Mayor Cor y Booker to Speak at Convocation
Students ‘ecstatic’ that Newark mayor will speak, convocation committee chair says
By AKANE OTANI Sun Managing Editor
Newark Mayor Cory Booker (D-N J ), the social media maven who is preparing to
m a k e a r u n f o r t h e U S Senate, will address graduating seniors at convocation this year, the Class of 2013 Convocation Committee announced Thursday Booker, a graduate of
St a n f o rd , O x f o rd a n d
Ya l e Un i ve r s i t y, defeated a four-
t e r m i n c u m -
b e n t t o m a k e h i s way onto t h e
Newark City Council in 1998 Eight years later, he ran for mayor and swept the race against former Deputy Mayor Ronald Rice (D) with 72 percent of the vote, according to The New York Times
Now in his second term, the Senate aspirant has grabbed headlines for his penchant for heroism: pulling a neighbor out of a burning house, opening his house to Hurricane Sandy victims and digging residents out from a blizzard, according to Time
Roneal Desai ’13, chair of this year ' s convocation ceremony and committee, said he “could not be happier” with the selection of Booker as convocation speaker
“Everyone I’ve spoken to is ecstatic that he’ll be the speaker W h e n yo u l o o k a t t h e places he has spoken at in t h e
Sororities See Surge in Medical Transports
By SARAH SASSOON Sun Staff Wr ter
After an uptick in the number of alcoholrelated medical transports last weekend, some students in the Panhellenic community raised concerns that rules prohibiting sorority members from being in the presence of alcohol may inadvertently encourage binge drinking
The school year is split into quarters, with each quarter having a different goal to enable freshman women to have a safe transition into the Greek community, according to Carlin Van Holmes ’14, president of the Panhellenic Council The rules of the third quarter which ended March 3 explicitly state that new members, even those of legal drinking age, are not allowed to be in the presence of alcohol during the six-week period
Kristen Powers ’14, president of the Kappa Alpha Theta fraternity, said the six-week “dry period” also prevents new members from learning to develop responsibility for themselves while drinking
“High risk drinking is a major concern within Greek life However, rather than teaching new members how to make responsible decisions and develop into responsible adults, we spent six weeks giving our women rigid guidelines and sheltering them from Cornell’s social scene, ” Powers said
Van Holmes said that while “the quarter system is designed to increase safety, it also does create a bit of a d i c h o t o m y , because the pressure [of the rules of the third quarter] is taken off ” during the fourth quarter
“Rather than teaching new members how to make responsible decisions and develop into responsible adults, we spent six weeks giving our women rigid guidelines ” K r i s t e n P o w e r s ’ 1 4
Van Holmes said in an email sent out to sororities March 8 that “ reports from last [Thursday] night reflect a high number of alcohol-related transports, notably more so than the Panhellenic community saw during the third quarter ” She said in an interview with The Sun that the purpose of the email was not to be punitive, but to be precautionary
Some students, reflecting on the medical transports, said they think the six-week dry period spurs binge drinking, leading to a higher number of alcohol-related transports when it ends
“I think the dry period is arguably effective, but I think it leads to binge drinking immediately after it ends,” said Olivia Wherry ’16, a newlyinitiated member in the Greek community
Van Holmes, however, said that she was unsure if the medical transports were “in relation to the Panhellenic community at all ” She added that her intention in sending her email to all sororities was to “make a preemptive note about safety ” Safety, she said, remains important in the fourth quarter of the year, when new members are officially initiated into their chapters and are no longer restricted from being in the presence of alcohol
Van Holmes said that the quarter system ––which was first introduced three years ago –– is a policy that was developed by the National College Health Improvement Project’s Learning Collaborative on High-Risk Drinking, an initia-
last couple of years, he’s undoubtedly one of the most in-demand graduation speakers in the country this year, ” Desai said, noting that Booker addressed graduates at Stanford in 2012 and will be speaking at Yale’s Class Day in May
Although Booker will be the 10th politician since 2000 to speak at Cornell’s convocation, Desai said he is confident Booker will be able to appeal to Cornellians across a wide range of political views
“I see Cory Booker representing much more of an advocacy figure one that resonates with a lot of students as opposed to a political role,” Desai said “I don’t think he is a polarizing political figure who has made a political career simply advocating for one party or another He represents the type of politics that people do care about: making a difference in the world ”
See CONVOCATION page 4
The Super-politician | Booker, who will speak in this year ’s convocation, is famous for having pulled a neighbor out of a bur ning house M CHAEL APPLETON / THE NEW
Man Shot in Face With Pellet Gun; 17-Year-O ld Male Charged in Court
A 17-year-old male has been accused of shooting an Ithaca High School student in the face with a pellet gun
The male was arraigned in the Ithaca City Court Wednesday on three misdemeanors: reckless endangerment in the second degree, menacing in the third degree and harassment in the second degree, according to the Ithaca Police Department
On Feb 12, a group of students
A moment to appreciate
were standing in the parking lot of the Ithaca High School when the male, who was part of the group, shot an airsoft pellet gun at the victim, according to IPD
The victim was struck in the cheek and back, but his injuries were not considered serious, according to IPD Police said in a press release that they are unable to release the names of the victim and defendant because of their age
Akane Otani can be reached at aotani@cornellsun com
Curator Andrea Inselmann describes the
used in Storm Tharp’s ’92 exhibition in the Herbert F Johnson Museum of Art Thursday
By AKANE OTANI Sun Managing Editor
Quotes of the Week
N ews, “S t uden t Asse mb l y H opef ul D isq uali f ie d,” Wed nesda y
Sp eaking ab out the S .A . ’ s decision to disqualif y Stephen Breedon ’14, a presidential candidate I don t think that [using a megaphone] is a fair reason to b e disqualified from an election I b elieve that Cornell students should have the right to elect the p erson who they b elieve is more qualified Just b ecause someone is using a megaphone and might not fully know all of the election rules, do es not justif y Cornell putting in place an S
Renee Alexander ’74, asso
theme music But go o dness do esn’t have anything b ecause it can’t use anything ”
Toni Morrison MFA ’55
ILR Study Suggests Bene ts of Hiring Disabled Workers
By ANUSHKA MEHROTRA Sun Contributor
r s
s t e d i n l e a r n i n g m o r e a b o u t t h e e m p l oy m e n t o f p e o p l e w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s T h e s t u d y w a s f u n d e d i n p a r t b y a $ 3 7 5 - m i l l i o n g r a n t f r o m t h e
Un i t e d St a t e s D e p a r t m e n t o f E d u c a t i o n ’ s Na t i o n a l
In s t i t u t e o n Di s a b i l i t y a n d Re h a b i l i t a t i o n Re s e a r c h Ac c o rd i n g t o t h e s t u d y, e m p l oye r s re p o r t s e ve r a l i n d i re c t b e n e f i t s f ro m h i r i n g e m p l oye e s w i t h d i s a b i l it i e s , s u c h a s i n c re a s e d o f f i c e m o r a l e , p ro d u c t i v i t y, s a f et y, c u s t o m e r i n t e r a c t i o n a n d a t t e n d a n c e T h e s t u d y a l s o n o t e d t h a t 8 7 p e rc e n t o f c o n s u m e r s p re f e r t o c o n d u c t b u s i n e s s w i t h c o m p a n i e s t h a t h i re w o rk e r s w h o a re d i sa b l e d “ We a re u r g i n g c o m p a n i e s t o p ro g re s s i ve l y re c r u i t p e o p l e w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s t o e n l a r g e [ t h e i r ] t a l e n t p o o l a n d f i n d t h e m o s t q u a l i f i e d c a n d i d a t e s , ” Br u y è re s a i d
f o r p e o p l e w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s , ” s a i d Te re s a Da n s o - Da n q u a h ’ 1 5 , v i c e - p re s i d e n t o f C o r n e l l Un i o n f o r Di s a b i l i t y Aw a re n e s s , a n o r g a n i z a t i o n t h a t s e e k s t o s u p p o r t c o m m u n i t y m e m b e r s w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s “ Of t e n t h i s i s n o t b e c a u s e o f a l a c k o f s k i l l s , b u t r a t h e r, b e c a u s e o f a t t i t u d i n a l b a r r i e r s ” T h e re p o r t a l s o h a s i m p l i c a t i o n s f o r C o r n e l l s t u d e n t s w h o h a ve d i s a b i l i t i e s , a c c o rd i n g t o Br u y è re
Sometimes people manage to leave Ithaca Sometimes not What are your exciting spring break plans?
“Does hibernating count?” –– Sleep-Deprived Girl ’15
“Eat, Pray, Make Love ” A Generally-Deprived Girl ’14
“Sleeping an absurd amount in sunny ol’ Ithaca!” Couch Potato ’14
“Clubbing in NYC Every Night All day too ” –– Repeat Rager ’15
“I just want to survive past tomorrow ” Girl With Friday Prelims ’15
Compiled by Lianne Bornfeld ’15
“ [ T h e s t u d y ] r a i s e s t h e a w a re n e s s o f C o r n e l l s t u d e n t s w i t h d i s a b i l i t i e s o f t h e i r r i g h t s a n d p ro t e c t i o n s u n d e r e m p l oy m e n t d i s a b i l i t y n o n d i s c r i m i n a t i o n l e g i s l a t i o n , ” Br u y è re s a i d C a t h e r i n e K l a p h e k e ’ 1 5 , p re s i d e n t o f De l t
A
p h a Pi – – t h e Un i ve r s i t y ’ s h o n o r s o c i e t y f o r s t u d e n t s w i t
b i l i t i e
i d t h e s o c i
t y b e l i e ve s “ e m p l oye e s w i t h d i sa b i l i t i e s a re i n t e l l i g e n t , d e d i c a t e d w o rk e r s w h o b r i n g a n i m p o r t a n t p e r s p e c t i ve t o t h e w o rk p l a c e ” Da n s o - Da n q u a h a l s o e m p h a s i ze d t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f re c o g n i z i
Anushka Mehrotra can be reached at am2359@cornellsun edu
After S candal, Profs Question Har vard
By THE HARVARD CRIMSON
Four days after news broke that Harvard administrators secretly searched the email accounts of 16 resident deans last September, professors called on administrators to address what one called accorroding of a “culture of trust ” between the faculty and its leaders
“There’s a lot of discussion now about trust At some level that is really the underlying issue,” former Dean of the College Harry R Lewis '68 said “Do we trust the University administration to follow the rules and do we trust the University administration to exercise good judgment in interpreting the rules?”
In the immediate aftermath of a Boston Globe report that broke the story on Saturday, professors’ questions primarily centered on how and why the searches occurred
President Drew G Faust, which asked for a broader consideration of University policy and ethics
“I think that I think Dean Howell’s letter ends on a note that I would share, which is the sense that there really is a bigger question here about what is it that makes a university different than a corporation?” Jasanoff said
Following Howell’s letter, professors have begun to express concern directly to deans
According to History professor Charles S Maier ’60, many members of the Histor y Department have signed a letter “expressing concern ” over the searches and the handling of the investigation
On Monday, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Michael D Smith and Dean of the College Evelynn M Hammonds issued a joint statement explaining some of the details of the search, which was part of a larger investigation into the source of a media leak regarding the Government 1310 cheating case
As the dust began to settle following Monday’s statement, professors began to pose broader questions about why the University dared to secretly search its own faculty
“I think that people have a few questions about why the resident deans were still not informed about the searches,” said history professor Maya R Jasanoff ’96 “I think that there is still more room for a fuller apology Many faculty members would like to be reassured that this kind of thing has not happened in the past and won ’ t happen again ”
Several faculty members inter viewed Wednesday referenced a letter sent by Senior Resident Dean Sharon L Howell to University
“The faculty I think has to be willing to take responsibility if it doesn’t want these events to happen, ” Maier said in an interview earlier this week
On Wednesday, the Faculty Council became the first faculty body to address Smith directly on the subject at its regularly scheduled meeting, Jasanoff said Professors would not disclose the nature of the exchange because the meetings are confidential
Jasanoff and others said they expect faculty will formally question administrators about the searches at April’s faculty meeting
Even as faculty begin to take up larger issues of institutional integrity, mathematics professor Wilfried Schmid said he is worried that faculty are too quickly setting aside the cheating scandal itself Though the email searches must be addressed by faculty, he said, he believes the cheating case should be of greater concern
“The faculty seems to be spending a lot of time on this email, but the underlying cause, what might have caused the cheating, nobody seems to care about,” Schmid said “I find it very strange that nobody seems to make the connection ”
Students practice the Chinese martial art of Tai Chi in Anabel Taylor Hall’s
break prelim stress
ZAC PETERSON / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
At a joint senior recital Thursday, students display their musical prowess on the violin and piano
Taking a bow
Attention dvertisers
SPRING BREAK !
The DEADLINE to e-mail advertisements for Display and Classified Ads for the Monday, March 25 issue of The Corne¬ Daily Sun is THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 3:30 P M
The DEADLINE for Display Ads for the Tuesday, March 26 issue is FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 12:00 NOON
CONVOCATION
Continued from page 1
University Trustee Andrew Tisch ’71, chairman of the executive committee of Loews Corporation, said Booker has made himself known as a “visionary and a consensus builder” throughout his time in Newark’s City Hall
“He has taken Newark, a city faced with generations of neglect, corruption, mismanagement and urban blight, and restored hope through creative programs to stimulate investment and excitement He is a leader who you can believe in because he is so forthright and passionate about his goals,” Tisch said “I am thrilled that the Cornell community, especially the Class of 2013, will hear his message on May 25 ” Boasting more than 1 3 million followers on Twitter, Booker has endeared himself to some of his constituents through his social mediasavvy ways When a Newark resident tweeted about a pothole on 11th Street, Booker took to Twitter, tweeting, “On it,” before 10 minutes had elapsed
But Booker sees Twitter as more than a way to fix potholes around Newark Speaking at SXSW the biggest tech festival in the U S in March, Booker said that the government must use social media to engage Americans in politics, Time reported
“I really trust my country and the people in my feed to be great syndicators of content, ” Booker said, according to Time
Off Twitter, Booker has earned about $1 million from public speaking events in the seven years he has overseen City Hall, according to The New York Times Although Booker said he “definitely” earns more from his public speaking engagements than he does from his mayoral salary, he said he has donated almost all of the money to charity, The New York Times reported
The University will hold its 145th convocation ceremony on May 25 from 12 to 1 p m at Schoellkopf Stadium
Akane Otani can be reached at managing-editor@cornellsun com
Reut ers Journalist Indicted in Hacking Of L.A. Times Website
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) Federal authorities on Thursday charged a journalist with conspiring with the notorious hacking group “Anonymous” to deface a story on the Los Angeles Times’ website a little more than two years ago
The federal indictment handed down in Sacramento accuses Matthew Keys of being a “recently terminated employee” of the Tribune Co who gave hackers the information they needed to login to the publisher’s computer system A hacker identified only as “Sharpie” in the indictment is alleged to have used the information to alter a headline on a Times story to include a reference to a hacking group
Keys, 26, was a former web producer for the Tribune-owned television station KTXL who was discharged during the company ’ s bankruptcy proceedings Several weeks later, he disclosed the login information in an Internet chat room frequented by hackers, according to the indictment Tribune also owns the Times
Keys now works for the Reuters news service as a deputy editor for social media He didn’t return a phone call or respond to email messages seeking comment
A post on his Twitter account late Thursday read: “I am fine I found out the same way most of you did: From Twitter Tonight I’m going to take a break Tomorrow, business as usual ”
Reuters spokesman David Girardin said Keys began working for the company in 2012 and it was “ aware ” of the indictment Girardin declined to comment further
According to the indictment, Sharpie altered a Times news story posted Dec 14 and 15, 2010, to read “Pressure builds in House to elect CHIPPY 1337,” a reference to another hacking group “Chippy 1337” claimed responsibility for defacing the website of video game publisher Eidos in 2011 The indictment alleges that a second attempt to hack the Times was unsuccessful
According to Keys’ Facebook page, he worked as an online news producer for the Sacramento FOX affiliate KTXL from June 2008 to April 2010
Federal prosecutors allege in court papers that a legendary hacker and Anonymous leader named “Sabu” offered advice on how to infiltrate Tribune’s systems The FBI unmasked Sabu when they arrested Hector Xavier Monsegur on June 7, 2011 Monsegur secretly worked as an FBI informant until federal officials announced that he helped them arrest five other alleged hackers on March 6, 2012
Federal officials declined to comment on whether Sabu assisted in the investigation of Keys
The day after it was announced that Sabu was an FBI informant, Keys wrote a story for Reuters about “infiltrating” the hackers’ chat room
Keys is charged with one count each of conspiracy to transmit information to damage a protected computer, as well transmitting and attempting to transmit that information If convicted, the New Jersey native faces a combined 25 years prison and a $500,000 fine if sentenced to the maximum for each count
Students Question the Ef cacy of Dr y Per iod
DRINKING
Continued from page 1
tive formed in 2011 to “address the problem of high-risk drinking on college campuses, ” according to the project’s website “[The goal] of the 3rd quarter is to foster
e r w i t h t h e g i r l s i n m y p l e d g e c l a s s
r s s a i d t h a t w h i l e i t i s i m p o r t a n t t o “ m e a s u re a n y n e w i n i t i
Sarah Sassoon can be reached at ssassoon@cornellsun com
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Rudy Gerson | Rooting Around
TEditorial
No E xcuses
For Bias Incidents
r v i n g h i s s e n t e n c e f o r a n o t h -
e r t w o Gi v e n t h e r a c i a l h a t re d i n v o l v e d i n t h e c r i m e , w e a re d i s s a t i s f i e d w i t h h ow
s e r i o u s l y t h e c o u r t t re a t e d t h i s c a s e T h e p l e a d e a l s t r u c k i n c o u r t Tu e s d a y k n o c k e d t h e o r i g i n a l m i s d e m e a n o r c h a r g e s d ow n t o v i o l a t i o n - l e v e l c h a r g e s , w h i c h m e a n s St e p h a n s ’ c r i m i n a l re c o rd w i l l re m a i n c l e a n He w i l l a l s o b e a l l ow e d t o f i n i s h h i s s e m e s t e r a t Tr i n i t y C o l l e g e
b e f o re h e re p o r t s t o It h a c a t o s e r v e h i s j a i l s e n t e n c e We f e e l t h a t t h e c o u r t h a s a l l ow e d t h e g u i l t y p a r t y i n t h i s c a s e t o a n s w e r f o r h i s a c t i o n s a t h i s ow n c o n v en i e n c e w h i c h s e e m s t o d e f y t h e v e r y p u r p o s e o f a j u d i c i a l p e n a l t y St e p h a n s ’ s t a t e m e n t o f a p o l o g y a s i n g l e , g e n e r i c s e n t e n c e d e l i v e re d e m o t i o n l e s s l y i n c o u r t Tu e s d a y l e f t m u c h t o b e d e s i re d b y w a y o f e x p re s s i n g re m o r s e f o r h i s h a r m f u l a c t i o n s We b e l i e v e t h e c o u r t ’ s a p p a re n t c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f t h i s i n c i d e n t a s a m i s t a k e m a d e w h i l e u n d e r t h e i n f l u e n c e o f a l c o h o l ov e r s i m p l i f i e s a n d e xc u s e s t h e b e h a v i o r St e p h a n s d i d n o t b u m p i n t o t h e v i c t i m s o n t h e s t re e t a n d t a k e i t p e r s o n a l l y He d i d n o t b e c o m e e n r a g e d ov e r a p e r c e i v e d s l i g h t He l a u n c h e d a n a r b i t r a r y, u n p r ov o k e d a n d s u s t a i n e d a t t a c k o n f o u r r a n d o m , i n n o c e n t p e o p l e A l c o h o l a l o n e c a n n o t a c c o u n t f o r t h a t c h o i c e W h e n t h e v i c t i m s p l e a d e d w i t h St e p h a n s n o t t o t o u c h t h e m , h e p h y s i c a l l y a c c o s t e d t h e m , a l l e g e d l y s h ov i n g t h e m a n d k n o c k i n g a t l e a s t o n e t o t h e g r o u n d W h e n t h e y b e c a m e s o a f r a i d t h a t t h e y f l e d , s e e k i n g re f u g e i n a n e a r b y re s i d e n c e , t h e p e r p e t r a t o r d i d n o t d r u n k e n l y s t u m b l e a w a y ; h e a c t i v e l y p u rs u e d t h e m T h e e p i t h e t s h u r l e d a t t h e f o u r s t u d e n t s n o t o n l y i n c l u d e d p o i n t e d s l u r s a t t a c k i n g t h e i r r a c e a n d p re s u m e d s e x u a l o r i e n t a t i o n ; t h e y w e n t f u r t h e r t h a n t h a t , i n c l u d i n g t h re a t s o f p h y s i c a l v i o l e n c e I f t h e p o l i c e re p o r t s d e t a i l i n g t h e v i c t i m s ’ a c c o u n t o f t h e i n c i d e n t a re a c c u r a t e , t h i s w a s n o t a “ l i t t l e m i s a d v e n t u re ” i n s p i re d b y a l c o h o l , a s t h e c o u r t s e e m e d t o i m p l y o n Tu e s d a y T h i s w a s a h a t e c r i m e I f w e w a n t t o g e t s e r i o u s a b o u t p re v e n ti n g b i a s i n c i d e n t s i
D ragon D ay :
Can’t We All
Ju st Get Weird?
oday is Dragon Day For many, t h e p r o c e s s i o n o f c o s t u m e d
A r c h i t e c t u r e s t u d e n t s p a r a d i n g down Campus Road helps us welcome a much-needed break from the stresses of the semester First-year Architecture students get to complete their traditional rite of initiation and begin their spring break with a celebration that dates back to 1901
However, there’s been quite an evolut i o n i n D r a g o n D a y s i n c e p r a n k s t e r
Willard Straight ’01 began the tradition over a centur y ago with the advent of “College of Architecture Day ” While no one knows exactly when the actual phrase “Dragon Day” was coined, Architecture students have been historically parading around campus with a constr ucted dragon since the 1950s It ver y well was more rambunctious back then than the festivities we all know and love today
Fo r e x a m p l e , i n 1 9 6 6 , a r c h i t e c t s released a live painted-green pig into the Ivy Room Naturally, of course, a massive f o o d f i g h t e n s u e d m a s h e d p o t a t o flinging at CUPD and all Can you imagine the architects nowadays hiding a pig at WVBR then releasing it into the Ivy Room, just like those ’66 archies?
From painting our founders’ statues g r e e n t o c l i m b i n g o v e r c a r s f o o l i s h e n o u g h t o c r o s s t h e d r a g o n ’ s p a t h ,
A r c h i t e c t u r e s t u d e n t s c o m m i t t e d t h e
m o s t p u b l i c c a m p u s p r a n k s , e xe r t i n g
autonomy and breaking free from mundane daily existence in ways that would be unthinkable today We now have roads completely blocked off, environmental health and safety on call and plenty of watchful eyes to ensure that all “risk” is managed In the past, authorities allowed a manageable space for these more lively activities to exist
Now, where and when on campus does the University allow for more “eccentric” behavior? In the past half-centur y, risk has been redefined to ser ve the increasing s u p e r v i s i o n o f g ov e r n m e n t s t r u c t u re s , and also to facilitate the corporatization of the University and its growing bureaucratic capacity There is no place for uncontrolled tradition, held by the hands of the people the students Tradition is appropriated and redefined, so large gove r n m e n t - l i k e s t r u c t u r e s l i k e
activity at a micro-level These organizations justify their existence with more r ules and regulations in the name of student safety and liability management, but can they honestly tell us that Cornell is so much more dangerous than it was 30 years ago?
I still want to feel safe at Cornell, but safety and risk management are being ov
, unbridled tradition Since 2009, the culmination of D-Day’s festivities the notorious burning of the dragon on the A
m o r y reser ved for those lucky faculty and alumni who witnessed a sensational bonfire in the middle of our usually serene campus
Now, students can only wonder how it must have felt for Cornellians to gather t o g e t h e r
spring with a big-ass fire, raging as a symbol for the reintroduction of life and passion on campus after Ithaca’s drear y winter
Damn you environmental conser vation legislation § 9 19 6 NYCRR Par t 215: Open Fires! Perhaps these open burn laws were made on some ethical high ground for the “betterment of society,” and perhaps the N Y S Depar tment of Environmental Conser vation was wholly unaware that it effectively killed a centur y-long tradition that draws in thousands from Ithaca, a city ironically renowned for its liberal environmental policies
This is usually the par t where the columnist says, “the Government should reevaluate its risk management policy to understand whether risk is in fact being managed, or simply imagined,” but I won ’ t say that Behemoth organizations do not respond to generalized critiques aimed at its entirety No, rather, critiques need to be leveled at individuals or subsections who actually have the agency to change a policy Unfor tunately, who these individuals are and where they exist within the administration is a myster y to me and likely to most of you Vague statements and deflection of authority is the only response these organizations make to general demands
C o r n e l l h a s g o t t e n l e s s f u n , m o re stressful, and ever more tradition-less Dragon Day used to be a staple, a dr unken pre-Slope Day celebration to mark the end of the sluggish existence that is Ithaca winters Now, most of my friends are simply counting the minutes until their hellish week of prelims end, not because they can ’ t wait to kick off spring break with a huge celebration (read: drinking alcohol with architects) on campus, but instead because they can ’ t wait to get out of Ithaca as fast as they can It’s a shame more people don’t care about Dragon Day Maybe if there still was a monstrous fire on the Ar ts Quad, more students would be compelled to par ticipate
Rudy Gerson is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences He may be reached a rgerson@cornellsun com Rooting Around column runs alternate Fridays this semester
CORRECTION
Wednesday’s Science article, “The Scientist: Prof Vivan Zayas ’94 Researches Relationships,” incorrectly stated that participants in Zayas’ research filled in words when prompted In fact, they only decided if words on a computer screen were real words or non-words
Collegiate Courting Ritual: Pixel Habitat
Nestled in a remote alleyway in the temperate deciduous biome of Collegetown lies the unique habitat of Pixel a forum where coeds congregate to display and act upon their most primal instincts At first glance this habitat appears to be an assembly of sweaty highly-educated youth looking to “ get some’”(to use the accepted parlance), yet upon further investigation there are many fascinating social mechanisms and collegiate mating rituals occurring in this desolate cinder block hut
The coeds are forced to wait in line while being screened by guards, to be later ushered into the abode through a small door Acceptance into Pixel is both coveted and highly restricted One must obtain a very elderly stature of 21 years of age on planet Earth, or merely bare a false plastic chit attesting to this laudable achievement Clearly this society deems that these fecund creatures should wait until they are 21 to obtain the morality-reducing, sex-inducing drug known as alcohol Perhaps this delay is necessary due to exponentially increasing population size
Before ever entering the hut, a hierarchy of social status among the coeds is clearly evident Those who deem themselves of higher rank feel entitled to finagle their way past the ushered line In colloquial collegiate terms, these coeds are “assholes ” “Who do they think they are? Can you believe what she is wearing?” are common whispers among the assembled herd
Once formally accepted into the hut, the display of welldressed mammals on the prowl would make an anthropologist orgasm In the center of the dance floor, the single females
Upon further investigation there are many fascinating social mechanisms and collegiate mating rituals occurring in this desolate cinder block hut.
cluster in tight clothing to reveal their feminine bodies They dance, and appear to be having a great time with their female counterparts, but their subtle eyeing of the male population makes it clear that they have more reproductive goals in mind From an evolutionary standpoint, bopping around with friends of the same sex would not support repopulation
Luckily though, the male species is more overt in their courting rituals The males can be seen circling the females in a domineering manner Once identifying a potential mate, either based on attractiveness as a long-term partner or for a more immediate romp, the male swoops in This act often involves approaching the female from behind, and slowly, yet ever so forcefully rubbing and pushing their pelvic area on the rear of the female The desperate female will accept this act and continue to partake in this copulative motion However, the ever-skeptical female recognizing that her male suitor is as yet unseen will stare at her female friends, open her eyes widely in a seemingly perplexed manner and demand a reassuring nod from her companions If they approve of this abrupt courtship, the friends will nod and move on If not, they will counter-swoop and save the female from this potentially unsuitable mate thus proving the righteous power of natural selection
Once a male secures a female, the humping is often coupled with intense groping Oral to oral facial contact may commence if the two humans are sufficiently attracted to one another and their pheromones spark alignment The mating ritual may continue until after 1 a m when Pixel closes often a mere seven minutes after this bizarre ritual commences The humans will then stumble home together united by shared intoxication and mutual love of that band you know, the one with the song
Often this courting ritual is unsuccessful female companions are quick to reject a substandard mate and both sexes may flee the dance floor, shunning all future encounters Expect maybe when they run into each other at Trillium and pretend they have never met
A fascinating display of human socialization and sexuality can be seen from 12:47 a m to 1:00 a m in the dark hut known as Pixel These coed mating rituals are perplexing given the subset of humans who participate The Cornellian courting practices stand in marked contrast to the air of poise and composure they so often assume This researcher postulates that their high intelligence, nerdiness and overachieving drive causes a crushing anxiety that interferes with more conventional mating practices
Annaclaire Brodnick is a senior Human Development major in the College of Human Ecolog y Her studies concentrate in Social and Personality Development Occasional (thankfully) visits to Pixel have provide a more practical oppor tunity to apply her more scholarly interests She may be reached at ab699@cor nell edu
Web
Co mme nt of the day
“
I“Can we please build larger buildings? Not necessarily taller, but wider and deeper Too much ratty, unused backyard space in ctown Allow buildings to have a larger footprint and we can better use the land without having to build up or students move into new neighborhoods.”
Shortandfat
Re: "City of Ithaca Considers Changes to Zoning That Could Transform Collegetown" published March 14, 2013
Reviving Nulli caiton : Take It to the State
’ll fight it all the way to the Supreme Court!”
We ve all heard that phrase before, raised as we are to think of the Supreme Court as the final decider of i m p o r t a n
n
i s s u e s When conser vatives want to attack local anti-gun laws, they take the fight to the high court When liberals want expanded abortion rights or gay marriage, they do the same
But the court has rarely been a faithful guardian of our constitutional rights It s true that over most of the past centur y it hasn’t been shy in striking down state laws t h a t i t t h o u g h t v i o l a t e d
“fundamental rights ” But at the same time it has almost always stamped its approval on whatever new power the federal government decides to assert The 2 0 0 5 Go n z
R a i c h case, in which the Court held that, under the “inter-
grown medical marijuana which n
s never sold commercially represented the outrageous extent to which the Court would twist constitutional language to empower the federal government It was not, however, surprising, and stood in a long tradition of deference to federal power
But recently, local communities have begun to stand up for themselves and protect the rights that the Supreme Court won ’ t They’re reviving the old principle
asserting the states ’ power to declare
d therefore null and void In so doing, they’re returning power to the states, where, being closer to the people, it is better controlled
Nullification is a bipartisan principle Today, conser vative legislators in states such as Vermont, Oklahoma, Oregon and South Carolina have introduced bills to nullify Obamacare and federal gun grabs
But liberals and civil libertarians are nullifying too Last year, Virginia nullified the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act a horrible law,
which would allow the president to detain American citizens indefinitely without trial or access to a lawyer L
r a d o l e g a l i z e d m a r i j u a n a l a s t year, they did so in the face of explicit federal law to the contrar y a sort o f d e f a c t o n u l l i f i c a t i o n A n d
Californians have been using medical marijuana for years, despite Gonzales v Raich empowering the feds to prevent them from doing so
Though in the 20th centur y nullification got a bad name through association with southern segregationists
umph
For instance, if you hire a lawyer to help you through a divorce, the lawyer is your agent and has to act in a c c o rd a n c e w i t h y o u r i n t e r e s t s (though he will have some latitude in how he does so) But if the lawyer understands your agreement to also authorize him to arrange you a second marriage, then you certainly have the right to refuse to nullify his decision on the grounds that he exceeded his authority If this were not the case, and the agent gets to decide for itself what the a g r e e m e n t r e a l l y m e a n s , then the agreement gets turned on its head No more would the government ser ve you now you ’ re just along for the ride, forced to go along with whatever your erstwhile agent commands So in order to conser ve
it had been honorably invoked before then to oppose such legislative abominations as the Alien and Sedition Acts and the Fugitive Slave Act (One Vermont state judge is said to have defiantly proclaimed that he would only return a fugitive slave once he received a bill of sale from God!)
But, despite that histor y, doesn’t it feel weird that states can nullify federal law?
Well, it shouldn’t The people of the individual states originally created the Constitution to ser ve their own interests to “form a more perfect union ” In legal parlance, the people of the states are the “principals” and the federal government is just their “ agent, created only to further the people’s interests
T h o u g h t h e Su p re m a c y C l a u s e makes federal laws “made in purs u a n c e o f ” t h e C o n s t i t u t i o n t h e “ supreme law of the land,” disputes will often arise over whether a law is r e a l l y “ i n p u r s u a n c e o f ” t h e Constitution, or whether it actually violates it The orthodox position is that only the Supreme Court gets to make that decision
But really, when an agent and principal disagree over what their relationship means, the principal’s
agent relationship, the people of the states and not the Supreme Court must have final say on what the Constitution allows
Of c
y come up with all sorts of justificat i
changes with the times, or why the
powers
conveniently turn out to be so expansive as to be virtually unlimited
But that is irrelevant The important point is that many people disagree with them They view the rise of omnipotent, centralized government with horror and they don’t care what Professor Laurence Tribe thinks of it The government is supposed to reflect their interests just as much as it reflects his These people demand real limits on federal power If the Supreme C
through their states As
exercise in self-government, nullification is long overdue
Kelse Moen | Barely Legal
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Oz: The Mediocre and Colorful
MARISSA TRANQUILLI Sun Staff Writer
If you had asked me when I had first viewed The Wizard of Oz so many years ago what words I would use to describe to wizard, I’m pretty sure I would have sung you something about being off to see some “wonderful wizard of Oz ” I am also certain I would not have described him as a con man, a player or a cocky son of a bitch However, that is exactly what Oz: The Great and Powerful directed by Sam Raimi (The Spiderman Trilogy), delivered
Oscar Diggs ( James Franco) has pretty much slept his way around the Baum Bros (Get it? Baum, as in L Frank Baum) circus, picking up innocent country girls and conning every audience he meets When chased by the angry, bodybuilding romantic partner of one of his seductees, Oz, as he is known, escapes in the Baum Brothers’ hot air balloon and promises to catch up with the traveling circus in the next town But with the predictable tornado twist, Oz finds himself thinking that perhaps he may not be in Kansas anymore In a reverse Enchanted effect, however, Oz switches from the muted, cramped full screen feel in the real world and opens up to the full widescreen potential in the magical land of Oz Spotted by the lovely Theodora (Mila Kunis), Oz is pegged as the great wizard of the “prophecy,” told to bring peace to the land once more
throne as the Wizard of Oz Enticed by the gold of the of this position, he runs off in the night to seek this witch, along with his faithful flying monkey (Zach Braff ) and a fragile rescued china doll ( Joey King) True to Ozian form, characters we encounter in Oscar’s “real world” are mirrored both in personality and actor when set in the land of Oz Apart from the show stealing china doll and lovable monkey, the greatest crossover is, of course, Glinda the Good Witch (Michelle Williams) Glinda’s counterpart in the real world was the woman we met briefly as Oscar’s old love, Annie Her significance in his life was so profound, that even the wizard can ’ t fail to recognize the similarities between the women
The greatest difficulty director Sam Raimi seemed to have was striking the balance between Fleming’s 1939 film and modern acting and C G revolution Judy Garland was a class acting talent, and modern camera techniques have changed dramatically since the ’30s
Oz: The Great and Powerful Directed by Sam Raimi Starring James Franco, Mila Kunis
Promised a great mountain of gold upon taking the throne and urged to join the fight by the lovely, innocent Theodora, our selfish Oz would never be one to refuse Oz (the land not the person here) is in turmoil after the previous great wizard was poisoned by his own daughter, the wicked witch Evanora (Rachel Weisz), one of his three witch daughters, currently sits on the throne of Oz waiting for the wizard Upon his arrival, Evanora sends Franco’s wizard to kill her exiled sister so that he may take his rightful
Populating the movie with Franco, Kunis, Weisz and Williams seems to imply the movie would benefit from exemplary acting talent The scenes, however, felt forced and the dialogue stunted The lines were over the top and the pacing was pushed This may have been an attempt to emulate the ’30s vision of Oz, this being a prequel after all, but I often worried if the way the actors were pushed likely ruined the movie’s potential
Then there was the land of Oz itself, made up of gorgeous C G sets Though it was beautiful, there where moments when you could practically see James Franco floating along in front of a green screen over the top of backgrounds pasted in behind him While this choice may have been an attempt to pay homage to the ’30s Wizard of Oz, it was not done so in a way that aided the film in the least The sets, which were very obviously C G , were beautiful at some points, but were often so bright that they hurt the
Seasons of Literature
It ’ s a clear and frigid day The trees are still barren and the bitter wind rushes over the torpid yellow grass We’re in a transitional phase between winter and spring, a difficult, adolescent time when the weather fluctuates between warm and cold like a temperamental teenager Soon enough it ll be true spring The cherry blossoms on Ho Plaza will bloom, the air will fill with ephemeral fragrance and life will continue on
Literature is about life, and life is defined by phases So what better way is there to express the phasic nature of life than with the metaphor of seasons? The idea that seasons are analogues to the cycle of life is as old as literature and deeply rooted in the Jungian metaconsciousness However, why this idea is so ingrained in all of us requires some introspection After all, the effects of seasonal changes are a peculiar artifact of those civilizations that developed above the tropic of cancer With Western civilization spreading around the globe in recent centuries, notions of seasonal changes spread like some brain virus or meme, influencing the minds and habits of the peoples that fell under the sway of Western cultural influence
Educated in the grand tradition of English literature, as most of us are, I’m familiar with the works of such seasonally-influenced literary works as the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, the poems of Robert Frost, Disney classics and even concertos like Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons ” These works rely on powerful seasonal images to instill different moods in their audiences
that had knowledge of the visceral effects of seasons
In my own case, however, coming from Southeast Asia, a place that never experienced the four traditional seasons, I’m not sure how these images came to resonate so deeply within my own literary consciousness As I read, the deep, dark black, snow-covered forests of deep winter became synonymous with the brooding presence of faeries unseen and magical things underfoot and out of sight My vision of spring became a lush mountain valley scene with the sun ’ s rays glinting over perfect cr ystalline shards of melting ice; Morgenstimmung resonating softly in the background I knew summer as that wild time of searing heat and torrential rain A time when the explosive vitality of children’s play in typical bildungsroman fashion came alive And finally, fall became known to me as that magical time of changing leaves and ripening
fruit that called to mind Robert Frost’s apple picking shenanigans from his poem “After Apple Picking,” but with the suggestion that with maturity and ripeness comes the inevitable descent into decay and senescence
The assumption of their creators was, perhaps, that they were writing for an audience
All of these impressions were nuggets of cultural information that I absorbed without truly knowing what they meant in visceral
eyes When creating a magical land in the modern day, it is logical to generate the fantastical sets via computer, but some actual interaction with set pieces may have done this film some good
The relationships and backstory of the three witches and the wizard makes me wish screenwriters Mitchell Kapner and David Lindsay-Abaire had created a novel as opposed to a movie The ridiculous nature of the story would have been gorgeous in print, but was lost in translation when the talented actors were contorted into offbeat ’30s caricatures James Franco’s face became somewhat terrifying at points I did not know he could smile like that, and never wanted to
The sheer clash of the ’30s against the modern day ruined this potentially amazing prequel to our childhood classic Though Disney has already approved an Oz: The Great and Powerful 2, I do wish they would leave it at one average, fun, over-the-top extravaganza and stop trying to milk the classic stories for everything they are worth Oz: The Great and Powerful was funny in a “I don’t know whether I am laughing with the movie or at the movie” kind of way It will never come close to the original, nor will a sequel do it any credit It was an interesting movie to say the least
Marissa Tranquilli is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences She can be reached at mtranquilli@cornellsun com
terms That is, of course, until I came to a place where they are immediately apparent By which I mean Ithaca, with its blistering summers, New England fall colors, and frigid winters Only then did that crucial component click Only since then have I come to better understand the authorial drive to use seasons as metaphors
Writing about seasonal changes is a powerful tool to convey the idea of cycles and to help a narrative progress through time What is understood intuitively by most people is that spring connotes adolescence and freshness, summer vitality and autumn maturity Winter is a more double-edged sword: A time of simultaneous threat and magic, doubtlessly reinforced by the common child’s belief that winter s deep heralds a special visitation by one S Claus In Richard Adams’ Watership Down, seasons are used to denote a beginning and end to the travails of a warren of intrepid rabbits With the coming of spring, humans threaten to exterminate the warren to make way for new construction, prompting a small group of rabbits to flee their doomed home and embark on a journey across the fields of rural England on a quest for a new home At the books end, spring comes again, ending what it started Seasons can be cross-cultural, too To the Japanese, for example, seasons are powerful reminders of the ephemerality of beautiful things For a few precious weeks in April, the country ’ s countless cherry blossoms bloom and the land is coated in pink Then, like the golden blossoms of Frost’s poem “Nothing
Gold Can Stay,” they lose their brilliance, fade and shrivel, giving way to the torrential rains of May and June and the oppressive heat of high summer, when the land begins to heave in exhaustion When autumn rolls along, paradise returns for a brief moment – the skies clear and swathes of forests turn a deep red hue, which, when seen together with their carefully sculpted gardens, induces an otherworldly feeling Finally, with the coming of winter, the Japanese retreat into their homes and hot springs and wait months for the advent of spring, when their ephemeral paradise returns for two fleeting weeks The transitory nature of seasons seems to inform the Japanese national consciousness a lot more than in other cultures, and naturally, their literature, art and popular culture teem with references to this ephemerality as well Seasons are powerful literary devices that derive their potency from the very aptness of their applicability to the human condition With the coming of spring here in Ithaca, let the literary and cultural connotations of spring tide you by in your own travails
Colin Chan is a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences He can be reached at cchan@cornellsun com Armchair Aesthetics appears alternate Fridays this semester
N-E RESIDENTIAL AREA 2013-2014 5/6 BEDROOM, 2 1/2 BATHS, HUGE LIVING,
For S e c on d Stage of EC AC To u r n a m e nt
M HOCKEY
Continued from page 12
said
seven goals since the end of December “ We’ve just got to get to the net hard and he’s usually going to stop the first shot he’s big, he’s covering up most of the net but we ’ ve got to get the shots there first They do block a lot of shots, but I’ve
against him there, so I’ve been telling these guys to get it
drops down because he’s big
strong goaltending will be a major asset in making a playoff run In this regard, the Red has been in good hands with the recent play of junior goaltender Andy Iles, who delivered 26 saves en route to a shutout performance, his second of the season, in the Red’s playoff opener at Princeton
“Andy was pretty awesome for us this [past weekend at Princeton],” D’Agostino said “ When he’s on his game, there’s a lot of confidence within our team, and we feel like he’s playing his best hockey right now As a defenseman, it makes the game that much more comfortable knowing you don’t have to d o a n y t h i n g s p e c t a c u l a r o u t there just keep [the opponents] to the outside and he’s going to make those saves for us [ W ]e expect nothing short of the best from him this weekend ” Sh
Quinnipiac, the team will travel t
games will be held on March 22,
onship game will be held on March 23
“ We a re d
,
we ’ re playing with our season on t h
“[Quinnipiac] doesn’t have that aspect, because even if they do lose they’ve still going to end up g o
h e [ N C A A ] Tournament I think we can use that to our advantage and just show up ready to go ”
Chris Mills can be reached at cmills@cornellsun com
www. cornell sun .com
Tennis S et for Upcoming Matches
By EMILY BERMAN Sun Assistant Sports Editor
The women ’ s tennis team aims for its first spring season 8-0 streak in 40 years Friday in its home match-up with Binghamton The Red look to continue last weekend’s domination, which resulted in convincing 6-1 and 7-0 victories over Pittsburgh and Duquesne, respectively
Junior Ryann Young and sophomore Lauren Frazier are undefeated in dual matches on the season, while freshman Dena Tanenbaum is 7-0 on the season as well The team has only lost four singles matches and three doubles matches all season
Following this weekend’s play, the Red will head to Coastal Carolina and the College of Charleston on Monday and Tuesday for the team ’ s annual Spring Break trip After these three matches, which are all non-league, the Red will face Columbia in its Ivy League opener on March 30
The men ’ s team is also active this weekend, heading down to Alabama to play in the 65th annual Bl u e - Gr a y Na t i o n a l Te n n i s C l a s s i c T h e Re d claimed the No 2 seed for the tournament and will face William & Mary in its first game on Friday
The Red (9-2) recently saw the end of its sevengame winning streak after a narrow 4-3 loss to Memphis on Sunday The Red dropped from No 23 a program best to No 29 due to the loss
Junior Venkat Iyer and sophomore Alex Sidney serve as the team ’ s No 1 doubles squad, while sophomores Quoc Nguyen and Jason Luu are hot at No 2 doubles
Following the match-up with William & Mary, the Red will square off against either No 34 Columbia or No 47 Texas Tech on Saturday After this second game, the team will then face top-seeded Notre Dame, which currently sits at No 22 n a t i o n a l l y,
Nebraska, Troy, or Boise State
Emily Berman can be reached at eberman@cornellsun com
Top Teams Duke It Out for NB A D ominance
Many teams af fected by injuries during critical regular season period
injuries to Stoudemire, Anthony and now Chandler, and their chances of beating the Heat in the playoffs are virtually zero
If you read my last column, you’d know the Nuggets are my favorite team to watch The team goes up and down the court, speeding up the pace at any chance it gets When the Nuggets are at their best, it almost looks like they are practicing a fast-break drill They get the ball, and suddenly there’s a three-on-two fast break leading to an open shot or dunk It’s fun to watch
4. Los Angeles Clippers
I’m still reeling from the DeAndre Jordan dunk I don’t usually assign hyperbole to things like this, but that was the best ingame dunk I’ve ever seen He caught the perfect lob clean with his off-hand, head at rim-level and absolutely murdered any street-cred Brandon Knight had Wow Oh, and the Clippers are pretty good too
5. San Antonio Spurs
The Pacers had beaten the Heat twice before but just got obliterated by them this past week Hard to imagine anyone even challenging the Heat from the East this year
8. Houston Rockets
The Rockets play even faster than the Nuggets; the one key difference between the two teams is that the Rockets play worse defense, but have a certified star in
somehow playing better without Rondo, but there’s not much to say; they look like the same Celtics team we ’ ve seen for years The story is similar for the Hawks; if you put on a game of the Hawks from 2010, it would take me several minutes to realize it’s not live And after losing by 42 (!) to the Kings (!), the Bulls should not be talked about until Rose returns
14. Los Angeles Lakers
Before Kobe’s injury on Wednesday, I had the Lakers in the top five based on how they’re playing now.
I’d rank the Spurs higher if Parker wasn ’ t injured; however, the fact that they are still fourth after losing their best player speaks volumes to the Spurs as a team If LeBron, Marc Gasol or Chris Paul were injured, there would be no chance their teams would be a top-five team in the NBA Without Parker, the Spurs machine keeps chugging along, relying on contributions from every player on their roster
The team has been labeled a “regular-season ” team the last couple years, but I still think they are the most dangerous playoff team in the West with a healthy Parker
6. Indiana Pacers
7 New York Knicks
Not too much to say about these teams; they’re both good, albeit the fact that the Knicks are now struggling with
James Harden With Kobe Bryant’s recent injury, I would argue James Harden is the best shooting guard in the league, able to score in any way imaginable and set teammates up as well Plus he has a nice beard
9. Milwaukee Bucks
10. Brooklyn Nets
11. Boston Celtics
12 Atlanta Hawks
13 Chicago Bulls
I mentioned how the Pacers and Knicks have no chance in the East, but these five teams are fighting for an Eastern semifinal berth The Bucks are playing the best out of the bunch after acquiring JJ Redick, which has made Monta Ellis a much more efficient player for some reason Deron Williams is starting to play better for the Nets, which is a good sign, but everyone outside Williams and Brook Lopez has been a disappointment this season and that duo is not good enough to carry a team The Celtics are
NHL Approves Ne w For m at For Div i sions
(AP) The NHL map is finally in order with Detroit and Columbus heading east, and Winnipeg moving west
“We’re thrilled, absolutely thrilled,” Blue Jackets executive John Davidson said on a telephone conference call Thursday, shortly after the realignment plan was approved in a vote by the league’s board of governors “We tend to use the (term) common sense around here This seems to make a lot of common sense ”
The new format goes into effect next season, and will feature two eight-team divisions in the Eastern Conference, including the Red Wings and Blue Jackets
The Jets will now be part of a Western Conference that’s made up of two seven-team divisions
It’s a plan that Commissioner Gary Bettman called “fan-friendly,” because it aligns teams by divisions that are mostly in the same time zones And Bettman noted it will re-establish numerous rivalries by geography and tradition
Detroit returns to the East in a yet-to-be named division that will feature three other Original Six franchises, Toronto, Boston and Montreal And Winnipeg is now part of a central-based division after having spent the past two years playing in the Southeast
“We think this is a common sense practical realignment, ” Bettman said
Without providing details, Bettman said the vote conducted by email was not unanimous, but “well in excess ” of the two-thirds majority required
The new format also creates changes in determining the 16-team playoff field The top three teams in each division will qualify for the postseason The next two teams with the best records in each conference will then earn wild-card berths
That will make it more difficult for teams to qualify in the East, because it will have two more clubs than the West competing for eight berths
The NHL Players’ Association had already signed off on the realignment format, which will be in place for at least three seasons
The Atlanta Thrashers’ relocation to Winnipeg two years ago helped precipitate the need for realignment
All three teams making the switch will benefit, because they will no longer have to make extended road trips outside of their time zones
Let me explain; before Kobe’s injury on Wednesday, I had the Lakers in the top five based on how they’re playing now Their rise has been attributed to Howard’s return to form, but it’s mainly due to Kobe’s incredible play, especially in the clutch He’s playing more efficient and distributing more and is the focal point of everything the Lakers do If the Lakers plan on doing anything this season, it revolves around Kobe’s health and nothing else
15. Golden State Warriors
16. Dallas Mavericks
17. Portland Trailblazers
18. Utah Jazz
These four teams (as well as the Rockets and Lakers) are fighting for the West’s last three playoff spots The Warriors, especially David Lee, have struggled after All-Star Break, while the Mavericks have been very average all year Dirk has been a non-factor all year and I’m unsure if it’s still from his injury or his age The Blazers and Utah can ’ t seem to put it all together, but do have some nice pieces to build on for the future They’ll both be interesting teams to watch next season, but this season? Not so much
Albert Liao can be reached at aliao@cornellsun com
“As much as we enjoyed those trips down south, I think our team and our coaches are very pleased to know we ’ re going to be playing in a Central time zone, ” Jets chairman Mark Chipman said “I think it’s very exciting for us as an organization and our fans to be geographically located where we ought to be ” The Dallas Stars, Colorado Avalanche and Minnesota Wild should also benefit from the change They will now be in a division mostly made up of teams that play in the same Central time zone
Stars CEO Jim Lites said the switch from the Pacific Division will benefit his players and fans
Lites said TV ratings dropped by as much as 60 percent because of the later start times when the Stars played against their division rivals on the West Coast He also noted that the team lost between seven and 10 practice days a season because of travel
“No one is a bigger beneficiary in this than the Dallas Stars,” Lites said
It’s no different for Columbus
“I’ve done a lot of town hall conferences with our fans here, and 99 999 (percent) of our fans really wanted to desperately be in the East,” Davidson said “So when you get out the ledger sheet and you go pros and cons, I don’t think there is anything on the negative side This is all positive ”
All teams will play each other both home and away at least once each season And teams will play division rivals at least four times a season
With Detroit and Toronto set to be in the same division, it revived questions of whether the two will meet in the league’s annual Winter Classic next season
The two were supposed to play at Michigan Stadium on Jan 1 this season, before that game was wiped out as a result of the NHL lockout
Bettman hinted of that being a possibility
“We think the notion of having Toronto play Detroit at the ‘Big House’ is a good thing to do,” Bettman said “Beyond that, you’ll just have to wait and see ”
C.U. Tops Penn State
In Double O vertime
By SCOTT CHIUSANO Sun Assistant Sports Editor
With just over one minute left in the second overtime period, senior attack Caroline Salisbury fired a shot into the Penn State net, giving the Red a thrilling victory over the No 7 Nittany Lions on Wednesday The game-winner came just three minutes after Salisbury missed a chance to put the game away in the first overtime, but the senior refused to let history repeat itself, capitalizing on her second opportunity
The win over a top-10 team gave the Red its second straight five-win start to the season
“We’re very confident right now, ” Salisbury said Junior midfielder Amanda D’Amico led the Red offensively, scoring five goals on six shots Salisbury chipped in three goals and an assist and sophomore attack Lindsay Toppe also netted three Toppe is the Red’s leader on offense so far this season, recording 21 goals and eight assists for 29 points The Red has five players with double digit points on the season, a testament to the balanced attack the team brings to the field
“I think everyone has really stepped up and everyone is contributing, so the other teams can ’ t guard just one person, which is huge,” Salisbury said
Coming off the win over Penn State, the Red heads to a neutral site in Baltimore, Md , to take on Albany It is the first time Cornell is matching up against the Great Danes in recent history
Spor ts
Similar to the Red, Albany also features a balanced offensive attack Rachael Burek leads the Great Danes offense with nine goals and seven assists on the season
“We’re going to bring an aggressive defense,” Salisbury said “We like to have high pressure on all the attackers ” The Great Danes defense has struggled, though, as their starting goaltender Anna Berman has allowed 35 goals while making only 24 saves The Red’s potent offense will be a threatening force for Albany to deal with
Though the Red’s offense is led primarily by under-
er s t o Ta ke O n To p-R an ke d Te am
By CHRIS MILLS Sun Staff Wr ter
After sweeping Princeton in the opening round of the ECAC Hockey Championship tournament, the Red is now preparing for a meeting with the nation’s top ranked team
Facing possible elimination, ninths e e d C o r n e l l ( 1 4 - 1 4 - 3 , 8 - 1 1 - 3 E C AC ) w i l l t r a ve l t o Ha m d e n , Conn , this week to take on top-seeded Quinnipiac (24-5-5, 17-2-3) in a best-of-three quarterfinal series The team ’ s first game will begin Friday at 7:00p m
“There’s a lot of excitement in the room right now, ” senior defenseman Nick D’Agostino said “[ W ]e knew on Sunday it was going to be either ‘Qpac’ or RPI, and even though [Quinnipiac’s] the number one team in the nation, I think a couple guys
wanted to get the chance again to play against them It’s going to be a lot of fun to go down there It’s going to be a [really] hostile environment, we ’ re going to be big underdogs, but we ’ re fine with that We’ve been playing well and we ’ re excited to get down there ”
In the two previous meetings this season, the Bobcats have upended the Red 4-1 in November and February, respectively Despite the Quinnipiac’s superior regular season play the Re d’s s e ve n - g a m e l o s i
occurred at the same time as the Bobcats’ 21-game unbeaten streak head coach Mike Schafer ’86 is proud of the way his team has been playing as of late and noted that he appreci-
a t e s t h e t o u g h
o n Quinnipiac will bring
“[Quinnipiac’s] a great opponent, ” Schafer said “They’re the number one
extremely consistent throughout the course of the year They’ve done it as a team ”
Schafer added that the Red is looking to this weekend’s series as a shot at redemption
“It’s a tremendous opportunity for us to go down there, [have a chance to] beat the number one team in the countr y, go to [the semifinals in] Atlantic City [and] maybe gain a little bit more self-respect back in the sense that we thought we’d be that kind of team ourselves near the top of the league,” he said Senior leadership, sound fundamentals and strong teamwork have characterized Quinnipiac this season The result has been a team noted for its defense, leading college hockey with a 91 7 penalty kill percentage and relinquishing the fewest goals a meager 1 59 per game of any team in the nation
“They just play real good team defense,” D’Agostino said “They play a very similar system to us Their
[
they’ve got a lot of experience on the back end and some good defensive forwards who are seniors now, who’ve been around here, and they’ve all bought into the system They play real tight in the neutral zone But we ’ re with fine playing a low-scoring defensive game That’s what we ’ re used to playing here at Cornell, and those are the games that we like to be in ”
A big key to the Red’s success this weekend will be putting pressure on one of Quinnipiac’s seasoned veter-
classmen, the stalwarts of Salisbury and senior goalkeeper Courtney Gallagher have been providing important leadership for the team this year
“I think the senior class brings commitment and hard work,” Salisbury said “We focus on trying to make sure that we ’ re out-hustling the other teams because we think that will go a long way ”
Scott Chiusano can be reached at schiusano@cornellsun com
NB A Power Rankings
Every year, the NBA starts getting serious when we leave for Spring Break With less than 20 games remaining, every team is gearing up for the playoffs and making that final push or starting to tank, whatever Nonetheless, let’s take a screenshot of the NBA with a
2. Memphis Grizzlies After the Grizzlies gave away backups Wayne Ellington and Marreese Speights for nothing but cap relief and traded leading scorer Rudy Gay for the same reason, it seemed like the Grizzlies would rather be a good team rather than a great team this year They’ve won 14 of their last 15 without
quick Power Rankings of the teams who still matter 1. Miami Heat
The past few years, the arguments for the best team and best player have both been good ones This year, however, LeBron and the Heat have made the conversation a lot less fun
The Heat is clearly the best team after 20 straight wins, but even when the team isn’t playing its best, you know they can rev it into another gear during the playoffs Similarly, LeBron is the undisputed best player in the NBA right now and anyone attempting to argue against that looks plain stupid
Gay, however, losing only to the Heat, and don’t appear to be missing Gay’s offense which was very inefficient to begin with at all A quick aside: just three years ago, Chris Wallace, the Grizzlies general manager, was widely regarded as one of the worst G M s in the league, trading Pau Gasol for his chubby younger brother and a bag of chips Now, he’s pulling sneaky trades to improve his team and shave off cap space at the same time; I have no idea how this transformation happened
Unstoppable | Attack Lindsay Toppe currently leads the Red offense with 21 goals and eight assists in just