March 10, 2017

Friday March 10, 2017 vol. CXLI no. 25

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SCIENCE

U. solar panels demonstrate green energy

By Jackson Artis Science Contributor

“Colleges and universities across the country are situated to lead the charge to 100 percent renewable energy,” said Pleasant Garner ’18, on a recent tour of the University’s solar panels.

The panels, situated across 27 acres in West Windsor Township, are home to one of the University’s green energy initiatives. Seventyfive percent of the panels are tracking panels that will adjust to absorb as much sun as possible. The remaining 25 percent do not track sunlight and therefore face south in order to maximize absorption. Surrounded by a fence on all sides for protection, the grass in the fields is a special blend that won’t grow taller than two feet in order to minimize energy used by mowing the grass.

Garner explained that the solar panel tour is part of an effort to promote the organization that she interns with, Environment America. She works with this organization as part of an effort to get more involved with environmental action on campus.

Environment America, an advocacy and research organization, promotes environmental issues and proposes potential solutions to these challenges. According to its website, the organiza-

tion is currently working to prevent the rollback of former United States President Barack Obama’s Clean Water Rule, which is part of the 1972 Clean Water Act. The 2015 rule was part of the Environmental Protection Agency’s attempt to correct and expand the reach of the Clean Water Act. President Donald Trump has since proposed repealing the rule for the sake of farmers, who are now strapped with navigating this new, more comprehensive regulation of land.

As for other sustainability efforts, Garner said there has been a push to change the way in which people live their lives, based on the examples set by other college campuses. She said colleges are well suited to lead the efforts for several reasons.

For one, college campuses are significant energy consumers, and their campuses often possess physical attributes that make alternative energy sources such as solar panels more feasible.

Moreover, colleges will benefit significantly by saving money and hedging against volatile fossil fuel costs, and they are positioned — as leaders in innovation — to create some of the best new energy solutions right on campus.

Director of the University Office of Sustainability ShaSee ENERGY page 2

ON CAMPUS

IMAGE BY CLAIRE THORNTON

In a panel on Thursday, journalists considered the ongoing relationship between Trump and Putin and discussed the evolution of the U.S.-Russia relationship.

Journalists talk similarities between Trump, Putin

By Claire Thornton Contributor

Panelists in a conversation about the relationship between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin argued that the countries’ political and economic situations are notably similar in some respects, especially the poverty facing some Trump and Putin voters.

One of the panelists was Russian and American journalist Masha Gessen, who teaches at Oberlin College. She has worked as a journalist, author, translator, and activist, and is a major critic of both Vladimir V. Putin and Donald J. Trump.

Her current work focuses on the relationships between both leaders’ political messages, and on election night, she wrote a widely-read article on how to survive autocracy.

Other panel speakers included Sean Walker, Moscow correspondent for The Guardian, and sociology professor Deborah Kaple *91.

Gessen said that during the Cold War, the United States and Russia were evenlymatched enemies and that the space race revealed the increasing relevance of both powers.

He added that the fall of the Soviet Union then ushered in a dichotomy of Western winners and post-Soviet losers that

pervaded the 1990s.

He explained that now, the newest evolution of RussiaU.S. relations is becoming clear: the United States is experiencing a governmental collapse comparable to the fall of the Soviet Union, and the leaders of the U.S. and Russia are coming to see eye-to- eye on a long list of issues.

The panelists publicly engaged in a search for the meaning behind the current relationship between Trump and Putin. Both men rely on ostentatious displays of wealth and power, argued Gessen, but at the strategic level, “Putin is the dictator that Trump plays See RUSSIA page 2

SCIENCE

Boeve discusses climate change activism

By Nouran Ibrahim Science Contributor

IMAGE BY JACKSON ARTIS

Students took a tour of the University’s solar panel field, a new initiative to showcase campus efforts toward sustainability.

In a lecture on Thursday, May Boeve, climate change activist and executive director of 350. org, spoke about how she has reshaped the climate change fight for use as a “useful window into unpacking larger topics” against the “specific and unique fight by Donald Trump.”

Boeve started 350.org, an international environmental organization, while a passionate

undergraduate at Middlebury College. Like her colleagues, she believed climate change was a global phenomenon that she could act upon.

Boeve has made climate change activism her life’s work, setting out to create global days of action and helping to form climate change into a social movement resembling that of the health care movement. She has attempted to close this gap by increasing research done on climate change, the rise of protests,

and the lack of policy change.

Boeve soon learned that this gap was a result of the fossil fuel industry lobby flexing its muscles and “whispering in the ear of the government” to dictate national policy. Boeve explained, however, that national decisions impact not just the United States, but “all those around the world,” and “more importantly, those countries who are most vulnerable,” she said.

In her talk, Boeve presented See BOEVE page 3

BEYOND THE BUBBLE BEYOND THE BUBBLE

Students respond to South Garden Theatre is top NJ movie theater Korean impeachment Associate News Editor

By Claire Lee and Sarah Hirschfield Associate News Editor and Staff Writer

The Constitutional Court of South Korea ousted President Park Geun-hye on March 9 after months of unrest in the country, including protests against government corruption.

Prosecutors had accused Park of being an accomplice in a case involving her close friend Choi Soon-sil, who was charged with forcing businesses into donating money to foundations under Park’s control. Additionally,

Park was accused of allowing Choi an undue inf luence in state affairs.

“We’re very glad to see justice being restored in Korea,” Taek Yoon Lee ’18, President of Princeton for North Korean Human Rights, said.

“As it’s most likely that a liberal candidate will win the election, I expect a more cooperative atmosphere in the peninsula but [one that] will still depend a lot on North Korea’s willingness to make peace.”

Park’s powers had been suspended since a legislative See KOREA page 3

The Princeton Garden Theatre, located on Nassau Street, has been named New Jersey’s Best Movie Theater by NJ.com.

According to a press release, the theater was named the winner from a pool of five finalists.

The Garden Theatre, which hosts numerous free movies to students as part of an initiative by the University’s Undergraduate Student Government, is owned by the University and has two screens. The University bought the theater in 1993. According to the press release, the theater is run as a nonprofit, independent theater boasting over 2,500 supporting members. Renew Theaters, Inc.,

which also runs three other historic movie theaters, has taken over its management.

The theater’s commercial nature was one of the properties brought into question when the University’s tax exemption status was recently challenged in a lawsuit. The Garden Theatre is one of 173 tax-exempt buildings; however, the University does pay taxes on this building, as it is not exempted by New Jersey laws.

In the press release, Executive Director John Toner explained that he is pleased with the result and recognition this award brings to the theater. He noted that the theater has “the best first run art films, as well as Hollywood classics, filmmaker appearances, and Na-

In Opinion

Today on Campus

The Editorial Board proposes reforms to help independent students, guest contributor Carolyn Beard talks piousness at Princeton, and columnist Jack Bryan implores us to be more compassionate. PAGE 4

4:30 - 8:00: Garod (Longing): Documentary Film Screening in Burr Hall, Room 219.

tional Theater and Royal Opera broadcasts.” In another University press release, Toner added that the theater hosts discussions as well as question and answer sessions with experts in the film industry.

The Garden Theatre opened Sept. 20, 1920 and was originally built to host Triangle Club before Triangle moved to McCarter Theatre in the late 1920s, according to the theater’s website. In 2001, the theater underwent a $1 million renovation whereby the theater’s balconies were removed, causing the theater to lose 20 percent of its 600-person capacity. The balconies’ original purpose was for segregation.

WEATHER

By Claire Lee

HIGH

38˚

LOW

14˚

Snow, later rain showers chance of rain:

100 percent

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page 2

Energy-saving solar panels are situated across 27 acres of land in West Windsor Township ENERGY

Continued from page 1

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na Weber, along for the tour, explained the University’s specific plans regarding sustainability. She said that the University is committed to sustainability and plans to continue this work.

In the early 2000s, legislators set a statewide goal in New Jersey to pull emission rates back down to 1990s levels by 2020. The University decided to mirror that goal and has been working towards it ever since, Weber said. Since this decision was made, the University has been developing and implementing a Strategic Plan, a 30-year framework for how to make the University sustainable and fulfill its commitment of being 100 percent carbon neutral over time.

“What we build today will still be the infrastructure 30 years from now,” Weber said.

Weber made it clear that this 30-year plan is crucial as it will bring the University to the mid-century, which is the current estimated tip-

ping point for world ecosystem health. Weber also made it clear that it is important that people begin to switch their living habits and lifestyles so that come mid-century, we have done all that we can to avoid serious environmental issues.

It is clear that a key factor in enacting these changes is human behavior and psychology. As such, according to Weber, the University’s Kahneman-Treisman Center for Behavioral Science & Public Policy works to understand the psychology behind decision-making within the field of sustainability to ensure that these new measures are accepted by the public.

Weber and Garner addressed the tour group when the group rode in Enterprise vans to the solar field, located across from the rugby fields on Washington Road.

The solar panel field is responsible for approximately five percent of the University’s energy usage — that five percent is equivalent to the amount of energy used

by Frick Chemistry Lab an-

nually and is equivalent to roughly 700 homes’ worth of energy, according to Gina Talt ’11, a Campus Lab Fellow.

Talt also told the group that the University’s solar panels have their peak energy production during the month of April, as humidity affects light absorption and April has the greatest tradeoff ratio between humidity and available sunlight. Talt also mentioned that the solar panels the University uses can absorb all visible light, as well as some UV and infrared rays. The solar panels are expected to last 25 to 35 years.

Garner emphasized the need for Universities, in particular, to take the lead on sustainable energy.

“As centers of both academic research and civic engagement, universities must double-down on their efforts to counteract climate change,” Garner said.

“Because schools such as Princeton have substantial financial resources at their disposal, it is our moral imperative to invest in the future of our planet.”

Friday March 10, 2017

Gessen: Putin is the dictator that Trump plays on TV RUSSIA

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on T.V.” Discussion turned to the role the Russian government played in the U.S. election, about which the U.S. intelligence agencies have filed a report. Gessen acknowledged evidence of Russian influence in the election of Donald Trump, but took conversation down a different path, arguing that Putin is an opportunist, not a strategist.

She explained that if Putin did indeed want Trump to be elected, he got what he wanted, but now he has no idea what to do with his prize.

Gessen shed light on the ways through which the election of Trump could prove to be harmful to Russia.

She claimed that in the aftermath of November, Putin is no longer seen as the most unpredictable world leader. Now that leader is Trump. Putin can no longer rely on the political strategy of blaming the U.S. for all of Russia’s problems — largely because Trump is not anti-Russian — and that now, given the role Russia played in electing Trump, any foreign governmental contact with Russia that would have previously been seen as unproblematic is now viewed as toxic.

Meanwhile, Gessen argued, Trump is leading the United States into an age that has the potential to be characterized by an “eternal present.”

Gessen argued that one of the most damaging things about the Trump presidency is that he causes us to focus on his latest tweet more than the long-term impact of his policies.

Caryl Emerson argued that if Putin is an opportunist instead of a strategist, Trump is neither. She referenced an article written by Gessen in claiming that a Trump-Putin era will be worse than the Cold War, noting, “Because during the Cold War at least you had two sides that had an ideology and incorporated a vision of the future, you know what you’re working with, maybe not facts, but reasonable projections. Now you’ve got two people who don’t have any interest in the future at all, don’t seem to have any policy that shows that sort of commitment to a stable thing.”

Panelists addressed the par-

adox of Russian support for Putin, given poor economic conditions in much of the country. Walker gave accounts of speaking to Russians living in houses that lacked plumbing but who nevertheless said they were happy with Putin.

He explained that the poor conditions in post-industrial areas of the U.S that helped elect Trump are similar to conditions currently affecting Russians living in provinces away from Moscow and St. Petersburg. He added further that while economic conditions in both the U.S. and Russia are increasingly topics of political discussion, the policies aimed to respond to these challenges often do not actually improve the economic conditions of these people.

Questions from the audience led to a discussion about “cracks in Trump’s armor,” as well as a conversation about how American citizens can most effectively fight back against the Trump administration. Gessen explained that talk of impeachment is pointless, arguing a Republican Congress will not impeach a Republican president, even if Trump’s ties to Russia can be successfully used as grounds for impeachment.

“The kind of resistance that we have seen to the Muslim ban, it’s very important to x that resistance invigorated the courts. The courts would not have acted if it weren’t for the people in the streets and for the ACLU lawyer, right?” said Gessen. “The judiciary institutions are not designed to deal with bad-faith actors, they fold, right?” she added.

Gessen argues that resistance to Trump should also come from local and state politics.

“It’s important psychologically,” said Gessen. “As Trump raises an assault on the American identity, it’s important to have a local identity.” She referenced sanctuary cities and urged the audience to have a personal local identity that is open to all.

The panel-style, questionand-answer lecture was delivered to a large audience composed mostly of older individuals from the town. The talk was moderated by music professor Simon Morrison and Slavic professor Caryl Emerson. The lecture took place in Betts Auditorium at 4:30 p.m. on March 9.

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Friday March 10, 2017

Boeve: Climate change related to human rights BOEVE

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an example to display how our decisions on coal emissions are impactful. Rising coal emissions increase the acidity of the atmosphere, which increases the acidity of the water, she explained. Subsequently, the increasing acidity of the water prevents shellfish from growing their shells. Fish are then unable to eat the shellfish, resulting in decreased food availability for those around the world for whom fish is a dietary mainstay.

The “connection between climate change and energy policy” directly relates to oppressive regimes and political power, Boeve said. The relationship between the “rogue” coal and fossil fuel industries and the government — which has allowed for the intimidation and silencing of activists who have risked their lives — shows how important it is to “push back” against oppressive regimes that will continue to attempt to “shrink democratic space,” she explained.

Just look at the recent Exxon incident, Boeve noted. Texas Congressman Lamar S. Smith, chairman of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, recently subpoenaed organizations like 350. org after an investigation into Exxon’s knowledge on climate change by attorney generals; this was argued to have been a violation to scientists’ free right to speech, according to The New York Times. It is this collaboration between these industries and the government that shows us just how “important the problem of oppressive regimes” is today, Boeve said.

Boeve said she wished to change the title of yesterday’s lecture from “Climate Action” to “Hope,” to remind us of the power individuals have to use activism to fight for justice, jobs, and most importantly, human rights. She noted that international series of actions she has helped to start demonstrate that the fight against climate change is “part of something bigger, a global solidarity against oppressive regimes” in places all

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around the world.

Boeve said that individuals must have “unshakeable faith in the movement,” noting that rising threats to climate change activist only mean that we are moving forward; they must not limit our “sense of possibility,” she added.

“Climate change under repressive regimes requires more creative ways of doing the work we were doing before,” Boeve explained. There are many ways to achieve this, Boeve said. She noted that some countries have succeeded by reframing the fight against climate change in ways that are less threatening to tradition.

As the movement against climate change grows and backlash against coal and fossil fuel industries increases, Boeve said we are forced to realize the power of crucial alliances between human rights and climate change activist groups. It is these key alliances that “launch the counterpush” against the rise of oppressive regimes.

Lastly, the fight against climate change and the push for a greener economy has the ability to democratize and give power to countries other than those specifically sitting on fuel reserves, Boeve explained.

She quoted activist and author Naomi Klein on her concept of the “Green Economy,” asserting it creates everything from “jobs of education” to jobs of “the creation of public transportation and sustainable food systems.” The age of fossil fuels may be over, Boeve said, as the decreasing cost of solar panels and booming of “state of the art batteries” gives hope of a growing energy sector.

Boeve reminded the audience to “remain positive and hopeful” as we face these threats head on. She encouraged her listeners to maintain a solution-oriented mentality and a drive to expose “phony economic populism for what is truly economic populism.”

Boeve’s lecture, titled “Climate Action Under Oppressive Regimes,” took place in Robertson Hall at 4:30 p.m. on March 9.

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Park ousted by Constitutional Court after months of popular protest KOREA

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impeachment vote in December, but she has lived in the presidential Blue House, her childhood home, until now.

The daughter of military dictator Park Chung-hee, Park was the country’s first female president. She served as an archetype of the Korean conservative establishment that, along with the United States, drew a hard line against North Korea’s nuclear activity.

Now, Park’s impeach-

ment precedes a likely shift in the nation’s politics as power moves to the hands of the opposition, whose leaders are expected to improve relations with China and reevaluate a joint strategy with the United States and their relationship with North Korea.

In November, University students held a demonstration in front of Nassau Hall addressing Park’s political scandal. The students leading the demonstration, along with others who signed the declaration entitled “Declaration Regarding the State of Affairs in the

Republic of Korea,” urged Park’s resignation. The students demanded investigations of accusations of corruption without regard for social status and demanded the government to pass legislation in an effort to prevent similar misconduct in the future.

“We have been waiting for this result since November,” Sejin Park ’18, who participated in the protest, said.

“I believe there will be a lot of pressure put on the next government to unite the divided nation, but I’m very excited for the future of democracy in Korea.”

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Jamie O’Leary ‘19 stands outside the Center for Jewish Life to have her picture taken as part of a Muslim Advocates for Social Justice and Individual Dignity (MASJID) and CJL joint effort to show solidarity with both communities and to set an example for Muslim and Jewish communities beyond the Princeton bubble. This comes in the wake of a surge in attacks on Jewish community centers and other places.

Friday March 10, 2017

Opinion

page 4

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EDITORIAL

E

Improving conditions for independents

very year, 70 percent of undergraduate upperclassmen at Princeton participate in the eating club system. Recently, though, a growing proportion of Princetonians are choosing to be independent; these students often do not know where to get the food for their next meal and whether it will be nutritious, a sit-down affair, or just a slice of pizza scavenged from a campus event. As noted in the Prince’s coverage of independent student challenges, many students choose to be independent for financial reasons, which creates a troubling inequality across socioeconomic lines in the way students eat. The Board supports many of the suggestions brought up by students in the Independent Student Advisory Board survey and proposes other steps the University should take to improve conditions for independent students.

First, to affirm a common independent stance, the Board suggests that the University create an on-campus food mart for independent students to purchase basic groceries.

Grocery stores within walking distance are expensive, and transportation by local bus and TigerTransit is often timeconsuming or inconvenient.

Our proposed on-campus food mart could take the form of expanded grocery offerings at the U-Store or a cooperative effort with Dining Services to provide fresh fruits and

Carolyn Beard

Guest Contributor

“

Anyone who dares to voice a religious opinion is regarded as unintelligent,” wrote Carrie Pritt in her column “Diversity for the Sake of Democracy,” published in the Quillette and covered by Jessica Li ’18 in the Tab. In her column, Pruitt makes the bold claim that religious beliefs — presumably implied to mean Christian statements of faith — are not welcome at Princeton University.

The idea that voicing a religious opinion marks a speaker as uninformed and unintelligent is a persistent and dangerous myth on campus. Portraying Christians as disadvantaged in a society that is steeped in Christian tradition and favorable to Christianity equips Christians on campus with a false sense of victimization; additionally, this attitude undermines the fatal persecution that Christians have faced historically and continue to face in parts of the world today.

Looking inside the Orange Bubble, Princeton was founded by dissenting clergymen and once served as a training ground for Presbyterian ministers.

Today, the campus is perhaps one of the most religion-friendly Ivy League schools. MurrayDodge Hall is brimming with chaplaincies, most of which are Christian fellowships representing all flavors of the faith, and a considerable number

vegetables for independent students to buy. This proposal dovetails with the Board’s previous suggestion to combat food waste in the dining halls with the help of independents.

Additionally, the Board recommends reforms to kitchen access in upperclassman housing.

Currently, most independent students must share kitchens with other dormitory occupants.

Consequently, if nonindependent students do not clean up after themselves, the responsibility falls on an independent student, someone with a pressing need to cook, to clean the space. Therefore, we propose that kitchens in upperclassman dormitories be reserved for independent students, as is the case in Pyne and Lockhart Halls, where only independent students receive kitchen keys from the Housing Department. Non-independent students, meanwhile, can still use kitchens in residential colleges for their cooking needs.

Besides proposing these University policy changes, the Board also calls on the eating clubs to consider the growing portion of independent upperclassmen in their guest meal policies. Many clubs offer one or two guest meals per month to each of their members, allowing them to bring visitors from out of town or independent friends. However, some clubs do not offer any guest meals without charging a

fee. Considering that the interclub exchange system allows for meal exchanges between two members of different clubs, the Board recommends that all eating clubs provide one to three guest meals per month to their members. By doing this, the eating clubs can allow members to keep up meaningful friendships with independent students without imposing a strain on club kitchens or a financial burden on their members. We encourage non-independent students to take advantage of these opportunities, look with understanding on their independent classmates, and work towards overcoming the unintended isolating effects of an eating-club dominated food scene.

Finally, the Board commends recent initiatives to create events, such as the USG Winter Formal, that provide campuswide social opportunities for all students, including those not associated with eating clubs.

Being independent is not just a matter of finding one’s own food, but it also presents a challenge for creating and maintaining social ties. Events, especially those with free food that are open to all are great ways to bridge the dining options divide and create more camaraderie among students. Potential future events could include College Nights where former members of residential colleges can eat meals without a swipe or

Pious at Princeton

of faculty members openly and actively engage with students on questions of religion.

As a professing and pious Christian at Princeton, I believe my faith is not an impediment to my academic ability in the lecture hall, but quite the contrary: my faith enables me to engage in academic conversations in a singular and unique way. Friends outside of my faith ask me questions about Christianity for both academic papers and their own spiritual journeys. In my eating club, I’m often called upon to give religiously informed opinions about divisive issues.

My professors know about my interest in religion and recommend scholarly articles and paper topics accordingly.

At Princeton, my friends and mentors affirm and help me grow in my personal profession of faith, involvement in religious communities, and desire to pursue ministry as a vocation.

And, yet, this myth of victimization of Christians at Princeton exists for a reason.

It is nearly impossible for the transformative and emotive experience of faith to carry legitimacy on a campus where logic triumphs over all. But, as Christians, we are called not only to engage the heart, but also to engage the mind: God endowed us with the capacity for critical thinking — would it not be a shame for our faith to lack the cognitive component?

Reason and faith are not as diametrically opposed as many would believe. In fact,

Christianity is fundamentally rooted in the academic tradition.

Consider the importance of learning and the written word in the Bible: King David set his words of teaching “that men may know wisdom and instruction, understand words of insight, receive instruction in wise dealing, righteousness, justice, and equity” (Proverbs 1:2-3, RSV). Paul, the model evangelist, employed epistles — letters, the written word — in order to encourage and exhort Christian communities throughout the Mediterranean.

In fact, in the Gospel according to John, we are told that Jesus Himself is “the Word” (John 1).

Christian tradition is passed onto us through text; indeed, those who studied the Holy Scriptures engaged in scholarly conversation and heated debates about which texts to include in the standardized text we read today.

Furthermore, the vast majority of the Daily Princetonian’s readership — save the occasional Princeton Theological Seminary student – does not read the Bible in its original languages, but reads various translations of the text, the history of which brings in centuries of additional scholarship. Just as past Christian scholars reconciled faith and reason, I encourage fellow Christians at Princeton to actively work against the myth of unlearned piety: we must seek further synthesis between our faith lives and academic lives.

Check yourself: are you

vol. cxli

social events for independents that are analogous to eating club semiformals.

Where, what, and with whom one eats at Princeton has a large bearing on students’ experiences, from nutritional health to feelings of identity and belonging. As the University seeks to promote a more diverse student body, its policies should keep in mind that paying $6,000 to $10,000 a year for eating options — whether in the dining halls or on Prospect Avenue — is simply not a feasible option for some students. If current trends continue, we should expect to see a growing proportion of students choosing independent options, and the University can work towards a more integrated community by taking steps not only to accommodate independent students, but to help them thrive. Beyond the policies, we hope that students see the value in building and maintaining relationships across the dining divide and empower each other to build a positive eating culture.

Connor Pfeiffer ’18 recused himself from the writing of this editorial.

Sarah Sakha ’18

editor-in-chief

Matthew McKinlay ’18 business manager

BOARD OF TRUSTEES president Thomas E. Weber ’89 vice presidents Craig Bloom ’88 secretary Betsy L. Minkin ’77 treasurer Douglas J. Widmann ’90 Gregory L. Diskant ’70 William R. Elfers ’71 Stephen Fuzesi ’00 Zachary A. Goldfarb ’05 Joshua Katz Kathleen Kiely ’77 Rick Klein ’98 James T. MacGregor ’66 Alexia Quadrani Randall Rothenberg ’78 Annalyn Swan ’73 Michael E. Seger ’71 Richard W. Thaler, Jr. ’73

141ST MANAGING BOARD

The Editorial Board is an independent body and decides its opinions separately from the regular staff and editors of The Daily Princetonian.

The Board answers only to its CoChairs, the Opinion Editor, and the Editor-in-Chief. It can be reached at editorialboard@dailyprincetonian. com.

managing editors Megan Laubach ’18 Grace Rehaut ’18 Christina Vosbikian ’18 Head news editor Marcia Brown ’19 news editors Abhiram Karuppur ’19 opinion editor Newby Parton ‘18 sports editor David Xin ‘19

holding your religious opinions up to the same standard as the arguments you make in precept? Or are you simply claiming something is infallible because it is “in the Bible” or “in the canons?” Move past the fallacious appeals to authority and provide coherent reasoning to support your beliefs. Check your texts: read, and not just the Bible. Pick up substantive theology and read scholars who have studied the Bible more than you have as a guide for your inquiry process. In order to better diversify and nuance your perspective, engage with scholars like Professors Elaine Pagels and AnneMarie Luijendijk, who tackle religion with historic approaches.

And, lastly, check your religious community. Not every religious community demands students to approach faith with their heart and mind. Visit the wide array of Christian fellowships featured on the Office of Religious Life’s website to find a community that values difficult questions, critical thinking, and scholarship.

In other words, take full advantage of your religionsaturated Princeton education — generations of Tigers-turnedclergymen did, too.

street editor Jianing Zhao ‘20 photography editor Rachel Spady ‘18 web editor David Liu ‘18 chief copy editors Isabel Hsu ‘19 Samuel Garfinkle ‘19 design editor Abigail Kostolansky ‘20 Rachel Brill ‘19 associate opinion editors Samuel Parsons ’19 Nicholas Wu ’18 associate sports editors Miranda Hasty ’19 Claire Coughlin ’19 associate street editor Andie Ayala ‘19 Catherine Wang ’19 associate chief copy editors Caroline Lippman ’19 Omkar Shende ‘18 editorial board co-chairs Ashley Reed ‘18 Connor Pfeiffer ’18

Carolyn Beard is a junior in the Department of Comparative Literature. She is the Junior Warden of the Episcopal Church at Princeton and the Founder and President of the Princeton University Christian Community Council. She can be reached at cebeard@princeton.edu.

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Friday March 10, 2017

The cost of compassion

Jack Bryan

Columnist

I

magine what it would be like to be cast out into a world at your throat, a world in which the most capable and wealthiest nation has shut its borders to you. Imagine facing a world where your life’s value is assessed in dollars and by the potential financial burden of giving you aid.

This past Monday’s Day of Action made us imagine this scenario as an opportunity to discuss issues in our country and around the world. One of the main topics of discussion was the issue of refugees and their resettlement.

One group of students showed a recording of a Skype conversation with Nawar and Yaseen, two Syrian refugees sponsored by various student-led fundraising activities. To many students who felt isolated from this international issue by the insularity of the Orange Bubble, this event put a face to this global crisis.

This is in tune with what Polish poet Zbigniew Herbert meant when he once wrote that “imagination

is the instrument of compassion.” It can be difficult to feel connected to the current refugee crisis when Princeton frequently assaults us with urgent assignments and responsibilities. Yet hearing the stories of individuals like Nawar and Yaseen allows one to imagine the reality of distant struggles, and thus to feel compassion.

This raises the question: what is preventing much of the United States, including the current presidential administration, from imagining the thousands of distinctly human faces at the other end of our policies?

Where is the compassion in the American response to the current crisis?

The main answer to this question seems to be that financial reasons have obscured the nation’s compassion. In the national conversation surrounding the issue of refugees, one of the main concerns of those supporting the current refugee ban is the financial burden that refugees may place on the U.S. economy.

From a financial perspective, it initially appears that admitting

many refugees would incur a cost. After all, each refugee requires a certain amount of money to be resettled.

Jeff Sessions, the current U.S. Attorney General, estimated the lifetime cost of settling 10,000 refugees to be $6.5 billion, which is not an insignificant amount.

But, when put in perspective, one realizes the absurdity of weighing human life by cost.

Recently, President Trump announced the addition of $54 billion to U.S. military defense spending — this is almost a 10 percent increase from the $597 billion spent on military defense last year.

In light of this, the cost of helping refugees is relatively miniscule.

On top of this, viewing human life through a purely monetary perspective trivializes life’s value. To say that financial burden of sheltering refugees is not “worth” it is to imply that money is worth more than human life.

Some would say that we should focus on fixing our own hospitals and crumbling infrastructure before attending to the needs of non-Americans.

Yet the money to aid these

refugees need not be money that is taken away from the American people. If we could make do with a nine percent increase of the military budget instead of ten, then the remaining percent could be used to fund 10,000 refugees — 10,000 living, breathing, beautiful people.

Compassion should not come with a price tag, and neither should human lives.

Sometimes we need to see the faces behind the numbers to help us realize this. We need faces like Nawar’s and Yasseen’s to spur us on towards compassion. Listen to their stories. Look at their faces. Let your imagination be the instrument of your compassion.

Jack Bryan is an English major from Lindenhurst, Ill. He can be reached at jmbryan@princeton. edu.

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Friday March 10, 2017

Sports

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{ www.dailyprincetonian.com } WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Women’s basketball to kick off Ivy League Tournament with Harvard rematch

By Miles Hinson Editor Emeritus

A team that faced more questions than answers at the start of this season is now firmly in the hunt for a spot in the NCAA tournament. After losing multiple veteran leaders from last season, the Princeton Tigers (15-12 overall, 9-5 Ivy League) have found themselves as the second seed in the inaugural Ivy League postseason tournament. The winner of the four-team tournament will have the honor of representing the Ancient Eight in the one of the most anticipated sporting events of the year: March Madness.

The Tigers, however, will not enter their most critical game of the season on the highest of notes. They will begin the postseason on a two game losing streak, including a 56-58 loss to league-bottom Dartmouth and a 40-52 loss to Penn Quakers, ranked first in the Ivy League,

in the Palestra. The loss against Penn featured Princeton’s worst offensive showing of the season, with a season low in points scored and where the team shot an ice-cold 26.2 percent from the field.

Nevertheless, the Tigers have more than enough reasons to expect a strong showing come Saturday evening. Freshman forward Bella Alarie was the most recent recipient of the Ivy League Rookie of the Year award, and has been a star throughout the season. She has led the Tigers in scoring, with 12.6 points per game, and was second in rebounding with 7.4. Moreover, production has not been lacking from the upperclassmen – junior forward Leslie Robinson and senior guard Vanessa Smith have been second and third in scoring on the team, at 10.2 points and 7.6 points, respectively. Robinson, named to the All-Ivy Second Team, has been particularly efficient, shooting at a 49.8 per-

cent rate, the second best in the league.

Indeed, the Tigers will need good performances on all fronts as they prepare to do battle with a team that has proven to be one of their toughest challenges. Both games against the Crimson (20-7, 8-6) this season went down to the wire; at home, the Tigers eked out an overtime victory, and at their meeting in Cambridge, the Tigers edged out the Crimson by just four. As they look for victory on Saturday, the Tigers are certain to rely heavily on their top two scorers once more: Alarie and Robinson together averaged 29 points and 13.5 rebounds across those two games against the Crimson.

It’s been a long time since Tiger fans have had a weekend this exciting. One thing is certain: if the last two games Princeton has played against Harvard are any indication, Saturday’s battle is sure to be one to remember.

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The Tigers, ranked second in the conference, are set to face Harvard in their Ivy League Tournament opener this coming Saturday.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Number one men’s basketball team poised for upcoming Ivy League tournament

By Chris Murphy Staff Writer

On Wednesday, hundreds of Princeton students mobbed the Frist ticket office to get their seats at the Palestra this weekend. With music, endless

T-shirts, and an overall mood that can only be described as “hype,” it became clear that Ivy Madness had officially begun.

On Saturday, the men’s basketball team will finally get the chance to add a regular

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After a stunning regular and Ivy League season, men’s basketball will enter the first annual Ivy League tournament this Saturday as the No.1 seed.

season title to their repertoire and ultimately to win the inaugural Ivy League Tournament. The winner of this tournament will not only get crowned as champion, but will also get an automatic bid to the 2017 NCAA Basketball Tournament. The Tigers enter the tournament as the number one seed and the expected winners.

However, their road will not be easy. The tournament, technically a neutral site game, will perhaps be the toughest road test of the year for the Princeton gang, which will take on Penn in the first round Saturday at 1:30pm. While a contingent of Princeton fans is sure to make their presence felt, Penn will definitely have an advantage playing on their home court in what will perhaps be the biggest game of the season.

The Tigers will look to use the same formula that they did in two earlier matchups against the Quakers. In those battles, the Tigers relied on their defense in order to stifle the Quaker offense, holding them to 49 and 52 points respectively in the teams’ two meetings this year. During these games, the Tigers outrebounded the Quakers in both contests and won the battle at the charity stripe, netting around .850 for the two matchups combined. The third time around, the Tigers will presumably rely on the same strategy while adding more offensive firepower.

The Tigers know that this game will ultimately come down to poise. In big games like this one, there will be times where the going gets tough. But Princeton has been in situations like this before;

they have been battle-tested throughout the season, most recently against Harvard, whom they may face once again. Princeton will lean on the senior core now more than ever to provide the mindset necessary to overcome obstacles they will face in the game.

Of course, having standout players such as Amir Bell ’18 and Myles Stephens ’19 helps make solving problems during the game much easier.

This Saturday, the Tigers will look to become the first Ivy League team that defended their conference title with a tournament victory. Their road starts against Penn, at the Palestra, home of the Quakers. Up to the challenge, there is no place the Tigers would rather be.

Let the madness begin.

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The Tigers look to continue their Ivy League sweep to qualify for the 2017 NCAA Tournament.

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Stat of the Day

43 total rebounds Women’s basketball leads the Ivy League in total rebounds at 43 as they head into the Ivy League Tournament.

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