Student Life | October 17, 2007

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STUDENT LIFE

THE INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER OF WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST. LOUIS SINCE 1878 VOLUME 129, NO. 23

Off-campus housing race speeds up BY JEREMY ROGOFF CONTRIBUTING REPORTER For students who haven’t yet signed an apartment lease for next year, it may be too late. Many of the surrounding neighborhoods with apartments that are typically rented by Washington University students are fi lling up faster than expected. Mostly by word-of-mouth, sophomores and juniors have discovered that neighborhood apartments are fi lling up as much as a year in advance of their move-in dates. To even have a chance at their top choices, students have been forced to pick their living mates and sign their leases for next year less than a month into this semester. “There are more kids today going abroad in the spring who need to figure out their housing for next year,” said local realtor Tom Maloney, who leases all of his apartments to University undergraduates. “By the time they get back, they know the apartments will be gone.” Maloney has noticed this trend over the past few years, as studying abroad in the spring semester has gained popularity. In recent years, Maloney has noticed that almost all housing in the area is gone by October. While the University guarantees housing for all four years, many rising juniors and seniors venture off the South 40 and into surround-

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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2007

ing apartment areas in search of independence and lower living costs. “I think people are anxious to be adults,” said Kathryn O’Malley, a junior who already signed lease papers with Maloney for a Washington Avenue apartment next fall. Earlier this month, O’Malley and her roommate for next year both paid $800 deposits to ensure they would get their second choice apartment. O’Malley said that in September, she and her roommate were surprised to fi nd that their fi rst choice apartment had already been taken. “I didn’t realize it,” O’Malley said of the early housing rush, but her senior friends informed her that the time to secure living for next year was this semester. Shyamali Choudhury, a junior who just signed for an apartment on University Drive, began looking for offcampus apartments with her two roommates in September. She said that they thought they had started the process early on, but soon realized that many of the buildings that they were looking at on Washington Avenue were already fi lling up. “When we signed the lease for our apartment a couple of weeks ago, all of the other apartments in our building were already fi lled,” said Choudhury. “We actually did it just in the knick of time.” Natalie Jarecki, a senior

See HOUSING, page 3

SIMPSONS DID IT

Students petition to erase carbon footprint

JOY WANG | STUDENT LIFE

Members of Green Action, Wash. U.’s student group dedicated to raising awareness about environmental issues, gather signatures Tuesday morning at the Underpass on the South 40. The purpose of the petition is to demonstrate community support for an increase in Wash. U.’s carbon neutrality.

BY SAM GUZIK SENIOR NEWS EDITOR Nearly 1,000 students signed onto a Green Action petition yesterday calling for

Fair trade hits the catwalk BY JOSH HANTZ NEWS EDITOR

LIONEL SOBEHART | STUDENT LIFE

Mike Reiss, one of the original writers and producers of “The Simpsons,” spoke in Graham Chapel on Monday night. Reiss’ speech, titled “The Simpsons Family Values,” was sponsored by the Jewish Student Union. Reiss discussed details of the show’s production, shared his own experiences in show business and screened clips from a number of his cartoons.

Voted ‘Most Likely to Succeed’ Get your Red and Green spirit ready as women’s volleyball scores a first seed ranking for the UAA finals. Sports, Page 4

While living on the wages of Nike sweatshop workers in Indonesia, the producers of the movie “Sweat” lost 40 pounds. Their movie, which compiles stories and information from primary sources, will be screened tonight by Students for Fair Trade and Amnesty International to promote awareness of fair trade. “The point of the documentary is that buying from companies like Nike perpetuates human rights abuses,” said sophomore Nikki Spencer, copresident of Amnesty International. “Buying [products] from a second-hand dealer or trading with people doesn’t perpetuate their economic benefit.” Fair trade refers to the idea of ensuring fair payment for producers, while taking into consideration social and environmental factors. The fair trade logo on a product is a guarantee of these terms. Spencer knows that there are companies with fair trade conditions who do not have the logo, but she hopes that these companies will make this information readily available. With this in mind, the

University-wide carbon neutrality and greater sustainability efforts on campus. The Green Action drive is part of a yearlong effort to raise awareness about envi-

ronmental issues and to educate students about how they can help make a contribution to sustainability efforts. “We want to build this up so we can have a large part of

the student body behind this movement,” said junior Lee Cordova, president of Green Action. “To be in the position where all we need to do is educate is a lot better than needing to change people’s minds.” The Green Action effort comes as the University is beginning to undertake an assessment of its “carbon footprint”—the net amount of carbon consumed—and energy usage. In addition to calling for individual commitments to energy-conscious lifestyle, the petition calls upon the University to “commit to 100 percent carbon neutrality through reliance on renewable, clean energy sources and a substantial cutback on energy consumption.” Carbon neutrality refers to the ability of an individual or an institution to offset its carbon emissions so that there is no net contribution of carbon dioxide to the environment. Greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, have been linked to global warming. While the Green Action petition calls for a specific decrease in the amount of carbon emissions, the University has avoided giving any indication about what level of

See GREEN ACTION, page 3

Sophomore wins national tennis title BY BRITTANY BERNACCHI SPORTS REPORTER Sophomore John Watts triumphed at the Division III Wilson/ITA Nationals Small College Championships on Saturday. With his win, Watts made history, becoming the Bears’ first individual winner of a national tennis championship. “It was a really close match and I was relieved to win,” said Watts. “It feels great to win a match like this.” Juniors Charlie Cutler and Chris Hoeland placed third in the doubles tournament, wrapping up an incredible weekend for Washington University’s men’s tennis team. “John, Chris and Charlie push their other teammates,” said Head Coach Roger Foll-

students are also hosting a clothing swap, in which students can trade unwanted clothes with each other rather than buy new ones from a company. A few fair trade clothing stores, including Ploughsharing Crafts on the Loop, are also allowing students to model clothing to help sell the idea. Junior Julia Baskin, president of Students for Fair Trade, noted that fair trade clothes look similar to regular ones, though they have a

Film may be your cup of tea Embark on a journey to the Indian countryside and read about the Wes Anderson flick “The Darjeeling Limited.” Cadenza, Page 8

mar. “They have taken losses in practice, which says just how deep this team is.” Upon arriving at the ITA Championship, the most important tournament of the fall season, it was clear that the tournament had a unique atmosphere, featuring a small field with only one representative from each region, very different from the much larger spring national championships. “[The tournament felt] more like a junior tournament, which is when you go only with the coach and a few other players,” said Hoeland. However, the biggest effect on the atmosphere was the amplified intensity of the matches. Watts, Cutler and Hoeland all played opponents from Gus-

more earthy and hand-made feel since they are not massproduced. “Half the reason these companies [create fair-trade clothes] is because they believe in the values they promote,” said Baskin. The night is part of series of social action programs, including the recent Indigenous Awareness Week and next Tuesday’s Ethics of Food. For the former, students considered the treatment of American Indians and how it led to problems with pov-

INSIDE: Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Forum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Cadenza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Sudoku . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

tavus Adolphus College in their final matches, which is a team from Wash. U.’s region. This further increased the pressure of their final matches. “Regional matches are always really important and hyped up,” said Cutler. Watts responded to the tournament’s pressure by shutting down Mikey Lim of ClaremontMudd-Scripps with a 6-0, 6-2 win in the semi-finals. After this resounding win, Watts’ game plan was to stay calm for the championship match. “I just tried to treat it the same as any other match. Don’t let it get to your head that it’s the big match,” said Watts. Watts’ beginning of the first set of his championship match was rocky.

See WATTS, page 4

erty, depression and alcoholism. They also discussed the rights of indigenous groups in Latin and South America. Additionally, Amnesty International will soon host a former worker from a Gap sweatshop in the Mariana Islands to speak about her efforts to unionize workers before being forced out of the company. “The current theme is different products around the world that we take for grant-

See FAIR TRADE, page 2

NEWSROOM PHONE 314-935-5995 ADVERTISING PHONE 314-935-6713 E-MAIL US editor@studlife.com


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