Tuesday, September 16, 2008 Volume 135, Issue 3
The Mosaic Interview: Girl Talk see page 19 Be sure to check out the Web site for online exclusives.
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2 September 16, 2008
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Mosaic
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Fashion Forward
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Sports Commentary
Students play with German Shepherd puppies being sold on the Green.
THE REVIEW/Ricky Berl
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THE REVIEW/Steven Gold
The band performs in front of the stadium’s new video screen. Editor in Chief Laura Dattaro Executive Editor Brian Anderson
Editorial Editors Sammi Cassin, Caitlin Wolters Cartoonist Jan Dickey Copy Desk Chiefs Sarah Esralew, Jennifer Hayes
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THE REVIEW/Steven Gold
The Resident Student Association handed out plastic bags for recycling at Saturday’s game.
Graphics Editor Katie Smith Web site Editor Quentin Coleman
Managing News Editors Jennifer Heine, Josh Shannon Administrative News Editor Kaitlyn Kilmetis City News Editor Lydia Woolever National/State News Editor Maddie Thomas News Features Editor Samantha Grayson Student Affairs News Editor Ashlee Bradbury Senior News Reporter Brittany Talarico Blogger Caitlin Wolters
Managing Mosaic Editors Caitlin Birch, Larissa Cruz Features Editors Sabina Ellahi, Amy Prazniak Entertainment Editors Ted Simmons, James Adams Smith delaware UNdressed Columnist Alicia Gentile Fashion Forward Columnist Sabina Ellahi Managing Sports Editors Seif Hussain, Ryan Langshaw Sports Editors Patrick Maguire, Alex Porro
Copy Editors Jordan Allen, Greg Arent, Nicolette Lotrionte, Andrew Lynch, Emily Riley Advertising Director Alexa Hassink Business Manager Lisa McGough
September 16, 2008
3
Student wins lawsuit against university BY ASHLEE BRADBURY Student Affairs Editor
More than a year after senior Maciej Murakowski filed a lawsuit against the university, a federal judge ruled the university violated Murakowski’s First Amendment rights when it suspended him for writings on his Web site while on the university’s server. On Sept. 4, the court decided educational institutions may restrict speech in some cases in order to protect the educational environment and the well-being of its students. However, the court found the university had not presented sufficient evidence to show Murakowski’s posting caused such a disruption and posed such a threat that the First Amendment would allow restriction. In May 2007, Murakowski was suspended from class and banned from campus because of postings on his Web site while living in Sypherd Hall. The university charged him with violating the Responsible Computing and Use of University Computing Resources policy and the Disruptive Conduct policy. According to court records, in June 2005, Murakowski established a personal Web site that consisted of controversial postings, including satirical essays such as “how to skin a cat” and an article titled, “The Sociopath,” which refers to a man giving a woman a hot bath and massage and then setting her on fire. “It was basically a blog,” Murakowski said. “The fact that it was on the Internet allowed others to view it but I didn’t actually promote it. It didn’t really matter to me if others saw it. It was my own thing but if other people saw it, then I wouldn’t com-
Murakowski said he felt he was treated plain.” Murakowski sued the university in unjustly by the university. August 2007 for violating his First “I think that no one would have cared if Amendment rights. He sought reinstatement, Virginia Tech had not happened,” he said. Murakowski said he would not have credit for the classes he would miss and punitive damages. sued the university if he did not feel his rights were “At first there was infringed. the basic anger and the feeling that this was just “I felt violated, trampled, all those fun little words,” a horrible, horrific injushe said. “If I didn’t feel tice,” he said. “Then I tried to work within the this way, I wouldn’t have sued.” university’s system to get this resolved and At Murakowski’s May 2, when that didn’t work, I 2007 Judicial Affairs hearing, officials deterwent out of their system to the courts.” mined he was to be susMurakowski said pended from classes and the university became banned from campus until aware of his Web postthe end of the year. After ings after a brother of a — Maciej Murakowski, that, he had to be readmitted to the university folfemale student comsenior, lowing a meeting with a plained. David Finger, on suing the university psychiatrist. “Once the psychiatrist Murakowski's lawyer, in defense of his said I was OK and not a said last year the university never ordered I was allowed to go Web site threat, to my classes, just not the Murakowski to remove the Web site from its dorms,” he said. Murakowski was charged server after the first two complaints. with failure to comply after the university The site had received three complaints discovered he used his access card to enter residence halls on two occasions. since November 2005. “The university pretty much ignored it Murakowski said he was then suspended for for a couple of weeks,” Murakowski said. one semester. The court ruled this month that while “Then after the [Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University] shootings, the university was wrong to suspend they continued to ignore it for about three Murakowski for his Web site, it was justified days. Then I was suspended.” in suspending him for entering his residence
“I felt violated,
trampled, all those fun little words. If I didn’t feel this way, I wouldn’t have sued.”
Paperless billing raises concerns, questions BY KAITLYN KILMETIS Administrative News Editor
Student billing will be paperless starting Winter Session 2009. Although the university cites a number of reasons why replacing paper bills with e-bills will be effective, some students have raised concerns about being billed online. Melissa Stone, director of billing and collection, said the change was implemented to support the university’s “Path to Prominence” by creating a greener campus through decreased unnecessary paper use. Stone said paperless billing also reduces costs in postage, printing and personnel, so the money saved can be used to increase budgets for other initiatives in the university’s strategic plan. “Costs are skyrocketing across universities, so we are trying to find ways that we can put these costs to better uses,” she said. The university’s new billing style will have an improved format, greater efficiency, better access to account information and guest access, Stone said. Freshman Laura Mascari said she was dissatisfied with the switch to paperless ebilling because she believes it makes the payment process more difficult and does not take students’ needs into account. “I thought it was kind of annoying how they decided to do this because since
I’m a new student I’m not really familiar with billing, tuition and financial aid,” Mascari said. “They just decided that it’s all online now. It might be easier for them but I don’t think they took into consideration our feelings about it.” She said although she supports the green initiative and cutting costs on campus, she feels e-billing will require more effort from students. “In the scheme of things I think it is a good idea but I just don’t like that it is more of a hassle for me,” Mascari said. She said since her parents are not comfortable using computers, the responsibility to pay bills and access account information will now fall into her hands. Stone said she recognizes online billing may require more student participation but she does not necessarily believe it is a negative thing. “This process may benefit students from an educational standpoint to look at their finances and realize what’s going on,” she said. Stone said she does not anticipate the process being any more work for students. “If anything, if a student really looks at it, it may really help them to start realizing early on what their financial responsiSee SWITCH page 10
Cutline ges here and here and here.
hall without permission. Murakowski was awarded nominal damages of approximately $10. His suspension has since expired and he currently lives off campus and is studying chemical engineering at the university. “In terms of freedom of speech, I guess the ruling was in my favor,” Murakowski said. “I think the judge got one thing wrong in that she decided that because UD said they implemented their policies fairly, that they did. Really, I think the only reasonable thing would be to have had the case sent back to the university to be reheard.” Dean of Students George Brelsford said the university has a behavioral concerns committee that meets biweekly. “The university’s primary concern is always with the security and safety of students,” Brelsford said. Junior Jillian Saunders said she feels the university took the right steps in addressing this issue. “After something like Virginia Tech, colleges across the country need to be aware of potential threats,” Saunders said. “I don’t necessarily agree with the way the university went about this process, but it is important that the administration is being proactive when it comes to a possible risk.” Junior Frank Corkery said the Virginia Tech shootings made the country more conscious of students’ behavior. “I really think that with the shootings at Virginia Tech, colleges across the nation are becoming more alert,” Corkery said. “You need to act attentively when a student complains about feeling threatened by another student.”
Courtesy of the University of Delaware
4 September 16, 2008
Muggings cause unease on campus City and university police join forces in light of recent assaults and break-ins BY LYDIA WOOLEVER City News Editor
One female was knocked to the ground and had her back stomped upon until she let go. Her friend was choked around the neck and thrown down upon the ground. A third female was grabbed by her hair and struck across the face. Two males were forced to lie in the street, then stripped of their belongings. The same day, three males and a female were held hostage in their home as they watched their possessions disappear with the suspects. Two others were assaulted a month prior. Around Newark, student victims like these are being held up by the barrel of a gun. A string of violent crimes has been occurring on and around the university’s campus, Newark police said. Two non-student victims were assaulted at the end of July, followed by approximately five armed robberies of university students. According to Cpl. Gerald Bryda of the Newark Police Department, this is relatively normal each fall. “I think we’re on par, unfortunately, with where we were last year and the year before,”Bryda said. “If you analyze the statistics, it has been pretty steady for the past several years.” Skip Homiak, director of campus and public safety for the university, said he agreed that this year’s crime spree is not unusual when compared with previous years. “I am not accepting of the fact that crimes are occurring, and if we point to past years as an example as to why they are happening this year, I am not really thinking that that is a very good answer,” he said. “One crime is too many. “We take the crimes seriously and our officers are taking ownership of the problems,” Homiak said. “I don’t want to write this off as we’re having this trend because of anything that’s happened in years past. We’re taking it seriously and UD officials are taking it seriously, too.” Most of the incidents have happened off campus but in predominantly student-ridden areas, police said. Such locations include Haines Street, Winslow Road, the Newark Shopping Center and the Foxcroft Apartments. One incident happened directly on campus, in university parking lot 17 on the corner of Cleveland Avenue and North College Avenue. “The reason we’re obviously concerned about it is not just because it’s within the community, but because several of the incidents have involved UD students,” Homiak said. Homiak said the attacks have been as early as 9:30 p.m. and as late as 2:30 a.m. “Some common denominators are the crimes usually involve one student or small group of students walking home at night,” he said. “They tend to occur late at night in areas that are considered questionable whether students should be walking there or not. Sometimes there is alcohol involved.” Homiak said it is important for students to recognize crime does occur across
America, including Newark. He said some students put themselves in vulnerable positions by walking alone at night or walking home intoxicated. “Students cannot put themselves in a position to be vulnerable and become prey,” he said. Homiak said he is not sure students are getting the message. “I am not trying to minimize the fact that they are victims because essentially they have the right to walk down a street because that’s not illegal, but you have to really think, ‘What’s the smartest thing to do?’ ” he said. “ ‘Should I be walking down the street by myself at two o’clock in the morning? Or should I be taking advantage of the bus escort services that are provided?’ “Our students need to really clearly know that they have to be careful of crime, that it can happen to them and that they can’t just go around putting themselves in vulnerable positions and things can’t happen, because they can,” he said. Homiak said unfortunately, there is a criminal element to society. “Just like you and I go to school or work everyday, some people set out from wherever they are to commit crimes, to live by drugs, whatever the case may be,” he said. Homiak said he thinks the current crime situation is that there is a group of people who are just looking around for vulnerable students. “This is why it’s important to not cast blame on the students or anybody who has been victimized by these people, these predators, these criminals,” he said. “But the students on campus really need to know that this is real life — crime does occur and it’s not just unique to campus or Newark, they are occurring across the country.” Bryda said crime rates often increase when students return in the fall because they can be easy targets. “It is volume in numbers — the criminal element knows what to look for,” he said. “An intoxicated college student probably will have cash in their pocket, a cell phone, an iPod. They know that you guys are back in town.” The Newark Police Department and the university’s department of Public Safety are working together to form an initiative against these crimes. According to the police, on Sept. 5, aggressive tactics led to the apprehension of four suspects that they believed to have committed an armed robbery at the Foxcroft Apartments on Wilbur Street, a complex that houses many students. One juvenile suspect was committed to the New Castle County Detention Center, while the three adult suspects were placed on bail and transported to the Howard R. Young Correctional Institution. These suspects, however, are not linked to the other crimes, Bryda said. Detectives are still investigating the more recent crimes and following any leads they may have, he said. In addition to a collaborative effort with the local police department, the university’s
THE REVIEW/File Photo
Approximately five university students have been victims of armed robberies since July. department of campus and public safety is also working with the state attorney general’s office regarding prosecution of the suspects, Homiak said. “We’re going to make sure for those who are arrested, that there’s quality prosecution and we will ask that they pursue the most serious amount of time we can possibly give to them,” he said. Homiak said university President Patrick Harker and Executive Vice President Scott Douglass are concerned with the perceptions of some of these robberies. “They are fully committed to everything we have to do to stop them and arrest them,” he said. “They are very supportive of any efforts that the law enforcement community is doing and are well aware of our partnership with the NPD.” Harker did not respond to a request for comment on the crime spree. Junior Tara Patel said she and other students feel left in the dark about the severity of these crimes. “I luckily check my e-mail religiously, so I received the UD crime alert e-mail, briefly informing me on the robberies,” she said. “But the thing is, most students either don’t read mass e-mails from the university, or they immediately delete them, like I almost did.” Patel said it would be comforting to have the administration make a larger statement about these issues. “Having President Harker put forward a reaction about this would show that the administration is aware and concerned and working toward a solution for this problem,” she said. “I think now is the time to make a public statement and give students a sense of security before a student gets mugged and ends up being killed, and then they decide to make bigger moves.” Homiak said he feels the university has
done a good job of informing the students of the crimes, as well as safety precautions. He said the messages are put forth by various sources, such as resident assistants, presentations from Public Safety, announcements at freshmen orientation and an e-mail message, as well as on UDaily and the university Web site. “I believe there is a concerted effort from UD’s administration and the police department to make sure that students are well-informed of things that are happening,” Homiak said. “We have a lot of resources for students to take advantage of.” Public Safety is looking into ways to increase its presence in the greater Newark community, he said. Homiak said Public Safety depends on students to report crimes. “We rely on the community to be our eyes and ears,” he said. “Our officers are diligent, but we can’t be everywhere at once and we rely on our partnership with our number one constituents — the students.” Although the Newark Police Department and the Department of Public Safety are looking into more stringent measures of security for the greater Newark area, Bryda said in comparison to last year, statistics show that robberies and burglaries are down this year. “In fact, we’ve seen a decrease in violent crimes,” he said. Patel said she thinks calling this consistent with years past is just an excuse. “These incidents shouldn’t be happening at a constant rate at all because if it’s something we’ve seen in the past, we should make sure it doesn’t happen next time around,” she said. “These statistics do not take away from the fact that university students have been caught in harm’s way,” Patel said.
September 16, 2008
University explores need to expand security BY SAMANTHA BRIX Staff Reporter
Junior Veronica Tucker said she remembers the chilling walks to her residence hall freshman year. She said getting to Dickinson Hall requires traveling through a long, desolate road some students have named the “Rape Trail.” Tucker said after dark, the poorly lit road lined with trees is a potential breeding ground for offenders. “There were many times I walked back by myself and thought, ‘Oh my God, I’m going to get killed here,’” Tucker said. Expanded security is on the rise at the university, with an increase in police officers, extended patrolling in certain areas and plans to install additional security cameras, James Flatley, director of Public Safety, said. Flatley said security cameras are currently most prevalent in parking lots and garages, but absent in residence halls. He said the university is looking into additional security cameras, but does not know if their locations will include residence halls. Jonathan Kassa, executive director of the national non-profit organization Security on Campus, Inc., said security cameras can only add to college campus safety, but their effectiveness truly lies in the nature of viewing the tapes. Flatley said Public Safety’s communication staff is responsible for monitoring the videos and reviewing them after an incident occurs. He said while the communication faculty is staffed 24 hours per day, the videos are not constantly monitored. Staff members are simultaneously in charge of answering phone calls, dispatching and other duties, Flatley said. He said the department of Public Safety has taken internal action in response to recent crimes surrounding campus. “Police officers are strategically placed in certain locations on certain nights of the week,” Flatley said. He said 12 new police officers were hired this semester and will patrol independently in November. This increase brings the number of officers to 50, which is seven more than previously permitted, Flatley said. Kassa said blue light emergency phones and
security cameras are two important facets of campus security. “They are a great backbone to any comprehensive system but shouldn’t be a stand-alone solution,” Kassa said. “No matter how many bells and whistles you have, it’s only as good as the people who implement them.” He said crime is inevitable on college campuses and the response of the university makes the difference. Flatley said student-police aides patrol Christiana Towers on Friday and Saturday nights, and this type of security is not likely to expand. “To my knowledge, there are no plans to have security officers in any residence halls,” he said. Flatley said the approximately 300 blue light emergency phones scattered around campus for students’ safety are tested at least once per year to ensure they are in working order. Junior Allison Ruppino said the presence of blue light phones lessen her fear of walking alone at night. “Since the police can’t be there all the time, it’s the best solution to fixing that problem of walking alone and feeling unsafe,” Ruppino said. Christine Viggiano, a freshman living in Dickinson, said she does not feel safe walking home alone at night on what she, too, calls the “Rape Trail.” “At night when the train goes by, you can’t hear anything, and if something were to happen and someone was calling for help, you wouldn’t be able to hear them,” Viggiano said. She said she knows of only one blue light phone across from the entrance of the lengthy road to Dickinson. “If I felt threatened and thought something would happen, by the time I got to a blue light and picked up the receiver, it will have already happened,” Viggiano said. Flatley said police officers have always patrolled the Rodney Complex area and will continue, but not due to incidences on the trail. “That name started years ago and prevails year after year,” Flately said. “It’s an undeserving name.”
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THE REVIEW/Steven Gold
There are approximately 300 blue light emergency phones on campus.
New Public Safety head appointed BY KAITLYN KILMETIS Administrative News Editor
The university has hired a former state trooper to head its department of Public Safety. Albert J. “Skip” Homiak Jr., who previously served as a field operations officer for the Delaware State Police, will serve as the executive director of campus and public safety, a position that includes leadership of the branches of law enforcement, emergency preparedness and occupational health and safety Homiak said he anticipates that his prior experience will prepare him for his new position as executive director of campus and public safety. “Essentially, public safety is the same no matter where you’re providing professional policing,” he said. “You’re serving the constituents whether they’re in New Courtesy of Delaware State Police Castle County, the city of Newark Former state trooper Albert Homiak is the new director of public safety. or the campus of the University of
Delaware.” Scott Douglass, executive vice president of the university, said Homiak was chosen from a pool of approximately 70 applicants due to his prior professional experience, work ethic and sensitivity to the special needs of the university community. “In the interviews it came out that he was not only qualified but someone who really had high expectations for himself and the organizations he worked for,” Douglass said. “Also, he had a very strategic view of what he would like to accomplish, and I think that he could move this organization to the next level.” Homiak said he plans to take safety to a new plateau by maximizing and utilizing resources such as technology and partnerships with other agencies, though no specific plans have been put into place yet. “We’re going to enhance safe-
ty on campus,” he said. “It’s not going to just stay status quo.” Homiak said the prevalence of crime on campus is not unique to the university, and educating students on the most modern selfdefense tactics is imperative to combat modern day criminals. “In society, we have several people that go out everyday to commit crimes, just like I go to work and students go to school,” he said. “You’re never going to eliminate those people from society.” Homiak said students should not expect the university to become stricter under his administration. “The campus is not going to become a police state,” he said. “We just want to make it the safest community and campus possible, and we’re going to do whatever is necessary to do that.”
6 September 16, 2008
Delaware Food Bank’s culinary school teaches skills for employment BY JOSH SHANNON Managing News Editor
THE REVIEW/Josh Shannon
Discount market offers residents low-cost food The Delaware Food Bank’s Market sells dented and dinged products at lower prices.
BY LYDIA WOOLEVER City Desk Editor
In a time when the price of food has skyrocketed and many people, from low-income families to college students, are looking for a bargain, the Food Bank of Delaware has found a way to offer affordable prices with their newest program, The Market. The Market is the Food Bank’s version of a discount grocery store. It takes household staples that may be dented or dinged, yet still meet USDA regulations, and sells them at a discounted price. Such items include milk, cereal, eggs, cleaning supplies and pet supplies. The Market is open to the general public as a way to make affordable food available to everyone during an economic slump, not on an income-eligibility basis. Patricia Beebe, president and CEO of the Food Bank of Delaware, said The Market was inspired in part by the poor economy. “What’s happening to people is they are losing jobs, as well as their homes, or having trouble with mortgages — energy prices are going up,” she said. “The price of food is going up when more and more people need food assistance.” Kim Kostes, community relations manager for the Food Bank of Delaware, said the response from the public has been great so far because many are surprised at how much money they are able to save. “The inventory varies week by week because of how the loads come in from our distributors,” she said. “It is really an adventure for people to come out and see what we have each week.” The food comes from distributors like Kmart and Target that can no longer sell the items because of dents or dings to the outer covering, but serve no real threat to the quality of the food, Kostes said. “A box may be dented or banged up, or opened, yet the bag inside is not harmed,” she said. The Market looks like an average grocery store, located in the left corner of the Food Bank’s warehouse. It is sectioned off and organized into aisles. A small refrigerator with produce and dairy is located next to the cash register where a cashier helps customers load their groceries into boxes they bring. “We’re not a replacement for grocery stores,” Kostes said. “We’re just supplementing people’s money that they would spend at the grocery store.” Although currently in operation in Newark, the Food Bank hopes to open a market in Wilmington as well, Beebe said. “There is a new grocery store being built there, but the need is so great that our goal is to find a location and bring it out to the inner city for those people and families to use,” she said. The Food Bank is going on a capital campaign
to expand its operation in Milford, as well, Beebe said. “Everyone just thinks this is a win-win situation all the way around,” she said. So far in Newark, business has been promising, Beebe said. “We’re still working out the suppliers’ glitch, but we’re very pleased,” she said. “We’re working out just the general glitches of how to operate. “We’re just looking at squeezing it, how much, what is our cost going to be and what’s the best way to run this.” Pam Cummings, hotel, restaurant and institutional management professor, said she frequently shops at The Market because it is a way to pick up good bargains. “It seems that although the FBD has grown in their accomplishments, they can barely keep up with the problems of hunger in Delaware and the surrounding areas,” she said. “The state of the economy has had a huge effect on the poor and more people are finding themselves turning to the Food Bank of Delaware for help, in spite of the fact that they may have full-time employment. These are not simple times.” The Market is a win-win situation, Cummings said. “You get good deals and they make a little more money from food that regular grocery stores won’t sell,” she said. “The proceeds go back into their operations for getting more food to those in need.” Cummings said she plans to make The Market in Newark a regular stop on her grocery shopping days. “Everyone loves a bargain,” she said. Due to The Market’s close proximity to campus, it is a prime place for college students to shop, Beebe said. “I really think there are a lot of students that are on a budget that could benefit from coming here,” she said. Kostes said The Market is a good place for college students to pick up items because there is no income eligibility. “We know a lot of of people don’t qualify for food stamps but with the economy in the condition it is, we just wanted to provide another outlet to help people who typically wouldn’t receive emergency food stamps but are still in need of assistance,” she said. “We have a lot of Ramen noodles,” Kostes said. “And that’s a staple for a lot of college students.” The Market at the Food Bank of Delaware is located at 14 Garfield Way, in an industrial park off of Route 72.
write a resume and how to find a job — in addition to learning cooking techniques and participating in hands-on training. The facility includes a classroom stocked with computers adjacent to the kitchen. Students get the opportunity to use their new skills working for the catering service run by the Food Bank, the proceeds of which are used for scholarships, she said. “It shows them the entrepreneurial side of the business and they get more hands-on experience with the cooking and taking the orders,” Varella said. Students also help Food Bank volunteers prepare meals that are distributed to after-school programs. For the final two weeks of the program, students are placed in paid internships in local restaurants, she said. After that, Food Bank employees help them find permanent jobs. Varella said the program has an 82 percent graduation rate. Of those who graduate, 87 percent are placed in a permanent job, she said. Robert Young Jr., a Newport resident who graduated from the culinary school in June, said the program helped him get a job working in the cafeteria of Wilmington Hospital. “Chef Nick is a good dude,” Young said. “He treated you like this was the field.” Young, 29, graduated from the Institute of Audio Research in New York and was working as a correctional officer when he saw an advertisement for the Food Bank program and was able to get a grant to attend. He has been interested in culinary arts since he was a child, he said. “I like working with my hands,” he said. Cornish said she hopes to one day work at the Hotel DuPont or another finedining restaurant. “Now that I’m back on track, I have my mind on getting my high school diploma,” she said. “If I can dedicate myself to coming here every day, I can dedicate myself to going to high school at night.”
When Tyra Cornish worked as a front-line server at Russell Dining Hall last year, she often marveled at the reaction of students when they received their food. However, she wished she was able to play a role in cooking the meal. “I wanted to know that I was part of the reason they have a smile on their face and they enjoyed the meal because I prepared it, instead of just serving it,” Cornish, 21, a Wilmington resident, said. Now, she is enrolled in classes at the Food Bank of Delaware’s culinary school and learning skills that will help her do just that. Program Director Tamara Varella said the school, which opened inside the Food Bank’s Newark warehouse in 2002, is intended to give students adequate culinary skills so they can get a job in the field. Many students are referred to the school by the Department of Labor and other social services because they need help honing their job skills. “They are here because there is some kind of barrier to their employment,” Varella said. Tuition for the program is $3,900, but many students get funding through the Department of Labor. The rest of the funds come from grants to the Food Bank. Cornish said she dropped out of high school, but has since gone back to night school to work on her degree, in addition to enrolling in the culinary school. She said the Food Bank program has helped her develop food preparation skills, as well as a passion for the field. “I dibbled and dabbled in the kitchen before, but once I got here, I realized it’s something I’m good at and could make a career out of,” Cornish said. Nick Durbin, chef instructor at the school, said the program teaches students basic cooking skills — from knife techniques to buffet presentation — and prepares them for the ServSafe test, a national food safety certification. When students graduate from the 12-week program, they are ready to work in a restaurant. “We consider them welltrained, entry-level applicants,” Durbin said. Durbin, who spent 10 years working as a chef for the Hotel DuPont, Fieldstone Country Club and other restaurants, said he enjoys teaching others his craft. “What really drives me is that I had an opportunity to go to the Culinary Institute of America, and I had an opportunity to get my foot in the door at some fine dining restaurants, but these guys don’t,” he said. “However, that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have the opportunity to get a good job.” Durbin said culinary art skills are good to have because those who have them rarely find themselves unemployed for long. “People always need to Courtesy of Delaware Food Bank eat,” he said. Varella said students learn Tyra Cornish worked at Russell Dining Hall life skills — such as how to before joining the Food Bank’s culinary school.
September 16, 2008
7
Crossing the classroom language barrier BY KAITLYN KILMETIS Administrative News Editor
As diversity continues to grow at the university through foreign students and staff, a growing complaint among students is they have professors they cannot understand because of their thick accents and poor command of the English language. Senior Glenn Puzio said as a chemical engineering major, he has struggled with a foreign language barrier in a majority of his classes, hindering his learning process. “It creates another obstacle in learning the material,” Puzio said. “If you can’t understand the person who’s teaching it to you, how are you ever going to learn it well?” He said he thinks the university should take the ability to convey a lesson in English into account when hiring faculty at the university. “They have people from China, Africa and India and it might mean they can speak English grammatically correct, but their accent is so heavy that we can’t understand it,” he said. Associate Provost for Faculty Administration Maxine Colm said university President Patrick Harker’s administration is committed to extending its borders beyond the outer limits of campus by reaching out to the global community. “President Harker and the new administration are anxious to diversify both our student body and our faculty as we go forward because it’s his feeling the path to excellence lies in a very diverse student body,” Colm said. In terms of hiring, she said the university has expanded its opportunities to include great minds across the globe. “We’re changing as a university and we’re looking at the whole world as our hiring potential,” Colm said. When hiring, the university’s primary goal is to find the best minds in any given field of study rather than focusing on the level
of proficiency in the English language, she those questions without any fear,” Cobanoglu said. said. “We certainly would not make the comAs a non-native speaker he encourages mand of the language a requirement for hiring students to ask questions, be upfront and have when you’re looking at all the other important open communication, he said. He attempts to elements — do they know their discipline, ease the difficulty posed by language barriers what is their background, can they teach at the by using PowerPoint slides to teach lessons level we expect of our faculty and our stu- by bulleting key points. dents?” Colm Cobanoglu said he hopes said. “Command other professors, both those of the discipline who speak English as a first has to be the language and non-native most important speakers, encourage stuquality.” dents to approach them She said the about ways to improve their university would teaching. never hire pro“As professors we all fessors who are strive to excel and construcincomprehensitive criticism is critical,” he ble, but a foreign said. accent would not Cobanoglu said education deter the univershould stress the imporsity from hiring a tance of being multiculturskilled professor. al, multilingual and inter“We have to acting with the global comguard against munity. using diversity “Students should take the and having a challenge to understand diverse accent as non-native speakers a way of not havbecause people who speak ing good people English as a second lanhere at the uniguage could be your manv e r s i t y, ” C o l m agers, employees and co— Maxine Colm, workers in the future,” he said. C i h a n assoicate provost said. “You’re going to need Cobanoglu, a to know how to communifor faculty administration cate with these people.” hotel, restaurant and institutional Colm said students should management professor who emigrated from realize interacting with non-native English Turkey 12 years ago, said both educators and speakers is a necessity for their future. “Students are going to be traveling the students need to be committed to understanding each other in order to combat this prob- world, so when the companies they work for send them overseas, are they going to comlem. “Teachers are responsible for ensuring a plain about it?” she said. Puzio said although he realizes that interpositive environment for open communication but students are responsible for asking acting with non-native English speakers will
“We certainly would
not make the command of the language a requirement for hiring when you’re looking at all the other important elements — do they know their discipline, what is their background, can they teach at the level we expect of our faculty and our students?”
be a part of his future, he questions why he is forced to do so in an educational setting. “I understand you have to deal with different cultures and people who don’t speak English perfectly,” he said. “I think in the learning system were trying to make our engineers and people better so I don’t think they need to add even more obstacles for students.” Tom Apple, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, said in a globalizing world, people need to work and interact with people from different countries, so the sooner students begin this process, the better. “The way the world works today when students graduate and get a job they are going to have to deal with international people from all types of countries who are speaking English as a second language,” Apple said. “There is a very definite silver lining to being exposed to professors from different countries.” Students will need to learn to adapt with the changing state of the world, he said. “For a very long time now we have been by far the largest economy in the world and the most powerful country,” Apple said. “We do tend to probably have a rather ethnocentric view of the world, but that’s probably going to change and it has to change because we’re just one of many now as these other countries grow up and develop economically.” Complaints from university students about the foreign language barrier may signal a larger societal problem that needs to be rectified, he said. “Your generation needs to get into the mindset that we are just one of many, many nations and English is not the primary language of most people of earth,” Apple said. Colm said rather than focusing on professors with accents, the university may have a larger problem at hand. “Maybe we need to do a better job of making students understand it’s a big world,” Colm said.
Student sells trays in response to trayless dining BY JENNIFER HEINE Managing News Editor
Senior Eric Dramstad opened up shop, selling laptop-sized, orange plastic trays in response to Dining Services’ decision to go trayless in the dining halls. Dramstad bought 20 trays from a restaurant-supply Web site and sent a message to members of the Facebook group “Protest Dining Services Trayless Initiative,” to let students know the trays were for sale at an off-campus location. He has sold a handful of trays so far for $5 each. Sue Bogan, director of Dining Services, stated in an e-mail message that she had not heard about students selling trays off campus, but Dining Services has no problem with students bringing their own trays into dining halls. Dramstad said he bought his own tray over the summer when he learned the university was trying to conserve water and resources by going trayless. He said he has been using his tray all semester, and he carries it in his backpack and wipes off the crumbs when he is finished eating. He has not seen any other students bringing their own trays to the dining halls. Ryan Boyer, marketing program manager for Dining Services, stated in an e-mail
message that of the 3,500 trays that were previously in dining halls, some were given to Trabant University Center, while others were donated to the art department for art projects. The university is storing the remainder of the trays until officials can find an organization that will need them. “Dining’s ultimate goal for the trays removed from the dining halls is to ensure none of the trays make it into a landfill,” Boyer said. Bogan said Trabant and The Scrounge in the Perkins Student Center still have trays because they require customers to pay after they have chosen the foods they want to purchase. “Unlike the dining halls where customers can select a menu item and return to get a beverage or another selection, customers in Trabant and The Scrounge must carry everything at once,” Bogan said. Senior Owen Smith, creator of the Facebook group protesting the trays, said the trayless initiative causes dining halls to have more spills and dirtier tables. “It has people shuffling back and forth to get stuff and when you have people mingling like that, it’s going to cause congestion,” Smith said. Dramstad said he also has noticed
increased messes in the dining halls. “We went to Rodney a couple nights ago and every table was just disgusting,” Dramstad said. Smith said he thinks there are better ways to save resources than go trayless. He said students should have the option for a tray because they pay for dining hall meal plans. “I’m more dissatisfied as a customer, not as an environmentalist,” Smith said. “I do care about the environment.” Going trayless can be a safety hazard because students are forced to carry hot plates that have come straight from the dishwasher, he said. Both Smith and Dramstad said they eat approximately the same amount of food in the dining halls as before, but now they try to put more food on one plate. Bogan said food service provider A R A MARK h a s never considered rein-
stating trays in other universities’ dining halls. ARAMARK’s experience with going trayless in other schools has been successful in achieving environmental benefits, so no school has returned to using trays, she said.
THE REVIEW/Katie Smith
8 September 16, 2008
Kildare’s works to avoid same fate as Shaggy’s BY DAVID THOMAS
Staff Reporter The new kid on the block seems to be having no trouble fitting in. After a busy opening month of August, the manager of Kildare’s on Main said he expected September to have a steep boost in sales with the welcomed return of students. Brian Houck, general manager, said the opening weeks did not disappoint. “We had a stellar month in August, but we’re on track to do at least the amount of business we did then, if not more,� Houck said. Senior Mallory Schwartz said she recommends Kildare’s to her friends. “The dance floor is very big, the bands are great and the DJs are great,�Schwartz said. Amy Burkett, 22, of Maryland, who visits her friends from the university, said she enjoys Kildare’s atmosphere. “It’s better than all the other bars,� she said. “I keep coming back with my friends from Delaware.� These repeat customers will be heavily targeted by Kildare’s now that the bulk of the restaurant’s clientele has arrived, Houck said. “The location on Main Street was carefully planned out by our company, which is in the middle of a rapid expansion, springing up on many college campuses around the country,� he said. The young-adult age, synonymous with a college campus, is Kildare’s prime demographic, Houck said. “This is where our company thrives,� he said. “This is our target.� Kelly Murphy, a restaurant employee, said she has been busy since students have been back. “Thursday through Saturday we had a line wrapping all the way around the steps,� she said, referring to the steps leading up to the second-floor establishment above Grotto Pizza. “The first few weekends with kids back, it has been slammed.� After struggling to get the kitchen up and running as quickly as the bar, lunch and dinner business has picked up steadily as the kitchen has been completed, Houck said. “Lunch is finally picking up now that the kitchen is open,� he said. With celebrity chef Brian Duffy, who was featured on NBC 10 making lunch specials, the mid-day food sales should continue to improve. Not only are these sales critical to business, but they are also very important to the long-term aspirations of the pub, Houck said. He said Kildare’s must keep its food sales high enough to balance out its alcohol sales, in order to avoid the same fate as Shaggy’s. “We have great food specials which we are marketing heavily to make sure we don’t do that,� he said. Also, with the return of students, the pub has been extra careful to prevent entry to minors. Kildare’s uses a strict security policy to make sure it stays on good terms with the city. The lines seem to do little to detract from business, Murphy said, as Kildare’s has seen customers coming back for a second or third time. Houck said he is very confident busy nights will continue. “We’re excited to be here,� he said. “Newark’s a great town and we definitely want to stay.�
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City raises speeding fines to protect students, pedestrians BY LYDIA WOOLEVER City News Editor
Drivers may need to start paying closer attention to the posted speed limit signs displayed around Newark, beginning this month. As of Sept. 1, fines for speeding violations have increased. According to Ordinance No. 08-14, the amendment reads: “Whoever violates this section who exceeds the maximum speed limit by less than 15 miles per hour shall be fined an amount equal to the number of miles per hour over the maximum speed limit multiplied by itself.� It goes on to state, “Any person violating this section who exceeds the maximum speed limit by more than 15 miles per hour shall, in addition to the fine established for 15 miles per hour over the maximum speed limit, pay an additional fine by $15 per mile per hour for each additional mile per hour in excess of the maximum speed limit.� David Athey, council member and creator of the amendment said the new fines are much larger than they were previously. “If you’re going 10 miles over the speed limit, the fine is $10 per miles over. So 10 times 10 would be $100, plus court costs and other additional fees,� he said. “If you’re nine miles over, it’s nine times nine. If you’re eight miles over, it’s eight times eight. So basically if you know math, it’s the square of the number of miles you are driving over the limit.� Athey said the rule is in effect up to 15 miles per hour over he speed limit. Once over 15 mph, the amendment takes a turn. “Fifteen squared is $225, so now you’re getting into some pretty serious money,� he said. “When you’re over 15 miles per hour, it just adds $6 per mile, because after that it just starts to get ridiculous.� The amendment was a result of multiple studies, Athey said. “We had some traffic studies done a few years ago with the police,� he said. “They were able to measure the speed of many neighborhood roads and big surprise, and by and large, the average speeds were well above 25 miles per hour on all of these residential roads.� Another reason for implementing this change was pedestrian safety, Athey said. “It’s not exactly rocket science to figure out but studies have been done to show that if you’re a pedestrian and someone in a car hits you going 25 miles per hour, you’re going to be hurt, but you’re probably going to live,� he said. “If that happens and that person is going 35 miles per hour, you’re probably not going to live.� Athey said he feels it is essential for
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drivers to follow the speed limit, especially in neighborhood environments. “There is a reason why in almost every residential community in the country, the posted speed limit is 25 miles per hour,� he said. Senior Jillian Guiglotto, a resident of Main Street, said she cannot believe how fast people sometimes drive. is “Traffic always heavy and 25 miles per hour is a fair speed for a crowded street with lots of pedesTHE REVIEW/Melanie Hardy trians,�she said. Sept. 1. speeding fines became effective Increased “Drivers seem to speed even more Every extra dollar the fines bring when there is a lot of traffic, like it’s a into the city will be used to benefit the race or something to see how quick they community and promote safety, Athey can get down the street. This is Newark, said. not New York City.� “It could be additional enforcement, Mayor Vance A. Funk III said he maybe some public education, some sort feels the increased speeding fines are of additional signage,� he said. “This necessary for safety in Newark. has nothing to do with raising more “There is a real concern about money for the city — it has everything speeding in the neighborhoods,� he said. to do with pedestrian safety.� “Especially because it seems like we’re However, Guiglotto said she thinks on a new wave of young children who the amendment could be somewhat are under 10 years old in neighborhoods stricter and more consistent. now, so we’re very concerned about “Speeding is speeding but those speeding vehicles.� who speed at a faster pace are given Both of these reasons tie into an harder punishments than those who only ugly past for Newark’s history, Athey speed by a little bit,� she said. “That is said. like giving a man a lesser sentence for “For awhile, every year or two, we shooting someone in the foot versus had a fatality,� he said. “A pedestrian, a shooting him in the chest. He still shot bicyclist, whatever. There’s a history of him right?� people being either seriously hurt or Guiglotto said she thinks the punkilled, and a lot of them were students.� ishment should be the same for any The amendment came into action speeding violation. back in May, Athey said. “It should be the same for someone “We had a meeting at council, just speeding five miles over the limit or 15 to let other council members know miles over the limit, and clearly a $25 we’re talking to the police department fine isn’t the same as a $225 fine,� she and looking at different data, and that said. “The violation may not mean as we’d be coming back sometime with an much to the person spending $25, who ordinance to change the fines,� he said. will probably continue to speed.� The city council hopes the change Athey said the bottom line is the in speeding fines will force drivers to city hopes the new law changes people’s slow down and thus cause fewer acci- habits. dents, Athey said. “We can’t guarantee it, but as soon “One thing we talked about was that as the word starts getting out that we’re every state has a few places where peo- serious about this, I am absolutely hopeple know you just don’t speed,� he said. ful it will,� he said. “I don’t want to read “I want people to know that when you’re in the paper in coming months or comgoing to Newark, Delaware, you don’t ing years that a pedestrian was hit and speed, simple as that, you keep your killed.� speeds low.�
Midnight Munchies feeds students’ late-night needs BY MOLLY YBORRA Staff Reporter
Capitalizing on the night-owl tendencies of college students, Midnight Munchies, delivers the convenient store to your door, from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m. every night of the week. Midnight Munchies is a Newark-based company that serves students living on and off campus and residents in the Newark area. The company’s Web site features a large menu offering everything from French fries and ice cream cones, to Alka Seltzer and Marlboro Reds. The company’s mission is to keep students safe. Fran McNally, owner and founder of Midnight Munchies, said he conceived of the idea in order to stop students from going out late at night in potentially dangerous situations. “Primarily when I came up with this concept, it was [for] students in particular that weren’t familiar with the area, especially with the freshmen coming in,” McNally said. “Instead of having to go out to a convenience store at two, three o’clock in the morning, bring a convenience store to them.” Since opening for the season in April, Midnight Munchies’ number of sales has increased. McNally said he was very busy within the first week of the Fall Semester. “Right now I’m just starting to gauge from the last seven days,” he said. “It’s been busy every night.” Josh Roarty, deliveryman for Midnight Munchies, said business since re-opening has increased by at least 50 percent. He said Hot Pockets and White Castle Burgers are
among the service’s most popular food products, while ping pong balls lead the race for the most popular non-food product. Even with the amount of business Midnight Munchies has been getting, many students are still unaware of the service Midnight Munchies provides, but are excited about the idea. University graduate student Leslie Mills said the service is unique because it has all the products of a popular convenience store but it is open later. “Usually in the evenings most shops are closed and students have a problem getting some of these basic things,” Mills said. Junior Cashin Chandler said being able to eat at all hours of the night might not be the healthiest alternative for students. “I feel that it could be useful, but then again it might promote people to eat throughout the whole night.” Chandler said. She said eating late at night can cause healthrelated problems, such as obesity. However, she did agree the service is safe and that other similar delivery services take a long time to deliver their products. McNally said he plans to expand his business to other campuses across the nation, including Villanova University, Louisiana State University and the San Diego area. He said these stores would tailor their offered products to the needs and prefer-
September 16, 2008
9
ences of the area. E a c h n e w business h e opens could
THE REVIEW/Katie Smith
have a different menu. “I have a lot of interested people who want to buy into the franchising,” McNally said. “I’ve branded everything, trademarked everything. Every state, every store will have a whole different menu.” However, his business’s popularity also has some other side effects. “I get a lot of prank phone calls but what are you supposed to do about that?” he
said. He has also received requests for tobac co products from minors, but McNally said he and his employees are prepared to deal with such incidents. “Biggest thing is, it doesn’t matter if you look 35 years old, you’re getting IDed,” he said.
Workshop explores wind power in Delaware
Small state to become nation’s first with offshore wind farms “Wind Power Workshop” in Wilmington on Sept. 9 and 10. The workshop focused on The university co-sponsored the offshore wind power in North America, and American Wind Energy Association’s used Delaware as an example of being a leader in the development of offshore wind projects. In the College of Marine and Earth Studies, faculty and graduate students are working on studying offshore wind energy. Willett Kempton, associate professor of marine policy, said he was a panelist at the conference. Kempton said he gave a presentation at the conference on the research the university has been conducting and discussed how wind energy can be more beneficial than fossil fuels such as gasoline and coal. He said the conference puts the university in the forefront of offshore wind technology. Kempton also said he hopes the conference educated its attendees about the potential of wind THE REVIEW/Katie Smith BY EVAN SCHWARTZ Staff Reporter
energy resources and technology. “With all the research the university has been doing, it was a better way of getting information about wind energy out to the public,” he said. Chris Madison, senior writer for AWEA, said the association chose Delaware to hold the conference because of its plans to allow Bluewater Wind to build an offshore wind farm off the coast of the Delaware beaches. “Delaware is clearly a leader in offshore wind planning,” Madison said. Offshore wind energy requires wind turbines to be placed in the ocean as opposed to onshore wind energy which uses land turbines, he said. An obstacle with onshore wind is building a transmission system strong enough to deliver wind energy to all areas of the state. “We think the progress made in Delaware and in other states that are planning projects shows that it will soon become an important renewable power source,” Madison said. “The clear message at our workshop was offshore wind is coming.” The process of establishing offshore wind energy in Delaware has been a lengthy one. Chad Tolman, the energy chair of the Sierra Club’s Delaware chapter, said the whole process took nearly a year and a half. He said he has worked to make offshore
wind energy a priority in the state for many reasons. “Sierra Club favors wind farming over a gas plant because burning coal and gas creates pollutants — one of the effects of climate change,” Tolman said. “Sierra Club is concerned about wind energy and the concentration of renewable resources over building gas or coal plants.” He said after electricity rates increased 59 percent in 2006, many Delaware residents were upset with Delmarva, a major energy provider for the state. Once the issue of offshore wind had been exposed and proposed in legislation, Tolman said the public was more favorable and open to the idea of using the alternative energy because of price stability, its new technology and its benefit for the environment. Julie Clendenin, an attendee of the workshop, said future improvements and expansion of wind energy depends on federal help. “While the industry has been growing at a breakneck pace these last two years, future growth is dependent upon a longterm federal policy to encourage investment in wind and other renewable energy resources,” Clendenin said. “The first critical priority is immediate congressional action.”
10 September 16, 2008
The cost of a quick energy boost Researchers question safety of some energy drink ingredients National/State News Editor
Now a multi-million dollar industry, energy drinks can be found in nearly any convenience store. As popular as they may be, some researchers
wonder how safe these drinks really are because their lack of strict regulation by the Food and Drug Administration has provided scarce research on their ingredients. Sebastian Cianci, public affairs specialist for the FDA stated in an e-mail message that the term “energy drink” is not specifically defined in the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. He said if the drinks are not labeled as a supplement, they are subject to be regulated as conventional foods, and have to meet the general requirements outlined for all food products. Basma, Mariam nutrition counselor at the university, said many of the herbal ingredients and supplements added to energy drinks — including taurine, guarana, l-carnitine and ginseng — have not been researched enough to properly assess their potential health effects, as well as their effects when mixed with caffeine. “We aren’t sure how safe they are,” Basma said. “Some countries have banned energy drinks simply because they don’t know how safe they are.” She said taurine, one ingredient found in drinks such as Monster, Red Bull and Full Throttle, is an amino acid that occurs naturally in protein- foods like meat and fish. She said isolating Taurine in energy drinks may actually be counterproductive, because it can create a calming effect. This is one reason why energy drinks may cause their users to crash or feel sick after drinking them, Basma said. According to WebMD.com, the FDA requires commercial beverage manufacturers to list caffeine on all nutritional labels. However, it does not require manufacturers to list how much caffeine a product contains. Most energy drinks contain approximately twice the amount of caffeine as a caffeinated soda, and more caffeine than most coffee beverages, the THE REVIEW/Katie Smith
BY MADDIE THOMAS
Web site states. In many energy drinks, the amount of caffeine exceeds the maximum limit placed on carbonated sodas. While a 12-ounce serving of Coca-Cola Classic contains 29 milligrams of caffeine, energy drinks such as No Fear can have nearly 141 milligrams of caffeine per 16-ounce serving. Basma said in high doses, caffeine alone can be potentially harmful to the body by causing it to excrete calcium, a precursor to developing weak bones. It can also elevate heart rate and blood pressure. Large amounts of caffeine may also hinder the ability to concentrate, she said. “If you take caffeine in high amounts, you won’t be able to focus,” Basma said. “Especially if you drink it later in the day, that can lead to sleep deprivation and irregular sleep patterns.” Other ingredients found in energy drinks are ginseng and guarana, both stimulants similar to caffeine. Basma said little research has been done assessing the interactions of these stimulants with caffeine, a cause of concern because the energizing effects of the additives and caffeine could be multiplied when mixed together. She said the additives may not even be essential ingredients for energy drinks. “The company’s justification is that during times of high stress, your need for these ingredients is higher,” Basma said. “Do you need it for a drink? No, not necessarily.” Kathleen Miller, a research scientist at the University at Buffalo, studied the effects of energy drink consumption and concluded that a correlation exists between drinking energy drinks and “toxic jock behavior,” a behavior associated with hyper-masculine attitudes and excessive risk taking. Her 2006 study found people who drank energy drinks at least six days per month, or one or two times per week, had an elevated risk of problem drinking, illicit drug use, sexual risktaking and violence. Miller said she believes more research needs to be conducted on the effects and safety of the ingredients used in energy drinks because there are currently loopholes in the way they are used. She said energy drinks should carry warning labels to notify children and pregnant women of their potential side effects. “Even if we don’t regulate, we at least ought to know what we’re getting in these drinks,” Miller said. Some countries including France, Denmark and Norway have banned energy drinks due to their excessive amounts of caffeine. Canada requires warning labels and Sweden only allows energy drinks to be sold in pharmacies for medicinal purposes, she said. Basma said for students looking for increased energy levels, there is no need for them to rely on energy drinks because a healthy diet, frequent exercise and adequate amounts of sleep are all keys to maintaining energy levels. However, for those still needing a boost, drinking coffee in moderate amounts is healthy. “You should not have to rely on energy drinks,” she said. “One or two cups of coffee in the morning is all you need.” Junior Max Ferreira said he believes energy drink users, especially students, should be more aware of their potential health risks. “A lot of people use these drinks for studying,” Ferreira said. “If people knew a little bit more of the health risks or the lack of regulations, they probably wouldn’t drink them as much. Something like that, if you do it too much, it’s bound to have adverse effects.”
University to switch to online billing Continued from page 3
bility is and what it will be later,” she said. Stone said she does not think e-bills are a foreign concept to parents with payments of mortgages, credit cards and other bills being completed online. “I don’t think it’s just this population of students that are comfortable with getting things online,” she said. “I think paying bills online is a common thing in higher generations.” Parent Rona Hunter said she thinks most parents will not have problems completing payments online. “How can anyone not know how to use the computer these days?” Hunter said. “I use the computer everyday. Also, I think it’s easily accessible and it seems uncomplicated even for people who aren’t computer savvy.” She said she appreciates the switch to paperless billing because she prefers online billing and it provides her greater access to her daughter’s tuition information. “I like it because I pay all of my bills online anyway,” Hunter said. “It was always hard to get information on the Web site because I didn’t have access to it and now I do.” She said she also appreciates that online billing provides a quicker turnaround time. “I didn’t used to have access to it and by the time I got it in the mail it was always due in a week or two, which caused problems,”Hunter said. Senior Chris Rearick said the more immediate update of billing information will decrease the chance of problems with late payments, but they may still occur because some parents do not regularly check e-mail. “I think parents are going to be confused by it at first and it may result in a lot of late fees just because parents won’t know,” Rearick said. “I think half the parents that have e-mails don’t check them. I know my parents don’t ever check theirs.” He said he understands the switch to online billing may mean he will have to take a bigger role in the payment process but he does not mind. “My parents would probably prefer getting a bill in the mail but it’s fine,” Rearick said. “I’m completely computer literate so it’s OK with me.” He said although some problems may arise with the new billing system, they are outweighed by all the positive aspects e-billing has to offer. “It’s definitely better for the environment and it’s definitely a good way to cut costs for the university,” Rearick said. “I think they are trying to keep tuition down and do other stuff with the ‘Path to Prominence,’ so any way they can cut costs is awesome and better for us.”
September 16, 2008
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in the news
Damage from Hurricane Ike evaluated
Officials in the Texas Gulf Coast began to assess the scope of the impact of Hurricane Ike on Sunday, finding the massive storm washed away homes and knocked out power to millions, but did notcause the catastrophic loss of life federal and state authorities had feared. Nearly 2,000 people were rescued from flooded homes and elsewhere in the Galveston area, and more than 2 million remained without power statewide.The number of deaths from the hurricane’s driving rains and 100 mph winds was reported to be seven — five people in Texas and two in Louisiana. By
late Sunday, there were reports of six additional deaths in other states as the storm moved north. Federal officials said there were no reports of major damage to the region's critical oil, gas and petrochemical installations. Approximately 2.2 million residences and businesses remained without power Sunday, along with 161,000 customers in Louisiana and 154,000 in Arkansas. While authorities feared Ike could inundate 100,000 homes and cause widespread fatalities, the storm veered north at the last minute and spared the HoustonGalveston Bay area from worse destruction.
Federal officials investigating Friday’s fatal Metrolink train crash in suburban Los Angeles focused Sunday on whether a signal that should have alerted the engineer to stop the train was working properly ,and if it went unheeded. National Transportation Safety Board member Kitty Higgins said a computer reading indicated the last signal before the collision site was displaying a red light, but investigators want to make sure it was not a false reading. The crash with a Union Pacific freight train has, so far, claimed 25
lives and left 135 injured, 40 critically. The train passed four signals that, if working correctly, would have flashed yellow or red to warn the engineer to slow and stop. Officials have listened to recordings and found no indication that the engineer and conductor exchanged information on the last two signals, one of which should have been flashing yellow, and the other red. Higgins said investigators are awaiting toxicology reports on the engineer, which should be available in two to three weeks.
A suicide bomber struck a United Nations convoy Sunday in southern Afghanistan, killing two Afghan doctors on their way to provide polio vaccinations to children, along with their driver. Separately, at least six children were killed while playing with what Afghan authorities said was a roadside bomb planted by the Taliban and aimed at foreign troops. Abdul Rahim Daisiwal, the chief of Andar district, said more than a dozen other children were injured by the blast. The suicide attack on the U.N.
convoy in Kandahar province, which injured five guards and 10 passersby, was condemned by U.N. officials and the commander of Western forces in Afghanistan. At least two dozen foreign and Afghan aid workers have been killed so far this year, exceeding last year’s total, and a group that tracks violence against humanitarian organizations said the number of such attacks has increased by 50 percent. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but suspicion fell on Taliban militants.
Train crash kills 25 in Los Angeles
— compiled from the L.A. Times and Washington Post news wire
police reports
MAN ARRESTED FOR LOCAL SOLICITATION Police responded to a report of an unknown suspect soliciting door-todoor without a city permit on Monday, Sept. 8, at 7:08 p.m., on the unit block of Odaniel Avenue, off of Elkton Road, Cpl. Gerald Bryda of the Newark Police Department said. According to police, the suspect, a 23-year-old white male from Kentucky, was found by police and arrested via summons for violating Newark’s no-solicitation law. The law states that door-to-door solicitors inside the city limits must obtain a permit from the city and carry it with them. The police are warning students and local residents that if a solicitor comes to their door and does not have a permit in his or her possession, it is more than likely a scam, in which case one should call the police, Bryda said.
PICKPOCKETING AT DEER PARK A 25-year-old Delaware resident had his wallet pickpocketed at The Deer Park Tavern on East Main Street on Monday, Sept. 8 at 1:15 a.m., Bryda said. The victim told police the suspect continuously attempted to engage in conversation while standing unusually close. He told police the suspect bumped into him once on the dance floor and then once again around closing time as the victim was exiting the bar. At that time, the suspect vacated the premises. A moment later, the victim overheard someone else saying his or her cell phone had been stolen, at which point the victim noticed his wallet was missing, Bryda said. The suspect is described as a black male, between the ages of 20 and 27 years old, approximately 5’9” to 5’11” in height with a thin build. The suspect was later seen on video using the victim’s credit card in a Wal-Mart in Elkton, Md. Officers are actively investigating those leads, Bryda said. — Lydia Woolever
THE REVIEW/Melanie Hardy
Main Street undergoes expansions, improvements BY KATIE PIZZULLO Staff Reporter
The city of Newark completed a project to enhance pedestrian Main Street this summer. Mayor Vance A. Funk III said the project was needed to increase the city’s image and safety. Funk said one of the main issues for the project was the crosswalks, especially the crosswalk by Klondike Kate’s because of the heightened number of people in that area. “During the construction, all of the crosswalks were redone to look exactly the same,” he said. “This was not done just for visual enjoyment reasons, but for safety, too.” Funk said designers decided to make the crosswalks out of brick to make them distinguishable to drivers. “This was done so drivers can see the crosswalks and know to stop for pedestrians, decreasing the amount of confusion that took place prior to the construction,” he said. Maureen Feeney Roser, interim city planning director, said there were new additions other than the crosswalks. “Bump-outs, or raised crosswalks, were put into place as well so that drivers can see the pedestrians and pedestrians can see the drivers,” she said. “Tree grates were put into place along the sidewalks as well.” Roser said the long-term project started with hopes of improvement in 2002. “There was anticipation of repaving the streets, replacing the crosswalk lights, building stone crosswalks and creating tree grates,” she said. Roser said the proposal was brought to the Downtown Newark Partnership and it, in turn, asked the Delaware Department of Transportation to help finance the project. The project cost a total of $1.2 million, she said. The city provided $200,000 and DelDOT provided the rest. Roser said the construction first began in the summer of 2006 with repaving Main Street. “This part of the project stretched from Library Avenue to the railroad,” she said. “This part of the project disrupted traffic on the Main Street area, so the streets were a priority to be finished first.” Roser said part two of the construction took place this summer to improve pedestrian safety. “This aspect of the project focused mainly on pedestrians while still taking into consideration vehi-
cle traffic,” she said. Roser said this project is important because Newark has the largest number of pedestrians statewide, with traffic to add in the mix. While the major construction has been finished, Roser said workers are still adjusting the tree grates. “The main point of the construction is to provide a safe, efficient and environmentally sensitive transportation network,” she said. Funk said the project also controls pedestrian walking on Delaware Avenue by the Green on university grounds. “The crosswalk light by The [Main Street] Galleria was altered so that people can cross when the light is green,” he said. Junior Kalie Lasiter said while she does feel safe walking along Main Street, some of the traffic lights still need to be adjusted. “The crosswalk by [Trabant University Center] is always very congested because the light is so long,” she said. “I think more improvements need to be made at that part of Main Street.” Sophomore Jesse Benigno said the city should go further in its efforts to improve the safety of Main Street. “Perhaps the university blue l i g h t s should be p l a c e d a r o u n d Main Street to protect students even more than just the crosswalk changes,” Benigno said. Newark resident and mother of three Lisa Marchesiello said she feels safe walking along Main Street. “I feel the new changes will make Main Street more accessible to pedestrians,” she said. Roser said in addition to its appearance, the safety appeal has been greatly improved. “After all, safety is the most important thing,” she said. THE REVIEW/Katie Smith
Violence continues in Afghanistan
The enhancements to Main Street cost a total of $1.2 million.
12 September 16, 2008
Suicidal thoughts common at universities BY KATHERINE GUINEY Staff Reporter
Approximately 55 percent of college students have considered suicide at least one point in their lives, a new survey reports. Six percent of students surveyed reported they had seriously considered taking their own lives, David Drum, a professor of education psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, who conducted the survey, said. The survey’s findings, which were presented in August at the American Psychological Association’s annual convention, include results from 26,000 undergraduate and graduate students from 70 different universities. While the University of Delaware was not part of the study, Drum said he thinks the survey’s results are important for all universities to consider. Victoria Kim, project director of suicide prevention in Delaware, said she thinks many universities do not want to assess suicide because it is such a sensitive issue. She said students may consider suicide for various reasons, including the stress of college life and academics. One quarter of the students who said they having considered suicide in Drum’s survey said their thoughts only occurred once. The rest had multiple occurrences of suicide thoughts. Drum said these findings reveal the need to develop new means of treatment for suicidal individuals. He said the term “considered suicide” can include a range of behaviors from a fleeting thought to more extreme feelings where actual attempts at suicide could be made. “It’s important to know it can be brief and reoccurring,” Drum said. “This means that some of our traditional methods are just not going to be able to affect those people.” Charles Beale, director of the university’s center for counseling and student devel-
opment, said Drum’s statistics confirm why increasing amounts of students have recently been visiting the counseling center. “When you graduate, we probably will have seen about 25 percent of the graduating class,” Beale said. Students must seek help from the counseling center if they are concerned for themselves or others, he said. The center’s biggest referral sources are friends of students and students who have already been to the center. Beale said there are many reasons why such a large number of college students have considered suicide, including leaving home and coming to terms with past issues. The center handles students with suicidal thoughts on a case-by-case basis by determining the mental state of each student, he said. Kim said gate-keeper training, which teaches people the risk factors and warning signs of suicide and the appropriate measures to take should someone be suicidal, can help make people more aware of the signs of suicidal thoughts. Beale said although resident assistants at the university do not undergo gate-keeper training, they are made aware of the signs, Beale said. They are instructed to urge students to visit the counseling center at the first signs of any concerning behavior. Should a student visit the counseling center, a counselor will assess the student’s frame of mind, he said. Unless the student poses a risk to anyone, including himself or herself, the student can continue living on campus while seeing the counselor. Beale said if the student is deemed to be a risk to themselves or others, the counseling center is obligated to take action, such as sending the student to the hospital until they are ready to return to campus. Junior Stephanie King said she thinks the center taking action may deter many stu-
dents from seeking help. “Some people think that if they share some information with the school, they’re obligated to tell their parents or someone,” King said. Senior Ashley Gannon said she has known little about the counseling center since her time at the university. “I remember freshman year, seeing flyers up and I was like ‘oh, that’s nice,’” Gannon said. “But that’s about it.”
King said she thinks students are not as aware of the counseling center as they should be and that it should be made more accessible to students. “I think it’s good that they have it, but I don’t really see too much about it,” King said. “I’m pretty sure there’d be more students willing to take advantage of it if it was out there more.”
“We followed them to Sacramento, Chattanooga, South Illinois and elsewhere,”Ann said. “If we have something else to do on a game day, we cancel that something. The Blue Hens are definitely our priority.” The Tatnalls said they keep track of the players that go on to the pros, such as former quarterback Joe Flacco. “To see Flacco play at a Baltimore game we couldn’t attend, we drove all the way to Elkton from our home in New Jersey and
booked a room at the Hampton Inn to get the station on TV,” George said. “We really care about the boys and wish them the best.” The Tatnall’s have even missed friends’ weddings to watch the team. “I think there should be a law that you can’t get married on a Delaware game day,” George said. “Our friends think we’re crazy.” Scarlett Schmidt, director of athletic development, said both alumni and students do a great job of supporting the football team. “It’s almost like they adopt the guys every
four years,” Schmidt said. “The fans are very serious about the team. They love getting the media guides and reading up on the guys, they wear the UD clothes and some attend the practices.” She said the reason so many families attend games is because many alumni have an affiliation and love for the team. They like to share that love with their children who, in turn, become fans. Junior Julie Cross said she has attended all of the football games since she was in fourth grade. “My family is continued season-ticket holders and they are obsessed with the team,” Cross said. “My brothers actually have a countdown to the season.” New students also plan to support the Blue Hens. Freshman Danni Olivieri said she chose to go to the university because of the immense school spirit and the football team. “I wanted to go somewhere that had a good football team because going to the games is so much fun,” Olivieri said. Oliveri, who bought beads and face paint in preparation for the first game of the season on Sept. 13, plans to attend all of the Hens’ home games and possibly some away games. Lynn Kokjohn said her love for the Blue Hens comes naturally. “The bottom line is people like to support winners,” Lynn said.
Laurel Hall houses the Student Health Center.
THE REVIEW/Steven Gold
Loyal fans excited for another football season BY ELISA LALA Staff Reporter
As students hurried off to their classes on Sept. 11, the university held a pep rally in Trabant University Center to encourage support for the football team in its first game of the season. Because of some fans’ existing love for the team, the enthusiasm to attend the game was already there. Fans had begun preparing well in advance for Saturday’s game against West Chester University. Kyle Kokjohn, 14 and a Blue Hens fan since birth, has been to every game, home and away. His mother Lynn Kokjohn, an alumna and a die-hard fan, went into labor on a game day. Two weeks later, clad in his university attire, Kyle attended his very first game. “Kyle goes with us to all the games,” Lynn said. “He really looks up to the guys on the team and loves to support them.” She said the players also show their love and appreciation for Kyle. “They’re always so respectful and thankful to us for attending the games,” Lynn said. The Kokjohns, like other football fanatics comprised of students, alumni and lovers of the team, live, breath and dream blue and gold. “We have been to every game for the last 15 or 20 years,” Lynn said. “We are their No. 1 spectators.” Fellow Hen fanatics, George and Ann Tatnall, both 1957 graduates, also support the team by following it throughout the season. Attendance was high at the football team’s first game of the season.
THE REVIEW/Steven Gold
Survey finds UD students unhappy with financial aid BY ALLYSON HEISLER Staff Reporter
The university received a ranking of 20 for students least satisfied with financial aid, according to The Princeton Review’s 2009 edition of “The Best 368 Colleges.” In order to obtain these rankings, over 120,000 students were surveyed with approximately 80 questions about different aspects of college life. Director of Financial Aid Johnie Burton said it does not appear students are unable to attend the university due to problems with financial aid opportunities. “Our enrollment figures show that the university is doing enough to help students meet their financial needs,” Burton said. “However, there is always more that can be done.” Burton said he was surprised by the rating, especially since 60 percent of students receive some type of financial aid. Louis Hirsh, director of admissions, stated in an e-mail message that although the university received a low rating, it did not have any influence on prospective students. “That same ranking appeared a year ago, and it had no perceivable effect on UD admissions,” Hirsh said. “In fact, last year we had the largest applicant pool in our history, and we just enrolled the strongest freshman class in our history.” The university is constantly looking for ways to improve its financial aid program, he said. Hirsh said in fall 2009, the university will implement the new Commitment to Delawareans program. “This program promises to meet the demonstrated financial need of Delaware residents, up to the costs of tuition, fees, a stipend for books and, if they are living on campus, room and board,” he said. “It also imposes a cap on the total loan indebtedness that Delawarean undergraduates can accrue during their four years at UD.” Hirsh said the university is introducing several new scholarship
opportunities beginning in fall 2009. The university expects the overall scholarship and financial aid budget to increase over the next few years. Burton said the financial aid department bases a student’s financial need on several factors, including the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, need-based aid, meritbased aid and athletics. However, the largest factor for determining a student’s financial needs is the FAFSA. University students seem to have mixed feelings about this ranking. Freshman Sarah Brown said she was not aware of the university’s ranking on financial aid and so many students were displeased with financial support from the university. “I find it surprising since Delaware is a good school with students from many different areas,” Brown said. She said she thinks the university should take these rankings into account to improve student opinions. “I would suggest putting more money toward helping students,” Brown said. Sophomore Nicole Aizaga said she thinks the university’s rating accurately depicts students’ sentiments toward the university’s financial aid department. “In general, I am not very happy with my financial aid,” Aizaga said. “I don’t find Delaware’s ranking surprising at all. I think the university should tap into their endowment and offer more scholarships.” Laura Braswell, senior editor of “The Best 368 Colleges,” said rankings are based solely on student surveys. Braswell said after completing the rankings, The Princeton Review requests the students who took the surveys browse the rankings for accuracy. “The Princeton Review’s list has an average of 81 percent accuracy,” she said. “We believe that these rankings are important for prospective students and it is our desire to help prospective students make educated choices about where they want to attend college.”
Courtesy of The Princeton Review
The Princeton Review’s survey is based entirely on student response
September 16, 2008
13
September 16, 2008
editorial
ONLINE POLL
Q: Do you think the university is doing enough to make the campus feel safer? Vote online at www.udreview.com
14
Campus crime isn’t “normal”
University should do more to prevent recent thefts
Since before the semester started, crime has been off the charts throughout Newark. There have been break-ins and muggings at gunpoint in the area leaving students and residents wondering what is being done to combat crime. When questioned about the increase of crime, Public Safety and Newark Police respond by saying it is consistent with past statistics. However, it seems crime is progressively getting worse and little is being done besides reassuring students that this is “normal.” The police have not had much of a role in preventing muggings from occurring. Public Safety officials claim to have more officers patrolling the campus but few are seen during the times it is most crucial. While they may be on higher alert for residence hall areas, students who live off campus are left to their own defenses on streets that are becoming more dangerous. It is important for university police to recognize that places around campus like Cleveland Avenue and South College Avenue are home to a mostly student population. It is unfair to pass over places like these that face the highest threat.
Shrub Toons
Furthermore, if the police are correct in saying that crime increases at the start of every semester, then it would be beneficial to step up prevention before the semester starts. It is completely unacceptable for a student to be held up with a gun shoved in his or her face, only to have it brushed off by police as a normal occurrence. The “Path to Prominence” program has been a central focus on the inner-workings of the university. To think the university would include the safety of its students as a primary goal wouldn’t be too much to ask. Instead, we remain uneasy that crime isn’t going to get any better and that nothing will be done to eliminate it. University President Patrick Harker refuses to comment on the crime increase. While it’s great to be able to take trips to visit Chinese universities or reinvent the Web site, that money should go to promoting a safe, crime-free environment. This school is home to so many students. No one should have to walk around campus in fear of being held up and knowing that the administration is essentially doing nothing, to protect the students who call the town home.
THE REVIEW/ Jan Dickey
Speeding fines help pedestrians Strict traffic laws aim to improve safety in Delaware As crime becomes more of an issue in areas around the university, being hit by a car on the way to class or getting into a fender-bender on Main Street is pretty low on the list of things to worry about. But the truth is speeding is a big problem, in Delaware and all over the United States, and while it may seem like there are bigger problems to worry about and more pressing issues to address, speeding can be just as dangerous as walking home alone at night. In an effort to crack down on speeding, a new law was instituted in Newark that will make the penalty for speeding more severe. Instead of a set penalty in place for all violations, the miles per hour being driven over the speed limit will be taken into account and defenders will be penalized based on the severity of their crime. The new law, although harsh, makes sense because the punishment will now fit the crime. If a driver is only five miles over the speed limit, the possible damage
is less than if a driver was going 30 miles over, and therefore the fine is less. With so many one-way streets and residential areas around Newark, steps to enforce speeding violations more strictly will make these areas safer. Furthermore, on heavily populated areas like Main Street where there are few stoplights and students are constantly crossing where there are no crosswalks, drivers may be encouraged to slow down. The new law is a severe enough penalty to prompt drivers into slowing down, and not just when there is a police car behind them. Overall, the higher fines and more severe penalties are only a burden to the drivers who get pulled over. The hope is if the new violations and financial issues that go along with the tickets become a big enough problem for those who continue to get caught, they will slow down for good and make Delaware streets safer for everyone.
“Return the makeup. You know you had a good time.”
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The Review welcomes guest columns from those interested in writing. Please e-mail theudreview@gmail.com for more information. www.udreview.com
September 16, 2008
Last week’s poll results:
Q: What do you think about the new trayless policy in the dining halls? 74% Love it 18% Hate it 8% Don’t care
opinion
15
Palin unfit for vice presidential ticket Guest Columnist
Andrew Grzywacz
Relatable personality doesn’t translate to job experience Sarah Palin is dangerously unqualified to be vice president. Don’t get me wrong — I can and do certainly respect Palin as a person. But just the slightest look past her cheerful personality and hockey-mom image will reveal that the Alaskan governor has no plan, no experience and seemingly no idea what she’s even talking about. The fact that Palin’s campaigning thus far has been virtually nothing but Republican pandering rhetoric is a bad omen — even more alarming is how so many people are buying into it. Take a look at her RNC speech, a stirring address of factual errors and schmaltzy “I’m just like you!” fluff. She spends a good chunk of her speech playing up the family angle, despite protests just days earlier for the media to leave her family out of the campaign. She may have said, “Thanks, but no thanks” to a congressional earmark for the “Bridge to Nowhere,” but what she neglected to mention was that she only said, “No thanks,” after Congress had already refused to pay for it. Before then, she was very much a support-
er of that earmark — and I think it goes without saying that receiving federal funding for that bridge lies very much at odds with McCain’s vehemently anti-earmark position. Palin argues for energy independence, a stance that no American would disagree with, but she doesn’t offer any kind of realistic plan as to how to lay pipelines, build nuclear plants and use alternative energy sources. A nice sentiment, but I’d love to know how utilizing every conceivable source of energy while simultaneously researching new ones would be even remotely affordable, especially with those tax cuts she and McCain are promising.
Even more telling of Palin’s total lack of geopolitical knowledge is her now infamous interview with Charlie Gibson from ABC news.
I say infamous because it was Palin’s first real attempt at expressing her political views — not herself or her family but her actual policies — and she did virtually anything but. On more than one occasion, Palin not only dodged Gibson’s questions, but straw manned a completely different issue into her response. For example, Gibson cites how McCain upheld Palin’s command of the Alaskan National Guard as national security experience since “Alaska is so close to Russia,” and then asked Palin if those are sufficient credentials. Rather than respond with a yes or no answer,
Palin shifted to discussing energy and how working as a chairwoman for the Alaskan Oil and Gas Conservation Commission is “a credential [she does] bring to this table.” The initial reference to McCain is ridiculous because unless Russia is planning a ground invasion of the United States by entering through the small string of islands that connects Siberia to Alaska, then, no, that does not count as substantial national security experience. Even worse is that Palin doesn’t even answer the question. She asserts that “energy is a foundation of national security,” which you could argue but that wasn’t the question — she was asked if she had national security credentials. And she had no straight answer. The most baffling segment of the interview was undoubtedly on the topic of the Bush Doctrine. For those who aren’t aware — Palin apparently being one such person — the Bush Doctrine is the belief that the United States has the right to launch a preemptive strike against any country considered a credible threat. When Gibson asked Palin if she agreed with this mentality, her response was that of utter confusion. “In what respect, Charlie?” she asked. There is no room for interpretation — you either agree with it or you don’t. Either you support preemptive military action or you oppose it. When Gibson clarified his point for her, she remarked on the president’s commitment to battling Islamic extremism and a McCain-Palin administration would correct the mistakes of Bush’s military campaign. Another nice sentiment — but absolutely nothing to do
with the question at hand. It took Gibson five times to get an answer that resembled something of a “yes.” When Gibson moved the topic onto whether or not Palin would support military action in Pakistan without the approval of the Pakistani government, she began blathering on about how the United States should focus on forging alliances and considering war as a last resort — another meaningless blanket statement that has nothing to do with Gibson’s very specific point as to whether or not crossing the Pakistani border in the War on Terror is justified. Gibson reiterated the question twice more until finally settling on an answer that barely even addressed the Pakistani situation. The only real credential Palin brings to the McCain ticket, is the PTA-hockey-mom image designed to capitalize on bitter Hilary supporters. Pitbull-with-lipstick jokes may prove entertaining for now but her ability to relate to everyday people won’t amount to anything when it comes to dealing with Iran or alleviating the national debt. Palin herself said it best, “When the cloud of rhetoric has passed, when the roar of the crowd fades away…what exactly is [Obama’s] plan?” I’m wondering the same thing about you, Governor.
Andrew Grzywacz is a sophomore at the university. His viewpoints do not necessarily represent those of the Review staff. Please send comments to grzywacz@udel.edu.
‘I don’t read’ is no excuse for college students Birch Barking
Caitlin Birch
Keep ‘booking it’ even after second grade It was possibly my favorite evening each month. I didn’t fully understand how or why — I just knew that once every 30 days or so, the pizza was free. It must have been second grade when BOOK IT! fever struck me. So there I was, a wide-eyed, fresh-faced second grader, and I was told by my teacher, Ms. Smith, that reading reaps rewards. (Ms. Smith’s real name was Ms. Panicucci but you can’t pronounce that, so I changed it for you.) Ms. Smith loved reading. She also loved pizza, so Pizza Hut started BOOK IT! — a program where she could read to pizzas all day long. (That’s entirely false. Pizza Hut launched BOOK IT! in 1985 to encourage kids to read in exchange for free personal pan pizzas.) Anyway, long story short, I became a frenzied BOOK IT! participant in second grade all because of Ms. Smith.
I loved BOOK IT! I’m so glad Pizza Hut included an exclamation point in the program’s name because it saves me the trouble of writing in my own when I’m feeling particularly passionate about the whole experience. In all seriousness, BOOK IT! afforded me with the opportunity to read books as a kid — which I already enjoyed, and turn in an adorable record of my literary achievements for free pizza, which anyone would enjoy. Now that I’ve been in college for a few years, I’ve noticed many of my peers have stopped booking it. Granted, there are other ways to get free pizza now — attending club meetings, showing up at residence hall events, playing food frenzy, dancing on tables. etc. However, just because the pizza is still free doesn’t mean the reading should have stopped.
There’s nothing worse than opening a valued friend’s Facebook profile and scrolling down to “favorite books,” only to find the words “I don’t read” printed.
There are actually a lot of things worse than that, but the point here is that the valued friend suddenly becomes a stranger. I don’t read? You’re wrong, valued friend.
You had to read the words “Favorite Books” in order to type “I don’t read,” so maybe you should tack a “books” on to the end of that response. Even if valued friend did that, though, I’d still have an issue. Reading books is one of the best things I do for myself and my slightly bookwormish friends seem to feel the same way. Non-readers among us can write that off, saying, “To each his own — I’d rather play Guitar Hero all day,” but the issue runs deeper than free time and personal preferences. Historically, the ability to read has been a liberating factor in countless lives. As an illiterate, a person’s options in life were often limited by the number of words he could read or write. Literacy set men and women free — even in particularly challenging circumstances, people in societies across the globe used the ability to read as a means of advancing their opportunities. How lazy, even ungrateful, it must seem to those still struggling with illiteracy when today’s college kids say, “I don’t read” — essentially, “I’ve been given all the tools but they don’t interest me.” It’s the equivalent of sitting in front of a starving man and saying, “Hmm, I just don’t think I’m hungry for this New York strip anymore.” According to a 2007 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization estimate, as many as 774 million adults lack basic literacy skills. Most of these adults grew up in countries where their primary school education and thus their exposure to reading were not priorities. It seems to me with such a looming worldwide literacy challenge still on our hands, those of us who booked it through elementary school are all the more accountable for what we do with our literacy skills. We’re fortunate that we can read, and we ought to want to read — foundering the gift makes the global illiteracy problem that much more deplorable. So read. Read anything. Charles Dickens. Leo Tolstoy. Virginia Woolf. The New Yorker. “Goosebumps.” US Weekly. The instruction manual to your microwave. Just read. And when you’re done reading this, conveniently leave it on your non-reading bookhater friend’s pillow. Even if they choose not to open it, they’ll still wake up tomorrow morning with newsprint on their face — some lucky classmate will have a little reading material during lecture. And after that obvious display of literacy heroism, buy yourself a pizza. It may not be free, but the BOOK IT! high is priceless. Caitlin Birch is a managing mosaic editor for The Review. Her viewpoints do not necessarily represent those of the Review staff. Please send comments to jecabi@udel.edu.
16 September 16, 2008
mosaic
September 16, 2008
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18 September 16, 2008
Fire up the grill: Biden on a bun BY SABINA ELLAHI Features Editor
Since the announcement of Sen. Joe Biden as Sen. Barack Obama’s running mate for the presidency, it’s been Bidenmania in Delaware. From tours of his neighborhood to stories about the people-friendly senator in newspapers, Biden has given Delaware a reason to be proud. In fact, Anthony Melhem was so proud of Biden that he decided to create a hamburger patty in his honor — the Biden Burger. Melhem, the executive chef at Haldas Brothers Meats in Wilmington, says when he heard Biden was on the Democratic ticket, he knew he had to create a product honoring the famed senator. “My mom from New York called me the day it was announced that Biden was Obama’s pick for vice president and I was speechless,” Melhem says. “I thought, ‘This is a great way to generate publicity.’ ” Haldas Brothers Meats, which specializes in gourmet burgers and meats, sells the patties for $4.99 per pound. Melhem says there has been immense buzz about the burger, bringing in curious customers from all over the country and causing business to grow. “We’ve got people who’ve landed at the Philly airport and would come straight here just to try the burger,” he says. Melhem says word of mouth has spread to Beau Biden, Biden’s son and Delaware’s Attorney General. “We’ve sent down orders to his office, so hopefully [Joe] Biden will hear about it soon enough,” he says. The market, which has been in business since 1917, is the last butcher shop in north Wilmington. Owner John Eleutheriou says the business is now morphing into more than a butcher shop. “We’re offering catering services and continuing to make creative recipes like the Biden Burger to attract our old and new customers,” he says. Melhem says there have been customers who come in and tell him specifically that they’re Republican, but are willing to try the Biden Burger anyway. “I can’t tell you how many people have done that,” he says, laughing. “But they like it.” Eleutheriou says, jokingly, that the burger seems to help
THE REVIEW/Sabina Ellahi
Haldas Brothers Meats created the Biden Burger.
fade the division between Democrats and Republicans, even if it’s just for the sake of eating. “I like to refer to the Biden Burger as the bi-partisan burger,” he says. “It seems to be bringing people together.” The Biden Burger features what Melhem calls the three all-American main ingredients — fried onions, American cheese and bacon. Each ingredient represents the three counties of Delaware, with the black crusted pepper garnish around the edge of the patty representing the fiery personality of Biden. Biden is not the only politician with a burger named
after him. In fact, the Juicy Wine Co. restaurant in downtown Chicago offers the ObamaBurger, which restaurant employee Les Molbar says has been selling out every Tuesday when it’s offered as a special. “We launched the burger the Tuesday before the Democratic convention,” Molbar says. “We started ordering a limited supply but they sold out within three hours, so we’ve had great receptions.” The ObamaBurger, he says, features marble-rye bread, which celebrates the candidate’s bi-racial background; Kobe beef, which reflects on his Pan-Asian upbringing; American cheese because, well, he’s American; and finally, bacon to demonstrate that Obama is not Muslim. The dish includes a side of Harvard Yard baked beans, reflecting his days as the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review. Molbar says the burger is an expression of the restaurant’s liberal patriotism, which may explain why he hasn’t seen any self-proclaimed Republicans come in to try it — or at least they don’t admit it. “Judging from the atmosphere and the area that this restaurant is in, if a Republican came in here to order the burger, they would probably keep their mouth shut,” he says. While there are no reported burgers named after Republican nominee Sen. John McCain or his running mate, Alaskan Gov. Sarah Palin, the success of the ObamaBurger and the Biden Burger convinced Melhem to say celebrity does indeed sell, at least judging from what he has seen since the launch of the Biden Burger. “It’s a great marketing strategy for small businesses like us,” he says. “I feel like Delaware especially benefits from that because we really don’t produce many celebrities or widely-known public figures.” In the end, Melhem says the burger’s creation is not about the store’s political affiliation with any parties, but to celebrate hometown hero Biden and what he means to Delaware. “It’s not a political issue by any means,” he says. “It’s purely a Delaware issue in the fact that we’re excited someone from Delaware potentially will be in the White House next year.”
Local orchard produces fruitful program BY ZOE READ Staff Reporter
This fall, apple harvesting is making a comeback, thanks to the growing concept of agritourism. Established in 1919, Fifer Orchards is a family-run business and farm based in Wyoming, Del. The farm has made a name for itself through the concept of agritourism, which is bringing people to farms by serving as an entertainment venue. Fifer Orchards recently added a U-Pick program, which allows visitors to pick their own fruits, including Fifer’s popular apples. Apple harvesting has become a growing trend, but Fifer Orchards is the only orchard in Delaware that offers a U-Pick program. Mike Fennemore, manager of retail operations at Fifer Orchards, says U-Pick is a great way one can support local farmers. “U-Pick is the holy grail of buying local,” he says. Fennemore says U-Pick is a hot trend and provides agricultural entertainment and education. “We provide an authentic experience, family fun and education,” he says. “We host school group tours where students can learn how things are grown and the life cycle.” Fennemore says Fifer Orchards uses high quality progressive techniques, such as using the more efficient dwarf tree, to grow their apples. The orchard grows 25 varieties of apples, including their popular Arkansas Black. Fennemore says there are more than 2,500 varieties of apples worldwide. “The varieties have been around for years,” he says, “but they have become more
popular in recent years.” Not only does the entertainment factor attract visitors to Fifer Orchards, but the economy also affects how people buy their food. “People are eating at home to save money — one way to do this is support local farmers,” Fennemore says. “A poor economy can be positive for local farmers.” He says U-Pick programs help generate revenue, and therefore, students of agriculture should educate themselves about U-Pick. Fennemore says the program also reaches out to the community. “The older generations have many childhood memories of picking fruit and want to pass the tradition down to their children,” he says. Gordon Johnson, extension agent for commercial agriculture and horticulture at the university, says students of agriculture should be interested in programs such as U-Pick because it’s important to understand different ways to bring people to the farm. “Not only should agriculture students educate the public, but learn about direct marketing and managing a business,” Johnson says. He says agritourism generates income to farms, especially in urban areas. Agritourism helps promote and build an understanding of agriculture, which is what Fifer Orchards has focused on with its U-Pick program, festivals and tours. He says not only are the visitors attracted to the entertainment, but people living in urban areas normally don’t have access to the See U-PICK pg 22
THE REVIEW/Ricky Berl
Fifer Orchards in Wyoming, Del. offers the U-Pick program to its visitors.
BY BRIAN ANDERSON Executive Editor
How many songs are in your library now? I actually don’t collect digital music. Not for any reason — I just buy a lot of CDs and vinyl. That’s kind of the way I listen to music. On my computer when I perform live, it’s all live sample triggering. If you hear a medley from a song or a drum beat from a song, I probably don’t have that song on my computer — I may own the CD at home. Live, I have thousands and thousands of loops and samples from songs, but I probably have maybe 100 or so MP3s on my computer.
Branching off of that question, how do you go about making a song? Does an idea just come to you or do you sit down and play around with samples until something makes sense? It’s very trial and error for me — it’s not intuitive. I’ll have a bunch of songs, ideas and things — I’m always jotting notes to myself, texting myself song ideas, something I hear I’ll be able to work with. I sample, isolate those parts, catalog them, take a beat from a song, take a melody, not really worried what I’ll be able to do with it. Then I sit there and try a whole bunch of different things. Sometimes things stick, but more often than not, things don’t work. The more and more I sample, the more possibilities something will work. At this point, you can probably name an artist. I probably have a loop to some of their music in my computer.
You seem to really embrace pop music and the songs I hear on the radio. Why do you decide to play around with pop music when there’s so much other stuff out there? Why heavily rely on Top 40 material? What I sample is what I’m into. I have a background
Radiohead made the news by releasing its CD online, allowing people to pay what they want. You did it with Feed the Animals. Did you or your record label decide to do it? Why? The label came up with the initial idea. I wasn’t even thinking about it — they just threw it at me. I was completely down with it. For me, the album, I had been working on it for so long — a lot of people had been asking about it — so my goal was to get the music out in the most efficient manner possible. The pay-what-you-want-thing — everyone is connected to the Internet, everyone realizes you can download basically any song for free once it becomes digital on the Internet. It seems ridiculous to ignore that — I’d rather be up front with people and say, “I know you can get it for free — if you want it for free, take it for free. If you want to pay, pay for it.” It just seemed reasonable. To me, buying a CD in a record store is like donating. You could go home and look up those songs on YouTube or download them so you can get them for free, but you chose to pay that cost because you want to support that artist. That’s the way it is. Buying music in 2008 is all donation based. Why not work with that system, rather than ignore it?
You quit your day job. Any regrets with that? Hell no. It’s been excellent. I mean, the job was fine, but I hate waking up and I hate dealing with people that I don’t want to deal with. Right now, I feel like I don’t really have a job — I just do music, which is something I’ve always done for fun. The shows are cool. Magically, a paycheck occasionally appears in my hand. How long can you see yourself doing this? Artists will always be putting out new music and there’s an endless supply of samples out there — when do you call it quits? I want to make music until I die. I don’t really care about sustaining this as a career. I can’t see myself going back to the day job or even getting into other styles of music — there’s always collaging music and chopping things up to make music. There’s a lot of different angles you can go — you can do a variety of things with it. I don’t see myself stopping regardless of the level of popularity or the number of people coming out to my show or the number of people downloading or buying records. I don’t really see that fazing me in any way.
Courtesy of Andrew Strasser
Night Ripper and Feed the Animals clock in at just under an hour each and there are hundreds of samples thrown together on each album. How long does it take you to make a CD? The past two have taken me two years each. Every time I perform live, I change up the set. I introduce small, new elements — 30 seconds here, one minute here. I’ll work all week and hopefully come up with a few minutes worth of new material. If I can change up two minutes of the set every week, then over the period of time, large chunks of it will change. For the past two albums, I’ve done a year and a half or two years worth of live shows, just constantly generating material, trying to figure out ideas and see what happens. People see what I like. Once I feel like I have enough interesting material to dump into an album, it usually takes me about six months.
I heard you don’t refer to yourself as a DJ. What do you tell people you do? I’m a producer. I’ve never spun records — I’ve never tried to beat-mash records. My shows have been performing for eight years and I’ve never played an all-out whole song. I’ve never queued up a song. I never wanted to do that, especially in the early days. I never play with DJs in clubs. I’ve always done the live performance thing. To me, I’m trying to make creative, original, transformative music based out of people’s samples. I want to make music, rather than play music.
Courtesy of Bridget Maniaci
Do you do college shows a lot? What do you like about the college crowd? Recently it’s been going up a bit with college shows — this year it’s been a lot. Starting at the beginning of this year I was planning to take January through March off to finish my new album. In that time, I got a lot of college offers so I decided to start picking them up, so I started doing a bunch of college shows then. In general, it’s cool. A lot of colleges are not in an actual city or don’t get that much entertainment provided. Kids are ready to go bananas at all the shows. It’s kind of less pressure — I feel like at the college shows, people are less likely to judge or critique the performance. They’re more into just getting into it and that’s what I’m about. I don’t really like to play shows to a bunch of critics — I like playing to a whole bunch of people who are ready to get crazy.
You sample artists like James Taylor, Jay-Z, Twisted Sister and Kanye West. Do any of the artists you sample ever contact you about your work? Any really like it, really hate it? I haven’t ever had anyone come out to me in a negative manner. Big Boi from Outkast came out to my last show in Atlanta. My friend was doing live visuals, things you do with touch keys to trigger specific effects and things on the keyboard. Big Boi ended up standing next to him and actually helped run the visuals for the last 30 minutes of the show — he was triggering effects while I was doing remixes of his songs. I ran into him after the show and he said he had seen me previously in Vegas and he knew my work. That was cool — I’ve been an Outkast fan forever. It was in Atlanta on a Saturday night, and he chose to come out there. A couple random run-ins, but everyone’s been cool about it.
Courtesy of Andrew Strasser
If you ever thought the Jackson 5, Rihanna and Queen would be good together on the same song, your dream has become reality. Gregg Gillis, also known as Girl Talk, is the king of sampling and brings hundreds of songs and artists together on one album. A former biomedical engineer in Pittsburgh, Penn., Girl Talk’s life now revolves around playing with other people’s music. He mixes, mashes and combines samples to create the songs that fill up his albums and play during his shows. Just don’t call him a DJ. On his most recent album Feed the Animals, Girl Talk samples beats and lyrics from artists both new and old. Whether it’s Kanye West, Sinead O’Connor, Outkast or Dexys Midnight Runners, you’ll find it on Feed the Animals. Before coming to perform at the university in front of a sold-out crowd on Thursday, Girl Talk found some time to talk to The Review.
doing more experimental music and I’m interested in stuff like that, but I just really appreciate pop art. I think it’s an amazing piece of art if you can get the whole world to know your song and know your face. Some music has changed over the years, but the general idea has stayed the same. I want to manipulate familiar elements and twist them into a new light. I like to take things people have heard and their standards and take people’s nostalgic connections and their memories with these songs and with how they understand them and just play with the relationship, with the music.
19 Courtesy of Andrew Strasser
The Mosaic Interview: Girl Talk
September 16, 2008
Girl Talk will perform at Trabant University Center Thursday.
Coen brothers get burned
This humor, although outdated, is one of the few things holding the film together. Pitt dancing around as a clueless gym body and McDormand using her simplistic charm blend into an amusing chemistry. Clooney is a self-pitying womanizer looking for one thing — sex. The most sincere character is the ex-priest-turned-gymTed Treffon manager (Richard Jenkins) who expresses subtle fondness for McDormand. The main problem seems to be with the editing. In dry comedy, there should be carefully measured spaces between each one-liner. With the exception of a few cases, the funny scenes are uneven and forced, creating a sense of comedy without any real substance. The Coens have scripted two identities in their movie-making skills — one for thrillers, which has succeeded with films such as “Fargo” and “No Country For Old Men,” and the other for comedies, which has proven inconsistent. What the Coen brothers were aiming for remains clear — a dark and offbeat satire of a modern, aimless society seeking satisfaction and an ignorant and faulty government administration. It seemed like a good idea, but with America’s loyalty to the brothers Coen aside, something here went terribly wrong. — James Adams Smith, smithja@udel.edu Courtesy of Universal
“Burn After Reading” Mike Zoss Productions Rating: PP 1/2 (out of PPPP) The Coen brothers’ formula most often involves poor protagonists with some desire to escape the commonplace or to seek money — and in the process, unleash a domino effect of stupid mistakes and misunderstandings. In “Burn After Reading,” their newest effort at offbeat comedy, this formula is just about all there is. The foremost problem is the story is too familiar. Rather than two vigilante parents seeking a baby like in “Raising Arizona,” it’s a self-conscious fitness trainer (Frances McDormand) seeking money for surgical reconstruction and a former CIA agent (John Malkovich) trying to get even with the corrupt system. George Clooney and Tilda Swinton just want to escape boring marriages. Brad Pitt’s character, another fitness trainer, is too peabrained to have any real desires. The foolishness of the main characters overlaps when Pitt finds a confidential disc belonging to Osborne Cox (Malkovich) on the floor in the women’s locker-room at Hardbodies Gym (the characters use the words Cox and Hardbodies excessively). Pitt and McDormand get in over their heads when they decide to blackmail Cox with the disc. Clooney meets McDormand on an online dating Web site and is having an affair with Malkovich’s wife (Swinton). Through all this, the government is watching closely — although even they have no idea what’s going on. The irony of all these characters being so well-connected in an urban sprawl like D.C. reduces the weight of the comedy — it’s more slapstick than anything else.
Courtesy of Universal
20 September 16, 2008
A modern-age knight Courtesy of Amazon.com
go to bed mad at you and I don’t want you to go to bed mad at me.” The disc’s best song is the Pollow Da Donproduced “Single.” Ne-Yo sings to all the single girls out by themselves, telling them, “You ain’t gotta be alone / I’ll be your boyfriend.” “Single” is that combination of expert song writing and top-notch vocals that has propelled Ne-Yo to the top of R&B. He sings with enough charm and sophistication to take the whole club home. While Ne-Yo’s vocal capabilities put him on par with Usher and Chris Brown, his ability to pen the perfect romantic tune gives him that much more edge above the rest of his class. It’s with class that Ne-Yo delivers his third album, like a true gentleman. — Ted Simmons, tsim@udel.edu
“Righteous Kill” Millenium Fills Rating: PP 1/2 (out of PPPP) Welcome to the Al Pacino and Robert De Niro show — the story of two seniors wrangled into doing one more movie for old time and box office sake. “Righteous Kill” follows the two, who play NYPD detectives, as they search for a serial killer, who more than likely is a fellow cop. It’s the pinnacle of buddy-cop movies, as the two acting legends reunite for their first film since 1995’s “Heat.” Naturally, they’ve been partners and friends for decades. Turk (De Niro) is a loose-cannon tough guy who appropriately coaches girls softball in his spare time. Rooster (Pacino) is the quick-tongued nice guy, and Turk’s counterpart. Together, they’re the old savvy vets at the station. Turk’s lips are well trained to spew out any four-letter expletive, or berate the bad guys, but his depth is about as large as his vocabulary. He’s a bumbling brute who carries a gun because it makes him feel like the big bad good guy. At one point, he’s referred to as “a pitbull on crack.” Rooster, on the other
hand, has more friends at the precinct — he has more to say about a crime scene and is generally more likeable. It’s safe to say Pacino wins the acting duel. The crime caper is much more difficult for the characters to figure out than the audience. Each time the judicial system fails to put a suspect behind bars, a serial killer murders that suspect at home, and leaves a poem as a calling card. The ensuing hour and a half shows the group of NYPD officers going from scene to scene, each time coming to the same conclusion about the killer’s identity. The story is interesting in the fact that De Niro and Pacino are in it. This is clearly just a vehicle for them to team up again and create some famous mobster magic. Watching the film is like driving in a car with De Niro and Pacino in the middle of central Florida. There’s enough to look at and the company is worthwhile, but you know where you’re going and your entertainment is limited to what’s in the car. The ride isn’t too painful, since seeing Pacino and De Niro play off each other is like watching Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Granted, they’re far from their primes and would make lessthan-stellar cops, but seeing the two together is delightful, and the story provides enough suspense and intrigue to keep innocent viewers alive and watching. — Ted Simmons, tsim@udel.edu
Overcome All That Remains Prosthetic/Razor & Tie Rating: PPP (out of PPPPP) The Massachusetts-based metalcore act All That Remains has taken a few more steps away from its hardcore roots with its newest release Overcome. This is not to say the members of All That Remains lost any power — they simply modified their own sound. Originally a side project of Shadowsfall vocalist Phil Labonte, the band began with a hardcore-inspired sound. Ironically, the band has since moved back toward the classic metal sound of Shadowsfall. Overcome features an abundance of clean vocals to a slower, heavier backdrop of broken chord progressions. There are fewer thrash-driven beats than before, but the sound is clearer and more
inviting with classical guitar solos breaking into speedy guitar riffs. Hardcore bands such as Atreyu and Eighteen Visions have Courtesy of Amazon.com failed in the to effort move into mainstream metal, but All That Remains succeeded. The band has maintained its consistent identity, while edging its way toward the melodic sounds of Killswitch Engage. Although the album hasn’t broken any new ground, it does offer a powerful tribute to classic metal. — James Adams Smith
We Global DJ Khaled Koch Records Rating: PP (out of PPPPP) DJ Khaled, known for his popular singles like “We Takin’ Over,” releases his third album We Global, which includes the hit jams “Out Here Grindin’” and “Go Hard.” The tracks come equipped with a star-studded list of rap artists that bring legitimacy to each of Khaled’s hits as well as the rest of his album. The collaboration of artists frees the listener from the
monotony of listening to one artist repeatedly through one sitting. Khaled provides no variety in his songs,
though. He thrives on a mainstream style and never steps outside that realm. His tracks, which are suited for purely mainstream reasons, become repetitive and one-dimensional. The title track “We Global,” which features Fat Joe, Ray Jay and Trey Songz, is about how the group is metaphorically on top of the world. There isn’t deep meaning in any track and the album is as average as can be expected. — Bryan Berkowitz, bberk@udel.edu
Courtesy of Amazon.com
Year of the Gentleman Ne-Yo Def Jam Rating: PPP 1/2 (out of PPPPP) A gentleman does more than hold the door. He compliments his lady. He is loyal to her. He admires her without being submissive. And a gentleman knows when the spark is gone, when to let past loves move on and wish them the best. Ne-Yo tries his best to glorify chivalry in an otherwise void landscape. With his third album Year of the Gentleman, the singer-songwriter proves he has not only a golden voice, but an unwavering ability to write hit singles. The CD’s first track and single “Closer” is No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and has listeners singing “I just can’t stop,” along with the artist. But a gentleman also knows it isn’t all about him. He knows to admire a woman for her intellect and style, which is exactly what Ne-Yo does on tracks like “Nobody” and “Miss Independent.” A gentleman also knows that romance doesn’t always end neatly, or in his favor. On “So You Can Cry,” Ne-Yo provides his comforting shoulder, and sings, “I'll ask the sun to shine away from you today so you can cry / If that’s what you want, alright.” Elsewhere, on “Fade into the Background,” Ne-Yo sings about attending the wedding of a former flame. His actions would make Mr. Fonzworth Bently proud, as he plans to smile, say congratulations and fade into the background. But if a gentleman knows anything, it’s knowing exactly what to say to a prospective, or current, missus. If a gentleman has an argument right before bed time, he knows it’s important to reconcile before the new day. On “Mad,” Ne-Yo sings, “Girl I don’t want to
Big names, small story
delawareUNdressed
Alicia Gentile Columnist
Being stuck in the friend zone is less than ideal. Is there room in that zone for flexibility, or are you in for good? And why is it that guys tend to get in the friend zone, while girls are often more fortunate? The friend zone is a place where no male wants to find himself, especially when he fancies someone. It’s when a man becomes so close to a female friend that when they decide there might be relationship potential, they can’t start one — they’re trapped as friends and friends only. I’ve found that guys can’t be friends with girls the way girls can be friends with guys. I can confidently say I can look at a guy and never think anything dirty. I can even look at a foxy man and want nothing from him other than a pleasant conversation and good company. Guys, on the other hand, usually have other intentions. This truth is the foundation for what I like to refer to as the unfortunate and slightly brutal “friend zone.” It’s a zone many
mediadarling
good guys find themselves in due to the fact friendships are not always mutual when it comes to gender. The friend zone happens to the nicest of guys — the guys who make an effort to actually listen to what their female friends have to say, or the ones any girl can call up to chill out with and watch a movie, no strings attached. Friend-zone men are capable of reading women well and, for the most part, are trustworthy. These are some of the rea-
they are stuck in the friend zone — stuck being the key word because they can’t fully get out. Perhaps it’s because they’ve always felt there was more to their co-ed friendship. I asked my brother and a good friend to back me up, and it seems I’m not too far off. Both agreed men can’t be friends with women the way women want them to. And once they’re stuck in the friend zone, there’s really no getting out. Girls, on the other hand, don’t worry about the friend zone, mainly because it’s not much of a burden for them. We actually enjoy having guys that are that close to us — it gives us a good outlet to get the inside scoop about what men are discussing. It’s unfortunate many of our good guy friends are stuck here, but there’s a way to break the existing barrier. The remedy is maturity. As people get older, friend zones break, probably because outlooks on relationships change. People start to crave more of a commitment, and who better to commit with than with someone who can understand women without trying to undress them with their eyes?
you think
Tell me what
...for next week:
1. Do you believe chivalry exists on college campuses? 2. What type of behavior would be classified as chivalrous? Respond to aliciarg@udel.edu
sons they find themselves acting the part of best friend instead of lover. Friend zone guys are the ones girls go running to when a chump breaks their heart. I feel for them because of that. Imagine having to sit down and listen to how some jerk screwed over the girl you’re in love with. That’s a hard-knock life. The reality is mutual friendships between genders are difficult and take patience. If you’ve dated each other in the past, I’d go as far as to say it’s impossible. For the most part, guys know when
Keeping the Dogg on a tight leash
Snoop had to undergo a governmental character assessment before earning his visa, according to a Sept. 12 Associated Press article. As part of the visa agreement, Snoop has to submit to counseling before traveling to Australia, and he’ll be completing charity work with atrisk kids once he gets there. I’m sorry, did this man kill somebody? And don’t answer “Yes” to that question — he was acquitted of that murder charge in 1993. The Aussies are handing down such strict stipulations for Snoop’s entrance into the country, I can’t help but wonder what the poor Dogg did to deserve it. It seems Australians view Snoop Dogg as some kind of threat to society. They’re mildly displeased with his behavior following an
appearance on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” in March 2007, according to the Associated Press. That was just a little slip-up involving possession of marijuana, cocaine and guns charges. It wasn’t as bad as the time he and his posse roughed up seven British cops in an airport. Or the multitude of times he was charged with possession of a firearm. The bottom line is: why wouldn’t you want this guy spending some QT with your atrisk youth? He’s touring with Ice Cube and Thugs-N-Harmony, too, so maybe they’ll come with. This tour could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship between the children of Australia, the rappers of America and undisclosed amounts of illegal substances. Australian immigration officials have clearly made the right choice here. Let’s face it — Snoop was already banned from entering the United Kingdom in March 2007, according to an April 2007 BBC article, and he was arrested in Sweden on narcotics charges in the same month, according to a March 2007 Reuters article. How much more international flogging can the rapper take? It’s obvious Australia is tailing the incrowd. First the Brits and then the Swedes give Snoop a thrashing, so the Aussies think they’ll follow suit. I don’t entirely blame them — they’re on the bottom of the globe and they’re bound to feel left out and slightly unpopular from time to time. That’s not a valid reason to attack an otherwise upstanding citizen like Snoop Dogg, though. My recommendation? Drop this visa issue like it’s hot. — Caitlin Birch, jecabi@udel.edu
Courtesy of James Sann — http://flickr.com/ photos/hooverdust/387596820
Upstanding citizen. It’s a bit of a stuffy term these days, but the implications are still good, nonetheless. It suggests community leadership, civic responsibility, moral awareness and a well-pruned lawn. It speaks volumes about one’s character, service record and golf game. Suburbia is full of upstanding citizens, but who do these stand-up ladies and gents most likely model themselves after? The most upstanding of them all, of course — SN-double-O-P-D-O-double-G. Snoop Dogg — given name, Cordozar Calvin Broadus Jr. — is as upstanding as they come. The 35-year-old rapper and sometimesactor has sold more than 17 million records, according to a Sept. 12 Reuters article, and has invested every cent of his earnings responsibly. Snoop has purchased self-esteem (every rapper feels prettier with some ice), happiness (it makes no difference if it was in an illegal powdered form) and most importantly, self-defense (he keeps a blue flag hanging out his backside, but only on the left side). There’s just little to find fault with when it comes to Snoop — he doesn’t have a bad bone in his body. It makes no sense, then, that Australian immigration officials refused him entry into the country for the past year, only granting him a visa Friday. According to Reuters, Snoop wasn’t even allowed to apply for a visa in 2007 because of his criminal record and this year, he almost met the same fate. The rapper slated his “Smoked Out” tour for an October appearance in Australia, but groups for victims of crime within the country complained and
Stuck in the zone
September 16, 2008
21
fashionforward
A week for the fortunate few
It’s that time of year when the leaves are changing colors, the temperature is going down and tents are going up in Bryant Park. That’s right mes amis, it’s every fashionista’s favorite time — New York Fashion Week. Sabina Ellahi Designers, modColumnist els, magazine editors, department store buyers and celebrities base their schedules around this important week — with London, Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks to follow. During Fashion Week, designers show their innovation and creativity — or utter destruction, depending on your tastes — with hopes that their hard work turns into success as it enters the mass market. But in the midst of the glamour and sophistication that couture tends to bring comes the more important, grim thought due to the deteriorating economy — the prices. In a time when we’re all scrambling for ways to keep a decent wardrobe while being money-conscious, it’s a wonder anyone can actually afford $500 shoes or $3,000 bags. Of course, there are people out there who are actually buying clothes and accessories at these prices, but I feel there are much less people doing so than previous years. While the high-end fashion houses like Louis Vuitton can afford to stay afloat, competition is increasingly difficult this year for young designers. More is at stake for them and their businesses as production costs rise and the U.S. dollar continues to weaken — not to mention the $28,000 price tag for a tent in Bryant Park. But it’s not necessarily the economy that designers opt to blame. In recent years, the rise of disposable fashion, or trendy and often inexpensive clothes, has greatly affected the fashion market — not just in the United States, but globally. The constant turnover of merchandise in retailers who follow this marketing strategy and the frequent need for change in trends has immensely transformed the insights of the fashion consumer. The typical mentality of a shopper is, “Why spend $200 on a Diane von Furstenburg top when I can get the same kind for $50 at Banana Republic?” The idea of luxury is nice, but it’s not worth breaking the bank to a point where you get a bad case of buyer’s remorse. I’m not going to lie to you — I enjoy luxury items just as much as any other fashionista out there. Who doesn’t? But for most, when it comes down to paying for one thing for its versatility and for the built-to-last purpose versus getting multiple items that essentially provide a new wardrobe for the same price, why wouldn’t one opt for the second choice? Even with the strong capitalist belief in our culture where we strive to have something better than everyone else, most Americans don’t feel inclined to spend extravagant amounts on a piece of fabric. It’s understandable, but unfortunate for the designers who are still trying to break into the industry. Putting economy and technicalities of the market aside, it’s hard not to appreciate the designer’s creations. Fashion Week is not just a week for buyers to figure out what’s best to be sold in their stores, but it’s a week to admire the visionary designs of hard-working artists. It’s a form of artistic expression, even though most people don’t see it that way. Even if the price tag is outrageous, just remember — don’t blame the designer. Besides, things always end up going on sale.
22 September 16, 2008
U-Pick program promotes agricultural education Continued from page 20
farm environment. While many people attend events like those at Fifer Orchards, more families are still out of touch with the farm. “My grandparents were the last generation of farmers,” he says. “Most folks are removed from the farm — they don’t have the ability to interact with farms.” Johnson says people should reconnect with rural areas. “People should learn where food comes from and how it is grown and understand the benefits of maintaining rural neighborhoods,” he says. Brian Hearn, farm manager for agriculture research and education at the university, says people should be better educated. “I was teaching kids and they had no idea how things were grown because they aren’t taught at home,” he says. “When I was a kid, my family taught me so it was second nature.” Hearn says many people are out of touch with farming today because people do not know how to grow anymore, nor do they have the time, energy or money. He says while farms are decreasing, people are becoming unfriendly about farms. “Sometimes people in urban
areas complain about farms, such as the smell,” Hearn says. He says he feels people should educate themselves about agriculture. Hearn agrees with Fennemore and Johnson that students of agriculture should be interested in programs like U-Pick. “It is a great opportunity to get into,” Hearn says. “There is money to be made — students need to learn how to plan and keep an operation.” He says U-Pick operations provide farmers a consumer base, which usually has the same people coming back often. “People don’t get to see farms every day,” Hearn says. “Lots of people come all the way from Baltimore for a particular U-Pick every year.” He says there are many benefits of visiting local farms. “There have been many concerns about contamination recently,” Hearn says. “It is popular to buy local because of safety issues.” He says he urges families to seek the benefits of supporting local farmers and take part in the family fun and entertainment that businesses such as Fifer Orchards provide — just as Fifer’s logo states, “Eat local. Taste Fresh.”
THE REVIEW/Katie Smith
23
Locals on the hunt for hidden treasure September 16, 2008
Geocaching takes students, adventurers on outdoor missions BY AMY PRAZNIAK Features Editor
Michael Ott, who refers to himself as the “unofficial president” of the Delaware Geocachers, jokes that geocaching is “basically nerds in the woods.” “All you need is a $100 GPS unit,” he says. “I do it because of the hiking part of it — there’s a little bit more of a purpose to the hike, and it gets you outside.” According to Geocaching.com, “Geocaching is a hightech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices.” Ott, who is one of the founders of the Delaware Geocachers, says he got involved in geocaching when he visited the official Web site, and discovered there was a geocache two miles from his house in Newark. Ott says he already had his own Global Positioning System that he had used for hiking in the past, so he began to use it for geocaching. Junior Katie Keeports states in an e-mail message that she used to be involved in geocaching because her mother did a lot of hiking in White Clay Creek State Park and her friends enjoyed the outdoors. “Caching not only gives outdoor lovers the opportunity to spend time hiking, but it provides competition and social stimulation that perhaps these people otherwise would have difficulty locating,” Keeports says. “It’s like a giant, secret treasure-hunt that spans the world.” She says the caches can be anything from coiled-up pieces of paper stuffed inside a tube to large ammo cans. The online profiles of the caches contain information about the cache, like size, purpose, themes or hints. She says once the cache is found with the help of a GPS, it contains a log in which one records the date and time the cache was found, whether any items were removed from or placed in the cache and a brief message for its owner. Keeports says once geocachers return home to their computers, they’ll log back onto the geocaching Web site and record whether the cache was located succesfully and whether they removed any of the “travel bugs” it contains. She says a travel bug is an item with a dog tag attached to it that bears a specific serial number, allowing it to be identified online by whoever discovers it. Travel bugs move from cache to cache around the world. “I succesfully logged 38 caches. This pales in comparison to my mom who has found in total 1,204 caches,” Keeports says. “I did, however, enter a travel bug named
‘Alex the Centipede’ in a race against other travel bugs to see how large of a distance it could cover within a certain amount of time. He won the race.” She says “Alex the Centipede” made it to Alaska. Keeports says caches range from being tiny in size to larger than the size of a shoe box. She says smaller caches, called microcaches, are geocaches which contain only a log that are often wedged Pictures courtesy of Katie Keeports inside of magnetic Junior Katie Keeports and her mother used to geocache at White Clay Creek State Park. spare-key holders to film cans. These caches are often found in urban areas so map instead of a GPS. He says he prefers caches that take the geocacher in search of a microcache must be extra- him on adventures that involve off-road bicycling and long hikes. secretive when searching for them. He says geocaching can sometimes become an obses“Non-geocachers, referred to as ‘muggles’ by geocachers, are often present during the search for geocaches,” sion and competitive for participants. “It is a phenomenon as to why it is so addicting,” she says. “So cachers must be clandestine in their search Petrucci says. “I think it may be because it is something that operations.” Keeports says the larger caches typically contain logs, is so easy to do, and it really takes no special skills to small trinkets and fun gifts for the “first-time finders.” She become an ‘expert’ geocacher.” While Petrucci says geocaching is a fun activity, he says most of the time the caches contain objects like chilfeels there are geocachers who aren’t as “green” as they dren’s toys, cards, small collectible items and travel coins. “Once I found a dragon stuffed animal that I still keep could be. “Geocachers tend to think of themselves as people who on my bookshelf,” Keeports says. Ott says if a finder chooses to take an item out of the love the outdoors and want to protect the environment,” he cache, he or she has to put something back in return. He says. “But these same folks burn gallons of fuel and spend says he’s had a matchbox car that’s made it 24,000 miles hours of time driving from cache to cache to feed their obsession. How ‘green’ is that? circulating around the globe. “Also, consider the person who places a cache. Glenn Petrucci, who has participated in geocaching in Delaware as well, states in an e-mail message that there are Everything is great if we assume that only good people put limited amounts of caches to find in Delaware, which has out caches, but we know that isn’t realistic. I could put out led him to travel long distances around the country in search a cache that will attract the geocacher of my choice to a of caches. He says he enjoys finding “signature” items, or remote wooded area just about anywhere. As more kids more personalized findings, in the cache, rather than the become interested in geocaching, I’m very concerned that usual “bric-a-brac” that are put into the containers. See EXPLORERS pg 25 Petrucci says geocaching can also be done with just a
Travel bugs, a popular component of caches, are tracked using dog tags.
Geocaches include collectible items like travel coins and other gifts.
24 September 16, 2008
Bringing art scene back to life in Wilmington BY LEXI AMBROGI Staff Reporter
Just northeast of Newark, a world of high culture lies waiting for students. Wilmington is home to a bustling art community. The Delaware Division of the Arts, a branch of the Delaware Department of State, distributes more than $1.75 million annually in grants to artists and for local art programs, director Paul Weagraff says. These grants help finance artists like Peter Williams, an art professor at the university. This year, Williams received a grant from the DDOA for emerging artists and used the money to create new work. He refers to this process as “quid pro quo” — artists are given money by groups like the DDOA in return for the work for which it pays. From Sept. 5 to Sept. 26, Williams’ work is on display at the DDOA Mezzanine Gallery in Wilmington. The show, “Working Space and Other Ideas,” features pieces made from Sunday comic strips from his hometown of Detroit. “I found a box of these old strips, and I couldn’t remember why I’d brought them with me when I moved here,” Williams says. “Arrangements and patterns and ideas emerged as I played around with them.” Though the bulk of Williams’ work consists of paintings, these cartoon collages proved to be a relaxing break for him. “I think I needed to get away from the stress of painting,” he says. Williams says he compares his usual painting style to nonfiction, whereas his recent cartoon images are “complete fantasy.” Another spot for local artists is the Delaware Center for Contemporary Arts in Wilmington. With 26 on-site artist studios, the DCCA features 30 exhibits annually from local, national and international artists. Like the DDOA Mezzanine Gallery, the DCCA relies on the backing
of donations and grants. Carina Evangelista, newly appointed Gretchen Hupfel Curator at the DCCA, says earlier in 2008 the organization received a generous endowment gift from an anonymous friend of the late artist Gretchen Hupfel, which finances Evangelista’s full-time position, the first of its kind at the center. With Evangelista’s help, the DCCA is able to expand upon its programs. Evangelista’s daily duties at the DCCA include writing grants to fund new exhibits, researching new artists and their work and writing promotional texts for shows. “We’ve never had a full-time curator before,” Evangelista says. “It’s kind of a luxury.” Evangelista and Williams agree that one of the best ways to take advantage of the Wilmington art scene comes the first Friday of every month. Dubbed the “First Friday,” and with the goal of bringing together art aficionados, the event features a bus loop around the DCCA, the Delaware Art Museum and more than 30 other venues and galleries in Wilmington. “Turnout is pretty good,” Williams says. “It’s not New York or Chicago, of course, but there are enough people who come out to enjoy art and engage in discussion.” Evangelista says she hopes to expand upon the art resources in the area and looks to increase membership at local museums. “For a city this size, it’s pretty good,” she says. “But it’s always better to widen and deepen viewership.” Emily Bunker, an art major at the university, says she enjoys the First Friday loop for the free food, wine and music in addition to the new art pieces. “The idea isn’t unique to Wilmington,” Bunker says. “Philly has a really good loop. But it seems to be gaining strength here.”
THE REVIEW/Melanie Hardy
The local art community showcases its work at musuems around town.
Courtesy of Amazon.com
Delaware authors join in new anthology
“On the Mason-Dixon Line” features the work of several university professors.
BY MIA POZZANGHERA Staff Reporter
“On the Mason-Dixon Line: An Anthology of Contemporary Delaware Writers,” is a collection of essays, poems and short stories by Delaware’s own authors, including several professors from the university. The book, printed by The University of Delaware Press, is a compilation of 52 pieces of work from 45 different writers, each of whom has a special connection to the state of Delaware. It will be available in the Morris Library, as well as for sale in most major bookstores. Karen Drumliner, managing editor at UD Press, says the collection is special because several Delaware writers are featured in one anthology. The book features three poet laureates, including renowned poet Joann Balilng, who currently holds the title. Along with these poets, the book also features published and unpublished writers. “There are even everyday folks who are great writers too,” Drumliner says. Jeanne Murray Walker, an English professor at the university, has two poems published in the anthology. One of the poems, titled “Betting in Bright Sunlight at Delaware Park,” was written for her friend Rick Smyth. Walker says her inspiration for the poem was a memory she had walking with Smyth around the race park one day watching the horses. The poem, a sestina, contains six sixline stanzas. Each line of every stanza is finished with the same six words in a different order. Walker says she felt this style was an appropriate way to express the theme of the poem. “I thought the form of the poem had a lot to do with betting and luck,” she says. “So I wrote this poem for Rick.” The book’s publisher, Billie Travalini, says she spent nearly five years compiling pieces of literature from various writers to publish the anthology. She says when she came up with the idea for the anthology, she
pitched it to a group of peers whom she had worked with closely. “I wanted a focus, but people lost interest,” Travalini says. “I thought it would be a wonderful way to have the voices of Delaware heard, so I just kept going.” She says she devoted a great deal of time to calling authors from around the area and asking for work to publish. “They were very happy to do it,” Travalini says. “They loved the idea and thought it was worth doing.” Travalini says working on the book was exhausting. Fleda Brown, a peer whose name appears adjacent to Travalini’s on the book’s cover, called one day offering assistance. “She looked at it with fresh eyes and I think that made all the difference,” Travalini says. “She didn’t want much credit though — I had to fight her to put her name on the cover.” Travalini says Brown came up with the title and eventually both agreed on it since the Mason-Dixon Line is a large part of Delaware’s history and helped tie everything in the book together. Travalini says she would love to work on something like this again and says this generation along with each succeeding generation will have something different to say. She also says it's important to include writers of varying age, style and ability. “It was a labor of love,” Travalini says. “Not just to the writers of Delaware, but the history and documentation of Delaware.” The unique aspect of the book, according to both Walker and Travalini, is that many of the authors featured have worked with each other in some way. They attend each others readings and go to workshops and classes together. Travalini says because Delaware is such a small state, it offers an opportunity for writers to work closely in a tight-knit community. “All of these people [in the book] I have worked with — we all know each other, in some way or another,” Walker says.
25
Having a ball in a basement band September 16, 2008
Local rock group takes name and inspiration from former Phillies outfielder BY JAMES ADAMS SMITH Entertainment Editor
In the basement of Peter Bothum’s house lies an assortment of guitars, a drum set, 8-track recording equipment and an original Nintendo — and they don’t belong to his kids. When Bothum isn’t being a family man or working as an editor at The News Journal, he plays guitar and sings for Von Hayes, a Newark-based rock act named after the former Phillies outfielder. The band was recently featured by ESPN.com for the sportsrelated name. “We just play once a month, because my family would kill me,” he says. “A lot of bands now don’t even tour.” The band’s drummer, Andrew Zitelli, coined the term “hobby rock” to define this balance between work and family life and playing in a rock band. Bothum says Zitelli came up with the name of the band. They considered using a number of baseball player names, including Lou Whitaker. They finally decided on Von Hayes, the Phillies outfielder who hit two home runs in the first inning of a baseball game, winning against the New York Mets 26 to 7 in 1985. “We decided on Von Hayes as a cheeser,” he says. “For example, we play Nintendo in the basement and stuff. We’re all into this outdated retro stuff. I love the Phillies, so you know I like Von Hayes.” He says the band took off after its first session when chemistry seemed to form between Jake Leach and Zitelli on a song called “Life Kicks Ass.” “Those two guys knowing each other, not even meeting,” he says. “That’s when it started.” The band then played its first show at East End Café. “We played this acoustic show,” he says. “It was just terrible. We weren’t good at playing — you have to be a good player to be in an acoustic band.” He says they recorded the whole album on 8-track tapes in four different locations, including his basement setup. Bothum says since forming, the band has actually had an encounter with the real Von Hayes. “I’ve been worried that he was going to sue and shut us
Explorers search for geocaches Continued from page 23
predators may use geocaching information as a tool for luring their prey to unsafe areas to put them in harm’s way, or even worse situations.” With the advancements in technology,
down and hate it,” he says. Hayes is the manager of the Lancaster Barnstormers, a minor league team in Pennsylvania. Bothum says someone from a rival Pennsylvania team, York Revolution, saw the band’s story on ESPN.com and asked them to play the national anthem at a game. “They were going to have us play their last home game against Lancaster, against Von Hayes’ team, to just stick it to him,” he says. What neither the York representative nor the band realized at the time was that the two teams had the same owner. Bothum says the real Hayes was OK with the name, but because of the ownership overlap, the Courtesy of Sarah Allard and Peter Bothum national anthem prank most likely won’t be allowed. Von Hayes includes bassist Jake Leach, drummer Denny Hehman and “We joked about the national guitarists/vocalists Peter Bothum and Andrew Zitelli. anthem,” he says. “We would just butcher it.” explains the role the band plays in his life. Bothum says the band is inspired by “’80s cheese stuff,” “I love beating the hell out of my drums after a long day at such as Bryan Adams, John Mellencamp and Bruce Springsteen. work,” he says. “I work a ton of hours. I have to work a lot of Although the band has often been referred to as “lo-fi indie,” weekends to make up for the time I spend doing music.” Bothum says he has problems with the exact meaning of the Hehman, a university alumnus, at one time played in the term. marching band. “We just do quick songs with decent hooks that people He got involved with Von Hayes after hearing about it remember,” he says. “We’re just redoing the songs, but not through a former drumline member playing in the band Terminal rewriting it.” Lunchbox with Bothum. Bothum says the band has used Myspace.com as a resource “It’s not work at all to me,” he says. “There’s no uniform. for sharing its music. It’s not strictly structured. Music is a huge part of my life — I “Everybody rips on Myspace, like it’s for little kids and couldn’t just be an engineer.” child porn freaks,” he says. “It’s actually a good resource for Hehman says he brings a background in jazz to the band, bands.” while Zitelli comes from punk roots. He says the band members Denny Hehman, 30, plays drums for the band when he’s not have grown close, which makes the band work. working full-time as a civil engineer. On his way to work, he “I think when you get older, you like to be surrounded by good people who are clean,” he says. “It’s not good to be wrapped up with people who don’t have their lives together.” The band recently signed with State Capital Records through Dan Hewitt, who started it with his own wallet. “He’s done a ton for a guy that’s works a full-time job and doesn’t have a million dollars,” he says. “He’s put a lot of stuff on his credit card. I guess we’re signed, whatever that means.” Bothum says the members have been in former local bands such as Terminal Lunchbox and Terrible Friends. The band played a show Friday night in a liquor store with a makeshift venue in Trenton, N.J. — bar fight included. While Bothum’s kids are playing in the living room of his Newark home, he says that being in a band is something he’s always wanted to do. THE REVIEW/Katie Smith “I just have to be in a band,” he says. “I have to do it.”
it’s also possible now to log caches right from the cache site using a GPS enabled cell phone, yet it seems no one is taking this as a serious security problem, Petrucci says. Keeports says many cachers will create all-day or weekend outings to other areas, collecting over 10 caches in one day. She says most of the cachers involved in Delaware geocaching are also involved with the Friends of White Clay Creek, a volunteer organization that helps maintain and develop the White Clay Creek State Park that surrounds Newark. Ott says the Delaware Geocachers sponsors four to eight events a year. He says he enjoys geocaching because a lot of the caches are in an interesting place or one
that’s special to visit. He says he’s seen a lot of places because of geocaching that he never would have seen. Petrucci says some of his most memorable searches were “virtual caches,” which have no container or log book — one simply finds an object such as a certain rock formation or a man-made oddity using coordinates, and a picture is taken to prove it has been found. However, virtual caches are no longer supported by the geocaching Web site, Petrucci says. “One of our favorite memories is finding a virtual cache in northern Arizona that took you three-quarters of a mile underground into a lava tube,” he says. “Threequarters of a mile doesn’t sound very far,
but when you are clamoring over boulders, some covered in ice, banging your head into rocks hanging from above and crawling through narrow passageways — all in total darkness — three-quarters of a mile seems like a long, long way.” Ott says anyone can create a cache, by submitting a form online on the geocaching Web site. Keeports says she has met another university student who is involved in geocaching as well. Together, they made a discovery on campus. “After multiple tries, we were able to locate the microcache in the overpass between Gore and Smith,” she says.
26 September 16, 2008
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classifieds ANNOUNCEMENTS PREGNANT? LATE AND WORRIED?
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Attentin Lord of the Rings Fans! Come join us at an unexpected party Bilbo’s Birthday Celebration! Sunday, Sept. 21 and Monday, Sept. 22 Special Guests: Fantasy artists Matt & Kathy Stawicki. Costumes, Contests, Free Refreshments and Lots of Prizes! The Days of Knights Main St Newark 366-0963 www.daysofknights.com
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HollyWoods Townhomes S. Chapel St. 4BR, 3 Full Bath, 3 Stories, Den, W/D, A/C Available June 2009. Chris 302-547-9481Email: hollywoodshousing@comcast.net or website: www.hollwoodshousing.com 276 S. Chapel Large 3 story house, 6 person permit, W/D, plenty of parking. Tcochran@nccde.org Equestrian Team Members: Renovated, 4 bedroom, two bath farmhouse on 8.4 acres. Horse barn on property available for boarding your horse from home. 5.3 miles from Caffe Gelato, adjacent to FAIR HILL HORSE PARK. Possible employment oppurtunities with other boarded horses. Chris 302-547-9481 Room for Rent in large neighborhoodhome. Convenient to campus and I-95. $150/week. Call 302-366-8133 for more information Avail. Now/Immediately! Live together with a bunch of your floormates or friends, or w/ just 1 or 2 roommates. Our house on Elkton Road is huge, has 3 separate or joining apts, and will legally house 7-12 people together or separately. 3 kitchens, 3 baths, 7bdrms, 2W/2D, DW, large yard w/ grass cut incl., lots of parking &UD bus comes every 20 min. CHEAP RENT! email: livinlargerentals@gmail.com
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CAMPUS EVENTS Tuesday, September 16
“Comedian David Goldstein” Do you like to laugh? Then join Hillel Student Life for some stand up comedy to get your semester off to a roaring start. Trabant Theatre, Trabant University Center 7:00PM - 8:30 PM “Comedian Vidur Kapur” Part of Coffeehouse Series Perkins Student Center Scrounge 8:30 PM Wednesday, September 17
“Utilizing the Power of Biochemistry for Drug Discovery” With Dr. Robert Copeland, VP Biology Glaxo SmithKline Pharmaceuticals 219 Brown Lab 12:15PM - 1:15PM “The Last Iceberg Photographs by Camille Seaman” Monumental images of icebergs created by contemporary photographer Camille Seaman University Gallery, Old College 11:00AM - 8:00PM
To place an ad call: 302-831-2771 or e-mail: reviewclassy@yahoo.com or for display advertising call: 302-831-1398 CAMPUS EVENTS
CAMPUS EVENTS
“How I Learned to Stop Judging and Love Adaptation” Dr. Thomas Leitch, Prof. of English, will present his book, “How I Learned to Stop Judging and Love Adaptation.” Class of 1941 Lecture Room in the Morris Library Noon - 1:00 PM
“2008 Election Lecture Series: The Selection Process, Why These Battleground States?” Joseph Pika, Department of Political Science and International Relations will speak. Research in Political Communication: The 2008 Election Lecture Series co-sponsored by the Departments of Political Science and International Relations, Communication, English, and the Center for Energy and Environmental Policy. The event will meet Mondays this fall through Dec. 1 140 Smith Hall 12:20PM - 1:10PM
Thursday, September 18
“Ninth Annual Lation Heritage Month Opening Ceremony” Soledad O’Brien, anchor and special correspondent for CNN: Special Investigations Unit, will give a keynote address that will offer both an authentic and unique way of looking at diversity on television and in daily life. Clayton Hall Auditorium 7:00PM Friday, September 19
“Forgetting Sarah Marshall” Film Weekend movies $3 with UD ID. Trabant University Center 7:30PM
“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” Film Weekend movies $3 with UD ID Trabant University Center Theater 10:00PM Saturday, September 20
“ATA Martial Arts of Maryland” Bob Carpenter Center 7:00AM Sunday, September 21
“Taste of Newark” More than 38 Newark restaurants joining the finest wine distributors, the variety and selectoin of great food and drink will be unsurpassed, and the spirit of competition generate among our excellent restaurants will bring our chefs to their highest level Tickets are $40 Old College Lawn, UD Main Campus Noon - 3:00PM
Monday, September 22
RATES University Affiliated: $1 per line Outside: $2 per line Bolding: $2 one-time fee Boxing: $5 one-time fee
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September 16, 2008
Did you know?
Breaking News: Planned unveiling of new football stadium design postponed until later date.
sports
Women’s soccer midfielder Ali D’amico led her high school basketball team to a state title in 2004 and also led the team in scoring.
weekly calendar Tuesday, September 16 Volleyball vs. Temple 7 p.m..
Wednesday, September 17 Mens Soccer vs. Monmouth 7 p.m. Thursday, September 18
Friday, September 19
Volleyball vs.Gardner-Webb, 4:30 p.m.
UD-West Chester rivalry still beneficial to Hens? BY PAT MAGUIRE Sports Editor
The Hens football team rumbled to a 48-20 win over longtime Division-II rival West Chester on Saturday night, in the latest series of a long line of games which has seen Delaware annually beating up on its “little brother”. “We’ve been doing this for 49 years,” West Chester Director of Athletics Edward Matejkovic said. “It’s become a tradition.” Saturday’s blowout marks the 15th straight time Delaware has defeated the Golden Rams, a string of games that are often decisive victories, highlighted by an 84-0 blowout in 2000. Delaware’s overall record versus Westchester improved to 43-6-1 since their first meeting in 1941, which resulted in a 7-7 tie. Although the annual meeting does not usually result in a thriller, it has mutual benefits for both schools. “What I like about them is that they’re willing to come to our stadium,” Delaware Director of Athletics Edgar Johnson said. “It’s probably
Women’s soccer @. Saint Josephs 7 p.m. Field Hockey @ Temple 3 p.m.
Saturday, September 20 Football@ Furman 2 p.m.
Mens and Womens XC @ Delaware Invitational Volleyball vs. Duke 11 a.m.
Sunday, September 21
Field Hockey vs. Saint Josephs 1 p.m. Men’s soccer @ Rider 2 p.m.
THE REVIEW/Steven Gold
Phillip Thaxton crushes a West Chester defender into the field.
28
THE REVIEW/Katie Smith
the best atmosphere their team plays in.” Saturday’s game sold out with an attendance of 22,029, marking the fifth straight sellout on a home opener, three of which have been against West Chester, a team accustomed to playing against smaller, Division-II crowds. Hens’ head coach K.C. Keeler saw the game as an opportunity to look for progress in his squad, although he was quick to praise West Chester’s effort and determination to take down their “big brother” to the north. While the annual meeting provides a guaranteed home game and what usually results in an addition to the win column for the Hens, West Chester heads to Delaware each year looking for tough competition to help them as they move on to the rest of their Division-II schedule. West Chester head coach Bill Zwaan said the challenge and the opportunity to step up on the big stage benefits the Golden Rams each year. “Although we haven’t been very successful at beating Delaware, I think it’s a great opportunity for our kids to step up a level,” Matejkovic said. For Delaware, it was undeniable that West Chester was a step down from the rest of their schedule, particularly after playing Football Bowl Subdivision school Maryland in their first game two weeks ago. “Athletic ability and size and weight and stuff like that,” UD running back Johnathon Smith said. “That’s the only difference, but they played hard.” Smith, along with most of Delaware’s starters, did not see much action in the fourth quarter, which gave the second string a chance to see some time. The West Chester game has become a stage over the years for the Hens to show off and assess their depth chart early in the season. Starting quarterback Robby Schoenhoft was replaced by Lou Rittaco shortly after the start of the final quarter. Rittaco spent the majority of his time handing the ball off to backup running backs Jared Bradley and Jerry Butler, who rushed for a combined total of 170 yards. Keeler said wide receiver Aaron Love hurt his hamstring earlier in the week and though the injury did not turn out to be serious, Keeler decided to limit the starter just as a precaution. Love did not see a play from scrimmage and was relegated to punt return duty for the majority of the game, allowing sophomore Tommy Crosby to make his first career start. Delaware’s contract with Westchester expires in 2012. Although Edgar Johnson said he has not thought that far in advance, the question lingers as to whether or not Delaware will continue to play the Golden Rams. “It could end any time,” said Matejkovic. “You never know what’s going to happen in the future.
Early issues test men’s soccer team BY DAVE THOMAS Staff Reporter
After a rough start, the men’s soccer team faces the task of quickly righting their ship. With a record of 1-3-1, (0-0 CAA) and all three losses coming in overtime, the team has dug themselves an early hole. Though the team is 70 percent underclassmen, they feel confident they can overcome this early obstacle. “The start was always going to be difficult,” junior forward Darren Christie said, “I think it will benefit the team in the long run.” The goal now is to take the lessons learned in the first four games and apply them as a team in their upcoming matches. Head coach Ian Hennessy said the tough early season schedule will be beneficial later in the season. “We put our team in the nation’s best arenas,” Hennessy said, “It’s a tough schedule, but they are much more experienced now.”
So far this season the team has lost close matches to Rutgers, St. Josephs and Lasalle. Hennessy said the early adversity will help build essential character on the young team. The team, he said, has already started to mold together. Christie, a native of South Africa, is one of the players who will be expected to help turn things around. A rising star who was kept scoreless throughout the 2007 campaign, leads the Hens thus far with three goals. While he downplayed the added burden of the winless start, Christie said the internal pressure to perform is always there. “I always put pressure on myself,” he said. “I just have a longing to do better. Last year I didn’t score, so this year is my time to score.” While the offensive production has increased from last year, the defensive side of the ball seems to be the weakness of this year’s team. The Hens have had trouble keeping leads, giving up two one-
See TEAM LOOKS page 31
Courtesy of Sports Information
E.J. Alvarado will try to bolster the offense.
29 September 16, 2008
Greeks square off on the gridiron BY DAN MOBERGER Staff Reporter
Rivalries occur between siblings or friends, professional teams or college alliances. One rivalry that may be overlooked by those not involved is the one among college fraternities. Here at Delaware, contention linking fraternities has now found a new outlet on the football field, namely in the sport of flag football. Starting this year many on campus fraternites will be competing in flag football tournaments against one another. The teams begin practicing far in advance of their annual meeting and take every minute of practice seriously. There are heated arguments about calls, members carry clipboards full of plays and everyone goes full speed at every practice. Now in its third year, the competition has undergone changes and will feature a campus-wide tournament, open to any of the recognized fraternities on campus. Perhaps the most notable rivalry among the fraternities is between Sigma Phi Epsilon and Sigma Alpha Mu. But the “SigEp” versus “Sammy” charity game has become a tradition. They will play under the lights on the new turf field on Laird Campus on Oct. 11. This celebrated rivalry has given the players many benefits. Senior Ricky Hopp, who plays running back and wide receiver for SigEp loves participating in the game each year. “Pride, camaraderie. It brings back the whole varsity sports mentality”, he said. Other fraternity chapters take the competition just as seriously, including Sigma Chi. Participants, such as Phil Wyman, do not only get their competitive nature out when they play, but they reap the benefits of the sport. “We get aerobic activity, fraternity bonding, hanging out with the guys,” Wyman said. Coming into this year’s game, SigEp players are very confident. They have won the past two years and have been practicing constantly since coming back to campus. Sammy members think that the tide could be turning this year, however. “I think we’re going to do great this year,” Sammy president Jason Aaron said. “We have a new coach because our old one
commentary
ALEX PORRO “Athletes are people too”
BlueHenBabble
Is former high school basketball star Elena Delldonne making the right choice by switching from basketball to volleyball? “Good for her, if she does not want to play she should not have to just because she is good at it.”
-Brian Steele, Freshman
“Whatever makes her happy, that’s what she should do, life is about more than money or fame.”
Courtesy of Steve De Lucia
Many more campus fraternities will square off in flag football this year
graduated last year and some kids that didn’t get to play last year are going to play. Our chances are definitely improved.” Besides the rivalries, competition and athletic involvement, the fraternity flag football game has a much deeper meaning. When it started two years ago, the fraternities created the event intending to raise money for a charity. “We started it as a philanthropy event for youth AIDS research,” Hopp said. “A couple hundred people came the first year, a few more last year. Now we are at the new turf field under the lights.” The charity game has evolved into something much bigger in just two years. It still focuses on raising money for an AIDS organization, but now that it has been pub-
Here we are, as sports fans, perched teetering on the edge of a new era in fanhood, and we need to take a long, hard look in the mirror and decide if we are going about our duty as fans in the right way. This January, UCLA freshman Kevin Love walked onto McArthur Court in Eugene, Oregon and the nation got a disturbing look at what is slowly becoming the norm in fan-athlete relations. Love, an Oregon native who starred at Lake Oswego High, signed to play for the Bruins in sunny Southern California. This apparently angered many fans of Oregon basketball. In the week leading up to the game, Love allegedly got so many voicemails threatening his life, apparently in fairly graphic terms, he had to cancel his cell phone service, and it only went south from there. During the game, Love, on the court and his family in the stands, which included his father Stan, grandmother and 13-year-old sister, were subjected to profanity laced taunts, while having garbage heaped upon them from the student section. Though Love enacted his revenge in the form of 26 points and 18 rebounds, he was visibly shaken before and after the ordeal. This begs a serious question. What would happen if the boos and chants of “You suck” fell on something other than deaf ears? What if, in our frenzy to let players know how we felt about them, we actually hurt them? What if we caused something we never intended, something with
licized for an extra year, more people are becoming interested and recognizing its importance. What began as one game has now stemmed into a tournament and the rivalries have continued to heat up. Though the rivalry can cloud some of the more benevolent motives behind the annual showdown, the two groups share one noble purpose at the end of the day. Each chapter gets a chance to help those in need of assistance, a place to exercise their competitive drive, good physical activity, a chance to entertain hundreds of people and at the end of the day they all carry themselves as true competitors with a sportsman’s spirit.
-Steve Sidebotham History Professor
serious consequences beyond the field or court? Would you feel responsible or contend that some internal weakness led to their demise and go about your business, perhaps a bit more quietly? Last week Tennessee Titans’ quarterback Vince Young asked to be taken out of the Titans’ home opener after being taunted by fans and it got me thinking about the volatile relationship between fan and idol. Fans have become more than spectators. We have taken on an active role in the competition, and with that comes a certain responsibility. Fans must understand the athletes on the field are more than what we perceive them to be from the nosebleed sections. But athletes, and especially quarterbacks, are supposed to be Teflon. It is hard for fans to see superstar athletes as human. If they were human, the things we said about them might have actual meaning. If we consider athletes to be people, like us, the things we say could take root and feed hidden insecurities within the athletes, and I’m not so sure we’re ready to handle that responsibility. Conversely, athletes must realize what they’ve gotten themselves into. Fans invest a great amount of time, energy and money following a team and its players. At any one time there are thousands of people collectively hoping and praying for a great pass, a last minute shot or a game-winning goal, and when a player screws that up, the fans are more than willing to share their disappointment.
“I would not want to do something that would put pressure on me, so I feel like she should be able to do what she wants.”
-Erin Morgan Junior
It’s when these relationships turn ugly that things typically go from bad to worse. The fans feel betrayed and become bitter and scream and yell until their lungs give out, and the athletes hear the taunts. They feel the chorus of boos deep down inside them and some of them can’t take it. Occasionally they lash out, giving some of it back to the fans, but other times they internalize the criticisms and it affects them in a meaningful way. Fans have the right to cheer and be proud of their teams. They should be able to boo and jeer and carry on, within reason, but how far is too far? To be honest, I’m not sure. These things should be clearer, right and wrong defined in someone’s ethics code would clear things up for us, but they’re not. Clearly screaming “whore” at a player’s family is crossing the line, but booing, I just can’t say. Fans have to be able to express themselves, or else the passion will be sucked right out of sports. Cheers and boos can define players, games and even cities (Philadelphia anyone?), but when have we taken things too far? Young reportedly frightened his friends and family with talk of suicide. Are the Titans’ fans responsible for his mental health? Maybe not, but in this new era of fan hood, we must consider the consequences of our actions. Alex Porro is a sports editor for The Review. Send questions, comments and a big ‘ol hanky to aporro@udel.edu
underp eview:
September 16, 2008
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Delaware v. Furman Time: 2 p.m. Location: Paladin Stadium
BY RYAN LANGSHAW
About the Teams: Managing Sports Editor
The Hens:
The Hens are coming off of a 48-20 win over Division-II West Chester. The team racked up 308 yards on the ground while giving up just 252 total yards on defense. Quarterback Robbie Schoenhoft threw for two touchdown passes last week and cornerback Anthony Walters came down with an interception.
The Paladins:
Furman prepares into this weeks game coming off a big win against Colgate, 42-21. The team is led on offense by quarterback Jordan Sorrells; who passed for 211 yards and three touchdowns last week. Defensively, the Paladins feature senior linebacker Brandon Williams, who leads` the team in both tackles and sacks.
Why we can win:
4-Headed Monster: Last week against West Chester, the Hens dominated in the rushing game with their split committee of runners If the team can have success with this rusherroulette again, a win could be in the cards.
Something special: In order to win this week, the Hens will need big plays and consistency from the special teams. The pressure could be on kicker Jon Striefsky late in the game to make a clutch kick. Thankfully Striefsky has looked good so far this season, having nailed field goals of 23 and 37 yards last week against West Chester. Pressure is on: Although the Hens’ defensive line has not made a huge impact thus far, both Matt Marcorelle and Ronald Talley seem poised to break out. If they can have some game-changing plays Saturday and disrupt the Paladins passing attack, the Hens could be in position to take control.
Why we could lose:
Soaring through the air: Last week, the Paladins were very successful passing the ball against a very competitive Colgate squad, finding the end zone with ease. If the Hens can not slow down that potent air attack they could be in for a long day.
Point of No Return: Last week Adam Mims returned three punts for 90 yards. If he can repeat that kind of success against the Hens this week, the field position battle could fall in Furman’s favor. Blind Date: Neither of these teams are familiar with each other, which means each team’s game plan will be of extra importance. The fact the Hens will be on the road also gives a slight advantage to the Paladins in terms of preparation.
161:
The Numbers:
Average passing yards for starting quarterback Robbie Schoenhoft so far this season.
214:
Average passing yards for Furman quarterback Jordan Sorrells so far this season.
176: All purpose yards for Hens wide reciever Mark Duncan, which leads the team.
The Prediction:
This game will probably be the Hens’ biggest test early in the season. Furman is ranked No. 23 in the FCS and is coming off a huge victory over Colgate. The Paladins also possess the most potent offensive attack UD has seen so far. Although Johnathon Smith will probably have success running through the Paladins’ defense, this game will come down to execution and special teams play, which is where the Hens will have the advantage.
Hens 24, Furman 21
No stretch to see value in sports training staff BY ADAM SAMPLES Staff Reporter
The Hens’ new jumbo screen was blasting music as the football team took to Tubby Raymond Field for practice. Through the Bob Carpenter Center’s blue double doors into the athletic training room, a distinctly different noise was audible through the rumble. The sound of athletic tape being ripped off large rolls, people telling jokes and medical advice being shouted filled the room. This is the daily scene for the university’s athletic training staff, lead by head athletic trainer John Smith. One of the responsibilities of the athletic trainers is to listen to the players who are injured, which ultimately helps the healing process. Chris Daino, an offensive lineman on the football team, said he is recovering from a dislocated knee that he suffered in March, which required surgery. “I work directly with John [Smith] and he really helps because he understands my injury,” Daino said. A redshirted sophomore, he said he spends a lot of time in the training room, but said the athletic trainers help him recover from his injuries quickly. Strewn across the dozen or so training tables were athletes from all different sports. A football player was getting his ankles taped. A field hockey player was receiving treatment for an assortment of cuts and wounds. A basketball player needed his knee looked at. Smith and his staff attend to each athlete, hoping to help them recover and get back with their teams. “We take some preventative measures so as to avoid injuries,” Smith said. “But injuries will happen, and when they do, we deal with them.” Linemen on the football team wear knee braces, whether or not they are injured, as a precaution. The equipment that players are fitted with is all properly adjusted so as to avoid injury. Some injuries can not be prevented. “Some chronic injuries are the real bad ones,” graduate assistant athletic trainer Devon Fegley said. “Ones you know will come back.” Fegley said she deals with field hockey in the fall and softball in the spring. She said human bodies are meant to walk straight up, not bent over and twisting. For that reason,
lower back issues tend to hamper field hockey players, as the natural playing position can be conducive to that injury. Some sports have more common injuries that the athletic trainers treat. In basketball, rolled ankles and jammed fingers claim victims regularly. Head of basketball operations Saul Frankel said he has no doubt his players are in good hands. During visits to the training room, Frankel gets updates on his injured players. “These guys are so good with communication,” Frankel said. “We always want to know what’s happening so we don’t put our guys in harm’s way.” The players work hard with the athletic trainers like senior athletic training student Karen Hsu and Fegley to get back to playing. In return, the athletic trainers work just as hard, sometimes showing up at 7 a.m. and staying until 7 p.m. “These kids are serious about their injuries,” Smith said. “It makes our job a little easier.” One athlete had not played all year due to injuries, but when the training staff got her back on the field, it was emotional for the whole team. “All of the girls started crying when she put her pads on,” Fegley said. When an athlete recovers from an injury, the athletic trainers know they have done their job well. For some, that moment THE REVIEW/Steven Gold is the reward and reason they do what they Athletic trainers have to tend to injured athletes both on and off of the field do. “A lot of my job satisfaction comes well, or when a star player comes back from an injury, not from when a player comes back from an injury,” Smith said. much is heard about the athletic trainers who helped that “They have success and the idea of being a part of recovery player return, but Smith said he is not in his job for the pubkeeps me coming back to the job day in and day out.” licity. He said his and the athletic training students’ profes“I don’t need a pat on the back,” Smith said. “I really, sion is not meant to be a glamorous one. When a team does really love what I do.”
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September 16, 2008
Team looks for success Continued from page 28
goal leads in their loss Sept. 9 to St. Joseph’s University. Players are quick to point out that blame for this early struggle is spread through the team. “When we get the lead, everyone needs to do their part to hold the lead,” sophomore forward Courtney Hewitt said. Hewitt added that the setbacks so far have nothing to do with inexperience, but this year, the team did lose one of its best players, Sobhan Tadjalli. Tadjalli, who was drafted by the Philadelphia Kixx of the Major Indoor Soccer League, provided both immense talent and leadership to the team. However, with offensive production up dramatically from one goal through the first four games last year, to five goals this year, the team feels that replacing the former star has proven less difficult than expected. “Sobhan was a great talent,” said sophomore midfielder E.J. Alvarado. “The team was more geared to him scoring, so there was definitely some pressure when he graduated. But everybody has pressure to score, this
year is a bit different than last year, we can do more than in previous years.” Freshman forward Andy Streilein said he felt little pressure to replace Tadjalli. Rather, he feels pressure as a team, spread on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. “You can’t put in on one area,” Streiliein said, “It’s a team game, so everyone attacks, and everyone defends.” With conference play still a few games away, the Hens will have a few games left of non-conference play before facing their first conference opponent, Old Dominion, September 26. However, with the tough losses so far, every game takes on even greater importance as the season progresses. As for the early pitfalls, coach Hennessy said he feels the team will overcome all the early season issues. With only about a quarter of the season in the books, he believes the Hens have both the time and the talent to get back on the right track. “ We ’ l l get through it collectively,” he said. “It’ll be just fine.”
Picture of the Week
Athletes of the Issue
THE REVIEW/Steven Gold
A fan in a No. 5 Joe Flacco Ravens jersey stands in the student section.
Johnathon Smith
Smith, a senior runningback, ran for 101 yards last week against West Chester. He also broke off a long run of 62 yards during the game. Smith, a transfer student, orginally started out his college career at the University of Connecticut.
Stacie Dulkis
Dulkis, a freshman forward from Mahwah, New Jersey was named the soccer team’s most valuable player for her two goals against Sacred Heart during the Yale Soccer Classic this past weekend.
September 16, 2008
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