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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2010 • VOLUME 122, ISSUE 14 • CHICAGOMAROON.COM
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Englewood man gets 35 years for Cisse murder By Adam Janofsky Associate News Editor & Gio Wrobel News Staff Three years after the death of graduate student Amadou Cisse (Ph.D. ’07), one of the men charged in his murder pled guilty Tuesday and was sentenced to 35 years in prison.
Cook County Circuit Judge Dennis Porter sentenced Jamal Bracey, a 20-year-old resident of the 6100 block of South Damen Avenue, to prison for the firstdegree murder of Cisse. Cisse, a 29-year-old chemistry student from Senegal, was shot in the chest outside his apartment by a gunman late on a November night in 2007. Cisse had already
defended his dissertation and was three weeks from receiving his Ph.D. He was awarded the degree posthumously. The shooting led to an increased University Police presence on and around campus and a more prominent focus on transportation issues. In addition to the 35 years he received for the murder, Bracey was sentenced to four years for a related
burglary of a physician’s South Chicago residence. He allegedly stole the gun used in the homicide, the Chicago Tribune reported in January 2008. E r i c Wa l k e r a n d B e n j a m i n Williams were also charged for first-degree murder in the case, but neither has pled guilty. A fourth man, Demetrius Warren, has been charged for his involvement in inci-
dents leading up to the slaying, but was not charged with murder. Cook County state attorneys didn’t respond to a request for comment. “I’m happy that at least one of the four is off the streets, but at the same time I can’t help but feel bad because essentially they’re a bunch of kids,” said Christian Nauvel, one of Cisse’s
CISSE continued on page 2
DISCOURSE
LAW SCHOOL
Quinn hails diversity
Law students win federal immigration case
IL Gov, U.S. treasurer speak at U of C business diversity event
While enrolled at U of C, recent alums argued before Seventh Circuit By Amy Myers Senior News Staff
Governor Pat Quinn welcomes leaders of minority- and female-owned professional service firms to the 2010 Business Diversity Symposium. Also speaking at the reception were (from right) President Robert Zimmer, Treasurer of the United States Rosa Rios, University Trustee John Rogers, and Chairman of Johnson Publishing Linda Johnson Rice.
Making their way through law school, James Burnham (J.D. ’09) and a group of his peers weren’t just studying federal cases—they were winning them. Working under the Federal Criminal Justice Project (FCJP)—a program which allows University law students to participate in the litigation of federal crimes—that group won their first case last month. The win represents years of work on several cases, all centering around punishing illegal re-entry into the United States. “I didn’t think it was a slam dunk,” Burnham said. “I thought there was a good chance we might lose the case.” Burnham and his peers acted as cocounsel, though they first approached lawyers with existing cases, offering to act as free co-counsel. They drafted
briefs and argued before hearings. “It’s very unusual that law students would be participating as directly as we were,” Burnham said. He argued the case and responded to questions at three separate hearings. All of the students working with the legal clinic during the 2008–2009 academic year were involved with litigation on the issue. Tom Gorman (’10), Emma Burnham (’09), and James Burnham led this particular case. “The students participated at every step of the way,” Project Director Alison Siegler said, from drafting an initial sentencing motion to writing briefs for the court of appeals. The FCJP was established in 2008 as an operation under the Mandel Legal Aid Clinic at the Law School. Like only a handful of legal clinics, it allows students to take the lead in litigating federal cases. The ruling has granted judges the “discretion to equalize the sentences of illegal re-entry defendants arrested here
COURT continued on page 2
DARREN LEOW/MAROON
POLITICS By Ivy Perez & Gabe Valley MAROON Staff Governor Pat Quinn and U.S. Tr e a s u r e r R o s a G u m a t a o t a o Rios mingled with minority and female business owners and University administrators last night at a Quadrangle Club reception. Th e e v e n t c a m e a h e a d o f today’s diversity in business symposium, aimed at developing relationships between the University and minority- and women-owned businesses. Speaking at the reception, Quinn touted the potential for change a large university can have in what he referred to "as a noble cause." “Great universities like the University of Chicago can spawn diversity with their purchasing power,” Quinn said, commending the University for its commitment to charter schools and to graduating talent. “Diversity is about talent,”
Q u i n n s a i d i n a n i n t e r v i e w. “Historically, there have been barriers blocking minorities from getting these opportunities. Events like these break those barriers.” Dozens of minority and women business owners were gathered for the upscale event, aimed at providing a forum for the relationships that hadn’t flourished as administrators would have liked, said Nadia M. Quarles, the University’s director of business diversity. “I was hearing from University leaders that they didn’t know minority-owned businesses, and from minority businesses that they didn’t know how to get in the door,” she said, adding: “We hope that they continue networking after today.” For his part, President Robert Zimmer said working with businesses other than ones owned by white men is central to the University’s mission. “For UChicago, this is not additional or at the margin,” Zimmer said.
“We want dedicated exposure [to these businesses], out of which actual action will hopefully grow,” he said. “There is a huge gap between the businesses that are getting the business and those that comprise the city,” said Suzanne F. Stantley, founder of the Black Expo Communication Development organization. “This event is about letting businesses make connections and to allow organizations to meet these buyers.” Stantley said Zimmer’s speech showed he was serious ab out working with minority-owned businesses. “When you have the commitment from the president of the University, the initiative becomes much more serious in its effort to bring in businesses that they would not already hire,” she said. Fourth-year Yahira Cruz and third-year Aliya Bagewadi, b oth memb ers of the student advisory board at the Office of Multicultural Affairs, were the
QUINN continued on page 2
Ex-prof elected state rep By Jonathan Lai News Staff U of C math professor-turnedpolitician Daniel Biss won a seat on the Illinois House of Representatives in last week’s election. Biss, a Democrat who left the University two years ago, will represent Illinois’s 17th State Representative District, the suburbs of Chicago including parts of Glenview, Northfield, south Northbrook, west Wilmette, west Evanston, northeast Morton Grove, and north Skokie. B i s s s a i d t e a ch i n g m a y n o t traditionally be considered a gateway to politics, but it was “better preparation than most people who have experience in academia and are interested in public life might expect.” “When you’re running, you basically spend your whole time trying to explain to people who have a
Daniel Biss
COURTESY OF DANIEL BISS
diverse array of learning styles, interests, and attention spans: that’s exactly what you’re doing in the context of a classroom,” he said. A 33-year-old who earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard and his Ph.D. from MIT, Biss said his first serious involvement in political campaigns was in 2004, after joining the University as a math instructor in 2002 and being made an assistant
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CHICAGO MAROON | NEWS | November 12, 2010
DISCOURSE
"Memory box" museums forget experience of objects, historian says By Tarika Khattar News Contributor Historian Steven Conn traced the evolution of museums into commercialized “memory boxes” at a workshop at the Harris School of Public Policy Studies Tuesday. Conn, a professor of history at Ohio State University, began with the question that titles his 2009 book: Do Museums Still Need Objects? Conn outlined two golden ages of museums: the first between the 19th and 20th centuries and the second ending with the recent economic downturn. He said the first golden age of museums, which didn’t have acoustic and interactive technology, emphasized visual experience in objects, highlighting The Art Institute of Chicago as a museum of the first golden age. He described its architecture as a signal that “culture happens here.” But where museums used to be a cultural refuge from “the messy world of commerce,” they have become commercialized through the increase in museum cafés, gift shops, and focus on museums as tourist attractions. With this commercialization and the rapid proliferation of museums, Conn said the purpose of museums has turned towards immortalizing the present in “memory boxes” that repackage the ephemera of the present age as historical artifacts. “Those two worlds, which a hundred years ago we could pretend to keep separate, have merged,” he said. Some audience members objected to Conn’s “memory box” argument in the question-andanswer session. They suggested that even “memory boxes” can be educational. Clarifying, Conn left the audience with a question: “I wonder whether museums lose their particular power to enchant and educate if more and more of our lives are seen through the lens of a museum. Are they becoming less magical, more commonplace?”
Friend remembers Cisse "helping underpriviledged people" CISSE continued from front page friends from Bates College, his undergraduate institution. Bracey was 17 at the time of the murder. Walker, Williams, and Warren, who were 16, 21, and 17 years old respectively, all have previous juvenile records or are being charged for other crimes, including robbery. Police were led to the suspects from a witness’s description of the getaway car, the Tribune reported in November 2007. An image of the car was caught on a U of C Hospital’s surveillance camera, and the vehicle was traced to a neighbor of Walker’s, who said he loaned Walker the car for cash. “Amadou was a very strong advocate for better conditions for kids who have the kind of upbringing that his murderers ended up having. He had a strong connection with the African-American communities and...helping underprivileged people,” said Nauvel, who was a law student at Northwestern at the time of the murder. “It’s very sad that he died the way he did.” Cisse was highly involved with the Muslim community on campus and was preparing to see his family back in Senegal when he died. “He was so close to going back home having accomplished his academic goals... to starting a new life that would impact so many people,” Bill McCartney, director of the International House when Cisse lived there, said in an e-mail. Administrators said Cisse’s legacy persists at the University, where he spent six years researching the process of molecular movement through polymers. “We will never forget Amadou Cisse,” said Vice President of Campus Life Kim GoffCrews in an email. “He brought pride to Chicago and his native Senegal as a talented scientist, a devoted son, a faithful brother, and a caring friend.” He had a lasting impact on students, faculty, and staff, like McCartney, who is now an administrator at East Carolina University. “He was someone who got involved with the activities of the House and had a smile for everyone he would meet,” McCartney said.
“He often volunteered to help House staff as we set up programs.” Bates has also been working to memorialize Cisse in a concrete way, according to Nauvel. “Our initial thought was to try to raise money and attach his name to a scholarship, but his family was against that idea...they didn’t want any Senegalese students to come to the U.S.,” Nauvel said, adding that Bates College is exploring other ways to memorialize him. Bracey’s sentencing came 10 days before the third anniversary of Cisse’s death.
REPONSE TIMELINE How police, prosecutors, and the University reacted to the murder of Amadou Cisse
11/19/2007 Amadou Cisse is shot around 1:30 a.m. on the 6100 block of South Ellis in an attempted robbery.
11/27/2007–1/23/2008 Eric Walker, 16; Benjamin Williams, 21; and Jamal Bracey, 17, are charged with first-degree murder. Demetrius Warren, 17, is charged with related crimes.
Trustee Rogers: U of C approach to cultivating diversity better than most QUINN continued from front page first students to be invited to the event. University trustee John Rogers, CEO of Ariel Capital Management, said it can be hard for business owners like him even to be heard by organizations that talk about business diversity but offer only certain contracts. “Usually, you see the person in the booth talking about increasing diversity,” he said, referring to booths at conventions. “But if you’re not in construction or in janitorial services, they tell you to go away.” Quinn was positive ab out minorityowned businesses, but he didn’t limit his remarks to promoting minority- and women-owned businesses: “We’ll put a fence around our borders and make sure our Nobel Laureates stay in Illinois.”
12/7/2007 The University recognizes Cisse’s Ph.D. in chemistry posthumously. He had successfully defended his thesis on November 1, 2007.
5/28/2008 The Campus Safety and Security Committee releases its report and its recommendations, which include new shuttles, a walking escort service, daily crime report p o st i n g s o n t h e U n i ve r s i t y ’s website, and additional outdoor cameras on campus.
10/29/2008 UCPD hires 15 new police officers and announces new shuttle bus routes, a new swipe card system for accessing buildings, and more security cameras.
11/9/2010 B ra c ey p l e a d s g u i l t y a n d i s sentenced to 35 years.
Governor Pat Quinn talks with State Senator Kwame Raoul at the reception of the 2010 Business Diversity Symposium Thursday evening at the Quadrangle Club. DARREN LEOW/MAROON
Controversial case won by Law students may go to Supreme Court
Biss hopes to use teaching background on education initiatives
COURT continued from front page
BISS continued from front page
with the sentences given to those same defendants elsewhere in order to avoid creating geographic sentencing disparity,” Siegler said. For committing illegal re-entry—the act of reentering the U.S. after deportation—defendants in Chicago can receive six-and-a-half to eight years in prison. “If those same defendants were arrested in Oregon, they would receive two-and-a-half years in prison for the same crime,” Siegler said. “There is a lot of criticizing for this particular sentencing guideline [in Chicago]. It’s considered extremely harsh.” But that was before the District Court judges made their ruling. “This unties [the judges’] hands and gives them an opportunity to give what they believe to be fair sentences,” she said. The group of students working on the case saw the ruling as a victory. “They were ecstatic. They were thrilled beyond belief,” Siegler said. “When it came down our way, they were really so excited.” In addition to focusing on a group of cases centered around one issue, the FCJP exposes students to a random assortment of cases, representing any
defendant that seeks free legal representation on a particular day. “We’ve represented clients in bank robbery cases and clients in mortgage fraud cases. It’s really very varied,” Siegler said. Students at the clinic take cases for new arrests through trial. For the law students involved, the October ruling is another step in their ongoing focus on illegal re-entry and geographic discrimination cases. Four courts have sided with the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals while three circuit courts have come down against the ruling—creating a huge disagreement in the U.S. Court of Appeals, according to Siegler. The Supreme Court often steps in to resolve such divisions, Siegler said. Should the Supreme Court take up the issue, Siegler said, “there is a really good chance that they would take the [recently decided] case and the [Mandel] clinic would go to the Supreme Court on the issue.” The continuation of the case requires the losing side, the U.S. government, to request that the Supreme Court consider the case. The chances of such an action are unlikely, according to Burnham.
CORRECTIONS » The November 2 News article, “Director Of Human Genome Institute Speaks At First Watson Lecture,” incorrectly described this year's Jean Mitchell Watson lecture. The lecture, delivered by Dr. Eric Green, was the third-annual Watson lecture. » The November 2 Voices article, “With Sinister Wit The North Plan Examines Post 9/11 Paranoia,” misattributed the role of Shonda. Tamberla Perry is currently cast in the part. The MAROON is committed to correcting mistakes for the record. If you suspect the MAROON has made an error, please alert the newspaper by e-mailing
Editor@ChicagoMaroon.com.
professor of mathematics in 2005. In 2008, he led his first bid for Representative against Republican incumbent Elizabeth Coulson, which was unsuccessful. But in order to be on the ballot in 2008, Biss said he had to begin to petition and campaign in 2007, leading to tensions between his two full-time commitments. “I felt that if I won the election, it would be totally crazy to promise my constituents that I can definitely do the job of state representative with the concern they deserve while also being a faculty member at the University,” Biss said. “It seems dishonest to say I can definitely be a full-time faculty member a d a legislator. That doesn’t seem practical. I could have asked for a leave or some kind of an extension, but I decided the most honest thing to do was to leave.” Third-year Jonathan Libgober from Oak Park campaigned for Biss in 2008, the summer before he came to the U of C. He said Biss would do whatever he could to meet as many constituents as possible. “He is the most hardworking individual I’ve ever met in my entire life. He would walk five hours every day in scorching heat,” he said. But Biss lost the 2008 election to Coulson, who “was billed as the one Republican Democrats would vote for,” Libgober said. Biss worked in a series of short-term political jobs, including campaign manager for Elizabeth Tisdahl, mayor of Evanston, before being called upon by Governor Pat Quinn to be a policy advisor for ethics and transparency. With Coulson running unsuccessfully to fill Illinois’s 10th congressional district seat vacated by U.S. Senator-elect Mark Kirk, Biss ran this year, allowing him to sweep
the Democratic vote. He defeated first-time Republican candidate Hamilton Chang with 54 percent of the vote. As a former educator, Biss hopes to bring new perspective to the Illinois House of Representatives. “Here in 2010, when we love nothing more than talking about the importance of having a highly educated, high-tech workforce, you wouldn’t think it would require, in that environment, a university professor to make the argument that it’s absolutely critical to support our institutions of public higher education. But it seems to be an argument that has not been made adequately strongly when the actual difficult decisions are made in the budgetary process,” he said. Besides an ability to deal with the technical side of government, Biss said his experience in higher education will help him gain support for policies and encourage education initiatives. “I think it will be valuable to have somebody who can speak from personal experience what the points of and benefits to all of society are of having first-class institutions of higher education in our state,” he said. According to fourth-year statistics major Jarret Petrillo, who took one of Biss’ InquiryBased Learning classes in the Calculus 160s sequence three years ago, he was a teacher that could leave students enough room to learn by themselves, but also guide them to the right train of thought. “He calls people up to do proofs and then tears them apart until it’s perfect. He was a phenomenal teacher. Somehow he was able to sit in the back of the class and still make sure it didn’t go too far astray,” Petrillo said.
CHICAGO MAROON
| VIEWPOINTS | November 9, 2010
VIEWPOINTS
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EDITORIAL & OP-ED NOVEMBER 12, 2010
EDITORIAL
CHICAGO MAROON
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Remember the A-Level!
The Ad Hoc Committee must resume meeting in order to fulfill its original agenda Here’s the good news: In recent months, no one has been arrested in the Reg for being too noisy. The bad news? Not much has changed since Mauriece Dawson’s (A.B. ’10) A-Level arrest this past February. In the event’s fallout, the Administration made an awful lot of plans to ensure that nothing similar would happen again. Among these was the formation of the Ad Hoc Committee on Campus and Student Life: a group consisting of students, professors, and members of the Administration designed to scrutinize the event and reevaluate campus policy. While the Ad Hoc Committee did meet several times during spring quarter, they have failed to do so this academic year, and furthermore, have no plans to.
The committee has not yet addressed much on its agenda, including its mandate to comment on the Independent Review Committee’s report about the arrest itself. While the committee was always meant to be temporary (and is scheduled to be disbanded at the end of spring quarter), one hopes it will try to accomplish more of its goals before that time. The beauty of the Ad Hoc Committee is that it is so interested in the student perspective. Out of the 17 people on the committee, 10 are students. Accordingly, it ought to be a space in which students not only can voice their real opinions about campus security and the presence of the UCPD, but also do something about it. A lot of times the phrase “Do
country’s private sector still consists mostly of farmers and microbusinesses. National politics are extremely unstable, and the Haitian government seems incapable of carrying out economic and social initiatives. Sure, foreign countries are quick to distribute medical supplies, food, water, and other aid to help alleviate suffering when disaster strikes. But the seemingly perennial destitution of Haiti shows us that this somewhat generic humanitarian mindset doesn’t help in the long run. I hope the U. S. has learned from its past “adventures” abroad that a country will not become stable and rich unless it is able to sustain itself and its citizens are able to contribute substantially to maintain its sustenance. Let’s not make the same mistakes over and over again.
targets to include Iran’s anti-air weapons, radar systems, and fighter aircraft. After that, Iran’s power grid will have to be destroyed to weaken its military response. Roads and bridges will have to be bombed to prevent Iran’s vehicle-bound S-300 surface-to-air missile systems from mobilizing. Iran’s seaports will be blockaded to interdict any shipments of fuel or weapons. What started with a few “precision airstrikes” can easily slide into what looks like an actual war. Iran’s counterattack will be conducted through its proxies in Iraq and Lebanon. Iran will redouble its efforts to provide these armed groups with the resources they need to kidnap American advisors
in Iraq or terrorize civilians in northern Israel. American forces in Afghanistan will be diverted away from an already difficult battle against the Taliban toward the Afghan-Iranian border. Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz—where 40 percent of the world’s oil shipments cross a passageway spanning less than six times the length of the Brooklyn Bridge—will grind to a screeching halt. The remnants of Iran’s nuclear program would simply move underground and resume with ferocious intensity. The effect on the civilian population of Iran will be tragic, not least because of the potential nuclear fallout from any damaged reactors. But while Iran
Foreign aid has done little to fix Haiti’s long-term problems By Suchin Gururangan Viewpoints Staff The earthquake struck Haiti almost a year ago. We all saw the images. Death and destruction reigned; humans bowed to the might of nature. And one year later, it hasn’t gotten any better. A cholera outbreak has surged in the capital of Port-au-Prince. According to Voice of America, approximately 270,000 people are expected to contract the disease. Poverty is still overwhelmingly the norm—most citizens must survive in slums and camps. Natural disasters, like the recent Hurricane Tomas, still ravage the nation, increasing the risk of infection and further compromising the country’s already fragile infrastructure. But haven’t foreign countries distributed humanitarian aid to help alleviate all of this for years? Haven’t both nongovernmental organizations and gov-
ernments spent millions of dollars trying to jump-start Haiti post-earthquake? There seems to be a large discrepancy between the money we are spending and the results. What happened? The reasons for the dragging recovery are numerous, but some are not as obvious as others. Take the Haitian health care system, for instance. Ironically, international health aid has actually hurt Haitians. Medical groups swooped in to assist immediately, spreading free health care to most of the population. Though this was necessary in the beginning and helped significantly in the short-term, the abundance of free health services damaged the Haitian health care system in the long-term. Haitian-run hospitals are few and far between, and Haitian doctors and nurses are out of work. Free foreign medical aid has diverted most patients, stealing them from the native Haitian health industry.
SUBMISSIONS
A preventive strike on Iran would have disastrous consequences for its pro-democracy movement
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What the country needs instead is a national care system bolstered by humanitarian aid. No country can become sufficiently functional without a sound economy, and the health care system is the ideal place to start. Instead of perpetuating foreign influence on Haiti’s medical system, in effect damaging the productivity of the country’s own health industry, why not focus more on training native Haitians in performing medical procedures? Not only does humanitarian aid need to be channeled towards a new health care system, it also needs to be directed into jobs, police forces, and businesses, to thrust Haiti into the global market and promote safety and capital for the nation. The facts, cited in Foreign Aid and Foreign Policy by Louis Picard, are startling: Unemployment rates range from 50 percent to 70 percent, and 95 percent of those who are employed work in an underground economy. The
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Not a quick fix
OP-ED
CONTACT
is that the Administration will disregard its initial promises as long as it is not under pressure to answer to them. The initial efforts of the Administration were well publicized and, by and large, well executed. But the sudden lack of activity this year makes their promises seem insincere and hollow, a temporary flurry of activity to assuage the inflamed campus community rather than a matter of real interest. That’s not the response the incident in the A-Level deserves, and the responsibility is on the Committee to resume its work and prevent any recurrence.
OP-ED
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The CHICAGO MAROON welcomes opinions and responses from its readers. Send op-ed submissions and letters to: Viewpoints CHICAGO MAROON 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. Op-ed submissions, 800 words.
something about it” sounds empty, but the committee’s clear ability to discuss and influence campus policy makes its lack of activity inexcusable. It’s not surprising that nine months later, the vast majority of campus has forgotten about Mauriece Dawson’s arrest. But what is surprising, as well as disconcerting, is that the people designated to improve the University’s response to such incidents have seemingly halted all attempts to do so. It’s not like this ought to be a “Remember the Alamo” situation, but it is recent and relevant enough to still warrant thoughtful consideration from the community and Administration. The unfortunate take-home point of the Ad Hoc Committee’s failure to meet
Suchin Gururangan is a first-year in the College.
Bombing to lose By Chase Mechanick Viewpoints Contributor At a meeting with Joe Biden on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought to convince the vice president that the only remaining deterrent against Iran is to threaten it with a military strike. I’m not a national security expert, but let me take a stab at how a hypothetical attack on Iran might play out. First, we will witness days of sustained bombardment. This will be no harmless, surprise airstrike on one or two nuclear installations executed with flawless and surgical precision. Iran’s nuclear weapons program is geographically and technologically dispersed
across multiple facilities, some secret, some already known: enrichment facilities in Natanz and Lashkar-Abad, reactors in Brushehr and Arak, weapons development centers in Tabriz and Chalus, nuclear research labs in Bonab, Esfahan, and Tehran. The American military brass will realize that it needs to strike many of these targets if it wants to permanently wound Iran’s nuclear program, and that this requires a protracted aerial campaign. After the first day, we will have lost the element of surprise; Iran’s defenses will be activated and will stand a good chance of repelling some of our attacks. Therefore, the U.S. Air Force will have to expand its list of military
IRAN continued on page 4
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CHICAGO MAROON
| VIEWPOINTS | November 12, 2010
OP-ED
Different executive, same decisions Obama’s refusal to take responsibility makes him little different from the typical politician By Lloyd Lee Viewpoints Staff George W. Bush emerged from his cave in Dallas this week to promote his new memoir, Decision Points, which was released on Tuesday. The timing of the release, one week after the “shellacking” of Obama and his party, seems to be no coincidence, and is probably meant to spin the legacy of the man whose infamous name, “Bush,” still unsettles many Americans. Republicans have aimed to distance themselves as much as possible from their old pal, and W. has for the most part obliged. But Democrats, who love to shout his name, should think twice before continuing their rhetoric of bashing and blaming Bush for every big mess they’re in. It was fine blaming W. on the morning of January 20, 2009. But after two years, every problem that Obama and his party “inherited” from W. is now rightfully their own. Afghanistan, they own it. Guantanamo Bay, they own it. The economy, they very much own it.
For Obama, the decisions needed to fix these “inherited” problems should have been relatively easy to make. He ran on changing the policies of the Bush administration and voters agreed with him. But after two years, it doesn’t make much sense to say that Bush has much to do with Obama’s Afghanistan, Obama’s Guantanamo Bay, and Obama’s economy. During the 2008 campaign, I agreed with thenSenator Obama that America should change its focus from Iraq to Afghanistan. But I didn’t think he would continue a war that so clearly cannot be won in the way he is trying to win it. Since Obama took office, there have been several high-profile attempted terrorist attacks: the Christmas Day bomber in Detroit, the Times Square car bomb, and, most recently, bombs sent through international cargo addressed to Chicago. Does Obama really think that being in Afghanistan is helping to stop the threat of terrorism from Islamic extremists? If anything, we are perpetuating
terrorism by being in the region. Closing Guantanamo Bay was a campaign promise, and to Obama’s credit he did try to do so. But he never followed through. I don’t expect politicians to do what they promise anymore, and Obama may have been naïve to think Guantanamo could easily be closed, but he should have overcome the obstacles and done it anyway, actually proving himself to be different from his predecessor instead of just pretending to be. But the biggest issue, that on the minds of every American, that which keeps Obama up at night, that which drives his every move, his every calculation, and that which will determine his political future and legacy, is the economy. That he continues to qualify every sentence about the economy with, “You must remember that I inherited this mess from the previous administration,” doesn’t help the economy. Blaming Bush for a recession caused by a combination of more complex actors doesn’t create jobs, doesn’t stimulate spending, and surely doesn’t create confidence. It seems this President has forgotten that he once
stood for something fresh and innovative. But what really can be fresh and innovative of an American politician? Not much, it seems. Blaming the other guy certainly isn’t fresh or innovative. If Obama loses in 2012, I’m sure his successor will also play the blame game. We have already seen the Republicans play it this year. They ran on blame in this past election, with Obama as their Bush. Obama seems to be not much more than a taller, darker, and skinnier version of his predecessors. Yes, he is certainly cooler, perhaps more thoughtful, and even more humble. But who really cares when the country has a 9.6-percent unemployment rate? Time is running out for Obama. And the bit of time he has left should not be spent blaming others. He is at the halfway point, and things don’t look good for the man who is now, according to Forbes, the second most powerful person in the world. Lloyd Lee is a fourth-year in the College majoring in Political Science.
Democracy movement is Iran’s best hope for long-term stability IRAN continued from page 3 can survive and recover from the physical destruction, the project of political reform will be set back decades. Iran’s security apparatus will pounce on the inchoate protest movement, denouncing them as traitors and Zionist collaborators. They will be blamed for the crisis, held responsible for sowing discord and thereby making Iran “weak” in its struggle against the West. Dissidents, feminists, and students will be summarily rounded up, placed before kangaroo courts, and condemned in Stalinesque fashion. An attack will also appear to support the fundamentalists’ portrayal of the West as a raging aggressor, discrediting the democracy movement’s pacifist overtones and confirming post hoc that Iran needed nuclear weapons after all. The loss of Iran’s democracy movement will not just be a problem for Iran, but for the U.S. as well, as it is our best hope for long-term peace. It is clear that a modus vivendi with Iran’s current power structure cannot be achieved, given its aggressive designs. It is no longer possible for an honest observer of the facts to hope Iran is not pursuing nuclear weapons capabilities, given the unlawful circumstances of its previous nuclear activities and its consistent displays of deception toward the IAEA. Nor is it the case that Iran is only arming itself in response to American threats: These threats began in response to Iran’s nuclear program, not the other way around (prior to 2003, Iran’s biggest existential threat came from Iraq). Finally, Iran’s extensive cooperation with armed Shiite groups in the Arab world suggests that its ambitions are not purely defensive. Iran could claim plausible deniability if these groups ever got a hold of fissile material, and could use its nuclear umbrella over these groups to discourage American or Israeli responses to terrorist attacks. Despite protests to the contrary from the regime’s apologists, Iran’s nuclear program is a threat that the world is right to take seriously. But while a doomsday scenario of war and instability is always invoked to justify an attack on Iran, war and instability is precisely what would ensue if hawks like Netanyahu have their way. The only feasible, permanent way to neutralize the threat emerging from Iran is through a changing of the guard. While it is possible that the Iranian reformists and democrats might disappoin—improving human rights in Iran while maintaining an aggressive posture towards the West and its allies—Iran’s democracy movement remains the most powerful weapon in our arsenal. If we follow the current path all the way to the end, democracy is sure to be the biggest casualty. Chase Mechanick is a third-year in the College majoring in Political Science.
The 29th Annual Interdisciplinary Faculty Seminar Series The MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics The Urban Health Initiative The Global Health Initiative RWJF Finding Answers: Disparities Research for Change
Presents
The Edge of Joy is an issue-driven documentary that follows an ensemble cast of Nigerian doctors, midwives and families to the frontlines of maternal care. Inside a maternity ward, the film chronicles distressed labors, deaths, and miraculous survival. Outside, lack of blood supply transportation and family planning are examined as causes of the cycle that kills more than 36,000 Nigerian women each year. Narrated by award winning journalist, Eliza Griswold, the multi-faceted characters in this portrait of pregnancy and childbirth provide intimacy, insight and reflection regardless of where the drama leads us.
Commentary by Olufunmilayo Olopade, MD and Christopher ‘Sola Olopade, MD, MPH
The University of Chicago Hospital Billings, Room P 117 Wednesday November 17, 2010 Noon to 1:30 Box Lunches will be provided
VOICES
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT NOVEMBER 12, 2010
FILM
In its Chicago debut, Doc chronicles a misunderstood genius tion for your films? IH: I think the inspiration for this film being shown here [is that] it’s all about my father…Because my father was this crazy guy, I always had a very hard time even just explaining to my friends when they would ask, “What does your father do?” And I was like, “Well, he smokes a lot of pot and hangs out, a lot. He used to be a famous writer.”…The other thing with this film was that there was a very primitive, essential motive, in that he was dying. He was in a hospice, and I suddenly was like, “Oh my god, I need to make a film about him.” That sort of motive is essential, wanting to document, wanting to save the “present tense.” Wanting to capture it, not in a bottle, but in pixels now. To keep him alive in some way, to immortalize him, in some funny way.
By Hallie Grumer Voices Couch Surfer You probably don’t know him, but Harold L. Humes, also known as Doc Humes, was one of the most important literary figures of the 20th century. He also had a sort of cult following on many college campuses, crashing on couches and influencing devoted students. Although he never visited UChicago while alive, he will be making his posthumous debut here with Doc, a film about the eccentric cultural figure shot by his daughter, Academy Award–nominated filmmaker Immy Humes. It details his life from founding the Paris Review, publishing two books, and being at the peak of artistic society, to his subsequent descent into madness. Doc will be shown in Chicago for the first time this weekend at the Film Studies Center, and will be accompanied by a discussion on his books. Immy Humes spoke with the Maroon about what it was like to create a film about her father and what life was like with this largerthan-life character. CHICAGO MAROON: When did you first become interested in making films? Immy Humes: I worked for a lot of TV shows, public television, broadcast journalism. I eventually made my first film of my own. That was A Little Vicious, which was a film about a dog.
In her documentary Doc, Immy Humes explores the rise and fall of her father, the late H.L. (Doc) Humes. Doc Humes was the founder of The Paris Review and the author of two novels, as well as a cultural staple of the 20th century. COURTESY OF IMMY HUMES
CM: A Little Vicious was nominated for Best Documentary Short in the 1991 Academy Awards. Does the critical acclaim you’ve received put pressure on you when you are working on new films? IH: I don’t think so. The thing is
that it was just a hoot. It didn’t really change anything, to tell you the truth: It’s really hard to find funding for a documentary anyway. But it was incredibly fun. CM: Where do you find the inspira-
CM: What was it like growing up with him as your father? IH: If you see the film it’s all in there: The film is the saga of his life. The family part is all there, but the film is the long story of his life and times. My part of it is not the biggest part of it. I didn’t make the film about me. I wanted it to be about him. He was this very charismatic, very active well-known writer; he was kind of manically talented in many areas. When I grew up, everyone said, “Oh, your father’s a genius.” But in the mid ’60s, he got much crazier—hearing voices and getting paranoid—and at that point my mom couldn’t do anything for him, so she
picked up her four kids and left him. So then, I didn’t see him for four years or so. I didn’t know if he was alive or dead from the time that I was six to nine or ten. And then he came back into our lives. He was always leaving and coming back, and the whole saga is in the film.
DOC: AN EVENING WITH IMMY HUMES Film Studies Center Friday, November 12 7:00 p.m.
C M: Well, for all of his more “unique” traits, so to speak, he was part of a very interesting group of artists at the time. IH: Well, yes, and on the one hand my film can neither idealize him nor diminish him. He was extremely accomplished and brilliant, and he knew everybody. He was incredibly social and gregarious and charming. And there was the younger self and the older self, and they’re slightly different; after the mid ’60s break he was always a little bit crazier. But before then, he was completely hooked in…He met Einstein, he had correspondences with Marlene Dietrich, and he was best friends with all those writers and painters. CM: But he is almost like an unsung artist of the time. IH: Yes, his books fell out of print, though they were very well received
HUMES continued on page 6
MUSIC
Wallpaper blurs the boundaries between sincerity and satire By Jordan Holliday Voices Zef Side Wallpaper is a band that’s hard to put your finger on. You could say it’s an Oakland-based funk duo comprised of front man (and Berkeley grad) Eric Frederic and drummer Arjun Singh, but that’s not quite right, because Frederic never exactly goes on stage. In his stead, he sends Ricky Reed, his polyester-suited, gold-chained, Auto-Tuned alter ego and the man whose lifestyle has inspired songs such as “Fine GF,” “Freak Scene,” and “Text Me Your Love.” The lyrics are so over-the-top they sound like satire, but the performance is so earnest that you want to believe. Is it irony? Exaggeration? Autobiography? Tough to say. Luckily, once Wallpaper takes the stage, Ricky Reed grabs the room by the lapels and shakes so hard you don’t have to think about all that anymore. Ricky’s outsized persona includes many things, but misgivings about his artistic talents are not among them, and he sings lines like, “I’m in the kitchen / Getting drip like a fish” and “My girlfriend’s always telling
me / I gotta start paying utilities” with such bravado that the layers of irony fall away and leave b ehind only pummeling b eats and knockout hooks. Wallpaper is self-conscious stupidity, the kind of music that brings U of C–style wallflowers to the center of the dance floor. At least that’s one take on it. For another, the Maroon talked to Eric Frederic, the man who dreamed up Ricky Reed and brings him to life at venues all over the
WALLPAPER Double Door Saturday, November 13
country, including at Chicago’s own Double Door tomorrow, November 13. CHICAGO MAROON: So you started using Auto-Tune in 2005, before I’d ever heard of T-Pain. Can you guys take any credit for Auto-Tune blowing up? Eric Frederic: I wish I could take credit for it. At that point people were referring to it as the “Cher effect,” because it was in Cher’s “Life After Love.” The beginning of
Wallpaper was more of a pop satire thing, so I thought what better way to satirize pop music than make my voice as robo as possible…So I took Auto-Tune and cranked it all the way up, and I thought, “This is kind of sweet. This is my thing, no one else is doing it.” And I was listening to the radio in 2007, and I heard this E-40 song featuring T-Pain, and my heart just sank. I thought, “This is it, some guy is doing Auto-Tune and it’s just a matter of time before this is the biggest thing in pop music.” And sure enough…so we’ve dropped it from our toolbox. I don’t like the way it sounds, it’s so grating, and it’s everywhere. C M : I’d never heard of “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell” until Pitchfork linked your remix of it, and suddenly your version was everywhere. How’d that song catch your ear? E F: I was playing a show with Girl Talk in Las Vegas. We were in Girl Talk’s hotel room, and [Dan Deacon] was like, “You have to hear this song—it’s crazy.” So he played it, and of course we were all in stitches, and I knew the instant I
Eric Frederic aka Ricky Reed (left) and Arjun Singh (right) prepare for their weekend with a trip to the liquor store to stock up on 40s and Four Lokos. COURTESY OF RIGHT ON! PR
heard it I had to remix it because it was just the weirdest song ever. At that point, Das Racist hardly had a MySpace, so they said I could remix it. We share a lot of the underlying ideas Das Racist has. Like using humor to subvert bigger ideas, that’s definitely what Das Racist does in their songs.
CM: I’m curious where the humor in your music comes from. Are there comedians who’ve influenced you? E F: Wallpaper’s lyrics draw on very exaggerated versions of life experiences, good and bad. There are definitely comedians who I draw on: Andy Kaufman, Richard
WALLPAPER continued on page 6
6
CHICAGO MAROON | VOICES | November 12, 2010
The Fun Corner. "Crystalised"
Across 1. Challenger letters 5. Hanoi holidays 9. F on a test 14. Series finale, briefly? 15. The third one can be shocking 16. Dripping 17. Boring way to learn 18. It gets dunked 20. Jet-black percussion instrument 22. Sans-___ (Helvetica-like) 23. “The end is ___!” 24. Airport org. 27. Beggar's cry 30. Overshadows 32. Chip companion 35. Missing thing in Transformers 2 38. Kind of phobia
39. Unconventional element 54. 43. Reds’ skipper Dusty 44. On pins and needles 45. Airport org. 46. Feeble 48. Nile biters 51. Cash extender 52. Sucked big time 55. Group of eight 59. Tea Party Poser 63. Cosmetics specialist 65. Stratford-___-Avon 66. “I surrender!” 67. Superior mate? 68. Bristol's beau 69. Travels like Calvin and Hobbes 70. Cholesterol varieties 71. Jazz duo?
Down 1. Peter and a Wolfe 2. Observe Yom Kippur 3. Lascivious deity 4. Reading disorder 5. Iliad setting 6. ___ of Sandwich 7. Attach with rope 8. ‘m’ in ninth-grade algebra 9. Glo-coat, e.g. 10. ___ Flux (MTV cartoon) 11. Chicago vista 12. Alpine sport 13. Spud spot 19. “Hanging” election concern 21. Defunct league for the Chicago Enforcers 25. Jackson Five ‘dos 26. Yoga position 28. 55. letters? 29. ___ Gin Fizz 31. Improve, as wine 32. Crazy luxurious sheikhdom 33. Senseless 34. It won’t flush with a flush 36. Like 13. 37. College chant 40. Michael Stipe’s band 41. Roasts, really 42. Boys, genetically 47. Year Marcus Aurelius became emperor 49. Top 40, usually 50. Peanuts creator Charles 53. Spreadsheet software 54. ___ Sisters (Shakespeare’s witches) 56. Pith helmet 57. On top of 58. Patron saint of France 60. Word sung on 1/1. 61. Execute perfectly 62. Singles 63. Speed speeder 64. Darkroom abbr.
Solution for 11/9 puzzle
Sudoku is provided by Laura Taalman (A.B. '94) and Philip Riley (A.B. '94).
Immy Humes remembers her father through film
In a pre-T-Pain era, Wallpaper pioneered Auto-Tune
HUMES continued from page 5
WALLPAPER continued from page 5
at the time. He authored two books; he was a bright, young novelist up there with Mailer, Styron, Capote, and Matthiessen, but then he went crazy. So no one read them because for 50 years they were out of print, and thanks to the film they are back in print, I am proud to say. CM: When you were younger your relationship with your father was confusing, but as you grew older, did that relationship change at all? IH: In my childhood, my memories of him are very strong, although he was not a normal dad, and I’ve always envied and admired my friends who had real fathers. But he was very important to us as kids. He had this kind of real wonderfulness with us. I remember some experiences with him as “magical” and wonderful. But then he was gone, and I remember as a 10-year-old, seeing that he was back in The New York Times. He was at Columbia giving away cash to students, as a performance art piece, making all these points about money. So he was this very nutty guy with a beard, and very hippie. It was this sort of new version of Dad. For the last 25 years of his life, he spent it on campus, surrounded by college students, and that was how he managed to live, because they took care of him.
M
CM: But he never made it to UChicago! IH: I know! He finally got off the East Coast. When Doc moved into someone’s dorm room, he never left. Paul Auster, the writer, tells this story in the film about when he was an undergraduate at Columbia, and Doc moved into his room, and his feet never touched the floor because he was on the couch…He amassed this group around him, mostly at Harvard, where he went to school, as well as MIT. He also spent time at Princeton, Columbia, and Bennington. He would move onto campus and start talking, and very soon would be surrounded by a group of kids, and they would essentially look after [him]. A lot of times it was like he was the only “grown-up” who took them seriously. CM: Well, it was an interesting life, to say the least! IH: Yeah, he was an interesting guy, a wonderful guy, a difficult guy. For me, the hard part was getting the balance in the documentary and the truth of him on screen. Because he was horrible in a lot of ways too; it was sad to see. A lot of people considered him a failure and a sad wreck of a man, but I didn’t want it to be about, “Oh, he’s my father, and I’m proud of him.” But somehow having a completely certifiably crazy parent makes it almost easier to forgive.
Check out our online exclusive articles at ChicagoMaroon.com: Christine Yang writes this week's Stuff to Do and Kathy Stewart interviews musician George Lewis
Pryor, Mitch Hedberg, but I don’t know if the humor we employ is derived from those dudes. [ Fo r t h e s o n g , “ I G o t S o u l , I ’ m S o Wasted”], the idea for it was born when I was quite intoxicated after a show in Sacramento. I was dancing at the club where we played, feeling good, and I can’t say all the lyrics for that were written on that dance floor, but the concept was birthed there.
"There are a lot of moments of vulnerability on our album Doodoo Face." CM: You’ve done a lot to promote Wallpaper on YouTube, tumblr, and MySpace. I’m curious what you, as part of an up-and-coming band, think about the role of the Internet in the music industry. Are MP3s and file sharing the downfall of the industry, or is this a great new way for bands to get noticed? EF: In some ways, the MySpace explosion was bad for the music industry, at first. If you signed up for a MySpace music page, you had a band. So there was an explosion of people that had bands but may or may not have had a real passion for music making. Now that a few years have passed, there’s such an over-saturation that bands with good songs or good Internet branding do rise to the top, the way bands rose to the top back in the day. The downside is, it’s hard to have the sort of mystery. You can shut yourself off, but it’s hard to maintain your fan base without
having a constant content flow. Luckily with Wallpaper, the front man is Ricky Reed, and he’s happy to spew all kinds of personal bullshit on the Internet. That’s my way out of having to tell people what I’m having for breakfast. CM: What’s the future of Wallpaper? Can you keep the humor? Does Ricky Reed eventually have to show a softer side? EF: There are a lot of moments of vulnerability on our album Doodoo Face. There are admissions of loneliness and disconnection. With all the references to technology, we’re trying to deal with how our generation is hyper-connected and information-addicted. Ricky talks about chasing down girls on Facebook, and we all get an immediate sense of pleasure from that stuff, but ultimately we may be distancing ourselves from actions and real people. That’s woven into the lyrics. It’s not on the surface, because Wallpaper is party music. But if we ever lost those ideas, then the music would be coming from an insincere place and the project would stop. And as we change and evolve, there are things about my personality that I dislike, and they come to light via Ricky Reed in exaggerated form. CM: What’s Ricky Reed’s highest aspiration? When will he know he’s made it? EF: He would probably have to have a small colony on another planet, with tens of thousands of virgins feeding him grapes and dark chocolate, and the latest SkyMall catalog delivered to him daily, and a fucking hybrid helicopter. It takes a lot to satisfy him.
7
CHICAGO MAROON | SPORTS | November 12, 2010
Maroons enter tourney 5–0–1 over last six games
Chicago looks to avenge one-touchdown loss to Bears last season
W. SOCCER continued from back page
FOOTBALL continued from back page
been the Maroon’s forte this year, only losing in four of 13 contests that were decided by a single goal. “We can be in every game and be successful” said Doman. The Maroon offense is no slouch either. Four times this season, the women have had impressively high scoring games, winning 6–0, 6–1, 4–0, and impressively slipping 11 goals into the net in a shutout of Anderson on the road. They are on a roll going into the playoffs as well; the Maroons have not lost in six games,
and since October have outscored opponents 13–3. Should the Maroons defeat Wartburg, they will go on to play the winner of the game between Loras and Aurora. Although Reifert emphasized that they were taking the tournament one game at a time and are not overlooking the game against Wartburg, the Maroons will set their sights high this postseason, as they do every postseason. Said Reifert, “Our ultimate team goal every year is to win a UAA championship and an NCAA championship.”
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Wash U, and no one on this team wants to feel that again,” said Oium. “To win on Saturday we are just going to need to capitalize on all of our opportunities to score. We cannot afford to let those opportunities slip away.” In the penultimate game of last year’s season, the 4–3 Maroons welcomed the Bears with the conference title still undecided. In a high scoring game, Wash U won 44–37. “Defensively, we need to control their running game and limit the big plays,” Oium added. “Those are what killed us last year against Wash, and if we are able to play solid defense, we should be able to come away with a win on Saturday.” “We have prepared for Wash U like any other week. We all know it is a big game, but we still have to play smart assignment football,” said thirdyear defensive lineman Jake Longtin, who rounds out the roster for the game after collecting three
sacks against Carnegie. “The coaches have done a good job of treating it like a regular game, even though we all know what is at stake.” But while the ins and outs of this week’s practice may remain largely the same, the feeling surrounding this team has been anything but. Not one member on the team played for the University when Chicago last won its conference. Speaking of Saturday’s import, Oium stated, “This is the last game of our season, and it is one of the biggest games in UChicago football history. If we lose this game, our season will be looked on as a failure because we failed to live up to the expectations set by our players and coaches. Naturally, there are going to be nerves; every time I take the field I get nervous. It’s just part of the game.” The Maroons will host Wash U at noon on Saturday for the Founder’s Cup, conference championship, and a possible berth in the NCAA tournament.
Midwest region features defending national champs UW-Eau Claire W. CROSS COUNTRY continued from back page Lawton, individually, will look to reprise her wondrous finishes at the last two meets, placing second at Oshkosh before winning outright at the UAA Championships. Her leadership and the team’s struggle for acknowledgement will be more than enough to provide the Spartan motivation for this race. “I know I’m not alone when I say I am going to give every ounce of heart I have at these next two meets [Midwest Regional and the NCAA Championship] in order to win both races and bring home the hardware that will show everyone that they’ve been underestimating us for far too long,” Lawton proclaimed. “I’m ready
to run as fast and hard as possible, and I know every single girl from Chicago is ready to do the same. “ The girls’ expectations are shared by their coach, Chris Hall, who “fully expects them to run their best race of the season.” Their ultimate goal would be to place in the NCAA Championship, not a difficult feat for a Midwest team considering UW– Eau Claire from this region are the current defending national champions. “We are waiting for our moment to shine as a team,” Lawton said. For that, there is no better stage than the Midwest Regional this Saturday and the NCAA Championships.
FOR MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY COVERAGE, GO TO CHICAGOMAROON.COM
Beyond Words: Author Portraits by Carl Köhler WHEN Through Dec. 11 WHERE Regenstein Library 1st Floor
A traveling exhibition
Portraits of renowned authors are featured in this traveling exhibition of works by the late neo-modernist Swedish artist and sculptor Carl Köhler (1919-2006). Oil and ink portraits of James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, Jean Cocteau, Henry Miller, Franz Kafka, Joyce Carol Oates, Virginia Woolf and others are on display.
www.lib.uchicago.edu
IN QUOTES
SPORTS
“Lady at Beluga is explaining the menu and it seems as if she’s talking in a foreign language, WTF is a shrimp tempora, bring me a burger!!” —Cincinnati Bengal Chad Ochocino, live-tweeting his first encounter with sushi.
FOOTBALL VS. WASH U • NOON, SATURDAY • STAGG FIELD
WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
The biggest
At Midwest Regional, Maroons race for first NCAA bid since 2006
W 8–2
FIRST
NCAA
THE BEST
RECORD
SINCE 1995
FOURTH
UAA
PLAYOFFS
IN PROGRAM
HISTORY?
CHAMPIONSHIP
4–0 PERFECT
By Charles Fang Sports Staff
RECORD
AT HOME
FOUNDER’S
CUP
COMES HOME
FIRST UAA
TITLE SINCE 2005
of the modern era?
By Nick Foretek Sports Editor
The banners hanging in Ratner may have some company come Saturday. After demolishing Carnegie 61–22 in a record-breaking victory on Saturday, the Maroons (7–2 overall and 2–0 in conference) will play Wash U for both the UAA championship and the Founder’s Cup at Stagg Field this Saturday. In what is surely the biggest game in recent memory for Chicago football, the Maroons will face Wash U, a longtime rival and winners of six straight. Wash U has also won both of its conference games to stand 7–2 overall— same as Chicago—behind a solid defense
and strong special teams play. During their winning streak, the Bears have scored an average of 21.5 points per game. In contrast, the Maroons have averaged just over 33 points a game over that time. Instead, the Bears have relied upon a defense that has surrendered only three touchdowns in their last three games. Opponents have scored a minuscule 12 points a game over the course of Wash U’s winning streak. The Bears will likely lean heavily on the play of senior defensive back Brandon Brown to help shut down the Maroons’ passing game. Brown recently received D-III team of the week honors after last week’s win over Case. “On offense we need to get up on them early and force them to pass the
ball,” said second-year wide receiver Dee Brizzolara, whose five touchdowns last week helped the Maroons score a record 61 points. His performance also got him a spot on the team of the week. “We’ve put in a few new plays, and from a general team perspective we seem to be more energetic and excited to practice. We all really want this win, and it shows in our attitudes this week.” If God built an offense designed to stress a dominant defense, it might very well be the Maroons. Last week, against conference opponent Carnegie, Chicago’s offense moved the ball at will. Fourth-year quarterback Marshall Oium dominated the Tartans’
secondary, passing for 410 yards and a school-record six touchdowns. Two of those touchdowns landed in the hands of fourth-year wide receiver Clay Wolff, who set Chicago records for career touchdowns (35) and total points scored (212) with his performance Saturday. If the Maroons can recapture some of their scoring prowess on Saturday, they should find themselves in a strong position to win. “Playing for the conference championship and the Founders Cup means a lot to our team. We have focused on beating Wash U since they came from behind and beat us last year. Nothing sucks more than losing to
FOOTBALL continued on page 7
WOMEN’S SOCCER
21st-ranked Chicago opens D-III tournament against Wartburg
Women’s soccer huddles during a home game this year. They play Wartburg to open this year’s NCAA tournament. DARREN LEOW/MAROON
By Mahmoud Bahrani Sports Staff The Chicago women’s soccer team begins postseason play today against Wartburg College at 7:30 p.m. at Loras College in Dubuque. The Maroons, ranked 21st in the country, are favored to win the contest over
their unranked opponents. However, coach Amy Reifert and the rest of her coaching staff are not taking the win for granted. “We look forward to a great battle!” Reifert said. “They are a tough, hard-working talented team that has won some great games this year.” Postseason play will be both eye-
opening and familiar to this unique Maroon team, composed of a large number of first-years and fourth-years. 14 of the 25 women on the roster are entering either their first or last NCAA tournament. “We start four seniors and four first-years so we have both experience and youth,” said Reifert. “The fourth-years understand what
playing in the tournament means while the first-years are learning. It is a young, exciting team with lots of personality.” First-year defender Elizabeth Doman, who garnered all UAA honors last week for her terrific play against Washington University, is one such player looking forward to entering her first NCAA postseason with the team. “Our entire team has connected really well, and I think that comes from how wonderful our upperclassmen are,” Doman said. The lines blur between underclassmen and upperclassmen for this unified team. The team will rely again on their seemingly impenetrable defense, both due to strong defensive line play and total cohesion. “Throughout the season, we have done a great job pressuring our opponent’s back line, disrupting in the midfield, and destroying any threatening chances in the defensive third,” Doman said. Defense has been an emphasis from day one for Coach Reifert, allowing the Maroons to stay competitive in any game. Low scoring affairs have
W. SOCCER continued on page 7
After placing second at the UAA championships, the Chicago women’s cross-country team will run at the Midwest Regional this Saturday at Augustana College amid great expectations. With the NCAA championship meet in sight, this should prove to be a competitive race. Several perennial powerhouses will attend, among them archrivals Wash U, North Central, and the Cheese Triad— UW-Oshkosh, UW-Stevens Point, and UW-Eau Claire. Even with the Maroons ranked sixth nationally, and second in the Midwest region, the team still has a chip on their shoulders from being considered an underdog at every turn. “It’s a shame, but we do not get the recognition at this school [that] we desire,” fourth-year Liz Lawton said. “We still stand as underdogs in [the eyes of ] the nation and even in the eyes of the school.” This may be the consequence of a long, grueling season in which Chicago struggled in the intermediate onset, facing tough competition at the Benedictine Invitational and the Loyola Lakefront Invitational in early October. However, the team has started peaking at the right time, placing second in their last two meets before these regional meets to qualify for the national championship meet on November 20. In the words of Lawton, the Chicago “team has grown extraordinarily close” over this strenuous season and is beginning to feel a spirit of renewal after all the meets and University of Chicago–caliber midterms. The Chicago women do not have to win this meet to qualify for the NCAA championship meet, but this would be a great achievement for a team Lawton describes as the “most talented and deep[est in the field],” and well within their expectations.
W. CROSS COUNTRY continued on page 7
CA LEN DA R Friday 11/12 • W. Soccer @ NCAA Tournament vs. Wartburg, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday 11/13 • M. Cross Country @ Midwest Regional, 11 am • W. Cross Country @ Midwest Regional, noon • Football vs. Wash U, noon
Sunday 11/14 • M. Basketball @ Domincan, 7 p.m. • W. Basketball vs. North Central, 7 p.m.