4 14 2011

VOICE the georgetown

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STUDENTS RAISE CASH FOR AFRICAN ORPHANAGE PAGE 5

BROS, ANYONE CARE TO LAX? PAGE 6

PILLOW PANDEMONIUM PAGE 10

Georgetown University’s Weekly Newsmagazine Since 1969 w April 7, 2011 w Volume 44, Issue 12 w georgetownvoice.com

FINANCIAL AID UNDER FIRE

2 the georgetown voice

X

april 7, 2011

comments of the week

— Matt, “Olson discusses Campus Plan changes”

—wait whaaaaat???, “GU cedes to neighborhood demands,

will add more beds”

Talk Back

blog.georgetownvoice.com || georgetownvoice.com

Voice Crossword “All In A Day’s Work” by Scott Fligor

Across: 1. Excellence 6. Conspiracy theorist target 11. Text standard 14. Clear 15. Blind mathematician

16. Business abbr.

17. Dennis Haysbert character 19. Plunk preceder 20. Leave in 21. Norse epics 22. Disaster org.

23. Commitment

OM

—Claire McDaniel, “Campus Crime Watch: Same old, same old”

O

E.C

“I will find my laptop. The thief will regret it. End of story.”

V

IC VO

“I’m just imagining a bunch of students just chilling on their bunk beds on the walkway outside lau…it’s okay, I would take one of those beds. I basically live in the damn library anyway!!”

N OW

—Hoya, “ANC Wrap-up: Unhappy residents”

ET RG

“The vapidity of these “debates” is mind-boggling. As much as the Burlieth residents are affecting Georgetown plans, I’m starting to pity them based on how empty their lives seem to be. Maybe a party would do them good?”

O .GE OG BL

“Would that I could get the administration to pay attention to the University’s actual stakeholders — the students. If they gave them 1/100th of the consideration they give to the neighbors’ demands, we wouldn’t just have Healy Pub, we’d have the whole Dahlgren Quad buildings to ourselves.“

POPULI

VOX

25. “Lose Yourself” rapper 27. Kiefer Sutherland role 32. Singer Yoko 33. Old English letter 34. Arm bones 35. “___ by the Bell” 38. Mix 40. Czech center 42. Old Italian currency 43. Yarns 45. Cockney greetings 47. The Reds, on a scoreboard 48. Fist bump 49. Enterer 51. Anguish 54. “The Raven” opener 55. Cleopatra’s killers 56. Split up 59. Actress Jessica 63. Big paperback name 64. Mary Lynn Rajskub part 66. ___ Maria 67. English Architect Sir John 68. Ready 69. Ice cream name 70. Traveler’s stop 71. Herculean labor

answers at georgetownvoice.com

Down:

1. Drugs, in short 2. Q.E.D. component 3. Dance party 4. “Would you mind?”

5. Red Sox legend Williams 6. 27-across, perhaps?

7. “___ Lang Syne” 8. ___ Mater 9. Witherspoon of “Legally Blond” 10. Pennsylvania Railroad ltrs.

11. Several time Chief of Staff 12. Memory muse 13. “Go away!”

18. Plant parts 22. Set in stone 24. Aladdin’s monkey 26. Cantina town ___ Eisley 27. Witty remark 28. “___ girl”

29. Easy stuff 30. Baseball Hall-of-Famer Combs 31. Like many tape recorders 36. Shallow Great Lake 37. Turn down 39. Paper units 41. Golden rule lead-in 44. Vacation location 46. First discovered oncogene 50. Almost 51. Infernal poet?

52. “Let me repeat…”

53. It’s less civilized than a Houyhnhnm 57. Builder’s map 58. Top-notch 60. Cried wolf?

61. Libertarian Bob ___ 62. Stage org.

64. Highest enlisted army rank 65. “Nonsense!”

Are you a logophile?

Share your love of words and help us write crosswords.

E-mail crossword@georgetownvoice.com

editorial

georgetownvoice.com

VOICE the georgetown

Volume 44.12 April 7, 2011 Editor-in-Chief: Molly Redden Managing Editor: Tim Shine Editor-at-Large: Juliana Brint Director of Technology: Ishita Kohli News Blog Editor: Geoffrey Bible Leisure Blog Editor: Nico Dodd News Editor: Chris Heller Sports Editor: Nick Berti Feature Editor: Sean Quigley Cover Editor: Iris Kim Leisure Editor: Leigh Finnegan Voices Editor: Aodhan Beirne Photo Editor: Max Blodgett Design Editors: Nitya Ramlogan, Catherine Johnson Projects Editor: Brendan Baumgardner Crossword Editor: Scott Fligor Assistant Blog Editors: Diana McCue, Vincent Tennant Assistant News Editors: Rachel Calvert, Ryan Bellmore, Jeffrey Neidermaier Assistant Sports Editors: Adam Rosenfeld, Rob Sapunor Assistant Cover Editor: Holly Ormseth, Kelsey McCullough Assistant Leisure Editor: Mary Borowiec, Heather Regen, John Sapunor Assistant Photo Editors: Julianne Deno, Matthew Funk Assistant Design Editor: Michelle Pliskin Associate Editors: Julie Patterson, Jackson Perry Contributing Editors: Keenan Timko, Matthew Collins

Staff Writers:

Gavin Bade, Thaddeus Bell, Akshay Bhatia, Tom Bosco, Kara Brandeisky, Sam Buckley, Matthew Decker, John Flanagan Kate Imel, Kevin Joseph, Satinder Kaur, Daniel Kellner, Matt Kerwin, Eric Pilch, Sadaf Qureshi, Nick Thomas, Abby Sherburne, Melissa Sullivan, Mark Waterman

Staff Photographers:

Sam Brothers, Helen Burton, Jackson Perry, Audrey Wilson

Staff Designers:

Megan Berard, Richa Goyal, Ishita Kohli, Michelle Pliskin Kathleen Soriano-Taylor

Copy Chief: Keaton Hoffman Copy Editors:

Emma Forster, Emily Hessler, Kate Imel, Tori Jovanovski, Claire McDaniel, Kim Tay

Editorial Board Chair: J. Galen Weber Editorial Board:

Gavin Bade, Juliana Brint, Ethan Chess, John Flanagan, Ishita Kohli, Tim Shine, Cole Stangler

Head of Business: Kara Brandeisky The Georgetown Voice

The Georgetown Voice is published every Thursday.

This newspaper was made possible with the support of Campus Progress, a project of the Center for American Progress, online at CampusProgress.org. Campus Progress works to help young people — advocates, activists, journalists, artists — make their voices heard on issues that matter. Learn more at CampusProgress.org.

Mailing Address: Georgetown University The Georgetown Voice Box 571066 Washington, D.C. 20057

Office: Leavey Center Room 413 Georgetown University Washington, D.C. 20057

Email: editor@georgetownvoice.com Advertising: business@georgetownvoice.com Web Site: georgetownvoice.com The opinions expressed in the Georgetown Voice do not necessarily represent the views of the administration, faculty or students of Georgetown University, unless specifically stated. Unsigned editorials represent the views of the Editorial Board.

Columns, advertisements, cartoons and opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or the General Board of the Georgetown Voice. The University subscribes to the principle of responsible freedom of expression of its student editors. The Georgetown Voice is produced in the Georgetown Voice office and composed on Macintosh computers using the Adobe InDesign publishing system and is printed by Silver Communications. All materials copyright the Georgetown Voice. All rights reserved.

On this week’s cover ... Pell Grants Cover Graphic: Iris Kim

the georgetown voice 3 NEVER SURRENDER

No more futile concessions on Campus Plan Last week, the University announced a series of concessions in the bitter fight over the 2010 Campus Plan, including the addition of 250 undergraduate beds either on-campus or at a satellite location and the introduction of a hard enrollment cap of 15,000 students.

Administrators agreed to these conditions after weighing suggestions from the District Department of Transportation, the Office of Planning, and the community. However, signals from the Advisory Neighborhood Commission and lessons from previous campus plans show that such concessions are nothing more than useless and unwise capitulations.

Monday night’s ANC meeting made clear that the commission remains stubbornly committed to its own vision for the plan, which would prohibit future building in East Campus, place a hard cap on students living in the community, discontinue student housing on Magis Row, disallow student vehicles from parking

on neighborhood streets, and prohibit the University from acquiring neighborhood property without Zoning Commission approval.

Such unreasonable demands are nothing new. During consideration of the 2000 Campus Plan, the Zoning Commission tried to insert an involuntary enrollment cap in the plan. Ultimately, the D.C. Court of Appeals stuck down the cap, along with a provision that gave the Zoning Commission review over the student conduct of conduct.

Past behavior shows that community organizations will settle for nothing less than full acceptance of their illegal and discriminatory measures. But, the University remains naively committed to making onerous concessions. The University would save time and better serve students by sticking to the original plan that it drew up. Concessions won’t please neighbors, but they will greatly hurt students.

Notably, the on-campus housing increase

will stretch already crowded Georgetown housing to the breaking point and draw critical funding away from the University’s academic mission—even though Georgetown’s on-campus residency rate is comparable to urban universities of similar size. Moreover, these actions concede the neighbor’s argument that students don’t deserve a place in the neighborhood.

Students have been an important part of the neighborhood’s makeup for hundreds of years and they have every right to remain there.

It is incredibly disappointing that the University would put forward this misguided proposal in an unlikely gamble to curry the favor of the ANC and other implacable community groups. They will not relent in their own destructive demands, even though they go against good sense and the law. If the University wants to protect the interest of its students, it will retract these amendments and stick to its original proposal.

NO RHEE-TAKES

Erasures controversy reveals Rhee’s errors When Michelle Rhee resigned as chancellor of D.C. Public Schools last fall, she left behind a legacy of school closings, teacher accountability, and rising test scores. But those apparently weren’t the only marks left during Rhee’s tenure.

According to a report from USA Today last week, classrooms in 96 schools were flagged for an inordinate number of erasures on correct answers on the 2008 D.C. Comprehensive Assessment System. Over the past three years, dozens of D.C. schools have seen a statistically abnormal amount of corrections on standardized tests, implying that teachers possibly cheated to significantly improve test scores.

Among the flagged schools were some of the District’s top performers, including a number singled out by Rhee for awards and financial bonuses. Crosby S. Noyes Education Campus, a National Blue Ribbon School, saw some of the largest erasures, with students correcting answers more than 12 times more frequently than their peers on one 2009 test.

While an elevated number of corrections alone does not prove wrongdoing, their pervasive and recurring nature makes their appearance by chance unlikely. Rhee’s aggressive approach to reform, which tied teachers’ and administrators’ fates to their students’ performance, incentivized fraudulently boosting test scores. Teachers whose students consistently posted low scores faced termination, and administrators were on an even shorter leash. Principals, some of whom worked with one-year contracts, were sometimes expected to increase scores by 10 percentile points per year.

In 2009, Caveon Test Security was hired by the city to investigate the erasures. Caveon found no evidence of cheating, but the firm did not perform independent analysis of test results and only interviewed teachers in the presence of DCPS officials.

In the wake of USA Today’s revelations, DCPS acting chancellor Kaya Henderson asked the D.C. inspector general to conduct a

more rigorous investigation into the test corrections. She should be applauded for taking this step, but as Henderson begins to lead the post-Rhee public school system, she needs to correct the mistakes of her predecessor. While performance-based evaluation is important, Rhee’s high-stakes testing went too far. Because pressure on school employees was so high, that focus on outcomes dealt a blow to actual learning. Henderson should begin by expanding the evaluation period for teachers and administrators and setting more realistic goals for school improvement. She should also reduce the importance of test scores in teacher assessments in favor of more emphasis on inclass evaluations, which are more likely to accurately capture a teacher’s ability.

This week, thousands of students are taking the 2011 version of the DC CAS. Henderson and DCPS face a number of questions, chief among them the relevance and reliability of standardized testing. Like their students, they better check their answers carefully.

INDENTURED INTERNITUDE

Student interns deserve pay and class credit Few things are more coveted at Georgetown than a prestigious internship. Landing one has been universally accepted as the best way to secure a paying job after college. Unfortunately, students on the Hilltop find themselves constrained in the internship search by the University’s burdensome requirements for internship accreditation, along with employers’ growing preference for unpaid interns. Getting employers to fairly compensate interns will require action by the Federal government, but more immediately, Georgetown should reform its accreditation process and stop funneling students into menial, unpaid positions.

Georgetown’s current policy requires students seeking credit for their internships to enlist a faculty sponsor or enroll in one of several offered internship classes. Since many employers require students to receive academic credit to be eligible for consideration, the University’s policy can make it harder for students to even qualify for their desired internship. The policy also forces students to cram another class into

their already busy schedules, and part-time students have to pay for the extra credit hours.

It would be far more effective for the University to dedicate its resources to reviewing the internships regularly offered in the District. This way the University could decide whether or not to grant credit based on the merits of the position, and the Career Center could slim down the internship lists it provides to undergraduates, removing those that offer no pay and no valuable experience.

A good place for the Career Center to start would be eliminating the unpaid internships that are, in fact, illegal. Under federal law, for-profit companies can hire an intern without pay only when that intern’s experience is “similar to what would be given in a vocational school or academic educational instruction” and provides “no immediate advantage” to the employer. Few for-profit companies heed these requirements, and many students end up working for months performing mundane tasks while learning absolutely nothing. By

taking such positions off employment lists the Career Center can help steer students towards more worthwhile opportunities.

In addition, unpaid internships unfairly benefit more affluent students, who can afford to work a summer or semester without pay. That was one reason why the Obama administration’s Labor Department signaled at this time last year that it would begin cracking down on offending employers.

Regrettably, since then, little has been done.

The Labor Department should return to this issue: it is the one entity that could force employers to treat their interns fairly.

Georgetown offers students better access to internships than most other universities in the country. Yet unless the University strips away its burdensome accreditation requirements and begins working with the Labor Department to evaluate employers’ internship policies, students will increasingly find themselves working in a state of quasi-legal servitude and paying the University to do it.

news

4 the georgetown voice

april 7, 2011

New boathouse stalled by Park Service delays

by Molly Redden Georgetown University’s efforts to construct a boathouse on the Potomac River, which have attracted millions of dollars in alumni donations and cost more than $1 million in lobbying fees, have come to a halt as the National Parks Service continues to delay a report critical to its progress.

Georgetown is awaiting the completion of an Environmental Impact Statement by the NPS before it can move ahead. But neither the University nor the NPS can project when the EIS will be released, while other local issues have complicated the report’s completion indefinitely.

“Like anything in the government, unfortunately, it takes 30 years,” said Mike Vespoli (COL ‘68) a men’s crew team alum and former Olympic rower who has helped lead the project’s fundraising efforts.

Scott Fleming, Georgetown’s associate vice president for federal relations, points to a 2007 Department of the Interior Office of the Inspector General report as a reason for the delays.

The report cites the Washington Canoe Club for abusing its NPS special-use permit. Although it is built on public land, the OIG said, the WCC functions as a private site that improperly blocks public access to the land it occupies—land adjacent to the University-owned site of the proposed Georgetown boathouse. Fleming said the NPS could not complete the EIS without resolving this issue.

According to Bill Line, a spokesperson for the NPS, the NPS is still working to resolve the issues raised by the OIG report, although he did not specify how the resolution could affect the proposed boathouse.

In June 2010, the Georgetown Current also reported that NPS discovered information that expanded the scope of its EIS. Rachel Pugh, the director of media relations for Georgetown, wrote in an email that “one or more completion dates or deadlines for the EIS and related studies have now come and gone.”

In his email, Line would not speak specifically to the delays.

“The National Park Service has the first duty and responsibility to ensure the EIS is done in a way that ‘gets it right,’” he wrote.

Georgetown university

The proposed boathouse would be the crew team’s new permanent home.

The University currently rents space for its four male and female rowing teams at the Thompson Boathouse. Georgetown has sought to build its own facility for the past 40 years, and in that time, secured approval from the Advisory Neighborhood Commission, the Old Georgetown Board, the Commission of Fine Arts, and the Zoning Commission to erect a boathouse on a tract of land approximately one mile north of the Key Bridge. In 1995, an NPS Environmental Assessment concluded that there was no potential for detrimental impact to the environment on that land before deciding to undertake a more thorough study of the area through an EIS. As of the end of 2010, alumni donors have contributed $9.15 million toward the construction project and have made $9.67 million in commitments, according to Pugh. These contributions have also gone toward the cost of lobbying and consulting efforts by the D.C.-based Carmen Group, which have been ongoing since 2005 and passed the $1 million-mark in the first financial quarter of 2009.

But in another sign that efforts have stalled, payments to Carmen Group have dwindled since earlier in the decade, when the firm received up to $130,000 in lobbying fees in a single quarter. Then, the issue of the boathouse was seeing progress with NPS. In a Mar. 2009 Voice article, Line said that the completion of the Environmental Impact

Statement could be three to five months away. University spokesperson Julie Green Bataille expressed similar optimism at the time.

According to lobbying disclosure forms obtained by the Voice, starting in the Jul. 2009 and for every financial quarter since then, Georgetown has paid the Carmen Group less than $5,000. During that period, the Carmen Group reported having “[n]o direct contact with National Park Service, but ongoing consultation with Georgetown with regard to environmental documentation,” where it had previously worked with the NPS to produce environmental documents and move toward approval.

When finally completed, the EIS will be circulated for public comment and at least one community meeting. A group called the Defenders of Potomac River Parkland, of which the Washington Canoe Club is one of more than two dozen members, is already urging people to prepare their opposition to the University’s plans, which they say will block hiking trails and the view of the Potomac River.

Vespoli is not convinced that the EIS will be the final step before construction can begin, however.

“I’m sure if we got the approval to go ahead, somebody else will file a court case, and that will take another few years,” he said. “Will I be alive when it finally happens? I sure hope so.”

Crime summit urges theft vigiliance

by Rachel Calvert On Tuesday and Wednesday night, InterHall and the Southwest Quad Community Council hosted a crime prevention summit with the Department of Public Safety to raise student awareness about crime prevention.

During the event, students could register their laptops and bikes with a national registry service. According to Talib Abdur-Rahim, DPS crime prevention coordinator, registration is meant to deter theft and help recover stolen items.

Dalvin Butler (COL ’13), who serves on the community council and is InterHall’s vice president of external affairs, said the event was originally conceived of by the Southwest Quad Community Council in response to the slew of laptop thefts last semester.

“It’s a way for InterHall, the Community Council, and DPS to get smart on crime by providing safety tips to residents [on campus],” he said.

Among these tips were ones often touted by DPS, including advice to lock doors and windows, secure bikes, and keep laptops within sight while studying in places like Lauinger Library. At least 21 bicycle thefts and five laptop

thefts have occurred on campus since the beginning of the 2011. In at least five cases, the stolen items were unsecured.

“Lots of theft stems from students,” Butler said, citing negligent habits that have led to thefts in the past. “Part of the goal and mission is to have students experience safety precautions and raise awareness.”

According to Joseph Smith, the University’s associate director of public safety, the fact that many students have a laptop and bring bikes to campus makes theft more likely.

“If there is going to be crime, it’s going to be in those areas,” he said, while adding that age and gender demographics create a heightened risk of sexual assault.

Despite incidences of as-

sault and theft, Smith said he considers Georgetown a safe campus.

“I think we’re quite a safe campus if you look at crimes against person, like robbery and sexual assault, our numbers are quite low compared to the rest of the city,” he said.

However, Smith said that students should not let their guard down.

“Students should still practice safety protocols,” he said.

College campuses, according to Abdur-Rahim, are often susceptible to crime because students do not realize how much crime happens in cities like D.C. “Students should be vigilant and not complacent,” he said. “Much of the student population is naïve.”

Unsecured items are at least 22 percent of all campus thefts.

Chris heller

news

georgetownvoice.com

the georgetown voice 5

NHS students raise money for African orphanage

by Jeffrey Niedermaier Four seniors in the School of Nursing and Health Studies returned from their fall semester abroad with a mission—help the fledgling Mother of Mercy Babies’ Home in Ghana. The students, who conducted research for their senior theses at the Navrongo Health Research Center, are now organizing a campaign to support the orphanage.

Caitlin Maloney (NHS ‘11), Ivy Higgins (NHS ‘11), Jaclyn Marrinan (NHS ‘11), and Phoebe Bacon (NHS ‘11) first became involved with the orphanage while visiting Navrongo, a town located 20 hours north of Ghana’s capital, Accra.

Although the group had access to amenities at the research center, they said life for the villagers was difficult.

“The surrounding area lived on less than $1.25 a day,” Higgins said.

The students quickly became involved in a group called

Friends of African Babies, which supports the Mother of Mercy Babies’ Home. “[They] are not your typical definition of orphans,” Marrinan said. “For the most part, one or more of their parents are still alive. In this region there is a common belief in spirit children. So if a mother dies when the children are born, the father will abandon them.”

According to Bacon, any inauspicious events surrounding a child’s birth can cause the village tto reject the newborn as a “spirit child,” poisoning or leaving him or her in the brush.

The home, which provides for 16 to 24 children, receives no formal funding. Because of a limited staff, children are only admitted if accompanied by a caretaker, such as a sibling or an elderly relative. Higgins explained there is no running water or electricity in the building. The entire operation survives on roughly $3,500 worth of food per year.

“It’s pretty bleak,” she said.

Keep $3.4 million SAFE With $3.4 million of student money weighing on their minds, it’s hard to envy the members of the Student Activities Fee Endowment commission. On Tuesday, the commission heard the biggest proposals yet: placing solar panels on Universityowned townhouses, creating a fund for student social justice activities, and reviving the pub in Healy basement.

It might be temping for commission members to latch onto one idea in order to leave a discernable legacy, but none of the plans are perfect. The commission should therefore hedge its bets in order to make as meaningful an impact as is possible on future student life.

Georgetown Energy requested $163,399 to place solar panels on 43 University-owned townhouses. As per their proposal, students living in townhouses would continue to pay the standard kilowatt-hour rate as if they were still dependent on the grid, but the University would reimburse the student government for the full savings.

This proposal has the advantage of actually making money— but, at the cost of townhouse residents, who would essentially subsidize the student activities fee. Also, given the potential savings, the University might be willing to install the solar panels without GUSA money.

Another proposal took a bend towards social justice. Clare Gustafson (SFS ’13) and Nick Troiano (COL ’12) asked for $1.5 million to endow the Georgetown University Social Innovation and Public Service Fund, which would give grants to students to start a social enterprise or community service trip, or to pursue a career in public service.

The pair modeled the fund after President Obama’s Social Innovation Fund. Their mentors include Marta Urquilla of the White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation and Freedom Corps Founder John Bridgeland.

“I don’t think we can underestimate how unique of an idea this will be,” Gustafson said.

One of the commission-

Upon returning to campus, the students hung photographs of the women and children who live in the home in Uncommon Grounds.

“It’s very hopeful in the sense that, you will see in the pictures, a lot of the women

are smiling and there’s camaraderie,” Bacon said. “They just added a school and sometimes they’re able to bring in local teachers. But it’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen. The babies have cribs but the [caretakers] sleep on mats on the ground.”

Courtesy ivy hiGGins

“Spirit children” in Ghana are abandoned shortly after birth. ers deftly pointed out that, in supporting this proposal, the commission would be spending down a failed endowment by placing money in a fund of similar design. However, Gustafson’s point is also well taken.

The excitement this proposal has generated among student community service leaders and government officials and its singular purpose give it a vitality that SAFE never had.

Then, of course, there is the most well known (and most ex-

saxa Politica

by John Flanagan

A bi-weekly column on campus news and politics pensive) proposal, the revival of Healy Pub. The pub would reclaim the whole of Healy basement as a student space, displacing the financial aid, student employment, and employee benefits offices. Healy Pub, as the proposal claims, would be a place for students to meet, socialize, and study.

But, it would presumably cost more than $3.4 million to turn the offices into a working restaurant, bar, and study space.

Supporters contend that alreadystrong alumni support will put the plan over the edge.

The idea of reviving student space in Healy is laudable. It would be great if Georgetown’s most iconic building were the center of student life. When I ran for the commission, I was a strong proponent of using the money for capital improvements to provide student space. I also appreciate spokesman Chris Pigott’s (COL ’12) point that creating a discernable center for student life would attract alumni support.

Then again, only 400 students can fit in the Healy basement at once. This will hardly make a dent in the marauding hoards of drunken undergrads that the neighbors object to, especially if the pub is serious about enforcing drinking laws.

Even if it were to have a greater impact, the pub’s proponents overestimate the reasonableness of the Advisory Neighborhood Commission, which approves all liquor licenses.

Also, even though the group met with Todd Olson, University vice president for student affairs, they have not received a defini-

FAB has trouble finding sources of funding outside of Ghana due to limited Internet access.

“We’re their only form of international contact,” Higgins said.

To raise money, the students will host a bar night at Rhino Bar and Pumphouse on M Street this Thursday.

“We wanted to go to the crowds,” Marrinan said.

They also hope to collaborate with NHS and future students who study in Ghana with hopes that Georgetown and FAB can build a lasting relationship.

“We’re hoping this will be the first of many events,” Marrinan said.

To the four students, the Mother of Mercy Babies’ Home is different from other charities they have participated in because it was so personal and real to them.

“You could see the big effect of a little change,” Higgins said. tive answer as to whether the University would be willing to allow a bar in Healy or foot the bill for moving its administrative offices. Pigott seems to think the new Science Center will open up space for these offices, but the academic departments have indicated they plan to continue using Reiss. Also, let’s not forget that the administration killed Healy Pub once—it can do it again.

In addition, the proposal offers promises of student space familiar to students who look forward to the student center in New South. Even if the pub could co-exist with the student center, as Pigott argued, it’s not responsible to commit the whole endowment to an uncertain proposal that may not be necessary.

Healy Pub and SIPS hold a lot of promise for raising the profile of Georgetown and improving student life. At the same time, the commission should be cautioned against placing all of its eggs in one basket. It should be the business of the commission to spread the benefits of funding as widely as possible while still making impactful allocations.

See how much money John costs at jflanagan@georgetownvoice.com

sports

6 the georgetown voice

april 7, 2011

Hoyas hoping to salvage early woes in Big East

by Kevin Joseph Mired in a season-long slump, the Georgetown women’s softball team (9-28, 3-2 Big East) decided to forget about the past and focus on the Big East grind that awaited them.

That philosophy paid dividends two weekends ago when they started on a run through the conference against Connecticut. They took one of two games and got their confidence back in defeating quality opponent. They parlayed the results into more success this past weekend, taking two of three from Villanova and narrowly missing a sweep in their final game.

For head coach Pat Conlan, different aspects of the team’s play have been promising, but only recently have the Hoyas strung together every facet of the game to produce wins consistently. In the beginning of the season, if their offense was not off, then their defense or pitching suffered.

“We’ve done all of those things well at time,” Conlan said. “We just haven’t put it all together.”

The slow start has to be mostly attributed to the overhaul the Hoyas roster went through, losing six starters from last season. They added eight freshmen, many of whom are starting. Newcomers Jenna Stark, Alexandria Antilla, and Elyse Graziano have been regulars in the lineup.

Conlan acknowledged that lack of experience has played a large role in her team’s performance this season.

“There is a huge adjustment from high school to the college game, and I think they’ve truly turned the corner in making that adjustment,” she said. “I think the experience is helping as we’re more comfortable with each other.”

Certainly, some teams would fold and struggle to keep focused for the remainder of a season given such a devastating start. However, the Hoyas rededicated themselves, seeking a fresh start in Big East play.

According to Stark and junior Mackensey Carter, they began practicing harder, spending extra time in the batting cages, and working on fundamentals. Carter, in particular, recognized the same turning tide that her coach saw in the team.

“I think everyone is playing with more confidence,” Carter said.

“Once we start Big East, it’s a new season. We came out with a new fire and passion.”

Throughout the season, Carter and sophomore Shikara Lowe have carried their team, waiting for the freshmen to make their impact. Both have started all of the team’s games, and together have accounted for almost 30 percent of the team’s runs and RBIs. During the beginning of the season, the Hoyas batted just .223 without producing many runs.

In the five Big East games since then, Georgetown has hit .319, scoring 27 runs and playing with the renewed spirit Carter and her freshman teammate, Stark, recognized.

“We all kind of snapped into gear and have been doing a lot extra,” Starks said.

As for the impact she and her younger teammates have, their footprint on the program is just beginning.

“I think we all came in wanting to make an impact as a group,” Stark said. “We can completely change this program is kind of our goal.”

Despite optimism for the remainder of the season as well as the future, the Hoyas have still been unable to string together an extended winning streak this season. After their Tuesday night matchup with University of Maryland-Baltimore County was rained-out, Georgetown traveled to College Park only to lose both ends of a double-header to Maryland by scores of 10-0 and 1-0. The lauded offense disappeared for a day, but these losses are not part of their Big East campaign, and won’t affect their chances of making the conference tournament.

Courtesy GEORGETOWN SPORTS INFORMATION

Jenna Stark has taken the Hilltop by storm, hitting .316 with 12 RBIs.

The Hoyas’ youth movement may serve them well going down the stretch, but the results will become more tangible starting next season, when these freshmen have a full year of experience under their belts. For now, the team is working hard to forget the beginning of their season and focus on the task at hand.

“Overall, our year may not look that great, but the Big East is all that matters right now,” Stark said.

Courtesy GEORGETOWN SPORTS INFORMATION

Shikara Lowe has three home runs and is slugging a team-leading .490.

The Sports Sermon “I like John, but he has three personalities. J.D. is the one who thinks he deserves sex when he wants it. John makes Tiger Woods look like a saint”—Sherrie Daly

Another recent innovation, MLB-At Bat, is perhaps their most powerful. Now in its third As the attention spans of year, MLB-At Bat allows you to Americans continue to decrease, stream any game on a mobile Major League Baseball finds itself device. It has truly been a game in a tough situation. America’s changer for the sport, at least in a pastime hasn’t changed its game business sense. It is the top grossin over a hundred years, and it’s ing app in Apple’s App Store. not in any rush to cater to the mulDie-hards never have to miss a titasking-obsessed population by pitch, and casual fans can watch altering its regulations. Hockey an inning or two on the bus. Most changed its rules to increase scorimportantly, it caters to younger ing after the 2004-2005 lockout, fans, the same generation with an and the NBA has frowned upon attention span of a three-monthdefense and essentially ignored old puppy. A 16-year-old may the travelling violation for the not be willing to sit in a stadium better part of 20 years, but the for three hours, but they’ll look at MLB hasn’t budged. their phone (and any With a game avPete Rose Central app that can distract eraging three hours, Da bettin’ line them) 100 times in America’s oldest that timespan. sport could struggle Margin Dookies Hoyas That’s why bringto stay relevant in (duh!) (underdogs) (favorites) ing the game to them the 21st century.

Field There aren’t many Tiger Blood was the best thing Phil the league could’ve people who want to Red Sox 0-162?

Yankees do anything for three Rockaway Maloney Teensy bit done. The MLB is finding the perfect straight hours, much balance between its old-time imnovator in the sports world. MLB. less spend $100 to bake under the age and its new technology feel. If com can’t change the sport it’s hot summer sun or sit inside all it can continue to do this, it may be promoting, but it finds the newest day watching on TV when your one of the only sports to engage a technology trends to dress up the friends are at the beach. new generation of fans while stayold game.

As a die-hard baseball fan, ing true to its roots.

MLB’s website has been crednothing would be worse than seeTheir latest initiative has ited as one of the best for sports oning Bud Selig change the rules of shown that they bring the game line. You can find any random stat the game in order to accommoto the fans, by bringing fans to you want in the archives. They also date more home runs and quicker the game—literally. As a marketcontrol each team’s site through finishes. It pains me to hear peoing ploy to reach the younger MLB.com Advanced Media and ple say that baseball is boring. I’ll generation, MLB has created the simplify the process of buying admit it’s not the most fast-paced, FanCave—a West Village storetickets, finding information about action-packed sport, but those front turned baseball fan’s dream the team, and watching highlights. who don’t appreciate it are usupad where two baseball loyalists The introduction of MLB.TV, a ally the ones who don’t give it a will watch all 2,430 games played subscription-based product that chance. They are the same fans this season, giving new meaning allows fans to stream any game who need to see football players to the fan experience. If they won’t online, gives displaced fans easy deliver crushing blows, or baswatch, force them to watch. access to their favorite teams. ketball players soar into the air

by Nick Berti

and deliver highlight reel dunks to justify the price of admission.

Don’t get me wrong—I love seeing Blake Griffin demolish the rim on a 25-foot alley-oop. Baseball not only gives fans these great plays, but also engages fans mentally more than any sport. Each pitch, swing, and base running decision makes you think. It’s a chess match, but the pieces move and can hit a baseball 450 feet.

Major League Baseball has been forced to get creative and find ways off the field to make the experience better for the fans.

Ironically, a sport invented in the 19th century is a technological in-

sports

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the georgetown voice 7

Lacrosse getting back on track The Georgetown men’s lacrosse team (5-4) entered Tuesday’s game against Mount St. Mary’s attempting to do something the squad had not accomplished all season: win consecutive games.

“We told the guys it was about time we strung some wins together,” head coach Dave Urick said.

On an extremely cold and windy night, the Hoyas were able to get the crucial road victory, outlasting the Mountaineers 13-7.

The game began slowly, as the teams played 11 minutes of scoreless lacrosse after the opening draw.

Sophomore Brian Casey opened the scoring, and senior captain Max Seligmann added another goal less than two minutes later to give the Hoyas a 2-0 lead.

Senior captain Rickey Mirabito got on the board early in the second quarter to put the Hoyas up 3-1.

Along with his contributions on the

Courtesy GEORGETOWN SPORTS INFORMATION

Barney Ehrmann has provided a strong defensive presence in the midfield position.

Best in show?

Now that the college basketball season has finally come to the end, we know a few things for certain: Georgetown can’t catch a break in March, Jimmer Fredette is the second coming of Joseph Smith (or maybe just Danny Ainge), and UConn is the national champion.

What we don’t know is who the best team in the nation is.

That’s no knock on the Huskies.

Their March rampage—five straight wins in the Big East Tournament, then six straight in the NCAA’s—is nothing short of remarkable, and they’re deserving champions. But while they are indisputably the hottest team in the country, there’s no way to say for certain that the Huskies are the best team.

This is the same UConn team that finished 9-9 in the Big East; the

one-and-done Hoyas were 10-8. Using the transitive property of basketball prowess (widespread academic acceptance still pending), you even could argue 7-21 Fordham was a better basketball team: the Rams beat St. John’s, and the Red Storm dominated the Huskies by 17 points. They even lost four of their last five games heading into the Big East Tournament. On March 5, after UConn lost its final regular season game to Notre Dame, no one thought the Huskies were the best team in America, save maybe Kemba Walker’s mom.

Fast forward one month, and UConn is cutting down the nets in Houston, having outlasted 67 other teams to become the undisputed national champion.

Or maybe they weren’t. In the final ESPN/USA Today coaches’

rick Murray was stellar in face-offs, giving Georgetown much needed possessions.

Perhaps the player with the greatest impact on the game on both ends of the field was grad student midfielder Barney Ehrmann, who Urick described as playing the best he has in his entire career.

“He made an assist, where out of nowhere he threw it more than 60 yards to Davey Emala, who was sitting right next to the goal,” Urick said. “It was a heck of a play but I have no idea why or how he did it. I guess that’s just some great coaching right there.”

Ehrmann is valuable because of his ability to clear the ball from the defensive zone either by finding the right outlet or by taking the ball out of danger himself. This skill set will be extremely useful in the Hoyas’ next game against No. 2 Notre Dame, a squad that always puts pressure on defenses, making clearing the ball all the more important.

The game will be televised nationally on ESPNU, and facing an undefeated Irish on their home turf will give the Hoyas an opportunity to re-enter the discussion for an NCAA Tournament bid.

“It’s an opportunity for us to take a significant step forward, but I’m sure Notre Dame’s gonna have something to say about it,” Urick said. “There’s a lot of pride on the line, two great programs, two Catholic schools, two Big East rivals … it’s a challenge for us but it’s one our guys are looking forward to.” poll, one voter, Northern Arizona head coach Mike Adras, gave his first place vote to Ohio State, which tied for the best regular season record. Adras told USA Today he voted for “the best team in the country based on the entire body of work during the season.”

The fact is, college basketball is not designed to produce a definitive answer to the question

Backdoor Cuts

by Tim Shine

a rotating column on sports of the best team in the country. It doesn’t have the luxury of time like the NBA, which determines its champion with near scientific rigor over the course of two months and four seven-game series. To avoid surrendering all pretense of calling its players student-athletes, the NCAA came up

What Rocks

scoreboard, Mirabito made it especially difficult for the Mountaineer defenseman to clear the ball.

“What I was most impressed with was how hard we rode them on attack,” Urick said. “It’s not a real glamorous part of the job, but it really pays off when you make it tough for teams to clear, leading to more chances for you to score.”

Mirabito and the Hoyas certainly took advantage of the offensive pressure. The senior scored his second goal of the night after the Hoyas batted down a clearing pass from the Mountaineer goalie. In addition to four goals for the night, Mirabito’s one assist brought his season total to 16, equaling his total assists for his first three seasons combined.

Trailing 10-5, the Mountaineers tried to turn up their intensity in the final quarter, but the Georgetown defense was too stifling and prevented the Mountaineers from gaining any momentum. In addition, the combination of Tyler Gnarr and Pat-

by Adam Rosenfeld

Sophia Thomas

Sophia Thomas doesn’t know the meaning of “sophomore slump.” After an impressive first year, she is on track to double her freshman numbers. In just nine games, she has already posted 21 goals, three more than her total for last year. Not bad, considering last year she won the Sheehan Stanwick Rookie of the Year Award.

While some may be surprised by Thomas’s consistently impressive performances, head coach Ricky Fried certainly is not.

“Watch the game. Even if you know nothing about lacrosse, you notice Sophia,” Fried said. “The biggest thing she brings is energy.”

She will need that energy for the duration of the season. The Hoyas, while experienced and talented, have struggled with some difficult matchups and are currently 4-5 for the year.

with March Madness, an imperfect but entertaining solution.

The NCAA Tournament is beloved precisely because it makes no pretense of trying to determine the most talented team. Its inclusive field and single-elimination format make the fluke upsets that drive bracket pools and TV ratings commonplace. Four times out of seven, Ohio State might beat Kentucky, but all that counts is that one game. That element of uncertainty is the reason March Madness draws America’s prolonged attention like no other sporting event: anything can happen and every game matters.

The meaning of “the best” in sports is too nebulous to make searching for a definitive answer worthwhile. It’s a theoretical question—one that sports are not designed to answer, at least on a grand scale. Basketball ends with the final buzzer; contextualizing the results

Courtesy GEORGETOWN SPORTS INFORMATION

But, regardless of the opponent, Thomas brings a dominant mentality to the field. The midfielder says that she tries to dictate her defender’s position and actions instead of simply taking what her opponents give her.

Thomas currently ranks second on the team in goals, and the Hoyas will rely on her invaluable scoring ability as they move forward throughout the season.

Her efforts have been instrumental in all of the Hoyas’ victories, including a six-goal performance against Connecticut that propelled the Hoyas to a 14-12 win.

Fried has high hopes for Thomas not only for the rest of the season, but also for the rest of her career.

“She has the capability of being one of the best midfielders in the country,” he said.

—Abby Sherburne

of the game isn’t part of the sport.

The final score only indicates the better of two teams in that specific instance. Any conclusions beyond that will always be subjective.

In that case, the NCAA is better off not wasting its time trying to make a tournament that would find the one best team in college basketball. The most it can do is make sure its champion has reasonably proved itself. And beating six of the supposed 68 best teams in succession certainly seems reasonable.

So Ohio State had more wins and Kansas had more pro prospects, but don’t begrudge UConn its championship. They may not be the best team, but they’re good enough.

Jimmer or Kemba? Who’s Tim’s biggest man crush? Email him at tshine@georgetownvoice.com

feature

8 the georgetown voice

april 7, 2011

feature

georgetownvoice.com

Pell Grants in Peril: Fighting for Funding KELSEY MCCULLOUGH

Kelsey Hendricks relies on a Pell Grant to pay for part of her tuition.

by Sean Quigley While most Georgetown juniors are busy finding an internship or making plans for their last summer as undergraduates, Kelsey Hendricks (COL ’12), has a much more urgent concern: returning to Georgetown for her senior year.

Hendricks is one of more than 800 Georgetown undergraduates who receive financial aid from the federal government through the Pell Grant program. But funding for next year ’s Pell Grants is in danger of being cut by Congress, leaving students like Hendricks

unsure of their futures. If the amount of her Pell Grant is reduced, she said, she could be forced to transfer to a more affordable school.

“It’s the difference between having my senior year at Georgetown and having to go back home and find a school nearby that’s not as expensive and get a scholarship,” Hendricks said. “When I came to Georgetown, I never thought this would happen.”

Created by the Higher Education Act of 1965, Pell Grants are annual awards of up to

$5,550 given to students from low-income families to help them pay for the cost of attending college. The grants do not require repayment. According to the Student Aid Alliance, a coalition of 62 higher education organizations and universities, including Georgetown, over nine million students across the country rely on Pell Grants to help pay for their secondary education.

Though funding for the program was included in President Obama’s proposed budget, the House of Representatives bud-

get proposal for fiscal year 2012 would bring Pell Grant spending back to 2008 levels, reducing the maximum grant amount from $5,550 to $4,705 and eliminating grants for summer programs entirely. The proposal would also remove funding for Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, a similar program through which students from low-income families can receive up to $4,000 per year.

While the proposed $845 reduction from the maximum awarded Pell Grant might seem

Federal financial aid by the numbers (2009 - 2010) Source: Office of Federal Relations

982 students received Perkins loans $5,222,998 830 students received Pell Grants 1,522 students received Federal Work Study (FWS)

$3,478,197

$2,277,775 $1,864,796

Perkins loans

Pell Grant

FWS

467 students received Supplemental Education Opportunity Grants (SEOG)

SEOG Graphic by IRIS KIM and SEAN QUIGLEY

like an insignificant part of the $52,443 total cost of tuition, fees, and average room and board at Georgetown, Hendricks says the prospect of coming up with that much extra cash for the next academic year is daunting.

“For a lot of people, I know it seems like nothing,” she said.

“But for people receiving the maximum [grant], finding $845 is almost impossible. … Georgetown is staying ‘full-need’ and saying that they’ll cover it, but you never know.”

While Hendricks imagines her worst-case scenario as having to leave Georgetown for a less expensive school, Scott Fleming, associate vice president for federal relations, said Georgetown is committed to meeting the financial aid needs of all of its current students regardless of the outcome of the federal budget debate.

“We’re a need-blind, fullneed school,” Fleming said. “[Dean of Student Financial Services] Pat McWade has made clear that certainly with regard to current Georgetown students, we will find a way to make sure that they will be able to continue to go to Georgetown.”

Still, he said that the University’s plan for covering the difference that a cut in Pell Grant funding would create is “still undetermined.”

“It is possible that a student will end up with a package of more loans,” he said.

According to Director of Media Relations Rachel Pugh, though the University provides more than $80 million in scholarships to undergraduate students each year, federal aid is part of the financial aid pack-

ages of 40 percent of students.

For the 2009-2010 academic year, out of the 5,500 Georgetown students benefiting from some form of financial aid, 830 students received Pell Grant funding totaling $3,478,197, and 467 students received $1,864,197 in SEOGs. The University is doing what it can to ensure that Congress reapproves funding for the grants. University President John DeGioia wrote a letter to Jacob Lew, director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, stressing the importance of federal aid programs to schools like Georgetown and emphasizing that “maintaining the federal commitment to student aid programs is vital to complementing our institutional aid and meeting our long-standing commitment to covering the ‘full need’ of our students.”

DeGioia also appeared on American University’s radio station, WAMU 88.5 FM, to urge Congress not to cancel funding for Pell Grants and SEOGs, calling the cuts “illconceived and harmful to the nation’s economic recovery.”

Fleming says the Office of Federal Relations has been involved with lobbying Congress for the continuation of funding for Pell Grants. Fleming has made the issue his own personal project, and comes off as both deeply passionate and highly knowledgeable about the subject.

“I really care about this,” he said. “This is the numberone priority right now.”

For years, his office has run Student Fed Net, a listserv of over 700 people to which Fleming sends information about federal aid policies. This year, as the budget debate has brought Pell Grant funding into question, the updates have become more frequent.

Because of student privacy rules, Fleming says he isn’t able simply to ask the Office

of Admissions for a list of the names of students receiving Pell Grants, so he started the Federal Student Financial Aid Network on the Office of Communications website, which allows students to submit information on how federal aid has impacted them.

Fleming has been personally meeting with staff members of various congresspeople, including Rosa Deloro (D-CT), the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Subcommittee, to emphasize the importance of aid programs to Georgetown. Using information from the Student Financial Aid Network, he tries to bring a Pell Grant-receiving student from that congressperson’s home state to share their story in person.

“I took a student from Alaska when we went to meet with Senator [Lisa] Murkowski’s staff, just to show her, look, Alaskans get Pell Grants.

That’s part of her constituency,” he said. “Quite frankly, a senator from Idaho doesn’t really care what I think, but he probably does care what a student whose parents live in Idaho and vote in Idaho thinks.”

At the core of Fleming’s strategy is an attempt to remind congresspeople of the negative effect a cut in Pell Grant funding would have on individual students’ lives, turning a line on a budget sheet from a numerical abstraction into a human story.

“The most significant thing we can do is put a face on this story,” he said.

Toward that end, his office had three students, Cody Ling (MSB ’11), Jose Vasquez (COL ’11), and Hendricks, record YouTube videos testifying to the importance of federal financial aid in their studies, which he sends to Congresspeople and others with a say in the budget debate.

In the videos, the students describe their background

and explain how coming to Georgetown would have been impossible without Pell Grants and SEOGs. Born in Cuba, Vasquez moved to Miami as a child with his single mother, who works as a nursing assistant, and transferred to Georgetown—his “dream school”—after spending two years at Miami-Dade College.

He says his Pell Grant provided “the extra difference” that allowed him to come to Georgetown.

Hendricks’s story, Fleming says, is compelling because her background is different than that of the average student who receives federal aid.

Originally from a well-off family in wealthy suburb of Dallas, her situation deteriorated around 2003 when her father became unemployed, her parents divorced, and her mother declared bankruptcy.

She found herself living with her grandparents in Louisville, Kentucky, her old life completely shattered.

“My life did a complete 180 in two years. I went from never being told no to never being told yes,” she said. “So when I applied to college it wasn’t where I could get in to, but where I could afford to go.”

When she was accepted to Georgetown, a combination of a Pell Grant, an SEOG, a Stafford Loan (a low-interest, federally subsidized education loan), and a “very generous” scholarship from the University allowed her to attend.

She says she was initially embarrassed about the amount of aid she received.

“When I first came, I didn’t want anyone to know that I had a Georgetown scholarship because most people here don’t have one,” she said. “I felt like I wanted to be put on an equal playing field with people. But now that it seems like it might get taken away, I have to move past that fear of people looking on me with a different light.”

Fleming recruited Hendricks to speak at a breakfast this Thursday morning hosted by the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, which will be attended by approximately 20 members of Congress. Fleming hopes they will have her story in mind when they vote on the budget later that day or Friday.

Outside of Fleming’s office, other students are working to dissuade Congress from deauthorizing Pell Grant funds.

The Georgetown University Legislative Advocates, a student group which lobbies for legislation that benefits stu-

the georgetown voice 9 dents, submitted a letter to the Senate encouraging them not to cut funding for the grants.

“As a group, we discuss what issues are pertinent to us and we all decided that this was one that we wanted to work on,” Joey Christie (COL ’12) wrote in an email. “We began to learn more about what exactly was going on and drafted a letter that we delivered to the Senate to urge them to provide sufficient funding in the pending Continuing Resolution to maintain the current $5,550 maximum Pell Grant.”

On Friday, the stopgap budget measure passed by Congress in February will expire, leading some to believe that Republicans and Democrats will come to some sort of agreement—and settle the question of Pell Grant and SEOG funding—by then.

“The theory is that Congress will reach some sort of agreement before then,” Fleming said. “This week, we should know.”

There is a possibility that Congress will authorize funding for Pell Grants for this financial year, but not the next.

Fleming pointed out that since the colleges have already sent out admissions letters and offered aid packages with federal funds to incoming students

for the 2011-2012 academic year, Congress might be hesitant to cut this year ’s alreadypromised funds.

“I actually think at the end of the day, that will be a very powerful argument for this year. Would you like to call [students who have been offered Pell Grants] and tell them, ‘Sorry, just kidding?’” he said. “I’ve been saying, let’s just live to fight another day, live until next year. And I’ll be fighting to save it then, too.”

Even if funds for Pell Grants are cut, Hendricks has been impressed with Georgetown’s efforts on behalf of the program.

“The University has actually been remarkable,” she said. “For the first time in my Georgetown career, I actually feel like the administration cares about students.”

That much is certainly true for Fleming.

“I love what I do, so I’m happy to do it,” he said.

Hendricks seems grateful for the work Fleming and his office have done.

“I’m definitely thankful that they’re actually doing something,” she said. “I don’t come from a wealthy family, but I have a lot to offer, so I want to fight to make sure that I can stay here and live out my senior year at Georgetown.”

MATTHEW FUNK

Scott Fleming is working to ensure that Congress doesn’t cut Pell Grant funds.

leisure

10 the georgetown voice

April 7, 2011

Hanna: Like Kill Bill, with a teenager ground complex in the Moroccan desert.

The contrast of her situation is obvious; Hanna is supposed to be a girl raised outside of our world. Sure, she wears that famil-

by Chris Heller There’s one thing you should know about Hanna—she’s got pierced ears.

This girl, who snaps necks and sheds blood like it’s her job, who was raised by her father (Eric Bana) in a remote cabin just below the Arctic Circle, who was trained by dear old dad in God knows how many languages and fighting styles but has never seen a television, heard music, or used the Internet, apparently found time to throw on a pair of earrings in between hunting elk and outrunning a ruthless bunch of assassins led by CIA handler Marissa Wiegler (Cate Blanchett).

Hanna opens with the title character (Saoirse Ronan) questioning her spartan lifestyle, but her father soon gives her a choice: if she turns on a signal beacon in the cabin, she will leave—and face the people who want her dead. She flips the switch on the years-old device, immediately gets captured, and then, after a prolonged escape plan, breaks out of an under-

lez’hur ledger

like befriending a girl her age (Jessica Barden) or riding a motorcycle for the first time.

Then, as more nasty bits about off-the-book CIA operations and her father’s murky past

Thankfully, the deeds are done in graceful, meticulous scenes that seem to react against the shaky camerawork and disjointed cuts championed by The Bourne Identity and just about

Don’t get mad, PETA, that hat isn’t animal fur. Hanna killed a seriously hairy Eskimo. iar tough-girl look that screams, “I am a raging bitch.” But she’s not a bitch—Ronan plays the character blithe and wide-eyed to the world around her, charmingly excited about all those normal teenage things she’s missed,

emerge, an icy mask glazes over Hanna’s face. She’s on her own and she doesn’t want to hurt anybody anymore. She wants to avoid her prescribed destiny, but can’t seem to stop dispatching baddies.

imdb

every other action movie released since. The shakes inevitably seep in, but are overpowered by long tracking shots that follow sequences of ass-kickings across bleak urban scenery.

Wright is a bit obsessed with

this shot (it most memorably appeared in Atonement, when he first worked with Ronan) and the way he brags with it is warranted—it looks great set to the Chemical Brothers’ thumping, bass-heavy score.

But beyond the camerawork, Hanna really gets interesting when our heroine has no villains to immediately conquer.

Below the surface, Hanna has fairy tale sensibilities—her dead mother and yearning for the outside world suggest a story fit for a Disney princess, not a killing machine. (She even hides a copy of Grimm’s Fairy Tales under her pillow.) If she could only vanquish the evil witch once and for all, she’d live happily ever after with daddy.

But Hanna doesn’t live in that kind of fairy tale. She has to run and punch and maim her way to freedom. When she cries, she’s faking. When she kills, she doesn’t flinch. And sadly, she never comes of age. The perfect soldier doesn’t change.

Except, apparently, for a piercing or two.

International Pillow Fight Day: It’s going “down”

by Samuel Buckley I arrived on the scene expecting a ruckus. After all, it was the spot for D.C.’s celebration of International Pillow Fight Day, right on the Mall directly adjacent to the Capitol Fountain. Given the Mall’s wide, open space, I expected a genuine melee to ensue.

The Facebook description gave the impression that the event was deliciously unsanctioned. We were supposed to keep our pillows discreetly stowed away, until, upon some secretive cue, we broke out into a spontaneous spree of beddingbased combat. I had high hopes for participating in some boisterous mayhem, perhaps with the threat of pillow-on-riot-shield action looming over our heads.

Unfortunately, by the time I arrived (fashionably late, about 20 minutes into the proceedings), this particular leg of featherbag insanity looked entirely spent. A few dozen peo-

ple, mostly under the age of 25 (and a good deal under 15), continued halfheartedly assaulting each other in small groups while their parents smiled indulgently, and a bored-looking pair of Capitol Police crouched on bikes amidst the remnants of the fight. A brass band of middle-aged men was playing “America the Beautiful” next to the Capitol Fountain, putting something of a damper on the fun, free-for-all atmosphere.

The event’s organizer, perhaps sensing the same thing, gestured to the remaining crowd. “We’ll be regrouping at Dupont Circle if you want to continue!” he shouted.

Clearly, I would be getting my requisite quota of pillow bruises elsewhere. Or maybe not. As I struggled towards the metro, a hailstorm opened up over the crowd, sending most of the tourists toward the safety of the Smithsonians. When I strolled out of the station at Dupont I didn’t have much hope

that the scene would be any more promising than the one at the Capitol.

Then I saw a blur of white shapes as I walked towards the circle. At least 80 people, young and old, appeared to be beating each other senseless in front of the statue with a variety of different sorts of cushions. Whipping my pillow out of my bag, I rushed to join them.

I was soon subsumed into chaos. While the event organizer winkingly reminded us to scatter if the police attempted to break up the event, I was pummeled on all sides by people aged 10 to 60.

Clearly, I had missed the memo about this being a costumed pillow fight. Wigged teenagers, costumed superheroes, and a variety of characters all assaulted me. “FOR THE BOURGEOUISIE!” screamed one grad-student-looking-type in a full business suit. “I’m a ‘90s Frankie Muniz!” shouted another, as a group of his friends hoisted him up.

This leg of the event more than satisfied my expectations.

I was elbowed in the face by a ski-helmet-wearing middleaged man dual-wielding sofa cushions, and uncomfortably chest-butted by a cowboy with stuffing under his shirt. Groups formed lines and charged at each other, shouting out “Free Weezy!” and “For Narnia!”

Eventually, the event’s organizer decided to have us test

our skills in a playoff system, fighting elimination-style to make the pillow-socking Final Four. My target was a twentysomething clad in a pink top hat and cloak. Bracing myself, I was determined not to be defeated by someone in such a ridiculous outfit.

After being felled by a flying leap and smack to the face, I decided to make a moderately graceful exit.

samuel buckley

Down pillows were prohibited, so he filled his with rocks. Game over.

georgetownvoice.com

“i’ve come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass, and i’m all out of bubblegum” —They live

the georgetown voice 11

O burger, where “art” thou? Let’s get it poppin’

puree. To even out the texture, he adds bread crumbs, but never with a heavy hand.

The location of HERE, Ross“I gauge it by eye and with lyn’s newest restaurant, feels as feel,” Tuson said, explaining how organic as its menu’s hand-cut the mushroom center never ends fries. Nestled naturally into the up tasting like the bun despite main floor of urban art center Arthe bread that forms its texture. tisphere, its tables spread out from Topped with sautéed onions and the bar opposite the venue’s ballmole verde, HERE’s mushroom room. burger ensures that vegetarian dinThe idea of integrating a resers don’t miss out on its savory setaurant into Artisphere was one lection. that excited Mike Tuson, Next to such well-crafted HERE’s head chef. burgers, however, the restau“[The surrounding galrant’s hand cut fries simply leries] really centered the don’t hold up—especially space,” he said. at $4 for a side. Their color is Yet for the art center, a gorgeous brown, but they HERE’s opening has crehang limp under their sea ated quite the opposite efsalt and chipotle ketchup. fect—though exhibitions Tuson explained that the may frame the restaurant, fryer had not been streamHERE has finally anchored lined with the rest of the Artisphere. Where the ballrestaurant yet, as HERE just room, theatre and galleropened this Tuesday. The ies once orbited around an aRTisPHeRe menu’s duck fat fries with awkward space cluttered It’s empty, yes, but I swear, it’s actually good! with empty couches, they now vegetarian counterpart. Veggie roasted garlic aioli, despite the burgers always prove hard to pin server’s rave reviews, were not yet have a gravitational center.

Part of HERE’s appeal derives down, but Tuson rejected the idea available either. Hopefully HERE’s from the pairing of a casual set up that such sandwiches need be fake fries will get past kitchen troubles and sophisticated menu. Though or flavorless and experimented and ingredient shortages to complethe bar has yet to open, once HERE with ingredients to find a combina- ment the crafty burgers soon.

HERE’s strong menu and satgets its liquor license, diners will tion that matched the richness of isfying atmosphere will no doubt be encouraged to leave their seats, meat while owning its own flavor.

The chef found success draw more locals to the Artisphere, wander the galleries with a glass in through mushrooms and spice. To and with good reason—its charhand, and return for dessert.

Though the restaurant’s burg- create the unappetizingly named cuterie plates, chorizo pizzas, and ers run from $9.50 to $12, the “com- but deliciously flavored “mush- savory burgers deserve a larger fort food with a Latin twist” merits room patties,” Tuson thinly slices and bigger mix of diners than just the price even without the hand cut mushrooms, mixing them togeth- art patrons, theatre goers, and fries or salad that come on the side. er with a white bean and garlic dance students.

by Heather Regen

The “HERE Burger” boasts local, dry-aged beef paired with Serrano ham and topped with manchego cheese. Between a fresh, sliced roll, avocado and chili aioli seal in the burger’s flavor. Looking to HERE’s sister restaurants Guadillo and Casa Oaxaca, it comes as no surprise that the fusion of Mexican and American cuisine work so well together.

But HERE’s greatest feat comes in the form of its signature burger’s

iPhones: High-tech cocaine

I have a confession to make—I’ve been sleeping with my cell phone most nights. Yes, it may seem like we’re never apart. I can talk to it for hours, and I can’t keep my hands off it.

I can’t be away from it, even at night. I think I’m in love.

And I’m not the only one who’s been engaging in such a, er, modern romance. This weekend, I noticed my neighbor Tristan Deppe (COL ’12) had phone numbers written all over his arms. When I asked him about his interesting choice of body art, he told me that it was because his phone was broken due to “water damage.” Left phoneless, he needed a way to keep track of girls’ numbers, and this was his solution.

Tristan didn’t seem all that upset that his link to civilization had drowned. In fact, he seemed pretty relieved about it.

For him, this weekend was an experiment in roughing it—Survivorman: College edition.

Today, Tristan has rejoined the 21st century and gotten a new phone. He handled the situation pretty maturely, but some recent studies show that many people are not prepared to be away from their devices.

This Tuesday, Science Daily reported that according to findings by the International Center for Media & the Public Agenda at the University of Maryland, college students around the world describe symptoms that point to addic-

tion when they are forced to “abstain” from using media.

Different students said they experienced depression or loneliness without their phones.

This March, high school senior Michelle Hackman won second place in the Intel Science

internet iRl

by Nico Dodd

a bi-weekly column about the Internet Talent Search for her study on similar behavior. According to Hackman, her classmates who were away from their phones went through symptoms similar to withdrawal, with many subjects experiencing anxiety.

I’m going to make an assumption that most of us are, at least a little bit, addicted to our

by Mary Borowiec The popsicle is the epitome of childhood summertime nostalgia. From Push-Pops to flavored ice, nothing captures those lazy days when summer meant neighborhood games and swimming pools rather than internships quite like a good old-fashioned popsicle.

In an effort to recapture those days of minimal responsibility, Pleasant Pops, a company that has reinvented popsicles for the adult palette, is sponsoring the Popapalooza this Saturday, Apr. 9. This spring kickoff event will feature Pleasant Pop’s highly sought-after popsicles, performances by local musicians, free face painting, and magic shows. Through its co-sponsorship with the Mount Pleasant Business Association, Popapalooza is being held at Lamont Park in Mount Pleasant.

While Popapalooza may make you want to put on your floaties and head to the shallow end, Pleasant Pops’ creations not only satisfy those long-lost childhood tastes, they also bring an adult sophistication to the summer treat. With 40 original flavors like Peaches N’ Ginger, Carolina Sweet Tea, and Blueberry Pancake,

phones. I’ll be the first one to own up—I won’t go anywhere without my phone. It provides me endless distraction—texting, Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Angry Birds, Words With Friends, email, and more.

These things are all pretty insignificant—they don’t make me money, and they aren’t directly related to anything I’m interested in, but I keep tapping away. It’s ironic that we invest so much into activities like this, when, judging from Tristan’s testimony, it’s possible to have a lot of fun without a phone. In fact, not having one actually improved his weekend.

Looking toward the future, our addiction to media and communication-with-ease may end up consuming our ability to socially interact independent of

it’s clear that these aren’t the bags of fluorescent-blue sugar you’d find in plastic bags in your home freezer (in fact, your childhood self would probably find them a little gross). These gourmet creations originated with much experimentation by Roger Horowitz and Brian Sykora, who founded the company during their junior year at UNC Chapel Hill.

In developing Pleasant Pops in D.C., Horowitz and Sykora made it part of their mission to support neighborhood farmers by using only locally-grown ingredients, and thus created their flavors around seasonal ingredients.

Consequently, Poppapalooza will provide a great opportunity to promote green, sustainable business practices for those who don’t frequent Pleasant Pops’s tables at local farmers markets or their truck, Big Poppa.

So if you’re ready to enter popsicle adulthood and give up your Pleasant Pop virginity to the highly intriguing Guac Pop (Avacado Lime) or the Strawberry Rhubarb Pop, the wait is over. Popapalooza is taking the D.C. area by storm this Saturday, and you can indulge your inner child while bringing the ultimate kiddie treat into adult vogue.

these tools and devices. People may not be able to maintain friendships without tools, and planning a meet-up may become obsolete in favor of finding someone on a map of campus a la the Marauders Map from Harry Potter.

The point is, before you bust out your phone to scan that QR code, ask yourself if it’s actually worth it. Banners with Facebook and Twitter buttons are becoming our drug pushers. Every instance is arguably helpful, but overall, cell phones might be more trouble than they’re worth. Plus, you’ll totally stand out to a girl if you write her number down on your arm.

Show Nico where on your flesh you wrote down his number at ndodd@georgetownvoice.com

leisure

12 the georgetown voice

April 7, 2011

C r i t i c a l V o i ces

Fleet Foxes, Helplessness Blues, Sub Pop Records Although they’re often lumped together with indie rock artists, Fleet Foxes are, at heart, a folk group. That folksy sound helped them develop a steady listening base with their eponymous 2008 debut, and they remain true to it on their sophomore release, Helplessness Blues.

The album proves to be a strong follow-up, with shining moments that are pleasant enough to make even the grouchiest person smile yet powerful enough to get the lethargic stoners out of their seats.

In lieu of straying from the sound that made them famous, Fleet Foxes thankfully stick to their tried-and-true path on Helplessness Blues, which features the familiar hymns, timid percussion, and call-of-the-wild

lyrics that earned the band its notoriety in 2008. “Montezuma,” the album’s opener, recreates that fantastic Fleet Foxes sound without offering a whole lot more. But deeper in the album you’ll find “Battery Kinzie,” which picks up the pace with a bright melody and delightfully distinguishable chorus.

Helplessness Blues also brings some ambitious (or at least lengthy) material to the table.

“The Plains/Bitter Dancer” nears six minutes, but like a good Crosby, Stills, and Nash song, the tune never gets tired and it offers a fulfilling conclusion. The title track has a two-halved structure, and plays out like a bright version of an Arcade Fire song—a rare combination indeed. Special accolades belong to “Lorelai,” a lick whose quick tempo and cheerful melody will make you want to climb a tree, go to the zoo, or chat with the next telemarketer who calls until you two become lifelong friends.

Without getting too deep into the album, the band’s desire to produce bright and upbeat tunes becomes clear. It’s a breath of fresh air for a second album, especially given all the attention Fleet Foxes have received—no dark and depressing, self-indulgent ballads about the perils

More like Warped Snore

For millions of American kids, the Vans Warped Tour was the pinnacle of the adolescent summer. Founded in 1995, Warped Tour capitalized on the burgeoning popularity of extreme sports, combining the best of skate culture with the biggest underground punk, metal, and ska bands. In its inaugural year, the Warped Tour featured an impressive roster of alternative powerhouse acts, ranging from the West Coast stylings of Sublime, No Doubt, and Pennywise to the East Coast melancholy of early emo and post-hardcore forefathers like Seaweed and Quicksand.

For many teens growing up the ‘90s, the Warped Tour became a comfort zone, where their music and hobbies, snubbed by the mainstream, were accepted and celebrated.

The ’95 Warped Tour quickly became one of the year’s hottest tickets, as its dozens of stages rolled from state to state, hitting every major metro and suburban area in the country and exploiting fans of the X Games, which were founded the same year, into paying top dollar for some of the best of the underground music scene.

In the years since ‘95, The Warped Tour broke many of the decade’s highest-selling acts, ranging from Blink-192 and Green Day to NOFX, Paramore, and even Katy Perry. But somewhere along the way, the Warped Tour lost its magic— today, it’s become an embarrassing attempt to profit off the watered-down remnants of a scene that simply doesn’t exist.

During the 1990s, the Warped Tour catered to the

of critical acclaim here. Rather, Helplessness Blues carries all the way through with 12 distinct songs that give Fleet Foxes fans more of what originally turned them on to the band.

Voice’s Choices: “Lorelai,” “Battery Kinzie,” “Grown Ocean” —John Sapunor

Jamie Woon, Mirrorwriting, Polydoor Records It’s rarely fair to directly compare one musician to another, but Jamie Woon will likely find himself pinned next to James Blake on the reg with the release of Mirrorwriting.

Which is a bit ironic—Woon’s first single was released more than two years before the hotshot London producer appeared on the scene. But the pair’s cominterests of a vibrant counterculture market. Then, during the last decade, the roles reversed—big-name chain stores like Hot Topic and Zumiez have replaced the independent record stores and skate shops that fostered the passion of the early years. These national chains serve up a mass-produced and diluted

banger management

by Matthew Decker a bi-weekly column about music dose of Warped Tour culture, simply pushing it towards the same uniformity that the original tour rebelled against. Today, the success and ubiquity of such stores have created a sizable market for alternative music. Whereas teens once had to research music they liked, trading mix tapes and burned

bination of blue-eyed soul and dubstep—two of Britain’s biggest contemporary musical currents—landed them both in the BBC “Sound of 2011” poll, just months before each would release his full-length debut.

It’s important, then, to draw the distinction between how each approaches this stylistic commingling. Where Blake came from a purely electronic background—his debut single was straight Croydon bass— Woon comes from the other side. He broke out with a soulful a cappella rendition of the folk standard “Wayfaring Stranger.”

When that track was remixed by dubstep kingpin Burial— moving it from mediocre Jamie Lidell mimicry to dark, urban alienation—it opened up a whole new aesthetic for Woon.

The singer fully embraces that aesthetic on Mirrorwriting, as hinted at by the fantastic singles he put out over the past year. Two of those—the Burial-produced “Night Air” and “Lady Luck”— are highlights here, carried by stuttering two-step beats and Woon’s strong ear for melody.

With “Night Air,” the only track not produced by Woon, most of the album lands closer to the latter single—heavier on tunefulness but less texturally daring.

CDs, these national chains now serve up a pre-packaged brand of “alternative” culture. Bands like Attack Attack and A Day to Remember have manufactured Billboard success by cornering the mass adolescent alternative market, yet their music is a funhouse distortion of the bands that paved the way for their success, such as Bad Religion, Every Time I Die, and Rancid.

So where does that leave us today? The originality and spirit of rebellion that fueled the Golden Age of the Warped Tour has been successfully homogenized and tamed into a corporate moneymaking monster with swoop haircuts and eyeliner. As the teens of the 1990s and early 2000s enter adulthood, they are turning toward more adult alternative and independent music, showcased at rival festivals

And when Woon is on his game, this is hugely successful.

The dainty “Shoulda” sounds like Justin Timberlake reimagined for 2011 Britain, “Middle” is a delightfully funky Michael Jacksonesque affair, while “Street” has a grime-indebted, very London sampling. While the tracks assume a different baseline for pop music (few pop artists draw from the UK’s underground bass music scene), they’re never demanding or confrontational.

When the melodies aren’t there, however, Mirrorwriting can get a little tepid. The album’s back half drags under the weight of two lengthy, new age-y affairs (“Spiral” and “Gravity”) that eschew strong hooks in favor of failed experimentation. However, sandwiched in between the two is the bouncy “TMRW,” which features Woon’s strongest ability—his talent for effortlessly weaving smart electronics into a delightful R&B tune. This is entirely different from Blake, whose electronic noodling far outranks his attempts at pop music. I guess they’re not so similar after all.

Voice’s Choices: “Night Air,” “Street,” “Lady Luck” —Matthew Collins like Coachella, Bonnaroo, and Bamboozle. The 2011 Warped lineup is one of the worst yet.

The typical redeeming headliners of recent years have disappeared entirely, replaced with the likes of 3Oh!3 and The Devil Wears Prada. But while hoards of mall goths and high school girls will undoubtedly flock to the festival, carrying armloads of overpriced and garish merch to their parents’ minivans, there will always be those who keep the real spirit of underground music alive. Now more than ever, the stage has been set for another DIY-spirited fest without the corporate corruption and stale offerings that define today’s Warped Tour.

Tell Matt about your fetish for swoop haircuts, dark-rimmed glasses, and guyliner at mdecker@ georgetownvoice.com

page thirteen

georgetownvoice.com

the georgetown voice 13

BRENDAN BAUMGARDNER

Meanwhile, every underclassman at Georgetown...

MADDIE HOWARD

THE FUNNY PAGE

MICHELLE PLISKIN

JACK DEGI OI IS A A

DINOS AUR And that’s why our campus plan roolz!

Do you have anything to add, Jack?

Meeting adjourned. The plan passes.

CHRIS HELLER

voices

18 the georgetown voice

april 7, 2011

Lead me into tempeh-tation and deliver me from cheese-vil

by Keaton Hoffman Growing up in a conservative Christian household, observing Lent has always been an intricate part of my cultural and religious identity.

But this year I wanted to abstain from something that would truly challenge my willpower—my Diet Dr. Pepper fast from last year didn’t quite cut it.

It was in this spirit that I ventured into the uncharted waters of veganism, a dietary regime that eliminates all animal products from your diet.

That means no milk, eggs, or even honey, because bees make it. The diet is so restrictive it may make you wonder how any normal, non-sadistic person would ever attempt such a constrained lifestyle.

Like vegetarianism, veganism attracts a wide range of followers who limit their animal consumption for myriad reasons. Jainism, a religion indigenous to India, prohibits harming other living creatures on the logic of reincarnation (you could be that cow some day). Others choose veganism because certain medical conditions, particularly lupus, can be remedied or repressed by a strict

vegan diet. Still others believe that all life is sacred and that animals should not be used and tortured for human consumption. My reason is a mix of Lenten obligation, a pinch of ecological responsibility, and an ample serving of curiosity—hold the butter.

Having tried vegetarianism on a whim last year, I figured veganism would be a logical next step—more difficult, but nothing that I couldn’t handle. How wrong could I be? On the first night of my experiment, back home in California, my friends suggested we go to In-N-Out. While I wearily watched my friends chowing down on their juicy Double Doubles, I chewed my small fries with remorse.

This was going to be impossible.

The temptations only got worse.

Over the past few weeks I’ve had to turn down carrot cake at my best friend’s birthday, Jell-O shots at a Thursday night pregame (Jell-O is made from bone marrow ... ewww), and an ice-cold Guinness on St. Patrick’s Day thanks to the ingredient isinglass, a substance obtained from the dried swim bladders of fish. It turns out that animal products are in almost everything.

But that doesn’t mean I’ve had problems finding stuff to eat. At Georgetown, Leo’s offers a surprisingly good selection of vegan-friendly options. In 2007 PETA2, a subdivision of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, ranked Georgetown as the ninth most vegetarian and veganfriendly school in the U.S. Since then our rankings have slipped. We didn’t make the list in 2008 and haven’t returned to the top10 since. Still, Georgetown’s regard for vegan and vegetarian students has made my transition relatively smooth. Everything is labeled, which makes selecting a meal fairly simple—though is it really necessary to say vegan-steamed broccoli? Furthermore, the availability of soy and rice milk makes my hungover Saturday brunch all the more bearable.

That’s not to say that there’s no room for improvement. While the vegan line usually offers protein, the emphasis on soy proteins, like tofu, is detrimental to male vegans, who have to limit their intake of soy because it contains estrogen. More tempeh-based dishes would be an improvement.

Grab ‘N Go needs the most work. The only vegan entrée that is available on a regular basis is the black bean salad (which is usually soggy and always unappetizing), and once in a while, that’s not even available, leaving me with nothing to eat but bananas and Lays. And while the occasional addition of vegan sushi has provided my fast food cravings an outlet this semester, regular vegan options need to be available at both Grab ‘N Go locations for strict herbivores.

While curiousity rather than religiosity originally fueled my critterconscious conversion, this experience has demonstrated to me that there are plenty of moral reasons to stay vegan.

The truth behind our animal-based food products is both gruesome and unavoidable. Cruelty, confinement, and congenital disease are all disturbing facts of the meat, dairy, and fishing industries in the U.S. The larger environmental impacts are serious as well. Consuming meat and animal products doesn’t just harm animals, it harms the earth. According to Environmental Defense Fund, if every American

substituted just one chicken meal each week for a vegetarian one, it would be the equivalent of taking more than half a million cars off the road. That’s because meat and dairy are much more calorically inefficient than vegetables and cereal grains.

With a looming food crisis due to rising demand and stagnant supply, the time is now for more people to adopt socially and environmentally responsible diets. By simply going vegan one night a week, you can make a huge difference.

At this point, I’ve decided to halt my strict veganism come Easter, but the idea of limiting my meat and animal product intake will stay with me. If you’re ready to live a healthy and socially responsible lifestyle, I encourage you to make a change too. You might regret it once in a while, but the cows certainly won’t.

Keaton Hoffman is a sophomore in the SFS. During the 40 days of Lent, he likes his eggs neither fried nor fertilized.

Student leads the way by being a committed follower

by Kelsey Bostrom Some people, when they’re looking for music recommendations, turn to Pitchfork or other indie blogs. I simply open up iTunes and check out the top 100 songs. If I don’t have one of the top 10, I get anxious and download whatever I’m missing immediately. I’m a trendaholic.

Even growing up, I played soccer, did gymnastics, took ice skating lessons, joined the knitting

club, and enrolled in ballet classes.

I surveyed a wide range of activities, not because I actually found a thrill in mastering the pilé, but because I simply followed the trends set by my fellow classmates. After my six-year losing streak playing on my AYSO Green Slime soccer team, I decided to turn my attention to knitting—the new middle school fad. My mom took me to go buy my first pair of knitting needles and rainbow yarn. As I sat during lunch knitting away with

FLICKR

Ke$ha fans might be followers, but she proves that no one needs a leder(hosen).

the rest of the seventh grade, I felt honored to be participating in such an interesting hobby. Although I soon abandoned the knitting club once its popularity started to wane (with only one-and-a-half scarves to my name), I felt the satisfaction of following the trend and learning something new.

Along with local trends, I chose to follow national-level trends as well. I collected Beanie Babies and even managed to get my hands on the sought-after Fourth of July bear with the shiny tag. I traded Pokémon cards and organized them in a binder. I had American Girl dolls and Furbies galore. I shopped at Limited Too and treasured my rhinestone shirts and matching sweatsuits. Usually, this trend-obsessive behavior stops around adolescence. But today, I continue to be a shameless trend-follower.

At Georgetown, we’re surrounded by this hipster-inspired notion that everyone has to stand out and have a unique style, whether in the music you listen to, the clothes you wear, or what you’re interested in. But what’s wrong with listening to Katy Perry, buying into the latest Urban Outfitter look, or watching I Love New York on VH1? Everyone actually does, I just do it openly.

Often, the iTunes top 10 consists of pop artists such as Ke$ha, Miley Cyrus, and Britney Spears.

These ladies are frequently criticized for their lack of vocal talent

and inane lyrics. However, their songs are undeniably catchy. Sure, when someone throws a Strokes song my way, I can appreciate the lyrics and musical value, but I prefer the pop music that makes it to the top of the chart. iTunes tells me what I should like, and it has a pretty high success rate. If a song’s trendy, it’s because a lot of people like it, and I shouldn’t feel embarrassed about being one of them.

Another artist many view as meritless is Rebecca Black. I wouldn’t have noticed her lack of vocal ability or her inane lyrics if it hadn’t gotten so much criticism. I would have downloaded it, knowing it had reached #30 on iTunes, and enjoyed it. In fact, disliking “Friday” is one of the few trends I haven’t caught on to.

I also follow television trends, watching primarily the most-talked about shows and passing on many of the more “serious” series. I have always watched reality television, even giving my eighth grade “what are you passionate about” speech on my love for reality shows. Although The Bachelor was only on its fourth season and Flavor of Love hadn’t even premiered yet, reality television had managed to captivate the world, and, of course, me. Nowadays, I still follow my favorite reality shows like Real World, Millionaire Matchmaker, and The Bachelor. I pray for another I Love New York series to premiere on VH1 in the near future. While

reality television is often described as trashy and fake, I completely buy into the entertainment factor.

Where else can you watch people with names like Pumkin and Buckwild spit at each other in the fight to win Flavor Flav’s love, or young adults partying with no shame in Las Vegas? Reality TV has an addictive quality that I embrace and most people would agree with me, no matter how trashy some of my fellow students think it might be.

I own up to my trend-following no matter how embarrassing it may be, or how much it’s looked down upon at Georgetown.

Trends become trends because many people follow them, whether they admit it or not. I consider VH1 to be a respectable TV channel and Britney Spears to be a talented artist because I enjoy them and always will. There is nothing wrong with buying that loose Urban Outfitters tank top that everyone else already has—imitation is the highest form of flattery anyway. While it’s fine to have personal preferences, it’s okay to enjoy trendy music and trashy shows, too. As Ke$ha would say, “I’m sick of being so serious, it’s makin’ my brain delirious.”

Kelsey Bostrom is a junior in the College. One time Regina George punched her in the face. It was awesome.

voices

georgetownvoice.com

the georgetown voice

19

The quality of children’s television is no longer All That

by Iris Kim A month ago my friend sent me an email titled “START GETTING EXCITED LIKE NOW,” with nothing but a link to a screenshot of a press release from Nickelodeon Studios in the message’s body.

They were announcing plans to produce brand new episodes of cartoon classics like Hey Arnold!, Rugrats, Angry Beavers, and Doug, with production to commence on Mar. 14. Like any other kid who grew up with the shows that made the network an instant nostalgia inducer, I was ecstatic. Turns out

it was a hoax pulled off by some punk ass kid in California that knew a little Photoshop. Damn high school kids.

Of course the prospect of the revitalization of these shows drew strong reactions—not just on my newsfeed, but also all over the Internet. Who did this kid think he was? You cannot make such false proclamations about a subject that garners such impassioned discourse. Apparently recounting Hey Arnold! episodes is something other people do too.

These shows represent a lot more than the couch-bound enter-

FLICKR

Helga’s frustration pales in comparison to that of the kids who grew up with her.

A tough late-night call Georgetown has been grappling with the issue of sexual harassment for some time. From hate crimes to sex crimes and everything in between, our campus community has been plagued by an unhealthy and often dangerous sexual dynamic. The situations in which harassment are most likely to occur often involve alcohol, which sometimes makes the decision of how to react to it more difficult.

Many women have been the object of a drunken comment or two while walking through the Georgetown community on a weekend night.

Sometimes it’s harmless, like a bro saying hello to every

stranger he passes, or the boy that sits in front of you in your psych class slurring the words, “Hey, I know you!”

Other times, however, the nature of these comments can be more offensive. Maybe it’s a “Hey, baby,” maybe someone comments on your body or what you’re wearing, or maybe they even try to approach you.

Sometimes in situations like these, if both parties are intoxicated, the situation doesn’t seem so serious. Maybe that guy was in your Problem of God class freshman year, maybe he lived in your stairwell, maybe he hooked up with your best friend all last year. And after all, he’s a

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tainment of my childhood. These characters were my friends, my enemies, and my role models. I swear I also had corporeal friends as well—though they weren’t nearly as entertaining.

Hey Arnold!, more than any other program, exemplified my childhood television experience. I would sit in my TV room, sometimes with my parents or my brother, and watch Arnold grapple with his neighborhood’s unique and quirky characters—whether it was his P.S. 118 crew or the eclectic circus freaks that resided in his grandparents’ boarding house.

Arnold was dealt a hard hand— no parents, senile and mildly crazy grandparents, and a stalker—and yet he still had the biggest heart and the best intentions.

Yeah, it was corny, but it always felt genuine.

I am no expert on modern day children’s entertainment, but I do the occasional channel surfing and babysitting. I have noticed Nickelodeon’s once-dominant presence has given way to the Disney Channel. From what I gather, the humor is forced, the plots are outrageous, and the characters are just extensions of child star egos.

The kids are spoiled (really, Zack and Cody live in a hotel with the concierge guy as their “friend?”) to the point of disbelief. The girls wear outrageous clothes and too fellow Hoya, right? He probably doesn’t mean it. He can’t be that bad.

But even if this is true— which is certainly not always the case—there are more serious cases of sexual harassment happening on our campus, with DPS broadcasting an alert for at least one major crime each semester. And of

Carrying On

by Julie Patterson A rotating column by Voice senior staffers

course, we never hear about the many cases of sexual harassment that go unreported.

I can’t say that I have ever felt particularly unsafe inside the front gates on a Saturday night, but stepping off campus is something else entirely. An alarming number of crimes, sexual or otherwise, happen just a few blocks away from 37th and O streets. While we may think we know our fellow classmates well enough to brush off any mildly inappropriate comments or behav-

much makeup for their age. Their personalities have few redeeming qualities.

As for providing kids with realistic role models, the openness of these child celebrities’ lives makes it too hard for young viewers to separate characters from actors.

So when Demi Lovato goes to rehab and Miley Cyrus is caught on video taking Salvia bong rips, tech savvy tweens are more up on gossip than anyone my age is. These characters are more “real” than the cartoon characters of classic Nickelodeon, but these are not the role models I want for the next generation of kids. Seriously, no one wants to babysit for some pretentious kid who suddenly takes up drugs too. It’s enough that they text more than I do.

Everyone easily identified with the characters in Hey Arnold! You could be Phoebe, the timid intellectual (read: nerd) with the domineering best friend. Sometimes you were Helga, the unibrowed terrorist of the playground with a horrifying yet hilarious secret obsession with Arnold. Or sometimes you were Brainy, Helga’s secret admirer with the overactive sinus/mouth breathing problem.

Every character filled a niche or a caricature of a playground creature, but they also had their share of weaknesses and quirks that made them relatable. Not to sound iors, leaving the Georgetown bubble throws us into a different world. We don’t know the men or women who may be looking us up and down, catcalling after us, or not taking no for an answer. We don’t know what they might have in mind or what they might be capable of.

Given the uncertain intentions of the people we come into contact with outside of the Georgetown bubble, the big question is how to defend ourselves against harassment. We can keep our head down and pretend we don’t notice and avoid conflict.

Imagine responding to someone’s whistle or catcall in a way that makes it clear that you don’t appreciate their behavior, only to fuel their drunken belligerence and have them pursue you, shout back at you, threaten you, or try to harm you.

On the other hand, I can’t help but think that each time we ignore someone’s comments and keep on walking, we send a message that this sort of behavior is acceptable.

If no one tells the men and

preachy, but Arnold represented the ultimate friend—he was supportive, kind, discreet, loyal, and nonjudgmental. He could and would befriend anyone while also helping them overcome their often unusual problems: Stoop Kid finally left the stoop.

I do not want to think that at 21 I have the hindsight and distance to really judge “kids these days,” but I fear for them. In an age where TV and media are even more inyour-face than it was for me and my peers, they are more impressionable than ever. My dad used to watch Nickelodeon with me, teasing me for being like Angelica on Rugrats or announcing how much he approved of Arnold and his moralistic ways.

I doubt he would be able to sit through a kid’s program now without having something to say about the overabundant materialism, phoniness, and all-around lack of quality.

My dad always said that Arnold was such a role model. Channel surfing, I am hard-pressed to find a show geared to a young audience with such quirk, substance, weird heads, and most importantly, worth.

Iris Kim is a junior in the College.

Sometimes she watches Rugrats to feel better about still wearing diapers. women who verbally harass others that their behavior is inappropriate, it only guarantees that they will continue to harass others in the future.

Yet women are told that the best way to avoid sexual harassment or rape seems to be to not go out at night, not to wear revealing clothing, or to never be alone—essentially to live in fear. The current strategy is to stay safe by feeling unsafe in most situations. Perhaps it would be better to develop an anti-harassment strategy of empowerment, providing students with the tools to defend themselves (physically as well as verbally) against sexual harassment of any kind. Oh, and it might be nice if we had a safety department that spent its time preventing robberies, muggings, and sex crimes rather than busting up unregistered parties at 1 a.m. on a Friday night.

Julie Patterson is a junior in the College.

On good nights, her toughest postparty decision is between Tuscany and Wingo’s.

Other Fun Things to do in DC This Spring: 1. Cherry Blossom Parade 4/9 2. “Gauguin: Maker of Myth" at the National Gallery of Art through 6/5 3. D.C. Bluegrass Festival 4/16 4. White House Easter Egg Roll 4/25 5. Passport D.C. 5/7 - 5/24 6. White House Spring Garden Tour 4/9 - 4/10 7. Washington Nationals Baseball ongoing 8. Smithsonian Kite Festival 4/10 9. Bay Bridge Boat Show 4/28 - 5/1 10. Georgetown Garden Tour 5/7