December 5, 2019

The Chronicle

See Inside Javin DeLaurier energizes Duke Page 11

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

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019 DUKECHRONICLE.COM

A Quik Comeback

Sam’s Quik Shop to be revitalized as “The Quikie”

Michelle Tai | Features Photography Editor The land formerly home to Sam’s Quik Shop is now set to become Blue Light Living, a luxury apartment complex.

Anna Zolotor Staff Reporter

The Boy family, who owned Sam’s Quik Shop for decades, plans to open a “spin-off” of the convenience store in downtown Durham and name it “The Quikie.”

Sam’s Quik Shop, a student favorite store known for its vast selection of craft beer on Erwin Road, closed January 2019, and the money from its sale is being reinvested into the new shop, which will be located at 618

Ramseur Street. Wilmorite, a New York-based commercial real estate development company, bought the property where Sam’s Quik Shop stood and is currently in the process of building a luxury student apartment complex, Blue Light Living, in its place.

Blue Light Living is slated to open by Fall 2020. The name of the apartment complex is a nod to The Blue Light Restaurant, which existed at the location of Sam’s Quik Shop from 1949 to 1974. In fact, Wilmorite’s office on Ninth Street features a mural photograph of the restaurant,

Old location to become luxury apartment complex

according to Joe Morelle, Wilmorite’s vice president of student housing.

John Boy, the former Sam’s Quik Shop owner, said The Quikie will feature many similar services to the Sam’s Quik Shop along with all of its “good vibes.” Aiming to be opened sometime during the second quarter of 2020, the new shop will be owned by Boy’s partner, Holly Tucker, and daughter, Holland Boy, making the Boy family’s collective See COMEBACK on Page 4

Duke downs Michigan State in first away contest

By Michael Model Associate Sports Editor

EAST LANSING, Mich.—Despite playing in his first true road game and getting booed on every miss during shootaround, Duke freshman Vernon Carey Jr. was simply unfazed by the spotlight.

As would be expected from a top-15 team playing in front of its home crowd, Michigan State would not crumple after falling behind by 16 at the half. The DUKE 87 11th-ranked Spartans 75 appeared poised for a MSU dominant second half after a 9-1 spurt out of the locker room, which was capped by a triple from Cassius Winston.

However, Carey wouldn’t have any of it, answering the call with five of his game-high 26 points out of a timeout to spark a game-clinching See M. BASKETBALL on Page 13

Bre Bradham | Associate Photography Editor Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo was left frustrated after a dominant Blue Devil onslaught.

Duke Jazz Ensemble featuring

Fred Wesley Friday, December 6th Baldwin Auditorium at 8 pm Tickets: tickets.duke.edu

ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTEENTH YEAR, ISSUE 30

Five Blue Devils win Schwarzman

By John Markis Senior News Reporter

Five Duke students and alumni have been named Schwarzman Scholars, earning them the opportunity to pursue a master’s degree in China.

Two current seniors, Charles Berman and Max Labaton, were chosen, as well as three alumni: Yunjai (Caroline) Lai, Trinity ‘19; Steven Soto, Trinity ‘17 and Kevin Zheng, Trinity ‘19. This year’s class was the most competitive in history, with 145 individuals selected from more than 4,700 applications.

The Schwarzman Scholarship covers the costs for American students to pursue a one-year master’s degree in global affairs at Schwarzman College at Tsinghua University in Beijing. The program hopes to foster better relations between the future leaders of China and the United States through this partnership. It seeks out qualities like demonstrated leadership and a desire to understand other cultures, according to its website. Scholars take classes in English but otherwise immerse themselves in Beijing and China more broadly.

Berman hails from Durham, N.C., and majors in visual media studies and Asian and Middle Eastern studies. The president of the Duke table tennis team, Berman also serves as the chief media director of Duke Sport Clubs.

He has already studied abroad in China and Argentina and hopes to use his experience as a Schwarzman Scholar to pursue a career as a director, actor or artist.

Labaton is an American Grand Strategy council co-chair and opinion managing editor for The Chronicle from Washington, D.C. He is majoring in public policy studies and has previously interned for the Department of State’s embassy in Peru and the Senate’s Committee on Foreign Relations.

He assisted 2016 Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and plans to eventually enter a field related to diplomacy and foreign service.

Lai, who is from Chongqing, is the first Duke student from China to be recognized with the Schwarzman. She graduated with majors in economics and international comparative studies. While at Duke, Lai participated in DukeEngage Detroit and danced in Duke Swing as well as Duke Chinese Dance. She spent time promoting the Duke Innovation and Entrepreneurship See SCHWARZMAN on Page 4

2 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019

The Chronicle

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University adds 27 acres to Duke Forest to protect natural heritage site

By Anna Zolotor Staff Reporter

$2.5 million for 27 acres? This may seem exorbitant, but for Duke, this addition to the Duke Forest was well worth the cost.

Duke purchased this parcel of land—located on the corner of Old N.C. 86 and Eubanks Road in Orange County—Nov. 4 for almost five times the assigned property tax value of $574,000. The land has been added to Duke Forest’s Blackwood Division, an important hub for biological research, including nationally funded climate change studies.

In the 1980s, a section of the 27 acres named Meadow Flats was identified as naturally significant by the North Carolina Natural Heritage Program, according to Stephen Hall, a landscape ecologist who worked for the program. The land has a “highly intact ecosystem,” Hall said, as well as a large amount of biodiversity.

The site, located in Carrboro’s rural buffer, was previously owned by the development company Parker Louis LLC. Omar Zinn, the company co-owner, told The Chronicle that their original plan for the land included office buildings, retail, restaurants, a general store, apartments and small singlefamily houses.

Omar said that he, his brother Adam and four other large landowners in the northern edge of Carrboro were approached

by Carrboro town officials about a development project nine years ago. The Zinns were the only ones who decided to take on the proposal, and in 2011 they began to map down their design for the project.

In retrospect, though, not all involved agree on the details.

Trish McGuire, planning director for the Town of Carrboro, wrote in an email to The Chronicle that the Town “was not pushing for a development project” but actually was interested in a “design workshop that would engage the community in how their property would be developed.”

According to Omar, the commencement of the planning process consisted of a series of public discussions organized by the Town.

Longtime Orange County resident John Gant has been involved in discussions surrounding the development since 2011.

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons The Duke Forest is set to grow with the addition of new acreage.

Feeling pressured to experiment on animals?

He noted that as these discussions continued, details began to emerge about the nature of the land that made it a potentially poor candidate for development. In addition to the fact that such a dense development wouldn’t “fit the character of a rural buffer,” Gant said, it would be “irrational” to place such a project “in the middle of Duke Forest, a county park, a school zone and a watershed.”

A June 2019 letter from a cohort of environmental scientists to Orange County Manager Bonnie Hammersley stated that Meadow Flats, a natural area directly adjacent to and partially overlapping with the purchased plot, “is the best example of upland depression swamp forest in Orange County, and one of the best examples of this natural community in the state.” The letter also noted that though the Orange County’s inventory of important natural areas—commissioned in 2004—named 53 “biologically significant locations,” Meadow Flats is “the only upland site with national significance.”

Three faculty from Duke’s Nicholas School signed the letter.

Johnny Randall, the director of conservation programs at the North Carolina Botanical Garden, pointed out that part of the importance of this kind of conservation relates to ecological connectivity, or having “corridors through which organisms can move.” Organisms that need access to connected natural areas include “highly mobile animals like deer and bobcats” as well as “invertebrates that don’t fly, but crawl,” he added.

“This is particularly important now, in a time of climate change, if we’re going to see any resiliency in biodiversity,” Randall said.

Most of Meadow Flats was already included in Duke Forest’s Blackwood Division. Hall explained that Duke has a registry agreement with the North Carolina Natural Heritage Program, which means that they have agreed to keep Meadow Flats and other identified areas in a natural state.

“It doesn’t mean totally hands-off,” he said, as some research is permissible, but it does mean “not doing anything that is going to disturb or disrupt the natural ecosystem processes.”

A July 2019 memo from Duke Forest Director Sarah Childs noted the importance of the “climate change and air See FOREST on Page 4

Admission is always free for Duke students.

If you’ve been told that you must use animals to obtain your graduate degree but feel there should be a better way, we can help. Please contact us at GradStudent@peta.org.

“Once there was another city here, and now it is gone. There are almost no traces of it anymore, but millions of us know it existed, because we lived in it: the Lost City of New York.”

—Pete Hamill, New York magazine

The Lost City of New York: © iStock.com/Olena Kurashova

Stories of Growing Up in the 1950s and ’60s With Harris Cooper, Philip Costanzo, Iris Tillman Hill, Peter Lange and Benjamin Reese

Thursday, December 5, 6 – 8 PM 6 PM Panel conversation begins in the Lecture Hall, followed by reception

nasher.duke.edu/nycstories

Co-sponsored by the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University Times Square, 1954. Photograph by Frank Oscar Larson.

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019 | 3

Former UN Ambassador Samantha Power speaks at Duke

By Preetha Ramachandran Staff Reporter

Samantha Power, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, spoke to a packed audience at Penn Pavilion Tuesday night about her career and latest memoir.

Power, a Pulitzer Prize winner, was featured on Time’s 2004 list of the 100 Most Influential People. She was also a human rights adviser in the administration of former President Barack Obama and currently works as a professor of the practice of global leadership and public policy at Harvard Kennedy School. Her memoir, “The Education of an Idealist,” was released in early September.

“I did not think, ‘One day, I’m going to be a UN ambassador’ or ‘I’m going to be a human rights lawyer.’ My epiphany was so much more modest,” said Power, who in her early days wanted to become a sports announcer.

However, after seeing kids her age mowed with tanks in Tiananmen Square and images from concentration camps in the Balkans 50 years after the Holocaust, she came to a realization— that there’s “more to life than sports.”

Power emphasized the importance of showing the human side of policymaking, which can motivate young people who may otherwise feel small, make a difference. We only hear about the human factor when there’s a foreign policy disaster, she added.

“If you create a fuller picture, there are parts of what any human is going through that are universalizable,” she said.

However, as a woman in a male-dominated space, Power often encountered bumps along the way.

Power said that although her professional

Michelle Tai | Features Photography Editor Samantha Power touched on her career ascent in a male-dominated workspace to become the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

life isn’t typical, many can relate to her “inner life,” her “torment” and her “sense of being torn in multiple directions.” She recounted when her son nagged her while she was on call with the secretary of state, a story she said has led many women who work from home to empathize with her.

Power touched on how she has always occupied male-dominated spaces, though she emphasized that her recognition of her place in them has shifted over time. As a war correspondent in Bosnia, she encountered several women in the field, but it was only in Obama’s White House that she first fully encountered and recognized the maledominated space.

“Because of the pipeline in national security, largely, but also because we were in such a rush

to hire that we didn’t slow the hiring process down sufficiently at the highest levels…there were 26 senior directors and six were women,” Power said.

Only through weekly meetings with the women and a subsequent growing sense of community was she able to realize that the gender dynamics were “pretty crummy.”

Additionally, Power’s status of coming into the Obama administration as a Pulitzer Prize winning author meant that more watchful eyes were upon her. The simple fact that Power had been a journalist generated suspicion.

Once, as she was taking scrupulous notes during a meeting, a senior person in the room asked Power if what she was writing was for a future memoir.

“It was as if I were a mole, or an enemy within

or that my interests were not the country’s interest,” she said. “It was so mortifying.”

Even so, Power’s outsider perspective didn’t mean that she was naïve when it came to criticizing policy. Even though she was an outsider, Power said that she spent virtually a decade interviewing people and though her writing was always critical, it tried to contextualize the policy choices.

“It wasn’t like I came into government thinking ‘Oh, this is going to be so easy,’” Power said, but she felt that her insights from the outside could serve to help.

One of these ideas included elevating proposals to do small initiatives. The direct application of these ideas came in the form of a “toolbox”—a set of policies like peacekeepers, contact groups and visa bans that could be employed in the face of mass atrocities and genocide.

When asked about foreign policy taken by the current administration that will be judged most kindly in the future, Power lauded the greater use of leverage, defining it as “that spirit of asserting your interests and being more willing to put more on the line on behalf of [your citizens].”

Although she doesn’t agree with the way it has been conducted—specifically citing the harm the trade war with China has caused—she recognized that the previous administration had been “more accommodationist.”

Above all, Power stressed the importance of idealism in public service.

“They’re trying to make their country better, they’re trying to look out for the welfare of their citizens, they’re trying to improve something somewhere,” she said. “I don’t know anyone in government who’s like ‘Yeah, it’s going pretty well out there.’”

The Chronicle

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4 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019

FOREST FROM PAGE 2 quality research” that has gone on in the Blackwood Division for decades, with “millions of dollars of investment by federal agencies and granting institutions.” The memo expressed concern that a “dramatic increase in the human population against the boundaries of the Duke Forest” would interfere with the climate change research and “minimize the value of the area for research in general.”

Many of the ecological and environmental arguments against the Zinn brothers’ development did not come to light until the spring of 2019. During the preceding eight years, it had been up to a “well-organized group of citizens” to stall the development process, according to Omar.

Omar emphasized that though he does not “blame these people for standing up for what they believe in,” he thinks that Carrboro has “a choice to make as a town.” He noted that Carrboro is concerned about the sustainability of the town’s tax base, which he said is around 80 percent residential.

He believes that not building more homes within Carrboro’s boundaries will simply mean “more people commuting from Mebane” and other nearby towns. “The town keeps growing outward,” he said, and “smart growth is creating density along primary transportation corridors.”

“How do we balance our population needs with environmental threats?” Zinn asked.

When Duke Forest first approached the Zinns about purchasing the land, Omar said that he and his brother “made a decision based on the pace of this project and its direction.” Zinn said that ultimately, he too is an environmentalist, and though he is “disappointed” with the length of the process and ultimate failure, he recognizes that protecting the land is “a good move in terms of climate analysis and climate study.”

Randall used a common metaphor to describe the biodiversity crisis that is so vitally connected to conservation.

“There’s all these rivets that hold an airplane together. How many rivets can you pull out before the plane falls apart?” he said. “How many species can you lose before the ecosystem falls apart?”

SCHWARZMAN FROM PAGE 1 Initiative, which sought to build a community of entrepreneurs on campus.

Soto, of Phoenix, majored in political science at Duke and is a first-generation student. A recipient of the William J. Griffith University Service Award, Soto has worked at Venture for America, a nonprofit started by Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang. He intends to use the Schwarzman Scholarship to research how technology can strengthen civic institutions in democracies.

Zheng is from Glenelg, Md., and majored in computer science and biology. He would like to focus his career on the intersection of equitable health care access and technology. He served as an emergency medical technician as an undergraduate and later co-founded Optiml, which uses artificial intelligence to detect eye diseases. As a Schwarzman, Zheng will study artificial intelligence in depth with the long-term goal of global collaboration.

HOT ITEM of the WEEK Courtesy of Duke Photography Charles Berman (left) and Max Labaton (right)

COMEBACK FROM PAGE 1 operations a fourth-generation family business.

What Boy misses the most about Sam’s Quik Shop is the friendships developed with his staff over the years. He said that the family hopes The Quikie will foster this same sense of community.

The Quikie

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Boy announced that Sam’s Quik Shop would be closing in a December 2018 Facebook post. He wrote that he was planning to “focus [his] efforts on Sam’s Bottle Shop,” a store located on NC Highway 54 that he said is identical in operations to The Quik Shop.

The Bottle Shop features 28 taps on draft, a bar upstairs and a 1,200 square foot upstairs patio. He has integrated many former Quik Shop staff as Bottle Shop employees.

Although the decision to sell the Quik Shop was “really emotional” for Boy, he said that working with the people at Blue Light Living was a positive experience. He “loved the fact that they were a third generation family owned business and [the Boy family] were as well,” and he appreciates their use of many Durham-based companies in the building and planning process.

Blue Light Living

The Blue Light Living apartment complex, according to Morelle, will have 80 two- and three-bedroom apartments, for a total of 211 beds. Because the apartments are fully furnished, Blue Light Living’s target audience is Duke seniors and graduate students who don’t want to buy furniture for a few years, he said, but anyone is welcome.

Morelle said that the complex is unique for its studentoriented financing system, as each person has their own lease and isn’t responsible for their roommate’s rent. Each renter gets their own bedroom, bathroom and walk-in closet, and shares kitchen and living room spaces with their roommates.

Blue Light Living will boast amenities including a rooftop pool, a fitness center, high-tech study lounges and a 24-hour coffee station, according to its website. The complex will also be pet friendly, complete with a dog park and two pet wash rooms.

According to Property Manager Cynthia Whyte, twobedroom apartments cost $1,500 per bedroom to rent, with three-bedroom apartments at $1,400 per bedroom.

The complex will include 80 parking spots but over 100 bike lots. The company also hopes that Duke will accept its request to place a bus stop in front of the property, Morelle said.

Wilmorite looked at university towns and cities across the country and decided to expand to Durham because the city “didn’t have this type of unique [off-campus] student-focused apartment complex,” Morelle said. The company has built similar apartment complexes in upstate New York at the Rochester Institute of Technology and Syracuse University.

Despite being a New York-based firm, Morelle explained the company’s engineers and architects are based in Durham because it’s helpful to have “people with a knowledge of Durham and its markets” working on the apartment complex.

The Chronicle

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019 | 5

Duke University Stores Student & Employee Holiday Sale

20

% off

Clothing & Gifts Monday, December 2 through Tuesday, December 10, 2019 University Store Medical Center Store Nasher Museum Store Provisions

*

Duke Team Store Terrace Shop East Campus Store Divinity Bookshop

At the Holiday Season, our thoughts turn gratefully to our customers. It is in this spirit we say...

Thank You and Best Wishes for the Holidays! *20% maximum discount allowed. Discount cannot be combined with any other discounts or promotions. Discount is valid on in-stock merchandise only.

Discount does not include: Academic Apparel, School Supplies, Greeting Cards, Food, Beverages,Candy, Health & Beauty Aids, Custom Orders, Electronics, Cameron and National Championship Floor Pieces, Class Rings, Alumni Chairs, Blazers & Sportcoats, Scrubs & Lab Coats, Professional Wear, Medical Equipment, Cameras, Film, Batteries, Textbooks, Computers, Computer/Printer Supplies, and accessories.

All Duke Technology Center products are excluded from this sale.

Divinity Bookshop: 20% off all regular price Divinity School clothing & gift items.

East Campus Store: 20% off clothing & gift items. (Discount not valid on food, beverages, candy, health & beauty aids.)

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6 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019

CAN’T MISS EVENTS DECEMBER 5 - JANUARY 31

DUKE PERFORMANCES

MUSIC MAKER 25 December 4-8 The Fruit, Downtown Durham In celebration of Music Maker Relief Foundation’s 25th anniversary, Duke Performances has teamed up with the groundbreaking organization for a weeklong music series and exhibition at The Fruit in downtown Durham.

Music Maker 25 brings to Duke and Durham an extensive series of concerts, a variety of free public events; a weeklong exhibit featuring archival materials, instruments, and Music Maker founder Tim Duffy’s tintype photos; and visits by participating musicians to Duke classes and local public schools.

MFA

ART, ART HISTORY AND VISUAL STUDIES

NASHER

CENTER FOR DOCUMENTARY STUDIES

SOUTHBOUND: PHOTOGRAPHS OF AND ABOUT THE NEW SOUTH Through Saturday, December 21 All Day Power Plant Gallery

FILM SCREENING WITH LONNIE HOLLEY: THE MAN IS THE MUSIC Thursday, December 5 12-1:30 pm American Tobacco Campus – Power Plant

THE LOST CITY OF NEW YORK: STORIES OF GROWING UP IN THE 1950S AND ’60S With Harris Cooper, Philip Costanzo, Iris Tillman Hill, Peter Lange and Benjamin Reese Thursday December 5 | 6-8pm Nasher Museum of Art

FALL 2019 DOCUMENTARY STUDIES UNDERGRADUATE CAPSTONE PROJECTS Friday, December 6 5-6:30 pm Center for Documentary Studies

MUSIC

AMI/SCREEN SOCIETY

RUBENSTEIN ARTS CENTER

THEATER STUDIES

DANCE

DUKE JAZZ ENSEMBLE IN CONCERT DIRECTED BY PROF. JOHN BROWN FEATURING TROMBONIST FRED WESLEY Friday, December 6 8 pm Baldwin Auditorium

THE IMAGE BOOK (2018) — JEAN-LUC GODARD – TRIANGLE PREMIERE Thursday, January 10 7 pm Rubenstein Arts Center, Film Theater

RUBY FRIDAYS— ALL SEMESTER LONG! (Most) Fridays at Noon Ruby Lounge Rubenstein Arts Center

MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION: “FEFU AND HER FRIENDS” COMING 2020

BALLETX Friday, January 31 8 pm Bryan Center, Reynolds Industries Theater

Brought to you by Department of Art, Art History and Visual Studies, Center for Documentary Studies, Dance Program, Music Department, Master of Fine Arts in Experimental & Documentary Studies, Nasher Museum of Art, Program in the Arts of the Moving Image’s Screen/Society, Theater Studies and Duke Performances.

The Chronicle

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019 | 7

VOLUME 115, ISSUE 30 | DECEMBER 5, 2019

best of the 2010s Recess staff picks the best culture the decade had to offer, page 8

imagining sisyphus happy Campus arts editor Kerry Rork explores Albert Camus, page 8

The Chronicle

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8 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019

Kendrick Lamar, “good kid, m.A.A.d city” (2012) There were too many good albums released in the 2010s to realistically pick a favorite, but my decade in music really begins with Kendrick Lamar’s “good kid, m.A.A.d city.” Lamar’s major-label debut achieved mythic status seemingly within weeks of its release in 2012, and it’s not for nothing: “good kid, m.A.A.d city” feels like the last instance of a certain strain of “classic” hip-hop album, complete with skits, star-studded cameos and immediate hooks. What sets the record apart from others like it, though, is how it doubles as a rich work of autobiography, a coming-of-age tale that’s now being taught alongside James Joyce. And in a decade where the “voicemail from Mom and Dad” became an ever-present trope in music, Kendrick did it first and did it best.

—Will Atkinson, managing editor

“13th” (2016) Ava DuVernay made today’s racial caste system and its forms of enslavement impossible to ignore in her debut Netflix documentary. By creating a direct connection between the 13th Amendment and the prison industrial complex, she establishes a new baseline for the mainstream understanding of how race operates in the United States. With interviews from historical legends like Angela Davis and Bryan Stevenson to formerlyincarcerated community organizers, “13th” humanizes the otherwise ambiguous world of “criminal justice reform,” setting fertile ground for critical conversations in abolitionist spaces and beyond.

—Miranda Gershoni, managing editor

M.I.A., “Borders” (2016) M.I.A.’s “Borders” was a response to the Syrian refugee crisis, but it still finds resonance today and probably will for years to come, given that it’s more an artifact of the postcolonial era rather than any particular decade.

Her simple quip, “Borders, what’s up with that?” speaks to the displacement and diaspora of communities around the world and challenges our notions of nationhood and culture as localized to a particular space or place. Herself a product of the cultural syncretism that characterizes our globalized age, M.I.A. reminds us that as long as human beings continue to migrate, the issue of “borders” will increasingly become an antiquated and oppressive one.

—Alizeh Sheikh, campus arts editor “BoJack Horseman” (2014–2020) “BoJack” consistently strikes a deft balance between eliciting empathy for its overtly-problematic lead (and his similarly-problematic friends that fill out the cast) and holding him accountable. I believe this exemplifies not only how writers should treat their characters, but also how we as humans should treat each other. Time and again, I find myself critiquing my relationships — including that with the show itself — through the show’s moral paradigm, carefully deliberating the consequences of approaching with rose-colored glasses. That said, it is also an incredibly creative show that has continually pushed the boundaries of its medium through six seasons and never forgets to be funny in its quest to be a moral arbiter.

—Tessa Delgo, staff writer

“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” (2018) Released in a decade defined by the proliferation of superheroes into the mainstream to the point of ubiquity and, ultimately, ad nauseam, “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” made the concept of heroism feel new again. From its jaw-dropping animation to its score — which blending orchestral swells and hip-hop beats — to its timely themes of sky-high expectations for minority populations, the film embodies the uncertainty of the decade without sacrificing any of the beauty or triumph of choosing goodness and optimism over the misanthropy so many have fallen victim to as a response to our current political climate.

No other piece of media comes close to its technical perfection or storytelling dexterity — and no other piece of media features a talking pig voiced by John Mulaney.

—Sydny Long, culture editor

recess

What do you want for Christmas?

Nina Wilder ........ oscar 4 tarantino

Kerry Rork ....................... boulder

Will Atkinson .............bernie 2020

Sydny Long ...... career in business

Miranda Gershoni ...... pete drops

Jack Rubenstein .......... jake’s toes

Sarah Derris .............an internship

Selena Qian .............quit graphics

Alizeh Sheikh ........... less research

Eva Hong ...................... une cloon

On the cover: “Celebrating Queerness in Turkey.” Courtesy of Gentry Finch.

staff note One of my favorite pieces I read in all my years of English classes was Albert Camus’s essay, “The Myth of Sisyphus.” Camus was admirable. He came across as defiant in this work in refusing to limit himself based on what he believed was a purposeless existence. And this work continues to impact how I choose to live.

Born in 1913, Albert Camus was a FrenchAlgerian writer best known for his work “The Stranger,” considered by many to be a profound discussion of absurdity and existentialism.

Influenced by the intellectual movements of the time like the growing postmodernism, Camus struggled with questions of meaning and purpose in what he found to be a meaningless and purposeless world.

Camus opens the essay with a description of the life of Sisyphus. In Greek mythology, Sisyphus is the famous king of Corinth — or Ephyra, as it was known at the time — who infamously cheated death not once, but twice. As punishment, Hades damns Sisyphus to push a boulder up a hill, for it to only roll down again for all of eternity.

What Camus is drawn to is the moment Sisyphus pauses to watch the stone roll down

BE OF T DECA

Lana Del Rey, “Born to Die” (2012) Lana Del Rey’s 2012 album artfully combines the booming beats and rhythms of the 2010s with timeless fantasies of luxury, romance and rebellion, making it one of my favorite albums of the decade. The soft, somewhat dark melodies and lyrics of infatuation and mid-century greed (think “National Anthem”) distinguish “Born to Die” as an album that reflects on the values of the past and will remain relevant in the future.

—Skyler Graham, staff writer

once again. Sisyphus devoted his life to escaping death and yet this hard-won life, as Camus claims, accomplished nothing. Camus, however, finds something human in this moment. Sisyphus stands, feeling the weight of his intensive labor as he watches the boulder he devoted hours to pushing roll down the hill again, putting him back where he started.

Camus uses Sisyphus as a symbol for all of mankind. Our actions are as meaningless and fruitless as Sisyphus rolling a boulder up a hill only for it to immediately roll down again. Every day, every year, every decade, we watch our own ventures seemingly repeat themselves as we are made to pursue them again.

Its relevance today is epitomized in our political situation and the many issues our society faces. Today, we watch our own boulder roll down the hill again only for humanity to push it back up, as we address events like the Paris Climate Agreement be taken off the table in a single presidency after decades of debate and the lives of immigrants in this country be ripped apart.

The idea of history repeating itself seems to be shaping our current political situation, a boulder rolling down the hill of what our future could be.

Even following an unchanging weekly routine seems to fall in line with what Camus deems the absurd and meaningless life.

Camus asks one of the many paradoxical questions of philosophy: Is there a way to live a life without meaning yet without despair?

The paramount issue is one of acceptance — if it is possible for humans to accept that life is merely absurd and orderless without complete indifference.

“Ex Machina” (2014) “Ex Machina” is a fantastic intelligence and what an AIcomplex ideas such as the extensive conversation arou cinematography and polishe —Derek Chen, staff writer

The danger of pure despair is obvious in our society. Apathy seems to be a universal characteristic of the millennial generation, felt after watching years of political failures and the seeming influx of corrupt governments, like in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Libya. Marketing and media teams further promote this ideology and shape our attitude toward life and routine (see: Apathy Clothing).

Individual efficacy in changing systematic problems feels futile and purposeless. The slippery slope of pessimism can result in the very hopelessness Camus argues against.

This often makes me think of the five stages of grief, ending with acceptance — the step Camus believes all of humanity needs to achieve. He does not argue for Sisyphus to give up, to stop pushing the boulder up the hill. Instead, Camus promotes persistence in the face of this struggle. As meaningless and tragic as this pursuit may be, Sisyphus transforms into the “absurd hero” in choosing to live, choosing to define himself by the world he lives in and finding passion in it. Our freedom from our punishment is consciousness, an awareness of the life we have been made to live, without having the ability to change the situation we live in. Once aware, we prevail in the face of struggle, and in that moment, we become the absurd hero over our repetitive venture.

What I leave you with is Camus’s final line: “The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man’s heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy.”

—Kerry Rork

The Chronicle

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recess

Taylor Swift, “Red” (2012) When her managers asked her whether she wanted to stay country or go pop for her fourth studio album, Taylor Swift probably had a simple answer: “Yes.” The result was “Red,” a beautifully diverse album that has aged like fine wine. From the agonizing bridge of “All Too Well” to the lightning-paced opener in “Holy Ground,” the work is a tour de force, showcasing Taylor Swift’s flair for showstopping lyricism. Doubtless, she has achieved something great with “Red,” providing an undeniable classic for the ages.

—Jonathan Pertile, staff writer

EST THE ADE

“The Good Place” (2016–present), “Parks and Recreation” (2009–2015) & “Brooklyn NineNine” (2013–present) Yes, this is a cop-out, but Michael Schur’s trio of sitcoms are brilliant and should serve as a model for the genre moving forward. Heartwarming and outrageously funny, Schur’s shows feature incredibly well-realized characters and mine jokes from the audience’s intimate relationships with those individuals, a far cry from the one-note characters and jokes of laugh-track-riddled, run-ofthe-mill network sitcoms. The shows tackle big topics from police bias to the ethics of the afterlife and what we owe to each other, and they take risks with their characters and the situations they end up in — especially “The Good Place,” which blew up its original concept after the first season. Schur proves that perfect and diverse casting, fresh comedy, unbridled optimism and realistic, strong relationships can reinvigorate the tired sitcom genre.

—Jack Rubenstein, culture editor

“The Grand Budapest Hotel” (2014) “The Grand Budapest Hotel” is a Wes Anderson masterpiece. With his typical flare, the director nearly effortlessly turns tragic events that occurred in Czechoslovakia (Anderson invents Zubrowka as a standin) during World War II and the postwar era into comedy, without any disrespect for the populations most deeply impacted. He borrowed much of the material from Austrian author Stefan Zweig, who was distraught after witnessing the destruction of the two world wars.

This movie is poignant and deeply human, a perfect depiction of the lasting impacts of loss and destruction told through the eyes of those most directly affected. If I can say anything, I would highly recommend seeing this incredible film. If not just for the profound narrative, see it for the beautiful and quirky sets.

—Kerry Rork, campus arts editor

sci-fi thriller that takes a deep look into the rise of artificial -dominated future would look like. Its discussion of large and meaning of morality raises important questions and invites und what it means to be human. Couple this with fantastic ed acting, and it’s easily one of the best films of the decade.

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019 | 9

“On Cinema at the Cinema” (2011–present) “On Cinema” has a simple premise: Tim Heidecker and Gregg Turkington, playing fictionalized versions of themselves, get together in a movie theater to discuss and review cinema’s latest. And yet “On Cinema” is perfect because it manages to convolute this structure beyond comprehension.

Tim, the show’s host, is short-tempered, quasi-illiterate and hellbent on talking about anything but movies — be it his ever-present medical issues, his foray into music with his band Dekkar, his right-wing politics or his avowal of “nutritional vaping.” Gregg, the show’s permanent guest and occasional co-host, is a self-identified film expert, whose only claim to expertise is his massive VHS collection of forgotten duds from the ‘80s and ‘90s. The web series devolves from there, spanning a spin-off show (“Decker”), a film (“Mister America”) and even a court trial (indeed, Tim is tried for mass manslaughter). It is unadulterated absurdity, gleeful in its annihilation of its characters and deeply committed to maintaining the bit.

“On Cinema,” at its core, is a show that could’ve only existed because of the 2010s, and we should count ourselves lucky to be along for the ride.

—Nina Wilder, Recess editor

10 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019 | 11

THE BLUE ZONE

BEYOND THE ARC: DUKE TAKES CARE OF MSU dukechronicle.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Duke veterans get redemption against Michigan State

By Winston Lindqwister Associate Sports Editor

EAST LANSING, Mich.—Few remember the best performance of Javin DeLaurier’s college career.

His 10-point, 11-rebound effort in the Elite Eight of the 2019 NCAA tournament hardly mattered thanks to the crushing blow of a season-ending loss, as Duke lost by just a point to Michigan State.

For the Duke holdovers from last year, such a bitter ending doesn’t go away easily. But in the Blue Devils’ rematch against the Spartans this season, Duke made sure Michigan State felt the sting of a bitter defeat.

DeLaurier was one of four often overlooked Blue Devil veterans who played some of their best basketball on the road in a crucial win against the Spartans Tuesday night. Whether it was solid interior plays from Jack White, slick shooting from Joey Baker or key defensive stops from Jordan Goldwire, Duke’s returners showed a level of depth that the Blue Devils have been aching for, perfectly complimenting the usual suspects of Tre Jones and Vernon Carey Jr, earning sweet revenge in the process.

“When a team beats you in the tournament and ends your season, it’s the game you think about the most, in all your workouts, practices, whatever as you’re working towards

the next year,” DeLaurier said. “And so, it feels good to come beat a really good team and it’s a little bit sweeter because they did beat us last year in the Elite Eight.”

DeLaurier came out with fire the moment his number was called. Though his defense had been solid at times, sloppy fouls and overly aggressive plays had severely limited his usefulness on the floor previously this season. The Shipman, Va., native showed no signs of sloppiness Tuesday, grabbing a steal almost as soon as he stepped on the floor and following it up with a slam off of a Jones lob. Every time Michigan State looked to the paint in the first half, DeLaurier would be there with either a tough contest or a vicious block, and the senior captain would follow it up with easy buckets in the paint on the other end of the floor.

DeLaurier’s 10-point, six-rebound performance was the perfect complement to Carey’s production down low, with DeLaurier proving himself to be a solid big man who can be trusted with serious minutes to give the freshman a breather.

And while Carey remained Duke’s most consistent scoring threat through the evening, the Blue Devils likely wouldn’t have been able to keep the Spartans at bay without big plays from White, Baker and Goldwire down the stretch.

After giving up nine points at the start of

Bre Bradham | Associate Photography Editor

Javin DeLaurier pieced together his best performance of the season Tuesday in Michigan. the second half, the Blue Devils looked shaken heading into a much-needed timeout. Duke’s upperclassmen responded brilliantly, clamping down to rebuild the Blue Devils’ cushion.

White made himself a menace against Michigan State’s driving wings, choking off the paint and forcing contested floaters all evening.

Twice, the star Spartan guard Cassius Winston drove past Jones on his way to a crucial bucket, and twice White rose to stuff Michigan State’s

attack with vicious blocks. Goldwire got in on the defensive action as well, helping to slow down Winston and Rocket Watts and highlighting his defensive performance with a signature steal leading to a transition bucket just after shutting Watts down with a behindthe-back block.

“Joey and Jordan Goldwire were the See VETERANS on Page 12

WOMEN’S GOLF

National champion Blue Devils go to White House championship-winning squad, a trip to the nation’s capital held extra significance. She first visited D.C. when she was 12, shortly after her family had settled in California. That trip was supposed to help her learn about American history and culture—her efforts on the golf course have made her a part of the nation’s athletic history. “[I feel] like I belong more to this country now,” Wang said. “At the beginning, I struggled to leave [home] because of the language barrier, and all kinds of things were different from home.

But now, I just feel like I can live comfortably in this country and I felt really honored to be to be able to meet [the President].”

By Glen Morgenstern Assistant Blue Zone Editor

Not much can surprise head coach Dan Brooks at this point. In his 35 years leading Duke women’s golf, he has claimed seven national championships, visited the White House three times and won several National Coach of the Year awards. He is a man of golf and a man of the world.

But when Brooks and his national champion women’s golf team visited the White House Nov. 22, they got to witness a true rarity: a moment of self-deprecation from President Donald Trump. “[Trump] is friends with [Swedish golfer] Annika Sörenstam. He said she hardly even brushes the grass,” Brooks said. “She’s what we call a ‘picker,’ no kind of big divot… He talked about how big his divots are.”

Regardless of the President’s shortcomings on the golf course, everyone involved got a taste of something new during the expedition up north.

D.C. Universe Before heading to the White House, the team walked around the National Mall and other monuments. Sue Gordon, former director of the CIA’s Information Operations Center and

Courtesy of the White House

The Blue Devils went to the White House last month to celebrate their 2019 national title. former forward for Duke women’s basketball, gave the team a private tour of the International Spy Museum, where you can see a hidden Soviet camera in a glasses case and an East German microdot in a hollow tooth.

The real highlight, of course, was at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. It was a lot to handle for some of the players.

“Until this morning, it didn’t feel real,”

redshirt junior Miranda Wang said. “I didn’t know what I was going to do, but I didn’t feel any pressure or anything like that. When I actually went to the White House and I was standing in the hallway waiting for the President to come… It was like playing [the] last few holes of the national championship.”

For Wang, an immigrant from Beijing and one of four international players on the

‘That never gets old’ After touring the White House three times, Brooks might know the place better than some faculty at Duke. Last week, Brooks and his team walked through the Oval Office, a first for all of them, along with the 21 other teams honored at the White House on the same day. Unlike Brooks’ previous two visits, which came after championships in 2005 and 2007, President Trump did not address all the athletes as a group.

See WHITE HOUSE on Page 12

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12 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019

WHITE HOUSE FROM PAGE 11 While it might be a thrill for Brooks, a History major from Oregon State, he says the main source of enjoyment from visits to D.C. is his players’ happiness.

“It’s great to see them putting the time in, making the accomplishment and being rewarded for it,” Brooks said. “That never gets old. I always enjoy seeing them reap the benefits of their efforts.”

It was also a learning experience for the team.

Duke found itself waiting for the President in the Blue Room, where Grover Cleveland exchanged vows with his bride, Frances—the only President ever to do so in the White House.

Junior Hannah O’Sullivan sat on a Parisian sofa she was told was over 200 years old. “[Brooks] always encourages us to really grasp and appreciate the meaning of what we’re doing,” O’Sullivan said. “He made sure that we really soaked in the fact that we’re walking through the hallways of history.”

Burger President The current Duke roster was joined by Virginia Elena Carta, the leader of the Blue Devils’ title run and a monumental figure in recent Duke history. She founded the Birdies for Babies fundraiser that has already raised more than $30,000 for Duke Children’s Neonatal and Pediatric Intensive Care Units. Carta flew in from Cambridge, England, where she is studying environmental policy, to receive the honors at the White House.

“I’ve been missing Virginia so much,” O’Sullivan said about Carta. “It’s so exciting to be able to welcome her back, and it was only right that

she was there. It really completed the trip because in her four years, she contributed so much to our team and the school and the community.”

Earlier this year, Trump presented the national champion Clemson football team with an array of fast-food favorites, including selections from McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s and Domino’s. Because Trump’s choice was prompted by a government shutdown, the decision (and the misspelling and miscounting of ‘hamberders’ in a now viral Tweet) brewed up controversy in both political and culinary arenas.

Unfortunately, Duke women’s golf did not receive similar treatment. Water was the most the team could ask for.

“I actually wouldn’t have been upset if there was fast food, though,” said freshman Megan Furtney. “That would have been pretty cool.”

Mary Helen Wood | Photography Editor

For redshirt junior Miranda Wang, a trip to the White House was particularly special.

VETERANS FROM PAGE 11 difference [in the Winthrop game],” Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “Jack’s been just solid. I think he had a couple blocks and three steals and hit a big three. So everyone contributed and we needed them to.”

And last, but not least, the Blue Devils likely wouldn’t be leaving the Breslin Center with a win without Baker’s second-half performance.

Shooting an efficient 5-of-6 from the field—all long-range jump shots—Baker rose to the occasion every time he was given the ball. When Michigan State found a bucket, the Fayetteville, N.C., native responded right back, sinking a corner triple and following it up with a longrange 2-pointer. On both sides of the ball,

The Chronicle Baker embodied some of Duke’s most valuable role players of old, getting buckets at all levels and refusing to back down his physical brand of defense no matter who the Spartans threw at him.

“I mean, really, I haven’t seen anything different from him,” Jones said. “His playing time is going up. He stayed ready every single game, every single day. He’s working.

He has just been waiting for his name to be called. He’s getting the opportunity now and he’s just showing that he’s ready and what he’s capable of.”

As Duke continues on a challenging early-season stretch, the Blue Devils know they can’t just rely on talented freshmen.

Luckily for Duke, at least for tonight, the Blue Devils showed themselves to be a team with the veteran depth necessary to go toeto-toe with anybody.

Bre Bradham | Associate Photography Editor

Joey Baker continued his emergence against the Spartans, scoring 11 points off the bench.

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019 | 13

M. BASKETBALL

After free throw shooting cost the Blue Devils against Winthrop and Stephen F. Austin FROM PAGE 1 last week, Duke converted at the line when it mattered most. Carey drained 9-of-12 attempts 8-0 run by the Blue Devils. No. 10 Duke would and the Blue Devils as a whole ended the contest stretch the lead back to 16 and beyond at the at a 72.7 percent clip from the stripe.

Breslin Center, running away with a dominant The Blue Devil defense was tenacious from 87-75 victory in the Big Ten/ACC challenge the outset, sparked by Javin DeLaurier in a Tuesday night. bounce-back performance. Duke forced seven Carey added 11 rebounds to his total, turning turnovers in the first 12 minutes and held the in his seventh consecutive double-double.

Spartans to a mere 45.2 percent rate from the “They all responded as good as you could field in the contest. expect, especially for it being our first true road After recording a 10-point, 11-rebound game. It’s going to be loud. It’s going to be very performance in the teams’ Elite Eight matchup, hostile. And we did a really good job of eliminating DeLaurier came out with a similar fire Tuesday. their crowd from the beginning just by playing The Shipman, Va., native picked up a steal, block hard and trying to take control of the game,” and an offensive board in his first two minutes of senior captain Javin DeLaurier said. “Second half, play and finished the contest with 10 points, six they came out and hit us with a couple punches. rebounds and two steals.

But we did a really good job of responding and the “I thought we did a good job of getting freshmen played amazing tonight.” back and actually, we had a lot more fast break Last March, Michigan State (5-3) rained on points than I could have ever imagined in this Duke’s parade, knocking off Zion Williamson and game,” head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “So Co. to advance to the Final Four. And, on a night much of that had to do with Tre and how our when former Spartan Draymond Green’s number big guys ran the court, especially Javin. Javin was lifted into the Breslin Center rafters, it was the has not played to the level that he’s capable Blue Devils’ turn to crash the party. of; tonight he was a difference-maker for us. I Playing with a chip on his shoulder, point guard thought our big guys did a very, very good job Tre Jones totaled 20 points, 12 assists and three and we won a tough game.” steals, while locking down the preseason National Duke did not miss a beat playing without Player of the Year in Winston, who finished with normal starting guard Cassius Stanley, who just 12 points on 4-of-14 shooting. suffered a hamstring injury Friday. The Blue Devils “[Winston’s] a great player. I have a ton of showcased their balance, as Joey Baker and Jack respect for him and his game. But we protected White filled in seamlessly. Baker helped Duke ice the rim really well when he started attacking— the game down the stretch with a pair of makes just trying to make it as difficult as we could on and built off of a career performance against him throughout the entire night,” Jones said. Winthrop with an 11-point effort Tuesday.

“Playing against him last year, I realized how Following the victory against the Spartans, much he does for their team, how much he the Blue Devils will remain on the road and means to them and how much they can feed off will open ACC play at Virginia Tech Friday. The of him creating for them. I’m just trying to try to Hokies defeated Michigan State last week during make it as difficult as I can for them throughout the Maui Invitational. the entire night.”

“We have to be more consistent with this play With both teams desperate for a statement now. We can’t have any lapses like we did last victory after a disappointing week, which week,” Jones said. “We flipped the page in our included shocking upsets for both programs, it book and have moved forward. We know the type was the Blue Devils (8-1) The whoNew displayed a sense of team we Corporation can be, and getting a road win like this York Times Syndication Sales 620 Eighth Avenue, New of urgency from the opening tip. is York, big forN.Y. us.”10018 For Information Call: 1-800-972-3550 For Release Tuesday, December 3, 2019

Crossword ACROSS

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Online subscriptions: Today’s puzzle and more than 7,000 past puzzles, nytimes.com/crosswords ($39.95 a year).

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Tre Jones got the last laugh against Michigan State point guard Cassius Winston Tuesday.

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Online subscriptions: Today’s puzzle and more than 7,000 past puzzles, nytimes.com/crosswords ($39.95 a year).

Read about and comment on each puzzle: nytimes.com/wordplay.

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

The Chronicle

“

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Getting lost in the free sauce

hile having coffee with a friend at the dining hall, she mentioned that she needed to buy milk for her apartment.

I instinctively suggested she ask for an extra cup with her drink and fill it with milk to-go, rather

Honor Council INTEGRITY OVER IMAGE than waste time shopping at Harris Teeter. Then when the milk pitcher at the side-bar ran out midpour, we asked the worker to refill it, leading him to believe that it was for our coffee. While I initially thought the transgression was harmless, I began to wonder... Did I just steal from West Union? Where does one draw the line?

For a kleptomaniac, West Union is likely a sensory overload. Free sauce packets, dishware, and napkins sit teasingly on the counters, just asking to be snatched by college kids on a budget.

Duke Dining even hosts an annual Fork Amnesty Day to encourage students to return their stolen utensils with full immunity. Message to pilferers: they’re onto us.

On the one hand, taking things—let’s call them “supplies”—from West Union is tolerated. There are no video cameras trained on the condiments rack and no security guards looking over our shoulders.

One can “borrow” a single spoon without fear of condemnation. With a wink and a nod to your friends, you can walk out onto the quad, the booty tucked away in your bookbag.

But there are limits. If this “borrowing” is done too often, or if too much is taken, it becomes unseemly. You are what game theorists call a freerider, using more than your fair share of a public good without paying. Sure, you “fork out” tens of thousands of dollars to attend Duke, but that doesn’t entitle you to raid West Union’s fork supply.

Such greed and selfish behavior results in a tragedy of the commons, or a depletion of the public good.

It is why Duke Dining had to order a whopping 9,000 extra forks for the new school year.

Public goods are an amenity that makes life more pleasant and tolerable. For example, in a dormitory, each resident has the choice to be selfish or sharing.

Suppose the avid baker who lives down the hall is kind enough to leave a sheet of cookies in the common room for anyone to enjoy. The pleasant aroma, as well as the sugar high, makes everyone feel a bit more loved and valued.

hot take of the week “Spring semester study abroad is better.”

—Mary Helen Wood, Photo Editor, on

LETTERS POLICY

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Letters should not exceed 325 words; contact the editorial department for information regarding guest columns.

The Chronicle will not publish anonymous or form letters or letters that are promotional in nature. The Chronicle reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for length, clarity and style and the right to withhold letters based on the discretion of the editorial page editor.

Est. 1905

W

hat does it mean to see structure and how are we blind to it? Sometimes I feel like all my schooling has been aimed at recognizing and identifying my own blind spots.

Racism, elitism, and privilege seem to underlie most of my humanities papers or class discussions.

Editorial Page Department The Chronicle Box 90858, Durham, NC 27708

And for the most part, I have been receptive and eager to understand where our society systematically leaves behind some groups of people and advantages others. In tenth grade, I wrote a blog piece entitled “I Will Not Look Away: College Visits and Educational Disparities” that compared my Northeast college tour with some of the drug and violence issues in public schools near my home in Atlanta. I remember furiously writing on the plane ride home thinking about why some youth have access to significantly better education opportunities? Why is the difference so stark and so closely related to race and socioeconomic status?

“My dad and I found not an array of diverse, prospective students but the same people we encounter in our daily lives. In fact, I ran into 11 students from the private school I attend in the Southeast. This was disheartening and a display of elitism that promises to transcend generations. The same people who currently go to the same schools, have the same social groups, and live in the same neighborhoods will continue in that tradition,” I wrote.

I compared this trip to my work in high schools with students struggling with drug problems. I remember writing about these schools that “My hands shook when I told them what school I attend, and I found myself struggling to connect with their situation.”

I felt overwhelmed with a sense of guilt and shame about the opportunities that I had related to school and educational support systems that these kids lacked for no fault of their own.

In my Duke seminar class about similar education inequalities, I have learned about more empirical and quantitative ways to validate my own feelings of stark education disparities. As seemingly obvious and unfortunate as ideas like education inequality are, the conversations around them are still uncomfortable.

People retreat to their own understandings of education or high school experiences. These are when the blind spots start to shine.

Maybe Thanksgiving conversations made me

Inc. 1993

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Lena Yannella is a Trinity sophomore. Her column, “the unlicensed ethicist,” runs on alternate Tuesdays.

To submit an ethical quandary, shoot her an email at lena.yannella@duke.edu.

more aware of this hypocrisy. I saw it in myself, a desire to avoid conflict discussing issues in the news when I saw that what I understood and learned on Duke’s campus differed from the life I grew up knowing. I think of conversations I have had with friends and teammates on Duke’s campus where it becomes clear

Naima Turbes MIND OVER MATTER

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Then imagine a stoner grabs the entire plate, just minutes after it is shared. The baker will be a little less generous in the future, and the communal spirit vanishes as fast as the plunderer. As he scurries down the hall, he deprives his neighbors of more than just cookies; he nabs their morale.

Now suppose a student is out of food points and has no money. For argument’s sake, we’ll assume his pocket change has been spent on toilet paper and textbooks, not a case of White Claws or JUUL pods.

With a chemistry final in the morning, the student is in desperate need of a touch of milk for coffee to get through tonight’s grind. A career in medicine is on the line. Surely, taking a little milk from the dining hall would not be considered looting. It’s excusable under these limited circumstances, and only the most sanctimonious person would call it out.

In the end, the ethics of taking a public good is a matter of common sense and decency. Sometimes things just feel wrong. If you feel the need to be furtive, don’t do it. Let your conscience be your guide.

Blind spots

E-mail: chronicleletters@duke.edu

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CONNER MCLEOD, Sports Managing Editor CARTER FORINASH, University News Editor MATTHEW GRIFFIN, University News Editor PRIYA PARKASH, University News Editor MONA TONG, Local & National News Editor ROSE WONG, Local & National News Editor MARIA MORRISON, Health & Science News Editor EMILY QIN, News Photography Editor ERIC WEI, Sports Photography Editor MICHELLE TAI , Features Photography Editor AARON ZHAO, Features Photography Editor MIHIR BELLAMKONDA, Editorial Page Managing Editor MAX LABATON, Editorial Page Managing Editor SELENA QIAN, Graphics Editor BRE BRADHAM, Video Editor

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dukechronicle.com commentary

14 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019

that truths related to race, class, or gender on campus do not translate to their home lives or childhood.

What I do understand is that as uninspiring and counterintuitive as it is, often skepticism is our greatest tool in identifying and these blind spots. We must be willing to challenge and sometimes leave behind the lessons that our parents or close relatives give. To allow the idea that an experience that a friend from across the country has to contribute is just as valid as your aunt. Otherwise, narratives about cultural deficiency or lack of work ethic work to support our blind spots and facilitate a misunderstanding and lack of respect for people and systemic issues.

There is a difference, I have noticed, between calling out structural inequalities in a class discussion versus taking action in real life. What irks me the most is my own ending to the blog post I wrote many years ago. I said, “And now that I see this, I plan to be part of the solution, and not the passive part of the problem. I will not look away.”

But how have I been “part of the solution?” I have found it embarrassingly easy to ride the advantages presented by attending Duke and forget about those I leave behind in my own community and surrounding communities. What makes it so easy to call out the problem and so hard to act on it?

I almost feel like learning about the deep rooted and structural causes of inequalities makes me more pessimistic about my ability to create any real change. It becomes easy and appealing to hold onto contradicting anecdotal information that tells us factors like racism or sexism or elitism do not play a large role in our society just because they seem to big to fight.

I write this all without a clear answer or way forward but as a loving reminder to my friends, my peers, and myself to not let frustrations, guilt, or regret feed the blindness.

Naima Turbes is a Trinity first-year. Her column, “mind over matter,” typically runs on alternate Tuesdays.

The Chronicle

dukechronicle.com commentary

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019 | 15

Duke Energy has a stranglehold on NC’s envirnoment and democracy

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n October 31, the North Carolina General Assembly passed a bill aimed to finance storm recovery costs.

However, a provision of the bill that would have allowed Duke Energy to raise rates indefinitely was removed after

Allison Bunker GUEST COLUMN long standing public pressure. Given the corporation’s monopoly status in the state, this change would have allowed them to rip off customers and create an even deeper disparity in energy access.

Though the incriminating provision is no longer a threat, the power and abuse of Duke Energy continue. As Duke students, many of us come from out of state where the monopoly and reach of Duke Energy are not familiar conditions. I was almost a full year into my Duke career before I heard anything about Duke Energy. Though Duke Energy is technically a separate entity from the university, we are students of a University that was funded by Duke Energy money and therefore responsible for understanding the dark sides of this corporation’s business model.

For years, Duke Energy has been wreaking havoc on North Carolina and the broader United States. The local energy justice nonprofit NC Warn describes Duke Energy’s business model as “build power plants, raise rates, control government and distort public debate.” As the largest energy provider in the United States and a monopoly in North Carolina, Duke energy has used this business model to take over the state.

During Duke Energy’s campaign against rooftop solar, the corporation targeted African American leaders in the state, misinforming them that solar energy in North Carolina would hurt the poor. However, a letter from community leader Rev. Nelson Johnson reinforced solar as helping “all customers by reducing overall electricity usage, thus reducing the need to keep building expensive power plants and continually raising customer rates.” Duke Energy’s monopoly in the state of North Carolina allows them to abuse their power, and they do so by spreading lies.

One such example is clear through Duke Energy’s disposal of coal ash at six different sites in North Carolina. In 2014, Duke Energy spilled upwards of 6 tons of coal ash, polluting North Carolina air and water to the extent that the state was deemed one of the sites with the “worst contamination” of coal ash. At Duke Energy’s Allen Steam plant in Belmont, the cobalt contamination was 500 times worse than healthy levels. It is estimated that clean up at even one contaminated location will take 32 years. When North Carolina’s environment department demanded that Duke Energy clean up coal ash contamination at six of its power plants in April of 2019, Duke Energy appealed the decision, arguing that the request was not based on “scientific evidence.” Prior to this cleanup request, Duke Energy had already been approved by the state’s utilities commission to raise rates on customers in order to compensate for the $546 million they have already paid in clean up costs.

How is it that Duke Energy gets away with these inhumane actions? This is where the second part of their plan comes in: controlling government through donations. In 2017, Duke Energy spent over a million dollars lobbying in NC, over a million dollars on local and federal PACs and at least a million dollars

influencing the Chamber of Commerce in NC. This corruption can be found among politicians of all parties and from all areas of the state. A tool created by Energy Justice NC, a coalition of organizations in the state that are fighting for energy choice in North Carolina, allows constituents to calculate the amount of money their state senators and representatives are receiving from energy monopolies. Given that Duke Energy is a corporation, it could be argued that we, as consumers, can’t expect any better of them than to chase profits, no matter the cost. However, even if this is true, we must demand better of our lawmakers and educational institutions to assert checks on Duke Energy’s power.

As Duke students, we must understand the legacy of Duke Energy. Duke Energy abuses its power, harming people across the state of North Carolina and beyond. Duke Energy was a builder of wealth for the family who endowed our University, and the entanglements of the two continue today.

Duke planned to allow Duke Energy to build a fracking gas power plant on Duke’s campus until April of 2018, when the University announced it would not allow construction (after facing pushback from student and community activists). Just last week, a piece in The Chronicle condemned the fact that this year’s “Energy Week” was sponsored by none other than Duke Energy.

We must demand that the University cut ties with this power-hungry company. If we fail to do so, then we are complicit in Duke Energy’s continued havoc on both our environment and our democracy.

Allison Bunker is a Trinity sophomore. She wrote this piece with the research support of NC Warn. You can sign the NC energy justice petition to end the Duke Energy monopoly, and look out for oncampus opportunities to learn more next semester.

Your essential Bon Apétit reading list

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or essentially all of 2019, I have been straight-up not having a good time.

It seems everyone I care about has been hurting at some point, in more ways than I can list in this column. After my two best friends and I all lost a grandmother in the span of ten days, we half-jokingly began typing up a Google Doc to record the year’s catastrophes. The file is entitled “2019 curse” and is now three pages, single spaced. This year has simply not been an easy one.

Gretchen Wright CAMERON CRAVINGS

Despite all of the bullet points on that list, one blessing has graced and sustained my life throughout the darkest moments: the Bon Appétit YouTube channel. I don’t want to be dramatic (who am I kidding, of course I do), but it does not feel like an exaggeration to say that it is the best thing that has happened to me this year.

If you aren’t one of Bon Appétit’s 4.82 million YouTube subscribers, you might appreciate some context. The Bon Appétit channel, like the magazine, is centered around food. Most of their content consists of tutorials where test kitchen staff members walk the viewer through a recipe, but they also have several video series where specific editors complete more specialized tasks and activities. For example, in “Gourmet Makes,” senior food editor (and my personal role model) Claire Saffitz is challenged to recreate and perfect popular snack foods like Twinkies or Doritos. Other series focus on everything from exploring food fermentation to guest celebrities cooking gourmet dishes with only verbal instructions.

Of course I watched their videos before 2019 started. I got the Top Fan badge on Facebook for Bon Appétit for the first time on November 28, 2018 (a date I remember

vividly and have listed on my resume under “accomplishments and awards”), but I like to think I was an unofficial top fan for much longer. That said, Bon Appétit has had a genuine moment this year, with longer videos, more frequent uploads and even several new series like “Making Perfect” and “Reverse Engineering.”

A passionate, wonderful community of unofficial content has sprouted up around these videos: meme pages, merchandise featuring art created by fans and even a Twitter account devoted entirely to Claire Saffitz’s hair. All this creative energy, centered around lovely people and good food, has produced one of the most wholesome pockets of the Internet. And this year, wholesome was exactly what we all needed.

Bon Appétit has made the worst days bearable. It has made me a better, more adventurous cook. It has strengthened old friendships and forged new ones with group chats dominated by pictures of the recipes we have tried: crispy saffron rice, banana bread, rigatoni with vodka sauce.

So this is my holiday gift to you: a Bon Appétit reading list, for every occasion and emotion.

The days are growing shorter, the deadlines are piling up and there’s no space in Perkins right now anyways. Get cozy with a blanket, pour a cup of tea, hot cocoa or wine and imagine the glamorous life you will live once you can afford a fully-functioning kitchen.

Here’s what I recommend watching when...

I’m feeling sad but want to feel happy: Brad and Matty Matheson Go Noodling for Catfish Part 1. In this episode of “It’s Alive,” Brad Leone and guest star Matty Matheson travel to Oklahoma to go digging around for catfish in a muddy creek. General hilarity ensues, and we all need a good laugh. If a catfish named “Ezekiel” doesn’t make you scream with laughter, I’m out of ideas.

I’m feeling sad but want to stay sad: Pastry Chef Attempts to Make Gourmet Pop Rocks. This is the closest Bon Appétit has come to making me feel sad. Claire is a capable, brilliant angel and I would never

say that she had failed per se, but Pop Rocks do prove to be an unconquerable challenge.

Seeing her upset makes me upset, okay?

I’m feeling happy and want to stay happy: Chris and Andy Try to Make the Perfect Pizza Toppings. This video could alternately be called, “Chris and Andy Make the Perfect Video,” because there is simply nothing wrong with it. Chris and Andy are the ultimate dynamic duo, and collaborate inventively and supportively. Just guys being dudes, making and sampling dozens of pizzas in their pursuit of perfection. It is a joy to behold.

I’m feeling lonely: The BA Test Kitchen Makes the Perfect Thanksgiving Meal. I don’t want to spoil any part of this precious video, so I won’t go into specifics here. I will say that this made me laugh and cry and miss my family and be grateful for my friends, all in one go.

I’m feeling generally content: Queer Eye’s Antoni Porowski Tries to Keep Up with a Professional Chef. Worlds collide in this installment, and it all goes wonderfully.

Why Antoni, who is a pretty experienced cook, only had to make a sandwich when poor Troye Sivan, who knows comparatively nothing, had to spatchcock a chicken is beyond me, but that’s neither here nor there.

This is just two beautiful humans cooking cheesy carbs. What could be better?

I’m feeling stressed and want to be soothed: Brad and Priya Make Yogurt. Priya looks adorable in her turtleneck; Brad gets a nickname; everyone is very giggly. There are several incredibly heartwarming storytelling detours, and Priya even Facetimes her dad, making this one of the most wholesome and healing Bon Appétit videos.

I’m feeling stressed and want to be inspired: Pastry Chef Attempts to Make Gourmet Pop-Tarts. Everything Claire does is a success because she is perfect, but PopTarts go particularly well for her. She aces this one, and it’s so satisfying to watch that I want to bust out a rolling pin (or open my textbooks) and get something done.

Claire herself says: “Basically, this was an unmitigated success,” which is the kind of can-do attitude we should all strive for.

I’m feeling competitive: Molly Makes Strawberry Shortcake. You could watch basketball and think about how Zion and RJ never would have lost to Stephen F. Austin State, or you could watch Molly race Chris in juicing lemons and Andy in whipping cream.

Up to you.

I’m feeling hungry: Trying Everything on the Menu at a Famous NYC Taco Shop. I’m low on food points and had ABP soup for dinner, but I want to imagine that I’m eating a five-star feast. Watching Alex and Rick sample every taco, quesadilla, and tostada on the menu at the famed Los Tacos No. 1 is almost enough to fool my taste buds and stomach.

I’m feeling like I have no purpose or calling and school is meaningless and I don’t want to be here anymore: Brad and Claire Make Doughnuts Part 2. The subtitle of this video (and this semester) is “The Disaster.” The first seven minutes are complete tomfoolery, followed by a series of tragic mistakes and misjudgments. It is absolutely deranged and wildly entertaining, and I take comfort in the fact that even Brad and Claire sometimes have no idea what they’re doing.

In years like this, full of heartache and fear, finding moments of uncomplicated, unproblematic, unadulterated joy can feel like an impossible quest. This world is hard, and doesn’t make sense, but I have never had a bad day that wasn’t alleviated by watching these kind, brilliant people cook and laugh together. No YouTube video can fix the mishap that was 2019, but Bon Appétit makes me feel hopeful for 2020. For now, that’s enough.

Gretchen Wright is a Trinity senior whose entire personality is roughly 25% love for the Bon Appétit test kitchen. Her column, “Cameron Cravings,” runs on alternate Thursdays.

16 | THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2019

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The Chronicle

The Duke Guide to Happiness, Purpose & Well-Being

First years: need a seminar? Take one What Now? seminar and gain access to a wider community of faculty and peers.

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An innovative course-based experience for first-year Duke students, featuring different small classes that link up to form a bigger community. Each course focuses on intellectual questions and practical skills for living a healthier, happier, more purposeful life.

What Now? Borderline Humans

What Now? South African Life Histories

What Now? Family, Identity, and Mindfulness

What Now? Taking Risks and Measuring Up: The Literature of Chance and Fortune

CULANTH / DOCST / ETHICS 89S (CCI, EI, ALP, CZ, SL) Professor: Charles Thompson

ETHICS / PSYCH 89S (EI, SS) Professor: Nahal Kaivan

What Now? Leadership, Resilience & Well-Being: Finding Your Voice

EDUC / ETHICS 89S (EI, SS) Professor: Dean Sue

What Now? On Becoming an Ordinary Genius: Introduction to Creativity and Visionary Thinking

DANCE / ETHICS 89S (ALP, SS) Professor: Michael Kliën

AAAS / CULANTH / ETHICS / HISTORY / POLISCI / PUBPOL 89S (CZ, SS, EI, R, W) Professor: Karin Shapiro

ENGLISH / ETHICS / ISS 89S (EI, STS) Professor: Astrid Giugni

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ETHICS / LIT / MEDREN / ROMST 89S (ALP, CCI, CZ) Professor: Elvira Vilches

For more information, visit dukeethics.org/whatnow or contact Christian Ferney, christian.ferney@duke.edu.