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City Court Judge Ithaca Sees Low Retention Rate for Candidates Talk Int’l Students Post-Graduation Platforms at Forum

By JONATHAN SWARTZ

Sun Senior Writer

Candidates speak about community relations, drug-related crimes in the city

By ZOE FERGUSON Sun Staff Writer

In hopes of becoming Ithaca’s next city court judge, three candidates — Kristine Shaw J.D. ’01, Rick Wallace and Seth Peacock J.D. ’01 — spoke at a public forum Wednesday night, discussing topics such as community connection and drug-related crime.

The forum was the last in a series of debates for the candidates, who are all on the ballot for the Democratic primary on Sept. 9. The three are competing to fill one of the two positions for city court judge in Ithaca. The other position is occupied by current judge Scott Miller.

Peacock is currently serving as interim city court judge after the June resignation of Judge Judith Rossiter. Peacock was appointed by Mayor Svante Myrick to fill the rest of Rossiter’s term, ending Dec. 31.

Peacock emphasized the importance of community in running an effective city court system.

“I want to create a new vision for Ithaca City Court,”

With 71.2 foreign students for every 1,000 students enrolled in its institutions of higher education, Ithaca has the highest concentration of foreign students among all U.S. cities, according to a new Brookings Institution study. However, only 14 percent of these students will stay in Ithaca after graduating, the study finds.

The Aug. 29 study based its results on the number of F-1 visa approvals — the most common form of visa for international

See JUDGE page 4

students in the United States — relative to the overall student population of each city.

According to Prof. Ronald Ehrenberg, industrial and labor relations, Ithaca does not serve as an ideal environment for most foreign students to apply their degree.

“Very few undergraduate or graduate students, both international and U.S. citizens, stay in Ithaca after graduation because of the limited employment opportunities in the area,” he said.

However, Ehrenberg said this stands in contrast to the “extraordinary educational opportunities” that See INTERNATIONAL page 4

CONNOR ARCHARD / SUN SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Students Receive Threats From Caller Claiming to be Police

By TYLER ALICEA Sun Managing Editor

A caller claiming to be a member of law enforcement has threatened Cornellians recently with arrest warrants if they do not wire the caller money,

according to Cornell Police.

Police Chief Kathy Zoner said in an email to the Cornell community Friday that there has been an increase in these fraudulent calls to students both on and off campus over the past weeks.

“Real law enforcement agen-

cies do not call asking that money be wired to them. Ever. If we really have a warrant for you, we will visit you personally, no charge,” Zoner said in the email.

Since then, fraudulent call incidents have continued to be reported to CUPD, according to

Deputy Chief David Honan.

“We had a couple of reports last week and some more over the past few days,” Honan said, adding that there were three calls reported to CUPD Wednesday.

Honan said one international student was contacted, raising

concerns because “they may be susceptible to the scam because they may not be as familiar with American police and U.S. law.”

In an email to the International Students and See CALLER page 5

Hundreds Gather to ProtestActions Of Ithaca Police Department

By ANDREW LEE Sun Staff Writer

CONNOR ARCHARD / SUN SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Take a stand | Protestors gather outside Ithaca City Hall Wednesday to denounce the actions of the Ithaca Police Department regarding an Aug. 9 incident involving minority youths and an officer.

Over 200 Ithacans gathered outside City Hall Wednesday to protest SWAT funding to the Ithaca Police Department in light of alleged racial bias against two youths involved in an incident with a police officer early last month.

On Aug. 9, Sgt. John Norman ordered two teenagers to stop, and and unholstered his

weapon when the teenagers began to run.

Norman kept the weapon “pointed in a safe direction” at the time, according to authorities.

The parents of the teenagers subsequently raised concerns that Norman was out of uniform and driving his personal vehicle and believed the incident was related to the fact that the officer was white and the teenagers were of color.

Garen Whitmore, a

local “spoken-word” artist, said the protesters would not be satisfied until they were certain the Ithaca Police Department was doing its best to protect the community’s youth.

“I and everyone else are here because this issue is worrying to us,” he said.

Whitmore and other protesters also expressed their disapproval of the See PROTEST page 5

2 THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014

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“It’s a huge chunk of money,” said Student Assembly Finance Chair Israel Song ’96, referencing to the almost $1 million allocated for the Student Activity Fee Budget at the Student Assembly meeting on Nov. 2, 1995.

The $962,000 budget, put together by an appropriations committee composed of S.A. members members and independent students, will raise the student activity fee from $56 to $74.

The fee, which is determined every two years, is based upon the funding needs of student organizations, Soong said. The fee was raised $10 in 1993 to pay for free entrance to Cornell athletic events.

“If you take into account inflation, it’s not a huge jump, it’s a cut,” he added, noting that inflation would raise the fee three more dollars.

To establish the budget, the appropriations committee considers the needs of 13 large student organizations including such groups as Cornell Cinema, Cornell University EMS and the Student Assembly Finance Committee, Soong said. The S.A.F.C. then determines the funding levels for approximately 255 other student

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groups according to Vincent Flannigan ’96, co-chair of the S.A.F.C. The S.A. appropriations committee proposed increasing funding for six groups, including the S.A.F.C., decreasing it for one and providing no change for five organizations, Soong said.

Brent Gibson ’97, treasurer of Cornell E.M.S., said he was “very satisfied” with the budget process for approving an “accurate representation of our spending.”

Soong said the appropriations committee applied new criteria to the budget this year to ensure they allocated the money efficiently.

“In the past, groups ask and they get,” he said.

This time, the committee assessed if the organization needed the money, if the funding would improve student life and if the increase was absolutely necessary, Soong said.

In addition to the more stringent criteria applied to the alloction of funds, Soong stressed the importance of cooperative oversight between the S.A. and student organizations to ensure the groups use their money for the intended purposes.

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014 3

NEWS

BUSINESS NEWS

Cornell Named Top Ivy For Entrepreneurship Startup programs, mentorship helpful, students say 5.5 credits while “pushing forward their venture.”

Cortle added that eLab seeks to recruit Cornell has recently been named the any student who has a strong passion for nation’s “Silicon Ivy” by Forbes Magazine entrepreneurship and is not focused on due to its focus on student entrepreneur- any particular type of startup. “[We are] focused on working with the ship.

As a result of the University’s “entrepre- right teams with amazing passion for their neurial tradition,” Cornell received fourth concept,” he said “With each [year,] you place — the highest of any Ivy League typically see a good mix of teams ranging institution — and the Silicon Ivy title in from software to consumer products and Forbes’ Aug. 18 ranking of the country’s everything in between.”

Students involved in startups also have most entrepreneurial colleges.

Student entrepreneurs at Cornell have access to the Student Agencies access to a large network of resources, Foundation, the nation’s oldest studentincluding eLab, Cornell’s startup accelera- run company and Life Changing Labs a tor and POPSHOP, a collaborative stu- Cornell-based startup network, among other resources. dent-run workplace, POPSHOP, for the article noted.

“Cornell has a unique example, serves as an eLab was estabconvergence of world class “ideation lab” for lished in 2008 by Cornell, according to Entrepreneurship at schools. ... This leads to Jake Reisch ’15, a Cornell due to a businesses in a range of member of the orga“growing need” to areas. nization’s steering support Cornell committee. entrepreneurs with Jacob Reisch ’15 “It’s a total catalyst their ventures, for the university and according to Peter offers a place for students to ‘do’ entrepreCortle, eLab’s program manager.

“Nearly 150 students have participated neurship rather than just learn about it,” in the program,” Cortle said. “eLab largely said Reisch, who is also CEO of Party provides students with guidance and men- Headphones, a Cornell startup that protorship — the program is designed to pro- vides headphones for silent discos.

Additionally, Reisch said he believes vide students with lessons they can apply Cornell students have extremely diverse right away to accelerate their growth.”

According to Cortle, eLab takes place startups, reflecting the wide range of acadover eight months during both semesters emic disciplines at the University.

“Cornell has a unique convergence of and gives students the opportunity to earn

By ANUSHKA MEHROTRA

Sun News Editor

DANNI NEUHARTH-KEUSCH / SUN FILE PHOTO

Start it up | Student entrepreneurs from a variety of fields use University resources such as eLab and POPSHOP to pursue their ventures.

world-class schools in not only engineering, but also agriculture, hospitality and business — this leads to businesses in a range of areas,” Reisch said. “Our company designs and develops audio technology for group listening.”

Resich added that eLab was a “huge help” in launching Party Headphones, as he was able to earn academic credit for working on his startup.

Pujaa Rajan ’17, co-president of Life Changing Labs, said the company has given her the opportunity to “explore and experience” entrepreneurship.

“I find it hard to tell you what we do here at Life Changing Labs because we do so much,” she said. “[We] help Cornell’s best entrepreneurs and startups grow and develop from just a big fantasy to a bigger and better reality.”

Next Tuesday, Life Changing Labs will host Cornell’s first-ever Entrepreneurship Kickoff, featuring an open house, startup showcase and pitch competition with over $1,500 in prizes, according to the event’s Facebook page.

Like Rajan and Reisch, Rahul Shah ’16 said he has utilized Cornell’s resources to develop his entrepreneurial interests.

In 2013, Shah founded Speare, a com-

pany that he says uses data analytics to help news and media sites “engage” their audiences.

“We applied to eLab for a grant,” he said “They really helped us [grow] from a bunch of computer scientists with technology to identifying a business need in a news media space and apply that technology to learn and grow.”

The team currently consists of 13 Cornell students, according to Shah. He added that he thinks the most useful part of eLab is the opportunity to “take lessons” from other student entrepreneurs.

“The ability for me to have an active set of mentors on campus to help and guide me through obstacles and motivate me to go further is useful,” he said. “But, the most important thing about eLab … is seeing 15 other startups around you pull it off.”

The support from the Cornell entrepreneurial community has been a crucial factor in Speare’s success, according to Shah.

“I think that support network is the reason we still exist,” he said.

Anushka Mehrotra can be reached at amehrotra@cornellsun.com.

SAFC Lowers Funding Cap, Creates New Project Fund

By TALIA JUBAS Sun Staff Writer

Due to funding constraints, the Student Assembly Finance Commission has reduced its maximum allocations to student organizations by $500, though it has also set up a new fund for special projects, according to cochairs Alec Kane ’15 and

Marissa Guiang ’15.

All undergraduates pay a student activity fee, allocated by the Student Assembly Appropriations Committee every two years. The SAFC receives $89.12 per student per year to distribute to over 500 student groups, Kane said.

Though the organizations are grouped into different tiers

based on the amount of funding they can receive, all tiers received the same reduction. “[The reduction is due to] the amount of funds we have available, the number of groups eligible for funding and previous allocation and spending patterns,” Kane said.

As a way to help student groups in the face of this reduc-

Pass It to me

CONNOR ARCHARD / SUN SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Members of the Singaporean Student Association play Captain Ball on the Arts Quad as part of their welcome week Wednesday.

tion, last year SAFC began a rules for spending funds,” they new initiative — Help Sessions said. for Spending Funds — to The SAFC also allocated part familiarize groups with the of the budget to create a fund guidelines and processes of for “Special Projects,” which receiving funding, according to reserves money for groups to Kane and Guiang. apply for separately from the H e l p regular budget Sessions for process.

Spending The com“We hope to incoporate F u n d s mission is also comprehensive student includes a seeking input input in the reform presentafrom the stut i o n dent populaprocess throughout this describing tion on multisemester.” the applicaple fronts, tion and i n c l u ding Alec Kane ’15 funding commission process, a guidelines, demonstracommission tion of OrgSync — the online operations and how they serve system organizations use to pre- the student organizations, pare budgets — and the oppor- according to the co-chairs. tunity to ask individualized “Guidelines are consistently questions, according to the co- amended based on student chairs. input, groups’ changing needs, Other new efforts include the and constraints to funding,” availabilty of SAFC office hours Kane said. and the distribution of a threeBeyond the input from the page document that gives a sum- 40 commissioners — many of mary of SAFC guidelines. whom are involved in other According to Kane and groups on campus — the SAFC Guiang, after implementing tries to collect feedback “while these measures last year, the talking to student leaders during commission noticed there was a help sessions and budget heargreat reduction in application ings,” according to Kane. errors. A new website aiming to “We hope to incorporate elucidate steps of the funding comprehensive student input in process is also set to launch in the reform process throughout Spring 2015. this semester,” he said. “[This] will help the community understand other aspects of Talia Jubas can be reached at the funding process, especially tjubas@cornellsun.com.

4 THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014

NEWS

Judge Candidates Discuss Strengths Ithaca Ranks Highest in JUDGE

to deal with drug-related crimes.

“Heroin is causing citizens in Binghamton to drop like flies, and it’s heading this way,” Wallace Peacock said. “It involves a vision based on relation- said. “There is only one candidate who has pubships.” lished a definitive four-point plan to revitalize our Peacock said the two most important connec- drug court, and that’s me.” tions for the court to maintain are the relationship Both Peacock and Shaw responded to Wallace’s with the law, and the relationship with the commu- statement with their own claims of drug court nity of Ithaca. He further said it was his plan to work. implement field trips to the courthouse for chil“There’s actually only one candidate who’s actudren, so young Ithacans growing up might feel a ally been revitalizing the drug court, and that’s personal connection with the judge and the law.

Judge Peacock,” Peacock said. “I’m already doing “The relationship with the community is key,” the work that Rick talked about, and it’s more than Peacock said. “When people feel they belong, they a four-point plan, as you can see.” are less likely to hard one another.”

In response to Wallace and Shaw — who has lived in Ithaca Peacock’s declarations, Shaw “We didn’t choose for 16 years with her wife and chilsaid she’s “the only candidate Ithaca because of dren — also emphasized the imporwho’s actually been a member of Cornell. We chose tance of the Ithaca community. the drug court team.”

“We didn’t choose Ithaca because When asked what she thinks Cornell because of of Cornell,” Shaw said. “We chose of “perceptions” that crime is on Ithaca.”

Cornell because of Ithaca. We wantthe rise in Ithaca, Shaw said ed to raise our family here. We there are no statistics to back up Kristine Shaw J.D. ’01 wanted to live here and be a part of those claims, but she suggested this community.” drug abuse may be a factor in Shaw said it was an issue “close to [her] heart” recent violent crimes. that there are currently no women sitting on the “I think one of the reasons for [more recent viobench in any Ithaca court. She said she felt a need lent crimes] is the introduction of harder drugs,” to “step up” and change that.

Shaw said. “The way to deal with that is to create Wallace appealed to a sense of local pride, open- the strongest treatment court that you can.” ing with an anecdote about his childhood in Ithaca.

Peacock also supported alternative treatment He described the Woolworth’s that used to stand in options, but Wallace said she disagreed. the place where the Tompkins County Public “Having been born and raised here, I can tell Library is now. you that crime is on the rise,” Wallace said. “I am Wallace spoke of his youth at Boynton Middle disturbed by what I am seeing in Ithaca.”

School, Ithaca High School and his 24-year law Wallace closed by emphasizing again his extencareer in the City of Ithaca. sive experience in the court.

He listed various legal and local organizations of “These solutions are going to require special which he is a member, saying he had the “unique ability, a depth of experience,” Wallace said. “Three experience” necessary. Wallace ended his opening months on the bench or three years in drug court statement by saying, “Here I am, at the old isn’t enough.”

Woolworth’s cafeteria, asking for your vote.”

One main issue the candidates discussed at the Zoe Ferguson can be reached at zferguson@cornellforum was the Ithaca drug court and the best way sun.com.

Continued from page 1

Proportion of Int’l Students

Only 14 percent remain in Ithaca, study finds FOREIGN

time working after studying in the United States — according to the Brookings reports. bring so many of the foreign “The U.S. is the most wealthy undergraduate and graduate stu- country that actually recognizes dents to Ithaca in the first place. the value of my education and Ruoxi Zhang ’15, an interna- appreciates me as a female worktional student from China, er,” Park said. “Work culture is agreed with Ehrenberg’s senti- way more flexible than in my ments, saying she was initially country.” attracted to Cornell for its presAccording to Ehrenberg, state tige. And while she may stay in funders of public higher educathe United States following grad- tion institutions are often conuation if she finds a job, she said cerned about the share of out-ofshe will likely not reside in state students — including forIthaca. eign students. “[Ithaca is] a small town and “[International] graduates consequently [has] fewer oppor- contribute directly to the ecotunities,” Zhang said. “Besides, nomic well-being of the state — most foreign think [about students I the] income know come tax payments “[Ithaca is] a small town from big they make,” and consequently [has] cities in their he said. fewer opportunities.” respective Private countries. It’s academic Ruoxi Zhang ’15 very likely institutions, that they are however, are not used to less focused life in small on the issue town — at least for my part, I’m of keeping foreign students in the never used to this suburban state, Ehrenberg said, adding that lifestyle in Ithaca.” the University’s goal is for stuJu Hwa Park ’15, an interna- dents to maximize their potential tional student from South Korea, after graduation wherever that said she also plans to leave Ithaca may lead them. post-graduation and hopes to “If our foreign student gradufind a job in Manhattan. ates move to other parts of the Unlike Ithaca, 75 percent of United States or return to their international students studying home countries we are quite in New York City remain in the happy,” he said. area through “Optional Practical Training” visas — allowing stu- Jonathan Swartz can be reached at dents to spend a brief period of jwartz@cornellsun.com.

Continued from page 1

Don’t get thejoke?

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Read the comics.

The CorneDaily Sun

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014 5

NEWS

Museum Demonstration Injures13

For the people

DOUG MILLS / THE NEW YORK TIMES

President Barack Obama shakes hands with a group of young children following his arrival at the Kadriorg Palace in Tallinn, Estonia, Wednesday.

Protesters Rally at Ithaca City Hall For Several Hours PROTEST

Continued from page 1

increasing militarization of the local police department, the result of the Department of Defense’s 1033 program, which provides law enforcement agencies across the country with military gear.

Protesters met outside of the Ithaca Southside Community Center at 4 p.m. and moved outside to City Hall 30 minutes later, according to Whitmore. For the next four hours, residents of Ithaca — including the mothers of the children — as well as faculty of Cornell University and Ithaca College criticized the police department’s handling of the situation.

According to an event press release, protesters promised to “keep showing up and working until the teens involved in this incident, their friends and their families can feel safe in their “I and everyone else are community.”

The City of Ithaca and here because this issue Ithaca Police Department is worrying to us.” have completed separate investigations looking into Garen Whitmore the incident. An internal review found that Norman’s decision to unholster his weapon was “wholly consistent with standard police policies,” The Sun previously reported. It was also judged that the officer’s actions were not racially motivated in any way.

Protesters have expressed their support for the Mayor’s list of proposed reforms, which include the introduction of officer sensitivity training, the creation of a fully independent body to investigate allegations of police misconduct, and a requirement whereby police officers must wear video cameras while on duty.

RENO, Nev. (AP) — A demonstration about the science of tornadoes went awry Wednesday at a Nevada museum, injuring 13 people, several with minor burns or smoke inhalation.

Emergency crews responded to a report of a possible explosion at 4:10 p.m. at the Terry Lee Wells Discovery Museum in downtown Reno.

City of Reno spokesman Matthew Brown told The Associated Press that a preliminary investigation indicates it was not an explosion but a chemical flash, which is “similar to if someone threw gasoline on a fire.” He said he couldn’t comment further on the distinction.

Eight children and one adult were transported to a Reno hospital for minor burns or smoke inhalation, city Brown said in a statement.

Four other people were treated at the scene, but their ages were not available, he said. Officials at Renown Regional Medical Center expected only one child would remain hospitalized overnight for observation and likely would be sent home Thursday, Brown said.

Reno police Officer Tim Broadway had said earlier that several children suffered acid burns on their hands, arms and faces.

Officials said a methyl alcohol and boric acid mixture is used during the routine exhibition conducted each day to create a whirling tornado effect.

“The injuries were the result of a mishap of a routine museum demonstration that simulates a tornado,” the city’s statement said Wednesday night.

“Reno Fire Department investigators are working with museum staff to determine what caused the chemical flash.”

KRNV-TV aired amateur video posted on its

Family Remembers Journalist Slain by ISIS PINECREST, Fla. (AP) — The family of a journalist slain

by Islamic State militants says Steven Sotloff dedicated his life to portraying the suffering of people in war zones, but was “no hero.”

Family spokesman Barak Barfi told reporters gathered outside the family’s suburban

CALLER

Continued from page 1

Scholars community, Sarah Hilsman, associate director of ISSO, said “several international students … received very distributing fraudulent phone calls.”

In these calls, according to Hilsman, the students were told not to tell anyone of the call and told to drop off cash at CUPD. The callers added that students would be arrested, reported to credit agencies and have their

immigration status canceled.

Honan said he thinks international students may be targeted because they may not be as familiar of U.S. law when compared to domestic students.

“If you receive any calls like this, you are likely being scammed,” Honan said. “If you have any concerns, please hang up and contact your local police department.”

Tyler Alicea can be reached at managing-editor@cornellsun.com.

Miami home Wednesday that Sotloff “tried to find good concealed in a world of darkness,” and to give voice to the weak and suffering in the Arab world.

A militant video released Tuesday showed the beheading of Sotloff, who was kidnapped in Syria last year.

Barfi said Sotloff was “no war junkie,” but was drawn to the stories of the turbulent Middle East.

Barfi said Sotloff ’s family was grieving, but have pledged to “not allow our enemies to hold us hostage with the sole weapon they possess — fear.”

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Students Told by Caller They Would Be Arrested

Facebook page that offered a glimpse of the explosion inside the museum. Run in slow motion, it appears to show a flash and flames falling off an experiment table and onto the floor several feet from a group of children who screamed when it happened.

Reno resident Joey Sanchez told the AP he was at the museum but didn’t see the flash.

As he and his three-and-a-half-year-old son returned from the restroom, he saw smoke and some children with injuries that looked like little red circles.

Sanchez said he saw one child crying with an ice pack on his face and someone with a fire extinguisher spray the table where the demonstration occurred.

“It didn’t smell like anything caught on fire, it smelled like burning chemicals,” he said.

It did not appear to be parents leading some of the children out of the museum because “if that happened, I would be clutching my son,” he said, adding there was no real sense of urgency or panic.

“It was scary, I understand that, but it was an accident,” said Sanchez, who often visits the museum.

Reno Fire Chief Mike Hernandez said the museum was evacuated, but the building didn’t appear to receive any additional damage. A sign on the door indicated it would reopen as scheduled at 10 a.m.

Thursday.

A hazardous materials team responded to the scene to ensure the explosion did not spew toxic gases throughout the museum, Hernandez said. He said the injured were transported to the hospital within 15 minutes.

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OPINION

Paola Muñoz |

The Corne¬ Daily Sun

19-Year-Old Existential Crisis

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Connor Archard ’15 Sean Doolittle ’16 Kaitlyn Tiffany ’15 Annie Bui ’16 Noah Rankin ’16 Scott Chiusano ’15 Kay Xiao ’16 Jayant Mukhopadhaya ’15 Dennis Fedorko ’17 Catherine Leung ’16

Editorial

One Cornell, One Community LAST WEEK, CORNELL WAS CHOSEN AS ONE OF THE TOP 50 LGBT-friendly campus by Campus Pride, a national non-profit that supports LGBT communities on college campuses. In response, students said they believe that while the University has taken some measures to create a safe and accepting environment, there is more that can be done to promote an inclusive campus, especially for those with non-binary gender identities. We at The Sun concur with those concerned students and call on the University to help facilitate a more inclusive campus culture for members of the University community who identify with minority gender identities and sexual orientations.

Currently, Cornell has several support systems for LGBT students available — including HAVEN and the LGBT resource center — which we think are a good first step in becoming a truly LGBT-friendly campus. We also applaud the Cornell University Programming Board for enhancing the campus dialogue on gender identity by hosting transgender actress and advocate Laverne Cox. However, we believe Cornell would benefit from greater engagement of nonLGBT students in the realm of awareness and advocacy.

For example, Tapestry of Possibilities, the anti-discrimination presentation that is a graduation requirement, ought to broaden the campus discourse by educating students about the presence of non-binary gender persons at Cornell. By doing so, the University would bring students who have had no prior exposure to alternative gender identities into the fold of a tolerant and inclusive campus culture. We assert that active and ongoing student exposure to sensitivity and tolerance education is crucial to the actualization of a more inclusive and accepting campus culture.

To help bring about this culture change, we suggest that the University enact substantive LGBT-friendly policy changes, such as more gender neutral bathrooms, gender-inclusive housing and platforms for LGBT students to voice their concerns to the administration. While there is some room for improvement, we at The Sun remain optimistic that the ultra-tolerant climate that Campus Pride portrayed in its rankings is attainable and already well within the University’s reach.

Midas’ Crumbs

H

ow does a 19-year-old handle an arrival at my new dorm last week, I was existential crisis? She goes on welcomed by the stench of Doritos and Facebook. So what’s trending futile all-nighters. As I unpacked the today in the social media? Jimi Jamison, Febreze from my bag, ready to exorcise the Survivor lead singer, dead at 63; Carrie demons, I wondered who could’ve been Underwood announces she is expecting the culprit of this evil stench; did he or first child with husband Mike Fisher. she have the same reaction when they Shoot. Well, that didn’t help. moved into this room for the first time From the irony of the death of a lead last year? Did the person before that persinger whose band goes by the name son have the same reaction too? It goes on Survivor, to yet another celebrity pregnan- and on. Aside from the past, I also woncy, our world constantly exists within the dered where those people are today; if inevitable, without really understanding they have kids running around with feet what that entails. reeking just as much as theirs did. Because We are surrounded by so many distrac- my dorm has been around for a fairly long tions — an entirely separate world — in time, I couldn’t help but to also question: and of itself. This seemingly immortal Are some of those people still even here other world of distractions, where the dis- today? tance between an individual in Dubai and While the fear of death is secretly persomeone in Kansas City can be reduced to vasive amongst humankind — especially a mere second, is the Internet. It is the the older you get — there are other things omniscient entity that encompasses the that are much more frightening. You debris of our past could worry about simultaneously with your impending the seeds we’ve sown doom, but those So shut down Facebook today. It knows of all, minutes spent every once in a while, and except of tomorrow. stressing are minAccording to this utes that cannot be use the senses that are so other world, our lives given back. Time is readily available to you to dabble between absolutely merciless polarized realities — — it is unapologetic experience a world that is the scandal and the by nature. eagerly awaiting your trivial. Readers just Nonetheless, if you can’t get enough are reading this participation. about who’s expectright now, you still ing a baby girl, but have time left. There proceed to scroll on are still hours, days, down the newsfeed past horrendous geno- waiting to be stretched. Although there is cides occurring concurrently with that a limit to these days, no one can tell you funny Kermit meme that you just liked … exactly how to use them. So shut down but that’s none of my business.

Facebook every once in a while, and use We’ve become desensitized to situa- the senses that are so readily available to tions that are rightfully entitled to their you to experience a world that is eagerly whispers for help; these are the situations awaiting your participation. Disconnect that define our humanity in moments from a fabricated world of distractions, where we can secure someone’s right to because no matter how many answers it life with as much gusto as we defend our has, it cannot tell you how you should live own. All in all, it’s all news. Out of sight, your life. People will come and go — be out of mind. We are quick to turn a blind aware of the life that is so organically eye to what really lies before us, even prevalent around you, reconnect, and when we are constantly being reminded of have no fear. Remember that you are starits presence every day: Our inevitable fate. dust, because in this world matter cannot But then again, who am I to judge what be created or destroy. You have been here, really is reality — reality itself is an indi- you are here and you will continue to be vidualized experience. It only really hits us here. Even if Jimi Jamison died at the age when we’re faced with how much of a sur- of 63, his legacy is still a survivor. What vivor we are really not. To put it bluntly, will yours be? reality is confined in between life and death. No exceptions. What will you do Paola Muñoz is a sophomore in the College of with your time?

Human Ecology. She can be reached at This crashing train of thoughts came pmm245@cornell.edu. Midas’ Crumbs appears about through peculiar means. Upon my alternate Thursdays this semester.

CORRECTIONS A Sept. 3 science story, “Peer Review: Sang Min Han ’15 Sudies Radio and Sound Waves,” incorrectly defined plasma, which is in fact a state of matter similar to a fluid but with electromagnetic properties. The story also incorrectly identified Dr. Aaron Rice, who is not a post doctorate student but is in fact the Director of the Bioacoustics Research Program at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Finally, the story omitted part of the title of Hunter R. Rawlings III Cornell Presidential Research Scholar.

CLARIFICATIONS A Sept. 3 science story, “Peer Review: Sang Min Han ’15 Sudies Radio and Sound Waves,” was not clear in stating that the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program and the Jicamarca Radio Observatory studies physics of the upper atmosphere instead of radio communications.

An Aug. 29 news story, “Students Contest Campus LGBT Ranking,” referred to a study conducted in 2013 that was mentioned in a report prepared by Cornell's Institutional Research and Planning office. The study in reference was conducted in spring 2013, a fact that was not mentioned in the original version of the story.

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014 7

OPINION

Eric Pesner |

P

Dems Discuss

Where Are the Women in Congress?

olitically speaking, what happened this summer was fairly ordinary and unsurprising. Republicans got mad at President Barack Obama. Democrats got mad right back. Vladimir Putin was a bully towards Russia’s neighbors. There was an uptick in extremist violence in the Middle East. And, the Republicans were annoyed that a bunch of kids fleeing violence didn’t have the right papers. But, somehow, the least surprising revelation of the summer — even less surprising than the Israelis and Palestinians shooting rockets at each other — was that sexism is still prevalent in the political sphere.

This sexism was articulated most clearly by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in her new memoir.

Senator Gillibrand, one of the most ardent fighters against sexual harassment in the military, opened up about the sexual harassment that she herself faced in the halls of Congress.

Even today — in what has been called the world’s greatest deliberative body — a woman can be treated as nothing more than a sexual object. Do her fellow Senators really respect her opinions when they say things like, “Don’t lose too much weight now. I like my girls chubby.”

While these comments should be utterly shocking and disappointing, can anyone really be surprised? In a body where four out of five members are men and the average member is 62 years old, it might actually be too much to expect a 21st century belief in women’s equality from them. And it’s doubtful that anything will change until more women are elected to Congress.

The relative scarcity of women in political how women should get access to contraceplife has a profound impact on our country. tion shows how backwards we really are.

Looking at the policies passed by Congress Access to affordable contraception is a fundaand at the state level, it’s obvious that women mental part of any national healthcare policy, get the short end of the stick. Organizations but, for at least one political party, the certainthat provide critical health care to women, ty of that fact is in doubt. When conservative particularly Planned Parenthood, are targeted politicians and commentators call contracepand shut down because of exaggerated conser- tives “dangerous” and call the women who use vative histrionics about abortion. Women are them “sluts,” it’s no wonder that women vote forced into uncomfortable and unnecessary the way they do.

A critic of my view on Hobby Lobby medical procedures in attempts to dissuade them from making personal decisions about would say that Justices Ginsburg, Kagan and their medical care with their doctors. Sotomayor ruled as they did not because they’re women, but because they’re liberals, Maternity leave and paid but I think family leave are that those two almost non-existent anywhere in the Even though most women propositions not entirecountry. And though identify with and vote for the are ly indepen60 percent of miniDemocratic Party, they are still dent. Eighty mum wage workers are women, the minheavily underrrepresnted. percent of women in the imum wage remains Senate and 76 far too low.

Despite all of these pressing issues and percent of women in the House are more for women’s rights, the most discussed Democrats. In 2012, President Obama won women’s issue of the summer was about birth women voters by 11 points. Women have control. In a five-to-four decision in the broadly rejected the Republican Party, and the Hobby Lobby case, the Supreme Court said Republicans have no real strategy to win back that the religious beliefs of corporate owners their votes.

But even though most women identify are more important than female employees’ access to the medications that they and their with and vote for the Democratic Party, they doctors want them to take. And in an entirely are still heavily underrepresented within the predictable course of events, all of the women Party structure. About 30 percent of on the Court sided with the healthcare rights Congressional Democrats are women, which isn’t great, except when compared to the paltry of women.

The fact that our country is still debating eight percent of Congressional Republicans

who are women. But things are looking up.

About 150 women won either the Democratic or Republican nomination for the House or Senate this year, and the number of women in Congress will likely be higher next year than now. President Obama has appointed the most women as judges out of any President. And, in just over two years, it’s very likely that a woman will be elected as President of the United States.

But in order to finally free the halls of Congress from the sexism that Senator Gillibrand experienced, more women have to get involved. Women need to stand up and make their voices heard, by running for office, by making sure that they vote, and by working and volunteering for the candidates that they support. I spent my summer working for Martha Robertson who is running for Congress this year to represent the district that includes Ithaca. And should she win in November, Congress will gain a powerful voice, not just for the women of this country, but for everyone.

And there’s no better time to get involved than while here at Cornell. There are so many organizations to be involved with, whether general political groups or any of the dozens of issue-based groups on campus. Making a difference begins with stepping up, and I hope that everyone will take that first step this fall.

Eric Pesner is a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences. He may be reached at erp55@cornell.edu.

Dems Discuss appears alternate Thursdays this semester.

THROWDOWN THURSDAYS Julius Kairey |

I

Always Right

Islamophobia and Racism

n the United States, to be termed a racist is to be shunned from the arena of respectable debate, and for good reason.

History has repeatedly shown the dangers of racist argumentation, and few of us wish to entertain the types of arguments that have proven so harmful in the past.

Yet, some groups have become quite aggressive in branding critics of Muslims and Islam as racists. Organizations like the Council on American Islamic Relations seek to name and shame these “Islamophobes” and limit their access to the public airwaves.

But is Islamophobia truly racism? The answer depends on how the term is defined. If it is defined narrowly as degrading and hateful attacks on Muslims, it is. But when the term is used to cover well-grounded criticism of Islam as a religious ideology simply because such criticism seems to portray Islam in a negative light, it ceases to describe racist behavior.

Indeed, the term “Islamophobia” in the latter sense seems to demand that Islam not be critically examined like other value systems. We rarely use terms like “conservative-phobia” or “liberal-phobia” to describe aggressive criticism of conservatism and liberalism, respectively, and we never consider such criticism to be the equivalent of racism. Why? Because we believe that critical examination of ideas is essential in a free and democratic society. We should not pretend that all values — including values associated with religion — are created equal. If they were, we would never have a basis for preferring any one value to any other. We could not prefer democracy to autocracy, or freedom to slavery.

As it happens, there is a lot to legitimately criticize about the goings-on in the Islamic world today, and I do not just refer to the actions of fringe groups like ISIS, al Qaeda and Boko Haram. Mainstream values in Muslim countries are in sharp contrast with those in the West on some very important issues.

Consider polling data from organizations like the Pew Research Center and the Anti-Defamation League. When it comes to women’s rights and status, more than 85 percent of Muslims in countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Malaysia believe that a woman “must always obey her husband.” The percentage of Muslims who view

homosexuality as morally acceptable is below 15 percent in nearly every major Muslim country. Support for the implementation of sharia — or Islamic law — as official law is often above 70 percent.

Additionally, the data shows that age-old religious intolerance is alive and well in the Muslim world. Less than 20 percent of Egyptian, Jordanian, Pakistani, Indonesian and Turkish Muslims view Jews favorably. In countries from Iran and Iraq to Malaysia and Kuwait, Holocaust denial is widespread, and most Muslims agree that “Jews are responsible for most of the world’s wars.”

From harmful beliefs flow harmful practices. In Iran, women can legally be stoned to death for adultery and other “crimes against chastity.” In Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and a number of other Islamic countries, converting from Islam is

Even those Westerners who aggressively criticize their own civilization ... can do so only because the West permits criticism of itself. punishable by death and “blasphemers” can be killed for religious insult. Most Muslim-majority countries prescribe a penalty of imprisonment or death for homosexuality. Under Islamic rule, granting only limited exceptions, freedom of thought and expression is stifled, sexual freedom is restricted and democracy is non-existent. We should stop pretending that our notions of fundamental human rights do not conflict with the beliefs and practices of much of the Islamic world.

The deplorable views and practices I described above are not limited to a few extremists with radical interpretations of Islam.

Let me be clear that I am not in any way suggesting that all Muslims believe in such values and practices (many risk their lives to oppose them), or that all Muslims should be held responsible for the behavior of Muslim countries or that Islam

is an essentially bad religion. I would similarly not suggest that we hold all Christians responsible for the actions of Christian countries or all Jews responsible for the behavior of Israel.

There are over one billion Muslims in the world, and they do not all believe exactly the same things.

That being said, I believe the frequent use of the term “Islamophobia” is symptomatic of a more fundamental problem: We have become much too apologetic about our own culture, and far too willing to adopt a relativistic framework when comparing ourselves to others. I do not consider the West’s core values — consisting of things like freedom of speech, frequent elections, equality of rights, rule of law, pluralism and secular government — to be merely different from the authoritarianism and theocracy that predominates in the Muslim world. I consider our values to be better.

Is that a form of Islamophobia? If it is, then we are all Islamophobes. I suspect that few of you would want to spend the rest of your lives in most of the world’s Muslim countries.

Is it because you hate Muslims? Or is it because you appreciate the range of freedoms available in the West but not in Islamic countries?

Even those Westerners who aggressively criticize their own civilization (but, tellingly, seldom leave it) can do so only because the West permits criticism of itself. Living in the West, you are free to doubt the value of freedom and democracy.

Living in an Islamic country, you could face severe punished for questioning fundamental Islamic tenets. Even the West’s staunchest self-critics, therefore, implicitly demonstrate what is so great about our civilization.

To call critics of Islam racists is to strip the term “racism” of its true meaning and limit the term’s ability to properly shame despicable behavior. It is a mistake to confuse criticism of ideas with demeaning the people who hold those ideas. We should either shelve the term “Islamophobia” or restore its proper, narrower meaning so that we can have an open debate about what values our society ought to hold most dear.

Julius Kairey is a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences. He may be reached at jkairey@cornellsun.com. Always Right appears alternate Thursdays this semester.

8 THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014

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THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014 9

DINING GUIDE

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Dining Guide

Your source for good food

Gorgers Taco Shack on the Commons Fails to Impress Commons’newest edition flops in its opening week, serving sub-par tacos wrapped in store-bought tortillas,lacking freshness

By NICOLAS LOZANO Sun Staff Contributor

The prospect of a new restaurant in the Commons dedicated solely to preparing fresh and delicious tacos immediately caught my attention, filling my tastebuds with anticipation Latin food in Ithaca is comprised mainly of Tex-Mex restaurants, and I appreciate the alternative to V i v a Taqueira. The second enterprise of ‘Gorgers’ sub, sandwich and soup owners located just down the b l o c k , opened this past Friday.

U p o n entering the scantily decorated restaurant in the heart of the Commons , I felt confused.

This is truly the only word I can use to describe my sentiment in that moment.

The only attempt at décor was some misplaced colorful longboards on the walls that seemed more fit for a California beachfront café and contrasted heavily with the white fluorescent lighting. Another source of confusion was the lack of a visi-

ble menu in the restaurant. Only after the cashier repeated the options over and over did anyone bother to write them on a whiteboard. I decided to set aside these initial impressions in order to given the food an unbiased opinion.

The menu was limited with only four tacos that presumably change on a day by day basis which keeps things interesting and appeals to those who appreciate the incorporation of seasonal items.

I decided to order all four t a c o s : Chicken with Salsa Fresca and Green Onions, Chicken with PineappleMint Salsa and WasabiM a y o Cilantro, Pork with GarlicChile-Lime S a u c e , Peanuts and Cilantro and Pork with Chile Verde, S m o k e d Paprika Mayo and Cilantro.

A few of the ingredients — pineapple and peanuts in particular —caught my attention right of the bat, and I looked forward to trying the fusion of flavors in the tacos.

The chicken tacos on the menu provided a classic option with a twist, however they left much to be desired. I was honestly shocked. I didn’t think it was possible to make chicken that lacked any flavor whatsoever. Not only did it lack flavor , it was also very dry and in no way fresh. It was so dry and so flavorless that at one point I had to check if a piece of the napkin hadn’t made its way into my first bite.

Moreover, the tortillas fell short. Arguably, the most important component of any taco is the tortilla on which it sits. The tortilla is the foundation on which the flavors of the taco build. Unfortunately what tasted like store-bought tortillas, in addition to being cold, left a lingering artificial aftertaste.

After the initial impression, I still hoped to find some redeeming qualities within the

Arguably, the most important component of any taco is the tortilla on which it sits.The tortilla is the foundation on which the flavors of the taco build.

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chicken tacos . I hoped the salsas would be their savior since they were creative and sounded like they had a lot of potential.

However, the moment I saw the limp tomatoes, which were a strange reddish hue, I knew that the salsa wouldn’t be so ‘fresca.’ The salsa had this overpowering taste — a combination of vinegar and cheap canned salsa — that made me wonder if I should even finish it or if I should simply write it off as a loss. The Pineapple-Mint

Salsa was much better. It was a refreshing topping to the otherwise dry chicken.

The pulled pork tacos were much better. This came as no surprise as the flagship sub shop is well known for their pulled pork sandwiches. The Pork with Garlic-Chile-Lime Sauce, Peanuts and Cilantro taco was by far the best one of all. The lime was a perfect complement to the cilantro and peanuts but once again the actual tortilla needed improving.

Gorgers Taco Shack will be attempting to appeal to late night goers by staying open until 1 a.m., but unfortunately they will not be delivering. As the taco shack is still new to the Commons, the owners have plenty of time to smooth out the rough edges and make Gorgers Taco Shack a valued local provider of fresh and delicious tacos.

Nicolas Lozano can be reached at nlozano@cornellsun.com.

A&E

10 | The Corne¬ Daily Sun | Thursday, September 4, 2014

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Mick Jenkins The Water[s] Cinematic Music Group

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Calvin Patten Last December, Mick Jenkins released a music video for the “Strange Fruit”-sampling “Martyrs,” in which he mimes Chief Keef’s “Don’t Like” video while alternatively wearing a noose and a fashionable scarf. If this sounds ambitious and Chicago and more than a wee bit pretentious, well, yes.

However, I can think of no more fitting introduction to Mick, a Chicago grown, Frank Sinatra-name-checking rapper, separated from the drill movement but not isolated. The Water[s], his second mixtape, is a flawed but prodigious project, generating justified comparisons to early works by everyone from Common to Kendrick.

Jenkins himself is a latecomer to rapping. He is 23, but claims to have only been rapping since he started college.

Instead, he got his start with poetry and open mic nights in Chicago. While he also grew up on the Southside, he does not lean on the violence or vulgarity of the experience like a Keef or Lil Durk. Rather, he seeks understanding and spiritual growth that makes sense when you remember that he is 23.

Kendrick had a lot of the same things going on in his first couple adult projects, especially on Section.80, where he tried to comprehend the failings of his generation through a variety of lenses.

Mick gets a few beats from well-known producers, including Statik Selektah, THC and Kirk Knight, but it is the local producer On Gaud that pulls the project together. He gives Mick beats that wink at jazzy, but are mostly ambient and light, the perfect backdrop for Mick’s voice. And Mick’s voice deserves noting; it is deep and musical, an instrument he

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avoids abusing with extravagant effects, organic or otherwise.

Mick starts off slow and forceful, hitting every syllable with gravity, similar to Common’s style. But as he gets worked up, his voice rises ever so slightly to a howl — strip out the beats and Mick is still comfortable at an open mic night. After a summer where DJ Mustard’s singular beat dominated songs he did not even produce, it is a refreshing reminder that hip hop is about more than a hot beat.

What the The Water[s] lacks most is that variety. Instead, it relies too heavily on the extended metaphor of water and life. Jenkins seems unable to turn off some of his poetic inspirations, constantly leaning on the title for content guidance.

This does keep the album thematically wound, but it comes at a cost of spontaneity. Kendrick’s Good Kid, M.A.A.D City was as together as any rap album, but it still allowed for a range from “Backseat Freestyle” to “Real.” With the possible exception of the Joey Badass featuring “Jerome,” The Water[s] never approaches such playfulness.

Despite the lack of variance, this tape does work though.

You are not going to play it at a party, but as a hip hop project to be listened to, chewed and discussed, it stands as formidably as any released this year. The intro track, “Shipwrecked,” is a lament to the self-destruction of both the rap game and the kids Mick grew up with. Mick explains that “We kill for it, when we die we can’t have it / But we can’t kill the habit holdin’ onto this boat ‘til we shipwreck.” “The Waters” finds Mick getting religious, thanking God for “the waters” and asking people to “save your souls.” Nothing Mick does is sub-

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tle, but he has the tenacity and voice to keep it from ever sounding cheesy. So on the same song when he claims “Shit comes straight from the heart / Not a record exec in the back with a remote,” you believe it without question. He has the same kind of idealism that found Kanye so proud of putting “Jesus Walks” on College Dropout.

“Jazz” is one of the most interesting tracks on the album.

Over On Gaud’s sparse, melodic beat Mick rhymes about growing up in Chicago and all the rappers “talking all that jazz” instead of searching for and sharing truth. He continues this discussion on “Drink More Water,” specifically calling out people’s admiration of Riff Raff while he is broke as something that confuses him. It is a petty note, but he is not wrong.

“Martyrs” is the crown jewel of the project though. With vivid imagery, a tragic sample and a morbid hook, “Martyrs” sticks with you in a way the rest of the tracks (a very full 15) fail to. Mick juxtaposing “I’mma get all this money / I’mma buy all this shit” with “I’m just with my niggas hanging / hanging” is a brutal take on modern rap tropes.

It is hard to say where Mick will go from here. His next album could be a classic, it could flop in the inevitable face of commercial pressure. Regardless, The Water[s] has fulfilled its mission, raising the profile of another fresh Chicago artist and, after a summer dry of hip hop, giving fans a drink.

Calvin Patten is a senior in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. He can be reached at cpatten@cornellsun.com.

With Great Hashtags Comes Great Responsibility Twitter’s role in all this can be traced back to a viral hashtag several years prior: #donald4spiderman. The #donald4spiderwitter is powerful. It has been uti- man movement began in May of 2010 after lized to organize mass protests and a Glover darned Spiderman pajamas on revolution in Egypt. Now it can be Community. This prompted several fans to credited with yet another major accom- tweet suggestions that he be cast as Peter plishment: Getting actor, rapper and come- Parker in the then upcoming Marc Webb dian Donald Glover cast as Spider-Man. In Amazing Spider-Man movie. The hashtag 2015, Donald Glover will voice Miles went so viral that Spider-Man’s creator Stan Morales, a half-black and half-hispanic Lee tweeted that he supported Glover being Spider-Man, in Disney XD’s animated given a chance to audition for the role. show Ultimate Spider-Man: Web Warriors. Glover, an NYU graduate, would have been This opportunity is especially meaningful a perfect fit to play the comic book’s protagto Glover, who grew up a tremendous onist a nerdy young man living in New Spider-Man fan. He says, “Spider-Man is York City. What made this push for Donald the best because you just don’t know who so fascinating was the provocative idea of he is, and he’s funny and he’s poor. I under- making Spider-Man, who is white in the original comic stand Spiderbook, black.

Man a lot on While Andrew that level. He’s Garfield was evenjust trying to tually given the make it.” What role of Parker, the makes Donald #donald4spiderGlover so man campaign beloved by his Jason serves as a true tesfans is that, Ecker tament to the similarly to power of social how he feels about his favorite superhero, he is easy to media. In fact, while not playing any actual relate to. Whether it is his goofy, cartoon- part in The Amazing Spider-Man movies, loving character Troy Barnes on the show Glover was given a subtle nod by Webb. In Community, the honest lyrics about rela- one scene where Peter Parker’s room is tionships and trying to be accepted in his shown, there is a Troy Barnes Community music as rapper Childish Gambino or even poster visible on the bottom left hand corthe anecdotes about his sexual exploits dur- ner of his wall. When asked about this, ing his comedy specials, Glover brings this Glover said, “I was pretty aware of the average-Joe college kid authenticity to Easter egg that Marc Webb put in there because he asked me — I guess when they everything he does.

JASON ECKER Sun Staff Writer

T

Guest Room

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

were filming it — if it was okay to do it. I was like ‘Sure.’ For some reason, I didn’t think they needed to ask my permission, but I guess they did. So there’s some stuff in Spider-Man’s bedroom that’s reflective of his musical or television taste.”

Now, four years later, Glover fans will have the chance to at least partially experience the actor as “Your Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman.” His character, Miles Morales, is a high school student who happens to possess super spider abilities and is one of several SpiderMen spread throughout several dimensions in the TV show. Glover will be featured alongside former Drake and Josh star Drake Bell, who is providing the voice of Peter Parker. Morales and Parker meet in one of the dimensions and Parker serves as a mentor for the young hero. When speaking on Glover and the character Miles, Stephen Wacker, vice president of Marvel Television’s animation department, said, “He meets someone who is his hero, and that comes across completely in Donald’s performance … He’s got a real warmth that suits the character really, really well.”

Despite finally getting to join an aspect of his favorite superhero’s legacy, when asked

COURTESY OF MARVEL COMICS

about actually playing the role of SpiderMan, Glover said, “I’m still holding out, though … I still have hopes to do something like that one day. I don’t look at this as second place. Spider-Man, he’s such an icon — you have to do something with him.” Speaking as someone who both greatly enjoys the many facets of Donald’s career and personally wore Spider-Man pajamas to sleep every night as a kid, I really hope that the young actor is given a chance to play his dream role.

Jason Ecker is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. He can be reached at jecker@cornellsun.com.

A&E

Thursday, September 4, 2014 | The Corne¬ Daily Sun | 11

Yes, you did read this correctly: That album that just came up on your iTunes homepage under “New Music” totally is a Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga (yes, that Lady Gaga) collabo. But before you dismiss the album as a very odd attempt at rebranding and/or a cry for attention — one that makes Tony Bennett look hip and Lady Gaga look *le gasp* conservative — you should listen to their latest single, “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love.” Released on August 26, the Gaga-Bennett cover of this 1928 Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh-penned jazz standard is surprisingly soulful and refreshing. While Gaga does go a little, well, gaga at times — particularly with her riffing at the ends of her verses — she’s fun to listen to and really does have a lovely voice (when she isn’t frying her vocal chords). Combine that with Tony Bennett’s typically charming croon, and you get a surprisingly adorable duet. So jury’s still out on the rest of the album, but if it turns out as enjoyable as this single, perhaps the Gaga-Bennett collaboration isn’t so crazy after all.

Lady Gaga and Tony Bennet “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love” Interscope Records & Columbia Records

Anna Brenner

Anna Brenner is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at abrenner@cornell.edu.

Chances are, even if you don’t recognize the name, you’ve heard some of Herb Alpert’s masterful jazz compositions. With a career in pop music spanning 60 years and as many Grammy’s as The Beatles, Alpert and the Tijuana Brass’ pretty much soundtracked the 1960s (along with Paul, John, George and Ringo), lending memorable themes to The Dating Game and the original Jimmy Bond flick, Casino Royale. Age doesn’t seem to stop Alpert, whose upcoming album, In The Mood, is set to feature a number of jazz standards and pop music covers, including songs by The Everly Brothers. The first single off the album, “Sneaky,” is a smooth, funky ride that exemplifies his trademark Latin and bossa nova-inspired beats. It may sound kitschy to some, but electronic infusions and spare instrumentals make this less cheesy big band and more palatable, modern jazz for both the enthusiast and the newcomer. Alpert is at career best, evoking Miles Davis or Louis Armstrong with his extended trumpet solos and never skipping a beat. Look out for the album to release on September 30. It should make for a great listen.

Herb Alpert “Sneaky” A&M Records

Sean Doolittle

Sean Doolittle is a junior in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. He can be reached at arts-editor@cornell.edu.

Eternal Sunshine of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl

A

wave of click-bait psychobabble has been circulating the bloggy interwebs this summer about the buzzword stock character, the Manic Pixie Dream Girl.

Admittedly baited by one such article, I began to investigate. The term, coined in 2007 by critic Nathan Radin in a scathing review of Cameron Crowe’s Elizabethtown, criticizes the trope of a spastic, dreamy, one-dimensional heroine who enters a brooding young man’s life solely in order to teach him how to live. What set off this new torrent of internet mania debating about the topic was the article Radin published this July on Salon, apologizing to pop culturedom for his invention of the term because of the way it’s been scarily misused and overapplied by preachy, would-be critics and bloggers, accusing an absurd range of characters (and actual women), from Ginny Weasley to the operating system from Her of participating in this trope. After sifting through its blogosphere history, I’m grateful for Radin’s apology, and, at risk of seeming melodramatic, would like to see this bizarre, virally catchy nomenclature removed from the vocabulary of intelligent artistic criticism and understood for what it really did to pop culture (after you indulge my thoughts on it, of course).

I want to be clear, it is not with the phrase in its original form that I take issue. The term could potentially have been quite apt in facilitating scrutiny of this a trendy and insidious brand misogyny. It was originally conceived with the commendable intention of diagnosing a stereotype — one that existed long before Orlando Bloom underwhelmed audiences with his performance as a suicidal sad sack — and encouraging conversation about the sexism inherent to this role, and challenging directors who pen these absurd women. Unfortunately, the path to creating a feeding frenzy of pseudocritical thought is paved with good intentions.

So, the misogyny of the trope itself is passé — no one is arguing that a woman cast as a vector of a male’s personal development is any kind of kosher. What is interesting, relevant and disturbing is the phenomena of pop culture’s obsession with the term and the creepy implications the trope has acquired through its shameless misappropriation.

A brief timeline and biography of the phrase “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” — she was born to

Kirsten Dunst’s character Claire in Elizabethtown, an ethereally bubbly and adorably frenzied flight attendant who flits into the life of grieving Drew (Orlando Bloom), post-suicide attempt and offers him a literal roadmap to self-actualization. Claire is the MPDG in her purest, most painfully depthless form: Beautiful, whimsical, flighty, impulsively eccentric and mystically wise. She has no needs, goals or desires of her own, she exists only as a (polka-dotted or floral) accessory to the mopey, wounded schmuck who she will ultimately heal and lead to salvation. Her quirks and idiosyncrasies are as cosmetic as her vintage red lipstick, because she has no struggles, grief or baggage to produce them.

The MPDG celebrated her first birthday when, a year after the Elizabethtown review, the A.V. Club (the entertainment website that Rabin wrote for at the time — he’s now a staff writer for Pitchfork’s film review project The Dissolve) published the list “Wild Things: 16 Films featuring Manic Pixie Dream Girls,” indicting cult roles like Audrey Hepburn’s Holly Golightly from Breakfast At Tiffany’s and Diane Keaton’s Annie Hall.

Fast forward through a few years of the term being kicked around and used to mock Zooey

Google the phrase, the articles go on for pages: Feminist blog tirades against a never-ending slew of supposedly offending film and T.V. characters, theories of Manic Pixie Dream Boy, a wikiHow coaching “How to Be a Manic Pixie Dream Girl: Five Steps” and a database of all the alleged MPDGs throughout film, television, literature, video games, comic books and, most disturbingly, a category called “Real Life” which includes women like Yoko Ono, Edie Sedgwick and Zelda Fitzgerald.

My real objection to the Manic Pixie Dream Girl craze is that it has legitimized a reductive label that invites sensational, lazy rhetoric about female characters and deters thoughtful, critical analysis. The trope doesn’t particularly alarm me but the influence the term has acquired, as a catch-all phrase for any woman in a movie (or real life) who’s remotely unconventional, from the bipolar to the bookish, does.

The phrase is just so pithy and attractive that viewers and readers project Manic Pixie Dream Girls where they don’t Objectivity exist, or overlook backstories, Bites personalities and ambitions of characters just to drop it oh-soDeschanel’s ukulele-playing antics to 2013, snarkily in a conversation; I’ve heard it and I’ve when the show Manic Pixie Dreamland, a done it (I’m hypothetically doing it right now). musical about a fantasy realm in which quirky, Some insidious linguistic tick in those little four beautiful women are sent on missions to rescue words has us all hooked. morose young men from despair, debuted in A useful example of the term’s misuse is the Chicago. The show was satirizing the term, but heroine of Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless snowballs pop culture’s unproductive infatua- Mind, who’s been frequently accused across the tion with the trope. Later in 2013, a young internet of MPDG status. At first glance, adult novel entitled Manicpixiedreamgirl was Clementine is a your prototypical dream girl: published, narrating the calculable tale of an blue-haired, zany, babbling, stringing a hapless, awkward high school aspiring writer who falls sad Joel (Jim Carrey) on impulsive adventures. in love with a free-spirited goddess-girl.

Look closer. She pours bourbon in her coffee This only scratches the surface of the and eventually crashes Joel’s car. She’s needy, MPDG bender pop culture has been on. irresponsible and sometimes thoughtlessly cruel

Jael Goldfine

COURTESY OF UNIVERSAL PICTURES

to Joel. She’s flawed, with very real, un-adorable issues, neuroses and quirks. Their relationship splits the MPDG schematic in half, and considering the crux of the film is that they deliberately have their memories wiped of each other, Clementine didn’t save Joel, she ruined his life. Clementine even gets poignantly meta at one point and acknowledges her would-be trope: “Too many guys think I’m a concept, or I complete them, or I’m gonna make them alive. But I’m just a fucked-up girl who’s looking for my own peace of mind.”

So, as you consume pop culture, stay alert.

Next time you think you might have spotted the elusive MPDG prancing around around in the rain, resist the urge to whip out those snappy words, and take a closer look. That is, of course, not to say that you will not encounter poorly written, shallow or offensive female characters. But when it comes to discussing these characters, we need a broader, more nuanced range of terms than shoving every flimsy girlfriend into the same tropey box — give bad directors some credit — they can write all kinds of insubstantial, empty women! Let’s talk about these women critically and thoughtfully, and not just on the basis that they love The Smiths.

Jael Goldfine is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at jgoldfine@cornellsun.com. Objectivity Bites runs alternate Thursdays this semester.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

by Garry Trudeau

Mr. Gnu

by Travis Dandro

Piled High and Deeper

by Jorge Cham

TODAY, 5 P.M., 251 MALOTT HALL

Classic Doonesbury (1977)

FALL SEMESTER ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

09/04/14

Get your mind blown with the Daily Sun Science Section every Wednesday!

TO OUR

By Bruce Haight (c)2014 Tribune Content Agency, LLC

Fill in the empty cells, one number in each, so that each column, row, and region contains the numbers 1-9 exactly once.

Each number in the solution therefore occurs only once in each of the three “directions,” hence the “single numbers” implied by the puzzle’s name.

(Rules from wikipedia.org/wiki /Sudoku)

COME

DOWN 33 Some badges 48 Cries 1 Prepares, as 35 Centers of 49 Commencement leftovers activity 50 In __: unborn 2 Mideast airline 36 Seat for a 53 Sudden 3 Absolut rival dummy movement 4 Bit of ink 38 Relaxed 54 __ Sea 5 Naproxen brand 39 Ratted (on) 55 Lawless 6 “Two Women” 44 Literary award character Oscar winner named for a 57 Go out in the 7 “Fool for You” writer afternoon?

Grammy winner 45 Dix et un 58 Keats poem Green 46 __ d’art 59 “The Leftovers” 8 Have 47 Wynonna’s mom airer 9 PEI hours 10 “The African ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE: Queen” co-star 11 Under consideration 12 Straighten 13 Church council 18 Oct- minus one 22 “The Gondoliers” girl 23 Four-letter word 24 Rainbow __ 25 As a result 26 Fruity soda 27 Yeats’ home 28 Top-rated evening TV show of 1961-62 31 Turkey on rye, e.g.

32 Actress Witherspoon 09/04/14 xwordeditor@aol.com

Puzzle # GPA of 0.0 “Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son.”

Help The Sun Rise!

ACROSS 1 Gusto 5 Reynolds Wrap maker 10 Reptile house attractions 14 __-Seltzer 15 Luxury hotel with a YouFirst rewards program 16 Nothing but 17 Keep one’s landlord happy 19 Cross the threshold 20 Tricky 21 Big name in dangerous stunts 22 Sierra follower, in the NATO alphabet 23 Box instruction 26 Not familiar with 29 Staff symbols 30 Part of Q.E.D. 31 __ Belt 34 Jan. honoree 37 Optional learning 40 Suffix with concert 41 “__ Fideles” 42 Back in the day 43 They may be counted 45 Golden number?

46 Usually not a good way to get married 51 Exposed 52 Film with talking bugs 53 NFL’s Jaguars, for short 56 “The Year of Magical Thinking” author Didion 57 “You listen to me,” and an instruction about what to look for in 17-, 23-, 37- and 46-Across 60 Qatari bigwig 61 Chicago’s __ Planetarium 62 Roughage source 63 Facetious nickname for a big guy 64 Gnocchi topping 65 Kan. neighbor

Sun Sudoku

www.cornellsun.com

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

273-3606 for more information

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

COMICS AND PUZZLES

Call

12 THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014 13

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SPORTS

Dalton’s Arm Could Lead Bengals to Super Bowl ZAKOUR

Continued from page 16

weren’t good enough to escape third place in the West, and the Rams were one of the most stout defenses in the league. The Niners’ defense probably won't be elite again, but they reloaded on offense pretty effectively. I see two teams coming out of the west again.

complete team in the AFC, which should get them their division crown, but they need some good QB play to actually make noise in the playoffs. The Steelers have reloaded and with a favorable schedule, and have the best quarterback in their division. A candidate for surprise team in the AFC, the Cleveland Browns, have all Wild Cards: Saints, 49ers the pieces for an excellent defense. If they can get production out of either Johnny Manziel or Brian Hoyer, AFC East: Patriots. It’s the AFC East, do I have to this is a playoff caliber team.

AFC South: The Indianapolis Colts’ schedule and say more? division is conducive to a gaudy record, like 12-4 or 13-3. The Colts maybe the weakest division winner in the AFC, benefiting from by far the easiest schedule, but it’s hard to see them challenged for a division title.

The South features two possible horrendous teams and one mediocre one,, although the Texans and Jaguars are probably on the upswing. New addition Hakeem Nicks could excel catching passes from Andrew Luck.

AFC West: It’s tough sledding for the AFC west, as the teams have to deal with playing all of the NFC west, the best division in football. As a result, it’s going to be tough on last year’s wildcards Chargers and Chiefs, who could regress.

Clearly, the Denver Broncos should win this division as they are the most complete team in the AFC. But if Carr can live up to his promise, the Raiders can field a playoff team for the first time in BARTON SILVERMAN / THE NEW YORK TIMES over a decade.

to an improved record. The Eagles set the division ablaze once Nick Foles established himself as the bird's signal caller, and look to do the same again, but they won't be sneaking up on anyone this time. So my pick is the ultimate wild card not just in the NFC east, but in all of football — the New York Football Giants. They spent big on defense and have a new scheme on offense which will hopefully turn Eli Manning into a real quarterback again (last year - 18 TDS, 27 INTs, 7 fumbles).

NFC North: Barring devastating another injury, the Packers should be much improved. Julius Peppers will be a huge boost to the Packers’ defensive line and combined with a healthy Aaron Rodgers, they should have enough to run away with this division. The Bears were an appreciably better team with Josh McCown under center instead of Jay Cutler, but have pieces on both sides of the ball to contend. The Lions are a huge mess, but a very interesting one with talent everywhere. The Vikings will either start Matt Cassel or a rookie at quarterback, so their season is probably DOA. NFC South: No team in the NFL let more close games get away than the Atlanta Falcons, my pick to win the always topsy turvy NFC south. One year removed from coming up just short of a Luck of the AFC South | Indianapolis Colts’ quarterback Andrew Luck may have led his team to the playoffs the past two Super Bowl season, the years, and being in arguably the worst division in the NFL will likely help him to another berth this season.

Wildcards: Steelers, Falcons floundered to a Raiders 4-12 record. With any luck, they should be able to Maybe I will. The Patriots not only won 12 games in have a seven win improvement. In New Orleans, the a "rebuilding" year, but added Darrelle Revis and Can Andy Dalton avoid spectacular collapse? Can he Saints should be able to ride an improved defense Brandon Browner to fortify their secondary so Julian be *good*? If he can muster play resembling “good,” the thanks to the singing of Jairus Byrd to another playoff Edelman won't have to pedal backwards again. The Bengals can use their skill and defense to win the AFC berth.

Dolphins should blow up, and could end up the worst title. The Seahawks are still the the best team in the NFC West: Awful things happen to teams in Seattle. team in football. The Jets offense should continue to NFL, and in great position to repeat if they can snag The Seahawks were one of the youngest teams to ever betray their defense. The Bills haven't made the playoffs homefield advantage again. But if not, I think the win the Super Bowl, and they did so in such convincing in over a decade, but should feature an elite defensive Packers could upend them in Lambeau. For now, I’ll go fashion that it's hard not to see the Hawks as contenders line and possibly dynamic offense. with a repeat. for the next decade or so. However, they play in the AFC North: It comes down to the quarterbacks in Super Bowl: Seahawks over Bengals toughest division in all of football, the NFC West. I feel the North. Is there a better team top to bottom in the any of the Top-three could win any other division in AFC, all quarterbacks being equal (which they aren't) John Zakour can be reached at jzakour@cornellsun.com. Point Blank appears football (except the AFC West). The Cardinals’ 11 wins than the Cincinnati Bengals? The Bengals are the most every Thursday this semester.

Red Uses Preseason To Ready For Ivies VOLLEYBALL

Continued from page 16

out each other’s styles on the court.

When asked about what she is most nervous for in terms of this upcoming series of games, Wilson said it would be the butterflies that come with stepping onto the court with a new team.

“If anything, it would be the team dynamic and playing together for the first time and how we are able to mesh, but that’s what I'm most excited for as well. We have a brand new team and so far have had great team chemistry, so I think that we will be able to play together really well,” she said.

Batie-Smoose is also looking ahead past this weekend at the bigger season goal of preparing for the Ivy League Championships. She expects her players to stay focused from game to game, but to also remember the bigger picture of league competition.

“The preseason is to help us prepare for the Ivies because that is what counts. This group expects nothing but the best, and their goal is to win the Ivies and go on to the NCAA Tournament,” she said.

“With that goal, every one opponent is equally important. One match, one day at a time.”

Anna Fasman can be reached at afasman@cornellsun.com.

Back in the pocket

MICHELLE FELDMAN / SUN SENIOR EDITOR

Quarterback Jeff Mathews ’14 was cut from the Atlanta Falcons at the end of August, but was added to the practice squad of the Indianapolis Colts on August 31.

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Thursday, September 4, 2014 15

SPORTS

BRITTNEY CHEW / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Gearing Up

Red Teams Prepare for Fall Contests Fall for fighting | On the brink of the start to the 2014 fall season, training has become as intense as ever. The men’s and women’s soccer teams travel for two games this weekend, while the volleyball team heads to South Orange, N.J. for the Seton Hall Tournament.

BRITTNEY CHEW / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

BRITTNEY CHEW / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

BRITTNEY CHEW / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

CONNOR ARCHARD / SUN SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

The Corne¬ Daily Sun

Sports

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

16

VOLLEYBALL

With Seven New Faces, Red Prepares For Opening Weekend Tournament

By ANNA FASMAN

pared for the test.

“Being young may result in some nerves this first weekend, but I think our freshmen are ready for the Starting this Friday and continuing throughout the challenge. They know that they will have the opportuniweekend, the Cornell women’s volleyball team will ty to be big impact players and I can tell they're excited begin its season with a series of games against Seton to prove themselves,” she said.

Hall, UNLV, Siena and Rutgers. Although the Red has Batie-Smoose does not see age as a hindrance to the had a shorter preseason than its opponents, it made effi- team, but rather as motivation to improve from game to cient use of its time. Head coach Melissa Batie-Smoose game. had the team focus on certain aspects “We really have a special group of of the game, such as defensive play, “Being young may result in young women athletes that want to get that she believed would be key in better and compete everyday,” she some nerves this first helping the Red succeed against its said. “Young will not be an excuse for opponents. weekend, but I think our us this year. We are going to go out “Passing and serving are two skills freshmen are ready for the every set and match and compete and we have worked a ton on in the preseaget better.” challenge.” son and we do believe will have to be While the Red has a winning record our strengths. Playing as [many] against Siena, it faces a losing record Alyssa Phelps game-like situations as possible and against both Rutgers and UNLV and minimizing our errors has been anothhas a 2-2 even record with Seton Hall, er focus,” Batie-Smoose said. “Coming together and whom it hasn’t faced since 2003. Both Phelps and playing as one beats teams with more talent.” sophomore middle hitter Macey Wilson agree that With seven new players on the team, the Red is look- Rutgers will be their toughest opponent this weekend. ing to its underclassmen to really step up and fill the However, with a slew of new players and a completely shoes of the four seniors who graduated this past year. fresh dynamic on the court, Wilson is hopeful that While being a relatively young team can have its advan- Cornell will be able to put up a fight. tages later on, coming into this weekend with seven new “We played Rutgers last year and lost, but because we players may leave the Red struggling. However, sopho- have a new team now, I'm excited to see what we can more setter Alyssa Phelps believes that the team is pre- accomplish,” she said.

Sun Assistant Sports Editor

ANTHONY CHEN / SUN FILE PHOTO

All hands on net | The volleyball team is not using youth as an excuse as it readies for the season’s first competition.

While the Red feels ready and excited for its upcoming weekend of games, it also looks at the opening weekend as a chance to solidify the team dynamic and feel See VOLLEYBALL page 14

WOMEN’S SOCCER

2014 NFL Preview: Tierney Kicks Off Second Year in Net Can Seattle C.U. goalie looks to build off successful freshman campaign Repeat?

M

By JOEL COOPER

Sun Staff Writer

VP: Peyton Manning almost assuredly will be the best quarterback in the NFL this year, statistically.

But will voters fatigue after the season he had? Are expectations too high for any mortal man (or what-

looked impressive in the preseason, culminating in throwing two touchdowns against Seattle’s starters (mostly).

NFC East: In its heyday, the NFC east was the NFC’s beast, regularly

John Zakour Point Blank ever type of cyborg Peyton is)? Probably. I’ll go with Aaron Rodgers, who rather shockingly didn’t even place in the Top-10 of the best players in the NFL. Should be a perfect opportunity for Rodgers to gain some steam for an MVP run.

Offensive Rookie: Derek Carr. Despite playing at a mid-major program at Fresno State, Carr might’ve been the best arm talent in this draft. Unlike his rookie peers, we know he’s going to start and has

sending two or even three teams to the playoffs. Now it’s a race to 10 wins for a division title. While the Cowboys’ defense probably won’t be historically bad, it should still be well, bad, and certainly not good enough to absorb any of their injuries. I expect them to contend for the worst team in the NFC rather than a playoff berth. Washington should be able to ride a rejuvenated RGIII and the addition of DeSean Jackson See ZAKOUR page 14

The Cornell women’s soccer team enjoyed one of its most successful seasons in the program’s recent history last year, finishing with a 7-8-1 record. At the heart of many of those wins was goalkeeper Kelsey Tierney, who took over the starting job in just her first year with the team.

Tierney played in 13 games as a freshman, including ten starts in net. She made 53 saves to go against 21 goals allowed, and put up two shutouts.

Tierney first got into soccer at a young age, playing for club and travel teams from the age of four or five. From there she developed as an athlete, originally playing in an outfield position instead of her now more favourable backstop.

“I have been playing my whole life, it was a big part of my life growing up,” Tierney said. “When I was younger I enjoyed playing on the field and being part of the action, but then one of my coaches asked me to play in goal and I thought it was fun and exciting, so I stuck with it.”

Tierney played in net for her high school, Garden City High, for four seasons, helping the program to its first ever New York State Championship win in 2010. She was also part of the Olympic Development Program in 2005, 2010 and 2011-12.

Right alongside soccer, Cornell has always played a part in Tierney’s life. Her uncle played football and lacrosse for the Red. This, along with the women’s soccer team’s great coaching staff, made the decision of adding to her uncle’s legacy

BRIAN STERN / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Bleeding red | Sophomore goalie Kelsey Tierney’s uncle was an athlete at Cornell, and Tierney has been a fan of the school from a young age.

an easy one.

“When I was younger I was always wearing Cornell gear and I always heard great things about the school,” Tierney said. “When I visited I loved the campus and the coaches — they were very supportive of me. I thought Cornell would be a great place to come to play and go to school.”

As a freshman, Tierney originally started on the bench behind Tori Christ ’14, but her skills and competitive nature quickly impressed the coaches and soon she became the Red’s primary backstop.

“I tried to keep a competitive mentality during practice,” Tierney said. “The other goalies on our team are very good and we pushed the competitive level of play up, making me the most competitive player I could be.”

Having had such a successful first year, Tierney spent the offseason focusing on the individual skills integral to a goalkeeper’s development. She spent time with her goalkeeping coach, while also working on her sprint training. Tierney believes this will help the Red to an even stronger finish this season.

“I have really high expectations for the team this year. The team has shown really good leadership and so far we have shown well,” Tierney said. “I am going to try my best to make my team confident in me and make sure I put out my best.”

Joel Cooper can be reached at jcooper@cornellsun.com.