PHOENIX
THE
SEPTEMBER 22, 2011 • THE CAMPUS NEWSPAPER OF SWARTHMORE COLLEGE SINCE 1881 • VOLUME 134, ISSUE 5
Inside: TED conference is coming to Swarthmore Latin@ heritage month brings live arts to campus Morgan Langely ’11 signs with Philadelphia Union
Garnet Goes Greener A new college position is part of a larger effort to streamline sustainability efforts on campus p. 5
The Phoenix
Thursday, September 22, 2011 Volume 134, Issue 5
The independent campus newspaper of Swarthmore College since 1881. EDITORIAL BOARD Amelia Possanza Editor in Chief Menghan Jin Managing Editor Marcus Mello Managing Editor Adam Schlegel News Editor Patrick Ammerman Assistant News Editor Parker Murray Living & Arts Editor Preston Cooper Assistant Living & Arts Editor Reem Abdou Opinions Editor Tim Bernstein Sports Editor Allegra Pocinki Photo Editor Peter Akkies Webmaster Eric Sherman Webmaster
Justin Toran-Burrell The Phoenix
The Swarthmore men’s soccer team continued its dominant performance this weekend, defeating Franklin & Marshall to make it an even 30 straight wins at home. Page 17
News
S.M.A.R.T. team adjusting to title IX
The S.M.A.R.T. team and other groups around campus are still trying to adapt to new enforcement policies regarding title IX sexual misconduct guidelines. PAGE 3
Sew Swatties stitches femi- politics A significantly low voter turnout in the nism, environmentalism latest Student Council Elections indicates
A group formed last fall, Sew Swatties, brings together men and women who are interested in sewing, a craft often viewed as outdated. The members have also moved beyond the practicalities of stitching to take a look at the intersections between feminism and environmentalism. PAGE 8
What we talk about when Stephen Bayer leaves for we talk about e-books the first installment of a three-part seDuke after 10 years at Swat In ries, Susana gives an overview of some of Stephen Bayer, former Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations, leaves after a 10-year career at Swarthmore. PAGE 5
Living & Arts Enlace, O.A.S.I.S. host string of LHM performances
Each September is Latin@ heritage month. This year, Enlace and O.A.S.I.S. chose to focus on the way in which the arts can serve as a tool for education. A series of visual and performing arts events throughout the month demonstrate the diversity of the Latin@ community. PAGE 7
the most important terms and issues related to the new e-book industry. PAGE 9
Guilty pleasure shows still strike emotional chord Post Emmy’s, Johnny takes the opportunity to focus on some of the shows that aren’t worthy of any awards, but still merit our attention because of their comfortably predictable plotlines. PAGE 8
Solyndra scandal comprises U.S. energy policy
Olivia offers an analysis of Washington’s recent lack of foresight in energy investment, explaining why the push for a green economy necessitates a shift in government policy. PAGE 15
Obama engages in class Plays in preview: mono- warfare With Obama’s “millionare tax” a new adlogues, Sondheim and dition to the debt debate, Tyler reflects on why this policy is doomed to fail both in stockings “The Vagina Monologues” along with Stephen Sondheim’s “Company” and several Shakespeare plays are slated to hit the stage this semester and next. PAGE 9
The lowdown on cheap eats in University City Restaurant week is wrapping up. Jen takes this as an opportunity to take a look at other Philly locales that offer great eats at affordable prices every week of the year. PAGE 10
Local bass quintet to per- TEDXSwarthmore set to form a variety of styles bring alumni speakers in Among the many student musical groups on campus lies a rare gem — the Mariet- spring ta Brass Quintet. The group is composed of two Swarthmore faculty members and three local brass musicians who all share a love for chamber music. They will be performing this Sunday at 2 p.m. in the Lang Concert Hall. PAGE 7
indifference among students. The Phoenix provides what we think are vital reasons to become active participants in campus politics. PAGE 14
Modeled after the global TED conferences, a colloqium featuring twelve alumni along with psychology professor Barry Schwartz as faciltator will take place at Swarthmore in the spring semester. PAGE 11
Opinions Voter apathy undermines Swarthmore student
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reviving the economy and in the 2012 presidential election. PAGE 16
Sports Field hockey opens conference play with loss
The growing pains continue for the young field hockey team, who fell to Franklin & Marshall on Saturday despite a strong defensive effort. PAGE 18
Corrections
FROM THE SEPTEMBER 8, 2011 ISSUE
STAFF Sera Jeong Living & Arts Writer Steven Hazel Living & Arts Writer Nolan Gear Living & Arts Columnist Jen Johnson Living & Arts Columnist Lauren Kim Living & Arts Columnist Vianca Masucci Living & Arts Columnist Susana Medeiros Living & Arts Columnist Aliya Padamsee Living & Arts Columnist Johnny Taeschler Living & Arts Columnist Naia Poyer Living & Arts Artist Tyler Becker Opinions Columnist Danielle Charette Opinions Columnist Olivia Natan Opinions Columnist Peter Gross Opinions Columnist Shimian Zhang Opinions Columnist Emma Waitzman Political Cartoonist Renee Flores Sports Writer Ana Apostoleris Sports Writer Paul Chung Photographer Simone Forrester Photographer Christina Matamoros Photographer Elèna Ruyter Photographer Holly Smith Photographer Renee Flores Chief Copy Editor Shashwati Rao Copy Editor BUSINESS STAFF Business Manager Ian Anderson Advertising Manager Paul Chung COVER DESIGN Amelia Kucic CONTRIBUTORS Victor Brady, Julia Carleton, Koby Levin, Chris Nam, Yared Portillo, Harshil Sahai, Sam Sussman, Melissa Tier, Chi Zhang OPINIONS BOARD Amelia Possanza, Menghan Jin and Marcus Mello EDITOR’S PICKS PHOTOS COURTESY OF: (clockwise from top left) forensicgenealogy.info guillaumeblackburn.blogspot.com toledoblade.com cocoacure.com TO ADVERTISE: E-mail: advertising@swarthmorephoenix.com Advertising phone: (610) 328-7362 Address: The Phoenix, Swarthmore College, 500 College Ave., Swarthmore, PA 19081 Direct advertising requests to Amelia Possanza. The Phoenix reserves the right to refuse any advertising. Advertising rates subject to change. CONTACT INFORMATION Offices: Parrish Hall 470-472 E-mail: editor@swarthmorephoenix.com Newsroom phone: (610) 328-8172 Address: The Phoenix, Swarthmore College, 500 College Ave., Swarthmore, PA 19081 Web site: www.swarthmorephoenix.com Mail subscriptions are available for $60 a year or $35 a semester. Direct subscription requests to Amelia Possanza. The Phoenix is printed at Bartash Printing, Inc. The Phoenix is a member of the Associated College Press and the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association. All contents copyright © 2011 The Phoenix. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without permission.
The picture accompanying the article “Sewer project advances despite delays” published in the 9/8 issue identifies the heavy construction equipment as a bulldozer when in fact, it is a trackhoe or more commonly known as an excavator, a larger version of a backhoe with tracks instead of tires.
September 22, 2011
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Events Menu Today Philadelphia Homeless Initiative Information Session Villanova Professor Stephanie Sena will be holding an information session about a new student-run Emergency Housing Unit in Philadelphia. Come to the Keith room, 7-9 p.m. to learn more about how to get involved, or visit the project’s website: www.srehup.org.
S.M.A.R.T. team adjusting to Title IX
Anthropology Lecture Associate Professor of Anthropology at NYU, Aisha Khan, will be giving a lecture entitled “Islam, Vodou, and the Making of the Afro-Atlantic World,” 4:30-6:30 p.m. in Kohlberg 116. Refreshments will be served. Tomorrow Benefit Wellness Fair Come to Clothier today 10:00 a.m.2:00 p.m. to speak with experts from the Blue Cross and other health vendors. Free health screenings will be available to all students. Sign up for those you are interested in by viewing the event on the Swarthmore Events Calendar. Classics Lecture Associate Professor of Classics at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, will present his lecture: “Feminist Studies in Classics: Schools and Approaches.” The lecture will take place in Kohlberg’s Scheuer Room, 4:00-6:00 p.m. Saturday, September 24th Apple-Picking Swarthmore Hillel is joining with Hillel groups at Haverford and Bryn Mawr to go apple picking at Linvilla Orchards for Rosh Hashanah. Brunch will be served as well. All who want to attend can meet Sunday at 10:45 a.m. at Parrish Circle. Moving Planet Participate in the 350.org campaign on campus. Students will be collectively completing 350 laps around Parrish Hall on bike, on skateboard, on foot, etc. as a call to move beyond fossil fuels. There will also be information about global climate change and alternative energy sources, and new Environmental Sustainability Coordinator, Clara Fang, will be there to meet students. The event will be 12:00-4:00 p.m. Daniel Pak Recital Pianist Daniel Pak will be performing a number of works on piano tonight 8:00-9:30 p.m. The performance will take place in the Lang Concert Hall. Sunday, September 25th Marletta Brass Quintet The Marietta Brass Quintet will be playing in Lang Concert hall 2:00-3:30 p.m. today. The show will include the music of Ewald, Holst, Brahms, and Bernstein. Email submissions for the events menu to news@swarthmorephoenix. com.
Patrick Ammerman The Phoenix
Deans and faculty members must now report cases of sexual misconduct, but those at Worth can still act as confidential resources. By Patrick Ammerman pammerm1@swarthmore.edu
Last April, a letter written by the United States Department of Education informed schools that Title IX guidelines around issues of sexual assault and sexual harassment will be held to new standards. Now, it has been put upon Swarthmore’s administration and student groups adjust to the new standards. “[The letter about] Title IX was a really a good opportunity for colleges because I think colleges, especially like Swarthmore, think ‘we’ve thought this through, we’re doing this pretty well,’ but this is saying look again,” said Beth Kotarski, Director of Student Health Services. Kotarski now in charge of sexual assault response on campus. She is also now is in charge of Swarthmore’s sexual misconduct advisors & resource team (S.M.A.R.T) and is liaison for Swarthmore’s sexual health counselors. Dean Karen Henry, who was the primary administrator working with these student groups last year, had been transitioning into her new role as class dean of first-year students. According to Kotarski, the administrators were mindful of the new Title IX policies when making that decision. “The deans office really wanted to do was to create a space where students could go that would still seem like a confidential space that didn’t feel like it was in the dean’s office.” Policies about confidentiality when reporting instances of sexual misconduct are one of the biggest changes addressed in the Department of Education’s letter. “If you report an issue of sexual misconduct to faculty members, members of the deans office, college staff members, coaches … they’re all responsible for reporting that incident to our title IX coordinator,” explained Ariel Finegold ’13, who is a member of S.M.A.R.T. team as well as a sexual health counselor. According to Finegold, the Title IX coordinator then handles each reported incident on a case-bycase basis.
THE PHOENIX
“We want to reach students where The information provided by the reporter of the incident may be used to they are instead of having them always carry out an investigation, but Kotarski come to us for questions because we’re stresses that this investigation should finding, more and more, people aren’t not be confused with the negative con- coming us us … so we’re working on outnotations the word can imply. “When reach,” Finegold said. The group hopes claims are made and the college is aware that events, such as a sex fair, speakers of it, students need to be able to report brought to campus and cake, condom it and the college then needs to have the and cinema nights will help bring more complete responsibility to make sure bring students to their events. The S.M.A.R.T team also hopes to that they investigate … it just means that we need to evaluate the situation to improve its availability to students make sure that we remedy it, and that who may need its assistance. Having we’re making the campus and the sur- a S.M.A.R.T team member “on call” to vivor as safe as possible,” Kotarski said. talk to students and providing quicker Swarthmore groups such as the answers to emails are two improveS.M.A.R.T team and sexual health ments the group hopes to make. “We want to counselors really update have been disour anonymous cussing how to More and more, people e-mail line, so cope with the people who have implications of aren’t coming to us, so real questions the new Title IX policies, and we’re working on outreach. can email us anonymously have been using Ariel Finegold and get answers the discussions to create broadS.M.A.R.T Member, SHC back from Swatties that are eduer changes in cated instead of how Swarthgetting informamore handles sexual assault. S.M.A.R.T team last year tion online which might not be right was meant to provide students with re- or not be from the right sources,” said sources, including trained students and Finegold. The main purpose of these groups faculty members to whom they could turn for help with sexual misconduct is- remains to create a safe place for those sues. “This year … we are trying to do with questions about sexual misconduct [our job] in a different fashion — being to turn to. Sendrow says she sees S.M.A.R.T more proactive on campus,” said Lisa Sendrow ’13, a S.M.A.R.T team member. team as a means “to help people … have S.M.A.R.T team members are adjust- more resources, become more aware of ing what they do in response to what themselves and try to see themselves as many see as underutilization of their re- stronger as well because a lot of survisources among the student body. “Survi- vors think its their fault and not a lot of vors’ issues and sexual assault are kind people know how to respond [to them].” of deteriorating on this campus and not The administration and these student as many people are as interested as we groups want to ensure that the college thought there would be,” Sendrow said. is doing all it can to prevent sexual misThe S.M.A.R.T team’s postering last conduct and to create a safe environyear, which advertised the names and ment for survivors of it. Anyone who has questions about the contact information of trained students and faculty, seemed not to reach a large changes to Title IX or about the resources number of students, so members want Swarthmore offers can email swatshc@ to make the group more visible on cam- gmail.com. pus.
September 22, 2011
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Vice President Bayer leaves for Duke after 10 years at Swat
Week in pictures
Holly Smith The Phoenix
Professors and students commemorate the arrival of a new piano in Parrish Parlors on Monday afternoon with an hour-long program of music.
Paul Chung The Phoenix
Students congregate in Shane Lounge to celebrate the Chinese Moon Festival and to eat traditional moon cake.
Allegra Pocinki The Phoenix
Students and faculty participate in a discussion after watching the film “Peace One Day” to celebrate September 21, the International Day of Peace.
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Baxter said. Bayer is young, with By KOBy LEVIn daughters in second and fourth jlevin1@swarthmore.edu grades. The time was ripe for a move. In August, Steven Bayer, Swarth- “If he didn’t make a move now, then more’s former Vice President for De- by the time the next campaign was velopment and Alumni Relations an- over he might not want to make one,” nounced he was resigning to accept a Baxter said. similar position at Duke University. Bayer’s career at Swarthmore beBayer was hired as Associate Vice gan in 2001, when he was hired as AsPresident of Development at Duke, sociate Director for Planned Giving. a position that entails increased re- As the campaign grew and developed, sponsibilities for him: he will head a so did his responsibilities. staff approximately three times the Bayer “held a number of increassize of his staff at Swarthmore. He be- ingly responsible positions, including gins work at Duke on October 1. Director of Capital Giving, Director Bayer’s departure was timed care- of Leadership Giving and Director of fully to coinDevelopment, cide with the before being nadir of his named, after We lose his enthusiam, schedule of rea national sponsibility as search in 2008, his desire to be Vice President as Vice Presi— the time be- connected with the people dent for Develfore Swarthopment and who are this institution. more’s next Alumni RelaStu Hain, capital camtions,” said Repaign begins. becca Chopp, Vice President He left beSwarthmore’s fore the camof Facilities President, in a paign had released statebegun to get ment. under way. Resumes are currently being acStudents have recently started off cepted from Bayer’s would-be replacethe upcoming campaign with their ments. The college has hired a consulcontributions to the Strategic plan- tant from the firm Storbeck/Pimentel ning document. & Associates to assist in the search. Capital campaigns are one of the The new consultant will join another primary responsibilities of Bayer’s consultant from the firm currently at former position. Swarthmore who is overseeing the Campaigns are essentially fund- search for a new Vice President of Huraising drives which canvas alumni man Resources. for donations toward projects the Storbeck/Pimentel & Associates school has identified to improve the has asked that applications be turned school — new dorms, increases in fi- in by October 15. nancial aid and faculty are generally Several resumes have already been paid for by the most recent fundrais- submitted, according to Baxter. The ing campaign. The last campaign college hopes to offer an applicant the here, called The Meaning of Swarth- position by the end of this calendar more, paid to build the new David year. Kemp dormitories. Though there are, of course, high “It paid to build the Science Cen- hopes for a successful search, Bayter,” said Connie Baxter, Adminis- er’s colleagues noted that in Bayer, trative Coordinator in Development. Swarthmore had lost a positive per“It paid to build the new Education sonality well suited to alumni relaCenter at the Scott Arboretum. These tions. were all priorities of the last cam“We lose his enthusiasm, his depaign.” sire to be connected with the people The Meaning of Swarthmore cam- who are this institution,” said Stu paign ended successfully, finishing 3 Hain, Vice President for Facilities months early and receiving $15 mil- and Services, who attended meetings lion more than its goal, but Bayer of the President’s staff with Bayer, knew that if he wanted to seek out where they discussed the direction of further opportunities, he would have the college. “He was a really gracious, to act soon. affable person, which I think makes He understood the disruption he him ideal to interact with alumni,” would cause if he waited until mid- Hain said. campaign before moving on; morePresident Chopp elaborated on over, he knew that the chance to move that in her announcement of Bayer’s on without causing a disturbance in departure, saying “Steven’s determifundraising wouldn’t come again nation, highly collaborative nature, soon. and leadership skills have contributThe last campaign had raised $245 ed to his success both on campus, and million, and that much money can’t among alumni. We will miss Stephen be raised quickly. as a colleague, friend, and champion “You have to plan about between of Swarthmore and wish him the best seven and nine years out on how as he pursues the next promising opyou’re going to raise that money,” portunity.”
September 22, 2011
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Fang named Environmental Sustainability Coordinator BY CHRIS NAM knam1@swarthmore.edu In response to the rallying cries of student groups, faculty, alumni and administrators, the college created a new position this fall called the Environmental Sustainability Coordinator (ESC). The ESC, whose post was filled by Clara Changxin Fang earlier this month, will guide the college’s efforts to draft a Climate Action Plan (CAP), a document that will outline the College’s path to achieving carbon neutrality, throughout the year and coordinate the activities of environmental groups on campus. “The Environmental Sustainability Coordinator is a new position created to guide the process of drafting the Climate Action Plan, a currently indefinite commitment that the school undertook in April 2010 to eventually achieve carbon neutrality,” said Camille Robertson ’13, an Environmental Sustainability Intern at the Lang Center of Civic and Social Responsibility. Robertson, along with a selection of faculty, alumni and fellow students, is part of the Swarthmore Sustainability Committee (SusCom), which is responsible for submitting recommendations to the college administration in order to promote sustainability and environmentalism on campus. In April 2010, President Rebecca Chopp signed the American College and University Presidents College Commitment (ACUPCC), which consists of the completion of a “comprehensive inventory of all greenhouse gas emissions” within one year of signing the commitment and the creation of “an institutional action plan for becoming climate neutral” within two years of signature, according to the ACUPCC’s official website. Last year, SusCom submitted a recommendation to President Chopp to create a new post that would work full time to flesh out the CAP, which is due to be completed next April. “The Sustainability Committee recognized that a CAP would involve a level of analysis, meeting and writing time that our committee structure could not handle,” said Ralph Thayer, Director of Maintenance at the College and co-chair of SusCom. “Thus the recommendation for the ESC position,” Thayer said. In March 2011, soon after the idea first emerged, members of McKinstry Consulting Group — a consulting firm that assists clients with the construction of sustainable, energy-efficient facilities — visited the College to tour the College’s physical plant, met with SusCom and faculty from the Environmental Studies program, and publicly presented their findings to members of the Swarthmore community. This presentation led to the submission of a formal request from SusCom to President Chopp regarding the hiring of a full-time Sustainability Coordinator and the accompanying creation of a Climate Action Plan Committee (CAPCom). “It was clear after that presentation that a new committee, CAPCom, should be empaneled to carry out the task of formulating a Climate Action Plan for the College,” said Professor Carr Everbach, Associate Professor of Engineering and co-chair of SusCom. The idea then began to gain serious momentum through an influx of support from each corner of the college. Last spring, 17 different parties from the college community, among which included the Lang Center Environmental Sustainability Interns, SusCom, Earthlust, THE PHOENIX
Green Advisors, Student Council, Scott Arboretum and various alumni of the College, presented a compendium of letters to President Chopp entitled “In Support of a Sustainability Director”. “We believe that a Sustainability Director is necessary to continue and increase sustainability awareness, action and lifestyle change on campus and beyond. The creation of a Sustainability Director position would demonstrate the college’s responsibility and commitment to sustainability, just as the presence of the Lang Center for Civic and Social Responsibility, the Black Cultural Center, and the Intercultural Center represent our seriousness in teaching and embodying the values of diversity and social justice essential to our lives at Swarthmore and in the world,” wrote Robertson and fellow Environmental Sustainability Intern Rebecca Ringle ’11 last April in their cover letter. The ESC will also be responsible for streamlining collaboration among the various environmental groups on campus — a duty that Robertson feels is especially significant, seeing how much these groups’ efforts have diversified in the last few years. “Since my freshman year, the amount of on-campus environmentalist activism has increased dramatically,” Robertson said. “We hope that the ESC will facilitate communication and collaboration among these activist groups and other campus committees, departments, and offices engaged in distinct but complimentary efforts.” Robertson is also coordinator of Swat-Ecosphere, a new umbrella organization for environmental groups on campus that will undoubtedly assist in organizing and coalescing these groups’ endeavors. Professors Charlton and Everbach were instrumental in the search and hiring process for this new position. SusCom interviewed three finalists among various impressive candidates and agreed upon the final selection to be Clara Changxin Fang. “Clara just jumped out at the hiring committee as someone who had great experience and enthusiasm for the job, and as being someone who would fit in really seamlessly with the Swarthmore community,” Cameron French ’14 said, a new addition to SusCom this year. Fang attended Smith College, where she actively espoused sustainable development and was awarded the Outstanding Student Leader Award for her efforts, and subsequently earned a Master of Environmental Management degree from Yale, where she also worked for the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy and the Yale Office of Sustainability. She then proceeded to work for a renewable energy consulting company, and most recently as the Sustainability Coordinator of the city of Albany, NY, where she helped the city conduct its greenhouse gas inventory and craft its Climate Action Plan. Fang will work tirelessly with members of SusCom and CAPCom to ensure this plan is completed by this coming spring. Especially closely tied to her efforts will be Professor of Biology Rachel Merz, who has prior experience in strategic planning and is due to chair CAPCom this school year. “Clara Fang brings the expertise and experience needed to help the college plan its next steps forward,” Professor Charlton said. “The Lang Center is very pleased to help bring focus to the environment as an issue of social responsibility in this way.”
Courtesy of http://www.dvgbc.org/
The Wister Education Center and Greenhouse, finalized in 2009, serves as a physical testament to the college’s commitment to environmental advocacy and sustainability.
Who are you going to be? “The community of teachers formed at the Warner School has had a lasting impact on my career. We share a common language, goal, and dedication to meeting that goal.” Margot Blazak MS in Teaching, Class of 2011 Teacher, Rochester City School District
The Warner School of Education at the University of Rochester offers graduate programs in:
Teaching Counseling Human Development Higher Education Educational Policy School Leadership Health Professions Education Parttime, fulltime, and nonmatriculated study available. Grants and scholarships
September 22, 2011
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Around Higher Education
Penn students increasingly go on academic leave By hayley brooks dailypennsylvanian.com, Sept. 19, 2011
Penn students are playing hooky — but instead of wreaking havoc like Ferris Bueller, they’re ditching the classroom for the workforce. Many students have decided to take a leave of absence to pursue job opportunities or start their own businesses, Director of Career Services Patricia Rose said. Though Career Services has no concrete statistics regarding the number of students taking such sabbaticals, Rose explained that taking a leave of absence “can be a good strategy depending on the individual student and his or her circumstances.” One example is that of Coursekit, a start-up learning management system company launched by three students who dropped out of Penn before donning their caps and gowns. Last May, Coursekit CEO Joseph Cohen left Wharton to develop his company with just his sophomore year under his belt. Cohen was joined by Coursekit web developers Dan Getelman — a former Daily Pennsylvanian web developer who completed his junior year in Wharton and the Engineering school — as well as Jim Grandpre, who had completed his sophomore year in Engineering, and Hunter Horsley, who finished his sophomore year at Wharton last May. “I wanted to put all my time into the company and build it into a real business,” Cohen said. “Opportunities come and go and they don’t linger. We think we’re onto something big — and that means someone else will
discover it.” “It would be silly if someone had said to Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg that they should stay in school,” Rose added. “There are certain start-ups that are timesensitive, and we wish [the Coursekit founders] well.” In fact, entrepreneur Peter Thiel has started the “20 Under 20 Thiel Fellowship,” doling out $100,000 scholarships to 20 individuals under 20 years old who opt out of college to “pursue innovative scientific and technical projects, learn entrepreneurship, and begin to build the technology companies of tomorrow” for a two-year tenure. After completing his freshman year at Wharton last May, Wesley Zhao decided to take a leave from Penn to pursue his start-up tech company “AvantCard,” an exchangable giftcard website that “gives users the opportunity to exchange any giftcard for the same value.” “It feels good after 13 years of school to not be in school for a year,” Zhao said, who plans to return next fall. “But I guarantee I will get my degree. I believe there’s a lot of value in education.” While Cohen and Zhao have left Penn to pursue their own businesses, other students have left to secure internships and jobs with already established firms and start-ups. Alice Lee, who completed her sophomore year in Wharton last May, is currently working for Foursquare, a start-up social networking mobile application, for the semester. “I applied to the internship program on a whim,” said Lee, who will return to Penn in the spring. “It’s very interesting to apply my skills in an actual way
outside of school.” Like Lee, would-be College sophomore Aaron Wilson has left Penn to work for an established tech start-up, but has definite plans to return to school. Wilson is working for MyRegistry.com through the year as the director of user experience and will continue his involvement with the company when he returns to campus next year. Though Wilson, Lee and Zhao have definite plans to earn their undergraduate degrees, Cohen is not as sure. “I wasn’t ever in school because of the degree,” Cohen explained. “The way I see it is if I don’t return I just get two less years.” Yet, Cohen remains extremely grateful for his time at Penn. “I feel like I got a lot out of Penn and think it’s the greatest thing in the world and the greatest thing that happened to me,” Cohen added. “If not for Penn, I wouldn’t have been able to do what I’m doing now.” Each student said that although they enjoy their time in the work force, they miss many aspects of undergraduate life. “I really miss the relationships,” Wilson said. “As much as school is about getting an education, one of the things I value most about Penn is the people.” “I had to quit clubs and activities I was involved in and [turn down the option of] being on boards,” Lee added. “It was sad because I worked hard for those positions and would miss working with the people.” A sprint football player and a polevaulter, Zhao said he misses his involvement in his sports teams. Zhao also mentioned he will especially miss those “late-night Wawa runs.”
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September 22, 2011
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Living & Arts
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Enlace, O.A.S.I.S. host string of LHM performances BY PRESTON COOPER pcooper1@swarthmore.edu Every September, communities nationwide celebrate Latin@ Heritage Month. Here at Swarthmore, Latino student organization Enlace is marking the month with a series of events, ranging from concerts featuring Latino artists to seminars and workshops focusing on Latino issues. This year, Enlace leaders are focusing heavily on the arts as a “lens” for educating the community about Latino issues, according to Rachell Morillo ‘14, co-president of Enlace. Both visual and performance arts have come to Swarthmore this year f o r Latin@ Heritage Month. Performance art predominates. This past weekend saw a trio of performances by musical artists Zuzuka Poderosa, Las Krudas and Geko Jones. A Saturday night Olde Club concert featuring these artists combined modern music with older varieties to create an intergenerational style. Enlace member Javier Perez ’13 elaborated on the role of art in Latino culture. “I think [Latin@ Heritage Month] is a special opportunity to celebrate Latino history and culture as it has influenced and shaped American history.” Perez is also a leader of O.A.S.I.S. (“Our Art Spoken In Soul”), a student organization founded last year to “give the campus a new outlet for self-expression” through spoken-word poetry. O.A.S.I.S. collaborated with Enlace to bring El Grito de Poetas (“The Cry of Poets”), a Latino spoken-word group based in New York, to campus this past Friday. Poetas comprises seven artists, six men and one woman, who passionately deliver original spoken word compositions, sometimes as a group, sometimes as individuals. The performance spanned two hours in the LPAC Cinema, taking a number of different tones and touching on a variety of issues. One of the prevalent themes through-
out the show was the issue of diversity within the Latin@ community. The artists asserted that while American society sometimes compartmentalizes people with Latin American origins, there are, in fact, dramatic differences between Puerto Ricans and Colombians, between Dominicans and Brazilians. “Embrace each other’s differences,” one of the artists said, “and find the common denominator.” Enlace co-president Andrea Jacome ’14 agrees. “Issues [of diversity within the Latino community] definitely come up in Latin@ Heritage Month, especially when you see that Latin America is a very big and spread-out place.” El Grito de Poetas also touched on several other issues that might not be considered Latino issues at first glance. One of the artists performed a composition about being overweight and the judgment that consequently falls upon him. Another spoke of having a father who left his family early on. A third reflected on being HIV-positive and the effect the diagnosis has had on his life. “It’s been eighteen years and I’m still here,” he declared, referring to the initial projection that he would have only seven years to live. As they touched on these topics, the poets asserted that when an issue affects the Latino community, it becomes a Latino issue. Digging deeper into Latino issues, Enlace also sponsored a collection of visual art, on display at the Kitao Gallery, which deals with immigration, an issue perennially significant to the Latino community. The art consists of several prints bearing symbolic images and slogans broadcasting the need for reform of US immigration policy and the costs of the fence along the US-Mexico border. On Sunday, three members of the San Francisco-based group HAVOQ (“Horizontal Alliance of Very Organized Queers”) spoke to students at the Gallery. HAVOQ advocates for immigrant and queer rights, two issues which may seem to have little overlap. The group asserts that
queer and immigrant issues are vastly interconnected, contending that the US ban on federal recognition of same-sex marriage prevents US nationals from obtaining citizenship for their immigrant partners. HAVOQ also believes that US immigration policy disadvantages transgendered immigrants given that they may have different genders listed on different forms of identification. One point that the HAVOQ members were sure to stress was their lack of political affiliation. “[Immigration] is not a Democrat/Republican issue,” said leader Molly Goldberg. She stresses that more illegal immigrants have been deported under the Obama administration than any other. According to Jacome, one facet of diversity in the Latino community sometimes goes unrecognized — the difference between being an immigrant from Latin America and being a Latino raised in the United States. “We still have a long way to go in terms of embracing that aspect of our diversity,” she says. Morillo agreed, adding that breaking down stereotypes is an inherent part of any heritage event. “We’re doing very well in terms of embracing our diversity … but there’s still a lot of growing and improvement to be had,” she says, adding that dialogue is the best way to fight stereotypes. “The way you can combat stereotypes is having [a] conversation … about your own complexity, admitting to yourself that you aren’t the stereotype, you’re not even all uniform.” Latin@ Heritage Month will continue until the first week of October, and there are still several events remaining on the calendar. Two popular films highlighting Latino communities will be shown in the coming weeks — “Wind Journeys” on September 23 and “Biutiful” on September 25. In addition, Enlace will host several speakers, including Lin-Manuel Miranda (writer of “In The Heights”) on September 29 and Aviva Chompsky (an immigrant rights activist) on October 3. The Kitao Gallery will also host another event to discuss the collection of immigrationfocused artwork; the date has yet to be determined. Enlace leaders stress that these events are open to everyone on campus, not just members of Enlace or people who identify as Latino. Others are encouraged to attend events and learn about Latino culture. “[Latin@ Heritage Month] is an opportunity to spotlight a lot of beautiful things our culture has produced,” Jacome said. “Having this cultural heritage month is a way of securing recognition. We don’t only exist in September.”
Local bass quintet to perform a variety of styles BY HENRY KIETZMAN hkietzm1@swarthmore.edu The Marietta Brass Quintet is so named because the group practices on Swarthmore’s own Marietta Avenue. The group is composed of Gil Rose and George Gehring on trumpet, Phil Runkel on French horn, Bill Nazzaro on Tuba and Carr Everbach on trombone. This local quintet of brass players will be performing this Sunday at 2:00 p.m. in the Lang Concert Hall. The group began playing together four years ago, but had some rearrangements and substitutions in past years to form the group performing Sunday. Everbach and Rose are both faculty of the college — Everbach is an Engineering professor and Rose was a Classics professor. The other players are local brass musicians with a love for chamber music. The group will be performing a variety of music, including classical, military band, and popular music. The most famous of the pieces to be played is Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story Suite,” which Rose quotes as “our most ambitious piece.” The quintet’s second most ambitious piece is Victor Ewald’s “Brass Quintet No. 2.” The group will also be per-
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forming pieces by Holst, Shostakovich, Saint-Saëns — featuring a horn solo for Runkel — and Brahms. The group quotes several musical influences in its development as a quintet. “Most of our arrangements are from the Empire Brass Quintet,” Everbach said. As individuals, the group has appreciated several different brass groups, including the brass section of the Chicago Symphony and the Canadian brass. This will be trumpeter Gehring’s last performance with the Marietta String Quintet. He is moving from Swarthmore to New York, and definitely plans to continue playing. “I’m excited for this to be my last performance,” Gehring said. “This has been a great group to play with; we’ve played a lot of fun and challenging things.” Everbach believes this to be the most challenging concert that the group has ever played. “We’ve all improved as players working on this difficult music,” he said. He believes that practicing for this concert has helped all of the players grow as musicians and as friends. The other players agree that “West Side Story” is the most challenging. “It’s the end of the concert, so everyone’s a little tired” Gehring said. He hopes that this crowd-pleas-
ing piece will keep everyone engaged and Swarthmore compared to the vast amount excited. of student string, piano, and woodwind Everbach stressed that the group is chamber groups that perform through the composed of amateurs. “We love to play Elizabeth Pollard Fetter Chamber Music for fun, and we hope that people can have Program. “Right now, there is no student fun with us.” The group also hopes that or faculty brass quintet or anything, so the free concert will entice students to virtually the only chance that students come and enjoy will get a chance to their music. hear a brass quintet Andi Merritt ’13 is us, right now, in plans to attend the phase of camThe college is lucky to this performance. As a pus life,” Everbach French horn playhave the opportunity to said. There have er, Merritt is exstudent brass have a quintet perform, been cited to hear some quintets in the past, talented musicians. especially a local one. but however none “I have played in exist as of yet this Andi Merritt ’13 brass quintets beyear. fore, I have a real Merritt hopes appreciation for the that many students challenges associated with playing brass attend the event. “It’s pretty rare to find a instruments,” Merritt said. brass quintet concert; I think the college The quintet agrees that there are sev- is lucky to have the opportunity to have a eral challenges. Typically brass players quintet perform, especially a local one,” are in an orchestral setting, in which Merritt said. they get vast breaks in the pieces. “We’re Continuing on that point, Merritt doing a lot of work where the strings thinks that it’s important to support aren’t there … It’s a very different experi- these local artists. “A large part of the ence for a brass player to be playing all appeal in playing an instrument for most the time,” Nazzaro said. musicians is having the opportunity to A brass quintet is uncommon at share their creations with an audience.”
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Guilty pleasure shows still strike emotional chord
Watching the sporadically entertaining telecast of the Emmy awards on September 18, I was shocked by two personal discoveries. First of all, I’d never thought that I would actually care about the best movie/miniseries categories until Kate Winslet managed to become one Tony shy of the presJohnny Taeschler tigious Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony (EGOT) Viewer Discretion Advised combo. The other realization was that for the first time since I’ve tuned into the Emmys, I had only regularly followed one show in the category of best drama. If it weren’t for the compelling yet visibly aging “Dexter,” my attachment to that entire genre would have consisted of the snooze-worthy pilot to “Boardwalk Empire”. Now with past nominees like “Lost,” “24” and “The Sopranos” off the air, “House” and “True Blood” virtually forsaken by critics, and “Damages” banished to DirecTV, a distinct void has emerged in my roster of shows. If there’s a question as to the amount of television I watch, I assure you that it borders on the unhealthy, so it’s not as if I’ve grown more selective in my viewing habits over the years. Instead, I’ve just had to accept that some of my regular shows aren’t all that good, critically speaking. While there’s still a small part of me that feels a twinge of guilt for not watching the awards leviathan that is “Mad Men” (although I’m gradually becoming convinced that winning the best drama Emmy for four years in a row is a sign of voters’ laziness rather than an indication of the show’s greatness), I actually feel comfortable admitting to my occasional indulgences. After all, even some of the worst dramas can’t touch the sheer unpleasantness that characterizes a great
deal of the reality television programs out there. I’m still holding out hope that “Toddlers & Tiaras” is just an elaborate hoax designed by the Parents Television Council to scare misbehaving children straight with the threat of spray-on tans and collagen injections. In contrast, the mediocre shows that I allow myself every now and then (a dosage that tends to be increased during particularly stressful work periods) function similarly to the analgesic wonders of comfort food. So, rather than consume a sleeve of Mallomars before bed when finals week rolls around, I sometimes choose to take the relative high road and watch an episode of “Spartacus: Blood and Sand.” Broadcast on the cable channel Starz but available on Netflix instant play, “Spartacus” tells the familiar story of a Thracian general sold into the slavery system of the Roman Empire as a gladiator. At first glance, this description may evoke the swords and sandals atmosphere that also defined the classy HBO series “Rome.” However, the word “classy” really shouldn’t be attributed to any of the events in “Spartacus,” unless one sees the decadent displays of wine and sex to which corrupt government officials are treated as classy affairs. Instead, “Spartacus” has all the appropriate qualities of a true guilty pleasure show. Battle scenes that rival “Kill Bill” in terms of outrageously stylized violence? Check. Boundless sexual scenarios that would make even the actors in “True Blood” blush? Check. The wonderfully wicked Lucy Lawless as a social climber in the vein of Lady Macbeth? Check. On a more fundamental level, though, “Spartacus” functions so well as a guilty pleasure because it shrewdly structures itself around the viscerally charged emotion of revenge. Defeated, enslaved and robbed of his beloved wife, the character of Spartacus (formerly played by the broodingly intense Andy Whitfield, who passed away last Sunday) instinctively gains the audience’s unwavering support. As he gets closer and closer to his goal of vengeance with each passing episode, the viewer becomes just as intimately involved in his quest for justice. Simply put, we want the good guy to punish those
responsible for his unwarranted misfortunes. If that necessitates the occasional decapitation and/or drunken orgy, I’m not one to complain. The rousing sense of satisfaction that accompanies an episode of “Spartacus” remains noticeably distinct from the emotions associated with another guilty pleasure show, “Nip/Tuck.” Running from 2004-2010 on FX but now available on Netflix as well, “Nip/Tuck” chronicles the exploits (and I use that word quite literally) of two Miami-based plastic surgeons. While the show degenerated into absurd sleaze after the second season (in one episode, for example, a man requested that his nipples be removed in order to please his Ken-doll fetishist of a wife), I still find the first thirty episodes to be immensely rewatchable. Ryan Murphy, the show’s creator who is currently continuing his trend of wild swings between greatness and mediocrity as the showrunner of “Glee,” manages to combine soap opera theatrics with a keen sense of dark comedy to create a surprisingly affecting viewing experience. In times of listlessness, I turn to the guaranteed excitement of “Spartacus,” whereas “Nip/Tuck” reliably provides some degree of emotional catharsis. Although many of its main characters are immoral, callous studies in solipsism, their infrequent displays of humanity become all the more meaningful as a result. Take the scene when Christian (Julian McMahon) finds out that his former girlfriend, the bitter, angry, self-centered Gina (Jessalyn Gilsig, who plays the bitter, angry, self-centered Terri on “Glee”) has contracted HIV. While he initially reacts to the news with the trademark douchebaggery that has defined his character, Christian eventually pays her a visit in the hospital. There, Gina tearfully reveals that he’s the only person who has come to see her, saying, “It’s not that I’ve burned bridges. I just never built them.” As he reassuringly lies down beside her, this moment perfectly encapsulates my love for the guilty pleasure show; sure, it’s obvious emotional manipulation, but somehow that doesn’t make it any less effective.
Sew Swatties stitches feminism, environmentalism By Chi Zhang czhang1@swarthmore.edu Sewing is regarded as a relatively antiquated craft by many people of our generation. Most grew up buying their clothes in stores and handing them off to their parents to be mended. Actually using a needle and thread is usually regarded as the common domestic work of housewives or associated with grandmothers in rocking chairs. However, a student group on campus, Sew Swatties, is looking to revitalize the craft in a revolutionary way: by uniting it with both feminism and environmentalism. The group is still in its infancy. It began last fall when Miyuki Baker ’12, who loves sewing, noticed that there was no campus group devoted to the activity. So she came up with the idea of starting Sew Swatties. “We also want to have a focus on environmentalism and feminism because sewing usually has been a part of women domesticity,” Baker said. “By having explosively said that we want to be feminists, we are reclaiming this identity. We sew and do these domestic things not because it’s the role of women to do that, but because 8
we enjoy doing it and we want to be able to know how to do these things and how to teach people like creating community by sewing.” Sew Swatties is open to all students, both men and women, experienced sewers and novices alike. For newcomers, there are chances to learn sewing and screen printing skills. For instance, Sew Swatties had a workshop last year on screen printing where participants learned how to make their own patterns on fabric. More experienced sewers can take advantage of the group’s space in the Women’s Resource Center, which is equipped with sewing machines that have been donated by Swarthmore Borough residents or bought at second-hand stores. Sew Swatties is a group in which students can fully express their creativity by sewing whatever they are interested in. “The first thing I made was a pencil case. It’s a bit poorly made, and one of my friends makes fun of me for using it. But most of my friends think it’s cute, and I like that I made something functional,” Karim Sariahmed ’13 said. Sewing can also be a valuable skill.
Since learning how to sew, Maria Thomson ’14 has been able to mend people’s clothes and alter the size of her own clothes so that they fit better. Sariahmed agreed. “I had been finding myself asking my mother to mend things for me and really figured I should learn it. I think sewing is kind of a life skill that should be taught in elementary school or boy scouts or something,” he said. But the group isn’t just about having fun and learning practical skills. Sew Swatties has found an intersection between environmentalism, feminism and sewing. Last spring the club organized a workshop about how to make and use reusable menstrual pads. Participants not only learned how to construct their own products, they also learned about the different kinds of alternative menstrual products, like the menstrual cup and reusable cloth pads. Different individuals feel comfortable with different products. The cloth pads the women constructed during the workshop can be washed and reused instead of just thrown away. They can often last up to four years. According to Baker, this is an extremely efficient way to save resources. Using disposable pads can cause great damage to the environment. Not only do they produce a large amount of trash, pad-manufacturing uses up lots of plastics and chemicals. Women who use cloth pads help reduce the amount of wasted resources. Sariahmed explained some of the other intersections between enviornmentalism and sewing. “You can buy
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Miyuki Baker for The Phoenix
Sew Swatties uses donated and secondhand sewing machines to stitch their creations in the Women’s Resource Center.
cheap used clothes from Good Will and make them fly. I particularly enjoy tailoring clothes that I’ve stopped wearing.” Instead of buying new pants, Sariahmed altered several pairs of pants that he no longer wore. “It’s really empowering to make things with your own hands rather than continuing to buy into the system,” he said. “With that said, I think it may be a while before I completely swear off purchasing new clothes.” THE PHOENIX
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What we really talk about when we talk about e-books I’ve never been one of those people who is up on the latest technology: I still use the iPod nano I got for my 13th birthday; I probably won’t get a smartphone even when my contract renews next year (I’m clumsy, so military-grade is ideal); and unless Smell-O-Vision comes back in vogue, I’m Susana Medeiros likely to still read musty print books. Four Eyed Literati That being said, you can’t be interested in publishing and not acknowledge the growing presence of e-readers, e-books and tablets in our lives. Therefore, this week marks the first in a three part series on digital publishing, so let’s jump in headfirst: what do we talk about when we talk about e-books?
E-books and the $ problem: As popular as e-books have been (e-books saw a 117% increase from last year at the start of 2011, according to the Association of American Publishers), neither publishers nor many authors are happy about this trend. For one, the e-book market is small enough that a huge increase, while commendable, simply does not make up for statistically smaller but monetarily larger losses in the print book industry. This is not aided by the inherent cheapness of the e-book, as spurred by Amazon. In 2007 when the Kindle was first released, Amazon took great strides to market its e-reader and bookstore, discounting a large majority of e-books to $9.99 — a concession accepted by many publishers because Amazon subsidized the price at a loss. This trend has been reversed to a certain extent, particularly after MacMillian, followed by HarperCollins and Hatchette (all publishing
companies) boycotted Amazon to have more freedom in setting prices. (If you’re wondering how Barnes and Noble managed to claim 25% e-book market share, this is it.) But the problem does not end there. The proliferation of $0.99 e-books (spurred by the sales tactics of self-published authors) has also devalued the worth of e-books and, for that matter, all books, inculcating consumers with the belief that books should be cheap. The problem with this notion is that the cost of a book is not really defined by the cost of producing the physical book. A $25 hardcover only costs about $2.50 to print, with the rest going to pay booksellers, publishers, agents and authors. When you sell an e-book for $9.99, you hurt everyone down the line. Self-published authors, on the other hand, capitalizing on consumer willingness to buy a crappy book cheap (okay, okay, not all of them are bad, but most of them are), have at times attained millionaire status, as with Amanda Hocking, the 26-year old Paranormal Romance author who began publishing in 2010. By March 2011, she earned two million dollars from sales of her nine books. Am I jelly? Hell yeah. E-Piracy: The publishing industry also faces problems typical of the music industry — piracy. In the same way iTunes didn’t save record companies (who thought $0.99 songs, which devalue whole albums and, frankly, have produced a culture more inclined towards hit singles than bodies of work, were going to work?), ebookstores won’t save the publishing industry. Indeed, across the Atlantic in the U.K., the Digital Entertainment Survey has concluded that one in three e-reader owning Brits have committed e-book piracy, and I doubt numbers are much different in the U.S. On a brighter note, of the top ten pirated ebooks on Pirate’s Bay, #1 is “Men’s Fitness: 12 Minute Workout,” #4 is “Photoshop CS5 All-in-One For Dummies” and #10 is “Advanced Sex: Explicit Positions for Explosive Lovemaking,” which somehow seems
reassuring to me.
Enhanced e-books: Enhanced e-books, which typically feature author commentary and interviews, criticisms, videos and other features, have been advertised as premium product that can bridge the gap between print and e-book profits. Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” and T.S. Eliott’s “The Wasteland” have been, in my opinion, rendered beautifully, featuring photos and interactive diagrams. Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged” was just released last week as an interactive iPad app, which includes scans of the original manuscript pages and author’s notes, as well as video and audio excerpts from Rand’s lectures. These bells and whistles, naturally, are only available on tablets and smartphones, though e-readers can link to some of these features. Closer to my heart, however, are HybridBooks. Introduced by the tiny but growing Mellville House — a publishing company I’ve been aware of since they published Tao Lin, a fascinating if sometimes frustrating author who is the leader of the resurgent Kmart Realism movement popularized in the 80’s — HybridBooks promise an enhanced e-book and print book rolled in one. The idea is simple enough: the HybridBook is “an innovative publishing program that gives print books the features of enhanced eBooks,” according to their website, enabling smartphones to scan Quick Response barcodes on the back of the book to reveal “illuminations” on their screen. These “illuminations” will feature the same supplementary materials of traditional enhanced e-books, without feeling like you have to part with your daily cozy reading in the sunshine. That’s a compromise I like to hear. Stay tuned in my next column for a college-centric look at e-textbooks and Swattie opinions on e-reading. The third installment on digital publishing will focus on foreign markets. Susana is a sophomore. You can reach her at smedeir1@swarthmore.edu.
Plays in preview: monologues, Sondheim and stockings of director after serving as assistant director in last year’s production of TVM. Described by the director in an email as Fall at Swarthmore offers casts and a depiction of the “experiences of real audiences alike a great variety of dramat- women [that] proves that all women ic productions and performances to en- have different experiences that impact tertain on those crisp evenings. Upcom- their lives in a variety of ways,” “The ing shows explore a range of styles and Vagina Monologues” consists of a series subjects, from Shakespearian vignettes of dramatic readings focusing on issues to dramatic monologues. of womanhood. Sendrow hopes that by Lisa Sendrow ’13 is the director for bringing women’s rights to the forefront, an upcoming production of “The Vagina it will leave the audience questioning Monologues,” an episodic play written by and “make the community members adEve Ensler, which was first performed vocate for women” after the curtain falls. in 1996. Continuing a tradition of annual “The Vagina Monologues” will have performances, Sendrow took on the role two showings in the Science Center on February 17 at 7 p.m. and February 18 at 1 p.m. For fans of musicals and live performances, “Company” offers audiences another option to explore the power and variety of theater. Based on a book by George Furth and music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, “Company” is directed by Jonghee Quispe ’14 with conducting and instrumental direction by Ben Kapilow ’13. “Company” will run for two days, premiering on November 4 at 7 pm on the LPAC mainstage, Jakob Mrozewski The Phoenix with performances at Emma Thomas performs in last year’s showing of the 2 and 8 pm Novermber Vagina Monologues in Sci 101. This year the play will run 5.This will be Quispe’s on February 17 and 18 in the same location. second time working on By brad lenox blenox1@swarthmore.edu
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a Sondheim musical after a successful Tri-College production of “Assassins” in the fall of last year. “Company,” which was first performed on Broadway in 1970, is set on the 35th birthday of a New York man named Robert. Kapilow described the plot as “a single man [who] realizes that being in a relationship is difficult, but being alone is impossible.” Quispe adds that while the show’s two central and charged topics, New York City and marriage, are still extremely relevant to today’s audiences, they offer an ambitious challenge to produce in the college theater context. According to the director, to focus audience attention on the characters, the set design will be minimalist, consisting of a set of large white blocks. The entire stage will be the thrust of LPAC and Quispe adds that “it will be up to lighting and sound design to specify the areas of time and space.” This production will be Kapilow’s first time conducting a pit band. He wrote in an email that as musical director he hopes to help “the orchestra understand where Sondheim inserted harmonic and textural surprises” into the “deceptive simplicity” of Sondheim’s compositions. Quispe also added by email, that due to the musical complexity of the play, such as a baritone with a three-octave range and the ability to hold five part harmonies, actors will be challenged to put their theatrical talents to the test. Also scheduled for this fall is a production by the Yellow Stocking Players, the “Night of Scenes.” The Yellow Stocking
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Players is a student group of actors, designers and directors who are interested in studying and performing the plays of Shakespeare. Named after a comic sketch in “Twelfth Night,” the Players made their debut performance in 2009 putting on that very play. This year, the “Night of Scenes” will include montages and scenes from a variety of the Shakespeare canon, including “The Mechanicals” (from “A Midsummer’s Night Dream”), “Macbeth” 1.7, “Twelfth Night” 1.5, “Antony & Cleopatra,” “As You Like It” 3.2 & 4.1 and “A Montage of Scenes” as well as “Taming of the Shrew.” Director Julia Cooper ’12 notes that the group’s decision to put on a variety of scenes, as opposed to a single performance, is “to have a collaborative experience with as many participants as possible … We all plan to work (or play) together as much as possible, so that actors and directors can inspire and advise each other.” Directing credits for this semester’s production draw from all over the campus community, from first years like Amelia Dornbush ’15 to alum Chris Klanecki ’10. Dornbush described in an email the relevance and resonance of themes in Shakespeare’s plays like “Taming” to modern life. The story, put simply, is “Kate is viewed as a ‘shrew’; Petruchio tries to ‘tame’ her.” Dornbush added that in the next weeks leading up to performance, the challenge for her and her cast is to discuss “whether or not Kate really is tamed in the end, and what significance comes as a result of either conclusion.”
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CAMPUS PANACHE Photos by Elèna Ruyter
Kicking Back
As September comes to a close, it seems people have begun to loosen up a bit in terms of style. Girls have begun phasing out their flouncy summer dresses in favor of plaid boyfriend shirts. Guys are leaning toward simple striped t-shirts and cardigans in lieu of their oxfords, signaling the beginning of autumn.
The lowdown on cheap eats in University City Center City Restaurant Week wraps up tomorrow. If you went, hopefully, you had a great highclass dining experience in the company of good Jen Johnson friends. It still cost you In-town, Off-Campus at least $42 — the fixed price of the meal, plus a 15% tip. If you ordered a drink, it was more. Restaurant Week sates the appetite for fine dining, but not necessarily for eating out in Philly. If you find yourself cash poor but still hungry for an alternative to the dining hall, the snack bar and the Swarthmore borough’s offerings, head to University City for Philadelphia’s best collection of cheap eats. The University City District is defined as the area bounded on to the east by 29th Street/the Schuykill River and to the west by 50th Street. Spring Garden Street, Powelton Avenue and Market Street create the northern edge, while Civic Center Boulevard, University Avenue and Woodland Avenue form the southern one. The area has gentrified significantly during the past 20 years as a result of University of Pennsylvania’s purchase and renovation of residential buildings to offer as student housing. Increased police and Penn security presence and the University’s push to make this area of West Philly into its student and faculty population hub have caused real estate prices to rise markedly, pressing the University City neighborhood’s boundary from 38th Street out to 50th. Many of the area’s original residents have been forced to relocate to less expen-
sive areas of the city as this part of West Philly has become more affluent. University City is an area in transition. It is an ethnically and socioeconomically diverse neighborhood rich in low-price, high-spice restaurants that appeal to students, recent immigrants and longtime residents alike. Many of the best places to eat here are hardly restaurants: Penn is ringed by a legion of food carts whose offerings range from crummy hot dogs to de-licious soul food, from kimchi to crème brulee. Actually, the kimchi and crème brulee food trucks — KoJa and Sugar Philly, respectively — park right next to each other just north of Walnut and 38th Street, on the west side of the drive. They are both highly recommended — go there and get a great dinner and great dessert for less than $10 total. Unlike these two, which stay open for dinner, most food carts in the area get the bulk of their business from the university and hospital lunch crowd and call it a day at or before 5 p.m. The best bet for finding a good street food vendor near Penn is to go to 38th Street — University Avenue — and look for a cart with a few people waiting to eat there. The other category of places to eat that doesn’t quite rise to the level of restaurants is the ethnic grocery stores, particularly those on Walnut and Chestnut between 40th and 46th Streets. International Food & Spice on 42nd and Walnut carries primarily Indian and Pakistani foods but also stocks some Thai, African, and Middle Eastern specialty ingredients. It’s reliable, but not a mecca, and its prices are in line with the rest of the neighborhood. International Foods stands out for the prepared foods in the front case, particularly its samosas. They’re $1.50 each, big, soft, and warmly spiced inside. If you’re really impressed, you can order them in bulk for your next event. Down the block is Makkah Market (4249 Walnut St.), which stocks both West African and Middle Eastern groceries. It has
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prepared foods in the front case, like International Food and Spice, and seating in the back. Makkah is no neighborhood secret; it’s particularly popular with the Penn student crowd for being open late. Where else are you going to find falafel for $2.50 after midnight? Like Makkah, Rice & Spice market (also known as Dana Mandi; 4205 Chestnut Street) looks like a hole in the wall. Makkah is small, but it has electric signs in the window to catch your eye. Rice & Spice does not. From the outside, it looks more like a dim warehouse unfortunate enough to have front windows that betray the clutter lying beyond the front door. Inside, it’s chaotic and cramped like a claustrophobic labyrinth. Walk straight past the front counter, try to ignore the stimulus of the colorful, precarious bags of chaat mix and look for an opening in the back wall — you’ll notice that it’s only a set of shelves dividing the grocery from a casual dining area. The menu is on the wall: salt, sweet, and mango lassis for $3; “half” palak paneer for $4.50, “full” for $8. Most of the menu items are the familiar north Indian dishes that most Indian restaurants carry but don’t expect a lunch buffet. The regular clientele does not prefer to speak English here. If you want chicken korma but the rest of your party wants resham kabob, you are in the right place: on the corner of 42nd & Chestnut, offset from the street, is Kabobeesh (4201 Chestnut St.), a local favorite for Pakistani food (and kabobs, in particular). Both Rice & Spice and Kabobeesh do take out orders. There are a number of Indian buffet restaurants in University City that cater to Penn students with butter chicken and kheer. You can get those things at Rice & Spice, but not in the same format. Down on Baltimore Avenue, Desi Chaat House (501 S. 42nd St.) mostly ignores those dishes, but it’s still extremely popular with students. The restaurant does mostly takeout, and specializes in Indian chaats — roughly
September 22, 2011
“snacks,” but more accurately a particular style of street food that blends textures and flavors to create a distinctly delicious style of food. The special chaats are $5.99; they’re meal sized, but not big enough to share. Pair one with a mango lassi ($3) and you’ll be happy that you did. Look for the line is the golden rule of street food exploration; look for the cabbies or the old, traditionally dressed grandfathers is the equivalent for exploring unfamiliar “ethnic” restaurants. Kilimandjaro Restaurant (4317 Chestnut St.) fits this criterion. It is not a Kenyan restaurant, as the name suggests, but an excellent halal Senegalese restaurant. Senegalese food employs rice as its starch and includes some fierce chilies in many of its dishes. (A word to the wise: If it looks like there’s a tomato in your stew, make darn sure that it is a tomato before you eat it whole.) If you want du bon yassa, go to Kilimandjaro. University City boasts more Ethiopian restaurants than any other area of the city, but not all of them are cheap. The Philadelphia guidebook darling Dahlak on 47th and Baltimore has a nice ambiance and a good bar in back, but it charges for the romantic lighting. Abyssinia and Ethio Café & Restaurant, both on 45th and Locust, are a much better value. Abyssinia is the neighborhood favorite in large part because of the bar upstairs, but if you’re hungry, don’t go with a group during peak dinner hours. The kitchen is not particularly efficient during the off peak times, either. Abyssinia is a little bit cheaper than its next door neighbor Ethio Café, but you can get free extra helpings of any of the veggie dishes at Ethio Café should you run out, and they offer some of the less common delicacies that are worth trying once you graduate from doro wat and collard greens. For more information about train tickets, maps and directions, as well as more recommendations of places to eat, shop and explore, please visit In-Town, Off-campus on The Phoenix website at swarthmorephoenix.com.
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TEDxSwarthmore set to bring alumni speakers in spring BY steven hazel shazel1@swarthmore.edu From Nepal to New York to India to England, activists, entrepreneurs and scientists flock to Long Beach, California each year to present their most powerful ideas. All are gathered for one conference — TED. TED stands for Technology, Information and Design. It has hosted speakers such as Al Gore, Jane Goodall and Bill Gates as well as Professor Barry Schwartz. On March 31, a group called TEDxSwarthmore will bring the experience of a TED Conference to the Swarthmore bubble. The “x” indicates that its an independently organized event, which means a local group organizes an event that uses the TED format in their own community. The conference will work around the theme “What Makes a Good Society” — a theme particularly important to Swarthmore’s history of social justice. Twelve alumni and faculty speakers will engage in a discussion with Swarthmore students, staff, faculty and guests in the Lang Performing Arts Center. Professor of Psychology Barry Schwartz, the faculty advisor for the group, said, “There’s no special reason to have a TEDx at Swarthmore, but there’s no reason not to. TED is a gift to the world, I think, so why not enlarge the gift?” It began in 1984 as a non-profit directed by Richard Saul Wurman, an architect and designer, that attempted to bring together leaders from the three industries to discuss their newest ideas. The first conference included speakers on the Macintosh computer and the mapping of
coastlines, but since 1984, TED has expanded to include a TED Global conference held in Edinburgh the United Kingdom as well as conferences on specific topics, like the role of women in the future in Washington, D.C. in 2010 and a talk on the future of India in Mysore in 2009. The conferences themselves consist of a series of invited speakers who lecture on topics ranging from neuroscience to Buddhist meditation and everything in between. Speakers are given only about 18 minutes for their lecture — a format that is intended for speakers to distill their ideas into a speech that gets to the point and leaves auditors with a memorable impression. A wide variety of authors, scientists, thinkers and businessmen are represented. “It was incredible. I had a wonderful time and met a thousand interesting people,” said Malcolm Gladwell, the author of psychology best-sellers like “Blink” and “Outliers,” in a review after being invited to the conference. At national and global TED conferences, the seats are limited to around a thousand attendees to ensure a level of personal connection with the speaker. The attendees are limited to invitation only, which requires a donation of at least $6,000, which goes to supporting the conference as well as offering the annual TED prize for an annual idea. Although this is mitigated by the fact that the lectures are posted for free online in a program that is wildly successful, with over 900 videos posted and 50 million views, the conference at Swarthmore will be free to the public in the spirit of the original TED idea of Ideas Worth Sharing — creating a community of thinkers — with the world. One member of the Swarthmore community, at least, already has experience with TED. Professor Schwartz has spoken three times at TED conferences about his ideas and books, including a lecture entitled “The Para-
TED is a gift to the world, I think, so why not enlarge the gift? Barry Schwartz Professor of Psychology
DORM DIVE by Sera Jeong
Kandinsky to Kanagawa A
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This ample, L-shaped single in David Kemp belongs to Natalia Cote-Munoz, which she acquired through the blocking process. The room is at once spacious allowing Cote Munoz to regularly host friends and features cozy places for her to relax in. She has decorated the room vibrantly, which reflects her appreciation of art and worldwide cultures. A Under the propped-up bed is an air mattress. “Since I had so much space in my room, I decided to make it like a sort of bunk-bed/sofa when people are hanging out in my room or sleeping over.” Flanking the side of the bed is a fabric print, “Great Wave off Kanagawa” by 18th century Japanese artist Hokusai. B On the wall facing the window, Cote Munoz displays her collection of postcards. “They’re actually mostly from friends who sent them to me when they were traveling/living in different parts of the world,” she said. Origins of the
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dox of Choice” which has been viewed more than a million times. “Was it beneficial for me to do the TED talks? Absolutely it was,” Schwartz said. “First, preparing the talks forced me to think hard about what was essential to what I wanted to say, since I had only 18 minutes, and also forced me to think about how to say it best to a smart, interested, but naive audience. Teachers have to do that all the time in their classes, but since we have lots more time, and can always make up for mistakes or confusions in the next class, there’s a bit less pressure to get it right. Beyond that, being at TED and hearing the other talks and interacting with the audience is just an indescribable treat.” The event appeals to faculty and students alike. “I watch TED videos all the time for inspiration, so it’s fair to say I’m excited [for TEDxSwat],” Riana Shah ’14 said. “It’s great that we’re using the resources we have — our brilliant alumni — [bringing them] to Swarthmore to increase student enCourtesy of tedxtimisoara.com gagement.” Vlad Fiscutean, founder of TEDxTimişsoara
postcards include Tokyo, Hawaii, Wisconsin, Berlin, Taipei, Buenos Aires, Valparasio, Paris and Swarthmore. Memorabilia from family and friends, such as birthday cards and letters accompany the postcards below. C In the corner of the room is Cote Munoz’s collection of stuffed animals, including Frodobert, the first sock monkey she has made. “He’s kind of ugly, but he’s still dear to me because of that. He also tends to appear in many class movie projects I end up doing…”Cote Munoz said, who is pursuing a film and media studies minor. D Cote-Munoz’s wall of colorful artwork features a large print by Russian painter Kandinsky and smaller prints of Hundertwasser, whom is Cote-Munoz’s favorite artist and architect. “He paints really colorful, funky paintings, and his buildings are just as quirky,” she said. “Swarthmore can be kind of a downer sometimes, especially in the winter, and my colorful walls lift my mood a lot.” E These three small, circular boxes are Cote-Munoz’s favorite item displayed on her dresser. It holds significance as they were hand-made by the grandmother of one of her best friends from Mexico. “They keep my friends and family closer to me, even if distance separates us,” Cote-Munoz said of all her trinkets.
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Around Higher Education
Fey’s memoir does BMC women proud Penn grad to Central Park joker By taylor stone biconews.com, Sept. 11, 2011
“Once in a generation a woman comes along who changes everything, Tina Fey is not that woman, but she met that woman once and acted weird around her”. This statement is included on the back cover of Tina Fey’s memoir Bossypants, above a series of other clever and humorous blurbs. (“Tina Fey is an ugly, pear-shaped, overrated troll” –The Internet.) Such “praise for Tina Fey” ultimately defines the mood of her memoir: insightful, bold, and simply hilarious. Before I had picked up her memoir, I admit that I wasn’t exactly a Tina Fey expert. I had seen many of her sketches on Saturday Night Live, her comically genius film Mean Girls (which she also wrote), and her famous impersonations of Sarah Palin. I had seen her win countless Emmys for her hit show “30 Rock.” However, I didn’t know too much about her professional background, or her real-life personality off stage. Bossypants caught my eye when the mother of one of my best friend’s handed me an excerpt photocopied from the book. She was a teaching a women’s studies class at an all girls Catholic high school. She had praised the book as interweaving feminist discourse, humor, and insider stories from the world of acting and improv. It does all that and more. I was absolutely struck by Tina Fey’s distinctive voice. It is snarky, honest, and refreshingly self-aware. She covers absolutely every aspect of her life, whether it was her days of fast and furious improv at The Second City comedy show in Chicago, awkward college boyfriends (one of which told her she’d be prettier if she lost weight – another fantastic blurb on the back cover), or her personal response to her Sarah Palin impersonations (she even includes the original script of the first sketch).
One of my favorite chapters in the memoir entitled, “The Windy City, Full of Meat” (the same excerpt that I first read), deals with the complicated issue of society’s perception of female comedians. She lists her “rules of improvisation”. The rule to “speak in statements instead of apologetic questions…applies to us women…no one wants to hear a doctor who says, ‘I’m going to be your surgeon? I’m here to talk about your procedure? I was first in my class at Johns Hopkins, so?’” As late as 1995, the shows for The Second City had casts of four men and two women, since according to the producers, a gender-equal cast would mean there wouldn’t be enough parts to go around for the women, implying that women had less to contribute to a sketch. Tina Fey offers this advice in response: “People going to try to trick you. To make you feel that you are in competition with one another. Don’t be fooled. You’re not in competition with other women. You’re in competition with everyone”. Other personal favorite chapters of mine include her tribute to her frightening Clint Eastwood-looking father who gave her the “gift of anxiety” and a hilarious minute-by-minute critique and account of a magazine photo shoot entitled “Amazing, Gorgeous, Not Like That.” And while I wouldn’t go so far as to equate Tina Fey to Simone de Beauvoir, her role as an ambitious, opinionated, and unyielding woman in the workplace and in life is sufficiently conveyed throughout her prose. It’s not surprising that there’s a strong movement among BMC students to have Tina Fey as a commencement speaker in 2012, with a group and event on Facebook including hundreds of members. This isn’t simply because her character Liz Lemon on 30 Rock is an alum (though that in itself is pretty cool). It’s because Tina Fey’s unforgettable personality and voice proves that she is, truly, a Bryn Mawr woman.
By katherine watkins dailypennsylvanian.com, Sept. 20, 2011
“Why do Chinese men bring chopsticks to bars?” “So they can pick up women,” jokes 2007 College graduate Jason Schneider. Schneider — who walks around Central Park with a huge sign that reads “Laughter Guaranteed” — has made a business out of telling jokes to park visitors willing to pay $1. “Did you know they say Viagra can make you deaf?” “Yeah, that’s where the phrase ‘hard of hearing’ comes from.” It was the first sunny day in April in the park, Schneider said, when he decided to test out his joke-telling. “I had the idea a long time ago when I was desperate for money,” Schneider said. At the time, he had a temp job making copies for $10 an hour. “I hated my job, so I had nothing to lose.” After making $140 in the first six hours, he decided to turn joke-telling into a business. Schneider has been doing stand-up comedy for the past nine years. While at Penn, he was the president of Simply Chaos, an undergraduate stand-up comedy group on campus. But after graduating Penn in 2007, Schneider could only find temporary work while doing stand-up comedy on the side. “I’ve had a lot of temp jobs. I’ve had office jobs, delivery jobs, and I’ve worked as a caterer and a bartender.” Now, Schneider ends up telling hundreds of jokes a day. For $1 Schneider promises his customers six jokes. “But, I usually end up giving them more.” To live up to his sign’s motto, Schneider promises to give back the dollar if customers aren’t satisfied. “That doesn’t happen very often. I’ve gotten pretty good at it,” said Schneider. But Jason’s job is not all laughs and grins. Between writing jokes, telling jokes, making signs and filming and editing his web series on park jokes — where he records his favorite jokes from each week — Schneider usually works more than 80 hours on any given week. On a typical day, he arrives at a nearby Starbucks at about 6 a.m., where he spends the next four hours coming up with new jokes. “I sit there and read the news and try to write jokes about the news or whatever comes to me,” said Schneider. “I aim to write 20 to 30 jokes a day and usually end up with 1 or 2 gems.” “Why are sharks racist? Because only the white ones are great.”
One more thing your phone can do.
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September 22, 2011
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Roc Da Bells!
Live Performances by Amanda Diva & The Welfare Poets Saturday, Sept. 24 8:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m. Olde Club
Tour Philly for Free!
Campus Philly College Day 2011 Saturday, Sept. 24 beginning at 10:00 a.m.
editor’s picks Marietta Brass Quintet
Sunday, Sept. 25 at 2:00 p.m. Lang Concert Hall
By Allegra Pocinki
TOGA!
Saturday, Sept. 24 at Delta Upsilon 10:00 p.m. Bring tri-co ID 13
September 22, 2011
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Staff Editorial
Voter apathy undermines Swarthmore student politics Held this past Saturday, the Student Council Fall 2011 Emergency Elections garnered ballots from only about 250 people. Perhaps one could generously argue that the low voter turnout was due to the fact that it was only an “emergency” election being held to fill positions that weren’t filled last spring. But thanks to the use of Moodle as the primary means of polling, the minimal public campaigning on the part of the candidates and the irony that a lack of urgency was present even during an “emergency election,” voter turnout in these fall elections was only about 50% of what it was in last spring’s elections (a slightly more substantial 420 people). But it’s time for the apathy to end. How are we to expect anything at all from our student representatives when we don’t practice our political efficacy in the simplest, most potent way imaginable? We then have no right to blame them for not living up to campaign promises made in the fervor and spirit of electioneering. Or even for not finishing the job when it comes to much-discussed initiatives, from trying to get our meal cards to work at restaurants in the Ville to teaming up with the engineering department to construct a shiny brand-new gazebo somewhere to any other impressively ingenious initiative that has yet to be dreamed up. Accountability is a two-way street — we must exercise our right to vote in order to expect anything from whoever gets elected. In addition to holding these representatives responsible for their promises, we must also be critical of their qualifications. To elect first-years (new Student Groups Advisor Lanie Schlessinger and Student Events Advisor Aya Ibrahim), whether by choice or by default, over seasoned Swatties to Student Council positions is to risk the fact that these students may not be well-versed enough in representative logistics at Swarthmore. While we don’t doubt the intelligence, energy or organizational skills of these candidates, we do — justifiably — question whether or not they know the school well enough to be in such positions of leadership just yet. When voters don’t become more wholly involved in this process, inexperience — an otherwise innocuous factor — could potentially paralyze progress. We need to be more critical of candidates’ qualifications, more conscious of the reality that freshmen have only been at Swarthmore for a month. Where some may feel that voting is a futile chore, others can see that there have been legitimate student movements in the past that demonstrate just how powerful a group of voters can be. For example, members of the Intercultural Center, Black Cultural Center (IC/BCC) and some activist groups formed a voter coalition in the spring of 2010 as a way to provide support for certain Student Council candidates. Their coalition was successful in winning all but one position for those candidates as it emphasized a concern for the lack of competition and diversity in Student Council. This might explain why the spring 2010 elections saw such a significant voter turnout — a grassroots effort that underscores a dialogue between representatives and the represented is a strategy that res-
onates with students. Voters want their potential delegate to reach out and engage them in meaningful discourse. This idea manifested itself in Tramane Hall’s win of the presidency over Ben Hattem ’12. His write-in campaign was conducted entirely via Facebook and emails to friends. Like the IC/BCC coalition, Hall courted friends and student groups in which he participated for support, ultimately thwarting notably experienced Hattem. But with only about 340 voters casting ballots in the election, how can we assume that nearly 1,200 students would have also voted for Tramane? Any discontent with Student Council among students today would be unwarranted — to opt out of our right to vote is to also concede our right to complain. So, how do we improve the system? On Student Council’s part, paper ballots can be provided to voters, delivered straight to each mailbox. This method has precedence: This year’s senior class officer elections pulled in 184 ballots — about half of the senior class. Moodle is complicated and somewhat obscure among more pressing documents (syllabi and class readings), while paper ballots harken back to a traditional view of the political process, one that values civic engagement. On our behalf, we can begin to vote. Voting not only means that you have faith in the candidate you voted for, it also means that you have faith in the system. Once we employ our representative voice, positions will be more highly-considered, which will lead more people to run for office and thus eliminate the need for emergency elections. This might increase competition among candidates and allow for more comprehensive platforms. Otherwise, we face a vicious cycle: when students are not confident in their Student Council, they fail to vote, which allows for
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the arbitrary election of inexperienced candidates for office, which means that Student Council’s effectiveness in student affairs is inadequate, which means that students are just not going to vote. This is a fruitless and preventative process that could be counteracted simply by casting one’s vote. We cannot let voter turnout in Student Council elections at Swarthmore continue
Emma Waitzman The Phoenix to be an issue. In order to view ourselves as informed and active citizens of our school, our country and our world, we must first become informed and active citizens of our school, our country and our world. Circular reasoning that is necessary for the survival of democracy on this small scale — apathy has no place among us.
Letter, op-ed and comment policy Letters, opinion pieces and online comments represent the views of their writers and not those of The Phoenix staff or Editorial Board. The Phoenix reserves the right to edit all pieces submitted for print publication for content, length and clarity. The Phoenix also reserves the right to withhold any letters, op-eds or comments from publication. All comments posted online and all op-eds and letters must be signed and should include the writer’s full name. Letters are a minimum of 250 words and may not exceed 500 words. Op-eds are a minimum of 500 words and may not exceed 750. Letters and op-eds must be submitted by 10 p.m. on Monday, and The Phoenix reserves the right to withhold letters and op-eds received after that time from publication. Letters may be signed by a maximum of five individuals. Op-eds may be signed by a maximum of two individuals. The Phoenix will not accept pieces exclusively attributed to groups, although individual writers may re-
September 22, 2011
quest that their group affiliation be included. While The Phoenix does not accept anonymous submissions, letters and op-eds may be published without the writer’s name in exceptional circumstances and at the sole discretion of the Editorial Board. An editorial represents the opinions of the members of the Opinions Board: Amelia Possanza, Marcus Mello and Menghan Jin. Please submit letters to: letters@swarthmorephoenix.com or The Phoenix Swarthmore College 500 College Avenue Swarthmore, PA 19081 Please report corrections to: corrections@swarthmorephoenix.com Letters, corrections and news tips may also be submitted online to the paper by clicking “Contact” on the Phoenix website.
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Opinions Solyndra scandal compromises US energy policy swarthmorephoenix.com
Olivia Natan The World At Large
I think we can all agree that the still unfolding Solyndra debacle is not going to end well for the President — even if allegations of corruption are unsubstantiated. Things are so bad for Obama that no “spin” is necessary to make him look, if not guilty, at least unduly involved in an ill-advised investment. Solyndra, a California manufacturer of thinfilm solar panels, had a $535 million federal loan guarantee from the De-
partment of Energy. This meant that the US government was the lender and the guarantor — the party that would assume the responsibility of the loan if the borrower were to default. In August, Solyndra declared bankruptcy, closed its plant and laid off all 1,100 of its workers. Following the bankruptcy filing, the FBI raided Solyndra’s headquarters. In comparison with the entirety of the DOE’s loan guarantee program, which tops $9 billion, this single default doesn’t completely tarnish the program’s push for investment in wind, solar and other renewable energy projects. The biggest problem is that it was clear from the outset that Solyndra was a losing proposition. They produce thin film solar panels, which are much less efficient and much more expensive than the market standard of monocrystalline or polycrystalline silicon photovoltaic cells. At the time Solyndra applied for their loan guarantee, the company was hemorrhaging money. The administration looks foolish after Obama’s
multiple visits to Solyndra’s headquarters and his clean energy technology — especially wind energy inuse of the company’s work as an example of what our frastructure and research — in the form of subsidies future green economy could look like. And the visits that phase out over time. to the White House by Solyndra investors in the weeks Wind has, by far, the fewest drawbacks of the leading up to the loan guarantee don’t look so great leading renewable energy technologies in the either. United States. Its main downside is the inability to To recap, the Administration invested — poten- store produced energy for any extended period of tially under pressure — in a company that didn’t have time. enough support (with good reason) from private invesSolar cells provide a more immediate benefit in the tors. Then, Obama went on to tout it as a prime example eyes of households that install PV and thermal cells of the DOE loan guarantee success, until said company on their roofs, but it takes around two to three years to went bust. But I’m just telling you what you al- capture enough energy to “repay” the energy used to ready know from a segment that airs on “The Daily make the cells, and up to 25 years to make up the cost Show” — “That Custom-Tailored of the cells in terms of energy Obama Scandal You Ordered is bill savings. These calculations Finally Here”. do not include the amount of So, thin film Photovoltaic clean water and, in some cells, The next step is to technology is not yet economicalharmful chemicals used in prostop subsidizing gas, ly viable. This does not mean that duction. a “green economy” is now unviWind farms cannot survive in coal and oil projects. able — quite the opposite is true the current US energy market, in Northern Europe: Germany’s and subsidies must be paired solar market is thriving and with aggressive marketing on can now survive without any subsidies, Norway is the behalf of firms (to match the awful pro-coal ads.) powered almost entirely by hydropower and Southern The stigma of windmills ruining landscapes could Sweden and Denmark have massive wind farms. easily shrink in comparison to the actual destruction What will it take for the US to get such a “green of landscapes that accompanies mountaintop removal. economy”? The potential for a green economy is not dead, but To begin, we need to move past what I imagine there must be significant shifts in either the internamight become “Solyndra-gate.” The rest of the $9.3 tional environmental regime or in the composition of billion in loan guarantees can still be a success, and Congress before greater progress can be made. if they are successful, both sides of the aisle will be But Solyndra’s failure only affects half of the battle; sighing in relief. policy supporting renewable energy is not enough to On Monday, “The New York Times” published make the complete transition to a green economy. letters sent to the DOE by Republicans in Congress Consumers must also move away from unsustainsupporting applications for loan guarantees from able patterns of consumption — the truly pervasive companies in their constituencies. No one wants gov- hindrance to our efforts to establish a green economy ernment spending to be wasteful, especially if they and live within the boundaries of this planet’s readvocated for it. sources. The next step is to stop subsidizing gas, coal and oil Olivia is a junior. She can be reached at onatan1@ projects and divert that money towards investment in swarthmore.edu.
To bail or not to bail, that is the question BY Harshil Sahai hsahai1@swarthmore.edu
Recently the finance industry has, once again, given us quite a scare regarding the future of America’s economy. UBS, one of the largest investment banks in the world, suffered a loss of $2 billion after a trader within UBS made an unauthorized decision. The debate that has been brewing as a result focuses on the the repercussions of such an event. In effect, the dilemma is whether tax-paying citizens should be responsible for covering this loss. Realistically, the $2 billion loss is not a major issue for a company the size of UBS. The structure of large investment banks is such that there is a separation between the investing division and the commercial banking division. In other words, a mistake in the investing division is usually handled within that division. And because the commercial banking division of UBS deals with a majority of citizens, they are not affected. Given recent history, however, it does not seem as if the investing divisions alone can support heavy losses. Concerns are looming regarding what would happen if this $2 billion loss were in fact, say, $20 billion.
OP-ED
The primary issue is the clash over technology and general well-being. Yes, many banks have a dishonwhether government should be allowed to step in and provide emergency funds orable, selfish reputation of setting to the bank (as in Geithner’s bailout their primary target as profit, but the plan) or let the bank to cover its own mass stimulation of the economy and l o s s e s . T h e f o r m e r i s g e n e r a l l y its positive aftereffects should not considered the conservative perspec- be neglected. The liberal viewpoint is also both tive whereas the latter is seen as good and bad. In such economic stagmore liberal. The conservative side of the ar- nation, investment strategies have become more and gument has its more risky. This benefits and pitnaturally leads falls. History has a few mistakes shown that bailBailout plans give com- to from time to time. out plans have panies less incentive to Should we really kept banks alive punish and perand running. allocate funds wisely. haps even let a However, it has company that imalso highlighted pacts many secirresponsible practices on the management side of tors of our economy capsize? If UBS, for example, went under, firms. AIG, for example, used government bailout funds to pay for a cor- hundreds of other businesses would porate vacation retreat in the midst lose their sponsor and risk bankruptcy. of an economic crisis. Bailout plans Are distrust, distaste and sheer spite give companies less incentive to allo- compelling enough excuses to potencate funds wisely and make coherent, tially rupture a large portion of the workforce?In some senses, yes. The responsible decisions. Nevertheless, what seems to be some- banking industry has time after time times overlooked is the hidden, and of- again given the government reasons to ten potent, impact some of these compa- refuse help, so why should the governnies have on the population. Investment ment bail them out again? Then what is to be done if both havbanks, especially large ones like UBS, provide capital to many businesses ing and not having a bailout plan would nationwide, fueling jobs in a variety of be detrimental to our economy? The moderate would dig deeper to sectors, kick-starting new markets and industries and indirectly increasing the root cause of the issue: business
THE PHOENIX
September 22, 2011
practice. Sonia Falconieri from the Cass Business School says, “Compensation packages with excessive bonuses and unrealistic targets are the reasons for excessive risk taking among traders, particularly at a moment of high financial instability that makes it difficult to achieve the required targets.” In other words, prevent the $2 billion loss in the first place. An effective alternative, or adjustment rather, to the typical government bailout plan would be to act as a venture capitalist assisting a business. Instead of giving grants to the company and leaving it alone to fend for itself (leading to irresponsible decisions), agree upon a contract. Such a contract could cap bonuses as well as help develop realistic goals. Because the banks will be hunting for funds, the US Government will have the bargaining power. Lucky for us, the UBS $2 billion debacle is probably going to be absorbed by the firm without much effort. However, decisions that cause such debacles to occur happen on a routine basis, and with the US in its current economic state, the next one may be huge. Perhaps it is time to plan for a logical compromise rather than scramble for a political argument. Harshil Sahai is a freshman. He can be reached at hsahai1@swarthmore.edu.
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Opinions
swarthmorephoenix.com
With ‘millionaire tax,’ Obama engages in class warfare
The 2012 presidential campaign has officially begun. The goal is no longer to fix an economy that is on the brink of a double-dip recession; it is no longer to grow jobs and rebuild America’s middle class, nor is it to do anything meaningful in an effort to reduce our national debt. With an approval ratTyler Becker ing hovering at or below 40 percent according to The Swarthmore Gallup, President Obama is on track to lose the 2012 election based on historical precedent. From now until Election Day, every word the president utters, every policy he proposes, every trip he makes, is about getting reelected. This grand spectacle was on display Monday in the Rose Garden, where the President offered a $3.6 trillion deficit reduction plan. The plan, complete with $1.5 trillion in revenue increases (meaning higher taxes), has no realistic chance of passing Congress. Republicans, as well as centrist Democrats like Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), have said they will oppose any legislation that raises taxes. In fact, it would be hypocritical for the president to sign the increases following his 2009 statement that “you don’t raise taxes in the middle of a recession.” But, as I already mentioned, the president knows this deficit reduction plan will never make it to his desk. Although the administration denies it, Obama is playing the class warfare game to drum up popular support for the unpopular commander-in-chief. Take the “Buffett rule” the President discussed in
relation to the package, named for the multi-million- allowing the expiration of the Bush tax cuts, in addiaire businessman who wrote an op-ed in the “New tion to other tax reforms. These include reducing alYork Times” arguing for higher taxes for people like lowed deductions for the people making over $200,000, himself. Obama wants to make millionaires pay the causing more tax increases on the “wealthy.” same top thirty-five percent on their capital gains that The President said that the wealthy need to take is the top rate on other income. “The Atlantic” (hardly more of the burden on their backs. He forgets that the a conservative publication) noted that this floor on tax top one percent of income earners pay forty percent of rates would actually not raise a significant amount of the income taxes. Fifty percent of wage earners do not revenue. They calculated that this would raise $37 bil- even pay any income tax. lion for the government (using 2009 numbers), which In the economy we are in today, we need the wealthy amounts to only 2.5% of the $1.5 trillion deficit the gov- to invest their money in production so more jobs can ernment faced that year. be created and the economy can get moving again. According to Larry Kudlow writing in “Investor’s But, this policy argument is not worth it considerBusiness Daily,” the entire logic behind the proposal ing that Obama is never planning on his deficit reducdoes not hold up. Both Buffett and Obama claimed tion plan getting to his desk. This is the same situation that Buffett pays a with Obama’s nearly lower rate than his $500 billion jobs packsecretary, when the age he proposed to a reality is most miljoint-session of ConObama is playing the class warfare lionaires pay about a gress two weeks ago. game to drum up popular support for It is all about a camthirty percent rate on all their income and paign strategy to paint the unpopular commander-in-chief. the middle-class pays Obama as the man of a 20 percent rate. the middle class and Buffett is using congressional Republitactics that allow him to have “unrealized capital cans as inhibiting the president’s middle class agenda. gains” and avoid paying taxes on the majority of his I am tired of strategy. I am tired of the political income, according to Kudlow. This is not the reality games that go on in Washington just to keep politifor the majority of millionaires who would be subject cians in office. Mr. Obama’s 2008 campaign was all to Obama’s “millionaire tax.” about “hope, “change,” and bringing a different kind Couple these facts with the data that suggests low- of politician into the White House. We are so far from ering the capital gains tax, as many Republican presi- that at this point. Obama has become a creature of dential candidates have proposed, actually increases Washington, and the most partisan president in the revenues. And raising the capital gains tax actually history of these United States. decreases revenues. Engaging in “class warfare” is not the solution to Why would Obama suggest the “Buffett rule,” then? our problems. If anything, it is the theme of Obama’s It is a class warfare tactic that the administration is doomed 2012 campaign. using to score cheap political points. Plain and simple. Tyler is a sophomore. He can be reached at tbecker1@ Also included as part of the revenue increases are swarthmore.edu.
letter to the editor Dear Editors, First, I would like to commend you and the members of the Phoenix staff for covering the recently released update, “Strategic Directions for Swarthmore College,” in your news article on September 8. This is a critical stage in the strategic planning process, and we on the Strategic Planning Council are eager and excited to gather constructive feedback. The community’s ideas and reactions will help us shape this update into a final plan that we can present to the Board of Managers this winter. The primary vehicles for receiving this feedback are small group conversations such as the open sessions for students on Monday, September 26 and Sunday, October 2 (in the Scheuer Room of Kohlberg Hall starting at 8:15 and 8:00, respectively) and online at the strategic planning website (http://sp.swarthmore.edu). We encourage all students to participate in one of these discussions or to offer their thoughts online. I would also like to provide some context regarding some of the good points raised in last week’s editorial, “Strategic Planning draft should outline cost, overall plan.” In particular, the editorial accurately points out that we do not discuss the details of cost at this point in the planning process. Many of the ideas in this draft are ambitious and will require a variety of strategies to support them. The most important of these strategies is a capital campaign equal in ambition to those ideas and according to our current analysis, one that may have a goal of raising between $350 and $400 million. In addition, we expect some of these ideas to be supported by creating efficiencies that come from using technology appropriately, and from being thoughtful in the repurposing of old facilities, even as new spaces are built, just to name two examples. Note that these too are broad ideas. All of this is intentional. As was stated in the strategic planning
document, “This strategic plan is designed to give Swarthmore a broad vision … for our future together. It is meant to be an organic document that can adjust both to additional community input and new challenges or opportunities as they arise.” (p. 29.) We think this is the right type of document for this stage of the process, and that it is consistent with how we (and other Colleges and Universities) have planned in the past. The Honors program, for example, emerged from similar origins. In that instance, Frank Aydelotte shared with the community what was then the radical (to American higher education) concept of an Honors program with outside examiners and small groups of students engaged in intense, often independent, learning, tested the program’s soundness and resonance and ultimately set the College on a course that would positively and remarkably alter its future. This was done first as a “broad vision,” a combination of a new idea, solid research and extensive consultation with our own community. It was then followed by careful, thorough stewardship of the College’s resources as final decisions were made and the idea implemented. We have followed that same model here, having added to it extensive consultation with our entire community in the development of the plan from the outset. It is our hope that by hearing from the community this fall, we will be most informed about which ideas need further analysis, and how to prioritize these ideas; we hope the discussions we will have over the next few weeks will set us on the right course for doing all the hard work necessary to turn our ideas into a concrete plan for our future together. Sincerely, Garikai Campbell Associate Vice President for Strategic Planning Associate Professor of Mathematics
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September 22, 2011
THE PHOENIX
Sports Latest win highlights consistency of men’s soccer swarthmorephoenix.com
by victor brady vbrady1@swarthmore.edu The streaks are staggering. A home unbeaten streak of 30 matches after Saturday’s 2-1 victory over Franklin & Marshall in the Centennial opener. Only a single loss in the team’s last 29 matches overall. Only a single Centennial loss in the team’s last 28 regular season Conference matches. A stretch of 35 of 37 matches surrendering fewer than two goals against. Compiled, these runs show a remarkable level of consistency now stretching across four seasons. However, streaks and consistency are built one game at a time. Despite the previous success, the Swarthmore men’s soccer team maintains a focused game-by-game approach with the mindset that a team is only as good as its last game. Truly, long streaks and high national rankings are generated by focusing on anything but those numbers. In the first match after achieving a No. 1 national ranking for the first time in program history a season ago, Swarthmore suffered its lone defeat of a 16-1-4 2010 season, losing 2-1 to Richard Stockton in a double-overtime heartbreaker. Despite another Top-5 National Ranking (Swarthmore was ranked No. 4 in Week 2 of the d3soccer.com poll and moved to No. 3 after Saturday’s win), it was with renewed focus that the Garnet opened their Centennial schedule on Saturday against the upsetminded Diplomats. Swarthmore turned in one of its more consistent and impressive matches of the season controlling tempo and pace and dictating much of the play, even against a packed-in Diplomat formation. Two first-half goals, one on a scintillating combination from strikers Fabian Castro ’12 and David Sterngold ’12 and the second off
of wonderful ball control with his chest from Michael Stewart ’15 and Kieran Reichert ’13, proved enough as the Garnet closed out a 2-1 result that wasn’t as close as the score line. For his performance in last Wednesday’s victory over Widener and Saturday’s win, Reichert was named Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week. Head coach Eric Wagner was impressed by the Garnet performance despite a handful of defensive breakdowns including the one which resulted in F&M’s lone goal in the 89th minute. “I thought that we worked very hard offensively and defensively, we made a few mistakes, but that is one of the areas that we are trying to patch up. When you lose a guy the caliber of Gage Newman [’11], the leader and force that he was at center-back, it makes a big difference initially. Fortunately, we were up early. The bottom line is we’ve only given up two goals in five games this season.” Even in a senior-laden lineup, Stewart often looked like one of the more dynamic players on the field on Saturday, as he has all season long. The rookie already has two goals and an assist in addition to his goals in a preseason scrimmage at York (PA) and reserve match against the Philadelphia Union Academy. His combination of dynamic speed and ball-control has become a match-up nightmare. “For me, the toughest adjustment [to college] has been getting used to our training schedule as well as the more physically demanding college game,” Stewart said. “In terms of my performance this season, I just want to keep improving and make sure that every game I play is better than my last.” “[Michael] is a threat every time he steps on the field and it is fantastic to have him in there given the fact that Sterngold, Castro and Roberto Contreras ’12 are
carrying a lot of the load trying to get through these defenses, and to have someone come on fresh like he does with so much energy and speed gives us another weapon,” Wagner said. The Garnet is in the midst of a four-game run which will set the tone for the remainder of the season and features matches with F&M, perennial national contender Stevens, the last Centennial side to defeat the Garnet in the regular season in Dickinson and Muhlenberg in a rematch of last year’s Centennial Conference Championship. Senior Toby Heavenrich ‘12, who has emerged as a starting center-back for the Garnet, is excited for each match in this stretch, a series of tests which he believes will help prepare the team to reach its goal of a December weekend in San Antonio at the Division III Final Four. “It gives us a real test both in and out of Conference and on the road. This is a big emotional notch to get on our belts and propel us into the second half of the season. . .It is a chance for us to prove to ourselves and to the rest of the country that we are for real this year and looking to improve on our success last season,” Heavenrich said. The depth on this year’s roster will also be critical in maneuvering through the remainder of September and into the second half of the year. “Experience and depth are going to get us through this four game stretch,” Contreras said. “We are certainly going to pick up some knock along the way. And each game will be a battle in its own right. However, experience has taught us how to handle these situations, from taking care of our bodies to mentally preparing ourselves.” Swarthmore returns to action on Saturday in the first Centennial Conference road contest of the season at Dickinson. Kick-off is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.
(l-r.) Midfielder Fabian Castro and Robert Contreras IV (11) in action against Franklin & Marshall on Saturday.
Justin Toran-Burrell The Phoenix
Garnet IN ACTION
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 26 Golf at F&M Invitational (Bent Creek), 2:30 p.m.
FRIDAY, SEPT. 23 Field Hockey vs. Dickinson, 4:00 p.m. Volleyball vs. Centenary @ York College, 5:00 p.m.
Volleyball vs. York @ York College, 9:00 p.m.
SATURDAY, SEPT. 24
Cross country vs. Dickinson @ Big Spring High School, 11:00 a.m. Women’s soccer at Dickinson, 12:00 p.m.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27 Women’s soccer at Cabrini, 4:00 p.m. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28 Men’s soccer vs. Muhlenberg, 7:00 p.m.
Men’s soccer at Dickinson, 2:30 p.m. THE PHOENIX
September 22, 2011
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Sports Field hockey opens conference play with loss swarthmorephoenix.com
BY TIMOTHY BERNSTEIN tbernst1@swarthmore.edu It was a disappointing beginning to Conference play on Saturday, as the Swarthmore field hockey team was blanked by the Franklin & Marshall Diplomats 3-0 in front of a home crowd at Clothier Field. With the loss, the Garnet falls to 1-3 on the season and 0-1 in Conference play, while the eighth-ranked Diplomats move to 4-0 on the season and 1-0 for the conference. The loss extends the Garnet’s losing streak against Franklin & Marshall to four. Swarthmore’s last win against the Diplomats came in October 2007, when they came away with a 3-1 home victory. On Saturday, the Garnet attack, which had managed 11 goals in the first three games, was completely stifled by an aggressive F&M defense. The Garnet managed just four shots and just one on goal, taken by midfielder Aarti Rao ’14. Comparatively, the Diplomats took twenty shots with ten on goal. Franklin & Marshall’s Chelsey Talhelm got the scoring started early, scoring off an assist by Steph McDonald and putting the Diplomats up 1-0 five minutes into the match. Ten minutes later, Talhelm provided the assist for Becky Willert’s score. Willert added a second goal in the last period, off Allison McLaren’s assist, to complete the scoring. Goalkeeper Gabriella Capone ‘14 cited a lack of aggression on defense as a key fac-
tor in the outcome. “We didn’t step up to the ball soon enough,” Capone said, “[and] this gave F&M the opportunity to gain an extra 10 or 15 yards towards the goal. “I think we can solve this by having people being aggressive and stepping up to the ball sooner. This should eliminate a lot of scoring opportunities for the other team too. If we can get organized before they get into the circle, we’ll be able to pressure them to the side and take away the scoring sweet spot.” Capone played the entire game as goalkeeper for Swarthmore, finishing with six saves. Franklin & Marshall was able to consistently control the ball throughout the game, taking nine shots in the first half and eleven in the second. Swarthmore managed just one shot in the first half and three in the second. “Our biggest issue today was that we gave [F&M] too much ground when they had the ball,” coach Lauren Fuchs said in an email. “[Offensively], we needed to step up sooner and pass sooner.” Forward Nia Jones ‘14 cited a relative lack of experience on the team (nine first-years are on the current roster) as a contributing factor to the team’s slow start this year. “It’s going to take some time for us to really get used to playing with one another and bring it all together into a cohesive team,” Jones said in an email. “F&M had that cohesiveness that we are still working for-
[they] came out ready to play from the beginning while it took us a little longer to get to that point and they definitely took advantage of that and capitalized on their opportunities.” Though Capone managed to keep the game within reach, F&M broke through several times on consistent offensive pressure. Though Talhelm’s goal came off of a penalty corner followed by an excellent quick pass from McDonald, both teams played a relatively clean game. “Gabby played a great second half, and we fought hard to get back in the game,” Fuchs said, who added that she felt the team’s mistakes were certainly not insurmountable. “We have another challenging game on Wednesday and need to make improvements from today’s game and we will be fine.” Defender Alison Ranshous ’13 agreed with her coach’s assessment. “We have a very young team that will make huge improvements from game to game,” Ranshous said. Jones echoed her teammate’s belief that the inexperience issue is one that can only improve going forward. “We have so much potential [that] once we all finally get used to playing together the sky is the limit,” Jones said. “As disappointing as yesterday’s loss was, everyone is remaining positive about the rest of our season.” The Garnet resume play on the road at Dickinson on Friday for another conference matchup. The start time is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.
Garnet athlete of the week
Mike Stewart
FR., SOCCER, PHILADELPHIA, PA
WHAT HE’S DONE: An assist highlighted a stellar game for the first-year forward against Franklin & Marshall. FAVORITE CAREER MOMENT: “My first collegiate goal was really sweet but as of now my favorite moment was our win over F&M in our first conference game.” WHAT HE WANTS TO DO: “Win a National Championship.”
Justin Toran-Burrell The Phoenix
Defender/midfielder Abby Lauder (2) and forward Meagan Hearney (9) keyed a strong defensive effort that ultimately fell short against F&M on Saturday.
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September 22, 2011
Allegra Pocinki The Phoenix
FAVORITE SPORTS MOVIE: “Victory.” THE PHOENIX
Sports
swarthmorephoenix.com
Around Higher Education
The top 10 players not playing in the NFL in 2011 by paul picinich cornellsun.com, September 16, 2011 One has to figure that somewhere out on a ranch in Mississippi, Brett Favre is throwing around a football in his Wranglers, waiting for his phone to ring. While it’s not Brett Favre o’clock just yet, there are plenty of players with good reason to watch the clock. Starting on Tuesday, teams were permitted to sign free agent veterans with a week-to-week salary rather than guaranteeing a full-season contract. Expect some veteran signings as injuries — and team question marks — build up over the next few weeks. Here’s a list of the Top-10 free agents available on speed-dial: And no, Brett Favre doesn’t make the list — after all, he is retired. No. 10. K Jeff Reed: What would this list be without a kicker? The “foot” in football should never be taken for granted, as we saw this past week when Chargers’ kicker Nate Kaeding’s nasty run-in with the turf monster left him with a torn ACL, ending his season. Reed offers a veteran presence, at least as far as kicking is concerned; he boasts a 90 percent field goal success rate across an eight-year career, including countless kicks at not-so-kicker-friendly Heinz Field. A few missed clutch kicks last season left him packing for San Francisco mid-season, but the team dropped him after the season. Nick Novak just signed with the Chargers, so Reed will have to look elsewhere. No. 9. LB Lofa Tatupu: Many around the league seem to think linebacker Lofa Tatupu — despite an impressive resume that includes three Pro Bowl appearances (2005-07) — is not a promising prospect for 2011 because of some nagging knee issues. Although his production has decreased in the past few years, he started all 16-games last year for the Seattle Seahawks and recorded 58 tackles along with 30 assists, solid numbers that are at least comparable to his Pro Bowl years. It’s tough to imagine that the 28-year-old will be without a home for the entire season, especially with
teams like the Giants and Raiders looking for some linebacker help. No. 8. C Shaun O’Hara: O’Hara is a reliable veteran that only played in six games for the Giants in 2010. Across the five years before that, however, he only missed one game. The heady 34-year-old could also attract a team looking to use him as a mentor for an up-and-coming center. Don’t be surprised if the Dolphins look to have him groom rookie center Mike Pouncey. No. 7. WR Donnie Avery: The former Ram could offer a quick-fix solution at wide receiver to many teams that are in need of exactly that. Avery, the first wide receiver taken in the 2008 draft, affords game-proven and consistent, albeit less-than-overwhelming, production at the wide receiver position. He could fit in nicely on many rosters, but expect the now Danny Amendola-less Rams to play free agency Indian giver here and push hard to get Avery back. No. 6. T Max Starks: The 29-year-old former Steelers tackle only played in seven games last year, but he’s a young, talented option for any team in need of a tackle. And at 6-8, 345 pounds., he’s sure to give any defensive lineman a run for his money. The Steelers, however, who just lost Willie Colon for the season, seem to be more interested in bringing back veteran Flozell Adams, who is currently 36 years old. No. 5. S Darren Sharper: So what if the man is 35 years old? He can still play ball. It was not too long ago, in 2009, that he was selected to the Pro Bowl as a member of the Super Bowl Champion Saints. Last year, he aggravated an injury after being reactivated from the Physically Unable to Perform List, and one might argue that the Saints’ defense suffered as a result. The versatile William and Mary alum, who has played both strong safety and free safety, seems ripe for the picking, especially as a band-aid for teams that might be lacking at the safety position. The Kansas City Chiefs — who just lost “The Fifth Dimension,” a.k.a. starting safety Eric Berry, to a season-ending knee injury — might
come knocking. No. 4. G Leonard Davis: The former Cardinal and Cowboy has only missed five games in his 10 NFL seasons, and started all 16 games in each of his four seasons in Dallas. He made the Pro Bowl in three of those seasons, and at 6-6, 375 pounds, he can be a formidable force at guard or tackle. The Seahawks and Raiders are both reported to be interested in Davis. No. 3. WR Terrell Owens: The 37-year-old receiver, whose 153 receiving TDs and 15,934 receiving yards put him second behind only Jerry Rice, will likely find a new home as soon as he is fully recovered from a June knee surgery to repair a torn ACL. This could be only a month and a half away, despite the typical six-month recovery period following this type of surgery. Just ask T.O. himself, who in a recent interview stated, “It’s just a matter of time.” With not much more to prove other than a successful return from injury, expect T.O. to have one more (half) year of solid production left in the tank. Get your popcorn ready. No. 2. QB David Garrard: Last week, Garrard went from Jaguars starting quarterback to unemployed. Garrard’s agent, Albert Irby, has made it known that the 33-year-old isn’t interested in being a “temporary fix,” but he’ll be highly coveted by a few NFL teams as just that. The Colts and the Dolphins are rumored to be interested, but don’t be surprised if he doesn’t land anywhere until a team needs a fill-in when their starting quarterback goes down. #1. WR Randy Moss: There’s not too much to be said here that hasn’t already been covered by the media maelstrom that has basically already anointed Randy Moss as “un-retired.” Simply put, Randy Moss, aside from some attitude and motivation issues, is the best free agent currently on the board, offering teams a big body with big-play potential at a position that often has its fair share of injuries. Expect teams in need of a big-play receiver to make an offer-youcan’t-refuse type push for Moss as the season presses on — that is, if the Eagles don’t swoop in first.
SPORTS IN BRIEF
Langley signs with major-league soccer team Last week, the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer announced that it had signed midfielder and Swarthmore alum Morgan Langley ’11 from the club’s USL-affiliate, the Harrisburg City Islanders. Langley, 22, trialed with the Union before officially signing with the club on September 15, according to the Union website. Langley was among the most decorated athletes in Swarthmore history, first all-time in points (with 95) and assists (with 27). In his senior season, Langley led the Garnet to the 2010 Centennial Conference championship while enjoying one of the most impressive individual campaigns in the history of the Swarthmore soccer program. That year, the Honolulu native scored 14 goals and recorded 14 assists for a program-record 42 points. For his accomplishments, Langley was named Centennial Conference Player of the Year with top-10 national finishes in assists, assists per game, and points per game. He was also an NCAA Division III Third Team All-American, an NSCAA All-Region First Team selection, a D3Soccer.com First Team All-American, and was selected to the ECAC Division III South Region team. Through 28 games played this season, the Union have compiled a record of 9-7-12, good for 39 total points and third place in the Eastern Conference, behind the Columbus Crew and Sporting Kansas City. Head coach Eric Wagner, who coached Langley during his time at Swarthmore, gave a statement to The Phoenix in which he wished Langley nothing but the best.
“We are extremely proud of what Morgan has done to earn himself such a unique and exciting opportunity,” the statement reads. “Not only is Morgan the first Centennial Conference player to play at the highest level in pro sports, but he is also the first Swarthmore College athlete of any kind to play in the major leagues since Dick Hall ‘52 retired after the 1971 season with the Baltimore Orioles. “Morgan has made dramatic physical, emotional, and mental improvements in his game over the past four years. We are thrilled that he has taken many of the lessons he learned playing at Swarthmore and leading the Garnet to three consecutive trips to the NCAA tournament - and applied them at the highest level. He certainly has a shot at a healthy career in the game if he keeps working hard, learning, and becoming a solid, dependable professional. “On a personal level, watching Morgan get his MLS debut last Saturday night at PPL Park in front of over 18,000 people was one of the highlights of my career as a coach. The Union got a much-needed and well-deserved win over the first-place Columbus Crew, so it was an important spot he played, and he acquitted himself admirably. We wish Morgan a long and successful career, and hope that the ball continues to bounce his way.” In his rookie season with the Islanders, Langley appeared in 20 games at midfield, scoring two goals. He will continue to play midfielder for the Union.
THE PHOENIX
BY TIMOTHY BERNSTEIN September 22, 2011
Olivia Natan The Phoenix
Morgan Langley in a 2010 match against Dickinson.
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Sports
swarthmorephoenix.com
Women’s soccer streak hits four with F&M win BY ANA APOSTOLERIS aaposto1@swarthmore.edu It was another week, another win for the Swarthmore women’s soccer team, as the squad extended its winning streak to four with a Saturday victory over Franklin & Marshall. The win over the Diplomats marked the first Centennial Conference game of the year, as well as the Garnet home opener. Although the Swarthmore women played only one match in the past week, the game carried through several positive trends that have accompanied the past four wins. The defense, which has surrendered just one goal in its past four games, remained tight in the 2-0 shutout of the Diplomats. The Garnet also turned in solid offensive performances up and down the lineup, including key contributions from the first-year class. “Our defense has definitely been holding down the fort lately,” senior midfielder Emily Coleman said. “I think it just took us a couple games to gel defensively. Defense is a very tactical position, and I think our defenders just needed time to figure each other out.” “We’re getting it done on both sides of the ball,” head coach Todd Anckaitis said. “We’ve averaged two
goals a game for the last four games and only given up one … That is how you put together a successful season. If we can continue to do this on average we’ll be in pretty good shape.” Goalie Marie Mutryn ’12 continued her impressive senior campaign, spending another unblemished 90 minutes at the net. Mutryn has now allowed just one goal in her past 336.5 minutes, making eleven saves along the way. “Mutryn continues to carry the tradition of having the top goalkeeping in the conference wearing a Swarthmore jersey,” Anckaitis said. “Our stellar defense has left her to only display her talents a few times a game, which I’m sure she appreciates,” she added. “My success really goes hand-in-hand with my defense and team’s success,” said Mutryn after last week’s 1-0 overtime blanking of Scranton. “I try my best to be a leader out on the field. I hope that when I make a save, this inspires and pumps-up my teammates to do better in not allowing an opponent’s offense to get those opportunities.” On the offensive side, the first-year duo of Amy DiPierro and Emma Sindelar continued to get the job done from midfield. On a night where the Garnet outshot the Diplomats 13-7, it was DiPierro’s 31st-minute
shot (her second goal of the year) that gave Swarthmore the lead, and Sindelar’s header with fifteen seconds left to play put the icing on the cake. Amber Famigletti ’14 picked up the assist on Sindelar’s third goal of the season. “Emma and Amy have been succeeding in terms of goals, but all of our freshman are surpassing our already high expectations,” Coleman said of her new teammates. “They’re all genuinely excited to be playing on the team, and their excitement shows in their performance. They’re great players and great girls. We are so happy to see them performing at such a high level.” The Centennial Conference season had its next chapter Wednesday night, as Swarthmore fell to Ursinus at home 6-3. The season continues on Saturday, as the team travels to Dickinson for a noon match. With a tough conference schedule looming in the immediate future, players and coaches alike know that the “A-game” will have to be par for the course to ensure a successful season. “Our conference has gotten better from top to bottom so we’re going to have to bring energy to every game,” Anckaitis said. “The team understands that nobody is going to give us anything this year. We’re going to have to earn it.”
Christina Matamoros The Phoenix
Defender Rehanna Omardeen (6), midfielder Emily Coleman (13) and midfielder Amber Famigletti (24) helped the Garnet extend their winning streak to four.
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September 22, 2011
THE PHOENIX