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THE MASSACHUSETTS
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DAILY COLLEGIAN DailyCollegian.com
Monday, January 27, 2014
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UM student robbed on North Pleasant Street UMass female was robbed early Sunday
assailant before he escaped with the victim’s purse. The victim identified the attacker as a black male wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt with the By PatricK HoFF hood pulled over his head, blue Collegian Staff jeans and a red bandana over his A female University of face. After obtaining the purse, Massachusetts student was the assailant ran to the passenger robbed early Sunday morn- side of a dark colored SUV parked ing while walking down North in front of Skinner Hall and left Pleasant Street. the scene. According to an email sent to The victim was not injured and UMass students yesterday, the was not taken to the hospital folstudent was walking alone along lowing the incident. North Pleasant Street when her Amherst police were the first purse was grabbed from behind. to respond to the scene. They The woman struggled with the proceeded to call UMass police
The victim identified the attacker as a black male wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt with the hood pulled over his head, blue jeans and a red bandana over his face. After obtaining the purse, the assailant ran ... to dark colored SUV parked in front of Skinner Hall. who sent a safety alert to the campus community soon after. Both Amherst and UMass police, due to the route that it takes through both the University and the town patrol North Pleasant Street, collaborated on the response. UMPD is currently investigating the incident. Anyone with
gestions for student safety on the UMPD site,” said UMass spokesperson Ed Blaguszewski, adding, “If people want an escort (from UMPD), they can ask for one.” “That in no way means this victim or any prior victims are at fault,” he said. He explained that the student was a victim of a crime and there was “no sense that this woman did anything wrong.” Blaguszewski added, “People are victims of a crime … the perpetrator is the one at fault.”
information regarding the robbery should contact UMPD at 413545-2121. Tips can also be called in anonymously at 413-577-TIPS. In Sunday morning’s email, UMPD chief John Horvath advised residents to use caution when walking alone. Patrick Hoff can be reached at pphoff@umass. “There’s a whole set of sug- edu.
Endowment scholarship honors the memory of late James “Jake” Hoffman
UMDI runs a new economic study
Scholarship in student’s memory
Sequestrian cuts analyzed in study
By Kristin LaFratta Collegian Staff
A year ago a fire at Rolling Green claimed the life of University of Massachusetts student Jake Hoffman. It is in Hoffman’s honor and memory that the Hospitality and Tourism Management department is working to create an endowment for future HTM students. James Hoffman, native of Stoughton, Mass., died in a fire last year on Jan. 21, 2013 that occurred in the Rolling Green apartment complex. He was expected to graduate last spring from the Isenberg School of Management’s department of HTM. Professors described Hoffman as an “outstanding student,” according to a recent press release.
Hoffman was involved with many on campus organizations both within and beyond his major, including the Club Managers Association of America, the MESIBA team, which serves to integrate crosscultural students, and the Jewish Student Union, to which he served as vice president. “If we raise another $15,000, we’ll meet the minimum required amount to establish an endowment scholarship in Jake’s name,” said Haemoon Oh, Department Head of HTM. Oh said the HTM department hopes to raise the necessary funds in an event that will potentially mimic the golf outing held on Columbus Day earlier this year. Hoffman’s family, and close friend and classmate Seth Rotberg, organized the James “Jake” Hoffman Memorial Golf Tournament, held at the Brookmeadow Country
Club in Canton, Mass. It attracted 148 participants and raised $15,000 toward the scholarship. “It was so, so well done,” said Oh on the golf tournament, which he participated in. The tournament included 18 holes of golf and dinner, as well as a raffle and silent auction that donations from various firms and businesses. Rotberg said in a press release that those involved in the fundraising hope to continue the golf tournament every year. “We hope to keep Jake’s memory and spirit with us forever in our hearts, at Isenberg and at UMass Amherst,” he said. Chairman Oh said the HTM department will reach out to Hoffman’s parents in February to discuss the details about endowing the scholarship under Jake’s name. “We’ll know by the end of February how it will be established and who will
Propane shortage becomes an emergency
Extreme temps. cause issues By ricHard simon Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON — As brutal cold continues to blast much of the nation, a propane shortage is driving up heating bills, prompting accusations of price gouging and leading to energy emergencies in more than a dozen states. “They’re worried they might not be able to keep those chickens warm,” said Jeff Helms of the Alabama Farmers Federation. And consumers are grousing about higher prices. “It looks like there’s some price gouging going on,” said Phillip Wallace, director of schools in Stewart County, Tenn., which were closed Thursday and Friday because they were short on propane for heating
classrooms. The district was due to receive 2,000 gallons. But Wallace complained the propane cost $3.45 a gallon, up from $1.29. “I don’t think that’s right,” he said. This winter has been exceptionally cold in large parts of the country. In early January the muchballyhooed “polar vortex” sent temperatures plummeting in the Midwest, Northeast and even parts of the South. Minnesota, no stranger to winter weather, canceled school because of the cold. With frigid temperatures expected to continue, suppliers are rationing propane and officials are urging consumers to conserve fuel. About 6 million households nationwide, including many in rural areas, use propane to heat their homes. “We did advise people to be very aware of their propane usage and reduce use
and monitor it very carefully,” said Judy Palnau of the Michigan Public Service Commission. Propane stocks are down 42 percent from a year ago. The average residential price, $2.96 per gallon, is 68 cents higher than a year ago _ the highest since the U.S. Energy Information Administration began tracking prices in 1990. Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange warned Friday that the state’s price-gouging law prohibits “unconscionable pricing.” Rep. Dan Benishek, R-Mich., citing price hikes to more than $6 a gallon in his state, sent a letter to President Barack Obama on Friday urging him to make federal energy assistance available. “It can be $700 more to fill your tank than it was yesterday – if they can get see
PROPANE on page 3
By ceciLia Prado Collegian Correspondent
COURTESY OF MATT DORNFELD
Jake Hoffman be the recipient,” Oh said. “We have every expectation the scholarship will go to a hospitality tourism management student here at UMass.” Oh added that several generous Isenberg faculty and staff have donated money toward the Jake Hoffman scholarship, and that all donations are deepsee
SCHOLARSHIP on page 2
The University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute (UMDI) performed its first ever study on the economic effects that federal spending cuts from 2013 and 2014 have had on the economy of Massachusetts. UMDI was hired by the Massachusetts Executive Office for Administration and Finance (ANF), Mass Development and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center requested by the Sequestration Task Force in order to investigate which areas are affected by the budget sequestration. The study was conducted by the Donahue Institute’s Economic and Public Policy Research group (EPPR). It consisted of a meticulous and highly customized
analysis of the immediate fund reductions caused by sequestration and an economic impact examination that specified the direct effects of the cuts to industry activity. The EPPR measured the firsthand and overall impacts that the budget cuts had during the federal fiscal years 2013 and 2014 within the areas of employment, labor income, value added, business output and state tax revenue. Along with this, the study illustrates a wide range of scenarios in order to demonstrate some of the inconsistency about the decrease in funding and related activity. Although every state will be unfavorably impacted by the cuts, the results of the study suggested that the state of Massachusetts will suffer more than others. According to Daniel Hodge, the director of Economic see
UMDI on page 2
Just lounging around
Students spend time in the Student Union between classes.
JUSTIN SURGENT/COLLEGIAN STAFF
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THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
Monday, January 27, 2014
THE RUNDOWN ON THIS DAY... In 1825, the U.S. Congress approved the Indian Territory in present-day Oklahoma, clearing the way for forced relocation of Native Americans on the “Trail of Tears.” In 1967, astronauts Gus Grissom, Edward White and Roger Chaffee were killed in a fire during a test of their Apollo 1 spacecraft. In 1967, the United States, United Kingdom and Soviet Union signed the Outer Space Treaty in Washington, D.C., banning deployment of nuclear weapons in space and limiting the use of the moon and other celestial bodies to peaceful purposes. In 1973, the Paris Peace Accords officially ended the Vietnam War. Colonel William Nolde is killed in action as the last recorded American combat casualty. In 1984, pop singer Michael Jackson suffered second degree burns on his scalp while filming a Pepsi commercial. In 2011, the Yemeni Revolution began as part of the Arab Spring. In 2013, 241 people died in a nightclub fire in Santa Maria, Brazil.
WEEKLY WEATHER
Monday High: 35 degrees Low: 3 degrees Cloudy with a 50 percent chance of snow showers. Winds up to 25 mph.
Tuesday High: 15 degrees Low: 3 degrees Sunny. Winds up to 10 to 15 mph.
Wednesday High: 18 degrees Low: 4 degrees Mostly clear. Cold.
Thursday High: 26 degrees Low: 14 degrees Mostly sunny.
Friday High: 30 degrees Low: 15 degrees Partly cloudy. Chance of snow showers.
Saturday High: 32 degrees Low: 20 degrees Mostly cloudy
Sunday High: 37 degrees Low: 22 degrees Partly cloudy.
Weather information provided by The Weather Channel
SCHOLARSHIP ly appreciated. “Jake was a beloved student at UMass and he was a very active student and it was a very tragic event,” Oh said. “ We wanted to honor him and his contribution to the department and school and that’s why we’re working hard to establish a scholarship under his name.” Contributions to the
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James “Jake” Hoffman Memorial Scholarship can be made online or by contacting the Isenberg Office of Development, Suite B4, 101 University Drive, Amherst, MA 01002.
Police identify Maryland mall shooting gunman By Jean MaRBella, caRRie WellS and liz BoWie The Baltimore Sun
BALTIMORE — Police on Sunday identified the gunman who entered a store in a suburban Maryland shopping mall the day before and killed two employees before killing himself. Surveillance video showed that Darion Marcus Aguilar, 19, arrived by cab at the upper level of Mall in Columbia at 10:15 a.m. Police said he had with him a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun, a large amount of ammunition and a bag in which they found two crude devices made of “flash powder and household items.” Aguilar walked downstairs before he came back to the second floor. Police report shots fired about an hour after he arrived. Police have not determined whether Aguilar knew the two victims, Brianna Benlolo, 21, of College Park, Md., and Tyler Johnson, 25, of Mount Airy, Md., who were killed shortly after 11:15 am in the skate shop Zumiez. The victims were co-workers. “We have not been able to verify any type of relationship between him and our victims,” Howard County Police Chief Bill McMahon said. Aguilar lived near one victim, Benlolo, but McMahon didn’t know if they knew each other. Aguilar, who lived with his mother in College Park, Md., kept a journal that police said “expressed general unhappiness” with his life. Aguilar’s moth-
UMDI
er showed the journal to Prince George’s County Police on Saturday at 5 p.m. after she had called them to report her son missing. She had been unable to find her son at the Dunkin’ Donuts shop where he worked. A Prince George’s police officer read a portion of the journal that “made him concerned for the missing person’s safety.” He began looking for Aguilar and tracked his phone to the Mall at Columbia. On Sunday, the family of victim Tyler Johnson, issued a statement that said: “We have lost a kind, positive son who reached out to help others in need, and he made a difference. Our prayers are with him and the other victims and all the people who have been touched by this violence.” Five people, including a woman who was shot in the foot on the first floor, were treated at Howard County General Hospital and released. The other four were not shot but injured during the chaos after the shots were fired. McMahon said police have seen nothing in Aguilar’s background that hinted at violence. According to Maryland electronic court records, he did not have a criminal record. “We want to find out why this occurred,” McMahon said. Police are planning to re-interview the victims’ families to again search for connections between Aguilar and Benlolo and Johnson but he said investigators also want to respect their grieving process.
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and Public Policy Research, there is an enormous number of ways that Federal expenditures reach Massachusetts. This means that although the sequestration cuts did not result in massive direct layoffs, the aggregated impact when combined across all programs adds up to a fairly large and significant drag to the economy. Over the years, universities and high tech companies in the state have had excessive success in obtaining contracts from federal agencies that are now immediately affected by the budget sequestration. Also, federal grants given to the state’s universities and high tech companies play a substantial role in the Massachusetts innovation economy. Reducing the amount of fund provided by the grants jeopardizes the likelihood for future economic growth. The fullrange of federal spending cuts that will affect Massachusetts are estimated to total over $1.3 billion during the federal fiscal year 2013. The economic impacts reflect losses and economic growth on jobs not added.
Secret Guantanamo review boards to become partly public By RichaRd a. SeRRano Tribune Washington Bureau
Kristin LaFratta is Collegian staff and can be reached at klafratt@umass. edu.
“We think that our estimate of impact is consistent with the state’s slower economic growth over the middle part of the year and that anything over 10,000 jobs is a significant impact for Massachusetts,” said Hodge. However, the state continues to see private sector job growth so it had not overwhelmed the economy. Hodge stated that it is important to keep in mind that the full effects of the spending cuts are not being felt immediately for a wide range of reasons, but the longer we experience reduced federal spending on key areas like the National Institute of Health (NIH), the more it threatens key industry sectors in Massachusetts. One example of this is the life sciences, which relies heavily on basic research. In addition, Hodge also mentioned that the recent Congressional budget agreement does not solve the longer term (2016-2021) sequestration cuts. Cecilia Prado is a Collegian correspondent and can be reached at sprado@umass.edu.
DailyCollegian.com
WASHINGTON — He was selling vegetables in Yemen at age 16 when he first embraced jihad, rising quickly in al-Qaida and eventually being tapped for a Sept. 11, 2001, suicide operation in Asia that was scrapped in favor of the airplane attacks in New York and Washington, according to U.S. intelligence records. He served as a trusted bodyguard to Osama bin Laden, and his sister became the terrorist leader’s fourth wife. But the jihadist’s career came to an end 12 years ago when he was captured near the mountains of Tora Bora by Pakistani forces and sent to the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, becoming another nameless, faceless “high-risk” terrorism suspect with little hope of release. On Tuesday, the man identified by U.S. officials as Abd Malak Abd Wahab Rahbi will get his first shot at freedom under a longdelayed review process designed to help empty the facility. Rahbi will become the first Guantanamo detainee to receive a partially public hearing to determine whether his status as an enemy combatant should be changed, making him eligible for release. The program was unveiled two years ago by President Barack Obama, who continues to face pressure to make good on a campaign promise to close the prison. After encountering resistance from lawmakers in shutting down the facility completely, Obama set up a system of review board hearings to accelerate the release for prisoners no longer deemed a risk. Seventy of them will appear before the review boards this year. With a defense attorney and a uniformed U.S. military officer acting as their representatives, the detainees will have the opportunity to
The panel’s primary mission is to assess whether the detainee still poses “a significant threat to the security of the United States.” argue why they are no longer enemy combatants and should be moved to the list of 77 other prisoners eligible for possible release. This past fall, the Pentagon held its first periodic review board in secret. In that case, Mahmoud Abd Aziz Mujahid, also a Yemeni and former bin Laden guard, was no longer deemed a “significant” threat. But his case sparked concern that the process was not transparent, as the White House had promised. As described by Pentagon officials, the detainee and his advocates will meet in a small Guantanamo prison room. Sitting around a table, military officials will lay out the prisoner’s current threat assessment, and the defense can offer a rebuttal. The board consists of national security representatives including senior officials from the departments of Defense, Justice, Homeland Security and State, as well as the Pentagon’s Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. The panel’s primary mission is to assess whether the detainee still poses “a significant threat to the security of the United States.” Board members can also review his complete prison file and other materials, including statements other detainees have made about him and documents supporting his release. The board “will not rely on information that has been obtained as a result of torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment” to continue holding the prisoner indefinitely. It can, however, take into consideration testimony from officials of foreign nations willing to have the detain-
ees transferred there, such as their home countries. If a case is rejected, the detainee cannot appeal the decision. However, the system allows a new review board hearing every three years. Rahbi’s board gets under way as civil rights organizations mark the anniversary of Obama’s executive order at the start of his first term to close Guantanamo. But, said Steven W. Hawkins, executive director of Amnesty International USA, “indefinite detention and unfair trials continue five years later.” Thirty-one retired generals and admirals sent the president a letter Tuesday urging him to finally close the prison. Even with review boards finally under way, they said, transfers out of Guantanamo “will have to increase dramatically to achieve closing the prison” by the end of Obama’s second term. Details about Rahbi’s life in al-Qaida are contained in a 2008 Detainee Assessment by Guantanamo officials that listed him as a high risk of threatening the U.S. and also as someone with a “high intelligence value” to this country. Included in his file was his picture – hair cut razor-short, eyes dark, beard thick. He was born in 1979, sold vegetables and briefly taught the Quran at a village mosque. He underwent militant training in 1995, joined al-Qaida three years later and moved with his pregnant wife to Afghanistan. He soon left his family to join bin Laden.
THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
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PROPANE
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the propane,” said Mark Wolfe of the National Energy Assistance Directors’ Association. With some suppliers in the Midwest running out of propane, 24 states have eased rules to allow truckers to drive longer hours to pick up and deliver the fuel. One county in Wisconsin has offered shelter to residents unable to heat their homes. “Some of the marketers are going around, home to home, seeing who is near empty and giving them gas,” said Jeff Petrash, vice president and general counsel of the National Propane Gas Association. Texas, which produces two-thirds of the nation’s propane, has received calls from as far away as Maine for fuel, according to the Texas Propane Gas
Association. The shortage, industry officials say, is because of a confluence of events: a Midwest pipeline being shut down for maintenance, a high demand for propane last fall to dry a rain-soaked harvest of corn, competition for pipelines and rail cars caused by increased oil and natural gas production – and the extreme cold. “I prefer not to call it a shortage,” said Simon Bowman, a spokesman for Pennsylvania-based AmeriGas, the nation’s largest propane retailer. “I prefer to call it tight supply.” “There is propane to be had, but it’s just having problems getting to some of the areas of the Midwest and Northeast,” he added. But some are suspi-
cious about what’s behind the lack of propane. Sen. Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, has called on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate to “ensure that any supply shortages are not created artificially.” Indiana state Sen. Richard Young, a Democrat, said businesses in his state had driven all the way to Kansas for propane, “only to be told by the distributor that no fuel will be sold due to the shortage.” “Other businesses tell me they have driven to Missouri and Texas for fuel, having to pay incredibly high prices for transportation and purchase,” Young added. “We’ve got a long way to go until spring,” he said.
Brain-dead, pregnant Texas woman taken off life support Pro-life activists protest court ruling By Matt Pearce Los Angeles Times
After a legal battle that became a touchstone in the abortion debate, a brain-dead pregnant woman was removed from life support Sunday as a Texas hospital agreed to comply with a court order. Marlise Munoz’s body was to be turned over to her family, attorneys for her husband, Erick Munoz, announced. She had been on life support for about two months at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth after falling unconscious in her home Nov. 26. At the time, she was 14 weeks pregnant. Erick Munoz said doctors told him she was brain dead. But the hospital refused to remove her from life support, citing a Texas law that says “a person may not withdraw or withhold life-sustaining treatment ... from a pregnant patient.” Both Erick and Marlise Munoz, 33, were paramedics. Erick Munoz said his wife had not wanted to be kept alive under such circumstances. He sued the hospital for “cruel and obscene mutilation” of a dead body. Before Friday’s hearing, competing demonstrators gathered outside the hospital. One group demanded her body
“One of the most painful parts of watching my wife’s deceased body lie trapped in a hospital bed each day is the soulless look in her eyes. Her eyes, once full of the ‘glimmer of life,’ are empty and dead. My wife is nothing more than an empty shell.” Erick Munoz, husband remain on a ventilator so the fetus could be kept alive. The others demanded the hospital “let Marlise rest in peace.” Texas District Judge R.H. Wallace Jr. ruled that the state’s pregnancy protection law did not apply to someone who was not legally alive. He ordered the hospital to take her off life support by 5 p.m. Monday. The hospital considered whether to appeal, but announced Sunday it would comply with Wallace’s order. “The Munoz and Machado families will now proceed with the somber task of laying Marlise Munoz’s body to rest, and grieving over the great loss that has been suffered,” Heather King and Jessica Janicek, attorneys for Erick Munoz, said in a statement, according to the Associated Press. “May Marlise Munoz finally rest in peace, and her family find the strength to complete what has been an unbearably long and arduous journey.”
Hospital of f icials acknowledged the “difficult” and “sad situation” in a statement but said they had followed what they believed to be the law. In an affidavit filed in court last week, Erick Munoz said it was clear his wife was no longer alive. “When I bend down to kiss her forehead, her usual scent is gone, replaced instead with what I can only describes as the smell of death,” he wrote in court papers. “One of the most painful parts of watching my wife’s deceased body lie trapped in a hospital bed each day is the soulless look in her eyes,” he continued. “Her eyes, once full of the ‘glimmer of life,’ are empty and dead. My wife is nothing more than an empty shell. She died in November 2013, and what sits in front of me is a deteriorating body.”
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Syria peace talks offer hope to trapped citizens By Patrick J. McDonnell Los Angeles Times
GENEVA — Hundreds of women, children and other trapped civilians could leave the rebel-held center of the Syrian city of Homs and aid convoys would be allowed access to the besieged district in what appears to be the first concrete accomplishment of peace talks here, the United Nations said Sunday. “Hopefully, star ting tomorrow, women and children will be able to leave the Old City of Homs,” Lakhdar Brahimi, the U.N. special envoy who is mediating the negotiations, told reporters here after a negotiating session with both sides. Other civilians in the devastated area would also be “welcome to leave,” Brahimi said, but government officials first want a list of their names, apparently to be sure that no rebel fighters are among those fleeing. In addition, Brahimi said, armed groups inside the Old City have agreed not to attack aid convoys delivering humanitarian assistance to the area, which has been under government siege for months. A convoy with food, medical supplies and other goods is awaiting the green light from Syrian officials to enter the Old City, Brahimi said. The accords on Homs would seem to signal the kind of quick if limited success that conference organizers were seeking as confidence-building measures between the two warring sides in the almost 3-year-old conflict. The long-delayed Syrian peace conference began Wednesday in Switzerland, but Sunday was only the
second face-to-face day of meetings between representatives of the government of President Bashar Assad and the U.S.-backed opposition bloc. Also Sunday, the two sides also began talking about the release of thousands of detainees held by both sides. The opposition has agreed to try to come up with a list of those in rebel custody, Brahimi said, though anti-government negotiators here have little sway with many armed factions holding hostages and other detainees. The government and the opposition blame each other for the fact that civilians remain trapped inside central Homs and aid convoys have not been able to get in for at least six months. According to the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, about 1,500 people, many of them Christians, are stranded inside the Old City, lacking sufficient food, medical supplies and other essentials. Only a trickle of sick and elderly have been able to leave in the last few months, the group says. The most recent effort to send in a humanitarian convoy to Homs’ Old City was turned back by a militant group, said the Red Crescent, which helps coordinate aid deliveries for international agencies. The center of Homs, once Syria’s third-most populous city, has been largely destroyed by shelling and gunfire. Most residents of the Old City fled long ago, as the area fell under the control of armed rebels. Government troops have gradually advanced and taken several nearby neighborhoods, including the Khalidiya district, and now encircle the Old City. The government has
accused the rebels of holding the civilians hostage as “human shields.” The opposition says the civilians are reluctant to leave because they fear being killed by government forces. Syria’s deputy foreign minister, Faisal Mekdad, told reporters in Geneva that civilians leaving the Old City would be welcomed and taken care of. “We shall provide them with shelter, we shall provide them with medicine, and we shall provide them with all the necessities of their daily life,” Mekdad said during a news conference. This week, negotiations between the government and the opposition coalition are expected to move to the more contentious arena of how to form a transitional government, a central focus of the proceedings. The opposition views the conference as a means of forcing Assad from power. The government says Assad’s future is not up for discussion. After Sunday”s session, Brahimi acknowledged that the going was slow, “We are just learning to walk” but added that the two sides had shown “mutual respect,” a contrast to the daily fusillade of ill-tempered accusations emanating from each camp. Any comprehensive deal could be weeks or months away, assuming the talks show progress and do not break down. “It is extremely difficult, complicated, the situation in Syria has been going from bad to worse,” Brahimi said. “So, you know, to bring Syria out of ditch into which it has fallen will take time.”
MCT
Todd Bullis, center, stands with other Pro-Life demonstrators during a memorial at John Peter Smith Hospital on Sunday in Fort Worth, Texas.
Opinion Editorial THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
“Would you like to come up and see my etchings?” - Steven Pinker
Monday January 27, 2014
Editorial@DailyCollegian.com
Stock returns reflect short-term profits, not long-run security As 2013 came to a close, the public conversation on the economy came to the conclusion that the U.S.
Zac Bears
Fighting fossil fuels: an exercise in futility Depending on where you look, and who you ask, the Earth might be on a collision course with the apocalypse
Julian del Prado or in no danger at all. Global warming, often referred to as climate change, threatens anywhere from a four to 11 degree (F) increase in global temperature in between now and the year 2100. However, this is contingent upon how much of an effect we place on the greenhouse effect through fossil fuels and other sources of carbon release. Additionally, global warming will increase or slow based on how volcanic activity plays out in that time. We will also have to contend with carbon contamination in our oceans as carbon will be absorbed into the depths and influence wildlife. Somewhat understandably, asking any twentysomething what they think about fossil fuels results in a well-versed diatribe against oil barons and their products. Part of this set of talking points is that we will be running out of oil in the next 50 years regardless, as we approach what is known as “peak oil.” In the face of all of these facts however, the argument that humanity should ditch fossil fuels is both pointless and lacking in updated information. When the debate rages
over whether global warming exists, it is no wonder that the discourse goes nowhere. On the left, politicians and a majority of climatologists defend the scientific merits of the computer models which predict peril for the human race. The right expresses skepticism at the validity of the charts. However, what is often overlooked is the fact that, whether or not the data
plants now store carbon dioxide. This excessive carbon dioxide is then sold to oil companies (who would also like to make money off the “green movement”) in order to amplify the efficiency of existing oil wells. Currently, the United States and China rank as the two top producers of wind energy. Regarding solar power, we are fourth despite the glacial progress of that technology to create viable energy on a large scale. The United States is also the biggest subsidizer of fossil fuels, which makes them more efficient and gives us all something to work with while cripplingly inefficient green energy tries to catch up to our hundreds of years of fossil fuel research. Meanwhile, investing in local fossil fuels has largely succeeded in freeing us from dependence on one of the most oil rich areas in the world – the Middle East. Regardless of personal opinion on global warming, climate change, and fossil fuels, the facts show (unsurprisingly) that it is folly to allow the energy source which has propelled humanity into its current position to go by the wayside while we work on technologies which will only provide similar results in a few dozen years.
What is often overlooked is the fact that, whether or not the data is valid, dropping fossil fuels while they continue to be useful is a downright silly idea.
is valid, dropping fossil fuels while they continue to be useful is a downright silly idea. Fracking in the United States has already increased our supply of fossil fuels. This practice, though protested by some, has proven to be effective and arguably safe. Additionally, investment in fossil fuel by the government and investors does not mean keeping the same methods of refinement and storage which exacerbate climate change. For example, rather than dooming the residents of coal-rich states to unemployment and stagnation for the benefit of so-called “progressive states” which can afford Julian del Prado is a Collegian to invest in inefficient new contributor and can be reached at technologies, coal-powered jdelprad@umass.edu.
economy is recovering swiftly and that 2014 will be a great year for growth. Much of this hype, however, came from the year-end realization that American stocks were up almost 30 percent. Yes, the NASDAQ, Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), S&P 500 and other major markets increased in value by nearly 30 percent. The DJIA hit a record high 52 times in 2013, and the NASDAQ returned to levels not seen since before the dot-com failures of the early 2000s. American Public Media, at 6:30 p.m. on weekday evenings, airs a radio program called Marketplace. About 15 minutes in, the show’s host Kai Ryssdal “does the numbers,” or recounts the stock market gains and losses of the day. On a recent show, a specific quote caught my ear; Ryssdal said, “Ford is up 2 percent on report of a higher dividend.” The stock of Ford Motor Company gained 2 percent, not because they had announced long-run profitability, such as a new car model or a renegotiated labor contract, but because they increased the dividend to stockholders. The stock market is not an accurate indicator of the health of the U.S. economy. It reflects short-run conditions that help the shortterm profits of indexed corporations. Nevertheless, both on Wall Street and in Washington, investors and policymakers continue to make choices to boost short-run profits, which hurt future profits, growth and the health of the labor market. Raising the minimum wage has been a major Democratic Party policy proposal for over two years, with the support of congressional democrats and the Obama administration. The latest proposal would increase the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour over two years, and then index it to inflation. This exemplifies long-run policymaking, but it will not go anywhere in Congress. Real wages have been stagnant or falling since the early 1980s, when neoliberal deregulation gutted unions and the collective bargaining power that ensured workers a fair piece of the corporate profit pie. However, critics of proposals to increase the minimum wage state that the
higher wage would cut into corporate profits, forcing companies to lay off workers. That is fundamentally short-run thinking, which ignores the fact that corporate profits are at an alltime high (indicated by the equally stratospheric stock market). In a consumer economy, the wages paid to workers are the most important component in determining economic growth. More than 70 percent of U.S. GDP is consumption-based, and with real wages stagnating or declining, fewer consumers have the income to perpetuate the level of consumption necessary for
28, with 72,000 more losing benefits each week. According to the National Employment Law Project, the total long-term unemployed without benefits will be 3 million if Congress fails to act by mid-year. Again, this is the latest in a string of failures to address long-term economic security of workers. Since 2009, 95 percent of the income growth in the U.S. has gone to the 1 percent while millions of workers sit in long-term unemployment. The incredulity of accepting billions of dollars in new income without providing job security and unemployment benefits to millions of workers is astonishing. It shows that Congressional fear of corporate retribution places short-term profits above long-term employment and broad income growth. C o m m e r c e Secretary Penny Pritzker has used the phrase “(moving) at the pace of business” in recent comments about ways the federal government and private business can work together to create jobs and increase growth. The glacial response of Congress to major policy issues reinforces the focus on shortrun political gains and reduces debate on how to best solve long-run issues facing our country. “Moving at the pace of business” may help Congress address policy issues, but it would also put the government in the dangerous position of making decisions too quickly and without regard for potential consequences. Clearly, the pace of obstructed government is too slow and puts the long-run economic security of American workers at risk, but the pace of business prioritizes shortrun profits over long-run economic security as well. Finding a balance between the private profiteering and bureaucratic malaise has always been a challenge for the federal government. With the global economic engine innovating and growing faster than ever, it is essential that the U.S. government move faster. But this same economic engine (whose growth is heralded as an end to global poverty by the neoliberal intelligentsia) can destroy jobs, industries and the environments of whole countries. The long-run economic security of U.S. workers is the sole responsibility of elected officials. The stock market has the short-run covered.
“Moving at the pace of business” may help Congress address policy issues, but it would also put the government in the dangerous position of making decisions too quickly and without regard for potential consequences.
strong GDP growth. While there is no room for passage at the federal level, minimum wage increases are proposed in many states, including right here in Massachusetts. In November 2013, the Massachusetts Senate passed a $1 per year minimum wage increase from $8 to $11 through 2016 after which the minimum wage would be indexed to inflation. According to Lew Finfer, around 700,000 Massachusetts residents earn between $8 and $10.50 per hour, and an increase in the minimum wage would put over $1 billion back into the local economy. An increase in the minimum wage would bring people out of poverty, and boost income for all lowwage workers, according to a study by University of Massachusetts Amherst economics professor Arindrajit Dube. A 39 percent increase in the federal minimum wage (from $7.25 to $10.10 per hour) would reduce the poverty rate by 1.7 percent or 4.6 million people immediately, and, in the long-run, the total decrease would be 2.5 percent or 6.8 million people. Dube notes that this increase would reverse less than half of the increase in poverty caused by the recession. While Congress is unable to pass long-term policies that help American workers, it is also unable to pass short-term policies that do the same. More than 1.3 million American workers Zac Bears is a Collegian columnist. lost long-term unemploy- He can be reached at ibears@umass. ment benefits on December edu.
t h e m a s s a c h u s e t t s D a i ly C o l l e g i a n
NEWS
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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.
WEB PRODUCTION MANAGER - Zac Bears NEWS DESK EDITOR - Katrina Borofski O p /E d DESK EDITOR - Brandon Sides ARTS DESK EDITOR - Tom Verdone | Jackson Maxwell SPORTS DESK EDITOR - Nick Canelas COMICS DESK EDITOR - Tracy Krug
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Arts Living THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
Monday, January 27, 2013
“I don’t tweet like I did back then.”- Courtney Love
Arts@DailyCollegian.com
FEATURE
Music to look forward to in the coming year
Numerous stars preparing releases By ElEna lopEz Collegian Staff
2013 introduced a multitude of new sounds from all corners of the music industry, giving the listening public high expectations for 2014. It is only January, but numerous major artists have already announced new releases for the coming months. Some of pop’s biggest stars are preparing to drop new albums in 2014. After the massive success of her 2011 album “21,” English sensation Adele is facing astronomical expectations. After facing an injury that nearly ended her career, fans are wondering if Adele can deliver an album as strong as “21” this coming year. 2013 was the first year since 2008 in which Rhianna failed to grace the world with a new record. That said, she did not shy entirely from the spotlight, releasing high-profile collaborations like “Monster,” a track on Eminem’s ultrasuccessful “The Marshall Mathers LP 2.” Neither Adele nor Rihanna have announced details of their new projects yet, only heightening anticipation for when they are finally released. Although these are two of the highest profile releases, Taylor Swift, Shakira and Pharrell are also preparing new projects for release this coming year. With the mainstream
introduction of the EDM genre in 2013, it is no surprise that the genre’s biggest stars are preparing new releases to keep their many fans happy. After his mega-hit “Wake Me Up” featuring Aloe Blacc, Avicii is rumored to be releasing more brain-altering tracks this year. After a tour-packed year, superstar Skrillex is likely not far behind in producing an album, ensuring that 2014 will be yet another huge year for him and EDM fans alike. Leading the pack for new rock releases this year are artists Ed Sheeran, Foster the People, U2, and Imagine Dragons. While the details of many of these upcoming releases have yet to be announced, Foster the People’s new album “Supermodel” is slated for a March 18 release. Foster the People recently explained that they plan on changing their sound significantly, sounding less like their massive hit “Pumped Up Kicks.” Sheeran, relatively new to the music industry but immensely popular, also plans to release a new album with the help of Taylor Swift. R&B greats also seem to be slated for a comeback this year. Mariah Carey is returning this spring with a new album titled “The Art of Letting Go.” Frank Ocean is also planning a follow up to his 2012 album “Channel Orange,” gracing the public with his melodic and sweet voice once again. Chris Brown’s oft-delayed album “X Files” is planned for release soon after his
Kanye West and Jay-Z are rumored to be working on a follow up to their 2011 collaboration album “Watch the Throne.” rehab stint, while Jhené Aiko gears up to release her first LP, “Souled Out,” in May after her budding success in 2013. Miguel and Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) crooner SZA are due to drop albums. It is SZA’s first album, one of six coming from TDE this year. Rounding it out with hip hop and rap, many huge albums are expected this year. Rick Ross’ “Mastermind” is due in March, while Nicki Minaj is working on her third solo album and a collab-
ALBUM REVIEW
orative album with Young Money. The album includes luminaries like Lil Wayne, Drake, and Tyga and is titled “Young Money: Rise of an Empire.” Jay-Z and Kanye West are also rumored to be working on a follow-up to their 2011 collaboration, “Watch the Throne.” West has also recently hinted at a follow up to “Yeezus,” claiming the album was not done when it was released and that he may drop a few new tracks some time in 2014. A huge favorite of this
year, Chance the Rapper, promised the release of his first full album, “Social Experiment.” Chance made waves in 2013 with his second mixtape “Acid Rap” and “Social Experiment” has an incredible amount of hype behind it. 2013 was a quiet year for TDE, the label that signed Kendrick Lamar, Ab-Soul, Schoolboy Q and some other upand-coming heavy hitters. However, the usually reclusive head of TDE recently took to Twitter and stated that TDE would
ANIRUDH KOUL/FLICKR
drop six albums in 2014, starting with Schoolboy’s “Oxymoron” on Feb. 25. This also means a possible follow up to Lamar’s critically acclaimed 2012 album “Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City.” These are just a few of the high-profile releases that make 2014 an incredibly promising year for new music. Elena Lopez can be reached aelopez@ umass.edu.
FEATURE
Mogwai drops ‘Rave Tapes’ The most important and An underwhelming influential music of 2013 eighth studio album Artistic risks yield fantastic results
Jackson MaxwEll Collegian Staff
Scottish post-rock band Mogwai has been quite prolific as of late. Following 2011’s solid album “Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will,” last year the band released their intense, creepy soundtrack to the French television show “Les Revenants.” Listeners get the feeling that that is where Mogwai is best suited; scoring something visual. Their grand, typically instrumental brand of rock always does its best to paint a picture in the mind of the listener. It often seems like the band is scoring something visual that only appears in their own minds. Rave Tapes, released on Jan. 21, is their eighth album; one that integrates more electronic sounds than their previous efforts. But even with a supposedly larger sonic palette, the same issue that has plagued much of Mogwai’s recent music ends up rearing its head on “Rave Tapes.” Even though the band certainly has a sense of scale on their songs, there is very little about the 10 tracks here that are fresh, even for a band as consistently unique as Mogwai. While “Hardcore Will Never Die” occasionally felt flat, it had disparate highlights such as the beautiful “How To Be A Werewolf” and the scorching “You’re Lionel Ritchie.” “Rave Tapes” plays almost entirely as a straight line; neither offending nor exciting at any point.
By ElEna lopEz Collegian Staff
JASE LAM/FLICKR
Mogwai performing live in Hong Kong in 2009. Opener “Heard About You Last Night” is probably the album’s best moment. Featuring a slow, pulsating bass and a dreamy electric guitar riff that is situated to repeat itself throughout, the song is certainly pretty. But more importantly, it sets a nice, consistent path for the rest of the album to follow. Unfortunately, nothing on the remainder of the record is as musically dynamic and engaging as its opener. “Simon Ferocious” and “Remurdered” both rely heavily on electronics, but feel listless, cumbersome and much longer than they actually are. “Hexon Bogon” and “Master Card” are more brief, snappy and rough around the edges, but still feel similarly unremarkable and similar to their previous material. Other than a somewhat amusing spoken-word vocal track about Satan and Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven,” “Repelish” has more of the album’s lackluster qualities. “Blues Hour,” throwing
some sung vocals into the mix, actually perks the album up again for a few minutes, but the excitement does not last long. The album ends with the flat “The Lord Is Out of Control.” The song continues the somewhat unfortunate tradition the band has established of including a track with vocoder-effected vocals on almost every album they make. Mogwai basically patented the dynamic quiet-huge crescendo-explosive volume formula that post-rock bands like Sigur Rós have copied for years. But as original as they were back in the day, they continue to steal from themselves more and more with each passing album. Their music has become increasingly vague and less direct, becoming more difficult to understand and enjoy. “Rave Tapes” would be a great soundtrack to a film, but on its own there is little to behold. Jackson Maxwell can be reached at jlmaxwell@umass.edu.
In 2013, many famous recording artists decided to flip the script. While some artists decided to wear a latex bikini and twerk in front of the world, others revisited their music and offered something completely new and enthralling to their fans. Of all the albums in 2013, one of the most surprising was Chicago native Chance the Rapper’s “Acid Rap” mixtape. His music is filled with warm melodies paired with a distinct tone and unexpectedly sweet serenades. The mixtape was enough to land him a tour as well as a slot at Coachella. Last year pop diva Lady Gaga introduced her monsters to “ARTPOP.” Living effortlessly up to its name, “ARTPOP” is full of hits inspired by anything from disco to R&B. While critics were dismissive, the public opened their arms to her and allowed Gaga to change the face of pop yet again. Arcade Fire managed to stay relevant with their fourth album, “Reflektor.” “Reflektor” demonstrated the band’s ability to morph musically and still maintain a broad audience. They became wittier while maintaining their wide palette of sounds. Arcade Fire remains one of the few rock bands of
the past decade with the ability to stay in the forefront of their genre. A more somber but defining moment of music in 2013 was the death of Lou Reed at the age of 71. A rock pioneer most famous for his work as the lead singer of The Velvet Underground, his influence is felt in the music of countless artists, who in Reed had a great mentor and example. Another surprising artist in 2013 was Miley Cyrus. She brought the term “twerking” into mainstream consciousness with her performance with Robin Thicke at MTV’s Video Music Awards. With all the subsequent hype and media buzzing around Cyrus, many forgot that the girl can actually sing. “Bangerz” became her fifth number one album. A huge creative jump, on “Bangerz” Cyrus really came into her own as a serious artist. Mixing touching ballads with irresistible party anthems, “Bangerz” cemented Cyrus as a superstar in her own right. Drake became a real competitor in the rap game in 2013 with the release of “Nothing Was the Same.” With more crooning on the album than most hiphop fans might be used to, Drake introduced a softer and more complex side of his music. Even Kanye West declared him a “rap god” on his Yeezus tour, cementing Drake as a rap heavyweight on par with giants such as West and Jay-Z. 2013 also introduced freshfaced New Zealand pop sing-
er Lorde. Her single “Royals” topped American charts for nine weeks, and immediately established the 17 year-old as a pop icon. The maturity and sophistication of her music has found a massive audience. Her debut album, “Pure Heroine” grabbed four Grammy nominations, leaving no doubt as to her artistic impact. One of the year’s defining artists was the always enigmatic Kanye West. “Yeezus” took on the world of pop in a way no other album did. “Yeezus” was his most abrasive and provocative record yet. His tour was an exercise in magnificent performance art. Songs like “New Slaves” and “Black Skinhead” brought an uncompromising political and artistic sentiment into the world of pop. At the tail end of 2013, Beyoncé shocked the world and released a self-titled album in the middle of the night on Dec. 13. Available only on iTunes for weeks, she shot to the top of the charts with her most ambitious and personal record to date. Despite a world tour, performing at the Super Bowl, singing at the presidential inauguration, and being the face of Pepsi and H&M, she managed to keep the “visual album” a complete secret. Beyoncé reached a new level of success in 2013, establishing herself as pop music’s queen. Elena Lopez can be reached aelopez@umass.edu.
6
THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
Monday, January 27, 2014
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HOROSCOPES Jan. 20 - Feb. 18
Having trouble getting your car out of the snow? Make sure you have a shovel! Also, make sure you have a car.
pisces
Feb. 19 - Mar. 20
leo
Jul. 23 - aug. 22
How is anyone supposed to believe you actually take care of yourself if you don’t have translucent teeth?
virgo
aug. 23 - Sept. 22
Though you want it to last longer, once you put a block of cheese in the freezer, it will never be the same again.
Warm ice cream soup is not exactly the decadent confection that it has the potential of becoming.
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
Ever take the time to think about, and I mean Put your Facebook creeping habits to work really think about those little hairs on your and switch over to doing that on LinkedIn. fingers? Maybe it’ll actually get you a job offer.
While it is true that salt is leeching from the roads into the campus pond, I hear the duck at the U–Club is excellent this time of year!
It’s fairly alarming waking up on a Saturday morning to nine unremembered iTunes receipt e–mails for Rod Stewart.
sagittarius
nOv. 22 - Dec. 21
Want to turn your mundane milkshake into a blizzard? The addition of fresh snow adds just that magic.
An ear of corn makes a really good makeshift microphone.
cancer
capricorn
Jun. 22 - Jul. 22
Cookie crisp can be made way better if you just add Famous Amos to a bowl of milk.
Dec. 22 - Jan. 19
I would try for the film studies certificate, but I heard you don’t even watch “Meet the Fockers,” so, I mean, why bother?
THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
DailyCollegian.com
BLOWOUT
PAIN
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halftime break with a 40-24 lead. With a healthy lead intact, UMass coach Derek Kellogg’s message at halftime was for his team to avoid complacency. “I explained to them let’s not have them score a couple times, get [the lead] to nine, call a timeout,” he said. “No, let’s try to be the team that makes the run to start the half and put the game away and they were committed to that.” The players responded, opening the half on a 17-0 run to push the lead to its largest of the season at 31 points. At that point, the sellout crowd was as loud as it was all game, making a Rams comeback impossible. UMass doubled up Fordham when the score reached 65-32 midway through the second half. At that point, Kellogg went to freshmen Clyde Santee, Seth Berger and Demetrius Dyson to close out the game. All three came in and contributed offensively, with Dyson recording his first career points. All 11 players that dressed and played in the game scored for the Minutemen. UMass had four differ-
ent scorers in double digits—Williams, Trey Davis, Raphiael Putney and Maxie Esho—but it was Davis’ performance down the stretch that really stood out in the blowout victory. Davis played the final 13 minutes at point guard, leading the freshmen on offense and getting them involved while the upperclassmen were on the bench. “I was just trying to get them all involved,” Davis said. “I was in those footsteps last year, being a freshman, so I knew they were a little nervous, but just talking to them and getting them involved is what I was trying to do.” The Minutemen shot 52 percent from the field, a sizable improvement from Wednesday night’s 40 percent effort at Richmond. The win moves UMass back into a tie for second place in the A-10, one game behind undefeated Saint Louis. The Minutemen will look to build on this performance when they head to Olean, N.Y., to take on St. Bonaventure on Wednesday night. Patrick Strohecker can be reached at pstrohec@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @P_Strohecker.
LOSING STREAK The Minutewomen held Fordham to 36 points on 32 percent shooting in the second half, but only made 31 percent of their own shots for 29 points. Erin Rooney led the way for the Rams with 22 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Abigail Corning and Hannah Missry also scored in double digits, finishing with 18 and 14 points, respectively. “Rooney got the shots that she wanted,” UMass forward Kim Pierre-Louis said. “She would be able to just drive, get into her space.” Pierre-Louis led the offensive effort for the Minutewomen, earning her second straight doubledouble with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Jasmine Harris
“That’s the game-tying goal but as many times as Steve got touched during the course of that game, I would’ve like to have seen that go in a different direction.” Things were looking up for the Minutemen after Michael Pereira had quite the eventful second period in which he reached 50 career goals and 100 career points. He helped UMass tie the game at 1-1 when Conor Sheary found him crashing the net hard on Rasmus Tirronen’s (24 saves) blocker side. Pereira finished the power play goal at 2:49, which was the 50th goal of his career. The power play opportunity was created when Kyle Singleton went to the box for goalie interference less than a minute into the period. But the news wasn’t all positive as Pereira crashed hard into the boards after the goal and had to be helped off the ice by Troy Power and a trainer. He returned to the ice a few shifts later, though. “The air is kind of sucked out of your sails a little bit when you’re not even able to celebrate that moment with him and he goes off,” Micheletto said. “Obviously he’s not in a comfortable spot. He’s not injured but when your bones get jarred like they did going into the boards at that speed, for him to come back and give us as
CADE BELISLE/COLLEGIAN
Cady Lalanne had six points and five rebounds in UMass’ win over Fordham.
7
continued from page 8
to a UMass squad still learning how to play consistent basketball as the conference schedule unwinds. Building on impressive team success is imperative to future success within the conference, especially as new situations present themselves. “We feel like we weren’t playing UMass basketball and doing what we’re used to doing, Williams said. “So coming out today, we just wanted to focus on executing coach’s game plan and doing what we’re used to doing.” Williams led all scorers with 18 points and chipped in eight assists in 27 minutes of play, a relatively light workload on his standards. Fourteen of his 18 points came in the first half of play. He opened the floor offensively as well, hitting four 3-pointers in the game. But the scoring and energy displayed by Williams also reverberated up and down the entire bench. Trey Davis added 13 points and nine assists in 28 minutes of play; Maxie Esho chipped in 10 points of his own and freshmen Demetrius Dyson, Clyde Santee and Seth Berger combined for 15 points in 44 minutes, much to the delight of veterans on the team who spent most
of the second half celebrating and enjoying the performance on the bench. “What made me most happy and I guess proud was that the freshmen had been practicing really hard and giving the starters and the top eight (players) a good run in practice,” UMass coach Derek Kellogg said. “And to see them come in and duplicate during the game lends for more confidence and more guys we think we can go to.” Sellout Saturday’s game at Mullins Center was played in front of 9,493 fans, marking the third sellout this season. The team clearly reveled in the added attention, signaling to the crowd on numerous occasions and adding a number of flashy dunks in transition, much to the delight of the Mullins Center faithful. “It’s really nice to see that people are supporting the team and the program and coming out,” Kellogg said. “I mean, to have a sellout was a big, big time deal for us and we appreciate that as a team and I think the guys buy into it.” Mark Chiarelli can be reached at mchiarel@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @Mark_Chiarelli.
continued from page 8
added 11 points and three assists of her own. Fordham dominated UMass on the boards, finishing with a 50-31 advantage in rebounds, including a 17-8 edge in offensive rebounds that led to 20 second-chance points for the Rams. “Rebounding is really just timing and effort, and we didn’t do a good job boxing out,” Dawley said. “We just kept trying to do something random, see if we had a lineup that could do a better job boxing out. We did finally find that lineup, but we were never able to overcome the deficit that had been built already.” Dawley said she plans to keep experimenting with the lineup until she finds the one
MERRIMACK
Monday, January 27, 2014
that works best. “Try different groups that might have more desire than others and just keep looking for that lineup that might work,” she said. Pierre-Louis said the key for the team going forward is being come back when opponents start to pull away. “We need to find a way to score when it’s tough,” she said. “We need to be able to rally when the other team goes on a run.” The Minutewomen return to Mullins Center on Wednesday to host George Washington. Tip-off is set for 11:45 a.m. Jesse Mayfield-Sheehan can be reached at jmayfiel@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @jgms88.
CADE BELISLE/COLLEGIAN
Kiara Bomben and the UMass women’s basketball team lost its 11th straight after being blown out by Fordham.
PEREIRA
continued from page 8
ROBERT RIGO/COLLEGIAN
Merrimack forward Mike Collins moves up ice in the Warriors’ 5-2 loss to UMass on Friday night. many quality minutes as he did is a huge testament to his desire to win.” Pereira didn’t seem to lose a step as he scored his second goal of the game and period at the 18:05 mark when he deflected in a puck that Ben Gallacher put on net from between the goal line and left circle. The goal was also on the power play, this time after Lashyn was called for tripping. This was also a historic goal for Pereira as it was the 100th point of his career. He is only the fifth player to have 50 goals and 100 points in UMass history.
“He had a great jump tonight,” Micheletto said. “Obviously Michael not only displays unbelievable speed, but he’s got such great spirit for our team. Our guys are so fond of him, for him to get his 50th goal and 100th career point.” Merrimack got on the board first when Vinny Scotti won a face-off at the right circle and found Lashyn, who let one rip from the point to beat Mastalerz high blocker side at the 4:32 mark in the first. After scoring five goals the previous night, the
Minutemen failed to muster much of an offensive attack in the first frame. The Warriors outshot UMass 13-4 in the first with the most notable scoring chances coming from a Sheary rush and a Gallacher shot from the point while his team was on the penalty kill. The Minutemen will try to rebound next Friday when they host Boston University at 7:30 in front of a national audience on NBC Sports Network. Cameron McDonough can be reached at cameronm@umass.edu and followed on twitter @Cam_McDonough.
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“That’s the way it goes. (Merrimack) is a little harder in the crease and it’s something we can look back on and say, ‘You got outworked, you got outbattled.’ “It made it a completely different game,” he added. “It kind of put us on our heels a little bit.” Pereira hits century mark Overshadowed in UMass’ disappointing defeat is the achievements of Pereira, whose two-goal performance gave him a pair of career milestones. The senior forward’s first goal 2:41 into the second period gave him 50 for his career, while his second at 18:05 was his 100th career point. Pereira became the fifth player in UMass history to score 50 career goals and 100 career points. “It would’ve been better if we won,” Pereira said. “I didn’t come here to try to score 100 points, I came here to try to get a win. As for the milestones, that’s something I can look back on and something to be
proud of. “It hasn’t really sit in yet. I think tomorrow maybe I’ll get a couple calls, celebrate with my family. It’ll be fun.” Saturday was only part of a highly productive weekend for Pereira, who scored a goal and assist in the Minutemen’s 5-2 win over Merrimack on Friday as well. Despite the loss, Micheletto took time to praise his senior’s accomplishments. “He had a great jump (Saturday),” he said of Pereira. “Not only does Michael display unbelievable speed, he’s got such great spirit for our team. Our guys are so fond of him, so for him to get his 50th goal and 100th career point. … to come back and give us as many minutes as he did is a huge testament to his desire to help us win.” Nick Canelas can be reached at ncanelas@umass.edu and followed on Twitter @NickCanelas.
THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN
Monday, January 27, 2014
Sports@DailyCollegian.com
@MDC_SPORTS
MEN’S BASKETBALL
BATTERING RAMS
HOCKEY
UM slips in third for loss Michael Pereira scores 100th point By caMeron McDonough Collegian Staff
NORTH ANDOVER — Saturday night was set up to be a special and historic night for Michael Pereira and the Massachusetts hockey team. But then the third period happened. Merrimack struck for two goals in Merrimack 3 the final frame and 3-2 UMass 2 won against the
TAYLOR C. SNOW/COLLEGIAN
Maxie Esho throws down a dunk in UMass men’s basketball’s 90-52 win over Fordham.
UMass buries Fordham Minutemen back for bounce-back win to November form “Especially coming off a By Patrick Strohecker Collegian Staff
For a brief moment, it looked like the Massachusetts men’s basketball team never fully recovered from its upset loss at Richmond on Wednesday night. Hosting Fordham in front of 9,493 fans at Mullins UMass 90 Center on Sunday afterFordham 52 noon, No. 13 UMass spotted the Rams a 7-0 lead to open the game. That was Fordham’s only positive moment for the game. The Minutemen (17-2, 4-1 Atlantic 10) responded to the Rams’ (8-11, 1-5 A-10) run with a 20-2 run and never looked back, cruising to a 90-52 win. It’s the largest win in school history over Fordham.
loss last game, we wanted to come out and feel like we got our swagger back.” Derek Kellogg, UMass coach
“Especially coming off a loss last game, we wanted to come out and feel like we got our swagger back,” senior Chaz Williams said. “We felt like we weren’t playing UMass basketball and doing what we’re used to doing, so coming out today we just wanted to focus on executing coach’s game plan and doing what we’re used to doing.” Williams scored 14 of his gamehigh 18 points in the first half, as the Minutemen coasted into the see
BLOWOUT on page 7
By Mark chiarelli Collegian Staff
When the Massachusetts men’s basketball team took the floor for warm-ups prior to Sunday’s 90-52 thrashing of Fordham, it unveiled a new t-shirt. Each player jogged onto the floor in matching white shirts with “Time For Pain” emblazoned across the chest in maroon lettering. The team wore them on the bench throughout the game, replacing the usual warmup attire. And while the moniker P.A.I.N. isn’t a new rallying cry for UMass – it stands for pressure, agitate, interrupt and neutralize – the Minutemen finally reminded fans of the reckless abandon their shirts suggested was capable. It was the most dominant performance of the season. UMass put together impressive runs through-
out the entire game, burying a Rams team with a 20-2 explosion after initially trailing 7-0. Eleven different Minutemen scored and each of those players tallied at least nine minutes of playing time. UMass overwhelmed on both the offensive and defensive ends, attacking in droves against a Fordham squad that quickly shied away from matching the energy level. The performance was a far cry from a recent string of dicey conference performances, which included a 58-55 loss to Richmond this past Wednesday. “Especially coming off a loss last game, we wanted to come out and feel like we got our swagger back,” Minutemen point guard Chaz Williams said. The victory served as a reminder
see
PAIN on page 7
Minutemen (7-16-3, 3-8-2 Hockey East) at Lawler Arena. The Warriors’ winning goal came when Hampus Gustafsson found his brother John Gustafsson crashing the net on a 2-on-1 opportunity. John Gustafsson proceeded to deke and score on Steve Mastalerz with a bankhand goal 6:04 into the third period. The goal came after poor pinching by UMass in the neutral zone. Merrimack (7-13-3, 2-7-2 HEA) tied the game up at 3:53 in the third period after a Minuteman knocked Jonathan Lashyn into Mastalerz (31 saves). Chris LeBlanc then found the loose puck and he finished on a wide-open net as Mastalerz struggled to regain his footing. “I get that there was contact, but it’s a tough pill to swallow,” UMass coach John Micheletto said of the game-tying goal. see
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
UMass falls to Rams
Minutewomen drop 11th straight game By JeSSe MayfielD-Sheehan
HOCKEY
Collegian Staff
MC’s tying goal turning point in contest UM allows two late goals in three minutes By nick canelaS Collegian Staff
NORTH ANDOVER — As the officials made their way to the video booth, all the Massachusetts hockey team could do was wait and hope. Merrimack thought it had just tied the game. The Minutemen were waiting for the seemingly inevitable overturn of the goal. Chris LeBlanc just put the puck into what was a wide open net to make it a 2-2 game in the third period after UMass goaltender Steve Mastalerz was knocked out of his crease by Warriors defenseman Jonathan Lashyn. In most cases, that’s a goalie interference penalty, not a goal. But what most people didn’t see was the UMass defenseman that cross-checked Lashyn into Mastalerz. The officials made the clear decision and the crowd at Lawler Arena erupted.
MERRIMACK on page 7
Goal stood. Tie game. What followed was a complete 180-degree turn in energy and emotion. The Minutemen once appeared on their way to a convincing weekend sweep of lastplace Merrimack. Two minutes, 11 seconds after the tying goal, they were on their way to a 3-2 loss to settle for the weekend split. It was a game full of lead changes and personal milestones by Michael Pereira, but only one moment stood out to UMass coach John Micheletto after the game. “It’s a tough turn there when you get a shove from behind and our goaltender gets completely cleaned out of the blue paint to score an empty-net goal to tie it up,” he said. “I get that there was contact, but it’s a tough pill to swallow when the game-tying goal (came) with as many times as Steve got touched during the course of that game. “I would’ve liked to see it go in a different direction,” Micheletto continued, “but obviously coming off of it we didn’t manage our emo-
ROBERT RIGO/COLLEGIAN
Steve Mastalerz allowed five goals in two starts for UMass hockey this weekend. tions. … It’s difficult to watch an empty-net goal be that big a part of the game.” It was a swing the Minutemen weren’t ready for, and it was apparent in the way a deflated group came on the ice for the rest of the contest. The game’s turning point passed and Merrimack seized it
when a Mike Busillo turnover in the neutral zone turned into a 2-on1 chance and a Warriors go-ahead goal. “Looking back at it, guys gotta pick up sticks after the push into (Mastalerz),” Pereira said. see
PEREIRA on page 7
Many of the Massachusetts women’s basketball team’s games have seemed lost from the get-go this season. The Minutewomen would allow their opponents to grab large leads within the first five minutes of Fordham 80 the game, and then to UMass 54 have play catchup for the remainder of the contest. In Saturday’s game against Fordham, UMass kept up with its opponent through most of the first half, never trailing by more than three through the first 10 minutes and even taking the lead at one point. The Rams saved their run for the end of the first half, outscoring the Minutewomen 19-8 in the last seven minutes to take a 44-25 lead at halftime, pulling away to hand UMass its 11th straight loss, 80-54. “We were playing relatively well and then had a major breakdown on (defense), and then we never came back from that particular deficit,” UMass coach Sharon Dawley said. see
LOSING STREAK on page 7