A KICK IN THE TEETH
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Congress passes bill to end government shutdown By William Douglas, lesley clark anD Justine mcDaniel
Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., on an 81-18 vote McClatchy Washington Bureau Wednesday night. Twenty-seven WASHINGTON — The nation Republicans joined Democrats in stepped back from the brink of backing the bill. About two hours default Wednesday as Congress later, the measure moved to the approved a bill to reopen the federal House of Representatives, where it government and raise the debt ceil- was approved 285-144. Eighty-seven ing. Republicans joined 198 Democrats President Barack Obama signed in voting yes. All 144 no votes were the bill early Thursday. The White Republicans. House told federal employees to “We fought the good fight. We just expect to return to work Thursday didn’t win,” House Speaker John morning. Boehner, R-Ohio, said hours before The Senate approved the pro- the vote. posal crafted by Senate Majority The partisan bickering and acri-
mony that enveloped the House during the 16-day shutdown was largely replaced by softer tones and talk of bipartisanship prior to Wednesday’s vote, perhaps to soothe and reassure the markets. Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., former chair of the House Financial Services Committee, asked colleagues, “For one night let us talk about what is good for this country and not about the other party” before he voted for the measure. “I’m pleased that cooler heads have finally prevailed,” said Rep. Charlie Dent, R-Pa. “This legislation must be supported but it should not
be celebrated. No high-fives or spiking the football. ... It’s not a win for anyone, particularly the institution of Congress or the president, for that matter.” President Barack Obama, who spoke after the Senate vote, thanked Democrats and Republicans for their work and said he would sign the measure “immediately,” to reopen the government and “begin to lift this cloud of uncertainty and unease from our businesses and from the American people.” Obama’s remarks came before the House vote. He said he would have more to say Thursday, declar-
Data sharing is caring
ing, “There’s a lot of work ahead of us, including our need to earn back the trust of the American people that’s been lost over the last few weeks.” Obama suggested his focus will return to a stalled immigration overhaul, passing a farm bill and the federal budget. “We could get all these things done even this year, if everybody comes together in a spirit of, how are we going to move this country forward and put the last three weeks behind us?” he said. see
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UM hockey set for home opener
Michigan St. comes to Mullins for pair By cameron mcDonough Collegian Staff
NICOLE EVANGELISTA/COLLEGIAN
From Oct. 21-25, the library will be hosting Open Access Week, which will include lectures focusing on copyright, fair use and data sharing.
Fracking may be threat to local communities Geologist spoke on effects on area B y D aviD B arnstone Collegian Staff
Sixty-eight percent of the electricity generated in Massachusetts in 2011 came from natural gas, yet none of that gas was produced here. The natural gas used to keep the lights on and power mobile devices is piped in from other parts of the country and Canada. In 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) released a report that suggested there may be some untapped natural gas resources underneath the Pioneer Valley. The finding has communities throughout the valley concerned that the controversial technology used to dig up the gas – called hydraulic fracturing – could find its way here. Rich natural gas reserves in parts of Pennsylvania and New York, for example, have made those regions popu-
lar targets for drilling and extracting gas from the Earth. “That’s a part of the world that looks a little like here on the surface but underground is not a lot like here,” said Peter Vickery, an Amherstbased attorney who spoke Wednesday at a public lecture called “Fracking in Western Mass.? What are the facts?” at the Sunderland Public Library. The event was a joint effort of the library and the Sunderland Energy Committee. So what does the underlying geology of the Pioneer Valley look like? Steven Petsch, associate professor of geosciences at the University of Massachusetts, who also spoke at the Sunderland event, said that although the report identified a region surrounding the Connecticut River from Deerfield to the Connecticut shoreline as having “geologically reasonable possibilities” of natural gas, the region was not actually explored.
“There has not been any assessment of Western Massachusetts as a potential natural gas resource and given our regional, geologic setting, this assessment is highly unlikely to ever occur,” Petsch said. He added, “We are by no means the largest, most extensive, or most important of these basins to consider.” The basins he refers to formed more than 200 million years ago when the supercontinent of Pangaea, which included present-day Africa and North America, began to break apart. Over geologic time, these basins filled with layers of sedimentary rocks called shale. Petsch said that few shales contain the remains of organisms, but the ones that do can generate fossil fuels as that organic matter breaks down. Until very recently, energy companies were not interested in these shale rocks because they didn’t see
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Both of the Massachusetts hockey team’s opening weekend losses followed a similar script: UMass outplayed its opponent early on, but couldn’t cash in on its opportunities. Then, its opponents took advantage on their chances, building up multi-goal leads before the Minutemen could get on the board in the third period. At that point, it was too little, too late. So before Michigan State (0-0) comes to the Mullins Center for a home-opening series this Friday and Saturday night, UMass (0-2) is looking for a fix. “We just need to bury down our opportunities,” UMass forward Troy Power said. “It’s something we’ve been stressing this week in practice, and I think the opportunities were there in the first, second and third
period.” “I think it was good for us to get a couple of power play goals, but that’s something that we need in addition to our 5-on-5 scoring,” Power added. “And that’s something that we lacked last weekend. I think it was big part of why we didn’t come away with two wins.” Despite the offensive struggles, one of the bright spots for the Minutemen was the play of the second line. Freshmen Steven Iacobellis and Ray Pigozzi, along with Power, were on the ice for two of UMass’ three goals against Boston University and UMass Lowell over the weekend. Iacobellis provided the only offensive spark against the Terriers with his power play goal in the third period. Power, who was returning after an injury ended his 2012-13 season early, then see
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Nearly Naked Mile run to raise money for students Event is reminder “There are a number of homeless people in of homelessness the area that don’t have appropriate clothing. By Jaclyn Bryson Collegian Staff
With the threat of winter weather quickly approaching, students will have one last opportunity to wear their shorts and T-shirts with pride during the upcoming, annual Nearly Naked Mile run. According to the University of Massachusetts Alumni Association’s website, pre-run activities, including music and body painting, will begin at 3:30 p.m. this Friday, followed by the mile run, which will kick off at 5 p.m. The starting line will be located at the Northeast quad, and the race will end at the Southwest concourse. Participants will complete the run nearly naked – as the name of the event suggests – in clothing such as undergarments, bathing suits, boxers, tank tops and shorts in order to embody what the 16,000 homeless people in
So this is is a way for (participants) to see what it’s like to have those conditions.” Erin McDowell, assistant director for student and young alumni program at UMass
Massachusetts will be going through when colder weather hits this year, according to the UMass events page. “There are a number of homeless people in the area that don’t have appropriate clothing,” said Erin McDowell, assistant director for student and young alumni program at UMass. “So this is a way for (participants) to see what it’s like to have those conditions.” Participants are also encouraged to donate two articles of clothing, which will benefit the Amherst Survival Center, a local organization that provides struggling families with food, clothing, health care and support from fellow community members. “It’s appealing to stu-
dents because it has that fun element, while also helping the local community,” McDowell said of the event. Registration can be completed in advance online for $12 or interested participants can pay $15 the day of the event. According to the events page, this is also an opportunity to support the university, since $10 from every ticket will go toward UMass student scholarships. Particularly enthusiastic participants will have a chance to win awards for best costume, best group and most school spirit. According to McDowell, she hopes the event will simply create a “fun, festive, environment.” Jaclyn Bryson can be reached at jbryson@umass.edu.
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Thursday, October 17, 2013
THE RU N D OW N ON THIS DAY... In 1991, Daily Collegian Managing Editor Malea Ritz was born in Weymouth, Mass.
AROUND THE WORLD
Inspectors visit weapons sites in Syria BEIRUT — Inspectors have visited almost half of Syria’s declared chemical weapons sites as part of an ambitious plan to destroy the nation’s lethal stockpiles, an international watchdog agency said Wednesday. A team of experts in Syria has now “concluded verification activities” at 11 sites, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said in a statement. All “were well within government-held territory,” said Michael Luhan, a spokesman for the Haguebased agency overseeing the undertaking. Inspectors were unable to visit one other site because of security issues, Luhan said. “We weren’t able to get sufficient guarantees to send our team in,” Luhan said in a telephone interview. “The battle lines shift quite frequently. ... It’s a fluid situation.” -Los Angeles Times
17 dead as typhoon batters eastern Japan TOKYO — At least 17 people died and 46 were missing in eastern Japan as a powerful typhoon bringing torrential rains and strong winds lashed the region Wednesday, authorities said. Sixteen residents died and 42 people remained unaccounted for after dozens of homes were destroyed by mudslides on Izu Oshima island, about 75 miles south of Tokyo, the National Police Agency said. Record rainfall of nearly 5 inches per hour was registered on Izu Oshima earlier in the day and the rainfall over the past 24 hours until Wednesday morning had exceeded 31 inches, more than double the average for October on the island, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. -dpa
Greece cracks down on neofascists LONDON — The Greek parliament voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to strip six lawmakers from the Golden Dawn party of their immunity from prosecution as authorities continued cracking down on the neo-fascist group, which has been blamed for a spate of violent attacks on immigrants. The Greek government has turned up its pressure on Golden Dawn since the fatal stabbing last month of an anti-racist rapper allegedly by a suspect with ties to the group. The party’s leader and other senior members have been arrested, and the Greek press has been filled with stories of Golden Dawn’s thuggish tactics, its newly unearthed caches of weapons, and its infiltration of police ranks. -Los Angeles Times -Distributed by MCT Information Services
FRACKING
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have the technology to extract the gas from them. Now with the invention of “fracking,” a process that involves drilling a horizontal well into layers of shale and blasting it with millions of gallons of water and chemicals, they are able to release the natural gas that has “dissolved into the solids of the rock,” Petsch said. The problem with our region is twofold. First, shale makes up a very small portion of the bedrock geology in the Pioneer Valley. And only some of those shales are thought to contain organic matter. Petsch said the collective thickness of organic and inorganic shales is less than 50 feet and each individual layer may be less than a foot thick. Thin beds of shale are a major disadvantage for drillers because they can’t actually see their drill bit underground. So a thin shale bed gives them a smaller margin of error. The other problem is that most of the gas in these rocks has already been released. As you dive down further toward the core of the Earth, temperature and pressure increase. Petsch said that beyond about 200 degrees Celsius, the rock is “unlikely to contain any natural gas.” He said one study has found that the shale in our region is thermally mature and therefore not a viable target for gas extraction. “So if you wanted to become an investor in the gas industry in Western Massachusetts, you’re about 180 million years too late,” Petsch said. “Just because fracking will not happen in our backyard doesn’t mean we should forget about it,” wrote Aaron Falbel, a member of the Sunderland Energy Committee who facilitated Wednesday’s lecture, in a letter to The Recorder. “It is happening in someone’s backyard, we are benefitting from it, and that ought to concern us.” Falbel’s letter was a response to an editorial published in The Recorder earlier this month suggesting that an outright ban on fracking “may be premature,” and that the state should collect more information before coming to a deci-
“So if you wanted to become an investor in the gas industry in Western Massachusetts, you’re about 180 millions years too late.” Steven Petsch, associate professor of geosciences at UMass sion. Despite the unlikelihood of fracking in Western Mass., community members are taking a proactive role against it in light of environmental and health issues that have been reported where fracking does take place. In July, a group of six college students came to Amherst by bicycle with the organization Climate Summer to raise awareness of these issues. “For a lot of people, the only thing they hear about fracking and natural gas is what the gas companies put out there,” Caroline WhiteNockleby, a student at Williams College, told the Amherst Bulletin. “For the first time, I think people are hearing another viewpoint.” Vickery explained that each state is responsible for regulating the creation and maintenance of wells needed for fracking. In 1982, Massachusetts banned those particular wells, but that was before widespread fracking for natural gas had been developed. If an energy company becomes interested in exploring the limited gas reserves in the state, the regulation could be challenged. In a blog post last September, Vickery wrote that unlike Pennsylvania and New York, where drilling and extraction has already occurred, Massachusetts currently has the advantage of being a hypothetical target. “That means towns like Amherst have time to design bylaw amendments that will both safeguard clean air and water and stand up in court,” he wrote. David Barnstone can be reached at dbarnsto@ umass.edu.
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Obama thanked congressional leaders for reaching a resolution, but he added, “Hopefully next time it won’t be in the eleventh hour. One of the things that I said throughout this process is, we’ve got to get out of the habit of governing by crisis.” He took no questions but turned and said “No” when a reporter asked whether the deal meant he and Congress would be back in the same place in three months. The expected approval by Congress would reopen the shuttered parts of the government after 16 days and end for now the stalemate that started when House Republicans refused to approve funding for the government past Oct. 1 unless the Senate and Obama agreed to defund the new Affordable Care Act, dubbed Obamacare. It also would temporarily extend the government debt ceiling. The government was expected to run out of borrowing authority Thursday evening, raising the specter of default. “The eyes of the world have been in Washington all week,” Reid said on the Senate floor. “And while they witnessed a great deal of political discord, today they’ll see Congress reaching historic bipartisan agreement to reopen government and avoid default on the nation’s bills.” The compromise appeared to be a victory for Democrats, as the health care law was left relatively unscathed. Under the deal, the government would be funded through Jan. 15 and the $16.7 trillion debt ceiling would be increased until Feb. 7. A bipartisan House-Senate conference committee - co-chaired by Senate Budget Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis. - would work on larger budget issues. The committee will have until Dec. 13 to complete its work and report to Congress. McConnell said Republicans managed to preserve tenants of the 2011 Budget Control Act, which includes the mandatory domestic
and defense cuts known as sequestration. “That’s been a top priority for me and for my colleagues on the Republican side of the aisle throughout this debate,” he said. “And it’s been worth the effort.” Still, McConnell acknowledged that Republicans came up short. “This is far less than many of us had hoped for, frankly,” McConnell said. “But it’s far better than what some had sought. Now it’s time for Republicans to unite behind other crucial goals.” Boehner also talked about preserving the Budget Control Act in announcing that he would not stand in the way of a House vote on the Senate plan. “Blocking the bipartisan agreement reached today by members of the Senate will not be a tactic for us,” Boehner said. “In addition to the risk of default, doing so would open the door for the Democratic majority in Washington to raise taxes again on the American people and undo the spending caps in the 2011 Budget Control Act without replacing them with better spending cuts.” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who was at the forefront of the plan to tie government funding to a demand to defund Obamacare, signaled that he would not block a vote on the Reid-McConnell compromise. “I have no objections of the timing of this vote, and the reason is simple,” Cruz said when asked whether he would filibuster the plan. “There’s nothing to be gained from delaying this vote one day or two days, the outcome will be the same.” That said, Cruz blasted the deal, calling it a victory for the Washington establishment. While passage of the compromise appeared certain in the Senate, its prospects in the House were less clear Wednesday afternoon. Tea party and outside conservative groups warned Republican lawmakers that they would pay a price if they voted for the deal.
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Thursday, October 17, 2013
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First woman to run in Boston Scientific research on Marathon to speak at MHC hold since shutdown By Maclane Walsh Collegian Correspondent Any long distance runner knows there will be physical challenges that they will face while running. But Kathrine Switzer had to overcome gender discrimination, too. She was the first woman ever to run in the Boston Marathon in 1967, shaking off a physical attack from the race’s director in the process. And on Thursday, she’ll be taking the stage at Mount Holyoke College to give a speech about resilience. Her speech, which is free and open to the public, will be held at 7 p.m. in the Gamble Auditorium of the Art Building at Mount Holyoke College. Switzer, who gained national and international acclaim for being the first woman to complete the Boston Marathon, didn’t cross the finish line without a few hurdles. In 1967, the Boston Marathon was a men’s only event, so Switzer signed up as “K.V. Switzer,” fooling race officials about her gender. On race day, Switzer laced up her shoes and ran among her male competitors, who, as Switzer recalls in an interview with Makers.com, were excited and showed their support. Soon, a press truck rolled up filled with photographers, all of whom wanted to get a shot of this brave woman. Suddenly, out of a city bus jumped the race director, Jock Semple, who ran at Switzer, clawing for her number. “Get the hell out of my race and give me those numbers!” yelled Semple, according
to Switzer in her memoir “Marathon Woman.” With the help of a block from her boyfriend, Tom Miller, she sent Semple tumbling. Switzer finished the race with blister laden feet and a completed marathon time of four hours and 20 minutes. Since then, Switzer has been a leading voice for female runners everywhere. In 1972, five years after her historic run, women were finally allowed to participate in the Boston Marathon. Later that year, Switzer helped create one of the first women’s road races. She helped found and formerly directed the Avon International Running circuit of women’s only races, which hosted around 400 events in 27 different countries with around 1,000,000 participants. The popularity of these events coupled with Switzer’s determined lobbying was a major factor in convincing the International Olympic Committee to include a women’s marathon in the 1984 Olympics for the first time. Switzer has also gone on to become a television commentator. She has covered the Olympics, world and national championships, the New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Pittsburgh marathons and has done commentary for each of the 36 Boston Marathons that have aired on television. In 1997, Switzer won her first of several Emmy Awards for her commentary of the Los Angeles Marathon. As a writer, Switzer has authored two books independently: “Marathon Woman,”
an award-winning memoir, and “Running and Walking for Women Over 40.” She has also co-authored a book with her husband, Roger Robinson, called “26.2 Marathon Stories.” Besides the infamous Boston Marathon, Switzer’s career as a runner boasts some impressive finishes. She has 39 marathons under her belt, including one victory. In 1974, she won the women’s portion of the New York City Marathon – coming in 52nd overall – with a time of three hours, seven minutes and 29 seconds. In 1975, her finish time of two hours and 51 minutes in the Boston Marathon ranked sixth in the world and third in the USA in the women’s marathon. At 66 years old, she still runs, her latest marathon being the 2011 Berlin Marathon. Switzer has received numerous awards for her work with women and in sports. She has received the Billie Jean King Award, been named “Runner of the Decade” by Runner’s World magazine and was awarded the Abebe Bikila Award, to name a few. In 2011, she was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame. The event at Mount Holyoke College is part of the Weissman Center for Leadership’s “Power of Resilience” series. After the event, Switzer will be holding a book signing and answering questions. “She’s very forthcoming and very laid back,” said Emily Weir, Mount Holyoke’s media relations specialist. Maclane Walsh can be reached at maclanewalsh@umass.edu.
By Renee schoof McClatchy Washington Bureau WASHINGTON — A scientist who arrived in Antarctica only to have his research stopped because of the government shutdown blogged that idled scientists have been made “hostages ... at the hands of our own government, here at the end of the earth.” Whether or not the House and Senate reach a deal to end the 2-week-old government shutdown, the closing already has hammered scientific endeavors, not just on the southernmost continent, but across the U.S. as well. Most of NASA is furloughed. Nobel laureates working in federal research have had to stay home. Department of Energy labs, operated by contractors, have remained open. But if a deal is not struck and the shutdown continues, they’re expected to run out of funds soon. More than 50,000 scientists would be unable to use facilities they depend on. Yet some scientific work, particularly in the Antarctic, could be scratched because so much money has been wasted once everything was put on hold. On Oct. 8, the same day that a group of scientists arrived on a research vessel at Palmer Station, one of three permanent U.S. research centers in Antarctica, the National Science Foundation said that it was putting the three centers on caretaker status because it was running out of funding. “Although we are proceeding now under the assumption that we will be returning home, a cir-
cumstance that everyone is very disappointed by, we are certainly prepared and in a position to resume our experiments and sampling as soon as an agreement is reached,” James R. Collins, who blogged about being a “hostage,” said in a phone interview on Wednesday. He described the situation of waiting on an icebreaker for Washington to act as “a very frustrating and bewildering holding pattern.” Officials at the National Science Foundation had been furloughed because of the shutdown and could not be reached for comment. In an earlier statement, the foundation said that it would try to keep the research program going when funds start flowing again. Collins, a graduate student in a joint program with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, went to the Antarctic to work on his Ph.D. research on how algae use chemical compounds to communicate the presence of ultraviolet radiation to each other. He’s also working on a long-term ecological study at Palmer and 25 other spots around the globe to assess the impacts of climate change. The University of Washington’s Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and Ocean doesn’t have research staff in the Antarctic now, but the shutdown has put some of its work in the Arctic on hold, said Thomas Ackerman, director of the joint institute and a professor of atmospheric sciences.
“A group of our research scientists is already supposed to be in the Alaskan Arctic Ocean area making observations using a (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) airplane,” he said in an email. “That plane is grounded due to the shutdown. Alaska has been experiencing warm weather so we are still hoping to get the flights in if the government shutdown ends this week.” In addition, buoys that contain scientific equipment are deployed in the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska every summer and are supposed to be retrieved before bad weather sets in, Ackerman said. But if the NOAA ship slated to do so is still in port, it’s not clear if the ship will be able to go out after the shutdown. “If the buoys are not picked up they will most likely be lost in the bad winter weather, along with onboard instruments and data,” Ackerman said. The American Physical Society, a nonprofit group of physicists, warned on Tuesday that the “U.S. scientific enterprise is on the brink of catastrophe,” citing the threat of the Antarctic science program’s cancellation and the prospect of the Department of Energy closing its 17 laboratories. “This is not a simple thing,” said Michael Lubell, a society spokesman and physicist who used to work at the Energy Department labs. “It’s not like putting a padlock on the door. You’re dealing with very expensive scientific equipment that if not handled properly can be destroyed.”
Opinion Editorial THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
“A witty saying proves nothing.”- Voltaire
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Land of the not-so-free Pop quiz: Which country holds the greatest number of people in prison?
Mike Tudoreanu You might be tempted to say China, because it has a large total population and an authoritarian state that cracks down on dissent. However, China only has the second highest prison population in the world. What about Russia, then? That’s another large country, and it’s a liberal democracy only in theory. Well, Russia is only at No. 3 on the list. The country with the largest number of people in prison – by far – is none other than the United States of America. The U.S. also holds the record for the highest percentage of prisoners out of the total population. So no matter how you measure it, the “land of the free” actually locks up more people than any other country on the planet. To be precise, the U.S. has 2,239,751 prisoners or 716 out of every 100,000 people. That means one out of every 140 Americans is in prison. By comparison, China has 1,640,000 prisoners, while Russia has 681,600. Let that sink in for a moment. The U.S. imprisons a greater percentage of its population than any other country. This means that, statistically speaking, you have a greater chance of being arrested in America than anywhere else – including every oppressive dictatorship you can think of. For example, Iran only imprisons 0.284 percent of its population (less than half the U.S. rate), and Saudi Arabia imprisons 0.162 percent. It has not always been this way. Up until 1970, the number of inmates in U.S. prisons was under 350,000 – less than one-sixth of what it is today - and it was only growing at about the same rate as the total population. The percentage of Americans in prison hovered between 0.1 and 0.2 percent, putting the U.S. in the same league as most other countries. Then, under presidents Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter and especially Ronald Reagan, the incarceration rate and the number of inmates began an astounding exponential growth that continues to this day. Since 1970, the odds of getting locked up have more than quadrupled, and the prison population has grown by almost 700 percent.
So what is going on here? What could be causing such an unprecedented rush to put people behind bars in a country that likes to think of itself as the freest in the world? For one thing, the laws have become much stricter and the sentences have grown longer. The “War on Drugs” began in the 1970s, and then mandatory minimum sentencing laws were passed in the 1980s, forcing judges to hand out long, harsh sentences for a wide variety of non-violent crimes. None of this really helped to reduce drug use, but it has been very successful at putting people in prison – around half of prisoners are locked up for drug-related offenses – and critics argue that this was its hidden purpose all
of the story. Even the white majority in the U.S. still gets imprisoned more often than people anywhere else in the world. It turns out that there is a third factor driving America’s incarceration binge: the spread of private, for-profit prisons. Since the 1980s, normal state and federal facilities haven’t kept up with the skyrocketing number of prisoners. So private corporations – the largest of which is called the “Corrections Corporation of America” – offered to help. And by help, I mean milk the system dry of taxpayer cash while giving the states an incentive to lock up more people. States agreed to privatize prisons and let these corporations run them as they see fit, claiming it was cheaper than having state-run prisons, though it quickly became more expensive in some cases as fees increased. In exchange for this “public service,” prison corporations demanded occupancy quotas. They wanted the states to guarantee that a certain percentage of the cells in their prisons would always be full. Outrageously, the states agreed. Almost two-thirds of private prison contracts include occupancy quotas, and these quotas range from 90 percent to a ridiculous 100 percent. Many contracts also impose a penalty to be paid in case any prison beds remain unfilled (the so-called “low-crime tax”). So not only are corporations literally profiting from throwing people behind bars, but they also get to fine the government when it fails to deliver sufficient numbers of prisoners into their maw. As if that wasn’t enough of an incentive to lock up people, prison corporations are also actively campaigning for tougher sentencing laws, to ensure an even bigger supply of prisoners. So that is where we stand today. The “land of the free” locks up more people than any other country in the world, half of them for non-violent crimes, with minorities being especially targeted for arrest, all in the service of the bottom line of private prison corporations. And most of us don’t even realize that it’s happening.
“So no matter how you measure it, the ‘land of the free’ actually locks up more people than any other country on the planet.”
along. The picture becomes clearer when we consider the breakdown of prisoners by race. Hispanic and black males are incarcerated at ridiculously disproportionate levels. One in 36 Hispanic males and one in 15 black males over the age of 18 are in prison. AfricanAmericans make up 14 percent of drug users, but they account for 37 percent of drug arrests and a whopping 56 percent of people actually convicted for drugrelated offenses. African Americans in the U.S. are more likely to be arrested and imprisoned than black people in apartheid South Africa. This is far too extreme to be a mere coincidence or statistical fluke. Let’s call it what it is: systematic, institutionalized racism. Michelle Alexander’s book, “The New Jim Crow,” points out that both the “War on Drugs” and the prison population explosion began shortly after the civil rights struggles of the 1960s. As African Americans won the right to vote and segregation ended, the ruling class moved quickly to find a “colorblind” method of enforcing racial inequality. After all, marijuana is equally illegal for everyone, isn’t it? It just so happens that certain people get searched more Mike Tudoreanu is a Collegian columoften than others. nist and can be reached at mtudorea@ But even that is only part econs.umass.edu.
Editorial@DailyCollegiancom
NFL should do more for its modern day gladiators A man gets ready for game day. He puts on his helmet, his protective padding and laces up his shoes.
Jillian Correira He’s nervous, but prepared. He’s been through a brutal fitness program: extensive workouts and specialized diets. He’s received expert medical care. His whole life is spent training for days like this. He walks out into the arena. He’s greeted by the noise of thousands of cheering spectators. They want to see him win, but they came to watch him fight. These games are characterized by violence. It’s the pain people like to see. And so he fights. And he’s hit, repeatedly. The fans audibly react to each confrontation: the nastier the hit, the louder they cheer. Even though he’s wounded, he keeps fighting until it’s over. Someone wins, someone loses. So, who is this? A gladiator or a football player? It’s both. If you’ve ever watched a football game, and know even the bare minimum about Roman gladiators, you’ll notice stark similarities between the two. It’s important – if a bit obvious – to note that modern day American society and the days of the gladiators are civilizations apart. It’s easy to compare the two on a superficial level. However, the public’s attraction to witnessing people pummel each other, to the death in many gladiatorial cases, goes a little deeper. Fans of these Roman battles knew the dangerous and tragic risks involved in being a gladiator: fans of NFL games aren’t as aware of the dangerous and tragic risks involved in being a football player. To shed some light on the subject, PBS aired a Frontline documentary on Oct. 8, called “League of Denial: The NFL’s Concussion Crisis,” (based on the book “League of Denial: The NFL, Concussions and the Battle for Truth,” by brothers Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainaru) that exposes the NFL’s disturbing efforts to hide the connection between their sport and chronic brain trauma. The documentary focused more specifically on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease found in people with a “history of repetitive brain trauma, including symptomatic concussions as well as asymptomatic subconcussive hits to the head,” according to Boston University’s Center for the Study of Traumatic
Encephalopathy (CSTE). The disease can only be confirmed post mortem, but reported signs include “dementia-like symptoms, and changes in thinking, memory, behavior, mood, motor skills, or the ability to carry out daily living activities.” The documentary put a spotlight on the deliberate attempts of NFL higherups to flat out deny any relationship between football and CTE, beginning with the condemnation of neuropathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu. His discovery of CTE in former Pittsburgh Steeler Mike Webster’s brain after his suicide in 2002 was the first instance of CTE ever found in a football player. Following Dr. Omalu’s autopsy, the NFL’s Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MBTI) committee started to publish papers in scientific journals attempting to downplay the league’s concussion issue. In 2004, the committee published a paper claiming an NFL study did not support the findings of Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz, a sports
York Times reporter in December 2009. Since then, the NFL has funded various research groups and studies in connection with brain trauma and has implemented changes in game rules and safety measures. However, people still aren’t happy. And they shouldn’t be. The NFL’s “league of denial” put the health of their players at risk and cost some their lives. They fraudulently concealed and suppressed valid medical evidence in an attempt to convince people football isn’t a dangerous sport. Why? One NFL doctor, in speaking to Dr. Omalu, sums it up best: “If 10 percent of mothers in this country would begin to perceive football as a dangerous sport, that is the end of football.” So that’s it. The NFL cares about one thing: the business of football. The 1,000 to 1,500 hits a player takes on average each season are a small price for league executives to pay. The players are their money makers, but they’re also disposable. There are thousands of little boys, teenagers and grown men in this country who would do anything to become a professional football player. In the eyes of the NFL, anything that could jeopardize the sport’s popularity, even something as serious as CTE, needs to be masqueraded. Realistically, football is not going anywhere, especially not anytime soon, even with the CTE revelations. It’s a staple of American culture. There are ways to make the sport safer, but some argue it won’t be enough. As long as football involves players running into each other at high speeds and being repeatedly hit, they are put at an extreme risk. The introduction of the supposedly safer “heads-up” tackling technique is nothing more than public relations. So the most important thing we can do is to fully inform potential football players about the health risks involved in playing the sport. The decision is ultimately theirs, but it’s only fair to provide them with all of the details: good and bad. That’s why the NFL’s “league of denial” has been an almost decade of shame. Their modern day gladiators, and those who watch them, should at least be given the courtesy of knowing what this sport can truly do to the human body.
“They want to see him win, but they came to watch him fight. These games are characterized by violence. It’s the pain people like to see.”
medicine researcher at the University of North Carolina, who published a paper positing that “repeat concussions may lead to slower recovery of neurological functioning.” And in what might be the most laughable and controversial of MBTI’s studies, they claimed football players have “evolved to a state where their brains are less susceptible to injury.” It’s almost hard to believe then-MBTI Chair Dr. Elliot Pellman had any experience in brain science. Oh wait, he didn’t. This pattern of denial continued well into 2009. During this time, players retired, a few even committed suicide, and of these players, some complained about suffering depression and memory loss. In January 2009, CSTE’s Dr. Ann McKee and a group of scientists found more cases of CTE in brains of deceased football players. One shocking case in particular was found in the brain of an 18-yearold student who passed away 10 days after his fourth concussion. Finally, in what seemed to be an out-of-the-blue change of heart, an NFL spokesman acknowledged the connection between concussions Jillian Correira is a Collegian columand long term effects in nist. She can be reached at jcorreir@ an interview with a New umass.edu.
Skybox photo on Page 1 courtesy Anderson Mancini/Flickr
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The Massachusetts Daily Collegian is published Monday through Thursday during the University of Massachusetts calendar semester. The Collegian is independently funded, operating on advertising revenue. Founded in 1890, the paper began as Aggie Life, became the College Signal in 1901, the Weekly Collegian in 1914 and the Tri–Weekly Collegian in 1956. Published daily from 1967 to 2013, The Collegian has been broadsheet since January 1994. For advertising rates and information, call 413-545-3500.
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Arts Living THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
“I feel the same way about disco as I do about herpes.” - Hunter S. Thompson
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Arts@DailyCollegian.com
FOOD & DRINK
Getting heavy with Brother Thelonious Ale Savory brew named for jazz musician By Emily A. BrightmAn Collegian Staff
I had the good fortune of spending my Columbus Day weekend at a craft beer festival in New Hampshire, which primarily means I got to spend the long weekend swilling beer and indulging my proclivity for strange and exotic brews. After dropping about half my paycheck on bottles to beef up my craft stash with, I hit the road home to Massachusetts with a slew of microbrews nestled in my back seat. While shopping around at the festival I specifically had this column in mind, and I would be lying if I said I didn’t agonize for about an hour over which beer I wanted to write about this week. After a long and arduous decision process (and by that I mean I flipped a coin), I decided to dedicate this week’s beer review to the Brother Thelonious Belgianstyle ale from the North Coast Brewing Company. And while it pains me to have to limit myself to just this one, Brother Thelonious is deserving of a review that recognizes its distinctive greatness. I first came in contact with the North Coast Brewing Company through its Old
Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout, which I stumbled upon on a happenstance last spring. This brew was instrumental in catalyzing my relatively new love for imperial-style stouts, and I have followed releases from the brewery ever since. I was initially drawn to Brother Thelonious as a result of my slight weakness for jazz musician Thelonious Monk (to whom this beer is dedicated), and because of my recently developed weakness for Belgian-style beers. I snagged a bottle of Brother Thelonious thinking “Oh, what the hell, I’ll give it a shot,” not anticipating the bombshell I was in for. At 9.4 percent alcohol with a staggering malt composition, Brother Thelonious packs a serious punch that is betrayed by its serene labeling. The satisfaction of popping the cork out of my bottle of Brother Thelonious is rivaled only by the tantalizing aroma that followed. Once the cork was ceremoniously removed, the distinct scent of malt permeated the room on an aromatic wave of sweet dark fruitiness, specifically figs and cherries. This beer seems to have an almost rum-like aroma, and the high alcohol content of this beer is easily indicated by its tangible scent. There is also a lingering sensation of smokiness, but its subtlety is overpowered by heavy malt
JUSTIN SURGENT/COLLEGIAN
Brother Thelonious is a Belgian-style ale from the North Coast Brewing Co. aromas, which comprise the majority of this brew’s fragrance. Brother Thelonious pours out a rich reddish brown with a bubbly tan head that dissipates rapidly but leaves a considerable amount of lacing. Swirled around in a pint glass, the carbonation in
H E A LT H & F I T N E S S
this beer is easily identified from the effervescent quality of the liquid, evident in the release of small bubbles from the sides and base of the glass. The look of this beer is similar to many Englishstyle ales in terms of color, but the deep red tones of Brother Thelonious suggest
a much more complex style of brewing not readily available in many average ales. In terms of taste, Brother Thelonious is a veritable knockout – falling somewhere in between the territory of porters and lambics, this beer packs a serious wallop in terms of taste. Primarily, malt is noted – Brother Thelonious has a quite heady malt composition, which comes across clearly even from the first sip. This malty head is well-complimented by a fruity under layer that quickly becomes reminiscent of caramel in the aftertaste. The veritable wave of malt that this beer rides in on all but cancels out the dynamic of the distinctive ale flavor, but regardless of flavor inclination, Brother Thelonious is definitely a must-buy for any fan of strong ales. Aside from the powerful combination of malt and hops, Brother Thelonious demands a certain respect from drinkers due in part to its jazz legend namesake, but also due to the fact that North Coast Brewing Company heeds the traditional style of Belgian beer brewing and has transmuted it into a surprisingly palatable craft beer. Whether or not you are a fan of Thelonious Monk the jazz musician, Brother Thelonious the beer is a necessary addition to the collection of any serious connoisseur. Aside from the fact
that it combines equal parts deliciousness with originality, Brother Thelonious ale preserves a brewing tradition that has been at play for decades and will likely continue to do so even in the face of more modern, advanced techniques. And even disregarding its uniqueness, the North Coast Brewing Company has agreed to make a donation to the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz for every bottle of the beer that is sold. So while it may put you out a pretty penny to snag a bottle, the investment is totally worth it in the long run because at least your beer money will be going to a good cause instead of just into your gut. But fair warning, Brother Thelonious smells like a strong stout and drinks like a glass of fine wine, so be sure not to abuse the privilege. If you want to be especially hip, throw on an old Thelonious Monk record (yes, I said “record”) and groove out while you sip away on some Brother Thelonious ale. Jazz music may not always have a significant place in culture, but in terms of beer, Brother Thelonious will certainly always have a place in this beer geek’s heart (if not just for the delicious ale named after him). Emily A. Brightman can be reached ebrightman@umass.edu.
MUSIC
Organic vs. non-organic foods Panic! releases new album
Debate rages on over advantages By hAE young yoo Collegian Correspondent
Organic food has come a long way in the last decade. It used to be that people could only bring home organic foods from specialty farmers markets and health food stores, but now major grocery store shelves and freezers are filled with organic products to meet the growing demand from consumers. Eating organic has turned into a trend that is believed to have benefits that eating non-organic does not. In order for food to be labeled organic by the United States Department of Agriculture, it must abide by strict regulations. All foods must be free of synthetic chemicals such as pesticides, fertilizers, preservatives and antibiotics, as well as grown without the use of genetically modified organisms and sewage sludge. Organic livestock is required to have full access to pastures and is not permitted to have been treated with growth hormones or genetically modified feed. Organic foods are believed to be cleaner and safer
because of the absence of these harmful chemicals that can cause health problems. The Organic Consumers Association states that pesticides may be the cause of breast cancer, asthma and early puberty, and that the sewage and drugs that are fed to non-organic livestock is associated with risks for prostate and testis cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. Aside from the health problems that eating organic prevents, the OCA also says that organic food is more nutritious in vitamins and minerals than non-organic food is, and provides more antioxidants and vitamins C, D and E. Organic food is better for the environment as well because pesticides and fertilizers that are used on non-organic farms contaminate primary drinking water sources when they are washed into them, and studies have proven that such chemicals can disrupt and impair the wildlife that come in contact with them. Eating organic also supports small family-owned farms because there is less disparity between what comes off the farm and what makes it to the table. However, there are people who do not consider eating
organic to be beneficial at all. Jayson Lusk, from the Department of Agricultural Economics at Oklahoma State University, strongly advises people not to buy and eat organic. He argues that organic foods are too expensive, usually doubling the price of non-organic foods, and that the extra money can be spent on more practical things. He says that organic farmers do in fact use chemicals, and although they claim to be “natural,” there is no way for a consumer to know exactly how much and what fertilizers and pesticides there could be in an organic product. Additionally, the cancerreducing effects of many fruits and vegetables outweigh the cancer-increasing effects of chemicals. And he says there is no proof that organic foods taste better than non-organic foods like many people assume to be true. The argument between the benefits of organic eating compared to non-organic eating will continue to be heavily debated. It is up to the consumers to decide the truth and choose for themselves. Hae Young Yoo can be reached at haeyoungyoo@umass.edu.
Band showcases latest shift in musical style, lyrical maturity By rAchEl Arlin Collegian Staff
Panic! at the Disco has been through many stages throughout its career. When the time rolled around for a new album, it released “Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die!” to promote its newest career stage. P!ATD’s style is not terribly consistent, but the band is known to venture where many bands do not dare to go stylistically. Its quirkiness has enabled it to go far as musicians, and this new release has given the band a fresh new showcase for its distinctive talents. Ever since P!ATD lost original members Ryan Ross and Jon Walker after the release of 2008’s “Pretty. Odd.,” fans have said the band lost a bit of its character. However, P!ATD proved doubters wrong with its 2011 album, “Vices & Virtues,” which was a considerable success. The band has switched up its styles re gularly throughout its career, but fans have always been pleased with the outcome. The majority of the new album sounds like old 80s pop music. In the album, P!ATD uses more synthesizer and auto-tune than it ever has before, and its new album sounds much more pop-friendly than any of the band’s previous releases. Its overall genre has been questioned many times because it is not easily defined: it is arguable that it even falls under the “alternative rock” or “pop punk” categories. But if those are the only two genres to categorize
its latest work in, then this album is without a doubt considered “pop punk.” P!ATD placed a strong emphasis on keyboard in its new album, and most of the beats throughout are very hypnotic and mysterious, and it’s obvious that the band is trying to suck listeners in with a new sound. The auto-tune fused into Brendon Urie’s singing only casts a bigger spell on the listeners, who were captured by this kind of vocal enchantment on “Pretty. Odd.” P!ATD released all of its new songs on YouTube on Sept. 30, and promoted two of the albums hits, “Miss Jackson” and “This Is Gospel,” on Facebook. “Miss Jackson” features female vocalist LOLO and conveys a much more mainstream sound. The beat in “Miss Jackson” is often compared to Fall Out Boy’s “My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light ‘Em Up).” In fact, Fall Out Boy guitarist Pete Wentz discovered P!ATD, therefore the tributes occur often. The band also acknowledged Fall Out Boy in its song “Nicotine,” as the first line says, “Cross my heart and hope to die,” the same first line as Fall Out Boy’s song “G.I.N.A.S.F.S.” The second hit “This Is Gospel” is just what it sounds like: organs and ominous singing are both used in this song, making it just slightly different from what the rest of the album sounds like. A song to look out for is “Girls/Girls/Boys.” P!ATD acknowledges an issue in this song is bisexuality. The song is about someone who is bisexual and
is struggling with picking up a partner, assumedly of either gender. This is a risky move by P!ATD but it has the potential to pay off and end up being a powerful song that takes on social issues along the line of songs like Macklemore’s “Same Love.” The video for “Girls/Girls/Boy” will definitely get some publicity because Urie appears naked, seemingly as a way to get attention. He clearly wants this song to receive attention to the extent that he’s willing to strip for publicity. The last song on the album, “The End of All Things” is lyrically interesting because it contains Urie’s wedding vows to Sarah Orzechowski, whom he married earlier in 2013. This is not the first song Urie has written about Sarah – “Sarah Smiles.” a song from “Vices & Virtues” was also addressed to her. “End of All Things” is a cute exchange of affection from Urie, and a nice addition to the album. Overall, this album is considerably more lively than P!ATD’s previous albums. It has a much happier tone and there aren’t many depressing songs. The only thing this album lacks is guitar: the keyboard tempos seem to upstage everything, but the beats in their entirety are very rhythmic and enticing. If you like how abnormal P!ATD is and how much its style varies even within one album, ”Too Weird” is a must buy. Rachel Arlin can be reached at rarlin@umass.edu.
6
Thursday, October 17, 2013
THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
Comics Club Soda
DailyCollegian.com
WE WANT YOUR COMICS! Put your comics in front of thousands of readers. Questions? Comments? Email us: comics@dailycollegian.com
iS the moSt exCluSive of nightClubS
D inosaur C omiCs
B y r yan n orth
Battered and Deep Fried
P oorly D rawn l ines
B y r eza F arazmanD
aquarius
HOROSCOPES Jan. 20 - Feb. 18
Always remember that a smile and a nod answers literally every question just fine.
pisces
Feb. 19 - Mar. 20
leo
Jul. 23 - aug. 22
Who do you think you are? No, really, take this time to meditate and reflect on your inner self.
virgo
aug. 23 - Sept. 22
Today, you will be in a 10-person round table discussion and the inside of your nose will be legitimately itchy. Godspeed.
It’s impossible to think you are even a little entertained sitting on your laptop, watching TV, and looking at Facebook on your iPhone.
aries
Mar. 21 - apr. 19
libra
Sept. 23 - Oct. 22
taurus
apr. 20 - May. 20
scorpio
Oct. 23 - nOv. 21
gemini
May. 21 - Jun. 21
Ain’t nothing like a 10 a.m. nap to really break up the day.
Winning a free water bottle is a great way to inadequately increase your self worth.
Your professors will be super impressed if you Pumpkin flavor is akin to the ugliness that will ask such complex questions that they don’t soon emerge once all the leaves have even know the answers to. completely fallen and withered away.
sagittarius
nOv. 22 - Dec. 21
Mention that obscure dead celtic language in class again. I dare you.
Show everyone that you care by asking, “Hey, how are you?” but make sure you don’t care too much by openly ignoring their response.
cancer
capricorn
Jun. 22 - Jul. 22
You will be haunted by tailless squirrel sightings all day long.
Dec. 22 - Jan. 19
Fortune cookies serve as your horoscope for the next three days that I have off. They were created for that purpose.
THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
DailyCollegian.com
RIVALRY
continued from page 8
against the Rams since 2000, and haven’t beaten them since the 2010 season. But, with both teams facing similar struggles this season, Sunday’s contest is a chance for UMass to avenge the previous losses. “We know they’re a hardworking team and that it’s going to be a battle every time we play them,” junior Matt Keys said. “They’re kind of like our rivalry, I guess, in the A-10 because of distance where we are from each other. We played them in the spring and beat them 1-0, I believe, so we know some of their players. We got a lot of new guys, so hopefully matching up, we’re a
better team this year.” In order for the Minutemen to find success on Sunday, they will need to find a balanced attack, something that has plagued them all season. “A goal is a goal, no matter who scores it,” Keys said. “But, it’s definitely good to get some other guys scoring goals because, you know, it gives them the confidence they need going into the next game.” Sunday’s game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. kickoff at Rudd Field. Patrick Strohecker can be reached at pstrohec@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @MDC_Strohecker.
HOCKEY
Thursday, October 17, 2013
7
continued from page 1
struck the following night with a power play goal of his own against the River Hawks. Even though the Minutemen didn’t come away with a win, it was still an encouraging sign for UMass coach John Micheletto to see other players produce besides the first line. But he’s still expecting more guys to step up. “Yeah definitely a positive,” he said. “We certainly would’ve liked it to come in bigger bunches. We’re certainly hopeful and expecting the Steve Guzzo’s, the Shane Walsh’s, Adam Phillips – you know Adam obviously contributed on the power play
unit with a couple of assists. But all of those guys are gonna be leaned upon to contribute offensively at least significant amounts.” And while earlier scores could’ve helped turn around the outcomes against BU and UML, Micheletto also wants something else for his team when they outplay an opponent. “The other thing is from a coaching standpoint, we want our guys to be rewarded when we outplay teams for 20 minutes and the score doesn’t reflect it,” he said. The next opponent for the Minutemen will be the Spartans as a part of the newly formed Big Ten/
Hockey East Challenge. The Spartans were picked to finish in a tie for fourth in the preseason poll along with Ohio State. They also had two players make the Big Ten’s “players to watch” list in junior forward Matt Berry and sophomore goalie Jake Hildebrand. Michigan State has yet to play an official game this season, only playing a scrimmage against Western Ontario on Oct. 9 and an intra-squad game on Oct. 5. With only a scrimmage to prepare with, Micheletto says that the focus is more on what UMass can improve on. “Our eyes in terms of all of their tendencies are not
gonna be great,” he said. “At this time of the year I think with everybody, you’re always focusing a little bit more on what you need to tend to as opposed to what other teams are doing because you’re well aware that their personnel is gonna change, which is gonna change probably some of their structures, special teams situations from what we’ve seen, and even from week to week in the early going.” Both games will begin at 7 p.m. Cameron McDonough can be reached at cameronm@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @Cam_McDonough.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Season opener against BC drawing closer for UMass By Mark Chiarelli Collegian Staff
With 25 days remaining until the Massachusetts men’s basketball team is scheduled to face Boston College at TD Garden, the team has reached a crossroads in the practice schedule, somewhere in between the initial excitement of a new season and starting to prepare for the Eagles. “Twenty-five days man, there’s isn’t anything possible left to do except get ready for the season and that first game,” senior forward Raphiael Putney said with a smile before practice Wednesday afternoon. Balancing the time leading up to game action is a constant juggling act, something coach Derek Kellogg’s managed throughout the preseason. The team has settled into a consistent rhythm, practicing fully for
three days in a row followed by a day off. “The biggest thing is to get the guys to understand how hard we like to play and the pace we like to play at,” Kellogg said. “(We) haven’t got real specific on plays or exacts yet, but more importantly (for the team) is to set the tone on how we do things.” UMass’ brand of basketball is fast-paced and intense, one that aggressively moves the ball up and down the court. With a stronger non-conference schedule than in years past – the Minutemen are scheduled to face Louisiana State, Brigham Young, Florida State and Providence this year in addition to BC – the focus is on becoming a more complete team. “In practice, we don’t do some things that traditional basketball teams do, whether it’s as much
screening or quite as physical at times,” Kellogg said. “We had to do some drills to make sure that the guys realize the physicality of some of the team’s we’re playing.” So far, some of the more specialized drills have focused on the defensive side of the ball in both the half-court defense and the press. As the Nov. 10 date with the Eagles draws nearer, more focus will move toward the other side of the ball and the half-court offense, something Kellogg called a “work in progress.” “When you’re playing as many high level games as we are, or as many good teams, more often than not you’re gonna have longer possessions in the halfcourt that we have to take advantage of,” he said. Putney believes the team might already be at an advantage working through
offensive sets because of the connection they have with each other. “I think this year, our team chemistry is a lot better than a couple years ago,” Putney said. “Everybody’s in tune with what we’re gonna do on offense. If we’re not gonna push the ball up as much and be in the half-court, we gotta specialize in our plays and get the job done.” The addition of sophomore transfer Derrick Gordon figures to add another element to the offense, which it may have lacked a season ago. “He’s a slasher, he gets in the paint a lot,” Putney said. “That’s able to create for me with his penetration in the paint so all I have to do is spot up and hit shots.” Kellogg also mentioned that the four freshmen on the roster are making a positive impact on the team
MARIA UMINSKI/COLLEGIAN
UMass coach Derek Kellogg looks on during a preseason practice. as well, integrating well with the older guys while also trying to get minutes of their own. Additional talent vying for minutes adds yet another competitive aspect to practice as the team focuses on more specific options. “They’re competing at a
high level,” Kellogg said. “What I like about a couple of the guys is that they’re out there, but they’re not making a lot of freshman mistakes.” Mark Chiarelli can be reached at mchiarel@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @Mark_Chiarelli.
THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
Thursday October 17, 2013
Sports@DailyCollegian.com
@MDC_SPORTS
FOOTBALL
M L B P L AY O F F S
UMass goes for second straight win Big 2nd inning costs
Red Sox in Game 4
Minutemen face Buffalo on road
Series tied 2-2 heading to Game 5
By Nick caNelas
By Paul sullivaN
Collegian Staff
The celebration for the Massachusetts football team’s first win of the season didn’t last long. Just minutes after the bus departed Gillette Stadium for Amherst following the Minutemen’s 17-10 win over Miami (Ohio) last Saturday, UMass coach Charley Molnar said that most of the team had already passed out after an exhausting afternoon. “It was loud only for about the first five, eight minutes and then they all fell asleep,” Molnar said. “We work awfully hard during the week, we played awfully hard in the game. They really did zone out in the last hour.” And after getting that first taste of victory last weekend, the Minutemen (1-5, 1-1 Mid-American Conference) want more. By the team’s meeting on Monday at 2 p.m., the focus shifted to earning their first winning streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision era at Buffalo on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. “We were just a little quieter, more focused,” Molnar said. “Now they feel there’s a little more pressure to win a second game. They realize now that they can win. We’re capable of winning. Let’s go get another one.” But the Bulls (4-2, 2-0 MAC) will pose a significantly greater challenge for UMass than the downtrodden Redhawks did. Buffalo boasts one of the MAC’s strongest defenses, led by two-time all-conference linebacker Khalil Mack. The 6-foot-3, 248pound senior leads the conference in tackles for a loss (eight) and is tied for sec-
with the 19th-century practice of churning butter, the DETROIT — Tigers grizzled Tigers manager manager Jim Leyland was suggesting it was time had a big announcement to hit the shuffle button on to make before Game 4 the old iPod. Peavy loaded the bases of the American League in the second Championship on a single and Series on two walks, then Tigers 7 Wednesday night, faced Jackson, and he even prefRed Sox 3 who was hitaced it as such. ting .091 in the “Huge lineup postseason with change,” Leyland said, before adding: “Really, 18 strikeouts in 33 at-bats. I don’t know if it’s huge or Peavy promptly walked Jackson on four pitches, not.” Whether it was the new forcing in the first run. Red Sox second baseman lineup or the inefficiency Dustin Pedroia mishandled of Red Sox starter Jake Peavy is debatable, but the a potential double-play revamped Tigers scored grounder to allow anothmore runs in the first four er run to score on a fieldinnings than they did in the er’s choice before Hunter previous three games com- doubled down the left-field line to bring home two bined in a 7-3 victory. The Tigers evened the more runs. After Cabrera series at two games apiece. dumped a single into center Anibal Sanchez, who threw to score Hunter, the game six hitless innings in Game was all but over at 5-0. Jackson and Cabrera 1, faces Jon Lester in Game drove in runs in the fourth, 5 on Thursday. Peavy suffered control making Leyland look like a issues in the five-run sec- genius. Cabrera even stole ond and was removed in the a base off oblivious reliever fourth. He allowed seven Brandon Workman, jogging runs on five hits and three into second. Tigers starter Doug walks, putting the game out Fister coasted in six innings of reach early. Leyland’s big lineup of work, allowing one run switch centered on Torii on eight hits. Leyland said beforehand Hunter moving into the leadoff for the first time he had no choice but to try since 1999 and struggling something new. The Tigers Austin Jackson dropping to had scored six runs in the eighth. Leyland also moved first three games, hitting his best power hitter, .225. “I thought long and Miguel Cabrera, up to the No. 2 hole for only the third hard about this,” he said. time in his career while “I wrote it down. It looks inserting Prince Fielder pretty good. I checked with and Victor Martinez as his a couple of people, and a couple of people really Nos. 3 and 4 hitters. “We have to take a shot,” liked it.” It worked so well that Leyland said. “Something to churn up the butter a Leyland may just get out little bit.” the butter churn and try it For those unfamiliar again in Game 5. Chicago Tribune
MARIA UMINSKI/COLLEGIAN
UMass tight end Rob Blanchflower caught a touchdown pass in last Saturday’s win against Miami (Ohio). ond in sacks (six), leaving the Minutemen no choice but to use an extra blocker, likely a tight end such as Rob Blanchflower, to keep him from getting into the backfield and disrupting the offense. “You have to pick and choose how you handle Khalil,” Molnar said. “If we think we’re gonna put one blocker on him we’ll be sorry at the end of the day, so we’ll have to use some creative methods to try to neutralize Khalil Mack.” This makes for an especially big challenge for quarterback A.J. Doyle, who is coming off arguably his best outing of the season with 249 passing yards and two touchdowns in his first career win as a starter. It doesn’t make things any easier for Doyle to be battling an ankle injury, but he “doesn’t see any reason why he wouldn’t be able to” perform at his best, he said. Instead, he’s focused on trying to solve an experienced defense that consists primarily of upperclassmen atop the depth chart.
He said it’s simply a matter of executing and getting his team in position to make plays. “It’s a different defense than we’ve faced. We faced them last year so we have some film on them as well as their games this year,” Doyle said. “Khalil Mack is a presence we’ll have to pay attention to, but their whole defense is good. They’re all experienced guys, they’ve all played together for a long time so it’s gonna be a challenge.” UMass led the Bulls 13-0 at halftime and 19-7 late in the third quarter of last year’s meeting, but Buffalo rallied late for a 29-19 win. In that game, the Minutemen got their first look at Buffalo quarterback Joe Licata. The redshirt sophomore has led the Bulls to wins in each of their last three games with a combined 525 passing yards and seven touchdowns. “He really manages their offense really well,” Molnar said of Licata. “He’s got above-average arm strength, more of a pro-style passer, accurate, quick release and
he plays within his system and plays within his own abilities. “He doesn’t try to make throws that might be too tight of a window for him, too far down the field. He’s just good.” UMass has watched enough film on Buffalo both from this season and last year’s head-to-head matchup to put Miami in the past. However, Doyle said some players are still excited and their confidence is at an alltime high. Now it’s just a matter of not getting too satisfied by just one win, the same underwhelming total the Minutemen finished with last year. “It’s very important,” Doyle said. “We can’t remember what happened against Miami. Now we gotta focus on Buffalo and beating them and getting the second win. We can’t dwell on the fact that we have one win on the season.” Nick Canelas can be reached at ncanelas@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @NickCanelas.
MEN’S SOCCER
FIELD HOCKEY
UM is 2-12 in last 14 meetings
four-game homestand
Minutemen to host rival URI UM ready to begin pivotal Go for fourth straight victory
By Patrick strohecker Collegian Staff
After dropping both games in its opening weekend of Atlantic 10 play, the Massachusetts men’s soccer team looks to right the ship this weekend when it takes on Rhode Island on Sunday at Rudd Field. UMass opened up conference play with two of the tougher opponents that the A-10 has to offer, dropping a 4-0 decision to Virginia Commonwealth last Friday and then falling to George Mason 2-1 on Sunday. Even with the sour taste still fresh in their mouths, the Minutemen (1-10-1, 0-2 A-10) are keeping a positive approach and know that there is plenty of soccer left to play. “They’ve been tremendous,” UMass coach Sam Koch said of his team. “At practice on Monday, it was excellent. I just feel like this group really cares for each other, they work hard together as a group, they support each other.” Sunday’s test against the Rams (2-7, 0-1 A-10) is a chance for the Minutemen to put the previous results
By JasoN kates Collegian Staff
NICOLE EVANGELISTA/COLLEGIAN
UMass looks to win its first conference game of the season on Sunday. behind them and set the stage for the rest of conference play. Both UMass and URI enter the contest trying to find any bit of momentum to turn its seasons around. Much like the Minutemen, the Rams are plagued by the inability to score goals and it has shown in their record. URI enters the contest having scored only seven goals in nine games, a slightly better mark than UMass, who has scored just nine times in 12 matches. “I think they’re capable of beating anybody,” Koch said. “They have a few foreign guys, a new coach and their record is not very good, but, you know, they’re certainly capable of beating you
if you’re not ready to play.” The Rams are also looking for a spark to their season. They struggled through their non-conference schedule and were supposed to open up conference play against George Mason and VCU just like the Minutemen did. But URI’s match against the Patriots was postponed due to heavy rain, and it followed that up with a 3-1 loss to VCU, which was its fifth loss in six games. For UMass, Sunday’s matchup means a lot more than just a shot at its first conference win of the season. The Minutemen are 2-12 see
RIVALRY on page 7
After sweeping its latest three-game road trip, the 10th-ranked Massachusetts field hockey team returns to Garber Field for a pivotal four-game stretch, beginning this Friday against Atlantic 10 opponent La Salle. The Minutewomen (104, 1-0 A-10) are coming off their first conference win of the season, destroying Saint Louis 11-0 on the road. The three wins on the road were important for UMass, but coach Carla Tagliente knows how important it is to win games at home, especially in conference play. “Starting off the home stretch with four straight A-10 opponents is a great opportunity for us to set the tone in our conference and to see where we fall within the other teams in our conference,” Tagliente said. “I would like to see improvement on the things we’ve been working on over the past few weeks, which will
hopefully result in more victories.” Tagliente hopes her team will continue to build momentum going forward, and that they will remain focused. “We talk about performance and individual preparation every day in terms of making our team better as we move forward,” she said. “We’re in a critical part of the year in that this isn’t time for our players to rest and relax, as we are in a phase where we are gearing up not only for the A-10 championships, but for the NCAA Tournament as well. We continue to put a heavy emphasis on the importance of coming to practice every day ready to play and making the team better.” This game also marks the return of sisters Brooke and Allie Sabia for the Minutewomen, who were suspended for two games after violating a team rule. Brooke continues to lead the team in points with 22, while seniors Hannah Prince and Alexa Sikalis are tied for second with 14 points. Tagliente believes it will be critical for her team to get off to a fast start against the
Explorers (4-9, 0-1 A-10) and to stay focused the entire way. “I think focusing on how we want to play and executing our gameplan is vital,” she said. “Getting back at home always feels good after a three-game road trip, but limiting distractions is very important in terms of players seeing family and friends and making sure they keep their focus on the game. “I think it is going to be really important for us to go out, set the tone and get on the board early, and make sure we execute what we are trying to do.” La Salle comes into the contest after losing its last two games, including a 3-1 loss to Saint Joseph’s, which will visit Amherst on Sunday. The Explorers rely offensively on senior Olivia Shoemaker, who leads the team with 21 points. UMass has dominated La Salle in its 18 previous meetings, winning 17 of them, including a 4-1 victory last year in Philadelphia. Friday’s A-10 contest is set to begin at 3:30 p.m. at Garber Field. Jason Kates can be reached at jkates@umass.edu.