ARTS PAGE 21
FORUM Peretz reactions were unwise 11
‘TABLOID’ REVIEWED
SPORTS Womens’ soccer wins both its games 16 THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER
the
OF
BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY SINCE 1949
Justice www.theJusticeOnline.com
Volume LXIII, Number 5
Waltham, Mass.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
RELIEF EFFORT
STUDENT UNION
F-Board low on funding for fall
PANEL
Panelists discuss Kagan’s climb to the Court
■ Frederick Lawrence
was one of the speakers presenting about the new Supreme Court justice.
■ An increase in chartered
clubs and monetary requests from organizations has left F-Board with limited funds.
By SARAH AHMED JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
$30,000. The students organizing the relief effort are working with the House of Charity, the International Development and Relief Foundation and Islamic Relief USA. All three of these organizations respond to different types of natural disasters and also helped with Haiti. “We wanted programs with a lot of credibility because people often have hesitations when donating to Pakistan. These … are well-established organizations with credibility,” Aqil said The first fundraising event is a benefit dinner that will take place on Tuesday, Sept. 28 in the Shapiro Campus Center Atrium. A donation will be required at the door; the recommended amount is $15.
University President-elect Frederick Lawrence joined Prof. James Mandrell (ROMS), the chair of the Women’s and Gender Studies department, and Profs. Anita Hill (Heller) and Eileen McNamara (JOUR) last Thursday for a discussion surrounding the confirmation of the newest U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Elena Kagan At the discussion, titled “Roundtable Discussion on Confirmation Hearings of Judge Elena Kagan,” the panelists spoke about a range of topics concerning Kagan, a former Harvard Law School dean, who was the first female solicitor general in the Justice Department and the fourth woman to be appointed to the Supreme Court. The panelists covered the process of the confirmation hearings, the media portrayal of it and the impact of diversity in the nation’s leadership. The panelists also spoke about the fact that Kagan’s nomination was a topic of discussion at all. Lawrence focused on the history of the confirmation process since U.S. President Ronald Reagan’s attempt to nominate Robert Bork, whom the Senate refused to nominate. Lawrence, who currently serves as dean of the George Washington University Law School, explained that Kagan faced opposition by the Senate not because she was “unqualified,” but because to them, “her views were outside where they thought they needed to be.” According to Lawrence, the Senate during Bork’s and Kagan’s times desired a Supreme Court that represented the mainstream views of the country. Although Senate
See RELIEF, 7 ☛
See KAGAN, 7 ☛
By FIONA LOCKYER JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
Facing a record-high amount of requests, the Finance Board will use a relatively low amount of funding to fund regular marathon requests as a result of more clubs requesting larger sums of money for early marathon. This year, out of $247,266 in the FBoard budget, $83,243 has already been allotted for early marathon, leaving $164,022 remaining for clubs that requested $463,000 in funding during marathon this past week. After over-allocating and expecting that some clubs will not use all of their early marathon money, the official amount allocated was $196,893. “Last year we were able to give 85 percent of what clubs requested on average,” explained F-Board member Gabriel Weingrod-Nemzow ’12. That percentage will be in the low 40s, according to Union Treasurer Akash Vadalia ’12. According to Vadalia, the increase in the number of requested funds is due to an increase in chartered clubs and an increase in the F-Board requests by student clubs and organizations. “Large increases from last year include $15,000 more for Club Sports, $11,000 more for BEMCo, ~$6,000 more for WBRS, around $8,000 more for Waltham Group, $5,000 more for SSIS, and $3,000 more for BTV,” wrote Budget Analyst Steven Costa in an e-mail to the Justice. Members of the F-Board also attributed part of the request increase to a rise in the number of club sports, which also request funding from the F-Board. Moreover, secured clubs, which are guaranteed yearly funding and do not need to apply for funding from F-Board, requested more funding this year, increasing requests by $50,000, according to Costa.
See F-BOARD, 7 ☛
ROBYN SPECTOR/the Justice
FUNDRAISING UNDER WAY: Anushka Aqil ’12 (left) and Wajida Syed ’12 sell a variety of goods to help the Pakistani citizens.
Students initiate Pakistan relief effort after flooding ■ A variety of student
groups will hold events to raise money to help the Pakistani people. By MARIELLE TEMKIN JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
In light of the destructive flooding that has occurred in Pakistan since late July, Anushka Aqil ’12 has spearheaded an on-campus fundraising relief effort on campus to help revitalize the Pakistani economy, whic has been devastated by the natural disaster. While Aqil started the relief effort, many on-campus groups and organizations, such as the South Asian Students Association, Project Nur, Positive Foundations,
WBRS, the Greek Awareness Council, Waltham Group and the Student Union, are collaborating in this effort. Aqil said in an interview with the Justice that the main goal of the fundraising effort is to make people aware of the situation in Pakistan. “Unfortunately, this problem is something that not a lot of people know about; there’s not a lot of news coverage,” she said. Since the flooding started on July 26, there have been 21 million displaced Pakistani citizens, and the official death count is 2,000. Aqil said that a major problem is that “the Pakistani economy is not selfsufficient enough to come back out of this crisis very easily.” Through the fundraising, she explained, those involved are hoping to raise somewhere between $20,000 and
Her Campus in print
Record-setting win
Investigative report
■ Abi Katznelson ’11 wrote a feature for Seventeen magazine.
■ The men’s soccer teams scored the most goals in the team’s history with a 13-0 win over Newbury College.
■ The Schuster Center’s E.J. Graff reports on the corruption in the Vietnamese adoption system.
FEATURES 8 For tips or info call Let your voice be heard! Submit letters to the editor online (781) 736-6397 at www.thejusticeonline.com
INDEX
SPORTS 16 ARTS SPORTS
17 16
EDITORIAL FEATURES
10 8
OPINION POLICE LOG
10 2
NEWS 3 COPYRIGHT 2010 FREE AT BRANDEIS. Call for home delivery.
2
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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THE JUSTICE
NEWS AP BRIEF
POLICE LOG
AP BRIEF
Medical Emergency
Government policies cause Citigroup to stop issuing private student loans BOSTON—Citigroup Inc. is exiting the private student loan business, as the government changes the playing field by making Uncle Sam the primary lender to students. The government’s growing role is cutting out private lenders from much of the business of financing higher education, prompting lenders to decide whether to exit the business entirely or scale back. On Friday, Citigroup said it is selling its 80-percent stake in Student Loan Corporation, its student loan business, and about $32 billion in related assets to Discover Financial Services and the student lender Sallie Mae. The combined transactions will bring Citigroup $1.8 billion in cash, but Citi said it will take a loss of about $500 million in this year’s third quarter because of the deals. Back in March, President Barack Obama signed a law to make the government the primary lender to students rather than a guarantor backing private loans. This essentially means that private lenders can continue to service their exisiting loans, but the potential for growth in making new loans is cut off. Private lenders still can make student loans that are not backed by the government, although that market is shrinking. The changes have hit Citi’s student loan business and Sallie Mae harder than the industry as a whole, said Tim Ranzetta, founder of the independent research firm Student Lending Analytics. He estimates industrywide the number of new private loans was down 24 percent in the 2009-2010 academic year compared with the previous year, while Citi and Sallie Mae have seen their new loan business cut by roughly half. In Friday’s transactions, Sallie Mae, the largest student lender, and Discover Financial, provider of the Discover payment cards, will fill the void from Citi’s private student loan exit. Discover has agreed to pay Citi $600 million, or $30 per share, for Student Loan Corp. Discover also will acquire $4.2 billion of private student loans from Student Loan Corp. Sallie Mae, based in Reston, Va., is the nation’s largest student lender, formally known as SLM Corp. With the Citigroup deal, Sallie Mae will acquire $28 billion in federal loans, adding another 1.3 million new customers for $1.2 billion. After the transaction, Sallie Mae will manage or service about $200 billion in federal student loans. Citi has been looking for a buyer for its 80-percent stake in the Student Loan Corp. for several months as it refocuses it operations. The indirect Citi subsidiary is 20-percent owned by holders of Student Loan Corp.’s publicly traded shares. Citi has been unraveling the one-stop financial services marketplace model it created in the late 1990s. Citi split itself into two parts last year—Citicorp and Citi Holdings. The latter division holds riskier assets, including the mortgage-backed securities that undermined the bank and other financial institutions. In afternoon trading, Student Loan Corp. shares surged $8.72, or 41 percent, to close at $29.87—slightly below the $30 price per share that Discover is paying in the transaction.
Sept. 16—University Police received a report from a party claiming that his friend was vomiting in Village B. BEMCo treated the party on-scene with a signed refusal for further care. Sept. 16—A male student was reported to have a cut thumb in Goldman-Schwartz Fine Arts building. BEMCo treated the party onscene with a signed refusal for further care. Sept. 17—University Police received a call from a doctor claiming that a 17-year-old was “in crisis” in front of the Bernstein-Marcus Administration Center and was with a community development coordinator. The party was transported by ambulance to the NewtonWellesley Hospital for a psychological evaluation. Sept. 18—A party claimed that a 21-year-old female was shaking and fainting in the Sherman Dining Hall. An ambulance transported the party to the Newton-Wellesley Hospital. Sept. 18—University Police received a report that an 18-year-old had a bee sting in Massell Quad. BEMCo treated the party onscene with a signed refusal for further care. Sept. 19—A 20-year-old intoxicated male was transported from Ziv Quad to the
Newton-Wellesley Hospital. Sept. 19—University Police received a report of an intoxicated male in North Quad. An ambulance transported the party to the Newton-Wellesley Hospital. Sept. 19—University Police received a report that a young woman was having arm and chest pains. BEMCo was dispatched, and an ambulance transported the patient to the Newton-Wellesley Hospital.
Larceny Sept. 17—University Police received a call that an individual’s wallet had been stolen in North Quad. The party’s backpack had been left unattended in a hallway outside a lecture hall.
Miscellaneous Sept. 18—A University Police officer observed a male climbing through a window in the Charles River Apartments. University Police arrested the male on an of an outstanding default warrant, trespassing and breaking and entering.
—compiled by Alana Abramson
The Justice welcomes submissions for errors that warrant correction or clarification. E-mail justeditor@brandeis.edu.
Senators present project reports, discuss budget
TALI SMOOKLER/the Justice
Fondue night with BUCO Students were invited to join together last Tuesday to make new friends while dipping different delicious foods into chocolate at a fondue night sponsored by the Brandeis University Conservative Organization.
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 every Monday from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the Justice office. Main Line News Forum Features Sports Arts Ads Photos Managing
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The Student Union Senate agreed to further assist Brandeis Pakistan Relief. Founded by Senator-at-Large Abdul-Aziz Sohail ’13, the group works to provide aid for the millions of Pakistanis who have been affected by the recent floods. A Pakistan relief fund dinner is planned for Sept. 28th, and the cost of attendance will be $15. The Senate unanimously confirmed Usman Hameedi ’12 as a representative to the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee. The UCC is comprised of Dean of Arts and Sciences Adam Jaffe, seven faculty members and three undergraduate students. The committee supervises all undergraduate educational activities. The Senate unanimously approved a name change for VOCAL Poetry (previously known as VOCAL). VOCAL poetry is an organization that works to combine poetic arts and community involvement. Assistant Treasurer to the Senate Neladri Bose ’12 discussed the Senate’s budget and possible funding for clubs, such as the Brandeis Pakistan Relief. The senators reported on a variety of projects. Executive Senator and Senator for the Class of 2012 Abby Kulawitz suggested language tables for students learning foreign languages, and this project is ongoing. In addition, Student Union members met with representatives of the Crystal Shuttle and discussed placing GPS systems on the shuttles. The senators agreed to explore replacing the broken Kosher cups at Sherman Dining Hall and posting nutrition facts at dining locations throughout the campus. They also discussed recording Senate meetings and posting them on the WBRS website. Ice machines are also on the Student Union’s agenda.
—Andrew Wingens
ANNOUNCEMENTS Martin Weiner Lecture Series: Physics department colloquium
theJustice
BOSTON—Had Twitter been an option in 1960, a pregnant Jacqueline Kennedy might well have used it to communicate with voters while largely confined to her Massachusetts home and notably absent from her husband’s presidential campaign. A half-century later, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library is using Twitter to recreate Jackie’s weekly glimpses into the life of a presidential candidate’s spouse. The first tweets, expressing her dismay at not being able to campaign in person, were posted Friday—50 years to the day that her first syndicated column was published. “For the first time since Jack and I have been married, I have not been able to be with him while he is campaigning,” she wrote. Kennedy learned she was pregnant early in her husband’s campaign, and by summer her doctors had advised her to keep traveling to a minimum. Concerned that voters would negatively view her absence from the trail, John F. Kennedy’s advisers suggested that she pen the weekly columns to keep her in the spotlight and appeal to female voters. The Twitter feed, @JBK1960, is a companion to the JFK Library’s ongoing Twitter feed @Kennedy1960, which reconstructs day-to-day developments in the 1960 campaign.
SENATE LOG
CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS An article in News incorrectly stated the given name of a student. Her name is Sarah Miller, not Sam Miller (Sept. 14, p. 5) A photo caption in Arts misstated the DJ in the photo. It is MiMOSA, not RJD2. (Sept. 14, p. 21) A photo caption in Arts did not properly attribute a photo. The photo of Sarah Bareilles was courtesy of Tara Melega/Sony Music. (Sept. 14, p. 18) A photo caption in Arts did not properly attribute a photo. The photo of The Bad Plus was courtesy of Liz Burg. (Sept. 14, p. 21) An editorial in Forum made an incorrect statement. The article incorrectly stated that the the bookstore’s policy requires all students wishing to return their textbooks to do so the week before the end of the add/drop period. The bookstore’s return policy actually allows students one week from the first day of class to return their books, unless they drop the class, in which case they have 30 days to return textbooks for that class with their receipt and proof of schedule change. (Sept. 14, p. 10)
JFK Library creates Twitter account for Jackie Kennedy
The degree to which evolutionary adaptations are reversible has long intrigued biologists. A famous example of reversibility in evolution is the emergence and subsequent loss of legs in the lineage that led to whales. However, studies of enzymatic evolution suggest that it is possible for evolution to become “stuck” even if the original form of the enzyme is more fit in the new environment. Come listen to Jeff Gore from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who will be addressing the previous statements and presenting “Is Evolution Reversible?” through the Physics department. Today from 4 to 5 p.m. in AbelsonBass-Yalem 131.
with stipends to support your unpaid internship this summer! The International Center for Ethics, Justice, and Public Life’s Sorensen Fellowship, Hiatt Career Center's WOW Fellowship, Women’s and Gender Studies’ Rapaporte Fellowship, Eli Segal Citizen Leadership Fellowship and Davis Projects for Peace will be featured in the program. Today from 5 to 6 p.m. in the Shapiro Campus Center Atrium.
Student Events presents Candyland Looking for something good to eat and hungry for a delicious treat? Come see the Shapiro Campus Center Atrium transformed into Candyland! Previews of the fall concert performers OK Go will be played. The event is sponsored by Student Events. Today from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Shapiro Campus Center Atrium.
Funding your summer internship information session
Liquid Latex informational meeting
Come learn about the various sources of funding across campus that can provide you
This will be an informational meeting for anyone interested in participating in the
Spring 2011 Liquid Latex show as a model, dancer, choreographer, artist, designer, security, staff member or any other role. Tomorrow and Thursday from 8 to 9 p.m. in Polaris Lounge.
Open mic All students, staff and faculty are invited to kick off the year by expressing their musical talents at an open-mic event in the Slosberg Recital Hall. Contact shawna@brandeis.edu with any questions. Friday from 3 to 4 p.m. in the Slosberg Recital Hall.
Taste of Waltham Pizza Back for its third year in a row, you can vote for your favorite Waltham Pizza place for free! Stop by, sample and vote! If you don’t like pizza, the Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees game will be screened as well. Friday from 7 p.m. to midnight in the Shapiro Campus Center Atrium.
THE JUSTICE
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
3
CENTERS AND INSTITUTES
Journalist studies corrupt adoption policies ■ E.J. Graff examined
undisclosed documents from the State Department about Vietnamese adoptions. By NASHRAH RAHMAN JUSTICE EDITOR
E.J. Graff, associate director of the Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism, published an investigative article in Foreign Policy Sept. 12 examining the actions undertaken by the United States State Department between 2007 and 2008 to address systematic corruption in the Vietnamese adoption system. The article, titled, “Anatomy of an Adoption Crisis,” is part of the Institute’s Gender and Justice Project, which focuses on “continuing injustices and biases that are harming women and their children … and yet are not being fully or accurately reported,” according to the Institute’s website. The Institute has published five other articles on corruption in international adoptions, including Graff’s “The Lie We Love” in 2008, which received four journalism awards. In an e-mail to the Justice, Graff
wrote that the Institute “originally began investigating fraud and corruption in international adoption when sources made it clear that a significant problem—exploitation of birthfamilies [sic] in poor countries—was being reported only piecemeal, not in depth.” Referring to “Anatomy of an Adoption Crisis,” Graff wrote, “In 2008, I heard a great deal about the extensive problems in adoptions from Vietnam; sources told me that the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi had tremendous concerns and was on the verge of halting all U.S. adoptions from Vietnam.” She wrote that the Institute subsequently submitted Freedom of Information Act requests, which calls for full or partial disclosure of unreleased information controlled by the U.S. government, related to the State Department’s evidence of problems in Vietnamese adoptions. The documents received through the Freedom of Information Act requests are available on the Institute’s website. In her article, Graff writes that these documents revealed that the U.S. State Department had discovered “a network of adoption agency representatives, village officials, orphanage directors, nurses, hospital administrators, police officers, and government officials who were profiting by paying for, defrauding, coercing, or even sim-
ply stealing Vietnamese children from their families to sell them to unsuspecting Americans.” Graff’s investigation explores how the U.S. State Department struggled to take efficient measures “to shut down the infant peddlers while allowing the truly needed adoptions to continue.” According to the article, the U.S. government had three “imprecise tools” to address concerns about the Vietnamese adoption system. Graff writes that the U.S. State Department and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officers could have investigated the circumstances behind Americans’ applications for “orphan visas” but that this option was “time-consuming, and it elicited vehement objections from the Vietnamese government.” She writes that U.S. consular officers and diplomats could have pressured Vietnam to uphold the 2005 Memorandum of Agreement—a bilateral agreement on adoption—or the United States could have stopped accepting adoptions from Vietnam all together. “Understanding how little the State Department and USCIS could do, despite how hard they tried, helps reveal what these U.S. government agencies need to respond more effectively in the current adoption hot spots, Nepal and Ethiopia,” Graff writes in her article.
Graff writes that today the U.S. does not allow adoptions from Vietnam but that Vietnam has began prosecuting baby sellers involved in the corrupted adoption process. “[The InGraff stitute] wrote about Vietnam because we received hundreds of compelling documents that illuminated the problem. That’s not always been the case. We have filed many Freedom of Information Act requests about other countries; we are still waiting for some to be answered by the U.S. government,” Graff wrote in her e-mail to the Justice. Graff also wrote in her e-mail, “Our goal is to report the facts in enough depth to spur policy discussions, so that concerned citizens and policymakers can identify and take any steps needed to reform injustices, oversights, and abuses.” She wrote, for example, the Institute had been informed that reading “The Lie We Love” had prompted Congressman Albio Sire to focus on corruption in international adoptions in order to draft corrective legislation.
“[‘Anatomy of an Adoption Crisis’] has spurred some very thoughtful and moving discussion. We will be posting some of it on our website, when we are given permission,” Graff wrote in her e-mail. Florence Graves, the founding director of the Institute, wrote in an email to the Justice,“ [‘Anatomy of an Adoption Crisis’] is about Vietnam— but it illustrates just how easily fraud can be committed in very poor countries where prospective U.S. parents are paying more than $20,000 to adopt a child. That kind of money can easily lead to corruption in very poor countries where many people live on a dollar a day—and our system needs to come to terms with that.” As Graff’s editor, Graves also collaborated with Graff in writing the article. “What’s really very important to understand is that this series of investigations into corruption in international adoption ultimately illustrate[s] just how desperately poor millions of people are in countries throughout the world … These stories illuminate the world’s foreign aid failures—and should force even more attention on what the world needs to do to help desperately poor people around the world. This is the bottom line significance of our several related investigations,” Graves wrote.
RESEARCH
Findings may lead to a new treatment ■ Two professors worked
with a group that may have discovered a new way to treat Parkinson’s disease. By HARRY SHIPPS JUSTICE SENIOR WRITER
JI YUN LEE/the Justice
Afghanistan experience Prof. Sarah Lamb (ANTH) speaks with Khayam Allen ’07, after he spoke about his work in Afghanistan in his talk, “Relief Work in Afghanistan: Report from the Ground.”
ROSE ART MUSEUM
Search for new Rose director begins ■ Director for the Office of
the Arts Scott Edmiston will head the search committee for a new museum director. By ALANA ABRAMSON JUSTICE EDITOR
A search committee has been formed to recruit a new director for the Rose Art Museum, University President Jehuda Reinharz wrote in a Sept. 16 campuswide e-mail. The e-mail explains that Roy Dawes, who currently serves as director of operations for the Rose, will continue in that capacity “until a new director is in place.” Reinharz wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that he made the decision to form this committee at the start of this fall semester, explaining, “We’ve been very deliberate in our approach to the museum.” “The Board of Trustees voted in March to adopt the two key recommendations of the Future of the Rose Committee report: that the Rose remain a university museum open to the public, and that it be more fully integrated into the academic mission of the university,” he wrote. Until April 2009, Dawes served as assistant director of operations for the Rose. According to Reinharz , Dawes has “led the Museum” since the position was vacated after Michael Rush, the former director of the Rose, left
the museum in June 2009. An April 21 Justice article explains that Rush had his position terminated on June 30, 2009. In an e-mail to the Justice, Dawes wrote that once a director has been chosen, he will resume his role as “second in command” and will continue to oversee the day-to-day operations of the museum and exhibitions. According to Reinharz’s e-mail, the search committee is chaired by Director for the Office of the Arts Scott Edmiston and consists of Chair of the Rose Art Museum Board of Overseers and member of the Board of Trustees Stephen Reiner, Vice President for Planning and Capital Projects Dan Feldman and Profs. Susan Lichtman (FA), Jonathan Unglaub (FA), John Lisman (BIOL) and Robin Miller (GRALL). A student and a museum professional will be invited to join the committee in the near future, according to the e-mail. Reiner wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that the committee had not met yet, and a meeting had not been scheduled, although he expected one to take place soon. Edmiston wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that he anticipates the first meeting taking place in October, and that the committee will “continue to meet once or twice a month until the search is complete.” When asked about a timeline for finalizing a decision regarding a director, Edmiston wrote that the committee would not be operating
under a strict deadline. “I believe it’s important that the search process be thoughtful and thorough rather than fast,” he explained. Dawes wrote that while he will not serve on the committee, “the staff of the Rose will be consulted during the process.” When asked what qualities he hoped to see in a director, Dawes emphasized someone that values the museum and its history. “We need a person with a strong vision, one who understands the history of the Rose and embraces its future. The new director must understand the importance of the Rose collection and the museums [sic] place in the academic life of the university,” he wrote. Edmiston echoed Dawes sentiments. “I can’t speak for the committee, but I personally hope we will find someone of vision and integrity—who is passionate about engaging students in the arts,” he wrote. The decision to conduct a search for a new director comes after the administration hired Dabney Hailey for academic programming at the Rose and Kristin Parker as the new collections manager and registrar there, Reinharz’s e-mail explains. “Coming on the heels of the two excellent recent hires, it represents another step forward for the Rose, and that is something with which I hope the whole Brandeis community is pleased,” wrote Reiner.
Profs. Gregory Petsko and Dagmar Ringe (CHEM) are part of a group of scientists led by researchers at Columbia University that has discovered a new pathway in cells that influences the collection of specific proteins called polyamines, which is one of the “central characteristics of Parkinson’s disease and probably causes the disease,” said Petsko in an interview with the Justice. Especially significant about the results of the study is the fact that drugs designed to slow the buildup of the polyamines already exist, said Petsko. Petsko explained that the drugs were initially intended to combat cancer and said that before this research, no one would have thought to make the connection between these drugs, more specifically the chemical compounds in the drugs, and their applications for Parkinson’s disease. Petsko said that these drugs, aimed at the pathway newly discovered by the group, “may have therapeutic benefits in Parkinson’s disease,” meaning they may be able to help treat the disease in some cases. Petsko also said that the research has established the connection between polyamines and Parkinson’s so that the presence of polyamines in the body might be able to be used to diagnose Parkinson’s early on in the progression of the disease. Scott A. Small, M.D., the senior author of the study and Herbert Irving associate professor of Neurology in the Sergievsky Center and the Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain at Columbia University Medical Center was quoted in a separate article, which appeared online, as saying, “The most exciting thing about the finding is that it opens up the possibility of using a whole class of drugs that is already available; additionally, since [the proteins] can be found in blood and spinal fluid, this may lead to a test that could be used for early detection of Parkinson’s.” Petsko and Ringe said that the drugs, or more specifically the compounds, may exist and will inhibit the pathway, which would prevent a protein from performing its function, but that the previous testing has been
done only on cell models of Parkinson’s. Petsko explained that the existing drugs cannot cross into the brain, over what is known as the blood-brain barrier. In drugs meant to treat Petsko other diseases, this is preferable because it lessens the risk of neurological side effects, but Petsko said that if the compounds can be used to treat Parkinson’s, then they will need to be in the brain. He said that it will be necessary “either to find compounds that these drug companies discarded during their development because they got into the brain, … or, if not, we will have to make analogs of these drugs that are capable of passing into the brain.” Petsko credited Shulin Ju, a postdoctoral student at Brandeis, with doing most of the research work that constituted Brandeis’ contribution to the study. In an interview with the Justice, Ju said that most of the work he has done has focused on the study of Parkinson’s in a yeast model, which Ju said is a very simple model of a cell that can be easily manipulated to study the effects of Parkinson’s disease on the cell and the therapeutic effects of certain compounds. Like Petsko and Ringe, Ju expressed excitement that manipulation of the newly discovered pathway might be able to at least slow the progression of Parkinson’s in some patients. “This [discovery] is obviously very significant,” he said. Petsko said that the next step in the research process, which has been going on for about a year, is to “test these ideas in animal models of the disease, and that’s going to require developing better compounds.” “I think we want to try to understand why this pathway is involved in Parkinson’s. We don’t really understand the biochemistry of why this pathway influences the Parkinson’s-related protein,” added Petsko. He said that he expected this to be the focus of the research taking place at Brandeis, while most of the animal testing will be done at Columbia University. Both Ringe and Petsko said that, even if something worked in animals, there is no guarantee it would work in or be safe for humans and that there is a long process to go through before any compounds might be safe for human use.
THE JUSTICE
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMER 21, 2010
STUDENT LIFE
ADMINISTRATION
Students still plan to request apology
Two administrators to assume Jean Eddy’s responsibilities
■ Students are sending the
letter they wrote Marty Peretz prior to his apology for his anti-Muslim remarks. By FIONA LOCKYER JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
Sahar Massachi ’11, one of the students who wrote a letter to Martin Peretz ’59 demanding an apology for his remarks regarding Muslims in his column of The New Republic, still plans to send the letter after Peretz’s apology was made public. Massachi had planned to mail it to the office of The New Republic as soon as the 500 Brandeis community members signed the letter online, which happened after Peretz had published an apology. “Attacking people’s First Amendment rights is un-American, un-Brandeisian, and unethical,” reads the letter, its last words stating, “We, the united Brandeis community, respectfully and firmly demand you apologize.” The letter was in response to remarks Peretz made in his Sept. 4 column of “The Spine” in The New Republic, stating that “frankly, Muslim life is cheap, most notably to Muslims,” and going on to say: “I wonder whether I need honor these people and pretend that they are worthy of the privileges of the First Amendment which I have in my gut the sense that they will abuse.” On Sept. 13, Peretz issued an apology addressed at his previous remarks. “I do not think that any group or class of persons in the United States should be denied the protections of the First Amendment, not now, not ever,” he wrote, but did not apologize for his other statement that called Muslim life “cheap,” which he described as “a statement of fact, not value.” The Union Senate formed a separate letter, and the Union Executive Board drafted a press release on the matter, both of which denounced Peretz’s statements but did not call for an apology. Massachi explained in an e-mail to the Justice that he plans to still send the letter to The New Republic because “we [those who wrote the letter] have an obligation to our membership [those who signed the letter]” to send the letter. Peretz has not contacted Massachi about the letter.
■ Rick Sawyer and Keenyn
McFarlane will provide joint oversight of the Divsion of Students and Enrollment. By FIONA LOCKYER JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
According to a Sept. 14 e-mail to the Brandeis community, Vice President for Enrollment Keenyn McFarlane and Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Student Life Rick Sawyer will provide joint oversight of the offices that compose the Division of Students and Enrollment after the current Senior Vice President for Students and Enrollment Jean Eddy resigns
at the end of the month. Eddy has accepted the job of senior vice president for Students and Enrollment at the Rhode Island School of Design. The two will serve in this capacity until further notice while the University searches for Eddy’s successor, explained Sawyer in an interview with the Justice. McFarlane added that they will both be involved in the search process. “This is a fairly obvious and appropriate interim step going forward,” said Sawyer, explaining that he and McFarlane were already very integrated into the department. “As Vice President of Student Affairs I already have about half of students and enrollment in my
world, the other half Keenyn [McFarlane] was already integrated with, so it was more of an announcement than a significant change in either of our responsibilities,” Sawyer explained. Sawyer further explained that he and McFarlane would be assuming the duties that Eddy had previously overseen, such as attending meetings, making reports directly to the University president and interacting with the Board of Trustees. Eddy assumed additional responsibilities for student admissions after former Dean of Admissions Gil Villanueva resigned in July 2009. Both McFarlane and Sawyer will be working closely with Mark Spencer, the new dean of Admissions, they said. Spencer, who previously served
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as director of Admissions for the Cornell University College of Engineering and prior to his time at Cornell had served as the associate director of Admissions at Vassar College, began working in Admissions on Sept. 13, according to an email from President Jehuda Reinharz during the summer. “We have a really good division,” Sawyer said, explaining that he and McFarlane aim “to not let the momentum of our division and our work lapse with Jean Eddy’s leaving.” “We want to make sure transition is seamless,” said McFarlane, “people will know [Eddy] is gone but not necessarily see it.”
—Alana Abramson contributed reporting.
MORGAN FINE/the Justice
Student Union meet and greet Student Union President Daniel Acheampong ’11 and Student Union Secretary Herbie Rosen ’12 spoke at “Meet the Student Union,” a forum for interested students to find out about Brandeis student government and learn about ways to become involved. Elections for campuswide senatorial positions will be held this Sunday.
CAMPUS CLUBS
Students form an Israeli-focused activist club on campus ■ Jewish Voices for Peace
consists of students that want to promote peaceful relations in the Middle East. By TYLER BELANGA JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Three students recently founded Jewish Voices for Peace, an activist group advocating for peaceful, nonviolent resolutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The founders, Liza Behrendt ’11, Jonathan Sussman ’11 and Lev Hirschhorn ’11, started the group several weeks ago. Hirschhorn said that the group is not planning on applying for a charter, but it plans on working with other chartered clubs on campus such Brandeis Students for Justice in Palestine. According to the group’s website, Jewish Voices for Peace “opposes antiJewish, anti-Muslim, and anti-Arab bigotry and oppression,” and seeks “an
end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem; security and self-determination for Israelis and Palestinians; a just solution for Palestinian refugees based on principles established in international law; an end to violence against civilians; and peace and justice for all peoples of the Middle East,” according to the group’s website. “Our opinion is that there are a lot of avenues to peace,” said Behrendt. “As American Jews, it is our responsibility to advocate for Israel to change its policies toward the Palestinians and ArabIsraelis.” Behrendt cited both an end to Israeli military occupation in the West Bank and the ceasing of human rights abuses in Gaza and around the region as critical first steps in achieving peace. Hirschhorn added that he feels it is “quite impractical” for two groups such as the Israelis and Palestinians who live in such close proximity to “have sentiments of nationalism.” Both Hirschhorn and Sussman said that American-European military aid to Israel must be re-evaluated.
“I don’t feel that America and Europe should completely disengage from the Middle East,” Sussman said. “I feel that the overwhelming amount of aid in terms of military equipment, weaponry and money has created a huge power imbalance in the region. Sussman said that his interest in starting such a group was triggered by several things, including Brandeis’ selection of Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren as the 2010 commencement speaker, as well as because of the Justice Richard Goldstone debates held last year. “There isn’t really a voice [on campus or in America] advocating for peace,” Sussman said. “We have a number of organizations that represent farright political foreign policy views who advocate generally for support for Israel,” Sussman said. “[Jewish Voices for Peace] is not only a legitimate voice calling for peace … but represents a new voice that needs to be heard.” Hirschhorn said that Jewish Voices for Peace is currently the only explicitly Jewish and “non-Zionist” organi-
zation on campus. The group plans on working with Students for Justice in Palestine “because we have similar goals and a similar outlook on the conflict. What makes our group different is that we want to do this with a Jewish voice and a Jewish character,” he said. Jewish Voices for Peace “is advocating for a very specific way to end this conflict, which is to re-evaluate America’s perspective on Israel and to ask American Jews to reconsider how they approach the state of Israel,” Sussman explained. The group hopes to hold events in the near future, such as a lecture by Shir Hever, an economist who will speak about the political economy of Israel, and a discussion led by a panel of rabbis who speak out against human rights abuses going on in the region, according to Hirschhorn. The group also hopes to work with the Muslim Student Association to plan an event to discuss “Islamophobia” in response to the Brandeis Tea Party chapter’s upcoming screening of Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against
the West. “It needs to be shown on campus that there are very strong contingent voices against this action of bigotry,” Sussman said. Other topics the group would like to discuss include a one-state solution, as well as the boycott of divestment sanctions in Israel, an item that the group does not necessarily endorse but would like to discuss in open conversation because it is a topic often subject to misinformation. Sussman said he is particularly interested in addressing the components of boycott divestment sanctions that target “corporations that are involved in building settlements in the West Bank and profiting from them.” “Because of Brandeis’ place [in the jewish community] it has an opportunity to show that even within the mainstream institutions of the Jewish community there is a diversity of opinions,”said Hirschhorn.
—Jillian Wagner contributed reporting.
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THE JUSTICE
RELIEF: Student groups help Pakistan
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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STUDY ABROAD COMES TO BRANDEIS
CONTINUED FROM 1 There will be music, speakers and regional Pakistani food, Aqil said. She also said that on Friday, Oct. 1, WBRS will be hosting a benefit concert similar to the one it put on for Haiti last year, and the Greek Awareness Council will sponsor a Pakistan Week in late October. Also, there will soon be tables in the Campus Center selling accessories such as scarves and jewelry from Pakistan and green-and-white wristbands so students can show their support. The accessories were donated by students who are from areas in and around Pakistan, and the tables will be run by students from the various clubs involved with the fundraising. Student Union Vice President Shirel Guez ’12 commented on the various clubs coming together for this cause. In an interview with the Justice, she said that, at first, “[the effort] didn’t have a huge presence on campus yet, and I saw it as an unbelievable opportunity to really embody the Brandeis social justice message. … Last year I was really involved in the Haiti relief, and I was just so inspired by the way people came together.” Senator at Large, Co-Head of the Social Justice Committee and active member of the Pakistani effort Aziz Sohail ’13 said that those running the relief effort are trying to schedule events so they do not overlap but also so there will not be long breaks between events. He said that in order to keep track of all the events, there will be posters up around campus with the dates and locations of everything that is happening. “We just hope the trajectory takes off and that the events are successful. … We really hope to get the word out,” he said. “This is for awareness more than anything.”
YOSEF SCHAFFEL/the Justice
Options overseas A representative from a study abroad program in Australia speaks with a student at the Study Abroad Fair, which took place last Thursday in the Levin Ballroom. The Study Abroad Fair provided students with a chance to learn about a multitude of study abroad programs that are from a variety of countries all over the world.
F-BOARD: Less funding given CONTINUED FROM 1 Most years, explained the FBoard, there is a rollover from year to year that occurs when clubs do not spend all of their allotted money. For example, $50,000 of rollover from fall 2009 was reallocated in spring 2010. In his e-mail to the Justice, however, Costa explained; “Although [Student Activity Fee] revenue increased, after accounting for late expenses, there was virtually no rollover this year” from the spring 2010 semester. According to Costa, the F-Board semester budget consists of money allocated for secured clubs, the salary of the Budget Analyst and fringe costs of operation, early marathon and fall marathon. Most of the money provided to the F-Board comes from the Student Activities Fee, the annual fee that
each undergraduate student, except for students studying abroad, pays each semester. After Costa’s salary, fringe costs and the CapEx/Reserve fund is deducted, the F-Board has a budget to use for marathon. The CapEx/Reserve fund “is used to fund things like the annual maintenance contract and server rental for Student Union Management System, the new club finance application,” wrote Costa. “We fear that some clubs might not be able to function,” said Weingrod-Nemzow. Clubs are being advised to look into alternate methods of funding, such as departmental and grant funding. The F-Board allocates money based on the merit of the request, the funding scale of the club, and whether the club leadership is deemed able to hold the planned event, explained the F-Board in an
interview with the Justice. “We can’t really allocate money for an event that might not happen, because for every dollar we give to a club we can’t give to another club,” Weingrod-Nemzow said. During marathon, the F-Board members meet with the leaders of different campus groups requesting money and listen to their plans for the funding period. “If their request has merit then at that point we consider if what the club requested is too much. … We figure out if we can get [the club’s request] for cheaper and we look for them. We tell them to re-look if we think it’s too much, and we basically get it so we can get what they want for as cheap as possible,” explained Weingrod-Nemzow. “We try to get it as cheap as possible without skipping on quality; we try to get the best item for the best
price,” he said. This year, publicity costs, food for meetings, food for events and the number of weekly lessons were reduced aspects of F-Board allocation as a result of the funding conditions. While the University has experienced a net increase of 100 more students, the fund request increased by $140,000 from last fall semester, according to the F-Board, indicating that even though the SAF was increased by the payments of the 100 students, the requests outweighed the increase. “We wanted to tell all the clubs that we truly apologize for our inability to fund all of their events in the way that we actually want to. … They can still do everything they want to do, just without all the bells and whistles they were planning,” explained Weingrod-Nemzow.
KAGAN: Panelists discuss Supreme Court confirmation process CONTINUED FROM 1
LYDIA EMMANOUILIDOU/the Justice
JUDICIAL DISCOURSE: Prof. Anita Hill (Heller) recalls Kagan’s confirmation hearings.
members who opposed Kagan’s nomination did not claim outright that she did not fit the country’s views, they did attempt to portray her as unqualified in general. According to Lawrence, the Senate confirmation hearings have turned more into “rude political theater” when senators, instead of asking nominees questions, give rants and turn them into a question by asking for Kagan’s opinion on their speech. Through these types of hearings, Lawrence said that we lose “an extraordinary opportunity for public education” where instead of focusing on the issues the country is facing, the media pays more attention to anything that seems outrageous during the hearings. McNamara elaborated on the lack of media focus on the role of the courts and the diverted attention to Kagan’s sexual orientation. According to McNamara, the role of the courts should have been a more substantive topic of discussion than Kagan’s choices of clothing and hair. McNamara pointed out that Kagan’s appearance was used to draw attention to Kagan’s sexual orientation and whether it mattered for her role as a justice. McNamara explained that media
attention on Kagan’s wardrobe and haircut was an attempt to draw publicity to news organizations since Kagan had no controversy. “No controversy means no conflict. And no conflict means no news,” McNamara said. Hill focused on the opposition Kagan encountered during the Senate confirmation hearings. In particular, Hill focused on how Senate members misconstrued Kagan’s stance on issues and tried to portray her as an “outsider.” They did so, said Hill, by claiming that her prohibition of military recruitment at Harvard was “punishing military and demonizing soldiers” although in reality, Kagan opposed the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy because she deemed it unconstitutional. Hill additionally pointed out that Kagan’s admiration of Thurgood Marshall, the first AfricanAmerican Supreme Court justice, was portrayed as a sign of Kagan being a judicial activist rather than a fair judge. Hill pointed out that the depiction of Kagan as an extremist causes her to lose her ability as a possible conciliator for the court and raises the question of who the nation thinks will be acceptable replacements in the future. Mandrell closed by speaking on
the changing dynamic of the Senate and the Supreme Court. He said that while there is a lack of diversity in these arenas, the slowly growing diversity nevertheless induces fear in some people. Mandrell also spoke about the sacrifices minorities, specifically women, make to obtain high offices of power. He pointed out that out of the last three women appointed to the Supreme Court, none were married or had children. Mandrell said that the confirmation hearings make us look at women like Kagan and the fact that women need to abandon family life to become successful as she is. Students who attended the event expressed interest in the relevance of the issues brought up by the speakers. “We need to know what’s going on in the courts and who’s representing us,” said Zakaria Hussein ’14. “These discussions bring about an awareness about issues that still continue to come up in society today,” said Stacy Dimapelis (GRAD). “People can talk about how we’ve come so far, but clearly it shows that we have a long way to go to getting to the point where these aren’t issues that should be made into such a big deal,” she added.
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
just
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THE JUSTICE
features
VERBATIM | John Kenneth Galbraith You will find that the State is the kind of organization which, though it does big things badly, does small things badly, too.
ON THIS DAY...
FUN FACT
In 1981, Sandra Day O’Connor was approved by the Senate as the first female Supreme Court justice.
Natural pearls melt in vinegar.
ROBYN SPECTOR/the Justice
IN PRINT: Abi Katznelson ’11 wrote an article about packing tips for students going off to college that was published in the October issue of Seventeen magazine after she was chosen to be one of just 17 writers.
Brandeisian en vogue Abi Katznelson ’11 wrote a feature for Seventeen magazine By MISSY MANDELL JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Whether you religiously follow who’s the latest couple in Hollywood or you can’t resist a glance at the page of embarrassing stories when flipping through the pages of teen magazines, it’s common that those stories are either written by or about students in high school and college. Abi Katznelson ’11, a stylish brunette and one of those magazine readers, can now flip through the pages of Seventeen magazine and see her own name in print. Katznelson, a writer for Her Campus, a blog written by college women as a source of information for other college women, will soon be featured in Seventeen magazine, according to a Sept. 8 press release from Her Campus . Her Campus was founded in September 2009 by three Harvard undergraduates: Editorin Chief Stephanie Kaplan, Windsor Hanger and Annie Wang. Its sections include Style, Dormlife, Careers and Health, and it has over 600 writers on 50 college campuses. Some of the most recent contributions have included articles on a recent apple-picking event at Honey Pot Hill by Katznelson, a guide to where to eat on Newbury Street by Amy Melser ’12, tips on what it really takes to be an orientation leader by Jordana Gluck ’12 and Morgan Schwartz ’11 and a once-weekly nominated Campus Cutie. Katznelson got involved with Her Campus through her suitemate, Danielle Schivek ’11, who wrote for the national publication. It appealed to her because it was different from anything she does in her daily life, as she does not study writing and had not written for other campus publications. “I’m an Economics major, so writing is something different, and I felt like it was something I could do to make a difference,” she says. When asked what she likes to write about, Katznelson responded, “We try to answer questions that people ask all the time so they want to keep reading. We try to write about what’s going
ROBYN SPECTOR/the Justice
PACKING EXPERT: Katznelson writes for Her Campus, which has over 600 writers on 50 college campuses. on on campus.” This week, Katznelson is working on an article about what to eat at a Yom Kippur break-fast, although she says it’s “hard to come up with a recipe column for Yom Kippur.” What is unique about Her Campus is that contributors do not have to dedicate their lives to writing in order to participate. Katznelson commented, “It’s not my goal to be published. What Her Campus does for its writers is provide a relaxed writing environment so their writers can provide the readers with information they can’t get anywhere else.” Interest in Her Campus has been picking up speed, and the organization is now increasing at a rate of about six branches per week. As it began
gaining support and getting sponsorships, the idea of partnering up with Seventeen magazine came about, and all of the interested Her Campus writers submitted applications and sample work. Katznelson was one of 17 Her Campus writers chosen be featured in the October 2010 issue of the magazine, which was released to newstands Sept. 8. The feature, titled, “Seventeen Things You Should Know About College,” targets high school girls and gives advice on things they should know as they near their first year of college. In it, Katznelson gives advice on “What to Pack and What Not to Pack.” Other examples of advice given in the article include “What to Wear to Class,” “Must-Haves for Your Dorm Room” and
“How to Survive an All-Nighter.” Katznelson felt like an expert on the topic of packing after having learned her packing lessons as a first year. “The funny thing is, my freshman year, my father’s construction van was needed just to bring all of my stuff to school. Since then, I’ve made it a project to pack as smart as possible,” Katznelson wrote in an e-mail to the Justice. She pitched 25 tips to the magazine, which ended up picking eight. “My favorite [was] a tip to pack lots of underwear (to keep from having to do laundry too often),” she wrote. Katznelson said that she read Seventeen when she was in high school, so it was exciting to be featured in it. She had never dreamed that she would published in the popular magazine, as she did not think of herself as a writer. Seventeen, though, thought of her as one and was very helpful in the editing process with her. “I had to give them their dues. The editing process was instantaneous. I was up a few nights getting one e-mail after another,” she said in an e-mail to the Justice. Still, after all of that editing, Katznelson still did not know for sure if her work would be featured. “No one told us if our submissions [after the final edits] would actually be featured until the day the issue was released,” she said. As a senior, Katznelson has one more year to write for Her Campus while still an undergraduate. She cares about Her Campus and wants it to be successful once she leaves, but she does not think she will continue writing once she graduates. She says, “I want to make sure it is left in good hands. I know there are people who are capable and passionate who will make sure it will survive after I graduate.” ”[It is] a really cool opportunity [to be published in Seventeen], and a way to connect with all of these new people, and life is about making these connections and taking opportunities as they come,” Katznelson said. Editor’s note: Amy Melser ’12 is an Arts staff writer for the Justice.
THE JUSTICE
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
Reunion for a worthy
cause abroad
GRATEFUL PATIENTS: Each day, while the five doctors were in Haiti, there were lines of about 150 to 250 patients waiting to see them for medical attention.
Brandeis alumni, all doctors, went to Haiti to lend their medical hand in September By DEBORAH SALMON JUSTICE STAFF WRITER
Before Sept. 5, Michael Forman, Lisa Fishaman, Steven Fralik, Mark Horowitz and Michele Mandel had a few things in common. They were all once Brandeis students and all went into the medical profession. However, that was all that bonded them until just a few weeks ago when the group went on a volunteer medical mission to Haiti. They went not knowing what to expect, and they came back with another shared experience, a broadened view of the world and a story to tell. The group was part of the Brandeis Haiti Relief Effort, a student-led mission co-founded by Nate Rosenblum ’10, and set up to aid Haiti after last year’s earthquakes. Rosenblum, who was heavily involved with fundraising for Haiti as an undergraduate, contacted and coordinated with alumni that would be willing to help out in Haiti. He started this effort with immense dedication to the Haitian people, and although he didn’t know he would have as many interested alumni as he did, it certainly turned out to be a success. This comes to show that the Brandeisian devotion to justice and community can remain years after graduation. Rosenblum, while an undergraduate, contacted alumni in the medical profession from contacts given to him by the alumni office. He invited all of them to be part of this group. More than 20 Brandeis alumni who were working in the medical profession answered Rosen-
blum’s calls and showed interest in volunteering. Eventually, after working around various scheduling conflicts, five physicians and one dentist, impressed by Rosenblum’s incredible dedication, traveled to provide medical care to the residents of Les Cayas, Haiti from Sept. 5 to 10. Although the doctors had not known each other previously, there was a “sense of bonding by our common Brandeisian heritage,” Horowitz says. Over the week, the group bonded and became very close; not only were they spending a lot of time together but they were also experiencing intense situations. “When we were [parting ways] in Miami [at the end of our trip], it was sort of a moving moment ending this intense week together,” Horowitz says. Mandel, currently a pediatrician in New Hampshire, said she went into the trip without any significant expectations or worries, except that “[we] wouldn’t have the capabilities to help patients as much as we wanted to.” As expected, help was desperately needed, and the committee moved around various locations. In addition to Les Cayes, they went to Aquin and Charettes and toured the capital Port-au-Prince and neighboring Petionville. In the end, the doctors turned out helping much more than they had originally expected. The group awoke early in the morning to the sound of church bells and roosters crowing and would then prepare lunch for the long day. “When we arrived at [the clinics], patients were already waiting to see us,” Horowitz
says. The patients, despite being poor, would take extra efforts to clean themselves and dress nicely for the doctors, who were flattered by the gesture. “We were seeing patient after patient. One day we saw 235 [patients]. Usually, [though], it was between 150 and 200,” he continues. Their mission was not solely to help the victims of the earthquake, but to help the impoverished citizens of Haiti. In fact, the southwest region of Haiti, where they were based was largely spared damage of the earthquake. However, some local residents lost family members in the city or were living in the city and forced to headsouthwest when their homes were destroyed. Horowitz, whose daughter Jane is a Brandeis junior, is a family physician working in New York City. Horowitz came back impressed with Haiti’s beauty, despite his belief that the country has been ruled by corrupt leaders who have been more concerned with their own wealth than the well- being of the people. “The people are beautiful. Poor and often undereducated, they always smile and have a nice word for a visitor,” Horowitz says. The doctors worked beside Haitian doctors, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory technicians and dedicated health care workers. The cases they saw included malaria, diarrheal illnesses, intestinal parasites, malnutrition, uncontrolled hypertension, diabetes and even a few cases of post-traumatic stress disorder result-
ing from the earthquake. Although the range of medications they had available was more limited than what they had in the United States, they had adequate choices of medication to use such as antibiotics for malaria and intestinal parasites. Going to Haiti was not just about helping the victims of the earthquake. “To go to a place where health care is not an expectation but rather a privilege is amazing,” Mandel says. People who live in Haiti’s poverty were not accustomed to having routine health check-ups, so having a doctor to talk to for even a few minutes was comforting for the patients. For the doctors, it was a call away from their comfort zone. It took them out of their everyday world of patient care and transported them to a different reality. “I was impressed with what efforts have been done by some of the organizations there with the little resources they have,” Mandel says. “I gained a whole new appreciation for what the conditions are like in Haiti. And although I knew I would be affected by what I saw and experienced there, I had no idea how deeply affected I would become,” Mandel says, when talking about the lasting impressions she is taking with her. The doctors would love to plan to go back to Haiti in the future and even take Brandeis students with them . “I’ve been bitten by the bug and intend to return to Haiti, probably with the same organization,” Horowitz adds.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF MARK HOROWITZ
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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THE JUSTICE
the Justice Established 1949
Brandeis University
B RIAN FROMM, Editor in Chief REBECCA B LADY, Managing Editor B RIAN N. B LUMENTHAL, Production Editor IAN CUTLER, REBECCA KLEIN, NASHRAH RAHMAN and JILLIAN WAGNER, Associate Editors ALANA ABRAMSON, News Editor TESS RASER, Features Editor HILLEL B UECHLER, Forum Editor J OSH ASEN, Sports Editor B RYAN FLATT, Arts Editor ASHER KRELL and ROBYN SPECTOR, Photography Editors DEBRA FRIEDMANN, Layout Editor EMILY KRAUS, Copy Editor C ODY YUDKOFF, Advertising Editor
Effort for Pakistan is admirable This editorial board commends the various student groups on campus that have initiated the Brandeis relief effort on behalf of the flood victims in Pakistan. The floodwaters have damaged more than one-fifth of the country’s geographical area and affected over 21 million of its citizens—approximately one-eighth of the population. On Sept. 7, The New York Times estimated that 10 million of those affected are in urgent need. With that number expected to rise, it is imperative that in the spirit of our mantra of social justice, we, as members of the Brandeis community, contribute to the relief cause in any way we can. A coalition of students on campus has stepped up and established the Pakistan Relief Fund. The group is in the process of planning events to raise awareness and funds for the flood victims. It has already planned a major kickoff event for next Tuesday, Sept. 28: the Pakistan Relief Fund Dinner, which has nearly 100 confirmed guests on Facebook at press time. The fact that these students were able to mobilize quickly at the start of the semester and collaborate so efficiently to shed light on an important issue that risks becoming “old news” is truly remarkable. We encourage all students, faculty, staff and community members to support these students’ efforts by attending the event or making a donation, large or small. We further commend the organizers
Initiative is well planned of the Pakistan Relief Fund for their choice of reputable charities to which to send the money they will raise through their efforts. The members of the committee have chosen to contribute to the major causes being spearheaded by House of Charity, Islamic Relief-USA and the International Development and Relief Foundation. These organizations intend first and foremost to directly aid the flood victims by providing relief supplies; a better water purification system; and naan, a type of bread popular in South Asia. Given the worthwhile missions of these charities to not only provide relief but also invest in infrastructure for the future, we highly encourage everyone to learn more about the organizations’ causes and think of possible ways to help. Just as in the aftermath of the January earthquake in Haiti, it is characteristic of the students at this university to be proactive in a time of major crisis and work toward a solution to a humanitarian problem halfway around the globe. These students’ work on behalf of Pakistan is particularly impressive, considering the fact that the tragic event there occurred nearly two months ago and is losing face in the eyes of the American public and media. In praise of this and in the spirit of the values upon which our university stands, we encourage communitywide support for the Pakistan Relief Fund.
E-Board stance is misinformed In a Sept. 13 press release, the Student Union Executive Board issued a statement condemning the University’s decision to adopt a recent proposal by the Undergraduate Admissions and Financial Aid Committee. However, the accusations, that appeal to the moral foundations of the University found within the release, are highly misplaced. Much of the Executive Board’s reason for its expressed dissatisfaction is based on misinformation. We expect better of the Executive Board, especially considering the weight of its relationship with the University administration on behalf of the student body at large. Within the release, the Executive Board first claims that the revised financial aid policy, which includes a need-sensitive component, constitutes a “substantial blow to the University’s bedrock values” due to its partial consideration of financial need for lowerranked applicants. This claim is exaggerated, as it is unmindful of the University’s financial aid policy as it stood prior to the recent policy revisions. Long before these revisions were adopted, the University has been need-aware for wait-listed applicants and generally does not grant needbased aid to international applicants. While this was, and still remains, less than optimal, like many top-tier universities, this university is not (and in the past has not been) financially equipped to have a completely needblind policy for every applicant. On that note, the press release also fails to acknowledge that under the
Revision was misinterpreted former financial aid system, most students with financial need were not having their needs fully met, which likely prevented many top students from ultimately matriculating to this university. The revised system simply seeks to ensure that more top students have their needs met and end up selecting Brandeis over another institution. It is true that students toward the very bottom of the acceptance list are hurt in this process, but the idea of a financial aid process that leaves some students with needs unmet, however imperfect it may be, is not a new one. Lastly, in its statement, the Executive Board implied that the University altered its financial aid distribution methods because of its lessthan-ideal financial situation. This is not correct. According to Prof. Steven Burg (POL), the chair of the Undergraduate Admissions and Financial Aid Committee, this policy does not save the University any money: It simply results in a more thoughtful allocation of financial aid funds that may subsequently push more top students to attend our university, as this page wrote in a Sept. 7 editorial. Given that the Executive Board serves as a key liaison between the student body and the University administration, we hope that it re-examines its stance on this issue and more carefully researches its positions on University affairs before taking comparably strong stances in the future.
A. ELI TUKACHINSKY/the Justice
Don’t award nice profs Leah
SMITH IN A WORD
We’ve all had that professor. You know what I’m talking about. That [insert expletive here] professor. That professor whom you simply cannot stand because he (or she) just isn’t a nice person. When you do run into that professor, it’s usually a pretty unpleasant experience. But it happens to everyone, and we all deal with it because, unfortunately, it’s an inevitable part of the college experience. But according to a June Inside Higher Ed article, Moshe Yanai, an Israeli billionaire, has provided some incentive for all professors to be a little nicer. He has donated $10 million to the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology and wants his money to be awarded to professors whom students think are nice over the next 20 years. What a cute idea. But let’s get real here. A nice professor award? At a highly esteemed university? It sounds pretty absurd. It seems to me that professors at an elite university such as the Technion should only be getting substantial monetary rewards for compelling academic reasons. Students choose to go to university to pursue an education, expand their horizons and learn how to think critically. Of course, having nice professors to guide you through your academic pursuits is certainly a huge plus. But having nice professors is certainly not guaranteed since faculty members do not get hired or granted tenure because they are nice. Generally, universities hire, grant tenure and recognize professors for the achievements they make in their respective fields. There might be other reasons to hire or grant tenure to a professor, but a university should never do so simply because said professor is a nice person. Hiring a professor based upon his or her personality traits sends the wrong message about the mission of an academic institution, and the same goes for giving out awards. Faculty members are at their universities to teach and to expand upon their own knowledge, and they should only be awarded based upon their ability as teachers and their achievements in academia. If universities start giving out awards based upon other criteria, they run the risk of diminishing their reputations as outstanding academic institutions. Additionally, this award ignores another crucial role that college plays in the lives of its students. Of course, students go to college primarily for academic reasons, but college also serves as a stepping stone to life in the professional world. Not only do students learn skills to help them get better jobs, but they also learn more practical things, like how to be independent, how to network and how to deal with people. In college, students will run into all kinds of people, including people who are not very nice and with whom they do not get along. When you run into “that professor,” it may be a rather unpleasant experience, but it is ultimately helping to prepare you for the “real world.” Whether we like it or not, we will all have to learn how to deal with people we don’t like, and college is a great place to start. This is not to say that professors shouldn’t make the effort to be nice, but we also shouldn’t necessarily be awarding them when they do so. The world is full of all kinds of people, and we must learn to deal with them. No awards necessary. Considering that “nice professor” awards are rather inappropriate for an academic environment, donating $10 million to create such an award was a bit of a waste. In this economic environment, where so many schools are struggling, $10 million could be put to considerably better use. Perhaps Yanai should have thought more carefully about what use he wanted his money to be put toward. $10 million could have been used to strengthen a particular department, build new facilities or even hire better professors. Any of these things would have been significantly more beneficial to students and faculty and could have helped to increase the prestige of the Technion instead of presenting it with an award that is neither beneficial to the student body nor academically appropriate. Everyone loves getting a professor who is particularly nice. It’s a great feeling, and it temporarily makes your life as a student a little easier. We should certainly show a great deal of gratitude to those professors who are kind and understanding, but there is no need to reward them for it. Monetary awards should be reserved only for those professors who show particular skill in their respective fields of research.
OP-BOX Quote of the Week “But we were the most effective in keeping the ball. When we had the ball, we kept it and never gave it back to them.” —Men’s soccer defender Ethan Bercelli ’14 on the Judges’ 13-0 win over Newbury College (See Sports, page 16).
Brandeis Talks Back What are your “green” ideas in order to receive grant money from the Brandeis Sustainability Fund?
BECKY MCDOWELL ’11 “I don’t have any. I felt that it was a project that would take more time than I have.”
ALEX SCHMIDT ’14 “In Sherman [Dining Hall], if everyone got a cloth napkin they could be washed and reused.”
ALBERTO LOPEZ ’12 “Have dryers instead of paper towels in the bathroom.”
IYRON EDEBIRI ’13 “Just having a fund is pretty cool. I have no ideas.” —Compiled by Eitan Cooper Photos by Asher Krell/the Justice
THE JUSTICE
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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War on weed is lost; it’s time to legalize marijuana By SHAFAQ HASAN JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The war on marijuana is not a losing war; it is a lost war. It’s time for anti-marijuana lobbyists to come over to the dark and foggy side, where the air is bong-flavored and the grass has five to seven distinct leaflets. Instead of having to cower in the shadows of the campus, college students should be able to openly bask in the pungent, potent pot smoke without fear of retribution. In other words, it’s time to exchange petitions for pot and make peace, because the hard-fought war to prevent the recreational drug use of marijuana is becoming more and more fruitless. We should focus on the passage of a bill to legalize marijuana that could improve the economies of states by allowing them to tax the drug, a bill that would also unclog the judicial system overrun with superfluous and inane marijuana busts. A group of ex-police officials, judges and prosecutors in California gathered to support the passage of an initiative that would do just that. Proposition 19 could potentially make California the first state to legalize marijuana for personal consumption for adults over 21 years of age. Why would upstanding public figures support the passage of a ballot that legally allows the recreational use of a drug? Because they agree that the police have better things to do than to arrest college students huddling in a circle outside their dorms and passing around a joint. With a marijuana-related arrest occurring every 38 seconds, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, it’s unsurprising that one out of every six federal inmates is imprisoned for a marijuana-related offense, making up 44 percent of all drug arrests in the country. The Drug Enforcement Administration has led this ineffectual fight against the “potheads” of America. FBI records show that out of the 1.6 million drug arrests in 2009, over 850,000 were for marijuana-related activities. However, these efforts are rendered void given the damage they are inflicting on our already crowded federal prisons and court systems. These marijuana arrests have perhaps cemented our country’s position as the “biggest incarcerator on the planet.” According to a study performed by Elizabeth Alexander for the American Civil Liberties Union, 25 percent of the prisoners in the world are currently locked up in America. The manpower that was wasted to arrest these individuals that could have been utilized to try real cases with real criminals is unknow-
GLORIA PARK/the Justice
able. This is not to say that marijuana is solely to blame for the crowded prisons and backed-up judicial system, but these arrests certainly don’t help the situation, either. The arrests are largely extraneous given the relative harmlessness of the drug in comparison to other illicit substances. While small amounts of cocaine or heroin can be fatal, marijuana alone will not kill a first-time user. Of course, marijuana is bad for you but if abused; but so is alcohol, which is legal. Yet, if monitored and regulated (and taxed), marijuana could provide an enjoyable high for citizens and a hefty paycheck for local and state governments. The State Board of Equalization, the agency that controls tax collection in California, already collects close to $100 million per year in sales taxes for medicinal marijuana use. It is now gearing up to collect an estimated $1.3 billion more if Proposition 19 comes to fruition. The proposition would allow marijuana to be taxed like alcohol already is. Undoubtedly, states across the country could use that kind of
money, given the slow economic recovery. Interestingly, this bill is accompanied by numerous terms and conditions that are not unlike the rules police use to monitor the distribution and consumption of alcohol. There is a minimum age, a penalization for furnishing minors and the requirement of a license to sell. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 20,000 Americans die every year as the direct result of alcohol consumption, whereas an American has yet to die as a direct result of smoking marijuana. Considering marijuana is actually less dangerous than alcohol, why can’t it be regulated in a similar manner to alcohol? The answer for most is that marijuana is thought to be worse because it’s stigmatized as being a drug. However, the Drug Enforcement Administration found that 90 percent of minors have described marijuana as being easier to obtain than alcohol despite the fact that marijuana is illegal and alcohol is legal for everyone over 21 years of age. Marijuana should
arguably be more difficult to obtain because it’s only legally accessible to those who need it for medicinal purposes. The law here clearly doesn’t seem to make a difference. Therefore, the legalization of marijuana should actually make the usage of the drug easier to regulate because it would be sold in stores that police officials could monitor. Proposition 19 has the ability to turn the waning war on marijuana around into a beneficial situation for the state, which can collect sales taxes and for the individual, who can enjoy recreational use of the drug without the worry of legal action. For many college students using marijuana and alcohol is part of the college experience. Though studies show alcohol is more dangerous and more addictive than marijuana, drinking has become an acceptable part of college life, whereas smoking marijuana continues to be frowned upon by many. However, if marijuana is legalized, it can be better monitored and regulated, and it can provide financial prosperity.
Backlash against Peretz comments was both unfair and unwise Avi
SNYDER VOICE OF REASON
This is going to be a controversial column. So before I begin, I would like to make a few disclaimers. First, I am not a bigot. I hate neither Muslims nor Islam. Religion is intensely personal, and I would never dream of judging another person on the basis of his or her faith. Second, I will not be talking about “true Islam” in this column. Islam, like every other religion, can be interpreted in numerous ways. I am not a Muslim and do not know very much about the Quran or Muslim theology, so I will not talk about what Islam “really” preaches. Finally, I will try to make this column as inoffensive and sensitive as I possibly can. But I will likely offend someone somewhere, and for that I apologize. On Sept. 4, Marty Peretz ’59, editor in chief of The New Republic and famed Brandeis alumnus, wrote a blog post in which he made remarks that many took to be bigoted against Muslims. This sparked a small uproar in the national media, with the likes of New York Times op-ed columnist Nicholas Kristof attacking Peretz for his comments. But it wasn’t just the national media that got sent into a frenzy; Peretz’s blog post caused quite a stir here, too. A group of students began circulating a very strongly worded letter to Peretz that called his remarks “un-American, unBrandeisian, and unethical” and that called on him to publicly apologize. Under pressure from national media figures like Kristoff, Peretz has apologized for some of his comments, although not all of them.
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Facebook tells me that a lot of my friends have signed this letter. For most students, the question whether or not to sign was probably a no-brainer. But I didn’t sign the letter. I think the letter was unwarranted and unwise. I think it takes Peretz’s comments out of context. I think it is serves to chill free speech. And I think it bespeaks a hypersensitivity unbefitting an academic institution committed to serious and thoughtful discussion of serious geopolitical issues. The specific paragraph which has caused all the uproar, and which was quoted directly in the students’ letter to Peretz reads: “But, frankly, Muslim life is cheap, most notably to Muslims. And among those Muslims led by the Imam Rauf there is hardly one who has raised a fuss about the routine and random bloodshed that defines their brotherhood. So, yes, I wonder whether I need honor these people and pretend that they are worthy of the privileges of the First Amendment which I have in my gut the sense that they will abuse.” I admit, taken alone, this paragraph sounds pretty insensitive and bigoted. But a prudent person can’t simply read one paragraph of a pagelong blog post and then accuse someone of bigotry. That type of rush to judgment is shallow and serves only to distort the views of and slander those who say unpopular things. Taken in context, it is glaringly obvious that Peretz was not attacking all Muslims. He was not saying that Muslim life ought to be cheap. The paragraphs immediately preceding the ostensibly offensive one discussed the recent terrorist attacks in Pakistan that claimed the lives of over 100 people. Those attacks were carried out by Sunni Muslims against Shiite Muslims. Peretz was lamenting the horrendous violence that occurs in places like Pakistan and Iraq and where Muslim extremists routinely kill other Muslims
The Justice welcomes letters to the editor responding to published material. Please submit letters through our website at www.thejusticeonline.com. Anonymous submissions cannot be accepted. Letters should not exceed 300 words, and may be edited for space, style, grammar, spelling, libel and clarity, and must relate to material published in the Justice. Letters from off-campus sources should include location. The Justice does not print letters to the editor and op-ed submissions that have been submitted to other publications. Op-ed submissions of general interest to the University community—that do not respond explicitly to articles printed in the Justice—are also welcome and should be limited to 800 words. All submissions are due Friday at 5 p.m.
in the name of Islam. Furthermore, he was lamenting the fact that, in his view, there is precious little protest against such violence in the Islamic world. It is not hateful to all Muslims to point out that there is a disturbing amount of religious violence and extremism in Muslim society. It is not an attack against the humanity of Muslims to say that far too many Muslims passively accept the existence of extremism and violence in their societies. As Peretz himself remarked in his apology in the pages of The New Republic, “The idea that in remarking upon the cheapening of Muslim lives, I was calling for the cheapening of Muslim lives, as some have suggested, is preposterous.” In fact, Peretz was doing the opposite of devaluing Muslim life. It would be hateful and bigoted to express pleasure at the thought of internecine Muslim violence. Calling on Muslims to take a stronger stand against terrorism within their own societies is a call to Muslim extremists to acknowledge the humanity of their fellow men. However, the question remains: Couldn’t Peretz have expressed himself in words that were a bit more politically correct and sensitive? Yes, he could have. But we must not let the fact that Peretz’s phraseology may have been poorly chosen obscure the points he made in his post. Muslim extremism is a serious geopolitical problem. Any reasonable observer can acknowledge that there is a tremendous amount of violence in much of the Arab world, and that most of that violence is committed in the name of Islam. If we are to have a serious and meaningful public discourse about this terribly important topic, we mustn’t demand that everyone who discusses it walk on glass. Does anyone who reads Peretz’s blog post seriously think that he wants to strip Muslims of First Amendment protections? Does anyone seri-
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ously think that Peretz thinks all Muslims do not value life? Why do we all suddenly become strict constructionists when it comes to parsing the words of media personalities? Pundits and columnists use hyperbole sometimes—they write with passion. We ought to be able to look past words which may have been poorly chosen or written in the heat of passion and see their meaning. Peretz was criticizing Muslim society and what he perceives to be its tolerance of violent extremism. He was not criticizing all Muslims. He was not criticizing the religion of Islam. That ought to have been pretty obvious to anyone who stopped to think for a minute or two before rushing to judgment. If one were to read an article attacking American society for being overly materialistic and corporatist, few people would think that the author was calling every American a materialist cheerleader for exploitative corporations. Likewise, accusing many Muslim societies for tolerating violent extremism is not the same as calling every Muslim a violent extremist. Now, perhaps you think that Peretz’s judgments about Muslim society in the Middle East are incorrect. Perhaps you think that the vast majority of moderate Muslims really are taking an active role to fight extremism in their countries or that they would be more active if they didn’t fear their governments or the terror groups. You may very well be correct, and Peretz may very well be wrong. But demanding apologies for politically incorrect language and calling Peretz a bigot is not engaging with his claims and challenging them. It is the classic tactic of someone who does not want to engage in a serious debate: name-calling. That chilling of free speech should not be present on a university campus, especially not ours—for that is truly un-Brandeisian.
Arts: Rebecca Brooks, Alex DeSilva, Julia Jerusalmi, Elly Kalfus, Morgan Manley, Amy Melser, Alex Pagan, Bryan Prywes, Sujin Shin, Shelly Shore Photography: Genevieve Armstrong, Amy Bissaillon, Maegan Bautista, Jaxson Dermer, Nathaniel Freedman, Davida Judelson, Rozi Levi, Mansi Luo, Yosef Schaffel, Shaefali Shandilya, Tali Smookler STAFF Copy: Danielle Berger, Rebecca Brooks, Jacob Senior Writers: Harry Shipps, Melissa Siegel Senior Illustrators: Rishika Assomull, A. Eli Chatinover, Hilary Cheney, Jenn Craig, Camille Dolfen, Ariel Glickman, Patricia Greene, Rachel Tukachinsky Herman, Liana Johnson, Daniella Kohlhagen, Kim Features: Sarah Gilson, Deborah Salmon Forum: Hannah Goldberg, Rebecca Kellogg, Ethan Dela Cruz, Mailinh Phan-Nguyen, Zane Relethford, Mermelstein, Liz Posner, Leah Smith, Avi Snyder, Marielle Temkin, Amanda Winn, Liat Zabludovsky Layout: Nadav Havivi, Hilary Heyison, Nan Pang Elizabeth Stoker Illustrations: Ari Tretin Sports: Max Goldstein, Jonathan Steinberg
EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS NEWS: Fiona Lockyer FORUM: Eitan Cooper SPORTS: Jeffrey Boxer ARTS: Wei-Huan Chen
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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THE JUSTICE
FORUM UPPING SCHOOL SPIRIT
RISHIKA ASSOMULL/the Justice
IN FAVOR
Sports and architecture will help Deis spirit By RYAN KUHEL JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Clothing can speak so loudly at times that it forces you to drop everything you’re doing and just stare. As I walk down the Rabb steps across campus to Sherman Dining Hall, I cannot help but notice all the sweatshirts boasting Harvard, Yale and Penn. I am always tempted to remind the people wearing them that they actually go to Brandeis. Although I never say anything, I do start thinking. I think about whether Harvard and Yale students would wear a Brandeis sweatshirt because it was comfortable and warm. But most importantly, I think about the squelched sense of school spirit on our campus. The lack of school spirit takes the form of self-deprecation. I heard a first-year sarcastically say that he thought the Zeta Beta Tau highlighter party would be a study session in the frat house at which students would highlight each other’s notes. The University bookstore has a shirt that reads, “Brandeis football, undefeated since 1959.” When students visit the University and go into the
bookstore, that is what they see: One should ask, “Is this display of self-deprecation appropriate to showcase? Are we trying to compensate for a football program, which is an integral part of college life at many universities, with cynicism?” Our education is costing us a leg and an arm; part of getting the most out of this investment requires safeguarding our school’s reputation. We need to moderate the public display of self-deprecation, and we need to nurture a stronger sense of school spirit. In a maelstrom of brainstorming, I came up with two suggestions to remedy this situation. My goal is not to dictate what I think should be done. Rather, I hope to stimulate conversation about constructive ways to address this issue. 1. The student body should take active steps to support the sports teams—perhaps even a new type of team. At the moment, this university is not a state school with a powerhouse football team to cheer for, but the energy exuded by state schools during football season is an important contributing factor to increasing school spirit.
Football, more than other sports, gives students a common enemy, which is critical in uniting any group of people. People have told me that it goes against the culture here. I have heard people say that we are not a sports school and it just would not work. I could not disagree more. Football is a wholesome social outlet, and you don’t have to be an enthusiast to enjoy being in the stands. This university could use a football team.
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We need to nurture a stronger sense of school spirit. And on a similar note, I think the Student Union should take it upon itself to spend more time advertising and promoting the next big basketball game or soccer game. We need to create a stronger culture around our athletic programs. I suggest that the Student Union purchase towels with the University logo and give them out
at games to swing around over our heads. Or the Student Union could give out food and thundersticks at games. Whatever the Union does, it has to be compelling enough to bring people out of the library and into the stands. 2. Great buildings have always reflected the power and accomplishments of countries, states and, of course, universities. Every tour of our campus includes a visit to the Usen Castle, an iconic symbol of the University used to impress potential students. I am baffled as to why more capital is not invested into maintaining and improving the interior of the Castle. Instead of being the most-desired place to live on campus, the Castle is notorious for having old rooms with leaking pipes. If investments were directed toward making the Castle’s interior as impressive as its exterior, we would truly be able to take pride in it. I would even go as far to say that the University should invest in refurnishing older buildings on campus instead of investing in new buildings. The Mandel Center for the Humanities and the Shapiro Campus Center are incredibly modern facilities that we can take pride in.
However, there are many structures that have existed at Brandeis for longer periods of time that could use serious renovations: Massell Quad, Sherman Dining Hall and East Quad. Improving these existing structures forges a stronger nostalgic connection between students and the campus. Alumni will be able to come back to campus and see how buildings they shared memories in are still taken care of and in use. This is an essential part of building a deep sense of school spirit. We are at a dynamic university that makes unbelievable contributions to the greater community and the world. Many students here are extremely proud to take part in the campaign for academic excellence and social justice. It would be unfair to say the University has completely muted its sense of school spirit. I am simply trying to suggest ways in which the University can help students express their sense of school pride. Being active in the conversation about what is wrong with our university reflects how much you care about increasing the value of our education.
IN OPPOSITION
Cherish our current, humble student attitude Rebecca
KELLOGG SOUND AND FURY
Fall 2008 was an exciting time for me; I was finally able to formally begin my own college search. This was an event I was greatly looking forward to after years of watching my older siblings ship out to their own chosen schools while I enviously listened to their stories of college life. After painstaking negotiations with my parents shrunk my desired search radius—namely, the whole country—to only the eastern half, I assembled a list of schools and scheduled visits; the search for the perfect school was officially on. Sadly, despite my initial eagerness, I found myself disenchanted with the schools I was visiting. The colleges I visited were far from homogeneous: some were renowned for excellence in the arts, others in sports, still others in general academia. After each tour, I was left disquieted due to
the distasteful sensation that I was being sold something—namely, that particular school’s “brand.” I heard too much about what going to that college would do for your future and too little about what the students themselves were actually doing to make their dreams come true. Fast forward to spring 2009, when having emerged victorious from the whole ghastly admissions process, I was on my way to Brandeis for Admitted Students’ Day and hoping hard that the school I had fallen in love with on paper would live up to my expectations. Despite my initial misgivings over the “I Got In!” T-shirt given to all the admitted students (would this turn out to be just another school where the students placed an unnatural amount of faith in the name of their college, after all?), after a few hours on campus, I knew that I had found my place. Finally, here was a place where students were more concerned with what they were accomplishing rather than where they were doing that work! I was captivated by the way the students at Brandeis were able to display a healthy amount of pride concern-
ing their own capabilities without veering into the unbearably pompous, “Well of course I’m amazing, I go to Brandeis!” territory. This line of thinking, a supposed indicator of school spirit, just reads as obnoxious and insecure.
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One of my favorite aspects of Brandeis is that there is a lack of that pompousness that masquerades as school spirit. Now, in fall 2010, just over a year after I began my official tenure at Brandeis, I couldn’t be more pleased with our school’s intellectual (but not unduly pretentious) and ambitious (but not arrogant or cutthroat) atmosphere. It’s true that we are (in my
humble, unbiased opinion) a group of rather talented folk. However, very few people here are laboring under the illusions that attending this university will make us special, that the school listed on our diploma will grant us instantaneous access to jobs and unearned respect. Obviously, I believe that going to Brandeis will pay some dividends; I’m putting myself into a lot of debt to be here. I don’t, however, truly believe that the fact that I will have graduated from a prestigious school should cause others to automatically value my worth and capability. Rather, it should be the fact that I successfully challenged myself and engaged with the world in a meaningful way during my stint at said prestigious college which makes the world respect me and my school. While it would be nice if the statement “I go to Brandeis” were more often met by the general populace with something more than a vacant smile and an “Oh, that’s nice,” in the end, that doesn’t really matter. As unique and wonderful as this university is, only a truly blind person would think that its specialness comes from the walls and
hills that form the physical exoskeleton of our beloved alma mater. Our acceptance letters weren’t magical. We—the students, the professors, the administration—are what imbue this place with its Brandeisian essence. I wouldn’t be fully content here if the people erroneously believed that there is something intrinsically amazing about Brandeis. I am certainly proud to go to a university that was named after a great man and founded on solid principles. However, these mean absolutely nothing on their own. “Social justice,” “academic excellence” and other so-called “Brandeisian” qualities are merely flashy, pretty words unless we as a community choose every day to put them into action. Assuredly, there are resources here which are able to help us fully flourish as students and as scholars; but again, these mean nothing without proper effort. One of my favorite aspects of Brandeis is that there is a lack of pompousness that masquerades as school spirit. Yes, we’re awesome, and, yes, we know it. We just know that we don’t need to shout about it all the time.
THE JUSTICE
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VOLLEYBALL
Team storms back to victory ■ The volleyball team came
from a 2-0 deficit to win its match against Endicott College last Tuesday. By ADAM RABINOWITZ JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
After dropping the first two sets of last Tuesday’s match against Endicott College by scores of 26-24 and 25-23, the Judges rallied back and won the next three sets 25-23, 25-14 and 15-13 to win the match and improve their record to 8-2 on the year. Outside hitter Paige Blasco ’11 led all players in the match with 23 kills, while middle blocker Nicole Smith ’11 contributed 15 kills to the effort. Setters Abby Blasco ’11 and Yael Einhorn ’14 collectively had 49 of the team’s assists, lending 34 and 15, respectively. Abby Blasco and Si-Si Hensley ’14 each had 19 digs, while Paige Blasco contributed 18 for the match. Smith was pleased with how the team was able to rally despite losing the first two sets by close margins. “We were able to pull through and fight together for the win,” Smith said. “We were capable of working through different rotations, trying new things, and eventually rallied to the victory because of it.” In the first set, the Judges jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead, but Endicott seized the momentum, gaining a l37 lead. Brandeis attempted to make up ground with three consecutive points but ultimately could not keep pace with the Gulls, who then held to a 17-10 lead. The Judges came back to make it 22-22, but they failed to execute on their momentum and ultimately lost the set. In the next set, the Judges jumped out to an early 9-4 lead and set the tempo for most of the set as they approached the end of the set with a 20-14 lead. Yet the Judges exhibited some fatigue and confusion as they allowed Endicott to initiate an 8-2 run, evening the set at 22-22. From there, the Gulls won the second set of the match. In the third set, the Judges raced out to a 7-1 lead. Once again, the team failed to execute on a comfortable margin and quickly ceded to Endicott 9 out of the next 11 points. This time around, the Judges set the tempo en route to a 20-14 lead they never relinquished, leading to a 25-23 victory. Next, in the fourth set, things took a turn for the worse as the Gulls jumped out to an early 8-6 lead. The Judges, however, then dominated by rolling off 8 consecutive
are there for herself and the team, obviously. She’s definitely an unselfish player. … She does everything. She’s just doing great.” Even though the team was up by six goals midway through the second half, Pacheco knew the team had to remain focused.
JOSH LINTON/the Justice
UP AT THE NET: Outside hitter/libero Si-Si Hensley ’14 goes up against an Endicott player last Tuesday in the team’s 3-2 win. points, which they then soundly won 25-14. Finally establishing their rhythm, the Judges entered the tiebreaker set exuding plenty of confidence, which showed as Brandeis won eight of the first 11 points. Despite letting Endicott back into the tiebreaker, the Judges completed their comeback with a 15-13 win. Coach Michelle Kim thought the team’s resilency was especially evident against Endicott. “Our five set win against
Endicott speaks volumes for the team’s will to win,” Kim wrote in an e-mail to the Justice, “It’s not easy to be down two sets and be able to make a come back like we did against them. It shows a lot of heart and desire to win.” The team plays today against Tufts University at 7 p.m., the No. 1ranked team in New England. Kim thinks the game at Tufts will be a key game for the team. “[Tufts will be] a tough challenge for us,” Kim wrote in an e-mail to
the Justice. “They are the topranked team in New England, but we will be using our adjusted lineup again, so it will be important for us to continue to work together as a team and work on being consistent in our play.” After the match against Tufts, the team continues play on Friday and Saturday, where it will participate in the Amherst Classic. Brandeis is set to face rivals Amherst College, Middlebury College, and the Coast Guard Academy.
“It’s all about focus and keeping that focus throughout the game and keeping things going,” Pacheco said. “The worst that you could do is to let down, so we just kept attacking and playing our game and didn’t let the score affect us.” Last Tuesday, the Judges won their first road game of the season by defeating Bridgewater State
University by a score of 2-1. The Judges got on the board first in the 34th minute when Einhorn scored her first goal of the season on a breakaway. The team then scored what proved to be the game-winning goal in the 55th minute when Pacheco connected from 25 yards out on a pass from defender Francesca Shin
’12. Bridgewater State was able to pull within one goal in the 83rd minute with a goal from junior forward/midfielder Jordan McDermott but could not get any closer. The Judges next play Thursday when they host Gordon College at 4 p.m. The team will then face Simmons College Sunday at 1 p.m.
XCOUNTRY: Men and Warwick finish third at meet CONTINUED FROM 16 race. She was 23 seconds behind Keene State junior Paige Millis, who finished first in the race. Erin Bisceglia ’12 came in 14th place. The women’s team did not field the five runners necessary to place in the meet because of injuries, the Yom Kippur holiday and Evans’ desire to have first-years run in the junior varsity race.
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MSOCCER: Judges set team record for goals in a match CONTINUED FROM 16
WSOCCER: Team continues winning ways CONTINUED FROM 16
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
However, this did not stop Brandeis from having success with the runs. “The pace started out a little quick, but [Warwick and I] both ran our best times ever,” Bisceglia said. During their first meet of the season on Sept. 3, the women’s cross country team defeated University of Southern Maine 15-48. In the meet against Southern Maine, five runners from Brandeis
finished before a single runner from Southern Maine crossed the finish line. Captain Grayce Selig ’11 finished first with a time of 14:48. The team took nine out of the top 10 spots to start the season. The cross country teams will next run Oct. 9 at the Open New England Championships at Franklin Park. Last year, the Brandeis men’s cross country team finished 11th overall and third among teams in Division
III. Norton finished sixth overall at the meet out of 320 runners. Brown and Boutin finished 43rd and 50th overall, respectively, to give Brandeis three of the top 50 runners at the meet. The women’s cross country team finished 20th overall and sixth among Division III teams. Selig was the top Brandeis runner at the meet, placing 46th overall and 11th among Division III runners.
Salazar ’14 played a pass to an open Kostel, who simply took a touch and buried his chance into the back of the net with a cannon from 20 yards. In the 48th minute, George played a low cross through the penalty area that found the feet of midfielder Noah Bass ’13. Bass hit a first-time drive toward the near post, scoring his second goal of the season and Brandeis’ sixth of the evening. After a shot from midfielder Matt Hauser ’13 in the 62nd minute, George picked up the rebound and pounded the shot into the back of the net for his second score of the year. One minute later, Farr took possession of the ball after a defensive turnover by Newbury. Farr took a few touches and slotted a hard, low drive for Brandeis’ eighth of the evening. Just 2 minutes later, Farr scored the second of his three goals. Farr took on the Newbury defense and broke through, slotting a shot into the back of the net for the 9-0 lead. Farr completed his hat trick 57 seconds later as he received a pass from midfielder Harold Salinas ’14 and again powered through Newbury’s defense, eventually pounding in his third goal of the game and Brandeis’ 10th. Farr’s hat trick, which occurred in just 4 minutes, 13 seconds, broke the Brandeis record for fastest hat trick. “I came in and put a couple away right away,” Farr said. “We got things done really well. … I actually wasn’t aware that I had broken the record [until the next day]. But it’s pretty exciting and hopefully it continues.” George completed his hat trick in the ensuing minutes. In 80th minute, George broke free of his defender and entered the penalty area one-on-one with the goalkeeper. George rounded the keeper and shot into the open net for his second goal of the game. Just 47 seconds later, midfielder Tudor Livadaru ’14 slotted a pass into the penalty area that George latched onto, where he took a touch and scored. Brandeis’ final goal came in the 86th minute as defender Gil Jacobs ’14 beat a midfielder on the wing and proceeded to take on the Newbury defense. Jacobs continued his run, rounded the final defender and chipped a shot over that trickled over the goal line for his first career goal. Against WPI last Tuesday, Brandeis allowed its first goal of the season to in the 80th minute, but the Judges’ offense continued its scoring run. Midfielder Lee Russo ’13 scored two goals, while midfielder Kyle Feather ’14 and Teece scored the other two goals. “We’ve been making sure we’ve had our formation and our spacing right,” said Feather. “We want to score quickly and finish off the game.” The team continues its season tomorrow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology at 4 p.m. before squaring off against Babson College Saturday at home at 2:30 p.m.
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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THE JUSTICE
TENNIS
Both squads fare well in tournaments ■ The men’s and women’s
tennis teams both competed in separate individual tournaments last week. By JONATHAN STEINBERG JUSTICE STAFF WRITER
The women’s tennis team kicked off its season with a win against Wheaton College last Wednesday and then traveled a short distance to Wellesley College for the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regional Championships last weekend. The men were also in action, competing in the Northeast Intercollegiate at Brown University. For the ITA Regional Championship, each team is allowed to send its first and second singles team and its first doubles team. The Judges sent Rachel Rosman ’11 in the first slot and Faith Broderick ’13 in the second slot. The two teamed up to serve as the squad’s doubles team as well. In her first match, Broderick faced rookie Sarah Whitaker of Babson College, winning 6-4, 6-0. Her next match pitted her against Wheaton College senior Catherine Teague, who was ranked ninth among singles players at the tournament. Broderick fell to Teague 6-4, 7-5 in the round of 32. Rosman’s first match came against Middlebury College sophomore Leah Kepping. Kepping, though unranked at the singles spot, was part of the number-one-ranked doubles squad in the tournament. She defeated Rosman 6-1, 6-3. “I got an unlucky draw and had to play against someone who is very good and had a very good day,” Rosman said concering her loss. In the main doubles draw, Rosman and Broderick, the sixth-ranked doubles team in the tournament, first faced off against a team from Smith College, handling them easily, 8-1. In the round of 32, they faced a strong Amherst team of sophomore Caroline Richman and senior Carlissa King. Broderick and Rosman played another strong match and won 8-2. The two, however, would go on to lose in the next round by the same score against a team
JOSH LINTON/the Justice
BACKHAND WINNER: Alexa Katz ’14 plays in the women’s tennis team’s 6-3 home win against Wheaton College last Wednesday. from Williams College. Coach Ben Lamanna was very happy with how the two played at doubles. “[Broderick] started off the match with two straight aces, but we ended getting broken after some tough playing from Williams,” he said. “Overall though, they played as well as they could have played.” Rosman also noted that she and Broderick are a formidable duo.
“[Broderick] and I have great chemistry, and we are only going to get better,” she said. The women’s squad also faced off against Wheaton last Wednesday in its season opener, taking the match 63. Rosman, Broderick, Mackenzie Gallegos ’11 and rookie Roberta Bergstein ’14 all defeated their singles opponents, with the only test coming at first singles, where Rosman needed a
first set tiebreaker to put away senior Catherine Teague, whom she defeated 7-6, 6-2. Broderick won her match 6-3, 6-3, while Gallegos won her match 6-2, 6-1. In her debut, Allyson Bernstein ’14 lost the first singles match of her career. After dropping the first set 6-4, she won the second set 6-2, but she then went on to lose a third-set tiebreaker 10-1. In doubles action, the women were
only able to claim a victory at the third slot, where Nina Levine ‘12 and rookie Alexa Katz ’14 defeated their opponents in a close 9-8 match. The doubles pair of Rosman and Broderick lost their match 8-4, while Gallegos and Bergenstein were defeated by a score of 8-4 as well. Despite the team losing a few matches, Rosman thought the team’s first match of the season went well. “We went into singles play down 12, but everyone played really hard and we came back and won it,” she said. After three long days of playing at the Northeast Collegiate, Lamanna was satisfied with how the men’s tennis team fared. “We weren’t amazing, but we were pretty good,” he said. Notables players included Dave Yovanoff ’13, who won his first match of the tournament 6-3, 6-2. Yovanoff faced rookie Chris Tortora, whom he defeated 7-5, 2-6, 6-1. Nick White ’11 won his first match in his draw, but he was defeated by Villanova senior Trenton Alenik 6-3, 2-0 (retired). Fred Rozenshteyn ’13 won his first match in comeback fashion, taking it 3-6, 6-2 (10-3). He lost his next match against to Brown sophomore Kendick Au 6-0, 6-1 In doubles action, White and Yovanoff teamed up and won their first match against a Marist duo 9-7. They would go on to finish fourth in their draw. While not all memebers of the starting team played in the tournament, Lamanna was pleased with how some of his rookies played in the tournament despite the fact that they are not members of the starting lineup. “The first-years aren’t the ones we are too focused on as they are not yet contending for the top six spots, Lamanna said. “They gained good experience, though.” Adam Brown ’14 played in two third-set tiebreakers, and Mayur Kassety ’11 won a match on the third day. The men return to action this weekend when they travel to Williams College for the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regional Championships. The women’s team will have a week off before facing Simmons College Oct. 3. at home.
THE JUSTICE ● TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
AP BRIEFS
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Manning Bowl II: Indianapolis Colts rout New York Giants 38-14
Alexander Farr ’12 ■ The men’s soccer forward recorded the fastest hat trick in team history in 4 minutes, 13 seconds during the team’s 13-0 win over Newbury College. In the men’s soccer team’s record-setting 13-0 win against Newbury College last Thursday, forward Alexander Farr ’12 scored three goals in just 4 minutes, 13 seconds. Farr recorded the fastest hat trick in school history, and the sixth fastest hat trick in Division III history. “I came in for a while; things were clicking,” he said. “I got a few early opportunities and I managed to put them away. The second goal was my favorite. I managed to put the ball past the defense and tuck into the far corner.” Farr broke the previous team record, set by Brandeis’ fifth-highest all-time scorer Ben Premo ’09, who recorded his hat trick in 7:35. Farr, who has four goals on the season, led the team in scoring last season with seven goals. In his first year on the team two seasons ago, he scored four goals and dished two assists. Farr has been pleased with the team’s chemistry on and off the field this season. “The whole camaraderie has been really good, and we’ve been very solid so far. The upperclassmen have been great leaders. Leadership is a responsibility that I take seriously,” said Farr. The team has won six straight games, the most consecutive wins since the 2000 season. Now, the team is looking to carry the momentum throughout the season, especially against the tougher opponents they face in the University Athletic Association.
Judging numbers
13 3 11 23 6
goals, the most in team history, by the men’s soccer team in its shutout victory against Newbury College Thursday.
rd-place finish for women’s cross country runner Kate Warwick ’12 in the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Shriner’s Invitational Saturday.
goals scored by the women’s soccer team in its last three games, all of which have been wins.
kills for outside hitter Paige Blasco ’11 in the volleyball team’s 3-2 victory over Endicott College last Thursday.
-3 victory for the women’s tennis team against Wheaton College last Wednesday.
SPORTS PIX PHOTO BY MICHAEL TURESKI
“The first few games have not been as competitive, but we’ve been burying these teams, and we’ve got [to] do that to beat the better teams coming up,” Farr said. “We know we haven’t gotten to the strongest part of the schedule yet,
but we are really happy that we are playing well, and we have a big game coming up [against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology tomorrow].”
—Max Goldstein
UAA STANDINGS Men’s Soccer
Women’s Soccer
Not including Monday’s games
Not including Monday’s games
UAA Conference WL T Carnegie 0 0 0 Emory 0 0 0 JUDGES 0 0 0 Washington 0 0 0 Rochester 0 0 0 New York 0 0 0 Chicago 0 0 0 Case 0 0 0
UAA Conference W LT Emory 0 00 JUDGES 0 00 Rochester 0 00 Carnegie 0 00 Case 0 00 Chicago 0 00 Washington 0 0 0 New York 0 00
W 7 7 6 5 4 4 4 3
L 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 2
Overall T Pct. 0 1.000 0 1.000 0 1.000 2 .857 2 .833 1 .750 0 .667 2 .571
W 6 4 5 4 4 3 3 2
L 0 1 2 2 2 2 3 5
T 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1
Overall Pct. .929 .750 .714 .667 .643 .583 .500 .312
TEAM LEADERS MSoccer (points)
WSoccer (points)
Midfielders Luke Teece ’12 and Joe Eisenbies ’13 lead the team with 10 points this season.
Forward Tiffany Pacheco ’11 leads the team with 10 points this year.
Player Luke Teece Joe Eisenbies Nick George Alexander Farr Three others tied with...
Player Tiffany Pacheco Sofia Vallone Mimi Theodore Ali Maresca Three others tied with...
Points 10 10 9 8 6
Points 10 9 8 4 3
Volleyball (kills)
Volleyball (digs)
Outside hitter Paige Blasco ’11 leads the Judges with 117 kills.
Setter Abby Blasco ’11 leads the team with 131 digs.
Player Paige Blasco Nicole Smith Si-Si Hensley Lauren Berens Abby Blasco
Player Abby Blasco Susan Sun Paige Blasco Si-Si Hensley Yael Einhorn
Kills 117 103 77 45 34
Digs 131 114 109 86 81
UPCOMING GAME OF THE WEEK Men’s soccer at MIT tomorrow at 4 pm
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After scoring the most goals in team history in its 13-0 victory over Newbury College last Thursday, the men’s soccer team looks to continue its winning ways when it takes on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology tomorrow at 4 p.m. On Sept. 23, 2009, the Judges defeated MIT 2-1 at home. In the win, mid-
INDIANAPOLIS—Quarterback Peyton Manning showed some compassion for his little brother. It didn't help—the Indianapolis Colts pummeled Eli anyway. Big brother Peyton didn’t give his defense his usual encouragement to get after the opposing quarterback. No matter: Peyton proved he still rules America’s first family of quarterbacks as the Colts dominated Eli’s New York Giants 38-14 Sunday night. Manning Matchup II was no contest. “No, I didn’t,” four-time league MVP Peyton said of dropping his pregame pep talk. He didn’t need to do all that much, thanks to the way Indy’s running backs, offensive line and defense gouged the Giants (1-1). “I really just kind of focused on the defense and on our running game,” Peyton said after he threw for three touchdowns. “This was a different kind of game for me. The run really was the ticket tonight.” But the focus, naturally, was on Peyton vs. Eli. “I told him I loved him,” Peyton said of their 10-minute conversation after the game. “I think they will be fine. They play the Titans next week and we’ll being pulling hard for them to help us in the AFC South. We will do our best to help them when we play all these NFC East teams. “I am proud of him and I love him.” One week after a distressingly lopsided loss at Houston, the Colts (1-1) looked like defending AFC champions. They made Eli and his team resemble amateurs, forcing two quarterback fumbles that gave Indianapolis 14 points. Four years ago, in the first meeting of sibling NFL quarterbacks, Peyton’s Colts won 26-21 at the Meadowlands. Five months later, he guided Indy to the Super Bowl title. A year later, it was Eli matching that championship, leading the Giants to one of the NFL’s biggest upsets over undefeated New England. The Mannings chatted during pregame warmups and met at midfield for the coin toss, shaking hands twice, but otherwise they could have been total strangers during the game. There were no signs of Peyton wincing on the sideline—or father Archie cringing in the stands—while Eli was being pounded. Eli was hugged by both parents after the loss and refused to address the matchup after the game. “We couldn’t get into a rhythm,” he said. “The whole first half, when you can’t get first downs, it’s hard as an offense to get into all your plays and your calls, and a lot of three-and-outs. They outplayed us, and that’s what it came down to.”
University of Arizona hangs on to defeat University of Iowa 34-27
The Judges will play at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology tomorrow. minutes, 13 seconds for men’s soccer forward Alexander Farr ’12 to score a hat trick, the fastest in team history, in the team’s 13-0 win over Newbury College.
15
fielder Joe Eisenbies ’13 and forward Matt Peabody ’13 scored goals. Goalie Matt Lynch ’11 made five saves in the game. This season, MIT’s record is 4-2. After dropping two out of its three games to start the season, MIT has won five straight games, outscoring its opponents 19-3 during the span.
TUCSON, Ariz.—Quarterback Nick Foles hit receiver William Wright with a late 4-yard touchdown pass and No. 24 University of Arizona held its ground in the national spotlight with a momentum-swinging 34-27 win over ninth-ranked University of Iowa Saturday night. Arizona (3-0) jumped out to a 20-point halftime lead behind a slew of big plays that included a blocked punt, Receiver Travis Cobb’s 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and an interception returned 85 yards by cornerback Trevin Wade for another score. Iowa (2-1) rallied behind its defense in the second half, grinding the Wildcats’ offense to a halt to set up two of quarterback Ricky Stanzi’s three touchdown passes. The Hawkeyes had a chance at the lead midway through the fourth quarter when defensive tackle Broderick Binns returned an interception 20 yards for a touchdown, but kicker Trent Mossbrucker’s extra point was partially blocked, leaving the score at 27-27. The Wildcats finally shook out of their second-half funk on the next drive, moving 72 yards in nine plays for the winning score, then sealed what they hope is a program-defining win with four straight sacks of Stanzi. Foles threw for 303 yards and two touchdowns on 28of-39 passing. Iowa rolled over its first two not-so-challenging opponents by a combined score of 72-14. The road trip to the desert represented a little tougher challenge: a long-distance road game (over 1,500 miles) with a late start (9:30 p.m. Iowa City time) in hot-air-dryer heat (close to 100 degrees at kickoff). On top of that, the Hawkeyes were facing a talented Arizona team looking to prove itself against a big-school program in one of the biggest nonconference games in the 81-year history of Arizona Stadium. The Wildcats were certainly up for it, producing one big play after another in a stadium-rocking first half. Arizona held Iowa to a quick three-and-out on its first drive, then David Roberts broke through to block Ryan Donahue’s punt, which Marquis Flowers recovered at the Hawkeyes 8-yard line. Three plays later, Foles hit receiver David Douglas on a 5-yard slant for a touchdown that had the rowdies in red jumping and pumping their white pompoms. Iowa was marching on its second drive, but receiver Marvin McNutt Jr. had the ball slip through his hands and it fell right to Wade, who had a clear shot to the end zone for an 85-yard score. Barely 5 minutes into the game, Iowa was in a 14-0 hole. The Hawkeyes kept plugging away on offense, moving 93 yards for a 4-yard touchdown pass from Stanzi to Jewel Hampton, the first touchdown against Arizona this season. Then, another big play: Cobb burst through a seam like one of the pregame fireworks on the ensuing kickoff and was gone—100 yards for a touchdown that put Arizona up 21-7. Tacking on two field goals by Alex Zendejas, including a career-long-matching 47-yard field goal, Arizona had a seemingly comfortable 27-7 halftime lead. Seemingly. Turning up the defensive pressure, Iowa stymied Arizona’s offense in the third quarter 58 total yards and pulled within 13 points on a 37-yard touchdown pass from Stanzi to receiver Derrell Johnson-Koulianos.
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COMEBACK VICTORY The volleyball team lost its first two sets but won the next three in last Tuesday’s win over Endicott College, p. 13.
Waltham, Mass.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
HEADED FOR GOAL
WOMEN’S SOCCER
Offense fuels team in wins over two schools ■ The women’s soccer team
won twice and outscored its opponents 8-1 to move to 41-1 on the season. By MELISSA SIEGEL JUSTICE SENIOR WRITER
JOSH LINTON/the Justice
COLLISION COURSE: Midfielder Luke Teece ’12 looks to score in the men’s soccer team’s record-setting 13-0 home victory against Newbury College last Thursday night.
Judges set records in blowout ■ The men’s soccer team
scored 13 goals against Newbury College last Thursday in the shutout win. By JULIAN CARDILLO JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The heavy rainfall last Thursday night was not enough to stall the men’s soccer team’s offense as the Judges exploded to score 13 goals in the most lopsided victory in the team’s history: They defeated Newbury College 13-0. The previous record for goals in a game was 12, set in 1986 against the Massachusetts Maritime
Academy. They also scored 10 goals in 1977. The Judges also defeated Worcester Polytechnic Institute 4-1 away from home last Tuesday, giving them a record of 6-0 on the year. Five different players combined to give Brandeis a 5-0 lead at halftime, while forwards Alexander Farr ’12 and Nick George ’14 each scored hat tricks in the second half to lead the game’s scoring. Goalkeepers Matt Lynch ’11 and Blake Minchoff ’13 combined to give Brandeis its fifth shutout of the season, with each goalie having only to make one save. “When you can keep a clean sheet, it’s always a good thing,”
defender Ethan Bercelli ’14 said. “But we were most effective in keeping the ball. When we had the ball, we kept it and never gave it back to them.” Brandeis outshot Newbury 52-2 and had no difficulty starting the attack. The opening goal came in the 10th minute as midfielder Steve Keuchkarian ’11 headed in a cross from midfielder Joe Eisenbies ’13 for his second strike of the season. Eisenbies produced his second assist in the 28th minute, slotting a pass into the path of midfielder Ben Applefield ’14, who slammed a shot into the back of the net for his second goal of the season. Just 7 minutes later, forward
Luke Teece ’12 made a surging run into the penalty area before finally crossing to midfielder Matt Peabody ’13. Peabody latched onto the cross with a diving header, firing the ball into the net. In the 43rd minute, defender David McCoy ’12 got hold of possession and sent a searching cross into the penalty area after Newbury misplayed a free kick. Newbury subsequently cleared the cross into the path of Eisenbies, who unloaded a shot for his fourth goal of the season. Midfielder Stephen Kostel ’11 scored his first goal of the year in the 45th minute, adding a fifth tally to the team’s run. Forward Steve
See MSOCCER, 13 ☛
CROSS COUNTRY
Men’s squad cruises into third place ■ The men’s cross country
team finished third out of 36 teams in the team’s first major meet of the season. By JONATHAN EPSTEIN and JACOB LURIE JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
In its first meet of the season, the men’s cross country team placed third out of 36 New England colleges in the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Shriners Invitational this past Saturday. In the 8-kilometer race, Brandeis placed four runners in the top 20, compiling an average time of 25 minutes, 13 seconds for all six runners.
The women’s cross country team also competed but failed to score due to not fielding a full team. In a frantic finish, the second through seventh runners all finished within 5 seconds of each other. Marc Boutin ’12 finished sixth at 24:53, only 5 seconds behind the second-place runner, and was the first Brandeis runner to finish the race. Boutin commented on the finish of the close race. “I was half a step behind [Salem State junior Alex Gomes],” Boutin said. “I ran right into him at the finish line. [I was] just trying to pass as many people as I could.” Coach John Evans said that Boutin had “a really good start to the season,” having improved by
37 seconds over his time at the race last year. “Hopefully by Regionals, he’ll beat these guys,” Evans said. Devon Holgate ’11 was not far behind the first pack of runners, finishing 11th with a time of 25:03. The other Brandeis runners were Dan Anastos ’11, Kerwin Vega ’11, Chris Brown ’12 and Alex Kramer ’13, who placed 18th, 20th, 33rd and 90th out of 272 runners, respectively. Co-captain Paul Norton ’11 did not run in the race because of fatigue from an Achilles tendon injury. “It got to the point of being unbearable,” Norton explained. He said that he is unsure when he might return. Evans insisted that Norton was being held out
merely out of precaution, that the injury was “slight” and that he would run in the team’s next race. The Judges scored 79 points to earn third place, behind the 76 points of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and 73 points of Keene State College. The next closest team to the Judges was University of Massachusetts Lowell, with 150 points. In last year’s Shriners Invitational, the Judges finished fourth out of 37 teams with Norton placing third with a time of 24:43. In the women’s cross country meet, Kate Warwick ’12 placed third out of 290 runners, with a time of 17:57 in the 5-kilometer
See XCOUNTRY, 13 ☛
The women’s soccer team had a 3-0 lead at halftime against Roger Williams University last Thursday, and at the start of the second half the team picked up right where it left off. Forward Tiffany Pacheco ’11 scored just over 5 minutes into the second half after she dribbled past a defender and shot the ball just under the crossbar and into the net. The Judges went on to win the game 6-0 to move their record to 41-1 for the season. The Judges have now scored 11 goals in their past three games since not scoring against William Paterson University in a tie Sept. 5. “We’ve been working a lot at practice on shooting, definitely more than we had started off with,” Pacheco said. “So I think that helped us at scoring and framing the goal and just taking the opportunities when we have them.” Midfielder Mimi Theodore ’12, the team’s leading scorer last year, scored her second and third goals of the season in less than a 3minute span to give the Judges an early 2-0 lead. In the 8th minute, Theodore headed in a corner kick from Pacheco and in the 11th minute, midfielder Ellie Einhorn ’11 sent a ball past the defense that Theodore shot into the back of the net. The team then got its third goal of the period when rookie midfielder Madeline Stein ’14, who had come into the game off the bench, lofted a shot from 20 yards out over the keeper and into the net for her first collegiate goal. “I think [Stein] is going to be a really great midfielder for us,” Pacheco said. “She worked really hard and she’s feisty, and she brings a lot of energy to the field, so I was really happy that she got her first goal [last] Thursday.” After Pacheco’s goal, the Judges got two more goals within a 3minute span to put the game away. Midfielder/defender Alanna Torre ’12 got her first goal of the season in the 63rd minute. In the 66th minute, forward Sofia Vallone ’11 scored her team-leading fourth goal of the season on a cross by Pacheco. Pacheco tied her career-highs with three assists and five total points in one game, and she moved into a tie for second place on the Judges’ all-time assists list. She currently has 23 and is five behind Melissa Gorenkoff ’09 for first place on the list. She also currently has 71 career points, which is good for eighth in school history. “Tiffany is doing super,” coach Denise Dallamora said. “[She] looks to feed her teammates as well as take opportunities when they
See WSOCCER, 13 ☛
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ARTS
ERROL MORRIS SHOCKS
September 21, 2010
“UTTERLY INSANE”
AND
AWES AUDIENCES WITH “A CLASSIC ROMANCE STORY”
p. 21
Photos courtesy of Alice Kelikian. Design: Robyn Spector/the Justice.
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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THE JUSTICE
POP CULTURE
INSIDE ON CAMPUS
18-21
■ Sleigh Bells 19 Cholmondeley’s was completely packed last Saturday as the Brooklyn-based pop duo treated students to an intimate concert.
19 ■ OK Go interview JustArts spoke with bassist Tim Nordwind about what the band is up to and what to expect for their upcoming show at Brandeis. The full interview can be found online at www.thejustice.org. 21 ■ Errol Morris’ ‘Tabloid’ The Film, Television, and Interactive Media program brought director Errol Morris to Brandeis last week to screen and answer questions about his new see-it-to-believe-it documentary.
OFF CAMPUS
21-24
22 ■ Beer History JustArts provides a look into the lengthy history behind one of the most popular alcoholic beverages in the world. 22 ■ Trina’s Starlite Lounge This hidden treasure provides delicious and creative food at reasonable prices. 23 ■ The Bad Plus The power piano trio played a fiery set last Friday as part of the BeanTown Jazz Festival. ■ Kurt Rosenwinkel The acclaimed jazz guitarist started the BeanTown Jazz Festival off with a bang.
CALENDAR
23
INTERVIEW by Bryan Flatt
Yes she’s back, back again, Lohan’s back— and nobody is quite surprised. After another crazy week of drug tests, arrests and tweets, everyone’s favorite child-actress-turned-tabloid topic is making headlines yet again. It turns out that a prison term and rehab didn’t quite do all that they were supposed to because, yet again, Lindsay’s substance problem has gotten her in some hot water that could very seriously threaten her career. Last Friday, gossip blog TMZ broke the story that Lohan failed a court-mandated drug test in her criminal case. According to her probation terms, she will be given 30 days in jail for a positive drug test. Although, according to a friend of hers, she has “really been making an effort to make herself better.” The test was later confirmed to be positive for cocaine, and sources also revealed that it was only one of two failed drug tests—each potentially resulting in another 30 days of prison time. Apparently the “bad influences” Lindsay has been surrounding herself with has been a large part of the quick relapse. More than some foul friends, Lindsay could have feasibly ruined her last chance at a renewed career. We also heard that Lohan’s new film project, titled Inferno—a biopic about porn star Linda Lovelace—could potentially be in shambles. Beyond prison, Lohan’s out-of-state travel privileges may be revoked. Considering she lives in California and Inferno is set to film in Louisiana, this will likely pose a serious issue. According to TMZ, “a source close to the film tells us shooting the picture in Los Angeles instead of Louisiana ‘would radically change the budget.’ … The film’s top people are ‘beyond irritated by the recent developments.’” But what does Lindsay have to say about all this? She took to Twitter for a surprising apology. “Regrettably, I did in fact fail my most
Finding time to direct with a busy schedule ■ JustArts e-mailed with Brandeis
alumna Deborah Finkelstein ’04 to discuss her role as director of the new local play ‘Crazy Shakespeare!’
DAVID MCNEW/The Associated Press
WILD CHILD: Actress Lindsay Lohan is under fire for her two recently failed drug tests. recent drug test and if I am asked, I am prepared to appear before judge Fox next week as a result.” The most surprising part of her apology was when she took responsibility for her actions—something very out of character for Lohan. “This was certainly a setback for me but I am taking responsibility for my actions and I'm prepared to face the consequences,” she wrote. She was seen Saturday night attending an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting—was she trying to get in the judge’s good graces, or has she finally changed? Only time will tell.
What’s happening in Arts on and off campus
ON CAMPUS EVENTS Meet the Fine Arts majors Meet fellow artistically inclined Brandesians over free pizza and discuss being an Arts major. Tomorrow from 5:30 to 7 p.m. outside the Goldman-Schwartz Fine Arts Building courtyard.
Special screening of ‘Iron Cross’ from the Film, Television and Interactive Media program The Film, Television and Interactive Media department will continue its “Meet the Artist” tradition, offering students a chance to see movies in advance and meet the people involved. Last Thursday, the department screened Errol Morris’ Tabloid and followed with a question-and-answer with the director. Tabloid, a documentary about a former beauty queen-turned manacled Mormon kidnapper, is a breakout hit from the Telluride and Toronto film festivals, and a review of the film can be seen in this issue. The screening of Iron Cross will be cosponsored by the Boston Film Festival. Director Joshua Newton, producer Kevin Farr and actor Zander Newton will take questions after the film with special guest Liebe Gefft, director of the Museum of Tolerance Los Angeles, moderating the question-and-answer session. Tonight at 7 p.m. at the Edie and Lew Wasserman Cinematheque in the Sachar International Center.
Toro Y Moi, Brave Little Abacus and Golden Girls Punk, Rock N’ Roll presents its first show of the year with rock/synth/dance/punk offerings at Cholmondeley’s. According to the event’s Facebook page, this will be the first of many shows this fall brought to you by the club. Toro Y Moi, Brave Little Abacus and Golden Girls will play Friday from 9 to 11 p.m. at Cholmondeley’s.
Screening of Tony Goldwyn’s ‘Conviction’ The Film, Television and Interactive Media program presents a special screening of Conviction, a dramatic feature about a real-life story. Betty Anne Waters, a highschool dropout and single mother, puts herself through law school to exonerate her brother, unjustly convicted of murder. Director Tony Goldwyn and other talents will take questions. This is a free but ticketed event. Monday, Sept. 27 at 5 p.m. in the Edie and Lew Wasserman Cinematheque in the Sachar International Center. Tickets will be distributed today and tomorrow from 2 to 4 p.m. in Olin-Sang 215. Please contact Dona Delorenzo (delorenz @brandeis.edu)for additional information.
OFF CAMPUS EVENTS Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival Berklee School of Music, the first college of jazz, celebrates the the music of New
PHOTO COURTESY OF LIZ BURG
GUITAR VIRTUOSO: Kurt Rosenwinkel played with big band Orcquestra de Jazz de Matosinhos last Wednesday as part of the Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival. See review on page 23. Orleans in its 10th annual Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival. For 10 days straight, renowned jazz artists all over the world and popular local acts will fill Boston with free and ticketed concerts around the city. The celebration ends with a huge outdoor festival Saturday that stretches three blocks in the South End, with concerts playing on three stages and family-friendly music activities all around. Over 80,000 people attended last year’s event. This year’s festival is bolstered by an even larger roster, with 30 acts at the Berklee Performance Center, Scullers Jazz Club, Regattabar, Wally’s Cafe, Berklee’s Cafe 939, David Friend Recital Hall and outdoor stages along Columbus Avenue. Highlights include Kurt Rosenwinkel and the Bad Plus, who played last week and are reviewed in this issue of the Justice. Upcoming events include Robert Glasper (Thursday, Regattabar); Danilo Perez (Thursday and Friday, Scullers); Paula Cole (Friday, BPC); and Terence Blanchard (Saturday, Scullers). The Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival will take place until Saturday at various locations in Boston. More information can be found by calling (617) 747-2261 or by visiting beantownjazz.org.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston College Night “ART. MUSIC. FOOD. FREE.” is the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston’s description for its widely popular annual College Night. The MFA is free for University Member students every day of the year, but on Thursday, Sept. 23, the Museum is throwing a party just for college students. A college ID is all that is needed to join hundreds of college students and enjoy all that the Museum has to offer, which includes a free concert that promises to spin electro, hip hop, and a little bit of everything; free food from Chipotle; and free prizes. Also featured are “cool musical instruments from harpsi-
chords, clavichords, early pianos, zithers, reed organs, mouth organs, flageolets, and even musical glasses. Back by popular demand, Berklee College singer/songwriter Liz Longley playing in the coffee house.” Students who visit the “Under the Skin: Tattoos in Japanese Prints” exhibition will receive a free temporary tattoo, but those new to the MFA should take a look around the whole place. Thursday at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston from 7 to 11 p.m. Admission is free with a Brandeis student ID.
‘Alice vs. Wonderland’ A snazzy and psychedelic update of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass hits the American Repertory Theater in two weeks, blending the fantasical tale of Alice with Lady Gaga and the international direction of Hungarian director-superstar János Szász (The Seagull, Desire Under the Elms, Mother Courage ). Expect a fresh and inventive reimagination of Carroll’s coming-of-age story that features high-octane dances, colorful set pieces and pop-culture-influenced musical numbers. The show’s premiere at Moscow theater school MXAT was met with an enthusiastic reaction from the city’s youth, students and teachers and will likely “take Moscow by storm,” according to the American Repertory Theater website. “The collision between pop culture and these canonical storybook characters will spark the same smile of pleasure as Carroll’s mash-up of pious nursery rhymes,” explains adapter Brendan Shea. “This is why I call Alice vs. Wonderland not an adaptation, but a remix.” Until Oct. 9 at the Loeb Drama Center. $25 advance student tickets are on sale now, available at www.americanrepertorytheater.org/tickets or by calling (617) 547-8300.
JustArts: How did you decide to pursue theater after Brandeis? Deborah Finkelstein: Theater has always been my first love, so there was nothing to decide. JA: Did you participate in any plays during your experience at Brandeis? DF: I was in a couple Hillel Theater Group musicals, Penelope and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying as well of Taming of the Shrew with Hold Thy Peace. I actually am a founding member of Hold Thy Peace and directed both Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) and Merchant of Venice. I also produced Shrew and Merry Wives of Windsor and stage managed The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged). I didn’t do any of the Brandeis Theater Company shows, but I did minor in theater here and take several acting classes, which I still remember fondly and take things from on a regular basis. JA: What is your role in the Gazebo Players? DF: I’m on Gazebo’s board and I’ve been directing, producing and acting in their plays since 2006. They mostly do summer Shakespeare in the Park and I was lucky enough to direct Twelfth Night last year. This year a friend of mine, Shelby Bleweis from Brandeis, directed Love’s Labour’s Lost for them and I was cast alongside another alumna, Pheobe Roberts—and the producer, Amy Klesert ’09 was also a Brandeis alumna! JA: What have been some difficulties in directing your current play? DF: The biggest difficulty has been the lack of time. I co-wrote Crazy Shakespeare! with 2 other board members at the end of the summer and then the board looked for a director and so by the time I knew I was directing and we put out the first casting notice we only had 2 1/2 weeks before the performance (which is a 15 min play created for Medfield Day). The next problem was finding the cast because it was such short notice and people are so busy and already have plans. I think we’re all set now though—I’m keeping my fingers crossed. JA: How long have you been involved in theater productions? DF: I’ve been doing theater since kindergarten. I was lucky that Natick, where I grew up had lots of theater that kids could do through the town. I really started learning about theater in Natick Drama Workshop, which is a middle school musical theater program where kids learn by doing. It's great and I’m actually their assistant director and stage manager and I still adore the program! JA: Have you focused on mainly Shakespeare-oriented plays? DF: I grew up doing musicals and sort of discovered Shakespeare in college. For some reason I tend to only cast in Shakespeare or musicals. ... I’m actually working on getting Gazebo Players to do a production of The Crucible that I would direct—which is neither, so that would be great and different. JA: Can you elaborate about what the Gazebo Players is? DF: Gazebo Players is a non-profit community theater group based in Medfield. We do one Shakespeare in the Park (or rather, at the Gazebo) every year, 2 weekends in Medfield and 1 weekend at Walpole’s Bird Park. Every few years we also do a winter show. We’ve done Brighton Beach, The Little Prince and Love Letters to name a few. JA: Can you explain what Medfield day entails? DF: Every year Medfield has a festival where all the various groups and schools in the town get together and have booths to showcase what they’re all about. They also have a stage set up so that bands and the like can perform while people are walking around, getting lunch, whatever. So every year Gazebo tries to book a 1/2 block on the stage to showcase what we do best (which of course is putting on a show). Several other towns do similar things, for example, Natick has Natick Days (although it’s only one day). One unrelated theater thing is that I actually work at Brandeis now. I’ve been in the Development Office for just over a year now. It’s not theater, but it’s great being back on campus and as a result I'm more aware of what the Undergraduate Theatre Collective, Hold Thy Peace and BTC are up to, and I love that!
—Bryan Flatt
THE JUSTICE
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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ON CAMPUS MUSIC
Sleigh Bells rocks out an intimate show ■ Last Saturday night the
up-and-coming band Sleigh Bells played at Chum’s. By LOUIS POLISSON JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Brooklyn-based, genre-defying duo Sleigh Bells rocked the walls of Cholmondeley’s last Saturday night. Pitchfork Media has said of them, “Sleigh Bells sound like hip-hop, pop, hardcore, metal, dance—but above all else the Brooklyn duo sounds like now.” While Pitchfork certainly got that right, anyone who has had the pleasure of seeing the two musicians perform would add that, live in concert, they literally sound like fun. The band has been growing rapidly in popularity since their breakout performance last October at the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City almost one year ago. After opening for Yeasayer on the band’s tour last spring and playing to thousands of fans at notable music festivals such as Coachella last April and Pitchfork this past July, Sleigh Bells found their way to the cozy little coffeehouse known as Chum’s. Singer Alexis Krauss and guitarist Derek Miller met in a restaurant in Brooklyn where Miller worked as a server when Krauss came in one day with her mother. From a brief exchange in which Miller mentioned that he was looking for a female vocalist to form a band with, and Krauss’ mother suggested that her daughter might be the woman for the job, Sleigh Bells was formed. Both Krauss and Miller had experience in the music industry and the performance world before forming Sleigh Bells. Krauss was a member of the now all-but-forgotten teen pop group Rubyblue, while Miller was a guitarist in the Florida-based hardcore outfit Poison the Well. If you have ever wondered what a female pop singer would sound like singing over metal breakdowns and riffs, Sleigh Bells is the answer to your questions and more. Chum’s was packed as Brandeis’ own DJ Marcos opened the night around 9:30 p.m. after Sleigh Bells finished its sound check later than expected. WBRS Co-Music Director Jake Blair ’13 estimates that there were about 100 people waiting outside by 8:45 p.m. DJ Marcos started off his set with a selection from the ever-popular French electro house duo Jus-
MICHAEL ZONENASHVILI/WBRS
UNIQUE VOICE: Alexis Krauss, lead singer of Sleigh Bells, wows the packed audience at Cholmondeley’s last Satuday. tice. Marcos demonstrated a good mastery of Serato Audio Research’s Scratch Live, a DJ software similar to the well-known VirtualDJ. His music selection was well- rounded and pleased the crowd, ranging from an English version of the popular song “Alors on Danse” by the Belgian hiphop/electro-house artist Stromae to the Brandeis-appropriate “I Can’t Dance” by Dirty Nasty featuring LMFAO. Using a new dance mix of an old standby, Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ on a Prayer,” Marcos demonstrated that he knows how to get a crowd to dance and sing along by cutting the music in and out during the chorus, though his cutting was not quite in rhythm. All in all, Marcos was good, but he clearly has more potential—one would hope that he’ll begin to do more complex, original and live mixing instead of re-
lying on previously made remixes and the simpler functions of his DJ software and hardware. It was also an interesting choice for Marcos to set up at the back of Chum’s. Though it allowed Sleigh Bells to set up quickly, it took some time for some students to realize that a live DJ was performing, not a preset playlist. Nonetheless, Marcos did gain the attention and dancing support of his audience. Blair remarked, “after deciding we’d get a DJ [as an opener], Marcos seemed like the obvious choice. He’s very easy to work with and can read the crowd at an impressive level.” As DJ Marcos’ set came to a close, Sleigh Bells took the stage to blaring metal, replete with distorted guitar, blast-beat drums and numbingly powerful bass—an appropriate prelude to its own performance. The new sub-
woofers in Chum’s certainly got a workout with Sleigh Bells’ set from start to finish. Chum’s itself was at capacity, with 150 people inside. Sleigh Bells opened with “Tell ’Em,” the first track off of its debut album, Treats. The song was as effective an opener live as it was on recording, and immediately the crowd was captivated, as they discovered the peculiar but enjoyable half-dancing, half-moshing movements inspired by the music. “No one should dance to something so heavy, but I saw everything between grinding and headbanging happening in Chum’s that night, which was interesting,” said WBRS’ Michael Zonenashvili ’13, who interviewed the band after the concert. Sleigh Bells continued with “Infinity Guitars,” a song that superbly encapsulates its style: the interplay of heavy, distorted
guitar riffs from Miller and clear, light, yet commanding vocals from Krauss. “Infinity Guitars” was never finished due to sound problems, most likely induced by the insane volumes at which Sleigh Bells likes to perform and the use of computer-generated beats and background synth lines written by Miller. Krauss, quick to think on her feet and experienced with killing time during technical difficulties, taught the audience a line from “Crown on the Ground,” which came later in the set. Zonenashvili commented, “[because] Krauss is a second grade teacher … she taught the crowd all cheerfully like a second grade teacher would, and it was awesome thinking on her feet.” “Riot Rhythm,” which has been featured in a Honda television commercial, was next, followed by “Treats,” the last song and title track off the album, and “Holly,” the only song performed that night that cannot be found on “Treats.” “Rill Rill,” one of their most popular songs, which features a distinct sample from Funkadelic’s “Can You Get to That,” was next, followed by the incredibly heavy, minute-anda-half-long “Straight A’s,” and finally the closer, “Crown on the Ground.” As members of the audience joined Sleigh Bells onstage for its final song, everyone in Chum’s felt the full force of their music and performance: the special camaraderie of people picking each other up mixed with the undying energy of pop and dance music— and the simple fun of being a part of an intimate yet powerful concert. Chum’s proved to be quite a good venue for Sleigh Bells despite its small size. The intimacy allowed the band to interact with and energize the audience and vice versa. Zonenashvili said, “Brandeis students who attend shows are pretty phenomenal hipsters with hearts of gold,” which added to the intimacy and energy of the show and allowed everyone to enjoy the music even though Krauss’ vocals were not always perfectly on pitch and Miller’s guitar work was slightly sloppier than on the recordings. Blair and Zonenashvili agreed that the concert was a success for WBRS. As Blair put it, “It was just a cool experience, and definitely the biggest concert WBRS has done (excluding Springfest) in recent memory.” The fact is this: whether or not you like the over-the-top wall of distorted danceable sound that is Sleigh Bells, you missed out on a fun concert if you were not in Chum’s last Saturday night.
MUSIC
OK Go bassist Tim Nordwind talks to justArts ■ Tim Nordwind talks to
justArts about OK Go’s new video among other topics. By WEI-HUAN CHEN JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
So the word’s out now that indiepop rock band OK Go will be coming to Brandeis in less than two weeks. Seeing that there are already over 750 people attending according to the concert’s Facebook event page and more than 200 people listed as “maybe attending,” expect the Shapiro Gym in the Gosman Sports and Convocation Center to be packed on Saturday, Oct. 2 before opener The Postelles even start their first song. But why just hear an arts writer’s pure speculation? The members of OK Go have more than enough to say to Brandeis students about what to expect at the concert. Last week, when JustArts found out that OK Go will headline Student Events’ fall concert, we were lucky enough to nab an interview with bassist Tim Nordwind. Nordwind, who met lead singer Damian Kulash at Interlochen Summer Arts Camp in middle school and has stayed in touch with him since then, took time out of
DJing in New York City to give us an idea of what the band has been up to. JustArts: What are you doing until next Saturday? Tim Nordwind: We’re going to Brazil and closing their MTV Video Music Awards. Then we’re playing two club shows there, then flying back to the States to play on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. We’re also flying to a few different places, including Barcelona, before coming back for your show. JA: And then you’re going on tour the following week? TN: We’ll be touring North America and that will end up in Canada. We’re also releasing a new video on Sept. 20 for our song “White Knuckles.” I can’t tell you much about it, but I think it’s maybe the best video we’ve ever made. It’s really pretty good. I’m proud of all of our videos, but this one may take the cake. JA: Where does the creativity of your videos come from? TN: What kind of gets us out of our beds is we like to make things. Whether it’s music video or just plain music, or some kind of collaborative art project, we’re just very interested in the creative process. We look at video making as an art project. When videos started 20 to 25 years ago, it was looked at as an advertisement for the music. Up until right
now in the music business, the thing of value is the master recording of the song, with everything else around that studio recording considered as promotion. Now that people don’t really buy master recordings anymore, the rules are being rewritten for what a song is, what a band is and how music is given and distributed to the world. All of a sudden, the video, the live shows, the merchandise—pretty much all of the stuff that used to be thought of as promotion—is now starting to be taken seriously as an artistic form. So video-making is just one of those ways in which we like to make things. Essentially, we’re trying to make the impossible possible. JA: Speaking of music promotion, OK Go seems to get much of its word out online. As a musician, how big a role does the Internet play? TN: First of all, these days, I don’t think there’s much use in making a distinction between the Internet and regular life. Most of us live our lives through the Internet: it’s how we communicate, it’s where we make our art, it’s how we get our bills. Making a distinction between that space and any other space seems unnecessary to me. That said, the Internet is an extremely important place for music. It’s certainly a great way to find music, but I don’t think it will make anyone any more or less cre-
ative. JA: On the other side of that, what can you say about your live shows? TN: The best part of playing live, from our point of view, is when we can get everyone in the room on the same wavelength and making a connection. The nice thing about that is that you can play fun songs and everyone has fun, and you can play a sad, introspective song and everyone can get introspective for a moment. As long as everyone’s willing to go on the same adventure together, it can be a really emotionally satisfying time. That’s what we try to do when we do untraditional things like playing a song entirely with handbells. Doing the unexpected helps to keep everyone’s attention. The idea of the musician sitting on the stage and playing his guitar, and the audience sitting down and smoking their cigarettes—that’s such a tried-and-true method of playing from the ’60s, so we try to break that mold a little bit and find other ways to have fun with the audience. JA: My favorite aspect of your performances is your dancing. How much time do you devote to thinking about dance? TN: Sometimes we’ll work with Damian’s sister, who’s a choreographer. She worked with us for the “A Million Ways” and “Here It Goes
Again” videos and also the upcoming one for “White Knuckles.” We are not very good dancers or anything, but we have fun trying. We used to end all of our live shows with a choreographed dance—that’s kind of how all the dancing started—because we wanted to do something that would surprise the audience, jolt them out of their rock ’n’ roll malaise. We’d drop all of our instruments and lip-sync to our own songs and do a dance routine for them, which used to be a total surprise. At some point though, when those dances started coming out on videos, it became expected of us to do that. So it wasn’t as much fun for us, and for the audience who have seen us on videos, it wasn’t as much of a surprise. So we don’t do choreographed dance routines anymore, but we’ve replaced that with a lot of other surprises. One thing we’ve learned is that if you can keep surprising people with whatever you can dream up to do, that’s really the important part of performance. The full interview with Tim Nordwind can be found online at www.thejustice.org, where the bassist talks about getting dressed in the morning, watching fan videos on YouTube and listening to bands like Sleigh Bells—who performed at Cholmondeley’s last Saturday—on his iPod.
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THE JUSTICE
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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FILM
Morris’ ‘Tabloid’ engrosses audiences ■ Director Errol Morris came
last Thursday to screen his latest funny and intriguing documentary, ‘Tabloid.’ By BRYAN FLATT JUSTICE EDITOR
Last Thursday, Brandeis University was graced with a unique treat—an advance screening of Academy Award winner Errol Morris’ newest film, Tabloid. The screening was organized by Prof. Alice Kelikian (HIST) and took place in the Wasserman Cinematheque, kicking off the incredible 2010-2011 film series season. Following the screening, Morris participated in a queston-and-answer session and later spoke to justArts in a phone interview. Errol Morris’ newest documentary, Tabloid, begins like a fairytale love story. The main character, Joyce McKinney, whom Morris describes as one of his most fabulous characters, stands in a dress reading her very unique version of the infamous tabloid story—the case of the manacled Mormon. She begins, “Once upon a time there was a little princess,” and ends, “and they live happily ever after.” But everything in between is a mix of madness. With love, sex, rape, kidnapping, religion, prostitution and more, it is no surprise that this very true story has all the aspects of “the perfect tabloid.” But the perfect story needs a perfect character, and luckily enough, Joyce McKinney embodies one with ease. In a way, it is ironic that Joyce’s life is making headlines yet again. She has been publicized three times in her life for three very unrelated events—winning the title of Miss Wyoming; stalking, harassing, kidnapping, and raping the chubby Mormon Kirk Anderson; and going to Korea for a unique process that has to be seen to be believed—let’s just say that she ends up with five “mini-boogers.” Interestingly enough, in the film she is able to play all three roles at the same time. She is a charming, likeable woman with an accented twang to her voice, and she tells her story to the audience heartfeltly and convincingly. “Thank God for all those years of drama school,” she says at one point in the film; and it is obvious she loves the camera. This image of McKinney is made possible not only because of her outlandish personality, but also because of Morris’ incredible way of letting people tell their stories—he just lets them speak. Very few times in the film do we even hear Morris’ voice, and it is usually only to draw a conclusive
DAVID WEDAMAN/Brandeis Library and Technology Services
STRANGER THAN FICTION: Director Errol Morris participates in a question-and-answer session with the audience after a special screening of his new documentary. point to a long-winded tale. Morris lets the audience members feel as if they are sitting in the interviewer’s chair with McKinney, as well as the other fascinating people interviewed in the film. Part of this is thanks to Morris’ personal unpatented invention, the interrotron, an invention that has allowed countless figures from Robert McNamara to Holocaust denier Fred A. Leuchter Jr. to speak frankly and directly to a captivated audience. With quick cuts and blinklong blackouts, the film remains fresh and interesting throughout the entire almost-90-minute runtime. But, then again, McKinney is a pretty interesting character. For those unfamiliar with British tabloids of the ’70s (though have they honestly changed that much?), the case of the manacled Mormon, also referred to as the sex-in-chains case, begins with a disappearance of a young Mormon named Kirk Anderson from his mission in London. He reappeared three days later, called the police and his kidnapper, former Miss Wyoming Joyce McKinney, was taken away. According to the
tabloid story, during the three days McKinney took Anderson, the love of her life, to a desolate cabin; tied him up; and raped him in attempts to impregnate herself with his child. You can imagine why the press ate it up. According to McKinney, on the other hand, she and Anderson, who were actually true lovers, had arranged to run away after he had been brainwashed and stolen by the Mormon Church. She came to London to free him from the terrible situation he had been forced into and only tied him up because he felt less guilty about his transgressions that way. To quote McKinney in response to Morris’ question, if a woman can rape a man, “that’s like squeezing a marshmallow into a parking meter.” It’s comments like these that explain how a story about rape can be so ridiculous. So, which story is true? The tabloids claim they have uncovered “the truth,” and McKinney claims that she knows “the truth.” The only person who never attempts to unravel “the truth” is the filmmaker, and that is why it is such an effective
film. From interview to interview, Morris is just interested in the story, and it makes for a seriously captivating documentary. Morris himself said, “It’s been hard for me to come to a definitive conclusion about what happened; I just don’t think it’s available. But there is still a story, of course, and with it is a story of competing narratives—all of which are a little crazy.” At the end of the film, nobody knows who is right or wrong, just that they have been told a great story— one that is too ridiculous to not be true. As we find out, the case of the manacled Mormon is only just the beginning. The film itself is put together with a sharp eye for detail and wit that only Morris could achieve. The lightning-fast cuts during the interviews make the story feel fresh. The “tabloid-esque” cinematic technique of bolding buzzwords on screen not only emphasizes a point of necessary ridiculousness, but also highlights the overly indulgent insanity of the story itself. When you add two cheeky gossip columnists, an exMormon and the pilot who originally
flew McKinney to London to the mix, the story just gets better and better. During once scene in particular, the pilot described meeting McKinney in a hotel room, where she was wearing a dress that was totally see-through. His response to the memory is one of the best reactions in the film. As Morris put it himself, “totally seethrough: You can’t do better than that.” Add that with the hauntingly minimalist melancholy-meetsmadness score by John Kusiak, and the result is a winning formula. The only thing really clear at the end of Tabloid is that the film truly is a love story. From gossip-columnist to Mormon, everybody is still clearly in love with McKinney. Whether out of infatuation, interest, or obsession, once introduced to McKinney, you can’t help but fall in love. “There is this whole collection of men obsessed with Joyce, I among them,” Morris said. “I like to think about it as a deeply romantic movie.” And as the credits role to the perfectly cheesy words, “The End,” Tabloid is certainly something you have to see to believe.
SPEAKER
Paul Loeb urges citizens to “get the ball rolling” ■ The author of ‘Soul of a
Citizen’ and ‘The Impossible Will Take a Little While’ gave students food for thought. By SUJIN SHIN JUSTICE STAFF WRITER
Paul Loeb is the swarthy and energetic author of several highly acclaimed books, like Soul of a Citizen and The Impossible Will Take A Little While, that detail stories about the power of a normal citizen and the significance of proactive habits. He spoke at Brandeis in the Carl J. Shapiro Theater last Thursday night about those very subjects which stirred him to lead a life of social activism. The atmosphere of Loeb’s talk was lighthearted and intimate. He asked the audience to move closer to the front of the theater to create a more personal space. The person who introduced him, a close friend of Loeb’s, simply read Loeb’s Wikipedia entry, proving that this event would be less of a formal presentation and more of a personal introduction to the ideologies behind the man attempting to stir up the passions
TALI SMOOKLER/the Justice
CIVIL CITIZENS: Loeb discusses social issues in the Carl J. ShaprioTheater of an increasingly distant and unconcerned society. The focus of the speech seemed to be drawn from the question: Who can get the first ball rolling? The answer Loeb gave was “everybody.” One doesn’t need to have thousands of dollars to campaign for a cause or to have influence by way of a high political position.
One normal person can spur on the passions of another, causing social change to happen. Loeb proceeded to talk about several examples of people who were normal citizens spurred to make significant changes in their societies. Rosa Parks was one such example, albeit one of the more famous ones. However, as it was
revealed in Loeb’s explanation of her defiant stand in the bus, it was made clear Rosa Parks didn’t have a sudden surge of courage. She was, in fact, actively protesting the discrimination that plagued her and her people. The significant part of her story, however, was how she began her path from African-American woman to civil rights activist. She was introduced to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People chapter in her home state prior to that fateful day on the bus until that famous incident. Another story that Loeb told was of a girl who, even as she entered college, didn’t know what global warming was. She was completely detached from the societal issues that rocked America. But then, piqued by other people who introduced her to these concerns, she joined her university’s environmental club, which consisted of only around six people at the time. As her passions grew she spread her voice to the larger populace. By the time she graduated, the environmental club was one of the biggest clubs in a university of over 25,000 students. Loeb also stressed the importance of not losing sight of the present as one looks toward his or her future. He
brought up the example of South African anti-apartheid activist Desmond Tutu. Tutu was a man who was imprisoned and beaten, who watched his friends and family murdered in front of him and who suffered discrimination his whole life. But he still laughs and jokes, speaks with a smile and is effervescent in every way. Loeb mentioned with a laugh that when he met Tutu once, the famed activist was dancing. “It was the first time that I’ve ever seen a Nobel Peace Prize winner dance,” said Loeb. However one acts, Loeb insists that he or she takes a stand and does it with positive energy. As a person tries to create the world that ought to be, he or she should never forget the present and enjoy all that it offers right now as it is. And it all starts with one person. Social activism and the fire to create a difference happen in cycles of influence, with one person sparking it in another, and so on. And though Loeb talked about huge social movements, like the Civil Rights movement of the ’60s and South Africa’s movement to reverse apartheid, a significant change can still be created by anyone, anywhere. Loeb’s books can be found in any major bookstore.
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THE JUSTICE
OFF CAMPUS FOOD
A brief explanation of the long history of beer ■ As one of the oldest drinks
in history, beer provided thirst-quenching satisfaction to Egyptians and Americans. By DOUGLAS MOORE JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Now for the second part of my twopart series: Beer 101. In the first article, I talked about the base ingredients that make up a beer; now it is time to give you a brief history of beer. And it will be quite a brief history, for beer is one of the first known beverages humans consumed beyond water. The earliest writings attributed to man are Babylonian recipes for beer. Many breweries today attempt to replicate these old recipes, Dogfish Head Midas Touch being the most notable. Brewers use strands of yeast found in ancient Egyptian
tombs that have been woken up from dormancy and bred back into existence for these recipes. Fast forward to the Middle Ages: Throughout Europe, people were brewing beer, from the German lagers found in every town in Bavaria to Belgian monks brewing powerful ales. Most people drank beer because, unlike the water, the beer was known to be sanitary (the yeast had to eat it, so they knew microbials weren’t in it). In Britain and in Ireland, ale was predominately brewed on a very small scale from town to town and served in drinking establishments called public houses. These public houses, often shortened to pubs, became known for their atmosphere as much as for their drinks. The traditions of British brewing were brought across the sea during the America’s colonization. It is important to note that while brewing today is a male-dominated profession, the women of the town
were often the ones that made the beer. Alewife station in Cambridge on the T refers to this tradition. The wives would make the beer for the men of the town; there wasn’t much in the way of the mass-scale brewing operations we see today. That grew over time as the village brewery tradition became more industrialized. However, beer in America was still extensive, and there were thousands of breweries across the country; one in practically every town. However, in 1919, the government ratified prohibition, which put a damper on this tradition. By the end of this period of American history, most breweries were gone, and only the strong few survived. Add barley rationing in World War II to the mix, and beer became the weak, adjunct-filled beverage that is most known today. Brewers began using corn and rice in their beers, which cut costs but also diminished flavor. After World War
II, people were so used to these flavors that the old recipes died out, and these began to be produced on a massive scale. Until late in the 20th century, beer in this country was relegated to massproduced lagers created by only a handful of surviving breweries from prohibition. Given their size, producing millions and millions of barrels per year, they held a monopoly on the beer industry. There were few choices, and no one really challenged the status quo. This all changed in the 1970s when Jimmy Carter legalized homebrewing, allowing people to make beer by themselves in minute quantities. Soon after, many of the people who took advantage of this new law began experimenting with old-world styles and techniques and began going into business. This was the start of the microbrewery. Today, there are again thousands of little breweries all
around the country. And this is where we are today. While the large-scale breweries are still producing most of the beer in this country, more and more we are seeing the microbreweries getting more and more business. With the recent acquisition of Budweiser, Miller and Coors by European conglomerates, a microbrewery, Boston Beer, which makes Sam Adams, has become the largest brewery in America. More and more consumers are switching their preferences to try new things, and bars and stores are offering up more selections. People are sick of the bland, watered-down garbage that has been the norm for years, and more are seeking fresh organic products that don’t cheat on flavor for the sake of costs. We’ve come a long way, and beer remains the third-most-consumed beverage in the world after water and tea. Expect to see more experimentation and varieties in the years to come.
MUSIC
Vampire Weekend plays to a crowd of college kids in Boston ■ Accompanied by two great
openers, Vampire Weekend played to a predominately college-aged crowd in Boston last weekend. By LEAH IGDALSKY JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Vampire Weekend’s popularity in the Boston area makes sense. As the metropolitan area with the highest percentage of college students in the country, the New York-based indie-pop quartet strikes a particularly strong chord here with songs like “Campus” and “Oxford Comma,” lamenting the importance of grammatical techniques in essay writing. Thus, Vampire Weekend’s performance on Sunday, Sept. 12 drew a full house to Boston’s Bank of America Pavilion. Although the band is now a mainstay of college and indie music, its repertoire consists of only two full-length albums: its self-titled 2008 debut and Contra, released in January. Thus, the fans at Sunday’s show were treated to an eclectic sampling of tunes spanning the group’s brief history. Vampire Weekend took the stage to DJ Khaled’s “All I Do Is Win.” Then, vocalist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rotsam Batmanglij, drummer Chris Tomson and bassist Chris Baio opened with “Holiday,” a peppy, boppy cut from Contra, highlighting Koenig’s falsetto, while Tomson’s steady, building drums backed the bouncy number. Lyrics about going away for a summer’s day highlighted the dichotomy between the band’s sunny sound and the chilly, grey and dreary evening. However, the cool breezes blowing through the open-air pavilion couldn’t stop the crowd from temporarily suspending the weather conditions to travel into the bright, cheerful world of Vampire Weekend. Soon, the band moved into songs from its first album, including “I Stand Corrected,” one of the few tracks from the debut that are not entirely fastpaced and poppy. Rather, “I Stand Corrected” started slowly, featuring only Koenig’s vocals, the stage awash in red, glowing lights. His bandmates soon joined behind him, as Baio’s drums built throughout with the tempo progressing until the chorus. The chandeliers dangling above the stage flashed alternating neon lights as Vampire Weekend began “M79,” and Koenig encouraged the audience to sing along. Another sing-along came later on with the peculiar “Blake’s Got A New Face,”
which featured the audience straining to match the top pitches of Koenig’s falsetto riff. The uniqueness of Koenig’s vocal range stood out again on “California English,” in which his voice was made both higher and faster thanks to autotune. Another surprise came during the band’s emotive, synth-driven cover of “I’m Goin’ Down” by Bruce Springsteen. Koenig’s voice was higher than The Boss’ on the original and lacked Springsteen’s definitive twang. Instead, Vampire Weekend crafted “I’m Goin’ Down” into a more sensitive, poppy number, more fitting with its own style. Batmanglij’s keys and the sloweddown tempo made the song stand out. Instead of becoming just an imitation of the original, the band put in their own twist, making it their own while still honoring the song’s identity. Next came “Diplomat’s Son,” featuring recorded repetitive, funky chants backed by a dub-step synthesizer sound, expanding and shrinking in a longer span than the band’s usual short and sweet cuts. The backing percussion added to the calypso style of the tune, fitting the set’s summery feel. The performance’s opening acts, on the other hand, seemed more in tune with the chilly, dark evening than the sunny, glowing aura surrounding Vampire Weekend’s performance. Baltimore-based duo Beach House played a 45-minute set of dreamy, dark electropop. On “Norway,” the ethereal tone of singer Victoria Legrand’s milky yet scratchy vocals combined with the lights shimmering on the stage like stars in a dark sky created the feeling of a dream world. The duo began to wake from its sleepy state on “Used To Be,” employing the synthesizer and keys to create a boppy, almost childlike sound. Dum Dum Girls, an all-female noisepop quartet from Los Angeles, preceded Beach House. Each member of the band was dressed entirely in leather and lace, fitting with the band’s icy, foreboding electronic sound. Vocalist Dee Dee Penny yodeled over the sound of her fellow band members moaning, mixing to sound like an a cappella synthesizer. On “Jail La La,” Penny finally left the three low notes among which she had been alternating to expand her range on the drum-centered tune. Still, the differing styles of the three bands could not detract from the distinctly Vampire Weekend-based identity of the show. Neither the slower, dreamier sounds of the opening acts nor the clearly autumnal weather conditions could challenge Vampire Weekend’s insistence on one last night of summery music.
PHOTO COURTESY OF TRINA’S STARLITE LOUNGE
DELICIOUS DOGS: One example of the many delicious and unique “dog of the day” creations at Trina’s Starlite Lounge.
Trina’s serves up delectable dishes ■ This tough-to-find eatery
is worth the short trip to Cambridge for a whole slew of interesting entrées. By ERIC CHOW JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Trina’s Starlite Lounge may be hard to spot from afar. Walking up from Inman Square in Cambridge, at first all you see is a nondescript three-story building with a ground floor of dark brown stucco and a bright “Miller High Life” light-up sign. But when you get closer, expecting to see perhaps a seedy, rundown dive through the two corner windows, you see a bar in front of a tall, irregular stack of box shelves lit up and filled with bottles of brightly colored liquors and a vibrant crowd packed into booths and tables. Next to the window, a small bulletin board spells out in multicolored plastic letters, “Wednesday: sloppy joes. See twitter for dog of the day.” Open every day for dinner and drinks from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m., Trina’s serves food late enough for night owls and cooks getting off work; Trina’s Monday “Industry” brunch, from noon to 4 p.m., is specifically for the cooks and servers (and the general public) who miss weekend brunches because they have to work them. The theme of both the dinner and brunch menus is clear: selections of simple American comfort food done well, with appetizers like hot wings and blue cheese, chili topped with aged cheddar and sour cream and housemade barbecue sweet potato chips with dip. The entrées include macaroni and cheese, grilled skirt steak and fries and a daily blue-plate special (’50s diner
style). For the more indulgent, some of the sides include hand-cut fries covered in gravy, sweet potato and bacon hash and broccoli with cheese sauce. And, of course, Trina’s has burgers and hot dogs. About the hot dogs: you can indeed check Twitter for updates and listings of the daily specials, but you may prefer to check the restaurant’s Facebook page instead for (several hundred!) pictures of both dogs and blue-plate specials. The dogs listed on the menu are standard enough: plain griddled, topped with chili and cheese or a corn dog. But the specials take the simple dog in all kinds of directions from the simple to the bizarre, and all of them are irresistible. Many are homages to the cuisines of the world: dogs wrapped in burritos, served as tostadas, topped with kimchi and wasabi or served in poutine (the incredible and simple Canadian dish of fries slathered in cheese and gravy). The rest are inspired decadence, like the Monte Cristo, which is served on a cinnamon French toast bun, topped with smoked ham, Swiss cheese and maple syrup or the “All Dogs Go to Heaven,” with melted port wine cheese, pecans, mushrooms and truffle oil. One of the comments on the picture of the last sums it up: “OMG.” I wasn’t quite in the mood for the dog of the day when I went (a dog topped with lettuce, tomato, cheese and a burger patty), so I decided instead to start with a couple of sides—sweet potato and bacon hash and “ol’ school” macaroni salad. The macaroni salad was simple and brilliant with only tiny bits of celery among the noodles dressed in fresh mayonnaise; it brought back memories, somehow, of all of the best macaroni salads I’d ever had at past
summer picnics and barbecues. And the hash had been grated into tiny shoestring thinness and had been flash-fried perfectly so that it was cooked but still firm, with the bacon adding great flavor and crunch. One of Trina’s signature dishes is its fried chicken and buttermilk waffle served with hot pepper syrup. I’d known for a while that I was going to get this here, having had a craving for chicken and waffles lately. It was good, not great—there were two large pieces of chicken, a thigh and a breast, which is always disappointing when deep-fried; shouldn’t it be mainly about the skin and the breading? More pieces of smaller chicken would have been great. And the seasoning on the breading was nothing exciting— probably nothing more than salt and pepper. But the meat was properly cooked, to the right doneness and texture. The waffle was similar to the chicken: good but not exciting. The syrup, infused with red chili peppers, made the dish enjoyable and interesting, and I finished satisfied because any plate of chicken and waffles that isn’t cooked terribly will hit the spot. A slice of chocolate strawberry pie rounded out the meal, and like the dishes before it, it was simple, homey and satisfying. The dollop of very fresh, unsweetened whipped cream on top was just right. Make a visit to Trina’s, then, for both indulgent and challenging new flavors and for casual, comforting homestyle food done well. You can find Trina’s Starlite Lounge at 3 Beacon St. in Somerville, walking up Hampshire Street from Inman Square. Twitter handle: @trinastarlite, or visit trinastarlitelounge.com.
THE JUSTICE
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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MUSIC
The Bad Plus rocks out at BeanTown ■ Midwest-based piano trio the Bad
Plus shook up the Berklee Performance Center last Friday with selections from their new album. By WEI-HUAN CHEN JUSTICE EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
It’s true that the Bad Plus is best known for covering Nirvana, the Pixies and Aphex Twin and achieving genre crossover success unknown to most jazz musicians. It’s true that The New York Times, in its review of the power-piano trio’s album Suspicious Activity, said the band is “better than anyone at mixing the sensibilities of post-’60s jazz and indie rock.” It’s also true that its innovative fusion endeavors over the past decade are as relevant to modern jazz as the Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever and electric Miles were in the ’70s. But as someone who saw them perform live last week, I must emphasize that while the Bad Plus members are master blenders, they are also master composers. Their new album, Never Stop, is their best yet, and it consists entirely of originals. Last Friday, bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson and drummer David King played a mind-blowing set at the Berklee Performance Center featuring tunes from the new album. The concert, part of the annual BeanTown Jazz Festival (taking place from Sept. 15 to 25), showed that the Berklee College of Music offers the best week ever for jazz fans around Boston. Berklee students, Harvard students, adults and people of all backgrounds attended the jam-packed auditorium, located just down Boylston Street and Massachusetts Avenue from the Crystal Shuttle drop-off location. It was an audience that, unlike most at jazz venues, cheered very, very loudly for the performing group. The environment was the perfect mix of jazz sophistication and youthful rock ’n’ roll energy. After opening with the eclectic “2 p.m.” off of Never Stop and “Here We Test Our Powers of Observation” from 2004’s Give, Iverson quietly introduced the group, his modest manner nonetheless riling up the crowd. The latter tune is one of my favorites from the trio, with Iverson’s swooning open chords hinting at classical music, Anderson’s ascending lines reminding me of jazz funk and King’s hard, driving rock beat supporting more jazz-style syncopated rhythms. They were giants onstage, emitting largerthan-life sounds—sounds that were much louder than I’d expect from three acoustic instrumentalists. They filled the room with just as much noise as any decked-out punk rock band, but I could hardly describe the Bad Plus’ precise and unaltered tones as noise. Yes, King’s exaggerated motions on the drum set—barreling up and down in what can be described as rhythmic seizures— translated to a heavy rock sound, but within the barrage of cymbal crashes were eloquent flourishes on the snare and expertly placed bass drum kicks. He created complex polyrhythms with Anderson while Iverson flowed over them with his jagged, syncopated melodies. After finishing “Beryl Loves to Dance,” the first track on Never Stop, which Iverson said was about a shy girl in high school, someone sitting next to me asked me why people cheered so frequently in the middle of the tune. How do I explain that moment of connection between the performer and listener that makes jazz so enjoyable? It’s the laughter to the comedian’s joke; the impulsive “Amen!” to the solo’s sweet sermon of harmony and rhythm, tension and release. If I
GENEVIEVE ARMSTRONG/the Justice
THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE GROOVY: Drummer David King’s accentuated motions on the drum set translate to a mix of heavy rock and modern jazz. had to count, “Beryl Loves to Dance” had about five of these instances of jubilation shared among the crowd—check out the album and see how many you have. For me, “Never Stop,” the Bad Plus’ title track, was the group’s most memorable composition. The steady, pulsing rhythm of the piece gave way to an aspect rare in modern jazz: it was a tune that was appropriate to play at any party alongside OK Go or Lady Gaga; something with an infectious element that makes you want to move. I felt the audience members’ energy as they leaped
up in applause after the closing piece, “The Radio Tower Has a Beating Heart,” and continued to cheer until the trio were urged back in for an encore featuring its cover of Aphex Twin’s “Flim.” But the musicians weren’t finished yet. A parodic medley of bebop standards followed, including “Have You Met Miss Jones?” played speeding up and down. Not only did that final piece showcase their mastery of straight-ahead jazz, it also revealed a lighthearted side of the discipline that most modern jazz players never show. The Bad Plus is not afraid to make fun of jazz
during its performances or celebrate with red wine while signing vinyls after the show. But that’s not to say that the Bad Plus doesn’t take what it does seriously, because Never Stop is jazz that remains intricate while becoming more and more accessible to fans of pop, rock and dance. After squeezing past the throng of fans holding CDs and T-shirts, I asked Iverson where the inspiration came from with the new album. “It’s about all the years we’ve spent with each other,” he said. “We’re still constantly inspiring each other, after 10 years.”
MUSIC
Rosenwinkel’s ‘Secret World’ amazes at Berklee ■ In his performance at the tenth-
annual Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival, Kurt Rosenwinkel presented his latest musical project. By JAXSON DERMER JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The Berklee Performance Center was imbued with an aura of effervescent anticipation. Jazz devotees congregated to celebrate the inauguration of the tenth-annual Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival with the live performance of Berklee alumnus Kurt Rosenwinkel. He presented his latest project, a collaboration with the Portugal based big band Orquestra Jazz de Matosinhos, entitled Our Secret World. Established in 1999, the OJM has acquired international recognition by accumulating an expansive modern repertoire and working with a diverse array of vanguard soloists and composers. OJM’s pianist Carlos Azevedo and conductor Pedro Guedes approached Rosenwinkel in 2007 to discuss the logistics of rearranging
his highly intricate small ensemble compositions for a 16-piece big band, and after nearly three years of zealous preparation, the result is a visceral reimagining of Rosenwinkel’s distinctly enigmatic, yet melodically poignant, expression. Rosenwinkel explains, “The arrangements are like a cubist reorganization of my songs, using what I wrote as RAM. [They] put it in a bag, shook it up, and saw where it came out.” Rosenwinkel’s expanding influence on the jazz tradition is given reverential authority because of his willingness to continue investigating the infinitely rich palette of sonic possibilities. At the same time, he maintains the authentic compositional vision at his artistic core. The unique interplay and unprecedented stylistic direction this ensemble evinced is testament to Rosenwinkel’s commitment to the progression of the idiom and to fervent spirit with which OJM embraced his music’s breadth. Our Secret World is a milestone that presented a unique procedural challenge for Rosenwinkel. In contrast to his work in the standard quintet format, which encourages an equivalent dynamic impetus from each band member, leading the OJM required Rosenwinkel to main-
tain a careful balance between asserting the protagonist voice and unifying the ensemble organically. He was able to accomplish this feat with characteristic candor. The ethereal reverberation of his overdriven Sadowsky semi-hollowbody harmonized seamlessly with the rich timbres of the brass and horn sections in a vivid cascade of texture. Rosenwinkel often describes his approach to music by citing the truism “all that loves‚ listens,” and this consideration is invaluable for leading a big band that is malleable to adapt to improvised cues while still remaining aware of explicit compositional directives. The adage also describes the sense in which Rosenwinkel surrenders to his own inner voice, transcending limiting idiomatic norms and invoking a melodic intention that is channeled instead from the universal well of primeval creative energy. One could feel the receptive assurance with which Rosenwinkel engaged the OJM and his own artistry to establish this atmosphere of intimate communication. From a place of unwavering awareness and deep acceptance, the music was able to breathe with a flowing narrative quality, which contextualized Rosenwinkel’s original themes and elaborated upon
them with imaginative improvisational reach. Of the multitudinous blissful moments I experienced at this concert, the details I savored the most included the explosive geometric symmetry of “Turns,” the tense microtonal inflections in “Use of Light” and the synthesis of bass clarinet with Rosenwinkel’s vulnerable singing voice in “Dream of Old.” Equally penetrating were his improvised solos, which evolved with fluid purposefulness, often enveloping the listener in a sea of linear intervallic structure reminiscent of Coltrane’s sheets of sound. With each successive project, Rosenwinkel reaches new pinnacles of technical mastery, harmonic innovation, and inimitable melodic force. OJM presented Rosenwinkel with the opportunity to amplify his music to grandiose proportions, and the challenge promoted yet another evolution in his already revolutionary approach. The audience sat in a state of perpetual awe as fantastic moments of wistful impressionistic revelation were ripped by spikes of fierce emotional intensity. OJM’s music created a mysterious pull which beckoned us to traverse the vibrant excursion through Rosenwinkel’s secret world and return with a deep sense of appreciation.
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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2010
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THE JUSTICE
TOP of the
ARTS ON VIEW
TRIVIA TIME 1. Which futurist author once said, “One of the definitions of sanity is the ability to tell real from unreal. Soon we’ll need a new definition”? 2. By how much does water expand when it freezes? 3. What is a group of geese called? 4. The daytime serial General Hospital is set in what city? 5. The island nation of Sri Lanka lies in which ocean? 6. How many Oscar nominations did Titanic receive? 7. How many pints are in a quart? 8. What is the top number of a fraction called? 9. Who is credited with discovering vitamin D? 10. When did Vatican II begin and end?
CHARTS Top 10s for the week ending Sept. 19 BOX OFFICE 1. The Town 2. Easy A 3. Devil 4. Resident Evil: Afterlife 5. Alpha and Omega 6. Takers 7. The American 8. Inception 9. The Other Guys 10. Eat Pray Love
WBRS
ARI TRETIN/the Justice
ABSTRACT STATE OF MIND: Across starry night skies in the big city that never sleeps, this translation of Manhattan spells out the words “life in my mind.” An apt title as it represents big-city life with tall buildings filled with colors galore and every aspect of the city working together in unison.
1. Alvin Toffler 2. 9 to 10 percent 3. A gaggle 4. Port Charles 5. Indian Ocean 6. 14 7. Two 8. The numerator 9. Edward Mellanby 10. 1960 to 65 ANSWERS
CROSSWORD
1. The Thermals – “I Don’t Believe You” 2. Arcade Fire – “We Used To Wait” 3. Jenny and Johnny – “Scissor Runner” 4. Kelis – “Acapella” 5. Ra Ra Riot – “Boy” 6. The Walkmen – “Angela Surf City” 7. Weezer – “King of the Beach” 8. Ratatat – “Grape Juice City” 9. The Chemical Brothers – “Another World” 10. Screaming Females – “Laura and Marty”
COLLEGE RADIO
SHOWTIMES 9/20 - 9/23
Easy A Mon-Thurs: 2:40, 5:10, 8:20
The American Mon-Thurs: 2:20, 4:50, 7:50
Going the Distance Mon-Thurs: 2:30, 5:00, 8:10
Inception Mon-Thurs: 2:50, 7:30
The Town Mon-Thurs: 2:10, 5:00, 8:00
Eat Pray Love Mon-Thurs: 2:00, 4:50, 7:40
ACROSS 1. Emulated Michael Phelps 5. Goya’s “Duchess of —” 9. URL bit 12. Incite 13. Fly high 14. Sapporo sash 15. 26-Down attendee 17. Tear 18. The Usual Suspects actor 19. Identifies 21. Fire 22. Memorable mission 24. Feedbag fill 27. Carte lead-in 28. Former larva 31. “A pox upon thee!” 32. Beleaguered spacecraft 33. Turf 34. Envelope feature 36. “Bleah!” 37. “F’ heaven’s sake!” 38. Sign of life 40. “— what?” 41. Form 43. Opening remark? 47. The girl 48. 26-Down attendee 51. Illustrations 52. Reed instrument 53. Protracted 54. Possibly will 55. Require 56. Ostriches’ kin DOWN 1. Addition problems 2. Enclose 3. City of India 4. Groups’ havens 5. Wan 6. Mauna — 7. Tavern 8. Action venue 9. 26-Down attendee 10. Theater trophy 11. Gratuities 16. Whammy 20. Pump up the volume 22. 26-Down attendee
1. Gorillaz – Plastic Beach 2. Broken Bells – Broken Bells 3. Joanna Newson – Have One On Me 4. Hot Chip – One Life Stand 5. Local Natives – Gorilla Manor 6. Yeasayer – Odd Blood 7. Liars – Sister World 8. Ted Leo and the Pharmacists – The Brutalist Bricks 9. Beach House – Teen Dream 10. Spoon – Transference
BILLBOARD 1. Sara Bareilles - Kaleidoscope Heart 2. Eminem – Recovery 3. Various Artists – NOW 35 4. Kary Perry – Teenage Dream 5. Disturbed – Asylum 6. Stone Sour – Audio Secrecy 7. Interpol – Interpol 8. Justin Bieber – My World 2.0 9. Anberlin – Dark Is the Way, Light Is a Place 10. Soundtrack – Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam 23. Caprice 24. Askew 25. Have a bug 26. Wonderland event 27. Writer Kingsley 29. “The Raven” man 30. Woodworking tool 35. Young dog 37. Nudge 39. Dealership dud 40. Vast expanse 41. Counterfeit 42. Wife of Zeus 43. Molt 44. Teensy bit 45. Waiter’s handout 46. Work measures 49. Honest politician 50. Anonymous John
STAFF PLAYLIST
“iPod Recovered” By NASHRAH RAHMAN JUSTICE EDITOR
Solution to last issue’s crossword.
King Crossword Copyright 2010 King Features Synd., Inc.
STRANGE BUT TRUE ■ It was 20th-century French air force brigadier general and geopolitician—and bearer of the nickname “father of the French atom bomb”—Pierre Marie Gallois who made the following sage observation: “If you put tomfoolery into a computer, nothing comes out of it but tomfoolery. But this tomfoolery, having passed through a very expensive machine, is somehow ennobled, and no one dares criticize it.” ■ Gravity makes you shorter. It’s true; gravity compresses your spine: in a weightless environment, you would be 2 to 3 inches taller than you are here on Earth.
The Embassy is located at 18 Pine Street in Waltham
Album information provided by Billboard Magazine. Box office information provided by Yahoo! Movies. Radio charts provided by CMJ.
■ You might be surprised to learn that the first ceiling fan was introduced way back in the 1860s. The lack of electricity was no deterrent; the device was powered by a stream of running water. ■ When the bubonic plague, more commonly known as the Black Death, was at its peak in Europe in the 14th century, a wide variety of remedies was prescribed, including smoking tobacco, bringing spi-
ders into the household, inhaling the stench from a latrine, sitting between two large fires, drinking red wine in which new steel had been cooled and bathing in goat urine. ■ Those who study such things say that women are better at identifying smells than men are. ■ In 1994, Singapore banned the importation and sale of chewing gum. Ten years later, lawmakers added a revision: Gum that has “therapeutic value” is now allowed. ■ Over the past year, lottery sales have increased by a whopping $1 billion in the United States. ■ Human skin is about 70 percent water, and the human brain is 80 percent water. Thought for the Day: “All living souls welcome whatever they are ready to cope with; all else they ignore, or pronounce to be monstrous and wrong, or deny to be possible.”—George Santayana
On my first day back at Brandeis, I damaged my iPod and downloaded a virus on my laptop that corrupted my hard drive, resulting in the loss of all my music. As I waited for Apple to mail my new iPod and for the LTS Help Desk to fix my laptop, I devotedly listened to the radio and hummed songs on the way to classes. After finally reconciling with technology, I downloaded this eclectic list of songs—some of which I recently discovered, and others that just bring back great memories. THE LIST 1. Echo & The Bunnymen – “The Killing Moon” 2. Aaron Carter – “I Want Candy” 3. The Smiths – “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out” 4. La Roux – “Bulletproof” 5. Tochi Raina – “Gal Meethi Meethi Bol” 6. Mike Posner – “Cooler Than Me” 7. The Kinks – “You Really Got Me” 8. David Guetta ft. Akon – “Sexy Bitch” 9. Radiohead – “Talk Show Host” 10. 30H!3 ft. Katy Perry – “Starstrukk”