012012 Chicago Maroon

FRIDAY • JANUARY 20, 2012

THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO SINCE 1892

CHICAGOMAROON.COM

Major politicos weigh Republican field

ISSUE 21 • VOLUME 123

Axelrod unveils Institute of Politics Democratic strategist to leave Beltway for Midway Noah Weiland & William Wilcox News Staff

Mayor Rahm Emanuel speaks with columnist David Brooks at the “2012: The Path of the Presidency” panel event Thursday afternoon at the International House.

DARREN LEOW | THE CHICAGO MAROON

Sam Levine News Editor Mayor Rahm Emanuel joined New York Times columnist David Brooks (A.B. ’83), MSNBC host Rachel Maddow, and Republican strateg ist Alex Castellanos for a

panel discussion yesterday afternoon, speculating on the 2012 presidential campaign and diagnosing the condition of American politics in International House’s Assembly Hall.

Former White House senior adviser David Axelrod (A .B. ’76)

assembled the panel, which “This Week” anchor George Stephanopoulos moderated. The discussion began after Axelrod publicly announced plans to establish a new institute for the study of politics here at the University.

Much of the discussion

focused on the political viability of current Republican front-runner Mitt Romney, and the message that President Barack Obama would have to send to voters in order to win re-election. The panelists also examined 2012 continued on page 2

David Axelrod (A.B. '76), President Barack Obama’s longtime chief political strategist, announced the creation of the University of Chicago Institute of Politics at a panel event in International House’s Assembly Hall yesterday afternoon.

Slated to open next January, the Institute will try to establish a practical approach to political science: It will offer internships in politics and communications, host fellows who will conduct small study groups, and present series of speakers in a wide variety of fields related to public life. The internship program will build on existing offerings like the Jeff Metcalf Fellows Program.

Axelrod also hopes to use the series of speakers and fellows to make the University “a top destination for political actors and policy makers.”

New York Times columnist

David Brooks (A.B. '83), one of Thursday’s panelists, will serve on the Institute’s advisory board alongside Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, historian Doris Kearns-Goodwin, and Republican consultant Mike Murphy, among others.

The creation of the Institute will mark Axelrod’s departure from political life and a homecoming to Hyde Park, though he alluded to one more “chore” to take care of before the end of the 2012 presidential elections. Axelrod also alluded to his deep ties to the area: While a student he wrote for both the Maroon and Hyde Park Herald, and married his wife, a Hyde Park native, in Bond Chapel.

The Institute will be open to students from all divisions of the University, but will operate under the purview of the College and the Harris School of Public Policy. After meeting with students over the past few months, Axelrod decided the U of C was the INSTITUTE continued on page 3

Fermilab, LEGO launch science contest Architect of Max Palevsky dormitories dies at 80 Stephanie Xiao News Staff Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) will partner with Google, LEGO, Scientific American, National Geographic, and the CERN Laboratory this April for the second annual Google Science Fair, an international competition intended for students between the ages of 13 and 18.

The grand prize winner will receive hands-on experience at Fermilab, CERN, or Google, in addition to an expedition to the Galapagos Islands, a $50,000 Google scholarship, and a personalized LEGO set.

This year’s competition is open to submissions in 13 languages, an expansion from last year when only entries in English were considered, even though 10,000 students from more than 90 countries submitted proposals. All entrants must create online profiles using Google Sites to present their projects.

“The winner can see what we do and visit a number of research areas… play around if he or she wants and get a feeling for what research is,” YoungKee Kim, Deputy Director of Fermilab,

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University physics professor, and member of this year’s judging panel, said.

Kim said that winning a regional science competition in middle school gave her the confidence to pursue particle physics, and she hopes that the Google Science Fair will similarly impact its participants.

“Many times you ask whether you can do it, or if you are good enough, or if it’s right for you; many questions come to you when you are young. Experiencing that competition gave me a lot of confidence, so when I see all these young people doing this, I think it is very incredible,” Kim said.

In July, 15 global finalists will be chosen from the online entries and flown to Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, for judgment. From there, winners will be chosen across three age brackets, before judges settle on a Grand Prize Winner.

Ultimately, Kim believes the Google Science Fair will nurture a love of science in young people around the world.

“There are perceptions that perhaps [science] is hard, or that only uncool people do it,” Kim said. “Science is not something that only a few people can do. Science is everywhere.”

Temperatures in Fahrenheit - Courtesy of The Weather Channel

Joy Crane News Staff Ricardo Legorreta Vilchis, designer of the Max Palevsky Residential Commons and pioneer of Mexican modernist architecture, passed away December 30 of liver cancer in Mexico City. He was 80.

Legoretta brought global exposure to modernist Mexican design, brightening cities such as London, Mexico City, and Chicago. He designed Max P in 2000, just a year after he was awarded the prestigious UIA Gold Medal for architectural excellence.

Legoretta’s distinctive style has divided opinion throughout the world. His controversial redesign of Los Angeles’s Pershing Square in 1993 marked his aversion to the status quo. As one of the most visible dorms on campus, Max P contrasts with the Mansueto and Regenstein Libraries and other distinctive buildings on 56th Street.

The bright colors of his work embody the culture of his home, Mexico City, against the grayness of ARCHITECT continued on page 3

Ricardo Legorreta Vilchis, the architect who designed Max Palevsky Residential Commons, passed away late last month.

Pictured above, Thornburg Offices, also designed by Legorreta, in Santa Fe. COURTESY OF LEGORRETA + LEGORRETA

IN ARTS

IN SPORTS

Lascivious Ball disrobes bookish stereotypes » Page 7

Chicago hits century mark

The kids are alright; the parents aren’t » Page 7

Maroons thrive at home meet

» Page 12 » Page 12

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THE CHICAGO MAROON | NEWS | January 20, 2012

Remembering MLK, students continue spirit of Occupy

Roughly 1,500 people turned out for Sunday’s “Occupy the Dream” event at the People’s Church of Chicago in Uptown, including dozens of U of C students.

PHOTO COURTESY OF IIRON

Linda Qiu Associate News Editor Droves of community groups and activists, including dozens of University students, gathered Sunday

at the People’s Church of Chicago in Uptown to reflect on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and call for legislative action.

About 70 U of C students were among the 1,500 people

who turned out for the day-long commemoration of King’s work, dubbed “Occupy the Dream”, which kicked off a week of political action and agitation.

Reverend Dwight Gardner de-

livered the day’s keynote address on King’s legacy, while speakers presented local and federal agendas and demanded policy changes from invited elected officials, including Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Congressmen Jan Schakowsky and Jesse Jackson, Jr. Preckwinkle said that she would work to create fairer banking standards for Cook County deposits.

State Senator Heather Steans and State Representatives Robyn Gabel and Kelly Cassidy committed to raising corporate taxes. Jackson and Schakowsky both pledged to pass jobs bills and regulate financial speculation.

An MLK Day celebration is held every year by Southsiders Organized for Unity and Liberty (SOUL), one of the day’s coordinators. However, this year’s event had an “Occupy twist,” according to SOUL member and event speaker Toby Chow.

“In many ways the Occupy movement is the heir of MLK’s legacy. King was killed while planning the Poor People’s Campaign.

This mass movement around eco-

nomic inequality didn’t happen, so what we’re seeing now is what he wanted to see happen,” Chow said in an interview. “There is definitely a great advantage in bringing up these more populist, progressive demands in an audience.”

Third-year Caroline Wooten, who helped to recruit U of C students in organizing Occupy the Dream, was hopeful that the event would capture Washington’s attention.

“By helping pack the church, we could really put pressure on these politicians and let them know that people in Chicago are pissed off and we expect our politicians to play their roles,” she said.

Political action in association with Occupy the Dream continued during the week. On Monday, Dream participants joined demonstrators at Federal Reserve Banks in Chicago.

The event was coordinated by the Illinois Indiana Regional Organizing Network (IIRON), which includes a number of Chicago grassroots organizations in addition to SOUL.

Brooks to Obama: Talk about opportunity, not inequality

(left to right) George Stephanopoulos, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, David Brooks, Rachel Maddow and Alex Castellanos engaged in lively debate at the “2012: The Path of the Presidency” panel event Thursday afternoon at the International House.

DARREN LEOW | THE CHICAGO MAROON 2012 continued from front

whether Americans had reason to be optimistic about their government. “ The Republican field I don’t think at this point has disting uished itself,” said Castellanos, who served as a top adviser on Romney’s 2008 presidential campaign. “Romney I think is still the only candidate who can still win the Republican nomination.”

Maddow ag reed with Castellanos’s prediction, but she qualified that Romney is merely “the tallest midget” in the Republican field. Emanuel

also agreed with Castellanos, though he argued that Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels or New Jersey Governor Chris Christie would have been much stronger candidates.

Asked what Obama should say in Tuesday’s State of the Union address, Brooks said that it was an opportunity for the President to remind Americans to be optimistic.

“If you go into a room and ask how many people think their kids will have worse life prospects than you, every hand goes up,” Brooks said. “People do not want to talk about inequality. They

want to talk about opportunity.”

Maddow agreed that Americans were pessimistic about what their government could accomplish, and said that the President needs to focus on small, specific policies that will bolster the nation’s confidence in Washington.

“People need to have their faith restored that government can do something useful, that policy can do something useful,” she said.

“So this is probably a time to talk about small, do-able things that people can identify with.”

Emanuel, who helped engineer several of Obama’s keystone policies during the beginning of

his presidency, disagreed, arguing that specific policy details should come after an election, while campaigns are a time to focus on big ideas. Emanuel said that the President’s democratic base will “rally to the battle cry,” but that the biggest challenge to re-election will be winning over independent voters skeptical of how Obama has handled the economy.

As Axelrod, Obama’s chief political strategist, sat a few feet away, Maddow argued that Republicans have won a significant battle of public opinion.

“Part of what’s happened is

that the Republicans have won the framing and messaging battle about whether politicians are scumbags, and whether or not government is worth anything , whether or not policy can do anything, and whether you can expect anything from the work of public servants to do anything better,” she said.

“People know instinctually, in their sixth sense, we’re at kind of an inflection point as a country, and they know their lives are going to be part of that inflection point,” Emanuel said. “Elections are all about the future. They’re about tomorrow. If you’re going forward looking through the rearview mirror, they’ll catch you on that and there will be an accident.”

The panel also considered the possibility of a third-party challenger in the general election this fall. Maddow said that the left will “eat alive” any challenger from its own side, but suggested that Ron Paul could run as a third-party candidate in the general election.

The panelists concluded the discussion with a reflection on the current political climate, and the future of both major political parties. Brooks said that today’s polarized political culture is connected to the disappearance of humility and self-effacement.

“If you have a sense of modesty about yourself, you realize that you need the people who disagree with you because of your own flawed understanding of the world,” he said. “If you think you have the truth by the short-hairs, they’re just in the way.”

A group of protesters sitting in the balcony interrupted Emanuel when he first spoke, criticizing his decision to lay off 363 public library employees last year. The Mayor paused while the demonstration continued, and the protesters were escorted from the room after a few minutes.

THE CHICAGO MAROON | NEWS | January 20, 2012

3

Axelrod to spend 20 hours a week on campus; UC Dems, College Republicans both see promise in Institute INSTITUTE continued from front

ideal place for the program he envisioned. The Institute will be located in a University-owned building at 5707 S. Woodlawn Avenue, Axelrod said, though a University spokesperson could not immediately confirm the location.

In order to make use of what Axelrod calls a “world-class” faculty at the University, he has enlisted former Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers and Booth School Professor Austan Goolsbee to act as a faculty liaison for the Institute. In addition to conferring with Axelrod on the goals of the Institute, Goolsbee said he plans to coordinate with different speakers and involve other professors within the program.

The Institute will offer a different approach to education than the theoretical style often associated with the College. Instead of analyzing political theory in the abstract, the Institute will put students directly in contact with the practice of politics, Axelrod said.

Dean of the College John Boyer said that the pragmatic focus of the Institute would complement the academic rigor of the College.

“I don’t think there’s any kind of conflict with intellectual intensity and professional success,” he said. “The Institute and our Chicago Careers Programs are built upon the assumption of our Core program.”

Axelrod, who has spent the last 27 years as a Democratic strategist, has stressed the Institutes’s non-partisanship, and said that the Institute will draw on a network of political figures from both sides of the aisle.

“We want to place people in Republican, as well as Democratic, offices because to me, this is not to proselytize from one point of view or

the other,” Axelrod said. “The only point of view I’m trying to get across is that it is vitally important for young people to be involved in public life.”

After the 2012 presidential election ends, Axelrod said he will spend 20 hours a week at the Institute and devote the rest of his time to writing.

“My next campaign is not a partisan campaign,” he said. “My next campaign is to bring more young people into the public arena, to rehabilitate politics in the eyes of young people and encourage them to take the reins here and really steer the course of this country.”

Student leaders from UC Dems, College Republicans, and Student Government discussed the Institute with Axelrod a weekand-a-half before the official announcement.

Fourth-year and UC Dems President Ricky Zacharias and College Republicans President Stephen Sunderman, both fourth-years, agreed that the Institute will help encourage continued political participation.

“It should spell well for both the UC Dems and the College Republicans when it comes to activity within the groups,” Sunderman said. “It’s the Institute’s initiative to really spur students to be politically active.”

Axelrod said that he hopes the Institute will give him a new energy about the field in which he has become nationally renowned.

“When you’re around young people, they force you to think about what you do and why you do it, and so it is an invigorating thing to be on a campus,” he said. “This has always been something that I wanted to do after I got done with my political work.”

Former White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod (A.B. ’76) details the new University of Chicago Institute of Politics, slated to open in January 2013.

DARREN LEOW | THE CHICAGO MAROON

Initiative aims to make leaders out of 25 students Stephanie Xiao News Staff The University’s new Student Leadership Institute (SLI) is poised to begin its first workshops for the students who successfully applied for its services, ending months of planning that began before the start of the school year.

At its kick-off event over the first weekend of winter quarter, 25 first-, second-, and third-year students traveled to the Outdoor Wisconsin Leadership School near Lake Geneva, WI, joined by fourth-year facilitators and members of the SLI’s planning committee.

Through spring quarter there will be biweekly workshops and lectures at the Alumni House by professionals and alumni, alternating with media components, reading assignments, and trips to Chicago-based organizations, culminating in a final project of each student’s own design that must have a measurable impact on campus or in the neighborhoods surrounding it.

The general curriculum will focus on developing leadership skills in the workplace, adaptability, emotional intelligence, decision-making, group dynamics, and entrepreneurship, according to Student Activities Resource Adviser Ravi Randhava.

Initial student reactions to propos-

als for the program last quarter were mixed. Students felt that the Institute would cater mostly to students who needed its services least, such as those who already lead RSOs and have a presence in the campus community; the fact that the SLI would rely on a competitive application process deepened this concern. Additionally, the SLI’s actual purpose and execution were regarded as vague.

As an Orientation Leader this year, second-year SG representative Melissa Chanthalangsy heard preliminary proposals about the Institute before the start of the school year.

“A suggestion was made [that the SLI should] target students who needed the tools to build leadership skills— not students who already have them and are implementing them in their RSOs and daily life everyday,” Chanthalangsy wrote in an email last October. “[As of then], it’s just another one of those leadership programs geared toward students who are already in tune with leadership opportunities.”

The planning committee corrected its course, however, in time for the start of winter quarter.

“We felt from Orientation on that we wanted to consult with students to get feedback on the process,” Daugherty said. “We didn’t want it to just be a teaching curriculum; we wanted it to

be more engaged...overcoming the theory-practice divide and creating a program that did both with real people.”

Only 25 students were selected for participation in this year’s pilot program out of more than 100 applications, but the leaders of SLI want to expand the program across a broader portion of the student body in the future, according to Randhava.

“I’m looking forward to hearing how students evaluate this pilot program,” Daugherty said.

Current SLI members view the pilot as an opportunity “to help improve it for next year,” first-year and member Devansh Parasrampuria said.

Older students in the Institute have similar opinions.

“As a third-year, I have a lot of opportunities to mold the program and give input into what I want out of the program,” Vivien Sin said.

First-year Student Government representative Raymond Dong believes that, despite being in its early stages, the program has the potential to benefit the entire College once members apply the skills they learn on campus.

“All the people who take part will definitely grow in terms of leadership capabilities, and that is always very positive for a community,” Dong said.

“It’s still in its infancy, but I think it’s on the right track.”

Architect captured colors of Mexico in work ARCHITECT continued from front

Chicago winters.

“Modern architects want too much clarity in a building,” he told Architectural Record in 2000.

“They miss the pleasures of mystery and intrigue.”

His other esteemed works include the Camino Real Hotel

in Mexico City (1965) and the Fashion and Textile Museum in London (2003).

Legoretta established his own practice, Legoretta + Legoretta, in 1963. His first commission, an automobile factory for Mexican manufacturer Automex, was one of his many projects that captured the

spirit of Mexican independence.

“When I built Automex, it was like an explosion inside me, a rebellion against all the discipline I had known and the foreign domination of my country,” he told Architecture in Development in 1995. “It was like yelling ‘Viva Mexico!’ and ‘Viva the Mexican worker!’”

Two Booth professors appointed to Group of 30 Jennifer Standish News Staff Booth School of Business professors Raghuram Rajan and Axel Weber will soon be representing the University in the global economic community through their appointments to the Group of Thirty, an international body of economists and financial thinkers.

Weber, a visiting professor of economics, and Rajan, the Eric J. Gleacher Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at Booth, were chosen for their experiences in both economic academia and policy making. Rajan also serves as an economic adviser to the Indian Prime Minister and was chairman of the International Monetary Fund from 2003 to 2007. Weber was recently offered a position in the financial industry as the Chairman of the Union Bank of Switzerland.

“The group aims to deepen the understanding of international economic and financial issues by drawing on the experience of a range of senior public and private sector practitioners, academics and policymakers,” Weber wrote in an e-mail.

According to Sunil Kumar, dean of the Booth School, the appointments will be beneficial to both the international discourse and the quality of education at the University.

“First, this will allow our representatives to influence debate and policy in a substantial way.

Second, some of the ideas discussed at the meetings may find its way into our classrooms and into conversations with other faculty members who will then bring it into their classrooms,”

he wrote in an e-mail.

Rajan and Weber expect that their participation in G30 will give their teaching an edge of realworld policy-making. “I usually draw heavily on current events in financial markets,” Weber wrote.

“Discussions within the Group of Thirty will help me in assessing these developments from a broader and balanced perspective.”

Rajan, the author of the bestseller Fault Lines, agreed.

“Almost any new experience which makes you think differently can be brought into the classroom,” Rajan said. “Just today, we were talking about the European crisis. I think discussions of the kind that we have in the Group of Thirty will help improve my understanding, and what I bring to the classroom.”

Kumar said that the appointments will also benefit the University’s outward image. “Being represented on the G30 will also help raise the visibility of the University and Booth not only among committee members, who include senior participants from the public and private sectors and academia, but also in the international economic and financial spheres at large,” Kumar wrote.

R ajan and Web er ’s appointments exemplif y the non-academic expertise of the University’s faculty in their fields, according to Rajan. “It helps convey the reality that the faculty at the University is very much engaged in national and international discourse,” Rajan said. “We are not sitting in an ivory tower. We are not only thinking, but communicating our thinking in policy debate.”

THE CHICAGO MAROON | NEWS | January 20, 2012

4

By Rebecca Guterman

WEEKLY CRIME REPORT

This is a weekly series the Maroon publishes summarizing weekly instances of campus crime. Each week details a few notable crimes, in addition to keeping a running count from January 1. The focus is on crimes within the UCPD patrol area, which runs from East 39th to 64th Streets and South Cottage Grove to Lake Shore Drive.

Since Jan. 1

CLASSIFIEDS Classified advertising in The Chicago Maroon is $3 for each line. Lines are 45 characters long including spaces and punctuation. Special headings are 20-character lines at $4 per line. Submit all ads in person, by e-mail, or by mail to The Chicago Maroon, Ida Noyes Hall, Lower Level Rm 026, 1212 E. 59th St., Chicago, IL 60637. The Chicago Maroon accepts Mastercard & Visa. Call (773) 702-9555.

ASIAN EGG DONOR NEEDED $40-$50k in compensation, plus expenses Asian couple seeking a happy, intelligent, attractive, and healthy woman with athletic abilities between the ages of 21-27, black hair, brown eyes, and 5’6�+. Please contact: info@aperfectmatch.com 1-800-264-8828

Advertise in the Maroon ads@chicagomaroon.com

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Before welcoming the University’s new William Eckhardt Research Center in 2015, the University will have to demolish the Enrico Fermi Research Institute in Feburary, which occupies the Center’s future site and boasts 67 years of history.

Built on the northwest corner of East 57th Street and South Ellis Avenue in 1945 after World War II, the Fermi Institute was “an outgrowth of the research that was brought here from the Manhattan Project,� said Emil Martinec, the Institute’s current director. ThenChancellor Robert Hutchins intended for it to bridge the disciplines of traditional science and technology, an alliance which began in the Manhattan Project. Since then, it has been the site of breaking research in astronomy, astrophysics, and high-energy nuclear physics. “Some of the most scientific events happened in this area and in this building,� said Grahm Balkany, a Chicago-based architect whose work includes preservation projects. “[The University will be] losing a major part of its history when this building is [torn] down.�

In anticipation of the move, the Institute’s theorists have moved to other buildings around campus. “[The construction] is having an effect on the research that’s being done, and it also will, in the short term, affect us in terms of tracking new faculty,� Martinec said. The old center held tens of thousands of square feet of office and lab space.

However, the Eckhardt Center will provide a single space for the Institute’s research to continue—a boon for researchers reliant on cooperation across fields and between offices. “[The center’s design will] force collaboration and what we call ‘collisions of people’ between experimental-

ists and theorists,� Project Manager John Ekholm said. “And those are vital to discovery.�

Martinec agreed, noting that there has been a “diaspora� of scientific minds at the University since the James Franck Institute’s move south of East 57th Street and the consolidation of the Cosmology department in the Laboratory for Astrophysics and Space Research on East 56th Street near Drexel Avenue. “One of the important things about research space is: does it facilitate people interacting with each other?� he said.

To ensure that there will continue to be a productive place for research on campus, Martinec is working closely with the Dean’s Office for the Physical Sciences and project managers on the advisory committee for the Eckhardt Research Center’s construction.

Whether or not the Fermi Institute will be formally memorialized remains unknown, though its departure has not been without pomp: A cornerstone from the building containing a time capsule from 1949 was ceremoniously removed this past summer. “We don’t know quite what the plans will be for the reuse of that cornerstone,� Ekholm said.

Even if the same cornerstone marks the Eckhardt Center, Balkany feels that something will be lost without the old building. “Architecture is a three-dimensional living experience, whether you’re walking by it or inhabiting it. The presence it gives is palpable when you’re there, when you’re in the building. There’s no comparison between some kind of placard or monument and the actual thing that was there,�

Ekholm said.

The James Franck Institute’s low-temperature laboratory was demolished in August 2011. By the end of February 2012, the clearing of the Fermi Institute will be complete. Currently, the Eckhardt Research Center is projected for completion on May 1, 2015.

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Construction of the Eckhardt Research Center on East 57th Street and South Ellis Avenue continues through the winter.

JAMIE MANLEY | THE CHICAGO MAROON

 Over weekend, unknown time Swift Hall—Dry chemical fire extinguisher discharged.

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 Tuesday 1:17 p.m. Parking garage at South Ellis Ave and East 55th Street— UCPD officer reported finding a previously stolen vechicle. The investigation has been handed over to CPD.

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 Sunday 1:30 p.m. South Hyde Park Blvd. and 55th Street—suspect took cell phone out of victim’s hand as victim was walking on the street.

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Liberal Associationism and the Rights of States

by Professor David Estlund Monday, January 23, 2012 University of Chicago Law School, Room F 4:00 p.m.

David Estlund is the the Lombardo Family Professor of Humanities at Brown University. He is also the Distinguished Visiting Professor of Political Philosophy at the University of Chicago. He is editor of the collection, Democracy (Blackwell, 2002) and the author of Democratic Authority: A Philosophical Framework (Princeton, 2008). He is currently at work on a book to be called Utopophobia, on questions of realism and idealization in political philosophy.

To receive the workshop materials in advance, contact Lorrie Wehrs, lragland@uchicago.edu To sign up for the dinner that follows, contact Ryan Long, ryan@uchicago.edu.

Dinner space is limited.

Professor Estlund will also speak at the Practical Philosophy Workshop on Friday, January 20, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. in Wieboldt 408.

For additional information, contact Mark Hopwood at marksjhopwood@gmail.com

VIEWPOINTS

Editorial & Op-Ed JANUARY 20, 2012

Canceling the party New Institute of Politics provides welcome public service opportunities but should avoid partisanship The student newspaper of the University of Chicago since 1892 ADAM JANOFSKY Editor-in-Chief CAMILLE VAN HORNE Managing Editor MAHMOUD BAHRANI Senior Editor AMY MYERS Senior Editor JONATHAN LAI News Editor HARUNOBU CORYNE News Editor SAM LEVINE News Editor PETER IANAKIEV Viewpoints Editor EMILY WANG Viewpoints Editor CHARNA ALBERT Arts Editor DANIEL LEWIS Sports Editor VICENTE FERNANDEZ Sports Editor DOUGLAS EVERSON, JR Head Designer KEVIN WANG Web Editor

David Axelrod, the former Senior Adviser to President Barack Obama, announced yesterday the creation of a new Institute of Politics at the University of Chicago. Intended to, in his words, “inspire young people to go into a public arena,” the Institute’s goals include providing students with internship and job opportunities in politics and journalism, as well as bringing wellknown speakers and fellows to campus.

Though some doubts have already arisen, its aims are admirable. This addition to campus life, if implemented correctly, will serve to fulfill a long-standing need for many students.

Many have expressed concerns regarding partisan bias. Axelrod is, after all, a high-profile Democrat and a key

figure in Obama’s re-election campaign.

Some students worry that the Institute will only provide jobs at liberal publications or for Democratic politicians. This worry, however, is over-blown; though Axelrod is a liberal Democrat, many on the Institute’s advisory board are decidedly not, including New York Times columnist David Brooks and Republican strategist Mike Murphy. Axelrod has also emphasized that the Institute will strive to remain non-partisan, so there’s little reason for concerns over it becoming a training ground for future Democratic politicians.

However, adding a place on campus specifically designed to break students into the public sphere does, to some extent, go against the image the Uni-

versity of Chicago has cultivated for so long as an institution. Few universities are as steadfast in their (critics would add “ivory tower”) intellectualism as ours, so concerns about the Institute’s existence in such a place deserve some recognition. Critics could easily say that it is flying in the face of what the University stands for.

It’s hard to view this as a major problem though. For one thing, institutions change. Over time our student body’s career options have become slightly more complicated than “academia” versus “not academia.” Given the mostly positive reaction to the Institute’s creation, public service is, for many students, a desirable career option. Furthermore, it’s clear that present offerings

in this area do not do nearly enough to satisfy student demands for jobs and internships. And this is without mentioning peer institutions like Harvard, who go much farther in encouraging student involvement in politics through the Kennedy School of Government, which has its own Institute of Politics.

Time will tell whether we should be concerned about partisanship, but for now the creation of this Institute is a welcome change to our campus and ultimately one more sign of the changing interests of our student body.

The Editorial Board consists of the Editor-in-Chief, Viewpoints Editors, and an additional Editorial Board member.

ALICE BLACKWOOD Head Copy Editor DON HO Head Copy Editor GABE VALLEY Head Copy Editor DARREN LEOW Photo Editor JAMIE MANLEY Photo Editor REBECCA GUTERMAN Assoc. News Editor

Expat expectations Though transformative in the movies, traveling abroad does not alone bring personal growth

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By Colin Bradley Viewpoints Columnist

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Study abroad is not “party abroad,” right, Dean Boyer? It is an all-inclusive, immersive educational experience—like the Club Med of a cosmopolitan liberal arts education. I can speak only for the civilization studies program in saying that it is not particularly demanding, at least not compared to the typical course load a student faces back in Hyde Park. But that’s okay; there are many other facets to your education here, most of which can be found outside the classroom.

You are in class for 2.5 to 3.5 hours a day, with maybe an hour of reading assigned for the next day. So that leaves the majority of the day for…what? The lion’s share of that education, I guess, is the “transfor-

mative experience” that we have all come to expect from not only a U of C–sponsored study abroad program, but from travel in general.

That should be easy. I’m in Paris after all. I can eat lunch next to Chopin’s heartless grave and drink absinthe where Oscar Wilde spent his dying days. I can match the beat of my footsteps across the decades with Proust and Matisse. I can do my reading in the Église Saint-Eustache and grab a vin chaud in the café across the park. I think the walls in Montmartre still tremble with the vibrato from Edith Piaf ’s first performance. This will be a piece of cake.

So the other day I decided to fulfill two obligations at once—one to my studies, the other to my pursuit of that transformative experience.

I went to the café Le Select on the Boulevard du Montparnasse, a café that, as the front page of the menu says a bit too reassuringly, was once the haunt of Hemingway, Picasso, and Henry Miller. I would grab a ham sandwich and a typically Parisian too-small cup of coffee and finish my reading for the next day.

I waltzed in confidently and sat

at a table in a quiet corner. There was not the typical smoking section attached like a plastic bubble to the front of most cafés so I opted instead for a booth of stained, dark wood without a tablecloth. After ordering in my paltry French and getting the waiter’s reply with a knowing smirk, I settled into my reading. As my coffee arrived in its miniature glory, my heart sunk. I forgot my wallet. I had only a few euros jangling in my pocket. I immediately turned the darkest shade of rouge as I tried to scheme my way out of it. But the more I thought about it, I found it somewhat appropriate that I would show up near penniless to the café of Hemingway and Miller—as long as I didn’t think too hard. Transformation?

Not yet, but maybe it’s coming?

I left all my change on the table, just enough for the coffee, tracked the waiter down and cancelled my order for the sandwich—in English.

I asked him for les toilettes, walked past the cedar and bronze bar where wise old Phillipe turned over a half century’s worth of patron’s stories in his mind (his sole occupation, according to the menu), and de-

scended into the basement to the door marked Monsieurs. As I stood in the bathroom, attending to my business, I realized: Hemingway and Miller once stood in this exact same place and were doing this exact same thing.

But, you see, when they were standing there they were probably thinking about the meridian of truth. I, on the other hand, just found myself wondering whether or not two dead white guys were well endowed.

My mistake was—and still is for that matter—thinking that a place is enough to have any transformative effect on me. It is a grave error to think that traveling itself is able to provide any answers. At best, it’s the solitude granted by an extended period of travel or the occasional insightful glance into another way of life that acts as a foil of sorts to the way you lead your own.

But at the end of the day, it’s winter here in Paris and I’m just trying to keep warm by rubbing coins together in my pocket. And that’s all. I’ll learn some French, I’ll learn to appreciate a two-euro PARIS continued on page 6

Too Fast, too Furious Controversial gun-trafficking operation within the ATF reveals government incompetence The Chicago Maroon is published twice weekly during autumn, winter, and spring quarters Circulation: 5,500.

The opinions expressed in the Viewpoints section are not necessarily those of the Maroon. © 2011 The Chicago Maroon, Ida Noyes Hall, 1212 East 59th Street Chicago, IL 60637 Editor-in-Chief Phone: 773.834.1611 Newsroom Phone: 773.702.1403 Business Phone: 773.702.9555 Fax: 773.702.3032

By Eric Wessan Viewpoints Columnist

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From its messy raid of the Branch Davidian ranch in Waco to its sexual harassment of female gun buyers, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) always seems to attract

controversy. So when the calamitous “Operation Fast and Furious”—a controversial gun trafficking investigation within Project Gunrunner, the ATF’s program intended to reduce the flow of firearms into Mexico— came to light, no one in the know was particularly shocked. In this operation, over 2,000 guns, many of which were assault weapons, were effectively allowed by the U.S. government to be sold to the Mexican drug cartels. As of this writing, fewer than 700 of these guns have been recovered; at least one U.S. border official, 20 Mexican policemen, and 300 Mexican citizens have been murdered with

these guns. There has not yet been a single high profile arrest or conviction.

While there is nothing necessarily wrong with a catchy title, the idea of naming an ATF operation after a series of films that glorifies the breaking of many laws that the ATF implicitly supports seems suspect. In Fast Five, the most recent film in the series, an antagonistturned-ally DEA Agent betrays the U.S. government by joining a band of carjacking criminals—the protagonists—and breaking into a police station. Quite frankly, Operation Fast and Furious was no less crazy or unrealistic.

The first part of the operation,

in which guns were sold to straw buyers on behalf of larger drug cartels, went extremely well. In fact, one of the straw buyers alone purchased over 600 guns. In the end, 2,020 guns sold were filtered back to Mexican gangs. Unfortunately, the phase of the operation during which the guns were to be tracked and monitored failed. A large majority of the guns is still missing.

The aftermath of these “unintended” consequences was predictable considering the ATF’s track record. But the question begs to be asked: Just how unintended were these consequences?

Throughout the operation, there ATF continued on page 6

THE CHICAGO MAROON | VIEWPOINTS | January 20, 2012

6

Degrees of happiness A liberal-arts degree is worth the risk of post-undergraduate uncertainty Meaghan Murphy Viewpoints Contributor As a pessimistic traveler, I usually arrive a good two hours before my flight leaves even at an empty airport. In doing so, I’ve learned that airports are not fun places to hang out. There’s always a crying baby, the smell of French fry oil, and the walls are always that depressing shade of speckled grey. But they do have bookstores.

Not anything special, just your basic Barbara’s Booksellers stocked with all the latest celebrity memoirs, vampire romance fiction, and sexy selfhelp books. Still, compared to the stores that sell overpriced perfume and “I heart [insert major city]” T-shirts, Barbara’s is a pretty okay place to spend 20 minutes.

At my last foray into a Barbara’s I bought Tina Fey’s memoir-type book, Bossypants, in hardcover. I thought it would be just the sort of light, funny airplane material an 18-35-aged female and 30 Rock enthusiast such as myself could digest comfortably. But it wasn’t—in fact, it’s pretty uncomfortable to get through. Fey spares

no details about her North Side, post-graduate, and pre-Second City existence. And while she spends only a chapter detailing her time at an incredibly depressing desk job at a YMCA, this one chapter alone was enough to scare me.

After reading her book, I realized that a lot of Fey’s story is not really exceptional. Admittedly, she is both incredibly talented and successful, yet she spent a good many years after college living through the “grimness” of a YMCA reception desk in a scenario familiar to so many. The people are grim, the lunches are grim, the bosses are grim, even the concept of being awake for the morning is grim. But grimmest of all is the crisis that can follow the realization that, in the real world, your degree is not worth a whole lot.

We’ve all been forewarned about this grim possibility at some point, and many of us have felt the weight of it looming over our heads. And as we take those tentative “Steps to Success” on what could end up being a very long and difficult path, it’s easy to become just the slightest bit cynical.

We come up against this cynicism all the time in our daily University lives and sometimes it’s

Lack of professionalism and deception define Operation Fast and Furious ATF continued from page 5 had to have been a decided lack of oversight. The U.S. government had no place in facilitating the sale of weapons to its enemies. It is clear now that the U.S. government never had an effective way to monitor these guns. Alarm bells should have gone off more quickly given the sensitivity of the operation, and it is disappointing that they did not within the ATF. Next is the issue of the subsequent congressional hearing, which saw Representative Darrell Issa accuse Attorney General Eric Holder of possibly being in contempt of Congress. Holder initially denied knowledge of the operation in a letter sent to the Congressional investigation, but the letter was later withdrawn for containing inaccurate information. When asked the difference between lying and misleading Congress by Representative James Sensenbrenner, Holder responded, “It all has to do with your state of mind, and whether or not you had the requisite intent to come up with something that can be considered perjury or a lie.” This seems to be a pretty egregious dodge: at best legalese, at worst just a lie about a lie. Holder was lying to duly elected representatives that were trying to serve the American people. While, in some nations, opaque government and flat out lies from authority figures are to be expected, it is profoundly disappointing that this could happen so flagrantly in the United States.

Just as insidious are the leaked Department of Justice memos concerning policy decisions affected by Operation Fast and Furious. It was recently bandied about Congress that relatively loose gun laws have led to violence in Mexico. What has become clear is that many of these guns have been sold as part of Fast and Furious. Thus, in a dizzying about-face, the gun sellers once conscripted by the ATF are now being punished for that very thing. The ATF wants to put into place stronger regulations on selling weapons called “Demand Letter 3,” which were supposed to make it more difficult to buy guns. When interviewed by CBS, National Shooting Sports Foundation Spokesman Larry Keane said that it was “deeply troubling” that gun sellers “voluntarily cooperating with ATF’s flawed Operation Fast and Furious were going to be used by some individuals within ATF to justify [Demand Letter 3].” Senator Chuck Grassley also commented, “There’s plenty of evidence showing that this administra-

tion planned to use the tragedies of Fast and Furious as a rationale to further their goals of a long gun reporting requirement.” This is an insult to the intelligence of the American people, as well as to the integrity of the U.S. government. The current administration has a policy it wants passed and has now shown it is willing to lie to the public to accomplish that end. It sounds similar to the plot of a generic action movie in the vein of the operation’s namesake: An all-powerful government, trying to take away the rights of citizens through smoke and mirrors, is thwarted by its own henchmen.

What is really surprising is the lack of media coverage both on the airwaves and in print that this scandal has had. Bigjournalism.com did an excellent exposé on the lack of coverage. Neither the New York Times nor Washington Post covered Operation Fast and Furious, with both focusing instead on Rick Perry’s father’s ranch home.

NBC News, on the night following a heated exchange between Representative Issa and Holder, reported about dogs, squirrels, concussions, and cereal.

Lies, deceit, and a lack of comprehension have seemed endemic in Operation Fast and Furious, as has the lack of professionalism of the Department of Justice. What is most amazing to me is that this story even happened. Whenever I explain Operation Fast and Furious to someone, their response is either disbelief or hysterical laughter. To think so ridiculous an operation and cover-up could actually happen in the United States is utterly shameful.

Eric Wessan is a second-year in the College majoring in political science.

SUBMISSIONS The Chicago Maroon welcomes opinions and responses from its readers. Send op-ed submissions and letters to: The Chicago Maroon attn: Viewpoints 1212 East 59th Street Chicago, IL 60637 E-mail: Viewpoints@ChicagoMaroon.com The editors reserve the right to edit materials for clarity and space. Letters to the editor should be limited to 400 words.

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hard to tell how we will feel at the end of it. But Fey, in the end, was glad to have that theater performance degree. While it didn’t get her the job at Second City (that came from talent), it did get her a promotion from the reception desk to the actual office at the Y with a pay raise that allowed her to continue improv classes. So if life in the proverbial real world will be grim for everyone, I at least want to embrace these four years at college as an opportunity to binge on education.

And all I ask is that, somewhere down the line, my degree gets me from reception to the office.

In my first quarter at the U of C, I’ve force fed myself passages of Marx and Durkheim, Ovid and Eliot, taken a workshop on memoir and storytelling and acted with University Theater. I’ve gotten lost on the CTA, seen concerts in the city, eaten too much Mexican food, and even fallen on my face on the dance floor at DU. (That was one time, okay?) I’ve taken it upon myself to meet as many people as I can and I daresay I’ve made some friends. I’ve done so much and yet whenever I allow myself to sit alone and indulge in inactivity, I feel guilty for not seizing some op-

portunity somewhere (and I know I’m not alone in feeling this way).

This university and the opportunities it has to offer are a privilege. This is a fact we can never forget. In the face of the cynicism surrounding the future that lies beyond it, we can’t afford to lose sight of the infinite possibilities we are free to enjoy right now. If the grimness must fall, I want to be prepared and take it on not only with my liberal arts degree, but also with the wealth of great experiences I had along the way to attaining it. I don’t want to half-resent my degree, as Fey seems to in her book. Self-deprecation is fine—in fact, here it’s encouraged—but resentment is never where you want to be.

So I’m taking Fey’s advice she learned at those Second City improv classes: saying yes. I’m saying yes. I’m saying yes to four years of studying theory and literature and art and yes to a life of living, of beating back the grimness with those very liberal-artsy luxuries.

Meaghan Murphy is a first-year in the College.

Internal change comes from introspection, upheaval PARIS continued from page 5 bottle of wine, but the mere act of being in a foreign place will not be enough to help me learn about myself. There’s more to it than that. I’m not saying it’s hopeless; I’m not being pessimistic. I just feel I have to warn against the expectation that travel brings change. It does not. It comes from either sustained introspection or some serious external shock. Using multi-colored money instead of that familiar pale green constitutes neither of those.

But I still find myself wandering the streets like a shadow, vaguely looking for some clue in the façade of Shakespeare and Company, or the ripples on the Seine that will give me what I expected before coming here. And meanwhile, I say sit in your cafés, Paris, with your lips and your secrets. Sit there and raise a glass to those of us who are oppressed by the hidden poetry of the walls.

Colin Bradley is a second-year in the College studying abroad in Paris.

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Trivial Pursuits JANUARY 20, 2012

Lascivious Ball disrobes bookish stereotypes Alexandra McInnis Arts Staff Dancers on stilts, guys in drag, blaring music, and 750 partygoers…No, it wasn’t Mardi Gras: it was the annual Lascivious Ball held in Ida Noyes this past Saturday night.

The Lascivious Ball, organized by HYPE, is an annual tradition at the University of Chicago, where for one night the University provides students with an event that celebrates freedom of sexual expression. The tradition has a notorious history; it began in the 1960s but was banned in 1984 for reported “ludicrous behavior,” and was only reintroduced in 2008. This ball’s theme of “1984” commemorated the infamous year when Lascivious was discontinued, and implied that this year’s event would be equally scandalous.

The Facebook page for the event stated that costumes were “strongly recommended,” and the week before the event brought a mad scramble for Lascivious-worthy outfits. “Never in my life did I think I would be shopping online for lingerie for a University of Chicago event,” firstyear Megan Tang said.

For an $8 entry fee, students had access to an Ida Noyes transformed into a risqué carnival, with various dance performances, raffles, body paint, and hors d’oeuvres from Chant. VIP tickets, sold for $4 more, allowed entrants access to an exclusive lounge, where a savory, although decidedly unsexy

meal of mashed potatoes and baked chicken was served (napkins not provided). VIP ticket-holders also each received a gift bag filled with items ranging from potato chips to sex toys.

From the coat check line, one had a clear view of scantily clad students dashing around Ida Noyes in a frenzy, pointing out costumes and not knowing which of the ball’s attractions to check out first. Eventually, most congregated on the dance floor in one of Ida’s main halls, where the pulsating music was complemented by “silhouette dancers” swaying provocatively behind screens.

The crazy outfits students wouldinevitably wear were a main attraction.

Costumes ranged from corsets and garters to caution tape to jeans and t-shirts. There was also a student designer fashion show, where models strutted down the runway in everything from demure dresses to full-on body paint.

“I’ve definitely seen some things tonight,” one ball attendant said, laughing, “including a girl wearing a strap-on.”

Angela Wang, a coordinator of the event, said that despite a few technical issues, she was extremely pleased with the event’s outcome. “I think it went fantastically. Historically, it’s a celebration of sexual freedom and identity, being able to express things that were oppressed before…now it’s a little safer, but it’s still the same message, pushing for a little less judgment as to what people want to wear or do.”

According to Wang, a second-year, one of the most important aspects of the ball was the way it challenged societal norms of what’s appropriate to wear in certain settings. “For me it’s breaking down[those mores] a little bit because you’re in a normal school building, you’re with all of your school friends, but you’re dressed up.”

Her favorite costume of the night?

“The sexy Russian spies, with their fur hats and red berets.”

Wang also emphasized the collaborative effort that went into the Lascivious Ball, with many different RSOs apart from HYPE involved, such as Le Vorris & Vox Circus, Massage, Vita Excolatur, and UChicago Maya. The event had about 10 sponsors who provided features such as the chocolate fountain and cabaret tickets.

Did the Lascivious Ball live up to its name? Well, there were plenty of lingerie-clad students and suggestive dancing (and yes, there was that awkward moment when I recognized a kid from last quarter’s math class grinding onstage in a Speedo), but ultimately the ball seemed less like a strip-club and more like an offbeat vaudeville event: chaotic, quirky, and risqué, but certainly not obscene. Perhaps because we’re now more accepting of sexual expression, it was less controversial than it was in the ’80s.

Regardless, the Lascivious Ball gave the University the chance to contest its overly academic reputation, allowing students to lose themselves…at least for one night.

First-year Tessa Weil strikes a pose at the Lascivious Ball at Ida Noyes last Saturday evening.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CHRISTIAN MARTINEZ

Lyric’s Magic stuck in the ’80s, The kids are alright; the parents aren’t but the flute plays on Philip Ehrenberg Arts Contributor

Scotty Campbell Arts Staff For a work featuring wild beasts, vengeful queens, and hostile savages, Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) offers a pleasant and surprisingly tame night at the opera. Using August Everding’s classic 1986 interpretation, Lyric presents a version of Mozart’s family-friendly fairytale classic that’s hard to be unhappy about.

Flute tells the story of a prince, Tamino (Alek Shrader), who is asked on behest of a fiery Queen of the Night (Audrey Luna) to rescue her daughter, Pamina (Nicole Cabell), from the evil Sarastro. With the aid of scrappy bird catcher, Papageno (Stéphane Degout), and the titular magical instrument, Tamino starts his quest, only to discover,

THE MAGIC FLUTE Lyric Opera of Chicago Through January 22

in true fairytale convention, that his journey is really about character development.

Lyric’s rendition of this tale is highly polished and clean, never daring but always enjoyable.

Most voices are very good, some excellent.

Stéphane Degout’s Papageno is particularly fine. While the wily bird catcher is usually cast for acting skill rather than vocal prowess, Degout combines his beautifully resonant baritone with a keen wit that is brash

but always lovable. With his powerful, refined voice and on- (and off-) stage antics— he even usurped the conductor’s baton— Degout is definitely the audience favorite.

Sir Andrew Davis’s conducting is graceful and consistently gentle; even the brass section sound smooth at the loudest sections. Most voices easily blended in with or rose above the orchestra when appropriate, with the noticeable exception of Audrey Luna, the Queen of the Night. Her voice is too harsh, and the famous high notes of the Queen’s second aria (“Der Hölle Rache”) provided constant pitch problems for Luna’s soprano, which barely navigated the extreme ranges.

Fortunately, the wonderful Nicole Cabell imbues her character, Pamina, with a delicate but clear, smooth but emotional soprano, a perfect counterpart to Sir Andrew’s orchestra. Her second-act aria, “Ach, ich fühl,” was show-stopping with its passion. Alek Shrader, making his Lyric Opera debut in this performance, also lends a beautiful voice to the mix.

His powerful but never overwhelming tenor blends flawlessly with Cabell’s soprano, and their final duet, “Tamino mein,” is blissful.

The production itself has multiple moving sets and fun touches (including a floating ship), and director Matthew Lata seems practiced at keeping the action moving. But the sullen palate of sea-blues and -greens, while initially creating a mystical effect, is too dark to match the lighthearted mood of the opera. The sometimes-jarring juxtaposition is confusing, especially when FLUTE continued on page 9

Roman Polanski’s latest film, Carnage, is a meditation on many themes close to the director’s own biography: justice, political correctness, family life, and the merits of good cobbler. Filmed shortly after his release from house arrest, Carnage traps the viewer in a small New York loft with two couples as they discuss an act of playground violence involving their children. As the film progresses and tensions rise, the viewer gradually comes to care less about the children at the heart of this conflict and more about the parents. In fact, most of the film’s fun comes from seeing what vitriol each participant will lob at the next.

Adapted from a play, God of Carnage by Yasmina Reza, the film certainly feels like a theatrical production. The film is very short, clocking in at a sparse 85 minutes. The cast is small and intimate, effectively set in a single location. Shots of a bathroom and kitchen complement the typical framing of the parents moving around a coffee table, and the cinematography is nothing to write home about. In adapting the play, Polanski did not add much other than a short prologue that gives the viewer a chance to see the children’s violence firsthand and an all-too-ironic conclusion running during the credits (which I won’t spoil here).

The film is entertaining, if you’re the sort of viewer inclined to watch people shout at each other for just over an hour. In fact, the film seems almost like an extended episode of Seinfeld: horrible people, specifically New Yorkers, yelling about some specific conflict and everything (or is it nothing?)

in between. The four characters all invoke particular archetypes, but these ebb and flow throughout the film in a surprisingly organic way, as do the parents’ alliances.

What starts as an amicable but tense discussion develops into couple against couple before moving to everyone for him/herself, men versus women, three taking on one, moments of clarity, and everything in between. The situation hardly improves once they break out the scotch.

The cast seems to work perfectly with one another and they hold the film up when it

CARNAGE Roman Polanski AMC River East

might otherwise languish. Christoph Waltz of Inglourious Basterds fame is particularly enjoyable. He lurks about the apartment, clearly reluctant to have come for the conversation but visibly enjoying himself once the argument starts boiling over. He speaks curtly, calls his son a maniac, and spends as much time talking business over the phone as he does to the people in front of him. Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, and John C. Reilly round out the cast, and all play their parts consummately. One benefit of the film over the play is the camera’s ability to capture the subtleties of each performance and direct the audience’s attention to them.

Still, the film never seems to transcend the feel of a play. Line pickups sometimes feel slow, but had they been faster the film would CARNAGE continued on page 9

THE CHICAGO MAROON | ARTS | January 20, 2012

8

It’s a foggy day for London Lily Gordon Arts Contributor Emerging hip-hop pop star Theophilus London left his audience feeling uneasy after he cut tracks prematurely and repeated others during his sold-out “Tour de Roses” concert on Friday, January 13 at Lincoln Hall. I was impressed with the 24-year-old Brooklyn-based rapper’s major label debut, Lovers Holiday EP, along with his other albums, so London’s dissatisfying, disjointed performance on Friday surprised me. I left the concert wondering, “Is Theophilus London ready to headline?”

While sampling the Pinky and the Brain theme song, a strange but interesting choice, London instructed his DJ to stop the track and restart it—only to abruptly leave the stage, perhaps due to frustration. Episodes like this one slowed his momentum and the audience’s dancing bodies.

Despite the distractions, London had his moments. After hours of anticipation and four opening acts (Lunice and Chrome Sparks were noteworthy), the energy level skyrocketed when London and his “LVRS” varsity jacket-wearing “band” (guitarist, bassist, other rapper, and DJ) finally emerged with a performance of the brand-new “Last Night (LVRS ANTHEM),” which he released on January 11 via SoundCloud and Twitter. The crowd gyrated approvingly to the synth-heavy hip-hop beat about “that party from last night,” and fans quickly began singing along to the hook.

The crowd also responded enthusiastically to “Girls Girls $,” “Last Name London,” and “I Stand Alone,” all of which are featured on London’s July 2011 album Timez Are Weird These Days. Audience members yelled “Day one!” showing their approval of his earlier tracks.

Before the disruptions started, London and his crew livened the atmosphere by dancing, switching places on stage, crowd surfing, and rapping at each other in dueling stances. The bass player even took off his shirt and London drank a Corona.

After the concert, Matt Rucins, talent buyer for Lincoln Hall, commented, “I’ve never really seen anything like that. He needs to get a little more disciplined.” When I asked him what he liked about the show, Rucins half-jokingly replied, “I liked when he played the songs and finished them.”

Appearing in Rolling Stone, on the Late Show with David Letterman, and in Vogue as “Artist of the Week” on June 15, London has been making a name for himself over the past few years. He generated some publicity with his wellreceived performance at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival. But what makes London a standout?

“Fun” was Rucins’ word of choice when I asked him why he decided to host London. “His music is fun and a change of pace from the typical stuff we usually bring to Lincoln Hall.”

Rucins characterized London’s music as “all over the place. I hear dance, rap, pop, R&B, electro, and hip-hop,

especially on [his] album[s].”

“You like that progressive shit!”

London cheered to the crowd on Friday. While many artists are jumping on the mixed-genre bandwagon, London is a leader of the movement.

“He is not necessarily doing anything groundbreaking,” Rucins said, “although he does it better than a lot of other people who attempt to combine a bunch of different types of music.” London’s songs display his eclectic personality and genre-bending creativity—two tracks never sound alike.

Other contemporary artists who fall under the same “non-genre” category include Maximum Balloon (a venture of producer and TV on the Radio founding member Andrew Sitek), Little Dragon (an indie pop/electronic operation headed by Swedish-Japanese vocalist Yukimi Nagano), and Quadron (a funk/ soul/R&B duo from Denmark).

While London shares a similar “musical mission” with the aforementioned groups, Rucin made an interesting remark about what sets him apart. “If London had a little more discipline, he could bring out a whole band—kind of like LCD Soundsystem.” While this kind of pursuit may not seem feasible for London at the moment, it is something to look out for in the future.

What other musical mischief is London brewing? He told his audience that he has been working on a new album entitled Lovers Holiday 2: Rose Island and a street album, as well as some singles.

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Bass player Barry 3000 gives Theophilus London some love.

LILY GORDON | THE CHICAGO MAROON

Musical talent aside, London makes excellent use of social media in order to stay in touch with his fan base. He frequently posts updates on his Facebook fan page (over 84,000 “like” London); uploads photos, videos, blurbs, and tour dates to his Tumblr

(timezareweird.tumblr.com); and tweets incessantly (@TheophilusL; he tweeted 14 times on Tuesday).

Given London’s obvious love for the fans, and his fans’ dedication to him, I hope this show is the exception, not the rule.

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Tuesday, January 24, 2012 3:30 p.m.

Weymouth Kirkland Courtroom University of Chicago Law School 1111 East 60th Street Chicago, Illinois 60637 This event is free and open to the public. No response is required but seating is limited.

For special assistance or needs, please contact Marjorie Holme at 773.702.0220 or mholme@uchicago.edu.

THE CHICAGO MAROON | ARTS | January 20, 2012

In Magic, virtuosity of performances can’t hide antiquated interpretation FLUTE continued from page 7 it is matched with equally somber period clothing. Delightfully costumed animals dancing across the stage provide low-tech entertainment, but high-tech touches remain firmly from the ’80s. When Sarastro’s brotherhood requires Tamino and Pamina to undergo the trials of the gods in order to go back home, the effect is less scary than a reminder of opera’s dated technolog y.

Lyric Opera’s The Magic Flute offers plenty of superb song and spectacle, proving that it is the Midwest’s most refined and consistently excellent opera company.

But it could still do with an up-

dated interpretation. Lyric already has excellent singers, a polished orchestra, and a beautiful space.

A new interpretation could not only put all of these elements to use, but it could also give them a new sparkle. The Magic Flute will probably never disappoint its longtime patrons, but a fresh update could turn something good into something truly great and attract a younger audience. After all, Mozart was the pioneering composer of his time; surely he would approve of an equally original and new production that would allow his opera to speak to contemporary audiences as it did over two hundred years before.

Polanski revels in parents’ bickering CARNAGE continued from page 7 have been even shorter. As voices and tension rise, one character always feels the need to remind everyone why they are there: to talk about their kids, whom they seem all too inclined to forget. These punctuations break up the dialogue slightly and feel like a trick, as if Polanski wants to restrain the argument and show us how easy it is to develop a brand new one.

The parents’ range of topics to argue about gives viewers the film’s best scenes. They argue about everything from proper removal of pets to what the grenade launch-

ers used in Africa are called. Embracing a sense of schadenfreude is the best thing you can do sitting in the theater. If you watch the movie and think, “Oh, the injustice!

She’s concerned about suffering in Africa and yet her priceless art books get ruined!” you’re doing it wrong. Polanski doesn’t want you to feel sorry for these four souls he’s thrown into a tiny room; he wants you to enjoy the fact that it’s the worst day of their lives. It may walk like a play and talk like a play, but that won’t stop you from embracing the god of carnage and laughing all the way home.

9

Style

Chicago Manual of

TV’s top fashion trendsetters

by Jessen O’Brien

With TV’s midseason programming now under way, I thought it’d be nice to take a look at some of the shows that have been influencing fashion for the better. So, what shows held the fashion industry in sway? Or, to put it another way if you want a good dose of pretty, where should you look?

AMC’s Mad Men (slated to return for its fifth season on March 25) is, of course, at the top of this list. Few shows have influenced what we wear as quickly or have maintained their hold over us for so long. The late ’50s, early ’60s fashion depicted in Mad Men have led designers to reembrace a more feminine silhouette.

In the 1950s, fashion was all about an ultra-feminine aesthetic: soft curves and an hourglass figure produced by big skirts, loose tops, and tight belts.

It’s an aesthetic opposite to models of today—thin, tall, androgynous stick figures—yet its influence is evident in the rising waistlines and fuller skirts that have graced fashion magazines for the past few years.

But aside from its considerable influence on the fashion industry (Banana Republic even launched a Mad Men collection in August of this past year), Mad Men’s fastidious attention to detail renders it a visually stunning show. Joan’s exquisite sheath dresses, Betty’s carefully coordinated ensembles, and even Don’s classically masculine suits are a pleasure to behold. In some ways, the show’s sartorial panache makes it so critically acclaimed. Even

though the pacing can seem slothlike, there’s always something beautiful to admire. Check out Tom + Lorenzo, a popular fashion blog, for a Mad Men fashion rundown.

Learn how Trudy’s shirtdress ties her to her home or how Betty’s outfit signals her impending rebellion.

Another period piece, PBS’s Downton Abbey, now in its second season, is also rife with stunning costumes. Although it’s set in the early 1900s, the show has affected current trends. Midi-skirts, hats, beading, trench coats, head pieces: all of these trends for 2012 can be seen within the show. The early 1900s was a time of changing fashion. Skirts shortened, art deco began to emerge, and with the advent of World War I, clothing became sparser, more practical, and more militaristic. Trench coats appeared as Burberry was commissioned to make all-weather coats for officers, and a simpler, more reserved style replaced the finery and frippery that marked the turn of the century.

Lady Cora and Mary, in particular, have beautiful garments, from gorgeously intricate black evening gowns to smart, wool suits and light, white summer frocks. The Dowager Countess of Grantham, however, might have the most interesting outfits. Even as styles simplify and Sybil dares to don harem pants, the Countess sticks to more Edwardian outfits with S-shaped silhouettes and ornate hats.

Finally, a more modern show with a more masculine look is Sherlock, BBC’s modern adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes. Unlike Mad Men and Downton Abbey, which consciously use costumes to create a separate world, Sherlock has a more utilitarian approach to costume design. Pieces are chosen not because they reflect a time period but because they enhance the character. They are meant to add a sense of realism, not a sense of the past. Nevertheless, Belstaff, the company that produces Sherlock’s iconic long wool coat, has been flooded with requests to reinstate the design.

Similarly, Watson’s shooting coat from Haversack has had a similar influence on men’s fashion, particularly in Britain.

The show has a stormy, muddy palette—lots of grays, blacks, and navy blues. The clothing appears simpler, but there’s a quality and a detail to it that is always found in the best menswear. There’s a beautiful practicality and a sense of underlying richness that lend it such visual fascination. The show’s characteristic time lapse filmography and scrolling white text add to the atmosphere of visual sparseness and precise intricacy.

If you’re tired of gazing at puff y coats or simply can’t look at another pair of skinny jeans, check out the above shows for entirely different but wholly stunning aesthetics.

Around 1948: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Global Transformation

Jan Gross

Norman B. Tomlinson '16 and '48 Professor of War and Society, and Professor of Histor y, The Department of Histor y, Princeton University

At the Periphery of the Holocaust Killing and Pillage of Jews by their Polish Neighbors Thursday, January 26 Lecture: 4:00 — 5:30 p.m. with reception to follow

Workshop: 6:00 — 7:15 p.m.

Workshop texts available at: http://franke.uchicago.edu/sawyernew-events.html

Pacifica Quartet with Jorge Federico Osorio, piano SUNDAY / JANUARY 22 / 3 PM Brilliant, virtuoso pianist joins Grammy Award-winning quartet to perform ambitious program Beethoven: Quartet in F Major, op. 59, no. 1 (“Razumovsky”) Dvorák: Piano Quintet in A Major, op. 81 ˇ

The Franke Institute for the Humanities 1100 East 57th Street, JRL S-118, Chicago, IL Co-sponsored by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation's Sawyer Seminar on "Around 1948: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Global Transformation" and the Franke Institute for the Humanities.

For more information, please see: around1948.uchicago.edu Open to the public. Persons with a disability who believe they may need assistance are requested to call 773-702-8274 in advance.

Buy your tickets today!

773.702.8068

Mandel Hall, 1131 East 57th Street chicagopresents.uchicago.edu

$25 / $5 students with valid ID A limited number of FREE student tickets are available through the Arts Pass program; visit chicagopresents.uchicago.edu for details.

10

THE CHICAGO MAROON | SPORTS | January 20, 2012

Undefeated Maroons take on conference rivals Women’s Basketball Mahmoud Bahrani Senior Editor One of the most threatening aspects of Chicago’s team last year was not their stifling defense; it was that they could score when they got to the other end of the floor. With four starters in double figure scoring last year, the Maroons could not only lock teams down on defense, but also run the score up on offense.

So when Chicago fans learned that second-year guard Maggie Ely, the most prolific scorer in the UAA last year at nearly 16 points per game, was transferring to Chicago, both fans and the coaching staff couldn’t help but be excited.

“I was thankful we didn’t have to come up with a way to defend her again,” laughed head coach Aaron Roussell. “I think she was the one player last year that we spent the most amount of time focusing on and energy defending. She’s such a dynamic scorer that she caused us a lot of problems.”

Ely will take on her former team tonight, the NYU Violets.

She insists that despite her history with the team, the pressure to perform tonight will be no different than other nights.

“You have to approach every game and team the same way mentally, so it will be just like every other game for me,” Ely said.

Ely’s scoring has dropped substantially since playing at NYU, as she now averages only five and a half points per contest. How-

ever, this is probably more a result of her not needing to score as much. At NYU last year, she was the primary scoring option and didn’t have another teammate in double-digit scoring.

“She and I had some very direct conversations. [I told her], ‘You’re not going to be the leading scorer in the league if you come here,’” Roussell said.

Even with her scoring down this year, Roussell had high praise for the dangerous offensive threat. “There haven’t been a whole lot of kids that we’ve had that I’ve ever coached that have the scoring capability she does,” he said. “She can score with the best of them.”

Chicago faces NYU (9–5, 1–2), a team that, along with Ely, gave them a scare last year in a good old-fashioned 87–81 shootout. Ely played the full 40 minutes against what would be her new team, scoring 25 points.

Without Ely, NYU has struggled offensively, putting up only 59 points a game. Chicago averages nearly 72.

The Maroons are coming off a close call against Case, an unheralded and unranked team that held the lead through much of the first half before Chicago was eventually able to pull away with a 62–57 win.

“Case is a very good team and a fun one to play against. As for [us], we learned that we have to play a complete 40-minute game,” Ely said. “We have great spurts, as every team does. Putting it all together for a complete game is a challenge, but one that I’m confident we’re capable of.”

NYU

UChicago

Min/G: 32.7

Min/G: 15.2

PPG: 15.7

PPG: 5.4

FG%: 0.342

FG%: 0.393

RPG: 4.2

RPG: 1.5

APG: 2.2

APG: 1.1

GP/GS: 25/25

GP/GS: 14/4

Once the focal point of NYU’s offense, Ely is still adjusting to her role comming off the bench for the 2nd ranked Maroons.

JAMIE MANLEY | THE CHICAGO MAROON

On Sunday, Chicago will face a Brandeis (7–7, 3–0) squad that has been struggling all year, sitting in last in the UAA. Brandeis also struggles offensively, scoring only 55 points per game, something that is sure to be a problem against the suffocating Chicago defense. Fourth-year ballhawk Meghan Herrick is averaging nearly two steals per game along with fourth-year guard Bryanne

Halfhill, who is fifth on Chicago’s all-time steals list. The Maroons will also be well-rested; for the first time since UAA play began, Chicago will be staying at home for the weekend.

“I love playing at home, as does the rest of the team,” Herrick said. “There is something about the comfort of home with your fans and family.”

Tonight is also Beach Night, an

annual event that hopes to entice students to come to games with free Hawaiian -style pizza, limbo contests, and other fun prizes and activities.

“I love Beach Night,” Roussell said. “Beach Night is my favorite night of the year every single year.”

The women’s game kicks off at 6 p.m. at the Ratner Athletic Center. A live stream is available through athletics.uchicago.edu.

Upset over top-ranked team Chicago to face NYU in seventh annual Beach Night of the season. But winning will be crowd on their side, given that it is at Elmhurst Invite After the basket, the Spartans tough given NYU’s #23 national the seventh annual Beach Night.

M.BASKETBALL continued from back

Wrestling Derek Tsang Sports Staff

Chicago took first place on Saturday at the Elmhurst Invitational, beating the 13th-ranked Elmhurst squad that had previously bested them in early December.

The Maroons placed an athlete seventh or better in each of the 10 weight classes, including wins by third-years James Layton and Josh Hotta at 157 pounds and 149 pounds respectively. Layton went 3–0 with one major decision, while Hotta went 4–0 with two major decisions.

“Hotta and Layton put in workmanlike jobs,” said head coach Leo Kocher, who is entering his 34th year in the position. “They had control of every single match they wrestled in.”

Layton swept the competition as the first seed, Hotta as the third. Perhaps the biggest surprise of the meet though was first-year Devon Range’s first-round upset of Elmhurst’s top-seeded Mike Ryan in the 165-pound weight class by an 8–7 decision. After losing in the semifinals, Ryan got his revenge in the consolation bracket, but Range, competing up a weight class, still left a strong impression.

“He showed good talent and ability,” Kocher said.

Elmhurst sat a couple of their top wrestlers, including their lone wrestler in the 125-pound division, who was out with injury.

That does not mean the Maroons’ victory was especially qualified, however: The squad had faced a similar injury plague in their first meet with Elmhurst.

The Elmhurst Invitational also saw Chicago first-year Ryan Hankenson finish a strong second place, losing 5–2 to the top seed in the final round of the 174pound bracket. The Maroons also had four wrestlers finish third— third-year Francisco Acosta at 133 pounds, second-year Sam Pennisi at 184 pounds, first-year Mario Palmisano at 197 pounds, and second-year Jeff Tyburski at 285 pounds.

A third-place finish translates to each of the wrestlers in the quartet going undefeated after suffering an early loss.

“They showed a really strong effort,” Kocher said.

Kocher also noted that his team is on the rise. Twenty of his team’s 25 wrestlers are underclassmen.

“We’re a younger team, so we’ve improved,” he said.

The Maroons took on 30thranked Augustana late last night, losing 22–18.

called a timeout.

“I think at that point, I said, ‘Hey, we just won by 45 [points] on Friday, we’ve had a 20-point lead most of this game; they just cut it to 10. We just have to focus in,’” McGrath said.

McGrath’s words appeared to rejuvenate his players, and after first-year forward Ian Joyce had an uncontested dunk with 21 seconds left, the Maroons won handily by a score of 85–66.

Now the Maroons are focused on winning their first UAA home games

ranking and their recent upset of fourth-ranked Emory.

Still, the Maroons are very familiar with the Violets. In last season’s home finale, Johnson scored a careerhigh 39 points to give the Maroons an 82–80 win.

At the same time, the Maroons got their glimpse of Violets’ now fourthyear center Andy Stein.

Currently, Stein is averaging 17.3 points per game along with 7.3 rebounds.

But the Maroons will have the

“Beach Night is definitely a lot of fun [because] people get really excited about it, and it’s fun to play in front of the crowd with that kind of energy,” second-year forward Sam Gage said.

On Sunday, the Maroons will go up against Brandeis, a team that most recently lost to Emory (95–58) last Sunday but beat Rochester (78–64) last Friday.

Tip-off for Beach Night is scheduled for 8 p.m. tonight. The Brandeis game on Sunday starts at noon.

Some swimmers achieve best times, despite lack of rest W.SWIM continued from back

Weber said. “It’s good practice for our conference meet in a month.”

If practice makes perfect, the Maroons are well on their way to a successful remainder of the season. They dominated the pool, finishing 229.5 points ahead of second-place Calvin.

“I’m so proud of the women’s team this year. I think we have such an amazing dynamic, that we really feed off of each other’s positive energy,” McPike said.

“It was impressive that some swimmers bettered their best times of the season at this meet, which we did not rest for at all,” Hill agreed.

Looking ahead to next weekend and the rest of the season, the Ma-

roons are planning on taking the momentum and training from this weekend’s meet and using both to continue to win. Everything during the season is part of their training for UAAs, including this past weekend.

“The competition at UAAs is going to be a lot tougher than what we saw this weekend, but we will be ready,” McPike said.

However, before UAAs, the Mawroons will need to get through a tough dual meet on Saturday, when they will host DI UW-Milwaukee.

Hill believes the team is ready for the test.

“The win showed us that we can swim fast under heavy stress from training, which we will still be under

this weekend during our meet against [UW-Milwaukee].”

Although it may sound like swimming while under heavy stress and exhaustion can be counter productive, McPike believes the team can handle the extra work.

“Athletes who can overcome the temptation of giving into fatigue and pain are the ones who come out on top,” she said. “That’s what we did this last weekend, and I have no doubt that the UAAs and NCAAs will be the same.”

To catch some serious racing and cheer on the Maroons as they continue to thrive, stop by the Myers-McLoraine Pool this Saturday at 1 p.m.

THE CHICAGO MAROON | SPORTS | January 20, 2012

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Despite hard fall, distance runners find success

UAA Standings Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

School Chicago Rochester Washington (Mo.) Emory NYU Case Western Brandeis Carnegie

Rank 1 2 3 4 5

Player Loren Wagner Emily Peel Morgan Herrick Jodie Luther Taylor Simpson

Rank 1 2 3 4 5

Player Joann Torres MacKenzie Boyd Emily Hyncik Hannah Lilly Dani Hoover

Rank 1 2 3 4 5

Player Jodie Luther Cara Bonito Chelsea Peck Emily Peel Erin Hollinger

Record 14–0 (3–0) 14–0 (3–0) 12–2 (2–1) 11–3 (2–1) 9–5 (1–2) 8–6 (1–2) 7–7 (0–3) 6–8 (0–3)

Win % 1.000 1.000 .857 .786 .643 .571 .500 .429

Field Goal Percentage School Rochester Carnegie Chicago Rochester Chicago

FG % .588 .549 .538 .538 .534

Three-Point Percentage 3-Point % School .511 Chicago .469 Carnegie .452 Emory .443 Emory .415 Washington (Mo.)

Free-Throw Percentage School Rochester NYU Case Carnegie Case

11

FT % .848 .818 .805 .776 .750

Women’s Track & Field Jake Walerius Sports Contributor Women’s track and field endured a disappointing start to their indoor season Saturday, with an 88–48 dual loss to UWOshkosh.

The Maroons took first place in only four of the 14 events contested, and even against opposition as strong as national champions UW-Oshkosh, it was a frustrating way to start the year.

“We’ve got good attitude, we’ve got good work ethic, but somehow we didn’t turn it up to a competitive level last Saturday and we can’t do that. We go to meets to compete not to work out. It wasn’t a great opener for us,” head coach Chris Hall said.

One area in which Chicago did look strong was the middle-distance and distance events, where they recorded three of their four event wins. Third-years Julia Sizek and Kayla McDonald won the mile (5:17.46) and 800-meter (2:23.28), respectively, and fourth-year Ali Klooster fin-

ished first in the 3,000-meter (11:03.29).

The Maroons’ fourth individual victory came from third-year Emily Hren in the high jump (1.55m).

Encouraging though these victories were, the distance runners have benefited from the preparation offered by their recent cross country season. It was the lack of intensity from the rest of the squad that was Hall’s biggest cause for concern.

“They haven’t been removed from competition for an extended period of time and know how to get themselves into that mode a little quicker,” Hall said of his distance runners. “It was in other areas of the team, perhaps, where we didn’t show the fire I would’ve liked.”

If there is any encouragement to be taken from the team’s performance as a whole, it is that it was only their first meet of the year. It was a chance to gauge fitness levels, get rid of any lingering nerves, and, for the first-year athletes, an opportunity to experience college-level competition for the first time.

“We didn’t run our best last Saturday, but it was important to get those first race jitters out of the way,” McDonald said, “and

for those who were running their first collegiate race, they were able to get a taste of what’s expected for the rest of the season.”

Chicago will take their dual loss into a triangular meet at Illinois-Wesleyan this Saturday, where they will match up against conference rivals Wash U and host IllinoisWesleyan.

In facing Wash U, Chicago has a rare opportunity to size up a big conference rival early in the season, and Hall is counting on his team to make the most of that opportunity.

“Just seeing [Wash U] will put a lot of motivation into the athletes in our squad,” Hall said. “I expect our kids to fight a little harder against those uniforms than what they did against Oshkosh.”

There’s no need for the Maroons to beat themselves up over a season-opening loss to one of the best teams in the country, but it will be harder to defend their performance this Saturday if it lacks the fire their head coach was looking for last Saturday.

“If I don’t see it this weekend,” Hall said, “I don’t know when I will.”

The action gets under way at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 21.

MEN’S BASKETBALL UAA Standings Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

School Washington (Mo.) Emory NYU Chicago Brandeis Carnegie Rochester Case Western

Record 11–3 (3–0) 13–1 (2–1) 12–1 (2–1) 9–5 (2–1) 8–6 (2–1) 6–8 (1–2) 9–5 (0–3) 8–6 (0–3)

Win % .786 .929 .923 .643 .571 .429 .643 .571

Record performance highlights Chicago Invite

MEN’S TRACK 1 Mile Run Rank 1 2 3 4 5

School Brandeis Brandeis Chicago Washington (Mo.) Washington (Mo.)

Runner Chris Brown Taylor Dundas Renat Zalov Andrew Padgett Kevin Sparks

Time 4:20.96 4:23.67 4:26.39 4:26.87 4:28.05

WOMEN’S TRACK 1 Mile Run Rank 1 2 3 4 5

School Washington (Mo.) Chicago Chicago Brandeis Chicago

Runner Lucy Cheatle Julia Sizek Elise Wummer Miriam Stulin Michaela Whitelaw

Time 5:13.20 5:17.46 5:18.28 5:18.54 5:20.00

MEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING 500 Freestyle Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

School Chicago Emory Emory Emory Carnegie Emory Case Western

Swimmer Andrew Salomon Cameron Herting Andrew Dillinger

Paul Weinstein Andrew Yee Jeffrey Simpson Samuel Geiger

Time 4:32.45 4:37.11 4:38.22 4:40.35 4:40.67 4:40.98 4:43.31

WOMEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING 500 Freestyle Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

School Emory Emory Emory Emory Chicago Carnegie Emory

Swimmer

Time 4:54.45 M. Clark 4:59.64 A. Culpepper 5:02.10 M. Newsum-Schoenburg 5:02.35 K. Taylor 5:04.89 K. Halbersleben 5:06.66 S. Neumann 5:07.70 C. McDermott

WRESTLING UAA Standings Rank 1 2 3

School Chicago New York Case Western

Record 5–5 5–5 0–6

Win % .500 .500 .000

VISIT CHICAGOMAROON . COM VISIT CHICAGOMAROON . COM VISIT CHICAGOMAROON . COM

The men’s swimming team competes at a meet in the Ratner Athletics Center earlier this year.

COURTESY OF JOHN BOOZ

Men’s Swimming & Diving Daniel Lewis Sports Editor Men’s swimming and diving took first place in a field of 10 competitors at the annual Chicago Invitational over Martin Luther King, Jr. Day weekend. The victory was ripe with top performances from established athletes and even a school record from a new face.

Chicago led the field by a large margin, finishing ahead of second-place Calvin College by 125.5 points and third-place Lincoln College by 149.5 points. The first-place finish featured a flurry of individual winners, both in swimming and in diving. Second-year swimmer Eric Hallman placed first in the 400-meter IM and the 500-meter freestyle, first-year Andrew Salomon led the pack in the 200-meter and 1650-meter freestyles, and first-year Andrew Angeles won in the 200-meter breaststroke.

At the diving board, third-year Bobby Morales posted an NCAA standard in 1-meter diving, while first-year Matt Staab

hit standards in 1-meter and 3-meter.

First-year diver Tony Restaino set a school record in 1-meter diving and met the standard in 3-meter.

“This meet gave us a chance to enter people in events they wouldn’t usually swim, so we were able to see just how deep and versatile we really are,” assistant coach Krista Carlson said.

A deep squad will be vital down the stretch, as injuries can derail even the highest performing teams come playoff time.

The Maroons have already suffered injuries to key swimmers, the effects of which may be seen as soon as this weekend.

“Our top breaststroker, Angeles, is out with a second degree burn and our top backstroker, [first-year] George Gvakharia, is just coming back from a sprained ankle,” head coach Jason Weber said.

“Right now our team needs to focus on staying healthy and keeping the intensity up in practice,” Carlson said. “We really only have about a month left of the season—not including NCAAs—and staying focused is key.”

This weekend, Chicago will host UW– Milwaukee, a more daunting opponent

than they have faced all year. The Panthers made the trip to Hyde Park last season and walked away with a dominant 208.5–91.5 victory, something the Maroons do not plan on allowing again. “[We expect] to win some events and compete with them,” Weber said, “not get blown out.”

“The UW-Milwaukee meet will definitely be a great opportunity for us to contend against a good team and allow us the opportunity to step up and race,” Carlson said.

The Maroons’ success so far has been impressive, but they must swim at a different level in order to match the likes of UWMilwaukee and, further down the line, DePauw. Both meets are at home and will prepare the team for even higher stakes competitions, such as the UAA Championships in Cleveland and the DIII Championships in Indianapolis.

“We’re in a good place with our performances up to this point,” Weber said.

“Hopefully the last two meets will be our best because they will have to be wins.”

Chicago faces UW-Milwaukee at the Myers-McLoraine Pool this Saturday at 1 p.m.

SPORTS

IN QUOTES “He’s a piece of shit.� —Drew Magary, sportswriter for Deadspin.com, on former Patriots’ defensive tackle, Albert Haynesworth.

Chicago hits century mark

Fourth-year Steve Stefanou scores a lay-up at an away game early in the season.

COURTESY OF JOHN BOOZ

Men’s Basketball Alexander Sotiropoulos Senior Sports Staff One hundred points. The Maroons had not scored that many points in a game since January 19, 2007 and, in Friday’s game at Carnegie, it looked like that drought was

going to continue.

That is, until fourth-year forward Tom Williams stepped up to the foul line for two shots.

With 34 seconds left in the UAA contest, and the Maroons (9–5, 2–1 UAA) overwhelming the Tartans (6–8, 1–2) 98–53, he sunk the first to put the Maroons within one point of 100. Then it was time for

the second. “All I heard was that people were going to be [angry] if Tom Williams missed one of those free throws and left us at 99,� Maroons’ head coach Mike McGrath said with a laugh.

Fortunately for Williams, the ball landed in the bottom of the net, and the Maroons secured a triple-digit point total, winning the critical conference clash by a score of 100–55.

Chicago did not leave its efforts behind in Pittsburgh, however, as they routed Case 85–66 in Sunday’s match at Cleveland. With a twogame winning streak, Chicago looks to edge out NYU (12–1, 2–1) on Friday and Brandeis (8–6, 2–1) on Sunday.

Although UAA games are typically fights to the finish, Friday’s game at Carnegie was anything but that.

The Tartans got off to a 4–2 lead, but that was the last lead they would see. By shooting 48.7 percent from the field in the first half, the Maroons gained a 53–22 advantage at halftime.

By that time, McGrath was almost ready to call a victory but knew there was still a possibility for a surprise. “It didn’t take long to realize that [the Tartans] weren’t having their best day,â€? McGrath said. “I felt like, at halftime, because of the way that Carnegie plays, if we didn’t keep an eye on the ball a little bit‌it could zip back into a competitive game. I wasn’t sure that that was going to happen, but it definitely could’ve moved that way.â€?

Fortunately McGrath’s fears did not become a reality. The Tartans shot just 37.5 percent from the field in the final 20 minutes, while the Maroons shot 51.7 percent. On top of that, Chicago was 6–14 from behind the arc compared to Carnegie’s 1–8.

Three Maroons had double-digit scoring performances—Hughes (18), fourth-year guard Matt Johnson (18) and fourth-year forward

Oshkosh dominates season opener Men’s Track & Field Matthew Schaefer Associate Sports Editor It was not surprising that the Titans of UW-Oshkosh crushed the Maroons 87–47 on Saturday. It was not surprising that the Titans won every event in which both teams competed, except for the 3,000-meter run, which featured a winning performance by third-year Billy Whitmore and a third-place finish by fourth-year Moe Bahrani. And it was not surprising that the Maroons were not thrilled with the outcome. “The team performed as expected. Oshkosh is a really complete team, while we are in the process of rebuilding,� fourthyear Donny Chi said. “The coaching staff went through some changes over winter break and it was entertaining to see the new coaching dynamic in action.�

It was indeed a learning experience. Fourth-year Tyler Calway called it “more of a practice than normal.�

Yet despite that fact, Saturday’s dual meet performance was a little—just a little—displeasing. “The meet was somewhat disappoint-

ing and we were definitely not competing at the best of our abilities. That being said, Oshkosh is an extremely competitive team, so a loss to them is not the end of the world,� Calway said.

The atmosphere at the event in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, however, was shocking. “The only thing that stuck out about last week’s meet was our approach to the meet itself. We didn’t seem as competitive as normal, and the gym seemed a bit quieter than usual,� Calway said. “I don’t think it will affect us negatively at all. I think it’s a reality check to get us back into the competitive feel and motivate us to put more of ourselves out there this upcoming weekend.�

Some notable performances included a second-place finish by third-year Dee Brizzolara in the 200-meter dash, a second-place finish in the mile run by first-year Renat Zalov, and a fifth-place finish in the weight throw by fourth-year Daniel Heck. “I’m not too disappointed about it since Oshkosh is one of the best teams in the entire country,� Heck said. “It was a good meet to start the year against good competition, and hopefully people can

improve and learn from it as the year goes on.�

This Saturday, the Maroons will take on Illinois–Wesleyan and UAA rival Wash U at the Illinois–Wesleyan Triangular in Bloomington, Illinois. “Coach Hall introduced the idea of starting a new Triangular Meet against Wash U and Illinois–Wesleyan earlier this year, and it is probably the greatest idea [he] has ever had,� Chi said. “I’m looking forward to really beating on some scrubs from Wash U.�

While Calway is concerned about the sprinters’ preparation for the upcoming triangular—they are still “a little unprepared,� adjusting to their new associate head coach, Laurie McElroy—he is glad to face the competition in Bloomington. “The meet this weekend is going to be tough with Wash U and Illinois–Wesleyan; they are both great teams,� Calway said. “It is definitely always exciting to see Wash U, especially outside of a conference situation because they are our main rivals in the conference. I am interested to see how they are doing as a team.�

The meet begins at 11 a.m. on Saturday.

Steve Stefanou (15).

McGrath said that while putting up 100 points is crowd-pleasing, in the larger scheme of things, there is nothing to read between the lines about the performance. “It’s like a rainstorm in the middle of the desert. There’s no explanation for it,� Johnson said with a laugh. “It’s such an anomaly in terms of the way the game was that it’s hard to put a finger on what anything means or the significance of everything.�

McGrath told the Maroon last week that his team needed a quick change in mentality for Sunday’s game at Case, given that Case has a height advantage on Chicago, while Carnegie is a smaller, more mobile team. But with Friday’s rout in Pittsburgh, the shift in focus was not as difficult as anticipated. “Because the game on Friday was just so odd...we didn’t have to make as big of an adjustment as I thought we might,� McGrath said.

Just like their game at Carnegie, the Maroons got off to a strong start.

Their efforts early on amounted to a 15–5 lead with almost seven minutes being played.

But it was not just one person that allowed for the increasing lead. In the first half, the Maroons scored 26 points off the bench and 10 secondchance points.

It looked like things were going to get worse for the Spartans when Chicago second-year guard Derrick Davis scored a 3-pointer from threequarters the length of the court to end the half. Case got a break though, as the referees ruled the shot left Davis’s hands after the buzzer. Still, at the half ’s end, Chicago led 42–28.

While Chicago sustained its lead in the second half, Case closed within 10 points with a 3-pointer by forward Dane McLaughlin. The trey tightened the game at 61–51.

M. BASKETBALL continued on page 10

Maroons thrive at home meet Women’s Swimming & Diving Liane Rousseau Sports Staff

Women’s swimming and diving dominated the pool at this past weekend’s Chicago Invitational at the Myers-McLoraine Pool. Calvin College took second and Lincoln College came in third.

The Maroons also won nine individual events and five relays. “I was really proud that the women’s team won all [our] relays,� head coach Jason Weber said. “That’s a sign of a really solid team.�

Chicago trained hard to prepare for two days of multiple sessions and long races. “Our training leading up to every meet continues to be really intense, and I think we were all pretty exhausted going into the meet this weekend,� fourth-year Andrea McPike said.

McPike was a member of three of the five winning relays. “We kept up our hard training over the days leading to the meet,� said first-year Jennifer Hill, who won two individual events and participated in four of the five winning relays. “Many of us actually had a swim practice and weight lifted in the morning before the first session of the meet.�

All of that training was necessary for the two-day Chicago Invitational, which featured a different format than the Maroons’ previous competitions. “This meet is different than our other meets because it’s three sessions over one and a half days, so they do a lot of events in a short time frame,�

W. SWIM continued on page 10

CA LEN DA R

Saturday

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1/20

- Wrestling vs. St. Olaf, 10:30 a.m.

- Track & Field @ Illinois-Wesleyan Triangular, 11 a.m.

- Swimming and Diving vs. Wis.Milwaukee, 1 p.m.

- Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tennis @ Illinois-Chicago, 6:30 p.m.

Sunday

1/21

- M. Basketball vs. Brandies, 12 p.m.

- W. Basketball vs. Brandies, 12 p.m.