Friday, April 6, 2018

SINCE 1891

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 6, 2018

VOLUME CLII, ISSUE #43

WWW.BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM

A conversation with John Krasinski ’01 Jeb Bush to speak as

Ogden lecturer April 25 Former Florida governor, presidential candidate to speak on leadership in changing world

By ALLIE REED SENIOR STAFF WRITER

COURTESY OF TBD MARKETING

John Krasinski ’01 stepped out of his comfort zone to direct his horror film “A Quiet Place.” Krasinski stars in the film, which features the struggles of a family in an apocalyptic world, with his wife, actress Emily Blunt.

Apocalyptic horror film “A Quiet Place” explores theme of fatherhood, juxtaposes love, fear

By MIA PATTILLO ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR

For nearly a decade, John Krasinski ’01 was best known for his role as Dunder

Mifflin paper salesman Jim Halpert on the NBC comedy “The Office,” playing pranks on Dwight and staring down the camera with a knowing expression and a charming shrug. But in his third directorial endeavor, “A Quiet Place,” Krasinski breaks away from comedy with a horror film set in an apocalyptic world where even the slightest noise results in a violent death by humaneating creatures. The film, released

today, underscores the importance of family in a pervasively threatening environment. Krasinski crafts the story of two parents — played by Krasinski and his wife Emily Blunt — and their young children who must learn to fiercely protect one another in the fight for survival.

Reading the script for “A Quiet Place” just three weeks after the birth » See KRASINSKI, page 3

Jeb Bush, former governor of Florida, will speak at the University April 25 as the Ogden Memorial lecturer. After Bush delivers a speech entitled “Leadership in a Changing World,” President Christina Paxson P’19 will moderate an audience question-and-answer session, according to a University press release.

The son of former president George H.W. Bush and the younger brother of former president George W. Bush, Bush served as the 43rd governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007 and launched a presidential campaign for the Republican Party nomination in the 2016 election.

Under Bush’s leadership, “Florida was on the forefront of consumer health care advances, led the nation in job growth and launched and accelerated restoration of America’s Everglades,” according to the Ogden website.

Bush was born in Texas and went

on to earn a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin, according to the website of the Foundation for Excellence in Education, of which Bush currently serves as founder, president and chairman of the board of directors.

After moving to Florida in 1981 and co-founding the Codina Bush Group, a real estate development company, Bush stepped into the political arena by serving as Florida’s secretary of commerce under the state’s 40th governor, Bob Martinez. In 1994, he founded the Foundation for Florida’s Future, a nonprofit organization that aims to make “education in Florida a Model for the Nation,” according to its website.

Bush has authored three books: “Profiles in Character,” “Immigration Wars: Forging an American Solution” and “Reply All: A Governor’s Story 1999-2007,” according to the press release.

The Ogden Lectureship celebrates the life of Stephen Ogden Jr. ’60, who died of injuries from a car accident during his junior year. Bush will join many political figures who have taken the role as Ogden lecturer, including former United Nations Secretary-General Ban » See BUSH, page 3

U. hosts bipartisan Waters ’20 pitches game shutout softball pitcher Middle East discussion Bears allows only four hits, Liberal Brian Katulis, conservative Michael Rubin discuss war in Iraq, Syrian civil war

By ISABEL ALEXIADES STAFF WRITER

A bipartisan discussion about U.S. policy in the Middle East rehashed long-standing disagreements but found common ground in positioning foreign policy moving forward. The talk, which was co-hosted by Brown Students for Israel and the American Enterprise Institute at Brown, featured Brian Katulis, senior fellow from liberal thinktank Center for American Progress, and Michael Rubin, resident scholar at conservative thinktank American Enterprise Institute.

Katulis and Rubin debated the history of U.S. intervention in Iraq and how current regional changes would affect U.S. policy. Katulis worked at the National Security Council and the U.S. Departments of State and Defense under the Clinton administration. Rubin, whose area of expertise is Iran, served as a staff adviser for Iran and Iraq at

INSIDE

the Pentagon from 2002 to 2004. Brian Atwood, senior fellow at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, moderated the discussion.

The speakers clashed on the subject of the Iraq War, to which Katulis said he was vehemently opposed. On the other hand, Rubin said he would not apologize for the war. “I did not see it as a choice. I saw it as the status quo breaking down,” he said.

Rubin also discussed his optimism regarding Iraq following his last trip to Baghdad earlier this year. “Sixty percent of Iraqis were born post 2000. Forty percent have been born after 2003,” he said. “We have a new generation that is not embracing the religious extremism and sectarian rhetoric as the panacea for their problems.”

Katulis and Rubin both critiqued the Obama administration’s attempts to remain impartial in the region’s conflicts, describing the strategy as “unrealistic.”

Rubin pointed out a lack of coherence on Middle East policy since the Clinton administration, which was exacerbated by Obama’s unwillingness to take a side. » See POLICY, page 2

records first complete game of season

By ALEX SMOLAR SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The softball team won its second conference game of the season last weekend, earning a 4-0 victory against Penn at home. The team was led by starting pitcher Emily Waters ’20, who pitched a complete game shutout and allowed only four hits and three walks with no errors. The Bears scored a pair of runs in both the third and fourth innings to help defeat the Quakers and move to 2-4 in the Ivy League.

Waters, a sophomore from Northridge, California, is a right-handed ace for Bruno. With her most recent victory, she holds a 2-5 mark on the season and has recorded 16 total strikeouts.

For her outstanding performance in the victory against Penn, Waters has been named The Herald’s Athlete of the Week.

Herald: Congratulations on the win against Penn. Can you talk a little about the game and how it felt to play so well?

COURTESY OF BROWN ATHLETICS

Emily Waters ’20 powered the Bears to a 4-0 victory against the Penn Quakers to give Brown its second conference win of the season.

Waters: Thank you! Coming into it, I felt pretty confident because I think we did a really good job scouting. We

had a good plan and stuck to it, and everything just went smoothly with » See SOFTBALL, page 3

WEATHER

FRIDAY, APRIL 6, 2018

SCIENCE & RESEARCH U. participates in National Public Health Week with events to educate community

COMMENTARY Froid ’21: U. should not invite Jeb Bush, legitimize dehumanizing, ill-informed views

COMMENTARY Cardoso ’19: Increasing access for underrepresented groups undermined by legacy admission

COMMENTARY Klein ’20: For many NBA teams, final weeks of season become a race to last place in the standings

PAGE 2

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PAGE 2 • FRIDAY, APRIL 6, 2018

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

U. expands role in National Public Health Week School of Public Health helps organize events on gun control, obesity to educate community

By CHRIS SCHUTTE SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Under the Dean of the School of Public Health Bess Marcus, Brown has increased its efforts to promote public health and educate the community.

This week, the school planned activities for National Public Health Week, which included symposiums, poster sessions and advocacy events aimed at educating the Providence community about the many facets of public health.

Though the event has taken place for many years under the American Public Health Association, this is the first year that the school planned events for the entire week, as opposed to only organizing a Public Health Research Day as in previous years.

Brown’s renewed involvement is part of Marcus’ effort to highlight the school’s work in the community. “I’m a new dean, and I really wanted to call attention to all of the great work that our students are involved in, our faculty are involved in and what we’re doing as a community,” Marcus said, adding that she hopes to raise the school’s profile.

“We focus on research, we focus on teaching and education and we focus on service to the community, and this

TIFFANY DING / HERALD

The Public Health Week included events planned by the School of Public Health, covering topics such as tobacco use, obesity and healthy cooking. week is about celebrating all those parts,” she said.

The school hopes to educate the wider community about public health as well. “It’s really a great opportunity for the School of Public Health to reach out to the greater Brown community and the greater Providence community to really put on these fantastic events that celebrate public health,” said Meghan Gonsalves GS, a health communications scholar who worked to promote this week’s events.

Notable events for the week included a panel on tobacco use, an event addressing obesity in the United States and a healthy cooking demonstration.

On Tuesday, a public art project entitled “One Gun Gone” advocated for gun control by displaying art pieces with weapons to raise funds for a buyback program and further aid families affected by gun violence. “Hearing personal stories from students and people who have been affected by (gun violence) is really compelling,” Gonsalves said, adding that “to see the guns in an art form of wax and glass rather than hard metal is a very interesting way to view it.”

One of the busiest days of the week was the Public Health Research Day, where undergraduate and graduate students prepared posters to present

their own research. “Research day is the culmination of all of the activities and interests students have in research,” said Director of Public Health Communications Karen Scanlan.

Students wrote abstracts and created posters to present to peers, other researchers and faculty. “This is a fantastic opportunity for students to push their research and get involved with teaching others about what they do,” Gonsalves said. She added that she hoped presenters would also gain confidence and form connections with other researchers in the field, a key goal of the week.

Marcus said she hoped that the event would spur future research.

“They’re the next generation. They’re going to take all that we’re doing forward,” she said.

Though the week focused on public health, it aimed to encourage people of all concentrations to take part as well.

“This week is for everybody. Public health touches every single person’s life in some way because it’s how we act, what we do, our health and everything that affects an individual,” Gonsalves said.

Marcus hopes that events like these will continue to grow in the near future.

“This is really just the beginning of what we’re hoping to do,” she added.

“You’ll see more partnerships with other programs at (Brown) … and us partnering with more of our community partners in coming years.”

Saturday, 7 April 2018

11 am, Lownes Room, John Hay Library 20 Prospect Street

3:15 pm, McCormack Family Theater, 70 Brown Street

Exihibit of Ugly Duckling Presse’s beautiful, sculptural and wacky works of literature and art

Alissa Cardone and Sara June (with music by Max Lord) will interpret Hijikata through dance; other presentations to be performed by Darcie Dennigan and Kate Colby; Sawako Nakayasu; and Mike Taylor

Book talk and display

noon, George Rattner Room, 70 Brown Street Lunch for participants and the public 1:30 pm, McCormack Family Theater,70 Brown Street

Small Press Roundtable

Discussion with Ugly Duckling Presse editors Anna Moschovakis and MatveiYankelevich, as well as literary editors Damon Krukowsi (exact change), Erica Mena (Anomalous Books), Stephen Motika (Nightboat Editions) and Patrick Riedy (PressBoardPress)

Performance Works

5 pm, George Rattner Room, 70 Brown Street Reception to honor Ugly Duckling Presse and the participants in the festival.

6:30 pm, McCormack Famly Theater, 70 Brown Street

Literary Readings

Presentations by Kate Colby, Mónica de la Torre, Damon Krukowski, Cole Swensen and Sara Wintz

» POLICY, from page 1 “My big criticism of the Obama administration is that the Syrian civil war … has had huge strategic consequences,” Katulis said. “We would not have a President Trump today if we had had a meaningful engagement about the (war).” Terrorism and the civil war have “led to a re-emergence of the politics of fear” across the world, he said.

“By trying to stay neutral, it’s almost as if we are a gambler that only wants to put his cards down on the blackjack table after he’s seen everyone else’s cards,” Rubin added. “In a region where people see policy and diplomacy as a zero-sum game, people think that if the Americans aren’t supporting us, then they must be supporting the other guys.”

Rubin and Katulis also agreed that it is necessary for U.S. policy to evolve from its current reactionary state to a more proactive approach. “We’re all debating the past, whereas no one’s debating about the future,” Rubin said.

He pointed to the eventual phasing out of restrictions included in the Iran nuclear deal and the declining health of both Ali Khamenei, supreme leader of Iran, and Mahmoud Abbas, president of the State of Palestine, as examples of topics that merit more attention.

When discussing the current administration, the speakers both said that they do not believe the United States will go to war with Iran. Katulis referred to a lack of concrete policy behind Trump’s actions, which he described as posturing.

However, he noted that conflict breaking out in the fight for dominance in the region could draw in the United States.

“Every administration tends to be defined (by) the crisis it never saw coming,” Rubin added.

The Israel-Palestine conflict was touched upon briefly, with Katulis expressing his pessimism regarding any possibility of a two-state solution. “(Jared) Kushner and (Jason) Greenblatt’s quest for the perfect twostate solution is like O.J. (Simpson)’s quest for the real killer,” Rubin said.

He added that he does not believe it is the most urgent problem to address within the region, because while the other Arab nations support Palestine, they are not particularly focused on the conflict.

Broadly, Rubin cautioned the United States against thinking inwardly, noting that it must consider how its actions will be interpreted by players in the region.

Issue

In This

Anita Sheih 3

Chanel Johnson

2

@MikesIceTruck

Spirit of Brown SONYA BUI 4

Scraps JOSHUA LU 5

Country Music's High Horse James Feinberg 6

Animal Instinct

postCover by Clarisse Angkasa

APRIL 6

VOL 21 —

ISSUE 9

FEATURES

Spirit of Brown

The Eccentricities of Brown Campus Tours

I

written By Chanel johnson – illustrated by ella rosenblatt

only went

on one campus tour during the college application season. I don’t remember much from it except the humid heat of mid-July and how our tour guide managed to mention at every stop how amazing the school’s Greek life was. “I never saw myself being part of a sorority, but now I can’t imagine myself without it,” she said as I rolled my eyes. It goes without saying that I wasn't impressed with the school and did not apply. My decision shows just how impactful a campus tour can be to prospective students. Brown campus tours are getting increasingly busy with the beginning of spring and the admittance of 2,566 students to the Class of 2022, and tour guides are tasked with highlighting the implicit qualities of its campus atmosphere and attract prospective students.

There are currently four different types of tours that Brown provides for prospective students: the general campus tour, the engineering tour, the physical sciences tour, and the sustainability tour. The campus tour is managed by the Brown Bruin Club, a student organization associated with the Office of College Admission that oversees all prospective students’ needs.

The engineering tour is managed by the Department of Engineering and gives an overview of what it’s like to study engineering at Brown, allowing prospective students to talk to current engineering concentrators and visit classrooms and lab spaces. The physical sciences tour visits similar spaces, but highlights computer science, chemistry, physics, engineering, math, applied math, geology, and environmental science. The sustainability

Letter from the Editor

Dear Readers,

tour is the newest offering: Provided by the Brown Office of Energy and Environmental Initiatives, it shows prospective students the sustainability initiatives at Brown, including compost and recycling, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) buildings, and alternative living options.

Every university has a unique approach for how it presents its campus on tours. Brown’s approach begins with the competitive application process for tour guides. Aspiring and returning tour guides must be interviewed at the beginning of every semester. In the interview, each applicant gives a mock tour guide introduction and answers a few situational questions that could come up on tour. Interestingly, while most schools pay their students to be tour guides, Brown students volunteer about an hour of their time each week to lead tours. “I think it speaks to how Brown students are genuinely interested in talking about the school and genuinely love Brown,” explains Cindy Zeng ’20, who has been a tour guide for two semesters. “I think it’s nice that students care so much about the school, and they want to do it anyway because they think it’s really fun.”

The distinctive aspects of Brown campus tours don’t stop with its competitive application process. Ben Ahmad ’20, who has been a tour guide for two semesters, explains that prospective students are not assigned a tour guide when they visit. Instead, families hear the tour guides’ intros and choose whom to follow: “Basically, we say that it’s in the ‘spirit of Brown’ because you have freedom of choice.” In addition, Ahmad also describes how campus tours

playing at the Avon this week, and Anita

National Holidays to Celebrate After the Holiday Season

Sheih's investigation of the secret behind Ever since I returned from Ireland last

Mike’s Ice.

week, I have to remind myself a few times a day that I’m not going to stumble on a

If you want to go to another planet

random statue of Oscar Wilde, pass another

altogether, Sonya Bui’s poem will do the job.

pub named Murphy’s, or turn the corner

We also have a review of Kacey Musgraves’s

on another building that’s a thousand years

new album, which Joshua Lu, former

old. But it has also meant that I see Brown

Post- Managing Editor, compares to early

with new eyes: the trees! the red brick! the

Taylor Swift—and knowing the Post- staff

random mix of snow/sun/rain in one day!

1.

Fruitcake Toss Day (Jan 3)

2.

Ditch New Year’s Resolution Day (Jan 17)

3.

OK Day (Mar 23)

(we dedicated an entire issue to her last

4.

National Something on a Stick Day (Mar 28)

semester), it is high praise indeed.

5.

Be Kind to Lawyers Day (Apr 10)

6.

Lima Bean Respect Day (Apr 20)

7.

World Naked Gardening Day (May 5, right after

Chanel Johnson has written the perfect piece for my frame of my mind: a feature on

Predictions for when Mike’s Ice will return

campus tour guides, whose very job is to sell

to campus? Ideas for thesis topics? You

naive high schoolers and their unsuspecting

know how to get in touch. (It’s post@

parents on this school.

browndailyherald.com).

If you’re still very much in a spring break

Happy Friday!

state of mind, however, we have you covered with a review of Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs,

2!post–

Saanya - EDITOR IN CHIEF

May 4’s No Pants Day) 8.

Herb Day (also May 5, so pants are optional)

9.

Sauntering Day (Jun 19)

10.

Pluto Demoted Day (Aug 24)

NARRATIVE do not focus on the history of Brown: “I’ve noticed that when I went on other tours at other schools, they spent a lot of time on that. And I don’t really think we do because honestly people can get really bored by it."

This non-traditional approach to campus

the school culture. Additionally, students this year will be placed into “units” for the weekend so that they can develop a network even before they begin their first semester.

Through non-traditional approaches, Brown has allowed prospective students to

While tour guides may struggle to navigate new situations on the spot, each tour session also comes with pleasant surprises.

On one of Ahmad’s tours, Harrison Ford made an unexpected appearance, while one of Zeng’s tours was thrown off by something much more ordinary. tours has an impact on not only the prospective students but also the tour guides. For Zeng, she loves how campus tours give her the chance to take a break from her work and to walk around campus.

The relaxed atmosphere also allows her to tell a few jokes and get a few laughs out of the audience.

For example, she tells her tour groups, “The urban legend of the Soldier’s Arch is that if you kiss your partner underneath it, you will both be married.

But the legend doesn’t specify who you will be married to.” Zeng says, “At that point everyone laughs, and it’s really great.” For other guides, leading campus tours can be a humbling learning experience. Ahmad says, “It makes me realize how privileged I am to be here because I really think you can take that for granted, and it also makes me love Brown more every time I talk about it.”

While campus tours can be refreshing for both prospective students and tour guides, they do come with a few challenges. One is how to handle tricky questions that prospective students ask, like what current students typically do on the weekends.

“What I found is that you want to be honest,” Ahmad explained. “But the best way to frame the honesty is to give a balanced perspective.”

While tour guides may struggle to navigate new situations on the spot, each tour session also comes with pleasant surprises. On one of Ahmad’s tours, Harrison Ford made an unexpected appearance, while one of Zeng’s tours was thrown off by something much more ordinary. “One time, I was giving a segment outside of the Ratty,” Zeng described, “And one of my friends was with her friends, and they all started cheering, so I got pretty flustered.”

Furthermore, prospective students can get a more in-depth experience at Brown with A Day On College Hill (ADOCH), and this year’s new policies have made the atmosphere even more welcoming than in the past. Instead of hosting admitted students for just one weekend, ADOCH will be offered twice in order to allow more flexibility for admitted students’ schedules and give more people the chance to see the campus. In addition, Early Decision admitted students are allowed to come to ADOCH this year, which allows everyone to have the chance to gain a sense of how they will fit with

comprehensively experience student culture and imagine themselves on campus. Brown’s campus tours, online resources, and events allow current students to reach out to prospective students and reflect on how their time at Brown has impacted them.

@MikesIceTruck Straying from the Obvious

By Anita Sheih "I don't even know, if I’m gonna be honest.”

Major walks around to the front of the truck, his black aviators glinting in the setting sun, heavyduty brown boots thudding against the cool pavement. “I don’t know what kind of truck this is. But I can tell you some fun facts about it. The guy we bought it from brought it up from Florida.

It used to be a flower truck at Disney World; it had never left Disney property, the mileage was low, and it was in great shape. He wanted to make it into an ice cream truck too, but he had to give up that dream when he got injured. So he sold it to us.”

6:31 p.m., and the post-dinner rush is just beginning: a line of people waiting at the passengerseat window to order and a blob of others waiting at the back window for their orders. The logos of Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram cover the truck, complementing the bold, blue slogan, “Roll With Us,” above the windshield. The truck’s mascot is a cartoon boy sporting a brown snow suit, a gleeful smile, and comically triangular brown hair.

“We had an idea of what we wanted it to look like—a cozy guy eating ice cream. I contacted a branding consultant, and he just came up with the idea. I think the little guy looks happy.”

From the homepage: “Mike’s Ice is Rhode Island's first Thaiinspired ice cream company.”

“The most awesome rolled ice cream in town, made fresh to order.”

“Help us help veterans.”

Mike explains this last slogan: “Mike’s Ice is dedicated to our friend Mike, who passed away a couple years ago. It’s a veteran-owned business.

I was in the Marine Corps, and in March of 2014, coming home from Afghanistan, I wanted to dedicate something to him. So we had this dream of a frozen yogurt place. But I just decided, ‘Let’s transition.’”

He’d been watching a Muay Thai kickboxing fight, a sport of which he is both an avid fan and participant, and saw an ad for Thai rolled ice cream.

“Ice cream is a staple in American cuisine.

And we wanted to do something a little different to diversify and add to the food scene here. This type of ice cream was first introduced to the United States in New York City last summer, and we are the first to bring it to Providence.”

I notice the round emblem on the side of the truck displaying the silhouette of a saluting man in uniform set on a background of the US flag, with a caption that reads, “Support Our Veterans.”

Walking closer to the window, I see the menu. The sizes offered are “#selfie” for a single serving or “#icecreamandchill” for a double serving. All of the orders have trending hashtags for names, such as “#merica,” “#instagood,” “#keytosuccess,” and “#yolo”.

“We wanted to stray from the obvious. When someone looks at a menu, they expect the cookies and cream flavor to just be called “Cookies and Cream.” We wanted to try something else, to combine something people are familiar with, ice cream, and something new that they like, social media.” 16,800 Instagram users follow Mike’s Ice, a stable fan base for a constantly moving business.

One, two, one, one, and one make six total people waiting in line to order. They either have soft bodies and big bellies or lean bodies and active social media accounts. They all have their phones out and heads down until they arrive at the window. For a few moments, their faces lift to say a few words, and then back down they go. No one chats in line, not even the two people who came together, who are on their own respective newsfeeds, scrolling, scrolling, scrolling…And when an order finally comes out, one of two things happens. The customer either immediately scarfs it down or immediately snaps a picture of it. Click, and mimi122 captions the Snap with three big, red, emoji hearts. She taps the blue arrow, checks “My Story,” and clicks another arrow to post.

I walk up to Major, my heeled boots clicking along the dark, evening pavement. I introduce myself as “Anita, the girl on the phone earlier.” He says, “Hi, just give me a second. I’m just updating the social media real quick…I’m Major.” He grins widely, and his chest puffs up a little with pride.

A few minutes into our conversation, he notices a woman standing behind him, patiently waiting.

“Hello, ma’am. We just have to wait for the machines to get frosted, ma’am.” The white panel on the outside of the truck flips up to create a little makeshift sheet-metal roof. I notice two apronwearing young workers—maybe my age—sitting in the driver’s and passenger’s seats of the truck, relaxing before their shift and scrolling, tapping,

“My grandma apologized for forgetting to wish me happy birthday by venmoing me a hundred bucks for beer money.”

"I don’t like tomatoes in my tuna."

“Does anyone have an Overheard we can use? We need two more.”

- Saanya Jain april 5, 2018&3

NARRATIVE swiping, typing away on their phones.

The tape on the menu sign suddenly falls off, and the menu flaps in the breeze, barely hanging on by the pieces of tape on the bottom. In a matter of seconds, Major whips in and out of the truck again with a roll of packing tape. Evidently experienced in dealing with rebellious signs, he sticks it back up using the taping method everyone learns in middle school—rolling up the tape in a little loop and sticking it between the surface and the back side of the paper.

“The machines are ready, ma’am! What’s your order and your name? …Oh, Carrie! I remember you! Nice to see you again.” Major beams at her through his close-shaven beard, his sunglasshidden eyes crinkling up a bit at the edge with smile lines, his buzz-cut head bobbing in acknowledgment and recognition.

The two younger workers move from the front of the truck to the kitchen area and start working with the machines, pulling levers, pressing buttons, cranking dials. I ask Major about the rest of his team. He counts off people on his right hand, starting with his thumb. He loses count and starts over. Finally, “We have a solid team of five fulltime and three part-time workers. As of now, we are only hiring family and friends of mine or my partner, Sadam Salas, who was in the Navy.”

Another man comes up, and Major takes his order. “Thank you, sir, that’ll be coming right up.”

I’ve had this type of ice cream twice before in my life, once at a night market in Vancouver and once in Thailand. Inspired by the traditional street foods of Thailand, Major and his partner introduced rolled ice cream to Providence through the opening of Mike’s Ice Truck on July 1, 2016.

Scraps

By Sonya bui illustrated by Miranda Villanueva Clogged in my sleep-deprived brain are crumpled scraps of paper i’ve been meaning to unscramble. scrap one. “let’s go outside.” something-something about blackened grid-like sidewalks and noiseless streets roaming freely out of sheer post-midnight curiosity then melting into firm grounded steps steered by puddles and mushy dewy grass. scrap two. “talk to me.” something-something about filters and defenses simultaneously rendering erroneous or pathological lies being cornered into the waters down the riverside then drowned by weighty gaps and breaks of comfortable silence. scrap three. “please?” something-something about making room for a temporary lodger pretending the expiry date doesn’t exist and turning “scoot over?” into “move in?” in half-assed fits of delirium. i still don’t know what to make of these scraps and perhaps my brain will declutter itself in waking hours.

4!post–

While their business is fairly westernized, with its social media references and active online marketing, their ice cream is pretty authentic.

Standing a few feet from the kitchen area, I watch the now-familiar process. First, they put all the ingredients onto the cold plate and use flat, metal spatulas to chop it all up. The instruments make short, sharp clangs as they are scraped and stabbed repeatedly against the plate. Clang! Kchhh, kchhh, clang. Klik klik, klik, klik, clang! The mixture of cream, milk, and sugar blends together and simultaneously freezes on the chilled metal slab, resulting in a light-colored, thick-textured blob.

The blades slowly smoothe the ice cream into thin layers, pushing down and outward from the middle of the plate, over and over in an almost-hypnotic motion. The ice cream, sufficiently flattened, begins to spiral up and inward, above the spatulas, off the icy surface of the frozen block. Finally, the addition of a bright red cherry, black Oreo cookie, and brown wooden spoon makes for a perfect Instagram picture.

“We just started researching online to learn how to make the rolls. One of our team members, Zuliana Bedel, who is very passionate about cuisine, developed our recipes and flavors. We YouTubed the process, watched videos, and practiced, practiced, practiced…” With each “practiced,” Major hits the back of one hand against the palm of the other.

“We’re gonna open up a real shop in downtown Providence soon, in the next six months. It’s the next step. We’re gonna build our franchise and take the region, then the nation, then the globe, by storm.” Passion pours from his words. “We’re looking to be the next Ben & Jerry’s. The next Cold

Stone Creamery.”

“I’m actually writing a book.” Major lingers in the doorway of the truck, as if unsure of whether he wants to come outside. After I give him an encouraging look and warm half-smile, he steps forward to join me on the sidewalk and continues to speak. He tells me about how he started learning “sales skills, customer service, and business savvy” at the young age of 11 while working at his father’s food truck. Though he is following in his father’s footsteps, he still feels like his story is unique. His whole business is focused on being different. Now he wants to teach millenials the new business skills necessary for entrepreneurship, such as taking advantage of of social media. “The book’s gonna be called How to Date a Girl from Work,” he says with a chuckle. “It’ll come out sometime next year.”

I would love to unpack the title and learn more about the book, but Major chose not to elaborate.

As I wait for my order, Major tells me that he dreams of moving to Thailand one day. His eyes light up, and his voice thickens with determination.

“I’m definitely gonna be spending some time there. I’ll eat, train, and maybe even fight some Muay Thai fights.”

As I walk back to my room, I follow both the business’s account and Major’s personal account on Instagram, as Major suggested several times throughout our conversation. I glance at my cup and see my order and my name, which Major carefully wrote in dark blue Sharpie 20 minutes ago. “#mikesice” (the Thai-iced-tea flavor) “C” (for cherry) “@anita” (to me: the ice cream, his message.)

LIFESTYLE

ARTS&CULTURE

Country Music's High Horse Kacey Musgraves Returns

By Joshua Lu illustrated by Miranda Villanueva In 2012, recent The Voice alum RaeLynn premiered her debut single, questionably titled “God Made Girls,” which to a liberal ear praises women for serving their husbands. “Somebody's gotta wear a pretty skirt / Somebody's gotta be the one to flirt / Somebody's gotta wanna hold his hand / So God made girls,” she sings without a hint of irony; less “Gunpowder & Lead” by Miranda Lambert and more “Stand By Your Man” by Tammy Wynette.

Material, which was more or less a rehash of the same concepts and sounds from Same Trailer, Different Park, came and went. She consistently flirted with a more pop-oriented, un-country audience, touring with Katy Perry and, more recently, Harry Styles, even lending her vocals to a remix of a Miguel single, “Waves.” She released two songs a month or so ago to promote her third album, Golden Hour: “Butterflies,” a twee statement of affection with a predictable metaphor, and “Space Cowboy,” a ballad about letting a disquieted lover leave. They were classic Kacey songs, being wistful, casual, and country through-and-through.

Then “High Horse” dropped. Essentially a disco track about telling someone to fuck off, the song was nothing like what Kacey had released before, being a predominately pop song. The critics salivated; Pitchfork awarded the song the Best New Music

It’s wonderful to see a talented artist receive the accolades she deserves. But it’s similarly difficult to not be cynical and consider the factors that have contributed to Musgraves’ critical acclaim, especially from people who will likely never willingly listen to another country album this year.

The thinkpieces responded accordingly (read: obnoxiously), decrying it for its un-feminist politics that one Jezebel article described as “outright Victorian,” “blasphemous,” and “a sign that Pinterest achieved sentience.” The Guardian referred to it as “a sexist mess that paints women as nothing but pretty little objects, just as much as Luke Bryan and Florida Georgia Line’s records do.”

Nevermind that RaeLynn, in an interview shortly after the Jezebel article ran, defended herself as a feminist whose own career was proof that the lyrics were not meant to wholly encompass the role of the female sex. Nevermind how the song’s values do resonate with a large number of women in America, for whom the song was written. The song did not match with what critics expected in their music, and “God Made Girls” became a joke in the critical landscape.

Kacey Musgraves’s music, since her major label debut in 2013, has always received at least a modicum of critical praise. Same Trailer, Different Park was recognized for its cynical and casual lyricism; in lead single “Merry Go ‘Round,” for example, she sings about the toxic circularity of small-town life, never upbraiding this lifestyle but merely looking on with a sigh. The country music industry extolled her regularly, awarding her CMAs and putting her on their biggest stages.

But to liberal critic-land as a whole, like Spin and Pitchfork and Time, Kacey’s best song was really “Follow Your Arrow,” a good song that was recognized more for its politics: Kacey sings about smoking weed, kissing girls, and living your own life all over a catchy guitar melody.

The underlying argument is that country music, at its core, is bad; country music that serves as a rebuff to country music is therefore good.

Kacey’s second album, Pageant

label, and other publications gave it more attention than they would have any other release by a country artist. Kacey acknowledged these awards, but part of her charm is how genuine her liberal appeal manifests. Just a few days before the album release, she wrote a Facebook post about how she was inspired to write an interlude about her mom while she was on LSD—not quite the image a country artist tends to carry.

T h e release o f

Golden Hour last week only added onto the acclaim; Pitchfork doled out Kacey her second Best New Music sticker, and the album currently has a score of 90 on Metacritic. Part of her success must be attributed to the merits of the album, with layered, experimental instrumentals and witty lyrics tied together with Kacey’s melodious voice. Part of it must also be the pop landscape it is being released in, where artists like Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, and Miley Cyrus here promised hybrids of country and pop that failed to excite upon release. But part of it must be because much of the album does not feel like country music; I’ve seen the vocoder used on “Oh, What a World” compared to those on songs

by All Saints, MIKA, and Daft Punk, and Pitchfork could not help but compare the record as a whole to releases by Beck and Sufjan Stevens. Pop music fans were similarly engaged, and Kacey tweeted a meme showcasing a man labelled “The Gays” turning away from Carly Rae Jepsen’s record Emotion and facing Golden Hour instead. Kacey later deleted the tweet, perhaps not used to the vitriol that pop music fans on Twitter often carry, especially toward a country artist.

It’s wonderful to see a talented artist receive the accolades she deserves. But it’s similarly difficult to not be cynical and consider the factors that have contributed to Musgraves’s critical acclaim, especially from people who will likely never willingly listen to another country album this year. The country music scene has largely gone unaffected by the critics, whose old biases are still evident even when they’re silent. RaeLynn released her latest single “Queen’s Dont” a few weeks ago to not much of a hullabaloo. “Queens don't hate, queens don't fight / Queens don't stay unless their king treats her right,” she sings, echoing her debut track but with reversed politics. One has to notice how, despite being similarly prescriptivist about the roles girls must play in their lives, “Queens Don’t” escaped the scorn of critics.

april 5, 2018&5

ARTS&CULTURE

Animal Instinct At the Movies: Isle of Dogs

Written by James Feinberg Illustrated By Miranda Villanueva Wes Anderson can milk the hell out of a dead dog. In the director’s Moonrise Kingdom (2012), Snoopy, the trusty pooch belonging to the boys

delves into the non-space of a fictionl quirk-ified Japan just Showtimes as Tenebaums did New York 2:00 4:10 and The Grand Budapest Hotel 6:20 8:30 (2015) did Middle Europe.

Anderson seems intoxicated, as he did in his last animated feature, Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009), by the possibilities of stop-motion, and fills the frame with exquisite color and detail, which is delightful. No director since Kubrick, in 2001: A Avon Cinema

There’s too much going on on the surface and not so much under, with the net result being that [Isle of Dogs], despite being aesthetically beautiful, seems to end before it begins. from Camp Ivanhoe, is impaled by a stray arrow, making him the one fatality in a movie that includes devastating floods, a troop of preteens armed with axes, and a child being struck by lightning. In The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), the youngest Tenenbaums’ dog is crushed by a car and almost immediately replaced by the Dalmatian of the firefighter crew that arrives to assess the situation. (Yeesh.) But fittingly, Anderson’s newest film, Isle of Dogs, a stop-motion-animated visual extravaganza that’s nonetheless his weakest effort, leans the hardest on the trope. A particular dog skeleton is the source of much of the pathos early in the film, and later, during a dream sequence, our hero, Atari Kobayashi (Koyu Rankin), visualizes an army of dog skeletons melting into thin air. Call it a memento mori for the canine set.

There’s almost too much to see and hear in the film, which is infused with the spirit of one of Anderson's admitted influences, Kurosawa, and

Space Odyssey (1968), has utilized blinding white more effectively, and one shot, in which Chief (Bryan Cranston), a stray, is oriented against an illuminated cave of discarded bottles, could be the most beautiful thing Anderson’s ever composed.

The voice cast, again traditionally for Anderson, is stacked: Aside from Cranston, there’s Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Harvey Keitel, F. Murray Abraham, Jeff Goldblum (who gives the best delivery in the film, no surprise), Greta Gerwig, Frances McDormand—there are more, but there’s limited space in this magazine.

I almost missed Bob Balaban until I really started to pay attention. Also, strangely, Yoko Ono is in it, playing a scientist named Yoko Ono. Fair enough.

This is all well and good, but the storyline—in which Atari travels to the titular isle, where all dogs in the city of Megasaki, have been banished, to find his own lost pup—runs out of steam around the time the quest comes to fruition, which is not so

“Ahh, I should have guessed he was American from those non-fitted pants.” —Spencer Roth-Rose, The Game of Language 4.14.16

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6!post–

deep into the film as one might suspect. Anderson, who penned the script, allows his usually helpful narrative economy to run away with him here.

Gerwig’s foreign exchange student, a distraction, takes up far too much of the plot for my taste, and prevents us from spending more time with dogs who, under their gorgeously articulated skin, might be more than one-joke characters. (Tilda Swinton’s Oracle, a “clairvoyant” pug, receives her cosmic wisdom by “understanding TV,” which is funny, but maybe not funny enough for Tilda Swinton.)

There’s too much going on on the surface and not so much under, with the net result being that the movie, despite being aesthetically beautiful, seems to end before it begins.

What Anderson is trying to do here, it becomes increasingly clear, is make an actual children’s movie—albeit one with his customary minor acts of bloody violence—as opposed to Fox, which had a complex emotionality and a keen sense of family dysfunction that lumped it more comfortably in his ouevre. In Isle of Dogs: Big-city child loses pet.

Pet falls in with pack of ragtag strays. Powerful criminal organization prevents child from getting to pet. Child finds pet after action-heavy chase sequence. Child is reunited with pet, and criminals are suitably punished. This is the exact plot of Disney’s Oliver and Company (1988), which is not nearly so nice to look at as Isle of Dogs, but has the distinct advantage of co-starring Billy Joel. Eat your heart out, Yoko.

NEWS

FRIDAY, APRIL 6, 2018 • PAGE 3

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

» BUSH, from page 1 Ki-moon and His Highness the Aga Khan, according to the press release.

“For more than 50 years, the Ogden Lectures have brought leaders from across the country and the globe to Brown for engaging discussions on pressing and timely topics. We’re pleased to welcome Gov. Bush this

month and look forward to a conversation informed by his lifelong career in business and public service,” wrote Director of News and Editorial Development Brian Clark in an email to The Herald.

Bush will begin his lecture at 5 p.m. at the Salomon Center. For those who are unable to obtain tickets, the event will be livestreamed.

COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Jeb Bush will deliver a speech titled “Leadership in a Changing World,” followed by a Q&A session moderated by President Christina Paxson.

» SOFTBALL, from page 1

kind of showed me around.

no hiccups.

What is your favorite part of being on the softball team?

It’s like having another family. I don’t really get homesick being here because it’s like I have my own little family. The older girls are like mentors and I can go to them for anything.

When did you first start playing softball and when did you become a pitcher?

When I was about six years old, I think.

My mom played softball growing up, and she was a pitcher. So, that’s what she just taught me to do growing up.

When did you decide that you wanted to play softball in college?

Probably in middle school. I started getting into travel ball, being more competitive and seeing some of the older girls in my organization going on to play in college. So, I thought that was something that I wanted to do.

Why did you choose Brown?

I’m from California, so I was looking at schools on the West Coast like (the University of California at San Diego and St. Mary’s College of California).

And then looking on the East Coast, it was basically just Brown. So for me, it was go home or go away. And I guess I wanted to experience something new and come to the East Coast. When I visited Brown, I loved it. I loved the girls that were on the team already (who)

Do you have any pregame rituals?

I do not. I guess I do my hair the same way every day (that I pitch). That’s about it.

What are some of your team and personal goals for the season?

(For) team goals, probably to be competitive in the Ivy League. Our goals are always to be above .500 in the Ivy League. I think we are on our way to doing that. Personal goals for me (are) just to be pitching well as a team. As a pitcher, you don’t want to win games for your team. You just want to keep your team in the game.

The Bears will return to the field this weekend to host Cornell before facing the University of Rhode Island Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Wherever you go, bring your own mug, reusable bottle and/or thermos.

Avoid plastic cutlery.

It’s time we take responsibility for our waste stream.

» KRASINSKI, from page 1 of his second daughter, Krasinski said the thread of family immediately hit home. “I was already in a state of terror about whether or not I was a good enough father,” he said in a conference interview with The Herald and other university publications. Imagining being a father in a nightmare world who is so dedicated to keeping his children alive elevated the meaning of parenting to him, he added.

This focus on family and parenting weaves throughout the entire plot as a central theme that parallels the terror, Krasinski said. Though the film has its jumpy moments, he wanted the audience to experience fear in direct correlation with love for the family. “If I can make you fall in love with this family, then you’ll be scared because you don’t want anything to happen to them,” he said.

As actor, producer and writer, Krasinski donned various hats, in addition to his role as a father in real life, to cement the family’s interdependence and center the rest of the movie around their inseparability. For him, the film is “a love letter to (his) kids.”

Krasinski also regularly turned to his on-screen and real-life wife Blunt for her input and ideas. Although it was their first time working together on the same set, Blunt went above and beyond in being a collaborative

contributor, giving Krasinski notes on the script and shots and being present whether or not her character acted in the scene, he said.

Together, Krasinski and Blunt generated ideas about how to inject horror into the film. As a self-proclaimed “scaredy-cat,” Krasinski drew from his own instincts to decide what fear factors would play most effectively in each scene. While writing, Krasinski would imagine himself in the scene and think about what would scare him most and then write that very image or action into the script.

Silence plays a critical role in the film — nearly the entire first half of the screen time contains no dialogue, and the entire script is only 67 pages. But as the cast shot these scenes, Krasinski said he learned about the value of such stillness in a distractingly noisy world.

“We just sat in the forest and we listened, and it was really powerful to have all of these ambient sounds around you,” he said. Krasinski has since started taking his daughter outside to “just look up at the sky and listen.”

The family in the movie goes to painstaking lengths to remain silent and ensure safety by putting sand down when they walk through the forest, painting floorboards so that they don’t creak and communicating through American Sign Language.

The cast learned ASL together from deaf actress Millicent Simmonds, who

played the deaf daughter in the film.

“There’s no better teacher for ASL than Millie because she was so kind and gentle,” Krasinski said. “I’ve never had someone take in all of me when we were communicating.” Simmonds taught the cast about how each individual has their own version of sign language — for example, the father, who focuses on keeping the children safe, has very curt and short signs, whereas the mother, who wants to give the children a larger life, has more poetic gestures. Krasinski cited his biggest regret about his directing experience as having not learned more sign language, as he believes that “there’s no more beautiful language.”

Krasinski fondly recalled how his community at Brown opened up a world of exposure, impacting his work today “in every single way.” Every week for all four of his years at Brown, he would ask his group of friends to give him an album or a movie recommendation, helping him grow from a high schooler “who had never seen a movie that wasn’t in a Cineplex or listened to music that wasn’t on the radio” to the actor, director and producer he is today.

“I could talk about this forever and I would probably start crying,” Krasinski said. “I legitimately would not be half the person that you see in front of you if it were not for Brown. … I wish I could go back.”

COMMENTARY PAGE 4 • FRIDAY, APRIL 6, 2018

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

CORRECTION An earlier version of the article “‘WeatherProof ’ explores climate change through multidisciplinary lens” stated that the theme of this year’s season at the Cogut Institute for the Humanities is environmental humanism. In fact, the theme is environmental humanities. The Herald regrets the error.

An earlier version of the photo caption accompanying the story “Joukowsky Forum addresses U.S. Senate partisanship” stated that Norman Ornstein is a member of the University faculty. In fact, Ornstein is not a member of the University faculty. The Herald regrets the error.

An earlier version of the article “Annenberg staff, programs depart after University review” stated that President Christina Paxson P’19 appointed Provost Richard Locke P’18 to review the Annenberg Institute’s “mission, strengths and opportunities for the future” in December 2015. In fact, President Christina Paxson P’19 appointed Provost Richard Locke P’18 to review the Annenberg Institute’s “mission, strengths and opportunities for the future” in fall 2016. The Herald regrets the error.

C L A R I F I C AT I O N An earlier version of the article “Annenberg staff, programs depart after University review” stated that Paxson and Locke said that the review process began following Simmons’ retirement in December 2015. The statement has been clarified to reflect that the review process took place from 2016 to 2017.

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COMMENTARY FRIDAY, APRIL 6, 2018 • PAGE 5

Inviting Jeb Bush to speak is irresponsible MICHAEL FROID OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR It was announced recently that the University intends to have former Florida Governor Jeb Bush come to campus to deliver the Stephen A. Ogden Jr. ’60 Memorial Lecture on International Affairs. This decision is disappointing, to say the least. The stated goal of the lecture is, according to the lecture’s website, “the advancement of international peace and understanding.” Unfortunately, Bush’s views are not those of peace and understanding. Instead, he represents the exact divides in our world that lead to international conflict.

Jeb Bush has consistently chosen to advocate for policies that do not, and should not, represent the values of Brown students. Bush has vocally opposed allowing non-straight marriage, as well as the adoption of children by non-straight couples.

These are morally unjustifiable positions. Furthermore, Bush has consistently advocated that women be denied their right to access reproductive health care, including abortions.

These positions dehumanize, shame and disrespect members of the Brown community and the population at large. Individuals of moral character do not hold these indefensible positions.

By inviting Bush to deliver a prestigious lecture, the University implicitly suggests that holding morally unjustifiable and outrageous views about women and members of the LGBTQ+

community is not disqualifying of distinction, when in fact it should be.

Providing Bush a platform suggests that his views, including his bigotry, deserve the same attention as rational and tolerant views. This should not be the case. It is downright insulting to the members of the Brown community who Bush has dehumanized that he be given the honor of delivering The Stephen A. Ogden Jr. ‘60 Memorial Lecture on International Affairs.

serious matter, and the livelihoods of future generations depend on our ability to recognize and combat the serious harms being done to our planet. Someone who will mislead the public about the facts surrounding the climate, for example, should not be treated as a credible source of information on other subjects either.

Despite these issues with his credibility, the University believes he is fit to deliver a prestigious lecture.

field of international affairs are modest at best. Bush has never held a federal diplomatic office, and though he has engaged in some foreign diplomacy as Governor of Florida, it is unclear what warrants awarding him a prestigious lecture in this field.

And, let it be clear that the opposition to Jeb Bush speaking on Brown’s campus does not come from some desire to end freedom of speech.

Bush certainly has every right to state

Bush’s views are unjustifiable, dehumanizing and rooted in ignorance, and the Brown community should not lend them legitimacy by inviting him to speak.

Even if one were to ignore Bush’s outrageous views, there is simply no reason to believe he has credible opinions on policy. Not only does Bush hold abhorrent views on social matters, but he has also refused to accept the facts surrounding climate change. Bush, in a 2011 interview, misleadingly stated: “It is not unanimous among scientists that (climate change) is disproportionately manmade.” (While it is true that not every single climate scientist has thrown their weight behind this fact, the vast majority have.) Climate change is a

Furthermore, given that the topic of the lecture that Bush has been invited to deliver is international affairs, it might seem reasonable to believe that Bush has at least has some relevant experiences in this field. Unfortunately, Bush fails again. For instance, in 2015, he stated that, if he had been president in 2003, he would have authorized the invasion of Iraq given the information available. In light of the developments of the past decade, this position seems unthinkable. Bush’s policy positions notwithstanding, his qualifications in the

his own views, and Brown has every right to invite him to speak. However, freedom of speech does not guarantee any platform from which to speak. Nor does freedom of speech mean that we, as a community, must blindly accept the legitimacy of any views presented to us. Furthermore, the opposition to Bush speaking on Brown’s campus does not come out of fear of ideological diversity. Brown ought to welcome those with dissenting views on policy issues. However, Bush’s views are unjustifiable, dehumanizing and rooted in ignorance,

and the Brown community should not lend them legitimacy by inviting him to speak. There is a meaningful difference, for example, between legitimately believing that the free market is the best mechanism to confront climate change and denying the basic facts surrounding climate change.

One of these positions is a legitimate, if controversial, policy opinion. One is not.

If Brown wants to encourage debate and discussion on campus, I, by all means, encourage them to find a speaker whose views might challenge those of students. However, when we allow speakers that dehumanize others to find a platform on our campus, we only act to silence those who have been dehumanized. I will gladly listen to any speaker who wants to make a case for a foreign policy doctrine with which I do not agree. What I will not do, however, is listen to someone who fails to recognize the humanity of my family, friends and peers. I strongly encourage the University administration to reconsider their decision to invite Jeb Bush to speak on campus. Furthermore, I strongly encourage them to invite a different speaker, one who has earned the privilege of addressing Brown students, and who represents the values that the University claims to support.

Michael Froid ’21 can be reached at michael_froid@ brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

Ending legacy admissions will help focus on access CONNOR CARDOSO OPINIONS EDITOR In his March 5 op-ed, Dean of Admission Logan Powell argues that a fixation on legacy admission is a distraction from the University’s efforts to increase access for underrepresented groups on campus. Yet while Powell highlights much of the progress the University has made in expanding access to low-income and first-generation applicants, his piece is, itself, an effort at obfuscation. Despite his best efforts to disentangle the two, the University’s legacy admission policy and its efforts at increasing access to low-income and first-generation communities are intimately connected. The University, despite its earnest efforts at increasing diversity on campus, must end the use of legacy status in admission entirely if it hopes to truly create a meritocratic admission policy that places a premium on equal access for underrepresented communities.

Perhaps most central to Powell’s argument is the idea that legacy admission and expanding efforts to admit low-income students are not mutually exclusive. This is true in a very technical sense, but misleading. For instance, Powell is correct in noting

that the University has been making good-faith efforts to expand financial aid to low-income students and take into consideration factors like low-income and first-generation status during the admission process. Though it is true that the University can expand on these efforts while simultaneously

ing a parent that previously attended the university was equivalent to scoring an additional 160 points on the SAT. Similarly, one study of approximately 30 top universities in the United States found that legacy status increased an applicant’s chances of admission by 45 percent. Surely

admission process. The defenses he does provide are facile. For instance, he argues that legacy students are uniquely equipped to guide other students through their time at the University, yet he provides no evidence to substantiate this claim, beyond the sanguine assumptions that legacy stu-

The University, despite its earnest efforts at increasing diversity on campus, must end the use of legacy admissions entirely if it hopes to truly create a meritocratic admissions policy that places a premium on equalizing access for underrepresented communities.

continuing its legacy admission policy, the latter is still an obstacle to its broader objective of increasing access. Fundamentally, every spot given to a legacy applicant is one that is not given to another applicant.

Of course, Powell attempts to preempt this argument by stating legacy status is one of many “tie-breakers.”

But there is substantial evidence to suggest that this is generally untrue at elite universities. For instance, one Princeton study found that, among applicants to elite universities, hav-

one cannot believe that Brown’s admission policy vis-a-vis legacy applicants is so different from its peers without hard evidence to substantiate the claim. And if Brown is, in fact, using legacy status as more than a tiebreaker, it becomes patently obvious that non-legacy applicants, including applicants from low-income and first-generation backgrounds, are being pushed aside.

Despite the length of his piece, Powell devotes very little time to defending the use of legacy status in the

dents are exceptionally knowledgeable about Brown and eager to serve as community mentors. What’s more, Powell notes that legacy applicants generally support the University’s financial priorities. According to several studies, this is generally not the case. In the book “Affirmative Action for the Rich,” contributor Chad Coffman notes that among several universities that dropped their legacy preference policies, there was consequently negligible fluctuation in alum donations.

In the ultimate analysis, using legacy status in the admission process is wrong for two reasons. Firstly, it is profoundly unmeritocratic. While policies that seek to increase access for underrepresented groups are valuable to the extent that they allow talented and deserving students to compete in a system that is generally biased against them, considering legacy status in admission gives additional advantages to applicants that often already had substantial advantages to begin with. But secondly, and perhaps most importantly, in defending the use of legacy status in the admission process, Powell and the University are undermining the very goal of access that they claim to value. This is not to question the University’s good-faith commitment to expanding access to underrepresented communities. But if we, as a community, want to cast off the legacy of elitism that is pervasive among top-tier universities and make our campus totally accessible to underrepresented groups, we must end legacy admission once and for all.

Connor Cardoso ’19 can be reached at connor_cardoso@ brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

NEWS THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

FRIDAY, APRIL 6, 2018

MLB’s baserunner rule is ineffective and inorganic JAMES SCHAPIRO SPORTS COLUMNIST Besides an email from a Baseball Writers’ Association of America member angry at my criticisms of Hall of Fame voting procedures in December 2016, my columns don’t usually generate many responses. So you can imagine how excited I was when I saw that Patrick Nugent ’21 had written an op-ed in response to my last column, in which I criticized Minor League Baseball’s use of a new rule to automatically place runners on base after the 10th inning.

“The idea that the rule doesn’t address a problem is wrong — it just doesn’t address the problem you think it does,” Nugent argues. The real problem the rule addresses, he writes, is that decreased starting pitcher workload has led to increased fatigue and injury among relief pitchers, whose increased value in recent years has made these kinds of injuries more costly to their teams.

But I would urge readers to remember: Just because this rule would reduce injuries to relief pitchers does not mean it is a good way to do so.

Lots of rules would accomplish this goal but would also be clearly ridiculous, like requiring all relievers to wear Kevlar body armor or pitch

from behind a safety net. So, is this particular rule worth it?

You already know my view, which is that it is not. There are all kinds of ways that MLB could protect relief pitchers without giving out free baserunners. It could expand rosters from 25 players to 28, allowing space for up to three more relief pitchers to dilute heavy workloads. It could direct increased funding to biomechanical studies and technology, which could allow teams to more effectively evalu-

ball, which, given the increased home run frequency across baseball, is an outcome I would also support. I love small ball — a well-executed suicide squeeze is my favorite play in baseball. But a rule change like this is not the way to bring it back. How do you incentivize small ball? In the ways described above: Make it harder to hit home runs, so that swinging for the fences is less likely to pay off. Small ball has declined because MLB teams have realized that power is more valu-

hit a groundball, even if it’s a hit, I can tell you: It was an accident.”

Hitters have systematically adjusted their swings away from small ball and toward power-hitting, regardless of game situation. And you can’t undo such an adjustment simply by putting free runners on base in extra innings. I love a good bunt more than anything — but when Joey Gallo, or one of the many players like him, comes to bat, it’s easy to tell that he’s swinging for the fences whether

Certainly, baseball is always changing. And the best changes are those made by the teams on the field, not the lawyers in the commissioner’s office.

ate the causes of injuries to pitchers. It could mandate moving outfield fences back, resulting in fewer home runs, more outs and quicker innings, or it could slightly deaden baseballs — making them less firm so they don’t come off the bat as hard — with similar results. All of these things could be done effectively — and all, I’d say, would be far less disruptive and nonsensical than just giving out free runners.

Nugent then argues that the proposed rule would incentivize small

able than contact and that flyballs are more valuable than grounders. Unless flyballs become less valuable, the current trends toward more power and less small ball will continue. “Hitters, armed with better and more extensive data than ever,” the Washington Post reported last year, are “reaching the conclusion that not only are flyballs, on average, better than grounders but that the latter are to be avoided at all costs.” The Post quoted 2015 American League MVP Josh Donaldson: “Groundballs are outs. If you see me

there’s a man on second or not.

“Baseball is steeped in tradition, but perhaps its most pervasive tradition is change,” Nugent then argues.

As examples, he cites the five-man rotation, increased defensive shifts and the designated hitter. But it’s interesting — two of these, the five-man rotation and the defensive shift, didn’t come about through rule changes.

They came from natural adaptation as teams fought to gain advantages on the field. The other example, the designated hitter — the only one list-

ed that was an official rule change — is, like giving out free baserunners, something I heartily disagree with.

And baseball fans agree with me: A 2016 poll conducted by Public Policy Polling found that 65 percent of respondents favored pitchers hitting over designated hitters, while 25 percent stated the opposite. Certainly, baseball is always changing. And the best changes are those made by the teams on the field, not the lawyers in the commissioner’s office.

Like I’ve said, in the end, this is a philosophical question. I don’t support putting runners on base in extra innings because it would distort a fundamental part of baseball — the process of scoring a run — for purposes that could either be better achieved in other ways (like decreasing pitcher fatigue) or shouldn’t be achieved at all (increasing pace-ofplay). To merit a change as radical as this, MLB needs to show both that it is in pursuit of objectives that are essential and that such a proposal is the best or only way to achieve them.

And as far as free runners on second base go, so far, MLB has shown neither.

James Schapiro can be reached at james_schapiro@brown.edu.

Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

Who will win the NBA tank race?

GEORGE KLEIN SPORTS COLUMNIST The NBA playoffs are fast approaching, with anticipation growing accordingly. Sports fans cannot wait to find out if Stephen Curry can return healthy, if the Rockets can take down the Warriors and if LeBron James can make yet another NBA Finals appearance. But lost in all the playoff excitement is the closest race in the NBA, one that could have enormous ramifications for the future of the league: the race for last place.

The NBA’s lottery reform measures will begin next season, so for one last time, teams can secure the best possible lottery odds by obtaining bottom positions in the league standings. There are five prospects: DeAndre Ayton, Luka Dončić, Mohamed Bamba, Marvin Bagley III and Michael Porter Jr., who are all considered superstar potential, a talent pool that has led many organizations to take drastic steps for worsening their teams.

There are currently nine franchises vying for position, including a fascinating mixture of historic basement-dwellers and powerhouses: the Phoenix Suns, Memphis Grizzlies, Atlanta Hawks, Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks, Sacramento Kings, Brooklyn Nets, New York Knicks and Chicago Bulls. To be fair, the Nets are

not tanking, since they do not control their first-round pick this year (still due to the Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett trade, incredibly). But the roster simply cannot win many games even when giving full effort.

The Suns, Grizzlies and Hawks have emerged as the worst of the worst, leaving the other teams to finish behind them in the lottery. Phoenix has a putrid 20-59 record, out-

not shoot in part because his long, pointed hair gets in the way of his arm and the ball (yes, this is real).

Dragan Bender and Marquese Chriss are already busts. The Suns surprisingly won their last outing against the Kings, breaking a 15-game losing streak, but it is safe to say that they will not enjoy much success from here on out.

The Hawks, in my opinion, could

of 38-point games last month. Atlanta may consider benching him if he plays too well on the court.

As mentioned above, Memphis has an easier schedule to end the season, which could spell trouble for their losing hopes. The Grizzlies boast the best player out of the NBA’s bottom three teams in center Marc Gasol. The 33-year-old can win a regular season game on his own, so Memphis

Lost in all the playoff excitement is the closest race in the NBA, one that could have enormous ramifications for the future of the league: the race for last place.

pacing the 21-57 Grizzlies and 22-57 Hawks. The Suns have to be the favorites to come in last. Devin Booker, the team’s best player by a long shot, is sidelined with a hand injury, leaving rookie Josh Jackson to lead the rest of the bunch. Forward T.J. Warren can score, center Tyson Chandler can rebound and Jackson can do a little bit of everything on offense and defense.

Besides them, however, the Suns have few average-level NBA players. Elfrid Payton, their point guard, can-

slide past the Grizzlies into secondworst place. Memphis has winnable games left against Sacramento and Detroit, but the Hawks face playoff teams for the rest of the season — in other words, sure losses. Atlanta’s top player, Dennis Schröder, is out with an ankle sprain for the rest of the season, forcing Taurean Prince, Kent Bazemore and rookie John Collins to step up. Unfortunately for the Hawks, Prince has shown that he can be explosive in scoring, with a pair

has been reducing his playing time to stop that from happening. Gasol has not played more than 23 minutes in any of his last three games. Tyreke Evans is not playing either, as Memphis is perhaps the team most overtly tanking. But they cannot change their schedule, which could be their downfall.

While the bottom three teams have separated themselves, there is still plenty of competition for the other top lottery spots. The Dal-

las Mavericks pulled off an impressive loss against the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night that helped their place tremendously. With Harrison Barnes (rest), Dennis Smith Jr. (knee) and Dirk Nowitzki (ankle) all off the court, the Mavs showed their commitment to the tank and have set themselves up for the fourth pick. Orlando must shake off their win and find a better way to limit the impact of Aaron Gordon. They should still finish in the top five, however. The Sacramento Kings have two clutch performers in De’Aaron Fox and Bogdan Bogdanović. But they’ve proven to be clutch a season too early and could cost the Kings’ position against the Nets. Brooklyn boasts some talent but falls apart at the end of close games. Chicago and New York, meanwhile, stand firmly above the rest of the tankers.

The next week could decide the future of the league, though no one will be winning a championship, a playoff series or even two games. But with nine teams all trying their hardest to lose, at the very least, it will be an interesting travesty to watch unfold.

George Klein ’20 can be reached at george_klein@brown.edu.

Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and other op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald. com.