Rugby team ranked No. 2 in nation see page 28
When genocide becomes personal see page 25
Check out the Web site for breaking news and more.
Commentary: A generation of self-love see page 15
The University of Delaware’s Independent Newspaper Since 1882
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 Volume 136, Issue 10
A sogg y, spooky Homecoming Wet weather, Hens’ loss fail to dampen Saturday’s festivities
Students and alumni alike swapped Halloween’s orange and black for UD blue and gold on Saturday as thousands braved rainy conditions to root on the Blue Hens, catch up with old friends and eat, drink and be scary. A crowd of 20,639 was on hand to witness James Madison University defeat the Hens 20-8 in a game that saw quarterback Pat Devlin sacked eight times and the offense never reach the endzone. Still, UD spirit never wavered, as costumed fans cheered on the home team. Two robberies in Newark Saturday night tainted the festivities, but overall, police reported one of the least problematic Homecomings in recent memory, as most students dispersed from the tailgate when asked and police made few arrests.
PHOTOS BY AYELET DANIEL
inside 1 News
For coverage of Homecoming festivities see pages 6 and 7, for coverage of the game see page 28
14 Editorial
15 Opinion
17 Mosaic
21 Media Darling
27 Classifieds
28 Sports
2 November 3, 2009
Letter from the Editors
Dear readers,
Last week, I had the once-in-a-lifetime chance to visit the New York Times newsroom in Manhattan. As part of a field trip for my Global Media and Politics class, my classmates and I took a tour of the newsroom and met with a foreign affairs editor and members of the Times’ editorial board. Few places represent journalism better than the Times’ building. One of the most-read and most-respected news organizations in the world, the paper is one of very few to still have foreign bureaus around the world. From the six-story newsroom in the 8th Avenue skyscraper, the paper’s journalists print stories that are read in capitals around the world. And from a 13th floor conference room, the Times’ editorial board writes editorials that often affect policy in those very capitals. That’s the power of journalism — it literally can change the world. That’s why, on a much smaller scale, of course, we at The Review spend so much time in a cramped office in Perkins Student Center putting out the paper each week. Many say print journalism is dying. Maybe that’s true (even though I still have faith that there are enough people who enjoy sitting down with a newspaper more than with a computer). But, journalism, in whatever form, is not going anywhere.
THE REVIEW/Josh Shannon
Members of the UD Swing Club perform a costumed version of “Thriller” Friday at Perkins Student Center.
Faithfully yours,
Josh Shannon, Editor in Chief
THE REVIEW/Ayelet Daniel
The Review is published once weekly every Tuesday of the school year, except during Winter and Summer Sessions. Our main office is located at 250 Perkins Student Center, Newark, DE 19716. If you have questions about advertising or news content, see the listings below.
Newsroom: Phone:(302) 831-2774 Fax: (302) 831-1396 E-mail: editor@udreview.com Advertising: Classifieds: (302) 831-2771 or classifieds@udreview.com Display advertising: (302) 831-1398 or email ads@udreview.com Fax: (302) 831-1395 For information about joining The Review, email recruiter@udreview.com The Review reserves the right to refuse any ads that are of an improper or inappropriate time, place and manner. The ideas and opinions of advertisements appearing in this publication are not necessarily those of The Review staff or the university.
Read The Review online and sign up for breaking news alerts:
www.udreview.com
UD cheerleaders get into the Halloween spirit at Saturday’s game. Editor in Chief Josh Shannon Executive Editor Maddie Thomas
Copy Desk Chiefs Claire Gould, Nora Kelly Editorial Editors Haley Marks, Lydia Woolever Managing Mosaic Editors Alexandra Duszak, Ted Simmons Managing News Editors Ashley Biro, Elisa Lala Managing Sports Editors Pat Maguire, Matt Waters Photography Editor Natalie Carillo Staff Photographers Nicole Aizaga, Ayelet Daniel, Christine Fallabel Multimedia Editor Michelle Trincia Layout Editor Larissa Cruz
THE REVIEW/Natalie Carillo
YoUDee and Baby Blue sport Where’s Waldo costumes on Halloween.
Administrative News Editor Tad Kasiak City News Editor Katie Speace News Features Editor Caitlin Maloney Student Affairs News Editor Erica Cohen Assistant News Editor Marina Koren Senior News Reporter Stephanie Kraus
Features Editors Annie Ulizio, Jackie Zaffarano Entertainment Editors Bryan Berkowitz, Allyson Heisler Senior Mosaic Reporter Jordan Allen delaware UNdressed Columnist Brittany Harmon Fashion Forward Columnist Jackie Zaffarano
Sports Editors Tim Mastro, Emily Nassi Assistant Sports Editor Ellen Craven
Copy Editors Samantha Brix, Monica Trobagis, Adam Tzanis, Joy Wedge Sports Copy Editor Elliot Grossman Cartoonist Allison Schwartz Recruitment Manager Ashlee Bradbury Advertising Director Eric Mojito, Claire Gould Business Manager Annie Mirabito
November 3, 2009
3
U.S. Secretar y of Education visits UD BY ASHLEY BIRO Managing News Editor
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan spoke to an audience of more than 500 Delaware educators about Vision 2015 on Oct. 27 at Clayton Hall. According to its Web site, Vision 2015 was developed by a 28-person committee of senior public, private and civic leaders from throughout the state. The program was established to assure a high-quality education for every student in Delaware by 2015. Duncan addressed the issues facing students in grades K-12, as well as students in college. “The president has drawn a line in the sand. He has said by the year 2020, we have to lead the world in the percent of college graduates,” Duncan said. “We used to lead the world probably two and a half decades ago. We’ve flat-lined. We’ve stagnated. Many other countries have passed us by, and, collectively, we pay a price.” He said this is a time of great opportunity for the country and for the state of Delaware to breakthrough and improve in early childhood education, grades K-12 and higher education. “We have to get dramatically better in all of those areas,and we have to do it now in order to get where we need to go,” Duncan said. The establishment of a strong educational background starts at the early childhood education level. He said the country has been trying to keep up with the different levels of education, and every child should have the chance to be given a great foundation. “In education, we have to get out of the catch-up business. Every level, we’re catching up,” Duncan said. “Universities have too many remedial classes. High schools are doing too much of what doesn’t happen in middle school. And, ultimately for us to get out of the catch-up game, it goes all the way back to early childhood education.” The Obama administration is also invested in the community college system. Duncan said he thinks community colleges are the unrecognized jewel of the education system continuum. “Whether it’s healthcare jobs or tech jobs, if the country gets back on its feet, families get back on their feet, we think community colleges are going to play a huge role there,” he said. University president Patrick Harker said the university,
along with former Provost Dan Rich, has been involved with Vision 2015 from its beginning in Oct. 2006. “As a result of the Vision, we have moved our school of education toward aligning our future training practices with the vision of Vision 2015,” Harker said. Duncan also addressed the issue of making college more affordable for students and parents, and said the Obama administration has created new resources to aid in that process. “A historic increase in the Pell Grant, Perkins Loans and tuition tax credits, over $30 billion already there, another $70 billion coming in this package that could pass at the Senate, to really make sure that every child has a chance to go to college,” Duncan said. Specifically, Duncan focused on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. “I want a huge push to dramatically simplify the financial aid form, the FAFSA form, and those of you who have gone THE REVIEW/Ashley Biro through that form know that the form itself is a barrier to entry,” Arne Duncan discussed Vision 2015 Oct. 27. he said. “You basically have to have Ph.D. to figure it out.” Alison Taub, Red Clay district parent advisory council pres- working as teachers in other states, due to the standards of the ident, said she thought what Duncan had to say was beneficial, education program. and she is happy with the direction the country is headed with “We’ve recognized that part of our mission, as the flagship education reform. university of the state, is not just for us to produce great students, “His thoughts were very down-to-earth and realistic, but but also for working with the other institutions in the state so we with high expectations, which is what we need,” Taub said. can learn from each other,” he said. Jill Simonds, member of the Parent Information Center of Taub said she appreciated Markell directly addressing the Delaware, said she thought it was great to hear different perspec- issue of the lack of funds for education in Delaware. tives on the issue. “When Markell said, ‘I don’t have a Plan B. I’m not going “I thought it was phenomenal,” Simonds said. “The infor- to talk about what happens when we don’t get the money because mation was great. It was great to have different people here.” we’re going to get the money,’ I think there’s a huge spotlight on Delaware Gov. Jack Markell said the state is working toward education in Delaware right now, which is great because it’s been achieving a high level of success in the education reform. broken for a long time,” she said. “Failing school reflects struggling communities and parents, Duncan said he and the Obama administration are working and until we face this reality head on, we’re unlikely to achieve hard to improve and restructure education across the country. the level of success we demand of ourselves,” Markell said. “The president’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, has a great “These struggles are not an excuse of failure, but they must serve line – ‘Never waste a good crisis.’ Well, we have a couple good as a wake-up call for more urgency.” crises on our hands, and it’s often in times of crisis, whether we Harker said the university is working with other institutions like it or not, that we get the kinds of breakthroughs we need,” in Delaware to achieve the goals of Vision 2015. He said he also Duncan said. “So, we really do see this as a huge opportunity.” feels the university’s education students would perform well
Gwen Ifill shares past journalistic experiences BY NORA KELLY Copy Desk Chief
Journalist Gwen Ifill spoke about her book The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama on Thursday in the Thompson Theatre of the Roselle Center for the Arts. After a lengthy introduction by James Jones, director of the Black American Studies program, listing her qualifications as a journalist, Ifill remarked “I’ll try to do less.” Ifill is a senior correspondent for The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and moderator and managing editor of Washington Week. The event was a continued part of the lecture series, “Assessing Obama’s First Year.” Ifill said throughout her career as a political journalist, she has noticed a generation of young African-Americans taking office as the outcome of the civil rights movement of the ’60s, and wanted to write about their stories. Her book is the culmination of years of work and observation, and not a treatise on Barack Obama, she said. The book, which features a chapter on the president, also focuses on politicians such as Mayor Cory Booker of Newark, N.J. and Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick. She spoke of the significance of this new group of politicians, saying their positions in politics and on the national stage is racially significant, but also that their rise has been a significant generational handoff from the civil rights leaders. Ifill described how her father’s example of always having newspapers in their house and watching the news encouraged her to be knowledgeable about current events. She said her childhood experiences influenced her decision to become a journalist, a career she always knew she wanted, and inspired
told,” Ifill said. her to encourage this Ifill said in knowledge in others. speaking to young “I want to create a people she has found culture of news literacy,” increasing numbers she said. of them are becoming Ifill’s presentation interested in public was sponsored by the service but not necesBlack American Studies sarily elected office. program in cooperation She said young peowith several other univerple want to change sity depatments. the world and have an A question and influence, but some answer session followed do not see elected her lecture, and the audioffice as the solution. ence of university memIfill spoke of the bers and Newark commucampaign’s nity members asked her THE REVIEW/ Alyssa Benedetto Obama strategy in appealing about topics ranging from Gwen Iffil spoke Thursday. to young people. She Jesse Jackson’s involvement in the Obama campaign to her opinion said the campaign harnessed technology to go to where the young voters were, using an about Fox News. One audience member asked Ifill which individualistic and personalized approach in generation she feels she belongs to: the civil their use of Facebook and other Web sites to rights generation or the new generation she influence young people’s votes. She added writes about in her book. Ifill said she does voters could create their own pages endorsnot have to choose either, and while her ing Obama. “You could be ‘Left-handed Gay identity as an African-American woman Women of Latino and Japanese Ancestry informs her reporting, it does not define it. Ifill said as an African-American For Obama’,” she said. In an interview before the speech, Ifill female journalist her objectivity is quesspoke of Obama’s campaign strategy in tioned at times. “I find that people are more likely to appealing to a broad audience, and how it is think neutral as having a white male face,” difficult for a president to be attractive to the masses. She attributes this to the generIfill said. She spoke about how her life experi- al public viewing presidents differently ences have brought a distinctive perspective from when they are governing than when and sensitivity to the newsrooms she has they were candidates. “I covered Bill Clinton when he first worked in, and if a newspaper’s staff is not as diverse as the news it reports, important became president and it was shocking to him, too, that all of the sudden all of the issues slip through the cracks. “The biggest bias in any newsroom in high-minded stuff he said in the campaign, the country are the stories that don’t get A. he couldn’t carry out and B. people don’t
take you at face value anymore,” Ifill said. In the interview, Ifill also expressed her thoughts on the opinion-based segments of Fox News and other media outlets. “I think it is okay for them to exist and I think it is fine for the Glenn Becks to flourish as long as people understand that that’s not news,” she said. “I don’t really have a problem with people coming up with opinion or craziness or Jim Cramer throwing things at the camera as long as they don’t confuse what they do with what I do.” An audience member also asked Ifill about Fox News and the White House’s recent decrying of the cable channel. Ifill said parts of Fox’s programming are opinion-based, but there is legitimate reporting of the news, as well. According to her, the White House was picking a fight with Fox News, and if other news stations perpetuate any false information presented by Fox, they are as much at fault as Fox is. “We pick up on what Fox does and expand it, and that’s okay if it’s the Balloon Boy, but not if it’s ACORN,” she said. Students in POSC360 were required to attend the lecture, but not required to read Ifill’s book, sophomore Rachel Giattino, a student in the class, said. Sophomore Madelyn McGill, also in the class, said Ifill was an engaging speaker.. “I thought she was very informative,” McGill said. After Ifill’s question and answer session, Newark Mayor Vance A. Funk III named her honorary mayor. A book signing and reception also followed the event. Referring to Ifill’s visit to Newark, Funk said, “We’re greater because great people like you come.”
review this
4 November 3, 2009
police reports
Money stolen from house on Cleveland Avenue A21-year-old male residing on East Cleveland Avenue had money stolen from him between 1:00 and 1:30 a.m. Sunday, Cpl. Gerald Bryda of the Newark police said. The victim returned home with cash he had earned that night at his job and placed it in his room. The victim’s roommate, who was at home sleeping, heard footsteps on the third floor but thought it was the victim, Bryda said. The unidentified suspect entered the room wearing what appeared to be a Halloween costume, and the victim’s roommate escorted the allegedly intoxicated suspect out of the residence. Later, the victim returned to find the window on the third floor open and the money from his room missing, Bryda said. The suspect was described as a white male, 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall with an average build, 150 to 160 pounds and wearing short pants, suspenders, no shirt and a green hat.
Unknown man with BB gun found at party Newark Police received a call at 1:08 a.m. Sunday about an unknown guest at a house party allegedly in possession of a handgun, Bryda said. Residents of the house, located on South College Avenue, said minutes before police arrived, an unknown man inside the party had loaded a handgun and placed it into his waistband. The officers cleared out the party with the hope of finding the suspect as guests left, Bryda said. The suspect was found and taken into custody, but at this point he did not have the gun on him. The suspect, an 18-year-old Newark man, was charged with underage consumption of alcohol, Bryda said. The next day, residents found a BB gun which wasn’t loaded and was a very realistic replica of Walthur handgun, Bryda said. - Katie Speace
b e s t of t h e b l o g s
A sampling from The Review’s blogs this week UD Citizens of the World: Haley Marks writes about Better World Books, a company that helps fight illiteracy in impovershed nations. Green Love: Maddie Thomas writes about Eddie Vedder, Portland, Oregon’s Cimate Action Plan and the current beef recall.
Campus Cravings: Erica Cohen (pictured) and Marina Koren write about the best places to get brunch on Main Street.
Check out these posts and more online at:
www.udreview.com/blogs
This Week in History
Nov. 5, 1983 - Vice President George Bush spoke at Clayton Hall as part of the university’s Founder’s Day celebrations. Bush recieved an honorary degree from the university.
p h o t o of t h e w e e k
THE REVIEW/Ayelet Daniel
Students tailgate before Saturday’s Homecoming game.
Colin Powell to speak tonight
In his first visit to the university, Gen. Colin Powell, former Secretary of State, will deliver a public lecture at the Bob Carpenter Center tonight at 8:30 p.m. Powell was the first African American chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. This evening’s speech, “Diplomacy: Persuasion, Trust and Values,” is part of the UD Speaks series, which featured a talk by CNN news anchor Anderson Cooper last spring. The lecture will be
in b r i e f
followed by a question and answer session.
Winter Session registration open now
Registration for Winter Session 2010 began yesterday for all students and will continue through Jan. 7, during which students can drop or add courses with no charge. Students can register for winter classes online on UDSIS, or register in person at the Student Services Building on Lovett Avenue, Monday through
t h i n g s to do
Submit events to calendar@udreview.com
Tuesday, Nov. 3 “Fashioning Social Responsibility,” a distinguished speaker lecture series sponsored by the Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies, with a panel discussion on the UD Sustainability Institute. Mitchell Hall, 7 p.m. Wednesday Nov. 4 “Little Night of Music” in the Scrounge at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5 Elon Musk, CEO of Tusla Motors Gore Recital Hall at 4 pm.
THE REVIEW/File photo
Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Spring semester registration begins Thursday, Nov. 19.
“Assessing Obama’s First Year” series continues Wednesday
The “Assessing Obama’s First Year” series, held every Wednesday in Mitchell Hall at 7:30 p.m., will feature a lecture by political science professor Muqtedar Khan this week called “Obama and the Muslim World.” The lecture series is free and open to the public.
Friday, Nov. 6 V8 hosts “First Friday” event Alumni Lounge of the Perkins Student Center at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7 “You can Never Tell by George Bernard Shaw” Hartshorn Theater. 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 8 The film “Rumba” Trabant Theatre,7:30 pm
Monday, Nov. 9 4th annual Mr. Fraternity Competition Trabant MPR at 5:00 p.m.
November 3, 2009
5
Biden announces electric car plant in Delaware
Newark implements green initiatives throughout city
Newark has made several efforts to become more sustainable.
BY NORA KELLY Copy Desk Chief
The city of Newark has partnered with the Conservation Advisory Commission to implement projects that will lessen the city’s carbon footprint and increase public awareness of environmental issues. The CAC is a city-appointed committee that makes recommendations to the city council about environmental concerns and programs, Steve Dentel, a member of the CAC and engineering professor at the university, said. Carol Houck, assistant to the city manager, said Newark received a grant in September that would qualify the city to receive $147,800 in stimulus funds for energy efficiency and conservation. Houck said her office has begun investigating the improvement of city facilities to increase energy efficiency. The CAC wants to help the city decrease its carbon footprint in a cost-effective way, Dentel said. “The tax revenues are down, even electric revenues are down, so they’re not excited about spending extra money on the environment,” Dentel said. The CAC is evaluating how much the city would decrease its carbon footprint per each dollar it spends. Houck said it has offered to perform a carbon footprint study for the city. CAC member Ann Morrison said the study would seek to assess the energy efficiency of city facilities and vehicles, so that the city can evaluate the impact of any future changes it makes with regard to energy policy. “It’s a good place to get a baseline now so, as you make changes, you can go back and see that your carbon footprint is hopefully decreasing,” Morrison said. The city has also focused its attention on Newark residents and their energy efficiency. It founded Green Energy Subscriptions, a voluntary program that permits residents to directly purchase green renewable energy for their homes, said Dennis McFarland, director of finance for Newark. He said residents participating in the program must pay a surcharge of .21 cents per hundred kilowatt block of energy, and the city takes those subscriptions to its agent, the Delaware Municipal Electric Corporation, which buys the green energy. The program has 264 participants currently, and there is no eligibility restriction for participation, McFarland said. Students living off campus should be eligible for the program, he said. Residents may also be affected by an anti-idling ordinance, developed by the CAC, Dentel said. The ordinance, passed on May 26, was modeled after the state’s ordinance restricting the idling time of heavyduty vehicles only, but Newark’s ordinance pertains to all vehicles. The state has had trouble enforcing the heavy-duty vehicle ordinance. Dentel said Newark police will enforce the ordinance if the city supports it. The police respond to the directives and wants of the city, he said. “We didn’t want to overtax the policemen, but it was something to extend that consciousness message,” Morrison said. Residents can further participate in reducing the
THE REVIEW/File photo
city’s carbon footprint by implementing the curbside recycling program in June. When trash is taken to landfills, the city has to pay a tipping fee to the landfills, Dentel said. However, he said with curbside recycling, the companies that collect the recycling make a profit off the materials, such as aluminum, and thus the city does not have to pay a tipping fee. The city also is trying to encourage private builders and construction companies to build green. The CAC has been working on a multi-tiered green building incentives project, which includes a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification program. LEED certification designates that a building has been made following guidelines for environmental sustainability. The city and CAC want to encourage builders to construct using LEED guidelines. Morrison said the LEED program was voluntary at first. However participation in the program was minimal, and in response the CAC developed a mandatory minimum point system for LEED certification, she said. Points correlate with specific energy conservation technologies used in constructing LEED-certified buildings. Dentel said this phase of the CAC’s project is still in development. “The CAC has proposed to the city that we require all new commercial and industrial buildings and all residential developments of six residences or more to have a certain number of LEED points,” he said. The number of points required would correspond to half the value needed to have a certified green building, and the minimum quantity would increase every year, he said. Dentel said the university has stated that tit does not want to get LEED certification of university buildings. “The problem at the university and with all developers is that they will build green when it saves money in the short term. They are not building green when the savings are longer term and that can mean even five years,” he said. University Facilities has a process to evaluate the possible LEED credits that can be obtained for new construction projects and for renovation projects, allowing UD to be conscience of the environment and cost for both new construction and renovation, John Brennan, university spokesman, stated in an e-mail message. Financial concerns affect the city’s and individual building companies’ interest in energy efficiency and green technology, Dentel said. Builders are not used to building green at this time, and so the city has to make certain programs, like the LEED points program, mandatory to encourage green building, he said. “Even if it costs extra money, we should be building green. We shouldn’t have to justify building green by saying it saves you money,” Dentel said. “We’re saving money at the expense of future generations.”
BY JOSH SHANNON and MADDIE THOMAS The Review NEWPORT, Del. — Vice President Joe Biden returned home on Oct. 27 to help state officials announce plans for an electric car manufacturer to reopen a vacant auto plant in northern Delaware. Fisker Automotive will buy the former General Motors plant on Boxwood Road, which closed in July after 62 years in operation. The Irvine, California-based company will use the site to produce a plug-in hybrid sedan currently in development. The cars are estimated to cost approximately $39,000 after federal tax incentives. Production is expected to begin in 2012. Speaking at the plant to an audience of mostly United Auto Workers, members who used to work for GM, Biden praised Fisker’s efforts to invest in energy-efficient cars. “People said the days of America providing the wheels for the world were over, and it wasn’t just the auto industry, it was all manufacturing in America,” Biden said. “But we’re here standing today proving the beginning of what we’re going to be able to say: ‘The doubters were wrong about our ability to manufacture.’ ” The announcement is welcome news for Delaware, which, in the last year, has seen its oncestrong auto industry vanish. In addition to the GM plant closing, Chrysler closed its Newark assembly plant in December. Last month, the university signed a deal to purchase the Chrysler site and eventually plans to use it for a research and development facility.
“It’s a bittersweet day for a lot of our brothers and sisters at Chrysler,” Biden said. “We’re not opening that plant again. That’s not a place where we’re having that kind of rebirth.” Still, the mood was celebratory among state officials, who spent the last few months lobbying Fisker officials to close their deal to purchase the GM plant. “This is our sunny day,” Sen. Tom Carper said. The Fisker plant, which will eventually produce up to 100,000 vehicles per year, is expected to bring more than 2,000 factory jobs and 3,000 supplier jobs to the state. “Today, that new chapter begins,” Gov. Jack Markell said. “It may very well be the start of our state's economic future.” Fisker executives say the company was lured to Delaware by the size of the vacant plant, the proximity to the Port of Wilmington and a variety of tax incentives offered by state officials. Biden, who has long enjoyed the support of the UAW, often spent time at the plant while running for office. He said he envisions a future in which the plant will return to prominence in the auto industry. “Imagine a day when 2,000 workers are once again passing through those gates being harassed by politicians like me,” Biden said. “Imagine a day when this plant, on the floor we'’re standing on right now, is making 100,000 plug-in, hybrid sedans, coupes and crossovers every single year. Imagine an America that has freed itself from the grip of the oligarchs of oil by plugging their cars into a new electric grid of renewable energy.”
Biden spoke at the former GM plant in Newport.
THE REVIEW/Natalie Carillo
6 November 3, 2009
Alumni travel to Newark for Homecoming Football game, tailgate highlights of weekend festivities BY LAUREN SAVOIE Staff Reporter
University graduates young and old braved the rain and came together this weekend for football, food and fun during this year’s Homecoming festivities. Events held throughout the weekend included brunches hosted by university colleges, a Black Alumni Organization dance and the class of 1959 reunion dinner, but the highlight for many was Saturday’s football game at Delaware Stadium against James Madison University. Thousands of students and alumni, many in costume, came out to the football stadium Saturday morning to tailgate before the noon kickoff, taking time to meet up with old friends and reminisce. For some, like Brea McMillen who graduated last spring, it was the first time coming back to the university as an alumna. McMillen said she was excited to come back for Homecoming to meet up with friends she has not seen since graduation, but found visiting the university as an alumna a bittersweet experience. “I love UD. I wouldn’t have it any other way,” McMillen said. “But coming back makes me miss it so much.” She said she was also curious to see what would happen when Homecoming and Halloween were combined. “I was skeptical at first because I thought people would go a little crazy, but it’s been really good,” McMillen said. “People seem to really be having fun with it.” For others, like class of ’77 alumnus Bill Kearns,
this year’s homecoming was one of many attended throughout a lifetime. Kearns said he has returned to the same tailgate spot every year since graduation to celebrate Homecoming and has watched the university change and expand year by year. “It was much more of a party institution when I was here. Of course I was here in the mid-seventies, which was a good time for that,” he said. “I think it’s grown in terms of its academic stature and how it’s viewed outside of Delaware. I don’t think anybody when I was here would have called it an academic powerhouse.” Trudy Strusowski, class of ’82 alumna, added that the university has not only grown in stature, but in size. “Back in the Dark Ages it was a lot smaller,” she said. “It’s a lot, lot bigger now.” Strusowski, dressed in a Halloween sweater, said she was enjoying the unique atmosphere of the day. “I think it’s fun to see everyone’s themed tailgates and everyone dressed up,” she said. “It’s something very different than previous years.” Jeff Moyer, a ’91 graduate, said he and his family members were also looking forward to spending Halloween in Newark until the weather set in. “We were going to bring costumes and stay for trick-or-treating, but because of the rain we didn’t,” Moyer said. While the rain deterred his family from getting festive, Moyer said he was happy to see the rain did not seem to stop people from coming out to the game. “I think it’s a great atmosphere, given the weather,” he said. “People seem fired up.”
Sudents and alumni gathered Saturday to tailgate before the football game.
With thousands of people trafficking through three parking lots full of tents, tables, and trucks, at least one alumnus was overwhelmed with the morning’s festivities. Michael Nash, an ’08 graduate school alumnus, said it was his first time at a university football game and he was not impressed with the setup of the tailgate. “I think the way they have everyone crowded here is just a terrible idea,” he said.”Everyone’s so close. Despite the rain and the tight quarters, many alumni relished the opportunity to relive their glory days. Strusowski said she and her family enjoy coming to the game because they get to experience all the things they miss most about college. “College was all about the football,” she said. “And the frat parties.” Kearns said his college memories stick with him as some of the best in his life. “I think my fondest memories were just the friends I made, the people I knew in my fraternity, stupid little things like sitting around chatting,” he said. “And of course, back then there were a lot of parties.” Mike Fisher, class of ’02, said he enjoys attending Homecoming because it gives him a chance to join in the university camaraderie. “The best days in college were always days like this when everybody comes together and has a good time,” Fisher said. “Everyone’s here for the same reason.” Moyer added that the feeling of community is what keeps him coming back year after year. “I love the football, love the atmosphere,” he said. “More than anything, I love the people.”
THE REVIEW/Ayelet Daniel
November 3, 2009
DE Angler Association wins RSO Olympics BY BRIAN RESNICK Staff Reporter
Amongst the school spirit and excitement of homecoming week, the RSO Olympics took place last week and engaged student clubs in a competition for money and bragging rights. The DE Angler Association won the games. Junior Alex Aten, press secretary for the club, said he is happy his club won the competition. “It feels really good to win, I’m very proud of the club,” Aten said. The RSO Olympics is a weeklong competition among the various student organizations on campus held in conjunction with Homecoming. The banner and spirit competitions have been going on for over a decade, but this is the first year that they are a part of the larger RSO Olympics, Laura McGrath, a graduate assistant in the student centers office, said. “It’s a way for the RSOs to get a little competitive,” McGrath said. “And it gets people ready for Homecoming and shows UD spirit.” The olympics consisted of four separate events, she said. There was a campus trivia search on Wednesday, won by the UD Angler Association. The contest involved following text message clues to certain areas around campus and taking pictures. On Thursday, the Intervarsity Christian Fellowship won the 5-on-5 flag football tournament. On Friday the banner and spirit competition took place. In this competition, each RSO had to create a Homecoming banner that incorporated the JMU Duke Dog mascot, McGrath said. The banners were judged while they were on display in the Trabant University Center last week. The banners were judged on creativity, school spirit, originality and appropriate representation of the university, she said. The Spirit portion of this competition involved putting on a skit or song that shows school spirit and gets the crowd excited for Homecoming. The Student Centers Programming Advisory board, SCPAB, won the banner and spirit competition this year and led the football team out onto the field Homecoming day. Chelsea Berdolt, secretary of the
club, said they had been working on their banner and song for two weeks. The club put a lot of effort into this competition, she said. “It was an awesome experience to win” Berdolt said. “It was so cool to see all the stands filled. Everyone was so happy.” banner had a SCPAB’s Halloween theme, she said. YouDee was portrayed as a ghost and had the message “Spook the Duke” written across it. For the spirit competition, they did a song and dance to the theme from Ghostbusters. For each individual competition win, a RSO received $100. The overall winner of the Olympics will receive $300, 2nd place $200, 3rd place $100, and 4th place will receive $50, McGrath said. However, only the winners of the banner and spirit competition get to lead the football team out on to the field homecoming day, she said. This is an added prize, because Greek organizations compete in the banner and spirit competition but not the larger RSO Olympics, McGrath said. It has also been a long standing tradition of at least ten years. The DE Anglers Association is one of the newer clubs that is competing in the RSO Olympics. The group won the campus trivia search and came in second for the flag football tournament, and the banner and spirit competition. Aten attributed the trivia search win to the fact that the club has several tour guides on their team. This is the club’s second year on campus and they are excited to compete in the olympics to get their name out and earn some money for their club, he said. Their banner featured YoUDee and the JMU Duke Dog mascot in a fishing competition. In the banner YoUDee caught a huge fish, and the duke dog only got a tiny one. “We weren’t too worried about the competition,” Aten said referring to the fact that the DE Anglers Association is a small organization going up against large RSOs, such as the Student Government Association and SCPAB. “It might be a little easier for the larger RSOs to organize,” he said. “But we don’t feel we’re at too much of a disadvantage.”
The RSO Olympics were held last week.
THE REVIEW/Nicole Aizaga
Robberies spoil otherwise calm Homecoming weekend
7
THE REVIEW/Natalie Carillo
New Castle County Police used Clydesdales for crowd control at Saturday’s tailgate.
BY KATIE SPEACE City News Editor
Homecoming festivities Saturday afternoon proved to be less eventful than in recent years, but crime increased after the sun went down, police said. Cpl. Gerald Bryda of the Newark police said clearing the parking lots at the tailgate was the quickest it had ever been done because of the cooperation from city, county, state and university police. Maj. Joel Ivory of the University Police said students, alumni and other patrons were cooperative in leaving the lot, and there were a minimum number of problems prior to the game resulting in two arrests. “One person was arrested for disorderly conduct and an alcohol violation during the pre-game,” Ivory said. “And there was one person arrested inside the stadium for an open container of alcohol.” The individual arrested for the open container was not a student, he said. Ivory said someone reported their purse was stolen at the tailgate, and three students were referred to the Office of Student Conduct for alcohol violations and disorderly conduct. “Those were pretty much the only criminal incidents that were reported to us, or that the officers came upon,” he said. “So that was pretty good, considering previous homecoming games.” Ivory said he credits the smooth outcome to police walking through the lot before clearing time to explain to patrons that they would soon be asked to leave. Another benefit was the presence of Newark County Police atop Clydesdale horses, Bryda said. “When you have large crowds that need to be moved or might get disorderly, the horses are a great tool for crowd control,” he said. “Their size is powerful, and officers sitting atop them have a better view of the area.” Joe Cavalier, who stayed until the end of the tailgate, said he noticed a few people being confronted but not about anything serious. “There were cops all over the place,” Cavalier said. “Some people who were acting out were told to watch their behavior, but I didn’t see police going around checking IDs or anything.” Senior Dan Borger said it was his first and last time attending the Homecoming tailgate, and he thought the atmosphere was a positive one. “There were mud fights and beer everywhere, but I didn’t see any actual fights,” Borger said. “People were jolly and enjoying the festivities to the fullest.” There are a number of factors that can be correlated with Homecoming being tamer this year, Bryda said. Not only did the rainy weather assist police, he said, but that Halloween and the third game of the World Series were also on Saturday. Bryda worked with a group of 10 to 15 officers that dealt with order maintenance surrounding the Homecoming game. Order maintenance, he said, includes disorderly conduct, fighting, open containers and underage drinking. There were no reports of anyone being tasered this year. “I was assigned with a partner to respond during the
football game to three complaints of loud parties,” Bryda said. “The hosts of every single party were absolutely respectful and complied with us telling them what the law was about with no questions asked and no problems.” He said that city law allows one warning to be given for a noise complaint made during daytime hours, with the next complaint resulting in a ticket. It isn’t often that people comply, but everyone complied this year, he said. “Homecoming was benign, to say the least, in terms of parties,” Bryda said. “It did pick up at nighttime, so maybe that was the reason why it wasn’t as bad this year. People might have had other things planned during the day.” However, two major robberies occurred Halloween night, Bryda said in a separate statement. At approximately 1:53 a.m. Sunday, Newark police received a call that a 20-year-old university student was the victim of an armed robbery on East Main Street near Farmers Lane across from the Newark Shopping Center. There were three suspects involved, Bryda said. One pushed the victim to the ground, stood over her and, while displaying a black handgun, stole her purse and its contents. The victim described all three suspects as wearing blue jeans and gray hooded sweatshirts with the hoods up. The suspects also wore light-colored masks, she said, which covered their faces from the eyes down. The second robbery, Bryda said, occurred in the first block of South Chapel Street. Newark Police received a call at 1:13 a.m. about a burglary in progress. One victim, a female university student, told police she was asleep in her living room and awoke to an unknown man standing above her. The victim said the suspect laid down next to her, so she immediately went up the stairs to find another one of her roommates, another female university student. Bryda said the suspect followed the victim up the stairs, where both victims told the man to leave. Approximately 40 minutes later, the suspect reentered the residence. The two victims locked themselves in a room and called 911. Bryda said the suspect was gone when officers arrived, and three laptop computers as well as cash had been stolen from the residence. The victims described the suspect as appearing to be intoxicated, Bryda said. Crime after Homecoming festivities this year was not only an off-campus problem, Ivory said. “On campus there were certainly some alcohol violations,” he said. “We had an assault that occurred at 1 o’clock or so in Smyth Hall that was alcohol related.” University Police received reports Sunday about smashed windows in Warner Hall and Rodney Complex, Ivory said. . Bryda said Halloween is always a night of mischief. “There’s an opportunity that is sought at Halloween night, with everyone wearing costumes going to parties and bars,” he said.
8 November 3, 2009
CITY BOUND: A weekend guide to four cities near Newark NEW YORK CITY
Getting there: AMTRAK Departs from Wilmington Station AMTRAK Arrives at Penn Station, NYC Cost: $52 – $89 Attractions: The Museum of Modern Art 11 W. 53rd St. 10:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. General Admission: $12 with Student ID
GREYHOUND Departs from Wilmington Station GREYHOUND Arrives at New York City Station Cost: $20 – $24
Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum 234 W. 42nd St. 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. General Admission-$35
Empire State Building 350 Fifth Ave. General Admission-$18.45 8 a.m. – 2 a.m.
Dining: Serendipity 3 (225 E 60th St.), Magnolia Bakery (401 Bleecker St.), El Quinto Pino (401 W. 24th St.)
Going Home:
AMTRAK Departs from Penn Station, NYC AMTRAK Arrives at Wilmington Station Cost: $52 – $89
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Attractions: US Holocaust Memorial Museum 100 Raoul Wallenberg Place S.W. 10 a.m. – 5:20 p.m.
GREYHOUND Departs from Wilmington Station GREYHOUND Arrives at Union Station, Washington, DC Cost: $24
International Spy Museum 800 F Street N.W. 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. General Admission-$18
The Shops at Georgetown Park M Street N.W.
Dining:
Founding Farmers (1924 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.), Old Ebbit Grill (675 15th St. N.W.), Ben’s Chili Bowl (1213 U St. N.W.)
Going Home:
AMTRAK Departs from Union Station, Washington DC AMTRAK Arrives at Wilmington Station or Newark Station Cost: $36.00-$86.00
Getting there: SEPTA Departs from Wilmington Station SEPTA Arrives at 30th Street Station, Philadelphia Cost: $4 Attractions: Philadelphia Museum of Art 26th St. and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway Open 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. General Admision – $12 with student ID
LOVE Park Across from City Hall Free Admission
Liberty Bell Center Market St. between and Fifth and Sixth Streets Open 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. Free Admission
Dining: Lorenzo and Sons Pizza (305 South St.), Continental Restaurant (138 Market St.), Geno’s Steaks (1219 S. Ninth St.)
Going Home:
SEPTA Departs from 30th Street Station SETPA Arrives at Wilmington Station Cost: $4
GREYHOUND Departs from New York City Station GREYHOUND Arrives at Wilmington Station Cost: $20 – $24
Getting there: AMTRAK Departs from Wilmington Station or Newark Station AMTRAK Arrives at Union Station, Washington DC Cost: $36 – $86
PHILADELPHIA
GREYHOUND Departs from Washington, DC Station GREYHOUND Arrives at Wilmington Station Cost: $22:50
BALTIMORE
Getting there: AMTRAK Departs from Wilmington Station AMTRAK Arrives at Penn Station, Baltimore Cost: $34 – $58
Attractions: The National Aquarium in Baltimore Open 10 a.m. – 5 p.m General Admission-$24.95
GREYHOUND Departs from Wilmington Station GREYHOUND Arrives at Baltimore Station Cost: $22.50
Maryland Science Center Open 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. General Admission-$14.95
Shopping in Fell’s Point Fleet and Thames Streets
Dining: Mad River Bar & Grill (1110 S. Charles St.), Ropewalk Tavern (1209 S. Charles St.), MaGerks (1061 S. Charles St.) Going Home:
AMTRAK Departs from Penn Station, Baltimore AMTRAK Arrives at Wilmington Station Cost: $34 –$58
GREYHOUND Departs from Baltimore Station GREYHOUND Arrives at Wilmington Station Cost: $22.50
University’s community garden mostly organic BY MADDIE THOMAS Executive Editor
Although the leaves are changing and the weather is becoming steadily cooler, that has not stopped the university’s Garden for the Community from continuing to grow its own produce this fall including broccoli, kale, cabbage, collards, spinach, lettuce and cauliflower. On its Web site, the community garden promotes itself as being sustainable. “We are growing vegetables, herbs and some fruits to provide fresh, local, sustainably-grown produce to the Food Bank of Delaware steadily throughout the year,” the Web site states. While it may promote some sustainable practices, the 15,000 square foot garden which is located on the university’s College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences campus, is not completely organic. Alyssa Collins, project coordinator and post-doctorial researcher in plant pathology, said the garden staff does not have enough manpower to become completely organic as of yet. Right now, the garden functions primarily on the support of 150 volunteers including university staff, faculty, students and surrounding community members. “Going organic would require a full-time staff, at least a couple of full-time staff members,” Collins said. “The main part is that it’s quite a bit more labor intensive than conventional gardening. Conventional gardening can typically be more money and organic gardening can be more labor intensive, depending on the crops being grown.” The community garden was started earlier this year and grows produce for the Food Bank of Delaware. It also acts as a living classroom for students and community members, as well as a demonstration area for Food Bank culinary workshops, according to the Web site. Over the summer, the garden grew more than 3,000 pounds worth of produce, enough food to feed approximately 12,000 people. Collins said organic farming is labor intensive and poses certain challenges to gardeners. “Weed control is the hardest, hardest part for all gardens,” Collins said. “In an organic garden, sometimes you physically have to pick bugs off of plants.” Because the community garden cannot be completely organic, she said she employs Integrated Pest Management techniques, which she claims have the lowest impact on the environment while providing the greatest benefits for crops. However, this practice still allows for herbicides and pesticides to be used. Collins said she scouts for pests and diseases on plants to make sure they are correctly identified so that spraying is only done when needed. “I always try to choose something with the lowest toxicity or both humans and beneficial organisms, like pollinators,”
November 3, 2009
9
Collins said. During instances when there are fungal diseases on a tomato crop, for example, Collins said she might treat it with a fungicide rather than risk losing the entire crop. Quadris, one fungicide sometimes used in the community garden, has almost zero toxicity, Collins said. It also has a four-hour re-entry interval, while some other fungicides, herbicides and pesticides have a 24-48 hour re-entry period, she said. Preen is another herbicide used in the garden that is also available to homeowners. “It’s not quite an herbicide, but more like a germinating inhibiter,” Collins said. Spot spraying with Roundup is also used when needed in areas like the walkway into the garden, she said. “Roundup is not typically used near crop plants because it kills everything,” Collins said. THE REVIEW/File photo She said anytime an area in the garden is The university’s community garden does not have enough manpower sprayed, appropriate signage is placed around to be completely organic. the area notifying any volunteers or other gardeners what was sprayed, when it was sprayed enced any concerns on behalf of any volunteers about pestiand what its re-entry period is. cide use. Senior Greg Yayac said he volunteered to work in the Smith said because of the cooler season, there isn’t as community garden around the beginning of the semester. much need to spray crops. “I volunteered because I’m interested in gardening and I “The weather now doesn’t allow for as many weeds to worked at an organic farm over the summer,” Yayac said. “I grow now as they would in the spring or summer,” Smith said. assumed it was organic, being a small community garden.” Collins said the goal of the community garden is total He said after his initial surprise and disappointment at economic and environmental sustainability. learning that the garden wasn’t completely organic, he decidShe said all crops in the garden are on a three-year rotaed to stop volunteering. tion, a sustainable practice because it keeps the soil disease“I don’t plan on volunteering again because I don’t want free and full of nutrients. to be exposed to anything that has been sprayed,” Yayac said. “We don’t want to grow the same crop in the same spot. Junior Jarrod Friederich is a plant science major who Disease and bugs build up in the soil,” Collins said. interns for Collins at the community garden. His responsibiliShe said the community garden also uses black plastic ties include working with volunteers and telling them which mulch to prevent weeds from growing, and therefore reduces tasks need to be performed around the garden like mulching, or eliminates the need for pesticides. Gardeners plant pruning, weeding, planting, harvesting and other general seedlings in the mulch, and a lack of sunlight due to the plasmaintenance. tic prevents weeds from growing there. He said as of yet, he has not had any volunteers express Collins said hay, straw and mulch are also used in many any concerns to him about the use of chemicals in the commu- other areas of the garden to prevent weed growth and to pronity garden. mote healthy soil. A compost pile is also on site at the garden. “No one has said anything to me,” Friederich said. It’s supplied primarily with weeds pulled by volunteers. “Volunteers may be more concerned in the summer because As of now, she said she is not sure how long the commuthere’s more insects.” nity garden will continue operating, but it will continue operSenior Marcie Smith, a plant science major with a minor ating as long as it can and resume again in the spring. in landscape horticulture, is another intern this semester at the “Most crops won’t tolerate a hard frost, but conceivably community garden. Like Friederich, Smith is in charge of we could go through December because we are growing coldworking with volunteers. She also said she has not experi- tolerant crops.”
Education major sees 18 percent increase BY PAUL MUSSONI Staff Reporter
The elementary education major saw an 18 percent increase in enrollment this semester, with 155 new freshmen enrolled, according to the office of undergraduate admissions. Laura Glass, associate director of the School of Education, said the increase this semester has helped restore the program’s success to previous levels. “The numbers are back up to what we like them to be,” Glass said. The university has adopted new strategies for encouraging prospective elementary education majors to attend the university, she said. The largest effort was a telephone campaign last summer by students and faculty, Glass said, in which over 400 calls were made to freshmen admitted into the program encouraging them to accept. She said the education program has also been expanded to make it more attractive to students. Previously, students could become
certified in elementary school education with a concentration in mathematics, science, social studies, English or special education. Now, students have the option of concentrating in urban education, Glass said. “Urban schools and urban landscapes always have a need for good teachers,” she said. Glass said other in-demand areas are special education and middle school math and science. “Students who pursue those areas are very marketable and will have no problem getting a job when they graduate,” she said. Glass said she hopes these efforts will also increase the minority representation in the elementary education program. “The percentage of diverse candidates is actually lower than the UD population,” she said. Melva Ware, the director of ASPIRE, a student support organization for education majors, is working to increase the number of
underrepresented groups. She said this includes not only minority students, but also male students. The focus is on low-income and first generation college students, she said. “In 1991, there were virtually no minority students studying elementary education,” Ware said. Now, she said, 10 percent of students in the major come from underrepresented groups. Ware said she sees potential in attracting students through the summer internship program, in which high school juniors and seniors work as teaching assistants in their fields of interest. She said this internship, along with other efforts, have likely been effective. “Some of our more personalized approaches to develop relationships with prospective students are yielding results,” Ware said. She said the university tries to help students find teaching jobs by hosting career
fairs and Teaching in Delaware Day. Many students are offered jobs that day, she said. Glass said elementary education is an attractive major because students can make a difference in children’s lives. They are not in it for the money, she said. “Students who choose an education major love kids,” Glass said. Senior Colleen Singleton is an elementary education major with a minor in disability studies. She said she got into teaching because she loves being around children. “There’s a growing need for teachers,” Singleton said. “A lot of people are realizing it’s a really nice career path.” Ware said the future of teaching looks promising. “Baby boomers are getting ready to retire,” she said. “It’s time for the next generation to step in. The demand is high for very qualified teachers.”
10 November 3, 2009
Students have to ‘Scrounge’ elsewhere on weekend BY JESSICA SORENTINO Staff Reporter
THE REVIEW/Alyssa Benedetto
Some departments have begun calling students to recruit them to the university.
Departments recruit students with phone calls BY CHELSEA CALTUNA Staff Reporter
Several departments at the university have been using a novel approach to increase students’ interest in the university and their future majors. Members of departments have been calling prospective students at home during the summer before freshman year to tell them about the opportunities they could have in their major at the university. Fred Schueler, chairperson of the philosophy department, said he contacted students personally last summer. He said he took the opportunity to encourage them to attend the university and to promote the merits of the philosophy program. “I asked them what their interests are, and I tried to connect that to what our department does,” Schueler said. “I really tried to engage them.” Since philosophy is rarely taught in high schools, Schueler said he enjoys reaching out to students who expressed interest in the program when they applied. “Typically, I call them,” he said. “It’s not a huge department.” John Hurt, chairperson of the history department, said he and other members of the department told students about the advantages the history major has, like small class sizes and a wide range of courses offered all over the world through study abroad programs. “We have the benefit of being a university that has the virtues of a small college,” Hurt said of some departments. Fred Adams, chairperson of the linguistics and cognitive science department, said he called students immediately after the admission decisions were finalized. “The admissions office is working with all departments coordinating efforts to attract those stu-
dents who are interested in UD and who selected our major as a possible reason for coming to UD,” Adams said. “We thought that was a good reason to give students a call.” Adams said he and an undergraduate adviser called students to congratulate them on being admitted and tell them about opportunities and academic events within the major. “The students were very pleased to be called,” he said. “Many of them had interesting questions they wanted answered. All enjoyed hearing from us personally.” Schueler and Hurt said they received similar reactions from students. “Most of the students were pretty positive and were willing to discuss the program,” Schueler said. He said he is optimistic about the telephone campaign’s impact on students’ decisions about enrolling in the university. “The numbers seem pretty comparable. They’re roughly the same each year,” he said. “It makes it seem pretty successful.” Adams said enrollment for the linguistics and cognitive science program has increased. However, he said, other factors make it difficult to tell if the calls made a great impact. “We have a new undergraduate major, and it’s proving to be very popular,” Adams said. “So our numbers are rising rapidly anyway.” Hurt said he was not sure if the calls affected the department’s enrollment, but most of the students he spoke to seemed to have already decided on the university. “I don’t know if we made a difference,” Hurt said. “But I hope we did.”
For more than 15 years, the Scrounge in the Perkins Student Center has been closed on the weekends and officals have no plans for adding Saturday and Sunday service, Ryan Boyer, marketing director of dining services, stated in an e-mail message. Boyer said Dining Service is paying attention to business trends and if need be, decisions to discuss the hours of The Scrounge will be made after the semester. “We are always evaluating business trends over the semester,” Boyer said. “If an adjustment is necessary, we would make the decisions after the semester, but right now students have not been complaining about weekend options.” Currently, on-campus meal options during the weekend include the Pencader, Rodney, and Russell dining halls, Trabant University Center and Dunkin’ Donuts in the Perkins Student Center, Boyer said. Without a strong demand to keep The Scrounge open the two extra days a week, the cost may not be worth it, Boyer said. Freshman Ryan O’Boyle said he goes to the Russell Dining Hall every day and there is a noticeably larger attendance there on the weekends. “On the weekends, it’s so much more crowded,” O’Boyle said. “The lines are really long and it’s much harder to sit with your group of friends because so many people are there.” On East Campus, Boyer said there is not a need for The Scrounge to open on weekends. “Based on current student traffic patterns and the number of students that have shifted to North Campus, the demand to open on weekends just isn’t there,” he said. Even with Laird Campus becoming increasingly more populated than other areas of campus, The
The Scrounge remains closed on weekends.
Scrounge is still a central location and is heavily trafficked during the week, Boyer said. Sophomore Charles Boyle, who lives on Laird Campus, said he usually eats in the dining halls on the weekends. Because Kent and The Scrounge are closed Saturdays and Sundays, the open options are over packed, he said. “If The Scrounge was open on the weekends, it would just give students another option,” Boyle said. “Dunkin’ Donuts should also be open more. Half of the time I go it's closed or they're out of lots of items.” Boyle said The Scrounge is a nice place to hang out. “They have some events in the Scrounge during the week, like the a cappella groups and stuff,” he said. “Maybe if they could be held on the weekends that would raise the incentive to keep it open Saturdays and Sundays.” Boyer said the cost to keep the dining venue open two extra days a week would vary based on the hours of operation and labor required. Since five locations are already open, the costs would have to be measured against the possibility of increases in sales at The Scrounge. The Scrounge already staffs full-time employees, working 40 hours per week, so opening longer hours would cost the university more money to pay for the operation, Boyer said. O’Boyle said he notices a lot of people go to Perkins to study at night after the Scrounge is closed. “I’ve heard a few complaints about late-night Perkins having no snacks, but it’s nothing serious, kind of like the weekends,” O’Boyle said. “People make comments, but no one really complains until they can’t sit down in the dining hall for Sunday morning brunch.”
THE REVIEW/File photo
November 3, 2009
11
Popular Newark bakery expands to Middletown BY JESSICA MCKNIGHT Staff Reporter
Bing’s Bakery opened a new outlet in Middletown.
Courtesy of Abigail Billingsley
Bing’s Bakery, a 63-year-old family-owned business on Main Street, recently opened a new location in Middletown. Carla Guzzi, co-owner of the bakery, said the new Middletown location opened a week ahead of schedule on Oct. 7. “It’s only open four days a week, Wednesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., because of the amount of baking and prep that has to be done in order to stock two stores,” Guzzi said. She said the name of the new store is Bing’s Bakery Outlet, because they bake all of the goods in Newark then package and ship them down to Middletown. “There has been an overwhelming terrific response,” Guzzi said. “I love Middletown, and the need for a local bakery down there was great. We knew it wasn’t going to be an easy task, because if it was then someone would have done it already.” Carla Guzzi and her husband Tom took over the bakery in November 2005 from its original owners. “It was started by Selina and Russell Bing,” Carla said. “After Russell died, Mrs. Bing ran the business for 25 years.” Tom Guzzi was head baker for 10 years under Bing, she said. “They had a great relationship, and he’s the one that she wanted to sell her legacy to,” Carla said. “Mrs. Bing believed that so much more could be done with Bing’s that she couldn’t do because of her age.” The couple started looking at a loaction in Middletown in 2007, but the timing was not right and they needed a crew in place in order to expand, she said. “I think it’s great that they’re
expanding,” Tuesday Stewart, a long-time Bing’s customer, said. “My parents live in Middletown, so I’m sure that someone in my family will start shopping there. I live in Newark, so I probably won’t go there personally.” Keith Sweetman, an electrician at the university for 27 years, said he shops at Bing’s Bakery three to four times a year for birthdays, holidays and other special occasions. “I probably wouldn’t go down to Middletown because I live around here,” Sweetman said. “I wish they had a Bing’s down at the beach, though.” Carla said she doesn’t think Bing’s will be adding any more locations at this time. “You have to be careful, do what you do well,” she said. “You can’t expand too much or the quality of your work can be affected. We aren’t planning any more location expansions, but expansion of customer base, yes.” Carla said the couple didn’t let the economy stop them from expanding their business. “We opened the new location as inexpensively as we could without a tremendous amount of upfront collateral, and we did a lot of the work ourselves,” she said. “We can do things that make sense in this economy, but any small business is a risk.” Jamie Bonk, an employee at the bakery and manager of the new location, said despite the economy, she believes Bing’s Bakery has continued to be successful. “The economy may have slowed business down a little, but overall we’re doing very well,” Bonk said. “I don’t think people will give up on their sweet tooth.”
Blue & Gold Club’s future remains uncertain BY CAITLIN MALONEY News Features Editor
After the Blue & Gold Club closed its doors on July 1, ideas began to circulate around campus about the future of the facility located at 44 Kent Way. The closing of the Blue & Gold Club, a members-only dining club serving the university community, was part of an ongoing effort to reduce university costs. Its demise was approved by the board of directors after years of decreasing membership and operating deficits, Associate Vice President of Auxiliary Services Margot Carroll said last spring. Currently the club is closed and inactive, with neither food services nor scheduled events taking place. Plans for the future of the club are in the preliminary stages and no decisions have been made at this time, Executive Vice President Scott Douglass stated in an e-mail message. “The primary issue with the facility is that it needs substantial structural and systems renovations and upgrades, beyond kitchen renovations,” Douglass said.
University officials have discussed different options for the facility, including the possibility of moving Vita Nova, the student-run restaurant located in the Trabant University Center, to the old Blue & Gold club location, he said. However, the move has caused some dilemmas. “Cursory examination of such a move suggested the demands on the building and impacts on the HRIM program were not positive,” Douglass said. Julie Fagan, director of restaurant operations at Vita Nova, said she has not heard about the possible moving of the Vita Nova location and has not considered that option. If the move were to be approved, it would not be easy, she said. “I would have to think about it, the space and the size, and obviously there would be a lot of ground work that would need to be done to consider the move,” Fagan said. Although the university has not made any decisions about the future of the building, at this time officals do not plan on reopening the Blue & Gold Club in the same build-
ing or any other location. “The Blue & Gold Club generated a substantial deficit and, despite repeated attempts over the past 10 years, membership and pricing strategies failed to slow the growth of the deficit,” Douglas said. The closing of the club led to the layoff of all of the club staff, which included managers, chefs, and servers, many of whom were students. In the spring, management stated they would help Blue & Gold Club workers find other positions on or off campus. “All full time staff were offered the opportunity to accept comparable positions at other dining facilities on campus or at another Aramark location,” Douglas said. “All but one individual took advantage of this opportunity.” Although plans for the building are still under consideration, in the past the building has been home to administrative offices, a women’s residence hall and a student infirmary, according to the club Web site.
12 November 3, 2009
RSO lends helping hand to families in need BY CLAIRE GOULD Copy Desk Chief
Students brew up own brands of beers
Some students enjoy the challenge of making their own microbrews.
BY AARON DENTEL-POST Staff Reporter
Situated in limbo between several overstuffed recliners and a spacious kitchen wafting the scent of sautéed onions, senior Mark Breiner’s dining table was jam-packed with an odd assortment of bottles, buckets, instruments, and a large sack of grain. Boxes of brown beer bottles were arranged on the floor along the wall, their labels partially torn off or removed entirely as Breiner began to explain the process involved in his new hobby. Breiner and two of his roommates, seniors Matt Brokaw and Matt Singer are a band of brewers who have decided that making beer is more fun than buying it. “The best part about it is the bottling process,” Singer said. “When you cap that bottle, Bam.” Breiner agreed. “You know the next week you’re going to be enjoying it,” Breiner said. When he made his first batch in August, Breiner ordered a brewing kit online, but also said a store called How Do You Brew, located off of Paper Mill Road, was a valuable resource for him. Joe Gallo, who runs the store with his wife, estimated that a similar kit costs between $75 to $135. He also said an extract kit would cost from $20 to $50. Senior Cory Gordon has always been fascinated with trying new kinds of beer. He began his home brewing experiment when he got a brew kit for free from his brother-in-law, who didn’t have room for it in a new apartment. “I still have a few beers from our first brew, which we bottled on the fifth of September, so we’re going on just about two months now,” he said. “I’ve always really been interested in microbrews and just anything outside the normal when it comes to beer.” Both Gordon and Breiner said they are keen on developing their own specific taste for their beers, one they could eventually attach to a label, which meant advancing from store-bought extracts to doing all the steps themselves. To achieve this, Breiner said they had to advance to a new level in brewing that includes cracking and rinsing the grain and extracting the sugar, in addition to the steps they were already doing — boiling the mixture together with hops, cooling it down and adding the yeast. “It’s the same basic premise, it just adds this whole other element where you’re in control of the ingredients as opposed to just opening a can where somebody else controlled what went into that can,” Breiner said. “We can concoct our own beer that we can call ours — it’s not some formulated recipe.” Gordon had a similar goal. “Eventually we want to do our own recipe entirely,” he said. “It’s like chemistry. You kinda pick this and that and see what you come up with.” Gordon, Breiner and his roommates all stressed the importance of cleanliness and sterilizing anything
Courtesy of Jesse Wexelblatt
that might come in contact with the beer. “We have to sanitize each bottle individually,” Brokaw said. Breiner and his roommates thought extensively on their own labels and said they had even thought about names for their group. “We kind of did our first batch late in the night, so we call ourselves the Midnight Brewers, and we have three batches that are in bottles right now,” he said. Brewing with other people was a common theme amoung Breiner and the Midnight Brewers, but also with Gordon, who said he brewed his beer with a fraternity brother. Breiner said brewing with a group helped because shared enthusiasm was part of what got them going. “If anyone’s considering doing it they should probably find someone else, or two other people,” Singer said. “It makes it more fun and everything so much easier.” “A lot of the tasks are pretty tedious, and when you have multiple people it’s more efficient,” he said. While Breiner said getting people interested in brewing was fairly easy, he also did not encourage home brewing for those who are underage. Gallo also said he doesn’t encourage underage brewers if they come into his store. “I discourage students from buying. Legally, I don’t have to card people, but if I think they’re under 21, I will,” he said. “There’s no law against me selling them stuff because I sell no alcohol. But I discourage it, which is one reason I try not to advertise in any publication related to students.” Both the Midnight Brewers and Gordon said one popular belief is that they save money by brewing their own beer. “It’s more of a hobby than a cost saver,” Brokaw said. “It’s actually probably cheaper to buy alright beer. Then again, if you consider the fixed cost as the price of the hobby, then everything from then on averages about $29 to $30 for a five gallon batch of 54 bottles.” Breiner said brewing has also led them to have a greater appreciation for interesting beers. They have been venturing into different types themselves and their next brew will be a pumpkin ale. Gordon and the Midnight Brewers said they look forward to future brews. The Midnight Brewers are currently brewing hard cider, and have scraped out a pumpkin for this up-and-coming fall variety. Gordon said he’s looking forward to correcting mistakes made in their second brew. “Our second brew was a little more complicated, and we misread the labeling,” he said. “It was a holiday ale, and had coriander, orange peel, cinnamon and some chocolate in it.” Gordon is going to try again though. “We know what we did wrong, and we’re trying to take baby steps to our own recipe,” he said.
Families affected by chronic illness sometimes need a little help getting by. Treatments are time consuming, costly and often physically draining, making every day activities much more difficult. It can be hard for family and friends to help, especially if they live far away, and sometimes families are left with no one to turn to –– until now. Lori’s Hands, a registered student organization new to campus this fall, seeks to help families dealing with chronic illness, including cancer. The group consists of both nursing and non-nursing major student volunteers. The group was started last spring by junior Sarah LaFave in honor of her mother who passed away from breast cancer before Lafave came to the university. “This is exactly what she’d be doing if she were here,” LaFave said. She said the plan was originally for Lori’s Hands to focus on helping women with breast cancer. The idea expanded to the families of women with breast cancer, and now the RSO is open to the families of anyone fighting chronic illness. Lafave and her friends, the original group members, spent the spring and summer dealing with liability issues with the university. The RSO went through several changes before it was approved by Alex Keen , assistant director of student organizations and the RSO board. “My original proposition was that we would be driving patients to appointments and babysitting for them,” she said. “I wanted to go in suggesting everything we could, and then cut back from there if we had to. Those two elements worried the university.” LaFave said she thought Keen was impressed that Lori’s Hands could answer all his questions and that they had a business plan. She said the RSO was happy to work with the board to make sure the students would always be safe. “Students going into houses, anything could happen, and it would come back to the school,” Lafave said. “Now we have waivers to cover all that.” The waivers state the university is not liable for anything and guarantees the student has their own medical insurance. The families being helped must sign similar waivers, in addition to a statement explaining that the students are not authorized to provide any medical care. Right now Lori’s Hands has five families signed up for the program. Two were referred to them by the Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition, and three were referred by a home nursing service. None of the families have received services from Lori’s Hands yet, due to delays in finalizing the liability issues with the university. There have also been delays because of family members’ surgery dates. Cathy Holloway, the special
projects manager at the Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition, provided information for Lori’s Hands to get started and referred two families to the RSO. She said DBCC and hospitals cannot give out patient information, but they can mention Lori’s Hands to families who might be interested, and the families can contact the RSO independently. “There are other organizations that help in a similar way but there is a fee,” Holloway said. “When you’re undergoing treatment, one more thing to pay for is too much. People may be out of work while they are undergoing treatment, making payment even harder.” She is optimistic about the success of the RSO, but she said the logistics still may need refinement. “I want to hear the feedback from the families. They have a great idea and there is a huge need for it in the community, especially in the economic situation nowadays, but feedback will help them decide what services to keep,” Holloway said. “If it works, though, from what I know about university clubs, this will keep going even after the founders have graduated.” Senior Kelly Lawless, secretary of Lori’s Hands, is in charge of fundraising and talking to potential families. She said she has personal experience with the hardship chronic illness can place on families. “My grandparents live two hours away and when they were sick my parents were the ones taking care of them,” Lawless said. “It would have been such a huge help to have somebody go to the grocery store or do a load of laundry, anything like that.” Lawless said aside from her personal experience and her friendship with Lafave, she was drawn to Lori’s Hands because of its unique idea. “I know there’s people out there who drive people to appointments, but going to the grocery store, doing the laundry, mowing their lawn –– zit’s such a necessary thing, and the people we talk to are so grateful because they’ve never found anything like this,” she said. “It’s just the little things. If we do the laundry for you, maybe you could make dinner. Or if we make dinner, maybe you could play with your kids.” Junior Mark Weidman, a Lori’s Hands member, said joining the RSO was an easy decision. “It’ll be a really good feeling to help out these families, and it’s not a big deal for us to give up an hour or two,” Weidman said. “Just an hour of our time can really help these people out in a big way.” Fellow member, Junior Laura Scruggs, agreed. “Now that Sarah’s created a group where we can not only find the people that need help but help them, why wouldn’t we?” Scruggs said. “I’ve got the time, I might as well give it a try.”
November 3, 2009
13
Mor ris Librar y theft-free this semester
BY JESSICA SORENTINO Staff Reporter
THE REVIEW/Ayelet Daniel
Morris Library officials warn students not to leave their valuables unattended.
Signs on the second floor of the Morris Library warn students to guard their personal belongings because thefts have been reported in the past. This semester, however, the library has been theft-free. Susan Brynteson, vice provost and director of libraries, said the signs exist as a reminder to students to take their things with them, even if they are just getting up to use the restroom or get a quick snack. There have been no reports regarding stolen items this semester, she said. “It is the case that thefts do occur in the Morris Library because valuables are left unattended,” Brynteson said. “It is not like students are being mugged in the stacks.” Public Safety Maj. Joel Ivory said the most common valuables to be reported stolen are textbooks and laptops. “Textbooks, especially in the beginning and end of the semester, are the most commonly reported thefts,” Ivory said. “Their resale give quick,
easy cash.” Brynteson said Public Safety officers are in the library looking out for suspicious behavior during most hours. “Public Safety officers are regularly scheduled to patrol the Morris Library Sunday through Thursday nights to discourage thefts and any other criminal activity,” she said. Public Safety employs additional methods for identifying thieves in the library, Ivory said. If a laptop is connected to the university network, officers can trace the connection and see where the laptop is being used, he said. “The most successful ways we have recovered stolen laptops is through network tracing,” Ivory said. “The other way we catch people is through closed-circuit television video cameras in the entrance of the library.” He said these cameras can zoom in for facial recognition, and a positive identification can be made. When thefts occur, the best thing to do is report them immediately to both the library staff and Public
Safety, Brynteson said. Most cases stay private and students do not realize these things happen in the library, she said. To further prevent thefts on campus, Public Safety officers are advising incoming students at DelaWorld to keep an eye on their belongings and if anything goes missing, to report it immediately, Ivory said. The library and Public Safety are taking numerous joint actions as well, Brynteson said. “During just the past two weeks, the Morris Library has hosted three laptop registration sessions staffed by Public Safety,” she said. Senior Stuart Kenworthy said he feels safe in the library, but not safe enough to get up without taking his stuff with him. “Things get stolen everywhere. If I get up quickly, I at least take my laptop,” Kenworthy said. “People should be responsible for their things and if they are, thefts could easily be prevented.”
November 3, 2009
editorial
The Review welcomes guest columns from those interested in writing. Please e-mail letters@udreview.com for more information.
14
Halloween-Homecoming proves to be an epic success
Despite initial student fears, this year’s shared weekend event went well for UD
This year, fall’s two greatest recreational events converged into one of the most epic days in university history. HomecomingHalloween was a greatly anticipated and often criticized union. Fortunately, the day came and went with little crime, a large alumni turn-out and all-around high spirits. The Blue Hens received a beating on the field from JMU, but campus remained pulsating with happiness. As old friends returned from the depths of the real world and students roamed the streets in costume, it was clear that all of the worrying was in vain, even an unfortunate calendar could not strip Delaware of its ever-present magnetic personality. Thank you students, alumni and local police for working together to make this
Homecoming safe and enjoyable. No serious crimes were reported and, unlike years past, no injuries occurred during crowd control. The lesson learned from this year’s Homecoming is that as students we should think before automatically condemning university planning Yes, decisions. Homecoming weekend combined two highly anticipated events and could have ended in somewhat of a disaster, but the administration
had no clear alternative. With dozens of events held every week, and limited time to plan home football games, a sacrifice had to be made. Thanks to the entire university community this sacrifice turned out to be a great success. While many would argue that two separate occasions to celebrate youth, football and costumes would have been ideal, this weekend was a union of football and fright not soon forgotten.
only part of The Scrounge that they can utilize is Dunkin’ Donuts, which does not even open until 2 p.m. on weekends. Dining Services claims that demand is nonexistent, but lengthy lines form even before the coffee shop opens. The university would benefit from the additional student business, and students would be able to save their own money by using FLEX or points. With the closing of Kent Dining Hall over winter session,
freshmen who don’t have access to cars need a nearby source for food without having to venture to Trabant, Russell Dining Hall or Main Street. Opening for a few hours on the weekends would benefit both parties. Student utilization would negate university expense and create profit. If timed windows for lunch and dinner could be negotiated on the weekends, students would without a doubt utilize The Scrounge.
Scrounge needs weekend hours
Dining Services reassess, food court will stay closed
The Scrounge in Perkins Student Center has been closed on the weekends for the last 15 years. Dining Services has no plans to change the hours in the near future and, for students, this has remained a constant problem. Some of the primary arguments against additional hours include East Campus demolition, slow traffic patterns, minimal demand and Laird Campus dominance. However, these claims hold little substance as The Scrounge is centrally located for many off-campus student residences and nearby dorms, making it a prime location for week-long business. Many students meet in Perkins over the weekends to do homework or have group discussions, and the
yoUDon’tSay: Elisa Lala, Managing News Editor: “I had such high expectations for “Hallow-coming.” But I feel like I ended up being let down by both weather.com and the overcrowded bars on Main Street.”
Letter to the Editor
Since the end of my playing days for the University of Delaware few things have been as enjoyable as going back to reconnect with everyone at the homecoming football game. I had not attended one for over 10 years due in part to working and living overseas, and this year I wanted to take my three small sons to see my alma mater play. Much of what I loved about UD football was still there — the beautiful stadium, the kindly manner of the people who work there, and the sense that the place was filled with people who did not want to be anywhere else nor doing anything else. Those elements are what make UD football special and I was happy to experience those familiar feelings. However, as kickoff loomed, I had to wonder if I was at the right game. I expected change, of course, under a new staff, but I was not prepared for such a spectacle. From the blaring heavy metal and rap music (even between plays) to the shock-jock antics of the public address announcer and smoke machines, it was as if the program was now run by Vince McMahon, the obnoxious pro wrestling icon. I understand things change and there is pressure to “entertain” fans, but this is not the University of Miami. Our fans are modest, plainspoken people and I doubt they are impressed with all that theatricality. Moreover, there is nothing more entertaining than winning; loud music and slick marketing do not
make a champion. I have written these comments with great reluctance as I do not want them to be interpreted as against my team (and I say “my” out of affection and pride, not entitlement). When I was a young man, the football program challenged me, the university educated me, and the UD community took me in as one of their own. This is not a call to return to the ways of the past, but the program and its image were so far from our tradition it was unrecognizable to me; from the music and attitudes on display to the very troubling practice of recruiting some players who may be good athletes, but not very good citizens. It is as if the new regime sought not to honor our past but to bury it and remake UD football in its own image. To whom much is given, much is expected. And the new coach inherited a lot. It would do some good to acknowledge that. Many alumni and fans have complained about things like the unimaginative offense, recruiting decisions, and a dismissive attitude toward alumni. I leave all that to others who are better informed and know much more than I do about making a successful football program. All the aforementioned is just one man’s opinion, but I won’t be going back to a Delaware game again until I am sure I would recognize the place. – John Fileppo, UD alumnus, former football player and assistant coach
Staff members on Homecoming, the World Series & Maintenance.... Maddie Thomas, Executive Editor: “As an impartial sports fan, it was annoying when Yankees and Phillies fans almost got violent with my friends and I at the bar this weekend..”
Marina Koren, Assistant News Editor: “Why doesn’t maintenance work on weekends? If there’s a problem with my dorm that makes it unlivable, I can’t wait until Monday to get things fixed.”
The Editorial section is an open forum for public debate and discussion. The Review welcomes responses from its readers. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit all letters to the editor. Letters and columns represent the ideas and beliefs of the authors and should not be taken as representative of The Review. Staff editorials represent the ideas and beliefs of The Review Editorial Board on behalf of the editors. All letters become property of The Review and may be published in print or electronic form.
November 3, 2009
Have something you want to say? Use The Review to voice your opinion.
opinion
15
In a new generation, what’s wrong with a little self-love? Jessica Schiffenhaus
Guest Columnist
Narcissim’s appeal for a new generation of self-loving youth. My zebra-print notebook is filled with doodles. Tthe other day, as I was finishing up one of the best doodles I’ve ever doodled, something hit me. I’m in love. Yes, love, and not with just anyone either, it’s The One, the one I’m going to spend my whole life with. Myself. It came to me as I completed the best 3D graffiti ‘Jessica’ in all three years of college. I’m entirely and utterly wrapped up in myself. I can do no wrong, even when I’m wrong. I love stories that concern me, pictures that I’m in, and every little thought that pops into my brain is pure genius. I’m not alone though, I know there are others out there like me, you know, in love with me. Oops, I mean, in love with themselves. Some people know it already, and others just aren’t ready to admit it yet. I call those people secret admirers. Even if I don’t want to admit that I love me, I have to. It’s pretty obvious to the girl who I didn’t notice walking into the bath-
usually manage to slip it into conversation, humbly of course; I want them to know I’m smart, not smug. No, no, that girl in the bathroom will never understand that whenever someone has
a great story about me, I’ll make sure the storyteller tells it over and over again until everyone I know has heard it. Not to mention if someone comes up with a great idea that I’ve already thought of, I make sure to let everyone know that I was “thinking about that the other day!” I have to make sure to give myself credit. And, of course, I always take my own advice, how can I not? I’m the best advice-giver around. Who can blame me for smiling at myself in the mirror? I was just showing myself some gratitude. Myself and I were childhood sweethearts. I can’t tell you exactly when it happened, but I can tell you that by the time I was in second grade, as far as I was concerned, I could outsmart and out-dress any kid in the class. Yup, I knocked all six girls in the class away with my black spandex biker shorts and oversized Tweety bird T-shirt. And I certainly didn’t need to write the vocabulary words three times each and put them into sentences to learn how to spell them. Even when I went through my awkward phase, like every kid does, I had no idea. No, even when my braces shone silver and gold to match the dress I had for my friend’s Bat Mitzvah, I was in love. I just didn’t realize it yet. My friends are the same way, and maybe that’s why I love them almost as much as I do myself. Like when we’re flipping through
gladiators, sexy cats, sexy maids, sexy sailors, sexy pirates, sexy witches, sexy vampires, sexy cheerleaders, sexy girl scouts, sexy cowgirls, sexy teachers, sexy librarians, the ever-so-famous sexy bunnies and sexy (fill in any costume here). What happened to the days of dressing up like a pumpkin, a fairy, a gymnast, a ballerina, a scary old witch or a vampire, and when does this whole “sexy” business start? I wonder when girls go from dressing up like old witches to being sexy policewomen. In my opinion, the transformation begins late in high school, but doesn’t really kick into high gear until freshmen year of college, when it seems acceptable — almost mandator— for girls to dress slutty on Halloween. The transformation to slutty costumes in college might be due in part to college-aged men and their expectations. After talking to a few of my guy friends, the consensus seems to be pretty similar. They want girls to look good all of the time, of course, but agree that on Halloween it’s nice to see the sexy side of girls come out. One guy friend said that Halloween is not just an excuse to party, but also an excuse for girls to show off their bodies. So it seems that some men find it acceptable,
even admirable, for girls to bare all on Halloween. Guys may like the looks of these sexy costumes, but they shouldn’t be fooled. Even though they leave little to the imagination and seem easy to rip right off, the extra zippers, pleather fabric, fishnet stockings and strappy shoes can’t quite be ripped off as fast as boys hope. It does seem possible that girls like using Halloween as an excuse. They may be wary about looking slutty on other occasions, for fear of disproval or fear of being called a actual “slut,” (whether they are or aren’t doesn’t quite matter, the word alone evokes fear in all females). However, Halloween seems to be their one chance to be a slut without any consequences, while still getting positive attention from men. Getting this attention from guys does come with a cost, however. Remember that Halloween is at the end of October and temperatures on Halloween nights are often less than 50 degrees. Nevertheless girls walk around like half-dressed Victoria’s Secret models while guys stay covered up in their not-so-sexy costumes. This doesn’t seem quite fair if you ask me. Besides being freezing, these typical girl costumes show a lack of creativity and
room behind me, watching as I put on my lip gloss, fix my hair, adjust my shirt and 360 spin to make sure everything’s looking AOK, then smile at myself. She might think I’m vain, but she doesn’t really understand my relationship. She doesn’t know that whenever I make a joke, I’m always there to laugh. And then I tell my joke to everyone else, just to ensure they know how funny I can be, too. Or whenever I get an A, I congratulate myself and
pictures from the weekend, I know that everyone is really scoping out the background to see their own faces. And after a really fun weekend, we get together, share our different versions of Saturday night and determine that everybody probably loves us now. I think it’s something about my generation. You know, the kids in college right now that most adults want to punch in the head, the supposed-to-be role models for our younger sisters and brothers. The reason for the epidemic of scantily-clad Disney stars all over the Internet. The Myspace-Facebook generation. The ‘I love my digital camera solely for the fact I can take pictures of myself with it, then put them on the Internet,’ generation. The ‘reason Apple put a built-in camera in their Macbooks’ generation. The ‘adults read my blog because I’m abnormally observant and articulate for my age’ generation. The ‘I love myself,’ generation. We are the generation of the selfabsorbed, self-obsessed, self-righteous, selfa lot of stuff. And it seems like we’re totally okay with that, even if no one else is. It’s not like we’d notice anyway.
Jessica Schiffenhaus is a guest columnist for The Review. Her viewpoints do not necessarily represent those of The Review staff. Please send comments to jhaus@udel.edu.
Halloween sex appeal, as integral as candy and pumpkins Caitlin Maloney
Maloney ’ s Memos
Slutty costumes triumph despite bad reputation and chilly weather. Last week while walking back from class, I overheard this very conversation: Girl 1: “So I have this really slutty dress and I haven’t been able to wear it yet.” Girl 2: “Make it into a costume and wear it on Halloween. You’re allowed to look really slutty on Halloween. That’s the point.” Since when has dressing slutty been the point of Halloween? Last time I checked, Halloween costumes originally began as a way to scare off the spirits of All Hallows’ Eve, which is why typical Halloween costumes are usually ghosts, witches, skeletons, devils or other monsters. Although those costumes are still around, somewhere along the way, women, especially college-aged females, started to change the theme of Halloween by dropping the scare factor and turning the holiday into an excuse to dress like a slut for a night (because they never do any other night, right?) College Halloween parties are now filled with sexy policewomen, sexy firewomen, sexy nurses, sexy princesses, sexy
originality. It doesn’t seem to take much time and thought to go out and buy a sexy costume at the local Halloween store or sexycostumes.com. Last Halloween, I actually decided to count the number of sexy costumes I saw, out of frustration and to prove a point to some friends. I saw 47 sexy policewomen in one night—and I had only gone to one or two parties. Girls never want to show up to a formal dance with someone wearing the same gown as them, but it seems perfectly acceptable for 47 girls to all be sexy policewomen. Next Halloween I suggest females get a little more creative. Think about some of your favorite famous characters or try group ideas—they are always a fun alternative. I would also recommend opting for a comical costume rather than the sexy approach. I would rather a boy give me attention because of my personality and humor than my sex appeal. I will continue to try to persuade my generation to change, but until the perception and attitudes of both genders transform, I will find myself searching for a costume in the Halloween aisle that doesn’t make me look like the next Playmate of the Year.
Caitlin Maloney is News Features Editor at The Review. His viewpoints do not necessarily represent those of The Review staff. Please send comments to cfm@udel.edu.
16 November 3, 2009
Check out udreview.com for breaking news, blogs, video, podcasts and more.
m o sea i c z y a w h S
brings
the
November 3, 2009
17
Malibu flavor
see page 19
18 November 3, 2009
World Series match-up causes tension on campus BY MIA POZZANGHERA Staff Reporter
Over the last few days campus has become a sea of red, white and blue. It’s not Memorial Day, or the Fourth of July — it’s the World Series, and the Philadelphia Phillies are battling the New York Yankees. Various media outlets have nicknamed this World Series the “Amtrak Series” because the two teams’ stadiums are located just 90 miles apart, and it’s a straight shot down the tracks from one city to the other. The university has become divided over this year’s World Series because the two teams are so local to many students’ hometowns. According to information provided by the university’s Office of Institutional Research, there are 2,029 undergraduate students from New York — likely Yankees fans — and 1,895 from Pennsylvania — who are very possibly rooting for the Phillies. There are 3,132 undergraduate students from New Jersey and 6,007 students from Delaware, and it’s anyone’s guess where their allegiance lies. With a campus full of students and two baseball teams from the East Coast battling in the World Series, it is no wonder there is much controversy between students. University alumnus Nate Hall says he is hoping the Phillies are able to win the World Series two years in a row. Hall says he grew up in Philadelphia but admits he hasn’t watched much baseball since the 1980s — the era of Lenny Dykstra, Darren Daulton and John Kruk. “I don’t follow baseball that much,” Hall says. “But I was born and raised in Philadelphia so in my heart I sort of have to be a Phillies fan.” Senior Cortney Penta, who is from Boston, says she is a Phillies fan by default. “I’m really a Red Sox fan,” Penta says. “But because
they aren’t in the series this year, I just have to root for whoever is against the Yankees.” It is a common sight these days to be walking down Main Street and see dozens of people outside of Grotto Pizza or in Deer Park Tavern, all screaming at baseball games playing on wall-mounted TVs. Senior Catherine McGill spent Thursday night watching the second game of the World Series at Klondike Kate’s with her friends. With beers in hand and plate of nachos on the table, McGill and her friends were celebrating the series with a relaxed and fun-filled night. “I want the Yankees to win the series because their fans are classy, unlike Phillies fans,” McGill says. Senior Julie Eisman was at Kate’s celebrating the game with McGill and was also hoping the Yankees were able to beat the Phillies this year. Eisman is from Boston but unlike Penta, she does not feel any innate hatred toward the Yankees — a major rival of the Boston Red Sox. Senior Mike Ruehr says he doesn’t usually follow baseball, but because it’s the World THE REVIEW/Christine Fallabel Series he plans on watching every game. Ruehr is from Seaford, Del. but his rela- Yankees fans and Phillies fans gathered at bars to watch the Series. tive proximity to Philadelphia has not influenced him enough to become a Phillies fan. He says he is with a group of good friends watching the game from Klondike Kate’s. also hoping that the Yankee’s win this series. “I like the atmosphere here,” he says. “I can just have a “I am so tired of being surrounded by Phillies fans,” Ruehr says. “The Phillies won last year and I just want the drink, hang out with friends and watch the game. I really hope the Yankees are able to pull this series off.” Yankees to beat them now.” Ruehr also celebrated the second game of the series
Cozying up with Blue Hen Blankets
BY ARIF ZAMAN Staff Reporter
Far removed from the heart of the university and tucked away in a barn on South campus, resides a flock of university-owned Dorset sheep. Students and community members may not know they exist, but will soon have the chance to get up close and personal with the wool they provide. The College of Agriculture & Natural Resources is, for the first time, auctioning Blue Hen Blankets & Yarn using wool shorn from the flock of university-owned sheep. According to Katie O’Connell, the manager of communications for the College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, auctioning began on Thursday, Oct. 15 and ended Thursday, Oct 29. The auction required a minimum bid of $80 for lap throws and $150 for the queen-sized blankets. All bids had to be made in $5 increments. O’Connell says Blue Hen Blankets & Yarn auctioned off a totall of 32 lap throws and 25 queen-sized blankets. The blankets are all the same design, she says. All of the blankets have the year they are made and a serial number printed on them. “The serial numbers add a novelty to the blankets,” O’Connell says. “Obviously blankets numbered one are getting the highest bids right now. Other bidders have favorite numbers or are selecting graduation years and so on. And, thinking that we’ll sell blankets again, it will be great for someone to be able to say that they have a blanket with a 2009 serial number, the first year they were produced.” The highest bid was on a queen-sized blankets with serial number 10 at $255. Most of the other queen-sized blankets sold for $200
Previously, the wool was sold through a regional wool pool, which is like a wool auction. Wool processors and their buyers would come to the sale and purchase the wool from multiple sellers. The sheep themselves, she says, are part of a registered flock of 35 to 40 ewes that is part of the animal science and pre-veterinary medicine teaching program. Griffiths says Dorset sheep are good allaround or all-purpose sheep and are known for providing lamb meat and wool. She also says they are one of the most popular breeds of sheep in the United States. While the majority of the shearing is done by farm assistant Larry Armstrong, some students try their hand at shearing as part of a course in sheep production at the university. “It is very tiring and difficult work,” Griffiths says. “The goal is to shear each fleece without breaking the fleece up into small chunks or pieces of wool. The wool is sorted, baled and exported to MacAusland’s Woollen Mills of Prince Edward Island, Canada.” According to MacAusland’s Woollen Mills’ Web site, the dirt and grease is first removed from the wool in a standard washing machine. After being dried, the wool is combed and brushed in a carding machine and spun into yarn. “Wool is a strong, natural fiber that is environmentally friendly, renewable, and keeps people (and sheep) both warm and cool,” Griffiths says. O’Connell says that the response has been positive. “We have bids from faculty, staff, alumni, THE REVIEW/Andy Bowden students, parents of students, the general public The Blue Hen Blankets & Yarn auction benefited the College of Agriculture & Natural — you name it,” O’Connell says. Resources.
each. The highest bid on the lap throws was $215 for serial number 1, with the rest hovering around $100. Yarn created from the wool was also for sale. According to the Web site, yarn comes in 4 oz. hanks of either 2-ply 200 yard or 3-ply 126 yard lengths. O’Connell says the proceeds will help to support the undergraduate large animal teaching programs of the Department of Animal and Food Sciences. “The idea of making blankets with the sheep has been tossed around for some time.,” she says. “Really, it was a matter of finding a
company who would do all of the processing from start to finish, starting with the raw wool and ending up with finished blankets.” According to Lesa Griffiths, a professor of animal science who instructs courses related to sheep, the blanket production process was modeled after a similar program at Cornell University. She says Scott Hopkins, superintendent of the university farm, initially thought of selling blankets about a year and a half ago. “We had wool saved from the last two years’ spring shearings and were looking at options for wool products,” Griffiths says.
November 3, 2009
The Mosaic Interview: Shwayze
19
Cisco Adler shares his California state of mind BY TED SIMMONS Managing Mosaic Editor
Don’t let Shwayze’s first album set their sound in stone. The duo, composed of Cisco Adler and rapper Shwayze, emerged in the hybrid world of rap/rock with a self-titled album that embodied their Malibu roots. Singles “Corona and Lime” and “Buzzin’” paired the two for laid-back summer time anthems and defined the band’s sound. Adler is looking to change that. The former Whitestarr lead man, who sings the hooks to Shwayze’s verses, co-wrote and produced both Shwayze’s debut and it’s new release, Let It Beat. Adler says the two have a lot more to offer than beach side lullabies, and if Let It Beat’s lead single, “Get U Home,” is any indication, Shwayze's transition will keep them just as hot in autumn months. Adler spoke on the phone with The Review about the band’s sound, creation and what fans can expect from Let It Beat. Where did this name Shwayze come from? That was just a nickname I gave him when we first started working. He was just Aaron Smith. When I found him, I was just going to produce him as a solo rap artist, so the first couple songs were just basically straight up Hip-hop tracks with just him. Then he needed a stage name so I almost just went ‘What about Shwayze?’ I don’t know, it kind of just hit me like a bolt of lightning. On the fourth or fifth song, which was “Buzzin,’” that was the first one I sang on the hook and we kind of found our sound and that’s when we decided to really become a group and just go forward that way. I had read that there is some connection to Patrick Swayze? No, no, no, that’s a misnomer. It has nothing to do with that. It was more like, there’s a Hip-hop term, ‘I’m Shwayze,’ — I'm kind of out of here. It has nothing to do with Patrick, but rest in peace Patrick.
Hip-hop is very much about region and representation. What do you think you guys are doing in that respect for your part of the map, Malibu? I think Hip-hip being about region is sort of ridiculous. Or, music in general being about region is kind of ridiculous. We try to make music for everyone. And if you’re from California, you’re from the West Coast, hopefully you identify with what we’re doing and if you’re not, hopefully it gives you a little slice of what we’re doing and you can sort of experience it with us. And there is very much that lifestyle and that attitude that seems to be very Malibu and that area that’s conveyed in all your music. Yeah, yeah, we’re definitely selling the lifestyle as much we are selling a song. It’s really the soundtrack to our lives. We kind of met over a summer and started making music and just became friends. That’s sort of what it represents, that summer, of love. Especially the first album. Now this album, we took this music and we got to tour all over American and all over the world and we experienced so much stuff that when we came back to make the second record we tried to put all of those new experiences into it and we wanted to show people where else we like to take our music. So that it’s not just us sitting on a beach drinking Coronas with a couple hot girls.
Shwayze (the band) is made of these two components, one rock and one rap. How did the chemistry, or the synergy, develop between you two and eventually go into the first album? Just as friends. The funny thing is, if you wanted to separate as individuals, we’re not just Hip-hop and we’re not just rock, individually. I started out in music an obsessed kid with Hip-hop, and I really wouldn’t listen to anything else at that time. And then through that I started branching out and eventually created a rock band and did all that. And Shwayze himself, it’s really hilarious, he grew up more as a rock kid. When I met him he was more into Rage Against the Machine and Tool and bands like that. So it’s almost a little opposite of what you would
think. When we come together it’s definitely not just rock and rap, it’s literally every type of music, all of our influences. I love folk music, I love soul, I’m like a Van Morrison fan and all that. So we just try to put it all in one pot and stir it up to see what comes out.
Musically speaking, going from the first album to the second one, you touched on it a bit, but there seems to be a change in direction. I wouldn’t call it a change. I would call it more of an evolution. We definitely didn’t just switch up our style and be like, ‘Okay, let’s make a dance record’ or, ‘Okay, let’s make a straight-up Hip-hop record,’ we were just like ‘Let's do a couple songs in each of the different avenues and get the full spectrum,’ rather than when we came out last time it was really a beautiful accident. “Get U Home,” the first single, is sort of a dance big pop-rock song, but if you really had to break that song down, I don’t think it’s one thing in itself. The hook is a big giant rock song at the end of the day and when it sucks out into an electro-Hiphop beat in the verses, those two things are smashing together. So we’re looking for other things to smash together and sort of get people to vibe. There’s a song with Snoop called “Livin It Up,” which is really just a classic Hip-hop song with a full horn section and it almost sounds as if it’s a sample, even though it’s not.
As you guys grow as a band, are you looking to keep exploring those different sounds and keep doing different things? It’s the same ingredients, it’s Cisco and Shwayze, but we’re just going in and doing a different kind of thing on every song. Yeah, we’re always going to keep trying new things; as an artist you get bored if you have to sit there and do the same thing. If we had to make another album with 12 “Buzzin’s” on it, I would shoot myself in the head. And I want our fans to grow, and we want to grow with them. We feel like we know them and we know their musical tastes. They love Bob Marley as much as they love N.W.A. They don’t just listen to one type of music.
Coming from the “Buzzin’s” and “Corona and Lime’s” to this new single “Get U Home” there seems to be a common theme of drinking and partying and girls. And that very much speaks to my demographic, the college students. People just want to have a good time. Especially with what’s going on in the world right now as it sort of spirals out of control into no man’s land. I think music is the one thing that can take people away and just make them have a good time. We try to do that. We try to make fun, good-time music, and “Get U Home” is one of those songs. If you had to look at all the great songs ever made, 90 percent of them are about women. Women rule the world as far as I’m concerned. And love and love lost, and so on. “Corona and Lime,” at its heart is really not a drinking song, that’s a song about a perfect harmonization, which is really just a metaphor for a boy and a girl.
You had mentioned working with Snoop Dogg. With both you and Shwayze coming from that West Coast background, how was it working with The Doggfather himself? That’s a dream come true. I grew up on those records and so did Shwayze. Even though we weren’t friends at that time, those are our heroes as far as West Coast rap goes. It feels like we’ve been accepted, if he agrees to get on a song with us. The funny thing about our music is, a lot of people, they don’t think we’re really one thing. A lot of the real hardcore Hip-hop heads might not say that we’re hip-hop just because I’m singing in the middle of the songs. And at the same time a lot of rock heads might not believe us as real rock because there’s a rapper on it and a beat under it. So, that’s why having Snoop bless us with that, it was him sort of knighting us. We were just like “Wow, we’ve done something right in that realm.” Yeah, it's a nice validation. Yeah, exactly, we’ve been validated, and for us, it’s those moments, you listen to that song and you’re like ‘Wow, is Snoop really about to drop his verse?’
All photos courtesy of Nadav Benjamin
20 November 3, 2009
Swank steers film from folly to flight
For Jackson fans: ‘This Is It’
“This Is It” Sony Pictures Entertainment Rating: PPP (out of PPPP) Michael Jackson produced 17 No. 1 singles in his illustrious career. His death left the world missing one of the best performers in history and director Kenny Ortega’s “This Is It” gives the King of Pop his final curtain call. Before entering the theater, the least an audience member would expect is to see a showcase of Jackson’s most popular songs one last time. The movie shows the final months of Jackson’s life as he prepares for what was billed as his final tour. It also depicts Jackson’s dedication to his work, as well as every crew member, backup dancer and singer that worked on the concert that never happened. It is a powerful and entertaining look at Michael Jackson the performer. The amount of work put into this final concert tour is mind-boggling. “This Is It” opens the curtain and gives the audience a peak at the perfectionist Jackson was. When a beat is off and doesn’t match how he feels it should sound, he instantly stops the performance and doesn’t move on until it’s corrected. The concert clearly took a lot out of him and his performers, but the passion shown by the entire crew is a theme that gets lost in the catchiness of songs such as “Beat It.” The song selection is everything a Jackson fan would want. The concert didn’t just feature MJ and his backup dancers on a stage, but came with a music video and props for nearly every song.
Courtesy of Sony Pictures
“Smooth Criminal” puts Jackson back in the suit and hat combination that was popular for years and into a black and white film using a green screen, where he is fending off gunshots, trying to make a narrow escape. “Thriller” puts the audience in the graveyard and all the dancers hit the moves right on cue. It is upsetting to see how honored the dancers felt to work with their hero and how filled with happiness when they got the job. Although it is never mentioned, viewers will really feel for the dancers’ shattered dreams. Although the film runs about two hours, it is still a great experience for all involved, if only for to great selection of songs. The film flies and gives fans their closest opportunity to see Michael Jackson in concert and sing his popular songs. For Jackson, this really is it, but his fans will keep his memory alive forever. — Bryan Berkowitz, bberk@udel.edu
Nerd rock continues its reign
blender set to purée. The final track, “Underdogs,” is a mellow and melodramatic expression of the geeky sentiment Weezer has so famously rocked for the past 15 years, and seems out of place on an album that is otherwise fairly happy-go-lucky. One of the album’s best songs is “The Prettiest Girl In The Whole Wide World.” It’s everything that typifies Weezer’s sound — strong drums, a stronger guitar and a catchy hook — and its lyrics typify Weezer’s attitude: “I’ve got the prettiest girl in the whole wide world / And nobody can take her from me / And if even when she goes out walking alone / I waited home patiently / I’ve never been so happy / I’ve never been so sure / I’ve got the prettiest girl in the whole wide world / No one knows.” Buddy Holly is back, and he’s never sounded so cool. — Alexandra Duszak, aduszak@udel.edu
Play On Carrie Underwood Sony Music Distribution Rating: PPP (out of PPPPP) Carrie Underwood’s newest album, Play On, her first since 2007’s Carnival Ride, features her rich vocals over a mixture of pop-rock beats backed by the country twang of guitars. If anything, it isn’t the lyrical styling or the beats but Underwood’s voice that makes the album so enjoyable. In each song, her voice swells with emotion, and it’s clear that her talent lies in her vocal range.
Courtesy of Fox Searchlight
of the flapper period. Aesthetically the film is right on the money. However, the script lacks complexity. The story revolves around Earhart’s celebrity status and the love triangle between her, Putnam, and Gene Vidal (Ewan McGregor). Frankly, the love triangle is boring. There’s one quick, undersexed affair between Earhart and Vidal, followed by Putnam’s illogical and unrealistic clemency. Earhart’s life, which must have been interesting and exciting, is portrayed as dull and common. However, Swank saves the day. Her prominent bone structure and boyish good looks make her the perfect candidate to play Earhart. This role will definitely win Swank a nomination. Swank understands how to portray a character well in a film where the audience already knows the end. And since they do, my advice is: wait for the DVD. — Lexi Louca, alouca@udel.edu
She also has an amazing ability to make her voice resonant and strong while still showcasing her down-home accent and Southern-girl sentiments. However, this album lacks cohesiveness in the types of songs Underwood sings. The album has songs featuring piano, slide guitar and even string orchestral instruments. It’s as if 12 different country singers each sang a different song on the album. While lack-
Courtesy of Amazon.com
Courtesy of Amazon.com
Raditude Weezer Geffen Rating: PPP 1/2 (out of PPPPP) Weezer’s signature nerd-rock attitude is all over Raditude, their seventh studio album — and it’s definitely lucky number seven for the boys who made plastic frame glasses cool again. The band stays true to the quasi-punk sound that has characterized its work since the 1994 release of “Buddy Holly” — and they’re still singing about the same thing: nerdy guys lusting after girls they can’t have. But the act doesn’t wear thin — unlike Blink 182 (with whom the band recently toured), Weezer doesn’t seem to be pathetically clinging onto the remnants of their youth. After all, once a nerd, always a nerd. The album’s first single, “(If You’re Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To,” has a catchy, percussion-heavy melody that breaks into a hook guaranteed to be stuck in your head as much as it will be playing on the radio waves over the next few months. Other songs, like “Freeway,” seem made for Guitar Hero — and while they’re not radioready, they form the backbone of a solid album. Both musically and lyrically, “Can’t Stop Partying” is another standout song. Here, Weezer toys with synthesizers, resulting in a track that sounds like the sequel to 2005’s “We Are All On Drugs.” Lead singer Rivers Cuomo even plays into pop music’s current obsession with Patrón (“I got to have Patrón / I got to have the E / I got to have a lot of pretty girls around me”), injecting a little humor into a song about drug addiction. Raditude loses a little of its spunk towards its end — the album seems to evolve from a collection of cleverly written and well-played songs into a jam session that’s been tossed into a
“Amelia” Fox Searchlight Rating: PP (out of PPPP) “Amelia” will fade into oblivion as quickly as Amelia Earhart’s airplane vanished. However, Hilary Swank’s portrayal of the free-spirted, freckled-faced, female pioneer may save this film from being completely forgotten. The movie opens with Amelia Earhart’s launch into stardom. We meet Earhart as a vivacious young woman in her early 30s who is craving to be the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. George Putnam (Richard Gere), Earhart’s publisher, promoter, and future hubby, has his own plans for Earhart’s career. Putnam turns Earhart into a brand, creating a marketing strategy to make Earhart a household name. Audiences are catapulted into Earhart’s life with no background knowledge on her childhood, which leaves a void during the rest of the film. Plot aside, the set is truly magnificent. With impressive aerial views of landscapes and oceans, the extravagant locations shine, and the expensive budget is obvious. Director Mira Nair, known for “Monsoon Wedding” and “Mississippi Masala,” has a great eye. Shots are clean, colorful and rich, making Swank and Gere even more attractive. Nair makes the preWWII Prohibition era appear especially vivid and vibrant. Costume designer Kasia Walicka-Maimone does a spectacular job at finding the perfect styles and colors to complement the beautiful set. Audiences will feel as if they are a part of the magic
ing a definitive sound, Underwood fans will still enjoy the experience and want the singer to indeed play on. — Mikala Jamison, mjamison@udel.edu
Let It Beat Lyrically, Shwayze the rapper may Shwayze still talk about the same things as before, Suretone Records/Geffen but it’s clear he’s honed his songwriting Rating: PPPP (out of PPPPP) and flow to make a better album. On Coming a long way from their 2008 songs like “Maneatrr,” he spits in a way debut album, Shwayze has really stepped that he’s never really shown before. The up their game. Instrumentally, the songs song is fast-paced, and if it gets played on incorporate some more influences. For the radio, it will be a hit. the most part, the first Another huge differalbum’s production was ence is the addition of guest simple and never really artists. The debut had only a wander far from the guitar solo from Dave combo of a drum Navarro. This album features machine and guitar. Tabbi Bonney, the Knux and In stark contrast, Snoop Dogg. Shwayze avoids Let It Beat incorporates the feared sophomore slump all different sorts of and should pick up new fans instruments and defiwith Let It Beat. nitely has more appeal — Russell Kutys, than their previous selfrkutys@udel.edu titled album. Courtesy of Amazon.com
delawareUNdressed
Brittany Harmon Columnist
While in a relationship, both women and men can both find themselves doing crazy things for their significant others. I know I am not the only one who is guilty of staying on the treadmill an extra 10 minutes or attending an hour-long spin class when I am in a relationship. Even though I know I’ll regret the muscle soreness in the morning, my mind screams that my boyfriend will notice the difference. I’m not alone, and I feel as though people take these actions — and more — to have more in common with that special person and to keep them wanting more. The sacrifices women make in the name of love are a little more obvious than the sacrifices men make. Girls are notorious for creating copious amounts of picture collages and leaving sappy letters in his book bag. Besides the “expected” acts of women in relationships, there are many other small things we do just so we can drive our men crazy. I have witnessed girl after girl rocking her man’s favorite
Oh so crazy in love
sports team’s jersey to please him. Wearing those Steve Madden 5-inch heels that kill our feet is another crazy thing to add to the list. Those stilettos betray us big time, but he compliments our calves every time we wear them. Let’s not forget about remembering every single one of his relative’s birthdays and how we always bring gifts or send cards. Girls also suffer through Brazilian waxes, faking it in the bedroom (at times), and staying the night at his place when we live on the opposite side of campus. But girls are not the only ones in the
you think
Tell me what
...for next week:
Is your boyfriend/girlfriend your best friend?
Write to columnist Brittany Harmon at bharmon@udel.edu relationship that make sacrifices. Guys make sacrifices too. Admit it guys: when you are in love, you too have few a screws come loose in your heads. You like to be viewed as the useful knight in shining armor. Besides maxing out your credit cards on gifts, being our chauffer to all locations, and replying with the ever-embarrassing “I love you too, Pookie,” there are other little things you do that do not go unnoticed. Girls realize that the “big game” is on, but the fact you give that up to watch “America’s Next Top Model” with us may
be crazy in your book, but is a guaranteed to get you a favor later in the bedroom. Giving stuffed animals on every little anniversary that girls insist on celebrating is expected. Letting her dress you up like her very own Ken doll is pretty crazy too — you would never imagine yourself looking like a Banana Republic model. Hanging out with her ex crosses the line of lunacy. Even though they are still friends, you truthfully just want to punch him. You’re forced to play nice — and you do. Men letting their women get into pointless fights with them is the prime example of male insanity. Yes, we are picky and get into our nagging moods, but we love hearing we are right. Even if we don’t like to admit it, it’s inevitable that both parties in a relationship alter the way they act to impress their significant other. When we’re dating someone, we do silly things and change how we act or dress only because it makes sense to give a little. However, it’s important to keep in mind that while change can be a good thing, we shouldn’t change ourselves to the point that when we look in the mirror, we barely recognize the person we see.
mediadarling Of game winners and gossip Courtesy of Newscom.com
Some people’s biggest worry with New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez (A-Rod to most) when the post season rolls around concerns whether or not he can parlay his career success thus far into garnering his team the most important W of the year. Other fans — less concerned with RBIs and more concerned about being inthe-know with A-Rods personal life — are babbling about his most recent romance with actress Kate Hudson. A-Rod is no stranger to the limelight; he’s featured often in gossip columns and “People” magazine. His well-known for his affinity for beautiful blonde women who happen to be models or well-known actresses and celebrities. Take last year’s A-Rod romance, for example. His alleged affairs with Madonna graced the front pages of the tabloids for weeks, strained Madge’s nine-year marriage to the British film director Guy Ritchie and may have been the straw that broke the camel’s back, or rather the affair that sealed the deal on the couple’s divorce. A-Rod’s track record with women is almost as impressive as his status as a fiveyear member of the Yankees. His five-year marriage to Cynthia Rodriguez ended a little over a year ago. The reason for divorce wasn’t just because A-Rod wasn’t home to raise the kids and led an all-too-public lifestyle — it had a little more to do with his promiscuous behavior with other
women, including a stint in the news about his reported relations with strippers and hookers. So, what’s in the cards for the new couple A-Rod and Kate? Will it sizzle then fizzle like the other hundred flings he’s had with leading ladies? Sometimes celeb couples that seemed absolutely doomed to fail have made longterm relationships and oftentimes successful marriages out of romantic flings. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt is the perfect example of a couple that we all guessed
would end sooner than later. A-Rod and Kate started seeing each other in May and according to “Us” magazine, are currently house-hunting in the Big Apple and L.A. Seems serious, right? In my opinion, Kate could do better. Sure, he’s worth billions and he looks pretty good in that Yankees uniform, but it’s undeniable that he’s a little less than respectable when it comes to women. Case(s) in point: according to the “New York Daily News,” last year A-Rod was seen with a stripper named Monique. He reportedly liked her enough to take her on a pretty hefty shopping spree at Versace. There was also a Brazilian named Mia who told “Steppin’ Out” magazine, “He’s so good to me!” So, it’s easy to see why some (including yours truly) find it hard to see his fling with Hudson ending in anything involving shiny circular objects. Sure, he’s treated her to meals at some of New York’s finest eateries and a romantic getaway in South Beach, but his form of doting/dating seems a little more like buying Kate’s affections. Am I totally wrong in seeing a strong resemblance in A-Rod’s grand gestures towards Hudson and his treatment of the strippers he hires during his bachelor stages? Maybe Kate can teach A-Rod a little lesson in commitment. If Madonna can convert him to Kabbalism, anything’s possible, right? — Annie Ulizio, aulizio@udel.edu
November 3, 2009
21
fashionforward
The demise of the District
Paris, Milan, London and New York: fashion hubs of the world — at least for now. Did you ever stop to think what our world would be like without them? Well, I’ll tell Jackie Zaffarano you. It would be borColumnist ing and by no means resourceful. And we’d outsource. As centers for the production of carefully conceptualized, designed, engineered, planned and produced garments, each fashion capital is responsible for producing clothing with care, within its respective country. Can you imagine New York City without its garment center? The threat it’s faced with is actually very real — America’s once thriving heart of fashion now faces extinction. This is why on Wednesday October 21, designers, fashion students and others gathered in Manhattan to rally for its survival. What it does for the city and our country is more important than most Americans may know. Designer Nanette Lepore referred to the garment center as the “lifeblood” of New York. Undoubtedly, creativity adds to the life and uniqueness of the city, but the century-old garment center stands for much more. For quite a number of years now, New York City’s garment center has been diminishing in square footage. The district includes nine million square feet of commercial space, yet if this is so, why is the space (approximately two million square feet) being used significantly less for manufacturing? Two words: real estate. What is it that keeps the country’s once booming, manufacturing center for fashion from being regenerated? Outsourcing. What all of this means for America is endangerment of fashion created close to home, and virtually no claim to our own clothing. Having cutting rooms, pattern digitizers, and suppliers of fabric, buttons, thread and trims located in close proximity make local production efficient and possible. Without these components, it would be difficult for designers to stick around. Accordingly, a significant chunk of economic activity would leave the city as well. In the 1950s and 1960s, New York’s garment center produced a whopping 95 percent of clothing sold in the nation. Today, approximately 5 percent of clothing sold in the United States is actually manufactured domestically. Yet, the latter fraction represents 24 percent of sales volume, according to “The New York Times” Web site. Saving the garment center would continue this influx of cash, as well as keep a center of history, culture and craft alive. That’s why landlords who convert the garment center’s manufacturing space to shops, living spaces and offices must be stopped from doing so, and more space must be designated to reviving the garment district. Additionally, Americans must be made aware of the danger it faces, and the importance of supporting American-made crafts. If you were to spend quite a bit of time in New York, you might begin to notice more than buildings, people, storefronts, vastly different neighborhoods and food aromas. You might tune into the city’s unified culture — one of independence and pride. Now, it is vital for the many American designers to fend for not only themselves, but for the surviving American designers with this attitude. Let’s let clothing in the United States do what fashion is supposed to do — reflect how we want to be viewed. Independent and resourceful. —jackiez@udel.edu
22 November 3, 2009
Reality TV showcases excessive spending BY LAUREN SAVOIE Staff Reporte
Their sprawling mansions are filled with luxury furniture and personal staffers, designer clothes are delivered to their doorstops every day, and their closets are overflowing with the trendiest handbags. They’re the wealthiest one percent of the population, and they have the other 99 percent captivated. Whether reality or fiction, the lives of America’s elite have continued to become a subject of interest to the middle class, eager for a glimpse of how the other half lives. Certain television shows have gained popularity in recent years for showcasing extravagant lifestyles and big spenders. Shows like “Gossip Girl,” “The Hills,” and “The Real Housewives” series exhibit the lives of American socialites whose financial decisions ultimately come down to convenience over price. “Do I know if that’s a fair price or not? No,” Kim Zolciak, star of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” confides to the camera while buying a Cadillac Escalade. “Am I driving off the lot in five minutes? Yes.’ ” “Budget? What’s that?” Sheree Whitfield brags, another of the housewives, in the same episode. Few would agree that these sentiments reflect the spending habits of most Americans, professor Deborah Andrews, Director of the Center for Material Culture Studies, says. But they do give insight into widely held cultural beliefs about money. “Americans have very conflicted, confused, interesting attitudes towards money because as a culture, so much of who we are depends on what we possess and how much money we have,” Andrews says. “We see all these CEOs getting enormous, excessive salaries, and we say, ‘Isn’t that terrible?’ but we also think, ‘Well maybe I could be like them and I could have that much money too,’ because we can be whoever we want to be in our culture.” Despite the nation’s current economic state, in which the national unemployment rate is 9.5 percent and frivolous spending is frowned upon, television shows about extravagance continue to thrive. The premiere of the second season of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” this
August drew more viewers than any other season in the “Real Housewives” series, according to Bravotv.com. This suggests that the economic recession has done little to deter viewers from shows about luxury lifestyles. The draw of shows like “Real Housewives” and “Gossip Girl” is to this economic recession what “The Great Gatsby” was to the Great Depression, Andrews says. “Maybe the people on these shows are attractive because they’re so unlike us or because afterwards we can say, ‘Oh they’re such terrible people, we’re not like them, we’re better than these people,” she says. “Or maybe people are looking for a mode of escapism and will think, ‘Well we can always imagine for an hour that we’re living those lives, living in the big houses and carrying those purses.’” Freshman Emily Hubbard, who watches “Gossip Girl” and “The Hills,” says they exhibit unrealistic ideas about youth and money. “It’s ridiculous,” Hubbard says. “Most of them don’t have to worry about getting jobs because their parents are already rich and they can just go around spending it on whatever they want. I don’t think that’s the situation for most college kids.” Hubbard says while she takes the shows with a grain of salt, she thinks they have the possibility of negatively impacting the young audiences that watch them. “It probably encourages kids to want be like that and want to spend money like that,” she says. “It’s something to aspire to even though it shouldn’t be.” Sophomore Becky Trexler says she doesn’t watch the shows because they are unrealistic portrayals of how people live their lives. “If they are on, I just sit there and say, ‘This is stupid,’ ” Trexler says. “You can’t take these people seriously. They don’t t reflect most people’s attitudes about money.” Andrews says people take a particular interest in shows that feature extravagant spending and posh lifestyles. “Money is a kind of drug in a way,” Andrews says. “So much of our sense of self as Americans can be tied up with money. These shows reflect a cultural love of money.”
THE REVIEW/Samantha Weintraub
“The Real Housewives” stars epitomize reality TV excess.
THE REVIEW/Ayelet Daniel
Dining tries to cater to the vegetarian lifestyle
All university dining halls offer vegetarian options.
BY SOPHIE LATAPIE Staff Reporter
Perhaps students just got tired of Ramen noodles. Perhaps more have seen the film Super Size Me. Whatever the case, more and more students at the university have turned to vegetarian and vegan diets, prompting residential dining halls and restaurants on Main Street to make accommidating changes. Debbie Miller, the administrative dietitian for the residential dining halls on campus, says that since 1990, the university has worked continually to improve its menus to fit a variety of students with different dietary needs. “What we’ve done most recently, is we’ve added a second vegetarian option at Russell and Pencader dining halls at each meal throughout the week,” Miller says. The other dining halls, like Rodney, have a PanGeos station and a “lighten up” station, both of which provide vegetarian options like pasta and stir-fry. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals ranked the university one of the top ten vegetarian schools in the country, Miller says. But some students on campus are not satisfied. Sophomore Jeanette Kassai, a fashion merchandising major and lifelong vegetarian, says that although there are usually one or two options available at the dining halls, those options don’t always promise the most balanced of meals. “I definitely felt like I was snacking more on Goldfish or relying on the desserts at the dining hall because the desserts were always vegetarian,” Kassai says. “I think I gained five or six pounds just because I was eating foods like pizza or bean and cheese burritos as opposed to eating something more balanced.” Kassai also found herself frustrated over how the dining hall chefs cooked the veggie burgers on the same grill as the beef burgers. “I’ve been a vegetarian my whole life so I don’t miss anything,” she says. “I could taste the meat on my veggie burger.” Nate Larsen, a sophomore environmental engineering major, considers himself a serious vegan. Larsen is also concerned about the on-campus meal options, other than what is offered at the dining hall. “It is kind of disappointing to see Dunkin’ Donuts and Chick-Fil-A so easily accessible to students because I don’t feel like fast food is the best food to be eating as a student,” Larsen says. Although Larsen usually only gets food from Newark Natural Foods on Main Street,
he believes vegan options, which exclude any food from animals or animal by-products, shouldn’t be difficult to find on campus. “Last year I lived in Portland, Oregon, which is the vegan capital of US,” he says, “it was so easy to find really good vegan food, so coming back to Delaware is a tough vegan transition.” Larsen says health and ethical concerns are the two most popular reasons students become vegetarians or vegans. Both Kassai and Larsen agree that they generally feel healthier because they say their diets command a health-consciousness that permeates into every facet of their lives. Being a vegetarian or a vegan is a lifestyle change as much as it is a dietary change. “I’m more conscious of what I’m putting into my body because vegetarianism has made me more aware of how my body should be treated,” Kassai says. “So not only am I looking into what nutrients I should consume but how I should be active. If I want to live a healthy life, I might as well go gung-ho about it.” Restaurants owners on Main Street have also noticed the change in students’ eating habits and have responded in ways that satisfy the cravings of every diet. Delaware Today awarded Homegrown Café “Best Vegetarian Dishes” from 20022005. Chef-owner Eric Aber says the restaurant has been offering vegetarian and vegan options for the past ten years since the restauraunt opened. Aber says Homegrown Café has always made vegetarian dishes, but any dish on the menu could be turned into a vegetarian meal. The restaurant allows meat substitutions for tempeh, a soy bean cake and good source of protein, or tofu. Homegrown Café also tries to create dishes that appeal to everyone, he says. “We’ve always tried to make options that are vegetarian, but that you wouldn’t think are just for vegetarians,” Aber says. “Things that any meat-eater would be happy to eat.” He says the mushroom macaroni and cheese with truffle oil is a perfect example. “It just happens to be vegetarian,” Aber says. Vegetarian and vegan diets require many adjustments, but adhering to a limited diet is not impossible at the university. “Vegetarians and vegans have to be very aware of the options,” he says. “It’s not necessarily harder for them but there’s a little more responsibility involved. They have to take the time to talk to someone and make sure they get what they want.”
Court
November 3, 2009
mosaicmusings
23
Managing your time, maximizing your fun
Each week, the managing Mosaic editors present their thoughts on current cultural happenings. students would take it as an invitation — or a challenge, rather — to do two days of partying in the span of 24 hours. But the people I saw were all having fun and all enjoying the festivities. I think all those people who fussed because they thought the university was squandering their fall party schedule were exposed as young pessimists. As as senior, I can’t say that I was glad Homecoming and Halloween were on the same day, but if they were going to be, then I was going to make the most out of it. These two days didn’t detract from one another, not for me at least, and I didn’t try to ingest twice the amount of drinks. Instead, I took in twice the amount of memories, and experienced one of the most epic and fun days of my college career. And I’m guessing you did, too. Whether at the tailgate, in a backyard, at a bar or roaming the streets, the atmosphere of excitement was undeniable. The day was young and plans were plentiful. And all the concern about turning two days into one was quickly replaced by the overwhelming feeling that this day was longer than most. After I awoke from my nap, downed a Red Bull and frantically put the finishing touches on my costume, it felt like morning again. The same giddiness I had for all things Homecoming, I had for all things Halloween. Sure, a day full of costumes and ghoulishness would have better, but this is a busy world — learn to multitask. And more importantly, learn what it means to become an adult. We’re not children anymore who go around trickor-treating or complain when we’re unhappy with the way
things are going. Don’t like that Halloween was on Homecoming? Sorry, it was that or Parents and Family Weekend. It’s on you to make it work. Judging by the looks of it, we all made it work in one way or another. The streets were still lined with garbage, flocks of people in costume still marched down Cleveland Avenue, and I still had a Homecoming I will always remember, and a Halloween I will never forget. Who cares if they were on the same day? Maybe a Super Bowl themed wedding isn’t a bad idea after all. It’s not exactly killing two birds with one stone, but more like getting two scoops on the same cone — not the healthiest of choices, but extra delicious, and just a college try away from satisfying. — Ted Simmons, tsim@udel.edu THE REVIEW/Natalie Carillo
Now that the Halloween/Homecoming bonanza has passed, a retrospective is in order. This publication printed numerous related stories, with subjects including costumes, haunted houses, obscene t-shirts and the general dismay of students who feel cheated that Halloween and Homecoming were overlapped. “Bah!” said the disgruntled freshman who saw lost drinking opportunities. “Blasphemy!” cried the senior who wished these last college memories could be appreciated separately. I heard their displeasure and shared some of the same sentiments. I wouldn’t want to get married on the day my team is in the Super Bowl, and certainly wouldn’t want to compound two days of unsafe drinking practices into one. “What would happen?” I wondered, but the answer was obvious. Being a college student is about careful planning, being persistent, knowing your limits and making things work. When we have three finals on the same day, or 10 places to be at once, we make it work. It’s called the college try — have you heard of it? That’s what got me up at 6:30 a.m. Homecoming morning. And it’s the same thing that got me up from an essential nap 12 hours later. It’s what I used when I had to stuff my car to the gills with boxes of alcohol because I was hosting a party, and it was seen in my efforts to pull off a costume few understood, but made me and my friends laugh throughout the night. Yes, combining Halloween and Homecoming was less than ideal, and I was legitimately concerned that several
artisticappeal Alexandra Duszak — Junior, International Relations
Want to showcase your artwork or photos in The Review? E-mail us at
theudreview@gmail.com
This picture was taken while Alexandra was visiting ruins in Tunisia.
24 November 3, 2009
how bazaar
Each week in How Bazaar, Mosaic will feature a different component of everyday life that we wouldn’t otherwise have space to cover. This week, entertainmnet editor Bryan Berkowitz reviews the video game “WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2010.” Wrestling videogames, particularly those from World Wresting Entertainment, have been produced with varying success. Some have been terrible while others have come close to greatness. A great videogame from the WWE franchise needs have a wide character selection, a great story mode, tons of different match types, lots of fun objects to hit the opponent with and the ability to create a wrestler. “WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2010” meets all of these criteria and is the first great wrestling game since “WWE No Mercy” on Nintendo 64. The game is equipped with more than 60 different wrestlers. All the classic characters, including John Cena, Triple H and Shawn Michaels have returned in the franchise’s latest installment. New additions such as Jack Swagger, Christian and R-Truth give the game a new feel to make for more enjoyable matches. Even wrestling legends The Rock, Dusty Rhodes and Ted DiBiase made the roster cut this year. The story mode, known as Road To WrestleMania, is a lot of fun to play. The game features specific stories where the player can control a premade character or a selfdesigned wrestler on their path to reaching their Super Bowl
— WrestleMania. The stories are unique and interesting to play. The player has the ability to choose the path their superstar takes to get to the ‘promised land’ and capture the WWE Championship. The game developers at THQ also added a new feature called Story Designer mode. With this new feature, the gamer can create entire scenes adding any text desired and make any matches that are deemed necessary. In this mode, the gamer truly can make anything happen. This adds tremendous amounts of replay value to the videogame. The Create-A-Wrestler mode receives an upgrade as well. More choices in clothing style, the ability to create a finishing move and the entrance to the
Courtesy of Amazon.com
ring allow the player to make their character stand out in a crowded field of grapplers. The created wrestler can also partake in the story designer mode and the player can build him or her on a path to wrestling immortality. Even with such improvements the game still has faults. With all the character choices, there are still notables left out, including The Hurricane and Bret Hart. Unfortunately, there aren’t too many new characters added, which could have been a great way to keep game play more interesting. Furthermore, to build a created star from a low 41 rating to a respectable mark takes a lot of time in a boring career mode or in Exhibition matches. Another flaw in the game is the inability to fight in other parts of the arena. There is a backstage brawl mode and a falls count anywhere mode. Combining these two modes would launch the game to a higher status, but these flaws hold the game back from its true potential. All in all, “WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2010” is the best game in the entire Smackdown series and possibly one of the best wrestling game ever. There are lots of characters to choose from and many exciting modes. Wrestling fans should rejoice as this is the most amount of fun to be had by bashing an opponent with a chair, sledgehammer and, when all else fails, a fist. The game is a must-buy for any wrestling fan — and that’s the bottom line ‘cuz Stone Cold said so.
you speak out Who are you rooting for in the World Series? “I’m rooting for the Phillies because I hate the Yankees.” — Pat Desmond, senior
“I’m rooting for the Phillies because I’m from Philadelphia; also because we can win championships without paying $280 million a year for our players.” — Eric Hartmann, senior
“I’m not rooting for any team because I don’t watch baseball.” — Travis Graves, senior
“I’m rooting for the Phillies because I’m a Red Sox fan and hate everything Yankees and the Phillies are in the position that the Red Sox were in and I’d like to see them win again.” — Elizabeth Lodge, junior Compiled by Senior Mosaic Reporter Jordan Allen
November 3, 2009
When genocide becomes personal
25
Years later, dealing with the aftermath of a crisis
yes, my dad and my brothers are gone. They’re not going to come back. But I have my mom, I have another younger Editor’s Note: This is Part Two of a story printed last week brother who was born in the war, my mom was pregnant during that time, and about the a victim of the Rwandan genocide. I have Rachel and I have another [aunt] Diana Bisengo managed to survive the brutally violent Nancy,” Bisengo sasy. “So even though Rwandan genocide. She escaped the hacking of machetes, but my dad is gone at least I have someone also lived to see her family killed around her. When she came else to call mom, I have someone else to to the United States, she was a severely traumatized 7-year-old call sister, someone to call brother.” The very fact she survived when so child. “Of course I’ve been very affected by the situation,” many others did not made her realize Bisengo says. “When I came to this country I just felt like there there must be a reason why she was alive. She says she has decided to stop was no point in me living. I had no hopes for tomorrow.” Her troubled mind made her violent toward her fellow stu- thinking about the past and start focusdents and even her mother. Sometimes when they would walk ing on the future — helping others and to the mall together, Bisengo says, she would lag after holding on trying to prevent future genocides. Bagirimvano, a Valentine a rock behind her back battling an impulse to hit her mother with it. Whenever her mother would talk to her, Bisengo would University of Delaware sophomore, left fight with her. She would also fight with her aunts, who are so Rwanda in 1994 when violence started breaking out in the country. She says she close to her own age she refers to them as her sisters. “I was a very disturbed child; I never wanted to listen to and her family lived in Zaire and Kenya anybody,” she says. “My mom basically kind of gave up; she before moving to the U.S. in 1999. was like, ‘I don’t know what to do with this child; she has expe- Though several of her aunts and uncles were killed during the genocide, rienced so much. I don’t know what to do.’ ” A friend advised Bisengo’s mother to get her involved in Bagirimvano says she doesn’t rememsports activities, so Bisengo was sent to a nearby martial arts ber much from that time in her life. “We had a good life there, a nice after school program. She says the experience helped her focus house. We had maids,” Bagirimvano on regaining a normal life. “My mom pretty much kept me busy with martial arts and says. “We weren’t rich but we were also with basketball, stuff to distract me and not allow me to well-off.” When they fled Rwanda, her fami- Diana Bisengo has a have enough time to sit in my room and think about what haply was left with nothing. Their first few pened,” Bisengo says. Whenever she got a bad grade or report card in school, her years living in the U.S. were spent in a mother would tell the martial arts instructor. He would have trailer until they had saved up enough money for a house. She Bisengo do extra exercises, like push-ups or running, as a way is now paying her own way through school and plans to become to motivate her to improve. The activity proved to be a helpful. a nurse. “The whole genocide thing made me want to help others. When she was about 18 years old, she took another step towards reconciling with her past. Her mother’s boss suggested From the medical field you can go help people that are actually Bisengo talk to someone about what happened to her, and hurt,” she says. “The whole reason I’m going into the medical referred the family to a social worker. Bisengo made an field is I hope that I can go to Rwanda and other places that are appointment, but says she didn’t see the point in talking to a not as well off. Hopefully, I can go there and help for a year or stranger who couldn’t possibly understand the things she expe- two years or something to just make a difference.” Bisengo says she also wants to work in Rwanda after she rienced. Even though the social worker wasn’t really able to tell her how to deal with her pain, Bisengo says the session was graduates, a goal she set for herself after returning to her home country this past June. She says she felt excitement and fear as helpful in other ways. “That was a step towards me talking about my story,” she tried to picture what it would be like when she landed in Bisengo says. “After I talked to her I said, ‘OK, I talked to her, Rwanda for the first time in 16 years. “For so long, my heart has always been scared — what’s I can talk to anybody.’ ” She began talking to her teachers and recounting her expe- going to happen when I go back? The person who killed my riences whenever the class would discuss Africa or Rwanda and father, is he going to come after me? Is anyone going to rememwhen her class studied the Holocaust. Sharing her story finally ber me? Am I going to find any family members?” she says. “What is the point of going back when I have nothing to go to?” enabled her to cope with her trauma. When her plane landed on June 2, Bisengo says she was “I started talking about it, and then I went on to realize that shocked to see the way the country had managed to pull itself back together after the genocide. Everyone around her was smiling, though she says she could still sense an underlying pain. During her second week in Rwanda, she learned the man who killed her father was alive and still living in the same house where the murder took place. She says once her aunt heard the news, she took the man to court. Bisengo never met the man, since friends and family advised her against it, but she spent the next several weeks telling her story to a lawyer as a witness for the case. She didn’t allow painful memories monopolize her experience. The best part of her trip, she says, was meeting her father’s older sister. She and Bisengo are the only surviving blood-relatives of her father. Her newly found aunt has several children, most of whom started families of their own, giving Bisengo an unexpected extended family in Rwanda. “I had family members who loved me who were telling me stories about my dad. I had people telling me I look like my dad, I had people telling me I act like my dad,” she says. “Everything there was good news, nothing bad. It was so exciting.” Bisengo says she was so happy in Rwanda that when she left, she left in tears. She had to return All photos courtesy of Diana Bisengo to the U.S. before the court case against the man Bisengo’s mother encouraged her to explore martial arts. BY JORDAN ALLEN Senior Mosaic Reporter
large family in the States. who killed her father was settled, but her family members continued fighting for her. She says they found eye witnesses to testify against him, and she heard in the beginning of October he was sentenced to 30 years in jail. “He still doesn’t admit what he did, but I somehow felt like justice was done. I felt like I could rest,” she says. Timothy Longman, a visiting associate professor at Boston University, was in Rwanda in the years leading up to the genocide doing research for his dissertation on the genocide and its causes. He says the chief organizers of the genocide should be held accountable for their crimes. However, Rwandan local court systems have tried about one million people for genocide crimes and he says this is excessive. He says he spoke with several organizations, such as the United Nations Assistance Mission to Rwanda. He contended the idea the courts are trying anyone who was present during the killing, even though everyone was legally required to participate in patrols during the genocide, otherwise they could be punished as traitors. “The ambassador’s position was, ‘Well yeah, but if someone was present then they’re responsible,’ ” Longman says. “That’s not really leaving the situation to rest. If it evolves into a reverse genocide that’s not at all helpful.” It can be equally dangerous to leave human rights violations unchecked, which is why Longman says accountability for organizers is necessary. But for average Rwandan citizens another form of reconciliation could be more appropriate. Bisengo says it is her duty as a survivor to tell her story, so people are aware genocide is not a thing of the past but something that goes on in the world today. “This really did happen,” she says. “There are numerous times I wake up in the middle of the night and I’m like, ‘I am dreaming; I’m going to wake up and my dad will be there. I’m going to wake up one day and everything’s going to be perfect.’ ” Bisengo says she learned a lot about her father’s role in the community when she was visiting Rwanda. He was generous and always helped others, and she hopes to continue his legacy either through social work or by joining a government group to help Rwandan citizens deal with their problems. Still, her most important goal is promoting her experience with mass violence and the havoc it wreaks on a country, a community and a family. “It’s just not human; it really doesn’t make any sense. Do you really have to take it to that level where you have to kill someone just because they’re different from you?” Bisengo says. “This would be a boring world if we were all the same. The whole purpose of having all of us here is to learn from each other.”
26
Film sequels recreate the money, not the magic November 3, 2009
BY HILARY KARPOFF Staff Reporter
Surviving in Hollywood means making money and staying relevant, and that spells “selling out” for many of the talented writers, directors, and actors who create the often-mocked, but usually profitable sequels that make viewers wishing for their time (and money) back. Profitable hit movies frequently extend their plots with a sequel many years after the film is originally released, when the original has all but faded from memory. With the recent release of “Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day” and the upcoming release of “Toy Story 3” a full 10 years after the original movies, some studios are now relying on adding new chapters to previous hits, in the hope of recreating earlier box-office gold. As professor Thomas Leitch, director of film studies at the university, understands it, this is not a new trend in the movie industry. He questions those who think that waiting so many years for a sequel is any different than making one right away. “If the sequel did come right away, if it came within a year or two, wouldn’t you think that that was a money-making proposition too?” Leitch says. “So why stigmatize sequels that don’t come for years down the road as money-making propositions?” Leitch is familiar with the inner workings of the movie industry and
the Crystal knows that Skull,” which many movies was released 19 are not made years after the for the sake third Indiana of art, but Jones movie, an rather to feed already estabthe bank lished series is accounts of used as a way to the producers continue a who bankroll strong brand. the films. “I think “ Ve r y very, very few f e w people think Hollywood that, ‘I love the movies are movie so much, made not to I don’t want to make money, see the sequel,’ ” and I think Feng says. “I that even think Hollywood very few that assumes Hollywood most people movies are to see made for any THE REVIEW/Samantha Weintraub want other reason The “Boondock Saints” storyline was resurrected 10 years after the fact. more, and I think that they’re right than to make more often than money,” he ject. says. “I think the question assumes not. Then, even if people think the Peter Feng, the associate chair that there’s an artistic way to evalu- movie isn’t going to be as good, they of the department of English, agrees ate and say whether something’s often go to see it.” Senior Karyn Noll often diswith Leitch’s assessment that pro- necessary, and as long as something ducing sequels is a smart idea in gives people pleasure, I can stick up cusses this subject with her friends. “I don’t know the intentions terms of cost. my nose and say that this movie’s “If nostalgia makes money, not as good, but if people enjoy it, behind people in the industry,” Noll that’s where the industry will go,” then that’s all that matters,” he says. says. “I would assume it has to do Feng says. “The marketing aspect of Film studios sometimes begin with greed, or lack of creativity as it set aside, it is always going to be planning sequels soon after a the other reason, because I don't cheaper.” movie's debut, as is the case with understand why they would put out Feng admits that movie experts “Paranormal Activity,” which is those movies that aren't really that and fanatics often find sequels reportedly developing a sequel. For great.” Noll isn’t a fan of sequels. She unnecessary, but says that there are some movies, such as the recent different points of view on the sub- “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of believes a good movie is strong
enough without adding additional chapters. A sequel is unnecessary when she enjoyed the movie in the first place, she says. “The thing that drives me nuts, though, is when they take a sequel and replace the actors and actresses with new people so it’s not really even similar,” she says. “I feel like they do that all the time.” “They’re not coming up with new ideas for movies, so they’re just relying on what made them money in the past and trying to continue with something that doesn't really work,” Noll says. Sophomore Dana Martin has never thought about Hollywood greed as being an essential component of movie-making until recently, when she found herself inundated with unnecessary sequels. She recounts her experience seeing the second “Ice Age” movie, which she found completely absurd. “Nothing was left [to qualify] for a sequel to be made,” Martin says. “The sequel was good, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as the first and it didn't clear anything up from the first movie.” As an avid fan of movies, Martin sees movie follow-ups as a pointless Hollywood trend. “I think that sequels mostly just get ridiculous as they go along, and they only really make them because the first movie was such a hit that they want people who saw the first to go see the second, and third, and keep making money,” she says.
November 3, 2009
27
classifieds ANNOUNCEMENTS PREGNANT? LATE AND WORRIED?
Pregnancy testing, options, counseling, and contraception available through the Women’s Health Clinic at the Student Health Service. For more information or an appointment call 831-8035 M-F 8:30-12 and 1:00-4:00 CONFIDENTIAL SERVICES
STUDENT HEALTH SERVICE TELEPHONE COMMENT LINE CALL THE “COMMENT LINE” WITH QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, AND/OR SUGGESTIONS ABOUT OUR SERVICES 831-4898 QUIGLEY’S HAYRIDES Fun Hayride with Bonfire! Call Today for Reservations328-7732 www.PenFarm.com PennFarm@dca.net
Looking for Models and Makeup Artists Blue Hen Studios will be holding a casting call at Kildare’s in Newark, DE on November 10th, from 7-9pm. Please bring comp cards, portfolio or other samples of your work. Women 5’5” and up, Men 5’11” and up Email questions to bluehencasting@gmail.com We are also on facebook!
FOR RENT
Twice the space, half the price! Madison Dr. 4BR townhouses- AC, W/D, DW- legal for 4- UD bus + Newark Trolley - 4 blocks from campus- plenty of parking$1200mo + util. 1 year lease starting June 1- John 454-8698 or jbauscher@yahoo.com Clean 4brm house, w/d, d/w off/st parking, 1 block from campus, $2,000 mthly, avail 6/1/10 302.731.7469
FOR RENT
Great Location- Near University Courtyard. Newer house- 117 Tyre Ave. 4 BR, 3 Full bth- 4 Tenants. 5 Off-St. Prk- Excellent ConditionNot a drive like many other properties- udelhousing.com or 266-0364 Cider Mill Luxury Townhouses 4/5 bedrooms Corner of N. College and N. Street Bluehenrentals@aol.com 302 731 7000 CampusSide Townhuses 4/5/6 bedrooms, 3 full baths, W/D, A/C, 6 tenants allowed per unit Available June 2010 visit www.CampusSide.net or 302-229-5695 Houses For Rent 2010-2011 school year Great locations Affordable prices All close to campus Call Matt at 302-737-8882 or for complete list email: mattdutt@aol.com
College Town Apartments 1bdr, 2bdr, furnished rooms, 2 blocks from Campus. Available now and for June 2010 includes heat and HW $500 and up. Collegetownapartments@gmail Renovated, 4 bdrm, two bath, W/D, A/C farmhouse on 8.4 acres. 5.3 miles from Cafe Gelato, adjacent to FAIR HILL HORSE PARK. Available August 2010 $765/mo Chris 302-547-9481
FOR RENT
HOUSES 4 RENT WALK TO CAMPUS: 3, 4 & 6 Person Rental Houses for 2010-2011 www.UD4RENT.com TOWNHOMES FOR RENT! GREAT LOCATIONS! GREAT PRICES! GREAT MAINTENANCE! HOUSE FOR THE PRICES OF AN APARTMENT! Call for more information: EJS Properties 302-368-8864 E-mail ejsproperties@comcast.net Perfect graduate retreat! Restored rustic carriage house overlooking Big Elk Creek, 80 acres of forest & fields off 896 New London. Woodstove, cobbled floor, greenhouse, veg. garden, DSL, W/D. Avail immediately. Rent $765/mo. Call 610-932-3444 or write drcpbrown@gmail.com Houses 2,3,4,5 bedrooms All shapes and sizes, All around campus Bluehenrentals@aol.com 302 731 7000
Great Houses for Next School Year! Many houses to choose from. Call Ryan 302-421-6301 or e-mail shannoncanton@msn.com for a full list of available properties 2 BR house near Main St. Renovated kitchen, large yd. Avail. Immediately. $695/mo. Contact 369-1288
To place an ad call: 302-831-2771 or e-mail: reviewclassy@yahoo.com or for display advertising call: 302-831-1398 FOR RENT
Large Student Rentals Available for 2010-2011 -733 Wollaston Ave (8 people max) -382 South College (8 people max) -372 South College (6 people max) -370 South College (6 people max) -11 Prospect (3 people max) -901 Devon Drive (3 people max) Please contact me if you are interested in an of these houses. Doug Gay Wollabelle LLC 610-400-3142 GUDoug59@comcast.net
3 bedroom houses, rent for $1650.00 138 New London Rd (2 baths), 136.5 New London Rd (2 baths), 348 Delaware Cir (2 baths), 350 Delaware Circ (2 baths) All off street parking and laundry rentalsbg@comcast.net Four person homes, Close to UD, Cleveland & New London, Some with Washer/Dryer, porch, yard, free parking, less than a block from school/Deer Park, Prices starting from $2150 Call 302-983-0124 www.udrentals.20m.com Bluemoon222@juno.com Houses for Rent 2010-2011 school year email: smithunion@verizon.net
HOUSES 4 RENT- WALK TO CAMPUS: 3, 4, & 6 Person Rental Houses for 2010-2011 www.UD4RENT.com 3 br house available ASAP for rent till 5/31/10. Newly renovated, 2 full baths, off st parking. rentalsbg@comcast.net
CAMPUSRENTALS@webtv.net Homes for 2 to 8 persons for 2010/11 $$sensible prices$$, Convenient locations just steps to UD Early sign-up discount Possible. To request listings, Email or leave message @ 369-1288 for details
Newer homes, townhomes, & apartments available 4,5,6 tenants thru-out City. View houses online at www.udelhousing.com for housing details, pricing and contact info.
129.5 E Cleveland-Lrg 4 br/4prs Off st pkg, AC, W/D, gas H/W, 2 bths W-W crp 1 bl off Main, Newark- $1960- call 302-234-5230
HollyWoods Townhomes S. Chapel St. 1 Den, 4 Bdrms, 3 Full Bath, 3 Stories, W/D, A/C. Available June 2010 Chris 302-547-9481 e-mail hollywoodshousing@comcast.net
236 Kells Ave, (1 bath), prking, w/d, d 136 New London Rd (2 1/2 baths), prking, w/d, d rentalsbg@comcast.net
To good home, two English bulldogs for adoption. They are vet checked and also friendly. For more information contact me on James.lens@yahoo.com
4 bedroom houses for rent 6/1/10
FOR SALE
HELP WANTED
Reliable and proficient computer assistant wanted by nearby professional office for regular backups and other assistance. Start immed. Send resume to helpwantednewark@live.com P/T Babysitter-Newark AreaFlexible hours. rphilipbar@gmail.com UOD student only
!Bartending! $300 a Day Potential! No Experience Necessary. Training Provided. 1-800-965-6520 ext 175 Nanny needed for 2 girls (7&10) $230/week M-F 2:30-6P- 11/1812/18-Wilmington. Contact simplepleasures@comcast.net
TRAVEL
Spring Break 2010. Sell Trips, Earn Cash and Go Free. Call for Group Discounts. Best Prices Guarenteed! Best Parties! Jamaica, Cancun, Acapulco, Bahamas, S. Padre, Florida. Information/Reservations 1-800-648-4849 or www.ststravel.com USE CAUTION WHEN RESPONDING TO ADS The Review cannot research the reputability of advertisers or the validity of their claims. Because we care about our readership and we value our honest advertisers, we advise anyone responding to ads in our paper to be wary of those who would prey on the inexperienced and naive. Especially when repsonding to Help Wanted, Travel, and Research Subjects advertisements, please thoroughly investigate all claims, offers, expectations, risks, and costs. Please report any questionable business practices to our advertising department at 831-1398. No advertisers or the services or products offered are endorsed or promoted by The Review or the University of Delaware. RATES University Affiliated: $1 per line Outside: $2 per line Bolding: $2 one-time fee Boxing: $5 one-time fee
November 3, 2009
Did you know?
Delaware’s opponents winning percentage of .597 ranks second highest among the 113 FCS teams.
sports
Check out our sports blog at www.udreviewchickenscratch.blogspot.com
28
Hens suffer Homecoming day massacre
because we know that’s what they do,” he said. Walters was able to keep the game close saving a sure touchdown in the third quarter, stripping McCarter a couple of Delaware’s postseason hopes took a huge hit Saturday yards before the end zone. The fumble was recovered and with a loss to James Madison, 20-8. The Hens were not able to returned 43 yards by safety Charles Graves, but once again, the stop the Duke’s strong defensive line and their long passing Hens could not do anything with the good field position as game in the second half. The loss dropped the Hens back to No. more dropped passes led to a turnover on downs. 23 in The Sports Network poll. James Madison tacked on another touchdown in the fourth “I’m really disappointed in how we played,” head coach quarter to make it a two-score game after a three-yard run by K.C. Keeler said at the postgame press conference. “We did not Jamal Sullivan. The Dukes ran the ball throughout most of the look crisp at all. We looked rusty and we lost our poise, that’s game and finished with 152 yards total in 49 rushing attempts. uncharacteristic for us.” Delaware was held to a season low of 224 total yards and Quarterback Pat Devlin was sacked eight times and finzero touchdowns. The Hens were forced to settle for just two ished with only 19 completions out of 42 attempts. field goals by John Striefsky from 31 and 34 yards and a safety “I thought their defensive line was the key to the game,” by JMU punter Matt Goff, who Keeler said. “Pat was under pressure attempted to run the clock out with 42 all game long.” seconds remaining. Delaware took a 3-0 lead into Delaware was only able to gain a halftime, after a first half that saw total of nine yards rushing on the day, both teams repeatedly trade threeas the Dukes’ front line, led by Alland-outs. The Hens had the first American candidate Arthur Moats, chance to score but chose to try a fake repeatedly frustrated the Hens offenfield goal in the first quarter, which sive line. Moats led JMU with 2.5 was unsuccessful. sacks while Sam Daniels collected The common themes for the two and Chase Williams had 1.5. Hens throughout the game were “They were solid up front, I receivers repeatedly dropping passes thought we could have been better,” and Devlin constantly under pressure. senior offensive lineman and captain James Madison took the lead, Corey Nicholson said. “They got the with 12:54 remaining in the third best of us today.” quarter, on a 12-yard run by freshman Keeler attributed some of his quarterback Justin Thorpe to end the team’s struggles on offense to rust team’s 12-quarter scoreless streak. from last week’s bye. He would not Thorpe did not complete a pass say whether or not his team needs to until midway through the second win the rest of their games in order to quarter, but caught fire on the first have a chance at a playoff berth, statdrive of the third with a 27-yard coming that he would rather the team just pletion to Mike Caussin and key 31look at the remaining schedule and yard completion on third and long to take it one game at a time. Scott Noble. “We went 0-1 this week and “That drive was huge,” Keeler THE REVIEW/Natalie Carillo we’re just going to have to go 1-0 said. “I thought that was the turning Mark Duncan (center) caught five passes for 72 yards but couldn’t get past the Duke’s defense into the end- next week,” he said. point of the game.” zone. BY TIM MASTRO Sports Editor
Thorpe did not throw the ball often but finished with 11 completions for 262 yards on only 15 attempts. He found Rockeed McCarter, who finished with 125 yards receiving on only three receptions, for his longest pass of the day, a 53yarder that was immediately followed with a seven-yard touchdown pass to Charlie Newman. “He played well, but it wasn’t what he did, it was what we didn’t do well,” senior defensive back Anthony Walters said. “It was a lack of focus on my part on all counts. It’s inexcusable.” Keeler recognized that his defense was not able to defend Thorpe’s deep throws despite having two weeks to prepare for it. “For us to give up those deep balls is mind-boggling
Rugby team undefeated, ranks among nation’s elite BY REBECCA SILVER Staff Reporter
Following a rough 2-5 season last year, the Delaware Men’s Rugby club team set out to “pay back” their rivals as they stepped onto the field to start this year. So far, so good. The team has played seven games thus far this season and has come out victorious in all of them. They have beaten Kutztown, Penn State and Navy, three of their biggest and most talented rivals in the league. Week by week the team has continued to move up in the Rugbymag.com rankings, bringing them to the No. 2 spot. Head coach Bjorn Haglid said that the students have come together and created a
strong and cohesive team. “They have learned to trust and believe in each other and they do what needs to be done to secure the win,” Haglid said. Rugby is quite different from other college sports. Most athletes have been playing their sport for years but when it comes to rugby, many never play until they get to college, Haglid said. This being the case, they have quite a bit of catching up to do from the very beginning. “We have to try to squeeze 10 years of required experience in any other sport into a couple of months,” Haglid said. That catching up has come easily to this year’s team. Players and coaches are attribut-
Courtesy of Jim Lewis
This year’s club rugby team has improved their 2008 2-5 record to 7-0 in 2009.
ing much of their success to their ability to play together as a team. “Everybody has a lot of heart,” team captain Jarett Brotz said. “We’ve worked a lot harder outside of practice as individuals and during practice as a team. This is the closest
team I have ever been a part of.” A few years ago, the team had a season similar to the current one. When graduation came in May, however, many of those players see RUGBY page 31
Chicken Scratch 29 November 3, 2009
w e e k ly c a l e n da r
commentary
old-fashioned ways and just use instant replay. It wouldn’t be as groundbreaking as he might think either, seeing how so many sports use instant replay to judge certain calls.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Men’s Soccer vs. Georgia State 3:00 PM Friday, November 6, 2009
Men’s and Women’s Swimming CAA pod meet at Delaware 5:00 PM Volleyball vs. Towson 7:00 PM
Saturday, November 7, 2009 Volleyball at CAA semi-finals TBA
Men’s and Women’s Swimming CAA Pod meet at Delaware 9:00 AM Football vs. Hofstra Noon
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Field Hockey CAA Championships TBA
EMILY NASSI “POOR JUDGMENT” The baseball postseason has had an excess of missed and bad calls by officiating crews. Two missed in Game Two of the World Series, two calls blown in Game Four of the American League Championship Series — the list goes on. Whether it’s one or five incidents in a game, not a day goes by in this postseason where there hasn’t been an issue. Although it’s obviously a problem, it would not be as much of a concern if MLB commissioner Bud Selig would give up his
henpeckings
Women’s Basketball Elena Delle Donne was named to the Full Court Press Preseason Mid-Major Top 25 for the 2009-10 season. Delle Donne played volleyball last year, citing being “burnt out” from basketball, but plans to play basketball for the Hens this year. The forward was the No. 1 recruit in the nation and originally planned to play basketball at Connecticut before transferring to Delaware. The Hens open their season Nov. 17 at St. Francis.
Field Hockey The Hens lost to Drexel on Sunday 4-2. Had they won, they would have captured the CAA title. Despite the loss, the Hens will be competing in the CAA playoffs next weekend. The Hens are currently ranked No. 17 in the nation. Football Following the Hens’ 20-8 loss to James Madison Saturday, Hens head coach KC Keeler called the team’s play and conduct on the sideline, which involved disputes between Delaware players, a “meltdown.” He assured it wouldn’t be an issue moving forward. However, the Hens lost DL Chris Morales for the season due to a high ankle injury.
Men’s Soccer Delaware defeated VCU on Halloween, 21. Goals were scored by freshmen Roberto Vernashi and Darren Christie. The Hens improved to 6-12 and end their season against Georgia State this afternoon at 3pm.
Women’s Soccer The Hens defeated Drexel 1-0 in their last home game of the season on Friday night. Stacie Dulkis scored Delaware’s lone goal. The Hens finished their season 6-6-5.
Check out our sports blog for up-to-date scores and analysis of Blue Hen sports.
Football, basketball and ice hockey have instant replay systems in place. College basketball and football use it. Even the Olympic committee used a type of instant replay when trying to make a call on Michael Phelps’ 100butterfly win by a tenth of a second back in 2008. The point is, it’s not a foreign concept in the slightest. And it’s obviously not completely foreign to the baseball commissioner, either. Instant replay for boundary calls was first implemented last year during the World Series, according to ESPN. In Game 3 of this year’s World Series, instant replay was used on an Alex Rodriguez home run. Now all that’s left is to expand its usage. Selig has yet to give a clear answer on what the problem is when it comes to instant replay. He talks about “trepidation” of using it but has not expanded on what the actual trepidation is about. I have concerns about the amount of human error that has been occurring. Also, baseball is a sport where calls are more concrete than say basketball. In basketball, calls on fouls are subjective, yet there have been countless times I can remember watching a game when play was paused so that officials could walk to the scorer’s table to re-watch the previous play. In a baseball
underp eview:
game, a player’s foot is either on the base or it isn’t. An official is occasionally going to miss that, or not going to be able to tell from his angle. A camera won’t miss it. Perhaps to ease the minds of the worried officials, the commission could ease into the system. For example, in tennis, replay is only used when they player challenges a call, and the players are only giving a certain number of challenges. Or, the commission could start out using replay for only certain types of calls. And honestly, there’s a limited number of calls that instant replay really needs to be used on anyway. Blown calls have yet to actually make or break the game, but it’s not unreasonable to think this is a possibility. In Game 3 of the World Series, that replay was used to call a home run. Who’s to say that more runs wouldn’t be called without it? The bottom line is, there’s always going to be human error. It’s part of being human. But so many other sports organizations have recognized human error and the problems that can come with it. They have made a change in their officiating and/or means of officiating. Considering the volume of problems currently occurring in the MLB, the commission should not even have to think twice about making instant replay more widespread. Emily Nassi is a sports editor for The Review. Send questions, comments and a pair of binoculars to enassi@udel.edu
Dela w ar e vs. Hofstr a About the Teams:
About the Hens:
The Hens dropped their homecoming game, 20-8, against James Madison University. The Hens led 3-0 at halftime but couldn’t piece together a strong attack. The Hens had a lot of trouble connecting passes, completing only 19 of 42 attempts. Delaware is now 5-3, (3-3 Colonial Athletic Association). The Hens dropped back to No. 23 in The Sports Network poll. About the Pride:
Hofstra (4-4, 2-3 CAA) is coming off a bye week after losing to the top-25 team New Hampshire, 10-18. The Pride limited the Wildcats to a 3-0 lead at halftime and managed only 61 rushing yards, -5 in the last second half. Quarterback Cory Christopher completed 20-of-28 passes for 217 yards and rushed for 56 yards in the last game.
Time: Saturday, November 7 Noon Location: Delaware Stadium
Why the Hens can win:
Delaware doesn’t always play like it did against JMU, they came out flat out of their bye week. The Hens were ranked No. 16 for a reason. Overall, Pat Devlin has had a good season that’s been supplemented by his teammates’ performances. They had good showing against ranked opponents and will probably play with vengeance next week.
JMU was a much better team than their record suggested. Just because the Hens lost to a team with a losing record doesn’t mean the Massachusetts win and the Richmond almost-win were flukes. Devlin is still among the best passers in the league and the Delaware defense simply had a bad showing against the Dukes.
Why the Hens could lose:
Our offensive line struggled against JMU, allowing eight sacks of Devlin, and failed to run block well. Delaware running backs managed only 64 yards on the ground. The Hens failed to score a touchdown last weekend. Devlin had two interceptions last week and if the offense continues to stall, expect another Hens loss next week.
—Ellen Craven
The Numbers:
11-5-1 Delaware leads the series against the Pride. 17-0 The Hens defeated Hofstra last season.
Pat’s Prediction:
Delaware will come to play on Saturday. The bye week leading up to the JMU disaster may have been detrimental to the Hens’ momentum, but expect them to be back in form come Saturday. After all, they will have to be in order to keep any playoff hopes alive.
Hens: 21 Pride: 7
November 3, 2009
30
Volleyball loses second CAA game of the season BY PAT GILLESPIE Staff Reporter
THE REVIEW/Samantha Mancuso
Jess Chason (10) sets up a play in the Hen’s loss to VCU on Mischief Night.
The raucous crowd of 325 at Viera Court Friday night was “blacked out” in black Delaware volleyball shirts, but it wasn't enough to spook the Virginia Commonwealth Rams as the Hens lost in a five-set battle. “I didn’t think we started as aggressive as we should have,” head coach Bonnie Kenny said. “We just made entirely too many mistakes. When you play at home you should win.” Despite the home-court advantage, Kenny’s squad had 14 serve errors against VCU, which seemed to be the Achilles' heel of the team Friday night. “Serving is one part of the game that we can control the most,” said sophomore outside hitter Kim Stewart. “If you keep serving them out then that’s going to hurt us.” The Hens dropped the first set 25-21, won the next two 25-15 and 25-18, lost a very close fourth set 25-23, and finally lost the last set 15-10. It was only the second loss for the Hens in conference play, but the team is still in first place in the CAA standings. Kenny believed the team’s preparation could have been better. “We were half and half this week,” Kenny said. “I thought we trained a couple days really well, and a couple days not good at all. We’ve got to start having better training days.” Senior outside hitter Kelly Gibson noted that the fourth set was a crucial point in the match. “I think we needed to show them on the fourth game that we were going to take care of them, and we didn’t,” Gibson said.
Cross country teams end season on high note BY EMILY MARTINEZ Staff Reporter
Delaware’s men’s and women’s cross-country teams wrapped up their season this past weekend at the CAA Championships hosted by James Madison Saturday. The men took third place and the women took fourth, although, according to head coach Jim Fischer, the women were only one point away from third place. “We really ran well,” Fischer said. The men’s team was led by senior captain Chris Bourke, who finished fifth in 25:23.72, the highest finish by a Delaware men’s runner at the CAA Championships since 2003. The third place finish by the men tied their highest finish at CAA Championships. The women were led by senior Julia Somers who came in 15th with a time of 21:54.76. Fischer credited the upperclassman for a strong season. “There has been some really good upper-class leadership,” Fischer said, who coaches both teams. “I like the way everyone has worked together this year.” The runners’ times are added together and the lowest times determine the winner and the placement of the rest of the teams. Although there are occasions when the individual is celebrated, cross country is mostly a team sport, senior captain Amanda McGowan said. “As a team we shoot for number one,” she said. Both teams started their season on Sept. 12 at the James Madison Open Invitational. The men walked away with fourth place and the women took fifth. McGowan said the team has improved tremendously
Gibson also stated that momentum was a factor in the game. She believed losing the fourth set killed the team’s momentum for the fifth set. Stewart also remarked on the loss. “It’s really the toughest loss because they’re ranked either second or third in the conference,” Stewart said. “So having the rankings, it might put us below them now.” Although the volleyball squad did not drop out of first place, VCU is now only a half-game behind them in the CAA standings. Despite the loss, there were some notable performances. Senior captain Stephanie Barry had a match-high 28 digs, and junior setter Jess Chason had 41 assists and 13 digs. Confidence was not lacking after the loss, and the team bounced back to beat William & Mary on Halloween in another five-set match. “I think we’re in pretty good shape,” Gibson said. “We can handle it. I’m hoping tomorrow we’ll bounce back.” Barry had another 28 digs and Chason improved on Friday’s performance with 53 assists against the Tribe. It was the team’s second-straight weekend where they split the weekend series. The Hens’ upcoming schedule favors them strongly as their next three opponents, Towson, Northeastern and Hofstra, have all lost to Delaware earlier in the season. Stewart reflected on the team’s attitude going into the final three games of the regular season and CAA playoffs. “We’re just going to keep going, and keep fighting, and keep trying to play hard,” Stewart said.
since then. She said there is so much more depth to the team this year. The men’s team improved a lot throughout the season as well, according to Bourke. “Especially the younger kids have done surprisingly well,” Bourke said. The second meet of the season was the Delaware Invitational on Sept. 19, 2009. The men took the win for the meet and the women second. Both teams have had great workouts and have surpassed expectations. The third meet of the season was the Paul Short Invitational at Lehigh, where the men took 25th place and the women again folCourtesy of Chris Bourke lowed closely with 29th place. For the men, Bourke said that this meet Bourke (center) had the highest finish by a Hen in the CAA Championships since 2003. was their greatest accomplishment. “After Paul Short, we had the fastest team in school right, McGowan said. There were a lot of comical falls and by the end, everyone was soaked and muddy. history,” Bourke said. Although all the meets are great to win, they all lead up Two weeks later on Oct. 17, at the Blue & Gold invitational at Delaware, the women took the win and the men to the last three championships, Fischer said, which are what the teams really focus on. Fischer, speaking about placed second. For the women, this was one of the most memorable both of his teams, said that he knows how hard they work and he wants them to succeed. meets. “We will be competitive,” he said. It was pouring rain and people were falling left and
31
November 3, 2009
Ice hockey looks to compete for ESCHL title BY JORDAN WOMPIERSKI Staff Reporter
Heading into the weekend, the No. 7-ranked Delaware ice hockey team boasted a 7-1 record before losing back-to-back games to the No. 10-ranked Rhode Island team. Despite the setback, head coach Mike DeAngelis is satisfied with his team’s start. “We’ve come out of the starting gate with some momentum, so it’s good,” he said. “I’m probably one of the few coaches who like being on the road early to build some team chemistry and really throw ourselves into the fire early on. You can see what you’ve got and kind of set a game plan from that point on.” However, DeAngelis said that now is the time the Hens need to fine tune their team and work out any kinks in the system as the season moves forward. Senior Jackie Lankelis understands the importance of giving a full effort each and every game. “We’ll come out and play two great periods. We’ll just dominate a team, but then we’ll come out a little slow in the third period,” he said. “Every week we come out and it’s do or die. If you lose both games in a weekend, you can drop in the rankings.” Lankelis believes that despite some of the team’s early inconsistency, the Hens have a legitimate shot at capturing a national title. “Our team’s got a lot of promise this year. I think it’s one of the best we’ve had in the past few years,” he said. “We’ve had two teams that have gone to the final four, and last year we got upset in the final eight of the national tournament, but I think this year is our chance to really win it.” DeAngelis also has his eyes on the national crown, but is focused on winning the Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League title first. Delaware came in second for the trophy the past two years. Sophomore Andre Menard expressed similar sentiments. “Obviously for the team, the expectation is a national championship,” he said. "It always has been since I’ve been here, and we want to win the Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League too, which is our division.” Last year, Delaware fell to Penn State in the ESCHL championship game in March. If the Hens are to accomplish their goals of a division and national championship, one piece of the puzzle will be their goaltending. For the first time in years, the team has two goaltenders splitting the starting role. “Our goaltending situation is fantastic,” DeAngelis said. “We picked up S.J. Broadt, a 20-year-old freshman, and he’s the real deal. Then we have our senior coming back in Kurt Pflumm. We don’t know really who our number one goalie is.”
Pflumm said that despite having to share the number-one role, having two capable goalies is a good thing for the team. He said that his Broadt, his counterpart, has played well when he is not in the game. Pflumm said that while his goal is to post a solid save percentage this season, the success of the team is much more important than any of the personal statistics he could work toward. Besides goaltending, DeAngelis said the team is also great defensively. Defenseman Chris Galgano returned from a nearly career-ending head injury this season, and the Hens hope he is a vital part of their success. “Chris is probably one of the best stay-at-home defensemen in the country and I think he’s really brought our team to a whole new level,” DeAngelis said. “We’re a defensive system really, for the most part, and having him come back has just been tremendous. We were good anyway but now that he’s on top of his game it’s been a big help.” On offense, the team has added a few solid goal scorers in addition to the already strong lineup of returning players. While Menard gave praise to his returning players, he said the addition of freshmen Connor Moore, Ryan McDonald and Kyle Curley have had an instant Impact on the team. Each have Courtesy of Sue Collini already scored goals this season. Delaware celebrates one of their seven wins at Fred Rust Ice Arena. Of all the new forwards, DeAngelis has been most impressed with McDonald. “Ryan McDonald, a freshman out of Virginia, has leled, and I think that’s a contagious thing.” No matter how effective of a team Delaware has out definitely been a real charmer,” he said. “He’s a fun player to watch. He has a lot of speed out on the ice and he on the ice, Lankelis believes the team’s greatest strength brings a lot of excitement to the offense so I think that’s is the bond they share with one another. “We’re pretty much together every minute of every really been a big key for us.” Besides the team’s offensive stars, DeAngelis also day we possibly could be, and I think that’s huge when it comes down to it,” he said. “When you’re battling in the likes what he sees from the Delaware role-players. “Another guy that rounds us out is Rocky corner or somewhere in the game, you don’t want to just Romanella,” he said. “He’s got a tremendous amount of win for yourself, you want to win for the guy next to energy. He’s what we call a ‘grinder’ in hockey and he you, and I think that’s something that our team has that a really brings intensity on and off the ice that’s unparal- lot of other sports don’t have.”
Rugby: Hens ranked No. 2 in nation
Continued from page 28
THE REVIEW/Samantha Mancuso
The club rugby team has beaten top teams such as Navy, Kutztown and Penn State this season.
who contributed to the team’s achievements left. They had to rebuild themselves and improve together. While it didn’t work out so well last year, this time around has proved quite different. “We knew we had six months to prepare for this fall and we went out and did just that – and it’s paying off,” Brotz said. “The team has been practicing harder than I’ve ever seen – four or five days a week instead of just three,” senior 8-man and president Mike “Chief” Levin said. “We didn’t expect to be this good.” The 20-19 road win over Navy on Oct. 23 was huge for the Hens. The game was critical as neither team had lost a game yet, and it was especially important to Delaware because they had never beaten the Midshipmen. After the sour taste the team had in their mouths from last year, they were on a mission to change that. “We took this game to be just like any other,” Brotz said. “We knew we had to work hard during that week and we concentrated on the basics.” In preparation for the game, the team sent one man down to Annapolis for the Navy game the week before. This was done in order to obtain film so Delaware could
watch and learn about the Midshipmen's style of play. It is a practice much more common in football and in retrospect, Haglid said that it was a key strategic move. Delaware came out strong in the first half with a 13-point lead. As the game went on, Navy was able to score 19 points, leaving the Hens at a 6-point deficit. As the time dwindled down to a mere 10 minutes, Delaware was able to score once more, allowing them to jump ahead and ultimately beat out Navy. Haglid helps to keep the team loose.He can be seen at games in his signature outfit– a suit jacket and short rugby shorts. “He’s more than just a coach to us. He is a mentor, a friend, someone we can go to in any situation,” Brotz said about Haglid. “He does so much for us as an organization and volunteers so much of his time.” The team is hoping to finish out the season undefeated. “Our eyes are on the playoffs in March,” Brotz said. If the team gets there, they will need to win one game to get invited to nationals. “We’re good but we’re not at the point yet where we can say we’re as good as we can be – there’s always room for improvement," Brotz said.
November 3, 2009
32