Fall Fest | 11/6/2015 | Red&Black

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s t u d e n t n e w s pa p e r o f w a s h i n g t o n a n d j e f f e r s o n c o l l e g e r e d a n d b l a c ko n l i n e . c o m w a s h i n g t o n , p e n n s y lva n i a November 6, 2015

W&J Welcomes fall with fall fest celebration

Courtesy Kashmir Sainiak

This past Friday, Oct. 30, the Student Activities Board (SAB) hosted its annual Fall Fest event. Student clubs organized various activities in order to celebrate the Halloween season, including crafts, pie eating contests and pumpkin carving.

SECURITY LOGS ARE BACK PAGE 4

ARTS: SARAH ROSE NORDGREN PAGE 10

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6 N ovember 2015

Spanish Club Spotlight: Join the Fiesta

Courtesy W&J Modern Languages

From left to right, Emily Sterk (Class of 2017) and Stephanie Velasquez (Class of 2017) at the Modern Language Open House this past Monday, Nov. 2, 2015.

Brittany Graft Red&Black editor A great way to experience another culture here on campus is by joining a foreign language club. In particular, The Spanish Club here at W&J is a great way to immerse yourself in another culture and still getting to have fun with your friends.

The Spanish Club offers many different events throughout the year for you to experience various traditions from Spanishspeaking countries. The club meets every 2 to 3 weeks. The best part is that students do

not even have to be a Spanish major or minor to join. The club is open to any student who has taken a Spanish class here or who just knows some

of events for their members.

Some of these events include cooking demonstrations, Día de los Muertos celebration, a film series, and let’s not

go to these events for their members.

The tickets are usually free so it is a great way to go experience something new!

The students are able to get acquainted with films, art, culture and traditions. There’s only so much we can teach in a class. The Spanish Club offers a more real-world experience for students.

Spanish words. It is a great opportunity to develop skills in the language as well.

Throughout the course of the year, they host a number

forget, fiestas! Occasionally, Pittsburgh also holds Spanishrelated events such as operas or plays, and the Spanish Club usually gets tickets to

For those who are uncertain if joining is right for them, the Spanish professors on campus and the students involved highly encourage you. The

advisor for the club, Professor Alpañés, is very enthusiastic about the club. “I think it is a great opportunity for students to meet new people and they get to enjoy the many great things about the Spanish-speaking countries.

The students are able to get acquainted with films, art, culture and traditions. There’s only so much we can teach in a class. The Spanish Club offers a more real-world experience for students,” said Alpañés.

Students interested in joining The Spanish Club, should visit The Spanish Club page on Facebook or email spanishclub@jay.washjeff.edu.

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Second Grid Academy Lecture: Modern Grid Red & Black

Courtesy wjenergy.org

Tyler Mattes Red&Black Contributor

On Oct. 14, the second session of the Grid Academy lecture series was held in Burnett's Yost Auditorium.

There were four speakers: Dr. Gregory Reed, who also spoke in the last lecture, but did not take center stage in this trio of lectures; Steve Bossart, a Department of Energy analyst who presented on the metrics of efficiency, the technology and the abundant benefits involved in running the Modern Grid; Joe Waligorski, who focused on the practical difficulties and short-term costs of adopting the Modern Grid on a large scale; and Doug Dillie, who discussed how consumers would experience the use of the Modern Grid.

Students may notice the use of the term “Modern Grid” rather than “Smart Grid.”

The distinction between the two was a major point of the interconnected lectures.

It was explained in Bossart's introductory piece that the Modern Grid would make use of micro grids, defined by

Bossart as “a small grid that includes its own dedicated generation and load, defined electrical boundaries, connects at a single point to the main grid and can connect and disconnect from the main grid.” The Modern Grid will also use the capabilities of the Smart Grid, such as communicating

large. Before concluding his presentation, Bossart touched upon the issues of security, funding and other potential concerns consumers might have. In all, the case for the Modern Grid is virtually unassailable in terms of whether it would benefit society. But as Waligorsky and Bossart both

sentation focused on how the Modern Grid might use a network of sensors to relay information about a given fault and reduce the total time it takes to find and fix it. He also discussed the effects of and various types of consumer power production and the changes that they would necessitate

The benefits of switching to the Modern Grid were self-evident: fewer power outages, meaning less businesses lost to blackouts, a cost benefit over the often-repaired current system of about two trillion dollars and greater energy independence for America at large. sensors that monitor power flow, in conjunction with the increasing amount and variety of generation, storage and load upon the grid.

The benefits of switching to the Modern Grid were selfevident: fewer power outages, meaning less businesses lost to blackouts, a cost benefit over the often-repaired current system of about two trillion dollars and greater energy independence for America at

mentioned, there are some notable obstacles.

For example, though there may be an eventual benefit of two trillion dollars, that only comes with an immediate investment that may approach five billion dollars—money that needs to come from somewhere. Another is the concern of how ubiquitous micro grids might complicate the issue of faults, which cause blackouts. Waligorski’s pre-

from today’s grid. Dillie’s presentation closed the evening’s lecture, and focused on how consumers, both private or residential and commercial or industrial, would participate in the Modern Grid.

One of the largest differences from the present would be “demand response,” a system in which consumers are called upon to “reduce the consumption of electricity in periods of high demand.” The

change in consumption levels could be accomplished by using private power generation systems as well as taking simple steps to reduce consumption, such as unplugging unneeded devices.

That, however, represents a significant commitment from large businesses who would be the most significant participants in a demand responseenabled system. The incentive lies in financial benefits the company receives in exchange for agreeing to a given number of cutbacks per year, each of a limited duration.

Power plants that are only active during peak hours would become obsolete, with the end result of lowering the cost of electricity. Dillie also discussed several similar policies that would benefit both producers and consumers, as well as how smart meters and home automation would fit into the overall structure of the Modern Grid.

The next installment of Grid Academy will be on Feb. 17, and will discuss the economic realities of the emerging power system.

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S E C U R I T Y LO G S

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W&J’s Halloween Costumes of 2015

Date: 10/05/2015 Incident: Theft Campus and Public Safety responded to 312 E. Chestnut St. where a banner was reported to have been taken from the porch. A resident of the building had put it away. There were no charges filed because there was no crime.

Date: 10/10/2015 Incident: Disorderly Conduct Campus and Public Safety responded to Grant II parking lot where they had received a report of a person lying on the ground. The person became verbally abusive. The person was cited.

Date: 10/11/2015 Incident: Assault Campus and Public Safety responded to Bica-Ross Hall where a male non-student pushed and yelled at a female student. A male alum punched him in the mouth. The victim did not want anything done, so no charges were filed.

Date: 10/15/2015 Incident: Theft Campus and Public Safety responded to Taylor Parking Lot where a student saw a man trying to open car doors. The man fled and was captured. All of the stolen property was recovered.

Charges were filed.

Courtesy Kass Baron

From left to right, Kass Baron (Class of 2017), Kira Baierl (Class of 2018) and Christine Plavchak (Class of 2016) dress as the Wet Bandits and Kevin from “Home Alone.”

Date: 10/23/2015 Incident: Alcohol Possession Campus and Public Safety responded to 127 E. Chestnut where a fire alarm was activated. Two students were found still asleep.

Both had been drinking alcohol. Both were cited.

Date: 10/31/2015 Incident: Alcohol; Public Drunkenness Campus and Public Safety responded to Marshall Hall where a student fell while carrying a bottle. The bottle broke and the person received a cut on their arm. Medical assistance was required. No charges were filed.

Courtesy Jake Bran

Courtesy Stephanie Velasquez

Jake Brandl (Class of 2018) and Sam Horowitz Hiroyuki Azuma (International Student) and Soyos (Class of 2018) as Jake from State Farm Stephanie Velasquez (Class of 2017) as and a bunny respectively. calaveras.

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Red & Black

Ask the Staff: What is your favorite part about Fall?

"The colorful foliage, and also the cooler weather. It reminds me of the weather back in Nepal." - Sid "My favorite part of fall has to be comfy scarves, drinking hot tea all the time and all of the fall colors that match my hair so well."

- Shannon Adams "Stepping on crunchy leaves!"

-Carolyn Wilson

"My favorite thing about fall is how beautiful the trees here in western Pennsylvania get when the leaves change colors. Even though I'm from around here, I have not yet found a part of the country that is more beautiful than western Pennsylvania in the fall." - Katie Campbell

THIS WEEKEND'S EVENTS

Friday: • Free Bowling with W&J ID (until 3:00) – 1 p.m. at Alpine Lanes • Frisbee Friday – 5 p.m. on Tech Center Lawn • Thanksgiving Dinner - 5 p.m. at The Commons • The Real Deal Crazy Show - 7 p.m. at G&T's • Monticello's Karaoke Night - 9 p.m. at Hub LL Saturday: • Football vs. Thiel - 1:30 p.m. at Cameron Stadium • Monticello's – 9 p.m. at Hub LL • SAB Presents: Comedian Geoff Keith - 9:30 p.m. in The Alley (Hub LL) Sunday: • Pittsburgh Sports: Steelers - 1 p.m. at G&T's • DIY Architectural Letters - 2 p.m. until 6 p.m. at G&T's

"My favorite part about fall is the changing leaves. My house is on the ridge, so everything is colorful and vibrant for a few months."

- Carolyn Tomlinson "I love how fall feels the way jazz sounds." - Lauren Lamm "My favorite thing about fall is the changing of the leaves and spending time with loved ones during Thanksgiving." - Bailey Mudrick

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Exxon Mobile Was Aware of Climate Change 40 Years Ago

Courtesy forhumanliberation.blogspot.com

Comic depicting Exxon Mobil fueling President Bush with lies about Climate Control and Global Warming

Ben Langdon Red&Black Contributor 1977 was a busy year in the United States.

A nuclear-proliferation treaty was signed by the United States and the Soviet Union, Elvis Presley died and Star Wars first hit theaters.

Among the events and issues on the mind of the American public, climate change was not among them.

Although the science behind human-made climate change was not made aware to the general public, a

new investigation by Inside Climate News has revealed that Exxon, the world’s largest oil and gas company, was aware of climate change in 1977.

According the report, Exxon’s senior scientist James Black revealed to high level executives the dangers of exposing large amounts of carbon dioxide to the environment.

“In the first place, there is general scientific agreement that the most likely manner in which mankind is influencing the global climate is through carbon dioxide release from

the burning of fossil fuels,” Black explained to Exxon’s management committee in July 1977.

Exxon denies that any of the information they received in the 70s was as conclusive as the report states.

“We didn’t reach those conclusions, nor did we try to bury it like they suggest,” ExxonMobil (the successor to Exxon) spokesperson Allan Jeffers stated.

When climate change science was made public, and a real policy debate emerged around human-made climate change in the late 80s, Exxon’s

public stance was that the science was still up for interpretation.

In 1989, Exxon helped to create the Global Climate Coalition, which sought to question the science behind human-made climate change.

In 1998, Exxon lead an effort to prevent the United States from signing the Kyoto Protocol, an international treaty aimed at trying to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The United States, India and China were among some of the countries who refused to sign the treaty. On Tuesday, Oct. 20, Democratic

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders called on the Department of Justice to conduct an investigation into ExxonMobil.

“ExxonMobil knew the truth about fossil fuels and climate change and lied to protect their business model at the expense of the planet,” Senator Sanders wrote in a letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

How much information about climate change Exxon knew, and when they knew it will become a matter of great debate in the coming weeks.

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Russia Fails to Compensate for Environmental Damage

Courtesy coporate.comcast.com

Ioseb Jorjoliani Red&Black Contributor

Russia is taking back its promise to compensate for the environmental damage caused by constructions for the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games.

Environmental organizations had protested this developing processes in the mountains above the Black Sea resort, where many sporting facilities were built on land within the bounds of Sochi National Park.

Russian government indeed agreed to put other land in the area under strict environmental protection and include it in the UNESCO World Heritage site known as the Western Caucasus. The region was awarded World

Heritage designation in 1999 their abundance of rare and Environmental Watch on the and was described as one of endangered species, in its pro- North Caucasus (EWNC), the Europe’s large undisturbed posal to have them incorpo- which took photographs of forested mountain ranges. rated into the World Heritage the roadworks last month.

Rosa Khutor's director SerBut why should international site.

However, the authorities gei Bachin told a meeting earcommunity trust Russian are now pushing to build in lier this month that his resort promises? plans to double Recently Russia in size in the next announced its reThere is ongoing destruction of two or three years, traction of formal to the bid to expand the the river's ecosystem and of the according Russian Ski Assosite. As International experts were unique wilderness of these areas. ciation.

The expanevaluating the subsion would affect mission, several undisturbed areas people involved in the process said, “This is a the areas, with the Russian inside Sochi National Park refusal to carry out the Olym- environment ministry pro- and a wildlife sanctuary along pic obligations,” Igor Chestin, posing them as sites for rec- Sochi's main Mzymta River, director of WWF-Worldwide reational development. The which the government promFund for Natura in Russia told Rosa Khutor ski resort, where ised to rebuild after heavy some of the Olympic events in downstream construction for to AFP blog correspondent.

The Russian government 2014 were hosted, is already the Olympics. "Instead, there had vaunted the virgin wil- building roads in the area, is ongoing destruction of the derness areas near Sochi, with according to the local group river's ecosystem and of the

unique wilderness of these areas," EWNC said.

Under a restoration project supported by the Kremlin, the areas were also supposed to become a habitat for the rare Caucasian leopard, which once inhabited the Caucasus but now exists only in Iran.

Russian President Vladimir Putin championed the project, taking several International Olympic Committee officials to the local leopard breeding center ahead of the Games last year.

"Restoring this part of lost nature is part of our Olympics," Putin told them.

But if the territory continues to grow as a ski resort, "this program will be pointless," said WWF's Chestin, noting that it would cut off the leopards' migration routes.

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U.S.Watching Canada’s New Drug Policy Ben Langdon Red&Black Contributor

When Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party seized an electoral victory in the recent parliamentary elections in Canada, one issue of the campaign raised interest in the United States: marijuana legalization.

The Liberal Party’s election platform stated, “We will remove marijuana consumption and incidental possession from the Criminal Code and create new, stronger laws to punish more severely those who provide it to minors, those who operate a motor vehicle while under its

influence and those who sell it outside of the new regulatory framework.”

If Canada succeeds in legalizing marijuana possession and consumption, it would be the first among developed nations. Only the developing nation of Uruguay has fully legalized marijuana.

Therefore, the developed world, and especially the United States, are keeping a close eye on Canada’s drug policy. Significant shifts in Canadian drug policy could lead to subsequent shifts around the world. If marijuana is legalized in Canada, our northern neighbors could be in trouble for international treaty violations.

The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961, the Convention on Psychotropic Drugs of 1971, and the UN Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988, all signed by Canada, set guidelines for international enforcement of the drug trade.

Although, the likelihood of these treaties being enforced if Canada legalized marijuana is quite low. Typically, the United States enforces these treaties, but it is unlikely that the United States would go after such a close ally.

Also, the United States drug policy is seen as moving in a direction similar to Canada, so a public disapproval

deviate from the norm, and play a prank on his university.

The English major decided to lay lines of powdered sugar on his coffee table to look like a line of cocaine.

He did not stop there, however. He continued the prank by adding pills, which were really just aspirin, and a rolled up dollar bill to his coffee table and counters.

Jonathan knew his university has a zero tolerance policy for drugs on campus and that when drugs are suspected the university is expected to call the police.

Harrington thought that since the white substance was clearly only sugar, everyone would have a good laugh at his joke and move on. He was completely wrong. When the

police were called in, they used a drug field kit to test the powdered white substance.

The test came up positive for cocaine. Harrington was promptly charged with a felony of cocaine possession, handcuffed and taken to jail.

His felony consisted of at least 5 years in jail and a $5,000 fine, and he also faces suspension at University of Miami.

To say the least, Jonathan was shocked that his powdered sugar tested positive for cocaine.

The positive drug field result is not uncommon, however. Quick drug tests often produce false positives and Harrington happened to be one of those lucky people.

He stuck with his story that

of Canadian policy could seem hypocritical to the international community.

Legalization of marijuana use in Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington has already opened up U.S. investment opportunities, but legalization in Canada could open up the biggest market yet. One hedge fund that has shown interest in the anticipated market in Canada is Poseidon

Courtesy fotolia.com

Asset Management. “We have one core holding up there currently but we would love to expand that," Morgan Paxhia, the hedge fund's founding partner and chief investor, told CBC News.

As the Canadian Parliament looks towards marijuana legalization within the coming months, one thing is for sure: the United States will be watching intently.

Pranked: Poweded Sugar Gone Awry Shannon Adams Red&Black Editor

Dorm inspection week is hectic for both students and RAs alike.

We all know the drill to take down the tapestries that are hanging on the walls, put away the wax melts and to throw a blanket over microwaves and refrigerators that are not provided by the school.

Then starts the process of cleaning up your messy floors, folding your clean laundry and picking up dirty laundry so your RA doesn’t know that you are the slob that you really are. At the University of Miami one student, Jonathan Harrington, decided to

Courtesy sweetbeez.org

the test resulted in a false positive.

“It was indeed powdered sugar,” said Harrington in the Miami New York Times. “23.7 grams of the finest you can buy at Publix.

I know the amount from the police report. I doubt they’d believe me. To them

it is more plausible that I left $1,500 worth of cocaine strewn around my apartment.”

The good news is that Jonathan was released from jail after a month when the lab results came back proving that the white substance was powdered sugar the whole time.

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Hurricane Patricia Wrecks Havoc

Courtesy abcnews.go.com

Above, the predicted path for Hurricane Patricia on the Mexican border

Emily Sterk Red&Black Editor-In Chief

This past week the city of Washington had its own fair share of wind and rain, but Texas, Mexico and Central America were where Hurricane Patricia’s forces were felt the most.

Originating in mid-October, Hurricane Patricia was classified as a tropical depression on Oct. 20, 2015.

Just 24 hours later, Patricia grew from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane and was declared as the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere with a barometric pressure of 879 mbar and

sustained winds of 200 mph.

As referred to as a “potentially catastrophic” storm by the National Hurricane Center, a number of measures were taken by the Mexican government while citizens waited for the arrival of Patricia.

Multiple watches and warnings for coastal communities and areas such as Michoacán, Colima, Jalisco and Guerrero were issued and 1,782 shelters were established across Mexico.

Evacuation plans for approximately 50,000 people were initiated with the help of two aircrafts and 600 buses.

Together, the Mexican Army, Navy and Federal Police deployed about 25,000 personnel and the Mexican Red Cross rationed food and

supplies. Mexican authorities received recognition for establishing emergency preparations in an efficient manner.

Yet, after making landfall on the evening of Oct. 23, 2015, Hurricane Patricia passed through Mexico leaving very little damage in its wake. Patricia avoided largely populated areas and instead passed through areas with low population densities.

In addition to the proactive evacuations of citizens, the path of the hurricane is credited for the relatively low death toll of seven people.

However, several communities were not spared from damage.

Throughout the affected region, Hurricane Patricia left 261,989 people without

electricity and resulted in the destruction of about 100,000 acres of crops. With hundreds of homes and agrarian farms destroyed, the total damage is estimated to be in excess of US$199.1 million.

Hurricane Patricia was not nearly as devastating as reports anticipated.

Reasons include that the storm hit a sparsely populated area and it ran into the mountains, which allowed it to quickly weaken the strength of the hurricane. Communications and Transport Minister Gerado Ruíz Esparza told reporters, “We are fortunate the hurricane . . . went to the mountainous areas. That lessened the impact. The wind and water hit us but our infrastructure was able to with-

stand that hit. The worst went to the mountains.” The storm was also moving at a fast rate of about 20 mph; therefore, heavy rains did not stay in place long enough to generate devastating floods.

This, along with the Mexican authorities’ efficient preparation and preventative measures, enabled Hurricane Patricia’s toll to be less significant than early reports expected.

Roberto Sandoval, governor of Nayarit, Mexico told CNN, “We as government are not supposed to mention faith and God but the only thing I can tell you is that God helped and watched over us so this monster of a hurricane did not hurt us here in Nayarit and in Mexico.”

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Poet Sarah Rose Nordgren Visits W&J Kayla Marasia Red&Black staff

“If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, I know that is poetry,” said wellbeloved poet Emily Dickinson to a friend in 1870.

In accordance with Dickinson’s definition, rather than being merely a group of stagnant words on paper, poetry is often a force of beauty and raw emotion. Poets have the gift of channeling their observations of the world and their deepest thoughts into words, exposing facets of human nature with each letter.

On Thursday, Oct. 29, talented contemporary poet Sarah Rose Nordgren visited the leaf-strewn W&J campus to speak with the local community and share some of her poignant words. A North Carolina native, Nordgren went to undergraduate school at Sarah Lawrence College because of its renowned writing program.

After dabbling lightly in prose

writing, she decided that poetry writing was her calling.

Nordgren is now pursuing her doctorate degree in poetry at the University of Cincinnati and has recently published a collection of poems entitled Best Bones.

Well-known for her poems’ haunting, surreal images and themes, Nordgren uses varying voices across the span of time to explore fascinating relationships in a type of magical, aesthetic realism.

Despite her growing success, Nordgren is humble and down-to-earth, even opting to discuss writing with a few W&J students over coffee at Chicco Baccello a few hours before her formal reading.

Equipped with a sweet disposition and a witty sense of humor, she spoke of the writing process, what sparks a love of poetry and words, and the quality of an idea.

“I was really lucky to have been exposed to poetry as a child. I think I always knew I loved language and the sound of language,” Nordgren said at her reading of selections from Best Bones. She even spoke of

Courtesy sarahrosenordgren.files.wordpress.com

Poet Sarah Rose Nordgren has been awarded two fellowships from the Fine Arts Work Center, an Individual Excellence Award from the Ohio Arts Council and a Walter E. Dakin Fellowship from the Sewanee Writers Conference.

her idea process and how she organizes her poems.

“Sometimes I start to write a poem before I know who the speaker of the poem is,” she said before reading a poem told from the point of view of a female cicada. “Ideas are

precious.” Poetry captures a certain aspect of the human experience that is unique in its universality. “Her work had a lot of raw emotion,” says Andrew Adams (Class of 2017).“You could hear it in her voice while she was

reading. ”With her visit, Sarah Rose Nordgren inspired poetic hearts and minds to keep an open mind about the sensations and images that surround us, because they can be crafted into something of beauty.

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Mr. Nobody Highlights The Importance of Choices

Poetry Corner “Food Of The Earth”

Diana Ciarallo Red&Black contributor

Benjamin Langdon Red&Black contributor

“You have to make the right choice. As long as you don't choose, everything remains possible.”

This quote from the 2009 science fiction film, Mr. Nobody, could very easily be used to describe an average trip into the chaotic universe of Netflix surfing. The overwhelming number of choices presented by the video streaming service can push any avid movie fan into a catatonic stupor, unable to finish the movie selection process.

Do not despair! One of the most stunning, beautiful and thought-provoking movies of all time can be streamed right into your dorm room. Mr. Nobody is the type of movie that grabs you from the start, and refuses to let go throughout the entirety of a two hour

emotional joyride. If you find yourself in a never ending cycle of Netflix browsing, then it may be time to move that cursor to the movie that the Washington Post described as “mind-bending and eye-popping fantasy.”

Mr. Nobody follows the storytelling of a very aged man named Nemo Nobody. Set in 2092, humanity has advanced science in order to reach quasi-immortality.Nemo sits on his death bed, the last mortal left on Earth.

An investigative journalist is assigned to visit Nemo and record his life story, so that humanity can have a record of what life was like before death became obsolete.

As Nemo recounts his long life, it quickly becomes apparent that story lines and alternate realities are becoming interwoven and confused.

Various story lines following Nemo at age 9, 15 and 35 are shown in a nonlinear fash-

Courtesy magpictures.com

ion. The three main story lines follow Nemo’s lives with three separate love interests: Anna, Elise and Jean.

As Nemo makes various decisions throughout his life, he is lead to and away from his various love interests.

The story lines that display the thirty-five year old Nemo show the audience a version of Nemo who has to live out the life that he has constructed for himself. Every choice he has made has pushed him towards a specific outcome.

Ultimately, Mr. Nobody is about the choices that we all make, and the version of ourselves that we are constantly working towards. Through stunning visuals, great cinematography and a spellbinding story line, Mr. Nobody attempts to decode the meaning of the lives that each and every one of us creates. Ambitious?

Yes. One of the most beautiful films available on Netflix?

Without a doubt.

“Deep in the earth my love is lying and I must weep alone.”

- Edgar Allen Poe

The roots in her grave Looked like siphoning appendages Ready to drain away the remaining energy Of the body that the soil embraced To nourish their mother, the Earth So that the remaining dregs of life May invigorate her green face Perhaps the essences of our loved ones Still thrive in the Earth’s arraignment Green with life And the apples that grow on the trees Are ripe and red with their love Perhaps a bit of them dwells with us Below as well as above I prefer the idea of my grandmother’s essence Being in a tree Rather than in the ground Growing taller with beauty and life Growing higher and higher Farther and farther From the ground that is rich with death and strife

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Franklin Literary Society Celebrates Halloween

by Hosting Words to Make The Darkness Visible Stephanie Velasquez Red&Black contributor

On Oct. 27, The Franklin Literary Society hosted Words to Make the Darkness Visible in the Library’s Walker Room.

Although FLS has hosted the event in the past, this past year they took a hiatus.

Vice President of the society, Carolyn Tomlinson (Class of 2016), has been pleased with the progress the club is making this semester.

“Unfortunately, last year, FLS consisted of six members so it was hard to coordinate events.

This year we’ve more than doubled our members and they’re all really interested in making the club a success.

It’s great to see how much progress we’ve made in only a few months,” said Tomlinson.

Together, the members of the society decorated the Walker Room with fake cobwebs and battery-operated candles, bought an ample amount of Halloween-themed snacks and chose works that would be read.

Some of the works chosen included: Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven,” David Sedaris’s

short story “Us and Them” and an excerpt from “Beowulf.”

The event was a tremendous success. President of FLS, Lauren Lamm (Class of 2016), was blown away by the number of attendees.

“Because this was our first event, and because FLS isn’t a well-known club with non-english majors, we were expecting somewhere around 20 people. We had no idea some of the English professors were promoting our event, but I’m so pleased with the turnout. We actually ran out of chairs to borrow from the bottom floor of the library, so some people ended up sitting on the floor. The success of this event has encouraged our members to plan more,” said Lamm.

FLS had planned for the event to last from 7-8 p.m. but because so many attendees were eager to read their favorite spooky work, it went well beyond an hour.

Dr. Lauryn Mayer, adviser for the FLS, was also pleased with the event and said, “I was delighted to see so many people sharing their love for the literary macabre!”

A common misconception is that FLS events are meant exclusively for students

studying English. As a result, many events are met with low attendance.

Words to Make the Darkness Visible, however, was attended by students with various majors and interests.

The FLS executive board hopes all students feel welcome at their events.

Many students chose to read works they’ve covered in classes, while others were eager to share their favorites.

The members of FLS are hoping to host another similar event in February, featuring Valentine’s Day treats and published works. FLS is the oldest existing club on campus.

During their meetings, they discuss an array of works from all genres and authors.

While this is incentive enough for many English majors and minors to join the club, it is also a gateway to Sigma Tau Delta, the English honor society.

While English majors and minors are encouraged to attend, FLS is not exclusive and welcomes any student with a love of literature.

The society meets biweekly on Wednesdays at 7 p.m. in the Hub meeting room.

Courtesy Carolyn Tomlinson

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An Abridged History of Women's Triumphs: Five Times Women Won Roles Originally Written For Men

Courtesy www.elle.com

Carolyn Tomlinson Red&Black Editor

Especially in the media, it is a male-dominated world.

It is only recently that women have been chosen over men for strong lead roles in movies. In her acceptance speech at the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, Jessica Chastain revealed she is in the process of “scouring scripts for male roles that could be easily converted to female.”

Fortunately, Chastain is not alone. Many directors are swapping the genders of their main characters in an effort to provide women with more complex and exciting roles. While the film Salt was

originally intended for Tom Cruise, his refusal of the part resulted in his CIA agent role being reconstructed to make an appropriate character for Angelina Jolie.

Producer Lorenzo Di Bonaventura defended his choice by claiming it was time for the era of “spy guys” to end, allowing a women to become the first spy girl.

Glenn Close was also cast in a male-written role in The Paper. Her character has traits more commonly associated with a man: a no-nonsense, passionate managing editor with a nemesis.

Although the role was tweaked, Close requested many characters traits were kept the same, even insisting on keeping a fist fight between

herself and Michael Keaton.

While Sean Penn was the first choice for the star of Flightplan, the role was eventually rewritten for Jodie Foster.

Although her character’s name, Kyle, was not changed, the role was revamped to highlight her maternal instincts.

This is not the first time Foster has been cast in a role written for a man; in the 2013 film Elysium, Foster played a character originally written for one as well. The idea to swap the genders of the main character came from Foster.

Fortunately, the producers felt it would be beneficial to the film as well. 2002's mostly forgotten film Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever featured Lucy Liu in a role originally intended for

a man.Jet Li, Sylvester Stallone and Vin Diesel were all considered for the role before Antonio Banderas, co-lead in the film, suggested Liu. The movie was not successful and received terrible reviews, but Liu was praised for portraying a merciless killer, a role usually reserved for men.

Last but not least, Sigourney Weaver’s role as Ripley in Alien is seen as one of the most famous gender swaps in Hollywood history.

Nearly 40 years later, Alien is used as proof that women are more than capable of starring in successful action flicks.

Weaver credits her career to Ripley: “[She] is much bigger than what I brought to it. She is an iconic person. But I’m grateful to her. Who knows

if I would even have a career without her?” While not every producer feels women could successful portray a role written for male characters, it is becoming more common for gender swaps in lead roles and women are befitting from it.

Too often, female actors are placed in the role of housewife, mother or damsel and many are getting tired of playing the same parts.

It seems only fair that women should have the opportunity to showcase their talents and abilities in film.

Hopefully one day action roles will be written with women in mind.

Until that day, however, it’s comforting to see women breaking free of Hollywood’s gender norms.

14 opinions

OPINIONS Red & Black

6 N ovember 2015

Staff Editorial: Are You Following Us On Social Media?

Throughout the course of this semester, the Red&Black staff has made a number of changes in order to move the student newspaper toward a more modern and professional source of news for the W&J community. The print edition of the paper has been updated and includes a new cover design; a website has been created that features notable student work and online discussion; and finally, “The Superburger,” the satirical section of the newspaper has been retired. We hope you take the time to check out our latest social media updates and follow our pages.

As a student newspaper, we strive to meet the wants and needs of the entire campus body. The Red&Black acts as the public voice of the student body: writers document student events and causes and have the power to shape conversations on campus. We know we have done our job when we overhear students debating a topic written in the opinions section or when students learn about a national new story they did not originally hear of in the mainstream media. With that being said, the Red&Black staff encourages feedback or suggestions from anyone from the campus body. This newspaper belongs to all members of the W&J community. Please let us know what you think we are doing right, what you would like to see us do more of or if you have any ideas to continue the improvements of the Red&Black.

Although all English majors and Professional Writing minors are encouraged to be a part of the paper, students from all disciplines are welcome. We encourage contributions from any student, staff or faculty member who wishes to share her thoughts and ideas with the college community.

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E ditorial P olicy The Red & Black is the official, registered student-produced newspaper of Washington & Jefferson College. It is published Fridays with the exception of exams and break periods.

Editorials are based upon the opinion of the respective writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the newspaper, the

College or its students, faculty, or administration.

The Red & Black welcomes all reader contributions, but reserves the right to reject letters of pure promotional nature, as well as letters which do not meet its standard of integrity, accuracy and decency.

The Red & Black also reserves the right to edit submissions.

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6 N ovember 2015

15 Opinions

Red & Black

Education in the Tech World Why We Should Not Jail Drug Addicts Leah Segal Red&Black Contributor

In the age where we can translate any language by just speaking into our phones and any fact is just a Google search away, many people question what is the purpose of education in a world where technology seems to do all the learning and thinking for us.

Although technology will continue to remain a vital part of everyone’s life, we must not forget the importance and power of education.

Long after our phones have died and our self-driving cars break down, we as humans must be able to take charge and use our brains and brawn to the fullest.

Currently, the United States has 21 million students enrolled in an institute of higher education. Each one of these students has dreams and goals to graduate and jump into their field of study.

However, strictly relying on technology will never help them achieve such dreams.

For example, as a student enrolled in French courses, using Google Translate may seem like the easy way out, such programs simply do the work for you, and often times with mistakes. Learning the ins and outs of French through hard work and determination is worth so much more than simply punching in a few words on your browser.

When you learn the old fashioned way, you for-

ever carry the information with you, and you have a skill many will envy.

Plus, it may just land you your dream job in the future.

Self-sufficiency is also a prime example of education’s purpose in a world of artificial intelligence.

Before the age of electronics, the only way to get homework done was with hard work. I am sure many adults, parents included, have told you the terrors of using typewriters to finish long papers and going to the library to the use the fancy encyclopedias to look up a simple fact. Although such tales are usually accompanied with a lecture, they are worth their weight in terms of the value of education.

When you go to the hospital, would you want your nurse staring blankly in front of a computer screen to understand how to give anesthetics, or hoping your self-driving car can dodge an incoming truck on a highway riddled with human error?

Personally, my answer is a resounding no. Although computers, phones and tablets do have their place in society, it should not be their job to replace our brains.

Overall, although schools utilize technology for educational purposes, its use outside the classroom must be carefully encouraged as there is a fine line between helping and hurting.

Our generation should grow to be strong, independent members of society, and certainly not slaves to technology.

Christopher Frydryck Red&Black Staff

In 2001, Portugal had implemented a law that seemed absolutely preposterous to the European Union and western countries battling the drug war for years.

Portugal has decriminalized small amounts of all drugs, and “Portugal decided to treat possession and use of small quantities of these drugs as a public health issue, not a criminal one [and]… now getting caught with them meant a small fine and maybe a referral to a treatment program — not jail time and a criminal record.”

This leap into obscurity in national law seemed revolutionary but also terrifyingly risky.

It seems that more and more drug users are being jailed annually. Our federal prisons are swarming with criminal drug offenders, being that “57% were sentenced for drug crimes.”

But how does placing an addict in a cell help these prisoners?

Addiction is not a physical issue, it is an emotional issue.

Addicts tend to relapse not because they crave it, but because they have nothing better to do.

Similarly why might someone twiddle their thumbs in a boring atmosphere or text our acquaintances in order to not feel alone?

It is actually quite simple.

Placing somebody that had

Courtesy dualdiagnosis.org

nothing better to do but rack up a federal drug offense in a prison cell will not necessarily fix the problem. In fact, it will most likely hurt it.

For starters, our federal taxes are going towards the federal prison systems.

If it is already proven that most of these prisoners are relapsing and entering jail again, then we as taxpayers are watching our money be thrown out the window.

It is a waste of resources, time, money and space in our shrinking correctional facilities.

This, as well as our relapse rate of 40-60%, is quite alarming. Since when did 40-60% percent become a “success” in the public eye?

Yes, rehabilitation is far from being cheap for the common household, but what if we put our taxpayer dollars towards that instead of giving these violators of the law a four by four cell and treating them the same way we treat horrific criminals such as Charles Manson. Since

Portugal integrated the law in 2001 as well as raising public awareness of dirty needles and HIV/AIDS, they have achieved the second lowest mortality rate (behind Romania) in the European Union.

With an average of three deaths for every one million civilians, this by far trumps Estonia (126 deaths for every one million) and the European Union’s average (17 deaths for every one million).

The public ridicule of our minority of drug possessors has gone too far in our society that begs for a higher employment rate, a lowering of taxes and proper usage of our taxpayers’ dollars.

Criminalizing drug offenders like we do today is by no means the proper way to execute a rehabilitation for the public.

In order for us to properly help these people, we need to understand the underlying facts of addiction and use our public funds more wisely in order to give addicts a chance in life.

16 opinions

Red & Black

6 N ovember 2015

Are We Starting to Say “I Love You” Too Quickly?

Courtesy lifehack.org

Saying the words “I love you” is becoming so common today even in new relationships that those words are beginning to lose their sentimental value.

Kayla Marasia Red&Black Contributor

In a society obsessed with love, it is all too common to utter those magical three words: “I love you.”

These should be three of the most valued words in language, but they have somehow become so common as to be meaningless in some situations.

It is comparable to the common psychological phenomenon, semantic satiation: if you repeat a word too many times, it begins to sound like a mere compilation of nonsense and

meaningless sounds. Our society needs to slow down and cherish the journey of intimate relationships instead of merely tumbling headfirst into a single moment of lust or feigned love.

In the popular romantic comedy sitcom “How I Met Your Mother,” the main character Ted Mosby makes the fatal mistake of falling too hard too fast. He says: “I think I’m in love with you,” to Robin, a woman he met the same evening.

Ted wasn’t crazy; like a lot of us, he’s a hopeless romantic.

However, his rashness and inability to control his desire to find love lead him to a lot of sticky situations

and romantic complications throughout the series.

“I just think people feel pressured to say it when they don’t feel it because that has become society’s norm,” says Sarah Janczewski (Class of 2019).

As much as we may laugh at Ted’s adventures, his plight is rather common.

We use “I love you” as a certain milestone in our personal relationships, a type of verbal manifestation of our emotion. We use it when we’re ready for commitment, marriage or even sex.

Unfortunately, people sometimes use it to manipulate another person’s emotions or achieve personal

gain. The phrase no longer possesses the quiet intensity and exclusivity between true lovers; rather, it is something often seen as a necessary token of affection in many modern relationships where going too fast is all too common.

“The meaning of love is taken for granted,” says prospective W&J student Katelyn Perroz.

“People underestimate what it means, so they say it all the time. They don’t see the power that lies within it.”

A study at Baruch College/ CUNY found that couples who do not say “I love you” as much tend to stay together longer and have more stable relationships. This is not to say

that “I love you” can no longer be genuine. In fact, many modern couples use the phrase often and it never loses value.

However, I don’t believe that the three words must be vocalized in order to be true.

Love is shown more clearly in actions, such as sacrifice and selflessness.

Without loving behavior, “I love you” is empty and meaningless.

Instead of rushing to the ultimate societal symbol of affection, perhaps we should slow down and let our feelings develop naturally.

Show your love through kind words and acts, not through a rushed phrase whispered in the dark.

6 N ovember 2015

Red & Black

17 opinions

Is Touching a Pregnant Woman's Belly Harassment?

Diana Ciarallo Red&Black Contributor

The nine months of a woman’s pregnancy can be a wild, wonderful and emotional roller coaster of tears, cravings, anger, excitement and love - all of which ultimately ends in the joyful experience of bringing a new life into the world.

It is during this time period that the expectant mother can expect a good number of things: mood swings, morning sickness and people rubbing her belly like it’s a crystal ball that can foretell the baby’s future.

It now may be illegal in the state of Pennsylvania to touch a pregnant woman’s belly without her permission.

All of this started after a man in central Pennsylvania was charged with harassment for touching a pregnant woman's belly without her consent.

The decision to take legal action instead of giving the man an etiquette book set off a debate on Facebook and Twitter.

While this may seem just a tad bit excessive (maybe even humorous) to some, others can understand why a stranger touching a pregnant woman’s stomach would be viewed as an act of harassment. It is not unusual to see people congratulate and touch

an obviously pregnant woman as a genuinely kind gesture to share in her presumed joy and welcoming a new member into our little world.

The problem with this is etiquette isn't black and white, and like anything else some people will cross the line and there should be a civilized way to control the outliers It is one thing when a friend, the father of the child, a family member or the doctor that you’re seeing touches your stomach because there is really nothing unusual there at all.

A complete stranger walking right on up to you and caressing the swollen bulge of your belly like its some kind of coveted treasure makes you start to question if that kind of behavior can in fact be considered harassment.

I cannot define harassment exactly, but I know it when I see it.

An older woman who has already had children of her own that touches and offers an old wives tale to predict the sex of the baby sounds lovely.

In the legal case: a middle aged man comes out of his trailer, enters his pregnant neighbor’s home, gives her an unwanted hug, rubs her pregnant belly and says he wants to be friends. If that is not creepy, then I honestly don’t know what is. I think, common sense dictates, whether it is lovely or creepy, if it is unwanted and persists in spite of the mother’s objections, it's harassment.

Courtesy whattoexpect.com

Pregnant women often fall victim to strangers and acquaintences wanting to touch their pregnancy bumps.

18 Opinions

Red & Black

6 N ovember 2015

The Rise in the Existence of the Stay-at-Home Dad

Courtesy cnn.com

Now, more than ever before, some men are staying home to be the at-home caretakers while women work outside of the domestic sphere.

Bailey Murdrick Red&Black Staff

Growing up, my dad was the stay-at-home parent while my mom worked long hours.

I never knew stay-at-home moms were the norm until I was in elementary school and the other kids told me that their moms did not work.

Throughout history, the United States has been primarily a patriarchal

society until women gained the right to vote in 1920.

However, 95 years later, it is still argued today that we live in a patriarchal society in the United States.

I believe women are still not completely equal to men in all aspects of life, but it is something that is slowly improving.

One way it is improving is the way children are being raised.

Traditionally fathers were the “breadwinners” and

mothers cooked, cleaned and took care of the children.

I do not think our society is as traditional today as it was back in the 1920’s.

In most cases, both parents work and are expected to contribute to the household income. There is even a rise in stay-at-home dads in the United States.

In 2014, The New York Times ran the article The Brotherhood of the Stay-atHome Dad, about the growing population of stay-at-home

dads in the United States. The article stated that, according to a study done by Pew Research Center, stay-at-home dads now account for more than 16% of at-home caretakers; more than double the amount over the past decade.

The study did not account for the father who worked part time.

The article also highlighted a group of men part of the National At-Home Dad Network that met in New York to hold a convention

that aimed for stay-at-home dads to be “better men, better husbands, better fathers.”

One would think it is silly for these men to hold a convention, but dads talking to other dads to get advice on how to raise and talk care of children helps gain support in their own community.

I appreciate fathers who take care of their children, and I think as more fathers become stay at home dads, it will just be called stay-at-home parenting.

6 N ovember 2015

19 sports

Red & Black

Lewis Hamilton Wins his Third F1 World Championship Christopher Frydryck Red&Black Staff

When petrolheads think of some of the greatest race car racers in history, we tend to lean towards Stirling Moss or Michael Schumacher. But it seems that a British racer has been stealing the thunder from the Germans Formula One teams for years.

Lewis Hamilton, a 30 year old from Hertfordshire England claimed back to back championships in the Formula One championship in 2014 and 2015 with team Mercedes-Benz. Born into “karting” at the age of eight, Lewis had always a dreamed of the big leagues. At the age of 10, he had told McLaren Automotive, a British automotive manufacturer

of high-performance vehicles, “I want to race for you one day."

After racing through Formula Three and GP2 classes, Hamilton would go on to Formula One racing, where he would fulfill his dream. From 2007 until 2012, Hamilton would race for McLaren until his contract ended, thus joining team Mercedes.

Although his first season with Mercedes was far from perfect, Hamilton has shown himself a worthy contender to be the greatest British Formula One driver. In his championship 2014 season, he held 11 out of 19 wins with an astonishing 384 points under his belt.

What wass even more miraculous was that Hamilton had already claimed his 2015 championship with three races left in the

season. After winning the United States Grand Prix, Hamilton held enough points to claim the first place podium with ease. He currently held 10 wins this season and is intending on breaking his previous record of 11.

Hamilton said, “It’s a very humbling experience to equal Ayrton Senna who meant so much to me and still does.” Hamilton referred to the late Brazilian driver for Lotus, McLaren and Renault who was viewed as one of the greatest drivers in history, who also holds three wins. Generally, Formula One’s unpredictability can put the smallest contender in the front of the pack, Hamilton denied everyone the chance to reach the first place podium. With Hamilton’s name practically

engraved at the first place position, he defied the unpredictable events in Formula One. As for Hamilton’s appetite, he stated in an interview,

“Winning three titles is amazing. But it is also strange that now that it has happened I come to this race and I have the same hunger as before.”

Samara and Kaliningrad. The selection process for the host nation of FIFA World Cup 2018 has not gone without any scandals.

Due to several human rights violation, including the incidents regarding racism and homophobia, Russia received recognition of a dangerous place to host the world soccer’s main event.

Now suspended former president of FIFA, Sepp Blatter argued that Russia will be the best fit for the World Cup 2018.

Also a former Chelsea FC and Russian national team defender, Alexey Smertin touched upon the concerns

of racism and homophobia: “There’s no racism in Russia, because it doesn’t exist.”

The problems that might face the world cup in 2018 should not be neglected as Smertin suggested.

It is disappointing to see how people in higher platform of Russian football try to advocate for Russia with tenuous arguments based on superficial examples.

It would be much more appropriate to talk about many foreigners who are currently playing in Russian Premier League.

For example, Seydou Doumbia from Ivory Coast plays in CSKA Moscow, one

of the most prominent Russian football clubs.

Yannick Boli, a FrenchIvorian footballer plays in Anzhi Makhachkala, a club which was captained by a famous Brazilian footballer, Roberto Carlos.

Carlos faced racism in March 2011 when a fan from a club in St. Petersburg taunted him with a half-peeled banana.

In that case, the racist fan’s club was fined the equivalent of 6,600 pounds and the fan banned for life from its stadium.

After that incident, Russian Premier League appealed to fans to stop fellow support-

ers damaging the reputation of the Russian game.“People allowing themselves such outbursts are sitting next to you at the stadiums,” it said.

“If you don’t want your club to suffer, don’t let them disgrace Russian football.”

It is needed to be honest with the threats of racism in Russian football, there might have been incidents but Russia is not an exclusive in that regard, and as you have read actions have been taken to limit such incidents.

However, people who advocate for Russia should explain why and avoid populist phrases such as, “racism does not exist.”

Courtesy theguardian.com

Lewis Hamilton won his third Formula One world championship, joining Sir Jackie Stewart as Britain’s most successful driver.

Stadium Names for 2018 World Cup Confirmed Ioseb Jorjoliani Red&Black Contributor

It has been a very scandalous time for the governing body of world soccer, FIFA. Still, there is some good news as the World Cup 2018 in Russia approaches.

The stadiums of the fields that will host the 2018 tournament have been named.

The main grounds are located in Saint Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan and Sochi among other seven cities in Novgorod, Yekaterinburg, Volgograd, Rostov, Saransk,

20 sports

6 N ovember 2015

Red & Black

FIFA’s Sepp Blatter Says U.S. Was Set to Host 2022 World Cup

Courtesy npr.org

Above, FIFA President Sepp Blatter (right), seen with UEFA President Michel Platini after he was re-elected in May,

Ioseb Jorjoliani Red&Black Contributor In an interview, suspended FIFA President Joseph Blatter blamed Michel Platini for the onset of FIFA’s troubles.

Blatter claimed that Platini undermined a push to deliver the 2022 World Cup to the United States instead of the State of Qatar. As Blatter said, FIFA president is a ball in the big political power game.

Of course, sports and other big events in the world have gained political importance for a very long time.

Perhaps it is FIFA’s job to minimize politics involvement in decision making of soccer’s governing body. Blatter also described in detail how political gamesmanship, between the European Union

and FIFA, and the rivalry between the US and Russia, have fueled controversies that surrounded both Blatter and FIFA. Blatter explained the events of 2010, when FIFA selected Russia and Qatar, respectively, to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cup tournaments: “For the World Cups it was agreed that we go to Russia because it’s never been in Russia, Eastern Europe, and for 2022 we go back to America,” said Blatter. “We will have the World Cup in the two biggest political powers. Everything was good until the moment when [former French President Nicolas] Sarkozy came in a meeting with the crown prince of Qatar, who is now the ruler of Qatar [Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani]. At a lunch

afterwards with Mr. Platini, he said it would be good to go to Qatar. This has changed all pattern. There was an election by secret ballot. Four votes from Europe went away from the USA an the result was 14 to 8. If you include the four votes, it would have been 12 to 10. If the USA was given the World Cup, we would only speak about the wonderful World Cup 2018 in Russia and we would not speak about any problems at FIFA,” continued Blatter.

Blatter also described his relationship with a Russian President, Vladimir Putin: “Vladimir Vladimirovich is a good friend of Joseph Josephovich. You know what I like in Russia also is that in difficult situations I still have the full support of President

Putin. This is good. And I support him in all discussions, in all situations.”

The conclusion observers can draw from this statement is that Blatter can clearly convince anyone that politics was a determinant role in delivering the rights of FIFA World Cup 2018 to Russia. Bearing in mind Putin’s inclination towards corruption, it is rather logical to assume that Blatter has followed his footprints for 17 years as a president of FIFA. As Blatter mentioned in his interview, the main candidates for FIFA World Cup 2022 were the United States and Qatar, with the final decision made by European delegates. That raises more questions: first, how morally correct is the intervention of

French President Nicholas Sarkozy into FIFA’s decisionmaking process.

Second, on what basis have UEFA delegates supported Qatar’s candidacy? Blatter said that while they have been friends, the recent controversies and charges began with the European body’s dissatisfaction with him — and that “at the beginning it was only a personal attack. It was Platini against me.”

Blatter said things got more political culminating in his own recent suspension and charges of corruption leveled against his top deputies.

Despite those controversies, Blatter was elected to a fifth term as FIFA’s leader in May — and then promptly announced that his resignation from his post.