March 23, 2012 - The Brandeis Hoot

Volume 9 Number 9

www.thebrandeishoot.com

Brandeis University’s Community Newspaper • Waltham, Mass.

March Madness, climate edition

France shooting rattles Jewish community Campus responds to act of violence

By Aly Schuman Staff

an escape from the heat Students participate in sprinkler party on the Great Lawn on Thursday.

photo by nate rosenbloom/the hoot

News Analysis

Competing narratives in student manager story

By Gilda DiCarli Staff

In response to a Hoot article last week discussing a decline in student manager positions at Usdan, Aaron Bennos, director of Dining Services, contested the decline was intentional.

“As we determine those who have the desire to become a student manager and are willing to take on more responsibility we gladly promote them,” Bennos wrote in an e-mail last Friday.

Bennos, who was handing out ice cream to students on the Great Lawn

Thursday afternoon, did not respond to repeated requests for further comment this week.

There has been a noticeable drop in the number of student managers at Usdan from six to seven working there before last year to three now, according to current student managers, Ben Sargent ’13 and Jesse Manning ’13. Student managers in Usdan typically work on the floor and are required to know how to work every station. They make sure the other student workers are doing their jobs.

There are currently three student managers working in Usdan, but

Admin, underage differ on fake IDs

By Marissa Budlong Staff

In an area where one-fourth of the population is under the age of 21, Boston and surrounding cities are in a constant struggle with the overwhelming amount of underage college students using fake identification as a means to obtain alcohol.

A recent study found that about 20 percent of all underage college students’ use or own fake identification of some form. Whether or not this is the percentage at Brandeis University, using fake identification is not uncommon.

Students interviewed mentioned knowing at least one person at Brandeis who had attained false identification and often had experiences with it him or herself. Still, views on

the issue often differed. All students interviewed chose to represent themselves anonymously in order to separate from the issue publicly even if he or she did not personally obtain any form of false identification.

Opinions on the use of false identification vary among the students and faculty of Brandeis University. Generally, faculty worry about the safety, while the students fret about the consequences of being caught.

There is also debate among each concerning the laws pertaining to false identification and the moral responsibility held by the students who obtain it.

“I think what a lot of students don’t understand is that it’s actually more serious than people think,” Dean of See FAKE ID, page 3

“some of their responsibilities are administrative as well,” Bennos wrote.

Sargent said that one of the student managers does not work on the floor and instead handles payroll.

There are other food service locaSee ARAMARK, page 3

March 23, 2012

Despite the university’s large Jewish population, Director of Public Safety Ed Callahan, said there is no cause for alarm after three children and a rabbi were shot and killed at a Jewish school in Toulouse, France, on March 19. In response to the incident on Monday in which a man opened fire at the Ozar Hatorah school before fleeing on a motorbike, New York City has assigned extra security patrols to guard Jewish institutions, like schools and synagogues, in case of a copycat or second incident.

“At this point of time, there are no obvious concerns to our community, but we must be vigilant and report any suspicious occurrences to the proper law enforcement authorities,” Callahan said.

Fred Hazan ’13, a French Jewish student, said he does not feel threatened here at Brandeis.

“So, first there has been no evidence that this guy chose specifically a Jewish school; it might have been a random choice,” Hazan said.

Hazan referred to the suspected connection between this shooting and two others that occurred days earlier when three black soldiers

were killed in Toulouse and Montauban in France. The gunman also fled on a motorbike at these occasions, and it is suspected that the guns used for all the attacks are the same.

“Overall, there is some anti-Semitism in France, but I feel that we are well protected; there has always been policemen in front of my synagogue,” Hazan said.

Dan Lahmi ’13, also a French Jewish student, said that, while he has never been to Toulouse, he felt especially connected to the victims because they were Jewish.

“I do not fear similar attack at Brandeis, not because the security is higher but just because the killing was the act of a lonely man who probably has the same psychological features [as] the killer, Breivik, in Norway [who massacred 69 people and wounded several others out of Islamophobia],” Lahmi said.

“It happened in France but it could have happened anywhere else on earth, in my opinion.”

Police in France have cornered the suspect, Mohamed Merah, in his home in Toulouse. Merah had previously been arrested in Afghanistan for creating bombs, but escaped later in a breakout of Taliban members, and claims membership to al-Qaida.

He has told the police that his attacks were done to protest the French involvement in Afghanistan and to avenge the deaths of Palestinian children.

Union pushes for extended Einsteins’ hours

By Zach Reid Staff

After the successful campaign to extend the C-Store hours, the Student Union has moved on to Einsteins.

Student Union President Herbie Rosen ’12 stated that the C-Store campaign “went pretty well,” and the Union will keep the lessons it learned there in mind with the Einstein Bros. campaign.

Currently, Senator Ricky Rosen ’14 is spearheading the campaign.

Ricky Rosen told The Hoot that this effort resulted when “the Senate Dining Committee re-examined the dining hours of all locations on campus” after last semester’s CStore efforts.

Upon deciding that the hours of Einsteins could be a good target for this semester, the Student Union sent out a survey that received a response from one-fourth of the student body, according to Ricky Rosen. Of that roughly 750 students, 96 percent reported that they were dissatisfied with Einsteins’ hours of operation.

See UNION, page 2

einstein bros bagels

photo by nate rosenbloom/the hoot

NEWS

2 The Brandeis Hoot

March 23, 2012

Scientists receive Canada Gairdner Award

By Connor Novy Editor

On the heels of Dr. Michael Rosbash’s latest appointment as the Peter Gruber Chair of Neuroscience, he and Brandeis Professor Emeritus Jeffrey C. Hall have been awarded the Canada Gairdner Award for their discoveries involving the biological clock and its effects on the circadian rhythm, according to an announcement from President Fred Lawrence this week.

Rosbash was recently appointed the first Peter Gruber Endowed Chair in Neuroscience, established through a gift from the Peter and Patricia Gruber Foundation last week. He is the director of the Brandeis National Center for Behavioral Genomics. He and Hall were awarded the Canada Gairdner Award as “medical researchers whose work contributes significantly to improving the quality of human life,” for their work involving the circadian rhythm of fruit flies, according to a BrandeisNOW release.

They share the award with a Rockefeller University researcher, Professor Michael C. Young.

The Canada Gairdner Award was established in 1959 in Toronto, Canada, to recognize accomplishments of biomedical researchers. It is often a precursor to a Nobel Prize—nearly

a third of the scientists awarded the Canada Gairdner Award subsequently won a Nobel. According to Rosbash, it helps the scientific community communicate their discoveries effectively with the public.

Rosbash, Hall and Young’s own discoveries have the potential practically to improve the quality of life of many people.

Their research revealed the relatively small group of genes responsible for the daily patterns, beginning with the individual cells. Tiny mutations of the genes can change the way the clocks shift the behavior and physiology of organisms.

It is, according to the Gairdner Foundation, the first inroad that scientists had to understanding the “biological machine” that controls certain aspects of human behavior. The foundation lauded the 20-year work of the Rosbash and Hall labs at Brandeis and their impact on the scientific community.

The discovery has the potential to create more effective sleep-aid drugs as well as cures for jet lag and methods to “combat certain forms of depression,” according to the Gairdner foundation, especially those based on seasons and other biological cycles.

The circadian rhythm is involved not only with sleep. Organs like the brain, lungs and heart use it to control their own, different rhythms.

Crime. A MacBook was stolen either in the Shapiro Campus Center or in Olin-Sang while the owner was in the bathroom on March 12.

The following day, on March 13, an undetermined amount of money was stolen from the backpack of a Brandeis student, left unattended in the Shapiro Campus Center. On the same day, an unattended laptop was stolen from an office on an upper floor of the Campus Center.

photo from brandeisnow

dr. michael rosbash

“Michael and his colleagues discovered the genetic basis for biological rhythms fundamental to life because they control when we sleep and are wakeful,” Provost Steve Goldstein told BrandeisNOW, “how we absorb food and expend energy and how well we resist disease. His work shows how basic science can both explain and improve the human experience.”

Michael Rosbash is also a Howard Hughes Medical Investigator and a member of the National Academy

of Science, as well as the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Hall is also a member of both the National Academy of Science and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, as well as the 2003 recipient of the Genetics Society of America Medal.

In 2011, the three researchers were awarded the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize from Columbia University and two years prior to that, the Peter and Patricia Gruber Foundation awarded them its Neuroscience Prize.

Union pushes for extended hours UNION, from page 1

Based on the data, Ricky Rosen said that he realized these hours “were something that needed to be prioritized.” The Senate Dining Committee then decided primarily to lobby for increased hours on Sunday morning, as this was when the majority of students surveyed said they would prefer increased hours.

“Einsteins is a breakfast location,” Ricky Rosen said, “and having a nice breakfast option on lower campus seems only natural.”

He also stated that he would work with the Senate Dining Committee to try and have the trial period con-

ducted in April, so that any extensions on Einsteins’ hours would be in place by the time finals season comes around.

According to Ricky Rosen, progress has already been made on this front.

He met with Aaron Bennos, the head of Dining Services, and told The Hoot that Bennos seemed “very receptive” to the proposed increase in hours.

Herbie Rosen also attested to the effectiveness of having hard data to show to administrators as proof that extended hours would be not only cost-effective, but profitable as well.

He stated that this “really helped with the C-Store campaign.”

Due to this need for hard data and statistics, the Student Union

The Brandeis Brief

will be pushing for a trial period of extended hours, as this will provide the Senate Dining Committee with the required information to present to Dining Services. Ricky Rosen commented that such a trial period would be incredibly successful, if adequately publicized to the student body.

Ricky Rosen also told The Hoot that the Union would only be seeking an extension of Einsteins’ hours, and wouldn’t be asking for anything else, such as a price reduction.

“How they manage their business is not something we deal with, nor should it be” he said.

Aramark does not explicitly own Einsteins, which is owned by its parent corporation, like Quiznos.

Because Aramark is ”logistically a

major presence on campus,” according to Ricky Rosen, “they have the most discretion” with operational matters of dining establishments on campus.

Aramark could not be reached for comment on this matter. Herbie Rosen stated, however, “Aramark keeps the Student Union updated” on its part in these efforts, and has itself “been very receptive to the Union’s input.”

Crime. On March 16, an individual reported their laptop stolen while left unattended in Village C. The next day, a female reported her laptop and camera stolen in Gosman.

Community. The Brandeis board of trustees announced that Donald Zimring will take charge of the Brandeis Hillel Day School after the departure of its current director, Chaim Heller. Zimring is the superintendent of the Las Virgenes Unified School District in Southern California.

Faculty. Dr. Irene Pepperberg, Brandeis University and Harvard University faculty, will hold a lecture at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on whether African Grey Parrots can comprehend their own speech. She is an internationally known animal behaviorist and has been featured on “NOVA,” Animal Planet and the BBC. In 2006, she received the Frank A. Beach Comparative Psychology Award from the American Psychological Association.

University. Brandeis has been named one of the universities on the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for 2012. It is the second year Brandeis has received the honor, the first in 2010. It distinguishes Brandeis as an institution with exemplary actions in their communities.

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March 23, 2012

NEWS 3

The Brandeis Hoot

Revisions to Student Union Constitution would streamline Senate

By Zach Reid Staff

In recent weeks, the Student Union Senate has been mired in debate over proposed changes to the Constitution. These changes include “how the Union is set up, improving communication with different corners on campus” and “increasing the overall effectiveness of the Union,” according to Student Union President Herbie Rosen ’12.

Herbie Rosen believes the Senate could be doing a better job, and said he would be “having some tough conversations” with people about “positions that aren’t living up to their mission.” He said that he “thinks we can be messy … and I want to set a better standard for the Union to live by.”

Currently, clubs are required to submit to two separate votes by the

Senate for both recognition and chartering. Additionally, a club must make a presentation to the Financial Board in order to seek funding from the Student Union. Senator Ricky Rosen ’14 explained that clubs previously “required a majority vote from the Senate to be recognized and then chartered.”

In response to these issues, Herbie Rosen commented that the Senate had voted to increase the required number of votes for chartering a club to a two-third majority, as opposed to a 50 percent one.

“We wanted to avoid overburdening the Financial Board and their resources,” he said. He also mentioned the prospect of assigning a “Senator Buddy” to each club, who would testify to the club’s effectiveness and merit.

These new revisions would require club founders and members to “be

more prepared to spear for their club and its goals,” Herbie Rosen said. The overall goal would not be to make the process of becoming recognized “more challenging or imposing, but to make sure the clubs are prepared when they get to the Senate.”

Herbie Rosen also stated it has been brought up that the Senate has “not been adhering to some of the constitutional provisions … with regard to clubs and charters.” He claimed that the wording of these provisions was “a little unclear, vague and at times not discernible,” which has resulted in senators not being able accurately to follow them.

One recent example of the flawed execution of the laws dealing with clubs would be the new chapter of FaceAIDS. Village Quad Senator Ben Beutel ’12 said in an interview that the club’s significant similarity to the Student Global AIDS Campaign seemed

For underage, a fake ID dilemma

like “a blatant violation of duality of purpose” under the existing clause.

He also stated that the meeting dealing with FaceAIDS was rushed, due to the occurrence of the Super Bowl later that evening.

This process of revision is not without its fair share of conflict. Beutel told The Hoot that he had quit working on the amendment process because he “lost faith in the Senate as an institution.”

During a recent meeting to address a series of amendment proposals, “multiple senators argued … that the rules in and of themselves are irrelevant” and then proceeded to veto the amendments. These proposals would have “made existing rules ‘easier’ to follow, but were opposed because the Senate doesn’t currently follow those rules at all,” Beutel said.

The current club rules have also resulted in some technical violations.

The Special Olympics Club, which was approved for recognition with an 11-6 vote, had not held an organizational meeting before coming before the Senate, a clear violation of the rules, according to Beutel. He stated that the vote was divided “because Special Olympics had not had an organization meeting”—while not the most egregious breach of the rules, it represents a deliberate move by the Senate to ignore the current rules on club recognition.

When asked if these changes could be expected by the end of the year, Beutel stated he believes that both “a massive overhaul of the [Senate’s] bylaws is necessary,” and a major effort to “make the Senate follow the bylaws” are needed.

He believes this is unlikely to occur this year, however, due to “stubborn resistance to even the most simple of changes” from the Senate.

News Analysis: Official account of student managers does not add up ARAMARK, from page 1

photo by ingrid schulte/the hoot

FAKE ID, from page 1

Student Life Rick Sawyer said.

Sawyer says that the use of false identification to obtain alcohol affects more than just the students themselves—it affects the individuals selling the alcohol. Under Massachusetts State Law, any individual who sells alcohol and receives a form of false identification must report it to the local police. The consequences of not doing so would make the individual civilly responsible for any crime committed by the minor who bought the alcohol.

Others believe that it is not the students who are in the wrong, but the law. Many students find the law to

be unreasonable for someone who is considered an adult.

“I disagree with the drinking age in the United States,” mentioned one student who enjoys the perks of false identification. “If you’re allowed to vote, you should be able to drink.”

The student also mentioned how it is not common in European countries to have false identification since the drinking age is lower than that of the United States.

“Laws are in place for a reason,” one first-year said. “The use of alcohol needs to be used responsibly.”

In the state of Massachusetts, it is a felony to be convicted of obtaining false identification. The possible

outcomes of this felony are imprisonment for up to three months, a fine of $200 and a license suspension of one year.

According to Sawyer, Waltham Police trust Brandeis administrators to take false identification seriously and often let them to deal with this form of student misconduct through the university. If the situation is that of a first offense and depending on the student’s attitude, the student could be let off with a warning. Occasionally students are also summoned to court.

“Students may feel otherwise, but my perception of how the police and the city reacts to our students break-

tions that employ student managers but, just by its station structure, Usdan’s student managers have a more noticeable effect on the quality of service. If student workers need to take a break or do not show up to work, student managers are often the ones to cover their stations. If there is not a student manager working at a given shift, union and student workers are spread thin to cover the stations.

The decision to promote workers to student managers reflects more than a change in pay. Rather, it represents a position of leadership, enabling students to demonstrate their experience, skills and motivation to excel at the job. It rewards students who have consistently performed their jobs with notable distinction. The purpose in promoting them is to increase efficiency and provide an additional layer of communication between workers and senior management. Further, the student manager position enhances oversight and enforcement of student responsibilities and conduct.

Interviews with student workers, student managers and supervisors reflect a disconnect between layers of Aramark’s employee structure. There is confusion among student workers between the position of “supervisor” as opposed to “manager,” because they are used interchangeably in speech although the positions are quite different.

The supervisor position is the step between student and professional manager, and professional managers deal more specifically with scheduling, Sargent explained. Professional managers are often overworked and unaware of the instances when students do not show up to their shifts or show up late. When there were six to seven student managers, or approximately one per shift, student managers were able to fill in gaps by covering student workers’ stations. But the reduction of student managers has resulted in a lack of efficiency, enforcement and student accountability.

Union workers are even less frequently informed regarding scheduling changes for student worker shifts.

Interviews this week revealed that the three student managers who work in Usdan were not aware of who the other two student managers were.

Becky Starzyk ’12, a former student manager of Quizno’s, explained the sense of ambiguity attached to this

photo by nate rosenbloom/the hoot

aaron bennos

position.

Other than a pay raise, there was little else to indicate her status. She was not even given a uniform to distinguish herself from other student workers. “I just tried to be more efficient and act with more authority,” Starzyk said.

Ultimately, turnover in middle management and drop in number of student managers at Usdan impact quality of service. The constant change in authority figures affect student accountability, according to Manning. If student managers do not see consequences to laziness, they lose motivation to do their job well.

Further, lapses in communication between levels of the employment structure result in disorganization and slow service. The dilemma for Aramark is to address these organizational challenges.

Frequent turnover among supervisor and student manager positions means that often employees have not stayed long enough to set the standard for their co-workers. The challenge for Aramark as it promotes students to become managers is to establish consistency and understanding—to create organizational clarity between its workers and supervisors.

4 The Brandeis Hoot

hoot scoops

March 23, 2012

At Relay, Brandeis raises $77,000 to fight cancer

relay zumba Students gather to learn Zumba from Student Events staff member Sarah Richardson.

By Yael Katzwer Editor

Brandeis’ Relay For Life last weekend coupled with the various events that the Relay committee held throughout the year raised $77,000 for cancer research, $12,000 more than last year.

At Relay For Life, a national event sponsored by the American Cancer Society, teams of people camp out around the track overnight and often sell baked goods, lanyards and souvenirs to raise money. While part of the team is raising funds, at least one member of each team presumably walks around the track in solidarity with those who have been affected by cancer.

Relay began in 1985 when Dr. Gordy Klatt of Tacoma, Wash., decided to raise money for his local American Cancer Society office by doing something he loved—running marathons. Klatt circled the track for 24 hours and raised $27,000. That was only the beginning.

Relay is an annual tradition at Brandeis but this year it had a somewhat different feel thanks to Hannah Katcoff ’12, the event chair. Among Katcoff ’s responsibilities, she managed all the subcommittees, lead weekly meetings to iron out logistics and served as Brandeis’ liaison to the American Cancer Society. Katcoff became involved with Relay her first year at Brandeis “as a way to fight back to a disease that has taken far too much. Cancer has affected many of my family members, and Relay is a time to think about cancer’s huge impact,” Katcoff told The Hoot.

“For the first time ever we got food donations from several Waltham restaurants,” Katcoff said. “We made

over $300 from selling dinner, which felt essential because of our time change.” In previous years, Relay was held from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m and this year it was held from 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. Katcoff continued, “We brought back the dunk tank (from 2009) and karaoke (from 2009 and 2010) … We introduced Zumba with Sarah Richardson [a Student Activities staff member] which participants enjoyed very much.”

While the Relay committee instituted several changes to the actual event, they also used other events to raise Relay’s profile on campus.

“While Relay remains an important and powerful even on campus, I feel like it has grown tremendously and has become a staple on Brandeis campus,” Katcoff said. “Part of my goal this year was to make Relay a year-long event. I wanted to spread awareness and raise money yearround. Hence, we put on Jail and Bail, Rumba with International Club and Relay For Lit.” Holding Relay events throughout the year both raised more money and got students excited about participating. This year’s Relay had many more participants than last year’s event.

“We had 88 teams and 858 people registered this year,” Katcoff said.

“Last year we had 80 teams and 795 participants.”

Despite the increase to Relay’s crowd, the event seemed smaller.

There always seemed to be less people walking around the track at any given time than there had been in previous years and by 1 a.m. many participants had left, leaving the Gosman gym eerily empty. “I want to say that other St. Patrick’s Day celebrations prevented students from staying the entire time, but when I asked around,

walking the track Student participants keep things lighthearted as they circle the track..

photo by ingrid schulte/the hoot

it seemed that people were leaving because they had exams this week,” Katcoff explained. She also believes that some people left earlier than in past years because the evening began earlier, “so I feel like by [midnight], people were starting to go home because they had already been in Gosman for seven hours.”

In future years, Katcoff hopes that faculty and staff will become more involved with Relay. “Every year we try to encourage faculty and staff to come participate in Relay,” Katcoff said. “Some express interest, but there usually isn’t much follow up.

Members from Dining Services and Department of Community Living participate and President Lawrence and Andrew Flagel came this year. I would like to see Relay become more of a Brandeis community event in the future.”

Ceremonies Every Relay For Life in this country is different, from the teams participating to the activities offered.

Yet, constant in every Relay is the three ceremonies that take place in the course of the event.

The first ceremony is the Survivors Lap in which cancer survivors proudly circle the track to show that they beat cancer and to celebrate the victories of those around them.

The last ceremony, held at 2 a.m., is the Fight Back ceremony in which participants pledge to fight back against this disease and not remain passive. Some personal pledges include a promise to quit smoking or to go to regular doctor check-ups. “I wish that the Fight Back ceremony had been earlier in the night,” Katcoff said, “so that participants could expe-

photo by ingrid schulte/the hoot

rience all three ceremonies.”

It is the middle ceremony, however, that really shows the effects cancer has had on so many lives. Although the ceremony took place at 10:30 p.m., participants began preparing for it earlier in the night. Small paper bags were decorated and dedicated to those who have had cancer and, directly before the ceremony, glow sticks were placed in these bags to illuminate them. In the center of Gosman Gym stood a giant Luminaria bag on which participants could write personal messages to loved ones affected by cancer.

At the appointed time, the lights in the gym were dimmed and every participant gathered around the giant bag to throw glow sticks into it. The ceremony begins slowly, with survivors coming forward each to throw a glow stick into the bag. Then, more people come forward to honor parents, offspring and siblings affected by cancer. It is the final part of the ceremony, however, that never fails to move many people to tears.

People who have had a grandpar-

ent, aunt, uncle, cousin, etc. who has been affected by cancer are welcomed to throw glow sticks into the bag. At this point, nearly the entire room surged forward and it took nearly a minute for everyone to finish throwing their glow sticks into the bag. Seeing the amount of people who have been affected by cancer, either personally or through a relative or family friend always moves students beyond words.

“I have participated in Relay for Life for a number of years in my hometown, and found the Luminaria ceremony to be extremely meaningful and moving,” Judith Giller-Leinwohl ’15, a Luminaria co-chair, told The Hoot. “At the beginning of the year I was on general committee, but when the position for Luminaria co-chair opened up and I was offered the spot, I was very excited! It means a lot to me … my mom passed away from cancer when I was 13, and I find the Luminaria ceremony a time to look back on that loss and connect with others affected by cancer.”

“I was drawn to the Luminaria

luminaria Students write messages to loved ones.

photo by ingrid schulte/the hoot

March 23, 2012

FEATURES 5

The Brandeis Hoot

face painting Bad Grammar painted faces to raise money.

photo by ingrid schulte/the hoot

music Various bands, a cappella groups and DJs entertained all night..

photo by ingrid schulte/the hoot

Students rally at Relay to combat cancer committee following my first Brandeis Relay For Life experience,” Sarah Hirsch ’12, a Luminaria co-chair, said. “Seeing the Brandeis community come together to grieve collectively and share an extremely emotional moment with each other was amazing to me. Once I was on the other side of the ceremony, each picture and name that I was sent was a piece of someone from our community. To me that was the most important and rewarding part, being the outlet for someone to share their story, their love, and their memories.”

Directly before the Luminaria ceremony, Giller-Leinwohl and Hirsch showed two slideshows; one, a staple of the Brandeis Luminaria ceremony, featured the names and images sent in by Brandeis students of the people close to them who had or have cancer. The other slideshow was recently made by the American Cancer Society in honor of caregivers. During these slideshows the Brandeis a cappella group Starving Artists performed Sarah Mclachlan’s “Angel.”

“I think this year’s Luminaria ceremony went very well,” said GillerLeinwohl. “Knowing how many people have been affected by cancer, knowing the pain that accompanies any encounter with the disease, our hope is that the ceremony allows everyone affected by cancer to come together and realize no one is alone in the fight.”

Shaving it up One of the odder fundraising methods occurred at 1 a.m. when four boys shaved for the cause. Kevin Landsman ’12 shaved his entire head and half his beard at around midnight to show those still awake how insane it was and to urge them to donate more money. Each of the four boys, not including Landsman, were given certain amounts of money they needed to collect and, if they collected that money between midnight and 1 a.m., they would shave. While shaving one’s head is a fun way to raise money, it is also an act of solidarity with those who have lost their hair to cancer treatments.

The first boy to shave at 1 a.m. was

Jeremy Fineberg ’12 who shaved his iconic beard. Although Fineberg only had to raise $50 to shave his beard, he raised a lot more as all of his friends put money into his can while cracking jokes at his expense. After counting his money, Fineberg climbed the makeshift stage in the center of Gosman and allowed himself to be shaved.

“I had that beard for two and a half years,” Fineberg said. “I had no desire at all to shave my head, but I figured that there were enough people who were interested in seeing me without facial hair who would be willing to donate money to a great cause.” He was right.

“It feels very different, a little cold actually,” he continued. “Also many of my friends keep making jokes about me looking like a 12 year old.”

Nathan Young ’15 shaved his entire head after raising his money; beforehand he had sported long, curly locks of hair. “I wanted to shave my head as soon as I saw it was an event,” Young said. “Before I got donations I felt as if I was not obligated to do it, and sometimes when I told a friend I wanted to do it, it was just to see his or her reaction. But once I got donations, I felt compelled.”

Jeremy Perlman ’14 possibly underwent the most drastic depilation.

Perlman not only shaved his long beard but also cut off eight inches of hair to donate to Pantene. “I was getting a little nervous about cutting my hair … but I knew I would cut it soon anyway, so I went through with it,” Perlman told The Hoot. “I started growing my hair out in freshman year of high school and my last haircut before this one was the summer before my first year at Brandeis.”

In order to cut so much hair, Perlman had to raise $200. At the time of Fineberg’s shaving, Perlman was just shy of $200 as he walked around with his bucket of money. He had a bucket whereas the others had cans because he had to collect so much more. Once Perlman appealed to the small crowd, however, they quickly donated the rest of the money, going beyond the previously needed $200.

The last boy to shave his head was Rohan Narayanan ’15. He had his fel-

shaving Jeremy Fineberg ’12 and Rohan Narayanan ’15 (right).

low teammates, who all live in Renfield in Massell Quad, come on stage and they each got a turn to shear their teammate. “I originally decided to shave my head for Relay when a friend of mine saw the head shave challenge announcement in a Student Union e-mail and suggested that I do it,” Narayanan said. “I actually made up my mind not to, until they called my name, and I decided that it would be a lot of fun and a great way to raise some more money.”

As his friends were shaving his head, Narayanan kept worriedly asking, “What’s going on?” and “Is everything OK?” Although Narayanan came off the stage with a few nicks here and there, he was no worse for the wear—just bald.

The individuals who comprise Relay Eighty-eight teams participated in this year’s Relay For Life and, although each team was drawn together for a different reason, they each endeavored to raise money to fight cancer and to have a good time.

It would be impossible to discuss each team involved in Relay but this sampling shows the diversity of the teams.

One team, the Organic OncoFighters, was composed almost entirely of students taking organic chemistry this year. “We decided we would embody the science wholeheartedly!” Elizabeth Allen ’14, the team’s captain, said.

Allen, who is majoring in Classical Studies and Neuroscience on the premed track, is one of the Survivorship Chairs for Colleges Against Cancer.

“I enjoy raising money and awareness for a disease that had affected and hurt—yet inspired—so many,” Allen said.

Although this was only Allen’s second time participating in Relay— her first time was last year as a firstyear—she has grown to love Relay.

“As a cancer survivor, I feel that Relay is such a wonderful way to celebrate life,” Allen said. “It’s such an amazing feeling to be surrounded by caring friends and other supportive people.

If anything, I would say Relay has

photos courtesy of jeremy perlman and rohan narayanan

a stronger, deeper meaning for me than most people. I feel personally connected, and I embrace the energy and excitement of the event because I know all too well that cancer never sleeps.

“I was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2004 when I was 11,” Allen continued. “I had surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, and now I’m cancer free! My amazing family, friends and community are what got me through the tough times, and I love them so much. I feel like being a survivor gives me a whole new outlook on life; I realize now how precious it is, and I plan to enjoy and make the most of every minute.”

While Allen’s team, Organic OncoFighters, was drawn together by their class, the Best Union of Cancer Opposers (BUCO) was drawn together by religion (BUCO also stands for Brandeis University Conservative Organization). The 16-member team “participated in Relay For Life in the name of tikkun olam, which in the literal Hebrew means repairing the world. We came together to honor those who have passed from cancer and to support those who are still suffering in our effort to repair the world and make it a better place,” Tali Friedland ’14, BUCO’s team captain, said.

To raise money, the team sold temporary tattoos and sandwiches made from things such as fluff and Nutella; they even provided fun cookie cutters so one could shape one’s sandwiches into ducks or stars.

“My grandmother survived breast cancer, and my grandfather has been living with lymphoma for over a decade,” Friedland said. “I participated to support them as well as to support my friends and their family members.

And I was especially proud to participate with BUCO this year in our mission to make the world a better place.”

The team Dakota’s Love Pals, led by Lauren Gendzier ’12, is different from many of the other teams at Relay in that the members were not joined together by a club or a class but by pure friendship. “Having a team of friends that is not centered on a specific club or activity has its advantages and disadvantages,” Gendzier said. “Sometimes friends will not join my team

allies Triskelion’s team shows off their wares.

because they are expected to join other teams. When my friends are able to join, however, they encourage their friends to join and it makes for a fun way to get more people involved who might not have gotten involved because they didn’t have a team to join.”

The team raised money by selling baked goods and lanyards for participants to play with as they walked around the track. Several customers joked that the lanyard, which was the colors of Relay, purple and white, reminded them of summer camp.

“I was one of the founders of a club in high school called Lake Brantley Love Letters where we would write letters and send gifts to critically and terminally ill children,” Gendzier said. “My junior year, I found out that the four-year-old daughter of one of my dad’s coworker named Dakota had a brain tumor … When I decided to form a team at Brandeis’ Relay for Life my first year, I decided that ‘Dakota’s Love Pals’ would be the perfect name.” Gendzier plans to continue participating in Relays after she graduates as the leader of Dakota’s Love Pals.

The team Allied Against Cancer, made good use of their name as this Triskelion-funded team invited “allies” of all identities to participate.

“My team guarantees a safe space for all members, regardless of sex, gender or sexual orientation,” Naomi Rodriguez ’15, Allied Against Cancer’s team leader, explained.

To raise money, the team sold rainbow-colored cupcakes and kosher rainbow lollipops, and Triskelion President Halee Brown ’13 taught passersby how to make gimp bracelets. Their most successful fundraiser was henna, which a few teams offered.

“I found out about Relay for Life in high school,” Rodriguez said. “We come together to share in the pain of loss; then we are revitalized by mutual understanding and shared determination to prevent this horrid disease from taking any more of our loved ones.

“We honor those who have won the fight, we support those who are still struggling and we remember those who fought so hard, but lost the battle. We fight back for them.”

photo by ingrid schulte/the hoot

ImpressiOns

6 The Brandeis Hoot

March 23, 2012

The Katzwer’s Out of the Bag

A New York Times dilemma: to print or not to print

By Yael Katzwer Editor

Newspapers and other news sources are in a self-reflective business; while we certainly cover the events, politics, etc., we love to cover other newspapers. This proclivity became very obvious during the News of the World scandal this past summer. Although the readers eventually became bored with the story, the newspapers kept writing articles and placing them prominently in the papers. The reason newspapers do this so much is that it provides newspapermen with the opportunity to ask themselves: What would I have done? And everyone loves a good internal argument.

Last week there was a ministorm—perhaps a heavy rain—swirling around The New York Times and their advertisements. On March 9 the paper ran an ad bought by Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation. The atheist organization’s advertisement urged Catholics to turn from the Church, asking them: “Why send your children to parochial schools to be indoctrinated into the next generation of obedient donors and voters?” The advertisement went on and accompanied a cartoonish and unflattering portrayal of a bishop with a scathing critique of the Church, which, according to the ad, had “two decades of sex scandals involving preying priests, church complicity, collusion and cover-up going all the way to the top.”

Then, last week, in response to this ad, a woman named Pamela Gellar, a blogger and executive director of Stop Islamization of America, created a similar ad, this one featuring a cartoonish imam and an appeal to Muslims to abandon Islam. The ad featured statements like “[Why do] you keep identifying with the ideology that threatens liberty for women and menaces freedom by slaughtering, oppressing and subjugating

non-Muslims?” and “Join those of us who put humanity above the vengeful, hateful and violent teachings of Islam’s ‘prophet.’”

This should not come as a surprise to you but the Times refused to print the ad even though they had already printed the previous anti-Catholicism ad and even though Gellar offered the same amount of money. New York Times spokeswoman Eileen Murphy released a statement that read: “We have not made a decision not to publish the ad … We made a decision to postpone publishing it in light of recent events in Afghanistan, including the Koran burning and the alleged killings of Afghani civilians by a member of the U.S. military. It is our belief that fallout from running this ad now could put U.S. troops and civilians in the region in danger and we would like to avoid that.”

Obviously Fox News picked up on this story and will stop at nothing to criticize The New York Times, explaining how the newspaper has bowed to Islamist pressures and how it should have remained fair and printed Pamela Gellar’s advertisement.

Fox News is wrong.

Should the Times have printed the Freedom From Religion Foundation ad? It is difficult to say. Should the Times have printed Gellar’s ad? Definitely not. Had the Times gotten both ads at the same time, it would have been better not to have printed either, but they did not receive both at the same time and—contrary to popular myth—the Sulzbergers do not have a time machine.

Although Fox News is equating the two ads and Gellar based her ad off of the earlier ad, I see a huge difference in them. The first ad did not say anything negative about Catholicism as a religion; they criticized the institution of the Church. While the ad was using these things to draw people away from Catholicism, it does

graphic by yi wang/the hoot

not say anything derogatory about the Holy Trinity, Communion, etc. It criticizes the Church’s complicity in the sexual abuse of young boys at the hands of clergymen. This is a fact and does not disparage the beliefs behind the institution.

Gellar’s ad on the other hand attacks Islam’s “ideology” and questions the validity of Muhammad as a prophet, having the gall to put the word prophet in quote marks. Gellar crossed a line and thankfully The New York Times recognized that.

Gellar is now fighting back and badmouthing the Times in as many

news sources as she can. Gellar has said that she is especially angry by the Times’ response to her because they always hold themselves as a “gold standard” for journalism. She lamented that while she fervently believes in the First Amendment, the Times does not; she specifically cited the rights to free speech and a free press, two rights that newspapers should also hold dear.

This argument is fickle, however, because, first of all, the right to free speech means that she can stand up on a roof and shout vile obscenities to the world—as long as it does not

incite violence, as Schenck v. United States established in 1919. It does not mean that she has the right to post her opinions anywhere she likes; if she spray-painted it on a wall, she would be arrested for vandalism. All papers reserve to right to edit and monitor their content. She has a blog; let her stick to that. As to the right to a free press, that right means that the government cannot tell the newspapers what they can and cannot print.

Again, it does not mean that the See ADS, page 9

In March the madness returns

By Zoe Kronovet Editor

Every year March rolls around and the panic sets in. You see, I was born and raised in North Carolina, a state home to one of the fiercest college rivalries in the country: University of North Carolina Chapel Hill vs.

Duke (known in my house as Dook is Puke), college basketball has consequently always been important in my family. By the time that the NFL season ends and us Carolinians have gotten over licking our wounds due to the Panther’s latest heartbreaking season, we turn our eyes to basketball.

In my family every game means my father comes out of his ManCave (his study) to watch the game on the main tv in the living room and my mother relinquishes the right to have the television turned off during dinner (there is a compromise: the tv is on mute).

All throughout growing up, I used to watch the Tar Heels dribble down the court in the reflection of the window above my kitchen table as I ate whatever had been made that night. So by the time March rolls around and the NCAA tournament is gearing up, everyone in my family begins to prepare their brackets. My uncle holds a pool every year that is comprised of around fifty people, some who follow each team’s games throughout the season like a hawk, others who pick based on whatever school sounds the

best in their head.

When I was younger my preferred strategy was just to rely on my dad’s opinion, pick random upsets in the first and second rounds, and then choose a first or second seed to take the prize. As I have gotten older and learned what a gift the internet is however, I have begun to look up stats, read what the pundits think and are predicting and with some minor guesses pick my bracket. One year I ended up coming in second place, but most years I fall in the middle of the pack. But every year, regardless of where I ultimately end up in the standings, I am confident that my bracket is best. Not known for being quiet or civil, I go around boasting that my picks are correct, every who chooses differently is not only mistaken, but should be embarrassed, and that they should all eat dirt when I take the crowning prize.

This year was no different, but my confidence waned pretty quickly as the first round got underway. Not only did I pick incorrectly for every game in the Midwest (except for the Tar Heels), but in every other division I picked mostly wrong too. I quickly tumbled down from my pedastal and fell straight to last in the standings where I have remained since day two of the tourney.

My uncle, known for his dry and biting wit, goes by the name ‘Gridmiester’ for the duration of the tourney.

Halfway through the tournament he

photo from internet source

sends out an email to the entire pool ridiculing everyone’s choices (including his own) and lamenting the upsets and the bad calls. His commentary is one of my highlights of the year. I walk away laughing and connected to my family, no matter what geographical location I find myself in that year.

A lot of people here at Brandeis aren’t interested in college basketball and get the normal platitudes when I ask if they are mentally deranged

for not caring, “football is more my thing,” “I’m more interested in baseball,” “college sports are boring, I prefer professional leagues.” Not being an athlete I struggle to find people at Brandeis who cared so emphatically about a tradition that has been in my family for as long as I can remember.

Only my best friend, a fellow North Carolinian and Brandeis student can commiserate with me as I berate Long Beach State and Southern Florida for

their astonishing upsets over higher ranked seeds.

As I entered Brandeis as a Midyear and attempted to find normality in a brand new situation, pouring over brackets and participating the tournament was my way to do that. So although I may get a little to riled up and contemplate wearing a paperbag over my head to the next family gathering to cover my shame, I enjoy every minute of the madness of March.

March 23, 2012

IMPRESSIONS 7

The Brandeis Hoot

Altered Consciousness

More engagement in Syria necessary

graphic by rachel weissman/the hoot

By Rick Alterbaum Columnist

Day by day we hear news reports of the Syrian government slaughtering its own people. The question is: Should the United States do something about it?

We have already implemented strict, comprehensive sanctions on the regime there. President Obama

has also stated as a matter of policy that dictator Bashar al-Assad must leave. Yet there are steps that the United States should take beyond these measures.

It could transfer arms and material support to the Free Syrian Army, providing it with additional means to communicate. In cooperation with Turkey, it can create no-fly zones, as was done in Iraq with the Kurds, to

provide refugees and anti-government rebels a safe haven and place to plan and organize their operations.

Another key step is to convince the Alawites, Christians and other minorities, in addition to Sunni urban elites, not to support Assad. By this we can ensure that their safety and interests are maintained in the event that the regime falls.

I would stop short of a full military

Looking to the future: A truly Brandeisian strategic plan

By Sahar Massachi Special to the Hoot

More than anything else, Brandeis is about widening access to education. When Brandeis was founded, that meant opening admission to people of all racial and gender identities. Later on, that mission matured to include the creation of programs like TYP, and Wien and Slifka Scholars.

Like graven idols, all barriers to learning should be destroyed.

The Brandeis five-year Strategic Plan should take that mission seriously. Truly keeping that commitment in today’s society means much more than just having an open admissions policy.

Given the spread and maturation of technology, we have an opportunity to achieve something of a much greater magnitude. Just as libraries democratized access to knowledge for many in industrialized societies, online teaching initiatives can democratize access to learning for so many more people worldwide.

The plan should make provisions for expanding the reach of Brandeis teaching to non-students worldwide through channels like public domain courseware, online classes and video lectures.

If Brandeis implements these policies, then we still need a compelling reason for people to pay tuition to attend physically.

Even if we don’t, online educational programs like Khan Academy, OpenCulture, MIT OCW, iTunes U, Stanford Engineering Everywhere and Code Academy will still force the question: Why bother

attending when I can learn so much at home for free? The answer lies in our community and our values.

Learning will always be a strong part of the Brandeis experience, but formal learning will become so available that we need to supplement it with something else.

One approach is to focus more on the values that make us distinct: the aforementioned smashing of academic inequity and the broader pursuit of justice.

We need to start practicing justice more than we are now.

A complementary approach is to pursue a more holistic learning experience than the Internet could ever provide, in the form of personalized teaching and a much stronger “learning by doing” ethic.

Brandeis can’t rely, however, on hiking tuition to pay for the cost of personalization. The growth of tuition is unsustainable. Soon, the student loan bubble will burst.

Luckily, we have a huge untapped resource in our alumni. Brandeis spends four years nurturing a bright committed corps of people, building a strong network between them and giving them valuable skills.

Then it destroys that network, forces them out and scatters them to the four winds.

Imagine a Brandeis where the distinction between students, professors and alumni is a bit more blurred. Imagine a Brandeis that is a self-conscious community, where students and alumni collaborate to make archeological digs in Mexico together, or spend a semester building an IT network for Louisiana schools, or go found a startup for a few years and then come back to

finish their degrees.

By involving alumni more in offcampus flexible experiential learning, Brandeis can offer learning that no Internet course can match, allow alumni to give back in a fulfilling way, and sponsor worthwhile projects that pursue knowledge and justice throughout the globe.

While Brandeis would still offer degrees, the gap between students and alumni would be less stark— after achieving a degree, alumni would be welcome to stick around campus once in a while, meet students, and then lead groups of alumni and students back off-campus for “expeditions in pursuit of knowledge and/or justice.”

By adopting this two-step plan of democratizing access to information as well as fostering a lifelong community of scholar-social entrepreneurs, the Strategic Planning Committee can best position Brandeis for the future.

Services like Khan Academy, Code Academy and Open Course Ware will eventually be competitive threats to the traditional university model. By embracing their best elements and also focusing on our own strengths of teaching, community and justice, Brandeis can flourish in the coming decades.

Brandeis was founded as a grand experiment: Rather than pass laws challenging discrimination, can we instead create a top-notch college that uses competitive pressures to force other universities to strike down their admissions quotas?

Turns out we can. Now it’s time for phase two: Can we become the educational utopia of the future?

Yes, I believe we can.

intervention on par with the Libyan operation.

Our hands are already full in the region, not to mention the various logistical dilemmas associated with such an undertaking: the strength of Assad’s army; the lack of international consensus on the issue especially regarding Russia and China; as well as the potential backlash and unintended consequences that such an invasion could precipitate. Still, President Obama should make his policy of regime more credible.

The question that lingers is what would happen if the current regime crumbles. Scenarios have been conjured up in which, considering the country’s artificial nature and lack of national unity, Syria could split into several sections based on sectarian and ethnic differences. Others worry about Islamist infiltration into the rebel forces. Another concern is civil war between Alawis and pro-government factions versus anti-government groups.

All of these considerations are valid. Still, the current situation is untenable.

The fact is that Assad is already greatly destabilizing the region. Just by remaining in power, he is inflaming the Sunni-Shiite divide and causing a refugee crisis, along with the massacre of thousands of Syrian citizens. Furthermore, although Islamism is a concern, as a movement it

is relatively weak compared to movements in countries such as Egypt, considering that the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood was crushed by Hafez al-Assad, Bashar’s father, at Hama in 1982.

Furthermore, the current Syrian government opposes U.S. interests in the region for several reasons. It is Iran’s chief Arab ally and its gateway to the Mediterranean Sea. It is a key sponsor and transfers arms to Hezbollah, a group that killed hundreds of U.S. marines in 1983. Syria assisted foreign fighters who were fighting U.S. troops in Iraq. It oppressed the Lebanese people through its decadeslong military occupation of the country. It refuses to cooperate on the peace process in a reasonable manner with Israel, to which it remains an adamant foe.

I am very skeptical about prospects of liberal democracy or even normalcy in the Middle East. I also understand the “there is no alternative” or “very good alternative” to the status quo argument.

Still, the Syrian case is not very difficult: Assad is a brutal tyrant who is no friend of the United States and is diametrically opposed to its interests and its values.

President Obama should do everything in his power short of full-scale military action to see that justice is done to this murderer.

Reconsidering Rabb

By Lila Westreich Special to the Hoot

We all know the Rabb steps. They are feared all over campus. And for those of us who are lucky enough to be midyears taking classes at Shiffman at 9 a.m. in the morning Monday through Thursday, this means that we have to tackle them after our mile-long hike.

This also means that we see every advertisement and announcement by every club on campus, day in and day out. And I have to say that I am a little confused as to how this school is going about their broadcasting.

Let me walk you through it, in case you’re not up early enough to see the beginning of the minefield that the Rabb steps resembles by mid-afternoon.

Monday is usually the day some kind of new announcement comes out for an event being hosted by a club during the weekend. This can come in the form of hundreds of fliers taped to the ground, the steps, the walls and the ceilings.

Or it can come from banners tied above the steps. Maybe even from simple tape letters on the ground.

But by Tuesday, or on a bad day by 5 p.m. on Monday, those hundred fliers have been ripped into thousands of tiny pieces and whipped across the Rabb lawn by the wind and by the student body.

The tape is torn and missing in most places; the words that it once formed are long gone.

I have even witnessed the banners, usually tied above the second tier of stairs, untied from the gusts and whipped to and fro by the winds at scary speeds.

This is disappointing, compared to the lengths to which the rest of the school seems to try to discourage mindless trash.

In my dorm hall in section C

of The Village, our first recycling grade was posted soon after we arrived second semester. We got a C. Not only did we fail, according to Brandeis standards, but we also received a sheet of tips and hints as to why we did so poorly.

I know a few teachers off the top of my head who would never bother to alert me to why I did so poorly without a conference scheduled far in advance.

There are also fliers posted all over the building with little tips, such as how staples can be left in when one is recycling paper. Students for Environmental Action goes to great lengths to make sure that we know how to recycle correctly. So why can’t we go to great lengths to stop littering all over Rabb?

There is also the small mention that should be made about the lengths to which our dining halls go to try to be as environmentally friendly as Aramark can afford to be. They provide reusable take-out trays for a small price. They are even colored green—although who knows how many chemicals it takes to dye each tray and what that is putting into our ecosystems back at the factories. That is another column entirely.

For a school that boasts so much about recyclable materials, reusable trays in the dining halls and grades for recycling bins in dorms, we are simply doing a terrible job at Rabb.

It may be outrageously important for Russian Club to announce their ball, or for student events to let everyone know about the club night happening over the weekend, but do we really need to sacrifice the beauty and cleanliness of our campus to do so? Save your fliers, save your painted banners, and maybe try sending out a few more e-mails.

I know you hate blindly deleting them from your Brandeis mailbox as much as I do, but at least they’re pollution-free.

8 IMPRESSIONS

The Brandeis Hoot

The Chosen Rosen

March 23, 2012

In defense of the B.L.C.U.

By Ricky Rosen Columnist

On behalf of the group that cares more about a speaker’s physical assets than what she has to say, I would like to respond to the article that appeared in last week’s edition of The Hoot: “When Free Speech Turns Sexist.”

As Vice President of the Brandeis Libertarian-Conservative Union (B.L.C.U.), and the person who planned and administered the event in question, I feel compelled to respond to the contentions that the author of the article, and various female students around campus, made regarding the event.

Last Thursday, B.L.C.U. brought notable political commentator and journalist S.E. Cupp to campus to speak about conservatism in America.

To promote this event, we put fliers up around campus with the tagline— because every event needs a selling point—“Smart, Sexy, and Savvy.” It was crafty and clever and it flowed, so we went with it. We were not trying to draw attention to her looks and away from her qualifications; we just wanted to promote our event to the public. And, as any business major will tell you, effective marketing is crucial to the success of any event.

The author of the article, however, took issue with our advertising of the event. But the initial difficulty, at least from my standpoint, regarding the author’s dissatisfaction with B.L.C.U’s event was her source of information. The author of the article was not present at the event. Therefore, her entire basis of knowledge was from a few words on a flier and a thread of distasteful Facebook comments.

Nevertheless, the author of the

article felt that our marketing of the event was so outrageously “sexist” that if “[Cupp herself] saw the fliers or the Facebook event page, also she would be disgusted …”

On the contrary, when we mentioned our tagline to S.E. over dinner, she commended our creativity and wondered aloud if she could use the slogan for a future event. When we told her that we were under attack for, as the author put it, “using [her] looks as a promotion tool,” she chuckled to herself at the ironic indignation that transpired as a result of our innocuous promotional technique.

The author of the article seemed to take particular issue with the description of the Facebook event: “Do you like beautiful women? Do you like food? Do you like politics?” Now, when the B.L.C.U. E-board learned that female students were offended by this, a few of us were scratching our heads as to why.

If this alone was all that we had written in promoting our event, then that would have been not only improper, but also un-intelligent, and I would firmly agree with any and all criticism. But that was not all that we had written. We devoted a full paragraph of the brief event description to highlighting all of Cupp’s achievements. Never once did we undersell any of those impressive accomplishments; if anything, we spent a great deal of time drawing attention to her credentials, and a mere five words underlining her appearance.

By opening the event with those rhetorical questions, we were also mirroring the prevalent tactic in the advertising industry of asking wideranging questions that pertain to everyone in order to appeal to viewers or consumers, like the commercials that begin with: “Has this ever happened to you?” In the comments, female students declared that our order-

ing of these introductory questions demonstrated that we “valued her image over her accomplishments.”

Simply put, that is making something out of nothing.

And this leads me to the critical flaw in the author’s article: It makes no mention of the event itself. All of these marketing tactics would be in vain without reference to their impact on the event.

When I introduced Cupp, I unveiled the laundry list of her achievements and how honored we were to have her with us, not once making any mention of her physical appearance.

When she spoke for half an hour on what conservatism meant to college students today, she did not bring this up either. Why not? Because that is simply not what B.L.C.U. had brought her to Brandeis to speak about, nor is it what Cupp drove all the way from Manhattan to lecture college students about. She came here to encourage students to explore their political ideologies and to investigate what it means to be a conservative.

Cupp fielded questions for about an hour, addressing issues ranging from Rick Santorum’s odds in the primary election, to Rush Limbaugh’s recent controversial statements, to how the media treat persons of Islamic descent. The author of the article wrote: “I would have loved to have been on campus last night to go to the event and ask her what she thought and if her physical attractiveness was something for which she wanted to be known …”

Well, the author can rest assured; a member of the audience did, in fact, ask that question. This student informed Cupp of the “in-fighting” that was occurring on the Facebook thread, and asked her what her opinions were on the notion that B.L.C.U. was exploiting her looks to encourage

graphic by donna vatnick/the hoot

students to attend the event. Cupp took a deep breath, and mentioned that the topic was understandably awkward for her. She answered with the following response paraphrased by me: “This is not the first time that my appearance has been the subject of criticism. And so I have learned not to care what people think. I am proud of the way I look. Why should I have to ugly myself up and dress like a man to be taken seriously?”

The crowd overwhelmingly supported her response, reacting with the most enthusiastic applause of the night.

There was something fundamentally logical in Cupp’s response. Women can and should take pride in how they look; S.E. Cupp is no exception. And if the author of that article had been

at the event, she would have realized this.

The bottom line is that S.E. Cupp is a strong, self-assured woman who is well on her way to becoming a household name in the field of political journalism. And, as she said, why does she have to diminish her image to be taken seriously? If she can do everything that she does and still sustain her attractiveness, all the power to her.

To all women, success and beauty are not mutually exclusive. Whether we promoted S.E.’s appearance as well as her successes, or whether we merely listed her accomplishments alone, at the end of the day, people still attended the event and walked away with a greater understanding of conservatism on college campuses.

Housing lottery creates unnecessary stresses

graphic by diane somlo/the hoot

By Rachel Hirschhaut Staff

As much as Brandeis students enjoyed having a week off in February, in reality, most of us spent it in front of our computers, refreshing our emails in anticipation of the random number that would dictate our lives for the next year—our housing lottery numbers.

The weeks leading up to housing selection test our patience and our friendships, and force us to evaluate

ourselves.

Even though (and maybe because) I’m a first-year, I have a unique perspective on the housing situation.

I am one of the lucky few to get a double-digit number. This is quite an accomplishment in a lottery where 90 percent of first-years have a threedigit number, and the upperclassman numbers reach well into the 2,000 range. After bracing for the worst possible number—as first-years do—I felt like I’d actually won the lottery. I’m still pinching myself over the fact that I can decide between the Village, East or the Castle, rather than the lottery

deciding for me. I have all of campus at my fingertips.

Having a great lottery number puts me in a position of power, however, and that brings its own challenges.

First of all, I’m now responsible for deciding what housing arrangement best suits my daily lifestyle. This is something that others have always decided for me. Now, after less than a full year of college, rising sophomores have to reflect on their social lives and study habits. Again and again I ask myself: Is it better to live in a quieter dorm for studying or a louder dorm that fosters social life? Do I need to

bond with my floor-mates over TV and baking cookies in the common room as first-years do, or will my life be a mix of dorm activity and other social outlets?

Effective, informed decision-making requires a combination of intuition and rational thinking, including what we already know. The housing process, however, asks first-years to decide on a living arrangement based on a prediction of what their lives will be like as sophomores, which is impossible to do without actually being sophomores and having that experience.

First-years can also be easily influenced by others’ opinions of dorms because we are young and susceptible to hearsay. The dirty, insect-ridden reputation of a certain sophomore quad is enough to keep any first-year miles away. Yet in that same quad there are sophomores who are content with their rooms. Many of them say it’s not nearly as bad as they were led to believe. As I am learning in my social psychology class, people operate on quick judgments and easily trust those with perceived power, like upperclassmen. Rumors have the power to influence our decisions, especially when we don’t know better.

The roommate pull-in process adds yet another dimension of stress to the housing-selection experience. As its name implies, the Department of Community Living wants us to build a vibrant community of friends at Brandeis. Why, then, does this same system ignite so much drama between students, especially first-years still developing new friendships?

Those who plan to room with someone before even getting their numbers often face more stress.

Sometimes neither person gets a number good enough for the housing they want, and they have to be pulled in as neighbors. Even with the right numbers, roommate plans often change and fall through, leaving one person desperate to find someone else.

Having a desirable number changes the dynamics of this too. People with good numbers get requests from so many classmates—friends, acquaintances and strangers alike—asking to be pulled into a specific dorm, which causes its own tensions. We must decide what kind of living arrangement is right for us, but this often comes at the cost of choosing one friend over another.

One needs to do nothing more than go online to witness the housing-related stress affecting Brandeis. The “Housing” Facebook group immediately became a place for everyone to vent about their bad numbers, ask about potential dorms and shamelessly beg for pull-ins. The same frustration can be heard anywhere on campus now.

So what perspective can I offer my fellow students as housing selection begins? All I can hope is that people avoid the drama and keep their sanity. If you don’t like your room, think positively. Maybe it’s a reason to go out and spend more time off campus.

Use housing as a chance to meet new people and deepen friendships; do not use it as a divisive force. If friendships form out of the intangible bonds between people, then something as inconsequential as a lottery number should not be enough to tear friends apart. Know that it will all work out in the end and next year all the drama will seem silly in retrospect.

March 23, 2012

Still Writing

IMPRESSIONS 9

The Brandeis Hoot

Warnings on video games? Not this again

By Gordy Stillman Staff

Congressman Joe Baca, of the 43rd district of California, is once again pushing for warnings on video games. Hopefully he fails yet again.

Like in 2009, and again in 2011, Congressman Baca wants all video games not rated EC—everything that isn’t for toddlers—to have a label linking video games to aggressive behavior.

Even games like “LittleBigPlanet,” a puzzle game with an emphasis on playing, creating levels and sharing— without a violent nature—would bear the label.

Violence in video games has not been conclusively linked to violent behavior in people. Furthermore, some people may have a natural predisposition to aggression. I’m not saying that a violent video game doesn’t contribute to such a person’s behavior, just that it wouldn’t be much different from a violent movie. Furthermore, critics are still deciding what the relationship between video games and aggressive behavior looks like, if it’s even a noteworthy connection.

After only a few minutes searching on the Internet, I was able to find that some studies suggest a link between violence and video games while some studies suggest no link. Additionally, as Andy Chalk, columnist for The Escapist notes, the rate of violent crime in the United States has actually decreased during the 20 years that have seen an increase in video-game popularity.

Additionally, the current videogame rating system is adequate.

Baca contends that “the videogame industry has a responsibility to parents, families, and to consumers—to inform them of the potentially damaging content that is often found in their products,” and follows with a claim that playing video games can be a risk factor for disorders. The industry-rating system, the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), has enough different ratings and details to accompany the ratings that inform parents of what they are buying—something Congressman Baca ignores. For example, on the case of “Mario Kart 7” next to the game’s rating of E (meaning for anyone ages six and older) they added “comic mischief.” Granted, plenty of games have notice of anything from “mild cartoon violence” all the way to “intense violence.” While there may be violence in video games, it is the buyer’s responsibility to check the labels and know what they are buying before they take it to the register. It doesn’t make sense to put an arbitrary label on anything not aimed at preschoolers.

I once spent a summer selling video games, and while for the most part it was easy, there occasionally would be a customer who was determined to find a game that had no mention of violence at all in the rating. It was never difficult to find something that met the customer’s needs. That being said, if all video games were labeled with a mention of violence, it puts an improper prejudice in the minds

of a potential gamer. Anything more than mild violence is rated T (for teens) and anything more violent is given the rating of M (mature). Additionally, most retailers will not sell M-rated games to anyone under the age of 17, much like with an R-rated movie. Furthermore, the most intense rating, AO (adults only) is restricted to the point that most console developers will not allow such games on their consoles, and retailers will not sell them.

Additionally, Congressman Baca is ignoring studies that demonstrate the benefits of playing video games. There are studies suggesting that playing video games can improve hand-eye coordination, resistance to distraction, and sensitivity to information in their peripheral vision. Additionally, a study conducted a few years ago

by Massachusetts General Hospital suggested that playing violent videogames can actually serve as an outlet for people to vent their stress and aggression; meaning that violent games in moderation can be good for overall well-being. In the book “Everything Bad is Good for You,” Steven Johnson argues that a player has to learn to navigate and master a highly complex system when playing video games. He further argues that in order to learn and play a game successfully, especially a demanding game, a player uses many different areas of cognition in order to play through such a game.

I may not play video games as much as I used to—the demands of classes and a social life leave me with

graphic by linjie xu/the hoot

much less personal time—but the idea that a congressman wants to put additional warnings on video games, ignoring the positives of gaming, is more frustrating than any video game I’ve ever played. Cigarettes deserve warning labels; their negative effects are well-known and there aren’t any

Reframing marriage equality in America

By Morgan Gross Editor

Proponents of marriage equality in America, often base their defense of same-sex marriage on the fact that sexuality is not a choice, Professor Tim McCarty (POL) illustrated in a political theory class last week.

They argue that same sex marriage should be legalized because it is wrong to deny individuals the fundamental rights of citizenship associated with marriage, due to something that is essential to their personality.

That seems fair, right?

It should, as this is the cornerstone of the gay rights movement in America today; of course we don’t choose who we’re attracted to, it would be antiquated to suggest anything of the sort.

However, by stressing this point of sexuality as an essential quality in human beings—something that is fundamental to their self, which they have no power to control—in our discussion of marriage equality, we are making the argument for human equality even more difficult, McCarty explained.

It’s true that in current dialogue, the only people who would argue that sexual orientation is anything other than involuntary are the same people who would ship their children of questionable sexuality off to reprogramming camps to “straighten them out.” But before you jump down my throat for challenging this precept, let’s dissect the thinking behind it.

Embedded within the logic of the statement: “I didn’t choose to be gay” is the assumption that if you had the choice, you wouldn’t be. In other words, this way of thinking creates and perpetuates a need to rationalize sexuality as something that we have no control over, in order to accept it as being legitimate.

If our rationalization for why samesex couples should be given marriage rights is because they had no choice but to be attracted to people of the

same sexuality, then we are also posting the assumption that homosexuality is an inferior lifestyle that no one would make the choice to pursue.

Sex and The City star, Cynthia Nixon, recently defied this convention and stepped forward a few months ago as being ‘gay by choice’—consciously making the decision to be with a woman, despite the fact that she is attracted to men.

The actress received a huge amount of public backlash for announcing her decision and explained in a January interview with New York Times Magazine: “For me, it is a choice. I understand that for many people it’s not, but for me it’s a choice, and you don’t get to define my gayness for me.... I say it doesn’t matter if we flew here or we swam here, it matters that we are here and we are one group and

let us stop trying to make a litmus test for who is considered gay and who is not.”

I am not trying to argue that sexuality is something that is the product of decision, rather I am arguing, as my professor did, that it shouldn’t matter.

More importantly, I am arguing that—by making sexuality something that needs defending—we are reinforcing antiquated notions that homosexuality is an inferior lifestyle.

There is a monumental difference between the ideas that marriage equality should be legal because homosexuality isn’t something that is a product of choice, and that marriage equality should be legal because both homosexuality and heterosexuality are equally legitimate lifestyles to pursue.

I think that it is time that we become conscious of this distinction and make the necessary move towards an understanding that sexuality does not illustrate personality.

This will be impossible unless we undergo a massive, as if we continue to focus on the idea that people can’t choose their sexuality, we will never be forced to embrace the idea that difference in sexual orientation is not a signal of inequality.

Our need to rationalize homosexuality as being a product of biology is symptomatic of a deeply held belief within American society that homosexuality is something to be ashamed of.

As we move towards the horizon of greater marriage equality in America, this shame is something that should be eliminated, not reinforced.

photo from internet source

positives to counter them. Video games have positive links as well as some questionable negative ones. The fact that there are no clear, concrete links between video games and violence, other than a few questionable incidents, does not show a necessity for warning labels on video games.

Printing vitriolic ads ADS, from page 6

Times has to be an open publication and allow anyone to print anything.

The New York Times looked at the advertisement she wanted to print and smartly realized that it could incite violence in an already unstable region that could result in deaths.

Part of responsible journalism is considering things like this. Although advertisements do not express the view of the newspaper, they are still in the newspaper and the paper is responsible to a degree for what is printed in it. For example, in 1987 the magazine Soldier of Fortune was sued by a man named Norman Norwood after he was injured in a murder attempt; the two men who tried to kill him were hired via an advertisement in the magazine. Norwood and the magazine settled out of court after a U.S. District Court said that “gun for hire” ads were not covered under the First Amendment. There were later lawsuits for the magazine following more ambiguously worded ads that still incited violence and later juries agreed that publications should consider each advertisement and anticipate the possible reactions. Soldier of Fortune is more careful now.

The New York Times did the responsible thing in “postponing” Pamela Gellar’s advertisement. Advertisements are not inane space-fillers; people read them, as is proven by the fact that people still buy ads. Although Gellar based her ad off of the previous ad, its content was very different and the two cannot be placed on equal footing. And, as the two were very different, The New York Times could not respond to them in

10 The Brandeis Hoot

ARTS, Etc.

March 23, 2012

‘21 Jump Street’ plays with stereotypes

By Dana Trismen Editor

“21 Jump Street,” the newly released action-comedy film starring Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, manages to make everyday stereotypes funny again. The film is loosely based on the TV series of the same name, which aired on Fox and sprung Johnny Depp to stardom during the 1980s. Since its opening on March 16, the film to has grossed $35,000,000 in North America alone.

The film is purposefully set up so that stereotypes become inescapable.

The premise is that two male police officers go undercover in a high school to get information about illegal drug dealing. The film includes classic high school themes from popularity to prom. Tatum plays Greg Jenko, who is tall, muscular and dumb, unable to pass his police exams or memorize the Miranda rights.

Hill acts as Brad Schmidt, a small, geeky wiz at all things school, but a miserable failure at the physical skills required of a police officer. The genius move by screenwriter Michael Bacall is to accept these stereotypes and then manipulate them, creating a type of satire. The school that Greg and Brad infiltrate is the opposite of the “Mean Girls” high school normally seen in cinema. Popular are the kids who support environmental action and scoff at the establishment and sports.

Here, geeky Hill fits right in, while students tease and mock Tatum, who is unused to not getting his way. Other stereotypes are reversed: Tatum is ap-

photo from internet source

crazy cops Jonah Hill (left) and Channing Tatum star as two cops who go undercover at a high school in the new film “21 Jump Street,”

based on a 1980s TV series starring Johnny Depp.

proached by a female teacher who is infatuated with him, but he shrugs her off in a hilariously nonchalant manner. Even Tatum and Hill grow out of their own stereotypes by the end of the film. Hill does not bury his nose in a book, instead consorting with the popular kids. Tatum plays the burlydumb male for most of the film, but at its close he defies expectation. He creates a bomb from the knowledge he learned in AP chemistry about covalent bonds. Embracing and challenging the stereotypes surrounding the films topic, “21 Jump Street” makes viewers laugh as the storyline

develops to the opposite of what they expect.

While Hill’s character is similar to his past roles (with the exception of “Moneyball”), Tatum’s performance is different from his normal repertoire. Known for films such as “She’s the Man,” “Step Up,” “Dear John” and “The Vow,” Tatum is the tried-andtrue pretty boy. A Nicholas Sparks darling, he is the perfect romantic, a large and clumsy man that millions of women in the audience will undoubtedly swoon over.

Yet, in “21 Jump Street,” Tatum has no love interest. While he does not

stray far from his pretty-but-not-terribly-intelligent role of choice, here Hill is the character with a love life.

This offers Tatum a chance to show a slightly different side. He focuses instead on relationships with his male friends: from his close partnership with Hill to the geeky friends he makes in chemistry class. Tatum is possibly better at this friendships than his romantic relationships.

While Tatum’s romantic relationships in films like “The Vow” often feel forced and cheesy, his onscreen relationships with his male sidekicks appear far more genuine. It is almost

more charming to watch Tatum swing pretend light sabers with his geeky friends than to watch him in an on-screen kiss.

The pitfalls of “21 Jump Street” are the sheer impossibility of many of the happenings within the film.

For one, Tatum and Hill are not near high school age; they look like they are old enough to be fathers. Tatum is actually 31 and Hill is 28, but in the film audiences must believe he is having an affair with an 18-yearold high school senior. There is one scene involving a motorcycle chase, car jackings and shootings, and yet no repercussions come from the giant traffic jam and murders the young police officers must have committed.

Instead the film skips right ahead to Hill’s starring role in the musical as Peter Pan. While it it does not detract from the film’s humor, it slightly disrupts viewers to be taken so far out of reality.

It is jarring to have to return to the film knowing what just happened was implausible. Though the film remains hilarious, it could have been easier for audiences if some discrepancies in the plot were explained.

“21 Jump Street” is entirely set up for a sequel, its ending greeted with the proposition that now these two undercover cops will take on college instead of high school. While the film has its share of stupid humor, its satirical approach and quick, witty lines from its main characters make it a successful comedy. While sequels are very rarely better than the original, at least in the next college-set “21 Jump Street,” almost middle aged Tatum and Hill may look more in place.

‘The Legend of Korra’ meets high expectations

By Juliette Martin Editor

In 2008, Nickelodeon’s animated series “Avatar: The Last Airbender” was brought to a rather premature end.

Thanks to its enormous popularity among both its target age group and teenagers (most of whom are now college students), however, “The Last Airbender” is far from dead. Recently, the first episode of its sequel series, “The Legend of Korra,” was leaked onto the Internet several weeks ahead of schedule, giving fans the pleasure of the first new material from the “Avatar” universe after years of waiting.

The first series was full of incredible plot and animation quality. Hopes have been high for “The Legend of Korra” since the moment it was announced.

“The Last Airbender” and “The Legend of Korra” take place in a universe based on various Asian cultures, in which certain inhabitants known as benders have the power of control over earth, water, fire and air. At the center of both series is the avatar, a figure of almost mythical proportions, who is capable of using all four elements, and who is continually resurrected so as to be a constant force of balance in the world. In the new show, this figure takes the form of Korra, a headstrong teenage girl who is born as the newly resurrected Avatar after the between-series death of the first series’ main character, Aang. In the lifetime that has passed between the two shows, things appear to have changed drastically with the passing of the industrial revolution as evidenced by the based on the new steamships, cars

and skyscrapers in the series. With many of the beloved characters of the first series now elderly or dead, there is plenty of novelty to “The Legend of Korra” despite strong ties to the original story in the appearance of those original characters’ children and grandchildren.

While “The Last Airbender” was structured around travel and adventure, “The Legend of Korra” is set in a single city and has more subtle political themes in play.

It is a way of catering to the show’s slightly older than anticipated audience. In “The Legend of Korra” there appears to be conflict brewing not on a global scale, as in its predecessor, but on a more serious social level, in which those who are not benders feel oppressed by those who are. The complexity of this situation becomes apparent almost immediately, as an ever-vigilant and apparently all-seeing police force that utilizes overly harsh bending techniques patrols the city streets. The new show still has the humorous moments of the old, but as of yet they appear fewer and farther between, with more serious themes setting themselves up to take center stage.

One of the best features of “The Legend of Korra” is our titular heroine. She is a refreshingly strong female lead: athletic, stubborn and idealistic.

Personally, I had feared a show lacking the original main characters to which I had grown so attached, but there were enough references to them to satiate me, and I was extremely pleased with the new protagonist. I also particularly appreciated the music for this first episode, which was a mix of beautiful and epic, carrying the various cultural themes on which the show itself is based.

photo from internet source

korra “The Legend of Korra,” which takes place in the same universe as the series “Avatar: The Last Airbender,” will premiere on Nickelodeon

on April 14.

Despite my entirely positive reaction to “The Legend of Korra,” there will no doubt be many complaints. I have already read critiques that are frustrated with the show’s diversion from the structure and tone of the first. The tone has undoubtedly shifted: “Korra” is darker and grittier then “The Last Airbender.” That said, “The Last Airbender” was certainly not without its darkness. The shift is far subtler than it seems at first, though “The Last Airbender” did begin on a much lighter note. “Korra” still contains the same humor and bright characterization that made its predecessor such a humorous delight. The balance between humor and darkness is still

present and strong, and hopefully that remarkable quality will allow “The Legend of Korra” to carry the success of the original, a success of which it is, so far, entirely deserving.

For fans of the original series worried about the quality of “Korra,” there is truly nothing to fear. It is a wonderful return to an old favorite, but it manages to bring fresh elements to the table so as to keep the series from becoming redundant. Even without the beloved characters of “The Last Airbender” (as of yet, only one has appeared), “The Legend of Korra” knows its roots and pays clear homage to them. I look forward to watching the story unfold, particularly since it

is leaning toward a much more mature conflict, as well as a sort of moral gray-zone in which the antagonists might even have a point, an element that was never really present in the past.

I fully enjoyed the first episode of “The Legend of Korra.” It was, in many ways, both everything I’d been told it would be and everything I hoped it would be. Although obviously more exciting for old fans of “The Last Airbender,” “Korra” is promising even for a new watcher. “The Legend of Korra” officially premieres April 14 and is an extremely high-quality show that contains far more depth than meets the eye.

March 23, 2012

The Brandeis Hoot

‘Footloose’ has all the right moves

By Sean Fabery Editor

It’s always a risky venture when you stage a show as familiar as “Footloose.” After all, the 1984 Kevin Bacon movie has long been a part of our pop culture lexicon, and a remake appeared just last fall. As it turns out, this risk pays off handsomely for the Hillel Theater Group (HTG), which is staging a lively and engrossing musical version this weekend in the Shapiro Campus Center.

When native Chicagoan Ren McCormack (Brett Torres ’12) finds out that his newly single mother (Bethany Adam ’15) wants to move to the tiny town of Bomont, he’s a little hopeful.

After all, maybe Bomont will be the kind of mythical tight-knit community where everyone accepts everyone.

Yet even he has to admit that his old friends have a point when they ask: “Bomont? Where the hell is Bomont?”

Unfortunately for Ren, Bomont is less than hospitable. When Ren and his mother move in with his stuffy uncle Wes (Ben Rifkin ’12) and aunt Lulu (Viktoria Lange ’13), uncle and nephew quickly clash; Wes goes so far as to slap Ren. The rest of the town doesn’t treat Ren much better—to them, he’s just a big city hooligan.

Things get even more heated when Ren challenges one of Bomont’s most arcane laws: a ban against public dancing. A few years before, four teenagers died in a tragic car accident after leav-

ing a local dance; things have never been the same since. Though the other Bomont teens join Ren in protesting the law, they face stiff resistance, particularly from Reverend Shaw Moore (Harrison Webb ’12), the man who originally proposed the law. The situation becomes even more complicated when Ren finds himself increasingly attracted to the reverend’s headstrong daughter Ariel (Katrina Michalewski ’15).

This musical incarnation of “Footloose” is an absolute blast to watch, but it really requires a great group of actors. Thankfully, HTG’s production—which was directed by Jade Sank ’12 and Aliza Sebert ’12—has brought together an ensemble that clicks perfectly. No matter how big or small the role, everyone has presence.

As Ren, Torres doesn’t miss a single beat. Every aspect of his portrayal manages to convey a perfect blend of brashness and soul, and his voice is simply spectacular. Upon leaving the auditorium at the end of the show, everyone I encountered used the same word to describe his performance: “Wow.” Michalewski is a great match for Torres. Ariel constantly embroils herself in conflict, and Michalewski communicates all the messy emotions that lurk beneath the surface. Like Torres, she’s a persuasive singer; their duet “Almost Paradise” elicited the loudest cheers on opening night. At times it proved difficult to make out what she

was singing during this inaugural performance, but it was a minor hiccup.

Webb infuses his reverend with the expected fire and brimstone, but he always projects a human quality that ensures he never becomes a stock figure. As the reverend’s wife, Sarah Brodsky ’15 boasts the single most beautiful voice in the production.

Nick Petrocchi ’12 provides the show with memorable doses of comic relief. He plays Willard Hewitt, a hayseed with a heart of gold who ends up becoming Ren’s best friend. Replete with a drawl and an awkward gait, he never fails to elicit laughter when he appears onstage; it doesn’t hurt that Willard’s self-conscious courtship of Ariel’s best friend Rusty (Nicole Wittels ’15) is totally endearing.

Of course, a musical is nothing without dancing and … well, music. Choreographers Beth Green ’12, Danielle Zipkin ’12 and Tara Loeber ’14 succeed in what must have been a daunting task, namely coordinating the movements of such a large cast. Meanwhile, music director Ben Oehlkers ’12 leads an orchestra that enlivens the show.

“Footloose” admittedly doesn’t touch on anything especially complicated—censorship, maybe—but it’s all about how it is impossible to be young and not do something utterly irrational like dancing. It’s about having fun, and HTG’s “Footloose” is above all else fun. Go see it.

photos by nate rosenbloom/the hoot

‘footloose’ and fancy free Clockwise from top left: Ariel (Katrina Michalewski) and Ren (Brett Torres) meet at a diner; Jeter (Zach

Smith) gets down; Ariel engages in a dangerous liaison with Chuck ( Jason Dick); Ren gets the attention of Willard (Nick Petrocchi); and Ren gets into an argument with Uncle Wes (Ben Rifkin) as Ethel (Bethany Adam) watches.

ARTS, ETC. 11

12 ARTS, ETC.

The Brandeis Hoot

March 23, 2012

New show ‘Missing’ suspense and intelligence

By Yael Katzwer Editor

Often when reviewing a new show based off of a pilot episode, one needs to hedge one’s bets and say that while the show is good or bad now, that can easily change as it is only the pilot episode. I feel I can say, however, that “Missing,” ABC’s new Thursday night drama, is terrible and will remain that way. There was very little in the pilot episode to make me—or anyone— want to continue watching the show.

“Missing” centers on Rebecca Winstone (Ashley Judd), a former CIA operative, as she searches Europe for her abducted son, Michael (Nick Eversman). And that is it. That is the whole plot. The writing is predictable and the viewer has already guessed the midseason arc twists midway through the first episode.

Not even the show’s top-notch cast can save this blunder. Ashley Judd is a very good actress but this character is all over the place, making it impossible for Judd to shine. One minute Rebecca is kicking ass and killing Stasi agents, the next she is looking at a photo of her son and weeping; while this could have added depth to her character, it just makes her look like a mess. While an audience enjoys watching a beloved character spiral into depression/insanity/somethingterrible, no one enjoys meeting a character midway through that spiral.

Sean Bean is a favorable addition to the cast. He will always be Boromir to me but, nevertheless, he was stellar in the one scene he had as Judd’s dead husband. But wait, why would they hire such a recognizable actor for one scene and then kill his character? See what I mean about predictable plot twists.

My biggest problem with this show is believability. This is coming from a

photo from internet source

missing Ashley Judd and Adriano Giannini star in the new ABC series “Missing.”

person who loves science-fiction and fantasy shows and has no problem believing those. Yet I find this show unbelievable. No way is Ashley Judd a CIA operative. I’m not buying it.

Every fight scene just makes me laugh because there is no way she would win. I don’t care how well-trained you are, Ashley, when you are fighting a guy who is a good foot taller than you and has at least 50 pounds on you, you are going to lose. Also, he had a gun; she didn’t.

Additionally, Judd’s character has supposedly been a stay-at-home mother for the past 10 years, having given up her sexy spy life when her husband died. It has been 10 years and yet she is just as deadly as a current spy and still has old spy contacts to rely on. In 10 years, people’s phone numbers change—as do their loyal-

ties.

The chase scene was both predictable and fantastical. Wow, we’re in Italy, let’s have a chase on mopeds! Every spy movie that takes place in Italy has a moped-chase scene. When one watches a pilot episode, one wants to be amazed, but this scene just had a tiresome been-there-done-that vibe.

Also, part of the chase was on foot and—get this—boot-clad men are chasing Ashley Judd who is wearing strappy, platform sandals. I don’t care how well-trained you are by the CIA, you cannot run in those kind of shoes, especially on the uneven paving stones of Italian streets. Also, you would think a CIA operative would think to wear sensible shoes.

Just to drive my point home: a fight scene on a train, really? Yawn.

I just feel like I’ve seen this all be-

fore. And no, I am not talking about “Taken” starring Liam Neeson, in which an ex-CIA operative searches for his kidnapped daughter in Europe.

I’m talking about “Double Jeopardy.”

Not only did “Double Jeopardy” actually star Ashley Judd but it was about a woman fighting to get her son back from her husband who is supposed to be dead. Ashley Judd is a producer of this show and I can’t help but think that she wanted to do a show and said, “Hey, let’s make ‘Double Jeopardy’ into a show. What do you mean that wouldn’t work? What if she’s also a spy? We’ll make it work.”

Clearly not winning viewers based on their clever new idea, the creators of the show were probably hoping that one would continue watching in order to find out where Michael is. This was also a failure though. First, I’m

pretty sure I know who took Michael.

Second, to become invested in a character’s well-being, one has to like the character. I get that Michael “saw” his father get blown up and all, but still, he is such a momma’s boy. You expect me to believe that an 18-year-old boy would come up with a cute text message so that he could tell his mother that he loves her while he is hanging out with his friends. That is some creepy “Psycho” stuff right there. Perhaps it would be better if Judd didn’t find him as he will probably grow up to be a serial killer. No boy should be that attached to his mother.

I was extremely disappointed with “Missing.” I love action movies and really wanted to like this show but it is just too predictable, too unbelievable and too nonsensical for me to waste my time with.

Boston Village Gamelan presents New Age rock

By Adam Hughes Staff

“Welcome to the workshop! You can watch us for 10 minutes, then you have to start playing.”

It was 4 p.m. on Wednesday, and I had an hour before class on a beautiful spring afternoon. On the idealized silver screen, settings like this are for lounging on the lawn and reading or dozing off; perhaps some vaguely foreign, New-Age-y music plays in the background.

But this is not my scene. The Greeks could gaze on the Sirens without fear, but just a note of their song would send sailors diving into the brine. Likewise, this Argonaut can resist everything but music, so I found myself walking into The Rose Art Museum on a day when being indoors was no better than Davy Jones’ Locker.

My reward, however, was significantly better than Hollywood’s New Age crap. This was the real deal: a full gamelan, courtesy of the Boston Village Gamelan, and a well-trained ensemble to play it. A full ensemble … and myself, that is. I was not yet down the stairs when Professor Judith Eissenberg recruited me to join them, and her simple declarative gave me no room to demur.

I first heard of gamelan through the music of King Crimson, the endlessly inventive and under-appreciated paragons of rock music’s avant-garde. After single-handedly inventing progressive rock with 1969’s “In the Court of the Crimson King,” the band endured several years of instability. They righted the ship in 1973, and it was here that the rich tradition of Javanese music entered their work. Buoyed by a line-

photo from internet source

masters of music Members of the Boston Village Gamelan pose with their instruments.

up that included both a drummer (Bill Bruford) and a percussionist (Jamie Muir), “Larks Tongues in Aspic” opens with a minute and a half of tinkling, polyrhythmic percussion clearly borrowed from the gamelan. Hints of gamelan influence pervade the album; however, King Crimson’s focus shifted until their 1974 break-up.

The mighty Crims reunited in 1981, and the gamelan influence returned.

Bandleader Robert Fripp spent much of King Crimson’s hiatus developing Frippertronics, a technology and technique that allowed him to loop his guitar to create layered soundscapes. Belew, from stints with Frank Zappa and Talking Heads, was pursuing his own interest in guitar textures, which eventually led to 1995’s “Experimental Guitar Series Volume 1: The Guitar as Orchestra”

(which is exactly what it sounds like).

New bassist Tony Levin had mastered the Chapman Stick, a 10-string instrument that allowed him to play separate melodies with both hands concurrently.

The musical ingredients were in place for bold rhythmic and textural experimentation, and it was the full sound of the gamelan that provided its structure.

“Discipline,” released in 1981, is a masterpiece of rock’s outermost edges.

Melodies fly past each other at different tempos, mathematically woven into perfect coherence. The highlight may be “Frame by Frame,” in which layer after layer is added at such breakneck speed that you’d swear it must be the product of studio overdubs—except King Crimson was able to replicate it perfectly on stage. “Beat” in 1982 and “Three of a Perfect Pair” in 1984 con-

tinued in a similar vein with slightly diminishing returns, but “Discipline” had a tremendous impact on my musical consciousness. If this was what gamelan sounded like, then I needed to hear more of it.

The prospect of taking my turn on the gamelan was nerve-racking, but after watching the workshop for several minutes, I was itching to cast off the guise of curious reporter and unleash the intrepid musician within.

The gamelan is not one instrument; it is a battery of flutes, strings, and xylophones and drums of various shapes and sizes. Though the more complex instruments were being manned by the experts, my fellow gamelan newbies were at a long row of sarons (small xylophone-like instruments). They banged with little technique and gazed

at their instruments with perplexed faces, but the sound they made was sweet and consonant. To be sure, much of this was because the pros were holding the music together; still, it was clear that the mechanics of the sarons were simple enough to invite beginners to participate.

I soon got my chance to join, and after slipping off my shoes, I picked up the hammer and studied the broad, wooden keys. They were marked with stickers reading “1” through “7”. “What are the actual names of the pitches?” I asked Boston Village Gamelan leader Barry Drummond. “Ji, ro, lu, pat, ma, nem and pi. That translates to one, two, three …” That’s simple enough.

Behind me, two musicians were preparing the giant kempul (pitched gongs). “Be sure to hang the three,” one said.

“Oh yeah, I forgot we brought the three!”—a recollection heard only in the mines of Digitopolis or the latest version of “Shit Gamelanists Say.” Barry began teaching us the first pattern, which consisted only of a series of pitches played on the quarter notes (ignorance defaults me to Western terminology). A request for written notation was denied: “This way, the music stays in your head.” He’s right; more than a day later, and I still know my first gamelan piece started “six, two, seven, two, three, two, five, seven, six …”

The trouble with the gamelan is that everything looks inviting once you begin playing. My ambition outstripped my competence, and I hungrily eyed the larger, more complex instruments long before I had mastered my simple pattern. When Barry screened for promotions by asking for music majors, I See GAMELANS, page 13

March 23, 2012

ARTS, ETC. 13

The Brandeis Hoot

Musika Rox rocks

Eliza and The Strange are a great new find

By Yael Katzwer Editor

photo from internet source

eliza and the strange

By Adam Marx Staff

Sometimes it takes a lot of legwork in this business to find the next underground sensation. My discovery of Eliza and The Strange, however, was the happiest of accidents that have turned into an obsessive listening binge that, for the last 72 hours, has nearly kept me from sleeping.

Recently, I was intrigued by the new “voodoo-rock” band from Nova Scotia. That intrigue has turned into an obsession and a new favorite band.

Eliza and The Strange are a creepy voodoo-rock five-piece from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, with a dark sound that exudes sexiness. Composed of Eliza White (lead vocals and organ), Alex MacAskill (guitar), Ian Bennett (guitar), Jake Seaward (bass) and Kenny Myers (drums), Eliza and The Strange strangle from their instruments a hair-raising groove that would find home in any Tim Burton film. At just more than 30 minutes long, their self-titled debut release drips in sex, fury, dirt and grit, and oozes from the speakers with the same kind of intoxicating rhythms that made songs like “Queer” and “Vixen” super-sized hits for the band Garbage.

“Lady of the Night” is bass-led by Seaward and showcases White’s voice.

The guitar riff and chords laid down

by MacAskill are simple and catchy and, set against Myers’ cymbal crashes, perfectly encapsulate the feeling of straight power behind White’s breathy vocals.

My favorite track, from the min-

ute I heard it, is the album’s second track, “She Ain’t Pretty.” From the first sound, MacAskill’s guitar riffs are addictive, and the song’s structure is a beautifully clear and brilliant tribute to the Pixies’ loud-quiet-loud dynamic. The rhythms in the song are contagious. White’s vocals are sultry and seductive during the verses, but blast forward as the chorus comes, and mixed with the organ, gritty guitar chords and minimalist drumming, I’m reminded of a Mudhoney-meetsGarbage mash-up. With a lead-single track like this, it’s no wonder that Eliza and The Strange chose “She Ain’t Pretty” as the song for their first music video, shot in a black, white and washed out purple. Scenes of the band performing intermingle with shots of a girl dancing and walking through a cemetery. White and company revel in the dirt and grit that they pull from their instruments.

Wonderfully creepy, “She Ain’t Pretty” is a five-star track and smash single if there ever were one. Bringing together Dead Weather-style vocals and White Stripes-influenced fretwork, Eliza and The Strange make this song an instant classic. To add fuel to the already blazing fire, MacAskill brings the whole house of cards crashing down at the end, letting loose on a blistering guitar riff and solo that tops out chaos-driven drumming and bombshell-basslines.

To continue their voodoo-rock style, Eliza and The Strange come back a few minutes later with “White Lies,” an unforgettable riff-driven song that builds on itself with effects and rhythm. “White Lies” encapsu-

lates everything that’s great about rock ’n’ roll. MacAskill’s bouncy guitar rhythm is rough around the edges and helped along by Myers’ simplistic yet decisive drumming. White’s organ creeps onto the scene with muddy blues notes, and twinkles dimly over MacAskill’s nimble fretwork. With distortion and feedback enough for 10 guitars, MacAskill sets “White Lies” apart from the rest with a subtle attitude that speaks to the versatility and power behind the track.

The last track on the album, “They’ve Got Secrets,” is also the longest. I love the slow, droning bassline, the laid-back drum beat, and vocal set that reeks of blues-rock heritage and attitude. In the two minutes in which White goes full-throttle on her organ, Seaward and Myers share energy on the rhythm section just below MacAskill’s heavy riffs. Bennett, who makes his recording debut with the band on this track, is quick to keep up with MacAskill, injecting his own brand of adrenaline into the song.

“They’ve Got Secrets” is the best way to close out the album, and certainly a track that leaves me wanting more.

The fact that this is the debut album says something to me about the band.

Eliza and The Strange are full-throttle all the way through all 30 minutes of this recording. With these 10 songs under their belts, I have high hopes for their future.

The combination of minimalist rhythms and eerily seductive vocals is a winning idea, and on their self-titled debut, Eliza and The Strange take the idea to its most triumphant heights.

Gamelans worth a listen

GAMELANS, from page 12

wasn’t going to lose my chance.

“I’m a music minor,” I piped up. I was ushered over to a long rack with 14 big brass kettles. Jackpot!

The bonang proved much more difficult than the saron. I had to play triplets now, and memorize a more complex series of pitches. Very patiently, the musician who was instructing me kept explaining the pattern.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I must not be explaining this very well.”

I assured her this was not the case.

The melodic patterns in gamelan music are so foreign to the Western tradition that it would take months of study before they came to me naturally. The accented beats vary among instruments,

so there’s no easy way to jump back in if you lose your place. The fundamental saron patterns can be deceiving; this is very difficult, meticulously-composed music.

Not everyone had difficulty with the finer points of the gamelan; Chris Miller, for one, had no trouble at all.

He shouldn’t; he’s been playing gamelan music since 1991 and has traveled to Indonesia for advanced study. Now, he leads the Cornell Gamelan Ensemble.

On Wednesday night, I asked Chris about the tonal system that underpins gamelan composition, and he explained the two common scales of Javanese music. Sledro is pentatonic, and pelog, the tuning of the Boston Village Gamelan’s instruments, has seven notes—though only five are used in most compositions. There is no theory of temperament. A “ji” can vary from ensemble

to ensemble, and even the intervals between pitches are not consistent among instruments from different gamelans.

Chris gave me a sheet of vocal music to look at, but its simplicity made it incomprehensible to me. Three lines of text lay under two lines of numbers, which were circled, dotted, tied and underlined. Chris told me that the single sheet could be the basis of a 20-minute composition.

Playing with the Boston Village Gamelan was a unique and special music experience, and I was proud to pick up enough of the technique to avoid ruining the entire piece. More than anything else, it taught me enough to appreciate what the full 20-piece ensemble must sound like when they weren’t compromising themselves for our benefit—exactly the way they performed for us three hours later.

Musika Rox. Musika is Hebrew for Music. Rox is Arabic for dance.

I think it is time for B’Yachad Israeli Dance Troupe to rename their annual show because they brought much more than just Middle Eastern song and dance; they brought fun, poetry and discussion—just to name a few of the additions—to their show March 21 in Levin Ballroom.

At its inception, the show combined the Israeli dancing of B’Yachad and the Arab musical stylings of Mochila. Mochila no longer exists but B’Yachad kept up the traditions by having a wide array of talented performers at their show, including professional dance troupes, other Brandeis groups and other university troupes.

B’Yachad danced admirably for all of their routines. While some dancers were clearly more experienced than others, they held together well and the few weaker dancers were supported well by the more advanced dancers. B’Yachad began with an energetic dance to foottapping music that got the audience revved for the show. This opening act titled “Mehashamayim”—choreographed by Jennie Berger ’12, Meg Kennedy ’14 and Missy Mandell ’13—was one of B’Yachad’s strongest numbers in that it showed the cohesiveness of the group as they danced together in near-perfect synchronicity.

This number was very similar to the routine they performed directly after the intermission. In “Matai L’achazor, choreographed by Rose Just-Michael ’12, the troupe energized the audience, bringing them out of the doldrums of intermission.

Although there were a few mistakes in this routine, the troupe always recovered quickly and it did not affect the performance too much.

Another standout for B’Yachad was “Bein Ha’tzlilim,” choreographed by Berger, in which all of B’Yachad’s seniors danced together.

This dance, slower than their first number, flowed well with fluid motions. Additionally, this dance allowed each senior a moment to shine; Ilyana Rosenberg ’12 shone the brightest though when she stood alone in a semi-circle created by her fellow dancers and did a handstand—dress be damned (she was wearing shorts underneath).

B’Yachad also wowed in “L’azuz,” choreographed by Becca Meyer ’12 and Micky Waks ’13; this fast-paced routine was very modern with a lot of acrobatics and nearly hip-hop moves. There was one very bad mistake in this routine, however, in which Jake Altholz ’15 and Waks attempted to do the lift popularized by “Dirty Dancing.” For a moment while Altholz was suspending Waks in the air, it was fabulous; but then that second passed and the entire audience gasped as one when it appeared that Waks was about to plummet headfirst into the stage.

Luckily she did not and they both recovered very quickly although the audience was a bit more nervous.

In fact, B’Yachad did many more lifts than they have in previous shows probably due to the fact that they now have three male members.

While this does not excuse the brash negligence in trying such as dangerous move as Altholz and Waks attempted, the troupe did successfully accomplish many lifts.

One cannot write so much about B’Yachad without mentioning Baby B’Yachad; Baby B’Yachad is the “troupe” composed of students who are not members of B’Yachad but wanted to learn a dance and perform it. These students, while they

were not very good, it was impossible to watch their performance without a huge grin on your face because of how much fun they were having on stage.

The two best guest groups were the Sayat Nova Dance Company and the Aftab Dance Group. The Sayat Nova Dance Company is a professional dance troupe that performed traditional Armenian dances. They performed two routines, the first of which contained only the female members of the group performing a traditional Armenian women’s pride dance. Their movements were very controlled and their dance seemed to be comprised of series of quick movements and then a pause for a pose. As amazing as their first routine was, the second, in which the men joined them, was even better.

I do not know if I have ever seen anyone dance that quickly in such succinct synchronicity.

The Aftab Dance Group, a Persian dance group comprised of Boston-area college students, was a surprising win.

While not every dancer was perfect, their choreography was incredibly interesting with a focus on their hands rather than their feet and their music was upbeat and fun. Also, they were having a blast. Those were the eight most genuine smiles I saw on stage all night and some of the girls were even singing along to their Farsi music.

Two amazing performers did neither song nor dance; Zoha Hussain ’14 and Rawda Aljawhary ’13 performed slam poetry deftly. Hussein performed two original poems that confronted the intolerance she faces from non-Muslims and from other sects within Islam. Her first poem “We Are One” made great use of current political tensions; as she performed, one could feel her anger at the way she is sometimes treated. Her second poem “Muslims” confronted many of the same issues and had these beautifully heart-wrenching lines about the intolerance she faces: “You will never be accepted here / Go back to your country / You’re better off there.”

Aljawhary’s performance was phenomenal as well but the strongest part came when she recited a work-in-progress original poem about Allah; the poem evoked a very visceral reaction by the flowing beauty of the words.

The Belly Dance Ensemble also performed a routine and it was very impressive. Although not all the girls in the ensemble have the body types one would expect from belly dancing, they sure could dance. At one point their coin-belts were jingling steadily for a very long time and yet they were shaking their hips so subtly that the only movement one could see was the coins; they appeared to be stationary.

Musika Rox also featured performance by Ba’note, Adagio Dance Ensemble and Boston University’s Kalaniot. Ba’note was good but not great; their first song was lovely but was not at all Middle Eastern and did not fit the theme, their second song seemed somewhat messy, and they have sung their third song too many times. Adagio Dance Ensemble danced very well but they did nothing to stand out; also, Adagio choreography seems to love putting their dancers lying on the floor, which is Levin Ballroom is a mistake because it makes it very difficult for the audience to see them. Lastly, Kalaniot was terrible; their choreography was very traditional but they unfortunately could not carry it out.

Also, for next year’s show, B’Yachad should consider finding one student to emcee the event and have him practice his lines beforehand. Some emcees forced the audience to listen as they read the routine descriptions in a monotone from the playbill. One emcee could not even pronounce B’Yachad.

Overall Musika Rox was a very good show with strong routines from nearly all of the performers. It was a shame that not more people attended because the dancing and poetry were truly impressive.

14 ARTS, ETC.

The Brandeis Hoot

March 23, 2012

‘Witty’ lecture by visiting professor

By Dana Trismen Editor

This past Wednesday, the Dean of Arts and Sciences and European Cultural Studies brought Gary Saul Morson to campus to discuss the concept of wit. Morson is a professor of arts and humanities at Northwestern University and is an expert scholar in Russian literature.

Known for his picky and precise sentences, Morson applied his insights into the little talked about topic of wit to the modern day.

In a literary world consumed with

the novel, the short quips of witty statements and anecdotal stories often go unmentioned. Morson is wit’s crusader, serving to remind us of the importance of possessing wit. Defined

by Morson, wit is mind over circumstance and the ability to respond with a smart comment on the spot regardless of the environment. It is entirely tied to timing.

While as humans we often have afterthoughts about what we should have said, wit has no patience for human folly. If a person possesses wit, he or she is also armed with a clever remark on the tip of his or her tongue

at all times. Wit is therefore a social skill, a literary tool that makes a person exceptionally intelligent. Morson described this concept with verbal duels. In his opinion, the ability to retort to an insult with a witty remark grants the person respect and honor. It demonstrates the importance of brains, logic and knowledge in the world. He cited examples ranging from Dorothy Parker to Winston Churchill, both of whom were able to stupefy the person insulting them with wit.

Morson insists that wit is a nonviolent way to become a champion.

By possessing wit, one can adapt and thrive in the most testing of social situations.

Morson also illustrated the importance of wit in darker situations such as on the deathbed or the scaffold.

Oscar Wilde’s famous last line was “either that wallpaper goes, or I do.”

Death is inevitable; only the bravest of men can face it while maintaining a sense of humor and wit. The scaffold is an even more trying environment than the deathbed, for men are forced to face death firmly in the face while enduring extreme embarrassment and shame. The ability to possess the presence of mind necessary to joke on the scaffold is astonishing, which is a sort of unique stoicism, he explained.

While it may seem that Morson is talking about topics entirely unrelated to the everyday Brandeis student, his comments on wit are relevant.

While students do not expect to face the scaffold in their lifetime, possessing a calm presence of mind in the face of danger is a valuable lesson.

While studying for a looming chemistry exam for example, it may be easier to approach the challenge with a witty comment instead of constantly stress-

ing about it. It would make a person appear more intelligent as well, given that wit is the sole literary tool that requires adept social skills. Morson preaches that wit is about transforming a situation into a more pleasant one.

Morson is an excellent lecturer. Although he was reading a chapter out loud from his new book that is set out to come out in April, he brought his own words to life. When quoting witty comments, he would take on different

tones, deepening his voice and pausing for effect at the funny outcomes.

The audience was very invested in his topic as they were constantly reminded of the clever tactics of wit. Morson would even stray from his text. For example, he joked that many of the witty comments taking place on the scaffold were brought to us from the French Terror. Personable and pleasant to hear, Morson has finally given wit the attention it deserves.

photos by ingrid schulte/the hoot

witty banter (Bottom right) Professor Robin Feuer Miller (ENG) introduces visisting

professor Gary Saul Morson (top left) on March 19.

Social media privacy not black and white

By Anastasia Austin Special to the Hoot

Social media has made headlines in the news lately because of its role and effectiveness in not only spreading news but popularizing it. The Kony 2012 campaign, specifically, caught the eyes of traditional news networks that praised it for raising awareness.

The campaign criticized the media for factual fallacies and jealously pointed out that they’d been covering the story for years, all in one breath.

Social media is not only useful “for uncovering awful stories about war lord’s atrocities or finding out what your old high school flame has been up to,” as Jon Stewart, the popular night-time comedian puts it. The Internet is also an incredible resource for discovering career and internship opportunities as well as being discovered.

Warnings about keeping your Facebook clean, your Twitter appropriate and your Google search decent are almost as old as the Internet—or at least Myspace itself—but you might be surprised to learn that promoting the positive information about yourself is just as important as suppressing the negative. After creating a Twitter account because “employers like you to have it,” I found that the lesson in Monday’s Hiatt Webinar: “Managing Your Brand in a Digital Age” was especially encouraging. Even more useful than the self-reassurance was when Aaron Finegold, a Brandeis alumnus and marketing strategist at Industry Solutions, presented a step-by-step on how to clean up your “digital image” and increase your positive presence on the Web. The seminar consisted of two main topics: organic search and social media.

Ever Google your name? Of course you have: That’s what everyone did

photo from internet source

internet privacy How public is your Facebook account?

before memes, but what is more important than that is that you might not be the only one googling it. Recruiters and employers will often do an organic search on a prospective employee or intern, usually using Google, Bing or Yahoo search engines. If the first link to come up is to an album of less-than professional St. Patrick’s Day photos, even your Hiatt-approved resume may not make the cut. If, on the other hand, nothing even vaguely related to you appears, employers might wonder how disconnected from the modern world you really are. This is a classic dilemma of balance: You want to raise your search-engine ranking but at the same time you want to make sure that anything negative disappears.

We’ve all heard the warning that once something is on the internet, it’s there forever. This is only very technically true. If you own the unsightly

content, you can remove it yourself. If you can’t, you can write to the owner asking to have it removed and in both cases you can request that the search engine remove the URL from the search. Although the process is different for different search engines, the directions are easy to find online.

If you have the opposite problem, however, in which little if anything shows up when your name is searched, your solution is a little more complex.

Finegold suggests getting some local, but significant, press coverage. Getting press coverage for an event that you’re involved in or getting involved with events that you’re passionate about is well worth your time. That, along with following simple rules such as always using the same name in applications and interviews, and being active with social media will have you well on your way to making Google

your personal advertiser.

Speaking of social media, it’s more important than you think. Even having “thin” Facebook and Twitter profiles can be helpful in making you more human than just a resume, but it’s important to make sure that those social websites are not doing more harm than good.

Though privacy settings are an encouraged safety net, especially if your circle of friends sometimes have poor judgment, privacy settings are not a guaranteed lock: Do not have a lock.

It’s important to remember that what is posted on social media websites is not your property but that of the site itself and is fair game for employers.

Ignorance is not an excuse. A basic rule of thumb, Finegold says, is asking yourself “would I feel comfortable having this picture or story in the Wall Street Journal?” If not, it shouldn’t be

online at all.

More than ever before, employers are turning to LinkedIn for recruitment purposes. You’ll be surprised at who bothers to look at your profile. As a matter of fact, LinkedIn is so vital in today’s job hunt that Finegold suggests making sure your profile is at 100 percent completion, even if you do nothing else. It’s not so much the content of your profile that recruiters and employers are looking for but that you are a serious enough of a candidate to have these profiles made and updated.

For those savvy few to whom the above advice seems obvious, there are additional resources to further your branding in the digital age: personal websites and blogs. Unlike social media sites, however, the most important question when it comes to blogs and websites is not how to control the content you post, but whether you need a blog or website at all!

For a website Finegold suggests hiring a professional designer, but first you have to ask yourself if it’s going to be worth your money. This depends on whether or not you have a large portfolio of work outside of what’s on your resume and on how actively you are looking for a new job. The latter consideration is especially important because having a website made when you’re not looking to leave your current job looks suspicious and might leave you jobless.

A blog, which you can easily make on your own, also requires these same considerations. We’ve all read those self-righteous, random and, honestly, somewhat dull blogs without focus or perspective. As interesting as you might be as a person, you have to ask yourself whether or not you have a clear topic of interest, an original perspective and the time to merit having your own Web property..

EDITORIALS

March 23, 2012

“To acquire wisdom, one must observe.”

Editor-in-Chief Jon Ostrowsky Managing Editor Yael Katzwer Alex Schneider Editor Emeritus Connor Novy News Editor Morgan Gross Impressions Editor Candice Bautista Arts, Etc. Editor Brian Tabakin Sports Editor Ingrid Schulte Photography Editor Nate Rosenbloom Photography Editor Emily Stott Layout Editor Steven Wong Graphics Editor Leah Finkelman Production Editor Suzanna Yu Copy Editor Gordy Stillman Business Editor Deputy Editors

Victoria Aronson Morgan Dashko Zoe Kronovet Juliette Martin Dana Trismen

Senior Editors Destiny D. Aquino Sean Fabery Savannah Pearlman

Volume 9 • Issue 9 the brandeis hoot • brandeis university 415 south street • waltham, ma

Founded By Leslie Pazan, Igor Pedan and Daniel Silverman

Mission As the weekly community student newspaper of Brandeis University, The Brandeis Hoot aims to provide our readers with a reliable, accurate and unbiased source of news and information.

Produced entirely by students, The Hoot serves a readership of 6,000 with in-depth news, relevant commentary, sports and coverage of cultural events. Recognizing that better journalism leads to better policy, The Brandeis Hoot is dedicated to the principles of investigative reporting and news analysis. Our mission is to give every community member a voice.

SUBMISSION POLICIES The Brandeis Hoot welcomes letters to the editor on subjects that are of interest to the community. Preference is given to current or former community members and The Hoot reserves the right to edit or reject submissions. The deadline for submitting letters is Wednesday at noon. Please submit letters to letters@ thebrandeishoot.com along with your contact information. Letters should not exceed 500 words. The opinions, columns, cartoons and advertisements printed in The Hoot do not necessarily represent the opinions of the editorial board.

STAFF Senior Staff Nafiz “Fizz” Ahmed Alana Blum Debby Brodsky Sam Allen, Rick Alterbaum, Emily Beker, Alex Bernstein, Emily Breitbart, Marissa Budlong, Justin Burack, Adam Cohen, Haley Fine, Jeremy Goodman, Rachel Hirschhaut, Paula Hoekstra, Adam Hughes, Gabby Katz, Josh Kelly, Samuel Kim, Zoe Kronovet, Arielle Levine, Ariel Madway, Estie Martin, Adam Marx, Anita Palmer, Alex Patch, Lien Phung, Zachary Reid, Betty Revah, Zach Romano, Ricky Rosen, Aaron Sadowsky, Jessica Sashihara, Sarah Schneider, Alex Self, Naomi Shine, Diane Somlo, Sindhura Sonnathi, Ryan Tierney, Alan Tran, Yi Wang, Sarah Weber, Rachel Weissman and Linjie Xu

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To reserve your space in the paper, contact us by phone at (781) 330-0051 or by e-mail at ads@thebrandeishoot.com.

Corrections

Due to a reporting error, a news article last week misstated the name and position of Michael Rosbash’s new position. He was named the Peter Gruber Chair of Neuroscience, a new university endowed faculty chair.

We regret the error.

unsolicited submissions

We welcome unsolicited submissions from members of the community sent by e-mail to eic@thebrandeishoot.com. Please limit submissions to 800 words. All submissions are subjected to editing.

L

The Brandeis Hoot 13

Rethink Aramark corporate structure

ast week The Hoot published an article about Brandeis Dining Services decreasing the number of student managers. Director of Dining Services Aaron Bennos responded to The Hoot via e-mail on Friday to explain there was no intentional decision to reduce the number of managers.

Hoot staff continued investigating the issue this week and found that there has in fact been a significant decrease in the number of student managers working in dining services.

But that decline has been specifically at Usdan, a distinction the article did not explicitly state in the beginning. The article noted there was one student manager working in Usdan.

Technically speaking and depending on timing of hiring, that statement was not incorrect.

There is another student manager hired to perform administrative responsibilities and only last week was a second floor manager who works behind food lines hired in Usdan.

After speaking with many student and union workers, managers and supervisors, Hoot staff contacted Bennos to follow up on this story, but he did not respond to repeated requests for further comment.

Our responsibility as editors of a community newspaper is to investigate the issues that affect students, staff, faculty and administrators. The em-

ployment structure, organization and hierarchy of dining services undoubtedly has a direct effect on both student life and staff treatment. Unfortunately, it is often an issue overlooked.

Students at Brandeis often complain about the quality of food in dining halls. In fairness, however, this critique must not be directed solely at Aramark.

As a food service provider, Aramark makes food for a range of institutions in America from correctional facilities to elite universities. Aramark alone cannot be held responsible for the quality of food they provide.

If Brandeis purchased a different dining package and spent more money each year, food quality would improve significantly.

What Aramark can be critiqued for, and what Brandeis administrators can be held responsible for, is the corporate structure they build and promote within the university.

The Hoot’s coverage of the relationships, hiring practices and communication between staff and supervisors, whether students or adults, reveals a system that is not transparent.

Dinings services should be hiring more, not fewer student managers. Senior management officials like Bennos should clearly list the goals to achieve, responsibilities to meet and development track to follow for aspiring student managers.

Providing food services for a university of more than 3,000 students is not a simple task. We do not underestimate the difficulty of managing personnel and running an efficient dining service operation. Yet we believe that each of these objectives can be met more fully if they are viewed as combined, indistinct goals.

Overtime, food service will be more efficient if students are given more responsibility, control and leadership capabilities. It will take energy and resources to restructure and redefine the role of student workers but it is a crucial and long overdue change.

Brandeis administrations should recommend this dining services personnel structure review to Aramark. If they are unwilling to lead on the issue, surely we can interview with other companies to create a new contract for food service in the future.

This issue is not about whether Bennos will respond to phone calls and e-mails from The Hoot or whether the quality of the food is adequate in lower usdan or Sherman.

It is about a corporate culture that needs to change, either from within Aramark or a new company. Corporations must provide an effective service and motivate their employees to succeed. Right now, Aramark is struggling to recognize this dual responsibility to the Brandeis community.

Features

16 The Brandeis Hoot

March 23, 2012

Travels in Rome: the eternal city

By Margo Kolenda Special to the hoot

“So, how was Rome? What did you guys do?” Upon returning from February break, I was asked this question by almost everyone I encountered.

When I first touched back down in the United States, I received a call from home asking me to describe my trip in one word. The word I chose was indescribable. Every time I briefly described my trip, I felt as though I was selling it short, that I couldn’t adequately convey my experiences or what they meant to me.

There is a clear reason why Rome has been dubbed “The Eternal City”; Everything seemed to exist outside of time. Every street is soaked in history, and everyone from Constantine to Michelangelo, to a long succession of Popes has made an impact. Rome collects elements from its long history to fill every corner with something spectacular. History is not set aside and roped off, but instead incorporated into the modern city. We walked over the bridge where Constantine converted, we touched the doors of the Pantheon and we ate dinner over the site where Caesar was murdered. In true Brandeis spirit, we even played a game of Ultimate Ninja inside the Colosseum as homage to the gladiators who fought before us.

It may seem at first as though five days would not nearly be enough time to experience fully a city that has so much to offer. As an experienced traveler, this was the shortest trip I have ever taken, but I believe it is by far the most meaningful. For five days we put aside outside stress, project due dates, waiting applications and all of the other commitments that can easily weigh down a Brandeis student.

We packed much more into our days than could ever be done on campus, even by the standard of a Brandeis overachiever.

We made sure to take advantage of our time and see as much of the city as we could, often choosing to walk through one more museum rather than rest at the hotel. We saw all of the major sights multiple times, until walking past the Pantheon became a daily occurrence. We took time to wander, explore, stop, stare and take in the awesome sights before us. We would take the time to lean our heads back and stare at the ceiling of the Sistine chapel for more than an hour, sitting and relaxing atop the Spanish steps at night.

On the plane ride to Rome, a fellow student asked what this trip signified for me as a Catholic. Upon considering the question I responded that it seemed more of a Pilgrimage for me as an Italian; after all, Jesus never went to Rome. I soon realized how

pantheon in rome While in Rome, Margo Kolenda and her fellow students passed by the Pantheon

photos courtesy of margo kolenda

nearly every day, to gaze at its glory..

wrong I was, for much of my religious history was centered in Rome.

Walking through St. Peter’s Basilica was breathtaking. The building itself is gorgeous, and the atmosphere of a history of religious devotion is overwhelming. In the mountainside town of Assisi, we visited the tomb of St. Francis (who essentially started the order of the Franciscan monks), and reflected deeply on simplifying our lives. Father Cuenin, Brandeis’ Catholic chaplain, held two masses, one in Assisi and one beneath St. Peter’s on Ash Wednesday, and both services were also meaningful to the non-Christians in the group. We had several students who were not Christian, but were still able to appreciate the history of Rome.

My favorite thing about Brandeis has always been the people here, and this trip was no exception from that.

As our leader, Father Cuenin was an expert on all aspects of Rome including the historical, religious and social. He lived in the city for eight years, and had been ordained in St. Peter’s. He gave us a true insider’s look, showing us the best restaurants and giving us all of the background information throughout the trip.

Prior to the trip, I only knew a few

the colosseum While visiting the Colosseum, students played Ultimate Ninja to show

unity with the gladiators who fought there long ago.

of the fellow students. Now I have 16 new friends, some of whom I consid-

er myself very close with. We still get together after the trip, and I am grate-

ful now to have each and every one of them in my life.

ash wednesday mass Above, the students on the trip gather around Father Cuenin on Ash Wednesday beneath St. Peter’s Basilica.

March 23, 2012

FEATURES 17

The Brandeis Hoot

The importance of women in forestry

By Victoria Aronson Editor

Bina Agarwal, director and professor of Economics at the Institute of Economic Growth of Delhi, India, who has explored the potential for women’s increased inclusion in forest governance delivered a lecture on campus Monday.

Agarwal traced the historical absence of women within the forestry industry. She illuminated the cultural and gender specific forces that have cultivated this pattern, while further presenting her analysis of forestry industries in Nepal and India to elucidate the potential for increased female participation.

In some cases, extraction from the forests can be beneficial, preventing dry regions from catching fire.

Agarwal further showed images of groups of women participating in informal patrolling of the forests.

“The presence of women within forest government can significantly improve conservation and regeneration,” she said.

To further provide the distinctions between participation levels granted to women within the Community Forest Industry, or CFI, Agarwal traced a continuum from

nominal to empowered participation. She defined nominal or passive participation as being informed, but said that empowered participation transcends this actually to bear influence upon the decision making process. In the words of a village woman from Gujarat, “Men don’t stop us from speaking, but they do all the talking.”

Beyond reflecting on the historical near absence of women within this industry, Agarwal went on to address the distinct motivations rural women would have toward the forests in comparison to men. She drew upon gender divisions of interests, including relative stakes in forest conservation and increased knowledge of plant species.

Acknowledging the complexities of her argument, Agarwal noted that since women tend to be far more dependent on the forests than men, they could possibly be “much more compelled to extract from them,” enforcing the conflicting interests of “immediate subsistence and long term conservation.”

Both the data she has collected and the statements on behalf of women with whom she has spoken, however, tend to repudiate these concerns. For instance, within Ne-

pal, the likelihood of the forests improving was higher for all women groups than those lacking female participants.

Remarking on the sense of empowerment associated with active participation, Agarwal quoted one female villager who stated: “We are seen as much more knowledgeable and much more responsible persons.”

Due to the dependence on firewood and timber within these regions of Nepal and India, Agarwal asserted the need to provide villagers with alternative sources of fuel.

During the subsequent questionand-answer session, Agarwal confessed that “women were much more trusting than the men and more forthcoming on rule violations.”

She noted the need to create environments actively in which women felt able to speak. It is not only inclusion Agarwal is striving for, but also the ability for women to feel comfortable in this environment.

Having recently published the findings of her research in the novel “Gender and Green Governance,” Agarwal notes: “Somehow environment has not yet fired the imagination of feminists in the women’s movement.”

bina agarwal, speaker

photo by ingrid schulte/the hoot

Raising awareness on sexual assault

By Jennifer Spencer Special to the Hoot

Professors Anita Hill (Heller) and Bernadette Brooten (NEJS) assembled a daylong conference in Levin Ballroom on March 19 to raise awareness of the issue that black women are considerably less likely than white women to report and seek justice when raped.

“Professor Hill came to Brandeis in 1998, and we met soon after that. Our actual collaboration on this topic began in the early 2000s,” Brooten said. “What excites me about the conference is the multiplicity of steps forward that people can take.”

Leaders of the convention discussed the reasons, implications and further steps that can be taken to change the societal problem. As part of their academic research, Hill and Brooten have studied for years the legal injustices that black rape victims face.

“All citizens can work to persuade government officials to hold hearings and conduct investigations into why black women who experience rape are less likely to report to the police, why prosecutors are less likely to prosecute, and why jurors are less likely to convict than if the rape complainant were white,” Brooten said.

“Any citizen who serves on a jury can make certain that they are judging each case on the merits, rather than based on harmful racial-sexual stereotypes.”

The crowd then watched a dramatic theater arts production, performed by Vanessa Adams Harris, depicting a woman who was raped by a man for whom she worked. He proceeds to lock her in a room, threatening to kill her, but she manages to retaliate, ultimately killing her attacker in self defense.

Tragically, she is later found guilty of murder and given the death sentence. This presentation was then followed by two separate panels allowing for dis-

photos by lien phung/the hoot

raising awareness Panelists speak at the conference on March 19.

cussions and questions of topics encompassing the issue.

The event catered to many different disciplinary fields by including speeches, panels, general discussion and the arts, bringing in scholars from both near and far.

Some of the panelists included

Professor Gail Wyatt (Clinical Psychology, Psychiatry, and Biomedical Sciences) of University of California, Los Angeles, and Professor Adrienne Davis (Private Law, Feminist Legal Theory, and Theories of Justice and Reparations) of Washington University. Panel discussion included

talks of deep-seeded cultural issues as well as the current event topics of today.

The audience members were diverse as well, consisting of local community members and students as well as those as far away as from Ghana.

President Fred Lawrence, who

attended law school with Hill, talked about the urgency of the issue in his speech and how imperative it is to take steps towards consciousness and making changes.

“It is critically important that as a society we grapple with these issues because the stakes could not be higher,” Lawrence said.

18 The Brandeis Hoot

SPORTS

March 23, 2012

Baseball continues to struggle, dropping four straight

By Brian Tabakin Editor

After getting their first win of the UAA tournament in Florida last week, the baseball team was looking to build on that victory and begin a winning streak. Unfortunately, the Judges failed to sustain any momentum from their victory against Case Western, dropping the final two games of the UAA tournament to Rochester and Case Western, 6-4 and 9-1 respectively.

Rochester jumped out to an early lead this past Friday, forcing the Judges once again to attempt to come back from an early deficit.

Rochester immediately scored in the first inning after center fielder Alex Caghan was hit by a pitch to lead off and to steal second. Secondbaseman Ethan Sander then followed with a single to put runners on the corners. The Judges’ starting pitcher Kyle Brenner ’15 induced a double play off of a groundball on the next play to limit the damage but Rochester was able to plate a run. Rochester tacked on two more runs in the fourth inning off of an RBI double from first-baseman Nick Carlson, as well as a sacrifice fly from left fielder Dominic Caruso.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, Brandeis pulled within one run.

Third-baseman Brian Ing ’14 led off the frame with a walk and then center fielder Zach Malis ’12 drove him home with an RBI double to left.

Malis then scored on an error by the Rochester shortstop after left fielder Dylan Britton ’13 bunted him over to third.

Unfortunately for the Judges, Rochester again extended their lead in the seventh inning. Carlson and Caruso led off the frame with backto-back singles and following a balk

by Brenner, with both runners moving into scoring position. Carlson scored on a sacrifice fly and Caruso scored on a single before Brenner got another double-play to avoid further damage in the inning.

The Judges would once again pull within one run in the bottom of the seventh. Ing led off the inning with a single. Two batters later, shortstop Dom Schwartz ’14 singled to left and then Sean O’Hare ’12 doubled to left center to drive in Ing. Catcher Kenny Destremps then followed hitting a ball to shortstop that was booted by Rochester allowing Schwartz to score; however, O’Hare also tried to score and he was gunned down at the plate for the final out of the inning.

Rochester added another run in the eighth and Brandeis was unable to mount another rally.

photo by paula hoekstra/the hoot

Even though Brenner took the loss to fall to 2-2 on the season, he once again had pitched deep into the game, going eight innings allowing 11 hits and six earned runs.

Brandeis looked to finish the UAA tournament with a win the following day when they faced Case Western Reserve for the second time in three days.

The Judges jumped out to an early lead in the top of the first inning following a single from O’Hare. After a fielder’s choice resulted in an out at second, a balk moved another runner into scoring position. Following a groundout, Brenner drove home a run with a two-out RBI single.

Unfortunately, for the Judges, Case was able to jump all over starting pitcher Pat Nicholson M.A. ’12, tagging him for seven runs in the first two innings. After falling into a 7-1 hole, the Judges were unable to muster any comeback.

This is becoming a pattern for the Judges. When they get good pitching, they struggle to score runs, and when they are scoring runs, they aren’t pitching well. The Judges left the UAA tournament hoping to establish some consistency as they returned to Brandeis for the home opener.

In their home opener, the Judges

faced Bridgewater State. Unfortunately, the Judges got plastered, losing 194. Second-baseman Sean Riley led the Bridgewater Bears with a career day in which he went 4-of-5 at the plate, including two doubles and a home run, with a walk scoring five runs and driving in six.

First-baseman David Pierce, Riley’s teammate, also had a spectacular game going 2-of-5 with a walk, triple, five RBIs and three runs scored. In total, 10 different players registered hits for Bridgewater with five of the 10 getting at least two hits. In a remarkable feat, Bridgewater batted around the order in three different innings, scoring nine times in the first, four times in the second and four times in the sixth.

The Judges had success hitting the ball, with 11 different players combining for 13 hits off of Bridgewater starter Bryant Warner; however, the Judges simply were unable to plate any runs.

The Judges’ first run came in the seventh inning and then they tacked on three more in the eighth. While the Judges could only muster four runs on 13 hits, Bridgewater scored an extremely efficient 19 runs on 18 hits.

The following day, Brandeis faced

Wentworth hoping to bounce back from the shellacking they took the previous day.

Against Wentworth, Brandeis once again had to attempt to rally from a 5-2 deficit. Unlike in previous games, the Judges were able to rally successfully, plating runs in the sixth, eighth and ninth innings, holding Wentworth scoreless and sending the game into extra innings knotted up at 5-5.

Unfortunately, in the 10th inning, the Judges committed two unforced errors that allowed Wentworth to score six runs. Thus, the Judges’ comeback attempt came short once again as the team lost 11-5.

In the 10th inning, Wentworth aggressively went after three different Brandeis pitchers. Wentworth’s first baseman Kevin McKenzie led off the extra frame with an eight-pitch walk.

Scott Oullette bunted McKenzie over to second during the next at-bat and then center fielder Paul Dassau singled to shallow center to put runners on the corners. During the next at-bat, Dassau stole second putting two Wentworth runners in scoring position with just one out. Left fielder Alex Wong then hit a weak grounder to second that was booted, preventing the Judges from limiting the Leopards to a single run while getting an out on

the play.

Wentworth took advantage of the Judges’ miscue as they proceeded to score four more runs in the inning, putting the game out of reach for the Judges.

The Judges will host Framingham State this Sunday at 1 p.m.

Baseball Team

UAA

All

Emory

7–1

14 – 7

Washington

5–3

13 – 6

Case Western

4–4

12 – 6

Rochester

3–5

3–5

Rochester

1–7

5 – 13

Chicago

0–0

7–1

Box Scores Rochester

Loss

6–4

Case

Loss

9–1

Bridgewater St.

Loss

19 – 4

Wentworth

Loss

11 – 5

@Salve Regina

Loss

9–7

Men’s tennis falls to Bentley in home opener

By Brian Tabakin Editor

In their first home match of the season, the Brandeis men’s tennis team fell 7-2 to visiting Bentley University.

With captain Steven Milo ’13, Dave Yovanoff ’13 and Ezra Bernstein ’12 all missing Wednesday’s game, the Judges struggled to replace them on the court.

“I strained my patellar tendon [in my knee] so I just wanted to take it slow. I should be back for our next game,” Milo said.

Yovanoff missed the game with the stomach flu.

While their fill-ins performed admirably, they were not enough to overcome the absence of three of the team’s top performers. Josh Jordan ’13 and Alec Siegel ’15 stepped up for the Judges, winning their matches at No.

1 singles and No. 2 singles respectively; however, these were the only matches the Judges won. With the loss, the Judges fell to 2-5 on the season while Bentley improved to 8-4.

Filling in for Milo at No.1 singles, Jordan won a hard-fought match.

After dropping the first set 6-2, Jordan rallied to take the second set 6-4 and then gritted the third set out in a match tiebreak 10-7. Siegel did not have as difficult of a time as Jordan did in his match, dispatching his opponent in straight sets 6-1, 6-4 to gain his first win at No. 2 singles.

While the Judges were unable to win any of their doubles matches, Michael Secular ’15 and Siegel did put a scare into Bentley’s No.1 doubles team. They could not eke out the win, however, eventually losing 8-6.

Milo touched on some of the struggles the Judges have endured early

The Judges will return to action on Wednesday at 3 p.m. when they travel to face Babson College.

Men’s tennis

photo by paula hoekstra/the hoot

on in the season, noting: “We have a young team. Experience is a bit of an issue right now. We only have one senior on the team. It’s a bit of a transition year for the team.”

“We just have to continue to improve and gain confidence. I had a lot

of confidence in our team going into the season and I still have faith in our team going forward,” he said.

The Judges were supposed to play again this Saturday against Coast Guard, but the match has been postponed until a later date.

Team

UAA

All

Emory

0–0

12 – 0

Carnegie Mellon

0–0

7– 4

Case Western

0–0

10 – 6

Washington

0–0

6–5

NYU

0–0

1–2

Brandeis

0–0

2–5

Chicago

0–0

1–3

Rochester

0–0

0–5

Box Scores Bentley

Loss

7–2

March 23, 2012

SPORTS 19

The Brandeis Hoot

Softball goes 1-2 over weekend to end UAA tournament

By Alex Berstein Staff

After losing a close game 8-7 to Rochester last Friday, the Judges’ softball squad split a doubleheader on Saturday, with an 11-3 win against Case Western, and another close loss, 5-4, to Washington University at St. Louis. The team returned from the UAA tournament in Altamonte Springs, Fla., finishing the tournament with a 3-5 record.

Ali Theodore ’12 is hopeful the Judges will have a successful season after a productive off-season.

“In the off season the team worked a lot on fielding fundamentals, strength and conditioning, and batting,” Theodore said. She added that the team’s goal was to “correct the small things that many times go unnoticed during big games, yet can be crucial to [their] success. I think the team has really done a great job cultivating everything we have been working on in the off-season, which definitely showed in Florida.”

Theodore also pointed out the challenges of having the UAA tournament in March. “It’s difficult for us because, unlike other UAA teams, we have yet to really play outside, whereas teams like Emory are already midway through their season. All the teams we faced were strong, talented teams.”

Theodore also mentioned the benefit of having the tournament, noting: “These are always the toughest games of the season, so having to be thrown

By Brian Tabakin Editor

This past Monday, the National Football League (NFL) was turned on its head as reports emerged from ESPN’s Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter that Peyton Manning would be signing with the Denver Broncos.

After missing the entire 2011-2012 NFL season recovering from multiple neck surgeries, the Colts decided to part ways with Manning earlier this month. Without Manning behind center this past season, the Colts went from a 10-6 playoff team to a 2-14 team with the rights to the first overall pick in the upcoming draft. The Colts are widely expected to draft the highly touted prospect QB Andrew Luck out of Stanford University.

Rather than pay Manning a $28 million option bonus, the Colts decided to part ways. It became increasingly apparent this past season that Manning had been masking numerous holes and deficiencies on the Colts. As painful as this decision was for the Colts and Manning, the decision is the right decision. The Colts are entering a rebuilding period and they need the cap space to build around the heir apparent to Manning: Luck.

In a spectacular press conference that seemed like a retirement ceremony Manning remarked, “Nobody

By Brian Tabakin Editor

The 25th-ranked Brandeis women’s tennis team easily dispatched Bentley University 8-1 in their home opener Thursday afternoon. Alexa Katz ’14 sealed the victory for the Judges with her straight set victory 6-0, 6-2 at No. 4 singles.

After Katz clinched the match, the Judges won three of the final four matches. With the win, the Judges improved to 8-1 on the season while Bentley fell to 3-7.

The Judges jumped out to a quick start, winning all three of the doubles matches. Carley Cooke ’15 and Faith Broderick ’13 won at No. 1 doubles 8-1, Katz and Dylan Schlesinger ’15

into it immediately definitely gives us a good indication of our strengths and weaknesses for coming back to New England for the remainder of the games.”

In the match-up against Rochester, the Judges fell behind 7-1 after four innings but were able to rally and tie the game up with a six-run sixth inning. The Judges benefited from a pair of two-run singles by second baseman Leah McWilliams ’14 and pitcher Caroline Miller ’12. A wild pitch with two outs in the ninth, however, brought in the game-winning run for the Yellowjackets, ending the Judges’ hopes for a miraculous win.

For the game, right fielder Amanda Genovese ’15, first baseman Marianne Specker ’12 and center fielder Lauren Porcaro ’12 led the Judges with two hits apiece, while Miller and third baseman Anya Kamber ’15 each added a pair of RBIs. The Judges looked to bounce back on Saturday, when they faced Case Western Reserve. The game was close through the first five innings, with the Judges leading 4-3. Brandeis put the game away in the sixth inning, scoring seven runs on their way to an 11-3 victory. Melissa Nolan ’14 pitched well for the Judges, allowing just two earned runs on four hits while pitching a complete game.

Unfortunately, the Judges were not able to stay hot for their next game later on Saturday, facing Wash U, who ranked 21st in the nation. Brandeis scored first, plating two runs in the third inning, but the Bears responded

photo from brandeisnow

with a pair of runs in the fourth and fifth inning, taking a 4-2 lead into the last inning.

After Genovese got on base with a one-out single in the top of the seventh, shortstop Brittany Grimm ’12 hit a game-tying two-run homer, evening the score at four apiece. In the bottom half of the seventh inning, however, the Bears got three straight two-out singles to walk off with the 5-4 win. Although she took the loss, Miller pitched well for the Judges, striking out seven batters in six and two-thirds innings.

Theodore touched on some of the improvements the Judges made throughout the tournament.

“We had a little trouble getting things started with the bats early on, but over time I think players became

more confident as they realized just putting the ball in play and causing havoc could lead to game-changing situations,” she said. “I think our pitching, fielding and hitting improved every game. Once we got all the nerves out and realized we have the potential to challenge every team we faced, things started to flow nicely.”

Theodore also noted the importance of smart base-running. “I think it is also important that we stay aggressive on the base paths and take advantage of the opportunities to advance bases.”

Theodore said the team’s main goal for the season is to qualify for the NCAA tournament.

The Judges will face Worcester Polytechnic Institute in a double-

header Friday at 3 p.m. and then at 5 p.m.

Softball Team

UAA

All

Emory

6–2

23 – 3

Washington

4–4

10 – 5

Rochester

4–4

5–6

Case Western

3–5

8–7

Brandeis

3–5

3–5

Chicago

0–0

4–2

Box Scores Rochester

Loss

8–7

Case Western

Win

11 – 3

Washington

Loss

5–4

John Elway’s gamble: Peyton heads west loves their job more than I do. Nobody loves playing quarterback more than I do. I still want to play. But there is no other team I wanted to play for.”

A teary-eyed Manning continued, “We all know that nothing lasts forever. Times change, circumstances change, and that’s the reality of playing in the NFL.” After the official paperwork went through the league office, Manning immediately became the most-coveted and high profile free agent in NFL history and perhaps in sports history. Reports came out that up to 15 of 30 total NFL teams were reaching out to Peyton for his services but ultimately Manning decided to join the Broncos.

Without any other changes to the team, Manning immediately transforms the Broncos into Super Bowl contenders. With Tim Tebow, a quarterback that only completed 47.3 percent of his passes and frequently threw balls into the ground and missed wide-open receivers, under center last year the Broncos finished with an 8-8 record and advanced to the playoffs where they shocked the Steelers in the Wild Card round.

By replacing Tebow with Manning, it is not much of a stretch to believe that the four-time MVP, Super Bowl champion and first ballot Hall of Famer can take the Broncos two games further, to the Super Bowl.

Manning makes every offensive player better. With the Colts, he frequently took no-name receivers and made them national names.

With Manning’s football IQ, his arm strength and his accuracy, Manning can take Broncos’ wide receiver Demaryius Thomas to the next level and make him a pro-bowler.

Admittedly, there are three things that could derail the Broncos’ season or even cause them to miss the playoffs entirely.

First, the Broncos had the 20thranked defense last season. This will have to improve. While the argument can be made that the NFL is now a passing league, teams need a defense that can get the opposing offense off the field.

Second, the Broncos’ schedule is arguably the toughest schedule in the league. In addition to facing their divisional opponents—Chargers, Raiders and Chiefs twice—they will also have to face seven playoff teams from last season—the Ravens, Bengals, Falcons, Texans, Steelers, Saints and Patriots—and finally they will have to face up-and-coming teams such as the Buccaneers and the Panthers. In the NFL, playoff seeding is incredibly important with the crucial advantages of home field and a bye week. With such a tough schedule, the Colts will at best finish with a record of 11-5, which will likely not be enough for a

photo from internet source

playoff bye.

Finally, the one thing that could completely derail the Broncos, which also has a higher chance of happening than most would like to admit, is another injury to Manning. Manning has had five neck surgeries in the past two years. People close to Manning claim that his throwing mechanics and game have returned to pre-injury levels; however, football is a violent game. One hard tackle, sack or hit could cause a new injury to Manning that could knock him out for the season and possibly force him to retire.

This reason makes it rather peculiar that the Broncos currently do not have a backup QB on their roster as they traded former starter Tim Tebow

Women’s tennis continues early domination

won at No. 2 doubles 8-1, and Allyson Bernstein ’14 and Marissa Lazar ’14 won at No. 3 doubles 8-1.

The team followed up their sweep of doubles with Cooke easily winning No. 1 singles in straight sets 6-3, 6-1.

Broderick defeated her opponent in No. 2 singles in straight sets 6-2, 6-0 while Bernstein won No. 3 singles in straight sets 6-2, 6-3. Katz also easily won in No. 4 singles, winning in straight sets 6-0, 6-2. The only match the Judges lost was at No. 5 singles where Schlesinger lost in straight sets 7-6 (7-4), 6-3. Jill Martin ’15 closed out the match with a win in nN. 6 singles 6-3, 7-5.

The Judges will look to continue their early domination when they travel to Babson next Thursday.

to the New York Jets on Wednesday.

The Broncos have the tools and opportunity to win a Super Bowl next year; however, they will need to be extremely lucky to get there, let alone win the Super Bowl. In the NFL, chances to win the Super Bowl do not come along often. It is exactly for this reason that John Elway made an allout push to sign Manning.

If the Broncos are able to win a Super Bowl with Manning, the move will be one more achievement in Elway’s illustrious career; however, if the Broncos fail to win a Super Bowl, the move will likely be seen as a failure. Elway has double-downed on Manning, only time will tell if it was a gamble worth taking.

Women’s tennis Team

UAA

All

Case Western

0–0

13 – 2

Carnegie Mellon

0–0

11 – 3

Brandeis

0–0

8–1

Emory

0–0

7–2

Washington

0–0

7–3

Chicago

0–0

4–1

Rochester

0–0

2–2

NYU

0–0

0–2

Box Scores Bentley photo from brandeisnow

Win

8–1

20 ADVERTISEMENTS

The Brandeis Hoot

March 23, 2012