ESTABLISHED 1826 — OLDEST COLLEGE NEWSPAPER WEST OF THE ALLEGHENIES
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2016
Volume 145 №6
Greeks see 92 fire violations
ZETA BET TAU FRATERNITY SUSPENDED
Overcoming a sense of invincibility
RECORDS SHED LIGHT ON DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURE
SAFETY
GREEK
KIERRA SONDEREKER
JAMES STEINBAUER
During the 2016 spring semester, 92 fire violations were reported in off-campus Greek houses. With an average of 24 houses inspected, this comes down to about four violations per house. Oxford Fire Chief John Detherage said that fire violations can range from the use of a hot plate to the presence of holes in the walls or ceiling. “On routine inspections, what occurs most often are [the use of] extension cords, things stored in the hallways or stairwells [which block fire escapes] and the self-closing fire doors being broken,” Detherage said. Once a fire violation is found, the occupants are responsible for fixing the violations. “We look for [occupants] to fix the stuff immediately if that’s possible,” said Detherage. “Other violations that take longer, like things that need repaired, we usually give them two weeks to a month, depending on how long we think it’s going to take for them to get it fixed. Then we will return and inspect to make sure that the things were repaired or removed.” Failure to fix a violation can result in a citation of up to $500. All fines that are collected due to fire violations are placed in the Fire and EMS Fund, the source of the majority of funds used to support the Oxford Fire Department. The number of violations is down about 50 percent from the fall 2015 semester total of 180.
Miami’s body of Greek organizations became one fraternity smaller after investigations last semester. A series of allegations in the spring and as recently as late August has led to the suspension of one fraternity and investigations into two more, according to university records obtained by Patch on September 8. Zeta Beta Tau is no longer recognized by Miami University and is suspended until May 10, 2018, bringing the total list of unrecognized fraternities at Miami to nine. An investigation this spring by Miami’s Office of Ethics and Student Conflict Resolution (OESCR) and Zeta Beta Tau national headquarters revealed the fraternity violated the Miami Code of Student Conduct for hazing. Initial allegations against the fraternity said current members forced new members to drink alcohol, provide servitude and perform early morning workouts, according to university records. Zeta Beta Tau’s suspension is the third to come out of investigations last semester. Phi Kappa Tau and Pi Kappa Phi were both suspended in March after OESCR found them responsible for violating Miami’s Code of Student Conduct for hazing and prohibited use of alcohol. And there were almost twice as many fraternities under investigation and put on disciplinary probation. The numbers were not normal — OESCR saw a 16 per-
VIOLATIONS »PAGE 2
SUSPENSION »PAGE 4
THE MIAMI STUDENT
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Diminishing sisterhood Pledge class sizes split sororities HOUSING
LAURA FITZGERALD SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Living on a designated dorm floor is an experience that sororities tout as a bonding opportunity for sophomore sisters. For some women, though, that experience has been compromised. Four sororities have members living in two or more dorms: Alpha Delta Pi, Delta Delta Delta, Alpha Omicron Pi and Pi Beta Phi. Sophomore Hannah Hendricks is a member of Alpha Delta Pi, which is split between two floors of Porter Hall and one small floor in Scott Hall. Hendricks lives with the smaller portion of girls in Scott Hall, which
Miami University — Oxford, Ohio
is primarily a co-ed dorm housing first-year students. “I do like my room, and I like the girls who live in Scott, but I wish we were all in one hallway,” Hendricks said. Hendricks said she chose to live in Scott so she could live on Central Quad and have air conditioning in her room. “I probably should have weighed that we wouldn’t be with as many girls,” said Hendricks. The split housing, Hendricks said, diminishes her ability to bond with all of her sisters. “I think it divides you just because the idea of a corriSORORITY »PAGE 2
RYAN TERHUNE THE MIAMI STUDENT
Seniors Mickey Myers and Lauren Salem kiss in counter-protest to the religious organization Official Street Preachers. The protests on Friday, Sept. 16 roused hundreds of students to fight back in peaceful counter-protest.
RYAN TERHUNE THE MIAMI STUDENT
RYAN TERHUNE THE MIAMI STUDENT
JACK EVANS THE MIAMI STUDENT
The Official Street Preachers, labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, gathered on Miami’s campus on Friday, Sept. 16 to protest homosexuality and Islam, among other things. They were led by Mikhail Savenko (right), known as “The Russian Preacher.”
Miami students counter-protest religious hate group ACTIVISM
A throng of students congregated at the corner of Maple Street and Spring Street, just outside the Shriver Center. Students walking to and from class stopped and stared, listening and observing the commotion. It was a mob of people. All that could be heard were shouts of, “You’ll burn in hell!” and responses of, “Gay is good.” Getting closer to the chaos, sweat could be seen trickling down people’s faces as they stood under the sweltering sun. There was passion in the eyes of the protesters and counter-protesters. They were there with a purpose. Miami police officers Sgt. Andy Rosenberger and Officer Don Delph surveyed the area to ensure things didn’t get out of hand. The tension was tangible. Around 11 a.m. Friday,
Sept. 16, a group of protesters known as the Official Street Preachers (OSP) gathered at Miami University’s Oxford campus. Armed with Islamophobic and anti-LGBTQ signs and sentiments, the group began preaching their message to whomever would listen. “A person is not born a homosexual, the homosexual makes a decision of choice because of the perverted mind that they want to engage in homosexual and lesbian activity,” said a street preacher identified as Vijay. “[The] bible says that if you don’t trust in Christ and give up your homosexuality, you’re going to end up in hell.” The semicircle of students that formed around him erupted in protest. “God created people the way they are,” a student cried. “How dare you! How would you know?” another shouted. As time crawled by, the
ANGELA HATCHER JACK EVANS
THE MIAMI STUDENT
masses of students grew in number. Some lone students got caught up in the moment on the way to class. Pairs of people walked across the street from Armstrong to see what was going on and lingered to watch the activity. Others walked by, only to return 15 minutes later with water bottles and friends. Students of the same sex held hands and skipped through the fray. Some would grab each other and passionately kiss in front of the demonstrators. Others remained silent, holding up signs that spoke for themselves. The students all had different reasons for being there but stood united in counter-protest against OSP. “I’m here to preach the good word of consensual premarital sex, because it feels really good, and I don’t think these guys have ever heard about it,” said sophomore Oliver Greive, holding a speaker blasting Lonely Island’s “I Just Had Sex.” “I was out here earlier, but
then I went back to go get a rainbow sticker. And then more friends and more rainbow stickers,” said first-year Jess Scott, sporting a sticker. “Honestly, I was going to pick up a package because I have class in an hour, but this is much more enjoyable,” said first-year Jake Gold. Some had a more serious message. “This is not God, this is irrelevant. What’s in Revelation? Depart from me you worker of iniquity. They talk about burning in hell, but this is hate,” said firstyear Sierra Evans. “My message is what’s been instilled in me since birth: Love. God is love.” Sophomore Paige Galberg held a handcrafted sign that read, “Homosex is in,” next to the OSP sign that read, “HOMO SEX IS SIN.” “I identify as bisexual and the majority of my friends are LGBTQ community members or allies,” Galberg said. PROTEST »PAGE 2
NEWS p. 2
CULTURE p. 3
EDITORIAL p. 6
OP-ED p. 7
SPORTS p. 8
ONLINE
PRESCRIPTION DRUGS IN THE MIAMI RIVER
CONFESSIONS OF A COLLEGIATE MESS
THE WORLD OF INTERNET SHAMING
COLUMN: WHY IS IT COOL NOT TO THINK?
VOLLEYBALL CLAIMS SEVENTHSTRAIGHT WIN
PREVIEW: BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETS FRIDAY
Scientists in southwest Ohio are finding drugs in the water. The culprit: Us. Should we care?
Dirty dish, clean slate: One writer’s struggle with an ever-growing dirty dish pile.
The internet has made shaming as easy as ever, but many forget it can ruin lives or even end them.
We’ve all experienced it: the professor asks a question and...silence. What does it say about students?
The ‘Hawks defeat the Furman Paladins before heading into Mid-American Conference play.
Board will vote on $180 million bonds for construction, endowments for Pre-Law, Student Affairs.
2 NEWS
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2016
Drugs in Miami River could be changing gender of fish, frogs
NEWS@MIAMISTUDENT.NET
Havighurst lectures recall Russian Revolution LECTURE
ENVIRONMENT
Particles of antibiotics, antidepressants, birth control, painkillers and a slurry of other pharmaceutical drugs are finding their way into southwest Ohio’s streams and rivers, and they have scientists and environmental agencies in a regulatory quagmire. Scientists say that some of these drugs could mutate the fish and amphibians they come in contact with, causing them to change gender. In a study by the Miami Conservancy District, which monitors and analyzes water in the Great Miami River watershed, researchers found 17 different pharmaceutical compounds at 30 different testing sites. A previous study by the United States Geological Survey found more than six times as many. This type of water pollution didn’t start in the chemical and paper companies that used to pepper the Great Miami river from Dayton to Hamilton. It started in your bathroom. “It’s us. Everything we take,” said Mike Ekberg, a researcher at The Miami Conservancy District. “If you take ibuprofen, your body is going to metabolize some of it, but a lot of it will move through the body un-metabolized. You’ll pee it out and it will enter into the sewage system.” Pharmaceutical and personal care products, or PPCP’s, are being flushed into the Great Miami from wastewater treatment plants or leaching into groundwater from
old septic tanks. Researchers call these particles “emerging contaminants.” That’s not because they’re new — they’ve been in our waterways for decades. However, the technology needed to detect PPCP’s has improved, and scientists can now locate them at very small levels. “When we get down to those smaller levels, it’s like, ‘Wow, there’s more things in here than we ever imagined,’” Ekberg said. “My gut feeling is that pretty much anything people are taking is making its way into the water. If you know what to look for, you can find it.” Scientists don’t yet know the ultimate ecological impact of this chemical cocktail. There is little evidence that traces of PPCP’s are harmful to humans, but one specific group of chemicals, called endocrine disruptors, can cause mutations in wildlife. “I think we’re really only scratching the surface right now in terms of what the known effects are, but a lot of the concern is about reproductive function,” said Ty Hoskins, a Ph.D. candidate at Miami studying how endocrine-disrupting chemicals influence reproductive organs in developing frogs. In the absence of an endocrine disruptor, Hoskins said, an individual may have become a male. However, increased levels of estrogens from birth control and other endocrine-disrupting chemicals in the water are interfering with that natural process. Endocrine disruptors are causing some fish and amphibians to change their gender. A USGS study found that some
native fish populations living downstream from wastewater treatment plants were found to exhibit similar endocrine disruption, including low male-to-female sex ratios and fish that have both male and female reproductive organs. And one problem with endocrine disruptors, Hoskins said, is that they’re almost impossible to regulate. Until now, environmental agencies and regulators have been working off an adage coined in the early 1500s by the “father of toxicology,” Paracelsus — the dose makes the poison. The traditional logic states that the higher the dose, the more toxic the chemical. “That’s the way our whole regulatory system is designed,” Hoskins said. “But endocrine disruptors do not always show traditional dose response relationships. For example, they can be toxic at very low concentrations and less toxic at higher concentrations. How do you deal with a chemical like that?” The World Health Organization has labeled more than 800 endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and the federal government currently does not regulate any of them. “Under our current way of doing things, it takes a really long time to develop a maximum contaminant level for some compounds,” Ekberg said. “And people are creating new types of drugs every year. The regulatory process can’t keep up.”
FROM PROTEST » PAGE 1
from violations »PAGE 1
“This is just not ok. This is sad.” Miami administrators who were present at the demonstration had positive things to say about the students’ responses to the OSP protesters. “I think the student response was overall terrific,” said Mike Curme, dean of students. “It showed great support for segments of the student body who may have felt targeted by the protestors. They tried to engage in civil discourse with the demonstrators, and they acted in accordance with our institutional values.” Jayne Brownell, vice president of student affairs, offered some encouragement to students who may face discrimination and other hardships during their time at Miami and beyond. “Miami is a public institution and we are not going to be able to shield students from the bigger issues and concerns from the larger world,” said Brownell. “A lot of times they are going to be confronted with messages that they disagree with. I encourage [students] to keep supporting each other, stay engaged, educate and listen.” Miami University president Gregory Crawford also showed support for the student demonstrators in a tweet Friday afternoon. “Thanks to those students who demonstrated Love & Honor today with peace & civility in the face of division. So proud of you all,” Crawford wrote. As the protest continued throughout the afternoon and into the early evening, students began to go back to their daily routines. Greive, whose music had taken a different tune, turned to Vijay as he started to play John Lennon’s “Imagine.” “I hope someday you’ll join us, and the world will live as one...”
The City of Oxford, the Oxford Fire Department, the Interfraternity Council (IFC) and the Cliff Alexander Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life all work together in order to regulate and protect against fire and property management violations. At the beginning of each semester, the Oxford Fire Department holds mandatory meetings with each fraternity’s house manager to explain expectations and go over the more serious violations, which can result in automatic fines. Sterling Parker, a brother of Delta Kappa Epsilon and the IFC vice president of housing and facilities management, said that because many of the off-campus fraternity houses are older buildings, they don’t comply with modern fire code. Parker believes that the number of fire violations found off-campus last spring is a reasonable one. “I’d say [having 92 fire violations] is pretty average, because the house managers will oversee [fire standards] for the common rooms, but not the individual rooms,” said Parker. “A lot of the time it’s just the individual rooms with violations.” While the term “fire violation” may refer to something as small as not having a cover on an outlet,
Vice President of Student Affairs Jayne Brownell said that the procedure of checking for violations emphasizes the importance of fire safety. “I don’t think [fire safety] is a thing that students are aware of,” Brownell said. “There are fires on college campuses every year. There are people who die from fire every year.” In 2005, three Miami students were killed in an off-campus house fire. In addition to facilitating the Canvas-based fire safety training that is mandatory for all incoming Miami students, the Office of Student Affairs conducts fire education for students looking for off-campus housing, compiles checklists to make sure off-campus houses have safety measures in place and sends newsletters to Miami parents to raise awareness of how fire safety affects their students. “I am sure there is always more that we can do [to promote fire safety], because I don’t think that you can over-sensitize about how serious this issue can be,” said Brownell. “It is one of those things where people who are college age think that nothing bad can ever happen to them. So it is partially the question of, ‘How do you overcome that sense of invincibility to have people take it seriously?’”
JAMES STEINBAUER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
This story was previously published on Patch.com, a hyper-local news site moderated by Miami University journalism students.
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LISA TROWBRIDGE THE MIAMI STUDENT
In honor of the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution, the Miami University Havighurst Center of Russian and Post-Soviet Studies is kicking off its Colloquia Series with a string of lectures that started yesterday. These follow two lectures on the same topic: Russia in War and Revolution. The first discussion, held on Wednesday, Sept. 7 by visiting assistant professor Irina Anisimova, centered on postmodernism in the 2014 Sochi Olympics. About 20 students and staff gathered for the hour-long lecture, laughing and engaging with the speaker. Stephen Norris, interim director of the Havighurst Center, who also teaches a class associated with the series, said that Anisimova was chosen to speak about her studies because of the recent conclusion of the Summer Olympics and the start of the Paralympics. The second lecture, on Monday, Sept. 12, discussed a more serious but equally pertinent subject: the refugee crisis. The guest speaker, Umut Korkut, who is visiting the United States from Scotland, noted an overlap between European and American politics when it comes to issues such as freedom of expression, immigration and terrorism. “[Korkut’s talk was] connected to a subject that’s really prevalent in today’s world — the issues of refugees,” Norris explained. “The way the EU is expanding into the former Soviet space and how that impacts former Soviet countries or Soviet bloc countries and how they deal with the refugee crisis.” The host Havighurst Center was formed after a donation from late Miami English professor Walter Havighurst and has assisted with a number of cultural and academic events at the university. In addition to the lecture series, the Center
from sorority »PAGE 1
dor is to be like a house, but when you’re all split up it doesn’t give you the chance to have that house feel,” she said. While sorority women have been divided across dorms for several years, the growing number of women in sororities is impacting the placement of women in the dorms. Jenny Levering, director of the Cliff Alexander Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life, said finding a single space large enough for all of the women in a sorority is challenging, and, for some sororities, there is simply not a floor large enough to accommodate all of the women in a pledge class. “There’s not many places you can keep 80 women,” Levering said. The number of women living in sorority corridors have increased from 811 in the 2013-14 school year to 923 in the 20162017 year, according to director of housing contracts and meal plans Brian Woodruff. The renovation of Hamilton Hall, once designated as sorority housing, is also impacting the amount of beds that are available on Central Quad for sorority women, some of whom have been relocated to rooms in Etheridge, Scott and Porter halls. The process for placing women in sorority dorms is studentdriven. Senior Katie Cross, Vice President of Member Education, said all sorority women are eligible to apply for a spot on a housing committee, which works with members of Miami’s Panhellenic Association to assign sororities to dorms. The housing committee chooses the dorms and placements for each sorority according to the number of women in the pledge class, while taking into secondary consideration suite placements and special requests, such as for a single room or walkways.
helps develop courses that deal with the Russian region and hosts a yearly International Young Researchers’ conference. Students who take the class associated with the lecture series get the chance to interact with the guest speakers and write essays based on the work they present, the best of which get published on the Havighurst Center’s blog. The in-progress Colloquia event, which consists of six lectures between Sept. 19 and Nov. 7, is focused on the centenary of the Russian Revolution. The topic, which changes every year, can be political, historical, religious or anthropological and is always associated with some aspect of the class paired with it for that semester. “All of us have a mind toward not just teaching the class or within our own discipline, but how it might fit with current issues,” Norris said. “In this case, it’s the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution, and people in Russia and elsewhere are thinking about, ‘What did that event mean, and how has it continued to shape the present-day world?’” Ultimately, the Center’s goal is to educate students on Russian history and issues and reveal the ways that those issues are relevant to their lives here and to the United States as a whole. “We want to offer a different, fuller perspective and a more complex context to the topics that are in the news these days with Russia,” said Norris, adding that, often, “our Center’s area of interest overlaps with even bigger geopolitical interests.” Sophomore Anna Melburg, who runs the Twitter page for the center, agreed that these lectures aren’t just for Russian majors like her. “If you want to be a part of the global community and you want to understand problems that the U.S. and the world are facing today, looking at the history, especially of Russia, is really important,” said Melburg.
“It came down to the number of beds,” Cross said.“Some building literally did not have a single bed left over. There was no wiggle room.” Cross said the committee tried to keep as many women together as possible and to distribute women equally between the dorms. “I was still trying to keep that meaningful experience of having as many girls as possible in the same area, because I think that was the most impactful experience,” Cross said. “If you can’t be surrounded by 80 girls, at least you could be surrounded by 25 or 35 of them.” Sophomores Katie Schelli and Stephanie Ryan said they opted for sorority housing so they could live with as many fellow members of Alpha Delta Pi as possible. It’s harder for the women in Scott to socialize with women in Porter, they said. “The people in Scott just don’t have as much opportunity to find other people in three seconds,” Ryan said. “They have to call people or text people.” The women in Porter have ID card access to Scott, but not the other way around. Ryan said that if women in Scott had access to Porter, they could see their sorority sisters more easily. Sophomore Lexi Sloan-Harper said she enjoys living in Richard Hall with a small group of women from Delta Delta Delta. She is close with her roommate and neighbors, but she has not yet visited Porter, where all but 12 of the Delta Delta Deltas live. Sloan-Harper said she would like to get to know her sisters better, which has been difficult while so many more live in another dorm. “I think living in the corridor with all your sisters is how you get to know them.” Sloan-Harper said. “And if most them are at the other dorm, it sucks.”
SHUMANDB@MIAMIOH.EDU
Confessions of a collegiate mess: Dirty dish, clean slate STUDENT LIFE
EMMA SHIBLEY
THE MIAMI STUDENT
I never believed coffee could grow mold. Last year, I chalked it up to the cream and sugar I religiously stirred into my chrome travel mug. Even when I no longer got a comforting thrill from the power I exercise turning a deep, dark abyss matte and tawny with half & half, I would still leave almost as much room to top off as the coffee itself occupied. A Starbucks shareholder’s dream. A purist’s nightmare. Of the two of us in Tappan 204, I and my moldy coffee mugs were the bad roommate. (Sorry, Annamarie.) My stepdad, who loves to remind me how much he hates laziness, would be ashamed at my desk full of dirty dishes. I spent all summer at home cleaning up the kitchen by myself after he cooked dinner. Our small talk over coffee in the mornings got easier. When I moved back to school last month, we hugged goodbye and he kissed my cheek. Now it is my second year, and I drink coffee black. There’s no cream, no sugar, no one but me to take the blame for the mess. I woke up last Friday alarmed, not because I was running late (though I was), but because my white quilt, tangled by a zoo of dreams in the night, dangled over the edge of the mattress like a cloud over a dirtydish metropolis — bowls with a crunchy film of yogurt and oatmeal, half a dozen mugs with varying depths of coffee sludge, knives and spoons still wearing peanut butter masks long after the party ends and the jar of Jif is put away. My entire soul panicked. I pictured immeasurable ruin, irremovable brown coffee sludge stains on my cool white blanket. I apparently flailed just enough to avoid this disaster. But the universe had made its point. It was time. As my dad would say when we were at the end of our fraying wits, when you don’t know what to do, do what you know. At college, now,
CULTURE 3
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2016
amid readings to be read, discussion posts to be posted, vocabulary to be learned and favorite jeans to be laundered, we know for damn sure that the dishes need done. Sponge, AJAX and humming garbage disposal are like a community concerns meeting, a convocation of elderly neighbors with stories to tell. Hello, Emma. Glad to have you back. How’s school? It became a Friday night tradition when my older brother, Lee, and I were in middle school. Time was measured then in the eternally long days of 40-minute classes, cross country practices, team pizza dinners, carpools home for the weekend’s math homework, a recorded episode of “The Office.” And finally, tidying up. Putting things to rights, my mom would say, so tomorrow morning we could start the weekend off right. Vacuuming took me back to fourth grade, when we were trying to sell our house in Wichita, and a showing for a potential buyer could and would spring out of seemingly any afternoon we’d been planning to spend lazing around on the couch. Emptying the litter box felt like the introduction scene to a horror movie — the sinister rhythms of the poop scoop on sand, the laundry room door closed behind me, my nose pinched theatrically, impractically shut. So to the kitchen sink I leapt. But here, under the grime of old food, lies a solid ground, a right answer for an existential question. A used plate, cup, or fork is a holy relic. Your dish now carries just a wisp of a snack ghost — a snack ghost waiting in snack limbo, clinging to the promise of the grocery afterlife. Your job in cleaning it is to set it free. It’s Saturday. This morning, I finally washed every mug, bowl and spoon, making three pilgrimages from my room on the second floor to the kitchen on the first to carry it all and then one more, when I finally remembered I needed soap. My roommate cooked yams on the stove. We talked for a moment about DISHES »PAGE 5
“La La Land” successfully revitalizes the Hollywood musical
A.J. NEWBERRY THE MIAMI STUDENT
Layered line-waiters on the last day of the Telluride Film Festival. The Telluride sun came out at unexpected times, especially blinding when coming out of a dark theater. FILM
A.J. NEWBERRY
THE MIAMI STUDENT
Last year, in one my first film classes at Miami, in preparation for “Singin’ in the Rain,” my professor told our class about her deep love of musicals. With their upbeat casts performing dance numbers on an Olympic level, the musicals struck me with their charisma, and I felt unashamed to express my enjoyment. The power of the genre to transcend preference was a unique quality, but like many other genres of Classical Hollywood, its success reached its limits by the 1960s. But fear not, 2016, for we are the latest generation of nostalgics to dive deep into the talent of the past to bring you backstage comedies like “Hail, Caesar!,” Western remakes like “The Magnificent Seven,” plus anything and everything that can be marketed as a “biographical picture.” This trend in Hollywood may appear conceited or lazy, but in capable hands, these films deliver us the magic we thought was only available in the past. Damien Chazelle, the director of the upcoming film “La La Land,” has very capable hands. His 2014 film, “Whiplash,” was nominated for five Academy Awards (including
Best Picture) and centered around the meticulous development of a jazz musician. “La La Land” is a musical starring two Hollywood sweethearts, Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling. Stone plays a struggling actress and Gosling, a mired pianist. The two happen upon one another in Los Angeles after having their talents rejected. Love soon blossoms, illustrated through one of many homages to Gene Kelly’s dance numbers. Gosling and Stone are not skilled dancers, so Chazelle compensates with fantastic camera movements. But this isn’t distracting, as we come to understand the playfulness the filmmaker is mimicking from original Hollywood musicalcomedies. Young but experienced, the two leads revel in their own personalities and flaws, making the film believable and very funny. The camera makes jokes too, such as when Stone’s character, Mia, cycles through dramatic auditions, pouring her soul out to the audience only to be cut off by an impatient interviewer behind our field of vision. Gosling’s character, Sebastian, encounters similar artistic ruses as his career as a jazz musician is stalled by managers and bandleaders who force him into the mainstream. Mr. Chazelle, who gave hard bop jazz its due recognition in 2014, con-
Miami alumna, comedian Beth Stelling, returns to campus for Homecoming set THEATRE
KAITLIN PEFFER
THE MIAMI STUDENT
Howls of laughter exploded from Wilks Theater in the Armstrong Student Center Saturday evening. The Performing Arts Series welcomed stand-up comedian and writer Beth Stelling for the opening homecoming entertainment act. After performances on shows like “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and “Conan” as well as appearances on Comedy Central’s “@midnight,” “Chelsea Lately” and “The Pete Holmes Show,” Stelling returned to her alma mater. A 2007 magna cum laude graduate, Stelling obtained a BA in theatre from the College of Creative Arts where she studied under department chair, Julia Guichard. Guichard, a speaking voice coach who’s been with Miami since 1998, has known Stelling for 13 years and continues to keep in touch by attending her performances.
“I’m not surprised that she has gained so much success in the comedy world,” said Guichard. One class activity that stood out in Guichard’s mind was an assignment called “Fool’s Day.” “Each year, I tell the students to try something that they’ve always wanted to try and just do it, even if they’re not good at it,” Guichard said. “Beth did a stand-up act for the first time in front of the class and everyone loved it.” Stelling hails from Oakwood, Ohio, where she grew up with her mom and two older sisters. Choosing Miami’s theatre program was an important moment in Stelling’s career. In a last minute decision, Stelling auditioned for the College of Creative Arts. Not only was she accepted, but she also received a scholarship for that audition. It was then that Stelling knew this was the right path for her. “I had dreams of auditioning at conservatories and schools better known for their acting programs,”
Stelling said. “But I’m so glad I chose Miami, because while my classmates and I worked hard and took it seriously, there was still an element of play.” For Stelling, stand-up wasn’t always the goal. It wasn’t until she came to Miami that she considered a career in comedy. “I always loved getting laughs as early as I can remember,” Stelling said. “I like to say it all started with a group of friends giving me way too much confidence. Lots of my roommates and girlfriends at Miami would tell me to do stand-up instead of just making them laugh in our living room.” Other college role models who changed Stelling’s perspective on theatre include professor Paul Bryant-Jackson, who casted her as Beatrice in the play “A View from the Bridge” in 2006. “By casting me in a dramatic role, [Bryant-Jackson] challenged me in a COMEDIAN »PAGE 5
tinues his dedication to the history of music with a recognition of America’s jazz roots. Sebastian takes Mia to a cafe outside of town to watch a quartet of black men, wailing on their horns in the middle of the afternoon. Sebastian explains that jazz arose in a smoky room of immigrants brought together by the common language of music. Sebastian himself is recruited by a character played by John Legend (a Grammy award-winning giant in reality), effectively giving jazz and its culture a true voice in the musical. Hollywood musicals were perhaps most defined by Technicolor film stock and the florescent palettes of set dressing and costume design, and this is where “La La Land” exceeds all expectations. Flooded in artificial lighting, the costumes by Mary Zophres pop on the chic set design of Sandy Reynolds-Wasco. Zophres has worked with the Coen brothers over a dozen times, and Reynolds-Wasco has been collaborating with Quentin Tarantino ever since “Reservoir Dogs.” Ironically, art direction by Austin Gorg draws influence from David Lynch’s “Mulholland Drive,” using hypnotic color grading, special effects and transitions that give the LA LA »PAGE 5
Emmys reflections: Why we watch awards shows TELEVISION
DEVON SHUMAN CULTURE EDITOR
I like to think that I know a thing or two about television. I write regular reviews of new shows and seasons. My Twitter feed is filled with thoughts from famous showrunners and critics. There’s a copy of the brand new “TV (The Book)” on my bedside table. I do what I can to turn what many consider a dumb hobby or a worthless mode of procrastination into a passion, an exciting area of study. Which is why I felt completely lost during Sunday night’s 68th Emmy Awards. Whenever a friend, fresh off their latest Netflix binge, comes to me with a suggestion for what to indulge in next, I give them a readymade answer: “‘Fargo.’ It’s the best thing on TV right now.” That is true. I have a couple other shows that I enjoy slightly more be-
cause I can connect to them on a personal level, but from a critic’s point of view, nothing is more superb than FX’s tremendously offbeat miniseries that takes its inspiration from the Coen brothers’ 1996 film. Showrunner Noah Hawley blew me away with the first season in which he took the dark and humorous tone of the original and used it to craft a different and unique storyline. And then he somehow topped it with the second season, which jumped back to the 70s to tell a new story, albeit one that’s still contained within the same universe. More than anything else I’ve watched, the second season of “Fargo” inches implausibly close to perfection. It deserves every award it could possibly be nominated for. When it came time to announce the winners of the Limited Series categories Sunday night, there was one show that cleaned up, but “Fargo” it was not. Another FX miniseries, EMMYS »PAGE 5
Editors’ pop culture picks VINYL »PAGE 5 The things we watched, listened to and streamed over Homecoming weekend “REVIEW”
As The Student’s television critic, I understand that the job of a reviewer can be demanding. But my own stressful experiences pale in comparison to those of Forrest MacNeil, the fictional critic played by Andy Daly on “Review.” As Forrest explains in the show’s opening, he doesn’t review movies or books — he reviews life experiences. Whatever his viewers suggest, he will review. From developing an addiction to starting a cult, nothing is off limits (and nothing gets zero stars, so “Racism” earns half a star). The show is at its best when we see the consequences of Forrest’s no-holds-barred ideology. In one of the best episodes, he first pushes his digestive system to the limits by consuming 15 pancakes. He then has to divorce his wife, and after reaching a point of total emotional devastation, he is asked to review what it’s like to eat 30 pancakes. If anything else, “Review” makes me happy I only have to critique television. (Devon Shuman, Culture Editor)
“PARKS AND RECREATION”
After only the first episode of “Parks and Recreation,” I thought to myself, “Why did it take me so long to start watching this?” (Of course now I’m already into the fourth season.) I didn’t start “The Office” on time either, but since then I have watched all nine seasons at least twice. And while I still prefer the character chemistry and ever-funny jokes that only “Office” fans will understand, “Parks and Rec” is an amazing replacement. I relate to Leslie Knope, Ron Swanson, Tom Haverford and April Ludgate all at the same time — there’s at least one person for every fan. (Alison Perelman, Assistant Culture Editor)
“DON’T THINK TWICE”
This bittersweet ensemble comedy follows the members of the Commune, an improv comedy troupe. The film’s funniest moments aren’t the bits the cast plays out on stage (though those will make you laugh, too). They’re the jokes that they make crammed in a minivan on their way back from a hospital or sitting around a coffee table in a cramped New York apartment. (Emily Williams, Managing Editor)
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cent increase in violations of Miami’s Code of Student Conduct last year by both students and organizations. Phi Gamma Delta was under investigation this spring for prohibited use of alcohol and prohibited use of drugs. An investigation from the Office of Equity & Equal Opportunity revealed that the fraternity was serving alcohol to minors at a party on April 29. Various drugs, including marijuana, ecstasy and acid, were also readily available to attendees, records show. However, in an administrative hearing early this week, OESCR found the fraternity not responsible for the charges. Delta Kappa Epsilon was also under investigation after a report from the Office of Residence Life alleged that the fraternity was serving alcohol to minors at a party on August 27. Yet, in an administrative hearing on Friday, Sept. 16, OESCR found the fraternity not responsible for the charges. Two additional fraternities, including Delta Tau Delta and Sigma Pi have been placed on disciplinary probation after investigations in the spring found them responsible for violating Miami’s Code of Student Conduct for hazing, dishonesty and prohibited use of alcohol. Delta Tau Delta is on disciplinary probation until May 2017. According to a letter sent to Delta Tau Delta from OESCR in early April, an anonymous complaint alleged that new members of the fra-
ternity were being paddled, having full cans of beer thrown at them, being forced to sleep in a basement, providing servitude for current members and being forced to consume alcohol. Records show that the fraternity was found responsible for violating the Code of Student Conduct for hazing and dishonesty on April 18. Sigma Pi is on disciplinary probation until May 16, 2017. According to a letter sent to Sigma Pi from OESCR in late April, an anonymous parent alleged that her son reported that Sigma Pi was engaging in hazing. The complaint said that new members were required to perform various activities that involved alcohol and drugs and could endanger their health, safety and wellbeing. The fraternity was found responsible for violating the Code of Student Conduct for hazing and prohibited use of alcohol on April 21, records show. “We are constantly working to be a positive force in the Miami University and Oxford communities,” said Colin Suter, president of Sigma Pi fraternity, in an email to Patch on Sept. 19. “To that end, we have take significant steps to improve our fraternity with the goal of becoming the chapter that leads Miami University to be a model Greek Community.” Sigma Pi was the only fraternity mentioned in this article that responded to Patch’s requests for comment at the time of publication. The difference between fraternities that were suspended versus those that were just put on disciplinary probation can seem like an arbitrary one, but the records give insight into the complicated process that OESCR has created to sanction students and organizations that violate Miami’s Code of Student Conduct. Sanctions for alcohol violations by a fraternity are formulaic and increase in severity with each offense. For the first offense, fraternity members have to attend a two-
hour substance abuse program. The sanction for the second offense is disciplinary probation and a third offense means suspension — revocation of recognition by the university. Hazing is different though. Sanctions are more subjective and may take into account whether or not the fraternity accepts responsibility or their prior disciplinary history. “Two fraternities could have identical hazing charges and present their cases very differently,” said Jane Brownell, vice president of Student Affairs. “With ZBT, they were making the case that they could turn their organization around, but only two or three years prior, they were found responsible for very similar charges. They were given a chance then and they were right back in the same place.” More often than not, though, the decision lies in the hands of the hearing officer and how severe they believe the hazing was. “You have to ask, ‘What is the nature of the offense?’” said Susan Vaughn, director of OESCR. “There rarely are two that are identical. So, if you take alcohol and those mandatory sanctions out of the situation, it’s really up to the discretion of the hearing officer — what they believe is appropriate.” Vaughn said that, while an organization could be a liability, and severing ties with it may be in the university’s best interest, she’d like to move even further away from giving out suspensions. “There are a lot of consequences with probation,” she said. “Many times they are defined. Student may not be able to study abroad or they may not be able to be on ASG. But if we suspend a fraternity, they can live in their house. They can function. “They go underground and then you have no control.” This story was previously published on Patch.com, a hyper-local news site moderated by Miami University journalism students.
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very fulfilling way,” she said. Another influential individual was Ann Elizabeth Armstrong, a directing and dramatic literature professor who also co-directs the “Finding Freedom Summer Project” on Western campus, which Stelling was involved with during her time at Miami. “Dr. Armstrong taught me about theatre for social justice — making changes in our community and society through performance and theatre games,” said Stelling. Stelling returns to Oxford periodically to visit with old professors and current theatre majors and to teach stand-up workshops. Guichard explained that, until recently, Miami did not offer a comedy-based acting
course. “We now offer an upper level comedy elective for students, as well as on-campus organizations such as Sketched Out Improv,” Guichard said. Stelling demonstrated her comedic talents on Saturday while discussing her childhood experiences in gymnastics and stories of living in Stanton Hall her freshman year. Stelling is a self-proclaimed “fro-yo Cinderella,” frequently running to get ice cream just before the stores close. “My favorite joke was Beth’s travel bit on the TSA at the airport,” said senior Julie Donna after the performance, referring to Stelling’s anecdote about bringing four-ounce containers of liquid rather than the legal maximum of three for the sole
purpose of bothering TSA employees. Stelling also joked about her student life at Miami. She wore workout clothes while living in Stanton, but not for working out, bought a Ferris Bueller poster at the Shriver Poster Sale only to have it ruined by a bird who flew in her dorm room window and ate altogether too much Bagel and Deli after working there for two years (her favorite is the Kool Jules). After graduation, Stelling moved to Chicago where she performed at hundreds of late-night stand-up sessions and open-mic clubs, all while working at Chicago Bagel Authority on the side. She then moved to Los Angeles to pursue her writing and acting career. Stelling tours all over the U.S. and
has even performed in foreign countries — Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, to name a few. Miami Activities and Programming (MAP) chose Stelling as the first act in President Crawford’s “Think Differently” series, which focuses on inclusivity. She was recently selected as one of Miami’s “18 of the Past 9” for exceptionally talented young alumni and was named TimeOut Los Angeles’ “Comic to Watch in 2016.” Currently, viewers can catch Stelling in the TV series, “Red Oaks” on Amazon, “Comedy of SXSW” on Showtime and “This Isn’t Funny” on Netflix. Next, Stelling will head back to Los Angeles to write for the Comedy Central show “Another Period,” a parody of historical dramas.
FROM DISHES »PAGE 3
LALA »PAGE 3
FROM FIELD HOCKEY »PAGE 8
the practicality of aprons at any age. The kitchen was pleasantly stuffy. It was raining. Now I am tidying up after making tomato soup in a Pyrex measuring cup, a dorm room eight o’clock dinner for one. I carry it empty to the bathroom two doors down, fill it with water, use my soup spoon to scrape the sides. Someone left an inexplicable comb on the floor — it’s a pick, rounded and bubbly, like something a lifesize Barbie would use. A black hair tie is wound between the wide white teeth. I leave it be, where it stays until the morning. It’s half past 10. I maintain a respectful distance while I brush my teeth — picking up the comb can be someone else’s tidying communion. Outside, the dew is heavy and clean, and you can smell the mushrooms growing.
film a continuous dreamlike quality. “Dreamlike” may seem like a cliché descriptor, but you can’t deny the surreal feel to this film. Chazelle also wrote the film, and as with his earlier screenplay flops, he struggles to rationalize the story in a music-heavy plot. The film lags in the middle, as Gosling and Stone argue about a conflict that wouldn’t quite be justified in a normal movie. The music carries us onward, but not without leaving a blemish in an otherwise enjoyable show. This film is a love letter to Hollywood musicals and film history, but that doesn’t limit its appeal to the general public. If you think about it, musicals have historically been the only art films accessible to mass audiences, bringing in star power for a feel-good occasion. The final music number of “La La Land” blew me away, but that’s not to say the Hollywood musical is ready for its comeback. Then again, maybe it is.
Rose Tynan was back for more and commandingly extended her team’s lead to 3-0. The game ended with four penalty corners and five shots between the teams. Duke ended with 13 shots to Miami’s seven, though Miami took four penalty corners to Duke’s three. “I think it was a good game of hockey. Duke is a very good team,” head coach Inako Puzo said. “There’s no regrets about the performance today. The team played good. I think we competed from
the first minute to the last minute to win the game, and that’s what I expected from them — just try to win the game.” The RedHawks face Central Michigan Friday in their first MidAmerican Conference game of the season and then non-conference opponent Michigan State on Saturday. Avery Sturm, a sophomore midfielder/back said of the upcoming weekend, “It’s our first MAC game and that’s really exciting. We’re excited to kind of prove ourselves to them, too. Hopefully we get the win.”
COMEDIAN »PAGE 3
FROM VOLLEYBALL »PAGE 8
“We have great team chemistry on and off the court. We have a lot of hunger to win the conference this year, especially since we have come so close the last two years,” Rusek said. The team begins conference play Thursday when they travel to face Bowling Green.
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EMMYS »PAGE 3
Ryan Murphy’s “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story,” took home five primetime Emmy’s. “Fargo?” Zero. Now I can’t sit here and argue that “Fargo” deserved the awards more than “The People v. O.J.” I never saw the latter. But what’s interesting here is the fact that “Fargo” seems to have simply picked the wrong year to be so good. “American Crime Story” must have been tremendous, and the Television Academy was ready to throw them as many awards as they could. Had the second season of “Fargo” aired any other year, I’m sure it would have run the board. It’s not a case of being an inferior show. It’s a case of unlucky timing. That’s not a huge problem, but the issue now is that the first season, which faced weaker competition, has three more Emmy’s than its successor. When the TV historians of the future look back on these records, they’ll be forced to conclude that the first season was the better show. And that’s just not accurate. I guess this a fact that we’ve always known to be true but don’t want to admit. Awards shows simply are not reliable measures of greatness. Look at Leonardo DiCaprio. He’s almost universally regarded as one of the best actors in the business, and yet he just won his first Oscar, and for a movie in which his performance was mediocre at best. So why do we watch awards shows if we know them to be shams? It’s certainly fun to root for your favorite shows. I cheered like a zealous football fan when Rami Malek took best lead actor in a drama series for “Mr. Robot,” and I yelled obscenities at the screen when “The Voice” took best reality show over “The Amazing Race” (apparently it’s more impressive to sit in a chair and judge singers than it is to coordinate a global race, but I digress). But five years from now, we won’t remember who won what. That’s not what will stick with us. We’ll remember when Jimmy Kimmel and the kids from “Stranger Things” passed out Kimmel’s mother’s peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to a room filled with adult celebrities. We’ll remember when Matt Damon passive-aggressively ridiculed Kimmel after the host lost his category to John Oliver. We’ll remember when Bill Cosby was jokingly announced as a presenter. We’ll remember when Henry Winkler delivered a beautiful tribute to the late Garry Marshall. We’ll remember when Julia Louis-Dreyfus, normally ready with a joke or gag, broke down on stage when revealing that her father had passed away two days prior. We’ll remember when Patton Oswalt, whose wife died in April, dedicated his win to his daughter waiting at home and to “the other one [who] is waiting somewhere else — I hope.” Awards shows are wonderful, but not as objective gauges on which art is best. They’re wonderful for how they remind us why we consume that art. They’re a celebration of the emotional power of mediums such as film and television. I’d go on, but I hear the music starting up, so I guess it’s time to end my rant.
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6 OPINION
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2016
EDITORIAL@MIAMISTUDENT.NET
Our society’s disturbing new habit: Internet shaming The following piece, written by the editorial editors, reflects the majority opinion of the editorial board.
T
he internet, as most of us know, does not go away when we want it to. It does not go away when we have to summon all of our stockpiled focus for a paper due the next day, it does not go away when we know we have to go to sleep. Worst of all, the internet does not go away when we make a public mistake. In these instances, the internet — fueled by thousands of firebrand souls — shines its omniscient light on the mistake until the one at fault has been ridiculed and shamed to oblivion. This phenomenon, internet shaming, can manifest in small outbursts and die off within a few hours of someone’s bad joke. On the other end of the spectrum, surplus examples indicate that it can ruin lives — and even end them. Take, for example, Justine Sacco, former senior director of corporate communications at IAC. In 2013, before her flight to South Africa, where she had family, Sacco tweeted out a series of very dry, sarcastic remarks critical of America and the bubble in which we all live. To truly hammer this point home, she tweeted the following, again, trying to prove a point about American naivety and privilege: “Going to Africa. Hope I
don’t get AIDS. Just kidding. I’m white!” This was a blunder of massive proportion. Sacco had boarded the final flight of her trip soon thereafter, missing entirely the backlash that ensued on Twitter. The internet community saw to
cerned vigilantes on the popular forum website Reddit attempted to assist police in identifying the attacker(s) while they were still at large. Redditors ended up (falsely) identifying Sunil Tripathi, except Tripathi was recently deceased — he had committed sui-
On the contrary, guilty parties are ordinary websurfers like you and me who spend time demonizing people like you and me.
it that, when she landed, Justine Sacco be fired from her job, lose trust with her South African family and be further shamed for her disturbing mistake. Three years later, Sacco has found a new job, though she, like many victims of internet shaming, was rarely considered seriously by her prospective employers on account of the negative image she drags along. Suffice it to say, the monsters of Twitter got what they wanted. Some aren’t as “fortunate” as Sacco. In 2013, in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings, con-
cide after suspending his studies at Brown University due to bouts of depression. He was 22 years old. At the time of the bombings, his whereabouts were unknown (his body was later found floating in the Seekonk River) and his family was consquently dragged through exhausting allegations of terrorism. Tripathi’s suicide was not related to internet shaming. But many suicides in America are. A quick Google search of internet shaming cases will not only prove this tenfold, but will likely bring about a guilty feeling, a pang of realiza-
Hate group brings Miami women together PROTEST
MARIA TAYLOR
GUEST COLUMNIST
“Muhammad is a liar, false prophet, child raping pervert! (See history for details),” the sign read. On the flip side, it said, “Homo is sin — Romans 1.” Holding the sign was an unkempt-looking man, surrounded by other men who were also a part of a hate campaign that festered in front of Shriver last Friday afternoon. We all want our voices to be heard, but what good are you accomplishing with the spread of hate? Pointing at me and telling me that, if I am not a devout Christian, that I am not exactly what you stand for, I am eternally damned? Yeah, I really want to hear more. I definitely want to believe the man who yelled at a girl — who stated she was Jewish — that she is a Nazi (Let’s take a moment to think about that shall we?). I decided to approach the man holding the sign, who called himself Brother Michael. He refused to shake my hand because I was a woman, even after I asked if we could interact with each other respectfully. After refusing my handshake Brother Michael felt the need to tell me: “I’m not here to put women down, I’m here to put them in their place.” That did not go over well with the female-dominated crowd protesting against the hate group. Standing in front of the nut during the Friday fiasco, the women in the crowd received more hate than
any other group Brother Michael and his comrades were there to preach about. At one point, Brother Michael stopped quoting his five selected Bible verses and began preaching how we (women) should be meek and quiet. One woman, who named herself as Sarah Gadsick, stood up and stepped in front of the man, demanded his attention. “What about women in the military?” she asked with her hands folded in front of her. “Women are trying to be men, and that’s the problem. You’re also too emotional. I am in the Army of God, and I serve every day,” Brother Michael spat at her. Gadsick laughed at Brother Michael and gave a rebuttal he physically turned his back on and ignored. “I served in the Army for one and a half years, and I can tell you, you haven’t served shit. I served so you can stand in front of me, say this [and] disrespect us,” she said. I asked if he believed if women were allowed to be preachers. He told me he believed anyone can spread the God-Fearing gospel that will save them from hell. “I thought women had to be meek and quiet?” I asked him. Brother Michael closed his eyes and stammered for a minute before opening his eyes and reaching out, saying, “Well, you can as long as you’re meek and motherly. You should be perceived differently.” Perceived differently? Please tell me how standing in front of a crowd of people and preaching
what I believe wholeheartedly is done meekly and quietly. Motherly was his argument? If anything, mothers are powerful, strong, and demanding. We wouldn’t be on this earth without mothers. It is a shame that he uses Christianity to spread his cruel and hateful messages. This is not an attack on just Christianity. I’d be just as ashamed if he used Islam in this way, or any other religion. You have the right to express your views, and I have a right to express mine. But speak with love regardless of how you feel. Keep respect the main character in your narrative and do not shame, spit or hate on the things about which you are uneducated. Posters and markers were passed around during the protest, and love was plastered in more places than those tacky signs were. Community members showed up with bottles of water and rainbow popcicles were shared. Even Miami professors came to support the students, and counterarguments were factual and said with love instead of hate and fear. I watched the students of Miami stand in front of this group of men, and stand their ground not only for themselves, but for each other. If anything, we should be thanking the lunatics for showing us that as a community we can come together when a part of us is being threatened.
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tion that a good portion of our society feeds into this atrocity. This internet shaming, the cyber bullying, it’s all so hypocritical. It sounds cliché, but we all have our demons, so why feast upon people who stumble just like we do? Why is this disheartening phenomenon so widespread? First, there’s the appeal: it’s a game. The premise: to bring about the target’s demise as quickly as possible, then move on to the next target. It’s shaming as a form of idle entertainment, whereby the rabid attackers follow a script, as a New York Times article on the case of Justine Sacco suggests. It’s Schadenfreude taken too far, it’s basking in the dismantling of one’s life for the sake of feeling good for two seconds. According to a CNN, there is now such a thing as a reputation manager, whose job it is to clean up Google search results. But not everyone can afford a reputation manager. That is to say, the victims of internet shaming are not just well-known celebrities who are ridiculed by n’er do wells. On the contrary, the guilty parties are ordinary web-surfers like you and me who spend time demonizing people like you and me. For example, most of the peo-
ple who exacerbated Sacco’s case were those that simply favorited, retweeted or commented on different internet platforms, expressing their opinion. Most of the people who blamed Tripathi and his family for the bombings relied heavily on Reddit threads and stereotypes. They just wanted their voices to be heard. We often do not realize that the person we are condemning is not simply a character on a screen, but a real person with thoughts, emotions and consequences that correspond to what those on the internet say. These examples are unfortunate, but can be solved if a more empathetic culture begins to surround every interaction that we have online. Something as simple as putting yourself in someone else’s shoes can make a difference if done across the board.At a certain point, nothing can be done about internet trolls that feed off of ruining others’ lives with a keyboard. But if people can introduce more sound judgment in their internet lives, we can all reduce the effects of internet shaming. Next time you post an accusatory comment on the internet, visualize that you are saying it out loud to your object’s face, because for that person, you are.
Clinton’s not the best option: Vote your conscience POLITICS
ANGELA HATCHER JACK EVANS
THE MIAMI STUDENT
At the Republican National Convention (RNC) in late July, Senator Ted Cruz said, “Stand and speak and vote your conscience.” In what became a controversial and infamous non-endorsement of presidential candidate Donald Trump, Cruz implored citizens to vote based on ideals and principle, not political expediency. Last Friday, The Miami Student published a staff editorial condemning Trump, highlighting numerous inconsistencies in his campaign rhetoric and perceived moral failings throughout his career as a businessman. But the editorial left potentially the biggest political question of 2016 hanging in the air: What about Hillary Clinton? By neglecting to acknowledge any of the political and public failures of the ‘donkey’ in the room, the editorial board implied that Hillary Clinton is the more palatable candidate — the lesser of two evils. The U.S. presidential election should not be a matter of picking your poison. So, why is this election, like so many others before it, limited to candidates A and B? Both Clinton and Trump have historically, abysmally low approval ratings. 56 percent of Americans find Clinton unfavorable and 63 percent find Trump unfavorable, according to recent Washington Post-ABC News polls. If the majority of Americans can’t stand either of these people, why are they the only candidates left standing? Against the wishes of many of our founding fathers, our current political climate revolves around a two-party system. These organizations and their non- and for-profit allies raise and distribute hundreds of millions of dollars to push candidates into seats and influence public opinion. The argument of “Vote for Candidate A because you can’t stand Candidate B” is the latest and most potent weapon of the Democratic and Republican establishments this election season. Playing off the public’s disdain for both these candidates, they market their own undesirable as the silver bullet to the other. But we should not vote against people in this country, we should vote for them. In this sense, we want to urge you to do something that the editorial board did not encourage you to do: vote your conscience.
There is an outstanding notion in this country that if you cast a vote in the general election for a third party candidate, you are throwing away your vote and your ability to make a difference in the future of this country. Indeed, the general election is skewed in favor of the two-party system, but if you don’t support either candidate of the two big parties, don’t vote for them. The fact that Jill Stein and Gary Johnson are third-party candidates should not deter you from voting for them in the general election. If you truly believe in their campaign and their principles, support their policies and wish to see them hold a seat in office, vote for them. It is crucial that, come November, you vote for the candidate you believe in -- for who you think will be the best 45th president of the United States of America; someone who can lead this country, and most importantly, someone who embodies your ideals. And, if you can’t, in good conscience, bring yourself to vote for any of the candidates, then actively choose not to vote at all. In a time where so much of the political landscape revolves around the interests of corporations, pursuing big party political agendas, and polarizing rhetoric that has taken over our political landscape, we need to return to ideals. We need to demand a president whose policies are dictated not by money and lust for power, but by principle. The number two candidates on both sides -- Sen. Ted Cruz and Sen. Bernie Sanders, while diametrically opposed in terms of policy -- were political outsiders and thrived in this election. They built their respective campaigns on the pursuit of a greater nation built on principles. Their success indicates that the American people is ready to leave the lethargic two-party establishment behind. To be clear, compromise and negotiation has an important place in the architecture of democracy. “My way or the highway” is not any way to run a country, but we must not walk into the governing process with our hopes for this nation already constrained by what politicians tell is and is not possible for our society. If we do this, we have conceded our ideals. If we refuse to dream of a greater country for all people, and we cease to actively seek out that place with our minds and voices and our votes, then what is the point of voting at all?
HATCHEAM@MIAMIOH.EDU EVANSJM4@MIAMIOH.EDU
EDITORIAL@MIAMISTUDENT.NET
Public service announcement: Pick it up and throw it out LIFE
GRAHAM von CARLOWITZ OPINION EDITOR
I’m not an angry person. I rarely grit my teeth and furrow a strained brow. I was once called the most mild-mannered child in a family of eight boys. One time, one of my brothers, in the spirit of slap-happy joking, swung his hand at my man-parts and struck gold, leading to me keeling over, filled with a torturously slow pain in my stomach. I know he hadn’t meant to strike anything — it was meant in jest — so I simply resumed my upright position and called him a
Ideally, the garbage cans littered throughout the sidewalks of Uptown would be used to, well, hold the garbage.
bastard in a pathetically squeaky voice. And that was that. I was once awoken by the stench of upchuck, which happened to have been spilled out onto my stomach by another well-intentioned brother (he, uh, he thought I was a garbage can). In lieu of a fitting punishment, like removing my shirt and feeding it to my belligerently drunk brother, I stood up, walked him to the other, more real garbage can and traded my soiled shirt for a fresh one. The nightmare came to a close and I resumed my sleep, undisturbed.
OPINION 7
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2016
Evidently, my to threshold for bullshit is exceedingly high, I think. To avoid scolding 80 percent of the American population (or thereabouts), I have put aside my anger for people who text and (try to) walk, as well as slow-walkers, but that one is a little less warranted. However, the abysmal sight of litter blanketing the supposedly quaint, clean town of Oxford has me shaving enamel from the dwindling capsules of teeth that line the inside of my mouth. I’m pissed, seething. It’s only taken four weeks of roaming about off-campus for this perpetual nonsense to sink in. Those four weeks, of course, have served a catalytic function whereby my anger has simply boiled to a point where I am on fire inside and can no longer hold in my rage. As shown by my brother’s off night (and a plethora of other “off nights”), I understand what a drunk person is capable of — and not capable of. And although finding a proper trash bin seems to be the most common challenge among the drunkards, I don’t believe it’s excuse enough to start tossing empty food containers into the bushes (or shrubs, I can’t tell the difference) around town. At the bare minimum, I would expect the stumbling drunks in question to hold on to these pieces of garbage until they made it back home. Ideally, the garbage cans littered throughout the sidewalks of Uptown would be used to, well, hold the garbage. So please, spare me the pent-up rage. Please. VONCARGH@MIAMIOH.EDU
RULE OF THUMB NORTH DAKOTA STATE TOPPLES IOWA IN FCS-FBS MATCHUP Reminiscent of App. State’s upset of Michigan in 2007, the Bison knock off 13th-ranked Hawkeyes on last-second field goal.
SUSPICIOUS BACKPACK FOUND UPTOWN The bomb threat, which happened Sunday on High St., was investigated and cleared the same day.
COMMUNITY BLOOD DRIVE TAKES PLACE IN SHRIVER ON TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY Community Blood Center is holding a drive and invites all Miami students to donate to the cause.
Why is it cool to not think?
Large class sizes and readymade degrees can make us feel faceless in a crowd of equally uncritical consumers, and we ask for it. EDUCATION
KYLE HAYDEN COLUMNIST
The first week of classes I addressed one of my professors: “I think everyone in class hates me.” “Why is that?” “Well, I just feel obnoxious talking all the time.” My professor then said something that has been on my mind since that moment: “About 15 years ago we entered a period in the university where the cool thing became not thinking.” I’ve noticed this through the years: professor asks a question. Silence. What can we learn from this silence? What does it say about students? Teaching courses has become a battle against silence, especially when the course demands close reading of texts (and not just formulaic analysis). Students not completing the readings, not contributing to discussion have plagued countless courses I’ve sat in. When my peers decide to contribute, at best they can summarize texts — or exert about the intellectual effort required for the use of an ATM. Throughout college, even in some introductory philosophy classes (Dr. Elaine Miller’s “Theories of Human Nature”) students would not speak. We did not share papers. We only (rigidly) completed required “peer review” exercises. Everyone experiences these creeping urges to escape their tired-boredom in class. It seems also that the university cares more about our ability to produce quantity more than it values learning, thinking and contemplation. This is the mark of a dreadfully “efficient” institution. Who doesn’t love or want efficiency? In this age, it seems to be all we are concerned with. Shortening attention spans (this is admitted and observed, not alleged) combine with increasing demands for completion of short-term homework make for meaningless work. Consistently, University Herald and the folks at Inside Higher Ed write casually about how students cannot finish books! Some have suggested that profes-
sors need to simply “make it not an option to not read.” But it’s clear that many students, due to increased class size, very well can get away with it all semester. Because we are force-fed assignments, which are mostly trivial “busy work” as it’s called, this leads the students into a space of learned-helplessness. Where they neither want to be assigned work and can’t generate ideas of their own. They don’t know how to be free when they finally get the chance to think, to suggest a project, to imagine without being told what they want. This is all good for business as it lets the professor off easy without having to look at students’ work closely and increases class sizes. Who could honestly read 120 400-word papers twice a week, consider them and provide meaningful feedback? Multiply this threefold or fourfold and you have clearly an impossible set of expectations and workload for a lone professor. “Great job on the reading response, 2/2.” After 10 straight assignments returned like this I have to wonder: did they even read it? Fill in the blanks. You get an A, graduate, here’s your cubicle. Do I even matter as a student or a thinker? Or am I simply a customer? I don’t think of myself as a customer (most students might object when something upsets them: “This isn’t what I’m paying you for!”) But I don’t subscribe to the “consumer model” of education because this implies that students who are here on tuition waivers, full-ride scholarships or on loan have less of a standing to make claims about quality in the classroom. It seems as though the deep shift in the model of education occurred before I even arrived. Dr. Flint of the Sociology department said to me: “The whole society is so addicted to consumption that it tries to make something like education a consumption activity.” Just sit back and eat it. Work is absolutely to be avoided. Education should “ideally” be a “production” activity, where a student enrolls in the school, arriving with ideas of what they want to learn and they find their place. We know this as “Liberal Arts” but
it’s been flipped on its head: now becoming requirements to be fulfilled! Instead, most of us act like we don’t even want to be here. No longer do we have to complete the stressful task of discovering what we want to learn, Miami is all ready to tell you what you want to learn! The only way to encourage thought in students is to give them time with texts. It’s taken me years to begin to understand and enjoy Freud’s “Civilization and its Discontents.” So why only give it one day in class? Additonally, this is the primary problem with “Science” as it is undertaken today. Students therefore proceed in uncritically accepting current methods and beliefs (e.g. “progress is good,” “technology improves our lives,”) are unable to conceive anything new, so we continue to produce more deadly weapons, agro-chemicals, iterations of the growth economy and rote or trivial analysis of Melville, Chaucer, whatever. It seems students love the courses where the education is a product to be consumed: for example, courses that teach skills. We have some in the Geography department. Students can learn GIS (Geographic Information System), this is a “hard skill,” meaning concrete, usable, “real.” I can feel the energy in the lab when I walk in: “Finally, no reading, I can learn this skill and go out and use it!” No thinking required. Professors might say in protest to my suggestion, “There is problem solving and thinking involved.” This is superficially true. You don’t have to read, you don’t have to (rather, you should not) challenge the technological apparatus that seeks to mathematize and standardize human experience and the “resources” of the natural world through the creation of digital maps. We aren’t pushed to wonder what “bid data” agglomeration and processing does socially or spiritually. Maybe there are courses for this but that knowledge certainly isn’t being integrated here. Alternately, in remaining classes where reading, thought and discussion are the main components of the course, students continue to founder. The silence is deafening. HAYDENKA@MIAMIOH.EDU
BOARD OF TRUSTEES AGENDA SHOWS A HEAVY FORECAST OF CONSTRUCTION Nearly 180 million dollars in donations, state bonds, will go to on-campus construction and athletic facilities.
MIAMI ALUM AND COMEDIAN PERFORMS DURING HOMECOMING WEEKEND Dayton native Beth Stelling returns to bring laughs and love and honor to her alma mater.
A.J. NEWBERRY NEWBERAJ@MIAMIOH.EDU
8 SPORTS
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2016
SPORTS@MIAMISTUDENT.NET
Football still winless FOOTBALL
COBURN GILLIES
ASST. SPORTS EDITOR
The Miami RedHawks entered Saturday’s game against Western Kentucky searching for their first win of the season, and they left still searching after dropping their third straight game. Once again, the defeat came in a close game, as the RedHawks fell 31-24 at home to Western Kentucky University (2-1) on Saturday. Even though the ‘Hawks dominated time of possession and outgained the Hilltoppers 424 to 404 yards, they still found themselves on the losing end this weekend. While the RedHawks didn’t get the victory they were seeking, Head Coach Chuck Martin found some silver linings in the game, especially on the defensive side of the ball. “Big positive right off the bat for us is defense. They really, really, really, really played really good in the first half. For all but really one play, they got turnovers,” Martin said, referring to Miami’s 3-1 edge in turnovers. Sophomore defensive back De’Andre Montgomery contributed to the turnover column for the RedHawks for a second straight week, as he picked off Western Kentucky’s redshirt junior quarterback Mike White in the first quarter for his second interception of the year. Defensively, Miami seemed to come out firing on all cylinders, as they held the Hilltoppers’ high offense to only 14 points in the first half. Offensively, on the other hand, the RedHawks appeared to have trouble finding their footing, especially in the first half. “First half offense, I wasn’t displeased with how we ran it,” Martin said. “I watched Alabama really struggle running against [Western Kentucky]. We had a little bit of existence, particularly with no passing attack in the first half,” Martin said. Since the passing attack offense was seemingly gridlocked, Miami survived the first two periods of
play by leaning on redshirt sophomore tailback Kenny Young, who set career highs with 17 carries and 68 rushing yards. For Martin, the front-seven of the Hilltoppers, who made seven sacks, were a major contributor to Miami’s difficulties through the air. “[Quarterback] Billy [Bahl] got just a little bit off his game. Actually, he got off his game in the first half,” Martin said. “[The Hilltoppers] are good up front. I mean, really good. And there were times [Bahl] was getting pressure. Other times, we did a hell of a job blocking some really tough guys,” Martin said. During the game, there was a sense that the passing attack from the RedHawks just was not clicking. Yet, on paper, sophomore Bahl had the best performance of his career. Bahl not only displayed elusiveness with a nine-yard scamper in the third quarter for his first career rushing touchdown, but he also had his first ever 300-yard game, throwing for 339 yards and two touchdowns. “I mean, in the first half it was pretty messy and I just wasn’t seeing it very well and came in at halftime kind of regrouped and talked to the coaches for the second half.,” Bahl said. “The big thing was just trusting the O-Line. I mean, I wasn’t really looking downfield as much as trying to look at what was going on up front.” A big reason for Bahl’s success this season has been the emergence of sophomore wide receiver James Gardner. The 6’4” wideout continued his early-season success, adding one touchdown and 134 yards to Miami’s total. “It’s just good,” Bahl said of Gardner’s play. “He’s got a huge catch radius, so I can put the ball anywhere near him and he’s going to make a play on the ball. Even if he doesn’t catch it, he’s going to get his hands there.” Miami returns to action Saturday on the road against archrival Cincinnati in the Battle for the Victory Bell, with the game set to kick off at 3:30 p.m.
ANGELO GELFUSO THE MIAMI STUDENT
VOLLEYBALL CLAIMS SEVENTH STRAIGHT WIN VOLLEYBALL
KYLE STEINER
THE MIAMI STUDENT
The Miami University volleyball team defeated the visiting Furman Paladins in straight sets on Friday night in front of a packed Millett Hall crowd. The victory continues a torrid stretch for the RedHawks, who have now won seven consecutive games heading into Mid-American Conference play. “The fans created a fun atmosphere that gave us a lot of energy to build off of,” junior libero Maeve McDonald said. The RedHawks dominated from start to finish in a game that only lasted little over an hour. With the win, MU improves to 8-4 this season, while the Paladins drop to 3-7. From the first set, it was clear that the ’Hawks were ready to play. Juniors right side hitters Katie Tomasic and hitter Olivia Rusek, as well as middle hitter Meredith Stutz, quickly set the tone, tallying two kills apiece to propel the squad to an early 9-3 lead.
The Paladins managed to stay in the game, pushing the score to 1016. An ace by sophomore outside hitter Stela Kukoc out of a timeout halted any potential Furman rally, and Miami ran away with the set. A kill by Kukoc ended the set at 25-16, giving the ’Hawks a convincing first set victory. Furman jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second set, but the Red and White easily overcame the deficit. Kukoc and Rusek heated up, tallying four and three kills, respectively, over the course of an 11-2 run that forced the Paladins to call a timeout. Miami kept the pressure on, pushing the lead to 19-11. A kill and a block by Stutz helped the team finish off the set on a 6-1 run, giving the RedHawks a dominant 2512 win. The third set capped off the best all-around performance by MU of the season. Kills from Tomasic and senior middle hitter Paige Hill helped give the team an early 9-0 lead. Rusek added two more kills to help push the lead to 16-5. The Paladins managed to get the
game to 15-21, but a kill and an ace by Rusek propelled Miami to a 2516 win, giving the Red and White yet another straight set victory. For the match, MU held Furman to a .094 hitting percentage and forced them to commit 17 attack errors. McDonald led the RedHawks defensive effort through stellar back row play, tallying 20 digs for the night. Stutz established herself on the front row, finishing with three blocks. The RedHawks finished the match with a sizzling .324 hitting percentage. They only committed nine attack errors for the entire match. Junior setter Krista Brakauskas and sophomore setter Mackenzie Zielinski fed the hitters well all night, finishing the game with 22 and 18 assists, respectively. Rusek led the Red and White attack, finishing the match with 13 kills. Kukoc and senior outside hitter Maris Below also contributed to the offensive onslaught as they totaled seven kills apiece. VOLLEYBALL »PAGE 5
Field hockey falls to No. 2 Duke FIELD HOCKEY
EMILY SIMANSKIS THE MIAMI STUDENT
Miami University’s field hockey team maintained an unwavering level of intensity when facing second-ranked Duke, but ultimately lost 3-0 to the Blue Devils Sunday afternoon. With the loss, the RedHawks fall to 3-5 on the season, while the Blue Devils improve to a spotless record of 8-0. Duke was commanding in their early play, inundating Miami with tight gaps and purposeful passes, effectively testing the RedHawks’ defense. Shots were exchanged between the two teams within the first eleven minutes, and the RedHawks soon found their stride as they began to match the Blue Devils’ speed.
Duke’s substitution for sophomore forward Rose Tynan was a catalyst for the Blue Devil’s offense, as Miami’s goalkeeper Alysa Xavier was forced to make a couple of saves against Tynan in the 11th and 14th minute. Duke midfielder Alexa Mackintire’s pass from outside the circle was tipped by the relentless Tynan, beating Xavier and putting Duke up 1-0. Miami midfielder Mariona Heras’ shot after a Miami penalty corner was blocked during the 19th minute, but the Blue Devils counterattacked and earned a penalty corner of their own. The RedHawks defense secured a block, keeping Miami’s hope alive. Xavier showcased her skill again when making a terrific save amongst traffic during the 28th
minute, keeping the score at 1-0. After a late shot by standout forward Paula Portugal, the RedHawks entered halftime outshot 7-3. Perhaps feeding off the feisty exchange of cheers between Duke and Miami parents, the RedHawks began the second half of game play with a heightened sense of determination. While fighting valiantly to tie the game, Miami’s Mariona Heras drew a yellow card in the 44th minute, forcing the RedHawks to attempt to adjust to competing down a player and to channel their frustration into competitive energy. On the rebound of a previous shot, Duke’s Robin Blazing put the Blue Devils up 2-0 in the 46th minute. Under two minutes later, FIELD HOCKEY »PAGE 5
BRIANNA NIXON THE MIAMI STUDENT
Redshirt sophomore running back Kenny Young makes a tackle against Quinton Baker (3) of WKU. Young rushed 14 times during the game for a total of 71 yards.
Headlines beyond Oxford: Week two of the NFL season was not kind to running backs, as seven starting backs were injured. Vikings’ Peterson (knee), Panthers’ Stewart (hamstring), Seahawks’ Rawls (leg), Chargers’ Woodhead (knee), Buccaneers’ Martin (hamstring), Lions’ Abdullah (foot) and Dolphins’ Foster (groin) all left their games with injuries.
TODAY IN HISTORY
1973
On September 20, 1973, Billie Jean King defeated Bobby Riggs in the “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match. The heavily hyped spectacle was viewed by 90 million worldwide (50 million in the U.S.). Riggs had boasted that he could beat any of the top female players.
SIDELINE MLB REDS
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CUBS
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