September 17, 2014

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Tulane Heads to Durham with Sense of Urgency Having lost its first two games this season, the Green Wave heads to Durham coming off a win against SE Louisiana | Page 4

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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2014

ONE HUNDRED AND TENTH YEAR, ISSUE 18

Greeks honor successes, urge change

DukeCard system receives big facelift after two decades New system will allow admins to control access to doors in name of consistency and safety Sydney Sarachek The Chronicle

He told students that the decision to join an entrepreneurial venture needs to be wellthought out, citing his decision to stick with consulting firm McKinsey and Company for a period of time rather than starting his own venture sooner. “My gut was telling me to leave, leave, leave [the consulting company], but I also had to value my time and calculate the expected value for any venture I wanted to undergo,” Thekkekandam said. “You need to leave at exactly the right time.”

After more than 20 years, the DukeCard system is getting a facelift. The new DukeCard system will allow facility administrators to control access to their doors rather than having to go through the DukeCard office. The updated system is designed to provide consistency throughout the University and ensure the safety of community members. “We have an overarching security strategic plan and we look constantly at ways to enhance and improve the safety of the entire community,” said Vice President of Administration Kyle Cavanaugh. He added that the upgrade won’t require students or current faculty to get new Duke IDs. The DukeCard system—which was first instituted in 1985—controls access to more than 1,200 doors, including academic and administrative buildings, residence halls and athletic facilities. The DukeCard office provides more than 44,000 new and replacement ID cards per year to students, employees, contractors and others members of the community. “The new system was developed in alignment with the campus master plan for safety and security as well as governing principles and policies, including the university’s buildings and facilities access policy,” said Debbie DeYulia, director of customer and technology support at the Office of Information Technology. DukeCard staff members are working with departments to phase in the new access system. The system is set to be put in place over

See Innovation on Page 3

See DukeCard on Page 3

Lesley Chen-Young | The Chronicle Members of the Interfraternity Council, National Panhellenic Council, Multicultural Greek Council and National Pan-Hellenic Council gathered Tuesday to listen to speeches from the four council presidents and a keynote by alumna Kimberly Jenkins. (See Story on Page 2.)

Alum promotes risks in entrepreneurship Aleena Karediya Local & National Editor The Innovation Co-Lab Studio Night—an installment of Entrepreneurship Week—strove to create a bridge between entrepreneurship and innovation Tuesday. The Innovation Co-Lab hosts Studio Nights every Tuesday during the semester, featuring dinner and a presentation by a Duke technologist or local entrepreneur, with an opportunity for students to discuss and pitch project ideas. In the spotlight Tuesday was Thomas Thek-

kekandam, Fuqua and Law ‘10, who spoke to students about his decision between joining a consulting firm versus jumping into a start-up. “Someone once told me, entrepreneurship is like gravity,” Thekkekandam said. “Eventually, if you’re meant to be an entrepreneur then you’ll become one.” Thekkekandam was the co-founder of Nourish International—a sustainabiliity-focused student start-up at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill—prior to his studies at Duke. He then worked for several external start-ups, a consulting group and his own ventures.

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Former Trustee Jenkins aims At downtown’s Alley 26, to empower greeks in speech history meets urbanization as Panhellenic women continue to collect donations throughout the week as their annual philanthropy. “The National Panhellenic Council is the largest collective of college-educated women in the world,” said Angela Paolucci, campus Zaynah Alam representative for Circle of Sisterhood. “ColThe Chronicle lectively, we can do much more than we could as individuals—one person could make a The University’s greek leaders and alumni small difference, but as a community of educelebrated achievements and challenged cated women, our contributions could change each other to advocate for positive change at the outlook…for generations to come.” Duke’s annual greek conJenkins’ keynote advocation. dress continued the oo often, we give up A keynote speech from theme, as she shared her a Silicon Valley veteran, own success with Microour true selves and a list of achievements yield to cultural forces that soft in the early days of spanning all four greek the company and her councils and a theme of might allow us to be accepted personal experiences with empowering women and by some but come at a huge cultural expectations for minorities rang through cost to ourselves. men and women involved the halls of the Chapel with greek life. as Duke welcomed its so“Too often we give up — Kimberly Jenkins rorities and fraternities our true selves and yield to a new year. Members of he Interfraternity to cultural forces that might allow us to be Council, National Panhellenic Council, Multi- accepted by some but come at a huge cost to cultural Greek Council and National Pan-Hel- ourselves,” she said. lenic Council gathered to listen to speeches Jenkins also urged attendees to take a mofrom the four council presidents, along with ment to themselves to reflect on their identity, a keynote address by entrepreneur Kimberly behavior and core values. Jenkins, Trinity ‘76 and Ph.D ‘80, a member “The choices you make now powerfully of Kappa Alpha Theta. influence the choices you make later in life,” The night’s speeches centered on the she said in closing. “If you can be courageous theme of empowerment, beginning with the at Duke, you can be courageous anywhere.” announcement of a donation to Circle of SisJenkins’ work history includes time with terhood—an organization dedicated to end- Microsoft, NeXT and Oracle, and she has ing poverty and oppression for girls across the world. The total amount will exceed $5,000 See Greek on Page 3

At greek convocation, Jenkins encourages students to stay true to themselves and be courageous

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Michelle Xu The Chronicle A major reconstructive project, aimed at small local businesses, is currently underway in “Alley 26” of downtown Durham. The alley, which currently houses a warehouse that caught fire several years ago, is being repurposed as office space. Built in 1915 with unique historical architecture, the space will eventually contain a two-story building and courtyard. The project is being planned by Durham real estate developer Eno Ventures, which has plans to modify several aspects of the area. “[Eno Ventures] proposes modifications to the existing historic shell and construction of a new two�story building within the shell,” Lisa Miller, senior planner and urban designer of the City of Durham Planning Department wrote in an email Friday. Located between East Chapel Hill and West Parrish Streets, the alley and its warehouses were burned completely in a fire in 2009. The remaining exposed overhangs and unique angles led Gary Kueber, Trinity ‘92 to describe the space as “the strangest downtown property” on his blog, Open Durham. “It seemed like an exaggeration, but it felt like a Roman ruin of some kind,” Kueber wrote on the blog. Plans for renovation include returning the windows of the building to their for-

Emma Loewe | The Chronicle Alley 26, pictured above, will soon be home to small start-ups and businesses after the conclusion of a major reconstructive project.

mer rhythm, according to the Certificate of Appropriateness Report for the project, which notes that this “restores the engagement of the building with the city.” “Nothing was left but an empty maSee Alley on Page 3

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Grants can be used flexibly for project support and/or materials. Grant requests should be for approximately $5,000; however, other amounts may be considered depending upon the scope and impact of the project. The grants run for the 2015 calendar year. Preference will be given to proposals made jointly by students from both institutions. The proposals will be reviewed by an advisory committee of students, faculty and administrators co-chaired by Carol P. Tresolini, vice provost for academic initiatives at UNC, and Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs at Duke.

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INNOVATION

GREEK

DUKECARD

He then discussed two start-ups that he has started work on following his departure from McKinsey—Tom and Jenny’s, a cavity-fighting candy company started by him and his wife, a dentist, and Green Top Farms, a company that encourages the growth and delivery of fresh produce in urban homes. Thekkekandam also gave a few words of his own advice for students interested in developing start-ups, ranging from the value of failure to the kind of “shoestring” budget that is needed for such a task. Thekkekandam’s extensive experience and wide skill set are the reasons behind his selection as an Entrepreneurship Week speaker, said IT Innovation Program Manager Michael Faber, manager of the Innovation Co-Lab. “[Thekkekandam] has dabbled in many phases of the entrepreneurship process, from innovation to marketing to consulting,” Faber said. “He has a wealth of knowledge to share with the community.” Rachael Lee, a sophomore and member of the Innovation Co-Lab, said that the event was a success. “I think he’s a great speaker, and there’s a lot to learn from him, especially for students who may or may not be totally aware of entrepreneurship,” Lee said. Faber also said he thought Thekkekandam was able to demonstrate to students how to bridge the gap between the realms of innovation and entrepreneurship. “I work mainly on the innovation side of things. Most people forget [that innovation and entrepreneurship] are very interconnected,” he said. “I’d say he did a great job in conveying this to people.”

served on Duke’s Board of Trustees. The event also highlighted past achievements of Duke fraternities and sororities, 20 of which were recognized as Gold Standard chapters in the past year. Phi Beta Sigma President Broderick Turner, a senior, gave a special address celebrating his fraternity’s 100 years of success, hard work and service as they celebrated their centennial. Abhi Shah, a junior and Alpha Episilon Pi brother, commended the Panhellenic council presidents on their speeches revolving around the night’s central theme. “I thought [Panhellenic Association President] Kate Preston had a really strong speech, and she really hit on the note of empowerPhoto Courtesy of Duke Today ment,” Shah said. “I think it’s really cool that Thomas Falcon, an IT specialist for the Dukeeveryone’s taking steps toward empowerment Card office, installs the new system at a building entrance. in the greek system.”

the next couple of months, and should be completed by the end of 2014. Facility administrators will use two tools to control access to their buildings’ doors: Grouper and Blackboard Transact. Grouper will allow them to grant access to individual cardholders in their buildings, and Blackboard Transact will allow administrators to change how the doors in their buildings behave—either requiring a swipe to access or unlocked for all to enter. The upgrade will not affect how current DukeCard holders use their cards to swipe into doors, purchase food or use laundry facilities. “The new technology will allow us to improve and control access and position us for the future to take advantage of further emerging technologies, so this is a terrific development for the entire campus,” Cavanaugh said.

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ALLEY

continued from page 2 sonry shell and some charred remains of the window frames and sashes,” the report reads. “Aside from the masonry walls topped by a tile coping, there is little left of the original building other than some hints of the window sizes and configurations.” The building lacks a street front and can only be accessed via Alley 26. As a result, city planners do not expect this building to be used by retail businesses. “It figures that it was never a viable Darbi Griffith | The Chronicle Thomas Thekkekandam discussed his entre- business location and instead served as preneurship experience at the Innovation Co- warehouse storage for businesses within Lab Studio Night event Tuesday evening. 118 West Parrish [Street],” reads the re-

r… ve o l is it Cal a e w 14 Th ll 20 Fa

port. A list of specific reconstructing instructions and plans has already been proposed, including new elements that will match the original ones damaged by the fire. According to the report, the new building will have molds, painting and windows that match the original design in order to preserve the historical value of the area in addition to new materials. No business have currently declared interested in renting an office space the new building at Alley 26, but city planners showed optimism in the project. “This project…will utilize private funds to place a derelict building back into service [and] thereby contributing to the viability and vitality of downtown,” the report reads. “This may once again contribute uniquely to the urban fabric.”

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The University/Cultural (U/C) Fund Call for Spring 2015 Programming

Deadline: Thursday, October 9, 2014 at 5pm If you have questions, please email ucfundfall2014@gmail.com


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THE BLUE ZONE

CURRY RECEIVES CAMP INVITE FROM MAGIC

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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2014

Football

FINAL NON-CONFERENCE TEST AWAITS

Led by dangerous ground game, Green Wave heads to Durham Brian Mazur Beat Writer

For some teams, a record doesn’t tell the whole story. Tulane is one of those teams. After dropping its first two games this season, the Green Wave heads to Durham this weekend to duel with the Blue Devils at Wallace Wade Stadium coming off its first win of the season against FCS opponent Southeast Louisiana. But the two losses against Tulsa and Georgia Tech could have easily gone the other way and made head coach Curtis Johnson’s squad a confident, undefeated team. In its season opener, Johnson’s team lost a 38-31 double-overtime heartbreaker to American Athletic Conference foe Tulsa and then lost a 38-21 matchup with Georgia Tech a week later. Against the Yellow Jackets, Tulane only trailed by three points at halftime before being held scoreless after the break. The potential is there for the Green Wave, which is why Duke head coach David Cutcliffe is impressed with Tulane after watching them on film. “The more I looked at them, the more I

sports

Izzi Clark | The Chronicle Running back Shaun Wilson had a career day against Kansas but will not be the only freshman speedster on the field with a 200-yard game to his name this season come Saturday—Tulane running back Sherman Badie scampered for 215 yards against Tulsa.

was impressed with the job not only they are doing coaching, but with the job they are doing recruiting there,” Cutcliffe said. “This is a team blessed with a lot of athletes. They are playing some seniors, they are playing some true freshmen. But the theme you can tell with Tulane is that they can run.”

The excitement in New Orleans has been brewing for a long time. After only 13 wins from 2008-2012, Tulane has bounced back in the college football world, led by its third-year head coach. Last season, the Green Wave posted a 7-6 record in its final year in Conference USA and

lost a close battle with Louisiana Lafeyette in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. The 2014 campaign is Tulane’s first playing outside the Mercedes Benz Superdome—home to the NFL’s New Orleans Saints—and the Green Wave picked up in its first win in new, on-campus Yulman Stadium last Saturday, knocking off the Lions 35-20. “[It was a] great win for us, big for our program,” Johnson said. “Our first win in our new stadium. Our kids played hard and well. We played so many young kids toward the end that I thought we got a little out of sync. But I thought defensively we got some turnovers. We really played our first good defensive football game.” During the first three games, the offense has been a strong point for the Green Wave, specifically the ground game. A trio of running backs—freshmen Sherman Badie and Dontrell Hilliard and redshirt sophomore Lazedrick Thompson—anchor the three-headed rushing attack that has combined for 463 yards this season. Badie has been the best rusher of the three so far, running for 310 yards on 33 carries. His speed was showcased in the season opener when he exploded for a 90-yard touchdown against Tulsa and finished with 215 total yards on the ground. One area of concern for Johnson is under center, where redshirt freshman quarterback See Tulane on Page 5

Women’s Golf

Choi wins individual title, Duke finishes third Jake Herb Staff Writer Sandy Choi finished the 2013 season with two top-10 performances and helped the Blue Devils claim their sixth NCAA championship, but the Duke sophomore made a statement about the future Tuesday as she made eagle late and birdied two of her final three holes to capture her first individual title. The Choi-led Blue Devils rallied to a thirdplace finish Tuesday at the Cougar Classic in Charleston, S.C. Correcting for a shaky first round, Duke shot a combined six-under-par on the final day to break into the top three and finish eight-under-par. Arkansas took home the team victory, finishing solidly ahead at 18-under. UCLA took second with 11-under-par, and Virgina and Mississippi State rounded out the top five, both finishing at three-under-par. But Choi stole the show, battling rain delays and illness en route to the individual win. “I never thought about winning,” Choi said. “On my second-to-last hole, they blew the rain horn. I saw the scores and realized that I was two back from the lead. When I

came back out, I still wasn’t thinking about winning. I was in the zone of playing my game and finishing strong.” The impressive showing by the Seoul, South Korea, native buoyed a team that lost three-fifths of its lineup in the offseason. With returning National Player of the Year Celine Boutier away from the team to compete at the final LPGA tour event of the year, Choi set up for her opening drive with the expectations of an entire NCAA championship team placed squarely on her shoulders. Dehydration compounded the challenges facing Choi, who said she had been battling symptoms in the days leading up to the tournament. Head coach Dan Brooks considered scratching Choi from the scorecard after she spent some time in an ambulance earlier this week. “Physically I was really weak,” Choi said. “I wasn’t able to hit the ball as far as I normally hit it. I wasn’t able to put all my effort into my game.” But the sophomore powered through all three days. And when rain soaked the course See W. Golf on Page 5

Special to The Chronicle Sophomore Sandy Choi shot four-under-par on her final five holes to capture the individual title at the Cougar Classic at Yeamans Hall in Charleston, S.C.


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TULANE

continued from page 4 Tanner Lee has experienced growing pains in the first few games this season. The Destrehan, La., native has completed only 50 percent of his passes this season and has an 8-6 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Still, Cutcliffe, a quarterback guru himself, recognizes Lee’s talent and the weapons around him. “That big quarterback [Lee] has a big arm that can make plays,” Cutcliffe said. “He has people to throw it to. Their backs are really good, they have a couple of freshmen backs [Badie and Hilliard]. They have great speed if you watch the tapes.” Tulane’s defense is still attempting to build on a strong 2013 campaign in which it was the nation’s 22nd-best defense in terms of yards allowed and ranked second in the nation in forcing turnovers. After losing almost half of its starters, however, the Green Wave has given up 32 points per game in 2014, which has dropped its defense to 94th in the nation in points allowed. The defense’s strength lies near the line of scrimmage. Nose tackles Corey Redwine and Tanzel Smart both weigh in at more than 300 pounds and will try to put a dent in an explosive Blue Devil running game that is posting 262.7 rushing yards per game. The linebacking corp, led by linebacker Nico Marley—the grandson of reggae legend Bob Marley—will also look to be active near the line of scrimmage. The sophomore has 22 tackles, 0.5 sacks and an interception already this season. “They are definitely a very active front,” Duke center Matt Skura said. “A lot of movement. Their two nose tackles are

big, quick guys that are athletic. We have been working on guys working downhill on scout team defense and trying to prepare for a lot of movement.” The Blue Devils may be without guard Lucas Patrick, who was injured in the Kansas game and was called questionable for Saturday’s game by Cutcliffe. If Patrick can’t suit up this weekend, look for Cody Robinson to take his spot up front and help combat Redwine and Smart. After having its way with the first three opponents of the season, Duke should face more resistance from a hungry Tulane squad in its final home game until Oct. 18. If the Blue Devils underestimate their opponent, the Green Wave could pull off a major upset that would give it the momentum needed to build on last year’s success.

sports

Izzi Clark | The Chronicle Max McCaffrey and the Blue Devils will look to victimize a porous Green Wave defense Saturday at Wallace Wade Stadium.

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2014 | 5

W. GOLF

continued from page 4 late in the third round, Choi found a way to overcome that, too. Racking up 14 birdies against just five bogeys, she gave Duke the lift it needed with Boutier missing. Adding to her tournament highlights, the sophomore made eagle on the 18th hole—which the teams played as their 14th of the day after starting on No. 5—a result Choi described as unexpected. “It’s just fantastic. I was concerned that she wouldn’t make the trip,” Brooks said. “But for her to come in and win individually is pretty exciting.” Freshmen phenoms Leona and Lisa Maguire did not disappoint in their collegiate debuts. The twins, heralding from Cavan, Ireland, lived up to the hype surrounding their amateur resumes, combining for 22 birdies. The Maguires’ strong performances come at the tail-end of a transition to college across the pond. Brooks cited the twins’ strong work ethic and passion for the sport as reasons for the seamless changeover. “They’re tenacious competitors. That’s very apparent to me since they showed up at Duke,” Brooks said. “They’ve really come in here ready to play. They work hard and it showed in this tournament.”

Leona Maguire opened the tournament with a birdie on her way to carding a threeunder-par for the first round. At 69 strokes, the effort marked the lowest career-opening round by a Duke freshman since the 200506 season. And she never looked back, finishing the tournament tied for fifth overall with a score of eight-under-par. “I couldn’t have asked for a better start,” Maguire said. “[The birdie] was quite a long shot as well. It gave me a bit of momentum for the next three days.” Junior Yi Xiao and senior Irene Jung rounded out the Blue Devil lineup in Charleston, adding some valuable experience to an otherwise young group. Xiao posted her first career round under par on the second day, carding 71 strokes to finish the round at one-under-par. Missing from the tournament was freshman Gurbani Singh, who played in an amateur event in Japan last week representing her home country, India. Duke brings back Boutier and Singh for the three-day Annika Intercollegiate Tournament that begins Sept. 28 in Orlando, Fla., in what will be the Blue Devils’ first opportunity to exhibit the strength of their full team. “[Overcoming being shorthanded], that’s one of the things that makes me so proud of the team,” Brooks said. “We just came in and played great golf. In Celine’s absence we got the job done.”

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T H E I N D E P E N D E N T D A I LY AT D U K E U N I V E R S I T Y

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Confronting the hook-up culture

Y

esterday, we noted the sexualization of American society and the prevalence—in pop culture at large and at Duke—of an objectifying hook-up culture. Today, we normatively address this issue. These days, it does not seem like a far stretch

Editorial to say that Duke students are more willing to have sex than they hold hands with a romantic partner in public. But a study conducted two years ago by the Duke Social Relationships Project showed that, despite popular perception, nearly one third of students were in “committed relationships” and nearly three fourths of single students wished there were more of a dating scene on campus. A more up-to-date study is probably needed, but intuitively, the study’s claims still ring true: on balance, students prefer sustained emotional and romantic engagements rather than hook ups. So why does hook-up culture seem to dominate, when it appears to lack widespread support? Two comprehensive concepts of reality and sex

address these concerns. critically and ironically by day. Bloom also identiOn the whole, the hook-up culture may pro- fied this self-indulgence as “the civilized reanimalvide momentary pleasures but fails to encour- ization of man.” age long term, meaningful encounters with our But sex can be much more than what the hookpeers. Hook-ups are purely physical, self-gratify- up culture offers. Sexual habits inherently reveal ing acts that are not conpsychological, emotional and moral ducive towards emotional viewpoints. Sexual acts have more n the whole, the intimacy; rather than prodimensions than physical, and these hook-up culture mote healthy intimacy, non-physical dimensions require a hook-up is akin to mu- may provide momentary careful reflection, which the hooktual, cooperative mastur- pleasures but fails to up culture denies. Accordingly, sex bation. In this worldview, is an intrinsically unitive, intimate encourage long term, different sexual convenand self-giving act, which is signifitions—ranging from celi- meaningful encounters cant to all involved. bacy until marriage to with our peers. Which view of reality and sexual “no-strings attached”— ethics is correct? In the haze of are treated as equally nightlife, the hook-up culture dishealthy options on a dinner menu. None is any guises itself, offering pleasure and conquest sans better than another; each is equally nurturing commitment—great for bragging rights and tallyand should be chosen as a matter of self-serving ing notches in the belt. But in the light of day, taste and desire. alienation, awkwardness and debasement—“the As Allan Bloom, author of The Closing of the walk of shame”—are the words that often describe American Mind, argues, higher education has it. While an individual’s sexual decisions are his or been reduced to the professional training of clev- hers alone to make, the ramifications of hook-up er and impulsive animals, who drink, vomit and culture should raise eyebrows and encourage esfornicate in the dorms by night while they posture sential discussions about sex culture at Duke.

O

edit pages

The rights way to go

onlinecomment Why does a “loss of intimacy” necessarily have to be “problematic”? People who finger wag at the hookup culture are getting as tiresome as the acknowledgement of a hookup culture in the first place.

—“Twentyfourteen” commenting on the editorial “Let’s talk about sex.”

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T

he language of rights has been part of the grammar of Western morality for a while— the concept came into its modern form around the time of the Enlightenment. In a lot of ways, this language has been useful. Historically, it arose in response to a distribution of power in which the interests of the many were entirely subjugated to the interests of a very small group (often one person). In these contexts, rights were a way of asserting that the interests of the “regular people” mattered too—it no longer became acceptable for the happiness of many people to be sacrificed in the name of some vague idea like “the state” or “the collective,” which really just meant the interests of those in power. In their role as a safeguard against totalitarian or absolutist infringements, rights have it right.

Eugene Rabinovich ARE WE THERE YET? But I think there are a number of reasons why rights can’t be the whole story. According to Joseph Raz, an Israeli legal philosopher, X has a right to Y if X’s interest in Y is sufficient to incur in other parties a moral duty to procure Y or at least not prevent X from getting Y. This definition is pretty good in capturing the idea of rights, but it leaves some questions unanswered. For example, what force does the moral duty incurred by rights carry? It definitely can’t be an absolute duty. Even Robert Nozick, the godfather of philosophical libertarianism, would argue that an island dweller’s property rights are not so strong that the island dweller would be morally justified in denying a shipwrecked sailor food and refuge on the island. Especially when rights conflict (here, right to life versus property rights) or when there is an “emergency” situation (as in this toy example), it seems that at least some rights can sometimes be violated. However, trying to put a logic to when we should allow these exceptions only shows that rights are missing some more fundamental ethical concept. At best, it turns out, rights are a heuristic device. To get an understanding of why that’s so, let’s think about the “emergency exception.” The idea is that while under normal circumstances it’s not acceptable to violate a right, certain extenuating circumstances might permit the violation of rights. For example, it’s considered a violation of personal liberties if the state coerces an innocent person into a particular job. But if that person happened to be the only one that could figure out

how to stop a meteor from destroying the Earth, this would qualify as an extenuating circumstance and the state would be justified in exercising coercion. Here, the significant number of lives at stake outweighs the individual person’s interests. Exceptional circumstances must be truly dire to justify invasions of rights: if only two lives had been at stake in the meteor example, rights-based theorists would not consider coercion justified. The problem with this way of thinking, though, is that it’s completely arbitrary. It would be hard to argue that a situation is an emergency when 100,000 lives are at stake, but not when 99,999 are. This arbitrariness is a good indication that underneath our intuitions about emergency circumstances lies a deeper idea. This problem is related to another difficulty that I think is a decisive factor against a purely rightsbased ethics--the question of what to do when rights conflict. This issue touches on some deeper questions in ethics, but suffice it to say that in my opinion, rights-based theories don’t have a good way of fully resolving conflicts between rights. On the other hand, the utilitarian framework provides a resolution to these problems. To a utilitarian, rights are sources of happiness of great enough importance that they require the devotion of others’ resources. This approach solves the arbitrariness problem because it gives a clear way of deciding when rights should be infringed--when the happiness produced by their infringement outweighs the suffering. Utilitarianism has its problems, but its natural and philosophically meaningful way of resolving conflicts between interests is one of its biggest strengths. Am I saying that we should abandon rights altogether? Not at all. The real world is riddled with uncertainties. Even if we are committed to utilitarianism, there exist enormous barriers to us being able to figure out what state of affairs actually maximizes utility. In this context, rights could exist as a safeguard against our uncertainty. The point I’ve been making is that an ethical theory that takes rights as its starting point faces a number of (decisive) difficulties, most of which relate to the fact that rights are of instrumental value; my rights are only valuable to me insofar as their protection helps me to live a fulfilled and meaningful life. As with many ethical concepts, peeling back the idea of rights reveals a roughly utilitarian backdrop. But even utilitarianism has its difficulties. So, rights or no rights, the only way forward is a constant and critical re-evaluation of our values and the assumptions that underlie them. Eugene Rabinovich is a Trinity senior. His column runs every other Wednesday.


The Chronicle

www.dukechronicle.com commentary

Picking our battles

S

peaking up is good; silence is bad. This dichotomy is continually reinforced in discourse at Duke. We are encouraged to speak up when we know of injustices and call out those responsible for perpetrating them. We are told that remaining silent about injustices puts us almost on par with the perpetrators themselves. Of course, this language of “speaking up” and “remaining silent” is mostly used as metaphor. To speak up about an issue doesn’t always mean literally speaking out loud about it; it means using a variety of means to increase awareness or to seek to better understand a problem. Speaking up often involves altering one’s actions—choosing not to buy clothing that is manufactured in sweatshops is a means of speaking up. Likewise, remaining silent often means continuing to participate in a

reason and rhetoric, not to engage with the reallife opinions of another individual. The debate world is not the real world. In real life, people are emotionally and intellectually vested in their opinions. And it barely needs to be said that Facebook debates don’t really change people’s deeply-held convictions. There is nothing to be gained; we only stand to alienate and injure each other in a careless and heated exchange of condescending remarks. Spats like this make real dialogue difficult, because they further entrench people in their respective camps and cause people to feel attacked. Worse yet is when we feel compelled to talk about things we don’t actually care about. Our penchant for talking often causes us to voice an opinion—lest we be left out of the conversation—before we’ve truly formed it in

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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2014 | 7

A choice between imitation and creation Sometimes when I’m alone in Perkins worrying about how my paper due the next morning will get written, my mind takes a detour to marvel at the wealth of ideas that must continually be flowing throughout campus. With the combination of renowned professors and inquisitive students found at Duke, it’s no surprise that this university has become the birthplace of numerous innovative questions and solutions. At least, that’s the type of discourse I’ve been immersed in since freshman year. From the day we step onto campus, we are reminded constantly of the awe-inspiring feats of our peers and alumni and told to be proud of our association with them. But after that thin cloak of self-assurance is stripped away, a more subtle fear creeps in: how am I contributing to this campus discourse? What have I thought of or said that hasn’t been thought of or said already? We live in a world where communicative technology has significantly

Zach Heater

Chris Lee

THE MIDDLE GROUND

WHAT’S IN A NARRATIVE?

problematic activity or culture without working to correct it. Failing to name and correct injustices is bad indeed. But we shouldn’t let our disdain for this kind of silence turn us off from choosing not to speak…so that we can listen. Duke students love to talk. We talk about all kinds of things, from the mundane happenings of our daily lives to the grand existential questions of philosophy and science. If we really kept track of all the things we say from day to day, we’d probably find that a lot of our words are useless. How many times do we feel like we have to say something—literally anything will do—to break an awkward silence in class or in social settings? Duke students are a cohort of silence breakers, who can speak up with little thought. But more than liking to talk, I think we like listening to ourselves talk. We’ve been unfortunately primed for this—in our education thus far people have affirmed our special talents and lauded our exceptional ideas. Naturally, they’ve wanted to hear from us. We’ve been the ones who spoke up in class, the captains of the debate team and the speakers at graduation. Now that we’re at Duke, this predisposition to speak has left us with a problem—we don’t know how to pick our battles. Although I try not to, I occasionally find myself embroiled in a Facebook debate regarding a particularly aggressive post to which I feel personally obligated to respond. In most cases, I end up arguing with people who are as convicted of their own opinions as I am of mine and are as unlikely to change their minds as I am. Don’t mistake me, I get a thrill out of arguing for the sake of arguing. I’m a debater and I do think it can be a valuable intellectual exercise. However, in an organized debate the speakers must remove themselves completely from their own opinions on a topic. The goal is to convince an unbiased judge with the use of

our minds. We feel pressured to offer a view on things we haven’t considered critically or researched at all. After all, Duke students fear nothing more than admitting “I haven’t read enough about it to know” or “I’ve never heard of that before.” In a competitive academic environment, this kind of honesty feels like failure. It’s pretty easy to see how this can diminish conversation: look no further than those classes, I’m sure you’ve had one, where someone always raises his or her hand to ask an unnecessary question or contribute a barelyrelevant comment lest they go unnoticed. What do we do if we don’t have an opinion? What do we do if we don’t know enough about something? The obvious answer is to listen. Listening requires silence—not a passive, complacent silence—but an active and engaged silence, seeking to learn from others. As a man, I’ve been moved by listening to some of my female friends give their thoughts on rape and sexual assault. They speak from a perspective I don’t have, and I’ve realized that there’s more value in what they have to say than I. This is what picking our battles means— only choosing to speak up when we’ve actually thought through an issue and formed an opinion, and doing so in a setting that actually has the potential to do good. More importantly, it means choosing silence so that we can listen. This is not the silence of complacency or ignorance; it’s the silence of maturity and reason. We can’t listen to others and learn from them if we never stop talking. Being able to pick one’s battles is a sign of intellectual and emotional maturity, and it’s a skill that will stand us in good stead in our careers and relationships after Duke. Let’s start practicing now. Zach Heater is a Trinity sophomore. His column runs every other Wednesday.

compressed the time and space barrier that once inhibited our intellectual exchanges. Today we share knowledge at an unprecedented rate, but of course, not all the consequences shine positive. Karl Marx, among others, appraised the modern capitalist machine by criticizing its dependence on an unhealthily rapid turnover of ideas. Originality quickly becomes stale; what is solid melts into air, and new forms become antiquated before they can ossify. Consequently, the equilibrium between idea creation and idea distribution has long since been rendered lopsided towards the latter. To compensate for this imbalance, I feel that we’ve become content with recycling but not evolving old ideas, digesting the philosophies of generations before us and letting them merely stagnate in our stomachs. As Duke students, we take pride in our creative faculties and expect the quality of our ideas to come at a high standard. But how often can we say that an idea of ours is truly innovative—a product of creation, not imitation? It’s hard to admit, but the majority of my knowledge base has been developed from being a passive consumer in the marketplace of ideas around me—rarely am I able to conceive of a thought that is original. Of course, while quoting the ideas of Derrida or Foucault in a paper may equip me with the vocabulary to think critically, it can also serve as an intellectual crutch if I’m not encouraged to think creatively as well. The well-discussed “decline” of U.S. education comes not because we’re falling behind other countries in standardized exam scores, but rather because we are entrenched in a cultural system that unintentionally promotes mediocrity. It’s a system where creativity is the exception, not the norm— where we are rewarded for how well we can reproduce the pre-established ideas we learn in class on our exams or papers. Even as college students, we don’t necessarily have to create ideas to succeed. We need only to replicate the way of thinking that has existed before us to earn our degree and make a respectable living after college. As we embark on our different careers, we must be wary of the choices that lie before us. So many of the positions to which we aspire have lost their haloes—renowned professionals such as physicians, lawyers and engineers have been reduced to wage laborers. Healthcare mandates, legal precedents and other institutionalized regulations have forced these highly educated individuals to conform and confine their innovative ideas to fit into the system. They are pressured to reiterate the same narratives over and over because “that’s how things have always been done.” How can we hope to change our world for the better if we continue stagnating a dialogue of ideas that was meant to evolve? There are times when we must stop fooling ourselves. The problems of the status quo will not go away if we simply keep doing what we’ve been doing. We may be exposed to fountains of knowledge in our university courses, but if all we take away from our education are imitated facts, then we would be doing society and ourselves a disservice. Injustices of this generation would persist because the cultural narratives we carry with us through time would remain the same. To fix a broken system, we need to chase after ideas that deviate from the status quo instead of simply adopting any ideas that are offered to us. For this reason, I believe that those of us who are still unsure about our future careers should embrace the uncertainty. The real tragedy is when a promising student is forced to confine his or her academic identity to an assembly line that mechanically produces new doctors and lawyers simply to replace the old ones. Rather than considering what kind of job we will hold, let’s start envisioning what kind of impact we would like to leave behind. We all deserve an education that can turn our mirrors into windows. There are infinite realms of creativity within ourselves; if we’re willing to unveil them, perhaps new narratives and perspectives can refresh the stagnated dialogue. I know it’s tempting to offer ourselves up to a safe, established path of imitation, but I believe we’re meant to strive for more than that. Imitation, taken alone, is a disservice to our uniqueness. So let’s strive to create something out of nothing and see what wonders we discover. Chris Lee is a Trinity junior. His column runs every other Wednesday.


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