The Justice, November 20, 2012 issue

ARTS Page 21

FORUM Humanities majors still worthwhile 11

HAMLET 2.0

SPORTS Men’s soccer falls in Sweet Sixteen 16 The Independent Student Newspaper

the

of

B r a n d e is U n i v e r sit y S i n c e 1 9 4 9

Justice

Volume LXV, Number 12

www.thejustice.org

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Waltham, Mass.

academics

GITTLER PRIZE

Univ to offer online classes ■ The University is joining a

consortium of ten schools in offering a semester online.

By sam mintz JUSTICE editor

Earlier this week, Brandeis began the first steps toward an experimental new frontier in technology-aided education by announcing that the University has joined a consortium of schools in a program called “Semester Online.”

Starting next fall, students will be able to take a semester of classes

online if they are abroad, doing an internship, staying at home or for whatever reason not able to be on campus.

“Our goals in this are to provide flexibility in education, to expand opportunities for our students to be able to take advantage of online learning,” said Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Birren at a faculty meeting Nov. 9.

The consortium of 10 universities, which includes Duke University, Northwestern University, and Washington University in St. Louis, is partnering with a company

See ONLINE, 7 ☛

JENNY CHENG/the Justice

Social movement expert Doug McAdam, a Stanford sociology professor, speaks at his acceptance of the Joseph B. and Toby Gittler prize on Thursday. See News, p. 5 for more coverage of the event.

athletics

Judges conclude historic run ■ The women’s soccer squad

ended a season for the record books with a 2-0 loss in the NCAA Elite Eight.

By jeffrey boxer JUSTICE editor

The glass slipper could only fit for so long.

The most successful season in history ended last Sunday for the women’s soccer team, as the Judges fell 2-0 to No. 10 Misericordia University. The loss to the Cougars ended the Judges’ run at the Elite Eight of the NCAA Division III Tournament, just one day after defeating SUNY Cortland 2-1 in the Sweet 16. It was the team’s furthest-ever advancement through the tournament, and as icing on the cake, Brandeis’ 16-5-2 record tied a school mark for wins in a season.

“I am extremely thrilled,” coach Denise Dallamora said of the team’s season. “We’re a very good team, but

we were hoping to make nationals, I don’t think we were ever expecting to win three games once we got there. We had a great year.”

Misericordia struck early in the Elite Eight matchup, as sophomore midfielders Erin McGreal and Megan Lannigan combined to get the Cougars on the board just three minutes, 32 seconds into the first half. A cross from the right flank by McGreal found a streaking Lannigan at the back post.

Lannigan then powered it home for her 10th goal of the season.

☛ The men’s soccer

team also rounded out a memorable NCAA run with a 1-0 loss to Williams College. See Sports, p. 16 for more coverage of its tournament success.

The teams battled back and forth for the rest of the half, with forward

Dara Spital ’15 coming closest to a breakthrough. Five minutes before halftime, Brandeis’ leading goal scorer weaved through the Misericordia defense before clanking a shot off of the post.

The Cougars took over in the second half, outshooting the Judges 8-1 the rest of the way. Misericordia’s second tally came on a set piece from just outside of Brandeis’ 18-yard box. Senior forward Laura Roney stepped up and drilled a laser into the bottom corner of the net to double the Cougars’ lead.

“I think we were all exhausted from yesterday’s game, midfielder Sara Isaacson ’16 said in an email to the Justice. “They were all over us the entire game, and we just couldn’t find our rhythm like they did. We got close a few times but unfortunately couldn’t find the back of the net.”

The Judges looked fresh, though, right out of the gate against SUNY Cortland, scoring two first-half goals.

As she had all season, Spital led the way, tallying her 13th and 14th goals.

campus clubs

BTV shoots for revival ■ Brandeis Television

received $4,000 less in funding this year than last.

By marissa ditkowsky JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

Brandeis Television has lost some of its funding this year following controversy last fall about the club’s questionable use of secured funds.

Last year, according to former club leader Ethan Mermelstein ’12 and information gathered from a list of BTV expenses from fiscal 2010, the club spent thousands of dollars of Union funding to produce individual film

See WSOCCER, 13 ☛

projects and pay for club members' flights to the Berlin International Film Festival. Meanwhile, no original content had been shown on BTV channel 65 since 2009.

While an inquiry into its progress from last year has revealed few gains thus far, the club’s new leaders are hoping to give BTV a new image and renewed purpose on campus.

BTV treasurer Ethan Roseman ’15 attributed much of the club's problems in the past couple of years to the make-up of last year’s membership.

Membership presented an issue, Roseman said, as there were only senior and first-year members, leading

See BTV, 7 ☛

Road trip

Strong start

Lawrence abroad

Asher Krell is traveling across the country with friends playing music and interviewing Jewish musicians.

 The women’s basketball team notched its first two home victories in resounding fashion this past weekend at the Judges classic.

 University President Frederick Lawrence will travel to Israel and the UK this week.

sports 16

FEATURES 9 For tips or info email editor@thejustice.org

PHOTO COURTESY OF 2U

DISTANCE LEARNING: Students and a professor demonstrate the 2U platform.

Let your voice be heard!

Submit letters to the editor online at www.thejustice.org

INDEX

ARTS SPORTS

17 16

EDITORIAL FEATURES

10 8

OPINION POLICE LOG

10 2

News 3 COPYRIGHT 2012 FREE AT BRANDEIS. Email managing@thejustice.org for home delivery.

2

TUESDAY, november 20, 2012

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THE JUSTICE

NEWS SENATE LOG

POLICE LOG

Senate recognizes two new clubs

Medical Emergency

In its last meeting before Thanksgiving break, the Senate recognized two new clubs and chartered the Brandeis chapter of the Harry Potter Alliance on its return trip to the Senate after being denied this status at the meeting two weeks ago. There were 16 senators present at the start of the meeting.

To start out the meeting, Executive Senator Ricky Rosen ’14 addressed the Senate on the progress of ongoing projects including the Turkey Shuttles and planning for Midnight Buffet. Rosen reported that many students were taking advantage of the shuttles, and he was hopeful that they would turn a profit.

The Science Club for Girls was first up for recognition and passed by a margin of 14 in favor to two abstentions.

According to leaders who presented at the meeting, the club seeks to provide positive experiences and mentoring to girls in grades K-12 to encourage them to get involved in science and science-related careers. The club is open to both male and female student mentors. The group did not request charter, as it is sponsored by a national parent organization.

After much debate, the Senate also recognized, but denied charter to, the Brandeis Technical Traders Society.

The club, which is interested in financial trading based on “technical analysis,” is geared toward bringing experts in the field to speak on campus, as well as training students to take a technical analyst certification exam.

Many senators were not convinced that the club did not have duality of purpose, citing similarities with umbrella groups such as Business Club and Economics Society. BTTS was ultimately recognized but not chartered.

The Harry Potter Alliance, which was recognized two weeks ago and had returned to seek charter, was the final club to appear before the Senate this week. The club, which aims to further social justice projects through campaigns related to themes of the popular Harry Potter books, emphasized in its presentation that the founder of the national organization, Andrew Slack ’02, “really wants [Brandeis] to have a chapter.” The club leaders sought charter so that they could request money from the Finance Board for administrative costs for their events.

In its initial vote, the Senate did not meet the quorum of eligible voters, as some senators had left the meeting and a few abstained from the vote. After considering inviting HPA vice president and Class of 2015 Senator Sneha Walia to be the deciding vote, the Senate ultimately held a revote and chartered the club.

In other business, the Senate turned down a proposed Senate Money Resolution from North Quad Senator Alex Burger ’16. The SMR would have allocated $59.50 for game supplies for Polaris Lounge. Senators were wary of setting precedent for funding minor Quad projects such as this. Earlier in the semester, the Senate also rejected an SMR to buy hammocks for Massell Quad.

Club Support Committee chair and Senator at Large Charlotte Franco ’15 reported that Club Support had met with Student Activities director Stephanie Grimes, club leaders, other senators and union members two weeks ago to discuss club and general organizational problems throughout the Union. Franco said she expects constitutional and procedural changes to follow.

Nov. 12—University Police received a report of a female in the Mandel Center for the Humanities having a seizure. An ambulance and the Waltham Fire Department responded, and the party was transported to the Newton-Wellesley Hospital.

Nov. 14—The Mailman House reported a Section 12 voluntary and cooperative patient. An ambulance and the Waltham Fire Department were notified, and the patient was transported to the NewtonWellesley Hospital. The community director coordinator on call was notified.

Nov. 15—A party in the Gosman Sports and Convocation Center reported a Brandeis student injured her right shoulder while diving for a ball during a volleyball game. BEMCo was notified, and the patient refused further medical treatment.

Nov. 15—A party in the Intercultural Center Lounge re-

ported that a student required medical attention for a laceration to their right middle finger. BEMCo was notified, and the student refused medical treatment.

Nov. 17—The mother of a student telephoned University Police to report that her daughter in Ziv was complaining of stomach pains. BEMCo responded and requested an ambulance, which transported the student to the Newton-Wellesley Hospital. The quad director on call was notified, and the mother was updated.

Nov. 18—A party in Gordon reported that a female had a small laceration on her back.

BEMCo treated the party onscene with a signed refusal for further care.

Nov. 18—University Police on-scene at Sherman Function Hall requested BEMCo for an intoxicated female party attending an event at Sherman.

BEMCo assessed the patient and cleared her with a signed refusal for further care.

Disturbance

Nov. 15—A faculty member in Rosenstiel reported that a student was refusing to leave her office and requested University Police’s assistance. The student was removed without incident, and the faculty member provided a written statement. A report will be compiled.

Nov. 17—A caller in the Foster Mods reported a female party screaming and crying. Police units were sent to investigate, and they found a female party laying in the middle of the quad. BEMCo was dispatched, and an ambulance for a 20-yearold intoxicated female was notified to transport the party to the Newton-Wellesley Hospital.

Nov. 18—A party in Ridgewood reported that a male party urinated on their door.

The subject was described as a six-foot Asian male wearing a navy hoodie. University Police identified an intoxicated party fitting that description and took him into protective custo-

The Justice is on hiatus for Thanksgiving. Our next issue will be published Dec. 4.

Check our website, www.thejustice.org, periodically for updates.

CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS n An article in Features misspelled the name of the CEO of Siri. His name is Dag Kittlaus, not Doug Kittlaus.

(Nov. 13, pg. 5)

JENNY CHENG/the Justice

Pay it forward Rebecca Bachman ’13 and Gwen Teutsch ’14 collaborate to make fleece blankets for Cradles to Crayons in the Shapiro Campus Center Atrium on Thursday. The project was part of Kindness Week, which was sponsored by the University and lasted from Nov. 12 to 18.

n An article in Arts incorrectly identified musician Dan Deacon as a part of the group Animal Collective. In fact, Deacon is not part of this group. (Nov. 13, pg. 15)

ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Justice welcomes submissions for errors that warrant correction or clarification. Email editor@ thejustice.org.

A panel of Brandeis professors and alumni of the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program program will introduce Brandeis undergraduates to careers in the organized Jewish community and speak on two related Brandeis graduate programs: the Hornstein Program and Day School Leadership Through Teaching Master of Arts in Teaching Program.

Panelists are Chair of the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program Prof. Jonathan Sarna (NEJS), Director of the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education Prof. Sharon Feiman-Nemser (NEJS), student Jessica Lowenthal (Hornstein Class of 2012) and student Josh Pernick (Hornstein Class of 2010.)

Monday from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in Lurias room, Hassenfeld Conference Center.

Justice

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The Justice is the independent student newspaper of Brandeis University. The Justice is published every Tuesday of the academic year with the exception of examination and vacation periods. Editor in chief office hours are held Mondays from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the Justice office.

Editor News Forum Features Sports Arts Ads Photos Managing

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The Justice Brandeis University Mailstop 214 P.O. Box 549110 Waltham, MA 02454-9110 Phone: (781) 736-3750

Nov. 15—A party in Rosenstiel reported there was an odor of something burning coming from the elevator lobbies on floors three, four, five and six.

The party further reported that it smelled electrical. University Police responded and could faintly smell an odor of something burning but observed no signs of fire nor could they pinpoint the source.

Nov. 18—A party in Goldsmith reported that six people climbed onto the roof of the Goldsmith building. University Police conducted a check of the area and found nothing.

The door to access the roof was locked and secure upon the arrival of the police.

—compiled by Marielle Temkin

Israel violence escalates

NOTE TO READERS:

n An article in Arts misstated alumnus Ryan Fanning’s year of graduation as 2012. In fact, Fanning graduated with the Class of 2011. (Nov. 13, pg. 14)

Miscellaneous

WIRE BRIEF

—Tate Herbert

n An article in Forum misquoted a figure from the Sept.

2012 issue of Philadelphia Magazine. The magazine reported that 18,043 people were shot in Philadelphia between Jan. 1, 2001, and May 29, 2012, not between Jan. 2012 and May 2012. (Nov. 13, pg. 7)

dy for intoxication. University Police transported the party to the Waltham Police Station for processing, and a report was compiled on the incident.

Careers in the Jewish community

Women and gender in science

This discussion examines the impact of Uneasy Careers and Intimate Lives, Women in Science, 1789-1979 at its silver anniversary in 2012.

The talk inquires to what extent the mixed reputation of the genre of collective volumes may have obscured the innovative and subversive dimensions of Uneasy Careers. The talk also examines the role of timing (mid-1980s), known as the “me generation,” so different from the social mobilization of women in the 1970s. The talk concludes with a discussion of how historical scholarship on the underrepresentation of women in science in the present was affected by what happened in the 1980s.

Tuesday, Nov. 27, from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in Epstein Lecture Hall.

Dinner and Discussion: “Pathways to G-d”

Dinner and Discussion consists of group discussions based on texts and discussion questions.

The topic will be: what defines transcendence? How does prayer differ from one belief system to another?

What are the key elements common to the various forms of prayer and meditation practiced across faiths?

TEL AVIV, Israel—Saturday was the third day in a row that rockets fired by militants in Gaza managed to reach Israel’s center.

Those who were looking toward the south Saturday evening could see the Iron Dome missile interceptor system exploding a rocket which was aimed at southern Tel Aviv. The system, which was deployed in Tel Aviv earlier this weekend, has been one of the great successes of Israel’s military arsenal.

As of Friday, police officials said that more than 600 rockets had been fired into Israel by militants in Gaza. Of those, more than half fell in open areas away from civilian infrastructure, and more than 240 were intercepted by the Iron Dome.

“Some people think they don’t need to run for cover. They think that Iron Dome is a fail-safe, but it’s not,” said Ron Huldai, the mayor of Tel Aviv.

“We are still urging all Israeli citizens to take cover in shelters or in reinforced areas when they hear the warning sirens.”

Hamas militants took responsibility for the rocket fire into central Israel, confirming Israeli claims that they were firing Iranian-made Fajr-5 missiles.

Israel, meanwhile, bombarded the Gaza Strip with more than 300 air strikes, widening its attacks to include Hamas administrative buildings.

An Israeli air strike also destroyed the Hamas prime minister’s headquarters, a police compound and a police training area. Witnesses in the southern Gaza Strip said that Israeli air strikes were also hitting the hundreds of smuggling tunnels linking Gaza to Egypt.

Speaking to reporters on a military base near Gaza, Maj. Gen. Tal Russo, head of the military’s southern command, said that Israel was “absolutely” ready to send in ground troops.

The recent exchanges between Israel and militants in Gaza came as Egypt attempted to broker a ceasefire amid the various Palestinian factions in Gaza.

So far, over 100 Palestinians, including 53 civilians, have been killed, while three Israeli civilians have died, according to BBC. —McClatchy Newspapers and BBC

Sponsored by BaRuCH and Brandeis Interfaith Group.

Tuesday, Nov. 27, from 7 to 9 p.m. in Usen Castle Commons.

Eli J. Segal Citizen Leadership info session

If you are looking for a meaningful, challenging and rewarding experience this summer and are committed to a lifetime of contributing to the common good, then the Eli J. Segal Citizen Leadership Program might be for you. The Segal Program elevates service and citizen leadership as central strategies critical to the health and well-being of our democracy.

We place between six and nine undergraduates and Masters of Public Policy students every summer at government and nonprofit agencies in Boston, New York City and Washington, D.C. We provide $3,500 for undergraduates, $5,000 for Heller MPP students and lifetime membership in the prestigious Segal Network.

Wednesday, Nov. 28, from noon to 12:30 p.m., Shapiro Campus Center room 313.

THE JUSTICE

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TUESDAY, november 20, 2012

ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT

Burnat examines West Bank nonviolent protest ■ A nonviolent resistance

leader from the village of Bil’in talked about his experiences in Palestine.

By MARIELLE TEMKIN JUSTICE EDITOR

LESLIE KAMEL/the Justice

MILITARY ETHICS: Pflanzer addressed the moral and ethical issues facing the IDF.

Former captain discusses IDF ■ Benny Pflanzer spoke to

students about the Israel Defense Forces’ code of military ethics.

By ARIEL GLICKMAN JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

The Israel Defense Forces, established in 1948 to protect the Jewish democratic state, is distinct from other militaries, said Benny Pflanzer, former captain in the IDF’s paratroop corps and operations officer. Pflanzer spoke to an audience of roughly 30 students in Hassenfeld Conference Center on Sunday.

With its own ethical code, the IDF has bound Israeli soldiers and commanders since 1992 to a set of rules and fundamental values that guide their actions during combat.

Responsibility, dignity and preservation of civilian life are among the ten principles Pflanzer defined as “the spirit of Tzahal”— ideals that combine Israeli and international law with Jewish and military heritage, which he said are apparent in Israel’s recent strikes in Gaza.

In an effort to minimize the loss of civilian life from airstrikes in Gaza, “Israel is spreading flyers,” Pflanzer said. “They’re spreading [flyers] to different areas and saying, ‘You know, we know there is a Hamas base over here. We’re going to attack it soon. If you live around it, please evacuate your home.’”

The discussion was an indictment of Hamas and Hezbollah for using civilians— even children—as bait to reel in Israeli soldiers. Pflanzer recounted one of his ethical dilemmas during the Second Lebanon War in 2006 in which Hezbollah, against the Israeli-imposed curfew, ordered children to play in the street to divert IDF troops. Though Israeli soldiers were instructed to drive through villages without stopping, the thought of killing innocent civilians was appalling to many. “[T]he commander in the first vehicle in that time that I was there couldn’t do it—just couldn’t do it because of his morals. He felt that he can’t [sic] just let innocent kids … just playing over there suffer. So, he stopped. And we paid … a very large price for that,” said Pflanzer.

The result was a bomb that hit the

commander’s vehicle, murdering several Israelis as well as the children. These types of scenarios in which Hezbollah and Hamas are willing to sacrifice Palestinians to eradicate Israelis are among the challenges Israel faces, Pflanzer stressed. “We’re trying to avoid hurting any innocent people, but it seems like the other side is playing according to different … rules.”

Pflanzer attributed this distinction to the IDF’s high standards and an Israeli code of conduct that is stricter than that of other Middle Eastern countries.

Defending Israel and avoiding civilian casualties often come into conflict. “I’m expected to risk myself or my soldier with me. You know the two complete the mission,” Pflanzer said, but, “you’re being challenged every single second. It’s not that you need to make one decision in your life and that’s it.” With every tactical move and each new piece of intelligence, commanders are required to reanalyze the possible scenarios to determine what is best for their soldiers and their country.

But, while the IDF faces challenging situations, Pflanzer stressed that it is prepared to make these crucial decisions until Israel meets its ultimate goals of security and independence.

Many attendees were pleased with the discussion in general, but some felt that it was incomplete and wanted to hear how Hamas or Hezbollah would frame civilian casualties. “I’m obviously interested to hear the other side, but it sounds like … you can’t deny [the civilian casualties],” said Chelsea Polaniecki ’16 in an interview with the Justice. She added that Pflanzer’s presentation seemed fair. “We see where Hamas is aiming their rockets and … their missiles, and he [Pflanzer] just said [it] in the most truthful way.”

Melissa Sirt ’16 also came to the event to learn more about ethics in the Middle East. “I think it’s important to be reminded … how [the IDF] really try to keep to these [ethical] codes, especially … at this time when people are trying to show the opposite.”

Western countries are eager for a cease-fire to end the most recent wave of Israeli airstrikes and Palestinian rocket fire. As of press time, there was no sign of success from truce talks in Cairo.

In the small village of Bil’in in the West Bank, a demonstration against the barrier separating the West Bank from Israel occurs every Friday. The head of Bil’in’s Popular Committee and one of the leaders of the village’s nonviolent resistance movement, Iyad Burnat, spoke on Wednesday at an event sponsored by Brandeis Students for Justice in Palestine.

“When we go on our demonstrations, we hope to end the occupation by the next Friday,” Burnat said of the weekly protests. The students in attendance, approximately 30, applauded his hopes of easing the tensions in the West Bank.

He explained, “In 2004, the Israelis started to build the wall in the Bil’in area. … They destroyed much of our land to build this wall, and the land of villages all around.” Because of this, Burnat and other members of the village started their weekly nonviolent demonstrations. “We do other demonstrations on other days too, always nonviolent,” Burnat said.

To illustrate what goes on at these demonstrations, he played clips from a film Bil’in Against the Wall for his audience. The film showed scenes of Palestinians gathering near the barrier, holding signs and chanting “No, no to the wall” in Arabic, among other similar things. In most of these scenes, the Israeli Defense Forces stand on the other side of the barrier, telling the Palestinians to disperse. In some instances, the film showed the IDF throwing tear gas canisters into the crowd to scatter the protestors or threatening the

Palestinians with batons and guns.

Other scenes from the film showed what Burnat meant by “other demonstrations,” which include creative protests. Among the examples shown in Bil’in Against the Wall were protestors who locked themselves in a metal cage, others who were placed inside metal canisters and chained together to blockade a road, and others who break the curfew in Bil’in by playing with chimes and drumming on metal lids.

The idea behind the first two examples, according to Burnat, is to slow down the IDF’s progress for the day because the soldiers must first free the protestors from their cage or canister and disperse the crowds and then continue, taking up their working time for the day.

While Bil’in was the first village to start these organized nonviolent demonstrations, Burnat says that the idea has spread to about 20 other villages near Bil’in. “Since 2005, we have had 1,300 injured and 39 killed,” Burnat said. “The Israelis wanted to break [Bil’in residents] in any way they could because they didn’t want us to spread this way, this nonviolence, to other places in Palestine, but after two years, we started in a new village.”

He continued, “From the beginning in the new village, they tried to break the people there.

They killed five in one year; the first was an 11-year-old child. He was a nonviolent demonstrator like the others. He got a bullet in his head.”

“But we continue our struggle despite this violence from Israeli soldiers. We continue because we have our right to have our land and to have our freedom to demolish this apartheid wall.”

Burnat said that, while it is difficult to continue nonviolently in the face of violence, “We have our friends. Every week Israeli

activists and new people join us, and now in 20 places we have people.” The group Anarchists Against the Wall, an Israeli group that supports the popular Palestinian resistance to the wall, is one that regularly joins the Bil’in villagers.

A member of Brandeis SJP and one of the coordinators for the event, Noam Lekach ’14, said in an interview with the Justice that he is a part of AATW and has taken part in the protests. “I believe a joint struggle of Palestinians and Israelis is the only way to fight against occupation,” he said. “I, as an Israeli, should be in solidarity with the struggle. We’re trying to be allies and support people who fight for their freedom in whatever they need.”

Lekach continued, “We invited Burnat to Brandeis because I think it’s important for people at Brandeis to see and hear what’s happening in Palestine because they either just don’t care or just want to ignore it.

Echoing Lekach’s sentiments was Morgan Conley ’13, a member of Brandeis SJP and Jewish Voice for Peace. “I think the importance of bringing these events to campus is to educate the student body because, for the most part, there’s a big part of our campus that’s connected to Israel but unfortunately most of them are uneducated about the reality on the ground,” she said.

Master’s student Tareq Jawabri ’12, who is Palestinian, came to campus last fall. “I came to the United States to do my studies because I wanted to find a solution, which is why I’m doing my master’s in conflict resolution,” he said. “A lot of what I find here is that a lot of people at Brandeis might just know one side of the story and not the other side, and that’s why it’s good for such events about Palestine and Israeli to go on, so everyone can hear both sides and make their own judgments.”

BRIANNA MUSSMAN/the Justice

PEACEFUL PROTESTER: Students for Justice in Palestine brought Iyad Burnat, a demonstration coordinator, to campus.

3

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THE JUSTICE

TUESDAY, november 20, 2012

5

NIGHT OF NETWORKING

BRIEF Lawrence visits Israel and UK University President Frederick Lawrence is traveling abroad this week to meet with alumni in Great Britain and Israel as part of his plans to connect with alumni and donors abroad.

Lawrence and his wife Kathy made their first stop in London this past weekend to “help the Alumni Club of Great Britain celebrate the 25th anniversary of its signature event, the Alumni-Student Thanksgiving Day Tea,” on Nov. 18, according to a BrandeisNOW press release.

Alumni, students and friends of the University attended the event.

On Wednesday, Lawrence will visit Israel at an event hosted

by United States Ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro ’91 and his wife, Julie Fisher ’90. The Alumni Club of Israel is organizing the event.

This will be Lawrence’s third trip to Israel during his time as president, and it comes in the midst of increased tensions between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

At least 107 people have been killed, according to a New York

●

Times article from yesterday, and hundreds more have been wounded.

When Lawrence announced his plans for this week at the faculty meeting on Thursday, Nov. 8, he jokingly referred to the Wednesday event as “Erev Thanksgiving,” and said that he will have additional business in Israel as well.

“Part of this trip … will be meeting with potential donors in Israel,” he said.

“We are looking forward to welcoming President Lawrence back to Israel, and honored that Ambassador Shapiro and his wife are serving as our hosts for the evening,” said Glen Shear ’81, president of the Alumni Club of Israel.

“We expect this event will serve as a kickoff for a series of exciting club programs for our more than 400 Brandeis alumni in Israel.”

Associate Vice President for Communications Bill Burger declined to comment by press time.

—Sam Mintz

campus speaker

Heller professor analyzes election ■ Prof. Michael Doonan

Ph.D. ’02 (Heller) spoke about the implications of the election on public policy.

By allyson cartter JUSTICE senior WRITER

Last Tuesday Prof. Michael Doonan Ph.D. ’02 (Heller) offered an analysis of the recent elections in a presentation titled “Election 2012: The President, Congress and Social Policy Implications” at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management.

The event was part of the Tuesday Talks series in which Heller faculty members and researchers offer presentations on select Tuesdays, as described on the Heller website.

Doonan began by asking the audience for types of public policy they saw in the presidential election race. Responses included tax equity, jobs, higher education, health care and immigration. Doonan then stated that though President Barack Obama had clearly stated that he would raise taxes for the rich, he did not have a specific mandate for these other public policy issues.

Because of the distribution of power between government branches and other factors such as “weak,” almost “parliamentary” political parties and the effects of the Tea Party, “it’s really hard to pass public policy; the bar’s really high to get something passed,” Doonan said. Parties today have less overlap where they can make deals than they have had in the past, he continued.

Doonan noted the importance of

states in setting precedence for federal policymaking. He cited two examples: Massachusetts’ health care reform law, which in turn shaped the federally-enacted Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and New York’s requirement that fast food restaurants post nutritional information, which is influencing national regulations.

With respect to Gov. Mitt Romney’s loss in the presidential race, Doonan pointed to Republican candidates such as Rep. Todd Akin of Missouri, whose remarks about “legitimate rape” helped contribute to a 20 percent gender gap in voting, with more women voting for Obama and more men for Romney. A tough primary race in which Republican presidential primary candidate Newt Gingrich had “already slandered” Romney, “kept [Romney] on the right wing” and opened the door for further criticism from the Democratic party, Doonan continued.

The election was also notable for its use of social media, said Doonan, which “might be an avenue to have people matter even more.” However, despite the “need to have a sophisticated media policy,” the people-topeople and door-to-door component of campaigning, demonstrated by Obama’s campaign, is important for close races, he continued.

Doonan is the director of the Masters of Public Policy program, the executive director of the Massachusetts Health Policy Forum and director of the Council for Health Care Economics and Policy. He has also previously served as a member of President Bill Clinton’s Health Care Task Force and as a legislative aide for Senator John Kerry.

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Hiatt brings experts The Hiatt Career Center held the fourth annual Biotech, Health and Science Forum on Wednesday night. The event featured a panel discussion moderated by Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Birren titled, “Addressing Unmet Medical Need.”

awards

Gittler Prize awarded to Stanford sociologist ■ Doug McAdam was

recognized with the Joseph B. and Toby Gittler Prize for his groundbreaking research on racial politics and social movements in America.

By allyson cartter JUSTICE senior writer

Last Thursday, Stanford Prof.

Doug McAdam spoke in Rapaporte Treasure Hall about the role of race in contemporary and historical American politics and how it will factor into the future of the Republican Party as he accepted the fourth annual Joseph B. and Toby Gittler Prize.

McAdam is a sociology professor and the director of the program on urban studies at Stanford University. He is the author of two books, and his research has delved into civil rights with his examination of the 1964 Freedom Summer—a campaign in which approximately 1,000 volunteers registered black voters in Mississippi—and civic engagement with his study of Teach for America graduates.

The prize is designed “to recognize outstanding and lasting scholarly contributions to racial, ethnic and/or religious relations” and includes a cash prize of $25,000 and a medal.

Joseph B. Gittler, who created the award, was a sociologist and taught at many universities over a span of 60 years, the prize’s website states. According to Provost Steve Goldstein ’78, who introduced the presentation, Gittler did not teach at or have an official affiliation with Brandeis but selected the University to host the award in recognition of “the distinctive character of this institution.”

Prof. Chad Williams (AAAS) then introduced McAdam and said that he himself had benefited from Mc-

Adam’s work in his own research.

He cited McAdam’s “fundamentally different vantage point” in viewing the role of race in politics and his ability to “transgress disciplinary boundaries and illuminate issues across time and space” as placing McAdam “ahead of the curve” in his field.

After being awarded the medal by Goldstein and Williams, McAdam gave his presentation, titled “The Continuing Significance of Race in America’s Politics of Inequality.”

He said that he had known Gittler personally when he was in the “first two years of [his] academic career” at George Mason University when Gittler was a visiting professor in sociology there.

Based upon this interaction, McAdam said that “[Gittler’s] values were exactly what is reflected in this prize.”

Race in American politics is the “thread that runs through all my works,” said McAdam. Despite rhetoric that we are in a post-racial society, which he “desperately wanted to believe … was true,” “we continue to wrestle, deeply wrestle, with this deeply American issue” of race, he said.

According to McAdam, the United States today displays extreme racial inequality, with the widest gap in income and access to education and health care since the Great Depression, and the greatest political polarization since the 10-year leadup to the Civil War. The post-World War II period until the 1970s displayed the most equality, McAdam said. This period boasted an ideological overlap between the two political parties, while the ideological gap has been widened in recent times by the entrance of “extreme right Tea Party members” into the political sphere in 2010, he continued.

McAdam stated that the main three factors that determine Tea Party adherence, sympathy and “hard-core” dedication are an-

tipathy toward President Barack Obama, “racial resentment” and lack of support for an egalitarian social order.

In the 1950s, McAdam said, the Republican Party was moderatecentrist and was more liberal in racial and civil rights voting than the Democratic Party, a holdover from its history as an abolitionist party and as the party of President Abraham Lincoln. Today, the GOP displays “exclusionary politics of all manner of ‘others’,” including racial minorities and immigrants, he continued.

McAdam cited six historical moments that contributed to the ideological shift in the two parties, the first of which was the renationalization of race during the Cold War, during which the United States’ racism was viewed as a political and foreign policy liability as they aimed to model other countries’ governments after their own.

According to McAdam, subsequent significant historical moments include the historically blue-state South beginning to vote Republican around 1964; Republican President Richard Nixon’s focus on the Southern vote and attempts to institute segregationist policies, the efforts for which were interrupted by the Watergate scandal and his resignation; and Republican President Ronald Reagan’s “full realization of Nixon’s vision,” which included “tax policies that fueled a lot of the [racial] inequality” and an “attack on welfare.”

These factors in part contributed to Obama capturing 75 percent of the Hispanic vote in 2008 and 71 percent in 2012, said McAdam.

Due to the United States’ projected demographics, in which whites will be in the minority by 2050, a party as “racially exclusive” as the Republican Party is doomed to fail, said McAdam. However, “there may be hope that we can put this dilemma behind us, but we’re not quite there yet,” he concluded.

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Hard at work Hanna Switlekowski ’13 (left) pads a capsule for an egg drop contest called “Get EGGcited About ExCEL” on Wednesday. The participants’ contraptions were dropped off of the SCC balcony.

BTV: New club board plans to put more content online to a lack of content because so many members were still attempting to learn the ropes.

“BTV has actually gotten less funding this year than we have in previous years. We think that’s in part due to the lack of content last year,” said Roseman in an interview with the Justice. The Finance Board could not be reached for comment prior to press time regarding the reasoning for the cut in funding.

According to F-Board Chair Nathan Israel ’14, the F-Board has recently taken action in order to determine the proper funding that clubs should receive depending upon their purposes and initiatives. “Emails have been sent out by our secretary requesting that all clubs send in and update My Brandeis with their constitutions,” said Israel in an interview with the Justice. “So, while we’re waiting for those to come in … we hope to take into account what a club was established for in determining how much money they receive. It’s not something we do right now, but it is a move we’re going toward.”

The lack of junior and sophomore members in BTV led the first-year members from the 2011-2012 school year to take charge of the club as sophomores. Despite the fact that the board is full of underclassmen, the members have begun attempting to regain the status of BTV as a productive club.

“I think the difference mainly between this year and last year is that we are definitely trying to become much more Brandeis-oriented,” said BTV Secretary Margaret Hoffman ’15 in an interview with the Justice.

“We’re working with lots of different clubs on campus … We have the ability to further student productions; we have the ability to advertise a bunch of things going on … So we’re trying to really become a resource for people to use on campus.”

According to an October 18, 2011 Justice article, technical issues with BTV’s channel have existed in the past, resulting in a lack of broadcasting.

“We work through MTS, so some of the things are a bit reliant on them,

and they’ve done a great job, but some of their hardware had some minor issues last year and the channel wasn’t accessible everywhere,” said BTV President Rohan Narayanan ’15 in an interview with the Justice. “We’ve had multiple meetings with MTS and we’re having another one in a few weeks to just solidify accessibility and their technology so that we’re clear on both ends, but we’re also looking to get the channel accessible on our website and in different ways so that people can see it not just through their TVs.” According to Roseman, restoring the channel was a priority to share students’ works funded by BTV. “We … purchased something at the very beginning of the year, which is a new set-top box for the channel, which is kind of like the server for all the videos, so that’s now in there and the channel should be stable,” said Roseman. In addition to the channel, according to Roseman, the club plans to publish content on its new website, brandeis.tv, Facebook page and YouTube channel.

According to Narayanan, the channel is currently up and running but is only showing content from previous years that they are hoping to update this year. The club has also posted three videos on its Facebook page, including two submitted by member James Conlon ’16, and episode one of a new project called “Deisian Couple,” which can also be found on the club’s YouTube channel “deistv.”

Although the club has received less funding compared to last year, only $13,000 according to the My Brandeis Club Center website, BTV is not currently planning to ask for more funding for this school year. “We’re not really planning on asking for more funding because we want to kind of prove to the F-Board that we deserve the funding we got, and … that we can use it well, so maybe next year we’ll get more funding,” said Hoffman.

“But we’re going to try to have a big event on campus, and we’re also going to try to maybe buy a camera [and are] looking into new equipment to get, as well as still funding student productions, so we just want to make the most use of the money we have.” Last

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2012

7

ONLINE: Each of ten schools to offer 3 courses

EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

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year, BTV received $17,000 in funding, according to the October 18, 2011 Justice article.

According to BTV Marketing Manager Giselle Silberman ’15, the board plans to produce Internet shorts, in addition to those that are already in production under the direction of current members. Hoffman also added that the club has been working on filming events on campus, such as the Bob Dylan forum.

The club’s current constitution, which was adopted in 2004, states that its purposes are “To provide an arena for the members of the BTV community to pursue their personal, educational and ideological growth … To create an organization based on leadership, cooperation, trust, education, and respect … To provide individuals an environment to advance their knowledge of television within the Brandeis community … To deliver original, member-produced programming to the Brandeis Community through various multimedia outlets.”

The Student Union granted Brandeis Television seccured club status in 2002. In a November 5, 2002 Justice article, the club was described as a 24-hour cable television network, using funds to feature two original series, purchase equipment and present these projects to the Brandeis community.

According to Israel, should a club stray from its original intent, F-Board does not have the authority to take action. “We do not overstep our bounds in the Union. We’re a separate branch of the Union from the Senate, which is responsible for what happens when a club is no longer following its constitution,” said Israel. “[I]f we notice that they’re not following their constitution … we are allowed to recommend them for review to the Senate.”

The current board hopes to have a successful year, increasing both membership and productivity. “We are a new club. We’re starting from the ground up,” said Roseman. “All of the board is new, and we’re all sophomores, so I just kind of want to tell everyone to be aware of that, because although we have the same name, we aren’t the same people.”

called 2U, “a private online education company based in Landover, Maryland,” according to a BrandeisNOW release. The universities involved are being considered founding members—meaning that there will be openings for more schools to join once the system is developed and kinks are worked out.

The arrangement is still in the early planning stages, said Birren in an interview with the Justice, but conversations will begin soon and proceed rapidly throughout the spring and summer in time to have courses prepared by fall 2013.

Initially, each of the 10 consortium universities will likely provide three undergraduate courses, according to Birren, so the initial course schedule on 2U will include approximately 30 courses. 2U already has several graduate school programs, but this arrangement with the consortium represents the company’s first foray into undergraduate education.

Birren said that each course on 2U will have “both synchronous and asynchronous” aspects, meaning that students will have certain times during the week when they will have to be present via webcam for a lecture or discussion section, but that there will also be work for them to do on the website at any time during the week. Each “section” or lecture will include no more than 20 students, and will, like any old-fashioned class, be taught by professors from Brandeis or any of the 10 consortium schools.

While Birren said that the University will likely give course credits for the 30 initial courses that will be offered on the website, she said that there may be some restrictions and that it is yet to be determined whether these courses will count toward University or major requirements.

“There are systems already in place” for dealing with these questions, she said, comparing a 2U course to a course at an institution abroad that must be approved by the University and individual departments if it is to count toward requirements.

Though starting this fall students will only be able to take a full semester of online classes, rather than pick and choose individual classes, Birren said that in the future, it might be possible to just take one or two at a time as the system evolves.

While the financial details of the arrangement are “complicated and still being worked out,” according to Birren, students who are paying University tuition will not have to

pay extra for online courses. At the faculty meeting, she said that the arrangement should be “at least neutral” for the University, and could potentially even make a profit.

The 2U model is one of the first of its kind, though some universities offer courses on platforms such as a website called Coursera, which according to the website is “a social entrepreneurship company that partners with the top universities in the world to offer courses online for anyone to take, for free.”

Coursera counts such top-tier universities as Columbia University, Brown University and University of Pennsylvania among its 33 partners. As of right now, participants who take classes on Coursera are not able to get credit from their courses, though the company recently announced that five of their courses are being evaluated by the American Council on Education, and could be deemed worthy of credit.

Birren said that the massive open online course model that Coursera uses is very different from what 2U offers.

“In MOOCs, most people don’t finish the classes,” she said, while through 2U, students will be required to complete the course to get University credit.

Online learning has its critics, including Mark Edmundson, a professor at the University of Virginia, who wrote in an op-ed piece for The New York Times that said, “A real course creates intellectual joy, at least in some. I don’t think an Internet course ever will.”

He continued, saying that “Internet learning promises to make intellectual life more sterile and abstract than it already is—and also, for teachers and for students alike, far more lonely.”

While Birren said that different students have different learning styles, she thinks that “this may be the best possible way to learn for some students,” and that the arrangement will at least greatly increase educational flexibility.

In an email to the University community, Birren and Provost Steve Goldstein ’78 expressed their excitement about the plan.

“Distance learning is clearly a part of our future, and we need to find ways to do it well, while also preserving the distinctive character of a Brandeis education,” the message read.

“Semester Online is an important step in that direction. We look forward to implementing this initiative. We are sure it will be a valuable learning experience for all of us who participate.”

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Justice

The Independent Student Newspaper of Brandeis University Since 1949

8

features

TUESDAY, november 20, 2012

just

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THE JUSTICE

VERBATIM | CHARLIE CHAPLIN Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in longshot.

ON THIS DAY…

FUN FACT

In 1789, New Jersey became the first U.S. state to ratify the Bill of Rights.

Americans eat roughly 535 million pounds of turkey on Thanksgiving.

Force of change Khazei discusses book and co-founding City Year nonprofit

By ALEXA BALL JUSTICE CONTIBUTING WRITER

“Pursue your dreams, don’t take the conventional route.” Words of advice from guest speaker Alan Khazei’s book Big Citizenship: How Pragmatic Idealism Can Bring Out the Best in America, prefaced the interactive discussion held in the Heller School for Social Policy and Management on Nov. 15. As part of the Eli J. Segal Seminar in Citizen Leadership and Service course taught by Prof.

Larry Bailis (Heller), the talk focused on the steps to becoming a successful citizen leader and advocate for social justice.

Khazei is the cofounder of the national service program City Year, “an education focused, nonprofit organization that unites young people of all backgrounds for a year of full-time service to keep students in school and on track to graduation,” according to its website. He is also the founder and former executive of the nonprofit Be the Change Inc., author of Big Citizenship and was a candidate in the 2009 Massachusetts Senate Democratic special election primary. Khazei is also working with a new campaign, New Politics, which focuses on empowering people who have completed national service to run for political office.

Khazei was also Eli Segal’s close friend. “[He] had more impact on me developing as a leader than anybody else that has been in my life… [Segal] always challenged me,” Khazei said. Segal founded AmeriCorps during the Clinton administration and is the namesake of the Segal Fellows at Brandeis, a program committed to inspiring new leaders and encouraging citizen service.

In front of nearly 25 eager students and staff, Khazei opened the workshop with a discussion of his book, which he said he wrote partly because he wanted to tell the story “of how ordinary people do extraordinary things.” Also, he said, it was “a way to say thank you because I’ve been privileged to pursue my dreams … with people like Eli rallied around me.”

He continued to tell the group his personal story, which began on Sept. 8, 1979 when he was assigned to be roommates with future partner and City Year cofounder Michael Brown at Harvard College.

“We found we both had this passion to want to change the country,” Khazei said of his first-year roommate. “We finally realized that what we could do as young people was to develop [what we called] an ‘action tank,’” a notion built around bringing thinkers and their ideas together.

In collaboration with presidential candidate Gary Hart, Segal and presidential candidate Bill Clinton, Khazei and Brown were able to grow City Year into a national program.

However, Khazei said tnat the turning point for him was in June 2003, when President George W. Bush and the Republican Congress cut the funding for AmeriCorps.

Khazei said his response “was to organize his coalition. Hang together, that was our attitude. We all had to combine forces if we were going to save this program.”

“That’s when I realized this is the power of citizens to make change, the power of coalitions. That led me to leave City Year ultimately. Eli passing was a big part of that. It

got me to reflect about what I really wanted to do,” said Khazei.

Following his departure from City Year, Khazei began Be the Change, Inc., a national nonprofit dedicated to creating issue-based campaigns through organized coalitions. He also decided to run for Senater in Massachusetts.

“It’s a real privilege [to run for office] because you get a window into what’s really going on,” Khazei said. “Part of the reason I ran and part of the reason I wrote the book … was that I think we need a new way to do politics and a new way of solving problems … We have to get back to our roots; we have to get back to what the role of citizens is in our democracy.”

With one final statement by Khazei about the importance of empowering the people and after a hearty round of applause, the discussion opened to the group.

The first question came from Bailis, who asked about useful lessons Khazei has learned on his path to becoming a citizen leader. Khazei responded with three pieces of advice.

First, he asserted, it is important to work together with others. “What I’d say to you, is, if you want to make a difference, find a partner and build a team. Nobody changes the world alone,” Khazei said.

Also, he said, “you have to have a big vision for people to get inspired by, and you have to be really concrete.”

Lastly, Khazei alluded to what he calls the “guardian angel.” This, he said, is the “spirit of public service [and of] idealism, and there’s a spirit of people wanting to make a difference.”

“If you knock on enough doors, you’re going to get a lot of no’s, but you’re going to get enough yes’s to succeed,” he asserted.

Khazei continued to maintain that the way to get work done and to implement change, especially those who have completed national service, is to become an advocate and to create a community. “What I realized is that the larger change comes from coalitions, from people banding together,” he said.

He also reiterated the importance of having citizens with national experience becoming involved in politics, and encouraged that everyone become political and become an advocate. Although politics may not always be enjoyable, he said, “Until we get people like you to change it, it won’t change.”

In response to the program, International Business School Masters of Business students Laura Rooney and Gabriel Ellis-Ferrara both said they found Khazei’s discussion to be inspiring and motivational.

“I came in with a sense that political engagement was important, and I think that [Khazei’s] take away about needing to do more than just vote is a good call to all of us,” said Rooney. “[Khazei] gave really good insight on how to use an action oriented approach to change a political system that many people seem to be frustrated by,” said Ellis-Ferrara.

Echoing the words of reforming Unitarian minister, Theodore Parker, in his closing words, Khazei asserted that “‘the arc of the universe is long, but it bends towards justice.’ The people that are fighting for a better life, a better world, an equal world, a more just world—we are winning.”

JON EDELSTEIN/the Justice

CREATING PARTNERSHIPS: Khazei spoke about his book, which encourages collaboration to make change.

BRIDGET CASS/Flickr Creative Commons

EMPOWERED ALLIANCE: City Year is an AmeriCorps program that works to ensure that students stay in school by giving them the support, materials and opportunities they need to be academically successful.

THE JUSTICE

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TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2012

Jewish music on the road

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ASHER KRELL

UNCOVERING A MUSICAL WORLD: Krell, Rotenberg and Rosenbaum set out on a 16-week roadtrip across the United States that will end in December, learning about and documenting Jewish music and musicians.

Krell journeys across the country discovering Jewish music By jaime kaiser JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

It’s Middle Of Nowhere, America and Asher Krell, former Brandeis student and friends Sam Rosenbaum and Sam Rotenberg pull up to a gas station between destinations to refill their rickety Toyota Sienna that they affectionately named Ginger. The average traveler with reactions ranging from nostalgia to condescension, might assume them to be three best friends taking their inaugural post-adolescent road trip.

They would be right of course, but this road trip has a twist.

Krell, who intended to attend Columbia University’s medical engineering program this fall, set out in early September on a 16week journey to various cities across the country to explore the world of Jewish music along with two of his close friends from summer camp. “We’ve been on the road for 11 weeks and 25 states so far,” said Krell.

“One of the greatest things about this trip has been being in the car with them.”

The project is called Rock Shabbat, a title that originated from the project’s Facebook description. The end date of the trip is Dec. 22—the supposed end of the Mayan Calendar. The original Rock Shabbat Facebook description said, “this isn’t the end of the world, it’s only Shabbat,” the word rock meaning “only” in Hebrew.

The trip is documented in the form of a 20-minute webisode released every Saturday night on their website www.rockshabbat.com. These episodes document the journey and include conversations and performances by Jewish musicians, as well as other interesting occurrences on their travels.

Krell’s involvement in the project started during the summer of 2012 when Rotenberg and Rosenbaum, fellow staff members at Camp Ramah Darom in Georgia, asked him if he would come along as their videographer and video editor. Krell had been head of the video and photography program at the camp and was getting positive feedback on the short clips of the camp activities that he had created there.

“The first thing I told them was no,” Krell admitted. He spent his first three years of undergraduate study at Brandeis as a Biology major and had planned on attending the Columbia University medical engineering program beginning this fall. “They continued to push. Three weeks later I got back to them and told them I could do it. How often in life do you get to do something like this?” said Krell.

He explained, “The trip was a chance to learn about something that is very much a part of the Jewish community that I didn’t know that much about coming into it.”

The media component of the project however, was nothing new for him, as Krell has always enjoyed sharing his experiences through social media.

“What’s really fun about this project is it’s not like we’re making a film where we’re going to ask people to sit down for an hour and a half and go get a big picture of what we’ve done. It’s very live, very real time. …

We put up [the episodes] as we go. It’s an experience that we’re having on the road, and we’re trying to share that same experience,” Krell said.

He did similar videographer work at Brandeis, including working on the video “Sh*t Science Majors Don’t Say,” as well as holding the posts of photography editor and

EAGER EXPLORERS: Rotenberg, Rosenbaum and Krell (left to right) have visited 25 states so far.

associate editor of the Justice.

Krell’s ability to be both a Biology major and be involved in journalism and film is, in his opinion, one of Brandeis’ greatest strengths as a university. “What I really miss and love about Brandeis is the community. It is never like you’re in this clique and you do this and you are this,” Krell said.

The inclusive nature of the Brandeis community is something Krell feels as he travels to meet with various Jewish musicians across the States. “We have stayed in a few hotels, but it’s only been three times. Wherever we go, people are always very welcoming and offer us a place to stay,” Krell said.

The most recent of their adventures took place in Los Angeles, which Krell said has been his favorite stop thus far because he found himself immersed in a part of the L.A. community that did not fit his stereotypes of the city. “I always thought of L.A. as very Hollywood, and it ended up being a lot more outdoorsy and friendly,” he said.

L.A. also allowed him to meet a wide breadth of musicians—from Sam Glaser, one of the Moment Magazine’s top 10 Jewish artists in the United States, to Craig Taubman, a Jewish singer/songwriter who has been featured on the Disney channel. Taubman’s name is one that “most people who are involved in reform or conservative Judaism through summer camps have heard of,” according to Krell.

Other notable musicians included Mikey Pauker, an up-and-coming artist with a sound reminiscent of modern folk bands, as well as Michael Isaacson, a Jewish composer and originator of the Jewish Camp Song movement.

Rosenbaum and Rotenburg, “the Sams,” as Krell referred to them, spent over a year

planning the project. They are both musicians with a passion for Jewish music and envisioned that the trip would be a “serious unifying factor for Jewish musicians,” according to Rotenberg.

Speaking about the vision that sets this road trip apart, Rosenbaum said, “I think the way [our trip] is different is that this project is about people. We’re traveling the country to meet people and play music with them, hear what they do and hear why they’re involved in making Jewish music. … Physical structures are nice, but if you want to really feel a part of a town, you really need to meet the people in that community.”

Regarding Krell’s contributions to the project, Rosenbaum and Rotenburg expressed, with a couple good-natured jokes at his expense, how invaluable Krell is to the project.

“Asher is incredibly organized. He is a technical genius with a knack for visuals and knows what it takes to make a video look good both behind the camera and in front of a computer,” said Rotenberg.

“Asher knows how to capture the moment,” added Rosenbaum.

The trip will culminate in a Havdalah service, the service that marks the end of Shabbat, that will be held on Dec. 22.

The group is asking that the musicians in all the cities they’ve visited each hold their own Havdalah service while keeping the entire American Jewish music community in mind.

“We as American Jews are a large community around the country,” said Krell. “Although we cannot all do Havdalah together, we can all be together in spirit as each of us does our own service around the country.”

JAMMING JOYS: The group enjoys playing music with those they interview, like Mikey Pauker (right).

9

10 TUESDAY, November 20, 2012 ● THE JUSTICE

Justice Justice

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Established 1949, Brandeis University

Brandeis University

Established 1949

Andrew Wingens, Editor in Chief Marielle Temkin, Managing Editor Eitan Cooper, Production Editor Fiona Lockyer, Deputy Editor Jeffrey Boxer, Shafaq Hasan, Nan Pang and Robyn Spector, Associate Editors Sam Mintz and Tate Herbert, News Editors Celine Hacobian, Features Editor Glen Chesir, Acting Forum Editor Adam Rabinowitz, Sports Editor Phil Gallagher and Jessie Miller, Arts Editors Jenny Cheng and Joshua Linton, Photography Editors Rachel Burkhoff, Layout Editor Sara Dejene, Online Editor Maya Riser-Kositsky, Copy Editor David Wolkoff, Advertising Editor

BTV problems persist Last year, this editorial board argued that BTV, the University’s student-run television station, no longer deserved its status as a secured club on campus. Today we stand by our argument that BTV as it currently exists does not deserve such an elevated status.

Rather, we believe its future status as a secured club should be contingent on whether it operates to its fullest potential as a television station within the next year.

BTV, originally secured in 2002, once produced new and original content that aired on the campus’ cable channel 65.

However, since 2009, BTV has failed to broadcast anything substantial. Rather, in the past year, it has funded individual student projects and at least one senior thesis—none of which were shown to the larger Brandeis community. Since this board last addressed this issue, BTV has not released any significant work nor been reprimanded for its inactivity and misuse of funds.

According to the Student Union Constitution, a secured club is an organization that is guaranteed money from the Student Activities Fund because it is “fundamental to the mission of the university.”

Other secured clubs include BEMCo, a first response student medical service; Student Sexuality Information Service, an education and counseling resource that provides access to contraceptives; and WBRS, a radio station with regular programming and concerts that enhance student life on campus. This board feels that these clubs uphold their stated missions and benefit the Brandeis community.

While BTV over the past three years has neglected to serve the student body, its resources are sorely underutilized.

Perhaps this explains why this semester BTV received $13,000 in funds—down from $17,000 last year, according to information from the MyBrandeis Club Center website. But even still, the club’s website, Brandeis.tv is under construc-

Reconsider secure status tion and the actual television channel 65 continues to have no new content.

We believe that a student-run television station on campus has great potential. BTV could host programs discussing campus or national news and even collaborate with other clubs like the Brandeis Economics Society and Students for Environmental Action to have individual segments discussing their topics on the show. Perhaps by recruiting a larger staff, the television station could also have entertainment programs, like game shows hosted by students.

This past weekend, BTV filmed the South Asian Student Association’s annual MELA event. We encourage BTV to continue to partner with more student groups like this in the future and air campus events on channel 65 to allow students who missed events to be able to view them and those who were there to relive them.

Current BTV members say their focus this semester is to rebuild the core of the club and shift back to its original intent of producing programming for Brandeis students.

As the majority of the club’s staff graduated last May, this change of leadership could provide the opportunity BTV needs to transform itself. Club members have already begun to work with Media and Technology Services to fix technological difficulties, and say that they hope to produce Internet shorts, with one already in production.

While we look forward to these reforms, the semester is coming to a close and this board has yet to see any tangible evidence of how BTV’s $13,000 in secured funds is being utilized. We hope that the current club members move BTV in a more productive direction so that the allocation of student funds is not perpetually put to waste. If not, we strongly advise the student body to reconsider the club’s status.

Re-evaluate online courses In an email to the student body on Friday, Provost Steve Goldstein ’78 and Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Birren announced that Brandeis will join an online consortium in fall 2013. While this board understands the benefits that online learning could bring to our University, we are hesitant about how this technology could best be used to suit the student’s needs.

Dean Birren explained that in fall 2013 a student who is off campus for the semester would be able to take a full four classes of credit. However, students who are absent from campus for an entire semester due to illness or internship opportunities likely will lack the time to take an entire semester of courses. It would be more practical for students to be able to take fewer than four courses while away from campus.

Signing up for fewer than four courses may have an additional advantage. If a student majoring in Psychology, for example, is interested in a particular facet of the subject for which Brandeis does not offer a class, he or she could take the class from one of the nine other schools in our online consortium if one of the schools happened to offer it. This would allow

Suit the student body’s needs students to further explore their fields of study with specific classes that Brandeis might lack.

Furthermore, a student studying abroad would be able to take one or two classes that would go toward his or her major or minor, off-setting the time crunch that some who study abroad feel when trying to finish their requirements.

Additionally, online classes should only be a supplement to in-person classes.

Brandeis prides itself on its small class sizes and opportunities to interact with professors. We believe that the growth into the field of online learning could undercut this image. Students should be limited in the number of online courses they can take and the amount of University requirements they can satisfy. The convenience of online courses should not replace the importance of face-to-face interactions with professors.

As this Semester Online will not be put into place until fall 2013, we hope that the administration will consider making some changes to its plan to make this new endeavor most useful for students.

SARA WEININGER, WILLIAM LODGE II, and STEPHANIE COHEN, /the Justice

Views the News on

This past week the U. S. military and Central Intelligence Agency suffered a loss with the resignation of General David Petraeus after an extramarital affair between Petraeus and another woman came to light. Democratic Senator from California Dianne Feinstein, chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, expressed disappointment with President Barack Obama for accepting Petraeus’ resignation. Do you think the personal lives of politicians should play a role in determining whether or not they are fit for office?

Viktoria Bedo ’15 I am strongly opposed to using the private life of politicians to determine the strength of their leadership. These morals have little to do with public officials’ abilities to perform their job and serve the country. Being raised in Europe, where trust in politicians is at a premium, I find it difficult to understand why so many U.S. citizens want to see loyal husbands as their politicians and why citizens care about where public officials pray or who they sleep with. As long as they are not breaking the law, we should let them do their jobs. We don’t check how much charity they give and how often they visit their grandparents, why should extra- marital affairs concern the public so much? If I want a moral compass I’ll visit my rabbi. Petraeus should not have felt the need to resign from a position that he fulfilled perfectly well.

Viktoria Bedo is a Wien Scholar and president of JStreet U Brandeis.

Jack Zev Hait ’14 At the core of this question are two phrases used to refer to politicians: public servants and representatives. From a public servant, one expects first and foremost excellent public service. The person who has the most “value add” to the people he or she serves is the best public servant. In this sense, constituents should bother themselves less with the minute details of a politician’s life and instead vote for the public servant that can help them most. Yet, we cannot simply be purely economic when picking our politicians. After all, they are our representatives and thus our face to the state, country and world. If we genuinely believe them to be immoral people, it is hard to simply say “but they have the most value add.” We need someone who we can call not just a politician, but our leader. Bottom line, I encourage voters to not let personal flaws play an equally important role as excellence in public service. At the same time, character reflects judgment, so I also encourage voters not to completely disregard a politician’s personal life.

Jack Zev Hait is the undergraduate departmental representative for the Philosophy department.

Prof. Daniel Breen (LGLS) This is a difficult issue. Assuming no laws are broken, the private lives of public officials probably should not determine their fitness for the duties they are assigned under whatever statutes govern their posts.

However, it seems fair to hold a limited number of officials to a higher standard. A CIA director, for example, has access to extraordinarily sensitive information that is vital to national security, information that could be compromised through personal recklessness. Hence, the public probably had a right to expect better judgment than what Gen. Petraeus seems to have displayed in his private life.

Professor Daniel Breen is a lecturer in Legal Studies.

Carly Lenhoff ’13 The personal lives of politicians in office have little to do with whether or not they are capable of doing their jobs well. Just because an individual decides to live his or her life in a way with which we disagree doesn’t make him or her any less intelligent or fit for a given job. A politician’s personal life is that—personal. However, the price of holding public office is the scrutiny of the public eye, and a corresponding lack of privacy. If the public condemns a certain activity, like infidelity, as a general principle, it is unlikely that, in a democratic system of government, a politician who violates that social more will be able to hold office for much longer after that. Granted, Patraeus is a special case—as he was the head of the Central Intelligence Agency, his personal life was more likely to be an important influence on his job. A politician’s private life should not be the deciding factor as to whether or not she or he is fit to hold office, but it is also not a factor that can be dismissed.

Carly Lenhoff is the undergraduate departmental representative for the Philosophy department and the Brandeis undergraduate group study tutor for “PHIL 17a.: Introduction to Ethics.”

THE JUSTICE

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TUESDAY, november 20, 2012

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Humanities essential in career-focused world

By Michael kahn JUSTICE contributing writer

Perhaps it is my unyielding naïveté, but I firmly believe the humanities play an essential role in our society. Unfortunately, this opinion seems to be increasingly unpopular.

According to a recent article in Liberal Education, a journal published by a consortium of over 1,000 institutions of higher education, there has been a significant decline in the number of institutions that have an overwhelming majority of students majoring in humanities over the last 20 years., Former Wesleyan University and Emory University President William Chace notes in The American Scholar journal that from 1970 to 2003 there was a precipitous decline in the number of students majoring in the humanities, from 30 percent to 16 percent.

This trend—coupled with the incessant interrogation about what I will do with my humanities-based liberal arts degree in the “real world,”—has led me to the following refrain: I believe the humanities to be valuable beyond academia and esoterica, and I rail against those naysayers who attempt to dismantle the robust edifice of the humanities in order to assemble, however tenuously, the argument in favor of more “practical” degrees.

The humanities engender a method of thinking, extending far beyond the borders of any specific topic studied in the classroom. It is not merely what is learned but rather how it is learned.

Honing these critical-thinking skills through seemingly endless hours of reading, writing and analyzing cultivates a mindset deftly prepared to approach problems in a thoughtful and pragmatic manner. In this light, a humanities degree can, in fact, be the key to opening many doors along one’s career path, and certainly more than the pigeonhole to which a biomedical engineering or applied mathematics degree can lead. Graduates equipped with backgrounds in the humanities bring skills with them that many do not possess—most importantly the critical and flexible mind capable of adapting to many fields.

When one studies literature, for example, it is not what you learn that is important, it is how you learn to analyze the unfamiliar that is widely applicable.

Winston Churchill is credited with saying, “the best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter.” An electorate capable of cutting through political rhetoric and understanding the core issues facing society is of paramount importance to a functional and successful democracy. Perhaps if the average voter possessed the critical-thinking skills that the av-

HANNAH KOBER/the Justice

erage humanities graduate has, he could summon a serviceable version of the truth from the otherwise baffling sensationalism and dangerous partisan brinksmanship that has pervaded our political discourse to an alarming degree.

With a humanities degree comes a better understanding of how to relate to society.

David Brooks, noted columnist for The New York Times, writes that “Very few people have the ability to create a great brand: the iPod. Branding involves the location and arousal of affection, and you can’t do it unless you are conversant in the language of romance.”

Creating an effective product is no longer enough to guarantee success in today’s marketplace (Myspace); a company must be able to gauge what the consumer wants and create a product that connects with him on a personal level (Instagram).

A car to transport you from one place to

another is no longer enough; it must reflect who you are and provide you with a sense of intimacy.

A phone is no longer just a means of communication; there is an increasing emphasis on providing a personalized product that is an extension of its owner. So even an industry, such as technology, previously thought to have an interest in hiring only those with science or engineering backgrounds, must now also turn to more well-rounded individuals capable of understanding and, more importantly, communicating the passions of society.

To be fair, I am not trying to devalue the pursuit of science or engineering—the value of these subjects is simply undeniable. But those who tout the importance of science in order to belittle the humanities are taking a decisively parochial position.

For that student who comes to college at age 18 ready to commit to a career working for

Intel at a chip factory in the Arizona desert, studying engineering in college may be the right proposition.

But a humanities major, with the intellectual capital he would accrue, can thrive in society without any science knowledge much better than a science major can survive without any of the essential skills taught by the humanities. What is the use of a proficient programmer with no vision or imagination with which to innovate? And the best way to cultivate those qualities? Reading, writing, debating, exploring, researching and reflecting.

Some may argue that there is no sense in promoting one over the other, since both are indispensable elements of the development of society, but the invention of the Kindle is meaningless without the novels we read on it.

After all, what will we remember in 500 years, the Kindle Fire or Hamlet? The proverbial pen is still as mighty as ever.

Israel has right to defend itself from Hamas violence

By Alex Thomson Special to the justice

“Wherever I stand, I stand with Israel;” “I hope Gaza gets through this inhumane brutal attack

by Israel.” These are just some of the numerous posts that greet me when I log onto Facebook as of late.

For many impartial observers, these comments offer little explanation for the present state of affairs in the Gaza Strip, and even less as to the long-term causes and implications of this conflict.

Many see their friends taking sides on the conflict and are alienated by the harsh criticism from both sides. Unfortunately, the real reason behind the escalation of violence is lost in this debate.

We must be clear in our facts. Israel did not initiate these specific attacks on Gaza. It was Hamas, a U.S., European Union and Israeli designated terrorist organization operating in the Gaza Strip, which has indiscriminately fired over 750 rockets this year alone into southern Israel, upending the lives of Israeli citizens within reach of those missiles. According to the Israeli Defense Forces, over the last 12 years, Hamas has launched over 12,000 missiles at Israel. Israelis living in locations targeted by Hamas live very different lives from what we are used to—they are on constant alert for a siren warning them to seek refuge in the closest bomb shelter. This lifestyle is unimaginable, and yet, large swaths of the

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Israeli populace have to undergo this nightmare routinely.

In order to defend the Israeli people, Israel decided to launch an aerial attack last Wednesday, Nov. 14, that targeted key Hamas military sites and operatives including Ahmed al-Jabari, the top Hamas military commander. Jabari was responsible for the execution of all rocket fire into Israel.

The acts of terrorism he orchestrated have led to the deaths of Israeli civilians. As a result, Israel killed al-Jabari and preceded to target Hamas military infrastructure, including rocket launching sites, underground tunnels, Hamas’ operational communication structure and Hamas’ government headquarters in the Gaza Strip. In response to the airstrikes, Hamas has fired over 300 rockets into Israel with some aimed at Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Israel has done nothing more than exercise any sovereign nation’s right to self-defense.

Throughout Israel’s military campaign against Hamas, Israel will be imperfect and inevitably, there will be civilian casualties. However, at the heart of Israel’s military strategy is a deep concern for the innocent civilians of the Gaza Strip.

Before launching military strikes, Israel actually drops pamphlets to warn Palestinian civilians to stay clear of Hamas operatives. Israel takes great care to protect the Palestinian people throughout these offenses.

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In 2008, while visiting Sderot, a southern Israeli city constantly attacked by Hamas, then-Senator Barack Obama said, “If somebody was sending rockets into my house where my two daughters sleep at night, I’m going to do everything in my power to stop that. And I would expect Israelis to do the same thing.” If the United States were to be attacked by a terrorist organization operating out of a neighboring country, there would be uproar if our government did not act.

No one would expect our nation to take any action other than an immediate and forceful retaliatory response. Israel faces an impossible double standard—any other country in the world, if attacked, would have the full support of the world behind them to respond. Only Israel, who is attacked daily, faces worldwide condemnation for an act of self-defense.

Despite decades of conflict, both Israelis and Palestinians want peace. However, an organization dedicated to Israel’s destruction is not a proactive partner with whom Israel can engage.

Presently, the Palestinian people are divided between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In each of these locations, Palestinians are represented by two separate entities: the terrorist organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and Fatah, the moderate Palestinian government of the West Bank.

To truly form a comprehensive peace agreement, the Palestinians need a unified force to negotiate for them. Unfortunately, Hamas has little inter-

The Staff

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est in negotiating peace, and Fatah represents the only hope for a lasting peace.

Fatah needs a true collaborator willing to make peace with Israel, and Hamas fails to be that partner. Israel’s defensive actions against Hamas aim to establish a better environment in which peace can be achieved—one where Israel lives without the threat of constant attack, and where the Palestinians have true leadership focused on the building up of a Palestinian state, not on the destruction of the Jewish state.

The United States Senate and House of Representatives both passed unanimous resolutions affirming Israel’s right to self-defense and condemned Hamas’ unjustified aggressive assault on Israel. The U.S. State Department issued a statement denouncing “the violence that Hamas and other terrorist organizations are employing against the people of Israel.”

The U.S. government recognizes the true source of the conflict, and Republicans and Democrats have come together to support the state of Israel. Now is the time for the world community to stand behind and profess its solidarity with Israel in this time of need. Peace will only come when Hamas lays down its arms to allow Israel to do the same.

Alex Thomson ’15 is the copresident of the Brandeis Israel Public Affairs Committee

Editorial Assistants Arts: Rachel Hughes, Eli Kaminsky Photos: Josh Horowitz, Olivia Pobiel Sports: Henry Loughlin Features: Jaime Kaiser Staff Senior Writers: Josh Asen, Aaron Berke, Allyson Cartter, Dafna Fine Senior Illustrator: Sara Weininger Senior Photographer: Jon Edelstein, Alex Margolis, Tali Smookler, Jane Zitomer News: Shani Abramowitz, Marissa Ditkowsky, Ariel Glickman, Danielle Gross, Luke Hayslip, Raquel Kallas, Suzanne Schatz, Rachel Starr Features: Selene Campion, Rachel Miller, Gabrielle Santoro Forum: Michael Abrams, Aaron Fried, Noah M. Horwitz, Liz

Posner, Leah Smith, Avi Snyder, Naomi Volk Sports: Ben Freudman, Avi Gold, Zachary Marlin, Jacob Moskowitz, Jonah Price Arts: Aliza Vigderman, Aaron Berke, Erica Cooperberg, Alex DeSilva, Aliza Gans, Rachel Hughes, Haemee Kang, Olivia Leiter, Emily Wishingrad Photography: Wendy Choi, Brianna Mussman, Josh Spiro, Karina Wagenpfeil, Michelle Wang, Anna Yatskar Copy: Aliza Braverman, Jennie Bromberg, Hilary Cheney, Patricia Greene, Andrew Hayes, Max Holzman, Brittany Joyce, Eunice Ko, Kinza Kukhari, Megan Paris, Christine Phan, Mailinh Phan-Nguyen, Leah Rogers, Will Schneiderman, Amanda Winn Layout: Elana Horowitz, Rebecca Lanter, Jassen Lu, Denny Poliferno, Illustrations: Rishika Assomull, Mara Sassoon, Arielle Shorr, Tziporah Thompson

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TUESDAY, NOVEMber 20, 2012

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THE JUSTICE

FORUM

Fiscal cliff requires minimal congressional action

By NOAH M. HORWITZ JUSTICE stAFF WRITER

About two years ago, issues of controlling the nation’s deficit became a top priority of the new, Republican-controlled congress. The government was nearly shut down twice, and the United States came so close to defaulting on its debt that Standard & Poor’s downgraded our nation’s credit rating.

However, the debt ceiling is not, as many put it in 2011, a blank check for government spending, but rather, the bill for spending already accumulated.

Because of these political catastrophes, I became frustrated with the public’s misunderstanding of spending, taxation and our budget deficits.

My friends and I held a series of mock budget summits in which we examined the budget numbers and formulated our own plan to balance the budget.

Because of this experience, I am proudly a self-proclaimed deficit hawk, who sees the importance in reigning in this nation’s finances.

I believe spending cuts, including to the military, tax increases and entitlement program reforms are all invaluable for success. For these reasons, I, for one, am not as concerned with the approaching so-called fiscal cliff as others may be.

The fiscal cliff, better described by Ezra Klein, a columnist for the Washington Post, as the “self-induced austerity crisis,” is a prophesized budget calamity that is set to occur around the end of the year.

At that time, the infamous Bush Tax Cuts will expire, and large, automatic spending cuts—including those affecting the military— are set to take effect.

Further, the debt ceiling is set to be reached around the same time.

While there are legitimate concerns about the timing and pace of these spending cuts and tax increases, the austerity of the fiscal cliff may, in effect, be necessary.

In its Nov. 9 issue, The Economist defined this issue perfectly when it said that the United States “taxes itself like a small state economy and spends like a big state one.”

While the United States maintains the largest military in the world and accomplishes many expensive government programs, the nation taxes its citizens low, especially those in the upper echelon of income, especially compared to other nations of the western world.

This presents the primary reason for the steep deficits in today’s age.

During the last years of Bill Clinton’s presidency, the budget was balanced, thanks to higher tax rates and lower defense spending.

The reversal that occurred in the first years of George W. Bush’s presidency has been mainly attributed to the steep increases in military spending and the Bush Tax Cuts.

If Congress does not do anything, the fiscal cliff will be reached and the high military budget and tax cuts of the Bush administration will be undone.

The 2013 deficit is set to be about $900 billion.

NAN PANG /the Justice

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that going over the fiscal cliff, thus initiating the cuts and tax hikes, would reduce the deficit by $600 billion per year. The New York Times estimates that this nation’s deficit shall be about $500 billion per year once the economy recovers.

Therefore, once the economy recovers (The New York Times estimated that this would occur in 2015) a balanced budget may be reached. Therefore, the fiscal cliff may end up being a blessing in disguise.

While the rhetoric of the Republican Party’s leaders, such as Mitt Romney, may seem to imply that cuts in non-entitlement, nondefense spending could ward off our budget woes, this is simply not true.

In reality, the policies of cuts and austerity within the Republican Party are not a platform to eradicate the deficit; it is a platform

to eradicate the social safety net and stigmatize the poor.

For example, Paul Ryan’s (he is the Chairman of the House Budget Committee) “Path to Prosperity” budget, would not eliminate the deficit for twenty years, even though it severely cut programs for the poor because it was coupled with drastic tax cuts for the wealthy.

Instead of sidestepping the issue of debt reduction by simply grandstanding to political bases, politicians must actually seek solutions to our debt crisis.

These include reforms to entitlement programs, such as increasing Medicare’s eligibility age (like what was done to Social Security in the 1980s), tax increases and cuts in the military’s budget.

To rest hope in a budget negotiation between two of the most polarized political par-

ties in American history may be naïve.

The fiscal cliff may end up being the real wakeup call that our country needs to balance its budget.

The quick shock of all this austerity would adversely affect the economy and rapidly contract it. I would prefer a gradual transition to the pre-Bush Tax Cut rates and lower military spending.

However, given the brinkmanship and gridlock that has affected Congress over the past two years of divided government, I find such a solution highly unlikely.

The Republican Party, if previous negotiations in March and August of 2011 give any indication, will not waiver from its original position in these budget dealings in any meaningful way.

Accordingly, going over the cliff may end up being a good thing.

Campus clubs can benefit from Student Events makeover By fiona lockyer JUSTICE editor

I love to see Student Events’ logo attached to an event, because it can only mean one thing: free food. Because of this association, I suggest that students would benefit more from an increase in collaborative Student Events activities, which could augment the exposure of multiple clubs on campus.

At a university where hundreds of clubs exist and vie for student attention, this could be a welcome change to the way events are planned.

The non-collaborative Student Events activities are lacking.

If you ask a random group of students, how many of them could tell you the difference between Louis Louis week and Bronstein week, two of Student Events’ largest annual undertakings? Do they look forward to Student Events’ activities?

These questions would likely be met with some sort of quizzical look; they are unaware of the fact that Louis Louis and Bronstein weeks are an attempt at school spirit.

On their own, Student Events’ activities lack any sort of draw other than “free, fun stuff,” and therefore Student Events specific events tend to fall flat. Rather, if Student Events coordinated its activities with other events on campus, student turnout would surely increase.

As it stands, Student Events does great work on campus; for example, the Munchie Mobile inspires a mad rush from the dorms

to the SUV delivering pizzas across the campus. However, what I love even more are the events they put on in conjunction with other clubs. I love that Student Events spiced up SCRAM Jam by providing more funding for the event and securing the graffiti wall, which allowed students to take home fun pictures from the event.

I love that Student Events provided pizza and hot chocolate for the men’s NCAA Tournament games that took place here last weekend. I love when they collaborate with WBRS for SpringFest because then I know that the bands are going to be popular.

It won’t be exclusively indie stuff espoused

by WBRS—we’re getting something I’ve actually heard on the radio before, like fun. or Far East Movement.

That’s what Student Events excels at: using incentives like munchkins and the graffiti wall to bring uniformly enjoyable activities to a wide base of students.

By using a partnership model, with Student Events working towards having some sort of collaborative role in events, student participation in performances and activities on campus could blossom.

This idea fits into the mission of Student Events, explained on its website, that “Student Events is a volunteer student organization that supports the mission of Brandeis University by providing cultural, educational, recreational, and social programs designed for the entire Brandeis community,” and it achieves the goal of increasing student turnout.

For that reason, I offer the following proposition: Student Events should become more of a support base for other clubs. It can be an aid for groups that are having activities that could use a bit of a spark.

By using activities of other groups that have a specific vision, such as fundraising for a charity or giving a museum more exposure, Student Events can incentivize students to attend these different activities on campus.

This, in my opinion, is a much better appropriation of resources than some of the Student Events-specific events, like having a bounce castle in the Shapiro Campus Center, which do not explicitly espouse any sort of goal or broaden student exposure to different clubs.

“

It can be an aid for groups that are having activities that could use a bit of spark.

There are a multitude of events at Brandeis that could benefit from this type of partnership.

One example would be the annual music festival in Slosberg put on by the different ensembles in the Music department.

What if Student Events had a cotton candy

machine set up in lower campus that drew students away from Rabb and closer to where the festival was taking place?

The event and the Music department could benefit immensely from that kind of collaboration.

Additionally, consider athletic events.

Imagine if Student Events gave out pizza to students with their Brandeis ID at basketball games in a fashion akin to what they did for the NCAA games—I’d bet that more students would attend, and many of them would even stick around after the pizza boxes were empty to watch the game and cheer on the team.

Partnerships could be implemented through a request process, whereby clubs could request some sort of collaboration with Student Events.

Or Student Events could review the schedules of different venues on campus, like the Shapiro Campus Center Atrium or Levin Ballroom, to see if they would be able to form a partnership with a club that is holding an event there.

These partnerships wouldn’t have to be mutually exclusive to long-standing traditions of Student Events like the Louis Louis and Bronstein weeks, either.

Given the proper schedule and budget management, events can coincide with each other to both elevate the attendance at Student Event activities and the activities of other clubs. If executed well, this idea could really help Student Events do what every club wishes they could: reach the most students possible.

THE JUSTICE

WSOCCER: Women end the year with first-ever run to the Elite 8 CONTINUED FROM 1 In the 13th minute, Spital scored her first career NCAA Tournament goal, collecting a rebound and slotting the ball into the bottom corner of the Red Dragons’ net. In the 25th minute, it was Spital again, this time climbing high to head home a cross from midfielder Mary Shimko ’14. The goal proved to be Spital’s eighth game-winner this season, tying a Brandeis record.

“Spital is a phenomenal player,” Dallamora said. “She played great, and she’s been instrumental in some key games for us.”

“She has been amazing for us this season,” added Isaacson. “She works so hard 100 percent of the time, which makes everyone else on the team want to work just as hard.”

The Judges held tough until the final moments of the game. As the Red Dragons desperately attempted to claw their way back into the game, junior forward Kelly Knight cut the deficit in half with a drive that deflected in, off of the bottom of the crossbar. That would be as close as the Red Dragons would get, though, as the Judges closed out their first-ever victory in the Sweet 16.

The Judges finished the season with 16 wins just one year after finishing with a 6-11-2 mark and graduating six senior starters. Instead of another season in transition, the Judges finished just one win away from a trip to the Final Four in San Antonio, Texas.

“All last fall I followed the team, so I'm not going to lie I was a bit nervous for what this season had in store,” Isaacson admitted before entering Brandeis.

“But during preseason, you could tell this year was going to be completely different than last year. Everybody came into preseason ready to go and was so excited to make a name for ourselves.”

The end of the team’s historic run also closed the careers of the squad’s two seniors, goalkeeper Francine Kofinas and midfielder Zoe Siegel.

The two end their careers with 47 wins and two NCAA Tournament appearances.

“We’re going to miss both seniors,” Dallamora said.

“Both have tremendous heart and great character. We’re going to really miss their leadership and a lot of the intangibles that they brought to the table.”

On the other hand, the team’s youth—Brandeis’ typical starting 11 this season featured five firstyears and three sophomores—allows plenty of room for further

By JACOB MOSKOWITZ JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

The men’s basketball team opened its season with a late-game surge against host Rhode Island College last Saturday but fell just short in what proved to be a 48-46 loss.

Despite the loss, and playing without guard Jay Freeman ’13 and forward Alex Schmidt ’14, the team showed glimpses of its potential throughout the game.

While the Judges attempted to take control in the first half, the Anchormen held Brandeis’ high-powered offense at bay, limiting the squad to 20 points. It ultimately proved to be a defensive-minded, low-scoring half, in which there were three ties and four lead changes.

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FENCING

Teams aim to foil foes in a strong road meet

By BEN FREUDMAN JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVE BURBANK

ROADBLOCK: Forward Dara Spital ’15 encounters trouble as Misericordia defenders hone in on the ball in last Sunday’s defeat. growth for the 2013 squad.

“The experience was great for them,” Dallamora said of her underclassmen-heavy squad.

“I saw my team just get better and better and really improve. We played solid teams under pressure.

They’ve just been phenomenal and

I’m really proud of them.”

“We have some big goals to accomplish in the future for Brandeis women's soccer,” Isaacson added, before closing with a bold prediction. “We're going to Texas next year.”

After a spectacular run, and with

10 starters and every goal scorer on the roster returning, Isaacson may prove correct.

However, one thing is for sure.

Next year’s squad won’t be a Cinderella story. Brandeis women’s soccer has put its name on the map for 2013 and beyond.

Squad falls short in its season opener

surged to catch Rhode Island College but could not get the job done in a 48-46 loss to start the 2012 season.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2012

■ The fencing squads continued their hot start with individual standouts.

MEN’S basketball

■ The men’s basketball team

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The Judges entered halftime trailing 22-20, and after a key three-pointer by Rhode Island junior guard Michael Palumbo with nine minutes, 26 seconds to play, the Judges were on the decline. Brandeis soon stared down a double-digit deficit with just five minutes to play.

“I think what enabled [Rhode Island] to jump out to a large margin at the start of the second was their ability to knock down shots that they weren’t hitting in the first half,” said guard Ben Bartoldus ’14.

The Judges slowly chipped away at the deficit, eventually cutting it to four points, as Bartoldus knocked down a layup with 1:15 to play. Forward Alex Stoyle ’14 capitalized on a RIC turnover soon after, notching another layup to cut the lead to two points with 44 seconds left.

The Judges then committed a costly foul against RIC senior guard Tahrike Carter, sending him to the free-throw line. Carter buried both free throws with just 18 seconds left.

The Judges kept themselves in the game, though, with a fall-away three pointer by guard Derek Retos ’14

with just five seconds left.

The Judges then had no choice but to foul RIC with 2.7 seconds remaining. Junior guard Nyheem Sanders made the first free-throw but missed the second one. The ensuing rebound gave Brandeis one last chance to win the game.

The Judges called a timeout, and elected to run a play to point guard Gabe Moton ’14. His half-court heave caromed off the rim, causing the Judges to fall short of what would have been a comeback victory.

Bartoldus credited the Judges’ ability to knock down shots as a key factor in the late comeback.

“Initially we struggled to hit [shots] in the second [half] but we picked up momentum as the half progressed to cut the deficit,” he said.

Center Youri Dascy ’14 led Brandeis with nine points, but tallied just one rebound. Bartoldus and Retos each scored eight points.

Moton, in his debut for Brandeis, led the Judges with eight rebounds and six assists, but also committed seven turnovers.

Stoyle tallied seven points, three rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal. Forward Ishmael Kalilou ’15 scored six points and added four rebounds in 15 minutes off the bench.

Bartoldus said that, even though they lost, the game was a step in the right direction for the Judges.

“It’s always hard to find positives from a loss, however, there were glimpses to how dominant we can be,” he said. “I think defensively we got after it and our press played a key role in the shift of momentum in the second.”

“What we need to work on most is becoming more consistent offensively, which is closely within our grasp.”

The Judges look to take the next step toward reaching their potential in a home game against the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth tonight.

Brandeis will then host the Big Four Tournament this weekend, beginning with a local rivalry against Tufts University this Saturday at 7 p.m.

The men’s and women’s fencing squads hoped to continue their success from the Big One Invitational on Nov. 4 with another strong showing at the first Northeast Fencing Conference meet. Brandeis took on teams from the University of New Hampshire, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Boston University, Wellesley College, Sacred Heart University, and the hosts, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Both teams, after attaining 5-1 records at last weekend’s meet, provided some pleasant surprises.

The women’s foil trio, composed entirely of first-years, proved to be the defining factor for the Judges.

Emilia Dwyer ’16; Eva Ahmad ’16; and last meet’s hero, Caroline Mattos ’16, showed the poise of seasoned veterans, handily defeating all of their opponents. The three cumulatively had a 46-8 record against opponents. In fact, they allowed just one touch against BU in the third round, and against Wellesley in the fifth round, the foilists conceded merely two touches. Even against Sacred Heart University, one of the best fencing programs in the Northeast, the unit fought tirelessly, notching wins in six out of nine matches. This young group of first-years has utilized its raw talent effectively, and as Dwyer stated, it can be attributed to veteran leadership and chemistry.

“Women’s foil is an all-first team, but we greatly appreciated Vikki Nunley’s ’13 guidance based on ample experience. She was a great sideline coach,” said Dwyer. “Women’s foil shows a promising outlook. Our results speak for themselves. Most importantly, we’re so close, so there is trust that we will support each other on and off the strip.”

In its toughest fight against Sacred Heart, Mattos and Dwyer helped carry the squad to victory, combining for a 5-1 record. Foilist Annette Kim ’16 made her biggest statement at this meet. She went 6-0 against BU and Wellesley, allowing just one touch in her six matches.

She also handily won all of her matches against UNH and MIT. The entire team consistently followed in Kim’s winning ways. The seniors, captain Zoe Messinger ’13 and Emmily Smith ’13, gave women’s sabre the extra push it needed against several opponents. They provided a strong foundation for the performances of sabreists Deborah Abiri ’16 and Jessie Kirshner ’15.

Messinger and Smith were there to lift the sabre crew in matches against Sacred Heart and BU. The men, however, were equally successful against their opponents.

Sabreist Adam Mandel ’15 gave the squad several key boosts in vital situations. He went 10-0 in all of his matches, also notching a notable 6-0 mark against SHU. He also attained a 3-0 mark against the MIT sabreists.

Mandel’s performance headlined an exciting group of finishes for the sophomore sabreists, including joint successes from Ethan Levy ’15, Wonhee Choi ’15 and Noah Berman ’15. The group went 11-0, and in five of these victories, the sophomores allowed zero touches. Furthermore, the men went 11-2 against UMass while also improving to a 7-1 record against BU. The Class of 2016, the Class of 2015 and the senior leadership all caused the Brandeis fencing teams to garner much attention. They will next compete at home on Dec. 2, where they will face Yale University, St. John’s University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Johns Hopkins University and Cornell University.

To all of you at Covens Corner: On behalf of the Brandeis Men’s Soccer Team we would like to say thank you for everything that you have done for us this year.

Your support, your enthusiasm, and your passion for Brandeis and Brandeis soccer helped our team immensely this year.

You truly are the best fans in the country. We will be back next year and we certainly hope you are there with us in 2013.

Go Judges!

Brandeis Men’s Soccer Coaches Coven, Margolis, Murray, and Silver

THE JUSTICE

●

Tuesday, NOVEMBER 20, 2012

15

MEN’S SOCCER

jUDGES BY THE NUMBERS Men’s Soccer FINAL UAA STANDINGS

TEAM STATS Goals

Not including Monday’s games UAA Conference Overall

W L D W L D Pct. JUDGES 4 2 1 18 3 1 .841 Carnegie 4 2 1 13 4 1 .750 WashU 4 2 1 10 5 2 .647 Emory 4 2 1 11 7 2 .600 Rochester 3 1 3 10 4 4 .667 Chicago 2 3 2 8 4 5 .618 NYU 2 3 1 12 7 2 .619 Case 0 7 0 3 14 1 .194

Sam Ocel ’13 leads the team this season with 13 goals.

Player Goals Sam Ocel 13 Lee Russo 12 Tyler Savonen 6 Kyle Feather 6

Assists Lee Russo ’13 leads the squad with nine assists this season.

Player Lee Russo Sam Ocel Kyle Feather Tyler Savonen

EDITOR’S NOTE The men ended their season with a loss in a NCAA Sweet 16 match against Williams College.

Assists 9 8 7 5

WOMen’s Soccer FINAL UAA STANDINGS

TEAM STATS

Not including Monday’s games

Goals

UAA Conference Overall

W L D W L D Pct. WashU* 6 0 1 19 2 1 .886 Carnegie 4 1 2 14 1 5 .825 Emory 3 1 3 14 1 7 .795 Chicago 4 3 0 12 6 0 .667 JUDGES 2 3 2 16 5 2 .737 NYU 2 4 1 10 7 1 .583 Case 2 4 1 8 6 4 .556 Rochester 0 7 0 3 13 1 .206

Dara Spital ’15 led the team this season with 14 goals.

Player Goals Dara Spital 14 Sapir Edalati 7 Holly Szafran 5 Haley Schachter 3

Assists

Dara Spital ’15 led the team this season with five assists.

Player Dara Spital Sapir Edalati Alec Spivack Alyssa Fenenbock

EDITOR’S NOTE: The women concluded their season with a loss in an Elite 8 match to Misericordia University.

Assists 5 4 3 3

VOLLEYBALL FINAL UAA STANDINGS

TEAM STATS Kills

Not including Monday’s games UAA Conference Overall

W L W L Pct. Emory 8 1 0 31 5 0 .861 WashU 8 2 0 29 3 0 .906 Chicago 8 2 0 28 10 0 .737 Case 5 5 0 24 11 0 .686 Carnegie 3 6 0 15 17 0 .469 Rochester 3 7 0 22 12 0 .647 NYU 1 6 0 17 14 0 .548 JUDGES 1 8 0 19 13 0 .594

EDITOR’S NOTE: The volleyball squad ended its year with a 3-1 defeat in the ECAC title game to Albertus Magnus College.

Liz Hood ’15 led the team in kills this year with 464.

Player Kills Liz Hood 464 Si-Si Hensley 252 Lauren Berens 225 Becca Fischer 190

Digs Elsie Bernaiche ’15 led the team in digs this year with 601.

Player Digs Elsie Bernaiche 601 Si-Si Hensley 348 Yael Einhorn 267 Susan Sun 253

cross cOuntry Results from New England DIII Regional Championship on Nov. 10.

TOP FINISHERS (Men’s)

TOP FINISHERS (Women’s)

RUNNER TIME Ed Colvin 26:01.17 Mik Kern 26:16.10 Alex Kramer 26:27.86 Jarret Harrigan 26:35.70

RUNNER TIME Amelia Lundkvist 22:36.91 Ali Kirsch 22:52.82 Maggie Hensel 23:59.77 Kelsey Whitaker 24:24.92

EDITOR’S NOTE: The men’s and women’s teams placed 13th and 16th, respectively, at the NCAA New England Division III Championship to conclude their seasons.

ROBYN SPECTOR/the Justice

CHEERING FOR COVEN: The members of Coven’s Corner traveled to Amherst to support the Judges in their Sweet 16 game.

Coven’s Corner stands out for its school spirit ■ Dylan Britton ’13 and

Jesse Link ’13 collaborated this fall to create the highly acclaimed Coven’s Corner.

By HENRY LOUGHLIN JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

Last fall, the men’s soccer team experienced a strong base of fan support during its run to the Eastern Conference Athletic Conference title.

However, the creators of “Coven’s Corner” took this level of spirit to a whole new level this season.

“Coven’s Corner,” named after men’s soccer coach Mike Coven, grew in numbers as the season progressed, went on to receive regional acclaim from the Boston Globe and witnessed the Judges’ first NCAA Division III Tournament victories since 1984 with wins over Baruch College and Vassar College.

The legend began this September at the lobby of the Gosman Sports and Convocation Center. Jesse Link ’13, a pitcher on the baseball team, made a habit of talking to Coven on his way to practice, and on this particular day, he shouted out to Coven: “Hey coach, turn around.”

Coven quickly turned around, only to find that Link had taken his picture. Coven eventually forgot about the incident, but on the night of the Judges’ first home game on Sept. 5 versus Colby-Sawyer College, he glanced over at the fans’ section with a puzzled look.

“I saw this banner with a picture of someone’s face on it,” he said, “and I thought, ‘Who’s that funnylooking guy? Then I realized it was me.”

The banner, bearing the words “Coven’s Corner,” was a manifestation of the newly-established fan section that supported the team not only at its home games but its away games as well – including the squad’s 1-0 victory over New York University and its 1-0 loss this past weekend at Amherst College.

The name “Coven’s Corner” was the brainchild of Link and fellow baseball pitcher Dylan Britton ’13, also an avid soccer fan.

“There were a core group of guys, about 10 to 15 of us, that went to every game last year,” said Link.

“This winter, we were watching March Madness [the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament] and… [Britton] saw the [Duke fan section] “Camden Crazies” and

said ‘“Well, we should be Coven’s Crazies.’”

“And with the use of the term ‘corner’ in soccer, we adapted it to be “Coven’s Corner.”

Coven appreciated the gesture and praised the fans.

“Those guys are great. … They definitely make their presence known,” he said.

The significance of this presence was not lost on the team either.

“Our fans have been phenomenal,” said goalkeeper Blake Minchoff ’13 following the end of the regular season.

“They’re so important, because even ten seconds after we give up a goal, they’re cheering louder than they were before. … They lift the team.”

“The support we’ve had from the fans has been great,” said forward Lee Russo ’13 after the team’s 2-1 double-overtime victory over Babson College on September 19.

“They’re cheering you the whole way.

With the team’s run to the Sweet 16 this year, and inception of “Coven’s Corner,” it should be exciting to see the growth of what has been a vibrant part of the Brandeis soccer culture.

major league baseball brief Marlins dismantle foundations of their 2011 squad in an unprecedented trade with the Blue Jays The Miami Marlins, notorious for their history of fire sales, shocked the baseball world on Nov. 13 with a fire sale unparalleled by any other.

Owner Jeffrey Loria and President David Samson traded five of their highest-paid players to the Toronto Blue Jays.

The deal, which was made official

by Major League Baseball last night, will send shortstop Jose Reyes, outfielder Emilio Bonafacio, catcher John Buck and starting pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle to the Blue Jays.

In return, the Marlins will receive shortstop Yunel Escobar, infielder Adeiny Hechavarria, outfielder Jake Marisnick, catcher Jeff Mathis, pitchers Henderson Alvarez and Justin Nicolino and four million dollars.

The trade was not only unexpected because of the players involved but also due to the timing.

Last offseason, the Marlins moved into a brand new stadium while also signing Reyes, Buehrle and former closer Heath Bell, giving the smallmarket team a $100 million dollar payroll. Loria promised that the new stadium, coupled with a commitment to spending money, would usher in a new era of Marlins baseball. .

Just one year later, the Marlins have abruptly shifted to a rebuilding project, tearing apart both their starting rotation and the heart of their lineup, in addition to trading away their free agent signings from 2011.

Along with Reyes, who was signed to a six-year deal for 106 million

dollars, and Buehrle, a four-year deal for $58 million, the Marlins also traded away Johnson, signed through 2013 for almost $14 million, Buck signed for$ 6 million dollars in 2013, and Bonifacio made just $2.2 million last year.

The Marlins’ latest salary dump not only guts the middle of their order, but with the new look, reduces their 2013 payroll from almost $100 million to around $30 million.

This decrease in payroll is not only unprecedented due to the money involved, but again, also in the timing.

The Marlins were supposed to be perennial contenders in the National League East. The squad boasted a formidable offense in Reyes and right fielder Giancarlo Stanton, while also featuring arguably one

of the best rotations in the National League headlined by Johnson, Buehrle, and Anibal Sanchez. However, things did not go as planned, and the Marlins spent most of the year in the NL East cellar, prompting a deal with the Detroit Tigers at the trade deadline to ship off Sanchez and second baseman Omar Infante.

Just three months later, after three large-scale trades, the Miami Marlins of 2012 and the Miami Marlins of 2013 will be two entirely different entities. .

Team management, over the course of one season, has decided that the Marlins should start over once more.

The Marlins, however, still have a foundation to build around next season. Along with Stanton and out-

fielder Logan Morrison, the squad also features a promising ace in Jacob Turner. In addition, Miami also acquired Escobar, a proven defensive shortstop along with Mathis, an All Star catcher, as well as the No. 2 and No. 5 prospects in the Blue Jays’ farm system. The Marlins received two team-controlled players who displayed promise during their rookie campaigns last year and could prove to be All Stars in a few short years.

However, the city of Miami now has to deal with the prospect of another year in the cellar. If the Hot Stove was only on the backburner as of last week, it has certainly been set ablaze by the blockbuster trade between the Blue Jays and Marlins.

— Avi Gold

just

Sports

Page 16

FAN FAVORITES The faithful fans of Coven’s Corner have stood side-by-side with the men’s soccer squad in their memorable 2012 season, p. 15.

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Waltham, Mass.

MEN’S SOCCER

Squad ends memorable year at Sweet 16 ■ The men’s soccer squad

concluded its best season since 1985 with a 1-0 loss to Williams in NCAA action.

By JONAH PRICE JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

The men’s soccer squad, after securing a thrilling 1-0 victory over Vassar College in last weekend’s second-round NCAA Division III match, looked to carry its momentum to Amherst College in a match against No. 9 Williams College. Although the men fought with lockdown defense and a relentless attack, Williams came away with a 1-0 regulation victory, knocking the Judges out of the tournament and ending the team’s strongest season since 1985.

Coach Michael Coven noted that the Judges played very well on the field, but that Williams was able to break down Brandeis' strategy.

“I thought we were the better team,” he said. “They were a little more athletic and physical than we were. Knew that we liked to possess the ball. Broke us down a little bit.”

Williams senior goalkeeper Than Finan already had his work cut out for him in the third minute of what proved to be a back-and-forth affair.

Midfielder Sam Ocel ’13 sent in a header to cross the ball, which deflected off a Williams defender, forcing Finan to make a diving save to prevent an own goal.

Williams continued to apply offensive pressure, but by the 11th minute, the action shifted to the other side of the field as senior forward Patrick Ebobisse ripped a one-timer in the air which he received off of a well-placed through ball right outside the 18-yard box. Goalkeeper Blake Minchoff ’13 made a lunging save, ultimately keeping the Judges in a scoreless draw.

Midfielder Kyle Feather ’14 helped to shift the offensive momentum back to the Judges’ side of the pitch, charging down the field on a counterattack, which soon turned into a breakaway.

Feather, though, was deliberately tripped inches outside the 18-yard box, resulting in a 20-yard free kick. The free kick was taken by Ocel, who fired the ball just wide of the post.

Two minutes later, the Judges had yet another offensive opportunity, as forward Tyler Savonen ’15 sent a perfectly placed cross to Ocel right in the middle of the 18-yard box, who fired the

shot just inches above the crossbar.

The game continued to be a hard fought battle, as the Judges pursued a high-powered attack. The offensive combination of Ebobisse and freshman forward Mohammed Rashid also caused many close calls for Brandeis' defense. Center back Joe Eisenbeis ’13, particularly, stopped several key balls, keeping the Judges in the game. The sides ultimately ended the half with four shots apiece, keeping action on the wings and in the midfield. Center back Matt Brondoli ’14 and midfielder Robbie Lynch ’15 helped to preserve the draw with several key tackles.

The deadlock continued to kick off the second half until the 63rd minute.

Rashid found a loose ball and then raced to the box, sending a well-placed cross to Ebobisee, who then fired the ball at the bottom left corner of the net to put Williams ahead 1-0. That fateful goal proved to be the game-winner that sealed the Judges’ fate.

The Judges, now needing a goal to keep their postseason hopes alive, began to create a plethora of offensive opportunities. However, they were unable to get past the lockdown defense of senior defender Matt Ratajczak and junior defender Dan Lima, who stopped nearly all of the Judges’ offensive chances as the final whistle drew closer and closer.

The Judges had one of its last, and possibly best, chances of the night in the 81st minute when a bouncing ball landed in the path of forward Lee Russo ’13 deep inside the 18-yard box.

He had an open opportunity for a close range shot. However, Finan charged out from the net and claimed the ball just before Russo could get the shot off.

With just 40 seconds left on the clock, the Judges were awarded a corner kick, giving the team one last chance to stay alive. Russo sent the corner in to Ocel, who got a head on it, but Finan was there to make the save.

As the game wound down, Lima accidently gave up a handball with 17 seconds left on the clock, giving the Judges one last opportunity to continue to rewrite the history books. Russo took the free kick, but Finan was there yet again, making the save and icing the ball for the win.

The seniors of the team—Eisenbeis, Minchoff, and Russo—finished their careers at Brandeis with 61 wins, two ECAC championships and the squad’s first berth in the NCAA Tournament since 1985. Ocel, who was injured as a sophomore, will return to play for the team next year as a graduate student.

JOSH HOROWITZ/the Justice

OPEN FOR THE TAKING: Defender Ben Applefield ’14 finds an opening among two Williams College defenders in Saturday's loss.

Coven was quick to reflect on the memorable season he had as coach of the 2012 men's soccer squad.

“Sometimes you get lucky as a coach, but everything falls into place,” he said. “This team from day one was

together and made to succeed.”

However, Coven is already looking ahead to prospects for next season.

“The minute the game was over I was recruiting," he said. "We lost Blake [Minchoff], Lee [Russo] and Joe

[Eisenbies] but we look good in terms of what we’ve got coming back for the squad.”

The expectations will certainly be high for this resurgent men’s soccer team in 2013.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Team makes defining statement in home opener ■ The women’s basketball

team cruised past Mitchell and Springfield at home to begin the season at 2-0.

By SAMUEL MARLOWE JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The Judges, hoping to build off an impressive start to the season in which they handily defeated Mitchell College by a margin of 89-45 last Saturday, pulled out a crucial 50-38 victory to win the Brandeis Invitational Tournament this Sunday against Springfield College.

With five minutes remaining, following a Springfield basket to cut the Judges’ lead to eight points, it looked as if the Pride were threatening to capture a come-from-behind win.

However, guard Mikaela Garvin ’15 stepped up for the Judges with a crucial three-pointer that sealed the victory and the tournament.

The first half, however, soon proved to be a tight affair as both teams competed aggressively and played stout defense.

Neither team managed much success on offense, though, as they shot less than 30 percent from the field.

After a low-scoring first-half, the Judges led 22-15.

The Judges got off to a hot start offensively in the second half, stretching their lead to 14 points with 11 minutes, 36 seconds remaining.

The squad was fueled by a standout offensive performance from first-year guard Niki Laskaris ’16, who keyed their success with eight points, all of which came in the second half.

Laskaris also showed a notable shooting touch, hitting four midrange jumpers.

Coach Carol Simon was pleased with her team’s victory and was especially glad with the team’s defensive effort through the action last weekend at the Judges Classic.

“Our team had been working very

hard on defense in practice,” she said. “I’m glad they converted what they had been focusing on in practice into a game successfully.”

Tournament MVP and point guard Hannah Cain ’15 echoed Simon’s sentiments.

“Communication on defense was a major key to our victory,” Cain said.

Defensively, the Judges played aggressive man-to-man defense and even employed a full-court zone press at times to pressure Springfield.

This was quite successful, as they created 23 turnovers and managed to disrupt the Pride’s offense. Additionally, the Judges converted these turnovers into 18 fast break points.

In addition to their lockdown defense, the Judges were aided by the depth of their bench. The reserves gave the team a boost by scoring 26 points with offensive totals from seven different players.

Simon emphasized the value of the team’s depth in this game

against Springfield.

“Our team’s depth enabled me to make a lot of substitutions, much like hockey lines, which kept us fresh and energetic throughout the game,” she said Last Saturday, in the team’s season opener against Mitchell College, the squad got off to a fast start. The Judges won the opening tip and converted it into a quick lay-up to begin the game with a two-point lead.

They never relinquished the lead, quickly moving past the Mariners on the scoreboard. They led 46-19 at the end of the first half en route to a commanding 89-45 victory.

In the first-half, the Judges employed a full court press that proved to be quite successful.

The full-court pressure disrupted the Mariners’ offense, causing Mitchell to commit 19 turnovers.

The Judges were then able to convert many of these lapses into easy fast-break baskets.

The Judges also exploited their size advantage in the post to domi-

nate the boards and gain scoring opportunities. Cain and guard Samantha Mancinelli ’16 each had eight rebounds.

The Judges also captured a notable 23 offensive rebounds, which they were able to convert into several second-chance baskets.

The Judges also received a large contribution from Garvin, who led the team with 16 points.

She was especially efficient from behind the arc, hitting four threepointers in just eight attempts. She also played aggressive defense in the post, blocking two shots.

Despite the lopsided win, Simon did note that the Judges needed to improve in some areas of the game, particularly on the defensive end.

“Defensively, we need to do a better job against the dribble drive,” she said.

The Judges look to continue their success and preserve their undefeated record in their next game when they host Babson College tonight at 5:30 p.m

just just ARTS

February 7, 2012 November 20, 2012

MELA brings South Asia to the masses

p. 19

Photos: Robyn Spector/the Justice. Design: Robyn Spector and Stephanie Cohen/the Justice.

18

TUESDAY, november 20, 2012 ● THE JUSTICE

POP CULTURE

INSIDE ON CAMPUS

19-22

■ MELA Performance

19

■ Curation at the Rose

19

■ ‘Rumors’ Review

20

Students dazzled their peers in the South Asian-themed performance.

The curatorial decisions concerning 1960s artwork shed new meaning on the exhibit.

Actors enthralled the audience with their energetic and expressive performance.

■ Mary Ann Caws Lecture

20

The lecturer spoke about surrealism to an audience of art enthusiasts.

■ BTC Performs ‘Hamlet’

21

The creative production of ‘Hamlet’ put a new spin on the Shakespeare play.

■ ‘Etty’ Performance

21

The one-woman show on Jewish survival in Amsterdam during World War II touched on themes of sexuality and independence.

■ Shakshouka and Stories

The event allowed students to share personal narratives of Israeli culture.

22

22-23

OFF CAMPUS

■ ‘Anna Karenina’ Film Review

22

The film fails to keep the quality of the book.

■ Aerosmith Album Review

22

The new album is inconsistent in content and quality.

■ ‘Funny Boy’ Review

23

The South Asian story paints a vivid picture of sexuality and politics in Sri Lanka.

CALENDAR

Interview

by Erica Cooperberg

Chiseled abs? Check. Breakdancing talent?

Check. History as a male stripper? Check. For these reasons, and many more, People Magazine named actor Channing Tatum as 2012’s Sexiest Man Alive.

There is no doubt that Tatum has been knighted with the honor as a result of his summer flick, Magic Mike. Playing the puzzling role of unbearably-attractive-male-stripper-andcustom-furniture-entrepreneur, Tatum’s shirtless—and even bottomless—scenes were captivating enough for most audience members to ignore the fact that the film’s plot was far below par. Sure, he may be 32, but Tatum proves sexy isn’t all about the numbers.

And it’s not just his looks that contribute to his sex appeal. More than that, he’s modest.

Upon finding out that he was given People’s honor, “My first thought was, ‘Y’all are messing with me,’” Tatum told the magazine.

Unfortunately, ladies and gents, the “amazingly beautiful” actor (in my roommate’s own words) is taken; Tatum married his Step Up costar, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, back in 2009, and the pair has been almost disgustingly inseparable since (“They’re married? That’s amazing!”). But don’t lose all hope—there are still plenty of men who are unattached and undeniably sexy. So, without further ado, I provide you with a few alternative options for 2012’s Sexiest Man Alive.

The Brandeis student population may be in their late teens or early 20s, but that doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate older men. Case in point: Gerard Butler. He may not have the smooth moves of Tatum and has taken a temporary hiatus from the big screen, but the 43-yearold can still walk the red carpet and captivate the attention of every female within a two-mile radius.

Maybe 43 is a little old for you. Is 34 a little better? If that’s a yes, then maybe you’d consider Psy, a South Korean singer/rapper/music producer who has literally taken the world by storm with his hit, “Gangnam Style.” He also

Set designer teaches new theater course Abaca Press/ MCT

SEXIEST MAN: Channing Tatum makes the list. has quite the sense of humor—have you seen the song’s music video?!

Or maybe you don’t really care what your sexy man sounds like—you just want him to look good. Might I suggest contender three: Ryan Lochte. If you’re okay accepting the fact that he currently only accepts girls on a one night stand basis, this guy’s for you. He’s raked in seven individual Olympic medals during this summer’s Games and let’s be real, he has a body that doesn’t look half bad in a swim suit.

But fine. To appease the cradle-robbers out there who also happen to enjoy a boy with a British accent, I provide you with five options, known to most as One Direction. Sure, the five guys have a wholesome image, (short of some incredibly suggestive lyrics in their new single, “Live While We’re Young”) so sexy might be a bit of an ambitious adjective, but maybe give them a little while to mature some more?

Maybe you don’t appreciate my options (I mean, personally I’d stick with Joseph GordonLevitt). All I’m saying is there’s more to sexy men than Channing Tatum—if you can believe it.

What’s happening in Arts on and off campus this week

ON-CAMPUS EVENTS

“Intersection of Art & Culture” Exhibition This unique exhibition considers the complex interaction between art, anthropology and culture. Art pieces by students will further discussion on the topic.

Monday, Nov. 26 at 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Art Gallery of the Shapiro Campus Center.

Writing Women’s Connections

Lives:

Memories

and

A salon of readings by artist Lydia Kann Nettler and Women’s Studies Research Center scholars Mary Berg, Ann Caldwell, Paula Doress-Worters, Louise Lopman and Frinde Maher. Informed and inspired by the exhibition, each will present a short piece—from the deeply personal to the historical, from the playful to the provocative—that explores the memories and connections that shape women’s lives. Refreshments will be served.

Tuesday, Nov. 27 from 3 to 4 p.m. in the Kniznick Gallery of the Women’s Studies Research Center.

Close Looking: Dor Guez’s “Two Palestinian Riders”

Prof. Dan Perlman (BIOL) and Prof. Gannit Ankori (FA), cocurator of 100 Steps to the Mediterranean, will discuss Dor Guez’s work “Two Palestinian Riders.”

Wednesday, Nov. 28 from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in the Rose Art Museum.

A Conversation about Women and Trees Join Michele L’Heureux, curator at the Women’s Studies Research Center, and Elinor Gadon, cultural historian and WSRC scholar, for a casual conversation about the various connections between trees, women and women’s lives.

Thursday, Nov. 29 at 3 p.m.in the Kniznick Gallery of the Women’s Studies Research Center.

13th Annual Sketch Comedy Festival Professional and collegiate comedy troupes join Boris’ Kitchen in an attempt to provide as much entertainment as possible without getting arrested. Mature audiences.

Thursday, Nov. 30 through Dec. 1 in the Carl J. Shapiro Theater. Tickets are $3 for members of the Brandeis community and $5 for the public and can be purchased through Brandeis Tickets.

‘The Glass Menagerie’

Brandeis Theater Company presents an autobiographical classic by one of America’s greatest playwrights about the power of memory, the allure of illusion and the fragility of love.

Friday, Nov. 30 at the Merrick Theater in the Spingold Theater Center. Tickets are $5 for members of the Brandeis Community and $10 for the public.

Up The Octave Semester Show Come listen to the ladies of the Up The

Mandi Wright/MCT Campus

REUNION CONCERT: Patti Smith, above, will perform at TD Garden with Neil Young and Crazy Horse.

Octave a cappella group perform at their semester show.

Saturday, Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. in the Golding Auditorium.

country, performed by the univeristy’s own Wind Ensemble and directed by Thomas Souza.

Sunday, Dec. 2 at the Slosberg Music Center from 7 to 9 p.m.

New Music Brandeis Performance New Music Brandeis, the concert series featuring the music of M.A., M.F.A., and Ph.D. students in the Music department, will be performing a series of songs.

Saturday, Dec. 1 at 8 p.m. in the Slosberg Music Center.

OFF-CAMPUS EVENTS

Berklee Musical Theater Club Presents: Hairspray

Stop by Chomondley’s and tune into Crowd Control’s improv comedy show.

Saturday, Dec. 1 at Chum’s from 9 to 11 p.m.

The students of Berklee College of Music’s Musical Theater Club are performing the classic Hairspray, which follows the story of teenager Tracy Turnblad in 1962 Baltimore and her dream to dance on The Cony Collins Show.

Tonight at the Berklee Performance Center at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $12 and $20.

A Night of Dance Fusion Featuring DJs Gustavo Lopes and Chris Perry

World Premier of Boston Ballet Presents: The Nutcracker

Crowd Control Semester Show

An international dance fusion night that will showcase music from different cultures.

Learn new dance styles from different dance groups and party the night away. Represent your country of origin by wearing your flag’s colors or any other outfit that represents your culture.

Saturday, Dec. 1 at 10 p.m. in Sherman Function Hall

Leonard Bernstein Fellows Concert

Join the Leonard Bernstein Fellows for a music recital in the Slosberg Music Center.

Sunday, Dec. 2 at 3 p.m. in the Slosberg Music Center

Brandeis University Wind Ensemble Concert: American Folk Tunes and Dances

This is a spirited concert of music derived from folk tunes and dances from around the

Boston Ballet presents Mikko Nissinen’s brand new production of The Nutcracker this holiday season completely reimagined.

New England’s number-one holiday tradition will feature all new sets and costumes designed by award-winning designer Robert Perdziola and revised scenes and choreography by Nissinen, while encompassing the beauty and magic of the traditional Nutcracker story.

Friday at the Boston Opera House at 7:30 p.m.

Neil Young & Crazy Horse and Patti Smith at the TD Garden Neil Young & Crazy Horse bring their reunion tour to Boston’s TD Garden with punk rock godmother Patti Smith, on the road to support her most recent release, 2012’s Banga.

Monday, Nov. 26 at the TD Garden in Boston at 7:30 p.m.

 Prof. Cameron Anderson (THA), advises students aspiring to professional theater careers to embrace a liberal arts education.

JustArts spoke with Prof. Cameron Anderson (THA) about her career in set design as well as her interest in working with undergraduates on campus.

JustArts: How has your first semester at Brandeis been so far?

Cameron Anderson: My semester has been wonderful so far—I have been so impressed with Brandeis students. My students are making such striking work. I am having a great time working with them.

JA: What types of design projects are you currently working on?

CA: Currently I am designing a production of The Magic Flute for Boston Lyric Opera that will perform at the Shubert [Theater] in Boston. It is going to be a really exciting production—we are modernizing much of the libretto and creating a very evocative visual world for the opera.

I am also designing a production of Britten’s The Turn of The Screw for [the] New England Conservatory, which opens in February. In October I opened a new play called, The Company We Keep, at Boston Playwrights’ Theatre.

JA: What led you to pursue set design as a career?

CA: I found set design through a liberal arts experience at Wesleyan University. I was an English major, but also studying drawing, painting and architecture. I discovered set design through my interdisciplinary thesis in the English department which was about Renaissance drama. I walked into the Theater department and was given the opportunity to design a show. That was the beginning—when I walked onstage and saw the set I felt like I was walking into my own mind.

I moved to [New York City] and assisted a designer there—and went to grad school a year later. I have been freelancing for the past ten years in NYC, all over the U.S. and abroad. We hope to give that same opportunity to Brandeis undergraduates. Students interested in designing for the department should get in touch with me.

JA: What advice would you give to students interested in pursuing careers in theater?

CA: My advice would be that at an undergraduate level, students should get as wellrounded an education as possible. Theater is about telling stories, and if you don’t know anything about the world, you can’t be an effective story-teller. Take classes in art, history, science, as many and as broad a swath as possible—while at the same time beginning to hone in on what it is that interests you about theater.

JA: What led you to an academic career after working in theater?

CA: I have always kept my eyes open for undergraduate teaching opportunities not too far from NYC. I knew I wanted to teach design as a part of a liberal arts education— allowing students to think about design as a part of life—after all, everything in the world is designed. I hadn’t made the decision that I wanted to enter the academic field this year, but I saw the job posting at Brandeis and thought it could be a great fit for me—and allow me to continue my professional career at the same time.

JA: Set design classes have not been very common in the undergraduate theater curriculum. Do you have plans to reverse that trend?

CA: Yes! This semester and next I am offering “[THA] 40a: The Art of Visual Narrative and Production Design.” This is a course where we learn to tell stories with space and three-dimension. It is a gateway course into theater design fields—with the purpose of teaching students to think with visual metaphors and make expressive, not descriptive work. In the future, we will be offering set and other design courses—all for undergrads—so look out for them.

JA: Your courses so far have been targeted primarily to undergraduate students, such as “THA 10b: [Theater as Design]” and “THA 40a: [The Art of the Visual Narrative and Production Design.]” Will you also be teaching graduate students or will you work with them primarily through productions?

CA: There are no longer any graduate students in design in the Theater department. All of our resources are now being dedicated to undergraduate designers. It is a great time for students to get involved, as there are many design opportunities open undergrads.

—Phil Gallagher

THE JUSTICE

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TUESDAY, november 20, 2012

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ON CAMPUS

MELA lights up Levin ■ The show, which showcases

South Asian culture, featured both traditional and modern student dance performances.

By EMILY WISHINGRAD JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

The South Asian Students’ Association’s MELA, an event named after the Hindi word for celebration, was by far the most well-attended of all the cultural events I have been to this semester. The line snaking out the door of the entrance to Levin Ballroom suggested that it was going to be crowded inside. However, I was not prepared for the enormous number of people I encountered. The event sold more than 600 tickets and Levin couldn’t have been more packed.

This year’s theme was “Kahaani: Our Story.” The event celebrated, as the co-events coordinators Natasha Qidwai ’14 and Sindhura Sonnathi ’14 said in their introduction, the small moments in all of our individual lives coming together to create our story, a complete narrative of the Brandeis community. Proceeds from the event were donated to the organization Apne Aap, an acronym for a phrase in Hindi meaning “self-help.” This organization is dedicated to empowering women and girls to resist sex trafficking and change their own stories.

Walking in, I quickly noticed the magnificent backdrop for the stage; what looked like streamers in gold, yellow, green and red were spun across a blue background. Imprinted on the streamers were faceless dancing figures, different Asian languages, the banyan tree (which in Hinduism is supposed to represent the resting place for the God Krishna) and the words Kahani: Our Story.

As the program says, these different colored streamers and the images imprinted on them seem at first glance

to have nothing to do with each other but, upon closer look, it is evident that they are all connected by one golden thread, symbolizing the unity of the stories.

Each class of students, ranging from first-years to seniors and graduate students, did its own dance and each dance seemed to reflect the spirit of the class. The first-year dance was fun, joyful and reflected the excitement of the first-year experience. The sophomore dance was a bit more relaxed. Although the music was still upbeat, the dancers were more confident in their movements and made more attempts to improvise. In the junior dance, the dancers drew attention to themselves through their powerful and skillful movements.

One of the songs that the seniors danced to was LMFAO’s “Party Rock Anthem.” The dance was beautifully choreographed, incredibly coordinated and reflected the seniors’ celebration of their last three and a half years at Brandeis and their intent to savor their last semester. The graduate student dance depicted an incredible amount of confidence. One dancer even came out in a Superman costume, and the dance reflected the dancers’ readiness to seize the world.

In between each of the performances, three students—Nabila Kabir ’13, Jay Dev ’13, and Nikhil Pallikonda ’16 read letters from three different perspectives aloud to the crowd. One of the stories was about a student on a year-abroad tour of southern Asia, and her experiences with the new cultures she encountered. Another story focused around a Brandeis student who was trying to adjust to his new, independent lifestyle, and a third story focused around a Brandeis alumnus, who was trying to find his way in the world outside of Brandeis. These juxtaposed stories formed a conversation between different experiences.

By alternating between the stories, the audience was able to see how all the experiences and stories were in

some way intertwined.

There were only two solo performances at the event, but they were both magnificently done. One of them was a Bharatanatyam, performed by Pooja Gupta ’16. In her beautiful performance of a classical dance from Southern India, Gupta danced with precision and grace. Gupta choreographed as well as performed this dance. The other solo performance was a piece of spoken word preformed by an alumnus, Usman Hameedi ’12.

Hameedi spoke with passion about the impact of MELA on his cultural identity. In an interview with the Justice, Hameedi says he “hopes to promote a larger alumni presence at this event going forward.”

Another impressive dance was a Bhangra, a folk dance from the Punjab region in India, choreographed

by Prasant Lokinendi, a master’s student in Computer Science, and Gauri Thaker ’14. Every component of the dance, from the bright blue and red costumes, to the two daring students, Anuj Vadalia ’15 and Vincent Asante ’14, who rode a scooter down the stage, screamed ‘fun.’ The costumes twirled around the dancers as they ran, jumped and danced their hearts out. At one point in the dance, the music switched from the traditional Indian music to an Indian version of the popular song “Gangam Style.”

The audience cheered loudly as the performers switched from a more traditional dancing style to the infamous “horse-riding” dance.

MELA is an annual event in which graduate and undergraduate students, families and staff come to support the performers and enjoy the inspiring performances. As audience member Flora Wang ’15 commented in an interview with the Justice following the event, “It was really cool how they pulled the whole thing together. The collaboration was very impressive. There was just so much energy in the room; it was crazy. I would definitely go again next year!”

JOSH HOROWITZ/the Justice

HERITAGE ON STAGE: Students performed a dance number during the MELA show on Saturday evening in the Levin Ballroom.

STUDENT WRITES ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

JOSHUA LINTON/the Justice

‘Non-Reality’ Student Show Steven Kline ’14, Jess Plante ’16 and Allie Alexander ’14 perform in ‘Non-Reality,’ an original show written by Emma Lieberman ’14 and directed by Amanda Stern ’15.

BRIEF University remembers Kazanoff Members of the Brandeis community gathered together Monday evening in the Spingold Theater Center to remember Ted Kazanoff, a beloved professor of Theater Arts who died on Oct. 22 at the age of 90 in Austin, Texas.

This deeply personal event brought about a hundred friends and family members of the professor, director, writer and actor.

Guests were welcomed by the late professor’s son playing smooth jazz and the blues on the saxophone, accompanied by a local pianist.

Many speakers emphasized his unique method of communication, full of bluntness and honesty, which helped Kazanoff change people’s professional and personal lives. He had a way of backing up his direct critique of people’s work with specific and grounded points for refinement, allowing them to improve themselves, according to speakers at the event.

According to an obituary online,

Ted Kazanoff was born in 1922 in New York City. He served as a First Sargeant in World War II, attended the City College of New York, received a graduate degree from Smith College, and subsequently taught at several schools. Although he retired from Brandeis in 1992, he also taught at Columbia University, Boston University, University of California, Berkeley and Carnegie Mellon University. In 2009, he received the Independent Reviewers of New England’s first “Theatre Icon Award” for his commitment for Boston theater.

Besides being a noted director and actor, Kazanoff was also a scholar of the theater. At the service Monday evening, his son remarked that he remembered his father always reading, always working and taking extraordinary notes. “I always knew where to find him—just follow the trail of books,” he said.

—Phil Gallagher and Eli Kaminsky

rose ART MUSEUM

Art analysis shows connections between pieces ■ SCRAM member discusses

the “Art at the Origin” exhibit in the Rose Art Museum.

By bernardo goldberg special to the justice

This article is part of an ongoing series of columns about the Rose Art Museum written by members of SCRAM. Most art historians would agree that the 1950s and 60s mark the beginning of a defined cultural superiority for the United States. With North American art flooding galleries all over Europe, and New York becoming the culture capital of the world, artistic creation from this period is recognized as some of the most important for American history. The Whitney Museum of America Art’s “Sinister Pop,” The National Gallery of Art’s “Roy Lichtenstein: a Retrospective,” the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s “Regarding Warhol,” and our own Rose Art Muse-

um’s “Art at the Origin” are all current exhibitions showing comprehensive collections of 1960s art that seek to give viewers a thorough understanding of the importance of these period’s artistic creation and demonstrate how this works shifted the understanding of what art is.

In recent months Dor Guez’s exhibition “100 Steps to the Mediterranean” has received much attention, sometimes allowing visitors to overlook the works displayed in the Upper and Lower Rose Galleries. The exhibition “Art at the Origin: The early 1960s,” stands independent of Guez’s show in the Foster Gallery and not only showcases great examples of works from this time but manages to do so in an interactive, enriching way.

The curatorial decisions, how and where are artworks to be placed, create a path that leads visitors to link one piece to the next one while bringing in their background. The connections that museum-goers make in their minds, the way colors, shapes, sizes and subject matter relate and create

links, are really the focus of Director of Academic Programs at the Rose Dabney Hailey’s curatorial efforts and can be discovered throughout all of the exhibition.

In their own private nook to the right of the top floor staircase, a sculpture resembling a dress by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama is hung right next to a painting by U.S. painter Alex Katz.

This is just one of the many pairings achieved by the curation, fascinating for the effect they have on viewers, attracting them to find relationships between the artworks and the way they are placed. The corner in which they are hung gives a feeling of private comfort, allowing for personal interaction with them.

The dialogue that occurs between these two pieces is first apparent in the color compositions of both. In Katz’s painting, his wife Aida poses in an aqua and teal dress, which echoes Kusama’s teal-and-black-stripe material. My personal passion for 1960s style immediately gets me daydreaming about Don Draper parties with the

ladies that would wear these dresses.

Kusama’s migration to New York in the 60s and her fascination with fashion and appearance are obvious in this piece, and Katz’s glamourous almost illustration like painting looks like a vintage ad I would love to stumble upon.

Once the viewer dives into the more conceptual face of the works, the phallic shapes protruding from the dress shape, and the objectification of Katz’s female model demonstrate commentaries on gender roles and perceptions.

Katz is reducing his wife to a concept.

She becomes a female body that is subject matter rather than a person. The artist has stated that if he can paint one woman he can paint any woman.

As I see this happening in the picture, I wonder whether this is a misogynistic idea, whether this was a common way of thinking at the time, and I even wonder if at one point I have believed that myself. The fact that the work right next to it is by a female artist gets me wondering about the minimal female presence in the exhibi-

tion. Women artists at this time were not common and rarely recognized.

To see Kusama’s dress and to see her embracing the phallic shapes is a bold statement coming from the usually disciplined and censored japanese society of the 60s. The liberation that this piece implies and the kind of woman that it suggest is completely different from Katz’s object-wife. These two tealdressed ladies from the 60s defy our conceptions of the time; are they Audrey Hepburns or Donna Reeds?

The whole exhibition is thought out in this manner and endless moments and details can be found in “Art at the Origin” after some exploration. The staff at the Rose Art Museum works hard to present viewers with an enriching experience, and the many narratives that the curation of this show allows are not only unique because of the museum’s collection, but because it is carefully tailored for the Brandeis community. There are endless connections and stories that can be found in “Art at the Origin” and are only a matter of close looking.

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TUESDAY, november 20, 2012

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THE JUSTICE

HILLEL THEATER GROUP

Hysterical play is an instant hit

■ ‘Rumors’ entertains with

the perfect touch of comedy and ideal costumes and set.

By aliza vigderman JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

BRI MUSSMAN/the Justice

FANTASTIC TRIO: From left, Kate Davis ’14, Bethany Adam ’15 and Sarah Pace ’13 gave entertaining performances.

JOSH HOROWITZ/the Justice

FUNNY MAN: Christopher Knight ’14 performed an excellent monologue as the character Lenny Ganz.

Imagine a party with no host, no food and—gasp—no servants! What is a modern, upper-class couple to do?

On Nov. 15, 17 and 18, Brandeis’ Hillel Theater Group performed Neil Simon’s Rumors, a comedic farce about a tenth wedding anniversary party gone wrong. The play, directed by Neal Rabinowtiz ’13 and produced by Julie Bauer ’14, begins hilariously with affluent suburban couple Ken and Chris Gorman in a fit of hysterics at their friend Charlie’s house, where the soiree was to take place. Charlie, a successful politician, has attempted suicide after his wife left him and lies upstairs, suffering deliriously. The Gormans attempt to cover up the incident for fear it will create a political scandal. Throughout the night, the plot thickens as more and more couples enter the party, and shocking secrets are revealed.

The play was performed and produced extremely well and left the audience in hysterical laughter. The actors did an excellent job of creating unique, hilarious, memorable characters. Consisting of mostly dialogue, the show required a lot of energy to keep the audience interested, and the actors provided just that.

The audience was immediately intrigued by the Gorman couple, played

by Aaron Fischer ’15 and Sarah Pace ’13, who were frantically attempting to deal with Charlie’s gunshot wound, while hiding his adulterous marriage.

Pace in particular played the panicky part of Chris Gorman perfectly, creating a sense of comedic apprehension through her expressive, worried faces and piercing voice. Kate Davis ’14 charmed as the swanky yet snobbish Claire Ganz, another partygoer who often was a catalyst of drama, reveling in rumors of affairs, accidents and arguments. She utilized an affected finishing school accent and sophisticated, often blasé gesticulations to convey her character’s rich upbringing and frivolous lifestyle. The relationship of Claire and her somewhat nerdy husband Lenny was highlighted as Claire belittled his driving, job and general personality.

Additionally, a favorite part was the performance of Bethany Adam ’15 as Cookie Cusack, another melodramatic dinner guest scorned for her outdated, unsophisticated style. Adam cracked up audiences particularly by her expert use of physical comedy, spe-

cifically her strange public displays of affection with her husband and her intermittent back spasms.

Another highlight was Lenny Ganz’s (Christopher Knight ’14) monologue, fallaciously describing to the police the night’s unusual events. Knight did not allow the extended monologue to drag, and kept the audience laughing throughout as he flickered around stage, rambling brilliantly about how the car accidents, injuries and fights came to occur.

All of the actors were constantly in tune with the actions of the play and reacted accordingly. Many memorable moments could be found outside of the main plot, such as Cookie Cusack trying to sit in a chair, back spasming.

The show was meticulous in its detail and included lots of comedic moments, although there was one noticeable weak spot when Glenn Cooper (Gabriel Guerra ’14) and Cassie Cooper (Samantha LeVangie ’15) arrived fighting over the husband’s alleged infidelity, putting a damper on the uproarious event.

However, this can be attributed to the script rather than the actors.

The best behind-the-scenes work is the kind where the audience doesn’t notice it’s happening. The technical aspects of the show went off without a hitch. The sounds, such as the telephone ringing, seamlessly melded into the scenes with perfect timing. The set was well lit throughout, contrasting the chaotic scenes which were taking place.

The set, designed by Barbara Rugg ’15, was the living room of the Gorman’s house and was appropriate and well-constructed without being overly complicated. The set was an upper middle class family’s take on minimalism—white walls, white furniture, modern art, and of course, a wellstocked bar. The costumes, designed

by Emma McAfee-Hahn ’13 and Jamie Perutz ’13, thoughtfully contributed to each character, revealing something about their personalities, such as Claire Ganz’s low cut, luxurious gown.

The most significant costume moment was the outdated, hideous sequined dress of Cookie Cusack, ridiculed by the female guests of the party.

Rumors was extremely entertaining, humorous and a great example of Brandeis theater. The actors took a fantastically funny script and did their own spin on it, creating distinguishable, hilariously-nuanced characters.

The actors clearly enjoyed playing their parts, and the audience enjoyed watching them and even gave a standing ovation. Because of my affinity for comedies, I may be slightly biased, but this was definitely the best Brandeis production I have seen so far.

campus speaker

Literary scholar Caws discusses surrealist art ■ Mary Ann Caws shares her

passion for surrealist art and her lifelong work on the topic.

By ALIZA GANS JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

The 79-year-old woman who can barely see over the podium was haunted by her work. “Surrealist art is about being haunted by something. If you want to work on surrealism you must, by golly, be haunted,” said Mary Ann Caws, who gave a lecture called “Looking After Surrealism” on Tuesday night at the Rose Art Museum. Surrealism is a cultural movement that flourished in Europe beginning in the 1920s. Surrealist art and writing contains an element of surprise including nontraditional juxtopositions, and non sequitors.

Caws obsessed about the openness of surrealist art such as the drawn curtains that pervade René Magritte’s work or the wide open planes of Salvador Dalí’s canvases. Each painting she

showed in her presentation included a poem. Caws read several verses from her favorite French poets, Pierre Reverdy and André Breton.

The lecture was sponsored by the Departments of Fine Arts, French and Francophone Studies, Comparative Literature and Philosophy. In fact, Caws is fluent in all of these subjects.

In addition to authoring many publications on surrealist and modernist art and literature, she has written about poets and novelists such as Marcel Proust, Virginia Woolf and Henry James. She also wrote biographies of Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dalí, and in 2008, published a cookbook of Provencal cuisine. Caw’s expertise consists of a range of different literary and art historical periods, however she has always been captivated by surrealism. She served as the president of the Association for Study of Dada and Surrealism from 1971 to 1975.

But Prof. Michael Randall (FREN), who introduced Caws, remembers her as the chair of the French department at the City University of New

York where he studied. Caws was also a Professor of French, English and Comparative Literature at the Graduate School of the City University of New York. Randall referred to her as “a true renaissance woman … with insatiable curiosity which has led her to explore many different intellectual territories.” Since his college years, Randall has always been impressed by the “rare creature who can write on different nationalities of arts from many [aspects]. It’s not the [curriculum vitae] … it’s the woman behind the CV which is so compelling.” Randall also stressed the importance of cross-disciplinary programming at Brandeis. Through interdepartmental events we can appreciate arts and culture through many different lenses and foster a greater sense of community at Brandeis, he explained.

With all of Caws’ writings on surrealist artists and artworks, one may think she seeks the meaning of surrealism. However, Caws asserted, “We do not care what it means, we care how it is … how it makes us feel.” The energy

of surrealism must paradoxically feel like “always for the first time.” Caw’s philosophy on viewing surrealist art stood true as she examined many artworks from the Rose’s own collection including Judy Pfaff’s “Untitled,” 1933 and Juan Gris’ “The Siphon,” both of which Caws admires for their “fizziness,” or effervescensce. When looking at Gris’ “The Siphon,” the color palate looks very comfortable. While the image of the siphon and table are fragmented, the shapes in the painting look solidified on the canvas. However, Caws pointed out many exciting elements in “The Siphon.” She highlighted the lines in the painting with a laser pointer and followed them down to the edge of the canvas. “This excites me,” she exclaimed. In surrealism, the images are presented as if they have always existed that way, as if the viewer should think nothing of a wine glass sliced in half placed next to a perriwinkle blue siphon. However, the strange juxtopositions in the composition make surrealism a very refreshing and unique period in art history.

As a scholar of literature and art, Caws supplemented many of the artworks she lectured on with complementary poems, explaining that “Art helps text [and] text helps art.” Caws explained how surrealism is unique because it puts a series of ordinary objects into a different context, which catches the observer off-guard. The element of surprise in surrealist art stemmed from the writing of that period. According to Caws, writing inspired the light and openness that pervades surrealist art. She read a short exerpt of a Pierre Reverdy poem and closed the the lecture with an appropriate quote from her favorite French poet, André Breton, “Never pierce the mystery in the heart of the Rose.”

Her poems gave the paintings she discussed a deeper meaning. The combination of painting and poetry samples in Caw’s lecture enforced her claim that surrealism is relevant in writing.

The mystery behind the strange and exciting paintings Caws discussed will haunt lovers of surrealist art lovers always, for the first time.

THE JUSTICE

HAMLET WITH A TWIST

21

Etty’s diary and letters offer an inside perspective ‘Etty,’ a play based on the writings of a young woman growing up in the Holocaust.

By aliza gans JUSTICE STAFF WRITER

JOSHUA LINTON/the Justice

TRANSFORMING SHAKESPEARE: Marya Lowry’s re-interpretation of ‘Hamlet’ creates an entirely new play with similar themes.

Hamlet emerges anew ■ Based on the classic Shakespearean play, ‘HAMLET in a nutshell’ adds a modern spin and drama.

By rachel hughes JUSTICE editorial assistant

JOSHUA LINTON/the Justice

LOVE AND MURDER: ‘HAMLET’ has dramatic themes that originate in Shakespeare. demure development. There were moments when I felt that their interpretation contributed much clarity to the subtlety of the original play’s period-specific idiomatic language, but there were also moments when I wondered if the original playwright would even be able to recognize the amended characters.

A moment of immense clarity occurred for me during the actors’ interpretation of a scene in the second half of the play when the King, who is also Hamlet’s uncle, and whom he suspects of murdering his father, entreats Ophelia to manipulate an expression of madness from Hamlet. In the original play, the subtlety within this scene has a masking quality, but in the performance, it was quite the opposite. The King and his men strip Ophelia of her virginal white dress, and come upon her like a torrent, slipping a sexy red dress over her head, tossing around her neck strings of pearls and swiping vixen-red lipstick upon her lips. They cast the brightest stage lights upon her and physically throw her to the center of the stage, just in time for Hamlet’s entrance.

The audience really gains a dramatic sense of the malevolence which provoked the King to set up Ophelia

TUESDAY, november 20, 2012

THEATER

■ Susan Stein performed

“What are they doing?” A very young boy with an unkempt mohawk who was squirming in the seat in front of me asked, tugging on the sleeve of the woman next to him. Another boy sat on the other side of him, tossing a realistic-looking plastic skull up into the air and catching it. “They’re warming up,” the boy’s mother answered. In the middle of the small theater stood ten members of the Masters of Fine Arts Class of 2014 acting ensemble, preparing to perform a king of infinite space—HAMLET in a nutshell. Performances lasted through the weekend of Nov. 16 to 18 in the Merrick Theater in Spingold Theater Center, presented by the Brandeis Theater Company.

The actors were all wearing black, and tossed similar skull props back and forth to each other, while they yelled, screamed, sang, danced and posed —each movement or outcry expressing some theme or line from Shakespeare play. HAMLET in a nutshell is a very unique performance developed by director Marya Lowry, in conjunction with the actors who performed in it. In the director’s note in the program, Lowry explains that, “The collaborative process invites the actors’ voices, ideas and unique points of view into the creation of a theatrical event in exciting and demanding ways.”

The lights shut off after the actors introduced their performance, and the audience of students, faculty and theater fans alike, who were seated around the perimeter of the theater, fell silent as the cast chanted in chilling unison: “Something is rotten in the state of… state of… in the state of… Denmark!”

The performance consisted of several well-integrated distinct episodes inspired by Shakespeare’s play that formed a cohesive performance. Though plot and character elements of the original Hamlet were easily recognizable, HAMLET in a nutshell took much liberty in both developing those aspects and translating them into more modern intonations. Very little about this performance was “traditional”— the actors rotate through roles, and sometimes a single character was played by multiple actors on the stage at once. They sang and played instruments, ranging from drums to a child-sized piano. They unleash Shakespeare’s naughty humor with outrageous puns, innuendoes and rowdy love scenes.

Perhaps the largest difference between the original Hamlet and HAMLET in a nutshell is the explicitness with which the actors develop the characters of the Queen, Hamlet’s mother, and Ophelia, his love interest, in contrast to Shakespeare’s

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as bait for Hamlet’s mania, and how uncomfortable it made her.

Conversely, toward the end of the performance, when the actors interpret a scene in which Hamlet voices to his mother his disapproval of her hasty remarriage, I felt that the actors took perhaps a little too much liberty. The original play ends this scene with Hamlet storming out of the room, leaving the Queen miserable and disgusted. But the actors went a step further, rolling out a piano and lighting the theater with candles, as the Queen performed a cabaret-esque number, banging on the keys and belting out “speak to me no more, sweet Hamlet.” After I imagined the actress as Liza Minnelli, I lost it. I couldn’t stop laughing during this serious scene.

The intense enjoyment and hilarity I felt during HAMLET in a nutshell amply justified the changes to the original play. The actors were phenomenal—always on time, on key, en pointe. The rest of the audience seemed to enjoy themselves just as much as I did, and left the theater with smiles all around.

HAMLET in a nutshell is a reminder that great art is distinguished by a capacity for change and growth, and was an overall superb experience.

When I saw that Brandeis was hosting Etty, a one-woman play based on the life of a female Holocaust victim from Amsterdam, I was shocked that another diary had been discovered in addition to Anne Frank’s. The prospect of sitting through a one-woman Holocaust play made me hesitant for two reasons. First, one-woman plays tend to make me uncomfortable. Will the actress be acting out other characters simultaneously?

Will it be painstakingly long without set or costume changes? Will she break down in tears while the audience awkwardly watches from a distance? Secondly, I was reluctant to see another adaptation of the life of a Holocaust victim after years of Holocaust units in elementary school, high school and Hebrew school. However, the one-woman play, Etty, which strings together the diary entries and letters of Etty Hillesum during the German occupation in Amsterdam, appeals to an audience at a deeply complex, reflective and mature level. The show was followed by a post-performance discussion panel moderated by Prof.

Andreas Teuber (PHIL). The panel included Prof. Antony Polonsky (NEJS), Prof. Dawn Skorczewski (ENG), Prof. Palle Yourgrau (PHIL) and Susan Stein, who played Etty.

The play, which was staged in the Rappaporte Treasure Hall on Thursday night, was performed by Susan Stein and directed by Austin Pendleton. The stage was plain and black; a black curtain was the only backdrop. There were no costume changes, and a low stool and antique suitcase were the only props.

While props and costume changes do add variety to a play, I believe this minimalistic setting was ideal.

It allowed me to truly zero in on the emotional intensity that Stein’s performance evoked.

Etty is also unique in that it is used to teach non-Jewish audiences about the Holocaust. Stein has performed Etty for churches, Catholic private schools, inner city public schools and more recently, Muslim communities. Etty’s life is relevant cross-religiously because in addition to identifying as Jewish, she drew much of her belief system from the New Testament and Buddhist theology. However, I found her spirituality very confusing in this performance. She outwardly curses God for not making her a better poet and for the fate that her Jewish people ultimately face.

Yet soon after this, she quotes the Book of Matthew and later prostrates herself on stage, singing psalms. Stein, herself, admitted that Etty’s patchwork of faith was often confusing, relaying a reaction from one of her past audience members.

He asked, “I don’t get it, is Etty an agnostic, or Tevya? (from Fiddler on the Roof).” Although Etty’s religious identity is somewhat ambiguous, Stein told Etty’s life story with such confidence and poise that I initially overlooked the question of Etty’s religion.

Etty’s story begins as a 27-yearold law student in Amsterdam. She becomes a “model” for psychologist Julius Spier (known as just “Spier” in the play), who recommends she keep a diary as part of her therapy.

However, Etty’s diary becomes more than just a mode of treatment; it is also where she blossoms as a gifted writer. In her journal, Etty documents the passionate affair she had with Spier, her lust for other men and women in her life, her concerns for the future of German-

occupied Amsterdam and her troubled relationship with God. When many Jews in Amsterdam are summoned to report to Camp Westerbork, a Dutch transit camp, Etty applies for a position with the Jewish Council—a group of Jewish social elite who were exempt from deportation—at the recommendation of her brother Jaap. Etty refers to Westerbork as “a camp for people washed from the nooks and crannies of the Netherlands, only to meet their demise.”

She performed administrative duties for the Jewish Council reluctantly but knows this job helped save her family from earlier deportation. Etty resents her privileged position at the Jewish Council and longs to be treated as a member of the Dutch Jewish community at Westerbork. However, Etty ultimately recognizes her situation “makes me the luckiest person in all of Holland.”

Etty’s job at the Jewish Council only postpones the inevitable. In her last letter to her close friend, Maria, Etty writes about her final time in Westerbork before her deportation to Auschwitz. She passed her diary along to Maria upon her deportation in case she did not return to Amsterdam after the war.

“How I die will show me who I truly am,” she writes. Etty perished along with her family in Auschwitz.

Several incomplete versions of her diary and letters were published in the late 1950s, but it wasn’t until 1981 when the full Dutch version was released along with an English translation.

Etty’s painful yet beautiful prose is less of a testament to the Holocaust, but rather to her own struggle to find her place in the world. Yourgrau communicated this sentiment in the panel, explaining that “The play is about Etty as a witness of the Holocaust and also these diaries are an incredible human document of a powerful thinker … her diaries develop in a powerful way.” Yet the question of why Etty’s diary is not as widely read as Anne Frank’s or other Holocaust diaries remains unanswered. The answer may be that Etty’s life was not textbook friendly.

“Etty slept with many people. She led a very sexual life,” explained actress Susan Stein, “Was the world ready for a woman’s highly sexual view on the Holocaust?”

“

Yet the question of why Etty’s diary is not as widely read as Anne Frank or other Holocaust diaries remains unanswered.

One Brandeis student, Elena Korn ’13, saw Etty in its seminal stages and then again at a local synagogue. “Everyone who sees it takes something from it … Etty speaks to everyone so differently,” she said after Thursday’s performance.

Korn also recognized the play’s potential as a cross-departmental program for theater, creative writing, philosophy and Near Eastern and Judaic studies; each can appreciate the play from different angles.

As the 69th anniversary of Etty’s death approaches this Nov. 30, we struggle to make present the past.

Etty is not a history book, full-length documentary, or museum exhibit— it is not concerned with presenting the facts of the Holocaust. Rather, Etty is a moving journey into the mind of a woman caught in the wake of emotional and historical turmoil. Etty’s reflections on her imperfections and human struggles allow us to relate to her story and adopt it as our own.

22

TUESDAY, november 20, 2012

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THE JUSTICE

BRANDEIS VISIONS FOR ISRAEL IN AN EVOLVING WORLD

Israeli culture conquers the Castle Commons

JENNY CHENG/the Justice

CAPTIVATING CUISINE: Zach Cardin ’15 and other students enjoy homemade shakshouka, an egg and tomato sauce dish from the Middle East, at the “Shakshouka and Stories” event last Thursday evening.

■ Students shared

personal anecdotes about their experiences with Israeli society.

By Phil Gallagher JUSTICE Editor

JENNY CHENG/the Justice

THOUGHTFUL DISCUSSION: Daniel Koas ’16 participates in a lively discussion about Israeli culture and experiences.

Students from various ethnic and political backgrounds came together in the common room of Usen Castle on Thursday evening for Middle Eastern food and thoughtful dialogue at “Shakshouka and Stories.”

The event was dedicated to the sharing of students’ cultural experiences and narratives about Israel. The program was sponsored by the new student group Brandeis Visions for Israel in an Evolving World, which describes itself on its Facebook page as a group that “envisions conversations [about Israel] that emphasize innovation, embrace diversity, empower students, and push us to look toward the future.”

The event began with introductory remarks by A. B. Troen ’14, who acknowledged the importance of sharing personal narratives and being open to new opinions, given the recent violence in Israel and in Gaza.

Following Troen’s greetings, five students presented their

stories to the gathered group.

Faisal Alasiri, a Saudi Arabian graduate student in the Teaching Hebrew Master’s program, spoke first and recounted his first exposure to the Hebrew language in grade school when his teacher uttered a Hebrew curse word to the Arabicspeaking students. Pinchus Polack ’14 shared his confrontation at an Israeli gymnasium with local teenagers who attempted to seek retribution on Polack and his friends for asking them to leave a basketball court.

Shani Abramowitz ’14 recited a poem entitled “Corkboard Reality Check” about her experience overcoming the challenges of adapting to Israeli society and longing for the familiarity of home. Chen Arad ’15 performed a song on the guitar that he described as a song about “Israeli cockiness.”

Rena Singer ’13, the final presenter, described visiting a commune in Israel filled with Bob Marley-obsessed observant Yemenite Jews.

After the presentations, students ate a dinner of shakshouka, a meal of eggs and tomato sauce prepared by Gal Barak ’16, and broke into smaller groups to share personal narratives in an intimate setting.

In the breakout groups, students explored a variety of top-

ics, including uncomfortable experiences in Israeli supermarkets, the unique style of Israeli humor and the political challenges that Israelis face on a day-to-day basis.

To close the program, Mostafa Hussein, an Egyptian Ph.D. student in the Near Eastern and Judaic Studies department, shared his motivation for studying Jewish Studies.

In order to break through the “psychological barrier” that he has found between Israeli and neighboring Arab countries, Hussein, as an Arab Muslim, has studied Hebrew and Judaism in-depth for the purpose of “learning the other side of the story.” During his presentation, he both quoted the Quran and recited the Shema, a Jewish prayer central to daily liturgy.

Students in attendance appreciated the opportunity to share their personal stories.

“I admit, I was slightly ambivalent going into the program,” said Zelle Rettman ’14 in an email interview with the Justice. “I initially went because I had friends who were performing and was planning on leaving afterward, but I ended up staying because the presentations were all so unique and depicted different perspectives on Israel.”

Alex Thomson ’15, co-pres-

ident of the Brandeis Israel Public Affairs Committee, expressed similar feelings about the event. “Especially with the current situation in Israel regarding Gaza, it was great to hear perspectives of Israel not directly related to conflict and war,” he said in an email interview with the Justice. “I found what people had to say about Israel to be both illuminating and fascinating.”

Arad, speaking on behalf of the bVIEW executive board, reflected on the event in an email to the Justice, commenting that, “Thursday night, we were not only proud of bVIEW but of the Brandeis campus in general. Given the escalating rocket fire on Israel from the Gaza Strip and Israel’s response, it was incredibly meaningful to see students, among them Israelis, a Saudi Arabian and an Egyptian, come together to share their stories about Israel and learn from each other.”

According to Arad, this program is part of a series of bVIEW events that will culminate in a full-day conference to “lay the foundation for a better vision-based discussion of Israel,” hosted at Brandeis on Sunday, Jan. 27.

Editor’s Note: Shani Abramowitz is a News staff writer for the Justice.

movie review

Film departs from enduring themes of its novel ■ Though beautifully

presented, ‘Anna Karenina’ lacks the original qualities the novel portrayed.

By YEHUDA HAREL JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

In the novel Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy describes a feeling of love and desire that drives one couple to ruin while uplifting another couple to happiness. The society Tolstoy lived in did not accommodate the sudden desire that takes the virtuous woman, Anna, to adultery. She becomes the subject of ridicule, and only in the countryside can she find peace away from the eye of society.

Although the film, directed by Joe Wright, expresses some of these points, it largely uses the novel as a point of departure rather than an ex-

act template.

One of the most innovative parts of the film is the use of a theater as the set for most of the scenes. This directly reflects the idea that the world is one large stage. Pieces of the theater, including the stage and backstage, remind the viewer that this is actually a performance. During the opening minutes, the set pieces actually move on screen, and I watched an office turn into a street in Moscow and then into a restaurant. The sense of time and space is distorted, and this in turn gives the film a dreamlike quality, yet this film avoids the mystery that makes dreams so appealing.

Wright stylizes the most obvious aspects of the novel, giving an increasingly narrow view of the story.

A scene towards the middle of the movie is shaped like a nightmarish version of classical paintings, where all the characters stare at Anna as she walks into the room. Rather than

let the audience empathize with her situation, Wright purposely points a finger at the fact that everyone looks down on her. This scene is very subjective, but lacks the context to make it meaningful. What made Tolstoy’s novel powerful was that he made sure every alternative view was always present. In this scene, he brought to the attention of the reader that although Anna may think no one cares about her, many people actually do.

Wright focuses on Anna’s story of adultery and her resulting misery, as opposed to recognizing that Anna’s very misery is responsible for the happiest form of love.

The decision to give less attention to the happy love story may be the biggest flaw in the movie. Levin (Domhnall Gleeson) asks Kitty (Alicia Vikander) for her hand in marriage despite being refused once before. Kitty accepts the marriage only after her former suitor, Count

Vronsky, has run off with Anna, her aunt. If Vronsky had not run off with Anna, he would have married Kitty.

In turn, Kitty and Levin share the happiest form of love, while Vronsky and Anna fall into misery. Towards the final act of the film, Wright occupies the film with Anna’s story and ignores Levin and Kitty’s marriage. The juxtaposition of happiness alongside misery would have helped the film expose the emotional contrast that made the novel so moving.

Even though Anna Karenina (Keira Knightley) is played well, the stylized scenes took the spotlight away, not giving her a chance to exhibit some of the more interesting aspects of her character, like her increasing distrust of her lover. Count Vronsky (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), her lover, does not have enough physical presence on screen to convince the audience that he is Anna’s lover, let alone a womanizer. Jude Law provides the

subtlest performance of all, playing Anna’s husband, Karenin. He plays a benevolent, religious and respectable man who conceals a growing hate for his adulterous wife. Yet the mix of performances cannot help a film that suffers on a thematic level.

Although Anna Karenina has much visual splendor to offer, no empathy passes readily to the screen.

The film did not provide the wide scope that made Tolstoy’s novel so appealing. All I was left with was to marvel at the set design, the costumes and the careful staging, feeling nothing towards Anna and her troubling situation. Maybe if the film did not treat misery like some obvious fact, I would have felt something towards Anna. Instead, the film blunts the very feelings it attempts to inspire by simply showing them off. I said before that the film departs from the novel, but “abandons” might be a better word.

THE JUSTICE

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TUESDAY, November 20, 2012

23

OFF CAMPUS music

Aerosmith loses skill on latest release ■ ‘Music From Another Dimension!’ stays true to Aerosmith’s roots, yet does not meet expectations.

By ELI KAMINSKY JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

No band compares to 1970s to 1980s hard rock group Aerosmith, dubbed the “Bad Boys from Boston,” when it comes to intermember conflict. Between constant breakups, a public feud between front man Steven Tyler and lead guitarist Joe Perry, Tyler’s season as an American Idol judge and a band-wide attempt to find a replacement lead singer, it has become near impossible to keep up with band drama. No one expected Aerosmith to ever get its act together. However, all of a sudden, in the summer of 2012 the band announced a countrywide tour in support of its highly anticipated album Music From Another Dimension!— the group’s first studio effort since 2004’s lukewarm Honkin’ On Bobo.

Given Aerosmith’s reputation for lack of communication and trust between bandmates, key aspects of producing quality material in a group setting, it is difficult to conceive that Music will be a good album. Unexpectedly, Music From Another Dimension! greatly resembles the musical style of classic Aerosmith releases such as 1975’s Toys in The Attic, 1987’s Permanent Vacation and 1989’s Pump, though it leaves much to be desired.

The record opens with an ominous, robotic voice that matches the science-fiction theme touched upon by the album cover and title.

The warning states that, “You are about to enter a great adventure … from which you may never return.”

This introduction matches the science fiction theme of the album title, Music From Another Dimension! and the supporting tour’s title, “The Global Warming Tour,” but not much else. The opening track, “Luv XXX,” which sounds unmistakably like typical Aerosmith, strongly

Wichita Eagle/MCT

ROCK LEGEND: Steven Tyler, lead singer of Aerosmith, ‘American Idol’ host and fashion legend, performs in Wichita, Kan. during “The Global Warming Tour” in November. kicks off the hour-long odyssey as a loud, raunchy sound explodes out of the speakers. Drummer Joey Kramer truly shines on the track, sounding as energetic as he did in 1975 on “Walk This Way.” The next standout track is, “Out Go the Lights,” which blends stadium funk and hard rock in a way truly unique to Aerosmith, only crippled mildly by its length.

“Out Go the Lights” signifies the beginning of the strongest set of songs on the album, which includes

the lead single and best track off Music From Another Dimension!, “Legendary Child,” the power ballad, “What Could Have Been Love” and “Lover Alot,” another raunchy jam reminiscent of “Luv XXX.” Music From Another Dimension!’s most obvious anomaly is its ninth track, “Can’t Stop Lovin’ You,” which oddly enough, since Aerosmith is by nature a hard rock and blues rock band, features country singer Carrie Underwood. Straying

from anything an older reincarnation of Aerosmith would compose, “Can’t Stop Lovin’ You” is, by nature, a generic, cheesy country pop song that confuses listeners as to the motives of the album. The album’s overall purpose needs to be clarified.

Although the record certainly contains several diamonds in the rough, the album as a whole lacks cohesion. An album should rely on every track to pull the listener

through, and the individual songs on Music fail to flow into one another.

That being said, the album is certainly bearable. It’s actually a decent listen and better than anything the band has put out in this millennium. However, when one thinks of Aerosmith, one thinks of a level of power, in sound and performance, that Music From Another Dimension! approaches but does not quite reach.

book

‘Funny Boy’ illuminates intricacy of Sri Lanka ■ The book, assigned

in “SAS 140A: We Who Are At Home Everywhere: Narratives from the South Asian Diaspora,” explores sexuality and ethnicity.

By phil gallagher JUSTICE editor

Admittedly, I’m not usually a fan of novels. I prefer to read my nonfiction book on a topic of personal interest; as a result, fictitious plot lines and constructed characters are foreign to me. However, I found Shyam Selvadurai’s Funny Boy, a fictional story influenced by the author’s childhood, kept me glued to each page with its different scenarios, complex characters and timeless themes.

The story chronicles the maturation of Arjie, a boy growing up in Sri Lanka, and explores his experiences with ethnic tension, political violence, gender roles, sexuality and familial politics. The five themes traverse six chapters, each with a unique plot connected to the book’s broader storyline of Arjie’s maturation in war-torn Sri Lanka. Throughout the book, Arjie becomes more aware of his homosexuality and its pariah status in society, the growing ethnic tensions in Sri Lanka that inhibit personal relationships and the interaction of these two concepts in both his life and the lives of his family and friends.

As an American reader, I found the literature to be an excellent

mechanism for exploring South Asian culture, especially given that I previously had no knowledge of it.

Furthermore, I appreciated hearing about Sri Lankan society from the unique perspective of a gay adolescent. Arjie’s narrative provided a first-person context for the challenges of sexual and ethnic diversity that exist in South Asian culture.

Ethnic tensions in Sri Lanka between the minority Tamils and, majority Sinhalese creatively interweave with sexuality, politics and family dynamics to form many of the conflicts present in Funny Boy. The way that ethnicity affects almost every aspect of the characters’ lives demonstrates the surprising imposition of Sri Lankan affairs on its citizens. For readers generally unfamiliar with South Asian culture, the narrative provides a personal vehicle to understanding more nuanced components of Sri Lankan society.

The most unique characteristic of the book is its approach to time. The six chapters are highly individual in their content and timing, yet the book does not explicitly identify the passing of time in each section. Instead, the implication to the reader is that the story is presented in a chronological order, but the exact amount of time that passes with each chapter is left ambiguous. After reading the different sections of the book, I had to struggle to remember what happened at the beginning, similar to the effort of remembering what you did at the beginning of a very busy day. It is through this style of bringing together stories that Selvadurai conveys to us Ar-

jie’s maturation; we are so focused on the present moment in the story and Arjie’s current state of mind that we do not consider the past despite its clear effect on the present.

The overarching chronology of the book of moving forward through time made me feel that I was growing up with Arjie. At the end of story, I marveled at how I could think back to the beginning of the story and see the change over time in Arjie’s understanding of his family, ethnicity and sexuality.

The book’s singular drawback is the characters’ lack of depth, particularly Arjie’s immediate family members. Although each character clearly has his or her own social and political attitudes, their individual natures are not thoroughly articulated. Consequently, it is difficult to relate to characters through their personalities; their social attitudes and experiences are the primary method of appreciating them.

Although many readers are able to relate to characters in literature through common experiences or beliefs, I found that the two-dimensional dispositions of the characters in Funny Boy made this a challenge.

Readers looking for a book in which they can develop vivid relations with the characters may, as a result, find themselves disappointed.

Nonetheless, the book’s careful weaving together of several different themes through a unique chronology makes it an excellent read.

There aren’t many stories that can take the reader on carefully individualized but intricately related journeys. Funny Boy’s ability to do that makes it worth a reader’s while.

VAUGHN ANDREWS/Harcourt Brace

SOUTH ASIAN POLITICS: The book explores the impact of ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka.

24

TUESday, november 20, 2012 ● THE JUSTICE

TOP of the

ARTS ON VIEW

Brandeis

CHARTS

TALKS

Top 10s for the week ending November 18 BOX OFFICE

Quote of the week “Distance learning is clearly a part of our future, and we need to find ways to do it well, while also preserving the distinctive character of a Brandeis education.”

- Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Birren and Provost Steve Goldstein ’78, writing about the addition of online learning opportunities, in an email to the Brandeis community.

(News, Pg.7)

1. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn- Part 2 2. Skyfall 3. Lincoln 4. Wreck-It Ralph 5. Flight 6. Argo 7. Taken 2 8. Jab Tak Hai Jaan 9. Pitch Perfect 10. Here Comes the Boom

NYT BESTSELLERS

What is your favorite Thanksgiving tradition?

KARINA WAGENPFEIL/the Justice

SPIRITUAL ARCHITECTURE: Justice Photographer Karina Wagenpfeil ’16 took this photograph of the arched ceiling of the Bamberg Cathedral while visiting family in Bamburg, Germany.

Ben Kanter ’13 “We usually go over to my grandmother’s house a few miles away and have a nice Thanksgiving dinner with the folks.”

Laura Weil ’15 “I go to my cousin’s house and then we drive down to Philadelphia to see the larger extended family and then we get Tastykakes, which are kind of like Twinkies.”

Marina Garkavi ’13 “I actually don’t have a Thanksgiving tradition and every year I do something different. I’m going to my friend’s this year, which I’m really excited for.”

ACROSS 1 Favorite texting partner, for short 4 In a crooked position 9 Form 14 Lord’s Prayer opener 15 Deli counter unit 16 What actors have to learn 17 Barcelona gold 18 Kin of “Skoal!”

19 Like much pub ale 20 “Yes, indeed” 23 Parlor or den 24 Kindergarten basics 25 Dinner table dispenser 32 Restful resorts 35 Mystery writer Stout 36 Et__ 37 Destiny 38 Calculates 40 Parisian negative 41 Like bees attacking 43 Computer network acronym 44 Talk show moderator 45 Sentry’s question 48 It replaced the punt in Ireland 49 Shade trees 52 Tenth novel in Sue Grafton’s “Alphabet” series 58 Lite cigarette boast 59 Messing of “Will & Grace” 60 Afternoon potful 61 Hold holdings 62 Best-case 63 Brain scan, for short 64 “Stuck __”: Elvis hit 65 Funeral song 66 Brief titles for the starts of 20-, 25-, 45- and 52- Across DOWN 1 Blessing 2 Much ado about something 3 Bilbo Baggins’s nephew 4 Postulate 5 Hunk 6 Garment for Rob Roy 7 Quito’s nation: Abbr.

8 Place to grab a screwdriver at home?

9 Sits sloppily 10 Doesn’t exactly tell 11 Not pro 12 __ moss 13 Parapsychology subj.

21 “Didn’t mean to do that” 22 Like a banned book, perhaps 26 First, to Franco 27 Wooden pin

CROSSWORD

iTUNES

1. PSY — “Gangnam Style” 2. Rihanna — “Diamonds” 3. Ke$ha — “Die Young” 4. Bruno Mars — “Locked Out of Heaven” 5. Christina Perri — “A Thousand Years, Pt. 2 (feat. Steve Kazee)”

BILLBOARD

28 Rejoice 29 Lotto-like game 30 Mythical archer 31 Talk wildly 32 Chopped side dish 33 High-end 34 Welk’s upbeat 38 Frills, ribbons, ruffles, and such 39 Bit of arena support 42 In olden days 44 Skipper’s area 46 Morally base 47 Wine and dine 50 Measured (out) 51 Look of derision 52 Rivers of comedy 53 “Just doing my job” 54 User of the Force 55 Over, in Hanover 56 Wet blanket, so to speak 57 Luggage attachments 58 Sgt., e.g.

1. Taylor Swift — Red 2. Various Artists — Now 44 3. Rod Stewart — Merry Christmas, Baby 4. Ne-Yo — R.E.D. 5. Aerosmith — Music From Another Dimension!

6. Jason Aldean — Night Train 7. Mumford & Sons — Babel 8. Meek Mill — Dreams and Nightmares 9. Kendrick Lamar — good kid, m.A.A.d city 10. Third Day — Miracle Top of the Charts information provided

by Fandango, the New York Times, Billboard.com and Apple.com.

STAFF PLAYLIST

“Word For Word” Solution to last week’s crossword

Crossword Copyright 2012 MCT Campus, Inc.

SUDOKU INSTRUCTIONS: Place a number in the empty boxes in such a way that each row across, each column down and each small 9-box square contains all of the numbers from one to nine.

Molly Silverman ’15 “In my family, we usually have a lot of vegan dishes because my brother and I are almost vegan.”

—Compiled by and photos by Olivia Pobiel/the Justice

Fiction 1. The Racketeer — John Grisham 2. Poseidon’s Arrow — Clive Cussler and Dirk Cussler 3. Flight Behavior — Barbara Kingsolver 4. Gone Girl — Gillian Flynn 5. The Casual Vacancy — J.K. Rowling Nonfiction 1. Killing Kennedy: The End of Camelot — Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard 2. No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission that Killed Osama bin Laden — Mark Owen with Kevin Maurer 3. Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever ­— Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard 4. The Signal and the Noise — Nate Silver 5. The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill: Defender of the Realm, 1940-1965 ­— William Manchester and Paul Reid

Solution to last week’s sudoku

Sudoku Copyright 2012 MCT Campus, Inc.

By TATE HERBERT Justice editor

These are songs that I know by heart and plan on serenading my family with obnoxiously (air guitar and sound effects included) on our road trip back from Thanksgiving dinner.

THE LIST 1. “Just A Friend (feat. Biz Markie, Matt Berninger and Sharon Jones)”—Booker T. Jones 2. “I’ll Make A Man Out Of You”— Mulan Chorus and Donny Osmond 3. “Just Like Heaven”—The Cure 4. “I Believe In A Thing Called Love”—The Darkness 5. “Runaround Sue”—Dion 6. “Baker Street”—Gerry Rafferty 7. “December, 1963”—Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons 8. “Yes”—LMFAO 9. “Billie Jean”—Michael Jackson 10. “Hot In Herre”—Nelly