Misc 10.4.18

The Miscellany News

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Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY

Volume CLI | Issue 5

October 4, 2018

Dees’ life, work honored

Broom & ball bond Brewers

Frankie Knuckles

Duncan Aronson REPORTER

COPY STAFFER

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I Courtesy of IYEC

ast Thursday, Sept. 27, the Vassar community gathered with the family and friends of the late Adjunct Assistant Professor of Philosophy Marco Dees in a celebration of his life and legacy. The events consisted of a memorial service followed by a lecture by Professor Dean Zimmerman of Rutgers University, Dees’ doctoral supervisor, in which he presented some of Dees’ work on spacetime functionalism.

Speaking to the planning process and his hopes for the event, Associate Professor and Chairperson of the Philosophy Department Jeffrey Seidman said that when the department got together to begin planning the memorial, the idea to hold a lecture in Dees’ honor came from Assistant Professor Sofia Ortiz-Hinojosa. She, along with Seidman and Associate Dean of Religious and Spiritual Life and Contemplative Practice Reverend Samuel Speers, assembled an informal committee to organize the planning See DEES on page 3

Vassar hosted its first annual Immigrant Youth Empowerment Conference on Sept. 22, featuring panels and workshops addressing the concepts of resilience and resistance in immigrant and undocumented experiences.

Event empowers immigrant youth Rachel Yang

GUEST REPORTER

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eading up to Saturday, Sept. 22, Vassar’s campus was adorned with flyers featuring a vibrant butterfly splashed across the front, which advertised the first annual Immigrant Youth Empowerment Conference (IYEC).

As the name implies, Saturday’s conference was the inaugural event in what is planned as a series of annual conferences aiming to inform and empower immigrant and undocumented students. Included in the conference were workshops, a plenary session and a keynote address by the founder of the

undocumented youth resource program Adelante Student Voices Gabriela Quintanilla.

IYEC planning committee member and Assistant Professor of Education Jaime Del Razo explained that the idea for the event was first conceived in the See IYEC on page 4

Poets instill hope, inspire students Holly Shulman GUEST COLUMNIST

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In their lecture, Vassar alums Elsbeth Pancrazi ’05 and Geoffrey Hilsabeck ’03 discussed the refreshing perspective that poetry can provide in a world fraught with technological obsession and off-putting political turmoil.

Inside this issue

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ARTS

of how poetry can function as a tool of resistance: “Poetry is very unique because it really operates outside the boundaries of commerce. There’s no money to be made so you don’t really See POETS on page 6

Courtesy of the Vassar English Department

n Thursday, Sept. 27, at 6 p.m., 21 senators sat in a room on Capitol Hill facing Judge Brett Kavanaugh.

Three hundred miles away, about 15 students and faculty members sat in an auditorium in Taylor Hall facing two poets. Elsbeth Pancrazi ’05 and Geoffrey Hilsabeck ’03 had returned to Vassar’s campus to read from their debut poetry collections (Pancrazi’s “Full Body Pleasure Suit” was published in February 2017 and Hilsabeck’s “Riddles, etc.” was published in November 2017). Hilsabeck wanted to share with the Vassar community a way of looking at the world that “makes more sense than what [he] was reading in the newspapers.”

With this comment, Hilsabeck was responding to a question regarding an article he wrote in January 2017— shortly after President Trump’s election—titled “Resistance.” In that piece, he wrote, “In days when speaking feels like betrayal because speech is both inadequate and normalizing, and it seems wrong, dangerous even, to talk in the same old ways about what has happened but worse to avoid talking about it, I need a new language. […] I know that poetry can help.” When asked about how poetry functions as “a new language” to be

used in discussion of the contemporary political field, Hilsabeck said, “The fact that poetry speaks in metaphor was helpful in processing what was happening at the time.”

Pancrazi, too, offered explanation

On identity and development, novel relatable, relevant

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New library location designed FEATURES for creation, collaboration

f you have ever passed by Joss Beach on a Wednesday, Friday or Sunday afternoon, you may have run across a motley crew of broom-andball-wielding Vassarites throwing balls through mounted hoops, one of them dressed in yellow with a tennis ball stuck to their posterior. That dynamic group would be our very own Quidditch team—the Butterbeer Broooers.

I sat down during one of their Thursday bedtime readings of “Harry Potter” in Raymond to learn more about the sport of Quidditch and their student org.

For people like me, whose Harry Potter knowledge has been deteriorating in a dusty corner of their brain, fear not—members of the org provided a quick Quidditch rundown.

Captain Lestra Atlas ’19 explained, “There are five positions: beater, chaser, keeper, seeker and snitch.

Chasers handle the quaffle, a scoring ball, that gets 10 points if it goes in See QUIDDITCH on page 10

On fantasy football, Georgetown Prep Emmett O’Malley GUEST COLUMNIST

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wrote two articles for this week’s issue. You’ll only be reading the fluffy one. But I want to quickly acknowledge the other one that, for the foreseeable future, is stuck in my Google Drive.

Last week was a particularly emotionally charged week in American politics. What transpired—like many of our current political challenges— had plenty to do with sports. Even for someone as privileged and relatively unaffected as I am, watching the Kavanaugh hearings was nauseating.

The hearings prompted me to do some thinking and writing on masculinity as it relates to sports.

Kavanaugh’s professed love of sports took on an outsized role in the hearings. During his morally depraved youth, his love of sports rested at the intersection of fierce competition (between mediocre, doughy white kids) and bonds he developed with a group of boys defined most accurately by their striking similarities to Vineyard Vines t-shirts drenched with too much Axe body spray.

Kavanaugh’s favorite sport—and it pains me to say this—is basketball.

18 SPORTS

What passed for basketball at Georgetown Prep in the late ’70s was surely some sort of under-the-rim, chestpass-heavy, slow-paced nonsense that featured as many crossovers as it did people of color (I couldn’t get a picture in this article, but go ahead and type “Brett Kavanaugh Georgetown Prep basketball” into Google Images).

During the hearings, Kavanaugh rambled about his days as a high school athlete and reified his love of the game. He did so because he thought that this sort of appreciation for sports and the camaraderie that comes with them is antithetical to the credible allegations he is facing. He was, and is, wrong.

Among other things, Brett Kavanaugh is a lens into the largely unexamined world of prep-school sports, a world I know intimately. He gives a glimpse of the twisted form of male bonding that seeps into almost every part of its culture.

As much as I love sports, not acknowledging the toxic masculinity located at the very heart of male, sports-based camaraderie is counterproductive. Indeed, erasing the hateful aspects of sports aids in perSee KAVANAUGH on page 18

Editor waxes poetic on autumnal athletics

The Miscellany News

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October 4, 2018

Editor-in-Chief Talya Phelps

Senior Editor Leah Cates

Contributing Editors

Noah Purdy Charlotte Varcoe-Wolfson Laila Volpe

Courtesy of Aidan Zola

Aidan Zola ’20 is currently studying abroad in Paris, France. Zola writes of her experience: “Besides making the occasional faux-pas (think, eating dinner barefoot or accidentally locking my closet shut), I’ve learned a lot linguistically and culturally. What began as me tentatively commenting on the weather has evolved into absorbing conversations about the French political landscape and my hopes for study abroad.

What’s more, I’ve even learned to be a cat person! Berlioz, my 13-year-old “host cat” has taken to greeting me at the door and curling up on my bed while I do homework.” To read more about Zola’s adventures, plus those of fellow JYA-ers, visit farandaway.miscellanynews.org!

The Miscellany News 4

October

Weekender_ 5

Thursday

October

Karen Saxe Lecture

Friday

Relationship Abuse Awareness Tabling

5:00 p.m. | Rocky 300 | Dean of the Faculty

11:00 a.m. | College Center | SAVP

Screening: Guangzhou Dream Factory

Volleyball (W) vs. St. Lawrence University

7:00 p.m. | Rocky 200 | Forum for Political Thought

Guest Photographer Lecture - John Willis 8:00 p.m. | New England 105 | PHOCUS

Saturday

Lacrosse (W) Scrimmage Day 10:00 a.m. | Prentiss Turf Field | Athletics

De-stress with Dogs 12:00 p.m. | Joss Beach | PreVeterinary Club

7:00 p.m. | Kenyon Gym | Athletics

Magic: The Gathering Draft

Make Your Own Challah

12:00 p.m. | CC 240 Conference Room | NSO

7:00 p.m. | CC 223-Multi Purpose Room | Big Night In

Guest Recital: Stephanie Blythe 8:00 p.m. | Skinner Hall Martel Recital Hall | Music Dept.

The Limit’s Very First Show!!

9:00 p.m. | Sanders 2`12 | The Limit

Decades Mug Night 10:00 p.m. | The Mug | Vassar Burlesque

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October

Sunday

1:00 p.m. | The Quad | ALANA Student Cultural Center

Doug Varone and Dancers 7:00 p.m. | Kenyon Dance Theater | Dance Dept.

Paper Critique 9:00 p.m. | Rose Parlor | The Miscellany News

Soccer (W) vs. Skidmore College 2:00 p.m. | Prentiss Competition Field | Athletics

Lacrosse (M) Alumni Game 3:00 p.m. | Prentiss Old Competition Field | Athletics

Tipping Points Opening Reception 6:00 p.m. | CC Palmer Gallery | Campus Activities

Vassar College Orchestra

8:00 p.m. | The Mug | Vassar Student Musicians Union

Reporters Duncan Aronson Columnists Catherine Bither Jimmy Christon Jesser Horowitz Izzy Migani Sylvan Perlmutter Blair Webber Copy Natalie Bober Lucy Leonard Anastasia Koutavas Frankie Knuckles

ALANA Fest

2:00 p.m. | Kenyon Gym | Athletics

Band Showcase

Assistant Social Media Patrick Tanella Assistant Online Chris Allen

12:00 p.m. | Rugby Field | Athletics

Volleyball (W) vs. Clarkson University

8:00 p.m. | Skinner Recital Hall | Music Dept.

Andrea Yang Steven Park Hannah Gaven Izzy Braham Myles Olmsted Rose Parker Kimberly Nguyen Teddy Chmyz Jessica Moss

Rugby (M) vs. SUNY Maritime College

Courtesy of ALANA Center via Facebook

Courtesy of Mathematical Association of America

Professor of Mathematics at Macalester College Karen Saxe will deliver a lecture on Thursday, Oct. 4, at 5 p.m. in Rockefeller Hall 300. Saxe’s specialties include are electoral system design and the history of mathematics.

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October

Features Opinions Humor and Satire Arts Sports Design Outreach Copy

On Oct. 7, Vassar’s AfricanAmerican/Black, Latino/a, Asian/ Asian-American, Native American Student Cultural Center will present ALANA Fest, an afternoon of community and celebration.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

CORRECTION POLICY The Miscellany News will only accept corrections for any misquotes, misrepresentations or factual errors for an article within the semester it is printed.

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. The weekly staff editorial is the only article which reflects the opinion of the Editorial Board.

NEWS

October 4, 2018

Page 3

Youth conference centers stories of resistance, resilience IYEC continued from page 1

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fall of 2017, following national talks concerning the government’s potential revocation of the DACA policy. Del Razo mentioned that, although this is only his second year at Vassar, he has experience organizing similar events from when he lived, worked and studied in California. Del Razo was able to mobilize the multitude of interested community members both on and off campus to bring this historic event to fruition.

The stated goal of the conference was to inform and empower Vassar students and local high schoolers about issues that immigrant or undocumented students face. Empowerment means, as Del Razo puts it, “to provide a space where students feel welcome, where they feel like, ‘I’m not alone.’”

He further mentioned that being an immigrant student can sometimes feel very isolating. The conference thus aims to help these students find a place where they can resist the litany of anti-immigrant rhetoric that is so prevalent in this day and age, illustrated in national polemics surrounding DREAMers and migrant separation policies.

Just in the last month, the Trump administration announced a proposed policy denying green cards to anyone who relies on public assistance benefits.

Although the conference was focused on informing and empowering immigrant youth, Del Razo mentioned that myriad opportunities exist for others who are interested in working with immigrant and undocumented community members.

The theme of the conference, unique to this year’s iteration, was “Stories of Resilience and Resistance.” Organizers of and participants in the conference told stories of immigrants, narratives which are generally overlooked and which may not typically be discussed on college campuses.

Ae n a K h a n [TW: This column discusses rape and sexual assault, and makes mention of suicide.]

In the United States...

On Thursday, Sept. 27, Professor of Psychology at Palo Alto University Christine Blasey Ford and Judge Brett Kavanaugh testified about Ford’s allegations of sexual assault against the Supreme Court nominee in a Senate hearing that evoked strong emotional responses around the country. Ford directly stated, “I believed he was going to rape me.” Various Republicans, including Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Orrin Hatch (R-AZ), came out in support of Kavanaugh, and Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) called Ford’s testimony a shameful display. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Susan Collins (R-ME) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) remain on the fence about Kavanaugh’s confirmation, with Flake supporting Democrats’ demands for an FBI inquiry into Ford’s allegations. Two other women, Deborah Ramirez and Julie Swetnick, have come out with similar claims against him (The New York Times, “Brett Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford Duel With Tears and Fury,” 09.27.2018).

President Donald Trump addressed the U.N. General Assembly this week. His opening speech, which included the claim that his administration had already accomplished more than any other in U.S. history, left many in the chamber laughing. Several of Trump’s statements were aimed at China, with which Trump has recently been engaged in a trade war, in response to a fourpage advertisement advocating U.S.-China trade in the Des Moines Register that was paid for by

As Del Razo expanded, “Immigrants and children of immigrants, we don’t see ourselves in the books we read, in the texts we read, in the things we encounter in classrooms, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t have stories or histories.”

Immigrant stories and experiences are often told among the immigrant community through diverse mediums such as songs, oral histories and art, which can then be passed down to younger generations. By telling these stories in a more concentrated way to students with whom they would resonate, the conference seeks to help build the consciousness, resilience and resistance of immigrant youth.

This year’s theme was reflected in the many workshops, which focused on topics of resilience and storytelling. One such workshop, run

by Professor of Anthropology and Director of Latin American and Latino/a Studies David Tavárez, was titled “Zapotec Religion and Colonial/ Postcolonial Resistance.” As Tavárez described the workshop, “[It constituted a presentation of] indigenous resistance to colonial rule, and the persistence of local indigenous cosmology and devotions, as an important historical example of resilience and resistance.”

Co-Coordinator of CollegeConnect and former Vassar College Counseling Service psychotherapist Lisa Reticker ran a workshop that discussed the ways in which immigrant students can communicate with their parents—some of whom were in attendance—and balance their disparate worlds and cultural dualities.

Not only was the conference open to the Vassar community, but the IYEC also invited around 100 local high school students and community representatives. One workshop, which addressed the specific origins of conference participants, was titled “EPIC: Central American Immigrant Youth

Learning and Leading in Rural Dutchess County.”

The focal point of this workshop was sharing stories that were meaningful to participants both in Guatemala and New York.

In addition to a variety of workshops, the conference also included a plenary session moderated by Associate Professor of Sociology Eréndira Rueda. This session, called “Lived Stories of Resistance and Resilience,” also followed the overall theme of the conference, featuring four Vassar alumnae/i who grew up in immigrant families.

The plenary session presented an opportunity for the alums to share their experience at Vassar and the ways in which their immigrant family backgrounds influenced that experience. The panelists also discussed the meaning of resistance and resilience in their eyes and how their identities and circumstances have influenced them in the professional world.

Panelist Alicia Lewis ’18 shared how she came to the United States with her family from Trinidad when she was seven years old. While at Vassar, she was a part of the Transitions program, which supports first-generation, low-income and/or undocumented students. During her senior year, Lewis joined the planning committee for Adelante Student Voices, an organization of which she is still a part.

Lewis stated that she wished a conference like the IYEC had been around while she was still a student in high school and college. Discussing the importance of this type of conference, she explained, “Events like this can help underrepresented communities feel more empowered because they offer a safe space for an open discussion on the unique challenges immigrant youth face.”

In addition to participating in the panel, Lewis ran a workshop titled “Our Virtual Identities: Media Literacy and the Politics of Representation.”

This topic has interested her since she got the chance to conduct an independent study on undocumented youth and the rise of the immigrant rights movement.

Finally, the conference included an address by the keynote speaker Quintanilla.

Del Razo, in reflecting on the conference, emphasized the amount of work that went into making this event possible and how grateful he was to those who contributed to its success. He remembered that when he organized a new course for the Spring 2018 semester titled “Undocumented, Unapologetic, Unafraid” alongside Rueda, his colleague and fellow member of the planning committee, there was great support and interest from the College, from students and from the participating Education and Sociology Departments and Latin American and Latino/a Studies Program.

The conference itself was similarly well-promoted. The packet that each participant received featured a list of people and groups who had founded, sponsored or supported the IYEC, ranging from the ALANA Center to various academic departments to President of the College Elizabeth Bradley. Indeed, Del Razo commented that he felt this wealth of support all throughout the planning and implementation of this inaugural IYEC. Speaking to the relevance of the conference to the campus as a whole, he added, “All signs show that this issue is an issue of interest, and an issue that the Vassar community wants to support and learn more about and teach more about.” Providing spaces such as this one where immigrants and the children of immigrants can come together is crucial to making sure that immigrant students feel like they can thrive in a place like Vassar. As Del Razo put it, “[College-sponsored events like these] say, ‘No, we reject this anti-immigrant narrative and we see you and we’re here for you.’”

the state-run newspaper China Daily. Trump also claimed, “Regrettably, we’ve found that China has been attempting to interfere in our upcoming 2018 election...” (The New York Times, “China Rejects Trump’s Charges of Meddling in U.S. Elections,” 09.27.2018).

In Mississippi, Senate candidate Mike Espy is one of several Black politicians seeking political office this November, along with Andrew Gillum of Florida and Stacey Abrams of Georgia, who are seeking the gubernatorial positions in their respective states. Espy will face an uphill battle in a state that boasts the Confederate seal on its flag. Espy’s Republican opponent, Chris McDaniel, is an outspoken supporter of the flag.

Should voters reject two Republican candidates and vote for him, Espy will become Mississippi’s first Black senator in over a century (The Washington Post, “In Mississippi Senate race, an African American Democrat faces a Republican using a Confederate symbol,” 09.30.2018).

Presidential Counselor Kellyanne Conway revealed on CNN that she is a survivor of sexual assault, but that she does not believe that allegations of misconduct against Kavanaugh should impede his nomination. Conway previously referred to her experiences with assault following the 2016 election, but warned against inferring her admission as a detriment to her functions as an advisor to Trump. While speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union” this past Sunday, Sept. 30, Conway stated: “I don’t expect Judge Kavanaugh or Jake Tapper or Jeff Flake or anybody to be held responsible for that. You have to be responsible for your own conduct’’ (The Boston Globe, “Kellyanne Conway says, ‘I’m a victim of sexual assault,’” 09.20.2018)

my sins? Did I steal money? ... My only sin is extrajudicial killings.” He also referred to the lack of formal implication against him in the deaths of thousands. Duterte’s spokesperson attempted to retract the comments, but global human rights groups spoke out against any remaining doubts about his culpability. The stated number of deaths related to resisting police is 3,967, but opposing senator Antonio Trillanes said on Sept. 28 that the number had risen above 20,000 since Duterte assumed office in 2016 (Al Jazeera, “Rodrigo Duterte: ‘My only sin is extrajudicial killings,’” 09.28.2018) A 7.5-magnitude earthquake caused the deaths of 832 people on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi after nearly 10-foot-high waves of the ensuing tsunami crashed on land on Sept. 28. This number is expected to continue rising. Authorities have estimated that of the 2.4 million affected by the earthquake, hundreds more were injured and 17,000 were rendered homeless. Various infrastructural necessities, including airports, roads and bridges, have been either washed out or destroyed, leaving thousands isolated at a time when access to water, food and healthcare is most crucial (CNN, “Indonesia earthquake and tsunami death toll surpasses 830,” 09.30.2018).

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) released a statement on Sept. 30 attributing its decision to ignore the results of that day’s parliamentary elections to violations in the voting process. The party, which currently dominates Iraq’s northern region, is competing with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in the face of growing corruption, economic hardship and moral disquiet. The Gorran Movement, which opposed the two-party PUK-KDP coalition, accused the PUK of threatening the credibility of the elections, the results of which have not yet been released (Reuters, “Main Iraqi Kurdish party says it may reject regional election result,” 09.30.2018).

Hudson to support the Out of the Darkness Walk. Hosted by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), the walk intends to raise awareness about suicide and eradicate the stigma surrounding it. Board member of the Hudson Valley/Westchester chapter of the AFSP Diane Missasi, who lost her son to suicide in 2011, commented on her first walk: “I met people I felt I could connect with.” The event also raises funds for initiatives to educate schools and communities about suicide prevention (The Poughkeepsie Journal, “Out of the Darkness walk to promote suicide prevention, raise funds,” 09.29.2018).

The town board of East Fishkill passed a nine-month moratorium on Thursday, Sept. 27, intended to halt development at industrial sites, in light of the news that Stormville Airport was in contract to sell 155 acres to Copart, a vehicle salvaging and auction company. Residents of East Fishkill raised concern over the future of their town, as well as the environmental impact, increased noise and traffic the company would bring, at a town meeting supporting the moratorium (The Poughkeepsie Journal, “East Fishkill passes moratorium for i-zones after outcry over Stormville Airport sale,” 09.28.2018).

Around the world...

Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte is currently facing two charges of crimes against humanity from the International Criminal Court for extrajudicial killings promulgated by his war on drugs. Critics clamored over the apparent admission in a speech he gave on Sept. 27: “What are

In our backyard...

This past Sunday, Sept. 30, hundreds in the Hudson Valley flocked to the Walkway Over the

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

2020 hopefuls...

At a town hall in Mount Holyoke, MA, on Sept. 29, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) announced that she is “taking a hard look” at running for president in 2020. Warren stated, “It’s time for women to go to Washington and fix our broken government, and that includes a woman at the top.” This leaves almost no doubt that she will seek the Democratic candidacy in two years’ time, as she has extensively traveled around the country and met with potential sponsors. Warren is one of several Democratic senators to publicly rebuke Kavanaugh, alongside members of the Senate Judiciary Committee Kamala Harris (DCA) and Cory Booker (D-NJ). Warren is currently seeking re-election for Senate (The New York Times, “Elizabeth Warren Says 2020 Presidential Run Is On the Table,” 09.29.2018).

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NEWS

October 4, 2018

Outside the Bubble U.N. condemns Rohingya genocide U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Myanmar’s Minister for the Office of the State Counsellor Kyaw Tint Swe last Thursday, Sept.

27, at the U.N. General Assembly in New York.

During the meeting, Pompeo called for Myanmar’s government to hold its military accountable for violence committed against its Muslim minority population (Reuters, “U.S. urges Myanmar to hold security forces accountable in Rohingya crackdown,” 09.28.2018).

In Rakhine State, a western coastal region of Myanmar, about one-third of the population identifies as Rohingya Muslim. The Rohingya are ethnically, religiously and linguistically distinct from Myanmar’s majority Buddhist population.

Under current legislation, many of the Rohingya are undocumented. Since the 1940s, laws have also barred them from citizenship, marriage, education and employment (Council on Foreign Relations, “The Rohingya Crisis,” 04.20.2018).

However, the most recent controversy surrounding the Rakhine State involves allegations of ethnic cleansing on the part of Myanmar’s military. On Thursday, Myanmar saw responses from the U.N. Human Rights Council, which decided to establish an independent body to advance any criminal charges that result from the actions of Myanmar security forces. The decision was backed by a majority of 35 of the council’s 47 members and came after an August report by a U.N. fact-finding team that called for the prosecution of the Commander-in-Chief of the Myanmar Armed Forces Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and other top military leaders (The New York Times, “Human Rights Council Ratchets Up Pressure on Myanmar,” 09.27.2018).

According to the U.N., 700,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh and other neighboring countries following a military crackdown last year.

Both the U.S. State Department and the U.N. released documents that list atrocities committed by the Myanmar military against the Rohingya.

The U.S. report came out earlier in the week, before Pompeo’s meeting with Myanmar officials, and listed mass killings, arson and rapes as part of deliberate efforts by the Myanmar military.

Myanmar has defended its actions, claiming the fact-finders were misinformed about the military’s campaign against terrorism (Reuters, “U.S. urges Myanmar”).

A coalition of all the countries in the European Union and 57 states from the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation sponsored the U.N.’s resolution. The Pakistani ambassador to the U.N. Farukh Amil said the collaboration was “unprecedented” and that it should be understood as a strong message to Myanmar’s government (The New York Times, “Human Rights Council”).

In Washington on Wednesday, Sept. 26, members of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee urged the Trump administration to call Myanmar’s actions a genocide.

The members said that a debate over language delayed the release of the report for a month. At the heart of the dispute was the fact that the U.S. report did not use language such as “genocidal intent” or “crimes against humanity” like the U.N. analysis had. Both Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Todd Young (R-IN) asked Pompeo if he worked to make a legal determination of genocide through the State Department (Reuters, “Lawmakers urge U.S. to call Myanmar’s Rohingya campaign genocide,” 09.26.2018).

Pompeo also discussed the imprisonment of two journalists with the Myanmar officials. On Sept. 3, Myanmar police arrested Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, both Myanmar nationals and Reuters journalists, while they were investigating the killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims after the discovery of a mass grave. Myanmar’s case against the journalists cited a 90-year-old law, the Official Secrets Act, that originated under British colonial rule (NPR, “Reuters Journalists In Myanmar Convicted, Sentenced To 7 Years,” 09.03.2018).

At their trial, a police captain testified that the

case against the journalists was a setup. He was sentenced to a year in prison for his statement.

The journalists received a sentence of seven years for trying to obtain confidential state documents. As members of the independent Myanmar Press Council Myint Kyaw expressed, “This decision is a warning that no journalist can report freely about the Rakhine issue” (The New York Times, “Myanmar Sentences Reuters Journalists to 7 Years in Prison,” 09.03.18).

At a forum in Vietnam in September of this year, Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi claimed that the reporters had been arrested for a violation of the law and not for a free expression of journalism. The case has drawn international criticism of the condition of Myanmar’s power structures. Aung San Suu Kyi has the ability to pardon the journalists, but to her critics, the case is another example of her decision to suppress dissent (The New York Times, “From Hero to Pariah, Aung San Suu Kyi Dashes Hopes About Myanmar,” 09.29.2018).

When she came to power in 2015, Aung San Suu Kyi offered the promise of reclaiming Myanmar from a military junta through a progressive democracy, but international opinion of her has fallen since then. The oppressive military rule began in 1962 after it ousted Prime Minister U Nu who aimed to lead a Buddhist, non-aligned state during the Cold War. Aung San Suu Kyi was an opposition leader against the military rule, which placed her under house arrest for 15 years (BBC, “Myanmar country profile,” 09.03.2018).

The military retained legislative authority and autonomy from the civilian state’s control under the constitutional system that brought Aung San Suu Kyi to power. However, the U.N. document that criticized the military implicated her, claiming that she has not used her power as counsellor to stop the military from committing atrocities (The New York Times, “From Hero to Pariah”).

Various political powers have persecuted the Rohingya since the time of British colonial rule,

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MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

but Aung San Suu Kyi’s government has defended the killing and expulsion of the Rohingya under the guise of a fight against the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA). In 2017, ARSA claimed responsibility for attacks against police and the military. In the crackdown that ensued, the miliary killed an estimated 6,700 Rohingya in the first month (CNN, “UN granted access to Rohingya villages in Rakhine state,” 09.13.2018).

Aung San Suu Kyi’s association with the violence has resulted in diplomatic consequences.

In 2007, she received honorary citizenship from Canada while advocating for democracy during her time under house arrest. Only five other people have received the same honor from Canada, including Nelson Mandela, Malala Yousafzai and the Dalai Lama (Aljazeera, “Canada strips Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi of honorary citizenship,” 09.28.2018).

Canada’s House of Commons, though, cast a unanimous vote on Thursday, Sept. 27 to revoke the honor. While the Canadian Senate still has to approve the decision, the vote came after the House of Commons officially declared the violence in the Rakhine State to be genocide (The New York Times, “Canada’s Parliament Moves to Strip Honor for Myanmar’s Leader,” 09.28.2018).

While the United States has not given such honors to Myanmar leadership, it has gradually lifted sanctions that targeted the military government. Language has remained central to U.S. relations with the country. Beyond the recent debate over the use of the word genocide, the United States has not yet officially recognized the change Myanmar made to its name in 1989.

The State Department and other U.S. agencies still refer to Myanmar as Burma, a name that reflects the country’s Burmese ethnic majority (U.S. Department of State, “Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs Fact Sheet: US relations with Burma,” 07.17.2018).

—Chris Dillon, Guest Reporter

NEWS

October 4, 2018

Page 5

VSA Updates Consensus Agenda–Passed Finance allocations • $209.52/$209.52 to Aikido Club from Capital Fund

The committee is in the process of reviewing proposed org constitutions.

of the Faculty Jonathan Chenette will be in attendance.

of Elections and Appointments (BoEA) to seek out new committee members. New members would be reviewed and appointed by BoEA.

Chair of Equity and Inclusion The chair met with a senior to consider hosting a workshop in January with students, faculty and staff to discuss racism.

The committee would seek collaboration with ALANA Center orgs.

Chair of Organizations

Chair of Finance The committee is working with the Board

As we have reached the end of the month, org treasurers should be completing reconciliation forms.

Vice President President Elizabeth Bradley will be coming

President The Enagaged Pluralism Initiative Steering Committee met to discuss the results of last year’s Campus Climate Survey. Results from that survey will be released in November; the committee is discussing how to engage the campus community in a dialogue around these results.

President Tamar Ballard will be meeting with Athletics to discuss the relationship between the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and the VSA.

Committee Chair Updates Chair of Health and Wellness Chair met with Director of Health Services Dr. Irena Balawajder to discuss plans for restocking first-aid kits in residential houses.

BoEA Appointments Cody Harmon ’19 and Kristin Caolo ’19 appointed Senior Gift Co-Chairs Executive Board Updates Chair of Academics The academics committee is involved in

in to the next Senate meeting on Sunday, Oct. 7 at 2:30 p.m. to discuss the College’s five-year plan. All students are welcome and encouraged to attend this meeting.

Ballard talked about Bon Appetit’s planned phase out of the Deece’s plastic straws with Dean of the College Carlos Alamo-Pastrana.

Courtesy of Kelsie Milburn

—headgear and sparring gloves 2000/2000 to Outing Club from Discretionary Fund —money to subsidize membership and travel costs for Climbing Team • $67.96/$67.96 to Chess Club from Capital Fund —four chess boards that will be stored with NSO and which are necessary for this pre-org’s programming • $400/$500 to Contrast from Community Fund —annual fashion presentation in December • $2500/$3890 to Student Musicians Union from Capital Fund —sound systems to make new practice space functional • $750/$750 to PHOCUS from Conference Fund —12+ members to attend regional photography conference • $150/$150 to Toastmasters from Pre-organizations Fund —subsidy for new member fees and six-month membership fees to international organization • $2150/$2150 to Vassar Student Review from Discretionary Fund —annual budget •

the organization of a public forum, to be held on Oct. 28, regarding the planned curricular change. Chair of Academics May Venkat-Ramani ’20, Professor Teresa Garrett, Professor Christopher Bjork and Dean

Students are encouraged to attend VSA Senate this upcoming Sunday, Oct. 7, for a forum with President Bradley concerning the College’s priorities and planning process.

The committee is planning a “Health-oween” event in the week leading up to Halloween to inform students of the resources that will be available to them during Halloweekend.

Chair of Programming The committee is planning events to be held during October break, which may include a bus to New Paltz and a movie night.

—Julian Corbett ’19, VSA General Intern

Community lauds influence of late philosophy professor DEES continued from page 1

of these events. Seidman also emphasized that Philosophy Department Administrative Assistant Angela Smith handled the organization of all logistical concerns for the memorial.

Seidman explained the logic behind presenting a memorial lecture: “[Dees] was young, promising and full of ideas. His intellectual life was a big part of who he was. He did a PhD in philosophy and he was just starting out on his career, so we thought in addition to a memorial for him as a well-rounded person, which we are also doing, it would be appropriate to try and get his ideas out there.”

Seidman also described the Dees family’s desire to gain a better understanding of Dees’ work: “His family, in communication with us, expressed interest in trying to understand what he was working on. Because philosophy is often esoteric and it’s got a technical jargon, we thought both for the family and also for us, and for the wider world, it would be a nice way to honor him, to try to engage with some of the ideas that he was working on before he passed away.”

He added, “I hope people are able to come away with a glimmering of what it is that Professor Dees was thinking about.” Even for his students and colleagues who are already familiar with the philosophic vocabulary, the lecture was intended to cultivate a more specific understanding of Dees’ work.

A memorial service was held in the Aula prior to the lecture. With contributions from students, colleagues, family and friends, the

event aimed to celebrate the multifaceted life of Dees. He was a lover of nature, and reflections from his “adventure buddies” (their own term) demonstrated the intersection of this aspect of his personality with his philosophical work.

One speaker at the service told the story of a sort of game she would play with Dees when they went on adventures, which he called “a priori biology.”

For the non-philosophical, “a priori” refers to knowledge gleaned from theoretical deduction rather than experience. The game consisted of pointing out a particular plant or animal and wildly speculating as to its chain of evolution and the other organisms to which it was related, sometimes with hilarious results.

The memorial also featured the thoughts of some of Dees’ students. Seidman described his preparation for his reflection at the memorial: “The number of students [I reached out to] who said that he inspired them, or opened their eyes to something new, or in several cases, said they have decided to be philosophy majors as a result of taking that first class with him was astounding … He touched a lot of people in a way that I suspect will be with them 30 years from now, when they’re in their careers and they’re doing other things.”

In a reception following the memorial, students came together in remembrance of Dees, as well as to share their personal stories with the Dees family.

Connor McShaffrey ’21 recalled, “I remember early on in class, I started to wonder how in depth he’d get with things, so I asked how

quantum physics would affect an argument he was presenting. He got the most excited expression and started over, explaining everything from that standpoint.”

At the reception, Karen Nakayama ’21 and I got the opportunity to speak with one of Professor Dees’ brothers. We shared some of our most vivid memories with him, such as the time Professor Dees walked into Rocky 312, slapped the front desk loudly and posed the question: “Did my hand just touch the desk?” He told us that our stories meant a lot to him and the rest of the family, as they reflected an important part of Dees’ life that they wouldn’t have known about otherwise.

Following the reception, the event moved into Rocky 200, where many students had already assembled. After an introduction by Seidman, Zimmerman began his lecture: “It’s an honor to be talking about Marco’s ideas...I think this is something he would’ve liked.” He suggested that by engaging with Dees’ work, students could briefly move from the physical world into the Platonic realm of ideas and not focus on the tragedy at hand.

“Marco may be gone,” he said, “but his ideas are here still.” As he began to describe the foundations of Dees’ views on spacetime and read from some of Dees’ papers, Zimmerman’s words came to life. The language of the writing perfectly matched the way Dees spoke in class, verbal tics and all.

Zimmerman explained how Dees posited the view that space and time are not the constitutive elements of reality, a view called prim-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

itivism, which indicates that spacetime is the prime, most basic structure of the universe.

Instead, space and time are themselves governed by something else; Dees thought that this something else was the causal structure of the universe.

He condensed this view into a neat slogan, “Spacetime is what spacetime does,” that encapsulates the functionalist view. He posited that primitivism gives rise to redundancy, and thus is not the best description of the nature of the universe.

Zimmerman used various means to explain these concepts to an audience of both philosophers—including many professors from the department, as well as students—and those with no background in philosophy.

After the lecture, Nakayama noted that his chalk drawing on the blackboard, intending to depict a world in which topology differed from our own, reminded her particularly of class with Dees: “When [Zimmerman] started drawing stick figures on the board, all I could think was, ‘This is exactly how Professor Dees would’ve explained this.’”

The lecture was, in many ways, a kind of mental time travel back to sitting in class, listening to Dees explain abstruse ideas with his trademark enthusiasm.

At the end of the lecture, after taking a few questions, Zimmerman ended his sojourn into the Platonic realm. “If I could just add one more thing,” he said, “it’s times like this, when we have questions that we can’t figure out answers to, that we just want to go ask Marco.”

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October 4, 2018

Alumnae/i highlight importance of poetry in hostile times POETS continued from page 1

Courtesy of the Vassar English Department

have to be worried about who you’re going to offend or piss off. So there’s real freedom to just explore the themes you want to explore.” Without the allure or necessity of capitalizing off of poetic work, she said, there is room to speak one’s mind. The use of metaphor, as Hilsabeck suggests, compounds with this total freedom of content to form a new lens through which to view the often untouched topics that poets are (according to Pancrazi) at financial liberty to broach. Hence, a new language.

In “Full Body Pleasure Suit,” Pancrazi, who earned her MFA in creative writing from NYU, uses this language to discuss the ways in which people can become absorbed in technology and TV to a ridiculous extent. She described the familiar scenario in which someone describes every intricacy of the plot of a TV show that no one else in the room has seen, and her perplexity at the degree to which virtual realities have permeated tangible life.

Pancrazi’s words highlight another form of poetry as a new language: namely, the ever-growing social media outlet of Twitter. The 280-character form that tweets take on mirrors that of short prose poetry and serves as an example of the way in which, as Pancrazi said, “[People become deeply involved] in virtual worlds, at the expense of things that are right in front of you.” In this way, perhaps artists aren’t the only ones speaking this new, politically poetic language. Trump has adopted it, as well.

Although it may seem like a stretch to describe tweets as poetry, there is no denying that many poems appear structurally similar to Twitter’s model. Hilsabeck, who went on from Vassar to graduate from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, stressed the importance of poet-

On Thursday, Sept. 27, Vassar hosted a lecture with two former students and current poets who discussed the power of poetry as a new language, drawing connections to politics and technology. ic form, particularly given that “Riddles, etc.” adopts an unusual structure: Each poem is a riddle and the book comes with an answer key.

Discussing this aspect of his poetry, Hilsabeck said, “For me, poetry is very much about form.

That’s what keeps me coming back to it, and that’s what I learned from Mr. Kane.”

Here, Hilsabeck was referring to Professor of

English Paul Kane, who had invited both Pancrazi and Hilsabeck back to Vassar. Kane was an important person in both Pancrazi’s and Hilsabeck’s development as writers and as people.

Kane said of the two poets’ times at Vassar, “I knew them both, and even had the pleasure of teaching Geoff. We loved their poems and we love, too, that they’ve returned to share their

work with us.”

Kane’s comment was a particularly poignant moment. For current Vassar students watching what almost felt like previews of themselves 15 years from now (several students asked both Pancrazi and Hilsabeck for advice on emulating the paths the poets have taken to the accreditation of their MFAs), it seemed that, with Kane’s words, all those personal goals were within reach.

As the event continued, Pancrazi and Hilsabeck read their work, speaking their new languages from behind the podium. Highlights of Pancrazi’s reading included a humorous piece titled “The Secretary of the Interior Skulks in His Office,” which drew laughter from around the room, and a longer piece dealing with the always relevant topics of bodies, love and betrayal entitled “Body Swap.”

Hilsabeck read two riddles (one an audience member was able to solve; the other proved too difficult for tired minds at the close of a long week) and finished with a lengthy piece which he explained had come from the beginnings of a translation of an Old English poem. The piece tells the story of a wannabe actress in New York, whose assault leads her to consider suicide; she opts instead to take her assaulter to trial, where he is acquitted. Employing his new language, Hilsabeck closed the event at Vassar by metaphorically referring to this parallel event occurring on Capitol Hill.

Pancrazi described this new language: “It’s almost about giving someone a feeling, or giving them a provocation to think about something.” In the difficult days to come, perhaps we can all use the new poetic language to make sense of all the inexplicable events occurring in our world.

‘Past Time’ exhibit engenders respect for great outdoors Abby Tarwater

GUEST COLUMNIST

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rom Sept. 21 to Dec. 8, 2018, the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center is presenting a temporary exhibition titled “Past Time: Geology in European and American Art.” The show features watercolors, sketches, paintings and drawings created by artists from the 1770s to the 1890s, a period during which geology emerged as a distinct scientific field and landscape became a major focus of artistic work. These concurrent developments in the areas of art and science prompted a shared interest in land and geology.

“Past Time” opened on Friday, Sept. 21, with a lecture by Associate Professor of Art at Wellesley College Rebecca Bedell. As to why the 18th and 19th centuries saw a surge in art related to geology, Bedell explained, “Geology was then a new

science, and a controversial one, intent on overturning long established ideas about the Earth… already by the 18th century, geologists were vastly expanding the age of the earth and populating its long history with creatures more extraordinary than anyone had imagined. It’s no wonder that so many artists and other members of the public were drawn to geology in those days.”

The establishment of the field of geology was prompted by a novel scientific investigation of the Earth’s crust (The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, “Past Time,” 2018). Geology developed due to a blend of scientists’ interests in the application of minerals, new theories about how the Earth began and their curiosity about how rocks and land features form (The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center). Artists—especially landscapists—and scientists alike became fascinated by this newfound

Izzy Braham/The Miscellany News

The “Past Time” exhibition now on display in the Loeb displays paintings, drawings, journals and sketches as well as geological artifacts, linking the disparate traditions of science and art.

intensity in our ways of observing the Earth.

The exhibition was curated by the Loeb’s Philip and Lynn Straus Curator of Prints and Drawings Patricia Phagan, who has cited a watercolor by John Ruskin in the Loeb’s permanent collection as her inspiration for the exhibition. On the shared interests of artists and scientists during the time period, Phagan stated, “Artists found that geology sharpened their perceptions of the land and fed their curiosities about how the earth and its mountains, rocks, etc. were formed.” She continued to sum up how artists were instrumental to the development of geology, “There were friendships between artists and geologists during this long time period, from the 1770s to the 1890s, when geology was largely accessible to a popular audience bent on exploring and learning about the land around them and seeing faraway places...[E]ighteenth century geological societies were founded by naturalists, artists and others who were not professional geologists in the way that we understand that today.”

Nineteenth-century artists often began their geological landscape paintings by visiting land features and sketching in field notebooks, which is the same method of observation that geologists use in their studies; some of these artists’ notebooks are featured in the display. The exhibition is arranged according to four geological motifs: caves and natural arches; rocks and rock formations; mountains, volcanoes and glaciers; and cliffs.

Although the interests of artists and scientists were harmonious form the late eighteenth to nineteenth century, many still consider the worlds of art and science to be disparate in terms of methodology, purpose and ethos. However, “Past Time” highlights the similar ways in which scientists— particularly geologists—and artists process and study the world.

Professor of Earth Science and a consultant and guest contributor to the Past Time Catalogue, Jill S. Schneiderman, is one such geologist for which the

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

studies of art and science are complimentary. She joined Phagan in presenting a gallery talk about the exhibition on Wednesday, Oct. 3, at 4 p.m.

Schneiderman fueled her interest in the relationship between geology and art by sitting in on Art 105-106 lectures. Schneiderman explained, “I wanted to see how art dovetailed with geology, and how artists look at the world visually, because that’s what field geologists do. They both use a visual language to articulate what it is that they are taking in.”

Schneiderman found that contributing to the “Past Time” exhibition further allowed her to recognize the likeness between the artist and the geologist. She described, “One of the things I took home from doing the exhibit is that artists and geologists take in the world the same way by drawing what we see…We both draw what it is that we’re looking at as a way of understanding and taking it in.” She elaborated on this observing, expressing how it applied to her personally: “There are artists who are interested in rendering accurately what it is that they’re looking at, but they’re also perhaps expressing a feeling of awe. As a geologist, I don’t do it to only understand and record but to express my feelings of awe. When I try to explain what the Earth does, I do it as an act of devotion.”

The “Past Time” exhibition is in many ways complementary to the A. Scott Warthin Museum of Geology and Natural History in Ely Hall, which features an expansive collection of rocks, minerals, fossils and other artifacts related to natural history.

Although “Past Time” is only on display until Dec. 8, the A. Scott Warthin Museum allows students to appreciate the beauty of the Earth’s art throughout the year. Schneiderman urged visitors of “Past Time” to enhance their understanding of the exhibition by observing both galleries. Ultimately, whether one understands the world primarily through a scientific lens or an artistic one, “Past Time” aims to evoke a sense of awe for all individuals, giving us a moment to appreciate nature.

October 4, 2018

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Life of Basquiat to be performed as Broadway musical Taylor Stewart

GUEST COLUMNIST

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Courtesy of Renaud Camus via Flickr

orn and raised in Brooklyn, an anchor of contemporary art, Jean Michel-Basquiat used to sign his pieces SAMO©. The alias originally stood for “same old shit.” SAMO© was Basquiat’s first art project. He started it with artist Al Diaz, whom he met in high school, and artist Shannon Dawson. The group dominated the New York City graffiti movement in the ’70s and ’80s. They mainly painted SoHo and the Lower East Side with maxims about “THE SO-CALLED AVANT GARDE,” “MASS MEDIA MINDWASH” and the drudgery of “9-5, WENT 2 COLLEGE, NOT 2NITE HONEY BLUES.” They told jokes and issued their frustrations with contemporary society. Short and biting, maybe childish, their graffiti covered politics, religion and pop culture, even the surge of artists into SoHo, in the vein of the angsty teen. Basquiat and Diaz inspired copycat artists and pervaded the culture of their canvas, which was starting to retire punk by the end of the ’70s. Self-described concept artist Henry Flynt, who photographed several of the group’s messages, wrote an essay describing the cultural milieu of New York at the time: “The so-called avant-garde had become a formidable, lucrative, orthodox institution—in which supercilious barrenness was the reigning fashion. By the end of the Seventies, Punk broadened into a crossover culture called New Wave. The Seventies narcissists began to metamorphose into Yuppies.”

(Slideshare, “Viewing SAMO©,” 1993/1997.)

Wall Street’s bull market started pouring money into New York art in the early 1980s. Art dealers rose in power, and auction houses inflated prices; young Basquiat used SAMO© to address these changes. Later on in his career, Basquiat would become the star of this newly commercial-

ized art world. (In keeping with Andy Warhol’s philosophy, some careerism was necessary to be a successful artist at the time.) SAMO© ended after Basquiat and Diaz had a falling-out in early 1980, a finale as famous as the project itself.

The former started painting “SAMO© IS DEAD” on buildings in downtown Manhattan and SoHo art galleries. Meanwhile, he was energetically making connections with Warhol and prolific pop and graffiti artist Keith Haring. The MoMA P.S.1 Gallery in Queens featured his work. He frequented the now-famous Mudd Club, which also functioned as a gallery. He continued using the pen name until his solo career took off in the mid-80s. He went clubbing frequently, but painted incessantly, and got rich in about a year.

Award-winning producers Barbara and Alan D. Marks (of “Dear Evan Hansen” and “The Encounter”) will present an artistic near-antipode to Basquiat’s debut: an original Broadway musical. Having received an okay from the late artist’s estate, the project is set to feature music and lyrics from Jon Batiste of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” Tony Award-winning director John Doyle, famous for his productions of “Sweeney Todd” and “The Color Purple,” will direct the show. The production crew will have ready access to Basquiat’s art and personal archives.

The show is in capable hands, and popularizing the subject’s story is valuable: Viewers are in for a tale about the creative process, Blackness in America, addiction and the toxicity of the commercial art world. Basquiat’s sisters Lisane and Jeanine have also expressed excitement for the project, stating, “[O]ur interest was piqued once we understood that [the Marks’] approach to telling our brother’s story treats his life, his art, and his legacy with respect and passion.” (Artnet News, “The Tragic Life Story of Jean-Michel

Basquiat’s life story will take center stage in a Broadway musical that promises to be both sensitive and entertaining. Acclaimed producers Barbara and Alan D. Marks will put on the show.

Basquiat Is Going to Become a Major Broadway Musical,” 09.26.2018) Basquiat had a tumultuous life, to say the least.

He died of a heroin overdose at 27 years old; after working for only about a decade, he reached unprecedented levels of fame as a painter but sagged completely into addiction. The art industry predated on like creators. However, Basquiat had known displacement since childhood. He had problems. A flock of art dealers attended his funeral. The week following his death, appraisers taking inventory in his loft found over 1,000 works he had hidden from such dealers (Warhol had advised him to do so).

It takes a kind of bravery to tackle Basquiat-era

New York through a musical; at the same time, it is easy to mythicize something as crazy as his life, as beautiful, horrific and intense as his experiences and art. Al Diaz told Dazed Magazine of the SAMO© graffiti, “What we were doing was more like Greco-Roman graffiti, making commentaries on the world around us and that set us aside.” Upon first thought, a Broadway show seems contrary to the anti-establishment angst that characterized the graffiti and resounded in much of Basquiat’s professional work. Hopefully, Basquiat on Broadway will approach his story with attitudes similar to those of the SAMO© group—not solely as entertainment, but as something about tragedy and creative excellence.

Novel captures inevitable ‘in-betweenness’ of growing up Madeline Seibel Dean GUEST COLUMNIST

Three Daughters of Eve

Elif Shafak Penguin Books

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he summer after high school and before college is comprised of a kind of in-betweenness, saying goodbye to one thing while preparing for another. In general, much of youth takes place in this kind of liminal space: between childhood and adulthood, between your family’s identity and your own, between who you are and who you want to be. While many books, movies and television series feature young protagonists and try to address the idea of youth, few fully take

on this in-betweenness.

I spent much of the time between high school and college trying to read as many books as possible before my schedule was overloaded with classes. To my delight, I found a book that describes this in-betweenness quite well—Elif Shafak’s 2016 novel “The Three Daughters of Eve.” The book is primarily set in Turkey. It follows the life of a woman, Nazperi Nalbantoğlu, better known as Peri, and is told in two alternating timelines: One starts when she’s in her 30s and is going to a dinner party with members of Istanbul’s elite, and one involves flashbacks to her childhood and youth.

In the book’s opening scene, Peri fights off a tramp who tries to steal her purse. During this scuffle, a photograph falls out of her bag, reminding her of her college days.

Courtesy of World Economic Forum via Flickr

Writer Elif Shafak highlights the crucial, yet often confusing, transition between childhood and adulthood in her recent novel, “The Three Daughters of Eve,” through the character of Peri.

The next chapter is a flashback in which we learn about her childhood, during which time she’s divided by her mother’s strict religious attitudes and her intensely secular father. This pattern is mirrored by her older brothers and by some of the dinner guests in the later timeline. In addition, this seems to be an allegory for much of Turkey’s history—caught between religion and secularism, and between the East and the West.

In these first few chapters, Shafak introduces another recurring conflict: the nature of God. Again, Peri is divided between her mother’s confidence in God and her father’s constant denial of a divine being. To clear things up, Peri begins to keep a journal of all the events that happen in her life that relate to God, including her strange recurring visions. That journal, those visions and the photograph from the first scene provide a frame of reference for the story.

Eventually, Peri follows her father’s wishes and leaves Turkey altogether. She goes to Oxford, where she is confronted with a brand new culture. However, she remains haunted by her in-betweenness. Two extremes are represented by two different characters. One of the first students Peri meets is Shirin, an exuberant Iranian girl existing in an in-betweenness of her own, having been exiled from her country. Shirin is extroverted, modern and promiscuous. Then, Peri meets Mona, a religious and reserved Egyptian-American.

While much of the book would lead readers to believe that Shirin, Peri and Mona are the three protagonists, the narrative doesn’t offer much development for Mona and Shirin. Mona’s character, in particular, is written without much depth.

To the reader, her absence presents much of Peri’s inner struggle as unbalanced.

I felt like Peri’s struggle with religion was depicted quite profoundly, and that it was one of the more engaging aspects of the book. Shafak does a wonderful job in demonstrating this conflict— showing it rather than just telling us about it. This

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

adds more action and urgency to what could be a story of angst and inner turmoil.

Peri’s ambivalence toward religion continues to be amplified by external and internal forces, especially when she decides to take a seminar on the nature of God. The content of this class is another way in which Shafak depicts the inner conflict of the story, and it offers more for the book to explore.

Overall, I felt the story’s conflict was presented well as it was shown through the perspective of the main character—never getting too boring or slow. Shafak’s prose is lovely and was another reason to keep turning the pages. The characters, especially Peri, were well thought out and complemented each other.

The 2016 storyline, in which Peri goes to the dinner party, worked well in opening and closing the novel. Peri’s self-reflection helped emphasize the in-betweenness she experienced in her youth.

However, the storyline itself was often dull and also took a long time to develop. The main events don’t start until about three-quarters of the way through the novel.

In addition, the novel’s ending felt a little rushed. I didn’t see a convincing switch from the uncertain, in-between Peri we see in the chapters about her college experience and the more self-assured, reflective Peri in the 2016 chapters.

As the difference between her character at the beginning and the end forms a framing device for the whole story, I thought that the missing transition between them was a major fault in the narrative.

Still, “The Three Daughters of Eve” (or, at least, the first three-quarters of it) was engaging and interesting. Certainly, reading this book the summer before college helped me to realize how much of my life was taking place in the in-between spaces of college and childhood. And the ending makes me wonder how I’ll look back on this pivotal time in 10 or 20 years.

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October 4, 2018

Profound, harrowing lyrics stand out in latest Hozier EP Gina Pepitone

GUEST COLUMNIST Nina Cried Power

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sat in breathless anticipation, with the buzzing energy of New York City rushing through my veins. Perched in the top balcony of the Beacon Theatre, I peered down at the crowd of fans chattering excitedly. Eyes widening in astonishment, I realized that despite my short stature, I could still make out every detail of the stage.

My heart hiccupped as the lights in the theater dimmed and a moment of silence washed over the packed auditorium. It was a Monday night, but not even school could have kept me from missing this opportunity. It had been nearly five years, and now—for me and for many other Hozier fans—the long wait was finally over.

For those who are unfamiliar, Andrew Hozier-Byrne, best know by the mononym Hozier, is an Irish singer-songwriter. In 2014, he reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for his single “Take Me to Church.” Hozier’s overnight success catapulted his career from the streets of Dublin to touring stadiums worldwide, building an international fanbase.

It’s impossible not to be moved by Hozier’s raw vocals and chillingly poetic lyrics. His powerful voice is paralleled by his unprecedented talent for composing and producing a unique musical sound and style. His work is best described as a mix of indie rock, blues and folk, drawing inspiration from artists like Booker T. Jones, John Lee Hooker and Muddy Waters, to name a few.

Courtesy of Creative Commons via Flickr

Hozier Columbia Records

Earlier this year, Hozier announced the long anticipated release of new music and tour dates in the United States. Naturally, I, along with hundreds of other fans, scrambled to buy tickets.

At the concert, Hozier played all four songs he released on Sept. 6 from his new EP “Nina Cried Power.” The entire audience was completely captivated by Hozier’s amazing vocals.

The synchronization of the drumming and the lighting allowed his fans to internalize the rhythm of each song and feel his music pulse through our bodies.

Before the release of his politically charged newest EP, Hozier has been known to confront social issues in his earlier music as well.

The provocative music video for “Take Me to Church” highlights violent hate crimes committed against gays in Russia and openly confronts homophobia.

The music video for “Cherry Wine,” another hit from Hozier’s first album, features a woman in an abusive relationship. The video and lyrics confront domestic violence in a way that jars viewers, leaving them breathless from the juxtaposition of pain and beauty captured in the song.

His newest EP is similarly hair-raising. It highlights the power of protest and the civil rights movements in both Ireland and America. Hozier elaborates in an interview with Billboard, “‘Nina Cried Power’ is about crediting the legacy and the result of protest.”

The lead single on the EP, also titled “Nina Cried Power,” is a tribute to the heavy history of blues music, mentioning artists including Nina Simone, Joni Mitchell, Billie Holliday, James Brown and Mavis Staples, the last of whom is a featured singer on the track. Hozier explains that “[This song recognizes] artists who imbued

Hozier left fans in admiration and awe with his poetic lyrics addressing serious topics in his latest EP, “Nina Cried Power.” He is currently on tour, performing for audiences all over the world. their work with the vigour of dissent, and [“Nina Cried Power” is] a reflection on the importance of that tradition in the context of the rights, and lives, we enjoy today” (Joe, “Watch: Hozier pays tribute to Irish activists in video for ‘Nina Cried Power,’” 9.18.2018).

The recently released music video for “Nina Cried Power” features Irish civil rights advocates reacting to the song. The simplicity is shockingly compelling and inspiring. The power of Hozier’s song moves people to tears, and his ability to artistically honor oppressed voices through his music is a beautiful gift.

“We are witness to a new Ireland waking to the consciousness of itself; a kinder, more inclusive nation,” Hozier explains. “This video is an attempt to acknowledge just a handful of those who have fought for this new Ireland, and whose work continues to inspire me” (Irish Examiner, “Hozier’s Nina Cried Power video is a tribute to

Irish activists,” 9.13.2018).

Hozier’s unbridled passion for his music was palpable from watching him perform live. You don’t listen to him sing; rather, Hozier’s music is an experience. You feel his raw talent and excitement in your heart, as it beats in time with his music.

During the concert, Hozier debuted a song titled “Movement” that will be released with his complete album in 2019. The heart-stopping harmonies and guitar solos were nothing short of yet another Hozier classic.

If you are unfamiliar with his songs beyond “Take Me to Church,” I strongly recommend you check out his other music. There is still plenty of time to fall in love with Hozier before the release of his new album, which has been five years in the making. And after seeing Hozier perform his new material live, I can assure you that it was worth the wait.

Brockhampton wows with intense album ‘Iridescence’ Jimmy Christon COLUMNIST

Iridescence

Brockhampton RCA Records

J

ust nine months ago, Brockhampton released their most recent album. Over the summer, they crafted two different records, ejected a band member and still managed to release a trio of summer singles that were much better than any other “summer pack” released this past season.

And now, Brockhampton has released their newest album. The first part in another trilogy, “Iridescence” stands as a bold departure and a foray onto new ground for the band. Gone are the days of just being a vibey LA-based backyard boy band.

Brockhampton has broken into the mainstream in stellar fashion. This album simply couldn’t be one of the homegrown records of the past. Instead, Brockhampton was tasked with the incredibly difficult project of making something new during a very tumultuous time in their career. There was a reason that this album was going to be called “Things We Lost in the Fire” after being slated as a sunshine album known as “Puppy.”

Still, I am happy to share my opinion here that “Iridescence” is a stellar album that encapsulates everything I love about Brockhampton at the moment and more. This might be biased on my part: The band ejected a less interesting member and pumped up the presence of those formerly in the background. Here, I am talking about vocalist and producer Bearface and producer Joba.

The other members strive and thrive on this album as well. I’m glad to hear more of Merlyn

after his absence from the songs released this summer, and Kevin Abstract and Dom sound as hungry as ever.

The only real missing piece on this album is, oddly, Matt Champion. This guy has always sounded at least a little apathetic and ethereal on the other albums, but I think “Iridescence” is the only time he’s gotten completely blown away by the other members on this album whose roles make the album noisy.

The song “J’OUVERT” is the prime example of this noise. This nocturnal track completely embodies the infrared aesthetic displayed on the cover. Industrial musicality is on display in this awesome Splinter Cell–ish ringing that haunts the beat of this track, and everyone raps in a cool, subdued sort of tone—with one exception.

“This album bleeds emotional vigor. There are so many tracks that just floor me and leave me with tears in my eyes.”

This exception is where Brockhampton takes a page from the emo playbook. On this track, in one of the most surprising moments on this album, Joba just screams his verse at the top of his lungs. This impassioned performance is amazing, and gives me flashbacks to the music I would listen to when I hung out with the scene crowd at my high school.

And the lyrics here are amazing. “Misunderstood since birth/Fuck what you think and fuck what you heard,” are words that match their vis-

ceral delivery perfectly. This track is just dripping with raw emotion, and it will pull these feelings out of you, the idle listener, as well.

The other surprising aspect of this track comes from Bearface’s verse. Since he’s usually reserved for the ballads on the other Brockhampton albums, it’s so nice to hear this man come through with some slick bars. “With the dogs, in my ride know the doors suicide/Paranoid, do or die, you should know we never lie,” is a pair of verses that just makes love to my ears. These lines are as sleek as the suicide doors on the car.

Also, while I’m on the subject of Bearface, he definitely is the cutest member of this boy band, bar none. That’s my opinion, but I’ll die on this hill.

Another highlight of this album is the opening pair of tracks: “NEW ORLEANS” and “THUG LIFE.” “NEW ORLEANS” is exciting because it warms you up for the rest of the album so well.

Everyone on this song delivers an excellent, high-energy verse, and there are stand-out lines creeping out every which way from this track.

“If Jesus were a popstar, would he break the bank?” is my personal favorite. Also, shoutout to the surprise guest performance by Jaden Smith on this track. I was floored by it, and I think it’s one of the best musical surprises I’ve heard in a bit.

Yet the real standout with this opener is how seamlessly and beautifully these tracks transition from one to the next. I love how the drum sequence continues over both tracks and how gorgeous piano notes swoop in out of nowhere on the transition. This, paired with Kevin Abstract’s and Bearface’s vocals, creates an excellent counterpoint to the high energy of the first track.

These two songs taken together set up two expectations for this album: hard-hitting, techno-y posse cuts paired with the opposite ex-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

treme, lush and beautiful songs that blend techno influence with an overwhelming and undeniably emotive power.

This album bleeds emotional vigor. There are so many tracks that just floor me and leave me with tears in my eyes. “SAN MARCOS” is a ballad with an overwhelming ending; it feels so full that I can’t help but sing along every time it comes on.

“‘SAN MARCOS’ is a ballad with an overwhelming ending; it feels so full that I can’t help but sing along every time it comes on.”

Then there’s the airy and sparse track “TONYA” that unravels expertly as the song progresses. I’m not quite sure how this song makes me feel, but it definitely provokes a sort of sadness—the type of melancholy you might expect to get from 808s-era Kanye, but Brockhampton develops this sound so beautifully that I am at a loss for words.

The last time I felt this way about an album was Frank Ocean’s “Blonde,” and I’ve listened to that album well over 1,000 times at this point. There’s something about “Iridescence” that alludes to the same sort of modern experimentality exuded by “Blonde.” Tracks from “Iridescence” like “HONEY” or “WEIGHT” have a clear sense of emotion that could only exist in the 21st century; the same was true for tracks like “Skyline To” or “Futura Free” from “Blonde.” Brockhampton has struck it out of the park...once again.

ARTS

October 4, 2018

Campus Canvas

A weekly space highlighting the creative pursuits of student-artists

Page 9 submit to misc@vassar.edu

Excuse me,

*EVOLUTION The sun beams and the birds chirp, reminiscent of Darwin’s finches.

Where do you go to cry?

And the earth stirs, warm chuckles from underneath thaw a deep freeze.

The roses bloom because women laugh in the streets at the pretty little things sprouting near their feet.

And flying around their heads are Darwin’s finches.

*Untitled Vases of softly drooping petals, little girl pink, sit on the lace, ornate, on the table.

“I like to cry at Sunset Lake. It’s hard to hold it in while walking over there.”

— Evin Heintz ’21

While dust collects in the corners of the window pane, but outside it’s stained with the aftermath of last night’s hurricane.

“Evin hit the nail on the head.”

— Tom Possidente ’19

When you cried a fury, a hellion madness running through your veins, pounding at the paper lace adorning the walls, now on your fists.

I thought maybe I could find meaning from tulips, and you from roses.

Sat on the edge of your made up bed, frightened, palms wearing down the mattress.

Maybe I can extract meaning from petals, and you from stems.

“I’ve ranked the bathrooms. The library basement is the best.”

— Shannon Chen ’21

Tentatively throwing words for you to catch them, but as they blossom into existence, I want to kill them.

“With friends.

Because I totally have friends.”

— Rose HulseyVincent ’19

* HARMONY Roman noses sniff the thawing of the snow, but tiny eyes make sense of the shifting of the sky from lost at sea to Hawaiian beach.

While the world rocks on its axis, veiny hands reach out to feel “On the inside.”

— Michael Jaklitsch ’21

the seeds rustling, forming a phalanx, forming a tree.

Long hair swooping from the temples of the head, which relax in the shaking of the swings long metal chains cut from flames, burning in an iron cave.

Heavy eyelids close while ears peek out putting together the harmonies

“If I cried I would go to my closet.”

— Max White ’21

carried on the mellowing wind.

Elizabeth Girdharry Class of 2022

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Hannah Gaven, Humor & Satire Hannah Benton, Photography

FEATURES

Page 10

October 4, 2018

Courtesy of Karl Rabe/Vassar College

Courtesy of Karl Rabe/Vassar College

Courtesy of Andrea Yang/The Miscellany News

Courtesy of Yijia Hu

Courtesy of Karl Rabe/Vassar College

Courtesy of Karl Rabe/Vassar College

Families Weekend took place from Sept. 28 to Sept.

30. Highlights included the Geology Walking Tour of Campus with Professor of Earth Science and Chair of Earth Science and Geography Jill Schneiderman, the Vassar Haiti Project art sale and the Arlington Street Fair.

The photo above was taken during the Reception on Saturday on the library lawn. Crowds gathered to sample from the Hudson Valley harvest, and the delectable local food also inspired engaging conversation among faculty, parents and students.

Org of the Week: Quidditch excites, unites Vassar Muggles

Courtesy of the Vassar Quidditch team

Here, the Vassar Quidditch team’s group photo brims with energy. The org has aimed to carry on Dumbledore’s vision and foster collegiate pride through the unique sport since 2006. tually the second Quidditch team to ever exist.

We played in the first World Cup between us and Middlebury. We also played the first international Quidditch tournament against the University of Vaasa from Finland. We’ve got a long past and [have] existed for 12 years, so Lestra is part of the 12th generation of captains.”

Unsurprisingly, the Harry Potter series is a major component of the Butterbeer Broooers’ identity and it manifests itself in non-Quidditch ways. Markotsis expressed his love for these other activities: “The best night of the week is Thursday night, when we get together and we just read Harry Potter together. Someone will narrate out loud. Everyone will have a book or a pdf copy, and whenever a character shows up in the books, people will just jump in and get to voice that character for the duration of the

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

should I be throwing this ball at, and who’s the best person to try to block right now.”

A unique blend of Harry Potter and conventional sport, Quidditch is multi-dimensional and attracts different people for a variety of reasons. Markotsis put it this way: “For a lot of us, Harry Potter is this wonderful world we got to explore as children and really connected with. And then we hear about the sport in college, and we don’t quite know what it’s about yet, but we’re like, oh, it’s Harry Potter. It’s gonna be an awesome experience. And then we go.”

Students like Markotsis usually ended up enjoying the sport even without the Harry Potter aspects of it. Quidditch can be a game for everyone.

Courtesy of Duncan Aronson/The Miscellany News

QUIDDITCH continued from page 1 a hoop.” Shannon Russo ’20 continued, “Beaters are kind of playing dodgeball, and if you get hit by their bludger, you are temporarily out.

A keeper is kind of like a goalie, but they have some special rules and are more offensive.”

Peter Markotsis ’21 took the cake with his explanation of the famous snitch: “The snitch is a person who’s dressed in yellow with a tennis ball attached to them. The seekers will have to basically grapple with them and try to grab and pull off the ball. Once that ball is caught, the game is done, and you get 30 points.”

It wouldn’t surprise members of the Quidditch team if Vassar students had never heard of this competitive sport before coming to Vassar. Russo illuminated Vassar’s integral role in the Quidditch realm, saying, “[Vassar was] ac-

chapter we’re reading. It’s just really awesome.

It’s just a way to kind of relax and have fun as a team.”

Russo added, “We do that for 24 hours straight in the second semester. We turned that into a fundraiser, which [brings in] a lot of money. [U]ltimately, at the end of the day, we’re a sports organization, but we’re also a social organization.” Atlas chimed in, “We do board night parties, and—how could I forget?—we organize a Yule Ball every year as well.”

What about the athletic aspect of Quidditch?

For Margaret Bigler ’22, who has a background in gymnastics, Quidditch belongs to the same category as conventional team and ball sports.

She shared, “For me, the biggest difference between Quidditch versus gymnastics is just the balls. It’s throwing, catching, hand-eye coordination, all that stuff that I never had to worry about before.”

Bigler elaborated, “Also, communication and working with other players on a team is very different. Every game is different. Whereas in gymnastics, the goal is to do the same exact thing every time, and to make it as perfect as you can. In Quidditch, you have to react to what’s going on in real time. So it’s just a different mindset.”

Russo expanded upon Quidditch’s other crucial athletic elements of physicality and strategy, saying, “[Quidditch is] serious. You have to take it seriously. There is a risk of injury because it’s a full-contact sport. We recently had one of the rugby coaches come in and teach us how to tackle and get tackled safely, so we have to take it seriously.”

She added, “The second I started playing [Quidditch], I fell in love with it. It’s not just a game about physical ability, it’s a lot about strategy. Especially if you’re a beater, it’s less about scoring and running down the field really fast.

It’s more about...how can I get a ball back, who

Pictured here is Peter Markotsis ’21 dressing in am authentic Hogwarts gown. The Deathly Hallows necklace endows him with the power and wisdom to emerge victorious in Quidditch.

October 4, 2018

FEATURES

Page 11

New Collaboration Studio offers alternative workspace Ariana Gravinese GUEST REPORTER

H

Both the Design Studio and the Collaboration Studio are open all hours of the day and night.

Ashton elaborated, “This is all part of the after hours area in the library as well, so you can work there anytime. We really hope this will be a ‘non-quiet’ space in the library, where students can be interacting without worrying about disturbing people trying to study.”

The Collaboration Studio has already become a hub of activity. Metadata and Systems Librarian Arianna Schlegel commented, “We are thrilled to already see so much activity and collaboration happening in the space. We hope that as the students begin to take more ownership of

the Studio, they will use it to create scholarship in ways we hadn’t even dreamed of. We eagerly look forward to this, and to any ways in which we can partner with or support these explorations.”

Looking to future possibilities, the library staff and administrators are planning on hosting workshops and events in the Studio that Ashton and the rest of the staff believe will be helpful for students interested in learning new skills and employing the tools offered. The library staff welcomes suggestions on this initiative and aims to make the space as useful as possible for students.

Courtesy of Yijia Hu

ave you checked out the north section of the Main Library recently? Aside from the coffee vending machine that one covets, you shall find the new Collaboration Studio situated behind a glass wall and next to the Design Studio. Different from other places in the library and on Vassar’s campus, it features movable furniture, bright lighting and an open area where students can freely work together in the library.

The Studio is also a space that promotes communication and creativity.

New to Vassar this fall semester, the Collaboration Studio offers flexibility and mobility. Director of the Library Andrew Ashton strives to build a useful and inspiring workspace for students. He shared in an emailed statement, “The new space offers a lot of flexible workspace as well as a collection of lightweight technologies that students can use to test out their ideas. We hope students will use the space to experiment with and prototype their ideas.”

Despite its location in the library, the Collaboration Studio holds the unique distinction of allowing—even encouraging—audible conversation. Students may meet with peers, friends and fellow classmates to chat openly about projects and ideas without worrying about disturbing someone who is trying to study. Digital Technologies Librarian Carolyn Moritz explained, “We hope students find this place to be a ‘no shushing’ space, an open space for work and play, a place that feels entirely theirs.”

Moritz also acknowledged the thoughtful planning behind the design of the Collaboration Studio, saying, “We were deliberate about an atmosphere that encourages collaboration.

We explored the nature of unstructured learn-

ing while designing this space. At one point we really ran with the idea that the Collaboration Studio serves as an ad hoc ‘in-between space’ between the Library Classroom and Design Studio.” Equipped with 32 workstations and Mac computers, the Main Library Classroom (room 160) provides a space for technical course instructions. The Design Studio is furnished with Mac computers and scanners.

The Collaboration Studio has been in the works for some time. Ashton noted, “The project started a few years ago when we decided to repurpose the old Reserves Room, which had been closed down and was just being used for storage. We worked together with colleagues in CIS [Computing Information Services] to talk to a lot of students and faculty about their ideas to create a ‘Makerspace’ somewhere on campus. It turned out there was a lot of interest, but also a number of other similar projects happening on campus.”

Over time, the idea of a studio came into the picture. The Library completed the renovation over the past summer before receiving a generous grant from the George I. Alden Trust, which predominantly supports high education in the Worcester area.

Library staff members hope that students can make the Collaboration Studio a space of their own and bring different ideas from a variety of disciplines into a comfortable environment.

Moritz commented, “The equipment is lightweight, with the hope that what we provide is a springboard that will encourage students to bring in their own projects. Most importantly we feel strongly that providing this kind of resource in a place that is not tied to a single department encourages interdisciplinary collaboration.”

The Collaboration Studio invites communication with its booth seating and movable whiteboards.

It also provides resources like zine kits, button makers and smartphone-based virtual reality.

Paleo banana coconut pancakes outshine Deece breakfast Charlotte Varcoe-Wolfson CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

W

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Charlotte Varcoe-Wolfson/The Miscellany News

hile breakfast is arguably the best meal the Deece serves, students with various dietary restrictions may be disappointed. What fun is breakfast on a relaxed Saturday morning if you can’t indulge in a plate of pancakes with maple syrup?

Sure, the Deece has gluten-free waffles and pancakes, but they aren’t as good as homemade. And honestly, even though I can eat gluten, sometimes it’s nice to dine at home on a Saturday morning.

Last Saturday, two friends and I gathered in my TA to cook a decadent breakfast. Even on weekends that are full of homework and meetings, I like to set aside Saturday morning for self-care. What a privilege it was to spend that morning chatting and enjoying homemade breakfast with people I love!

My friends and I decided to make pancakes—a classic—but had to find a recipe that was both gluten- and dairy-free. Luckily, with the help of a number of lifestyle blogs, this goal was not out of our reach. We settled on a recipe from the blog Love & Zest, which appears to be run by a sports dietician. That means these pancakes are healthy, right?

The recipe we made called for a banana, eggs, almond milk, apple cider vinegar, vanilla, coconut flour, baking soda, salt and, most importantly, cinnamon. It certainly requires more ingredients and time than the two-ingredient alternative that is also gluten- and dairy-free.

If you live a dorm, you may prefer the simpler version, described below.

My housemates and I are fortunate to receive a CSA share from the Poughkeepsie Farm Project, so we had fresh raspberries and peaches to top off the pancakes. However, if you don’t have fresh berries, I’d highly recommend top-

ping these pancakes with cooked apples. As my housemates will tell you, I’ve recently become a cooked apple fanatic, and they are perfect to pair with these pancakes. No one will judge you for singing, “I like to eat, eat, eat apples and bananas” for the next week!

For the simple variation, you just need one banana (easily found in the Retreat or the Deece) and two large eggs. Before you start mixing up your ingredients, you’ll want to start heating up your skillet—cast iron or nonstick are best, but any skillet will do—on medium and add a small amount of butter, vegetable oil or coconut oil to grease the pan. Mix the banana and egg with a fork or whisk. Once the skillet is hot, you can decrease the heat to medium-low. To determine the right moment to flip your pancakes, look for popping air bubbles on the surface.

If you’re looking for a more complex version of this recipe, which for some god-forsaken reason my friends and I were, the instructions are as follows. Again, you’re going to want to start by setting your stove on medium heat and greasing your skillet. Next, combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a small mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, preferably a large one, mix together the wet ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the banana/egg mixture and stir until combined. Spoon two tablespoons batter onto skillet and spread with spoon to form pancake.

When my friends and I were making these, I did not follow this instruction, and my first pancake was a lump of batter that crumbled when I tried to flip it. Learn from my mistakes and make small, flat pancakes. Once again, flip when you see air bubbles popping on the surface and/or when the bottom side is golden brown.

Enjoy cooking up this healthy breakfast!

Ingredients 1 banana, smashed 4 large eggs 1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/3 cup coconut flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

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October 4, 2018

Misc Comics by Zane Diamond

submit to misc@vassar.edu

Star Signs

Ben Costa

ACROSS 1. Pork leg 4. Princess of Arendelle 8. Daisy's paramour, minus his last preposition 12. Hellenic earth goddess 13. Whose this land is (as well as mine) 14. Long opera solo 15. Composer of 'La Traviata' and 'Rigoletto' 16. Corkscrew-curled 18. Driving, as a motor 20. A court excuse 21. Henry who preceded Catherine of Aragon's spouse by 22. Color brightly 44. Garden ACROSS 23. People withplots this sign should 45. Bleeding edge purchase slightly more than three 46. Laid back 1. In the style of large bodies of water.

48.

Salutations 4. Lightly carve 49. US spy or agency 24. Save 15% more 8. Bronze medalist, of three 50. Lengths times widths 12. Coffee unit 26. What any of these predictions are 51. Piratical subcontractor 13. In addition 28. Back muscle (abbr.)

54. Used the gift of gab 14. Moving aboard 56. Beauty’s beau 29.

Copy mark 15. Obsolete Russian length, .66 miles 57. A cobbler’s mold cereal 16. Mozart, Ramanujan, and Fischer 30. Raisin 58. What you do to breath to hold it 18. Self-obsessed 31. Emeralds, rubies, and diamonds 59. The only remaining 20. Mud samples 60. Heaviest fencing sword 32. Someone assigned to a position 21. Flavoring applied dry 61. Title contents of NSYNC hit 35. Something to scratch 22. It’s for horses 62. Struggle through 38.

'Crazy' bird 23. Delicately cut 24. ASCII emoji 39. Gnats, rats, siblings DOWN 26. Stay fresh for awhile 43. Between Feb. and Apr. 28. Neither complement 44. A 1.beaver's curse Oxygen-using 29. Grouchy prize 2. Winning decree standing person 30. Window edge 45. Unpopular 3. Walter White, for example 31. Camera attachment 46. Factory standard 4. Out of gas 32. Decade-spanning drama 48. Massachusetts state fish (and 5. Music’s Amos or Kelly 35. Shelled Galapagos resident, for short 6.

Alligator alternative region) 38. Mothers Superior 7. First half of Harry’s owl 39. Early British sonar 49. Bitter medicinal herb 8. Computer’s thoughts 43. Avenue 50. The most capable people of rotten 9. Aromatic amine, smelling fish 51.

Temporary truce Answers to last week’s puzzle Star Signs 10. Cowboy hat 54. People this sign should put G A T S H A M E L S A 11. Dartwith throwers A R I A pants12.

Y O U R G A I A onto yellow veggies Attacks toothlessly R I N G L E T E D V E R D I 15. Thea left page 56. Clean spill I M P E L L I N G A L I B I 17. Ain’t, more formally barked up D Y E V I I P I S C E S 57. Often 19. State L A T 58. Bouncy I N S U R E O M E N stickIreland 23. Emerald D I T T O B R A N G E M S 25. After penultimate 59.

Rage, wrath, and fury A P P O I N T E E 26. Big cats L O O N P E S T S 60. Withered and dry I T C H 27. Swiss peaks M A R D A M N D I K T A T 61. Burn medicine 30. Starchy tuber P R E S E T R U E C O D 31.

What the dying breathe A T E A M C E A S E F I R E 62. Architecture software (abbr.)

“Famous Last Words”

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Benjamin Costa 15. Bright and brilliant 35. Has domestication potential 17. Set down at another's feet 36. Venn Diagram center 19. Cleaner, or flesh solvent 37. Let go of 23. Cooped (up) 40. Shuffle off this mortal coil 41. Chilliest 25. Salt Lake City's state 42. A map or graph 26. Olympian Lochte thinks this is his 44. Put the ki______ on something sign. *Sigh*.

27. Musician Aimee 30. Tick tick 31. A nerd or dork 33. Pt metal, informally 34. The Black Death or Swine Flu 35. Makes a real splash 36. Fish served raw, seasoned, and shaped into cakes 37. Liana or kudzu 40. Zebra pattern 41. People with this sign should bend into a donut shape.

42. Prepare tea 44. Kinda sorta 45. Not don'ts 47. Indian draped garment 48. Boat with one-bladed oars 45.In Deadly autoimmune infection 51. vogue 47. Starbucks staple 52.

Therefore, that is 48. Unprocessed leather 53. message 51. Roman Ask a higher power boards 52.Green Network of nerves 55. visor-wearer (abbr.)

The Miscellany Crossword

33. Rebirth 34. Able to be lifted

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October 4, 2018

OPINIONS

Page 13

The Miscellany news Staff Editorial

Strong House mission statement models gender inclusivity I

n 1861, Matthew Vassar’s vision for his college was radical: an elite university for women that would provide a similar education to that of male students. Vassar at once boasted higher education for women and exclusivity in terms of status and institutional strength. Strong House exemplified these qualities—built in 1893 and named after donor John D. Rockefeller’s daughter Elizabeth Rockefeller Strong, it was the first freestanding student dormitory outside of Main Building. The building allowed Vassar to provide its unique educational merits while accommodating a growing student body (Vassar Encyclopedia, “Strong House,” 2013).

The College’s mission adopted greater resonance as other women’s colleges cropped up. Soon, in the early 1900s, these institutions designated themselves as the “Seven Sisters,” a loose consortium that still exists today (Vassar Encyclopedia, “The Founding of The Seven Sisters,” 2007). During the mid-1900s, the Seven Sisters, particularly Vassar, faced an identity crisis, and the College seriously considered an offer from Yale in ’66 to merge into one coeducational university. Vassar ultimately rejected the proposition, instead opting in ‘69 to become a coeducational institution on its own (Vassar Encyclopedia, “The Vassar-Yale Study,” 2007).

But where did this immense adjustment of the College’s century-long identity leave Strong?

In ‘72, the College designated Strong as a permanent all-women’s dorm, considering tradition and the relatively small number of male students in the early ’70s (Vassar Encyclopedia, “Strong”). As the recognition of trans* and gen-

der-nonconforming (GNC) identities has grown in recent years, however, historically all-women colleges have had to reconsider their admission policies, which seemed narrow in defining gender identities. Thirteen of the 34 U.S. women’s colleges now have formal acceptance policies granting admission to transgender students, and six of the Seven Sisters admit trans women, though they vary on their policies relating to non-binary students and trans men (Campus Pride, “Women’s Colleges with Trans-Inclusive Policies,” 2018).

At the beginning of last year, Strong changed its residential policy, moving away from language such as “all-women’s dorm.” Discussing the motivation for these changes, Strong President Mari Robles ’21 stated via email, “There is no one type of Strong resident and I think that this mission statement acknowledges and celebrates that.” In the past decade, trans, non-binary, genderqueer and other non-cis students have been living in Strong, so the House created the new mission statement to embrace and celebrate all of its residents. It reads, “Historically, Strong House has been labeled as all-women’s housing but the House actively welcomes and celebrates our trans*, nonbinary, questioning, agender, and other gender-nonconforming residents and community members” (Office of Residential Life, “Strong House”). Strong House Advisor Michael Drucker stated, “[The transition is] less of an actual change and more of a necessary, inclusive shift towards congruence aligning the reality of the wonderfully rich gender-diversity in our House and the language we all use to describe it.”

Considering campus engagement and awareness, Robles urged, “I would call on the Vassar community to reflect on and change the ways they think and talk about Strong and its residents.” The Office of Residential Life has changed the language on its housing application and website to accurately represent Strong.

Drucker acknowledged: “We have a great sense of relief knowing that we are outwardly celebrating all the genders living and creating community in our House.” These language changes reflect intentionality and community engagement, which leave a mark on Vassar history.

Other historically all-women’s student groups have also been working to create more inclusive spaces. Their’ historical identities empower them and create community. However, as a cappella group the Night Owls also stress, “It is important to us to be inclusive to those beyond the gender binary and to ensure that this empowering space does not become one of exclusion.” The group now uses the term “all-women’s gender inclusive,” while also acknowledging the complexity of labels. Another a capella group, Measure 4 Measure, has switched their language to all-female and/or non-binary.

The group maintains a space where all members are encouraged to share their voices and be heard, while also aiming to “honor the practice of having majority-femme spaces on campus.”

We at The Miscellany News commend Strong and other historically all-women’s organizations on campus for their decisions to alter their policies. These groups have undertaken necessary conversations about the identity of their members or participants, admirably judging an

expanded view of inclusivity more important than outdated traditions. We urge all historically women’s organizations on campus to engage in or continue having similar conversations and to prioritize members’ and applicants’ identities over potentially exclusionary historical precedent. Such a policy change constitutes a crucial step in building the inclusivity for which we as a College strive. It is also key to recognize the significance of these conversations occurring in a wide variety of contexts while still affirming the value of exclusive spaces for trans*, GNC and LGBTQ+ students and community members.

We call on all orgs to reflect on who feels welcome and to improve accessibility and minimize unjust exclusion.

Vassar has long prided itself on its initial designation as a women’s college. However, it celebrates its origins while constantly challenging the very definitions of womanhood and inclusivity that it previously lauded. The dissolution of binaries and the recognition of perpetuated marginalization have inspired noteworthy alterations to campus life and functions. We as students are both the inheritors and drivers of these changes, and the orgs in which we participate and the spaces that we occupy are necessary starting points for crucial conversations.

Let us use Strong, Night Owls, Measure 4 Measure and other traditionally all-women’s groups as examples of the importance of such productive reevaluations.

—The Staff Editorial expresses the opinion of at least 2/3 of The Miscellany News Editorial Board.

Non–East Asians neglected in Hollywood film portrayals Isabella Boyne

GUEST COLUMNIST

“C

razy Rich Asians,” the first Hollywood movie with an all-Asian cast in 25 years, was released this year. Around the same time, Netflix released an original film “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before,” featuring a Asian lead. Just this September, designer Claudia Li casted only Asian models for her New York Fashion Week show.

For many Asian-Americans, these developments represent positive, albeit belated, achievements. Yet for others, this version of representation leaves much to be desired. A common theme among all of these displays of diversity is that they only showcase a small minority of those who identify as Asian: people from East Asia. The East Asian culture sphere refers to countries and regions within Asia that were historically influenced

by Chinese culture, encompassing China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea and Vietnam—and these are the people that tend to be represented in American media as being “Asian.” These are the groups that are portrayed in American media and supposedly encompass over 40 ethnicities in Asia, but unfortunately, such representations completely miss out on West, South, Southeast and Central Asia.

“Crazy Rich Asians” is based on a 2013 novel

by Kevin Kwan that explores the lives of Singapore’s megarich. As of Sept. 30, the film had made a worldwide gross profit of $218.9 million with a production budget of $30 million (Box Office Mojo, “Crazy Rich Asians,” 09.30.2018). Critics have praised the film not only for its diversity— particularly in Hollywood, where films have cast white people to play Asian roles (think Scarlett Johansson in “Ghost in the Shell”)—but also for its entertaining glimpse into the lives of the one percent of the one percent.

However, some of the film’s audience dis-

agrees with the high praise that it is receiving.

For instance, journalist Cat Wang argued, “[W] hile critics and starstruck fans have hailed Crazy Rich Asians as a decisive victory for Asians everywhere, in reality, such an assessment is simplistic at its very best and destructive at its very worst” (The Guardian, “Where are the brown people?”

08.21.2018). This sentiment is particularly relevant in the context of Singapore, where Malaysians, Indians and other ethnic minorities make up a quarter of the population.

Furthermore, Singapore has a history of race riots and strict, race-based policies that enforced multiculturalism and the inclusion of the large range of ethnic groups in the country. However, many members of such minority groups still believe that casual racism in Singapore remains an issue. The overall concern surrounding Singapore’s 53-year independent identity, or lack thereof, which is characterized by mixed identities and cultures, only serves to demonstrate the many issues that come with a lack of representation (BBC, “Crazy Rich Asians: The film burdened with ‘crazy’ Asian expectations,” 08.18.2018).

Ultimately, Hollywood marketed the film as the ultimate example of Asian representation in modern cinema, it still leaves many ethnicities out of the spotlight, with all of its main characters of East Asian descent. Southeast Asians did feature in the film but only as maids, drivers and security guards, demonstrating that the film may not be the outstanding win for diversity that many Asian-Americans were hoping it would be. Despite the fact that the male lead for “Crazy Rich Asians was portrayed by Henry Golding, whose mother is from Malaysia’s Iban indigenous group, Golding was also playing an East Asian Chinese-Singaporean (The New York Times, “For Some Viewers, ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ Is Not Asian Enough,” 08.16.2018).

It is unfortunate that a film that could have por-

trayed Asian-Americans to be more than the stereotypes of what Hollywood has reduced them to would demonstrate such a narrow scope of what it means to be Asian.

Some may question whether a film should be subject to such high expectations for diversity, but it does seem that, if a film is to market itself as a “win” for Asian and Asian-American representation, then it should attempt to include more ethnicities in lead roles. However, other critics agree that “Crazy Rich Asians” has succeeded in representing Asian-Americans, claiming that such criticisms for a lack of diversity are a double standard.

Asian-American writer Jiayang Fan questioned, “What does it mean that “Crazy Rich Asians” must accommodate simultaneous, conflicting demands…when other movies, starring white leads, are asked only to tell a single story convincingly?”

(The New Yorker, “How to Watch “Crazy Rich Asians” Like an Asian-American,” 08.13.2018).

“Crazy Rich Asians” is definitely a step in the right direction for Asian and Asian-American representation in Hollywood, but it is clear that there is still a long way to go before there is true diversity in mainstream media. The fact that East Asians are seen as representative of the entirety of the 40+ Asian-American ethnicities is more than just a Hollywood problem. This disparity between different Asian-American ethnicities can be traced back to the Yellow Power Movement of the 1960s and ’70s, a movement essential to Asian-Americans’ fight for civil rights. Such a campaign was necessary to correct the belief of the time that Asian immigrants posed a threat to Western civilization, and historical events such as the Chinese Exclusion Act, Japanese internment camps and the Vietnam War only served to add to the series of abuses many Asian-Americans were subjected to in U.S. society (Michael Liu, Kim Geron and Tracy Lai, “The Snake Dance of Asian-American

Activism,” 2008).

But not all Asian-Americans felt represented by such a movement, hence the divide between East Asians and the rest of Asia. The “Brown Asian Movement” was initiated in response to the fact that other Asian ethnicities remain forgotten, marginalized and underrepresented in the popular understanding of what it means to be Asian-American (NPR, “Can East Asians Call Themselves ‘Brown’?” 11.16.2017).

E.J.R. David, a Filipino-American professor at the University of Alaska who studies the effects of colonialism on mental health, as well as authoring “Brown Skin, White Minds,” a book discussing the psychological experiences of Filipino-Americans, says that when people talk about Asians, they are almost exclusively referring to people of Chinese, Japanese or Korean descent. But currently, only half of Asian-Americans comprise those groups.

Furthermore, East Asians and people of other Asian ethnicities tend to have distinct income levels, access to health and education resources, immigration histories and refugee status. As such, whilst there may be some similarities between and even similar discrimination faced by East Asians and people of other Asian ethnicities, David claims that the term “brown Asians” (Asians who are not East Asian) is supposed to represent those who have felt invisible, even within a group that is supposed to represent them (NPR).

Perhaps it is overly cynical to criticise a fluffy romantic comedy for not representing a more diverse view of Asia when it is taking steps to increase diversity of racial representation in mainstream film. Many would suggest to just enjoy the movie for what it is—an entertaining love story.

Yet, it is important to recognize that Hollywood, and the rest of the world, has a long way to go before Asians can be fully represented in mainstream media.

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. The weekly staff editorial is the only article which reflects the opinion of the Editorial Board.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

OPINIONS

Page 14

October 4, 2018

Marijuana allergies pose danger to Vassar students Jesser Horowitz COLUMNIST

“M

y lips and throat start tingling, my eyes water, I have trouble catching my breath...The first time I went to hospital it took two doses of epipen and I was put on steroids,” described Adele Schroder, a 38-year-old resident of Mississauga, Canada (CityNews, “Woman with dangerous marijuana allergy fights weed-friendly condo board,” 09.21.2018).

“What happens is I get this really sharp pain behind my left eye, it’s excruciatingly painful and it’s just like a hot poker in my eye, and then my chest starts to tighten and my face gets all tingly and my arms and hands and extremities tingle, and it feels like there’s just a vice in my chest where I can’t breathe. It’s quite scary,” reported Doneil Oliphant, a different Canadian patient (CTVnews, “Under recognized and under diagnosed: Could you be allergic to marijuana,” 03.23.2018).

The symptoms described all result from the same allergy. Not peanuts, not milk, not cats, not dogs, not pollen. Marijuana.

It’s a surprisingly common allergy. A 1940 study published in the Nebraska Medical Journal found that 22 percent of 119 patients tested were allergic to it. Then in 2000, a study published in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology found that 61 percent of 127 patients tested shared the same allergy (Live Science, “Marijuana May Trigger Allergies in Some People,” 03.06.2015).

A different study done in Colorado post-legalization showed that 10 percent of people with passive exposure to marijuana exhibited some kind of allergic reaction (CTVnews). Now, a 2018 study suggests that people may be more likely to have allergies to marijuana than to cats, molds, dust mites or plants (Medical New Today, “Can

you be allergic to marijuana?” 08.03.2018).

Marijuana allergies can be especially dangerous because the industry, and legalization, is expanding faster than the rate at which we understand these medical conditions. At present, there is no standardized way to test for a marijuana allergy, and many of those who are allergic won’t find out until they’re exposed (Medical News Today). Even inhaling secondhand smoke can cause a serious enough reaction to send someone to the hospital. One woman told CTV News, “[O] nce it’s legalized, I’m afraid of even just walking down the street” (CTVnews).

The purpose in pointing out this information is not to suggest that marijuana shouldn’t be legalized or that there are not any possible medical benefits of smoking it. In 2016, more people were arrested for simply possessing marijuana than for every violent crime combined, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigations (The Washington Post, “More people were arrested last year over pot than for murder, rape, aggravated assault and robbery - combined,” 09.27.2017). Allowing such a system to continue is an offense of all human decency.

Furthermore, there are economic reasons to support marijuana legalization. A massive study

by Colorado State University-Pueblo found that legalization had a significant positive economic impact, bringing over $58 million to Pueblo County, Colorado in 2016 while only increasing costs by $23 million. The study further found that legalization did not contribute to poverty and did not significantly affect the culture of the area (The Denver Post, “To boost its economy, Pueblo County embrace marijuana. Now a new study reveals whether it worked,” 03.12.2018).

On the other hand, the health benefits of marijuana are questionable and often exaggerated.

While there is a long history of it being used to treat a variety of medical issues, the Food and Drug Administration has not approved it to be used as treatment for any medical condition.

However, that has not stopped the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine from saying that it can be effective in treating chronic pain. A study published in Clinical Psychology demonstrated that it can be an effective treatment for addiction. There are also claims that it can help alleviate side effects of chemotherapy, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis. While there is some evidence that marijuana use can be helpful, most of these findings were either inconclusive or in serious contention (Medical New Today, “Marijuana: Good or Bad?” 02.21.2018).

With that in mind, the acceptance of marijuana has to be balanced with the needs of those who suffer severe allergic reactions to it. Students with pot allergies are at risk on college campuses all over America. A study from the University of Michigan showed that 39 percent of college students have smoked marijuana and 4.9 percent use it daily (University of Michigan, “National study shows marijuana use among U.S. college students at highest level in three decades; use of most other substances remain steady,” 09.06.2017). Indeed, recreational marijuana use is widespread at Vassar too, to which anyone who has lived on the campus can probably testify. That is not inherently a problem: People have the right to engage in whatever behavior they choose so long as it doesn’t hurt anyone else.

However, considering the prevalence of marijuana allergies, smoking in a public space, be it a dorm room or in front of a building, poses a threat to other people. Pot on this campus can be unavoidable. Even if you live on a wellness floor, you could still be exposed to it by walking down

the wrong hallway or by the wrong stairwell at just the wrong time.

If you didn’t already know this and engaged in behavior that could put someone else at risk, it doesn’t mean that you’re a bad person. Marijuana allergies are underdiagnosed, and a lot of people likely assume that it’s not something that can happen. However, it is on you to change your behavior now that you recognize that this is a problem. That doesn’t mean stop smoking: It means find a space outside where you pose the least danger possible.

As for what the administration could do, I think the best option is to allow for pot smoking on campus but to designate specific smoking areas that are far away from essential places and where people are unlikely to walk by. However, if the school cannot or will not do that, campus security should more strenuously enforce the smoking ban in the dorms and directly in front of buildings, while taking a more lenient approach toward people smoking outside and far away from others. Students should not be punished for taking steps to smoke more considerately and in a way that does not negatively impact the health or educational environment of others.

I imagine that there will be some marijuana users who will be upset at me for pointing out that pot could have any negative effects on other people and for demanding that they change their smoking habits. What I’ll say to them is this: Your desire to smoke does not outweigh any student’s fundamental right to safety on this campus. Every student should be able to go wherever they want without fear that the consequence for doing so will be a hospital visit. All students with allergies have the right to equal access to this college, and if we don’t change how we view marijuana, that right will undoubtedly be violated.

Depictions of dissociative identity disorder misguided Laila Volpe

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

[TW: This article contains mention of trauma, mental illness and violence.]

[Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers for the movie “Fight Club.”] issociative identity disorder (DID), otherwise known as multiple personality disorder, consists of several defining features. Often the result of childhood trauma, the disorder is characterized by a fracture of an identity into two or more distinct personality states and recurrent episodes of amnesia. To learn more about the criteria for this disorder, one can look up the official list in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5).

Oftentimes, pop culture attempts to represent DID in various contexts. Famous movies and books often make sales through dramatized characters, which is relatively inevitable since it can lead to engaging content. However, the common representation of a person with DID is that of a monster capable of dangerous and often illegal acts. This portrayal damages the public notion of DID, effectively creating shame and stigma around the condition.

There are some people who have shared their personal experiences with DID on a more accessible platform, namely YouTube. Their videos involve discussions of the disorder, answering questions and switching on camera. This is not for views, but rather for the education of those who would like to know more.

YouTuber AlexMax Han discusses the different personalities of her five alters and at what age they came about in her video titled “Dissociative Identity Disorder | switch caught on camera--meet my alter!” She describes these alters as protectors, with one alter being the

D

mother of the group, and explains how her first identity split occurred after severe childhood trauma.

“[T]he common representation of a person with DID is that of a monster capable of dangerous and often illegal acts.”

Another YouTuber, DissociaDID, has more than 21 alters, some of which are non-human, and in one video titled “Making our Inner World! - Sims 4 | Dissociative Identity Disorder,” she even built a Sims mansion to help show her viewers how her alters were organized in her “mental mansion.”

Viewers have expressed mostly positive responses to these videos, but some will write off these women as fakers, claiming that they only pretend to have DID for the views. However, especially during a switch, it is evident that the footage is entirely real, with each personality again showing its own traits and manner of speech. It would be difficult to authentically create these personalities on screen, although some actors have attempted to do just that for their movies.

One famous example of DID in film lies in the 1999 movie “Fight Club.” Edward Norton plays the protagonist, a depressed man wishing that his life would take a turn for the better. He runs into Brad Pitt’s Tyler Durden, who essentially embodies everything that Norton’s character

wishes he could be: confident, self-assured and fearless. Durden takes the lead in recruiting members to join a fight club, which grows into a mafia-style crime group. Initially, Norton’s character watches from the sidelines, but as the group becomes increasingly violent, he finally decides to shut it down. Yet, nobody listens to him, and the members instead treat him the same way they treat Durden.

He confronts his new friend, which leads to his realization that he and Durden are actually the same person. He has flashbacks of the horrible acts he witnessed Durden commit, but now instead of Pitt, we see Norton. Even in the first fight scene, in which Durden and the protagonist brawl against each other, we see Norton’s character alone and punching himself. Everything falls into place as strange occurrences that the characters initially wrote off earlier finally make sense.

Again, DID is represented by a dangerous, thrill-seeking sociopath. The alternate personality developed as a way for the protagonist to express his violent tendencies, and he managed to create a substantial amount of chaos before the host even realized that he was there.

Another well-known portrayal of DID comes from Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1886 book “Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” When we first learn of Hyde, we hear a description of a seemingly apathetic dark stranger. Jekyll, a kindly doctor, has made Hyde the sole benefactor of his will yet acts skittish when asked about Hyde’s behavior. Jekyll ends up shutting himself away more and more, until eventually he refuses to receive any visitors.

Finally, the protagonists find Hyde dressed as Jekyll, dead in the office. Jekyll’s note explains that he wanted a way to be self-indulgent without discovery, so he created a serum that turned

him into Hyde. However, he lost control and began transforming in his sleep. Realizing that he would turn into Hyde permanently, Jekyll decided to end his experiment before it became irreversible.

Once again, we see an alternate personality develop as a way to commit crimes and other terrible acts without dealing with the consequences. Because of the inclusion of an actual physical transformation, the book does not explicitly reference DID, but it does explore the idea of multiple personalities. “Jekyll and Hyde” is renowned not only because of the twist ending, but also because it touches on the idea of the mind being split into two—the complete duality of character.

“[U]sing Dissociative Identity Disorder as a thought experiment damages the public’s opinion of such disorders.”

In general, the examples shown in these sources tend to pit good against evil personalities. This makes sense, as many movies and other works of fiction attempt to sensationalize their characters in order to draw in viewers and promote an interesting discussion about the human condition. However, using Dissociative identity disorder as a thought experiment damages the public’s opinion of such disorders.

Therefore, films and books should take steps toward accurately and respectfully representing this mental condition.

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. The weekly staff editorial is the only article which reflects the opinion of the Editorial Board.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

October 4, 2018

OPINIONS

Trump, white supremacy irrefutably linked Catherine Bither COLUMNIST

[TW: This article contains discussions of violence and death.] ince Donald Trump’s election in Oct. 2016, 21 individuals have been murdered by white supremacists (Los Angeles Times, “Violence by far-left protesters in Berkeley sparks alarm,” 08.28.2017). In addition, those directly connected to the alt-right have planned and committed two bomb plots and 15 violent attacks and killings.

Trump’s ascendency to presidency marked a resurgence in overt racism and white nationalism.

Yet, many allege that this revival has nothing to do with Trump’s election. On several occasions, people have tried to convince me that this rise in white supremacist violence is merely a response to increasing racial tensions within the United States, which they claim has nothing to do with Trump.

Some even cite far-left aggression in an attempt to justify violence by the alt-right.

It is true that anti-fascist rioters took hold of the “Stand Against Hate” protests at UC Berkeley, destroying property and beating Trump supporters.

It is also true that a gunman opened fire on Republican Congress members at a GOP baseball game (NPR, “Wounded Congressman in Critical Condition, Will Require Additional Surgery,” 06.14.2017).

However, the violence committed by one side cannot justify the violence of the other. The fact that white supremacists murdered 21 individuals in 2016 remains. And it seems that this resurgence in alt-right violence is only growing.

The year 2017 was the fifth most deadly year for extremist violence since 1970 (Newsweek, “White Supremacists Killed 18 People in 2017, Double the Number from 2016, Report Finds,” 01.17.2018). In the past decade, white supremacist individuals or militias committed 71 percent of extremist related murders (Newsweek). Despite this fact, Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen recently argued for the need to prevent foreign terrorists from entering the country when only 26 percent of extremist-related murders were committed by Islamic extremists. Refraining from mentioning or confirming the rise in white supremacist violence, the Trump administration has attempted to distract the general public, stirring up fear of immigrant populations, most of whom are not white.

Trump’s election did not signal some sort of spontaneous resurgence in racism. Racist sentiment has existed in America since the nation’s conception, although it has recently been hidden from the mainstream media. Trump’s condoning, and at times what appears to be endorsement, of white nationalism allows white supremacists to come out of hiding and express more overt and vi-

S

olent expressions of their nationalist leanings. Two members of the white nationalist militia known as the Crusaders planned to bomb an apartment complex that housed a large population of Somali immigrants the day after Trump’s election, so as not to hurt his chances of winning (Mother Jones, “Trump Says White Supremacist Terror Is Fake News. These Chilling Cases Prove Otherwise,” 07.11.2018). In May of 2017, a man with a history of making racist and xenophobic comments confronted two Muslim women and stabbed and killed two passersby who came to their aid, yelling, “You call it terrorism—I call it patriotism!” (Mother Jones).

So many accounts of white supremacist violence have been reported since Trump’s election that it is impossible not to see the connection between the two events.

In 2017, Congress passed a joint resolution urging Trump and other Cabinet members to do everything in their power to address the resurgence of white supremacy, including members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). Trump signed this proposal privately, yet he tweeted anti-Muslim videos sponsored by alt-right hate groups a mere two months later.

Similarly, after Charlottesville, Attorney General Jeff Sessions stated, “Today’s indictment should send a clear message to every would-be criminal in America that we aggressively prosecute violent crimes of hate that threaten the core principles of our nation” (The New York Times, “Charlottesville Car Attack Suspect Indicted on Federal Hate Crime Charges,” 06.27.2018). However, lawmakers have not taken any direct actions against white supremacist terrorism, and a senior federal law enforcement official reportedly confided, “I’ve seen nothing to indicate it’s a priority” (Mother Jones).

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) defines hate groups as organizations with “beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics” (Southern Poverty Law Center, “The Year in Hate: Trump buoyed white supremacists in 2017, sparking backlash from black nationalist groups,” 02.21.18). The organization asserts that Trump’s rhetoric and policies are a direct reflection of the goals of white supremacist hate groups and that Trump, as the leader of the United States, defends racism. Trump justifies white nationalism constantly. For example, he has appointed White House officials with ties to the alt-right, such as Steve Bannon of Breitbart News; Sebastian Gorka, who was affiliated with neo-Nazis in Hungary; and Stephen Miller, a follower of anti-Muslim extremists and anti-immigrant hate groups. Trump also promotes policies supported by alt-right groups, such as restricted immigration and decreased gun

control.

Most often, though, Trump promotes racism through his rhetoric. In his campaign announcement speech, he famously called Mexican immigrants criminals and rapists. Although some may brush off his comments as harmless ignorance, Trump’s rhetoric significantly influences members of society. After Trump’s assertion that there were admirable people on both sides of the Charlottesville conflict, the former grand wizard of the KKK David Duke tweeted, “We are determined to take our country back. We are going to fulfill the promises of Donald Trump. That’s what we believed in.

That’s why we voted for Donald Trump, because he said he’s going to take our country back” (Vox, “‘Why we voted for Donald Trump’: David Duke explains the white supremacist Charlottesville protests,” 08.12.2017).

Since Trump’s election, more and more white nationalist groups have begun campaigning on college campuses, and they seem to be succeeding in their efforts. The SPLC counted more than 300 incidents of the distribution of racist flyers across 200 campuses, and neo-Nazi groups continue to grow en masse (Southern Poverty Law Center). In 2017, the number of neo-Nazi groups in the United States rose from 99 to 121. Anti-Muslim groups have also increased substantially in size for the third year in a row, as have armed militias. These reports are merely underestimates, because a significant part of white supremacist activity still takes place online, and not every white supremacist is formally affiliated with a group.

This sort of activity is unprecedented. Historically, increased white supremacist activity occurs under a Democratic president in response to liberal policies. Alarmingly, however, the United States has witnessed an even greater growth of white nationalism under the Trump administration.

The growth of neo-Nazi and alt-right groups is occurring alongside a decrease in the ranks of the KKK, showing white supremacists’ shift from the stigmatized KKK to newer, more brazen white nationalist groups. Evidently, the alt-right movement is a reincarnation of white supremacy that has infiltrated the public consciousness following Trump’s election.

With a president such as Trump, white nationalist groups with histories of violence now feel that they are allowed to commit hateful acts without fear of punishment. Those who argue against the connection between Trump’s election and the increased acceptance of white supremacy most likely don’t have to fear becoming targets of these groups. By condoning Trump’s rhetoric, policies and actions, individuals must be aware that they are also condoning white supremacy.

If you are: a) a professor doing cool research b) a student who knows a professor doing cool research,

Page 15

Word on the street If the liquid in your veins wasn’t blood, what would it be?

“Bustelo Coffee.”

— Kayla Vasquez ’20

“Ash.” — Sophie Blumenstock ’19

“Chocolate milk because it’s all I drink here.”

— Jake Kaplan ’22

“The blood of Christ.”

— Rob Downes ’22

“Jake’s Fireball.”

— Liam Manion ’22

Contact The Miscellany News so we can share your cool work with the rest of the school in our “Please, tell us more!” segment!

Submissions should be approx. 300 or more words. Be sure to include a picture of either yourself or your work!

Send your submission to eupark@vassar.edu.

“Chocolate syrup.”

— Tahsin Oshin ’20

Hannah Gaven, Humor & Satire Hannah Benton, Photography

The Miscellany News is not responsible for the views presented within its Opinions pages. The weekly staff editorial is the only article which reflects the opinion of the Editorial Board.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

HUMOR & SATIRE

Page 16

October 4, 2018

Breaking News

From the desk of Hannah Gaven, Humor & Satire Editor

Overwhelmed by approaching midterms, students skinny-dip in Sunset Lake despite horrifying rashes Guilt-tripper uses family weekend to obtain room decor Francisco Andrade

SEASONED FAMILY WEEKEND WARRIOR

V

Courtesy of Frank

assar All Families Weekend just wrapped up, and I must say that it was a resounding success! I mean, Vassar really nailed the two core concepts of this past weekend. First thing is that it was definitely the weekend; you just can’t argue with that. I mean what, is someone going to tell you that this wasn’t a Friday night, followed by a full Saturday and the first half of Sunday?

That would be ludicrous! Because that is the exact time frame during which this weekend event took place.

Second, there were families! That’s another check mark in the list of requirements. The students were indeed visited by blood relatives or legal members of their family trees, or at least people with whom they have strong emotional bonds who have pivotal stake in their life. You just can’t disagree with these wins. The local events really tied a ribbon around a fantastic weekend.

What would a family weekend be without weekend activities? The Arlington Street Fair was also a resounding success. How can we as students expect to have a fun weekend and be required to spend our own money?! That’s why you set up a street fair at the same time the adults with money visit, and everything falls into place.

Just imagine: “Dad/Mom/Parental Figure, I really missed you.”

“Oh, I missed you too. What a great time we are having!”

“WOAH look at that neat wall art for sale that I don’t need but can’t live without. I sure hope I can have it, since it would be a shame if this whole weekend was ruined!”

“OH gosh, yes of course!”

Bam. Nailed it.

Let’s not get bogged down in the simple and materialistic stuff, folks. It’s also important to bond. That’s why Vassar set up a stunning performance by the local circus group The Barefoot

Monkeys. We all love the circus, and we all love gasoline and fire. So of course, this is a great event for a beautiful Saturday night with your family!

Yes, maybe the overtly sexual songs just one notch below Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On” that played during the performance seemed a bit awkward for an event to which you brought your parents. But how else would you explain to your parents that the student you’ve been staring at dreamily as he runs across the lawn with fire in his hands isn’t just a nice guy in your English class? And how are you supposed to bond with his parents unless they capitalize on this moment by approaching the aforementioned nice guy, going, “Do I hear wedding bells!?” while giggling after the performance. This is absolutely the kind of memory that you need to make now! Wait any longer, and your mom won’t have time to rehearse this story to tell your entire family on Thanksgiving.

The most important thing to remember is what truly brings a family together: tragedy. If you’re looking for that, then search no further than one of our women’s rugby games. I hadn’t seen this big a massacre in a field since the first “Friday the 13th” movie. What better family bonding time than watching another college get pounded into the dirt by some of the sweetest people you know, who apparently turn into Mr. Hyde once you put a jersey and two goal posts between them? I mean, by God, our women’s rugby team is so destructive that I hear they’ve been cast as the replacements for all of the Avengers in the next Marvel movie, as they have a better chance of beating Thanos.

So remember to spend that special time with your family when they do get to visit! Because then when you accidentally post a picture on IG of you drinking from a bottle with half of your economics class, they’ll at least know that you don’t drink every weekend. You managed to avoid it for three days while they were here, at least.

Pictured above is a classified Vassar College document from planning All Families Weekend. If you look closely, you can see malicious scheming, such as the limited-time quality food guarantee.

Distraught moth writes breakup letter to lover lamp who stopped shining Provided by Moth and Lamp’s number one shipper: Izzy Migani

F

two-way street. You cannot expect me to be solely responsible for this—you needed to communicate with me and tell me when you were planning on blowing your bulb. This, unfortunately, you never did. In all my time of being with you I was never truly angry with you once.

I told you this many times; I always wanted to be with you, but had no idea you needed your space sometimes, too. Again, you never told me.

I had no problem with the thought that I would be with you forever; in fact, I wanted that.

I wanted your face to be the one I woke up to and the last one I saw in the day. If the words existed to describe the love I had for you, I would have happily told you day after day after day for the rest of my life. I guess those words didn’t exist, or I didn’t find them in time. Now that you’re gone, my mind is constantly weighed down with the thoughts of what I could have said to make everything better and to make you stay. There are so many things I wanted to do with you, experiences I wanted to share, questions I wanted to ask. I guess the answers don’t even matter

now. I just don’t understand.

How could someone say they loved me and then 15 minutes later end a two-year relationship over a blown-out bulb? A bulb? That’s all I was worth to you? You said that now that I knew what to improve upon, we’d be able to move on and grow. Do you not even have the decency to refrain from lying to my face?

Even though you stopped loving me, that didn’t mean I ever stopped loving you. Wasn’t that worth anything? Even the tiniest shred of respect? I suppose not, according to you. In your eyes, I wasn’t deserving of kindness at that point; I was a horrible person and a manipulative and emotionally abusive moth monster, and apparently it was fine to treat me as an object that can just be thrown away at will. I’ll never forget the time we had together, but enough is enough. I’m not going to be pushed around anymore, always held at arm’s length away from the beautiful light I thought was somewhere deep inside you.

Goodbye, Moth

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

My dear beloved, irst things first, I’m never going to send this to you. This is for my personal use only, to get out all the feelings of hurt and pain that have been weighing me down ever since you left. I don’t hate you. I could never hate anyone. I don’t work that way. I still love you as much as I always did, even though you stopped loving me a long time ago. Although I still don’t see it and probably never will, I know you had your own reasons why you felt the need to do what you did—to suddenly stop shining. I can safely say, though: I’ve never felt this much pain in my life.

You hurt as hard as you love, I guess. What you did was so full of unnecessary hate and anger that it is inexcusable. At that point, it was the mark of a hateful and spiteful foe and not the lamp I thought I knew. The lamp I knew was bright, shiny, kind and loving.

However, you never communicated with me; you expected me to read your mind and guess what I was doing wrong. Relationships are a

HUMOR & SATIRE

October 4, 2018

Page 17

Student forced off bed following ‘Blob of Hair’ invasion Blair Webber

POSSIBLY COMPLICIT STUDENT

I

Courtesy of Hannah Gaven and Rodney Lewis

t seemed like a trick of the light at first— something my 4 a.m. brain would concoct after a fitful night of sleep, interrupted this time by the need to pee. But the longer I stared at it, the more real it became: The humanoid blob of other people’s hairs that had been forming slowly over the past month was sitting on the toilet.

I didn’t think much of it when a large clump of hair began accumulating around the drain in the furthermost shower. In a hallway as crowded as mine, these sorts of things happen often enough.

Someone else would be responsible enough to grab a paper towel and scoop it up. Besides, none of it was my hair. I have short hair, and most of this was long hair, so none of it could have possibly been mine. Also, I’m not gross enough to just drop hairs. All my hairs stay perfectly put in their follicles. Clearly, this was somebody else’s problem.

Now, hindsight is 20/20, but maybe I should have been a little concerned when the hairball developed into the shape of legs. I mostly thought it was gross that it had gotten that big, so I quit using that shower and just bathed in the another one.

I didn’t think much of it either when the beard shavings on the shelf above the new Cushing sinks coalesced into a vague head shape. It rolled off and onto the floor pretty quickly after its formation. I mostly felt irritated that no one bothered to clean up their own shaved hairs.

I mean, I’ve plucked my eyebrows and didn’t wipe every hair off the shelf, but some people shave way more hair off their faces every day.

The Blob of Hair is planning a school-wide attack! It sneaks into unlocked rooms while the victim sleeps. On the first night, it takes your bed. On the second night, it slits your throat and eats your hair.

It’s so inconsiderate to just leave it there. Since they still weren’t my hairs, I left the head to roll around on the floor undisturbed.

God only knows where the hair for the torso and arms of this creature came from. Maybe the floor, maybe the other showers—who’s to say, but there it sat in all its furry glory.

“Take a picture, it’ll last longer,” it intoned angrily.

I was stunned. I was sure I was still asleep.

How could the complex organs that allow for speech form in such a short time out of body hair?

“I’m sorry,” I said, and closed the stall door.

I guess despite being able to speak, it couldn’t figure out locks. I used the stall next to it and went back to bed.

I was comfortably nodding off when the door to my room opened and shut. I thought it must be a dream, so I kept my eyes shut until I felt the covers ripped off of me and a grotesque fuzz roll in next to me, exclaiming rudely, “Shove over, you’re hogging the covers.”

I opened my eyes to find The Blob of Hair in bed next to me.

“What the hell,” I mumbled, “this isn’t your room.”

“I’m not staying with a first-year. I don’t want

HOROSCOPES

to listen to anyone brag about how much alcohol they can hide in their sock drawer,” it replied, “Shove over, will you?”

“No,” I retorted. “You have to get out of here.

I drew a single so I could be alone with my thoughts. I’m not sharing it with a glob of other people’s hairs.”

“There’s a good number of your hairs in this mix, too, buddy. You think you’re so smart ’cause you keep it short. Now shove over!”

That filthy lie was the last straw. I pulled the comforter off my bed and slept on the floor.

That morning, I woke under a thin layer of hair that fell from the sleeping mass on top of me. This couldn’t continue, but I found ResLife unhelpful.

“You can put in a work order, but it might take a while for it to get processed,” my house advisor told me. “Sorry, there’s not a lot we can do about sentient hair.”

After a few fruitless emails and phone calls to Security, I decided to take matters into my own hands.

At midnight the next night, I snuck into a supply closet where I’d seen custodial staff return a massive vacuum cleaner. As quietly as I could, I rolled it down the hall and into my room, where the sleeping blob lay. I plugged it in and, as fast as I could once I turned it on, sucked the glob up the hose. The drone of the vacuum covered the muffled protests of a mass of what could only be other people’s hair. By the time I finished with my room, not a stray eyelash remained anywhere. While this horror has ended for now, my only hope is that everyone who sheds so grotesquely in the bathroom is more responsible in the future.

Hannah Gaven

AMATEUR ASTROLOGIST

ARIES

March 21 | April 19

TAURUS

April 20 | May 20

GEMINI

May 21 | June 20

CANCER

June 21 | July 22

LEO

July 23 | August 22

VIRGO

August 23 | September 22

The future is bleak. However, there is one ray of light shining upon you. Make sure to apply sunscreen because you don’t want to get burnt, develop skin cancer and then die from taking part in an experimental drug test.

My mom is my number one friend on Snapchat.

Is that sad or cute? Either way, I just wanted to let you know that my mom is cooler than all of your moms. I dare you to find a cooler mom. That’s your assignment for this week. I wish you the best of luck.

If I were a pickle, I would be in a pickle. Keep this important life advice in mind throughout the week. Also, remember this when eating pickles because you could be eating me. Then I would be gone, and you’d never get any more horoscopes. Without weekly horoscopes, you may drop out of school.

I cut my fingernails to decrease stress. While I would recommend it to you, you can even use this great life advice to help others! For example, when I notice my roommate is very stressed, I’ll cut her nails while she sleeps. When I see people stressing during an exam, I whip out my trusty clippers and snip their nails.

I’m currently on a quest to find and destroy all other Hannahs. Take this as your first and only warning. You don’t think I’m talking to you, but I am. I even know your address and where you go to school. Nowhere is safe. I will be the alpha.

Interviews are STRESSFUL because you have to answer a bunch of questions about your better self. What’s worse is that you have to remember the lie! Did I say that I’m a Taurus or that I have three brothers? Either way, whenever someone asks you what your dream job is, the correct response is “Being your dream employee!”

LIBRA

September 23 | October 22

SCORPIO

October 23 | November 21

SAGITTARIUS

November 22 | December 21

CAPRICORN

December 22 | January 19

AQUARIUS

January 20 | February 18

PISCES

February 19 | March 20

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

I don’t like juice. The poor fruit has all of its innards squeezed out of it and it’s left all dried up. It’s so sad, but it can’t even cry because it doesn’t have any lifeblood left. Humans take everything. Then its lifeblood is put into containers and swished around with its brethrens’ insides. It loses all identity. Remember this next time you drink juice. *raps* “Do you like to sleep?” *bass drop* “Then drop in a heap.” *everyone falls* As I just demonstrated, it’s super easy to be a musical genius! Take this week to develop your album and become a superstar. Disclaimer: I get 99.96 percent of profits because I’m now your manager.

If you think about it, there are no real reasons that we always have to follow social norms. Why can’t we lick people’s necks as a greeting? Why can’t we poop on the lawn? Why can’t we have sex in the Deece? Go wild! Be the best you and the true you.

Have you wailed on a plane recently? Pooped your pants? Eaten applesauce? Don’t lie. I know the answer is yes. This implies that you are a small child. Yay to no more adulthood and worrying about real life jobs. Now you can get some vitamin D through breastfeeding.

It’s time to take a chance this week. Sniff some glue. Lick a stranger’s butthole. The worst that could happen is that you end up on the side of the road vomiting up oysters as your friend is arrested for public indecency. Not that it’s ever happened to me.

I know all of you, and if I combine all of your individual knowledge on sex positions by the transitive property I would be the best at sex. So I guess this means everybody wants to have sex with me. Too bad, get in line.

Page 18

SPORTS

October 4, 2018

Celebrating fall, unparalleled sports season Brewer events this I month Myles Olmsted

n Chapter 16 of L.M. Montgomery’s classic 1908 novel “Anne of Green Gables,” the orphan Anne Shirley comes home carrying royal crimson maple branches with which to decorate her room. “I’m so glad I live in a world where

of season-ending injuries, most notably for Jimmy Garoppolo and Earl Thomas. Football’s back, baby.

So is the other kind of football. Across the pond, the English Premier League chugs into matchweek eight. There are storylines galore. Defending champions Manchester City look to be involved in a three-horse race with flashy Liverpool and new-

The NBA, NFL and Premier League are all quiet.

The WNBA, MLS and NWSL are all growing and deserve attention, but still can’t generate enough buzz to sustain me. Baseball drags on and on and on and on and on. Watching a three-hour pitcher’s duel before realizing there are 100 more games until the playoffs is a feeling unsatisfactory enough to

there are Octobers,” she tells Marilla Cuthbert, her guardian at Green Gables.

I too have always felt a particular affection for October. Fall just holds a certain romance, a certain magic, a certain je ne sais quoi. Fall means sweaters and hoodies and pants and jackets. (I’ve always said I look better the more layers I have on.) Fall means hot coffee and tea and cocoa. Fall means pumpkin pie. And pumpkin patches. And pumpkin carving. And pumpkin spice. Fall means sleeping under my comforter again after months of hot, sticky nights (although this year my TH has AC.) Fall means raking and jumping into leaf piles. Fall means we are only weeks away from one of my favorite holidays, Halloween, when I will once again put together a mediocre-at-best costume at the last minute before we carry on the Vassar tradition of being disappointed by the much-hyped festivities.

Ah, fall. Breathe it in. I’m so glad to live in a world where there are Octobers.

I say that as a fan of sweaters and hoodies and coffee and pumpkin pie and cozy beds and leaf piles and Halloween, yes, but I also speak as a sports fan. Is there a better season to be a sports fan than fall?

Just think about where we are in the sports world as October begins. For many fans, fall is synonymous with the NFL. (If you’ve avoided the moral cesspool that is football so far, congratulations. I’ve tried, but have not been able to resist sporadic Sunday afternoon check-ins.) With week five approaching, the season has passed its quarter mark. Already, the Patriots have lost their annual early-season games only to—after collective histrionics—shellack a division opponent. Already, Ryan Fitzpatrick has completed the full boom and bust we expect from a Ryan Fitzpatrick season.

Already, the young season has produced a slew

look Chelsea. Once-mighty Manchester United, meanwhile, flounder in 10th place, the club embroiled in a classic Jose Mourinho drama. For an American fan, one of the EPL’s greatest features is the time difference between the east coast and the U.K.; the Premier League rules my Saturday and Sunday mornings this time of year. I can wake up, put on a hoodie, make a coffee and watch soccer until half the day is gone. Bliss.

As the NFL and Premier League hit their stride, the MLB season approaches its climax. After the languid march that is the 162-game regular season, the MLB playoffs have arrived. Playoff baseball is actually watchable, and it is glorious. At last, games mean something. Each pitch could be the season.

Managers pull their starters after three innings.

Relievers’ arms fall off. Home runs prompt iconic bat flips. Stadiums actually have people in them.

Glorious, I tell you.

What’s more, the sports gods aren’t done. No, on top of the NFL, EPL and MLB playoffs, October brings the return of the NBA. The preseason has already started. That’s right, folks, the Association is less than two weeks away from tipping off.

I am literally salivating as I type. My Celtics might have the deepest roster since the 1980s; LeBron looks great in Laker yellow; the Timberwolves organization might explode; Kawhi Leonard laughs weirdly but might still make the Raptors a force; Chris Paul’s body is ready to fail him at the most inopportune time. I am wiping the saliva off my keyboard. (Yes, I know, the Warriors are almost certainly going to win again. Don’t ruin this high though, please.) I ask again: With the NFL, Premier League, MLB and NBA overlapping, is there a better sports season?

Let’s quickly look at the other three contenders.

Summer we can quickly cross off the list. It is trash.

drive any fan from the sport. If you confused October baseball, with its tension and stakes, for a sport completely distinct from July baseball, I wouldn’t blame you. Summer is a sports desert; just think about how many people watch the Little League World Series. (This year we had the men’s World Cup, of course, and next year we’ll have the women’s tournament, but those take place once every four years and end early in the summer.)

Winter is a decent enough sports period. But the NBA season dulls after the holiday period, reminding us again that an 82-game campaign is too long.

Winter also means the midpoint of the European soccer calendar. Winter is fine, just less exciting.

The college basketball regular season is boring, and the college football bowl season is dumb.

It is spring that gives fall its toughest competition; spring is championship season, after all.

March Madness gives way to the amazing (although too long) NBA playoffs. European domestic soccer leagues wrap and the Champions League crowns a winner in May. I sometimes even get into the NHL playoffs. And there’s baseball again, of course, the first months of which are exciting until you watch a three-hour pitcher’s duel and realize there are 120 more games until the playoffs. Spring is absorbing, but it’s no fall. Anne of Green Gables knew her sports.

I wonder if the changing weather helps fall’s case. As the weather gets colder and the days grow ever shorter, curling up in front of a game feels just right. In the spring, as the snow gives way to sun, we want to get outside and stretch our limbs after months of hibernation. Or maybe the magic of fall sports comes from the barrenness of the summer before. Absence, they say, makes the heart grow fonder. Whatever the reason, I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.

SPORTS EDITOR

Men’s Cross Country Oct. 13, Rowan University Interregional Battle, Glassboro, NJ, 12 p.m.

Oct. 27, Liberty Leaue Championships, Potsdam, NY, 12 p.m.

Women’s Cross Country Oct. 14, Seven Sisters Championships, Bryn Mawr, PA, 12 p.m.

Oct. 27, Liberty Leaue Championships, Potsdam, NY, 12 p.m.

Men’s Rowing Oct. 14, Head of the Passaic, Lyndhurst, NJ, 9 a.m.

Oct. 20, Head of the Charles, Boston, MA, 9 a.m.

Oct. 27, Head of the Fish, Saratoga Springs, NY Women’s Rowing Oct. 14, Head of the Passaic, Lyndhurst, NJ, 9 a.m.

Oct. 27, Head of the Fish, Saratoga Springs, NY Women’s Rugby Oct. 6, at Albany, Albany, NY, 12 p.m.

Oct. 13, vs Bowdoin, Vassar Farm, 12 p.m.

Oct. 20, at Army, West Point, NY, 12 p.m.

Men’s Rugby Oct. 7, vs Maritime, Vassar Farm, 12 p.m.

Oct. 14, at Bard, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY, 12 p.m.

Men’s Soccer Oct. 6, at Skidmore, Saratoga Springs, NY, 12 p.m.

Oct. 12, at Clarkson, Potsdam, NY, 4 p.m.

Oct. 13, at Saint Lawrence, Canton, NY, 2 p.m.

Oct. 20, vs Hobart, Senior Day, Gordon Field, 2 p.m.

Oct. 24, vs RPI, Gordon Field, 3:30 p.m.

Oct. 27, at Ithaca, Ithaca, NY, 2 p.m.

Women’s Soccer Oct. 6, vs Skidmore, Gordon Field, 2 p.m.

Oct. 12, vs Clarkson, Gordon Field, 4 p.m.

Oct. 13, vs St. Lawrence, Gordon Field, 2 pm.

Oct. 20, at William Smith, Geneva, NY, 1 p.m.

Oct. 24, at RPI, Troy, NY, 7:30 p.m.

Oct. 27, vs Ithaca, Gordon Field, 2 p.m.

Field Hockey Oct. 6, at Saint Lawrence, Canton, NY, 6 p.m.

Oct. 12, at Ithaca, Ithaca, NY 4 p.m.

Oct. 14, vs Union, Weinberg Turf Field, 1 p.m.

Oct. 19, vs Rochester, Weinberg Turf Field, 4 p.m.

Oct. 21, at William Smith, Geneva, NY, 1 p.m.

Oct. 24, at Scranton, Scranton, PA, 7 p.m.

Oct. 27, at New Paltz, New Paltz, NY, 1 p.m.

Women’s Golf Oct. 6 & 7, George Phinney Golf Classic, Middlebury, VT Women’s Volleyball Oct. 13, at Swarthmore, Swarthmore, PA, 2 p.m.

Oct. 19, at RIT, Rochester, NY, 7 p.m.

Oct. 20, at Ithaca, Ithaca, NY, 1 p.m.

Oct. 24, at New Paltz, New Paltz, NY 7 p.m.

Oct. 27, vs College of New Rochelle, Kenyon Hall, 2 pm

Kavanaugh reflects toxicity in male athletics KAVANAUGH continued from page 1 petuating the normalization of many of the core characteristics of all-male spaces. Kavanaugh’s past is an extreme example of the byproducts of the deleterious way prep school sports culture grooms its boys. But it is not an aberration. #MeToo has not fully hit the world of sports yet.

When it does, however, it will hit hard.

Deep breath.

For now, I’ll leave that be. For now, I’m going to write about fantasy football.

I’m going to write about fantasy football because it sits at the heart of what makes sports so helpful and so problematic. I’ll be grappling with the Janus-faced qualities of sports for the rest of my life. That does not mean I cannot also revel in the beautiful, frustrating monotony of wishing I started John Brown over Mike Williams last week. As in all things, a desire for critical consciousness should not preclude us from enjoying what makes other aspects of life liveable.

This past week in my increasingly rancorous fantasy football league, I faced kind person and Vassar-men’s-basketball-captain-turned-DraftKings-employee Tony Caletti. My buddy Tony, a die-hard Warriors fan (judge as you see fit), is not a football guy. Caletti is so not a football guy that if you put shoulder pads on him he’d look like a lollipop. In our texts back and forth regarding the matchup, he noted that he has watched fewer than 10 minutes of football this year. (I am both jealous of this fact and appalled by it.)

I, conversely, spend every Sunday reading with football on in the background. I have won

the last two fantasy football leagues I have been in. I am rated as the gold standard by Yahoo Fantasy. This is obviously a very big deal. Unfortunately, this fantasy football season has not gone particularly well for me.

This season I drafted Leonard Fournette in the second round. What I did not know when I drafted him was that his right hamstring was about as sturdy as my self-confidence in seventh grade. I drafted Russell Wilson in the fifth round. What I did not know was that the most exciting part of the Seattle Seahawks season would be Earl Thomas waving the same finger I wave at any pseudo-woke Vassar student who treats campus workers like service-delivering automatons.

“Kavanaugh’s past is an extreme example of the byproducts of the deleterious way prep school sports culture grooms its boys.”

Mr. Caletti, on the other hand, stumbled into Patrick Mahomes in the ninth round. For those of you who haven’t been following football, stumbling into a player as good as Patrick Mahomes in the ninth round is like stumbling into Noam Chomsky in Bacio’s at 2 a.m. on a Friday night; it’s just not supposed to happen.

Despite this, heading into Monday night,

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

I was leading Mr. Caletti by a whopping 45 points. The only problem was that his Chomsky was playing Monday night.

I was unnerved. I was obsessed. I was immersed in a world with seemingly no real consequences (as long as you play along with the dominant narratives of what NFL labor is supposed to be—read last week’s article). I wasn’t thinking about all the real things that make me anxious. I was thinking about whether or not the Denver Broncos’ defense could get enough pressure on Mahomes to prevent him from torching their secondary and burying my hopes of bumping my fantasy record up to 2-2. What a world.

The Denver Broncos defense, it turned out, could not contain Patrick Mahomes.

I lost to Tony Caletti in fantasy football.

I was humiliated.

But at least that’s what I’m thinking about.

For a few moments.

Fantasy football could not wholly numb my visceral reactions to the past week of American political news. Yet there were moments when the glee and mysticism of it all were so immersive that, when I snapped out of my myopia, I felt refreshed. Lending this sort of emotional significance to a distraction like fantasy football is silly, but so are a lot of feelings that I harbor.

As I continue critically exploring intersections of sports, politics and philosophy in my writing, I want to remind myself of the undeniable, virtuously distracting joy that sports often bring me. This past weekend reminded me of that to the fullest extent possible. It would have have been nice to win, though.

SPORTS

October 4, 2018

Why

we

Page 19

Annie Shriver

play

Annie Shriver

GUEST COLUMNIST

W

Courtesy of Annie Shriver

hen I was little, “athlete” meant the people on TV, the big names everyone knew, the people on baseball cards and football cards and on the posters I put up in my locker.

And they were all men. I knew that I loved playing sports, but I felt wrong calling myself an athlete. It didn’t matter that I played organized sports yearround. It didn’t matter that I played on the varsity basketball team. My tomboy ways weren’t enough to drown out the boys who didn’t throw to me at recess or that replica jerseys could only be found in the boys’ clothing section or the student fan section in high school that came to the boys’ basketball games but not to ours. Women could play sports, but to be an athlete—to claim athletics as your identity—felt beyond me.

I still loved sports, however, so when my senior season of basketball ended I knew I needed to find a new team. On a whim, I started playing Ultimate frisbee. Within a month I was in love. In Ultimate I found a community of athletes who valued integrity, fair play and mutual respect over winning.

Ultimate is a mostly self-officiated sport, and no one is making a living playing frisbee (yet), so the community is a group of people who play for their love of the game.

But as much as I love the values of Ultimate, I know that they aren’t the whole reason why I spend hours a week on the field. I play because I love competition. Not win-or-nothing, opponents-are-enemies competition, but the competition that happens when two teams are battling in a way that brings out the best in all the players. I play for the moments when you’re up 9-6 against the girls’ team from Seattle, who has been undefeated in the tournament for the past 11 years.

You’re ranked second, but Seattle is such a juggernaut that every other team is a Cinderella story.

You’re playing the best you ever have because you know you have to. A constant stream of noise is pouring from the sidelines. In Ultimate, there is no bench, so players who are not currently in

“Why We Play” is a weekly installment in which Vassar athletes write about what their sports and teams mean to them. This week, we feature senior women’s Ultimate player Annie Shriver, pictured above. the game run up and down along the field, yelling encouragement and advice to their teammates on the field. You have never heard sidelines so loud.

You’re so close.

And then they call a timeout, change their defense and battle back. A game that had been 9-6 us ends with Seattle winning 13-10. They were going to the finals, still undefeated, and we would play for third. By the end of the game, I felt so drained— physically, mentally, emotionally—that I sat on the sideline and cried. I learned what it meant to leave it all on the field.

On the plane ride home I decided I was going to do what I had to do in order to play more games

like that. I started running sprints before classes and watching games online. I started thinking of myself as an athlete. It helped that some of the best players in the sport—players of all genders— make an active effort to value women and girls in Ultimate. From initiatives like the Girls’ Ultimate Movement to a recent boycott by top players of the male-dominated semi-professional Ultimate league, high-level Ultimate players have shown their dedication to securing greater gender equity in athletics. If players from top-ranked teams respected me as an athlete, who was I to disagree?

The past two summers, I’ve played with a club team based in Boston that’s one of the top 25

women’s teams in the country. I’ve played teams from Denver, San Francisco, New York City, Seattle, DC, Columbus and even Southeast Asia. I’ve played against the people who were my heroes when I was learning how to play (and who are still my heroes now). I’ve learned to set my goals as high as I want and to value the time and dedication I give to my sport. Being a woman in sports still gives me some imposter syndrome, but now I call myself an athlete, and I believe it.

The Vassar women’s Ultimate team, unlike my summer club team, is not that competitive.

We’re a Division III team full of players who generally didn’t know anything about Ultimate before coming to college. Without a coach, my co-captain and I are the ones who guide the team in practices and games with input and help from our teammates. That’s what I love about playing here.

Our games may not have the thrill of coming so close to beating a national powerhouse (my club team lost 15-12 to the fifth-best team in the country just over a month ago), but there’s a different sort of thrill that comes from watching players take the skills and concepts we teach in drills and apply them to gameplay. And there’s a thrill that comes from hearing my teammates compliment each other, from knowing that the team I’m guiding is committed to improving and to appreciating each other. People come to Ultimate with a range of athletic backgrounds, but I know none of the women on the team have experienced the sort of validation and respect that male athletes enjoy.

I want to change that. On my team, we celebrate one another. We bring out the best in one another. We give each other the affirmations that we haven’t heard elsewhere, as women athletes in a world that puts men on a pedestal. Ultimate has taught me to value myself and my teammates, and this lesson gives me the confidence to push myself and my team to be our best and to be proud. I play Ultimate because it makes me feel like an athlete.

As a captain, my goal is for my teammates to feel the same.

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Brewers In Action

Courtesy of Nick Jallat

Like PLAYING sports? Then write for the sports section!

Like WATCHING sports? Then write for the sports section!!

Know NOTHING about sports?

Then learn by WRITING for the sports section!!!

GO SPORTS!!!!

No, seriously, we’d love to have you.

Against Bard on Sept. 22, senior Nick Lee helped the men’s tennis team to an easy 9-0 win, cruising to wins in both singles and doubles (partnered with senior Nick Zuczek) without dropping a single game.

Courtesy of Roger L. Wollenberg

Courtesy of Nick Jallat

Junior Rylie Pope earned Liberty League Offensive Player of the Week honors after two goals against Hartwick in a 8-1 win and one against Skidmore in a 3-1 win. Field hockey has won seven straight.

Please contact Myles Olmsted at myolmsted@vassar.edu if this ad has convinced you to write for the sports section.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

SPORTS

Page 20

October 4, 2018

After offseason drama, new NBA season ripe with storylines Dean Kopitsky

GUEST COLUMNIST

B

asketball fans, rejoice. The high flyin’, slamdunkin’, star-makin’, pragmatically commissioned, concussion-free, guaranteed-contract-having, guilt-free sweetness of the National Basketball Association makes its return this October.

It seems like only yesterday that J.R. Smith befoggedly dribbled out the Cleveland Cavaliers chance of winning another NBA title en route to getting swept by the Golden State Warriors. But one chaotic free agency window and a dramatic NBA draft later, the league is ready to grace televisions and social media feeds once again.

This NBA offseason brought many changes. A claw moved to Canada. A bromance was broken.

A King moved to Los Angeles. A guy who wears hoodies to the beach signed with the Rockets. One European prodigy was drafted to succeed an aging other. The final two pieces of the Spurs dynasty left town, one for New Orleans and one for retirement. Forty-two-year-old Vince Carter, however, is still dunking. All right, let’s hit it.

A New Day in the Eastern Conference Maybe the most bizarre storyline of the offseason was the trade demand by Kawhi Leonard. It was bizarre because Leonard is usually heralded for his stoicism, not for headline-making. Leonard was injured by Warrior’s center Zaza Pachulia in a game all the way back in the 2017 playoffs. (Although illegal, it was probably the most effective contribution Zaza made in the whole series.) But the San Antonio Spurs medical staff misdiagnosed Kawhi’s injury, beginning the slow and awkward demise of the forward’s relationship with the team.

Now, Leonard begins a new chapter after his trade to Toronto.

The Raptors, who earned last year’s top seed in the Eastern Conference, took a gamble when they traded their best player—DeMar DeRozan—for Leonard. Leonard has only one season remaining

on his current contract, meaning that this year the Raptors must convince him to stay once he becomes a free agent.

The next big storyline in the East is the rapid rise of the Boston Celtics. The Celtics shattered expectations last year by making it to game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals without their two

The move to L.A. is an inflection point in the career of James, the league’s best player. LeBron has played in the last eight NBA Finals, but, barring an immense surprise, his young Laker squad will not be expected to advance deep into the playoffs. The Lakers are composed of a motley crew of journeymen and rising stars. Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram

draft. What makes these young prospects so intriguing is their mix of old-school and new-school skill.

Ayton and Bagley are elite post-up big men, but they can also shoot three-pointers, are mobile and are freak athletes for their size. Ayton will play alongside Devin Booker, an up-and-coming

best players, Gordon Hayward and Kyrie Irving.

Hayward only played for four minutes last season after breaking his leg in the first game, so they are effectively adding an All-Star to an already deep, well-coached team.

Finally, one of the most interesting teams in the whole league to watch this season will be the Philadelphia 76ers. The Sixers made their return to the playoffs in impressive form last year, led by young superstars Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid.

Their encouraging success wasn’t without drama, though. The number one overall pick in the 2017 draft, Markelle Fultz, whom Philly traded up to get, was sidelined for most of last year with what seemed like a crisis of confidence. With Fultz’s struggles hopefully behind him, the Sixers are effectively adding an eye-poppingly athletic guard to their roster.

Philadelphia also have a new General Manager.

Former player Elton Brand will replace the disgraced Jerry Colangelo, fired by the team after a cringeworthy scandal linked him with pseudonymous Twitter accounts that referred to sensitive organizational information. There are no title expectations yet for this young Sixers team, but look for them to improve as their young stars Embiid, Simmons and Fultz play their first meaningful minutes as a trio.

and Kyle Kuzma make up a core of encouraging but raw talent, while veterans Rajon Rondo, Lance Stephenson and JaVale McGee fill out the roster on one-year deals. There is no pressure for the Lakers this season. Their hope is to develop their young talent and attract a star from the upcoming free agent class next offseason.

shooting guard who, at only 20 years old, scored 71 points in a single game last year.

Young, on the other hand, fits more into the mold of a modern player. He’s small and doesn’t play much defense, but his shooting in college was unparalleled and he already passes at an elite level.

Fans and analysts alike have compared him to twotime MVP Stephen Curry, who rose to the upper echelon of NBA players on the back of his ability to shoot and create shots off the dribble.

But the best prospect out of all of them may be Luka Doncic, a small forward hailing from Latvia.

Doncic is only 19 years old, yet he has already been playing professional basketball in Europe for three years. The hype around Doncic swelled when he won MVP of the Euroleague, a competition in which many former NBAers play. Furthermore, Doncic seems like a perfect fit for the Dallas Mavericks. He will be mentored in Dallas by Dirk Nowitzki, possibly the greatest European basketball player in NBA history.

Although it feels like it never left, the NBA is back for another season. The NBA is truly a yearround league now. No other American sport can really claim that. It speaks to the rocketing popularity of basketball that, in a season where the champion seems predetermined (the Warriors are overwhelming favorites to three-peat), the buzz surrounding the league kept up throughout the summer.

The NBA season will be a marathon, not crowning its champion for another eight months, but those eight months will bring hot takes, Twitter drama and endless highlights. It’s time for basketball.

Cue the LAbron puns The most consequential event of the offseason was LeBron James’ move to the Los Angeles Lakers. Fans speculated wildly on his choice—dubbed by some “the Decision three”—for a year before he even made his choice to leave the Cavaliers

Women’s Volleyball

Vassar College 8, Hartwick College 1

Vassar College 3, Kean University 0

September 26, 2018

September 28, 2018

Player

Hartwick College

S H SOG G A

3

Aquilina -Piscitello

1

0

0

0

4

Feeley

1

1

1

1

5

Caveny

5

4

0

0

6

Lopez

6

4

1

0

8

More

5

3

0

2

12

Plante

1

1

1

0

16

McGrath

1

1

0

0

17

Youse

0

0

0

0

18

Johnston

0

0

0

0

20

Young

1

1

0

1

30

Rotolo

0

0

0

0

Totals.......

Goalie Rotolo Maguire

The Youth Movement The 2018 draft yielded some of the most intriguing prospects in recent memory. Players like Marvin Bagley III, Trae Young and Deandre Ayton lit up college ball, and all went in the top five of the

Women’s Field Hockey

Vassar College #

How good is too good?

Last season’s NBA champs (and those from the year before that, and the year before that), return with a shiny new 270-pound weapon down low. When no one else came calling, the Warriors snatched up Demarcus Cousins, All-NBA center, from free agency. Cousins—whose brooding nature, poor shooting, lack of defensive effort and distracting locker-room presence seem antithetical to everything the Warriors stand for—is coming off a devastating achilles tear and won’t be ready until at least March. His delayed introduction shouldn’t be a problem for the Warriors though, who already have four All-Stars, including two MVPs in their starting lineup.

But will the addition of Cousins sink the Warriors’ famous mojo? Most likely not. In fact, Cousins, who has never played in a playoff game, could provide a spark for the Warriors in their battle against complacency after reaching the pinnacle of basketball three out of the last four years.

Minutes 48:28 21:32

28

21

GA 1 0

8

5

Saves 0 0

#

Player

Vassar College

S H SOG G A

#

Player

Kean University

K

A

DIG

#

Player

K

A

DIG

3

Willett

1

0

0

0

2

Ninkovich

5

1

4

4

Stec

4

0

5

4

Bonini

0

0

0

0

4

MacMillan

0

33

8

5

Sample

0

1

8

5

Quirk

0

0

0

0

6

Ehnstrom

5

0

2

11

Calvano

2

29

6

8

Stauble

0

0

0

0

7

Gallagher

8

0

8

15

Larkin

5

0

1

9

Sobol

0

0

0

0

11

Kerbs

10

0

2

21

Harper

10

0

10

14

Robinson

0

0

0

0

15

McLeod

7

0

3

23

Strozewski

4

0

1

15

Peakes

0

0

0

1

1

Schreeder

0

0

6

1

Antal

8

1

2

19

Singer

1

1

1

0

10

Zucchero

1

2

19

2

Ross

3

0

1

25

Wheeler

0

0

0

0

12

Bialek

0

0

2

26

Nelson

0

3

22

32

Stalder

0

0

0

0

8

DeLio

0

0

0

41

Osborne

0

0

0

0

20

Lacona

0

0

0

24

Fiore

0

1

0

13

Jaskot

0

1

0

36

36

56

2

Totals.......

1

1

1

Goalie

Minutes

GA

Saves

Osborne

70:00

8

9

Totals.......

Set:

36

36

54

Totals.......

1

2

3

25

25

25

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Set:

1

2

3

23

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23