The Lorian
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Independently Published by Loras Students Since 1921
Vol. CI Iss. V
November 8 , 2022 - Dubuque, IA
The Rise and Decline of The Lorian By KEEGAN A. GODWIN
photo from KEEGAN A. GODWIN
The Lorian has been a staple of news at Loras College since 1921. Despite its long and proud tradition, the paper has been facing a dramatic decrease in members in recent years.
AMERICAN RIVERS CONFERENCE AND SPORTSMANSHIP Duhawk Dispatch Five
GET OUT AND VOTE. YOUR BALLOT MATTERS By KEEGAN A. GODWIN
In 1921, The Lorian was founded at Loras as the sole news source on campus. Over the last one hundred and one years, The Lorian has provided the students, faculty, and staff of this great college with campus news, events, and features about those in the Loras community. B u t l o o k i n g at T h e L o r i a n’s publication history, it is not difficult to notice the drop in content over the years. Especially in recent years, The Lorian has been forced to drop its page numbers from twelve to eight, then from eight to four. Sometimes it is less than four. In years past, the paper was able to put together twelve pages every week with ease. In 2010, The Lorian’s Executive Board consisted of eleven students and additional staff writers that totaled between twenty and thirty students. Today, the Executive Board of The Lorian consists of four students and additional staff writers between five and eights writers. But how has the school paper fallen so far from grace? Unfortunately, The Lorian has become a victim of the trend that has captured many newspapers across the globe – the Digital Era. With the rise of the internet and technology, the need for a physical paper copy of the news became irrelevant. Vox reported that with
It’s t h a t t i m e o f t h e y e a r. Election month. You have seen the advertisements nonstop for the past few months now. November 8th is Election Day and there are many ways you can vote to have your voice heard. However, there is the idea of voter fatigue. The idea is that people will become so worn out by the constant political banter that they simply will lose hope and not vote. But that idea cannot become reality in our democracy. Under Article I of the U.S. Constitution, Congress is to be elected by a popular vote while the President will be elected through the Electoral College. The idea of the popular vote works. In theory. The popular vote only works if the people go out and vote for their respective candidates. Midterms are even more difficult to have every voter get out there and cast their ballots. In 2018, PewResearch reported that just 49.4% of eligible voters cast their ballots in the Midterm elections. This was the highest voter turnout for the Midterms since the 1914 Elections. 49.4%. That is the highest eligible voter turnout in modern American history. That 49.4% tallied just over 122 million Americans. Now think about if 60% of eligible voters came to the ballots.
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The Old Man Living in Binz
By AVA BRADLEY
We l c o m e b a c k t o a n o t h e r Duhawk Dispatch! This week, we want to hear from YOU! Student Government is working on how we can best reach students with news without sending multiple emails per week. In order for us to figure out where you prefer your news to come from, we want your input! Student Government is conducting a survey that we would like for students to fill out. You can find the survey on the DuConnect News Feed or at this link: https:// tinyurl.com/lorasnews. We will use the survey results with your input to ensure that the news you receive will be delivered to you in the best format possible. Make your voice heard and take the survey today!
By MARK MEDERSON By DENISE UDELHOFEN
Last spring the American Rivers C on fe re n c e ( A- R- C ) at h l e t i c administrators discussed the topic of sportsmanship at our athletic events and determined improvement was needed across all sports. We began the development of a conferencewide sportsmanship statement that was designed by Dan Hammes, A-R-C Commissioner with input from all A-R-C institutions and ultimately released by the Presidents’ Council. This fall every student-athlete, coach, and athletic administrator at Loras signed the statement with the expectation to embrace these key principles: 1. Respect
Show respect to your opponents and officials Respect the integrity and judgment of every official 2. Language In ap p r o p r i at e a n d a b u s i v e language directed at others will not be tolerated There is no place for harassing comments or other actions that might humiliate others 3. Sportsmanship Each participant is expected to display good sportsmanship; gamesmanship will not be tolerated Officials are requested to use tools available to ensure that respectful communication and conduct occur 4. Diversity
My dog Cabo and I both jumped at the same time, startled by the awful sound blasting from the hallway. It was loud and annoying. “What the hell?” I asked myself. I opened the door to my third-floor room and the annoying noise got exponentially louder. “For f**k’s sake,” I uttered. “A fire alarm.” This is life for a 62-year-old college professor living, at least half the week, in a student dormitory. When I was finishing my Ph.D. at the University of WisconsinMadison, I started looking for teaching jobs. My first priority was finding something within driving distance of Madison, where my kids and I lived. As a divorced father of two, I wanted to continue to spend
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every other week with them. When Loras College offered me a position in the spring of 2018 I was stoked. Like anyone who gets a job offer, I tried to negotiate as much as I could. My negotiating skills aren’t great because the only thing I was able to get was a dorm room on campus. Well, not quite on campus. My first room was in the Visitation House, also known as the Viz. This meant I could occasionally spend a night or two in Dubuque instead of driving the nearly three-hour round trip every single day. In 2021, with Beckman being shut down for rehab, student housing was desperate for space. I was asked if I could give up my room in the Viz for a student. I obliged.
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Why Ukraine Still Matters
The Dewey Party and Midterms
Welcome, Dryden Mentes
The Lorian’s Website
If I asked you a year ago to point out Ukraine on a map, you most likely could not do it. I probably could not find it either. But now, everyone in the world knows exactly where Ukraine is. Everyone in the world (almost everyone), knows how Ukraine is fighting for its freedom against the Russian invaders. On February 24th, page 2
With Midterms right around the corner, you are expected to make your choice between the Republicans and Democrats. If you were to follow this endless cycle, you would be voting for another politician who does not care about the American people, but rather, their own pockets. This endless cycle of voting is draining our democracy. The Republican page 3
Roy McCarthers was not an extraordinary man. He was not extraordinarily tall, nor was he excessively short. He was not unusually handsome, but neither was he inordinately ugly. His hair was a drab, standard color of tannish brown, and not one single feature would have made him stand out in a crowd. This must be expanded: not a single physical page 3
The Lorian is currently working on creating a website so it is easy to access all of our amazing content. We appreciate your support and patience as we continue our transistion to the Digital Age. If you have anything that can help us with our creation of a website, please feel free to contact us at lorian@loras.edu. We appreciate you!
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The Lorian
TRANSITIONING TO THE NEW ERA
November 8, 2022
This opinion piece does not represent the views or beliefs of The Lorian, the Editorial Staff, or Loras College.
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the rise of the internet, large media companies like CNN, Fox, and MSNBC could afford to spend big money on advertising and other ways to attract readers while local media outlets could not outbid and compete with the media giants. This move to outspend smaller media outlets has created a cycle of failure within smaller media outlets, much like The Lorian. The biggest problems with The Lorian do not lie in the money game of media, however. There is a much bigger problem with the status of The Lorian. The sad truth is that many students simply do not care about The Lorian. In a recent survey that The Lorian sent to a group of students, we found that 70% of those students did not read the paper at all. 37% of those who did not read chose not to read the paper simply because they do not care. The others stated that they did not have the time to read the paper, nor did they know how to access the paper. This is not the first time that The Lorian has seen responses like this. Last year, The Lorian sent a campus-wide email to students, faculty, and staff members asking them questions about the paper. Of the 123 students who responded, 66 students said they did not read the paper at all. The most recent survey also asked the group of students if they would be interested in writing for The Lorian. If they were unwilling to write for the paper, they were asked to give a reason why not. An overwhelming majority of those said they would not write for the paper because they were too busy, or they were not a good writer. This is a trend that has unfortunately been the case for The Lorian in recent years. The Un i v e r s i t y o f Ma s s a c hu s e t t s Amherst’s student newspaper, the Amherst Wire, wrote a piece questioning why students are expected to overwork themselves to succeed. In the article, the author argues that students need to participate in clubs, internships,
j obs, and de dicat ion to t heir own major so future employers are impressed. And on top of everything, the students have to manage their eventual student loans. The American Psychology Association found that 41.6% of college students have anxiety, 36.4% have depression, and 24.5% are taking psychotropic medications. That is a staggering and pressing mental health issue that plagues our society today. With the understanding and acknowledgment of these underlying factors, it is understanding why many students do not have any feelings of desire to read The Lorian; students have bigger issues to be concerned with. The pressure college places on students to succeed. But that pressure comes with a price. It creates a mentality to focus on oneself. Passing classes and graduating come first and foremost. And it should. But students are feeling so anxious about college that they do not have the mindset to work on anything other than their classes. This is a problem that plagues not only The Lorian but other college newspapers across the nation. Other college newspapers have been struggling the same way The Lorian has with recruitment and publication. Other papers have seen a decline in new writers in the same way The Lorian has. But not all is disappointing news with The Lorian. In efforts to combat these challenges, the paper has implemented new strategies to fight for students’ attention. The Lorian has headed back on social media with Twitter and Instagram. The paper has been moved to a new site for easier access for students. There is still plenty of work to be done, but right now, there is hope for The Lorian. The paper will do everything in its power to continue to fight through these challenging times to continue the 101-year-old tradition here at Loras.
Good Sportsmansip, the Loras Way
photo from NBC NEWS
Nine Months Later - Why Ukraine Still Matters By KEEGAN A. GODWIN
If I asked you a year ago to point out Ukraine on a map, you most likely could not do it. I probably could not find it either. But now, everyone in the world knows exactly where Ukraine is. Everyone in the world (almost everyone), knows how Ukraine is fighting for its freedom against the Russian invaders. On February 24th, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine under illegal circumstances and began a new Cold War. I’m not here to give you all the details about the war. We have heard the stories from the news and are pretty familiar with what is happening. When I first heard that Russia invaded Ukraine, I was horrified to see the devastation in Ukraine. I would hope the rest of the world was too. As time dragged on, the horrors of the war became more and more normal to all of us. We all became to understand the war as ‘just one of those things.’ Russia hoped to win the war quickly and hoped that the West would not help in the way they did. However, the West responded with quick and decisive action to supply Ukraine with weapons and other necessities for war and sanctioned every aspect of Russian life. While Russia’s hope for a swift victory fell apart, its strategy shifted towards a
No question we want to b e competitive, and it is fun to win. But it is even more important to win that with class and if we are on the other side to do so gracefully. We want all to attend our athletic events and have a positive experience whether you are a student-athlete, coach, official, or fan. Get out and cheer on your fellow Duhawks! November is a busy month with fall sports coming to an end and winter sports beginning. Make good sportsmanship an expectation for all!
No one wants Ukraine to give in to Russian demands. But as the war rages into its ninth month and economies continue to suffer, there is growing concern that the public will begin to turn against Ukraine, or at least call for Ukraine’s end to the war. ForeignPolicy.com warns that a brutally cold winter could push the European energy crisis to the brink of disaster. Many European countries relied on Russia for their energy exports before the war. Now, they are needing to find alternative solutions. Experts worry that struggles could create an anti-Ukraine movement. As the war rages on, it is essential that we continue to support Ukraine’s fight against Russia. By giving in to Russian demands, we are sending a message to the world: if it hurts our pockets, we will stop it. Although the global economy continues to decline due to the war, we cannot let that deter us from what we know is right. Global leaders must continue the fight against tyranny by standing up against Russia no matter the economic toll. Giving in to their demands shows weakness in the West’s morality and gives Russia an excuse to continue its tyrannical reign.
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All races, genders, backgrounds, a n d i d e nt i t i e s a r e e q u i t a b l y welcomed, supported, and included Create and maintain a safe environment for all Cheer for the Duhawks – not against the opponent is a mantra you will hear from our athletic staff members who address displays of unsportsmanlike conduct. Can we do better – absolutely, are we the worst – no. We prefer not to remove anyone from an event nor have a competitor miss contests due to poor behavior during competition.
new way to win – attrition. A war of attrition, according to the Oxford dictionary, is a prolonged war during which each side seeks to gradually wear out the other through a series of small-scale actions. The only thing about Russia’s war of attrition is its target. The Kremlin has realized that Ukraine is a tougher enemy than they believed. But the Kremlin also realized that the West is the lifeline of Ukraine. Without the West, Ukraine’s military would take a huge hit. Now, no Western country would ever publicly stand against Ukraine and side with Russia. But when the Western economies begin to take huge hits, they are going to miss their Russian gas and Ukrainian grain. According to MIT, Russia and Ukraine combine for roughly onethird of the global wheat production and 75% of the sunflower oil supply. With an already struggling global supply chain, the war in Ukraine has only worsened it. The war has caused energy prices to soar ten times above their average level, according to ForeignPolicy.com. Many European countries have been suffering from record-high energy bills. Why does any of this matter? Well, when people’s pockets begin to hurt, loyalty is tested. No Western nation wants Russia to succeed in Ukraine.
What about 70%? 80%? 90%? Tens of millions of eligible voters did not vote in the 2018 Midterms. The reason people believe their votes don’t count is that they choose to believe that. Vo t e r t u r n o u t i s e s s e n t i a l for securing the future of our democracy. American democracy relies on the people to vote for their elected leaders. But when people don’t prioritize elections and do not cast their ballots, we have a failed democracy. We create an endless cycle of voting for the same politicians over and over. According to PewResearch, only 20% of Americans say they trust the government to do the right thing.
Another 65% of people say political candidates run for office for their own personal interests. This distrust in the American government is warranted. But that does not mean it cannot be changed. The only way to change our government is by voting for leaders who will actually create change. No change can be made if the people do not vote. With November 8th approaching, there are many ways you can get out and vote. The first, and easiest way, is by going to the polls on Election Day. To find your nearest polling location, simply head over to Google. Google has a new feature that allows you to type in your address and it will show
you the nearest polling stations. In Iowa, an ID is required to vote. Make sure to bring your ID to the polls. If you are not registered, you can register at the polls on Election Day. Another way to vote is to vote by mail. If you are going to vote by mail, get on that right away. Go online and search ‘Absentee ballot by mail’ and you will find all the information you need to vote by mail. With November 8th closing in, it is more difficult to vote by mail. However, that does not mean you cannot do it. If you have any questions about voting, you can always contact the Dubuque County Elections Office at 563-589-4457 or at 720 Central Ave, Dubuque, Iowa 52001.
3 Midterms and the Rise of the Dewey Party With Midterms right around the corner, you are expected to make your choice between the Republicans and Democrats. If you were to follow this endless cycle, you would be voting for another politician who does not care about the American people, but rather, their own pockets. This endless cycle of voting is draining our democracy. The Republican politician does poorly. Elect the Democrat. The Democrat politician does poorly. Elect the Republican. See the pattern? No longer shall we be deprived of our democracy in this great nation. This election cycle, we the people have the chance to make real change here in America. It is time we cast aside our political party’s shackles and unite under our glorious leader, Dewey. As the Chairman of the Dewey Party, he understands that this cycle is weakening our democracy day by day. For far too long, the rivalry between the Democrats and Republicans has only deepened the divide here in America. Under the leadership of the Dewey Party, politicians will have no time to yell and scream at each other because they are actually doing work under the leadership of Dewey. T h e D e w e y Pa r t y b e l i e v e s i n strengthening the government by rebuilding the trust between the people and Washington. After winning a majority of C ongress after the upcoming Midterms, Dewey himself will travel across the nation rebuilding relationships between our great people. The people will fall to their knees and cry when they hear Dewey speak. His speeches will cause even those who hate each other to embrace the leadership of the Dewey Party. There is no time to hate in America when Dewey is in charge. As he continues to tour and rebuild the people’s faith, the elected Dewey Party officials in Congress will be busy helping America. The 118th Congress will implement sweeping reforms to strengthen this great nation. There will be no bitter arguments, slander, or any division within Congress as the Dewey Party embraces those with differing opinions and encourages them to join them. The corruption rate within the government drops to 0%, as those who are corrupt are dealt justice as there is no tolerance for those who abuse the system. The divisions in America begin to heal. No longer are there racial tensions as the people begin to love each other. The world looks in envy at the success of the Dewey Party in America. As the people begin to see the progress of the Dewey Party in Congress, the nation begs Dewey to run for the presidency in 2024. Dewey understands that to make this change permanent, he must take the reigns of the presidency. He begins to prepare for his campaign.
This satire piece does not represent the views or beliefs of The Lorian, the Editorial Staff, or Loras College. Please view this article as a piece of comedy, not one of factual information.
The Lorian
Teaching Students by Day, Living With Them by Night
November 8, 2022 The Lorian is proud to welcome Dryden Mentes, a student-writer here on campus. The Lorian has agreed to publish his stories in parts for each publication. We hope you enjoy his stories,
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Before the start of this school year, the bad news came in an email. I was told the Viz was being sold so I needed to get my stuff out of there before the start of the fall semester. In addition to the bad news, the head of student housing, Molly Burrows Schumacher, had some good news. Schumacher told me she had a new space for me. My new place would be on the third floor in Binz, she said. Viz was not super convenient since it was located about two blocks off campus. But, it also had very few students living there. Those that did reside in the old building were nearly all in a Loras graduate program. This meant I wouldn’t be running into any students, who were actually in my classes, should I wander into the kitchen in my pajama pants and slippers. Binz, on the other hand, is a full-on student housing facility. This became abundantly clear when Cabo and I evacuated our room at 9:30 p.m. on the second week of school after being startled by that fire alarm. Looking around the group of people outside the back door, it was obvious that I was the only one who had actually watched the first moon landing live on television. As I scanned the crowd, I could see that nearly everyone standing around waiting to get back in, in fact, would need a fake ID to buy a six-pack of Natural Light. I felt weird and out of place. One of the things that have helped is having my dog, Cabo, with me. He’s a scruffy-looking m i x of Si b e r i an hu s ky an d wire-haired terrier. Early in the semester one of the resident advisors in Binz asked if I would bring Cabo to “Doggo Night.” I brought him to the main RA’s office space that evening and about a dozen students came in and out of the office to pet and play with Cabo. I think a lot of students were missing their own pups at home and this really seemed to help. It also introduced them to the “old dude” living in the building, me. I walk Cabo on campus several times during the day. We go to the old soccer field where I let him off the leash to run and burn off some energy. In addition to being the faculty advisor for the Lorian, I also am the founder and faculty advisor to the Loras Boxing Club. Every afternoon that I go to the boxing gym in Graber, Cabo joins me. He’s become the unofficial club mascot. When Father Vu blessed the boxing space a couple of Fridays ago, he also splashed some holy water on Cabo and gave him a brief blessing. This year my son started school at the University of Minnesota and my daughter, a high school s ophomore, is on ly st aying with me on the weekends in Madison. This means I am able to, for all intents and purposes, live on campus here at Loras. I’m on campus for more than a hundred hours most weeks. This has allowed me to spend more
time doing on-campus stuff. I’ve watched more Duhawks sporting events this semester than I had in my previous four years combined. That’s been a lot of fun. I have also been able to meet with students at all hours of the day and night. I meet with a lot more students after five in the afternoon than before five. While I’ve always met with students in the evening and on weekends, previously that was over Zoom or on speaker phone. Now it’s in my office and in person and as late as 10:00 p.m. Because of their class schedule, athletic team obligations, and part-time jobs, the students seem to like the opportunity to meet later at night. I also take late-evening campus walks with Cabo and they are pretty amazing. The campus is very quiet and very well-lit. I go in and out of buildings to see what’s happening. I stop in Hoffmann and find the sweet sounds of a group of music students playing in the third-floor chapel led by Professor Pohland. I go down two floors to find Professor Decker in the theater leading another group of students through the rehearsal for an upcoming play – everyone laughing and enjoying their theatrical endeavor. The lights to the Rock B owl are glowing every evening. As I walk past some nights the football or soccer team will be practicing – coaches hollering instruction, whistles blowing, student-athletes laughing. Last night there was just one lone soccer player practicing – rapidly dribbling a ball up and down the field. I go past Graber and see the lights in the boxing gym are on. I trot up the rusty spiral staircase and find four or five students working out. I spontaneously give instructions to a few of the beginners before heading back to Binz. On the way I c an s e e, t hroug h t he large windows in the wellness center, the men’s volleyball team scrimmaging on the Lillis Court. I pop in and watch for a few minutes. A group of students who were watching the volleyball scrimmage in the bleacher seats asked if they can pet Cabo. “Of course!” I said. And so goes another great evening walk on campus. Unfortunately, in the past, not everyone in my division was supportive of me commuting back and forth to Madison so that I could spend more time at home with my family. Last year, with the rise in gas prices, that commute got to be a major financial burden that was painful. And last year I didn’t have my dorm room to help me out. This year, with my new dorm room, all of that has changed. I find that a lot of students in Binz seem to be okay with the old dude living on the third floor and the old dude is getting more comfortable with them. At least those students who actually know I’m a professor and not the oldest freshman in Loras history.
Esteemed Reader, lad would I be to say that many of the things chronicled here did not happen and that phenomena such as these do not occur around us all the time. But they did, and they do. When was the last time something happened, and you wished desperately that it was coincidence or could be logically explained? Can it? Can it? Can you? And thus, here are my musings and research on topics such as these. It has taken a lifetime of work and woe, but at last, it is finished. Do you not feel a tremor go through you? No, perhaps it is something you ate; you don’t have any enemies do you? I cannot say the same.
Roy McCarthers was not an extraordinary man. He was not extraordinarily tall, nor was he excessively short. He was not unusually handsome, but neither was he inordinately ugly. His hair was a drab, standard color of tannish brown, and not one single feature would have made him stand out in a crowd. This must be expanded: not a single physical feature. There was one, however, of the mind. No, he was not a genius, although his school records were nothing to be ashamed of. This was more of an affliction, an odd one. Roy did not have entire control of his mind. Hallucinations, they were called by the medical specialists. Visits from spooks they were called by those with better imaginations. Even in his childhood he would see things in the tall grasses when the wind rippled through them, or in the dancing snowflakes as they fell. He would just sit by the window, his subconsciousness telling them that there were armies swaying in the fields, or angels coming to earth with glittering wings. This was, of course, before the hallucinations took a turn for the worse. In the early years they had never been unpleasant, although, ‘tis true, they bore the brunt of the school’s ridicule. It was shortly after Roy’s eleventh year that the first horrors began.