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SEXUAL ASSAULT POLICY TO INCLUDE ALCOHOL AMNESTY PAGE 4

FOOTBALL STRUGGLES IN OPENER PAGE 6

BABY WALE MAKES A SPLASH PAGE 10

Georgetown University’s Weekly Newsmagazine Since 1969 w September 5, 2013 w Volume 49, Issue 4 w georgetownvoice.com

ALL HANDS ON DECK Risks and Rewards of Georgetown Sailing

BY CHRIS CASTANO

2 the georgetown voice

sept 5, 2013

georgetownvoice.com twitter.com/gtownvoice facebook.com/georgetownvoice

Voice Crossword “Going Clubbing” by Tyler Pierce 38. Pierce Reading Room event 40. “And I Love ___,” Beatles tune 41. Like a gymnast 43. Caught some Z’s 44. Adam’s madam 45. Advil target 46. Letter before iota 47. Lobsterlike 48. Way back when 50. It’s corny 53. Sight at 38 Across 60. Mass measurement 62. Esau’s father 63. Like some Georgetown language classes 64. ___ del Sol 65. Long, long time 66. Make a seam 67. “The door’s open!”

Down

Across 1. A lot of kids like it cut off 6. Sheep’s cry 9. Roll call calls 13. Line from the heart 14. Bad spirit 17. Radioactive noble gas 18. Coverage 19. Starry eyed sight at 38

Across 21. Canal locale 22. An end to sex?

23. Emergency ___ 26. Otherwise 30. Dad in France 34. Plastic ___ Band 35. Let happen 36. Riverbank romper 37. Big fuss

1. Joker, e.g.

2. Den din 3. Pakistani tongue 4. Rock 5. Japanese poetry genre 6. Eithiopean unit of currency 7. On the safe side, at sea 8. “The Sound of Music” backdrop 9. Try 10.10 jiao 11. Rowing machine, for short

12. “Get it?”

15. Like seven Ryan games 16. Kind of race 20. Lace, e.g.

23. Aussie “bear” 24. From India 25. Kind of fairy 27. Squarely 28. Chivalrous 29. Young hooter 31. It’ll knock you out 32. Christopher of “Superman” 33. Fucked up 35. Trick taker, often 36. Excuse 39. Lickety-split 42. Cheer 46. Hammer’s partner 49. Enter 51. Chilled 52. Yellowstone sight 53. “What’s gotten ___ you?”

54. Colored eye part 55. Stalactite site 56. Old World duck 57. Hops kiln 58. Miles per hour, e.g.

59. Kind of tissue 60. Tom Clancy subj.

61. Chemical suffix

Answers to last week’s sudoku

Answers to last week’s crossword

editorial

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VOICE the georgetown

Volume 49.04 September 5, 2013 Editor-in-Chief: Gavin Bade Managing Editor: Connor Jones Blog Editor: Julia Tanaka News Editor: Lucia He Sports Editor: Chris Almeida Feature Editor: Patricia Cipollitti Cover Editor: Kathleen Soriano-Taylor Leisure Editor: Heather Regen Voices Editor: Ana Smith Photo Editor: Andres Rengifo Design Editors: Lauren Ashley Panawa, Teddy Schaffer Projects Editors: Alec Graham, John Sapunor, Cannon Warren Puzzles Editor: Tyler Pierce Creative Directors: Madhuri Vairapandi, Amanda Dominguez Assistant Blog Editors: Minali Aggarwal, Isabel Echarte, Ryan Greene, Laura Kurek Assistant News Editors: Jeffrey Lin, Claire Zeng Assistant Sports Editors: Chris Castano, Brendan Crowley, Joe Pollicino Assistant Cover Editor: Neha Ghanshamdas Assistant Leisure Editors: Rio Djiwandana, Dayana Morales Gomez Assistant Photo Editors: Kathryn Easop, Joshua Raftis Assistant Design Editor: John Delgado-McCollum

Staff Writers:

Tim Barnicle, Emilia Brahm, Will Collins, Emlyn Crenshaw, Claire McDaniel, Liana Mehring, Dzarif Wan, Sam Wolter, Abby Greene, Abby Sherburne, Steven Criss, John Guzzetta

Staff Photographers:

Elizabeth Coscia, John Delgado-McCollum, Robin Go, Alan Liu

Staff Designers:

Karen Bu, John Delgado-McCollum, Mike Pacheco, Tom Pacheco, Sebastian Sotelo

Copy Chief: Sonia Okolie Copy Editors:

Grace Funsten, Rina Li, Natalie Muller, Dana Suekoff, Kim Tay, Suzanne Trivette

Editorial Board Chair: Caitriona Pagni Editorial Board:

Gavin Bade, Patricia Cipollitti, Lucia He, Quaila Hugh, Connor Jones, Julia Tanaka

Head of Business: Michael Grasso The Georgetown Voice

The Georgetown Voice is published every Thursday.

This newspaper was made possible in part 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 424 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: Georgetown Sailing Cover Design: Joshua Raftis (SFS ‘16)

the georgetown voice 3

NEEDLE IN A HAYSTACK

Revisions to conduct policy leave students in the dark Last Thursday Vice President of Student Affairs, Todd Olson, sent an email to the student body hailing the changes made to the Code of Student Conduct that have gone into effect this year. In his opening lines, Olson praised GUSA, the Student Advocacy Office, and the Disciplinary Review Committee for their help in the revision process, highlighting their emphasis on making the Code of Conduct clearer and more accessible to students.

Following Olson’s opening pleasantries, his email devolved into little more than bureaucratic rambling. Although Olson did name a few of the changes to the Code of Conduct, like the elimination of Category A, B, and C violations, he failed to explain the new Code of Conduct to his audience, namely the people who will have to live by these rules. Essentially, Olson handed stu-

dents a 28-page document and encouraged them to read it.

This method of communicating the changes made to the Code of Student Conduct is unacceptable. It places upperclassman at a distinct disadvantage when dealing with conduct issues because, while incoming students have had the essentials of the current Code of Conduct explained to them at NSO, the rest of the student body is expected to wade through 28 pages of rules and preambles in order to find the differences.

The University’s lack of clarity with regard to the changes does nothing to foster an image of Georgetown’s Office of Student Conduct as a transparent and trustworthy organization. If the Office of Student Conduct wishes to support students rather than function as a looming edifice of collegiate authority, it must prove that by maintain-

ing clear and active communication with students. Todd Olson’s email, although presumably well intentioned, fell short of that mark.

Students need to understand their limitations and their rights under the Code of Conduct. It is unreasonable to expect them to read through a behemoth set of rules and then read through last year ’s as well to understand the changes. Instead of sending students a vague email that focuses on patting a few organizations on the back, Olson ought to have sent out a clear and concise description of the changes made this year.

Additionally, the Office of Student Conduct needs to make a stronger effort to inform students of their rights.

Basic communication is a simple step to rectify this lack of clarity, and everyone, students and administrators alike, stands to benefit from it.

JUST FINISH ALREADY

Amendment to sexual assault policy insufficient

Over the past year the Division of Student Affairs, along with GUSA, has critically reexamined Georgetown’s sexual assault policies, seeking ways to improve how sexual assaults are addressed on campus. As part of this effort, the administration added new, if insufficient, sexual assault education programs to NSO, and GUSA required its members to take these programs as well. Most recently, the administration plans to codify a currently de facto policy which protects survivors of sexual assault from being punished if alcohol violations are discovered during a sexual assault investigation.

Although this change goes a long way towards giving sexual assault survivors the level of care and legal protection they deserve, it does not go far enough. The new policy must be expanded to include amnesty for all substance violations, not just alcohol.

The policy as it stands deters sexual assault survivors from reporting their experience to the authorities because they believe they will be punished for drug violations. Even though amnesty for alcohol violations is a positive step, without official protection regardless of the circumstances of the assault, surviors will be less likely take a leap of fate and file a report.

Georgetown has made a good deal of progress in dealing with sexual assault and has many useful resources to offer survivors. The trauma caused by sexual assault requires immediate attention, and Georgetown has the capacity to provide this care. Students who know they will not be punished for unrelated crimes are freer to make the already difficult decision to disclose their assaults and gain access to the resources the University has to offer.

Drug violations pale in comparison to the seriousness of a sexual assault.

The top priority in any sexual assault investigation should be aiding the survivor. Using an allegation of sexual assault as the genesis of a drug investigation not only represents skewed priorities, but is a betrayal of the student’s trust by the university.

Granting survivors amnesty brings university policy in line with GUPD official practice, which ignores evidence of criminal activity on the part of a survivor when that discovery is made during an investigation. This route insures investigators do not become distracted from the authority’s primary purpose: investigating a report of sexual assault.

Offering amnesty to sexual assault survivors for drug violations would help Georgetown be the force of justice it strives to be. Punishing survivors for drug violations does nothing to further and in fact impedes this institution’s commitment to the wellbeing of its students.

TIME FOR A RED CARD

D.C. United stadium a burden for the District

With the signing of a tentative agreement with D.C. United to create a new 20,000 seat soccer stadium at Buzzard Point in Southwest Washington, D.C., it appears as though Mayor Vincent Gray thinks cash cow Robert Griffin III plays fútbol, not football.

The stadium, which will cost $300 million, will be paid for in part by D.C. United. D.C United will pay half of the cost of construction, which would still leave D.C. taxpayers with a $150 million bill. Theoretically, the city will receive a share of the profits from stadium revenues, but this will only happen after D.C. United has accrued a “reasonable profit” from the stadium. D.C. United’s proposition never defines “reasonable profit”. However, the proposition does ensure that D.C. will reduce the stadium’s property taxes as well as pro-

vide the team with sales tax revenue from the stadium if D.C. United fails to accrue a “reasonable profit”.

To call these terms a fair trade is laughable. The construction of the D.C. United stadium is a high-cost gamble for the District that places a $150 burden on taxpayers in hopes that the stadium will generate profits.

Considering D.C. United’s track record, the chances that this new stadium will be a profitable enterprise are slight. During the 2013 season the team averaged 13,465 fans per game, which is only 70 percent of the stadium’s capacity and the third lowest attendance rate in MLS. The team’s estimated yearly revenue is currently just over $5 million, a fraction of the projected costs of construction.

Supporters of the stadium claim that the new stadium will provide D.C. United the venue it needs

to rekindle its franchise. Arguing that RFK stadium is over 50 years old, has few amenities, and holds too many seats, proponents of the proposed stadium also muse that the new stadium could reinvigorate the economy of the surrounding areas by creating jobs.

Buzzard Point is one of the most underdeveloped areas of D.C., and, although it may receive a temporary economic boost from the new stadium, tax money would be far more useful in other sectors. According to D.C. school officials, more than half of the D.C. students who attended ten out of 13 schools that closed in June have not re-enrolled in a D.C. Public School. Rather than risky sports teams, the District should prioritize the education of its youth. In fifty years’ time, investing in education will be what is important.

news

4 the georgetown voice

september 5, 2013

University sexual assault policy to include alcohol amnesty

by Claire Zeng Following a push from students and GUSA, the University is slated to pass an alcohol amnesty amendment sometime in the span of this semester. Under the provision, if a student is sexually assaulted under the influence of alcohol, he or she will be protected from being charged with alcohol-related violations.

“We will not bring secondary charges involving underage alcohol use against either party when adjudicating sexual assault cases,” said Judy Johnson, director of the Office of Student Conduct.

In general, sexual assault survivors are afforded multiple protections under Title IX, the federal law which prohibits sex discrimination in educational programs that receive public funding. However, amnesty policies, which are not regulated yet, vary across universities around the country. The Office of Civil Rights in the Department of Education has remained highly involved, and in April 2011, it issued a “Dear Colleague” letter to colleges and uni-

versities which addressed sexual assault, and it warned that in sexual assault situations involving alcohol or drug influence, “Schools should consider whether their disciplinary policies have a chilling effect on victims’ or other students’ reporting of sexual violence offenses.”

“Schools across the country, including Georgetown, have been working to implement these changes over the last few years,” said Laura Kovach, director of the Women’s Center.

However, the amendment is not intended to be revolutionary at Georgetown. The de facto policy has already been that of amnesty for some time.

“The practice is that students have not been charged … It’s been our practice [for a while]. We are just codifying it now,” said Jeanne Lord, Associate Vice-President for Student Affairs.

Nonetheless, many students and even staff members on campus are unclear about sexual assault policy. Five interviewed residential assistants, one counselor, and

five Residential Life administration members were unsure or could not answer whether Georgetown had a codified amnesty policy.

“I think it’s fair to say that there has been some confusion, so that is why what we want to do right now is clarify it,” Lord said.

Much of the confusion is due to the length and technicality of the code. Students have complained about the difficulty of navigating the document, which stands at 28 pages after the recent revision.

Ben Manzione (SFS’ 15), co-director of the Student Advocacy Office, stated that the recent revamp of the code was intended on streamlining it and improving accessibility. However, the document was released without two key appendices, the sanctioning guidelines and the student conduct procedures manual.

The latter, which was removed out of the old code of conduct, lists the procedure that happens when sexual assault or misconduct is reported.

When asked when the new manual would be published, Johnson responded that the office was

“still working through it” and that it would be out “certainly before the weekend, if not later today [Wednesday], then by tomorrow.”

She added that “there are so many tweaks that must go into it.”

Michelle Mohr (COL’15), other co-director of the Student Advocacy Office, agreed that awareness was a problem and stated that “it is the policy, but it’s just not the written down policy yet … we hope it increases awareness as well as people’s certainty that it will be upheld.”

With regards to other drugs, the administration has stated that the upcoming amnesty amendment will only consider alcohol charges, not other kind of violations.

“Alcohol is the issue we deal with most commonly, so that is what we focused on. Drugs are more complicated. That is more nuanced. …

At this point, we are not considering [drug amnesty], but that is not to say that could not be a topic of conversation later,” said Lord, adding that the amendment will “absolutely” be passed within the semester.

Other items on the agenda for

the semester include a change of the definitions of sexual assault and sexual misconduct in the code of conduct to reflect the legal definitions.

The administration is looking also to revive the Sexual Assault Working Group, which has existed for over a decade but has not met for over a year and a half.

Additionally, the University will soon release a new Title IX website that aims to further clarify sexual assault policy and resources available.

Lord, who also serves as Deputy Coordinator of Title IX for undergraduate students, explained that the website was slated to go up shortly, adding that easy accessibility to students is a main priority.

Overall, administration and students alike expressed optimism but also discussed the need for further work.

“Our goal is to have a safe community, to enhance the safety and wellbeing of all members of our community, legal requirements aside … I think we’ve done some good work, but significant challenges remain.” Lord said.

On the record with Jay Gruber: New campus open container policy

by Caitriona Pagni On Sep. 4, GUPD Chief of Police Jay Gruber sat down with the Voice to discuss enforcement of the new open container policy.

Will GUPD be modeling the enforcement of this policy off of the practices of other universities?

I am not currently familiar with the current alcohol policies of our peer institutions.

If you are not aware of any other universities that use this policy, what model will GUPD use to enforce it?

We’re not really following a standard model ... We’re trying almost a proof of concept. We know that students can be responsible while using alcohol. I think there is a lot of misconception that students only binge drink, they only drink to get drunk. I don’t think that’s the case.

So we want to open up an opportunity for students to prove they can be responsible in the use of alcohol with certain caveats. That’s sort of the model we are looking at here, that’s what this pilot is all about.

If successful, the policy is expected to be expanded to other areas of campus. How will GUPD measure the success of this policy?

It’s interesting. I think the measure of success will be lack of contact

with the Residential Living Staff and lack of contact with the Georgetown University Police Department. So it’s going to be very difficult to measure how many of these events take place. We’re not asking for self-reporting from these groups, so one of the only measures we have is where there is negative interaction between the GUPD and the office of residential living and these groups. So if we don’t see these types of contact because the students are following the spirit and letter of the pilot, I think that’s a success right there.

How would GUPD come into contact with students?

Either somebody’s called us to complain, or an officer has an on-site view of someone not following the letter and spirit of the pilot. That’s how they [students] would come into contact with Residential Living or the GUPD, because they are doing something outside of what we expect of them in the pilot. If an officer walks by and there’s some kids with a couple six-packs of beer enjoying themselves and just talking having a nice time, we’re going to walk right by it.

We’re not going to interact with them, we’re not going to check ID’s, it’s just part of the normal course of business.

Julia tanaka

Students will be allowed to hold open containers in Village A and Henle.

In the past, GUPD has stated it reserves the right to request identification from students who are “obviously” underage. How does an offer go about determining who is of age?

First of all, if they are not doing something outside of the scope of the pilot, like I mentioned earlier… we are going to assume everyone is 21, and we are going to keep going about our business.

Once we get called over, once it’s outside of the scope, there’s a couple of kegs, there’s thirty people

there, we get a complaint because of the quiet hours, that’s when we would start looking at ages.

Were Village A and Henle chosen as locations for the pilot simply because they are out of the way of pedestrian traffic?

It’s not that they are out of the way, but they seem like natural places for students to gather. We will evaluate at the end of the fall semester with GUSA and the office of Residential Living, and we’ll do the same thing at the end of the spring semester. We’ll look at these pilots

and see how they’ve gone, and if they went well, there are possibilities to expand it in the fall of 2014.

There’s a lot of opportunities, so that is why this academic year is very important for the students.

In the event that the pilot is expanded to areas such as Alumni Square, where there is a lot more pedestrian traffic, would that affect GUPD’s approach to regulating those areas?

We are only looking at a scope of small gatherings, a few people, not a whole lot of alcohol. I’m not concerned that non students are going to make their way into Alumni Square or Walsh. We’re not talking parties. I am not concerned if and when the pilot expands and maybe outside of the main gates.

So, moving forward, when students approach drinking in pilot areas, they need to be cognizant of the difference between a gathering and a party.

Very important differentiation. My officers are not going to sit there and count people.

It’s one of those things where you sort of know it when you see it. We want to encourage students to be responsible. I think they can be responsible and now they have an opportunity to share that.

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the georgetown voice 5

Old Georgetown Board postpones dorm redesign

by Jeffrey Lin

On Wednesday, the Old Georgetown Board, an advisory committee that conducts private reviews of semi-public and private structures within the Georgetown neighborhood boundaries, voiced concerns about the design of the Northeast Triangle in a hearing with the designers from Sasaki Strategies. After the discussion held, the Board ultimately decided against further action on the proposal until designers addressed the Board’s concerns.

Created by the Old Georgetown Act of 1950, the Old Georgetown Board consists of three architects, appointed by the Commission of Fine Arts, who serve without compensation for three-year terms.

During the meeting, the Commission of Fine Arts also introduced its two new appointees— Alan Brangman, the Georgetown University Architect from 1994 to 2010, and David Cox, a previous member of the Board who is serving a one year extension.

Brangman supervised the design of the completed Southwest Quadrangle and the Hairiri Building, but also oversaw failed projects such as the Wormly School and the GU Boathouse. In his introduction, Brangman said that he believed his experience with Georgetown University would help him meet both the needs of

the students and the requirements of the administration.

One of the main topics discussed in the hearing was the controversial Northeast Triangle proposal that has caused a backlash from the Georgetown students.

For the hearing, Georgetown University brought in Sasaki Strategies’ principal planner Gregory Janks to advocate for the construction of the Northeast Triangle.

“The most important thing to say is that all the planning done today for Georgetown University is really focused on reinforcing the vibrant and active student life on campus,” Janks said. “It’s not simply sufficient to provide beds without providing a vibrant community for our students as well to make sure that the campus is a place where they want to be.”

Janks explained to the Board how Sasaki used data collected from an interactive map to choose a location based along the major pathway that goes all the way from Lau and the main gates, through Red Square, and ends at Darnall.

Two more important aspects of the planning process included an emphasis on adding more space by increasing the height of buildings and creating a community in the northern part of campus by adding more beds.

Despite Jank’s justifications for the proposal, the Board voiced several concerns regard-

Georgetown’s costly trade-off

Administrators’ plan to allow open containers in the outdoor grill areas of Village A and Henle Village was received favorably by students, as expected, even though only 12 students in two areas around campus could take advantage of the program at any given time.

Within the same week, the University tried for the second time to get the Northeast Triangle dorm approved by the Old Georgetown Board. While most of the public debate and media attention was given to the ugliness of the dorm, it’s incontrovertible that students don’t want another dorm built on campus. Students want to live in apartments, not dorms.

Administrators’ strategy for complying with the campus plan seems to be twofold: push through dormitories as quietly as possible and appear to sweeten on-campus living by rolling back restrictions on alcohol. GUSA leaders have

said they have been lobbying the administration so far to make oncampus living at least as appealing as off-campus living. That strategy makes sense in the short term: the 2010 Campus Plan agreement (approved in the summer of 2012) gives students an opening to push for rolling back restrictions on oncampus partying.

Once a new building is constructed, though, it will likely remain on campus for more than 100 years. Usually, students prefer oncampus apartments to off-campus apartments, and they prefer those to dormitories. The school is required by law to add 385 beds by fall 2015 and to house 90 percent of students on campus by 2025. If Georgetown keeps adding beds on campus in dorms, they run a risk of having beds unfilled. In order to comply with the campus plan, this arrangement could require that the University establish a requirement

ing the design and location of the Northeast Triangle.

“It bothers me that it [the dorm] has relatively few number of beds for the result and one of the outcomes is the loss of a significant communal part of the campus. It [the pathway from Red Square to Leavey Center] has a key role as a connector on campus,” Stephen Muse, the third member of the Board, said. “This building could suggest that you wind up with slivers of space. I think [the new space] should be a key component of attracting new freshmen students to the university.”

Brangman expressed concern for the loss of green space. “One of the best things about college campuses is that you do find opportunities to find open space in different areas of the campus,” Brangman said.

Responding to the concerns about the loss of open space because of the development of the Northeast Triangle, Janks told the Board that the galleria design of the building would preserve 50 percent of the green space lost.

A lack of open areas, however, was not the Board’s only concern.

As a whole, the Board agreed that the plan lacked a comprehensive approach and the correct motivation needed for a successful design.

“One thing that is striking everyone is the unfortunate expedithat juniors live on campus. No one is talking about that now, nobody was talking about that two years ago, and nobody seems interested in talking about what could happen in 20 years.

The Northeast Triangle structure isn’t a good start, though. Adding another dorm will only move sophomores out of Henle and into the new dorm. For whatever reason, dorm floors of sophomore students don’t foster community in

Saxa Politica

by Connor Jones

A bi-weekly column about campus news and politics the same way that freshman floors do. After freshman year, students’ priorities become finding a place where they can host their friends.

Most of the time, hosting friends involves kicking back and hanging out. Other times it means hosting parties. But dorms can’t engender community like apartments can.

JOSHua RaFtiS

The Georgetown Park Mall, located on M Street, will open its doors again this month after being under renovation for over a year. According to The Georgetown Current, new major tenants include T. J. Maxx and HomeGoods, which are scheduled to open on Sept. 8th. Pinstripes, Inc., a bowling alley, is expected to open for business in November.

— Soo K. Chae

ency that is driving this [project].

The project has this short term sense to it,” Cook said. “I think the real opportunity for master planning is to think about that whole strip Henle down to Reiss as one giant, consolidated piece to blend more intelligently with all the space on campus.”

After freshman year, apartments become a main gathering places for students, considering that Georgetown has no real student union apart from the small Sellinger Lounge. If the campus plan’s goal is fostering “an enhanced living-and-learning campus focused on undergraduates on the main campus,” moving sophomores into the Northeast Triangle won’t help.

The University’s solution to the problem of student space is the New South Student Center, which will incorporate a pub designed for students. Opening it will be an important step to creating community among students who are too young to have apartments, though public spaces serve a different purpose than do private meeting spaces.

The Northeast Triangle dorm is going to be approved. No student has the power to stop it. Although Todd Olson has repeatedly said that, after the Northeast Triangle gets the Uni-

The group of architects and University administrators are expected to continue to meet with students and the Old Georgetown Board in the upcoming months in order to finally reach a decision on the design and construction of the new dorm.

versity to its 2015 goal, construction will focus on apartment spaces that will be “appealing to juniors and seniors.”

Having more apartmentstyle beds on campus would be the only way for all these rolledback alcohol restrictions to matter. While the lifting of the keg limit is a clear-cut policy, the general loosening of enforcing underage drinking policies, to students with whom I’ve spoken, seems spotty at best. Also, with the open containers announcement, the official line from GUSA was initially that only people who are “clearly underage” would be carded. These new policies always have a way of being ambiguous. While some of the new measures are significant, in effect, these announcements serve as a cheap way to boost rapport with students.

Grab a beer at Connor’s Village A rooftop at cjones@georgetownvoice.com

sports

6 the georgetown voice

september 5, 2013

Football loses opener in disappointing fashion

by Joe Pollicino Despite the welcomed return of redshirt senior quarterback Isaiah Kempf, who missed all of the 2012 season, the Georgetown football team (0-1, 0-0 Patriot League) lost its season-opening game to Wagner (1-0, 0-0 Northeast) 28-21. Although the Hoyas rushed out to a 21-7 halftime lead, the Wagner running game proved too much to handle. The Seahawks rushed for 195 yards on a whopping 56 attempts.

“It’s always tough, especially the first one,” said Georgetown Head Coach Kevin Kelly. “You spend 29 practices getting ready for four weeks and you want to start out on the right foot.”

In the opening drive of the game, the Hoya offense put together a 13 play, 84 yard drive, which culminated with a 5-yard touchdown run by Kempf to give the Hoyas a 7-0 lead. Wagner responded quickly, however. Redshirt junior quarterback Matt Misley connected on a 6-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Tyree Watkins to tie the game at 7.

The Hoyas then scored two unanswered touchdowns, a 2-yard run from sophomore running back Jo’el Kimpela and a 1-yard touchdown pass from Kempf to senior tight end Daniel Sprotte, to enter the half with a commanding 21-7 lead.

But the second half proved to be resoundingly different than the first for Georgetown.

Kempf and the offense struggled tremendously in the second half with only 33 yards of total offense and two first downs. In the third quarter, Kempf was intercepted by redshirt sophomore defensive back Deangelo James, who proceeded to return it 24 yards for a touchdown that tied the game at 21. Wagner fifth-year senior running back Dominique Williams rushed for two second half touchdowns, including the game-winner with 2:49 remaining in the game. Williams’ ground performance proved problematic

for the Hoya defense throughout the game, as he rushed for 165 yards on 32 carries.

Georgetown senior linebacker Dustin Wharton had nothing but praise for the Wagner back.

“He’s probably the most talented back that we’ll see,” Wharton said. “Starting off with a guy like that, I think it really shows the talent we’re going to play and how much we need to work going forward.”

Looking ahead, Coach Kelly hopes his players build on the loss and learn from the experience.

“We played well for one half, we did some good things in the second half but obviously on offense we didn’t do much at all,” said Coach Kelly. “Defensively, we had some good plays but we also let them score 21 points in the second half. We’ve got to learn to play the whole 60 minutes.”

The return of quarterback Isaiah Kempf was a bright spot for the Hoyas. Kempf played well for the Hoyas in his first game in over a year, after sitting out all of last season from a concussion suffered during the opening series. Kempf completed 23 of 41 attempts for 198 yards, with one passing touchdown, one rushing touchdown, and the game-changing interception.

“It was a great feeling,” Kempf said on his return “Especially that first drive, I took a pretty big hit on the third play and that did a lot to get me going. I felt good, I felt like I hadn’t missed that much time and having the great line that we have, it just felt natural.”

Dustin Wharton’s performance was another positive aspect. The senior linebacker earned Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week honors for his play, with 12 tackles, one sack, and one interception in Georgetown’s debut.

“It’s an honor,” Wharton said about his award. “I think it’s a testament to our team.

Our defense played really well.

When the guys around me play well, it really helps me to shine

ANDRES RENGIFO

The football team will try to bounce back this week against Davidson.

and show my abilities. It’s an honor to be picked out of the great players that played this week. It means a lot.”

The Hoyas will return to the Hilltop this Saturday for their home opener against familiar foe Davidson (0-0). In last year’s contest, the Hoyas won convincingly 35-14. But the Hoyas face a Wildcats team with a new coaching staff, revamped

scheme, and a replenished roster. All of these factors will make preparation in practice this week difficult for Kempf and his teammates.

“This week since we have no film on Davidson, the key for us is to focus on ourselves and get better this week in practice,” Kempf said. “Especially scheme-wise and getting what we do well down in order

to be ready for anything they throw at us.”

Coach Kelly and his team are especially excited to open their home schedule under the lights, hopefully on a winning note when they take the field on Saturday night at 6:00pm.

“Our guys always like to play at night,” Kelly said. “You get more fans and more students … It’s a good feeling when you’re playing.”

the Sports Sermon

“If I ever get ‘Manziel disease,’ I want all of you to smack me in the head with your microphones.”

-Jameis Winston, Florida State Quarterback the Big Ten, even though their football programs will, in all likelihood, not contend in their new conferences.

These decisions are beneficial for a select few, but most others involved with conference realignment are thoroughly unhappy with the actions of the powerful. When Syracuse completed their move to the ACC, Syracuse men’s basketball head coach Jim Boeheim said, “Like I said, if [the conference commissioners] were running the United States in colonial times, Brazil and Argentina would be states because they have something we need.”

For years, the NCAA and other companies have profited from memorabilia sales, though

tographs, a clear violation of NCAA policy.

The NCAA desperately Though Manziel’s intenwants to market themselves tion to sell these autographs as an organization that cares was never completely proven, about their athletes and wants the school’s program suspendto provide an enriching college ed him for all of one half of the experience. Universities with season’s first game. When Ohio athletic programs try to put out State quarterback Terrelle Pryor a similar message. In a perfect and four of his teammates were world, it would be a great syscaught selling memorabilia, they tem: Some would go on to fame were suspended for five games, and fortune while others would longtime OSU coach Jim Tressel get the full college experience resigned, the school’s scholarand go on to live their lives just ships were reduced, and Ohio like the rest of us. There’s only State was banned from the postone problem: these mission season for a year (they happened statements are bullshit. to go undefeated that year and What really drives the NCAA missed out on a chance to play and athletics programs? Money, for the national title). and nothing else. History, enterSo, with the precedent of tainment, the welltough love in Pete Rose Central being of athletes: mind, that Mannone of these things ziel would be punDa bettin’ line factor into decision ished in a way that Dookies Margin Hoyas making unless they simultaneously (underdogs) (duh!) line up with financial (favorites) acknowledged his interests. wrongdoing and NFL Just look at what Tebow’s Arm effectively hurt noCFL has happened to our body is a represenCalvin Diddy Johnson beloved Big East. It tation of the blatant Recruits LeBron Ohio St. had been the top bashypocrisy present ketball conference in the country no jerseys bear the name of any in college athletics today. Their over the past decade. Each week players. But recently, ESPN ana- absurd rules of amateurism are of conference play provided lyst Jay Bilas went to the NCAA’s always upheld, at least until the matchups between premier online shop and typed the last face of football is at risk. At that teams. In 2011, 11 Big East teams names of Texas A&M quarter- point, the money once again received a bid to the NCAA tour- back Johnny Manziel and South overrides all else. nament. To give some perspec- Carolina linebacker Jadeveon The NCAA needs to contive, the conference with the next Clowney, as well as the names of sider allowing athletes to earn most bids that year was the Big other athletes, into the website’s money during their time in Ten with seven. search bar. Results brought up college. In the meantime, they The Georgetown-Syracuse ri- their jerseys. The NCAA is prof- need to uniformly enforce their valry is right behind Duke-North iting from these players and they policies, not cower when susCarolina for the most storied feud know what they’re doing. Man- pensions could hurt their viewin college hoops. However, with ziel, in particular, was estimated ing numbers. I don’t know the football generating more revenue to have generated well over $30 best way to pay players while than basketball for all schools, million for his university last year. keeping college athletics differeven Kentucky, which has a legLast season, Manziel took ent from the pros, but it’s not endary basketball program and college football by storm, unreasonable to let Manziel sell a bottom-dwelling football team, beating the top-ranked Ala- his own signature, and allow teams began moving to confer- bama Crimson Tide and be- players to generate a bit of inences with more lucrative foot- coming the first freshman to come from their achievements. ball media deals. Just like that, win the Heisman. However, But until that is allowed, punish Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Louisville, “Johnny Football” sparked everybody when they break the Notre Dame, and Rutgers all controversy when stories sur- rules, not only when it is finanjumped ship for the ACC and faced that he was selling au- cially convenient.

by Chris Almeida

sports

georgetownvoice.com

the georgetown voice 7

Mixed weekend for men’s soccer Women’s tennis serves up

by Brendan Crowley Entering this past weekend’s season opener, the 2013 Georgetown men’s soccer team (1-1, 0-0 Big East) had nothing but hype. Ranked third in the preseason poll of the National Soccer Coaches’ Association of America, the Hoyas traveled to the West Coast this weekend for their first opportunity to prove that last year’s top two national finish was no fluke.

On Friday evening, the Hoyas matched up against No. 10 University of California (2-0, 0-0 Pac-12) and were quickly reminded that no game will come easy this year. Georgetown first fell behind in the 41st minute, when Golden Bear midfielder Connor Hallisey found the back of the net to give California a 1-0 lead, the score that would hold until halftime.

Early in the second half, a Georgetown foul committed inside the penalty box presented the Golden Bears with an opportunity to extend their lead. California defender Steve Birnbaum connected on the ensuing penalty kick, making the score 2-0 in the 48th minute.

Despite ten total shots, the Hoyas managed only three on goal, eventually falling to the Golden Bears 2-0, a surprising defeat.

“Friday was incredibly disappointing,” Head Coach Brian Wiese said. “For a lot of reasons … I thought we were very pretty and very fragile … We were very good for the first half, but we didn’t handle the adversity that always comes on the road … I think the guys either forgot or didn’t appreciate how hard it is to win on the road.”

Sunday evening provided an immediate opportunity for redemption as the Hoyas headed south in the Golden State to Berkeley, taking on unranked Stanford (0-1-1, 0-0 Pac 12).

The Hoyas earned their first chance to take the lead versus Stanford in the 43rd minute, when Cardinal midfielder Jimmy Callinan’s reckless challenge inside the box earned him a red card and gave Georgetown senior captain Steve Neumann a penalty shot. Neumann converted the chance, giving the Hoyas a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.

LUCIA HE

The men’s soccer team will open up at home this week against West Virginia.

Tebow should head north

There is no escaping the media sensation that is Tim Tebow.

The guy is a third string quarterback at best, yet you see him on the ESPN headlines just about as much as any other starter. Lately he has made headlines for being cut from the New England Patriots, releasing him back into the free agent market until some other team picks him up just to get some publicity and excitement flowing.

Tebow is so loved by the media, though, that even when sitting in an airport in Vancouver, I was still presented with breaking news about the former University of Florida Heisman winner. I was startled that he was making news headlines in Canada, which got me thinking that his diffusion into media was a lot more serious than I previously thought. With nothing better to do, I started listening to the two Canadian newscasters talk about Tebow like he should be an important asset to

any team and then, they said it: “Maybe Tim Tebow needs to consider joining the Canadian Football League.”

At first I just laughed because the prospect of going from being an NFL quarterback to training with a CFL team would be a major shot to a man’s pride. For Tebow, it would mean a whole new barrage of criticism and snickering, as if he doesn’t get enough already. But think about that idea just a little bit more.

Think about Tebow’s future in the NFL and think about his possible future in the CFL. The move makes sense.

Being a fan of the NFL can make you pretty closedminded at times. The strength and lore of the league makes it hard to recognize any other football association as legitimate because, compared to the NFL, they just do not match up. Regardless, these other leagues do exist because, to put it plainly, not all countries

In the second half, Neumann found the back of the net again, scoring on the rebound of a missed attempt by sophomore forward Brandon Allen. Neumann’s second goal, in the 88th minute, proved enough to secure victory for the Hoyas, bringing them to .500 on the season.

“He’s the leader of the group,” Wiese said of Neumann. “Stevie’s the guy who everybody looks to; he’s the one who gets all the press.

He handles it very well. He is a very mature captain and leader for us now. He’s going to be someone that we look to not just to score goals or get assists, but to help everyone around him get better. He’s just an important piece to how we’re built and I think rightly one of the best players in the country.”

Coming away from the weekend, Wiese also was impressed with what he saw from the Hoya defense, most notably freshman defender Joshua Yaro and junior goalkeeper Tomas Gomez, both of whom he thought made major strides in their development.

“Joshua Yaro’s been playing in there as a freshman and is looking more and more settled,” Wiese said. “Tomas Gomez, I think, has emerged over the weekend as a very important leader. Even in the California game where he conceded two goals, he made some great saves, and I thought he did a spectacular job leading.”

Next up for Georgetown is Friday’s home opener against West Virginia (1-0-1, 0-0 Big 12). The match will kick off at 4 p.m. on Shaw Field. want to watch Americans play football. We may not think of these other leagues as serious and competitive athletic competition, but a world of sports does exist outside our major leagues in the United States. To make a humbling comparison, it is similar to how European countries think of our little Major League Soccer.

All The Way

by Steven Criss A bi-weekly column about sports

A move like this may be a devastating shot to Tebow’s dream of becoming an NFL quarterback, which he so boldly tweeted about last week, but he realistically needs to consider it.

The CFL has been an incubator for numerous NFL players in the past who were just not good enough to play in the NFL at that time. What Tebow needs right now more than anything is playing time and reps. His decision-

by Abby Greene After a seven match winning streak, Georgetown University’s Women’s Tennis team finished the 2012-2013 season on a bleak note, losing to the Cincinnati Bearcats in the consolation round of the Big East Tournament.

The team enters this year with a different end goal in sight. “You know what would be great, this year, would be to finish strong,” Head Coach Gordie Ernst said. “Last year we just kind of limped through the finish line. We had a great winning streak going, we beat some good teams and then all of a sudden we just ran out of gas. It’d be great if we could peak at the end of the year, at the Big East tournament.”

This year, the team boasts a slate of new players as well as numerous veterans. With four new freshmen, the team is quite young, but that doesn’t seem to concern Ernst.

“The new freshmen are terrific. If we can get Victoire [Saperstein] healthy, she’s a very strong player that had a great national career,” he said. “Sophie Bernard, the same thing. She’s beating all my veterans in my trial matches. Then we have Maggie [Psyhogeos], Mimi [Lynham], and Maddy [Foley], and they’re just really good

making skills are lagging and he is vulnerable to the sack, which will continue to put his career in jeopardy unless he is able to get out onto the field. No NFL team in their right mind would put him out as a starter and therefore he would fall to the position of practice squad QB. Tebow may never be able to start as an NFL quarterback, but he would definitely be wasting his time by sitting on the sidelines. The lower skill level in the CFL would give him the opportunity to play quality minutes, albeit against lesser quality players, and gain the experience necessary to quicken his wits.

He has shown that he has the drive and work ethic it takes to be successful in the pros, but his stubbornness in accepting nothing less than a quarterback role in the NFL could lead to his demise. With such promise and accomplishment coming out of college, it would be a shame to see his professional football career end without at least a trial run in the CFL.

kids who have a strong work ethic and I think they’re going to work really well in this atmosphere.”

Ernst looks to the captains and upperclassmen to provide leadership and solidarity for the team.

“Our veterans are Kelly Comoli, Maddie Jeager, and Sophie Panarese and they’ve been through so many matches and tough battles … so having their experiences with the young ones is invaluable… They were part of the William and Mary win.

They all didn’t finish great.

They want to redeem themselves,” said Ernst.

For senior captain Kelly Comoli, this year provides ample opportunity for success.

“Obviously there’s a new conference alignment so there’s a big opportunity for us to do well this year. I think the biggest thing for us … is just setting the tone … during every practice working hard each day, day in and day out.”

The Hoyas’ first tournament will be the Georgetown Classic at home on Friday, September 20th.

“The whole thing about September is that you fill with hope. You get new kids that come in with veterans and … that’s really exciting,” said Ernst. “Every year I do this, I’m more excited at this point because of what can happen.”

Joining the CFL would mean endless jokes and the most media coverage Canadian football has ever seen, but with his current skillset, Tebow will never be anything but a second or third stringer. The list of players who have come from the CFL to the NFL includes some impressive (even Super Bowl winning) names, such as Doug Flutie and Warren Moon, so obviously playing in the CFL is not a career-ending decision.

For Tebow, it would be a fresh start in a new league where he would have a legitimate chance to excel and improve, exactly what he needs in order to have pro scouts back on his case.

I hope my Canadian newscasters are right and that CFL teams do approach Tebow because it really would be a productive opportunity for him and maybe with him up in Canada, our media can finally move on to some fresher news to cover.

Talk aboot Tebow with Steven at scriss@georgetownvoice.com

8 the georgetown voice

feature

DANGEROUS

WATERS

By Chris Castano

september 5, 2013

doesn’t have to think twice about the difference between a mainstay and a forestay.

“The thing about sailing is that it’s both mental and physical,” he says. “You have to be in good shape to do it, but at the same time it’s a thinking person’s game. It combines strategy with athletic ability.”

Callahan is quick to stress the intellectual along with the corporeal, with good reason. While college sailing is built around racing, it’s much more complicated than simply crossing the finish line.

The principal competitive event for collegiate sailing is a team race. These races involve two different teams, each comprised of three boats. To decide the winner, the finishing position of each participating craft is taken into account. Since each boat’s finishing position is what counts rather than which boat crosses the finish line first, team tactics quickly become complicated. For this, it helps to have a good head on your shoulders.

Given the type of equipment handled, the speeds at which the athletes pilot these crafts, and the perpetual possibility of inclement weather, sailing has the potential to be dangerous. A former Hoya sailor, Callahan, lost his four front teeth the first day of practice when he fell headfirst into the side of a boat during a capsizing drill.

“My teeth actually stayed in the boat. Then we sold the boats to Stanford that year, and they were still embedded in there. They couldn’t get them out of the fiberglass,” he says.

Callahan isn’t the only one to harbor a few sailing horror stories.

“I was just learning how to sail, and it was really windy, and I was just coming into the harbor,” Alex Post (COL ’15) recounts. “I capsized in the middle of the channel, and [a] freighter was coming through … It was an extremely close call. That was one of my scariest moments.”

Senior sailor Nancy Hagood (COL ‘14), too, has had her share of memorable experiences at sea. “Last year, while I was sailing at the Laser Regatta academy, a thunderstorm came up which wasn’t on the radar. We were all thrown out of our boats and then [had to] turtle underneath the boats until the storm passed.” Turtling involves flipping the boat completely upside down, and in this case, sheltering underneath.

Hoya sailors stand up to the wind.

Joshua Raftis

The intensity builds as she goes on to recall an even more hair-raising occasion. “I was sailing with my sister [who] was out on the trapeze and we capsized. She was catapulted into the boat, sliced her head open, and had to get stitches. But I was fine so it’s all good,” Hagood remembered, laughing. According to her, it’s just this sort of pulse-pounding experience that makes sailing such a good time.

As darkness falls on the final night of NSO, the Harbin 6 common room fills with excited freshmen eager to share their experiences from the last few days. The range of topics jumps from academics to student organizations to club sports.

“Sailing [is best] when it’s really windy, and the boat in front of you wipes out and suddenly you’re forced to avoid them without running over them. It gets a little hairy, but that’s what makes it fun,” she says.

A few Harbinites think they have what it takes to make it in club basketball. Then, there are those who think the club soccer team would be foolish to turn them away. The freshmen who have spent most of their free time on Copley Lawn mention the ultimate frisbee team. The focus of the conversation then shifts from ambition to curiosity, and some of Georgetown’s lesser-known sports teams are mentioned. The minute one poor freshman decides to have a giggle at the sailing team’s expense, a barrel-chested young man who’s been silent so far leans forward and, in a low voice, growls, “Watch what you say about sailing.”

Despite the sizeable risk involved in climbing into a sailboat, and the high level at which the Georgetown sailing performs, the team doesn’t receive the media coverage or student recognition it might deserve. However, this lack of attention doesn’t seem to faze the sailors.

Despite a general lack of knowledge about college sailing, people seem quick to write the sport off as minor—or worse, boring. On the contrary, Georgetown’s sailing team has proven to be one of the University’s most successful varsity sports programs of the last decade, having secured the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association/Gill National Championship twice, including last year, and having placed five times in the last nine years.

And what’s more, the high physical risk sailors face in what turns out to be an extremely dangerous sport challenges anyone who thinks of sailing as a leisurely activity.

No one at Georgetown is better equipped to obliterate these misconceptions than Head Sailing Coach Mike Callahan.

“When you first tell people that we’re sailing, people think we’re on a gigantic boat relaxing. College sailing is totally different. The boats are designed to reward athleticism.”

In the 15 years that Callahan has coached the Georgetown University Sailing Team, his enthusiasm for the sport and for his team has not faded one bit. Sitting in his office in the top of McDonough Arena, he answers each interview question with the confidence of a man who

the georgetown voice 9

georgetownvoice.com “Georgetown has a perfect blend of academics and athletics. There are a lot of schools in the country that do really well in sailing every year and win nationals.

But people go to those places just to sail and they don’t really have the college experience outside of sailing,” Hagood says. “But … Georgetown is such an awesome school, it’s in such an incredible location, there are just so many great resources, and [it] is generally a great place to be. The sailing team is the icing on the cake.”

Georgetown’s wide offering of activities and opportunities makes up a large part of Coach Callahan’s recruitment strategy, and he’s certainly happy with the results. “These kids are coming from all over the country,” he says. “If you look at our roster it’s an equal mix of East Coast [and] West Coast.”

“We do have a history of bringing people in with no experience, and that’s something I want to keep. We could have a team of fifteen people who are really good, but that’s not what I want, and that’s not what the team wants.”

“

Our team motto is ‘As One’. The idea there is

”

that everyone is pushing everybody else—

we win as a team and we lose as a team.

Callahan may be selling himself and his program short, though. It’s not just the University that attracts future sailors, but Georgetown’s sailing program itself.

Inexperienced students are encouraged to try out for the team and are quickly included in the sailing community. In fact, the more experienced Hoya sailors have their own way of welcoming newcomers.

“I really like D.C. Also Mike [Callahan] is a really good coach.

We know him very well. He was Olympic coach of the year [an award conferred by the Olympic Comittee to the top college coach],” Post says. “That was a really big draw to come here. The team also has a really great reputation.”

“We sail right next to the Potomac, and sometimes the jet wash from the planes coming in creates waterspouts on the river,” Hagood says, smiling. “It’s pretty fun not telling the freshmen and then watching the waterspouts come down and they all capsize.”

To date, Callahan holds the most outstanding coaching achievement awards, as presented by the University’s athletic department. During the 2005-2006 season, for the first time in program history, Georgetown was awarded the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association’s Leonard M. Fowle trophy for best overall collegiate team in the country. Since then, the Hoyas have continued to bring fame and prestige back to the Hilltop, and it doesn’t look like they’ll be stopping anytime soon.

Nevertheless, it’s not all fun and games in the water by the national airport. The Hoyas fine-tune their sailing abilities not only by following a strict workout regimen that has them hitting the gym as often as any other varsity athlete, but more importantly by making sure they’re in the right mindset to maneuver their boats, tacking and jibing wherever they may need to go.

Although sailing at Georgetown is a varsity sport, the team depends on open try-outs to fill its ranks. “We do recruit like any other sport, we do have help from admissions, but with a team of 45 people (depending on the year),” Callahan says. “[W]hen you can only

When it comes to talking hopes and expectations for the team, sailor Alex Post’s expression becomes serious. “I mean, [the ICSA/Gill national championship] is definitely the goal. We lost a bunch of seniors last year, so we’ll have to see how that affects us and get the team set and see what happens.”

Callahan ensures that his team is sharp in mind as well as fit in body. “We focus on great work ethic and great concentration. A lot of sailing is getting the skills down and going out everyday and practicing hard. You also need the concentration to be in maybe twenty races in a day and to see what’s going on in the water where it’s always a changing race course.”

Hagood echoes Post’s determined sentiment. “It’s a long season. Our first weekend of competition is next weekend. Nationals are at the end of May and the beginning of June. [Though] we take a short break at the end of December and the beginning of January, we literally break ice.”

Perhaps with a little more awareness from the public, the sailing team can break ice in more ways than one.

“The only way to really understand the sport is to see it. I think if people haven’t seen it, they have their own preconceived notions of what sailing is,” Callahan says. “My battle as coach for many years has been to bring more people in to see what kind of a sport it is.”

Even though the stakes are high for the Hoyas this year, Coach Callahan is determined to focus more on his team on the whole and less on the results.

“Our team motto is ‘As One’. The idea there is that everyone is pushing everybody else—we win as a team and we lose as a team. It’s a core component of what we do… Everybody pushes each other and that makes things fun. That gives practice a different feel,” the coach emphasizes.

“It would definitely be nice to get more recognition on campus, but we also get that sailing isn’t really a spectator sport, especially on the Potomac,” Hagood says. “We have a big team. There are forty people on our team, and it’s a great community. We don’t really need the recognition because we know we have a good time.”

Hagood smiles at the thought of the camaraderie among the sailors. “My favorite thing is the people,” she says. “I think the reason … we do so well is because we’re such a good community, everyone supports each other, and we’re all working toward the same goal.”

Before the team can keep working towards even more success for the upcoming academic year, though, Callahan and his program have to recruit during the summer. Thankfully, due to Georgetown’s vibrant campus community and the team’s reputation, their job isn’t too difficult.

“The great thing about sailing as far as being a collegiate sport is that there are no scholarships,” Callahan says. “So when you are recruiting, you are getting kids who are just choosing the best school for them academically. So if we lack some resources or a boathouse, it’s not a big deal because it’s not like someone else is offering more money to go there.”

As a student sailor, Hagood concurs, adding her own commendation of the Hilltop and what it has to offer.

The team enjoys a moment of peace on the Potomac. recruit four or five kids, we have to fill the rest of the spots with try outs.”

In fact, the team encourages people with no sailing experience to sign up. Callahan and his trusty band of sea dogs are especially keen on students who were athletes before coming to Georgetown.

“When we are looking through walk-ons for the team, we look for people who have played other sports. We want people who have been varsity athletes in high school. They can compete, but maybe they didn’t get recruited at Georgetown,” Callahan explains.

Upon reflection, Coach Callahan remembers to point out the remaining sailing virtue. “Oh! And thinking quickly. You have to able to think quick on the water and react to what’s going on around you. That’s what really makes a good sailor.”

With the ICSA/Gill success Georgetown’s sailing team has seen under Callahan’s tenure, the head coach and his sailors continue to compete at the highest level. Certainly, their expectations have not lowered one bit since coming back to the Hilltop this year.

Joshua Raftis As far as a national championship goes, Hagood stays coy, saying, “It will all depend on who peaks in May.” Unfortunately, the greater campus community still remains ignorant of the deft sporting organization that is the Georgetown sailing team. First-year dorm common rooms and seniors in Sellinger alike will probably respond with puzzled looks when someone mentions our nationally-renowned sailing team. But in the end that’s not what matters to the Hoya sailors. Their work ethic, team philosophy, and camaraderie serve to help them be the best they can be at a thrilling but dangerous sport that, sometimes, can spell the worst.

leisure

10 the georgetown voice

september 5, 2013

Baby Wale swims into D.C. with simple, striking menu

by Annamarie White Don’t try to order a baby whale at Baby Wale. Instead, I recommend sampling the Mozzarella Porcupine. An unpredictably satisfying cheese dish, it’s topped with Kataifi (shredded Fillo Dough) and complemented by a tomato colis and basil oil dipping sauce, which satisfies both the cosmopolitan palate and the adventurous spirit found in so many Georgetown students. In fact, the Mozzarella Porcupine perfectly encompasses the eclectic atmosphere of one D.C.’s newest restaurants.

Burrowed within a nondescript building, Baby Wale is all exposed beams and concrete walls decorated with concert posters and peeling paint. The tables are small and close together, topped with brown paper and dishtowels to create the ultimate understatement.

What’s most noticeable behind Baby Wale’s doors, however, is the expansive, 140 seat bar.

Stretching along the length of the room, the bar was Tom Power ’s inspiration when developing his second restaurant. Taking a few minutes in between filling orders to speak with me, Power explained that his vision for Baby Wale was to put a “playful spin on the old school bar.” Indeed he has, with menus on wooden clipboards and an imposing branch suspended from the ceiling and decorated with Christmas lights.

Power noted that the posters, splashing the graying walls with pops of neon, were created by his wife, Georgetown’s own

Natsu Onoda Power, an assistant professor in the Department of Performing Arts.

Along with the Porcupine, I sampled the charred tomato soup, a tangy—spicy even— twist on the traditional dish.

While Baby Wale’s menu is limited, with only two options if you’re looking for the “Big Stuff,” it still caters to a variety of tastes.

For, as the running joke goes, half of our student population, Baby Wale offers a taste of home with the New Jersey hot dog and fries.

For patrons looking for a more diverse dinner, the Filipino-style spring rolls came highly recommended.

The dishes themselves are delicious, but certainly leave you wanting as they come in relatively small servings. Refreshingly, the prices fit the portions as everything—save the “Big Stuff”—is under $20. The deals are not unintentional, our server disclosed. Baby Wale shares a South wall with Corduroy, Power ’s other restaurant and Wale’s older, more mature brother. Appealing to younger crowd, Baby Wale takes Corduroy’s class and adds some youthful energy.

With partially-covered bare bulbs casting a smoky shadow over the room, Baby Wale is, as aptly described by my cohort who ate with me, like “the Urban Outfitters of restaurants.”

This quirk and charisma is complimented by the funky vitality of its patrons and wait staff.

The man at the table next to us, shamelessly dining alone, felt completely comfortable strik-

aNNaMarie White

Baby Wale opens at 5 p.m. and closes whenever DPS shuts them down.

ing up a conversation with us regarding our seemingly furry entrée. Elsewhere, the din of chatter at the bar coupled harmoniously with the dynamic music that filled the room.

Our server noted that while at Corduroy he dons a jacket and tie, at Baby Wale he can re-

lax in jeans and a simple black shirt. It’s all this that creates the appeal of Baby Wale. Diners can enjoy the sophistication of a crispy soft-shell crab sandwich with chervil sauce while taking in the exposed beams and skylights of the seemingly “unfinished” building. The am-

Capitol kiss and tell

As the industrial skyline of my beloved hometown, Milwaukee, Wisc., faded from view, I felt ready. The three-hour flight to Reagan passed quickly. I pretended to read until I could see the first twists of the Potomac out the window. Then came the gothic spires of Georgetown, the townhouses, the government buildings, and as the plane tilted—there it was, the Washington Monument, its polished surface proudly proclaiming a successful democracy with liberty and justice for all.

I, like many bright-eyed high school seniors, chose Washington D.C. as the place where I’d spend my formative college years. Mark Leibovich’s lengthily-titled new book This Town: Two Parties and a Funeral–Plus Plenty of Valet Parking!–In America’s Gilded Capital is an exposé of politics and media in D.C. that’s bound to shatter the naïveté of new Hoyas impatient for Hillternships. It shows our town— “The Club”—at its best and its worst. Well, mostly at its worst. If you’re new to the cynicism game, come prepared.

Leibovich tells us that D.C. has become the stomping ground of the power- and money-hungry, and the rest of the city—from Columbia Heights to Wards 7 and 8 across the Anacostia—is irrelevant.

As Leibovich says, “That’s just the D.C. where people live, some of them (18.7 percent) even below the poverty line … Yes, Washington is a “real city”, but This Town is a state of belonging, a status and a commodity.”

This Town differs from other modern political assessments.

It lacks the issue-aware comedy of Jon Stewart and Colbert, but it is fairer in analyzing both parties evenly. It is much more lighthearted than House of Cards or other intense political dramas.

This Town feels more like a tabloid appraisal of all those who “belong” enough to be critiqued.

Based on the media uproar the

book has caused in D.C., it seems that the only thing worse than being reproached by Leibovich is not being mentioned at all. In fact, he proudly refuses to include a glossary in order to force name-conscious Washingtonians to actually search for their mention.

Of Washington media, Leibovich admits, “Vintage square rooms have given way to light-headed news cycles and public servants have graduated into killer personal franchises.” No franchise in politics sells more quickly than going rogue, and Leibovich is portrayed as the Palin of White House reporters. But he is no more a rogue than he is a full-fledged member of the club he writes about.

Under the covers

by Emilia Brahm a bi-weekly literary column Leibovich worked as a political reporter for the Washington Post’s style section, where he shined while writing lines like “U2’s “Beautiful Day” blared over loudspeakers, sputtering out for a few nervous seconds before recovering. Mr. Obama’s too-long blue tie went nicely with Mrs. Clinton’s blue pantsuit.” He now writes political profiles for The New York Times and has settled his family just outside of the capital.

Though supposedly chronological, This Town jumps from the life story of a talking head to a prized politician to a top journalist as though Leibovich were making the rounds of a packed room.

The content is anecdotal—it is in essence the diary of an elite D.C. party hopper.

You would be right to guess that the Washington elite is upset that the whispers at their exclusive parties have gone public. Lois Romano expressed her dismay in Politico, writing that Leibovich has been “exploiting his access to parties” and breaking “unwritten

biance and conviviality of Power ’s second restaurant makes it an entertaining, enjoyable dining experience.

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guidelines … about what’s fair game—and what’s a cheap shot” by including inflammatory quotes from events he attended as a guest.

Yet none of Leibovich’s collected quotes are real shockers. It’s general consensus that sometimes, politicians just say the darndest things.

The bigger message of This Town, if you can sift through the People Magazine-like diatribes, is the monetization of public service.

Leibovich lets us know just how fast the revolving door between political office and lobbying on K Street spins. Even President Obama, who vowed to cut out lobbyists from his administration, has succumbed to the system—in order to win, he had no other choice.

The ultimate sad joke, according to Leibovich? That “D.C. is predicated on perpetuation of problems … not solving them … Washington may not serve the country well but has in fact worked splendidly for Washington itself—a city of beautifully busy people constantly writing the story of their own lives.”

I still haven’t had a Hillternship, but I have grown less starryeyed in the presence of political power. I’m a little sick of the hesaid, she-said, celebrity column style of political journalism that Leibovich continues to use. But I perpetuate this cult adoration of public figures by lining up for hours when Hillary makes a pitstop in Gaston or by taking selfies with Joe Biden when he stops at Dahlgren for mass. I participate.

And that’s not always bad. Because these people are not Hollywood starlets, they are decision makers. I hold out hope that their important decisions—the ones we elect them for—are more influenced by political than monetary values. The Washington monument can remind them, too, of liberty and justice for all—and a happy retirement package from K Street.

Gossip on the Hill with Emilia at ebrahm@georgetownvoice.com

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“Don’t point that gun at him, he’s an unpaid intern.” — The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

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Ritchie’s watercolor time machines Jazz across Key Bridge

by Amanda Wynter Depicting just one place in space—yet over many moments in time—Charles Ritchie slows us down just enough to notice those ordinary yet beautiful “subjects that we pass by every day.” As the artist spoke and displayed his work on a projector before his exhibition officially opened yesterday at Georgetown’s Spagnuolo gallery, one got the sense that his works were large and overwhelming—until, of course, viewed in the gallery.

Overwhelming, but for quite different reasons, Ritchie’s work often maxes out at six inches wide and perhaps four inches tall. You can begin to imagine him sitting in front of his window with finesse and care, looking ahead at what lies outside, yet also backwards through his reflection, etching into

his journal and layering his many shades of black onto the page.

His unique mixture of media— store-bought books and homemade journals—can be traced to his childhood love of reading.

Ritchie describes being riveted by the illustrations in his family’s collection of “My Book House” books with their use of dark colors and simple shapes. Their influence shows in the way he paints throughout his journal, sometimes writing at the top and painting at the bottom, other times using one vertical column of the page for image and one for letter. The use of journals as his canvas constrains the physical space that Ritchie can occupy, yet does nothing to limit the scope with which he views and relays the world he sees.

“I think that I see in grids now,” Ritchie responds to whether photography influences his work.

charles ritchie

The artist reflects on a room with a view of a room with a view.

Not only do physical grids—like the windows that he often looks out of—aid in his measurement and alignment, but also contributing to his framework is the spatiotemporal grid on which he rests those images.

Before you notice the outline of the artist’s head and arms, and long before the image of the paintings behind the artist’s silhouette make themselves visible, the image is simply of his front yard. Trees and roads are elegantly drawn on the page, but then something else happens.

The reflection of glass against light reveals a chandelier above the artist’s head and the dark shadow of his body. An oddly symmetrical shape catches the eye, and you realize that in the reflection of Ritchie’s living room, you can also see the accumulation of his other paintings. Days, weeks, months worth of paintings can be made out, symbolizing the time passing in this one place, and simultaneously, in the world as it goes on outside his window.

Ritchie believes that reflection is at the core of his work. He reflects the darkness of a winter night against the brightness of his desk lamp that irradiates the cozy room inside. He reflects the stillness of peace in the changing light of time passing. As he instructs us all to do, Ritchie reflects on a night’s dream to discover what it might have to say for him when awake.

by Jackson Sinnenberg If you’re looking for a way to avoid Lau on the first true weekend back, you’ll find one just across the river. The Rosslyn Jazz Festival is this Saturday from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Gateway Park. It’s free and open to the public—a modern-day highway robbery, considering the incredible line-ups the festival is known for assembling.

This year’s festival is no exception. While the festival will only bring in four bands, each will play for an hour and a half.

Opening the festival is the Kenny Rittenhouse septet. Rittenhouse is a fixture of the D.C. jazz scene, playing regularly at Bohemian Caverns and Blues Alley. With Rittenhouse, expect a mix of classic bop numbers as well as some original material—his “New York Suites” are masterfully crafted new jazz numbers. The septet should provide a great traditional start-off to the festival.

Following Rittenhouse, the jazz fest is looking to raise you up as Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens bring the spirit straight from the heart of Brooklyn. The Queens combine hard-hitting blues and gospel to make a biting yet uplifting brand of hard gospel mixed with the funky sounds

of Stax-era soul. Church on Saturday? Maybe. But these Gospel greats will be sure to heighten the fest’s energy.

Following Shelton, The Soul Rebels Brass Band will land their funky, hip-hopping brand of New Orleans brass band music in the middle of Rosslyn. These boys have played with everyone from Metallica and Green Day to Bootsy Collins and The Roots.

If you only go to one artist at the festival, see the Soul Rebels.

Their style crosses multiple music tastes, and they’ll play their own material as well as covers from Metallica to Kanye.

The show will close on an international note with Olé Coltrane, the project of legendary percussionist Poncho Sanchez. Sanchez and the group will perform their version of John Coltrane’s renowned 1962 album Olé Coltrane. This is jazz at some of its most international, as Coltrane draws on the music of Islamic Spain as the central influence. Legends of all sorts will come to life at this performance.

Jazz in the park is a timeless idea, and Rosslyn’s Jazz Festival is part of that canon. Whether you’re looking for great music, or just a reason to get out of the bubble, grab a blanket and head down to Gateway Park this Saturday for an afternoon of jazz.

Overzealous 17-year-olds start planning for presidency

by Rita Chang Given the number of times the American flag appears in Jonathan Goodman Levitt’s most recent documentary, Follow the Leader, the imagery sparks a reflection on what patriotism actually means. In almost every other scene, red, white, and blue decorate the background, whether the camera’s showing us a camp ceremony, the wall of a college dorm, or the lapels of politicians’ suits. As Levitt himself said, “That might make us think twice about [the flags], or make us question them.”

The documentary follows three high school boys, Nick, D.J., and Ben, all motivated, articulate, and passionate about politics, and all bearing the same dream—to become president of United States. The main characters not only share this same goal, but also the same politi-

cal passion for the Republican Party, at least at the beginning of the film.

In his first interview, Nick points out that “one of the things I was certain about was what I believed in, but that turned out to be one of the things that changed the most.” The 72-minute documentary traces the characters’ late high school years and early college careers, through which the audience witnesses their transformation from political zealots, certain of their goals and support for conservatives, to thoughtful citizens with broader political views.

“As the characters took different paths politically, the film became less about political positions and more about the universal process of becoming politically conscious and mature,” Levitt told the Voice. In this sense, they can be equally passionate and patriotic without necessarily being conservatives. Follow the Leader proves easy to follow, and

it’s certainly aware of its pedagogical value. The resolute attitudes the boys begin with gradually fade towards the end. As a coming-of-age story, the film aptly conveys a basic lesson: Understanding the roots and background of one’s claim before judging or coming to a conclusion proves vital.

As much as it is a film that teaches values, Follow the Leader is also a reflection of the American political scene. The camera flips through shots of American troops armed on Iraqi soil, rockets taking off, clips from a Star Wars trailer, and President Reagan walking out of the White House. These scenes give a glance of times before the 9/11 tragedy, the event that greatly shaped the boys’ generation’s political views.

But Follow the Leader goes even further to capture a more sensitive subject in today’s political reality. In

one brief shot, Nick discusses female leadership with his friend Kathryn.

He hesitates, but says honestly that he “prefers an authoritative and strong man” in a wartime situation.

He poses the question, “Can they [women] be decisive when they’re always filled with emotions?”

Such a scene reflects continuing injustice in national politics.

“People have also just had a very hard time grasping why the film is about three white boys, because they imagine it’s somehow not reality,” Levitt said. “They have a hard time dealing with the fact that it’s primarily white men who still run the country politically, given our political system’s slow pace of change.”

FOLLOWTHELEADERFILM.COM

Fox News polls suggest White Bread is ahead of Hill but behind Rubio for 2016.

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C ri t i c a l V o i c es

Jonathan Rado, Law and Order, Woodsist Records On his debut solo project Law and Order, Jonathan Rado casts his net just about as wide as a 45 minute LP will permit.

Starting with the familiar psych rock sound of Foxygen, the critically acclaimed group that he co-founded in 2005, Rado quickly broadens his repertoire, venturing into Motown, punk, and folk, ultimately finding his comfort zone right back where he started.

The album leads off with “Seven Horses,” a psychedelic rock jam with just enough electronic flare for 2013. As the synthesized instrumentals gallop along, Rado layers on a simple drum line and a shimmering organ chord progression, topped

off with airy vocals. “If you feel it all, clap your hands,” he implores us, and that is exactly the vibe this cheerful opening gives the listener.

Once the clapping has ended, it’s time for the artist’s experiment in Motown. “Hand in Mine” is a lovely exploration of the genre, complete with tambourine and a charming, male-female call-and-response duet. Rado does a fantastic job here, while still employing just enough of his characteristic cheerfulness to remind us who we’re listening to.

But then there’s “Looking 4a Girl Like U,” “I Wood,” and “I Wanna Feel it Now!!!”all great examples of experimentation gone wrong. In each of these three cases, the vocals are distorted beyond recognition. Initially, they show glimmers of musical merit but quickly degenerate into smears of pointless hissing and screeching.

“Faces” redeems the album, making up for an EP’s worth of forgettable noise. With its fuzzy guitar, jumpy percussion, and nostalgic vocals, Rado finds his way home to the contemporary psychedelic rocker role he established in his main project, Foxygen.

Top of the Lake plunges deep

The first few minutes of Oscarwinning director Jane Campion’s haunting BBC miniseries, Top of the Lake, find a young girl slowly wading into the freezing water, the silhouette of New Zealand mountains emerging through the surrounding mist. Her glassy expression is unreadable and the scene stunningly seductive, but when a frazzled adult arrives and yells that the water could kill her, we begin to understand that there’s a sinister force behind the tranquil landscape. As the story unfolds, its characters disturb the surface in more ways than one, peeling back the outward layers of both their small, sleepy town and their own pasts to discover more corruption than they might have imagined.

Only seven episodes long and yet nominated for eight Emmys (that includes a Best Actress nod for star Elisabeth Moss, who has also been nominated for her supporting role in Mad Men), Top of the

Lake is arguably the greatest thing on television that no one has heard of, now streaming on Netflix. Moss delivers her strongest performance yet as Robin Griffin, the detective who takes on the case of a missing 12-year-old girl, Tui, who also happens to be mysteriously pregnant.

Much like Peggy in Mad Men, Robin is a strong-willed woman trying to make her voice heard in a man’s world, where the general attitude toward a missing, pregnant preteen is surprisingly cavalier. With Campion as the show’s co-creator, it’s no surprise that the entire narrative is skewed toward—deep breath—a feminist perspective, tackling the reverberating consequences of sexual assault and abuse in a way that’s less contrived and more realistic than anything else I’ve seen on screens both large and small.

That’s a far cry from the gritty, confrontational approach of crime shows like CSI or Law and Order,

Rado used his inaugural solo album as a soul searching adventure, trying out different genres and styles. This exercise is successful and lands the artist back where he started.

Overlooking some forgettable mistakes, this album is bookended by a handful of captivating, cheerful tunes, which point to an exciting future solo career for Jonathan Rado.

Voice’s Choices: “Seven Horses”

“Faces,” —Josh Ward

Bastille, Bad Blood, Virgin Records Bastille’s major label debut begins in epic fashion: with raucous, layered choral harmonies. The first track, “Pompeii,” which has gained prominence where the same subjects are treated in a clinical manner. Nothing on Top of the Lake is so clear-cut or easily resolved, and the damaging effects of every action are insidious, rearing their ugly head when you least expect it.

It’s not until the fourth episode, for example, that Robin reveals a part of her past that explains both her deep connection to and fierce

idiot Box

by Julia Lloyd-George a bi-weekly column about television determination to find Tui in the face of relative apathy from Police Chief Al Parker (David Wenham) and other officers.

It’s a heartbreaking moment that must have required remarkable preparation from Moss. This first real demonstration of vulnerability indicates her slow descent into rough emotional territory, where all her defenses are down, and it soon becomes impossible

in the British music scene, introduces us to themes that recur throughout the twelve track record and the musical mind of Dan Smith. Together, the songs weave a story of the grand and ancient Roman city while simultaneously injecting a palpable feeling of inferiority: “But if you close your eyes/ does it almost feel like/nothing changed at all?”

This balance is the hallmark of Bad Blood and Smith’s compositional style. The lyrics of many songs tell impassioned stories of love, loss, and confusion. The title track, “Bad Blood,” speaks to a long-past relationship that ended poorly.

“It’s been cold for years/won’t you let it lie?” Smith croons over the synthetic, electronic instrumentation that Bastille has perfected over their previous four EPs. It is this electronically driven sound that makes Bastille so unique, that gives them their own brand of indie pop. The juxtaposition of classic alternative rock instruments like piano with the colossal and unlimited ability of the synthesizer creates a complex arrangement that appeals not only to a general radio audience, to separate her own story from that of Tui. Similarly, what appear to be fairly insignificant subplots, such as the arrival of a battered women’s collective headed by a sassy guru named GJ (Holly Hunter) in the area, or the growing romance between Robin and local scruffy heartthrob Johnno (Thomas M. Wright), all reach a kind of thematic coherence that isn’t initially clear.

These subplots are also simply satisfying stories in their own right.

The New Age-y women’s group within the small New Zealand town community provides both comic relief and a sounding board for the surrounding chaos, while the Robin-Johnno affair allows for some serious outdoor sexy times that actually made me say “hot damn” out loud. (NB: I watched the entire series alone in bed, wearing my Taylor Swift t-shirt and steadily working through a bag of Milanos.) All kidding aside, nothing ever feels forced and no detail is wasted on the viewer.

but also to an underground fan community.

A prime example of this style comes in the song “Laura Palmer,” which contains a driving bass beat one would usually associate with the Jersey Shore or the latest disaster featuring Big Sean. But when combined with the soaring harmonies and synth lead lines, the song becomes an infectious indie ballad with universal appeal.

However, the album does have its failings. The lyrics, while poetic and beautiful, can seem superficial at times. The song “The Weight of Living, Pt. II” simply repeats the line “Under the weight of living/you’re under the weight of living,” as if we will receive some sort of enlightenment regarding our stress by the third time the chorus comes around.

Bad Blood is good if for no other reason than Dan Smith’s lead vocals themselves. And I’m sure as hell not going to listen to anything else for the next two weeks.

Voice’s Choices: “Pompeii,” “Laura Palmer” —Daniel Varghese Still, the tempting “It all connects and there’s an answer for everything,” closed approach of most mystery narratives is forgone for something far more open-ended and less neatly packaged. The case is solved and achieves closure, yet it’s not the kind of story that is slave to the machinations of its plot.

Unlike Twin Peaks, David Lynch’s cult ‘90s series to which it has been endlessly compared, Top of the Lake doesn’t overreach by throwing out endless red herrings and leaving far too many loose ends. Nevertheless, both shows are concerned with the blurred lines (please go away, Robin Thicke) of their respective mysteries, subverting the moral certainties of such tales. In a way, they’re not about disturbing the surface of everyday life at all, but about revealing such a distinction between good and evil to be a mere figment of our imaginations.

Plan a TV date with Julia at jlloydgeorge@georgetownvoice.com

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— Shalina Chatlani

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Trial proves Nazis must remain accountable years later

by Lara Fishbane Sixty-nine years ago, Siert Bruins allegedly killed a Dutch resistance fighter. This Monday, he was placed on trial for Nazi war crimes. No matter how many times people say the old mantra “time heals all wounds,” for victims of the Nazi regime, this platitude will never be true.

Nazi war crimes are an issue that will never be put to rest, because, beyond all the pain caused by the Nazi atrocities, we still want to prove that no harm can be done without punishment. We need to believe that by holding the perpetrators accountable, we will be able to prevent those massive injustices against humanity from occurring again.

Siert Bruins became a member of the Nazis’ Waffen SS after the Nazis seized control of his homeland in 1941.

Over the years of working under the regime, he gained prestige and rose to a rank equivalent to sergeant. He was

later transferred to the Netherlands, where he worked for an intelligence agency and the Security Police.

It was during his time in the Netherlands that he is believed to have killed Aldert Klaas Dijkema with an accomplice. Although it is not certain whether or not Bruins’s gun actually fired the lethal bullet, he is still to be held accountable for his violence. If convicted, Bruin’s case will prove that murder is ultimately irreconcilable and no statute of limitations can render the worst crimes moot.

Although my great grandparents left Europe before the Holocaust, there were members of my family and many others left behind in Germany that were sent off to concentration camps. Many of these mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers fell victim to the genocide perpetrated by the Nazi soldiers either in gas chambers or the harsh conditions of the work camps. Even though I did not personally

know those victims, I still feel for the suffering they had to bear. In those years, we lost a piece of humanity.

But, should a man like Bruins be offered a chance at redemption, after so much time has passed? Many people are asking if there should be some statute of limitations for the 92 year-old man entering the court room dependent upon a walker—if it is time for healing and acceptance, rather than a revisiting of painful wounds.

Maybe there is some reason in these ideas. We are all capable of doing good and evil and have moments where we morally falter. Under the right circumstances, anyone’s ethical code could be swayed.

If someone is offered power after years of oppression, it is hard to say that even the most humble person would not accept it. If it were ingrained in a man’s mind over and over again that he is superior to another, even the most righteous might eventu-

ally believe it. If a suffering man were told the source of his problems, even the most levelheaded person would begin to feel a sense of bitter resentment.

As humans, we are inclined to accept whatever reality is presented to us, especially when it is more desirable than the truth. If a man on shaken moral ground is given a gun and ordered to shoot someone he is told is the cause of his problems, he will most likely pull the trigger.

I understand how the actions taken by men under the Nazi regime might have been committed under duress. All of us have the capability to commit crimes, to do wrong, to hurt, and to kill. But understandable does not mean forgivable. We all have the ability to put down the gun and say no. We all possess an intrinsic good that protects humanity, as the Nuremburg Trials established decades ago.

No matter how deeply we feel for the victims and de-

spise the injustice committed to millions of people, no one will ever be in a position to grant forgiveness. Murder cannot be forgiven because it eliminates the only people who have the right to grant forgiveness. To let Bruins off the hook would not grant him a true second chance. Not a single person today can accept an apology owed to a lost generation.

Even seven decades cannot separate Bruins from his crimes. He may not be the person he once was, but he is still accountable for his actions.

His trial is not about dredging up old grudges or believing that people cannot change after 69 years. It is about the silencing of a generation, and an insistence that justice will always matter.

Lara Fishbane is a freshman in the College. As a matter of couse, she makes a point of not accepting apologies.

Common ground: Republicans, Obama can unite over Syria

by Ryan Shymansky President Obama’s recent decision to use force in Syria has been met with attacks from both ends of the political spectrum. The liberal left claims military action will lead to more bloodshed, while the far right rejects the notion that force can be used without an imminent threat, and though these arguments may seem sound from within the partisan chambers they inhabit, they’re wrong.

I’ve been a conservative Republican my whole life. I know better than most how Republicans feel about President Obama, because I feel that way, too. We think he’s a weak executive, a hypocrite who campaigns accord-

ing to one set of principles and governs by another. In fact, there’s little that Barack Obama and I agree on, except for the Syrian crisis.

For months, Republicans have been calling for a harder stance against the crimes in Syria and the problematic regime officials. We believe Obama’s administration has avoided necessary involvement in the Syrian crisis for far too long. Now he is ready to act. Republicans aren’t looking for a second Iraq War or a regime change with new Syrian policy, and neither is Obama.

Republicans don’t want to just put boots on the ground or for America to police the world, and neither does Obama.

Instead, on a world stage crowded with children too

Barry knows the family that plays together, stays together.

TEDDY SCHAFFER

weak or too beholden to the Syrian regime to act, we expect the United States to be an adult force and take action against Assad. After indiscriminately killing 1,429 Syrians with chemical weapons, including 426 children, Syrian President Bashar Assad must be held accountable for his crimes. These mass killings are war crimes. Since the end of World War I, international norms have dictated that chemical weapons never be used in war. To allow a dictator to use weapons of mass destruction, or WMDs, without facing repercussions will only lead to further proliferation of chemical weapons.

There are a number of actions against Assad taken by the Obama administration that Republicans should start supporting. First, they should commend the careful approach President Obama has taken regarding WMD intelligence gathering in the postIraq world. His strategy has allowed for the time and resources needed to confirm with a high level of confidence that Sarin gas was used by the regime in the attacks on Aug. 21.

Republicans should also support President Obama’s decision to proceed unilaterally against Syria. Any efforts to pursue a vote to authorize force through the UN

Security Council would lead nowhere. The lack of UN approval does not make President Obama’s decision any less right, it only reinforces the notion that the United States is the only country capable of taking a stance against the crimes of the Syrian regime.

Finally, Republicans should support Obama’s decision to seek Congressional authorization before using force in Syria. Though the War Powers Act does not demand the President do so, he should get his military plans approved by Congressional representatives as a matter of conscience. Though it is a politically risky move for the president, it is the right one.

Republicans in Congress will soon face a dilemma.

They must decide whether to make the right decision and authorize the president to use force, or to make the politically expedient decision and vote against military intervention.

Of course, before acting, we should recognize that military action alone cannot solve Syria’s problems. But the point of intervention in Syria is not regime change or to end centuries-old sectarian differences.

The point is to punish a man who, after over 100,000 of his countrymen died fighting a bloody civil war, saw fit to use weapons of mass destruction against his own people.

There will be time to argue politics again soon. It won’t be long until we’ll be arguing about healthcare and taxes again, but saving innocent Syrian lives is an issue that should unite us all, conservatives and liberals alike. Americans—Republicans and Democrats alike—understand war fatigue. But that is no excuse to not act. Some of the darkest stains on Western foreign policy have been the result of us closing our eyes and trying to ignore the world. We look back at the Rwandan Genocide and the Munich Agreement not with pride, but with shame.

President Obama is taking steps to avoid making a similar tragic error. The international community has proven too weak or too misaligned to retaliate against Bashar Assad.

And now, Assad’s crimes have shocked President Obama into doing something that many Republicans have long argued for. The United States has been left alone to shoulder this massive burden. Republicans, then, should stand side-by-side with President Obama and help him carry the weight of war.

Ryan Shymansky is a sophomore in the College. He voted for Obama in the last election, he just can’t admit it to himself.

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Death penalty make us no better than criminals we condemn

by Jeremy Dang I remember the stutter in his speech, the terror on his face, and the utter desperation in his voice.

I remember his torn jeans and old, faded polo that told the story of a life of poverty and struggle. But, most of all, I remember the face of the man that sat just a few meters away from him. That man was his father, who seemed stone cold and emotionless, with his eyes staring straight ahead. His face conveyed that he truly knew regret.

His name was Obel CruzGarcia, and he raped and murdered two people. He was staring death row right in the eyes.

There are few things that have changed me as much as the month I spent interning at Texas Defender Service, a non-profit law firm that defends inmates on death row. I remember every single face in the courtroom on that day. I remember thinking to myself that the kid who sat on the witness stand was my age, yet while I would go home and worry about going to Georgetown, he would go home and worry about whether his testimony was good enough to save his father’s life and how he would take care of his family if his father was sentenced to death. So when Texas proudly celebrated its 500th execution in June, it hit me harder

In related news, Texas’s funeral industry booms.

LAUREN ASHLEY PANAWA

Dynamic in diversity

After two weeks at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in Qatar, I have noticed a stark contrast between how Qatar and the U.S. treat their immigrant workers. From this, I have decided that America’s acceptance of its melting pot tradition truly makes it a stronger country.

I know it’s cliché to say we are a melting pot, and I know that our current immigration policy leaves much to be desired. But while Doha is a glittering city being built as fast as humanly possible, almost all of the work is done by foreign laborers who have no chance of a future in Qatar. They primarily come from Nepal, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and the Philippines.

According to Human Rights Watch, Qatar has some of the most restrictive sponsorship laws in the region. This sponsorship is

considered a version of modern slavery, in which foreign workers must pay fees for the privilege of working in Qatar, a portion of their monthly wages goes to their sponsor, and the sponsor controls the workers’ ability to leave the country. Even if you start a small business, part of your earnings go to your Qatari sponsor. Simple labor laws regarding worker safety and quality of living are rarely enforced, or don’t apply to immigrant workers.

Foreign workers cannot obtain citizenship in Qatar. To become a citizen of Qatar applicants must be born of a Qatari man, have lived in the country for at least 25 years, or been married to a Qatari man for five years. Human Rights Watch estimates that only 50 naturalizations are allowed in a year, although this is not stipulated in the citizenship law. This is why Qatar has only a citizen pop-

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than I expected. 500 lives were terminated in the name of justice, 500 families were shattered to pieces.

I don’t identify strongly with many political issues, but watching Texas’s policy on death row in action moved me in ways I could never have expected.

We only get one life, one opportunity to find our place in the world. This is our only time to find love, friendship, and happiness. The intentional theft of that life is the greatest evil, no matter if it is done by a criminal or endorsed by the state. Even if the death penalty did deter crime— which is impossible to measure— we must not sacrifice life to stop someone else from committing a crime. Every person only has one life to call their own, and that life is theirs and theirs alone, not simply a tool to be used to better society.

There are many ways in which you can argue against the death penalty and the bloodthirsty attitude that accompanies it in this country.

You could stick to facts and simply remark how executions cost more money than life-long incarcerations and that juries have been known to convict the wrong person. Most of the time there is an incongruous rela-

ulation of around 250,000, despite the fact that it has over one and a half million residents. Although it is not easy to obtain a green card in the United States, at least the time requirement for naturalization is only five years. The bulk of Qatar’s foreign workforce will never have contracts long enough to earn citizenship.

I interact with these workers everyday. Across the Doha campus, foreign workers clean buildings, drive buses, serve food, guard entrances, and build foundations for a metro line. As part of student orientation, all the in-

Carrying On

by Matthew Weinmann A rotating column by senior Voice staffers

coming freshmen had lunch with the service staff, something that many students had never experienced. One woman I met talked about her sons and how much she missed them. They live with their grandmother in the Philippines.

She can only visit them once a year and works hard so that they might have a future in the Philippines—not in Qatar.

After that conversation I started thinking about the differences between the opportunities present

tionship between white courtrooms and minority convicts.

What’s more, the United States is one of the leading countries in numbers of state-sanctioned murders. If you are sentimentally or spiritually inclined, there’s the fact that justice is supposed to reinstate balance in society, not inflame angry emotions and give in to revenge—which is what the death penalty is designed for. Absolution and redemption are not possible if we end someone’s life prematurely.

Lawmakers in Texas, it seems, are blind to these facts. Before making their verdicts, juries in Texas are instructed to ignore their passions, prejudices, and emotions when considering criminals facing the death penalty. They are told to evaluate nothing but the facts as they have been presented. But, it is the passions, prejudices, and emotions that make us human. Juries are told to destroy human lives just as easily as the criminals do. And yet, they celebrate the state sanctioned murder of 500 people as if others’ lives were inconsequential.

It is easy for most of us, as comparatively affluent Georgetown students, to misunderstand or judge the faces that are on the other side of the law. It is even easier for us to ignore and marginalize the

in Doha and America. Yes, they both take in foreign workers to do jobs the locals do not want to do. (Honestly, I have yet to see a Qatari in a position other than law enforcement or as an immigration officer.) But, for the most part, Americans welcome immigrants as long as they follow the system.

According to recent Pew polls, 49 percent of Americans think immigrants strengthen the country and 52 percent said increasing numbers of newcomers strengthen our society. According to a poll conducted in May, 75 percent agreed something must be done to fix our immigration system.

I hope that the the House of Representatives will take up a serious immigration bill before the end of the year. When they do they should bear in mind that we are a country of immigrants. Nearly all Americans can trace their lineage to another country.

This weekend, leaders in Catholic churches are planning to encourage parishioners to pressure House Republicans for change, with masses focused on immigration and visits to Congressional offices. Along with their moral motivations, Catholic leaders know that part of the Church’s future is with the growing Latino population. It’s a

500 lives that have been terminated in the name of justice in Texas, and forget the families torn apart.

As college students, sometimes we forget about the world going on outside our little bubbles, beyond our social groups and classes. We tend to stress about classes and homework and forget that there are real people with real problems that never got the privilege to stress about classes or homework.

In reality, we are at the heart of the nation, the center of change and progress, and we have the power to alter who we are and what we are as a country.

We need to start looking beyond the walls of our school and start caring for the people with bigger problems and torn families.

Our justice system and the way we carelessly execute citizens for their crimes demand our humanity immediately. Texas and every other state need our human passions, prejudices, and emotions, because now, they are robotic, statesanctioned murder machines.

Jeremy Dang is a freshman in the College. He can be found in Red Sqaure advocating for the bumblebee’s right to live. shame Republicans can’t seem to realize the same can be said about America as a whole.

Immigration reform will make our economy stronger, our democracy more vibrant, and our future brighter. I don’t want America to be like Qatar, with workers toiling away so that their families can have a better future elsewhere, separate from them. I want immigrants to come to the United States, to bring their families, to add to our economic strength and social diversity, and to pursue their dreams. Some of our greatest minds such as Albert Einstein, Madeliene Albright, and Sergey Brin came from somewhere else but pursued their dream in America and made it a better place.

Doha is as ethnically diverse as anywhere in the United States.

But it is not a melting pot. It is a bucket filled with Pakistani sweat, stirred by Filipino cooks, and served by Sri Lankan waiters.

Looking at Doha, I see the worst of what our immigration policies could be, and this highlights the reasons why embracing immigrants must be a vital part of the United States’s strategy for success in the 21st century. I hope opponents of immigration reform can see the difference between our melting pot and the Qatari bucket.

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT Will Collins

Chris, The Joads’ First Album

North Carolina

School of Foreign Service: Major: CULP, Certificate: film and media studies

Know a Georgetown Artist?

Contact Tiff at tdl25@georgetown.edu with your suggestions!

So tell me, what are you studying?

I’m a CULP major with a focus on film and media Do you think those two topics work well together?

Yeah, its really cool because I can study the reasons and implications involved in war through my IR classes and then look at director Akira Kurosawa and his films on post-war drama and their effects. It’s a surprisingly great blend.

That sounds awesome!

Yeah, it’s great because there’s so much good cinema that addresses our pressing international affairs.

So have you made any films?

Yeah definitely, I made a short film last semester called On the Other Hand, which is a crazy story about a renegade physical therapist and his patient who cant use one of his hands. It was inspired by some personal experience, I had messed my hand up pretty bad.

I’ve also done a couple of things this summer, a few short films— they’re pretty absurd but I think they’re pretty funny—and also a music video for a song from my band.

You’re into music too?

Yeah, so I’ve always been into making music ever since I got my first drum set in fifth grade. I guess I always stuck with it since I had friends who played instruments too. These days, I’m working on music with my best friend in our band, The Joads.

The Joads?

It’s the name of the family from The Grapes of Wrath. I think they

are the greatest American tragedy, which is kind of cool.

How would you describe your sound?

It’s sort of Rock and Roll, but I don’t think we fit into sub-genres.

I think we have a lot of punk, surf and blues, which to me are the basics of Rock.

So how did The Joads get started?

Well, we formed officially only two months ago but we were making a lot of music so recorded our first EP Chris and soon after had a show at a concert venue in Richmond Virginia.

Wow! That’s pretty impressive start, how are things since then?

Venues have started reaching out to us to play throughout the city. We’re pretty excited and once classes get started we’ll be able to see what dates we’re playing and where. But I know our next show will be at The Velvet Lounge on October 22nd.

Sounds like pursuing your music was a good choice for you.

Definitely. Coming to Georgetown I didn’t realize how much I loved being able to just play music until I couldn’t do it all the time. This summer when my bandmate Zach moved to D.C., we took our music more seriously.

We’ll see where it goes.

Check out Will’s Music here! http://tinyurl.com/thejoads And watch his short film! http://tinyurl.com/ontheotherhandwill