February 24, 2010 issue by Duke Chronicle

The Chronicle 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

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2010

ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTH YEAR, Issue 102

www.dukechronicle.com

Duke to send East welcomes more early birds second med team to Haiti by Sabrina Rubakovic THE CHRONICLE

Approximately one third of the Class of 2014 will be composed of early decision applicants when Duke’s newest freshadmissions men move in to East part 1 of 2 Campus next Fall. In the past, early appli-

cants have typically made up about one fourth of the freshman class. Administrators said this was because last year’s early decision application season left them wishing they had been able to admit more students. This year, those hopes were fulfilled with the admittance of 50 more students through early decision than usu-

al. Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Christoph Guttentag said this was due to a significant increase in early decision applications this year. Duke admitted 602 early decision applicants in December 2009, and there are currently 1,100 spots remaining in the Class of

See early decision on page 4

daniella choi/Chronicle file photo

by Shaoli Chaudhuri THE CHRONICLE

This Saturday, the Duke University Health System will send its second medical team to Haiti in an ongoing effort to provide health care aid to the earthquakedevastated country. The new team will continue the work started by the first group, supporting a Partners in Health hospital in Cange, Haiti. PIH is a global health organization cofounded by Duke Trustee Dr. Paul Farmer, Trinity ’82. The first team of 14 medical professionals returned Feb.15. Physicians who returned from Haiti last week recounted their experiences, shedding light on issues the new team will face. In their work in both Cange and the Haitian capital city of Port-au-Prince, team members treated earthquake victims, though they also saw routine “runof-the-mill” cases, said team member Dr. David Macleod, assistant professor of anesthesiology. “We were treating mostly people who’d had their injuries dealt with,” Macleod said, adding that most patients had initially sustained crush injuries or falls. “We did wound management—[treating] amputations and lacerations, which are prone to See Haiti on page 6

Duke chaplain will Dr. Ruth exposes sex myths in talk lead Congressional morning prayer by Caroline Fairchild THE CHRONICLE

From Staff Reports THE CHRONICLE

Abdullah Antepli, Duke’s Muslim chaplain, will deliver the U.S. House of Representatives’ opening prayer March 3. Rep. David Price, D-N.C. and a political science professor, invited Antepli to D.C. to give the prayer. A prayer is delivered at the start of each Congressional session. “I am deeply humbled and honored to be asked to give this opening prayer. It is a great honor for me and for Duke University,” Antepli said in a statement Tuesday. “It’s wonderful that Congress, through their invitation, is acknowledging Duke’s commitment to diversity and a pluralistic society.” Antepli came to Duke in July 2008 as the University’s first Muslim chaplain. In Abdullah Antepli addition to serving as a leader for Duke’s Muslim community, Antepli teaches courses about Islam and promotes interfaith dialogue.

Ruth Westheimer believes that a lesson taught with humor is a lesson learned well. Tuesday night in Reynolds Theater, more than 550 members of the Duke community laughed their way to learning that talking openly about sex can have many benefits. With a presence far exceeding her four-foot-seveninch frame, Westheimer, better known as Dr. Ruth, engaged the audience in a lively discussion about the importance of sexual literacy to personal happiness. Westheimer said fewer unintended pregnancies in America and more women willing to embrace their sexuality are among the many improvements she has seen come out of speaking freely about sex. The 81-year-old preeminent sexual expert broke the ice by leading the audience in a chant of important sexual terminology. The audience responded well to Westhimer’s frank approach, freely repeating words such as “orgasm,” “erection” and “masturbation” as they warmed up to the topic. “She is all about being open about your sexuality and

ONTHERECORD

“To get a good seat you would have to go wait at the line early on.”

—Major Attractions Director Liz Turner on Cameron Rocks. See story page 3

See dr. ruth on page 5

caroline rodriguez/The Chronicle

After speaking in Reynolds Theater Tuesday night, Ruth Westheimer (right), also known as Dr. Ruth, answered the audience’s questions as they were read by Vice President for Student Affairs Larry Moneta (left).

K-ville needs a change Columnist Joe Drews explains why white tenting should be abolished, PAGE 7

Whitaker takes fifth in Tucson, Page 7

2 | WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2010 the chronicle

worldandnation

TODAY:

4238

THURSDAY:

4231

Arrested Sunni rebel claims ties with the United States

Car bomb explodes outside VA delegate in hot water courthouse in N. Ireland WASHINGTON, D.C. — Virginia Delegate Robert Marshall apologized this week to people with disabilities for remarks suggesting that women who have abortions risk having children with birth defects later as a punishment from God. Marshall, R-Prince William, made the comment last week at a news conference calling for an end to state funding to Planned Parenthood. Calling the nonprofit group “Planned Barrenhood,” Marshall joined the Virginia Christian Alliance, several African-American ministers and others who blamed the abortion provider for a host of social ills. “The number of children who are born subsequent to a first abortion who have handicaps has increased dramatically. Why? Because when you abort the firstborn of any, nature takes its vengeance on the subsequent children,” Marshall said.

“

Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt. — Abraham Lincoln

”

BELFAST, Northern Ireland — Northern Ireland police said a car bomb exploded outside the courthouse in the town of Newry Monday night as they were evacuating the area around the vehicle. The car was left at the front of the court at around 10 p.m. and the bomb exploded about 40 minutes later, a police spokeswoman, who declined to be named, said today by phone. Nobody was injured in the blast, which caused damage to the building. The bomb weighed 250 pounds, police said by phone Tuesday. Dissident republicans, who oppose Northern Ireland’s link to Britain, are trying to re-ignite a conflict that claimed more than 3,500 lives. They killed two British soldiers and a policeman last March, the first military fatalities in the region since 1997. Another policeman had a leg amputated after a bomb was planted in his car last month.

TODAY IN HISTORY 1970: National Public Radio is founded in the United States

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TEHRAN, Iran — Iranian authorities have arrested the fugitive leader of the country’s main Sunni Muslim insurgent group, Iran’s minister of interior told reporters Tuesday. Iran accused the United States of having supported the insurgent leader, while his group issued a statement claiming that the Central Intelligence Agency was involved in his arrest. The United States denied both assertions Tuesday. “These claims are just plain garbage,” a senior U.S. intelligence official said in Washington. Abdul Malik Rigi, 27, was captured in an unspecified third country, Iranian Interior Minister Mohammad Najjar said. Iran accuses Rigi of being the mastermind of numerous terrorist attacks that have killed dozens of people. Rigi, who

for years has been Iran’s top fugitive, heads the Jundallah (Soldiers of God, or God’s Brigade) group, which says it supports the rights of a Sunni Muslim minority in Iran and operates in Iran’s southeastern border region. Iranian authorities say the United States gives financial and organizational support to the group, which often posts al-Qaida-like execution videos on the Internet. Iran’s intelligence minister, Heidar Moslehi, accused U.S. authorities of providing Rigi with a false Afghan passport, that he allegedly used to travel to several European countries. In a news conference Tuesday, the minister also showed a photograph that he said proved the insurgent leader spent time on a U.S. military base 24 hours before he was arrested.

Aaron Davis/The washington post

Thirty miles east of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, the State Department has drafted a plan to use $70 million in stimulus money to transform two tracts of farmland into the largest and busiest anti-terrorism facility the nation has ever seen. Although the center would create over 400 jobs, neighbors in Ruthsburg, Md. worry that regular bomb explosions will scare their livestock and children.

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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2010 | 3

Duke University Union

Union to sponsor Arabian-themed Duke Royale by Ray Koh

THE CHRONICLE

Duke University Union will sponsor its annual semiformal event, Duke Royale for the third straight year this April. At its meeting Tuesday night, DUU members discussed the upcoming Duke Royale, a cocktail party hosted at the Doris Duke Center in the Sarah P. Duke Gardens. The event is scheduled for April 8 from 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. “The idea behind the event is to provide students with a memorable experience and create more interaction between faculty and students,” said junior Karen Chen, vice president of communications. “We want to help form our campus culture and make it more enjoyable.” Duke Royale is an annual semiformal event for all students. In case it rains April 8, a rain date has been set for April 15. Last year, the party theme was Casino Royale, and this year’s will be Arabian Nights, said Special Projects Director Christie Falco, a senior. DUU members also announced details for Cameron Rocks ticket sales. Tickets will go on sale Monday at 9 a.m. The price for students is $25, and tickets can only be purchased in person at the box office. Tickets will go on sale for the general public Wednesday. “To get a good seat, you would have to go wait at the line early on,” Chen said. In other business: The rXn Dance Party, initially scheduled for Jan. 30, will take place sometime in April, Falco said. The event was originally intended to be a tenting kick-off party, but was delayed due to weather. Because the event will no longer occur during tenting season, it will no longer be co-sponsored by the Line Monitors and the men’s basketball team. A date and venue have not yet been decided. “The party will have a whole new identity and be marketed differently,” Falco said.

sam sheft/The Chronicle

At DUU’s meeting Tuesday night, Special Projects Director Christie Falco (right) announced that the theme of this year’s Duke Royale will be Arabian Nights.

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Early Decision from page 1 2014, Guttentag said. “Five hundred more applications essentially allowed us to admit 50 more students,” he said. As the number of applicants increase, the proportion of qualified students increases, Guttentag said. He noted that last year, the University was not able to admit a number of qualified students because of limitations on class sizes, and he did not want that to be a limiting factor this year. Provost Peter Lange said the fact that early decision applicants have indicated that Duke is their top-choice institution. “We decided that if we have that many kids committed to Duke, it appeared to be the right decision,” he said. Guttentag noted, however, that admissions officers had two aims in mind—to admit more students if possible, while also increasing selectivity. Because of the increase in early decision applications, it was necessary to be more selective this year so enough spots remain open for regular decision applicants. Selectivity increased by 4 percent this year, Guttentag said. Officials believe the increase in early decision admittances will not significantly affect financial aid awarded. Early decision applicants traditionally apply for financial aid at a lower rate than regular decision applicants. In 2006, Jim Belvin, then-director of financial aid, told The Chronicle that about 20 percent of early decision applicants initially qualified for financial aid compared to 45 percent of regular decision applicants who qualified. Director of Financial Aid Alison Rabil confirmed this, and she wrote in an e-mail that there are fewer early decision students asking and qualifying for aid than regular decision applicants. Rabil said she does not believe the increase in early decision admittances will reduce her financial aid budget. “I don’t think our percentage of people who are on aid is going to drop significantly,” she said. She explained this was because more early decision applicants are applying for financial aid than in the past. In addition, Rabil said she thinks the economic downturn has resulted in more financial aid applicants in the regular decision pool. “I think in the whole admissions process, we’re going to have more students who are on aid in the regular decision pool than we’ve had before,” she said. Rabil added that the increase in regular decision admitted students needing aid will offset the increase in early decision acceptances. “I don’t think we’re in jeopardy of losing any of our economic diversity because of [having] 50 more admits in the

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dr. ruth from page 1 that is definitely something that we need to talk about more,” junior Katie Lootens said. Westhimer started by exposing the many myths that surround the ubiquitous act. Myths that the doctor warned the audience be aware of include women never masturbating, men needing to sleep after sex and the existence of the mysterious G-spot. Because she said the last real scientific sexual study dates back several years, Westhimer asked the Duke community to become involved in sexual research so that more of these myths can be revealed. “Real research is very difficult and expensive, but we have no choice,” she said. “There are so many ways to improve our good relationships and our good sex, but we need a new study. It can’t just be a myth or three women sitting on a kitchen table writing about a G-spot. It needs to be a scientific study with all the respect necessary given to the topic.” Vice President for Student Affairs Larry Moneta joined the talk by reading questions from the audience—ranging from topics like first-time experiences to playing with toys. Moneta said he was impressed by Westhimer’s ability to bring new knowledge in an interesting way to a frequently discussed topic. “We tend to think of her work in a humorous way,” Moneta said. “But she is a scientist and she has found a humorous way to present science, which makes her engaging.” But Westhimer’s life has not always been the subject of sex columns and late-night radio shows. Born in Germany in 1928, Westhimer was sent to Switzerland to escape the Holocaust. By the end of the war, she learned that the struggle had taken her entire family. At the age of 16 she went to Palestine and joined the Haganah, the Israeli freedom fighters, as a sniper before she was seriously wounded by a bomb blast. Westhimer was hosted by Jewish Life at Duke and The Rubenstein-Silvers Hillel Student Board because of her special connection to Judaism. “Westhimer appeals to a wide audience of students across campus,” said Duke Hillel President Scott Gorlick, a junior. “Westhimer’s Jewish background was of particu-

caroline rodriguez /The Chronicle

Sexual therapist Ruth Westhimer (right) talks with a student at a book-signing after her speech Tuesday night. In her talk, Westhimer underscored the importance of scientific research in improving sexual relationships. The event drew a crowd of more than 550 in Reynolds Theater. lar interest to us, especially since she served time in the Haganah. We are very excited to have her reach such a great amount of people throughout the Duke community.” After moving to the United States in the mid 1950s, Westhimer took a job with Planned Parenthood in Harlem and ultimately made a career out of talking about sex. She has since become one of the most widely known sex experts in the country. She is the author of 35 books, including “Sex for Dummies,” the host of a nationally syndicated TV show and the owner of a sex advice Web site. In the age of pervasive technology and access to information, Westhimer also commented on how the latest technology has affected personal relationships. Because she often sees couples texting

other people or surfing the Internet while together, Westhimer said she is concerned about the negative effects this may have on their love lives. “It can be a big problem,” Westhimer said. “People have to find a balance be-

tween technology and the need to be touched, hugged and related to. I’m not negating technology. When I need to find something it helps me. But I am also very aware of the need for people to continue to relate to each other.”

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Haiti from page 1 infection and poor healing.” Although the hospital in Cange was well operated and relatively unscathed by the earthquake, the team faced additional challenges at the Port-au-Prince hospital, Macleod said. For safety reasons, many patients prefer to reside in tents rather than unstable buildings hit by the earthquake, Macleod noted. And with inadequate medical equipment and frequent electrical failures, conditions were grim. “People were barely surviving,” said team member Dr. Mark Shapiro, a trauma surgeon who served on the team. “The smell of blood and pus and urine was ubiquitous. There were rats running everywhere the size of small cats.... These folks were either going to live or die.” Dr. Cameron Wolfe, an infectious diseases physician, said the team must be prepared to address patients’ evolving needs. As time passes, the medicine and necessary care will change, Wolfe said. And as the demand for acute surgeries and trauma treatment decreases, rehabilitation and long-term therapy will become more important, he added. “I also think what we started to see and what will probably be a large issue was the effect of malnutrition and lack of food,” Wolfe said, adding that poor sanitation and the impending rainy season will bring new challenges for the new team.

ian greenwald/special to The Chronicle

After spending 10 days in Haiti, the first Duke medical team (above) returned to Durham Feb. 15. This Saturday, DUHS will send a second team to Haiti to continue health services.

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women’s golf

Whitaker’s 1-under leads Duke at Wildcat by Gabe Starosta THE CHRONICLE

The rough weather and No. 1 Arizona State’s dominant team performance will get most of the attention after the Wildcat Invitational in Tucson, Ariz., but Duke senior Alison Whitaker came close to stealing the show. Whitaker, who shot a 2-under 67 in the tournament’s first round Monday, followed that up with a 1-over 72 Tuesday to finish in a tie for second place on the individual table. If not for a wonderful 18 holes from Oklahoma State’s Caroline Hedwall, who shot a 5-under 66 on the second day of competition, Whitaker would have been in contention for the individual crown. Hedwall won the Invitational with a score of 6-under par, including a 66 Tuesday, and Whitaker finished at 1-under, the same as the Sun Devils’ best player, Juliana Murcia. Hedwall, Murcia and Whitaker were the only players in the field to finish under par. Whitaker looked to have a chance to make Hedwall sweat after two birdies early in the round put her at 4-under for the tournament. Yet the senior settled for pars on most of the back stretch and finished the round with three birdies and four bogeys—not good enough to

make a late push for first, but still one of the better rounds seen all week. Aside from Whitaker, the No. 5 Blue Devils did not fare so well in the desert. Duke finished fifth in the event with a combined score of 31-over, 23 strokes behind champion Arizona State. “On the whole, the team would have been happier with a better finish, especially considering we battled it out [Monday],” Whitaker said. “But personally, I think I just got some results from some hard work that I’ve been doing with my golf game. It paid off a little bit today.” Freshman Lindy Duncan was the second-best Blue Devil on the week, finishing at 9-over after shooting a 74 Monday. Courtney Ellenbogen and Kim Donovan followed Duncan closely with scores of 11and 12-over, respectively. Freshman Stacey Kim, Duke’s fifth and final participant, closed the tournament at 18-over par. The Invitational was marred by inclement weather which shortened the event by a full round. Teams were originally scheduled to play 36 holes Monday but only managed Chronicle file photo

See w. golf on page 8

Senior Alison Whitaker was one of only three players to shoot under par at the Wildcat Invitational in Tucson, Ariz.

Forget the camel, and forget white tenting I love white tenting. I like that it only lasts two weeks. I appreciate the fact that 10 out of 12 people get to sleep in their beds every night. I like that if you position someone near enough to the secret registration spot, you can get a guaranteed seat to one of the biggest sporting events in America. But I think it needs to be scrapped. The problem isn’t that white tentJoe ing isn’t popular. In fact, it’s just the opposite. Last year, hundreds of people raced to the CARL building to register for 40 tents—enough that the line monitors stopped accepting tent rosters. Monday night, there were once again far too many people for the number of available spots. A demand that high indicates that white tenting is too easy considering the magnitude of the North Carolina game. For two nights in K-ville and less than an hour and a half per day,

Drews

eugene wang/The Chronicle

White tenting is hardly a stressful experience when compared to black or blue tenting.

you can see Duke take on the Tar Heels in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Why not try it? (Full disclosure: My friends and I tried—and failed—to get a white tent Monday, but that has nothing to do with me writing this column. It was going to happen regardless.) I went digging through The Chronicle’s archives over the weekend, and as far as I can tell, white tenting is a remnant from the time when no one was allowed to camp out more than 10 days before the game. That restriction obviously doesn’t apply anymore. Two years ago, the first group was set up in K-ville by the end of final exams in December, nearly three months before the March contest. This season, the maximum tenting period was restricted to a much more reasonable six weeks. In any event, the earliest tenters now set up well in advance of that 10-day barrier. I agree with having a firm start date to the tenting season, mostly for health reasons. Three months is far too long to be sleeping outside, even if Durham winters are milder than those in other parts of the country.

But why is it necessary to have another artificial starting point two weeks before the game? For every other game, the line forms naturally, with fans showing up whenever they decide doing so is worthwhile. Why is the Carolina game any different? Once the first tent goes up—and I’m aware of the slight contradiction here, but again, that time should be regulated for the health of everyone involved—why can’t others join whenever they see fit? It’s nice to be able to say that Krzyzewskiville is full two weeks before the game, and for fans to ogle at the 100 tents packing the lawn in front of Wilson as they walk into Cameron. But is filling those spots really a concern? We know Duke students are going to tent, and many of them are going to set up weeks before the opening tip. Allowing seniors busy with interviewing to tent is also good, but I have a hard time believing that white tenting is the only option for seniors in that position. If interviewing is See drews on page 8

8 | WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2010 the chronicle

w. golf from page 7

drews from page 7

to complete 18, in essence turning the tournament into a two-round competition. Brooks and Whitaker, though, both said they wished the team had been able to play the complete third round. Still, Whitaker did her best to capitalize on her quality play and managed to earn the fifth top-5 finish of her career. “When somebody goes low and finishes near the top in a good field in bad conditions, it’s all about attitude, being tough and staying tough,” head coach Dan Brooks said. “That’s what Ali is all about. This is kind of a deal where she would shine.”

a major issue for some fans, they can simply start tenting later or join the walkup line, which only requires a commitment of a couple days. And in some ways, it is great that white tenting allows more moderate fans to get into the biggest game of the year. (It’s still the biggest game if Carolina is 3-9 in the ACC, right?) But isn’t the magnitude of the game precisely why you want the most dedicated fans in the stands, not just the first 40 groups to reach the camel statue by Gross Chem? Yes, people who want to go to the game may still try the walkup line, but even if they get into Cameron, they will be pushed to the outskirts of the student section. That may not seem like much of a difference, but believe me, it is. And since the walkup line doesn’t guarantee admission, a handful of dedicated fans may decide the walkup line isn’t even worth it. At this point, you’re probably looking for a better solution. Here’s what I would do: Keep the same start date, with black tenting beginning six weeks before the UNC game (assuming a March matchup, for simplicity). Blue tenting would start one week later and go all the way until personal checks, with six people having to be present at night. Black tents and groups that join on the first day of blue tenting would be sorted by a tally of how many cumulative men’s basketball games their members attend between the start date and personal checks. After that first batch of tents, groups would be sorted by the order in which they register. Not only is it simpler than the

Chronicle file photo

Senior Alison Whitaker’s score of 1-under par was 10 shots better than that of any of her teammates.

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current system, but it fits with the spirit of the walkup policy for other games, giving fans the freedom to line up whenever they choose. If you don’t want to spend an entire semester in a tent, fine—register a couple weeks before the game. If you just want the experience of a Duke-UNC game in Cameron, keep an eye on the number of tents and sign up for one in the 90s. It may also be worthwhile to reward the black tents with white tenting rules for the

week leading up to personal checks. That would give the hardcore tenters a break and ensure that they have time to recover before the game. But I wouldn’t give white tenting rules to anyone else—they’re just too relaxed. As someone who wants to go to the game, I like that, but apparently so do a lot of you. At least 300 people were at the CARL building last year, and a long wait list formed again this year. We can come up with a better system. Eliminating white tenting just might do it.

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N.C. learns history lesson of its own If a recent report from the middle school and would now North Carolina Department be able to focus on modern of Public Instruction had events in their high school been impleyears. This apmented, severproach is both editorial al key moments counterintuiin our nation’s tive and misses history would have been the point of history educaerased—from the state’s high tion—to provide students school classrooms, that is. with the tools to analyze past The state agency re- events and their consequenccently proposed changes es. Thankfully, the plan has to secondary school history been stopped in its tracks curricula that would have by substantial public outcry eliminated pre-1877 Ameri- against it. can history and cut swaths The idea that material covof global history. The class- ered at one level of schooling room time would have been need not be repeated nefilled with more contempo- glects the nature of history as rary history classes. a subject matter that builds The state defended its upon itself. plan by asserting that stuWhereas middle school dents learn much of this jet- students tend to learn the tisoned historical material in basic facts associated with

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onlinecomment

Unfortunately medical schools, etc. do not have the same thoughts as you. The GPA is a huge factor for admission, so it does matter..

”

—“Duke08” commenting on the letter “Put learning first.” See more at www.dukechronicle.com.

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major historical events, high school students study these events with a keener focus, examining trends and the relationships between history and the present. They work not only with a survey textbook, but also engage more deeply through analysis of primary sources and other historical texts. By removing pre-1877 U.S. history, administrators would take away the opportunity for high school students to critically examine some of the most important events that have shaped the nation, including the American Revolution and the Civil War. Both of these topics are especially relevant to students in North Carolina.

Similarly, the scrapped plan’s focus on modern history and the accompanying cuts to world history are indications that the state government has taken a very shallow approach to molding the history curriculum. Modern history will inevitably be tainted by the bias of teachers who have lived through these recent events. Furthermore, if exposing students to more modern history is North Carolina’s goal, cutting back on world history is surely not the proper way to achieve it. In an increasingly globalized world, students can hardly be expected to study modern international events without understanding the historical trends in which

they are rooted. The aim of a history curriculum is to foster good citizenship and give students a broad sense of historical understanding. Credit should be extended to the politicians and observers who recognized that the fragmentation of the proposed curriculum fell far short of this purpose, and its gaps would have made students unprepared for higher education. The N.C. Department of Public Instruction ought to go back to the drawing board and formulate a plan for historical education that leaves students with a solid understanding of the past and its continuing relationship to the present.

Americant

ate February is the time when graduating seniors begin to stare their futures in the face. Fears of leaving your four-year home and friends share mental space with the excitement of finally entering the adult world. Unfortunately, Duke’s seniors do not find themselves enterdaniel bessner ing the friendly job environment I enmutatis mutandis tered—and quickly fled—in 2006. Instead, 9.7 percent of Americans were unemployed last month and the future of the American job market looks unstable at best. At this moment in history, it is impossible to know what particular confluence of factors led to the recession and this massive loss of jobs. What is clear to me, however, is that the standard of living and career expectations that Americans have developed since we controlled, by some estimates, 45 percent of world GDP in 1945 will have to change (although our present, roughly 27 percent share of GDP has remained mostly stable since 1970, it is somewhat weaker today than earlier in history). For decades, middle-class Americans have expected a large social safety net coupled with low taxes. For decades, middle-class American children have assumed they would surpass the income and living standards of their parents. For decades, as Don Peck’s “Atlantic” essay “How a New Jobless Era Will Transform America” elucidates, these children have anticipated working in a career they find fulfilling and enjoyable while earning a large income. These three middle class expectations—for they were not goals—appear to be sustainable no longer. In my anecdotal experience, few people my age seem to recognize or understand this. I personally know many young middle-class Americans who, despite being in their mid-20s, continue to rely on their parents for extensive, and often ridiculous, financial support. A family friend, who is currently in her fifth year at the University of Mississippi, was unable to figure out her financial aid forms, and she never signed them. Predictably, the university threatened to expel her. Upon hearing such dastardly news, she ran crying to her father, who coughed up the $13,000 he did not have. This is, of course, an extreme example, but it illustrates well the widespread idea held by many young middle-class Americans that we can have something for nothing. This belief has led to the lack of self-sufficiency so many young Americans seem to accept.

Our elected representatives are unwilling—not unable—to risk their political futures by informing their constituents that the times are “a’ changin.” The government can no longer provide what their constituents want for the price they are willing to pay. As the situation of the state of California has made clear, one cannot have relatively low taxes and huge state programs. Something has to change. Politicians’ unwillingness to sacrifice any political capital has resulted directly in what Paul Volcker, former chairman of the Federal Reserve and current chair of the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board, has termed a “crisis in governance.” That is, the American government has been, literally, unable to govern. It is functionally mute. Thus not only are politicians unwilling to break the bad news to their constituents, but any changes government could make are dead in the water. This functional castration has led to the rise of the intellectually bankrupt “Tea Party,” which has found a leader in the insufferable dimwit Sarah Palin. It is unfortunate that the Tea Partiers and their numerous fellow travelers, angry at their government, do not appear to have seized this opportunity to look inward, asking themselves what their expectations are and whether they are justifiable given the country’s present, and perhaps future, economic position. Instead, many—not all—have turned away from the real problems they are facing and have instead embraced morally reprehensible xenophobia and racism. If there is one salutary fact that the dire economy, the crisis of governance and the rise of the Tea Partiers all point toward, it is that we here at Duke are living in one of the few truly plastic moments of history. Such a moment last occurred at the end of the Cold War in 1991, and before that in 1945. Today, we are not emerging from a decades-long military standoff, nor did we just defeat Hitler. Nevertheless, for the first time in my adult life, a space has opened up for real, not Obamian, change. Unlike the change championed by our President, this is not change I can believe in, but change I must believe in. I don’t know specifically what this change must entail, but any solution I would offer would be premised on, first, a change of expectations, and more importantly, a change in our values and culture. These changes are not just desired, but necessary. If we want America to retain its position of global leadership for the foreseeable future, it requires a massive cultural shift. When culture changes, the rest follows. Daniel Bessner is a third-year Ph.D. candidate in European history. His column runs every other Wednesday.

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What we know about the China cyberattacks

hen news broke in the Feb. 22 Chronicle article “STJU may be linked to attacks on Google” that Duke may have partnered with a Chinese school connected to the recent cyberattacks on Google and evan burness other American companies, guest column I honestly was not surprised. No school in America over the last decade has endured more public relations challenges and bad luck as Duke, and everyone connected with the University—alumni, faculty, students and administrators—knows it. At this point, we practically expect something to go wrong every few years. So, of course it would be Duke that would unknowingly partner with a university now thought to play a notable role in committing the kind of international corporate and military espionage that rates awakening Secretary of State Hilary Clinton in the middle of the night. President Richard Brodhead, who I’m sure was doing his best to hide the “when it rains it pours” sentiment from his face, acknowledged that administrators are “concerned” but said he would not immediately change Duke’s relationship with Shanghai Jiao Tong University given “the facts of the situation are so ambiguous.” We heard similar comments

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2010 | 11

commentaries

from Provost Peter Lange and Michael Schoenfeld, vice president for public affairs and government relations. The problem with these statements, however, is they do not fully acknowledge some established facts and additional information many security researchers and U.S. officials now believe to be true. Lange said “nobody really knows exactly what’s going on,” but that’s not quite accurate. We do know cyberattacks originating inside China targeted American companies (one of which is a U.S. military contractor) and Chinese human rights activists. We know the attacks scared Google, one of the world’s most powerful companies, into at least thinking about pulling out of China altogether. And, while we do not yet know exactly who perpetrated these attacks (which is I believe is what Lange was expressing), we are increasingly confident STJU was used as the staging ground to launch the malicious code. So, either STJU is actively involved in such activities, or it is being unwillingly used by someone else for those purposes. Some security experts believe the Chinese government is a likely conspirator, an accusation many find unsurprising given China’s seedy history of cyber-warfare. Bottom line: Any of these possibilities is downright terrifying. Certainly more so than Schoenfeld’s analogy to Duke’s network having previously been hacked to distribute spam advertisements might suggest.

Unofficial grad requirements

rom “duke, Horizontal” to sex toy their own suggestions, ranging from basworkshops to lectures by Dr. Ruth, ketball games in Cameron and exploring you would think that everyone’s just various places in Durham, which are, needhaving sex all the time at Duke. It’s even less to say, a must. I’d, however, like to add overrepresented in our infamous unwrit- some more obscure ones to the grand list. ten tradition: the unofficial 1. Immortalize yourself graduation requirements. as a Pauly Dog. Add yourAs many of you may know self among the ranks of by now, these include scal“The Andrew,” named afing Baldwin Auditorium, ter Andrew Godfrey, Trintunneling, driving backity ’07 or “El Niko,” named wards in the traffic circle after Niko Kurtzman, Trinand having sex in the stacks ity ’09. “El Niko,” the most and in the Duke Gardens. recent student creation sue li With two out of the five philosopher’s stone comes with chili, cheese, requirements involving sex Texas Pete, garlic, jalapeno in public places on camand BBQ chips. After havpus, I’m noticing a bit of a trend. However, ing his first Pauly Dog in 2006, Niko became I am a little disappointed, Dukies, in your a loyal customer and friend to Pauly, Beth lack of creativity. Instead of limiting yourself and Randy, testing new recipes and finally, to just doing the deed in the library or the inventing his own creative concoction. You, Gardens, why stop there? There are plenty too, could be the next great hot dog. of places on campus that boast equal brag2. Gaze at the stars at the Duke Teachging rights. What’s that, Sally? You mean ing Observatory in the Duke Forest. you haven’t heard of the new graduation (Yes, we have an observatory.) Run by requirement of sex in the law school? Don’t the Duke physics department, it is open worry, my services will be “pro bono.” to the public on select Friday nights. Or how about a late night rendez3. Purchase a book by a Duke profesvous Wednesdays at Jazz at the Mary sor from the Gothic Bookstore and get it Lou Williams Center? You’ll have great autographed. background music, and you can wine 4. Rent an iPod or HD Flipcam from the and dine on free cheese and desserts. Link for free and make a YouTube video or Or consider a quickie during halftime at podcast. I, for one, am seriously going to a basketball game in Cameron. For the miss free technology in the real world. bold, irreverent few who would enjoy a 5. Climb the rock wall in Wilson Gym. stint of irony, there’s also sneaking into Belay classes are held Mondays and the Chapel or the Divinity School—an Wednesdays, and $25 on Flex covers you unofficial unofficial requirement that for an entire year. It’s also a great way to my friend completed last semester. get over a fear of heights. Consider the options like a Dr. Seuss 6. Rent a bike from the Duke Outpost poem: Would you like it here or there? and go riding. Would you like it anywhere? Would you 7. Half an hour outside of Duke, the like it in the DiVE? Would you like it on deer and the buffalo roam. Purchase Campus Drive? If you’re on the shy side, fresh bison burgers from a local bufyou can check out the more low-key fifth falo farm. It will be much cheaper and floor McClendon Tower or the abandoned fresher than the one you’ll order at the Twinnie’s on the weekends. And we must WaDuke, I promise. not forget K-ville—it’s the perfect excuse to 8. Visit the Durham Flea Market Satkeep warm out there. All I know is that if the urday mornings where for a dollar you tent’s a rockin’, don’t come a knockin’. can get authentic pupusas, tamales and All joking aside, there are also less risque other authentic Hispanic foods from Titasks that one should add to one’s senior ana, a housekeeper who works in Edens. bucket lists. Unfortunately, although they While you’re there, you can pick up an cannot all be considered as thrilling as the old school Atari or N64 system and relive unofficial graduation requirements, they your childhood for less than 20 bucks. are at least legal and not terribly frowned upon by the administration. In past years, Sue Li is a Trinity senior. Her column various writers have contributed some of runs every other Wednesday.

To be fair to Brodhead, Lange and Schoenfeld, they did not dismiss the notion of terminating the partnership with STJU. And they shouldn’t, at least not yet. Successfully building a campus in China, under the right conditions, could be a landmark accomplishment for not just these three men, but the University as a whole. Duke’s administration is correct to let the investigation play itself out. That said, I suspect Duke nevertheless faces a decision it cannot afford to miscalculate. Although Duke may view its entre into China as a mission of education, there are those in China who will view a Duke campus as simply another vector with which to launch cyberattacks on the United States and other democratic nations. Brodhead and his administration need to understand this clearly and act accordingly. Because as communist China ramps up its efforts in the coming decades to supplant the U.S. as the world’s superpower, Duke will have to decide whether it wants to be an unwitting asset to a suppressive Chinese government that rejects many of the freedoms Western civilization deems essential and inalienable. This is not the kind of history Duke can be on the wrong side of. Evan Burness is a Trinity ’05 alumnus.

Bang goes Emerson

uring a class discussion of Ralph Waldo this movement towards a consensus about Emerson the other day, a professor of what one needs to think/know about Duke mine made note of the happy truth in order to converse and function as a Duke that Emerson never whimman or woman. To start, it’s all pered. Though his rhetoric can too bloody automated. be grandiose—and therefore By the latter two-thirds of occasionally sloppy and oversecond semester freshman stuffed—Emerson is famous not year, we’ve all drawn our least because he’d be damned battle lines, even the passive if he wasn’t going to say exactly among us. We’ve joined or not what he thought and felt. It goes joined, we’ve befriended and along with the whole staunchly connor southard de-friended, we’ve chosen a independent “Self-Reliance” Duke self that is apparent not dead poet thing, of course. Not surprisingonly in our own heads but in ly, this same professor is insistent the eyes of others. It’s not just that none of us whimper about our thoughts. social: We’ve got an idea about our majors, the My professor is also quick to point out kind of work (we think) we’ll end up with. It’s that, on this campus, we spend an awful lot a process of careful self-selection that nonetheof time whimpering. less fails to add up to true self-determination, There’s something to that. We Blue Dev- because everyone can already tell you what the ils are, for the most part, fairly self-conscious apparent intellectual effect—the biases, the afpeople with a lot on our plates and all kinds fections, the justifications—will be. of tension-generating aspirations, and so we This process of selective identity is about worry. Our worrying—whether it’s ground- more than choreographing the things one will ed in our academic, professional, sexual or do in one’s Duke life: It also, unfortunately, social concerns—leads to hand-wringing. seems to dictate the things we end up saying. Hand-wringing soon leads to the repetition Our discourse becomes so influenced by the of all kinds of silly tropes: “This major is The vividly imagined world of Duke’s various piOne True Path, that greek organization is geonholes that it is difficult to imagine us not superior to this one, there’s no way you can only speaking but even thinking free of labels get a job anywhere but Tunguska unless you and imaginarily neat divisions. Which is too bad, do that.” It’s all deeply unimaginative and because Emerson is onto something when he derivative—we end up parroting what we notes, “People wish to be settled; only as far as hope, pray that everyone else is thinking. they are unsettled is there any hope for them.” It amounts to a light whimpering, and you So, we’re settled, and we whimper even can find it in the newspaper columns (guilty as when we appear to be snarling. Independents charged), in the common rooms, in the Loop accuse and greeks fire back. Humanities maat all hours. I’m applying the harsh label “whim- jors look down their noses and preen as econ per” to stay true to my prof’s phrasing, which majors give pious speeches about “practicality.” is insightful but is probably not quite what I If you want an analogous example of wouldmean: I’m picking on reflexive, predictable be incendiary, “strong” rhetoric that likewise talk, the kind that you can see coming from a stands on weak, knee-jerk foundations, look mile away, and calling it “whimpering” because no further than either side of the aisle in the it’s not especially forceful and looks nothing U.S. Senate. Duke has its own stupidly partisan like the kind of barking you probably end up rhetoric, and it’s more or less everyone’s fault. doing when you actually speak your mind. That’s right: Another columnist whimpers Conventional wisdom tends to amount to out a plea for reconciliation. But let’s be clear. I ritualistic small talk in any context, and the like argument, debate, contention. Predictabilparlance of Duke is no exception. Just as sure ity gives us the weak versions of all those things. as we know that it’s always safe to remark upon If you want to point a finger, fine. But make sure how ironic it is that those of us who have fled you do it for yourself, and not because you’re from states like Wisconsin and Massachusetts expected to based on the ground on which you have to put up with snow here in Dixie, we think you’ve chosen to stand. That’s a fancy way know that our mini-culture thrives on a shared of urging you to think twice to make damn sure knowledge of “Duke Social Life” (thanks to you’re thinking for yourself. Rolling Stone for making that a proper noun) Or, like Emerson’s buddy Thoreau, you and a set of common neuroses about grades, could take a half-hearted Boy Scout trip to internships and interviews. Really, we’re just the woods. I’d say that’s still less a bang than working to find a shared language, a project a whimper, but it’s really OK. that won’t be completed no matter how many years we diverse multitudes spend on campus. Connor Southard is a Trinity sophomore. His Still, there is something troubling about column runs every Wednesday.

12 | WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2010

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