Services website. Sched uled appointments are also available on MyHealthConnect through the hours of 9-11:30 a.m. and 1-3:30 p.m.

Masks can help keep respira tory illnesses—such as the flu or the common cold—from spreading, and should be worn if feeling sick in pub lic.

Cleveland Guardians win division, clinch playoff spot, following an exciting season

If you had told people a year ago that the Cleveland Guardians would be the champions of the American League Central Division and make their way to the MLB postseason, they would have been utterly bewildered.

They would first be confused be cause the Cleveland Guardians were not technically a team at the time. After playing as the Cleveland Indians since 1915, the organization changed its name in 2021 and rebranded following decades of protests surrounding its rac ist and tokenizing name.

But second of all, they would be confused because last year’s Cleveland baseball team was wildly mediocre.

The 2021 team failed to qualify for the playoffs, entering the offseason with a losing record of 80-82. Aside from ace pitcher Shane Bieber and All-Star third baseman José Ramírez, the Guardians roster seemed lacking. Ramírez was the only remnant of the 2016 lineup that took Cleveland all the way to the World Series in 2016 before they lost the championship against the Chicago Cubs. Since then, all of his former teammates, such as Francisco Lindor and Carlos Santana, have re tired or been traded away, often due to the organization’s unwillingness to pay their star players how much they are worth. Instead, the front office tends to trade away their stars for younger, cheaper players.

With Ramírez’s contract ending soon and many teams eager to snatch him up, it seemed inevitable that he would be traded away as well. In all likelihood, it was expected that despite the fresh name and rebrand, the Guard ians would tread water for another

year, dump its one star hitter and con tinue to acquire more young talent that would also be traded away someday. That all changed just days before the 2022 season began on April 6, when it was announced that Ramírez had signed a contract extension to stay in Cleveland through 2028 for $124 mil lion—the largest in Cleveland base ball history. The total was still far less than what other teams were offering Ramírez, but he decided to turn down millions just to stay in Cleveland. His

agent quoted him as saying, “$150 mil lion or $200 million, my life is gonna be the same. I’m happier with $150 million in Cleveland than $200 million somewhere else.” This is quite unusual for ballplayers, but Ramírez has made it clear that Cleveland is his home and that he had a “desire of never wearing another uniform,” making the sacrifice in salary worth it for him.

And boy, has it paid off for the Guardians. Ramírez is having the best season of his career so far, being ranked

No. 3 in the MLB for the number of doubles hit and runs batted in.

With Ramírez leading the way, the Guardians have surprised everyone with their performance this season. Be fore the season began, they had 10-1 odds of winning the division, according to BetMGM. No one had them picked to win the division, especially over the Chicago White Sox, who had spent $130 million more than the Guardians for their players.

Shreyas Banerjee Executive Editor

The Cleveland Guardians have been having a very successful season, led by All-Star third basemen José Ramirez (pictured). Courtesy of Jason Miller / Getty Images

Tyler Vu / The Observer

A look into CWRU’s new shuttle text number

Darcy Chew Contributing Writer

On Sept. 13, the Undergraduate Student Government of Case Western Reserve University (USG) announced a new text shuttle number in their weekly newsletter designed to aid stu dents with the shuttle system.

Nathan Heddleston, Director of the Shuttle Operations at SP Plus, empha sizes how the number is a resource for students as they navigate the shuttle system. “Any student can call or text that number. And we have from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. a dispatcher who will re spond to it,” Heddleston says.

USG President Ananya Hari elabo rates on how the text number was a recent development pushed by the Student Life Committee last semester due to similar recurring problems with the unreliability of the shuttle system. “We’ve just had a lot of issues with drivers just randomly taking breaks or popping off the grid, or [situations] like you’re in the bus and the [driv er’s] taking a break, and you’re sitting there in the bus [for] 20 minutes and they’re, like, eating a sandwich,” Hari describes.

Rather than having to write emails after the event occurred, the dispatch number is in place to solve real-time issues. It gives students a direct and rapid response to the problems they are facing. “The idea behind the tex ting and calling is to be able to react more quickly, because we were finding that, when I get an email, there’s so lit tle I can do about it at that [moment].”

This dispatch is able to provide rap id answers to student questions about the estimated time of arrival (ETA) of the shuttles as well as other concerns about the system. “We can do a lot of stuff in real time. So we can pick up the radio and radio a shuttle driver and just say ‘hey, what’s your ETA to this stop?’ or ‘we have someone who has

this issue, can you speak to it?’ We can of course take notes and respond to stuff later too,” Heddleston explains.

Currently, the shuttle number is only getting a few calls and texts per day, but both Heddleston and Hari hope to spread the word about it. “One of the things I’m really excited about is that this text feature is going to put so many more pairs of eyes in the field. So if there’s an issue with wait time, they’ll let us know and we can get them moving right away,” Heddleston says.

“It’s really [a] strength in numbers. That’s why I put it in the newsletter every week. I want as many students to have this on their phone as possi ble so that if the bus isn’t running or something’s not expected, you [can] have 20 people message this number. [And they’ll] do something about it,” Hari adds.

Hari also mentions how this number is part of a collection of transportation initiatives pushed last semester to cre ate a more reliable shuttle system for students. “There were a bunch of trans portation initiatives that were coming out of Student Life last year. We were trying to fix a lot of bus issues. We got the capacity limits on TransLoc. So you can see that or it’s like 50% full or 40% full,” Hari explains.

Transportation is an integral part of college life and USG and SP Plus are committed to making the shuttle sys tem more accessible and convenient.

“The notion is that there are all these problems. So I really would love to work to change the temperature of it and have people embrace the shuttle system, and when there’s an issue just let us know and let us work on it. My team and I both, we really want to work to make this thing convenient,” Heddleston says.

CWRU Film Society

Friday, September 30, 2022

7:00 p.m., 9:30 p.m., 11:59 p.m.

The Man Who Knew

Too Much (1956)

Rated PG (120 mins.)

Cosponsored by The Observer

Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock

With James Stewart, Doris Day, Brenda de Banzie

Dr. Ben McKenna, his wife Jo, and their son Hank are on a touring vacation of Africa when they meet the mysterious Louis Bernard on a bus. The next day, Bernard is murdered in the local marketplace, but before he dies, he man ages to reveal details of an assassination about to take place in London. Fearing that their plot will be revealed, the assassins kidnap Hank in order to keep the McKennas silent. Ben and Jo go to London and take matters into their own hands.

Saturday, October 1, 2022 7:00 p.m., 9:15 p.m.

Manry at Sea: In the Wake of a Dream (2018)

Not Rated (94 mins.)

Directed by: Steve Wystrach With Robert Manry, Bill Jorgensen, Steven Callahan

In 1965, Robert Manry was a typical mid dle-aged suburbanite in Cleveland, Ohio. How ever, his colleagues at the Plain Dealer newspa per were shocked to learn he had just set sail on a solo voyage across the Atlantic in his 13½-foot sloop, Tinkerbelle. By the time his 78-day odys sey ended in England, Manry was the target of a wild journalistic arms race, the guest of honor to a welcoming committee of 20,000 Britons, and a hero to his countrymen—and to dreamers everywhere.

CWRU Campus Quad

44

Rd

Hill

Committed to improving transportation accessibility on campus, USG an nounced the release of a new text shuttle number that will provide students with direct and rapid responses to shuttle-related concerns. Courtesy of CWRU (case.edu website)

“Moss” is Maya Hawke’s ode to indie folk

Known for her role in “Stranger Things” and the recent Netflix suc cess “Do Revenge,” Maya Hawke has established herself as a force to be reckoned with in Hollywood, and she has continually garnered herself new and inventive roles. But, her talents don’t end on the big or small screen, as she recently introduced herself into the world of indie folk music. After listening to her new al bum, “Moss,” it is clear why Hawke is such a powerhouse, as her talent and personableness are on full dis play throughout.

Indie folk, as a genre, provides a continually underappreciated trove of endearing and heartbreaking musi cal talent. It can make you feel like you want to go camping or drop ev erything to travel across the country in a van. The genre is also known for its ability to tell stories, with a vibe akin to sitting around a campfire and listening to the artist in the mo ment. It is able to capture and elicit such raw emotions—whether its gut-

wrenching heartbreak or tear-jerking joy—that viscerally draw the listener in. Indie artists often use simplistic folk instruments—mostly acoustic— as well, distancing themselves from the technologically dominated mu sic industry. While indie folk artists aren’t limited to folk instruments, the sound they create often helps listeners retreat from the noises of everyday life, allowing them access to something much more simple and comforting. Hawke’s “Moss” cer tainly conveys these feelings through her narrative-like lyrics and simple acoustic tunes. In “Moss,” she encap sulates the genre, with the album ref erencing her past as an industry child. With its personal nature, “Moss” is a distinct step up from her debut album “Blush,” which came out in 2020.

Throughout the album, Hawke is able to portray her vulnerabil ity, showing how she longs for love and struggles with being the child of celebrities. In “Driver,” the simple acoustic tune puts focus on the lyrics

of the song, as Hawke sings a melan choly letter to her parents’ love. Her parents, Uma Therman and Ethan Hawke, met on the set of “Gattaca,” and the film portrays a romanticized version of their love. “Driver” rejects the notion of that “crafted and clear” love, instead wishing she were the driver of a taxi so that she could see it for herself. She wishes to be a viewer in her parents’ love but through a real lens, not just one that has been edited and chopped down to something com mercial. The song ‘’Backup Plan’’ repeats a simple list of lost items, where Hawke wants to “be anything you’ve lost that you might be lookin’ for.” It is about becoming the missing piece in another person’s puzzle and completing them. She uses the meta phor of becoming the items that a sig nificant other needs to conduct their daily tasks, whether she’s a charger or a winter coat in summer storage. This theme is conveyed through such simple lyrics; with the repetition of missing items and acoustic back

ing, the song feels more wholesome and endearing than its predecessor. Yet, her signature voice permeates the pain of having to transform and give herself up to someone to become what someone else wants them to be.

Despite being newly introduced to the music industry, Hawke produces the perfect combination of lyricism and tone to convey the themes of each song. She encapsulates the modern indie folk genre in a way that builds on her past pain and carries the lis tener with her. It isn’t just a depress ing acoustic ode to her pain either. She is able to convey her message and the notions of sadness without creating an entirely depressing song.

“Moss” truly conveys Hawke’s past in such a creative way that you almost forget that you’re listening to someone’s pain. So even if indie folk isn’t your genre, or if you’re just a fan of Hawke’s acting and want more, I recommend popping your headphones on and queuing up “Moss” this fall.

Maya Hawke has become a figure in the indie folk music scene, with her latest album, “Moss,” drawing upon personal pain through memorable lyricism and soothing instrumentals. Courtesy of Mom + Pop Music.

Joey Gonzalez

Conan Gray Conquers Cleveland with “Superache” tour

With COVID-19 restrictions finally easing up, concerts are once again in session; artists have begun long-antic ipated tours across the country, and we can once again feel the anxiety of buying tickets, getting in line early to secure the best seats and having goosebumps as our favorite artist emerges onto the stage. I had the pleasure of experiencing all of this and more last Saturday, Sept. 24, at Jacobs Pavillion for Conan Gray’s “Su perache” concert.

As someone who has listened to the “Kid Krow’’ album about a million times and knows every word to “Mani ac,” I was certain this concert would be a weekend well-spent—plus, the venue was just a short 20-minute ride from campus. Before I get into my thoughts and praise, here is a little context on Conan Lee Gray, a 23-year-old Ameri can singer and songwriter, whose recent album “Superache” debuted in the Top 10 in five countries. Like many artists of his generation, Gray got his big break from YouTube—truly humble begin nings. Launched in 2013, Gray’s chan nel included vlogs of his daily life in addition to self-produced music record ings. Four years later, Gray released his debut song “Idle Town” which received 14 million listens on Spotify. From there, his success soared. In November 2018, Gray released his EP “Sunset Season” and in March 2020, he released his first full album “Kid Krow,” my personal fa vorite. Now, “Superache,” embodies the next part of his music-making journey.

Arguably the most diverse album in his collection, “Superache”—contrary to its name—tackles more than just trag ic love stories. Through this album, Gray touches on the ideas of friendship, heart ache, family turmoil and acceptance. For instance, in “Family Line,” Gray turns his complicated family situation into an artistic appreciation for his past. On the other hand, “Footnote,” much like his previous hit song “Heather,” highlights the relatable story of a one-sided, un requited love. As in past albums, each song is simple with its words and rich in emotion. And in concert, every one of

these emotions becomes so much more real and memorable.

Surrounded by an audience united by their love for Gray’s work, I felt like a part of something bigger. So, when Gray finally hit the stage—working the most elegant white, glittery matching shirt and pants set—I joined in on the up roar. The cheers quickly fell silent as the lights dimmed and a heart projected onto the stage, signaling the start of this “Su perache’’ journey. This backdrop was made more beautiful by the perfect fall weather—very unlike Cleveland—and the intimate view of the sunset along the Cuyahoga River. With the mood set, we could not wait for the music.

Gray did not disappoint. As a per former, he was powerful and vibrant,

moving across the stage with swiftness and constantly encouraging the audience to join in on lyrics. Staying true to his roots, Gray accompanied some instru mentals with live guitar. With his increas ing fame, it felt special to see Gray go back to his more simple music-making roots. At the same time, this variety in the song presentation made for an even more dynamic performance, which— coupled with the persistent cheers from fans—further uplifted the mood. For certain sections, Gray included song in troductions that provided context for his lyrics and message. In doing so, he bared a level of vulnerability and charm, level ing himself with the audience and better connecting them with his past. When the set list was complete, we were offered

one last hurrah with an encore, before the applause of fans signaled the official end. A perfect ending to a near-perfect evening.

So, while I accept that Gray’s music style is not for everyone, his stage pres ence, love for music and his fans made this concert something special. His per sonality shows through in his raw lyrics and his ability to make every person in the audience feel warm and welcomed.

Gray is just one of those artists that feels approachable and “normal” even after all this success. For this reason and more, I implore you to take the opportunity to become a part of the Gray family—even if just for night—and experience the beauty of his music and the passion of his performance.

Case For Life hosts guest speaker event with Equal Rights Institute

Milo Vetter Staff Writer

Ever since its official recognition by the Undergraduate Student Government in 2020, Case For Life (CFL), a club on campus devoted to hosting discourse about abortion, has been marred by controvery. The USG vote to recognize CFL was close, but ultimately passed due to concerns that suppressing the club would be both legally tenuous and an unprecedented use of USG’s power to refuse club recognition.

CFL has been relatively quiet since then, but on Friday, Sept. 23, they host ed a speaker event with Emily Albrecht, the director of education and outreach at the Equal Rights Institute (ERI). The ERI is an anti-abortion organization de voted mainly to providing anti-abortion activists with talking points in order to equip them with strong arguments to defend their position against their peers. Albrecht has become a talented speaker and is probably one of the most knowl edgeable people when it comes to the abortion debate.

It was evident that the administra tion of Case Western Reserve Univer sity was worried about conflict arising, stationing multiple security guards and staff from the dean’s office at the event. The members of CFL also checked in every person entering the room order

to make sure they had registered in ad vance. It’s hard to say whether or not the measures were effective in discour aging conflict. Regardless, the event was peaceful enough that some of the security left early.

The event itself began with a brief introduction and disclaimer by CFL President Ethan Hansen, who stated that the views of CFL and Albrecht are not endorsed by CWRU. Once the floor was given to Albrecht, she gave a measured and researched speech about the ethics of abortion from the perspective of bodily autonomy. She began by expressing her frustration at the level of conversation about abortion that currently takes place in the United States, both generally and specifically.

“If you’re pro-choice and you’ve ever felt strawmanned by a pro-lifer, I’m so sorry. I’m trying to fix that,” she said.

Albrecht believes there are multiple arguments that could be made against the pro-life movement, but she finds those focusing on bodily autonomy and the “right to refuse” to be most chal lenging to her ideology. This argument states that even if one considers an em bryo to be a full human being, a preg nant person should still have the right to refuse to support that human, and that

the government should not force people to carry a pregnancy to term.

Albrecht’s rebuttal to the “right to re fuse” argument rests on a principle that abortion is not an act of passively with drawing support, but rather actively killing a distinct human life. “We can’t keep fooling ourselves, abortion is kill ing… I know that there are very under standable emotional reasons to frame it differently, but I don’t think it’s helpful to pretend that abortion is something other than what it is,” she said.

Albrecht’s argument raised certain questions, namely: does the morality of the situation become different when the perspective changes from withdraw ing support from a dependent to killing them? If, in both cases, the consequence is the same, the intent is the same, and the person being killed is not yet sen tient enough to understand, what dif ference is left between killing someone and withdrawing support from them in a manner that will leave them to die?

There are also other aspects to the debate when considering Albrecht’s argument. When arguing about killing distinct human life, one assumes that an embryo or fetus is conscientiously equal to an adult human, but that’s not a safe assumption for everyone. Ultimately,

the question of your personal values, despite any claims of objectivity, will earn you disagreement from many.

Another important consideration is legality. Most of the time, when people argue about abortion, the biggest ques tion in their heads is “should abortion be morally condemned?” But the ques tion that really matters is “should some one who performs an abortion be pun ished by the law?” It is entirely possible to believe that abortions are morally in advisable while also believing that the state shouldn’t have a say in whether they happen. The issue of abortion is extremely complicated, and no per son who has thought about it for long enough will tell you that it’s simple.

It can be said confidently that the goal of CFL and Emily Albrecht—and possibly the ERI as a whole—is to get people to ask and discuss these ques tions respectfully and in good faith. While there is still bitter controversy about CFL’s recognition by the USG, CFL’s event and Albrecht seemed to emphasize the need for civility when debating these topics. The hope is that despite the heavy political implica tions of the abortion debate, students at CWRU can continue to have this dis cussion respecfully.

Last Saturday, Sept. 24, Conan Gray graced the stage at Jacobs Pavillion to share his journey through heart break, acceptance and family turmoil from his album “Superache”. Courtesy of Republic Records.

as

Seven of Cups (Reversed)

When given a multitude of opportunities, pick the choices that benefit yourself the most. Sometimes making good choices are harder than bad ones.

Two of Cups (Upright)

There are good things coming in terms of parternship and mutual attraction

Three of Wands (Reversed)

You might be experiencing obstacles in your love, finances, and career. However, it is important to face said challenges as soon as possible.

Knight of Pentacles (Upright)

Hard work will always overcome any circumstances you’re having.

Gemini: Grown-ish

Seven of Pentacles (Upright)

It’s been a week, don’t forget to take a moment to celebrate your accomplishments, big and small.

The Chariot (Upright)

This is an encouraging card, take this as a message that you are on the right path.

King of Wands (Reversed)

& Water

Get Away

Although you have been given opportunities to lead, sometimes someone else needs to step up. Let others take the reins.

Page of Pentacles (Upright)

Now is a good time to think of how to blow up and act like you don’t know nobody.

Six of Wands (Reversed)

Some of your recent successes are meant to be celebrated silently.

Two of Wands (Reversed)

From College

Knowing what you deserve is the only way you’ll know what you want.

Six of Cups (Upright)

It will be very fruitful to go down memory lane and remember the past good times.

Eight of Cups (Upright)

Running away is easy but it will be harder to come back the farther away you try to escape your responsibilities.

opinion

opinion

Take breaks outside of school

Board

It’s the time of year that we all dread and one that we always lament about: the first wave of presentations, exams and papers has arrived and stu dents are struggling. We aren’t here to scold you if you haven’t been tak ing care of your basic health while studying because we understand that it’s hard. However, that doesn’t mean putting yourself first isn’t important. Therefore, while this editorial isn’t detailing the aspects of your health you should focus on, it is here to serve as a reminder that life exists beyond school. So, perhaps you should think about taking a break every once in a while.

When assignment after assignment and obligation after obligation start piling up, it’s easy to get overwhelmed

by everything. We are all guilty of tunnel vision as we try to stay focused in order to achieve our goals and as pirations. In fact, it is commendable that we as a student body are so goaloriented and want to see our dreams come true. We’re all working incred ibly hard to become the most success ful and passionate versions of our selves. However, that can come at a cost—not just to ourselves, but also to those around us.

It’s easy to stop taking care of our selves when responsibilities pile up. However, when grocery shopping or exercising gets put on the back burn er, it is still important to have simple tasks to look forward to in order to break up the monotony of stressful tasks. Whether that involves taking

the RTA off campus to study, watch ing birds for five minutes, listening to an audiobook on the way to class, sitting down and eating dinner at a fa vorite restaurant or buying your favor ite overpriced coffee drink, you can do more for yourself than you know. Sure, eating three meals a day and getting eight hours of sleep is great, but those basic living habits don’t al ways feel attainable. Doing something completely different and unrelated to your daily routine could be the small change of pace you need to keep mov ing forward. Beyond just that splice of abnormality, it’s also important not to ignore the people around you. Inten tionally taking the time to call family members, having lunch with a friend you don’t see all the time or even

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spending an evening volunteering at a food bank reminds us that we’re all in tertwined with each other. You aren’t alone in feeling overwhelmed; being around others and interacting with the community can not only give you a break, but can also be a way to build lasting relationships in your life. We all need support systems.

It may be cliché to say that time flies by or that life is short, but both of those sentiments are true. Pouring our energy into only our academics and career will only give us a lim ited amount of happiness in the end. Making sure that we experience life with the help of others is essential in ultimately not burning ourselves out. Enjoy the time we have here. It won’t last long.

the observer

established in 1969 by the undergraduate students of case western reserve university

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.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR should be e-mailed to observer@case.edu or submitted on our website at observer.case.edu. Letters can be mailed to Thwing Center 11111 Euclid Avenue, Suite 01, Cleveland, Ohio 44106. For policy and guidelines related to the submission of Letters to the Editor, refer to observer.case.edu/submit-a-letter.

The Observer is a proud member of CWRU’s University Media Board. Follow The Observer on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @cwruobserver.

executive editor & publisher SHREYAS BANERJEE director of print SARA KHORSHIDI director of digital media JOCELYN ORTIZ director of design TARUN SEPURI director of business operations KHUSHALI DESAI development editor BEAU BILINOVICH engagement editor MULAN MA news editor GRACE JOHNSON life editor JOEY GONZALEZ opinion editor KARUNA LAKHIANI sports editor PUNEET BANSAL

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The importance of student journalism

Beau Billinovich Development Editor

As staff members of The Observer, we like to tout ourselves as the voice of the student body. We are the plat form for students from all walks of life and backgrounds, allowing all to share their stories and ideas with the campus community. But what does it actually mean—the voice of the student body? Why does what we, as student journalists, do matter? What’s the point, anyway?

Being a writer, I sometimes ask myself those questions. Whenever I write an article, I feel as if I’m just sending it off into the silent void where, save for a few of my fam ily members (who are awesome), no one truly cares. Of course, that isn’t true. The conversations we as writers create with the community of Case Western Reserve University and the surrounding Cleveland community are important. It’s one of the ways we connect with the people around us.

So what do we gain from student journalism?

Student journalism can act as a model for the real world, where people can freely and openly dis cuss ideas, debate and point to the problems that need to be addressed. As opposed to state or even federal politics, schools offer a smaller,

more confined community. It’s easier to see the effects of a change in, for example, university policy, since we are around each other all the time and see the direct effects immediately. When we familiarize ourselves with campus-wide issues, we can learn to understand strategies for resolving them.

That skill—figuring out how to resolve conflicts—is needed now more than ever. 60% of rural youth and 30% of urban youth live in “civic deserts,” where limited opportunities are available to meet people, discuss issues and address problems. Trying to cure the maladies that plague the country nationally is hard enough. But by engaging in conversations on the campus level, students can more easily meet and find solutions to the issues specific to a school’s commu nity.

For us at CWRU, that means call ing to attention when the administra tion has an inadequate response to changes in housing policies, as hap pened last semester, or to the violent crimes that frequent this place we call home—issues that we are all too familiar with. For students at Virgin ia Commonwealth University, that means being on the front lines and

covering police brutality protests. And countless school papers reported on the pandemic and its effects on the student body, including ourselves.

Hence by working together to fig ure out solutions to the problems af fecting the campus community, we can build bridges. Figuring out solu tions forces us to see each other. It brings the community closer togeth er. This connection is valuable—es pecially since we as young adults were affected the most by loneliness and social isolation due to the pan demic.

Student journalism also enables young Americans to have their voices heard, broadcast and uplifted. Much of the political power in this country is held by older Americans: The av erage ages of members of the Senate and House of Representatives is 62.9 years and 57.6 years, respectively. President Joe Biden is currently the oldest president in history at 79 years old. Moreover, voter turnout for younger Americans in 2020 lagged behind older Americans by about 25%.

Seeing so much authority in the hands of only a fraction of the U.S. population can feel crushing. The connection that student journalists

Complaining about complaining

Enya Eettickal Staff Writer

I’m sure we all have certain fables from our childhood that have stuck with us over the years. One of my fa vorites went like this: a painter pre sented a piece of his to a king and his court. But upon doing so, many court members complained about different parts of the painting. As an experi ment, the king’s adviser put the art out in front of the steps of his palace with the instructions, “mark whatever part of the painting you think needs to be better.” By the end of the day, the en tire painting was covered by the vari ous marks left by the people. But the next day, the advisor kept the painting out and changed the instructions to, “now make the part you marked bet ter.” When he returned the next day, the painting remained identical—cov ered with marks of what needed to be improved, but none of the improve ments made.

I can’t say I think about this fable often (my butchered details are prob ably a reflection of this). However, I was recently reminded of it when my roommate was explaining something she, as a camp counselor, said a lot to the kids, “at the root of every com plaint is a request.” Once I realized she was right, my immediate follow-

up question was, if that’s true, why do we often hear complaints but not the requests they are alluding to?

It is necessary to understand both the distinction between the word com plaint and complaining, while also ad dressing the restrictions each of these words have. Complaints are defined as statements of dissatisfaction. Com plaining, on the other hand, is the act of outwardly expressing that dissatisfac tion. But connotatively, there’s more to what complaining actually looks like.

We all complain to some degree. People broadly have issues with class es, professors, assignments, living ar rangements, friends and other people. Frequently, the critiques they have are well-founded. There are often genu ine concerns linked to these aspects of life, and complaining can be a method of communicating the issue at hand. That, however, is contingent on the way complaining is approached. While there are productive ways to complain, there are some which are more detri mental than helpful. For example, per sistent complaining can become an noying for listeners but it also builds a negative environment. Complaining breeds more complaining, and when a space is filled with critique from all

parties involved, it can be difficult to shift the energy.

The easiest solution is going back to “at the root of every complaint is a request.” If there’s something worth complaining about, something can be changed. In this way, complaints can be good if they are used as a tool for a solution, rather than a lament of exist ing problems.

For instance, my roommate’s solu tion is to allow yourself a set amount of time to complain. This can either be a literal timer, or it can just be a time frame, so for example, a day. And af ter that time frame elapses, stop com plaining and try to make the request or take action to find a solution to what you were complaining about.

However, there’s a distinction be tween complaining and venting. While complaining can be a cause for con cern and needs to be addressed, I want to validate venting. I think venting can be very productive. In some situations, venting may just be the solution if it’s a one-off scenario. If verbalizing your feelings to someone else allows you to process your frustration and reorient yourself, that’s great. But if you feel the need to do it over and over without changing the circumstances, re-eval

have with their community can help to mitigate these feelings and give young voices a sense of validity, es pecially when our concerns are often silenced.

No student newspaper is at the same level as The Washington Post or The New York Times. We aren’t Daniel Ellsberg uncovering classified government documents detailing two decades’ worth of U.S. military in volvement in Vietnam, but our work still has value in its own way. But as a student newspaper, we do cover is sues personal to us, the student body. We shine a light on the issues that large media outlets might not pick up on, the issues that we have to face ev ery day on campus. That’s what truly matters.

So that is what it means to be the voice of the student body. It’s not that we speak for all students, but rather that we bring conversations forward and unite together to determine how we can change this university for the better. Obviously, no writer can speak for every individual; differenc es in values make this near impos sible. But we can share in a common understanding that CWRU, and all other universities, should be places for students to thrive.

uate whether you’re venting or really just complaining.

I’ve never really understood when people complain in closed spaces for extended periods of time, then pro ceed to refuse the solutions posed to them—especially when pertaining to other people. And I’m sure you prob ably know someone who is like this as well. Nothing good can come from complaining about someone, especial ly when the opportunity to communi cate your concerns is viable. Often, problems are easier to address than you would think, and there is nothing another person can do to help manage your issues unless you let them know how you’re feeling.

At the end of the day, complaining is really easy to do. I get it, and I’ve defi nitely done it a bunch, and I still do it sometimes. But taking my complaints and doing something about them is a surefire way to ensure my circum stances don’t stagnate. Taking action is the only possible way for things to get better. If there is no solution I’m willing to look for, then there’s no point in complaining. Just like how if I don’t know how I can make a painting better, you won’t find me marking the canvas.

Volleyball rolls past Kenyon and Denison, improving to 11-3

On Sept. 24, the Case Western Reserve University volleyball team defeated Kenyon College (3-0) and Denison University (3-2), extending their winning streak to three games. The squad improved to 11-3 overall, remaining undefeated at home.

“It was a great weekend for us traveling down to Columbus, playing [teams] we don’t play regularly,” said head coach Karen Farrell.

The Spartans opened Saturday against a struggling Kenyon team, who held a 1-10 record. The Owls came out strong and took an early 11-7 lead in the first set before the Spartans closed the gap. After trading runs, first-year middle blocker Kiya Levy tied the score 22-22. Kenyon scored the next point, but CWRU came back in three straight bouts to win the set 25-23.

Unlike the first set, CWRU estab lished strong control of the second set with an early 11-2 run. Kenyon was unable to answer and CWRU took the 25-14 win.

The Owls, desperate to escape their 0-2 hole, fought tooth and nail in the third set. The two teams went backand-forth, tying 13 times to reach an even 16-16 score. From there, the Spartans settled in and closed out Ke nyon. Kills from third-year middle blocker Jennifer Ngo and second-year Rea Marfatia led the Spartans to the 25-20 set victory.

Ngo recorded a team-high 12 kills while Marfatia finished with 10 kills and nine digs. Fourth-year setter Sara Rogers tallied 23 assists and 11 digs while third-year libero Alyssa Bless inger led the team with 13 digs.

“It was a pretty close score all the way through,” added Coach Farrell. “Though we felt like they were in con trol of the match, [we] widened the gap at the end of their sets ... That was our 10th win, which is kind of a nice number to get this early in the season.”

The second match of the week

end was a different story altogether.

Though Denison stood with a record of 5-8, they forced CWRU to play some of their best volleyball of the season.

The Spartans rolled through the first two sets 25-16 and 25-18. Marfatia led the charge in the first set, record ing two consecutive kills to seal the victory. Blessinger and third-year de fensive Specialist Hannah Fox were instrumental in pulling together a 9-2 run to overcome an early 3-point defi cit in the second set. Denison fought back and trimmed the Spartan lead to 20-16, but Marfatia put a quick stop to

that with a kill and two service aces. First-year outside hitter Kalli Wall put the finishing touches on the set win with a kill.

The Big Red roared back in the next couple of sets, clinching 25-15 and 2521 victories to even the match to 2-2. CWRU committed multiple attack er rors and gave up kills, looking like a completely different squad from the first two sets.

“We had some third set blues, which we’ve seen our team go through,” re flected Coach Farrell on these mis cues. “[But] we were able to continue

Guardians continued from pg. 1

Yet on Sunday, Sept. 25, the Cleve land Guardians clinched the AL Cen tral after winning 17 of their last 20 games, including 10 wins in 12 games against their division rivals, the Min nesota Twins and Chicago White Sox. They managed to do this as the young est team in the MLB, with an average player age of 26. They are the first team since the 1986 New York Mets to have made the playoffs while being the youngest team in the league. With no other star players, the team took the mentality of “letting the kids play,” us ing their deep young talent pool to see which players would fit in their lineup for the long term. Surprisingly, many rookies made their mark—they are the first team in MLB history to win their division while seeing at least 16 rookies make their debut. As a result of the team’s youth, the Guardians fea ture one of the lowest payrolls in the MLB, but that hasn’t seemed to mat ter as they dominate teams that spend hundreds of millions more than them.

The season has not been easy on the Guardians, with the team having struggled early in April and May, but

it has since blossomed into one of the most competitive teams in the ma jor leagues. This happened under the direction of longtime manager Terry Francona, who defined the team’s identity and shaped the Guardians into a hustling team that would work each at-bat and get as many balls into play as possible, allowing the team to chain together several hits in a row and score runs—an old-school approach that sticks out in an age that focuses more and more on home runs. As a result, the Guardians lead the league in con tact rate and strikeout rate.

While their hits aren’t too power ful—with Cleveland leading the league in infield hits and being far down the list in home run leaders—just by vir tue of their approach of hitting the ball as much as possible, inevitably some balls land and the players are able to make it to base. This is helped by the fact that the Guardians run the bases like no other team in the league, fea turing the highest number of players that advance from first to third base on singles and the third most stolen bases in the league. With their high contact

and aggressive baserunning, the team constantly grinds for each hit and score, allowing them to constantly ap ply pressure to opposing teams.

This approach is best epitomized by rookie outfielder Steven Kwan, who started the season simply refusing to strike out, becoming the first batter in the league since 2000 to see 116 pitches before swinging and missing while starting their career. Though he started out the season as a low-power hitter, his consistency and ability to reach base made him instantly stand out. His progression through the sea son has only made him better—in the division-clinching game on Sept. 25 against the Texas Rangers, Kwan hit his first career grand slam, winning the Guardians the game.

Meanwhile, pitching has been espe cially strong. Along with Bieber con tinuing to be as hot as ever, this year also saw the transformation of starting pitcher Triston McKenzie into an ab solute machine. McKenzie has so far pitched three games with at least 10 strikeouts this season, tying him for first in organization history for such a

to work through that.”

Denison owned the momentum heading into the decisive fifth set. They had an 11-7 stranglehold on the Spartans and were only four points away from an impressive comeback.

CWRU persevered and scored four straight points to even it to 11-11 with two kills and two blocks. Fox gave the Spartans their first lead of the set with an ace and Marfatia followed with a kill to make it 13-11. Denison answered the 6-0 CWRU run with a kill but Ngo and Marfatia blocked an attack to reach within a point of the victory. Marfatia and first-year middle blocker Amanda Ngo combined for a block to secure the 15-13 set win and the 3-2 match win.

Wall totaled a career-high 14 kills and Rogers recorded 26 assists with 10 digs. Ngo and Marfatia contributed seven and four blocks, respectively, to the Spartans’ 12 as a team.

“We had to really scratch and claw back from 5-10 and 7-11 ... We had some really strong serving by Han nah Fox and some really strong block ing up front,” said Coach Farrell. “[It was] a really exciting 15-13 victory in set five. That’s the second time we’ve done that this year and it’s kind of an adrenaline rush.”

The Spartans will participate in the second UAA Round Robin on Oct. 2. Hosted by Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the event will feature conference matchups against Brandeis University and New York University. This is an opportu nity for CWRU to improve upon their 1-2 conference record.

“[Brandeis] is having a great sea son,” remarked Coach Farrell. “They have a couple new players and a much stronger attack ... [NYU] is a very, very talented, very balanced, very very strong team ranked in the top 10 in the country, so we have our work cut out for us this weekend.”

single-season performance.

The Guardians have also found in Emmanuel Clase a pitcher who can consistently close out games and whose consistent performances have ensured that the team holds on to slim victories. He refuses to allow oppos ing hitters to score home runs and, as a result, he leads the entire league in saves.

With José Ramírez locked down for years to come and a promising young roster, the Cleveland Guardians have a bright future ahead of them; but this season isn’t over yet. Now qualify ing for the playoffs, the Guardians will host the best-of-three American League (AL) Wild Card Series in Cleveland, where they will face the to-be-determined No. 6 seed of the AL starting Oct. 7. How far they go into the postseason remains to be seen, but Cleveland has not won a World Series since 1948—the longest drought in MLB history—so the city is hungry to see a championship. The Indians couldn’t do it, but now with a new name and new identity, perhaps the Guardians can bring it home.

As CWRU’s volleyball team beats Kenyon, third-year libero Alyssa Bless inger serves the ball and leads the team in digs, continuing the Spartans’ win streak. Courtesy of CWRU Athletics