VAGINA MONOLOGUES 7
INVESTITURE 4
BASEBALL 15
theTrinitonian
Vol. 115 Issue 20
Serving Trinity University, San Antonio Since 1902
February 26, 2016
The Great Trinity Experiment makes campus debut Trinity community attends a variety of unique classes taught by students and staff BY PHILIP MCKEON
NEWS REPORTER
President Anderson discussed the ideas leading to the formation of the Great Trinity Experiment, explaining that the event was designed to focus on the Trinity community as a whole. “We formed an inauguration committee, and I talked to them about keeping the emphasis on Trinity as a community rather than on me as an individual. And one of the ways the I suggested we could do that was hosting a traditional academic conference talking about liberal arts, integrated curriculum and all the different strengths that we have,” said President Danny Anderson. Anderson gave credit for the creation of the Great Trinity Experiment to the inauguration committee, who came together and decided that they wanted to do something outside the norm and change the traditional conference into something more reflective of Trinity’s values. “The inauguration committee went off and thought about things that they could do, and they proposed an ‘unconference,’ you know, let’s do this in a really different way. They thought about some of the real strengths at Trinity: the learning environment, the teaching, the small class groups, the creativity of our students, and they proposed that we flip the conference,” Anderson said. “They put out a call and asked student and alumni
NEWS...1-4
Senior JAMES DYKMAN (below) and sophomore YENNETTE MUNIZ (above) participate in and teach courses.
groups to help us become more aware of everything that is going on or could be going on here at Trinity. So I can’t claim the creative idea for coming up for the Great Trinity Experiment.” Before the event actually took place, Anderson said that he was expecting great things from the event and wanted to see all the projects that Trinity students were showcasing as part of the experiment. He even hinted at his hope that it could become a yearly event.
OPINION...5-6
PULSE...7-8
“I’m looking forward to the sessions, again I’m really excited to see all the things that students are showcasing. There’s also the hope that some aspect of this could be an annual experience here at Trinity. I’m really looking forward to the Great Trinity Experiment,” Anderson said. Adrien Lhemann, a Trinity student who helped teach a class for the Experiment, shared what the experience was like for him, beginning with describing his class, an introduction to field work in geology.
photos by Miguel Webber
“I worked with the same group I did geology research with over the summer. So basically the lesson was based off of the research that we had done, and we used our research to come up with our lesson plan. It was a reconstruction class, five hundred million years under the sea. Basically what we did was we tried to incorporate a lot of lab material and geological images and we explained how geologists go out and do field work,” Lhemann said. “We showed them how geologists collect rock samples, measure rock layers, basically how to understand the environment we’re in to reconstruct the environment from five hundred million years ago. We basically helped our students reconstruct a reef from five hundred million years ago based on how it looks today. We’re basically giving them an introduction into how a geologist would operate in the field.” Lhemann then discussed how his experience being a part of the Great Trinity Experiment affected him, explaining that it gave him a greater appreciation of the work professors put into their classes. “It’s a humbling experience, honestly. You realize just how much work your professors put into preparing labs and lectures because we had to do the same. So from a student’s perspective you realize just how much work goes into preparing for a class. A lot of planning goes into it. The lesson is very fast, you realize that a lesson goes really fast once you get into it. Fifty minutes isn’t a lot, it definitely wasn’t enough for us. Your notion of time changes going from a student to a teacher, and it’s definitely a lot faster from a teacher’s perspective,” Lhemann said. “I definitely have more of an appreciation for what they do. It was a good learning experience.”
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT...9-13
SPORTS...14-16
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WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM • FEBRUARY 26, 2016 •
NEWS
WEEKLY FORECAST
NEWS BRIEFS
Friday H 67 L 44
San Antonio
Late Wednesday evening on Feb. 24 San Antonio police reported the assault of a Domino’s Pizza delivery driver close to the Beacon Bay. The search is ongoing for two men who are said to have beat up the pizza delivery driver. After the attack the two assailants reportedly stole the delivery car, which was later found abandoned less than a mile away from the assault. The Domino’s delivery driver was treated for minor head injuries. mysa.com
National
On Thursday Feb. 25 a shooting in Hesston, Kansas has left four dead and at least 14 seriously injured and in the hospital. The shooting began on the road and ended in the building of Excel Industries. The shooter was seen walking in to the building holding a long rifle. Police quickly ruled out any possible terrorist activities. The shooter randomly targeted individuals. No law enforcement officials were injured in the process. It remains unknown at this time who killed the shooter.
Saturday H 75 L 53
Sunday H 79 L 55
Wednesday H 76 L 48
Tuesday H 81 L 48
Monday H 82 L 61
Thursday H 80 L 48
UPCOMING EVENTS
28 SUNDAY What: Trinity Symphonic Wind Ensemble Concert When: 8:00 p.m. Where: Ruth Taylor Recital Hall
29 MONDAY
1 3 TUESDAY THURSDAY
What: History Lecture- Giesberg When: 4:30 p.m. Where: Coates Library
What: Psychology Lecture When: 3:35 p.m. Where: CSI 437
What: BLACKOUT: Binge Drinking, Campus Culture, and Sexual Assault When: 7:00 p.m.
What: Distinguished Scientists Lecture Series When: 7:00 p.m. Where: Laurie Auditorium
What: 7th Annual Taiwanese Film Festival- “Grandma and Her Ghosts” When: 5:00 p.m. Where: Chapman Auditorium
What: The Theory of Antisemitism: Jew-Hatred and the Jewish State in PostPostmodern Times When: 7:30 p.m. Where: Chapman Auditorium
TRINITY UNIVERSITY WORD SEARCH Book Cram Library Pen Read Test Class Cry Midterm Pencil Sleep Tired Coffee Exam Notes Professor Study
cnn.com
International Can Dundar and Erdem Gul, two Turkish journalists who had previously been detained for allegedly revealing state secrets have been freed. The two journalists were accused of exposing the Turkish government for sending arms to Islamists in Syria. Early Friday morning they were released from their three month period in jail. The two are set to go to trial on March 25. bbc.com
compiled by Tyler Boelts
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Opinions expressed in the Trinitonian are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Trinity University, its students, faculty, staff or the Trinitonian. Editorials represent the opinions of the Trinitonian Editorial Board. The first copy of the Trinitonian is free; additional copies are 50 cents each. ©2015. All rights reserved.
NEWS • FEBRUARY 26, 2016
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• WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM
Students prepare for upcoming major declaration Minor and major declaration deadline approaches for the 2016 fall semester BY JESSICA LUHRMAN
NEWS REPORTER
Major and minor declarations must be given to the Registrar’s Office by Mar. 1 for changes to be in effect during preregistration for the fall 2016 semester. Students of sophomore standing are required to declare a major prior to their junior year. Eve Christoffersen, academic records analyst and graduation coordinator, has worked in the Registrar’s Office for over five years overseeing major and minor declarations. “There’s an advantage to waiting until the end of your sophomore year because students have more information. That’s the idea behind Common Curriculum and Pathways. It’s giving insight into many different fields,” Christoffersen said. During the 2014-2015 academic school year, there were 1,587 students that had declared undergraduate majors, according to the Trinity University Factbook for 2015-2016. An estimated 80 percent of students in the United States change their major at least once, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. On average, students change their major at least three times during college. “Oftentimes, students come from high school and think they want to major in one thing, but then they take a course and it changes their mind. We really want them to wait until they’ve taken some classes and have gotten a sense of the major,” Christoffersen said. The most popular major in 2015 was business administration with 357 students enrolled, according to the Factbook. The second most enrolled major was communication with 108 students, followed by 94 students in engineering science. The Factbook further indicated that the majors with the lowest enrollment were education with one student, interdisciplinary second majors with
ART 35 ART HISTORY 15 BIOLOGY BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 32 BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION CHEMISTRY & BIOCHEMISTRY 25 CHINESE STUDIES 8 CLASSICAL STUDIES 18 COMMUNICATION COMPUTER SCIENCE
89 357
108 61
ECONOMICS EDUCATION 1 ENGINEERING SCIENCE ENGLISH 59 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES 23 GEOSCIENCES 38 HISTORY 38 HUMAN COMMUNICATION & THEATRE 41 INTERDISCIPLINARY SECOND MAJOR 6 INTERNATIONAL STUDIES 35 MATHEMATICS 19 MATHEMATICAL FINANCE 15 MODERN LANGUAGES & LITERATURE 67 MUSIC 18 NEUROSCIENCE 44 PHILOSOPHY 9 PHYSICS 16 POLITICAL SCIENCE 66 PSYCHOLOGY RELIGION 17 SOCIOLOGY & ANTHROPOLOGY 44 URBAN STUDIES 22
80 94
Total number of declared students:
six students, Chinese studies with eight students and philosophy with nine students. Major declarations do not necessarily define career paths after graduation, according to Annie Cutler, employer relations coordinator. “Your major doesn’t have to define your college career. You can major in biology and end up working as a career coach. You can major in psychology and end up working as a technology consultant. There are so many options. Your major
1,587
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doesn’t determine your entire life —it’s the jumping off point,” Cutler said. Career Services works individually with students to determine their majors. “The students can meet with any of our advising team. We have a liaison model, which means that each career advisor is assigned to an area. We have counselors focused in the business sector, nonprofits, computer science and more,” Cutler said. Melanie Coulson, assistant director of coaching and advising, offers counseling
for students who are unsure which major to commit to. A study by the National Association of Colleges and Employers said that 66 percent of students choose their major based on a career that they are interested in, 12 percent of students “drifted” into a major, nine percent were inspired by a teacher to pursue it and seven percent chose a major because of its potential earnings. Career Services also offers a course dedicated to helping students find a career and major. The one-hour course “Chaos, Theory and Careers” is taught by Katie Ramirez, associate director of Career Services. In 2015, there were 259 students with multiple majors at Trinity. Cutler recommends that students seek faculty advice before declaring a second major. “It’s important to know if double majors are a good fit for your career goals. There are lots of benefits to a double major — it opens up your career options, you meet new people, but there definitely needs to be some intentionality behind it. That’s definitely a conversation to have with your career advisor and faculty,” Cutler said. Junior Elena Souris is pursuing a double major in political science and communication. “I feel like double majoring has given me a lot of flexibility and lots of options moving forward. I think they complement each other pretty well and there is a fair amount of job overlap, too,” Souris said. Souris chose to major in political science and communication based upon her interests. “I chose communication because of the career direction I thought I wanted to go in when I came to Trinity. But it definitely wasn’t everything that I was interested in, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go the typical communication route of public relations or advertising. I looked around at a lot of classes, took a political science class and internship and really liked them and felt like there wasn’t anything else that I would rather major in,” Souris said. Major declaration forms are available on the rack outside the Registrar’s Office in Northrup 118.
United States supreme court justice passes BY ALEXANDRA URI
NEWS REPORTER
On Feb. 13, 2016, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia passed away in Texas. News of his death sent shockwaves across the country and Trinity University’s political science department. “I’ve taught Antonin Scalia’s opinions now, since I’ve been at Trinity. He was appointed in 1986 by Ronald Reagan, and now Ronald Reagan has passed. I mean talk about a lasting legacy on the Court for Reagan’s beliefs. He was part of a revolution that moved the Supreme Court to the right,” said John Hermann, professor of political science at Trinity. Known as one of the more controversial Justices sitting on the Supreme Court, many also regard him as one of the most brilliant jurists of our time. “I would consider him an intellectual giant in constitutional law. He’s
celebrated by the conservative wing and many members of Congress have stated despised by the liberal wing, there’s no that they will not approve any person doubt about it. I think it would be unfair Obama will nominate. to brand him as a bad judge. He was a “Constitutionally the nomination power good judge,” Hermann said. is one of the few almost plenary powers His decisions were always had of the president so Congress cannot constitutional stop Obama reasoning even if from nominating they went against someone. They what people believe. don’t have to “He’s known confirm the universally among If you think about person but they law professors stop him it, Obama is a lame- can’t and PhDs of the from nominating judiciary as the duck president, for all s o m e o n e . academic favorite. Nothing requires practical purposes. His decisions were the Senate so colorful and so to confirm interesting to read. w h o m e v e r Many of the Justices’ the president decisions are pretty nominates. The John Hermann dry, not Antonin real question is, Professor Political Science Scalia,” Hermann are there any said. grounds for the His passing has senate to deny a created several questions in the field of confirmation hearing whatsoever? This political science. However, the biggest would mean the Senate is saying this is one at the moment is of what this means dead on arrival; we’re not even going to for President Obama and the upcoming talk about it. And that’s a tricky question presidential elections, especially since to answer. I don’t know of a situation in
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Justice Antonin Scalia’s passing is reflected on by political science professors at Trinity
history whether there was a presidential nomination so far out of an election that was ever denied even a hearing,” said David Crockett, chair of the political science department at Trinity. Others are looking at the ramifications Scalia’s death will have on the structure of the Court itself. “If you think about it, Obama is a lameduck president, for all practical purposes. He’s in a divided government with a Senate that isn’t going to easily pass anyone that he proposes. And anyone that’s even moderate is going to shift the Court to the left, because if you look at the Court now you have two hardcore conservatives, one being Alito and the other being Thomas. When Thomas first came to the Court you had a 94 percent voting agreement rate between Thomas and Scalia,” Hermann said. “So if they put someone moderate with Kennedy, who is called “Flipper” because he’s the swing vote and goes left and right, and Roberts has been trying to be more of a consensus builder. Anyone who gets approved who is not as conservative as Scalia could move the Court to the left.”
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WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM • FEBRUARY 26, 2016 •
NEWS
Investiture of president Danny Anderson The 19th president of Trinity University took his formal position following ceremony on February 19th BY PHILIP MCKEON
NEWS REPORTER
Danny Anderson was installed as the 19th president of Trinity last Friday in an inauguration ceremony held in Laurie Auditorium. “In 1952 when this campus was opening, President Jim Laurie described the first class of students as a ‘company of pioneers.’ Now in 2016, you are also pioneers, and it is an honor to join you as president on this journey with you.” The inauguration began with a processional of Trinity faculty, staff, the board of trustees and selected students in academic regalia.
Anderson was given the symbols of the Office of President including a mace, which represents the university’s liberal arts values institution, and the presidential medallion bearing all the names and dates of previous Trinity presidents. Douglas Hawthorne, board of trustee member, led the installation of Anderson and explained the history of Trinity. “Trinity has endured hard times, wrenching changes and three relocations to Waxahachie in 1902, to San Antonio in the Woodlawn campus in 1942 and finally to this permanent home—the magnificent campus set on a hill overlooking the San Antonio downtown skyline in 1952,” Hawthorne said. Throughout the ceremony, there was a contrast between Trinity’s past and its future. “As we gather today to install Trinity’s 19th president, let us acknowledge the debt we owe to not only its founders but also the succeeding generations and the past presidents and trustees whose vision, dedication and hard work that created the amazing institution that
we are so justifiably proud of on this day,” Hawthorne said. Councilman Ron Nirenberg, a Trinity alumnus and former director of KRTU, spoke on behalf of San Antonio in welcoming Anderson. “I am encouraged that President Anderson’s first days included a day of service, where 500 Trinity community members, students, faculty and staff poured through the entire city to address the challenges that are so real to so many San Antonians,” Nirenberg said. In the weeks preceding the inauguration, Trinity hosted several community events. Last week the campus participated in “Trinity Gives Back,” in which students, faculty, staff and community members volunteered around the city. Last Thursday, the campus participated in the Great Trinity Experiment, which provided a day for students to lead classes about a variety of subjects. Greetings to the president were presented by one representative of the faculty, staff, student body and alumni.
Ramiro Sanchez, manager of the Financial Service Center, spoke on behalf of the staff. Adam Urbach, professor and chair of the Faculty Senate, represented the faculty. Leslie Hollingsworth, president of the Alumni Association, represented the alumni. Trinity student representative, Sean McCutchen, former SGA president, welcomed Anderson on behalf of the student body. “The Dr. Anderson I have come to know wants nothing less than the best for the students of Trinity. Your willingness to serve and inspire others are just a few reasons everyone here this afternoon believes in you,” McCutchen said. Anderson made it a goal to provide clarity in the coming days of the Trinity Tomorrow plan. “We’re in the third year of a ten year plan,” Anderson said. “One of my goals is to facilitate clarity. We cannot do this all at once. We need to build upon our momentum, we must stage our actions to reinforce each other and we have to ensure the renewal of our own energy.”
photo by Noah Davidson
Trinity Women in Science and Technology Women at Trinity interested in pursuing STEM majors hold meeting BY ALEXANDRA URI
NEWS REPORTER
Last Wednesday Trinity Women in Science and Technology (TWIST) had their inaugural meeting. The organization is for students, staff and faculty that are interested in the field of science and technology.
“TWIST was created to support and raise awareness for women in STEM fields, and to serve the purpose of establishing relationships between faculty and students. Even though the club supports women in STEM fields, men should not be afraid to join in support of women and STEM. In fact, If anyone has an interest in science they should join TWIST as a great way to learn about revolutionary women in science through TED talk viewings, as well as faculty lectures and more,” said Lavanya Hospeti, a sophomore Trinity student and secretary of TWIST.
This semester, TWIST will meet bi-weekly on Wednesdays from 5-6 p.m. in order to discuss women in science. Some of the goals of TWIST this semester are “to raise awareness about women in science, to empower women and to learn about amazing women in science,” Hospeti said. After the first meeting garnered such interest, TWIST is working to form several committees. “The first meeting went so well. We are currently working on forming our education and social committees. Our educational committee will primarily concern itself with raising awareness about women in science
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through posters, TED talk viewings, faculty led lectures and more,” said Hospeti. TWIST also hopes to reach beyond Trinity’s borders and work with groups both within Trinity and the greater San Antonio area. “We hope to expand our education committee’s audience past Trinity and into the Greater San Antonio area! Our social committee is involved in fostering relationships with our club and Trinity’s population,” said Hospeti. If you have any questions about TWIST and its activities please contact Lavanya at lhospeti@trinity.edu.
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OPINION • FEBRUARY 26, 2016 • WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM
...
pinion
COMMENTARY
Have an opinion? Want it heard? For a chance to be featured as a guest columnist in our opinion section please submit your article by Monday night to be in the Friday issue of the paper. Email trinitonian@trinity.edu for any concerns or questions.
What I learned during my study abroad trip
This subject might not be expected from a guest faculty column, but this winter break was indeed outside the realm of normal — at JACOB TINGLE least for me. While there are a few faculty #AskTingleTU road warriors, the trailblazers of Trinity’s faculty-led study abroad trips, this was a first for me. Let me assure you, it certainly won’t be my last. While many members of the Trinity community were basking in post-holiday daze, head men’s soccer coach Paul McGinlay and I joined Callum Squires (henceforth referred to as The Mayor) and 12 Trinity undergraduates for a twoweek sojourn in the city of London. “The people that you meet and the books you read.” These words from coach McGinlay’s lecture on Jan. 2 served as the foundation for our trip and, more importantly, impacted my life in meaningful ways. The least important — or perhaps the most important — change for me was becoming a fan of Queens Park Rangers Football Club (join the family at @QPRFC). Something about the West London working class fan base really connected with me. Something about touching and tasting the air in Loftus Road connected with me. Something
about hearing their former manager give a guest lecture on leadership left me with a better understanding of the importance of my job. “The books you read.” We wouldn’t have watched QPR play if for not coach Ramsey’s relationship with coach McGinlay. “The people you meet.” Anyone who has studied abroad knows these questions “What’d you learn?” and “How was the trip?” all too well. Having been on the asking end of those questions before, I’ve been somewhat dumbfounded to hear students respond with a refrain similar to “it was life changing.” End of sentence. End of answer. I’ve pulled my hair out trying to get more out of them, but after my (entirely too short) experience, I feel like I have a little glimpse behind the curtain. I now better understand the hesitancy to offer more details. Everyone coming back from a study abroad trip should be able to articulate their learning, but they should also be issued an “It’s a Study Abroad Thing, You Wouldn’t Understand” t-shirt. Coach McGinlay and I required our students to keep hand-written journals each day on the trip, giving class time and space during lectures and tours for them to do so. We even modeled this by keep our own journals, mine written and Paul’s photographic. (He took nearly 5,000 photos!) It is our firm belief that without immediate reflection, we all lose
the ability to articulate the significance of an experience. With that said — given the complexity and depth of our experiences in London, coupled with the intimacy and bonding experienced by a group of 14 people tripping over each other 24 hours a day — it is DIFFICULT to articulate the value of the experience to someone who wasn’t with you. Who else experienced sideways rain in 35 degree weather at Hampton Court? Who else walked 4.5 miles during a 3-hour tour of Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park? Who else ate Indian food with coach McGinlay the night they watched “Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time?” Who else ate lunch at a table filled with The Mayor, his family and 14 of his high school friends at a pizzeria in Finsbury Park? Who else yelled for the Rs at Loftus Road — the night AFTER hearing their former manager give us an impromptu guest lecture in Camden Town on New Year’s Eve? How can you possibly explain the impact of hearing The Lord’s Prayer delivered at Bath Abbey, or the bitterness of the “fresh” water at the Roman Baths? If you weren’t there, then Holburn, Pret, Ainsley, Rodney, Chris Ramsey, David Henwood, the Wembley Roar, Wong Kei, the grass at Wimbledon, the five values of English Rubgy and the question “What’s in a meat pie?” probably aren’t meaningful to you. And no amount of enthusiastic
explanation can ever put you in my place while I was able to help coach McGinlay’s celebrate his birthday — at HIS college hangout in London. “The people that you meet and the books you read.” So, we resort to the fallbacks: “It was amazing” or “It was life changing.” Not because we’re lazy, but because we still want to be friends with you. Our class has had the good fortune of being back at Trinity this semester, meeting every Monday. Last week’s reading on racism in Scottish Football, juxtaposed with the previous week’s reading on the intersection of sports and the American Civil Rights movement, provoked some outstanding conversations about privilege, hegemony and media agenda setting. While I’ve had conversations on those subjects with Trinity students before, there was something different about last week. Something raw. Something honest. Something that comes from holding hands while ice skating in Hyde Park. Something that comes from studying abroad. By the way, QPR have moved up from 17 to 12 in the table since the night we watched them play. Did I mention that the trip was life changing? Jacob Tingle is the new director of Experiential Learning, co-director of Center for Experiential Learning and Career Success and chair of the sports management minor program.
A necessary review of the appointment’s clause Last week, the editorial board of the Trinitonian wrote a remembrance piece about the late Associate Justice, Antonin Scalia, who just recently passed away. The editorial mentions, and rightly so, that a political firestorm has erupted in the wake of the Justice’s passing. For immediately after Scalia’s death, President Obama took to the podium and announced that he plans to “fulfill [his] constitutional responsibilities to nominate a successor [to Scalia] in due time.” Since this announcement, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell stated that the Republican leadership plans on letting any replacement nomination sit on hold because he believes the people should have the say as to who gets to fill that seat via next November’s presidential election. Enter the Trinitonian editorial, which proclaims: “Despite our own alignments and political stances, we know and support that President Barack Obama has the constitutional right to nominate the next justice. For conservatives to rob him of this ability, which is outlined in our founding document, would be an insult to Scalia, whom they seemingly respect.” Now we must correct a constitutional fallacy in this quote. No one, not even those pesky conservatives, are disputing that President Obama has the sole right to nominate a successor. He has the absolute authority to do so. The Constitution affirms this in Article II §II: “and he shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint … judges of the Supreme Court.” This is a three-part process. First, the president shall nominate a name and send that name to the Senate. Second, the Senate shall decide whether or
not it wants to give consent to the president’s nomination, manifested by a majority vote. Third, if the Senate provides its consent via that majority vote, then the president can appoint that person to the Supreme Court. But if the Senate rejects the ALEX HARTZELL nomination, then the president may The Political not appoint that specific person. This leaves me wondering why the editorial board believes that conservatives are robbing the president of his right to nominate a successor to Scalia, because they are not. The Senate has no such power to block the president from nominating any person he chooses. However, it may reject, block, hold or do anything it wants to with the president’s nomination. Why? Because they have the authority to advise the president and provide consent for his selection, but only if a majority of that body believes the nominee is a worthy choice; if not, then too bad for Mr. President. Our Constitution is a remarkable document. The framers who created it recognized that power is a corrupting influence and that it is best to separate government power into distinct branches and provide each branch with certain checks on the others as a means of balancing the use of government power. The president has an immense amount of power in being able to select nominees for the Supreme Court, who may sit there, like Scalia did, for thirty years, interpreting the Constitution. But this executive power is not absolute, for there is an important check upon the president’s authority, namely, that the Senate must
advise and give consent to his nominations. This check is fundamentally important; it ensures the nation that the Upper House will vet and investigate the qualifications of any nominee. Is it so inconceivable that a president, were he not subject to Senatorial confirmation, would unilaterally nominate and appoint his friends to the High Court? Perhaps this could be a reward for assistance during his campaign or any other reason. But this practice may undermine the common weal through institutionalizing the appointments of those who the president owes for whatever reason. The Senate acts as a check to this awesome power, ensuring that our Supreme Court is filled with those who are rightly educated and qualified to be there. Furthermore, in our contemporary times, when the current Court makes up new rights out of thin air in conjunction with our current President, who sees no problem in unilaterally abusing executive power, what better check could the American people have than the Senate, which is constitutionally authorized to accept or reject any executive nominations? Our Senators realize that they have a duty to abide by the Constitution, and they can still do so by withholding their consent to an Obama nominee. The president has an absolute right to nominate, but it is fallacious to assume that the right to nominate brings forth a concomitant right to have that nominee be accepted by the Senate. The separation of powers is unquestionably important; let’s never forget that.
STAFF
sports editor: Aynav Leibowitz photo editor: Miguel Webber graphic editor: Samantha Skory web editor: Kim Nguyen reporters: Jessica Luhrman, Alex Uri, Philip McKeon, Sarah Price, Shree Deshpande, Sarah Tipton, Paige Perez, Grace Frye, Dylan Wagner, Emily Elliot, Momo Setamou, Sidney Hopkins columnists: Courtney Justus, Callum Squires,
Markham Sigler, Alex Hartzell copy editors: Daniel Conrad, Zach Wilson, Emily Wood photographers: Karina Duran, Jordan Leeper, Claudia Garcia, Noah Davidson distribution manager: Maddie Kennedy advertising staff: Kayla Hood, Lauren Harris, Nick Kim, Connor Philips, Erin Patridge business staff: Krushi Patel, Jessie Taube adviser: Katharine Martin
editor-in-chief: Luke Wise managing editor: Claire Hoobler-Curtis business manager: Dzung Vu ad director: Christina Moore news editor: Tyler Boelts campus pulse editor: Julia Elmore arts & entertainment editor: Madison Smith
Alex Hartzell is a senior political science major.
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WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM • FEBRUARY 26, 2016 •
All I want for Christmas is no more drama
Lately I’ve been thinking about the actual meanings of holidays and how we spend them. I can see how that might COURTNEY JUSTUS sound cliché, but Turquoise Verses I promise you that I’m not going to go into any sugarcoated speeches ending somewhere along the lines of “And that’s the true meaning of Christmas!” Those explanations, in fact, are one of the many things on my mind as I try to re-examine holidays and their celebrations. While I understand that most holidays have particular origins that connect to the ways in which we celebrate them, I think that the meanings of holidays can be subjective. No one should be ashamed to admit that a certain holiday means little to them. So what if you’re not a big fan of Valentine’s Day or even New Year’s Eve? So long as you aren’t being disrespectful of other people’s preferences and you don’t do anything to blatantly insult someone else’s tastes, you shouldn’t feel guilty or ashamed. Personally, I’ve always thought that a New Year’s Eve celebration is a great time to think about renewal and goals for the upcoming year. Usually, that’s been pretty easy for me to do. This past New Year’s Eve, however, that wasn’t exactly the first thing on my mind. On Dec. 31 I arrived back to Texas after over eleven hours of flight, most of them turbulent. I had spent two weeks in Buenos Aires seeing family and friends. While the majority of the trip was pleasant, there was also some drama that happened right around Christmastime, which made enjoying that particular holiday difficult. On the way back to Texas I started getting sick. In addition to that, I wasn’t able to so much as nap on my flights, and the drama was still lingering in
the background. So that night, while other people partied and celebrated the quickly-approaching new year, I slept. I couldn’t even stay up until midnight, which is something I usually do pretty easily on any given day of the week. It wasn’t just my lack of sleep on the planes or my sickness; I was done with drama and hoped that I could sleep off some of my anxiety and bafflement. Christmas and New Year’s Eve and Day still mean a lot to me. Like New Year’s Eve, I consider Christmas to be a time of renewal, giving, gratitude and celebration. This past holiday season, however, I began to really think about the fact that Christmas, for example, isn’t so merry for everyone. One friend in particular told me that he was used to not having especially happy Christmas get-togethers. Now I finally understand what he means. For me, the past few holidays — Christmas, New Year’s, Valentine’s Day — have been about making changes. Perhaps you could relate that to what I think are the meanings of these holidays, but I wouldn’t quite go there. Looking back on holidays when I was younger, I remember getting candy and presents, as well as people telling me to be grateful for what I have. The turbulent moments of these past few months, especially those closer to specific holidays, have helped me to be more grateful for what I have. They have also helped me to truly acknowledge that not everyone is happy at Christmastime and New Year’s, and some people are just bent on showing dislike for Valentine’s Day. And we just have to accept that. It is our acknowledgment and acceptance of these differences that truly matters. Only then can we maybe start to have more positive feelings about holidays and the people we spend them with. Courtney Justus is a sophomore English and philosophy major with a minor in creative writing.
OPINION
Sneer away, America Once, when I was eight years old and feeling deathly ill, my mother asked me if I felt okay. I said I felt BRENDAN KENNEDY fine, with the naïve young mindset that Guest Column things couldn’t go wrong and that I couldn’t possibly be that sick. Five minutes after telling her I was fine, I vomited across our living room, and then found that I had a 103-degree fever. “When something is wrong, Brendan,” my mom scolded me later, “you really need to tell me, or else we have no way of making you better.” I believe Alex Hartzell’s recent opinion article, “It’s Time to Stop Sneering at America,” suffers from the same problems I did back then: a stubborn, categorical unwillingness to acknowledge problems. Throughout his article is an attitude that any criticism of the United States and its systems is wrong and downright un-American, despite the fact that such problems need to be addressed. Take healthcare, for example. Forget simple bread line analogies: Americans aren’t even bothering to get in line for necessary medical care because the system has priced them out. A report published this week by the New York Times stated that “just three pharmaceutical giants hold patents that allow them to manufacture insulin”, allowing these three to dominate the market and inflate prices so that “in much of Europe, insulin costs about a sixth of what it does here.” And this is just the most recent example. It is extremely well-reported that the sick and dying are often exploited and left helpless by our healthcare system. When examples like this keep showing up in healthcare and other industries, you will forgive us for raising concerns about the way our free market system operates. However, Mr. Hartzell’s article allows no room for qualms. He opens his article with what seems like a reasonable series of criticisms of the United States, both past and present, and presents them as the elitist attacks of “sneerers.” Sneerers focus on “our nation’s moral failures” and highlight uncomfortable realities about our country, which is apparently too “ludicrous” a notion for him to understand. All the Japanese-Americans who marked the recent anniversary of internment policies by expressing their dismay and disappointment? Sneerers! Native Americans who don’t view America
in the best light? Sneerers! People upset that they pay six times as much for insulin as they could elsewhere? Sneerers! And of course, anyone who questions whether the US of A is the best country that has EVER existed is being “simply and categorically irresponsible.” The article makes a huge leap between such criticisms and radical, unbridled socialism. You criticize income inequality and Wall Street? You must want the government to buy your bread for you! You don’t understand basic economics! This link is the premise of the entire piece, and the connection is lazy, poorly supported and just untrue. No, not everyone who criticizes the United States wants to see us become Denmark, as he insists. Most of us do it because we love our country and want to hold it accountable. When the only defense of income inequality is that poverty in the United States “is far better than living and working in other nations,” we have a problem. “The greatest country in all of world history” (unquestionably!) should not get a pass just because it beats the lowest common denominator, and saying so doesn’t make me a Marxist. Mr. Hartzell ought to learn the lesson I learned when I was eight years old: It is okay to acknowledge when something is wrong. People “highlight our worst moments” because that is the only way to improve! We can either try to find solutions for income inequality, or we can tell people stuck in a cycle of poverty to suck it up because hey, things could always be worse. We can try to help people who are being exploited, broken and left to die by pharmaceutical and insurance companies, or we can say government involvement is a socialist takeover that destroys our country’s ideals. We can acknowledge our country’s history of residential discrimination, which has doomed much of black America to an isolated and unacknowledged life of concentrated poverty, crime and suffering, or we can pat ourselves on the back for giving black people access to the ballot a century too late. Greatness is not maintained with heads planted in the sand. We need to actively improve on our shortcomings as a country. We may all have different ideas on how to fix these problems, and I agree that socialism is not the answer. But those points can be made the right way or the wrong way. If we are dismissing people who acknowledge areas for improvement as “sneerers,” then I am perfectly happy to sit here and sneer. Brendan Kennedy is a junior political science and Spanish double major.
EDITORIAL
Our fundamental right With the political circus still going strong, it is now more important than ever to vote. We know you hear this every year — get out and vote, your vote counts, be an active and engaged citizen, etc. You’re likely tired of hearing the pleading at this point, especially if you are already one of the politically active ones. But it’s also important to remember that in the 2008 presidential election, those aged 18-24 had the lowest voting rates of all age groups. And this has been a consistent trend since 1962, when everyone’s favorite young politician, John F. Kennedy, won the election. Consistent data shows that less than 50 percent of eligible youth voters participate in general elections. Less than half! In the 2012 Texas primaries, around only 12 percent of eligible voters turned out to vote for both parties We don’t even want to know what part of that percentage was college-aged students. We’re sure it’d be depressingly low. So
if we’re hearing those refrains over and over again, why is nothing changing? College students are highly apathetic at times. But we’re passionate and engaged, too. We go to classes, volunteer in the community, are part of countless groups and organizations. And still we find time to go out and drink on a regular basis. But when it comes to politics we often fall short. We get it; for some people, politics just isn’t interesting. For some people, it’s their life. Just look around campus — from the incredible number of political signs on dorm windows, debates on Trinity Snaps and those Bernie Sanders people who just won’t leave Coates alone, the passion is here. We have voting registration tables all around campus this time of year, with people left and right bugging you about early voting, registration and all other political topics under the sun. Most of us at Trinity are highly educated and passionate,
and we want to and are eager to vote. Our turnout rates are likely higher than those of the average 18- to 24-year-old. But when it comes down to getting out and going to vote we still fall short. It’s easy to get into politics when asked at the bar or when watching a debate, but getting off the couch and actually doing something seems to prove just a little too difficult for us. This isn’t an attempt to chastise or call out anyone who doesn’t vote. It’s just to encourage everyone to at least make an effort to do so. If you are an anarchist who doesn’t support the political system, then don’t vote. If you hate every single candidate, then don’t vote. But even if you are uninterested in politics, participating in the process is a crucial part of our citizenship. Voting is the fundamental cornerstone of any democracy. “But Trinitonian,” you say, “voting is just a waste of time, my vote doesn’t count! Voting
isn’t that easy, I have to find out where to go and actually decide who to vote for!” Luckily for you, we’re here to dispel such claims. First, are you registered to vote in Texas? We’ll make it easy on you. Walk down the street to Alamo Stadium and vote. Look no further. Early voting ends today, but it starts again on March 16. And that’s just for primary voting, which is just as important as any other election. It’s easy to pass off primary voting as just another election, but this is the last chance to fine-tune your party. Come general elections, you’ll want to have made the right choice back in March. Second, your vote doesn’t matter? Nonsense. A single vote is just as important as any other vote, even in a state where your party may not be in control. For one, it’s a vocalization of your individual preference, regardless of the outcome — by voting you make your choice known, and by joining with
others who feel the same you create a statement of support for certain policies and ideas. Voting is a fundamental right that we possess; exercising such a right is not only our right, but also our duty. If we don’t exercise it, then what purpose does it serve? It’s easy to pretend it’s unnecessary, but try and imagine a society without voting. You wouldn’t want that, would you? If we saw full voter turnout in elections then the political landscape could change drastically. Too often we hear young voters uninterested or apathetic: “Politics are corrupt and the system is broken.” It’s easy to be pessimistic because it requires you do nothing. Being passionate and engaged is difficult. But if you care even a little bit about something that affects your everyday life, then do something about it. Don’t like the candidates or don’t like the system? Then get off the couch and go vote.
CAMPUS PULSE
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• FEBRUARY 26, 2016 • WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM
FACULTY SPOTLIGHT “Figure out what success means to you. Once you have done that, work hard, own your mistakes, learn from your failures, be kind to others and success will follow.” Diana Young, business analytics and technology
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If you could major in anything, what would you choose?
“I’m quite the chef, I’d love to major in baking!” Brigitte Taylor Junior
Female faculty members take the stage at the Stieren Theatre on Feb. 23 for the annual production of the Vagina Monologues. In previous years, the performance was done by students, so this year was a new experience for performers and audiences alike. photo by Karina Duran
Dialogue and celebration of the female experience take center stage at annual Vagina Monologues BY EMILY ELLIOTT PULSE REPORTER In preparation for Women’s History Month, members of the Trinity community have organized several events and activities for students and faculty members to participate in. To kick off the celebration, faculty members and students performed in a production of “The Vagina Monologues” last Tuesday. The play featured several monologues of various topics regarding the experiences women have had, including sex, rape, orgasms and menstruation, among others. Many students entered the Stieren Theatre that night unsure of what to expect. “I had always been hesitant to go to one of these shows because it sounded intimidating and I honestly had no idea what the format was going to be,” said junior Katherine Wilks. “I had never seen ‘The Vagina Monologues.’ I’d heard good things about it and I’ve wanted to watch it, but I never had a chance to,” said sophomore Hester Lee. The performances quickly succeeded in capturing the attention of its audience members, as they brought stories of differing topics to life.
“I really liked it. It was interesting to see something candid about vaginas and stories about such experiences. I’d definitely recommend it to others. None of [the performers] were my teachers, but seeing familiar faces made it more tangible and understandable,” Lee said. Several of the performers put on shows that precisely captured the experiences of their stories, while also providing entertainment in a comfortable environment. “The monologue about visiting the gynecologist was the most interesting. The moaning performance by the theatre teacher was also really entertaining,” Lee said. Some of the performers have had previous experience with the play either as audience members or performers. “I’ve done it before, but it’s been really fun for me to do different voices. As a poet, these are monologues, so the idea is [that] you’re performing someone’s story and embodying their voice,” said a professor of English and a performer, Jennifer Browne. “It’s really different to sort of locate my body in the experience of a woman who was brutalized in the war in Bosnia. I’ve also done being in the presence of birth,
and as a mother, that was a really moving experience.” Many of the performers identity a personal need for the tradition of the performance to continue at Trinity, as they relate to it and understand it on several realms. “I think for me, we keep performing it because there remains a need to perform it. The stories of this performance haven’t gone away. They’re being played out right now in the political realm where people, whether or not they have a vagina, are trying to win votes based on what they should do with vaginas. We did ‘The Vagina Monologues’ because we need ‘The Vagina Monologues’,” Browne said. Audience members agree that the performance is an inspiration for understanding and expressing the female experience. “I hope that this show continues to be an avenue for women to be more comfortable with talking about the female experience,” Wilks said. Others who have been familiar with the production still enjoyed the performance because of the closeness it brings by including Trinity community members. “As a feminist, I loved it. It
was a second time attending and I enjoyed seeing it [performed] by both students last year and teachers this year,” said Mary Feit, a sophomore communications major. The impact of the performances could still be felt even after the show ended. “[‘The Vagina Monologues’] transcended my expectations and made me very excited to be a female. Some [performances] were humorous, others were emotionally heavy,” Wilks said. “I found myself talking with my friends about some of the monologues and how accurate and relatable they were.” Students were inspired by their personal beliefs to support the show and consider its messages. “I want to see some balance between males and females. Also, these monologues cover a range of different woman’s issues that need to be discussed, and I think that’s why this is important for Trinity to put on,” Feit said. All proceeds from the show were donated to the Rape Crisis Center in order to further promote the significance of Women’s History Month and bring awareness to the issues many women face today.
“I would major in sloths.” Katie Peth First Year
“Soccer for sure!” Francisco Vasquez Junior
“I’d like to play random sports, so I guess a sports trier.” Hannah Booher Sophomore
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WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM • FEBRUARY 26, 2016•
CAMPUS PULSE
Campus conversation to focus on safety BSU presents Mocha Life Best-selling author to discuss preventing sexual violence BY MOMO SETAMOU PULSE REPORTER From a young age, every child knows to how to dial 911 or to stop, drop and roll. “Click it or ticket” signs remind drivers to buckle up, and students are taught how to prevent accidents by not texting and driving. But what is being done to prevent emergencies regarding sexual assault? How can instances of rape be reported? Though more attention is being brought to the issue, unreported sexual assault and rape cases are still a rampant problem, especially on college campuses. The problem of under-reporting reflects a dire need for increased campus prevention, support systems and ultimately a need for open conversations between the student body and administrators. In the last year alone, the federal government has made it their prerogative to break the silence about sexual violence on college campuses and provide victims their right to reclaim the power and justice they have lost by being abused. Trinity has participated in conversations about the sexual violence that occurs on college campuses and has sought to implement a more realistic approach. One way the university will be shining a light on the reality of sexual violence on college
campuses is through a presentation by Sarah Hepola, author of the New York Times bestseller “Blackout: Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget.” The presentation is sponsored by Coalition for Respect and Greek Council. Hepola is a UT graduate who worked multiple jobs for different magazines and had an article published in Texas Weekly about blackout drinking in college. She went on to write a book about her experiences with alcohol in college and ultimately highlighted the realization that college is filled with a culture of unsafe binge drinking practices that leads to incredibly dangerous and harmful effects on college students. Jeremy Allen, coordinator for fraternity and sorority life, thought that it would be helpful for Hepola to come and share her perspective on the relationship between alcohol and sexual assault. “Two-thirds of sexual assaults on college campuses involve alcohol, and on our campus, that is about 70 percent,” Allen said. “In college, there is this culture about binge drinking to the point of blackout. We really want to open up the conversation about this culture, and we want to prevent sexual assault. I think that it is time for this conversation to happen,” Allen said.
Residential Life coordinator Stephanie Ackerman also expressed the importance of having Hepola come to Trinity and provide new insight on how sexual violence should be approached. “We’ve had speakers talk about sexual assault but not in this type of approach. To acknowledge that alcohol is a part of the college culture brings forth this conversation that needs to happen about the reality of sexual violence,” Ackerman said. Sarah Hepola brings a new view to dealing with sexual violence on college campuses starting with the recognition that alcohol is a huge contributing factor to sexual violence among colleges worldwide. She advocates acknowledging that college students are drinking, both legally and underage, and it is important to have conversations between the student body and the faculty and staff about prevention, support and the creation of a safe environment where victims of sexual assault and rape are able to come forward, not only to prosecute their offenders but also to seek justice and have their voices heard. For an exclusive interview with Sarah Hepola, see “Young, Educated and Drunk: An Interview with Sarah Hepola” on page 11.
Students celebrate black culture, art BY SIDNEY HOPKINS PULSE REPORTER Music, dancing and poetry reading are just a few ways that students and guests will be showcasing talent, expressing their creativity and celebrating Black History Month this Friday. This annual show called Mocha Life is hosted by the Black Student Union and celebrates black culture within the community. “Mocha Life is a celebration of black culture, art and excellence,” said coordinator Nia Thomas. “The most exciting part is being able to see the talent that so many Trinity students have to offer and being a part of one of Trinity’s traditions.” Kenneth Kusima, a first year student who also participated in and won Trinity Idol last semester, will be singing in the show. Students Greg Labbé and Kensi May will also be singing. Loon-E Crew and Prowlers will be dancing, and poet Anthony “Big Ant” Gordon will be reading poetry. Gordon has participated in several poetry slam competitions throughout Texas, and BSU is excited to bring him to Mocha Life. Alvin Mbabazi, another coordinator, is excited to bring several months of work to help the community celebrate black culture. “[Mocha life will be] a diverse blend of modern music, dance and spoken word. The audience should expect to experience performances that are influenced by various aspects of many people’s perspectives of black culture,” Mbabzzi said. The members of BSU have succeeded in finding different and interesting acts for each annual Mocha Life, and many are especially excited to hear poetry from Detroit-born Anthony Gordon. Mocha Life will help promote BSU’s purpose by celebrating the culture, contributions and history of the black community as well as the diversity of other cultures. “BSU’s purpose is to support and encourage the diverse members who share a common goal: to support, to promote awareness and to educate others about the culture and history of the black community,” said Yanina Soudaly, a junior who is involved in BSU and will be performing with LoonE crew at Mocha Life. The members of BSU have worked very hard to create a diverse, exciting show for audience members. Each act has been practicing for weeks to perfect their performances. Maia Ogembo, a member of BSU encourages students to come take part in the experience. “Students should want to come to support their friends as the performers have been working very hard to get ready for the show,” Ogembo said. Mocha Life will be held at 6 p.m. on Friday Feb 26 in Laurie auditorium, and no tickets or entry fees are required.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT•
FEBRUARY 26, 2016 • WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM
EVENT: YACHT WHAT: Yacht performs at Paper Tiger WHEN: Sunday February 28 WHERE: Paper Tiger, 2410 N. Saint Mary’s TIME: 11 p.m. COST: $15 and up
EVENT: THE MOLLY RINGWALDS WHAT: The Molly Ringwalds perform at the Aztec Theatre WHEN: Saturday February 27 WHERE: The Aztec Theater, 104 N. Saint Mary’s TIME: 9 p.m. COST: $15 TO $20
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The house of unrecognized talent: Academy Award predictions the survival film, which I am okay with. Sort of.
Best Director
It’s that time of year again. When a bunch of famous people get together to pat themselves on the back for creating above average movies. My main disappointment with this year’s nominees is that they are predictable and uninspiring. None of the movies that were nominated for several of the major awards truly wowed me, and I think that’s a major issue. Unfortunately, I don’t have any real say in the matter, but I can predict who will most likely win based off of an intense algorithm that I like to call common sense. Since the Academy upped the number of nominees from five to eight, it is harder to predict which film will take the night’s biggest award. Despite the large number of nominees, I think it is between either “The Martian” or “The Revenant.” Since “The Revenant” has been riding on an award season high, the award will most likely go to
Best Director is always a wildcard award, since it has historically seemed like one director was more favored than others, but then there is an upset. I fully believe that it is between George Miller and Alejandro G. Iñárritu, with Miller appealing more to the masses while Iñárritu is more artsy and gritty. Since Iñárritu won last year for “Birdman,” I think the ball is in Miller’s court.
Best Actor
Poor Leonardo DiCaprio. He has been denied an Oscar for so long. Yet, this will definitely be his year. Aside from the fact that he has won every single major acting award this award season for “The Revenant,” the other actors don’t quite stand up to his performance. Redmayne won’t win because he won last year, and Fassbender portrayed a typical Sorkin character. If there were any upset, it would be Matt Damon for “The Martian,” because a dramedy is slightly more appealing to viewers than watching a man cry and grunt while fighting the elements and bears.
Best Actress
None of the nominees truly stood out this year, but Brie Larson has won all the awards this season for “Room,” and the Oscars will be no different. I would definitely prefer her to Jennifer Lawrence winning for another lackluster David O. Russel film.
Best Supporting Actor
Sylvester Stalone is another actor who has been sweeping the awards this season for “Creed” (though his phenomenal costar Michael B. Jordan has gotten no award recognition). He will win this one, hands down.
Best Supporting Actress
Yet again, the award will go to the woman who has been winning all of the awards this season. I personally would prefer the award to go to Jennifer Jason Leigh or Alicia Vikander, but, in the end, Winslet will win. All I can hope for from this Academy Award ceremony is a celebratory kiss between Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio when they both inevitably win. It will be like a Titanic reunion, but hopefully neither of them dies immediately afterward.
Goodie bag PREDICTIONS If you’re a person who prides yourself on having a sense of dignity and normality when it comes to topics in the mainstream media, you probably haven’t thought much about what goes into most Oscar gift bags, which are the consolation prizes for non-winners. However, this year, the prizes have been making headlines due to the fact that the Academy is filing a lawsuit against Distinctive Gifts, the company that preparest the bags, for delivering a product that isn’t equal in value to the little golden statues awarded to the winners. The bags were each worth roughly $232,000, included a $1,900 Vampire Breast Lift, a $55,000 15day all-expenses paidwalking tour of Japan, a single tube of chapstick and many more treasures. Here are a few ideas for next year’s prizes: 1. A car powered by the sweat of a thousand newborn turtles. 2. 10 years added onto your life at the expense of 10 years out of your greatest enemy’s life. 3. The secret to being happy. 4. The ability to choose who falls in love and who lives alone forever. 5. Three tubes of chapstick. If we really budget, this could all cost about 13 bucks.
Leonardo DiCaprio: The next Peter O’Toole? BY TIM ZHANG
A&E INTERN
A developmentally disabled midwestern boy. A record-breaking aviator. A Rhodesian diamond smuggler. A market manipulatingstockbroker. These were characters portrayed by actor Leonardo DiCaprio so well that he received Academy Award nominations for all of them… but never received a win for any of them. For years Leonardo DiCaprio sat in his chair as they announced the nominees for best actor, waiting to hear his name called and to approach the stage to give a speech he diligently prepared. All four years, however, DiCaprio remained sitting,
having to use his acting skills to put on a face of graciousness for the winner who was often someone who never even attended an Academy Award ceremony before. After seeing him lose for the fourth time despite being nominated since he was a teen I wonder to myself “Why? Why can’t he win just one award? Just one!” Sometimes, I wonder if the Academy does this to him on purpose, perhaps to mold him into this generation’s Peter O’Toole. Peter O’Toole was nominated eight times for best actor without winning once. Toward the end of his career, the Academy gave him an honorary award, to which he reacted bitterly, believing that he could still win one on his own. Looking at O’Toole’s career and DiCaprio’s, I wonder if the Academy is setting Leo up to be our generation’s O’Toole. The main reason I had such a thought was not so much due to how many times they’ve been nominated
and lost as much as because the fashion in which they lost. For both actors, there was one time where they were nominated and truly deserved to win. For O’Toole, it was his role in “Lawrence of Arabia” that should have gotten him the win. However, he lost to Gregory Peck from To Kill A Mockingbird. Having seen both films, I found it baffling that O’Toole’s Lawrence lost to a Peck’s Atticus Finch. Don’t get me wrong, I thought Peck played Finch well, and I have immense respect for him, but O’Toole truly had one of the best performances of all time (I know I Kanye’d there, and I apologize). For the rest of the nominations, O’Toole’s performances were adequate enough for him to be nominated, but there was always someone better. For instance, when his performance in Venus was nominated, he rightfully lost to Forrest Whitaker from “The Last King of Scotland.” After seeing both of these movies, I can definitely
justify his loss, for while I thought O’Toole was remarkable in Venus despite his old age, Whitaker made the terrible Idi Amin come to life. For all but one nomination, O’Toole performed well enough to be at the Oscars, but there was always someone better. Now as for DiCaprio, the role for which he should have won was in “The Wolf of Wall Street,” where he played stockbroker Jordan Belfort. He was able to capture the ambition, the arrogance and the vulnerability of such a bold and dynamic character. While I admit Matthew McConaughey, the eventual winner, played his role to a tee and also deserved to win an oscar for that role, I felt that DiCaprio had a slight edge on him by having more power in his role. However, his other nominations(“Gilbert Grape,” “Aviator,” “Blood Diamond”) were always compared to someone who truly separated themselves from the
competition such as Tommy Lee Jones, Jamie Foxx and Whitaker who in the same year and at the same time, beat Dicaprio and O’Toole with his role in The Last King of Scotland, completely trolling both of them. While their histories at the Oscars are incredibly similar, there is one major difference between the two, and that is the future. While O’Toole unfortunately passed away in 2013, Leo is only 41 and has many years ahead of him. On top of that, his role in the 2015 hit “The Revenant” as the stranded frontiersman Hugh Glass is nominated for an Oscar, and in my opinion, it is his best role to date. I wish him the best of luck this Sunday, and I hope he can win it and dispel this notion that he will not win an Academy Award until the Academy feels bad for him and gives him one out of pity when he turns old.
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WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM • FEBRUARY 18, 2016 •
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
OSCAR
PREDICTIONS Best Picture
Best Actress
“Bridge of Spies” “Mad Max: Fury Road” “The Revenant” “Spotlight” “The Martian” “Mad Men” “The Big Short “Room” “Brooklyn”
Brie Larson in “Room” Charlotte Rampling in “45 Years” Cate Blanchett in “Carol” Saoirse Ronan in “Brooklyn” Jennifer Lawrence in “Joy”
Best Supporting Actress Rachel McAdems in “Spotlight” Rooney Mara in “Carol” Jennifer Jason Leigh in “The Hateful Eight” Kate Winslet in “Steve Jobs” Alicia Vikander in “The Danish Girl
Best Supporting Actor Mark Ruffalo in “Spotlight” Sylvester Stallone in “Creed” Tom Hardy in “The Revenant” Mark Rylance in “Bridge of Spies” Christian Bale in “The Big Short”
Best Actor Eddie Redmayne in “The Danish Girl” Michael Fassbender in “Steve Jobs” Bryan Cranston in “Trumbo” Matt Damon in “The Martian” Leonardo Dicaprio in “The Revenant”
Best Director George Miller in “Mad Max: Fury Road” Adam McKay in “The Big Short” Lenny Abrahamson in “Room” Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu in “The Revenant Tom McCarthy in “Spotlight”
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT •
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FEBRUARY 26, 2015 • WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM
Young, educated and drunk: Interview with Sarah Hepola
Young, educated and drunk. Young educated and drunk. Young, educated and drunk. It’s a sort of mantra that travels throughout the nation stopping at college campuses everywhere and implanting itself in the daily culture. Work hard, play harder mindsets are more common than any alternative and the pursuit of the next binge leads students charging for the weekend. Author Sarah Hepola’s new book “Blackout: Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget” examines her years in and following college through funny (and not so funny) tales of drinking in excess to feel empowered, drinking to feel inspiration and drinking to hold onto what little of herself remained. Hepola will be on Trinity campus Thursday, March 3 to discuss drinking on college campuses and what she has learned from blackouts she cannot remember. GF: In your book there is a particular passage that states that women are more likely to have three binges a month, or six drinks at a time. Which honestly, in college, just sounds like three parties a month. There is a drinking culture and the idea that you are just barreling towards the weekend. How did that become the norm and why? SH: I think drinking together on college campuses kind of started when boys and girls start living together in the seventies. This is the age of feminism and so drinking became much more of a shared part of the college campus life. Through the eighties you get these movies like “Animal House,” which was sort of the “American Pie” of its day — and these movies really reinforced the ideas that college was a bacchanal and a time for rebellion. It’s almost like those pop cultural messages became socially reinforcing in the same way that the real world kind of redefined what it meant to be young. So when I came of age during those years it was just an accepted part of the college life that we drank a lot. And when we say that we drank a lot I mean
that I wasn’t counting. I don’t know how much I drank in a night; I just drank until the drinks were gone. And you’re starting to see in that moment what the outside world might think is a normal night of drinking and what a college kid might think. As you get into the late nineties and the early aughts, the message just continues to amplify. Parents felt comfortable with this too. It’s like college becomes this sanctioned period of drinking, it’s almost like college becomes this American right of passage. GF: There seems to be a dichotomy between the community around drinking and the isolation that drinking brings. Can you talk a little more about this? SH: Well I certainly was a person who was drawn to drinking because I wanted closeness with other people. I wanted to be around other people and when I was drinking I liked myself better and I liked them better. And I was less afraid of them. I think a lot of us might feel, and especially me in my adolescence, trapped in my own unhappiness. And I didn’t know how to bridge that divide and alcohol felt like it built a bridge. And we took care of each other. I think that is the other part of it. When you are in a drinking circle, if somebody vomits you go and help them with their vomit and if somebody is drinking too much you go and bring them to their bedroom, tuck them in. It was in some ways our play-acting at adulthood. Where you are helping each other through the perils of life but it’s just the perils of a keg party. I think one of the big tensions that young people face is that you’re so eager to prove yourself. You want to show that you’re tough and that you can hang. I never wanted to admit I was having any kind of problem because I wanted to look totally in control of all of this stuff. When you’re in college especially, you don’t want to be the one person who looks like they can’t drink like everybody else. And I think sometimes there is just not an awareness that other people are struggling. There is so much performing to keep up with everybody else. But when are we going to be honest with each other and talk about our true selves and say, We need
to say “You guys, I’m not keeping up.” I think about my own life and I’m like, well those are conversations I used to have with my girlfriends when we were drinking. GF: You also talk a lot about female empowerment and what it means to be a strong or defiant woman. How do you think being this empowered woman has changed for you? SH: When I got to college was when I first realized that I wanted to be that kind of strong and defiant — I really looked up to a lot of women that really spoke their mind. I saw that as a really appealing way to be but I didn’t know how to be that. I was so shy and I was so worried about what other people thought of me. And so alcohol, it frees you. But alcohol is a very tricky empowerment because it will turn on you eventually. I know that for me, I used it as a crutch and what happened was I found myself in my twenties and my thirties with this false bravado that wasn’t really me. It was like this drinking persona that I put on that was very bold and empowered but on the inside I was terrified of criticism. I was so scared about what people thought about me. You grow up with so much pressure about being a proper girl and dressing a certain way and being cute and appealing enough and I really liked the feeling of giving two middle fingers because I didn’t want to care anymore. I used to think that drinking was really rebellious and cool and different. The truth is that drinking is conforming. I mean it is what everyone else is doing. And while drinking is good and it’s fun, it’s really not all that original. As I’ve gotten older I’ve been more interested in finding people that have found other ways, other sources of power. GF: A lot of pressure to be an empowered woman comes with being sexually empowered and comes with being sexually open. SH: Doesn’t it? That is so true. And my relationship to alcohol and sex was something that I didn’t even understand until I quit drinking. When I first quit drinking I talked to some of my female friends about why they drank — these weren’t necessarily people that had drinking problems—
and what I kept hearing again and again was, “It loosens me up, it makes me feel sexual — like I can be wild in bed.” I kept wondering why do we feel this need to perform this wildness that we don’t have authentically. So alcohol presents itself as a way to be that girl that you want to be. There is this great freedom, but how do you navigate it? I certainly didn’t know. And I felt this pressure to be really crazy and wild and have these crazy orgasms like I’d seen in the movies. Which is such a joke by the way. I didn’t even know how to give myself an orgasm it was not happening with the dude form the party that I just met. I was so reliant on that, that it was just an essential part of my sexual life. GF: With this openness, there’s also the idea that you get to really know people when you’re drunk. Not just when you’re sitting in front of each other hanging out, but when you’re sitting in front of each other a bottle of wine later and you’re having the “deep conversations.” SH: Totally, totally. What’s interesting about that is that you’ve just talked about this idea that alcohol is the great truth revealer. It’s a way to get at the authentic self. Then you get this bottle of wine between you and you can let down your guard and you can allow yourself to be you. But what’s funny about that is that’s not entirely true. The real you is not this super disinhibited, will say anything to anyone, kind of person. That’s the drunk version of you. The longer you have that the more you realize there is something kind of phony about that. Because you are all drinking yourself into this place where you can talk instead of doing that on your own. GF: A big topic on college campuses is the relationship between alcohol and sex and the question of what is consent. SH: It’s like alcohol has the same boomerang effect. It’s like when is alcohol fueling and inspiring you and when has it turned on you and it’s working against you and you’ve drank too much and you can’t give consent. It wasn’t until this current conversation about sexual assault that has been going on for probably about five years now that I started to think about my own drinking and sexual
history and ask the question of what is too drunk to consent? Where is that line? Where should it be? And who gets to say where it is? It’s not a clear cut matter of did you give consent, because people can give you consent and they’re in a blackout and they wake up and don’t remember it the next day. And I would see these things on the Internet that would say, “Anyone who had sex in a blackout, that’s rape.” Well, I don’t know if you realize it but Beyonce’s song “Drunk in Love” is about her having sex in a blackout. So is that rape? And blackouts are really scary, blackouts are not part of an empowered sex life. Because you don’t even know what you did. GF: There are a lot of things that alcohol can bring. You can drink to gain credibility, to gain courage so many different reasons. I think on a college campus especially there are so many reasons. But there was one line, my favorite in the book, and that was “Young, educated, and drunk.” I think it just speaks to a lot of people my age. SH: Yeah, young, educated and drunk. That was me. And that is a lot of us. And a lot of this conversation has followed a similar theme that drinking empowers you and then it takes away your power. I talked about that happening over the long history of my drinking career but we’ve also talked about that can happen in just one night. You know, that is the really tricky thing about alcohol. It is neither a total social good nor a total social evil. It is both. It’s good and bad. It has beautifully liberating effects and it also can completely distort who you are Get the good parts of this life. College is a good part of life. Stay in the good part of the evening, the empowered part. I think that is one of the problems that the empowered message came along with the excess message. And those don’t really live together. Empowerment to me is drinking so you remain conscious so that you remain in control, so you remember the evening, so you remain in charge of your facilities and not peeing your bed. Is that empowerment? No. Nobody thinks that is empowerment. I think that if drinking and empowerment are going to be messages that are tied together then we need to be a little more specific about it.
A few new President’s Day traditions BY LINA GAFFNER
A&E INTERN
On February 15th, the U.S. celebrated Presidents Day with crazy, out of this world, unbelievable deals in used car lots and secondhand furniture stores. Where did our patriotism go? As citizens, we need to reinvigorate America’s morale by taking up some new and modern traditions to honor our nation’s leaders. While some presidents are famous for getting stuck in bathtubs (calling you out, Taft) or ruining Inaugurations because of drinking a little too much the night before (Andrew Johnson
was a fun guy), I believe these three presidents yield the most successful new traditions for our generation. In order from better to best, here are our new traditions for Presidents Day.
Barack Obama
Our current president, famous for many achievements and shortcomings alike, is arguably America’s most hip Commander in Chief in history. With the explosion of social media comes the explosion of memes and jokes at the president’s expense. The good news is that Obama has wholeheartedly hopped on this train. When given the opportunity, Obama enthusiastically throws out his calm demeanor in favor of a savage comedian. His most clever moments are documented in the White House Correspondents’
Dinner, where he made multiple jabs at friends and enemies alike. Whether you like him or not, Obama deserves respect as a clever comic. In his honor, we should exchange all Presidential Debates for Presidential Roasts. If a candidate can’t successfully roast his competitors, how can they be expected to run a country?
John Quincy Adams
The sixth president of the United States had a lot on his plate. He not only had to live up to the expectations of his father, a former president, but also fight off the various Congressmen who were constantly fighting his legislations. To combat the stress that he faced, he decided to let loose and throw away all inhibitions. Legend has it that John Quincy Adams regularly
skinny dipped in the local Potomac river. He let loose all the pressures weighing him down, literally and figuratively, and took time out of his busy schedule to relax, not caring if his neighbors liked the scene or not. To honor President Adams, I propose we do anything but skinny dip in the Potomac. For real, that river might have been crystal clear when Adams was president, but it’s taken a negative, and murky, turn since then. If we regularly skinny dip in the Potomac, American citizens might be the victims of a radioactive epidemic. Let’s try skinny dipping in our backyard kiddie pool instead.
George Washington
Our first and most famous president wished for the United
States to remain neutral in all other conflicts. While many know he famously refrained from involving the newly independent U.S. in any wars with the European nations across the sea, not many know of Washington’s efforts to maintain neutrality with local Native Americans as well. According to old stories, Washington often held meetings with these tribe’s leaders at his own home. While discussing peaceful relations, everyone in the room often partook in the communal smoking of a hookah. President Washington has set a fine example that we should look up to even today. When’s the last time you had a nice dinner with your enemy while smoking a hookah? I bet Obama would be behind that.
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WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM • FEBRUARY 26, 2016 •
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Best places to spark creativity on campus BY PAIGE PEREZ
A&E WRITER
With the exception of a few bright sunny days, the month of February has so far proven to be dreary, humid and mostly cloudy for every Trinity student. It’s not helped by the fact that the spring semester is generally the hardest part of the school year. With midterms swiftly approaching, a little change of scenery is necessary for most. Luckily, our campus has many beautiful places for students to hang out and recharge their energy and get the creative juices flowing again.
Skyline Bistro
While the hungry lunch crowd takes the Coates dining facilities by storm on the daily, they tend to forget that this other option exists just up the stairs. Open Monday through Friday from 11:30 to 2
p.m., the Skyline Bistro is a great place to eat some good food and relax. With its convenient location and great view of San Antonio, visitors can refill their stomachs as well as refresh the mind while admiring the view of the skyline. Plus, they take Bonus Bucks, so it won’t break the bank.
Ruth Taylor Fine Arts Center
It’s hard to not feel inspired upon entering these buildings. Step into the Dicke art wing and immediately be exposed to different kinds of art projects made by fellow students. Stroll down the Smith music hallways and hear the sweet sounds of the band and the orchestra practicing or someone rehearsing for a choir recital. Or, if you just need to let off some steam, ask anyone to open one of the soundmuffling practice rooms for you and then scream until you’ve released all your pent-up stress. No judgment. (If anyone asks, just say it’s a performance art piece depicting the deteriorating state of your academic career.)
The rooftop garden in CSI
The soft breeze and beautiful plants really help make this area special. The garden is usually pretty quiet, especially in the evening, and it’s just upstairs from the study rooms that make CSI so popular. Take a break from your all-nighter to sit amongst the plants and breathe in the fresh air, or let the change of scenery excite a quick brainstorming session before heading back to a chalkboard and jotting down some new ideas.
Use Photoshop on one of the computers for a class project or just for fun. Check out cameras, and practice your directing skills by shooting a video. Or visit the TigerTV studio and help put a live TV production together. You just might have to ask a dejected communication student for help finding the place.
Enchanted garden behind Murchison
This one is for relaxing. The enchanted garden is elevated slightly from the normal walking path behind Murchison, keeping it quiet and isolated if you just need to get away. Surrounded by trees and a flowing fountain, it’s easy to let all worries drift away here. The only visitor will be the occasional Trinicat. This place ranks 10/10 if you just want to hide from the world.
The Richardson Communication Center
Walk into the lobby area of Laurie Auditorium, and walk towards the woman’s bathroom. On your way there, there will be a collection of couches beside a small hallway. Pass the elevator, take a left, and voila! You’ve found the secret door that leads to the most elusive place on campus: the communications lab, also known as the RCC. These magical stairs lead to a whole floor dedicated to all kinds of media.
Deadpool: The hero that the film industry needs? BY COLLIN GILLEPSIE
A&E INTERN
During its opening weekend “Deadpool” made a recordsmashing $132.4 million at the box office and has continued to rake in money from theaters worldwide since the beginning of February. The landmark success of “Deadpool” has left many (myself included) wondering how the film industry will react. To say that its success is surprising would be an
understatement. In one weekend “Deadpool” managed to gross more money than most R-rated films make in their entire time in theaters, and “Deadpool” is currently ranked No. 6 on the list of the highest grossing R-rated movies of all time. Few could have predicted the splash “Deadpool” made at the box office, and for good reason. R-rated films statistically make less money in theaters than PG-13 or lower rated movies, a fact made clear when you realize that the vast majority of the movies on the list of the top 100 grossing films of all time are movies rated PG-
13 at most. With that in mind, consider the fact that the target audience for most superhero films are a younger group of filmgoers who are excluded by the R rating. Suddenly the skepticism that surrounded “Deadpool” before its release seems a bit more justified. And yet, despite the odds, “Deadpool” has shown how financially viable an R-rated superhero film can be. The success of “Deadpool” has assured that the film will have some notable impact on the film industry — the only question is how it will affect Hollywood. In the short term, it seems likely
that studios will be much more accepting of R-rated superhero movies now that they know that they won’t bomb simply because they are R-rated. The fact that FOX has already okayed an R-rated Wolverine movie shows that the studio is more than ready to make another R-rated superhero movie, a decision that might be echoed by Sony and Marvel studios in the future. The rise of R-rated superhero movies could rapidly change superhero movies into something much more adult-oriented. However, these changes won’t only occur within the superhero genre. With
the size of “Deadpool’s” success, it is almost certain that the film will have an impact on the Hollywood landscape as a whole. Action movies are among the most expensive movies to produce in Hollywood. The large amount of set pieces, sizable special effects budget and astronomical marketing
campaigns
make
action movies very costly for the studios creating them. The large sums of money that go into making an action movie usually prevents experimentation in the genre for fear of failing to make enough profit to justify the resources put into action films. This is where “Deadpool” has the greatest potential to affect the film industry. This was one of those rare gambles in the world of action movies, and therefore its
The Theory of Antisemitism:
success could lead other studios
a lecture by Gabriel Noah Brahm
least, “Deadpool” could open up
Thursday, March 3, 2016, 7:30 p.m. Chapman Auditorium
action movies, possibly bringing
Jew-Hatred and the Jewish State in Post-Postmodern Times
Gabriel Noah Brahm (Associate Professor, Northern Michigan University) specializes in literary theory, Israel studies, film, popular culture, and the great works of Western civilization. Brahm argues that anti-Israel campus “theorists” such as Judith Butler advocate a solution (a return to minority status for Jews everywhere) that is effectively antisemitic. The event is free and open to the public. A reception will follow.
Sponsored by the Lecturers and Visiting Scholars Committee of Trinity University and the Departments of English, History, Modern Languages and Literatures, Philosophy, Political Science, Religion, Sociology and Anthropology, and the International Studies Program. For more information, contact Professor Alan Astro at aastro@trinity.edu or 210-999-7533
to being willing to take risks on action films that had been tossed aside because they were considered too expensive for an R-rated action movie. At the very studios to those riskier ideas for a new group of inventive action movies to theaters and lessening the industry’s fear of the dreaded restricted rating in general. Whether you liked it or loved it, “Deadpool” will definitely be stirring up the expectations for action movies, and especially superhero movies, in the very near future. And with a sequel already confirmed (really guys? It’s been like three weeks), one thing is for certain: You will be seeing more of the merc with a mouth in theaters very soon.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT •
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FEBRUARY 26, 2016 • WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM
How to be your Kanye Best BY SHANNON GROVER
A&E INTERN
Well, it’s gonna take some work. Forget what you thought you knew, because living the life of Ye requires some schooling.
Be yourself
We’re only two months into 2016 and it seems there’s already a pattern forming: Every week there’s another damn story about Kanye West. Whether he’s throwing shade at a popstar, having a tantrum in his Saturday Night Live dressing room, or going crazy on Twitter, this guy is taking over pop culture. It’s only natural we have some questions about the legend that is Yeezus. What is it about him that fascinates us so much? Why is he so popular? How can I, too, balance the line between genius and insanity?
Not everyone can pull off naming their kids Saint and North West. To be honest, I’m not even sure Kanye is pulling it off. Nevertheless, these are real names of real children. Sometimes I wonder how the name-choosing process. Surely Kim didn’t come up with these. Nothing screams Kanye more than a cardinal direction and a holy figure with a likeness to God himself. I can just imagine Kimye’s exchange. “Saint West would be such a dope name, right?” “Like, ummm, like, yeah.” Pull a Kanye, people. Get weird with your life.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help
We’ve all seen the tweets. Kanye is broke as hell. And he’s asking Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg for help. “One of the coolest things you could ever do is to help me in my time of need,” he wrote. Now that’s a man unafraid to be vulnerable — I can respect that. Sure, Zuckerberg has yet to respond to the pleas, but it’s the thought that counts. Kanye really will stoop to any level, and sometimes, you can get away with doing it too.
Don’t forget who’s played you
Devoted Ye fans will remember when his laptop was stolen last year. We were drowning in the
anticipation of endless song leaks and celebrity dirt that would surely be dug up. But just a few hours later, Kanye’s management insisted the laptop was never missing. We all got over our disappointment and moved on with our lives until “Real Friends” dropped and we were blessed with a new clue to the laptop mystery. “And as far as real friends, tell my cousins I love ‘em / Even the one that stole the laptop, you dirty motherfucker,” he raps. And that wasn’t the only track to mention the sticky-fingered cousin — I dig the “No More Parties in LA” verse. You can look up that expletive-laced line on your own. In Kanye’s world, revenge is a dish best served with a good beat. Next
time someone cuts you off in the Prassel parking garage, just leave them your diss track under their windshield wiper.
Stand up for your Beyliefs
I think we can all agree that Beyonce is the unofficial queen of everything. At the very least, Kanye agrees with me. Why else would he have stormed multiple award show stages to defend her? That kind of devotion is rare. Who else would have the balls to take down Taylor Swift and the endlessly talented Beck? Maybe don’t go stage rushing all of a sudden at the Grammy’s, but take a cue from Mr. West. Fight for what you believe in, or something like that.
Stuff you really should have tossed BY DYLAN WAGNER
A&E WRITER
Whatever our perverse weather might tell you, the season of Spring is almost blowing in. With the flowery shift to warmer weather from slightly-cooler weather comes changes in tradition: namely, the tradition of getting rid of garbage. I don’t know why cleaning up is associated with the spring solstice; perhaps it’s historical. Maybe all of the things humans used to hoard over wintertime were worth keeping around on the off-chance they could save their lives. Maybe after the cold passed and some of those items proved worthless, it was worth throwing away the trash by the truckload to clear up the log cabin for necessities. The most well-known spring ritual by far is spring cleaning, but does it really have any relevance to those of us living in ant-farm dorm rooms? Spring cleaning is a wellestablished activity for those with an actual job, family and stable residence, but we tend not to extend that ritual to college students. Why not? Isn’t the stereotypical college student one of the dirtiest, most slobbish types there is? Maybe we should take the opportunity to adopt that tradition here at Trinity, but first let’s examine the habits of the average student to make sure. First off, who else have more mismatched priorities regarding keeping things than students? Some of us keep things in the same manner
that the pioneers did: for the fear that later on we might need them and not have them. But the more slobbish of us, myself included, keep things because of a combination of nostalgia and laziness. Our finances are tied up in education and cheap goods, but one of those two can be tossed in the garbage. Given that college kids generally have limited finances and (associated) hoarding tendencies, let’s dive in and take a look at the different crap we can throw by the curb. First, there’s the sneaky clutter that masquerades as useful material. Books from last semester that you “might read sometime,” useless knickknacks from university events or piles of old papers. The last one is the worst of all: if I had one grade point for every paper from earlier classes that I find kicked under my desk or dresser, I’d have an A in “paper keeping” (but not on many of those papers). Then, there’s the actual garbage. Most people are better about keeping their rooms clear of this filth, but I’ve found that even for the slobs like me there’s a good system to keeping the room a few grades above “Fourth Circle of Hell” levels of cluttered. Here’s the system: every time you enter your room, throw away one piece of garbage that you see. Every time, without exception. Before you sit down, even. Even if this system makes you start preemptively stashing garbage in drawers rather than throwing it away, the strategy will (slowly) free your desk and floor from piles of refuse. Classically speaking, cleaning up the residue from winter to prepare for spring is a lot like burying the corpses from the winter’s cold and sowing the seeds of the new harvest. If it helps you to think of yourself as a pioneer farmer clearing the dead plants and sowing the land for a productive growing season, go for it. On the other hand, it might just be easier if you stop stealing those little signs from Whataburger. Happy purging!
OpFina d, ken en i nlgWee Nex t Week get your tickets while they last!! DATE:
February 19-21 & 24-27
CURTAIN:
Wed / Thur - 7 PM Fri / Sat - 8 PM Sun - 2:30 PM
by Paula Vogel
TICKETS:
Adults - $12 Faculty / Staff / Alumni - $10 Students - $6
Limited seating for this performance! tutheater@trinity.edu or 999-8515
Directed by Rachel Joseph
Want to see the show for FREE? Contact azuckman@trinity.edu to learn how!
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WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM • FEBRUARY 26, 2016 •
SPORTS
ATHLETE INSPIRATION
ports
“Hello. It’s Llama.”
Adellama
Trinity Tennis enters spring season with high hopes
Trinity men’s, women’s tennis teams begin their seasons with a winning streak BY DANA MCLAUGHLIN
SPORTS REPORTER Both the Trinity University women’s and men’s tennis teams have kicked off their spring seasons with a series of competitive matches against nationally ranked teams. Last weekend, the men’s team traveled to Pepper Pike, Ohio to compete in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Division III National Men’s Team Indoor Championship. Seeded fifth heading into the tournament, the Tigers defeated topranked Washington University 7-2 on Saturday in the consolation round. In the afternoon, the Tigers were also victorious over the No. 2 ranked PomonaPitzer Colleges from California, winning the match 6-3. The Tigers finished in fifth place overall for the weekend tournament following key victories by senior Paxton Deuel in the No.1 singles match and junior Chas Mayer in the No. 5 singles contest. “This past weekend we had good competition that hit the ball well, and I think moving forward we have to continue to realize that we just have to play our game and not go out there and try to do anything special,” Mayer said. On the doubles side, the No. 3 pair of senior Eliot Guin and first year Wilson Lambeth notched the Tigers’ sole doubles victory against Pomona-Pitzer. The No. 1 doubles pair, senior Adam Krull and sophomore Matt Tyer, in addition to the No. 2 team of Deuel and junior Clayton Niess were narrowly edged by the Pomona Pitzer Sagehens, 9-7 and 8-6. Guin reported his confidence as the team returns from the indoor nationals and looks ahead to the next weekend of competitive tennis. “Although we suffered a close loss to UChicago, we still took out the (top two) seeds of the tournament, Wash U [ranked 3rd nationally] and Pomona [ranked 4th nationally],” Guin said. Lambeth continues to contribute to the team’s early success, especially on the doubles side. “The [first years] have all stepped up, and I think that we have a very deep team this year that can compete with just about anyone,” Mayer said.
defeats allowed Tyler JC to walk away with a 6-1 overall victory on Saturday morning. However, in the afternoon, the Tigers rebounded to defeat SCAC conference opponent, TLU, in a resounding 8-1 victory. Roe attributed this afternoon surge against TLU to the team’s collective positive mindset. “As a senior, it has been so interesting to see the dynamic change from my first year to my last year playing college tennis, but one thing is for sure... Every player always brings their heart and sense of sisterhood out on the court with them,” Roe said. Roe, the SCAC Player of the Week, highlighted the importance of new athletes on the team. “The freshmen are contributing a great deal... And the greatest thing they bring to the table is their love for the game and their positivity day in and day out,” Roe said. Southwick echoed Roe’s testament of the positive team culture and role of the first year players De Leon, Hannah Cook, Caroline Kutach, Liz Sanchez and Erin Tsai this spring. “The freshmen are awesome. They bring so much talent, laughter, and an amazing work ethic to the team that inspires and drives each one of us,” Roe said. Southwick went on to describe how the photos by Jordan Leeper team’s energy is focused on a collective goal of advancing far into the NCAA’s this First year Caroline Kutach an (top), senior Paxton Deuel (bottom left) and sophomore Kevin Lee (bottom right). spring. “I want us to each contribute however we Mayer and Guin both noted that their No. 35 Linfield College (OR) but fell short can to make us the most successful we can personal goals for the spring season tie to Redlands and Lewis and Clark College be. Whatever is most important for the team directly into the team’s goal of competing (OR). for the top honor - a national championship. “I’m really confident in what our team is most important for me and I am trying to Guin cited the team’s vibrant dynamic as a can accomplish this spring. I think we are live that out day to day,” Southwick said. The Tigers were led by three back to back key ingredient to maintain their success. as good as we have been in a few years and wins in the doubles matches. Kutach and “We are a very close-knit group of guys we proved that by beating Whitman and Lutz clinched the No. 1 match, Roe and on and off the court … Those relationships having some other really close matches,” Southwick secured the No. 2 doubles and translate to a feeling of brotherhood,” Guin said junior Liza Southwick. said. The Tigers returned home to host Duncan and Porter rounded out another Still early in the season, the men’s team Tyler Junior College and Texas Lutheran victory at the No. 3 spot. The Tigers went on to win every singles and doubles match currently sits at an eighth place national University last Saturday. ranking with an overall record of 5-4 against The Tigers defeated Tyler JC with decisive except for the No. 1 singles contest between all competition. The Tigers will return home wins in the No. 2 doubles match where the Lutz and TLU’s 11th nationally ranked to face Division II opponent St. Mary’s pair of sophomore Marie Lutz and first year powerhouse, junior Sofia Vega. Kutach, Roe, De Leon, Erin Tsai and University (TX) at 10 a.m., and Laredo Caroline Kutach won 8-4. Additionally, the Community College (TX), of the National No. 3 doubles team of sophomore Blaire Duncan all won their individual remaining Junior College Athletic Association, at 4 Porter and Cheyenne Duncan narrowly lost singles matches. The women’s team will remain at home p.m. a close fought match, coming short of Tyler this coming weekend as they take on St. Similarly, the Trinity women’s tennis team Junior College with a final score of 9-7. jumped straight into competitive play over Tyler Junior College also secured the Edward’s University out of at 2 p.m. In preparation for the weekend, Roe the past two weeks. First, the Tigers travelled top three spots on the singles side of added that she plans to focus her attention to Walla Walla, Washington to battle four competition with Kutach playing the No. teams from the West Coast on Feb. 13 and 1 singles match, senior Gabrielle Roe in the on being more aggressive at the net. “St. Eds is definitely a formidable 14. Coming away from the weekend 2-2, No. 2 lineup and first year Andrea De Leon the Tigers handled No. 22 Whitman and battling in the No. 3 matchup. These narrow opponent; it will be a tough and fun match.”
Athlete Spotlight
Senior, Left Field Trinity Men’s Baseball Hometown: Scottsdale, AZ What is your favorite Trinity baseball memory?
Getting to the World Series last year and being so close to winning the national championship.
What is your favorite Pokemon?
Jere
f l o W my photo by Aynav Leibowitz
Articuno because he reminds me a lot of myself with its ability to fly and use blizzard on 110 power.
What is your favorite saying?
“You better cut the pizza in four pieces because I’m not hungry enough to eat six.” I like to be efficient.
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Future Tiger student-athletes invited to sign Trinity Tigers’ participate in National Signing Day for Division III athletics BY SHREE DESHPANDE
SPORTS REPORTER National Signing Day 2016 came and went on Feb. 3, 2016, but for the Tigers it is only a day in the process of bringing new players on-board. Any football fan knows that the season never really ends. The offseason is a time for us to obsessively pore over our team’s roster, compulsively check Twitter multiple times a day and react to
any and all information we get. Because we need football. For the coaches and players of the Trinity Tigers football team, the offseason is a time of preparation and renewal. The team is hard at work implementing new schemes and concepts, all the while welcoming new athletes to the team. The Tigers compete in Division III, which has a different protocol for signing new players than Divisions I and II have. Unlike their Division I counterparts, Division III student-athletes go through the same application process as nonstudent athletes. “Division I and II have scholarships tied to offers. If a young man wants to go to the University of Texas [at Austin], he signs a national letter of intent. He has a full athletic scholarship [that covers tuition and room and board].
For us, it’s a little bit different. We have a process where our athletes are held to the same standard as nonstudent athletes. [They undergo the] same application process,” said head football coach Jerheme Urban. This year for National Signing Day, Division I juggernaut University of Michigan enlisted Lou Holtz and Migos to welcome the Class of 2020. ESPN claimed to have expanded its coverage of National Signing Day 2016 to the most in history by having ESPNU crews visit fifteen schools, having a four-hour special on ESPN2 and even more coverage online. Trinity’s recruiting and signing process is much more low-key. About half of this year’s recruiting class still has to hear back from the school and determine whether or
photo by Miguel Webber
not Trinity is the best school for them. “Half of the class is still out trying to wrap up. A lot of guys have said they plan on coming, they just need to make sure the finances work for them, just like the majority of nonstudent athletes. They get their package in mid-March.” Urban said. This is because student athletes applying to Trinity and Division III schools are not eligible for athleticsbased scholarships. Instead, they are only eligible for the same merit- and need-based awards as their peers. “[Athletes] will receive a merit award if their academics qualify them for a certain amount, [depending on] where [they fall] on the Trinity merit award grid,” Urban said. “There’s not a lot of preferential treatment given for Division III … A lot of young men have already found out, but they are like every student on campus waiting for the school to send out that information.” Urban, class of 2003 and nine-year veteran of the NFL, still remembers how he and his family reached the decision for him to attend Trinity. The process may have been different, but the factors that influenced his family’s decision haven’t changed. “In the late ‘90s, Division III was very different from the way signing day happened. I was part of the back half of players. I didn’t decide to come to Trinity until late-March or early April. For me and my family, we had to make sure the financial aid side was [going to] work out,” Urban said.
When deciding to scout players and have them on the team, the coaching staff looks for a particular set of criteria. “We still look at our players, [and] the ones we get excited about are the ones who have no doubt they want to be here. [Players that are taking a] chance to change their personal path and develop a personal path or legacy as part of a family. [The athlete could be the] family’s first to get a degree. Trinity represents academic excellence,” Urban said. You can follow Coach Urban on Twitter (@JerhemeUrban83) for 140-character shoutouts for players that have committed so far. These shoutouts are both personal and well-crafted so the players know when they are being tweeted about, without explicitly naming them. The NCAA has rules about this. “You can’t mention players specifically and can’t follow them once they put in their deposit,” Urban said. All the while, Coach Urban and his staff are working hard to continue their winning ways. The Tigers finished 8-2 this past season, an improvement over 4-6 in 2014. “We are in the middle of spring non-traditional season. (It’s the) third week of spring practices. Guys are working hard. Both sides of the ball, coaching staffwise, are putting new things and mentally challenging guys. There are returners on offense, experience on defense. The next step would be to win the conference championship,” Urban said. The Tigers should know who is coming to San Antonio by late March or early April.
Trinity baseball improve overall record to 6-2 Tigers undefeated in last four games of the season BY SARAH PRICE
SPORTS REPORTER This weekend’s wins boost Trinity baseball’s record to 6-2 as they continue their season. The Tigers opened up Friday night by defeating the Comets 7-4. They started things off in the fifth inning with Austin Singer’s two run double and Connor Moore’s RBI Triple, followed by a two-run homer by Drew Butler in the sixth inning. UT-Dallas responded by scoring four runs in the seventh inning, but the Tigers held them and topped it off with another RBI by Singer to finish the game. Ryan Gray pitched the first six innings, allowing only three earned runs and putting up six strikeouts. Finishing out the game was junior Christ Tate allowing just two hits and striking out five players. “Going into the weekend we knew that UT-Dallas would be a very tough match up. Playing at
home is always a bonus. Nothing fires you up more than listening to your favorite music as you walk up to the plate (shoutout to Bieber),” Singer said. Saturday they played a doubleheader starting off with a close game, winning 8-7 over the Comets. The game started out one and one after the first inning, then the Comets went up 6-2 after the third inning, but the Tigers answered with a three-run homer from George Haaland. Going into the final inning being down 6-7 with two quick outs by the Comets, the Tigers had to make a play. Jeremy Wolf stepped up to the plate hitting his first homer of the season, tying up the game and rallying up the team. “I just wanted to hit the ball hard to keep the game going. I’m lucky enough to hit in front of the best hitter in the SCAC, so I felt as though if I got on base we had a chance to win the game.” Following the suspenseful play was Drew Butler and Carter McEachern with singles. Then Nick Jewett came up to bat, hitting a single right down the third base line, giving Butler the chance to score the final run.
Andrew Hoffman received the win for the game, allowing zero hits within the last couple innings. Throughout the game Jewett had two hits, Colin Serkowski had two runs and Wolf finished the game going 4-4 leading the team in hits and RBI’s (3). With all the momentum on their side, the Tigers continued their winning streak by defeating the Comets 11-4. The game opened up with Trinity going up 2-0 after the first two innings then going down 3-2 after the fifth. The Tigers answered by scoring nine runs within the next two innings. Andrew Waters led the team with a two-run pinch hit in the sixth, followed by a two-run homer in the seventh. He finished the game leading the offense and going 2-2 with four RBIs. Jewett also had a two-run hit in the seventh, and scored two runs. Other contributors included McEachern with two runs scored, Singer and Parker Cormack scoring twice,and Serkowski adding two hits in the game. Mike Walker picked up the win for the game, pitching in seven
innings and allowing only three runs total on six hits, with two strikeouts. Austin Singer speaks on the team’s ability to win these three consecutive games. “We had a collective hitting approach, always pass it on to the next guy. With crucial timely hits we were able to maintain the high energy in the dugout and on the field and come out with three wins to end the weekend,” Singer said. Winning a single game is one thing, but winning three games in a row takes a lot of focus and persistence as a team effort. The Tigers are going into this weekend with lots of confidence as they face their first SCAC competition. “It will be a fun and competitive weekend, and if our offense continues to swing it like we are and if our pitching can throw strikes and attack hitters then we should undoubtedly come out of the weekend with a sweep.” Butler said. The Tigers continue their season at home with another three-game header against Austin College starting this evening at 7 p.m.
photo by Noah Davidson
SPORTS • FEBRUARY 26, 2016
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Junior and KRTU 91.7 FM promotions and outreach manager Benji Gomez playing jams on Trinity’s live indie and jazz radio station.
Graduate Programs Information Session Monday, March 7 5:45 p.m. Business Building Room 4.01.18 UTSA Main Campus • MBA—nationally ranked with flexible scheduling • Master of Accountancy—specialties in taxation, financial reporting and data analytics • MS in Business—one year program for non-business majors launches May 2016 • MS in Data Analytics—transform data into competitive advantage, 12 month program launches Fall 2016 • MS in Information Technology—ranked the No. 1 cyber security program in the nation
RSVP to gradbiz@utsa.edu
photo by Claudia Garcia
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