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The Miscellany News

Students demand College accountability Palak Patel and Rhys Johnson Editor-in-Chief and News Editor

n Jan. 26, a letter was electronically disseminated to the campus community which called for a major change in the upper levels of administration at Vassar. The letter, authored by the Vassar Student Organizers, outlined multiple situations from the past in which the Administration has failed to prompt change on campus and led to further anger and distrust between students, faculty and administration.

Volume CXLVII | Issue 11

January 29, 2015

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The letter, distributed as an email, states, “We are calling for new senior leadership. Enough is enough. For the same reasons that President Hill and Dean Roellke have failed at their jobs in the past, we have no reason but to believe that they will continue failing in the future.” The Vassar Student Organizers entreatied students, faculty and alumnae/i to forward the letter to Chair of the Board of Trustees John Plapinger, President Catharine Hill and Dean of See LETTER on page 4

Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY

Debate attends world tournament Sarah Sandler Guest Reporter

any college students’ winter breaks include some sort of traveling, whether to a foreign country, or just somewhere a train ride or road trip away. Less often does this almost six-week stretch of time comprised of a nearly 24-hour plane ride and the opportunity to go to one place where there are people from over 90 nations. On Dec. 27, three students from

the Vassar Debate Society arrived at the Worlds Debate Tournament in Malaysia, where they would test their prowess against teams from around the world. Of these was Hannah Matsunaga ’16, who wrote in an emailed statement, “[Sophia Pitcairn ’16, Max Moran ’16 and I] were chosen as representatives because of our performance at previous tournaments and commitment to the team.” The Vassar Debate Society tries

to send a team to the Worlds Debate Tournament at least every other year. However, the Worlds tournament uses British Parliamentary style debate, which is not common in the Vassar’s team regular competition circuit in Northeast United States. This style of debate includes four teams of two speakers each with a first proposition, a first opposition, a second proposition and a second opposition. Matsunaga explained, See DEBATE on page 13

ResLife tackles spring housing shortage Noble Ingram Senior Editor

Courtesy of Max Moran

n Jan. 15, the Office of Residential Life sent an unexpected announcement to students returning to campus from abroad or otherwise for the spring semester. These students received an email explaining that, although traditionally the Office of Residential Life could guarantee singles or single equivalents to juniors returning from abroad, the Office would be unable to do so this year. This revelation marks only the most recent struggle with regards to ensuring on-campus housing for all students, as Residen-

tial Life faced a similar housing issue in the fall of 2014. In the days following this most recent announcement, amidst anger and concern among both returning juniors and underclassmen who would be unexpectedly receiving upperclassmen roommates, Residential Life administrators have worked to provide as many juniors as possible with singles while also placing additional upperclassmen in the necessary group housing situations. As the email read, “At our most recent count, there are only 84 singles and 40 beds in apartments, suites See HOUSING on page 3

The Vassar Debate Society sent Hannah Matsunaga ‘16, Sophia Pitcairn ‘16 and Max Moran ‘16 to the Worlds Debate Tournament in Malaysia over Winter Break. The three debaters competed against students from over 90 nations.

Gregoline thesis fuses text, image Athletics Department embraces young talent W Emma Rosenthal Arts Editor

hen many Vassar students hear “graphic novel,” they immediately think “Fun Home” by Alison Bechdel. Now, there is a new graphic novelist on Vassar’s campus–and she’s a student. Emma Gregoline ’15 combined her love for art and passion for writing to make a unique senior thesis: “Living in Ink: Embodiment in the Diary Comics of Julie Doucet and Gabrielle Bell.” “It’s an illustrated, visually-narrated

critical study of the ‘diary comic’ form that examines the work of prominent ‘comic diarists’ Gabrielle Bell and Julie Doucet under a feminist lens,” Gregoline wrote in an emailed statement about her thesis project. However, before this project came into her mind, and even before Vassar, Gregoline had art and writing in her sights. “I’ve always been interested in art for as long as I can remember. I was lucky enough to have a mom who read me tons of storybooks.

“Even in high school, I kept these really secretive diaries where I would draw and write down everything that happened to me, even memorable things that I ate,” she wrote. At Vassar, Gregoline continued working with the marriage of art and writing. She commented, “I’m an English major with an art minor. I’ve always felt a little deficient in both— it’s funny because when Alison Bechdel came to Vassar to speak, she shared See GREGOLINE on page 16

courtesy of Emma Gregoline

Emma Gregoline ’15 blends passion for art and love of writing to create a graphic essay for her senior thesis. Pulling from favorite authors and class work at Vassar, she created learned and created graphic novel style and content.

Inside this issue

Winter Break travellers explore TRAVEL world sites

14 ARTS

Local musical acts descend on Mug for No-Vice show

Erik Quinson Reporter

his semester, Vassar Athletics is joined by two new faces. Mike Callahan will be coming in as the Assistant Director of Athletics for Sports and Recreation, while the training room will be accepting Ian Shultis. Shultis will be replacing Josh Bellavance, while Callahan will add to the core of the staff of the Athletics Department who will soon be waving goodbye to Roman Czula, Vassar’s Life Fitness Director. Mike Callahan has some xperience working at Vassar before being hired this year. He served as the Summer Sports Camp Manager during the summer of 2011, from April to August. When he starts this semester as Assistant Director, Callahan, among many other obligations, will again be responsible for the summer sports camps, a prospect that drew him back to Vassar. The strong academics and athletics that Vassar has to offer also helped to bring Callahan to campus. In an emailed response, Callahan cited Vassar’s resources as one of its strong points. “The athletic facilities here at Vassar are top notch, which will help make my job much easier,” he explained.

Before he began work at Vassar, Callahan worked at Iona College for three and a half years as Coordinator for Recreation and Intramurals. While there, he looked after far more than just the intramurals program. He organized game day operations, transportation for 21 teams, and a host of other responsibilities, including the coordination of over one hundred student workers. With all his experience, Callahan is undeterred by his new challenge. At Iona, “I had to wear many different hats just like I am going to have to do here at Vassar,” he wrote. While Callahan is responsible for far more intramurals at Vassar, he says his main goal in the coming semester is to increase student participation in the intramural program. Callahan has big plans to make this happen. He intends to offer more leagues and tournaments. “Each league and tournament will have a playoff, a championship and each champion will be awarded a championship T-Shirt. I also planned to offer more leagues and tournaments.” Callahan wrote in an emailed statement. He also will introduce an Instagram page See NEW HIRES on page 18

Men’s volleyball aims to build on SPORTS previous season

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The Miscellany News

January 29, 2015

Editor-in-Chief Palak Patel

Senior Editors Noble Ingram

Contributing Editors Bethan Johnson Meaghan Hughes Marie Solis

News Opinions Arts Humor & Satire Sports Design Photography Online Social Media Copy

Rhys Johnson Joshua Sherman Emma Rosenthal Chris Gonzalez Zach Rippe Elizabeth Dean Samantha Pianello Gwendolyn Frenzel Maddy Vogel Ashley Pecorelli

Crossword Editors Collin Knopp-Schwyn York Chen Assistant Design Sarah Dolan

Join us during our first paper critique of the semester! Sunday, February 1 9:00 p.m. Rose Parlor

Reporters Amreen Bhasin Julia Cunningham Emily Hoffman Ashley Hoyle Erik Quinson Alex Trunnell Penina Remler Columnists Delaney Fischer Sam Hammer Sarah Sandler Claire Standaert Photography Alec Ferretti Emily Lavieri-Scull Social Media Kayla Holliday Hannah Nice Copy Antigone Delton Anika Lanser Macall McQueen Kelsey Quinn

The Miscellany News does not expressly endorse any of the opinions of the columnists featured within the pages of the paper, except for the staff editorial.

LETTERS POLICY The Miscellany News is Vassar Collegeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s weekly open forum for discussion of campus, local and national issues, and welcomes letters and opinions submissions from all readers. Letters to the Editor should not exceed 350 words, and they usually respond to a particular item or debate from the previous weekâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s issue. Opinions articles are longer pieces, up to 800 words, and take the form of a longer column. No letter or opinions article may be printed anonymously. If you are interested in contributing, e-mail misc@vassar.edu.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

January 29, 2015

NEWS

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Students, Poughkeepsie residents fire back at VC deer cull Rhys Johnson News Editor

Courtesy of The Poughkeepsie Journal

assar College’s winter deer cull, a population management project on the Vassar Farm and Ecological Preserve (VFEP), during which deer are systematically hunted for the purpose of protecting ecological safety, has been met with heavy criticism by both Vassar students and neighboring citizens. Despite a month-long campaign and legal action, the proposed program was carried out for the third time since 2010, much to the chagrin of many Poughkeepsie residents, who argued that the killings showed a lack of respect for local wildlife and municipal laws on the part of the College. The culls, conducted by management professionals from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), have aimed to monitor and periodically reduce the nearby deer population, which many argue is the healthiest solution to the issues the VFEP’s animal and plant populations face in times of a deer surplus. In an official press release posted on Dec. 18, the College asserted, “Five years ago, Vassar began a long-term deer management program at the Vassar Farm and Ecological Preserve to protect the health of that ecosystem. The overabundance of deer there is causing significant ecological damage. The management program includes monitoring the size of the deer population and periodically culling its numbers.” Many, however, have questioned the legitimacy of the College’s claims to the cull’s environmental benefits for the VFEP. In an emailed statement, Co-President of the Vassar Animal Rights Coalition (VARC) Rockwell Schwartz ’15 said, “Other towns in New York have chosen non-violent alternatives, such as experimental use of immunocontraception. There is no reason a progressive institution like Vassar should not abandon old, ineffective and violent shootings and take part in the future of ‘population management.’” The College announced its decision to conduct another cull on Dec. 18, notifying students and neighboring residents and business-

es of its intention to begin the culling in early January. The announcement was met with significant outrage from surrounding communities, and local protests were held on Jan. 3 and 25, where signs denouncing a perceived lack of respect for Poughkeepsie residents by the College and condemning the use of “bait and shoot” hunting techniques were held by incensed citizens. Many took to alternative mediums to express their grievances, particularly the Internet. An electronic petition to Poughkeepsie Mayor John Tkazyik, Poughkeepsie Town Supervisor Todd Tancredi and Vassar College President Catherine Hill said, “The deer peaceably travel in small families throughout our area, and do not belong to Vassar College. The deer population was stable before the college arrogantly began a campaign of repeatedly baiting them with food, whereupon sharpshooters would pick them off—a practice that even hunters find unsportsmanlike and cruel” (Change.org, “Stop the Deer Killing at Vassar College Farm,” 01.03.15). Vassar College Director of Media Relations and Public Affairs Jeff Kosmacher, however, said, “We see [the need for culling] in the decimation of saplings and other vegetation, specifically the saplings, because of which, if we don’t do something about this we will have a generation of trees that have no next generation of trees to succeed them.” He went on, “We work with the USDA Wildlife Services. These are professionals who do nothing but work on animal population control projects. They have a spotless 10year record. There’s never even been a hint of any public safety concerns, so we’re reassured that, given the need to do something, we’re working with the best possible people to get the job done” (The Poughkeepsie Journal, “VIDEO: Protesters call on Vassar to halt deer cull,” 01.03.15). Those opposing the College’s decision to continue culling deer populations on its 527acre farm and ecological preserve, having failed to make noticeable progress through local and student activism, attempted to pursue

Vassar students and Poughkeepsie residents denounced the College’s choice to engage in what many believe is a cruel and unnecessary solution to a problem which may have other solutions. legal injunctions against the cull. Those who brought forward the charges against the College did so under the accusation of violation of a Town of Poughkeepsie noise ordinance, as well as a City of Poughkeepsie ordinance prohibiting gunfire. Poughkeepsie police also came under fire for allegedly ignoring noise complaints made by people close enough to hear the gunfire coming from the VFEP on the nights of the culling. Town of Poughkeepsie resident Mary Schwartz, commented, “The city’s and town’s efforts to allow Vassar College to violate local law is all the more offensive, considering that the specific ordinances at issue are specifically intended to protect the safety and health of the public” (The Poughkeepsie Journal, “Judge clears way for Vassar deer cull,” 01.25.15). Poughkeepsie authorities responded to such contentions by declaring that the cull would not be challenged because the USDA,

a department of the federal government, oversaw the planning and execution of the shootings, their authority superseded those of municipal ordinances and so the deer culls were legal even if the local authority disagreed. Despite being unsuccessful in preventing this winter’s cull, local groups such as Save Our Deer and VARC will continue their efforts to organize events and educational opportunities surrounding potential culls in the future, and are hopeful that members of the Vassar community will join them in opposing the killings. Rockwell Schwartz remarked, “The school has spent well over $150,000 on these unnecessary killings. The local governments are willing to ignore their own laws to let our school violate them, which speaks to a widely recognized issue with Vassar’s place in Poughkeepsie. The list goes on and on. If anyone does not think this is an issue worth caring about, learn more.”

College struggles to accomodate students from abroad juniors would have to be placed in group living situations, the Office of Residential Life has made clear that it is working toward finding singles or single equivalents for all juniors who are currently assigned to doubles and triples; they say that particular emphasis is being placed on resolving situations in which upperclassmen have been left to share living quarters with underclassmen. Despite the apparent necessity of the College to defy its previous statement of juniors receiving single rooms, many students have expressed anger at the timing of the announcement and the cause of this issue. One returning junior, Madeleine Schafer ’16, expressed her feelings when the email was first sent out. As she recalled, “We get an email that says, ‘Hey, just so you all know, we goofed up

massively and there aren’t enough singles for everybody. Here are the open THs, here are the open TAs. Also there are ten doubles.’” She continued, “We all freak out. There are Facebook posts. Everyone is calling each other and texting each other.” This view was expressed by many who were concerned with the timing of the email. Because of how late the email was sent out, many students were concerned with their ability to seek out alternative housing arrangements. As Schafer stated, remarking on her views of Residential Life’s performance, “It is super disappointing. As a student who has organized a lot of things and worked with staff just like to see them fail so epically. It was a situation where they had to have known the problem earlier and if they didn’t know, there’s no ex-

Courtesy of Vassar College ResLife

HOUSING continued from page 1 and 2 room doubles. These 124 spaces aren’t enough for ou[r] anticipated returning population of 173 juniors, seniors, and exchange students.” It continued, “This means that some juniors will have to be assigned to doubles and, possibly, triples; we expect to have to use every empty bed on campus in order to provide housing for everyone.” This inequality between the number of available beds and the number of returning upperclassmen comes amidst a perceived guarantee of a single room for juniors. Though it is not an official promise made by the Office of Residential Life, the expectation of living in a single or single equivalent is held by most juniors returning to campus in the spring of each year. As one email distributed by Luis Inoa on March 4, 2014 reads, “With the possible exception of Josselyn, it is believed that singles will be available to all rising juniors in every house.” While acknowledging that the preferred living situation of upperclassmen has traditionally been single rooms, the College noted that this option would no longer be available to several returning juniors. The email states, “We understand that most juniors would prefer not to be in a double or triple.” Instead, the College noted the 10 entirely open double room situations across campus that groups of returning students could opt into and informed them that all other placements would be made at random. As potentially affected students became aware of this imbalance in housing, they also learned that the method through which the College intended to solve it. The statement explains, “Returning students will be assigned to spaces based on their listed graduation year and then in a random manner. We cannot provide an opportunity for students to provide their reasons for wanting/needing to avoid a double or triple without making things administratively unmanageable.” Even after explaining to students that some

Many juniors returning from abroad argue that the lack of the available single rooms that Residential Life guaranteed them is an indication of departmental incompetence, as well as a sign of disrespect.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

cuse for that.” These frustrations were echoed by many students who dealt with the current housing situation. Meanwhile, Jonas Bahceci ’17 was notified on Jan. 13 that he would be receiving a new roommate in his double. Bahceci wrote in an emailed statement, “I don’t think that ResLife handled the situation itself poorly. However, I do think that is a situation that unfairly treats many returning juniors and seniors who were promised singles after returning in spring.” This is the second time in two years that the Office of Residential Life has been unable to provide all returning juniors with single and single equivalent rooms, although students received this year’s announcement significantly later than last year, and the degree of difference between single rooms and juniors is much larger. In November 2014, returning students received an email stating that only 124 singles and single equivalents were available for 173 returning and transfer students. As the semester has begun, many of those affected by this residential issue feel as though they have few methods of recourse available to them, given that they have already moved into their new living situation as well as other larger perceived issues facing the campus. Schafer argued, “Given Vassar’s responsiveness to all things, I’m not really expecting anything. I ultimately think that it is not the biggest issue on campus. [Juniors] are not the college’s first priority right now and that is genuinely fine.” She continued, “On the other hand, this is one of those things that didn’t need to happen and could have happened in a lot of smoother ways. Even if it was as simple as a more concrete set of information given to juniors who are still in situations that they don’t want to live in, that would be great. There has just been a remarkable lack of communication.” Students are hopeful that the Administration will learn from this year’s mistakes so as to prevent any future disappointments with the Office of Residential Life.

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NEWS

January 29, 2015

Vassar Student Organizers find faults with Administration LETTER continued from page 1

Outside the Bubble GOP presidential possibles rev up for 2016 Throughout December and January, over a dozen Republican politicians and businessmen have garnered the attention of the media for their subtle preparations for a presidential bid in 2016. Among the most prominent names circulating are New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, former Governor of Florida and son and brother to the 41st and 43rd presidents Jeb Bush, Senator Ted Cruz and the 2012 Republican candidate, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Meanwhile, no similar pattern has emerged among Democratic hopefuls, as former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton remains the primary focus of most media speculation surrounding the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination. Although no serious Republican or Democrat contender has officially announced their candidacy for the presidency, several actions by big name politicians, including the creation of Super PACs, the sudden appearances in key electoral swing states and the hiring of political advisors, have given Americans an unofficial preview of who candidates of the 2016 election might be. Some of the most talked-about actions have been those of Jeb Bush. In December, Bush announced his intention to explore a presidential run in 2016 and has since moved to place himself in a good position for a potential campaign. Since his statement of interest, Bush has resigned from his role in several corporate boards. Unlike other Republican hopefuls, with the notable exception of Mitt Romney, the former Governor of Florida failed to attend the Iowa Freedom Summit to discuss his positions on major federal issues. In the meantime, the former governor has been soliciting donations to his political action committee, the Right to Rise PAC, and a related Super PAC; this allows donors to help fund such potential campaign efforts as hiring strategists and staffers and traveling across the country to both gauge public opinion and woo additional donors. The potential candidate will address the

voices need to be heard and that needs to be the top administrative priority.” In order to see students’ needs fairly prioritized within the administration, the Vassar Student Organizers propose seeking more capable and more cooperative individuals who can help to change the current direction of the school. Many students argue that the administrative failures of President Hill and Dean Roellke are a result of their ignorance, and, according to some, insensitivity, toward the experiences and feelings of those on campus who feel most forgotten and mistreated by the College’s existing leadership. “I want the people running this school to have actual education about the reality and function of race, gender and sexuality in this country,” reflected one student organizer. “I want the school,” the student went on to say, “to be run by people who have the heart and mind and education to actually engage with these topics in their everyday lives, in their pub-

lic discourse, in their leadership and in the policy they implement.” Another student organizer echoed this sentiment. “We hope to see a more integrated administration that has a background in race and gender studies as opposed to one appointed position,” the student added. “If the Deans cared about students of color, LGBTQ students, the SLD or SAVP, there would be many more resources for the students who feel like the administration has failed them.” The letter has been signed by 44 students, each of which had their own reasons for contributing their name to the bottom of the piece. Cierra Thomas ’16, who also chose to stand with the Vassar Student Organizers, found the honesty of the letter particularly important. “In the letter, the faults in Vassar’s senior administration are precisely laid out bare for all to see,” wrote Thomas in an emailed statement. “This largely resonated with me because it was brutally hon-

Sam Pianello/The Miscellany News

the College Christopher Roellke, as well as to other prominent and powerful members of the Vassar community. One of the student organizers explained the importance of the letter for the campus community. “Vassar tries to sell itself as some national anomaly—as a politically ‘progressive’ institution full of radicals. I want this to be less of a lie,” the student organizer wrote in an emailed statement. “I want the school to be run by people who have the heart and mind and education to actually engage with [topics of race, gender and sexuality] in their everyday lives, in their public discourse, in their leadership and in the policy they implement,” the organizer continued. The letter intends to call for greater accountability within the administration, particularly its senior echelons, to initiate meaningful social change on campus, starting with the replacement of both President Hill and Dean Roellke. “[This is] a call for honest accountability, which may mean taking jobs away from people who have admitted and demonstrated failure, does two things in my opinion,” explained the student organizer. “First, it values the lives of the students who have been undervalued, disrespected and terrorized—it says to those communities ‘when people fail you, they lose their access to power.’” The organizer continued, “Secondly, it sets a precedent, at Vassar, but also I think in academia and I dare say the nation, that establishes that failure and negligence to care about the safety and quality of life for already vulnerable communities, is grounds for losing a job.” The Vassar Student Organizers agree that major change needs to be made within the upper levels of administration if any effective steps toward genuine solutions to the existing problems at Vassar are to be made. Rishi Gune ’17 remarked that he signed the Vassar Student Organizers letter because he believes that real systematic change begins in the Administration. He commented in an emailed statement, “I think accountability needs to start with the administration. They need to start listening to what we are telling them! The students’

The Vassar Student Organizers’ letter, sent via email, serves as a potential outlet through which disillusioned students can communicate their dissatisfaction with the upper level Administration.

Detroit Economic Club, a common action for GOP hopefuls, on Feb. 4. After his small-margin defeat in 2012 by President Obama, speculation has again turned to Mitt Romney. Although he attended neither the Iowa Freedom Summit nor a Koch-brother forum, some believe that cries for a second presidential run have inspired Romney to begin traveling around the country seeking out potential donors. Some also interpret the strong criticism toward the idea of a new Romney campaign by other GOP hopefuls, such as Rand Paul and Donald Trump, highlights a growing impression that a campaign reboot is in America’s future (The New York Times, “Prepping for 2016, a Gathering of Republicans in Iowa Leans Hard to the Right,” 01.24.15). Insiders have told the media that Romney will decide, although not necessarily announce the decision, about mounting a second bid within the next two weeks (CNN, “Jeb’s invisible man strategy,” 01.26.15). Romney, despite taking criticism from fellow conservatives, has made a significant effort to shift the focus of any future campaigns away from the reasons for which his bid failed four years ago. He has, in the face of denouncements of his out-of-touch, one-percenter economic principles, intentions to bring poverty to the center of his political agenda; for his popularized roboticism and air of excessive scriptedness, Romney has moved toward forging a less stilted, more down-to-earth political persona (Business Insider, “Here’s One Big Way Mitt Romney’s 2016 Campaign Would Be Different,” 01.27.15). Governor Chris Christie, who many thought would serve as Romney’s running mate in 2012, has also made a serious stride forward in his long-rumored White House ambitions since the New Year. The political action committee started by Christie supporters is called Leadership Matters for America, and has steadily tapped into funding streams around the country. Like many other presidential hopefuls, the New Jersey Governor spoke at the Iowa Freedom Summit, talking about such issues as recommended changes in both Republican rhetoric

around major policies as well as politics itself. According to FOX News, Christie will begin using his funding to travel the country, before making any presidential announcements in February (“Christie launches PAC in significant step toward White House run,” 01.26.15). Others have, despite less significant media coverage, been attempting to gain some presidential spotlight in recent days. Senators Ted Cruz, Rand Paul and Marco Rubio participated in a debate-style panel hosted by the Freedom Partners. The group, which espouses conservative and free-market economic principles, is closely linked with the wealthy, politically-minded Koch brothers. In the forum, the potential candidates discussed issues related to fiscal spending, in which all three largely agreed with the Freedom Partners’ conservative economic stances, and foreign policy actions made by the current president, which inspired several heated debates. Another individual contemplating a presidential bid is former Vice Presidential candidate and former Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin. When asked about the idea of running for president next year, the conservative politician-turned-commentator, who officially retired from politics a number of years ago, declared, “You can absolutely say that I am seriously interested” (The Washington Post, “Palin says she’s ‘seriously interested’ in 2016,” 01.24.15). Her political prospects, however, have fallen significantly as a result of her most recent public blunder, what many observers have labeled a clumsy, poorly delivered speech at the Iowa Freedom Summit; the National Review said her performance was “meandering and often bizarre” (the National Review, “2016: It Begins, 01.25.15). As reports have emerged speculating that Palin’s teleprompter had frozen in the middle of her speech, forcing her to adlib the rest, Republican and Democratic observers alike have classified the awkward speech as a random, unwitting victory for Democrats by effectively eliminating Palin from any serious presidential ambitions. This recent trend in pre-campaigning among GOP hopefuls has also prompted several popular

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

est, which is exactly what President Hill, Dean Roellke and the Board of Trustees need to hear.” Like the other students who signed, Thomas wants the letter to Plapinger to make an actual difference in how the College functions moving forward. “First of all, I hope that the problems presented to Vassar’s senior administration aren’t swept under the rug. I hope they don’t try to place a band-aid on a wound that desperately needs surgery,” wrote Thomas. “I would like to see President Hill and Dean [Roellke] finally realize,” she went on to say, “that they are not the leaders they believe they are and step down to allow genuine leaders who are truly committed to the safety of all students, faculty and staff at Vassar College.” Amidst an increasingly strained relationship between students and the Administration and a climate that inspires many students to feel unsafe or disrespected on campus, Thomas’ growing desire for a greater sense of sincerity and frankness in approaching the existing tensions has become the focus of many such gestures aimed at promoting a more genuine dialogue about student issues on campus. Because students feel as though attempts at working within the current system to solve these issues have been unsuccessful, many have sought greater solidarity within the student body to forge a new system. One student organizer wrote in an emailed statement, “We have the power to address our own needs and the needs of Vassar employees. Our many perspectives need to be heeded because we have some great ideas on how this institution can shift for the better.” Although it is uncertain whether the Vassar Student Organizers’ letter will inspire the change it calls on Vassar students and faculty to create, many of those who supported it feel that they have no other means of forcing the College’s current leadership to heed their appeals. Thomas wrote in an emailed statement, “I signed this letter because I figured if Mr. Palpinger and the Board of Trustees need a letter with hundreds of signatures to prove to them that the President and Dean aren’t competent leaders of this institution, then so be it.”

Republicans to officially deny their intention to seek a bid for the White House next year, among them Mitt Romney’s former running mate, Congressman Paul Ryan. “After giving it a lot of thought, I’ve decided not to run for president,” announced the 44-year-old congressman from Wisconsin, most notable for his annual federal budget proposals. He continued, “[My chairmanship of the Ways and Means Committee] over the next few years will be crucial to moving America forward, and my job as chairman deserves undivided attention” (The Wall Street Journal, “Rep. Paul Ryan Rules Out 2016 Presidential Candidacy,” 01.12.15). Democratic Senator from Massachusetts Elizabeth Warren, who has recently become increasingly popular among many liberal voters, has also taken the opportunity to publicly announce that she had no intention of running for president in 2016. In an appearance on National Public Radio in December, Warren reiterated the sentiment three times. “I’m not running for President,” she clarified (New York Daily News, “Elizabeth Warren says ‘no’ to Presidential campaign,” 01.23.15). Amidst the Republican Party’s presidential preparations, however, little has been said regarding exactly who would be the candidate to take on any of the possible Republican candidates on the opposing Democratic ticket. The media has long assumed that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would make another attempt at the White House in 2016, despite her much-calculated reticence on the subject. Instead of spending the entire winter on unofficial campaign stops like many Republican hopefuls, Clinton has been working on assembling her campaign team and receiving approval for a preliminary campaign budget; according to reports, only the communications director position remains vacant (0Politico, “Inside Hillary Clinton’s 2016 Plan,” 01.26.15). With planning in its final stages, political observers speculate that Clinton will officially announce her bid in early April.

– Bethan Johnson, Contributing Editor – Rhys Johnson, News Editor

January 29, 2015

OPINIONS

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The Miscellany News Staff Editorial

ResLife must create space for students to air grievances J

ust before the semester began, Juniors returning from study abroad received an unpleasant surprise from the Office of Residential Life. On Jan. 13, Residential Life sent an email explaining that although in the past returning juniors could expect to be assigned to a single, this year things would be different. The email went on to explain that due to a large disparity between the number of students leaving campus in the fall compared to in the spring that superseded previous years’ amounts, Residential Life has had to deal with an allegedly unexpected influx of students returning to campus now. Most juniors, while understanding of the difficult nature of the situation, were inconvenienced by the lack of advance notice of the housing disparity and were thus frustrated with the news. Though this gap between available singles and returning students might be the largest in recent years, the timing of the email informing returning students was much later this semester. Last year, students who returned in the spring were informed of the lack of open singles in November; this year, students found out on Jan. 13, giving them far shorter notice. Because of this delay, students did not have the chance to seek off-campus housing or alternatives to dorm living. Additionally, this lack of advanced notification limited students’ agency in going through higher channels to find an amenable living situation for the semester; instead, these juniors must weigh the options of applying for a single and, upon rejection, living with underclassmen or applying to live with friends

and giving up any chance of getting a single. Placing some of the returning juniors with underclassmen creates the potential for an unpleasant housing experience for everyone involved. Juniors have a different general experience level and a different view of Vassar than younger students, which could impact their adjustment to life here. Additionally, it’s unlikely that a disgruntled junior will be able to create a positive living space for an underclassman with whom they aren’t acquainted and did not choose to live. Power dynamics are thus a potential issue: It may be difficult or uncomfortable for a younger student to approach their older roommate about general living concerns, and difficult for House Team members as well, most of whom are sophomores, to mediate between freshmen and juniors. The fact that the Office of Residential Life has sent a similar message to returning juniors in the past, albeit on a different schedule, seems to suggest that this housing challenge resurfaces year after year. While it is true that this year’s numbers look different than those from the past, it’s clear that this problem is not new for the office of Residential Life. Furthermore, while students recognize the many challenges associated with placing the enormous number of returning students, there is no system in place for students to express their concerns about housing. The official email sent by ResLife reads, “We cannot provide an opportunity for students to provide their reasons for wanting/needing to

avoid a double or triple without making things administratively unmanageable.” Students need a space to air their concerns about housing. Without such a space, the College is once again demonstrating that it isn’t committed to open communication with its students. Considering the already tumultuous atmosphere of the College following the many campus climaterelated events of last semester, this move is another force weakening the students’ faith in the Administration. One note of contention among students also centers around the tone of some of the emails sent out to returning students. Though the initial email acknowledged that the current housing situation was not what most students expected or wanted, following emails seemed to be far less understanding. Even in the emails that expressed how “very sorry” Residential Life was about the fact that juniors would have to move into housing they had been told they would not be placed in, a sense of dialogue was absent. What many students wanted to see was not simply regret or remorse but an actual acknowledgement that the office of Residential Life made mistakes. We would like to acknowledge that ResLife is putting a lot of work into managing this difficulty, but we feel that the Office should have acknowledged that they made a mistake and been more prompt and clear in expressing how they plan on resolving the situation in a way that is fair to students. While this dearth of housing impacted a large number of students, it is only one issue in a greater series

of problems that the Office of Residential Life did not address in an open manner this year. For example, residents in Strong House experienced an exorbitant number of fire alarms last semester due to problems with the heating system. Though this issue was eventually resolved, the Office did not provide an open space for students to express their concerns and instead communicated via a few emails to the students toward the end of the semester, once again failing to open a space for dialogues for the students. We at The Miscellany News believe that the Office of Residential Life should take responsibility for their actions. Currently, there is no open system for dialogue between students and ResLife; there is no official or organized way for students to express their complaints or concerns. Rather than students simply sending emails—often in too high a volume to be answered quickly—we believe that ResLife should initiate a grievance system on their end and create an open forum of communication between the Office and students about housing. In this specific case, we also believe students who were placed into double or triples despite being previously told not to expect such placement should receive some sort of compensation for this error on the part of Residential Life. This action would further the accountability we feel the Office should hold to the greater student body. —The Staff Editorial represents the opinions of at least 2/3 of the Editorial Board.

Town officials bend to college’s interests with deer cull Kaden Maguire & Rocky Schwartz Guest Columnists

n 2012, Binghamton University decided that it had a deer problem. As is often the case, the first option was the most violent one: shooting the deer. Sufficient public opposition to the killings found the university to New York State Court for noncompliance with the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA). The university had not complied with the state guidelines pertaining to the conditions necessary for a deer killing to occur. No study was conducted on the potential environmental impact of shooting up to 90 percent of the deer who lived in or traveled through its preserve. Despite the DEC having issued Binghamton a permit, Justice Molly Fitzgerald ruled that the state guidelines needed to be followed before the kill could take place. As of yet, deer have not been killed at Binghamton. Shortly before Binghamton, Vassar College also decided that it had a deer problem and that it would conduct a kill in early January 2010 (This article will not explore the science used by Vassar to determine this, though it should be known the existence of deer overpopulation is very much up to debate). Like Binghamton, there was public outcry over Vassar’s plans to kill, the plans for the shooting were announced shortly before students were scheduled to go on winter break—leaving little time for students to voice their dissent—and the College had not obtained a state-conducted study of the potential environmental impact on the Vassar Farm. Unlike Binghamton, litigation was not brought against Vassar in 2009-10 and the first round of killings proceeded. The first shooting was illegal and carried out by a sharpshooter from White Buffalo, Inc. Only nine of the original deer living in the area were left alive, inciting negative press. Vassar in 2012 began its process once again, announcing a planned kill shortly before winter break. This time, though, local residents were prepared and brought litigation against the College in Dec. 2012. In the first case, the court acknowledged that the first shooting, having taken place within city limits, where use of firearms is prohibited, was an unlawful “mistake” and so required the shooting be limited to the parts of Vassar Farm that are in the Town. For reference, the Farm is about evenly divided between the Town of Poughkeepsie and the City of Poughkeepsie. The court also acknowledged that the killing did require a current state-conducted study of

environmental impact on the ecological preserve because of the SEQRA. The studies of the preserve conducted by Vassar could not be substituted for a proper state environmental study. However, the judge decided that the general environmental impact statement written on hunting in New York State that was created over three decades prior in 1980 was a sufficiently current and relevant study about what would happen on Vassar Farm and Ecological Preserve as a result of the kills. Thus, the 2013 shooting proceeded more lawfully than its 2011 predecessor, with the help of the also-controversial company U.S. Wildlife Services, rather than Wild Buffalo, Inc. The Save Our Deer Campaign maintains that this 2015 shooting, as well as the two prior, have all been in violation of the Town of Poughkeepsie ordinance against noise, which states that the “use or firing of explosives, firearms or similar devices so as to create unreasonable noise” is forbidden (Chapter 139 of the Town of Poughkeepsie Codes). Thus, a second case was filed to stop the shooting, the arguments being that the shootings have been a breach of this noise ordinance. In the 2012 case brought against the City of Poughkeepsie in an attempt to stop the shooting, the judge hearing the case determined that the U.S. Wildlife Services, despite being a federal agency, could not supersede the City of Poughkeepsie ordinance forbidding the use of firearms within city limits. However, the judge of the 2015 case ruled in contradiction to the 2012 judge. The City of Poughkeepsie and Vassar lawyers argued that the U.S. Wildlife Services permit did supersede local laws and suspend the firearms ordinance. The local judge chose to agree with the judgment of Town and City of Poughkeepsie—leaving the decision of whether or not to enforce their ordinances up to them. On Friday, Jan. 23 and Saturday, Jan. 24, Vassar College shot deer for the third time in five years. These unnecessary killings—beyond being an exorbitant waste of College funds with their estimated $150,000-plus price tag as well as a potential source of contaminated meat donated to local soup kitchens—are a case of Vassar’s exceptionalism within the Poughkeepsie community. Both the Town and City of Poughkeepsie have catered to Vassar’s supposed needs, at the expense of public health and safety. Hunting is not allowed in the Town or City of Poughkeepsie. The Vassar Farm is never more than a

quarter mile from residential roads. With the knowledge that bullets have the capacity to travel well over two miles, allowing hunting at the Farm would clearly be incredibly irresponsible and dangerous. Vassar Dean Marianne Begemann has herself stated that hunting at the Farm would be a major risk and that is why the College has not pursued it. Yet, Vassar is able to get around this legal roadblock because the deer killings are not technically “hunting.” In fact, even many hunters consider Vassar’s killing method to be inhumane and cruel, and several have actually joined protests against Vassar’s killings.

“Both the Town and City of Poughkeepsie have catered to Vassar’s supposed needs....” Instead of “hunting,” the College employs a “bait and shoot” method outside of the legal New York hunting season so as to target pregnant doe in the kill. College staff are tasked with spreading corn to bait the deer at three sites on the Farm for several weeks. Many staff members oppose the killings, but must participate as not to risk their positions with the College. This baiting practice potentially attracts deer who would not otherwise enter the Farm property, as herds will travel beyond their usual range to find food in the winter. Baiting is designed so as to increase the slaughter count and make it easier to target deer, unlike with a traditional hunt. The sharpshooters hired for the killings are “professional” killers. As the deer dine, they shoot from cars, using car lights and infrared to immobilize and kill more deer. This is intended to reduce the safety risks of stray bullets or an injured-but-still-alive deer running from the Farm and into the road. Vassar’s professional killers do come from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services, but are not immune from criticism. This same organization elsewhere makes use of “neck snares, foothold traps and toxic devices known as M-44s that spray sodium cyanide into the victim’s mouth, causing tremendous suffering and releasing toxic chemicals into the environment,” and has been the subject of sev-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

eral recent lawsuits and investigations (Center for Biological Diversity, “Lawsuit launched to stop out-of-control wildlife killing by Secretive federal agency in Idaho,” 09.08.14). Despite this, the College boasts of these professional killers’ “spotless 10 year record,” making one wonder how much research has actually been done by the Vassar decision-makers regarding who they pay to kill. Regardless, the shootings consistently spark distress in the nearby neighborhoods. During the killings, there is a spike in calls to both police departments with nearby residents voicing concern over the sound of gunfire in their neighborhood. One mother spoke of her upsetting experience explaining to her frightened young daughter why they were hearing shots from their home. This year, our organization Save Our Deer received information that the local police were not taking complaints about the sound of the gunfire from Vassar’s shootings, thereby tampering with public record on the distress the shootings cause and indicating that the police are not going to enforce their own laws when doing so would interfere with Vassar’s agenda. City and town ordinances are in place specifically to protect the health and safety of residents. This is why they bar the sound of rifle fire. While the Town of Poughkeepsie police will gladly break up a party or concert because of loud noise, rigorously enforcing its noise ordinance, in the case of the terrifying sounds of Vassar’s rifle fire, the Town has chosen to ignore the law and police were actually dispatched to help secure the Farm during the shootings. It should come as no surprise that Vassar College is privileged within and by Poughkeepsie. This is often discussed in terms of the College’s heavy use of ambulances and the fire department despite its tax-exempt status. Here, Vassar’s exceptionalism moves a step further: Vassar has chosen to actively ignore the voices of Poughkeepsie residents who do not want rifles in their neighborhood and has influenced the local police, such that they are not only failing to enforce their own laws but actually dispensing staff to aid in Vassar’s killings. As members of the Vassar community, we must challenge the too-powerful role our school has assumed and find non-violent alternatives to killing. —Kaden Maguire ’16 and Rocky Schwartz ’15 are Co-Presidents of the Vassar Animal Rights Coalition.

OPINIONS

Page 6

January 29, 2015

Dining improvements mask needed structural review Joshua Sherman Opinions Editor

on’t be fooled by its fresh looks and new food flair—the ACDC has a long way to go before you should think everything is fine with Vassar’s overall dining experience. I’m only now returning to campus after a semester away in London, where most of my meals came out of a kitchen or across the street from a hole-in-the-wall shop called Gateway Chicken. But based on the word from friends and classmates, the ACDC, or “Deece,” seems different this semester—perhaps even (dare I say) better. The changes at the Deece so far appear to be subtle acts of acknowledgment to a variety of student requests for better dining options: There’s fresh water flavored with lemons, melons or cucumbers. The ice cream machine is fixed and has a station for sprinkles. The vegetables come freshly steamed in pots, rather than steeping in a stale pool of oil and water. There’s chocolate milk again in the Retreat. As little as these changes may be, they do reflect an effort by Director of Campus Dining Maureen King and her team to listen to student interests, likely with some kind of active collaboration between herself and the current food committee chair. I wonder if the efforts of Aramark to improve the dining hall are just acknowledgment of long overdue change, or perhaps a sign of something else that’s been on the table this year. For those who read my article on Aramark’s relationship to campus dining, you may remember that the Dean of the College, Chris Roellke, has expressed interest in pursuing “strategic alternatives,” which likely means a new Request for Proposal (RFP) (The Miscellany News, “Campus food services leave students hungry for options,” 04.23.14). A Request for Proposal is basically a call for bids on the operation of Vassar’s dining system. While it is indeed “Vassar campus dining,” in

reality, Aramark is the company that operates the ACDC, Retreat, Java City, Late Night and other meal plan options. All the cooks and cleaners are unionized Vassar College employees, but the managers (excluding one) remain Aramark employees and report to Maureen King. In an RFP, other companies, such as Bon Appetit, submit proposals of how they’d vision and operate a dining system for Vassar’s campus to meet our needs and be as cost-effective as possible. Bon Appetit, for example, operates Wesleyan’s dining experience. There are many moving parts to this logistical and business process, but ultimately it’s about asking other companies what they’d do if they were in charge of feeding us. Roellke isn’t the only one who’s been examining campus dining. Last spring, I recall as well the VP of Finance & Administration, Bob Walton, walking through the Deece and meeting with Aramark staff. This is pure speculation, but given the College’s continuing effort to keep costs down while improving quality of life, it’s logical to think that campus dining is on the to-do list of quality and cost improvement, given how much complaining about dining is so ingrained in our daily life. Don’t get me wrong; it isn’t like I think Aramark is the devil. I do, however, think that Aramark has been the bane of Vassar’s dining experience for a long, long time. As much as this is my opinion, it’s also shared by countless students, not to mention faculty and College employees who had the courage to share this information with me. My interest isn’t to get rid of Aramark, either. Aramark, like any other competitor, is a company. What Vassar needs to do is review how it controls dining on campus with a company, and then issue an RFP to see what options we have as a campus. It’s also far more important that Vassar considers its own structure before the RFP, as a weak structure in dining accountability will simply bring us back to the same

problems we have today with Aramark. Accountability, as far as I see it, depends on a thorough RFP process that operates alongside a system that gives students, administrators and faculty equal authority to inform our dining services provider of concerns and grievances about campus dining needs and capabilities. I am not aware of what the structure of the Campus Dining Review Committee and other past organizations were, but dining ought to be treated as a joint project, just as we handle admissions & financial aid, college life and other endeavors. This is especially important with student-led initiatives, which at times fall on deaf ears due to the status-quo structure, which is composed of a VSA Food Committee and a separate structure, where Maureen King collaborates with the Director of Campus Activities, Terry Quinn.

“What Vassar needs to do is review how it controls dining on campus....” Meanwhile, having an active RFP means we can at least know what’s out there and whether we would be happy with a company besides Aramark. For all we know, Aramark is perhaps the best and most willing of our alternatives to customize our needs. It may be our needs are more about Vassar’s internal structure and budgeting to campus dining, rather than the services company we contract to handle its internal management. The fact remains that we will not know how we will fix dining if we don’t start from somewhere with a in-depth project like an RFP, which may also motivate Aramark to be invested in its relationship with Vassar College. It’s possible Aramark is already very committed, given its long history at the

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

College, but I ask Campus Dining to prove its relationship through a process as challenging as defending its relationship in a new RFP and vision for dining at Vassar. Should a committee be formed to review and consider these major changes to our dining experiences, I ask everyone on campus to think long-term about our dining solutions. Even if Aramark turns over a new leaf, our goals should be about structural changes to prevent mistakes from reoccurring. Are we going to continually get new choices and ideas for meals, or are we going to fall back into old habits, serving three kinds of broiled chicken each week for dinner? I don’t know what dining will look like in the coming years, but I hope everyone takes dining seriously as ideas about alternatives take hold. Sometimes it seems a stigma exists that dining is too petty a matter among all the other ongoing issues and concerns on campus. While dining is of course nowhere near the importance to issues of campus climate and the necessity of restructuring and discourse to these issues, let’s not forget the reality that a failure in structure in dining reflects Vassar Administration’s failure to maintain better quality of life for students, which then reciprocates to issues of residential life, financial health and the overall trust in Vassar’s own administrative structures. I will also say that I’d trade—in a heartbeat— lower quality dining for strides in fostering a better community. Still, I do think we can learn a lot about Vassar’s structures through this issue among many other faults in accountability, communication and structure. No matter what, we ought to have a better structure to handle dining and, at the least, a discussion of potential Aramark alternatives. If not, Administrators and the VSA are not doing justice to ensuring the best possible quality of life for students. —Joshua Sherman ’16 is an English major.

OPINIONS

January 29, 2015

By the Numbers

Page 7

Word on the street Blizzard Edition

What makes you a special snowflake? “My aesthetic.” —Kim Karchairian ’17

“The way I stand.” — Chairster Katz ’15

This chart displays the mean GPA for graduating seniors in May of each year between 1989 and 2012. This chart has been compiled from the 2013/14 Vassar Factbook. Editor’s Note: “By the Numbers” is a regular showcase of charts we find noteworthy that will be shared with additional information. This chart is representative of the prevalent grade inflation taking place on campuses including Vassar, Brown, Harvard and others. In recent years, Dean of Faculty Jonathan Chenette discussed this issue with the VSA, as reported in a Nov. 2012 edition of The Miscellany News.

Genetics reveal complex family lineage Ramy Abbady

Guest Columnist

his past December, I decided to purchase a genetic ancestry test. This was no whimsical decision, as these tests are not cheap. However, it was something I felt that I needed to do. Being a biracial person, my racial identity has never felt quite as solid as other parts of my identity. Illustrative of this is the fact that I have identity crises at least once a week. Whereas racial identity comes easily to some people, this has never been the case for me. Apparently, Facebook knew about my identity struggles (through creeping on my Google searches, perhaps), and one day, I saw an ad for 23andMe, a “personal genome service.” Their home page displays the bold headline, “Find out what your DNA says about you and your family.” Could this be what I needed to make sense of myself? Growing up, my parents told me that I was exactly 50 percent Italian and 50 percent Egyptian. My mom’s side had been a series of Italians marrying each other in the U.S. for three generations until my mom married my dad. My dad is an immigrant from Egypt, and he always told me that his whole family for at least 400 years was Egyptian. While I didn’t really question my mom, I wasn’t entirely convinced by my dad’s story, as Egypt has historically been a major trade hub, connecting Africa, Europe and the Middle East—and, of course, Egypt was imperialized by the United Kingdom for many years. The odds of me tracing my lineage back to the pharaohs just didn’t seem very likely. So, when I found out about 23andMe, it seemed like I might be able to find some answers. After doing some research, and consulting with my neuroscience major housemate, I found that 23andMe was likely the most accurate personal genome service on the market right now. So, I placed my order at the beginning of finals week. It’s worth noting that 23andMe has had its share of controversy in the past. Prior to Dec. 2013, 23andMe provided information about predisposition to health conditions, in addition to ancestry information. There are videos on YouTube of people looking at their med-

ical results several years ago, and it’s quite detailed. Based on your genes, 23andMe used to describe your risk for relatively common conditions such as diabetes and various cancers, but also less well-known diseases such as deep vein thrombosis and others. It also provided information about likelihood of drug sensitivity, inherited conditions and physical traits (male pattern baldness for example). However, the FDA ruled that this service was considered a medical device, that there was not enough scientific evidence to support this service and it has been suspended since. It’s further worth noting that 23andMe cannot provide its service in New York as even its ancestry service is considered medical by the state and requires a special license. While they can ship it to a New York address, you have to collect your sample and mail it back from a different state. So, when my kit finally arrived, I had to drive to Connecticut (which, incidentally, is only slightly out of the way on my drive to/from Vassar). There, I sat in the parking lot of Whole Foods and had to spit into a test tube, which is much easier said than done. The kit requires that your saliva reach a fill line, not including any bubbles in your spit. As it turns out, my saliva is particularly bubbly, and so it took a solid 10 minutes to provide an adequate sample. Who knew spitting could involve so much effort? After signing a form to affirm that I had not collected my sample in the state of New York, I sealed up the pre-paid return package and dropped it off at a post office. Then began the wait. 23andMe states that results take approximately four to six weeks, but I had read testimonials of it taking only three weeks. I kept my fingers crossed for three weeks. At last, I received an email! My results were ready. I excitedly logged in to my 23andMe account, ready to find out where I came from. As it turns out, however, 23andMe uploads your results in two steps as they analyze your genes, and the first round of results was disturbingly broad. My maternal line was “Broadly Southern European” and my paternal line was “North African and Middle Eastern,” at least in terms of the majority of DNA. Thanks for nothing, results round one.

Before I get to my detailed results, which were uploaded several days later, I’ll explain a little bit of the biology behind the ancestry portion of 23andMe’s service. They analyze haplogroups, which are specific markers found in different populations around the world. The results “tell you what percent of your DNA comes from each of 31 populations worldwide.” Further, “the results reflect where your ancestors lived before the widespread migrations of the past few hundred years.” Cue my results! On my maternal line, I am 47 percent Ashkenazi. What? But my mom’s whole side of the family is Catholic. My guess is that a few hundred years ago, some missionaries got to my ancestors and they migrated to the Italian peninsula, home of the Roman Catholic Pope. Seems plausible enough. On my paternal line, I’m 45 percent North African. However, the DNA isn’t clustered in Egypt—it’s clustered in modern-day Algeria. I’m fairly surprised that it’s such a large percentage, but not that odd once I look at the rest of the breakdown on my dad’s side. I’m three percent Sub-Saharan African (mostly East African), just under one percent Middle Eastern (of the Arabian Peninsula specifically). As I had guessed, there was evidence of trade in my genes. The remaining four to five percent of my DNA is “broadly European,” most of which is unclassified, but a small amount of both sides comes from the Iberian Peninsula. If I was going to have anything in common on both lines, this makes the most sense to me. So, is my identity crisis solved? Not particularly. But I do know more about where my ancestors came from. While I will not claim any identity I did not previously use (e.g. though I am ethnically Jewish, I am not culturally or religiously Jewish and I am not a target of anti-Semitism), I am happy to know that my ancestry is not as simple as my parents always told me it was. Yes, I am still Italian and Egyptian because I know that many generations of my family lived in those places. But there’s nuance too. —Ramy Abbady ’16 is an education major.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

“I will not back down.” — Prince Chairy ’16

“I’m stained, but I’m proud.” —Leonardo Dichairio ’18

“I keep my back to the haters.” —America Ferchaira ’18

“I didn’t come here to make friends.” — Chair ’15

Chris Gonzalez Humor & Satire Editor Sam Pianello, Photo Editor

OPINIONS

Page 8

January 29, 2015

Lab-created meats spur new ethics questions, concerns Delaney Fischer Columnist

re you really going to eat that? This is a common question asked today as many become more conscious about what they consume and attempt to eat more healthily. So what does a well-balanced meal look like? According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), this includes 5.5 ounces of protein, which many accomplish by consuming meat (USDA, ChooseMyPlate.gov, 2011). However, eating meat daily may not always be the best option and usually, we consume too much. The average American consumes 224 pounds of meat every year, which equates to 3,584 ounces, or 9.82 ounces daily (Seattle Times, “Finding ‘meatless’ meat for a world of cities,” 02.25.13). Many in the Vassar community have already committed to eating less meat through the Meatless Monday campaign, co-sponsored by the Office of Health Education and the Vassar Animal Rights Coalition. Along with the over-consumption of meat, there is also the issue of the amount of animals that are being raised simply for meat production. Globally, meat for today’s seven billion people requires 60 billion land animals. We must also consider the food, water and land needed as well as the pollution emitted by the meat industry in production along with the animals themselves. With issues popping up left and right in the meat industry from animal care to drug and chemical usage, many ask what other alternatives are available for those who simply cannot give up meat and become vegetarians or vegans. This raises the following question: “Would you be willing to try meat made in a petri dish?” Modern Meadow, a biotech startup locat-

“Love on Top?”

ed in Brooklyn, is in the works of formulating meat without raising, slaughtering and transporting animals. The meat is still technically an animal product, for it is engineered through animal muscle (Modern Meadow, Solutions, 2014). Andras Forgacs, Modern Meadow’s CEO, has termed the company’s new development as “cultured meat” which is technically animal protein grown in a lab. The meat is still technically not vegan or even vegetarian, for its building blocks are still originate from a living animal.

“Would you be willing to try meat made in a petri dish?” Forgacs has explained to Popular Science the company’s process: You take cells from an animal, a cow for example, without actually harming the cow (usually with a small biopsy). Next, you take the cells and isolate the muscle cells. You can then grow them in a cell-cultured medium (“Should beef come from a petri dish?” 01.23.15). What is interesting about the newly cultured meat is that it appears to still be years before it will become available on the market, and yet, many are already starting to debate the pros and cons of this new-engineered product. The debate on petri-dish meat is hitting the media just months after New York Times columnist Amy Harmon spoke at Vassar in October as the Urban Research Summer Institute (URSI) keynote speaker. Harmon discussed

her controversial work investigating genetically modified organisms (GMOs) with her address: “Amy’s Adventures in GMO-land: A New York Times Reporter Explores the Rift Between Public Perception and Scientific Consensus in the Topsy-Turvy Debate over Biotechnology in Agriculture.” Throughout the talk, Harmon received a lot of mixed reactions from the Vassar community and I myself was left feeling confused about food. GMOs have been proposed as a solution to produce more food that we will soon need very much. With the United Nations estimating that we will need to grow 70 percent more food by 2050 for our growing population, GMOs appear to be a good option given their ability to improve crop yields. Another benefit is that nutrients in GMOs can be higher than in naturally grown and produced plants, such as in golden rice (a GMO) as opposed to natural white rice (IFL Science, “What You Need To Know About Genetically Modified Organisms,” 08.24.14). However, not everyone is on board with the idea of eating GMOs. There are a lot of unknowns regarding the consequences of GMOs such as the production of new allergens, or how GMOs may affect one’s metabolism or growth rate. Along with these unknowns, there has also been the issue of labeling. Does the food packaging need to state that it is a GMO? As of now, only two states appear to require GMO Labeling (Maine and Connecticut). But even with labeling what does GMO mean?! There are lots of ways to modify an organism (IFL Science, “What You Need To Know About Genetically Modified Organisms,” 08.24.14). So with a lot of controversy surrounding GMOs, it is no surprise that debates have al-

ready started around Modern Meadows and their cultured meat. The meat industry has a lot of issues. It’s expensive, dirty and eradicates animals for starters. But is petri-dish meat the answer? Cultured meat is clearly not the answer to all our meat problems, but it could be a step in the right direction. After all the method is claimed to have the potential of requiring 99 percent less land, 96 percent less water, 96 percent less carbon emissions and 45 percent less energy demand than standard farming and slaughtering (Seattle Times, “Finding ‘meatless’ meat for a world of cities,” 02.25.13).

“However, not everyone is on board with the idea of eating GMOs.” While I clearly see the benefits in creating meat, I still have a lot of questions that I can’t find the answers to, such as: Is this meat actually safe? Does it taste good? How much is it going to cost? Do I feel comfortable eating meat created in a lab? These questions are only the beginning of the new engineering method. Modern Meadows may be getting a lot of buzz, but cultured meat won’t be something we have to officially decide upon for a while. And in that time, hopefully we will get a lot of questions answered. —Delaney Fischer ’15 is a neuroscience major.

The Miscellany Crossword

by Collin Knopp−-Schwyn and York Chen ACROSS 1 Finger or USB drive 6 “Yeah. Right.” 10 2048, for one 13 Like a haunted house 14 Hay or Christian 15 Pee 16 Hot rocks 17 Desertic 18 It may be spun? 19 Groom, haughtily 20 Bye to a Borgia 21 Much like, with “to” 22 Tat 24 How a bad vegetarian might cook steak? 26 Water near Mecca 30 Beer head 31 Muscat’s country 32 Dane Niel with namesake model of the atom 35 “___ Lang Syne” 38 Fiona Apple’s debut album 40 “Aloha”, in sheep 41 Wintertime nose malady 43 Cassette 44 Sicilian mountain

Answers to last week’s puzzle Surfin' Safari

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46 Vitamin K-rich leafy goodness 2011 47 Person with no object 30 Raisin-y flakes permanence 33 Command sewn on many 49 Like an autumn Vermont drive 29-Downs 51 Capital on the Niger River 34 What each of 5-, 9-, 18-, 29-, 48and 50-Down is 54 “Wowza!” 36 Yung Swedish rapper 55 “Beowulf”, or a 360 no-scope, apparently. Thanks Collin. 37 Bodega, for short 56 Sandwich fixings in a tortilla 39 “Take a ___”. Pee. 59 Dried, as a rag 42 Last month Collin Chen 64 Job Knopp−Schwyn and York45 Ketchum from Pallet Town 65 Survive, or the final survivor 48 Lebowski or Sobchak, from “The Big Lebowski” 66 The fifth element ACROSS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Someor Klimt 167Finger USBshit drive Lake that might be 13-Across 668 "Yeah. Right." 13 14 at night 10 2048, for one 13 a haunted houseto being the 69Like Christ, in addition 14 Hay or Christian alpha 17 16 15 70Pee Where Wilbur wallows 16 71 Hot ___rocks a book! 20 19 17 Desertic 72 Type of infection

Love on Top?

50 John Wayne, for one 51 Amazon Instant show about a tech startup 52 Separated 53 45-Down’s bestie 54 Chose 57 Uncommon 58 The biggest continent 60 Capital of 44-Across’s country 61 First organic compound synthesized from inorganic reagents 62 Egg drinks 63 Tiny annoying flying bug

18 It may be spun? 22 23 19 Groom, haughtily DOWN 20 Bye to a Borgia 21 Much like, with "to" 26 27 28 29 30 1 Office 22 Tat nobody 2 What do 24 How aour badears vegetarian 31 32 33 34 3 Impulse might cook steak? 26 Water near Mecca maybe 4 Mirror movements, 38 39 40 305Beer head Babies by Ty Inc. 316Muscat’s country Aghast, with “taken” 43 44 327Dane Nielbodice, with sort of Bengali namesake model of the 8 Wings of the pelvis atom 47 48 9 Linux OS, perhaps a favorite of 35 "___ Lang Syne" 38neckbeards? Fiona Apple’s debut 54 52 53 10 What we are at 4 am too often 51 album Danger in sheep 4011"Aloha", “Dreadful”nose show 55 56 57 58 4112Wintertime malady Kippa 4318Cassette Yoink mountain 4423 Sicilian 65 64 4625 Vitamin K−rich leafy Political Spring in 2011 goodness 26 Decay 67 68 4727 Person with no object Give off permanence 28 French for “hobbyhorse” 71 70 4929 Like an autumn Vermont What Tyga brought back in drive MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE 51 Capital on the Niger © CC−BY 4.0 River 4 Mirror movements, maybe 36 Yung Swedish rapper 54 "Wowza!" 5 Babies by Ty Inc. 37 Bodega, for short 55 "Beowulf", or a 360 6 Aghast, with "taken" 39 "Take a ___". Pee. no−scope, apparently.

15 18 21 24

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HUMOR & SATIRE

January 29, 2015

Page 9

Breaking News From the desk of Chris Gonzalez, Humor & Satire Editor #BlizzardJuno rocks campus climate, deer resort to self-culling as ‘the only solution for heinous cold’ VC Gossip Girl provides 13 Broken hearts, brand-new tips for the aspiring socialite starts: a letter to the Captain Lily Horner

involve as much slapping and/or punching as possible.

XOXO Gossip Girl

nstead of reading Wikipedia Articles about feline AIDS or the Victrola as I am wont to do, I spent my break thinking about the Upper East Side and what kind of fart I am (Loud and Proud, for the record). As a result I shaved off days from my life by watching “Gossip Girl” and roaming BuzzFeed. So, here is my homage to the two things that got me through this break in the form of a “Gossip Girl” listicle. The 13 Things I Learned From “Gossip Girl”: 1. I should have been Gossip Girl. If you don’t watch GG, then all you need to know is that it is a “drama” about rich white teens living in Manhattan and the chaos that ensues when an anonymous source posts things on her blog/website. She is the Gossip Girl and she is annoying. If I were her, I wouldn’t be cheeky or refer to people by the letters of their first name (though I can see how that would be helpful for libel suits). Using my flawless creativity, I’d come up with stupid nicknames for everyone (Blair Waldork, for example) and act like a mom. I would first express my disappointment in them, offer them advice and, lastly, subtly imply I wish I’d never given birth to them in the first place. 2. Rumors are the food of life. Without them, we would all be mindless zombies watching “The Big Bang Theory” or “Two and a Half Men,” chuckling to ourselves wondering where our lives have gone. My mom says that gossip is bad, but the amount of gossip and the amount of money on that show has to be proportional to each other, right? The more rumors you spread, the richer and better of a person you become. 3. Money might not buy “happiness” but that’s overrated; money is perfect and capitalism is flawless. 4. Revenge is a dish best served with a cliché one-liner. 5. When plotting for said revenge, don’t trust anyone. Misconceptions are the number one downfall of all conspiracies. 6. Also, don’t forget to have a Plan B. It should

7. Drama is the most fun when you’re a bystander. Make popcorn. 8. When making out with your significant other, scan the perimeter because there will always be someone taking pictures on their phone in a super obvious manner. 9. Do as I say, not as I do: Don’t tell anyone you watch “Gossip Girl.” Surprisingly, they won’t make fun of you to your face, but they will try and talk to you about it. Yuck. If you don’t like talking to people, make sure they know nothing about you whatsoever. 10. No matter how many times or how loudly you yell at them, these characters are still going to make horrific choices. I’ve been attempting this strategy since birth, but watching these doofi (plural of doofus) on GG has made me realize that rich fictional people will do what they want. It just so happens that what they want involves being idiots. All you can ever do is close your eyes, cover your ears and pray to whatever deity you believe in that Blair or Serena or Whoever doesn’t eff everything up again. Sometimes you just have to trust they will make the right decisions; it’s like raising children. Watching GG or any TV show or movie is like raising really difficult children who don’t listen to you no matter what. I’m not “too invested,” you’re just not invested enough, in my opinion. 11. The hotter a character is, the more evil they are. *Fans self* If you see someone and think “Whoa nelly this person is very, very good-looking” stay as far away as possible. If you yourself are very, very good-looking, I’m already 50 ft. away, admiring you in fear. 12. Preppies are the worst. Ugh. 13. Apparently, Brooklyn is really far and inaccessible from Manhattan. I don’t pay attention to NYC geography, so sue me. This has been my most productive thus far. I am a freshman, though, so whatever. Envy me.

Chris Gonzalez Acquired Taste

’ve never done this with anyone before. I mean, I’ve never been in a relationship or anything even close to one for longer than, like, a week, so, um, here it goes... My heart is engorged with emotion as I write this, Captain. The time has come. Every young man reaches a point in his life when he must part with what he knows, with what he is most comfortable. Some might think embarking on a new journey is akin to setting sail in unchartered waters, but I prefer to think of my transition into this next stage of my life as hopping on a power scooter and popping wheelies into the sunset. A sunset with better alcohol choices. You see, we had good times. Through you I realized my deep love for spiced rum, which in turn led me to an even greater love for darker liquors. I came to college having minimal experience with white rum and vodka. White rum has sweetness, but vodka makes my tum tum feel icky. Blame it on Crystal Palace, blame it on that goose that never quite had me feeling loose, it doesn’t matter; choosing vodka as your go-to alcoholic beverage over rum, gin, tequila, bourbon, whiskey, whisky, air freshener, furniture polish, Windex, Clorox or fermented apple juice is like being that four-year old who wastes away eating nothing but microwaveable smiley-face potato products and white bread. Sure, it quells the burning in your stomach, but I mean, there’s gotta be more to life. Anyway...thank you. Thank you for giving me the courage to sloppily dance the night away around a group of my inebriated peers. I’ve been told I’m a good dancer, but I’ve also been called clumsy and slightly unlovable, so who’s to say? Regardless, I was never not able to get my swerve on with you by my side. Yeah, it was lonely on the dance floor—those around me smashing faces with each other were probably having a grander time, but hey, we tried right? No one can say we never fucking tried. But sometimes, you get tired of trying, you get tired of being disappointed, Captain. And I think we can both agree that our time together hasn’t always been fun. Perhaps that’s why I decided to stray. For the love of God, you aren’t

as sweet as you let on. When left to chill on your own, you’re as smooth as the crystalline surface of a frozen lake, but you lack that spark and depth I’ve grown to love you for; however, your personality is not that easy to swallow most of the time. It’s something I tend to forget about as the night goes on, but when we part for days and reunite on the weekend, I’m reminded of your flaws. I’m reminded that you’ll never quite love me the way I love you. And so I must leave. The world is larger than us, Captain. I’ve grinded with Jameson, shared emotional intimacy with Jim Beam, spent cool summer nights star gazing with Bacardi. I’ve brushed my teeth with Everclear and tested new territories with Jagar. I’ve pregamed with José and Patrón, fought with Tanqueray and fell into laughing fits with Kraken. In short, Captain, I’m over you. Well, I mean, you’re still better than vodka. Miles better. OK, so I won’t be able to quit you entirely. Forget I said that. The point is, we should take a break. Yeah, that’s it! A break. Let’s call it a break. Um, is that cool? You do your thing, I do mine. Cool. So, anyway, I’m awkward with goodbyes. I mean, I don’t have to tell you that, right? You were there that time I was so drunk I ended up helicoptering around my crush in the Mug, who responded by leaning into me and whispering, ever so softly into my ear, “You’re being a cockblock.” So, you know more than I do how I never know how to wrap things up. Um, yeah. So feel free to direct any question to me. Oh, what’s that? N-n-no, there’s no Natty Light in my minifridge right now. Of course not! I just got done telling you how much I’m trying to improve my alcohol choices. Really, Natty has nothing to do with this. I’m an adult, I want to be an adult. What? I’m not sweating, you’re sweating! You, you, you! Look. This is getting out of hand. I gotta be free. I’m about to graduate in four months, so I kinda need to get my shit together no matter how insurmountable that may be. Let’s go our separate ways. Let’s say farewell. Let’s—so we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceasely into the past. That’s a classy way to break up, right?

AskBanner: Winter Break Edition of the Misc’s “Weekly” “Advice” Column by Banner, Whose Life is an Extended “Dear Ashley” Segment Dear Banner, How does one cope with their parents over winter break? I love them, really I do, and I would never ever (I mean EVER) wish harm upon them. But you know when you’re trying to live your life and you’re feeling your look and want to show the world, but then your parents basically have like no chill and really ruin everything? So, like, what the hell am I supposed to do? Sincerely, Will Parents Ever Understand?

Dear Banner, We all know the struggle of Finals Week, right? You rid your body of sleep and pump out pages of bullshit hoping to land a mediocre GPA so that maybe one day you can land a spot in a Ph.D program on a really niche area of academia so that hole in your heart left behind by the father who abandoned you eons ago will finally be filled. What’s some good tips on improving my sleep hygiene? Help, Sleepless in Sandusky

Dear Delusional, It’s scientific fact that parents will never understand; that’s how the world functions. But maybe try to help them out—wash dishes, clean around the house, watch your porn with headphones on. Then you can feel your look in peace and maybe they will have some chill or something.

Dear Sleepless, You might be barking up the tree as Banner doesn’t get much sleep ever. Dark times, I tell you. I’ve seen better days. You could try staying up for 24 hours until your brain turns to ash. Or, like a professor once said, get some whiskey (or bourbon!) and drink until you pass out. Happy sleeping!

Dearest Banner, I will be back on campus soon and I’m having nightmares about it, to be honest. I’m not ready to face the dreaded Deece. As a freegan, I do all of my own cooking and food prep using what I find from the dumpster outside of my local Piggly Wiggly. But this blasted capitalistic society we live in requires me to pay for a meal plan I don’t want. What’s a healthy growing boy with an appetite and hunger for activism to do? Yours, All-Natural Living

Banner! Ugh. Hi. I hate people from the past, don’t you? Ugh. They knew me from before I became this upstanding specimen of human I am now. Back then I said the n-word and now I share articles combating racism on Facebook. You see how much I’ve changed? Anyway. What would you recommend I do when I’m home for the holidays and I bump into an old high school classmate? This is becoming problematic. Signed, New Year, New Me

Dear All-Natural, Vassar kids are notorious for wasting food. Clearly you want to avoid the Deece at all costs, so I suggest you go frolicking through the TA dumpsters. There you’ll find enough half-eaten rotisserie-style chickens and beer residue for a scrumptious meal. Bless.

Dear Same You, Visiting home means dealing with past demons. Your former friend circle ceases to exist in your mind, so it sucks to see them. After all, you left so you’re better than them, right? Perhaps lock yourself up in a box next time until your trip is done. You’re worth it.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

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TRAVEL

January 29, 2015

Jerusalem, Israel I

t’s been two weeks since I landed on American soil and I still can’t put into words how important and incredible my two weeks in Israel were. How does one describe the feeling of being thrown into a group of 40 people I didn’t know, and coming out with lifelong friends who I am closer to than those I’ve known for years? How can I accurately tell someone about climbing a mountain in the desert at dawn to watch the sun rise over the mountains of Jordan? The only way to really explain to people what my trip was like would be to have taken them with me. My trip was an anomaly—11 straight days of rain and two days of snow. Half of Israel is a desert where they receive less than four inches of rain a year, but we got poured on. I danced in the snow in Jerusalem while gorging myself on schwarma and my toes froze at Mt. Herzl cemetery as it hailed. But it didn’t matter what the weather was; I was happy. I learned so much Hebrew but can only tell you one thing: sababa. It means “cool” and apparently it’s not even Hebrew, it’s Arabic. I began my trip climbing through archaeological sites where my ancestors once lived, and ended it at Yad Vashem, the world Holocaust museum. My group traveled from the very top—looking over into Syria and Lebanon—to the bottom, near Egypt and the Gaza strip. The focus of this trip was not politics, and while we spent time with Israeli soldiers and discussed current issues, most of the time was spent looking at history and where the Jewish people came from. I don’t think I’ll ever consider myself a religious person, but since Israel, I better understand my religion. My only regret is that, with so few days and so many activities, we didn’t get to spend much time at each place, but the time I did get I’ll always remember. —Maddy Vogel ’15

Blue Mountains, Australia I

100 percent don’t describe myself as a “nature person,” what with the bugs and the allergens and the bugs. But since Australia’s most beautiful destinations are in nature, I had no choice but to confront the great outdoors. The first fresh-air excursion I went on was in the Blue Mountains outside Sydney, which get their name from the blue tinge caused by the evaporation of oil from the eucalyptus trees covering the area. Of course, when I was there the mountains looked green. The most famous formation of the mountains is the Three Sisters, part of an Aboriginal legend. From left to right, the sisters are Meenhi, Wimlah and Gunnedoo. The smaller rock next to Gunnedoo is Dave. Dave is not included in the legend because he is not special. There are many versions of the legend, but in all of them the sisters were young girls turned into rocks by their witch-doctor father to protect them from a monster in the valley, a man from a warring tribe who wanted to marry them, and others. Another big part of Australian nature is animals: In the wildlife parks and zoos, kangaroos jump out of nowhere and give you a heart attack and emus look like they’re about to charge when you look at them. One such wildlife park was at the base of the mountains. I learned here that koalas get a lot of hype for nothing. Yes, they are cute, but they spend most of their time sleeping and they just don’t care about you even though you’ve been waiting to meet them your whole life. Rude. I found myself more inclined toward the kangaroos and wallabies, who happily hop up to you and let you pet them, especially if you have a cone of food for them. Mostly because you have a cone of food for them. I like the way they think. Anyways, from this visit I’ve learned that nature isn’t so bad, especially when you stay on the designated footpaths to take in all its beauty. Also I need a pet wallaby. I’ll work on it. —Shereen Sodder ’17

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

January 29, 2015

TRAVEL

Page 11

Bangkok, Thailand S

ince my parents are both professors, we share a long winter break every year. Thanks to this happy overlap, my mom decided over a year ago that this would be an ideal time—what will be the final “long” vacation possible for me—to do something that has long been a pipe dream for my family and I : a trip to Thailand. After meeting in Bangkok, my parents, my sister, Sal, her boyfriend, Will and I headed South to see the jungles and islands of Thailand. We spent a few days living in tree houses trying to dodge monkey droppings before boating around the coast of Phuket. It was an incredible experience to have with my family and it was sad to see Sal and Will head back to DC as their annual two weeks of vacation expired. Next, I spent a few days with my parents in tow (or was it the other way around?) hiking around the Northern region of the country. I was pretty amazed by the vim and vigor of my parents, both of whom are in their 60s, as they enthusiastically tramped up mountains and explored waterfalls and tea plantations. As their vacation also ended, I found myself with two weeks left until the beginning of my last semester at Vassar and figured it would be a wasted opportunity to head home early. So I spent a week and a half traveling. Highlights included seeing the temples of Angkor in Cambodia and spending some alone time trying to process the controlled chaos of Bangkok. —Ben Simpkins ’15

San Diego, California E

xploring San Diego this break was certainly a fresh breath of air, especially coming from tropical Buffalo, N.Y. (or Poughkeepsie for that matter). This was my first time on the west coast so I was definitely ready to see if it lived up to the hype (spoiler alert: It did). Flying across the U.S., I saw a lot more snow on the ground than I expected, especially as we neared California. I guess you can’t really ever escape the snow. My trip was a culmination of the internship I had last summer at the American Institute of Physics (AIP) in College Park, Md. (the D.C. metro area). Following our summer employment, all of the interns were expected to present what they had been working on at a national physics conference. Given that myself and another intern worked on a science outreach project, presenting at the San Diego conference was an easy choice: This was the American Association of Physics Teachers meeting for Winter 2015. I didn’t get to see as much of the San Diego area as I would have liked, but the trip was sponsored by AIP, so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to present my work and see a little bit of San Diego in the process. I stayed in a hotel overlooking the marina and was greeted by a pretty awesome sunrise every morning. The big highlight of the trip, though, was getting out to see the Old Town neighborhood. My bosses took the few of us to lunch one day and afterwards we were able to walk around and enjoy the warmth. All of us are from colder areas so our trip outside of the hotel and into the warmth was much appreciated. The part of Old Town that we were in was pretty obviously made for tourists, but it was a relaxing time regardless. And of course, luckily, on the last day of the conference, I had chance to stop by In-n-Out. As I heard from more than one person while in San Diego, I couldn’t visit the area without grabbing some food there, so I gave it a try and came out the other side very satisfied. —Simon Patané ’15

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

FEATURES

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January 29, 2015

Flash in the pan: CIA opens new six-month restaurant Marie Solis

Contributing Editor

Courtesy of Pangea

rends in the culinary world change just as fast as our tastes do. However, there is one trend that is simultaneously temporary and enduring: the pop-up restaurant. These short-term eateries typically emerge in big cities, enticing foodies who want their secret enclaves to stay secret before anyone else realizes they’re cool. With the spirit of a similar ephemerality in mind, the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) opened Pangea on Jan. 12, the fourth of the restaurants on their campus. Open only until June, the chefs took the pop-up concept and turned it into a fine dining experience. “The advantage of a pop-up is that it’s temporary. You go into it for a short period of time,” Maitre d’Instructor John Storm said. “We’re located within a big institution so the economic advantages don’t necessarily apply to us, but out in the real world—restaurant margins are razor thin.” He explained that chefs will typically share spaces to execute different menus to avoid the high costs of rent and equipment. Introducing a pop-up was crucial for the CIA, however, to accommodate the amount of students who must spend 12 weeks working at two of the campus’ restaurants. CIA sophomore Sierra Hardy said she thinks pop-ups are an opportunity for restaurants’ seconds-in-command to shine. “I think pop-up restaurants are really cool, especially [for] sous chefs, who are second to the executive chef. They’re a good way to get a name that deserves a lot of the credit out in the open.” Once it was decided that a pop-up would be the CIA’s next restaurant venture, Storm and a team of chefs, construction workers, decorators and marketing directors set out to establish Pangea in just a month, hoping to create a stand-out experience for both its student and its diners. “We had six chefs around a table. Everyone had evaluation forms and we’d exchange notes. We did that for 10 days straight. At the end, we were able to get a cohesive menu that made sense to all of these very trained palates,” said Storm. Pangea boasts two prix fixe menus: one for vegetarians and one for meat and seafood eaters.

The CIA recently opened Pangea, a new pop-up restaurant that will be in business from Jan. to June. The restaurant features a prix fixe menu with foods inspired by cuisines from around the world. Each of the five courses comes with a plate for the table making for a 10-dish meal. Dinner begins with a winter vegetable broth and warm flatbread served with an assortment of dips and ends with tropical fruit-carrot sorbet and a cheese plate. Paying tribute to its name, CIA’s chefs wanted to create a menu incorporating flavors from all continents and cultures. “Using what we know about culture and cuisine today, we tried to pull ingredients and flavors from all over the world. Doing that is a daunting task because you have to make very serious decisions and it has to come together in each course,” said Storm. In addition to creating inventive flavor profiles, Pangea prides itself on experimenting with dishes that do not rely on meat as their centerpiece. Hardy said, “I’ve never worked with a mostly vegetarian menu. I think that’s really cool and appealing to everyone. Those kinds of foods are difficult to make and it’s even more difficult to make

them taste good. I think this is a good experience in learning how to make vegan and vegetarian food taste really good.” Storm joked, “This is a very risky menu. There’s no choice. And Americans love choice.” He added, “But it’s been well-received. People have said that the experience is less anxious—you’ve already paid, you already know you have a table and you don’t have to make any decisions. It just rolls out and it has a very casual, laid-back feel.” Behind the scenes, the students and staff of Pangea try hard to create a relaxed atmosphere. For weeks, Storm made small changes to how the food was served, what dishware it was served on and dozens of intricate details the diner is blissfully unaware of. Hardy recounted, “Really all of the changes have been small things. Where we want tables, if we want salt and pepper on the table, [or] how many people are serving a course.” CIA’s senior director of special projects, Waldy

Malouf, said that it is his aim to ensure that students benefit from these changes too. “At the CIA, the student is our foremost and most important customer, so every aspect of the restaurant from the smallest detail is taken into consideration for our students’ education and experiences.” Hardy said it has been a positive experience as well as a familiar one. Pangea’s dining style is similar to that of a restaurant she worked at away from the CIA. “With my externship, I went to a restaurant that had a prix fixe menu like this and I worked for a chef who graduated from Vassar. So this has been a lot of fun,” she said. After spending six weeks in the kitchen, Hardy will work the front of the house for six weeks, learning how to serve each course in what Storm calls a choreographed routine. “It’s totally a performance. That’s one of the reasons we’re prepaid, too. You buy Broadway tickets and this is the performance.” he said. So far it’s been going smoothly, said Storm. If it continues to go well, Pangea may become a permanent fixture, speculated Hardy and Storm. Storm recalled, “We did a Caterina De’Medici many years ago before pop-ups were [trendy] and it is a full blown restaurant now. But at first it was located in a teeny room with about 30 seats, minimal decor—but everyone loved it. It was the bestkept secret. That was 20 years ago. My recommendation would be to make [Pangea] 150 seats.” Hardy said, “I think if Pangea goes well and people are really interested in it, I think they may turn it into another restaurant. A lot of it depends on how many students are enrolled at the time.” She added that having the fourth restaurant has definitely enhanced her experience as a student. “When there are 20 students in the back of house there isn’t enough for everyone to do. Having this pop-up when there are too many students really helps out because I’ve learned much more than I would have if there were 20 students all trying to learn the same things I am.” As an added bonus, Hardy also had the opportunity of tasting all of the menu items. “My favorite thing on the menu is the dessert. It’s the perfect ending. There’s nothing wrong with that dessert.”

On Wednesdays we eat green: trendy health foods for 2015 Sarah Sandler Guest Reporter

ver winter break, I had three friends text me and ask for restaurant recommendations in New York City, where I don’t even live. I am a huge nerd who flips through cookbooks while I eat breakfast and I check out menus of restaurants online just for fun. I love going out to eat: breakfast, lunch or dinner; at a fancy restaurant, at a dive. Food is even one of my favorite things to talk about with friends, which they kindly put up with. Every few years, a new batch of food trends gains popularity, taking over restaurants and social media. While most of these things are appetizing, visually and by taste, some are not worth it. My parents always tell me about how when their parents would cook Brussels sprouts, it would fill the house with a horrible odor that would stick around for days. In the past, this cruciferous cabbage relative has been something on the dinner table that kids will not touch. This is because Brussels sprouts were often overcooked, turning them gray with an off-putting smell and taste. Now, chefs and home cooks have developed ways of preparing this vegetable to make it much more appetizing and even delicious. When done right, Brussels sprouts are worth the hype: They are extremely versatile. The most flavorful ways of cooking the infamous vegetable are roasting, which allows for a little caramelization to create crispier and sweeter sprouts. The best flavors to add to enhance the taste of Brussels sprouts are cheese, balsamic vinegar, mustard, bacon or pancetta, and apples or pears. Raw Brussels sprouts can even be shaved or chopped very finely and mixed with dressing to create a crunchy salad. Either on their own, or in salads or pastas, Brussels sprouts are worth conquering childhood fears. Next up is everyone’s favorite condiment: Sriracha. Most commonly associated with

the green top and rooster logo of Huy Fong foods, this hot chili sauce is available almost everywhere. Sriracha is my condiment of choice because there are so many ways to use it. My favorite food to put Sriracha on is basic fried eggs, but restaurants all over the world are incorporating this hot sauce into their more intricate dishes. It can be mixed with avocado, mayo or hummus to make a dip. It can be added to the butter you put on your corn on the cob or added to roasted nuts. You can even make cocktails like a Bloody Mary or a margarita with Sriracha. Over break, while having access to a kitchen, I made roasted carrots with a Sriracha maple sauce that gave them just enough spice. Almost all of my Instagram feed is made up of pictures from chefs, restaurants, bloggers, magazines or just regular people like myself who are obsessed with food, and one of the most common items I see featured is avocado toast. It is simple enough for anyone to make at home, but with a few upgrades, restaurants are incorporating it into their brunch and lunch menus. It is often made with whole-grain or sourdough toast and can be garnished with many toppings such as sea salt, red pepper flakes, smoked salmon, feta or Sriracha. Avocado toast makes an easy, healthy and filling breakfast that tastes much better than, but is almost as easy as, a bowl of cereal or frozen waffle. Kale, a green that is heftier and sturdier than its peers like spinach or romaine, is somewhat controversial. If I’m being honest, plain kale has nothing appetizing about it: It’s difficult to chew and basically tastes like a leaf, but when prepared well, kale can be very appetizing. The best way to make kale tastier? Massage it. While kale is a health-food staple, it also adds a nice touch to more indulgent recipes. You can throw kale into mac ‘n’ cheese, top pizza with it and even add it to mashed potatoes for some color. Kale must be good if Beyoncé is willing to wear it on a sweatshirt.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

January 29, 2015

FEATURES

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Vassar hosts Warrior Scholar Program Debate learns international F guidelines Penina Remler Reporter

or incoming freshmen, the transition from high school to college can be a hard adjustment period, but debatably not the hardest. Consider what it might be like to put college on hold, serve in the military and then finally return to school at a completely different time in your life. In light of the initiation of its Posse Program in 2013, Vassar intends to enroll one group of veterans per class, which, in two years, would represent veteran students as 1.5 percent of the College’s student body. As part of this long term initiative, from Jan. 11 to Jan. 18, Vassar hosted the Warrior Scholar Program (WSP) on campus to the attendance of more than 150 veterans. Staying at Vassar’s Alumnae/i House, the veterans spent the week attending seminars and generally meeting with Vassar professors, who volunteered to help ease the difficult transition back to school. Posse participant, military veteran and currently enrolled Vassar student Dave Carrell explained his transition, saying, “Being 10 to 15 years older than most students is tough. When I first came to Vassar I thought that i would just go to class, go to the library and go home. If I had done that, Vassar would be incredibly difficult. I had to find time to get involved in the Vassar community.” The Warrior Scholar program was first founded in 2011 by Yale graduates who wanted to develop a program that would emphasize the necessary skill set and confidence military veterans need to successfully return to four years of higher education. Carrell sees this program as a helpful one given his personal experience. He stated, “Transitioning from the military and entering college is a complex and difficult time in veterans’ lives. It took a while to come to the realization that an undergrad degree is not vocational training.” The WSP boot camp is based off of a syllabus that contains extensive texts and mate-

rial guides ranging from works by Frederick Douglass, de Tocqueville and Dahl to Herodotus and Thucydides. Having completed the program, Carell reflected, “The Warrior Scholar Project allowed me to relearn study habits, analytical reading and college level writing. While I still struggle balancing my time, the skills taught at the WSP have allowed me to better understand the material.” The bootcamp professors, who represent a variety of academic fields, include Professor of History Rebecca Edwards, Professor of Greek and Roman Studies Bert Bertrand Lott, Director of the Writing Center Matthew Schultz, Professor and Associate Chair of English Wendy Graham and Professor and Chair of Philosophy Giovanna Borradori to teach at the January boot camp. From a teaching perspective, Lott considers the WSP to be a well thought out curriculum, stating, “I think that preparing for college classes and becoming comfortable with the expectations that are particular to a college setting is something that happens for all students over several semesters, but having the opportunity to practice some of the core skills before jumping in full time seems like a great opportunity.” The first boot camp was held at Yale in 2012 with nine participants. Since its debut, the Warrior Scholar Program has held events at prestigious institutes across the country, Vassar being the most recent destination. Director of WSP Operations Gina M. Bartolomeo commented, “I feel this is a necessary program to allow enlisted veterans to see their full potential in academia. Running programs at colleges and universities like Yale, Harvard, University of Michigan and Vassar not only teach the Warrior-Scholars to think critically and write concisely, but also expose them to some of the U.S.’ top universities, where many may not have even considered applying.” Bartolomeo added, “It is very rewarding to see veterans complete the program and then have a solid idea of what school they want

to apply to and what they want to study. It’s amazing to see how much confidence they gain in one week’s time.” Carell affirmed Bartolomeo’s comment, stating, “I did not think I would be able to leave my past behind and focus on college. But I was wrong. I believe that the WSP was instrumental in my transition.” Prior to the event, Professor of History Rebecca Edwards said, “It will be great not only to work with veterans, and get to know this group a little bit, but it will also be helpful for me to think more deeply about the skills students need when they are making the transition to a liberal arts college, especially if they aren’t coming directly from high school. These are valuable things for me to learn more about, to apply in my Freshman Writing Seminar and other courses.” Professor Lott went into the bootcamp with a similar perspective, adding, “The goals of the program seem similar to Vassar’s Freshman Writing Seminar and I approached teaching my session a way very similar to how I teach Freshman Writing Seminars (FWS). Just like the FWS are content-driven—that is, they use particular subject matter to also teach general research, analysis and writing skills—the session of WSP I taught focused on a topic in my own area of expertise and practiced some general college skills.” After focusing his own lectures around Greek and Roman cultures, Professor Lott similarly concluded, “I hope the students also took away an introduction to the range of questions, approaches and activities that happen across the various areas of the Vassar curriculum.” After conducting a week of English lectures, Graham said she took away something valuable from the program. In an emailed statement she wrote, “I’m sure I learned as much from the students as they learned from me. I was very impressed and even moved by the students’ seriousness of purpose. It reminded me of why I chose this profession.”

Vassar Pronouns Project aims to end misgendering in classroom, community Julia Cunningham & Marie Solis Reporter and Contributing Editor

hile Vassar prides itself on being a safe space for members of the LGBTQ community, there are still some areas where it falls short. The Vassar Pronouns Project hopes to bring these shortcomings to the attention of the community and introduce ideas to help everyone feel safe. The Pronouns Project began about midway through the fall semester, and was initiated by both Feminist Alliance and Queer Coalition of Vassar College (QCVC). Kayla Neumeyer ’15, was part of this founding group. In an emailed statement she wrote, “This project is about a bunch of different things, though one of the primary ones is safety—this school is often extremely unsafe for trans students, and [addressing] constant misgendering in classrooms is a small step in making a slightly more safe learning environment.” Neumeyer was part of a group of organizers who come from both Feminist Alliance and QCVC . She wrote, “We meet together to collaboratively work on implementing a plan to hopefully reach our goal of having pronouns respected, particularly in classroom spaces.” Kiran Kawolics ’15 noted that while it is always important to be conscious of people’s preferred pronouns, it is especially important at the start of a new semester. “I think that asking people to state their preferred pronouns at the beginning of the semester is an incredibly easy and necessary way to increase students’ comfort in the classroom and make sure that everyone feels more respected and welcomed in this environment,” she explained in a written emailed statement. For these reasons, the decision to initiate the Pronouns Project was an easy one for

Neumeyer. Feminist Alliance and QCVC had two joint general body meetings where they discussed varying intersections of feminism and queerness. “When brainstorming possible projects that we might work on this year, we honed in on the fact that professors almost never ask for people’s pronouns (and sometimes not even names) in class, and that this was a small thing that caused a lot of discomfort for many people on this campus, and something that we felt we could create change around,” wrote Neumeyer. On their Facebook page, the project’s leaders state that they would hope this initiative takes root quickly. “Pronouns are important and misgendering people is bad,” it reads simply. “This project aims to educate Vassar about pronouns and how they should be and shouldn’t be used.” Neumeyer ellaborated, “It also allows people who are not out to professors to signal to classmates that they prefer a certain set of pronouns in the classroom, if that’s their choice.” Kawolics added that being proactive about pronouns fits into a larger dialogue about identity on campus. She stated, “It is important to strive towards a culture at Vassar in which people are aware that gender identity and expression manifest themselves in an infinite number of ways, and that it is therefore crucial to not make assumptions about what pronouns people use. “ Kawolics continued, noting that it is also crucial to hold oneself accountable for people’s preferred pronouns even when they are not present. “Taking care to ask someone what their pronouns are and then use their stated pronouns all the time—not just when the person is present—is such an easy thing to do and should be something that is encouraged and expected not only on this

campus, but in other communities as well,” she wrote. “There is literally no reason to not check in with people about their pronouns, and this should be the standard in all classrooms and other spaces.” Neumeyer suggested that creating a culture of awareness surrounding gender identity would call cisgendered students to confront their privilege. “I think this project is also important in terms of getting cis students to start stepping up, and not putting all of the weight on trans students to enact change.” She added, “Hopefully, this has implications for what (critical) allyship can look like at this school.” VP of Academics Logan Hill ’16 emphasized that misgendering in the classroom setting is not only hurtful, but also impacts a student’s ability to focus on their education. “When a student is misgendered in a classroom setting, that student is then less able to focus on their work in and out of class, instead having to put energy into dealing with the emotional repercussions of having their identities invalidated,” he wrote in an emailed statement. In his capacity as VP of Academics, Hill has been working on initiatives to make asking for students’ pronouns a standard practice among professors. Throughout the year, he has been collaborate with faculty, the Academics committee and the Committee on Curriculur Policy (CCP) to further this goal. He explained, “Whether that collaboration comes in the shape of a formal section in the Faculty Handbook encouraging professors to begin each semester asking students their preferred pronouns or just raising the community’s awareness of the issue, I hope I and Academics can accomplish some important work on this front, one that, as a non-binary individual, resonates with me personally.”

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

DEBATE continued from page 1

“Sophia and Max spent the first weekend of October break in Toronto at the Hart House IV, one of North America’s biggest and most prestigious British Parliamentary tournaments.” There, they gained experience in the style of debate they would encounter in Malaysia. At a smaller tournament on the east coast, Matsunaga qualified for finals on a hybrid team. In addition to practicing a different debate style, Pitcairn, Matsunaga and Moran kept up on current events and had weekly meetings to practice. Though the debate team put in many hours of preparation, the tournament was about more than ranking well internationally. Sophia Pitcairn added, “A lot of prominent U.S. teams attend this tournament every year, including a lot of schools who we regularly interact with on the debate circuit, so it’s important that we make a good impression by competing well on the international circuit.” Many previous Vassar debate teams have placed well in world tournaments of years past, even making finals in 1994 in Australia. This year’s team lived up to the successful standard by placing, Pitcairn noted. “[We placed] in the top half of about 350 of the world’s top debating teams,” she said. Competing with teams from Namibia, Australia, South Africa, Poland, Germany, Serbia, Hong Kong, Malaysia and more allowed for Vassar’s debate team to experience different topic approaches from cultural differences on issues such as family and urbanization. Pitcairn said “It made for more complex and exciting rounds as the issues weren’t always approached from a Western, American based framework.” From the debates themselves, Pitcairn said, “Hannah and I learned a lot from hitting so many different teams so we were able to engage with new speaking styles and approaches to argumentation that we don’t tend to come across in the American circuit.” Though Debate team member Colin Crilly ’15 did not attend worlds this year, he added that encountering different styles and perspectives is hugely beneficial to any debater. “I think that international tournaments offer the greatest possibility for debaters at Vassar to network with individuals from all over the world who carry unique ideologies and principles that may challenge their own. By engaging with these people both in and out of rounds, one can become a more critical thinker and develop a greater ability to communicate and convey their opinions,” he wrote in an emailed statement. Crilly recounted one experience he had while participating in debate while abroad in Cambridge. He continued, “I argu[ed] with a Swedish debater about whether or not the United States needs a Green Party. It made me reconsider the values that I may instinctively ascribe to having grown up in the United States for my entire life.” On a collective level, the teams were able to discuss logistics such as how they run debate team practices and how they manage their finances. Pitcairn explained, “Even though in the rounds it gets very competitive, once the round was over it was great getting to just meet everyone else and talk about our experiences with debate, school and travel.” “[Competing] did a lot of my ability to craft good arguments and deliver eloquent speeches,” said Matsunaga. The team plans to use skills—or rather ‘shamelessly copy,’ as Matsunaga put it— and tips picked up from other debates to improve their capabilities at future tournaments, as well as try out some new practice techniques. Outside of the tournament itself, the team members had the opportunity to explore the cities where they were competing. During a 23-hour layover in Seoul, South Korea, they got to do some sightseeing on their down time. Throughout the debate team’s stay in Malaysia, Pitcairn said, “On the days we had free we took some time to explore [Kuala Lumpur], visiting some of the main markets, passing through the National Mosque, visiting the KL bird park, and visiting the Museum of Islamic Art.” Matsunaga concluded, “Worlds is probably the coolest thing I’ve ever done. There were people from 92 countries present, and it was really fantastic to be able to engage with people from all over the world competitively and intelligently.”

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January 29, 2015

Quarterbacks brings lo-fi energy to No-Vice Mug show Charles Lyons Reporter

Courtesy of David Grimaldi

n Thursday, January 29, four bands are performing that both mark significant achievements in Vassar’s musical bookings in their prestige alone and are acts representative of the College itself. And although no band in the lineup for the concert at the Matthew’s Mug concert/dance floor space in Main building at 9 p.m. is made up of any VC students or alumnae/i, one is based in the neighboring city of New Paltz and considers its roots too in our very own Poughkeepsie. Quarterbacks is a grunge pop rock band made up of Dean Engle on lead guitar and vocals, Tom Christie on bass and Max Restaino on drums. Engle and Restaino attended all of their schooling, elementary onward, together, in Poughkeepsie, and would play in talent shows alongside one another in their high school years. They met Christie, the third member, by chance one night. “Tom grew up in Dover Plains, east from here but close enough to play an open mic at The Cubbyhole, a coffee shop by Vassar. I was there, not sure why, and saw him play, he was incredible, we met then,” Engle said in an emailed statement, adding, “We became friends through attending basement shows and playing music together and he eventually moved to New Paltz for school. We started a band called Ken Griffey Junior and Max joined too. It was a Star Wars-themed hardcore band.” Barring their intergalactic-summoning roots, Quarterbacks’ mantra undoubtedly has a sense of humor. They consequently have an air of modesty to their work, and their earnest pursuit of organically making good music with good people shines through. The bandleader declined to answer for his band’s demographic or target audience, instead focusing on the defining simplicities of his artistic mission in this quite minimalist rock band characterized by short bursts of energy and anguish. When asked what he wishes to improve or grow into with the band going forward, Engle, true to the band’s mix of acid-tongued humor and

measured, economical tone, said in an email, “I would like to learn how to write more than two songs per year. The band’s modesty extends to their live presence. Engles describes the band’s demeanor in very reserved terms, saying he even wears earplugs to drown out the noise of the crowd and often can’t tell if his audience is clapping along or not. “When I’m onstage I tend to disassociate from my surroundings and only truly check back in once we’re packing up…I like that, playing for strangers…Sometimes in the middle of a song I think about how I’m the only person in the room with a microphone and I feel so guilty,” Engles described in an email. Because for Engle, the experience comes down to some very simple, solid truths. “I just want to play fun shows with my friends,” he said via email. What one may see as unambitious, the members of Quarterbacks make playfully low-stakes, perhaps even honest, though the group’s veracity has been cast in a different light in terms of their unique, efficient style. “Every blog post about Quarterbacks and Dean Engle’s writing style uses words like ‘honest’ or ‘catchy’ or ‘twee,’ and those are certainly all apt…Dean just writes these super catchy and short’n’sweet songs that barely go beyond the two minute mark,” Zack Wilks ’17, No-ViCE Chair who helped acquire the band for the booking, said via email. Quarterbacks is slowly but surely gaining traction in the underground bedroom-rock lo-fi movement. Their discographic output includes an initial demo (January 2012), an LP-length cassette (2012’s “Loveseat”), an EP (2014’s “Sportscenter”), a solo tape from Engle (“Quarterboy”) and an upcoming, self-titled LP compilation that promises to be a summation of where the band is currently with their sound, as well as perhaps tracking an sonic evolution over time. The band’s refinements of sound are reminiscent of The Mountain Goats moniker in recent years becoming more than lead singer/ songwriter/mastermind John Darnielle’s lo-fi

The mug, through a No-Vice event, will host up-and-coming bands Porches., Girlpool, Quarterbacks and Gracie. Quarterbacks, a local New Paltz group, comment on how they met, and look forward to performing. man-guitar-and-amp confessional solo work. Likewise, Engle has taken the band in a more elaborate and polished place by smartly featuring work from her other bandmates. “The addition of drums and bass adds that punk-y drive that gives the songs some groove. Quarterbacks are part of the regional DIY… scene, and they take the best of both genres and meld it into an awesome mix of confessional and punk,” Wilks said in an emailed statement. The selection of the four bands together was certainly complementary in terms of presentation and entertainment as a whole show, but their styles and members all intermingle, despite being from four geographically separate cities—Boston for Gracie, Los Angeles for Girlpool, New York City for Porches., and New Paltz for Quarterbacks. Gracie is newer to the music scene, but Girlpool, an all-women band, just had an album

published on Spotify, and recently, Porches. was featured by Pitchfork, a noteable music review website. “I’ve seen an Intsagram photo of Aaron Maine and Greta Kline from Porches. both wearing Quarterbacks sweatshirts, and I know the folks in Girlpool are big fans,” Wilks said in an email, noting, “Gracie Jackson is sort of the odd band out sound-wise, but she and her band absolutely rule. Quarterbacks, Girlpool and Porches. all write absurdly catchy, sparse and relatable songs that are good at getting crowds to dance or shut up and just listen.” Excitement brews on campus to get the chance to ‘shut up and just listen’ on the 29th, with over 300 Brewers committed to attending the event on Facebook. Of Quarterbacks’ relationship to their venue, Engle wryly quipped, “Vassar wait-listed me in 2009, so I’d say the music fits but comes up a little short.”

XL exhibit displays Loeb familiars in new arrangement Samantha Kohl and Emma Rosenthal Reporter and Arts Editor

was referring to, the impressiveness of large paintings. It changes the experience a lot.” Apart from the novel arrangement and wide variety of works, the creators of the exhibition also aim to make it be a more active relationship with the viewers. While this installation is the first of it’s kind at the Loeb, the more involved nature of the viewers might remind us of an exhibit the gallery did last semester. The Embodied Fashion Show, put on earlier this year by Contrast Magazine and the Student Committee of the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, was an interactive show which made the role of the audience more active than passive. Instead of just watching the show, the viewers were also able to walk around and talk to the models, getting a more full art and fashion experience. While there is no runway in “XL,” the

viewers are encouraged to be more active in how they look at the giant pieces of art. Dietz commented on how the viewers will be moving around and connecting with the work, “People might get a certain effect from standing closer and then retreating backwards, paintings open up like that.” Lombino commented on this specific relationship as well, “Well, the first thing viewers will notice is that the galleries are very full and seem smaller than usual. The work dominates the space. Many of the works give one impression from a distance and a completely different one at close range. So, viewers might find themselves backing away and stepping close to the work, moving around to get another sense of the work. Viewing the work becomes less passive and more of an dynamic experience.”

Courtesy of Vassar College Media Relations

rt at the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center has never been bigger than in an upcoming exhibition. Although many of the exhibitions on view at the Loeb are often loaned to the museum through external galleries and collections, “XL,” the Loeb’s exhibit beginning on Jan. 30, will feature works from the Loeb’s Permanent Collection. Mary-Kay Lombino, the Emily Hargroves Fisher ’57 and Richard B. Fisher Curator and Assistant Director for Strategic Planning, wrote in an emailed statement about this event, “There are 19 works in the exhibition but there are many more large-scale works in the collection. There were are least another 10 works that could have qualified to be in the exhibition.” While the works featured in the exhibit may be familiar to those well acquainted with the Loeb, the pieces on display will be re-contextualized by being grouped together in one display. Lombino wrote, “Because of the limitations of our galleries, its very rare that the Art Center has a chance to show a large number of large-scale paintings. Some of these paintings have not been shown in years, some are new acquisitions, some have been moved from the 20th-century galleries to be seen in a new context, and never have they been shown all together.” The idea for the exhibit came from the desire to group works together based solely on a purely physical component: their scale. “A few years ago, I organized an [exhibition] from the permanent collection on abstraction called ‘Pictures of Nothing.’ I included a number of paintings and works on paper from the Art Center’s collection that fit within three major themes. At that time, I wanted to show more of the large-scale work, but it just wasn’t possible to fit very many in and still highlight the best abstract works that related to the themes,” said Lombino. She continued, “When it came time to or-

ganize another exhibition entirely from the permanent collection, I decided it would be great to only focus on scale, which allowed me to include all large works.” “XL: Large-Scale Modern Paintings from the Permanent Collection” will be on display from January 30 through March 29. The show will display nineteen mural-sized works, ranging from 64-194 inches in width and 44110 inches in height. The show will feature the works of artists Kevin Appel, Milton Avery, Ross Bleckner, Joan Brown, Roger Brown, Nancy Graves, Grace Hartigan, Joyce Kozloff, Alfred Leslie, Agnes Martin, Joan Mitchell, Kenneth Noland, Jules Olitski, Lawrence Poons, Mark Rothko, Hedda Sterne, Neil Welliver and Christopher Winter, all created from 1948 through 2005. Joyce Kozloff, apart from being a featured artist, will also be giving a lecture at the premiere of the event on Jan. 30 at 5:30 p.m. Kozloff ’s career had partly been guided by her interest in large-scale paintings, and her painting “Up Front, Appollonian” is a demonstration of that type of work. Chris Dietz ’17 works at the Loeb and said in an emailed statement, “[I’ve] been working at the Loeb since spring 2014, this will be my third seater as a student docent. I love getting a chance to talk to anyone who comes into the Loeb while I’m on shift, there’s a really eclectic set of people who visit.” Dietz also commented on what makes this new installation different than others he has seen in the past. He wrote, “‘XL’ exhibition is the new spring installation in the Loeb focusing on ‘big art,’ a movement that caught on in the mid-twentieth century, particularly among abstract expressionists. Huge, wall-covering canvasses introduced another sense of scope, and in some accounts, the ‘sublime,’ to a form of visual art that was seeking to capture deep and visceral reactions.” As a docent, Dietz wrote on what he is looking forward to most at the exhibit, “I’m excited for people to encounter the scope I

Pulling pieces from its permanent collection, Loeb’s curators put together a larger-than-life exhibition. Featuring almost twenty .pieces of art, the show will kick off with a lecture from artist Joyce Kozloff.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

January 29, 2015

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Modfest to integrate student artists into musical events Connor McIlwain Guest Reporter

Sam Pianello/The Miscellany News

assar’s performance-centric Modfest is integrating Poughkeepsie-area middle and high school students with Vassar students into a series of college events filled with art, music, dance and spoken word. Now in its 13th year on campus, Modfest puts on a series of musical events and performances. Vassar alumna Adene Wilson ’69 and her husband founded Modfest to showcase the diverse range of artistic abilities at and around Vassar. According to Wilson, “At first it was just music, but quickly expanded to include dance, art and poetry. Then more.” The festival continues to expand in content and reach today, with Wilson still at the helm. Vassar’s involvement with these local organizations began with Wilson, who served on the board of the Stringendo Orchestra School for years. “My role is to put this all together and make it happen,” she explained. And that she did. Events at the festival are all free, require no reservations, and are held at various locations throughout campus. In past years, events have included faculty performances, dramatic readings, film and video game compositions, sculpture exhibitions and more that explored themes like the censorship and politics of art. On Jan. 29, from 6:30–9:30 p.m. in the Villard Room, Modfest is bringing local young artists to campus. Mill Street Loft’s LitClub, the Vivace ensemble of the Stringendo Orchestra School of the Hudson Valley, and dancers from the New York Academy of Ballet will all be performing. “The Hudson Valley is very fortunate to have a long tradition of strong arts support,” says Wilson. As a student performing during the event, Rachel Fuerstman ’16 wrote in an emailed statement, “There are concerts featuring Vassar ensembles, faculty, and guests every day of the weekend for a few weeks, so there are a lot of wonderful opportunities to listen to great music. There are always a lot of innovative collaborations between depart-

Artists in every medium–poets, singers, dancers and more–gather from Vassar and the greater Poughkeepsie area to perform throughout the spring semester, hosted by the Music Department. ments as well (music, dance, art, etc.) that make Modfest especially unique.” It seemed natural to her to include this community in the festival. Wilson commented on the resulting event, “It...combines in one event what the whole festival tries to do overall.” And that is to showcase the arts of the 20th and 21st centuries in a variety of ways. Each of the groups will be performing separately at the event. Together, they give a glimpse into what Wilson describes as a rich local arts scene. Julia Boscov-Ellen ’15, who will sing in the Mahagonny Choir, Vassar College Choir and the Women’s Chorus during Modfest, wrote, “Modern music is a very exciting thing to me; there is so much incredible music out there and composers keep coming up with new and amazing ideas.”

“As a result of this richness,” she explains, “there are wonderful programs for the children. Even in the school, the arts are highly valued. Arlington school district, in which Vassar resides, has one of the best music programs in the state.” This focus is evident in the success of local young artists. When a faculty member had a daughter dancing to a piece of music by a Vassar alum, Wilson decided to include it in the event. It expanded to include Mill Street Loft’s poetry outreach program as well. Modfest aims to bridge the gap between artistic disciplines at Vassar. “It’s very much about community,” says Wilson. Founded in 2012, Mill Street Loft’s LitClub is a collaboration with the worldwide literacy organization LitWorld, that aims to increase literacy of young girls through storytelling.“

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Vivace is the Stringendo Orchestra School’s most advanced orchestra and is comprised of 28 high school students from the Hudson Valley. Their orchestra has won several awards including Second Place in The American Prize for Orchestras and the American Prize in the Youth Orchestra Category. They have also been featured on Live from Lincoln Center’s Student Stars. Over the years, Modfest and local teen artists involvement has steadily expanded under Wilson’s direction. There is no lack of Vassar student performances, and many music ensembles will be on stage during the event. Fuerstman wrote, “I’m performing in the ChoralFest on February 5th with the Vassar Women’s Choir. We perform every year at Modfest in Skinner. I’ll also be performing with the Madrigal Singers on February 7th in a concert in Skinner.” While the event holds a range of performers, from off and on campus and in a wide variety of mediums and styles, students on campus are looking forward to their own particular Modfest favorites. Boscov-Ellen wrote, “As a senior who is heading towards a career in music and extremely anxious about my future, Mr. Takach’s lecture ‘Ambition, Adaptation, and Risk: Making Music Your Career’ on Friday the 6th is definitely one I’m looking forward to.” As a veteran of Modfest, Ilse Heine ’15 commented on her past experiences, saying, “As both a dancer and musician, I particularly enjoy the way in which all the different art forms come together at Modfest. Compared to the performances that occur throughout the year, one Modfest event alone features a seamless blend of dance, music, photography and poetry readings.” And this community extends beyond campus. Teen music, dance and spoken word connects Vassar to the larger Poughkeepsie community. This group of artists has lots of diverse material to bring to Modfest. Their event fits nicely into the festival’s packed lineup and helps accomplish its goal previewing Vassar’s artistic disciplines.

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January 29, 2015

Senior uses ‘Mommy’ exemplifies cinematic perfection feminist lens in graphic essay Reid Antin

Guest Reporter

Mommy Xavier Dolan Metafilms

GREGOLINE continued from page 1 some old quote about how cartoonists are people who are mediocre artists and mediocre writers. That resonated so much with me!” One of Gregoline’s professors throughout Vassar, Peter Antelyes, eventually became her thesis advisor once she began this project. He wrote in an emailed statement about his work with her outside of classes, “During our conferences, I was introduced to Emma’s artwork.” Graphic novels might not be the first thing on anyone’s mind when they think of how to combine English and art, but Gregoline found that connection through her classes at Vassar. “[The idea for my thesis] came about during junior year, when suddenly I was reading so many graphic novels in all of my classes! I had always meant to read high-brow graphic novels like ‘Persepolis,’ ‘Fun Home,’ ‘Jimmy Corrigan,’ ‘Ghost World,’ etc., but found them kind of intimidating and inaccessible from a distance,” wrote Gregoline. She continued, “But I couldn’t have been more wrong–reading words and pictures at the same time came very naturally to me, and I fell in love with that form of reading.” With a wide variety of topics to choose from, Gregoline had to focus in on a specific subject for her thesis. She commented on that decision process, “For my thesis I initially wanted to focus on narratives of trauma written by women graphic novelists, of which there are many. But that was much too large a topic, so I decided to focus on something more narrow within the broader field of feminist comics.” Antelyes commented on Gregoline’s comic thesis, as he worked closely with her during the process, “Emma’s thesis is very much an original product... In it she explores what it means for these women to use the comics diary form to embody their perspectives and concerns–to take control of, or do battle with, the ‘blank space’ that haunts so many women.” He continued, “Her essay is brilliant not just in its insights but in the way it uses the image/text form to articulate and expand upon those insights.” During the process of researching, writing, drawing, and editing, Gregoline got inspiration from many different sources. “I was fortunate enough to be able to interview Gabrielle Bell herself for the project, in person. The ‘comic essay’ style was very much influenced by Scott McCloud’s graphic novel “Understanding Comics,” where he guides you, the reader, throughout the whole thing while he explains how comics work,” she wrote. Gregoline continued, “My mom is my ultimate guiding light for everything. But in terms of work, there are a lot of hybrid illustrator-cartoonists who I find really inspirational, like Maira Kalman, Vanessa Davis, Jillian Tamaki, Eleanor Davis and Lilli Carré, whose work I think is both visually beautiful and so real.” Apart from gathering inspiration from the content of these well-established authors and artists, Gregoline had to research their style as well. Antelyes wrote, “Emma worked extraordinarily hard on her essay... the form she invented required a great deal of time and effort not just to produce but to get right. Like all comics, for instance, each of her pages needed to stand on its own as well as within the greater whole, and needed to be designed, from panel to panel, image to image. It’s a very different way of thinking about ideas, which derives, in this case, partly from Emma’s interest in the form as a feminist vehicle.” On her final product, Antelyes wrote, “Three things struck me about Emma: her commitment to feminism, her initiative in pushing the project beyond an engagement with the books...and her wry sense of humor. I don’t think Emma would have come up with the insights she did if all three of these elements weren’t at work—a keen critical perspective, a talent for personal interactions, and a way of seeing things from unexpected angles.” Gregoline plans to keep this long-developed interest in graphic novels, and art in general in her life after she graduates this coming spring. “I’m definitely sticking to the graphic arts. I’ve met so many amazing people in the comics community through this project and I hope I can keep doing that,” Gregoline wrote.

nce every few years, one will come across a work of art so breathtaking, so gorgeous and so perfect that it defies categorization. The experience of viewing Xavier Dolan’s ecstatic, outrageous, flamboyant and above all, masterful new film, “Mommy,” unequivocally fits that description. For lack of a better term, it will have to settle for simply being pronounced a masterpiece. Not only is it the best film of the year, it is the best film of the decade so far (only possibly rivaled by Tarantino’s “Django Unchained”), if not one of the greatest films this well-versed film nut has. Ever. Seen. And if you think my statements are immaturely hyperbolic, perhaps they only reflect the same infectious spirit embodied by the film that shamelessly and melodramatically lays its emotions and cinematic techniques bare on the screen for the audience to embrace wholeheartedly (or, for the more reserved pseudo-intellectual, to reject). While “Mommy” is not a film for every conventional, logically-minded audience member, it is a film for every person who has a heart, a soul and a willingness to indulge his or her emotions to the point that common sense falls by the wayside. The elements are all active and present for such an experience; the viewer need only accept them as such. To briefly lay out the premise, the film concerns a working-class mother, Die (Anne Dorval, whose performance holds a stronger grip than a tightened vice), and her struggling attempts to raise her psychotic, ADHD-afflicted teenage son, Steve (the painfully real yet theatrically stunning Antoine-Olivier Pilon). It goes on to explore the mutually beneficial triangular relationship that forms between them and a neighbor with a speech impediment, Kyla (the

equally compelling Dolan regular Suzanne Clement, whose eyes say more than most actresses can with a whole monologue). But no more on the plot—for while it is intellectually complex in its own right, by comparison it is merely a springboard for a plethora of brilliant acting, beyond fabulous production design and costumes, completely creative cinematography, and any other overwhelmingly positive attribute that can be given to a film. Indeed, all of the saturated, stylized choices in the film (to paraphrase Dolan when I met him at the Film Society of Lincoln Center) aren’t meant as an ironic contrast to the characters’ dismal existences, but rather, to sincerely express the vibrancy with which those characters see the world. These are losers who dress themselves as if they were winners. If Die wants to wear a pink shirt and gold chain meant for a teenage girl, it is because she truly sees herself in this youthful fashion. If Dolan wants to illuminate Steve jumping on the bed in super-slow-motion in a non-diegetic orange glow, it is because he truly sees his characters in this epic effervescence. Dolan said that sometimes he would light a scene with a pink or an orange light not because it made sense to the content or setting of the scene (i.e. because it’s sunset), but rather, to randomly but genuinely express himself as a true artist does. And boy, does he succeed with flying colors (no pun intended)! As has been discussed ad nauseam since its premiere at Cannes, the film is uniquely shot in the never-before-seen aspect ratio of 1:1 (which creates a perfect square, and recalls the shape of an Instagram photo). Dolan displays these constant black bars that take up nearly half the screen in order to create a relentlessly claustrophobic space for his characters. He also ensures that they are imbued with a sense of portraiture, given that their faces are many times framed so that no background can be seen to distract from the human emotions on display. Finally, Dolan uses the ratio in a minimalistic fashion in order to call attention to the importance of the two key, minute-long mo-

ments in the film where he opens the frame up to the wider, more traditional aspect ratio of 1.85:1—though to spoil the content of such sequences would be to criminally diminish their impact. To put it in layman’s terms— simply be sure to pay attention to when the black bars on the side of the screen open up, and more dramatically, to when they close back in. The use of the 1:1 gimmick alone secures the film’s place in cinematic history as a first, to say nothing of the severe impact it entails which cements it as legendary. The soundtrack—a curated selection worthy of Tarantino and Scorsese—comprises of cheesy late-’90s/early-2000s hits that are deliciously used to great swooning effect (not even ironically). I can’t prize one musical sequence over the other—they’re all brilliant, from a let-the-good-times-roll montage scored by Oasis’ immortal “Wonderwall,” to a shocking use of Eiffel 65’s crappy but poppy “Blue (Da Ba Dee),” to a haunting evocation of teenage youth underlined by Counting Crows’ “Colorblind” (and don’t even get me started on his climactic use of Lana Del Rey’s “Born To Die”). Whether you’re shaking your head at the mediocrity of song choices, or you’re smiling with nostalgia—it is precisely that surprise or confirmation of familiarity that will allow for those songs to add a powerful crescendo to what happens on screen. For the last few years, I have been enthusiastically telling everybody who will listen about the genius of the ridiculously young 25-year-old Dolan (his third film, “Laurence Anyways,” also ranks among my top five of the decade so far). With this film—this tour de force—he will hopefully finally gain the recognition he unquestionably deserves. At such a young age, he has created a film of a quality most directors never achieve in their entire careers. Only time will tell whether he peaks now as did Orson Welles with “Citizen Kane,” or, more likely (his four other films are all of A-level caliber), whether his unimaginable best is still yet to come. But for now, it is the duty of every self-respecting cinephile to seek out the unforgettable experience that is “Mommy.”

Familiar ‘Men’ falls flat in final seasons Raphael Mariani Guest Reporter

Two and a Half Men Chuck Lorre Chuck Lorre Productions

here’s no doubt about it: we are living in the golden age of television. From comedies like “The Big Bang Theory” to dramas like “True Detective,” TV is as diverse as it has ever been. The problem with some shows, however, is that they sometimes end on a bad note (“How I Met Your Mother,” “Lost,” etc.), and nowhere is that better illustrated than in the newest and final season of the once-hilarious “Two and a Half Men.” After their mega-successful roles as Bud Fox in “Wall Street” and Duckie Dale in “Pretty in Pink,” Charlie Sheen and Jon Cryer were a match made in heaven. With Sheen as a modern Casanova, Cryer as a lovable loser, and an ensemble of creative characters, “Two and a Half Men” had genius written all over it. The show centered around Charlie Sheen as Charlie Harper, a womanizer alcoholic who enjoyed his life as a professional jingle writer living in a Malibu beach house. Jon Cryer’s Alan is his newly single brother who was kicked out of his house by his lesbian ex-wife and now needs a place to live. Charlie reluctantly lets Alan and his son Jake stay at his house for a few weeks, which then became eight years. “Two and a Half Men” quickly grew in popularity, earning Charlie Sheen a salary of $2 million an episode and Jon Cryer $620,000 an episode. It also won nine Primetime Emmy awards, including two for Jon

Cryer’s portrayal of Alan Harper. It seemed that the show was a cash cow that milked itself, but it would go downhill faster than you could say “Jack Robinson.” When Charlie Sheen was fired from the show after displaying *ahem* eccentric behavior on the set, creator of the show Chuck Lorre was faced with the task of replacing one of the most popular characters in sitcom television history. After interviews with Hugh Grant and John Stamos, Lorre and his team decided on the young Ashton Kutcher, who would play billionaire Walden Schmidt, and the rest is... well, history. As if the loss of a personality like Sheen’s wasn’t devastating enough, Chuck Lorre had to deal with another rebel in Angus T. Jones, who played Jake.

“With Sheen as a modern Casanova... [the show] had genius written all over it.” After keeping his mouth shut and enjoying life as the highest paid actor under 25 in the world for years, Jones said in an interview, “Jake from ‘Two and a Half Men’ means nothing,” and encouraged his fans to stop watching the show. This was a slightly easier fix; they just had Jake join the army and leave as fast as possible, replacing him with a series of comic reliefs which were neither comical nor offered any kind of relief. By then, the damage was irreversible. The show is entering its twelfth and final season, and it’s obvious that Ashton Kutch-

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er is no Charlie Sheen, and that “Two and a Half Men” is nowhere near the masterpiece it used to be. With Charlie Sheen and Angus T. Jones both gone from the show, it seems like the writers are greenlighting every idea they come up with the minute they come up with it. Season 11 had Jenny Harper, Charlie’s long-lost 30-year old lesbian daughter (I swear to god I’m not making this up) and, most insulting of all, the season 12 premiere episode had Walden and Alan (no joke) getting married and trying to adopt, almost like they want us not to watch the show. What does this say about TV? In my humble opinion, it shows that people like Chuck Lorre shouldn’t be envied. When you consider that he had to bring the show basically back from the dead, with a different lead and a different comic relief, one could say he did the best he could, given the circumstances. Does that mean that the choices he made were the right ones? I’d say no, but someone else might very reasonably say yes. I feel the same way about the show “Glee,” which also peaked way too early and had a complete casting change because of it. Television is an extremely fragile medium and the outcome of each episode can either make or break any television series. Shows that managed to make very careful choices and whose humor has kept consistent over the years are “South Park” or even “The Simpsons,” whose biggest crime was just overstaying their welcome. Does the decline of “Two and a Half Men” mean that television as an art form is dying? Not at all, it’s just a cautionary tale of what can happen if you’re not careful and, amid all the good that television has brought, we need something like “Two and a Half Men” to keep us grounded in reality.

ARTS

January 29, 2015

Page 17

Ye’s latest explores beauty through chaos Yifan Wang Reporter

Blind Massage Lou Ye Silversea Investment Co.

ou Ye is a famous screenwriter and director commonly grouped with the “Sixth Generation” directors of Chinese cinema from the post-1990 era. His latest film, “Blind Massage,” was nominated for the Golden Bear award at the 64th Berlin International Film Festival and won six awards including Best Script at the 51st Taiwan Golden Horse Award. The flim seeks to tell the stories of a group of blind people who work at a massage center in Nanjing, China. Although the narratives are somewhat overly dramatic, “Blind Massage” vividly presents the group image of these people, as well as the texture of China during the ‘90s. More importantly, it explores the philosophical essence of blindness, especially in terms of love and beauty. Xiao Ma lost his sight when he was nine because of a car accident. After a failed suicide attempt, he eventually ended up in a blind massage center run by Sha Fuming. Here Xiao Ma worked and lived with people who are just like him. Later, Xiao Ma met Xiao Kong, girlfriend of a new employee Dr. Wang, and Xiao Man, a prostitute working at a nearby hair salon. As these encounters took place, the massage center witnessed a series of significant changes. The story happened in Nanjing at the end of last century. While known in America today for its Foreign Language High School and the school’s large amount of students admitted to prestigious American colleges, Nanjing at the time was like any other city in China. The economy was becoming increasingly market-driven; state-owned enterprises were reformed and workers were laid off; millions of people started to buy stocks and open up their own businesses; color-

Campus Canvas

ful neon lights and various signboards replaced the unified gray buildings. It was in these streets that the characters of “Blind Massage” lived, and the film successfully puts them within their time by telling the audience both about their individual characteristics and about their era’s influence on them. At the same time, the Tiananmen Movement was just a few years before, and the romance and idealism of that generation had not yet died out among Chinese youths. They write poetry, read Sartre, dance, drink. And Sha Fuming was one of those people.. These characters and scenes from the film subtly present the texture of China at that period. As a realism film, such historical documentary value is not to be overlooked in comparison to the universal themes of its narrative and the artistic value of the film as a whole, especially for American audiences. While it doesn’t focus on portraying the everyday differences of life in darkness than life with sight, the film does touch upon some more fundamental, philosophical implications of blindness. One prevalent theme is beauty. Du Hong is the prettiest girl at the center, or so she is told by numerous customers. Yet she isn’t particularly happy when people give her such compliments: ”Do you think it means anything to me?” This rhetorical question is in fact asking for difficult answers. How can beauty be defined without visual references? What’s the boundary of beauty? And does it rely entirely on senses? Another is love. Sha Fuming falls in love with Du Hong because of her alleged beauty, but Du Hong thinks that he’s only obsessed with an unknown concept. Xiao Ma couldn’t stop thinking about Xiao Kong because of her smell, but when he met Xiao Man and had sex with her, he easily transferred these feelings to her. Here another series of questions arises: does better visual capacity guarantee better judgment when it comes to love? Exactly what role does physical appearance play

in human’s choice of romantic partners? What happens when appearance cannot be perceived? Unfortunately, however, the film hasn’t given these important questions the attention they deserve. This lack of attention may be partly due to Lou Ye’s longtime enthusiasm for violence, sexuality and dramatic narratives. From “Suzhou River” to “Summer Palace,” to the most recent “Mystery,” Lou Ye has never been shy about using these elements. While they may have worked well in other films, the use of these elements in “Blind Massage” seems unnecessary and disturbing of the film’s realistic feel. Instead of depicting the calm, uneventful, perhaps even dull everyday life of the characters, the film emphasizes several major dramatic moments in their lives: Xiao Ma’s suicide attempt, Dr. Wang hurting himself with a knife in order to pay off his brother’s debt, Sha Fuming vomiting blood at the restaurant. As a result of such focus, I was left with memories and understandings of a few very specific, extreme characters and events, as opposed to a more general impression of this group of blind people and their lives. Similarly, Lou Ye’s camera language contributes to the extreme, dramatic taste of the work. The camera is often shaky and wandering about; sometimes it moves without any cut when scenes change; close-ups shots are frequently so close to the face that it seems to be poking at the characters. And these shots weave together a picture of anxiety, chaos and drama. While the film’s plot is certainly stimulating and its film language is idiosyncratic and memorable, it fails to realize its potential as a work documenting a special group of people living in a specific historical period in China. However, despite its failure to live up to my taste, “Blind Massage” is definitely a film worth the time for Chinese and international audiences alike, because of its significant topic and because of Lou Ye’s unique position and style among the Six Generation directors of Chinese cinema.

A weekly space highlighting the creative pursuits of student-artists

Excuse me, What trend are you hoping will return in 2015?

“Steve Jobs turtlenecks.” — Marie Solis ’15

“Accent crimping.’” — Ashley Pecorelli ’16

“Butterfly clips.” — Meaghan Hughes ’15

submit to misc@vassar.edu

“Velour pants suits.” — Palak Patel ’16

“Britney Spears’ red leather jumpsuit.” — Noble Ingram ’16

“Mutton chops.’” —Zach Rippe ’16

Growing up, my mom has always wanted me to be a pianist, or a dancer, or something else elegant and noble. Instead I spent the majority of my childhood doodling on math textbooks, walls, my thighs, and my mom’s vintage couches. This acrylic self-portrait is one of the very few pieces of my work that did not end up in the trashcan or on an angry math teacher’s desk. It’s about the frustration of pretending to be what others wanted me to be, about masking genuine pain and laughter with synthetic smiles. For so long, I’ve been holding myself back from things I am truly passionate about, like art, while trying to achieve someone else’s definition of success. After an incredibly rough first semester at Vassar, I have now shifted my focus onto discovering my true authentic self and doing art and other things that truly make me happy. --Nancy Chen ‘18

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Sam Pianello, Photo Editor Emma Rosenthal, Arts Editor

SPORTS

Page 18

January 29, 2015

Men’s volleyball strives to block out the competition Ashley Hoyle Reporter

assar’s men’s volleyball team kicks off its season with their home opener on Thursday, January 29 against NYU on the Brewer’s home turf in the Kenyon Hall gymnasium. The men have found success on the road so far this 2015 season, gaining some important experience at the SUNYIT Tournament and being slated 7th in the Liberty League. They played well early in the tournament winning both matches 3-0, yet fell to good teams in two tough matches late. To add to their accolades, Matt Knigge, a freshman middle hitter from New Egypt, N.J., was named the United Volleyball Conference Co-Rookie of the week for his performance at the tournament. After going 10-21 last season, the Brewers are setting specific goals to meet in the coming months. Said Reno Kriz, the junior captain and right side hitter from Breinigsville, Pa., “Our goals are to get back to the UVC playoffs, and to not just settle if/when we get there. Also, we’d like to get back into the national rankings.”

Christian Lizana, sophomore outside hitter and libero from Dublin, Pa., elaborated on Kriz’s point, saying “I think that this year we, as a team, have agreed that, while we want to take things one at a time, we are determined to not only make the conference playoffs, but to win that first round game. We believe that this is definitely an attainable goal, but we’re are going to have to work hard to get there.” Sophomore captain and starting libero Trey Cimorelli from Orchard Park, NY seems optimistic, stating in an article via the Vassar Athletics website, “This year, we have a different energy level on the team, bringing in four freshmen has brought a good dynamic and the upperclassman leadership and competitiveness this season is more prevalent.” Cimorelli, known as a vocal leader, rounds out a strong trio of captains that also includes senior setter Colin White-Dzuro. One of the men’s biggest strengths this season is their depth. A strong freshman class of four that includes Knigge, outside hitter Jorge Rivera, setter Zechariah Lee and outside hitter

Courtesy of Vassar College Athletics

The Brewers huddle together as they look to their coach and one another for inspiration in the upcoming game. The men look forward to a strong, successful spring season.

Brian Manley has helped lengthen the bench for the Brewers, who struggled coping with injury and absence last season. “A strength of our team is that we are a very close-knit group,” said Kriz. The depth coming from underclassmen can be a blessing and a curse. Lizana elaborated, “Definitely a strength, at least from last year, is that we have more bodies on the team, and not only bodies but talented players that can fill much needed roles. I think that we will also have some younger players making big contributions. Perhaps while some inexperience now, hopefully it will transition to composed experience later this year and in the following seasons.” The young talent should help bring competitiveness in practice as well as during matches. The team only lost one senior player last year, captain Joe Pyne, which contributed to the team’s youth, said Kriz, “A weakness of our team is that, despite only losing one senior from last year, we are still relatively inexperienced.” The Brewers finished ninth in the conference in hitting percentage last year at .181. Unfortunately Kriz and Pyne did most of the work, making up 800 of their 1320 swings. First impressions are lasting, so the Brewers intend to set the tone of their season with their first few matches. “We have been working very hard in pre-season and I hope that we can keep up that effort as we transition towards the start of games,” said Lizana, “The way that we start the season will be key in setting the tone for the rest of it I think.” So far there have been several obstacles keeping Vassar from having a smooth start. First of all, Kriz explains, “Our senior setter and captain, Colin White-Dzuro, had to have surgery in the fall, so we’ve had to start the season without him. However, he is expecting to come back in the next week or so.” The Brewers have also had to adjust their offense with the 2015 personnel. “Also, we are relatively undersized in the front row, as we were last year,” said Kriz, “so we’ll have to make smarter decision when attacking, and not get frustrated when we are struggling to terminate the play.” Kriz looks to be a main option for Vassar again this year as he racked up 424 kills last season. It will take a team effort as their enthusiasm and resilience will serve them well as they move forward. The crowd and the team’s energy is expected

to carry them through their opening matches, according to Lizana, “I am very excited just in general for the season as a whole. We have a great group of guys that I am excited to play with, and I think that everyone will contribute greatly to the goals we have set and to pushing the better teams and hopefully getting some wins out of those tough games.” He continued, “The season opener, this year against NYU, will be a great atmosphere if we can get people into the stands, and seeing our efforts payoff will be very satisfying.” Down the road, VC will go toe to toe with some formidable opponents. Kriz detailed the teams he thinks will pose the biggest challenges for the Brewers, saying, “Our toughest matchups this season will likely be most of our conference games, since the UVC is a very competitive conference, including our matches against Stevens, NYU, SUNY New Paltz and Nazareth. In addition, we play 3-time defending national champions Springfield.” Lizana believes that mental toughness will be the key to staying strong during their hardest matches, “We will face some very talented opponents, often in tournament style settings. The key to these matches will be to remain focused and disciplined, while both mentally and physically tired. I am hoping that we will be able to push teams to the edge and get those key wins due to our perseverance.” Team chemistry and character will carry the Brewers through a successful season. Lizana recalled his favorite memories of the season so far, “I think that my favorite moment of the season so far was just getting to hang out and bond with the guys, who are not only my teammates but my best friends. It’s a great group, from the freshmen to the seniors. Seeing everyone come together to create intense, competitive practices was really exciting and gets you thinking about the potential success we will have this season.” The team does not only focus on volleyball, Kriz explained, “My favorite moment so far is when we went to a soup kitchen to feed some of the homeless people of Poughkeepsie. It was nice to put everything we’re doing into perspective, and give back to the community.” Despite the many questions facing the team, the Vassar men look to come out swinging at their match this Thursday.

Callahan, Shultis motivated to inspire campus athletics

Courtesy of Vassar College Athletics

field,” Shultis wrote. This position will be Shultis’ first full-time position in the sports medicine field. Shultis has been on the U.S. Fencing sports medicine team for three years prior to taking on this position, and will continue to be here at Vassar. He has added to those responsibilities men’s volleyball, men’s lacrosse and women’s rowing and rugby. Vassar’s Head Athletic Trainer, Susan Higgins, cited Shultis’ experience as one of his strengths. “Ian has a wealth of experience beyond his years,” she wrote in an emailed statement. He is very well respected by his mentors and peers and has worked in very high level fencing events which will include the Junior Olympics this Winter.” Apart from his involvement in the U.S. Fencing team, he has taken many internships in the field of athletics, as well as in sports management. He served locally at Arlington High School and Poughkeepsie High School, while also a little further afield at the New York City Half Marathon. Shultis was also in the wrong place at the right time, serving as one of the first responders at the Boston Marathon. The Boston Marathon offered Shultis the most violent injuries he’s ever had to contend with. Shultis was on a volunteer trip there, assessing runners as they crossed the finish line when the bombs went off. He and his classmates were some of the first to arrive on the scene. Such tragic events as those in Boston are not Shultis’ regular experiences. In the sporting world, Shultis has faced more common-place but difficult injuries. He wrote, “I would say a Spondylosis or a vertebrae fracture in one of my football defensive backs [was the most difficult.]” Shultis was on the Marist football medical team.

Courtesy of Vassar College Athletics

NEW HIRES continued from page 1 and he’s working on an app for Vassar Intramurals and Recreation. “We need to improve how we get our information out to the students on what programs we are offering,” he wrote. Following up on this plan, Callahan revealed that Vassar athletics has recently partnered with IMLeagues, an organization that will help with registrations, keeping track of statistics, standings and getting information out quickly and efficiently to the student body. IMLeagues provides similar services to more than 800 institutions across the U.S. Callahan seems prepared for the kind of work that needs to be done, especially with regards to getting information to students. “In this day and age, social media is essential to any organization. I have just recently created Facebook and Twitter pages for Vassar Intramurals and Recreation,” he explained. Callahan graduated from nearby Carmel High School in 2005, about thirty miles from Vassar, where he earned an All-League selection in basketball. He then attended Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, where he played basketball and majored in business administration. He was captain of the basketball team his senior year at MCLA.. He did his graduate work at Manhattanville College, receiving his Masters in Sport Business Management in 2011 and has coached basketball at the high school level for two years. Ian Shultis recently graduated from Marist College with a B.S. in athletic training. Home-schooled in his youth, he completed the majority of his high school education at a local community college. “I decided to come to Vassar as it presented a great opportunity at the right time, as I was looking to get into the sports medicine

Callahan (left) and Shultis (right) bring a wealth of experience and experiences to their new positions. Callahan looks to improve intramurals while Shultis brings unique experience. Considering the most common injuries of college athletes, Shultis wrote, “In this setting, ankles are very common, but especially long term overuse back and hip strains and general stress along the spine/hip junction, or the SI joints.” As well as being a part of fencing from the medical side, Shultis has also competed both at high school and college levels. Shultis trains for obstacle course running as well as road racing. Higgins is very pleased with Shultis and his work so far. She wrote, “Ian brings a very strong work ethic and excellent educational background. He works well with various

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

teams and makes an extended effort to educate the athlete along the way.” Shultis’ wish to teach the athletes with which he works is something he takes very seriously.Additionally, Shultis has high aspirations for his work in the area, and a clear interest for his field. He wrote, “I chose to continue into sports medicine after achieving my associates in exercise science. It was a practical way to go so as to learn more about the way athletes of all types train.” He continued, “Honestly, if I had a dream job, it would be me being a professional athlete, or expanding into a military setting.”

January 29, 2015

SPORTS

Off-field regimen vital to athletes’ longevity Sam Hammer Columnist

f the 2015 NFL playoffs will be remembered for anything other than controversial officiating decisions, it will be for the career longevity of the quarterbacks. Two of the greatest quarterbacks of all time were featured in this year’s playoffs with Peyton Manning of the Denver Broncos and Tom Brady of the New England Patriots. While both men have had long and successful playing careers, this season marked the first time where age became a factor in their performance. The problem rings true for athletes across the realm of professional sports. At 38 years old, and coming off a neck surgery several years ago, Peyton Manning was able to lead the Denver Broncos to a twelve-win season and the second seed in the American Football Conference. However, after a rather mediocre performance in a 24-13 loss to the underdog Indianapolis Colts in the divisional round, critics are beginning to doubt Manning’s playing ability going forward. It was recently revealed that in the weeks leading up to the playoff loss, Manning had been playing on a strained quad. The question then becomes how much of an impact the injury has had on Manning’s playmaking ability. Are his struggles also due in part to the natural aging process of athletes? Manning had already suffered a noticeable dip in performance over the last few weeks of the regular season. Manning has refused to place the blame for the loss on his injury, leading to speculation that aging is the root cause of his woes. When asked by reporters whether or not he would return for another season with the Broncos, Manning did not provide a solid answer and left open the possibility that this season may have been his last in the NFL. Over in New England, a 37-year-old Tom Brady managed to lead the Patriots to 13 wins and the top seed in the AFC. After a rough start to the season, the Patriots have been on a roll. Much of that success has come as a result of Brady’s fantastic play. At the time of this writing, Brady led the Patriots to a thrilling 35-31 victory over the Balti-

more Ravens in which he completed 33 of 50 passes for 367 yards and three touchdowns. Even at 37, Brady has so far shown few signs of slowing down. In fact, Brady has gone on record saying that he wants to play until “he sucks,” and is not considering retirement any time soon. With regard to rumors that he regularly goes to bed at 8:30 p.m., Brady said in an article from NFL.com: “I do go to bed very early, because I’m up very early...I think that the decisions that I make are always, they always probably center around performance enhancement, if that makes sense. So whether that is what I eat or what decisions I make or whether I drink or don’t drink, it’s always football-centric. I want to be the best I can be every day. I want to be the best I can be every week. I want to be the best I can be for my teammates.” In a December article for Sports Illustrated, Greg Bishoped detailed the lengths to which Brady goes in order to take care of his body to ensure that he minimizes the typical aging process. Brady owns a therapy center next to Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., where he works with body coach Alex Guerrero. Each day over the next three years of Brady’s career is already planned out. Everything in Tom Brady’s life is meticulously planned, from his workouts to his diet and sleep schedule. In the summer, he eats a diet of mostly raw foods, while in the winter months, he subsists more on hot foods and cooked meats. He has a brain resiliency program that helps him to make on-field decisions more efficiently. The whole report is fascinating and can be read on www.si.com. Brady is not the only athlete who is so fanatical about taking care of his body. Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant is currently averaging over 24 points per game this season, despite being 36 years old and coming off of multiple surgeries in the past couple of seasons. A recent article on espn.com by Baxter Holmes discusses how consuming bone broth has helped Bryant’s body to recover more quickly. This special soup, which

is certainly not the kind you might find in typical supermarkets, is extremely rich in nutrients and collagen and requires hours to simmer the various animal bones that go into making it. Bryant and team chef Sandra Padilla meticulously plan his meals to make sure that he gets as many nutrients as possible, while minimizing the intake of foods and ingredients that might cause inflammation in his body. The chefs at the hotels the team travels to are routinely asked to cook Bryant’s meals with olive oil, rather than vegetable or peanut oil. All of this focus on eating a squeaky-clean diet has enabled Bryant to make it this far, playing the amount of minutes at the high level required of him by the Lakers’ coaching staff. Another NBA star who has seemed to defy age is Ray Allen, who at 39 years old is still somehow an attractive free agent for NBA teams that need a reliable shooter off the bench. In the summer of 2012, Ray Allen began following a modified version of the Paleo Diet, which emphasizes eating fruits, vegetables and meats while staying away from highly-processed food. Soon after starting the diet, Allen lost ten pounds and felt more energetic and less inflamed than he had before changing his eating habits. Allen also spends a great deal of time working out to strengthen his core and joints in order to ensure that aging does not negatively impact his playing performance. Allen also goes through a rigorous routine in preparing on game day. As discussed in an article via bleacherreport.com, Allen comes on court around 4 p.m. for a typical 7 p.m. night game to practice shooting for an hour. This is followed by an hour of stretching and a light sandwich right before the game. The weird thing is that Ray Allen has this routine before every NBA game he plays. It is this level of extreme dedication that makes Allen an attractive free agent to teams, despite being nearly 40 years old. With all of the anti-aging techniques being introduced these days, it is no longer so uncommon to see star athletes playing into their late thirties and even early forties.

Silent Lynch not rude, simply speechless Claire Standaert Columnist

“H

ow important was it to keep the ball on the ground and run out the

clock?” “Yeah.” “How does your back feel Marshawn?” “Yeah.” “How are you feeling?” “Yeah.” Marshawn Lynch looked down and grinned. The reporters were obviously not getting the hint. “Marshawn, talk about the Cardinals defense.” “Yeah.” This excerpt from a Nov. 23 post-game interview with Lynch can be seen and read via NFL.com. Following this interview and many similar ones soon to follow, the NFL fined Lynch $100,000. Lynch had violated an NFL rule, listed in his contract, that states, “Reasonable cooperation with the news media is essential to the continuing popularity of our game and its players.” Eloquence has never been the professional athlete’s forte. To explain the task of beating an opponent would leave the athlete tongue tied and frustrated. Joe DiMaggio once said, “I’m a ballplayer, not an actor.” When asked about the odds against a boxing opponent, Sonny Liston replied, “I don’t know. I’m not a bookmaker. I’m a fighter.” Leave the competing to the athletes; leave the articulacy to the journalists. Often times, because professional athletes block out distractions and focus only on the task at hand during competition, postgame interviews are difficult. “What were you thinking when you hit the home run?” “How were you able to come back in the second half ?” “How was the team’s performance?”

The athlete doesn’t know the answer. Their job is to play, not to analyze and be a poet. But in order to give the fans what they want, which is some sort of connection, the answers to these questions become deceptively simple. “Well, we did our best and worked hard and everything fell into place.” “Well, I’ll tell ya, I felt fantastic when I saw the ball go in. I saw an opening and it was like slow motion as it went into the net.” “We had a great game because we worked together and never let down.” These typical sorts of answers only scratch the surface of what it means to be a champion and human at the same time. There are two ways to explain an athlete’s success. One is technical and physical, which is easily explained by the athlete themself. The other is an elusive combination of mystery and metaphysics, which is not easily explained because it involves the complex results of personality. Beginning in the mid-1900s, journalists began to share this side of the sports world that had remained largely untouched by newspapers and magazines. A great man for this type of personality reporting was Joe DiMaggio. He had become an icon to all Americans, not just for his baseball, but also for his looks, mystique and marriage to Marilyn Monroe. A lot had been written about him, but very little was actually known. In 1966, Gay Talese broke the barrier and gave the reader a glimpse of what DiMaggio was really like. When Esquire Magazine released Talese’s article “The Silent Season of a Hero,” the interaction between DiMaggio and a reporter at his family restaurant showed the hidden complexities of the great baseball star’s life and personality. “Look,” DiMaggio said, “I do not interfere

with other people’s lives. And I do not expect them to interfere with mine. There are things about my life, personal things, that I refuse to talk about. And even if you asked my brothers, they would be unable to tell you about them because they do not know. There are things about me, so many things, that they simply do not know…” “I don’t want to cause trouble,” the reporter said. “I think you’re a great man…” “I’m not great, I’m just a man trying to get along,” DiMaggio said softly. And the reporter left the restaurant. Like DiMaggio, fans and reporters expect an athlete’s performance to reflect their personality, when in fact, this is just a perception. These professional athletes must not only compete, but also market a product— their sport. This is why we find postgame interviews dulled into monotonous declarations of happiness, sadness or frustration. These relatable thoughts and emotions allow the language of sports to become accessible to all people. But the truth is, no one except the athlete themself will know what it feels like to have the attention of thousands of fans and critics, yet focus and trust in a God-given talent to accomplish supernatural things with their body and mind. So Marshawn Lynch doesn’t even seem to try. His responses have become unsatisfying “Yeah’s” for fans and the media. Honestly, we can’t blame him for his silence. As frustrated we are by his mysteriousness, he is just as frustrated by the media and sport’s forged bond. If Marshawn did ever answer a reporter’s questions with more than three words, they might parallel DiMaggio’s words, “I’m not great, I’m just a man trying to get along.” Just like the rest of us.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Page 19

NBA hierarchy in state of flux Robert Carpenter Columnist

s the NBA season nears the All-star Break, it is clear that for better or worse, “times are a changing.” Even if they were never meant to describe Basketball, the lyrics from Bob Dylan’s 1964 song ring true for the current state of the NBA, especially considering what teams, players, and strategies are establishing as the new normal. Currently, six of the teams eligible for the playoffs have never won a championship. For example, the Grizzlies and Raptors are strong contenders. Both teams lead their divisions and are second in their conference. Also in this group are the Cavaliers and Clippers. They are taking the spots of 3 elite franchises who together hold 36 of NBA’s 67 total titles yet are not in playoff contention: the Lakers, Celtics and 76ers. This season has been less than predictable. Underdog teams have defied the odds and climbed to the top of the standings, proving that the league is more competitive than ever. Like Dylan said, “if you don’t start swimming, you’ll sink like a stone.” Teams like the Thunder and Pacers who, due to injuries to stars such as Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Paul George, have dropped from finishes in last season’s quarter-finals to winning percentages below .500. But the worst fall from grace belongs the Knicks who slipped from the second best record in their conference in 2013 to the worst record this season. How has the landscape of the NBA changed so rapidly? New strategies center on the three pointer, a shot that has only skyrocketed in use over the last three seasons. Last season, more 3-point shots were attempted than ever. The record is likely to be broken again this season according to Bleacherreport.com. Sharp shooters Kyle Korver, Courtney Lee and Klay Thompson lead this trend and show no signs of stopping. These shooters unsurprisingly play on the NBA’s best teams, Golden State, Atlanta and Memphis. Yet the best sharp shooters usually depend on a strong inside presence to relieve defensive pressure. Shooters are more comfortable if opposing defenses have to focus on threats near the basket as well. The Grizzlies execute this strategy to perfection as their bigs, Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol demand the attention of defenses and create double teams that leave Courtney Lee open for easy 3-pointers. The Trailblazers who rank 5th in three-point efficiency follow a similar strategy thanks to strong inside scoring from LaMarcus Aldridge. What makes spreading the floor so deadly is the success of inside finishers that increases with the success of outside shooters, leaving no escape for weak defenses. Inside threats can open up outside shooting as seen with Memphis, yet outside shooting can improve interior scoring as well. Led by Stephan Curry and Klay Thompson, the Warrior’s 3-point accuracy is the best in the league, drawing defenses outside, allowing Marreese Speights to reach career scoring numbers. Golden State’s center has almost doubled his scoring this year. One aspect that cannot be ignored is that of the teams who posses the top 4 highest paid players. None are currently playoff bound. As the hierarchy of teams evolves, so does how teams reach success. Spending the mountain of money required to sign superstars like LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony or even Kevin Durant seems less viable. Teams that draft and develop their own talent spend less money and have become more successful. The Kobe Bryant era of the 2000s that depended on the ability of ultra-talented superstars to dominate is giving way to team-based attacks composed of lower-paid, disciplined players that can’t do everything but successfully fill their role. The best NBA franchises attack and defend as a team, and though it might be less exciting than one player dominating every statistic, it is definitely effective. Undeniably, the “times are a changing” for the NBA, and though this might be scary for many, I am embracing the three pointers, balanced offensive threats and a new hierarchy of teams. Because what is change if not exciting?

SPORTS

Page 20

January 29, 2015

Women’s basketball bonds in face of Liberty League Amreen Bhasin Reporter

Courtesy of Vassar College Athletics

assar College’s women’s basketball team this year has had a busy time during winter break. The team began conference play on Jan. 2 and is now about halfway through their Liberty League schedule for this season. The Brewers stand at 7-9 overall and 2-5 in the conference. This tabs them as 6th in the conference currently; however, the Brewers are just one of two Liberty League schools that have only played seven League games thus far. They have nine League games left this season, giving them plenty of time to move up in the standings. Junior team leader Colleen O’Connell explained in an emailed statement, “I believe our team is really starting to hit its stride now at the right moment. We have about one half of league play left and although we have not performed as well as we would have liked initially, I think our best basketball is right around the corner. It is just a matter of playing with a chip on our shoulders and going out and getting it done from here on out.” The Brewers began their Winter Break program with their last game of 2014, defeating the Hawks of Hartwick College 51-49 on Dec. 20. The game ended with a shot by junior guard Caitlin Drakeley who broke a 49-49 tie with a jumper with only 16 seconds left to play. Junior Rose Serafini ’16 had a big block in the final five seconds of the game that allowed the Brewers to maintain the lead and Hartwick missed their final shot at the buzzer as Vassar ended up with the win. O’Connell came away with her third double-double of the season, her third in four games. Freshman Samarah Cook, senior Allyson Pemberton and freshman Ariella Rosenthal also had strong games. The Brewers then moved on to Liberty League play on Jan. 2 and were edged out by Union College 72-68 in their League opener. Drakeley had a phenomenal game contributing 32 points, setting the record for the most ever shot attempts and field goals by a Vassar player with 29 and 13 respectively. O’Connell had another double-double, her fourth in five

Junior guard Caitlin Drakeley has been dominant as of late, scoring in bunches as she helps push her team into playoff contention. She has also received Liberty League Honor Roll honors. games. The next day the Brewers played Skidmore and fell 78-66. Rosenthal had a game and career high 24 points and made 9-of-17. Despite the losses, Drakeley was named to the Liberty League’s Honor Roll that week. Immediately after, the Brewers returned home and took on Bard College on Jan. 6 and defeated the Raptors 60-40 in their League Home opener as sophomore Zoe Walker had her first career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds along with two blocks. According to O’Connell, “Winter break is always a time of transition and a time for growth and development. I think more than in a basketball sense though winter break is invaluable for us to bond together as a team off the floor, which will always translate into better chemistry on the court.” Sophomore forward Zoe Walker further expounded on playing basketball during the

break, writing in an emailed statement, “It’s a lot easier to focus on basketball over break because that is all we are here to do. We don’t have classes and school work to worry about. And we don’t have other people or events on campus to distract us and share our time with. It’s all basketball. Over break we also live very close to each other and spend almost every second of the day with at least one other teammate. Living on a basically deserted campus for an entire month of break makes it very clear what we’re back to do—play basketball.” The Brewers had a hard fought loss to William Smith on Jan. 16. Drakeley once again shined with 17 points and seven rebounds. The women then rebounded the next night and came up with a 58-55 win over RIT. Drakeley had 28 points, going 11-of-19 from the field, had six rebounds and two shots. After this weekend, Drakeley was named the Liberty League

Performer of the Week. It was her second selection as the performer of the week this season. Hoping for better results, the Brewers took on St. Lawrence University, currently the second place team in the league, on Jan. 23 and were barely edged by the Saints, falling 59-57. St. Lawrence hit a 3-pointer with 22 seconds left in the game to put them up by four. Vassar managed to halve their lead but fell just short. Despite the heartbreaking loss, O’Connell stated, “I think the moment that best stands out for me is the St. Lawrence game this past weekend. I am so proud of how we played, largely because for 40 minutes we played as one unit and played our brand of basketball. It was a huge step forward for our team and I’m looking forward to seeing how we continue to play…for the rest of Liberty League play.” On the 24th, the Brewers had a rough game against Clarkson University, currently 4th in the League. They are just one win behind RPI but have a game on hand. The game was unique in that it featured 52 total fouls and 63 free throws between both teams. After the game, Drakeley once again was named to the Liberty League Honor Roll for the week. Moving forward, the Brewers are ready to tackle their remaining schedule and are looking to build on their first half little by little. Walker stated, “Now that we’re halfway through league play and are about to begin playing liberty league teams for a second time it is crucial to focus on consistency, urgency and execution in all of our games as well as practices.” According to O’Connell, “The most important thing for us for the remainder of the season is to take things one step at a time—take each game as it comes, and within each game, take things one possession at a time,” she wrote. “When we get the little things done, our big goals can be achieved as well. That being said, we have to take it one step at a time but still remember to be focused and on a mission to accomplish our goals.” The Brewers are back in action against League-leading Skidmore College. They will play on Friday, Jan. 20 at 6 p.m. in the AFC.

Brewers stay competitive over lengthy winter break Zach Rippe

Sports Editor

with 22 seconds left to play. The Brewers welcome Skidmore this Friday, Jan. 30.

Women’s Basketball

The women’s basketball team went 3-4 over the break, facing several tough opponents. Their efforts were highlighted by a tight 51-49 win over Hartwick College on Dec. 30. Junior guard Caitlin Drakeley hit a jumper with 16 seconds left to put the Brewers up for good. Vassar also boasted an impressive 60-40 win against Bard as they outscored the visitors 40 to 23 in the second half. Perhaps their most impressive win, however, came on Jan. 17 against Rochester Institute of Technology. The Brewers trailed by as many as 10 in the second half, but came back to win behind 28 points from Drakeley. Vassar may have snagged another win on Jan. 23 if not for a clutch St. Lawrence University three-pointer

Men’s Basketball

Men’s basketball finished the winter break 2-6, with several tight contests going in favor of their opponents. They began with a nice win 88-80 over Union College on Jan. 2. Senior forward Alex Snyder led the way with 23 points and 10 rebounds. The Brewers also pulled out a 64-57 victory against Maritime College on Jan. 12. Vassar, who never trailed after halftime, was led by junior guard Erikson Wasyl’s 22 points. The men’s team also lost close bouts against Skidmore, Bard, Hobart College and St. Lawrence University. They look to improve their record this Friday against Skidmore.

Women’s Swimming and Diving

Women’s swimming and diving had a busy break as they were out training in San Diego for a week in early January. While there, they competed in a non-scoring meet against University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in Coronado, Calif. This meet was highlighted by a victory for sophomore Julia Cunningham in the 100m butterfly, a second place finish for senior Olivia Harries in the 400m freestyle, and a third place result for senior Lizzy Balter in the 50m freestyle. In their first tri-meet of the season, the women won 148-140 against Trinity College but were edged out 137-161 against Mount Holyoke. They also took part in the Seven Sisters Championships at Mount Holyoke in South Hadley, Mass. on Jan. 17-18 where they finished third of five teams. Next up for the Brewers is the Skidmore College Sprint Invitational this Saturday at 1 p.m. Men’s Swimming and Diving

Courtesy of Vassar College Athletics

The men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams headed to sunny San Diego over the Winter Break to work on their strokes and enhance their team chemistry in preperation for their seasons.

The men’s swim and dive team also spent part of their break training in the sunny skies of San Diego where they too competed against University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Sophomore Anthony Walker came out on top in the 100m butterfly with a time of 1:01.72. Sophomore Chris Cerutti and junior Greg Cristina also finished second in the 100m backstroke and 50m freestyle respectively. Nearly 24 hours after arriving home, the men came out on top against Trinity College 145-125 on Jan. 13. They later fell to Montclair State on Jan. 21 and were edged out 121-132 by Roger Williams University on Jan. 24. The men are set to compete at the Skidmore College Sprint Invitational on Saturday.

Yale. Last weekend, the women headed to Rhode Island for the Brown University invitational. They went 2-5 on the day with wins against Dartmouth and Smith, but fell to Boston College, Brandeis, Tufts and MIT. Led by freshman Kirsten Denman and sophomore Elsa Stoff, the Vassar’s foil team earned 31 wins on the afternoon. Next up is a bout against Drew University on Jan. 31. Men’s Fencing

Men’s fencing also participated in the VC Fencing Challenge where they went an impressive 3-1 with wins over Detroit, Cleveland State University and NJIT. Vassar freshman Eli Polston led the way, going 11-0 on the day. Polston, a sabre fencer, would go on to win Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Fencer of the Week last Wednesday. The men then attended the Brown University Invitational where they finished 2-4 with impressive wins over Tufts and Dartmouth. The men too look to Drew University this coming Saturday. Men’s Volleyball

While their home opener is this Thursday, the Brewers participated in the SUNYIT Tournament last weekend in Utica, N.Y. The men started quite strong on Saturday, with dominant 3-0 wins over Wells College and Mount Ida College. Yet, Sunday proved much tougher on the Vassar men as they rallied down 0-2 but fell to Nazareth College. They later fell 0-3 to Wentworth Institute of Technology. Vassar looks to start its season strong this Thursday at 7 p.m. against NYU. Men and Women’s Squash

Women’s Fencing

Vassar hosted the VC Fencing Challenge on Jan. 18 where they also honored seniors Megan Lewis, Kathleen Konno, Anveshi Guha, Janelle Washington and Anastasia Stevens. The Brewers started strong with convincing wins against Detroit, Cleveland State University and NJIT, yet they fell later in the day to both Tufts and

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Both the men and women’s squash teams fell to Haverford 8-1 this past Saturday. The men’s lone win came from sophomore Vincent Mencotti, who leads the Brewers with 6 wins this season. Freshman Hannah Nice gave the women their only victory. Nice is 6-1 at no. 1 singles this year. Next for both the men and women are the Hudson Valley Team Championships.