Print Edition of The Observer for Tuesday, October 15, 2019 by The Observer

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Volume 54, Issue 34 | tuesday, october 15, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com

University reaches environmental target Notre Dame cuts carbon emissions by over half more than a decade ahead of schedule, ends coal use By MARIA LUISA PAUL News Writer

For over 150 years, coal has been an important source of energ y for Notre Dame. However, the Notre Dame power plant burned its last load of coal this Monday, marking the discontinuation of its coal-burning program more than a year ahead of schedule. “Notre Dame once relied on coal to keep the bellies warm and later to keep the lights on,” University President Fr. John Jenkins said during a news conference. The administration was

inspired by Pope Francis’ call to rethink the connection humans have with the planet, Jenkins said, “not seeing it as a resource for our needs, but as a gift.” “Our efforts at sustainability are an effort to make our world f lourish for future generations, but it’s also a call to think in a new way about our relationship with Earth and the environment,” Jenkins said to The Observer. “It’s a spiritual goal as well as a practical one to change our lives.” As such, in 2015, Notre

MARIA LUISA PAUL | The Observer

see COAL PAGE 4

Assistant vice president for utilities and maintenance Paul Kempf spoke Monday about Notre Dame’s continuting investment in renewable energy and long-term plan to reach carbon neutrality.

ND Radiation Lab conducts energy, solar research

GRC fosters dialogue on relationship violence By ALYSA GUFFEY News Writer

For its 15th annual Relationship Violence Awareness Month (RVAM), the Gender Relations Center (GRC) organized a lineup of events and activities to recognize the importance of

violence prevention in the Notre Dame community. RVAM takes place in October to coincide with National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The sponsored activities range from educational programming to hands-on experiences to allow students to learn about

the issue in different ways. John Johnstin, assistant director for student engagement and community outreach for the GRC, said the wide variety of events allows the GRC to achieve its goal of promoting dialogue see GRC PAGE 3

SMC administrators reflect on fulfillment, mission By MARGARET CICCHIELLO ANDREW CAMERON | The Observer

Assistant research professor Aliaksandra Lisouskaya works on the Notre Dame Radiation Lab’s linear particle accelerator. By ANDREW CAMERON Associate News Editor

To many students, the nondescript concrete building on Library Quad is little more than a source of vague rumors. Its exterior ornamentation consists solely of block letters merely reading “Radiation Research.” Contrary to campus legends, the Radiation Research

NEWs PAGE 3

News Writer

Building, housing the Notre Dame Radiation Laboratory (NDRL), may not have 26 stories reaching underground, but what it does have is a world-class array of particle accelerators, lasers, spectrometers and other specialized equipment for probing the secrets of energ y and matter.

Members of the Saint Mary’s community gathered on Monday to hear Dana Strait, vice president for strategy and finance, and Titilayo Ufomata, the provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, speak at “Landscapes of the Spirit.” Judy Fean, vice president for mission, introduced the speakers by discussing the event’s founding four years

see LAB PAGE 4

see LANDSCAPES PAGE 3

scene PAGE 5

Viewpoint PAGE 6

MARGARET CICCHIELLO | The Observer

Provost Titilayo Ufomata spoke Monday about Saint Mary’s mission and the enduring power of its founding sisters’ spirit.

ND Golf PAGE 12

SMC Sports PAGE 12

TODAY

The observer | tuesday, october 15, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com

Question of the Day: ndsmcobserver.com

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What do you do to de-stress?

P.O. Box 779, Notre Dame, IN 46556 024 South Dining Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556 Editor-in-Chief Kelli Smith Managing Editor Charlotte Edmonds

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Notre Dame News Editor: Tom Naatz Saint Mary’s News Editor: Maeve Filbin Viewpoint Editor: Evelyn Stein Sports Editor: Connor Mulvena Scene Editor: Mike Donovan Photo Editor: Anna Mason Graphics Editor: Diane Park Social Media Editor: Mary Bernard Advertising Manager: Landry Kempf Ad Design Manager: Ruby Le Systems Administrator: Mike Dugan

Matt Ellingson

Conor Milligan

freshman Fisher Hall

sophomore Duncan Hall

“Listen to music.”

“Exercise.”

Sam Pasmann

Tyler McDonough

graduate student Carroll Hall

sophomore Duncan Hall

“Rock climb.”

“Hang with friends.”

Conor Sinclair

Andrew Sullivan

freshman Dillon Hall

sophomore Duncan Hall

“Nap.”

“Run.”

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ERIN FENNESSY | The Observer

In honor of the 1969 moon landing, a person dressed as an astronaut walked onto the field and planted a prop American flag onto the field during the Notre Dame Marching Band’s halftime performance. The Fighting Irish defeated the Trojans 30-27.

The next Five days:

Want your event included here? Email news@ndsmcobserver.com

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Lecture: “The Heart is the Country” Hesburgh Center 4 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. Lecture about Syrian and Iraqi refugees.

“Interdisciplinary Approaches to Corruption” Hesburgh Center 5:30 p.m. - 7:45 p.m. Workshop.

“The Big Draw: Monster Drawing Rally” Snite Museum of Art 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. Live drawing event.

ASA Sociology of Development Conference Hesburgh Center All day. Register online.

Fall Break campus-wide All day. No classes in session. Classes will resume on Oct. 28.

Workshop: “Crafting a Strong Grant Proposal” Bond Hall 5 p.m. - 6 p.m. RSVP if interested.

Viola and Piano Performance LaBar Recital Hall 7 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Concert is free and open to the public.

Film: “At War/En Guerre” (2018) Browning Cinema 7 p.m. -9 p.m. Free event, tickets required.

Exhibit: “Looking at the Stars.” Snite Museum of Art All day. Exhibition of Irish art. Open to the public.

EMBA-South Bend Preview Day Stayer Center for Executive Education 9:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Class space is limited.

News

ndsmcobserver.com | tuesday, october 15, 2019 | The Observer

BAVO raises awareness through stress relief By COLLEEN FISCHER News Writer

As students cram for midterms in libraries, study spaces and dorm rooms, some students opened cardboard boxes and grabbed their favorite board games to play with their friends and peers. They gathered to take a break from studying and to learn and inform students about the Belles Against Violence Office (BAVO). Co-chair of the Green Dot committee for BAVO, junior Meghan McNamara talked about how BAVO changed the event to fit better to what they felt the student body needed. “It was supposed to be like a human life-size Game of Life and then we were going

Landscapes Continued from page 1

ago. “[The event was founded] so we could get a sense of how people here do live the mission and how being a Catholic Holy Cross Institution … makes a difference,” Fean said. Strait described several instances in which she’s experienced prejudice for being a woman, including being told to “stay realistic” when telling her mother she wanted to attend medical school and having a professor tell her “women just aren’t suited for Beethoven — it needs a man’s touch.” Strait said she went on to “devour Beethoven’s sonatas for the rest of [her] musical career,” and received a Ph.D. in musical theory from Northwestern.

GRC Continued from page 1

regarding relationship violence. “As we look at the month, we’re trying to engage in the conversation about relationship violence, support, how to deal with the trauma [and] educational complexities,” he said. “... Having all of those elements try to come into a holistic conversation about the topic is the goal.” In planning the month of sponsored events, Johnstin and the GRC evaluated the atmosphere on campus regarding relationship violence. “Each year we look at the programs, we try to bring in new speakers, we try to adjust the topics, we try to look at what’s happening and say, ‘Are we having a conversation that will meet the needs of the students the best that we can?’” Johnstin said. FIREstarters, a group of

to have facts about what BAVO does, but with midterms and everything we did not want it to be too stressful and big,” McNamara said. “We thought it would be a nice break for people to just come and play games.” Students attended for a variety of reasons, including to relax. “I’m here to de-stress and also hang out with these cool ladies,” junior and BAVO member Jordan Gilchrist said. Others hoped to inform the Saint Mary’s community about BAVO’s mission. “I am here to play board games and to de-stress, but also to take the opportunity to educate others about BAVO and what we stand for,” junior Audrina Massey and BAVO

member said. BAVO offered prizes for the winners, a variety of stickers, handouts and information about what BAVO does. McNamara said that Green Dot is a subcommittee of BAVO that focuses on bystander intervention. The event highlighted some of the new initiatives this year, under the new leadership of Liz Coulston. “[Coulston] is really trying to go towards the sisterhood and do more events that are inclusive,” McNamara said. “She wants BAVO to be known on campus, and she is doing a really good job at planning events that people want to go to and are better and interesting.” This event focused less on

addressing sexual assault on campus and more on building community and reestablishing BAVO’s place on campus, McNamara said, though BAVO is still involved in issues surrounding sexual assault and relationship violence. “We are trying to be inclusive and there for everyone,” McNamara said. “It does not always have to be hard topics or all the time. We are trying to be inclusive and understand the stress that students are going to be feeling and give them a place to release it in public, and still give them the opportunity to learn about BAVO.” McNamara said that BAVO’s objective of building sisterhood and support extends beyond helping victims of

violence, and towards building a community between all of Saint Mary’s women. “We are giving [the students] different ways to meet new people, or to connect with people, to strive and to learn new things,” McNamara said. “This is just people being there for each other and we are giving them different ways to look out for one another.” BAVO is hosting an event at Tuesday’s soccer game to raise awareness for Domestic Violence Awareness Month and encourages all to show up and wear purple in support of victims of domestic abuse. They are also hosting a candlelit yoga event Wednesday.

“As I learned more about who we are and how we were founded and the mission that guides us — a mission that was founded by the sisters of the Holy Cross, these radical, devoted women with the mission to improve the world around them — the f lame that drew me into this campus began to take shape,” Strait said. “… The Sisters who founded us and who continue to invite us to share in their ministry forged a radical history of pushing the limits of what is acceptable for young women in contemporary society and in the Church, always in response to the needs of the complex world around us.” Strait said she found herself and her story, or her “f lame,” woven into the sisters of the Holy Cross. “It’s a story of risk-taking and being on the leading edge of what’s acceptable and appropriate for women to be

doing, of doing things … like playing a Beethoven sonata, that might be thought of by some as needing a man’s touch,” Strait said. “It’s a story of empowering women to be auto mechanics in the 1920s, to be medical professionals serving on battlefields during the Civil War … and to enter the male-dominated fields of business and accounting as early as the 1970s. For those in the Church, the sisters founded the first graduate school, where women could earn a theological education — the first in the world.” Strait said living her mission is about bringing her “full self” to work. “This is the first job where I’ve been able to live out all of the parts of me: my womanness, my big ideas, my scientific and analytical self, my creative self, my spiritual and Christian identity, my belief that God has a f lame

burning on this campus and that God invites me and all of my parts to be a part of it,” she said. Ufomata began her address by ref lecting on the mission of Saint Mary’s. “What does it mean to live the mission at Saint Mary’s College?” she said. “… I look at this question from the perspective of God’s work on Earth, particularly of building a Christian community.” Ufomata said she learned this sense of community from her upbringing in Nigeria, and she now carries it wherever she goes. “We have a saying in my language that translates roughly to ‘what can be divided can be shared,’” she said. “I grew up seeing a lot of people in a lot of need who never lost their dignity … because the community ‘covered them,’ as we say in my language. People took care to protect the dignity of those

they supported. They understood that membership of community includes responsibilities to the whole and to each other.” Following the presentations, attendants were given an opportunity to respond to the speakers. Sister Eva Hooker emphasized the importance of being welcoming as a community when she recalled a conversation she had with two members of the South Bend community who were not sure it was OK for them to enjoy their picnic lunch on campus. Ufomata was then asked how she thought the College community could help people live out their potential and embody the mission of Saint Mary’s. “I think what we’re doing here is a start,” she said.

student leaders at the GRC, also contributes to hosting events as part of RVAM. Senior Casey Cheyeon Kim, a program assistant at the GRC, said in an email October is an important month for the FIREstarters group to create programs to connect with Notre Dame students. “We aim to create healthy dialogue around the topics of interpersonal violence, relationships and authenticity, gender identity and intersectionality, and sexual identity,” Kim said. While the month as a whole is an awareness campaign, Johnstin and Kim highlighted other activities that offer support to those who have been personally impacted by relationship violence. On Friday, the GRC cosponsored a healing program, “Kintsugi” with the McDonald Center for Student WellBeing. At the program, students broke ceramic pots for holding succulents and then

reconstructed the pots based on the traditional Japanese ceramic art of “Kintsugi.” Johnstin described this activity as “symbolism of healing.” “It’s trying to get them to recognize that even though the symbolic pot might be broken, you can still work on it and put it back together,” Johnstin said. “You can still work through trauma, and there are supports and resources here for them.” In an effort to raise participation in the awareness aspect of the month, members of the RVAM team handed out purple shirts Monday morning to students at Fieldhouse Mall. The GRC is asking the entirety of campus to wear purple this Wednesday to honor victims and survivors of relationship violence. Johnstin spoke of his belief that small actions such as “Wear Purple Day” can contribute to a positive campus culture that promotes

dialogue on difficult topics. “I think when we start to look at relationship violence, often it’s something that remains silent and in the shadows, whether it’s individuals that feel afraid to come forward or individuals that don’t feel like they’ll be believed for whatever the reason is,” Johnstin said. “Maybe it’s enough that they see somebody that has a t-shirt on, and they see that little bit of support on a topic that may be afraid to come forward with.” In addition to recurring events, the GRC looks to add new events to diversify the conversations taking place. New this year, sociology professor Mark Gunty will give a talk titled “Understanding Gender and Violence” on Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. in Duncan Student Center. Johnstin said the educational lecture will focus on gender conversations. “This is the very first time that I’ve worked with [Gunty],” Johnstin said. “I had a couple

of students that talked about his class, and so I looked him up and found that it was pertinent to the conversation that we’re having.” The GRC will end the month with the second annual Fall Festival on Oct. 31, which will also serve as a closing to LGBTQ History Month. Johnstin described the festival as “a fun social campaign where students and studentled groups like FireStarters come together” to wrap up the month of outreach. “Everybody has different experiences, and there are people that have come here that have experienced unbelievable strategies,” Johnstin said. “We want to make sure that they know that people will believe them and will support them and will help them get to the resources they need. So that’s really at the heart of what we’re trying to do.”

Contact Colleen Fischer at cfischer01@saintmarys.edu

Contact Margaret Cicchiello at mcicchiello01@saintmarys.edu

Contact Alysa Guffey at aguffey@nd.edu

NEWS

The observer | tuesday, october 15, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com

Lab Continued from page 1

The groundwork for the NDRL was laid in the 1940s when the U.S. government required a high-power particle accelerator for radiation research relating to the Manhattan Project — the research effort to develop the nuclear bombs used in World War II. The only suitable machine in the Chicago region was owned by the Notre Dame Physics Department, housed in what is now the LaFortune Student Center. Former Notre Dame chemistry professor Milton Burton was commissioned by the U.S. government to perform the necessary research on the effects of ionizing radiation. In 1949, Burton formally established the NDRL, and the Radiation Research Building that now houses the lab was completed in 1963, funded by the Atomic Energ y Commission. The lab is now owned and primarily funded by the Office of Science within the U.S. Department of Energ y. It has continued to perform research on the fundamental properties of radiation, as well as photochemical research. Ian Carmichael, NDRL Director since 2004, said the lab focuses on basic, rather than applied, research, but the research could have important applications in nuclear power. “We do basic research

Coal Continued from page 1

Dame announced its plans to cease burning coal by 2020 and cut its carbon footprint by more than half by 2030. As of Monday, both goals have been met. These initiatives are part of the Universit y’s Comprehensive Sustainabilit y Strateg y, which also includes a hydroelectric plant on St. Joseph River, a geothermal system and a new thermal energ y East Plant. Notre Dame has implemented an array of energ yconser vation measures since 2008. These include installing the largest green roof system in Indiana, hav ing a minimum “Leadership in Energ y and Env ironmental Design” (LEED) silver standard for new constructions, using energ y-efficient lighting and low-f low water dev ices and setting temperature controls. Together, the measures have ser ved to not

investigating the fundamentals of radiation chemistry and, more recently, solar photochemistry as well,” he said. “The complementary thrust to radiation chemistry is targeted at basic understanding of radiation, but also to the impact of radiation chemistry on nuclear power, such as radiation degradation of reactor materials, very hot water in reactors and so on.” W hile the Department of Energ y is the main source of grant funding, Carmichael said the NDRL has received smaller grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF), National Institutes of Health (NIH), the U.S. military and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), among other organizations. W hile the lab was previously operated on a government contract, Carmichael said that since 2004 there has been a cooperative agreement in place between the University and the government. The NDRL houses a linear particle accelerator, as well as several Van de Graaff accelerators. Additionally, the lab has a scientific glassblower and a machinist on staff who provide specialty components and equipment maintenance to the NDRL and other science departments on campus. Radiation research remains the lab’s focus, Carmichael said, but photochemical research has become a secondary aim of

only reduce carbon emissions, but to also generate a more than $2 million annual sav ings, according to a press release. Paul Kempf, assistant v ice president for utilities and maintenance, said Notre Dame has invested almost $200 million in both conversion of energ y systems and the renewable energ y projects. Carol Mullaney, the senior director for the Office of Sustainabilit y, said the Universit y’s ongoing sustainabilit y strateg y is multidimensional, as it includes actions both big and small. “It encompasses and includes some ver y large actions — like we’re celebrating today — but it also includes elements that are small, ever yday actions that we can each take collectively that can have a great impact on our env ironment,” Mullaney said. Moreover, she explained the strateg y relies on local partnerships to find and implement solutions.

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ANDREW CAMERON | The Observer

The control room of the linear particle accelerator allows researchers to monitor the radiation released when particles collide with a target and gain insight into the composition of subatomic particles.

the lab in recent years. “Maybe 25% of our resources go towards our solar photochemistry program,” Carmichael said. “That includes trying to understand the fundamentals of solar cells. The big thing in solar energ y nowadays is Perovskite solar cells, and we have a program trying to figure out what goes wrong … for some reason they work very well but they don’t last very long, so we’re trying to figure out why they break down and how we can stop that.” The remainder of the resources are dedicated to radiation-related matters, Carmichael said. “The rest goes towards radiation chemistry, which is

the high-energy electrons, the gamma rays and so on,” he said. “We’re looking at the effects of stress and radiation-enhanced corrosion on aqueous solutions mainly, but also in materials in aqueous solution in nuclear reactors. Why reactors only live for 40 years, for example.” Carmichael noted the NDRL has never done classified work, partly because the building does not meet the necessary security standards. Aliaksandra Lisouskaya received her Ph.D. in Belarus and is now working as an assistant research professor at Notre Dame, conducting research on radiation chemistry and photochemistry at the NDRL. The equipment available at the NDRL, she

MARIA LUISA PAUL | The Observer

The University burned its last load of coal on Monday as part of its response to Pope Francis’ call to care for the enviornment.

“W hat we do here impacts the local community, and what the local community does impacts us as well,” she said. “... We partner with local and regional organizations here because we’re all in this together. So through the City of South Bend and the Green Ribbon Commission, locally we have co-sponsored

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several events. We’ve worked together on several things, and they’re invited in some of our working sessions as well.” Another important aspect addressed by Notre Dame’s strateg y is education, Mullaney emphasized. “One of the key underly ing elements of our

said, offers unique research opportunities. “You can find linacs [linear particle accelerators] at other places, but here there is just much more,” Lisouskaya said. W hile the NDRL doesn’t build devices or research potential applications, Carmichael said it has made valuable contributions to science. “Over the years, we’ve published perhaps 5,000 papers from NDRL in all kinds of journals,” Carmichael said. “Many of these papers have had a huge impact, but we’re not here to promote anything in particular.” Contact Andrew Cameron at acamero2@nd.edu

sustainabilit y strateg y is really to inf luence people’s awareness and their behavior, and as part of that we need to broaden their awareness and educate people,” she said. Though Notre Dame reached an important milestone in its sustainabilit y efforts, Kempf recognized more work still needs to be done to protect the env ironment. As such, the University has developed a plan that looks out almost 50 years in the future, which includes more projects and initiatives geared towards allowing Notre Dame to become carbon neutral by 2050, Kempf said. “Our work is not complete,” he said. “Although we’ve met our short-term goal way ahead of schedule, there’s still lots to be done. We continue to look forward in finding more opportunities to reduce our carbon footprint.” Contact Maria Luisa Paul at mpaulran@nd.edu

The observer | tuesday, october 15, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com

By JAKE WINNINGHAM Scene Writer

At the end of AMC’s “Breaking Bad” in 2013, the show’s two main characters ended the series reaping what they sowed. Teacher-turned-kingpin Walter White died caressing equipment in a meth lab, while his former student Jesse Pinkman rode off into the night screaming and smiling after being freed from his neo-Nazi captors. It should be noted that the show, while it aired, appeared much more grounded than that sentence makes it seem. Where Walt’s series-long “Mr. Chips to Scarface” arc wrapped up in a definitive way, Jesse’s left itself more openended, likely purposefully. Fans could be forgiven for wondering exactly what happened to Jesse after the show rather ambiguously ended. Such patience and likely frustration, however, saw its reward in the form of Netflix’s release of “El Camino,” writer-director Vince Gilligan’s latest entry in his “Breaking Bad” universe. “El Camino” quite literally picks up where “Breaking Bad” left off, with Jesse riding the titular stolen car away from his former life of meth manufacturing — or so he hopes. Immediately after leaving the compound, Jesse has to hide from an arriving police convoy, forcing him towards the single goal of the entire movie: an escape from Albuquerque. I am reticent to list any of the cameos in “El Camino” fulfilled by “Breaking Bad” characters or flashbacks to the

By AIDAN O’MALLEY Scene Writer

For all its technical wizardry and for every commercial that claims “you’ve never seen anything like it” — “Gemini Man” is a movie you have certainly seen before. Quite an obvious reason for that has to do with the film’s script, which sat rotting in development hell for 20 years — literally. First conceived by acclaimed screenwriter of “Shrek Forever After,” Darren Lemke, in 1997, “Gemini Man” is now credited to three writers and is said to have passed through the hands of countless others along the way. The result is a film so aggressively generic in its plot that it plays like bad deja vu. “Gemini Man” may be directed by the well-respected Ang Lee (“Brokeback Mountain,” “Life of Pi”), but its insides are entirely Jerry Bruckheimer. Had it been made, as intended, in the 90s, maybe we would look back and smile with nostalgia. But with its release 20 years later in 2019, “Gemini Man” doesn’t quite hit the mark. To be fair, the selling point of “Gemini Man” isn’t so much its story but rather how Lee, cinematographer Dion Beebe and the talented folks at Weta Digital decided to tell it. The film is shot at 120 frames per second (fps), five times the average Hollywood frame rate, it can be viewed in 3D and it utilizes elaborate de-aging technology, allowing Will Smith to play both a 50-yearold hit man as well as his 20-year-old clone. If such technological achievements are what a film should be rated on, then “Gemini Man” is mostly a success. With the exception of the film’s final moments, the young Smith created in a computer looks no less lifelike than

show. But, that being said, the trailers for the movie already alerted viewers to the presence of two fan favorites. Matt Jones and Charles Baker return as Jesse’s burned-out friends Badger and Skinny Pete, and the early rapport between the two is what settles “El Camino” back into the instantly-recognizable “Breaking Bad” groove. For better and worse, “El Camino” exists in the well-established comfort zone established by the series. The peaks of “Breaking Bad” exemplified the show’s oneof-a-kind tone, while its gritty depiction of the violence associated with drug dealing belied a darkly hilarious streak running beneath. “El Camino” flashes brief glimpses of that unique collaboration between pathos and comedy. Gilligan populates the edges of his story with instantly recognizable weirdos designed to worm their way into the audience’s hearts while keeping it all the same grounded in realism. As in the original show and the prequel series “Better Call Saul,” the dialogue in “El Camino” straddles the line between funny and horrifying; the laughs seem to get caught in your throat and dragged down to the pit of your stomach. Gilligan has always been one of the most gifted visual artists in television, with individual shots that deserve to be framed in an art museum. “El Camino” is no different. One scene with a whiplash rack-focus from a gun barrel to the face of its wielder made me excitedly gesticulate to no one in particular during my first watch. All of these cinematic flourishes in the Gilligan’s world, however, fail to distract

from the film’s potential redundancy. I don’t mean to say that “El Camino” is superfluous as a piece of art. There is far too much craftsmanship on display for that to be the case — from the aforementioned script to Aaron Paul’s stellar performance. Rather, I mean to suggest that the movie cannot exist without “Breaking Bad,” and unlike “Better Call Saul,” it doesn’t quite add anything to the storyline of the show. The original series is one of the best programs in television history, if not the best outright. The 60-odd hours we got from “Breaking Bad” don’t need an addendum, no matter how impressive it may be. Anyone who loved “Breaking Bad” will find something to enjoy in “El Camino” — everybody else, however, would be better off returning to the show from which its plot derives itself.

his actual self. In fact, many of the story’s most dramatic moments rest entirely on his doppelganger’s shoulders. Smith’s performance here is not only a reminder of his oft-forgotten acting capabilities, but a testament to the de-aging software itself. Yet of equal importance to the technology’s success is the high frame rate at which Lee and Beebe had the picture filmed. The director experimented with something similar on “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk” with cinematographer John Toll in 2016. The gimmick, despite the nonsense of the story it accompanies, pleasantly surprises. The unique increased frame speed takes some adjusting to, but after the first few scenes it begins to feel natural. The action sequences filmed in 120fps are especially kinetic. With hyperrealism and ultra-clarity making every blow more painful, Lee’s long takes help to immerse you so completely in the action that they truly make you feel like you’re there — in an un-cliched way. This speed of frame also helps blend the delicate nature of digital de-aging. Because the movie already looks like a video game, a young Smith blends in smoothly, and the “uncanny valley” to which he could have belonged is neatly avoided. If only the technology was in service of a good story. Yes, de-aging and a unique method of filming are appropriate implementations for the story of a film like “Gemini Man,” but the screenplay which gives them a canvas to work on is abysmal. One of the reasons for such may be that time has not been kind to the the genre it concerns. Since 1997, plenty of thrillers about shady government agencies betraying their own people and superhero movies about scientifically engineered

super-soldiers have graced the silver screens with limited success. In combining these tropes, “Gemini Man” only doubles down on its datedness. The characterization of the players within such a lackluster plot do not do it any favors. Every major role is reduced to a three-word SparkNotes summary — that is, if they’re given only a personality to revolve around. At one point, for no particular reason Smith makes reference to his deadly bee allergy. “I wonder if this randomly specific detail is trying to foreshadow something!” you say, cringing in your recliner at dialogue too awkward to be an accident. In another scene, Smith and an old pal discuss whether they should drink a cool can of CocaCola™ or an ice cold draft of Anheuser-Busch™. Their logos are crisply captured in 4K HD. Who could have possibly allowed this to happen? But, alas, every time watched, the movie runs its length. It isn’t until the second half of it that we finally meet the killer clone. As a result, the whole film feels not only lopsided, but also quite poorly paced. Smith’s quasi-love interest (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) decides to show up as well alongside his nemesis (Clive Owen) and his wisecracking best friend (Benedict Wong) in performances of epically abhorrent proportions. And when the Fresh Prince finally does arrive, the movie not only attempts to treat it as a twist, but also completely glosses over the psychological ramifications of such a discovery. Instead, it moves on. At least that means it ends a little sooner.

Contact Jake Winningham at jwinning@nd.edu

“El Camino” Netflix Director: Vince Gilligan Starring: Aaron Paul, Charles Bake If You Like: “Breaking Bad”

Contact Aidan O’Malley at aomalle2@nd.edu CLAIRE KOPISCHKE | The Observer

The observer | Tuesday, October 15, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com

Butterfly of pain

Inside Column

Embracing the both/and Erin Grimes News Writer

I spent all of sophomore year study ing abroad in Innsbruck, Austria. It was wonderful and challenging, super fulfilling and really, really hard. My journey there ended, and now I’m back in the States, readjusting to life in the Midwest again and tr y ing to process that year. It’s been four months since I came home and two months since I’ve been back at Saint Mar y’s. For the most part, I think I am doing well w ith readjusting. Since I came home, it’s felt like I never left. Innsbruck seems like a faraway place; just like when I was there, Indiana felt like a faraway place. I am glad to be back in the United States. I love being back at Saint Mar y’s, and I love that at Saint Mar y’s I can go home for a quick weekend since I only live 45 minutes away. I love participating in Sunday Mass at Loretto and weekday Mass in Le Mans again. I love that I don’t have to worr y about a language barrier at stores or restaurants, and I love that I can get free refills on drinks when I am eating at a restaurant again. But ever y so often I find myself w ishing I could be back in Innsbruck. I miss walking and sitting along the Inn River. I miss gazing at the mountains from the w indow of my apartment bedroom. I miss walking to A ltstadt (“old tow n”) and Maria Theresa plaza. I miss the beautiful churches, and I miss the delicious food. Most of all, I miss the feelings I got when I was there: independence and freedom. At first, I was confused why I missed Innsbruck because, as I was approaching the day of my f light back to the States, all I wanted to do was go home. I also got annoyed about these feelings because I didn’t want to miss Innsbruck. But I’ve been realizing that over the course of that year abroad, Innsbruck became a second home for me. So it’s only natural that I miss it. I’m realizing that it’s normal to feel what seem like t wo contrar y emotions at the same time. That how I feel about a situation is a both/and, not an either/or. It is not simply that Innsbruck was wonderful, and I miss being there. It is not simply that I am glad to be home and wouldn’t have wanted to stay any longer in Innsbruck than I did. It is both. These feelings can and do coex ist side-by-side and even intertw ine themselves together. As I continue on w ith the rest of this semester, I am going to make both/and my mantra. I am going to continue to enjoy being back on the Saint Mar y’s campus while also missing Innsbruck and all that I experienced there. To do or feel other w ise would mean that I would be ly ing to myself and robbing myself of the power of my study abroad experience. Contact Erin at egrimes01@saintmarys.edu The views expressed in this Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Gabriel Niforatos The Road Less Traveled

There is a butterf ly of pain that rests atop every synagogue, an inexplicable beauty borne of weightlessness and the breeziness of f light. Upon wings as delicate as origami paper folded, there is a fiery orange to show the struggle and pain of attaining f light, and you can see that it is there if you look hard enough. You can see it when you wish Shabbat Shalom to the three guards in body armor at the front of the synagogue. In the faces of aged Jewish men and women, in the greetings that we utter to each other in Hebrew with a smile, you can see it. You can feel it as well; the disruption in the air from origami paper-folded wings that drift upon the wind until they rest on your shoulders like the heaviest burden you have ever carried, the winds that breathe and explore your house as the sun is setting and the windows are left open. You can feel its weightlessness, its light-as-origami paper, horrible weightlessness, and you will know. On Oct. 9, the day of the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur, an attacker who was suspected of having “extreme far-right and anti-Semitic views” opened fire near a synagogue in Halle, Germany and killed two people. I honestly find it hard to put into words the way the pure emptiness and brokenness that I feel, not only as a Jew, when time after time the headlines are filled with shootings and violence motivated by pure hatred. I want to make it clear that this column details my process, as a Jew, of trying to understand the perpetual violence committed against Jewish people around the world. It is absolutely not intended to trivialize the matter in the way that it is written. In fact, this column has been one of the hardest that I have ever written. I also want to make it clear that the butterf ly of pain is something that every group of people can feel and sense. In society, in lecture halls and behind the masks that we wear every day, there are countless butterf lies who are alienated and without a voice. They say that beauty can be found from pain, and unless you are one of these people, you can’t understand the burden of this search. Butterfly Egg A butterf ly egg is a crystal of biology, a promise of potentiality and an indicator of the limitless boundaries of the horizon. It represents everything that can be, a journey that has not yet started. Everyone is born into different circumstances, with different joys and struggles that define who they are. As a Jew, I sometimes feel as if I have the wilderness running through my veins. Vagabond, sojourner, voyager – these are adenine, thymine, guanine, the building blocks of who I am. On Oct. 9, an armed gunman tried to force his way into a synagogue in Halle, but the doors wouldn’t open. It is almost too awful to write about what the people inside must have been thinking as this occurred. Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, finding the afikomen for the very first time at Passover, exchanging chocolate shekels with one another at Hanukkah. The little things, the butterf ly eggs that are meant to mark innocence. But

that innocence has drifted away like monarchs in the fall. Larva As you grow older and more mature, you inevitably interact with people who are different from you. You begin to see the threads of the various social fabrics that you are a part of as you recognize the beauty afforded by diversity. I am not just a Jew; I live in a political society. It is a joy to be interwoven into multiple social fabrics. There is an almost childlike innocence at this point as you see the world for how immense it is. You cannot yet name the pain from rejection for who you are, but you know it is there without saying a word; the promise that you will one day become a butterf ly and have the joys of f light occupy your mind as you taste and explore and feel the world around you. This stage is all about growth and comprehending the sheer beauty of the world around you, finding your place in it and engaging with others on what you find. Chrysalis But this innocence cannot continue forever. To make wine, grapes must be crushed, and this stage of rebirth is the most painful. And yet, the pain is worth it, right? If we tell ourselves that there is wine after grapes are crushed, that there is milk and honey after Sinai, that there is a butterf ly after every chrysalis, then the pain will be worth it. Struggle is an inevitable part of the human experience, after all. And yet, to say that there is a sunrise for every sunset is to sound incredibly insensitive and blind to the survivors of Halle, Tree of Life, Chabad of Poway and the countless other shootings that have occurred. This is not to say that there is no hope that things can’t be changed. But there comes a time when one is tired of the winepress. Metamorphosis I am the phoenix, I tell myself. I will go to synagogue and wish the three guards in body armor Shabbat Shalom and pray that I cannot feel the butterf ly of pain kiss my neck as I sing prayers in Hebrew. I want to tell you that I am strong, that I have been through enough in my life to give me the tools to overcome. I am lying. Chabad of Poway, Tree of Life, Halle. I cannot shake these words from my head. I am afraid to go to synagogue because I do not want to see the butterf ly of pain drifting slowly to Earth like the pages of books on the breeze. I say that I will pray for the victims of the shootings and you utter the same, but prayers are not enough. They are meaningless. To make wine, grapes must be crushed. And yet, Jesus made water turn into wine as the grapes looked on this miracle unscathed. I wonder why he cannot do this now, why the butterf ly that emerges from the chrysalis is one of pain. The butterf ly is meant to be beautiful, but I admit to you that I am struggling to see beauty here. Gabriel Niforatos is a junior majoring in political science with a minor in the Hesburgh Program in Public Service. He is passionate about giving a voice to the disenfranchised, and writing is the muse he is persistently chasing. He can be found at gniforat@nd.edu or @g_niforatos on Twitter. The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

The observer | tuesday, October 15, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com

Letter directly to the editor Danny McMaster You’re Welcome for My Opinion

I am writing to you today to talk about something that has been troubling me for some time now: the current state of The Observer. As I have long said in this column before, The Observer is the only place I go for all of my opinions. Whenever there is a matter of political divide, global unrest or sub-standard dining hall food, I constantly refresh The Observer website until someone is able to tell me what to think. To date, this system has worked flawlessly. I have been happy, and there has been no need for change. After three years of working in this manner, I decided that I would even take on responsibility and create some of the content that told everyone how to think. Until recently, it had been wildly successful. The Observer had been running like a well-oiled machine, and students everywhere knew what to think about everything as they read the paper cover to cover each morning. Recently, however, tragedy has struck The Observer. In what was once a harmonious place, with column after column helping students lead better lives, there now there lies a war zone of instability. It’s columnist vs. columnist, editor vs. editor. I know what columns you’re thinking about, and you’re absolutely right: I’m talking about Pizza Pi. To date, there has been not one, not two, but three Observer pieces all about the new pizza establishment that has more than capably filled in for Reckers. Some of the reviews have been positive. Some have been negative. I’ll admit that this is a

personal issue for me, as I took the time to review Pizza Pi myself. My column was overwhelmingly positive, and I still believe that any student who is not exclusively spending their flex points at Pizza Pi has no honor and should be asked to leave campus immediately. While I can see clearly that there is no possibility that I am wrong on this issue, what are other students supposed to think? Picture a freshman in his or her dorm, hands shaking while holding two copies of The Observer with conflicting opinions. I could see students standing there for hours, weeks even, wrought with indecision as they learn that the only institution they thought could be trusted had failed them. This problem stems, I think, from our current editors’ failures to have a single unchallenged opinion and agenda. Many a time, these conflicting opinions that I have seen in The Observer are coming from those writing ‘letters to the editor.’ I am told that the writers of these ‘letters to the editor’ did not have to go through Observer staff training and initiation and weren’t required to take a two-week sabbatical in the desert*. There is simply no focus here anymore. In recent weeks, we have often seen two columns with opposing views, published back-to-back. The Observer today stands as a mishmash of opinion and response columns. How could the readers ever understand what it is trying to tell them? If every column concludes that the writer is completely right and shames those who don’t think as they do, what can we hope to accomplish? This is why there can be no opposing views in The Observer.

In conclusion, I believe I have found the correct solution and if you disagree, I think it will be necessary for you to leave the Notre Dame community. I believe that The Observer should only allow one opinion on every topic, first-come-first-serve, no backsies. If you have a take, get it in quick because there’s only room for one. Our community should get one opinion and one opinion only, and we should wholeheartedly stand by that opinion going forward. This would be a perfect strategy for any number of scenarios. A new administration policy allows Lime scooters on campus and a columnist likes it? Build a Lime statue next to the dome. A new, PizzaPi-like restaurant is established on Bond Quad and the first columnist dislikes it? Burn it to the ground. As a result of this, The Observer will likely have to stop taking letters to the editor, as we need to make sure that the first person getting to these stories is taking the adequate preparations necessary for this task. So that is why today, I am writing a letter directly to the editor, asking him or her to think about the future of The Observer and to make changes. With these changes in place, I believe that this paper can be restored to its former glory. *While this was also not required for regular columnists, don’t tell me how to prepare for things. Danny McMaster is a senior business analytics major, and has never once been wrong in his entire life. He can be reached at dmcmaste@nd.edu or @DanMcMaster14 on Twitter. The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Letter to the editor

The right to be free and gay Let me start by stating that I immediately hold a deep respect for anyone who takes an interest in the language of the laws that govern our nation and how the Supreme Court then interprets this language into the laws’ application to the daily lives of Americans. So my interest was sparked by the column covering the Supreme Court’s upcoming ruling on discrimination based on sexual orientation. However, I will admit that I was disappointed by the ultimate legal conclusions reached in that opinion piece, “LGBT discrimination is legal even if it’s wrong.” I agree with the beginning point raised that “the Court does not decide policy,” as well as the fact that “Congress has never opted to explicitly include sexual orientation and gender identity in discrimination protection.” Title VII was written in 1964, a time in which openly gay people were deemed “unsuitable for Federal employment.” In complement to this role of the legislature, it is “emphatically the duty of the Judicial Department to say what the law is,” and if the Supreme Court ultimately decides to expand the applications of Title VII to apply to discrimination based on sexual orientation, it certainly would not dismantle the integrity of the legislative branch. If Congress does not agree with the Court’s interpretation, it is within its power to change the law. In his opinion for Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services, Justice Antonin Scalia, a strict textualist, said it best when it comes to expanding the

interpretation of Title VII in certain cases that were not necessarily foreseen by the U.S. Congress at the time: “Male-on-male sexual harassment in the workplace was assuredly not the principal evil Congress was concerned with when it enacted Title VII. But statutory prohibitions often go beyond the principal evil to cover reasonably comparable evils, and it is ultimately the provisions of our laws rather than the principal concerns of our legislators by which we are governed.” Next, we move into this hypothetical scenario of deciding to fire an individual based on a simple list of resume information as well as a sudden knowledge of the person’s sexual orientation but not gender. This no longer counts as sexual discrimination based on sex and thus moves into the gray area of discrimination based on sexual orientation, which is never explicitly prohibited by Title VII. However, Justice Elena Kagan rebuts that this scenario works to weaken the argument of the employers in question. Gerald Bostock and Donald Zarda were let go for being men who were attracted to men. Presumably, though, their employer would permit women to be attracted to men. This is fundamental sex discrimination. Also, pointing to the Court’s prior case of Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins only bolsters the argument that discrimination based on sexual orientation is illegal rather than weakening it. In this 1988 case against the major audit and consulting firm, the

plurality opinion determined that Ann Hopkins could not be fired or denied a promotion for being insufficiently feminine. In the current case of R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes v. the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the boss’ rule that men must dress and act one way and women must dress and act a different way is a form of sexual stereotyping and thus sexual discrimination, according to this precedent from Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins. How, then, can Aimee Stephens be discriminated against for not complying with her employer’s gender standards that “God commands” him to enforce? Now, I’m a proud moderate conservative, and I have continually grown more exhausted by the divisive rhetoric of the current political environment. At the core of my beliefs is a firm trust that our most fundamental rights are those of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Thus, I grow tired of any philosophical, legal or religious loophole being exploited to deny members of the LGBTQ+ community their basic rights to be free and gay human beings (yes, I mean both meanings of the word “gay” here). Ultimately, I hope that one day, the United States learns from the mistakes of its past and firmly stands against discrimination in any form.

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Connor Whittle junior Oct. 11

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The observer | tuesday, october 15, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com

Crossword | Will Shortz

Horoscope | Eugenia Last Happy Birthday: A positive attitude will help you alter the way people treat you. Your priority should be to surround yourself with people who are upbeat and willing to make the most of each day. Partnerships look promising, although they will also change constantly. Adjusting to an ongoing flow of unique and innovative trends will lead to new possibilities. Your numbers are 7, 12, 20, 28, 33, 36, 41. ARIES (March 21-April 19): High energy can be both good and bad. Concentrate on what you want to achieve, not dealing with no-win situations. Arguing will not help you get ahead or gain respect. Say little, do a lot; doors will open. TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Your emotions will fluctuate, and if not handled with care, can lead to trouble. Look at all sides of a situation before you make a decision. If you are disciplined and resourceful, you’ll accomplish a lot. Romance will improve a meaningful relationship. GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Look for opportunities and head in that direction. Refuse to let anyone lead you astray or take advantage of you. Partnerships will be difficult if you cannot maintain equality. Do for others only what they will do for you. CANCER (June 21-July 22): Anger won’t help you advance. Use your imagination, and you’ll come up with an alternative way to get what you want. Change may not be your thing, but if you use your intuitive intelligence, you’ll get good results. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Stay put if you aren’t sure what’s best for you. It doesn’t matter what others do or how persuasive friends or peers can be; if something doesn’t sit right with you, don’t join in. Don’t feel you have to share your thoughts. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Connect with people who have always given you sage advice in the past. An open mind will lead to optimal changes that will help you move forward personally. Travel down a path that is void of divisiveness. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Be open to suggestions. Someone you least expect will offer a solution that will bring about positive change to a partnership that has been on shaky ground. Update your look or your attitude, and it will make people view you differently. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): It’s decision time. Stop pondering over possibilities, and start implementing your ideas. Speak up about the way you feel and what you want to do, and you’ll persuade others to bend to your needs and wishes. Romance is in the stars. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Consider the whole scope of a situation before you make decisions that will affect how you live or the lives of others. A change may be in the cards, but how you go about it will determine the outcome. Pay attention to detail. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Do your research, take care of the paperwork and clear the way. Having an open channel to change will show how thorough and able you are to lead the way. Express your thoughts, nurture meaningful partnerships and embrace new beginnings. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Be careful what you say, who you listen to and what you decide to do. Put everything in place, and concentrate on budgeting, legal matters and who you can call upon for help. Make adjustments based on necessity, not emotions. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Looking back will help you move forward. Take care of matters that affect your physical and emotional well-being. Update your plans, refresh your look and prepare to make changes that will encourage you to follow your heart. Birthday Baby: You are perceptive, convincing and changeable. You are possessive and unique.

Sudoku | The Mepham Group

Jumble | David Hoyt and Jeff knurek

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Sports Authority

Is Baker Mayfield an NFL success? Aidan Thomas Sports Writer

If you want evidence of how hyped Baker Mayfield and the Cleveland Browns were coming into this season, look no further than my brother’s fantasy football draft. Now granted, this was my brother’s first foray into fantasy football, so he can be forgiven for not having an expert-level approach to his draft. Faced with the third overall pick, my brother passed on running backs and wide receivers such as Alvin Kamara, Ezekiel Elliott, and DeAndre Hopkins in order to take a quarterback. You may reason that Patrick Mahomes is a special talent, and some people did jump to take him in the first round. Maybe if that’s who my brother took, you could justify his actions. Rather, he selected Baker Mayfield. Later on, when I confronted him about this highly questionable decision, my brother’s reasoning amounted to, “I heard he was good, and Odell [Beckham Jr.] is on the Browns.” While I won’t rip on my inexperienced brother much more, his reasoning for selecting Baker reflects much of the hype that surrounded Mayfield and his squad entering the 2019 season. Even the most casual of NFL fans had heard this was Cleveland’s year, that Baker was a potential MVP and that paired with Odell Beckham, Nick Chubb, and Jarvis Landry, the Browns would have the most lethal offense in the NFL. And yet, six games into the season, the Browns sit at 2-4, one half game worse than their 2-3-1 mark a year ago. So what happened? Where did the hype feel free to meet reality? Personally, I was never enthralled with the Browns. I thought they would be decent, and probably playoff contenders, but not the Super Bowl dark horse everyone made them out to be. Mayfield, while he delivered a promising rookie campaign, put forth just a 6-7 record as a starter. I believed more in Mayfield’s college coach Lincoln Riley than I believed in Baker. Riley is on his way towards developing a third-straight Heisman Trophy winner, while Mayfield has not truly established himself as a premier signal caller since leaving Oklahoma. Baker was solid in his rookie campaign, putting up a 93.7 passer rating, but he largely capitalized on a bevy of soft defenses. Against teams with winning records, Mayfield threw 10 touchdowns, but also tossed up 11 interceptions. While Mayfield got more credit

than he was due, it was largely an easy schedule and strong defense that carried Cleveland down the stretch. Regardless, Baker and the Browns entered an offseason full of hype, during which they acquired Beckham Jr., making them “instant Super Bowl contenders.” During this time, Baker also began building his brand. Mayfield’s Instagram page is chock-full of numerous advertisements he has appeared in, as he quickly became one of the most recognizable faces in professional football. It was a lot of off-the-field work for a quarterback who, in my opinion, had not truly cemented himself as a high-quality starter in the league. Then week one of the season came, and the world watched as Baker threw three interceptions, getting pummeled by the Tennessee Titans 42-13 at home. Following the initial beatdown, Cleveland has had some good moments, but the Browns, and Baker, have been largely far worse than expected. They beat the Jets in week two, but they only scored 23 points. They put up just 13 points in a loss to the Los Angeles Rams, and then a measly field goal against the 49ers two weeks later. Last week, the Browns started the game with three consecutive touchdowns, but managed just eight points in the final three quarters as a large lead slipped into a second straight loss. Taking out a 40-point performance against the Ravens in week four, the Browns have averaged just 16 points per game in their other five contests this year, as they sit at 2-4 with an 0-3 record at home. Baker himself has thrown just five TDs to 11 picks, putting up an ugly 66.0 passer rating. So the questions still linger: Are the Browns truly a good team? Is Baker Mayfield a good NFL quarterback? His 8-11 record as a starter and ugly start to this season are not promising, but he certainly still has time to turn this season around. But does the former walk-on have the ability to do it? Or has the glow of this former Heisman winner faded as he gets further and further from Lincoln Riley and Oklahoma. The Browns don’t have too much time to wait and find out. And, for the record, neither does my brother: he dropped Baker in favor of Josh Allen and Teddy Bridgewater a week ago. Contact Aidan Thomas at athoma23@nd.edu The views expressed in this Sports Authority are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

Fair Pay to Play Act takes lid off Pandora’s Box Colin Capece Sports Writer

Last week, my colleague and classmate Ellen Geyer shared her thoughts on the recently passed Fair Pay to Play Act. W hile I understand Ellen’s point of v iew and ver y much respect her opinion, I respectfully disagree. A llow me to preface my explanation w ith a brief anecdote. One of the most important moments that I can recall so far in my life was when my mother dragged six year old me to the elementar y school around the corner from our house, took me by the hand, and led me to the middle of the dust y field behind the school. I wanted absolutely no part of pee wee soccer practice on that fall afternoon, but I soon grew to love the beautiful game, and continue to play to this day. But what if my mom had taken her tiny son to basketball practice instead of soccer practice? Like the amazing parent that she is, I’m sure she would have been tr ying to do what was best for her son, and she would have thought “Hey, if he’s good at this, some college is going to pay him a lot of money one day.” After getting blocked at the rim a half a dozen times, it’s not unreasonable to think that six year old Colin would have been so discouraged that he never would have played sports again. My stor y summarizes the potential unintended consequences that California governor Gav in Newsom did not consider when he went on Lebron James’

“The Shop” to sign the Fair Pay to Play Act into law. The bill, which is scheduled to go into effect in 2023, would allow collegiate athletes in California to hire agents, sign endorsement deals and profit off of their image and likeness. W hile I believe the cause that the law is working towards is a noble one, I also believe it w ill establish a terrible precedent that no one could have foreseen. Do I believe that it is completely unfair that collegiate athletes are not compensated beyond scholarships for what they do? Absolutely. Think of the student athletes at national championship w inning schools. At what other place in the United States can you help your firm reach the pinnacle of its ex istence and not be compensated for it? On paper, it really makes no logical sense. However, putting aside the unfairness of the current system for a second, we need to think about the long term affects that this bill w ill have. For any sports league to persist, there needs to be competitive balance, and the main underly ing issue w ith the Fair Pay to Play Act is that it has the potential to completely destroy the competitive balance in college sports. Ever y five star recruit w ill now f lock to California and other states that pass similar bills. Additionally, big time football and basketball programs that are already filling their pockets to the brim w ill just get richer and draw attention away from other sports. Many argue

that the athletes who make big time money by going professional are exceptions, and that the vast majorit y of collegiate athletes w ill never be able to sniff that kind of money in their sports. However, in the new landscape the Fair Pay to Play Act has created, the athletes w ith the potential to go pro w ill still be the exception. The earning potential of Tua Tagovailoa is exponentially greater than the walk on long snapper at A labama if athletes can sign endorsements and profit off of their image and likeness. We also have to consider the effects that a bill like this w ill have on our societ y as a whole. Returning to my opening stor y, many parents are going to start pushing their kids towards sports they probably shouldn’t be play ing because their son or daughter can make more money when they get to the collegiate level. This act w ill absolutely have a domino effect and has the potential to change the sports landscape forever. Additionally, it w ill change how we v iew college sports for the worse. College sports w ill no longer be about pageantr y and supporting an institution w ith a greater purpose. Instead, they w ill exclusively become another means to an end. Contact Colin Capece at ccapece@nd.edu The views expressed in this Sports Authority are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

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The observer | tuesday, october 15, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com

Golf Continued from page 12

putting green, chipping green, bunker, two garage hitting bays and an indoor putting green provide multiple options to combat the often unpredictable weather South Bend provides. There would be no practice sessions this week, however, as a four-foot high platform was constructed on top of the putting surface and 150 lockers were placed on top to ser ve as player locker rooms. Further erosion of the practice area was inevitable, but the USGA promised substantial monetar y help – an estimated $ 60,000, according to Irish head women’s golf coach Susan Holt – to repair the damages and replace it with an entirely new surface when they were done. They stayed true to their word. The event concluded by the first week of July, and the 12-day reconstruction process began two weeks later. The surface has been redone twice before to var ying degrees, but this was the most extreme, Holt said. “They had a bulldozer in there,” Holt said. “I was in here one day and I had stuff falling off the walls. It was a lot of work, but they did a great job and were extremely thorough.” The technolog y complementing the new surface is also cuttingedge, with Notre Dame becoming the 15th school in the nation to have PuttView technolog y. W hile this new tool is predicted to help with recruiting, current players will also look to capitalize on this latest advancement in the game of golf. The PuttView system projects a visual line of break onto the surface based on the undulation of the green, so players can work on stroking their putt on that line and feeling the speed needed to do so. “This allows you to marr y the two: the speed and the line,” Holt said. “And I think the visual aspect of it, the repeat motion and engraining — that feel is huge.” Aside from a few rounds of loud and windy thunderstorms last week, Notre Dame has so far this fall had weather nice enough to allow for outdoor practice, so the new indoor facility has not been in use for an official practice yet. But the Irish golfers know what is coming, and look for ward to the late fall, winter and early spring benefits of the new place.

“I didn’t ever think I’d say I was looking for ward to being inside for extended periods of time, but I feel like this is really going to allow us to be more productive in our training,” Holt said. As with any thing artificial, no matter the technolog y involved, there is going to be a certain degree of adjustment between the indoor turf surface and a real green on the course. But Holt thinks there may be more benefit to practicing on the new indoor surface. “It’s literally like standing on your yardage book,” she said. “It’ll show you the entire slope of the entire surface and put the arrows in for break.” Technolog y like PuttView, especially in golf, is still a relatively new concept that continues to develop. Before the gizmos and gadgets, however, it was a completely different stor y. Holt said she often wonders how she ever played golf in college without all of it — even rangefinders to measure distance. “I was just looking for a little bush that was 150 yards out,” she said. There is an obv ious for ward progression of the game of golf as technolog y advances, but there is also an opinion among professionals and hackers alike that the newly implemented technologies have taken away pure feel. “I really feel like if [the players] are 150 yards out, they don’t know what 150 yards looks like, they don’t feel it in their sw ings,” Holt said in agreement. “I mean, they are laser-ing ever y thing; they’re 30 yards from the green pulling out a rangefinder.” For many of today’s golfers, golfing w ithout rangefinders, simulators or systems like TrackMan and PuttView is a farfetched idea. For Holt and her players, it is also a necessit y. To fail to adapt to change is to fall behind — so the Irish adapt. “You know, I think you just almost have to surrender to it, because if you don’t, you might be losing the edge,” Holt said. “And we work on feel stuff out here in practice. But on the golf course, when ever ybody else has alignment books and all that information, it’s a lot. But if we’re not doing it, we are possibly doing our kids a disser v ice because they don’t have the same information that other people have when they are tr y ing to compete.” Contact Summer Stillson at sstillson01@saintmarys.edu

Photo Courtesy of Josh Bates

Irish sophomore Andrew O’Leary watches his ball at the close of his swing during a golf game this season. The Irish just won their third title of the season after taking first in the Fighting Irish Classic on Oct. 7.

ANN CURTIS| The Observer

Irish junior Abby Heck, swings from the fairway with her iron, careful to complete her swing fully during an exhibition game last season at Warren Golf Course on Aug. 24, 2018.

SMC Sports Continued from page 12

Bethel Inv itational. First and second places were earned by fellow NAIA members no. 8 Indiana Wesleyan and no. 19 Huntington. The Belles posted five scorers in the contest. Sophomore Riley Swope lead the Belles in indiv idual scoring, posting a 20 :54.4 in the race, which

was a 5k. Freshman A lexa Zeese was next for the Belles, improv ing her 5k time by roughly 27 seconds from the National Catholic Inv itational to place 80th overall w ith 72 points. Freshman Julia Bobosk y placed 90th overall w ith 77 points and a time of 21: 02 as she passed a runner from Cornerstone near the end of her race. Sophomore Emily Blank posted a time of 21:19.6 to earn 86 points and a 103rd place finish for

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a personal record 5k time. Sophomore Brigid Conmy rounded out the top five scorers for the Belles, all of whom contributed to the team score, as she posted a time of 21:22.4 to earn 88 points and 107th place. The time marked an improvement of 54 seconds on her 5k time. The Belles w ill head next to the Oberlin InterRegional Rumble this weekend for their next event.

Sports

ndsmcobserver.com | tuesday, october 15, 2019 | The Observer

HCC SPORTS

Holy Cross sports programs discuss season progress, look to build on year’s goals By JIMMY WARD Sports Writer

Men’s Basketball Head coach and interim director of athletics Mike McBride is heading into his seventh year at the helm of the team. During his tenure, he has turned the program around and been able to develop a team that advanced to the CCAC tournament four times in the last five years. The team w ill begin their new season w ith scrimmages Tuesday against Ancilla and Bethel College. McBride spoke on his squad’s dy namic and how he has been able to turn the tide. “The most important thing I think we’ve established had been a really good culture around the team that has developed and grow n and been passed along, year to year,” he said. “The ver y best programs are always player-led. They pass on the core values of our program.” McBride also spoke on the importance of fundamentals and skill development. “There’s not a day goes by that we don’t work on skill development,” he said. “The term we use is brilliance in the basics — we want to be great in the basic things and that sounds simple, it’s not prett y, it’s not glamorous. But we work really hard at developing our players’ indiv idual games fundamentally and skill-w ise.” McBride touched on the goals he has for his squad coming into the new season. “We have some destination goals,” McBride said. “We want to compete at the top of the league, put ourselves in position to w in it and ultimately w in it — regular season and conference tournament. Regular season and conference tournament we want to get into the national tournament. But again, all those are destination goals, meaning that if we don’t do day-by-day what it takes to prepare and improve for those things we’ll never arrive at that destination. Our daily focus is always getting better going 1-0 each day. Getting a little better indiv idually and the fundamentals like we mentioned earlier, getting a little bit better system-w ise, understanding how we play and executing it and getting a little bit better as a team in terms of grow ing closer. If we do that day-by-day

then those other things kind of become by products of that. We talk about [season goals] but we don’t belabor them, they’re not the thing we put right in front of us. Right in front of us — as cliche as it sounds — is the improvement day-by-day we have to build upon over the course of the entire season, or we’ll never be in a position to reach those destination goals.” The team w ill tip off its season Tuesday against Bethel College at 5 p.m. in the Pfeil Center. That scrimmage w ill be followed by one bet ween Bethel and Ancilla College. The Saints w ill then return to the court to take on Ancilla after the conclusion of their opponents matchup.

Women’s Basketball Last year, the Saints recorded their best season on record, tally ing 16 w ins and 16 losses. The program hired head coach Tom Robbins over the summer. Robbins brings 17 years of coaching experience to the table; although the team is going through a rebuilding phase, Robbins seems like the perfect man for the job. He comes to Holy Cross after ser v ing as the head women’s basketball coach at Ancilla College, where he turned a team that had won just six games in three years into a national contender. Robbins discussed how he manages to make mediocre teams achieve greatness. “A change in the culture of expectations is a big deal,” he said. “We want the kids to [have] a hunger to w in basketball games, that is the focus. I didn’t have to worr y about that at Ancilla because they hadn’t won and ever ybody really wanted to w in because they were tired of losing. The biggest concern here [at Holy Cross] is they did get to the .500 mark last year so there is a tendency to be satisfied w ith that. So my first focus was for us not to be satisfied w ith where we are at and tr y to build towards having w inning seasons and consistent w inning seasons. Changing our culture of work ethic and expectations and the amount of energ y and enthusiasm we bring to each day that we practice, each day we’re together as a team has been a focus.” Robbins said the players’ chemistr y and dy namic is

also great. “We don’t have personalities that conf lict and you can have that a lot on a team and you have to learn how to deal w ith that,” Robbins said. “We don’t have that, we’re just naturally blessed w ith indiv iduals whose personalities mesh well together and that has been great. That has helped us get a lot of work done. We haven’t had to get bogged dow n in other issues. We’ve been able to stay to the process, to the course of getting our work done and progressing in what we need to in our offensive and our defensive systems and that sort of thing because we haven’t had to worr y about other things and distractions.” The players also respond well to coaching, Robbins said. “They want to know what our expectations are and they are tr y ing to meet them so that dy namic has been really good,” he said. “One issue we do have is we only have 10 players this year. We lost a few players w ith just the natural situation of hav ing a coaching change, the adjustment that you have from losing a coach. We originally had six freshmen coming in and we only have three. So only hav ing 10 players is really a thin squad. The positive about it is all 10 of them can play at this level there is nobody that is not ready to play at this level, they all have the talent to do it.” The Saints w ill begin their season w ith a scrimmage against Robbin’s prev ious squad, Ancilla College, this weekend on Saturday in the Pfeil Center. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.

Men’s Soccer The Holy Cross men’s soccer squad (7-3-2, 3-2-2 CCAC) has completed the first half of their season w ith a w inning record despite their last t wo games resulting in draws. The Saints failed to continue their six game w in streak when they took a loss to Governor’s State (6-5, 3-4 CCAC) in late September and lost only their third game of the season at the hands of Roosevelt Universit y (8-4, 6-1 CCAC) on Oct. 1. The Saints were able to notch a w in against the 25th ranked team in the countr y in Cardinal Stritch (7-4, 5-1 CCAC). The Saints were led by sophomore midfielder

A xel Valenzuela who contributed on all of the goals scored on the day. He scored the first goal of the match just t wo minutes into the game off an assist from senior for ward Luis CorreaCabral, and he would go on to notch three assists on the day. The next t wo matches for the Saints against Olivet Nazarene Universit y Tigers (4-5-4, 3-3-1 CCAC) and the Universit y of Saint Francis Fighting Saints (IL) (7-33, 4-2-1 CCAC) resulted in 220 total minutes w ithout a score. Despite the matches being uneventful for fans, the Saints can come away from the games w ith some positives. Junior goalkeeper Lew is Tomlinson would make eight saves against the Tigers and would go on to set a career high of 14 saves against the Fighting Saints.

Women’s Soccer The Holy Cross women’s soccer team has also put together an outstanding year in contrast to years past. The Saints recorded a w in against Roosevelt Universit y (1-7-2, 0-6-1 CCAC) on Oct. 2 in Chicago. The only goal of the match came from freshman midfielder Ma’Elena PerezGarcia in the 42nd minute. The w in over Roosevelt would mark the first time in program histor y that the team has recorded five w ins in a season. The Saints would then fall 1-2 to Cardinal Stritch Universit y at home on Oct. 5. Despite jumping out to an early lead w ith a goal from Cernak, assisted by junior defender Audrey Filippo in the 20th minute, the Saints were unsuccessful in closing out the match. Cardinal Stritch responded w ith a goal of their ow n 17 minutes after Cernak’s score. In heartbreaking fashion, the Saints gave up a goal in the 88th minute when Cardinal Stritch’s freshman midfielder Kira Schuster found the back of the net to w in the game. The Saints then lost another home match to Olivet Na zarene Universit y (10-2, 7-0 CCAC) on Oct. 8 despite junior goalkeeper Chole Kane’s 10 saves on the day. The Saints were outshot 18-5 on the day and the t wo goals scored by Olivet Na zarene were both in the last 10 minutes of play. The Saints were able to

jump back up to .500 on the season w ith a 3-1 w in against the Universit y of Saint Francis on the road. Saint Francis jumped out to an early lead, but Lauren Cernak was able to tally t wo scores in the second half to put the Saints up 2-1. Her first goal came in the 47th minute and was assisted by junior midfielder Eleanor Boothman. Her next goal came in the 55th minute w ith the assist credited to freshman midfielder Nicole Cook. Freshman midfielder Oliv ia Shaw would put the game away in the 89th minute w ith an unassisted goal. The Saints w ill travel to Trinit y International Universit y (6-4, 4-1 CCAC) Wednesday to tr y and improve on their recordbreaking season.

Men’s Golf The Saints travelled to Rav isloe Countr y Club in Homewood, Illinois, where they played host to the CCAC Cup. The Saints had won the Cup in the last t wo years, but their streak was halted by the fantastic play of Olivet Na zarene. The Saints had three men finish in the top 10 on the field. Senior Blake Vise led the way, w inning the tournament in terms of indiv idual scoring, shooting a 72 in the first round and a 71 in the second. Freshman Walker Reyes and sophomore Camden Dal Corobbo followed closely behind, both carding scores of 147 to tie for 9th place. Next the Saints w ill travel to Kohler, Wisconsin for the Taylor Inv ite at W histling Straits on Oct. 21.

Women’s Golf The Holy Cross women’s golf team also travelled to Rav isloe Countr y Club to compete in the CCAC Cup. The Saints ended up in 5th place and were led by freshman Kaitly n Va zquez, who finished 3rd overall in the tournament by shooting an 84 on the first day and an 80 in the second round. Freshman Rachel Scherer and sophomore Madison Pool both carded scores of 183 to tie for 15th place. The Saints w ill conclude their fall season when they travel to Kohler, Wisconsin for the Taylor Inv ite at W histling Straits starting on Oct. 21. Contact Jimmy Ward at w ward@hcc-nd.edu

The observer | tuesday, october 15, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com

ND GOLF

Practice facility makeover provides golfers with brand new technology, updated course By SUMMER STILLSON Sports Writer

With the Golden Dome and “Touchdow n Jesus” as a backdrop, the 2019 U.S. Senior Open Championship left its mark on Notre Dame — literally. From June 27-30, Notre Dame’s Warren Golf Course played host to the longawaited event that was the culmination of almost three years of preparation. On a carefully manicured, championship-caliber course, golf fans watched Steve Stricker edge out defending champion Dav id Toms to w in his fifth senior tour event. W hat wasn’t in championship condition, however, was the practice facilit y v isible across the driv ing range, utilized by both the Notre Dame men’s and women’s golf teams. An outdoor driv ing range, see GOLF PAGE 10

ANN CURTIS | The Observer

Irish sophomore golfer Claire Albrecht putts during an exhibition match in her freshman year,at Warren Golf Course on Aug. 8, 2018. With coaches watching from the carts, far off the green, she focused intently, aiming the ball towards the hole in order to make the putt.

SMC SPORTS

Belles fall to opponents in close matches, look to gain momentum in coming games Observer Sports Staff

Volleyball

ANNA MASON | The Observer

Saint Mary’s junior Megan Saunders, preps to send the ball up field during a home match Sept. 4 against Anderson Indiana.

The Belles dropped their match against A lma at home over the weekend 3-0 (2523,25-21, 25-14). A lthough the Belles got ahead early in the first set w ith a five point lead, A lma quick ly pulled off a four point run to come w ithin a point of Saint Mar y’s. Junior middle hitter Lindsey Pelletier recorded a clutch kill follow ing the A lma run, but A lma would go on to score three points in a row to gain a 12-11 lead. The match would eventually be tied at 23, but A lma came up clutch in the end to gain a 1-0 lead on the match. The Belles came back w ith a vengeance in the second set, however, and they gained a 10-4 lead quick ly, thanks in large part to the efforts of senior outside hitter Nicole Lukens, who recorded four consecutive kills on the run. The Scots would come back, taking a 19-18 lead during the

homestretch, and although the set would be tied at 2020, A lma would pull away w ith a four point run before ending the set w ith a 25-21 v ictor y. A lthough the Belles pulled w ithin a point of the Scots at three separate points early on in the third set, the Scots would eventually go on an eight point run to gain an 18-10 lead. They pulled away w ith the set, and the match, follow ing the run, w inning the final set by a score of 25-14.

Soccer The Saint Mar y’s soccer team dropped a close match against the A lma Scots at home over the weekend by a score of 4-3. Sophomore for ward Lex i Trombly struck first for the Belles, as she handed Saint Mar y’s an early 1-0 w ith a goal in the 18th minute. Freshman defender Sophia Fleming would add to the lead in the 25th minute, making it 2-0 w ith plent y

of game to play. The Scots would respond before the half was over, however, making the score 2-1 heading into the first half. The Belles came out w ith a good pace in the second half as well, as sophomore for ward Rose Stack house scored after the ball def lected off the goalkeeper in the 56th minute. It was Stack house’s 10th goal of the season and it gave the Belles a solid 3-1 lead. The Scots would respond w ith a goal of their ow n t wo minutes later, however, and they went on to carr y that momentum to v ictor y, scoring in the 77th and 79th minutes to w in 4-3. The Belles w ill play at home again tonight against Calv in at 7: 00 p.m.

Cross Countr y The Saint Mar y’s cross countr y team posted a 15th place finish on Friday at St. Patrick’s Count y Park in the see SMC SPORTS PAGE 10